Archive All News All Partners All interviews All Best Practice All Services All Genderconsulting All Resources
» partners » TRR 154
Partners

TRR 154

Mathematical Modelling, Simulation and Optimization Using the Example of Gas Networks
Spokesperson Prof. Dr. Alexander Martin
Coordinator Dr. Andreas Herán
Contact Details +49 9131 85 67094 
andreas.heran@fau.de
trr154.fau.de
Address
TRR 154
Department Mathematik
Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg (FAU)
Cauerstraße 11
91058 Erlangen

Research Programme

The “turnaround in energy policy” is currently in the main focus of public opinion. It concerns social, political and scientific aspects as the dependence on a reliable, efficient and affordable energy supply becomes increasingly dominant. On the other side, the desire for a clean, environmentally consistent and climate-friendly energy production is stronger than ever. To balance these tendencies while making a transition to nuclear-free energy supply, gas will become more and more important in the decades to come. Natural gas is and will be sufficiently available, is storable and can be traded. On the other side, focusing on an efficient handling of gas transportation induces a number of technical and regulatory problems, also in the context of coupling to other energy carriers. As an example, energy transporters are required by law to provide evidence that within the given capacities all contracts defining the market are physically and technically feasible. Given the amount of data and the potential of stochastic effects, this is a formidable task all by itself, regardless of the actual process of distributing the proper amount of gas with the required quality to the customer. It is the goal of the Transregio-CRC to provide certified novel answers to these grand challenges, based on mathematical modeling, simulation and optimisation. In order to achieve this goal new paradigms in the integration of these disciplines and in particular in the interplay between integer and nonlinear programming in the context of stochastic data have to be established and brought to bear. Clearly, without specifying the underlying structure of the problems, such a breakthrough is rather unlikely. Thus, the particular network structure, the given hierarchical hybrid modeling in terms of switching algebraic, ordinary and partial differential-algebraic equations of hyperbolic type that is present in gas network transportation systems gives rise to the confidence that the challenges can be met by the team of the Transregio-CRC. Moreover, the fundamental research conducted here will also be applicable in the context of other energy networks such as fresh- and waste water networks. In this respect the proposed research goes beyond the exemplary problem chosen and will provide, besides a cutting edge in enabling technologies, new mathematics in the emerging area of discrete, respectively, integer and continuous problems.

© GeCo | 2021