A differential evolution model for optimising the size and cost of electrolysers coupled with offshore wind farms
Quang Vu Dinh, Van Nguyen Dinh, Paul Leahy
Abstract
Green hydrogen is a potential means to reduce CO 2 emissions by replacing fossil fuels in energy systems and other applications. For combined electrolyser – wind farm green hydrogen plants, choosing the appropriate electrolyser capacity is critical in order to minimise hydrogen production costs. This study develops and applies a novel optimisation method using differential evolution combined with a detailed model in order to minimise the levelised cost of hydrogen production from offshore wind energy . Two concepts are considered based on offshore wind farms combined with onshore or offshore electrolysers. In the offshore electrolyser concept, the most suitable electrolyser capacity was found to be 91.41 % of wind farm capacity. In the onshore electrolyser concept, the optimal value was 94.54 %. The differential evolution algorithm was observed to rapidly converge to a solution within six iterations demonstrating its suitability for application in sizing of hybrid wind-hydrogen plants.