Modelling Optimal PV System Sizing for Zero Energy Buildings

Considering increasing global warming and the contribution of renewable energy resources, minimizing supply the energy consumption of residential buildings using conventional generation is a critical issue. In a Nearly zero-energy building (NZEB), the total amount of energy consumed by the building is produced onsite through renewables energy resources. In this paper, a stochastic optimization model is presented to design an optimal grid-connected Photovoltaic (PV) system to supply the optimum electrical and heating loads for NZEB designs. The objective function of the proposed model is to optimize costs of the PV system, heating system, and electrical loads, and profit of selling surplus power into the grid. The results illustrate that when designing an optimal NZEB based on the optimum PV system, optimal space heating load and electrical loads are vital. This model is applied to a sample building in Dublin, Ireland to show the operability of the proposed methodology for different scenarios based on the solar radiation uncertainty.