1

New Electric Machine Compensators of Reactive Power

with Double-Axis Excitation

Y. G. SHAKARYAN,
P. V. SOKUR
*
,
T. V. PLOTNIKOVA,
I. Y. DOVGANJUK,
R. D. MNEV

Research & Development Center for
Power Engineering
(Russia)
N. D. PINCHUK,
O. V. ANTONUK,
M. B. ROYTGARTZ,
D. V. ZHUKOV


Power Machines
(Russia)
Y. A. DEMENTYEV
V. M. SEDUNOV




Federal Grid Company of
United Energy System
(Russia)




SUMMARY

As a result of collaboration of R&D CENTER FOR POWER ENGINEERING and plant
Electrosila a new type of the electromachine compensators of reactive power by the capacity
100 MVA with the two-axial excitation and vector control has been designed, constructed and
put into operation. The paper describes the benefits of the compensator, its technical and design
characteristics, as well as a way to control reactive power and electromagnetic torque and shows
the results of experience in reverse reactive power.
The possibility of production of flywheel-compensator, working with variable speed to
compensate fluctuations of active network power and technical advantages of this modification
was considered.










KEYWORDS
Asynchronous machine - doubly-fed machine - reactive power compensator - voltage control-
variable speed - flywheel storage.


*
sokur@vniie.ru



21, rue dArtois, F-75008 PARIS CIGRE 2012
http : //www.cigre.org A1-101

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A reactive power compensator is one of the important components of modern power grids,
designed to maintain voltage in grid nodes and reduce active power losses through choosing the
optimum conditions.
Over the recent time, power systems have widely used static compensators based on power
electronics. Alongside with clear advantages (fast speed of operation, no rotating parts), they
have drawbacks as well (harmonics generation, dependence of reactive power on connection
point voltage).
As distinct from static devices, however, electric machine compensators can withstand short-
time double overloads, which in the case of static devices may only be reached by doubling the
installed capacity. Another important property is resistance to potential surge overvoltages in
lines (caused, for example, by thunderstorm activity).
Research & Development Center for Power Engineering in cooperation with Power Machines
developed, manufactured and placed into operation a new ASK-100-4 electric machine
compensator of reactive power with double-axis excitation and capacity of 100 MV. The
ASK-100-4 compensator is designed for operation in steady state conditions at synchronous
speed. Development and manufacture allowed for the experience of designing double-axis
excitation turbogenerators [1].
The two excitation windings with excitation system and vector control provide new properties
and advantages to such compensators as compared to traditional synchronous compensators with
one excitation winding:
1. Extended reactive power range from +100 MVAr to -100 MVAr (traditional synchronous
compensators have the range from +100 MVAr to -40 MVAr).
2. Faster reactive power (voltage) control speed due to current reversing in excitation
windings.
3. Improved damping of oscillation in response to grid disturbances.
4. Enhanced survivability due to the possibility of operation in backup modes in case of
excitation system failures.
Two ASK-100-4 compensators are installed at Beskudnikovo substation in Moscow. Their basic
specifications are listed in Table 1 and outline drawing is shown in Fig. 1.
Table 1
Parameter Value
Rated power, MV 100
Reactive power, VAr 100
Stator voltage, kV 20
Stator current, 2,900
Rotor winding current:
on axis d,
on axis q,

2,200
740
Speed, rpm 1,500
Total loss in compensator, kW 1,500

The compensator is air-cooled throughout, including oil and bearings. Losses generated in stator
and rotor windings as well as in magnetic cores (in the stator core and the stator shaft) are
withdrawn by direct air-cooling of the stator core and indirect air-cooling of stator and rotor
windings.
The compensator has an open-circuit cooling system with outside air taken in through an air
treatment unit and heated air added in cold weather.
The stator winding face parts are of basket type. Winding bars braided from solid conductor
strands have transpositions in slotted and face parts. The bars are sealed in the slots by gaskets of
semiconducting material and secured with special fiberglass wedges and corrugated woven-glass
reinforced liners. The bars have Class F continuous thermoreactive insulation.
3

Leakage fluxes of the stator winding face parts are damped by copper screens and electric steel
shunts installed under locking rings.


Fig. 1. Outline Drawing of ASK-100-4 Compensator

The rotor is made from a solid forging of special steel providing its mechanical strength in all
selected operating modes of the compensator.
The primary and control excitation windings are placed in the slots. Both slot and turn insulation
of coils is made of fiberglass impregnated with heat-resistance epoxy lacquers (Class F). The
winding is indirectly cooled by air circulating in subslot and radial channels and in the rotor
body tooth splines.
Influence of negative-sequence currents in unbalanced conditions is diminished by the rotor
damping system composed of wedges, flat copper gaskets located beneath wedges and short-
circuit copper segments in the banding space.
Mounted from two sides of the compensator are brush rigs designed to supply excitation current
to slip rings of the rotors primary and control windings. The compensator has static thyristor
reverse excitation.
A thyristor starting device is used for standstill-rotor start and shutdown of the compensator
(including those in emergency conditions with minimized shutdown time).
The compensator features a measuring and diagnostic system that monitors relevant values,
records and warns about any departures from the preset limits.
It is evident from the vector diagram (Fig.2) showing the operation of the double-axis excitation
compensator in various conditions that the excitation current if is comprised of two
components: primary excitation winding current ifd and control excitation winding current
ifq. The control excitation winding contains fewer turns and lower rated current than the
primary excitation winding. MMF of the former is 6% of MMF of the latter.
The control excitation winding is responsible for electromagnetic torque control, thereby
providing static stability in the in-depth reactive power consumption mode.
Air supply from air filter unit

Air release to air filter unit
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As seen from the vector diagram, the in-depth reactive power consumption mode (Q) is provided
by current reversing in the primary excitation winding. This enables high speed of reactive
power control.

Q
=
0

Fig. 2. Vector Diagram of ASK-100-4 Operation in Reactive Power Output and Consumption
Conditions

Figure 3 depicts a transient process at the reverse flow of ASK-100-4 reactive power. The
experiment involved a stepwise change of the automatic voltage regulator (AVR) setting from
the initial value U=1.14 p.u. to U=0.84 p.u. for the time t=7 sec, followed by the restoration of
the initial setting value. With selected voltage setting values, the compensator operates first in
the reactive power output mode (Q=1.14 p.u.) and then changes over to the in-depth reactive
power consumption mode (Q=-0.84 p.u.) at the rated stator current i=1 p.u.
The compensators reactive power reverse flow is caused by ifd current reversing in the
primary excitation winding. The angular position of the ASK rotor (Delta) during the reactive
power reverse flow remains almost unchanged. The reactive power reverse process is
dynamically stable. A new value of voltage across the generator busbars sets after about 0.8 sec
and does not differ by more than 5% from the setting. The maximum change rate of the
compensator reactive power is
300
dt
dQ
MVAr/sec.

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Fig. 3. ASK-100-4 Compensator Reactive Power Reverse Flow
1 stator voltage; 2 reactive power; 3 stator current; 4 d winding excitation current; 5 q
winding excitation current; 6 rotor angular position.

With various failures in the excitation system, the compensator can operate in backup modes:
with primary winding excitation only (-30 MVAr<Q<+100 MVAr);
in asynchronous conditions without excitation (Q-40 MVAr).
The compensator may also be designed for variable speed operation. To this end, a symmetrical
2- or 3-phase excitation winding is placed in a laminated rotor. This not only enhances control
efficiency, but also allows active power of the machine stator circuit to be controlled. This effect
is achieved by means of kinetic energy stored in the compensators rotating rotor. To increase
the stored energy, the compensator is fitted with a flywheel.
Capability of fast active power control, the compensator with flywheel may perform special
functions in a power system:
serve as an emergency control tool in case of inadequate or excess active power;
be used as an additional tool for fast frequency control;
damp an abruptly variable active load on a power system;
extend dynamic stability limits trough fast active power control.
The Federal Grid Company is currently considering the possible use of compensators with
flywheel in Russias power systems.

BIBLIOGRAPHY
[1] Y. G. Shakaryan, I. A. Labunets, P. V. Sokur, T. V. Plotnikova, I. Y. Dovganyuk, N. G
. Shulginov, V. A. Diyachkov, Y. V. Tuzlukova, N. D. Pinchuk, I. A. Kady-Ogly,
V. Y. Zinakov. Experience of developing and operating new types of turbogenerators with
1
2
3
4
5
6
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vector type excitation system for wide-range reactive power control. CIGRE, 2010
Session, paper A1-108, p. 8.