Design hybrid micropower system in mistah village using homer model

International Journal of Advanced Research in Engineering and Technology (IJARET), ISSN
0976 – 6480(Print), ISSN 0976 – 6499(Online) Volume 4, Issue 5, July – August (2013), © IAEME
218
DESIGN HYBRID MICROPOWER SYSTEM IN MISTAH VILLAGE USING
HOMER MODEL
Sameer S. Al-Juboori
Electronic and Control Engineering Dept., Kirkuk Technical College, Iraq
ABSTRACT
This paper presents a case study of a remote village dependent on agriculture currently grid
connected. The remote village consists of 10 houses. The latitude and longitude of the study area are
35° 20´ N and 43° 15´ E respectively. The proposed model consists of photovoltaic (PV) array, wind
energy subsystem, micro hydro, diesel generator and battery storage sub-system.
The aim of this paper is to present optimization of distributed energy resources DERs
includes distribution generation with battery backup and to provide a reliable, continuous,
sustainable, and good-quality electricity service to the users in the village using HOMER model.
Among 1104 simulations, 3 cases was designated and analysed. It was found that the optimal case is
wind, hydro, diesel generator, convertor and batteries. Economical Distance Limit (EDL) for optimal
case was calculated and found equal to 3.55km. Emissions were calculated and compared.
Keywords: Renewable Energy, Hybrid, Micropower, Homer.
GLOSSARY
Annualized cost: the hypothetical annual cost value that if it occurred each year of the project
lifetime would yield a net present cost equivalent to the actual net present cost.
Autonomous: not connected to a larger power transmission grid. Autonomous power systems are
often called off-grid systems.
Clearness index: the fraction of the solar radiation striking the top of the atmosphere that makes it
though the atmosphere to strike the surface of the Earth
Levelized cost of energy: the average cost per kilowatthour of electricity produced by the system.
Micropower system: a system that produces electrical and possibly thermal power to serve a nearby
load.
Net load: the load minus the renewable power available to serve the load.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ADVANCED RESEARCH IN
ENGINEERING AND TECHNOLOGY (IJARET)
ISSN 0976 - 6480 (Print)
ISSN 0976 - 6499 (Online)
Volume 4, Issue 5, July – August 2013, pp. 218-230
© IAEME: www.iaeme.com/ijaret.asp
Journal Impact Factor (2013): 5.8376 (Calculated by GISI)
www.jifactor.com
IJARET
© I A E M E

219
Replacement cost: the cost of replacing a component at the end of its useful lifetime.
Residual flow: the minimum stream flow that must bypass the hydro turbine for ecological purposes.
Unmet load: electrical load that the power system is unable to serve. Unmet load occurs when the
electrical demand exceeds the supply.
I. INTRODUCTION
Hybrid systems give the opportunity for expanding the generating capacity in order to cope
with the increasing demand in the future. Remote areas provide a big challenge to electric power
utilities[1-7]. Hybrid power systems provide an excellent solution to this problem as one can use the
natural sources available in the area e.g. the wind and/or solar energy and thereby combine multiple
sources of energy to generate electricity. The advantages of using renewable energy sources for
generating power in remote areas are obvious. The cost of transported fuel is usually expensive for
such locations. Further, using fossil fuel has many concerns on the issue of climate change and
global warming. The main disadvantage of a standalone power system using renewable energy is that
the availability of renewable energy has daily and seasonal fluctuations which results in difficulties
in regulating the output power to cope with the varying the load demand[8]. In order to design a
mini-grid hybrid power system, one has to be provided with information for the selected location.
Typical information’s required are; the load profile that should be met by the system, solar
radiation for PV generation, wind speed for the wind power generation, initial cost for each
component (diesel, renewable energy generators, battery, converter), cost of diesel fuel, annual
interest rate, project lifetime, etc. Then using these data one can perform the simulation to obtain the
best hybrid power system configuration. One of the available tools for this purpose is the HOMER
software from NREL [6].
The HOMER Micropower Optimization Model is a computer model developed by the U.S.
National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) to assist in the design of micropower systems and to
facilitate the comparison of power generation technologies across a wide range of applications.
HOMER models a power system’s physical behavior and its life-cycle cost, which is the total cost of
installing and operating the system over its life span[9-10]. HOMER allows the modeler to compare
many different design options based on their technical and economic merits.
A micropower system is a system that generates electricity, and possibly heat, to serve a
nearby load. Such a system may employ any combination of electrical generation and storage
technologies and may be grid-connected or autonomous, meaning separate from any transmission
grid. HOMER can model grid-connected and off-grid micropower systems serving electric and
thermal loads, and comprising any combination of photovoltaic (PV) modules, wind turbines, small
hydro, biomass power, reciprocating engine generators, microturbines, fuel cells, batteries, and
hydrogen storage[11-14].
The analysis and design of micropower systems can be challenging, due to the large number
of design options and the uncertainty in key parameters, such as load size and future fuel price.
Renewable power sources add further complexity because their power output may be intermittent,
seasonal, and nondispatchable, and the availability of renewable resources may be uncertain.
HOMER was designed to overcome these challenges[15-19].
II. PROPOSED SYSTEM
Mistah is a 10 houses village on the Little Zab river, 5km to the west of Al-Abbasy town in
Kirkuk city in Iraq. The latitude and longitude of the village are 35° 20´ N and 43° 15´ E
respectively as shown in Fig.1.

220
HOMER software, has been used to find out the best energy efficient renewable based hybrid
system options for Mistah village. The proposed design is shown in Fig.2.
The total electrical load consumption is 395kWh/d. The load profile is shown in Fig.3.
Figure 1: Mistah Village on the Little Zab river
Figure 2: The proposed system

221
Figure 3: Village daily and seasonal load profile
III. SOLAR POWER PROFILE
Solar radiation for this study area was obtained from the NASA Surface Meteorology and
Solar Energy website [20]. An average solar radiation of 5.24kWh/m2
/day and a clearness index of
0.632 were identified for the village. The installation cost of PV array is taken $7000/kW and
replacement cost is $6000/kW. Operation and maintenance (O&M) cost is $1000/year and lifetime is
25 years[21]. A derating factor of 80% is applied to each panel to account for the degrading factors
caused by temperature, soiling, tilt, shading etc. The Global horizontal radiations are shown in Fig 4.
Figure 4: Global horizontal radiation of study area
IV. MICRO HYDRO TURBINE
In the study area, the stream has a monthly average flow of 890 L/s, Fig.5. With design flow
of 1500L/s (1.5 m3/s), 1.3m head and 75% efficiency, it is determined that a run-of-river type micro
hydro plant of 15 kW rated capacity can be installed. The capital cost for the installation of micro
hydro is taken as $20,000 with replacement cost of $18,000 and operation and maintenance (O&M)

222
cost of $300 per year Some useful calculation tools are available at the website of VA Tech Hydro,
www.compact-hydro.com. The nominal electrical power generated by micro hydropower generator
is 14.3 kW.
Figure 5: Monthly average stream flow
V. DIESEL GENERATOR
The diesel generator size used in our case study is 25kW. The capital and replacement costs
are $18 and $16 respectively. The life time is 15000 operating hours[4]. Fig.6 shows the diesel
generator fuel and efficiency curve by Homer.
Figure 6: Fuel and Efficiency curve for the diesel generator

223
VI. WIND TURBINE
Wind resources are determined using the NASA Surface Meteorology and Solar Energy
database considering the wind direction at 15 meters above the surface of the earth. The database
provides average wind speed is 4.19 m/s. Fig.7 shows the Technical information of the proposed
wind turbine [15 ]. Monthly average wind speed is presented in Fig.8.
Figure 7: Technical information of the proposed wind turbine
Figure 8: Monthly average wind speed
VII. BATTERY
Homer uses DC battery to store the energy and retain the energy when peak load appears. It is
assumed that battery property of battery remain constant throughout its lifetime and are not affected
by external factors. Surrette 4kS25P is a deep cycle, high capacity, lead acid battery and is most
suitable for renewable energy application [2].

224
VIII. CONVERTER
The bidirectional converter costs $500/kW, has replacement cost of $400/kW and O&M cost
of $500/yr for a lifetime of 15 years. The inverter and rectifier efficiencies are assumed to be 90%
and 85% respectively [2]. The converter specifications were shown in Fig.9.
Figure 9: The converter specifications
IX. RESULTS
To present optimization of distributed energy resources DERs includes distribution
generation (solar PV array, wind energy, hydro and diesel generator) with battery backup and to
provide a reliable, continuous, sustainable, and good-quality electricity service to the users in the
village, we got 1104 simulation results when all the above components data were uploaded using
HOMER model as shown in Fig. 10.
Figure 10: Power system HOMER simulation results

225
CASE1: Diesel Generator
The load is supplied by only diesel generator with 1% capacity shortage. Total NPC and cost of
energy COE are $1,331,862 and 0.802$/kWh respectively. Cost summary is shown in Fig.11. Grid
extension total cost NPC is lower than diesel generator supply NPC for distances below 65.9km as
shown in Fig.12. In our case study load supply from the grid is cheaper because the distance to main
power station is 5km.
Figure 11: Cost summary (by cost type) for diesel generator
Figure 12: Case1 Breakeven Grid Extension Distance= 65.9km diesel generator
CASE 2: Wind, Hydro, Diesel Generator, Converter and Batteries.
The hybrid power system consists of: Wind, Hydro, Diesel Generator, Converter and Batteries. As
shown in Fig.13, total NPC and cost of energy COE are $705,643 and 0.422$/kWh. respectively.

226
Figure 13: Case 2 summary cost by type
Grid extension total cost NPC is higher than case2 hybrid system supply NPC for distances more
than 3.55km as shown in Fig.14. in our case study the distance is 5km to the main power station.
Figure 14: Case2 Breakeven Grid Extension Distance= 3.55km
CASE 3: PV, Wind, Hydro, Diesel Generator, Converter and Batteries
The hybrid power system consists of: Wind, Hydro, Diesel Generator, Converter and Batteries. As
shown in Fig.15, total NPC and cost of energy COE are $716,539 and 0.428$/kWh. respectively.

227
Figure 15: Case 3 summary cost by type
Grid extension total cost NPC is higher than case3 hybrid system supply NPC for distances more
than 4.63km as shown in Fig.16. in our case study the distance is 5km to the main power station.
Figure 16: Case3 Breakeven Grid Extension Distance= 4.63km.

228
X. EMISSIONS
HOMER calculates the emissions of the following six pollutants: Carbon dioxide, Carbon
Monoxide, Unburned Hydrocarbons, Particulate Matter, Sulfur Dioxide and Nitrogen Oxides. Table1
shows emissions of these pollutants result from:
• the production of electricity by the generator(s)
• the production of thermal energy by the boiler
• the consumption of grid electricity
Table 1: Pollutants emissions results
Emissions Description Case1
[kg/yr]
Case2
[kg/yr]
Case3
[kg/yr]
Carbon
Dioxide Nontoxic greenhouse gas.
41,627 24,735 22,188
Carbon
Monoxide
Poisonous gas produced by incomplete burning of
carbon in fuels. Prevents delivery of oxygen to the
body's organs and tissues, causing headaches,
dizziness, and impairment of visual perception,
manual dexterity, and learning ability.
127 75.2 67.5
Unburned
Hydrocarbons
Products of incomplete combustion of hydrocarbon
fuel, including formaldehyde and alkenes. Lead to
atmospheric reactions causing photochemical smog.
11.4 6.77 6.07
Particulate
Matter
A mixture of smoke, soot, and liquid droplets that can
cause respiratory problems and form atmospheric
haze.
7.75 4.61 4.13
Sulfur
Dioxide
A corrosive gas released by the burning of fuels
containing sulfur (like coal, oil and diesel fuel). Cause
respiratory problems, acid rain, and atmospheric haze.
83.7 49.7 44.6
Nitrogen
Oxides
Various nitrogen compounds like nitrogen dioxide
(NO2) and nitric oxide (NO) formed when any fuel is
burned at high temperature. These compounds lead to
respiratory problems, smog, and acid rain.
918 545 489
XI. CONCLUSIONS
• Whenever the breakeven grid extension distance is less than 5km, the total NPC is cheaper
than village grid alone connected power system.
• Since the price of fossil fuel increases with the distance of the location, hybrid energy
systems could be an appropriate technology to reduce fuel consumption and environmental
hazards.
• It was found that wind, hydro, diesel generator, converter and batteries hybrid system is the
most economical solution for the given location.

229
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