The Why of Adaptive Protections in Modern Electrical Networks

Juan Martín Guardiola Montenegro,Eduardo Marlés Sáenz,Jorge Armando De La Cruz Saavedra,Eduardo Gómez Luna

doi:10.15446/ing.investig.v39n2.74786

Juan Martín Guardiola Montenegro, Eduardo Marlés Sáenz + Show 2 more

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https://doi.org/10.15446/ing.investig.v39n2.74786

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Abstract

Electrical networks are evolving and taking on more challenges as the inclusion of renewable energy and distributed generation units increase, specially at distribution levels. Big trends of generating electricity with alternative and renewable resources has promoted the formation of distribution networks subsystems or micro grids, capable of supplying their own electric demand and to export energy to the interconnected system, if necessary. However, the effects of these generation units into the network and into the microgrid as well are many, as harmonic distortion, voltage flickers and especially in electrical protections.This paper provides an overview about implementation of renewable energy and distributed generation worldwide, as well as an introduction to microgrids concept and its main impacts and challenges into the electric systems. Finally, the main impacts of microgrid on protection equipments are presented at a distribution level, being adaptive protections one of the solutions to the dynamic changes of the electric system.

Highlights

Nowadays global energy is based on fossil fuels in approximately a 79,5 %, while nuclear energy and renewables contribute with 2,3 % and 18,2 % respectively
The impacts over the power system must be reduced, in order to obtain the maximum advantage of these resources and to guarantee the quality of electrical service, and security for the wells and customers utilities
Impacts of distributed generation in microgrids can be very significant since the electrical protection point of view

Summary

Introduction

Nowadays global energy is based on fossil fuels in approximately a 79,5 %, while nuclear energy and renewables contribute with 2,3 % and 18,2 % respectively. Data estimate at the end of 2016 (Renewable Energy Policy Network for the 21st Century (REN21), 2018). The generation of electricity with renewable and alternative sources has increased gradually in the world, for example, from 2 017 GW of the global capacity in 2016 to 2 195 GW in 2017, data that includes hydroelectric.

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