Transmission and Distribution Simulations To Assess Distributed Energy Resource Ride-Through To Power System Faults

This journal article describes a technical assessment of Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Standard 1547-2018 (IEEE Std 1547-2018) ride-through class response to transmission faults.

Article

Distributed Generation Response to Power System Faults (Kenyon et al. 2020)
The authors model the dynamic response of 9 GW of distributed energy resources to a transmission fault on the Western Interconnection using coupled transmission and distribution simulations. Time-dependent tripping and momentary cessation criteria based on IEEE Std 1547 are analyzed.

Topics Covered

The research described not only evaluates the simulated voltage ride-through response of the performance categories (I-III) in IEEE Std 1547-2018 but looks at legacy implementation of the standard (2003).

Analysis involves a transmission fault, leading to fault-induced delayed voltage recovery.
Simulation results show significant differences in distributed generation responses, as well as overall system responses.
Overall system distributed generation capacity modeled in this study is on par with current penetrations in the Western Electricity Coordinating Council power system.

Key Takeaways

Voltage Ride-Through Impacts of Distributed Energy Resources

This article explains that at low penetrations, distributed generation has a minimal impact on bulk power system operations; but at higher penetrations, the potential aggregate loss of distributed generation because of transmission-level voltage faults might exceed the credible planning contingency (i.e., a Palo Verde double-unit loss in the Western Interconnection).

Method and Approach

Through this paper and its references, industry practitioners will learn more about the method and approach to coupled simulation, pairing transmission and distribution models, to evaluate distributed energy resource ride-through impacts on the bulk power system. A performance metric is described (volt-sec), which may serve the practitioner as a useful way to compare relative voltage performance under different scenarios and parameters (settings).