Next-power: Next-generation framework for secure and sustainable energy trading in the metaverse.

The rapid emergence of the Metaverse as a leading virtual digital technology is driving innovation in power generation. The increasing demand for sustainable energy and the rise of the Metaverse has provided an opportunity to develop a secure and sustainable energy trading system using Smart Grid (SG), Virtual Power Plants (VPP), Digital Twins (DT), and Blockchain. Integrating VPP with SG can optimize the utilization of distributed energy resources and improve the stability and reliability of the energy supply in the metaverse. Meanwhile, the use of DT can facilitate the efficient management of VPPs by simulating their behavior and performance to identify potential issues and test different scenarios for improvement. Blockchain is a rising technology that enables decentralized and trustworthy applications, making it a promising tool for creating decentralized energy trading systems in the Metaverse. In this context, we propose Next-Power, a next-generation framework for secure and sustainable energy trading in the Metaverse. Next-Power consists of: (1) an automated blockchain-based fair payment of energy traded between consumers and prosumers in the Metaverse, it uses Ethereum's smart contracts to determine the price at which energy is traded using a cooperative game theory (i. e. , reverse auction); (2) an access token-based blockchain system that ensures a secure mutual authentication between consumers and prosumers; and (3) a lightweight on-chain collaborative reputation scheme that keeps track of prosumers reputation as well as consumers credibility in the Metaverse in a fully decentralized manner. The system of Next-Power is implemented, tested, and deployed on the Ethereum official test network. Next-Power is a promising framework for the future of energy trading in the Metaverse, as demonstrated by its successful experimental results in terms of flexibility, efficiency, security, and cost-effectiveness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]