Optimised Model for Community-Based Hybrid Energy System ()
Abstract
Hybrid energy system is an excellent solution for electri?cation of remote rural areas where the grid extension is dif?cult and not economical. Such system incorporates a combination of one or several renewable energy sources such as solar photovoltaic, wind energy, micro-hydro and may be conventional generators for backup. This paper discusses different system components of hybrid energy system and develops a general model to ?nd an optimal combination of energy components for a typical rural community minimizing the life cycle cost.
The developed model will help in sizing hybrid energy system hardware and in selecting the operating options. Mi-cro-hydro-wind systems are found to be the optimal combination for the electri?cation of the rural villages in Western Ghats (Kerala) India, based on the case study. The optimal operation shows a unit cost of Rs. 6.5/kW h with the selected hybrid energy system with 100% renewable energy contribution eliminating the need for conventional diesel genera-tor.© 2006 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
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"Optimised Model for Community-Based Hybrid Energy System," Smart Grid and Renewable Energy, Vol. 1 No. 1, 2009, pp. 23-28.
Conflicts of Interest
The authors declare no conflicts of interest.