MPPT of Multi-signal Feedforward Doubly-fed Asynchronous Wind

Turbine
Lin Pan1,2,3 , Ping Yan1 , Yong Shi4
1. School of Logistics Engineering, Wuhan University of Technology, Wuhan 430063, China
E-mail: linpandr@163.com; djkyanping@163.com
2. State Key Laboratory of Ocean Engineering, Shanghai Jiaotong University, Shanghai 200240, China
3. National Engineering Research Center for Water Transport Safety (WTS Center), Wuhan 430063, China
4. UMR SADAPT, INRA, Université Paris-Saclay, Paris, France
E-mail: shiyonghbwh@gmail.com

Abstract: In this paper, a novel method of Maximum Power Point Tracking(MPPT) for wind turbines based on multi-
signal feed forward is proposed. By introducing the additional speed obtained by multi-signal feedforward, the optimal
speed is superimposed to the traditional method as the new reference speed of the hybrid system, which improves the
response speed and stability of the system. Moreover, Sliding Mode Control(SMC) is combined with signal feedforward.
The new sliding mode control rate is used to weaken the power oscillation of the wind turbine to improve the stability of
the system. Finally, the simulation results show that the proposed new structure and system are feasible and effective for
the wind turbine to maintain its maximum power point.
Key Words: Wind Turbine, MPPT, SMC, Multi-signal Feedforward

1 INTRODUCTION stability. Optimal power control is independent of the wind

With the increasing demand for energy, the development
of new alternative clean energy sources has become a new
research focus. Wind energy is considered to be the clean-
est and most promising energy source. In recent years, the
global wind power industry has also been rapid develop-
ment, in 2018 the new installed capacity of the global wind
turbine 51.3GW, in 2019-2021 the new installed capacity
of the wind turbine is expected to be 62.6GW, 70.1GW,
70.2GW. However, the volatility, uncertainty and intermit-
tent characteristics of wind speed make it difficult for wind
turbines to be connected to the grid. Keeping wind turbines
running at maximum power points is of great significance
for improving the stability of wind power systems and cap-
turing maximum power [1].
The MPPT control system is to enable the wind turbine
to track the maximum power point. According to its con-
trol principle, Currently, the most commonly used meth-
ods of MPPT include Tip Speed Ratio (TSR), The Optimal
Turque (OT) and Power Signal Feedback (PSF) [2]. The
optimal tip speed ratio method depends on the true wind
speed and the characteristics of the wind power generation
system. Different power generation systems have differ-
ent optimal values. Literature [3] proposed an intelligent
MPPT algorithm that combines power and wind speed to
reduce the range of speed difference and improve system
This work was supported by the Fundamental Research Funds for
the Central Universities (WUT: 173118001), the Open Project Program
of National Engineering Research Center for Water Transport Safety (No.
A2019006), and the Open Project Program of State Key Laboratory of
Ocean Engineering (No. 1812).
speed, the generator power is controlled by a double closed
loop control system. Literature [4] proposed a PI controller
based on cruise control to improve power tracking. Liter-
ature [5] proposed a control structure without speed sen-
sor, which has strong robustness and stability to parame-
ter uncertainty and wind speed disturbance. With the im-
provement of control precision by modern industrial con-
trol, MPPT now uses hybrid control more, using new intel-
ligent algorithms, optimal path optimization, etc. to solve
the problem [6, 7, 8, 9].
Sliding mode control, as a kind of nonlinear control, has
advantages of fast response, insensitivity of correspond-
ing parameters and simple physical implementation etc.
[10, 11, 12, 13]. The sliding mode control makes it pos-
sible to solve the problem that the generator is unstable and
the power sharking is too large. Literature [14] proposed
a fractional-order slip film control to improve the output
power quality of permanent magnet synchronous genera-
tor. In literature [15], the optimal power extraction control
design of permanent magnet synchronous motor variable
speed wind turbine based on passive sliding mode control
is proposed.
It is difficult to simultaneously consider the response speed
and dynamic stability of the system. In this paper, a max-
imum power point tracking method for wind power gen-
eration systems based on multi-signal feedforward is pro-
posed. Based on the optimal power curve and optimal
torque curve of the wind turbine, the signal error of the
wind turbine power and torque is controlled and fitted, and
the new additional torque is added to superimpose it to
the optimal speed of the traditional method. Get the new

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best speed on the top. In order to reduce the oscillation corresponding to the maximum torque coefficient. The
of power, the multi-signal feedforward control and sliding thick dashed line is the best tip speed ratio trajectory. The
mode control are combined to design a new sliding mode best curve appears at different speeds.
control approach law to further improve the dynamic sta-
bility of the system. Simulations were performed on MAT-
LAB software to verify its accuracy and reliability.
The structure of the article is as follows. Section 2 de-
scribes the DFIG wind power system. Section 3 introduces
the maximum power point tracking structure for multi-
signal feedforward. Section 4 shows the sliding pattern
structure of the new exponential approach law. Section 5
shows MATLAB Simulation results. Finally, it is summa-
rized in Section 6. Figure 2: Relationship between wind wheel torque, optimal
power and rotor speed
2 WIND POWER SYSTEM MODEL
2.1 Wind Turbine Model
2.2 DFIG Model
The actual captured output power of the rotor is represented
by the power efficient C p : Through the coordinate transformation, the variable in the
three-phase coordinate system is represented by the vari-
1 able in a two-phase stationary coordinate system by the
Pwt = ρπR2 v3C p (λ , β ) (1)
2 principle of constant amplitude.
Wherein, the power coefficient C p is the function of the tip The stator voltage equation is shown in equation (6):
speed ratio λ and the pitch angle β , and the relationship ®
can be approximated by the equations (2) and (3): usα = Rs isα + dψdtsα
dψsβ (6)
c2 c5 usβ = Rs isβ + dt
C p (λ , β ) = c1 ( − c3 β − c4 )e λi + c6 λ (2)
λi Electromagnetic torque equation is shown in (7):

1 1 0.035 3
= − 3 (3) Tm = n p Lm (isβ irβ − isα irβ ) (7)
λi λ + 0.08β β + 1 2
The three-dimensional relationship between power factor The equation of motion is shown in (8):
and pitch angle and tip speed ratio is shown in Figure 1.
dωwt J dωm
Tm − Twt = J = (8)
0.5 0.6
dt n p dt
0.4
0.3 0.5 The active and reactive power provided by the motor can
Cp

0.2
0.1
0.4 be expressed in formula (9):
0 0.3
ß
0
0.2 Ps = usα isα + usβ isβ
6
(9)
12
0.1 Qs = usβ isα + usα isβ
18
24 0
5 0
30
20
15
10
3 MPPT OF MSF STRUCTURE
The doubly-fed induction wind power generation system
Figure 1: C p - λ - β relation chart
is a high-order, nonlinear and strongly coupled multivari-
able system. Figure 3 is a typical grid-connected opera-
At any wind speed, it is only necessary to keep the style at tion topology of a wind power generation system.The main
the optimum tip speed ratio λopt to keep the fan running at function of the RSC is to realize the decoupling control of
the maximum power factor. At this point, the best power stator active and reactive power. The main function of the
from the wind is: GSC is to maintain the stability of the DC bus voltage and
control the power factor by controlling the active exchange
1 R 3 3
Pwtmax = ρπR2C pmax ( ) ωwt (4) between the rotor and the grid [16, 17, 18].
2 λopt
The wind speed will often be stepped. At this time, the op-
The best torque obtained is: timal speed and the optimal torque will change, but due to
the huge inertia of the wind turbine, the speed and torque of
1 R 2 2
Twtmax = ρπR3CT max ( ) ωwt (5) the wind turbine will not change immediately. At this time,
2 λT max if the optimum blade tip ratio reference method is contin-
Figure 2 shows the relationship between the wind wheel ued, the input of the control error is further expanded. At
torque and the rotor speed at different wind speeds. The the same time, the instability of the entire system is in-
thick solid line is the maximum tip speed ratio trajectory creased.

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 Figure 3: DFIG wind power system grid-connected operation topology
Figure 4: MSF MPPT controller
Therefore, based on the original methods, a MPPT method
based on multi-signal feedback is proposed. The topology
structure of the method is shown in Figure 4.
By introducing two signals of power and torque, the feed
control outer ring is matched by the wind turbine real-time
power and the real-time torque respectively at the optimal
power value and the optimal torque value, and the output
values of the two feedforward outer loop controls are fitted
to obtain an additional rotational speed Δω. The resulting
additional speed is superimposed on the original optimum
speed to produce a new reference speed. It can be seen from
Figure 2 that the wind speed corresponding to the optimal
torque and the optimal speed of the wind turbine does not
completely coincide. The optimal torque will appear before
the optimal speed. The output of the signal is fitted in real
time to achieve optimal control. See the expression (10) for
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the formulation of the reference speed:
ωre f = Δω + ωopt (10)
The new speed signal is compared with the actual speed
as the input of the sliding mode control. Through the slid-
ing mode control, the stability and robustness of the system
are further improved to achieve the maximum wind energy
capture. To fit the two speeds, the additional speed obtained
is shown in equation (11):
Δω = a0 Δω1 + a1 Δω2 (11)
4 SLIDING MODE CONTROL
Sliding mode control can be seen as a control strategy con-
sisting of two dominant stages: the sliding mode sliding
phase and the sliding mode arrival phase. The important
advantage of sliding mode control is robustness. When the
system is in the sliding model, the model error and param-
eters change of the controlled object are very sensitive to
the external interference. Therefore, for objects with high
volatility such as wind energy, sliding mode control is very
suitable.
For exponential approach law:
ṡ = −ksgn(s) − αs, k>0, α>0 (12)
Compare with the sgn(s) sign function in the exponential
approach law, in order to further suppress the chattering,
the tanh activation function is used to replace the sgn(s)
sign function in the traditional approach law. The tanh
function expression is:
eαs − e−αs
tanh(s) = (13)
eαs + e−αs
By improving the exponential approach law and combin-
ing the activation function, a new exponential approach law
function is proposed:

−k|s|α
ṡ = tanh(s) (14)
E(s)
Where the expression of E(s) is:
μ
E(s) = sin θ + cos θ e−|s| (15)
Among them, α, k, and μ are positive ,and |s| is the ab-
solute value of s. Because of the existence of the denomi- Figure 6: The new exponential approach law reaches the
nator E(S), the newly proposed exponential approach rate image of the sliding surface
is compared with the other approaches. There is a faster
speed to reach the sliding surface. When taking a specific
value for the new exponential approach law, for example,
α = 0.5, μ = 2, θ is taken as [ 24π π π π π 5π π
, 12 , 6 , 4 , 3 , 12 , 2 ], the ˙ = −k|s|α
V (s) μ tanh(s)s ≤ 0 (21)
relationship between the symbol function and s is shown in sin θ + cos θ e−|s|
Figure 5. In summary, the Lyapunov function V (s) is positive def-
˙ is negative, the stability theorem of Lyapunov
inite, V (s)
function is satisfied, so this sliding mode control system is
widely progressive. Taking the rotational speed error as the
input of the controller, outputting the q-axis current refer-
ence value, and the expression of the state variable is:
ß
x1 = ωre f − ω
(22)
x2 = x˙1
Finally get:
Figure 5: New index approaching the image of the law un-
der different parameters
˙ = 1 k|s|α
iqr [cx2 + μ tanh(s)] (23)
B sin θ + cos θ e−|s|
For a second-order nonlinear system, the sliding mode 5 SIMULATION
switching function chosen is:
The specific parameters of the doubly-fed induction ma-
s = cx + ẋ (16) chine are shown in Table 1. In order to simplify the struc-
ture of the wind turbine, a single mass model is used.
According to the co-establishment formula (14), (16) ob-
tains:
Table 1: DFIG parameters
−k|s|α parameters values
ṡ = cẋ + ẍ = μ tanh(s) (17)
sin θ + cos θ e−|s| Norminal power PN 150KW
Stator resistance Rs 0.435Ω
Organize the above equations:
Stator inductance Ls 0.01mH
Rotor resistance Rr 0.816Ω
1 −k|s|α Rotor resistance Lr 0.02mH
u= [cẋ + μ tanh(s) − f (x, ẋ)] 0.19kgm2
g(x, ẋ) sin θ + cos θ e−|s| Inertia J
(18) Mutual inductance Lm 0.069mH
Take c = 6, An image of the exponential approaching law Pole pairs 2
reaching the sliding surface is shown in figure 6:
To verify the stability conditions of the system, select the The specific parameters of the wind turbine are shown in
Lyapunov function as: Table 2:
1 Table 2: Wind turbine parameters
V (s) = s2 (19)
2 parameters values
Bring equation (18) into the solution: Blade radius R 10m
Rotor configuration upwind,3blades
˙ = −k|s|α Cut-in,rated,cut-out wind speed 3m/s,12m/s,25m/s
V (s) μ tanh(s)s (20)
sin θ + cos θ e−|s| Peak-power cofficient 0.48
Known by the mathematical properties of tan(s), it is abso- Tip speed ratio at peak power cofficient 8.1
lutely that: Collective blade pitch angle 0

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 The simulation waveform of the power coefficient C p is 0.48
MSF
PI
0.47
shown in Figure 7 by using a new MSF input control and a 0.46

model using only double closed loop PI control. It can be 0.45

Cp
0.44
clearly seen that by introducing multi-signal feedforward 0.43

control, the power coefficient volatility is significantly re- 0.42

0.41

duced, and it is well tracked along the maximum power 0.4

12 12.5 13 13.5 14 14.5 15

curve. T

Figure 10: Power efficient 12-15s enlarged view

0.5

0.45

0.4 MSF

0.35 PI 2.70%. In the final wind speed oscillation phase, the power
0.3
factor is increased 2.31%. Figure 12 is a graph showing the
Cp

0.25

0.2
mean square error of the power coefficients at each stage.
0.15 It can be seen from the table that by using the MSF control
0.1
method, the mean square error of the power coefficients at
0.05

0
each stage is significantly reduced, which proves that the
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15
T proposed MSF control method has a very good stability to
improve the system and reduce the jitter of the system.
Figure 7: Power coefficient under MSF and PI control

Figure 7 is a graph showing the power coefficient of a wind

turbine obtained by the MATLAB simulation using the
MSF control method and the traditional PI closed-loop con-
trol method. In order to quantitatively analyze the charac-
teristics of the two curves, the three segments of the above
image are intercepted and enlarged to obtain Figures 8, 9,
and 10. Figure 8, Figure 9, and Figure 10 are the [3s, 6s]
wind speed stationary phase, [8s, 11s] a sudden increase in
wind speed, and an enlarged view of the power factor of the
last [12s, 15s] wind speed over a wide range of oscillations.

0.5
MSF
Figure 11: Average power factor comparison
PI

0.48
Cp

0.46

0.44

0.42
3 3.5 4 4.5 5 5.5 6
T

Figure 8: Power efficient 3-6s enlarged view

0.5
MSF
PI
0.48

0.46
Cp

0.44

0.42

0.4
8 8.5 9 9.5
T
Figure 9: Power efficient 8-11s enlarged view
Figure 11 is a graph of the average power factor for these
three stages. It can be seen from the figure that in the
smooth running phase of wind speed, the power coefficient
can be operated close to the maximum power point. The
power coefficient under PI control is 0.473, and under MSF
control is 0.478. The increase is about 1.06%. In the sud-
den rise of wind speed, it can be seen that the power coef-
ficient under PI control is 0.445, the power factor is 0.457
under MSF control, and the power factor is increased by
10 10.5 11
Figure 12: Power coefficient mean square error
the simulation curve of [9s, 15s] power is amplified as
shown in Figure 13. During the period of significant wind
speed change [12s, 15s], the MSF control allows the wind
turbine to capture more power. The average power cap-
tured during this time period is 40,207 W, which is 4.5%
higher than the average power captured by the PI control of
38,447W.

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 4
10
4.4
4.2
4
3.8 MSF
PI
3.6
9 10 11 12 13 14 15
Figure 13: 9-15s capture power amplification
6 CONCLUSION
The simulation results show that the maximum power point
tracking method based on multi-signal feedforward has a
significant improvement in response speed compared with
the traditional method, and has a good tracking effect on
the maximum power point, and stabilizes the power coef-
ficient in the steady state of wind speed. In the area where
the wind speed is large, the output of the stable system is
greatly improved to reduce the power oscillation of the sys-
tem, and the stability is further improved.
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