Microgrid Operation Control with Adaptable Droop Gains

TL;DR

This paper proposes an adaptive droop gain control scheme for microgrids, improving renewable utilization and operational flexibility by solving a finite horizon optimization problem with a robust model predictive control approach.

Contribution

It introduces a bilinear formulation for optimal power and droop gain control, enabling adaptive adjustments in microgrid operation under uncertainty.

Findings

Renewable utilization increased by up to 7.5% with adaptive gains.

Fuel cell power output reduced by 6% using variable droop gains.

Enhanced microgrid flexibility and efficiency demonstrated through simulations.

Abstract

Modern low-carbon power systems come with many challenges, such as increased inverter penetration and increased uncertainty from renewable sources and loads. In this context, the microgrid concept is a promising approach, which is based on a segmentation of the grid into independent smaller cells that can run either in grid-connected or standalone mode.In microgrids, droop control is widely used for primary control. It enables proportional power sharing, depending on the droop gains. Operation control schemes considering droop control often assume fixed droop gains. However, using adaptive droop gains for grid-forming units allow to shape power sharing in presence of fluctuations, enhancing flexibility while maintaining a safe microgrid operation, particularly under uncertainty. This work introduces a bilinear formulation for microgrid operation control that finds optimal power setpoints and droop gains on a timescale of minutes by solving a finite horizon optimization problem. In detail, a robust minmax model predictive control scheme is designed for a standalone microgrid, comprising a fuel cell, a photovoltaic system and an energy storage. Closed-loop simulations are performed with and without variable droop gains. The results show an increase in renewable utilization of up to 7.5 % while reducing the power output of the fuel cell by 6 %, when allowing variable droop gains.