Constellation, le dépôt institutionnel de l'Université du Québec à Chicoutimi

Résumé

In this paper, we are studying an innovative solution to reduce fuel consumption for electricity production in remote areas. Historically, in these areas electricity is provided by Diesel generators. The cost of energy is therefore very high not only because of inherent cost of technology but also because of transportation costs. On the other hand, use of fossil fuels for electricity generation is a significant source of Greenhouse Gas emissions. The use of hybrid systems that combine renewable sources and diesel generators, allows reducing fuel consumption, improves the operation cost and creates therefore environmental benefits. Adding a storage element to the hybrid system above increases fuel saving as it allows an increased penetration of the wind power in the overall system capacity. In a previous work, we demonstrated that Compressed Air Energy Storage (CAES) is a serious solution thanks to its low cost, high power density and reliability. Pneumatic Hybridization of the Diesel engine consists to introduce the CAES through the admission valve. We have proven that we can improve the combustion efficiency and therefore the fuel consumption by optimizing Air/Fuel ratio thanks to the CAES assistance. As a continuation of these previous analyses, we studied the effect of controlling the pressure at the inlet and the exhaust of the Diesel engine on the thermodynamic cycle and evaluated the potential on fuel consumption reduction.