  Photovoltaic (PV) systems depend on irradiance, ambient temperature and
module temperature. A solar eclipse causes significant changes in these
parameters, thereby impacting PV generation profile, performance, and power
quality of larger grid where they connect to. This paper presents a case study
to evaluate the impacts of the solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 on two
real-world grid-tied PV systems (1.4MW and 355kW) in Miami and Daytona,
Florida, the feeders they are connected to, and the management areas they
belong to. Four types of analyses are conducted to obtain a comprehensive
picture of the impacts using 1-minute PV generation data, hourly weather data,
real feeder parameters, and daily reliability data. These analyses include:
individual PV system performance measurement using power performance index;
power quality analysis at the point of interconnection; a study on the
operation of voltage regulating devices on the feeders during eclipse peak
using an IEEE 8500 test case distribution feeder; and reliability study
involving a multilayer perceptron framework for forecasting system reliability
of the management areas. Results from this study provide a unique insight into
how solar eclipses impact the behavior of PV systems and the grid, which would
be of concern to electric utilities in future high penetration scenarios.
