Second-life battery systems for affordable energy access in Kenyan primary schools

 

As the world approaches net zero, energy storage becomes increasingly important for applications such as electric vehicles, mini-grids, and utility-scale grid stability. Increased storage demand limits battery raw materials, reduces the availability of new batteries, and increases battery disposal rates.

End-of-life batteries are difficult to recycle into components, so reuse and reuse options are needed to avoid large amounts of battery waste. This study explores the feasibility of using secondary-use batteries (retired from their initial intended lifespan) and solar power to provide affordable energy access to elementary schools in Kenya. Examine you. Based on interviews with his 12 schools in East Africa, a realistic set of different PV sizes (5–10 kW in 2.5 kW increments) and lithium-ion battery capacities (5–20 kWh in 5 kWh increments) A system size has been determined.

Each combination was simulated in four scenarios as a sensitivity analysis of battery transportation costs (that is, locally sourced or imported). A techno-economic analysis is performed to compare new and used batteries in terms of cost and performance in the resulting 48 system scenarios. Used batteries were found to reduce LCOE by 5.6–35.3% and 41.9–64% in 97.2% of scenarios compared to similar systems with new batteries.

5% compared to the cost of the same energy service provided by the utility grid. The system with the lowest LCOE (i.e. $0.11/kWh) uses 7.5kW or 10kW of solar power and 20kWh of storage. In all cases, using used batteries reduces the recovery time by 8.2–42.9% compared to new batteries. The system with the shortest payback period (i.e. 2.9 years) uses 5 kW of solar energy and 5 kWh of storage. These results demonstrate that reusable batteries are viable and cost-effective, offering the same benefits while reducing waste compared to new batteries for school electrification in Kenya.

INTRODUCTION:

To meet the growing global energy demand while combating climate change, much of the current global energy consumption must be electrified with renewable energy. Most renewable energy sources, such as solar, wind, and tidal power, are intermittent (i.e.
is not constant), building a system that can consistently cover energy demand must be complemented by energy storage.

The need for energy storage applies to both developed and developing countries. Off-grid energy systems incorporating photovoltaics (PV) and batteries are highly prevalent in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), which have abundant solar resources5 and rely on existing power grids. This is due to the need to expand energy access to rural areas where infrastructure6 is removed. In fact, stand-alone solar PV and energy storage systems are becoming the standard for extending off-grid energy access in LMICs, with proven social, economic and environmental benefits7.

Second Life Battery Usage:

When discussing the SLB, it is important to distinguish between reuse, reuse and recycling. Reuse involves the direct reuse of a material for the same purpose, but reuse gives the material a new purpose different from its original purpose, and recycling makes the product more fundamental for the reuse of its component parts.

When considering SLB, reusing or repurposing batteries will often have the greatest value over recycling, as they use less energy. Today, most batteries are assembled with little emphasis on recycling. This means that certain parts, especially cells containing valuable metals, are permanently joined by welding or gluing, making extraction difficult.

Therefore, applications that allow the battery to be reused or reused without disassembly are likely to be the most cost-effective for his current SLB inventory.

electric vehicle (EV) lithium-ion battery is his SLB of particularly high quality. “End of life” typically has 70–80% capacity remaining.

This corresponds to thousands of charge/discharge cycles and usable energy storage time. While these batteries may no longer be suitable for use in electric vehicles, there are many other applications where this remaining capacity can be put to good use. Based on the authors’ literature and field experience, SLB applications of interest in the LMIC context include light mobility, single building power, and micro- and mini-grids. His SLB suitability in these cases is described in Table 1.

A promising means of redistributing SLB is to provide access to affordable electricity in schools. It falls into the single building power category shown in Table 1. This is the focus of this study when investigating the potential for reuse of primary schools in Kenya.

Second Life Battery Opportunities in School Energy Access:

There are approximately 32,437 primary schools in Kenya. As of December 2017, 76% of these schools had access to electricity, according to a government spokesperson. But even where schools are connected to the grid, power is unreliable. This means that students are often forced to limit their studies to daylight or electricity hours. Power outages are not a panacea for education, but they also limit access to modern teaching technologies (computers, projectors, etc.) that play a complementary role and fill teaching gaps. Not leveraging these technologies can disrupt lesson planning and limit coherent learning.

Given the lack of resources in Kenya’s education system, the high cost of using mains power competes with other significant school costs. A 2019 survey of 300 boarding schools in Kenya found that electricity alone costs an average of $4,000 a month. This corresponds to the average cost of hiring her two teachers in the Nairobi area. Schools with limited available budgets are therefore forced to cut costs by hiring fewer teachers or minimizing electricity consumption, both of which have a negative impact on learning.

Energy Demand Assessment and Challenges:

The energy demand assessment was conducted in 12 schools (8 in Kenya, 2 each in Uganda and Tanzania) through semi-structured interviews. These were selected based on existing contacts and data access. Interviews covered: current energy use (including devices and hours of use), sources, costs, and satisfaction; energy use aspirations (i.e., what devices they would connect if energy were more abundant, reliable and/or affordable); whether they would consider an alternative source of energy, especially from a solar/battery system; and demographics.

The principal uses of electricity identified in the interviews were classroom lighting, security lighting, information technology (e.g., computers, printers/copiers, projectors, etc.), and phone charging. These all use relatively little power, which speaks well to the potential suitability of hybrid battery and PV solutions to meet school energy needs.

It was reported that these technologies impacted the ability of students to study (lighting), the security of the school community and premises (security lighting), the ability of teachers to prepare and deliver lessons (phone charging, laptops), preparation for examinations (printing and copying), and basic life/livelihood skills for better educational outcomes (information technology labs). Some aspirational productive uses of electricity were also identified by interviewees (e.g., submersible borehole pumps for water, refrigeration for food preservation).

However, these are much more difficult to power from hybrid batteries and solar systems, and are not core to the school’s learning objectives. Therefore, these high-performance devices are not included in the techno-economic analysis. Her 4,444 respondents from 4,444 on-grid schools reported technical and financial challenges in using electricity.

They reported erratic power supply due to frequent and prolonged network outages. They also reported that expensive utility power contributed to the school’s high costs. This, coupled with the lack of funds (or delays in payment) to cover school bills from central funding sources, suggests that the schools surveyed do not receive additional financial support from students’ parents to pay utility bills.

This meant that we often had to ask for This demonstrates the urgent need to provide affordable and reliable alternatives for energy access. The impact of schools with limited and expensive electricity has been reported to lead to poor educational outcomes, increased financial burden on parents, poor staff retention, and ultimately lower enrollment rates increase.

Basic characteristics of the case study schools:

Of the schools sampled, four schools in Kenya were characterized in more detail. There are two in Nairobi, one each in Kagiado and Machakos counties, as shown in Table 2. Schools 1, 2 and 3 are connected to the grid, but School 4 is currently not electrified and uses an independent biogas plant for the school’s cooking needs. Schools 1 and 2 are located in urban areas and schools 3 and 4 are located in rural areas. Both are state-supported public schools.

Originally published at https://businessdor.com on January 25, 2023.