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overlays the location of each utility-scale CSP project on a map of solar resource strength in the United States, as measured by direct normal irradiance ("DNI"), which is a more appropriate measure of insolation than GHI for CSP projects. 54 With the exception of the 2010 project in Florida (75 MWAC), all other CSP projects in the United States have been deployed in California (1,237 MWAC) and the Southwest (250 MWAC in Arizona and 179 MWAC in Nevada), where the DNI resource is strongest.
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The utility-scale solar sector has led the overall U.S. solar market in terms of installed capacity since 2012. In 2017, the utility-scale sector accounted for nearly 60% of all new solar capacity, and is expected to maintain its market-leading position for at least another six years. Two-thirds of all states, representing all regions of the countr...
Citations
... The ratio of DC to size AC has fallen below 1.5. Designers size inverters in a way that minimizes the lifetime cost and knows and accepts crop loss, but they also consider other constraints such as transformer capacity and the maximum values imposed by AC mains interconnection, to smooth the network integration (less fluctuation in output) and allow for more hosting capacity in a network, the ratio is set to a certain value DC/AC < 1.42 should be under [11]. ...
The trend towards renewable energy sources is increasing day by day due to increasing energy costs and environmental awareness. Solar energy, one of the leading and widely used renewable energy sources has become one of the indispensable sources of electricity production. To keep electricity production at the maximum level in solar PV power plants, the feasibility studies must be carried out correctly. Necessary evaluations should be made by considering the DC-installed power, the installation of the power plants, and their economic life. In this study, the importance of DC/AC ratio in solar power plants, performance problems in inverters which are of great importance for solar power plants (SPP), and the effects of losses in inverters on the power plant are explained. The configuration of the photovoltaic system, the dimensions of the inverters, the capacity of the PV array, and the clipped operating mode were examined, and the AC and DC plant conditions were commented on in the operation of the PV system. The output powers of the inverter and panels to be used are estimated using ANN. With this study, which tries to determine the DC/AC ratio more accurately, it is aimed to make investments more accurately. In this study, the importance of the DC/AC ratio in solar power plants, performance problems in inverters, which are of great importance for solar power plants (SPP), and the effects of losses occurring in inverters on the power plant are explained. Situations such as the configuration of the photovoltaic system, the dimensions of the inverters, the capacity of the PV array, and the cropped mode of operation were examined, and the AC and DC plant conditions were commented on the operation of the PV system. The output power of the inverter and panels to be used has been estimated using YSA. With this study, which tries to determine the DC/AC ratio more accurately, it is aimed to make investments more accurately. In addition, the performance of the PV power plant was evaluated with the results obtained.
... Abundant techniques can be used to attain economical optimum dispatch using solar PV output, electric load, and trade rates of electricity over a time horizon [12]. A technoeconomic analysis using SAM and MATLAB software tools was performed to assess the decarbonization potential of rooftop "PV+EV" systems in residential buildings in Korea. ...
The integration of solar photovoltaic (PV) and electric vehicle (EV) systems offers a promising and sustainable solution to address the increasing energy demand, environmental pollution, and carbon emissions in the residential buildings and transportation sector. The growing energy demand leads to rising energy prices, voltage and frequency deviations, and power fluctuations in electric grids during certain times of the day. To combat climate change, global carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) emissions must be eliminated by 2050. This research aims to study the implementation of the "PV+EV" system on a residential scale in Sydney, Australia. The study explores the effectiveness of incorporating bi-directional capable batteries on wheels alongside rooftop PV systems, as compared to standalone PV installations or using EVs solely as electric loads. A heuristic dispatch algorithm based on manual dispatch and peak shaving is tested using the System Advisor Model (SAM) software tool. The results show a significant reduction in annual electricity bills. This research underscores the potential benefits of the "PV+EV" system in contributing to energy efficiency, cost reduction, and environmental sustainability in the context of residential energy consumption.
... Because large-scale wind and solar plants tend to be located remotely, they face declining market value and operational challenges due to limited transmission line capacity (Millstien et al 2021). In congested regions of West Texas, for example, solar curtailment is as high as 7% of solar generation (Bolinger, Seel, and Robson 2019). With higher renewable penetration in the decarbonized grid, generators may face even higher congestion risk. ...
Smoky cookfires contribute to global climate change and kill approximately four million people annually. While many studies have examined the effects of fuel-efficient cookstoves, this study does so while selling stoves at market prices. After introducing a fuel-efficient cookstove, fuelwood use and household air particulates declined by 12% and by smaller percentages after adjusting for observer-induced bias, or the Hawthorne effect. These reductions were less than laboratory predictions and fell well short of World Health Organization pollution targets. Even when introducing a second stove, most households continued to use their traditional stoves for most cooking. Future research should focus on improving the usability of fuel-efficient cookstoves and/or policies that assist consumers to shift to safer fuels like gas or electricity coupled with mechanisms to disable the existing smoky cookfire.
... The geographic extent of solar ordinances appears to be correlated with both the location of wind ordinances and with solar deployment (Supplementary Figs. 6 and 8). For example, North Carolina has a large number of solar installations 24 , and also has a high density of counties with solar ordinances. The correlation in wind and solar ordinances can also explain why states like Florida, which have active solar development markets but no utility-scale wind, have wind ordinances. ...
In the United States, many siting regulations for wind and solar developments are created at the county or township level. Here we survey local zoning ordinances across the contiguous United States to understand the types and frequency of ordinances that might impact wind and solar development. We identify over 1,800 ordinances for wind and more than 800 ordinances for solar in 2022. To understand the impact of ordinances on anticipated land availability, we use spatial modelling on the setbacks specified in the ordinances. Extrapolating the setbacks throughout the country can reduce wind and solar resources by up to 87% and 38%, respectively, depending on the size of the setbacks applied. These results indicate the importance of capturing setback ordinances in resources assessments so as to not overstate resource potential, especially when considering highly decarbonized futures.
... Each LCOH case used the same operating expenditure (OPEX) and capital expenditure (CAPEX) co-optimization as described above to minimize the LCOH. Figure 9 shows the range of LCOH results as compared to the base case electricity price of $0.03/kWh. The intermediate electricity price case ($0.03/kWh) corresponds to the base case and to approximate electricity pricing from solar Purchase Price Agreements (PPA) (5). The high electricity price case ($0.074/kWh) corresponds to average 2022 industrial electricity price estimated in the Annual Energy Outlook (AEO) 2022 published by the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) (6). ...
To explore the near-term and future cost projection of hydrogen production via water electrolysis, Strategic Analysis, Inc. (SA) has developed a bottom-up project cost model for Alkaline, Proton Exchange Membrane (PEM), and Anion Exchange Membrane (AEM) electrolysis technologies. This project cost model incorporates: 1) Stack cost, derived from a Design for Manufacture and Assembly (DFMA) process-based cost model; 2) mechanical balance of plant (BOP) cost; 3) electrical BOP cost; 4) site preparation cost; and 5) construction overhead cost. The SA project cost model results are fed into the Hydrogen Analysis (H2A) model to estimate the Levelized Cost of Hydrogen (LCOH), accounting for electricity and water consumption, in addition to other operating costs. The SA project cost model and the H2A model were used to conceptualize electrolysis system sizes from 100 MW to 1 GW. SA conducted operating point optimization to determine the current density and cell voltage that minimizes LCOH for each system. The expected LCOH for a grid-fed electrolyzer plant is similar for all major low-temperature water electrolysis systems.
... Co-optimizing VRE and grid interconnection sizing (optimally oversizing the solar PV or wind capacity to the amount of transmission interconnection capacity needed) and colocating VRE and battery resources (siting VRE and battery technologies at the same physical interconnection location) are emerging areas of interest due to lower capital costs, available policy incentives, and enhanced value [12,13,14,15,16]. Solar PV projects entering the interconnection queue are already seeing the further oversizing of solar panels to inverter capacity, while wind projects are witnessing the decline of specific power [17,18]. Meanwhile, 42% of solar (285 GW out of 676 GW) and 8% of wind (17 GW out of 247 GW) projects added to U.S. transmission interconnection queues in 2021 were 'hybrid' projects co-locating solar PV, wind, and/or battery energy storage capacity at the same site behind a common grid interconnection capacity [19]. ...
... Most capacity expansion models assume a fixed ratio of solar PV or wind to grid connection capacity (1.3 MW PV: 1 MW grid connection and 1 MW wind: 1 MW grid connection) [23,27,29,30]. However, we are already witnessing the further oversizing of solar PV to inverter capacity and specific power declines for wind projects in the U.S. interconnection queue [17,18]. We thus enable GenX to determine the capacity of solar PV or wind to grid connection to investigate what the optimal sizing of VREs should be, resource capacity and siting decisions, and intra-and inter-regional transmission trends for the Western Interconnection in 2030. ...
Expanding transmission capacity is likely a bottleneck that will restrict variable renewable energy (VRE) deployment required to achieve ambitious emission reduction goals. Grid interconnection and inter-regional transmission capacity may be reduced by the optimal sizing of VREs to grid connection or co-location of VRE and battery resources behind the grid interconnection, but neither of these capabilities are commonly captured in macro-energy system models. We thus develop these two new functionalities to explore the substitutability of storage for transmission and VRE resource trade-offs through 2030 in the Western Interconnection of the United States. Our findings indicate that not modeling co-location fails to capture the full substitutability of storage and solar photovoltaic (PV) resources for transmission: co-location can reduce long-distance inter-regional transmission expansion by 12-31% and decrease grid connection capacity and shorter-distance transmission interconnection by 20-25%. We also demonstrate that not modeling colocated storage does not accurately reflect competition between wind and solar PV resources and underestimates the value of energy storage: co-location of VREs and storage favors solar PV (4-5% increase) and lithium-ion battery deployment (1.7-6 times increase), while decreasing wind buildout (0.9-1.6% decline).
... As demonstrated in reference [32], the 5-min wholesale prices went negative about 200 million times across the seven US grids in 2021, more than twice as often as five years earlier. As reported by [33], during 2021, nearly 3302 GWh of solar energy was curtailed by the California and Texas System Operators. This clearly indicates that there are enormous amounts of PV-generated power that is just dumped away, which could easily be used for balancing the increased XFC EV load. ...
An urgent need to decarbonize the surface transport sector has led to a surge in the electrification of passenger and heavy-duty fleet vehicles. The lack of widespread public charging infrastructure hinders this electric vehicle (EV) transition. Extreme fast charging along interstates and highway corridors is a potential solution. However, the legacy power grid based on alternating current (AC) beckons for costly upgrades that will be necessary to sustain sporadic fast charging loads. The primary goal of this paper is to propose a sustainable, low-loss, extremely fast charging infrastructure based on photovoltaics (PV) and co-located lithium-ion battery storage (BESS). Lithium-ion BESS plays a pivotal role in our proposed design by mitigating demand charges and operating as an independent 16–18 h power source. An end-to-end direct current power network with high voltage direct current interconnection is also incorporated. The design methodology focuses on comprehensive hourly EV-load models generated for different types of passenger vehicles and heavy-duty fleet charging. Appropriate PV-BESS sizing, optimum tilt, and temperature compensation techniques based on 15 years of irradiation data were utilized in the design. The proposed grid-independent DC power networks can significantly improve well-to-wheels efficiency by minimizing total system losses for fast charging networks. The network power savings for low, medium, and high voltage use cases were evaluated. Our results demonstrate 17% to 25% power savings compared to the traditional AC case.
... The strong deployment and related technological development of PV have led to a technological shift from CSP to PV. This is reflected also on the project level for utility-scale solar projects in the US, where several planned CSP projects were transformed into PV stations (Bolinger and Seel 2018;Mehos et al. 2016). In both the US and Europe, driven to a large extent by the tremendous cost reduction of PV, CSP support and construction has stopped completely. ...
Volume 3 contains reprinted archival papers to support and supplement the material in Volumes 1 and 2. These papers provide background information on the economics and alternative use cases of CSP not covered in Volume 1, and expand on the material related to the chapter topics presented in Volume 2. Potential commercialization, such as prototype and demonstration projects, are highlighted. The papers are intended as a starting point for a more in-depth study of the topics.
... 1 Indeed, the rapid advancement and decreasing cost of renewable energy technologies (e.g., solar photovoltaic, wind) has led to signicant increases in their deployment within the energy sector. 2 Alexis Maguin Fenton Jr is a recent graduate of the Chemical Engineering (ChemE) Department at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where he worked with Prof. Fikile Brushett on developing automated voltammetric methods to diagnose redox electrolyte behavior in batteries. He recently defended his PhD dissertation on the same subject, and during his candidacy, he was a MathWorks Engineering Fellow while serving as the ChemE Teaching Development Fellow. ...
High concentration electrolytes are of growing interest in energy storage technologies, such as redox flow batteries, where multimolar active species concentrations are believed to be necessary for economic viability. However, conventional approaches for materials and electrochemical characterization of multicomponent solutions often assume dilute conditions and, consequently, are challenged by the molar-scale concentrations of redoxmers (e.g., organics, coordination complexes) and supporting salt. Further, emergent behaviors (e.g., solution structuring, molecular aggregation, phase changes) can be present at elevated concentrations, which confound traditional interpretations. Accordingly, different methods and techniques are required to determine electrochemical and transport descriptors and to link these macroscopic properties to microscopic phenomena. In this perspective, we describe the need for and difficulties inherent to experimental measurements of concentrated electrolytes; we highlight recent progress in terms of scientific insight and method development; and we suggest new directions for the research community with a particular focus on nonaqueous redox flow batteries.
... 34 Rates of total VRE curtailment in such systems can reach 35%-50% 11 (similar to ''curtailment'' rates for thermal units on an energy Several developments could make this approach more competitive. Higher-capacity-factor system designs (low-windspeed and/or high-hub-height wind turbines; 11,35 tracking PV arrays with high inverter-loading ratios 36 ) preferentially increase output during low-resource periods, increasing VRE dispatchability. Hybrid systems, including concentrating solar power with thermal energy storage, can offer some additional grid benefits. ...
... Hybrid systems, including concentrating solar power with thermal energy storage, can offer some additional grid benefits. 36 Increased long-distance transmission deployment (over distances larger than the extent of weather systems 34,37 ) decreases curtailment, cost, and storage needs by exploiting the declining spatial correlation of VRE availability with increasing distance. Declining VRE and battery costs also facilitate this approach; if a resource is already economic and its cost falls by a factor of two, half of its output can be curtailed while retaining the same economic standing. ...
Meeting the last increment of demand always poses challenges, irrespective of whether the resources used to meet it are carbon free. The challenges primarily stem from the infrequent utilization of assets deployed to meet high demand periods, which require very high revenue during those periods to recover capital costs. Achieving 100% carbon-free electricity obviates the use of traditional fossil-fuel-based generation technologies, by themselves, to serve the last increment of demand—which we refer to as the “last 10%.” Here, we survey strategies for overcoming this last 10% challenge, including extending traditional carbon-free energy sources (e.g., wind and solar, other renewable energy, and nuclear), replacing fossil fuels with carbon-free fuels for combustion (e.g., hydrogen- and biomass-based fuels), developing carbon capture and carbon dioxide removal technologies, and deploying multi-day demand-side resources. We qualitatively compare economic factors associated with the low-utilization condition and discuss unique challenges of each option to inform the complex assessments needed to identify a portfolio that could achieve carbon-free electricity. Although many electricity systems are a long way from requiring these last 10% technologies, research and careful consideration are needed soon for the options to be available when electricity systems approach 90% carbon-free electricity.
