Improvements to a novel learning algorithm for model-based wind turbine controllers

Abstract

Wind turbine controllers are nowadays ever more advanced and rely on accurate internal controller model information. Therefore a calibrated model is needed for attaining predictable controller performance and ensuring stable operation. To calibrate the internal model information, a novel learning control scheme has recently been proposed that exploits the dynamics of the closed-loop controlled wind turbine system, without the need for wind speed measurements. The learning algorithm thereby periodically excites the generator power controller input signal. An extremum-seeking demodulation scheme was used to calibrate the internal model information. This paper improves the existing learning scheme in two ways: Firstly, it investigates how the frequency of the excitation signal influences the signal-to-noise ratio. Secondly, the problem was reformulated as a root-finding problem. This requires using the in-phase component of the phase-corrected learning signal. In addition, a precalculated lookup table relates the measured in-phase component directly to model uncertainty. It was found that an increased excitation frequency improves the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) by an order of magnitude. Combined, these contributions improve the convergence speed more than twenty times, addressing the effect of aerodynamic degradation and its consequences on controller performance.