Solar Energy and ESS Utilization for Optimizing Energy Consumption in Fluctuating SMP Markets

The current energy shortage is expected to worsen over time. Therefore, we have to use energy efficiently. In Korea, home appliances are marked with an energy consumption efficiency rating, making it easier for consumers to purchase high-efficiency, energy-saving products. Nevertheless, many consumers do not use products with the highest efficiency rating. According to a comparative survey on energy costs conducted by the Korea Consumer Agency, annual power consumption could have decreased by approximately 8,320 GWh if all Koreans used products with the highest energy consumption efficiency rating. This is equivalent to the annual power consumption of about 1.97 million households (based on four-person households) and is similar to the amount of power produced by two or three thermal power plants in one year. However, it is difficult to raise the energy consumption efficiency level of all home appliances to the next level. Considering these challenges, it is necessary to strategically use electricity to improve energy consumption efficiency. In a typical household, not all power is supplied solely through PV (solar energy), and the shortfall is supplemented by the electrical grid. Therefore, this paper proposes a method that prioritizes the use of power stored in the ESS (Energy Storage System) when the System Marginal Price (SMP) is high, taking into account the power consumption, energy efficiency rating, and noise factors of household appliances. In the absence of power stored in the ESS, high-power and high-efficiency appliances are used to optimize energy consumption when the demand for the power grid is low. This approach effectively utilizes both the stored power and power grid to reduce the burden on the power grid and improve energy efficiency.