Optimal Design of a Decarbonized Sector-Coupled Microgrid: Electricity-Heat-Hydrogen-Transport Sectors

Benefits accrued by virtue of the presence of microgrids have led to their increased deployment beyond their original objective of supplying power to the remote communities. However, in order to achieve a zero emission energy sector, the challenge is to design a carbon-neutral microgrid. This paper presents a novel, optimal design for a decarbonized microgrid taking into consideration the concept of sector-coupling, by integrating the electric, heat/thermal, hydrogen and transport sectors. The microgrid also includes wind facilities, solar PV panels, green hydrogen system (fuel cells, electrolyzers, storage tanks), Fuel Cell Electric Vehicles (FCEVs) and Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESSs). The real isolated microgrid of Kasabonika Lake First Nation (KLFN) in northern Ontario, Canada, is considered for the design studies and to evaluate the techno-economic feasibility. The effect of (US) Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 (IRA2022) is examined. Results demonstrate the practicability and techno-economic merits of the proposed Decarbonized Sector-coupled Microgrid (DCSCMG). The proposed DCSCMG is compared to the existing diesel-based KLFN microgrid on economic metrics, levelized Cost of Energy (COE) and emissions. Further, the advantages offered by inclusion of BESSs and/or sector-coupling are investigated in the context of net-zero.