Design and Verification of a CVR Scheme for Distribution Systems with Photovoltaic Penetration

Conservation voltage reduction (CVR) is widely adopted by utilities for energy savings through reducing the voltage level of the distribution system while maintaining the service voltage within standard voltage limits. However, an unexpected voltage violation can occur due to the intermittent nature of photovoltaic (PV) output. In this paper, a fast and adaptive voltage control algorithm is proposed based on the realtime measurement data from customers' smart meters to improve the CVR effect and prevent voltage violations. In particular, a Power Hardware-in-the-loop (PHIL) test platform is set up to validate the proposed control algorithm. The test circuit and measurement data are from an actual LV residential feeder located on the island of Maui, Hawaii. Simulation results demonstrate that the proposed algorithm can achieve additional energy savings compared to a traditional CVR approach while maintaining the feeder voltages within acceptable limits.