2018 International Ural Conference on Green Energy (UralCon)

Modeling Processes in Microgrids with Renewable

Energy Sources
Philipp Molotov
Hydropower Engineering and
Renewable Sources of Energy
National Research University "Moscow
Power Engineering Institute"
Moscow, Russia
MolotovFV@mpei.ru
Alexey Vaskov
Hydropower Engineering and
Renewable Sources of Energy
National Research University "Moscow
Power Engineering Institute"
Moscow, Russia
VaskovAG@mpei.ru
Michail Tyagunov
Hydropower Engineering and
Renewable Sources of Energy
National Research University "Moscow
Power Engineering Institute"
Moscow, Russia
mtyagunov@mail.ru

Abstract—In this article, we simulate the work of a
microgrid, based on renewable energy sources, and conduct
physical modeling, based on the equipment of the laboratory
complex "INTELLIGENT POWER SYSTEMS WITH
RENEWABLE ENERGY SOURCES" describing the work
with software. The article provides the characteristics of the
blocks, which simulate these or those aggregates in a real
microgrid. Besides, the article considers the creation of a
SCADA system and a special control code. The main problem
of microgrids with renewable energy sources is associated with
the instability of power generation in the RES-based plants due
to weather changes. A complete electrical circuit to connect the
units in a laboratory complex is presented.
Keywords—renewable; microgrid; smartgrid; energy;
sources; solar; wind
I. INTRODUCTION
The organization of uninterrupted power supply of
objects for various purposes is associated with great
difficulties, caused by significant costs for the construction
of low voltage distribution networks and ensuring their
accident-free operation. To solve the problem in a number of
cases it seems possible due to the use of microgridsbased on
renewable energy sources (RES) [2].In this article, we will
talk about the simulation of microgrids on the equipment of
the laboratory complex "INTELLIGENT POWER
SYSTEMS WITH RENEWABLE ENERGY SOURCES".
a task of autonomous power supply and have the advantages
of using renewable resources and also save an electricity.
Microgrids can operate autonomously, or in parallel with
a centralized network. In the case of parallel operation with
the network, the microgrid enters into interaction with it to
obtain energy if the energy generated by the solar power
plant is not sufficient for the consumer, or vice versa for
supplying surplus electric power to the network. The regime
of electricity supply to the grid is less likely, since the cost of
electricity inside the micro network will be significantly
lower and its delivery to the network will be expedient only
if there are special preferential tariffs for "green" electricity
[2].
The microgridobjects can perform the functions of
generators, consumers and power storage units separately or
simultaneously. In some cases, the microgrid includes power
sources that generate electricity based on traditional
technologies, usually such sources of energy are used as a
guaranteed source of electricity.
Currently, the most developed sources on the basis of
RES are sources of solar and wind energy. As far as natural
conditions are constantly changing, and the power of such
facilities depends on natural conditions, such sources are not
guaranteed. Dependence of output on SPS on weather
conditions in Figure. 1.

II. THE CONCEPT OF MICROGRIDS. FORMULATION OF THE

PROBLEM
A microgrid in the most general sense can be viewed as a
certain community of distributed generation sources,
accumulation and redundancy systems and consumers of
electrical energy, united into a single network. However,
there is still no unified opinion on the parameters
characterizing the microgrid, such as, in particular, the
aggregated power of the connected generation sources, the
size of the area on which the microgrid is implemented, the
number of connections to the centralized network, etc.
The RES-based microgrids has all the characteristics of a Fig. 1. Dependence of output on solar power station on weather
micro-network, the concept, the main characteristics and the conditions. [4]
name of which (microgrid) are put into practice at Wisconsin
University, USA [2]. Its difference is that it is an Considering to these phenomena, it is necessary to equip
independent energy micro-system, which normally functions the microgrids with systems of electric power reservation:
autonomously. RES-based microgrids are formed both in electrical, chemical, mechanical and others. There are some
territories not covered by centralized energy supply or main types of reservations:
connected to an interconnected power systemand perform as

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 2018 International Ural Conference on Green Energy (UralCon)
• Connecting consumers to the United Energy System
(UES)
• Accumulation of resources of different methods
• Reservepowersource
To design microgrids based on RES and to research the
processes taking place in such networks, it is necessary to
create a physical and mathematical model. The physical
model should maximally repeat the actual microgrid and
allow to read the necessary data. Such a model was created
in the laboratory of the Hydropower and Renewables
Department of the Research Institute of Power Engineering.
III. DESCRIPTION OF THE LABORATORY COMPLEX MPEI
The laboratory presents all the necessary installations for
the simulation of the microgrid, below is a list of these
installations:
1. Model of the wind power plant (WPP) with an
induction generator (ASG);
2. Model of a pumped storage power plant (PSPP) with a
synchronous generator (SG);
3. Model of substation and United Energy System (UES);
4. Model of electricity consumers;
5. Model of solar power plant (SPP).
These facilities of the laboratory complex are united in a
common network and connected to the United Energy
System (UES). The scheme for connecting the installations
to a common network is shown in Figure. 2. This scheme
was designed to properly connect sources and consumers of
energy. The UES model includes a bus to which other
installations are connected via sectional switches, in addition,
a "infinite" power source is installed on the UES model
simulating a united electric power system.
Fig. 2. Scheme for connecting installations to a common network.
Special attention deserves meters, because they are the
main elements that provide information about the parameters
of the network. Such meters are available at all laboratory
facilities, receive information from them or control switches
through them from a computer located on any installation.
For reading the indexes from the meters and controlling the
micro-network from the computer, it is necessary to create a
special mnemonic diagram, which displays the indications of
various units, including meter readings, warning lights,
controls.
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IV. WORKING WITH SOFTWARE
To create a mnemonic diagram in the laboratory, a
special program is used. The mnemonic diagram of one of
the experiments successfully carried out in the laboratory is
shown in Figure. 3.This SCADA-system was created to
investigate different modes of operation, for example, it
allows you to explore the mode of parallel operation of SPP
and UES, you can observe power flows, check the balance of
power.
Fig. 3. Mnemonic diagram of experiment with solar power station, electric
power system and consumer.
Schematically depicts the electrical connection of
installations, switches and meter readings. In this case, the
mnemonic diagram of the experiment of the joint operation
of the network SPP, UES and consumers is presented. In this
experiment, a change in the load of consumers, a change in
the generation of electricity at the SPP, and a reaction of the
system to these changes were observed.
For correct operation of this mnemonic scheme, software
code was written, which corrects the incorrect display of
quantities on one of the meters. The code is shown below:
VAR
ID1_0018 AT %ID1.0018 : REAL; (* Apparent power L1 *)
ID1_0024 AT %ID1.0024 : REAL; (* Active power L1 *)
ID1_0030 AT %ID1.0030 : REAL; (* Reactive power L1 *)
QL3_0000 AT %QL3.0000 : LREAL; (* Value 1 *)
QL3_0001 AT %QL3.0001 : LREAL; (* Value 2 *)
QL3_0002 AT %QL3.0002 : LREAL; (* Value 3 *)
END_VAR
QL3_0000:=-ID1_0024; (*active power*)
QL3_0001:=-ID1_0030; (*reactive*)
QL3_0002:=-ID1_0018; (*apparent*)
In the program code compiler each parameter is written
under its own variable, which can be used in the code,
displayed on the mnemonic diagram as any indicators. In
addition, in the software environment of this equipment there
are various types of variables, including logical ones. It is
possible to enter your own internal variables, which are
necessary for any algorithms.
This system works by the algorithm for maintaining the
power balance (1):
 2018 International Ural Conference on Green Energy (UralCon)
Pconsumer=Pspp+P(energy system)+∆P
Above, only one of the implemented experiments and
algorithms is presented, three installations of five located in
the laboratory are used. It is possible to implement other
algorithms, work on their modeling continues and now,
accordingly, all 5 settings are used. With the help of a special
recording device it is possible to trace the observance of the
power balance by the example of a circuit consisting of UES
+ SPP+ consumer. On the Figure. 4 is a graph of active
power.
Fig. 4. The balance of the active power of the United Energy System +
Solar Power Plant + consumer system with constant load and variable
generation of wind turbines.
It can be seen that at first the power of the solar power
plant is negative, as it does not produce anything by itself,
but there is a consumption of power for own needs and
synchronization with system. However, soon the solar
irradiance increases and the solar power plant starts to
produce more power. With the increase in the output of the
SPP, there is a proportional reduction in consumption from
the UES.
V. MODELING OF TRANSIENTS IN MICROGRIDS
Transient processes occur when the load changes or
power is generated. They are divided into so-called
electromechanical and electromagnetic transients. An
example of electromechanical processes can be the starting
currents of induction motors, which can be 5 ... 7 times
higher than normal working currents.
For the study of transient processes, the system of UES +
WPP + consumer was used. The installation simulating the
consumer allows changing the active and reactive loads, the
reactive load is divided into capacitive and inductive, and it
is also possible to work with a motor load with different
loads on the motor shaft. The recorder removed the voltage
and current characteristics from the time when active,
reactive powers were switched on. On the Figures 5 and 6
show these relationships.
It is necessary to pay attention to the fact that the active
load was first turned off and then turned on. The readings
were taken from the meter located on the consumer's
installation.
In this experiment, an inductive load was connected.
Initially, the load was not zero, because initially there was a
basic active load of the consumer.
(1)
Fig. 5. Characteristics of U(t) and I(t) when connecting an active load.
Fig. 6. Characteristics of U(t) and I(t) when connecting an reactive load.
In this experiment, an inductive load was connected.
Initially, the load was not zero, because initially there was a
basic active load of the consumer.
These graphics were taken with great discretion, as can
be seen on the graph. This does not allow to remove the
characteristics of electromagnetic transients, because the
discreteness is several tens of milliseconds, while the
transients are about 10-4 ... 10-6 seconds. It was not possible
to find out the reason for the large discreteness, or the
problem in the counters, or in the software.
As a result, we can say that it is impossible to investigate
electromagnetic transients on specific equipment. Further
actions are a request to the manufacturer to determine the
reasons and possible elimination of discreteness. After this, it
is necessary to conduct research on electromechanical
transients.
These studies include processes for the inclusion in the
network of an asynchronous electric machine (engine) as a
load and short-circuit experiments. On the Figure. 7 shows
the voltage versus current versus time when an asynchronous
motor is started.
High discreteness does not allow to accurately determine
the peak of the starting current, but allows you to see the
order of the current jump and the voltage drop. In addition, it
is possible to see the timing of the engine start-up process.
The engine can also be started in star mode and in triangle
mode, the graph is similar to that shown in Figure. 7, differs
only in magnitude. The special unit allows increasing the
load torque on the motor shaft, which increases its power
consumption, it can also be displayed on the graph.
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 2018 International Ural Conference on Green Energy (UralCon)
graphically. For a more convenient consideration of the
process below, the graphs of short circuit on the windmill
with a voltage drop of 20% and a three-phase short-circuit
(for the symmetry of the graph) Figures. 9, 10, 11, 12 -
Currents from different meters.

Fig. 7. U(t) and I(t) on time at start-up of the induction motor.

VI. INVESTIGATION OF PROCESSES IN THE MICRO NETWORK IN

CASE OF SHORT CIRCUIT
As is known, a short circuit causes a sharp increase in
current and voltage drop. In networks, the magnitude of the
current surge depends strongly on the distance of the power Fig. 9. Current of WPP on meter near to generator.
source at which the fault occurred. Short circuit tests were
conducted in the same system, consisting of UES + WPP +
consumer. A special unit, regularly connected to the
laboratory equipment, allows to make short circuits,
exposing various parameters, such as:
1. Number of phases – one-phase, two-phase, two-phase
with ground fault, three-phase
2. The magnitude of the voltage drop (simulates the
remoteness of the fault location from the generator) – 0%(on
terminals), 20%, 40%, 60%, 100%.
3. Short circuit duration
4. Angle of the beginning of a short circuit
Fig. 10. Current of WPP on meter near to system (line).
A short circuit was made at the wind power plant and its
line. The following values were measured by meters: phase
voltage, current, active, reactive and full power, frequency.
The network connection diagram and the location of the
counters in Figure. 8.

Fig. 11. Current of system.

Fig. 8. Microgrid scheme and meter installation.

In each experiment, the values listed above were taken

for each phase (except frequency). According to the received
data, the first Kirchhoff law and the power balance were
verified. During the experiments, the type of short-circuiting
(the number of phases of the short-circuit) and the magnitude
of the voltage drop varied. During the experiments, the
measured values were obtained, but in the numerical form
they do not make sense, it is more expedient to present them Fig. 12. Current on consumer.

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 2018 International Ural Conference on Green Energy (UralCon)
Red, green and blue colors indicate different phases.
According to Kirchhoff's first law, the sum of the currents at
the node is zero. In the case of a microbus, the node is a bus,
to which lines from the UES, the WPP and the consumer
come. It is necessary to pay attention that on the consumer
the current is negative due to the fact that the power is
consumed.
To fully analyze the regime, it is also necessary to
construct the characteristics of the dependence of the active
power on time. The graphs are presented in Figures. 13, 14,
15, 16.
As can be seen from the graphs, the power balance is
observed, including at the time of short circuit. Dependencies Fig. 16. Active power on consumer
were also taken for other values of the voltage drop, but this
experiment was chosen as an example because at 60% and In all previous experiments, the system worked on an
100% voltage drop the lab protective devices located in the algorithm for maintaining the power balance using an
source of infinite power operated, their speed exceeded the "infinite" power generator, which simulates a common
discreteness of the counters and the recording device . With a power system. At the same time, the power of the wind
single-phase short-circuit, emergency automatics worked station and the solar station remained unchanged. The wind
only in one phase, so the operation of the wind turbine was station can be controlled by changing the angle of installation
continued, but the values were skewed in phases. of the blades and the thyristor converters, the solar station
can begin to give out the energy accumulated in the batteries.
Next, we'll look at the UES and WPP system (Figure 17).
A semi-automatic algorithm was written. Now in the
development of a fully automated control algorithm, at the
moment it is being debugged, close work is being done with
the manufacturer of the test complex.

Fig. 13. Active power of WPP on meter near to generator.

Fig. 14. Active power of WPP on meter near to system (line).

Fig. 17. Algorithm of working of Energy system and wind power plant.

Debugging means building the dependencies of the

maximum possible power output of a wind farm against
wind speed with a change in the angle of installation of the
wind power plant blades. Currently, the wind turbine is
overloaded with a certain ratio of loads and wind speeds, the
rotor of the generator starts to slow down, the frequency sags
right up to the output of the plant from synchronization with
the system. In this connection, it is necessary to limit the
power given out by the wind farm to the system at different
wind speeds. Drawdown frequency from the nominal is
allowed up to certain limits, while thyristor converters can
convert the frequency to industrial (50 Hz). In this regard,
Fig. 15. Active power of system.
there are various options for power restrictions, such as:

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1. Control of the electric frequency at the output from the
stator of the generator;
2. The curve of the maximum power versus the wind
speed at the optimum angle.
In idle, the rotor speed must be kept at a maximum
permissible speed by the manufacturer.
VII. CONCLUSION
Nowadays, microgrids are a progressive branch of the
electric power industry, they have a number of advantages
over conventional networks. Their modeling is an integral
part of the study of the processes taking place in the
microgrids. It is necessary to carry out physical modeling on
laboratory equipment that repeats real equipment in a
microgrid, but on a reduced scale, and mathematical
modeling, since not all the processes can be traced on a
physical model. It was possible to simulate the operation of
the network SPP, trace the power flows, the model operates
according to the algorithm for maintaining the power
balance.
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