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Methodology for Monitoring Sustainable Development of Isolated Microgrids in Rural Communities

Author

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  • Claudia Rahmann

    (Department of Electrical Engineering, University of Chile, Santiago 8370451, Chile)

  • Oscar Núñez

    (Department of Electrical Engineering, University of Chile, Santiago 8370451, Chile)

  • Felipe Valencia

    (Department of Electrical Engineering, University of Chile, Santiago 8370451, Chile)

  • Susana Arrechea

    (Escuela de Ingeniería Química, Facultad de Ingeniería, Universidad de San Carlos de Guatemala, Ciudad Universitaria, 11 Av., Guatemala 01012, Guatemala)

  • Jalel Sager

    (Energy and Resources Group and Goldman School of Public Policy, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720-3050, USA)

  • Daniel Kammen

    (Energy and Resources Group and Goldman School of Public Policy, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720-3050, USA
    Goldman School of Public Policy, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA)

Abstract

Microgrids are a rapidly evolving and increasingly common form of local power generation used to serve the needs of both rural and urban communities. In this paper, we present a methodology to evaluate the evolution of the sustainability of stand-alone microgrids projects. The proposed methodology considers a composite sustainability index (CSI) that includes both positive and negative impacts of the operation of the microgrid in a given community. The CSI is constructed along environmental, social, economic and technical dimensions of the microgrid. The sub-indexes of each dimension are aggregated into the CSI via a set of adaptive weighting factors, which indicate the relative importance of the corresponding dimension in the sustainability goals. The proposed methodology aims to be a support instrument for policy makers especially when defining sound corrective measures to guarantee the sustainability of small, isolated microgrid projects. To validate the performance of the proposed methodology, a microgrid installed in the northern part of Chile (Huatacondo) has been used as a benchmarking project.

Suggested Citation

  • Claudia Rahmann & Oscar Núñez & Felipe Valencia & Susana Arrechea & Jalel Sager & Daniel Kammen, 2016. "Methodology for Monitoring Sustainable Development of Isolated Microgrids in Rural Communities," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 8(11), pages 1-24, November.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:8:y:2016:i:11:p:1163-:d:82586
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. Carlos M. Paredes & Andrés F. Bayona & Diego Martínez & Alfons Crespo & Apolinar González & José Simo, 2021. "Approach to an Emulation Model to Evaluate the Behavior and Impact of Microgrids in Isolated Communities," Energies, MDPI, vol. 14(17), pages 1-34, August.
    2. Antoine Boche & Clément Foucher & Luiz Fernando Lavado Villa, 2022. "Understanding Microgrid Sustainability: A Systemic and Comprehensive Review," Energies, MDPI, vol. 15(8), pages 1-29, April.
    3. Stergios Emmanouil & Jason Philhower & Sophie Macdonald & Fahad Khan Khadim & Meijian Yang & Ezana Atsbeha & Himaja Nagireddy & Natalie Roach & Elizabeth Holzer & Emmanouil N. Anagnostou, 2021. "A Comprehensive Approach to the Design of a Renewable Energy Microgrid for Rural Ethiopia: The Technical and Social Perspectives," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(7), pages 1-22, April.
    4. Chen, Weidong & Wei, Pengbang, 2018. "Socially optimal deployment strategy and incentive policy for solar photovoltaic community microgrid: A case of China," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 116(C), pages 86-94.

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