American Journal of Electrical Power and Energy Systems

2013; 2(2): 50-56

Published online March 10, 2013 (http://www.sciencepublishinggroup.com/j/epes)
doi: 10.11648/j.epes.20130202.14

Application of STATCOM to increase transient stability of

wind farm
Bouhadouza Boubekeur, Ahmed Gherbi, Hacene Mellah
Department of Electrical Engineering, Sétif-1 University, Algeria

Email address:
bouhadouza_b@yahoo.fr (B. Bouhadouza), gherbi_a@yahoo.fr (A. Gherbi), has.mel@gmail.com (H. Mellah)

To cite this article:

Bouhadouza Boubekeur, Ahmed Gherbi, Hacene Mellah. Application of STATCOM to Increase Transient Stability of Wind Farm,
American Journal of Electrical Power and Energy Systems. Vol. 2, No. 2, 2013, pp. 50-56. doi: 10.11648/j.epes.20130202.14

Abstract: In this paper we interested to the study the necessary of Facts to increase the transient stability on the presence
of faults and the integration of new renewable source, like wind energy, these lasts make the electrical grid operate in a new
conditions, the STATCOM is one of the important Facts element, It provides the desired reactive-power generation and
absorption entirely by means of electronic processing of the voltage and current waveforms in a voltage source converter
(VSC). This function is identical to the synchronous condenser with rotating mass. In present work we propose a transient
stability improvement using STATCOM under faults, in the first time we study the transient stability with and without
STATCOM for clearly his advantages. In the second time we know the relation between the reactive power injecting by a
STATCOM and the critical clearing time, some simulation results are given, commented and discussed.

Keywords: Transient Stability, Reactive Power, FACTS, STATCOM, Wind Power, CCT

severe transient disturbances such as fault on heavily

1. Introduction loaded lines, loss of a large load etc [6].Generator excita-
There is now general acceptance that the burning of fos- tion controller with only excitation control can improve
sil fuels is having a significant influence on the global cli- transient stability for minor faults but it is not sufficient to
mate. Effective mitigation of climate change will require maintain stability of system for large faults occur near to
deep reductions in greenhouse gas emissions, with UK generator terminals [6]. Researchers worked on other solu-
estimates of a 60–80% cut being necessary by 2050 [1], tion and found that flexible AC transmission systems
Still purer with the nuclear power, this last leaves behind (FACTS) are one of the most prominent solution [7], [8].
dangerous wastes for thousands of years and risks contami- The objective principal to use FACTS technology for the
nation of land, air, and water; the catastrophe of Japan is operators of the electric power is to have an opportunity for
not far[2], to avoid the problems of the pollution, the ener- the control of the power flow and by increasing the capaci-
gy policy decision states that the objective is to facilitate a ties usable of these lines under the normal conditions. The
change to an ecologically sustainable energy production parameter which controls the operation of transmission of
system such as wind power [3], but the major problem is energy in a line such as the impedances series and shunts,
how associate the wind power stations to the grid with running, tension and phase angle is controlled by utilizing
assure the linking conditions[4]. In addition, now a day’s FACTS controllers. FACTS devices increases power han-
power transmission and distribution systems face increas- dling capacity of the line and improve transient stability as
ing demands for more power, better quality and higher well as damping performance of the power system [7], [8].
reliability at lower cost, as well as low environmental effect. According to the specialized literature we find several
Under these conditions, transmission networks are called types of FACTS [6-11], in our work we are limited to the
upon to operate at high transmission levels, and thus power study a great disturbance, so the FACTS element used for
engineers have had to confront some major operating prob- reactive power compensation both assuring the low cost
lems such as transient stability, damping of oscillations and and high efficiency is STATCOM.
voltage regulation etc [5], in this work we interest to the The static synchronous compensators (STATCOM) con-
transient stability, this last indicates the capability of the sist of shunt connected voltage source converter through
power system to maintain synchronism when subjected to a coupling transformer with the transmission line. STAT-

Electronic copy available at: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3918730

 American Journal of Electrical Power and Energy Systems 2013, 2(2): 50-56 51

COM can control voltage magnitude and, to a small extent, is converted into I heat loss in the rotor conductor that
the phase angle in a very short time and therefore, has abili- needs to be dissipated [14].
ty to improve the system [7], [8]. Fig. 1 shows the torque-slip characteristic of the induc-
tion machine in the generating mode. If the generator is
2. Wind Turbine Model loaded at constant load torque only 1 is stable. The
loading limit of the generator i.e. the maximum torque it
2.1. Squirrel Cage Induction Generator can support is called the breakdown torque and represented
in the Fig.1 as If the generator is loaded under a con-
The fixed speed wind generator systems have been used stant torque above , it will become unstable and stall,
with a multiple-stage gearbox and a SCIG directly con- draw excessive current and destroy itself thermally if not
nected to the grid through a transformer [11]. properly protected [14].
The well-known advantages of SCIG are it is robust,
easy and relatively cheap for mass production [11], electri- Ns Speed 2 Ns
cally fairly simple devices consisting of an aerodynamic
rotor driving a low-speed shaft, a gearbox, a high-speed 0
-0.2 -0.4 -0.6 -0.8 -1
shaft and an induction generator [12].
The gearbox is needed, because the optimal rotor and
generator speed ranges are different, we find also a pole-
Slip perunit
changeable SCIG has been used in some commercial wind
turbines; it does not provide continuous speed variations
[11]. The generator is directly grid coupled. Therefore,
rotor speed variations are very small, because the only
speed variations that can occur are changes in the rotor TL Load Torque
slip[13], because the operating slip variation is generally
P1 P2
less than 1%, this type of wind generation is normally re-
Tmax
ferred to as fixed speed [12].
A SCIG consumes reactive power. Therefore, in case of Figure 1. Torque versus slip characteristic of an induction generator [14].
large wind turbines and/or weak grids, often capacitors are
added to generate the induction generator magnetizing 2.2. Modeling for Fixed - Speed Wind Turbines
current, thus improving the power factor of the system as a
The modeling of wind turbine plays an important role in
whole [13].
the building of stability concept. Every research recently
The power extracted from the wind needs to be limited,
uses grid model, wind turbine model and wind speed model
because otherwise the generator could be overloaded or the
as a foundation. The specific simulation approach used to
pullout torque could be exceeded, leading to rotor speed
study the dynamics of large power systems is reduced-order
instability. In this concept, this is often done by using the
modeling of wind turbine. This model uses several assump-
stall effect. This means that the rotor geometry is designed
tions and gives the models the various subsystems of each
in such a way that its aerodynamic properties make the
of the recent wind turbine types as presents at the Fig.2 [14].
rotor efficiency decrease in high wind speeds, thus limiting
the power extracted from the wind and preventing the gene-
rator from being damaged and the rotor speed from becom-
ing unstable [13], so the operating condition of a squirrel-
cage induction generator, used in fixed-speed turbines, is
dictated by the mechanical input power and the voltage at
the generator terminals. This type of generator cannot con-
trol bus bar voltages by itself controlling the reactive power
exchange with the network. Additional reactive power
compensation equipment, often fixed shunt-connected Figure 2. Generator structure of fixed-speed wind turbine model [6].
capacitors, is normally fitted [12]; this system concept is
also known as the 'Danish concept' and is depicted in Fig 1 We use Matlab to modeling the wind turbine system in
[13]. two main blocks: rotor model and generator model.
The slip is generally considered positive in the motor op-
eration mode and negative in the generator mode. In both 2.2.1. Rotor Model
operation modes, higher rotor slips result in higher current The traditional rotor model in wind turbine simulation is
in the rotor and higher electromechanical power conversion. base on the well known equation which gives the relation-
If the machine is operated at slips greater than unity by ship between the power extracted from wind and wind
turning it backwards, it absorbs power without delivering speed [14]:
anything out i.e. it works as a brake. The power in this case

Electronic copy available at: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3918730

52 Bouhadouza Boubekeur et al.: Application of STATCOM to increase transient stability of wind farm

ρAwt vw3 The IG space vector model is generally composed of

Pwt = C p Pv = C p (λ , β ). (1) three sets of equations: voltage equations, flux linkage
2
equations, and motion equation. The voltage equations for
Where C is the power coefficient of wind turbine (C is the stator and rotor of the generator in the arbitrary refer-
the function of the blade pitch angle and the tip-speed ence frame are given by [17]:
ratio); is the air density; is the swept area; is the
 1 d
vds = R s i ds − ϕ qs + w ϕ ds
wind speed. The tip-speed ratio .is defined as:
 s dt
λ=
wwt .R
(2)
 (6)
v = R s i qs + ϕ + 1 d
v ϕ qs
 qs ds
ws dt
Where w is mechanical angular velocity of wind tur-
bine blades; R is radius of wind turbine blades. The numer-  1 d
ical method of C is in Ref [15]. vdr = R r i dr − s.ϕ qr + w dt ϕ dr = 0
 s
*+,  (7)
!!"
, 0.5176 % 0.4β % 5( e -$ . 0.0068 (3) v = R r i qr + s.ϕ + 1 d ϕ = 0
#$
 qr dr
ws dt
qr

Where
The electrical torque is given by this equation after sev-
3 5.589 ;3 eral converted steps:
01 2 % : (4)
045.567 78 43

There is always an optimum tip speed ratio λ= corres- Te = L m (i dr .i qs + i qr .i ds ) (8)

ponding to the maximum power coefficient of wind turbine
C >?@ for any pitch angleβ. The β 0 without considering dwr Tm − Te
= (9)
wind turbine status at extreme wind speed. dt J
The output torque of wind turbine is [4]:
The power flow studies in the IG are represented in
AB Fig .4 [14].
CDE
(5)

The relation betweenC , β and λ is shown in Fig .3.

0.6
B=0°
X: 8.1 B=5°
Y: 0.48
0.5 B=10°
B=15°
B=20°
0.4
Figure 4. Power flow and losses in an IG.
Cp

0.3

0.2
3. Statcom
0.1 A STATCOM is a controlled reactive-power source. It
provides the desired reactive-power generation and absorp-
0
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
lamda
9 10 11 12 13 14 15 tion entirely by means of electronic processing of the vol-
tage and current waveforms in a voltage source converter
Figure 3. Aerodynamic power coefficient variation against tip speed
ratio and pitch angle .
(VSC). This function is identical to the synchronous con-
denser with rotating mass, but its response time is extreme-
The maximum value of C ( 0.48) is achieved ly faster than of the synchronous condenser. This rapidity is
for 0 degree and for F 8.1. very effective to increase transient stability, to enhance
To extract the maximum power generated, we must fix voltage support, and to damp low frequency oscillation for
the advance report F is the maximum power the transmission system [5].
cient . The schematic representation of the STATCOM and its
equivalent circuit are shown in Fig 5.
2.2.2.Generator Model
In real wind power market, three types of wind power
system for large WTs exist. The first type is fixed-speed
wind power (SCIG), directly connected to the grid. The
second one is a variable speed wind system using a DFIG Figure 5. STATCOM, VSC connected to the AC network via a shunt
transformer.
or SCIG. The third type is also a variable speed WT, PMSG
[16].

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 American Journal of Electrical Power and Energy Systems 2013, 2(2): 50-56 53

The STATCOM has the ability to either generate or ab- 4. Simulation Results
sorb reactive power by suitable control of the inverted
voltage|IJK | L MJK , with respect to the AC voltage on the The proposed test system has a wind farm connected to a
high-voltage side of the STATCOM transformer, say node network of 6 bus bars; the type of generators is an IG. Un-
l,| N | L MN . der normal operating conditions, the wind farm provide
In an ideal STATCOM, with no active power loss in- 9MW, the bank condenser used for offer a reactive power
volved, the following reactive power equation yields useful to the IG ,as presents at the following Fig .7.
insight into how the reactive power exchange with the AC
system is achieved.
2
vl vl vvR
QvR = − cos(θ l −θ vR )
xvR xvR
2
vl − vl vvR
=
xvR
Figure 7. Test system.
Where θP θQR for the case of a lossless STATCOM;
If |vP | T |vQR | then Q QR becomes positive and the The first objective of this paper is to evaluate the specific
STATCOM absorbs reactive power. On the other hand, Q QR needs of the system to restore to its initial state as quickly
becomes negative if |vP | L |vQR | and the STATCOM gene- as possible after fault clearing.
rates reactive power.
In power flow studies the STATCOM may be 4.1. Without STATCOM
represented in the same way as a synchronous condenser,
which in most cases is the model of a synchronous genera- The effect of a three phase short circuit fault at the load
tor with zero active power generation. It is adjusts the vol- bus is studied. The ground fault is initiated at t 15s and
tage source magnitude and phase angle using Newton’s cleared at t 16s. The system is studied under different
algorithm to satisfy a specified voltage magnitude at the conditions at the load bus as chosen below.
point of connection with the AC network as presents at the Fig 8 and Fig 9 shows the active and reactive power at
Fig .5. the load bus, we can see the active power curve reached
8.7MW in transient state operation and return near to zero
vvR = vvR (cos θ vR + j * sin θ vR ) in the steady state mode even with the presence of the fault,
however we find a peak in the reactive power curve at the
It should be pointed out that maximum and minimum time of the application fault and stabilized at -1Mvar.
limits will exist for |vQR | which are a function of the Fig 10 and 11 shows the active and reactive power of
STATCOM. Capacitor rating. On the other hand, θQR can each wind turbine.
take any value between 0 and 2π radians but in practice it It is clear according to these results that the active and
will keep close to θP [18]. reactive power of wind farm are disconnected before the
STATCOM is capable of providing capacitive reactive appearance of fault, because the insufficient of the excita-
power for network with a very low voltage level tion condenser of generator, and the wind farm protection
near0.15pu. It also is able to generate its maximum capa- systems, however the reactive power gives a negative value
citive power independent of network voltage. This capabili- because the presence of the condenser.
ty will be very beneficial in time of a fault or voltage col-
10
lapse or other restrictive phenomena, as presents at the Fig
PJB6
6 [10].
8
la puissance active au jb B6[mw]

-2
0 5 10 15 20
Temps [S]

Figure 6. Voltage current characteristic of STATCOM. Figure 8. Active power at bus 6.

Electronic copy available at: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3918730

54 Bouhadouza Boubekeur et al.: Application of STATCOM to increase transient stability of wind farm

10 According to the simulation results, the curves presented

QJB6
les puissances réactives au jb B6[mvar] above shows the importance of the compensation when the
8 wind farm recovers its operation after the fault and takes its
stability with some oscillation by the intervention of
6
STATCOM at bus bar 6.
4 12
P JB6
2 10

la puissance active au jb B6[mw]

8
0

6
-2
0 5 10 15 20
Temps [S]
4

Figure 9. Reactive power at bus 6.

2
3.5
P1 0
3 P2
la puissance active de wind turbine[mw]

P3
-2
2.5 0 5 10 15 20
Temps [S]
2
Figure 12. Active power at bus 6.
1.5
16
1
Q JB6
14
les puissances réactives au jb B6[mvar]

0.5
12
0
10
-0.5
0 5 10 15 20
8
Temps [S]

6
Figure 10. Active power of wind farm.
4
6
Q1
2
Q2
la puissance réactive de wind turbine[mvar]

5
Q3
0
4
-2
0 5 10 15 20
3 Temps [S]

2 Figure 12. Active power at bus 6.

1 16
Q JB6
14
les puissances réactives au jb B6[mvar]

0
12
-1
0 5 10 15 20 10
Temps [S]
8
Figure 11. Reactive power of wind farm.
6

4.2. With STATACOM 4

According to the previous simulation results, we added 2

the STATCOM at bus 6 for view the STATCOM effects. 0

Fig 12 and 13 shows the active and reactive power at the
-2
load bus, we can note that in the both curves the two pow- 0 5 10 15 20
Temps [S]
ers also stabilized faster with less oscillation compared with
the preceding case in the transient state and even after the Figure 13. Reactive power at bus 6.
fault, however fig 14 and 15 shows the active and reactive
power for each wind turbine.

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 American Journal of Electrical Power and Energy Systems 2013, 2(2): 50-56 55

4.5 5. Conclusions
4
la puissance active de wind turbine[mw]

3.5 The increasing penetration of renewable energy sources

3 in the grid, high demands, caused destabilized the electrical
2.5 network, so the researchers must be finding and master a
2 P1
new techniques for produced more power, better quality
1.5
P2 and higher reliability at lower cost. In first section a global
P3
1
description of system was presented, for each its compo-
0.5
nent a brief presentation are given, modeled and simulated.
0
In the second section, the dynamics of the grid-
-0.5
connected wind farm is compared with and without the
5 10 15 20
Temps [S]
presence of STATCOM under fault, our test network con-
tain three wind farm each wind farm has two equal wind
Figure 14. Active power of Wind Farm.
turbine, according to the simulation results, it clearly illu-
5 strates the need of STATCOM improvement when the wind
Q1 farm recovers its operation after the fault and takes its sta-
la puissance réactive de wind turbine[mvar]

4 Q2
Q3 bility and do not leave the wind farm disconnect in the
3
insufficient of the excitation condenser case. In the last
2 section, a several successive simulation are executed for
understand the relation between the STATCOM dimension
1
and the CCT.
0

-1

-2
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5 10 15 20
Temps [S]
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