Combined Voltage and Frequency Control for Diverse Standalone Microgrid Networks Using Flexible IDC with Novel FOC: A Real-Time Validation

Abstract

In this paper, a maiden application of combined voltage and frequency control ensures voltage, frequency, and power regulation in diverse standalone low voltage AC microgrid (MG) networks by combining flexible improved droop control (IDC) with a novel fractional-order controller (FOC) proposed. An effort is made to design an IDC into the control loop based on virtual power, virtual negative resistance, inductance, and FOC to ensure power decupling and compensate voltage source converter (VSC) based distributed generators feeder voltage drop. A maiden proportional fractional integral derivative filter plus double derivative $\left(P{I}^{\lambda }DF{D}^2\right)$ controller is used to precisely monitor VSC voltage and current reference value for reducing the control errors. The controller robustness regarding system parameters uncertainties, unmodeled dynamics, and disturbance in the MG system is ensured by a new memetic salp swarm algorithm by finding optimal $P{I}^{\lambda }DF{D}^2$ controller parameters. Several simulation studies in the MATLAB Simulink environment were conducted to verify the efficacy of the proposed technique. The suggested control methodology is also investigated by hardware in the loop using the OPAL-RT real-time simulator platform to demonstrate the controllers practical functional realization. The findings confirmed the efficacy of the proposed strategy.

Keywords:

• Distributed voltage source converter (VSC)
• Fractional order control (FOC)
• Hardware in the loop (HIL)
• Improved droop control (IDC)
• Microgrid (MG)
• Virtual impedance

DISCLOSURE STATEMENT

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

The author(s) reported there is no funding associated with the work featured in this article.

Notes on contributors

Manoja Kumar Behera

Manoja Kumar Behera received the BTech degree in electrical engineering and MTech degree in power system and power electronics from Siksha ‘O’ Anusandhan deemed to be university, Bhubaneswar, Odisha, India, in 2015 and 2017, respectively. Currently, he is working towards the PhD degree in electrical engineering at National Institute of Technology Silchar, Assam, India. His areas of research interest include PV power forecasting, PV MPP tracking, microgrid control, power sharing among static DGs in transient and steady state, and power quality.

Lalit Chandra Saikia

Lalit Chandra Saikia received BE degree in electrical engineering from Dibrugarh University, Assam, India, in 1993, MTech degree in power systems from Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Delhi in 2007, and the PhD degree in electrical engineering from National Institute of Technology (NIT) Silchar, Assam, India in 2012. He is currently working as an associate professor in the Department of electrical engineering, in NIT Silchar, Assam, India. He has authored or coauthored hundreds of his research articles in reputed international journals and conferences. He is a senior member of IEEE. His research interests include power system control, soft computing application in power systems, power system under deregulated AGC, power quality, distribution generation, smart grid, and demand-side management. Email: [email protected]