Facilitating the transition to an inverter dominated power system: experimental evaluation of a non-intrusive add-on predictive controller

The transition to an inverter-dominated power system is expected with the large-scale integration of distributed energy resources (DER). To improve the dynamic response of DERs already installed within such a system, a non-intrusive add-on controller referred to as SPAACE (set point automatic adjustment with correction enabled), has been proposed in the literature. Extensive simulation-based analysis and supporting mathematical foundations have helped establish its theoretical prevalence. This paper establishes the practical real-world relevance of SPAACE via a rigorous performance evaluation utilizing a high fidelity hardware-in-the-loop systems test bed. A comprehensive methodological approach to the evaluation with several practical measures has been undertaken and the performance of SPAACE subject to representative scenarios assessed. With the evaluation undertaken, the fundamental hypothesis of SPAACE for real-world applications has been proven, i.e., improvements in dynamic performance can be achieved without access to the internal controller. Furthermore, based on the quantitative analysis, observations, and recommendations are reported. These provide guidance for future potential users of the approach in their efforts to accelerate the transition to an inverter-dominated power system.