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Comparative Life Cycle Assessment of a Thai Island's diesel/PV/wind hybrid microgrid

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  • Smith, Cameron
  • Burrows, John
  • Scheier, Eric
  • Young, Amberli
  • Smith, Jessica
  • Young, Tiffany
  • Gheewala, Shabbir H.

Abstract

Hybrid microgrid systems are an emerging tool for rural electrification due in part to their purported environmental benefits. This study uses Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) to compare the environmental impacts of a diesel/PV/wind hybrid microgrid on the island of Koh Jig, Thailand with the electrification alternatives of grid extension and home diesel generators. The impact categories evaluated are: acidification potential (kg SO2 eq), global warming potential (kg CO2 eq), human toxicity potential (kg 1.4 DCB eq), and abiotic resource depletion potential (kg Sb eq). The results show that the microgrid system has the lowest global warming and abiotic resource depletion potentials of all three electrification scenarios. The use phase of the diesel generator and the extraction of copper are shown to significantly contribute to the microgrid's environmental impacts. The relative environmental impacts of the grid extension scenario are found to be proportional to the distance required for grid extension. Across all categories except acidification potential, the impacts from the home diesel generators are the largest. Sensitivity analyses show that maximizing the renewable energy fraction does not necessarily produce a more environmentally sustainable electrification scenario and that the diesel generator provides versatility to the system by allowing power production to be scaled significantly before more technology is needed to meet demand. While the environmental benefits of the microgrid increase as the installation community becomes more isolated, the choice of electrification scenario requires assigning relative importance to each impact category and considering social and economic factors.

Suggested Citation

  • Smith, Cameron & Burrows, John & Scheier, Eric & Young, Amberli & Smith, Jessica & Young, Tiffany & Gheewala, Shabbir H., 2015. "Comparative Life Cycle Assessment of a Thai Island's diesel/PV/wind hybrid microgrid," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 80(C), pages 85-100.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:renene:v:80:y:2015:i:c:p:85-100
    DOI: 10.1016/j.renene.2015.01.003
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    2. Zhao, Bo & Chen, Jian & Zhang, Leiqi & Zhang, Xuesong & Qin, Ruwen & Lin, Xiangning, 2018. "Three representative island microgrids in the East China Sea: Key technologies and experiences," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 96(C), pages 262-274.
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    6. T. Chamarande & S. Mathy & B. Hingray, 2022. "The least cost design of 100% solar power microgrids in Africa: sensitivity to meteorological and economic drivers and possibility for simple pre-sizing rules," Post-Print hal-03740059, HAL.
    7. Wouter Schram & Atse Louwen & Ioannis Lampropoulos & Wilfried van Sark, 2019. "Comparison of the Greenhouse Gas Emission Reduction Potential of Energy Communities," Energies, MDPI, vol. 12(23), pages 1-23, November.
    8. Thomas Sachs & Anna Gründler & Milos Rusic & Gilbert Fridgen, 2019. "Framing Microgrid Design from a Business and Information Systems Engineering Perspective," Business & Information Systems Engineering: The International Journal of WIRTSCHAFTSINFORMATIK, Springer;Gesellschaft für Informatik e.V. (GI), vol. 61(6), pages 729-744, December.
    9. Cao, Yijia & Wang, Xifan & Li, Yong & Tan, Yi & Xing, Jianbo & Fan, Ruixiang, 2016. "A comprehensive study on low-carbon impact of distributed generations on regional power grids: A case of Jiangxi provincial power grid in China," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 53(C), pages 766-778.
    10. Kockel, Christina & Nolting, Lars & Goldbeck, Rafael & Wulf, Christina & De Doncker, Rik W. & Praktiknjo, Aaron, 2022. "A scalable life cycle assessment of alternating and direct current microgrids in office buildings," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 305(C).
    11. Guangqian, Du & Bekhrad, Kaveh & Azarikhah, Pouria & Maleki, Akbar, 2018. "A hybrid algorithm based optimization on modeling of grid independent biodiesel-based hybrid solar/wind systems," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 122(C), pages 551-560.
    12. Jacquetta Lee, 2021. "Environmental Hotspot Assessment for a PV Mini-Grid Design: A Case Study for Malawi," Energies, MDPI, vol. 14(14), pages 1-19, July.
    13. Rafique, M. Mujahid & Rehman, S. & Alhems, Luai M., 2018. "Developing zero energy and sustainable villages – A case study for communities of the future," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 127(C), pages 565-574.
    14. Mérida García, A. & Gallagher, J. & McNabola, A. & Camacho Poyato, E. & Montesinos Barrios, P. & Rodríguez Díaz, J.A., 2019. "Comparing the environmental and economic impacts of on- or off-grid solar photovoltaics with traditional energy sources for rural irrigation systems," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 140(C), pages 895-904.
    15. Maria Christina Gudrun Hart & Michael Hans Breitner, 2022. "Fostering Energy Resilience in the Rural Thai Power System—A Case Study in Nakhon Phanom," Energies, MDPI, vol. 15(19), pages 1-20, October.
    16. Richard Wallsgrove & Jisuk Woo & Jae-Hyup Lee & Lorraine Akiba, 2021. "The Emerging Potential of Microgrids in the Transition to 100% Renewable Energy Systems," Energies, MDPI, vol. 14(6), pages 1-28, March.
    17. Fang, Xinli & Yang, Qiang & Dong, Wei, 2018. "Fuzzy decision based energy dispatch in offshore industrial microgrid with desalination process and multi-type DGs," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 148(C), pages 744-755.
    18. Heydari, Ali & Askarzadeh, Alireza, 2016. "Optimization of a biomass-based photovoltaic power plant for an off-grid application subject to loss of power supply probability concept," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 165(C), pages 601-611.
    19. Papageorgiou, Asterios & Ashok, Archana & Hashemi Farzad, Tabassom & Sundberg, Cecilia, 2020. "Climate change impact of integrating a solar microgrid system into the Swedish electricity grid," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 268(C).
    20. Mohammad Shafiey Dehaj & Hassan Hajabdollahi, 2021. "Multi-objective optimization of hybrid solar/wind/diesel/battery system for different climates of Iran," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 23(7), pages 10910-10936, July.
    21. Li, Mengyu & Zhang, Xiongwen & Li, Guojun & Jiang, Chaoyang, 2016. "A feasibility study of microgrids for reducing energy use and GHG emissions in an industrial application," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 176(C), pages 138-148.
    22. Aberilla, Jhud Mikhail & Gallego-Schmid, Alejandro & Stamford, Laurence & Azapagic, Adisa, 2020. "Design and environmental sustainability assessment of small-scale off-grid energy systems for remote rural communities," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 258(C).
    23. Mitja Mori & Manuel Gutiérrez & Mihael Sekavčnik & Boštjan Drobnič, 2021. "Modelling and Environmental Assessment of a Stand-Alone Micro-Grid System in a Mountain Hut Using Renewables," Energies, MDPI, vol. 15(1), pages 1-21, December.

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