Can Large Educational Institutes Become Free from Grid Systems? Determination of Hybrid Renewable Energy Systems in Thailand

Abstract

In some countries, renewable energy resources have become one of the mainstreams of energy savings and sustainable development. Thailand is one of the major countries to use renewable energy generation facilities in public buildings. In particular, public educational institutes consume large amounts of electricity from the grid. To reduce the electricity dependency on the national grid connection and greenhouse gas emissions, this paper introduces potential optimized solutions of renewable energy generation systems for a public university in Thailand, Chiang Mai University. Based on the simulation results from HOMER software, the potential configuration organized by PV panels, batteries and converters is proposed. The suggested configuration achieves 100% of the renewable fraction with $0.728 of the cost of energy for per electricity. Moreover, the greenhouse gas emissions are significantly reduced. Both the implications and limitations are presented based on simulation results.