Power Transfer Analysis in a Utility-Interconnected Fuel Cell Distributed Generator

Distributed generation (DG) is increasingly used as a means of satisfying the growing need for electric energy. The interest in DG is the result of the opening of the energy markets under deregulation and of recent technological advances in mechanical, electrical and power electronics conversion systems. Among DG systems, much attention is focused on environmentally friendly fuel cells, photovoltaic and wind generators. This paper presents active and reactive power transfer analysis when a fuel cell DG system is connected to a utility distribution network. Influences of the line impedance, DG output voltage magnitude and phase angle, and grid-connected inverter control method, are investigated by theoretical analyses. The relationship between output voltage phase angle and hydrogen flow is also presented. The interconnected power transfer study is supported by simple Matlab/Simulink models to validate theoretical analyses