Techno-Economic Environmental Analysis of a PV based Hydrogen Re-Fueling station for Off Grid Scenario in Oman

Hydrogen-refueling stations are one of the fundamental components of a hydrogen-based transportation system. Renewable energy sources must supply the power required to generate, store, and distribute hydrogen for a sustainable environment. There are many options available to generate power from renewable energy sources. However, identifying an appropriate system for a particular locality is still a challenging task. This paper narrates the feasibility analysis of a standalone hydrogen fueling station in the Gulf region powered by solar energy. In this simulation, we used diesel-powered systems as our reference, given that diesel is typically considered the fuel for off-grid systems. To determine the optimal system size, we used the HOMER pro software to compare four different system configurations: diesel alone (Case 1), PV/battery/diesel generator (Case 2), PV/battery (Case 3), PV /diesel generator (Case 4)., and. Based on the expected population of hydrogen-fueled cars, we calculated the hydrogen load and fuel station power demand to be 111 kg/day and 7 kW., respectively. The results indicate that Case 4, which combines 3.23 MW of solar PV with a 19-kW diesel generator and has a 99.4% renewable energy fraction, is a promising system. For Case 4, the levelized cost of hydrogen is 9.69 $/kg. The simple payback for this system is 3.76 years., compared to Case 1's ability to meet both electric and hydrogen loads. Despite reducing diesel consumption from 679846 litters to 8938 litters, Case 4 system produces 3325 MWh of excess energy annually.