Validated modeling of distributed energy resources at distribution voltages : LDRD project 38672. Page: 4 of 13
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Problem Statement
Lack of validated models of distributed energy resources (DER) is a significant barrier to their
deployment. Utilities are tasked with providing power of acceptable quality to their customers. Because
of this, they are necessarily cautious about connection of generators that are not well understood or even
under their control. At high aggregated power levels, such generation could affect fundamentally
important areas such as system protection and stability.
To date, the impact of aggregated DER has been modeled primarily on transmission systems. However,
sources that are presently being commercialized and those in the foreseeable future will operate at low
voltage and connect via transformers to local distribution systems. The goal of this project was to
develop and experimentally validate models of transient and steady state source behavior for
incorporation into utility distribution analysis tools. Development of these models had not been
prioritized either by the distributed-generation industry or by the inverter industry.
The project emphasized DER based on power-electronic inverters. Although the electrical behavior of
rotating machines such as diesel generators has been well characterized, no utility-compatible models are
available for power-electronic inverters. Inverters are the utility interface for microturbines, fuel cells,
photovoltaic (PV) inverters, variable-frequency wind generators, and virtually any system using electrical
energy storage.
This report will provide a summary of the project. Specific details may be obtained by contacting the
author.
Approach
There are many different aspects to the problem of distributed resource interactions with utility
distribution systems. In order to make progress it was critical to focus the activity. Key considerations
were:
Utility involvement
It was felt that in order for the results of this work to be useful to utility engineers, it was important that
they be involved and consulted for guidance by the project team. Salt River Project (SRP), a large utility
based in Phoenix, provided the primary source of utility expertise. The team took advantage of various
cooperative activities between Sandia and utilities to crosscheck the guidance from SRP.
Prioritization of Issues
There are a large number of concerns related to the operation of distributed generation with utility
distribution feeders. Documenting these issues and prioritizing them were necessary precursor activities
for this project.4
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Ralph, Mark E. & Ginn, Jerry W. Validated modeling of distributed energy resources at distribution voltages : LDRD project 38672., report, March 1, 2004; United States. (https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc890246/m1/4/: accessed April 25, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, UNT Digital Library, https://digital.library.unt.edu; crediting UNT Libraries Government Documents Department.