Enhanced Load Frequency Control for Renewable-Integrated Low-Inertia Power Systems Using FPA-Optimised PID Controller with UPFC and Redox Flow Battery

The increasing penetration of renewable energy sources introduces significant variability, low-inertia behaviour, and operational uncertainty into modern power systems, resulting in frequent frequency deviations and degraded dynamic stability. Conventional Load Frequency Control (LFC) approaches based on fixed-parameter PID controllers often exhibit limited disturbance rejection capability under nonlinear and stochastic operating conditions. This study proposes an enhanced LFC framework that integrates a PID controller optimised using the Flower Pollination Algorithm (FPA) with support from a Unified Power Flow Controller (UPFC) and a Redox Flow Battery (RFB) to improve frequency regulation, damping, and robustness in renewable-integrated low-inertia power systems. This study developed a MATLAB/Simulink single-area power system model comprising governor, turbine, and generator-load dynamics to evaluate controller performance under a 0.01 pu step disturbance, stochastic load variations, renewable energy fluctuations, and ±20% parameter uncertainty conditions. The FPA optimally tuned the PID controller gains using the Integral Time Absolute Error criterion to enhance transient response and disturbance rejection capability. Comparative analyses were conducted against conventional PID and fuzzy-based controllers using settling time, overshoot, RMS deviation, ITAE, and mean frequency deviation indices. Simulation results demonstrate that the proposed FPA–PID + UPFC framework significantly outperforms the conventional PID controller by achieving approximately 66.6% settling-time reduction, 72.1% RMS reduction, and 75.5% ITAE reduction. The proposed framework reduced settling time from 18.46 s to 6.16 s and substantially improved damping performance under stochastic disturbances. The coordinated integration of the UPFC and RFB further enhanced transient stability through dynamic power-flow regulation and rapid active-power compensation during disturbances. Sensitivity analysis under parameter uncertainty and stochastic operating conditions confirmed stable and reliable operation under stochastic disturbances and parameter uncertainty conditions. The proposed architecture, therefore, provides an effective, practically applicable solution for secondary frequency regulation in renewable-rich smart grids, low-inertia transmission systems, microgrids, and future distributed power networks.