Peak Shaving and Alternative Power: A Question of Economy, Quality of Life and Quality of Electricity

摘要

The Navy will need to upgrade the utility infrastructure of its installations in the coming years. There are several factors that they will need to take into consideration, to include energy conservation, environmental and quality of life issues. Peak shaving and load shedding are good business decisions and could be conducted in a better way than they are currently being done. Fuel cells offer a variety of options for co-generation and power management. A prudent use of the by-products of electric generation from a fuel cell could increase efficiency of the plant and provide cost savings to the user. The objective of this paper is to look at the problem of being able to peak shave without penalizing the equipment and personnel on board ships that are in port. By understanding the technologies available in fuel cells, a proper choice and proposal can be made. As Molten Carbonate Fuel Cells and Solid Oxide Fuel Cells become commercially available, the Navy needs to consider using them as power sources for the piers. The co-generation capabilities would be used to generate clean shore steam, one of the many pier services that the ships require.