Off-Grid

Hybrid Power Systems

Components and Architectures
E. Ian Baring-Gould
 Session Overview

Provide an overview of renewable based

power systems for rural areas.
Describe renewable power penetration and the
basic design of wind/diesel power systems
Provide examples of power systems that have
been installed.
Review common power system components
and their purpose
 Session Goals

Provide a basic understanding of

renewable based hybrid power systems
so that attendees will be able to
understand these power system options
 Key Messages

Hybrid power systems are an economic

reality that can be used to limit or
reduce the dependence on diesel fuel
and may provide power to remote
communities at a lower life cycle cost
that other traditional alternatives.
Stages of Remote Power Systems
Renewable power system can be used to
cover a wide range of needs.
These include:
Dedicated use: Water pumping/ice
making.
House systems: Power systems for
individual buildings, dispersed generation.
Community Power Systems: Power
provided to a large community with large
loads
Wind/Diesel Systems: Large communities
with large loads
Direct connect Water Pumping
 Agricultural Water Pumping
Livestock watering at the Bledsoe Ranch Colorado,
USA
PV, Mechanical
wind and diesel
backup solves
problems with
seasonal
variations in
resource
NEOSCorporation
 Direct Water
Pumping
Ranch near
Wheeler, Texas
Water-pumping for
120 head of cattle
Whisper 1000 wind
turbine,
1 kW, 9-ft rotor, 30-ft
tower
Small Power Systems
Systems do not have a dispatchable backup
generator like most hybrids
Very simple architecture:
Turbine, PV, Disconnects, Batteries
DC Loads or AC power through an inverter
Primarily PV dominated for small loads, wind
has potential at larger loads.
In many instances a combination of PV and
wind make most sense
Can vary in size, power output
Single Source System Architecture
Energy Flow for a Small Hybrid
Power sources and sinks,
0.2
Wind
0.15 Load
kW

0.1

0.05
Solar
0

Hour of the day

Battery SOC, %

100

50

Hour of day
 Solar Home System
Provide entry level
of service
Lighting, radio
DC service
Expandable in size,
>20W
Cost ~$700 for
small unit
Developed market
 Wind/PV Home Systems
Provide more
energy
AC Power
Higher output
Lower $/kW

InnerMongolianwind/PVsystem
 Village Scale Power Systems
Larger, village scale power systems use
centrally located power plants and distribute
AC power to the connected homes.
Single point of service and maintenance
Usually use larger or multiple generation units
to improve operation performance and benefit
from quantities of scale benefits
Act very much like small power utilities
Provide grid style power
Village System Architecture (DC)

W in d T u r b in e

G u y e d L a ttic e T o w e r

T u r b in e D is c o n n e c t

P V C h a rg e
C o n tr o lle r
T u r b in e C o n tr o lle r

D C S o u rc e C e n te r P V A rra y

G e n e ra to r

B a tte ry B a n k In v e r te r o r
DC Loads AC Loads b i-d ir e c tio n a l c o n v e r te r
Micro-grid System Architecture (AC)
W in d T u r b in e

G u y e d L a t t ic e T o w e r

T u r b in e D is c o n n e c t

T u r b in e I n v e r te r
a n d C o n t r o lle r

P V In v e rte r
a n d C o n tr o le r

G e n e ra to r
P V A rra y

AC Loads

B a tte ry B a n k B i- d ir e c tio n a l C o n v e r te r
a n d S y s t e m C o n t r o le r
 Micro-Grid Power Systems
Supply communities with demands from
~100kWh/day load (15 kW peak load) up to
~700 kWh/day (75 kW Peak load)
Components of wind, PV, biomass, batteries
and conventional generators
Generally provide AC
Use of batteries to store renewable energy for
use at night or low renewable times
Generator used as backup power supply
Mature market
 Parallel System
20
18
Both diesel
Morocco
16
Wind and
12Algeria
14 Diesel

inverter
Power, kW

Jordan
10

86Ghana Load needed to

42Egypt cover the
0Southern Africa Region maximum
(Nigeria,
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24
Mozambique)
Hour of day load.
Battery SOC, %

100% Both units

run
50%

0%

Hour of Day
together.
 Woodstock, Minnesota
Wind farm maintenance shop and office
Electric loads include lighting, PC, and shop tools
Passive solar day-lighting, corn used for space heat
Installed cost $6,800 in
2001 (grid extension
alternative: $7,500)
1200 ft2 shop, 900 ft2 office
Whisper H40 wind turbine,
900 W, 35-ft tower
PV panels, 500 W
24 VDC battery, 750 Ah
4-kW inverter, 120 VAC
single phase
 Santa Cruz Island, California, USA
Remote Telecommunications station
Power System
PV array
Two wind
turbines
No Backup
generator
Vary costly
access/site visits
Remote operation
and monitoring of NorthernPowerSystems
system
 Mt. Newall, Antarctica
Science Foundation
Station project
Repeater and
Seismic monitoring
station
Power System
3.3 kW PV array
Diesel generator
HR3 wind turbine
NorthernPowerSystems
 Isla Tac, Chile
Island community
with Health post,
school and 82
homes
Power System:
2x7 kW wind turbine
s
Flooded batteries
2 x 4.5 kW inverter
16 kWA backup gas
generator
 Subax, Xinjiang, China
Small community of 60
homes in very remote
part of Western China
Power System
2 BWC excel (8kW)
turbines
2 15 kVA Inverters
4 kW PV
Low Maintenance
battery bank
30kVA diesel generator
Dangling Rope Marina, Utah, USA

Remote National
Park Center
160 kW PV /
Propane generator
hybrid system
 San Juanico, Mexico
Remote fishing
community of
400 people
with tourism
Power System
17 kW PV
70 kW wind
80 kW diesel
generator
100 kW power converter/controller
Advanced monitoring system
 Wind-Diesel Power Systems

Larger systems with demands over ~ 100 kW peak

load us to many MW
Based on an AC bus configurations
Batteries, if used, store power to cover short lulls in
wind power
Both small and large renewable penetration designs
available
Large potential mature with fewer examples
Due to cost - PV generally not used
 Penetration
There are many different potential configurations for Wind
Diesel power systems, one of the critical design factors is how
much energy is coming from the wind called wind penetration
Instantaneous Penetration:
Wind Power Output (kW)
Instantaneous Penetration
Primary Electrical Load (kW)
Voltage and frequency control
Reactive power
Average Penetration: (generally a month or a year)
Wind Energy Produced (kWh)
Average Penetration
Primary Energy Demand (kWh)
Total energy savings
Loading on the diesel engines
Spinning reserve losses/efficiencies
 AC Based Hybrid System
Low penetration systems - Wind acts as a negative
load, very little control or integration of wind turbines into
the power system is needed .
Mid penetration systems - Wind becomes a major
part of the power system. Additional components and
limited automated control is required to insure that power
quality is maintained. Little operational control required
though may be used.
High penetration systems - Completely integrated
power system with advanced control. Limited operational
control of system by plant staff
 System Penetration
Low Medium High

Peak <50% 50 100% 100 400%

Instantaneous
Annual <20 20 50% 50 150 %
Average
Commercial Fully Well proven System
status utilized Fully commercial prototype
Multiple use Operating
Examples Denmark, San Clemente, CA St. Paul
Greece Kotzebue, Ak Wales Ak
Coyaique, Chile

These are really three different systems which all

should be considered differently
Note: People play loose with the definitions
 Diesel Only Power System
SystemController 100

80

DieselGensets

Power
60

40

20

0
0 6 12 18 24

-20

Time

VillageLoad
Multiple Diesel Plants with Control
In multiple diesel
systems the 1500

diesels may be

Power Sinks Power Sources

1000
dispatched to take
advantage of size 500

and load. 0

11

13

15

17

19

21

23
1

9
Generally requires -500

automatic diesel
-1000
control.
-1500
Favorable in Hour of Day

power systems Load, kW Dsl #1Power Dsl #2 Power

with renewables
Potential use of a 500 and 1000 kW diesels
 Low Penetration wind/diesel
system
WindTurbine 100

DieselGensets 80

60

Power
40

20

0
0 6 12 18 24

-20

SystemController
Time

VillageLoad
Kotzebue, Alaska

11 MW remote diesel power

station in Northern Alaska
2 MW peak load with
700kW minimum load
Installation of 10 AOC
15/50, 50 kW wind turbines
and 1 NW 100, 100kW wind
turbine
KEA, Island Technologies,
AOC
 Coyaique, Chile
Large regional distribution
system
3x 660 kW wind turbines
4.6 MW of mixed hydro
16.9 MW of diesel

Manually operated through

local control center
Currently runs as a
wind/hydro facility
 Medium Penetration W/D
Schematic
System Control

AC Wind Turbines
Community load

Diesel Engines
AC Bus

C o n tro l
D um p
Load
 San Clemente Island,
California
U.S. Navy island off San Diego
Diesel powered grid
850-950 kW avg; 1,400 kW peak

Plant Details
Four generators
3 NEG-Micon 225 kW
turbines
Yearly impact -
$97,000 fuel savings
871,785 Ton CO2
avoided
 Ascension Island
U.S. Air Force installation in the Atlantic ocean.
Prime diesel generation with rotary interconnect to
British 50 hertz system
Four NEG-Micon 225 kW turbines.
Operating since 1996
Average penetration 14-24%
Expansion in 2005
2 MICON 900 kW turbines
Synchronous Condensers
and 2 electric boilers for
fresh water
Impacts
650,000 gal/yr fuel saved
 Selawik, Alaska

Small Alaska Village

Electric Cooperation
community in
northern Alaska
Installation of 4 e15,
50 kW wind turbines
and dump loads
Part of a diesel plant
retrofit project AVEC, Entegrity, Sustainable
Automation
 Toksook Bay, Alaska
Small community in western Alaska
Installation of 3 NW100kW turbines and dump
loads
Part of a diesel plant retrofit project
Installed winter of 2006

AVEC, NPS
High Penetration w/out storage

C o n tro l
S y s te m

D is p a tc h e d
Loads

AC Bus

C o n tro l
S y n c h ro n o u s D um p
C ondenser Load
 Wind Diesel without Storage

When the wind power

100

is larger than the 80

load by some margin

- Diesel is shut off. 60

40

Frequency controlled
20

by dump load
Voltage controlled by 0
0 6 12 18 24

condenser -20

Red=Diesel
Blue=Load
Green=Windpower
High Penetration W/D Schematic

C o n tro l
S y s te m

A C W in d T u r b in e s

D C Bus
D C AC D is p a tc h e d
AC Bus Load
R o ta ry C o n v e rte r

A C D ie s e ls

B a tte ry C o n t r o le d
D um p
Load
Wind/Diesel with Short Term Storage
300
250
Wind Diesel used to
200
150
Load
provide power
100
to system when
Power, kW

50
0 the wind can
1

49

73

109
121
133
145
157
169
181
193
13
25
37

61

85
97
-50
-100
not cover load.
-150
Battery power (Charging is negative) Battery used to
-200
-250 fill short gaps in
Time, minutes
or to start
D ie s e l p o w e r, k W

250

200
diesel
150

100

50
109

145

181

0
121
133

157
169

193
37
13
25

49
61
73
85
97
1

Tim e , m inute s
 St. Paul Alaska, USA
IslandinthemiddleoftheBeringSea
Peakloadof160kW
CostofPower,+$0.21/kWh
Wasteenergyusedforheating
TDXandNorthernPowerSystems
 Wales, Alaska
Remote community in
Northern Alaska
80kW average load with 2
AOC 15/50 wind turbines
Short term battery storage
with rotary converter
Resistive loads used for
heating and hot water
Operation with all diesels
turned off
Problems with maintenance
and operation
AVAC, KEA and NREL
 Systems and Components
Hybrid power systems are made up of
separate pieces of equipment that are brought
together to form a cohesive power system
Configuration and component size depend on
the load and resource available at site
Controlling the power systems is a
complicated question, both logically and
technically.
Must understand the components
 Dispatchable Generators
Generators that can be
turned on with short notice.
Diesel, Gas, Natural
Gas, Bio-gas
Usually require a lot of
maintenance
Role depends on system
40kWDieselGenerator
design.
Wide range of old and new
technology 10kWDiesel
Generatorw/
Wide range of control
Fueltank
 Wind Turbines for Hybrids
Range in size from
300W to 750kW
Large AC turbines for
diesel plants
Small turbines designed
for remote applications, Entegretye15
generally DC but also
AC being developed
Self erecting or tilt up
towers common
Installed cost $3-6/W
with production from
$0.10-0.20/kWh
BergeyXL10
Northwind19/100
 Photovoltaics
Applicable for small,
remote applications
Installation cost of
~$10/W, LCC of
$0.22/kWh
Low maintenance
requirements
Quite accepted PVonActiveTracker
internationally
Not used commonly in
large applications but
there are some examples
 Micro and Run of River Hydro
Applicable for areas
with a dependable
resource.
Lower head systems
available
Run of river up to 50kW
pre-commercial
Generally larger MicroHydro
infrastructure cost facility
atremoteranch

UEK50kW
flowturbine
 Hybrid System Power Converters
Convert energy from DC to AC
and back
TraceTech Some units contain power system
100kW control
converter
Solid state or rotary systems
Solid state range in size from 1kW
WalesAK to 300kW
156kWrotary
converter
Rotary systems built to size
depending on needs
Combined with batteries for
storage

Xantrax4kW
converter
 Batteries
Many types
Lead Acid (deep cycle and
shallow cycle)
NiCad
Two uses/sizing:
Store energy to cover long
periods
Store power to cover short
periods
Requires periodic replacement
Sensitive to environment
Life dependent on use and the
environment
 Other Power Control Devices for Large
Power Systems

75kWSynchronous
Condenser

Flywheel
Controlled
Dumpload

Grid SystemControllers
LowLoadDiesel Conditioner
 Monitoring and
Remote Access
Remote access allows
oversight of system
performance
Enables real time
system interrogation
and troubleshooting
even when off site
With expert analysis
system reduces
maintenance and
down time
Small incremental cost
That looks simple doesn't it?

The design and implementation of power

systems is a complex matter and although
the models (and initial presentations) make it
look simple, it is never that easy.
Every power system is complicated, some
much less than others but you do need to
think about the design and how it will be
implemented.
 The Complication is with
Uncontrolled Generation
By their nature renewable generation are stochastic
(uncontrolled) and vary with the resource.

The amount of variation and thus the amount of

system control to handle the variation depends
on the
1. Renewable resource being used
2. The load
3. Power system design
 Two basic types
DC based systems that feed AC loads
Relatively simple in nature
System control provided by the battery bank based on battery
voltage
Issues associated with component efficiency and power factor of
the loads
AC based systems
More complex in nature
System control needs to be considered carefully since it many
cases it must be done actively
Issues of power quality and system stability
DC Based Small System Architecture
W in d T u r b in e

G u y e d L a t tic e T o w e r

T u r b in e D is c o n n e c t

P V C h a rg e
C o n tr o lle r P V A rra y
T u r b in e C o n tr o lle r

D C S o u rc e C e n te r

G e n e ra to r

B a tte ry B a n k DC Loads AC Loads In v e r te r ( b i- d ir e c tio n a l o p t io n a l)

 Power system schematic
S it e 1 . 8 O n e - L in e E le c t r ic a l D ia g r a m f o r B W C I n s t a lla t io n
( C h ile R e p lic a t io n P r o je c t )
1 -1 /C # 8

1 -1 /C # 8
.5 " E M T .5 " E M T c o n t in u o u s
L ig h tn in g A r r e s t o r 2 -1 /C # 8
In v e rte r 2 -1 /C # 8 1 -1 /C # 8
G G r o u n d B a r ( o r e q u iv a le n t ) 1 -1 /C # 8 1 -1 /C # 8
5 .5 k V A , 1 P
48VDC - 120VAC
G Neu
K o h le r G e n e r a to r 50 A
5 kVA, 1P
G
120 VAC Neu

N o N e u tra l/G ro u n d 2 -1 /C 4 /0
B o n d in g J u m p e r 1 -1 /C # 4 N G
(DC)
.5 " E M T G N D. RO D
2 -1 /C # 8
1 -1 /C # 8 5 0 A o r le s s
P os. Fused To Load
To Load
G S o lid N e g .

Neg
150A

30 K VA:
T u rb in e 1 .8 T u rb in e 1 .8 3 6 .1 A P r im a r y L P 1 .8 1 -1 /C # 4 G n d
D o w n -T ow e r C o n tro l R o o m 4 8 0 V /2 0 8 V
D is c o n n e c t D is c o n n e c t G
40A 40A G
G G
G G G
W T G (B W C E x c e l R 7 k W ) DC Bus
120V, 3P,3W
110A
R e c tifie r / P os. Fused
1 .5 " E M T S o lid N e g .
V o lt a g e R e g u la to r
3 -1 /C # 6 250A
1 -1 /C # 8 G N D . 1 .5 " R T C o m p E M T 1 .5 " R T C o m p E M T 2 - 1 / C 1 /0 W e ld
3 - 1 / C # 6 A r m o r e d , J a c k e te d C a b le 3 -1 /C # 6 3 -1 /C # 1
1 -1 /C # 8 G N D . 1 -1 /C # 6 G N D .
1 -1 /C # 4 G n d P os. Fused
S o lid N e g . N o N e g a tiv e /G r o u n d

Neg
G N D . RO D 300A C o n n e c tio n
W T G C o n tr o lle r
1 -1 /C # 2 G N D .

2 - 1 /C 1 /0 W e ld

1 -1 /C # 8

T ro ja n T 1 0 5 B a tte r y B a n k
48V, 52kW h
 System Drawings and
Documentation
All systems should have simple one line
drawing that shows the location and
size of all of the fuses and circuit
breakers in the system. This should be
posted in the building and will help
people find problems.
Things to worry about in DC based
systems
True availability of your battery (due to
control and temperature)
Yearly variation in resources and loads
Starting currents on large loads
Space requirements for components
Maintenance and service infrastructure
Venting of battery bank
 Wire Losses
Lower voltages
mean higher
currents
Higher currents
mean larger
wires (or higher
losses)
(increased
cost)
Basic Electrical

Everything should be
fused with the ability to
disconnect specific
components if that is
needed.
Good junction boxes
that are properly
installed
Cables are well
protected and buried
 Grounding
W i n d T u r b i n e /T o w e r

E l e c t r i c a l /E l e c t r o n i c
E n e rg y S y s te m E q u ip m e n t

4
5
1 3 5 3

2
7

6
 Grounding Details
Solid ground for towers or PV arrays further than 15m from
main junction
Lightning arrestors to protect towers
Lightning arrestors to protect the electrical/electronic equipment
Transient voltage surge suppressors (TVSS) for the most
sensitive electronic equipment
Solid ground for all metallic housings of equipment
Grounded metal conduit for buried power leads
Low impedance connection to earth potential
Tied earth planes to eliminate potential differences
Therightway

Thewrongway

Butthisis
OKfor
towers
 Facilities
Water proof with
overhang
Separate rooms
for major
components
Safe diesel
storage
Ventilation
Good lighting and
security
Work environment
 Site Issues
Access issues - need to be sure
you can get to the site when it is
needed
Strong Fences - Keep animals
from damaging equipment,
gives the sense of importance
to the site
Good and plentiful signs -
Keeps people safe and off
equipment
Things to Worry About
Power factor of installed loads
Temperature (for batteries)
Environment Corrosion,
humidity - protective coatings
Vandals, animals, insects...
Lead Acid Batteries
the known evil
But there is nothing else that is
really available, especially in
remote areas, that can
compete based on simplicity,
cost and availability

Batteryexplosion
ataschool
systeminChile
 Batteries Can Be Dangerous
The use of batteries has to be considered carefully and
appropriately.. This starts from proper system design

Wireless Energy, Chile

 General Battery Types
Starting Batteries
Automotive applications
Unsuitable for renewable energy
storage (but are commonly used
due to availability)
Deep Cycle Batteries (traction or
stationary batteries)
Robust construction designed for
repeated, deep discharge
Highly suited (even optimized)
for renewable energy storage
 Considerations for Batteries
The deeper the discharge, the fewer the cycles
One bad battery can bring down the whole string and
can even affect parallel strings (practice due vigilance)
Ensure a reliable supply of
distilled water
Avoid leaving batteries at a
low state of charge for long
periods
Extractable capacity dependent
on a number of factors

http://www.benchmarking.eu.org
http://www.ecn.nl/resdas/
 Conclusions
There are a lot of options / configuration of hybrid
systems - Depend on load, resource, and costs.
Many configurations for small DC-based power
systems for smaller communities or individual loads
Options for larger communities are also available
Advanced diesels and control, locally derived bio-fuels,
wind/diesel applications
Renewable based rural power systems can help supply
energy to rural needs in a clean, inexpensive way that
does not burden the national economy
Configuration depends on many factors
Social issues dominate over technical issues
Its never as easy as it seems
Renewable power systems have
a place in rural development