Abstract
Micro-grid (MG) deployment has dramatically become more popular with the high penetration of renewable energy resources (RER). This trend brings with it the merits of independent power grid clean energy resource-based systems, and simultaneously the demerits of an unstable grid due to the intermittent nature of RER. Control and monitoring of MG through robust and ubiquitous communication system infrastructure is the solution to overcoming this intermittency. There has been an increasing focus in recent years on using wireless communication technologies as a prominent candidate in holistic proposal for the micro-grid management system (MGMS). The MGMS has been developed using the multi-agent system (MAS), multi-micro-grid (multi-MG), Internet of things (IoT) integration, and cloud concepts requiring new communication specifications, which can be satisfied by next-generation wireless technologies. There is, however, a lack of comprehensive corresponding investigation into management levels of MG interaction requirements and applied communication technologies, as well as a roadmap for wireless communication deployment, especially for the next generation. In this paper, we investigate communication technology applications in the MG and focus on their classification in a way that determines standard gaps when applying wireless for MG control levels. We also explore and categorize the literature that has applied wireless technologies to MG. Moreover, since MGMS has been revolutionized by attaching new technologies and applications to make it an active element of the power system, we address future trends for MGMS and offer a roadmap for applying new enhancements in wireless technologies, especially the fifth generation (5G) of wireless networks with its exclusive characteristics, to implement this novel approach.
Highlights
Due to problematic issues with fossil fuels such as the limited resources, increasing greenhouse gases, and air pollution, new resources of energy, including solar, wind, tidal, etc. have been introduced, known as renewable energy resources (RER), and have overcome environmental issues with fossil fuels [1]
One of the most prominent advantages of RER is the end of dependency on conventional power plants and a centralized electricity network, which makes them sustainable candidates for distributed electricity generation, in remote places
The categorized communication technologies based on application and reviewed their characteristics and issues, as discussed in [25] and studied in [26] after the comparison of specifications of wired and wireless communications, which concentrated on satisfying communication requirements and the architecture of smart inverters in micro grids (MG)
Summary
Due to problematic issues with fossil fuels such as the limited resources, increasing greenhouse gases, and air pollution, new resources of energy, including solar, wind, tidal, etc. have been introduced, known as renewable energy resources (RER), and have overcome environmental issues with fossil fuels [1]. One of the most prominent advantages of RER is the end of dependency on conventional power plants and a centralized electricity network, which makes them sustainable candidates for distributed electricity generation, in remote places This specification, along with the development of communication technologies that facilitate information exchange in remote places to cover control, protection, and administration requirements of this distributed grid, have led to increasing RER use in the electricity grid, especially in the form of micro grids (MG) [2]. In grid-connected mode, the connection of MG to a utility grid defeats the risk of unavailability owing to natural resource features, and offers other benefits related to participation in the electricity market as a prosumer, selling over-produced electricity or buying it in the case of resource unavailability or system failure All these advantages would not be viable without a robust communication system. Due to wireless technology advantages in comparison with wired technology, such as cost effectiveness, convenient installation, portability, low risk of ground potential issues, and scalability, an investigation into employing this technology in MGMS should be undertaken
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