EEE4005 POWER SYSTEM OPERATION AND

CONTROL

Dr M.JANAKI
Associate Professor,
School of Electrical Engineering.

Mobile No: 9444226403

Cabin No: TT344

 Module-III

Automatic Generation Control

 AGC with Load Frequency Control

In an electric power system, automatic generation

control (AGC) is a system for adjusting the power output of multiple
generators at different power plants, in response to changes in the load.
Since a power grid requires that generation and load closely balance
moment by moment, frequent adjustments to the output of generators are
necessary. The balance can be judged by measuring the system frequency;
if it is increasing, more power is being generated than used, which causes
all the machines in the system to accelerate. If the system frequency is
decreasing, more load is on the system than the instantaneous generation
can provide, which causes all generators to slow down.
1. Governor control: Turbine generators in a power system have
stored kinetic energy due to their large rotating masses. All the
kinetic energy stored in a power system in such rotating masses is a
part of the grid inertia.
When system load increases, grid inertia is initially used to
supply the load. This, however, leads to a decrease in the stored
kinetic energy of the turbine generators. Since the mechanical
power of these turbines correlates with the delivered electrical
power, the turbine generators have a decrease in angular
velocity, which is directly proportional to a decrease in frequency
in synchronous generators.

2. Load-frequency control: Load-frequency control (LFC) is employed

to allow an area to first meet its own load demands, then to assist in
returning the steady-state frequency of the system, Δf, to zero. Load-
frequency control operates with a response time of a few seconds to
keep system frequency stable.
 GOVERNOR CHARACTERISTICS OF A SINGLE GENERATOR

Prime movers driving the generators are fitted with governors,

which are regarded as primary control elements in the LFC system.
Governors sense the change in a speed control mechanism to adjust the
opening of steam valves in the case of steam turbines and the opening of
water gates in the case of water turbines. The characteristics of a typical
governor of a steam turbine are shown in Fig., which is linearized by
dotted lines for studying the system behaviour.
The amount of speed drop as the load on the turbine is increased from no
load to its full-load value is (No–N), where No is the speed at no load and
N is the speed at rated load. The steady-state speed regulation in per unit
is given by

The value of R varies from 2% to 6% for any generating unit. Since the
frequency and speed are directly related, the speed regulation can also
be expressed as the ratio of the change in frequency from no load to its
full load to the rated frequency of the unit:

If there is a 4% speed regulation of a unit, then for a rated frequency of

50 Hz, there will be a drop of 2 Hz in frequency.
If the generation is increased by ΔPG due to a static frequency drop of Δf,
then the speed regulation can be defined as the ratio of the change in
frequency to the corresponding change in real-power generation:

The unit of R is taken as Hz per MW. In practice, power is measured in

per unit and hence R is in Hz/p.u. MW.
If the generation is increased by ΔPG due to a static frequency drop of Δf,
then the speed regulation can be defined as the ratio of the change in
frequency to the corresponding change in real-power generation:

The unit of R is taken as Hz per MW. In practice, power is

measured in per unit and hence R is in Hz/p.u. MW.
In Fig., the turbine is operating with 99% of no-load speed at 25%
of full-load power and if the load is increased to 50%, the speed drops to
98%. Let ‘A’ be the initial operating point of the turbine at 50% load and if
the load is dropped to 25%, the speed increases to 99%. In order to keep
the speed at 25% of the load same as at ‘A’, the governor setting has to
be changed by changing the spring tension in the fly-ball type of governor.
This will result in speed characteristics indicated by the dotted line parallel
to the first one and below it, passing through the point A′, which is the
point of intersection of the new speed line and 25% load line. Hence, the
turbine can be adjusted to carry any given load at any desired speed.
 This type of shifting the speed or frequency characteristic parallel
to itself is known as supplementary control. It is adopted in on-line
control to ensure proper load division among the running units and to
maintain the system frequency.
There is another method of changing the slope of the governor
characteristics. This is achieved by changing the ratio of the lever L
(refer the speed control mechanism) of the governor and thereby
adjusting the parameter R to ensure proper co-ordination with the other
units of the system. This adjustment can be made during the off-line
condition only.
Parallel Operation of Generating Units
(Interconnected System)
When two generators are running in parallel, the governor characteristic of
the first unit (Line 1) is shown towards the right, while that of the second
unit (Line 2) is shown towards the left of the frequency axis as shown in
Fig.

The characteristics are obviously different and hence corresponding to the

rated frequency fr, the two units carry loads P1 and P2 so that the system
load PD = P1 + P2. If the system load is now increased to PD′, the system
frequency will drop down to f′, since the units can only increase their
output by decreasing the speed.

To restore the system frequency, the characteristic of one of the units say
of Unit 1 needs to be shifted upwards as indicated by the dotted
characteristic, so that it can carry the increased load. The share of Unit 1
will be P1′ and that of Unit 2 will be P2 so that the increased total load, PD′
= P1′ + P2.
 The use of the speed changer enables the steam input and
electrical power output at a given frequency to be changed as required.
The effect of this on two machines can be seen in Figure. The output of
each machine is not therefore determined by the governor characteristics
but can be varied by the operating personnel to meet economic and other
considerations.
The governor characteristics only completely decide the outputs
of the machines when a sudden change in load occurs or when machines
are allowed to vary their outputs according to speed within a prescribed
range in order to keep the frequency constant. This mode of operation is
known as free-governor action.
Problem-1: Two generators of rating 100 and 200 MW are operated with
a droop characteristic of 6% from no load to full load. Determine the load
shared by each generator, if a load of 270 MW is connected across the
parallel combination of those generators.

Load shared by Generator-1 (100 MW unit) = 90 MW

Load shared by Generator-2 (200 MW unit) = 270 – x
= 270 – 90 = 180 MW
Problem-2: Two generators rated at 120 MW and 250 MW are operating
in parallel. The governor settings on the machines are such that they have
4 per cent and 3 per cent drops. Determine (i) the load taken by each
machine for a total load of 200 MW (ii) the percentage adjustment in the
no load speed to be made by the speeder motor if the machines are to
share the load equally.

52.94 MW, 147.06 MW, 2.133% increase in no load speed of 120 MW Unit
Problem-3: Two identical 60MWsynchronous generators operate in
parallel. The governor settings on the machines are such that they have 4
and 3% droops (no-load to full-load percentage speed drop). Determine
(a) the load taken by each machine for a total of 100MW; (b) the
percentage adjustment in the no-load speed to be made by the speeder
motor if the machines are to share the load equally.

(Answer: (a) 42.8 and 57.2MW; (b) 0.83% increase in no-load speed on
the 4% droop machine)
 It is possible to divide a
very large power system
into sub-areas in which all
the generators are tightly
coupled such that they swing in
unison with change in load or
due to a speed-changer
setting.

Such an area, where all

the generators are running
coherently is termed as a
control area. In this area,
frequency may be same in
steady state and dynamic
conditions.

For developing a
suitable control strategy, a
control area can be reduced to
a single generator, a speed
governor, and a load system.
 An independent aim of the automatic generation control is to
reschedule the generation changes to preselected machines in the system
after the governors have accommodated the load change in a random
manner.
Thus, additional or supplementary regulation devices are
needed along with governors for proper regulation. The control of
generation in this manner is termed load-frequency control.

A single area
Complete block diagram representation of an isolated power system

It consists of

1. Speed governing system

2. Turbine
3. Generator-Load

It is used to perform steady state and dynamic analysis of single area

system.
 Steady State Analysis of single area system
(Steady State Error)
The steady state analysis is performed for small change in input.
Here, a step in input is applied.

There are two incremental inputs to the system and they are:

i. The change in the speed-changer position, ΔPC or ΔPref

(reference power input).
ii. The change in the load demand, ΔPD.

We will analyze the response of a single-area system to steady-state

changes by three ways:

i. Constant speed-changer position (ΔpC=0) with variable load

demand (uncontrolled case).
ii. Constant load demand (ΔpD=0) with variable speed-changer
position (controlled case).
iii. Variable speed-changer position as well as load demand.
i) Uncontrolled case
For a step load change in the system, the following equations can be
written
 The gain Kt is fixed for the turbine and Kps is fixed for the power
system. The gain Ksg of the speed governor is easily adjustable by
changing the lengths of various links of the linkage mechanism. Ksg is so
adjusted such that KsgKt ≈ 1.
Therefore Equation can be simplified as:

All types of composite loads

experience a change in
power consumption with
frequency. Defining the load
damping (demand) factor B
as
and is known as the area frequency
response characteristic (AFRC) or area
frequency regulation characteristic
ii) Controlled case

Consider a step change in a speed-changer position with the load

demand remaining fixed:

The steady-state change in frequency can be obtained from the block

diagram
The steady-state change in frequency can be obtained from the block
diagram
The steady-state value is obtained by applying the final-value
theorem:
iii) Variable speed-changer position as well as load demand

By superposition, if the speed-changer setting is changed by ΔPC while the

load demand also changes by ΔPD, the steady-state change in frequency is
obtained by combining Equations as

From the above equation, we can observe that the change in load demand
causes the changes in frequency, which can be compensated by changing
the position of the speed changer.

If ΔPC = ΔPD, then Δf will become zero.

 Dynamic Analysis of single area system
(Time response)

i) Uncontrolled case
ii) Controlled case
Problem-4: Given a single area with three generating units as shown in
Fig.

Unit Rating (MVA) Speed droop R

(per unit on unit base)
1 100 0.010
2 500 0.015
3 500 0.015

The units are loaded as P1 = 80 MW; P2 = 300 MW; P3 = 400 MW.

Assume B = 0; what is the new generation on each unit for a 50-MW load
increase? Repeat with B = 1.0 p.u. (i.e., 1.0 p.u. on load base).
a) with B = 0; at a common base of 1,000 MVA
b) with B = 1.0 p.u.
Problem-5: Given a single area with two generating units as shown in Fig.
Unit Rating (MVA) Speed droop R
(per unit on unit base)
1 400 0.04
2 800 0.05
The units share a load of P1 = 200 MW; P2 = 500 MW. The units are
operating in parallel, sharing 700 MW at 1.0 (50 Hz) frequency. The load is
increased by 130 MW. With B = 0, find the steady-state frequency deviation
and the new generation on each unit. With B = 0.804, find the steady-state
frequency deviation and the new generation on each unit.

With B = 0 With B = 0.804

Problem-6: A 500-MW generator has a speed regulation of 4%. If the
frequency drops by 0.12 Hz with an unchanged reference, determine the
increase in turbine power. And also find by how much the reference power
setting should be changed if the turbine power remains unchanged.

If the turbine power remains unchanged, the reference power setting at

the point of the block diagram must be changed such that the signal to
the increase in generation is blocked:
Problem-7: A single-area system has the following data:

Speed regulation, R = 4 Hz/p.u. MW

Damping coefficient, B = 0.1 p.u. MW/Hz
Power system time constant, TP = 10 s
Power system gain, KP = 75 Hz/p.u. MW

When a 2% load change occurs, determine the AFRC and the static
frequency error. What is the value of the steady-state frequency error if
the governor is blocked?

Problem-8: Two generating units having the capacities 600 and 900 MW
and are operating at a 50 Hz supply. The system load increases by 150
MW when both the generating units are operating at about half of their
capacity, which results in the frequency falling by 0.5 Hz. If the generating
units are to share the increased load in proportion to their ratings, what
should be the individual speed regulations? What should the regulations
be if expressed in p.u. Hz/p.u. MW?
 Multi Area System
An extended power system can be divided into a number of load
frequency control (LFC) areas, which are interconnected by tie lines. Such
an operation is called a pool operation. A power pool is an interconnection
of the power systems of individual utilities. Each power system operates
independently within its own jurisdiction, but there are contractual
agreements regarding internal system exchanges of power through the tie
lines and other agreements dealing with operating procedures to maintain
system frequency. There are also agreements relating to operational
procedures to be followed in the event of major faults or emergencies. The
basic principle of a pool operation in the normal steady state provides:

i. Maintaining of scheduled interchanges of tie-line power: The

interconnected areas share their reserve power to handle anticipated load
peaks and unanticipated generator outages.
ii. Absorption of own load change by each area: The interconnected areas
can tolerate larger load changes with smaller frequency deviations than the
isolated power system areas.
 For analyzing the dynamics of the LFC of an n-area power system,
primarily consider two-area systems. Two control areas 1 and 2 are
connected by a single tie line as shown in Fig.

Here, the control objective is to regulate the frequency of each

area and to simultaneously regulate the power flow through the tie line
according to an interarea power agreement.
In the case of an isolated control area, the zero steady-state error
in frequency (i.e., Δfsteady state = 0) can be obtained by using a proportional
plus integral controller, whereas in two-control area case, proportional plus
integral controller will be installed to give zero steady-state error in a
tieline power flow (i.e., ΔPTL = 0) in addition to zero steady-state error in
frequency.
The block diagram of control area-1 is shown in Fig. Where PTL1 is the
power flow out of control area-1 to tie-line. And, ΔPTL1 is the deviation in
tie-line power output of control area-1.
Where T12 is the synchronizing
coefficient or stiffness
coefficient of tie-line.
The block diagram which relates frequency deviation and tie-line power
deviations is shown in Fig.
 RESPONSE OF A TWO-AREA SYSTEM—UNCONTROLLED CASE

For an uncontrolled case, ΔPc1 = ΔPc2 = 0, i.e., the speed-changer

positions are fixed.
Let ΔPD1, ΔPD2 be sudden (incremental) step changes in the loads of
control area-1 and control area-2, simultaneously.

ΔPG1, ΔPG2 are the incremental changes in the generation in Area-1 and
Area-2 as a result of the load changes.

Δf is the static change in frequency. This will be the same for both the
areas and ΔPTL1 is the static change in the tie-line power transmitted from
Area-1 to Area-2.
Consider two identical areas,

B1 = B2 = B, β1 = β2 = β, R1 = R2 = R and a12 = +1

If a sudden load change occurs only in Area-2 (i.e.,ΔPD1 = 0), then we

have
 Dynamic response of two-area system

To describe the dynamic response of the two-area system as shown in the

block diagram, a system of seventh-order differential equations is
required. The solution of these equations would be tedious. However,
some important characteristics can be brought out by an analysis
rendered simple by the following assumptions. A power system of two
identical control areas is considered for the analysis:

i. τgt = τt = 0 for both the areas.

ii. The damping constants of two areas are neglected, i.e., B1 = B2 = 0

and α and ω2 are both real and positive. Hence, it can be concluded from
the roots of characteristic equation that the time response is stable and
damped.
It can be seen that
the steady-state
frequency deviation
is the same for both
the areas and does
not vanish. The tie-
line power deviation
also does not
become zero.

Although the above

approximate
analysis has
confirmed stability,
it has been found
through more
accurate analyses
that with certain
parameter
combinations, the
system becomes
unstable.
Problem-9: Two control areas of 1,000 and 2,000 MW capacities are
interconnected by a tie line. The speed regulations of the two areas,
respectively, are 4 Hz/p.u. MW and 2.5 Hz/p.u. MW. Consider a 2%
change in load occurs for 2% change in frequency in each area. Find
steady-state change in frequency and tie-line power of 10 MW change in
load occurs in both areas.

Problem-10: Two interconnected Area-1 and Area-2 have the capacity of

2,000 and 500 MW, respectively. The incremental regulation and damping
torque coefficient for each area on its own base are 0.2 p.u. and 0.8 p.u.,
respectively. Find the steady-state change in system frequency from a
nominal frequency of 50 Hz and the change in steady-state tie-line power
following a 750 MW change in the load of Area-1.