## 1 Introduction  
Advanced metering infrastructure (AMI) deployments have changed the perception of the low voltage (LV) distribution grid. Smart meters scattered over the network offer LV grid visibility and accessibility. Distribution companies are now able to go one step beyond towards an advanced real-time representation, visibility, control, operation, and management of the LV network. LV narrowband (NB) powerline communication (PLC) is the most extended solution for the communication in these AMI systems [1]. Focusing on NB PLC technologies deployed in Europe, Powerline Intelligent Metering Evolution (PRIME) and G3-PLC are the most common standards [1]. The downside of this solution is that the electricity network is a complex communication channel with interferences and disturbances introduced by other devices connected to the network. In the LV grid, there is a very large variety of types and levels of disturbances in the communication channel, mainly classified by propagation channel effects, interfering noise, and non-intentional emissions. This variety, together with the high number of configurations of the communication technologies, complicates the detailed study of the effects of each types of disturbance on the different configurations. As a result, sophisticated test methods are needed to evaluate, first, the effects of each type of disturbance on the different configurations of the communications technologies and, second, the efficiency of the strategies designed to overcome such disturbances. This paper proposes the use of a Virtual PLC Lab to evaluate the performance of several improvement proposals for several PLC technologies. The Virtual PLC Lab includes the whole communication system, composed not only of transmission and reception devices, but also on the characterization of the different effects of the propagation channel. As a result, it enables an efficient analysis of new coding or equalizing techniques that would require long and complex validation procedures, without the need of physically implementing these techniques in the hardware devices, reducing the time and the cost of these developments. Several articles study the NB PLC performance from 3 to 500 kHz in the presence of noise and harsh situations. This performance has been studied from multiple approaches. There are analytical studies based on generic PLC technologies [2]. Several studies are oriented to PRIME statistical performance in field setups [3; 4]. Some specific studies focus on upper layer performance instead of being physical layer-oriented [5]. There are some comparisons of the performance of PLC technologies and physical layers, although these are not exactly under the same conditions [6]. Moreover, there is a lack of studies covering the PRIME standard in its recent 1.4 version and G3-PLC coherent modes [7]. Additionally, when disturbances are evaluated, no standard and controlled noise patterns are referenced [8]; moreover, the laboratory setups used in these studies are not reproducible, as no standard environments are utilized to determine PLC performance [9]. All these partial analyses demonstrate the need of developing simulation-based test benches for the design and validation of both the effects of channel disturbances and the performance of new techniques to improve the data transmission under these harsh conditions. In view of the limitations of the available studies, the authors of the present contribution carried out a complete physical layer performance evaluation of the influence of real-world disturbances over PLC technologies within European Committee for Electrotechnical Standardization (CENELEC) A band (9-95 kHz) [10]. The work analyzed the impact of standard and controlled noise patterns over PRIME 1.3.6 [11], PRIME 1.4 [12], and G3-PLC [13; 14] technologies under a reproducible and standard environment [15]. The study concluded with lessons to be learned for future technologies, opening several optimization lines [10].