• Korean Chemical Engineering Research
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• v.58 no.3
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• pp.381-389
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• 2020

This study analyzed the optimal electricity cost of a 100% renewable energy source (RES) based system. Especially energy storage system (EES) and supplementary biopower system as well as photovoltaic (PV) and wind power component were included in the proposed RES-based system to overcome the intermittence of RESs and to efficiently balance energy supply and demand. To comparatively analyze the levelized cost of electricity (LCOE) of different RES-based systems, six scenarios were developed according to the involved RESs: PV, wind, PV/wind, PV/biopower, wind/biopower, and PV/wind/biopower systems. We then applied the proposed systems to build a 100% RES-based system in Jeju Island, Korea. As a result, the single component based system, PV and wind power system of 0.18 and 0.28 $/kWh, respectively, cannot compete with the economics of existing electricity grid. However, the optimal LCOE of the hybrid system where PV and wind power are used as main supply options and biopower as supplementary option was identified to be 0.08 $/kWh, which can compete with the economics of an existing electricity grid.

• Environmental and Resource Economics Review
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• v.28 no.1
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• pp.147-176
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• 2019

This paper uses research on the Levelized Cost of Electricity (LCOE) in South Korea to conduct a simulation analysis on the impact of nuclear power dependency and usage rates on the social costs of power generation. We compare the $7^{th}$ basic plan for long-term electricity supply and demand, which was designed to increase nuclear power generation, to the $8^{th}$ basic plan for long-term electricity supply and demand that decreased nuclear power generation and increased renewable energy generation in order to estimate changes in social costs and electricity rates according to the power generation mix. Our environmental generation mix simulation results indicate that social costs may increase by 22% within 10 years while direct generation cost and electricity rates based on generation and other production costs may increase by as much as 22% and 18%, respectively. Thus we confirm that the power generation mix from the $8^{th}$ basic plan for long-term electricity supply and demand compared to the $7^{th}$ plan increases social costs of generation, which include environmental external costs.

• Korean Chemical Engineering Research
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• v.55 no.3
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• pp.332-340
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• 2017

This study aims to propose a new optimization-based approach for design and analysis of the stand-alone hybrid energy supply system using renewable energy sources (RES). In the energy supply system, we include multiple energy production technologies such as Photovoltaics (PV), Wind turbine, and fossil-fuel-based AC generator along with different types of energy storage and conversion technologies such as battery and inverter. We then select six different regions of Korea to represent various characteristics of different RES potentials and demand profiles. We finally designed and analyzed the optimal RES stand-alone energy supply system in the selected regions using multiobjective optimization (MOOP) technique, which includes two objective functions: the minimum cost and the minimum $CO_2$ emission. In addition, we discussed the feasibility and expecting benefits of the systems by comparing to conventional systems of Korea. As a result, the region of the highest RES potential showed the possibility to remarkably reduce $CO_2$ emissions compared to the conventional system. Besides, the levelized cost of electricity (LCOE) of the RES-based energy system is identified to be slightly higher than conventional energy system: 0.35 and 0.46 $/kWh, respectively. However, the total life-cycle emission of $CO_2$ ($LCE_{CO2}$) can be reduced up to 470 g$CO_2$/kWh from 490 g$CO_2$/kWh of the conventional systems.