Abstract

Several microgrids (MG) operating in the neighborhood can be integrated to form a community of MGs to harness several benefits of a larger networked system. The present research is an investigation of the coordination between the several AC and DC MGs of such community MG. Individual MGs may function as self-contained entities, but they might also collaborate with other nearby MGs to provide backup operations in the community MG. In this paper a coordination technique is suggested for transmitting excess power of a MG to the community bus under the control of the community MG controller so that nearby MGs can use it as needed, while maintaining stable operation of the participating MGs. A centralized controller called the community MG controller maintains the coordination between the neighboring MGs. The controller receives power shortage report from the MGs facing power shortage problem and decides as to which MG can draw this excess power. The controller uses a priority-based distribution algorithm to decide the allocation of power. The algorithm takes into consideration the presence of critical loads like hospital, industry, academic institution, etc. An infrastructure of smart metering (SM) is used to check the amount of power flow into any MG. The MGs will be penalized if they draw power more than that allocated to them. Thus, each MG is able to maintain stable operation without having to resort to spinning reserve for excess load and dump load to remove the excess power from the system. The obtained simulation results show that the suggested approach is a practical and efficient means of coordinating power flow in an islanded community MGs.

Key words: Community microgrid; Community bus; Microgrid controller; Smart Metering; Power sharing.