Parametric life cycle assessment for distributed combined cooling, heating and power integrated with solar energy and energy storage

Abstract

In this research, we develop a parametric life cycle assessment framework and evaluate the environmental and economic trade-offs of a distributed combined cooling, heating, and power system integrated with renewable energy and energy storage system (CCHP-RE-ESS). Also, we compare this to centralized conventional energy generation. The CCHP-RE-ESS system consists of microturbines, solar PVs, lithium-ion batteries, and other auxiliary system components. Using a parametric life cycle assessment approach, we learn the trade-offs environmental and economic impacts for various sizes of solar PVs arrays and batteries. The emission impact result from the parametric life cycle assessment is more accurate than the conventional life cycle assessment due to hourly-based simulation and parametric models for different system components. Our simulations show that the proposed system that follows the thermal load can primarily reduce the overall environmental impact as compared to the centralized conventional energy production for most building types and climate zones we studied. For example, the system can help a medium office in Atlanta reduce 46% of global warming impact, 98% of water usage, 93% of acidification impact, etc. In terms of cost, the life cycle cost of the proposed system is often higher than conventional energy generation while it is more economical for the small and large office than the medium office.