Design and Implementation of a Blockchain-Based Energy Trading Platform for Electric Vehicles in Smart Campus Parking Lots

Abstract

This paper proposes a blockchain-based energy trading platform for electric vehicles in smart campus parking lots. Smart parking lots are smart places capable of supporting both parking and charging services for electric vehicles. The electric vehicle owner may want to charge energy at a low price and sell it during peak hours at a higher price. The proposed system architecture consists of two layers: the physical infrastructure layer and the cyber infrastructure layer. The physical infrastructure layer represents all of the physical components located in the campus distribution power system, such as electric vehicles charging stations, transformers, and electric feeders, while the cyber infrastructure layer supports the operation of the physical infrastructure layer and enables selling/buying energy among participants. Blockchain technology is a promising candidate to facilitate auditability and traceability of energy transactions among participants. A real case of a parking lot with a realistic parking pattern in a university campus is considered. The system consists of a university control center and various parking lot local controllers (PLLCs). The PLLC broadcasts the electricity demand and the grid price, and each electric vehicle owner decides whether to charge/discharge based on their benefits. The proposed system is implemented on Hyperledger Fabric. Participants, assets, transactions, and smart contracts are defined and discussed. Two scenarios are considered. The first scenario represents energy trading between electric vehicles as sellers and the PLLC as a buyer, while the second scenario involves energy trading between electric vehicles as buyers and the PLLC as a seller. The proposed platform provides profits for participants, as well as enables balancing for the university load demand locally.

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http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/en12244814

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