A photovoltaic power unit providing ancillary services for smart distribution networks

This paper deals with grid-connected photovoltaic (PV) power plants for supplying ancillary services to the distribution grid. The power converter, interfacing the photovoltaic system with the grid, can be controlled in order to achieve both the primary goal of power generation and the chosen ancillary services. In particular, in the paper, a power converter configuration with an opportune control algorithm is suggested; they make the photovoltaic system capable of generating the maximum power available from the solar source and, at the same time, capable of contributing to the voltage regulation of the grid and to the suppression of the current harmonics absorbed by loads close to the system. The control strategy is then applied to a sample grid-connected PV unit, simulated in Matlab Simulink environment. Numerical results, showing the effectiveness of the proposed solution, are reported.