The NDSU power engineering group from the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering won a National Science Foundation grant in the amount of $240,001 for their project titled "Control of Wind Generation for Inter-Area Oscillation Damping." Group members include Lingling Fan, principal investigator; Rajesh Kavasseri, co-principal investigator; and Subbaraya Yuvarajan, co-principal investigator.
The project addresses stability enhancements in power systems, given the increasing presence of and unique challenges in wind farms. The focus lies in developing robust damping controllers through a novel concept of real and reactive power modulation in wind farms to help mitigate instability concerns in the overall interconnected power system. The project also will help convey the benign effects of stability enhancements if grid interconnected systems are equipped with such controllers.
According to investigators, the project will help reduce some of the barriers to grid integration of wind farms. If successful, the research will facilitate penetration of large scale wind power into the existing grid. "Increased integration of wind resources will benefit society by reducing fossil fuel dependence on electricity generation and thus help build a sustainable energy infrastructure," Kavasseri said. "The results from the project will help resolve some of the skepticism surrounding the stability of grid interconnected power systems. Overall, the activities will help promote and develop wind resources in the Midwest region and the nation at large."