Super twisting sliding mode approach applied to voltage orientated control of a stand-alone induction generator

To enhance the robustness and dynamic performance of a self-excited induction generator (SEIG) used in a standalone wind energy system (WES), a virtual flux oriented control (VFOC) based on nonlinear super-twisting sliding mode control (STSMC) is adopted. STSMC is used to replace the conventional proportional-integral-Fuzzy Logic Controller (PI-FLC) of the inner current control loops. The combination of the proposed control strategy with space vector modulation (SVM) applied to a PWM rectifier brings many advantages such as reduction in harmonics, and precise and rapid tracking of the references. The performance of the proposed control technique (STSMC-VFOC-SVM) is verified through simulations and compared with the traditional technique (PI-FLC-VFOC-SVM). It shows that the proposed method improves the dynamics of the system with reduced current harmonics. In addition, the use of a virtual flux estimator instead of a phase-locked loop (PLL) eliminates the line voltage sensors and thus increases the reliability of the system.