Author
Listed:
- Peter Anuoluwapo Gbadega
(Department of Electrical Power Engineering, Durban University of Technology, Durban 4001, South Africa)
- Kabulo Loji
(Department of Electrical Power Engineering, Durban University of Technology, Durban 4001, South Africa)
Abstract
The increasing integration of renewable energy resources in microgrids requires effective frameworks for energy management, system monitoring, and operational assessment. This study presents a simulation-based digital twin-oriented framework for a small-scale renewable energy microgrid with integrated energy management control. The framework consists of a solar photovoltaic (PV) system, a lithium-ion battery energy storage system, and a variable load implemented in a MATLAB/Simulink 2024b environment. Mathematical models are developed to represent PV generation, battery state-of-charge (SOC) dynamics, and load variations, while a rule-based energy management strategy is used to regulate power flow between generation, storage, and demand. An interactive dashboard is incorporated to provide dynamic visualization within the simulation environment of the system operation and key performance indicators. Simulation results show that the controller successfully maintains the battery SOC within the safe operating range of 30–90% and eliminates SOC constraint violations. Compared with uncontrolled operation, renewable energy utilization increases from 67.4% to 92.8%, overall system efficiency improves from 79.6% to 91.3%, and system reliability increases from 93.1% to 99.2%. The Loss of Power Supply Probability (LPSP) decreases from 0.069 to 0.008, while RMS power imbalance is reduced by 50.0%. Battery and converter losses decrease by 41.7% and 43%, respectively. These results demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed framework in improving energy utilization, reliability, and operational stability while providing a foundation for future digital twin-enabled microgrid optimization and decision support applications.
Suggested Citation
Peter Anuoluwapo Gbadega & Kabulo Loji, 2026.
"Toward a Digital Twin Framework for Small-Scale Renewable Energy Microgrids with Integrated Energy Management Control,"
Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 18(13), pages 1-30, July.
Handle:
RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:18:y:2026:i:13:p:6732-:d:1981920
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