Optimal structure design of a PV/FC HRES using amended Water Strider Algorithm

A techno-economic study has been proposed for an off-grid combined renewable energy system (HRES) by photovoltaic (PV) and fuel cell (FC) systems. The proposed HRES has been studied to provide electricity for a remote area in Jiaju Tibetan Village, Danba, Sichuan Province China The main idea is formulated according to the Total Annual Cost (TAC). The study uses a new improved metaheuristic, called Amended Water Strider Algorithm (AWSA) to optimal estimation of the photovoltaic panels' number, electrolyzer, fuel cells, and hydrogen storage tanks to get the minimum value of the overall net present value (ONPV). For increasing the system efficiency, the loss of power supply probability (LPSP) has been considered. Sensitivity analysis is used on the changing of the proposed HRES according to Levelized cost of energy (LCOE). Also, a comparison of the algorithm with several techniques from the literature is performed to illustrate its effectiveness. The results showed that the proposed method has further proper results than the other algorithms. (C) 2021 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd.