Smart-Grid Renewable Energy Management Using Space Technologies

Abstract

Smart-grids have now turned into the main focus on renewable energy research areas. Renewable energy systems like solar cells and wind turbines are commonly used on smart-grid due to their easy availability. The major difficulty of using these renewables is the prediction of energy that can be generated due to the unpredictable nature of weather conditions, which in turn results in grid instabilities and voltage fluctuations. Space technologies are found to be an ideal solution for overcoming the grid instabilities caused by the unpredictability of weather conditions responsible for renewable energy generation. Space technologies are responsible for forecasting weather conditions to optimally adjust the smart-grid to generate and store sufficient energy before the renewables fail to meet the energy demand. These technologies also offer quick transmission of the renewable energy generation information produced by the sensors to the grid energy management system. MATLAB/Simulink software is used for designing and simulating the stand-alone and grid-connected smart-grid system consisting of solar and wind energy systems as the primary renewables. The simulation results analyse the difference in results obtained from the grid-connected and stand-alone smart-grid before and after they are integrated with the space technology networks. System performance indices, including electrification costs, grid stability, and system efficiency, are used to perform energy management analysis. From the results of the grid-connected smart-grid system before and after integration with space technology networks, the electrification cost is reduced by over 75% when analysing the monthly electrification for a 5 kW load at a tariff of R1,85/kWh. The system stability is improved by 18% due to the unreliability of renewables. It can be seen that the optimum combination of the smart-grid is when it’s integrated with the space technologies.