Hybrid AC/DC building microgrid for solar PV and battery storage integration

Dc power systems can integrate dc renewable generation, storage, and building electrical loads easier and more efficiently than conventional ac based systems. A key challenge for the successful market adoption of these systems is the integration with existing electrical loads and power grids in buildings. Hybrid ac/dc microgrids combine advantages of both ac and dc systems and may facilitate the integration process of dc power technologies into existing ac systems. In this work, the performance of a hybrid building microgrid coupling on-site PV generation with ac and dc loads of a residential building is investigated in simulation. An experimental dc network prototype, coupling PV electricity generation to LED lighting in a building, has been built and tested. Theoretical and experimental results are used for the design of a hybrid microgrid, planned to be implemented together with the PV system of a residential research building.