Combining two techniques to develop a novel islanding detection method for distributed generation units

Abstract

Renewable energy is a fast-growing sector given that it does not cause the pollution produced by nuclear and fossil generation systems. The use of renewable energy for distributed generation (DG) is important worldwide not only because it increases profits but also because integrating it into utility systems ensures power supply at points of consumption even when a DG system is disconnected from the main system. Researchers continue to exert efforts in improving islanding detection methods because current detection approaches remain unsatisfactory. Accordingly, this paper presents two new islanding detection methods that are suited for single and multiple DG units. The methods are based on the rate of change in active and reactive power, frequency, and voltage angle. They are tested on single and multiple DG systems with wind turbines and simulated using the Power World Simulator software. The simulation results show that the methods effectively reduce the time spent on islanding detection and efficiently decrease non-detection zones. To verify the accuracy and speed of the proposed methods, the results are compared with those achieved by different islanding detection approaches.