RHYTHM: Resilient Hybrid Technology for High-Value Microgrids

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Microgrids for uninterruptable power supply systems (UPS) have been used in high-value service provider buildings for many years. Despite they use conventional network topologies with relatively conventional control and protection systems, the use of low voltage DC to supply information technologies (IT) loads is rapidly becoming standard. In these systems, DC is is seen as an opportunity to improve reliability and to reduce energy losses and costs. Today the market of photovoltaics, batteries, power electronics and IT hardware keeps growing as these technologies become more cost-competitive. Thus, the use of DC could be extended to further types of loads, generation and storage giving rise to hybrid AC-DC microgrids. When considering the current business-as-usual approach to electrical network design, planning and operation, the growth of renewables and power electronics is often seen as a threat to electrical networks. However, by exploiting the controllability of power electronics it would be possible to build highly-reliable, energy-efficient and cost-effective networks with low carbon impact. High-value buildings today present interesting opportunities to test new concepts of microgrids that could be used at a larger scale in the future. However, multiple technical questions still remain unanswered, such as: "how much can microgrid design be optimised while preserving high reliability?" or "how does low level control for transient stability affect battery life span and how can it be improved?" to name a few. This project seeks to answer these questions by bringing together world leading expertise on microgrids, network planning, energy storage, power converter design and power electronic control from the UK and Korea. The project will consider hybrid AC-DC microgrids with loads, generation and energy storage connected in either side. It will focus on applications to high-value service provider buildings with the ambition of generating knowledge that will be useful in other applications and at greater distribution network scale.