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Title: Advanced Inverter Voltage Controls: Simulation and Field Pilot Findings

Abstract

This report describes work performed by the Hawaiian Electric Companies and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) to model and simulate advanced inverter grid-support functions and to validate and expand on those simulations through a field pilot study. This work builds on earlier research, referred to as the Voltage Regulation Operational Strategies study. The objective of both is to investigate functionalities available in most photovoltaic (PV) inverters to modulate active and reactive power autonomously based on local voltage measurements for the purpose of mitigating off-nominal grid voltage conditions. Specifically of interest are volt/volt-ampere reactive (VAR) control and volt/watt control, the effect of those functions on quasi-steady-state feeder voltages, and the impact of the functions on PV energy production. Because volt/VAR and volt/watt control autonomously adjust inverter output based on local conditions without requiring communication with any other devices, they are good candidates to increase PV hosting capacity when it is limited by voltage constraints in a feeder with very large numbers of PV systems.

Authors:
 [1]; ORCiD logo [1];  [1];  [1];  [1];  [1];  [2];  [2];  [2];  [2];  [1]
  1. National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States)
  2. Hawaiian Electric, Honolulu, HI (United States)
Publication Date:
Research Org.:
National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States)
Sponsoring Org.:
USDOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE), Renewable Power Office. Solar Energy Technologies Office; Hawaiian Electric
OSTI Identifier:
1481102
Report Number(s):
NREL/TP-5D00-72298
DOE Contract Number:  
AC36-08GO28308
Resource Type:
Technical Report
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English
Subject:
14 SOLAR ENERGY; 24 POWER TRANSMISSION AND DISTRIBUTION; advanced inverter grid support; photovoltaic; PV; Hawaiian Electric

Citation Formats

Giraldez Miner, Julieta I., Hoke, Anderson F., Gotseff, Peter, Wunder, Nicholas D., Emmanuel, Michael, Latif, Aadil, Ifuku, Earle, Asano, Marc, Aukai, Thomas, Sasaki, Reid, and Blonsky, Michael. Advanced Inverter Voltage Controls: Simulation and Field Pilot Findings. United States: N. p., 2018. Web. doi:10.2172/1481102.
Giraldez Miner, Julieta I., Hoke, Anderson F., Gotseff, Peter, Wunder, Nicholas D., Emmanuel, Michael, Latif, Aadil, Ifuku, Earle, Asano, Marc, Aukai, Thomas, Sasaki, Reid, & Blonsky, Michael. Advanced Inverter Voltage Controls: Simulation and Field Pilot Findings. United States. https://doi.org/10.2172/1481102
Giraldez Miner, Julieta I., Hoke, Anderson F., Gotseff, Peter, Wunder, Nicholas D., Emmanuel, Michael, Latif, Aadil, Ifuku, Earle, Asano, Marc, Aukai, Thomas, Sasaki, Reid, and Blonsky, Michael. 2018. "Advanced Inverter Voltage Controls: Simulation and Field Pilot Findings". United States. https://doi.org/10.2172/1481102. https://www.osti.gov/servlets/purl/1481102.
@article{osti_1481102,
title = {Advanced Inverter Voltage Controls: Simulation and Field Pilot Findings},
author = {Giraldez Miner, Julieta I. and Hoke, Anderson F. and Gotseff, Peter and Wunder, Nicholas D. and Emmanuel, Michael and Latif, Aadil and Ifuku, Earle and Asano, Marc and Aukai, Thomas and Sasaki, Reid and Blonsky, Michael},
abstractNote = {This report describes work performed by the Hawaiian Electric Companies and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) to model and simulate advanced inverter grid-support functions and to validate and expand on those simulations through a field pilot study. This work builds on earlier research, referred to as the Voltage Regulation Operational Strategies study. The objective of both is to investigate functionalities available in most photovoltaic (PV) inverters to modulate active and reactive power autonomously based on local voltage measurements for the purpose of mitigating off-nominal grid voltage conditions. Specifically of interest are volt/volt-ampere reactive (VAR) control and volt/watt control, the effect of those functions on quasi-steady-state feeder voltages, and the impact of the functions on PV energy production. Because volt/VAR and volt/watt control autonomously adjust inverter output based on local conditions without requiring communication with any other devices, they are good candidates to increase PV hosting capacity when it is limited by voltage constraints in a feeder with very large numbers of PV systems.},
doi = {10.2172/1481102},
url = {https://www.osti.gov/biblio/1481102}, journal = {},
number = ,
volume = ,
place = {United States},
year = {Wed Oct 31 00:00:00 EDT 2018},
month = {Wed Oct 31 00:00:00 EDT 2018}
}