Professional Documents
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KOLLAM-691516
SEMINAR REPORT
ON
SUBMITTED BY:-
PREETHA S
YEAR 2010
TRAVANCORE ENGINEERING COLLEGE
KOLLAM-691516
Certified that this report titled “HVDC TECHNOLOGY AND SHORT CIRCUIT
CONTRIBUTION OF HVDC LIGHT” is the bonafide record of the work done by
PREETHA S
……………………………………………………………………………………………………
during final year, towards the partial fulfillment of the requirement for the award of the B.Tech
Degree in Electrical and Electronics Engineering of the Kerala University.
This paper aims at exploring the HVDC transmission systems and also presents a
comprehensive investigation on one of the concerned issues, which is the contribution of
HVDC Light™ to short circuit currents. Different AC network conditions, load conditions
and fault types are considered under different operation conditions and control modes.
The possible maximum short circuit current contribution is determined by the SCR. It
is inversely in proportional to the SCR and it occurs when the transmission system is
operating at zero active power.
The amount of contribution depends on control modes, operation points and control
strategies. With the reactive power control mode, the short circuit current contribution will
be limited due to the current order limit decreasing with the voltage. The contribution to the
short circuit current is irrelevant to the fault location if the fault current is evaluated in per
unit with the base value equal to the 3-ph fault current at the corresponding fault location and
without HVDC Light™ connected.
If the HVDC Light™ contributes a higher short-circuit current, the voltage dip due to distant
fault is possibly reduced and thereby the connected electricity consumers may suffer less
from disturbances.
CONTENTS
2. COST/DISTANCE OF AC vs DC
6
The HVDC technology is used in transmission systems to transmit electric bulk power
over long distances by cable or overhead lines. It is also used to interconnect asynchronous
AC systems having the same or different frequency. Figure 2.1 shows a simplified schematic
picture of an HVDC system, with the basic principle of transferring electric energy from one
AC system or node to another, in any direction. The system consists of three blocks: the two
converter stations and the DC line. Within each station block there are several components
involved in the conversion of AC to DC and vice versa.
Fig 2.1 Schematic of the overall system perspective of a general HVDC system, transferring electric energy
from one AC system or node to the other,in any direction
The traditional HVDC system is built with line commutated current source converters,
based on thyristor valves. The operation of this converter requires a voltage source like
synchronous generators or synchronous condensers in the AC network at both ends. The
current commutated converters can not supply power to an AC system which has no local
generation. The control of this system requires fast communication channels between the two
stations.
The question is often asked, “Why use d.c. transmission?” One response is that losses
are lower, but this is not correct. The level of losses is designed into a transmission system
and is regulated by the size of conductor selected. D.c. and a.c. conductors, either as
overhead transmission lines or submarine cables can have lower losses but at higher expense
since the larger cross-sectional area will generally result in lower losses but cost more.When
converters are used for d.c. transmission in preference to a.c. transmission, it is generally by
economic choice driven by one of the following reasons:
1. An overhead d.c. transmission line with its towers can be designed to be less costly
per unit of length than an equivalent a.c. line designed to transmit the same level of electric
power. However the d.c. converter stations at each end are more costly than the terminating
stations of an a.c. line and so there is a breakeven distance above which the total cost of d.c.
transmission is less than its a.c. transmission alternative.The d.c. transmission line can have a
lower visual profile than an equivalent a.c. line and so contributes to a lower environmental
impact. There are other environmental advantages to a d.c. transmission line through the
electric and magnetic fields being d.c. instead of ac.
3. Some a.c. electric power systems are not synchronized to neighboring networks
even though their physical distances between them is quite small. This occurs in Japan where
half the country is a 60 hz network and the other is a 50 hz system. It is physically impossible
to connect the two together by direct a.c. methods in order to exchange electric power
between them. However, if a d.c. converter station is located in each system with an
interconnecting d.c. link between them, it is possible to transfer the required power flow even
though the a.c. systems so connected remain asynchronous.
The Transmission and Distribution of Electrical Energy started with direct current.In
1882,a 50 km long 2 KV DC line was built between Miesbach and Munich in Germany.At
that time conversion between reasonable consumer voltages and DC transmission voltages
could only be realised by means of rotating DC machines.
In an AC system voltage conversion is simple.An AC transformer allows high power
levels and high insulation levels within one unit,and has low losses.It is a relatively simple
device,which requires little maintenance.Further, a three-phase synchronous generator is
superior to a DC generator in every respect.For these reasons,AC technology was introduced
at a very early stage in the development of electrical power systems.It was soon accepted as
the only feasible technology for generation,transmission and distribution of electrical energy.
However, high-voltage AC transmission links have disadvantages, which may compel
a change to DC technology:
• Inductive and Capacitive elements of overhead lines and cables put limits to the
transmission capacity and the transmission distance of AC transmission links.
• This limitaiton is of particular significance for cables.Depending on the required
transmission capacity,the system frequency and loss evaluation,the achievable
transmission distance for an AC cable wil be in the range of 40 to 100 km.It will
mainly be limited by the charging current.
• Direct connection between two AC systems with different frequencies is not possible.
• Direct connection between two AC systems with the same frequency or a new
connection within a meshed grid may be impossible because of system instability,too
high short-circuit levels or undesirable power flow scenarios.
Engineers were therefore engaged over generations in the development of a technology for
DC transmissions as a supplement to the AC transmissions.
The most relevant components that comprise a HVDC system, are the following:
- The Thyristor or IGBT(Insulated Gate Bipolar Transistor) valves make the
conversion from AC to DC and thus are the main component of any HVDC converter. Each
single valve consists of a certain amount of series connected thyristors (or IGBTs) with their
auxiliary circuits.
The central equipment of a d.c. substation are the thyristor converters which are usually
housed inside a valve hall.Figure 4.1 shows an example of the electrical equipment required
for a d.c. substation. In this example, two poles are represented which is the usual case and is
known as the “bipole” configuration. Some d.c. cable systems only have one pole or
“monopole” configuration and may either use the ground as a return path when permitted or
use an additional cable to avoid earth currents.
From Figure 4.1, essential equipment in a d.c. substation in addition to the valve groups
include the converter transformers. Their purpose is to transform the a.c. system voltage to
which the d.c. system is connected so that the correct d.c. voltage is derived by the converter
bridges. For higher rated d.c. substations, converter transformers for 12 pulse operation are
usually comprised of single phase units which is a cost effective way to provide spare units
for increased reliability.
5.1 ADVANTAGES
The advantage of HVDC is the ability to transmit large amounts of power over long
distances with lower capital costs and with lower losses than AC. Depending on voltage level
and construction details, losses are quoted as about 3% per 1,000 km.High-voltage direct
current transmission allows efficient use of energy sources remote from load centers.
1. Undersea cables, where high capacitance causes additional AC losses. (e.g., 250 km
Baltic Cable between Sweden and Germany,the 600 km NorNed cable between Norway and
the Netherlands, and 290 km Basslink between the Australian Mainland and Tasmania)
2. Endpoint-to-endpoint long-haul bulk power transmission without intermediate 'taps', for
example, in remote areas
3. Increasing the capacity of an existing power grid in situations where additional wires are
difficult or expensive to install
4. Power transmission and stabilization between unsynchronised AC distribution systems
5. Connecting a remote generating plant to the distribution grid, for example Nelson River
Bipole
6. Stabilizing a predominantly AC power-grid, without increasing prospective short circuit
current
7. Reducing line cost. HVDC needs fewer conductors as there is no need to support multiple
phases. Also, thinner conductors can be used since HVDC does not suffer from the skin effect
8. Facilitate power transmission between different countries that use AC at differing voltages
and/or frequencies
9. Synchronize AC produced by renewable energy sources
Long undersea high voltage cables have a high electrical capacitance, since the
conductors are surrounded by a relatively thin layer of insulation and a metal sheath. The
geometry is that of a long co-axial capacitor. Where alternating current is used for cable
transmission, this capacitance appears in parallel with load. Additional current must flow in
the cable to charge the cable capacitance, which generates additional losses in the conductors
of the cable. Additionally, there is a dielectric loss component in the material of the cable
insulation, which consumes power.
When, however, direct current is used, the cable capacitance is charged only when the
cable is first energized or when the voltage is changed; there is no steady-state additional
current required. For a long AC undersea cable, the entire current-carrying capacity of the
conductor could be used to supply the charging current alone. This limits the length of AC
cables. DC cables have no such limitation. Although some DC leakage current continues to
flow through the dielectric, this is very small compared to the cable rating.
HVDC can carry more power per conductor because, for a given power rating, the
constant voltage in a DC line is lower than the peak voltage in an AC line. The power
delivered is defined by the root mean square (RMS) of an AC voltage, but RMS is only about
71% of the peak voltage. The peak voltage of AC determines the actual insulation thickness
and conductor spacing. Because DC operates at a constant maximum voltage, this allows
existing transmission line corridors with equally sized conductors and insulation to carry
100% more power into an area of high power consumption than AC, which can lower costs.
Because HVDC allows power transmission between unsynchronized AC distribution systems,
it can help increase system stability, by preventing cascading failures from propagating from
one part of a wider power transmission grid to another. Changes in load that would cause
portions of an AC network to become unsynchronized and separate would not similarly affect
a DC link, and the power flow through the DC link would tend to stabilize the AC network.
The magnitude and direction of power flow through a DC link can be directly commanded,
and changed as needed to support the AC networks at either end of the DC link. This has
caused many power system operators to contemplate wider use of HVDC technology for its
stability benefits alone.
5.2 DISADVANTAGES
A study for Oak Ridge National Laboratory reported on a survey to 3 suppliers of HVDC
equipment for quotations of turnkey costs to supply two bipolar substations for four
representative systems. Each substation requires one d.c. electrode and interfaces to an a.c.
system with a short circuit capacity four times the rating of the HVDC system.
Transmission line costs cannot be so readily defined. Variations depend on the cost of
use of the land, the width of the right-of-way required, labor rates for construction, and the
difficulty of the terrain to be crossed. A simple rule of thumb may be applied in that the cost
of a d.c. transmission line may be 80% to 100% of the cost of an a.c. line whose rated line
voltage is the same as the rated pole-to-ground voltage of the d.c. line. The cost advantage of
d.c. transmission for traversing long distances is that it may be rated at twice the power flow
capacity of an a.c. line of the same voltage.
When electricity must be transmitted by underground or undersea cables, a.c. cables
become impractical due to their capacitive charging current if longer than a critical length
which for undersea applications is less than 50 kM. For distances longer than this critical
length with today’s technology requires d.c. cables. The choice is system specific, and
economic considerations will prevail.
1. For a given power transfer requiring extra high voltage transmission, the d.c.
transmission line will have a smaller tower profile than the equivalent a.c. tower carrying the
same level of power. This can also lead to less width of right-of-way for the d.c. transmission
option.
2. The steady and direct magnetic field of a d.c. transmission line near or at the edge
of the transmission right-of-way will be about the same value in magnitude as the earth’s
naturally occurring magnetic field. For this reason alone, it seems unlikely that this small
contribution by HVDC transmission lines to the background geomagnetic field would be a
basis for concern.
3. The static and steady electric field from d.c. transmission at the levels experienced
beneath lines or at the edge of the right-of-way have no known adverse biological effects.
There is no theory or mechanism to explain how a static electric field at the levels produced
by d.c. transmission lines could effect human health. The electric field level beneath a HVDC
transmission line is of similar magnitude as the naturally occurring static field which exists
beneath thunder clouds. Electric fields from a.c.transmission lines have been under more
intense scrutiny than fields generated from d.c. transmission lines.
4. The ion and corona effects of d.c. transmission lines lead to a small contribution of
ozone production to higher naturally occurring background concentrations. Exacting long
term measurements are required to detect such concentrations. The measurements taken at
cross-sections across the Nelson River d.c. lines in Canada failed to distinguish background
from downwind levels. While solar radiation influences the production of ozone even in a
rural environment, thereby maintaining its level, any incremental contribution from a d.c. line
source is subject to breakdown, leading to a resumption of background levels downwind from
the line. Investigations of ozone for indoor conditions indicate that in well mixed air, the half-
life of ozone is 1.5 minutes to 7.9 minutes. Increases in temperature and humidity increase the
rate of decay .
7. HVDC APPLICATIONS
D. Offshore Transmission :
Self-commutation, dynamic voltage control and black-start capability allow compact
VSC HVDC transmission to serve isolated loads on islands or offshore production platforms
over long distance submarine cables. This capability can eliminate the need for running
expensive local generation or provide an outlet for offshore generation such as that from
wind. The VSC converters can operate at variable frequency to more efficiently drive large
compressor or pumping loads using high voltage motors.
HVDC Light represents electric power transmission by HVDC based on voltage source
converters. This newly developed technology has various interesting characteristics that make
it a very promising tool for transmission of electric power to distant loads, where no other
transmission is possible or economic. The technology is briefly presented here together with
its application to a pilot transmission. Emphasis is on the characteristics that are of
importance for feeding of networks or loads without own generation. This refers specifically
to the generation by internal control of the phase voltages in the inverter, that could serve the
loads in the connected AC network.
New DC power cables based on a modified triple extrusion technology and a specially
designed DC material have been developed. DC power cables with ratings 30 MW at 100 kV
can be accomplished weighting only 1 kg/m. Such cables can be installed at low cost by e.g.
ploughing techniques.Voltage source converters together with these cables constitute an
excellent tool for providing power to any distant location. Thereby the advantages of a large
network can be brought to basically any place. For the moment the technology considers
designs that work within the power range of 1-60 MVA and with direct voltages up to around
+/-100 kV. For the future both powers and voltages will increase and extension to pure DC
networks will be possible.
The HVDC Light transmission system mainly consists of two cables and two
converter stations. Each converter station is composed of a voltage source converter (VSC)
built up with IGBTs, phase reactors, ac filters and transformer, as shown in Fig. 81. By using
pulse width modulation (PWM), the amplitude and phase angle (even the frequency) of the
converter AC output voltage can be adjusted simultaneously.Since the AC side voltage holds
two degrees of control freedom, independent active and reactive power control can be
realized.
Regarding the active power control, the feedback control loop can be formulized such
that either tracks the predetermined active power order, or tracks the given DC voltage
reference. Regarding the reactive power control, the feedback control loop can be formulized
such that it either tracks thepredetermined reactive power order, or tracks the given AC
voltage reference.
Under the normal operation condition, the VSC can be seen as a voltage source.
However, under abnormal operation conditions, for instance, during an ac short-circuit fault,
the VSC may be seen as a current source, as the current capacity of the VSC is limited and
controllable.
8.2 ADVANTAGES
• Reduced environmental impact, an underground cable has no visual impact on
the landscape. Once it's installed the cable route can be replanted with Native
vegetation.
• Faster and easier issue of permits using DC underground cables. Underground
cables rarely meet with public opposition and often receive political support.
• The system reliability is enhanced with reduced risk of damage from natural
causes such as storms, wind, earthquakes and fire. You simply bury it and
forget it.
• Operation and maintenance costs of the transmission easement are virtually
eliminated as there is no need for long term contracts to maintain the easement
with suitable access roads, thermographic checks of conductors joints,
insulator replacements, constant trimming and removal of regrowth vegetation
and public safety and security.
• The width of the corridor to install the underground cable can be as narrow as 4
meters, which will give greater flexibility with the selection of a transmission
route.
9 SHORT CIRCUIT CONTRIBUTION OF HVDC LIGHT
The current is mainly limited by the impedances of transmission lines and transformers
when a short circuit occurs. Since the impedance of lines and transformers is dominated by
the inductive impedance, the short circuit current is mainly consisted of reactive current.
Because of that, the choice of different control modes in respect of the active power control
does not give any impact to the short circuit current.It is important to notice that the change of
short circuit current and the variation of bus voltages usually go hand in hand. The increase of
short circuit current, namely, the increase of short circuit capacity, will improve the voltage
stability and minimize the reduction of bus voltage due to faults. Inversely, the reduction of
short circuit current may leads to voltage instability and voltage collapse during faults, in
particular in weak AC systems. With Uacctrl control mode, the reactive current generation
will be automatically increased when the AC voltage decreases.
9.4 THE IMPACT OF OPERATION POINTS
As it has been discussed, the maximum possible short circuit increment (∆Imax) due to
HVDC Light is determined by the SCR. It will occur if the VSC is operating at zero active
power, namely, it is operating as an SVC or STATCOM. Fig.9.2 shows the characteristic of
short circuit current contribution versus the load level. The two dashed curves are the result
by taking into account the transformer winding ratio variation due to the tap-changer. AC
networks with SCR equal to 3.14 has been simulated. For different load levels the observed
short circuit currents,during a 3-ph close fault, are marked with black dots in Fig. 9.2.
10 CONCLUSION
A high-voltage, direct current (HVDC) electric power transmission system uses direct
current for the bulk transmission of electrical power, in contrast with the more
common alternating current systems. For long-distance distribution, HVDC systems
are less expensive and suffer lower electrical losses. For shorter distances, the higher
cost of DC conversion equipment compared to an AC system may be warranted where
other benefits of direct current links are useful.HVDC systems remain the best
economical and environmentally friendly option for the above conventional
applications. However, around the world, a quantum leap in efforts to conserve the
environment - are demanding a change in thinking that could make HVDC systems
the preferred alternative to high voltage AC systems in many situations.
HVDC Light is a new technology that has been specifically developed to match the
requirements of the new competitive electricity markets. It provides the ability to
connect renewable generation to the AC grid. It allows us to supply power to remote
locations and islands replacing local diesel generation. The technical merits are that
by virtue of their standardised prefabricated modular constructions which lead to short
delivery times, it is relocatable and can be expanded to meet growing demand.
Moreover, a key advantage is that it provides accurate control of the transmitted active
power and independent control of the reactive power in the connected AC networks.
A pair of lightweight DC cables can be laid direct in the ground in a cost-effective
way which is comparable to or less than a corresponding total life cycle cost of AC
overhead line. For these reasons HVDC Light provides an important role as a business
concept and opens up new opportunities for both investors and environmentalist.
11 REFERENCES
1. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/High-voltage_direct_current
3. http://hvdcusersconference.com/wiki/
7. SIEMENS, “High voltage direct current transmission - proven technology for power
exchange,” Mars 2007, brochure from SIEMENS, Source http://www.siemens.com.