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Community and rooftop solar options for rural areas in Kansas
Peterson, Mary
Peterson, Mary
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2023-03-01
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Globally, the improving economics of solar and wind generation is enabling both large-scale solar and wind and small-scale rooftop solar PV for more renewable energy. In the U.S., energy providers are regulated to supply uninterrupted power to every consumer, requiring them to enhance energy infrastructure periodically.
Much of the energy distribution infrastructure in rural Kansas was designed and built decades ago. As these systems age, and as the need for renewables becomes more pressing, the power system in western Kansas experiences new infrastructure management challenges. Aging infrastructure makes rural communities in Kansas increasingly vulnerable to power outages.
This research analyzes the costs and benefits of replacing electric infrastructure, and of alternatives such as renewables at the residential level. For Kansas, which is one of the top ten states in the U.S. for solar generation, renewables located within a rural community could be an economically effective way to supply power during an outage.
This research uses real data from a farming town in rural Kansas to evaluate how implementing a utility-owned solar farm, or residential rooftop solar PV, could impact this community. Specifically, this research shows how these renewable options would impact customers and the utility financially, and how it could improve the reliability of power supply to the community served.
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Poster project completed at the Wichita State University, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering. Presented at the Kansas Undergraduate Student Research Day at the Capitol, Topeka, KS, March 1, 2023.
Sponsored by Dorothy and Bill Cohen Honors College.
Sponsored by Dorothy and Bill Cohen Honors College.
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Wichita State University