Stochastic Scheduling of Mobile Energy Storage in Coupled Distribution and Transportation Networks for Conversion Capacity Enhancement

Mobile energy storage systems (MESSs) is a promising solution to enhancing the operational flexibility of coupled distribution and transportation networks (CDTNs), as well as the conversion capacities of hybrid AC/DC microgrids (MGs). To achieve the coordination among MESSs, hybrid AC/DC microgrids and CDTNs, while considering the system uncertainties from variable renewable energy (VRE) sources and the daily traffic demands of common vehicles in transportation networks, a two-stage stochastic management scheme is proposed to minimize the expected system operational cost. In the first-stage, the vehicle scheduling problem of MESSs is modeled and optimized based on the proposed user-equilibrium-based multi-layer multi-timescale time-space network model to fully utilize the mobility of MESSs under traffic uncertainties, i.e., MESSs are scheduled to travel within CDTNs for energy transfer or local energy scheduling. In the second-stage, the actual charging/discharging behaviors of MESSs, outputs of VRE sources and the power conversions at each MG are adjusted in accordance with uncertainty realizations. The proposed model is verified on a test system with Sioux Falls transportation network and a 33-bus distribution system. The results demonstrate the effectiveness of MESSs mobility to serve as potential power conversion enhancements for MGs with mismatched generation and conversion capabilities.