• Energy Research

Capítulos en libros This paper proposes a simplified approach to design power system stabilizers (PSSs) aimed at damping low frequency inter-area oscillations when only limited information of the power system is available. The proposed method uses a simplified two-machine test system and a robust-PSS-design method based on eigenvalue sensitivities. The proposed approach has been used to evaluate the contribution of a number of PSSs installed in Spanish generators to the damping of 0.15 Hz inter-area mode of the European system. info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion

Artículos en revistas Excitation Boosters (EB) are aimed to improve Fault Ride Through (FRT) capability of synchronous generators equipped with bus fed static excitation systems by means of adding a supplementary voltage or current source to the rectifier. However, this paper shows that EBs governed by local On-Off controls may result in adverse effects in case of remote faults from generators that may occur in multi-machine systems. To sort this problem out, a novel EB Wide Area Control System (WACS) that modulates the EB voltage using the generator speed deviation with respect to the speed of the Center Of Inertia (COI) is proposed. The speed of the COI is obtained using a Wide Area Measuring System (WAMS), whereas the control laws are deduced from the Lyapunov stability theory. Results show that transient stability of multi-machine systems can be enhanced using EB WACS. info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion

Artículos en revistas Multi-terminal High Voltage Direct Current (HVDC) using Voltage Source Converters (VSC-HVDC) is a promising technology which provides flexible control of active and reactive power and facilitates remote renewable energy integration, above all using long cables. This paper analyses an active power control strategy for multi-terminal VSC-HVDC systems tailored to enhance transient stability of hybrid AC/DC grids. The proposed strategy controls each VSC using frequency measurements of all terminals. Its performance is compared to a strategy in which each VSC is controlled using only local frequency measurements of the AC side, proving that the proposed strategy shows better performance, even taking into account reasonable communication delays. The paper also shows that the proposed strategy generally gives similar results to those obtained when each VSC is controlled using the speed of the centre of inertia (COI). The speed of the COI is a more comprehensive and richer figure than the one proposed in this paper but it is also much more complex to obtain. Simulation results with PSS/E of a test system have been used to illustrate the comparisons and the main contributions of the proposal. info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion

A new active network management framework is presented based on a multi-period optimal power flow problem that is bounded by security constraints at the distribution level for upholding the security of supply. This can be achieved through active engagement with flexible demand and distributed generation to prepare for contingency events in day-ahead operational planning. This framework is coupled with a flexible hybrid AC/DC medium voltage (MV) distribution network topology. It contains an integrated multi-terminal medium voltage DC (MVDC) interface for a seamless interaction and integration of the flexible demand and generation on both AC and DC sides of the hybrid network. The active energy management framework when coupled with a flexible hybrid AC/DC topology provides unprecedented degrees of flexibility as well as security of operation under a variety of conditions. To this end, the 75-bus UK generic distribution network has been modified and converted into a hybrid AC/DC network using the integrated MVDC interface. This framework is then deployed to minimise operational costs to the network operator, considering costs of schemes such as distributed generation curtailment and flexible demand shifting, as well as network losses. Results show a significant improvement in operational costs when the network operates as a flexible hybrid when compared to a pure AC or a more conventional AC/DC hybrid.

High Voltage Direct Current systems based on Voltage Source Converters (VSC-HVDC) are increasingly being considered as a viable technology with advantages, above all when using underground or submarine cables for bulk power transmission. In order to fully understand how VSC-HVDC systems can be best used within existing power systems, it is necessary to adapt conventional tools to carry out system-wide studies including this technology. Along this line, this paper proposes a simplified algorithm to solve optimal power flows (OPFs) in hybrid VSCbased Alternating Current / Direct Current (AC/DC) grids with multi-terminal VSC-HVDC systems. The proposed algorithm makes it possible to seamlessly extend a previous large-scale AC case to which several multi-terminal VSC-HVDC systems must be added. The proposed approach combines two ideas used previously in two different modelling approaches: each VSC is modelled as two generators with a coupling constraint; and DC grids are modelled as notional AC grids, since, in per unit, the equations for the former are a particular case of the latter with resistive lines and no reactive-power injections. In the proposed approach, the hybrid VSC-based AC/DC system is transformed into an equivalent only-AC system. Therefore, the OPF solution of the AC/DC system can be found with the same tool used for the previous AC problem and a simple extension of the original case. info:eu-repo/semantics/draft

Abstract Excitation boosters (EBs) are one of the most cost-effective solutions to improve Fault Ride Through (FRT) capability of synchronous generators. However, they may lead to undesired behavior in multi-machine systems when governed by controllers that use local measurements. EB controllers based on a Wide Area Control System (WACS) have proved to be an effective solution to improve the overall transient stability of a multi-machine system. This paper compares two WACS-based EBs; one proposed in a previous work and a variant controller proposed here. In the comparison of WACS-based EBs, performance, design, implementation aspects and impact of communication latency are analyzed and discussed in detail.

Power transmission is the main purpose of high voltage direct current systems based on voltage source converters (VSC-HVDC). Nevertheless, this type of system can also help to improve transient stability by implementing suitable supplementary controllers. Previous work proposed active- (P) and reactive-power (Q) control strategies in VSC-HVDC multi-terminal systems (VSC-MTDC, for short) to improve transient stability, producing significant improvements. In those strategies, each VSC station of the MTDC system compares its frequency measurement with the average of the frequencies measured by all converter stations of the MTDC system (weighted-average frequency, WAF) in order to modulate its own P and Q injections. Hence, a communication system is required. This paper presents a detailed analysis of the impact of communication latency on the performance of those control strategies. The communication delays have been modelled using a Padé’s approximation and their impact on the performance of the control strategies have been assessed by means of time-domain simulation in PSS/E. The effect of the control strategies on transient stability has been quantified with the critical clearing time (CCT) of a set of faults. Results show that the control strategies analysed present good results for realistic values of communication delays.

This paper proposes a new reactive-power control strategy for High Voltage Direct Current multi-terminal systems with Voltage Source Converter stations (VSC-HVDC) to improve transient stability in electric power transmission systems. The proposed algorithm uses local measurements to estimate, in each converter station, a weighted average of the frequencies seen by the VSC stations of the HVDC multi-terminal system. This estimation is carried out making use of a (small) auxiliary local active-power modulation along with the DC-side voltage droop control in the VSC stations, where the latter also uses local measurements only. The estimated frequency is used as the set point for supplementary reactive-power control at each converter station. The proposed control law has been simulated in a test system using PSS/E and the results show that it improves transient stability, significantly, producing similar results to those obtained controlling reactive power using global measurements. info:eu-repo/semantics/draft