Investigation of smart grid topologies using pilot installations experimental results

In order to make smart grid feasible, the respective (a) topology and (b) control infrastructure should be determined first for the low level of the grid, i.e. microgrids or even smaller grids like a residential in-house grid, and be expandable in a larger scale. Additionally, the experimental investigation of properly designed interconnected microgrids could simulate the behavior of the whole distribution grid and thus facilitate in the transition from the traditional to the smart electric grid. Two smart grid topologies are presented in this paper. The respective infrastructure for two small-scale microgrids, one for each topology, is presented. A first comparison between the two topologies is outlined and verified by the experimental investigation of the respective microgrids.