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| Main Authors: | , , |
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| Format: | Preprint |
| Published: |
2025
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://arxiv.org/abs/2508.20059 |
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| _version_ | 1866916981211398144 |
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| author | Corre, Thomas Le Cardinal, Julien Bušić, Ana |
| author_facet | Corre, Thomas Le Cardinal, Julien Bušić, Ana |
| contents | Controlling large populations of thermostatically controlled loads (TCLs), such as water heaters, poses significant challenges due to the need to balance global constraints (e.g., grid stability) with individual requirements (e.g., physical limits and quality of service). In this work, we introduce a novel framework based on Moment Constrained Optimal Transport (MCOT) for distributed control of TCLs. By formulating the control problem as an optimal transport problem with moment constraints, our approach integrates global consumption constraints and physical feasibility conditions into the control design. This problem with high (or infinite) dimensionality can be reduced to a much lower finite-dimensional problem. The structure of this problem allows for computing the gradient with Monte Carlo methods by generating trajectories of TCLs. Contrary to all previous work, in our MCOT framework, it is possible to choose the sampling law, which considerably speeds up the calculations. This algorithm mitigates the need for extensive state-space discretization and significantly reduces computational complexity compared to existing methods. Numerical experiments in a water heater case study demonstrate that our MCOT-based method effectively coordinates TCLs under various constraints. We further extend our approach to an online setting, illustrating its practical applicability on simulated data. |
| format | Preprint |
| id |
arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2508_20059 |
| institution | arXiv |
| publishDate | 2025 |
| record_format | arxiv |
| spellingShingle | Moment Constrained Optimal Transport for Thermostatically Controlled Loads Corre, Thomas Le Cardinal, Julien Bušić, Ana Optimization and Control Controlling large populations of thermostatically controlled loads (TCLs), such as water heaters, poses significant challenges due to the need to balance global constraints (e.g., grid stability) with individual requirements (e.g., physical limits and quality of service). In this work, we introduce a novel framework based on Moment Constrained Optimal Transport (MCOT) for distributed control of TCLs. By formulating the control problem as an optimal transport problem with moment constraints, our approach integrates global consumption constraints and physical feasibility conditions into the control design. This problem with high (or infinite) dimensionality can be reduced to a much lower finite-dimensional problem. The structure of this problem allows for computing the gradient with Monte Carlo methods by generating trajectories of TCLs. Contrary to all previous work, in our MCOT framework, it is possible to choose the sampling law, which considerably speeds up the calculations. This algorithm mitigates the need for extensive state-space discretization and significantly reduces computational complexity compared to existing methods. Numerical experiments in a water heater case study demonstrate that our MCOT-based method effectively coordinates TCLs under various constraints. We further extend our approach to an online setting, illustrating its practical applicability on simulated data. |
| title | Moment Constrained Optimal Transport for Thermostatically Controlled Loads |
| topic | Optimization and Control |
| url | https://arxiv.org/abs/2508.20059 |