Multi-Energy Systems in Small Settlements: Methodology and Case Study for Electricity and Heat Supply

Abstract

This paper presents a methodology and a tool for prefeasibility studies to optimally design an energy supplysystem with multiple energy carriers for a site. The toolis based on mixed-integer linear programming (MILP)and it optimally determines the type and the size ofenergy conversion technologies such that the resultingdesign satisfies the demand for heating, hot water andelectricity in hourly resolution. Thermal and electricalstorage as well as demand response are also taken intoaccount. It is noted that the objective of the optimizationis twofold: life-cycle cost and CO2 emissions. Thus, a setof Pareto solutions are provided, where each solutionrepresents a different optimal combination of energyconversion and storage technologies, allowing the userto select the best combination according to her/hispreference. The methodology is tested on a greenfieldsettlement in the proximity of Baden in Switzerland.Index Terms — multi-energy optimization, energy hub, multienergy planning