Hierarchical control of power plants with microgrid operation

Microgrids are key elements to integrate renewable and distributed energy resources as well as distributed energy storage systems. In the last years, efforts toward the standardization of these microgrids have been made. In this sense, this paper presents the hierarchical control which consist of three levels: i) the primary control is based on the droop method, including an output impedance virtual loop; ii) the secondary control allows to restore the deviations produced by the primary control; and iii) the tertiary control manage the power flow between the microgrid and the external electrical distribution system. Results from a hierarchical-controlled microgrid are provided to show the feasibility of the proposed approach.