An MPC-sliding mode cascaded control architecture for PV grid-feeding inverters

The primary regulation of photovoltaic (PV) systems is a current matter of research in the scientific community. In Grid-Feeding operating mode, the regulation aims to track the maximum power point in order to fully exploit the renewable energy sources and produce the amount of reactive power ordered by a hierarchically superior control level or by the local Distribution System Operator (DSO). Actually, this task is performed by Proportional-Integral-Derivative (PID)-based regulators, which are, however, affected by major drawbacks. This paper proposes a novel control architecture involving advanced control theories, like Model Predictive Control (MPC) and Sliding Mode (SM), in order to improve the overall system performance. A comparison with the conventional PID-based approach is presented and the control theories that display a better performance are highlighted.