Editing Distributed generation (section)

{{Short description|Decentralised electricity generation}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=December 2024}}
[[File:Staying big or getting smaller.jpg|thumb|500px|Centralized (left) vs distributed generation (right)]]

'''Distributed generation''', also '''distributed energy''', '''on-site generation''' ('''OSG'''),<ref name=EonOsg>{{cite web|title=On Site Generation: Learn more about our onsite renewable energy generation technologies|url=https://www.eonenergy.com/for-your-business/large-energy-users/manage-energy/on-site-generation|publisher=E.ON SE|access-date=17 December 2015}}</ref> or '''district/decentralized energy''', is electrical [[Power generation|generation]] and [[Grid energy storage|storage]] performed by a variety of small, [[Electrical grid|grid]]-connected or distribution system-connected devices referred to as '''distributed energy resources''' ('''DER''').<ref name="DG-virginia-tech">{{cite web |url=http://www.dg.history.vt.edu/ch1/introduction.html |title=Introduction to Distributed Generation |work=[[Virginia Tech]] |year=2007 |access-date=23 October 2017 |archive-date=10 December 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181210181948/https://www.dg.history.vt.edu/ch1/introduction.html |url-status=dead }}</ref>

Conventional [[power station]]s, such as [[coal]]-fired, [[combined cycle|gas]], and [[nuclear power]]ed plants, as well as [[hydroelectric]] dams and large-scale [[photovoltaic power station|solar power station]]s, are centralized and often require electric energy to be [[Electric power transmission|transmitted]] over long distances. By contrast, DER systems are decentralized, modular, and more flexible technologies that are located close to the load they serve, albeit having capacities of only 10 [[megawatt]]s (MW) or less. These systems can comprise multiple generation and storage components; in this instance, they are referred to as [[hybrid power]] systems.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.atulhost.com/empowering-the-future-with-distributed-energy-resources|title=Empowering the future with distributed energy resources|year=2023}}</ref>

DER systems typically use [[renewable energy]] sources, including [[small hydro]], [[biomass]], [[biogas]], [[solar power]], [[wind power]], and [[geothermal power]], and increasingly play an important role for the [[electric power distribution]] system. A grid-connected device for [[Grid energy storage|electricity storage]] can also be classified as a DER system and is often called a '''distributed energy storage system''' ('''DESS''').<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Nadeem |first1=Talha Bin |last2=Siddiqui |first2=Mubashir |last3=Khalid |first3=Muhammad |last4=Asif |first4=Muhammad |title=Distributed energy systems: A review of classification, technologies, applications, and policies |journal=Energy Strategy Reviews |date=2023 |volume=48 |pages=101096 |doi=10.1016/j.esr.2023.101096 |doi-access=free|bibcode=2023EneSR..4801096N }}</ref> By means of an interface, DER systems can be managed and coordinated within a [[smart grid]]. Distributed generation and storage enables the collection of energy from many sources and may lower environmental impacts{{Citation needed|date=November 2024|reason=small diesel generators can be very polluting}} and improve the security of supply.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Koshiw |first=Isobel |date=2024-04-08 |title=Russia changes tack on targeting Ukraine's energy plants |url=https://www.ft.com/content/18882abd-6277-4aae-bc43-f3e5fa786445 |access-date=2024-11-29 |work=Financial Times|location=London}}</ref>

One of the major issues with the integration of the DER such as solar power, wind power, etc. is the uncertain nature of such electricity resources. This uncertainty can cause a few problems in the distribution system: (i) it makes the supply-demand relationships extremely complex, and requires complicated optimization tools to balance the network, and (ii) it puts higher pressure on the transmission network,<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Mohammadi Fathabad|first1=Abolhassan|last2=Cheng|first2=Jianqiang|last3=Pan|first3=Kai|last4=Qiu|first4=Feng|date=2020|title=Data-driven Planning for Renewable Distributed Generation in Distribution Systems|url=https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/9112707|journal=IEEE Transactions on Power Systems|volume=35|issue=6|pages=4357–4368|doi=10.1109/TPWRS.2020.3001235|s2cid=225734643|issn=1558-0679|hdl=10397/89857|hdl-access=free}}</ref> and (iii) it may cause reverse power flow from the distribution system to transmission system.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=De Carne|first1=Giovanni|last2=Buticchi|first2=Giampaolo|last3=Zou|first3=Zhixiang|last4=Liserre|first4=Marco|date=July 2018|title=Reverse Power Flow Control in a ST-Fed Distribution Grid|journal=IEEE Transactions on Smart Grid|volume=9|issue=4|pages=3811–3819|doi=10.1109/TSG.2017.2651147|s2cid=49354817|issn=1949-3061|url=https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:gbv:8-publ-14890}}</ref>

[[Microgrid]]s are modern, localized, small-scale grids,<ref>{{Cite book|last1=Saleh|first1=M.|last2=Esa|first2=Y.|last3=Mhandi|first3=Y.|last4=Brandauer|first4=W.|last5=Mohamed|first5=A.|title=2016 IEEE Industry Applications Society Annual Meeting |chapter=Design and implementation of CCNY DC microgrid testbed |date=October 2016|pages=1–7|doi=10.1109/IAS.2016.7731870|isbn=978-1-4799-8397-1|s2cid=16464909|chapter-url=https://academicworks.cuny.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1722&context=cc_pubs}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|last1=Saleh|first1=M. S.|last2=Althaibani|first2=A.|last3=Esa|first3=Y.|last4=Mhandi|first4=Y.|last5=Mohamed|first5=A. A.|title=2015 International Conference on Smart Grid and Clean Energy Technologies (ICSGCE) |chapter=Impact of clustering microgrids on their stability and resilience during blackouts |date=October 2015|pages=195–200|doi=10.1109/ICSGCE.2015.7454295|isbn=978-1-4673-8732-3|s2cid=25664994|chapter-url=https://academicworks.cuny.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1623&context=cc_pubs}}</ref> contrary to the traditional, centralized [[electricity grid]] (macrogrid). Microgrids can disconnect from the centralized grid and operate autonomously, strengthen grid resilience, and help mitigate grid disturbances. They are typically low-voltage AC grids, often use [[diesel generator]]s, and are installed by the community they serve. Microgrids increasingly employ a mixture of different distributed energy resources, such as [[solar hybrid power systems]], which significantly reduce the amount of carbon emitted.

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