Large-scale penetration of photovoltaic (PV) energy in a distribution network requires careful planning of its location on the distribution network since it evidently demands large space, flexible maintenance access and exposure to driving energy sources such as sunlight for PV plants. Besides that, the technical aspects of the design should consider possible constraints that may introduce inefficiency in the generation or simply unexpected loss in the distribution. This paper addresses the decentralisation requirement for large-scale deployment of PV power sources as it resists the intermittency of the PV output naturally. In this study, a Monte Carlo method was used to justify the validity of this implication. A modified Gaussian distribution function was used to model the random fluctuations of the PV source and was used in the Monte Carlo simulation. The result shows considerable boost in the average power level and suppression of the fluctuation rate while the interconnected sources are uncorrelated.

This paper shares initial results from a major collaborative project in Florida underway to study and address effects of high penetration levels of solar photovoltaic (PV) generation on the electric power system. The effort includes characterizing the variability of the solar resource in Florida, where a number of new multi-megawatt solar projects have either recently come online or are in the planning or construction stages (including the largest solar PV generating station in N. America at the time of this writing). Until now, most work on characterizing solar variability has focused on the Southwestern U.S. This paper shares initial results and insights on the variability of Solar PV generation output in Florida on different timescales and provides some preliminary insights into the implications and effects of the variability on the successful integration of increasingly higher penetration levels of solar PV, with respect to the integration technology, control systems, and the electric power system.

The cost-effectiveness of small distributed generating resources is vital to the success of the high penetration of distributed generators within the microgrid concept. A common mechanism is the use of highly efficient inverters following the electrical storage systems. In this paper, the design of a basic inverter deploying a switching power amplifier is discussed. The amplifier acts like a power booster that taps the grid current as its frequency reference. The inverter transfer function was examined against voltage droop characteristics and was found to be in compliance with the IEEE 1547 standard for microgrid. The basic design simply utilizes the linear rise of voltage for the small triggering angle where the sinus of angle can be approximated as the angle in radians. This inherently performs a similar action such as a pulse width modulator for a narrow band. This inherent feature saves cost because it precludes the need for an extra power controller.

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