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Publications

Publications by CPES

2025

Carbon-aware dynamic tariff design for electric vehicle charging stations with explainable stochastic optimization

Authors
Silva, CAM; Bessa, RJ;

Publication
APPLIED ENERGY

Abstract
The electrification of the transport sector is a critical element in the transition to a low-emissions economy, driven by the widespread adoption of electric vehicles (EV) and the integration of renewable energy sources (RES). However, managing the increasing demand for EV charging infrastructure while meeting carbon emission reduction targets is a significant challenge for charging station operators. This work introduces a novel carbon-aware dynamic pricing framework for EV charging, formulated as a chance-constrained optimization problem to consider forecast uncertainties in RES generation, load, and grid carbon intensity. The model generates day-ahead dynamic tariffs for EV drivers with a certain elastic behavior while optimizing costs and complying with a carbon emissions budget. Different types of budgets for Scope 2 emissions (indirect emissions of purchased electricity consumed by a company) are conceptualized and demonstrate the advantages of a stochastic approach over deterministic models in managing emissions under forecast uncertainty, improving the reduction rate of emissions per feasible day of optimization by 24 %. Additionally, a surrogate machine learning model is proposed to approximate the outcomes of stochastic optimization, enabling the application of state-of-the-art explainability techniques to enhance understanding and communication of dynamic pricing decisions under forecast uncertainty. It was found that lower tariffs are explained, for instance, by periods of higher renewable energy availability and lower market prices and that the most important feature was the hour of the day.

2025

Human-AI interaction in safety-critical network infrastructures

Authors
Mussi, M; Metelli, AM; Restelli, M; Losapio, G; Bessa, RJ; Boos, D; Borst, C; Leto, G; Castagna, A; Chavarriaga, R; Dias, D; Egli, A; Eisenegger, A; El Manyari, Y; Fuxjäger, A; Geraldes, J; Hamouche, S; Hassouna, M; Lemetayer, B; Leyli-Abadi, M; Liessner, R; Lundberg, J; Marot, A; Meddeb, M; Schiaffonati, V; Schneider, M; Stadelmann, T; Usher, J; Van Hoof, H; Viebahn, J; Waefler, T; Zanotti, G;

Publication
iScience

Abstract
Artificial Intelligence (AI) is transforming every aspect of modern society. It demonstrates a high potential to contribute to more flexible operations of safety-critical network infrastructures under deep transformation to tackle global challenges, such as climate change, energy transition, efficiency, and digital transformation, including increasing infrastructure resilience to natural and human-made hazards. The widespread adoption of AI creates the conditions for a new and inevitable interaction between humans and AI-based decision systems. In such a scenario, creating an ecosystem in which humans and AI interact healthily, where the roles and positions of both actors are well-defined, is a critical challenge for research and industry in the coming years. This perspective article outlines the challenges and requirements for effective human-AI interaction by taking an interdisciplinary point of view that merges computer science, decision-making sciences, psychological constructs, and industrial practices. The work focuses on three emblematic safety-critical scenarios from two different domains: energy (power grids) and mobility (railway networks and air traffic management). © 2025 Elsevier B.V., All rights reserved.

2025

AI-assistant for intelligent design of controllers in power systems

Authors
Bost, L; Fernandes, FS; Bessa, RJ;

Publication
SUSTAINABLE ENERGY GRIDS & NETWORKS

Abstract
The increasing penetration of renewable energy sources in power systems has heightened the importance of grid-forming (GFM) converters, which emulate the dynamic behavior of synchronous machines and are crucial for ensuring stability in converter-dominated grids. However, the complexity of modern grids calls for innovative control mechanisms to unlock the full potential of GFM technology. This work presents a novel automated framework for control design in power systems. Simulated annealing is used to evolve the structural design of control systems represented as graph-based models. The method achieves greater flexibility by using control graphs instead of traditional tree-based representations, supporting complex feedback loop configurations. A simplification process is also included to reduce complexity and improve interpretability, ensuring practical applicability. Validation on a two-generator power system with one GFM converter demonstrates the method's ability to design robust controllers that enhance system stability, achieving better performance metrics, such as smoother frequency responses with significantly reduced frequency deviations compared to benchmark configurations. The improved frequency response arises from differing terminal angle profiles, enabling faster, stronger power responses that quickly arrest frequency deviations during disturbances.

2025

A Conceptual Approach for Causal-Driven Demand Response Optimization in Electric Mobility

Authors
Silva C.A.M.; Watson C.; Bessa R.J.;

Publication
International Conference on the European Energy Market Eem

Abstract
The electrification of transportation, driven by the widespread adoption of electric vehicles and increased integration of renewable energy, is critical to decarbonizing mobility and society. Demand response strategies, such as dynamic pricing, enable indirect control of charging processes, but their success relies on accurately estimating consumer responses to tariff changes. Observational data can provide insights into consumer behavior, but the presence of confounding variables motivates the use of causal inference techniques for a reliable elasticity estimation. This study proposes a data-driven framework for optimizing dayahead charging tariffs, leveraging causal discovery and inference algorithms validated on a synthetically generated dataset. A sensitivity analysis explores the impact of data availability on elasticity estimation and the performance of the resulting demand response strategy. The findings highlight the potential of causal machine learning to characterize consumers and, ultimately, the need for regular characterization to improve the efficiency of demand-side management.

2025

Risk assessment of future power systems: Assuring resilience of electrification for decarbonization

Authors
Reiz, C; Gouveia, C; Bessa, RJ; Lopes, JP; Kezunovic, M;

Publication
SUSTAINABLE ENERGY GRIDS & NETWORKS

Abstract
Increased electrification of various critical infrastructures has been recognized as a key to achieving decarbonization targets worldwide. This creates a need to better understand the risks associated with future power systems and how such risks can be defined, assessed, and mitigated. This paper surveys prior work on power system risk assessment and management and explores the various approaches to risk definition, assessment, and mitigation. As a result, the paper proposes how future grid developments should be assessed in terms of risk causes, what methodology may be used to reduce the risk impacts, and how such approaches can increase grid resilience. While we attempt to generalize and classify various approaches to solving the problem of risk assessment and mitigation, we also provide examples of how specific approaches undertaken by the authors in the past may be expanded in the future to address the design and operation of the future electricity system to manage the risk more effectively. The importance of the metrics for risk assessment and methodology for quantification of risk reduction are illustrated through the examples. The paper ends with recommendations on addressing the risk and resilience of the electricity system in the future resilient implementation while achieving decarbonization goals through massive electrification.

2025

Multiobjective energy management of multi-source offshore parks assisted with hybrid battery and hydrogen/fuel-cell energy storage systems

Authors
Kazemi-Robati, E; Varotto, S; Silva, B; Temiz, I;

Publication
APPLIED ENERGY

Abstract
With the recent advancements in the development of hybrid offshore parks and the expected large-scale implementation of them in the near future, it becomes paramount to investigate proper energy management strategies to improve the integrability of these parks into the power systems. This paper addresses a multiobjective energy management approach using a hybrid energy storage system comprising batteries and hydrogen/fuel-cell systems applied to multi-source wind-wave and wind-solar offshore parks to maximize the delivered energy while minimizing the variations of the power output. To find the solution of the optimization problem defined for energy management, a strategy is proposed based on the examination of a set of weighting factors to form the Pareto front while the problem associated with each of them is assessed in a mixed-integer linear programming framework. Subsequently, fuzzy decision making is applied to select the final solution among the ones existing in the Pareto front. The studies are implemented in different locations considering scenarios for electrical system limitation and the place of the storage units. According to the results, applying the proposed multiobjective framework successfully addresses the enhancement of energy delivery and the decrease in power output fluctuations in the hybrid offshore parks across all scenarios of electrical system limitation and combinational storage locations. Based on the results, in addition to the increase in delivered energy, a decrease in power variations by around 40 % up to over 80 % is observed in the studied cases.

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