Multi-criteria Ranking of Renewable Energy Systems for Cities Located in Windy and Desert Areas

1. School of Energy Engineering and Sustainable Resources, College of Interdisciplinary Science and Technology, University of Tehran, Tehran, Iran
2. Department of Mechanical Engineering, Tafresh University, Tafresh, Iran
Email: farshid.mkhani@gmail.com (F.M.); alikhatibi83@tafreshu.ac.ir (A.K.); aminzadeh.hooman@ut.ac.ir (H.A.V.); razias_m@ut.ac.ir (F.R.A.)
*Corresponding author
Manuscript received September 17, 2025; revised October 11, 2025; accepted December 19, 2025

Abstract—Renewable Energy Systems (RES) continue to expand globally in the pursuit of energy sustainability. These systems contain different components and function based on technical, environmental, economic, and political factors. This research began by examining more than 50 relevant studies in the renewable energy field. The study then created a ranking system that combines expert knowledge with practical measurements of technical performance, environmental benefits, and cost effectiveness to find the best energy options for windy desert locations. While no renewable system can excel in every category, this balanced approach identifies the most practical overall solutions. Research in Yazd city, Iran revealed an unexpected result: a basic grid-connected wind turbine system performed better than more complicated setups. This simple system achieved 96.5% renewable energy use, generated profit instead of cost (with a negative Cost of Energy of $−0.2071), and reduced greenhouse gases by approximately 80%. Such findings provide valuable guidance for similar climate regions around the world and challenge standard assumptions about desert energy solutions.

Keywords—renewable energy, multi-criteria ranking, green house gas emissions, Yazd, economic feasibility, photovoltaic energy, wind energy

Cite: Farshid Mohammadkhaninezhad, Ali Khatibi, Hooman Aminzadeh Vahedi, and Fatemeh Razi Astaraei, "Multi-criteria Ranking of Renewable Energy Systems for Cities Located in Windy and Desert Areas," International Journal of Sustainability in Energy and Environment, vol. 2, no. 2, pp. 95-110, 2025.

Copyright © 2025 by the authors. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited ( CC-BY-4.0).