Application Of Energy Sources Research Articles

Self-Voltage Balanced Switched-Capacitor Seven-Level Inverter for Asymmetrical Solar PV Source Applications

In this paper, a novel structure of self-voltage balanced switched-capacitor-based seven-level inverter (SVB-SCSLI) is proposed for asymmetrical input energy source applications. SVB-SCSLI develops a seven-level staircase waveform with a minimum number of semiconductor devices compared to existing multilevel inverters (MLIs). The proposed converter is more suitable for the solar PV system where unequal DC voltage sources are available. The SVB-SCSLI also resolves the main difficulty of connecting many inverters in parallel to achieve staircase voltage. Besides, it attains voltage balancing capability at DC-link by holding constant capacitor voltage at every cycle. The detailed loss and steady-state analysis of the SVB-SCSLI are examined. Furthermore, the proposed converter’s efficiency improves with better power quality than other topologies reported in the literature. Finally, a prototype is fabricated, and experimental results are presented to validate the feasibility of SVB-SCSLI.

A new soft‐switching high step‐up DC–DC converter with low voltage stress

AbstractThis paper proposes a new high step‐up DC–DC converter with zero input current ripple for renewable energy sources applications, such as fuel cells. In this topology, a coupled inductor and a multiplier cell are used to achieve high voltage gains. The power switch in this proposed circuit turns on under zero voltage switching conditions. An active switch limits the maximum voltage stress across the main power switch. Moreover, all circuit diodes of the converter turn off without a reverse recovery problem. A detailed analysis of a high‐gain step‐up DC–DC converter is studied along with improved efficiency. The ripple cancellation of the input stage of the converter is done by adding an input inductor and capacitor. By including the parasitic elements, an approximate loss analysis was performed in PSIM and found the maximum efficiency of ∼96% in simulation and ∼94% in hardware for 200 W power level design for 30 V input voltage. Later on, the converter laboratory hardware prototype can be developed with selected parameters, and finally, experimental results have been used to validate the properties of the converter.

Towards Multiple Sources for Energy Harvesting in Wireless Sensor Networks in Practical Applications

For wireless sensor networks (WSNs) to continue operating, energy harvesting plays a critical role. This paper explores this topic. WSNs are essential to many applications, from industrial processes to home automation. The difficulty is in giving sensors enough power, particularly in isolated or difficult-to-reach places. A solution is found in energy harvesting, which uses vibration, heat, radio frequency, heat, and solar energy to power sensors. The wide range of uses for energy harvesting in climate change modeling, noise pollution mitigation, and environmental monitoring are examined in this paper. The emphasis now turns to real-world applications of various energy sources to improve WSN performance, with a particular emphasis on the switch from primary to rechargeable batteries. The study emphasizes how battery-free devices can lower maintenance costs and increase application possibilities. The field of energy harvesting, which includes thermal, radiofrequency, vibration, and solar energy, provides access to sustainable and priced WSNs. By elucidating the benefits of battery-free devices, this study underscores the potential to enhance WSN sustainability while simultaneously lowering operational costs. It underscores the transformative impact of energy harvesting, offering a pathway to sustainable and economically viable WSN deployments.

Potential capacity and cost assessments for hydrogen production from marine sources

The current study comprehensively examines the application of wave, tidal and undersea current energy sources of Turkiye for green hydrogen fuel production and its cost analysis. The estimated potential capacity of each city in the country is derived from official data and acceptable assumptions and is subject to discussion and evaluation in the context of a viable hydrogen economy. According to the findings, the potential for green hydrogen generation in Turkiye is projected to be 7.33 million tons using a proton exchange membrane electrolyser (PEMEL). Cities with the highest hydrogen production capacities from marine applications are Mugla, Izmir, Antalya, and Canakkale with 998.10 kt, 840.31 kt, 605.46 kt, and 550.42 kt, respectively. The study calculations obviously show that there is a great potential by using excess power in producing hydrogen which will result in an economic value of 3.83 billion US dollars. This study further helps develop a detailed hydrogen map for every city in Turkiye, using the identified potential capacities of renewable energy sources and the utilization of electrolysers to make green hydrogen by green power. The potentials and specific capacities for every city are also highlighted. Furthermore, the study results are expected to provide clear guidance for government authorities and industries to utilize such a potential of renewable energy for investment and promote clean energy projects by further addressing concerns caused by the usage of carbon-based (fossil fuels dependent) energy options. Moreover, green hydrogen production and utilization in every sector will help achieve the national targets for a net zero economy and cope with international targets to achieve the United Nation's sustainable development goals.

A Unified Design Method for Multi-Source Complementary Heating Systems Based on a Transient Simulation

Combining various sources to create a complementary system plays a key role in utilizing clean energy sources economically and mitigating air pollution during the heating season in Northern China. However, there is a lack of unified and reasonable design methods for such systems, resulting in the excessive capacity of equipment and the waste of energy. In this work, a unified design method is proposed to solve this problem. A generalized structure and its mathematical model are firstly established, enabling transient simulations on the TRNSYS platform. Then, a preliminary screening criterion for the system composition a general operation strategy is proposed. Finally, the system configuration is optimized by using the genetic algorithm. The method is successfully applied in a demonstration project in China. The results show that the coupling system consisting of a biomass boiler (384 kW), an air-source heat pump (430 kW) and a ground-source heat pump (369 kW) is the most economical, and the annual cost is 26.7% lower than that of a single-equipment system. Additionally, the sensitive factors that strongly affect the optimization results are explored. The establishment of the generalized structure and its mathematical model enables the quick calculation and convenient comparison of various schemes, and simplifies the complicated optimization problem of the capacity optimization of each piece of equipment. The proposed design method can reduce the annual cost to a minimum value, and thus it provides a theoretical basis for the large-scale application of clean energy sources for heating.

Different Scenarios of Autonomous Operation of an Environmental Sensor Node Using a Piezoelectric-Vibration-Based Energy Harvester.

This paper delves into the application of vibration-based energy harvesting to power environmental sensor nodes, a critical component of modern data collection systems. These sensor nodes play a crucial role in structural health monitoring, providing essential data on external conditions that can affect the health and performance of structures. We investigate the feasibility and efficiency of utilizing piezoelectric vibration energy harvesters to sustainably power environmental wireless sensor nodes on the one hand. On the other hand, we exploit different approaches to minimize the sensor node's power consumption and maximize its efficiency. The investigations consider various sensor node platforms and assess their performance under different voltage levels and broadcast frequencies. The findings reveal that optimized harvester designs enable real-time data broadcasting with short intervals, ranging from 1 to 3 s, expanding the horizons of environmental monitoring, and show that in case the system includes a battery as a backup plan, the battery's lifetime can be extended up to 9 times. This work underscores the potential of vibration energy harvesting as a viable solution for powering sensor nodes, enhancing their autonomy, and reducing maintenance costs in remote and challenging environments. It opens doors to broader applications of sustainable energy sources in environmental monitoring and data collection systems.

High step up DC–DC converter with low conduction losses and reduced switching losses

AbstractThis article presents a novel high step up converter based on the active switch inductor (ASL) technique for renewable energy source applications. The coupled inductor technique provides an opportunity to increase the gain. The proposed converter exploited the leakage inductors to provide zero current switching (ZCS) turn‐on for both switches. Therefore, there is no need for an auxiliary circuit, which simplifies the structure. Also, all diodes turn off under ZCS, which eliminates the reverse recovery problem and results in reduced switching losses. The energy of the leakage inductor is recycled, and the voltage spike on the switches is limited. In addition, all semiconductor voltage stresses are clamped below the output voltage. Hence, components with lower on‐resistance can be utilized to reduce conduction loss. Because of the reduction in power loss, the efficiency rises to 97.2% at 250 W output power. It also benefits from the current sharing of the interleaved structure. The operating principles, design considerations, and comparison to other topologies are discussed. To verify the effectiveness of the proposed converter, a prototype converter with 250 W of output power, 50 V of input voltage, 500 V of output voltage, and 100 kHz of switching frequency is implemented.

Modelling for Multiport Converter-based Hybrid Power supply for Renewable Energy Source Application

This research work deals with the design, modeling and technical evaluation of multiport modular converter based hybrid Power supply using solar PV for small village. The village’s maximum power demand is 50kvA, consisting of demands of twenty (20) households. The first converter in the proposed multiport system is a high frequency isolated DC-DC converter fed with HVDC link yielding an output voltage of 700vDC. The isolated DC-DC converter uses a medium frequency transformer with primary and secondary side converters in input-series output-parallel (ISOP) configuration. Also, the output of first converter is connected to a solar PV and battery system through a buck-boost converter. The second converter in the system is solar PV fed three phase modular inverter designed to have output AC line voltage of 0.415 kV. The three phase inverter is based on modular multilevel converter (MMC) with interleaved modulation techniques. A silicon carbide power MOSFETs, with model numbers CPM3-10000-0270(CREE) and SD11703 (Solitron) are used as a building blocks for isolated DC-DC converter. On the other hand, SiC -MOSFET with part number SCT3017AL (RHOM) is used as basic building block for modular inverter. A solar PV module with open circuit voltage of 85V and maximum power rating of 415W is used to feed the inverter. Different scenarios such as changes in load and changes in solar irradiance are used for critically evaluating the performances of the system under question. The output voltage THD, current distortions, changes in the converter output voltage, current magnitude and converter efficiency are used for performance evaluation of the system under consideration. Simulink/ PLECS (Piecewise Linear Electrical Circuit Simulation) combo simulation platform is used to model and simulate the system in question. Simulation results showed that the proposed multiport converter system can be a viable alternative to low frequency distribution transformer.
 Keywords: Multiport converter, MMC, DC-DC converter, Hybrid power Supply, Solar PV.

Renewable Energy Sources Applications in Currently Occupied Structures

Renewable Energy Sources Applications in Currently Occupied Structures

Photovoltaic-Based Residential Direct-Current Microgrid and Its Comprehensive Performance Evaluation

The “dual carbon” strategy has drawn attention to distributed PV systems for their flexibility and variability, but the rising need for direct-current (DC) loads on the load side has created additional difficulties for microgrid system upgrades. In this article, a PV-based microgrid design approach for residential buildings is suggested, working on the assumption that distributed PV systems are given top priority to handle domestic DC needs. The residential DC microgrid system’s overall design concept is first put out, and the circuit system is then concentrated to supply the main idea for the ensuing verification of the system’s viability. Secondly, the actual power generation in the selected area was clarified by testing, and then the electricity consumption of DC loads accounted for about 20.03% of the total power consumption according to the survey of 100 users. In addition, the circuit system is subjected to spectral model measurements and physical measurements to verify the operational performance of the circuit system; the feasibility of the PV microgrid system is further verified using dual testing of the PV system and the circuit system. The test results show that the proposed DC microgrid system can accurately provide the required voltage for small household DC appliances, such as 24 V, 14 V, 5 V, etc. Finally, the system economics were analyzed, and the equipment payback years were estimated. The supply and demand of PV power generation and DC appliances can be balanced via the construction of a microgrid. This study offers a fresh concept for the use of PV technology. The concept behind this research can serve as a model for the creation and application of other new energy sources.

Hierarchical magnetic porous carbonized wood composite phase change materials for efficient solar-thermal, electrothermal, and magnetothermal conversion-storage

Phase change materials (PCMs) have been extensively used to store energy and improve the utilization efficiency of thermal energy. However, their low energy conversion ability hinders the conversion and storage of thermal energy enhancement in various current energy source applications. In this work, we report a multi-energy driven based on Fe3O4 magnetic carbonized wood (MCW) as a host-matrix and stearic acid (SA) as a thermal energy guest. The obtained composite PCMs can effectively respond to solar, electric, and magnetic energy due to their high conductivity and excellent magnetic properties. Thus, the composite PCMs exhibited outstanding conversion ability of solar-thermal, electrothermal, and magnetothermal conversion simultaneously. In addition, the multi-energy driven composite PCMs show excellent form stability, outstanding thermal properties, high phase-change enthalpy of 199.24 J/g, and good cycle stability. Considering the superior performance, the synthesized composite PCMs have tremendous promise in satisfying the thermal energy storage requirements in various situations.

Application of Alternative Energy Sources as A Sustainable Strategy in Sri Lanka: Cases Review

This research aims to assess the feasibility and applicability of sustainable energy models for Sri Lanka by analyzing three successful case studies from different regions. The methodology involves examining solar PV installations in Iran's Lut Desert, rooftop solar PV projects in India, and combining floating solar panels with hydropower in various countries. The findings indicate that each case study offers unique advantages, with the potential for solar PV projects to address urban energy needs in Sri Lanka. The twinning of floating solar panels with hydropower also shows promise, leveraging the country's water resources. This study highlights the importance of tailored approaches and diversified sustainable energy projects for Sri Lanka, considering its distinctive characteristics.
 Keywords: Alternative Energy Sources in Sri Lanka; Rooftop Solar Power; Green and Sustainable Energy; Rent-a-Roof Project; Twinning Floating Solar and Hydropower

An Analysis of the Heat Transfer Characteristics of Medium-Shallow Borehole Ground Heat Exchangers with Various Working Fluids

Medium-shallow borehole ground heat exchangers (BGHEs) utilize a burial depth ranging from 200 to 600 m. The heat exchange capacity of a single medium-shallow BGHE is higher than that of a single shallow BGHE. Compared to medium-deep BGHEs, the cost of medium-shallow BGHEs is lower, and both heating and cooling can be achieved, while the former can only be used for heating. However, there is a relative lack of research on the heat transfer characteristics of medium-shallow BGHEs, especially on the influence of the working fluid type on the heat transfer performance of BGHEs. This study aimed to investigate the impact of different working fluids on the performance of medium-shallow BGHEs. First, a heat transfer model for medium-shallow BGHEs was established considering the ground temperature gradient and geothermal heat flow, and its accuracy was validated using experimental test data. Second, the model was used to compare and analyze the effects of various working fluids on the heat transfer performance, pressure loss, and potential environmental benefits of BGHEs. Based on economic analysis, CO2 was determined to be the most suitable working fluid among the organic fluids considered. Finally, the influence of the number of boreholes and the type of working fluid on the heat transfer performance of borehole clusters consisting of 2 and 4 boreholes was analyzed using the superposition principle. The results indicated that CO2 could provide the highest heat transfer among the various working fluids selected in this study, as its heat extraction and heat dissipation were approximately 15% and 12% higher than those achieved by water. Isobutane (R600a) achieved the highest net heat and emission reduction, surpassing water by 66.7% and 73.6%, respectively. Regarding the four boreholes, the outlet temperature of the BGHEs gradually decreased at the end of each heating season. After 10 years of operation, the value decreased by approximately 2 °C. The results in this paper provide a theoretical basis and technical guidance for the rational selection of working fluids and improvements in the heat transfer performance of BGHEs, which could promote the development and application of medium-shallow geothermal energy sources.

Computation insights of MoS2-CrXY (X≠Y[dbnd]S, Se, Te) van der waals heterostructure for Spintronic and photocatalytic water Splitting applications

van der Waals heterostructure (vdWH) is an attractive technique to enhance the behavior of two-dimensional materials for designing viable products for electronic, spintronics and clean energy source application. Inspired by the recent synthesized of CrSSe monolayer, we have calculated the structural, electronic, Rashba parameters and photocatalytic properties of MoS2-CrXY (X≠YS, Se, Te) vdWH by using density functional theory calculation. Two different model of MoS2-CrXY (X≠YS, Se, Te) vdWH are presented due to the alternative order of chalcogen atom attached to MoS2 layer. Phonon band structure, thermal stability and binding energies confirms, the most favorable stacking configuration is dynamically, thermal and energetically feasible. Indirect type-I (MoS2-CrXY (X≠YS, Se)) and type-II (MoS2–CrSeTe) band alignment are observed in understudy vdWH. Large Rashba spin splitting is observed in model 2. Electrostatic potential and Bader charge analysis show charges are transferred from MoS2 layer to CrXY layer, while the potential drop separate charge carrier (holes and electrons) at the interface. Work function and charge density difference are also calculated and presented. A red shift is observed in the position of excitonic peaks from model 1 to model 2. In last we investigated the performance of these vdWH for photocatalytic water splitting at pH = 0. Our results shows that MoS2-CrXY (X≠YS, Se, Te) vdWH may be promising for future nanoelectronics, spintronics and photocatalytic water splitting.

Integrated Nanogrid for the Impressed Current Cathodic Protection System in Desalination Plant

The impressed current cathodic protection (ICCP) scheme is a more reliable and efficient method of corrosion prevention mechanism than the sacrificial method. Currently, the grid connected transformer rectifier units supported with a battery banks are used for the ICCP-based corrosion protection system in the desalination plant. This conventional method is entirely grid-dependent, more expensive, and suffers during prolonged grid failure. The present trend of industrialization is the application of multi-renewable energy sources based on a nanogrid to power the station’s auxiliary power supply. This paper introduces a concept of distributed energy resources (DERs) operated integrated nanogrid (ING) system to provide a stable power supply solution to the ICCP scheme. A 100-million-litter per day capacity-based seawater desalination plant (SWDP) in India has been chosen as the test station. The conceptual hardware design and operational logic details for smooth integration of the integrated nanogrid module into the ICCP scheme of the Desalination plant is proposed. This research aims to investigate the behaviour of DERs during on-grid, off-grid and switching over from one mode of operation to another and vice-versa by using the accelerated Gauss–Seidel method in ETAP software (version 16.0.0). The simulation results confirm that the ING suffers from a high-frequency change rate during islanded operation, and in some cases, a complete blackout occurs. A PLC-based Smart Versatile ING Controller has been suggested to overcome the blackout issue. Finally, it has been proven that the stability of an industrial power system can be improved further by introducing the ING module into it.

Electric vehicle impact on the environment in terms of the electric energy source — Case study

The growth of the electric vehicles (EVs) use forces a need of verification their emissivity due to the electric power source. The thesis of non-emissivity EV is contested. Based on the average conditions of the Polish generation system and distribution network, real energy demand to charge EVs was calculated. Then the emissions were set and compared to the classic cars with internal combustion engine (ICE) according to Euro standards to check what real emissions are for EV and classic cars. For the averaged cases of the low voltage distribution system it turned out, that charging the electric vehicles from the mains results in higher exhaust gases production than the ICE cars. The energy losses are especially high for rural areas, where distances from the energy source to load are significant. This causes higher emissions than in cases of ICE. However the application of the renewable energy sources (RES) may be a best way to achieve zero-emissivity transportation, both in local scale (home RES supplying EV) and in whole system scale by lowering the average emissions substituting fossil fuels sources.

A New High Efficiency High Step-Up DC/DC Converter for Renewable Energy Applications

This article introduces a new nonisolated soft-switching coupled-inductor (CI) step-up dc/dc converter. The presented topology utilizes a three-winding CI (TWCI) along with a voltage multiplier circuit to increase the voltage conversion ratio without needing a high duty cycle. Using this circuit, a high voltage gain can be achieved without requiring a large number of turns ratio in the CI. The input current ripple of the introduced converter is very low, which is very desirable for renewable energy sources applications. The TWCI also creates an additional design freedom to increase the voltage gain, which indicates more circuit flexibility. Additionally, the voltage stress across the single power switch is limited with the help of a regenerative clamp capacitor. The leakage inductor of the CI is used to create a resonant tank to reduce power losses further. The leakage inductances help provide the zero-current switching conditions for the single power switch and decrease the reverse-recovery issues for all diodes, leading to an efficiency improvement. The operation principle, steady-state analysis, and design considerations are discussed thoroughly. Finally, the theoretical analysis is validated through experimental results obtained from a 200 W prototype with 250 V output voltage.

An Efficient Modified Z Source Grid Tied Inverter System

In this paper presents the controlling the power of using quasi-Z source inverter for renewable source application. The proposed quasi z source is single stage DC to AC converter it delivered buck-boost operation with respect to input. These buck-boost converter is highly suitable compare to the normal dc to dc converter for photovoltaic applications. The proposed single stage converter are reliable and suitable for renewable energy source application. The source impedance quasi network offers high gain compare to the exciting system and reduced the total harmonic level. The quasi-z source followed by single phase H bridge converter uses to convert DC to AC with high reliability output. A proposed system-built Simulink and the hardware made for the open loop control. The conventional voltage and current source inverter have its own limitation of the output voltage low compare to the input source in the voltage source inverter, it is just opposite in the current source inverter. These limitations overcome by designed novel modified z source inverter was developed and controlled pulse using unipolar and bipolar concept. The output of the inverter after filter, it produces the less harmonics result 7.6% on fifth harmonics level compare with conventional inverter.

Prospective carbon nanofibers based on polymer of intrinsic microporosity (PIM-1): Pore structure regulation for higher carbon sequestration and renewable energy source applications

Polymer of intrinsic microporosity (PIM-1) is characterized by a developed microporous structure. Needle-free Nanospider™ electrospinning of the PIM-1 solution with subsequent pyrolysis either under vacuum or in argon-hydrogen medium (7 vol% H2) at 900–1200 °C results in PIM-1 based carbon nanofibers (CNF) self-supporting mats. The samples were thoroughly characterized by N2 and CO2 adsorption using the BET, BJH, Dubinin-Radushkevich (DR), NLDFT and GCMC methods, CO2 uptake, and by Raman spectroscopy, elemental analysis, electrical conductivity, SEM. Since the N2 adsorption is found to be inapplicable, the presence of microporosity in the CNF is confirmed by CO2 adsorption (273 K) by the DR, NLDFT and GCMC methods. The CNF reach micropore specific surface area of 919 m2 g−1, micropore volume of 0.257 cm3 g−1 and CO2 uptake of 4.01 mmol g−1, which is higher than for initial PIM-1. Pt/PIM-1 CNF self-supporting mat, was successfully tested as anode for HT-PEM fuel cell.

Technologies for Air Conditioning Powered by Alternative Energy Sources: A Brief Review

Air conditioning systems promote human comfort, representing an energy consumption of up to 30% in a building. Although electric chillers are still widely used for thermal comfort, absorption chillers are a promising alternative for air conditioning using renewable energy sources (solar energy, natural gas, waste heat, geothermal, and biomass). The search for efficient, economical, and ecological solutions becomes evident regarding these considerations. This article proposes a brief bibliographical review of chillers powered by alternative energy sources to electricity. Awareness of the application of alternative energy sources in these systems contributes to sustainable practice and energy matrix diversification.