A new control strategy for a stand-alone self-excited induction generator driven by a variable speed wind turbine

This paper presents a new control strategy of a stand-alone self-excited induction generator (SEIG) driven by a variable speed wind turbine. The proposed system consists of a three phase squirrel-cage induction machine connected to a wind turbine through a step-up gear box. A current controlled voltage source inverter (CC–VSI) with an electronic load controller (ELC) is connected in parallel with the main consumer load to the AC terminals of the induction machine. The proposed control strategy is based on fuzzy logic control principles which enhance the dynamic performance of the proposed system. Three fuzzy logic PI controllers and one hysteresis current controller (HCC) are used to extract the maximum available energy from the wind turbine as well as to regulate the generator terminal voltage simultaneously against wind speed and main load variations. However, in order to extract the maximum available energy from the turbine over a wide range of wind speeds, the captured energy is limited due to electrical constraints. Therefore the control strategy proposed three modes of control operation. The steady state characteristics of the proposed system are obtained and examined in order to design the required control parameters. The proposed system is modeled and simulated using Matlab/Simulink software program to examine the dynamic characteristics of the system with proposed control strategy. Dynamic simulation results demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed control strategy.

► A new control strategy of a stand-alone SEIG driven by a VSWT is proposed. ► The proposed strategy uses a single CC–VSI with an ELC to reduce the system cost. ► Maximum energy extraction and voltage regulation are the main objectives. ► Captured energy is limited, so three modes of control operation are proposed. ► The obtained characteristics demonstrate effectiveness of the proposed strategy.