Optimizing Union College's Microgrid

Union College currently has a microgrid, or a localized electric grid, that meets 70 percent of the campus' load. It is made up of a co-generation plant that uses natural gas from National Grid, as well as solar photovoltaic panels and wind turbines, which are renewable energy sources. The goal of this project is to determine the least-cost, low-carbon energy mix that meets 100 percent of the campus' load. To combat the variability of solar and wind power, storage is also considered. The simulation designed in this project tests worst case conditions on the peak load day of 2019 to ensure that the energy mix can reliably meet load. Different sizes and costs of photovoltaic panels, wind turbines, batteries and other forms of generation are inputs to the optimization.