Submit to Sustainability Review for Sustainability Propose a Special Issue

Journal Browser

Technology Innovation and Applications of Power Electronics of Renewable Energy Systems

Print Special Issue Flyer
Special Issue Editors
Special Issue Information
Keywords
Published Papers

A special issue of Sustainability (ISSN 2071-1050). This special issue belongs to the section "Resources and Sustainable Utilization".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 April 2023) | Viewed by 12798

Share This Special Issue

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Emad M. Ahmed

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor

Department of Electrical Engineering, College of Engineering, Jouf University, Sakaka 72341, Saudi Arabi
Interests: power electronics converters for renewable energy; energy storage systems for renewables; reliability of renewable; energy systems; advanced control of power converters; meta-heuristic Optimization techniques

Dr. Mokhtar Aly

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor

Facultad de Ingeniería y Tecnología, Universidad San Sebastián, Bellavista 7, Santiago, Chile
Interests: renewable energy applications; reliability of power electronics systems; multilevel inverters; model predictive control; resilient microgrids; electric vehicles (EV)

Prof. Dr. Fernanda Carnielutti

E-Mail Website
Co-Guest Editor

Department of Electrical Energy Processing, Federal University of Santa Maria, Santa Maria 97105-900, Brazil
Interests: renewable energies; power electronics; control of grid-tied inverters; multilevel inverters; model predictive control

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Promoting the modernization of electrical power systems in order to enhance system sustainability and reduce CO₂ emissions has motivated researchers to develop new and emerging technologies for generating, transmitting, distributing, and storing electrical power. In this regard, increasing the penetration levels of renewable energy sources, energy storage management, voltage ride-through, electrical vehicle integration, etc., requires reliable and efficient power converters equipped with advanced control techniques. In this context, power electronics converters play a crucial rule in integrating renewable energy sources and/or energy storage with local loads, utility grids, microgrids, and nanogrids. These converters have a large impact on the overall system performance, efficiency, and reliability. DC-DC and DC-AC power converters have been widely used in these areas in order to achieve maximum power tracking, grid synchronization, active and reactive power control, and other grid support functionalities. In addition, modular multilevel converters, impedance source inverters, matrix converters, etc., have found applications, particularly in large-scale systems. Indeed, control and modulation techniques have a great influence on the performance and reliability of the whole system. This Special Issue will tackle the different innovative technologies and applications of power electronics in renewable energy systems.

This topic is highly related to other existing literature on boosting power system sustainability and improving system performance using power electronics converters, especially using new power converter topologies and advanced control techniques.

This Special Issue is devoted to providing the opportunity for interested researchers to focus on the recent innovative technologies and applications of power electronics in renewable energy systems. The issue covers all topics related to the integration of photovoltaics and wind generators with utility grids or microgrids, energy management and control techniques, battery storage technologies, fuel cells, electrical vehicles, etc. In addition, the submission of paper dealing with the related topics of using advanced control techniques in renewable energy systems (such as fuzzy logic control, neural networks, neuro-fuzzy, model predictive control, metaheuristic optimization techniques, etc.) is encouraged as well. The editor would like to invite all interested researchers studying the abovementioned topics to submit their original articles for publication in this issue.

Dr. Emad M. Ahmed
Dr. Mokhtar Aly
Prof. Dr. Fernanda Carnielutti
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Sustainability is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

renewable energy technologies
photovoltaic systems
wind energy conversion system
fuel cells
energy storage technologies
electric vehicles
power converters control techniques
grid integration

Published Papers (6 papers)

Download All Papers

Research

27 pages, 3549 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Optimal Power Flow in Wind–Photovoltaic Energy Regulation Systems Using a Modified Turbulent Water Flow-Based Optimization

by Ali S. Alghamdi

Sustainability 2022, 14(24), 16444; https://doi.org/10.3390/su142416444 - 08 Dec 2022

Cited by 6 | Viewed by 1154

Abstract

This paper describes how to obtain optimal power flow (OPF) in power systems that integrate wind turbine (WT) and solar photovoltaic (PV) producers. A modified technique called modified turbulent water flow-based optimization (MTFWO) is presented to solve the nonconvex and nonlinear OPF problem effectively. In the OPF model, power output from renewable sources is regarded as a dependent variable. At the same time, the voltage at the bus terminals of WT/PV is used as a controller (decision variable). The amount of power generated by WT and PV generators is modeled using data collected in real time on the wind speed and the amount of irradiation from the sun. Although the TFWO algorithm has its benefits, it also has certain shortcomings in solving challenging problems. By more effectively searching the feasible space using different interaction mechanisms and improving exploitation capabilities, this paper improves the TFWO algorithm’s performance. We compare the performance and effectiveness of the suggested MTFWO method with cutting-edge optimization algorithms for solving the OPF problems, using the same system-specific data, limitations, and control variables in the comparisons. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Technology Innovation and Applications of Power Electronics of Renewable Energy Systems)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

15 pages, 5132 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Small Signal Stability Analysis of a Microgrid in Grid-Connected Mode

by Hammad Alnuman

Sustainability 2022, 14(15), 9372; https://doi.org/10.3390/su14159372 - 31 Jul 2022

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1455

Abstract

Microgrid stability issues are classified into three categories: transient, voltage, and small signal stability (SSS). Small variations in the load demand and small perturbations in the control system and line impedance parameters can cause instability, which can be avoided by performing an SSS analysis. This paper focuses on investigating the impact of line impedance and passive filter parameters on the stability of a MG in grid-connected mode. Therefore, a MG system was represented mathematically, before performing an SSS analysis that calculated the stability margin of the MG parameters. A sensitivity analysis was performed to determine those parameters highly participating in the SSS. The mathematical results were validated using the simulation results, which were obtained using MATLAB Simulink. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Technology Innovation and Applications of Power Electronics of Renewable Energy Systems)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

28 pages, 26678 KiB

Open AccessArticle

A Novel Fairness-Based Cost Model for Adopting Smart Charging at Fast Charging Stations

by Sami M. Alshareef

Sustainability 2022, 14(11), 6450; https://doi.org/10.3390/su14116450 - 25 May 2022

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1276

Abstract

This research introduces a cost model for application at fast charging stations (FCSs) with the aim to adopt smart charging, which can mitigate voltage fluctuation caused by the on/off status of FCS. When the operation of FCSs causes a voltage fluctuation and light flicker, the FCSs may be disconnected, as per the utility general standard practice, which results in financial loss represented by FCS downtime. However, FCS downtime can be avoided by applying the smart charging method referred to in this paper, or by installing mitigation devices that are available on the market. The proposed smart charging method provides three charging powers (or options), namely premium, regular, and economic, which consumers can select according to their needs and/or priority, whether this may be time or cost. Thus, the output power of each type is different as well as the per unit cost. The offered cost of smart charging is reliant on a ‘fairness’ policy that is, from the viewpoint of an FCS operator or investor, characterized by the value of cost for any customer at the FCS being equivalent to the customer’s value of time. For instance, customers A and B require X kwh from the FCS. When arriving at the FCS, if customer A values time the most, the premium power can be selected with the highest $/kwh cost. If the cost is more valuable to customer B, regular or economic power can be selected, but customer B will spend more time than customer A to get the same X kwh. The proposed fairness policy indicates that, to get the required X kwh, the percent of total costs saved by B (by using regular or economic power) in comparison to A is equivalent to the percent of total time saved by A (by using premium power) in comparison to B, for the same X kwh. The annual cost of applying smart charging at the FCS is estimated and compared with the annual cost of the best flicker mitigation device. The comparison reveals that distribution static compensators are considered the cheapest mitigation device, according to the cost per kVAr basis and the total annual equivalent cost. The proposed smart charging method achieves a tremendous reduction in the cost of mitigating the voltage fluctuation and light flicker. The annual cost of the proposed smart charging method is less than the annual cost of distribution static compensators by a minimum of 90% to a maximum of 99%. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Technology Innovation and Applications of Power Electronics of Renewable Energy Systems)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

19 pages, 6425 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Design and Optimization of Fractional Order PID Controller to Enhance Energy Storage System Contribution for Damping Low-Frequency Oscillation in Power Systems Integrated with High Penetration of Renewable Sources

by Hasan Ali Abumeteir and Ahmet Mete Vural

Sustainability 2022, 14(9), 5095; https://doi.org/10.3390/su14095095 - 23 Apr 2022

Cited by 11 | Viewed by 2140

Abstract

This paper proposes adding a controller to the energy storage system (ESS) to enhance their contribution for damping low-frequency oscillation (LFO) in power systems integrated with high penetration of different types of renewable energy sources (RES). For instance, wind turbines and photovoltaic (PV) solar systems. This work proposes superconducting magnetic energy storage (SMES) as an ESS. The proportional–integral–derivative (PID) and fractional-order PID (FOPID) are suggested as supporter controllers with SMES. The PID and FOPID controller’s optimal values will be obtained using particle swarm optimization (PSO) is used as the optimization method. Both local area and inter-area oscillation is considered in this work as a LFO. To investigate the impact of adding the SMES with the proposed controller, a multimachine power system with different integration scenarios and cases is carried out with a PV system and wind turbine. The system responses are presented and discussed to show the superiority of the proposed controller both in the time domain and by eigenvalues analysis. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Technology Innovation and Applications of Power Electronics of Renewable Energy Systems)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

45 pages, 16011 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Investigation of Small-Scale Photovoltaic Systems for Optimum Performance under Partial Shading Conditions

by Mahmoud A. M. Youssef, Abdelrahman M. Mohamed, Yaser A. Khalaf and Yehia S. Mohamed

Sustainability 2022, 14(6), 3681; https://doi.org/10.3390/su14063681 - 21 Mar 2022

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 2027

Abstract

Not only are small photovoltaic (PV) systems widely used in poor countries and rural areas where the electrical loads are low but they can also be integrated into the national electricity grid to save electricity costs and reduce CO₂ emissions. Partial shading (PS) is one of the phenomena that leads to a sharp decrease in the performance of PV systems. This study provides a comprehensive performance investigation of small systems (consisting of ten modules or fewer) under all possible shading patterns that result from one shading level (300 W/m² is chosen). The most common configurations are considered for which a performance comparison is presented. Five small systems of different sizes are studied under PS. A new simplifying method is proposed to identify the distinct PS patterns under study. Consequently, the number of cases to be studied is significantly reduced from 1862 to 100 cases only. The study is conducted using the MATLAB/Simulink^® environment. The simulation results demonstrate the most outperformed configuration in each case of PS pattern and the amount of improvement for each configuration. The configurations include static series-parallel (SP), static total-cross-tied (TCT), dynamic switching between SP and TCT, and TCT-reconfiguration. The study provides PV systems’ owners with a set of guidelines to opt for the best configuration of their PV systems. The optimum recommended configuration is TCT reconfiguration, rather than dynamic switching between SP and TCT. The less recommended option, which enjoys simplicity but is still viable, is the static TCT. It outperforms the static SP in most cases of PS patterns. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Technology Innovation and Applications of Power Electronics of Renewable Energy Systems)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

27 pages, 6881 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Designing and Energy Estimation of Photovoltaic Energy Generation System and Prediction of Plant Performance with the Variation of Tilt Angle and Interrow Spacing

by Muhammad Tamoor, Salman Habib, Abdul Rauf Bhatti, Arslan Dawood Butt, Ahmed Bilal Awan and Emad M. Ahmed

Sustainability 2022, 14(2), 627; https://doi.org/10.3390/su14020627 - 06 Jan 2022

Cited by 18 | Viewed by 3149

Abstract

The focus of this research is to design a ground-mounted photovoltaic system at optimal tilt angle and interrow space to meet high demand of electrical energy. The Department of Electrical Engineering and Technology, GC University Faisalabad has been considered to perform the simulation test. This study is conducted using Meteonorm software for solar resource assessment. Furthermore, HelioScope software is used for modeling of a ground-mounted photovoltaic system, study of PV system’s performance in terms of annual generation, system losses and performance ratio and analysis of photovoltaic module’s performance, current-voltage and power-voltage curves for different irradiance levels. From SLD, it is seen that 11 strings are connected to each inverter and inverters output power are combined by using 20.0 A circuit interconnects. The performance of photovoltaic systems is impacted by tilt angle and interrow spacing. From simulation results of all cases, it is concluded that the PV system installed at 15° tilt angle with 4 feet interrow spacing are more efficient than the other installed PV systems, because total collector irradiance is maximum (1725.0 kWh/m²) as compared to other tilt angles. At 15° tilt angle, the annual production of photovoltaic system is 2.265 GWh and performance ratio of PV system is 82.0%. It is envisioned that this work will provide the guidance to energy system designers, planners and investors to formulate strategies for the installation of photovoltaic energy systems in Pakistan and all over the world. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Technology Innovation and Applications of Power Electronics of Renewable Energy Systems)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

Journal Menu

Journal Browser

Technology Innovation and Applications of Power Electronics of Renewable Energy Systems

Share This Special Issue

Special Issue Editors

Special Issue Information

Keywords

Published Papers (6 papers)

Research

Further Information

Guidelines

MDPI Initiatives

Follow MDPI