Economic dispatch of multiple energy carriers

Energy hubs can provide high flexibility in the operation of the integrated systems. This paper presents Time Varying Acceleration Coefficients Particle Swarm Optimization (TVAC-PSO) algorithm to optimize the Multiple Energy Carriers Economic Dispatch (MECED) problem for hybrid electrical and natural gas networks. The simulation results on two case studies are reported. The first one verifies an introduced gas loss formula and another one is devoted to a modified version of IEEE 14-bus test system. The results are compared with PSO, Genetic Algorithm (GA), and Differential Evolution (DE) technique. They show that a hybrid system can operate at a lower cost than independently-operated systems; CHP units can supply more electrical demand than the electrical network while their contribution in supplying the heat demand may be smaller than that of gas furnaces. In a hybrid system, energy efficiency can be reached, producing electrical power and heat locally; CHP units have a great role in reduction of operational cost; In the coupled mode, electrical power losses are decreased, while the gas losses are increased; The simple proposed gas loss formula can provide acceptable results; Cost reductions due to employing CHPs and applying the proposed optimization technique are greater than the other methods.