Living Lab study on Smart Energy Systems on campus

Vasiliki Kourgiozou is doing a living lab project at UCL on smart energy systems on university campuses.

The aim of the research is to create a framework for evaluating the potential to integrate smart energy systems at the university campus level within the context of energy systems decarbonisation in urban environments. The research will provide a framework that university campus managers and operators can use to reduce carbon emissions on campus.

Vasiliki is using the UCL Bloomsbury campus as a reference system for this research project.

Its location, within the heart of London, is a characteristic example of an existing university network sharing infrastructure and continuously interacting with the urban district system. It therefore provides a model to demonstrate the intricacies and benefits of the adaptation to a smart campus with smart energy systems that is transferable to similar contexts.

As part of her 4-year PhD studies, Vasiliki has taped into the UCL Bloomsbury campus to provide evidence-based proposals. During the first two years of studies, Vasiliki reviewed the current smart-readiness levels of the UCL Bloomsbury campus by adapting the EPBD SRI calculation method for campuses. She has also reviewed the value and challenges posed by the smart energy transition in the net-zero carbon emissions context for various universities worldwide and in the UK and has published a paper on ‘Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews’ with her findings. Finally, with the use of the UCL-developed 3DStock and SimStock models, she is producing a UCL Bloomsbury ‘digital twin’ that will be used to integrate campus information and the analysis done to underpin a framework for smart energy integration proposals.

The model will be completed by July 2022.

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