Smart — STATCOM control strategy implementation in wind power plants

High penetration of wind energy into the grid may introduce stability and power quality problems due to the fluctuating nature of the wind and the increasing complexity of the power system. By implementing advanced functionalities in power converters, it is possible to improve the performance of the wind farm and also to provide grid support, as it is required by the grid codes. One of the main compliance difficulties that can be found in such power plants are related to reactive power compensation and to keep the harmonics content between the allowed limits, even if the power of the WPP converters is increasing. This paper deals with an advanced control strategy design of a three-level converter performing STATCOM and Active Filter functionalities. The proposed system is called Smart-STATCOM since it has the capability of self-controlling reactive power and harmonic voltages at the same time. Therefore, deciding the amount of non-active currents (fundamental, 5th and 7th harmonics) to be injected depending on the PCC voltage quality. Experimental results of the proposed control strategy are analyzed in order to validate the performance of the entire system.