ForNe

Research Cooperation Network Optimization

Description

The liberalization of the German gas market poses novel and difficult planning problems to transmission network operators. They are obliged by the Gas Grid Access Ordinance to offer as much freely allocable capacity as possible. Freely allocable capacities enable gas shippers (usually gas traders or bulk consumers) to feed in or withdraw gas at their entries and exits without having to care where the gas is withdrawn or fed in, respectively. This flexibility shall contribute to increasing competition and establishing an efficient gas market.

When offering transmission capacities, the transmission system operator has to ensure free allocability, which means that all gas flow situations that may result from exercising these capacities can be realized by the gas transmission network. This requirement can hardly be verified with existing simulation-based planning methods. The goal of this research cooperation is therefore to develop and implement optimization-based methods for checking realizability of gas flow situations. Moreover, we are also working on methods that provide cost-effective network expansion measures to increase freely allocable capacities.

At the heart of our methods is a mixed-integer nonconvex model describing the technical realizability of a gas flow situation. The pressure loss in a pipe is approximated by a quadratic equation, whereas the operation range of a compressor is modelled by a suitable polytope. The possible operation modes of compressor stations are described by binary variables. We developed a custom-tailored algorithm exploiting special properties of this model which can determine suitable controls for each gas flow situation or decide that no such controls exist.

 

Contact

• Benjamin Hiller
• Thorsten Koch

 

Members

• Armin Fügenschuh
• Martin Grötschel
• Benjamin Hiller
• Jesco Humpola
• Thorsten Koch
• Ralf Lenz
• Robert Schwarz
• Jonas Schweiger

 

Past Members

• Jacint Szabo
• Thomas Lehmann

 

Events

• CPAIOR 2011 (Mai 23 - 27)
  8th International Conference on Integration of Artificial Intelligence and Operations Research Techniques in Constraint Programming for Combinatorial Optimization Problems
  Workshop on Mathematical Optimization of Energy Networks

 

Publications

• The set of solutions to nomination validation in passive gas transportation networks with a generalized flow formula
  J. Szabó
  ZIB Report 11-44
• Optimierung Technischer Kapazitäten in Gasnetzen
  A. Martin, B. Geißler, C. Hayn, A. Morsi, L. Schewe, B. Hiller, J. Humpola, T. Koch, T. Lehmann, R. Schwarz, J. Schweiger, M. Pfetsch, M. Schmidt, M. Steinbach, B. Willert, R. Schultz
  Erschienen in: Optimierung in der Energiewirtschaft, VDI-Berichte, S. 105-115. Auch erhältlich als ZIB Report 11-56
• Gas Network Topology Optimization for Upcoming Market Requirements
  A. Fügenschuh, B. Hiller, J. Humpola, T. Koch, T. Lehmann, R. Schwarz, J. Schweiger J. Szabó
  ZIB Report 11-09

 

Partners

• Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg, Lehrstuhl für Wirtschaftsmathematik
  Contact: Alexander Martin
• Leibniz Universität Hannover, Institut für Angewandte Mathematik
  Contact: Marc Steinbach
• Universität Duisburg-Essen, Diskrete Mathematik und Optimierung
  Contact: Rüdiger Schultz
• Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Institut für Mathematik
  Contact: Werner Römisch
• Technische Universität Darmstadt, Arbeitsgruppe Optimierung
  Contact: Marc Pfetsch
• Weierstraß-Institut für Angewandte Analysis und Stochastik, Nichtlineare Optimierung und Inverse Probleme
  Contact: René Henrion
• MATHEON B20,
  Contact: Thorsten Koch

 

Duration

01/2009 - 06/2013

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