Novel configuration and transient management control strategy for VSC-HVDC

This paper presents a novel system configuration for voltage source converter (VSC)-based high-voltage direct current (HVDC) transmission connected to a large-scale offshore wind power plant (WPP). The proposed scheme is reconfigured at the onshore end to achieve shunt and series compensation, which is named as 'Unified-VSC-HVDC' (U-VSC-HVDC). A mathematical model of the proposed configuration is derived to determine the rating of the employed series and shunt converters. To achieve a flexible control strategy for balanced and unbalanced fault conditions, the proposed transient management scheme employs positive and negative sequence controllers for the series compensation. The negative sequence voltage components are determined in such a way as to minimize power oscillations caused by asymmetrical faults, and hence to reduce DC link voltage overshoots. A test system comprised of a detailed representation of the proposed configuration is simulated and evaluated using PSCAD/EMTDC. A comprehensive study validates the capability of the proposed configuration and transient management scheme for achieving smooth power transfer and superior transient performance of the electrical grid. Also, it minimizes the possibilities of electrical network propagations in response to symmetrical and asymmetrical grid faults.