Abstract
An 'energy hub' comprises of the interactions of different energy loads and sources for power generation, storage, and conversion. This paper presents an energy hub consisting of nuclear plants, wind turbines, solar panels, biomass reactors, electrolyzers, and fuel cells. The hub serves to replace existing coal-based power generating facilities to meet electricity and hydrogen demands for industrial and transportation sectors, as projected in 2030. Equipment sizing and costing analysis for different energy production technologies and hydrogen storage were considered using Matlab/Simulink. Several energy hub designs with various technological combinations were analyzed, and a profitability analysis was conducted to evaluate the feasibility of each energy hub. The proposed models also evaluate the environmental benefits of the future energy hub and outline the best hub configurations. It was found that the most economical energy hub is when nuclear reactor was operated throughout the year at a capacity near to the grid's average annual electricity demand. Underground hydrogen storage emerged as the most economical option for all hubs analyzed, and any excess power was converted to hydrogen for sale in the industrial and transportation sectors.
| Original language | British English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 7470-7481 |
| Number of pages | 12 |
| Journal | Industrial and Engineering Chemistry Research |
| Volume | 52 |
| Issue number | 22 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - 5 Jun 2013 |
