This paper discusses the challenges faced by electric power systems due to the increasing use of inverter-based renewable energy resources (IBRs) operating in grid-following mode (GFL) and the limited support they provide for the grid’s reliability and stability. With increased IBRs connected to the grid, electric utilities are increasingly requiring IBRs to behave like traditional grid-forming (GFM) synchronous generators to provide support for inertia, frequency, voltage, black start capability, and more. The paper focuses on developing GFM inverter technologies with L, LC, and LCL filters and investigates the performance of combined GFM and GFL inverters with different filtering mechanisms when supplying different types of loads. It also emphasizes achieving voltage controllability at the point of common coupling of the GFM with the rest of an AC system. EMT simulation is utilized to investigate the interaction of combined GFM and GFL inverters with different filtering mechanisms. The research results will assist electric utilities in ensuring the reliability and stability of electric power systems in the future.
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Modeling and Stability Analysis of Grid-Connected Inverters with Different LCL Filter Parameters
Microgrid are gaining popularity due to several advantages like potential for fuel savings and resiliency in case of grid catastrophic failures. In a microgrid, many energy sources
like wind and solar farms are connected to the grid through inverters with different power ratings and LCL filter parameters. The inverters incorporated in these systems might have a different frequency response and stability ranges than those inverters with identical LCL filter values. This paper establishes the model and analyzes the stability of a system with multiple paralleled- and grid-connected inverters with different LCL filter paramenters
using the grid-side currents as feedback signals. The analysis results showed that a method similar to the interactive and common current analysis technique used on inverters with identical LCL filters can be implemented on a system with different LCL filers to calculate the maximum values of the inverters’ current controller gains without having to derive the complicated equations of the MIMO system.
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- Award ID(s):
- 1747757
- NSF-PAR ID:
- 10084334
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- 2018 IEEE Electronic Power Grid (eGrid)
- Page Range / eLocation ID:
- 1 to 6
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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In this work, a synchronous model for grid-connected and islanded microgrids is presented. The grid-connected model is based on the premise that the reference frame is synchronized with the AC bus. The quadrature component of the AC bus voltage can be cancelled, which allows to express output power as a linear equation for nominal values in the AC bus amplitude voltage. The model for the islanded microgrid is developed by integrating all the inverter dynamics using a state-space model for the load currents. This model is presented in a comprehensive way such that it could be scalable to any number of inverter-based generators using inductor–capacitor–inductor (LCL) output filters. The use of these models allows designers to assess microgrid stability and robustness using modern control methods such as eigenvalue analysis and singular value diagrams. Both models were tested and validated in an experimental setup to demonstrate their accuracy in describing microgrid dynamics. In addition, three scenarios are presented: non-controlled model, Linear-Quadratic Integrator (LQI) power control, and Power-Voltage (PQ/Vdq) droop–boost controller. Experimental results demonstrate the effectiveness of the control strategies and the accuracy of the models to describe microgrid dynamics.more » « less
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Distributed generation is gaining greater penetration levels in distribution grids due to government incentives for integrating distributed energy resources (DERs) and DER cost reductions. The frequency response of a grid-connected single inverter changes as other inverters are connected in parallel due to the couplings among grid inductance and/or inverter output filters. The selection of the inverter- or grid-side currents as feedback control signals is then not trivial because each one has tradeoffs. This paper analyses the system stability for multiple parallel- and grid-connected inverters using the inverter- or gridside currents as feedback signals. Modeling of both feedback signals is performed using the current separation technique. Moreover, the stability range for different conditions including active damping is analyzed through the root locus technique. The grid-side current has a wider range of stability, but the inverterside current allows for higher values of the proportional gain near the critical frequency and no extra sensors are needed since measurement of the inverter current is needed for protection in high-power applications.more » « less
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null (Ed.)Increased capacity associated with renewable energy sources has created a need for improved methods for controlling power flows from inverter-based generation. This research provides a comparative study of finite-control-set model predictive current control (FCS-MPC-based) with respect to conventional proportional-integral-based (PI-based) synchronous current control for a three-phase voltage source inverter (VSI). The inverter is accompanied by an inductive-capacitive-inductive (LCL) filter to attenuate pulse width modulation (PWM) switching harmonics. However, an LCL filter introduces a resonance near to the control stability boundary, giving rise to substantial complexity from a control perspective. In order to avoid potential instability caused by the resonance, active damping can be included in the PI-based current control. Though properly designed active damping can improve inverter stability, in practice the robustness of standard PI control is not attainable due to variability in the grid inductance at the point of common coupling (PCC). This is due to impedance variations causing large shifts in the LCL resonance frequency. Weak grid conditions (i.e., a low short-circuit ratio) and a correspondingly high line impedance are particularly susceptible to LCL induced resonance instabilities. As an approach to operate with grid impedance variations and weak grid conditions, FCS-MPC has the potential to produce superior performance compared to PI-based current control methods. This comparative study indicates that FCS-MPC has improved resonance damping and fast dynamic capability in a system with renewable energy sources under weak grid conditions. Detailed results from MATLAB/SimPower are presented to validate the suggested FCS-MPC method where it is robust to uncertainty in the grid impedance variations. Overall results indicate an improvement over conventional PI-based current control methods.more » « less
- Free Publicly Accessible Full Text
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Accepted Manuscript1.0
- Conference Paper:
- https://doi.org/10.1109/eGRID.2018.8598670
