IEEE SYSTEMS JOURNAL, VOL. 16, NO.

2, JUNE 2022 2401

Robust Control Strategies for Microgrids: A Review

Abstract—Microgrids consisting of photovoltaic (PV) power to use renewable energy sources (RESs), such as solar and
plants and wind farms have been widely accepted in power systems wind, to generate more electricity. Despite many advantages of
for reliability enhancement and power loss reduction. Microgrids RESs, such as reducing carbon dioxide (CO2 ) generation from
are capable of providing voltage and frequency support, improving
power quality, and achieving proper power-sharing. To achieve
power generation units, reducing power losses and voltage drop,
such goals and deal with the nonlinear behavior in such systems, delivering power to the new load centers that are geograph-
appropriate robust control strategies are required to be adopted. ically located far from power grids, the costs of investment,
This article presents a comprehensive review of robust control and maintenance of such energy sources are high [1]. Besides,
methods for microgrids, including AC, DC, and hybrid microgrids, the uncertainty of RESs and the nonlinear nature of genera-
with different topologies and different types of interconnection to tion facilities impose unprecedented changes on improving the
conventional power systems based on recently published research control performance [2]–[5]. To deal with the above-mentioned
studies. The main control objectives, along with proposed control
methods, are comparatively discussed for different types of micro-
drawbacks, it is mandatory to design and implement efficient
grids. Furthermore, several research gaps in this area related to and proper control techniques. Robust control techniques are
the scalability, robustness assessment, and evaluation approach are the best solutions to overcome uncertainty, disturbance, and
discussed. Recommendations are made that can potentially open the nonlinear nature of RESs. With the increasing use of dis-
new research lines to enhance the effectiveness of robust controllers tributed generations (DGs), many good attempts are made to
for AC, DC, and hybrid microgrids. design robust controllers and implement various robust control
Index Terms—AC microgrids, DC microgrids, distributed algorithms. Such measures have been taken for both AC and DC
generations (DGs), hybrid microgrids, nonlinear control, microgrids, under islanded and grid-connected modes of oper-
renewable energy resources (RESs), robust control. ation [6]–[8]. A powerful robust controller/control algorithm
should be capable of considering all parameters to efficiently
stabilize the microgrid under different operating conditions.
I. INTRODUCTION
In most of the research studies conducted in the field of
A. Motivation robust control methods for the operation of AC, DC, and hybrid
microgrids in power systems, it is tried to consider all the
HE population growth and urban and rural development
T have increased society’s needs for more electricity. These
days, environmental issues, as well as the huge cost of develop-
existing uncertainties [7], [8]. However, external disturbances
have significant impacts on the accuracy and performance of
the controllers. It is worth mentioning that there are various
ment of traditional power systems, have caused more tendency
disturbances on microgrids, and such disturbances can be either
internal or external factors that can directly affect the stability
Manuscript received October 15, 2020; revised February 25, 2021 and April of microgrids. The main aim of some research studies was to
23, 2021; accepted April 26, 2021. Date of publication June 8, 2021; date of
current version June 13, 2022. (Corresponding author: Fazel Mohammadi.) stabilize the operation of microgrids by eliminating external
Fazel Mohammadi is with the Department of Electrical and Computer En- disturbances (chattering) [9]. It is also noticed that most of the
gineering, University of Windsor, Windsor, ON N9B 1K3, Canada (e-mail: designed robust controllers in the past few years have better
[email protected], [email protected]).
Behnam Mohammadi-Ivatloo is with the Faculty of Electrical and Computer
efficiencies and performance compared to the other controllers,
Engineering, University of Tabriz, Tabriz 51666, Iran, and also with the De- such as conventional proportional-integral-derivative (PID) con-
partment of Energy Technology, Aalborg University, Aalborg 9220, Denmark trollers.
(e-mail: [email protected]).
Gevork B. Gharehpetian is with the Electrical Engineering Department,
Amirkabir University of Technology (Tehran Polytechnic), Tehran 1591634311, B. Major Challenges in Microgrids Deployment
Iran (e-mail: [email protected]).
Mohd. Hasan Ali is with the Department of Electrical and Computer
There are several challenges in AC, DC, and hybrid micro-
Engineering, University of Memphis, Memphis, TN 38152 USA (e-mail: grids deployment in power systems, in which the most important
[email protected]). one is energy balancing. Energy balancing in power systems
Wei Wei is with the State Key Laboratory of Power Systems, Department requires a proper control structure. Such structures of microgrid
of Electrical Engineering, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China (e-mail:
[email protected]). control systems, e.g., hierarchical structure, run autonomously
Ozan Erdinç is with the Department of Electrical Engineering, Yildiz Tech- and intelligently to control and manage energy dispatch, and
nical University, Istanbul 34349, Turkey (e-mail: [email protected]). improve the reliability of power systems. Fig. 1 shows the hierar-
Mohammadamin Shirkhani is with the Department of Electri-
chical structure of a microgrid control system that operates based
cal Engineering, Ilam University, Ilam 69315-516, Iran (e-mail:
[email protected]). on three control levels, called primary, secondary, and tertiary
Digital Object Identifier 10.1109/JSYST.2021.3077213 control. Increasing the control level leads to a decrease in the

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 2402 IEEE SYSTEMS JOURNAL, VOL. 16, NO. 2, JUNE 2022

Fig. 1. Hierarchical structure of a microgrid control system.

bandwidth to properly decouple the dynamics of various levels. Consumers, however, expect constant voltage and frequency.
In fact, higher control levels require to be relatively an order of Therefore, it is a challenging task to provide smooth and steady
magnitude slower compared to the downstreaming levels. power to consumers from power generation systems. Controllers
Except for energy balancing, there are other challenges in at the secondary level via the primary level can deal with power,
microgrids operation, which are as follows: frequency, and voltage fluctuations.
r decentralized structure of microgrids, which requires de- 5) Power Quality Issue: During a faulty condition, various
veloping new controllers; DGs may face severe power quality issues in terms of unde-
r accurate power-sharing for microgrids; sirable voltage sags. In addition, the DC-link voltage, inverter,
r optimization for control and operation of microgrids; and DC/DC converter can also be affected [20]. This means that
r voltage/frequency control of AC, DC, and hybrid micro- DGs should be transiently stable and have the ability to maintain
grids; fault ride-through capability. Furthermore, DGs must maintain
r impact of external disturbances on control and operation grid code requirements [19]. Power quality issue is referred to
of microgrids; as secondary control level.
r uncertainties in energy supply and load demand; If robust and efficient control methods are not adopted, such
r integration and interoperability of microgrids; issues may cause serious consequences, and in the worst-case
r stability issues in microgrids; and scenario, they may lead to power systems blackout. It should
r fast distributed current sharing in DC microgrids. be noted that the above-mentioned issues affect the microgrid
In detail, the above-mentioned challenges that arise in mi- by itself, as well as power systems and consumers. Many
crogrids control can be related to different control layers, as research studies are available in terms of developing control
follows: approaches, optimization techniques, operation, etc. [21]–[24].
1) Bidirectional Power Flow: While power distribution feed- Also, different configurations for AC, DC, and hybrid microgrids
ers were initially designed for unidirectional power flow, integra- are considered to increase their penetration into power systems
tion of DGs at low voltage levels can cause reverse power flows considering the design complexity, the stability of the system,
and lead to complications in protection coordination, undesir- and performance [25]–[27].
able power flow patterns, fault current distribution, and voltage A comprehensive review on centralized, decentralized, dis-
control [10], [11]. The power flow control and protection are tributed, and hierarchical control schemes of microgrids, empha-
referred to as tertiary and primary control layers, respectively. sizing their applicability and performances is performed in [28].
2) Stability Issues: Local oscillations may emerge from the The adaptive and intelligent methods for microgrid control are
interaction of the control systems of DGs, requiring a thorough introduced in [29], and the main focus is to use intelligent algo-
small-disturbance stability analysis. Moreover, transient stabil- rithms to automatically tune the control parameters, achieving
ity analysis is required to ensure a seamless transition between stability and reliability under the stand-alone operation mode.
the grid-connected and stand-alone modes of operation in a The performance of the microgrid voltage controllers in the
microgrid [12]. Stability issues refer to the primary control layer. presence of unmodeled dynamics is investigated in [30]. Also,
3) Low Inertia: Unlike bulk power systems, where a high developments in the hierarchical control structure consisting of
number of synchronous generators ensure relatively large iner- primary, secondary, and tertiary layers are reviewed in [31]. In
tia, microgrids might show low inertia characteristics, especially addition, voltage and frequency issues in the microgrid with a
if there is significant sharing of power electronic-interfaced large number of power electronics converters are discussed in
DGs. Although such an interface can enhance the system’s grid-forming, grid-feeding, and grid-supporting scenarios origi-
dynamic performance, low inertia in the system can lead to nating from the industrial side. The controller is designed based
severe frequency deviations in stand-alone operation if a proper on a linearized system model neglecting uncertainty. Linear
control mechanism at the secondary control layer is not imple- system control is a well-developed field, but the system model is
mented [13]–[18]. linearized at a given point. When a large disturbance occurs, the
4) Uncertainty: Due to their random input variations, power linearized model may be inaccurate. In principle, the nonlinear
generation sources connected to microgrids produce randomly model is more accurate when the state variables vary in a wider
varying and fluctuating power, frequency, and voltage [19], [20]. range. It should be noted that in microgrids, at the primary

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 MOHAMMADI et al.: ROBUST CONTROL STRATEGIES FOR MICROGRIDS: A REVIEW 2403

control level, fast reactions, and therefore, linear controllers voltage of the DC microgrid and provide the frequency support
are needed, but at the higher control levels, it is mandatory to to AC grids in grid-connected mode is proposed in [44]. In [45],
use nonlinear controllers. Although research studies are carried a nonlinear and finite DSC method to coordinate all DGs in
out in the area of AC, DC, and hybrid microgrids, there is no AC microgrids and control the AC voltage and frequency is
comprehensive and detailed review of robust control methods for proposed. A robust nonlinear decentralized control scheme for
the operation of such microgrids in power systems. Hence, this islanded DC microgrids to achieve the desired voltage at the DC
article aims at providing a comprehensive literature review on bus, as well as maintain power balance, is developed in [46]. In
robust control techniques, mainly nonlinear approaches, for the addition, a nonlinear robust fractional-order control (NRFOC)
operation of AC, DC, and hybrid microgrids in power systems. scheme for hybrid energy storage systems (HESSs) is proposed
To the best of the authors’ knowledge, the literature review in in [47] that has a better performance compared to the PID
this field remains blank. controllers.
The rest of the article is organized as follows. Section II To achieve an accurate power-sharing for microgrids, several
describes an overview of robust control methods for microgrids. research studies are conducted. A two-layer hierarchical con-
Sections III and IV provide comprehensive and detailed reviews troller to solve the power-sharing of grid-connected spatially
of robust control methods for microgrids and multi-microgrids, concentrated AC microgrids is developed in [48]. In [49], a
respectively. A summary of the reviewed research studies, re- robust secondary control strategy based on high and low levels
search gaps, and discussions is given in Section V. Section VI for islanded microgrids is proposed. An improved two-layer
provides the recommendations for future research. Finally, Sec- hierarchical control strategy for a three-phase four-wire micro-
tion VII indicates the conclusions of this article. grid under unbalanced and nonlinear load conditions using a
four-leg power converter is investigated in [50]. In addition, a
two-layer distributed controller for islanded microgrids is devel-
II. AN OVERVIEW OF ROBUST CONTROL METHODS
oped in [51] to control the output power of distributed energy
FOR MICROGRIDS
resources (DERs), such as photovoltaic (PV) and battery energy
As mentioned, the decentralized and hybrid structures of mi- storage systems (BESSs). The concept of power-sharing among
crogrids, accurate power-sharing, voltage and frequency control, power converters in microgrids can be extended to high-voltage
and stability are the major challenges in the operation of AC, DC, applications, and hence, applying a method to solve the power
and hybrid microgrids. flow problem in hybrid AC/DC grids is required [52]. The H∞
To control the voltage and/or frequency in microgrids, several control method is used as a robust scheme to control microgrids.
attempts are made. In [32], a robust PID controller based on A robust H∞ control method for regulating the AC voltage
Cohen–Coon (CC) tuning method is developed to control the AC and frequency in AC microgrids in the presence of unmodeled
voltage in AC microgrids. An observer controller is proposed dynamics is proposed in [53]. Controlling the DC voltage based
in [33] for secondary AC voltage and frequency control in on the nonfragile H∞ method in off-grid microgrids within the
autonomous AC microgrids to overcome possible limitations scenario of energy internet (EI) is investigated in [54]. A voltage
in this regard. A dynamic event-triggered robust secondary and current robust controller with three degrees of freedom
frequency control for islanded AC microgrid is proposed in [34] is introduced in [55]. A control method for adjusting the AC
to overcome the uncertainty in the energy supply of RESs. To voltage and frequency of a microgrid in grid-connected mode
synchronize hybrid microgrids and control the frequency, a mul- using H∞ robust controller is investigated in [56]. In [57], an H∞
tiagent asynchronously compensated (MAAC) control method is multivariable robust controller for adjusting the initial frequency
presented in [35]. In [36], a virtual inertia controller is developed in stand-alone microgrids is proposed.
to deal with the large frequency fluctuations while controlling Using the droop control method is another technique to con-
AC microgrids and improve their stability. An integrated hybrid trol microgrids. The droop control approach is also employed for
microcontroller frequency control based on Kharitonov theory controlling converters in high-voltage and high-power applica-
(KT) is proposed in [37] while considering the time delay of tions in [58]. In [58], an improved droop-based control strategy
communication channels and uncertainties in the system’s pa- is proposed to achieve accurate power-sharing in power systems
rameters. In [38], the direct droop control method for frequency with both conventional power sources and DERs. In [59], the
control of islanded microgrids is presented. A fully distributed stability issue of an islanded microgrid with inverter-based
secondary control (DSC) method aiming at restoring the AC DGs in the low-frequency range controlled using the droop
voltage and frequency in islanded AC microgrids is developed control method is investigated. A distributed finite-time control
in [39]. Controlling the secondary frequency considering the scheme based on droop for BESS-based microgrid is proposed
clock drift phenomenon and its impacts on the secondary fre- in [60]. In [61], a droop-based controller for decentralized
quency are investigated in [40]. A centralized controller for power-sharing in DC microgrids is developed to address the
accurate DC voltage regulation in DC microgrids considering large-signal stability problem. Also, an improved droop-based
the uncertainty in the system’s parameters is proposed in [41]. control scheme for microgrids is investigated in [62] to solve the
To control the frequency and AC voltage of a DC microgrid, stability problem and increase the accuracy of power-sharing in
a control method using a consensus-based control scheme is grid-connected microgrids.
studied in [42]. A robust DSC method using active disturbance Another efficient technique to control microgrids is the
rejection control (ADRC) to restore the AC voltage of an is- sliding-mode control (SMC) scheme. In [63], a multifunctional
landed microgrid is presented in [43]. A nonlinear input-to-state control structure based on SMC, Lyapunov function, and
stability (ISS) Lyapunov-based controller to stabilize the DC fractional order sliding-mode controller (FOSMC) for a

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 2404 IEEE SYSTEMS JOURNAL, VOL. 16, NO. 2, JUNE 2022

multi-DER microgrid is developed to control the AC voltage method is used to achieve accurate power-sharing in islanded
and improve power dispatch and stability of the system. A microgrids. In order to regulate the AC voltage and frequency
fully decentralized second-order SMC method to control the in islanded microgrids, a bialternate sum matrix control and
DC voltage of converters in DC microgrids is developed nonlinear ecological systems-based control methods are inves-
in [64]. SMC scheme is employed in [65] to improve the tigated in [86] and [87], respectively. A three-phase, improved-
dynamic performance of microgrids against large disturbances. magnitude, phase-locked loop (3IMPLL) control scheme for ac-
A multi-agent fixed-time control strategy based on the SMC curate power-sharing in islanded microgrids is proposed in [88].
scheme is proposed in [66] for the energy balance of BESSs Considering power quality improvement, a critic neural net-
and PV systems in grid-connected mode. In addition, the SMC works (NN)-based adaptive dynamic programming (ADP) con-
scheme is employed in [67] to balance the power generation trol method and also an affinely adjustable alternating direction
and consumption for a marine vessel system with different method of multipliers (ADMM) control strategy are presented
DGs as an islanded microgrid. In [68], an SMC-based control in [89] and [90] for islanded and grid-connected microgrids,
approach is employed to control the AC voltage and frequency respectively. In addition to the above-mentioned methods, model
in an islanded AC microgrid with arbitrary topology. predictive-based robust control methods for the tertiary control
Except for the above-mentioned methods, the backstepping level are employed to coordinate energy management among
control method is another commonly used technique to control microgrids [91], [92], faster operation of microgrids [93], and
microgrids in power systems. In [69], an integral backstepping minimizing the energy cost drawn from power grids and increas-
control (IBC) method for DC microgrids is introduced that ing self-consumption of local RESs [94].
includes RESs and HESSs aiming at merging several sources on
a typical DC bus. In [70], an augmented backstepping control
method is proposed to control the AC voltage in islanded micro- III. ROBUST CONTROL METHODS FOR MICROGRIDS
grids under faulty conditions and external disturbances. A fully
robust backstepping control scheme is investigated in [71] to A. State-Space Control Methods
control the DC voltage of PV systems in islanded DC microgrids Robust PID controllers are mainly designed to control the
considering the system’s dynamics and uncertainties. voltage in microgrids and achieve a fast transient response
Kalman filtering and fuzzy logic are the other methods to and zero steady-state error. Among the most common tuning
control microgrids. A Kalman-based controller to stabilize the methods, including Chien–Hrones–Reswick (CHR), CC, and
DC microgrid system with constant power loads (CPLs), RESs, Wang–Juang–Chan, the CC-based PID controller shows a better
and HESSs is proposed in [72]. A nonfragile fuzzy control performance according to [32]. In [33], an SMC-based dis-
method is employed in [73] to control the DC current in is- tributed controller, along with an extended state observer, is
landed DC microgrids. In addition, an approach based on linear proposed for a multiagent system in which DGs are affected by
programming (LP) and Chebyshev theorem is proposed in [74] measurement noise. In [34], a secondary controller is proposed
to regulate the DC voltage in islanded DC microgrids. to control the frequency through a dynamic event-triggered
In other research studies, robust control methods for voltage scheme in an islanded AC microgrid. The proposed controller
and frequency regulation, as well as power quality improvement also controls the uncertainties coming from RESs. The lack of
and proper power-sharing, in multi-microgrids, are proposed. existence of power grids in an islanded microgrid makes the
In [75], a two-stage optimal scheduling for hybrid multimicro- frequency control more challenging as none of the agents is
grids is investigated. A nonlinear fixed-structure control strategy grid forming. A few sets of literature take the communication
for a transformer-like interlink converter, called transfverter, is delays into account in multiagent systems making the proposed
proposed in [76] for regulating both the AC voltage and the DC controllers more practical and realistic [35]. In some control
voltage in hybrid AC/DC microgrids. In [77], a nonlinear state techniques, the phased locked loop (PLL) is deployed to estimate
feedback control strategy is proposed for accurate power-sharing the frequency. However, using PLL can cause large fluctuations
for hybrid microgrids. An optimal control strategy for grid- in the frequency. To combat such adverse effects and improve the
connected microgrids for optimal power dispatch is investigated frequency profile, a virtual inertia controller is designed in [36]
in [78]. In addition, an optimized two-stage energy-sharing con- using a robust H∞ controller based on the linear fractional trans-
trol scheme for grid-connected microgrids is proposed in [79]. formation technique. In [37], a control scheme is presented based
In [80], an optimized information gap decision theory (IGDT) on the KT to analyze the impact of communication channels’
method based on augmented Lagrangian relaxation (LR)-based time delay and uncertainty in frequency control. In [38], a robust
algorithm for optimal power dispatch in grid-connected micro- droop controller and an SMC-based controller for the primary
grids is proposed. A semidefinite programming (SDP)-based and secondary levels, respectively, in an islanded AC microgrid,
control scheme for regulating the AC voltage and frequency are presented.
in islanded microgrids is proposed in [81]. In order to regulate One of the important challenges is to design a completely
the AC voltage and achieve accurate power-sharing in islanded distributed secondary robust controller for voltage and frequency
microgrids, a Takagi–Sugeno (TS) fuzzy control is proposed in islanded microgrids. A multiagent consensus-based control
in [82]. It is shown in [83] that the active damping control method strategy is proposed in [39] to design a robust and adaptive
is capable of regulating the frequency in islanded microgrids. secondary AC voltage and frequency control scheme for such
In [84], the DC voltage regulation and power-sharing control networks. To provide a certain degree of robustness, the designed
in islanded microgrids are performed using optimal control. controller should consider the model uncertainty, parameter
In [85], the frequency-superimposed coordinated control changes, and unmodeled dynamics. Due to the well-distributed

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 MOHAMMADI et al.: ROBUST CONTROL STRATEGIES FOR MICROGRIDS: A REVIEW 2405

control, each DG unit only needs its own information and a power resources while minimizing the voltage and frequency
limited number of neighbors (depending on the control scheme), deviations from reference values. The lower level control adjusts
which helps to reduce bandwidth and minimize communication the magnitude and angle of the inverter output voltage, enabling
costs, and increases the reliability and flexibility of the micro- it to track the reference power. A hierarchical distributed control
grid. The performance of a distributed controller that can be technique for an islanded microgrid is proposed in [50] that
affected by minor parameters, such as clock drift, is discussed controls the frequency and mitigates harmonics at the primary
in [40]. Although distributed controllers have recently attracted layer while the active power-sharing is performed at the sec-
attention, centralized controllers are still being used for accurate ondary layer. The proposed controller is capable of controlling
voltage regulation in microgrids affected by DGs’ uncertainties. active and reactive power accurately. A two-layer distributed
In [41], a robust centralized controller for a DC microgrid im- control scheme is introduced in [51] for an islanded microgrid
pacted by parametric uncertainty and disturbances is proposed. to regulate the output power of DERs. As the proposed control
A secondary control scheme, called stochastic consensus-based scheme solely relies on limited aperiodic communications, the
control approach, is proposed in [42] for islanded microgrids cost of communication on the cyber networks can be greatly
considering the system and communication noises. This method reduced using delayed communication. This control method is
results in high accuracy in the estimation process, less com- used where the communication infrastructure is distributed and
plexity, and low computational burden for frequency and volt- suffers from time delays and bandwidth limitations.
age restoration. Compared to existing methods, the proposed
scheme can achieve mean-square synchronization for voltage C. H∞ -Based Control Methods
and frequency restoration of DGs.
In order to minimize the amount of information exchanged In [53], an H∞ -based robust control technique is proposed,
among different agents in the grid, a secondary control scheme and its effectiveness is evaluated under unbalanced and nonlinear
is presented in [43] that only needs information from nearby loads in a microgrid. In [54], a nonfragile robust H∞ control
DGs through a scattered communication patch. In the proposed within the scenario of EI in an islanded microgrid is used to
scheme, the ADRC technique is applied, which can partially adjust the DC bus voltage while the system is robust against
eliminate model uncertainty, as well as unknown disturbances. external disturbances and modeling uncertainties. The state
An ISS Lyapunov-based nonlinear controller for a DC microgrid equations are presented by a class of nonlinear stochastic differ-
is proposed in [44]. The controller ensures the efficient integra- ential equations while the parametric uncertainties are merged in
tion of RESs and stable operation of the DC microgrid providing coefficients. A cascaded voltage/current robust control strategy
ancillary services to AC grids. The improved performance of is introduced in [55] with an emphasis on improving the power
the proposed controller is shown and compared with the clas- quality delivered to loads from DGs. Designed via the H∞ ,
sic proportional-integral (PI) controller under CPLs. In [45], the proposed controller possesses three degrees of freedom. To
a consensus-based secondary control scheme is proposed for achieve the set goals and design a robust controller, one needs to
chattering-free power-sharing, as well as AC voltage/frequency choose the most appropriate weight functions. An H∞ robust
restoration control, using Lipchitz-continuous secondary con- controller for regulating the AC voltage and frequency in a
trol scheme. Also, improvements are shown in terms of the microgrid is evaluated in [56] under different loading conditions,
transient overshoot and convergence speed through a cumu- and its performance is compared with the droop control. In
lative distribution function. A robust decentralized nonlinear this method, a multilevel control method, including a droop
controller is introduced in [46] to achieve the desired voltage control loop, voltage control loop, current control loop, and
at the DC bus and maintain the power balance in an islanded control loop for inductance–capacitance–inductance filter and
DC grid to which a PV unit, a fuel cell system, and a BESS, are coupling circuit, is proposed. Also, the incorporation of the
connected along with DC loads. In this article, the parametric harmony search algorithm (HSA) leads to a better adjustment. A
uncertainties are merged as unknown control inputs that are then, multivariable H∞ -based controller is proposed in [57] to mainly
estimated through adaptation laws. The inherent characteristic adjust the frequency in a PV-diesel hybrid power system operat-
of the employed adaptive partial feedback linearization scheme ing in stand-alone mode. The controller is designed using linear
in noise decoupling makes the controller robust against external matrix inequalities (LMIs). Uncertainties in the state-of-charge
perturbations. An NRFOC approach is proposed for HESSs in (SoC) of supercapacitors are considered using µ-analysis. It is
electric vehicles (EVs) in [47]. The proposed NRFOC is capable shown that the proposed H∞ controller maintains stability in the
of handling nonlinearities and model uncertainties through a presence of disturbances and SoC uncertainties.
FOPID controller as an additional input. The control cost is also
compared with PID control, feedback linearization control, and D. Droop-Based Control Methods
SMC methods.
In [58], an improved droop-based control strategy for the
integration of RESs to the medium- and high-voltage buses in
B. Hierarchical Control Methods power systems is proposed. To achieve proper power-sharing,
A hierarchical robust power-sharing scheme is presented the proposed method uses DC voltage-droop, AC voltage-droop,
in [48], considering two layers of control. The secondary control and frequency-droop controllers simultaneously along with op-
level, where DGs exchange information, acts slower than the pri- timal tuning of the PI controllers. In [59], a robust two degrees
mary level of control, where the set-points are tracked. Another of freedom decentralized droop controller is proposed, which
two-level distributed control scheme is presented in [49], where is a combination of a conventional droop and a robust transient
the higher level controller shares the power accurately among droop function. To mitigate low-frequency oscillations, robust

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 2406 IEEE SYSTEMS JOURNAL, VOL. 16, NO. 2, JUNE 2022

D-stability analysis is performed incorporating Kharitonov’s A second-order SMC method is used, which may lead to an
stability concept. In [60], a droop-based control is applied to increase in power losses. To solve this problem, in addition to the
a small-scale system that is made up of heterogeneous BESSs. second-order SMC method, a third-order SMC method is also
The proposed technique is fully distributed through a sparse recommended, which continuously receives the control signal
communication network. The distributed control method is that can be used as a duty cycle. The distributed multiagent fixed-
based on a hierarchical control structure that can achieve energy time control strategy presented in [66] regulates the AC voltage,
level balance and active/reactive power dispatch, as well as frequency, charge balance, and reactive power in a microgrid
voltage/frequency synchronization. Neglecting the global infor- considering communication delays. A fixed-time SMC method
mation, this controller is capable of greatly reducing the com- balances the charge mode using a fixed-time observer. Based on
putational and communication load compared to the centralized the distributed control system model, it restores the frequency,
methods and also showing robustness. To address concerns about adjusts the average voltage to its nominal value, and achieves an
the stability of a self-disciplined microgrid that allows plug and accurate power-sharing. This strategy ensures robustness to load
play for different DGs, a droop-based decentralized controller changes, as well as intermittencies in the PV system. A nonlin-
is presented for DC microgrids considering the large-signal ear SMC method is tested on a shipboard microgrid proposed
stability in [61]. In the proposed scheme, a nonlinear disturbance in [67] to control the secondary load frequency. A combination
observer (NDO) is used to estimate the interactions among dif- of the sine cosine algorithm (SCA) and the wavelet mutation
ferent agents. The uncertainty of the parameters is compensated (WM), called SCAWM, is used to optimize the performance
by the NDO and makes the system robust against the parametric of the proposed controller and reduce the complexities. Robust
uncertainties. control of an islanded AC microgrid with arbitrary topology is
A combination of secondary communication-based control discussed in [68]. Using the second-order SMC-based control
and droop control can be suitable for maintaining a constant approach and AC voltage measurement, without the need for
voltage and frequency at point of common coupling (PCC) along communication networks among DGs, the asymptotic stability
with the power-sharing among DGs. However, this can be threat- of the system is ensured.
ened by slow dynamic operation and communication errors. An
improved droop-based control is suggested in [62] to improve
the dynamic behavior and enhance the power-sharing accuracy F. Backstepping-Based Control Methods
in autonomous microgrids. Compared to a conventional droop An IBC method is proposed in [69] for a DC microgrid, and
controller, the proposed controller provides a faster response. its performance is compared with other control schemes. The
This is due to the fact that it does not require low-pass filters. This controller is designed to adjust the DC bus voltage for wind,
method performs power-sharing effectively. However, it suffers PV, and HESSs. A backstepping-based fault-tolerant control
from the line impedance variation. To reduce such deviations, algorithm is introduced in [70] for an islanded microgrid. The
as well as to optimize then the voltage and frequency setting, an proposed controller robustly regulates the AC voltage of the mi-
improved dq secondary controller is suggested. crogrid irrespective of the faults and disturbances and improves
the reliability of the system. As opposed to many droop and
E. Sliding Mode Control-Based Control Methods nondroop control strategies requiring a precise model of the sys-
To enhance the power-sharing and stability of the sys- tem, the nonlinear backstepping-based control method proposed
tem, an efficient decentralized robust power/current/AC volt- in [71] takes the uncertainties and dynamics into account using a
age/frequency control strategy is presented in [63], and its per- disturbance observer. Also, local quantities measurement leads
formance is evaluated under unbalanced loads. Three separate to faster response in tracking the reference values.
controllers are designed based on the SMC, Lyapunov function
theory, and FOSMC in order to improve power-sharing and
regulate voltage and active/reactive power. In [64], a decen- G. Other Approaches
tralized second-order SMC-based control method is applied to In [72], the cubature Kalman filter (CKF) approach is used
boost converters in a DC microgrid to regulate the DC voltage. to stabilize a DC microgrid with CPLs, DGs, and BESSs. This
The proposed controller generates continuous inputs that can method uses CKF and LMI to optimize the power buffer design.
be used as duty cycles for boost converters. The effectiveness The proposed model does not require Jacobian and Hessian
of the proposed scheme is evaluated under unknown load de- matrices, leading to a less computational burden. Also, the
mand and modeling uncertainties. A robust control algorithm for robustness of the method is evaluated against uncertainties. The
multifunctional grid-tied inverters under an unbalanced loading stability of a DC microgrid is assessed through a robust nonfrag-
condition is proposed in [65] by incorporating the instantaneous ile fuzzy control method in [73]. The proposed technique takes
power theory. A positive fundamental components estimator the parametric uncertainties, CPL characteristics, and inaccura-
(PFCE) is used to estimate the undesired components of the cies in models into account. By incorporating the exponential
load current, such as harmonics, reactive power, and negative stability analysis and TS fuzzy modeling, rapid stabilization
sequence component. An efficient SMC method is also used as is achieved. Additionally, using the Lyapunov-based approach
a DC bus regulator. In addition to injecting active power, the al- leads to better accuracy in terms of considering nonlinearities
gorithm allows the multifunctional grid-tied inverter to manage in the system. DC microgrid stability analysis can be more
reactive power, reduce harmonics, and balance the load. In the challenging when constant DC power loads are being fed due to
proposed algorithm, the weighted average voltage converges to their destabilizing effects on the system. The method presented
the weighted average of the reference voltage in the microgrid. in [74] is an efficient robust controller combined with an LP

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 MOHAMMADI et al.: ROBUST CONTROL STRATEGIES FOR MICROGRIDS: A REVIEW 2407

approach and Chebyshev theorem to solve the problem of LMI behavior due to the complex resonance at harmonic and sub-
optimization that can reduce the destabilizing effects of CPLs. harmonic frequencies. To avoid such resonances, a damping
method based on a robust distributed observer is proposed that
can enhance the stability of microgrids. The proposed method
IV. ROBUST CONTROL METHODS FOR MULTI-MICROGRIDS is robust against changes in system and load parameters and can
reconstruct undesirable resonance disorders without knowing
An optimal two-stage robust scheduling for hybrid multimi-
the system parameters and frequencies.
crogrids is proposed in [75]. In this method, in addition to the
A distributed control scheme is discussed in [84] for mul-
uncertainties in the source-load, the tie-line disconnection uncer-
tiagent DC microgrids. In addition to adjusting the DC-link
tainties are also taken into account that improves the robustness
voltage, the proposed scheme shares the power among differ-
of the method. Stiff voltage sources pose a challenge for interlink
ent agents while the uncertainties in the load demand, power
converters in hybrid microgrids. In [76], a transfverter is pro-
generation, and modeling are all taken into account. It also
posed that acts as a transformer and converter linking AC and DC
prioritizes the use of resources. A coordinated robust control
grids together. The transfverter, the same as a transformer and
technique for microgrids is presented in [85] by introducing
converter, can reflect the voltage stability of the other side. This
the concept of virtual frequency. In the proposed method, the
article proposes a robust control structure for interlink converters
low-voltage virtual frequency is injected into the main DC grid.
that are optimized for all of the three modes of a hybrid AC/DC
The proposed technique dispatches the power among BESSs
microgrid, including balanced, AC dominant, and DC dominant.
within the grid through interactions between a master controller
A new design based on the concept of state feedback control is
and slave control units without using any virtual resistance in the
presented in [77] that can be applied to bidirectional interlink
network. A robust stability analysis is presented in [86] based on
converters in hybrid microgrids. The method uses Lie derivatives
the bialternate sum matrix approach to identify the stable region
for linearization and considers model/parametric uncertainties.
of microgrids considering the parametric uncertainty. The main
It is also shown that using approximate parameters, the nonlinear
advantage of this method is the less computational time com-
model of the interlink converter can be represented by two
pared to other techniques. In order to evaluate the robustness and
separate subsystems. Accordingly, a high-gain PI observer and
stability of microgrids with mixed DERs, i.e., inverter-based and
a virtual state feedback controller are designed to control each
synchronous generator-based, in [87], a robust control method
subsystem.
based on concepts derived from ecological systems is studied.
In [78], a robust optimal control strategy for BESSs within
The best possible configurations of microgrids are determined
grid-connected microgrids is presented. It is shown that the
based on how the interactions and interconnections among sub-
proposed method guarantees the highest economic benefit for the
systems affect the stability of the system.
system even under the worst-case net demand prediction error
A 3IMPLL control algorithm is presented in [88] that provides
conditions. A two-stage power-sharing framework is presented
improved steady-state performance, as well as fast dynamic
in [79] for prosumer-based microgrids with RESs, multiple
response. This control algorithm can reduce unbalanced compo-
HESSs, and load shifting. In this article, both the uncertain-
nents from input signals. The proposed control method adjusts
ties of market prices and the PV energy forecasting are con-
microgrids’ AC voltage and frequency, and maximum power is
sidered. The proposed algorithm continuously optimizes the
achieved through the converters. There is also a synchronous re-
energy schedule and also predicts errors. A robust optimization
luctance generator (SyRG)-based pico-hydro system that feeds
scheme for multi-microgrids active distribution grids is provided
the nonlinear load. The converter can meet nonlinear load cur-
in [80]. The model is designed to take the uncertainties in the
rent conditions. The control method is capable of harmonics
market price, RESs, and loads into account. In this proposed
elimination, reactive power compensation, and load balancing.
method, a fully distributed model is presented that does not
A critic NN-based ADP robust control strategy for multiplayer
require a central controller. An optimized IGDT method is
linear systems with input disturbances is proposed in [89]. This
also used to model uncertainties. Finally, the central hybrid
controller is combined with a reinforcement learning method.
robust optimization model is split using an augmented LR-based
Compared to the traditional SMC-based control strategy, this
algorithm and a heuristic approach. A robust control strategy
method generates a continuous-time control signal while pre-
for an islanded multi-microgrids is proposed in [81] using a
venting disturbances. This algorithm is mainly presented to solve
decoupling algorithm for DGs with arbitrary topology. There is
the Hamilton–Jacobi equations, along with reducing the com-
also a fixed control structure and a new SDP-based approach
plexity of the calculations and preventing approximate errors.
used for compensatory design to ensure the level of decou-
The discussion of coordination for the use of prosumer-owned
pling of the microgrid channels considering the uncertainties.
DERs by not violating power grid constraints is a challenging
A fuzzy-based decentralized control strategy for multiagent
task. However, such coordination is difficult due to the uncer-
islanded microgrids is proposed in [82] considering the system
tainty of PV units and prosumer loads, as well as their distributed
dynamics and uncertainties. The TS fuzzy approach is applied
nature. To solve the mentioned problems, an affinely adjustable
to achieve stability and optimal performance of microgrids. The
robust approach based on the ADMM algorithm is proposed
control method is combined with a convex optimization problem
in [90]. This approach is more flexible to predict deviations.
and LMI formulation. An approach to mitigate the resonance
phenomena in islanded multi-microgrids is provided in [83]. In
addition, a detailed scheme is developed to assess the dynamics V. SUMMARY AND DISCUSSIONS
behavior of DGs. The proposed model shows that the resonant Fig. 2 illustrates the flowchart of robust control strategies for
characteristics of islanded microgrids cause variable frequency microgrids. The majority of the robust controllers for microgrids

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 2408 IEEE SYSTEMS JOURNAL, VOL. 16, NO. 2, JUNE 2022

Fig. 2. Flowchart of robust control strategies for microgrids.

in the literature have the same structure as shown in Fig. 2. In calculated errors, i.e., ΔVAC , ΔVDC , and Δf , which are sent
this figure, Pm , P ∗ , Qm , and Q∗ represent the measured active to all microgrids, become available and are fed into the control
power, reference active power, measured reactive power, and loops. Adopting and implementing an appropriate robust control
∗ ∗
reference reactive power, respectively, and VAC , VDC , and f ∗ are method leads to proper active and reactive power dispatch,
the reference AC voltage, reference DC voltage, and reference stabilizing the AC voltage and/or DC voltage and/or frequency
frequency, respectively. The measured values of AC voltage, and mitigating their changes, improving the power quality, etc.
DC voltage, and frequency are indicated by VAC,m , VDC,m , and It should be noted that depending on the characteristics of the
fm , respectively. In addition, ΔVAC , ΔVDC , and Δf are the designed controller and availability of the measuring devices, the
calculated error of the AC voltage, DC voltage, and frequency, calculated errors may vary. Active and reactive power control in
respectively. According to Fig. 2, when the microgrid operates microgrids is a function of frequency and voltage deviations
in grid-connected mode, the active and reactive power can be control. Since the frequency is zero in DC microgrids, the DC
controlled by adjusting the frequency, i.e., phase changes in the voltage plays an important role in active power flow control.
steady-state, and the AC voltage magnitude inside the microgrid, If the DC voltage deviations in DC microgrids are greater than
respectively. When the microgrid comprises both AC and DC zero, using Kirchhoff’s current law, the active power can be
sources, the DC voltage magnitude should be also adjusted. To calculated, where P > 0 shows there is excess active power that
prevent voltage and frequency instability and improve the power should be injected into power grids and P < 0 indicates that
quality, a centralized controller, which uses internal control loop there is active power deficiency and microgrids should absorb
controllers principles, at the tertiary level that sends the reference power from power grids (or any other sources from neighbors).
signals should be disconnected during islanding. The synchro- On the other side, since the frequency and AC voltage are,
nization loops are being used to maintain the microgrid synchro- respectively, the determining factors of active and reactive power
nized with the grid. Robust controllers are designed when the flow control in AC microgrids, by calculating/measuring their

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 MOHAMMADI et al.: ROBUST CONTROL STRATEGIES FOR MICROGRIDS: A REVIEW 2409

TABLE I
THE SUMMARY OF THE EXISTING ROBUST CONTROL METHODS FOR THE OPERATION OF MICROGRIDS IN POWER SYSTEMS

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 2410 IEEE SYSTEMS JOURNAL, VOL. 16, NO. 2, JUNE 2022

deviations, an overall estimation of the net energy excess and/or 4) Optimal Operation of Microgrids: New optimization ap-
deficiency can be done. Considering that both the frequency and proaches and algorithms with a view to reducing the operational
AC voltage deviations are greater than zero, active power is a costs of microgrids should be developed.
function of frequency, and its positive/negative value shows that 5) Real-Time Monitoring and Control of the Load Demand:
the power should be injected into/absorbed from power grids. In Novel methods for real-time monitoring and control of the load
addition, the AC voltage can directly affect the reactive power demand should be explored. This can improve the power quality
control, where the positive/negative value of reactive power situations of future microgrids.
shows that the power should be injected into/absorbed from 6) Generation Capacity Expansion: With a view to meeting
power grids. customers growing demand in the future and due to the fact that
Table I shows the summary of the existing robust control control methods and their implementations considering com-
methods for the operation of microgrids in power systems. The munication infrastructure can directly affect the cost function
research studies in the literature are categorized based on the type of expansion planning, the generation capacity of microgrids
of microgrids (AC microgrids, DC microgrids, or hybrid mi- should be increased using appropriate design means and con-
crogrids), the controller structure (centralized or decentralized), siderations.
the operating mode (grid-connected, islanded, or both), and 7) Microgrids Interoperability: Future microgrids should have
the main control objectives (controlling AC voltage and/or DC proper interconnection and interaction capabilities toward real-
voltage and/or frequency, power quality, and power-sharing). izing smarter power grids.
Considering the microgrid capacity, droop control strategies are 8) Model-Free Control Methods: With the growing use of
appropriate for small-capacity microgrids at the primary level. microgrids, model-free control methods, such as data-driven
Taking the structure of microgrids into account, at the secondary and machine learning-based approaches, can play a key role
level of control, the centralized and decentralized structures are in the control and management of microgrids in the near future.
suitable for small-scale and large-scale microgrids, respectively. However, machine learning-based control approaches for mi-
Finally, unlike islanded mode, grid connection requires the crogrids are currently limited. Therefore, consideration of such
tertiary control. control approaches without the need for exact models of future
microgrids is highly recommended.
VI. RECOMMENDATIONS FOR FUTURE RESEARCH 9) New Business Models Facilitating Transactive Energy:
Future microgrids should be designed considering new business
For proper operation of microgrids, reliable communication
models facilitating transactive energy that can allow customers,
infrastructure, as well as applicable control algorithms, is essen-
either as individuals or in aggregate, to actively engage in energy
tial. To enhance the reliability of power systems and optimize en-
markets by negotiating and responding to “value signals” based
ergy dispatch, hybrid microgrids are required. To achieve these,
on demand, price, time of day, and other considerations.
robust control schemes should be considered for microgrids
10) Intelligent Energy Management System: New methods
under the scenario of increasing penetration of DGs into power
based on intelligent techniques, such as fuzzy logic and arti-
systems. The design complexity and cost of implementing con-
ficial neural networks, considering both technical and financial
trol schemes for microgrids and their robustness against external
aspects should be investigated for the future energy management
disturbances, system modes of operation, and unpredictabil-
systems of microgrids.
ity of RESs are the dominant considerations to design robust
11) Bulk Power Injection From Microgrids Into Power Grids
controllers for microgrids. Taking the mentioned explanations
Considering Power Systems Protection and Power Quality Stan-
into account, there are some fundamental discussions on robust
dards: New protection methods and power quality standards,
control strategies for microgrids, as follows.
including specific indices, are required to be developed to allow
1) Scalability: Most of the case studies are small-scale micro-
for bulk power injection from microgrids into power distribution
grids. One of the research gaps is to make a better understanding
grids.
of the applicability of the proposed approaches to larger systems
12) Bidirectional Real-Time Electricity Trade Among
when the computational burden can be a realistic concern.
Prosumer-Based Microgrids and Utilities: New methods em-
2) Robustness Assessment: Robustness is a quantifiable con-
ploying bidirectional capabilities should be explored for real-
cept. However, in many research studies, the robustness of the
time electricity trade among prosumer-based microgrids and
proposed controller is not clearly assessed. It is clear that there is
utilities’ control centers.
not a perfect universal robust controller that would fit all needs
13) Using Fast Communication Infrastructure to Reduce the
in microgrids. Hence, the limitations of the proposed controllers
Delay in Communication With Secondary and Tertiary Control
should be discussed along with the conditions to which the
Levels: In order to reduce the impact of time delays that arise
controller is shown to be robust.
inherently from communication systems, faster communication
3) Evaluation Approach: Theoretical microgrids are com-
mediums, such as 5G-based technology, should be considered
monly proposed as case studies to evaluate the effectiveness
in future microgrids.
of control algorithms. Real-world power grids are not as clean
as theoretical systems, and they contain some features that are
not usually considered in generic models. For instance, in many
research studies, the uncertainties of RESs are considered that VII. CONCLUSION
are not close to uncertainties in a real-world system. This article presents an exhaustive overview of robust control
Future developments of the control systems for microgrids schemes for AC, DC, and hybrid microgrids with different
should be focused on the following topics. topologies and different forms of connection to power grids. For

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 MOHAMMADI et al.: ROBUST CONTROL STRATEGIES FOR MICROGRIDS: A REVIEW 2411

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