Mitigation of power system forced oscillations based on unified power flow controller

Forced oscillations (FOs), or low-frequency oscillations (LFOs) caused by periodic, continuous, small power disturbances, threaten the security and stability of power systems. Flexible AC transmission system (FACTS) devices can effectively mitigate LFOs via stability control. We propose a novel method that mitigates FOs by shifting the resonant frequency. Based on the features of the linearized swing equation of a generator, a resonant frequency shift can be achieved by controlling the synchronous torque coefficient using a unified power flow controller (UPFC). Because of the resonance mechanism, the steady-state response of an FO can be effectively mitigated when the resonant frequency changes from the original one, which was close to the disturbance frequency. The principle is that a change in resonant frequency affects the resonance condition. Simulations are conducted in a single-machine infinite-bus (SMIB) system, and the simulation results verify that the method is straightforward to implement and can significantly mitigate FOs. The controller robustness when the resonant frequency is not accurately estimated is also analyzed in the simulations.