Adaptive Control and Interoperability Frameworks for Wind Power Plant Integration: A Comprehensive Review of Strategies, Standards, and Real-Time Validation
Source abstract
Abstract
The rapid integration of wind power plants (WPPs) into modern electrical power systems (MEPSs) is crucial to global decarbonization, but it introduces significant technical challenges. Variability, intermittency, and forecasting uncertainty compromise frequency stability, voltage regulation, and grid reliability, particularly at high levels of renewable energy integration. To address these issues, adaptive control strategies have been proposed at the turbine, plant, and system levels, including reinforcement learning-based optimization, cooperative plant-level dispatch, and hybrid energy schemes with battery energy storage systems (BESS). At the same time, interoperability frameworks based on international standards, notably IEC 61850 and IEC 61400-25, provide the communication backbone for vendor-independent coordination; however, their application remains largely limited to monitoring and protection, rather than holistic adaptive operation. Real-Time Automation Controllers (RTACs) emerge as promising platforms for unifying monitoring, operation, and protection functions, but their deployment in large-scale WPPs remains underexplored. Validation of these frameworks is still dominated by simulation-only studies, while real-time digital simulation (RTDS) and hardware-in-the-loop (HIL) environments have only recently begun to bridge the gap between theory and practice. This review consolidates advances in adaptive control, interoperability, and validation, identifies critical gaps, including limited PCC-level integration, underutilization of IEC standards, and insufficient cyber–physical resilience, and outlines future research directions. Emphasis is placed on holistic adaptive frameworks, IEC–RTAC integration, digital twin–HIL environments, and AI-enabled adaptive methods with embedded cybersecurity. By synthesizing these perspectives, the review highlights pathways toward resilient, secure, and standards-compliant renewable power systems that can support the transition to a low-carbon future.
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Research context
OpenAlex topics: Microgrid Control and Optimization · Real-time simulation and control systems · Wind Turbine Control Systems
SciVX discovery tags are terminology-based. OpenAlex topics are source-provided classifications.
Affiliations
Department of Electrical, Electronic and Computer Engineering, Cape Peninsula University of Technology, Bellville, P.O. Box 1906, Cape Town 7535, South Africa
References (86)
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