Planning, Operation, and Coordinated Control of Renewable-Rich Active Distribution Networks

The rapid integration of renewable energy resources, distributed energy storage systems, electric vehicles, and advanced power electronic converters is accelerating the transformation of traditional distribution networks toward more intelligent, flexible, and sustainable energy systems. Meanwhile, the increasing deployment of digital technologies, advanced sensing infrastructures, and communication networks is enabling distribution systems to evolve into highly interactive cyber–physical energy systems. Renewable-rich active distribution networks are therefore becoming a key component of future low-carbon power systems. However, the large-scale penetration of renewable and converter-interfaced resources also introduces significant challenges to system planning, operation, stability, and coordinated control, including power fluctuation, reduced system inertia, bidirectional power flow, voltage and frequency regulation issues, and power quality deterioration. Consequently, advanced methodologies for planning, operation, optimization, and coordinated control are becoming increasingly important for future active distribution systems.The increasing penetration of renewable energy resources and power electronic converters is fundamentally reshaping modern distribution systems. Although renewable-rich distribution networks provide significant opportunities for improving sustainability and reducing carbon emissions, they also introduce critical challenges related to operational flexibility, system stability, resilience, and power quality. Conventional operation and control approaches are becoming insufficient for addressing the uncertainties, bidirectional power flows, and reduced-inertia characteristics of converter-dominated distribution systems. This Research Topic aims to address emerging challenges and opportunities associated with advanced planning, operation, and coordinated control of renewable-rich active distribution networks. Recent advances in grid-forming inverter technologies, distributed optimization, artificial intelligence, digitalized energy management, cyber–physical energy systems, and source-grid-load-storage coordination have provided promising solutions for enhancing system flexibility, reliability, and resilience. This Research Topic seeks high-quality contributions on innovative methodologies, modeling approaches, optimization strategies, and practical applications that support the secure, efficient, and sustainable operation of future active distribution systems.Topics of interest include, but are not limited to: • Renewable energy integration and distributed energy resources in active distribution networks;• Grid-forming and grid-following inverter technologies and coordinated control;• Energy storage systems and source-grid-load-storage coordination;• Cyber–physical energy systems and intelligent energy management;• Distributed optimization, demand response, and distributed flexibility management;• Resilience enhancement, voltage and frequency regulation, and power quality control;• Stability analysis and operational security of converter-dominated distribution systems;• Real-world applications, hardware experiments, digitalized operation, and field demonstrations for active distribution networks;We welcome Original Research, Review, and Perspective articles presenting innovative control strategies, optimization frameworks, validated simulations, experimental results, and theoretical analyses relevant to future renewable-rich distribution systems. Studies should clearly demonstrate contributions to improving the flexibility, reliability, resilience, sustainability, or operational efficiency of modern distribution networks. Topic editors: Ziyi Bai, Da Xu, Hanyu Yang, Gangwei Zhu Source: https://www.frontiersin.org/research-topics/82020/planning-operation-and-coordinated-control-of-renewable-rich-active-distribution-networks