PV - Battery - Diesel Standalone Hybrid System for Campus of International Burch University

Abstract

Today renewable energy is playing a key role in the production of power. These sources are used more and more because they are unlimited and environmentally friendly. Plants of such sources are much smaller and are placed close to consumers, which directly leads to reduced losses and the production of better power in the system. For the past ten years, photovoltaic systems have had more growth compared with the others. Solar energy is the energy that occurs from the sun and is stored in the battery. In this case study, a PV-battery hybrid system for International Burch University will be modeled by taking into account yearly loads from the year 2019. Thus, the study evaluates the techno-economic aspects of using this hybrid system at the university. The system consists of a photovoltaic module, a converter, and a battery. The main goal is to make a favorable solution, which is efficient and environmentally friendly, by integrating all these elements into the system. After all of the analysis was done in the HOMER software, which has different optimization algorithms, it is concluded that the best solution is the configuration made exactly of a PV-Diesel-Battery hybrid system. Its return on investment is 99% in 1 year, with an internal rate of return of 100%. Initial capital costs are 225,000 USD, while net present costs are about 3.67 million USD.