Energy Systems Integration Newsletter: February 2022

In this edition, NREL to help Puerto Rico reach 100% renewable energy, ARIES high-speed connections lay groundwork for SuperLab, NREL analysis shows the value of floating solar for a small New York community, and more.

Photo of wind turbines near the beach in Puerto Rico.

NREL To Perform Power System Analysis for Puerto Rico To Reach Its 100% Clean Energy Goal

Puerto Rico's power system has been battered by multiple disasters, and its outdated infrastructure results in some of the highest-priced electricity in the nation. With an excellent supply of renewable resources—solar, wind, and water energy—Puerto Rico has committed to transitioning to a clean, affordable, and resilient energy future. And an NREL-led study will show how it's possible.

The Puerto Rico Grid Resilience and Transition to 100% Renewable Energy (PR100) study will provide Puerto Rico with technically sound and community-driven ways to reach its goals. The study will leverage the expertise of NREL and five other Department of Energy (DOE) national labs: Argonne, Lawrence Berkeley, Oak Ridge, Pacific Northwest, and Sandia. The team's comprehensive analysis will provide detailed scenarios that Puerto Rico can use to chart the course toward its clean energy future.

Read the DOE announcement about the PR100 study.

Live Demonstration Shows National Laboratory SuperLab Capabilities

We can currently link models and simulations across the national laboratory complex, but imagine connecting these models with equipment, devices, and scientists so that they can work together as if side by side instead of thousands of miles apart. In a future like this, researchers could run experiments that leverage thousands of devices to model the millions of devices that constitute our increasingly complex energy systems.

NREL's Advanced Research on Integrated Energy Systems (ARIES) platform is making that vision a reality, one step at a time. A recent demonstration built on previous efforts to connect labs and make more detailed energy research possible.

Learn more about this project and how it can take energy systems research to a new level.

Small City Leans on NREL Analysis for Floating Solar Project

The working-class city of Cohoes, New York, discovered a creative approach to clean energy: a floating solar installation located on its municipally owned 10-acre reservoir. By owning the resource, Cohoes could potentially reduce its city electricity costs and provide a model for other low- and medium-income communities to follow. However, Cohoes first needed buy-in to support the project, and for that, the city found its pitch in an NREL study. With NREL's findings that floating solar is a largely untapped opportunity, Cohoes mobilized the financial support to move ahead. And as Cohoes nears the next steps in its project, NREL is providing follow-on technical support.

Read more about this floating solar project.

REopt Is Not Lite Anymore

Once called REopt Lite^®, the REopt^® tool is dropping the "Lite" in 2022 to better reflect its true status as a heavy-hitting and comprehensive optimization tool. REopt, a free, techno-economic decision support model, does the heavy lifting to help users optimize energy systems for buildings, campuses, communities, and microgrids. It identifies optimal generation and energy storage system sizes and dispatch strategies to minimize the life cycle cost of energy at a specific site. The tool also recommends least-cost system configurations to sustain critical loads during grid outages and to meet clean energy goals.

Learn more about the full capabilities of the REopt tool.

NREL Paper Looks at Equitable Value of Renewable Energy Microgrid Deployment

Microgrids powered by renewable energy can provide backup power to critical infrastructure during grid outages. These systems can also play an important role in advancing energy justice by providing economic, environmental, health, and resilience benefits for underserved communities. The value of microgrids is often measured by the economic savings and resilience provided, but other energy justice factors should be considered.

A recent paper from NREL researchers in Renewable Energy Focus provides a way to quantify broader costs and benefits of microgrid deployment, including utility bill savings, the value of resilience, the social cost of carbon, public health costs, and job creation. The researchers conclude that when these factors are considered, cost-optimal microgrids can lead to a 52%–82% reduction in emissions and diesel fuel use. The researchers also conclude that the net present value of hybrid and renewable microgrids exceeds $10 million, indicating the potential for greater microgrid deployment if energy justice values are incorporated in decision making.

NREL Researcher Named Distinguished Fellow for Energy Leadership Program

Kate Anderson, NREL's chief of staff for Energy Systems Integration, was recently recognized by the Oppenheimer Science and Energy Leadership Program as a distinguished fellow for the 2022 Cohort. Established in 2017, the Oppenheimer Science and Energy Leadership Program brings together exceptional leaders to explore the complexities, challenges, and opportunities facing the national lab system and DOE.

Building a Solar-Powered Future: NREL Releases Solar Futures Study

NREL recently released the findings of its Solar Futures Study, which synthesizes analyses across many domains to provide a balanced and rigorous assessment of the future of solar power. According to the study, the evolution of solar energy technologies could be defined more by how they interact with other energy technologies, such as wind and storage. Changes across the wider energy system—including the increased electrification of buildings and vehicles, the emergence of clean fuels, and new commitments to both equitability and a more circular, sustainable economy—will shape the future of solar energy.

Read more about the full findings of the Solar Futures Study.

Solar Energy Innovation Network Aims To Unlock Equitable Solar in Underserved Communities

To ensure the benefits of solar energy can be shared by all Americans, NREL has selected eight teams from across the country to join the third round of the Solar Energy Innovation Network. The teams will work collaboratively to deepen understanding of the barriers that prevent more equitable adoption of solar energy in underserved communities. NREL will provide analytical support to the teams as they design and test solutions to overcome these barriers in their communities.

NREL, USAID Provide Guide on Photovoltaic Quality and Safety for Developing Countries

To scale solar photovoltaic (PV) deployment in developing countries, the technology must be safe and reliable, meeting both customer and utility expectations; however, challenges exist in achieving these goals. Because PV systems are novel and complex, most consumers are unable to distinguish between low- and high-quality systems and might invest based on price alone. A recent guide published by the U.S. Agency for International Development-NREL Partnership examines key considerations of rooftop solar in developing countries and provides potential solutions to common rooftop solar concerns.

Check out the full guide.

Publications Roundup

Photovoltaic Plant and Battery Energy Storage System Integration at NREL's Flatirons Campus

Although utility-scale PV power plants are becoming a cost-effective energy resource, there is belief within the energy industry that increasing penetrations of PV technologies could impact grid reliability. Variability across timescales, forecast uncertainty of the resource, and impacts on distribution and transmission systems can cause utilities to limit PV installations. This technical report, completed by NREL with industry partner First Solar, focuses on developing controls and conducting demonstrations for collocated, AC-coupled PV-battery energy storage systems. In the first demonstrations of the multitechnology aspect of grid integration research at NREL's Flatirons Campus, the report demonstrates the value of collocated PV-battery energy storage systems installations, including their ability to provide resilience services and improved reliability.

Modular Security Apparatus for Managing Distributed Cryptography for Command-and-Control Messages on Operational Technology Networks (Module-OT)

This NREL technical report describes the design and importance of Module-OT, an easily deployed solution for implementing cryptography and securing data in distributed energy systems. NREL designed and validated Module-OT in many lab demonstrations; now, Module-OT is nearer to commercial application. This report discusses the unique value of Module-OT, its fulfillment of cybersecurity requirements, and results from multiple tests and simulations. The report finishes with a discussion of future work and a plan for commercialization.

Solar Radiation Research Laboratory Final Report: Fiscal Years 2019–2021

NREL's Solar Radiation Research Laboratory is a world destination for calibrating, comparing, and learning about solar irradiation measurement methods. This technical report describes a 3-year project to research applied solar radiation measurements, standards development and knowledge sharing, and reference cell calibrations and spectral measurement and modeling. The project's goal was to focus the Solar Radiation Research Laboratory on reducing the cost and uncertainty in resource measurements. This included research on improving the quality of measurements as well as more comprehensive strategies to ensure that stakeholders around the world have access to more accurate measurements.