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Micro- Grid Integration with Renewable Energy in Indian Perspective


S. S. Murthy, Life Senior Member, IEEE
grid fed and off grid systems. A 20% penetration of RE in electricity generation globally is considered necessary in the coming decade (by 2020). RE by very nature is dispersed and distributed and random too. Bulk of the global population is also distributed making concentrated generation not always desirable or feasible. Man needs energy to meet desired quality of life in the form of heat, light and motion. In developing economies with large dispersed population, electricity is also a promoter of good education, healthcare, agriculture and population control. Electricity is considered to be the best vehicle to carry energy from source to the load. Challenge of today is not only to produce electricity without upsetting nature but to efficiently transmit and utilize the same. Despite massive rural electrification plans, India has nearly 54000 un-electrified villages [1], [3]. In most of the electrified villages not only the connected households are a fraction of the total but power is available on an average of 4 hours per day. This is not acceptable if electricity to all is the motto with all ensured 24x7 power. This paper aims at explaining a unified and generic technology for power generation in off grid mode to energize local loads using locally available renewable sources such as wind, solar, bio and hydro (individually or in any possible hybrid combination) in combination with appropriate storage systems as necessary dependent on source and load variations. A generalized Energy Management System involving the concept of a micro grid is aimed at. There is a glut of literature on smart and micro-grids in recent times. One view is that a Smart Mini-Grid (SMG), or Micro-Grid, is an intelligent electricity distribution network, operating at or below 11 KV, where the energy demand is effectively and intelligently managed by diverse range of Distributed Energy Resources (DERs) such as solar PV, micro-hydro power plants, wind turbines, biomass, small conventional generators such as diesel gen-sets etc in combination with each other through smart control techniques. Advanced sensing, communication and control technologies are used in smart grids for generation, transmission, distribution and utilization of electricity in a more intelligent and effective manner. Such an application will not only foster effective inter-connection and utilization of multiple renewable energy resources but will also help in advancing access to energy to the last mile in the most optimum way by improving the efficiency of the overall system. It is believed that the Smart Mini-Grid system has a great potential in large commercial and industrial complexes, hospitals, shopping malls/complexes, apartments, residential complexes,
AbstractThe paper reviews Indian Energy scene, challenges ahead and solutions attempted. Conceptually, micro-grids may play a useful role in the future evolution of energy sector but the modes may be at variance with those of developed economies. Renewable energy will play a major role in India with an optimistic penetration of 20% in both grid fed and off grid mode. The paper presents a generalized renewable energy fed microgrid system augmented by conventional energy in Indian context to leapfrog on access for reliable power supply. Problems peculiar to India will need India-centric solutions by leveraging global technology. Index Terms Climate change, global warming, renewable energy, smart micro-grids.

I. INTRODUCTION

ITH Fossil fuel based power generation causing unwanted emissions, this playing havoc with the environment and threatening the future of the planet, search for viable and deployable low carbon technologies to meet the growing power demands of global population has become imperative. Role of Scientists and Engineers is to make Conventional Energy Sustainable and Renewable Energy Available. Global warming and Climate change being global problems, must be tackled with global synergy. Think Global and Act Local is the Mantra, as solutions are not unique with many local variants although we may evolve some generalized philosophies. Efforts are made by different countries individually and collectively to address this energy related climate change issue. According to International Energy Agency (IEA), about 1.3 billion people worldwide lack access to electricity services with nearly 2.7 billion without clean cooking facilities. 404 million people in India currently do not have access to electricity and the daily average per capita electricity use is about 2 kWh for connected population [1]. Therefore the major challenges in electricity sector are twofold: a) expanding access to electricity for sections of populations not reached by the grid, and b) meeting increased demands from sections of populations within the reach of the grid [2]. Increasing energy efficiency is also a major challenge for countrys power sector which reports nearly 26 % losses in transmission and distribution. Renewable energy (RE) sources such as solar, wind, bio and hydro are considered attractive in this venture both for
The author is with the Department of Electrical Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology Delhi, New Delhi, 110016, INDIA (e-mail: ssmurthy@ ee.iitd.ac.in)

educational institutions, remote un-electrified as well as electrified locations to ensure maximum flexibility, reliability and safety [4]. Broadly a smart grid is an application of information, communication and sensor technologies for effective generation, transmission, distribution and utilisation of electric energy leading to a green solution. There are varying applications demanding varying and often tailor-made solutions. The Objectives for developing such systems may be as follows: 1. Study the nature of available sources and loads. 2. Develop suitable energy conversion systems from source to load. 3. Study the performance of the above in individual and hybrid mode. 4. Develop suitable controllers for the above. 5. Develop suitable unified (generalized) Energy Management System to account for any types of source and loads in any combination as per site conditions. 6. Design and develop tailor-made systems for the identified sites in India. 7. Install the demonstration units based on the above developed technology in the identified sites. 8. Collect field data and make corrections as warranted. II. REVIEW OF INDIAN ENERGY SCENE At the outset it is apt to ponder over peculiarities and paradoxes in Indian context which may resonate with other similar emerging economies. India is one of the fastest growing countries in terms of energy generation and consumption. Currently, it is the fifth largest consumer of energy in the world, and will be the third largest by 2030. Current installed capacities in different sectors are given in Table I. Present capacity of about 190 GW is set to grow by 710% ( to meet growing demands) to about 300GW in 2020 and 800GW by 2032 mostly through coal (not green) needing an investment of $150-175b annually, a herculean task indeed. To meet the current deficit, consumers (mostly private) have installed diesel gen-sets of a total capacity of 35,000 MW which is not green, all operating in off-grid mode. Balancing this growth with the demand to contain emission is the challenge. Clean coal technologies such as use of IGCC and carbon sequestration, though sustainable would need additional investment. Renewable energy on the other hand too would be expensive. While a unit of electricity through coal would cost 6c, solar would be 4 times costly with other renewables falling in between. One-sixth of the Indian villages are entirely off the electricity grid. Amongst the other 500,000 villages with grid access, more than 50% suffer from infrequent, erratic, low-voltage power [5]. Off-grid power generation augmented by local renewable energy (wind, solar, bio, hydro) in a micro-grid mode is therefore an attractive option to energize nearly 125,000 villages currently off-grid.
TABLE I ALL INDIA INSTALLED GENERATING CAPACITY (MW) AS ON FEB. 2012*

Type Thermal Hydro Nuclear Renewable Total *Source: CEA [3]

Installed Capacity (MW) 124731 38848 4780 22233 190593

There are already many policies propounded on energy front with reference to emerging economies. Integrated Energy Policy prepared by Planning Commission (Govt. of India) in Aug 2006 lists out the status and priorities for India. India Energy Book-2010 brought out by World Energy Council (WEC) presents the current energy status in India with proposed action plans. CAETS (International Council of Academies of Engineering and Technological Sciences) has recently (Nov. 2010) brought out a Working Group report on Deployment of Low Emissions Technologies for Electric Power Generation in Response to Climate Change, listing a roadmap for all National Academies. This document presents scopes and challenges in developing and deploying new and relevant low carbon energy technologies to augment power generation and achieve efficiency for developing economies such as India. Electrical energy systems can fall in three baskets- grid connected system, off-grid system and energy efficiency. For power generation both grid connected and off grid stand- alone systems must be considered using above energy sources. Bio and solar energies can also be used to obtain direct heat for suitable applications such as water heating and cooking. Energy efficiency is a necessity in both rural and urban sectors. Here again suitable technologies become critical. The prime criteria for such technologies are that they must be suitable, acceptable, deployable, adoptable, economical and user friendly. The policy document of Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) of Govt. of India states as follows [6]. Off-grid applications are major Indian renewable energy priorities. Such applications not only replace fossil fuels but also make significant contribution to reduction in their consumption. As such, the strength and potential of renewable energy lies in its ability to generate power in decentralized and distributed mode which has the advantages of production at consumption points and does away with land and environmental related concerns and problems. Accordingly, Ministry has put in place a policy framework for rapid upscaling of off-grid programmes in an inclusive mode. Rural electrification to meet unmet demand through renewable energy is a priority by itself. 150 villages have been covered in last 2 years through mini grid by rice-husk based gasification systems in Bihar. The Ministry has plans to cover about 10,000 villages from biomass-based systems and over 1000 villages from solar power up to 2022. The Ministry would like to step up renewable energy decentralized applications to save a billion litre of diesel/furnace oil/kerosene annually after 5 years. Telecom towers and industrial power generation are two focus areas to reduce consumption of diesel.

3 Cogeneration- bagasse 5,000 2,700 50 MW/ sq. km 88,081 1952.53 73.46 481.48

Thus off grid power will become a major component of sustainable energy and micro-grid may become inevitable. India has initiated a National action plan on climate change through following Missions [7]; Solar Mission Mission on Enhanced Energy Efficiency Mission on sustainable Habitat. Water Mission Mission for Sustaining Himalayan Eco-system Mission for Green India Mission for Sustainable Agriculture Mission for Strategic Knowledge on Climate Change III. POTENTIAL AND STATUS OF RE IN INDIA Indias current RE base is 22233 MW and it is 11.66% of total installed capacity of 190.59 GW (Feb. 2012). India stands 4th in the installed power generation capacity using RE sources. The Greenpeace International, European Renewable Energy (EREC) report (March, 2009) has projected that by 2050; about 69% of the electricity produced in India will come from RE sources. New renewables mainly wind, solar thermal energy and PV will contribute almost 40%. The country has an estimated RE potential of around 88,081 MW from available exploitable sources as given in Table II. Special features of RE are: Non Portable except Bio Energy to some extent. Generation must be at location of source. Solar Energy is uniformly spread. Wind and Hydro are location specific. Bio is more uniformly spread, but of different types. Technology must be economical, viable, acceptable, maintainable and user-friendly (for non-techno savvy customers).
TABLE II INDIAN RENEWABLE ENERGY AT A GLANCE (SOURCE: MNRE [8]) Indian Renewable Energy Estimated Installed Systems Potential Capacity (MW) (MW) (Feb. 2012) A. Grid connected Wind Small Hydro Biomass Power 48,500 15,000 16,881 16179 3300.13 1142.60

Waste to Energy Solar PV and Thermal

Total A B. Off-grid Waste to energy

23129.40

92.93 347.85 148.26 1.45 81.01 2025 numbers 671..50 23800.90

Biomass (non-bagasse cogeneration) Biomass gasifier Aero generators/ hybrid systems Solar PV (>1kW) Watermills/ Micro hydel Total B Total (A + B)

A. Grid Fed RE Systems a) Wind: Grid connected wind energy systems are installed in large numbers in India, majority of them having unit sizes of nearly 1 MW. All the major global players in this field have their presence in the country and unit size of machines has gone up to 2.5 MW [9]. Variable power dependant on wind speed poses challenge for designers. They mostly use horizontal axis turbines that drive a generator through a gearbox to feed generated power to a local 11kV or 33 kV grid through a transformer. Initially, fixed speed induction generators were used and the present trend is to use variable speed systems employing doubly fed induction generators (DFIG) or permanent magnet (PM) synchronous generators. Grid interface issues have assumed importance as power evacuation levels are affected and mismatch or weak grids are causing reduced energy production. There are many technology and management issues in the Indian context for up-scaling grid-fed wind energy to its full potential. A positive feature is a strong manufacturing base of wind equipment. Higher capacities require larger blades with taller towers with associated material and mechanical factors. New technologies on variable speed generators involving type of generators (DFIG, PM) and power electronic converters need to be adopted, indigenized and researched. A comprehensive study on relative options for such applications and the extent of indigenization and global cooperation is indeed warranted. A study on interface of such wind systems with Indian Grid is another critical area. While estimated potential is 50 GW assuming 2 per cent of the land availability, undeveloped sites are in low wind (4-8 m/s) regimes with poor evacuation and transport infrastructure [10]. b) Small Hydro: Small hydro systems have great promise in India. With a total hydro capacity of nearly 100,000MW we

may tap about 30,000MW under small hydro category that requires minimal civil works and has little environmental impact. They are classified as mini (a few MW), Micro (20kW to 1 MW) and pico (upto 20kW). Higher capacity systems are grid - fed while the lower ones can be off -grid to energize local isolated communities. Grid fed systems are fairly standardized with mature deployable technologies and enough local industry base in terms of turbines, generators and other equipment. c) Bio Energy: Bio- energy widely available in rural and urban sector can be an attractive source for electricity and heat. It has multiple variants- solid, liquid and gas, convertible to heat. In India, bio energy is estimated to have 25,000 MW potential. Biomass power plants account for about 1000 MW of existing capacity. Bio- energy attracts annual investments of over $40 billion, generates more than 7 billion units of electricity and creates employment opportunities of more than 15 million man days in rural areas [11]. Municipal Solid Wastes (MSW), agro wastes, animal dung, forest residue, urban sewerage, bagasse, biomass, bio-fuels (Algae, Jhatropha, etc.) are some of the raw bio sources to be exploited. Waste to Watts is a popular slogan that combines waste management with power generation. Bio-thermal and Biochemical processes are involved to covert sources to useable gas or liquid. Grid fed systems of unit sizes of 1 MW and above can be installed. There is indigenous potential in terms of equipment (turbine, engine, generator etc.) and expertise. Security of supply with price stability is crucial. Co-firing of coal fed boilers with Biomass is an option to save coal. Bagasse in sugar mills is a major source of co-generation. In view of multiple variants of Bio-energy, there are many inter-related issues to be studied. Conflicting interests of food versus energy call for judicious actions. Social forestry, Tree to electricity schemes are some exciting areas to be explored. Techno-economic and socially viable sources must be identified that may vary with local conditions. Standardization of technology and energy conversion equipment for bio energy should be addressed. d) Solar Energy: India launched the Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission (JNNSM) in Jan. 2010 for development and deployment of solar energy technologies in the country. Solar energy under the Mission has targeted 20000 MW solar power capacity (both thermal and PV) by 2022, with current (July 2011) installation of 45 MW. The phased implementation has targeted 1000 MW by 2013 [12]. Cost and efficiency are of concern that has limited its widespread use for both grid- fed and off- grid systems. Solar PV and solar thermal are the two routes. Cost of solar cells is claimed to be falling to a level of less than$1/W. There are many technological challenges for effective utilization of solar energy Need for import of technology and equipment is of concern for India as it affects energy security. Indigenous R&D coupled with local manufacturing is the key. Present penetration of solar energy into the grid is negligible. Deployable technologies at global level on PV panels and converter systems to interface with the grid should be critically studied. Developing a solar energized dc micro-grid is an attractive option that eliminates inverters and ac grid

interface problems if loads can be modified to work on dc supply. B. Off-Grid RE Systems Technology requirements of grid-fed and off-grid systems using RE are entirely different. The objective is to provide quality power (constant voltage, frequency, balanced and harmonic free) to the consumer at varying loads using available local energy sources. Each source will have distinct features on the type of power it provides. Bio energy driven governor controlled engine will provide varying power to the load as per demand by adjusting the input fuel to the engine. It is a near constant speed variable power arrangement. In stand alone small hydro units (say upto 100kW), typically classified as Micro, Pico, Nano hydro systems, it is apt to use uncontrolled constant power turbines with constant head and discharge. Thus the generated power is always constant while the consumer load varies. We need an automatic load controller to ensure that controllable additional load is faced by the generator such that the total output power is constant at varying consumer loads. Wind energy on the other hand provides varying power as cube of wind speed. Thus output power must always match this wind power. We need power balancers at all wind speeds and loads through dump loads and additional source or storage system. In solar PV systems power output is dc and depends on light intensity, this needing a controller and inverter. We may also explore a combination of RE sources in hybrid mode which may involve storage systems like a battery. a) Bio-Energy: Different types of bio- fuels can be converted to liquids or gases to feed an engine to drive a generator which in turn will energize the local load. System may be similar to small Petrol/Kerosene driven gen-sets (1-10kW) which are a common sight in domestic and commercial sectors. They are installed in millions in India. Such units are in use in ships, boats, camping, tourism, military and other stand alone off grid applications. In these engines bio-fuel can replace the fossil fuel. Power quality at generation, transmission and load levels should be ensured under varying magnitude and types of loads (1-ph., 3-ph, balanced, unbalanced, linear, nonlinear). Both synchronous and induction generator can be explored with suitable controls. While petroleum is readily available for use in engines, the user must install a system to convert the available bio energy source to a form compatible with the engine. Apart from sizing and design of the engine for the given load, its performance with bio fuel must be assessed. Suitable electrical system, comprising the generator, control and transmission should be evolved. Unit sizes may vary from 5kW to 100kW and beyond. It has near constant speed prime mover with a typical speed drop of 5% from no load to full load through governor control. Engine operates at varying input power by adjusting fuel intake decided by output power. Considerable R&D efforts on energy conversion systems are made in Indian institutions (see references) with great promise Due support may be provided for these inventors for technology transfer and deployment for rural energization using local bio- energy. There are some success stories in India such as husk power in Bihar where power is

generated from rice husk for local communities [13]. A comprehensive list of examples of Indian experience in bioenergy may be prepared. b) Small Hydro Energy: Micro or pico hydro units in off grid mode can be installed for local loads for remote locations with favorable hydro potential needing minimal civil works. For off-grid applications it is apt to use uncontrolled turbine or Pump as Turbine (PAT) in constant power mode since head and discharge at turbine end is constant with specific water head naturally available in a site. Since consumer power varies randomly, surplus power should either be used or dissipated that requires an Electronic Load Controller (ELC). Self Excited Induction Generator (SEIG) deeply researched in Indian Institute of Technology Delhi (IITD), [14] can be a good candidate for such applications. Based on the work of IITD, a few units have been installed. The other variant of hydro energy is the power in moving rivers and canals. A vertical axis Darious type turbine when dipped in such canals will rotate at low speed from which electricity can be produced. The engineering feat demands proper conversion systems and control to provide quality power to local consumers. The task ahead is to consolidate the existing technology, expertise and industry base to standardize on such off grid hydro systems for large scale deployment in Himalayas, and river basins. Defense and Border Road units may find them useful in Himalayas. c) Wind Energy: As already mentioned, both input wind power and output consumer power vary randomly and the challenge is to match them at all instances through a control mechanism. In its simplest form connected load can be varied through a switching mechanism to match with wind speed. From typical wind turbine characteristics for different wind speeds, we notice that at any wind speed there is one generator speed at which extracted power has maximum value. We need to have maximum power point tracking (MPPT). Type of turbines, power transmission and generator should be standardized. Challenge is to develop suitable control mechanism for energy balance needing R&D efforts. d) Solar Energy: India has the off-grid solar energy target of 200 MW by 2013 and has projects of 45 MW sanctioned so far. Within the off grid component, there is a separate target of covering 20 million rural households with solar lights [15]. This is a system with no rotating components. Similar to wind system power of the PV panel varies with the solar light intensity and temperature. From typical volt-ampere characteristics of PV panels we can identify one load for maximum power. Here too we need MPPT and adjust the load with the available maximum solar power. A dc grid and dc loads can be suitable options here. IV. PRESENT STATUS OF SMART MICRO GRIDS IN INDIA India is considered a global leader in Information Technology (IT) with large pool of professionals and experts. This can be leveraged for smart micro grid development in India for varied applications. The Indian Ministry of power (MOP) is the umbrella entity coordinating this activity. With

launching of Smart Grid Task Force(SGTF) and Smart Grid Forum(SGF) coupled with $900 billion in investment planned for generation, transmission, distribution and power quality, India is set for massive growth. But, several major hurdles remain before the worlds second most populous nation achieves widespread adoption of next generation electrical technology. The report from Zpryme consultants [16] presents a scenario as in Table III which indicates that in 2015 Indias smart grid market will be $1.9 billion. Further, it predicts the countrys basic electrical infrastructure needs will grow beyond that, totaling $5.9 billion in the same year. India is likely get $750 m from Asian Development Bank for its national grid improvement project, including smart grid innovations. The IEEE Standards Association predicts [17] (Dec. 2011) that India stands third worldwide for smart grid investment, behind United States and China.
TABLE III INDIA SMART GRID MARKET VALUE BY TECHNOLOGY AREA (SOURCE: ZPRYME [16]) Market Areas Estimated Investment in US$ million 2011 2015 247 257 137 145 234 339 446 236 289 392

Software & Hardware Smart Meters Sensors Comm.& Wireless Infrastructure Smart & T&D Equipment

A. Current Active Smart Micro Grid Services in India 1) R-APDRP: The Restructured-Accelerated Power Development and Reform Program (R-APDRP) is a Central Sector Scheme (CSS) during XI plan in India. The focus of the programme is to support the modernization of subtransmission and distribution networks including a system of local management and energy metering using IT services. Projects under the scheme shall be taken up in two parts. Part A shall include the projects for establishment of base line data and IT application for energy accounting/auditing and IT based consumer service centers. Part -B shall include regular distribution strengthening projects. Apart from this, the programme will require enabling activities which would be covered under Part C. The cost of this programme is US$100 billion [18]. 2) Distribution Reform, Upgrades and Management (DRUM): The objectives of the program are (a) to establish the framework, institutional capacity and project development functions at the central and state levels and (b) to enable implementable of several full-scale commercially replicable distribution initiatives in key reform states in India [19]. 3) Indian Smart Grid Task Force & Forum: The Smart Grid Task Force is an Inter- Ministerial group and will serve as governments focal point for activities related to smart grid and evolve the road map for implementation of smart grids in the country. The main function is to ensure awareness, coordination and integration of diverse activities related to smart grid technologies, practices, and services for R & D. There are

5 working groups in the above task force. The goal of this forum is to help the Indian power sector to deploy Smart Grid technologies in an efficient, cost-effective, innovative and scalable manner. The forum will coordinate and cooperate with relevant global and Indian bodies to leverage global experience and standards. Under the forum, eight working groups have been formed [20]. 4) Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS): The BIS has taken the lead in adopting international standards (particularly IEC 62056 and IEC 61850) common in the global smart grid community. More efforts follow as the nation becomes more integrated and more able to transfer power across their regional grids [21]. B. Current Smart Micro Grid Projects in India The MoP has allocated US$44.3 million for smart grid pilot projects across the country. Indian government is going to finalize eight smart grid pilot projects worth US$ 9.69 million by March 2012. 1) One of the high profile partnerships brings together USAID, MOP, the Central Power Research Institute (CPRI) and Bangalore Electricity Supply Company (BESCOM) for a pilot project in Electronic City to cover around 17,500 domestic and business users with $100 million fund [16]. 2) The Smart Grid Task Force is currently coordinating eight pilot projects across the countrys national electricity grid. For the next 18 months these projects will provide an indication of what the overall framework for a detailed national plan will be [13]. 3) The Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE) is partnering with IBM on a project that would conduct a cost-benefit analysis on various smart grid initiatives and the deployment capabilities for smart grid technology by National Mission for Enhanced Energy Efficiency [16]. 4) In India, managing peak load is critical as peak power plants will add an untenable margin to the cost of electricity in a developing nation. The Mangalore Electricity Supply Company (MESCOM) smart grid project [16] will seek to scale back demand rather than cut it off entirely, allowing customers to meet critical demand needs while giving critical sectors un-interrupted supply. 5) North Delhi Power Ltd, (NDPL) a consortium between the government and Tata Power, has partnered with GE for various smart grid solutions. The US Trade and Development Agency awarded NDPL a $686,447 grant for a smart grid project in North-West Delhi intended to reduce blackouts and increase reliability. NDPL is considered a smart grid technology leader in India rolling out smart metering infrastructure and automated meter reading [16]. 6) IBM has joined hands with IIT Kharagpur (IITK) and IIT Madras (IITM) in 2010 to carry out research in Smart Grids to develop systems that will make power grids more efficient and resilient [22].

The fastest growing market segment is Communications and Wireless with a CAGR of 24.9%, the 2011 value of that sector is $144.5 million. Smart T&D will total $234.5 million in 2011. Smart meters currently constitute $286.6 million in 2011 and are projected to reach $445.5 million in 2015. In 2011, sensors were $136.5 million while software and hardware is estimated at $146.9 million. V. A PROPOSED INTEGRATED OFF-GRID ENERGY SYSTEM METHODOLOGY, POSSIBLE SCHEMES In Indian context a micro-grid can have several possible applications as below to transform the current unreliable power supply to a reliable one needing suitable technologies in each case. A village or a cluster of villages University campuses/Institutions, R&D centers Hospitals Island communities Large Industrial complexes Small townships The envisaged technology development effort will have different possible variants dependent on local conditions. We may have units and systems from 5 kW (feeding individual loads) to 1 MW (feed a community). Based on this experience we may extend to about 50MW. The schematic of the proposed micro-grid for the above applications is in Fig. 1. Following are different possible components in this off-grid scheme on micro-grid operation and control involving hybrid sources within a micro-grid of size less than 50 MW. A. System Components The proposed system components are: a) Conventional Sources Main Grid Diesel Generators b) Renewable Sources Small Hydro Wind Bio Energy Solar Ocean, Geothermal (Minor Player) c) Storage Systems: Hydrogen Fuel Cells Battery Super Capacitor Pump Storage Fly Wheel d) Loads: Domestic:1- Phase Commercial: 1- Phase Agriculture/Irrigation:3- Phase Industrial- 3-Phase The above loads can be technically classified as: Linear

Non-linear Balanced Unbalanced Dynamic

sources and load with augmented power from main grid and leveraging the storage systems suitably. We may have the following practical schemes as particular cases of the general model of Fig. 3. a) Scheme-I: One source, One load - Here only one energy source, conventional or renewable, is available which should be used to generate electricity to energize the local load which may consist of several loads of different types in parallel. Here Energy management system will be tailor-made to the source to effect power balance between source and load for off-grid systems explained in sec. III. Diesel, Oil, or Bio-fuel operated engine driven generating systems will need fuel control to match with the load. For small hydro operating at constant power we need load balancers to use power in surplus of load either for storage or dump load. With wind and solar energy load must be controlled on line to match generated maximum possible power. b) Scheme-II: Hybrid System: More than one source and one load - Depending on locally available energy sources, Hybrid systems may be developed often in combination with a storage element to match the available energy with the load. Many combinations are possible depending on local conditions, such as Wind-Diesel, Wind- Bio, Wind- Battery, Hydro-Bio, WindSolar, Hydro-Solar etc. Energy Management System of Fig.3 should be designed appropriately.

Fig. 1. Proposed Off- grid energy system on micro grid operation.

B. R & D issues Typical R&D issues may be as below: a) Individual device electrical design and control Micro-turbines Doubly fed induction generators Inverter based generators Self-excited induction generators c) Scheme-III: Scheme with Diesel Generators (DG) - Modify Permanent magnet synchronous generators existing diesel system: Here the existing Diesel system Induction machine and dc machine based flywheels energizing a community (or load) can be modified through a b) Non-electrical design of devices micro-grid arrangement using available RE along with storage Aerodynamic design of wind turbines systems. Community is electrified with the grid created by DG Biomass based turbines sets. There are hundreds of such isolated communities even in Solar insulation characteristics and maximum power developed countries like Canada totally electrified through point tracking diesel. There are similar sites in India such as Andaman Spatial smoothening effect of wind farms Nicobar, Ladakh, and Lakshadweep. Diesel may continue as c) Loads main source to create a micro-grid. Using the grid as micro Statistical modeling of loads grid in island operation and connecting RE sources and Dynamic and frequency/voltage dependent Storage systems (as in Fig.3) diesel may be conserved and characteristics of loads community served with quality uninterrupted power. Load shedding strategies d) Scheme-IV: Modify the existing unreliable grid-fed system: Load management Here we take up an existing grid fed system to a community System wide control where the grid is not reliable. Grid is weak with regular d) Energy management strategies disconnections. The grid can be used to create a storage Centralized vs decentralized control strategies system. During the period of power outages, the existing Reactive power matching and compensation distribution lines form a micro-grid to energize the same loads Protection issues Implications of hybrid sources on fault current levels using stored energy and RE. Here the main grid is used as micro-grid in island operation. across the micro-grid Interaction of micro-grid with the conventional grid VI. CONCLUSION Interface design issues Indias Energy generation and consumption are on a high Anti-islanding detection methodologies growth rate. Climate change concerns due to emissions Low-voltage ride-through capabilities combined with resource and infrastructure constraints The micro-grid will operate with or without the main grid are dampeners. With nearly 40% of its 1.22b population thus ensuring 24x7 power to the consumers (loads). Energy deprived of grid electricity, present 186 GW installed power capacity may have to be doubled by the end of Management system must ensure balancing of power in the

this decade to meet energy needs of its growing population and expectations of a high GDP growth economy. Off-grid power generation for its vast dispersed population is inevitable and renewable energy augmented by smart and micro-grid technology should be deployed. Issues of RE for grid-fed and off-grid systems reviewed in this paper may guide future policies. India has taken several steps to adopt smart grid technologies with its prime role in IT. Integrated micro-grid system proposed in this paper if properly developed and deployed will be a trend setter for such emerging economies to pursue green and sustainable energy. REFERENCES
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Surathkal) during 2003-05. He was coordinator (and instrumental) for several international collaborations with UK, Japan, Korea, Canada and Australia. He led the Indian delegation for Australia- India S&T Workshop on Sustainable Energy (2006) in Sydney and organized Indo- Canada workshop on renewable energy for electricity generation (2009) in New Delhi. He has nearly 300 papers and 8 patents to his credit. He has also transferred technology of self excited and grid connected induction generators to industry for low and medium power generation under standalone or grid connected mode. He initiated several new academic programs at IIT Delhi and was instrumental in establishing state-of- the-art energy audit and energy conservation facilities at IIT under World Bank funding. His areas of interest include electric machines, drives, special machines, power electronic applications, renewable energy systems, energy efficiency and conservation. Dr. Murthy has received many awards notable being ISTE/Maharashtra Govt. Award for outstanding research, IETE/Bimal Bose Award for contribution in Power Electronics and IEEE/PES Delhi Chapter Outstanding Engineer Award. He has made significant contributions to professional Societies, such as IEEE, IET and IE (I). He was General Chair of the IEEE International conference, PEDES96 held in New Delhi and INAE conference on Research Policy for Sustainable Energy (2009), in Delhi. He is a Fellow of the Indian National Academy of Engineering (INAE), Life Senior Member of IEEE, Fellow of IEE/IET, Life Fellow of the Institution of Engineers, India, Life Fellow of IETE and Life Member of ISTE. He is the member of Energy Forum of INAE to formulate global energy policies jointly with academies of other countries.

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S. S. Murthy (SM87 LS03) received his B.E, M.Tech and Ph.D degrees respectively from Bangalore University, Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Bombay, and IIT Delhi. He has been a faculty with IIT Delhi since 1970, Professor since 1983 and was the Head (Chair) of the Department of Electrical Engineering from 1998-2001. He has held visiting assignments in Univ. of New Castle on Tyne (UK), Universities of Calgary, Ryerson &Waterloo (Canada), IISc, Kirloskar Electric, GE Global research Centre, and Central Power Research Institute, at Bangalore. He was heading a Research Institute (ERDA, Baroda) during 1990-92 and a Technical University (NITK,

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