Control of grid connected power converters with grid support functionalities

The installation of power generation systems based on renewable energy sources has been increasing exponentially over the last decades. However, in spite of the well-known merits of such energy sources, the expansion of renewable-based generation (RG) plants, which interface the grid through power converters, can produce also negative impacts on the electrical grid, due to its power processing mechanism, which is different from traditional generation plants. In fact, the regulation capability of the grid can decrease as much as the share of the RG increases. To avoid this, power conversion systems belonging to RG plants are requested to be more grid-friendly, and responsive to the electrical network conditions. In this way, they can contribute to the electrical network stability as other generation does, instead of behaving as simply grid-feeding systems focused on injecting as much power as possible.This PhD dissertation is focused on the control of grid-connected power converters with grid support functionalities based on the Synchronous Power Controller (SPC) concept. The SPC is an established solution for controlling grid connected power converters and equipping them with emulated and improved synchronous machine characteristics. In addition to the general goal of improving the grid interaction of the RG plants, grid support functionality stands as a main property among the characteristics given by the SPC. In this dissertation the virtual admittance structure, contained in the electrical block of the SPC, which emulates the stator output impedance of the synchronous machines, is analyzed. Moreover, it is extended to a study case where the admittance value can be different for positive- and negative-sequence components. The designed virtual admittance block contains three branches, which are responsible for positive-sequence current injection, negative-sequence current injection and other harmonic components, respectively. The converter?s performance under asymmetrical grid fault is especially considered in this case.The analysis and arrangements in the design of the SPC?s power loop controller is another contribution of this research. Other methods that consider synchronous machine emulation normally construct the controller by reproducing the synchronous generation swing equation. Based on the virtual implementation, which is free from mechanical constraints, one can set a proper damping factor achieving thus better dynamics compared to the traditional synchronous machines. However, the increase of the damping factor changes the inherent power-frequency (P-f) droop characteristics, which may lead to undesired deviations in the active power generation. In the framework of this PhD, a method that modifies the conventional swing equation emulation and lets the inherent P-f droop characteristics be configurable, independently of the inertia and damping characteristics, is proposed.The work presented in this dissertation is supported by mathematical and simulation analysis. Moreover, in order to endorse the conclusions achieved, a complete experimental validation has been conducted. As it will be shown, the performance of the SPC has been validated in tests once the main parts, namely virtual admittance and power loop controller, and other parts are settled. The simulation and experimental test scenarios include events like changes in the power operation point, frequency sweeps, voltage magnitude changes, start-up and parallel converters operation, which are given under different control configurations like the different structures for the power loop controller and different control parameters. This PhD research also compares the transient performance of the SPC-based power converters with the ones achieved with conventional control methods.