Surface Meteorology And Solar Energy Research Articles

Microgrid Hybrid Solar/Wind/Diesel and Battery Energy Storage Power Generation System: Application to Koh Samui, Southern Thailand

This paper presents the optimization of a 10 MW solar/wind/diesel power generation system with a battery energy storage system (BESS) for one feeder of the distribution system in Koh Samui, an island in southern Thailand. The main objectives are to maximize the deployment of renewable energy-based power generation and to minimize the levelized cost of energy (LCOE). A hybrid renewable energy-based power generation system, consisting of solar PV, wind turbine generators, diesel generator (DiG), bi-directional grid-tied charging inverter (CONV) and BESS, was simulated using HOMER Pro®. This study accessed the database of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) for the Surface meteorology and Solar Energy (SSE) for the global solar radiation and temperature, along with the Modern-Era Retrospective analysis for Research and Applications (MERRA-2) wind database. The simulations show that Scenario 1 (PV/Wind/DiG/BESS/CONV) and Scenario 3 (PV/DiG/BESS/CONV) are the optimal configurations regarding the economic indicators (i.e. minimum net present costs (NPC) of 438 M$ and LCOE of 0.20 $/kWh) and the environmental indicators (i.e. lowest greenhouse gases (GHG) emission avoidances of 6,339 tonnes/year and highest renewable fraction (RF) of 89.4%). Furthermore, the sensitivity analysis illustrates that Scenario 3 offers the optimal system type with the largest annual energy production (AEP). Besides contributing to the body of knowledge of optimization methodologies for microgrid hybrid power systems, the outcome of this work will assist the regional energy practitioners and policy makers regarding optimal configurations of microgrid hybrid systems in the development of a Green Island concept for Koh Samui.

Estimation of the Surface Runoff Volume of Al-Mohammedi Valley for Long-Term period using SWAT Model

The management of water resources requires adequate information on the quantities of water supplied from the basins that outfall into a river, especially during the flood seasons. The study area located in the western part of Iraq within the administrative boundaries of the Heet district about 70 km from Haditha Dam, 45km from Ramadi in Anbar province. The study aims to evaluate the amount of surface runoff through a long-term period (1981-2019). Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) related to Geographic Information System (ArcGIS) was used for the simulation. The input data was the Digital Elevation Model (DEM) of SRTM with resolution 30m, land use/land cover map from the European Space Agency (ESA) with resolution 300m and, soil map from the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). The weather data used in the study were obtained from the Climate Forecast System Reanalysis (CFSR) combined with the weather data from the Surface meteorology and Solar Energy (SSE) produced by NASA. These weather data prepared using SWAT weather database software to be ready for the simulation processes. Al-Mohammedi valley was calibrated and validated using SWAT-CUP software using the available recorded discharges at Heet, Ramadi, and Al-Warar gauge stations. The calibration is based on the meteorological data for the period January 1, 2002, to December 31, 2006, and the validation was based on the data between January 1, 2007, to December 31, 2009. The model calibration and validation results based on two objective functions “Nash-Sutcliffe (NS) and coefficient of determination(R2)” showed that SWAT was successfully simulated Al-Mohammedi valley with NS = 0.72 and R2 = 0.76 for calibration, and NS = 0.63 and R2 = 0.65 for validation. According to SWAT results, the average runoff volume in the long-term period of simulation from January 1, 1981, to October 31, 2019, was 79.2 million m3 while the average runoff depth was 18.25 mm with about 17 % of rainfall becomes surface runoff.

Contribution of Cartography to the Optimization of the Evaluation of Wind Energy Potential in the Republic of Cameroon: Case of Bitchoua Highlands

This study deals with a model combining cartography with mathematical simulation for the optimal evaluation of wind potential in the context of the absence of networks of in-situ observation stations. It is based on both geographic Information Systems (GIS), climate data from NASA Surface Meteorology and Solar Energy (SSE) from 1985 to 2018, and field survey data from 2018.The NASA-SSE data, made it possible to obtain information on the direction of the winds, to determine parameters of distribution of wind speed frequencies (by the Weibull method).Then, we proceeded to the processing and numerical simulation of the data to provide predictions of the electrical energy that could be generated. By mobilizing GIS, the study proposes a decisional mapping allowing the planning and realization of wind energy projects in the studied area. It appears from the work carried out in the field that with an average wind speed of 2.56m / s (at 50 m from the ground) the winds of Bitchoua have an average power density estimated at 1612.64 W. Under current operating conditions defined by the Betz limit, it would be possible to recover from the local wind, thanks to a 50 m diameter wind turbine, an electrical power of approximately 956.87 W / s, for a maximum average of 974.17 W / s. The spatial representation of this potential presents the Center and North-East of Bitchoua as the most suitable sectors for the installation of wind turbines in the locality. Indeed, with an average wind speed of 2.8m / s, the area has an average wind power density evaluated at 13.45 W, for an available power of 4221.53 W. Under current conditions of exploitability, the recoverable potential in this part would be about 1251.79 W / s, for 1275.07W / s on average maximum (well above the local average).

MATHEMATICAL MODEL OF SOLAR RADIATION INCIDENT ON AN ARBITRARILY ORIENTED SURFACE FOR ANY REGION IN RUSSIA

The paper deals with an original model of solar radiation incident on an arbitrarily oriented surface. This model has been designed to predict the main characteristics of solar radiation for any geographical point in Russia. The model is based on the isotropic model developed by Liu and Jordan and enables the researches to determine the values of solar radiation incident on an arbitrarily oriented surface at any given time period with the sampling interval of one second. The model implies the use of numerical values of the atmospheric transparency index and the surface albedo obtained from the NASA SSE (Surface meteorology and Solar Energy) database as initial data to ensure precise modeling of the incident solar radiation values including those for regions with no systematic actinometric observations. The paper presents the results of modeling the average daily values of solar radiation for ten Russian settlements located in the region between latitude of 43–62oN and longitude of 50–158oE. In order to verify the adequacy of the model, the results of instrumental terrestrial actinometric measurements are taken from meteorological stations included in the World Meteorological Organization network. The verification results show that the average relative model error for the considered meteorological stations does not exceed 11.7% for total solar radiation and 24.5% for scattered radiation. The authors developed the histograms of modeling errors in comparison with data from the World Radiation Data Center and NASA SSE. The analysis of the histograms revealed no systematic errors in the model since the errors were distributed uniformly and symmetrically with respect to the zero level. The paper compares the results of modeling the diurnal variation of solar radiation for 4 typical months of the year in Yekaterinburg with data from the World Radiation Data Center published in the periodic bulletin “Solar Radiation and Radiation Balance Data (The World Network)”. The developed model is implemented as a separate subsystem in MatLab/Simulink to enable its integration into the general model of the energy complex of an arbitrary configuration. The model can be used for studies concerned with the design, development and improvement of the energy systems including solar energy installations.

Solar Radiation Estimation from the Measurement of Sunshine Hours over Southern Coastal Region, Bangladesh

In this study,the global solar radiation over the southern coastal region of Bangladesh is estimated from the duration of relative sunshine hours. Five models are considered to estimate the solar irradiance. These models are modified form of classical Angstrom – Prescott regression equation. A quadratic logarithmic model, relating the relative solar radiation and the relative sunshine hours is proposed for southern coastal region of Bangladesh. NASA Surface Meteorology and Solar Energy (SSE)have record of solar radiation data all over the world, measured from satellite. As Bangladesh Meteorological Department or any other organization has no record of measured solar radiation data for the considered locations, the estimated solar irradiance from the proposed regression model is compared with the data recorded by NASA SSE. Also t – statistics is applied to the estimated results to determine whether or not they are statistically significant at a particular confidence level.

English

This paper presents the characterization of global solar radiation (GSR) for Malawi using NASA’s SSE model. The mean monthly daily GSR monthly variation in the three regions of Malawi has been investigated. It has been found that there is a general gradient in GSR in the north-south direction. This gradient correlates well with the variation of the clearness index in the same direction (r = 0.986). It has been observed that the GSR is characteristic of each region. Simple analytic polynomials have been proposed for estimating solar radiation in the traditional Northern, Central and Southern regions of Malawi. There is a strong agreement between the polynomials and the SSE model with R2 values of 0.988, 0.989 and 0.989 and root mean square errors of 0.061, 0.057 and 0.062 kWh/m2.day for the regions, respectively.   Key words: Malawi, global solar radiation, solar climate, surface meteorology and solar energy (SSE) model.

A Technical and Economic Potential of Solar Energy Application with Feed-in Tariff Policy in Indonesia

This paper presents a technical and economic potential of Solar Energy Application in Indonesia. Indonesia consists of thousands islands. Meanwhile, according to the latest data from the Department of Energy and Mineral Resources in 2012, Indonesia's electrification ratio is only around 74%. Renewable energy especially solar energy is one of the most potential energy sources as Indonesia lies in the equator line where the daylight is abundant and available throughout the year. The solar energy technologys is also eco-friendly and its application has the potential to reduce the greenhouse gas emission.A review of solar energy potential in Indonesia based on the solar resource data is presented. Estimation of solar resource in Indonesia was done using solar radiation data from NASA Surface Meteorology and Solar Energy (SSE). Retscreen software was used for all of the calculation in the study. It is found that the proposed system can generate electricity annually vary from 0.46 GWh/year in Denpasar to 217 GWh/year in Pontianak. This paper also calculates the economic viability through pre-tax IRR and simple payback indicator. It was observed that the highest IRR was observed in Makassar and the lowest IRR was observed in Banjarmasin. Meanwhile, it can be observed that Makassar got the shortest payback period for 11 years and Banjarmasin got the longest payback period of 17.6 years. From the side of environmental impact, the proposed system can reduce the GHG emission up to 243252 tons per year in particular selected location.

Impact of sunlight on the age of onset of bipolar disorder

Although bipolar disorder has high heritability, the onset occurs during several decades of life, suggesting that social and environmental factors may have considerable influence on disease onset. This study examined the association between the age of onset and sunlight at the location of onset. Data were obtained from 2414 patients with a diagnosis of bipolar I disorder, according to DSM-IV criteria. Data were collected at 24 sites in 13 countries spanning latitudes 6.3 to 63.4 degrees from the equator, including data from both hemispheres. The age of onset and location of onset were obtained retrospectively, from patient records and/or direct interviews. Solar insolation data, or the amount of electromagnetic energy striking the surface of the earth, were obtained from the NASA Surface Meteorology and Solar Energy (SSE) database for each location of onset. The larger the maximum monthly increase in solar insolation at the location of onset, the younger the age of onset (coefficient= -4.724, 95% CI: -8.124 to -1.323, p=0.006), controlling for each country's median age. The maximum monthly increase in solar insolation occurred in springtime. No relationships were found between the age of onset and latitude, yearly total solar insolation, and the maximum monthly decrease in solar insolation. The largest maximum monthly increases in solar insolation occurred in diverse environments, including Norway, arid areas in California, and Chile. The large maximum monthly increase in sunlight in springtime may have an important influence on the onset of bipolar disorder.

Solar radiation over Turkey and its analysis

Ground-based solar-radiation observations have rather high random errors, which were sourced from maintenance, calibration and/or inaccurate instruments in Turkey. Satellite-based radiation data obtained from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) were compared with reliable ground observations, and it was found that the global solar incident insolation data of the NASA Surface Meteorology and Solar Energy (SSE) dataset is usable, with a rather low mean relative error of about 4%. Therefore, monthly and annual spatial distribution over Turkey and solar-radiation time series were analysed in order to detect the potential of solar radiation and to find out variations and trends, respectively.