Micro-phasor measurement units (μPMUs) and its applications in smart distribution systems

Abstract

The installation of phasor measurement units (PMUs) in the power grids is mainly focused on the transmission systems. Researchers are continuously working on the PMUs for its installation in the transmission system. But, now due to the advancement in distribution system, i.e., for smart distribution system, a device is going to be installed which creates real-time synchrophasor data from the consumer voltage level, called μPMUs, which could provide new insight into modern power systems. These units can be created more cheaply, an order of magnitude less, than current commercial PMUs. For this reason, many more μPMUs could be deployed and provide a much higher resolution of the distribution grid. So, in this paper, the concepts like why we need micro-PMUs and its block diagram are explained. This paper also discusses the applications for synchrophasor technology in distribution systems. © Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd. 2018.