Selection of DC voltage controlling station in an HVDC grid

Abstract

This paper proposes a real-time quantitative evaluation of HVDC converters’ in an HVDC grid to select the suitable DC slack converter. This real-time evaluation considers the strength of connecting AC grid and the converter's on-line capacity margin as selection metrics. The strength of AC grid is evaluated in real-time by the estimation of grid short circuit capacity using recursive lease square algorithm. Given these selection metrics, the credibility of HVDC stations in controlling the DC voltage can be offered to the system operator in real-time for further operational decisions. This paper also studies the practical aspect of the estimation algorithm regarding selection of the operating points. As major contribution, it suggests to intelligently use a naturally occurring droop response in HVDC grids as a second operating point in the estimation algorithm to calculate the short circuit capacity. The method has been tested through set of scenarios using a real-time co-simulation platform. This platform includes real-time power system simulator to model AC/DC grid, industrial HVDC controllers and corresponding ICT systems. The results show that the proper selection of DC slack station can improve the AC system response and DC voltage drops during disturbances.