See discussions, stats, and author profiles for this publication at: https://www.researchgate.

net/publication/266629726

Small Scale Photovoltaic-Wind Hybrid Systems in D.R. Congo: Status and

Sustainability

Article · August 2011

DOI: 10.2316/P.2011.714-008

CITATIONS READS
7 115

2 authors:

Kanzumba Kusakana Herman Vermaak

Central University of Technology Central University of Technology
137 PUBLICATIONS   953 CITATIONS    64 PUBLICATIONS   559 CITATIONS   

SEE PROFILE SEE PROFILE

Some of the authors of this publication are also working on these related projects:

Optimization of real time mixed model assembly line systems View project

A Vision-based Quality Inspection System for Fabric Defect Detection and Classification View project

All content following this page was uploaded by Herman Vermaak on 11 February 2015.

The user has requested enhancement of the downloaded file.

SMALL SCALE PHOTOVOLTAIC-WIND HYBRID SYSTEMS IN D.R.CONGO:
STATUS AND SUSTAINABILITY
K. Kusakana and H.J. Vermaak
Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer systems
Central University of Technology, Free State
Bloemfontein, South Africa
kkusakana@cut.ac.za, hvermaak@cut.ac.za
ABSTRACT
As a contribution to rural development, this paper studies
the current status and presents basic characteristics for the
techno-economical sizing of stand-alone Photovoltaic-
Wind hybrid power systems in the rural Democratic
Republic of Congo (DRC). It is shown that even though
the country has good potential in wind and solar resource,
it requires technical expertises in wind and solar energy;
which makes vulnerable the sustainability of
Photovoltaic-Wind hybrid power systems.
The performance of the PV and Wind generators under
different meteorological conditions is reviewed. The
influence of energy efficient load in the process of sizing
the PV-Wind hybrid system is investigated as well. The
annual average monthly and the worst renewable months
sizing methods are examined to point up calculation of the
respective energy contributions of PV and wind in the
architecture of the hybrid system under consideration. The
results of this study can be used as tools and reference to
the designers for implementation of stand-alone hybrid
PV-Wind systems to supply other remote areas of The
Democratic Republic of Congo, where wind and solar
resources are available and exploitable.
KEY WORDS
Hybrid Photovoltaic-wind System; Sizing; Rural
Electrification, Energy Efficiency; Sustainability.
1. Introduction
For sustainable ecological and economical development
in rural area of developing countries, using of a PV and
wind system can be very useful when local conditions are
favourable from the renewable energy resources point of
view. The implementation of these systems may present a
viable option, in the particular case of remote and isolated
areas not served by the grid. All around the world,
especially in Africa, there are isolated communities, like
rural agglomerations of DRC without access to electricity.
Moreover, in several cases due to remoteness of the
community to supply, limited means and high cost, the
extension of the existing grid is not feasible; though the
need for electricity still exists.
The Democratic Republic of Congo is the third largest
country in Africa with a population of 70 916 439; one of
the poorest least developed countries in the world [1], and
the proportion of people in the DRC still without
electricity is higher than in most of the countries of
Africa. The rate of electrification is 6% lower than other
countries of the continent such as Tunisia (99%) or South
Africa (70%) [2].
Aware of climate change issues, it is possible that a part
of the solution to the DRC rural electrification problem
comes from the coupling of the renewable PV and wind
energy system as mentioned above [3]. This technology is
available and reliable so its implementation depends
mainly on factors such as the technical expertise of
designers, installers and users; the cost and the proper
sizing of the generators in order to avoid outages or
excess of power production as well as guaranteeing
reliability of power supply.
The objective of this paper is to investigate the current
status and presents the fundamental features for the
analysis and sizing of hybrid PV-Wind systems for
sustainable power supply in the rural areas of DRC.
2. Factors influencing stand-alone PV-wind
systems
2.1 PV and wind technical expertise
The matter of manpower and technical expertise is of
major significance to sustain hybrid PV-Wind systems.
Unfortunately, academic programs completed by local
engineers in the DRC do not integrate principles of sizing
PV, wind or other small renewable energy systems. It is
clear that the design stage is vital to subsequent steps and
must be completed with awareness. That is why local
energy planners, developers and designers, must make
sufficient efforts in sizing and techno-economical
feasibility of PV-Wind hybrid systems. Moreover,
research funds in the renewable energy area must be
mobilised.
Congolese Universities are planning to make some
adjustments in their Electrical Engineering program by
integrating basics of Renewable Energy into the student’s
curriculums to meet their expected role of producing
graduates with technical skills as developers, designers,
installers or operators [4].
Users must be conscious of basic functionality of the
hybrid system for its appropriate handling. This
knowledge should be offered by installers. These skilled
technicians are key players for the good implementation
of hybrid PV-Wind energy systems.
However, the role played by the end used is of major
importance in achieving cost effectiveness. For this
reason, attention must be given to the user’s education for
efficient usage if the PV-Wind hybrid system.
2.2 Incentive
The high investment cost of PV and wind energy systems
is a major constraint for development and use of such
systems. In addition, efforts are made to promote the use
energy-efficient appliances. This is seen in the current
substitution of incandescent light bulbs by the Light
emitting diodes (LEDs), which save electricity [5].
Besides making cost effective PV and wind systems, the
energy-efficient appliances allow:
The reduction of the energy consumed by the
load, which has a direct consequence on the
reduction of the price of the kWh consumed.
The reduction of the size of the energy supply
system, which has a direct consequence on the
reduction supply system’s overall cost.
More loads to be served at the same time.
2.3 Weather conditions
The knowledge of the characteristics of the resources and
generators i.e. PV modules, daily irradiation, clearness
index or wind turbine size, wind speed and distribution is
a major key in the implementation of Hybrid PV-wind
systems. Actually, weather conditions significantly
influence the performance of the hybrid system. The PV
system output voltage decreases when the temperature
increases, while the output current is directly proportional
to solar radiation [6]. The output power of a wind turbine
is a cubic function of speed, and there is a maximum
quantity of energy of 59% that the wind turbine can
collect in the wind [7].
DRC has good potential in wind and solar resources, the
average daily solar radiation is 5.2 kWh/m² and the wind
speed in some regions can reach 4.3 m/s [8].
6
Average soral radiation
5.8
5.6
5.4
5.2
5 Kabinda
4.8
4.6
4.4
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
Month
Figure 1: Average monthly solar radiation at different location in the
D.R.Congo
5.3
4.8 Mbuji-Mayi
Wind speed
4.3 Dibaya
Kabalo
3.8
Kabinda
3.3
Kamina
2.8
Kanyama
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12
Month
Figure 2: Average monthly wind speed at different location in the
D.R.Congo
The Figures 1 and 2 give the average monthly solar
radiation and wind speed respectively for some different
agglomerations in the country.
3. Load description
We consider that an average household will use electricity
more for lighting and then to supply basic equipments
such as iron, radio and TV for entertainment. We have to
notice the energy management from the domestic demand
side is not always applied in the DRC, people always buy
what they can afford regardless on the power
consumption. By applying energy management; we can
reduce sensibly the household energy demand by
replacing the locally made Incandescent Light Bulbs
(ILB’s) by more energy efficient one like Light Emitting
Diodes (LED’s) producing the same luminous flux. Some
other advantages of LED’s over Compact Fluorescent
Lamps (CFL’s) and incandescent light bulbs are [5]:
1. Technical: The life span of a LED is 50 000hours
which is 40 times greater; the kilo-watts of electricity
used per year are 10 times less, the watt of electricity used
and the operating costs are 10 times less than the one of
the equivalent incandescent light to produce the same
luminous flux.
2. Environmental: The LEDs do not contain the toxic
mercury; are restriction of hazardous substance
compliant; the lower energy consumption result in a
decrease of CO2 emissions and sulfur oxide 10 times less
than incandescent light.
Mbuji-Mayi 3. Important facts: LEDs have no sensitivity to lower
temperatures and humidity, turn on instantly, are very
Bibaya
durable and they have no typical failure mode.
Kabalo This is why we have selected the 6watt LED instead of
the 60watt incandescent light bulb or 13watt CFL; each of
Kamina the producing 800lumens. With the above supposition,
Kanyama Table 1 gives domestic appliances, power demand and
9 10 11 12 running times for an average typical household in DRC.
 Table 1 cell and Pf is the packing factor of the module, equal to
Domestic power demand estimation
0.9.
Equipment Amount Power Running Energy
demand time (kWh/d) 4.2 Wind generator
(kW) (hour)
Light 5 0.006 5 0.15 The power contained in the form of kinetic energy, P (W)
Radio 1 0.020 5 0.1 in the wind is expressed by [10]:
T.V. 1 0.07 5 0.35
1
Iron 1 1 0.1 0.1 P . . A.V 3 (4)
2
The daily energy consumption 0.7kWh is the sum of the Where A is the area traversed by the wind (m2), ρ is the air
daily consumption of the equipments. For our selected density (1.225Kg/m3) and V the wind speed (m/s).
average household, only by replacing the incandescent The wind generator can recover only some of that wind
light by the LED, we have been able to reduce the power representing the power generated:
calculated daily energy consumption from 2.1kWh or The electrical power is given by:
0.925kWh (incandescent of CFL respectively) to 0.7kWh 1
for the same household’s appliances usage hours as PW . .Ce . A.V 3 .10 3
(5)
2
shown on the following figure.
Ce is the efficiency factor, which depends on wind speed
and system architecture.
2.25 Ce CP . m . gen (6)
2
ηm and ηg represent the performance of the gearbox and
Energy (kWkh/d)

1.75
1.5 ILBs generator respectively. Cp is the coefficient of
1.25 performance of the wind turbine. It can theoretically not
CFLs
1
0.75 LEDs exceed a limit called the Betz limit (Cp-limit = 0593).
0.5 Therefore, the energy produced by wind generator is
0.25 expressed by:
0
1 2 3 EW PW t (7)
The size of the storage battery is determined from the
Figure 3: Energy demand for different types of lights monthly maximum load demand EL,max, and it can be
expressed by [11]:
E Lo a d,max 1000 t
4. Characteristics of PV and wind power Cbat (8)
generation Vsys N m
Where: Vsys is the voltage of the system, Nm the number of
4.1 Photovoltaic generator days in the worst month, Δt the time in days of autonomy
needed, which is defined by the designer.
The energy produced by a PV generator is estimated using
data from the global irradiation, the ambient temperature
and from the manufacturer of the PV module. The energy
generated from the PV generator is given by the equation 5. Methods of sizing PV-Wind hybrid system
[9]:
EPV A gen Pf I (1) In the design of stand-alone hybrid power systems, the
optimal size of each component of the system is
Where A is the total area of the photovoltaic generator
extremely important as the coordination among the energy
(m2), ηgen is the generator efficiency, Pf is the packing
generated by the PV and wind systems, the energy stored
factor, and I is the hourly irradiance (kWh/m2). The
and the energy needed by the consumers is very
efficiency of the PV generator is represented by the
complicated.
following equation:
There are quite a number of methods for the sizing of
ηgen = ηr [1 – γ ( Ta - 25)] (2) PV-Wind Hybrid system in isolated area as developed in
NOCT 20 the followings sections.
Tc Ta I (3)
800
5.1 Artificial Intelligence techniques (AI)
γ is the coefficient taking into account the variation of the
PV module’s efficiency with the temperature, which is Artificial Intelligence is a term applied to computer
taken to (0.0045/°C); ηr is the reference yield of the systems and programs performing duties more complex
photovoltaic generator; Ta daily average ambient than basic programming [12]. The Neural network [13],
temperature, Tc the average daily temperature of a solar neuro-fuzzy [14] and genetic algorithm [15] are sizing
cell (°C), NOCT is the nominal operating temperature of a
methods under the category of artificial intelligence. The
Artificial Intelligence techniques present an alternative
method for sizing hybrid systems in remote or isolated
areas where the required resources data (irradiation,
clearness index, wind speed, etc.) are partially available.
5.2 Numerical methodologies
The numeric methodologies such as the annual yearly
monthly average or the most unfavourable month methods
[16], present good solution when the solar and wind data
are available for the site where the hybrid power system
has to be implemented.
The monthly energy produced by the system per unit
area is EPV,m (kWh/m2) for photovoltaic and EW,m (kWh /
m2) for wind energy (where m = 1, ..., 12 represents the
month of the year). The worst month is based on the
monthly charge, PV and wind resources climate and
performance of system components. The surface of the
generator needed to ensure full coverage (100%) load
(ELoad) during a month is given by:
E Load,m
A1 max (9)
Ei , m
i = PV for the photovoltaic generator and i = W for the
wind generator. In hybrid PV-wind energy, the term of the
total energy produced is enough defined in the sense that
the contribution of each of these parties is not determined.
The total energy produced by both photovoltaic and wind
generators and supplied to the load is expressed as:
E PV . APV EW . AW E Load (10)
With E PV . APV f .E Load (11)
EW . AW [1 f ].ELoad (12)
Where f is the fraction of load supplied by the PV source
and (1 - f) that is supplied by the wind source. The limit f
= 1 indicates that the entire load is powered by the PV, for
f = 0 corresponds to a supply 100% by the wind. In this
size’s optimization study, two methods are used, and the
first is based on the average monthly and the second on
annual the average worst month of the total energy
incident.
5.2.1 Annual yearly monthly average sizing method
In this method, the size of PV and wind power is derived
from the average monthly contribution of each component
named EPV and EW. Similarly, the ELoad load is represented
by the average monthly load. Therefore, sizes of both
photovoltaic and wind generators are given by:
E (wind speed, solar monthly irradiation and clearness
APV f . Lo a d (13)
E PV
E sizing methods.
AW [1 f ]. Lo ad (14)
EW
5.2.2. Method of worst or most unfavourable month
sizing method
For this method, the sizing of system components
(generators photovoltaic and wind) is based on the worst
month for solar and wind. Surfaces needed for the two
generators are expressed by:
E Load,m
APV f . max (15)
E PV ,m
ELoad,m
AW [1 f ].max (16)
EW ,m
In this case, Eload is constant.
6. Economical analysis
On an economical point of view, the actual size chosen
for the PV and wind generator is particularly important
for small-scale systems because it can be different to the
one determined from the equations mentioned above. The
real size is calculated according to the surface of the
component unit (manufacturer) available on the market.
(SPV,U = 0.3m2 and SWind,U = 0.65m2) [17]. As for the PV
and wind components, the actual size of the battery is
determined from the capacity of a battery unit CBat,u.
The cost of PV cost is expressed per-unit-area ($/Wp),
but on the market the PV modules are sold based on cost
per peak watt. The cost per square meter can be converted
to cost per peak watt by using the following equation
[18]:
$ / m2
$ / Wp (17)
.1000Wp / m 2
For a PV module operating at a solar conversion
efficiency of 12%, power is actually produced at 3.59
$/Wp [19] if the module cost is 430.8 $/m2. Thus a 0.3m2
module will cost 129.24$.
The price of a 0.65 m2 rotor swept area small commercial
wind turbine is 487.5$ [20].
7. Analysis and results discussion
In this study we have all the renewable resources data
index) and the load specification that allowing us to use
the most unfavourable and the monthly yearly average
Table 2 shows the monthly specific energy production
of the hybrid system components and the monthly load
energy requirements. The energy consumption is assumed
to be constant about 0.7kWh per day using actual data of
 Months Clearness Daily solar Wind Monthly Solar Monthly Wind Load Energy
index radiation speed Energy Output Energy Output demand (kWh)
(kWh/m²/d) (m/s) (kWh/m2) (kWh/m2)
January 0.484 4.870 3.4 20.38095 8.552 21.7
February 0.475 4.930 3.7 18.6354 9.756 19.6
March 0.497 5.220 3.7 21.8457 10.801 21.7
April 0.519 5.300 4.0 21.465 12.937 21
May 0.570 5.500 4.1 23.0175 14.397 21.7
June 0.594 5.530 4.5 22.3965 18.037 21
July 0.611 5.760 4.8 24.1056 22.62 21.7
August 0.562 5.570 5.2 23.31045 28.148 21.7
September 0.526 5.430 5.0 21.9915 24.216 21
October 0.496 5.140 4.9 21.5109 24.064 21.7
November 0.496 5.010 4.3 20.2905 16.072 21
December 0.489 4.850 3.8 20.29725 11.701 21.7
Average 0.526 5.261 4.3 21.60394 16.775 21.30

Table 1
Table 2
Monthly load energy demand and specific energies produced by the PV and wind generators, for "Kabinda” site

PV size N0 PV PV Cost ($) Wind size N0 wind Wind Cost Total cost ($)
f modules generators ($)
1 0.985931 4 517.6 0 0 0 517.6
0.9 0.887338 3 388.2 0.126975 1 487.5 875.7
0.8 0.788745 3 388.2 0.253949 1 487.5 875.7
0.7 0.690152 3 388.2 0.380924 1 487.5 875.7
0.6 0.591559 2 258.8 0.507899 1 487.5 746.3
0.5 0.492966 2 258.8 0.634873 1 487.5 746.3
0.4 0.394373 2 258.8 0.761848 2 975 1233.8
0.3 0.295779 1 129.4 0.888823 2 975 1104.4
0.2 0.197186 1 129.4 1.015797 2 975 1104.4
0.1 0.098593 1 129.4 1.142772 2 975 1104.4
0 0 0 0 1.269747 2 975 975

Table 3
Sizing according to the average annual monthly method

PV size N0 PV PV Cost ($) Wind size N0 wind Wind Cost Total cost ($)
f modules generators ($)
1 1.06472 4 517.6 0 0 0 517.6
0.9 0.958248 4 517.6 0.253742 1 487.5 1005.1
0.8 0.851776 3 388.2 0.507484 1 487.5 875.7
0.7 0.745304 3 388.2 0.761225 2 975 1363.2
0.6 0.638832 3 388.2 1.014967 2 975 1363.2
0.5 0.53236 2 258.8 1.268709 2 975 1233.8
0.4 0.425888 2 258.8 1.522451 3 1462.5 1721.3
0.3 0.319416 2 258.8 1.776193 3 1462.5 1721.3
0.2 0.212944 1 129.4 2.029935 4 1950 2079.4
0.1 0.106472 1 129.4 2.283676 4 1950 2079.4
0 0 0 0 2.537418 4 1950 1950

Table 4
Sizing according to the most unfavourable month method

a typical household and real meteorological data from one
of the DRC rural agglomeration, “Kabinda” for instance.
The results obtained by the average annual monthly
sizing method are shown in Table 3 in which are
presented the number of units of each system components
(defined as the ratio between the calculated size of the
generator and the size of the generator unit), and total
hybrid system cost for each configuration.
These results show that the configuration with
photovoltaic system alone (f = 1 with 4 photovoltaic
 modules for a cost of $ 517.6) is the most economical
option. For the pure wind energy system (f = 0), the
results show that the load is fully supplied by two wind
generators with a cost of $ 975. As for the hybrid system,
the cheaper is the one with f = 0.5 and f = 0.6 (2 PV
modules and 1 wind generator) for a cost of $ 746.3.
For the most unfavourable method, the results in Table 4
show that the system cost is relatively high and the PV
configuration alone with 4 modules and a cost of $ 517.6
is the optimal one. The pure wind system is composed of
4 wind generators and its cost is $ 1950. As for the hybrid
system is the most economical one with the factor f = 0.8,
with 3 photovoltaic module and 1 wind generator at a cost
of $ 875.7. The total cost calculated by this method is
high because the system is oversized and more reliable.
An important point in this study is that PV has an
economically favourable option for this type of load in
“Kabinda”.
8. Conclusion
The aim of this paper was to investigate the current status
and to present the fundamental characteristics for the
analysis and sizing of hybrid PV-wind hybrid systems for
sustainable power supply in the rural areas of DRC.
For the particular household energy requirements in
“Kabinda” as defined in this study, the photovoltaic
system alone has a more favourable economic impact
compared to wind system.
The methodology presented for the sizing of the hybrid
system using the two scenarios shows that the method of
the worst month gives a higher system cost compared to
the average monthly values per year. This is due to the
oversizing and reliability that the system has inferred
from the first method.
Regardless of the method used, the sizing optimization
of a hybrid PV-wind system requires a detailed analysis of
the load consumption, data from the solar irradiance and
wind speed. In addition to economics, the designer and
installer’s technical expertise as well as the end user
education are important criteria that must be taken into
account in any study of sizing optimization.
References
[1] US Census bureau: International Data Base. [Online]
Available from:
http://www.census.gov/ipc/www/idb/region.php accessed on
11/11/2010
[2] Africa: Electrification rate. [Online] Available from
http://www.africapedia.com accessed on the 11/11/2010.
[3] T. Gül, Integrated Analysis of Hybrid Systems for Rural
Electrification in Developing Countries, Master Thesis,
Royal Institute of Technology, Stockholm 2004
[4] Bünyamin Çoker , Hakan Çatlioglua, Osman Birgin
“Conceptions of students about renewable energy sources: a
View publication stats
need to teach based on contextual approaches” Procedia
Social and Behavioral Sciences 2 Elsevier, 2010, pp: 1488-
1492.
[5] Comparison chart LED Lights Vs. Incandescent Light
Bulbs vs. CFLs, accessed on the 21/11/2010 available from:
www.designrecycleinc.com/led%20comp%20chart.html
[6] D. Dusabe. J. l. Munda and A. A. Jimoh. Modelling and
Simulations of a Photovoltaic Module. In: Proceedings of the
Fourth IASTED International Conference POWER AND
ENERGY SYSTEMS (AsiaPES2008). Langkawi, Malaysia,
April 2 – 4, 2008, pp. 327 – 333
[7] P. Pinson, C. Chevallier and G. Kariniotakis. Trading
wind generation with short-term probabilistic forecasts of
wind power, IEEE Transactions on Power Systems 22(3),
pp. 1148–1156, 2007.
[8] Clean Energy Decision Support Center, RETScreen
software. Available from: www.retscree.net accessed on the
17/06/2011
[9] J. A. Razak et Al. Optimization of PV-Wind-Hydro-
Diesel Hybrid System by Minimizing Excess Capacity,
European Journal of Scientific Research Vol.25 No.4 (2009),
pp.663-671
[10] A. Arbaoui et al. Added Value of Power Control in
Improving the Integration of Wind Turbines in Weak Grid
Conditions, Energy and Power Engineering, 2010, 2, 230-
237.
[11] A. El Khadimi , L. Bchir et A. Zeroual.
Dimensionnement et Optimisation Technico-économique
d’un Système d’Energie Hybride Photovoltaïque - Eolien
avec Système de Stockage, Revue des Energies
Renouvelables Vol. 7 (2004) 73-83.
[12] A. Mellit et Al. Artificial intelligence techniques for
sizing photovoltaic systems: A review, Renewable and
Sustainable Energy Reviews 1,3 Elsevier, (2009) 406–419.
[13] W. ChauK A review on the integration of artificial
intelligence into coastal modeling. J Environ Manage 2006;
80:47–57.
[14] L.R. Medsker Microcomputer applications of hybrid
intelligent systems. J Network Computer Application
1996;19:213–34.
[15] S.A. Kalogirou. Artificial Intelligence in energy and
renewable energy systems. Nova Publisher; 20071-60021-
261-1.
[16] S. Diaf, M. Haddadi, M. Belhamel, Analyse technico
économique d’un système hybride (photovoltaïque/éolien)
autonome pour le site d’Adrar, Revue des Energies
Renouvelables Vol. 9, N°3 (2006) 127 – 134
[17] A.N. Celik Optimisation and techno-economic analysis
of autonomous photovoltaic–wind hybrid energy systems in
comparison to single photovoltaic and wind systems, Energy
Conversion and Management 43, Elsevier, (2002) 2453-2468
[18] G.P. Smestad, Optoelectronics of Solar Cells, SPIE,
Bellingham, WA, 2002 , Chap. 7.
[19] 125 Watts and Higher Module Index, Retail Price Per
Watt Peak. Accessed on 07/11/2010 Available, from:
http://www.solarbuzz.com/Moduleprices.htm
[20] Wind energy, the fact, cost and prices, available from:
http://www.ewea.org/fileadmin/ewea_documents/documents/
publications/WETF/Facts_Volume_2.pdf accessed on the
07/11/2010