Modeling and analysis of hybrid solar water desalination system for different scenarios in Indonesia.

• The performance of the PV-RO was analysed economically and environmentally. • The batteryless PV-RO system is the most economically feasible among other scenarios. • The diesel-assisted PV-RO system is the less preferable option. • The CO 2 emissions avoidance by the batteryless PV-RO system is 65,152.5 kg.CO 2 eq. • The optimized PV-RO system could avoid about 111,690 kg.CO 2 eq per year. Clean water demand has significantly increased due to the rise in the global population. However, most water on the Earth has high saline content that cannot be consumed directly; only about one over forty of the total water source is freshwater. Desalinated water is one of the potential solutions to meet the growing demand for freshwater, which is highly energy intensive. This paper analyses the energy, economic and environmental performance of a 5 m3/day PV (photovoltaic) powered reverse osmosis (RO) desalination system. Three scenarios of PV-RO with and without battery storage and diesel generator hybrid systems have been analyzed and investigated for the annual estimate load, net present value, and payback period of the water and electricity production costs. Also, the CO 2 avoidance over the lifetime operation of all scearios is evaluated. This study shows that the PV-RO system without battery with 6.3 kW PV panels installed and with a 2-days water storage tank system is the most profitable economically f. For this scenario, the Levelized Cost of Electricity (LCOE), Levelized Cost of Water (LCOW), and Payback Period (PBP) are found to be $0.154/kWh, $0.627/m3, and five years, respectively. In addition, for this scenario, the CO 2 emissions avoidance was the maximum (111,690 kg.CO 2 eq per year) compared to other scenarios. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]