Developing a Workflow for Using Simulation in Research

Within the NFDI4Energy consortium, we aim to advance research in the energy domain by developing a Simulation-as-a-Service (SimaaS) hub that simplifies the execution of complex simulations without requiring the management of extensive IT resources. By providing scalable infrastructure and streamlined access to advanced simulation software, SimaaS enables the analysis of critical scenarios, such as integrating renewable energy sources, thereby advancing the energy transition. Nevertheless, technical barriers and the absence of standardized interfaces and methodologies across existing software limit its broader adoption and effectiveness until now. We identified and analyzed various use cases to find key requirements and common challenges associated with simulations in the energy domain. Our findings guided the development of a systematic workflow encapsulating the fundamental steps and functionalities for a SimaaS tailored to this domain. We further assessed existing services against these use cases, revealing significant gaps in the currently provided services. To deepen our understanding of using simulation in the energy domain, we examined various use cases, including the following: • Search for simulation software • Compare simulation software and models • Find best-suited co-simulation framework • Find simulation model and data for co-simulation • Find and reuse existing co-simulation scenarios • Creation of simulation scenarios • Guided creation of simulation scenario based on research goal • Automated execution of a simulation scenario • Investigating and reproducing the results of a co-simulation • Add software to the NFDI4Energy research software registry • Add simulation model to the NFDI4Energy research software registry • Sharing the results of a co-simulation FAIRly They illustrate the diverse requirements a SimaaS must fulfill. We structured these use cases into a coherent workflow, as shown in Seiwerth et al., aligned with the research and transfer cycle typical of energy system research projects. This workflow can serve as a guide for researchers and provide critical feedback for refining the design of the SimaaS hub. Additionally, we looked at existing services and mapped them to the individual use cases. The services we identified as relevant are primarily from the NFDI Community and were designed to support research. Our mapping revealed that individual use cases typically require multiple services to be addressed effectively since many services only offer an infrastructure to build upon. Therefore, we decided to design the SimaaS hub to integrate relevant services into a centralized platform that comprehensively addresses identified needs. The developed platform is intended to help energy researchers follow the proposed workflow and use simulation in their work. As part of our contribution to the CoRDI conference, we would like to show and discuss the presented workflow and identify potential new services offered by other NFDI consortia that could be linked to or support our SimaaS hub.