Abstract
The electrical energy demand is steadily growing, and hence, the integration of photovoltaic system to the distribution networks is also dramatically increasing though it has a significant effect on the network’s power quality. The purpose of this paper is to analyze the impact of solar PV integration on the power quality of distribution networks. The study is conducted using ETAP software, taking one of the radial distribution networks available in Bahir Dar city during the peak of connected loads which has the least voltage profile. Furthermore, the optimal location of the PV in the network is done using particle swarm optimization. Accordingly, the appropriate location of the PV system is determined to be the farthest end bus (bus 34). Also, the impact in terms of voltage and current harmonic distortion on the distribution feeder network is comparatively discussed by comparing the distribution system parameters with different penetration levels of solar PV system. The simulation results obtained demonstrate that high harmonic distortion level is injected correspondingly as the penetration capacity of PV system increased which indicates that the solar PV system should be integrating only up to a maximum possible capacity the network can carry. The integration of the PV system beyond this maximum penetration level causes production of high harmonic distortion which adversely affects the system performance. At the maximum penetration level which allows the acceptable harmonic distortion limit, the total voltage harmonic distortion and current demand distortion are found to be 4.97% and 14.98%, respectively.
Highlights
Nowadays, the world’s power demand is rapidly increasing due to expansion of loads which in turn required clean, safe, and economic energy resources
The impact of integrating solar PV system into the distribution system in terms of harmonic distortion is analyzed for different penetration levels of the PV system
34 buses of Bahir Dar distribution feeder are taken into consideration to study the power quality of solar PV system connected with the distribution system in terms of harmonic distortion
Summary
The world’s power demand is rapidly increasing due to expansion of loads which in turn required clean, safe, and economic energy resources. Photovoltaic (PV) generation is one of the widely applied forms of renewable power generation which converts the available free solar energy into usable electricity through the process of photovoltaic effect. The PV systems in power networks can be classified as standalone and grid connected based on their applications. Standalone PV systems are able to supply electric power for remote loads that do not have any source to power loads, whereas grid-connected applications can be used to provide energy for both local loads and exchange power with utility grid [3, 4]. When the PV system is connected to the grid, it can transmit the extra energy to the grid after satisfying the existing demand. When the demand is more than the generation, extra energy is obtained from the grid [5].
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