Decentralized and Distributed Transient Control for Microgrids

This paper presents a comprehensive approach toward the design of primary and secondary controllers in low-inertia power grids with mixed lines and a large amount of inverter-interfaced generation. First, a complete dynamic phasor model is developed that represents the electromagnetic and electromechanic dynamics of lines, inverters, synchronous machines, and constant power loads. The model offers a straightforward way to combine white-, gray- and black-box models, and its structure lends itself well to control design. In a second step, it is shown how a recently developed robust fixed-structure control design method can be applied to the challenging and relevant problem of primary and secondary control in medium-and low-voltage grids. A comprehensive three-part simulation example demonstrates how frequency and voltage transient stability and performance can be achieved through a methodical design process. It is also shown how nonstandard performance specifications such as proportional power sharing can be directly incorporated in the design. Finally, a distributed secondary controller from the literature is reformulated and designed using the presented framework, and all results are validated in nonlinear simulation.