Thermal Energy Modeling in Microgrids with Urban Air Mobility

Dear Colleagues,

Due to the need for a low-carbon economy, a high electric supply reliability, and the introduction of emerging technology, the deployment of microgrids is rapidly increasing. With a large acceleration in relation to renewable energy sources and with those that have an intermittent nature, there is a need to use energy storage systems (ESSs). However, typical battery-based ESSs are expensive, whereas thermal storage systems (ETSs) are a cheaper option that can meet the thermal heating demand, thereby allowing for the efficient use of diesel- and renewable-based distributed generation (DG) units. Therefore, there is a requirement to model ETSs and examine their contribution in the context of microgrid integration. As urban air mobility (UAM) emerges as a transformative solution for future transportation, the integration of microgrids and thermal energy management becomes critical to ensuring efficient, sustainable, and resilient operations.

Microgrids can effectively integrate thermal, cooling, and electrical energy resources, as well as loads, to satisfy customer demands while providing technical, social, economic, and environmental benefits. An effective integration of microgrids with thermal energy systems requires optimization techniques that can minimize investment and risk while maximizing the deployment of the available technology. For example, with the consideration of seasonal storage capability, the low temporal resolution of available data can lead to inaccuracies in analysis and missed insights, potentially reducing the ability to monitor and respond to changes effectively.

Methods, recommendations, guidelines, good practice, and strategies are needed for the optimal use of technologies such as solar thermal, water heating, space heating, and thermal energy storage. A design should be available so that thermal energy storage systems can optimally store the heat, which can then be used in times when it is hardly available, such as in winter.

This Special Issue aims to publish multidisciplinary research on novel and scientific technological insights, principles, algorithms, and experiences relating to technologies, case studies, approaches, and visionary ideas to innovative or practice solutions to cope with the real-world challenges for thermal energy modeling in microgrids to support the growing demands of UAM infrastructure, including vertiports, battery charging systems, and climate-responsive air traffic management.

Topics of interest include, but are not limited to, the following:

1. Thermal energy storage and management in microgrid-powered UAM hubs.
2. Battery thermal regulation for electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft.
3. Microgrid optimization for energy-efficient vertiports.
4. Impact of urban heat islands on UAM flight performance.
5. AI and machine learning applications in thermal modeling for UAM microgrids.
6. Renewable energy integration and waste heat recovery for urban air mobility.
7. Resilience strategies for microgrid-based UAM infrastructure.
8. Thermal energy storage in microgrid design, optimization, operation, and control involving renewable energy generation characteristics.
9. Applications, energy trading, and social issues.
10. Standards development towards successful system implementation.
11. Behavioral changes and monitoring—challenges, strategies, and lessons learned.
12. Demonstration projects.
13. Modeling and assessment of integrated multi-energy systems.

Dr. Zhuoli Zhao
Dr. Yujie Yuan
Dr. Chun Sing Lai
Prof. Dr. Loi Lei Lai
Guest Editors

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• electric thermal storage modeling
• energy management systems
• seasonal storage
• cooling, heating and power-based microgrids
• asset management
• thermal storage system
• standards development
• airport microgrid
• demonstration project
• energy trading