HetNets Powered by Renewable Energy Sources: Sustainable Next-Generation Cellular Networks

Abstract

Renewable energy could be the key for sustainable next-generation cellular networks. The authors' approach would let mobile operators feed base stations in a heterogeneous network using renewable energy sources. The authors compare their method to a classical grid-powered solution. They evaluate costs and CO <sub xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">2</sub> emissions savings for different scenarios to demonstrate that properly powering a heterogeneous network with renewable energy can be a sustainable and economically convenient solution.