Powering a Space Environment Research Laboratory (SERL): Hybrid Renewable Energy System or Diesel System?

This is the authors' abstract. We don't add key points for this paper.

The quest for sustainable energy has greatly increased across the globe. Erratic energy supply in many African countries restricts socioeconomic growth, particularly in developing countries. Besides, the depletion of fossil fuel and the environmental threats caused by the use of conventional energy supply is a challenge that requires immediate attention. Several critical sectors require constant energy, which is not readily available. One such sector is research and development. For example, the Space Environment Research Laboratory (SERL) operated by the Centre for Atmospheric Research (CAR) of the National Space Research and Development Agency (NASRDA) Nigeria needs constant and reliable energy to meet up with the expectations of collaborators. To achieve this, the equipment is powered by a diesel generator, which is not environmentally friendly. Furthermore, the associated cost to constantly run a diesel generator is a major concern to administrators. Therefore, this article explores the application of hybrid energy to power the space research equipment at the Space Environment Research Laboratory (SERL), Abuja, Nigeria. The optimization results show that the proposed PV/BAT/DG (photovoltaic/battery/distributed generation) is the best energy generation alternative compared to the diesel generator, presently in use. It is essential that the sustainability of a hybrid system be considered in future research.