Abstract
A method for leveling power generation was examined for a power supply system that uses wind power generation for a stand-alone radio base station. One possible method is the conversion of the surplus electric power into hydrogen, which enables stable energy storage that can be later used to produce electrical energy via a fuel cell. In order to efficiently produce hydrogen from wind power, it has been suggested that an electric double layer capacitor (EDLC) can be used as the electric power buffer medium for the system. The effect of EDLC installation to a wind power generation system was examined using numerical analysis. In a system that is constantly converting the generated electrical energy into hydrogen, there is an appropriate load capacity for the hydrogen generator that corresponds to the amount of energy generated. By setting the appropriate capacity and expanding the range of load operation of the hydrogen generator, the electrical charge and discharge of the EDLC are balanced, and the buffer ability improves. As a result, even if the EDLC capacity is extremely small, it is shown to contribute to stabilization of the amount of hydrogen generation. Moreover, a reduction in the hydrogen generator load capacity is observed with installation of an EDLC.
