Interaction Analysis in Islanded Power Systems

with HVDC Interconnections

Carlos Collados-Rodrı́guez, Eduardo Prieto-Araujo, Silvia Sanz, Carmen Longás,
Marc Cheah-Mane, Ricard Ferrer-San-José, Antonio Cordón, Luis Coronado
Oriol Gomis-Bellmunt Red Eléctrica de España, Spain
CITCEA-UPC, Spain
Email: [email protected]

Abstract—Islanded power systems are often connected to circuit current capacity in the islanded system. Currently,
larger mainland power systems using HVDC cables. The prolif- most of the islanded systems interconnected through HVDC
eration of new HVDC interconnectors in those islanded systems are based on Line-Commutated Converters (LCC): Gotland
might lead to a reduction of the conventional synchronous
generation-based power plants connected to the grid, with the [9], Jeju [10], Majorca [11], Sardinia and Corsica [12].
associated decrease of rotating inertia and short-circuit current Voltage Source Converters (VSC) can provide additional
capacity in the resulting system, posing new challenges on benefits for an islanded power system thanks to their higher
the system stability and the behavior during system faults. In controlability. Compared to LCCs, VSCs do not present
these situations, the power system dynamics heavily depend commutation failure due to disturbances on the AC grid and
on the converter control algorithms, fact that requires new
methodologies to study the system stability and the potential can provide both voltage and frequency support, contributing
interactions between the different system elements, considering to improve the system stability. Therefore, VSCs can operate
the power electronics. This paper analyses interactions in connected to weak grids, which may represent small islands
a multi-infeed HVDC islanded system with LCC and VSC- with a low number of synchronous generators. However,
HVDC links. In particular, frequency stability is evaluated in when the synchronous generation of the system is reduced,
a case study that represents an island with two HVDC links,
two synchronous generators and an aggregated load. Also, the inertia or short-circuit current may not be sufficient to
frequency stability limits are determined when the synchronous ensure a stable operation with conventional VSC controls. As
generation of the island is reduced. a solution, the VSC control can be improved, e.g. the current
reference loop is modified in [13] to operate connected to
I. I NTRODUCTION grids with low short-circuit current. Also, VSCs can operate
The number of power electronic devices connected to the in grid-forming mode, i.e. generating the voltage magnitude
grid is increasing due to the integration of renewable genera- and angle of the grid [14]. It is important to identify the
tion and High Voltage Direct Current (HVDC) transmission operational limits of conventional VSC control techniques
systems. An example of a grid with high penetration of for frequency and voltage support and when grid-forming
converters is found in Northern Europe, where several coun- techniques should be applied to ensure stable operation of
tries and offshore wind power plants are connected through the islanded system. The multiterminal HVDC grid used in
HVDC transmission systems. Areas with high penetration Zhousand islands represents an example of islanded system
of power electronics present new challenges in relation connected through VSC-HVDC [15].
to system stability and response during faults. In particu- Multi-infeed HVDC systems with LCC and VSC-HVDC
lar, instabilities might be caused by interactions between links may become more common in islanded system (see
power converters and other components of the grid, e.g. Fig. 1), since VSCs can provide additional benefits for
transformers and transmission lines [1]–[5]. The converter LCCs, e.g reduction of commutation failure or harmonic
control plays a key role to ensure a proper operation of the emission without large passive filters [16], and can improve
system and avoid undesirable interactions between compo- the stability. Currenly, few multi-infeed systems are planned
nents. Systems with multiples LCC-HVDC links have been or in operation: Gotland is interconnected through a LCC
studied in [6]–[8], where five main interactions are iden- and a VSC-HVDC link, whereas an additional VSC-HVDC
tified: transient overvoltage, commutation failure, harmonic link might be installed in Jeju [10].
interaction, power voltage stability and control interactions. This paper analyses interactions in a multi-infeed HVDC
Also, frequency stability may be considered in case of small islanded system with LCC and VSC-HVDC links. In par-
systems with low inertia [8]. In order to limit the impact of ticular, frequency stability is evaluated in a case study that
these interactions, mitigation strategies were proposed based represents an island with two HVDC links, two synchronous
on converter design and control coordination [7]. generators and an aggregated load. The frequency response
A number of HVDC links has been used to connect is- contribution of the HVDC links is analysed when a con-
landed systems to the main AC grid. Interconnecting islands ventional frequency-power droop control is implemented.
to mainland is a solution to reduce the high costs of local Also, frequency stability limits are determined when the syn-
generation and improve the security of supply. In these cases, chronous generation of the island is reduced. Time-domain
conventional power plants based on synchronous generators simulations in PSCAD/EMTDC have been carried out to
can be removed from the grid, reducing the inertia and short- demonstrate the frequency response of the islanded system
 commutation failure. The control structure is based on PI
controllers that define the firing angles for the thyristors, as
shown in Fig. 3.
LCC AC-DC LCC AC-DC
converter 1 converter 2
LCC- HVDC link LCC rectifier Smooth LCC LCC inverter
reactor IDC

AC grid 2
AC grid 1

βi
VSC AC-DC VSC AC-DC
converter 1 converter 2 6
Rc = π TωLAC 3
Δ
LCC LCC
VSC-HVDC link VDC-r VDC Y
62 βi Y
Vr = π TVAC2 cosαr

AC filters

90
Fig. 1: Example of multi-infeed HVDC islanded system LCC*
IDC PI αr LCC*
90
VDC PI
+ 0 + βmin
LCC
IDC VDC
LCC max βi
90
after a sudden disconnection of synchronous generation. γ* PI
+
βmin
γ
II. M ULTI -I NFEED HVDC I SLANDED S YSTEM
Fig. 3: Representation of LCC-HVDC link
Fig. 2 shows the configuration of the system under study,
which represents an islanded AC grid fed by an LCC
and a VSC-HVDC link importing power from a AC main B. Configuration and control of MMC-HVDC link
grid. Switching models have been used for the inverter The VSC-HVDC link is based on Modular Multilevel
HVDC terminals connected to the island, while the rectifier Converters (MMC) with half-bridge submodules and asym-
HVDC terminals are represented as voltage sources. The metrical monopole configuration. The rectifier side is mod-
islanded grid is composed by two synchronous generators elled as a DC voltage source, as shown in Fig. 4, whereas
that are connected to the same bus, a variable load and three the inverter side is represented with the MMC accelerated
overhead lines, L1, L2 and L3, which are represented with model presented in [19]. This MMC model represents all the
frequency dependent models. submodules of the converter individually as capacitors that
are connected or disconnected depending on their switching
states. The VSC-HVDC link operation considers the VSC-
3 L2 rectifier controlling DC voltage and the VSC-inverter con-
SG1
trolling active power and AC voltage of the islanded system.
2 1 The VSC-rectifier control is not represented, whereas the
L1
VSC-inverter includes a detailed MMC control. The control
4 strategy for the MMC is shown in Fig. 4 and is based on
L3 Load SG2 [20]. The main objective of the MMC control is to exchange
power between the AC and DC grids, while ensuring bal-
ancing of the energy stored in all the arms without large
deviations. Also, Nearest Level Modulation (NLM) is used
Fig. 2: Case study of multi-infeed islanded system with an as a modulation technique, which can reduce the average
LCC and a VSC-HVDC links commutation frequency [21].
C. Modelling and control of synchronous generators
The synchronous generation of the islanded system is rep-
A. Configuration and Control of LCC-HVDC Link
resented by two conventional steam power plants, including
The LCC-HVDC link is based on 12-pulse bridges with turbines, synchronous machines, exciters and governors, as
asymmetrical monopole configuration. The rectifier side is shown in Fig. 5. The mechanical part of the generation unit
represented with an average model, as shown in Fig. 3, which is represented by single-mass models with a specific inertia.
is modelled as [17]:
√ D. Frequency control
LCC 6 2 LCC 6 Frequency control is based on a conventional power-
VDC−r = T VAC2 cos α − IDC T ωLAC (1)
π π frequency droop. Fig. 6 shows the control structure of the
where, VAC2 and ω are the line-to-line voltage and angular power-frequency droop implemented in the converters and
LCC
frequency of the AC grid, IDC is the DC current through synchronous generators. The power-frequency droop gain,
the LCC-HVDC link, T is the transformer ratio and LAC Kdroop , can be defined as in [17]:
is the equivalent inductance of the transformer. The inverter
side, is represented with a detailed model including thyris- ∆f /f0 1 P0
Kdroop = · 100 = · 100 (2)
tors, transformers and reactive and harmonic compensation ∆P/P0 kf p f0
filters. A conventional operation is considered, where the where ∆f and ∆P are the frequency and power variations,
LCC-rectifier controls DC current and the LCC-inverter f0 is the nominal synchronous frequency, P0 is the rated
controls DC voltage [18]. An extinction angle γ control is power of the converter or synchronous generator and kf p is
also implemented in the inverter side to reduce the risk of the control gain shown in Fig. 6.
 TABLE I: Systems parameters
IMMC
DC
a
SMu1 SMu1
b c
SMu1
a b c Parameter Value Unit
SMu2 SMu2 SMu2
AC grid voltage (RMS, ph-ph) 220 kV
a b c
LCC rated power 200 MW
SMuN SMuN SMuN MMC rated power 500 MW
Generators droop 5 %
LCC droop 2 %
4 MMC droop 2 %
MMC Lines length (L1, L2 and L3) 15 km
V DC Δ Y

a b c A. Case Study 1: Contribution of HVDC links to Frequency

SMl1 SMl1 SMl1
Support
a b c
SMl2 SMl2 SMl2
The contribution of HVDC links to frequency support of
a b c
SMlN SMlN SMlN the islanded system is analysed considering the load and
generation specified in Table II, where 41.7 % of the total
Grid side control load is supplied by synchronous generation. A sudden loss
Grid current
PV operation PQ reference
reference
Grid current of 50 MW of synchronous generation (SG2) is considered at
Measurements

mode calculation control

Gate signals
calculation 1 s, which represents a 8.3% of the total generation. Different
Submodules
Internal energy control gate signal
generation scenarios have been tested depending on the elements that
Internal Additive current
Energy Additive current
energy control
control
reference
control
contribute to frequency support:
references calculation
• Only Synchronous generators (SG)
Fig. 4: MMC configuration and control • Synchronous generators and LCC-HVDC link
(SG+LCC)
• Synchronous generators and VSC-HVDC link
Exciter (SG+MMC)
• Synchronous generators and both HVDC links
Single-mass 1
(SG+LCC+MMC)
SG Y Δ
TABLE II: Operational parameters in first case study.
Parameter Value Unit
f Steam SG1 power 200 MW
P0 Governor
turbine SG2 power 50 MW
LCC-HVDC link power 100 MW
VSC-HVDC link power 250 MW
Fig. 5: Frequency response depending on the remain syn- Load 600 MW
chronous generation power
Fig. 7 shows the frequency response for all the scenarios.
When the converters do not provide frequency support,
III. C ASE STUDY the generator SG1 has to compensate the power imbalance
caused by the loss of SG2. The frequency is reduced below
49.2 Hz, which is not within acceptable operational ranges
Two case studies are analysed considering the islanded [22]. The steady state frequency is 49.69 Hz and is reached
systems presented in Section II and with the parameters around 20 seconds after the generation loss. It is clear that
shown Table I. First, the contribution of the HVDC links the converters can contribute significantly to the frequency
to the frequency response is analysed. Then, the frequency support, reducing the maximum frequency deviation (the
stability of the islanded system is evaluated by reducing frequency is always above 49.7 Hz) and reaching the steady
the synchronous generation, i.e. the inertia of the system. state in a shorter time. This is because the converters have
In order to analyse the frequency response of the system, a faster dynamic response, compared to the synchronous
a sudden loss of synchronous generation is simulated in generators, to compensate the power imbalance after the
PSCAD/EMTDC, disconnecting generator SG2 from the generation loss.
system.
B. Case Study 2: Frequency stability limits
The frequency stability limits are analysed considering a
reduction in the total synchronous generation of the islanded
Δf kfp
f0 + ΔP system, i.e. a reduction in the total inertia. In this case
study, the load is 550 MW and a sudden loss of 100 MW
of synchronous generation (SG2) is applied at 1s, which
f
represents a 18.2 % of the total generation. Initially the
Fig. 6: Frequency response depending on the remain syn- power transferred from the converters is the same as in the
chronous generation power previous case study and each synchronous generator (SG1
 50 400 SG1
SG2

P [MW]
MMC
49.8
200 LCC

49.6
f [Hz]

0
50
49.4
SG 49.9

f [Hz]
SG + LCC
49.2
SG + MMC 49.8
SG + LCC + MMC
49 49.7
0 5 10 15 20 25
0 0.5 1 1.5 2 2.5 3 3.5 4
t [s]
t [s]
Fig. 7: Frequency response comparison with or without
(a) Scenario 1
support of the converters

400

and SG2) provides 100 MW, i.e. 36.4 % of the total load is

P [MW]
supplied by synchronous generation. 200
In order to test the frequency stability limits the generation
from SG1 is reduced progressively, while the total load
0
is maintained and replaced by additional power from the 50
converters shared equally between the MMC and LCC. Table
49.9
III shows the 4 scenarios considered in this case study, where
f [Hz]

the total synchronous generation before and after the power 49.8
imbalance is indicated. 49.7

TABLE III: Scenarios to analyse frequency stability limits. 0 0.5 1 1.5 2 2.5 3 3.5 4
t [s]
Scen. Initial SGs (MW) Initial SGs (%) Final SGs (%)
1 200 36.4 18.2 (b) Scenario 2
2 150 27.3 9.1
3 125 22.7 4.6 400
4 112.5 20.5 2.3
P [MW]

200
Fig. 8 and Fig. 9 show the results of the power con-
tribution from each synchronous generator and converter
0
and the frequency response. When the SG2 is disconnected, 50
SG1 starts compensating the power, reducing the frequency
49.9
of the system as the mechanical torque provided by the
f [Hz]

turbine is slower than the electrical one. When this reduction 49.8
on the frequency is detected by the converters, they start 49.7
injecting power according to the droop control. When the
synchronous generation that remains connected to the system 0 0.5 1 1.5 2 2.5 3 3.5 4

is high enough, the converters can respond correctly to the t [s]

change (see Fig. 8a). When the inertia is reduced, some (c) Scenario 3
oscillations appear in the power of the converters, which can
400
be translated to frequency oscillations. When SG1 generates
50 MW, the power of the MMC begins oscillating but the
P [MW]

system has enough damping and the effect on the frequency 200
is not significant, as shown in Fig. 8b. When the power from
SG1 is reduced to 25 MW, this oscillation is increased and 0
the frequency is affected, as shown in Fig. 8c. The frequency 50
of this oscillation is around 14 Hz, which is in the range of 49.9
f [Hz]

electromechanical interactions. When the power from SG is

reduced to 12.5 MW, the system is stable, but the operation 49.8

is not acceptable as the large oscillations would force the 49.7

disconnection of the converters, as shown in Fig. 8d. Fig. 9
0 0.5 1 1.5 2 2.5 3 3.5 4
shows the frequency for all the cases, where lower inertia
t [s]
values of the system are translated to a decrease on the
minimum frequency. (d) Scenario 4

Fig. 8: Simulation results when the inertia of the system is

reduced
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