Optimal Operational Adjustment of a Community-Based Off-Grid Polygeneration Plant using a Fuzzy Mixed Integer Linear Programming Model

Community-based off-grid polygeneration plants based on micro-hydropower are a practical solution to provide clean energy and other essential utilities for rural areas with access to suitable rivers. Such plants can deliver co-products such as purified water and ice for refrigeration, which can improve standards of living in such remote locations. Although polygeneration gives advantages with respect to system efficiency, the interdependencies of the integrated process units may come as a potential disadvantage, due to susceptibility to cascading failures when one of the system components is partially or completely inoperable. In the case of a micro-hydropower-based polygeneration plant, a drought may reduce electricity output, which can, in turn, reduce the level of utilities available for use by the community. The study proposes a fuzzy mixed-integer linear programming model for the optimal operational adjustment of an off-grid micro-hydropower-based polygeneration plant seeking to maximize the satisfaction levels of the community utility demands, which are represented as fuzzy constraints. Three case studies are considered to demonstrate the developed model. The use of a diesel generator for back-up power is considered as an option to mitigate inoperability during extreme drought conditions.