Advanced Grid Integration of Photovoltaic Energy Systems

Dear Colleagues,

Power electronics, as an essential interface, has benefited from the development of renewable energy resources (RESs), including solar photovoltaic (PV) energy. Meanwhile, driven by the continuous decrease in the levelized cost of energy (LCoE), PV systems are now widely integrated into the power grid. However, the high penetration level of PV systems raises concerns around grid instability due to intermittent power fluctuations, such as the frequency stability induced by the deficient mechanical inertia in power electronics interfacing RES integration. Accordingly, various attempts have been made to advance the grid-friendliness of PV systems. Beyond conventional integration, recent PV systems are required to act as active power sources, particularly mitigating the adverse effects and providing intelligent controllability and flexibility, as well as by leveraging digital technologies. In this context, power electronics-based solar PV systems are being of digitalization and intelligence, which, however, also brings challenges in the era of artificial intelligence (AI). One of the key concerns in recent scholarship is how to properly digitalize the entire energy system, ensuring data availability while keeping cyber-attackers away, in order to develop advanced and smart control techniques. Additionally, testing large-scale low-inertia power electronics systems is becoming of increasing importance, as it is a cost-efficient way to validate control algorithms by integrating them into control hardware-in-the-loop (CHiL) and power hardware-in-the-loop (PHiL) systems. However, there is a dilemma to consider when performing simulations of massive power electronics: computation burdens and real-world-case representation accuracy (fidelity). Considering the above issues, this Special Issue, ‘Advanced Grid Integration of Photovoltaic Energy Systems’, proposes to collect the latest research in this field. The topics of interest include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Modelling of large-scale PV plants, including floating PV systems;
• Novel power converters for solar PV and energy storage systems;
• Data-driven analysis and optimization of PV systems;
• Artificial intelligence in solar PV energy systems;
• Stability and resonances in power electronics systems;
• Grid-forming technologies for PV systems;
• Grid-supportive and grid-friendly control technologies;
• Cybersecurity in digital and smart PV systems;
• Testing and validation of large-scale power electronics systems;
• Advanced and coordinated control of hybrid energy systems.

Dr. Yongheng Yang
Dr. Yinxiao Zhu
Dr. Shuo Yan
Guest Editors

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