This article proposes a distributed multi-period multi-energy operational model for the multi-carrier energy system. In this model, energy hubs function as distributed decision-makers and feature the synergistic interactions of generation, delivery, and consumption of coupled electrical, heating, and natural gas energy networks. The multi-period multi-energy scheduling is a challenging optimization problem due to its strong couplings and inherent nonconvexities within the multi-energy networks. The original problem is thus reformulated as a mixed integer second-order cone programming (MISOCP) and subsequently solved with a sequential second-order cone programming (SOCP) approach to guarantee a satisfactory convergence performance. Furthermore, a fully-distributed consensus-based alternating direction method of multipliers (ADMM) approach with only neighboring information exchange required is developed to optimize the multi-energy flows while considering the local energy-autonomy of heterogeneous energy hubs. The proposed methodology is performed and benchmarked on a four-hub urban multi-energy system over a 24 hourly scheduling periods. Simulation results demonstrated the superiority of the proposed scheme in system operational economy and renewable energy utilization, and also verify the effectiveness of the proposed distributed approach.

Distributed Multi-Energy Operation of Coupled Electricity, Heating, and Natural Gas Networks