Requirement of Assistance regarding the modelling of Hybrid(SolarPV+Wind) System

Dear Concerned, 
Please assist about the followings:

• Is it possible to model a hybrid system(PV+Wind) in this software?
• When required data of some region is not available in this software then how I can import that data like wind speed data and solar irradiation data? Is it possible to import data, if yes then how and what should be the exact file format?
• If I want to model the system according to my own searched equipment like Wind Turbine and Solar Panels(which are not available in this software) then how can I add them with their Unit costs and some core specs.
• How a customized unit rate/Tariff can be entered to get the payback period?
• Lastly, according to the attached screenshot, when I am trying to merge systems, it doesn't recognize the names of the system either I tried the exact ones or the given ones. The solution, please.

Kindly respond on these issues which I am facing, so that I can conclude my project at the earliest.

Thanks.

Regards,
Abubakar Chaudhry
Mechanical Engineer
UET Lahore

Dear Abubakar,

SAM does not model hybrid power systems. You can use the Combine Cases macro to combine the power output of two different systems and use that generation profile with a single financial model to approximate a hybrid power project.

UPDATE: As of SAM 2021.12.02, the Combine Cases macro is replaced by the Calculate generation profiles and nameplate capacity from open cases option on the Power Plant page for the Generic System model and Generic Battery model. See the SAM YouTube channel for a short tutorial .

You can create your own weather files in the SAM CSV format for solar and SRW format for wind. See SAM's Help system for format descriptions: In the table of contents, you'll find them under "Weather Data, Weather File Formats."

For photovoltaic modules and inverters that are not in SAM's library, you can use the options described in this post: sam.nrel.gov/forum/forum-general/2768-pv-modules-and-inverters-not-in-database . For wind turbines, it is possible to edit the wind turbine library file as described in this post: sam.nrel.gov/forum/forum-general/1268-updating-wind-turbine-files .

The electricity rate structure is available for the Residential and Commercial financial model on the Electricity Rates page. You can enter the rate data by hand, or if you are modeling a system in the United States, you can download the data from the OpenEI Utility Rate Database using the tools on the Electricity Rates page.

I think the problem with your attempt to use the Combine Systems macro is that you included a space in the comma-separated list of case names. There should be no space after the comma. Note that you will need to create a third case using the Generic System model with the financial model you want to use for the project as described in the macro instructions.

Best regards,
Paul.

Then, can you pls guide how I can convert my XLS or CSV file to SRW format??

Please see the format description of the SRW file format for wind resource data in SAM's Help system. You can find it in the table of contents under "Weather Data, Weather File Formats."

Best regards,
Paul.