250 research outputs found
A decentralized scalable approach to voltage control of DC islanded microgrids
We propose a new decentralized control scheme for DC Islanded microGrids
(ImGs) composed by several Distributed Generation Units (DGUs) with a general
interconnection topology. Each local controller regulates to a reference value
the voltage of the Point of Common Coupling (PCC) of the corresponding DGU.
Notably, off-line control design is conducted in a Plug-and-Play (PnP) fashion
meaning that (i) the possibility of adding/removing a DGU without spoiling
stability of the overall ImG is checked through an optimization problem; (ii)
when a DGU is plugged in or out at most neighbouring DGUs have to update their
controllers and (iii) the synthesis of a local controller uses only information
on the corresponding DGU and lines connected to it. This guarantee total
scalability of control synthesis as the ImG size grows or DGU gets replaced.
Yes, under mild approximations of line dynamics, we formally guarantee
stability of the overall closed-loop ImG. The performance of the proposed
controllers is analyzed simulating different scenarios in PSCAD.Comment: arXiv admin note: text overlap with arXiv:1405.242
Plug-and-play and coordinated control for bus-connected AC islanded microgrids
This paper presents a distributed control architecture for voltage and
frequency stabilization in AC islanded microgrids. In the primary control
layer, each generation unit is equipped with a local controller acting on the
corresponding voltage-source converter. Following the plug-and-play design
approach previously proposed by some of the authors, whenever the
addition/removal of a distributed generation unit is required, feasibility of
the operation is automatically checked by designing local controllers through
convex optimization. The update of the voltage-control layer, when units plug
-in/-out, is therefore automatized and stability of the microgrid is always
preserved. Moreover, local control design is based only on the knowledge of
parameters of power lines and it does not require to store a global microgrid
model. In this work, we focus on bus-connected microgrid topologies and enhance
the primary plug-and-play layer with local virtual impedance loops and
secondary coordinated controllers ensuring bus voltage tracking and reactive
power sharing. In particular, the secondary control architecture is
distributed, hence mirroring the modularity of the primary control layer. We
validate primary and secondary controllers by performing experiments with
balanced, unbalanced and nonlinear loads, on a setup composed of three
bus-connected distributed generation units. Most importantly, the stability of
the microgrid after the addition/removal of distributed generation units is
assessed. Overall, the experimental results show the feasibility of the
proposed modular control design framework, where generation units can be
added/removed on the fly, thus enabling the deployment of virtual power plants
that can be resized over time
A scalable line-independent design algorithm for voltage and frequency control in AC islanded microgrids
We propose a decentralized control synthesis procedure for stabilizing
voltage and frequency in AC Islanded microGrids (ImGs) composed of Distributed
Generation Units (DGUs) and loads interconnected through power lines. The
presented approach enables Plug-and-Play (PnP) operations, meaning that DGUs
can be added or removed without compromising the overall ImG stability. The
main feature of our approach is that the proposed design algorithm is
line-independent. This implies that (i) the synthesis of each local controller
requires only the parameters of the corresponding DGU and not the model of
power lines connecting neighboring DGUs, and (ii) whenever a new DGU is plugged
in, DGUs physically coupled with it do not have to retune their regulators
because of the new power line connected to them. Moreover, we formally prove
that stabilizing local controllers can be always computed, independently of the
electrical parameters. Theoretical results are validated by simulating in PSCAD
the behavior of a 10-DGUs ImG
Recent Developments and Challenges on AC Microgrids Fault Detection and Protection Systems–A Review
The protection of AC microgrids (MGs) is an issue of paramount importance to ensure their reliable and safe operation. Designing reliable protection mechanism, however, is not a trivial task, as many practical issues need to be considered. The operation mode of MGs, which can be grid-connected or islanded, employed control strategy and practical limitations of the power electronic converters that are utilized to interface renewable energy sources and the grid, are some of the practical constraints that make fault detection, classification, and coordination in MGs different from legacy grid protection. This article aims to present the state-of-the-art of the latest research and developments, including the challenges and issues in the field of AC MG protection. A broad overview of the available fault detection, fault classification, and fault location techniques for AC MG protection and coordination are presented. Moreover, the available methods are classified, and their advantages and disadvantages are discussed
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