Design and modelling of microgrid

The demand for power is growing globally and the development of microgrids is turning into a conceivably appealing alternative to meet the escalating energy demand. Microgrid reflects a new way of thinking about designing, and outlining smart grids. A microgrid system consists of distributed generation units, storage devices, loads which can be operated either parallelly with the electric utility network or in isolated mode. The principal sources of electrical energy generation are fossil fuels (coal, oil and gas), nuclear fuels, etc. which cannot be replenished and due to the environmental impacts, the need for renewable energy sources is hastening. There a good scope for large number of distributed generations powered by renewable energy generation units connected to grid in the immediate future. Microgrids are low voltage networks, designed to deliver energy to relatively smaller areas rather than massive regions. The coordinated control of generation sources with presumably contradictory requirements, limited communication and significantly high transmission losses enforces the adoption of distributed intelligence techniques. The relatively smaller scale alleviates transmission loss with superior control, better security, improved reliability and design flexibility. The major objective of the project is to design a microgrid system by setting up models of different distributed generation sources and evaluate the system performance by computer simulation. The modelled microgrid employs the combination of solar photovoltaic system (with maximum power point tracking and inverter control), fuel cell and battery systems. Asynchronous motor loads and RL loads have been utilized in the model. A synchronous generator with Hydraulic Turbine and Governor (HTG) system and excitation system is used for regulating the microgrid voltage and frequency during changeover between grid-connected mode and isolated modes of operation. The results have been obtained from the MATLAB & SIMULINK environment.Master of Science (Power Engineering