Effective MPPT technique and robust power control of the PMSG wind turbine

Abstract

Wind generator performance improvement requires sophisticated and robust control techniques to overcome various constraints and achieve optimal aerodynamic energy conversion. Because of the continuously changing nature of the wind, the output power of a wind energy conversion system (WECS) can be maximized if the wind rotor is driven at an optimal rotational speed for a particular wind speed. This is achieved with a maximum power point tracking (MPPT) controller. Over the years, a variety of MPPT studies have been made, but very few provide guidelines to single out the most suited MPPT technique. In this paper, a comprehensive comparison of the four most used schemes has been made in relation to a permanent magnet synchronous generator (PMSG) wind turbine system. These techniques can be classified into various categories. The obtained results show clearly the superiority of the fuzzy logic control (FLC) technique. Using this MPPT approach, the generated power by the turbine is considered to be, in terms of power control, an auxiliary source feeding a grid. To achieve smooth regulation of the active and reactive power exchange between the PMSG and the grid, direct power control, using space vector modulation DPC‐SVM strategy combined with sliding mode control (SMC) is applied in the grid‐side converter. Simulation results show the efficiency and reliability of the control strategy proposed in this paper. © 2015 Institute of Electrical Engineers of Japan. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.