Implementation and performance of automatic gain adjustment in a shunt active filter for harmonic damping throughout a power distribution system

This paper discusses automatic gain adjustment in a fully-digital-controlled shunt active filter. This is the first step in cooperative control of the multiple active filters based on voltage detection for harmonic damping throughout power distribution systems. In general, the active filter should be equipped with an optimal control gain corresponding to the characteristic impedance of a distribution line. However, it is difficult to know circuit parameters of a real distribution line having various shunt capacitors and loads. Therefore, a main purpose of the gain adjustment is to make the active filter damp out harmonic propagation without considering the circuit parameters. In addition, the gain adjustment can reduce the compensating currents and losses in the active filter, and moreover it can avoid over-damping performance. Experiment results obtained from a 200-V, 20-kW laboratory system verify the effectiveness of the active filter equipped with automatic gain adjustment. Index Terms--Active filters, digital control, harmonic damping, harmonic propagation, power distribution systems.