Analysis of energy management and financial planning in the implementation of photovoltaic systems

This paper presents the analysis of energy management and financial planning that is carried out in the design and implementation of photovoltaic systems in urban areas of the city of Barranquilla, Colombia. A questionnaire with a Likert scale and 36 items was designed, which was answered by subjects with managerial functions of the 16 companies dedicated to the implementation of photovoltaic (PV) projects in Barranquilla. The instrument was validated by expert judgment with a reliability of 0.84 with Cronbach’s Alpha. For the analysis of results, techniques of central tendency and variability were used. The results show that energy management in the implementation of PV projects is moderate, indicating that there is no predominant presence of indicators of improvement and energy performance in these projects. Financial planning has a moderate significance, indicating that the financial analysis methods that are being used in these PV systems projects have a basic analysis

An image processing‐based method to assess the monthly energetic complementarity of solar and wind energy in Colombia

Solar and wind energy systems, without storage, cannot satisfy variable load demands, but their combined use can help to solve the problem of the balance between generation and consumption. Energetic complementarity studies are useful to evaluate the viability of the use of two or more renewable energy sources with high variability in a specific interval of time in a determined region. In this paper, the monthly energetic complementarity study of solar and wind resources of Colombia is carried out. A novel approach to conduct the study is proposed. A dataset with the average monthly solar radiation and wind speed values is obtained from high‐resolution images of renewable resources maps, using image processing algorithms. Then, the dataset is used to calculate the energetic complementarity of the sources employing the negative of the Pearson correlation coefficient. The obtained values are transformed to energetic complementarity maps, previously eliminating the protected areas. The obtained results show that there is a good energetic complementarity in the north and northeastern regions of the country throughout the year. The results indicate that projects related to the joint use of solar and wind generation systems could be developed in these regions

Effect of Cultivar on Chlorophyll Meter and Canopy Reflectance Measurements in Cucumber

Optical sensors can be used to assess crop N status to assist with N fertilizer management. Differences between cultivars may affect optical sensor measurement. Cultivar effects on measurements made with the SPAD-502 (Soil Plant Analysis Development) meter and the MC-100 (Chlorophyll Concentration Meter), and of several vegetation indices measured with the Crop Circle ACS470 canopy reflectance sensor, were assessed. A cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.) crop was grown in a greenhouse, with three cultivars. Each cultivar received three N treatments, of increasing N concentration, being deficient (N1), sufficient (N2) and excessive (N3). There were significant differences between cultivars in the measurements made with both chlorophyll meters, particularly when N supply was sufficient and excessive (N2 and N3 treatments, respectively). There were no consistent differences between cultivars in vegetation indices. Optical sensor measurements were strongly linearly related to leaf N content in each of the three cultivars. The lack of a consistent effect of cultivar on the relationship with leaf N content suggests that a unique equation to estimate leaf N content from vegetation indices can be applied to all three cultivars. Results of chlorophyll meter measurements suggest that care should be taken when using sufficiency values, determined for a particular cultiva

The Use of Chlorophyll Meters to Assess Crop N Status and Derivation of Sufficiency Values for Sweet Pepper

Chlorophyll meters are promising tools for improving the nitrogen (N) management of vegetable crops. To facilitate on-farm use of these meters, sufficiency values that identify deficient and sufficient crop N status are required. This work evaluated the ability of three chlorophyll meters (SPAD-502, atLEAF+, and MC-100) to assess crop N status in sweet pepper. It also determined sufficiency values for optimal N nutrition for each meter for pepper. The experimental work was conducted in a greenhouse, in Almería, Spain, very similar to those used for commercial production, in three different crops grown with fertigation. In each crop, there were five treatments of different N concentration in the nutrient solution, applied in each irrigation, ranging from a very deficient to very excessive N supply. In general, chlorophyll meter measurements were strongly related to crop N status in all phenological stages of the three crops, indicating that these measurements are good indicators of the crop N status of pepper. Sufficiency values determined for each meter for the four major phenological stages were consistent between the three crops. This demonstrated the potential for using these meters with sufficiency values to improve the N management of commercial sweet pepper crops

Financing of Residential Rooftop Photovoltaic Projects Under a Net Metering Policy Framework: The Case of the Colombian Caribbean Region

The inclusion of photovoltaic energy in the Colombian energy matrix has had several difficulties due to the lack of energy policies and regulations in renewable energy projects. The lack of government support with subsidies that extend the coverage of PV energy projects in residential areas has made the collection of funds more challenging. This paper presents a techno-economic analysis for the implementation of grid-connected photovoltaic projects on the roofs of residential areas, under the net metering policy framework. For the profitability analysis, the discounted cash flow (DCF) method was used. The revenues were obtained from the forecasts of the electrical power production of the PV system, based on the characteristics of the Colombian Caribbean Region. For this purpose, the meteorological data (2013-2017) of this region were used as an input for the calculation of the economic benefits that can be achieved with the implementation of PV systems. Based on the technical sizing and economic assumptions, it was proved that the DCF method allows to accurately determine the optimal debt ratio. After evaluating the three scenarios proposed, it was demonstrated that profitability and self-sustainability, with investment from creditors, is obtained from the implementation of PV systems of at least 3 kWp

Financing of residential rooftop photovoltaic projects under a net metering policy framework: the case of the colombian caribbean region

The inclusion of photovoltaic energy in the Colombian energy matrix has had several difficulties due to the lack of energy policies and regulations in renewable energy projects. The lack of government support with subsidies that extend the coverage of PV energy projects in residential areas has made the collection of funds more challenging. This paper presents a techno-economic analysis for the implementation of grid-connected photovoltaic projects on the roofs of residential areas, under the net metering policy framework. For the profitability analysis, the discounted cash flow (DCF) method was used. The revenues were obtained from the forecasts of the electrical power production of the PV system, based on the characteristics of the Colombian Caribbean Region. For this purpose, the meteorological data (2013-2017) of this region were used as an input for the calculation of the economic benefits that can be achieved with the implementation of PV systems. Based on the technical sizing and economic assumptions, it was proved that the DCF method allows to accurately determine the optimal debt ratio. After evaluating the three scenarios proposed, it was demonstrated that profitability and self-sustainability, with investment from creditors, is obtained from the implementation of PV systems of at least 3 kWp

Techno-economic evaluation of a grid-connected hybrid PV-wind power generation system in San Luis Potosi, Mexico

This paper presents a study of the installation of a hybrid PV-Wind power generation system for social interest houses in the city of San Luis Potosi, Mexico. To assess the benefits of the implementation of this type of systems, a technological, economic and environmental evaluation is carried out based on the available renewable energy resources and considering a typical load profile of consumers. The obtained results show the feasibility of installation of small capacity hybrid generation systems in the city, however governmental incentives must be implemented to make more attractive and affordable the proposed systems for medium/low income users

Substrate treatment for the increment of electric power potential from plants microbial fuel cells

Plants microbial fuel cells (PMFC) is novel systemthat generates renewable, clean, and sustainable electricity with minimal environmentalimpact. However, PMFC has limitations in power generation and current density, since its production values is lower than other renewable technologies. Different studies show that the highest limitation for energy generation through MFC is the high resistivity of the cathode, and the solution is to replace the metallic electrodes with non-metallic materials to obtain a better performance, however, the application of these materials requires complex interdisciplinary work. This study conducted three experimental tests using metallic electrodes for the extraction of electrons and combined a black earth substrate with different natural materials, types of plants, and water to determine their influence in the increment of the electric power output

A Review: Integration of Renewable Energies in the Sustainability of the Electric Distribution Grid

This Article submits a review of the integration of renewable energies in the contemporary distribution of generated energy. A technological supervision is implemented to observe in a systematic manner the behavior of state of the art technologies in renewable energies, in the search of energetic sustainability, making an analysis of the distribution of the most representative Microgrids at world level. it is to be noted, the great inclusion of energy obtained through solar panels, and Eolic generators. However, there is a great participation of generators from diesel vapor, and gas; while in the storage system batteries are predominant, and sometimes, flywheels and supercapacitors surface. These results are possibly due to the promotion and experience of including new techniques and use of energy resource methodologies.Keywords: Renewable Energies, Distributed Generation, Microgrid, Generation Systems, Energetic sustainability.JEL Classifications: Q01, Q4, Q42DOI: https://doi.org/10.32479/ijeep.9570</p