Flexible Active Power Control for PV-ESS Systems: A Review

The penetration of solar energy in the modern power system is still increasing with a fast growth rate after long development due to reduced environmental impact and ever-decreasing photovoltaic panel cost. Meanwhile, distribution networks have to deal with a huge amount and frequent fluctuations of power due to the intermittent nature of solar energy, which influences the grid stability and could cause a voltage rise in the low-voltage grid. In order to reduce these fluctuations and ensure a stable and reliable power supply, energy storage systems are introduced, as they can absorb or release energy on demand, which provides more control flexibility for PV systems. At present, storage technologies are still under development and integrated in renewable applications, especially in smart grids, where lowering the cost and enhancing the reliability are the main tasks. This study reviews and discusses several active power control strategies for hybrid PV and energy storage systems that deliver ancillary services for grid support. The technological advancements and developments of energy storage systems in grid-tied PV applications are also reviewed.

Model-based control of wind turbines for active power control

This paper addresses the model-based control design of wind turbines using the sector-nonlinearity approach. Building on the Takagi-Sugeno framework, this approach introduces an exact representation of the underlying nonlinear dynamics into the control design. The unified wind turbine control design followed in this study addresses both established (power optimization in the partial load and power limitation in the full-load region) and further requirements for wind turbine systems. An important control objective for wind turbines is the ability to support grid operators with frequency control. To achieve this, an active power control scheme is inherited in the design model such that changes in the power generation can be balanced and the grid frequency may be controlled. First, the derivation of models designed to achieve the multiple control objectives is presented in detail. After that, a unified synthesis procedure based on linear matrix inequalities is discussed and applied. Finally, the quality of the design process is evaluated through simulation studies for representative scenarios.

Comparison of two control strategies for VSC-MTDC with wind farm

: Two VSC-MTDC control strategies with different combinations of controllers are proposed to eliminate transient fluctuations in the DC voltage stability, resulting from a power imbalance in a VSC-MTDC connected to wind farms. First, an analysis is performed of a topological model of a VSC converter station and a VSC-MTDC, as well as of a mathematical model of a wind turbine. Then, the principles and characteristics of DC voltage slope control, constant active power control, and inner loop current control used in the VSC-MTDC are introduced. Finally, the PSCAD/EMTDC platform is used to establish an electromagnetic transient model of a wind farm connected to a parallel three-terminal VSC-HVDC. An analysis is performed for three cases of single-phase grounding faults on the rectifier and inverter sides of a converter station and of the withdrawal of the converter station on the rectifier side. Next, the fault response characteristics of VSC-MTDC are compared and analyzed. The simulation results verify the effectiveness of the two control strategies, both of which enable the system to maintain DC voltage stability and active power balance in the event of a fault. Background: The use of a VSC-MTDC to connect wind power to the grid has attracted considerable attention in recent years. A suitable VSC-MTDC control method can enable the stable operation of a power grid. Objective: The study aims to eliminate transient fluctuations in the DC voltage stability resulting from a power imbalance in a VSC-MTDC connected to a wind farm. Method: First, the topological structure and a model of a three-terminal VSC-HVDC system connected to wind farms are studied. Second, an analysis is performed of the outer loop DC voltage slope control, constant active power control and inner loop current control of the converter station of a VSC-MTDC. Two different control strategies are proposed for the parallel three-terminal VSC-HVDC system: the first is DC voltage slope control for the rectifier station and constant active power control for the inverter station, and the second is DC voltage slope control for the inverter station and constant active power for the rectifier station. Finally, a parallel three-terminal VSC-HVDC model is built based on the PSCAD/EMTDC platform and used to verify the accuracy and effectiveness of the proposed control strategy. Results: The results of simulation analysis of the faults on the rectifier and inverter sides of the system show that both strategies can restore the system to the stable operation. The effectiveness of the proposed control strategy is thus verified. Conclusion: The control strategy proposed in this paper provides a technical reference for designing a VSC-MTDC system for wind farms.