Socio-technical evolution of Decentralized Energy Systems: A critical review and implications for urban planning and policy Ali M. Adil a , Yekang Ko b,n a Urban Planning and Public Policy Program, College of Architecture, Planning and Public Affairs, University of Texas at Arlington, United States b Department of Planning and Landscape Architecture, College of Architecture, Planning and Public Affairs, University of Texas at Arlington, United States article info Article history: Received 2 July 2015 Received in revised form 15 October 2015 Accepted 17 December 2015 Keywords: Decentralized Energy Systems Renewable energy Smart Grids Sociotechnical theory Urban energy planning Urban energy systems abstract The growth of Decentralized Energy Systems (DES) signals a new frontier in urban energy planning and design of local energy systems. As affordability of renewable energy technologies (RET) increases, cities and urban regions become the venues, not only for energy consumption but also for generation and distribution, which calls for systemic and paradigmatic change in local energy infrastructure. The decentralizing transitions of urban energy systems, particularly solar photovoltaic and thermal tech- nologies, require a comprehensive assessment of their sociotechnical co-evolution – how technologies and social responses evolve together and how their co-evolution affects urban planning and energy policies. So far, urban planning literature has mainly focused on the impact of physical urban forms on efficiency of energy consumption, overlooking how the dynamics of new energy technologies and associated social responses affect local systems of energy infrastructure, the built environments and their residents. This paper provides an interdisciplinary review on the co-evolving technical and social dynamics of DES focusing on Distributed Generation (DG), MicroGrids (MG), and Smart MicroGrids (SMG), in order to draw insights for their integration in urban planning and policy, in particular reference to climate change mitigation and adaptation planning. & 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. Contents 1. Introduction ....................................................................................................... 1026 1.1. Distributed Generation ........................................................................................ 1027 1.2. Microgrids .................................................................................................. 1027 1.3. Smart MicroGrids............................................................................................. 1027 2. Socio-technical evolution of Decentralized Energy Systems ................................................................. 1028 2.1. Distributed Generation ........................................................................................ 1028 2.1.1. Growth of Distributed Generation ........................................................................ 1028 2.1.2. Motivations of DG consumers ............................................................................ 1028 2.1.3. Challenges of increasing DG deployment ................................................................... 1028 2.2. Microgrids .................................................................................................. 1028 2.2.1. Improvement in technical sophistication over isolated DG installations........................................... 1028 2.2.2. Modes and methods of efficient microgrid operation ......................................................... 1028 2.2.3. Community Microgrids and consumer–utility relationships .................................................... 1029 2.3. Smart MicroGrids............................................................................................. 1029 2.3.1. Smart MicroGrids: building blocks of Smart Grid ............................................................ 1029 2.3.2. Technology-enabled innovation at the distribution scale ...................................................... 1029 2.3.3. Technology-enabled consumer participation and consumption psychology ........................................ 1030 3. Interdisciplinary discussion of socio-technical dynamics ................................................................... 1030 4. Implications for urban planning and policy .............................................................................. 1031 Contents lists available at ScienceDirect journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/rser Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.rser.2015.12.079 1364-0321/& 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. n Correspondence to: College of Architecture, Planning and Public Affairs, University of Texas at Arlington, Box 19108, 601W, Nedderman Drive, Arlington 76019, TX, United States. Tel.: þ1 817 272 1260; fax: þ1 817 272 5098. E-mail addresses: alimohammed.adil@mavs.uta.edu (A.M. Adil), yekangko@uta.edu (Y. Ko). Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 57 (2016) 1025–1037