Primary frequency regulation in islandec microgrids through droop-based generation and demand control

Abstract

Conventionally, droop control has been used for primary frequency control, allowing generators to share imbalances in generation and load. This paper proposes the use of different types of droop-based control logics for load regulation to turn on or off groups of loads to help restore the system power balance. The proposed droop-based controllers are used by an aggregator to identify individual loads that can be used for demand response (DR) and control them according to their assigned priority. This procedure incorporates an incentive provided by the utility to the customer to allow control of their loads. Also, we will show that droop control can be used on a variety of resources in an MG at the same time, including energy storage system (ESS), generator, and loads to cooperatively contribute to frequency stabilization. Numerical experiments presented show that the proposed method is an effective way to prevent large frequency deviations due to variations in renewable generation and power contingencies in islanded MGs.