Analysis of the contribution of a BESS enabling electric aviation at Bonaire

Abstract

Currently, the entire aviation sector accounts for 2.5% of global emissions. To commit to the Paris Agreement by 2050, new emerging technology is necessary. Electric aircraft emerged as one of the promising solutions to decarbonize the aviation sector. However, the introduction of electric aviation (EA) causes a shift from kerosene to electricity. With the minimized turnaround times of aircraft, high charging powers are encountered with the adoption of electric aircraft. This can in turn lead to grid instability and costly grid infrastructure upgrades for the grid operator. A battery energy storage system (BESS) can potentially be a promising solution capable of addressing the high power rates associated with electric aircraft charging. Moreover, it provides opportunities for the battery owner to reduce costs and increase the utilization of renewable energy. This thesis aims to gain insight into the contribution of the deployment of a BESS compared to the business-as-usual situation to enable electric aviation while facilitating the interests of both the grid operator and the airport. In particular, this is done for the case study of Bonaire International Airport (BIA) and the grid operator Water- en Energiebedrijf Bonaire (WEB). For the grid operator, the impact on the grid is analyzed focusing on the voltage fluctuations, the load on the distribution cables, and the airport’s transformer (over)loading. From the airport’s perspective, the airport system’s LCOE, and the CO2 emissions from grid electricity are investigated.
Lastly, as electric aviation is currently not commercially used, and faces a lot of uncertainty, the sensitivity of the control strategies to various future scenarios for 2030 is analyzed. This is investigated by a mathematical optimization model for the three battery control strategies, Self-Consumption, Peak-Shaving, and Cost-Optimal. The results showed that in the absence of a BESS, the business-as-usual situation, independent of the adoption level of electric aviation at BIA, the transformer required a capacity upgrade. With the deployment of a BESS, it was found that a Self-consumption-controlled BESS could not effectively reduce the peak loads and defer a transformer capacity upgrade. While voltage fluctuations remained within the acceptable operational range for each control strategy and adoption level of EA. On the other hand, future scenarios with high demand growth could lead voltage fluctuations to reach the allowable threshold. The Self-Consumption strategy is susceptible to an increased electricity demand and adoption level of EA, which substantially influences the load on the distribution cables. Conversely, the Peak-Shaving and Cost-Optimal battery significantly reduces the peak loads in both electricity demand and injection even in scenarios with increased electricity demand and higher adoption levels of EA. Economically, it was shown that a BESS substantially reduced the LCOE depending on the control strategy. Furthermore, it is feasible to reduce CO2 emissions originating from grid electricity production, albeit the reduction is strongly affected by increased electricity demand over time. The research concluded that a BESS is able to defer grid infrastructure upgrades and reduce costs for the airport, although, the extent of these results is highly dependent on the control strategy. Regardless of the control strategies, a battery is able to achieve a reduction in CO2 emissions from the grid given the on-site PV system.