Optimal and economic operation of microgrids to leverage resilience benefits during grid outages

With the rapid proliferation of power supply via the national grid, energy resiliency in unforeseen outages has to be ensured. However, the resilience advantages of microgrids concerning power failure endurance, which also result in financial disbursements, are little explored in available academic research. Hence, this study proposes an airport microgrid tied with the grid, which increases a host critical facility's resiliency under different circumstances, using an optimized dispatch of renewable energy technology (Photovoltaics) with energy storage and diesel generator. First, the proposed system's superiority is established in terms of technical and economic values by comparing with other feasible hybrid and standalone configurations feeding critical loads. Then, the resilience benefits from the microgrid during blackout occurrences are examined through a case study under four different scenarios. Finally, the microgrids' survival probability during a significant outage over any time in a year has been carried out. Results show that the critical facility subject to the proposed system's deployment, can save more than 73 thousand US dollars on average, over 25 years of the life cycle, and withstand 718 hours of grid outage.

Automated summary

This study proposes an airport microgrid scheme that enhances a host facility's resilience using optimized renewable energy technology and energy storage. The system demonstrates superior technical and economic value, saving costs significantly and improving resilience against blackout occurrences.