A transformer is an essential but expensive power delivery equipment for a distribution utility. In many distribution utilities worldwide

a sizable percentage of transformers are near the end of their designed life. At the same time

distribution utilities are adopting smart inverter-based distributed solar photovoltaic (SPV) systems to maximize renewable generation. The central objective of this paper is to propose a methodology to quantify the effect of smart inverter-based distributed SPV systems on the aging of distribution transformers. The proposed method is first tested on a modified IEEE-123 node distribution feeder. After that

the procedure is applied to a practical distribution system

i.e.

the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Roorkee campus

India. The transformer aging models

alongside advanced control functionalities of grid-tied smart inverter-based SPV systems

are implemented in MATLAB. The open-source simulation tool (OpenDSS) is used to model distribution net-works. To analyze effectiveness of various inverter functionalities

time-series simulations are performed using exponential load models

considering daily load curves from multiple seasons

load types

current harmonics

etc. Findings show replacing a traditional inverter with a smart inverter-based SPV system can enable local reactive power generation and may extend the life of a distribution transformer. Simulation results demonstrate

simply by incorporating smart inverter-based SPV systems

transformer aging is reduced by 15% to 22% in comparison to SPV systems operating with traditional inverters.