Load Frequency Control of Power Systems Integrated With Heterogeneous Controllable Loads: A Hybrid MPC Approach

With the increasing participation of flexible loads in power grid regulation, the heterogeneity of flexible loads poses a critical challenge in load frequency control (LFC) of power systems. This paper proposes a novel hybrid model predictive control (HMPC)‐based LFC strategy for power systems with heterogeneous controllable loads (HCLs), comprising continuous‐type controllable loads (CCLs) and discrete‐type controllable loads (DCLs). To the best of our knowledge, this is the first paper to introduce discrete‐type controllable resources into the LFC framework and formulate a hybrid predictive model incorporating both continuous and discrete control inputs. Due to the hybrid predictive model involving both continuous and integer decision variables, we employ a mixed‐integer linear quadratic programing (MILQP) algorithm to solve the problem and obtain the optimal LFC strategy. Simulation results on a three‐area interconnected power system demonstrate that the proposed HMPC‐based LFC achieves improved performance over traditional PI‐based LFC in terms of overshoot (OS) reduction, oscillation damping, and regulation speed. The effectiveness of the proposed approach depends on the accuracy of the LFC model, which may present challenges in scenarios with significant system uncertainties. Nonetheless, this research contributes an innovative control paradigm for LFC design in power systems with heterogeneous regulation resources.