Cost-Based Droop Schemes for Economic Dispatch in Islanded Microgrids

In this paper, cost-based droop schemes are proposed, to minimize the total active power generation cost in an islanded microgrid (MG), while the simplicity and decentralized nature of the droop control are retained. In cost-based droop schemes, the incremental costs of distributed generators (DGs) are embedded into the droop schemes, where the incremental cost is a derivative of the DG cost function with respect to output power. In the steady state, DGs share a single common frequency, and cost-based droop schemes equate incremental costs of DGs, thus minimizing the total active power generation cost, in terms of the equal incremental cost principle. Finally, simulation results in an islanded MG with high a penetration of intermittent renewable energy sources are presented, to demonstrate the effectiveness, as well as plug and play capability of the cost-based droop schemes.Feixiong Chen, Minyou Chen, Qiang Li, Kaikai Meng, Yongwei Zheng, Josep M. Guerrero, Derek Abbot

Distributed Control Strategies for Microgrids: An Overview

There is an increasing interest and research effort focused on the analysis, design and implementation of distributed control systems for AC, DC and hybrid AC/DC microgrids. It is claimed that distributed controllers have several advantages over centralised control schemes, e.g., improved reliability, flexibility, controllability, black start operation, robustness to failure in the communication links, etc. In this work, an overview of the state-of-the-art of distributed cooperative control systems for isolated microgrids is presented. Protocols for cooperative control such as linear consensus, heterogeneous consensus and finite-time consensus are discussed and reviewed in this paper. Distributed cooperative algorithms for primary and secondary control systems, including (among others issues) virtual impedance, synthetic inertia, droop-free control, stability analysis, imbalance sharing, total harmonic distortion regulation, are also reviewed and discussed in this survey. Tertiary control systems, e.g., for economic dispatch of electric energy, based on cooperative control approaches, are also addressed in this work. This review also highlights existing issues, research challenges and future trends in distributed cooperative control of microgrids and their future applications

A novel decentralized economic operation in islanded AC microgrids

Droop schemes are usually applied to the control of distributed generators (DGs) in microgrids (MGs) to realize proportional power sharing. The objective might, however, not suit MGs well for economic reasons. Addressing that issue, this paper proposes an alternative droop scheme for reducing the total active generation costs (TAGC). Optimal economic operation, DGs’ capacity limitations and system stability are fully considered basing on DGs’ generation costs. The proposed scheme utilizes the frequency as a carrier to realize the decentralized economic operation of MGs without communication links. Moreover, a fitting method is applied to balance DGs’ synchronous operation and economy. The effectiveness and performance of the proposed scheme are verified through simulations and experiments

Control jerárquico-óptimo de microrredes aisladas

The objective of this article is to propose a novel method that uses hierarchical control to efficiently manage power resources in an isolated Direct Current (DC) microgrid. The scope of this paper is limited to a numerical study of the components of the micro-generation system using accurate mathematical models in a commercial simulation tool. The control methodology is based on power sharing by means of a hierarchical topology including several control layers. In particular, the internal control loops that regulate the electrical variables in individual generators are at the bottom of the hierarchy. In addition, the power-sharing technique distributes power at an intermediate level, and it is complemented by a Newton-Raphson optimization algorithm at the top, which aims to minimize the cost function. The cost of the microgrid is defined in terms of investment and maintenance indices. This study analyzes the case of a low-power isolated DC microgrid that combines an array of photovoltaic panels and a battery bank. The most relevant result was the optimization of its generation cost, which was verified using simulations of the control and power circuits. In conclusion, although simple, the proposed technique achieves efficient performance in managing the power resources of this microgrid under environmental disturbances.El objetivo del presente artículo fue proponer un método para realizar la gestión eficiente de recursos energéticos en una microrred aislada en corriente continua, empleando control jerárquico. El alcance del trabajo se limitó a estudios numéricos a través de modelos matemáticos precisos en una herramienta de simulación comercial para los componentes del sistema de microgeneración eléctrica. La metodología del control se basó en el reparto de potencias mediante una topología jerárquica con diferentes capas de control. Específicamente, los lazos de control internos que regulan las variables eléctricas en generadores individuales están en la base de la jerarquía, la técnica de reparto de potencias realiza una distribución de energía a un nivel intermedio y se complementa en un nivel superior por un algoritmo de optimización del tipo Newton-Raphson, minimizando un funcional de costo. Dicho costo de la microrred es definido, a su vez, en términos de índices de inversión y mantenimiento. Asimismo, una microrred CC aislada y de baja potencia, constituida por un arreglo de paneles fotovoltaicos combinados con un banco de baterías, es analizada como caso de estudio. El resultado más importante correspondió con la verificación de la optimización del costo de generación mediante simulaciones para los circuitos de control y potencia. En conclusión, la técnica propuesta verifica, a pesar de su simplicidad, un desempeño eficiente para el manejo de recursos energéticos de la microrred ante perturbaciones del entorno

Evolution of microgrids with converter-interfaced generations: Challenges and opportunities

© 2019 Elsevier Ltd Although microgrids facilitate the increased penetration of distributed generations (DGs) and improve the security of power supplies, they have some issues that need to be better understood and addressed before realising the full potential of microgrids. This paper presents a comprehensive list of challenges and opportunities supported by a literature review on the evolution of converter-based microgrids. The discussion in this paper presented with a view to establishing microgrids as distinct from the existing distribution systems. This is accomplished by, firstly, describing the challenges and benefits of using DG units in a distribution network and then those of microgrid ones. Also, the definitions, classifications and characteristics of microgrids are summarised to provide a sound basis for novice researchers to undertake ongoing research on microgrids

Wide-Area Time-Synchronized Closed-Loop Control of Power Systems And Decentralized Active Distribution Networks

The rapidly expanding power system grid infrastructure and the need to reduce the occurrence of major blackouts and prevention or hardening of systems against cyber-attacks, have led to increased interest in the improved resilience of the electrical grid. Distributed and decentralized control have been widely applied to computer science research. However, for power system applications, the real-time application of decentralized and distributed control algorithms introduce several challenges. In this dissertation, new algorithms and methods for decentralized control, protection and energy management of Wide Area Monitoring, Protection and Control (WAMPAC) and the Active Distribution Network (ADN) are developed to improve the resiliency of the power system. To evaluate the findings of this dissertation, a laboratory-scale integrated Wide WAMPAC and ADN control platform was designed and implemented. The developed platform consists of phasor measurement units (PMU), intelligent electronic devices (IED) and programmable logic controllers (PLC). On top of the designed hardware control platform, a multi-agent cyber-physical interoperability viii framework was developed for real-time verification of the developed decentralized and distributed algorithms using local wireless and Internet-based cloud communication. A novel real-time multiagent system interoperability testbed was developed to enable utility independent private microgrids standardized interoperability framework and define behavioral models for expandability and plug-and-play operation. The state-of-theart power system multiagent framework is improved by providing specific attributes and a deliberative behavior modeling capability. The proposed multi-agent framework is validated in a laboratory based testbed involving developed intelligent electronic device prototypes and actual microgrid setups. Experimental results are demonstrated for both decentralized and distributed control approaches. A new adaptive real-time protection and remedial action scheme (RAS) method using agent-based distributed communication was developed for autonomous hybrid AC/DC microgrids to increase resiliency and continuous operability after fault conditions. Unlike the conventional consecutive time delay-based overcurrent protection schemes, the developed technique defines a selectivity mechanism considering the RAS of the microgrid after fault instant based on feeder characteristics and the location of the IEDs. The experimental results showed a significant improvement in terms of resiliency of microgrids through protection using agent-based distributed communication