CERTS Microgrid Laboratory Test Bed
This concept was first proposed in 1998 as a cluster of microgenerators and storage that could operate independently of the utility, with little or no impact on their customers' loads. For example, fast load tracking, controllers based only on local terminal quantities, and frequency droop methods for load sharing between micro sources are important concepts. In the future, this work was formalized in the form of a white paper and a patent in the US. The CERTS Microgrid Laboratory Test Bed project's goal was to show how easy it is to integrate small energy sources into a microgrid. By developing and demonstrating three cutting-edge techniques collectively known as the CERTS Microgrid concept, the project was able to achieve its goal of reducing the amount of custom field engineering required to operate microgrids composed of small generating sources. The CERTS Microgrid concept is composed of three techniques: 1) a method for achieving automatic and seamless transitions between grid-connected and islanded modes of operation; 2) an approach to electrical protection within the microgrid that does not rely on high fault currents, and 3) a method for microgrid control that achieves voltage and frequency stability under the grid and islanded conditions without the need for high-speed communications.