Protection of VSC-based HVDC Transmission Systems, Requirements, Challenges and Recent Advancements

The recent technological advancements related to the power-electronic converters and DC circuit breaker have led to significant opportunities for development of Voltage-Sourced Converter (VSC)-based HVDC transmission systems and specifically HVDC grids. However, protection of the highly advantageous VSC-based HVDC transmission systems is a major challenge that is still constraining the proliferation of these emerging power systems. The impacts of DC-side faults on the VSC-based HVDC system and the host AC grid highly depend on the utilized VSC technologies (e.g.: various MMC topologies) and the system characteristics. This panel will focus on the requirements and challenges associated with protection of VSC-based HVDC transmission systems, considering the state-of-the-art converter, DC circuit breaker, and relay technologies as well as the AC and DC system grounding strategies. Presentations in this panel session: - Novel HVDC Voltage Source Converter Topologies to improve Protection and Fault Current Limiting Capabilities (23PESGM2814)