Photovoltaics in Microgrids: An Overview of Grid Integration and Energy Management Aspects

The microgrid vision contains several aspects, and a commonly admitted one is a portion of grid with its own means of production and energy flow controls. Photovoltaic (PV) generation is geographically the most distributed means of electricity production. In this sense, the integration of PVs in microgrids seems natural. The intermittency of PV generation can be compensated not only by using energy storage technologies but also by demand-side management and exchanges with other power networks: the main grid and surrounding microgrids. Many aspects still have to be investigated in the fields of power electronics, information communications technologies (ICTs), protections, and power quality (PQ) issues, to make this association a reality.