Optimal planning and configuration of adiabatic-compressed air energy storage for urban buildings application: Techno-economic and environmental assessment

As urbanization and demand for energy increase, the importance of localized renewable energy resources and energy storage system solutions becomes more prominent. Adiabatic-compressed air energy storage (A-CAES) has been identified as a promising option, but its effectiveness in decentralized applications is not widely concerned. This study aims to plan and design a decentralized A-CAES system to enhance its significance within urban building infrastructure. The focus is on the optimal design of a decentralized A-CAES system for urban building utilization through a comprehensive analysis of its thermodynamic, techno-economic, and environmental aspects. A sizing-designing approach inducing simulation and optimization is proposed to customize the A-CAES system according to the specific application requirement. To do so, this study investigates several energy management operation strategies (EMOS) toward different potential applications of decentralized A-CAES to maximize the system's value and adaptability during the project's lifetime. Multiple scenarios concerning managing solar PV-surplus power are proposed to investigate the overall performance of the proposed model. Additionally, a sensitivity analysis (post-optimization) is conducted to ensure the model's applicability across different case studies. The results demonstrate that an energy cost saving in the range of 0.015-0.021 $/kWh is achieved for the optimal hybrid system in which the A-CAES system is planned for solar photovoltaic (PV) integration and seasonal load shifting, leading to shaving the grid peak demand. Adopting such an A-CAES-PV hybrid system allows for achieving a 52 % electrical load management ratio and 65 % carbon emission reduction compared to the primary power system (grid). Furthermore, under the worst-case scenario (zero selling back), such an optimal hybrid energy system (HES) achieves a PV self-consumption rate of around 92 % and a payback time of 15.5 years. This analysis provides useful insights for policymakers, building owners, and energy planners interested in implementing sustainable and energy-efficient solutions, especially in the feasibility study phase.