Micro-hydrokinetic river system modelling and analysis as comparedto wind system for remote rural electrification

Abstract

Micro-hydrokinetic river (MHR) system is one of the promising technologies to be used for remote ruralelectrification. In rural areas with access to both wind and flowing water resources, wind generationis selected as a first electrification priority. The potential benefit of generating electricity using flowingwater resource is unnoticed. Hence, this paper presents the modelling and performance analysis of a MHRsystem as compared to wind generation system using MATLAB/Simulink software. These performancesare compared to generate the same amount of electrical power. A permanent magnet synchronous gener-ator (PMSG) has been chosen or used to investigate the behaviour of each system under variable speeds.The developed model includes horizontal turbine model, drive train model and PMSG model. The simu-lation results illustrate the ability of a hydrokinetic turbine driven PMSG to generate electricity markedlybetter and cheaper than a wind driven PMSG within South Africa. Hence, the MHR system presents acheap electrification opportunity for poor rural households.