Abstract:
Users ought to decide how to operate and manage power systems in order to achieve
various goals. As a result, many strategies have been developed to aid in this regard. Optimal
power flow management is one such strategy that assists users in properly operating and managing
the supply and demand of power in an optimal way under specified constraints. However, indepth research on optimal power flow management is yet to be explored when it comes to the
supply and demand of power for the bulk of standalone renewable energy systems such as solar
photovoltaics, especially when it comes to specific applications such as powering military soldierlevel portable electronic devices. This paper presents an optimal power flow management modelling
and optimisation approach for solar-powered soldier-level portable electronic devices. The OPTI
toolbox in MATLAB is used to solve the formulated nonlinear optimal power flow management
problem using SCIP as the solver. A globally optimal solution was arrived at in a case study in which
the objective function was to minimise the difference between the power supplied to the portable
electronic device electronics and the respective portable electronic device power demands. This
ensured that the demand for solar-powered soldier-level portable electronic devices is met at all times
in spite of the prohibitive case scenarios’ circumstances under the given constraints. This resolute
approach underscores the importance placed on satisfying the demand needs of the specific devices
while navigating and addressing the limitations posed by the existing conditions or constraints.
Soldiers and the solar photovoltaic user fraternity at large will benefit from this work as they will be
guided on how to optimally manage their power systems’ supply and demand scenarios. The model
developed herein is applicable to any demand profile and any number of portable electronic device
and is adaptable to any geographical location receiving any amount of solar radiation.
