Modeling of Renewable PSH Systems
Location
CSU Ballroom
Start Date
18-4-2016 10:00 AM
End Date
18-4-2016 11:30 AM
Student's Major
Integrated Engineering
Student's College
Science, Engineering and Technology
Mentor's Name
Mohammad Fanaei
Mentor's Department
Integrated Engineering
Mentor's College
Science, Engineering and Technology
Description
Surplus electric power produced during off-peak hours can be used to pump water from a lower to higher elevation to be stored. The stored energy can then be harnessed by running water from the higher to lower elevation during peak hours. This promising and cheap method for large-scale energy storage is called Pumped Storage Hydropower (PSH). This system can be integrated with unpredictable and inconsistent renewable resources, mainly wind and solar, to provide a reliable, clean power source. Considering the Minnesota state mandate of 25% power production from renewable resources by 2025 and recent international efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions (Paris agreement, December 2015), further investigation of this integration is warranted. The objective of this research project is to model the integration of PSH systems with renewable resources in three different ways: (a) mathematically analyzing energy production capabilities of renewable resources, namely wind and solar, based on a given geographic location and its historical data, as well as energy storage capabilities of a given site for implementing PSH; (b) visual modelling of an integrated PSH system using CAD software; and (c) fabricating a scaled table-top physical representation of the system to facilitate deeper understanding of integrated PSH. The primary approach of our study is the literary review of past research. The broader impact of this research study is to develop an interactive mathematical model that can serve as a tool to assess the feasibility of this integrated design in an arbitrary geographic location.
Modeling of Renewable PSH Systems
CSU Ballroom
Surplus electric power produced during off-peak hours can be used to pump water from a lower to higher elevation to be stored. The stored energy can then be harnessed by running water from the higher to lower elevation during peak hours. This promising and cheap method for large-scale energy storage is called Pumped Storage Hydropower (PSH). This system can be integrated with unpredictable and inconsistent renewable resources, mainly wind and solar, to provide a reliable, clean power source. Considering the Minnesota state mandate of 25% power production from renewable resources by 2025 and recent international efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions (Paris agreement, December 2015), further investigation of this integration is warranted. The objective of this research project is to model the integration of PSH systems with renewable resources in three different ways: (a) mathematically analyzing energy production capabilities of renewable resources, namely wind and solar, based on a given geographic location and its historical data, as well as energy storage capabilities of a given site for implementing PSH; (b) visual modelling of an integrated PSH system using CAD software; and (c) fabricating a scaled table-top physical representation of the system to facilitate deeper understanding of integrated PSH. The primary approach of our study is the literary review of past research. The broader impact of this research study is to develop an interactive mathematical model that can serve as a tool to assess the feasibility of this integrated design in an arbitrary geographic location.
Recommended Citation
Rasley, Katherine; April Levar; Kurtis Nelson; and Marcell Meacham. "Modeling of Renewable PSH Systems." Undergraduate Research Symposium, Mankato, MN, April 18, 2016.
https://cornerstone.lib.mnsu.edu/urs/2016/poster-session-A/58
