Prioritization of low-carbon technology for electricity generation in the Philippines using calibrated fuzzy AHP

• Main Authors: Antonio, Martin Raphael S.E., De Serra, Adam John D., Chuaunsu, Richard Malcolm M., II
• Format: text
• Language: English
• Published: Animo Repository 2015
• Subjects: Electric power production; Fuzzy algorithms; Carbon dioxide; Carbon compounds
• Online Access: https://animorepository.dlsu.edu.ph/etd_bachelors/7173
• Institution: De La Salle University

Electricity generation, due to the world's growing demand for electricity, is one of the largest industries that contribute to Carbon Dioxide (CO2) emissions due to coal being a main energy source. In line with this, taking advantage of other energy resources is important to address the persisting problem of greenhouse gases and climate change. A Calibrated Fuzzy Analytic Hierarchy Process (CFAHP) method that incorporates Fuzzy Set Theory with AHP was developed to prioritize low-carbon technology for electricity generation in the Philippines. The calibrated fuzzy scale was used in the fuzzy pairwise comparison matrix to address the vagueness involved in giving judgment. Criteria used for the prioritization were the Environmental, Economic, Technological, and Social aspects of the low-carbon technologies. These criteria broke down into sub-criteria such as Levelized Cost of Electricity, carbon, land and water footprints, as well as qualitative criteria such as maturity of technology, social acceptance, and social benefits. The alternatives to be prioritized were biomass, geothermal, solar, hydro, and wind power. A non-linear mathematical programming model was used to derive the priority weights using LINGO and Excel (with Whats Best add-in). Aggregated weights showed that the prioritization was affected heavily by the social aspect. The CFAHP model prioritized the LCT for the Philippines from highest to lowest namely, Biomass, Solar, Geothermal, Hydro, and Wind. Sensitivity analysis suggested that the result of prioritization was highly sensitive to the environmental criteria.