Flexible Operation of Power‐To‐X Energy Systems in Transportation Networks

With growing environmental concerns regarding climate change, there has been a worldwide acceleration in investment toward renewable power. The transportation sector is responsible for a significant portion of greenhouse gas emissions, which is why decarbonization is necessary to hedge against climate change. This includes the mobility sector, such as cars, trucks, airplanes, ships, and other forms of transportation. Furthermore, renewable energy should also penetrate other energy sectors, including power systems and heat networks. Therefore, sector coupling is an inevitable necessity. To provide a sustainable supply for the energy sectors, power-to-X (P2X) is a workable solution. The P2X transforms renewable energy into power, heat, hydrogen, syngas, and chemical energies which are storable and usable in the different energy sectors. Renewable power intermittency is the crux of the matter to keep energy sustainability. To counterbalance renewable power fluctuation, the flexible operation of P2X facilities is a practical solution. The P2X flexibility is reflected in the interoperation of flexible demands and storage facilities. This chapter surveys the flexibility potentials of P2X plants including the power-to-hydrogen, -methane, -heat, -mobility, and -chemical systems. Regarding hydrogen energy, the flexibility of water electrolyzers and hydrogen storage are discussed. The syngas methane is addressed to provide flexibility for gas and heat networks. The electric heat pumps and green hydrogen boilers are surveyed to unlock the flexibility potentials of heat networks. In the mobility sector, the flexibility opportunities of electric vehicles and hydrogen fuel cell fleets are investigated. The chemical industries exhibit great potential to provide energy flexibility through liquid energy carriers, e.g., methanol and formic acid. Finally, the flexibility opportunities of electricity demands are surveyed in residential, industrial, agricultural, and commercial sectors.