Benchmarking Energy Transitions: An Irish Case Study

The challenges of a low carbon energy transition have now been recognized by most nation states, each of whom have responded with differing visions, strategies and programmes, with variable veracity and effectiveness. Given the complexity of each country’s energy system (and sub-systems such as mobility, food etc), the differing sources and wealth of indigenous energy resources, the variable legacy of the fossil fuel regime and differing capacity to respond to global shifts in energy markets, it is clear that each country will respond to this challenge in very different ways.
This poses difficulties for understanding the extent to which a transition may be taking hold in any territory as simple indicators such as GHG emission data or increases in renewable energy ignore the complex contexts in which transitions take place. Drawing on the results of a study, funded by the Irish Environmental Protection Agency (Characterizing and Catalyzing Transitions) and using the wider theoretical framework of socio-technological transitions, this paper will explore the challenges, virtues and constraints of attempting to ‘benchmark’ the Republic of Ireland’s transition. This will lead to wider observations on the normative nature of benchmarking and a critical review of how we conceptualize the very idea of transition.

Application of battery energy storage in the Québec interconnection

Le Système Stockage de l’Énergie par Batterie ou Batterie de Stockage d’Énergie (BSE) offre de formidables atouts dans les domaines de la production, du transport, de la distribution et de la consommation d’énergie électrique. Cette technologie est notamment considérée par plusieurs opérateurs à travers le monde entier, comme un nouveau dispositif permettant d’injecter d’importantes quantités d’énergie renouvelable d’une part et d’autre part, en tant que composante essentielle aux grands réseaux électriques. De plus, d’énormes avantages peuvent être associés au déploiement de la technologie du BSE aussi bien dans les réseaux intelligents que pour la réduction de l’émission des gaz à effet de serre, la réduction des pertes marginales, l’alimentation de certains consommateurs en source d’énergie d’urgence, l’amélioration de la gestion de l’énergie, et l’accroissement de l’efficacité énergétique dans les réseaux. Cette présente thèse comprend trois étapes à savoir : l’Étape 1 - est relative à l’utilisation de la BSE en guise de réduction des pertes électriques ; l’Étape 2 - utilise la BSE comme élément de réserve tournante en vue de l’atténuation de la vulnérabilité du réseau ; et l’Étape 3 - introduit une nouvelle méthode d’amélioration des oscillations de fréquence par modulation de la puissance réactive, et l’utilisation de la BSE pour satisfaire la réserve primaire de fréquence. La première Étape, relative à l’utilisation de la BSE en vue de la réduction des pertes, est elle-même subdivisée en deux sous-étapes dont la première est consacrée à l’allocation optimale et le seconde, à l’utilisation optimale. Dans la première sous-étape, l’Algorithme génétique NSGA-II (Non-dominated Sorting Genetic Algorithm II) a été programmé dans CASIR, le Super-Ordinateur de l’IREQ, en tant qu’algorithme évolutionniste multiobjectifs, permettant d’extraire un ensemble de solutions pour un dimensionnement optimal et un emplacement adéquat des multiple unités de BSE, tout en minimisant les pertes de puissance, et en considérant en même temps la capacité totale des puissances des unités de BSE installées comme des fonctions objectives. La première sous-étape donne une réponse satisfaisante à l’allocation et résout aussi la question de la programmation/scheduling dans l’interconnexion du Québec. Dans le but de réaliser l’objectif de la seconde sous-étape, un certain nombre de solutions ont été retenues et développées/implantées durant un intervalle de temps d’une année, tout en tenant compte des paramètres (heure, capacité, rendement/efficacité, facteur de puissance) associés aux cycles de charge et de décharge de la BSE, alors que la réduction des pertes marginales et l’efficacité énergétique constituent les principaux objectifs. Quant à la seconde Étape, un nouvel indice de vulnérabilité a été introduit, formalisé et étudié ; indice qui est bien adapté aux réseaux modernes équipés de BES. L’algorithme génétique NSGA-II est de nouveau exécuté (ré-exécuté) alors que la minimisation de l’indice de vulnérabilité proposé et l’efficacité énergétique représentent les principaux objectifs. Les résultats obtenus prouvent que l’utilisation de la BSE peut, dans certains cas, éviter des pannes majeures du réseau. La troisième Étape expose un nouveau concept d’ajout d’une inertie virtuelle aux réseaux électriques, par le procédé de modulation de la puissance réactive. Il a ensuite été présenté l’utilisation de la BSE en guise de réserve primaire de fréquence. Un modèle générique de BSE, associé à l’interconnexion du Québec, a enfin été proposé dans un environnement MATLAB. Les résultats de simulations confirment la possibilité de l’utilisation des puissances active et réactive du système de la BSE en vue de la régulation de fréquence.

Oceans of energy? The non-linear trajectory of the emerging wave energy technology

This paper addresses the construction and structuring of a technological niche – i.e. a protected space where promising but still underperforming technologies are stabilized and articulated with societal needs – and discusses the processes that influence niche development and may enable niche breakout. In theoretical terms the paper is grounded on the multi-level approach to sustainability transitions, and particularly on the niche literature. But it also attempts to address the limitations of this literature in what concerns the spatial dimension of niche development. It is argued that technological niches can transcend the narrow territorial boundaries to which they are often confined, and encompass communities and actions that span several spatial levels, without losing some territorial embeddedness. It is further proposed that these features shape the niche trajectory and, therefore, need to be explicitly considered by the niche theoretical framework. To address this problem the paper builds on and extends the socio-cognitive perspective to technology development, introducing a further dimension – space – which broadens the concept of technological niche and permits to better capture the complexity of niche behaviour. This extended framework is applied to the case of an emerging renewable energy technology – wave energy - which exhibits a particularly slow and non-linear development trajectory. The empirical analysis starts by examining how an “overall niche space” in wave energy was spatially constructed over time. Then it investigates in greater detail the niche development processes that took place in Portugal, a country that was among the pioneers in the field, and whose actors have been, from very early stages, engaged in the activities conducted at various spatial levels. Through this combined analysis, the paper seeks to understand whether and how niche development is shaped by processes taking place at different spatial levels. More specifically it investigates the interplay between territorial and relational elements in niche development, and how these different dynamics influence the performance of the niche processes and impact on the overall niche trajectory. The results confirm the niche multi-spatial dynamics, showing that it is shaped by the interplay between a niche relational space constructed by actors’ actions and interactions on/across levels, and the territorial effects introduced by these actors’ embeddedness in particular geographical and institutional settings. They contribute to a more precise understanding of the processes that can accelerate or slow down the trajectory of a technological niche. In addition, the results shed some light into the niche activities conducted in/originating from a specific territorial setting - Portugal - offering some insights into the behaviour of key actors and its implications for the positioning of the country in the emerging field, which can be relevant for the formulation of strategies and policies for this area.

Rotina computacional de obtenção, tratamento e visualização de dados oceanográficos

Atualmente, sensores remotos e computadores de alto desempenho estão sendo utilizados como instrumentos principais na coleta e produção de dados oceanográficos. De posse destes dados, é possível realizar estudos que permitem simular e prever o comportamento do oceano por meio de modelos numéricos regionais. Dentre os fatores importantes no estudo da oceanografia, podem ser destacados àqueles referentes aos impactos ambientais, de contaminação antrópica, utilização de energias renováveis, operações portuárias e etc. Contudo, devido ao grande volume de dados gerados por instituições ambientais, na forma de resultados de modelos globais como o HYCOM (Hybrid Coordinate Ocean Model) e dos programas de Reanalysis da NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration), torna-se necessária a criação de rotinas computacionais para realizar o tratamento de condições iniciais e de contorno, de modo que possam ser aplicadas a modelos regionais como o TELEMAC3D (www.opentelemac.org). Problemas relacionados a baixa resolução, ausência de dados e a necessidade de interpolação para diferentes malhas ou sistemas de coordenadas verticais, tornam necessária a criação de um mecanismo computacional que realize este tratamento adequadamente. Com isto, foram desenvolvidas rotinas na linguagem de programação Python, empregando interpoladores de vizinho mais próximo, de modo que, a partir de dados brutos dos modelos HYCOM e do programa de Reanalysis da NOAA, foram preparadas condições iniciais e de contorno para a realização de uma simulação numérica teste. Estes resultados foram confrontados com outro resultado numérico onde, as condições foram construídas a partir de um método de interpolação mais sofisticado, escrita em outra linguagem, e que já vem sendo utilizada no laboratório. A análise dos resultados permitiu concluir que, a rotina desenvolvida no âmbito deste trabalho, funciona adequadamente para a geração de condições iniciais e de contorno do modelo TELEMAC3D. Entretanto, um interpolador mais sofisticado deve ser desenvolvido de forma a aumentar a qualidade nas interpolações, otimizar o custo computacional, e produzir condições que sejam mais realísticas para a utilização do modelo TELEMAC3D.

Sustainable Energy Production in the United States: Life Cycle Assessment of Biofuels and Bioenergy

The United States of America is making great efforts to transform the renewable and abundant biomass resources into cost-competitive, high-performance biofuels, bioproducts, and biopower. This is the key to increase domestic production of transportation fuels and renewable energy, and reduce greenhouse gas and other pollutant emissions. This dissertation focuses specifically on assessing the life cycle environmental impacts of biofuels and bioenergy produced from renewable feedstocks, such as lignocellulosic biomass, renewable oils and fats. The first part of the dissertation presents the life cycle greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and energy demands of renewable diesel (RD) and hydroprocessed jet fuels (HRJ). The feedstocks include soybean, camelina, field pennycress, jatropha, algae, tallow and etc. Results show that RD and HRJ produced from these feedstocks reduce GHG emissions by over 50% compared to comparably performing petroleum fuels. Fossil energy requirements are also significantly reduced. The second part of this dissertation discusses the life cycle GHG emissions, energy demands and other environmental aspects of pyrolysis oil as well as pyrolysis oil derived biofuels and bioenergy. The feedstocks include waste materials such as sawmill residues, logging residues, sugarcane bagasse and corn stover, and short rotation forestry feedstocks such as hybrid poplar and willow. These LCA results show that as much as 98% GHG emission savings is possible relative to a petroleum heavy fuel oil. Life cycle GHG savings of 77 to 99% were estimated for power generation from pyrolysis oil combustion relative to fossil fuels combustion for electricity, depending on the biomass feedstock and combustion technologies used. Transportation fuels hydroprocessed from pyrolysis oil show over 60% of GHG reductions compared to petroleum gasoline and diesel. The energy required to produce pyrolysis oil and pyrolysis oil derived biofuels and bioelectricity are mainly from renewable biomass, as opposed to fossil energy. Other environmental benefits include human health, ecosystem quality and fossil resources. The third part of the dissertation addresses the direct land use change (dLUC) impact of forest based biofuels and bioenergy. An intensive harvest of aspen in Michigan is investigated to understand the GHG mitigation with biofuels and bioenergy production. The study shows that the intensive harvest of aspen in MI compared to business as usual (BAU) harvesting can produce 18.5 billion gallons of ethanol to blend with gasoline for the transport sector over the next 250 years, or 32.2 billion gallons of bio-oil by the fast pyrolysis process, which can be combusted to generate electricity or upgraded to gasoline and diesel. Intensive harvesting of these forests can result in carbon loss initially in the aspen forest, but eventually accumulates more carbon in the ecosystem, which translates to a CO2 credit from the dLUC impact. Time required for the forest-based biofuels to reach carbon neutrality is approximately 60 years. The last part of the dissertation describes the use of depolymerization model as a tool to understand the kinetic behavior of hemicellulose hydrolysis under dilute acid conditions. Experiments are carried out to measure the concentrations of xylose and xylooligomers during dilute acid hydrolysis of aspen. The experiment data are used to fine tune the parameters of the depolymerization model. The results show that the depolymerization model successfully predicts the xylose monomer profile in the reaction, however, it overestimates the concentrations of xylooligomers.

An Islanding Detection Method based on Impedance Estimation and Grid Identification for Grid-Tie Distributed Power Generation Systems

Power system policies are broadly on track to escalate the use of renewable energy resources in electric power generation. Integration of dispersed generation to the utility network not only intensifies the benefits of renewable generation but also introduces further advantages such as power quality enhancement and freedom of power generation for the consumers. However, issues arise from the integration of distributed generators to the existing utility grid are as significant as its benefits. The issues are aggravated as the number of grid-connected distributed generators increases. Therefore, power quality demands become stricter to ensure a safe and proper advancement towards the emerging smart grid. In this regard, system protection is the area that is highly affected as the grid-connected distributed generation share in electricity generation increases. Islanding detection, amongst all protection issues, is the most important concern for a power system with high penetration of distributed sources. Islanding occurs when a portion of the distribution network which includes one or more distributed generation units and local loads is disconnected from the remaining portion of the grid. Upon formation of a power island, it remains energized due to the presence of one or more distributed sources. This thesis introduces a new islanding detection technique based on an enhanced multi-layer scheme that shows superior performance over the existing techniques. It provides improved solutions for safety and protection of power systems and distributed sources that are capable of operating in grid-connected mode. The proposed active method offers negligible non-detection zone. It is applicable to micro-grids with a number of distributed generation sources without sacrificing the dynamic response of the system. In addition, the information obtained from the proposed scheme allows for smooth transition to stand-alone operation if required. The proposed technique paves the path towards a comprehensive protection solution for future power networks. The proposed method is converter-resident and all power conversion systems that are operating based on power electronics converters can benefit from this method. The theoretical analysis is presented, and extensive simulation results confirm the validity of the analytical work.

Bidding and Optimization Strategies for Wind-PV Systems in Electricity Markets

The variability in non-dispatchable power generation raises important challenges to the integration of renewable energy sources into the electricity power grid. This paper provides the coordinated trading of wind and photovoltaic energy to mitigate risks due to the wind and solar power variability, electricity prices, and financial penalties arising out the generation shortfall and surplus. The problem of wind-photovoltaic coordinated trading is formulated as a linear programming problem. The goal is to obtain the optimal bidding strategy that maximizes the total profit. The wind-photovoltaic coordinated operation is modeled and compared with the uncoordinated operation. A comparison of the models and relevant conclusions are drawn from an illustrative case study of the Iberian day-ahead electricity market.

Bidding and Optimization Strategies for Wind-PV Systems in Electricity Markets Assisted by CPS

The variability in non-dispatchable power generation raises important challenges to the integration of renewable energy sources into the electricity power grid. This paper provides the coordinated trading of wind and photovoltaic energy assisted by a cyber-physical system for supporting management decisions to mitigate risks due to the wind and solar power variability, electricity prices, and financial penalties arising out the generation shortfall and surplus. The problem of wind-photovoltaic coordinated trading is formulated as a stochastic linear programming problem. The goal is to obtain the optimal bidding strategy that maximizes the total profit. The wind-photovoltaic coordinated operation is modelled and compared with the uncoordinated operation. A comparison of the models and relevant conclusions are drawn from an illustrative case study of the Iberian day-ahead electricity market.

Large scale underground energy storage for renewables integration: general criteria for reservoir identification and viable technologies.

The increasing integration of renewable energies in the electricity grid contributes considerably to achieve the European Union goals on energy and Greenhouse Gases (GHG) emissions reduction. However, it also brings problems to grid management. Large scale energy storage can provide the means for a better integration of the renewable energy sources, for balancing supply and demand, to increase energy security, to enhance a better management of the grid and also to converge towards a low carbon economy. Geological formations have the potential to store large volumes of fluids with minimal impact to environment and society. One of the ways to ensure a large scale energy storage is to use the storage capacity in geological reservoir. In fact, there are several viable technologies for underground energy storage, as well as several types of underground reservoirs that can be considered. The geological energy storage technologies considered in this research were: Underground Gas Storage (UGS), Hydrogen Storage (HS), Compressed Air Energy Storage (CAES), Underground Pumped Hydro Storage (UPHS) and Thermal Energy Storage (TES). For these different types of underground energy storage technologies there are several types of geological reservoirs that can be suitable, namely: depleted hydrocarbon reservoirs, aquifers, salt formations and caverns, engineered rock caverns and abandoned mines. Specific site screening criteria are applicable to each of these reservoir types and technologies, which determines the viability of the reservoir itself, and of the technology for any particular site. This paper presents a review of the criteria applied in the scope of the Portuguese contribution to the EU funded project ESTMAP – Energy Storage Mapping and Planning.

Silicon nanocrystals tailored for bioimaging and energy conversion

This thesis focus is the development of hybrid organic-inorganic systems based on Silicon Nanocrystals (SiNCs) with possible applications in the field of bioimaging and solar energy conversion. SiNCs were engineered thanks to the realization of a strong covalent Si-C bond on their surface, which allowed us to disperse them in different solvents with different final purpose. Chapter 1 introduces the basic properties of nanomaterials. Chapter 2 describes all the synthetic procedures to obtain the organic molecules-functionalized SiNCs. Chapter 3 illustrates an organic-inorganic antenna system based on SiNCs conjugated with diphenylanthracene (DPA) photoactive molecules, which was also embedded into Luminescent Solar Concentrators (LSC) made of a polymeric matrix. The optical and photovoltaic performances of this device were compared with the ones of a LSC embedded with a physical mixture made of SiNCs plus DPA at the same concentrations of the two components in the covalent system. Chapter 4 shows many different techniques to functionalize SiNCs with polyethylene glycol (PEG) chains in order to make them dispersible in water, for biomedical imaging applications. Chapter 5 presents the synthesis of dyes and/or SiNCs loaded Polymer Nanoparticles (PNPs) capable of excitation energy transfer (EET) mechanism. Chapter 6 is focused on the realization of photo-switchable systems based on azobenzene derivatives-functionalized SiNCs. These organic-inorganic hybrid materials were studied to possibly obtain a new light-driven response of SiNCs. In the end, chapter 7 reports the activity I followed in America, at The University of Texas at Austin, in the laboratory led by the professor Brian Korgel. Here I studied and compared the properties of high temperature hydrosilylated SiNCs and room temperature, radical promoted, hydrosilylated SiNCs.

Planning and flexible operation of storage systems in power grids: from transmission to distribution networks

The first part of the thesis has been devoted to the transmission planning with high penetration of renewable energy sources. Both stationary and transportable battery energy storage (BES, BEST) systems have been considered in the planning model, so to obtain the optimal set of BES, BEST and transmission lines that minimizes the total cost in a power network. First, a coordinated expansion planning model with fixed transportation cost for BEST devices has been presented; then, the model has been extended to a planning formulation with a distance-dependent transportation cost for the BEST units, and its tractability has been proved through a case study based on a 190-bus test system. The second part of this thesis is then devoted to the analysis of planning and management of renewable energy communities (RECs). Initially, the planning of photovoltaic and BES systems in a REC with an incentive-based remuneration scheme according to the Italian regulatory framework has been analysed, and two planning models, according to a single-stage, or a multi-stage approach, have been proposed in order to provide the optimal set of BES and PV systems allowing to achieve the minimum energy procurement cost in a given REC. Further, the second part of this thesis is devoted to the study of the day-ahead scheduling of resources in renewable energy communities, by considering two types of REC. The first one, which we will refer to as “cooperative community”, allows direct energy transactions between members of the REC; the second type of REC considered, which we shall refer to as “incentive-based”, does not allow direct transactions between members but includes economic revenues for the community shared energy, according to the Italian regulation framework. Moreover, dispatchable renewable energy generation has been considered by including producers equipped with biogas power plants in the community.

A novel hybrid thermochemical-biological refinery integrated with power-to-X approach for obtaining biopolymers

In this study, a novel hybrid thermochemical-biological refinery integrated with power-to-x approach was developed for obtaining biopolymers (namely polyhydroxyalkanoates, PHA). Within this concept, a trilogy process schema comprising of, (i) thermochemical conversion via integrated pyrolysis-gasification technologies, (ii) anaerobic fermentation of the bioavailable products obtained through either thermochemistry or water-electrolysis for volatile fatty acids (VFA) production, (iii) and VFA-to-PHA bioconversion via an original microaerophilic-aerobic process was developed. During the first stage of proposed biorefinery where lignocellulosic (wooden) biomass was converted into, theoretically fermentable products (i.e. bioavailables) which were defined as syngas and water-soluble fraction of pyrolytic liquid (WS); biochar as a biocatalyst material; and a dense-oil as a liquid fuel. Within integrated pyrolysis - gasification process, biomass was efficiently converted into fermentable intermediates representing up to 66% of biomass chemical energy content in chemical oxygen demand (COD) basis. In the secondary stage, namely anaerobic fermentation for obtaining VFA rich streams, three different downstream process were investigated. First fermentation test was acidogenic bioconversion of WS materials obtained through pyrolysis of biomass within an original biochar-packed bioreactor, it was sustained up to 0.6 gCOD/L-day volumetric productivity (VP). Second, C1 rich syngas materials as the gaseous fraction of pyrolysis-gasification stage, was fermented within a novel char-based biofilm sparger reactor (CBSR), where up to 9.8 gCOD/L-day VP was detected. Third was homoacetogenic bioconversion within the innovative power-to-x pathway for obtaining commodities via renewable energy sources. More specifically, water-electrolysis derived H2 and CO2 as a primary greenhouse gas was successfully bio-utilized by anaerobic mixed cultures into VFA within CBSR system (VP: 18.2 gCOD/L-day). In the last stage of the developed biorefinery schema, VFA is converted into biopolymers within a new continuous microaerophilic-aerobic microplant, where up to 60% of PHA containing sludges was obtained.

Low carbon systems for climate change mitigation and adaptation

Global warming and climate change have been among the most controversial topics after the industrial revolution. The main contributor to global warming is carbon dioxide (CO2), which increases the temperature by trapping heat in the atmosphere. Atmospheric CO2 concentration before the industrial era was around 280 ppm for a long period, while it has increased dramatically since the industrial revolution up to approximately 420 ppm. According to the Paris agreement it is needed to keep the temperature increase up to 2°C, preferably 1.5° C, to prevent reaching the tipping point of climate change. To keep the temperature increase below the range, it is required to find solutions to reduce CO2 emissions. The solutions can be low-carbon systems and transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy sources (RES). This thesis is allocated to the assessment of low-carbon systems and the reduction of CO2 by using RES instead of fossil fuels. One of the most important aspects to define the location and capacity of low-carbon systems is CO2 mass estimation. As mentioned, high-emission systems can be substituted by low-carbon systems. An example of high-emission systems is dredging. The global CO2 emission from dredging is relatively high which is associated with the growth of marine transport in addition to its high emission. Thus, ejectors system as alternative for dredging is investigated in chapter 2. For the transition from fossil fuels to RES, it is required to provide solutions for the RES storage problem. A solution could be zero-emission fuels such as hydrogen. However, the production of hydrogen requires electricity, and electricity production emits a large amount of CO2. Therefore, the last three chapters are allocated to hydrogen generation via electrolysis, at the current condition and scenarios of RES and variation of cell characteristics and stack materials, and its delivery.

Strategies for lowering the environmental impact of different electrochemical energy storage system

The continuous growth of global population brings an exponential increase on energy consumption and greenhouse gas emission in the atmosphere contributing to the increase of the planet temperature. Therefore, it is mandatory to adopt renewable energy production systems like photovoltaic or wind power: unfortunately, the main limit of these technologies is the natural intermittence of the energy sources that limits their applicability. The key enabling technology for a widespread usage of clean power sources are electrochemical energy storage systems, most commonly known as batteries. Batteries will enable the storage of energy during overproduction period and the release during low production period stabilizing the power outcome, allowing the connection to the main grid and increasing the applicability of renewable energy sources. Despite the high number of benefits that the widespread use of batteries will bring, starting from the reduction of CO2 emitted in the atmosphere, it is necessary also to take care of the environmental impact of processes and materials used for the production of electrochemical storage systems. In addition, there are many different battery systems, with different chemistries and designs that require specific strategies. Nowadays, the most part of the materials and chemicals used for battery production are toxic for humans and the environment. For this reason, this Ph.D. thesis addresses the challenging scope of lowering the environmental impact of manufacturing processes of different electrochemical energy storage systems using natural derived or low carbon footprint materials while increasing the performances with respect to commercial devices. The activities carried out during my Ph.D. cover a high number of different electrochemical storage systems involving a wide range of electrochemical processes from capacitive to faradic. New materials, different production processes and new battery design, all in view of sustainability and low environmental impact, increased the innovative and challenging aspects of this work.

Power flow forecasting and smart charging for electric vehicle charging systems with photovoltaic integration

An essential role in the global energy transition is attributed to Electric Vehicles (EVs) the energy for EV traction can be generated by renewable energy sources (RES), also at a local level through distributed power plants, such as photovoltaic (PV) systems. However, EV integration with electrical systems might not be straightforward. The intermittent RES, combined with the high and uncontrolled aggregate EV charging, require an evolution toward new planning and paradigms of energy systems. In this context, this work aims to provide a practical solution for EV charging integration in electrical systems with RES. A method for predicting the power required by an EV fleet at the charging hub (CH) is developed in this thesis. The proposed forecasting method considers the main parameters on which charging demand depends. The results of the EV charging forecasting method are deeply analyzed under different scenarios. To reduce the EV load intermittency, methods for managing the charging power of EVs are proposed. The main target was to provide Charging Management Systems (CMS) that modulate EV charging to optimize specific performance indicators such as system self-consumption, peak load reduction, and PV exploitation. Controlling the EV charging power to achieve specific optimization goals is also known as Smart Charging (SC). The proposed techniques are applied to real-world scenarios demonstrating performance improvements in using SC strategies. A viable alternative to maximize integration with intermittent RES generation is the integration of energy storage. Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS) may be a buffer between peak load and RES production. A sizing algorithm for PV+BESS integration in EV charging hubs is provided. The sizing optimization aims to optimize the system's energy and economic performance. The results provide an overview of the optimal size that the PV+BESS plant should have to improve whole system performance in different scenarios.