Performance Analysis of Wind Energy System Integrated into Electrical Grid

Abstract

The development of wind turbines and the capacities of wind power plants have increased significantly in the last years, more and more wind farms are being connected into power systems. Integration of large scale wind farms into power systems presents some challenges that must be addressed, such as system operation and control, system stability, and power quality. Wind power plants must provide the power quality required by new regulations and the reliability of the power system that is interconnected to. It is very important to analyze and understand the sources of disturbances that affect the power quality. In this research, the performance of three different popular wind generators that are connected to the power system have been analyzed. Based on this analysis a comparison was made for the three wind turbines studied that are: the Squirrel-Cage Induction Generator (SCIG), commonly called the Single-Fed Induction Generator (SFIG), the Doubly-Fed Induction Generator (DFIG), and the Permanent-Magnet Synchronous Generator (PMSG). The fixed speed system is more simple and reliable, but severely limits the energy production of a wind turbine. In case of variable speed systems, comparisons show that generator of similar rating can significantly enhance energy capture. Moreover, the performances of these wind turbines and their characteristics are analyzed in steady-state, and in addition of that after connected to Sudan national grid. Wind turbines systems are modeled in MATLAB/SIMULINK, and ETAP environments. Simulation results matched well with the theoretical turbines operation.