Modeling and simulation of power and energy demands to dimension an alternative energy supply for the aquaculture industry. Use of OpenModelica to develop an applicable simulation model for the energy and power demands

Abstract

The purpose of the research is to investigate whether feed barges currently running on diesel generator can be powered by alternative energy sources where power from shore is limited. Through data collection, several models are developed in OpenModelica to represent the power and energy distribution on a feed barge. Using the Power Systems library provided in OpenModelica, it has offered benefits of modeling complex power systems put together by several simpler models. User-friendly, preset components from the Power Systems library provides simplicity for that matter. A diesel and battery-electric model is developed to dimension the battery to account for different power strategies throughout a production cycle for the farmed fish. The result from dimensioning of the battery provide some clues on how to dimension alternative energy providers to replace the diesel generators. Variations in the power consumption makes feed barges a good candidate for hybridization with a battery as an energy buffer to either shave the power peaks or used as a source to cover the base loads. By utilizing batteries, alternative energy sources and carriers are made available in order to reduce emissions from diesel generators.