Peer-to-peer Economic Decision Analysis Model for Integrated Thermal Energy Trading

Solar energy harvesting technologies that are environmentally friendly and sustainable are being utilized worldwide as a viable alternative for lowering energy consumption. Solar thermal is one of the emerging technologies for industrial processes to supply steam and hot water. The technology also has the potential to be installed as an integrated solar thermal network to reduce costs while maximising the use of available surplus heat. The intermittent solar irradiance and temperature variance of process demand complicate the supply chain of heat networks. The collaboration among stakeholders necessitates using a mutual transactive energy distribution approach to coordinate supply and demand to achieve smooth operation at a lower cost. This study aimed to develop a peer-to-peer (P2P) approach for the economic decision analysis model that would assist the industry in determining the cost of an integrated solar thermal system and thermal energy distribution pathways based on a mixed integer programming model using a General Algebraic Modelling System (GAMS). It was applied to an illustrative case study of centralized thermal energy storage (TES) facilities to validate the economic decision analysis. The model showed that the integrated solar thermal system could supply 3.73 % thermal energy from TES for Prosumer 2, Consumer 1 (19.76 %) and Consumer 2 (27.50 %), with a total capital investment cost of 551,744 USD/y.