L'intégration des liaisons à courant continu dans les systèmes électriques permet d'accroitre les possibilités de pilotage des réseaux, ce qui permet d'en améliorer la sûreté et de raccorder de nouveaux moyens de production. Pour cela la technologie VSC-HVDC est de plus en plus plébiscitée pour interconnecter des réseaux non synchrones, raccorder des parcs éoliens offshore, ou contrôler le flux d'énergie notamment sur des longues distances au travers de liaisons sous-marines (liaison NorNed). Les travaux de cette thèse portent sur la modélisation, la commande non-linéaire et la stabilisation des systèmes VSC-HVDC, avec deux axes de travail. Le premier se focalise sur la conception et la synthèse des lois de commandes non-linéaires avancées basées sur des systèmes de structures variables (VSS). Ainsi, les commandes par modes glissants (SMC) et le suivi asymptotique de trajectoire des sorties (AOT) ont été proposées afin d'assurer un degré désiré de stabilité en utilisant des fonctions de Lyapunov convenables. Ensuite, la robustesse de ces commandes face à des perturbations et/ou incertitudes paramétriques a été étudiée. Le compromis nécessaire entre la robustesse et le comportement dynamique requis dépend du choix approprié des gains. Ces approches robustes, qui sont facile à mettre en œuvre, ont été appliquées avec succès afin d'atteindre des performances dynamiques élevées et un niveau raisonnable de stabilité vis-à-vis des diverses conditions anormales de fonctionnement, pour des longueurs différentes de liaison DC. Le deuxième vise à étudier l'influence de la commande du convertisseur VSC-HVDC sur l'amélioration de la performance dynamique du réseau de courant alternatif en cas d'oscillations. Après une modélisation analytique d'un système de référence constitué d'un groupe connecté à un convertisseur VSC-HVDC via un transformateur et une ligne, un contrôleur conventionnel simple PI est appliqué au niveau du convertisseur du système pour agir sur les oscillations rotoriques de la machine synchrone. Cette commande classique garantie une amélioration acceptable des performances dynamiques du système; surtout pour l'amortissement des oscillations de l'angle de puissance de la machine synchrone lors de défauts.

“Hardware in the Loop” (HIL) testing is widely used in the automotive industry. The sophisticated electronic control units used for vehicle control are usually tested and evaluated using HIL-simulations. The HIL increases the degree of realistic testing of any system. Moreover, it helps in designing the structure and control of the system under test so that it works effectively in the situations that will be encountered in the system. Due to the size and the complexity of interaction within a power network, most research is based on pure simulation. To validate the performance of physical generator or protection system, most testing is constrained to very simple power network. This research, however, examines a method to test power system hardware within a complex virtual environment using the concept of the HIL. The HIL testing for electronic control units and power systems protection device can be easily performed at signal level. But performance of power systems equipments, such as distributed generation systems can not be evaluated at signal level using HIL testing. The HIL testing for power systems equipments is termed here as ‘Power Network in the Loop’ (PNIL). PNIL testing can only be performed at power level and requires a power amplifier that can amplify the simulation signal to the power level. A power network is divided in two parts. One part represents the Power Network Under Test (PNUT) and the other part represents the rest of the complex network. The complex network is simulated in real time simulator (RTS) while the PNUT is connected to the Voltage Source Converter (VSC) based power amplifier. Two way interaction between the simulator and amplifier is performed using analog to digital (A/D) and digital to analog (D/A) converters. The power amplifier amplifies the current or voltage signal of simulator to the power level and establishes the power level interaction between RTS and PNUT. In the first part of this thesis, design and control of a VSC based power amplifier that can amplify a broadband voltage signal is presented. A new Hybrid Discontinuous Control method is proposed for the amplifier. This amplifier can be used for several power systems applications. In the first part of the thesis, use of this amplifier in DSTATCOM and UPS applications are presented. In the later part of this thesis the solution of network in the loop testing with the help of this amplifier is reported. The experimental setup for PNIL testing is built in the laboratory of Queensland University of Technology and the feasibility of PNIL testing has been evaluated using the experimental studies. In the last section of this thesis a universal load with power regenerative capability is designed. This universal load is used to test the DG system using PNIL concepts. This thesis is composed of published/submitted papers that form the chapters in this dissertation. Each paper has been published or submitted during the period of candidature. Chapter 1 integrates all the papers to provide a coherent view of wide bandwidth switching amplifier and its used in different power systems applications specially for the solution of power systems testing using PNIL.

Τα τελευταία χρόνια έχει αρχίσει να διαδίδεται με γρήγορους ρυθμούς η μέθοδος μεταφοράς ισχύος μέσω συνεχούς ρεύματος. Προς αυτή την κατεύθυνση ώθηση έδωσε η ανάπτυξη νέων ημιαγωγικών διακοπτικών στοιχείων οδηγώντας σε περεταίρω ανάπτυξη και χρήση των συστημάτων μεταφοράς με συνεχές ρεύμα. Σε αυτή τη διπλωματική εργασία μελετάται ένα σύστημα μεταφοράς ισχύος με διασύνδεση συνεχούς ρεύματος (HVDC), που συνδέεται ανάμεσα σε δυο εναλλασσόμενα ηλεκτρικά δίκτυα με και χωρίς φορτίο. Την διασύνδεση συνεχούς ρέματος πραγματοποιούν δυο back-to-back AC/DC μετατροπείς VSC, που αναλαμβάνουν τους ρόλους του ανορθωτή και του αντίστροφα ισχύος. Οι μετατροπείς χρησιμοποιούν την διαμόρφωση πλάτους παλμού PWM. Αρχικά μελετάται θεωρητικά το μοντέλο των μετατροπέων και του back-to-back HVDC συστήματος και στην συνέχεια σχεδιάζεται και αναλύεται η λειτουργία του ανάμεσα σε δυο δίκτυα εναλλασσομένου ρεύματος με ή χωρίς την ταυτόχρονη παρουσία φορτίου. Τέλος προσομοιώνεται το σύστημα μέσω του λογισμικού Matlab και συγκεκριμένα της εφαρμογής Simulink για την εξαγωγή συμπερασμάτων. / In the past few years the method of power transmission by means of direct current has expanded rapidly. To this direction a push forward has been given by the development of new semi-conductive switching valves leading to a further development of transmission systems by direct current. In this thesis what is considered is a power transmission system via direct current HVDC connected between two AC electric networks with or without load. The direct current connection is achieved through back-to-back AC/DC converters VSC which undertake the role of rectifier and that of inverter of power. The converters use the Pulse Width Modulation (PWM). At first the converter model and the back-to-back HVDC system is theoretically approached and in the process what is designed and analyzed is its function between two networks of AC current with or without the simultaneous presence of load. Finally the system is simulated through software Matlab and specifically the application of simulink in order to draw conclusions.

The UK Government has set an ambitious target to achieve 15% of final energy consumption from renewable sources by 2020. High Voltage Direct Current (HVDC) technology is an attractive solution for integrating offshore wind power farms farther from the coast. In the near future, more windfarms are likely to be connected to the UK grid using HVDC links. With the onset of this fairly new technology, new challenges are inevitable. This research is undertaken to help assist with these challenges by looking at possibilities of problems with respect to faster AC/DC interaction modes, especially, on the impact of inrush currents which occur during fault-recovery transients. In addition to that, possible mitigation strategies are also investigated. Initially, the relative merits of different transformer models are analysed with respect to inrush current transient studies. The most appropriate transformer model is selected and further validated using field measurement data. A detailed electro-magnetic-transient (EMT) model of a grid-connected MMC-HVDC system is prepared in PSCAD/EMTDC to capture the key dynamics of fault-recovery transformer inrush currents. It is shown that the transformer in an MMC system can evoke inrush currents during fault recovery, and cause transient interactions with the converter and the rest of the system, which should not be neglected. It is shown for the first time through a detailed dynamic analysis that if the current sensors of the inner-current control loops are placed at the converter-side of the transformer instead of the grid-side, the inrush currents will mainly flow from the grid and decay faster. This is suggested as a basic remedial action to protect the converter from inrush currents. Afterwards, analytical calculations of peak flux-linkage magnitude in each phase, following a voltage-sag recovery transient, are derived and verified. The effects of zero-sequence currents and fault resistance on the peak flux linkage magnitude are systematically explained. A zero-sequence-current suppression controller is also proposed. A detailed study is carried out to assess the key factors that affect the maximum peak flux-linkage and magnetisation-current magnitudes, especially with regard to fault specific factors such as fault inception angle, duration and fault-current attenuation. Subsequently, the relative merits of a prior-art inrush current mitigation strategy and its implementation challenges in a grid-connected MMC converter are analysed. It is shown that the feedforward based auxiliary flux-offset compensation scheme, as incorporated in the particular strategy, need to be modified with a feedback control technique, to alleviate the major drawbacks identified. Following that, eight different feedback based control schemes are devised, and a detailed dynamic and transient analysis is carried out to find the best control scheme. The relative merits of the identified control scheme and its implementation challenges in a MMC converter are also analysed. Finally, a detailed EMT model of an islanded MMC-HVDC system is implemented in PSCAD/EMTDC and the impacts of fault-recovery inrush currents are analysed. For that, initially, a MMC control scheme is devised in the synchronous reference frame and its controllers are systematically tuned. To obtain an improved performance, an equivalent control scheme is derived in the stationary reference frame with Proportional-Resonant controllers, and incorporated in the EMT model. Following that, two novel inrush current mitigation strategies are proposed, with the support of analytical equations, and verified.

The HVDC, High Voltage Direct Current, is important when it comes to upgrading the energy system to a renewable, sustainable and efficient system. This master thesis is investigating what is happening during the most decisive fault cases when the HVDC station is operating with inherent overload. An inherent overload operating area is defined and simulations are performed in PSCAD/EMTDC to study the transient behavior of the fault currents and overvoltages.

The main objective of this thesis is to develop a new methodology to evaluate the transmission cable losses of wind-generated electricity. The research included the power loss variations of submarine cables in relation to the line length, cable capacity and the transmission technology in an offshore wind farm having a capacity of 500 MW. The literature of similar studies helped to generate a solid background for the research.   The comprehensive analysis carried out is based on a hypothetical wind farm and using three different power transmission wind farm models to investigate the technical reliability of transmission technology, namely, High Voltage Alternative Current (HVAC), High Voltage Direct Current Voltage Source Converter (HVDC VSC) and High Voltage Direct Current Line Commutated Converter (HVDC LCC). The analyses carried out are performed under assumptions and simplifications of power system models to evaluate the submarine cable transmission losses of 3 different transmission systems by using the MATLAB/ Simulink software.   With relevance to the simulation results, the HVAC submarine cable has more losses than any other transmission technology cables and it is suitable for short distance power transmission. The VSC technology has less losses than HVAC. Comparing with afore-mention technologies the HVDC LCC technology transmission links have the lowest line losses. Moreover, the transformer losses and the converter losses were calculated. The simulation results also included the overall power system losses by each of the transmission models.

One of ABB Power Systems´s business areas is HVDC (High Voltage Direct Current) technology. HVDC is used for transmissions for both short and long distances. One of Power Systems’s products is called HVDC Light. HVDC Light is a relatively new technology for power transmission, but have before only been used for motor drives applications. The technology is based on VSC (Voltage Source Converter) that uses a technique called PWM (Pulse Width Modulation). There are a lot of PWM patterns that have been examined, but not in the field of power transmission where ABB Power Systems is working. The different PWM patterns can be used for reducing switching losses or harmonics, that can cause the need of external filters to decrease or increase. The purpose of this report is to give a general picture of the system that generates the PWM patterns. The report describes some main components in the system. T he thesis also present amplitude spectrum from various PWM patterns - generated by signals that have been pulse width modulated with a triangle- shaped wave. By showing the frequency-content, the decisions are eased for the engineers and technicians that are working with this kind of questions. An analysis of different PWM patterns have been done. The kind of reference waves that generate the PWM patterns are called Dead Band PWM and Modified SPWM. Comparisons have been done for Dead Band PWM, between harmonics and the width of Dead Band. Comparisons have been done for Modified SPWM, between: 1. fundamental frequency and modulation index. 2. different Modified SPWM and their harmonics.

Recently, with growing application of wind power, the system based on the doubly fedinduction generator (DFIG) has become the one of the most popular concepts. Theproblem of connecting to the grid is also gradually revealed. As an effective solution toconnect offshore wind farm, VSC-HVDC line is the most suitable choice for stabilityreasons. However, there are possibilities that the converter of a VSC-HVDC link canadversely interact with the wind turbine and generate poorly damped sub-synchronousoscillations. Therefore, this master thesis will derive the linear model of a single DFIG aswell as the linear model of several DFIGs connecting to a VSC-HVDC link. For thelinearization method, the Jacobian transfer matrix modeling method will be explainedand adopted. The frequency response and time-domain response comparison betweenthe linear model and the identical system in PSCAD will be presented for validation. / Nyligen, med ökande tillämpning av vindkraft, det system som bygger på den dubbeltmatad induktion generator (DFIG) har blivit en av de mest populära begrepp. Problemetmed att ansluta till nätet är också gradvis avslöjas. Som en effektiv lösning för att anslutavindkraftpark är VSC -HVDC linje det lämpligaste valet av stabilitetsskäl. Det finns dockmöjligheter att omvandlaren en VSC-HVDC länk negativt kan interagera medvindturbinen och genererar dåligt dämpade under synkron svängningar. Därför kommerdetta examensarbete härleda den linjära modellen av en enda DFIG liksom den linjäramodellen av flera DFIGs ansluter till en VSC-HVDC -länk. För arise metoden kommerJacobian transfer matrix modelleringsmetodförklaras och antas. Jämförelse mellan denlinjära modellen och identiskt system i PSCAD frekvensgången och tidsdomänensvarkommer att presenteras för godkännande.

“High voltage direct current” (HVDC) teknologi har blivit allt viktigare teknik för att integrera förnybara energikällor i elnätet. För att styra ett sådant elsystem på bästa möjliga sätt krävs optimala kontrollstatergier både för omvandlarna och nätet. Så syftet med detta projekt är att undersöka hur olika regleringsmetoder, såsom centraliseradoch distribuerad spänningskontroll, kan påverka driften i ett 4-terminal HVDC-system. Ett optimalt effektflöde uppstår i systemet endast när likspänningen inte avviker från sitt börvärde och det uppnås genom att ha aktiv effekt regulator i varje nod i nätet. Olika scenarier som ändring av effektens börvärde och omvandlaravbrott har simulerats med hjälp av HIL-processen i realtid. Simuleringarna hjälper till att analysera hur väl dem implementerade regleringsmetoder i nodernas regulatorer hantera dessa förändringar. Resultatet ger bevis på att både centraliseradoch distruebued metoden har positiva och negativa aspekter. Fördelen med centraliserade metoden är att den ger en väldefinierad operationspunkt men den hanterar den inte svåra transienter (tex. avbrott) vilket distribuerade metoden gör.

Shunt compensation devices have been a powerful candidate for expanding the limits of transmission facilities, allowing more active power transport and supporting voltage and overall stability of the network. An example of such devices is the Static Synchronous Compensator (STATCOM) which is based on Voltage Source Converter (VSC) which synthesizes output voltage and current for mainly reactive power compensation. STATCOMs might be accompanied with a Thyristor Switched Capacitor (TSC) or Reactor (TSR) which are controllable shunt devices for extra VARs required, along with passive filters for absorbing the switching harmonics generated by the VSC. Such STATCOM topology is referred as the Hybrid STATCOM.However, such configuration typically results in parallel resonances with the maingrid’s passive elements at different harmonic frequencies. This leads to amplification of background harmonics, if any exist, at the Point of Common Coupling (PCC) where the Hybrid STATCOM is connected. This thesis deals with the VSC control in the STATCOM to mitigate the harmonic amplification behavior by active filtering,which is based on emulating an impedance by the control. Also, the overall system passivity is essentially studied, which ensures a passive system with respect to harmonics. / Shunt-kompensationsanordningar har varit en kraftfull kandidat för att öka gränserna för överföringsanläggningar, vilket möjliggör högre aktiv effekt och understöderspännings-stabilitet och övergripande stabilitet i kraftnätet. Ett exempel på sådana enheter är Static Synchronous Compensator (STATCOM) som är baserat på Voltage Source Converter (VSC) som syntetiserar utspänning och ström för huvudsakligen reaktiv effektkompensation. STATCOMs kan åtföljas av en Thyristor Switched kapacitor (TSC) eller Reaktor (TSR) som är kontrollerbara shunt-apparater som ökar kapaciteten för reaktiv effekt (VARs), tillsammans med passiva filter för att absorbera övertoner som genereras av VSC. Sådan STATCOM-topologi kallas HybridSTATCOM. Emellertid, en sådan konfiguration resulterar i parallella resonanser med huvudnätets passiva element vid olika övertoner. Detta leder till förstärkning av bakgrundsövertoner, om någon existerar, vid Point of Common Coupling (PCC) där Hybrid STATCOM är ansluten. Denna avhandling behandlar hur VSC kontrolleras i STATCOM för att mildra förstärkningen av nivåer för övertoner genom aktivfiltrering, vilket är baserat på att VSC kontrollen emulerar en impedans. Dessutom studeras övergripande systempassivitet, vilket säkerställer ett passivt system med avseende på övertoner.