Search Results (10)

This article is devoted to the study of a 20 MW large-scale photovoltaic power plant (LS-PVPP), connected to the grid and located in Naàma, Algeria. The power plant is included in the National Program for the Development of Renewable Energies 2015–2030. Among the parameters analyzed in detail in this work, the performance ratio recorded an average value of 67.55%, the capacity factor had an average of 17.10%, the total losses had an average of 2.10 kWh/kWp/day, the system efficiency had an average of 4.10 kWh/kWp/day and an annual average of 9.84% of the efficiency. A linear regression equation with a coefficient of determination R² of 0.91 confirms the importance of irradiation impact in the region; less significant linearity for the effect of temperature with a coefficient of determination R² = 0.28 is recorded for production. A comparative study conducted with the Adrar plant (Algeria) with an extremely hot desert climate and the Saida plant (Algeria) with a semi-arid climate demonstrated that the efficiency of the Naàma station is equal to 91.22% of the efficiency of Adrar and 73.47% of the efficiency of Saida. Naàma is known for its semi-arid climate; it is very cold in winter and hot in summer, with sandstorms becoming more frequent due to climate change. PVsyst software (Version 7.4.8) is used to validate the results. Full article

The insufficient durability of solar energy systems is an important problem in low-voltage situations in the electrical grid. This problem can cause PV systems to become difficult to operate during periods of low voltage and may disconnect PV systems from electrical grids. In this study, a hybrid protection system combining a DC chopper and a capacitive bridge fault current limiter (CBFCL) and based on a machine learning (ML) approach is proposed as a protection strategy to improve the low voltage ride-through (LVRT) capability of a grid-connected PV power plant (PVPP) system. To forecast the best control parameters using real time, including both the fault and normal operation conditions of the grid-connected PVPP system, the ML approach is trained on historical data. Among 20 classifier algorithms, the Coarse Tree classifier and Medium Gaussian SVM classifier have the best accuracy and F1-score for the DC chopper and DC chopper + CBFCL protection systems. The Medium Gaussian SVM classifier has the highest accuracy (98.37%) and F1-score (99.17%) for the DC chopper and CBFCL protection method among the 20 classifier methods. In comparison to another protection system, the simulation results show that a proposed hybrid protection system using SVM offers optimum protection for the grid-connected PVPP system. Full article

This research demonstrates the possibility and expediency of forming local electric energy systems (LEESs) based on renewable sources of energy (RSE) as balancing groups in the electric power system (EPS), which can maintain efficiency and provide power supply to consumers in an autonomous mode. The LEES is a part of the EPS of thermal and nuclear power plants and is considered as a separate balancing group. LEESs are designed in such a way that they can operate autonomously in both normal and extreme conditions in the EPS. The sources of electricity in LEESs are small hydroelectric power plants (SHPPs), photovoltaic power plants (PVPPs), and wind power plants (WPPs), whose electricity generation is unstable due to dependence on natural conditions. Therefore, the structure of a LEES with RSE includes an energy storage system with reserves sufficient to compensate for the unstable generation and balancing of the mode. LEESs can differ significantly in terms of key technical and economic indicators (power supply reliability, power losses, and power quality), and therefore, it is necessary to choose the optimal one. It is not advisable to optimize the quality of power supply in a LEES by individual indicators, as improvement of one indicator may lead to deterioration of another. The functional readiness of a LEES should be assessed by the quality of operation, which depends on reliability, power losses, and power quality. To simplify the task of assessing the quality of operation, which is a vector optimization problem, a method for determining the integral indicator as a number that characterizes the LEES and reflects the compromise between the values of reliability, power losses, and power quality has been developed. The integral indicator of the functioning of complex systems is based on a combination of the theory of Markov processes and the criterion method of similarity theory. The value of the integral indicator of the quality of operation of the LEES allows for comparing different variants of power transmission and distribution systems without determining individual components of technical and economic indicators—reliability, power losses, and power quality. The offered integral indicator of the quality of functioning of a LEES with RSE corresponds to the general requirements for such indicators. It reflects the actual operating conditions; allows for assessing the efficiency, quality, and optimality of power supply systems; and can be easily decomposed into partial indicators. Full article

To meet the challenges of renewable energy consumption and improve the efficiency of energy systems, we propose an intelligent distributed energy dispatch strategy for multi-energy systems based on Nash bargaining by utilizing the power dispatch meta-universe platform. First, the operational framework of the multi-energy system, including wind park (WP), photovoltaic power plant (PVPP), and energy storage (ES), is described. Using the power dispatch meta-universe platform, the models of WP, PVPP, and ES are constructed and analyzed. Then, a Nash bargaining model of the multi-energy system is built and transformed into a coalition profit maximization problem, which is solved using the alternating direction multiplier method (ADMM). Finally, the effectiveness of the proposed strategy is verified. The results show that the strategy greatly improves the consumption of renewable energy sources and the profit of the overall system. Full article

Over the last few years, the number of grid-connected photovoltaic systems (GCPVS) has expanded substantially. The increase in GCPVS integration may lead to operational issues for the grid. Thus, modern GCPVS control mechanisms should be used to improve grid efficiency, reliability, and stability. In terms of frequency stability, conventional generating units usually have a governor control that regulates the primary load frequency in cases of imbalance situations. This control should be activated immediately to avoid a significant frequency variation. Recently, renewable distribution generators such as PV power plants (PVPPs) are steadily replacing conventional generators. However, these generators do not contribute to system inertia or frequency stability. This paper proposes a control strategy for a GCPVS with active power control (APC) to support the grid and frequency stability. The APC enables the PVPP to withstand grid disturbances and maintain frequency within a normal range. As a result, PVPP is forced to behave similar to traditional power plants to achieve frequency steadiness stability. Frequency stability can be achieved by reducing the active power output fed into the grid as the frequency increases. Additionally, to maintain power balance on both sides of the inverter, the PV system will produce the maximum amount of active power achievable based on the frequency deviation and the grid inverter’s rating by working in two modes: normal and APC (disturbance). In this study, a large-scale PVPP linked to the utility grid at the MV level was modeled in MATLAB/Simulink with a nominal rated peak output of 2000 kW. Analyses of the suggested PVPP’s dynamic response under various frequency disturbances were performed. In this context, the developed control reduced active power by 4%, 24%, and 44% when the frequency climbed to 50.3 Hz, 50.8 Hz, and 51.3 Hz, respectively, and so stabilized the frequency in the normal range, according to grid-code requirements. However, if the frequency exceeds 51.5 Hz or falls below 47.5 Hz, the PVPP disconnects from the grid for safety reasons. Additionally, the APC forced the PVPP to feed the grid with its full capacity generated (2000 kW) at normal frequency. In sum, the large-scale PVPP is connected to the electrical grid provided with APC capability has been built. The system’s capability to safely ride through frequency deviations during grid disturbances and resume initial conditions was achieved and improved. The simulation results show that the given APC is effective, dependable, and suitable for deployment in GCPVS. Full article

Limited reserves of fossil fuels, rising environmental concerns, and a remarkable increase in electricity demand have led to the necessity of harnessing solar energy on a large scale. For this purpose, there has been a noticeable stimulation into photovoltaic power plants (PVPPs) over the last three decades, but the land requirement for PVPPs is still a handicap in many countries since valuable lands are considered for other purposes such as agriculture and livestock. For effective conservation of valuable lands and water resources, PVPPs are preferred to be installed on various water bodies such as oceans, seas, lagoons, lakes, rivers, dams, canals, wastewater treatment plants, irrigation ponds, fish farms, wineries, reservoirs, etc. PV systems on water bodies are called floating PVPPs, and they have outstanding advantages compared with land-based PVPPs including better energy generation owing to passive cooling effects, higher system efficiency and reliability, and lower dirt and dust accumulation on PV modules thus lower operating costs. There are also some significant environmental features provided by floating PVs. Shading effects due to PV coverage reduce water losses arising from evaporation. Moreover, algae growth is limited because of mitigated solar radiation, which yields better water quality. This review presents more insight on floating PVPPs in terms of several aspects such as electricity generation, system efficiency, reliability and sustainability, experimental applications and facilities in operation, water and carbon saving as well as challenges. Full article

The generation and integration of photovoltaic power plants (PVPPs) into the utility grid have increased dramatically over the past two decades. In this sense, and to ensure a high quality of the PVPPs generated power as well as a contribution on the power system security and stability, some of the new power quality requirements imposed by different grid codes and standards in order to regulate the installation of PVPPs and ensure the grid stability. This study aims to investigate the recent integration requirements including voltage sag, voltage flicker, harmonics, voltage unbalance, and frequency variation. Additionally, compliance controls and methods to fulfill these requirements are developed. In line with this, a large-scale three-phase grid-connected PVPP is designed. A modified inverter controller without the use of any extra device is designed to mitigate the sage incidence and achieve the low-voltage ride-through requirement. It can efficiently operate at normal conditions and once sag or faults are detected, it can change the mode of operation and inject a reactive current based on the sag depth. A dynamic voltage regulator and its controller are also designed to control the voltage flicker, fluctuation, and unbalance at the point of common coupling between the PVPP and the grid. The voltage and current harmonics are reduced below the specified limits using proper design and a RLC filter. The obtained results show that the proposed controller fulfilled the recent standard requirements in mitigating power quality (PQ) events. Thus, this study can increase the effort towards the development of smooth PVPP integration by optimizing the design, operation and control strategies towards high PQ and green electricity. Full article

The amplitude and phase angle of the fault current in photovoltaic power plants (PVPPs) are significantly influenced by the control system of the grid-connected inverters, unlike in a conventional synchronous source. Hence, PVPPs may adversely affect the performance of the current differential protection designed for synchronous sources-based power grids. In order to study the performance problem of current differential protection on AC transmission lines, an analytical expression of the fault current in the PVPPs was deduced, and the fault current characteristic was extensively analyzed. Based on this analysis, the ratio of differential current over restraint current was initially derived in this study; this ratio is observed to be affected by the control system parameters, power grid system parameters, fault resistance, and fault types. Moreover, the dynamic characteristics of this ratio can be clearly observed based on a three-dimensional diagram. Furthermore, the operating performance of the current differential protection was analyzed under different influencing factors. The mathematical analysis presents that the amplitude ratio of the fault current on both sides of the line is larger than nine and that current differential protection will operate reliably in any case. Meanwhile, the theoretical analysis and simulation results show that the current phase angle difference may become an obtuse angle in case of an ungrounded fault, which will cause inaccurate operation of the current differential protection. The results of this study will provide guidance for the engineering application of current differential protection in case the PVPPs are connected to a power grid. Full article

Photovoltaic virtual synchronous generator (PV-VSG) technology, by way of simulating the external characteristics of a synchronous generator (SG), gives the PV energy integrated into the power grid through the power electronic equipment the characteristics of inertial response and active frequency response (FR)—this attracts much attention. Due to the high volatility and low adjustability of PV energy output, it does not have the characteristics of a prime mover (PM), so it must be equipped with energy storage systems (ESSs) in the DC or AC side to realize the PV-VSG technology. However, excessive reliance on ESSs will inevitably affect the application of VSG technology in practical PV power plants (PV-PPs). In view of this, this paper proposes the PV power reserve control type VSG (PV-PRC-VSG) control strategy. By reducing the active power output of part of the PV-PPs, the internal PV-PPs can maintain a part of the active power up/down-regulation ability in real time, instead of relying on external ESSs. By adjusting the active reserve power of this part, the output of the PV-PPs can be controlled within a certain range, and the PV-PPs can better simulate the PM characteristics and realize the FR of the grid by combining the VSG technology. At the same time, the factors affecting the reserve ratio are analyzed, and the position of the voltage operating point in PRC mode is deduced. Finally, the simulation results show that the proposed control strategy is effective and correct. Full article

In recent years, only a small number of publications have been presented addressing power system stability with the increased use of large-scale photovoltaic (PV) generation around the world. The focus of these publications was on classical stability problems, such as transient and small signal stability, without considering frequency stability. Nevertheless, with increased PV generation, its effects on system frequency response during contingencies can no longer be ignored, especially in the case of weakly interconnected networks or isolated power systems. This paper addresses the impacts of large scale PV generation on the frequency stability of power systems. The positive effects of deloaded PV power plants (PV-PPs) able to support system frequency recovery during the initial seconds after major contingencies are also examined. Because this type of frequency support is not covered by current definitions, a new terminology is proposed that includes the frequency response of inertia-less generation units immediately after major power imbalances. We refer to this type of frequency support as fast frequency response (FFR). Finally, a discussion is also presented regarding the applicability and pertinence of frequency-related grid requirements for PV-PPs in the case of real power systems. The investigation is based on the isolated power system of northern Chile. The obtained results indicate that in the case of major power imbalances, no significant effects arise on the system frequency response until PV penetration levels exceed approximately 20%. From a system security perspective, the problems arise for PV penetration levels of approximately 50%, in which case, the frequency response capability in PV-PPs would be justified during certain hours of the year. Full article