Sustainable mega-seaports with integrated multi-energy systems: Life-cycle environmental and economic evaluation

Ports playa critical role in modern society by acting as crucial links between water and land transportation, and integrating transportation with energy systems. This integration results in a high demand for various types of energy uses, with polluting emissions produced by the diverse energy sources. Integrated renewable energy systems represent promising solutions to achieving high levels of energy supply while lowering carbon footprints. In this research, a framework is proposed for a port multi-energy system that encompasses solar energy, wind energy, a hydrogen system and a number of energy storage systems. The proposed framework is tailored for implementation at Ningbo Zhoushan Port, the largest port globally. Different system design schemes are compared based on the number and rated power of wind turbines. Then, a comprehensive life- cycle economic and environmental assessment of the system is conducted through simulation. The economic and environmental metrics such as LCOE, REF and CO2 2 emissions are considered. The outcomes demonstrate that the design scheme incorporating two wind turbines with high rated power outperforms others in both environmental and economic metrics. Over the life-cycle, the renewable energy fraction exceeds 72%, and the levelized cost of energy plummets to 0.46 yuan/kWh. The implementation of the proposed port integrated multi-energy system yields substantial environmental and economic benefits. Specifically, it allows fora reduction of 66.68% in CO2 2 emissions and a cost reduction of 70.94%. These outcomes highlight the potential that the proposed system holds for enhancing environmental sustainability and economic efficiency within the port context.