Ensuring (n − 1)-reliability in the optimal design of distributed energy supply systems

Abstract

Abstract For distributed energy supply systems, reliability is important but still often neglected during design. We present a rigorous design approach which ensures the exact supply of all energy demands during the failure of one arbitrary component at any time. Since this (n − 1)-reliable approach leads to high computational effort, we propose an alternative inexact approach with reduced computational effort. This so-called (n − max)-reliable approach also ensures sufficient energy supply but allows overproduction. An industrial real-world case study shows that both reliability approaches reduce both investment costs as well as total annualized costs significantly for a reliable design compared to current practical heuristics.