Student Number : 0400486V - MSc (Eng) dissertation - School of Electrical and Information Engineering - Faculty of Engineering and the Built Environment / The Voltage Dip Test Facility at the University of the Witwatersrand utilises a resistive load during testing of variable speed drives. This method produces valuable results regarding the performance of drives under dip conditions. It has been shown that load type does influence the performance of drives and this variation cannot be tested under current conditions as only linear loading is attainable with resistive loads. This thesis proposes a programmable load based on the concept of field-oriented control of an induction motor. The concepts involved with field-oriented control are discussed and shown to be suitable for this application. An implementation strategy utilising custom-designed software and an off-the-shelf VSD is developed and executed. The performance of the programmable load is analysed under both steady-state and dynamic conditions.

Most of the modern wind turbines are based on doubly fed induction generators (DFIG), with a back to back power converter connecting the rotor to the network. It is known that voltage dips at the stator terminals can cause overcurrents in the rotor windings, which could threaten the converter integrity. In order to protect the converter, several strategies have been proposed in technical literature, requiring in some cases the converter deactivation, which disables the control that the converter has over the power transference between the generator and the system. This last is not a desirable behavior since it can put on risk the voltage stability of the electric system. It is the aim of this dissertation to introduce and compare five of those protection strategies, through the computational simulation of their performance in case of balanced voltage dips. In order to achieve this, the electromagnetic dynamic model of the DFIG was theoretically developed, as well as the models of the strategies of interest. Subsequently, the computational model of the system was assembled in the software Matlabs Simulink to finally perform the desired simulations and its corresponding analysis. / A maioria das turbinas eólicas modernas é baseada em geradores de indução duplamente alimentados (GIDE), com um back to back conversor de energia que liga o rotor para a rede. Sabe-se que as quedas de tensão nos terminais do estator podem causar sobrecorrentes nos enrolamentos do rotor, que podem ameaçar a integridade do conversor. A fim de proteger o conversor, várias estratégias têm sido propostas na literatura técnica, exigindo, em alguns casos, a desativação do conversor, o qual desativa o controlo do conversor, que possui ao longo da transferência de energia entre o gerador e o sistema. Este último não é um comportamento desejável, uma vez que pode colocar em risco a estabilidade de tensão do sistema elétrico. É o objetivo desta dissertação apresentar e comparar cinco dessas estratégias de proteção, através da simulação computacional de seu desempenho em caso de quedas de tensão equilibrada. A fim de alcançar este objetivo, o modelo dinâmico eletromagnética do DFIG teoricamente foi desenvolvido, bem como os modelos das estratégias de interesse. Subsequentemente, o modelo computacional do sistema foi montado no software Simulink do Matlab para finalmente executar as simulações desejadas e sua análise correspondente.

Most of the modern wind turbines are based on doubly fed induction generators (DFIG), with a back to back power converter connecting the rotor to the network. It is known that voltage dips at the stator terminals can cause overcurrents in the rotor windings, which could threaten the converter integrity. In order to protect the converter, several strategies have been proposed in technical literature, requiring in some cases the converter deactivation, which disables the control that the converter has over the power transference between the generator and the system. This last is not a desirable behavior since it can put on risk the voltage stability of the electric system. It is the aim of this dissertation to introduce and compare five of those protection strategies, through the computational simulation of their performance in case of balanced voltage dips. In order to achieve this, the electromagnetic dynamic model of the DFIG was theoretically developed, as well as the models of the strategies of interest. Subsequently, the computational model of the system was assembled in the software Matlabs Simulink to finally perform the desired simulations and its corresponding analysis. / A maioria das turbinas eólicas modernas é baseada em geradores de indução duplamente alimentados (GIDE), com um back to back conversor de energia que liga o rotor para a rede. Sabe-se que as quedas de tensão nos terminais do estator podem causar sobrecorrentes nos enrolamentos do rotor, que podem ameaçar a integridade do conversor. A fim de proteger o conversor, várias estratégias têm sido propostas na literatura técnica, exigindo, em alguns casos, a desativação do conversor, o qual desativa o controlo do conversor, que possui ao longo da transferência de energia entre o gerador e o sistema. Este último não é um comportamento desejável, uma vez que pode colocar em risco a estabilidade de tensão do sistema elétrico. É o objetivo desta dissertação apresentar e comparar cinco dessas estratégias de proteção, através da simulação computacional de seu desempenho em caso de quedas de tensão equilibrada. A fim de alcançar este objetivo, o modelo dinâmico eletromagnética do DFIG teoricamente foi desenvolvido, bem como os modelos das estratégias de interesse. Subsequentemente, o modelo computacional do sistema foi montado no software Simulink do Matlab para finalmente executar as simulações desejadas e sua análise correspondente.

In last decade, there is a large increase in installed capacity of wind power. Asmore wind power is integrated into utility networks, related technologychallenges draw much attention. The doubly fed induction generator (DFIG) isthe mainstream choice for wind turbine generator (WTG) in current market andthe object of this thesis. It is very sensitive to voltage dips. The enhancement oflow voltage ride through (LVRT) is one of the most important issues for DFIG,and many works have already been done to provide solutions.In current works, the voltage dip waveforms that are applied in LVRTrelated works are largely different from waveforms in reality, because they failto consider the the effect of realistic wind farm configurations on waveforms ofvoltage dips and significant influences of additional characteristics of voltagedips. The true impact of the voltage dip needs to be assessed in performanceevaluation and development of LVRT methods. To support the development ofpractical LVRT capacity enhancement solutions, the application of voltage dipknowledge is definitely demanded.In this thesis, the characteristics of realistic waveform voltage dips in windfarm are analyized based on voltage dip knowldege from power quality field,measured voltage dip from industry and realistic wind farm configurations.Classical analysis theory is applied to explain the principles of the impact ofvoltage dip characteristics on dynamic behavior of DFIG. The impacts of manywidely neglected characteristics such as phase angle jump (PAJ), point on wave(POW) of initiation and recovery, voltage recovery process, transformerconfigurations, load effect are revealed and verified by simulations. The impactof many voltage dip characteristics on DFIG are studied for the first time. / De senaste tio åren har sett en stor ökning av installerad effekt av vindkraft.Mer vindkraft i elnäten har lett till större uppmärksamhet om dess tekniskautmaningar. Den dubbelmatad asynkrongenerator (DFIG) är idag denvanligaste förekommande typen i vindkraftverk. Den är mycket känslig förspänningssänkningar. Förbättring av tålighet för spänningssänkningar (LVRT)är en av de viktigaste frågorna för DFIG, och många studier har redan söktlösningar.I befintliga studier om LVRT har spänningssänkningarna skiljt sig väsentligtfrån verkliga vågformer, då de inte har tagit hänsyn till realistiskavindparkkonfigurationer och betydande påverkan av ytterligare egenskaper hosspänningssänkningar. För att stödja utvecklingen av praktiska LVRT lösningarbehövs mer kunskap om spänningssänkningar för att bedöma dess verkligainverkan.Detta examensarbete förbättrar LVRT analysen av DFIG genom att tillämpakunskap om spänningssänkningar från elkvalitetsområdet, tillsammans medrealistiska vindparkskonfigurationer. Inflytandet av ändringar i fasvinkel(PAJ), fasvinkeln vid sänkning och återhämtning (POW), spänningsåterhämtning, transformatorkonfigurationer, last och många andra egenskaperav spänningssänkningar ingår också. Inflytandet av många egenskaper avspänningssänkningar studeras här akademiskt för första gången. Denkaraktäristik av realistiska spänningssänkningar som inträffar vid generatornspoler, och de effekter dessa har, studeras och förklaras genom teoretisk analysoch intensiva simuleringar.

<p>This project deals with voltage source converters with energy storage capability. The main objective is to study the possible benefits of energy storage to a power system with a VSC as the interface between them.</p><p>First of all, a converter control system is proposed for a two level VSC. In the conventional converter control, the control system usually takes the voltage measured at the point where the converter is connected and calculates the reference voltage for the converter; with a modulation system the converter then produces the required 'average voltage'. In this project, a novel flux modulation scheme, combined with the deadbeat current control strategy, is proposed. The current controller is capable of controlling both positive and negative sequence current components. With flux modulation, the control system measures the bus flux and commands the converter to generate the required flux.</p><p>Based on the proposed control strategies, several application studies have been carried out.</p><p>The first application study investigates the effect of energy storage on the power quality at the point of common coupling when a system is subject to load disturbances. The voltage at PCC in a weak network is very sensitive to load changes. A sudden change in active load will cause both a phase jump and a magnitude fluctuation in the bus voltage, whereas reactive load changes mainly affect the voltage magnitude. With the addition of energy storage to a StatCom, it is possible to compensate for the active power change as well as providing reactive power support. In this thesis, some effective active power compensation schemes are proposed. Simulations and experiments have been performed to verify the compensation schemes. The results show that a StatCom with energy storage can significantly reduce phase jumps and magnitude deviations of the bus voltage.</p><p>pact of the energy storage on the performance of weak systems under fault conditions has been investigated. The investigation was done by studying an example system. The system model was established based on a real system, in which some induction motors driving pumps along a pipeline are fed from a radial transmission line. Studies show that for a weak system with induction motor loads, a StatCom with certain energy storage capacity will effectively improve the system recovery after faults. Although this incurs extra cost for the increasing dc voltage rating and size of the dc side capacitor, the overall rating of the converter can be reduced by utilization of the proposed active power compensation scheme.</p><p>The last case study investigates the possible use of a StatCom with energy storage to improve the power quality at the point of common coupling where a cyclic load is connected. Studies show that by providing both fast reactive and fast active power support to the network, not only the voltage magnitude can be well controlled, but also the voltage phase jump can be reduced significantly.</p>

<p>U ovoj doktorskoj disertaciji je predstavljena je nova metoda za<br />detekciju propada napona, zasnovana na Rekurentnoj<br />neuronskoj mreži i analizi u harmonijskom domenu. Metoda je<br />namenjena za primenu u savremenim distributivnim mrežama<br />koje sadrže obnovljive izvore, i u skladu sa tim je optimizovana i<br />testirana. Pametna metoda postiže izuzetne rezultate u brzini<br />detekcije, sa prosečnim vremenom detekcije manjim od 1 ms, uz<br />izuzetnu pouzdanost (preko 97%). U doktorskoj disertaciji<br />dokazana je i druga hipoteza, a to je da je moguće predvideti<br />dubinu propada algoritmom zasnovanim na harmonijskoj analizi.</p> / <p>In this PhD thesis, a novel method for the detection of voltage dips<br />(sags), based on the Recurrent Neural Network and analysis in the<br />frequency domain, is presented. The method is intended for use in<br />the modern distribution grids that contains renewable sources, and<br />accordingly it is optimized and tested. The smart method achieves<br />exceptional results in detection speed, with an average detection<br />time of less than 1 ms and with high reliability (over 97%). In the<br />PhD thesis, another hypothesis is proved, which claims that is<br />possible to predict the depth of dip with algorithm based on the<br />harmonic analysis.</p>

Static synchronous compensation (StatCom) is an application that utilizes a voltage source converter (VSC) to provide instantaneous reactive power support to the connected power system. Conventionally, StatComs are employed for reactive power support only. However, with the integration of energy storage (ES) into a StatCom, it can provide active power support in addition to the reactive power support. This thesis deals with the integration of ES into StatComs. The investigation involves the following aspects: possible benefits for power systems, main circuit design, and control strategies. As the basis of the investigation, a control scheme is proposed for two-level VSCs. It is a novel flux modulation scheme combined with the well-known deadbeat current control. The current controller is capable of controlling the positive sequence, the negative sequence, and the offset components of the converter current. With flux modulation, all the three above-mentioned components of the bus flux are controllable. This differs from the conventional voltage modulation scheme, in which only the positive and negative sequence components of the bus voltage are controllable. The difference between the proposed flux modulation scheme and the voltage modulation scheme is investigated regarding saturation of transformers in the connected system during fault recovery. The investigation shows that by controlling the offset component of the bus flux, the transformer saturation problem can be mitigated to a certain extent. The possible benefits of the additional active power support of StatComs are investigated through several case studies. Different active power compensation schemes are proposed. First, active power compensation for sudden load changes in weak systems is investigated. The proposed control strategies are verified through computer simulations and through experiments in a real-time simulator. It is shown that with active power compensation, both the phase jumps and magnitude variations in the voltage at the PCC can be reduced significantly. Secondly, the power compensation of cyclic loads is investigated. The results show that the power quality at the connection point can be improved regarding both phase jumps and magnitude variations. In the third case study, the fault-recovery performance of an example system is investigated, showing that improved performance can be achieved by the additional active power support. ES devices such as capacitors, supercapacitors, and batteries exhibit considerable variation in the terminal voltage during a charging/discharging cycle. A direct connection of ES devices to the dc side of a VSC requires a higher voltage rating of the VSC. Thus, the cost of the VSC has to be increased. In this thesis, a dual thyristor converter topology is proposed to interface ES devices with the dc side of the VSC. First, a cost comparison is performed to compare the total cost of the whole system with and without the proposed interface topology. A cost comparison between various types of ES is also presented, providing a guideline for the choice of ES at energy levels where several alternatives exist. Then, the dynamics of systems with the proposed interface topology are investigated. Control strategies are proposed and verified by computer simulations. Two different control methods for the dual-thyristor converter are compared. / QC 20100819

Avec le développement de l’éolien, les prescriptions techniques de raccordement de cette technologie obligeront le maintient de sa connexion lors d’incidents sur la tension du réseau électrique. L’enjeu pour le gestionnaire du réseau est de pouvoir utiliser tous les générateurs pour garantir la stabilité du système électrique.A partir d’un modèle dynamique d’une éolienne à base de Machine Asynchrone à Double Alimentation (MADA), une commande vectorielle améliorée a été proposée en prenant en compte la dynamique du flux statorique engendrée par la chute de tension. Les performances supérieures en terme de maintient de la production ont été établies par comparaison avec la méthode de commande classique. Son domaine d’utilisation a été également déterminé.Pendant les creux de tension importants, une protection matérielle (crowbar) est implémentée avec un contrôle de la démagnétisation de la MADA. En outre, de la puissance réactive peut être produite à la fois par la MADA et par le convertisseur connecté au réseau électrique au cours de la défaillance du réseau.Un contrôle vectoriel à hystérésis des courants pour les deux convertisseurs électroniques multiniveaux est proposé et évalué pour améliorer la réponse dynamique de ces convertisseurs et pour réduire les effets des variations des paramètres sur les performances de la commande. Selon la durée du défaut, des objectifs différents de contrôle doivent être réalisés en priorité pour empêcher des surintensités rotoriques et pour fournir de la puissance réactive. Une reconfiguration complète du dispositif de commande de cette éolienne est détaillée pour renforcer le maintient de la production éolienne lors de défaillances / With the massive development of wind energy, the technical requirements for connecting this technology will require the improvement of the fault ride-through capability of grid-connected wind turbines. The task for the grid system operator is to use all generators to ensure the stability of the electrical system.From a dynamic model of a Doubly Fed Induction Generator (DFIG) based wind generator, an improved vector control has been proposed by taking into account the dynamics of the magnetic flux, which are generated by the voltage dip. The higher performances have been established by comparison with the conventional control method. The operation domain was also determined.During serious voltage dips, a hysteresis control scheme of the active Crowbar is proposed to protect the system within a demagnetization method of the DFIG. Moreover, additional reactive power can be produced both by the MADA and the grid-side converter in order to support the electric network during the grid fault.A space vector hysteresis current control strategy of both three-level converters is proposed to improve the dynamic response of the system and to reduce the parameter variation effects on the control performanceDepending on the grid fault duration, different control objectives have to be achieved with priority to restrain the rotor over-current or to supply reactive power. Then the reconfiguration scheme of the control strategies of high power DFIG wind turbine system is proposed to enhance the fault ride-through capability of the DFIG system. With this specific methodology, the DFIG can stay connected and can supply maximal reactive current during voltage dips to help voltage recovery

This project deals with voltage source converters with energy storage capability. The main objective is to study the possible benefits of energy storage to a power system with a VSC as the interface between them. First of all, a converter control system is proposed for a two level VSC. In the conventional converter control, the control system usually takes the voltage measured at the point where the converter is connected and calculates the reference voltage for the converter; with a modulation system the converter then produces the required 'average voltage'. In this project, a novel flux modulation scheme, combined with the deadbeat current control strategy, is proposed. The current controller is capable of controlling both positive and negative sequence current components. With flux modulation, the control system measures the bus flux and commands the converter to generate the required flux. Based on the proposed control strategies, several application studies have been carried out. The first application study investigates the effect of energy storage on the power quality at the point of common coupling when a system is subject to load disturbances. The voltage at PCC in a weak network is very sensitive to load changes. A sudden change in active load will cause both a phase jump and a magnitude fluctuation in the bus voltage, whereas reactive load changes mainly affect the voltage magnitude. With the addition of energy storage to a StatCom, it is possible to compensate for the active power change as well as providing reactive power support. In this thesis, some effective active power compensation schemes are proposed. Simulations and experiments have been performed to verify the compensation schemes. The results show that a StatCom with energy storage can significantly reduce phase jumps and magnitude deviations of the bus voltage. pact of the energy storage on the performance of weak systems under fault conditions has been investigated. The investigation was done by studying an example system. The system model was established based on a real system, in which some induction motors driving pumps along a pipeline are fed from a radial transmission line. Studies show that for a weak system with induction motor loads, a StatCom with certain energy storage capacity will effectively improve the system recovery after faults. Although this incurs extra cost for the increasing dc voltage rating and size of the dc side capacitor, the overall rating of the converter can be reduced by utilization of the proposed active power compensation scheme. The last case study investigates the possible use of a StatCom with energy storage to improve the power quality at the point of common coupling where a cyclic load is connected. Studies show that by providing both fast reactive and fast active power support to the network, not only the voltage magnitude can be well controlled, but also the voltage phase jump can be reduced significantly. / QC 20101124

This Ph.D. thesis deals with problems about voltage dips and short voltage interruptions, generally named as voltage events, which origin in power supply networks and have a negative influence for all connected electric appliances. In this thesis single phase appliances are considered. These problems closely relate with area of electromagnetic compatibility which solve all questions about correct operation of different types of electric appliances during electromagnetic disturbances impact. Voltage events are ones of the many types of electromagnetic disturbances. The connection between disturbance sources and sensitive electric appliances is created by power supply lines. The immunity of electric appliances to voltage dips and short interruptions is currently tested via voltage dips with strictly defined parameters which are intended by class of electromagnetic environment in which the usage of electric appliance is recommended. During immunity tests the rectangular shape of voltage dips is preferred. The main descriptive parameters of testing voltage events are the residual voltage and the event time duration. But voltage dips and short interruptions defined by this way do not closely relate with parameters of real voltage dips and interruptions occurred in public supply system where parameters of voltage dips are variable. Moreover in the power supply system there are many of others voltage parameters which can have a significant influence to immunity level of connected electric appliances. This Ph.D. thesis also deals with finding more voltage event parameters. Although the voltage events occurrence in the power supply system is not limited and voltage events are considered only as informative voltage parameter it is important to monitor voltage events occurrence. The monitoring device has to be able to operate for ling time period and it has to detect parameters of voltage events with adequate accuracy. The accuracy of detected event parameters and the detection delay depends on the detection algorithm characteristics. That is why the part of this thesis relates with a comparison of several detection algorithms and their abilities to correct detection of voltage event parameters. The main purpose of this thesis is the proposal of connection between classification of voltage dips and short interruptions occurred in power supply system with the classification of electric appliances immunity to these voltage events. On the base of many of provided electric appliances immunity tests and also on the base of long time period voltage events monitoring the special compatibility levels are proposed in this thesis. The observation of proposed compatibility levels will bring the increasing level of reliable operation of all connected electric appliances.