A master thesis from Aalborg University
Reducing Wind Turbine Fatigue under Uncertainty : A Zone-Controlled SMPC Approach
Author(s)
Term
4. semester
Education
Publication year
2024
Submitted on
2024-05-30
Pages
92 pages
Abstract
This research investigates the effectiveness of different control strategies—Proportional-Integral (PI), Deterministic Model Predictive Control (MPC), and Zone-Controlled Stochastic Model Predictive Control (ZC-SMPC)—in managing wind turbine performance under conditions characterized by uncertainty, such as wind turbulence. The primary objective is to design and evaluate a ZC-SMPC system tailored for wind turbines, focusing on reducing fatigue and maintaining operational stability. The study begins with the development of a digital twin of a wind turbine using the OpenFAST simulation environment, followed by the implementation and tuning of the DMPC framework. The ZC-SMPC framework incorporates zone control to minimize unnecessary pitch adjustments, aiming to reduce blade fatigue without compromising other performance metrics. The performance of these controllers is compared using Pareto frontier analysis to balance conflicting objectives, particularly between tower and blade fatigue. Results indicate that the ZC-SMPC controller, with a penalty on rotor speed within the control zone, achieves the best balance between load reduction and operational stability, with the lowest resultant blade Damage Equivalent Load (DEL). The PI controller, while simple, shows limited effectiveness due to high variability and boundary violations. The MPC controller offers better adaptability but does not match the ZC-SMPC in terms of overall performance. In conclusion, the ZC-SMPC framework demonstrates significant potential for optimizing wind turbine performance, effectively managing trade-offs between different fatigue loads and maintaining rotor speed stability, making it a promising approach for future wind turbine control systems.
Keywords
stochastic model predictive control ; SMPC ; MPC ; Fatigue ; PI ; wind turbine ; OpenFast ; Simulink ; Matlab ; unscented kalman filter ; ukf ; Pareto front
Documents
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