Optimal sizing of a solar-wind hybrid system supplying a farm in a semi-arid region of Algeria

Abstract

In this paper, we study the sizing and economic optimization of a stand-alone photovoltaic-wind hybrid system with storage batteries, installed in a semi arid region of Algeria supplying a farm. Two methods are developed. The first method is based on the average annual monthly values in which the size of photovoltaic (PV) and wind generators is determined from the average monthly contribution of each component. In the second method, the determination of the size of these two components of the system is based on the worst month. The data comes from the local meteorological station. The consumption profile which has been adopted corresponds to the profile typically found in isolated sites. The optimization was performed taking into account the economic parameter to find the technical and economic optimum configuration. The results show that the studied site is well adapted for solar and wind applications. The sunshine duration is over 2000 hours annually. The energy acquired daily on a horizontal surface can exceed 7kWh/m2 in the summer period and it is annually in the order of 1780 kWh/m2 for a horizontal plane and can exceed 2000 kWh/m2 for an optimal tilt. The average annual wind speed at a 10m height is 3.61m/s and the monthly average speed is over 4m/s in the period of March, April and May. Our study shows that the main benefit of introducing a wind system with a solar one is in the total cost reduction especially in the size of the PV array and battery.