Abstract
In 2018 the number of people without access to electricity dropped to less than 1 billion. However, the difficulty of serving these people became higher, as the locations are in the most remote areas of the world. Brazil, for example, needs to bring electricity to around 1 million people who, in the vast majority, live within the Amazon region. In this way, hybrid energy systems (HESs) count as an attractive alternative for power generation, especially in remote areas. Therefore, this article analyzes a case study of a hybrid photovoltaic-diesel system installed in the Tapajós-Arapiuns Extractive Reserve in the Brazilian Amazon region. The studied plant is composed of a photovoltaic (PV) system, a lead-acid electrochemical battery bank, a diesel generator, and electro-electronic loads with highly variable demand throughout the year. The HOMER PRO software is used as the simulation tool. The results show that the load following dispatch strategy is the best option, with 85.6% of the load demand being supplied by PV energy and only 14.4% by the diesel generator set. As a result, the system is technically feasible to be replicated as a reliable energy source in other areas of the reserve to supply schools, public health places, and other community services.
Highlights
Universal access to electricity has increased exponentially in recent decades
The number of people without access to electricity dropped from almost 1 billion in 2017 to 860 million in 2018 [1,2,3]. These data are extremely significant, but the challenge becomes higher as the populations who still need to be served are located in remote areas of the world
HOMER has limitations such as not considering the depth of discharge (DOD) of the battery bank that affects the calculation of the useful life and the number of batteries used in the system
Summary
In the early 1990s, approximately 71% of the global population had access to energy. About 26 years later, in 2016, this number reached over 87%. 940 million people in that year still remained without any energy support. The number of people without access to electricity dropped from almost 1 billion in 2017 to 860 million in 2018 [1,2,3]. These data are extremely significant, but the challenge becomes higher as the populations who still need to be served are located in remote areas of the world. The crucial solutions to serve these populations predominate in the use of renewable sources such as solar and wind for the implantation of individual energy systems or hybrid systems
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