International Journal of Power Electronics and Drive Systems (IJPEDS)

Vol. 13, No. 1, March 2022, pp. 368~379

ISSN: 2088-8694, DOI: 10.11591/ijpeds.v13.i1.pp368-379  368

Design of super-twisting algorithm control and observer for

three-phase inverter in standalone operation

Dinh Hieu Phan1, Minh Tuan Dao2, Van Truong Nguyen1, Huy Anh Bui1, Ngoc Duy Le1,
Thanh Lam Bui1
1
Department of Mechatronics Engineering, Faculty of Mechanic Engineering, Hanoi University of Industry, Hanoi, Vietnam
2
Department of Automation Engineering, Faculty of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, Hung Yen University of Technology and
Education, Hai Duong, Vietnam

Article Info ABSTRACT

Article history: This paper develops a new control algorithm of a distributed generation
system in the standalone operation. Behavior of three-phase voltage source
Received May 5, 2021 inverter is investigated and the guidelines for tuning the control parameters
Revised Jan 29, 2022 are presented. Based on super-twisting algorithm, the proposed controller
Accepted Feb 5, 2022 guarantees the load voltage performance under different types of loads. The
proposed controller is established for an inner-loop current controller and an
outer-loop voltage controller in a dual control scheme. The proposed scheme
Keywords: is very simple, thus tuning control parameters is easy and the computational
burden of the controllers is low. In order to validate the load current of the
Distributed generation systems proposed system feasibility, a reduced-order observer is adopted. The
inner-loop current controller simulation results indicate a more reliable and efficient performance
Load voltage compared to the standard sliding control and the adaptive control.
Outer-loop voltage controller
super-twisting algorithm This is an open access article under the CC BY-SA license.
Standalone operation
Total harmonic distortion

Corresponding Author:
Dinh Hieu Phan
Department of Mechatronics Engineering, Hanoi University of Industry
No. 298, Cau Dien Street, Bac Tu Liem District, Hanoi, Viet Nam
Email: [email protected]

1. INTRODUCTION
Last century, there has been a rapid increase in the number of distributed generation systems (DGSs)
because of their merits compared to the conventional central generation systems, such as decreasing systems
and fuel cost, complying with stricter environmental regulations, and technological advances in small
generators, power electronics, and energy storage devices [1]−[6]. The DGSs could be implemented in two
different modes that are in stand-alone application (Islanded mode) [7] or grid-connected applications [8].
Especially, the stand-alone mode is applied as an optimal option in some cases, such as: expensive
connection, and impractical location rural areas. During the stand-alone applications process, the DGSs
implement in independent mode or in a parallel mode by connecting the DG units together. The most
remarkable advantage of the parallel mode is good load sharing (harmonic power sharing, reactive power
sharing, and real power sharing) by regulating real power and reactive power independently [9]. On the other
hand, the independent mode has to maintain good performance (small steady-state error, low harmonic
distortion, fast transient response) of the load voltage among complicated scenarios. In this article, the
authors concentrate more on each DG behaviors during the independent operation in the Islanded mode.
Recently, several studies have been investigated on designing voltage controllers for three-phase
voltage inverters in order to improve the load voltage performance. First, the conventional proportion-integral
(PI) technique was presented for a single voltage control loop in [10]. Zhang et al. [11] proposed dual-loop
scheme (the PI inner-loop current and the PI outer-loop voltage controllers). Even they maintain a good quality

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Int J Pow Elec & Dri Syst ISSN: 2088-8694  369

control during balanced loads operation, they were not appropriate for nonlinear loads. To deal with this
problem, a harmonic power flow technique tailored for planning applications is designed in [12]. It resulted in a
better distribution of dispatchable DGs, hence the high harmonic phenomena are reduced. During recent years,
various advanced control methods have been developed for output voltage controllers. He et al. [13], an
adaptive lyapunov-based control strategy for a single-phase uninterruptible power supply (UPS) inverter was
proposed. Although this controller showed a good performance in the case of the nonlinear loads, it still
consumes more time to validate and evaluate the output response of the micro-grid system.
A discrete-time repetitive controller is designed to maintain the performance of the UPS inverters
load voltage [14]−[16]. Nevertheless, this method suffers from a series of pitfalls such as reduced conversion
efficiency of the inverter or distorted output voltage in the UPS. Lucena et al. [17], a single-phase
AC/DC/AC five-leg multilevel converters are proposed to ensure the output voltage quality in case of the
unbalanced loads and the nonlinear loads. However, these controllers are too complicated to implement. The
(proportional-derivative) PD voltage controller is equipped for DC/DC boost converters via current
sensorless approach [18], but this approach could only process in the areas which install the active damping.
Besides, one serious weakness of this method is the ability to stabilize the error dynamic. In order to deal
with these complex issues, the sliding- mode control (SMC) has been proposed for UPS inverters [19], [21].
Komurgucil [19], precented the UPS inverters are designed by using the rotating-sliding-line-based sliding-
mode controller. Despite of smaller total harmonic distortion in the load voltage, the designed controller is
only for the single-phase inverter. The SMC strategy is approached for doubly fed induction generator using
extended active power [20]. Unfortunately, this method neglects to supervise the variable switch frequency of
the converter effectively. Therefore, it causes the high chattering problem. The SMC strategy is also
proposed to control the four-leg inverter [21]. This control strategy proves the robustness of the SMC system.
However, total harmonic distortion (THD) of the load voltage is relatively high in the case of the nonlinear
loads. The disadvantage of classical SMC above is characterized by a discontinuous control action which
causes the chattering problem increasement. To overcome this problem, a super-twist sliding-mode control
(STSMC) is proposed in many literature sources [22]−[28]. The advantage of this technique is characterized
by continuous time of the control action. Thus, the chattering phenomenon is eliminated significantly.
In this paper, the STSMC strategy is involved in the dual-scheme with a STSMC inner-loop current
controller and a STSMC outer-loop voltage controller under various load types. The method for tuning
parameters of the proposed controller is designed. The most remarkable point to emerge from the STSMC
controller is the continuous control actions which reduce the load voltage chattering. Hence, the quality of the
load voltages is significantly improved. The STSMC controller is sufficiently simple, thus tuning controller
parameters is easy and the computational burden of the controller is low. Moreover, a reduced-order observer
of the load current is established to reduce the number of current sensors. As a result, the reliability and the
cost-effectiveness of the designed system are enhanced. Finally, the simulation results show the good
performance of the load voltages under various load types when compared to the standard sliding controller
and adaptive controller.
The rest of this novel is divided as follows: The next section indicates a DGS description and
mathematical model of a three-phase inverter. The STSMC controller and reduce-order observer designs are
described in section 3. The simulation results are reported in section 4. The final section illustrates the brief
conclusion.

2. STANDALONE DGS DESCRIPTION AND MATHEMATICAL MODEL

A brief overview of the DGS based on renewable energy sources is depicted in Figure 1. There are
three main parts in standalone DGS: Input powers, local loads, and the power conversion unit. To begin with,
the input powers consist of different kinds of renewable energy sources, such as wind, fuel, and solar energy.
Secondly, the power conversion unit is established by coupling the input converter (AC/DC converter or
DC/DC boost converter), a three-phase inverter with an LC output filter. Finally, the power converter
transmits the output voltage and the electric power to the local loads. The quality and reliability of them are
regulated by the controllers. In this paper, the input powers and the input converter are replaced by a stiff DC
voltage source.
The structure diagram of a three phase DC/AC converter applying the LC filter is presented in
Figure 2. The mathematical model of the designed converter can be described as (1).
𝑑𝑉2 1 1 𝑑𝐼 1 1
= 𝐼 − 𝐼; 1 = 𝑉 − 𝑉 (1)
𝑑𝑡 𝐶1 1 𝐶1 2 𝑑𝑡 𝐿1 1 𝐿1 2

Design of super-twisting algorithm control and observer for three-phase inverter in … (Dinh Hieu Phan)
370  ISSN: 2088-8694

Where V1 is defined as a vector output voltage V1 = [v1a , v1b , v1c ]T , I1 is defined as a vector current
I1 = [i1a , i1b , i1c ]T , V2 denotes a vector load voltage V2 = [v2a , v2b , v2c ]T , I 2 denotes a vector load current
I 2 = [i2 a , i2 b , i2 c ]T , L1 , C1 denotes the filter inductance and filter capacitor, respectively. The (1) which places
in the stationary frame convert into the following equations in the synchronously rotating d-q frame:

𝑑𝑉1𝑑 1 1 𝑑𝑉 1 1
= 𝑤𝑉1𝑞 − 𝐼 + 𝐼 ; 2𝑞 = −𝑤𝑉2𝑑 − 𝐼2𝑞 + 𝐼1𝑞
𝑑𝑡 𝐶1 2𝑑 𝐶1 1𝑑 𝑑𝑡 𝐶1 𝐶1
𝑑𝐼1𝑑 1 1 𝑑𝐼 1 1
=− 𝑉 + 𝑤𝐼1𝑞 + 𝑉1𝑑 ; 1𝑞 = − 𝑉2𝑞 − 𝑤𝐼1𝑑 + 𝑉1𝑞 (2)
𝑑𝑡 𝐿1 2𝑑 𝐿 1 𝑑𝑡 𝐿 1 𝐿 1

where as w is defined as the frequency of the angular, V2d , V2q denotes the load voltage of d-q frame, and
I 2d , I 2q denotes the load currents of d-q frame, respectively. Let us introduce the state variables
I1d = x1 , I1q = x2 ; V2d = x3 ; V2q = x4 . In (2) could be rewritten as:

𝑑𝑥1 1 1 𝑑𝑥 1 1
=− 𝑥3 + 𝑤𝑥2 + 𝑉 ; 2 =− 𝑥4 − 𝑤𝑥1 + 𝑉
𝑑𝑡 𝐿1 𝐿1 1𝑑 𝑑𝑡 𝐿1 𝐿1 1𝑞
𝑑𝑥3 1 1 𝑑𝑥 1 1
= 𝑤𝑥4 + 𝑥 − 𝐼̂ ; 4 = −𝑤𝑥3 + 𝑥2 − 𝐼̂ (3)
𝑑𝑡 𝐶1 1 𝐶1 2𝑑 𝑑𝑡 𝐶1 𝐶1 2𝑞

where Iˆ2 d ; Iˆ2 q denote the estimation of the load currents I 2d , I 2q , respectively.

Wind power Balanced load

AC
or Three
LC Unbalanced
Solar power DC phase
filter load
inverter
DC
Fuel cell Nonlinear load

Figure 1. Block diagram of a standalone DGS

LOAD
L1
V1a i1a V2a i2a R

L1
V1b i1b V2b i2b R
Vdc
L1 R
V1c i1c V2c i2c

C1 C1 C1

Figure 2. Structure diagram of the three-phase converter of standalone distributed generation systems

3. STSMC TECHNIQUE AND REDUCE-ORDER OBSERVER DESIGN

The proposed controller is designed based on the STSMC technique. To be more specific, a dual
structure is established by combining the inner loop of current controller and the outer loop of voltage
controller. Both of them are involved the STSMC technique to calibrate the load voltage. In addition, an
observer of the load current is established for calculating the voltage loop controller. The proposed STSMC
and the observer in stand-alone mode is depicted in Figure 3.

Int J Pow Elec & Dri Syst, Vol. 13, No. 1, March 2022: 368-379
Int J Pow Elec & Dri Syst ISSN: 2088-8694  371

L1

L1
Vdc LOAD
L1

C1 C1 C1

S1-S6 i1abc V2abc

I1dq
a,b,c
SVPWM  d,q
V2 dq

V1

α,β
^

I1dqref I 2 dq
STA current STA voltage Load current
d,q V loop controller loop controller observer
1dq

V2 dqref

Figure 3. Schematic diagram of the STSMC and observer

3.1. Controller design

From in (3), the equation of inner loop current controller can be described as:
𝑑𝑥1 1 1 𝑑𝑥 1 1
=− 𝑥3 + 𝑤𝑥2 + 𝑉 ; 2 =− 𝑥4 − 𝑤𝑥1 + 𝑉 (4)
𝑑𝑡 𝐿1 𝐿1 1𝑑 𝑑𝑡 𝐿1 𝐿1 1𝑞

The sliding variables can be chosen as:

𝑠1 = 𝑥1𝑟𝑒𝑓 − 𝑥1 + 𝑐1 ∫ (𝑥1𝑟𝑒𝑓 − 𝑥1 )𝑑𝑡; 𝑠2 = 𝑥2𝑟𝑒𝑓 − 𝑥2 + 𝑐2 ∫ (𝑥2𝑟𝑒𝑓 − 𝑥2 )𝑑𝑡 (5)

Where𝑥1𝑟𝑒𝑓 ;𝑥2𝑟𝑒𝑓 are the output current reference values. This reference values are defined as 𝑥1𝑟𝑒𝑓 =
𝑢3 , 𝑥2𝑟𝑒𝑓 = 𝑢4 . Taking the time derivative of the sliding variables of the in (5) then incorporated with the in
(4) leads to:
1
𝑠̇1 = 𝑥̇1𝑟𝑒𝑓 + 𝑐1 (𝑥1𝑟𝑒𝑓 − 𝑥1 ) + 𝑥3 − 𝑤𝑥2 − 𝑢1 ; 𝑠̇2
𝐿1
1
= 𝑥̇ 2𝑟𝑒𝑓 + 𝑐2 (𝑥2𝑟𝑒𝑓 − 𝑥2 ) − 𝑥4 + 𝑤𝑥1 − 𝑢2 (6)
𝐿1

1 1
Where 𝑢1 = 𝑉 ; 𝑢2 = 𝑉
𝐿1 1𝑑 𝐿1 1𝑞
It reveals that the system in (6) is applied one-order sliding mode control (I-SMC) strategy or two-
order sliding mode control (II-SMC) strategy. As mentioned above, the I-SMC controller causes the variable
frequency of the DC/AC inverter switch, therefore increasing the chattering phenomenon. To handle this
issue, the 2-STSMC controller known as STSMC is adopted. Consequently, the action control variables
consist of two terms [28].

𝑢𝑖 = 𝑢𝑒𝑞𝑖 + 𝑢̃𝑖 (7)

Where 𝑢̃𝑖 (i=1,2) denote the control variables terms which is designed by using the STSMC technical, 𝑢𝑒𝑞𝑖
denote the equivalent control terms for the nominal and unperturbed model derived by letting 𝑠̇𝑖 = 0, 𝑢̃𝑖 = 0.
As a result, the equivalent control terms ueqi are written as,

1
𝑢𝑒𝑞1 = 𝑥̇1𝑟𝑒𝑓 + 𝑐1 (𝑥1𝑟𝑒𝑓 − 𝑥1 ) + 𝑥3 − 𝑤𝑥2 ; 𝑢𝑒𝑞2
𝐿1
1
= 𝑥̇ 2𝑟𝑒𝑓 + 𝑐2 (𝑥2𝑟𝑒𝑓 − 𝑥2 ) − 𝑥4 + 𝑤𝑥1 (8)
𝐿1

substitution of (7) and (8) into (6) produces:

Design of super-twisting algorithm control and observer for three-phase inverter in … (Dinh Hieu Phan)
372  ISSN: 2088-8694

𝑠̇𝑖 = −𝑢̃𝑖 (9)

The equation of the control terms ui are derived from [28].

𝑡
𝑢̃𝑖 = 𝑘1𝑖 |𝑠𝑖 |1/2 𝑠𝑔𝑛( 𝑠𝑖 ) + ∫0 𝑘2𝑖 𝑠𝑔𝑛( 𝑠𝑖 )𝑑𝑡 (10)

Where the values k1i and k 2 i being positive gains to tuned. Next, from in (3), the equation of proposed outer
loop voltage controller can be expressed as,
𝑑𝑥3 1 1 𝑑𝑥 1 1
= 𝑤𝑥4 + 𝑥 − 𝐼̂ ; 4 = −𝑤𝑥3 + 𝑥2 − 𝐼̂ (11)
𝑑𝑡 𝐶1 1 𝐶1 2𝑑 𝑑𝑡 𝐶1 𝐶1 2𝑞

the sliding variables of outer loop voltage controller are selected as in (12):

𝑠3 = 𝑥3𝑟𝑒𝑓 − 𝑥3 + 𝑐3 ∫ (𝑥3𝑟𝑒𝑓 − 𝑥3 )𝑑𝑡; 𝑠4 = 𝑥4𝑟𝑒𝑓 − 𝑥4 + 𝑐4 ∫ (𝑥4𝑟𝑒𝑓 − 𝑥4 )𝑑𝑡 (12)

where 𝑥3𝑟𝑒𝑓 , 𝑥4𝑟𝑒𝑓 are the load voltage reference values. Taking the time derivative of the sliding variable of
the in (12) then incorporated with the in (11) lead to:
1
𝑠̇3 = 𝑥̇ 3𝑟𝑒𝑓 + 𝑐3 (𝑥3𝑟𝑒𝑓 − 𝑥3 ) − 𝑤𝑥4 + 𝐿̂2𝑑 − 𝑢3 ; 𝑠̇4
𝐶1
1
= 𝑥̇ 4𝑟𝑒𝑓 + 𝑐4 (𝑥4𝑟𝑒𝑓 − 𝑥4 ) + 𝑤𝑥3 + 𝐿̂2𝑞 − 𝑢4 (13)
𝐶1

1 1
where 𝑥1 = 𝑢3 , 𝑥2 = 𝑢4 .
𝐶1 𝐶1
The action control variables of voltage controller consists of two terms in (7) where ueqi (i=3,4) can
be determined as:
1
𝑢𝑒𝑞3 = 𝑥̇ 3𝑟𝑒𝑓 + 𝑐3 (𝑥3𝑟𝑒𝑓 − 𝑥3 ) − 𝑤𝑥4 + 𝐿̂2𝑑 ; 𝑢𝑒𝑞4
𝐶1
1
= 𝑥̇ 4𝑟𝑒𝑓 + 𝑐4 (𝑥4𝑟𝑒𝑓 − 𝑥4 ) + 𝑤𝑥3 + 𝐿̂2𝑞 (14)
𝐶1

The STSMC terms 𝑢̃3 , 𝑢̃4 are similar to the control terms which described in (10).
The block diagram of the STSMC current and voltage controller is shown in Figure 4. This block
diagram is composed of the equation blocks. The inputs of the block are the state variables, observer
variables, and given constant parameters, while the outputs of the block diagram are the control signals ui .

~
xiref ui ui
xi Equations
si Equation Equation
(5),(12) (10) (7)

k1i , k 2i
Equations
(22),(23),(24) ci
 i , i , ni ,  i

xiref , xi Equations
ueqi
(8),(14)
^ ^

I2d , I2q

Figure 4. Block diagram of proposed STSMC current and voltage controller

3.2. Tuning the parameters of STSMC

The parameters tuned are ci , k1i , and k 2i (i=1: 4). Substitution the control law (10) to (9) lead to,

𝑡
𝑠̇𝑖 = −𝑘1𝑖 |𝑠𝑖 |1/2 𝑠𝑔𝑛( 𝑠𝑖 ) − ∫0 𝑘2𝑖 𝑠𝑔𝑛( 𝑠𝑖 )𝑑𝑡 (15)

Int J Pow Elec & Dri Syst, Vol. 13, No. 1, March 2022: 368-379
Int J Pow Elec & Dri Syst ISSN: 2088-8694  373
𝑠
it is obvious that 𝑠𝑔𝑛( 𝑠𝑖 ) = |𝑠𝑖 | , taking the time derivative of (15) produces,
𝑖

𝑠̇ 𝑖 𝑠
𝑠̈𝑖 = −𝑘1𝑖 − 𝑘2𝑖 |𝑠𝑖| (16)
2√|𝑠𝑖 | 𝑖

from (5) and (12), the sliding variables are generalized as,

𝑠𝑖 = 𝑥𝑖𝑟𝑒𝑓 − 𝑥𝑖 + 𝑐𝑖 ∫(𝑥𝑖𝑟𝑒𝑓 − 𝑥𝑖 )𝑑𝑡 = 𝑒𝑖 + 𝑐𝑖 ∫ 𝑒𝑖 𝑑𝑡 (17)

because of the effect of the STSMC, the sliding regime would happen and the sliding variable si close to
zero, so|𝑠𝑖 | ≤ 𝛿𝑖 with 𝛿𝑖 are the positive constants which close to zero. Considering the most
disadvantageous case, in which |𝑠𝑖 | = 𝛿𝑖 , and substitution in (17) to (16) produces.

𝑘 𝑘 𝑐 𝑘2𝑖 𝑐𝑖 𝑘2𝑖
𝑒̈𝑖 + (𝑐𝑖 + 1𝑖 ) 𝑒̇𝑖 + ( 1𝑖 𝑖 + )𝑒𝑖 + ∫ 𝑒𝑖 𝑑𝑡 = 0 (18)
⏟ 2√𝛿𝑖 ⏟
2√𝛿𝑖 𝛿𝑖 ⏟
𝛿𝑖
𝑎2𝑖 𝑎1𝑖 𝑎0𝑖

Taking the time derivative of (18), the reflecting the ei error dynamics is obtained,

𝑠 3 + 𝑎2𝑖 𝑠 2 + 𝑎1𝑖 𝑠 + 𝑎0𝑖 𝑠 = 0 (19)

where s is the Laplace operator, the design of the STSMC parameters ci , k1i , k2i is made to ensure the poles
of the characteristic in (20) equal the poles of the desired characteristic determined as,
2
(𝑠 2 + 2𝜉𝑖 𝜔𝑛𝑖 𝑠 + 𝜔𝑛𝑖 )(𝑠 + 𝛼𝑖 𝜉𝑖 𝜔𝑛𝑖 )
=𝑠 +⏟3
(1 + 2𝛼𝑖 𝜉𝑖2 )𝜔𝑛𝑖
(2 + 𝛼𝑖 )𝜉𝑖 𝜔𝑛𝑖 𝑠 2 + ⏟ 2
𝑠+⏟ 3
𝛼𝑖 𝜉𝑖 𝜔𝑛𝑖 (20)
𝑏2𝑖 𝑏1𝑖 𝑏0𝑖

where s is the Laplace operator, the design of the STSMC parameters ci , k1i , k2i is made to ensure the poles
of the characteristic in (20) equal the poles of the desired characteristic equation determined as,
2 2 2 3
(𝑠 2 + 2𝜉𝑖 𝜔𝑛𝑖 𝑠 + 𝜔𝑛𝑖 )(𝑠 + 𝛼𝑖 𝜉𝑖 𝜔𝑛𝑖 ) = 𝑠 3 + (2
⏟ + 𝛼𝑖 )𝜉𝑖 𝜔𝑛𝑖 𝑠 2 + (1
⏟ + 2𝛼𝑖 𝜉𝑖 )𝜔𝑛𝑖 𝑠 + 𝛼
⏟𝑖 𝜉𝑖 𝜔𝑛𝑖 (21)
𝑏2𝑖 𝑏1𝑖 𝑏0𝑖

where the pole of desired in (21) 𝑠1𝑖 = −𝛼𝑖 𝜉𝑖 𝜔𝑛𝑖 is the dominant poles, so the choice of  i is enough high,
𝜉𝑖 is the damping coefficient, 𝜔𝑛𝑖 is the natural frequency. The performance of the error dynamics in (19) is
achieved by turning the controller parameters 𝑐𝑖 , 𝑘1𝑖 , 𝑘2𝑖 to guarantee 𝑎2𝑖 = 𝑏2𝑖 , 𝑎1𝑖 = 𝑏1𝑖 , 𝑎0𝑖 = 𝑏0𝑖
simultaneous fulfillment. From simultaneous implementation 𝑎2𝑖 = 𝑏2𝑖 , 𝑎1𝑖 = 𝑏1𝑖 , 𝑎0𝑖 = 𝑏0𝑖 the controller
parameters 𝑐𝑖 , 𝑘1𝑖 , 𝑘2𝑖 are calculated as,

𝑐𝑖 3 − ⏟ (1 + 2𝛼𝑖 𝜉𝑖2 )𝜔𝑛𝑖

(2 + 𝛼𝑖 )𝜉𝑖 𝜔𝑛𝑖 𝑐𝑖 2 + ⏟ 2
𝑐𝑖 − ⏟ 3
𝛼𝑖 𝜉𝑖 𝜔𝑛𝑖
𝑏2𝑖 𝑏1𝑖 𝑏0𝑖
= (𝑐𝑖2 − 2𝜉𝑖 𝜔𝑛𝑖 𝑐𝑖 + 𝜔𝑛𝑖
2
)(𝑐𝑖 − 𝛼𝑖 𝜉𝑖 𝜔𝑛𝑖 ) = 0 (22)

𝑘1𝑖 = 2√𝛿𝑖 ((2 + 𝛼𝑖 )𝜉𝑖 𝜔𝑛𝑖 − 𝑐𝑖 ) (23)

3
𝛼𝑖 𝜉𝑖 𝜔𝑛𝑖 𝛿𝑖
𝑘2𝑖 = (24)
𝑐𝑖

3.3. Load current observer

It is obvious that the STSMC requires the load current information. The information can be obtained
by using sensors, but the sensors make the system more expensive and less reliable. Liu et al. [29], the
authors applied the full-order observer, which causes a high computational burden in the controller. Hence,
the reduce-order observer is utilized as a better option to estimate the current load. The reduced-order
observer of load current is represented as,
𝑥̇ = 𝐴1 𝑥 + 𝐴2 𝑦 + 𝐵1 𝑢
{ (25)
𝑦̇ = 𝐴3 𝑥 + 𝐴4 𝑦 + 𝐵2 𝑢

Design of super-twisting algorithm control and observer for three-phase inverter in … (Dinh Hieu Phan)
374  ISSN: 2088-8694

where 𝑥 = [𝐼2𝑑 𝐼2𝑞 ]𝑇 , y = [V2d V2q ]T , u = [ I1d I1q ]T , A1 = 02 x 2 , A2 = 02 x 2 .

1 1 1
− 0 − 0 0
𝐶1 𝐶1 2𝑥2 𝐶1
𝐴3 = [ 1 ] 𝐴4 = [ 1 ] 𝐵1 = 0 𝐵2 = [ 1]
0 − 0 − 0
𝐶1 𝐶1 𝐶1

The design of a reduced-order observer rests on coordinate transformation [30]-[32].

𝑥 ′ = 𝑥 + 𝑀1 𝑦 (26)

The coordinate transformation is obviously nonsingular for any M 1 . The equation with respect to x is
obtained from in (25), (26).

x = ( A1 + M1 A3 ) x + A2 y + ( B1 + M1 B2 )u (27)

Where 𝐴′2 = 𝐴2 + 𝑀1 𝐴4 − (𝐴1 + 𝑀1 𝐴3 ) 𝑀1 . An observer is designed by,

^̇ ^
𝑥 ′ = (𝐴1 + 𝑀1 𝐴3 )𝑥 ′ + 𝐴′2 𝑦 + (𝐵1 + 𝑀1 𝐵2 )𝑢 (28)

^
with x ' is an estimate of the state vector x' .
𝑚1 0
In this section, M 1 is simply chosen as𝑀1 = [ ] and incorporated with (28), the reduced-
0 𝑚2
order observer of load current can be rewritten as,
^̇ ^ ^̇ ^
𝑚1 𝑚12 𝑚1 𝑚1 𝑚2 𝑚22 𝑚2 𝑚2
𝑥1′ = − 𝑥1′ + 𝑉2𝑑 + 𝑉2𝑞 + 𝐼1𝑑 ; 𝑥2′ = − 𝑥2′ + 𝑉2𝑞 − 𝑉2𝑑 + 𝐼 (29)
𝐶1 𝐶1 𝐶1 𝐶1 𝐶1 𝐶1 𝐶1 𝐶1 1𝑞

where x = [ x1 x2 ]T , from (26), the load current observer is obtained as:
^ ^
^ ^
𝑥1 = 𝑥1′ − 𝑚1 𝑉2𝑑 ; 𝑥2 = 𝑥2′ − 𝑚2 𝑉2𝑞 (30)

The block diagram of the load current observer is expressed in Figure 5.

Figure 5. Block diagram of load current observer

4. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

In this section, we utilized the MATLAB/Simulink to evaluate the efficiency of proposed observer
and controller. The simulation model of the DGS is defined by the stiff DC voltage source, DC-AC inverter
with an LC filter connected to the various loads, the STSMC, and the reduce-order observer. The nominal
parameters employed in these simulations are listed in Table 1. During the simulation process, the discrete
model is designed with a time step of 2  s . The switching frequency converters are set at 5 kHz. The
parameters of STSMC for the current loop control and the voltage loop control can be turned as:

𝛼1 = 500, 𝜉1 = 1, 𝜔𝑛1 = 100, 𝛿1 = 0.05, 𝑐1 = 100; 𝛼2 = 500, 𝜉2 = 1, 𝜔𝑛2 = 100, 𝛿2 = 0.05, 𝑐2 =

100 𝛼3 = 2500, 𝜉3 = 1, 𝜔𝑛3 = 100, 𝛿3 = 0.05, 𝑐3 = 100; 𝛼4 = 2500, 𝜉4 = 1, 𝜔𝑛4 = 100, 𝛿4 =
0.05, 𝑐4 = 100

The variables of the matrix M 1 can be chosen as follows: 𝑚1 = 0.005, 𝑚2 = 0.01.

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Int J Pow Elec & Dri Syst ISSN: 2088-8694  375

We conducted the simulations under the following different cases to illustrate the excellent performance of
the proposed observer and STSMC controller:
− Case 1) Resistive pulse load (R=80 Ω; L=0.1 H; Sudden load change 100% to 0% and 0% to 100%).
− Case 2) Resistive and inductive pulse load (R=80 Ω; L=0.1 H; Sudden load change 100% to 0% and 0%
to 100%).
− Case 3) Unbalanced resistive load (R=80 Ω; Closed phase A)
− Case 4) Nonlinear load (R= 200 Ω, C= 680 µF, L=10 mH; A three-phase diode rectifier)

Table 1. DGS properties

Parameters Value
DGS rated power 450 VA
dc-link voltage 280 Vdc
Switching frequency 5 KHz
Nominal load output voltages 110 V
Fundamental frequency 60 Hz
Filter capacitance 6.67 µF
Filter Inductance 10 mH

Figures 6 (a)-(b) and Figures 7 (a)-(b) demonstrate the simulation results of the proposed controller
among different cases. Figure 6 shows the transient trends of the load voltage, the inverter current, and the
load current under case 1 and case 2. The transient time is very short, at about 0.02 s. It can be seen that the
load voltages are only slightly distorted during the transient time. Furthermore, the load voltages still
maintain a good performance in case of the unbalance loads (Figure 7-case 3). In case 4, it is critical to note
that the waveforms of the load voltages keep the sinusoidal form with a slight distortion while the waveforms
of the inverter current and the load current are relatively distorted. In addition, the estimations of the load
current are also presented. As highlighted in Figure 7, the proposed observer estimates and validates the load
current precisely. The oscillation amplitude of the load current estimations is smaller compared to the figures
of the measured load current. It demonstrates the excellent performance of the proposed reduced-order
observer of the load current under different conditions.
Figures 8 (a)-(d) shows the simulation results of a standard sliding mode controller under the
aforementioned cases. The performances of the load voltage, the inverter current, and load current are
showed to compare with the STSMC. Furthermore, the steady-state and the THD performance of the load
voltages using the proposed controller and the traditional sliding controller are shown in Tables 2 and 3
respectively.

(a) (b)

Figure 6. Simulation results of STSMC under (a) case 1 and (b) case 2
Design of super-twisting algorithm control and observer for three-phase inverter in … (Dinh Hieu Phan)
376  ISSN: 2088-8694

(a) (b)

Figure 7. Simulation results of STSMC under (a) case 3 and (b) case 4

(a) (b)

(c) (d)

Figure 8. Simulation results of the standard sliding controller under (a) case 1, (b) case 2, (c) case 3, and
(d) case 4

Table 3 compares the THD results between the proposed method and the other controllers among
different types of loads. Generally, it is clear that the THD rate of the proposed method in the case of the
balanced resistive load is the lowest, at about 0.05%. By contrast, the figures for the standard sliding
controller and the adaptive voltage controller are much higher, nearly 2.15% and 0.094% respectively. In
addition, for the nonlinear load, the THD proportion of the proposed control is noticeably low, at about

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Int J Pow Elec & Dri Syst ISSN: 2088-8694  377

0.402% in average. On the other hand, the percentages of the standard sliding controller and the adaptive
voltage controller always maintain over 0.405%. Furthermore, the results illustrates that the proposed system
could work effectively even in case of the unbalanced resistive load or the nonlinear load with the THD rates
down to 0.075%.

Table 2. Steady-state performance of the load voltages

The proposed control The standard sliding controller The adaptive voltage controller
Load types Load voltages (V) Load voltages (V) Load voltages (V)
𝑉𝐿𝑎 𝑉𝐿𝑏 𝑉𝐿𝑐 𝑉𝐿𝑎 𝑉𝐿𝑏 𝑉𝐿𝑐 𝑉𝐿𝑎 𝑉𝐿𝑏 𝑉𝐿𝑐
Balanced resistive load 110.01 110.03 109.95 109.4 109.2 108.9 109.72 109.72 109.72
Unbalanced resistive load 110.12 110.1 109.9 108.6 108.85 108.8 109.9 109.75 109.52
Nonlinear load 110.35 110.32 110.28 109.5 109.3 109.1 109.52 109.51 109.52

Table 3. The total harmonic distortion of the load voltages

The proposed control The standard sliding controller The adaptive voltage controller
Load types
THD (%) THD (%) THD (%)
Balanced resistive load 0.05 2.15 0.094
Unbalanced resistive load 0.075 2.33 0.08
Nonlinear load 0.402 2.06 0.405

5. CONCLUSION
In this paper, the STSMC of a three-phase inverter is designed to ensure the good performance of the
load voltage among various load conditions. The proposed STSMC is developed for the outer-loop voltage
controller and inner-loop current controller. Hence, it is not only easy to implement but also requires little
computational effort. Furthermore, we have found an innovative reduced-order observer to estimate the load
currents precisely. Hence, the parameter calculations are more robust to system disturbances. However, one
minor limitation of our research is the harmonic distortion of the inverter current in the case of the nonlinear
loads. As is well known, the high THD of the inverter current is extremely hard to control and could not be
eliminated completely. We propose that further research should be undertaken in this mentioned area. In
general, the paper points out the advantages of the proposed controller and observer based on the
MATLAB/Simulink. The simulation results have indicated the feasibility and effectiveness of the proposed
approach.

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BIOGRAPHIES OF AUTHORS

Dinh Hieu Phan received his B.S., M.S. in Automation Engineering from
Hanoi University of Science and Technology, Hanoi, Vietnam, in 2006 and 2008 and
received his Ph.D. degree in Electrical Engineering from Hunan University, China in 2016.
He has worked at Mechatronics Department Mechanical Faculty of Hanoi University of
Industry since 2008. His current research interests include robotics control, electric machine
control and control of distributed generation systems using renewable energy sources. He
can be contacted at email: [email protected].

Int J Pow Elec & Dri Syst, Vol. 13, No. 1, March 2022: 368-379
Int J Pow Elec & Dri Syst ISSN: 2088-8694  379

Minh Tuan Dao received B.S degree in electrical engineering from Military T
echnical Academy. He received his Ph.D. degree in Control Engineering and Automation fro
m Academy of Military Science and Technology, Vietnam in 2019. His research interests are
robot control, dynamic system, Control Engineering and, Automation. He can be contacted
at email: [email protected].

Van Truong Nguyen received the B.S. and M.S. degrees in mechatronics
engineering from the School of Mechanical Engineering, Hanoi University of Science and
Technology, Hanoi, Vietnam, in 2012 and 2014, respectively, and the Ph.D. degree in
mechanical engineering from the National Taiwan University of Science and Technology,
Taipei, Taiwan, in 2018. Since 2013, he has been a Lecturer with the Department of
Mechatronics Engineering (ME), Hanoi University of Industry, Hanoi, where he is currently
the Head of Department of ME. His current research interests include robotics, mobile
robots, AI, intelligent control systems, and computer vision applications. He can be
contacted at email: [email protected].

Huy Anh Bui received the B.S. degree in electrical and electronics engineering
from Ho Chi Minh City University of Technology, Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam in 2018, and the
M.S. degree in electrical engineering from Hanoi University of Science and Technology,
Hanoi, Vietnam, in 2020. Since 2020, he has been a lecturer with the Department of
Mechatronics Engineering (ME), Hanoi University of Industry, Hanoi, Vietnam. His current
research interests include robotics, AI, intelligent control systems, and computer vision
applications. He can be contacted at email: [email protected].

Ngoc Duy Lê received the B.S. degrees in machanical engineering and M.S.
degrees in electronic engineering from VNU University of Engineering and Technology,
Hanoi, Vietnam in 2009 and 2011Since 2010, he has been a Lecturer with the Department of
Mechatronics Engineering, Hanoi University of Industry, Hanoi. His current research
interests intelligent control systems, mobile robots, hydraulic and pneumatic systems, sensor
system and signal processing. He can be contacted at email: [email protected].

Thanh Lam Bui received the B.S. degree in mechatronics engineering from
Phuong Dong University, Hanoi, Vietnam in 2006, the M.S. degree in mechatronics
engineering from Military Technical Academy, Hanoi, Vietnam in 2012, and the Ph.D.
degree in mechanical engineering from Hanoi University of Science and Technology, Hanoi,
Vietnam in 2018. Since 2007, he has been a lecturer with the Department of Mechatronics
Engineering (ME), Hanoi University of Industry, Hanoi, Vietnam. His current research
interests include robotics, intelligent control systems, and nano technology. He can be
contacted at email: [email protected].

Design of super-twisting algorithm control and observer for three-phase inverter in … (Dinh Hieu Phan)