Model predictive control of solar photovoltaic‐based microgrid with composite energy storage

Abstract

SummaryThe renewable energy (e.g., solar photovoltaic)‐based grid‐connected microgrid (MG) with composite energy storage system (CESS) is feasible to ensure sustainable and quality power to the commercial and domestic load demands. Effective control systems provide the dynamic performance of such deployed MGs. This paper investigates the application of the finite control‐set model predictive controller (FCS‐MPC) for solar photovoltaic‐based grid‐connected MGs with composite energy storage. FCS‐MPC considers the discrete nature of interfacing (DC–AC and DC–DC) converters into the control algorithm to predict the optimal control command for reference current tracking. Compared to classical control approaches, FCS‐MPC provides a fast‐dynamic response, discards the modulation stage, and effectively handles the effects of dynamic source and load variations and nonlinear loads. The control system encapsulates a proportional–integral (PI) controller, low‐pass filter (LPF), power management algorithm (PMA) unit, and followed by the FCS‐MPC approach. The CESS unit consists of a battery and supercapacitor storage system. The efficacy of the FCS‐MPC approach is verified through the MATLAB/Simulink results. Solar photovoltaic variation due to irradiance, utility grid availability, electricity pricing, and dynamic load variations are considered in the implementation. Furthermore, real‐time simulation of the proposed method is validated using OPAL‐RT OP4510 real‐time simulator.