A Study Of Renewable Energy Resources For Backup Power Applications

Years from now, with the estimated growth in world population and economic activities, fossil fuels which currently generate more than half of the world’s energy needs would not be able to keep up with this pace because it is a non-renewable source of energy, in other words exhaustible. Nigeria today is witnessing perhaps the worst power generation and distribution crisis in many years. To redress this situation, experts in the field of green energy have since lent their views in support of pursuing renewable energy in delivering power and as well as powering even the remotest parts which are without grid infrastructure. Indeed, the need for alternative energy sources is even more compelling as Nigeria is currently predominantly dependent on electricity generating plants, which rely on gas-fired thermal energy. It’s no news that the continuous use of these resources over the years has made a negative impact on our environment. This has prompted scientists and experts in this field to look elsewhere for energy solutions. The result of this probe is RENEWABLE ENERGY.

Renewable energy in a nutshell is natural energy which cannot be exhausted. That is, it can be used repeatedly without end. This work explains renewable energy as Nigeria future reliable source of energy.

The paper focuses on the study of renewable energy as a backup means of electricity system. The main objective is to determine the influence of achieving the goals for renewable energy penetration on the need for backup in electricity system.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

COVER PAGE

TITLE PAGE

APPROVAL PAGE

DEDICATION

ACKNOWELDGEMENT

ABSTRACT

CHAPTER ONE

1.0      INTRODUCTION

1.1      BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY

• AIM OF THE PROJECT
• ADVANTAGES OF THE PROJECT
• PROBLEMS OF THE PROJECT
• BENEFIT OF THE PROJECT

CHAPTER TWO

LITERATURE REVIEW

• OVERVIEW OF RENEWABLE ENERGY
• HISTORICAL BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY
• REVIEW OF RENEWABLE ENERGY TECHNOLOGIES
• RENEWABLE ENERGY IN DEVELOPING COUNTRIES
• A RENEWABLE ENERGY SYSTEM IN A RURAL AREA

 

CHAPTER THREE

3.0     METHODOLOGY

3.1      SOURCES OF RENEWABLE ENERGY FOR A GREEN AND CLEAN WORLD

3.2     INTEGRATION METHOD OF RENEWABLE ENERGY SOURCES

3.3        INTEGRATION METHOD OF WIND RENEWABLE ENERGY SOURCES

3.4      GRID CODES OF WIND INTEGRATION

3.5      SOLAR ENERGY INTEGRATION

3.6     WIND AND SOLAR ENERGY INTERGRATION

3.7      ADVANTAGE OF WIND AND SOLAR – HYBRID SYSTEM

3.8      GRID CONGESTION

CHAPTER FOUR

4.0      RESULT ANALYSIS

• SMART GRID TECHNOLOGY AND APPLICATIONS
• RELIABILITY OF THE SMART GRID

CHAPTER FIVE

• CONCLUSION
• REFERENCES

CHAPTER ONE

1.0                                                        INTRODUCTION

The growing use of renewable energy requires additional techniques and analyses of its influences on the economy and the reliability of the electrical system in order to provide the system operator the tools to compensate for the intermittency of renewable sources in real time, considering the actual reaction times of the fossil and pumped storage units and their availabilities to back up renewables [1–3]. The challenge of combining energy storage units with the electrical network, aiming towards mechanisms for smart consumption and encouraging flexible generation, is becoming feasible in light of recent developments in communications and smart grid. While it is clear to all that, in parallel with developing storage technologies, it is necessary to develop smart grids that will be able to provide a solution and tools to the system operator to overcome the undesirable phenomena stemming from the intermittency of renewable energy sources. Nevertheless, the value of energy storage is captured best with additional renewable energy generation, thus reducing the use of conventional generation. Valuing the function of storage with renewable sources requires continuous analysis, improved data logging, and developing new techniques in order to assess the activity of smarter and more dynamic networks in the future.

The main objective of this paper is to determine the influence of achieving the goals for renewable energy penetration on the need for backup electricity system. This work presents the current situation and the expected undesirable effects resulting from the intermittency of electricity generated by wind and solar power stations as well as solutions to mitigating these phenomena. In fossil-based power stations, it is possible to store fuels on the site and supply fuel to the stations continuously. Alternatively, it is possible to decrease or increase load in accordance with the requirements of the system operator. In professional terms, these stations are called “dispatchable.” On the contrary, wind and solar stations rely on wind and irradiation intensity that are not controllable by the power station owner and the system operator; that is, they are “nondispatchable.” This operational deficiency is expressed in the assumption regarding the need for other resources—fossil units, pumped storage, demand response, electronic and chemical storage technologies, and so forth in order to maintain required system reliability; that is, the assumption is that, without these backup resources, replacing fossil plants with renewable plants, at least at a certain replacement level, is likely to cause system reliability and survivability to fall below set targets. The conflict between reliability and survivability targets for the electricity system and targets for renewable energy integration into the electricity market poses challenges to long-term planning and policy making for the electricity market.

The paper studies the backup needs and their characteristics, assuming that the Government’s goal of integration renewable energy source at is achieved. In order to calculate the backup capacity required for renewables, SAS software will be used to calculate the static coincidence factor for instability from all future planned renewable technologies together and for presenting various solutions by constructing a model to forecast the real-time output of renewable power stations including examining various backup possibilities in order to minimize the need for fossil resources for system backup.

1.1                                           BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY

Renewable energy is energy that comes from resources which are naturally replenished on a human timescale such as sunlight, wind, rain, tides, waves, and geothermal heat. Renewable energy replaces conventional fuels in four distinct areas: electricity generation, air and water heating/cooling, motor fuels, and rural (off-grid) energy services. Renewable energy is one of the means of tackling the global challenges of climate change.

It is now being seen by many people around the world as a cost-effective development solution for developed countries and a developing country such as Nigeria. A report released by international development organisation Oxfam argues that renewable energy is in fact a more affordable energy source than coal for poor people in developing countries around the world. The report argues that as a result of the changing energy landscape around the world, the decreasing price of renewable energies, and the often remote location of the majority of people who don’t have access to electricity, renewable energy may actually offer a more reliable and effective energy source. According to the report of Dr Simon Bradshaw, “Four out of five people without electricity live in rural areas that are often not connected to a centralised energy grid, so local, renewable energy solutions offer a much more affordable, practical and healthy solution. In Nigeria, there is rapid population growth, increase in industrial activities and more energy is consumed, resulting in environmental pollution and economic difficulties. There is need for renewable energy resources utilization globally. For example, the country has adequate fuel supplies (world’s sixth largest exporter of crude oil) yet more than 70 percent of its inhabitants do not have access to electricity for their domestic needs. Renewable energy penetration in Nigeria is still in its nascent stage. It is below that of other widely known energy sources due to technological and economic drawbacks, in addition to deep rooted policy inertia. The only source of renewable energy in the country is hydro-power and biomass; wind and solar energy have only been deployed in minuscule amount. Hydroelectric power plants with installed capacity and those coming on stream cumulatively accounting for roughly 13,000MW. Nigeria faces serious energy crisis due to declining electricity generation from domestic power plants which are basically dilapidated, obsolete, and unreliable and in an appalling state of disrepair, reflecting the poor maintenance culture in the country and gross inefficiency of the public utility provider. Solar energy in Nigeria is majorly used in urban areas for street lighting, while in some rural areas it is used for irrigation project and water pumping. The country has a target in 2007 to produce 7% of its 2025 energy needs from renewable with solar and hydro as the major priority. According to a report by Charles Opara-Ndudu in Thisday Newspaper of 15th March 2015, Nigeria has the potential to exploit its abundant solar energy resources considering its geographic location around the equatorial sun-belt. The country receives abundant sunshine all year round ranging from 6.70kwh/m2/day in Borno State to roughly 4.06kwh/m2/d to 5.86kwh/m2/d in locations such as Calabar in Cross Rivers State. The Federal Capital Territory has a daily horizontal solar radiation ranging from a high of 6.07/kwh/m2/d to a low of 4.42/kwh/m2/d during the month of August. This level of solar radiation across the country can support huge deployment of solar power infrastructures designed to primarily feed in to the regional power distribution entities. The size of the area currently occupied by the insurgents in Borno State can supply sufficient power required by the entire country if well harnessed. Despite the glaring economic constraints of solar power generation, its limited competitiveness, a low capacity factor, in addition to high cost of PV cells, renewable power sources mainly solar power development can support peak time energy consumption and can add considerable capacity directly to the national grid or embedded network of distribution enclaves. In fact, Christine Lins, Executive Secretary of the Renewable Energy Network for the 21st Century, noted that “last year, for the first time in 40 years, economic and emissions growth have decoupled”. The Renewable Energy Network was recently responsible for producing a global study of renewable energy growth over the last 10 years. What they find now, is quite surprising, even to its authors. “If you look back 10 years ago, Renewable energies were providing 3 per cent of global energy, and now, they provide something close to 22 per cent, so that has really sky-rocketed” noted Christine. This is being led most obviously by countries like Uruguay, which aims to generate 90% of its electricity from renewable sources by 2015, and Costa Rica, which maintained 100% renewable energy generation for the first 100 days of this year. These countries are not alone and are fast becoming the normal rather than the ‘alternative’. Even small developing countries such as Burundi, Jordan and Kenya are leading the world in investments in renewable energies as a percentage of GDP.

1.2                                                   AIM OF THE PROJECT

The main objective of this paper is to determine the influence of achieving the goals for renewable energy penetration on the need for backup electricity system. This work presents the current situation and the expected undesirable effects resulting from the intermittency of electricity generated by wind and solar power stations as well as solutions to mitigating these phenomena.

1.3                                          ADVANTAGES OF THE PROJECT

There are many advantages of renewable energy sources, many of these advantages are seen as below:

1. Green energy – environment friendly.

Unlike fossil fuels (which are non renewable energy sources and which release harmful substances such as CO2 and CO when burned), renewable energy sources have a very low impact on the environment. In fact, most of them are positively environmentally friendly.

2. Sustainable energy – limitless supply.

Because, crucially, they do not run out, renewable energy sources are sustainable. This makes them viable for use well into the future.

3. Low operating cost.

Once they have been set up, renewable energy apparatus such as wind farms and solar panels, are very cost effective to use and operate. As such, they are nice and cheap sources of energy.

4. Can be integrated into daily life.

Renewable energy sources can be harnessed in a way that does not disrupt daily life. For example, cows can graze in the same field as wind turbines are at work, and solar panels can be placed on the roof of a family home to create a handy energy source.

5. Able to be stored.

Many people do not realize this but renewable energy sources can be stored. For example, solar energy can be stored in solar panels so that it can be used even during cloudy weather or during the winter.

1.4                                            PROBLEMS OF THE PROJECT

There are also several problems of renewable energy sources which serves as a limitation for achieving the goal of using it as a backup electricity system. Such problems are:

1. high initial cost.

Though once they are up and running they are usually very cost effective, solar panels and wind farms (as well as other renewable energy generators such as hydroelectric dams) can be costly to install.

2. Not suitable for all climates.

Solar energy generators are not suitable for very cold or dark climates, whilst wind energy generators are not suitable for parts of the world where there is not very much wind. So, not all communities throughout the world can use all types of renewable energy sources and this somewhat limits the use of this type of energy, considered on an international scale.

3. Difficult to transport.

Whilst coal or wood can simply be loaded up onto a truck and taken to wherever it needs to go, the renewable energy that is generated from (for instance) a solar panel cannot be transported so easily. This is something that may change in the future. For example, it is already possible to store the energy generated from the sun’s rays in specialized cells (which may be thought of as kind of portable batteries).

4. Not the most efficient energy sources.

Fossil fuels such as coal and oil offer more energy per unit that many renewable sources of energy. This means that renewable sources of energy are not always energy efficient, and one will need to generate a lot more energy to heat a home from a renewable source compared to a non renewable source. Again, with new technologies, this may well change for the better in the future.

5. Reliant on certain technologies.

Renewable energy sources can often only be harnessed with the use of specialized technologies. For example, solar energy is captured in photovoltaic cells. At the moment, not all communities throughout the world have access to these technologies, or to the know how that enables them to be created and harnessed.

1.6                                               BENEFIT OF THE PROJECT

The resulting benefits include:

1. Reduced need for conventional generation,
2. Increased value of the electricity generated by variable RE generation,
3. Reduced suboptimal operation of conventional generation due to reduced need for ramping, and
4. Reduced need for other power conditioning equipment to accommodate large wind farms and high penetrations of distributed photovoltaics.

Keyword: sustainable energy sources, 5 renewable energy sources, renewable fuel sources, eia renewable energy