Design and Simulation of a Hybrid Renewable Energy Grid for Low-Carbon Urban Communities

This research assessed the energy conservation advantages of Renewable Energy (RE) generating systems by integrating solar energy in a metropolitan area. The solar city idea was executed using photovoltaic (PV) and Solar Thermal (ST) technology. The National Pilot Smart City (SC) was chosen as a case study to assess the green energy adoption rate. The power and ST demands of the SC were assessed using field measurements to evaluate the suggested RE solutions for low-carbon urban communities. The city's RE adoption rate was assessed. The HomerPro program was implemented to evaluate the gas-powered generator’s PV production and operational electrical consumption inside a district heating system. The heating and cooling capacity of the ST systems was assessed using the TRNSYS program. The findings indicated that the suggested urban integrative RE systems could achieve an RE adoption rate above 31%, with the leveled cost of power and overall net current cost being 8% cheaper than the baseline systems (i.e., natural gas generators). The suggested system demonstrated a 39% reduction in CO2 emissions compared to the baseline system for low-carbon urban communities.