Optimal Configuration for Design of Stand-Alone PV System

This paper presents a design for a stand-alone photovoltaic (PV) system to provide the required electricity for a single residential household in rural area in Jordan. The complete design steps for the suggested household loads are carried out. Site radiation data and the electrical load data of a typical household in the considered site are taken into account during the design steps. The reliability of the system is quantified by the loss of load probability. A computer program is developed to simulate the PV system behavior and to numerically find an optimal combination of PV array and battery bank for the design of stand-alone photovoltaic systems in terms of reliability and costs. The program calculates life cycle cost and annualized unit electrical cost. Simulations results showed that a value of loss of load probability LLP can be met by several combinations of PV array and battery storage. The method developed here uniquely determines the optimum configuration that meets the load demand with the minimum cost. The difference between the costs of these combinations is very large. The optimal unit electrical cost of 1 kWh for LLP = 0.049 is $0.293;while for LLP 0.0027 it is $0.402. The results of the study encouraged the use of the PV systems to electrify the remote sites in Jordan.

Maximum Power Point Tracking Using Fuzzy Logic Controller under Partial Conditions

This study proposes a fuzzy system for tracking the maximum power point of a PV system for solar panel. The solar panel and maximum power point tracker have been modeled using MATLAB/Simulink. A simulation model consists of PV panel, boost converter, and maximum power point tack MPPT algorithm is developed. Three different conditions are simulated: 1) Uniform irradiation;2) Sudden changing;3) Partial shading. Results showed that fuzzy controller successfully find MPP for all different weather conditions studied. FLC has excellent ability to track MPP in less than 0.01 second when PV is subjected to sudden changes and partial shading in irradiation.

A cost effective approach to design of energy efficient residential buildings

The objective of this study is to identify cost-optimal efficiency packages at several levels of building energy savings.A two-story residential building located in Jordan is selected as a case study.DesignBuilder software is used to predict the annual energy usage of a twostory residence in Irbid,Jordan.Real-time experimental data from a single isolated controlled room was used to verify the proposed model.In addition to energy analysis,the economic,environmental,and social benefits of the proposed design have been investigated.The sequential search optimization approach is used to estimate the minimum cost of the building while considering various design scenarios.In addition,the impact of various energy conservation techniques on residential buildings is assessed,and the payback period for each program is calculated.Ultimately,the optimal combination of design to achieve energy efficiency measures has been identified in several climate regions.The simulations results predict that the annual electricity consumption can be reduced up to 50%if the proper combinations of energy conservation measures are selected at the lowest cost.The payback period is 9.3 years.Finally,energy efficiency measures can lead to a total of 9470 jobs/year job opportunities.The study provide practical framework to link between energy performance criteria and economic goals of building.Linking the energy performance requirements to economic targets provides guidelines for homeowners,contractors,and policymakers for making a suitable decision regarding the retrofitting of existing residential buildings.The study focuses on developing new methodologies that support minimizing costs during a building’s lifecycle while maximizing environmental benefits which can not be identified by a series of parametric analyses using individual energy-efficient measures.