The conventional electrical grid is undergoing substantial growth for reliable grid operation and for more efficient and sustainable energy use. The traditional grid is now metamorphosing into a smart grid (SG) that incorporates a diverse, heterogeneous blend of operating measures such as smart appliances, meters, and renewable energy resources. With better efficient results and dependability, the SG can be described as a modern electric power grid architecture. The SG is one of the greatest potential advances as a promising solution for the energy crisis. However, it is complex and its decentralization could be of tremendous benefit. Moreover, digitalization and integration of a large number of growing connections make it a target of cyber-attacks. In this sense, blockchain is a promising SG paradigm solution that offers several excellent features. There has been considerable effort put into using blockchains in the smart grid for its decentralization and enhanced cybersecurity; however, it has not been thoroughly studied in both application and architectural perspectives. An in-depth study was conducted on blockchain-enabled SG applications. Blockchain architectures for various applications, such as the synchrophasor applications, electric vehicles, energy management systems, etc., were proposed. The purpose of this article is to provide directions for future research efforts aimed at secure and decentralized SG applications using blockchain.

Traditionally, the energy industry has been slow in adopting new disruptive technologies and the transition to a new energy market will require a new digital transformation plan, involving all parties from the energy market. Although it now seems to be an impossible and hard-to-accept scenario, especially by the big players in the industry, the pilot projects so far demonstrate that blockchain can play a major role in the future energy market, even if the technology is still in the first stages of the adoption life cycle. This article attempts to describe a solution to provide alternative irrigation systems for small farmers. The solution involves creating associations of small farmers that will use green energy from photovoltaic panels for the irrigation of agricultural lands. The efficiency of the proposed system can be monitored not only through digital hardware connected to photovoltaic panels and water pumps, but also by using the new blockchain technology that stimulates innovation and growth in the energy and a high level of automation though smart contracts. To accelerate the transition to the green energy economy, a SolarCoin version similar to the Bitcoin cryptocurrency has also been proposed, which is a utility token that creates new possibilities for energy and water trading.

The transport sector generates more than 35% of total CO₂ emissions. Electric vehicles are the future of transportation systems, and the demand for electric vehicles has grown considerably in the last few years due to government support. Companies worldwide are investing heavily in electric car charging stations based on renewable energy. This research study presents a complete design (including an appropriate energy management strategy) for a photovoltaic energy-based electric vehicle charging station (EVCS) with or without the support of a fuel cell and electrolyzer system. The parameters considered for designing the necessary capacity of the battery pack to support the required load are relative to the location-specific solar radiation (using RETScreen^® Clean Energy Management Software, Version 9.0, Government of Canada, Toronto, Canada), the efficiency of the solar panel, the used strategy, etc. The battery capacity in the EVCS design based on a power-following strategy is about 20 times smaller than that resulting in the reference design. Additionally, the cost for an EVCS design based on a power-following strategy is almost half that resulting in the reference design. An analysis of the power-following strategy was carried out according to three EVCS operating scenarios.

This paper will introduce a minimal introduction to blockchain technology, followed by a medical application (MedBlocks). The application is based on this technology, with the purpose to make medical field more efficient. Blockchain technology has the potential to revolutionize both medicine and any other field for system decentralization. This can change the whole world through efficiency and secure way to act. The objective of this paper is to show the extraordinary potential of this technology and how it will fundamentally change all aspects of receiving, transmitting and securing of information.