International Journal of Electrical Engineering Education 46/4
Transmission line shunt and series
compensation with voltage sensitive loads
Ulas Eminoglu
3
, M. Hakan Hocaoglu
1
and Tankut Yalcinoz
3
1
Department of Electronics Engineering, Gebze Institute of Technology, Kocaeli, Turkey
2
Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering, Nigde University, Nigde, Turkey
3
Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering, Meliksah University, Talas, Kayseri,
Turkey
E-mail:
[email protected]Abstract
This paper presents an analysis of the effects of shunt and series line compensation
levels on the transmission line voltage profi
le, transferred power and transmission losses for different
static load models. For this purpose, a simple model is developed to calculate the series and/or shunt
compensated transmission line load voltage. Consequently, different shunt and series compensation
levels are used with several voltage sensitive load models for two different line models. It is observed
that the compensation level is signifi cantly affected by the voltage sensitivities of loads. Moreover,
the voltage level of the transmission is an important issue for the selection of the shunt and series
capacitor sizes when load voltage dependency is used.
Keywords
selection of capacitor sizes; shunt and series compensations; transmission systems;
voltage sensitive loads
In electrical power systems, shunt capacitive compensation is widely employed
to reduce the active and reactive power losses and to ensure satisfactory voltage
levels during excessive reactive loading conditions. Shunt capacitive compensation
devices are normally distributed throughout transmission or distribution systems
so as to minimise losses and voltage drops. There are two types of shunt compensa-
tion: active and passive. For passive compensation, shunt capacitors have been
extensively used since the 1930s. They are either permanently connected to the
system, or switched, and they contribute to voltage control by modifying character-
istics of the network.
1
Improvements in the fi
eld of power electronics have had a
major impact on the development of shunt active compensators, which are Static
Var Compensator (SVC) and Static Compensator (Statcom) devices. One of the
most important applications of such devices is to keep system voltage profi
les at
desirable levels by compensating for the system reactive power. By employing these
devices for reactive power compensation, both the stress on the heavily loaded lines
and losses are easily reduced as a consequence of line loadability, which is
increased.
2
In series compensation, capacitors are connected in series with the transmission
and distribution lines. This reduces the transfer reactance between buses to which
the line is connected, increases the maximum power that can be transmitted, and
reduces the effective reactive power losses. Although series capacitors are not
usually implemented for voltage control, they do contribute to improving the system
voltage and reactive power balance. The reactive power produced by a series capaci-
tor increases with transferred power of the transmission line.
3–4
Shunt and series line compensation
355
International Journal of Electrical Engineering Education 46/4
In electrical power systems, load modelling is a diffi
cult problem due to the fact
that the electrical loads of a system comprise residential, commercial, industrial and
municipal loads. It should also be noted that variation of the loads over time and
number of uncertainties, spanning from economic parameters to the weather condi-
tions, signifi
cantly increase the complexity of the load modelling process. On the
other hand, aggregate load models, which represent the load as an algebraic equation,
have extensively been used for various power system studies to understand and
analyse system behaviour under various conditions. Traditionally, most of the con-
ventional load fl
ow methods, for transmission and distribution systems, use the
constant-power load model. The constant-power load model is highly questionable,
especially for a distribution system where most of the buses are uncontrolled. For
transmission systems, where loads are generally served through transformers
equipped with OLTCs (on-load tap changers), it is reasonable to use a constant
power model for the analyses. However, economic and environmental force con-
strains the system operators to exploit existing power structure to the limits. This
can cause voltage stability problems and increases the risk of voltage collapse.
5
It
is widely recognized that, for weak power systems, the dynamic behavior of OLTCs
contributes to the voltage collapse. Accordingly, OLTC blocking becomes a usual
practice among the operators of weak systems.
6
Therefore, like distribution systems,
the constant power load model becomes questionable for particularly weak transmis-
sion systems. Accordingly a number of studies, found in the literature, deal with the
effects of static load models on various power systems phenomena.
7–15
In Ref. 7, the authors analysed the effect of static loads modelled as an exponential
form on the optimal load fl
ow solution. The load fl
ow solutions are compared with
the standard optimal load fl
ow solutions. The authors showed that the differences in
fuel cost, total power loss and voltage values are signifi
cant. Moreover, they con-
cluded that the required iteration numbers are higher when the system is heavily
loaded. For distribution systems with constant-power, constant-current and constant
impedance loads, a new load fl
ow algorithm has been proposed and the effects of
these load models on the convergence pattern of the load fl
ow method have been
studied by Haque in Ref. 8. Results of the load fl
ow show that the constant power
load model gives the lowest voltage profi
le while the constant impedance load model
provides the highest voltage profi
le. It is seen from the results that the convergence
of the load fl
ow solutions gets diffi
cult when load exponents increase. The effects
of voltage-dependent load on the convergence ability of the load fl
ow method for
different characteristics of the distribution system are also analysed in Ref. 9. In this
study, the convergence ability of the proposed power fl
ow algorithm has been com-
pared with the Ratio-Flow method,
10
which is based on Kirchoff Voltage Law (KVL)
and Kirchoff Current Law (KCL) for different loading conditions, different R/X ratio
and different voltage levels, under a wide range of load exponents in radial distribu-
tion systems. The authors have concluded that load exponents have a signifi
cant
effect on the convergence ability of KVL- and KCL-based load fl
ow method and
load fl
ow solutions.
The effect of shunt capacitor compensation on the voltage regulation of distribu-
tion systems for different static load models has been presented.
12
A set of non-linear
356
U. Eminoglu, M. H. Hocaoglu and T. Yalcinoz
International Journal of Electrical Engineering Education 46/4
equations is established for radial systems by considering power balance and injected
power in terms of system parameters; consequently these equations are solved for
three types of loads: constant power, constant current and constant impedance load.
In this study, the effects of shunt capacitor levels on load voltage magnitude are
analysed for voltage levels lower than 1 p.u. It is demonstrated that the effect of
shunt capacitor sizes on the voltage magnitude increases with decrease of voltage
sensitivity of the static load. El-Metwally
13
has developed a method for assessing
the loadability limit of high voltage compensated transmission lines taking into
account the effect of load characteristics. The effect of voltage and/or frequency-
dependent load on the maximum power transfer limit and critical voltage of the
series and shunt compensated lines are investigated. Results show that the critical
voltage and maximum power transfer limit of the less voltage-sensitive loads are
greater than the more sensitive load. Ramalingam and Indulkar
14
have presented the
effects of load characteristics on the load voltage and current magnitudes, load phase
angle, active and reactive power losses of transmission lines for different static load
types. Results show that when load voltage sensitivity increases, the transferred
power and the transmission line power loss decrease. The same authors
15
have also
analysed the effects of tap-changing transformer control on the power voltage char-
acteristics of compensated EHV transmission lines for different static load types. It
should be noted that authors have only studied under 1 p.u. line voltage level. The
effect of high voltage level is not studied in all references cited above.
This paper presents the effects of shunt and series compensation levels on the
transmission system voltage profi
le, transferred power, and line losses for different
static load models. For this purpose a simple model is developed to calculate series
and/or shunt compensated transmission line load voltage. The developed theory
takes into account voltage dependency of static loads, transmission line parameters,
and series and/or shunt compensator reactance. Two different line models (nominal
π
circuit model and distributed line model) are used for analysing the effects of dif-
ferent static load models on transmission system performance. Effect of voltage
sensitivity of loads on the selection of shunt capacitor sizes for different voltage
levels is also analysed giving particular emphasis to the voltage level higher than
1 p.u.
Static load models
In electric power system analysis, loads may be modelled as a function of voltage
and/or frequency and this type of modelling is considered static. Common static load
models for active and reactive powers are expressed in a polynomial or an exponen-
tial form. A static load model depending on the powers relation to the voltage as a