POWER SYSTEM STABILIZER

The Power System Stabilizer (PSS) is a part of the excitation system for generator control. The PSS acts to modulate the generator field voltage to damp electrical power-speed oscillations. The need for effective damping of electromechanical oscillations motivated the concept of the power system stabilizer The recent increase in orders for power plants has given rise to an increase in interconnection studies to insure these plants are integrated into the power systems. Stability studies are important to verify adequate transient and dynamic stability of the plant for electrical faults in the system. With the stability margins being determined by sometimes weak interconnections during contingency conditions, it can be difficult to insure adequate margins. APPLICATION OF PSS A recent example of a study of a combined cycle power plant shows the benefit of PSS in helping to meet stability requirements. Fig. 1- One-Line Diagram of the Simplified Study System

The plant in this example is a multi-unit STAG plant with three combustion turbines with generators rated about 200MVA, and a 440MVA steam turbine generator supplied by a Heat Recovery Steam Generator (HSRG) from the combustion turbines exhaust. A simplified one-line diagram of the plant and system interconnections is shown in Fig.1 where the plant is connected at the end of a 345 kV transmission network. Power may also flow through two transformers, connecting to four 138 kV circuits. Under normal conditions, the total equivalent impedance seen from the studied plant is 0.55 pu. Fig. 2 shows the response of one of the three gas turbine-generators for a three phase fault on the plant end of the 345 kV line, cleared by opening the line in 6 cycles.

Fig. 2 - Response of a GT Generator

Studies showed that all three gas turbine-generators can be stable with the PSS control, but it is necessary to trip the steam turbine generator to maintain transient stability. However, with the loss of the 345 kV line the total equivalent impedance becomes 1.1 pu, causing dynamic stability problems. The dotted traces in Fig. 2 indicate a lack of damping in one of the combustion turbine generators response, assuming the excitation system is not equipped with PSS. The solid traces show the response for the same disturbance, when the new units are all equipped with PSS. Clearly, the PSS control is critical in this case to insuring dynamic stability for the system in the contingency condition. NEED FOR PSS The disturbances occurring in a power system induce electromechanical oscillations of the electrical generators. These oscillations, also called power swings, must be effectively damped to maintain the system's stability. Electromechanical oscillations can be classified in four main categories:

Local oscillations: between a unit and the rest of the generating station and between the latter and the rest of the power system. Their frequencies typically range from 0.8 to 4.0 Hz.

Interplant oscillations: between two electrically close generation plants. Frequencies can vary from 1 to 2 Hz.

Interarea oscillations: between two major groups of generation plants. Frequencies are typically in a range of 0.2 to 0.8 Hz.

Global oscillation: characterized by a common in-phase oscillation of all generators as found on an isolated system. The frequency of such a global mode is under 0.2Hz. MULTIBAND POWER SYSTEM STABILIZER The need for effective damping of such a wide range, of electromechanical

oscillations motivated the concept of the multiband power system stabilizer (MB-PSS).

As its name reveals, the MB-PSS structure is based on multiple working bands. Three separate bands are used, respectively dedicated to the low-, intermediate-, and highfrequency modes of oscillations: the low band is typically associated with the power system global mode, the intermediate with the interarea modes, and the high with the local modes. Each of the three bands is made of a differential bandpass filter, a gain, and a limiter. The outputs of the three bands are summed and passed through a final limiter producing the stabilizer output Vstab. This signal then modulates the set point of the generator voltage regulator so as to improve the damping of the electromechanical oscillations.

The recent increase in orders for power plants has given rise to an increase in interconnection studies to insure these plants are integrated into the power systems. Stability studies are important to verify adequate transient and dynamic stability of the plant for electrical faults in the system. With the stability margins being determined by sometimes weak interconnections during contingency conditions, it can be difficult to insure adequate margins. With weak transmission systems there are often sustained

power oscillations in the 0.7 - 1.0 Hz. range, following the clearing of electrical faults. In many cases the generating units tie into strong systems and the response is stable and well damped. Although the PSS controls is always beneficial for stability, its action can become critical in cases where the system becomes weak due to lines out-of-service. Faults in any power generating system that is connected to the grid can cause widespread transmission system failure. Power system oscillation (or dynamic instability) can result from transmission system disturbance. The Power System Stabilizer (PSS) is a supplemental control that improves dynamic stability by increasing damping of power, swing oscillations. Excitation systems with high gain and fast response times greatly aid transient stability (synchronizing torque), but at the same time tend to reduce small signal stability (damping torque). The objective of the PSS is to increase damping of generator rotor angle swings, which can occur in a broad range of frequencies in the power system. Low frequency modes, commonly called intertie or interarea modes, are due to coherent groups of generators swinging against other groups in the interconnected system. These modes are present in all interconnected systems and their damping is a function of tie line strength and unit loading factors. Weak ties due to line outages and heavy system loads can lead to poorly damped intertie modes. The PSS can provide significant improvements in intertie mode damping.