Sanjivani Rural Education Society’s

Sanjivani College of Engineering, Kopargaon-423 603

(An Autonomous Institute, Affiliated to Savitribai Phule Pune University, Pune)
NACC ‘A’ Grade Accredited, ISO 9001:2015 Certified

Department of Electrical Engineering

EE305B - Smart Grid

Dr.M.Sujith
Associate Professor
Email:[email protected]
Contact No: 9486820743

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 Unit- 6 MICROGRIDS

Course Objectives : To explain the concept of micro grid

● Microgrid Concept and Structure,

● Building Blocks of a Microgrid,
● Operation Modes,
● Control Mechanism of the Connected Distributed Generators in a Microgrid,
● Speed Control of Classical Distributed Generators,
● Control of Inverter-based Distributed Generators,
● Hierarchical Microgrid Control,
● DC Microgrid Control

Course Outcome : Describe the structure and control of micro grid.

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 Microgrid Concept
● A microgrid is a small-scale power grid that can operate independently
or collaboratively with other small power grids.

● The practice of using microgrids is known as distributed, dispersed,

decentralized, district or embedded energy production.

● Any small-scale, localized power station that has its own generation
and storage resources and definable boundaries can be considered a
microgrid.

● If the microgrid can be integrated with the area's main power grid, it is
often referred to as a hybrid microgrid.

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 Microgrid Concept

● Microgrids are typically supported by generators or renewable wind

and solar energy resources and are often used to provide backup power
or supplement the main power grid during periods of heavy demand.

● A microgrid strategy that integrates local wind or solar resources can

provide redundancy for essential services and make the main grid less
susceptible to localized disaster.

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 Microgrid defined by three key characteristics

A microgrid is local
● First, this is a form of local energy, meaning it creates energy for
nearby customers

● Central grids push electricity from power plants over long distances via
transmission and distribution lines. Delivering power from afar is
inefficient because some of the rural or remote places.

● A microgrid overcomes this inefficiency by generating power close to

those it serves; the generators are near or within the building, or in
the case of solar panels, on the roof.
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 Microgrid defined by three key characteristics

A microgrid is independent

● Second, a microgrid can disconnect from the central grid and operate
independently.

● This islanding capability allows it to supply power to its customers when a

storm or other calamity causes an outage on the power grid.

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 Microgrid defined by three key characteristics

A microgrid is intelligent

● Third, a microgrid – especially advanced systems – is intelligent.

● This intelligence emanates from what’s known as the microgrid controller,

the central brain of the system, which manages the generators, batteries
and nearby building energy systems with a high degree of sophistication.

Microgrids may contain other energy resources – combined

heat and power, reciprocating engine generators, fuel cells

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A microgrid consists of energy generation and energy storage that can power a building,
campus, or community when not connected to the electric grid, e.g. in the event of a
disaster."

A microgrid that can be disconnected from the utility grid (at the 'point of common coupling'
or PCC) is called an ‘islandable microgrid’

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 Topologies of microgrids

AC microgrid
● Power sources with AC output are interfaced to AC bus through
AC/AC converter which will transform the AC variable frequency and
voltage to AC waveform with another frequency at another voltage.

● Whilst power sources with DC output use DC/AC converters for the
connection to the AC bus.

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 AC microgrid

AC bus

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 Topologies of microgrids

DC microgrid
● In DC microgrid topology, power sources with DC output are connected
to DC bus directly or by DC/DC converters.

● On the other hand, power sources with AC output are connected to the
DC bus through AC/DC converter.

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 DC microgrid

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 Topologies of microgrids

Hybrid microgrid
● The hybrid microgrid has topology for both power source AC and
DC output.

● In addition, AC and DC buses are connected to each other through a

bidirectional converter, allowing power to flow in both directions
between the two buses.

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Hybrid Microgrid

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 Basic MG architecture with an MGCC

• Static switch (SS) • Load controllers (LCs) and

• Point of Common Coupling (PCC). • Microsource controllers (MCs)
• Circuit Breaker (CB) • Microgrid Central Controller (MGCC)
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Microgrid Concept and Structure

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 Information and Communications model of Microgrid

● Microgrid Controller (MGC) acts as the ‘brain’

 Connectivity to critical cyber elements

● In a centralized system, LCs connect to the MGC for control

purposes.
 A master-slave architecture is modeled.

● Distributed control is also common, and provisions need to be made.

● Cyber model should allow for both topologies.

● A practical network meets these requirements:
 Real-time performance
 Cybersecurity
 Robustness and adaptability

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Information and Communications model of
Microgrid

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● Primary elements are MGC and LCs of the DERs
 LCs interface with a remote terminal unit (RTU) as a gateway;
RTUs are used to represent LCs
 All LCs connect to MGC for centralized secondary control
 LCs interact with one another for distributed secondary control

Cybersecurity of the Microgrid ICT

● VPN needed to isolate the microgrid cyber system from cellular networks
 VPN functionality widely supported by cellular gateways and RTUs
 Each LC builds an independent VPN tunnel with MGC server
 MGC server, a high-performance workstation with human-machine
interfaces, needed to manage VPN tunnels

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Building blocks of Microgrid

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Example of building-integrated microgrid system

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 Operating Modes of MG

MG flexibility can be achieved by operating under two different conditions.

● Grid Connection Mode (normal mode)

● Islanded mode

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 Normal Operation Mode of MG

In the normal operation, the MG is connected to a main MV distribution grid

being either partially supplied from it or injecting some amount of power into it.

Depending on the demand request, in the grid-connected mode, the main grid and

local DGs may send power to the loads.

All DGs inside the MG can only generate currents but can be dispatched by the

MGCC in order to provide power references. The control system in the local

controller of the DGs (MCs) is known as “PQ inverter control” and the DG is said

to be in “PQ mode”.

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 Islanded Mode of MG

If an event in the main grid appears, an islanded operation mode can be

implemented because the electrical system is organized in the form of an MG with

an MGCC.

The MG islanding process may result from an intentional disconnection from the

MV grid (due to maintenance needs) or from a forced disconnection (due to a

fault in the MV network such as voltage dips).

The disconnection is performed by a static bypass switch opening the MG as a

controllable small grid.

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 Islanded Mode of MG
● After disconnection from MV Grid, the MG frequency and voltage must be

maintained by the MG DGs.

● In a DG, the corresponding local controller must implement a voltage source

inverter (VSI) control with an inner RMS voltage reference and frequency set

point thereby compensating the unbalancing between the MG load and power.

● In this case, the mentioned DG is said to be in “VF mode” and is defined as the

“master source.”

● Other DGs are known as “slave sources,” whose local controllers must operate in

the PQ mode.

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 Islanded Mode of MG

● The MGCC shares the total amount of real power to produce among the

“slave sources” and send them PQ references.

● It is important to avoid the overload of inverters and to ensure that load

changes are controlled in a proper form.

● So in islanded mode, one DG may be operated in the “VF mode” and the

others in the “PQ mode.”

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 Control Mechanism of the Connected Distributed
Generators in a Microgrid

Speed Control of Classical Distributed Generators

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 Control of Inverter-based Distributed Generators

Conventional variable-speed WPG

 Control Structure in Grid-connected Mode

 Control Structure in Islanded Mode

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 Control Structure in Grid-connected Mode

Grid-following strategy of a PV generator with a variable DC bus voltage for MPPT.

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Grid-following strategy of a PV generator with a generator-side converter for MPPT
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Control Structure in Islanded Mode

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 Microgrid Control Hierarchy

 Control is one of the key enabling technologies for the deployment of

MG systems.

 Similar to conventional power grids, MGs have a hierarchical

control structure with different layers.

 MGs require effective use of advanced control techniques at all

levels.

 The secure operation of MGs in connected and islanding operation

modes and successful disconnection or reconnection processes
depend upon MG controls

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 Microgrid Control Hierarchy

● MGs should be able to not only operate autonomously but also interact with

the main grid.

● In the grid-connected operation mode, the MGs are integrated into a

constantly varying electrical grid with changing tie-line flow, voltages, and
frequency

● To cope with those variations, to respond to grid disturbances, and to

perform active power/frequency regulation, as well as reactive

power/voltage regulation, MGs need to use proper control loops.

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● Each MG is locally controlled by a microsource control (MC) system.

● The load controllers (LCs) are installed at the controllable loads to provide load
control capabilities.

● For each MG, there is a central controller (MGCC) that interfaces between the
distribution management system (DMS) or distribution network operator
(DNO) and the MG.

● The DMS/DNO has responsibility to manage the operation of medium-voltage

(MV) and low-voltage (LV) areas in which more than one MG may exist.

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General scheme for MG controls

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 Controls in MG

● Local Control
● Secondary Control
● Central/Emergency Control
● Global Control

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 LOCAL CONTROL

● Local (also called primary or internal) controls perform the first level in the

control hierarchy, featuring the fastest response, and they appear in different
forms depending on the type of DGs, which can be addressed based on their
technologies such as induction generators, synchronous generators, and PE
inverters/ converters.

● The local controllers deal with the inner control of the DG units that usually

do not need the communication links and result in simple circuitry and low
cost.

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 SECONDARY CONTROL

● Secondary controls as second layer control loops complement the task of

inner control loops to improve the power quality inside MGs and to enhance
the system performance by removing the steady-state errors.

● In the grid-connected operation mode, all the DGs and inverters in MGs use

the grid electrical signals as references for voltage and frequency regulation.

● But, in the islanding operation mode, the DGs lose the reference signal

provided by the main grid.

● Secondary controls also cover some of controls needed to improve the parallel

operation performance for DGs (or inverters).

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 Central/Emergency Control

● Central/emergency control refers to the MG central EMS which is responsible

for the reliable, secure, and economical operation of the MG in either grid-
connected or islanded operation mode.

● The main objectives of this control level are to find the optimal unit

commitment (UC), reactive power supply, and voltage and frequency control
regulation (in coordination with secondary control), black-start restoration, and
dispatch of the available DGs/RESs in normal conditions and to perform load
shedding and special protection schemes in off-normal and emergency
condition

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 Global Control

● The global control is the highest level of control for coordinating the operation

of multiple interconnected MGs, and communicating requirements with

the main grid

● For instance, coordination features for active/reactive power management of

a grid comprising the main grid and interconnecting MGs could be

accomplished by the global control.

● Global control deals with some overall responsibilities for an MG, such as

interchange power with the main grid and/or other connected MGs

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 DC Microgrid for a Residential Area

● There are around 50–100 houses in the system, and each house has a CGS,

such as micro-CHP unit and gas engine.

● The cogeneration system (CGSs) are connected to DC distribution line

(three-wire, ±170 V), and the electric power is shared among the houses.

● In order to keep high efficiency, those CGSs should not be operated by a partial

load condition but operated by a start/stop control

● This system is connected to the utility grid by a rectifier.

● At the load side, various forms of electric power (AC 100 V, DC 48 V, etc.)

can be obtained by the converters.

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System configuration of the DC MG for residential area

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Interconnected operation

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 Interconnected operation

● The total generated power is controlled by changing the number of running

CGS/micro-CHP units.

● When the system is connected to the utility grid, the deficient power is

compensated from the utility grid as shown in Fig. This state is called
interconnected operation.

● In other words, the generated power from CGSs does not flow to the utility

grid in the interconnected operation.

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 Intentional islanding operation.

● When the system disconnects from the utility grid, the surplus or deficient power is
compensated by the EDLC as shown in Fig. This state is called intentional
islanding operation.

● In this operation, the converter of the EDLC controls the DC distribution voltage,
and the number of running CGSs is determined not only by the load consumption
but also by the stored energy of EDLCs.

● When the stored energy exceeds the maximum limit, the system stops one of the
operating CGSs. Then, the total output of CGSs becomes less than the load
consumption, and the EDLC discharges until the stored energy becomes less than
the minimum limit.

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 Interconnected operation

● On the contrary, when the stored energy is less than the minimum limit, the

system starts CGSs.

● Then, the total output of CGSs becomes more than the load consumption,

and the EDLC charges until the stored energy becomes more than the
maximum limit.

● These two modes are repeated alternately in the intentional islanding operation.

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