Multi-criteria approach to selecting sites for solar-diesel hybrid systems

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The paper aims to develop a site selection procedure for solar-diesel hybrid systems using a multi-criteria performance analysis of site options. The site selection process using this multi-criteria approach was carried out on the example of Kungurtug rural settlement (Tyva Republic). The area surrounding this settlement was analyzed, revealing four possible sites for a solar-diesel system. For evaluating the performance of these site options, the following criteria were adopted: ease of installation and maintenance of the solar-diesel hybrid system; surface topography and soil quality; convenience of the photovoltaic cell layout; environmental impact of the solar-diesel hybrid system; opportunities for further expansion of the system; orientation potential of the photovoltaic cell. In order to assess the significance of the concordance coefficient, the distribution quantile was determined, amounting to 16.2. For 5 degrees of freedom and a significance level of 0.05, the table value of the concordance coefficient amounted to 16.2. Since the distribution quantile is greater than the table value, the concordance coefficient can be considered significant (95% confidence level), indicating agreement between expert opinions. Experts ranked the site options to obtain relative performance estimates for the criteria; numeric indicators were converted into the relative estimates using linear transformation formulas. The multi-criteria performance estimates of the possible options were calculated for arithmetic mean and harmonic convolutions. After comparing the site options for the solar-diesel system, the second variant characterized by the highest criterion scores was selected for Kungurtug settlement. As a result, a site selection procedure for the elements of solar-diesel hybrid systems was developed using the theory of multi-criteria optimization and the method of expert evaluations, allowing a set of technical, economic, climatic, and environmental criteria to be taken into account.