Optimal selection of energy storage systems for an islanded community with desalination powered by wave energy

Unofficial AI-generated summary based on the public title and abstract. Not an official translation.

🔬研究者:Provides a methodology for sizing and dispatching energy storage in wave-powered microgrids with desalination, useful for renewable energy system design.

🏢実務担当者:Offers cost and feasibility insights for integrating wave energy and storage in remote communities, relevant for project developers.

🏛政策担当者:Highlights the potential of wave energy for island energy independence and water supply, informing off-grid energy policy.

Ocean waves are a potential source of significant energy. However, wave energy converters are still a developing technology and are currently considered too expensive to be used commercially to generate electricity for the grid. Two possible applications with more appealing economics are for islanded and remote communities, whose high cost of importing energy may make economic use of wave energy converters feasible, and for blue economy applications where ocean industry infrastructure reduces costs of using wave energy. A problem remote communities may incur that can be met by a blue economy solution is the high cost of accessing clean water. Sea water desalination plants can use energy to produce potable water for such communities, and their location near the ocean makes their pairing with wave energy converters appealing. One challenge of using wave energy is the intermittency of the resource. To provide more reliable energy production, energy storage systems can store excess power generated at times with low demand and then use that energy later at times with high demand. Several energy storage technologies are considered for this application, including battery energy storage, pumped water storage, and compressed air storage. These three technologies represent some of the leading candidates for use with renewable energy sources. Developing a microgrid that provides electricity to a community, is integrated with a desalination plant, and is powered by wave energy requires selection of storage technology, sizing of that technology, and then optimal dispatch of resources for operation. This work looks to develop such an optimal system. Wave energy converters are simulated to provide power for a microgrid that provides electricity to a remote community and a desalination plant, which must meet the community’s water demand. Three energy storage technologies (battery, pumped hydro, and compressed air) are considered for the microgrid design. The costs of these different storage systems are calculated and optimally sized for the microgrid based on the optimal economic dispatch of the microgrid. The optimization is carried out for a month of data as a case study. This data includes real wave data, real demand data, and forecast water demand data for a small community. The results of this study provide insight into the feasibility of using wave energy converters for small desalination plants and microgrids, as well as what energy storage technologies may benefit such systems most.

• Zenodo https://zenodo.org/records/20546412first seen 2026-06-05 04:15:09 · last seen 2026-06-08 04:14:02