Solar Energy Grid Integration Systems
The Solar Energy Grid Integration Systems (SEGIS) activities advance all of the balance-of-systems (BOS) technologies and methodologies that enable electrical power grids to seamlessly integrate large amounts of distributed electricity from solar energy, specifically photovoltaics (PV).
Within the Systems Integration subprogram, SEGIS was launched to develop advanced PV systems with intelligent interfaces to a smarter electrical grid. SEGIS developments include early but revolutionary technologies and futuristic developments such as the intelligence and performance required to enable high penetrations of solar-generated power. Essentially, a smart grid handles two-way flows of power and communication, in comparison to the one-way power flow and virtually no communication that exist today. The intelligence to interface with a smarter grid is required to make possible the seamless grid integration of solar technologies in high-penetration scenarios—while simultaneously helping solar energy generation achieve grid parity with conventional forms of electricity.
This illustration depicts the SEGIS concept with the two-way flows of power and communication required to enable seamless PV interconnections to the electric grid with high levels of solar energy.
In 2008, the Solar Energy Technologies Program awarded financial assistance to 12 companies, through Sandia National Laboratories, to develop smarter and more interactive components and systems. These systems include inverters, controllers, and energy management systems that will optimize system performance, economic value, energy storage, and energy management, through intelligent functionality and communication.
Through these industry partnerships, a SEGIS goal is to commercialize and deploy more modern, next-generation, clean, solar system technologies that enhance the nation's energy security and address the challenge of global climate change. As an added benefit, advanced software and hardware will better optimize the flow of PV power and enhance grid reliability and power quality.
Since solar energy is intermittent because of cloud cover and shading, another SEGIS focus is to mitigate the intermittency with energy storage and energy management. In the near future, these SEGIS activities will address intermittency mitigation, along with utility grid support, and system optimization for intelligent grid integration.