END-TO-END DIRECT CURRENT FOR STANDALONE POWER NETWORK

Abstract

Originally, the electrical energy used to be generated in form of direct current (DC) system, which was used for the first time by Thomas Edison in 1882. However, due to the growth of the loads and the increase of transmission distances, the generation of electric energy in form of alternating current (AC) system has become the standard in the entire world for the last century. The emergence and constant technological advancements of power electronics during the last century coupled with the photovoltaics (PV) commercialization, which generates DC power, as well as grid-scale battery energy storage system, which stores DC power, have demonstrated the low-cost sustainability of electricity generated in DC power form. In this document, the author has introduced the stand-alone power network for the emerging concept of community solar that is based on the end-to-end DC power network as a potential solution for phasing away gradually from AC power grid infrastructure; and bring back the concept of centrally located power generation based on the original idea of Thomas Edison. This off-grid power network consists of solar PV farm coupled with battery-based energy system, which generates and stores DC power respectively as mentioned earlier, and can supply to the utilization site with electricity all year long. The performance of this independent microgrid shows no deficiency in the supplied electricity in the first year for the project as well as after thirty years. The results of this dissertation show that the usage of DC power network in the form of end-to-end has a major advantage as compared to the conventional grid in term of energy efficiency as well as energy surplus which results directly in financial resource preserving.