UNDERSTANDING POWER SYSTEM STABILITY

Michael J. Basler Richard C. Schaefer

Member, IEEE Senior Member, IEEE
Basler Electric Company Basler Electric Company
Route 143, Box 269 Route 143, Box 269
Highland, IL 62249 USA Highland, IL 62249 USA

Abstract – This paper discusses power system II. BASIS FOR STEADY-STATE STABILITY
instability and the importance of fast fault clearing
performance to aid in reliable production of power. In an interconnected power system, the rotors of each
Explanation is provided regarding small signal stability, synchronous machine in the system rotate at the same
high impedance transmission lines, line loading, and high average electrical speed. The power delivered by the
gain, fast acting excitation systems. Transient stability is generator to the power system is equal to the mechanical
discussed, including synchronizing and damping power applied by the prime mover, neglecting losses. During
torques. The power angle curve is used to illustrate how steady state operation, the electrical power out balances the
fault clearing time and high initial response excitation mechanical power in. The mechanical power input to the shaft
systems can affect transient stability. from the prime mover is the product of torque and speed, PM
The term, “power system stability” has become = TMω. The mechanical torque is in the direction of rotation.
increasingly popular in generation and transmission. The An electrical torque is applied to the shaft by the generator
sudden requirement for power system stabilizers has and is in a direction opposite of rotation as seen in Figure 1
created confusion about their applicability, purpose, and below.
benefit to the system. This paper discusses the
fundamentals of the power system stabilizer and its
effectiveness. In today’s paper industry, power system
stabilizers are being applied on larger machines in the
Northwest United States and Canada.
Index Terms—Stability, voltage regulator, pole slip,
excitation, synchronous machine, transient stability where PM = Mechanical power
ω = speed
I. INTRODUCTION Te = Electrical torque
Fig. 1. Mechanical and Electrical Torque Applied to the Shaft
In the 1950s and into the 1960s, many power generating
plants were equipped with continuously acting automatic
When the system is disturbed due to a fault or the load is
voltage regulators. As the number of power plants with changed quickly, the electrical power out of the machine
automatic voltage regulators grew, it became apparent that changes. The electrical power out of the machine can change
the high performance of these voltage regulators had a rapidly, but the mechanical power into the machine is
destabilizing effect on the power system. Power oscillations of relatively slow to change. Because of this difference in speed
small magnitude and low frequency often persisted for long of response, there exists a temporary difference in the
periods of time. In some cases, this presented a limitation on balance of power. This power unbalance causes a difference
the amount of power able to be transmitted within the system. in torque applied to the shaft, which causes it to accelerate or
Power system stabilizers were developed to aid in damping of decelerate, depending on the direction of the unbalance. As
these power oscillations by modulating the excitation supplied the rotor changes speed, the relative rotor angle changes.
to the synchronous machine. Figure 2 shows the relationship between the rotor (torque)
This paper will discuss the various types of power system angle, δ, the stator magnetomotive force (MMF), F1, and the
instability. It will cover the effects of system impedance and
excitation on stability. Synchronizing torque and damping rotor MMF, F2. The torque angle, δ, is the angle between the
torque will be discussed and a justification will be made for the rotor MMF, F2, and the resultant of the vector addition of the
need for supplemental stabilization. rotor and stator MMFs, R, as seen in Figure 2 below.
 Eg

j IX g

ET
E0 jIXE
I

Fig. 4. Phasor Diagram, Generator tied to infinite bus

If a fault causes the current, I, to increase and the terminal

Fig. 2. Stator, Rotor, and Resultant MMFs and Torque voltage to decrease, the electrical power out of the machine
Angle will decrease, since the impedance seen by the generator is
now mainly inductive. This disturbance causes the rotor angle
Figure 3 is a circuit representation of a synchronous
to increase, perhaps beyond the limits of generator
generator connected through a transmission system to an
synchronous operation. The resulting variations in power flow
infinite bus.
as the rotor accelerates will cause a well-designed loss of
synchronism protective relaying (78 function) to isolate that
generator from the rest of the system. The disturbance on the
remaining system, due to the loss of generation may result in
additional units tripping off line, and potentially a cascading
outage.

III. TRANSIENT STABILITY

Generators are connected to each other by a network that
behaves much like weights interconnected by rubber bands
where ET = Generator terminal voltage (see Figure 5). The weights represent the rotating inertia of
Xg = Generator internal reactance the turbine generators and the rubber bands are analogous to
Eg = Internal generator voltage the inductance of the transmission lines. By pulling on a
EHV = High side voltage of generator step weight and letting go, an oscillation is setup with several of the
transformer weights that are interconnected by the rubber bands. The
EO = System voltage result of disturbing just one weight will result in all the weights
XE = External impedance oscillating. Eventually the system will come to rest, based on
its damping characteristics. The frequency of oscillation
Fig. 3. Synchronous machine tied to infinite bus depends on the mass of the weights and the springiness of
the rubber bands. Likewise, a transient disturbance to the
The synchronous machine is modeled by an ideal voltage generator/network can be expected to cause some oscillations
source, Eg, in series with an impedance, Xg. The terminal due to the inability of the mechanical torque to instantaneously
voltage of the machine, ET is increased to transmission balance out the transient variation in electrical torque.
system levels through a Generator Step-Up (GSU)
transformer, which is represented by an impedance, XT. The
high voltage side of the GSU is connected to the infinite bus
via a transmission line represented by reactance, XL. The real
(MW) power output from the generator on a steady state basis
is governed by equation:
E g ET
Pe = sin δ (1)
Xg
where δ is the angle between the generator terminal voltage
and the internal voltage of the machine. As the power transfer
increases, the angle δ increases. A fault in the system can
result in a change in electrical power flow, resulting in a
change in the power angle, δ. This can be seen graphically in
Figure 4. Fig. 5. Rubber Band Analogy

The synchronous machine’s electrical power output can be

resolved into an electrical torque, Te multiplied by the speed ,
ω. Following a disturbance, the change in electrical torque can
further resolved into two components:
ΔTe = K s Δδ + K D Δω (2) Starting from the initial operating condition (point 1), a close-in
transmission fault causes the generator electrical output
power Pe to be drastically reduced. The resultant difference
Where: between electrical power and the mechanical turbine power
Ks Δδ = the component of torque that is in phase with the causes the generator rotor to accelerate with respect to the
rotor angle change. This is known as the “synchronizing system, increasing the power angle (point 2). When the fault is
torque”. cleared, the electrical power is restored to a level
KD Δω = the component of torque that is in phase with the corresponding to the appropriate point on the power angle
curve (point 3). Clearing the fault necessarily removes one or
speed change. This is known as the “damping torque”. more transmission elements from service and at least
temporarily weakens the transmission system. After clearing
Both components of torque act on each generator in the the fault, the electrical power out of the generator becomes
system. A lack of sufficient synchronizing torque will result in greater than the turbine power. This causes the unit to
loss of synchronism. Such loss of synchronism can only be decelerate (point 4), reducing the momentum the rotor gained
prevented if sufficient magnetic flux can be developed when a during the fault. If there is enough retarding torque after fault
transient change in electrical torque occurs. This is facilitated clearing to make up for the acceleration during the fault, the
by a high initial response excitation system (an excitation generator will be transiently stable on the first swing and will
system that will cause a change from the input to output within move back toward its operating point. If the retarding torque is
.1 seconds) having sufficient field forcing capability and insufficient, the power angle will continue to increase until
sufficiently fast response to resist the accelerating or synchronism with the power system is lost.
decelerating rotor. In order to be effective for both accelerating Power system stability depends on the clearing time for a
and decelerating rotor response, the excitation system must fault on the transmission system. Comparing the two
be capable of field forcing both positively and negatively, examples in Figure 7 illustrates this point. In the example of
particularly on generators with rotating exciters. When the slower fault clearing (a), the time duration of the fault allows
rotor is accelerating with respect to the stator flux, the rotor the rotor to accelerate so far along the curve of PE, that the
angle is increasing due to mechanical torque higher than decelerating torque comes right to the limit of maintaining the
electrical torque. The exciter system must increase excitation rotor in synchronism. The shorter fault clearing time (b) stops
by applying a high positive voltage to the alternator field as the acceleration of the rotor much sooner, assuring that
quickly as possible. Conversely, when the rotor angle is sufficient synchronizing torque is available to recover with a
decreasing due to mechanical torque less than electrical large safety margin. This effect is the demand placed on
torque, the exciter system must decrease excitation by protection engineers to install the fastest available relaying
applying a high negative voltage to the alternator field as equipment to protect the transmission system.
quickly as possible. Power

Transient stability is primarily concerned with the PMAX

Pre-faulted System

immediate effects of a transmission line fault on generator

synchronism. Figure 6 illustrates the typical behavior of a Post-faulted System
generator in response to a fault condition.
Fault
1 2
Equal Area has
VG
VS no margin

1 4 Breaker
clears faults

(a) System
Power Fault Faulted
System
Power Angle, δ
Pre-faulted System δo 90o 180o
PMAX
(a) slow fault clearing time
Power
Post-faulted System
4 Pre-faulted System
3 PMAX
stable

1 Turbine Post-faulted System

PM
Power

Unstable
PM
machine loses
sysnchronism

Breaker Equal Area has

clears faults substantial margin

2 Faulted
System
Fault Faulted
Power Angle, δ System
δo 90o 180o Power Angle, δ
δo δss 90o 180o

(b)Power-angle Curve (b) fast fault clearing time

Fig. 6. Transient Stability Illustration Fig. 7. Effect of Fault Clearing Time

 IV. EFFECT OF THE EXCITATION SYSTEM torque, ΔTe, into the two components of synchronizing torque
and damping torque. The synchronizing torque increases the
ON STABILITY
pull between rotor and stator flux, decreasing the angle δ, and
Maintaining power system stability depends on speed of reducing the risk of pulling out of step. The damping torque,
fault clearing, excitation system speed of response and forcing on the other hand, results from the phase lag or lead of the
capacity. Increasing forcing capability and decreasing excitation current. Like the timing of pushes to a swing, the
response time increases the margin of stability. This effect is excitation current acting to improve synchronizing torque
illustrated in Figure 8, where the lower curve, A, represents normally is time delayed by the characteristics of the
the power angle curve of a lower forcing, slower response excitation system, the time delay of the alternator field, and
excitation system. Comparing the area under the curve for the time delay of the exciter field (if used). These time delays
acceleration when the electrical load is less than the cause the effect of a high initial response excitation system to
mechanical load to the area under curve A for deceleration cause negative damping, resulting in loss of small-signal
clearly shows that a machine under the example condition will stability. Loss of small-signal stability results in one or more of
lose synchronism. For curve B representing a faster, higher the types of oscillations listed below, involving rotor swings
forcing exciter, the area under the curve where electrical that may grow without bound or may take a long time to
power exceeds mechanical power is much greater, sufficient dampen.
to allow the generator to recover from this swing. This effect is Three types of oscillations that have been experienced
the source of the demand placed on generation engineers to with interconnected generators and transmission networks
install the fastest available excitation equipment with very high (shown in Figures 9 through 11) include:
levels of positive and negative forcing to secure the highest
level of immunity to transient loss of synchronism.

Fig. 9. Inter-unit Oscillations

Fig. 8. Effect of High Initial Response Excitation System
A. Inter-Unit Oscillations
While fast excitation systems help improve the transient These oscillations involve typically two or more
stability following large impact disturbances to the system, the synchronous machines at a power plant or nearby power
benefit may be outweighed by the impact of the excitation plants. The machines swing against each other, with the
system on damping the oscillations that follow the first swing frequency of the power oscillation ranging between 1.5 to 3
after the disturbance. In fact, the fast responding excitation Hertz.
system can contribute a significant amount of negative
damping to oscillations because it can reduce damping
torque. Thus an excitation system has the potential to
contribute to small signal instability of power systems. With
the very old electromechanical excitation systems, the
transient response was relatively slow compared to systems
introduced today. This slow response has minimal effect in Fig. 10. Local Mode Oscillations
reducing the damping torque.
B. Local Mode Oscillations
These oscillations generally involve one or more
V. SMALL-SIGNAL STABILITY synchronous machines at a power station swinging together
Small signal stability is defined as the ability of the power against a comparatively large power system or load center.
system to remain stable in the presence of small disturbances. The frequency of oscillation is in the range of 0.7 Hertz to 2
These disturbances could be minor variations in load or Hertz. These oscillations become troublesome when the plant
generation on the system. If sufficient damping torque doesn’t is at high load with a high reactance transmission system.
exist, the result can be rotor angle oscillations of increasing
amplitude. Generators connected to the grid utilizing high gain
automatic voltage regulators can experience insufficient
damping to system oscillations.
To further understand the difference between the good
effect of high performance excitation systems and the side- Fig. 11. Inter-area Oscillations
effect of reduced damping torque, recalling the equation (1) C. Inter-Area Oscillations
we discussed earlier that breaks down the change in electrical These oscillations usually involve combinations of many
machines on one part of a power system swinging against
2 H d 2δ
machines on another part of the power system. Inter-area = Tm − Te (3)
oscillations are normally in the frequency range of less than ω o dt 2
0.5 Hertz.
New fast excitation systems that are installed to aid in where:
improving transient stability can be a source of these types of δ =rotor angle, in radians
oscillations. These systems recognize a change in voltage ωO = angular speed of rotor (the base or rated value ωO
due to load change up to 10 times faster than older excitation = 377 rad/s)
systems. Thus, small oscillations of the unit cause the Tm = mechanical torque in per-unit
excitation system to correct immediately. Because of the high
Te = electrical torque in per-unit
inductance in the generator field winding however, the field
current rate of change is limited. This introduces considerable H = combined turbogenerator inertia constant
“lag” in the control function. Thus from the time of recognition expressed in MW-s/MVA
of a desired excitation change to its partial fulfillment, there is
an unavoidable time delay. During this delay time, the state of For small deviations in rotor speed, the mechanical and
the oscillating system will change, causing a new excitation electrical torques are approximately equal to the respective
adjustment to be started. The net result is the excitation per unit power values. The base value of power is selected to
system tends to lag behind the need for a change, aiding the be equal to the generator nameplate MVA. The “swing
inherent oscillatory behavior of the generators interconnected equation” dictates that, when disturbed from equilibrium, the
by transmission lines. The excitation system acts to introduce rotor accelerates at a rate that is proportional to the net torque
energy into the oscillatory cycle at the wrong time. acting on the rotor divided by the machine’s inertia constant.
Positive synchronizing torque can be provided to restore Equation 3 can be rewritten in terms of small changes
the rotor back to the steady state operating point if the about an operating point:
excitation system can be made to appropriately accelerate or
decelerate the rotor. Positive damping torque damps out the ΔTe = K s Δδ + K D Δω (4)
rotor oscillations of the torque angle loop to return the system
back to normal. For most power systems, the configuration of
the network and the generator control systems maintains where the expression for electrical-torque-deviation has been
stable damping forces that restore equilibrium to the power expanded into its synchronizing and damping components:
system. In some system configurations however, unstable KS = synchronizing coefficient
oscillations can result from the introduction of negative KD = damping coefficient
damping torques caused by a fast responding excitation
system. This can occur when the system is connected to a Δδ = rotor angle change
high impedance transmission system as compared to one ω = angular speed of rotor
connected to a low impedance transmission system. Δ = change
One solution to improve the dynamic performance of this
From Equation 4, it can be seen that for positive values of
system and large scale systems in general would be to add
KS, the synchronizing torque component opposes changes in
more parallel transmission lines to reduce the reactance
between the generator and load center. This solution is well the rotor angle from the equilibrium point (i.e. an increase in
known, but usually it is not acceptable due to the high cost of rotor angle will lead to a net decelerating torque, causing the
building transmission lines. An alternative solution adds a unit to slow down relative to the power system, until the rotor
power system stabilizer (PSS) acting through the voltage angle is restored to its equilibrium point, Δδ = 0). Similarly, for
regulator. Working together, the excitation output is modulated positive values of KD, the damping torque component
to provide positive damping torque to the system. opposes changes in the rotor speed from the steady-state
operating point. A generator will remain stable as long as
VI. POWER SYSTEM STABILIZERS there are sufficient positive synchronizing and damping
torques acting on its rotor for all operating conditions.
The Power System Stabilizer (PSS) is a device that
improves the damping of generator electromechanical A. Damping of Electromechanical Oscillations
oscillations. Stabilizers have been employed on large For positive values of the damping coefficient, and
generators for several decades, permitting utilities to improve constant input power, the rotor angle’s response to small
stability-constrained operating limits. In order to describe the disturbances (i.e. the solution of Equation 3) will take the form
application of the PSS, it is necessary to introduce general of a damped sinusoid. The relationship between rotor speed
concepts of power system stability and synchronous generator and electrical power following small disturbances is illustrated
operation. in Figure 12.
When disturbed by a sudden change in operating
conditions, the generator speed and electrical power will vary
around their steady-state operating points. The relationship
between these quantities can be expressed in a simplified
form of the “swing equation”:
 VIII. SPEED BASED STABILIZERS
To supplement the unit’s natural damping after a
disturbance, the power system stabilizer must produce a
component of electrical torque that opposes changes in rotor
speed. One method of accomplishing this is to introduce a
signal proportional to measured rotor speed deviation into the
voltage regulator input, as depicted in Figure 15.

Fig. 12. Response of Speed and Angle to Small Disturbances

A number of factors can influence the damping coefficient

of a synchronous generator, including the generator’s design,
the strength of the machine’s interconnection to the grid, and
the setting of the excitation system. While many units have
adequate damping coefficients for normal operating
conditions, they may experience a significant reduction in the
value of KD following transmission outages, leading to
unacceptably low damping ratios. In extreme situations, the
damping coefficient may become negative, causing the
electromechanical oscillations to grow, and eventually causing Fig. 13. Block Diagram of Excitation System and PSS
loss of synchronism. This form of instability is normally
referred to as dynamic, small-signal or oscillatory instability to Figure 14 illustrates the steps used within the speed-
differentiate it from the steady-state stability and transient based stabilizer to generate the output signal. These steps are
stability. summarized below:
By adding a power system stabilizer to a high initial • Measure shaft speed using a magnetic-probe and gear-
response excitation system, the benefit of higher wheel arrangement.
synchronizing torque is available and the possibility of • Convert the measured speed signal into a dc voltage
decreased damping torque can be corrected. The function of proportional to the speed.
the power system stabilizer is to counter any oscillations by • High-pass filter the resulting signal to remove the average
signaling to change excitation at just the right time to dampen speed level, producing a “change-in-speed” signal; this
the oscillations. The source of reduced damping is the phase ensures that the stabilizer reacts only to changes in
lags due to the field time constants and the lags in the normal speed and does not permanently alter the generator
voltage regulation loop. Thus, the pss (power system terminal voltage reference.
• Apply phase lead to the resulting signal to compensate
stabilizer) uses phase compensation to adjust the timing of its
for the phase lag in the closed-loop voltage regulator.
correction signal to oppose the oscillations it detects in the
• Adjust the gain of the final signal applied to the AVR
generator rotor.
input.
A power system stabilizer can increase a generator’s
damping coefficient, thus allowing a unit to operate under
conditions where there is insufficient natural damping.

VII. PSS THEORY OF OPERATION

Modulation of generator excitation can produce transient
changes in the generator’s electrical output power. Fast-
Fig. 14. Speed-based Stabilizer
responding exciters equipped with high-gain automatic voltage
regulators (AVRs) use their speed and forcing to increase a With some minor variations, many of the early power
generator’s synchronizing torque coefficient (KS), resulting in system stabilizers were constructed using this basic structure.
improved steady-state and transient stability limits.
Unfortunately improvements in synchronizing torque are often IX. DUAL INPUT STABILIZERS
achieved at the expense of damping torque, resulting in
reduced levels of oscillatory or small-signal stability. To While speed-based stabilizers have proven to be
counteract this effect, many units that utilize high-gain AVRs extremely effective, it is frequently difficult to produce a noise-
are also equipped with power system stabilizers to increase free speed signal that does not contain other components of
the damping coefficient (KD) and improve oscillatory stability. shaft motion such as lateral shaft run-out (hydroelectric units)
or torsional oscillations (steam-driven turbogenerators). The
See Figure 13. presence of these components in the input of a speed-based
stabilizer can result in excessive modulation of the generator’s relationship to substitute measured electrical and mechanical
excitation and, for the case of torsional components, in the power signals for the input speed. The electrical power signal
production of potentially damaging electrical torque variations. was measured directly using an instantaneous watt
These electrical torque variations led to the investigation of transducer. The mechanical power could not be measured
stabilizer designs based upon measured power. directly, and instead was estimated based on the
Figure 15 illustrates a 2% voltage step change introduced measurement of valve or gate positions. The relationship
into the voltage regulator summing point that causes the between these physical measurements and the actual
generator voltage to change by 2%. Here, a speed type power mechanical power varies based on the turbine design and
system stabilizer provides damping after the small signal other factors, resulting in a high degree of customization and
disturbance to resolve the momentary MW oscillation after the complexity.
disturbance. Note that the “PSS Out” changes abruptly during This approach was abandoned in favor of an indirect method
the disturbance to provide damping, but a constant modulation that employed the two available signals, electrical power and
that is being applied into the excitation system even during speed. The goal was to eliminate the undesirable components
normal operation is also observed. from the speed signal while avoiding a reliance on the difficult
to measure mechanical power signal. To accomplish this, the
relationship of Equation 2 was rearranged to obtain a derived
integral-of-mechanical power signal from electrical power and
speed:

Δω =
1
2H
[∫ ΔT dt − ∫ ΔT dt ]
m e (6)

Since mechanical power normally changes slowly relative

to the electromechanical oscillation frequencies, the derived
mechanical power signal can be band-limited using a low-
pass filter. The low-pass filter attenuates high-frequency
components (e.g. torsional components, measurement noise)
from the incoming signal while maintaining a reasonable
representation of mechanical power changes. The resulting
band-limited derived signal is then used in place of the real
mechanical power in The Swing Equation to derive a change-
in-speed signal with special properties.
The Swing Equation has been written in the frequency
domain using the Laplace operator “s”, to represent complex
frequency. The final derived speed signal is derived from both
a band-limited, measured speed signal and a high-pass
Fig. 15. On-line Step Response, Frequency Type PSS filtered integral-of-electrical power signal. At lower frequencies
Ks=6, 92MW Hydro Turbine Generator the measured speed signal dominates this expression while at
higher frequencies the output is determined primarily by the
electrical power input.
Although field voltage has not been recorded, one can The integral-of-accelerating-power arrangement is
conclude that the field voltage is also moving aggressively in illustrated in the block diagram of Figure 16.
response to the “PSS Out” driving the voltage regulator. The
reason for the constant changing is the high noise content at
the input of the speed type stabilizer. For years, the constant
changes in the field voltage have alarmed operators using this
type of power system stabilizer. Notice in the example that,
while the generator active power is oscillatory for a few cycles
after the disturbance, the terminal voltage and reactive power
are very constant.
Incremental improvements were made to the power
system stabilizer by manipulating the swing equation shown in
Equation 4 to derive a better method of improving the Fig.16. Block Diagram of Dual-Input Power System
damping signal input. Stabilizer
d 1
Δω = (Tm − Te ) = 1 Tacc (5) X. SPEED SIGNAL
dt 2H 2H
For the frequency or speed stabilizer, shaft speed was
The simplified swing equation can be rearranged to reveal measured either directly or derived from the frequency of a
the principle of operation of early power-based stabilizers. compensated voltage signal obtained from the generator
Based on Equation 5, it is apparent that a speed deviation terminal VT and CT secondary voltages and currents. If
signal can be derived from the net accelerating power acting directly measured, shaft speed is normally obtained from a
on the rotor; i.e., the difference between applied mechanical magnetic-probe and gear-wheel arrangement. On horizontal
power and generated electrical power. Early attempts at turbo-generators, operating at 1800 RPM or 3600 RPM, there
constructing power-based stabilizers used the above are normally several gear wheels already provided for the
purpose of speed measurement or governing. The shaft XI. GENERATOR ELECTRICAL POWER SIGNAL
location is not critical as long as it is directly coupled to the
main turbo-generator shaft. On vertical turbogenerators The generator electrical power output is derived from the
(hydraulic) the direct measurement of shaft speed is generator VT secondary voltages and CT secondary currents.
considerably more difficult, particularly when the shaft is The power output is high-pass filtered to produce the required
subjected to large amounts of lateral movement (shaft run-out) power deviation signal. This signal then is integrated and
during normal operation. On these units, speed is almost scaled, using the generator inertia constant (2H) for
always derived from a compensated frequency signal. In combination with the speed signal. Figure 19 depicts the
either type of generator, the speed signal is plagued by noise, operations performed on the power input signal to produce the
masking the desired speed change information. integral-of-electrical power deviation signal.

Fig. 19. Integral of Electrical Power Block Diagram

XII. DERIVED MECHANICAL POWER SIGNAL

As previously described, the speed deviation and integral-
of-electrical power deviation signals are combined to produce
a derived integral-of-mechanical power signal. This signal is
then low-pass filtered, as depicted in the block diagram of
Figure 20.

Fig. 17. Speed derived from VT and CT signals

The derivation of shaft speed from the frequency of a

voltage phasor and a current phasor is depicted graphically in
Figure 18. The internal voltage phasor is obtained by adding
Fig. 20. Filter Configurations for Derived Mechanical
the voltage drop associated with a q-axis impedance (Note:
Power Signal
For salient pole machines, the synchronous impedance
provides the required compensation.) to the generator A low-pass filter can be configured to take on one of the
terminal voltage phasor. The magnitude of the internal phasor following two forms:
is proportional to field excitation and its position is tied to the • The first filter, a simple four-pole low-pass filter,
quadrature axis. Therefore, shifts in the internal voltage was used to provide attenuation of torsional
phasor position correspond with shifts in the generator rotor components appearing in the speed. For thermal
position. The frequency derived from the compensated phasor units, a time constant can be selected to provide
corresponds to shaft speed and can be used in place of a attenuation at the lowest torsional frequency of
physical measurement. On round-rotor machines, the the turbogenerator set. Unfortunately, this
selection of the correct compensating impedance is somewhat design requirement conflicts with the production
more complicated; simulations and site tests are normally of a reasonable derived mechanical power
performed to confirm this setting. signal, which can follow changes in the actual
In either case, the resulting signal must be converted to a prime mover output. This is particularly
constant level, proportional to speed (frequency). Two high- problematic on hydroelectric units where rates of
pass filter stages are applied to the resulting signal to remove mechanical power change can easily exceed 10
the average speed level, producing a speed deviation signal; percent per second. Excessive band-limiting of
this ensures that the stabilizer reacts only to changes in speed the mechanical power signal can lead to
and does not permanently alter the generator terminal voltage excessive stabilizer output signal variations
reference. during loading and unloading of the unit.
• The second low-pass filter configuration deals
Figure 18 shows the high-pass filter transfer function
with this problem. This filter, referred to as a
blocks in frequency domain form (the letter “s” is used to
“ramp-tracking” filter, produces a zero steady-
represent the complex frequency or Laplace operator).
state error to ramp changes in the input integral-
of-electrical power signal. This limits the
stabilizer output variation to very low levels for
the rates-of-change of mechanical power that
are normally encountered during operation of
utility-scale generators.
Fig. 18. Accelerating-Power Design (Speed Input)
 XIV. TERMINAL VOLTAGE LIMITER
XIII. STABILIZING SIGNAL SELECTION AND PHASE
COMPENSATION Since the Power System Stabilizer operates by
modulating the excitation, it may counteract the voltage
As depicted in the simplified block diagram of Figure 16, regulator’s attempts to maintain terminal voltage within a
the derived speed signal is modified before it is applied to the tolerance band. To avoid producing an overvoltage condition,
voltage regulator input. The signal is filtered to provide phase the PSS may be equipped with a terminal voltage limiter that
lead at the electromechanical frequencies of interest i.e., 0.1 reduces the upper output limit to zero when the generator
Hz to 5.0 Hz. The phase lead requirement is site-specific, and terminal voltage exceeds the set point.
is required to compensate for phase lag introduced by the The level is normally selected such that the limiter will
closed-loop voltage regulator. operate to eliminate any contribution from the PSS before the
generator’s time delayed overvoltage or V/Hz protection
operates.
The limiter will reduce the stabilizer’s upper limit at a fixed
rate until zero is reached, or the overvoltage is no longer
present. The limiter does not reduce the AVR reference below
its normal level; it will not interfere with system voltage control
during disturbance conditions. The error signal (terminal
voltage minus limit start point) is processed through a
Fig. 21. Output stage of PSS to AVR conventional low-pass filter to reduce the effect of
measurement noise.
The diagram of Figure 21 depicts the phase compensation
portion of the digital stabilizer. The transfer function for each
stage of phase compensation is a simple pole-zero XV. CASE STUDIES
combination where the lead and lag time constants are A small turbine generator was experiencing potentially
adjustable. damaging power oscillations when the unit load was increased
Tests are performed to determine the amount of to more than 0.5 pu, with oscillations triggered by small
compensation required for the generator/excitation system by changes in load or terminal voltage. The oscillations could be
applying a low frequency signal into the voltage regulator triggered by a step change in unit terminal voltage. The
auxiliary summing point input and then by comparing to the waveforms in Figure 23 illustrate the test results indicating that
generator output for phase shift and gain over the frequency the oscillations under the test condition were damped, but with
range applied. These tests are normally performed with the significant duration. This condition occurred after the unit was
generator at 10% MW load. Figure 22 illustrates the results of upgraded from manual control to a modern static exciter
a typical test performed to determine the phase lag of the system with high initial response characteristic.
voltage regulator/generator interconnected to the system
without the power system stabilizer. Compensation is then
provided through the lead and lag of the power system
stabilizer to ensure that the voltage regulator will be
responsive to the frequency range desired. Here, phase lead
is needed above 1 Hertz as shown by the solid line in Figure
22.

Fig. 23. Hydro Generator without PSS

When the PSS, a dual input type power system stabilizer, was
implemented, the response of the turbine generator was
substantially improved, showing much greater damping
capability compared to the performance in Figure 23. In
operation, with the settings of the PSS set as indicated in
Figure 24, the unit was able to deliver rated load once again,
with no danger from power oscillations threatening to damage
the machine. This is an example of a local area oscillation.
The combination of high performance excitation and the
compensation of the PSS provides the best combination of
performance benefits for this hydro turbine installation.
Fig.22. Phase Compensation denoted with and without
the Power System Stabilizer
 machines 35 MVA and above or groups of machines in a plant
that total 75 MVA. To help improve the reliability of the
transmission system, power system stabilizers have proven to
dampen oscillations, and new innovations in power system
stabilizer technology continue to make them more user-
friendly in regard to commissioning and implementation. Old
potentiometer-type stabilizer adjustments are obsolete with
new commissioning software to reduce time for
commissioning. See Figure 26.
Additional features provided in stabilizers, such as multiple
setting groups, have made them more flexible to speed
commissioning and accommodate a wide range of application
needs. Here, reduced PSS gains may be required as the
Fig. 24. Hydro Generator with PSS turbine generator is moving through its rough zones during
machine loading. Without another set of gains in the power
system stabilizer, the voltage regulator could become
The benefits of a newly installed dual-input type power excessively aggressive and result in poor power system
system stabilizer (Figure 25) versus those of the existing performance.
single input power system stabilizer (Figure 15) for the same
machine can be seen in the on-line step response of a 92MW
turbine generator to system oscillations. The speed-based
stabilizer produces a significant amount of noise in the
stabilizing signal. This noise limits the maximum Ks gain to
6.2. With the dual-input type, the noise is considerably less,
allowing higher gain, Ks=7.5s and more effective damping as
illustrated in Figure 25.

Fig. 26. Setup Screen for Power System Stabilizer Tuning

XVII. CONCLUSION
In 2006, the Energy Act was passed with legislation that
requires conformance to performance audits by the American
Electric Reliability Council that are specifically defined by the
regional council. In the Northwest, WECC requires all
generators, 35MVA, or group of machines totaling 75MVA to
include a power system stabilizer. Many paper mills in the
Northwest and Canada meet these guidelines and, therefore,
Fig. 25. On-line Step Response, Basler PSS-100 may require power system stabilizers in the future if they do
Ks=7.5, 92MW Hydro Turbine Generator not already have them.

XVI. CHANGING TIMES FOR POWER SYSTEM REFERENCES

STABILIZER IMPLEMENTATION [1] F. R. Scheif, R. K. Feeley, W. H. Philips, and R. W.
Since the blackouts in the Northwest in the late 90s and Torluemke, “A Power System Stabilizer application with
the more recent blackout in the Northeast, the frailty of the Local Mode Oscillations”, IEEE Transactions on Power
transmission system has become apparent. NERC (North Apparatus and Systems, Vol. Pas-98, May/June 1979,
American Reliability Council) has issued guidelines mandating pp. 1054-1059.
[2] F. W. Keay and W. H. South, “Design of a Power
testing to verify hardware to improve the reliability of the
System Stabilizer Sensing Frequency Deviation”, IEEE
transmission system. These tests include verification of
Transactions on Power Apparatus and Systems,
excitation models with excitation system performance and
Vol.Pas-90, Mar/Apr 1971, pp. 707-713.
verification of excitation limiters and protective relays to [3] C. Concordia, “Effect of Prime-Mover Speed Control
ensure coordination. Today, use of power system stabilizers is Characteristics on electric Power Systems
being mandated in the Western portion of the country for all Performance”, IEEE Transactions on Power Apparatus
 and Systems, Vol. Pas-88, May 1969, pp .752-756. [19] Design of PID Controllers for use on rotary excited
[4] R. T. Byerly, F. W. Keay, and J. W. Skooglund, synchronous generator, To be submitted for publication
“Damping of Power Oscillations in Salient-Pole in the IEEE Transactions on Energy Conversion, 2003,
Machines with Static Exciters”, IEEE Transactions on Co-Authors, M.J. Basler, A. Godhwani.
Power Apparatus and Systems, Vol. Pas-89 July/Aug [20] Commissioning and Operational Experience with a
1970. Modern Digital Excitation System Accepted for
[5] IEEE Committee Report, “Dynamic Models for Steam publication in the IEEE Transactions on Energy
and Hydro Turbines in Power system Studies”, IEEE Conversion, Vol. 13, No. 2, June 1998, Co-Authors, A.
Transactions on Power Apparatus and Systems, Vol. Godhwani, M.J. Basler, and T.W. Eberly.
Pas-92 Nov/Dec 1973, pp. 1904-1912. [22] IEEE Std. 421.2-1990, IEEE Guide for Identification,
[6] J. Hurley , IEEE Tutorial Course Power System Testing, and Evaluation of the Dynamic Performance of
Stabilizer Via Excitation Control Chapter II- Overview of Excitation Control Systems.
Power System Stability Concepts. [23] IEEE Std. 421.4-12004, IEEE Guide for Specification
[7} J. Hurley, “Generator Excitation and Control “IEEE for Excitation Systems.
Orlando Power Engineering Society Seminar on Power [24] “Synchronous Generators", IEEE Transactions 2002,
Generators, Sept 24, 1992. IEEE Pulp and Paper Conference, June 2002
[8] E. L. Busby, J. D. Hurley, F. W. Keay, and C. [25] IEEE Std. 421.5-1992, IEEE Recommended Practice
Raczkowski, “Dynamic Stability Improvement at for Excitation System Models for Power System
Montecelllo Station-Analytical Study and Field Tests”, Stability Studies.
IEEE Transaction on Power Apparatus and Systems, [26] NERC Policies Affecting the Power Industry, IEEE Pulp
Vol.Pas-98, May/June 1979, pp. 889-897. and Paper, June 2003. D. Kral, Excel Energy, R.
[9] P. Bingen, G. L. Landgren, F. W. Keay, and C. Schaefer, Basler Electric Company.
Raczkowski, “Dynamic Stability Test on a 733 MVA
Generator at Kincaid Station”, IEEE Transaction on
Power Apparatus and Systems, Vol. Pas-93 Sep/Oct
1974 pp. 1328-1334.
[10] F. R. Scheif, R. K. Feeley, W. H. Philips, and R. W.
Torluemke, “A Power System Stabilizer application with
Local Mode Oscillations”, IEEE Transactions on Power
Apparatus and Systems, Vol. Pas-98, May/June 1979,
pp. 1054-1059.
[11] O. W. Hansen, C. J. Goodwin, and P. L. Dandeno,
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in Stabilizing Intersystem Oscillations”, IEEE
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Vol.Pas-87, May 1968, pp. 1306-1313.
[12] R. T. Byerly, D. E. Sherman, and D. K. McLain
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Apparatus and Systems, Vol. Pas-94, Mar/Apr 1975,
pp. 224-229.
[13] F. W. Keay and W. H. South, “Design of a Power
System Stabilizer Sensing Frequency Deviation”, IEEE
Transactions on Power Apparatus and Systems,
Vol.Pas-90, Mar/Apr 1971, pp. 707-713.
[14] C. Concordia, “Effect of Prime-Mover Speed Control
Characteristics on electric Power Systems
Performance”, IEEE Transactions on Power Apparatus
and Systems, Vol. Pas-88, May 1969, pp . 752-756.
[15] R. T. Byerly, F. W. Keay, and J. W. Skooglund,
“Damping of Power Oscillations in Salient-Pole
Machines with Static Exciters”, IEEE Transactions on
Power Apparatus and Systems, Vol. Pas-89 July/Aug
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[16] F. P. De Mello and C. Concordia, Concepts of
Synchronous Machine Stability as Affected by
Excitation Control” IEEE Transactions on Power
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316-329.
[17] C. Raczkowski, “Complex Root Compensator- A New
Concept for Dynamic Stability Improvement”, IEEE
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Pas-93 Nov/Dec 1974, pp. 1842-1848
[18] W. Watson and M. E. Coultes, “Static Exciter
Stabilizing signals on Large Generators-Mechanical
Problems”, IEEE Transactions on Power Apparatus
and Systems, Vol. Pas-92 Jan/Feb 1973 pp. 204-211
 Route 143, Box 269, Highland, Illinois U.S.A. 62249
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