Naval Postgraduate School creates microgrid with ice bank storage
As the nation’s largest consumer of energy, the Department of Defense (DoD) has created a goal to explore different ways of optimizing renewable energy resources based on end-use application. With 70% of the DoD’s energy use being oil-based, an increase in the optimization of its current renewable energy resources would create financial, sustainable, and security benefits.
The universal challenge of using renewable energy is the fact that it is a form of pure energy. It needs to be used as it is generated or else it will be lost. In addition, renewable energy sources such as wind turbines and photovoltaic (PV) panels are intermittent in nature with generation outputs being dependent on weather conditions. This creates a major disadvantage compared to fossil fuels, which are a form of stored energy. Fossil fuels are always available as they are needed, allowing supply and demand to perfectly align.