Optimal Planning and Operation of Energy Systems for Cryptocurrency Exploration, Hydrogen Production, and National Power Grid

This study investigates the planning and optimal operation of demand and supply systems in a renewable energy framework. The demand is categorized into cryptocurrency exploration, hydrogen production, and national power grid, while the supply consists of a national grid and a private solar power plant. The energy flow diagram considers feeding the cryptocurrency exploration and hydrogen production systems using both the national grid and solar power plant, and the solar power plant can also supply to the national grid. A linear optimization model is used to determine the optimal capacity of the solar power plant and demand planning to maximize investor profit while considering supply and demand limitations. The study includes 43803 decision-making variables and 26281 inequality constraints. The analysis focuses on the lifetime of system components, which aligns with the lifespan of renewable technologies. The system design considers variations in electrical energy consumption per bitcoin extraction, ranging from 70 MWh/BTC to 300 MWh/BTC, as well as changes in the price of Bitcoin, ranging from 5000 $/BTC to 55 k$/BTC. Additionally, the price of hydrogen ranges from 2 $/(kg_(H2 ) ) to 12 $/(kg_(H_2 ) ), and the price of electrolyzers ranges from 1250 $/(kW_Elect ) to 3000$/(kW_Elect ), over the study's 4356 scenarios. These scenarios encompass 31 unique states of supply and demand system design, along with optimal utilization of the supply system. The variability in energy exchange tariffs between the national grid and demand sectors accounts for the differences among the 26 distinct supply and demand system designs.