CHAPTER-1 INTRODUCTION

1.1. INTRODUCTION
An HVDC transmission system has a converter transformer as one of its main components. The failure of the converter transformer is one of the major concerns for electric power utilities all over the world. Invariably, the top portions of the secondary windings of the converter transformers fail whereas the primaries are left unaffected. In this paper, an effort has been made to analyze the causes for these failures by means of modeling a practical HVDC system. The modeling and analysis have been carried out in the MATLAB/SIMULINK environment. Based on the analysis, possible solutions for this problem have been suggested, such as providing passive filters on the secondary windings of the converter transformer, connecting a parallel capacitor on the dc side of the converter and R-C snubbers across the secondary windings. The suggested solutions have been compared to bring out their relative merits and demerits.

1.2. AN OVERVIEW
DUE to the evolution of power semiconductor devices, HVDC transmission has been gaining popularity ever since its first commercial operation in 1954. The advent of HVDC technology has been so rapid that it is widely applied all over the world for bulk power transmission over long distances. It is popularly employed for interconnecting two asynchronous systems not only through overhead lines but also through submarine cables. The power supply is made available to islands and remote places by means of HVDC transmission. Due to revolutionary progress in flexible ac transmission systems (FACTS) devices , HVAC is emerging as a tough competitor of the power carrier to HVDC. But still, the HVDC transmission system has an edge over HVAC, due to the advent of higher capacity power-electronics devices, such as insulated-gate bipolar transistors (IGBTs), integrated-gate commutated thyristors (IGCTs), metaloxide semiconductor field-effect transistors (MOSFETs), and gate turnoff thyristors (GTOs). But most of the HVDC stations still use the thyristor as the switching device for the converter-inverter circuit. Voltage-source converters (VSCs) , which use selfcommutating devices such as IGBTs or GTOs, are increasingly being used for HVDC transmission systems with limited power-handling capacity known as HVDC Lite. These do not cause any power-quality (PQ) problems. HVDC systems are also gaining importance because of the increased use of renewable energy resources for power

generation. HVDC systems are used to transmit electricity from remotely located nonconventional energy sources to thickly populated cities. Even in conventional power stations, it is easier to transmit electricity by HVDC from a remotely located power station closer to the location of the coal or natural gas, rather than to set up a power station closer to the thickly populated city and to transport coal from remotely located coal mines. The converter transformer is one piece of vital equipment in the HVDC transmission system. It serves as the isolating device between the power transformer and the dc link and steps down the voltage as required by the thyristor converters. It is equipped with onload tap changers on the primary side to maintain the ac voltage supplied to the thyristor converters constant at all conditions. But frequent failure of the converter transformer is a major cause for concern to the electric power utilities all over the world. Invariably, it is found that the secondary winding of the converter transformer is the one that fails. Generally, 12 pulse thyristor converters are employed in HVDC transmission to eliminate the fifth and seventh harmonics and this is achieved by connecting the secondary windings in Y- fashion to introduce a 30 phase shift. But the fifth and seventh harmonics are very much present in the secondary windings although they are absent in the primary side. The secondary windings should have been designed to withstand these harmonic contents. The failure analysis of HVDC systems reported by CIGRE states that out of 22 failures in the last few years, 14 failures were secondary winding failures. In India, almost all failures have taken place on the secondary windings of the converter transformers. Such failures have been attributed to corrosive oil-forming copper sulphide sediments, voltage transients arising during the commutation process, and temperature rise. It has also been suggested that repetitive voltage transients initiate partial discharge and eventually result in the failure of the converter transformer. The harmonic leakage fluxes cause thermal problems in the converter transformer which may lead to its failure. Grant and McDermid stated that a converter transformer shows signs of insulation degradation due to thermal aging after a few decades of normal operation. In this paper, an effort has been made to analyze the HVDC system from an electrical power engineers point of view to find out the root cause for the failure of the converter transformer secondary. Some solutions have also been suggested to eliminate these problems.

In the present scenario, converter transformers are made up of single-phase three winding transformer units. The primary sides are connected in star with grounded neutral. Secondary windings of the converter transformers are connected in Y to achieve a 30 phase shift so that the 12-pulse thyristor converters can be fed. Fig. 2.1 shows the schematic of the converter transformer connections. Two six-pulse thyristor groups are connected in series so that each converter carries the full-load dc-link current and develops half the dc-link voltage. Due to the 12-pulse thyristor converter operations, the 11th, 13th, 23rd, and 25th harmonics are generated in the source side of the converter. Hence, the converter acts as a harmonic current source, thus polluting the power supply. But the converters generate 12th, 24th, and 36th harmonic voltages on the dc side. Generally, passive harmonic filters are installed on the source side to mitigate these harmonics and to supply the reactive power required by the converters at fundamental frequency. Similar passive filters are also connected on the dc side to mitigate harmonics. These filters are generally of the single or double tuned type. Some of the stations are employing active filters on the dc side of the converters. only one station (the Tjele converter station in Denmark) has employed active filters on the ac side all over the world [4].

CHAPTER-2 HVDC: AN OVERVEIW

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.

2.1 HIGH VOLTAGE TRANSMISSION

High voltage is used for transmission to reduce the energy lost in the resistance of the wires. For a given quantity of power transmitted, higher voltage reduces the transmission power loss. Power in a circuit is proportional to the current, but the power lost as heat in the wires is proportional to the square of the current. However, power is also proportional to voltage, so for a given power level, higher voltage can be traded off for lower current. Thus, the higher the voltage, the lower the power loss. Power loss can also be reduced by reducing resistance, commonly achieved by increasing the diameter of the conductor; but larger conductors are heavier and more expensive. High voltages cannot be easily used in lighting and motors, and so transmissionlevel voltage must be reduced to values compatible with end-use equipment. The transformer, which only works with alternating current, is an efficient way to change voltages. The competition between the DC of Thomas Edison and the AC of Nikola Tesla and George Westinghouse was known as the War of Currents, with AC emerging victorious. Practical manipulation of DC voltages only became possible with the development of high power electronic devices such as mercury arc valves and later semiconductor devices, such as thyristors, insulated-gate bipolar transistors (IGBTs), high power capable MOSFETs (power metaloxidesemiconductor field-effect transistors) and gate turn-off thyristors (GTOs).

2.2 HISTORY OF HVDC TRANSMISSION

The first long-distance transmission of electric power was demonstrated using direct current in 1882 at the Miesbach-Munich Power Transmission, but only 2.5 kW was transmitted. An early method of high-voltage DC transmission was developed by the

Swiss engineer Rene Thury and his method was put into practice by 1889 in Italy by the Acquedotto De Ferrari-Galliera company. This system used series-connected motorgenerator sets to increase voltage. Each set was insulated from ground and driven by insulated shafts from a prime mover. The line was operated in constant current mode, with up to 5,000 volts on each machine, some machines having double commutators to reduce the voltage on each commutator. This system transmitted 630 kW at 14 kV DC over a distance of 120 km. The Moutiers-Lyon system transmitted 8,600 kW of hydroelectric power a distance of 124 miles, including 6 miles of underground cable. The system used eight series-connected generators with dual commutators for a total voltage of 150,000 volts between the poles, and ran from about 1906 until 1936. Fifteen Thury systems were in operation by 1913. Other Thury systems operating at up to 100 kV DC operated up to the 1930s, but the rotating machinery required high maintenance and had high energy loss. Various other electromechanical devices were tested during the first half of the 20th century with little commercial success. One conversion technique attempted for conversion of direct current from a high transmission voltage to lower utilization voltage was to charge series-connected batteries, then connect the batteries in parallel to serve distribution loads. While at least two commercial installations were tried around the turn of the 20th century, the technique was not generally useful owing to the limited capacity of batteries, difficulties in switching between series and parallel connections, and the inherent energy inefficiency of a battery charge/discharge cycle. The grid controlled mercury arc valve became available for power transmission during the period 1920 to 1940. Starting in 1932, General Electric tested mercury-vapor valves and a 12 kV DC transmission line, which also served to convert 40 Hz generation to serve 60 Hz loads, at Mechanicville, New York. In 1941, a 60 MW, +/-200 kV, 115 km buried cable link was designed for the city of Berlin using mercury arc valves (Elbe-Project), but owing to the collapse of the German government in 1945 the project was never completed. The nominal justification for the project was that, during wartime, a buried cable would be less conspicuous as a bombing target. The equipment was moved to the Soviet Union and was put into service there. Introduction of the fully-static mercury arc valve to commercial service in 1954 marked the beginning of the modern era of HVDC transmission. A HVDC-connection

was constructed by ASEA between the mainland of Sweden and the island Gotland. Mercury arc valves were common in systems designed up to 1975, but since then, HVDC systems use only solid-state devices. From 1975 to 2000, line-commutated converters (LCC) using thyristor valves were relied on. According to experts such as Vijay Sood, the next 25 years may well be dominated by force commutated converters, beginning with capacitor commutative converters (CCC) followed by self commutating converters which have largely supplanted LCC use. Since use of semiconductor commutators, hundreds of HVDC sea-cables have been laid and worked with high reliability, usually better than 96% of the time.

2.3 ADVANTAGES OF HVDC OVER AC TRANSMISSION

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. Highvoltage direct current transmission allows efficient use of energy sources remote from load centers. In a number of applications HVDC is more effective than AC transmission. Examples include:

Undersea cables, where high capacitance causes additional AC losses. (e.g., 250 km Baltic Cable between Sweden and Germany and the 600 km NorNed cable between Norway and the Netherlands)

Endpoint-to-endpoint long-haul bulk power transmission without intermediate 'taps', for example, in remote areas

Increasing the capacity of an existing power grid in situations where additional wires are difficult or expensive to install

Power transmission and stabilization between unsynchronised AC distribution systems

Connecting a remote generating plant to the distribution grid. Stabilizing a predominantly AC power-grid, without increasing prospective short circuit current

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

Facilitate power transmission between different countries that use AC at differing voltages and/or frequencies

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 only charged 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. In AC power, the root mean square (RMS) voltage measurement is considered the standard, 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. 2.4 DISADVANTAGES The disadvantages of HVDC are in conversion, switching, control, availability and maintenance. The required static inverters are expensive and have limited overload capacity. At smaller transmission distances the losses in the static inverters may be bigger than in an AC transmission line. The cost of the inverters may not be offset by reductions in line construction cost and lower line loss. With two exceptions, all former mercury rectifiers worldwide have been dismantled or replaced by thyristor units. Pole 1 of the HVDC scheme between the North and South Islands of New Zealand still uses mercury arc rectifiers, as does Pole 1 of the Vancouver Island link in Canada. In contrast to AC systems, realizing multiterminal systems is complex, as is expanding existing schemes to multiterminal systems. Controlling power flow in a multiterminal DC system requires good communication between all the terminals; power flow must be actively regulated by the inverter control system instead of the inherent impedance and phase angle properties of the transmission line. Multi-terminal lines are rare. One is in operation at the Hydro Qubec - New England transmission from Radisson to Sandy Pond. Another example is the Sardinia-mainland Italy link which was modified in 1989 to also provide power to the island of Corsica. HVDC is less reliable and has lower availability than AC systems, mainly due to the extra conversion equipment. Single pole systems have availability of about 98.5%, with about a third of the downtime unscheduled due to faults. Fault redundant bipole systems provide high availability for 50% of the link capacity, but availability of the full capacity is about 97% to 98%. High voltage DC circuit breakers are difficult to build because some mechanism must be included in the circuit breaker to force current to zero, otherwise arcing and contact wear would be too great to allow reliable switching.
10

Operating a HVDC scheme requires many spare parts to be kept, often exclusively for one system as HVDC systems are less standardized than AC systems and technology changes faster.

2.5 COSTS OF HIGH VOLTAGE DC TRANSMISSION

Normally manufacturers such as AREVA, Siemens and ABB do not state specific cost information of a particular project since this is a commercial matter between the manufacturer and the client. Costs vary widely depending on the specifics of the project such as power rating, circuit length, overhead vs. underwater route, land costs, and AC network improvements required at either terminal. A detailed evaluation of DC vs. AC cost may be required where there is no clear technical advantage to DC alone and only economics drives the selection.

2.6 RECTIFYING AND INVERTING

Early static systems used mercury arc rectifiers, which were unreliable. Two HVDC systems using mercury arc rectifiers are still in service (As of 2008). The thyristor valve was first used in HVDC systems in the 1960s. The thyristor is a solid-state semiconductor device similar to the diode, but with an extra control terminal that is used to switch the device on at a particular instant during the AC cycle. The insulated-gate bipolar transistor (IGBT) is now also used and offers simpler control and reduced valve cost. Because the voltages in HVDC systems, up to 800 kV in some cases, exceed the breakdown voltages of the semiconductor devices, HVDC converters are built using large numbers of semiconductors in series. The low-voltage control circuits used to switch the thyristors on and off need to be isolated from the high voltages present on the transmission lines. This is usually done optically. In a hybrid control system, the lowvoltage control electronics sends light pulses along optical fibres to the high-side control electronics. Another system, called direct light triggering, dispenses with the high-side electronics, instead using light pulses from the control electronics to switch lighttriggered thyristors (LTTs). 2.6.1 RECTIFYING AND INVERTING SYSTEMS

11

Rectification and inversion use essentially the same machinery. Many substations are set up in such a way that they can act as both rectifiers and inverters. At the AC end a set of transformers, often three physically separate single-phase transformers, isolate the station from the AC supply, to provide a local earth, and to ensure the correct eventual DC voltage. The output of these transformers is then connected to a bridge rectifier formed by a number of valves. The basic configuration uses six valves, connecting each of the three phases to each of the two DC rails. However, with a phase change only every sixty degrees, considerable harmonics remain on the DC rails. An enhancement of this configuration uses 12 valves (often known as a twelvepulse system). The AC is split into two separate three phase supplies before transformation. One of the sets of supplies is then configured to have a star (wye) secondary, the other a delta secondary, establishing a thirty degree phase difference between the two sets of three phases. With twelve valves connecting each of the two sets of three phases to the two DC rails, there is a phase change every 30 degrees, and harmonics are considerably reduced. In addition to the conversion transformers and valve-sets, various passive resistive and reactive components help filter harmonics out of the DC rails.

2.7 CONFIGURATIONS
2.7.1 MONOPOLE AND EARTH RETURN

Fig 2.1: Block diagram of a monopole system with earth return

In a common configuration, called monopole, one of the terminals of the rectifier is connected to earth ground. The other terminal, at a potential high above, or below, ground, is connected to a transmission line. The earthed terminal may or may not be connected to the corresponding connection at the inverting station by means of a second conductor.

12

If no metallic conductor is installed, current flows in the earth between the earth electrodes at the two stations. Therefore it is a type of single wire earth return. The issues surrounding earth-return current include:

Electrochemical corrosion of long buried metal objects such as pipelines Underwater earth-return electrodes in seawater may produce chlorine or otherwise affect water chemistry.

An unbalanced current path may result in a net magnetic field, which can affect magnetic navigational compasses for ships passing over an underwater cable. These effects can be eliminated with installation of a metallic return conductor

between the two ends of the monopolar transmission line. Since one terminal of the converters is connected to earth, the return conductor need not be insulated for the full transmission voltage which makes it less costly than the high-voltage conductor. Use of a metallic return conductor is decided based on economic, technical and environmental factors. Modern monopolar systems for pure overhead lines carry typically 1,500 MW. If underground or underwater cables are used, the typical value is 600 MW. Most monopolar systems are designed for future bipolar expansion. Transmission line towers may be designed to carry two conductors, even if only one is used initially for the monopole transmission system. The second conductor is either unused, used as electrode line or connected in parallel with the other .

13

2.7.2 BIPOLAR

Fig 2.2: Block diagram of a bipolar system that also has an earth return In bipolar transmission a pair of conductors is used, each at a high potential with respect to ground, in opposite polarity. Since these conductors must be insulated for the full voltage, transmission line cost is higher than a monopole with a return conductor. However, there are a number of advantages to bipolar transmission which can make it the attractive option.

Under normal load, negligible earth-current flows, as in the case of monopolar transmission with a metallic earth-return. This reduces earth return loss and environmental effects.

When a fault develops in a line, with earth return electrodes installed at each end of the line, approximately half the rated power can continue to flow using the earth as a return path, operating in monopolar mode.

Since for a given total power rating each conductor of a bipolar line carries only half the current of monopolar lines, the cost of the second conductor is reduced compared to a monopolar line of the same rating.

In very adverse terrain, the second conductor may be carried on an independent set of transmission towers, so that some power may continue to be transmitted even if one line is damaged.

A bipolar system may also be installed with a metallic earth return conductor.

14

Bipolar systems may carry as much as 3,200 MW at voltages of +/-600 kV. Submarine cable installations initially commissioned as a monopole may be upgraded with additional cables and operated as a bipole. A block diagram of a bipolar HVDC transmission system, between two stations designated A and B. AC - represents an alternating current network CON - represents a converter valve, either rectifier or inverter, TR represents a power transformer, DCTL is the direct-current transmission line conductor, DCL is a direct-current filter inductor, BP represents a bypass switch, and PM represent power factor correction and harmonic filter networks required at both ends of the link. The DC transmission line may be very short in a back-to-back link, or extend hundreds of miles (km) overhead, underground or underwater. One conductor of the DC line may be replaced by connections to earth ground. 2.7.3 BACK TO BACK A back-to-back station (or B2B for short) is a plant in which both static inverters and rectifiers are in the same area, usually in the same building. The length of the direct current line is kept as short as possible. HVDC back-to-back stations are used for

coupling of electricity mains of different frequency (as in Japan; and the GCC interconnection between UAE [50Hz] and Saudi Arabia [60Hz] under construction in 2009-2011)

coupling two networks of the same nominal frequency but no fixed phase relationship different frequency and phase number (for example, as a replacement for traction current converter plants) The DC voltage in the intermediate circuit can be selected freely at HVDC back-

to-back stations because of the short conductor length. The DC voltage is as low as possible, in order to build a small valve hall and to avoid series connections of valves. For this reason at HVDC back-to-back stations valves with the highest available current rating are used.

15

Systems with transmission lines The most common configuration of an HVDC link is two inverter/rectifier stations connected by an overhead power line. This is also a configuration commonly used in connecting unsynchronized grids, in long-haul power transmission, and in undersea cables. Multi-terminal HVDC links, connecting more than two points, are rare. The configuration of multiple terminals can be series, parallel, or hybrid (a mixture of series and parallel). Parallel configuration tends to be used for large capacity stations, and series for lower capacity stations. 2.7.4 TRIPOLE: CURRENT-MODULATING CONTROL A scheme patented in 2004 (Current modulation of direct current transmission lines) is intended for conversion of existing AC transmission lines to HVDC. Two of the three circuit conductors are operated as a bipole. The third conductor is used as a parallel monopole, equipped with reversing valves (or parallel valves connected in reverse polarity). The parallel monopole periodically relieves current from one pole or the other, switching polarity over a span of several minutes. The bipole conductors would be loaded to either 1.37 or 0.37 of their thermal limit, with the parallel monopole always carrying +/- 1 times its thermal limit current. The combined RMS heating effect is as if each of the conductors is always carrying 1.0 of its rated current. This allows heavier currents to be carried by the bipole conductors, and full use of the installed third conductor for energy transmission. High currents can be circulated through the line conductors even when load demand is low, for removal of ice. As of 2005, no tri-pole conversions are in operation, although a transmission line in India has been converted to bipole HVDC.

2.8 CORONA DISCHARGE

Corona discharge is the creation of ions in a fluid (such as air) by the presence of a strong electric field. Electrons are torn from neutral air, and either the positive ions or the electrons are attracted to the conductor, while the charged particles drift. This effect can cause considerable power loss, create audible and radio-frequency interference, generate toxic compounds such as oxides of nitrogen and ozone, and bring forth arcing.

16

Both AC and DC transmission lines can generate coronas, in the former case in the form of oscillating particles, in the latter a constant wind. Due to the space charge formed around the conductors, an HVDC system may have about half the loss per unit length of a high voltage AC system carrying the same amount of power. With monopolar transmission the choice of polarity of the energized conductor leads to a degree of control over the corona discharge. In particular, the polarity of the ions emitted can be controlled, which may have an environmental impact on particulate condensation. (Particles of different polarities have a different mean-free path.) Negative coronas generate considerably more ozone than positive coronas, and generate it further downwind of the power line, creating the potential for health effects. The use of a positive voltage will reduce the ozone impacts of monopole HVDC power lines.

2.9 APPLICATIONS
2.9.1 OVERVIEW The of current-flow through HVDC rectifiers and inverters, their application in connecting unsynchronized networks, and their applications in efficient submarine cables mean that HVDC cables are often used at national boundaries for the exchange of power (in North America, HVDC connections divide much of Canada and the United States into several electrical regions that cross national borders, although the purpose of these connections is still to connect unsynchronized AC grids to each other). Offshore windfarms also require undersea cables, and their turbines are unsynchronized. In very long-distance connections between just two points, for example around the remote communities of Siberia, Canada, and the Scandinavian North, the decreased line-costs of HVDC also makes it the usual choice. 2.9.2 AC NETWORK INTERCONNECTIONS AC transmission lines can only interconnect synchronized AC networks that oscillate at the same frequency and in phase. Many areas that wish to share power have unsynchronized networks. The power grids of the UK, Northern Europe and continental Europe are not united into a single synchronized network. Japan has 50 Hz and 60 Hz networks. Continental North America, while operating at 60 Hz throughout, is divided into regions which are unsynchronised: East, West, Texas, Quebec, and Alaska. Brazil and Paraguay, which share the enormous Itaipu hydroelectric plant, operate on 60 Hz and

17

50 Hz respectively. However, HVDC systems make it possible to interconnect unsynchronized AC networks, and also add the possibility of controlling AC voltage and reactive power flow. A generator connected to a long AC transmission line may become unstable and fall out of synchronization with a distant AC power system. An HVDC transmission link may make it economically feasible to use remote generation sites. Wind farms located off-shore may use HVDC systems to collect power from multiple unsynchronized generators for transmission to the shore by an underwater cable. In general, however, an HVDC power line will interconnect two AC regions of the power-distribution grid. Machinery to convert between AC and DC power adds a considerable cost in power transmission. The conversion from AC to DC is known as rectification and from DC to AC as inversion. Above a certain break-even distance (about 50 km for submarine cables, and perhaps 600800 km for overhead cables), the lower cost of the HVDC electrical conductors outweighs the cost of the electronics. The conversion electronics also present an opportunity to effectively manage the power grid by means of controlling the magnitude and direction of power flow. An additional advantage of the existence of HVDC links, therefore, is potential increased stability in the transmission grid. 2.9.3 RENEWABLE ELECTRICITY SUPERHIGHWAYS A number of studies have highlighted the potential benefits of very wide area super grids based on HVDC since they can mitigate the effects of intermittency by averaging and smoothing the outputs of large numbers of geographically dispersed wind farms or solar farms. Czisch's study concludes that a grid covering the fringes of Europe could bring 100% renewable power (70% wind, 30% biomass) at close to today's prices. There has been debate over the technical feasibility of this proposal and the political risks involved in energy transmission across a large number of international borders.

In January 2009, the European Commission proposed 300 million to subsidize the development of HVDC links between Ireland, Britain, the Netherlands, Germany,
18

Denmark, and Sweden, as part of a wider 1.2 billion package supporting links to offshore wind farms and cross-border interconnectors throughout Europe. Meanwhile the recently founded Union of the Mediterranean has embraced a Mediterranean Solar Plan to import large amounts of concentrating solar power into Europe from North Africa and the Middle East.

19

CHAPTER-3 CONVERTER TRANSFORMER

20

CONVERTER TRANSFORMER The HVDC (high voltage direct current) converter transformer is a key component in an HVDC transmission system. In addition to its normal application to provide transfer of power between two voltage levels, it serves a number of additional functions like galvanic separation between the AC and DC systems.

Fig 3.1 schematic diagram of transformer connection

3.1 THE TRANSFORMER FUNCTIONS:

In an HVDC system the converter transformer serves several functions. Its functions are:
Supply of AC voltages in two separate circuits with a relative phase shift of 30

electrical degrees for reduction of low order harmonics, especially the 5th and 7th harmonics. Act as a galvanic barrier between the AC and DC systems to prevent the DC potential to enter the AC system. Reactive impedance in the AC supply to reduce short circuit currents and to control the rate of rise in valve current during communication. Voltage transformation between the AC supply and HVDC system.

21

 A fairly large tap range with small steps to give necessary adjustments in supply voltage.

3.2 TRANSFORMER CONNECTIONS:

The common arrangement to achieve the circuits with 30 degree phase shift is to have two valve side windings connected in star and delta respectively, and using one and the same connection for line side windings.

Fig 3.2: Delta and star connected valve side windings will give a 30 degree phase shift between the two supply voltages. An alternate three-phase connection named extended delta is shown in fig 3.3

3.3 LOSSES:
Like normal power transformers the operating losses can be split into two parts, no load loss and load loss. The no load loss is a function of the applied AC voltage and the load losses depend on the load current. As the applied AC voltage in converter operation is governed by the line side voltage and close to sinusoidal shape the no load loss will remain the same as for normal power transformers. The load losses are from the point of view of analysis divided into two components, one the so called RI2-loss and the other the stray loss. The RI2-loss is the loss component obtained as the product of the square of the load current, rms valve, and the winding resistance measured by DC-current. The leakage flux from the load current will create circulating currents in the windings and other metallic parts exposed to the leakage flux. These currents give rise to
22

these called stray losses in addition to the losses derived from the product of winding resistance and the square of the rms value of the load current. The voltages driving the circulating currents depend on the rate of change in winding current and thus the leakage flux. With a more or less stepwise change in load current during the commutation from one valve to another the induced voltages will be fairly high as a consequence there is an increase in stray losses compared to the sinusoidal currents in a conventional power transformer. For the estimation of the actual stray losses it is practical to split up the winding currents into their harmonics by a Fourier analysis. The contribution from each one of the harmonics can then be evaluated. A characteristic distribution of current harmonics in the transformer windings is shown figure. The stray losses in the windings can be said to vary by the square of current magnitude for each harmonic and the square of the harmonic number, i.e. a 150Hz current in a 50 Hz system equal to the third harmonic will increase the stray losses in the windings by a factor nine if the current magnitude remained the same. The stray losses in structural components , especially if they are of ferromagnetic material, show a little less dependence on the frequency, instead of being proportional to the square of the harmonic number the relative increase has been found to be close to the power of 0.8. In order to establish the contribution from stray losses in windings and structural parts it is practical to measure the load losses with two different frequencies , normal power frequency and one frequency at least 3 to 4 times the power frequency.

3.4 TAP-CHANGER AND TAPPING RANGE:

Convert transformers have generally requirements for a large range of voltage variation. Tappings in the range of 25 to 30 % are often common. The taps shall primarily compensate for voltage variations in the supply network, where even more extreme operating conditions have to be compensated for. Further there is a need to compensate for the reactive voltage drop in the conversion between AC and DC. Small tap steps permit small variation in DC voltage, valve firing angles and reactive power demand.
23

In the tap changer the switch over from tap to another is carried out by the diverter switch. In the switch over the current in the leaving tap has to be broken during the normal current zero passage. For star-star connected windings it is normally not a problem as the current is zero for quite a long time. In the star delta connected windings there is a more or less uninterrupted transition from winding currents of opposite directions. The short time the current is close to zero will put extra strain on the diverter switch, a condition which has to be considered by the tap changer manufacturer.

3.5 GENERAL DESIGN:

Different transformer concepts are to be used depending on system voltages, AC as well as DC sides, through put power, transport limitations, converter station layout, etc... For medium power and voltage ratings three phase transformer units are viable. A thre phase transformer is advantageous in amount of material, space needed in the transformer bay and somewhat lower losses especially the no load loss. With separate transformers for the two bridges the transformer output voltages shall have a phase angle difference of 30 degrees. With the line side windings on the two transformers connected in star, one transformer will have its valve side windings connected in star and the other in delta. Full spare philosophy means that atleast two spare unitshave to be provided for, one for each connection combination. An alternate way for a 30 degree phase shift is the use of a so called extended delta connection, giving a 15 degree phase shift in relation to the incoming voltage. The advantage is that for three phase converter transformers the same transformer can be used for +15 as well as -15 degrees phase shift giving a total of 30 degrees. One spare only will then be necessary. The disadvantage with extended delta is few percent larger unit sizes and thus an increase operating losses of the same range.

24

Fig 3.3: valve side connected for extended delta gives 30 degree phase shift for two transformers of same design

For increased converter sizes single phased units have to be used. A common design is the so called single phase three winding transformer wioth one line side winding and two valve side windings, one for star and other for ddelta connection. The two valve side windings have the same power rating but with voltages differing by the factor 3. The transformers are built with two wound limbs with separate winding arrangements for each one the two valve side windings. This will give the same operating properties for the two windings as impedances and losses and in several operating aspects it can be considered as two independent transformers. The line side windings on the two limbs will be connected in parallel. They are of same design but with opposite winding directions to permit a mutual main flux. The core will have provision for the return of not balancing flux between the two winding arrangements, especially the leakage flux.

25

Fig 3.4: two valve side windings, one for star and the other for delta are located on different limbs

26

CHAPTER-4 CAUSES OF CONVERTER TRANSFORMER FAILURE

27

POSSIBLE CAUSES OF CONVERTER TRANSFORMER FAILURE

From the simulation results, it has been seen that the following two phenomena might be primary causes for converter transformer failures

4.1 HIGH HARMONIC CONTENTS ON THE SECONDARY WINDING OF THE CONVERTER TRANSFORMER
Both voltage and current THD (total harmonic distortions) are very high (>20%) in the secondary side of the converter transformer. Hence, the insulation of the secondary windings is severely stressed due to the presence of these higher order harmonics.

4.2 HIGH COMMUTATION OVER LAP

The converter transformer source impedance is very high and, hence, voltage transients are generated during the commutation process .these commutation voltage spikes that are seen during the changeover of current from one phase to another, are repetitive in nature .the rate of change of voltage (dv/dt) across the secondary windings is observed to be 1.5 kv/sec. These voltage transients[2] stress locally the part to part and turn to turn insulation of the secondary windings of the converter transformer .these transients increases as the firing angle increases and degrade the insulation of the secondary winding of the converter transformer. CIGRE analysis[2] of the converter transformer failure clearly describes that commutation voltage transients have been the major cause for converter transformer failure in the recent past. As per greenwood[6], the transient surge effects across the transformer windings are as follows.

Uneven voltage distribution across the winding: in the initial part of the transient period which exists for a few microseconds, no significant amount of current can penetrate the winding due to inductance .currents during this period flow as capacitive currents in the windings .if there is no proper insulation grading of the individual turns, then the turns adjacent to the line will be highly stressed compared with the turns closer to the neutral. As the voltage transients in the converter transformer are repetitive in nature and if there is any possibility of

28

improper insulation grading in the windings ,then insulations will be stressed and prone to failure in the long run even if this transients period is very small .

Oscillations of the winding in space: during the second time interval, this transient surge voltage distribution gives rise to a complicated systems of oscillations with in the winding .here,inductive and resistive elements come in to the picture. Space harmonics are generated and oscillation of the winding takes place. Since the surge is aperiodic and contains a spectrum of frequencies when it strikes at the transformer terminals, different frequencies penetrate the winding at different velocities. these phenomenon continue until the critical frequency of the winding .frequencies greater than the critical frequency can not penetrate the winding ,and the winding behaves like a filter

Hence, both of these phenomena cause an immense amount of stress to the insulations of the secondary winding of the converter transformer. Insulation grading across the length of the winding is carried out, but, in practice, it is difficult to achieve optimal grading of the insulation according to the literature.

4.3 COMMUTATION FAILURE

Because of the turn off time requirement of thyristors, there is a need to maintain a minimum value of the extinction angle defined by Gamma=180-alpha-u The overlap angle (u) is a function of the commutation voltage and the dc current. The reduction in the voltage or increase in the current or both can result in an increase in the overlap angle which can result in gamma<gamma min. This gives rise to commutation failure. The current in the incoming valve will diminish to zero and the out going valve will be left carrying the full link current. The firing of the next valve will result in short circuit of the bridges as both valves in the same arm will conduct. If the commutation from valve 2 to valve 4 is successful, only valves 1&4 are left conducting and this state continuous untill the valve is fired. The firing of the valve 5 prior to the firing of valve 6 is unsuccessful as the valve 5 is reversing biased at the time of firing.

29

The failure of two successful commutations in the same cycle is called double commutation failure. If the commutation failure occurs when valve 4 is fired also, the valves 1 & 2 are left in the conduting state until the instant in the next cycle when valve 3 will be fired. The bridge voltage wave form for the case is shown in figure. The double commutation failure is more severe than the single commutation failure. The following are effects of a single commutation failure: The bridge voltage remains zero for a period exceeding 1/3 of a cycle, during which the dc current tends to increase. There is no AC current for the period in which the two valves in an arm are left conducting. The recovery from a commutation failure depends on the following factors: The response of gamma controller at the inverter. The current control in the link. The magnitude of AC voltage.

30

CHAPTER-5 MATLAB SIMULATION

31

5.1 INTRODUCTION TO SIMULINK

SIMULINK is an interactive environment for modeling, analyzing, and simulating a wide variety of dynamic systems. SIMULINK provides a graphical user interface for constructing block diagram models using drag-and-drop operations. A system is configured in terms of block diagram representation from a library of standard components. SIMULINK is very easy to learn. A system in block diagram representation is built easily and the simulation results are displayed quickly. Simulation algorithms and parameters can be changed in the middle of a simulation with intuitive results, thus providing the user with a ready access learning tool for simulating many of the operational problems found in the real world. SIMULINK is particularly useful for studying the effects of nonlinearities on the behavior of the system, and as such, it is also an ideal research tool. The key features of SIMULINK are

Interactive simulations with live display. A comprehensive block library for creating linear, nonlinear, discrete or hybrid multi-input/output systems.

Seven integration methods for fixed-step, variable-step, and stiff systems. Unlimited hierarchical model structure. Scalar and vector connections. Mask facility for creating custom blocks and block libraries.

SIMULINK provides an open architecture that allows you to extend the simulation environment: You can easily perform what if analyses by changing model parameters either interactively or in batch mode while your simulations are running. Creating custom blocks and block libraries with your own icons and user interfaces from MATLAB, Fortran, or C code.
32

You can generate C code from SIMULINK models for embedded applications and for rapid prototyping of control systems. You can create hierarchical models by grouping blocks into subsystems. There are no limits on the number of blocks or connections. SIMULINK provides immediate access to the mathematical, graphical, and programming capabilities of MATLAB, you can analyze data, automate procedures, and optimize parameters directly from SIMULINK. The advanced design and analysis capabilities of the toolboxes can be executed from within a simulation using the mask facility in SIMULINK. The SIMULINK block library can be extended with special-purpose blocksets. The DSP Blockset can be used for DSP algorithm development, while the Fixed-Point Blockset extends SIMULINK for modeling and simulating digital control systems and digital filters.Introduction In this first step, you start MATLAB and then start Simulink. A short discussion of the significance of blocks is presented. The notion of having a block selected is presented. You will move, copy, and delete model blocks, lastly you will learn how to save and name your design by using the save-as command. 5.1.1 STARTING UP SIMULINK Before starting Simulink, you must start MATLAB. For the following, it is assumed that you are running Windows XP. This document was written on a machine that has MATLAB 7.3 installed, if your machine has a newer version make the substitution when you select the following with your mouse. Start => Programs => MATLAB 7.3 => MATLAB With MATLAB running there are three ways to start Simulink.

You may click on the Simulink icon

in the MATLAB toolbar.

You may enter the command simulink at the MATLAB prompt. You may specify an existing Simulink file. We will do this later, for now pick one of the other options.

33

After MATLAB finishes processing the command, your desktop will include the MATLAB command window, a new empty model window, and the Simulink block library window, shown below.

Fig 5.1. Simulink block library In Simulink, blocks are used to build up a model. Unlike the blocks in a diagram that we draw by hand, the blocks in Simulink are active and allow the program to simulate the behavior of the entire system. In the Simulink library window the icons each refer to a different block library, each of which contains a class of blocks. For now we will only consider the libraries used to build the first model, the libraries are listed below. Source type blocks produce input signals.

The Sine Wave block is a source type block. Sink type blocks provide a place for output. The scope block is a sink type block. Linear type blocks perform a linear transformation. The Integrator is a linear type block. Connection type blocks are involved with forming vector signals, the Mux block is an example.

34

The descriptive titles Sources and Sinks deserve a special comment as they do not refer to power supplies. Remember that while power supplies are important in real circuits, in drawing a block diagram we are concerned only with signals that convey information in some way. Block diagrams are necessarily abstract in form, this abstraction greatly simplifies the analysis. In developing a block diagram, we use source type blocks to produce the input signals. Conversely, sink type blocks provide a place for a model to have output appear. Linear type blocks perform a linear transformation on signals. Lastly, the connections type blocks are used for switching and forming vector signals. 5.1.2 ADDING A BLOCK FROM A LIBRARY To open a block library, double click on the associated library icon in the Simulink block library window. After opening the Sources library, the Sources library window opens, as shown below. Go ahead and double click on the icon if you have not already done so.

Fig 5.2: Sources library window

35

To add the first block to the diagram, point the mouse at the Sine Wave block in the Sources library window and press the left mouse button. Without releasing the left mouse button, drag the mouse to the new model window and release the mouse button.

Fig 5.3: Diagram window with Sine Wave block 5.1.3 SELECTING, COPYING, AND MOVING A BLOCK An important point needs to be made, to direct an action on a block or other object, the object must first be selected. The simplest way to select an object is to point at it with the mouse and click the left mouse button. Selected blocks have small black handles that appear in the corners, as the figure above shows. To un-select and object, either select something else or point the mouse at nearby empty space and click the left mouse button. Note that when you point the mouse at the Sine Wave block, then press and hold down the left mouse button, an outline of the selected object moves with the mouse. If you drag the mouse to another location in the same window, when you release the left mouse button, the selected object is simply moved to that new location. If however, you press the left mouse button on a block and drag the mouse to a different window, a copy of the selected object will appear in the new window. This is how you copied the Sine Wave block to the diagram window. Go back and copy a second Sine Wave block from the Sources library window to the diagram window.

36

Note that you will not be able to copy a second Sine Wave block back to the Sources library window, or move its blocks, as library windows are write protected. Each block name in a diagram must be unique and must contain at least one character. Because names must be unique, in producing a second copy of a block, the inherited block name includes an instantiation number that is used to tell the blocks apart. The second Sine Wave block is named Sine Wave 1, and the third Sine Wave block is named Sine Wave 2, and so on. Press the control key, point the mouse at a Sine Wave block. Next press and hold down the left mouse button to drag the mouse to a nearby location in the same window, then release the left mouse button. Note that with the control key pressed, the block was not moved but was copied. The diagram window should look similar to the figure below, note that the block named Sine Wave 2 is selected.

Fig. 5.4. Three copies of the Sine Wave block 5.1.4 FORMING A GROUP OF SELECTED BLOCKS So far you have found that by simply pointing at a block and clicking the left mouse button will simultaneously select that block and will unselect another block. At times however, it is useful to have several blocks selected. To form a group of selected blocks you have two options.

When you point and click to select a block, also have the shift key pressed. The action of having the shift key pressed will simply add the selected block to the group of selected blocks.

Point the mouse at an empty space near a block, press and hold down the left mouse button. Drag the mouse to form a select region that contains the blocks that you want selected, then release the mouse button.

37

At this point go ahead and select a group of blocks. Practice unselecting and try each method of selecting blocks. Note that when a group of blocks is selected, when you perform a move, all the selected blocks move together. You will find later that besides selecting blocks, you can select the lines used to interconnect blocks. 5.1.5 DELETING A BLOCK Another useful command is delete. To delete a block, select it and then press the backspace or the delete key. If a group of blocks is selected, the delete command will delete all the selected blocks. Make sure to get some practice selecting blocks, copying, and deleting. When you are ready to move on, leave one copy of the Sine Wave block in the diagram window and delete the rest. 5.1.6 UNDOING AND REDOING Now that you know how to delete objects, to get yourself out of trouble, you will want to know about the Undo command. The Simulink documentation indicates that you can cancel the effects of up to 101 consecutive operations by choosing Undo from the Edit menu. The following is a list of some of the operations that may be undone.

Adding or deleting a block Adding of deleting a line Adding or deleting annotation Changing the name of a block Like most modern software, Simulink goes one step further by also allowing you

to reverse the effects of Undo. Simply select Redo from the Edit menu. To summarize Undo and Redo; To undo, in the model window either press control-Z, or with your mouse select Edit=>Undo To redo, in the model window either press control-Y, or with your mouse select Edit=>Redo

38

5.1.7 SAVE AS COMMAND So far the design consists of only one block, but now is a good time to use the save as command to assign a name to your model and select a directory to work from. If you are using a PC on campus, it is strongly suggested that you use the M: drive, which corresponds to the home directory in your Unix account. By selecting the M: drive, your files will be accessible from any PC in the department. If you are using a PC that is not networked, use the C: drive instead. Lastly, rather than just saving your files in your home directory, save the files in directory with a name like simulink. Use the mouse to select the following in the design window. File => Save As In the pop-up window, near the Save-in field, click on the pull-down button and scroll through the list that pops up; When you find the M: drive, click on it. Next, to create a folder named simulink, click on the Create New Folder Button . A new folder

named "new folder" appears in the file display pane. Click on the folder name, change it to simulink, then press the Enter key. To open the simulink folder, double click on the icon. In the pop-up window, enter first.mdl in the File-name field and then with the mouse, click Save. Your model design window should now be titled "first" indicating that the design has been properly named.

Note that when you issued the command simulink, the block library opened, but this time a blank model window did not open. In general when you give the simulink command, a blank model window will open only if a model window is not already open. Arrange the blocks listed into the pattern shown below. For a refresher on how to copy blocks from a library, go to the "Add from Library," section. For a refresher on how to copy and move blocks, go back to the "Selecting, Copying, and Moving a Block" section of the tutorial.

39

After you have copied a block from a library, you will want to close it, to reduce window clutter. Note that to close each library window, click the window close button which is located in the upper right hand corner of the window. Block From Library Sine Wave Sources Integrator Linear Mux Connections Scope Sinks 5.1.8 INPUTS AND OUTPUTS In general the inputs to a block are on the left, a > symbol points into the block. In addition, outputs are generally on the right, a > symbol points out of the block. Consider the mux block shown below.

Note that the mux block has three inputs, but we only need two. To change the number of inputs double click on the mux block, and in the Parameters field, change the number of inputs from 3 to 2, then click the CLOSE button. In general the parameters associated with any block can be altered this way. 5.1.9 ADDING A CONNECTION Now it's time to connect the blocks in the model window. You will start by connecting the output of the Sine Wave block to the topmost input port of the Mux block. To start, use the mouse to position the pointer over the output port of the Sine Wave block. Notice that as illustrated below, the pointer changes to cross hairs, this is how Simulink indicates that it can start a connection.

Without moving the mouse, press and hold down the left mouse button. Use the mouse to move the cross hairs to the topmost input port of the Mux block. In moving the mouse with the left button pressed, two things happen. First, a dashed line is drawn, this

40

will be the connection line. Second, when the cross hairs arrive at the input port to the Mux bloc, the cross hairs change in appearance to double cross hairs, this is how Simulink indicates that its ready to complete the connection. With the mouse positioned, release the left mouse button. The completed connection should look like what's shown below.

If you release the left mouse button before the pointer changes to double cross hairs, the connection will be left dangling. To deal with this situation, you can either use the mouse to select Edit=>Undo_Add_line and try again, or you may add to the line to complete the connection. Follow the same steps to add a connection between the output port of the Mux block, to the input port of the Scope block. The completed connection should look like what's shown below.

5.1.10 ADDING A BRANCH LINE Unlike most of the lines in the model, the output of the Sine Wave block connects to the input ports of two separate blocks. So far the output of the Sine Wave block connects to the input of the Mux block. To connect the output of the Sine Wave block to the input of the Integrator block, you will use a branch line. Drawing a branch line Drawing a branch line is slightly different in that to start, the branch line must be welded to an existing line. Position the pointer on the line that connects the Sine Wave block to the Mux block.

41

Without moving the mouse, press and hold down the Ctrl key and then press and hold the left mouse button. Drag the pointer to the input port of the Integrator block and release the mouse button. Simulink draws a line from the starting point to the input port of the Integrator block.

To finish the connections, add a line from the output of the Integrator block, to the input port of the Mux block. When you're done the model should look similar to the following. To move a line, select it and move the handle blocks.

5.1.11 VECTOR SIGNALS A word is needed regarding the connection from the Mux block to the Scope block; That line is referred to as bearing a vector signal. A vector signal is a concatenation of signal lines. The idea of forming a vector signal with a Mux block is analogous to taking handful of wires and wrapping tape around the bundle. Most Simulink block input ports will accept a scalar or vector signal. Likewise, a block output port my produce either a scalar or vector signal. To make it more obvious which lines carry vector signals, select with the mouse; Format => Wide Vector Lines The mux block is used here to produce a vector signal so that the Scope block will display two signals. To return the display of vectors back to normal, repeat the previous selection with the mouse.

42

5.1.12 ADDING ANNOTATION Annotations provide textual information about a model. You can add an annotation to any unoccupied area of your block diagram. To create a model annotation, double click in an unoccupied area. A small rectangle appears and the pointer changes to a vertical insertion bar. Start typing the annotation content. To start a new line, simply press the Enter key. Each line is centered within the rectangular box that surrounds the annotation. To close the annotation, click with the mouse elsewhere in the window. In your block diagram you will place a title at the top and you will place your name and date at the lower right, as illustrated below. In performing homework assignments it is important that a title, your name, and date be included. Block diagrams missing this information are incomplete and will lose credit.

To move an annotation, drag it to a new location. To change the font size of an annotation, select it and with the mouse select Format=>Font. In the pop-up window select the desired font size and then click OK. The font size will change when the annotation is deselected, to do so simply click elsewhere. In the above illustration the name and date are in a 10 point regular font, the title is in a 16 point bold font. After you enter the title, you will want to change the font back to a comfortable size. For general purposes the 10 point regular font is reasonable. 5.1.3 SIGNAL LABELS Labels can be added to lines to further annotate your model. To create a signal label, double click on a line segment and type the label at the insertion point. When you click on another part of the model, the label fixes its location. Take care to double-click on the line. If you double click in an unoccupied part of the model, you will create a

43

model annotation instead. The figure below shows the model with the signal labels IN and OUT added.

To move a signal label, point at it with the mouse, press and hold down the left mouse button and drag the label to a new location. To unselect a label, click elsewhere in the model. Note that Simulink is fairly restrictive in where it will allow you to place a label. In general, a label must be immediately adjacent to a line. OK, you have done great so far. Before you do anything else, make sure to save your work. 5.1.14 PRINTING FROM THE COMMAND LINE By default Matlab is set to send files to a handler provided by the operating system. The printers in AK227 and AK120 should be set to print in the respective rooms already, but if this is not the case then perform the following steps. On the Windows-95 desktop double click the My Computer icon and in the popup window double click the Control Panel icon. Next, in the Control Panel pop-up window, double click on the Printers icon. In the Printers pop-up window you will select a printer. If you are in AK227 then double click on the AK227 printer icon. If however you are in the first floor PC lab then double click on the AK120 printer icon. In the printer pop-up window select Printer => Set_as_default. Then, clean up the mess and close all those windows. With the default printer selected, printing a block diagram out could not be simpler. From the Matlab window, enter the following command; >> print -sfirst The "-s" is referred to as a flag that instruct Matlab to retrieve the block diagram of a system to print. Of course, first is the name of the block diagram. Naturally, you will want to be in the same directory that the block diagram named first is in, before you issue the print command. As described earlier, to change directories, use the cd command.

44

Model Parameters So far you have examined the parameters of only one block, namely the Mux block. Recall that the Inputs and Outputs section described how to change for the Multiplexer block, the number of input ports from 3 to 2. Now it is time to examine the other blocks in the model. 5.1.15 THE SINE WAVE BLOCK Double click on the Sine Wave block and examine the data fields, make changes so that the fields match the following parameters. Then with the mouse click the Apply button, and then click the Close button. 5.1.16 SINE WAVE BLOCK PARAMETERS Amplitude =1

Frequency(rad/sec) = 0.25 * 2*pi Phase(rad) Sample Time =0 =0

A small bit of explanation is needed. First, the amplitude given here is unit-less. You must remember whether the signal is a current, voltage, torque, volume, or whatever. Next, note that the standard units of frequency that Simulink understands are
45

radians per second. To make things easier for ourselves and satisfy Simulink at the same time, we can make use of the built-in variable "pi". Simply stated, to convert from Hertz to radians per second, multiply by 2*pi. Thus 60 Hertz is 60 * 2*pi radians per second. The term phase angle refers to the phase of the resultant sine wave, at time zero. Lastly, the idea of sample time in a Sine Wave generator is an odd thing. Since we wish to have the block model a continuous sine wave generator, the value zero "0" is used. 5.1.17 THE INTEGRATOR BLOCK Double click on the Integrator block and examine the fields to make sure they match the list given below. Of all the parameters it is most important that the initial conditions field is set equal to zero. Use the mouse to click the Close button. Integrator Block Parameters External Reset Initial Conditions Limit output = None =0 = Not Checked

Show saturation point = Not Checked Show state port Absolute tolerance = Not Checked = auto

Don't open the scope block yet. A discussion of the scope block follows a discussion of the simulation parameters.

46

5.1.18 SIMULATION PARAMETERS In this next step you will set the simulation parameters. In the model window, select the following with the mouse; Simulation => Parameters The simulation time units are seconds. Set the simulation start time to `0' (zero) and the stop time to `8' Since the Sine Wave block is set to produce a 1/4 Hertz signal, this setting will produce two complete sine wave periods. For the Solver and Output options, leave the default settings shown in the figure below. With the mouse, click the Apply button, then click the Close button.

5.1.19 RUN THE SIMULATION Now you can run the simulation. This simulation is fairly simple in that it runs all-at-once. In the model window, select the following with the mouse; Simulation => Start To view the results of the simulation, double click on the Scope block. The Scope window should look similar to the following.

47

5.1.20 LABELS AND PRINTING Congratulations, your simulation works. One problem that springs to mind is how to apply labels to the diagram. Another problem is how to produce a print-out. While the model window has a print option, the Scope display does not appear to have one. These details are solved on the PC by performing a selective screen dump and then using the Paint program. Use the mouse to select the Scope display window. Next on the keyboard hold down the `Alt' key and press the `Print Screen' key. This key combination performs a screen dump of only the active window. Next, start up the `Paint' program by selecting the following; Start => Programs => Accessories => Paint Inside the Paint program, select the following Edit => Paste Now with the image loaded into Paint, you can add annotations and print the figure and produce something similar to the following. As always, make sure to sign and date your work.

48

5.2 MODEL DESCRIPTION

A 1000 MW (500 kV, 2kA) DC linterconnexion is used to transmit power from a 500 kV, 5000 MVA, 60 Hz network to a 345 kV, 10 000 MVA, 50 Hz network. The rectifier and the inverter are 12-pulse converters using two 6-pulse thyristor bridges connected in series. The rectifier and the inverter are interconnected through a 300 km distributed parameter line and two 0.5 H smoothing reactors. The transformer tap changers are not simulated and fixed taps are assumed. Open the two transformer blocks in the Rectifier and Inverter subsystems to see the factors applied on the primary voltage: 0.90 on rectifier side and 0.96 on inverter side. Reactive power required by the converters is provided by a set of capacitor banks plus 11th, 13th and high pass filters for a total of 600 Mvar on each side. Two circuit breakers are used to apply faults on the inverter AC side and rectifier DC side. The rectifier and inverter control systems use the Discrete 12-pulse HVDC Control block of the Extras/Discrete Control Blocks library. DC Protection functions are implemented in each converter. At the rectifier the DC fault protection will detect and force the delay angle into the inverter region so to extinguish the fault current. At the inverter the commutation failure prevention control will detect AC faults and reduce the maximum delay angle limit in order to decrease the risk of commutation failure. The Low AC voltage detection blocks will lock the DC fault protection when a drop in the AC voltage is detected. The Master Control block initiates the starting and stopping of the converters as well as the ramping up and down of the current references. The power system and the control system are both discretized for a sample time Ts=50 us. Notice that the "Model initialization" function of the model automatically sets Ts = 50e-6 in your Matlab workspace. A description of the control systems is provided in the HVDC Transmission System Case Study of the User's Manual.

49

50

The system is programmed to start and reach a steady state. Then steps are applied on the reference current of the rectifier and on the inverter reference voltage in order to observe the dynamic response of the regulators. Finally, a stop sequence is initiated to bring the DC power down before blocking the converters. Start the simulation. Open the RECTIFIER and INVERTER scopes (in the Data Acquisition subsystem) and observe the DC line voltage on trace 1 (1pu = 500 kV) and the DC line current (reference and mesured values) on trace 2 (1pu = 2kA). 5.2.1 START-UP AND STOP In the Master Control, the converters are deblocked and started by ramping the rectifier and inverter reference current. At t = 0.02 s (i.e. when the converters at deblocked), the reference current is ramped to reach the minimum value of 0.1 pu in 0.3 s (0.33 pu/s). At the end of this first ramp (t = 0.32 s) the DC line is charged at its nominal voltage and DC voltage reaches steady-state. At t= 0.4 s, the reference current is ramped from 0.1 pu to 1 pu (2kA) in 0.18 s (5 pu/s). At the end of this starting sequence (t=0.58 s) , the DC current reaches steady state. The RECTIFIER then controls the current and the INVERTER controls the voltage. In steady-state, the alpha firing angles (trace 3) are 16.5 degrees and 143 degrees respectively on the RECTIFIER and INVERTER sides. The exctinction angle gamma (minimum value) is measured at the INVERTER and shown in trace 4. In steady-state, the minimum value is between 22 and 24 degrees. The control mode of operation (an integer between 0 to 6) is shown in trace 4 (0= blocked; 1=Current control; 2=Voltage control; 3=Alpha minimum limitation; 4=Alpha maximum limitation; 5=Forced or constant alpha; 6=Gamma control). At t = 1.4 s the Stop sequence is initiated by ramping down the current to 0.1 pu. At t = 1.6 s a Forced-alpha at the Rectifier extinguishes the current and at the Inverter the Forced-alpha brings down the DC voltage. At t = 1.7 s the pulses are blocked in both converters. 5.2.3 STEP RESPONSE OF CURRENT AND VOLTAGE REGULATORS Verify in the Master Control that the "Enable Ref. Current Step" switch is in the upper position. This switch is used to apply a step on the reference voltage. Also verify that the reference voltage step is enabled in the Inverter Control. At t=0.7 s, a -0.2 pu step is first applied on the reference current (decrease from 1 pu to 0.8 pu ) and at t=0.8 s, the

51

reference current is reset to its 1 pu original value.The current stabilizes in approximately 0.1 seconds. Steps are also applied on the reference voltage of the inverter (-0.1 pu / +0.1 pu at t=1.0 s / 1.1s). 5.2.4 DC LINE FAULT AT THE RECTIFIER Deactivate the steps applied on the current reference and on the voltage reference in the Master Control and in the inverter control respectively by setting the switches in lower position. In the DC Fault block, change to 1 the 100 multiplication factor in the Switching times so that a fault is now applied at t = 0.7 s. Reduce the Simulation stop time from 2 to 1.4 s. The DC Fault protection (DCPROT) in the rectifier is activated by default. Open the FAULT scope to observe the DC fault current. Restart the simulation. At fault application the DC current quickly increases to 2.3 pu and the DC voltage falls to zero at the rectifier. This DC voltages drop is seen by the Voltage Dependant Currrent Order Limiter (VDCOL) which reduces the reference current to 0.3 pu at the rectifier. A DC current still continues to circulate in the fault. Then, at t = 0.77 s, the rectifier alpha firing angle is forced to 166 degrees by the DC protection because a DC voltage drop is detected (VdL< 0.5 pu for more than 70 ms). The rectifier now operates in inverter mode. The DC line voltage becomes negative and the energy stored in the line is returned to the AC network, causing rapid extinction of the fault current at its next zero-crossing. Then, alpha is released at t = 0.87 s and the normal DC voltage and current recover in approximately 0.4 s. 5.2.5 AC LINE-TO-GROUND FAULT AT THE INVERTER In the DC Fault block, change the multiplication factor of 1 in the Switching times to 100, so that the DC fault is now eliminated. In the A-G Fault block, change to 1 the 100 multiplication factor in the Switching times so that a 6 cycles line-to-ground fault is now applied at t = 0.7 s. The Low AC voltage detection (LACVD) subsystem in the rectifier and inverter protections and the Commutation Failure Prevention Control (CFPREV) in the inverter protection are activated by default. Restart the simulation. Notice the 120 Hz oscillations in the DC voltage and currents during the fault. When the fault is cleared at t = 0.8 s, the VDCOL operates and reduces the reference current to 0.3 pu. The system recovers in approximately 0.35 s after fault clearing. The LACVD detects the fault and locks the DC Fault protection that should not detect a DC
52

fault even if the DC line voltage dips. Look at the CFPREV output (A_min_I) which decreases the maximum delay angle limit in order to increase the commutation margin during and after the fault. Now deactivate the CFPREV protection by deselecting the "ON State" in the CFPREV dilaog box. Restart the simulation and observe the difference in recovery time of the DC transmission. Note that a commutation failure now occurs during the recovery. A commutation failure is the result of a failure of the incoming valve to take over the direct current before the commutation voltage reverses its polarity. The symptoms are a zero DC voltage accros the affected bridge causing an increase of the DC current at a rate determined mainly by the DC circuit inductance.

5.3 SIMULATION OF THE SYSTEM AT FULL LOAD

The system has been simulated at full load along with passive filters in service. The system parameters are presented in above. It is observed that the source-side voltage and current total harmonic distortions (%THD) are within 2%. But when the voltages and currents in the secondary winding of the converter transformer are analyzed, it is found that voltage and current total harmonic distortion (THD) are greater than 20% at a firing angle of 13 at the sending end rectifier. Hence, it can be concluded that secondary windings are highly stressed with these harmonic burdens of load. Also, it is observed from the secondary winding voltage waveforms that the rate of change of voltage with respect to time (dv/dt) across the secondary winding is around 1.5 kV/ s and it is repetitive in nature. These voltage transients are always present in the secondary winding of the converter transformer and increase as the firing angle increases. While designing the converter transformer, these harmonics should have been taken into consideration and graded insulation for the secondary winding should have been put in place. However, the stress level to which these windings is being subjected to is quite large as the voltage waveforms indicate. This leads to the partial discharge phenomenon and, thus, the failure of the converter transformer eventually becomes inevitable. Since voltage THD, current THD, and the waveforms are identical for star- and delta-connected transformer secondary windings and for sending and receiving ends of the HVDC line, the waveforms and the corresponding THD of the voltage and currents at the sending end are presented here. The voltage and current waveforms and their THD in the primary and secondary side of the converter transformers at the sending end are
53

shown in Figs.5.5 5.9, respectively. The corresponding THD values have been tabulated in fig.5.5.

Fig. 5.5: Waveforms at the primary of the converter transformer at the sending end. (a) Voltage waveform. (b) Current waveform.

54

Fig. 5.6: Harmonic spectrum of the voltage and current at the primary of the converter transformer at the sending end. (a) Voltage THD. (b) Current THD.

55

Fig 5.7: Waveforms at the secondary of the converter transformer at the sending end. (a) Voltage waveform. (b) Current waveform.

56

Fig.5.8 Voltage and current THD at the secondary of the converter transformer at the sending end. (a) Voltage THD, (b) Current THD.

Fig. 5.9. Various THD at full load with the existing system

57

CHAPTER-6 PROPOSED SOLUTIONS TO OVERCOME THE PROBLEMS ASSOCIATED WITH THE SECONDARY WINDINGS

58

PROPOSED SOLUTIONS TO OVERCOME THE PROBLEMS ASSOCIATED WITH THE SECONDARY WINDINGS: Due to the higher source impedance of the converter transformer, voltage transients are introduced during the changeover of current from one phase to another. A reduction of these voltage transients can be achieved in the following ways: 1) Reduction of commutation overlap 2) Inclusion of the filters on the secondary of the converter transformer and 3) Introducing RC snubbers on the secondary of the converter transformer.

6.1 REDUCTION OF COMMUTATION OVERLAP:

Commutation overlap can be reduced by introducing the capacitor[7],[8] on the dc side of the converter as depicted in Fig.5.1. It will prevent the dc-link voltage from sagging. The capacitor will also counter the effect of source inductance to decrease the commutation overlap. Thus, the commutation process becomes faster and voltage transients during commutation will be contained. When the system is simulated with this configuration, there is a reduction of voltage spikes. The maximum voltage spike is observed to be 150 kV during commutation which was originally 200 kV without the capacitor. Voltage THD is observed to be reduced to 17% from 20%. Only the fifth harmonic current is observed to be predominant in the secondary winding of the converter transformer. The R-C values considered for simulation are 65 ohms and 89.54 uF. The capacitance value is decided with an aim to nullify the reactance effect of the converter transformer connected to each 6-pulse thyristor converter. The value of is decided by a hit-and-trial by repeating computer simulations with an aim to minimize the losses in the resistance and to keep the source current within limits. The corresponding voltage and current waveforms and the respective harmonic spectrums are shown in Figs. 6.2, 6.3 and 6.4.

59

Fig 6.1: schematic of the capacitors connected to the dc side of the converter.

Fig 6.2 THD of the voltage and current on the secondary winding of the converter transformer with capacitors connected across the dc side of the converters. (a) Voltage THD. (b) Current THD.

60

Fig. 6.3 various THD at full load with capacitors connected on the dc side of the converters.

Fig 6.4: Waveforms on the secondary winding of the converter transformer with capacitors connected across the dc side of the converter. (a) Voltage waveform. (b) Current waveform.

6.2 INCLUSION OF FILTERS ON THE SECONDARY OF THE CONVERTER TRANSFORMER:

Generally, filters are included in the source side and in the present configuration; there is no space to add filters in the secondary of the converter transformer. But if there is a way to introduce filters on the secondary side, then it will help to reduce the

61

secondary winding harmonics and the cost on the primary side filters can also be reduced. The system has been simulated with fifth harmonic filters on the secondary side of the converter transformer along with capacitor on the dc side of the converters. Generally it is observed that current THD on the secondary side is getting reduced to 7% from 21% and voltage THD is observed to be coming down to 14% from 21%. When the fifth and seventh harmonic passive filters are put on the secondary side, further improvement in current harmonics is observed. Hence, it will definitely be useful to include passive filters in the secondary side to reduce the voltage stress across the secondary windings of the converter transformer. Here, the fifth and seventh harmonic filters will mitigate the fifth and seventh harmonic current, and the reactive power requirement by the converters will be supplied by the filters on the source side. However, space has to be created for introducing the fifth and seventh harmonic filters on the secondary side of the transformer. Also, the filters on the source side can be further simplified if part of the reactive power requirement can be met by the secondary side filters. The capacitor connected across the dc side of the converter will help to reduce the commutation overlap. Design of Fifth and Seventh Harmonic Passive Filters: The value of has been taken as C may be 0.5 F; accordingly, the value of has been calculated by using and a quality factor of 150 has been chosen. A

smaller value of C should be taken in order to reduce the reactive power generation as it has already been supplied by passive filters present on the source side.

6.3 PROVISION OF RC SNUBBERS ON THE SECONDARY OF THE CONVERTER TRANSFORMER:

Excessive over voltages can occur in the transformer windings if the exciting overvoltage has the same frequency as the natural frequency[8],[9] of a winding or a winding section. In these cases, the over voltages set up a resonance oscillation inside the winding with high amplitude that can cause damage to the insulation. To avoid these, RC snubbers can be connected from terminals to ground or in parallel to the winding section. High-frequency transient voltages below the protection level of the surge arrestor can cause severe internal voltage stresses that can result in dielectric breakdown of the winding section. These switching over voltages can be suppressed by RC snubbers.

62

However, there is no straightforward procedure for deciding the values of R and C. These have to be checked by means of computer simulations, keeping the losses to a minimum[9]. It is observed that there is no provision for the surge arrestor in the secondary of the converter transformer in simulation model system, although lightning arrestors are installed on the primary of the converter transformer. Zincoxide varistors are connected across the converters to protect them against over voltages. To check the validity of the proposed solution, the HVDC system has been simulated by connecting RC snubbers (a) across the secondary windings and (b) between phase terminals and ground. The voltage THD comes down to 15% in this case. The rate of change of voltage dv/dt also reduces considerably. Hence, if the snubbers are properly chosen, they will help to reduce insulation stresses in the secondary winding of the converter transformers. The design of the capacitor is based on the energy balance method. But there is no definite procedure to calculate the value of resistance. Here, the capacitance value is taken as 3 uF and 750ohm. Fine tuning of the R-C parameters will reduce the losses. It is found that whether snubbers are connected across the winding terminals or they are connected between line and ground, the results obtained are identical. The waveforms obtained by connecting snubbers across winding terminals and the corresponding THDs are presented in Figs.6.5, 6.6 and 6.7. Thus, the analysis on the stresses of the converter transformer secondary can be summarized as follows: The stresses are caused invariably by harmonics present in the voltages and currents in the secondary winding. These are predominantly the fifth and seventh order. The commutation overlap caused by large reactance of the transformer results in a huge rate of the change of voltage.

63

Fig 6.5: Voltage and current THDs with RC snubbers connected between the winding terminals at the secondary of the converter transformer. (a) Voltage THD. (b) Current THD.

Fig 6.6: various THD with RC snubbers connected between the winding terminals.

64

Fig. 6.7: Waveforms with the RC snubbers connected between the winding terminals at the secondary of the converter transformer. (a) Voltage waveform. (b) Current waveform. These ill effects can be minimized by the following techniques:

Connecting a capacitor in the dc link, Connecting passive filters on the secondary side, and Connecting RC snubbers across the phase windings or winding terminal to ground.

Out of these three solutions, a combination of the dc-link capacitor and passive filters seems to be yielding the best results. However, due to the limitations of the Simulink/Matlab software, transient modeling of the transformer winding could not be performed accurately. To obtain accurate results on the stress reduction with the introduction of secondary side filters and R-C snubbers, an accurate transient modeling of the transformer winding is very much essential.

65

CHAPTER 7 CONCLUSION

66

7.1. CONCLUSION
This project presented the analysis of the HVDC transmission system of the 2000-MW capacity. It is found that although the filters installed in the primary side of the converter transformer eliminate the harmonics in the source end, the secondary windings are very much affected by the harmonics mand the voltage spikes caused by commutation overlap. Three solutions have been proposed by the authors to reduce the, intensity of problems caused by voltage transients. From the simulation results obtained, it is found that a combination of passive filters of the fifth and seventh order installed in the secondary side of the transformer along with an R-C snubber in the dc link yields maximum reduction in the current harmonics and commutation overlap voltage spikes. It is envisaged that the installation of filters on the secondary side will also simplify the design of secondary windings of the converter transformer and the requirement of filters on the source side will be reduced. RC snubbers with a suitable design on the secondary of the converter transformer can provide relief to insulation stresses across the winding Out of these three solutions, a combination of the dc-link capacitor and passive filters seems to be yielding the best results. However, due to the limitations of the Simulink/Matlab software, transient modeling of the transformer winding could not be performed accurately. To obtain accurate results on the stress reduction with the introduction of secondary side filters and R-C snubbers, an accurate transient modeling of the transformer winding is very much essential.

7.2. FUTURE SCOPE

New converter transformer and an inductive filtering method are presented to

solve the existing problems of the traditional converter transformer and the passive filtering method of the high-voltage direct current (HVDC) system. It adopts the ampereturn balance of the transformer as the filtering mechanism.[11]

67

REFERENCES: 1. J. Arrillaga, High Voltage Direct Current Transmission. London, U.K.: Inst. Elect. Eng. Press, 1998. 2. G. M. Bastos, J. C. Brandao, J. Santelli, R. Albuquerque, S. Arenare, J. C. Mendes, and J. Hajek, HVDC converter transformer performance on ITAIPU system, presented at the B4-201, CIGRE Paris Symp., Paris, France, 2006. [Online]. Available:http://library.abb.com/global/scot/scot221.nsf/veritydisplay/6c9b4a9ad 68589f4c125708a002ec4f0/$File/Active%20Filters%20In%20Hvdc %20Transmission.pdf. 3. J. Alan, C. Forrest, and B. Allard, Thermal problems caused by harmonic frequency leakage fluxes in three-phase three-winding converter transformers, IEEE Trans. Power Del., vol. 19, no. 1, pp. 208213, Jan. 2004. 4. S. Gunnarsson et al., Active filters in HVDC transmission. [Online]. Available: http://www.abb.com/hvdc. 5. Simulink/MATLAB MathWorks. Inc. ManualOn-Line Documentation. Natick, MA,

6. A. Greenwood, Electrical Transients in Power Systems. New York: Wiley, 1991. 7. J. Arrillaga and N. R. Watson, Power System Harmonics, 2nd ed. New York: Wiley, 2003. 8. C. Zhao, H. Cui, and G. Li, A novel HVDC transmission system with parallel large capacitor connected in the DC side of the rectifier and its technical feasibility, in Proc. IEEE/Power Eng. Soc. Transmission Distribution Conf.: Asia and Pacific Dalian, China, 2005, pp. 15. 9. P. Heinzig, W. Knorr, C. Ploetner, A. Kramer, and M. Kolbol, Longtime experiences of ZnO varistor application in power transformers and OLTCs, in CIGRE Paris Symp., 2006. 10. O. A. Soyal, Voltage stresses in a distribution transformer under nonideal switching conditions, in Proc. IEEE Power Eng. Soc. Winter Meeting, 1999, vol. 2, pp. 10311035. 11. Longfu Luo, Yong Li, Jiazhu Xu, Ji Li, Bo Hu, and Fusheng Liu, A New Converter Transformer and a Corresponding Inductive Filtering Method for HVDC Transmission System, in IEEE Transactions on Power Delivery, Vol. 23,
No. 3, JULY 2008

68