Stand-Alone Microgrid with 100% Renewable Energy: A Case Study with Hybrid Solar PV-Battery-Hydrogen

Furat Dawood, Shafiullah Gm and Martin Anda
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Furat Dawood: Discipline of Engineering and Energy, College of Science, Health, Engineering and Education, Murdoch University, Murdoch 6150, WA, Australia
Shafiullah Gm: Discipline of Engineering and Energy, College of Science, Health, Engineering and Education, Murdoch University, Murdoch 6150, WA, Australia
Martin Anda: Discipline of Engineering and Energy, College of Science, Health, Engineering and Education, Murdoch University, Murdoch 6150, WA, Australia

Sustainability, 2020, vol. 12, issue 5, 1-17

Abstract: A 100% renewable energy-based stand-alone microgrid system can be developed by robust energy storage systems to stabilize the variable and intermittent renewable energy resources. Hydrogen as an energy carrier and energy storage medium has gained enormous interest globally in recent years. Its use in stand-alone or off-grid microgrids for both the urban and rural communities has commenced recently in some locations. Therefore, this research evaluates the techno-economic feasibility of renewable energy-based systems using hydrogen as energy storage for a stand-alone/off-grid microgrid. Three case scenarios in a microgrid environment were identified and investigated in order to select an optimum solution for a remote community by considering the energy balance and techno-economic optimization. The “HOMER Pro” energy modelling and simulating software was used to compare the energy balance, economics and environmental impact amongst the proposed scenarios. The simulation results showed that the hydrogen-battery hybrid energy storage system is the most cost-effective scenario, though all developed scenarios are technically possible and economically comparable in the long run, while each has different merits and challenges. It has been shown that the proposed hybrid energy systems have significant potentialities in electrifying remote communities with low energy generation costs, as well as a contribution to the reduction of their carbon footprint and to ameliorating the energy crisis to achieve a sustainable future.

Keywords: hydrogen; renewable energy; power to hydrogen to power; hybrid battery-hydrogen storage RE storage; stand-alone microgrid (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (36)

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