Energy management of solar photovoltaic-battery energy systems in buildings

Recently, renewable energy is attracting much attention due to limited traditional energy sources and severe environmental issues caused by the over-consumption of fossil fuels. It is promising to use renewable energy for the power supply to buildings, as the building sector accounts for a large portion of global energy consumption with a constant increasing trend. In order to compensate for the intermittent and unpredictable disadvantage of renewable energy, the electrical energy storage technology such as the battery can be adopted to secure a reliable and sustainable power supply to buildings. This study aims to analyse and compare energy management strategies of an on-grid solar photovoltaic-battery system for a real building project in a typical hot summer and warm winter region. Three energy management strategies are developed for the building based on the Transient System Simulation Program (TRNSYS) including maximising the photovoltaic self-sufficiency, time-of-use electricity pricing and grid relieving. These three strategies are analysed and compared considering the technical aspects of the utility grid, PV system and building demand to find the most suitable energy management strategy for the building project. This study can provide theoretical references for the energy management and system operation to facility managers and building occupants. It can also serve as a demonstration case for designing on-grid photovoltaic-battery systems for near/zero energy buildings in hot summer and warm winter areas.