Pilot nanogrid at universidad del valle, for research and training in control and management of electrical networks in non-interconnected areas

Smart networks are a research topic that is currently of great interest both in the academic community and in the business sector, within smart networks today you can find microgrid, nanogrid, and picogrid without it has been possible to define a standard that differentiates them; It is necessary to investigate more thoroughly in these topics and train professionals to support the research and development processes around them. To achieve this, some institutes, research centers, and universities are advancing assemblies in the laboratory for their studies. This work is framed within the development of a pilot micro-network laboratory that can work isolated or interconnected, implemented at the Universidad del Valle. This article presents a particular case of a nanogrid-part of the microgrid under development at Universidad del Valle-with the initial objective of investigating problems associated with non-interconnected systems, applicable to the Colombian context. Details of the design of the nanogrid are presented where the use of an Etap-Real Time software is considered, allowing monitoring, real-time management, simulation, and prediction integral. In particular, for the case in hand, details of the study are shown considering the flows in DC and AC, contrasted in a simulation with Etap-Real Time versus operational data of the nanogrid.