IEEE Power & Energy Magazine - May/June 2021 - 90

✔✔ fault protection for microgrids
✔✔ communication requirements for microgrid central-

ized protection.
IEC TS 62898-3-1 focuses on the differences between conventional power system protection and new solutions for safety
functions specific to microgrids. The complexity of protection systems for microgrids can be very different depending
on architectures and interconnections. For example, protection systems are different for microgrids connected to residential low-voltage grids and meshed transmission grids.

Product Safety Standards
Listings and certifications are somewhat synonymous methods to ensure that components, devices, subsystems, and
systems have been evaluated for safety and common performance requirements. Listings and certifications are typically

validated via nationally and internationally approved laboratories. Increasingly, several standards for listing and certification
have been harmonized to address the needs for equipment and
system requirements in the many variations of international
electrical distribution systems. The most common harmonized
standards pertinent to the protection of microgrid systems are
addressed in the following sections related to standards writing laboratories. It is important to note that no Underwriters
Laboratory (UL) standard directly addresses protection; certification processes and testing need to consider compatibilities
with legacy and evolving protection that will apply to interconnected DERs and microgrids. The UL 3001 standard currently being developed and described in Table 4 is an example
of increasing relationships between different standards.
These product standards are more than just older mechanical safety rules. Those associated with DERs, intermittent

table 2. The IEEE 2030 standards that are the most applicable to microgrids and protection.
IEEE Standard Title

Protection Relevance and Description

Notes

IEEE 2030.52018,
active
standard

IEEE Standard for
Smart Energy Profile
Application Protocol

Structural category
This standard enables utility management
of end-user energy environments,
including demand response, load
control, time-of-day pricing, distributed
generation, electric vehicles, and so on. It
is structural because it can be used to aid
the protection of the grid and microgrids.

This standard is often applied to
state mandates for communication
protocols that can be tied to protection.
State mandates are tied to important
standards, such as IEEE 1547-2003 for
interconnections and UL 1741 smart
inverter requirements.

IEEE 2030.72017,
active
standard

Standard for the
Foundational category
Specification of Microgrid This standard provides all the functional
specifications for microgrid controllers.
Controllers
These specifications guide the
performance of the microgrid and the
output characteristics that can directly
affect protection processes.

This standard provides functional
specifications for microgrid controllers
and is coupled with IEEE Standard 2030.8
for testing. The functional specifications
include transition timing and waveform
quality, two fundamental areas that affect
protection processes.

IEEE 2030.82018,
active
standard

Standard for the Testing
of Microgrid Controllers

Structural category
This standard is tied to IEEE 2030.7
and covers the testing of microgrid
controllers.

This standard provides testing
requirements for microgrid controllers
covered by IEEE 2030.7, with the
same dependencies and guidance for
protection.

IEEE
P2030.11,
project
underway

Distributed Energy
Resources Management
Systems Functional
Specification

Foundational category
The functional specifications for DER
management systems will be important
factors in designing and deploying
protection for DERs and microgrids.
The management system will provide
controls for coordinating system
operations that may interact with
protection methods.

This standard project guides the
development of functional specifications
for DER management systems. It includes
guiding principles for the application and
deployment of DER management systems
that, in turn, will interact to varying
degrees with protection systems.

IEEE
P2030.12,
project
underway

Draft Guide for the
Design of Microgrid
Protection Systems

Foundational category
The resulting selection and design
guidance will facilitate the deployment
of protection systems through different
approaches to detect problems and
protect microgrids. The standard will
address protection configuration and
challenges, protection system structures,
modes of operation, system coordination,
requirements for microgrid energy
management, and communication system
structures.

This project encompasses the design
and selection of protective devices and
the coordination for various modes of
microgrid operation, including gridconnected and islanded modes and
related transitions between modes.

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