Sea-Water Desalination for Load Levelling of Gen-Sets in Small Off-Grid Islands

Energies

Alessandro Corsini¹  Eileen Tortora² 

[1] Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Sapienza Università di Roma, via Eudossiana 18, 00184 Roma, Italy;Faculty of Civil and Industrial Engineering, Sapienza Università di Roma, via Andrea Doria 3, 04100 Latina, Italy;

关键词: water-energy nexus;    island;    diesel engine;    renewable energy;    desalination;   

DOI  :  10.3390/en11082068

来源: DOAJ

【 摘 要 】

This study deals with the energy/water nexus on small off-grid islands. Small islands share several characteristics that hinder the introduction of new plants, such as: Energy system balance when renewable sources are introduced; water shortages, usually addressed via shipping from the mainland; environmental and historical heritage values; and, scarce land availability. In these cases, it is mandatory to detect energy/water technology integration and management solutions respecting the peculiarities and boundaries of the sites. The present work proposes a desalination plant with a primary scope of load leveler and a secondary scope of water producer. The aim is to propose a simple and non-invasive solution for energy/water management in order to limit impacts on the local environment while improving the match between renewable energy and local generation by means of desalination. This study led to an integrated system composed of local diesel engine power plant, distributed roof-top photovoltaic plants and a desalination plant, managed by a dedicated control logic. Desalination from renewable energy and power adjustments of already active diesel engines are favored. The case study refers to Ponza island, in the Tyrrhenian Sea. This paper demonstrates the effective possibility of using a desalination plant with the double purpose of water production and load levelling, providing 98% of the local water demand while mitigating the renewable energy fluctuations effects on the gen-set. Moreover, the proposed system results in a 50% CO2eq emissions abatement over the current water supply carbon footprint.

【 授权许可】

Unknown