Wind Turbine Control Systems: Principles, Modelling and Gain Scheduling Design

Modern wind turbines generally operate at variable speed in order to maximise the conversion efficiency below rated power and to reduce loading on the drive-train. In addition, pitch control of the blades is usually employed to limit the energy captured during operation above rated wind speed. The higher complexity of variable-speed variable-pitch turbines is offset by the benefits of control flexibility, namely, higher conversion efficiency, better power quality, longer useful life; because of the immediate impact of control on the cost of wind energy, reliable high-performance controllers are essential in making wind technology competitive.

In Wind Turbine Control Systems the application of linearparameter varying (LPV) gain scheduling techniques to the control of wind energy conversion systems is emphasised. This recent reformulation of the classical gain scheduling problem allows a straightforward design procedure and simple controller implementation. The monograph provides a thorough coverage of wind turbine control, including:

• an overview of the principles of wind energy conversion;

• the control-oriented modelling of wind turbines;

• an in-depth analysis of the most common control strategies;

• the design of LPV gain-scheduled controllers for both fixed- and variable-pitch, variable-speed wind turbines.

Wind Turbine Control Systems is primarily intended for researchers and students with a control background wishing to expand their knowledge of wind energy systems. The book will be useful to scientists in the field of control theory looking to apply their innovative control ideas to this appealing control problem and will also interest practising engineers dealing with wind technology who will benefit from the comprehensive coverage of the theoretic control topics, the simplicity of the models and the use of commonly available control algorithms.