Blockchain-based Demand Response for Aggregated Residential Users in a Virtual Power Plant

In China, residential demand-side resources have gained attention due to the yearly rise in electricity consumption and the growing peak-to-valley difference in electricity loads. However, issues such as privacy, revenue distribution and demand scheduling hinder user participation in demand response (DR). To address this, we propose a blockchain-based virtual power plant structure to conduct DR transactions. In the proposed framework, blockchain technology is used for privacy protection and revenue distribution. Multi-objective optimization model is used to schedule demands for lower bills while maintaining satisfaction. The model is solved by non-dominated sorting genetic algorithm II and the experiments are carried out on the UK REFIT dataset. The demand scheduling results show the objectives of minimizing electricity bills and user dissatisfaction have been reached.