Renewable Energy and

Grid Integration

Submitted t0- Submitted by-

Dr. Paulson Samuel Bhumika gonekar
2020PS06
 1. Explain how Hydrogen can be used as energy storage and the role of fuel
cell in it.

Ans- Hydrogen is not an energy source, but is an energy vector or carrier. This means that it has to
be produced from one of the primary energy sources: fossil fuels, nuclear, solar, wind,
biomass, hydro, geothermal and urban waste resources. All the energy we use, including
hydrogen, must be produced from one of these three primary energy resources. On earth,
hydrogen is found combined with other elements. For example, in water, hydrogen is
combined with oxygen. In fossil fuels, it is combined with carbon as in petroleum, natural gas
or coal. The challenge is to separate hydrogen from other naturally occurring compounds in an
efficient and economic manner.

Hydrogen energy storage is a process wherein the excess of energy created by renewables
during low energy demand periods is used to power electrolysis, a process in which an
electrical current is passed through a chemical solution in order to separate hydrogen. Once
hydrogen is created through electrolysis it can be used in stationary fuel cells for power
generation, to provide fuel for fuel cell vehicles, injected into natural gas pipelines to reduce
their carbon intensity, or even stored as a compressed gas.

Hydrogen can be stored in three ways:

 As a compressed gas in high-pressure tanks.
 As a liquid in tanks (stored at -253°C).
 As a solid by either absorbing or reacting with metals or chemical compounds
or storing in an alternative chemical form.

Hydrogen storage in high-pressure vessel is the most widely used method. However, hydrogen
is pressurized up to 700 bar for practical purposes such as the refueling time at a hydrogen
station or the driving range for a fuel cell vehicle.
Therefore, solid-state storage is usually coupled with high-pressure hydrogen vessels. For
example, hydrogen can be stored in the interstitial sites of metal hydride crystals. This method
achieves higher volumetric energy density at room temperature than liquid hydrogen and
consumes less operating energy for storage. Metal hydride cartridge is suitable for portable
application due to the convenience of refill/replace . In addition, with appropriate hydrogen
refill and release properties at room temperature, metallic hydrides are good for stationary
energy storage .
 Fuel cell-

A fuel cell works much like an electric battery, converting chemical energy into electrical
energy using the movement of charged hydrogen ions across an electrolyte membrane to
generate current. There they recombine with oxygen to produce water – a fuel cell’s only
emission, alongside hot air.

A fuel cell is composed of an anode, cathode, and an electrolyte membrane. A typical fuel cell
works by passing hydrogen through the anode of a fuel cell and oxygen through the cathode. At
the anode site, a catalyst splits the hydrogen molecules into electrons and protons. The protons
pass through the porous electrolyte membrane, while the electrons are forced through a circuit,
generating an electric current and excess heat. At the cathode, the protons, electrons, and
oxygen combine to produce water molecules. As there are no moving parts, fuel cells operate
silently and with extremely high reliability.
Chemical reactions involved in the
operating principle of fuel cell

Fuel Cell for Propulsion Systems- PEM type fuel cell

 The proton exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cell is an electrochemical device that
produces electricity through an electrochemical reaction in which hydrogen and oxygen
are combined to generate electricity, with usable heat and water as the principal by-
products. The PEM fuel cell electrodes are separated by a polymer electrolyte
membrane. Each of the electrodes is coated with a platinum catalyst. Owing to its low-
temperature operation (50◦C–100◦C), faster response to load transients, and low start-up
time (less than a minute), the PEM fuel cell is suitable for propulsion applications.

FUEL CELLS FOR STATIONARY POWER GENERATION – SOFC and MCFC

type fuel cell-
 The solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) requires a simple reforming process and may not need
an external reformer. The SOFC operates at extremely high temperatures in the range of
700◦C to 1000◦C and hence has less compelling requirements for reformate quality and
uses carbon monoxide as a fuel. Fuel versatility makes SOFCs suitable for large to very
large stationary power generation applications.
 The molten carbonate fuel cell (MCFC) operates at 650◦C and is competitive to the
SOFC in stationary power generation applications. The MCFC also offers high
efficiency and flexibility of fuels and is also suitable for power generation with
combined heat and power (CHP).

Applications of fuel cell-

 According to the portability-

 They are used in portable appliances and power tools.

 With the use of fuel cells consumer electronics like laptops, cell phones can be operated.

According to transportation-

 Automotive industry
 Marine and Military transportation

According to Power distribution-

 Homes and small businesses

 Commercial and industrial sites
 Remote, off-grid locations (telecom towers, weather stations)

2. Explain the various technologies like tidal, wave and marine current for
power generation.
Ans- Tidal Energy-
Tides are the result of the interaction of the gravity of the sun, earth, and moon. The rise and
fall of the tides creates potential energy, the movement of tide and flow currents create
kinetic energy. Both forms of energy can be harvested by tidal energy technologies
as renewable energy.
Tidal power is a form of renewable energy generated by the periodic change in the ocean
envelope of the Earth while interacting with Sun and the Moon via gravitational forces. The
gravitational force of the Earth and the Moon attracts the ocean towards it.
There are currently three different ways to get tidal energy: Tidal streams, barrages,
and tidal lagoons.

1. Tidal stream system: A horizontal axis turbines are placed in the path of tidal
currents to generate electricity, similar to the operation of wind turbine. This method
is getting popular because the cost and ecological impact of tidal turbines is much
lower than that of the barrage system.

Fig. Tidal stream

system

2. Barrage tidal power: A physical barrier, namely the Barrage, is constructed within
the sea with Sluice Gates to control the flow of sea water. The Sluice Gates are to be
closed at high tide so that the water level inside the barrage is held at its highest level.
As the tide recedes, a difference in water level in between the barrage and the sea is
created. The potential energy from the water level difference can then drive turbines
to generate electricity.

Fig. Barrage tidal power for

incoming and outgoing tide

3. Tidal lagoons: These approaches are similar to barrages, but can be constructed as
self contained structures, not fully across an estuary, and are claimed to incur much
lower cost and impact overall. Furthermore they can be configured to generate
electricity continuously which is not the case with barrages.

A tidal lagoon may be “onshore” (Figure 3b) or “offshore” (Figure 3c)

Wave Current Power Generation

Wave energy converters capture the energy contained in ocean waves and use it to
generate electricity. There are three main categories-
1) oscillating water columns that use trapped air pockets in a water column to drive a
turbine.
2) oscillating body converters that are floating or submerged devices using the wave
motion (up/down, forwards/ backwards, side to side) to generate electricity.
3) Overtopping converters that use reservoirs to create a head and subsequently drive
turbines.
On top of that, each category can be subdivided according to the technologies used to
convert wave energy into pneumatic/mechanical energy (rotation/ translation), their
power systems (air turbines, hydraulic turbines, hydraulic engines), their structures
(fixed, floating, submerged), and their positioning within the ocean (shoreline, near
shore, off shore).
Wave Energy extraction technologies-
Wave energy technologies consist of a number of components:
1) the structure and prime mover that captures the energy of the wave.
2) foundation or mooring keeping the structure and prime mover in place.
3) the power take-off (PTO) system by which mechanical energy is converted into
electrical energy.
4) the control systems to safeguard and optimise performance in operating conditions.
There are mainly three ways through which wave Energy can be extracted:-
1) Oscillating Water Column (OWC)-
Oscillating Water Columns are conversion devices with a semi-submerged chamber,
keeping a trapped air pocket above a column of water. Waves cause the column to act
like a piston, moving up and down and thereby forcing the air out of the chamber and
back into it. This continuous movement generates a reversing stream of high-velocity
air, which is channelled through rotor blades driving an air turbine-generator group to
produce electricity.
 Fig. Oscillating water
column

2) Oscillating bodies (OBC)-

Oscillating Body Converters are either floating or submerged (sometimes fixed to the
bottom). They exploit the more powerful wave regimes that normally occur in deep
waters where the depth is greater than 40 metres (m). In general, they are more
complex than OWCs (Oscillating Water Column), particularly with regards to their
PTO (the power take-off (PTO) systems. In fact, the many different concepts and
ways to transform the oscillating movement into electricity has given rise to various
PTO systems, e.g., hydraulic generators with linear hydraulic actuators, linear electric
generators, piston pumps, etc.
3) Overtopping-
It consists of a floating or bottom fixed water reservoir structure, and also usually
reflecting arms, which ensure that as waves arrive, they spill over the top of a ramp
structure and are restrained in the reservoir of the device. The potential energy, due to
the height of collected water above the sea surface, is transformed into electricity
using conventional low head hydro turbines (similar to those used in mini-hydro
plants).

Fig. Overtopping

Marine Current Power Generation

Marine currents can carry large amounts of water, largely driven by the tides, which
are a consequence of the gravitational effects of the planetary motion of the Earth, the
Moon and the Sun. Augmented flow velocities can be found where the underwater
topography in straits between islands and the mainland or in shallows around
headlands plays a major role in enhancing the flow velocities, resulting in appreciable
kinetic energy.
The sun acts as the primary driving force, causing winds and temperature differences.
Because there are only small fluctuations in current speed and stream location with
minimal changes in direction, ocean currents may be suitable locations for deploying
energy extraction devices such as turbines.The kinetic energy of marine currents can
be converted in much the same way that a wind turbine extracts energy from the wind,
using various types of open-flow rotors.
Technology to harness Marine Current:-
There are several types of open-flow devices that can be used in marine-currentpower
applications. Many of them are modern descendants of the waterwheel or similar.
However, the more technically sophisticated designs, derived from windpower rotors,
are the most likely to achieve enough cost-effectiveness and reliability to be practical
in a massive marine-current-power future scenario. Even though there is no generally
accepted term for these open-flow hydro-turbines, some sources refer to them as
water-current turbines.
There are two main types of water current turbines that might be considered:
I) Axial-flow horizontal-axis propellers (with both variable-pitch or fixed-pitch)
II) Cross-flow Darrieus rotors
Both rotor types may be combined with any of the three main methods for supporting
water-current turbines: floating moored systems, sea-bed mounted systems, and
intermediate systems. Sea-bed-mounted monopile structures constitute the first-
generation marine current power systems.

Fig. Horizontal- axis

turbine, marine current
converter

• Adverse effect on population of aquatic animals

• Noise Pollution – The constant noise from wave capture devices especially in rough
conditions may have an impact on whales and dolphins that use echo location to hunt.
For shoreline and nearshore devices, the levels of operational noise may constitute a
noise nuisance locally on the beach or shoreline
• Sedimentary Flow – The placement of onshore and nearshore wave energy
installations such as device platforms, anchors, and cables could change the flow of
the water and sands immediately around the structures. Changes in water velocities
will impact on sediment transport, coastal erosion, and the deposition of coarse
sediments such as pebbles or rocks. Slower or restricted water currents will increase
the depositing of sediment.