DC Microgrids for offshore applications

R&D Focus Areas:
Energy systems integration

Lead Organisation:
Griffith University

Status:
Active

Start date:
September 2021

Key contacts:
Professor Evan Gray; e.gray@griffith.edu.au

Funding:
Blue Economy CRC

Project summary description:
Photovoltaics, batteries, supercapacitors, electrolysers and fuel cells are all natively DC. DC power is common in marine settings. Networking these components into a microgrid using high-efficiency DC–DC converters is logical, but problematic in practice, and few suitable DC–DC converters are available commercially.

Most microgrids are presently AC coupled with grid connection, therefore, involving multiple AC-DC conversions and issues of frequency synchronisation and voltage stabilisation. This project will examine the barriers to setting up pure-DC microgrids and create a bench-scale pure-DC hydrogen microgrid for experiments aiming to understand and resolve issues including transient response and control of the DC bus voltage.

Further information: https://blueeconomycrc.com.au/projects/dc-microgrids-for-offshore-applications/

 

Reviewed: January 2023