Technical and Economic Analysis of Renewable Energy Powered Stand-alone Pole Street Lights for Remote Area

摘要

Several different stand-alone pole street lighting (SPSL) models, using a light emitting diode (LED) lamp, were tested over a 1-year period on Penang Island in northern Malaysia. The models were powered by lead-lead dioxide batteries, autonomously recharged by a renewable energy power source (RES): either a photovoltaic (PV) generator or an integrated PV/Wind-turbine generator system. The technical requirements and economic impact (capital and operating costs) of these two configurations are analyzed and compared. Additionally, some of these configurations were programmed with an energy load savings scheme. The impact of operating with this scheme was compared to operations performed at full load. Results of this comparative analysis revealed that the most efficient system for the test environment was the PV generator operating with the energy savings scheme.