Anayochukwu and Nnene Simulation and Optimization of Photovoltaic/Diesel Hybrid Power Generation Systems for Health Service Facilities in Rural Environments

ABSTRACT Hybrid photovoltaic (PV)/diesel power systems can be used to upgrade power generation systems in medical clinics to improve the delivery of local health services. This study presents the design of hybrid (PV/diesel) power systems for medical faci-lities in the Agbani district (Nkanu-West) in Eastern Nigeria with a daily load of 19 kWh d-1. Solar resou-rces for the design of the system were obtained from the NASA Surface Meteorology and solar energy we-bsite at a location of 6 ° 00 ’ N latitude and 7 ° 00 ’ E longitude, with annual average solar radiation of 4.95 kWh m-2 d-1. The design is based on theoretical model of the power stations using Hybrid Optimization Mo-del for Electric Renewables (HOMER) software. The model was designed to provide an optimal system configuration based on hour-by-hour data for energy availability and demands. Energy source, energy sto-rage and their applicability in terms of performance are discussed. From the simulation results, it is shown that the designed hybrid PV/diesel system reduces the operational cost and quantity of air pollutants from a diesel-only system. Details of the comparisons are presented