A New Load Frequency Control Technique for Hybrid Maritime Microgrids: Sophisticated Structure of Fractional-Order PIDA Controller

Abstract

This paper proposes an efficient load frequency control (LFC) technique based on a fractional-order proportional–integral–derivative–accelerator with a low-pass filter compensator (FOPIDA-LPF) controller, which can also be accurately referred to as the PIλDND2N2 controller. A trustworthy metaheuristic optimization algorithm, known as the gray wolf optimizer (GWO), is used to fine-tune the suggested PIλDND2N2 controller parameters. Moreover, the proposed PIλDND2N2 controller is designed for the LFC of a self-contained hybrid maritime microgrid system (HMμGS) containing solid oxide fuel cell energy units, a marine biodiesel generator, renewable energy sources (RESs), non-sensitive loads, and sensitive loads. The proposed controller enables the power system to deal with random variations in load and intermittent renewable energy sources. Comparisons with various controllers used in the literature demonstrate the excellence of the proposed PIλDND2N2 controller. Additionally, the proficiency of GWO optimization is checked against other powerful optimization techniques that have been extensively researched: particle swarm optimization and ant lion optimization. Finally, the simulation results performed by the MATLAB software prove the effectiveness and reliability of the suggested PIλDND2N2 controller built on the GWO under several contingencies of different load perturbations and random generation of RESs. The proposed controller can maintain stability within the system, while also greatly decreasing overshooting and minimizing the system’s settling time and rise time.