Resiliency evaluation of a collective residence with an independent power outage system

Abstract

This study aimed to verify the effectiveness of a 48‐h independent power outage system, evaluate the indoor thermal environment under power outage conditions, and improve residential awareness of disasters through a power outage experience. A power outage experiment was conducted in a collective residence with a 48‐h independent power system. The available power for each dwelling unit was limited based on the type of heat source, at 700 and 1200 W for cogeneration (CG) and solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) heating, respectively. The power supply was halted when the available power limit was exceeded. During the experiment, the thermal environment, temperature, humidity, amount of power generated by the CG and SOFC, and load power of the dwelling units were analyzed. We also conducted a questionnaire survey to evaluate the indoor environment and infrastructure. The results showed that home appliances could be used because all dwelling units were supplied with sufficient power, at 700 and 1200 W. The most important appliances were electric fans, refrigerators, lighting, mobile phones, and computer chargers. Therefore, the experiment demonstrated that a comfortable evacuation living condition can be realized by using CG and SOFC during a power outage in the summer.