No processo de integração da América Latina, a integração do CONE SUL tem importância básica. Dentro deste contexto, insere-se a proposta do presente trabalho, a integração energética através de projetos multilaterais, particularmente a interconexão elétrica entre o Brasil e a Argentina. O exemplo que deu certo foi o da Integração Energética da Europa, que teve seu início na década de 50. Consideradas as características próprias de nossa região tais como a complementaridade de regimes hidrológicos e a predominância da energia gerada via base térmica da Argentina, o trabalho elabora um levantamento cadastral da região, discute sua proposta com entidades governamentais de ambos os países, obtendo significativa receptividade. O intercâmbio de energia elétrica foi, assim, associado às relações de troca do comércio bilateral, objetivando intensificar esta atividade entre nações irmãs e sobretudo contribuir da melhor forma para a consolidação do MERCOSUL. Seu resultado concreto será a possibilidade de intercâmbio entre Argentina e Brasil, do equivalente a 1000 MW médios ou 450 milhões de dólares/ano, contribuindo de forma expressiva para o equilíbrio da balança comercial, num determinado cenário e atenuando o risco de déficit de energia elétrica. Do Brasil, quando da ocorrência de excedente hidráulico, ao invés de simples vertimento, este poderia ser exportado para a Argentina, poupando seu parque térmico para eventuais paradas de manutenção e reduzindo o consumo de óleo combustível. Da Argentina, sua energia de base térmica, aliada a excedente proporcionado por hidrologia complementar, poderia ser transferida para o Brasil. A viabilização desta integração propicia vantagens econômicas e estratégicas, como a independência energética desta região geopolítica. Assegura um desenvolvimento equilibrado e auto sustentável, permitindo aguardar a vinda de novas fontes. Contribui para o objetivo maior das nações deste continente, o desenvolvimento humano, com justiça social e preservação do meio ambiente. / In the process of integration of Latin America, Southern Cone integration is of paramount importance. Within this context, the proposal is part of this work, the energy integration through multilateral projects, particularly the electrical interconnection between Brazil and Argentina. The example that worked was the Energy Integration of Europe, which started in the 50s. Given the characteristics of our region such as the complementarity of hydrological regimes and the predominance of thermal energy generated via the base of Argentina, the work produces a cadastral survey of the region, discusses his proposal with government in both countries, obtaining significant receptivity. The exchange of power was thus associated with the exchange relations of bilateral trade, aiming to intensify this activity between sister nations and above all best contribute to the consolidation of MERCOSUR. Your results will be the possibility of exchanges between Argentina and Brazil, the equivalent of 1000 MW or 450 million dollars / year, contributing significantly to the balance of trade in a given scenario and reducing the risk of energy deficits . From Brazil, upon the occurrence of surplus hydraulic, rather than simple vertimento, this could be exported to Argentina, saving you park for possible thermal maintenance downtime and reducing consumption of fuel oil. From Argentina, its basic thermal energy, combined with additional surplus provided by hydrology, could be transferred to Brazil. The feasibility of this integration provides economic and strategic advantages, such as energy independence of this geopolitical region. Ensures a balanced and self-sustaining, allowing await the coming of new sources. Contributes to the ultimate goal of the nations of this continent, human development, social justice and environmental preservation.

No processo de integração da América Latina, a integração do CONE SUL tem importância básica. Dentro deste contexto, insere-se a proposta do presente trabalho, a integração energética através de projetos multilaterais, particularmente a interconexão elétrica entre o Brasil e a Argentina. O exemplo que deu certo foi o da Integração Energética da Europa, que teve seu início na década de 50. Consideradas as características próprias de nossa região tais como a complementaridade de regimes hidrológicos e a predominância da energia gerada via base térmica da Argentina, o trabalho elabora um levantamento cadastral da região, discute sua proposta com entidades governamentais de ambos os países, obtendo significativa receptividade. O intercâmbio de energia elétrica foi, assim, associado às relações de troca do comércio bilateral, objetivando intensificar esta atividade entre nações irmãs e sobretudo contribuir da melhor forma para a consolidação do MERCOSUL. Seu resultado concreto será a possibilidade de intercâmbio entre Argentina e Brasil, do equivalente a 1000 MW médios ou 450 milhões de dólares/ano, contribuindo de forma expressiva para o equilíbrio da balança comercial, num determinado cenário e atenuando o risco de déficit de energia elétrica. Do Brasil, quando da ocorrência de excedente hidráulico, ao invés de simples vertimento, este poderia ser exportado para a Argentina, poupando seu parque térmico para eventuais paradas de manutenção e reduzindo o consumo de óleo combustível. Da Argentina, sua energia de base térmica, aliada a excedente proporcionado por hidrologia complementar, poderia ser transferida para o Brasil. A viabilização desta integração propicia vantagens econômicas e estratégicas, como a independência energética desta região geopolítica. Assegura um desenvolvimento equilibrado e auto sustentável, permitindo aguardar a vinda de novas fontes. Contribui para o objetivo maior das nações deste continente, o desenvolvimento humano, com justiça social e preservação do meio ambiente. / In the process of integration of Latin America, Southern Cone integration is of paramount importance. Within this context, the proposal is part of this work, the energy integration through multilateral projects, particularly the electrical interconnection between Brazil and Argentina. The example that worked was the Energy Integration of Europe, which started in the 50s. Given the characteristics of our region such as the complementarity of hydrological regimes and the predominance of thermal energy generated via the base of Argentina, the work produces a cadastral survey of the region, discusses his proposal with government in both countries, obtaining significant receptivity. The exchange of power was thus associated with the exchange relations of bilateral trade, aiming to intensify this activity between sister nations and above all best contribute to the consolidation of MERCOSUR. Your results will be the possibility of exchanges between Argentina and Brazil, the equivalent of 1000 MW or 450 million dollars / year, contributing significantly to the balance of trade in a given scenario and reducing the risk of energy deficits . From Brazil, upon the occurrence of surplus hydraulic, rather than simple vertimento, this could be exported to Argentina, saving you park for possible thermal maintenance downtime and reducing consumption of fuel oil. From Argentina, its basic thermal energy, combined with additional surplus provided by hydrology, could be transferred to Brazil. The feasibility of this integration provides economic and strategic advantages, such as energy independence of this geopolitical region. Ensures a balanced and self-sustaining, allowing await the coming of new sources. Contributes to the ultimate goal of the nations of this continent, human development, social justice and environmental preservation.

Because of the fluctuations in incident solar power, outlet power also changes over time (e.g., on an hourly basis or seasonally). If there is a need for a stable power outlet, there are options towards a steady state output of the system. This work is aimed at the development of systematic design procedures for two solar-based power generation strategies. The first is integration of fossil-fuel with the solar system to provide a compensation effect (power backup to supplement the power main source from solar energy). The second is the use of thermal energy storage (TES) systems to save solar energy in a thermal form and use it when solar input decreases. A common TES configuration is the two-tank system which allows the use of the collector heat transfer fluid (HTF) as a storing medium. For the two tanks, one tank has the hot medium (e.g., a molten salt) and the second has the cold storage media. Specifically, the following design challenges are addressed: 1. What is the optimal mix of energy forms to be supplied to the process? 2. What are the optimal scenario and integration mode to deliver the selected energy forms? How should they be integrated among themselves and with the process? 3. What is the optimal design of the energy systems? 4. What is the optimal dynamic strategy for operating the various energy systems? 5. What is the feasibility of using thermal energy storage to this optimum fossil fuel system? The developed procedure includes gathering and generation of relevant solar and climatic data, modeling of the various components of the solar, fossil, and power generation systems, and optimization of several aspects of the hybrid system. A case study is solved to demonstrate the effectiveness and applicability of the devised procedure.

The objective of this work was to develop a systematic methodology for simultaneously targeting and optimizing heating, cooling, power cogeneration, and waste management for any processing facility. A systems approach was used to characterize the complex interactions between the various forms of material and energy utilities as well as their interactions with the core processing units. Two approaches were developed: graphical and mathematical. In both approaches, a hierarchical procedure was developed to decompose the problem into successive stages that were globally solvable then. The solution fragments were then merged into overall process solutions and targets. The whole approach was a systems approach of solving problems. The methodology was developed from the insights from several state of the art process integration techniques. In particular, the dissertation introduced a consistent framework for simultaneously addressing heat-exchange networks, material-recovery networks, combined heat and power, fuel optimization, and waste management. The graphical approach relied on decomposing the problem into sequential tasks that could be addressed using visualization tools. The mathematical approach enabled the simultaneous solution of critical subproblems. Because of the non-convexity of the mathematical formulation, a global optimization technique was developed through problem reformulation and discretization. A case study was solved and analyzed to illustrate the effectiveness of the devised methodology.

The wind energy industry in the U.S. has seen robust growth within the last two decades. The amount of renewable resources available throughout the U.S. is substantial, and as renewable energy penetration approaches a significant proportion of total electricity generation, grid operators and utilities will be presented with a myriad of challenges. Such is the case in wind’ rich Texas, where the rate of wind installations surpasses every other state and rivals that of China. By the end of 2009, the ERCOT region of Texas had approximately 9000 MW installed, serving 6.5% of the annual electricity load . The intermittent nature of wind energy can place a burden on existing generators as they are increasingly relied on to provide regulation of power, frequency control and back-up energy services when wind production is low. Exacerbating the difficulty of integrating wind energy is the mismatch of wind generation and electricity demand. Although Texas is blessed with plentiful wind resources, the majority of energy produced typically occurs at night when electricity demands are low. The result is transmission congestion that prevents cost effective generators from serving load. Despite these integration difficulties, ERCOT is paving the way forward with transformative infrastructure plans and proactive rulemaking. This report provides a background on the state of the wind energy industry in the U.S., with a review of power system operation strategies and wind integration best practices. With that context, this study concludes that ERCOT’s electricity market operations, transmission plans, and Texas’ renewable energy policies will act to reasonably and reliably accommodate wind generation capacity that serves over 15% of annual load by 2030. / text

Over the last decade, wind penetration in the Pacific Northwest has increased rapidly. The variable nature of this massive new resource has increased stress on the hydropower resource to the point where system limits are currently being reached. In order to cultivate continued growth of the wind energy industry both in the Pacific Northwest and the rest of the world, something must be added to help mitigate the effects of the variability of wind power. This research aims to show what can be done by adding energy storage to a wind farm. A novel model predictive control structure has been created with the focus of increasing the dispatchability and reliability of wind farm power output along with allowing participation in frequency regulation. First, the effectiveness of the addition of energy storage with simple control is explored. This is followed by a study on the performance of the system when predictive control is added. Finally, a cost analysis is performed to assess the level of savings and potential profitability of the simulated system. Conclusions support the use of an energy storage resource for more reliable wind farm performance. However, storage technologies are still approaching the price point needed to ensure profitability. / Graduation date: 2012

In recent years, there has been lots of emphasis put on the development of renewable energy. While considerable improvement on renewable energy has been made, there are some inherent limitations for these renewable energies. For example, for solar and wind power, there is an intermittent nature. For the fuel cell, the dynamics of electro-chemical reaction is quite slow compared to the electric load. This will not be acceptable for modern electric application, which requires constant voltage of constant frequency. This work proposed and evaluated a new power circuit that can deal with the problem of the intermittent nature and slow response of the renewable energy. The proposed circuit integrates different renewable energy sources as well as energy storage. By integrating renewable energy sources with statistical tendency to compensate each other, the effect of the intermittent nature can be greatly reduced. This integration will increase the reliability and utilization of the overall system. Moreover, the integration of energy storage solves the problem of the slow response of renewable energy. It can provide the extra energy required by load or absorb the excessive energy provided by the energy sources, greatly improving the dynamics of overall system. To better understand the proposed circuit, "Dual Active Bridge" and "Triple Active Bridge" were reviewed first. The operation principles and the modeling were presented. Analysis and design of the overall system were discussed. Controller design and stability issues were investigated. Furthermore, the function of the central controller was explained. In the end, different simulations were made and discussed. Results from the simulations showed that the proposed multi-port DC-DC power converter had satisfactory performance under different scenarios encountered in practical renewable energy application. The proposed circuit is an effective solution to the problem due to the intermittent nature and slow response of the renewable energy.

This report presents an overview of the engineering considerations involved in the design of grid-scale battery energy storage systems. Grid-scale is defined here as systems over 1 MW in rated power, typically operated by a utility, independent power producer, or Independent System Operator (ISO). The physical components of a BESS are presented and explained, including power electronics, an introduction to various commercially available battery technologies, necessary control systems, and balance of plant hardware. Also presented are a variety of real-world applications of battery energy storage systems, showing how the specific application determines what mix of technology will be selected when designing the system, as well as explaining the foundation for the control algorithms. / text

The production of oil requires tremendous amounts of energy consumption through a distributed combustion network of processes along the oil supply chain spectrum. The consequences of fossil-based fuel combustion processes are the generation of Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions and hazardous wastewater, which have adverse environmental effects. Potential mitigation options of GHG emissions are the application of renewable and alternative energy sources. This research deals with integrating the upstream oil supply chain with renewable power generation systems in order to assess the impact of energy demand, and CO2 emissions on the efficiency of oil operations and environment . The main focus in this thesis is to evaluate the solar energy alternative for producing part of the energy requirements in the upstream oil supply chain. The output from the research will provide an optimal mix of energy generation in the upstream oil industry in order to comply with CO2 constraints, while sustaining target production plans. An analysis of GHG emission sources and their associated flow rates in the upstream oil supply chain mainly CO2 is discussed in this study. An investigation of replacement of energy supply for some non-critical operations from fossil fuels or other conventional sources to green renewable energy sources mainly from solar energy is also carried out with special focus on enhanced oil recovery operations. An analysis of different types of solar energy and identification of the best type of solar energy technologies that best matches the oil and gas industry is investigated in this study. The thesis will also identify the challenges for solar energy integration including irradiation levels and weather conditions in addition to policy regulations

Sustainable Built Environments Senior Capstone Project / This capstone project evaluates the current state of floating solar photovoltaic technology and proposes use of the technology on water management infrastructure in Arizona. The study finds that floating solar photovoltaic has a higher energy density (100 W/m^2) than land-based, utility-scale solar and does not involve significant cost increases. The study proposes and models a small pilot installation on Lake Pleasant Reservoir, part of the Central Arizona Project, and finds that lifetime costs per unit energy are higher than what the Central Arizona Project currently pays for energy, assuming US median per-wattinstalled costs for commercial solar. This cost however does not factor in savings from water conservation, existing infrastructure, reduced land costs, or other benefits. The study recommends water reservoirs by hydropower dams as ideal locations for floating photovoltaic installations. Justified with a significant background on Arizona’s environmental, social, and economic sustainability, as well as regulations calling for increased renewable energy generation and reduced carbon emissions, this study recommends aggressive implementation of floating solar photovoltaic technology within a sustainable development paradigm.