ANÁLISE COMPARATIVA ENTRE GERAÇÃO FOTOVOLTAICA CENTRALIZADA E DISTRIBUÍDA COM FOCO NAS PERDAS ELÉTRICAS, UTILIZANDO O SOFTWARE OPENDSS.

Abstract

With the growing demand for electricity and the search for sustainable solutions, the expansion of renewable sources, such as photovoltaic generation, has become a consolidated strategic alternative. Since 2012, Brazil has intensified discussions on ways to incentivize solar photovoltaic energy and integrate these models into the national electricity grid. In this context, this study performs a comparative analysis between two photovoltaic generation models: centralized and distributed. Through simulations performed using OpenDSS software, the centralized scenario, with all power allocated to a single injection point, is initially analyzed, followed by the distributed scenario, in which the same power is divided among several points in the grid. The analysis considered technical impacts such as electrical losses, voltage profile, power factor, and operational limits of the system. The results demonstrated that distributed generation showed greater technical efficiency in reducing electrical losses in the analyzed systems, due to the local supply of loads and the reduction of current circulation in the feeders. However, operational impacts associated with high photovoltaic penetration were also observed, such as increased voltage levels, reduced substation power factor, and the occurrence of reverse power flow during periods of higher solar generation. Therefore, it is concluded that, although distributed generation performs better in terms of reducing technical losses, the insertion of high levels of photovoltaic generation, regardless of the configuration adopted, requires complementary studies related to voltage control, reactive power support, and safe operation of distribution networks.