Enhancing the Capacity of the AC Distribution System Using DC Interlinks - A Step Towards Future DC Grid

The development of distributed generation system and electric vehicles is bound to strain the distribution network. A typical radial distribution feeder suffers from the voltage fluctuation and feeder overload in the presence of a large amount of variable renewable generation. This paper presents a concept of enhancing the power handling capacity of distribution networks using dc grid interconnections. Control of both the active and reactive power exchange between the ac feeder and the interconnecting power converter has been proposed for the voltage regulation at the ac feeder terminal. Besides, the dc grid interconnection also allows the introduction of a common storage system which can be shared by the connected ac feeders, and the dc grid connection to other renewable energy resources. The increased power handling capacity and improved voltage profile of the ac distribution feeder using the proposed system is shown through time domain simulations on a test system.