The Effective Enhancement of Power System Security by Flexible Transmission Line Impedance with Minimal Rescheduling of Generators

After the digital revolution, the power system security becomes an important issue and it urges the power producers to maintain a well secured system in order to supply a quality power to the end users. This paper presents an integrated Corrective Security Constrained Optimal Power Flow (CSCOPF) with Flexible Transmission Line Impedance (FTLI) to enhance the power system security. The corrective approach of SCOPF is chosen, because it allows the corrective equipment to bring back the system to a stable operating point and hence, it offers high flexibility and better economics. The concept of FTLI arises from the ability of FACTS devices such as Thyristor Controlled Series Capacitor (TCSC), which can vary the line reactance to a certain extent. An enhanced security can be achieved by incorporating FTLI into the CSCOPF problem, since the power flow in a system is highly dependent on the line reactance. FTLI based CSCOPF can reduce the amount of rescheduling of generators, but it will result in an increased number of variables and thus, the complexity to the optimization process is increased. This highly complex problem is solved by using nonlinear programming. The AC based OPF model is preferred, since the corrective security actions require highly accurate solutions. IEEE 30 bus system is used to test the proposed scheme and the results are compared with the traditional CSCOPF. It can be seen that the proposed idea provides a notable improvement in the reduction of cost incurred for restoring the system security.

Fault Location Method for STATCOM Connected Transmission Lines Using CCM

Determining the fault location using conventional impedance based distance relay in the presence of FACTS controllers is a challenging task in a transmission line. A new distance protection method is developed to locate the fault in a transmission line compensated with STATCOM with simple calculations. The proposed protection method considers the STATCOM injected/absorbed current to correct the fault loop apparent impedance and accordingly calculates the actual distance to the fault location. The comprehensive equations needed for apparent impedance calculation are also outlined and the performance is evaluated and tested with a typical 400 KV transmission system for different fault types and locations using MATLAB/SIMULINK software. The evaluation results indicate that the new protection method effectively estimates the exact fault location by mitigating the impact of STATCOM on distance relay performance with error less than 0.3%.

Towards a (More) Electronic Transmission and Distribution (eT&D)

The challenges and the path towards a(more)electronic transmission and distribution(eT&D)is presented in this paper.The challenges are first identified together with key stakeholders in the drive for grid modernization.A fundamental question is then asked about the investment priority.Six basic characteristics are reviewed,leading to the composition of structured microgrids as the basic functional cell of a modern grid.One example of fractal radial structure and one fractal meshed structure are presented.The likely evolution path is then proposed together with basic technology sets.Specific foundation technologies are discussed in detail,including adiabatic power conversion,3MC technology,medium voltage conversion,distribution-level electronic power transformer and FACTs hardware integration,and back-to-back converters as a universal interconnect element.The rapidly emerging on-wire sensing technology is also discussed.It is pointed out that the distribution-level large electronic power transformer will provide a key component to enable hybrid ac/dc grid flow control and ancillary support for a flexible electronic transmission and distribution(eT&D)systems.

Power flow transmission in a coupled flexible system with active executive elements

Based on its prototype of machine-isolator-foundation systems, a theoretical model for dynamic coupled linear system is established, in which both the passive and active control factors are considered. Power flow is used as the cost function to evaluate the isolation effectiveness. And the transmission of vibratory power flow from a vibrating rigid body into a simply supported thin panel through passive isolators and actuators is investigated numerically. The active control strategy is summarized in the conclusion.

Comparison and Performance Analysis of FACTs Controller in System Stability

In large inter connected power systems, inter-area oscillations are turned to be a severe problem. Hence inter-area oscillations cause severe problems like damage to generators, reduce the power transfer capability of transmission lines, increase wear and tear on network components, increase line losses etc. This paper is to maintain the stability of system by damping inter-area oscillations. Implementation of new equipment consists of high power electronics based technologies such as FACTs and proper controller design has become an essential to provide better damping performance than Power System Stabilizer (PSS). With development of Wide Area Measurement System (WAMS), remote signals have become as feedback signals to design Wide Area Damping Controller (WADC) for FACTs devices. In this work, POD is applied to both SVC and SSSC. Simulation studies are carried out in Power System Analysis Toolbox (PSAT) environment to evaluate the effectiveness of the FACTs controller in a large area power system. Results show that extensive analysis of FACTs controller for improving stability of system.

FPGA-based Digital Implementation of Flexible Power Control for Three-phase to Single-phase MMC-based Advanced Co-phase Traction Power Supply System

A three-phase to single-phase modular multilevel converter based advanced co-phase traction power supply(MMC-ACTPS) system is an effective structure to address the concerns of phase splitting and poor power quality of the conventional electrified railway. Due to the large number of MMCACTPS system modules, I/O resources and computing speed have high requirements on processors. Moreover, the module capacitor balance is challenging because the sorting time is too long when the traditional sorting algorithm for voltage balance is used. To solve the above issues, a digital implementation scheme of flexible power control strategy for three-phase to single-phase MMC-ACTPS system based on field programmable gate array(FPGA), which has sufficient I/O resources, has been proposed. Due to the parallel execution characteristics of the FPGA, the execution time of the controller and the modulator can be greatly reduced compared with a digital signal processor(DSP) + FPGA or DSpace. In addition, an improved sorting algorithm is proposed to reduce the sorting time and the implementation steps are analyzed. Finally, simulation and experimental results are presented to demonstrate the effectiveness and correctness of the proposed control strategy.

Overview of power electronics technology and applications in power generation, transmission and distribution

The main objective of this paper is three-fold.First, to provide an overview of the current status of the power electronics technology, one of the key actors in the upcoming smart grid paradigm enabling maximum power throughputs and near-instantaneous control of voltages and currents in all links of the power system chain. Second, to provide a bridge between the power systems and the power electronic communities, in terms of their differing appreciation of how these devices perform when connected to the power grid. Third, to discuss on the role that the power electronics technology will play in supporting the aims and objectives of future decarbonized power systems. This paper merges the equipment, control techniques and methods used in flexible alternating current transmission systems(FACTS) and high voltage direct transmission(HVDC) equipment to enable a single, coherent approach to address a specific power system problem, using ‘best of breed’ solutions bearing in mind technical, economic and environmental issues.

Optimal allocation of multi-type FACTS devices in power systems based on power flow entropy

Flexible AC transmission systems(FACTS)devices can effectively optimize the distribution of power flow.Power flow entropy can be applied as a measure of load distribution.In this paper,a method is proposed to optimize the distribution of power flow with the coordination of multi-type FACTS devices and establishes the corresponding mathematical models.The modified group searcher optimization(GSO)algorithm is proposed,in which the angle search is combined with chaotic search model to avoid jumping into local optimization.Compared with the different optimal allocation of multi-FACTS devices,the optimal allocation of multi-FACTS devices is achieved under the economic constraints.The locations obtained by this method can achieve the purpose of balancing power flow and enhancing the system performances.The simulations are demonstrated in an IEEE 118-bus power system with two classical types of FACTS,namely static var compensator(SVC)and thyristor controlled series Compensator(TCSC).The simulation results show that the proposed method is feasible and effective.

Press-pack IGBTs for HVDC and FACTS

The popularity of insulated gate bipolar transistors(IGBTs)for use in high-voltage direct current(HVDC)transmission and flexible AC transmission systems(FACTS)is increasing.Unfortunately,for these applications wire-bond IGBT technology has a number of shortcomings,such as insufficient current ratings for the most powerful schemes,and inability to fail to short-circuit.Press-pack IGBT technology,conversely,offers increased current ratings,and an inherent short-circuit failure mode,making it a more attractive choice for HVDC and FACTS.However,the design and manufacture of these devices requires a comprehensive understanding of the unique technical challenges,which differ markedly from those for wirebond modules or traditional pressure contact devices.Specific challenges include providing a high degree of mechanical protection for the IGBT chip against normal operating stresses.Furthermore,it is essential to achieve uniform contact pressure across each chip surface to ensure optimum performance.To achieve this,manufacturers have designed products that use rigid copper electrodes manufactured to tighter tolerances than for other pressure contact devices,such as thyristors,and products that use compliant electrodes,incorporating spring assemblies.Dynex is in the advanced stages of development of press-pack IGBT technology with demonstrated robust solutions for the technical challenges outlined in this paper.Design success has been achieved through the use of state-of-the-art simulations in conjunction with a long history of manufacturing expertise for bipolar and IGBT products.Finally,multiple press-pack IGBT variants are currently undergoing evaluation tests prior to product release.

Optimal Coordinated Operation of Distributed Static Series Compensators for Wide-area Network Congestion Relief

Relieving network congestions is a critical goal for the safe and flexible operation of modern power systems, especially in the presence of intermittent renewables or distributed generation. This paper deals with the real-time coordinated operation of distributed static series compensators(DSSCs) to remove network congestions by suitable modifications of the branch reactance. Several objective functions are considered and discussed to minimize the number of the devices involved in the control actions, the total losses or the total reactive power exchanged, leading to a non-convex mixed-integer non-linear programming problem. Then, a heuristic methodology combining the solution of a regular NLP with k-means clustering algorithm is proposed to get rid of the binary variables, in an attempt to reduce the computational cost. The proposed coordinated operation strategy of the DSSCs is tested on several benchmark systems, providing feasible and sufficiently optimal solutions in a reasonable time frame for practical systems.