Active Power Control Strategies in Wind Farm Systems
Summary
Active power control strategies in wind farm systems are essential for integrating variable renewable generation into power grids while maintaining reliability, minimising mechanical stresses and offering ancillary services. At the turbine level, control loops adjust generator torque and blade pitch to follow power set-points, whereas farm-level dispatch allocates these references across turbines according to wind conditions, fatigue considerations and market signals. Hierarchical schemes range from centralised optimisation to decentralised or distributed coordination, the latter improving scalability and resilience through local decision-making and peer-to-peer communication. Model predictive control has emerged as a powerful tool, enabling near-term wind forecasts and storage constraints to be considered in optimal power dispatch. Integration of energy storage systems smooths output, supports grid frequency and permits curtailed wind to be harnessed later. These strategies collectively advance the role of wind farms in frequency regulation, reserve provision and overall grid flexibility, underpinning global decarbonisation targets.
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Active Power Control Strategies in Wind Farm Systems publication trend
The graph below shows the total number of articles in active power control strategies in wind farm systems across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).
Technical terms
Model Predictive Control (MPC): An optimisation-based control method using a dynamic model to predict future outputs and compute control actions over a moving horizon.
Automatic Generation Control (AGC): A system that balances power supply and demand by adjusting generator output in real time to maintain grid frequency.
Fatigue Load: The cyclic stress experienced by turbine components over time, which influences service life and maintenance requirements.
Energy Storage System (ESS): A device or combination of devices that store electrical energy for later discharge, smoothing power output and providing ancillary services.
Asynchronous Distributed Control: A coordination approach allowing multiple controllers to operate independently with event-driven communication to achieve a global objective.
References
- Asynchronous distributed optimal power control for fatigue load minimization in wind farms. International Journal of Electrical Power & Energy Systems (2024).
- Ancillary services from wind turbines: automatic generation control (AGC) from a single Type 4 turbine. Wind Energy Science (2020).
- Improving Wind Farm Dispatchability Using Model Predictive Control for Optimal Operation of Grid-Scale Energy Storage. Energies (2014).
- Adaptive Multi-Model Switching Predictive Active Power Control Scheme for Wind Generator System. Energies (2020).
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