Stability Evaluation of AC-DC Hybrid Microgrids Considering Bidirectional Power Flow Through the Interlinking Converters

In this project, bidirectional power flow through the interlinking converter (IC), in ac/dc hybrid micro grids (HMGs) consisting of distributed generators (DGs) with droop controllers, plays an important role on the stability of such systems during islanding. This paper investigates the impact of the power flow direction on the small-signal stability of islanded droop-based HMGs. Firstly, a linearized state-space model of an HMG is developed. Secondly, eigenvalue analysis is carried out to realize the dominant modes, which are the rightmost eigenvalues. 

Thirdly, participation factor analysis is performed to identify the system and control parameters that effect stability the most. Lastly, sensitivity analysis is conducted to determine the critical droop gains and stability margin. It is observed from the eigenvalue and sensitivity analysis that the dominant modes of HMGs become more stable as more power flows from dc to ac subgrid. On the contrary, an increase in the power flow from ac to dc sub grid degrades the HMG stability. Additionally, the sensitivity of the dominant modes to changes in ac and dc droop gains is studied under bidirectional power flow through the IC to ascertain their impact on the stability margins.

Keywords: Bidirectional power flow, distributed generator, droop controller, ac/dc hybrid micro grid.