Optimal sizing and operational strategies for diesel engine driven CCHP system

This study investigates the use of a diesel engine generator (DG) driven trigeneration system fueled by diesel-bio-diesel-ethanol (DBE) blend to meet the energy demand of buildings in Bangkok, Thailand. The hourly electric, cooling and heating demands, for the building, are estimated using the software EnergyPlus. An algorithm is developed for optimal sizing of power generation unit (PGU) and absorption chiller that gives minimum annual total cost (ATC) for the system. Moreover, operational optimization schemes which minimize the annual energy charge (AEC) are also established to determine the optimal capacity of the considered trigeneration system. Different PGU sizes and absorption chiller capacities are used to demonstrate the performance of operationally optimized combined cooling heating and power (CCHP) system in this study. It is found that system fueled with DBE blends could reduce the total system cost by 17 % compared to the systems using base diesel. Also, the best configuration and the operational strategy for the considered CCHP system is found at each specific condition and the results are discussed.