Harmonic distortion-based island detection technique for inverter-based distributed generation

A harmonic distortion-based island detection technique for inverter-based distributed generation (IBDG) is proposed. The proposed technique is classified as an active island detection technique and it is based on the voltage change at the point of common coupling (PCC) that occurs in islanding. To avoid island detection failure in case of a close matching between IBDG-generated power and load power, an active power-voltage locus is introduced to shift the reference active power for PCC voltage change, therefore breaking the IBDG-load power balance and transferring the operating point outside the non-detection zone. A new harmonic performance index, named harmonic amplification factor, is introduced to detect the island. This factor amplifies each harmonic component by its order. Besides the ability of detecting short circuit, the proposed technique can discriminate between islanding and other disturbances, as load change, grid voltage distortion and unbalance, and capacitor bank switching. The proposed technique is validated by Matlab/Simulink simulation and practically as well.