Impacts and interactions of voltage regulators on distribution networks with high PV penetration

This paper discusses the impacts and interactions of voltage regulation devices on systems with high PV penetration under different solar conditions and voltage control algorithms. The study is done using a tool that was developed under a Department of Energy (DOE) funded project, Sunshine State Grid Initiative (SUNGRIN). The tool is composed of Matlab scripts and functions that use a Component Object Model (COM) interface to communicate with the Open Distribution System Simulator (OpenDSS) developed by EPRI. The tool is applied in this paper to analyze and study the dynamic interaction between voltage regulation devices in a distribution network, and the impacts that photovoltaic (PV) systems have on the operation of these devices in the network. A real feeder from a Florida-based utility has been used to perform this study with different incident solar radiation (insolation) scenarios. Case studies show the difference in the activity of the voltage regulating devices with the variation of PV power injection to the grid. The case studies also investigate the impacts of allowing PV systems to participate in voltage regulation using different algorithms.