4.6. Optimization criteria and sensitivity variables
In order to define the group of optimized system, HOMER performs
simulation and optimization by doing an energy balance for
each hour of the year considering the optimization criteria. The
optimization objective is to determine the decision variables (size
or numbers of each component) of a system with the minimum cost
that is capable to satisfy the energy demand within the imposed
constraints while maximizing the power reliability. In HOMER, the
power reliability is defined as a parameter called capacity shortage
that is the amount of power shortage divided by the total power
demand during one year operation. The optimization is constrained
to the maximum allowable capacity shortage defined by the
designer.