Renewable Energy Delivery Systems and Methods

• US 20110227417A1
• Filed: 02/13/2009
• Published: 09/22/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 02/14/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Alliance For Sustainable Energy LLC
• Original Assignee: Alliance For Sustainable Energy LLC
• Inventors: Walker, Howard Andrew
• Granted Patent: US 8,604,641 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 307/72
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 2300/20 The dispersed energy generation being of renewable origin
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 2300/22 The renewable source being solar energy
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 2300/24 of photovoltaic origin
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 2300/28 The renewable source being wind energy
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 2300/40 wherein a plurality of decentralised, dispersed or local energy generation technologies are operated simultaneously
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 3/381 Dispersed generators
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 3/466 Scheduling the operation of the generators, e.g. connecting or disconnecting generators to meet a given demand
• CPC Class Codes: Y02E 10/56 Power conversion systems, e.g. maximum power point trackers
• CPC Class Codes: Y02E 10/76 Power conversion electric or electronic aspects

Abstract

A system, method and/or apparatus for the delivery of energy at a site, at least a portion of the energy being delivered by at least one or more of a plurality of renewable energy technologies, the system and method including calculating the load required by the site for the period; calculating the amount of renewable energy for the period, including obtaining a capacity and a percentage of the period for the renewable energy to be delivered; comparing the total load to the renewable energy available; and, implementing one or both of additional and alternative renewable energy sources for delivery of energy to the site.

Claims

1. A site load energy system for the delivery of energy to a load at a site, at least a portion of the energy being delivered by one or more of a plurality of renewable energy technologies, the system including:

a site load for presenting a consumptive energy demand;

a connection of the site load to a source of non-renewable energy for contribution to meeting the consumptive energy demand of the site load;

a renewable energy sub-system connected to the site load for delivery of renewable energy in contribution to meeting the consumptive energy demand of the site load, the renewable energy sub-system also having a off-load connection to deliver any energy in excess of the demand to an off-load element;

a hardware sub-system for obtaining a load value and a renewable energy value for the site load for a period, including obtaining a capacity and a percentage of the period for the renewable energy sub-systcm to deliver renewable energy; and

for comparing the load value to the renewable energy value over the period using the capacity and percentage of the period for the renewable energy sub-system to meet, exceed or fail to fully meet the demand of the load, the hardware sub-system providing for one or more of delivery of renewable energy to the site load, and the acquisition of non-renewable energy from the non-renewable energy source, and the delivery of excess renewable energy generated to an off-load element.

2. A system according to claim 1 further including apparatus implementing one or more of installation, dispatch and engagement of one or more of new, additional or alternative sources of renewable energy.

3. A system according to claim 1 wherein the hardware sub-system provides one or both of determining how much of the load value is served directly by the renewable energy systems and how much is acquired from the non-renewable source;

and effecting usage of non-renewable acquired energy during a period; and

, determining how much renewable energy is generated in excess of the load, and effecting a transfer or sale back to a utility of excess energy generated by renewable sources.

4. A system according to claim 1 wherein the percentage of the period for the renewable energy sub-system operability is a capacity factor.

5. A system according to claim 1 including one or more of renewable energy sources from the group consisting of biomass, solar and wind.

6. A system according to claim 5 wherein the solar energy source includes one or more of photovoltaics, solar thermal electric, and day lighting.

7. A system according to claim 1 wherein the hardware sub-system is computer hardware.

8. A system according to claim 1 wherein the renewable energy sub-system includes one or more of a photovoltaic array, a wind turbine, and a biomass cogeneration facility.

9. A method for using a system for the delivery of energy to a site using one or more of multiple renewable energy technologies as set forth in claim 1;

the method including

calculating the load required by the site for the period;

calculating the amount of renewable energy for the period, including obtaining a capacity and a percentage of the period for the renewable energy to be delivered;

comparing the total load to the renewable energy available; and

,

implementing one or both of additional and alternative renewable energy sources for delivery of energy to the site.

10. A method according to claim 9 wherein one or more of the load values and the renewable energy values are one or both of respective capacities over periods of time determined portions over an annualized period.

11. A method according to claim 9 wherein the total load value and the one or more renewable energy values are determined as respective capacities over periods of time and can be represented as respective boxes in a graph of capacity versus time.

12. A method according to claim 11 wherein the one or more renewable energy values are determined by multiplying the sum of the capacities of all renewable energy technologies that are generating simultaneously times the number of hours per year that these technologies are simultaneous.

13. A method according to claim 12 wherein the one or more renewable energy values are wind and solar, and the values are determined by multiplying the capacity (kW) of solar plus that of wind (kW) and times the hours that wind and solar occur simultaneously, plus the capacity of solar times the hours of solar alone, plus the capacity of wind times the hours of wind alone.

14. A method according to claim 13 wherein one or the other of:

if the sum of all simultaneous technologies is less than the load, that portion less is acquired from a non-renewable source, and if the sum of all simultaneous technologies is greater than the load, that portion greater is delivered to an off-load element.

15. A method according to claim 9 wherein the power of the renewable energy over periods of time are determined as one or both of integrating or summing the area under the curve over time.

16. A method according to claim 9 wherein the power of the renewable energy over periods of time are determined as one or both of

Energy=(T*L)−

((T*CF)*Min(L,P_RE));

or

Energy=((T*CF)*Max(L,P_RE))−

((T*CF)*L);

wherein, T=Time;

CF=Capacity Factor, L=Load, and P_RE=Power capacity of the renewable energy.

17. A method according to claim 9 wherein the respective renewable energy values are stacked according to their coincidence, in order of ascending capacity factor, the capacity factor being the percent of the time that a renewable energy technology is delivering its rated capacity.

18. A method according to claim 9 wherein the renewable energy values include one or more of solar energy, wind energy and biomass energy.

19. A method according to claim 18 wherein a wind power representation is broken into two rectangles of the same height (kW of wind power) but one with a width proportional to the average of the solar energy capacity factors and the other with a width equal to 1−

the average of the solar energy capacity factors, the solar energy capacity factors including one or more of daylighting, photovoltaics, and solar thermal electric.

20. An apparatus incorporating a computer program product using a method as set forth in claim 9.