Self-Excited Induction Generator for Micro-Hydro Plants Using Water Current Turbines Type

A study of a micro-hydro run-of-the-river project using a squirrel cage induction generator is presented. A water current turbine, propeller type, is considered. A three-phase voltage source inverter is used to establish with deadbeat control on the AC side, the required currents to excite the generator. A DC control loop with PI controller is used to maintain the DC bus voltage constant with rotor speed. The control strategy is developed using the field orientation technique which is provided by a digital signal processor (DSP). The proposed model and adopted control strategy are validated both by numerical simulation and experimental results from a laboratory prototype