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A special issue of Energies (ISSN 1996-1073). This special issue belongs to the section "A1: Smart Grids and Microgrids".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 September 2023) | Viewed by 13873

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Special Issue Editors

Dr. Yanghong Xia

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor

College of Electrical Engineering, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310027, China
Interests: hydrogen production by water electrolysis; advanced control methods; stability analysis of power system; hybrid AC/DC microgrids
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Dr. Pengcheng Yang

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor

College of Electrical Engineering, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310027, China
Interests: advanced control methods; stability analysis of power system; hybrid ac/dc microgrids; hydrogen production by water electrolysis

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The Guest Editors are inviting submissions to a Special Issue of Energies in the subject area of “Review on Smart Grids and Microgrids”. Integrated with intelligent monitoring, control, communication and self-healing, smart grids are designed to harness the full potential of renewables, embrace the rise of prosumers and evolve archaic power systems, and have done so since 2007. The ultimate realization of smart grids requires a long-term transition and the coexistence of multiple technologies. In the short term, the focus can be placed on achieving a smarter microgrid that utilizes existing or near-ready technologies in order to improve the efficiency of power grids and provide higher quality and environmentally friendly power.

The editors invite manuscripts reviewing recent advances in smart grids and microgrids. Topics of interest for publication include, but are not limited to:

Smart grid planning and control;
Optimization operation of renewable energy;
Smart management of energy storage systems;
Demand side management;
Application of IoT and/or AI for smart grids;
Control method of power electronics;
Stability analysis of smart grid/microgrid
DC microgrid and Hybrid AC-DC microgrid
Coordination control for multi-connected energy sources

Dr. Yanghong Xia
Dr. Pengcheng Yang
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Energies is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

smart grid
renewable energy
power electronics
optimization techniques
microgrid
AI
power management
control methods

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Published Papers (7 papers)

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Research

22 pages, 9683 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Transient Stability Analysis for a Multi-VSC Parallel System Based on the CFND Method

by Yue Li, Yanghong Xia, Junchao Ma and Yonggang Peng

Energies 2023, 16(21), 7243; https://doi.org/10.3390/en16217243 - 25 Oct 2023

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 953

Abstract

Because of the control complexity of voltage source converters (VSCs), transient stability analysis of multi-VSC parallel systems is challenging, and there are still no effective methods to solve this problem. Inspired by the decoupling principle and combined with the normal form method, an innovative coupling-factor-based nonlinear decoupling (CFND) method is proposed. According to the coupling factors that can be used to evaluate the nonlinear coupling degree among different state variables, the CFND method approximately transforms a high-order nonlinear multi-VSC parallel system into multiple decoupled low-order modes. Thus, the transient stability of the original high-order multi-VSC system can be reflected indirectly by the mature inversing trajectory method and the phase plane method. The CFND method has universality, flexibility, and insensitivity to system order, and no need to construct corresponding Lyapunov functions for different nonlinear systems, breaking through the inherent limitations of traditional analysis methods. Furthermore, this paper derives a reduced-order large-signal model and the corresponding truncated model for a single VSC grid-connected system. The effectiveness of the reduced-order model is verified through simulation waveforms and ROAs partitioning. Subsequently, a generalized model of the multi-VSC grid-connected system is developed. Finally, taking the grid-connected system with three VSCs as an example, the proposed CFND method is used to analyze typical operation cases, and the conclusions of transient stability analysis are verified using the hardware-in-loop (HIL) experiments. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Smart Grids and Microgrids)

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17 pages, 3124 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Optimization of Expressway Microgrid Construction Mode and Capacity Configuration Considering Carbon Trading

by Lei Yao, Chongtao Bai, Hao Fu, Suhua Lou and Yan Fu

Energies 2023, 16(18), 6720; https://doi.org/10.3390/en16186720 - 20 Sep 2023

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 961

Abstract

An expressway microgrid can make full use of renewable resources near the road area and enable joint carbon reduction in both transportation and energy sectors. It is important to research the optimal construction mode and capacity configuration method of expressway microgrid considering the carbon trading and carbon offset mechanism. This paper establishes a design model for an expressway microgrid considering the operating features of each component in the microgrid under two patterns of grid-connected/islanded and two types of AC/DC. The goal of the proposed model is to minimize the annualized comprehensive cost, which includes the annualized investment cost, operational cost, and carbon trading cost. The model designates the optimal construction mode of an expressway microgrid, i.e., grid-connected or islanded, AC or DC. As a mixed integer nonlinear programming (MINLP) problem, the proposed model can be solved in a commercial solver conveniently, such as GUROBI and CPLEX. The validity and practicality of the proposed model have been demonstrated through case studies in several different application scenarios, which also demonstrate the necessity of considering carbon trading mechanisms in the design model. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Smart Grids and Microgrids)

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14 pages, 2307 KiB

Open AccessArticle

An Adaptive Phase Locked Oscillator to Improve the Performance of Fault Recovery from Commutation Failure in LCC-Based HVDC Systems

by Hongda Cai, Jing Li, Yongzhi Zhou and Yishuang Hu

Energies 2023, 16(14), 5299; https://doi.org/10.3390/en16145299 - 11 Jul 2023

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1074

Abstract

An adaptive control of phase lock oscillator (PLO) is proposed to increase the ability of LCC-based HVDC systems to successfully recover from commutation failure, where the dynamic performance during the recovery process is improved. The phase lock oscillator is one of the most important parts of the control system, which is used to trace the phase angle of commutating voltage. However, the PLO with constant parameters cannot provide accurate information under both steady-state operation and large disturbances. In our work, the control parameters of PLO can be adaptively adjusted, following the states of commutating voltage. When the system is operating in a steady state, the PLO selects parameters that exhibit improved small-signal stability, while parameters prioritizing dynamic behaviors with high-tracing accuracy are adopted during large disturbances. Case studies based on simulations in PSCAD/EMTDC and RT-LAB show that the proposed control strategy can improve the performance of fault recovery from CF. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Smart Grids and Microgrids)

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19 pages, 4968 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Exploiting Photovoltaic Sources to Regulate Bus Voltage for DC Microgrids

by Hongda Cai, Jing Li, Yu Wang and Wei Wei

Energies 2023, 16(13), 5123; https://doi.org/10.3390/en16135123 - 3 Jul 2023

Viewed by 1544

Abstract

DC microgrids are highly compatible with photovoltaic (PV) generation because of their direct-current properties. However, with the increasing integration of PV sources into DC microgrids, traditional maximum power point tracking (MPPT) algorithms may cause problems such as overvoltage and power fluctuation, which makes it challenging to keep the stability of the DC-bus voltage due to the intermittent and stochastic nature of PVs. Consequently, in order to reduce the investment and maintenance costs of storage systems, innovative control methods are required for PVs to provide DC-bus voltage regulation services. In this paper, a novel active power control (APC) strategy, based on characteristic curve fitting, is proposed to flexibly regulate the PV output power. The transient process performance and robustness of the system are improved with the proposed APC strategy. Based on it, a V-P droop mechanism is designed to provide voltage regulating (DVR) service for the DC microgrid. The overall control strategy unifies the DVR function with the traditional MPPT function in the same control structure; thus, the PV source either works in the MPPT mode if the DC-bus is at its nominal value, or it works in the DVR mode if the DC-bus exceeds it. Switching between MPPT and DVR is autonomous, and it is fully decentralized, which improves the PV generation efficiency as well as ensures generation fairness among different parallel PV sources. Case studies including a real-world project analysis are carried out to validate the feasibility and effectiveness of the proposed strategy. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Smart Grids and Microgrids)

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19 pages, 3401 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Tracing and Evaluating Life-Cycle Carbon Emissions of Urban Multi-Energy Systems

by Xiaoming Zhou, Maosheng Sang, Minglei Bao and Yi Ding

Energies 2022, 15(8), 2946; https://doi.org/10.3390/en15082946 - 17 Apr 2022

Cited by 5 | Viewed by 2097

Abstract

With the acceleration of urbanization, urban multi-energy systems (UMESs) generate more and more carbon emissions, causing severe environmental issues. The carbon generated by UMESs includes not only emissions from the consumption of fossil fuels for electricity generation during operation phases, but also those from the transportation, extraction, and recycling of materials during construction phases. Meanwhile, as carbon emissions are delivered with the energy flow among devices in the UMES, they are distributed differently across devices. Under this background, analyzing the carbon emissions of UMESs considering different life-cycle phases (i.e., operation and construction) and carbon flow characteristics is essential for carbon reduction and environmental protection. Considering that, a novel framework for tracing and evaluating life-cycle carbon emissions of UMESs is proposed in this paper. Firstly, the carbon emission models of different devices in UMESs, including energy sources and energy hub (EH), are established considering both the construction and operation phases. On this basis, the carbon flow matrixes of EHs coupled with the energy flow model are formulated to trace the distribution of life-cycle carbon emissions in UMESs. Moreover, different evaluation indices including the device carbon distribution factor (DCDF) and consumer carbon distribution factor (CCDF) are proposed to quantify the carbon emissions of devices and consumers in UMESs. The case study results based on a typical test UMES are presented to verify the effectiveness of the proposed framework. The analysis results of the test system show that about 60% of carbon emissions are delivered to electricity loads and the construction-produced carbon emissions of energy sources and EH devices account for nearly 35% of total carbon emissions at some periods. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Smart Grids and Microgrids)

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15 pages, 4839 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Experimental Performance Analysis of Wi-SUN Channel Modelling Applied to Smart Grid Applications

by Natthanan Tangsunantham and Chaiyod Pirak

Energies 2022, 15(7), 2417; https://doi.org/10.3390/en15072417 - 25 Mar 2022

Cited by 5 | Viewed by 3232

Abstract

The grid operation and communication network are essential for smart grids (SG). Wi-SUN channel modelling is used to evaluate the performance of Wi-SUN smart grid networks, especially in the last-mile communication. In this article, the distribution approximation of the received signal strength for IEEE 802.15.4g Wi-SUN smart grid networks was investigated by using the Rician distribution curve fitting with the accuracy improvement by the biased approximation methodology. Specifically, the Rician distribution curve fitting was applied to the received signal strength indicator (RSSI) measurement data. With the biased approximation method, the Rician K-factor, a non-centrality parameter (r_s), and a scale parameter (σ) are optimized such that the lower value of the root-mean squared error (RMSE) is acheived. The environments for data collection are selected for representing the location of the data concentrator unit (DCU) and the smart meter installation in the residential area. In summary, the experimental results with the channel model parameters are expanded to the whole range of Wi-SUN’s frequency bands and data rates, including 433.92, 443, 448, 923, and 2440 MHz, which are essential for the successful data communication in multiple frequency bands. The biased distribution approximation models have improved the accuracy of the conventional model, by which the root mean-squared error (RMSE) is reduced in the percentage range of 0.47–3.827%. The proposed channel models could be applied to the Wi-SUN channel simulation, smart meter installation, and planning in smart grid networks. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Smart Grids and Microgrids)

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20 pages, 1321 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Optimized Configuration and Operating Plan for Hydrogen Refueling Station with On-Site Electrolytic Production

by Jing Sun, Yonggang Peng, Di Lu, Xiaofeng Chen, Weifeng Xu, Liguo Weng and Jun Wu

Energies 2022, 15(7), 2348; https://doi.org/10.3390/en15072348 - 23 Mar 2022

Cited by 8 | Viewed by 2982

Abstract

Hydrogen refueling stations (HRSs) are critical for the popularity of hydrogen vehicles (fuel cell electric vehicles—FCEVs). However, due to high installation investment and operating costs, the proliferation of HRSs is difficult. This paper studies HRSs with on-site electrolytic production and hydrogen storage devices and proposes an optimization method to minimize the total costs including both installation investment and operating costs (OPT-ISL method). Moreover, to acquire the optimization constraints of hydrogen demand, this paper creatively develops a refueling behavior simulation method for different kinds of FCEVs and proposes a hydrogen-demand estimation model to forecast the demand with hourly intervals for HRS. The Jensen–Shannon divergence is applied to verify the accuracy of the hydrogen-demand estimation. The result: 0.029 is much smaller than that of the estimation method in reference. Based on the estimation results and peak-valley prices of electricity from the grid, a daily hydrogen generation plan is obtained, as well as the optimal capacities of electrolyzers and storage devices. As for the whole costs, compared with previous configuration methods that only consider investment costs or operating costs, the proposed OPT-ISL method has the least, 8.1 and 10.5% less, respectively. Moreover, the proposed OPT-ISL method shortens the break-even time for HRS from 11.1 years to 7.8 years, a decrease of 29.7%, so that the HRS could recover its costs in less time. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Smart Grids and Microgrids)

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