Robert Eriksson

Coordinated Active Power-Dependent Voltage Regulation in Distribution Grids With PV Systems

High penetrations of photovoltaic (PV) systems in distribution grids have brought about new challenges such as reverse power flow and voltage rise. One of the proposed remedies for voltage rise is reactive power contribution by PV systems. Recent German Grid Codes (GGC) introduce an active power dependent (APD) standard characteristic curve, Q(P), for inverter-coupled distributed generators. This study utilizes the voltage sensitivity matrix and quasi-static analysis in order to locally and systematically develop a coordinated Q(P) characteristic for each PV system along a feeder. The main aim of this paper is to evaluate the technical performance of different aspects of proposed Q(P) characteristics. In fact, the proposed method is a systematic approach to set parameters in the GGC Q(P) characteristic. In the proposed APD method the reactive power is determined based on the local feed-in active power of each PV system. However, the local voltage is also indirectly taken into account. Therefore, this method regulates the voltage in order to keep it under the upper steady-state voltage limit. Moreover, several variants of the proposed method are considered and implemented in a simple grid and a complex utility grid. The results demonstrate the voltage-regulation advantages of the proposed method in contrast to the GGC standard characteristic.

Optimizing DC Voltage Droop Settings for AC/DC System Interactions

In this paper, a methodology is presented to optimize the dc voltage droop settings in a multiterminal voltage-source converter high-voltage direct-current system with respect to the ac system stability. Implementing dc voltage droop control enables having multiple converters assisting the system in case of a converter outage. However, the abrupt power setpoint changes create additional stress in the ac system, especially when multiple converters are connected to the same interconnected ac system. This paper presents a methodology to determine optimized converter droop settings in order to not compromise the ac system stability, thereby taking into account the adverse effect the droop control actions have on the interconnected ac system. Developing a disturbance model of the interconnected ac/dc system, the principal directions indicate the gain and directionality of the disturbances; from this, optimal droop settings are derived to minimize the disturbance gain.

Thermal diffusivity measurements of liquid silicate melts

The effect of structure on the thermal diffusivities/conductivities for liquid silicates have been summarized based on recent experimental work carried out by the Royal Institute of Technology, Stockholm and the Tokyo Institute of Technology using the laser-flash and the hot-wire methods, respectively. In the former case, the effective thermal diffusivity was measured by a three-layer method. The relationship proposed by Mills that the thermal conductivity of silicates increases with a decrease in the ratio of NBO/T (number of non-bridging oxygens per tetrahedrally coordinated atom) has been well supported by the effective thermal diffusivity data for the liquid CaO-Al2O3-SiO2 slags. However, it has been shown that for the slags having a higher CaO/Al2O3 ratio, the effective thermal diffusivity is roughly constant independent of the ratios of NBO/T. It has been concluded that when the silicate network is largely broken down, the phonon mean free path is not affected by the structure. It has been found by the hot-wire method that the magnitudes of thermal resistivity are in the hierarchy Li2O-SiO2<Na2O-SiO2<K2O-SiO2 despite their similar values of NBO/T. It has been concluded that the ionicity of non-bridging oxygen ions is also a factor controlling the thermal conductivity of silicates as well as the number of broken bridges in the silicate network. The effective thermal diffusivity was measured for the CaO-Al2O3-SiO2-FeO system to elucidate the radiation contribution to the effective thermal diffusivity. It has been found that the effective thermal diffusivity increases with an increase in FeO content. It can be considered that the strong absorption and emission within the liquid slag films caused by the Fe2+ ions enhances the photon heat transfer.

Determination of macroinclusions during clean steel production

Abstract There are very few macroinclusions in clean steel, but the few that exist are very harmful for material properties of the final steel product. To date, very little information on large, so called macroinclusions in clean steel production has been presented. Therefore, the present study has focused on providing information on these inclusions during different stages of the steelmaking process, based on plant trials carried out at Uddeholm Tooling, Hagfors, Sweden. Macroinclusion size distributions have been determined using optical microscopy and classified according to a modified version of the Swedish standard SS 111116, as well as using immersed ultrasonic scanning. For the sake of completeness, the size distribution of microinclusions has also been determined using optical microscopy. Inclusion compositions were determined using a scanning electron microscope (SEM) equipped with energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS). Two types of liquid steel sampler were used in the investigation: a rapid solidifying (RS) sampler and the LSHR (liquid sampling hot rolling) sampler, suitable for immersed ultrasonic scanning. The results are critically discussed with respect to process conditions, such as alloy additions that took place during the plant trials.

Coordinated Control of Multiterminal DC Grid Power Injections for Improved Rotor-Angle Stability Based on Lyapunov Theory

The stability of an interconnected ac/dc system is affected by disturbances occurring in the system. Disturbances, such as three-phase faults, may jeopardize the rotor-angle stability and, thus, the generators fall out of synchronism. The possibility of fast change of the injected powers by the multiterminal dc grid can, by proper control action, enhance this stability. This paper proposes a new time optimal control strategy for the injected power of multiterminal dc grids to enhance the rotor-angle stability. The controller is time optimal, since it reduces the impact of a disturbance as fast as possible, and is based on Lyapunov theory considering the nonlinear behavior. The time optimal controller is of a bang-bang type and uses wide-area measurements as feedback signals. Nonlinear simulations are run in the Nordic32 test system implemented in PowerFactory/DIgSILENT with an interface to Matlab where the controller is implemented.

On the Centralized Nonlinear Control of HVDC Systems Using Lyapunov Theory

The security region of a power system is an important and timely issue; different stability criteria may be limiting. Rotor-angle stability can be improved by modulating active power of installed high-voltage direct current (HVDC) links. This paper proposes a new centralized nonlinear control strategy for coordinating several point-to-point and multiterminal HVDC systems based on Lyapunov theory. The proposed control Lyapunov function is negative semi-definite along the trajectories and uses the internal node representation of the system. The proposed control Lyapunov function increases the domain of attraction and, thus, improves the rotor-angle stability. Nonlinear simulations are performed on the IEEE 10-machine 39-bus system which shows the effectiveness of the controller. In comparison, simulations using the conventional lead-lag controller are also run.

A New Control Structure for Multiterminal DC Grids to Damp Interarea Oscillations

This paper analyzes the control structure of the multiterminal dc (MTDC) system to damp ac system interarea oscillations through active power modulation. A new control structure is presented that maximizes the relative controllability without the need for communication among the dc terminals. In point-to-point high-voltage dc (HVDC) transmission, the active power modulation of the two terminals occurs in opposite directions. In this case, the control direction is given and only needs to be phase compensated to align for maximal damping. In the case of MTDC systems, the control direction interrelates with the active power modulation share of the dc terminals and the relative controllability depends on this. The new control structure eliminates the need for communication between the dc terminals by performing dc voltage feedback loop shaping. This makes it possible to modulate the power in one terminal and let the other terminals react on the dc voltage change. Through loop shaping, where the feedback gain varies in the frequency plane compared to the regular droop design, the control direction is aligned with the direction of highest relative controllability. Loop shaping takes place without influencing the high frequency or steady-state gain. Simulations in the Nordic32 test system show the validity of the proposed controller and its structure.

Power Oscillation Damping From VSC–HVDC Connected Offshore Wind Power Plants

The implementation of power oscillation damping service on offshore wind power plants connected to onshore grids by voltage-source-converter-based high voltage direct current transmission is discussed. Novel design guidelines for damping controllers on voltage-source converters and wind power plant controllers are derived, using phasor diagrams and a test network model and are then verified on a generic power system model. The effect of voltage regulators is analyzed, which is important for selecting the most robust damping strategy. Furthermore, other often disregarded practical implementation aspects regarding real wind power plants are discussed: 1) robustness against control/communication delays; 2) limitations due to mechanical resonances in wind turbine generators; 3) actual capability of wind power plants to provide damping without curtailing production; and 4) power-ramp rate limiters.

Wind power impact on power system frequency response

The use of high power electronics in the large scale integration of wind power in the transmission and distribution systems can affect the system inertia response and the ability to recover frequency stability after large disturbances. Different approaches have been presented to show the system dynamic behaviour, and to quantify the wind power impact on the system inertial and frequency response. This paper gives a short overview of studies performed regarding the system inertia issues under high penetrations of wind power. Also, it presents the results of a case study to show how the system inertia can be affected by high penetrations of wind power.

On the coordinated control of multiple HVDC links

In this paper, coordinated control of multiple HVDC links in a small AC/DC power system is investigated. A coordinated control strategy is proposed to increase the transient stability and the damping in the AC/DC system. The system power loading is set by the well-known N - 1 criteria, i.e. that the system should remain intact (in the sense of both transient and small-signal stability) despite the loss of any important component. Since both transient stability and damping are increased by coordination of the control of the HVDC links, the allowed transmission capacity can be increased. The control strategy proposed in this paper posses the ability of damping power oscillations and improving the transient stability in the test system, it can also be used in a large scale power system. In the test system, the HVDC links are not operating in parallel with the AC lines, therefore coordination of the HVDC links is necessary to achieve significant better damping and transient stability.