Design and analysis of a hybrid power system for an offshore aquaculture site in Newfoundland, Canada

Asgher, Muhammad Nadeem (2024) Design and analysis of a hybrid power system for an offshore aquaculture site in Newfoundland, Canada. Masters thesis, Memorial University of Newfoundland.

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Abstract

The offshore aquaculture industry in Canada is bound to rely on non-renewable energy sources i.e. Diesel Generators (DGs) to meet its intensive energy needs due to absence of utility’s electrical infrastructure. The said energy source is expensive, detrimental for the marine ecosystem, difficult to manage its transport and storage at site. This thesis presents a comprehensive solution to replace the high-cost energy source with a cost-effective and environmentally friendly energy source for an offshore aquaculture site located near Red Island, Newfoundland, Canada. The first step involves inputting the actual energy requirements of the site into Homer Pro software to design a hybrid power system, primarily featuring a floating solar power system (FSPV) to replace DGs. The techno-commercial viability of the designed system is assessed in three scenarios (Base, Ideal, and Worst), all of which show convincing and encouraging levels of renewable energy penetration. By comparing the cost of electrcity calculated by the software with the existing setup's energy cost, it is evident that the FSPV system is economically advantageous in all computed scenerios, base case of the designed FSPV system is 42% cost-effective. To validate the design, the system is modeled in MATLAB, and its dynamic performance is analyzed under varying conditions such as irradiance, temperature, and load side variations. The simulation results demonstrate the system's satisfactory and reliable response in all scenarios. For remote monitoring, a low-cost and open-source LoRA-based SCADA system is implemented. Additionally, an interactive Graphical User Interface (GUI) is developed to visualize historical and real-time data, showcasing the system's performance. The assembled hardware and results affirm that the proposed design is capable of providing a remote monitoring solution for offshore aquaculture sites. The findings underscore the potential of FSPV systems as a viable and sustainable solution for powering fish farms, thereby contributing to the overall sustainability of the aquaculture industry.

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