System-Level Performance and Robustness of the Grid-Forming Hybrid Angle Control

TL;DR

This paper evaluates the system-level performance and robustness of a multi-variable hybrid angle control (HAC) for high-power converters, demonstrating its advantages over other schemes in stability and robustness, with improvements through retuning and control augmentation.

Contribution

It introduces a novel hybrid angle control scheme, compares its performance with existing methods, and proposes enhancements and theoretical stability extensions for multi-converter systems.

Findings

HAC improves small-signal frequency stability in low-inertia grids.

HAC exhibits robustness similar to dc-based matching control.

Retuning control parameters enhances frequency performance.

Abstract

This paper investigates the implementation and application of the multi-variable grid-forming hybrid angle control (HAC) for high-power converters in transmission grids. We explore the system-level performance and robustness of the HAC concept in contrast to other grid-forming schemes i.e., power-frequency droop and matching controls. Our findings suggest that similar to the ac-based droop control, \ac{hac} enhances the small-signal frequency stability in low-inertia power grids, and akin to the dc-based matching control, HAC exhibits robustness when accounting for the practical limits of the converter systems. Thus, HAC combines the aforementioned complementary advantages. Furthermore, we show how retuning certain control parameters of the grid-forming controls improve the frequency performance. Last, as separate contributions, we introduce an alternative control augmentation that enhances the robustness and provides theoretical guidelines on extending the stability certificates of \ac{hac} to multi-converter systems.