Investigation of Cascaded Commutation Failures in Multi-Infeed High-Voltage Direct Current Systems

The increasing applications of high-voltage direct current technology in long-distance bulk power transmission have resulted in multi-infeed systems, where multiple inverters are located within mutual electrical vicinity. Many of these systems use the line-commutated converter, which may suffer the commutation failure (CF) when a thyristor valve does not turn off at the desired instant. The cascaded CF becomes a possibility where a CF at one inverter propagates to other inverters, leading to a major power interruption and even loss of system stability. This project will reveal the underlying mechanism of the cascade CF by developing a novel approach for relating the probability and immunity of the CF to the area under the simulated commutating voltage curve. It is hoped that this project will enhance the understanding of the cascaded CF. The industry partner is RTDS Technologies Inc., a major simulator manufacturer.

Faculty Supervisor:

Aniruddha M. Gole

Student:

Partner:

RTDS Technologies

Discipline:

Engineering

Sector:

Manufacturing; Professional, scientific and technical services

University:

University of Manitoba

Program: