A comprehensive overview of single-phase self-excited induction generators

Abstract

The use of induction generators for electricity production in small power isolated systems represents the topic for a wide research area. As in such topologies single-phase consumers are predominant, besides three-phase induction generators with adequate balancing circuits, single-phase induction generators qualify as a reliable alternative. In the last 38 years, a significant number of research papers have tackled the problems related to the autonomous operation of single-phase induction generators (SPIGs) such as determining excitation capacitors values and their optimal arrangement, ensuring stable operation in terms of voltage and frequency balancing under varying loads and finally enhancing the quality of the energy delivered to the isolated single-phase consumers. While in case of simple topologies the operation of SPIGs is mainly investigated for fundamental electric parameters dependence with loading, excitation capacitance and speed, the use of power electronics based converters ensures stable operation over a wide range of varying/non-linear loads. This paper presents a comprehensive overview of the literature dedicated to SPIGs, focusing on several significant aspects such as main topologies, modeling, steady-state analysis and performance investigations.