Smart Inverter Control Methods for Overvoltage Mitigation in Distribution Network

Integrating photovoltaic (PV) systems into distribution networks has significantly increased the capacity of existing power systems due to the export of renewable energy from consumers. It has also introduced some key challenges in which voltage stability is one of the issues utility companies are facing currently. This paper evaluates various inverter control functions for mitigating voltage stability conditions during abrupt solar insolation. Results show that smart inverters equipped with automatic switching between PQ controllers will offer better results and keep the voltages within prescribed limits. This paper covers various inverter control frameworks using CYME software, Volt/Var control is considered to be a promising technique to mitigate overvoltages across the grid.