Peer-to-Peer Energy Trading in a
Micro-grid Using Internet of Things and Blockchain
Mirza Jabbar Aziz Baig, M. Tariq Iqbal, Mohsin Jamil and Jahangir Khan
With advancements in renewable energy techno
logies, consumers are becoming prosumers, and renewable energy
resources are being used in distributed networks. In an isolated
distributed system, peer-to-peer (P2P) energy trading is one of
the most promising energy management solutions. In this paper,
we propose a P2P energy trading method for micro-grids using
open resources and technology. The proposed setup comprises
an Internet of Things (IoT) server to transfer energy amongst
the peers without human intervention, and an Ethereum based
private blockchain is suggested for money transfer in the form
of cryptocurrency. The IoT server enables the peers to control
and monitor self-produced energy. Arduino UNO, ACS 712 hall-
effect current sensor, and a relay are the main components used
in the hardware setup. The current sensor data is sent in real-
time to Arduino for onward communication to the IoT server.
A user-friendly interface has been developed on the server to
perform various energy trading tasks. Peers have the choice to
access the server remotely to perform energy trading tasks. The
energy trading events can be shared amongst peers through e-mail
notifications. For financial transactions, we utilized Ganache
graphical user interface (GUI) a private Ethereum blockchain
eliminating the need for financial institutions. The proposed peer-
to-peer energy trading model has been successfully tested for
energy trading between two peers. This paper provides details of
the proposed hardware and software setup and explains how low-
cost P2P energy trading can be achieved.