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Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

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At least 271 records · Page 15
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2022

The locational value of distributed energy resources: A parcel-level evaluation of solar and wind potential in New York state

We report distributed energy resources (DERs) are poised to play a significant role in evolving power systems because of their flexibility to be sited in areas of high value to the grid. Traditional DER compensation frameworks, specifically net energy metering (NEM), inadequately communicate differences in the locational and temporal value of DER generation to the grid. As a transition from NEM, New York State's (NYS's) Value of Distributed Energy Resources (VDER) framework provides a methodology for calculating different value components that DERs offer the grid. To study the impacts of VDER frameworks on DER deployment, we developed a model to assess the value of distributed solar and wind systems configured as either a behind-the-meter system or a front-of-the-meter system for each parcel of land in NYS. Using parcel-level granularity, we can closely evaluate DER locational value and siting availability, particularly in urban and suburban settings. Our analysis finds while most DER generators would be modestly compensated for deferred transmission and distribution infrastructure upgrades (~0.01 $\$$/kWh for solar PV), a subset of projects receive significant value from this component (0.035 to 0.089 $\$$/kWh for top 5% of parcels for solar PV). Finally, our analysis finds VDER provides less overall compensation than NEM to the average DER generator, however, it increases access to compensation for front-of-the-meter DERs - a large and emerging market.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗
DOE OSTI2022

Duke Energy Carbon-Free Resource Integration Study

Duke Energy has partnered with the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) to evaluate pathways to achieving their carbon-free targets and to assess the operational impacts of the resulting system. This report details findings from Phase II of the Duke Low Carbon Resource Integration study, which consisted of three separate but interrelated analyses: (1) a resource assessment exploring the technical and economic potential and characteristics of wind and solar resources in the Carolinas; (2) capacity expansion modeling identifying the least-cost investment pathways for achieving 70% CO 2 emissions reductions in North Carolina by 2030 and a net-zero electricity system by 2050; and (3) detailed production cost modeling of power system operations at the higher shares of low- and zero-carbon emitting generation sources, informed by the capacity expansion modeling portion of the analysis. The analysis finds that Duke Energy can approach the 2030 and 2050 emissions target in North Carolina through investment in a combination of solar, wind, and storage along with maintaining its existing nuclear fleet. The average cost of CO 2 abatement in the Carolinas through 2021-2050 is on the order of $\$27-33$ per metric ton (range of $\$9-34$ per metric ton across key sensitivities).Duke Energy can expected increased interchange with neighbors to help balance higher levels of solar, although the ability to do this will depend on whether neighboring regions also move to integrate more carbon-free resources. As Duke Energy moves toward both the 2030 and 2050 targets, addressing energy needs during the winter peak period becomes particularly important, and the system relies on the availability of resources such as renewable or hydrogen combustion turbines, seasonal storage, or other similar technologies that are dispatchable but able to operate at low capacity factors.

29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY↗
DOE OSTI2022

Cybersecurity for Distributed Wind: What Integrators Need to Know

Few resources exist to address a growing need to secure distributed wind systems. Idaho National Laboratory recently published the Cybersecurity Guide for Distributed Wind, a richly detailed resource outlining a distributed wind system's possible architecture, relevant standards, risk management strategies, and key recommendations for stakeholders. This document highlights key actionable insights from the Guide that integrators can use to execute an effective cybersecurity strategy.

17 WIND ENERGY↗
DOE OSTI2022

Cybersecurity for Distributed Wind: What Manufacturers Need to Know

Few resources exist to address a growing need to secure distributed wind systems. Idaho National Laboratory recently published the Cybersecurity Guide for Distributed Wind, a richly detailed resource outlining a distributed wind system's possible architecture, relevant standards, risk management strategies, and key recommendations for stakeholders. This document highlights key actionable insights from the Guide that manufacturers can use to execute an effective cybersecurity strategy.

17 WIND ENERGY↗
DOE OSTI2022

Cybersecurity for Distributed Wind: What Operators Need to Know

Few resources exist to address a growing need to secure distributed wind systems. Idaho National Laboratory recently published the Cybersecurity Guide for Distributed Wind, a richly detailed resource outlining a distributed wind system's possible architecture, relevant standards, risk management strategies, and key recommendations for stakeholders. This document highlights key actionable insights from the Guide that operators can use to execute an effective cybersecurity strategy.

17 WIND ENERGY↗
DOE OSTI2023

Distributed Wind Market Report: 2023 Edition

The annual Distributed Wind Market Report provides stakeholders with market statistics and analysis along with insights into market trends and characteristics for wind technologies used as distributed energy resources. This report presents the distributed wind market from 2003 through 2022. Installed capacity, deployment trends, customer types, incentives, policies, installed costs, performance, and the future outlook for the distributed wind market are the key topics included in the report.

17 WIND ENERGY↗
DOE OSTI2022

Finding Hidden Patterns in High Resolution Wind Flow Model Simulations

Wind flow data is critical in terms of investment decisions and policy making. High resolution data from wind flow model simulations serve as a supplement to the limited resource of original wind flow data collection. Given the large size of data, finding hidden patterns in wind flow model simulations are critical for reducing the dimensionality of the analysis. In this work, we first perform dimension reduction with two autoencoder models: the CNN-based autoencoder (CNN-AE) [1], and hierarchical autoencoder (HIER-AE) [2], and compare their performance with the Principal Component Analysis (PCA). We then investigate the super-resolution of the wind flow data. By training a Generative Adversarial Network (GAN) with 300 epochs, we obtained a trained model with 2× resolution enhancement. We compare the results of GAN with Convolutional Neural Network (CNN), and GAN results show finer structure as expected in the data field images. Also, the kinetic energy spectra comparisons show that GAN outperforms CNN in terms of reproducing the physical properties for high wavenumbers and is critical for analysis where high-wavenumber kinetics play an important role.

97 MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTING↗
DOE OSTI2022

Evaluating Grid Strength under Uncertain Renewable Generation

The increasing displacement of synchronous generators with renewable resources such as wind and solar via power electronic interfaces causes a reduction in short-circuit strength and weak grid issues. The variation and uncertainty of renewable energy increase challenges for identifying weak grid conditions. This paper proposes an efficient method to analyze the impact of uncertain renewable energy on grid strength. The proposed method uses the probabilistic collocation method (PCM) to approximate the results of grid strength assessment under uncertain renewable generation, in order to reduce computational burden without compromising result accuracy when compared with traditional Monte Carlo simulation (MCS). To improve the accuracy of the approximation results, the proposed method integrates the K-means clustering technique with PCM to select the approximation samples of input variables. The efficacy of the proposed method is demonstrated by comparison with MCS on the modified IEEE 9-bus system and modified IEEE 39-bus system with multiple renewable generators.

grid strength↗
DOE OSTI2026

Loss of Glen Canyon Dam Hydropower Plant Capabilities

The power grid in the western United States is undergoing a major transformation, driven by technological advancements, power markets, policy shifts, and evolving energy demands. The integration of variable renewable energy (VRE) resources, such as wind and solar, into the power grid has become a major driver of change. Between 2018 and 2023, about 19 gigawatts (GW) of new solar capacity and 14 GW of new wind capacity was built in the Western Interconnection (WI) region. These two VRE resources accounted for the majority of WI capacity additions. The Western Interconnection is expected to host 30 GW of wind, 40 GW of solar, and 14 GW of energy storage by 2030 (Western Electricity Coordinating Council n.d.).

13 HYDRO ENERGY↗
DOE OSTI2026

Financial-technical co-design for capital-intensive, resource-responsive energy systems

Because of their capital-intensive operation, wind energy systems that are competitive in terms of the cost of the energy that they produce lead to risk-reward trade-offs that make their business cases less favorable than those of conventional energy generation technologies. However, wind energy systems tend to be designed to maximize energy production or minimize cost of energy rather than to maximize their business cases. In this work, we attempt to exploit designs specifically tailored to business cases. We develop a novel framework for analyzing energy systems that ties their design variables to monthly operating incomes using simple models and historical hourly market and resource data. Using this approach, we demonstrate that for a wind site with abundant wind resource in the California Independent System Operator market, we can control the trade-off between mean and 5th percentile monthly returns by choosing the specific power of the turbine at a fixed modeled initial capital cost. Our framework gives a measure of the risk-reward spectrum of energy generation assets that could be built at a given site with respect to the sub-annual resource/market variation.

29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY↗
DOE OSTI2021

Igiugig Site Visit Report

The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) team conducted a site visit during January 23-25, 2019 with the Igiugig Village Council (IVC) and other stakeholders to assist the community of Igiugig in refining their long-term energy strategy. The agenda included a tour of the village, data collection, presentations, long-term visioning exercises, identification of energy scenarios, and a school presentation. Participants in the site visit activities spanned a range of local, regional, government, and industry participation. There were 24 attendees at the all-day community workshop on Thursday, January 24th, with participants from the IVC, NREL, Bristol Bay Native Association (BBNA), Bristol Bay Native Corporation (BBNC), Lake and Peninsula Borough, Alaska Energy Authority, Intergrid, ORPC, Deer Stone Consulting, the Southwest Alaska Municipal Conference, and University of Alaska Fairbanks - Alaska Center for Energy and Power. Igiugig is a well-organized rural Alaskan community, with a leadership team that appears to have broad community support. The use of consensus-based decision making is one tangible example of how the leadership team actively invokes and promotes community-focused thinking. The NREL team observed anecdotal evidence of how this approach seems to be strengthening the community: active participation in the visioning exercise, a student hosted fund-raiser dinner at the school, a clean and organized landfill, and well-maintained roads and buildings. Igiugig has wind, solar, and river hydrokinetic resources readily available within the community. Wind has shown to be a promising resource in the region, and has been integrated into microgrids around the state, but the community has had mixed success with wind technologies: some devices failed quickly and others continue to operate. The economics of solar energy are improving in Alaska, and economical solar projects are being installed around the state. Considering that economic activity in Igiugig peaks during the summer sport fishing season, solar could prove to be a valuable supplement to the electrical system. Igiugig has been a test site for two different river hydrokinetic devices, and they have began a third project to operate ORPC's RivGen device, which is delivering valuable device performance data, operations and maintenance experience, and design refinement information. Already, this device has made over 7-million revolutions, and delivered over 8 MWh of power to the community. Igiugig's river resource is fairly unique because it is available year-round and has the potential to provide reliable base-load power for months at a time. A preliminary investigation of this diverse resource mix suggests that Igiugig could achieve very high levels (70% or more) of annual renewable generation contributions. A critical step in pursuing this path is identifying the mix of energy assets (generation and storage) that best meets the community's budget, needs, and goals. The assets that a community installs early in their grid-modernization initiative can constrain the options that are economical at later stages, which may lead to sub-optimal solutions. This is where technical and economic analysis of potential scenarios (i.e., distinct mixes of energy assets) can be useful in identifying the most promising pathways so that a community can make informed and strategic decisions about the assets they install. These analyses are most accurate and informative when they are based on actual technology performance and cost data. As the RivGen project continues to operate and generate this data, we will be better prepared to evaluate the technology's long-term viability and to identify research areas that would improve it. Igiugig's energy projects are at the cutting edge of two intersecting technology areas: 1) deploying an operational river hydrokinetic turbine, and 2) integrating renewable energy sources to achieve very high percent renewables. If these projects are successful, the lessons learned and technologies developed could be valuable for other microgrids around the world. Igiugig's unique resource mix make it an ideal location for this work, and the community's organizational strength make it an ideal partner in this ground-breaking work. Ongoing support for technical assistance to manage and address technical challenges along the way will maximize the probability of project success.

13 HYDRO ENERGY↗
DOE OSTI2023

Queued Up: Characteristics of Power Plants Seeking Transmission Interconnection As of the End of 2022 [Slides]

Proposed large-scale electric generation and storage projects must apply for interconnection to the bulk power system via interconnection queues. While most projects that apply for interconnection are not subsequently built, data from these queues nonetheless provide a general indicator for mid-term trends in developer interest. Berkeley Lab compiled and analyzed data from all seven ISOs/RTOs in concert with 35 non-ISO utilities, representing an estimated 85% of all U.S. electricity load. We include all "active" projects in these generation interconnection queues through the end of 2022, as well as data on "operational" and "withdrawn" projects where those data are available. We find that the amount of new electric capacity in these queues is growing dramatically, with over 2,000 gigawatts (GW) of total generation and storage capacity now seeking connection to the grid (over 95% of which is for zero-carbon resources like solar, wind, and battery storage). Solar (947 GW) and battery storage (~680 GW) are – by far – the fastest growing resources in the queues; combined they accounted for over 80% of new capacity entering the queues in 2022. Substantial wind (300 GW) capacity is also seeking interconnection, 38% of which is for offshore projects (113 GW). In total, about 1,250 GW of zero-carbon generating capacity is currently seeking transmission access, as is 82 GW of natural gas capacity. Hybrids projects (co-locating multiple generation and/or storage types) comprise a large – and increasing – share of proposed projects, particularly in CAISO and the non-ISO West. 457 GW of solar hybrids (primarily solar+battery) and 24 GW of wind hybrids are currently active in the queues; over half of battery storage in the queues is paired with generation. However, much of this proposed capacity will be withdrawn from the queues and not built. Among a subset of queues for which data are available, only 21% of the projects (and 14% of capacity) seeking connection from 2000 to 2017 have been built as of the end of 2022. Additionally, interconnection wait times are on the rise: The typical duration from connection request to commercial operation increased from <2 years for projects built in 2000-2007 to nearly 4 years for those built in 2018-2022 (with a median of 5 years for projects built in 2022).

24 POWER TRANSMISSION AND DISTRIBUTION↗
DOE OSTI2021

Evaluating the Interactions Between Variable Renewable Energy and Diurnal Storage

Cost declines and growing deployment of photovoltaic (PV), wind, and storage have led to increasing interest in the potential interactions of these three technologies as their role in the power system grows. In this work we enhance a national-scale capacity expansion model to evaluate how PV, wind, and storage interact in the evolution of the power system. Importantly, the modeling framework captures interactions in both investments and operations. Through this work we identify significant synergies between PV and storage. Scenarios with more PV always have more storage, and scenarios with more storage always have more PV. This synergy is due to the diurnal alignment of PV generation with 4-8 hour storage, and to the ability of PV to narrow system peaks to allow shorter-duration storage to serve as a peaking resource. Interactions between wind and storage are less pronounced, though we do observe that longer-duration storage resources appear to provide greater value for wind.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗
DOE OSTI2021

Sunsetting coal power in China

Reducing CO 2 emissions from coal-fired electricity generation in China is critical to limit global warming. Long-term projections of China's electricity supply tend to assume that coal generation will be a mainstay of China's electricity system through 2050, due to limitations in the scalability of hydropower, nuclear, and natural gas generation and the commercial availability of carbon capture and storage. This paper examines the resource, economic, and institutional implications of reducing and replacing coal generation in China with mostly renewable energy and energy storage by 2040. We find that the scale of solar, wind, and storage resources needed to do so is on the order of 100–150 GW/year of solar and wind capacity and 15 GW/year of energy storage from 2020 to 2025, growing to 250 GW/year and 90 GW/year, respectively, from 2025 to 2040. We then also evaluate the sensitivities if coal plants are retired by 2050.

01 COAL, LIGNITE, AND PEAT↗
DOE OSTI2021

Evaluating the Grid Impact of Oregon Offshore Wind [Slides]

This analysis used high-resolution offshore wind data and a detailed production cost model (PCM) of the Western Interconnection to explore the value and operational impact of integrating offshore wind along Oregon's coastline. Leveraging local technical stakeholder expertise and input, we determined a set of scenarios to explore. These scenarios vary both offshore wind capacities and the Western Interconnection generation and transmission infrastructure. From the scenario modeling and analysis, we identified the following key findings. In addition, we simulated a subset of the scenarios for a range of historical weather years (2007-2013), to understand the robustness of our findings to different weather conditions. Trans-coastal transmission constraints and congestion are the key drivers to the curtailment of Oregon offshore wind. Once power can be delivered into the Willamette Valley, there are few system constraints that lead to a significant curtailment of offshore wind off the coast of Oregon. Approximately 2.6 GW of installed offshore wind capacity can be integrated into Oregon's power system without major upgrades to trans-coastal transmission while avoiding significant curtailment. The system value provided by offshore wind ranges between $\$65$ /MWh and $\$85$ /MWh across the various scenarios considered. Offshore wind heavily influences the flow of the cross Cascade transmission. Across all scenarios, we found a robust relationship of approximately 500-550 MW decrease in the hourly flow of the cross Cascade transmission for every 1,000 MW of hourly offshore wind generation. However, we also found there was not a strong relationship between the highest cross-Cascade transmission flow hours and high offshore wind generation, limiting the extent to which offshore wind can be considered a non-wires alternative to cross cascade transmission. Depending on the meteorological year, 880-1,580 MW and 1,650-3,100 MW can be counted on to serve coastal loads with 2.6 GW and 5 GW of offshore wind capacity, respectively. Offshore wind allows for more optimal daily and hourly scheduling of hydropower, while still complying with various technical and regulatory constraints on the water resource. Oregon offshore wind has the potential to contribute to the evening net load peak in California (i.e., mitigate duck curve challenges), however transmission congestion between California and Oregon limits this contribution. Co-located storage at the point of interconnection for offshore wind reduces curtailment when trans-coastal transmission is not upgraded, providing a non-wires alternative to increase offshore wind capacity beyond 2.6 GW.

17 WIND ENERGY↗
DOE OSTI2021

Policy and Regulatory Environment for Utility-Scale Energy Storage: Bangladesh

Bangladesh has experienced significant economic growth and poverty reduction over the past several decades. Recognizing the central role electricity plays in economic development, the Government of Bangladesh (GOB) has established policies to accelerate the growth of the electric power sector. The Bangladesh power grid is transforming into one marked by declining reliance on domestic natural gas reserves and oil-based rental power plants, increasing renewable energy contribution, and shifting demand patterns. The GOB is now reconsidering its prior plans to increase the share of coal capacity in the generation mix to meet demand, shifting its focus instead to electricity imports from neighboring countries, nuclear generation, liquified natural gas imports, and domestic renewable resources such as wind and solar. However, investments in the transmission and distribution system, as well as ancillary services, have not kept pace with investments in generation resources over the past decade. Thus, Bangladesh electricity consumers still experience outages and poor power quality despite adequate installed capacity. On the demand side, population growth and industrialization have fueled steady growth in electricity consumption as efforts to expand access to electricity enabled near-universal electricity access by mid-2020. The combined changes in the mix of generation resources and patterns of electricity demand present new challenges and opportunities in operating and maintaining a reliable power system. Energy storage has the potential to help meet these challenges and accelerate Bangladesh’s energy transition. Declining costs for some energy storage technologies make them increasingly cost-effective solutions to provide a wide range of grid services. Previous analyses of energy storage in the region have identified several potential applications for storage at the bulk system level, including energy arbitrage, ancillary services, and transmission network support. The potential for storage to meet these needs depends on many factors, including physical characteristics of the power system and the policy and regulatory environments in which these energy storage assets would operate. This report applies an Energy Storage Readiness Assessment the National Renewable Energy Laboratory developed for policy makers and regulators to identify priority areas of focus as they continue to develop the appropriate suite of policies, programs, and regulations to enable storage deployment. This assessment uses a simple evaluation scheme to identify the barriers and opportunities for utility-scale energy storage within Bangladesh’s policy and regulatory environment.

24 POWER TRANSMISSION AND DISTRIBUTION↗