Bifurcation Analysis of Converter-Dominated Electrical Distribution Systems

The concepts of power system stability have been under review by both researchers and system operators because of the massive introduction of converter-interfaced power sources and loads to electrical grids. Power converters are mainly connected to networks that have a low short-circuit ratio (i.e. weak grids), where the power-transfer capability is greatly restricted by operational constraints. Different techniques have been proposed over the years for analysing operational limits of traditional power systems. However, these techniques have been scarcely applied in electrical distribution systems dominated by power electronics converters. In this paper, bifurcation theory is applied to analyze the maximum power transfer capability of a weak electrical distribution system with high penetration of power electronics interfaces. This analysis can be used to predict instabilities when the system parameters change. Simulation and experimental results are provided to demonstrate and validate the presented work.
IEEE Keywords
Power system stability
,
Mathematical model
,
Bifurcation
,
Stability analysis
,
Circuit stability
,
Load modeling
,
Induction motors