The scale of human accidents and the resultant damage has increased due to recent large-scale urban (building) fires, meaning there is a need to devise an effective strategy for urban disasters. In the event of a fire, it is difficult to evacuate in the early stages due to the loss of detection function, difficulty in securing visibility, and confusion over evacuation routes. Accordingly, for rapid evacuation and rescue, it is necessary to build a city-level fire safety service and digital system based on smart technology. In addition, both forest and building fires emit a large amount of carbon dioxide, which is the main cause of global warming. Therefore, we need to prepare both energy and fire management to achieve carbon neutrality by 2030. In this study, we developed an AI-based smart fire safety system for efficient urban integrated management using a city-based fire safety architecture. In addition, we designed a fire management infrastructure and an energy management system for buildings. The proposal was demonstrated by building a test bed in the A building, and the AR-based mobile/web application was tested for optimized evacuation management. Furthermore, AI-based fire detection and the optimal evacuation of occupants were implemented through deep learning-based fire information data analysis. As a result, this paper presents four points for safety and energy management, and we demonstrate that the optimization of occupant evacuation ability and energy saving can be achieved. We also analyze the efficiency of the data transfer rate to prevent data communication delays by using Virtual Edge Gateway (VEG) management. In the future, we expect that the appearance of future fire and energy management buildings through this research will produce more accurate data prediction technology and the development of cutting-edge smart technology in smart city infrastructures.
The electric vehicle (EV) industry has emerged in response to the necessity of reducing greenhouse gas emissions and combating climate change. However, as the number of EVs increases, EV charging networks are confronted with considerable obstacles pertaining to accessibility, charging time, and the equilibrium between electricity demand and supply. In this paper, we present a techno-economic analysis of EV charging stations (EVCSs) by building type. This analysis is based on public EVCS data and considers both standalone local grid operation and integrated operation of distributed energy resources (DERs) and the local grid. The analysis has significant implications for the management of the electricity grid and the utilization of sustainable energy, and can result in economic benefits for both residential, commercial, and public buildings. The analysis indicates that integrating DERs with the local grid at EV charging stations can reduce local grid usage relative to EV demand. Nevertheless, there are also complexities, such as initial investment and maintenance costs, especially the weather-dependent performance variability of solar, which require financial support mechanisms, such as subsidies or tax incentives. Future research should focus on different DER integrations, regional and seasonal variability, user behavior, installation location, policy and regulatory impacts, and detailed capital expenditure analysis. Such research will advance DER and EVCS integration and contribute to increasing the efficiency and sustainability of urban energy systems.
Smart energy technologies, services, and business models are being developed to reduce energy consumption and emissions of CO2 and greenhouse gases and to build a sustainable environment. Renewable energy is being actively developed throughout the world, and many intelligent service models related to renewable energy are being proposed. One of the representative service models is the energy prosumer. Through energy trading, the demand for renewable energy and distributed power is efficiently managed, and insufficient energy is covered through energy transaction. Moreover, various incentives can be provided, such as reduced electricity bills. However, despite such a smart service, the energy prosumer model is difficult to expand into a practical business model for application in real life. This is because the production price of renewable energy is higher than that of the actual grid, and it is difficult to accurately set the selling price, restricting the formation of the actual market between sellers and consumers. To solve this problem, this paper proposes a small-scale energy transaction model between a seller and a buyer on a peer-to-peer (P2P) basis. This model employs a virtual prosumer management system that utilizes the existing grid and realizes the power system in real time without using an energy storage system (ESS). Thus, the profits of sellers and consumers of energy transactions are maximized with an improved return on investment (ROI), and an intelligent demand management system can be established.
Energy prediction models and platforms are being developed to achieve carbon-neutral ESG, transition buildings to renewable energy, and supply sustainable energy to EV charging infrastructure. Despite numerous studies on machine learning (ML)-based prediction models for photovoltaic (PV) energy, integrating models with carbon emission analysis and an electric vehicle (EV) charging platform remains challenging. To overcome this, we propose a building-specific long short-term memory (LSTM) prediction model for PV energy supply. This model simulates the integration of EV charging platforms and offer solutions for carbon reduction. Integrating a PV energy prediction model within buildings and EV charging platforms using ICT is crucial to achieve renewable energy transition and carbon neutrality. The ML model uses data from various perspectives to derive operational strategies for energy supply to the grid. Additionally, simulations explore the integration of PV-EV charging infrastructure, EV charging control based on energy, and mechanisms for sharing energy, promoting eco-friendly charging. By comparing carbon emissions from fossil-fuel-based sources with PV energy sources, we analyze the reduction in carbon emission effects, providing a comprehensive understanding of carbon reduction and energy transition through energy prediction. In the future, we aim to secure economic viability in the building energy infrastructure market and establish a carbon-neutral city by providing a stable energy supply to buildings and EV charging infrastructure. Through ongoing research on specialized models tailored to the unique characteristics of energy domains within buildings, we aim to contribute to the resolution of inter-regional energy supply challenges and the achievement of carbon reduction.
Integrating Electric Vehicle (EV) charging stations into buildings is becoming increasingly important due to the rapid growth of private EV ownership and prolonged parking durations in residential areas. This paper proposes robust, building-integrated charging solutions that combine mobile energy storage systems (ESSs), station linkage data, and traffic volume data. The proposed system promotes eco-friendly EV usage, flexible energy management, and carbon neutrality through a polyfunctional Vehicle-to-Grid (V2G) architecture that integrates decentralized energy networks. Two core strategies are implemented: (1) configuring Virtual Power Plant (VPP)-based charging packages tailored to station types, and (2) utilizing EV batteries as distributed ESS units. K-means clustering based on spatial proximity and energy demand is followed by heuristic algorithms to improve the efficiency of mobile ESS operation. A three-layer framework is used to assess improvements in energy demand distribution, with demand-oriented VPPs deployed in high-demand zones to maximize ESS utilization. This approach enhances station stability, increases the load factor to 132.7%, and reduces emissions by 271.5 kgCO2. Economically, the system yields an annual benefit of USD 47,860, a Benefit–Cost Ratio (BCR) of 6.67, and a Levelized Cost of Energy (LCOE) of USD 37.78 per MWh. These results demonstrate the system’s economic viability and resilience, contributing to the development of a flexible and sustainable energy infrastructure for cities.