MTDC SYSTEMS

INTRODUCTION TO HVDC SYSTEMS

The first electric generator was the direct current (DC) generator, and hence, the first electric
power transmission line was constructed with DC. Despite the initial supremacy of the DC,
the alternating current (AC) supplanted the DC for greater uses. This is because of the
availability of the transformers, poly-phase circuits, and the induction motors in the 1880s
and 1890s.The ever increasing penetration of the power electronics technologies into power
systems is mainly due to the continuous progress of the high-voltage high-power fully-
controlled semiconductors Transformers are very simple machines and easy to be used to
change the voltage levels for transmission, distribution, and stepping down of electric power.
Induction motors are the workhorse of the industry and work only with AC. That is why AC
has become very useful for the commercial and domestic loads. For long transmission, DC is
more favourable than AC because of its economical, technical, and environmental
advantages. In general, high voltage direct current (HVDC) transmission systems can be
classified in several ways; on the basis of cost, flexibility, and operational requirements. The
classic converter station of HVDC transmission system,

MULTITERMINAL HVDC SYSTEMS

Although the classical HVDC has the aforementioned advantages, the need for active
network connection at both ends (and hence its inability to supply passive loads), its
consumption of reactive power at both terminals, its inability to reverse the direction of
current flow, and its susceptibility to commutation failures have been the down sides of
classical HVDC. These constraints have limited the use of classical HVDC to power
transmission between two points. In the light of this understanding, Voltage Sourced
Converter - HVDC (VSC-HVDC), a recent arrival in the arena of high voltage technology,
has eliminated all the mentioned drawbacks of classical HVDC and opened new application
areas and possibilities. VSC-HVDC consists of three phase switch mode converter and uses
pulse width modulation (PWM) for controlling its phase voltages. Since VSC-HVDC does
not need changing its DC voltage polarity for either direction of power flow and is capable of
independent control of active and reactive power flow, it has attracted attention as a
promising candidate for developing Multiterminal HVDC (MTDC) system.

MTDC is a DC equivalent of AC grid which will have DC transmission network connecting

more than two AC/DC converter stations. The range of operating voltage of the DC
transmission is expected to be within specified upper and lower limits. The upper limit of the
operating DC voltage can be determined by the ratings of the DC cables, DC circuit breakers
or the forward blocking capacity of the IGBTs used in the VSC. The lower limit of the
operating DC voltage is determined by the maximum of the operating AC voltages of all the
converter stations incorporated in the MTDC system.

HVDC transmission systems designed and operated so far are point to point systems with two
terminals (converter stations). A multiterminal DC (MTDC) system has more than two
converter stations, some of them operating as rectifiers and others as inverters. The simplest
way of building a MTDC system from an existing two terminal system is to introduce
tappings. Parallel operation of converters and bi poles can also be viewed as multiterminal
operation. Unlike in AC systems, the task of extending two terminal systems to multiterminal
systems is not trivial. The complexities of control and protection increase considerably, and
the use of HVDC breakers is generally required in the MTDC systems.

In recent times, with growth in HVDC transmission, there could be more than one converter
in proximity feeding same load area. The operational issues of such Multi-In feed DC
(MIDC) systems are similar to those of MTDC systems. Hence, MIDC systems are also
discussed in this chapter. With recent advances in the emerging technology of VSC-HVDC
transmission, the application of MTDC systems is becoming more attractive than before.

If the upper limit of the operating voltage is exceeded, there could follow equipment
failure and perhaps subsequent blackout. When the DC operating voltage becomes below the
minimum limit, one or more of the VSC-HVDC stations go into 'saturation' condition due to
over modulation and the VSC-HVDC terminal will no more respond properly to the
controllers. In practice, the upper and lower voltage limit settings of the MTDC should have
sufficient safety margins from the previously mentioned limits.

POTENTIAL APPLICATIONS OF MTDC SYSTEMS

Apart from tapping of power from existing two terminal systems, there are three specific
areas of applications for MTDC systems. These are listed below:

1. Bulk power transmission from several remote generating stations to several load centres.
Here, each generating plant (or unit) is connected directly to a rectifier station thereby
dispensing with the AC collector system. Similarly, a converter station at each load centre
eliminates the need to build additional AC (or DC) lines for flexible energy exchange.

An MTDC system has several advantages over the alternative of point to point systems. For
example, consider a system of two generating stations and two loads as shown in Fig. 9.1.
This is a radial system with two rectifiers and two inverters. For ensuring the same level of
flexibility in energy exchange, three two terminal DC links will be required in addition to a
link connecting the two receiving systems, which could be AC or DC (see Fig. 9.2). This
would result in extra costs for the converter stations, lines and additional power losses in
increased number of conversions.

The elimination of AC collector system at the remote hydro generating stations can result in
better efficiency in the operation of hydraulic turbines which are free to run at speeds
independent of the system frequency.

2. Asynchronous interconnection between adjacent power systems. When more than two
systems are involved, a MTDC system for interconnection is more flexible and economical
than employing several two terminal DC links.

3. Reinforcing of an AC network which is heavily loaded. Consider an urban power system

which is fed by a distant power station. It would be advantageous to arrange the power
injection at more than one point so that the underlying AC network is not overloaded. This
is easily achieved using a MTDC system with one rectifier station and several inverter
stations (see Fig. 9.3).
BASICS OF MTDC SYSTEMS
The applicability and flexibility of h.v.d.c. systems can be enhanced in some conditions if
several converters are coupled to form a multiterminal h.v.d.c. system. The earliest
application of this philosophy was the paralleling of bipoles I and II Scheme onto one line in
the event of an outage of one of the bipolar transmission lines. This procedure has now been
carried out in response to major storm damage to transmission lines. The first true
Multiterminal h.v.d.c. systems may be divided into series and parallel types, illustrated in
Figures 9.4 and 9.5, respectively. However, there are many permutations of each type,
depending on system requirements.

Series connection
This is a natural extension of the two terminal system which is a series connected system. A
three-terminal MTDC system is shown in Fig. 9.4. This shows a monopolar arrangement;
however, a homopolar arrangement with two conductors is also possible. The system is
grounded at only one point which may be conveniently chosen. If the line insulation is
adequate, the grounding point can he shifted, based on changes in the operating conditions.
Grounding capacitors may also be used to improve insulation coordination and system
performance during transients.

In a series connected system, the current is set by one converter station and is common for all
the stations. The remaining stations operate at constant angle (extinction or delay) or voltage
control. In order to minimize the reactive power requirements and the losses in valve damper
circuits, the normal operating values of firing angles may be adjusted using tap changer
control. At all times, the sum of the voltages across the rectifier stations must be larger than
the sum of the voltages across the inverter station. In case of a drop in the voltage at the
current controlling rectifier station, the inverter with the larger current reference takes over
the current control.

The switching in or out of a bridge is accomplished by de blocking/block and bypass in a

manner similar to that in a two terminal system. The clearing of a fault in the DC line is also
similar. The power reversal at a station is also done as in a two terminal system, by reversing
the DC voltage by converter control.

The power control in a two terminal system is accomplished by adjusting the current while
trying to maintain a constant voltage in the system. This is done to minimize the losses.
However, in a MTDC series system, central control would be required to adjust the current in
response to changing loading conditions. The local control of power would imply adjusting
voltage at the converter station using angle and tap controls. Using only one bridge or a 12
pulse unit for the voltage control and operating the remaining bridges at minimum (or
maximum) delay angle can reduce the reactive power requirements.

Parallel connection
The parallel MTDC systems can be further sub divided into the following categories:

(a) Radial (b) Mesh

The currents in all the converter stations except one are adjusted according to the power
requirement. One of the terminals operates as a voltage setting terminal at constant angle or
voltage. An example of 3 terminal radial system is shown in Fig. 9.5. This shows a
monopolar system but bipolar arrangement would be normally used.

A radial system is one in which the disconnection of one segment of transmission would
result in interruption of power from one or more converter stations. In a mesh system, the
removal of one link would not result in a disruption, provided the remaining links are capable
of carrying the required power (with increased losses). Evidently, a mesh system can be more
reliable than a radial system. An example of a 4 terminal mesh system is shown in Fig. 9.6.

The power reversal in a parallel MTDC system would involve mechanical switching as the
voltage cannot be reversed. Also, loss of a bridge in one converter station would require
either the disconnection of a bridge in all the stations or disconnection of the affected station.

The basic problem of control of parallel inverters is that an h.v.d.c. inverter operating in the
most efficient mode, of constant extinction angle, has an effective slope resistance which is
negative, so that two such inverters in parallel are obviously unstable. Many ways round this
problem have been proposed, such as operating one inverter at constant extinction angle (to
control direct voltage), and the other in a constant-current mode; this means that the second
inverter requires higher plant rating. However, the system is in a rather delicate state for even
minor transients.
COMPARISON OF SERIES AND PARALLEL MTDC
SYSTEMS
The advantages and disadvantages of series and parallel MTDC systems are given below:

1. High speed reversal of power is possible in series systems without mechanical switching.
This is not possible in parallel systems.

2. The valve voltage rating in a series system is related to the power rating, while the current
rating in a parallel connected system is related to power. This would imply that for small
power ratings of the tap, series connection may be cheaper even though valves have to be
insulated for full voltage to ground. The parallel connection has the advantage of staged
development in the converter stations by adding parallel converters as the power
requirements increase.

3. There are increased losses in the line and valves in series systems, in comparison to
parallel systems. The system operation in series systems can be optimized by operating the
largest inverter at rated voltage.

4. Insulation coordination is a problem in series systems as the voltage along the line varies.

5. The permanent fault in a line section would lead to complete shutdown in a series
connected system, while it would lead to only the shutdown of a converter station
connected to the line section in a radial MTDC system. With provisions for fast
identification and clearing of faults in mesh connected system, there is no disruption of
power transfer.

6. The reduction in AC voltages and commutation failures in an inverter can lead to

overloading of converters as current is transferred from other terminals in a parallel system.
The problem is severe if the rating of the inverter is relatively small. Increased values of
smoothing reactor and voltage dependent current limits can reduce the severity. However,
the valve ratings would increase, resulting in increased unit costs. A recent study shows that
the cost of a 500 MW DC equipment (at 1500 kV) would be 74% of the cost of a 1000 MW
DC equipment. It is concluded that a practical limit to unequal inverter ratings may be 75%
: 25%.

7. The control and protection philosophy in a series MTDC system is a natural extension of
that in a two terminal system. However, extension to parallel systems is not
straightforward. Increased communication requirements and problems in recovery from
commutation failures are associated with parallel systems. HVDC breakers of appropriate
rating may be required for clearing faults in the DC line or converter stations.

From the relative merits and demerits of series and parallel MTDC systems described above,
it may be concluded that series connection is appropriate for taps of rating less than 20% of
the major inverter terminal. Parallel connection is more versatile and is expected to be widely
used as in AC systems.
CONTROL AND PROTECTION OF MTDC SYSTEMS
There are several methods of control in MTDC systems. Only parallel MTDC systems are
considered as these involve complexities in extending the existing control methods. The
various methods suggested are reviewed below.

Current Margin Method

This is most widely considered and the natural extension of control philosophy in a two
terminal system. One of the converter stations which is operating at the angle limit (minimum
oz or minimum Y) determines the DC voltage (dependent on the AC voltage and the tap
ratio). The remaining terminals operate as current controlling terminals. The current through
the voltage setting terminal (say n) is given by,

Where n is the number of terminals. In the above equation, the inverter currents are treated as
negative, while the rectifier currents are treated as positive. The current controlling terminals
operate with a voltage margin which may become zero or negative during disturbances in the
AC system. As even small disturbances can affect the voltage margin, it is necessary to
maintain the current and power distribution in the system with minor changes, during the
disturbances.

This is possible if current control is also provided at the voltage setting terminal (or slack
terminal) such that it tries to maintain the same current as before. Because of measurement
errors and the requirements of a smooth transition from angle (or voltage) control to current
control, the current reference at the voltage setting terminal (VST) is chosen to satisfy the
following equation:

Where is positive a quantity. The converter with the lowest voltage ceiling always
acts as a voltage setting terminal. The changes in the voltage setting terminal due to
disturbances in the AC system are called mode shifts. Uncontrolled mode shifts can be
minimized by selecting a terminal with highest short circuit ratio as the voltage setting
terminal. Due to the negative resistance characteristics of the constant extinction angle
control, it would be advisable to choose a rectifier terminal as VST. The magnitude of the
current margin is critical as converters of lower ratings can be overloaded when operating at
angle limit.
 The central controller that regulates the current orders at all the converter stations is termed
as Current Reference Balancer (CRB) and is shown in the analog version in Fig. 9.7. Here,
the current orders calculated from local power controllers are adjusted in order to satisfy Eq.
(9.2),. The limits on the current orders are taken into account in balancing current references.
The actual implementation of CRB can be performed by using microprocessors.

Satisfactory operation of MTDC systems requires a reliable central CRB that operates at all
times. This requires reliable two way communication between a central station and each
converter station. If there is loss of a station and this information is not communicated, the
system operation is adversely affected. In case of loss of a rectifier station, the power transfer
is interrupted by voltage collapse. In case of loss of an inverter station, other stations will be
overloaded.

In the current margin method, the change in the voltage setting terminal requires the
operation of the tap changer in converter transformer to modify the voltage margin. This can
be slow and results in less flexible control to deal with mode shifts. An improvement has
been suggested by using a modified control scheme termed as voltage margin control method.
In this method, all converter stations are provided with automatic voltage regulators (AVR)
along with automatic current regulators (ACR). In the voltage setting terminal, AVR
reference voltage is set to the rated voltage and in other stations, AVR reference voltage is set
higher by an amount AE.

The operation of this control technique is illustrated by Fig. 9.8 which represents the control
characteristics for a MTDC system with two rectifiers and two inverters. When the voltage
setting terminal is shifted from INV2 to REC1, the voltage margin AE is added to the
reference value at INV2 and subtracted from RECI. The voltage margin control method is
also not free from the requirements of the centralized control and fast communication.
In order to facilitate the operation of MTDC systems even when there is failure of
communication system, the following modifications to the basic current margin method of
control have been suggested:

1. Voltage Limiting Control.

2. Use of Decentralized Current Reference Balancer (DCRB).
3. Two ACR (Automatic Current Regulator) method.
These are discussed below.

Voltage Limiting Control

In the voltage limiting control method, the rectifier and inverter characteristics are arranged
as shown in Fig. 9.9. The loss of a rectifier station does not have any significant effect on the
system operation even in the absence of communication failure. The inverter currents are
reduced in order to prevent voltage collapse. Also, the loss of an inverter station (operating
on current control) would not overload the voltage controlling inverter because of its voltage
reserve.

The drawbacks of this scheme are

(i) The disturbance in the AC system connected to an inverter station can result in other
inverters getting unloaded (due to drop in the DC voltage). This may cause adverse effect on
the AC systems supplied by healthy inverter stations,

(ii) Two or more terminals can operate in the voltage controlling mode forcibly, in the case of
loss of a terminal resulting in indeterminate distribution of currents in those terminals, (m)
Currents during DC line fault or commutation failure are likely to the higher without
additional measures.

Decentralized Current Reference Balancing

This method is similar to the one described by Foerst et al. Without CRB and which operates
on the current and voltage characteristics. DCRB is designed to allow rapid recovery of
MTDC system operation following severe disturbances which require a momentary rundown
of the DC system. The DCRB is supposed to permit the system recovery without coordinated
centralized control of converters and even if one or more of the terminals is removed from
service due to the disturbance.

Two ACR Method

In this method, each-converter is provided with two automatic current regulators (ACR) and
one voltage regulator. The rectifier and inverter control characteristics are shown in Fig. 9.11.

During the normal mode of operation, the rectifier station with the lowest voltage reference
or the inverter station with highest voltage reference acts as voltage setting (see Fig. 9.12).
The remaining converter stations operate under the control of ACR1. Irefl of the voltage
setting terminal is set larger than the operating current (determined by other converters) by
the current margin. The ACR2 operates during a contingency and its order can be fixed at the
minimum operating current of the inverter.

Without additional measures, the inverter may not be able to recover from a commutation
failure. Voltage dependent current order limit (VDCOL) is introduced to overcome this
problem. The operation of a 4 terminal system both during normal conditions and when one
of the converter stations is shutdown is shown in Fig. 9.13. The rectifier with the highest
voltage order and inverter with lowest voltage order are always controlled by ACR1, thus
resulting in small power deviations during a disturbance. This can be utilized to prevent
shutdown of a base station (such as a nuclear power station) or prevent interruption of supply
to a critical AC system. It is claimed that the two ACR method permits the use of DC circuit
breakers to isolate a line fault or converter fault without coordination with control. The
system operation following a disturbance is optimized by modifying the current orders from
central controller. The implementation of the controller is discussed in some detail in using
control block diagrams. The performance of this control technique has been studied using
digital dynamic simulation and HVDC simulator.

PROTECTION OF MTDC SYSTEMS

One of the issues under discussion regarding MTDC system operation is the evaluation of
protection requirements and coordination with control. Conceptually, the system can be shut
down following a fault in DC line or converter station and the faulted component isolated
using high speed disconnect switches. The system can be restarted after adequate time for
deionization of the arc path (in case of short circuits). System reliability considerations
dictate the need for fast clearing of fault with minimum disturbance to the healthy parts of the
system. The DC breaker ratings can be minimized by utilizing the intervention of fast current
controls to reduce the magnitude of the fault currents. The detection of DC line faults gets
complicated in a mesh system. A major problem is the large drop in the DC voltage even for
distance faults. This requires fast detection and clearing of faults to maintain power transfers.
Differential type of protection or directional sensitive measurements of the currents can be
used to locate the fault. Communication would be required in both methods. DC switches
would be required primarily for parallel MTDC systems and particularly in mesh systems to
utilize the improved security provided by such configurations.

STUDY OF MTDC SYSTEMS

The planning, design and operation of MTDC systems require detailed study using simulation
tools. The new control and protection concepts have been formulated using HVDC
simulators. The performance of the controllers are judged not only under normal conditions
with changing load conditions, but also under disturbances caused by faults in the AC system
and DC lines. Some of the typical problems that have been considered for study are as
follows:

1. Operation of small inverter taps connected to weak AC systems

 2. Integration of existing HVDC converter stations in MTDC systems without major
modifications in control
3. Evaluation of communication, reactive power and filtering requirements
4. Security of power transfer without fast communication links
5. Power and reactive power modulation strategies in MTDC systems.
Some of the conclusions from studies carried out indicate the type of problems that can be
anticipated in the operation of MTDC systems connected to weak AC systems.

1. Large smoothing reactor may be required to help in the recovery of a small inverter
from AC faults.
2. The speed of recovery of the entire MTDC system depends upon the recovery of the
small tap, if it is still connected to the system following clearance of a fault.
3. It is necessary to consider the effect of mode shifts and develop additional protection
sequences, particularly for faults in DC line.
4. The provision of VDCOL at each rectifier is beneficial and its characteristics have to be
adjusted suitably.
With a good knowledge of HVDC controls and their accurate modelling, HVDC simulators
(both physical and digital) can be used to analyze problems and search for solutions.

MTDC SYSTEMS USING VSC

The VSC based HVDC transmission is ideally suited for multiterminal operation due to the
following advantages:

(1) The power reversal in a converter is achieved by current reversal which is easily arranged
by control action without having to use mechanical switches to reverse the polarity of the
converter connections to the conductor in a parallel MTDC system. In line commutated
converters, the power reversal requires voltage reversal and this implies that the converter has
to be connected to the conductor of the opposite polarity.
(2) There is no problem of commutation failures in an inverter based on VSC. A VSC based
inverter can even supply passive loads.
(3) The use of Pulse Width Modulation (PWM) eliminates low frequency harmonics and
simple AC filters can be supplied.
(4) There is no need for reactive power compensation of VSC. Actually, a VSC can supply
reactive power and can help in the control of the AC voltage.
However, it is to be noted that harmonic interactions can occur in VSC also and the choice of
the circuit parameters and control design must consider this problem. However, the problem
is likely to be less complicated compared to LCC. One of the drawbacks with VSC is the
problem of handling DC faults. Since DC capacitors can discharge into the fault, the
protection must disconnect the converter from the line or block the firing pulses to the
converter and trip the converter. In the case of LCC rectifier, the action of forced retard (FR)
can help in clearing the fault by deionization of the fault arc.

SUMMARY
Although the concept of MTDC systems has been discussed for a long time, the
implementation has been very limited. The complexities in control and protection have
deterred many utilities from experimenting with MTDC system operation. Introduction of
MTDC systems requires extensive R & D activities to solve the problems associated with
MTDC systems. Meanwhile, it has been recognized that MTDC systems have similarities
With MIDC systems in terms of operational issues. It is anticipated that emerging technology
of VSC-HVDC transmission can help solve many of the problems and encourage utilities to
introduce MTDC systems.
DC CIRCUIT-BREAKERS
INTRODUCTION OF DC CIRCUIT-BREAKERS
The advance of voltage source converter-based (VSC) high-voltage direct current (HVDC)
transmission systems makes it possible to build an HVDC grid with many terminals.
Compared with high-voltage alternating current (AC) grids, active power conduction losses
are relatively low and reactive power conduction losses are zero in an HVDC grid. This
advantage makes an HVDC grid more attractive. However, the relatively low impedance in
HVDC grids is a challenge when a short circuit fault occurs, because the fault penetration is
much faster and deeper. Consequently, fast and reliable HVDC breakers are needed to isolate
faults and avoid a collapse of the common HVDC grid voltage. Furthermore, maintaining a
reasonable level of HVDC voltage is a precondition for the converter station to operate
normally. In order to minimize disturbances in converter operation, particularly the operation
of stations not connected to the faulty line or cable, it is necessary to clear the fault within a
few milliseconds.

Fig1: 800KV HVDC Circuit breaker.

In today’s point-to-point HVDC transmission systems, DC interrupters are used for several
different switching duties. As neutral bus witch (NBS), neutral bus ground switch (NBGS),
metal return transfer breaker (MRTB), ground return transfer breaker (GRTB), high-speed
bypass switch (HSBS), for parallel line switching, and isolation switches also exist.
Interrupters to break DC short-circuit currents have only been realized in very limited
numbers and maximum ratings are 250kV, 8kA or 500kV, 4kA, which is not more than 1.6
times the rated nominal current. The breaking time is in the order of 35ms, but as stated
above, for CSC based systems the large inductances limit the rate of rise of fault current and
this time is sufficiently fast. However, the components of these breakers are very large and
much more costly than AC circuit breakers with comparable current and voltage ratings. In
point-to-point HVDC transmission systems the function of DC breakers has thus typically
been substituted by de-energizing the converter stations, e.g. by acting with the station
control or by operating the breakers on the AC side and the opening of isolation switches. In
low and medium voltage DC applications, short-circuit current interrupting breakers have
been realized based on several different technologies, e.g. switching arcs or solid-state
switches. The difficulties in realizing HVDC circuit breakers can be attributed to the
demanding requirements on circuit breakers in DC systems which are quite different to those
of AC circuit breakers. One of the major differences is the absence of natural current zero
crossings in DC systems. The breakers have to fulfill the following basic requirements.

1) Create a current zero crossing to interrupt the current.

2) Dissipate the energy stored in the system inductance.
3) Withstand the voltage response of the network after current interruption.
In particular the first two requirements lead to a very strong interaction between the breaker
and the DC system, an attribute which is also very different to AC circuit breakers. In
addition to these basic requirements there are, depending on the breaker application,
additional secondary requirements: In VSC-based systems the HVDC breaker has to be able
to interrupt quickly, as was stated above. The maximum voltage generated by the breaker
must be low enough to comply with the insulation coordination of the DC system. This is
particularly important for switching of load currents where the network is at nominal voltage.
BASIC WORKING PRINCIPLES OF HVDC CIRCUIT
BREAKERS
The current in a DC circuit can be brought to zero by generating a counter-voltage of similar
or larger amplitude than the system voltage. This counter-voltage can be produced by
inserting additional resistance or inductance in the current path. The energy of the DC system
is dissipated across this device.

The larger the counter-voltage, the smaller the time needed to interrupt, but the larger the
energy that is dissipated in the device. DC breakers with current limiting and energy
dissipating function of an arc are commonly used in low- and medium-voltage applications.
Some proposals for high-voltage systems have been made, but none of them has proven
efficient and successful in real application.

An alternative is to have several parallel paths in the breaker and to separate the requirements
to different elements. The simplest is one nominal current path and one parallel path with a
linear or non-linear resistive element. The nominal current path typically consists of an
interrupter with low ohmic losses in closed position, which is so far only possible with
movable metallic contacts. Upon opening of these contacts, an arc is established and its
arcing voltage is used to commutate the current to the resistive path where the energy of the
system is then dissipated.

The advantage is that the interrupter in the nominal current path only needs to produce a
voltage sufficient for commutation and not for counter-acting on the full system voltage. In
addition, the breaker does not have to have a large energy dissipating function, which
typically improves its interruption capability. If the commutation path only consists of a
linear resistor, the arc voltage of the interrupter still has to be very high. A gradual insertion
of resistors or non-linear resistors to limit the required commutation voltage would be better.
The commutation process can be eased by adding other elements, such as a capacitor which
temporarily takes the current flow. More recent developments make use of actively
controllable resistances of solid-state devices.

For most of the practically realized HVDC circuit breakers, separate commutation and energy
absorbing paths have been used, as sketched in Fig. 2. The commutation path may then be a
series resonance consisting of a capacitance Cc and inductance Lc so that a current oscillation
between the nominal and the commutation path can occur at the natural frequency. If the
amplitude of the oscillating current in is larger than the system DC current I0, a current zero
crossing occurs in the nominal path and the interrupter Sn can interrupt the current. Current I0
continues to flow, charging the capacitor Cc in the commutation path. If the capacitor voltage
exceeds a given value, typically chosen to be the voltage capability of the breaker or the
insulation coordination of the HVDC system, the energy absorption path acts, causing the
system current I0 to decrease. If the differential arc resistance dU=dI of the interrupter in the
nominal path is negative, a current oscillation between the nominal and the commutation path
with increasing amplitude occurs, started by the natural fluctuation in the arc voltage. Fig. 3
shows the currents in the different paths of the breaker and the voltage across it. At time t0 a
fault occurs and the current I0 starts to increase,
The interrupter contacts of the nominal current path separate at t1 and an instable oscillation
starts due to the characteristics of the arc voltage. At t2 the amplitude of the oscillation is
sufficiently large so that in crosses zero and Sn interrupts. The current quickly charges Cc
until the threshold voltage level of the energy absorbing elements in the third path is reached
at time t3. This path can consist of energy absorbing linear or non-linear resistors that are
inserted with switch Se or be non-linear ZnO varistors that become partly conductive only
above a certain applied voltage and thus don’t need an insertion device. The voltage is limited
by these elements, current only flows through the energy absorbing path and the current I0 of
the system ceases. An alternative to the self-excited growing oscillations with purely passive
components in the commutation path is the use of additional active components, like the
closing switch Sc. If the capacitor Cc is pre-charged, a current is injected into the nominal
path upon closing of Sc and a counter-current is induced.

MORE RECENT ACTIVITIES AND RELATED FIELDS OF

TECHNOLOGY
1) Combined optimization of Topology, Control, and Breaker:

Most of the research on HVDC, multi-terminal schemes, and HVDC circuit breakers focuses
only on a particular individual aspect. Sometimes the breaker is assumed to be known and the
network control is designed around it. Other times, the requirements for HVDC circuit
breakers are set by the system control activities and the breaker has to be designed
accordingly. No combined attempts to optimize the system as a whole are reported. It would
be thinkable to adjust the control scheme to ease the requirements for circuit breakers.
Adding additional inductance to the DC side in VSC-based networks would limit the rate of
rise of the short-circuit current and simplify the hard breaking time requirement, but would
lead to slower control in normal operation. If high impedance grounding is used, the short-
circuit current during DC-line to ground faults is limited. Focusing on only one aspect is most
probably not optimum, only a combined optimization could lead to the globally best solution.
Another example for combined optimization is for VSC-schemes using multi-level
converters. Voltage levels at a fraction of the total DC line voltage occur inside the valve and
in principle it would be possible to interrupt at these levels. The respective DC breakers
would have a lower voltage rating, but the topology of the valves needs to be redesigned to
incorporate DC breakers. Only a combined effort of valve and breaker design would lead to a
satisfying result.

2) Standardization:

A new multiterminal HVDC system will be built using components from more than one
manufacturer. Standards and norms for multiterminal HVDC should be set. This is
particularly important for circuit breakers and their interfaces to the network and protection
system.

3) Solid-State DC breakers:
Also discussed are pure semiconductor switches, not only for HVDC, but also for low and
medium voltage DC and AC. The clear advantage is that the switching time can be as low as
a few, compared to a few (ten) ms of a mechanical switch with separating metal contacts. The
main drawbacks are costs and the fact that the resistance in conducting mode is in the order
of a few m- and thus considerably higher compared to a few for a mechanical switch. The full
forward conduction losses of the solid state devices are » 0:1–0:4% of the transmitted power.
The application of semiconductor switches was thus typically limited to applications where a
high power quality is of crucial importance and the minimum breaking time is absolutely
needed. As stated above, the rate of rise of short-circuit current in VSC-based HVDC
networks is very high. So far, no other HVDC circuit breaker concept is available with
breaking times in the order of 1ms and thus, a solid-state switch is the only feasible solution
today. A single semiconductor device is not able to withstand the full voltage and current
rating, but a series and parallel arrangement of several switches is possible to achieve HVDC
circuit breaker ratings. Research and development in the solid-state switching devices, the
semiconductor material itself, and in concepts where the high on-state losses of solid state
switches can be avoided, so-called hybrid concepts, have to be intensified. This is discussed
in the next two sections.

4) Semiconductor devices:

The performance of semiconductor devices continues to increase constantly, not only in

blocking voltage rating, but also in maximum current rating for a single chip. In future,
HVDC valves and potentially also HVDC circuit breakers can be realized with fewer
components which improves the performance and decreases the losses. Today, all devices are
based on silicon and an even bigger step ahead would be the change of semiconductor
material to a wide band-gap material. SiC, GaN and diamond have been discussed and are
intensively investigated. Wide band gap materials have a higher breakdown field strengths Ec
compared to Si (Si: 0:3, SiC: 1:2 ¡ 2:4, GaN: 3:3, and diamond: 5:6 MV/cm). For a
comparable voltage capability the chip could be significantly thinner which decreases the
losses of the device. For example, a SiC-pin-diode was fabricated with 4:2kV breakdown
voltage with 5 times lower conduction losses than Si-based diodes with comparable ratings.
Still, no competitive wide band-gap devices are commercially available, but research and
development is pursued intensively in this region and great advances can be expected in the
next years or decades. Any progress in this area will influence HVDC technology, including
the possibility of designing solid-state HVDC circuit breakers, significantly.

5) Hybrid circuit breakers:

It was already stated in the last section that semiconductors have high conduction losses and
are thus not optimal as in-line switches or circuit breakers. Hybrid switching schemes are
therefore proposed. Here, the nominal current path is contains a mechanical breaker with low
resistive metal contacts that are separated quickly, causing the current to commutate to a
parallel path with the semiconductor switch. When the current is transferred and the dielectric
strength between the metallic contacts has recovered, the semiconductor switch is operated.
Schemes are proposed for AC circuit breakers, AC capacitor switches, Fault Current Limiting
Units and also for DC circuit breakers. Other hybrid concepts, where gas and vacuum circuit
breakers are connected in series, exist as well. Here speed is not the primary aim, but the
combination of the high current and high frequency interruption capability of vacuum circuit
breakers together with the high voltage withstand capability of gas circuit breakers. These
schemes are continuously under discussion for both HVDC breakers and AC circuit breakers.
These type of hybrid concepts are of principal interest, but the interaction of different devices
is often complex and makes a detailed understanding of the working principle, and careful
consideration when coupling, necessary.

6) Fast Switches:

One of the key devices for hybrid DC circuit breakers using solid-state switches is a very fast
mechanical switch with low conduction losses in the nominal current path. These fast
switches have to operate in < 1ms and to build-up sufficient arc voltage to cause the current
to commutate to the interruption path. Concepts for fast switches based on
electromagnetically driven contacts in air or vacuum circuit breakers have been developed. In
low voltage networks, these switches also have a current limiting function and ratings for
circuit breakers have reached 4kA / 1:5kV with breaking time » 300¹s. The requirements for
fast switches in hybrid breakers operating in < 1ms are independent of AC or DC. For high-
voltage systems, new concepts or series arrangements of many switches would be necessary
and research should be carried out in this area.

7) Fault Current Limiters:

Many of the concepts to fulfill the basic requirements of an HVDC circuit breaker, as
discussed above, are also applicable for fault current limiters (FCL) in both AC and DC
systems. The task of fault current limiters is, as the name implies, to limit the maximum over
current in a power system when a fault occurs. The FCL thus needs to increase the impedance
of the systems, either self triggered or externally triggered. The FCL has to be effective
before the peak current is reached, typically 1-3ms in 50Hz AC systems. In addition, the FCL
has to handle the large amounts of energy dissipated during the limitation. In addition, some
FCL also interrupt the current. If they cannot do so, a load break switch has to be placed in
series to interrupt the limited current. Some review articles have been published and the
details of FCL will not be repeated here. Amongst the different operation principles are solid
state fault current limiters (SSFCL) and hybrid concepts using fast mechanical switches. Both
concepts have been discussed above, but have not been realized for high voltages so far.
Medium-voltage fuses work as self-triggered FCL with interruption capability, but they are
one-shot devices which have to be replaced manually and are widely available only up to 10-
20kV. Superconducting fault current limiters (SCFCL) of resistive type make use of the
intrinsic physical property that superconductors lose their zero resistance above a critical
current density. These types of fault current limiters have low conduction losses in nominal
operation, are fast and resettable but require extensive cooling of the material to reach the
superconducting state. Resistive SCFCL could be used as fast acting commutation switches
placed in the nominal current path, but disconnectors have to be placed in series as the
SCFCL has no voltage withstand capability. Most fault current limiters have been designed
for distribution voltage levels (< 36kV). For the higher voltages on the sub transmission and
transmission level, only limiting reactors and resonance links with in-line capacitors have
been realized. Research and development for high voltage FCL is ongoing and any progress
in this area is also of benefit for HVDC circuit breaker activities. Even unconventional
concepts as a series connection of SCFCL with puffer breaker in LN2 are investigated.

8) Testing:

So far only the circuit breaker itself has been addressed. The breaker or its individual
components have to be tested for functionality during development. Direct testing methods
are not possible for the high power ratings, thus, synthetic testing methods have to be used. In
contrast to AC circuit breaker testing, the breaker interacts strongly with the network and
thus, real energy levels have to be used to stress the breaker appropriately. This is difficult,
costly and leads to strong heating of e.g. the energy dissipating elements. Special test circuits
have been used, mainly for component testing. With power-hardware in the loop methods
individual component tests could be accelerated and simplified. In this method, only the
component of the system which is under investigation is a real physical device. All other
components and their interaction with the test object are simulated with a real-time simulator.
For an HVDC circuit breaker, this could mean that the interaction with the network and the
energy dissipation could be simulated. The corresponding current through the breaker is
calculated and driven by a flexible current source.

REFERENCES:
1. Foerst R., Heyner, G. Kangiesser K.W. and Waldmann, H. ‘Multiterminal Operation of
HVDC Converter Stations’, IEEE Trans., Vol. PAS-88, No.7, pp. 1042–50, July 1969.

2. Kangiesser K.W., Bowles J.P. Ekstrom A., Reeve J. and Rumpf E. ‘HVDC Multiterminal
Systems’, CIGRE 14-08, 1974.

3. J. Reeve, ‘Multiterminal HVDC Power Systems’, IEEE Trans., Vo1. PAS-99, No.2, pp.
729–37, March/April 1980.

4. Joetten R., Bowles J.P., Liss, G. Martin C.J.B. and Rumpf E. ‘Control in HVDC Systems–
The State of the Art’, Part II: Multiterminal Systems, CIGRE 14-07, 1980.

5. Ishikawa I., Machida T. Watanabe A., Konishi H. and Murai K. ‘Development of

Centralized Control System for Multiterminal HVDC Transmission Systems’, IEEE PES
Winter meeting, A78-122-4, 1978.

6. Sakurai T., Goto K., Irokawa S. , Imai K. and Sakai T., ‘A New Control Method for
Multiterminal HVDC Transmission without Fast Communication Systems’, IEEE Trans.,
Vol. PAS-102, pp. 1140–50, May 1983.
7. Reeve J. and Chen S.P., ‘Digital Simulation of a Multiterminal HVDC Transmission
System’, IEEE PES Winter Meeting, 84 WM 199-6, 1984.

8. Krishnayya P.C.S., Lefebvre, S. Sood V.K. and Balu N.J. ‘Simulator Study of
Multiterminal HVDC System with Small Parallel Lap and Weak AC System’, IEEE Trans.,
Vol. PAS-103, pp. 3125–32, Oct. 1984.

9. Nozari F., Grund C.E. and Hauth R.L. ‘Current Order Co-ordination in Multiterminal DC
System’, IEEE Trans., Vol. PAS-l00, pp. 4628–35, Nov. 1981.

10. Needs Christian M. Franck, Member, IEEE, “HVDC Circuit Breakers A Review
Identifying Future Research,” IEEE Trans. Power Del., vol. 9, pp. 1–10, Jul. 2011.