Dynamic Interactions of the MMC-HVDC Grid and its Host AC System Due to AC-Side Disturbances

This paper investigates the dynamic interactions of a modular multilevel converter (MMC) -based HVDC grid and its host ac system during ac-side disturbances. The HVDC grid is composed of five MMC stations that are interconnected through a network of cables and overhead lines. The ac grid includes ten turbine generators. The studies are conducted in the PSCAD platform, including the detailed models of the ac and dc subsystems. The reported case studies indicate that without the HVDC supplementary control functions and based on the conventional$dq$-frame control structure: 1) each MMC behaves as almost a fixed sink/source of power during the ac-side electromechanical transient oscillations; 2) the MMC-HVDC grid effectively improves dynamic interactions between ac subsystems that are connected only by the HVDC grid; 3) without appropriate provisions, the embedded MMC-HVDC grid can aggravate the transients of the host ac system, for example, interarea oscillations. The observations also contradict the widely accepted notion that even without supplementary controllers, the MMC-HVDC grid necessarily improves the dynamics of the ac system. The study results provide a comprehensive insight into the transient behavior of the MMC-based HVDC-AC grid. Such an understanding is essential to design the protection and control systems of the future HVDC-AC grids.