Increasing Power Generation Efficiency in Horizontal Wind Turbines by Rejecting Electromechanical Uncertainties Due to the Wind

A challenge in horizontal-axis wind turbines is power regulation and transient rejection during the transition between their three operational regions. In particular, the wind's uncertain nature can lead to undesired electromechanical effects, which in turn decrease power generation efficiency and, in extreme cases, could also be the cause of irreparable damage to the system itself. This letter presents a robust controller that allows the fraction of captured wind energy to be kept while maintaining the transient loads in safe values and preserves electricity generation inside its nominal values in Region III. A linear plus a non-homogeneous quasi-continuous second-order sliding-mode control is proposed to supply energy into the system to maintain the desired power and reject the undesired electromechanical effects. The non-homogeneous controller improves the efficiency of the power generation by reducing the effects of chattering and allowing faster convergence.