Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Blockchain-based local energy markets: Decentralized trading on single-board computers

  • Original Paper
  • Published:
Energy Systems Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Local, decentralized, and highly volatile electricity generation of renewable energy sources (RES) calls for new market approaches. Local energy markets (LEMs) match electricity production and consumption in a decentralized approach which reflects the distribution of the growing amount of RES. The blockchain technology, a distributed information and communication technology, supports the decentralized structure of LEMs and enables its users to directly interact with each other. In this context, we investigate blockchain-based LEMs on which prosumers (consumers that also produce) and consumers of a community are able to trade electricity without the need for intermediaries. A smart contract serves as a market place that accepts orders of all participants of a blockchain and performs a merit-order mechanism for efficient allocation. We verify the reliability of a private Ethereum blockchain and the smart contract through multiple simulations using real-life data. Furthermore, we compare two consensus mechanisms (Proof-of-Work and Proof-of-Authority) of the blockchain regarding computational performance and assess whether a blockchain-based LEM can be run on small single-board computers, i.e. Raspberry Pis.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4
Fig. 5
Fig. 6
Fig. 7
Fig. 8

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. Abidin, A., Aly, A., Cleemput, S., Mustafa, M.: Secure and privacy-friendly local electricity trading and billing in smart grid. arXiv:1801.08354 (2018)

  2. Andoni, M., Robu, V., Flynn, D., Abram, S., Geach, D., Jenkins, D., McCallum, P., Peacock, A.: Blockchain technology in the energy sector: a systematic review of challenges and opportunities. Renew. Sustain. Energy Rev. 100, 143–174 (2018)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  3. Bernabe, J., Sanchez, J., Hernández-Ramos, J., Moreno, R., Skarmeta, A.: Privacy-preserving solutions for blockchain: review and challenges. IEEE Access. (2019). https://doi.org/10.1109/ACCESS.2019.2950872

  4. Microgrid, Brooklyn.: The Brooklyn Microgrid. http://brooklynmicrogrid.com/ (2016). Accessed 20 June 2019

  5. Buchmann, E., Kessler, S., Patrick, Jochem, Klemens, Böhm: The costs of privacy in local energy markets. In: 2013 IEEE 15th Conference on Business Informatics (CBI), pp. 198–208 (2013)

  6. Buterin, V.: Ethereum White Paper. https://github.com/ethereum/wiki/wiki/White-Paper (2013). Accessed 17 June 2019

  7. ERC20 Token Standard: https://theethereum.wiki/w/index.php/ERC20_Token_Standard. Accessed 20 June 2019

  8. Etash DAG: https://github.com/ethereum/wiki/wiki/Ethash-DAG#ethashdashimoto. Accessed 27 June 2019

  9. Hayn, M., Zander, A., Fichtner, W., Nickel, S., Bertsch, V.: The impact of electricity tariffs on residential demand side flexibility: results of bottom-up load profile modeling. Energy Syst. 9(3), 759–792 (2018)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  10. Heck, K.: LEMs-on-Blockchains. https://github.com/koljahe/LEMs-on-Blockchain.git (2019). Accessed 22 July 2019

  11. Landau Microgrid Project (LAMP): http://im.iism.kit.edu/english/1093_2058.php. Accessed 20 June 2019

  12. Lombardi, F., De Angelis, S., Aniello, L., Margheri, A., Sassone, V.: A Blockchain-based infrastructure for reliable and cost-effective IoT-aided smart grids. In: International Conference on Computer Safety, Reliability, and Security, pp. 350–359 (2018)

  13. Mengelkamp, E., Notheisen, B., Beer, C., Dauer, D., Weinhardt, C.: A blockchain-based smart grid: towards sustainable local energy markets. Comput. Sci. Res. Dev. 33(1), 207–214 (2017)

    Google Scholar 

  14. Mengelkamp, E., Gärttner, J., Weinhardt, C.: Decentralizing Energy Systems Through Local Energy Markets: The LAMP-Project. Multikonferenz Wirtschaftsinformatik (MKWI) (2018)

  15. Mengelkamp, E., Gärttner, J., Rock, K., Kessler, S., Orsini, L., Weinhardt, C.: Designing microgrid energy markets: a case study: the Brooklyn microgrid. Appl. Energy 210, 870–880 (2018)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  16. Mustafa, M., Cleemput, S., Abidin, A.: A local electricity trading market: security analysis. In: IEEE PES Innovative Smart Grid Technologies (ISGT-Europe) Conference, pp. 1–6 (2016)

  17. Nakamoto, S.: Bitcoin: A peer-to-peer electronic cash system. https://bitcoin.org/bitcoin.pdf (2008). Accessed 17 June 2019

  18. Nolden, C., Schönfelder, M., Eßer-Frey, A., Bertsch, V., Fichtner, W.: Network constraints in techno-economic energy system models: towards more accurate modeling of power flows in long-term energy system models. Energy Syst. 4(3), 267–287 (2013)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  19. Notheisen, B., Cholewa, J., Shanmugam, A.: Trading real-world assets on blockchain: an application of trust-free transaction systems in the market for lemons. Bus. Inf. Syst. Eng. 59, 425–440 (2017)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  20. Raspberry Pis: https://www.raspberrypi.org/about/. Accessed 20 June 2019

  21. Richter, B., Mengelkamp, E., Weinhardt, C.: Maturity of blockchain technology in local electricity markets. In: 2018 15th International Conference on the European Energy Market (EEM), pp. 1–6 (2018)

  22. Sikorski, J.J., Haughton, J., Kraft, M.: Blockchain technology in the chemical industry: machine-to-machine electricity market. Appl. Energy 195, 234–246 (2017)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  23. Wattenhofer, R.: The Science of the Blockchain, 1st edn. Inverted Forest Publishing, USA (2016)

  24. Zheng, J., Gao, D.W., Lin, L.: Smart meters in smart grid: an overview. In: 2013 IEEE Green Technologies Conference (GreenTech) pp. 57–64 (2013)

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, Karlsruhe, Germany

    Kolja Heck, Esther Mengelkamp & Christof Weinhardt

Authors
  1. Kolja Heck
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Esther Mengelkamp
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Christof Weinhardt
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Kolja Heck.

Additional information

Publisher's Note

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Appendix

Appendix

figure a

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Heck, K., Mengelkamp, E. & Weinhardt, C. Blockchain-based local energy markets: Decentralized trading on single-board computers. Energy Syst 12, 603–618 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12667-020-00399-4

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12667-020-00399-4

Keywords

Search

Navigation