Grid-Forming Wind Turbines for Power System Stability and Resilience

Project Overview

This PhD studentship at the University of Exeter's Penryn Campus focuses on research at the intersection of wind energy, power systems, and advanced control. The project addresses how future electricity networks can maintain stability and resilience as renewable generation grows, especially through grid-forming (GFM) control of wind turbines. GFM control is essential for low-inertia power systems and enables wind turbines to contribute to system-level services such as frequency regulation, voltage support, and fault recovery.

What You Will Do

You will investigate the application of GFM control techniques to wind turbine systems, examining their interactions with power networks and their role in supporting grid stability under normal and fault conditions. The research can be tailored toward system-level analysis, control design, and simulation-based investigations using tools such as MATLAB/Simulink, PSCAD, PowerFactory, or Python.

Expected Outcomes

Outcomes will include a deeper understanding of how grid-forming wind turbines can enhance power system security and resilience, providing actionable insights into control strategies that enable renewable generation to support critical grid services in evolving electricity networks.

Why This Matters

The increasing penetration of renewable energy requires innovative control methods to ensure reliable and secure power system operation. This research tackles key challenges in integrating wind turbines as active grid-forming resources, which is vital to the sustainable transition to low-carbon energy systems.