Master lecture series: Dynamic control of power conversion in renewable energy systems

Modern power grids are undergoing significant infrastructure changes as power electronics-dominated power conversion systems are increasingly employed with renewable energy systems. Compared with electrical machines, a radical change with power electronics converter is the lack of physical electromechanical laws, and their dynamics are more dependent on the control system, which leads to growing dynamic issues and pose new challenges to the stability and reliability of power grids.

This course will provide a systematic study on power conversion control in the renewable energy system, by which the fundamental mechanism of various dynamic issues can be revealed with physical insights and impacts of control parameters can be quantified.

Modelling, Analysis, Design

The overall goal of the elective master course is not only to equip the students with the essential knowledge to address the dynamic issues in power electronics-dominated power grids, but also to foster their independence and creative problem-solving skills to be able to tackle the real-life industrial challenges. Specifically, the learning goals can be categorized into three aspects:

• Modelling: Be able to develop small-signal models of power electronics converters with close correlations with time-domain simulations
• Analysis: Be able to identify the root causes of the different instability phenomena of power electronics converters and their systems
• Design: Be able to design controllers in the power electronics converters to meet the given dynamic specifications.

The course will be taught with interactive lectures, workshops and a mini-project with emphasis on challenge/problem-based learning processes. The mini-projects are tasks using data from real-field for which students will establish models in PLECS software (free licence will be provided) and a flexible experimental platform to regenerate the issues and solve them using learned analytical skills.

Intended for

The course aims to foster good electrical engineers working in the renewable energy industry, including the equipment manufacturers, renewable energy system developers and consultants, and the system operators.

Note

This master lecture series is open to participants of PAO Techniek en Management. Regular students of the TU/e will attend the lecture series too. The lectures will be taught in English. Required previous knowledge: classical feedback control theory, and fundamentals of power electronics. 

Recommended materials

• X. Ruan, X. Wang, D. Pan, D. Yang, W. Li, and C. Bao, Control Technologies of the LCL-type Grid-connected Inverter. Springer, Singapore, 2018.
  https://www.springer.com/gp/book/9789811042768
   
• R. W. Erickson and D. Maksimović, Fundamentals of Power Electronics. Boston, MA: Springer US, 2001.
  https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/b100747#about

More information can be found on the website of TU/e