In recent decades, the use of fossil fuels has increased exponentially with a corresponding sharp increase in the pollution of the environment. The need for clean and sustainable technologies for the generation of power with reduced or zero environment impact has become critical. A number of attempts have been made to address this problem; one of the most promising attempts is polygeneration. Polygeneration technology is highly efficient and produces lower emissions than conventional methods of power generation because of the simultaneous generation of useable heat and electrical power from a single source of fuel. The overall efficiency of such systems can be as high as 90%, compared to 30-35% for conventional single-product power plants. A number of different technologies are available for polygeneration, such as micro gas turbines, sterling engines, solar systems, and fuel cells. Of these, fuel cell systems offer the most promising technology for polygeneration because of their ability to produce electricity and heat at a high efficiency (about 80%) with either low or zero emissions. Various fuel-cell technologies can be used in polygeneration systems. Of these, solid oxide fuel cells (SOFCs) are the most suitable because they offer high system efficiency for the production of electricity and heat (about 90%) coupled with low or zero emissions. Compared to other types of fuel cells, SOFCs have fuel flexibility (direct operation on hydrocarbon fuels, such as biogas, bio-ethanol, bio-methanol, etc.) and produce high-quality heat energy. The development of polygeneration systems using SOFCs has generally followed one of two approaches. The first approach involves the design of a SOFC system that operates at a temperature of 850 oC and uses natural gas as a fuel. The second approach uses low-temperature (generally 400-600 oC) SOFC (LTSOFC) systems with biomass, e.g., syngas or liquid fuels, such as bio-methanol and bio-ethanol. The latter systems have strong potential for use in polygeneration. High-temperature SOFCs have obvious disadvantages, and challenges remain for lowering the cost to meet commercial interest. The SOFC systems need lower operating temperatures to reduce their overall costs. This thesis focuses on the development of nanocomposites for advanced fuel-cell technology (NANOCOFC), i.e., the next generation SOFCs, which are low-temperature (400-600 oC), marketable, and affordable SOFCs. In addition, new concepts that pertain to fuel-cell science and technology—NANOCOFC (www.nanocofc.com)—are explored and developed. The content of this thesis is divided into five parts: In the first part of this thesis (Papers 1-5), the two-phase nanocomposite electrolytes, viz. ceria-salt and ceria-oxide, were prepared and studied using different electrochemical techniques. The microstructure and morphology of the composite electrolytes were characterised using XRD, SEM and TEM, and the thermal analysis was conducted using DSC. An ionic conductivity of 0.1 S/cm was obtained at 300 ºC, which is comparable to that of conventional YSZ operating at 1000 ºC. The maximum output power density was 1000 mW/cm2 at 550 oC. A co-doped ceria-carbonate was also developed to improve the ionic conductivity, morphology, and performance of the electrolyte. In the second part of this thesis (Papers 7-9), composite electrodes that contained less or no nickel (Ni) were developed for a low-temperature SOFC. All of the elements were highly homogenously distributed in the composite electrode, which resulted in high catalytic activity and good ASOFC performance. The substitution of Ni by Zn in these electrodes could reduce their cost by a factor of approximately 25. In the third part of this thesis (Papers 10), an advanced multi-fuelled solid-oxide fuel cell (ASOFC) with functional nanocomposites (electrolytes and electrodes) was developed. Several different types of fuel, such as gaseous (hydrogen and biogas) and liquid fuels (bio-ethanol and bio-methanol), were tested. Maximum power densities of 1000, 300, 600, and 550 mW/cm2 were achieved with hydrogen, bio-gas, bio-methanol, and bio-ethanol, respectively, in the ASOFC. Electrical and total efficiencies of 54% and 80%, respectively, were achieved when the single cell was used with hydrogen. The fourth part of this thesis (Papers 11) concerns the design of a 5 kW ASOFC system based on the demonstrated advanced SOFC technology. A polygeneration system based on a low-temperature planar SOFC was then designed and simulated. The efficiency of the overall system was approximately 80%. The fifth part of this thesis (Paper 12) describes a single-layer multi-fuelled electrolyte-free fuel cell that is a revolutionary innovation in renewable-energy sources. Conventional fuel cells generate electricity by ion transport through the electrolyte. However, this new device works without an electrolyte, and all of the processes occur at particle surfaces in the material. Based on a theoretical calculation, an additional 18% enhancement of the fuel cell’s efficiency will be achieved using this new technology compared to the conventional technologies. Our developed ASOFC systems with functional nanocomposites offer significant advantages in reducing the operational and capital costs for the production of power and heat by using different fuels based on the fuel-cell technology. ASOFC systems can be used for polygeneration with renewable fuels (i.e., biomass fuels) at high efficiency as a sustainable solution to energy generation in our society. The results have been achieved for this thesis work has demonstrated an advanced fuel cell technology. / <p>QC 20111213</p>

This study explores the application of micro-CCHP systems that utilize a 30 kW gas microturbine and an absorption chiller. Engineering Equation Solver (EES) is used to model a novel single-effect and double-effect water-lithium bromide absorption chiller that integrates the heat recovery unit and cooling tower of a conventional CCHP system into the chiller’s design, reducing the cost and footprint of the system. The results of the EES model are used to perform heat and material balances for the micro-CCHP systems employing the novel integrated chillers, and energy budgets for these systems are developed. While the thermal performance of existing CCHP systems range from 50-70%, the resulting thermal performance of the new systems in this study can double those previously documented. The size of the new system can be significantly reduced to less than one third the size of the existing system.

O presente trabalho objetiva a obtenção de configurações ótimas para geração conjunta de energia eletromecânica e calor em usinas sucroalcooleiras, avaliando o impacto destas nos custos de produção de açúcar, álcool e eletricidade. Desta maneira, uma proposta para a avaliação do uso racional da energia em usinas é desenvolvida, utilizando as análises exergética e termoeconômica como ferramentas de avaliação das alternativas propostas sob o ponto de vista da termodinâmica, da análise econômico-financeira e da perspectiva ambiental. Após a apresentação dos principais processos de conversão de energia de uma usina sucroalcooleira, uma análise exergética é desenvolvida a fim de identificar os principais mecanismos de geração de entropia e propor alternativas para melhorar o desempenho termoeconômico- ambiental da usina. O sistema de cogeração é identificado como o principal destruidor de exergia e diversas configurações são propostas para esse sistema, incluindo outras modificações relacionadas aos processos de produção de açúcar e álcool. As propostas incluem a elevação dos parâmetros de geração de vapor nas caldeiras, maior integração térmica dos processos, eletrificação dos acionamentos mecânicos e uso de sistemas avançados de cogeração, considerando sistemas com vapor supercrítico e ciclos combinados com gaseificação de biomassa. Para avaliar o impacto dessas alterações no desempenho termodinâmico da usina, propõe-se o uso do custo em base exergética dos produtos da usina. Mostra-se que o aumento da geração de eletricidade excedente está diretamente relacionado ao melhor desempenho dos processos de produção de açúcar e álcool. Os sistemas avançados de cogeração são capazes de gerar muito mais eletricidade excedente quando comparados aos sistemas convencionais. Essa situação implica um aumento da rentabilidade da eletricidade frente aos demais produtos, mostrando a importância desse produto para o lucro da usina. As análises de viabilidade econômico-financeiras indicaram que para os sistemas convencionais o par 67 bar e 480°C apresenta o melhor benefício financeiro atualmente; ainda a eletrificação das moendas só se justifica em casos de ampliação da capacidade de moagem ou substituição das turbinas por esgotamento da vida útil. O sistema supercrítico é mais atrativo economicamente frente aos ciclos combinados com gaseificação atmosférica. Finalmente, é proposta uma discussão sobre a renovabilidade dos processos baseada em um índice exergético de renovabilidade, trazendo uma nova visão sobre a renovabilidade das usinas como produtoras de fontes de energia renovável. / This thesis aims at obtaining optimal configurations of cogeneration systems for sugarcane mills, analyzing its impacts on the production of sugar, ethanol and electricity. In this sense, it is proposed the assessment of the rational use of energy inside the mill, using exergy and thermoeconomic analysis as evaluation tools of each alternative based on different criteria: thermodynamics, economics and finance, and environmental impacts. After a brief discussion regarding the different energy conversion processes used in sugarcane mill, an exergy analysis is developed in order to identify the main sources of irreversibilities, and also to propose alternatives to improve the thermo-economic-environmental performance of the mill. The cogeneration system is shown to be the process which generates more entropy among all; hence different configurations are developed, including changes in the sugar and ethanol production processes. These modifications include: higher steam temperature and pressure in the boiler, better thermal integration among the processes, electrification of the milling system, and the use of more advanced cogeneration systems, considering supercritical steam systems and biomass integrated gasification combined cycles. For the evaluation the impact of these configurations on the thermodynamic performance of the mill, it is used the exergybased cost. It is shown that the higher the generation of excess electricity is, the better is the thermodynamic performance of the mill. Advanced cogeneration systems are able to generate much more electricity than conventional ones. This means a better profitability of those, increasing the importance of electricity for the profit of the mill. Economical feasibility analyses show that the best option for power generation in conventional cogeneration systems is with steam temperature of 480°C and pressure of 67 bar, while electrification of mills are only interesting if there is a need of replacement the turbines due to increasing capacities or end of lifetime. Supercritical steam system is more economic attractive than combined cycles based on atmospheric gasification. Finally, a discussion on the renewability of processes is made based on an exergy index of renewability.

O presente trabalho objetiva a obtenção de configurações ótimas para geração conjunta de energia eletromecânica e calor em usinas sucroalcooleiras, avaliando o impacto destas nos custos de produção de açúcar, álcool e eletricidade. Desta maneira, uma proposta para a avaliação do uso racional da energia em usinas é desenvolvida, utilizando as análises exergética e termoeconômica como ferramentas de avaliação das alternativas propostas sob o ponto de vista da termodinâmica, da análise econômico-financeira e da perspectiva ambiental. Após a apresentação dos principais processos de conversão de energia de uma usina sucroalcooleira, uma análise exergética é desenvolvida a fim de identificar os principais mecanismos de geração de entropia e propor alternativas para melhorar o desempenho termoeconômico- ambiental da usina. O sistema de cogeração é identificado como o principal destruidor de exergia e diversas configurações são propostas para esse sistema, incluindo outras modificações relacionadas aos processos de produção de açúcar e álcool. As propostas incluem a elevação dos parâmetros de geração de vapor nas caldeiras, maior integração térmica dos processos, eletrificação dos acionamentos mecânicos e uso de sistemas avançados de cogeração, considerando sistemas com vapor supercrítico e ciclos combinados com gaseificação de biomassa. Para avaliar o impacto dessas alterações no desempenho termodinâmico da usina, propõe-se o uso do custo em base exergética dos produtos da usina. Mostra-se que o aumento da geração de eletricidade excedente está diretamente relacionado ao melhor desempenho dos processos de produção de açúcar e álcool. Os sistemas avançados de cogeração são capazes de gerar muito mais eletricidade excedente quando comparados aos sistemas convencionais. Essa situação implica um aumento da rentabilidade da eletricidade frente aos demais produtos, mostrando a importância desse produto para o lucro da usina. As análises de viabilidade econômico-financeiras indicaram que para os sistemas convencionais o par 67 bar e 480°C apresenta o melhor benefício financeiro atualmente; ainda a eletrificação das moendas só se justifica em casos de ampliação da capacidade de moagem ou substituição das turbinas por esgotamento da vida útil. O sistema supercrítico é mais atrativo economicamente frente aos ciclos combinados com gaseificação atmosférica. Finalmente, é proposta uma discussão sobre a renovabilidade dos processos baseada em um índice exergético de renovabilidade, trazendo uma nova visão sobre a renovabilidade das usinas como produtoras de fontes de energia renovável. / This thesis aims at obtaining optimal configurations of cogeneration systems for sugarcane mills, analyzing its impacts on the production of sugar, ethanol and electricity. In this sense, it is proposed the assessment of the rational use of energy inside the mill, using exergy and thermoeconomic analysis as evaluation tools of each alternative based on different criteria: thermodynamics, economics and finance, and environmental impacts. After a brief discussion regarding the different energy conversion processes used in sugarcane mill, an exergy analysis is developed in order to identify the main sources of irreversibilities, and also to propose alternatives to improve the thermo-economic-environmental performance of the mill. The cogeneration system is shown to be the process which generates more entropy among all; hence different configurations are developed, including changes in the sugar and ethanol production processes. These modifications include: higher steam temperature and pressure in the boiler, better thermal integration among the processes, electrification of the milling system, and the use of more advanced cogeneration systems, considering supercritical steam systems and biomass integrated gasification combined cycles. For the evaluation the impact of these configurations on the thermodynamic performance of the mill, it is used the exergybased cost. It is shown that the higher the generation of excess electricity is, the better is the thermodynamic performance of the mill. Advanced cogeneration systems are able to generate much more electricity than conventional ones. This means a better profitability of those, increasing the importance of electricity for the profit of the mill. Economical feasibility analyses show that the best option for power generation in conventional cogeneration systems is with steam temperature of 480°C and pressure of 67 bar, while electrification of mills are only interesting if there is a need of replacement the turbines due to increasing capacities or end of lifetime. Supercritical steam system is more economic attractive than combined cycles based on atmospheric gasification. Finally, a discussion on the renewability of processes is made based on an exergy index of renewability.

Road traffic dominates in domestic Swedish transportation and is highly dependent on fossil fuels, petrol and diesel. Currently, the use of renewable fuels in transportation accounts for less than 6% of the total energy use in transport. The demand for bioethanol to fuel transportation is growing and cannot be met through current domestic production alone. Lignocellulosic ethanol derived from agricultural crop residues may be a feasible alternative source of ethanol for securing a consistent regional fuel supply in Swedish climatic conditions.  This licentiate thesis focuses on regional transport fuel supply by considering local small-scale ethanol production from straw. It presents the results of investigations of regional transport fuel supply with respect to minimising regional CO2 emissions, cost estimates for transport fuel supply, and the availability of lignocellulosic resources for small-scale ethanol production. Regional transport fuel demand between the present and 2020 is also estimated. The results presented here show that significant bioethanol can be produced from the straw and Salix available in the studied regions and that this is sufficient to meet the regions’ current ethanol fuel demand.  A cost optimisation model for regional transport fuel supply is developed and applied for two cases in one study region, one when the ethanol production plant is integrated with an existing CHP plant (polygeneration), and one with a standalone ethanol production plant. The results of the optimisation model show that in both cases the changes in ethanol production costs have the biggest influence on the cost of supplying the regional passenger car fleet with transport fuel, followed by the petrol price and straw production costs.  By integrating the ethanol production process with a CHP plant, the costs of supplying regional passenger car fleet with transport fuel can be reduced by up to a third. Moreover, replacing petrol fuel with ethanol can cut regional CO2 emissions from transportation by half.

[pt] O presente trabalho tem por objetivo analisar e comparar sistemas de trigeração (produção simultânea de eletricidade, aquecimento e refrigeração) de diferentes arquiteturas com base nas eficiências energética e exergética e nas emissões de CO2. Sistemas de trigeração são considerados mais eficientes na conversão de energia, se comparados a sistemas convencionais, devido ao reaproveitamento do calor de rejeito do motor térmico para outros fins (aquecimento, acionamento de chiller, ou geração de eletricidade). Quatro configurações (com chiller de compressão de vapor, com chiller de absorção, com a combinação dos ciclos anteriores, e combinado com um ciclo Rankine orgânico) foram estudadas a partir de modelos matemáticos resultantes dos balanços de energia e de exergia, e do cálculo de emissão de CO2 considerando as demandas energéticas (eletricidade, aquecimento e refrigeração) como independentes do desempenho do sistema. Todas as arquiteturas de trigeração aqui analisadas apresentaram um ponto ótimo de operação, onde o calor de rejeito recuperado para aquecimento se iguala à respectiva demanda. Neste ponto, o fator de utilização de energia (indicador de desempenho pela primeira Lei) e a eficiência exergética são máximos, e a emissão de CO2, mínima. A solução das equações resultantes mostrou também que a melhor arquitetura, do ponto de vista energético, exergético ou ambiental, dependerá da combinação das demandas energéticas. / [en] The present work aims at analyzing and comparing trigeneration systems (for the simultaneous production of electricity, heating and refrigeration) of different architectures based on energetic and exergetic efficiencies and on CO2 emissions. Trigeneration systems are regarded as more efficient in energy conversion, if compared to conventional systems, due to the recovery of waste heat from the heat engine. The waste heat is used for different purposes, including heating, chiller driving or electricity generation. Four trigeneration configurations (with vapor compression chiller, absorption chiller, with a combination of the two previous cycles, or combined with an organic Rankine cycle) were studied. Mathematical models resulting from the energy and exergy balances and from the calculation of CO2 emissions were developed taking into account that the three energy demands (electricity, heating and refrigeration) are independent from the trigeneration system performance. Solution of the resulting equations indicated an optimal point of operation, for all trigeneration architectures under study, where the waste heat recovered for heating equals the heating demand. At this point, the energy utilization factor (first Law indicator) and the exergy efficiency reach their maximum value, and the CO2 emissions, its lowest. Another important finding is that the configuration with best performance, from the energetic, exergetic, or environmental point of view, will depend on how the energy demands relate to each other.

Despite the country's rural electrification programme, kerosene is the predominant source for lighting, and unsustainable and polluting woody biomass is virtually the only option available for cooking. The rural population also struggles with unsafe drinking water in terms of widespread arsenic contamination of well water. The present work has taken an integrated approach in an attempt to mitigate problems through small-scale polygeneration, a concept linking renewable energy sources to these energy needs via novel energy conversion systems. Anaerobic digesters (AD) for biogas production are promising in the rural setting, and field surveys have identified problems in the construction, maintenance and operation of existing AD, particularly in overall performance of household digesters. Based on these results, a number of operational and technological improvements are suggested for employing digesters in polygeneration units. This study also examines one approach for small-scale, low cost arsenic removal in groundwater through air gap membrane distillation, a thermally-driven water purification technology. Integration of biogas production with power generation and water purification is an innovative concept that lies at the core of feasibility analyses conducted in this work. One of the case studies presents a new concept for integrated biogas based polygeneration and analyzes the techno-economic performance of the scheme for meeting the demand of electricity, cooking energy and safe drinking water of 30 households in a rural village of Bangladesh. The specific technologies chosen for the key energy conversion steps are as follows: plug-flow digester; internal combustion engine; and membrane distillation. One major concern is local feedstock availability for the digester, since a single feedstock is impractical to serve both cooking, lighting and water purification systems. In this circumstance solar PV could be a potential option for integrated hybrid systems. / Bangladesh har varit föremål för en svår energikris (bristande el- och gasnät) de senaste tre decennierna. Landsbygden, som innefattar 75 % av befolkningen, har varit särskilt drabbad. Trots landets elektrifieringsprogram av landsbygden är fotogenlampor den företrädande ljuskällan, medan förorenande och ohållbar träbaserad biomassa är praktiskt taget det enda alternativet för matlagning. Landsbygden kämpar samtidigt mot osäkert dricksvatten, på grund av utbredd arsenikförgiftning av brunnsvatten, med negativa hälsoeffekter som följd. Tillgång till ren energi och säkert dricksvatten är verkliga behov bland de fattiga på landsbygden, för ökad välfärd. Detta arbete antar ett integrerat tillvägagångssätt för att försöka lösa dessa problem genom småskalig polygenerering. Detta koncept länkar samman förnyelsebara energikällor av biomassa och sol med energibehoven, genom nya energiomvandlingssystem. Anaerobiska rötkammare för biogasproduktion är lovande för landsbygdsmiljö, även om det för närvarande råder en betydande klyfta mellan den tekniska och kostandseffektiva potentialen och faktisk implementering på grund av bristande tekniskt kunnande och tillgång på råmaterial, höga installations- och driftkostnader, och begränsade användartillämpningar. Intervjuundersökningar visar på problem i konstruktion, underhåll och drift av befintliga anaerobiska rötkammare. Särskilt den generella prestandan hos hushållsrötkammare identifieras som bristfällig. Utifrån dessa resultat föreslås en rad drift- och teknikförbättringar för att utnyttja rötkammare i polygenereringssystem.   Denna studie undersöker även en metod för småskalig och kostnadseffektiv arsenikrening av grundvatten genom membrandestillation med luftspalt (Air Gap Membrane Distillation, AGMD), vilket är en termiskt driven vattenreningsteknik. Resultat från en experimentell undersökning visar att den undersökta AGMD-prototypen är kapabel att uppnå utmärkt separationseffektivitet med hänsyn till arsenikrening. Parametriska studier med fokus på varierande kylvattentemperatur illustrerar möjligheten att integrera AGMD-teknik i diverse termiska system. Integrering av biogasproduktion med kraftproduktion och vattenrening är ett innovativt koncept som utgör kärnan av förstudierna utförda i detta arbete. En av studierna visar ett nytt koncept för biogasbaserad polygenerering och analyserar den techno-ekonomiska prestandan av metoden för att möta efterfrågan av elektricitet, matlagningsvärme och säkert dricksvatten för 30 hushåll i en Bangladeshisk by på landsbygden. De specifika tekniker som valts för energiomvandlingsstegen är följande: plugg-flödesrötkammare, förbränningsmotor och en AGMD-enhet. Termodynamisk utvärdering inklusive mass- och energibalans av systemet undersöktes tillsammans med produktionskostnaden för elektricitet, matlagningsgas, och säkert dricksvatten. Även återbetalningsperiod och internräntan undersöktes. För att bemöta energi- och arsenikproblemen i Bangladesh, indikerar resultaten att detta polygenereringssystem är mycket mer konkurrenskraftigt och lovande (med avseende på produktionskostnaderna) jämfört med andra tillgängliga tekniker. Ett viktigt problem för rötkammaren är tillgången till lokalt råmaterial, eftersom en ensam källa till råmaterial är opraktiskt för att tillgodose efterfrågan från både matlagning, belysning och vattenrening. I detta fall kan solceller vara ett potentiellt alternativ för integrerade hybridsystem. Teknisk värdering och optimering har genomförts för elektricitet med verktyget HOMER (Hybrid Optimization of Multiple Energy Resources), för ett polygenereringssystem beläget i byn Panipara i Faridpur. Resultaten visar att systement kan tillgodoses det dagliga elektricitetsbehovet och samtidigt producera 0.4 m3 matlagningsbränsle och 2-3 L/person rent dricksvatten. Kostnadsuppskattningar visar att denna metod är högst gynnsam jämfört med andra förnyelsebara alternativ (t ex vind-, vatten-, biobränslebaserad- eller geotermisk energi). / <p>QC 20170419</p> / SIDA – the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency, Department for Research Cooperation, SAREC- project no. SWE-2011-135 / STEM-Fjärrsyn project 2014

Electrification of isolated rural areas in developing countries is a key action for the total eradication of energy poverty. A growing number of authors argue that this electrification should be done with distributed energy systems that combine different renewable energy sources, rather than trying to reach these communities with grid extensions. This is evidenced by numerous projects that have been carried out over the last years in different developing countries with different needs, climatic conditions and resources. These projects have very scarce resources and therefore need to be optimised. To do so, it would be very important to standardise their design, but this is very difficult as there are many variables involved. One of the most common design decisions that remains to be standardised is the question: What is the best way to bring the electricity supply to all the houses in the rural area being electrified? This Master Thesis has worked on solving this question by developing a prefeasibility tool which includes a mathematical model of the energy dispatch which minimizes the OPEX, a function which calculates the CAPEX and a final function which obtains the LCOE of the system by using the outputs of the forementioned model and tool. The tool has been implemented into the programming language Julia. Some of the parameters that need to be input to the model are the number of households, geographical distances between households, types of cables, transformers, generation technologies installed powers, among others. Besides, once the tool has been developed a series of tryouts and analysis have been carried out to confirm the robustness of the tool as well as to learn more about the behaviour of the costs structure. By carrying out the analysis of the results, the tool has successfully proven its validity. Moreover, a sensitivity analysis has been carried out to answer questions like which is the cheapest option, keeping a household isolated from the clusters or creating a stand-alone system for it? To sum up, as it has been said, this thesis has tried to answer the question settled previously with the aim of creating a useful and standard tool that could help other similar projects in their decision-making processes. / Elektrifiering av isolerade landsbygdsområden i utvecklingsländer är en nyckelåtgärd för att totalt utrota energifattigdomen. Ett växande antal författare hävdar att denna elektrifiering bör göras med distribuerade energisystem som kombinerar olika förnybara energikällor, snarare än att försöka nå dessa samhällen med nätutbyggnader. Det vittnar om ett flertal projekt som har genomförts under de senaste åren i olika utvecklingsländer med olika behov, klimatförhållanden och resurser. Dessa projekt har mycket knappa resurser och behöver därför optimeras. För att göra det skulle det vara mycket viktigt att standardisera deras design, men detta är mycket svårt eftersom det finns många variabler inblandade. Ett av de vanligaste designbesluten som återstår att standardisera är frågan: Vad är det bästa sättet att få elförsörjningen till alla hus på landsbygden som elektrifieras? Denna masteruppsats har arbetat med att lösa denna fråga genom att utveckla ett prefeasibility-verktyg som inkluderar en matematisk modell av energisändningen som minimerar OPEX, en funktion som beräknar CAPEX och en slutlig funktion som erhåller LCOE för systemet genom att använda utdata från den tidigare nämnda modellen och verktyget. Verktyget har implementerats i programmeringsspråket Julia. Några av parametrarna som behöver matas in i modellen är bland annat antalet hushåll, geografiska avstånd mellan hushållen, typer av kablar, transformatorer, genereringsteknik installerad kraft. När verktyget har utvecklats har dessutom en serie tester och analyser genomförts för att bekräfta verktygets robusthet samt för att lära sig mer om hur kostnadsstrukturen fungerar. Genom att genomföra analysen av resultaten har verktyget framgångsrikt bevisat sin giltighet. Dessutom har en känslighetsanalys genomförts för att svara på frågor som vilket år det billigaste alternativet, hålla ett hushåll isolerat från klustren eller skapa ett fristående system för det? Sammanfattningsvis, som det har sagts, har denna avhandling försökt besvara den tidigare ställda frågan i syfte att skapa ett användbart och standardverktyg som skulle kunna hjälpa andra liknande projekt i deras beslutsprocesser.

Most energy solutions in developing countries focus primarily on solving domestic energy demands of their growing populations without due consideration of sustainable development. On the other hand, in most of these countries, a segment of energy users that has not received enough attention from governments and institutions regarding appropriate energy solutions is the productive sector. This sector is mainly composed by small and medium-sized industries and ventures that greatly contribute to the countries’ economy, as in the case of Bolivia. However, the low investment capacity, the lack of knowledge, training and insufficient support from local and national governments do not allow these solutions to arrive as expected. Although many of these sectors have the potential to apply energy solutions utilizing alternative energy sources, as the waste generated by the activity, this work has not materialized. This is the case of the dairy farmers in central Bolivia, who do not have an adequate management of farm waste. This problem contributes negatively to the contamination of the local and global environment.  This study explores solutions of combined energy systems applied to the dairy sector of Bolivia. The two cases under investigation consider the utilization of waste from farms to produce biogas, which drives the proposed systems. The first solution focuses on a polygeneration system featuring either an internal combustion engine or internally fired microturbine for the simultaneous provision of biogas for cooking, electricity, refrigeration, and fertilizer. The second system involves trigeneration i.e. absorption chiller integrated to an externally fired microturbine for supplying electricity, refrigeration and hot water. Analysis methods include determination of levelized cost of services, payback period, primary energy rates and energy saving rates.  The techno-economic assessment for the polygeneration system shows that the costs of the supplied services are still attractive when compared to subsidized prices of fossil fuel-based services in the market if the investment capital of this system is partially subsidized. The biogas cost from the system is lower than the cost of conventional gas used for cooking. The use of the internal combustion engine results in a lower electricity cost than using the microturbine. The refrigeration cost is slightly higher than conventional refrigeration for both cases. A sensitivity analysis shows that the cost for feedstock (cow dung) can be increased while maintaining an attractive price of biogas, and that subsidies on investment capital cause a reduction in the services costs. In the case of energy performance evaluation of the trigeneration system it was found to be more efficient in terms of energy utilization than conventional fossil fuel-based solutions, and this leads to energy savings.  Finally, it is shown that combined energy systems applied to the Bolivian dairy sector are competitive in terms of their economic feasibility and energy performance. / De flesta energilösningar i utvecklingsländer fokuserar på att lösa inhemska energibehov för sina växande populationer utan att ta hänsyn till hållbar utveckling. Å andra sidan är ett segment av energianvändare den produktiva sektorn, som inte fått tillräckligt med uppmärksamhet från regeringar och institutioner när det gäller lämpliga energilösningar. Denna sektor består huvudsakligen av små och medelstora industrier och företag som i hög grad bidrar till ländernas ekonomi, vilket är fallet med Bolivia. Låg investeringskapacitet, brist på kunskap, utbildning och otillräckligt stöd från lokala och nationella regeringar tillåter dock inte att dessa lösningar kommer fram som förväntat. Även om många av dessa sektorer har potential att tillämpa energilösningar som använder alternativa energikällor, som det avfall som genereras av verksamheten, har detta inte exploaterats i nämnvärd grad. Detta gäller bland annat mjölkbönderna i centrala Bolivia, som inte har en adekvat hantering av jordbruksavfal, vilket bidrar negativt till föroreningar av den lokala och globala miljön. Denna studie undersöker lösningar med kombinerade energisystem för mjölkhantering i Bolivia. De två fall som undersöks gäller användningen av avfall från gårdar för att producera biogas, som driver de föreslagna systemen. Den första lösningen fokuserar på ett polygenerationssystem som innehåller antingen en förbränningsmotor eller mikroturbin med klassisk intern förbränning. Systemet möjliggör samtidig försörjning av biogas för matlagning och elgenerering, bl.a. för kylning samt ger gödningsmedel som restprodukt. Det andra systemet innefattar tri-gereration, dvs en absorptionskylare integrerad med en externt driven mikroturbin för att leverera el, kylning och varmt vatten. Analysmetoder innefattar bestämning av driftkostnader för de olika energitjänsterna, återbetalningsperiod, förbrukad primärenergi och relativ energibesparing. En teknisk-ekonomisk analys av polygenerationssystemet visar att kostnaderna för de tillhandahållna tjänsterna är attraktiva i förhållande till de subventionerade priserna på tjänster på marknaden om subventioner tillämpas på investeringskapitalet. Kostnaden för biogas från systemet är lägre än kostnaden för konventionell gas som används för matlagning. Användning av en förbränningsmotor resulterar i en lägre elkostnad än att använda en mikroturbin. Kylkostnaden är något högre än med konventionell kylning för båda fallen. En känslighetsanalys visar att kostnaden för råvaror (kogödsel) kan tillåtas öka, samtidigt som ett attraktivt biogaspris bibehålls, och att subventioner på investeringskapital leder till en minskning av kostnaderna för energitjänsterna. När det gäller utvärdering av energiprestanda för tri-gererationssystemet visade sig det vara mer effektivt när det gäller energianvändning än konventionella lösningar baserade på fossila bränslen, vilket leder till energibesparingar. Slutligen visas att kombinerade energisystem som tillämpas på mjölkhanteringssektorn är konkurrenskraftiga när det gäller den ekonomiska genomförbarheten och energiprestanda.

The project Austerland Energi at the eastern tip of the island of Gotland called Östergarnslandet was started as a response to the larger project Omställning Gotland funded by the Swedish government as an effort for a pilot project to convert to renewable energy to reach zero CO2-emissions for the country in 2045. The current plan for the Austerland energy system is a solar PV and wind production base with energy storage in the form of batteries and hydrogen which also can be used as vehicle fuel. The system will also continue to be connected to the grid and the annual electricity consumption for the area is 3.4 GWh, including both households and agricultural activities. The energy system has been modeled by Energenious, a company based in Berlin, Germany, who recommended a battery storage and electrically driven vehicles. The total investment cost of which was 30.099 MSEK and the operation and maintenance cost was 2,780 kSEK/year and the emission rate was 138 ton/year.  The yearly global horizontal irradiance is approximately 1,060 kWh/m2 at the location, the average wind speed is 7.5-8.5 m/s at 100 m hub height, but the wind turbine would have to be lower because of the Östergarnslandet being a protected area for the beautiful scenery. The heat production is mostly individual for each household or farm with either heat pumps or biomass boilers. There are no options for hydropower at the location and there is a desalination plant and a water treatment facility which provides the households and farms with drinking and irrigation water. The alternative energy storage solutions investigated in this thesis includes Flywheel, Redox flow battery, Pumped hydro, Deep Sea pumped hydro, Supercapacitors, Compressed air energy storage and Thermal energy storage. The first three of which were included in the models of the system. For the Future scenario changes of the energy consumption, the patterns of change for the households were based on national and regional trends the last 25 years.  The Austerland energy system was modeled using the software Homer Pro, where the base case of using batteries and batteries together with hydrogen storage was analyzed. The batteries were then switched to flywheels, a redox flow battery and a pumped hydro system respectively and analyzed with and without the hydrogen storage. The results showed that the recommended storage solution was still the batteries since the flywheel storage has too short storage duration, the flow battery storage is more expensive, and the pumped hydro storage has a complicated installation process. However, the recommended size of the batteries was half that of the recommended size provided by the Energenious models and the results also showed that the system would be suitable for a future change of the consumption patterns.  Lastly, the sustainability analysis showed that all the alternative energy storage devices have a slightly less CO2-emission rate, but none of the systems had a emission rate as low as that calculated by Energenious. However, when considering any of the components in an energy system, a more thorough investigation of environmental and social issues of the production process should be made. The investigation should include studying working conditions, wages, suspicions about child labour, process waste streams and other emissions streams and ethical values at the production company. / Projektet Austerland Energi är lokaliserat på ön Gotlands östra spets kallat Östergarnslandet. Projektet startades som ett efterfrågat initiativ genom det större projektet Omställning Gotland vilket är finansierat av den svenska regeringen. Omställning Gotland är för ett pilotprojekt för att ställa om till förnybar energi i landet och för att nå netto noll CO2-utsläpp i landet år 2045. Den nuvarande planen för Östergarns energisystem är en solcells- och vind produktions bas med energilagring i form av batterier och vätgas vilket också kan användas som fordonsbränsle. Systemet kommer även fortsättningsvis att vara anslutet till det lokala elnätet och den årliga elförbrukningen för området är 3.4 GWh inklusive både hushåll och lantbruksverksamhet. Energisystemet har modellerats av Energenious, ett företag baserat i Berlin, Tyskland, som rekommenderade batterilagring och elfordon snarare än att använda vätgas. Den totala investeringskostnaden var beräknad till 30,099 MSEK och drift- och underhållskostnaden var 2,780 kSEK/år och CO2-utsläppen var 138 ton/år.  Den årliga solinstrålningen på Östergarn är cirka 1,060 kWh/m2, medelvindhastigheten är 7.5-8.5 m/s vid 100 m navhöjd, men vindkraftverket måste vara lägre än så eftersom Östergarnslandet är ett skyddat område på grund av det vackra landskapet. Värme förses mestadels individuellt för varje hushåll eller gård med hjälp av antingen värmepumpar eller värmepannor som använder biomassa. Det finns ingen möjlighet för vattenkraft på denna del av Gotland men det finns en avsaltningsanläggning och en vattenreningsanläggning som förser hushållen och gårdarna med dricksvatten och vatten för bevattnings. De alternativa energilagrings lösningar som undersöks i denna avhandling inkluderar svänghjul, redox flödesbatteri, ett pumpkraftverk antingen på land eller till havs, superkondensatorer, trycklufts lagring och lagring av termisk energi. De tre förstnämnda alternativen ingick i modelleringen utförd i detta arbete. För undersökningen av framtida energiförbruknings förändringar, undersöktes utvecklingen för hushållen på nationella och regional nivå under de senaste 25 åren. Austerlands energisystem modellerades med hjälp av programvaran Homer Pro, där originalmodellen med endast eller batterier tillsammans med vätgaslagring analyserades. Batterierna byttes sedan till svänghjul, ett redox flödesbatteri respektive ett pumpkraftverk och analyserades med och utan vätgaslagringen. Resultaten visade att den rekommenderade lagringslösningen fortfarande var batterierna eftersom svänghjulet har för kort lagringstid, flödesbatteriet är för dyrt och pumpkraftverket har en mycket mer komplicerad installationsprocess. Den rekommenderade storleken på batterierna visade sig dock vara hälften av den rekommenderade storleken från Energenious-modellerna och resultaten visade också att systemet kommer vara lämpligt för den beräknade framtida konsumtionen. Slutligen visade hållbarhetsanalysen att alla alternativa energi lagringstyper har en något lägre koldioxidutsläpp, men inget av systemen hade en så lågt utsläpp som beräknat av Energenious. När någon av komponenterna i ett energisystem övervägs bör dock en mer grundlig undersökning av miljömässiga och sociala frågor i produktionsprocessen göras. Undersökningen bör omfatta arbetsvillkor, löner, misstankar om barnarbete, avfallshantering och andra utsläpp under produktionsprocessen och etiska värderingar hos produktionsföretaget.