\"Distributed Solar Generation (DSG) using small-scale Photo-Voltaic (PV) is an evolving technology with increasingly growing market penetration due to its significant benefits to consumers and broader power systems. DSG is sustainable, provides reliability, and is cost-effective where solar energy is abundant. However, the increasingly growing adoption of DSG creates uncertainties in forecasting electric power demand and market behavior. It also causes concerns of a “utility death spiral”. To this end, the goal of this research is to critically analyze the diffusion and benefits of DSG in the electric power infrastructure as a complex System-of-Systems (SoS). Specifically, this dissertation addresses the following five objectives: (1) investigating the relationship between the electric power sector and socio-economic parameters; (2) developing a complex simulation of electric power infrastructure and market impacted by the adoption of DSG; (3) exploring dynamic pricing by generating companies and the occurrence of a utility death spiral; (4) studying the impact of incentives on the adoption of DSG using complex sensitivity analysis; and (5) examining the benefits of DSG in reducing the vulnerability of the power infrastructure against natural disasters. As such, and as shown from the results, this research provided a novel holistic investigation of the complex relationship between DSG adoption and the electric power market and infrastructure in a multidisciplinary approach that combines infrastructure engineering, electric power engineering, economics, social science, machine learning, and computer modeling. The findings should benefit researchers, power system operators, and policy makers towards a sustainable DSG diffusion\"-- Abstract, p. iv
","abstract_html":"<p>"Distributed Solar Generation (DSG) using small-scale Photo-Voltaic (PV) is an evolving technology with increasingly growing market penetration due to its significant benefits to consumers and broader power systems. DSG is sustainable, provides reliability, and is cost-effective where solar energy is abundant. However, the increasingly growing adoption of DSG creates uncertainties in forecasting electric power demand and market behavior. It also causes concerns of a “utility death spiral”. To this end, the goal of this research is to critically analyze the diffusion and benefits of DSG in the electric power infrastructure as a complex System-of-Systems (SoS). Specifically, this dissertation addresses the following five objectives: (1) investigating the relationship between the electric power sector and socio-economic parameters; (2) developing a complex simulation of electric power infrastructure and market impacted by the adoption of DSG; (3) exploring dynamic pricing by generating companies and the occurrence of a utility death spiral; (4) studying the impact of incentives on the adoption of DSG using complex sensitivity analysis; and (5) examining the benefits of DSG in reducing the vulnerability of the power infrastructure against natural disasters. As such, and as shown from the results, this research provided a novel holistic investigation of the complex relationship between DSG adoption and the electric power market and infrastructure in a multidisciplinary approach that combines infrastructure engineering, electric power engineering, economics, social science, machine learning, and computer modeling. The findings should benefit researchers, power system operators, and policy makers towards a sustainable DSG diffusion"-- Abstract, p. iv</p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Ali, Gasser"],"institution":"Missouri University of Science and Technology","degree_name":"Ph. D. in Civil Engineering","degree_level":null,"degree_discipline":null,"degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":[],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":null,"date_issued":"","date_published":null,"updated_at":"2026-07-24T03:18:18Z","subjects":["Agent-Based Modeling","Complex Systems Simulation","Distributed Energy Resources","Distributed Solar Generation","Electric Infrastructure","Civil and Environmental Engineering","Civil Engineering","Engineering"],"languages":[],"rights":[],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://scholarsmine.mst.edu/doctoral_dissertations/3240","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Ali, Gasser"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:type","label":"Dc Type","values":["Dissertation - Open Access"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Ph. D. in Civil Engineering"]},{"key":"thesis:institution_name","label":"Thesis Institution Name","values":["Missouri University of Science and Technology"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["Agent-Based Modeling","Complex Systems Simulation","Distributed Energy Resources","Distributed Solar Generation","Electric Infrastructure","Civil and Environmental Engineering","Civil Engineering","Engineering"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://scholarsmine.mst.edu/doctoral_dissertations/3240"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["\"Distributed Solar Generation (DSG) using small-scale Photo-Voltaic (PV) is an evolving technology with increasingly growing market penetration due to its significant benefits to consumers and broader power systems. DSG is sustainable, provides reliability, and is cost-effective where solar energy is abundant. However, the increasingly growing adoption of DSG creates uncertainties in forecasting electric power demand and market behavior. It also causes concerns of a “utility death spiral”. To this end, the goal of this research is to critically analyze the diffusion and benefits of DSG in the electric power infrastructure as a complex System-of-Systems (SoS). Specifically, this dissertation addresses the following five objectives: (1) investigating the relationship between the electric power sector and socio-economic parameters; (2) developing a complex simulation of electric power infrastructure and market impacted by the adoption of DSG; (3) exploring dynamic pricing by generating companies and the occurrence of a utility death spiral; (4) studying the impact of incentives on the adoption of DSG using complex sensitivity analysis; and (5) examining the benefits of DSG in reducing the vulnerability of the power infrastructure against natural disasters. As such, and as shown from the results, this research provided a novel holistic investigation of the complex relationship between DSG adoption and the electric power market and infrastructure in a multidisciplinary approach that combines infrastructure engineering, electric power engineering, economics, social science, machine learning, and computer modeling. The findings should benefit researchers, power system operators, and policy makers towards a sustainable DSG diffusion\"-- Abstract, p. iv
"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["PROMOTING DISTRIBUTED ENERGY DEPLOYMENT AND DIFFUSION FOR SUSTAINABLE CIVIL INFRASTRUCTURE USING MULTI-AGENT BASED MODELING AND QUANTITATIVE ANALYTICS"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:creator":["Ali, Gasser"],"dc:description.abstract":["\"Distributed Solar Generation (DSG) using small-scale Photo-Voltaic (PV) is an evolving technology with increasingly growing market penetration due to its significant benefits to consumers and broader power systems. DSG is sustainable, provides reliability, and is cost-effective where solar energy is abundant. However, the increasingly growing adoption of DSG creates uncertainties in forecasting electric power demand and market behavior. It also causes concerns of a “utility death spiral”. To this end, the goal of this research is to critically analyze the diffusion and benefits of DSG in the electric power infrastructure as a complex System-of-Systems (SoS). Specifically, this dissertation addresses the following five objectives: (1) investigating the relationship between the electric power sector and socio-economic parameters; (2) developing a complex simulation of electric power infrastructure and market impacted by the adoption of DSG; (3) exploring dynamic pricing by generating companies and the occurrence of a utility death spiral; (4) studying the impact of incentives on the adoption of DSG using complex sensitivity analysis; and (5) examining the benefits of DSG in reducing the vulnerability of the power infrastructure against natural disasters. As such, and as shown from the results, this research provided a novel holistic investigation of the complex relationship between DSG adoption and the electric power market and infrastructure in a multidisciplinary approach that combines infrastructure engineering, electric power engineering, economics, social science, machine learning, and computer modeling. The findings should benefit researchers, power system operators, and policy makers towards a sustainable DSG diffusion\"-- Abstract, p. iv
"],"dc:identifier":["https://scholarsmine.mst.edu/doctoral_dissertations/3240"],"dc:subject":["Agent-Based Modeling","Complex Systems Simulation","Distributed Energy Resources","Distributed Solar Generation","Electric Infrastructure","Civil and Environmental Engineering","Civil Engineering","Engineering"],"dc:title":["PROMOTING DISTRIBUTED ENERGY DEPLOYMENT AND DIFFUSION FOR SUSTAINABLE CIVIL INFRASTRUCTURE USING MULTI-AGENT BASED MODELING AND QUANTITATIVE ANALYTICS"],"dc:type":["Dissertation - Open Access"],"thesis:degree_name":["Ph. D. in Civil Engineering"],"thesis:institution_name":["Missouri University of Science and Technology"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-24T03:18:18Z"}