The Impact of Integration of the VSC-HVDC Connected Offshore Wind Farm on Torsional Vibrations of Steam Turbine Generators

Abstract

For remote offshore wind farms, transmitting power to the main onshore grid via a Voltage Source Converter High Voltage Direct Current (VSC-HVDC) system is the mainstream of power transmission. It is not only cost-effective in long-distance transmission, but also can fully meet the grid side requirements such as black start, voltage support, fault ride through and frequency support. However, it still has some problems, such as the possible impact on the power grid needing to be paid attention to. In this paper, its impact on the torsional responses of turbine generator units neighboring to the onshore side of AC bus is studied by using the DIgSILENT PowerFactory software. It is found that the effects of the Sub-Synchronous Torsional Interaction (SSTI) with onshore controls and the generator de-rating operations can significantly affect the damping ratio of turbine torsional modes, whereas the effects of the machine configurations and the amount of wind farm power integrated can affect the electrical torque disturbance. The most noteworthy is that their effects can be superimposed on each other if these factors act simultaneously, which would lead to increased vibrations and reduce the turbine shaft’ s life. The findings will be helpful for avoiding accidents caused by torsional vibrations when it is going to integrate a VSC-HVDC connected wind farm into a power grid.