A dual-loop model predictive voltage control/sliding-mode current control for voltage source inverter operation in smart microgrids

The design of a robust controller for the voltage source inverter is essential for reliable operation of distributed energy resources in future smart microgrids. The design problem is challenging in the case of autonomous operation subsequent to an islanding situation. In this article, a dual-loop controller is proposed for voltage source inverter control. The outer loop is designed for microgrid voltage and frequency regulation based on the model predictive control strategy. This outer loop generates reference inverter currents for the inner loop. The inner loop is designed using a sliding-mode control strategy, and it generates the pulse-width modulation voltage commands to regulate the inverter currents. A standard space vector algorithm is used to realize the pulse-width modulation voltage commands. Performance evaluation of the proposed controller is carried out for different loading scenarios. It is shown that the proposed dual-loop controller provides the specified performance characteristics of an islanded microgrid with different loading conditions.