Smoothing Batteries for PV-Diesel Microgrids

Battery storage systems used to smooth out solar PV power fluctuations can be integrated with solar PV-diesel microgrids as an enabling technology to increase the penetration of solar PV and aid microgrid stability. This paper compares the moving average and ramp rate control techniques for selecting the optimal capacity of a smoothing battery. The studies are based on a large data set of 1-minute resolution solar irradiance data for a full calendar year and across multiple locations. Results from these tests are used to derive correlations between the optimal smoothing battery capacity and daily variability indices.