The Evolution of Research in Microgrids Control

Microgrids (MGs), as novel paradigms of active Distribution Networks, have been gaining increasing interest by the research community in the last 20 years. Currently, they are considered as key components in power system decentralization, providing viable solutions for rural electrification, enhancing resilience and supporting local energy communities. Their main characteristic is the coordinated control of the interconnected distributed energy resources (DER), which can be realized by various methods, ranging from decentralized communication-free approaches to centralized ones, where decisions are taken at a central point. This paper provides an overview of this development focusing on the technical control solutions proposed by reseachers for the various levels of MG organization hierarchy. A critical assessment of selected, popular technologies is provided and open research questions regarding the trend to more decentralized power systems are discussed.