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Investigation on the Impact of Distributed Generators on Steady Sate Voltage Regulation of Distribution System
R. Shivarudraswamy, and D. N. Gaonkar, Member, IEEE

Abstract--In the recent years there has been a considerable increase in the number of generators connected to distribution networks. While offering a number of benefits and opportunities, increasing penetration of distributed generators (DG) in the utility network can cause several technical concerns. One of the major concerns is the rise in steady state voltage level of the distribution system. This is very important as distribution networks are traditionally designed to maintain customer voltage constant, within tolerance limit as dictated by statute. This paper investigates the steady voltage variation under various conditions in distribution system. In this paper a comprehensive study for voltage regulation of practical a distribution system by taking in to account of number of DG systems and capacitors under various condition has been presented. Index Terms-- Distributed generation, concentrated load, uniform load. voltage control,

I. INTRODUCTION he need for energy is never ending. This is certainly true for electrical energy, which is a large part of total global energy consumption. But growing in tandem with energy needs are the concerns about sustainable development and environmental issues, such as the movement to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The result of fulfilling energy needs and meeting environmental, social concerns is the growing interest in reliable distributed energy sources. Inter connection of these generators to distribution network will offer a number of benefits such as improved reliability, power quality, efficiency, alleviation of system constraints along with the environmental benefits[1,2]. With these benefits and due to the growing momentum towards sustainable energy developments, it is expected that a large number of DG systems will be interconnected to the power system in the coming years [2, 3]. The present scenario of deregulation of the power utilities and the competition in the energy markets are further accelerating the growth in parallel operation of DG systems with the utility

R. Shivarudraswamy, is a research scholar in the department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering, National Institute of Technology Karnataka Surathkal, Mangalore-575025 Karnataka, India (e-mail: swamysrs@ nitk.ac.in). D. N. Gaonkar is with department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering, National Institute of Technology Karnataka Surathkal, Mangalore-575025 Karnataka, India (e-mail: dngaonkar@ieee.org). .

[2,3]. In order to achieve these benefits with large penetration of DG source in existing utility network, several technical problems are to be fronted such as degradation of system reliability, power quality problems, potentially damaging over voltages, islanding and various other safety issues[1-5]. Steady state voltage rise problem is reported as one of the main obstacles for interconnection of large amounts of distributed generation units to the existing radial networks [3, 4]. In [3], the results of some generic studies explaining the voltage rise issue and how it may be overcome are presented. Several methods like reducing primary substation voltage and constraining the generator operation are discussed. Distribution networks are designed to keep the customer voltage constant within tolerance limit as dictated by statute and has always been a top priority [5]. The range of voltage which must be met under a number of different standards does not exceed 10%, with some standards being even tighter than this [3-6]. A simple analytical expression for the voltage profile of distribution system with DG has been presented in [6]. The conventional voltage regulation methods such as online tap changing transformer associated with automatic voltage control (AVC) relay are not going to be effective in presence of a significant number of DG systems [5]. Several methods like network reinforcement and constraining the generator operation to counter the voltage rise are discussed in [3, 4]. These methods are not effective due to many reasons. A new method for determining the introduction limit, when DG unit is introduced into distribution system of which the voltage is generally controlled by LCT (load-tap changing transformer) and LDC (line drop compensation) is presented in [7]. An attempt has been made to design an AVC relay using the artificial neural network (ANN) for voltage regulation purpose in [8]. A novel approach, using consumer load control is discussed for countering steady state voltage rise in distribution system with wind generation plant [9]. Simulation case study has been made to compare this method with the existing methods such as system reinforcement and connection point changes. The disadvantage of this method is installation and use of load control for voltage regulation alone requires a significant capital. Recent developments involving mixed voltage/power factor control have shown that by intelligently controlling the synchronous generators, voltage variations can

be mitigated and reinforcement may be avoided [10]. Generators and tap-changing transformers can be used to control the level of voltage throughout a network. The transformers in the network also influence the direction and magnitude of the reactive component of power that flows to the loads [11, 12]. In this paper investigates the steady voltage variation under various conditions in distribution system. A comprehensive approach to voltage control in a distribution system by taking in to account of number of DG systems and capacitors under various condition has been presented. II. STEADY STATE VOLTAGE RISE When the generator is connected to the radial feeder, its active power export reduces the power flow from the primary substation. This causes reduction in the voltage drop along the feeder. If the generators power export is larger than the feeder load, power flows from the generator to the primary substation and this causes a voltage rise along the feeder [12, 3].
Vs
Feeder line

Magnitude of voltage rise V is approximately given by [14]

V = ( PR R + XQR ) / Vg
*
*

Vg

Load

(5) The active power produced by embedded generators increase the voltage, whereas the reactive power can further increase or reduce it depending on the type of DG technology. The synchronous generator can generate or absorb reactive power, but the induction generator only consumes reactive power. These outcomes, in combination with the systems R/X ratio or distribution network characteristics and load profiles, determine whether the voltage level at the connection point is increasing by increasing the power production of DG or not [12]. If the connection of a DG to distribution network causes an excessive voltage rise; there are a number of methods that can be employed to alleviate the situation. The system presented in Fig. 2 illustrates the facilities that can be used to compensate voltage rise effect. A distributed generator, DG ( Pg , Q g ) together with a local load ( PL , Q L ) and a reactive compensator ( Q C ) are connected to the distribution system through a distribution feeder with impedance Z and an on-load tap changer (OLTC) transformer. In Fig. 2, the rotating machine based DG system is shown. Similarly in case of power electronic interfaced DG systems, the interfacing circuit can be used as a facility to control.
Vg
Utility network Load

= (( Pg PL ) R + X (Qg QL )) / Vg

Utility network

PL + jQ L

Z = R + jX

IR
SR

Pg Qg
DG

Substation

(a)
IRR Vs

IR

Vs
OLTC Feeder line

PL + jQL
Pg
DG

IRX
Vg
AVC

Z = R + jX

Qg
Q compensator

Qc

(b)
Fig. 1 (a). Utility network with wind DG system (b) phasor diagram
Fig. 2. A simple system illustrating the options for voltage regulation

Fig.1 (a) and Fig.1 (b) are illustrates the connection of distributed generator to the distribution network [9]. The active and reactive powers of the generator are Pg and Q g respectively. PL and Q L represent the active and reactive power of the load connected to the distribution system. I R is the net current through the line impedance, Z = R + jX and S R is the net power injected to network. The substation voltage and connection point voltage are V s and
Vg

respectively.
S R = P R + jQ
*
R

= ( P g + jQ g ) ( P L + jQ L )
*

(1) (2)

S r = Vg I R , I R = (PR jQR ) / Vg
*

Vg = Vs + I R Z = Vs + ( R + jX ) ( PR jQR ) / Vg
s R R g R R

= V + ( P R + XQ ) / V + j(P X Q R) / V Considering the phasor diagram in Fig. 1(b)

g

(3) (4)

Vg sin = ( PR X QR R) / Vs

Since the voltage angle is very small, the term

( PR X Q R R ) / V g

is also very small and can be neglected.

The methods for regulating the steady state voltage of distribution network, using the above facilities are given as follows: Reduction in line impedance. Reduction in substation voltage. Voltage control by AVC using regulating transformers. Reactive power management. DG reactive and active power control. Reduction in line impedance is usually achieved by upgrading the distribution feeder through reinforcement. Study presented in [3] shows that it is an effective method. However replacing the conductors will be expensive and makes the scheme uneconomical. The DNO can reduce the set point voltage at the primary substation, thus reducing voltage further down the feeder. However, owing to the variability of the renewable energy sources and non dispatchable nature of some DG systems, there may be a loss in generation. When this occurs, the voltages would be further reduced, sometimes below the statutory limits. The technique, which is generally

followed to alleviate the voltage rise problem, is constraining the distributed generator operation. But this method reduces the DG efficiency. III. VOLTAGE PROFILE SIMULATION OF DISTRIBUTION SYSTEM
AND RESULTS
voltage(pu)

Fig. 3 shows the 11 bus radial system considered for study. The transformer is rated at 138/12.47 kV. The LTC for the substation transformer is assumed to adjust the secondary voltage to 1.05 pu at all time. The 4 mile long study distribution feeder has resistance and inductive reactance of the line 0.28 ohm/mi and 0.64ohm/mi, respectively. is 4mile Note that total peak load of the radial network is 10MW 5MVAR.Load data are taken from[15] Each node is connected by a load having active and reactive powers as given in the Table 1.The bus bar voltages of this system in per unit are derived from (6).

1.08 1.07 1.06 1.05 1.04 1.03 1.02 1.01 1 0.99 0.98 0.97 0.96 0.95 0

pf 0.8 pf 0.91 pf 1.0

w/o DG

0.5

1.5

2
distance (mile)

2.5

3.5

Fig. 4. Voltage profile without & with DG supplying 8MW at different pf. (with uniform load)

10

This Fig.5 shows the resulting voltage profile for the same capacity of the DG with different power factor as with Fig.4. for concentrated load. The concentrated load method is expected to be more accurate then the uniformly distributed load method for this circuit under study. Fig 6 shows the resulting voltage profile when the load is varies from 100% to 25% prior to the DG installation. When the load is 100 %, voltage at the end of the feeder is 0.97 pu.
1.08 1.07 1.06 1.05 1.04 1.03 1.02 1.01 1 0.99 0.98 0.97 0.96 0.95 0

utility network substation LOAD DG DG DG

voltage(pu)

Fig. 3. Radial feeder with 11 nodes TABLE I FEEDER AND LOAD DATA

pf 0.8

pf 0.91 pf 1.0
w/o DG

0.8

1.25

1.55

1.8

node 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11

Distance (mile) 0.80 0.45 0.30 0.25 0.20 0.25 0.55 0.25 0.30 0.40 0.25

P (MW) 2.1 1.4 1.0 0.5 0.8 0.6 0.9 1.3 0.3 0.5 0.6

Q (MVAR) 1.3 0.8 0.6 0.1 0.2 0.3 0.5 0.6 0.1 0.2 0.3

2.0 2.25 distance (mile)

2.8

3.05

3.35

3.75

Fig. 5. Voltage profile without & with DG supplying 8MW at different pf (with concentrated load).
1.07 1.06 1.05 1.04 1.03 voltage(pu) 1.02 1.01 1 0.99 0.98 0.97 0.96 0.95 0 0.5 1 1.5 2 distance (mile) 2.5 3 3.5 4
25%LOAD 50% LOAD 75%LOAD 100%LOAD

In general for a radial system the voltage level decreases along the feeder, from supply end to the end of the feeder.
n

Fig. 6. Feeder voltage profile at different load levels prior to DG Installation.

Vn + 1 = V1

( Rk + jX K )( Pk + 1 jQk + 1 ) V * k +1

(6) The effect of DG connected at bus no 5 on the study case feeder is investigated using uniformly distributed and concentrated loads. Fig. 4 shows the voltage profile of study distribution system with uniformly distributed load and 8 MW DG operating with different power factors.

k =1

Fig. 7 shows the new voltage profile after installing a 5 MW distributed generator at different location along the feeder, when this particular DG is installed at the end of the feeder(4th mile), it tends to raise the voltage from 0.97pu (prior to DG installation) to 0.98 pu, thus providing voltage support. On the other hand, when it is moved to close to the substation, it causes the last mile of the feeder to operate at a voltage below 0.95 pu, hence it confuses the LTC by setting voltage lower then required to maintain adequate service.

4
1.07 1.06 1.05 1.04 1.03 1.02 1.01 1 0.99 0.98 0.97 0.96 0.95 0.94 0.93 0

voltage(pu)

d=4miles d=2miles d=1.25miles

d=0.8miles w/o dg

Fig 10. shows the resulting voltage profile by assuming a concentrated load with 3 capacitors of size 1200 kVAR each connected at node 4, 8 &10 and also DG with capacity of 4MW is connected at node 6 and also without DG.
1.07 1.06

0.5

1.5

2 distance(mile)

2.5

3.5

4
line voltage(pu)

1.05 1.04 1.03 1.02 1.01 1 0.99 0.98 0.97 0.96 0.95 0 0.8 1.25 1.55 1.8 2.0 2.25 distance (mile) 2.8 3.05 3.35 3.75 4.0
PF 0.8 PF 0.91 PF 1.0 W/O DG

Fig. 7. Voltage profile with 5MW DG installed at different locations during peak load

Fig.8 shows the resulting voltage profile when the different sizes of DGS are connected at a fixed point located at 1.25 miles from the substation during peak load. The maximum DG size at this particular location that will not result in under voltage at the feeder end is estimated to be 3.2 MW (64%). The corresponding voltage profile verifies that such a limit is sufficiently accurate.
1.07 1.06 1.05 1.04 1.03 1.02 1.01 1 0.99 0.98 0.97 0.96 0.95 0.94 0.93 0

Fig. 11. Voltage profile Voltage profile without & with DG supplying 8MW at different pf and fixed capacitors are connected at node 4, 8, 10(with concentrated loads)

W/O DG 25% DG 50%DG 64%DG 100%DG

0.5

1.5

2 distance (mile)

2.5

3.5

Fig. 8. Voltage profile for different DG sizes installed at 1.25 miles from substation during peak load

To illustrate the voltage regulation with only DGs at different locations of the feeder, the same example circuit is used. The LTC for the substation transformer is adjusting the secondary voltage to 1.05 at all time. The feeder is assumed to have a 3 DGs with different size of 4.7MW, 2.5MW & 2MW, with the power factor 1.0, 0.91 & 0.8 respectively connected to the nodes 3, 8, &10. Fig.11 &12 shows the voltage profile for multiple DGs connected at different location of the feeder by considering uniform and concentrated load models respectively, voltage at each node is almost constant throughout the feeder without exceeding the voltage limit.
1.07 1.06 1.05 1.04 1.03 1.02 1.01 1 0.99 0.98 0.97 0.96 0.95 0

To illustrate voltage regulation with fixed capacitors, the same example circuit is used. The LTC for the substation transformer is assumed to adjust the secondary voltage to 1.05 pu at all time. Fig 9.shows the resulting voltage profile by assuming a uniformly distributed load with 3 capacitor of size 1200 kVAR each connected at node 4, 8 &10 and also DG with capacity of 4MW is connected at node 5, If we compare voltage profile of Fig. 4 and 9, voltage profile of Fig.4 shows that, without & with DG of 8MW capacity for different power factor as mention earlier. Voltage profile of Fig.8 is more steady throughout the feeder that means we can maintain constant voltage by connecting lower size capacity (4MW) of DG and 3 fixed capacitors instead of higher capacity (8MW) at node 5.
1.07 1.06 1.05 1.04 voltage(pu) 1.03 1.02 1.01 1 0.99 0.98 0.97 0.96 0.95 0 0.5 1 1.5 2 distance (mile) 2.5 3 3.5 4
PF 0.8 PF 0.91 PF 1.0 W/O DG

voltage(pu)

voltage(pu)

pf 0.8

pf 0.91

pf 1.0

w/o DG

0.5

1.5

2 distance (mile)

2.5

3.5

Fig. 11 Voltage profile without & with DG supplying active power at different pf are connected at node 3, 8, 10(with uniform loads) (with uniform loads)
1.07 1.06 1.05 1.04 voltage(pu) 1.03 1.02 1.01 1 0.99 0.98 0.97 0.96 0.95 0 0.8 1.25 1.55 1.8
W/O DG

PF 0.8

PF 0.91

PF 1.0

2.0 2.25 distance (mile)

2.8

3.05

3.25

3.75

4.0

Fig. 10. Voltage profile without & with DG supplying 8MW at different pf and fixed capacitors are connected at node 4, 8, 10(with uniform loads)

Fig. 12. Voltage profile without & with DG supplying active power at different pf are connected at node 3, 8, 10 (with concentrated loads))

IV. CONCLUSION Voltage stability enhancement analysis of distribution network with the integration of distributed generation is presented in this paper. This paper presented a investigation on the steady voltage variation under various conditions in distribution system with DG. A comprehensive approach to voltage control in a distribution system by taking in to account a number of DG systems and capacitors under various conditions has been presented. Distribution generation affects the voltage level of the system through the connection point due to their power injection. They improve the voltage profile and support the voltage stability. This allows the distribution system to withstand higher loading condition, defers the construction or upgrade of new transmission and distribution infrastructures, since the location of the DG has a major impact on the voltage support ability. With reduced DG size and fixed capacitor connection at different location of the feeder, voltage profile of the feeder can be improved much better in comparison to the higher size DGS connected to the system V. REFERENCES
[1] J. P. P. Barker and R.W. de Mello, Determining the impact of Distributed Generation on power systems: Part 1Radial distribution systems, in Proc. IEEE Power Eng. Soc. Summer Meeting, vol. 3, 2000, pp.16451656. Ackermann and V. Knyazkin, Interaction between distributed generation and the distribution network: Operation aspects, in Proc. of IEEE PES Transmission & Distribution Conf. Asia-Pacific 2002, vol. 2, pp.1357-1362. C. L. Masters, Voltage rise, the big issue when connecting embedded generation to long 11 kV overhead lines, IEE. Power Eng.J. vol. 16, issue 1, pp. 512. Feb. 2002. L. Kojovic, Impact of DG on voltage regulation, in Proc. IEEE/PES Summer Meeting, July 2002, pp. 97-102. Thomson, Automatic voltage-control relays and embedded generation part 1, IEE Power Engineering J., vol. 14, issue 2, pp.71 76, April 2000. C. Dai and Y. Baghzouz, On the voltage profile of distribution feeders with distributed generation, in Proc. IEEE/PES Summer Meeting, 2003.. T.E. Kim et. al., Methods of Determining the introduction Limit of Dispersed Generation Systems in A Distribution System from the Viewpoint of Voltage Regulation, IEE Japan, Trans., vol. 16-B, no.12, pp. 1461-1469, 1996. S. K. Salman and I. M. Rida, ANN-based AVC relay for voltage control of distribution network with and without embedded generation, in Proc. Int. Conf. on Electric Utility Deregulation and Restructuring and Power Technologies, April 2000, pp. 263 267. N. C. Scott, D. J. Atkinson, and J. E. Morrell, Use of load control to regulate voltage on distribution networks with embedded generation IEEE Trans. on Power Systems, vol. 17, no. 2, pp. 510-515, May 2002 A.R.Wallace and A.E. Kiprakis, Reduction of voltage violations from embedded generators connected to the distribution network by intelligent reactive power control, in Proc. 5th Int. Conf. on Power System Management and Control, 2001, pp. 210215. L. Kojovic, Impact of DG on voltage regulation, in Proc. IEEE/PES Summer Meeting, July 2002, pp. 97-102.f P. Brady, C. Dai, Y. Baghzouz, Need To Revise Switched Capacitor Controls On Feeders With Distributed Generation IEEE Conference and Exposition conference on transmission and distribution, Volume 2, 7-12 Sept. 2003 ,pp 590 594. N. Jenkins, R. Allan, P. Crossley, D. Kirsehen and G. Strbac, Embedded Generation, IEE Power and Energy Series, London,2000 Turen Gonen, Electrical power distribution system engineering, Book McGraw Hill Book Company, 1986.

[15] Chensong Dai and Y. Baghzouz, Impact of Distributed Generation on Voltage Regulation by LTC Transformer, in Proc.11th Int. Conf. on Harmonics and Quality of Power,2004,pp.770-773.

VI. BIOGRAPHIES
R. Shivarudraswamy, is working as a Lecturer in the Department Electrical and Electronics Engineering, Manipal Institute of Technology Manipal, Karnataka, India. He is currently a Ph. D. student in the Department Electrical and Electronics Engineering, National Institute of Technology Karnataka Surathkal. His main research interest is in the area of distributed generation systems and distribution system automation. D. N. Gaonkar (M 09) is working as a faculty in the Department of Electrical Engineering, National Institute of Technology Karnataka Surathkal, India. He received his Ph.D. degree from Indian Institute of Technology, Roorkee, India in the year 2008. He was a visiting scholar at the University of Saskatchewan Cananda. He has published many papers in reputed international journals and conferences. His main research interest is in the area of power system operation and control, distributed generation systems and power electronics.

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