Renewable Energy Devices and Systems: State-of-the-Art Technology, Research and Development, Challenges and Future Trends

In this paper, essential statistics demonstrating the increasing role of renewable energy generation are firstly discussed. A state of the art review section covers fundamentals of wind turbines and PV systems. Included are schematic diagrams illustrating the main components and system topologies and the fundamental and increasing role of power electronics as an enabler for renewable energy integration, and for the future power system and smart grid. Recent examples of research and development, including new devices and system installations for utility power plants, as well for as residential and commercial applications are provided. Fuel cells, solar thermal, wave generators, and energy storage systems are also briefly presented and illustrated. Challenges and future trends for 2025 are summarized in a table for on-shore and off-shore wind energy, solar power, including photovoltaic and concentering, wave energy, fuel cells, and storage with batteries and hydrogen, respectively. Recommended further readings on topics of electric power engineering for renewable energy are included in a final section. This paper also represents an editorial introduction for two special issues of the Electric Power Component and Systems Journal, 43(8–10) and 43(12), respectively.