The increasing integration of renewable energy sources into industrial power systems requires optimized operating strategies to ensure power quality, reliability and energy efficiency. This paper presents the experimental and simulation-based analysis of an industrial microgrid integrating a 120 kW photovoltaic system, an 80 kW diesel generator, a 250 kVA transformer station and a 120 kVAr automatic reactive power compensation unit. Five operating regimes were investigated: grid supply without compensation, grid supply with compensation, photovoltaic-assisted operation, combined photovoltaic and reactive compensation regime, and islanded operation with diesel backup. Experimental measurements performed in real operating conditions show that photovoltaic generation reduced grid power demand by up to 70-75 kW under favorable irradiation conditions. Reactive power compensation improved the power factor from approximately 0.82 to values close to 0.98, significantly reducing transformer loading and reactive power exchange with the utility grid. A detailed dynamic model of the microgrid was developed in MATLAB/Simulink-Simscape Electrical to validate the experimental results under on-grid and off-grid conditions. The optimized regime, combining photovoltaic generation and reactive compensation, demonstrated improved resilience, enhanced voltage stability and reduced diesel generator loading in islanded mode. The proposed methodology provides a practical framework for optimization of industrial microgrids aiming at decarbonization and operational efficiency.
Cazac et al. (Thu,) studied this question.