Faculty

of Engineering & Information Technology

Department of Engineering
(Renewable Energy Engineering)

Grid Integration of Renewable Energy

Dr. Mohammed Mahdi

Effects of RES on the Grid
• The effects of RES (Renewable Energy Sources) are significant only
in distribution networks where traditionally there have rarely
been any generation facilities.
• The distribution networks are usually designed to have
unidirectional power flow, i.e., the power flows from a high voltage
transmission grid to a medium voltage (MV) network and further
down to a low-voltage (LV) network and customers.
• Another key aspect of traditional distribution systems is that a
radial topology is applied.
• There are only relatively few backup connections, and despite the
partial ring topology, the system is always radially operated.
Effects of RES on the Grid, cont.
• This means that there are open switches in certain places of the
system, so that the operational topology is always radial.
• This makes it easier to manage the voltage levels in various parts
of the system and simplifies the protection arrangement.
• If there is generation in some part of the distribution system, the
direction of the power flow may vary depending on the power
balance, i.e., the difference between power produced and power
consumed.
• Thus, the generation placed in the distribution system makes the
system configuration always non-radial, practically approaching a
meshed system like the high voltage transmission networks.
Effects of RES on the Grid, cont.
• In addition to the changed configuration, the generation placed
into the distribution network may cause several power quality
issues:
1. too high voltage level,
2. large and frequent voltage variations, and
3. harmonics.
Voltage Rise
• Too high voltage level: refers to a situation where the power flow
in the system is reversed, causing also a reversed voltage drop
along feeders.
• This may raise the voltage at the customer site beyond the allowed
limits.
Voltage Rise
• Voltage rise is a problem only in cases where the network is
relatively weak when compared to the size of the generator.
• Thus, there is always a certain limit for the size of the generator
that can be placed on the network, and that size depends on the
characteristics of the network.
• However, the voltage problems can be mitigated if the generator
actively participates in the network voltage control.
• This is achieved simply by producing or consuming suitable
amounts of reactive power.
• Of course, the applied generation technology must be capable and
equipped for this, and also the regulatory and energy market
environment must enable this kind of activity.
Voltage Variations
• Depending on the type of generator, there may be large
uncontrollable variations in the power output.
• These may be caused, e.g., by the wind speed variations in a wind
power plant.
• Variations in power output cause corresponding variations in the
voltage of the network.
• In a weak network the voltage variation is larger than in a strong
network with high short circuit level.
• Also, the start-up and shut-down of power generation units may
cause voltage variations.
Voltage Variations
• The rapid voltage variations experienced by the customers are
called flicker, for which there are limits defined in power quality
standards.
• The possible flicker emission from the power generating plant
must be taken into account even in the design phase.
Harmonics
• If the grid interface of the generating unit is based on the power
converter the possible harmonics must be taken into account.
• The output current from a converter always contain harmonics
and they should be properly filtered out.
• Usually, passive filters are applied consisting of serial inductances
and parallel capacitances.
• Despite the filtering there may be situations where harmonics in
the grid increase due to resonances in certain frequencies.
Reliability!
• In addition to voltage waveform distortions, supply outages can be
also considered a power quality problem.
• Electricity supply interruptions have adverse effects on many
activities in modern society, and thus the requirements on power
system reliability are increasing.
• The effect of RES in the power system reliability is a complicated
issue, as indicated.
• Local generation can act as a backup supply in case of grid failure,
which increases supply reliability.
• On the other hand, it may be argued that the increased system
complexity increases the number failures.
• Ultimately, it is the protection system that has the central role in
maintaining the level of supply reliability.
Protection Systems
• The protection system ensures that the effects of a fault in the
system are minimized.
• Modern microprocessor-based protection relays, nowadays often
called intelligent electronic devices (IED), are the brain of the
protection system.
• They are responsible detecting the fault, locating it and
disconnecting the faulty part of the system.
• The connection of RES to the grid may have adverse effects on the
correct operation of the protection system if the effects of the RES
are not taken into account.
• Problems may arise, especially in the radially operated
distribution networks.
Protection Systems
• These kinds of system enable also quite a straightforward
protection concept.
• Especially in overcurrent protection, it can be assumed that the
only source for the fault current is behind the protection
equipment.
• If some RES is added into the network, the situation is different.
• There are now several sources of fault current in the network, and
therefore a more complex protection system design is necessary.
Protection Systems
• Studies have shown that RES causes several potential problems to
the protection of distribution networks.
• The most mentioned problems are the following:
• false tripping of feeders,
• nuisance tripping of production units,
• blinding of protection,
• increased or decreased fault currents,
• unwanted islanding,
• prohibition of automatic reclosing, and
• unsynchronised reclosing.
Protection Systems
• The appearance of these problems depends on both the
characteristics of the network and RES.
• In short-circuit faults a RES unit generates fault current that
depends strongly both on the grid interface technology (or
generator type) and the network configuration.
• Synchronous generators are able to feed a large sustained fault
current, while power converter-based systems may be controlled
so that their output is limited to only 2–3 times the rated current.
• When a large production unit, or several small ones, are connected
to an MV feeder, the fault current seen by the feeder protection
relay at the substation may be reduced, which can prevent or delay
the operation of the overcurrent relay (blinding of the protection).
Protection Systems
• A typical example of false tripping is shown.
• The short-circuit fault occurs in the
Feeder 2, but the relay at the
beginning of Feeder 1 is also tripped
because of the overcurrent fed by the
generation unit at the feeder.
• False tripping (sympathetic tripping)
is typically caused by synchronous
generators, which are capable of
feeding sustained short-circuit
current.
Protection Systems
• A typical example of false tripping is shown.
• False tripping of healthy feeders can
be solved by directional overcurrent
relays, but also the protection against
the bus faults may have to be changed.
• There should be a transfer trip from
the main infeed relays (overcurrent
relays at secondary side of the primary
transformer) and from the arc
protection relays to the feeder relays
for all the feeders having a significant
amount of RES connected.
Passive Islanding
• In the case of sudden loss of grid connection, a part of the
distribution network may keep on operating as an island with the
help of local generators.
• This kind of situation is not desirable, especially considering the
safety of maintenance personnel, so loss-of-main (LOM) or anti-
islanding protection is usually considered necessary.
• LOM protection is usually specifically required in the grid codes.
• Basic LOM protection is based on detecting abnormal system
voltage or frequency.
• Immediately after transition to the island operation, the power
production tries to match the power consumption in the islanded
part of the system.
Passive Islanding
• This usually causes deviations and transients in the voltage and
frequency of the islanded part of the system.
• However, if the power mismatch in the islanded part of the system
is close to zero, the passive LOM methods based on voltage and
frequency are not able to detect the islanding.
• This is called the non-detection zone (NDZ).
• An ideal way to arrange the LOM protection is a transfer trip
scheme, which requires a telecommunication link between the
primary substation and the generating unit.
Auto-Reclosing
• The problems with LOM protection are closely linked with the
problems with the auto-reclosing.
• The auto-reclosing function of protection relays takes care of large
amount of temporary faults occurring in overhead line feeders.
• The extinction of fault arcs is possible when the auto-reclosing
function switches off the voltage for few hundreds of milliseconds.
• The auto-reclosing will fail to remove the fault if there are
generators maintaining voltage in the feeder.
Intermittency
• Another problem from the grid operation point of view is the
intermittency of some of the RES technologies.
• For example, the output of a wind power plant depends on the
wind speed, which can fall to zero during calm periods.
• The output is not controllable and does not usually match the
consumption pattern.
• The only thing that can be done is to limit the output power of the
RES units if the system capacities are exceeded.
• This means in practice loss of energy sales for the RES owner.
• A solution for this is the use of energy storage in order to capture
the energy during hours of over-production.