Renewable microgrids covering the heat and electricity needs of industrial parks

Panel: 9. Deep decarbonisation of industry

This is a peer-reviewed paper.

Authors:
Eflamm GUEGUEN, Oxford University, France
David Wallom, University of Oxford, United Kingdom
Maomao HU, Department of Energy Resources Engineering Standford University, USA

Abstract

The industrial sector, undoubtably, has a key role to play in the reduction of global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. However, the diversity of processes involved, coupled with the uncertainties around the affordability and the reliability of climate-neutral solutions, make decarbonization in the industrial sphere a complex challenge. They could enable industries to reduce part of their GHG emissions by using climate neutral alternatives, ensure the resiliency of factories to future climate change impacts, and represent an economic opportunity, by deploying profitable and efficient energy management actions. However, many questions remain on how to best implement microgrids from both a technical and financial perspective. Obviously, from an investment perspective, minimalizing the overall size of the grid is essential as this prevents extraneous investment in unnecessary and costly capacity. In this paper we address some of the technical and economic questions on grid sizing. We present an optimal sizing methodology for heat and power microgrids. These grids were composed of solar PV panels, Li-ion batteries, and a biogas fired CHP unit. We go onto assess the financial, environmental and resiliency potential of the solution and use a multi-factor optimization (considering both economic and technical factors) to address the problem. A case study renewable microgrid was designed based on a real-life dataset of an industrial park, located in the UK and used to show significant carbon footprint reductions through the implementation of our model.