Dynamic Modeling of Data-Center Power Delivery for Power System Resonance Analysis

TL;DR

This paper develops a detailed dynamic model of data-center power delivery that captures multi-timescale interactions and resonance mechanisms, aiding power system stability analysis.

Contribution

It introduces an explicit, component-informed, grid-integratable model of data-center power chains, revealing how server load fluctuations can induce grid oscillations.

Findings

Model preserves component-level fidelity and inter-stage control interactions.

Server load fluctuations at specific frequencies can excite resonance modes.

Case studies validate the model's effectiveness in realistic scenarios.

Abstract

The rapid proliferation of data centers is reshaping modern power system dynamics. Unlike legacy industrial loads, data centers have power-electronic interfaces whose multi-timescale dynamics can interact strongly with the grid, inducing oscillatory behavior. However, analytical models that are grid-integratable for revealing the underlying resonance mechanisms remain largely unexplored. To fill this research gap, this paper derives an explicit, component-informed dynamic model of data-center power-delivery chains, which preserves component-level fidelity and captures inter-stage control interactions. This model is formulated as a time-invariant representation in the positive-sequence domain, enabling seamless integration with the phasor (or RMS) domain power-system dynamic models. The analytical derivation reveals how realistic server-load fluctuations at specific frequencies can excite coupled control modes, thereby inducing oscillation amplification and propagation in power grids with heterogeneous dynamic resources, including synchronous machines and grid-forming/following inverters. Case studies on test systems with some realistic data center data demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed solutions.