Can Energy Storage Make Off-Grid Photovoltaic Hydrogen Production System More Economical?
Newswise — Under the global goal of carbon neutrality, photovoltaic (PV)-driven electrolytic hydrogen (PVEH) production is a promising way to cut carbon emissions. However, PV power generation is intermittent and variable, and battery energy storage can smooth its power output but brings non-negligible investment costs. Thus, installing energy storage in PVEH systems is a complex trade-off issue. A research team from the School of Economics and Management, North China Electric Power University, and Beijing Key Laboratory of New Energy and Low-Carbon Development has conducted a study titled “Can Energy Storage Make Off-Grid Photovoltaic Hydrogen Production System More Economical?”
This study aims to compare the engineering economics of PVEH systems with and without energy storage, and explore the time nodes when the cost of the former can compete with the latter by considering the technology learning curve. Using the levelized cost of hydrogen (LCOH) as a key economic indicator, and taking seven regions in China (represented by Nanjing, Foshan, Hohhot, Wuhan, Xichang, Haixi, and Harbin) as research objects, the results show that in 2020, the LCOH of PVEH systems with and without energy storage is approximately 22.23 yuan/kg and 20.59 yuan/kg respectively. With the decline in technology costs, the LCOH of PVEH systems with energy storage will be lower than that of systems without energy storage by 2030.
The study sets three scenarios (pessimistic, neutral, and optimistic) based on different technical learning rates, and calculates the LCOH of PVEH systems with and without energy storage from 2020 to 2060. It also compares the LCOH of PVEH systems with that of non-renewable energy hydrogen production methods (natural gas (NG), NG with carbon capture, utilization and storage (CCUS), coal, and coal with CCUS), and conducts pressure tests on the impact of electrolyzer and energy storage battery efficiency changes on LCOH. The results show that the unit investment cost of power plants has the most significant impact on LCOH; under different scenarios, the time when PVEH systems with energy storage can compete with traditional hydrogen production methods varies, and considering the carbon trading market and state subsidies will affect this time node; the change in electrolyzer efficiency has a more obvious impact on LCOH than that of lithium-ion batteries.
The paper “Can Energy Storage Make Off-Grid Photovoltaic Hydrogen Production System More Economical?” is authored by Xingmei LI, Xiaoyan LV, Wenzuo ZHANG, and Chuanbo XU. Full text of the paper: https://doi.org/10.1007/s42524-022-0245-x.
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