Design of Smart Inverter for Distribution system using PV-STATCOM

Abstract

solar farms have become an indispensable option for power generation in recent years. This solar PV system produces DC power which is converted into AC power using Voltage Source Converter (VSC), The solar isolation determines how much power is produced by a solar PV. Therefore, there is no point in having solar PV when there is no insulation. STATCOM s functionality is actually mirrored by solar PV coupled with its inverter. PV-STATCOM enables solar farms to be operated around the clock. When it matters most, real power is generated normally during the day and switched to reactive power to compensate. In night time, it functions as STATCOM with full inverter capacity. Through MATLAB simulation studies, the dual functionality of the proposed system to regulate voltage at PCC and mitigate low voltage issues is demonstrated. Depending on the system requirements, it switches between functions using the Arduino controller to utilize available resources. The ability to mitigate the severity in 1-2 cycles response time proves the efficacy of the proposed system.