Distributed Control Based Economic Load dispatch for DC Microgrid with Reduced Communication Data

This study presents a distributed hierarchical control approach for economic load dispatch in autonomous DC microgrids, using a single-variable consensus approach. The strategy ensures the restoration of the voltage to its nominal value while achieving optimal power sharing among distributed energy resources (DER) based on their incremental cost characteristics. In contrast to conventional distributed consensus control that exchanges two state variables (voltage and current), this method is implemented using the exchange of a single variable. This reduces communication requirements and simplifies control implementation, making the system scalable and robust to network changes. In this paper, a single variable is developed that encapsulates the properties of both economic dispatch and average voltage, which is communicated to neighboring DERs. The simulation results demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed approach against load variations and communication link failures.