Renewable energy sources like wind, sun, and hydro are seen as a reliable alternative to the traditional energy sources such as oil, natural gas, or coal. Distributed power generation systems (DPGSs) based on renewable energy sources experience a large development worldwide, with Germany, Denmark, Japan, and USA as leaders in the development in this field. Due to the increasing number of DPGSs connected to the utility network, new and stricter standards in respect to power quality, safe running, and islanding protection are issued. As a consequence, the control of distributed generation systems should be improved to meet the requirements for grid interconnection. This paper gives an overview of the structures for the DPGS based on fuel cell, photovoltaic, and wind turbines. In addition, control structures of the grid-side converter are presented, and the possibility of compensation for low-order harmonics is also discussed. Moreover, control strategies when running on grid faults are treated. This paper ends up with an overview of synchronization methods and a discussion about their importance in the control

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Overview of Control and Grid Synchronization for Distributed Power Generation Systems

The recently introduced proportional-resonant (PR) controllers and filters, and their suitability for current/voltage control of grid-connected converters, are described. Using the PR controllers, the converter reference tracking performance can be enhanced and previously known shortcomings associated with conventional PI controllers can be alleviated. These shortcomings include steady-state errors in single-phase systems and the need for synchronous d-q transformation in three-phase systems. Based on similar control theory, PR filters can also be used for generating the harmonic command reference precisely in an active power filter, especially for single-phase systems, where d-q transformation theory is not directly applicable. Another advantage associated with the PR controllers and filters is the possibility of implementing selective harmonic compensation without requiring excessive computational resources. Given these advantages and the belief that PR control will find wide-ranging applications in grid-interfaced converters, PR control theory is revised in detail with a number of practical cases that have been implemented previously, described clearly to give a comprehensive reference on PR control and filtering.

Proportional-resonant controllers and filters for grid-connected voltage-source converters

This chapter gives a description and overview of power electronic technologies including a description of the fundamental systems that are the building blocks of power electronic systems. Technologies that are described include: power semiconductor switching devices, converter circuits that process energy from one DC level to another DC level, converters that produce variable frequency from DC sources, principles of rectifying AC input voltage in uncontrolled DC output voltage and their extension to controlled rectifiers, converters that convert to AC from DC (inverters) or from AC with fixed or variable output frequency (AC controllers, DC–DC–AC converters, matrix converters, or cycloconverters). The chapter also covers control of power converters with focus on pulse width modulation (PWM) control techniques.

https://www.springer.com/cda/content/document/cda_downloaddocument/9781447151036-c2.pdf?SGWID=0-0-45-1404710-p175009438

Fundamentals of Power Electronics

In this paper, a power control strategy is proposed for a low-voltage microgrid, where the mainly resistive line impedance, the unequal impedance among distributed generation (DG) units, and the microgrid load locations make the conventional frequency and voltage droop method unpractical. The proposed power control strategy contains a virtual inductor at the interfacing inverter output and an accurate power control and sharing algorithm with consideration of both impedance voltage drop effect and DG local load effect. Specifically, the virtual inductance can effectively prevent the coupling between the real and reactive powers by introducing a predominantly inductive impedance even in a low-voltage network with resistive line impedances. On the other hand, based on the predominantly inductive impedance, the proposed accurate reactive power sharing algorithm functions by estimating the impedance voltage drops and significantly improves the reactive power control and sharing accuracy. Finally, considering the different locations of loads in a multibus microgrid, the reactive power control accuracy is further improved by employing an online estimated reactive power offset to compensate the effects of DG local load power demands. The proposed power control strategy has been tested in simulation and experimentally on a low-voltage microgrid prototype.

An Accurate Power Control Strategy for Power-Electronics-Interfaced Distributed Generation Units Operating in a Low-Voltage Multibus Microgrid

This paper proposes a hybrid ac/dc micro grid to reduce the processes of multiple dc-ac-dc or ac-dc-ac conversions in an individual ac or dc grid. The hybrid grid consists of both ac and dc networks connected together by multi-bidirectional converters. AC sources and loads are connected to the ac network whereas dc sources and loads are tied to the dc network. Energy storage systems can be connected to dc or ac links. The proposed hybrid grid can operate in a grid-tied or autonomous mode. The coordination control algorithms are proposed for smooth power transfer between ac and dc links and for stable system operation under various generation and load conditions. Uncertainty and intermittent characteristics of wind speed, solar irradiation level, ambient temperature, and load are also considered in system control and operation. A small hybrid grid has been modeled and simulated using the Simulink in the MATLAB. The simulation results show that the system can maintain stable operation under the proposed coordination control schemes when the grid is switched from one operating condition to another.

A Hybrid AC/DC Microgrid and Its Coordination Control

Current regulators for AC inverters are commonly categorized as hysteresis, linear PI, or deadbeat predictive regulators, with a further sub-classification into stationary ABC frame and synchronous d-q frame implementations. Synchronous frame regulators are generally accepted to have a better performance than stationary frame regulators, as they operate on DC quantities and hence can eliminate steady-state errors. This paper establishes a theoretical connection between these two classes of regulators and proposes a new type of stationary frame regulator, the P+Resonant regulator, which achieves the same transient and steady-state performance as a synchronous frame PI regulator. The new regulator is applicable to both single-phase and three phase inverters.

Stationary frame current regulation of PWM inverters with zero steady-state error

Current regulators for AC inverters are commonly categorised as hysteresis, linear PI or deadbeat predictive, with a further subclassification into stationary ABC frame and synchronous DQ frame implementations. Synchronous frame controllers are generally accepted to have a better performance than stationary frame controllers do, as they operate on DC quantities and hence can eliminate steady state errors. This paper establishes a theoretical connection between these two classes of regulators and proposes a new type of stationary frame controller, which achieves the same steady state performance as a synchronous frame controller. The new controller is applicable to both single phase and three phase inverters.

Stationary frame current regulation of PWM inverters with zero steady state error

Stationary frame linear PI current regulators are conventionally regarded as unsatisfactory for AC systems because they cannot eliminate steady state errors. Consequently, synchronous frame regulators are perceived to be superior, since they achieve zero steady state error by acting on DC signals in a rotating frame of reference. However, a synchronous frame regulator is more complex, and requires in particular a way of transforming a measured stationary frame AC current (or error) to rotating frame DC quantities, and transforming the resultant control action back to the stationary frame for implementation. This paper presents a technique for interpreting the stationary/rotating frame transformations as modulation processes in the Laplace domain which move the control function from one part of the frequency spectrum to another. The technique is used to compare stationary and synchronous frame PI regulators on a common basis to better understand the advantages of a synchronous frame regulator, and then to develop a new form of stationary frame resonant regulator which achieves zero steady state error without requiring the complex transformations of a synchronous frame regulator. The performance of this new regulator is evaluated and found to be equivalent to that of the synchronous frame PI regulator.

Frequency domain analysis of three phase linear current regulators

Most of the many reported control algorithms for uninterruptible power supplies (UPSs) use either filter inductor or filter capacitor currents as feedback variables to regulate the output voltage. This paper explores the fundamental performance issues associated with the use of these quantities as feedback variables, with a view to determining their contribution to the transient system response and output harmonic compensation in any particular situation. A proportional plus resonant (P+resonant) compensator is then added into the outer voltage regulation loop to achieve zero steady error, to develop a high performance UPS control algorithm, which is applicable to both single-phase and three-phase systems. Theory, simulation, and experimental results are presented in the paper.

A comparative analysis of multiloop voltage regulation strategies for single and three-phase UPS systems

Harmonic reference generators for active filter systems are commonly implemented in the synchronous reference frame, so that simple low- or high-pass filter functions can be used depending on the requirements of a particular application. High-pass filters in particular are used when the reference generator is required to produce an "everything but the fundamental" target waveform. This paper presents a stationary frame notch filter equivalent to a high-pass synchronous frame harmonic reference generator for such systems. The use of the stationary frame allows for quicker calculation of the reference generation in a discrete digital implementation, and also allows classical control techniques to be used to analyze the active filter system without requiring synchronous frame transformations of the outside system model. Both simulation (continuous and discrete) and experimental results showing the equivalency of the stationary and synchronous frame reference generation process are presented using both shift and delta-operator-based infinite-impulse response digital filters.

D.N. Zmood

Papers

Stationary frame current regulation of PWM inverters with zero steady-state error

Stationary frame current regulation of PWM inverters with zero steady state error

Frequency domain analysis of three phase linear current regulators

A comparative analysis of multiloop voltage regulation strategies for single and three-phase UPS systems

Stationary frame harmonic reference generation for active filter systems