Long-Term Harmonic Analysis of Grid-Connected Photovoltaic Systems

Due to the increasing government support and decreasing installation prices, the rapid proliferation of grid-connected photovoltaic systems has been recorded in the past decade. Their integration is accompanied by harmonic pollution of the distribution systems, resulting from the application of power electronic converters. Therefore, extensive studies need to be performed before their commission to minimize their harmonic impact. This paper presents a thorough harmonic analysis of grid-connected photovoltaic systems in a historical meteorological framework. Temporal patterns of the harmonic emissions and the resulting distorting effects have been identified. In addition, numerical expressions quantifying the temporal variations of individual current harmonics have been developed, which enables their straightforward addition to various power system studies.