Multi-area Load Frequency Control using IP Controller Tuned by Particle Swarm Optimization

In this study an optimal load frequency controller for multi area electric power systems is presented. In multi area electric power systems if a large load is suddenly connected (or disconnected) to the system, or if a generating unit is suddenly disconnected by the protection equipment, there will be a long-term distortion in the power balance between that delivered by the turbines and that consumed by the loads. This imbalance is initially covered from the kinetic energy of rotating rotors of turbines, generators and motors and, as a result, the frequency in the system will change. Therefore The Load Frequency Control (LFC) problem is one of the most important subjects in the electric power system operation and control. In practical systems, the conventional PI type controllers are carried out for LFC. In order to overcome the drawbacks of the conventional PI controllers, numerous techniques have been proposed in literatures. In this paper a IP type controller is considered for LFC problem. The parameters of the proposed IP controller are tuned using Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO) method. A multi area electric power system with a wide range of parametric uncertainties is given to illustrate proposed method. To show effectiveness of the proposed method, a PI type controller optimized by PSO is incorporated in order to comparison with the proposed IP controller. The simulation results on a multi area electric power system emphasis on the viability and feasibility of the proposed method in LFC problem.