EpiSensor has created an energy monitor which connects to the internet and lets large-scale energy consumers – such as data centres – make better use of renewable energy sources and move towards a greener environment.
“If you have got a lot of renewables on the electricity system, like wind and solar, the problem with them is that they are intermittent,” says chief executive Brendan Carroll. The monitor, called a Demand Response Controller, detects changes in the supply and demand of renewable energy on the electricity grid and then responds to those changes.
The monitor has been used at commercial sites in Ireland, including Dublin Airport and Microsoft Ireland, to improve energy usage.
The device can detect problems on the electricity grid in real time and then decide to make changes on commercial industrial sites to reduce the pressure on the grid by moving energy supply to another source such as a backup generator, Mr Carroll says.
The company wants to reduce carbon emissions through widespread green energy usage. It also wants to enhance grid stability and efficiency by balancing supply and demand more effectively.
The Demand Response Controller has been deployed in projects abroad, connecting 2,500 e-scooter battery charging stations across Taiwan into a 15-megawatt virtual power plant.
