Techno-economic assessment of photovoltaic power generation mounted on cooling towers. (1st May 2021)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Qi, Lingfei; Jiang, Mingkun; Lv, Yuexia; Zhang, Zutao; Yan, Jinyue
• Is Part Of: Energy conversion and management. Volume 235(2021)
• Publication Date: 2021-05-01
• Subjects: Photovoltaic -- Thermal power plant -- Solar power generation -- Techno-economic performance; Direct energy conversion -- Periodicals; Energy storage -- Periodicals; Energy transfer -- Periodicals; Énergie -- Conversion directe -- Périodiques; Direct energy conversion; Periodicals; 621.3105
• DOI: 10.1016/j.enconman.2021.113907
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0196-8904

Abstract

Graphical abstract: Highlights: The PV potential of all cooling towers in China is evaluated for the first time. Total capacity of CT-PV reaches 1.05 GW. The techno-economic performance of CT-PV in different regions is compared. 90% of the cities' solar generation electricity prices are below 0.35 CNY/kWh. CT-PVs located in China's major industrial cities have best overall performance. Abstract: The deployment of photovoltaic systems based on existing buildings has been the focus of research in recent years. It is necessary to evaluate the techno-economic performance of the new photovoltaic system deployment strategy for its actual implementation. In this paper, we comprehensively evaluated the power generation potential and economic performance of photovoltaics deployed on hyperbolic cooling towers in Mainland China. Based on the local solar radiation situations and electricity prices, we analyzed both the technical and economic performance of cooling towers photovoltaic (CT-PV) located in different cities. The results show that the total capacity of photovoltaic installations on all cooling towers reaches 1.05 GW, with corresponding annual power generation of 1.44 TWh. The total CO2 emission reduction and total profit by CT-PV cooling towers photovoltaic over a lifetime of 25 years can reach 31 Mts and 8.00 billion CNY, respectively. The return on investment is between 1.1 and 2.49, depending on the location. The payback period for all cities is less than 8 years, and around 90% of the cities' solar generation electricity prices are below 0.35 CNY/kWh, which can compete with the benchmark price of coal-fired electricity. These results reveal that CT-PVs cooling towers photovoltaics have significant potential for PV photovoltaic application with attractive energy and economic benefits.