Autonomous micro hydro power plant with induction generator

Autonomous micro hydro power plants (MHPP) are a reliable solution for supplying small power consumers in areas located far from the distribution grid. When an induction generator (IG) is used in such a power plant, voltage and frequency need to be stabilized. This paper presents a single control structure that ensures both the voltage and frequency regulation of an isolated induction generator (IG). The control structure consists in a voltage source inverter (VSI) with a dump load (DL) circuit on its DC side. The VSI operates at constant frequency, thus stabilizing the IG frequency also. For voltage regulation two cascaded regulators are used, which have as reference the line voltage and the VSI DC voltage, respectively. Simulations and experiments are carried out in order to investigate the reliability of such configuration when supplying static and dynamic loads.

► Single control structure for an autonomous micro hydro power plant.
► Voltage and frequency regulation of an isolated induction generator.
► Voltage source inverter (VSI) plus dump load (DL) combination.
► Both resistive and highly inductive loads can be supplied.