January 2024

Conference Paper

The Empirical Effect of Fleet Optimization on Synchronization and Rebound Effects in Heat Pump Water Heaters

By:
Agah, Nora K; Tsybina, Evgeniya ; Lebakula, Viswadeep ; Hill, Justin; Munk, Jeffrey; Zandi, Helia
Page Number:
460-464
Book Title:
2023 IEEE PES Innovative Smart Grid Technologies Latin America (ISGT-LA)
Publication Date:
January 9, 2024
Publisher Location:
IEEE, New Jersey, United States of America
Conference Name:
ISGT Latin America: PES Innovative Smart Grid Technologies Latin America
Conference Location:
San Juan, Puerto Rico, United States of America
Conference Sponsor:
IEEE PES
View DOI Listing:
https://doi.org/10.1109/ISGT-LA56058.2023.10328308

Abstract

Demand response is a growing concept in light of the internet of things and an increasing need for grid flexibility. Water heaters are one of the preferred devices for providing demand response for grid services and peak management due to their capability to store energy. The efficient use of water heaters for demand response requires consideration of the associated load effects such as synchronization of device schedules and rebound effect. These effects present a significant challenge. Despite the importance of the mentioned effects for water heater queuing and scheduling, there has been no effort to quantify and empirically validate their impact. This study attempts to address this gap by offering two methods - Ward clustering and Euclidean K-means - to evaluate the extent of synchronization in a fleet of 42 water heaters in Atlanta, GA. Using the aforementioned methods on the measured data, we find evidence of convergence of water heater loads as a result of optimization compared to an idle period and analyzed their impact.