Impacts of High PV Penetration on Voltage Profile of Distribution Feeders Under Brazilian Electricity Regulation

With the worldwide growth of distributed generation (DG), specially photovoltaic (PV), several studies discussed about the impacts on voltage profile of distribution feeders. However, they do not apply the actual Brazilian electricity regulation for DG and PV systems, and the results are presented in a common way. This paper aims to study the voltage profile of IEEE 13-Node Radial Test Feeder with high PV penetration level under electricity regulation from Brazilian Electricity Regulatory Agency (ANEEL) and Brazilian National Electrical System Operator (ONS). The results are presented in a three-dimensional graphic, making the interpretation easier. The study is conducted simulating a residential region at noon where the PV generation is maximum and the consumer units consumption is on a medium level, making a scenario of 200% of PV penetration level. The PV generators, attending ANEEL and ONS requirements, has the ability to operate in fixed inductive or capacitive power factor (pf). A capacitive pf operation raises the node voltages by 4.0%, in average, with maximum of 12.7%. On other hand, inductive pf operation drops the node voltages by 0.5%, in average, with maximum voltage raise of 1.3% and maximum voltage drop of 2.0%. These results shows that PV generators operating with fixed pf may cause voltage issues impacting directly on electricity quality levels. A central control or PV inverters with smart control can mitigate these problems.