The presence of inter-area oscillations has long affected stability constraints, and therefore, limited the power transfer capacity of interconnected power systems. Adequate damping of these inter-area oscillations is, thus, necessary to secure system operation and ensure system reliability while increasing power transfers. Power system stabilizers (PSS) are the most common devices used to enhance the damping of such oscillations. Many studies have demonstrated that PSSs using remote signals may perform better than using local signals. The advent of phasor measurement units (PMU) makes remote or wide-area signals become available, which enables various important applications. Of particular interest is wide-area damping control (WADC), which aims to utilize remote or wide-area measurements to damp the inter-area oscillations. However, two main challenges in WADC design are (1) feedback controller input signal selection (which PMU signal is best to use?), and (2) latency (which is inherent in the transmission of the measurements) considerations. In response to the first challenge, this thesis proposes a concept called dominant inter-area oscillation path, which serves to pinpoint a set of candidate signals that can be used as the feedback controller inputs by locating the interconnected corridors where the inter-area modal contents are the most observable. Derivation, identification, and use of the dominant inter-area oscillation paths are demonstrated throughout the thesis. Extensive analysis on the relationships between the proposed set of signals and system properties regarding stability and robustness is presented. To tackle the second challenge, the impacts of time delays on the system performance when using the dominant path signals are investigated. To date, several studies have proposed different control design methods using various oscillation dampers to design WADC. Nevertheless, neither a systematic method nor a concept that encompasses fundamental knowledge on power system dynamics has yet been offered. The objective of this thesis is, thus, to propose an analytical framework based on the dominant path concept which is built upon fundamental principles for feedback controller input signal selection in WADC. With this framework, a proper and systematic approach is developed. The proposed method allows to select appropriate signals and use them to effectively mitigate the inter-area oscillations that constrain power transfer capacity and affect system stability. / <p>QC 20150414</p>

In the Nordic power network, the existence of poorly damped low-frequency inter-area oscillations (LFIOs) has long affected stability constraints, and thereby, limited power transfer capacity. Adequate damping of inter-area modes is, thus, necessary to secure system operation and ensure system reliability while increasing power transfers. Power system stabilizers (PSS) is a prevalent means to enhance the damping of such modes. With the advent of phasor measurement units (PMUs), it is expected that wide-area damping control (WADC), that is, PSS control using wide-area measurements obtained from PMUs, would effectively improve damping performance in the Nordic grid, as well as other synchronous interconnected systems. Numerous research has investigated one ``branch'' of the problem, that is, PSS design using various control schemes. Before addressing the issue of controller design, it is important to focus on developing proper understanding of the ``root'' of the problem: system-wide oscillations, their nature, behavior and consequences. This understanding must provide new insight on the use of PMUs for feedback control of LFIOs. The aim of this thesis is, therefore, to lay important concepts necessary for the study of power system small signal stability analysis that considers the availability of synchrophasors as a solid foundation for further development and implementation of ideas and related applications. Particularly in this study, the focus is on the application addressed damping controller design and implementation. After a literature review on the important elements for wide-area damping control (WADC), the thesis continues with classical small signal stability analysis of an equivalent Nordic model; namely, the KTH-NORDIC32 which is used as a test system throughout the thesis. The system's inter-area oscillations are identified and a sensitivity analysis of the network variables directly measured by synchrophasors is evaluated. The concept of network modeshapes, which is used to relate the dynamical behavior of power systems to the features of inter-area modes, is elaborated. Furthermore, this network modeshape concept is used to determine dominant inter-area oscillation paths, the passageways containing the highest content of the inter-area oscillations. The dominant inter-area paths are illustrated with the test system. The degree of persistence of dominant paths in the study system is determined through contingency studies. The properties of the dominant paths are used to construct feedback signals as input to the PSS. Finally, to exemplify the use of the dominant inter-area path concept for damping control, the constructed feedback signals are implemented in a PSS modulating the AVR error signal of a generator on an equivalent two-area model, and compared with that of conventional speed signals.