DESIGN AND OPTIMIZATION OF RENEWABLE AND NEGATIVE-EMISSION TECHNOLOGIES-BASED SUSTAINABLE ENERGY SYSTEMS

Abstract

Under the common vision of humanity to reduce carbon emissions, renewable energy and negative emission technologies are promising technologies in the blueprint of low-carbon transition of energy systems. In this thesis, recent research advances in sustainable energy system design are reviewed, with a particular focus on energy storage systems, hybrid renewable energy systems, and negative emission technologies. The feasibility and benefits of sustainable energy systems are first tested in a case study of an urban farming application. The positive validation of the case study leads to the exploration of methods for designing and selecting energy storage systems, which are recognized as enabling technology for sustainable energy systems. Further, a novel sustainable energy system based on renewable energy and negative emission technologies, referred to in this thesis as the negative emission hybrid renewable energy system (NEHRES), is proposed. Modeling, life cycle thinking, and optimization are incorporated in the process of system design. The economic and environmental feasibilities of such systems are analyzed for different places around the world. The results show that sustainable energy systems combining renewable energy and negative emission technologies offer considerable environmental benefits compared to conventional energy systems and are economically competitive in areas with abundant renewable resources.