1.

1 Historical Background

A high-voltage, direct current (HVDC) electric power transmission system (also

called a power super highway or an electrical super highway) uses direct current for
the bulk transmission of electrical power, in contrast with the more common
alternating current (AC) systems.[5] For long-distance transmission, HVDC systems may
be less expensive and suffer lower electrical losses. For underwater power cables,
HVDC avoids the heavy currents required to charge and discharge the cable
capacitance each cycle. For shorter distances, the higher cost of DC conversion
equipment compared to an AC system may still be justified, due to other benefits of
direct current links.
HVDC allows power transmission between unsynchronized AC transmission
systems. Since the power flow through an HVDC link can be controlled independently
of the phase angle between source and load, it can stabilize a network against
disturbances due to rapid changes in power. HVDC also allows transfer of power
between grid systems running at different frequencies, such as 50 Hz and 60 Hz. This
improves the stability and economy of each grid, by allowing exchange of power
between incompatible networks.
Power Transmission was initially carried out in the early 1880s using Direct
Current (DC). With the availability of transformers (for stepping up the voltage for
transmission over long distances and for stepping down the voltage for safe use), the
development of robust induction motor (to serve the users of rotary power), the
availability of the superior synchronous generator, and the facilities of converting AC
to DC when required, AC gradually replaced DC. However in 1928, arising out of the
introduction of grid control to the mercury vapour rectifier around 1903, electronic
devices began to show real prospects for high voltage direct current (HVDC)

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transmission, because of the ability of these devices for rectification and inversion.
The most significant contribution to HVDC came when the Gotland Scheme in
Sweden was commissioned in 1954 to be the World's first commercial HVDC
transmission system. This was capable of transmitting 20 MW of power at a voltage of
-100 kV and consisted of a single 96 km cable with sea return.
1.2 Comparison of AC and DC transmission:
1.2.1 Advantages of HVDC over AC:
1) Technical Merits of HVDC:
The advantages of a DC link over an AC link are:
 A DC link allows power transmission between AC networks with different
frequencies or networks, which cannot be synchronized, for other reasons.
 Inductive and capacitive parameters do not limit the transmission capacity
or the maximum length of a DC overhead line or cable. The conductor cross
section is fully utilized because there is no skin effect.
For a long cable connection, e.g. beyond 40 km, HVDC will in most cases offer the
only technical solution because of the high charging current of an AC cable. This is
of particular interest for transmission across open sea or into large cities where a
DC cable may provide the only possible solution.
1 A digital control system provides accurate and fast control of the active power flow.
2 Fast modulation of DC transmission power can be used to damp power
oscillationsin an AC grid and thus improve the system stability.
2) Economic considerations:
For a given transmission task, feasibility studies are carried out before the final
decision on implementation of an HVAC or HVDC system can be taken. Fig.1 showsa
typical cost comparison curve between AC and DC transmission considering:

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  AC vs. DC station terminal costs
 AC vs. DC line costs
 AC vs. DC capitalized value of losses
The DC curve is not as steep as the AC curve because of considerably lower line
costs per kilometer. For long AC lines the cost of intermediate reactive power
compensation has to be taken into account. The break-even distance is in the
range of 500 to 800 km depending on a number of other factors, like country-
specific cost elements, interest rates for project financing, loss evaluation,
costof right of way etc.

Fig 1: total cost/distance

3) During bad weather conditions, the corona loss and radio interference are
lower for a HVDC line compared to that in an AC line of same voltage and same
conductor size.

4) Due to the absence of inductance in DC, an HVDC line offers better voltage
regulation. Also, HVDC offers greater controllability compared to HVAC.
5) AC power grids are standardized for 50 Hz in some countries and 60 Hz in
other. It is impossible to interconnect two power grids working at different
frequencies with the help of an AC interconnection. An HVDC link makes this
possible.
6) Interference with nearby communication lines is lesser in the case of HVDC
overhead line than that for an HVAC line.
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 7) In longer distance HVAC transmission, short circuit current level in the
receiving system is high. An HVDC system does not contribute to the short
circuit current of the interconnected AC system.
8) Power flow control is easy in HVDC link.
9) High reliability.

1.2.2 Disadvantages of HVDC transmission:

 Converter stations needed to connect to AC power grids are very expensive.

Converter substations are more complex than HVAC substations, not only in
additional converting equipment, but also in more complicated control and
regulating systems.
 In contrast to AC systems, designing and operating multi-terminal HVDC
systems is complex.
 Converter substations generate current and voltage harmonics, while the
conversion process is accompanied by reactive power consumption. As a
result, it is necessary to install expensive filter-compensation units and
reactive power compensation units.

 During short-circuits in the AC power systems close to connected HVDC

substations, power faults also occur in the HVDC transmission system for the
duration of the short-circuit.
 The number of substations within a modern multi-terminal HVDC
transmission system can be no larger than six to eight, and large differences
in their capacities are not allowed. The larger the number of substations, the
smaller may be the differences in their capacities.
 The high-frequency constituents found in direct current transmission
systems can cause radio noise in communications lines that are situated
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 near the HVDC transmission line.
 Grounding HVDC transmission involves a complex and difficult installation,
as it is necessary to construct a reliable and permanent contact to the
Earth for proper operation and to eliminate the possible creation of a
dangerous “step voltage.”

1.3 Applications of HVDC transmission:

Connecting remote generation
Some energy sources, such as hydro and solar power, are often located
hundreds or thousands kilometers away from the load centers. HVDC will
reliably deliver electricity generated from mountain tops, deserts and seas
across vast distances with low losses.
Interconnecting grids
Connecting ac grids is done for stabilization purposes and to allow energy
trading. During some specific circumstances, the connection has to be done
using HVDC, for example when the grids have different frequencies or when the
connection has to go long distances over water and ac cables cannot be used
because of the high losses.

Connecting offshore wind

Wind parks are often placed far out at sea, because the wind conditions are
more advantageous there. If the distance to the grid on land exceeds a certain
stretch, the only possible solution is HVDC - due to the technology’s low losses.
Power from shore
Traditionally, oil and gas platforms use local generation to supply the electricity
needed to run the drilling equipment and for the daily need of often hundreds
of persons working on the platform. If the power is instead supplied from

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 shore, via an hvdc link, costs go down, emissions are lower and the working
conditions on the platform are improved.
Dc links in ac grids
HVDC links within an ac grid can be successfully utilized to strengthen the
entire transmission grid, especially under demanding load conditions and
during system disturbances. Transmission capacity will improve and
bottlenecks be dissolved.
City-center in feed
HVDC systems are ideal for feeding electricity into densely populated urban
centers. Because it is possible to use land cables, the transmission is invisible,
thus avoiding the opposition and uncertain approval of overhead lines.
Connecting remote loads
Islands and remotely located mines often have the disadvantage of a weak
surrounding ac grid. Feeding power into the grid with an HVDC link, improves
the stability and even prevents black-outs.

1.4 Types of DC link:

For connecting two networks or system, various types of HVDC links are used.
HVDC links are classified into three types. These links are explained below:
1) Monopolar link:
It has a single conductor of negative polarity and uses earth or sea for
the return path of current. Sometimes the metallic return is also used. In the
Monopolar link, two converters are placed at the end of each pole. Earthling
of poles is done by earth electrodes placed about 15 to 55 km away from the
respective terminal stations. But this link has several disadvantages because
it uses earth as a return path. The monopolar link is not much in use
nowadays.
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 Fig 2: monopolar DC link
2) Bipolar link:
The Bipolar link has two conductors one is positive, and the other one is
negative to the earth. The link has converter station at each end. The
midpoints of the converter stations are earthed through electrodes. The
voltage of the earthed electrodes is just half the voltage of the conductor
used for transmission the HVDC.

The most significant advantage of the bipolar link is that if any of their links
stop operating, the link is converted into Monopolar mode because of the
ground return system. The half of the system continues supplies the power.
Such types of links are commonly used in the HVDC systems.

Fig 3: bipolar DC link

3) Homopolar link:

It has two conductors of the same polarity usually negative polarity, and
always operates with earth or metallic return. In the homopolar link, poles
are operated in parallel, which reduces the insulation cost. The homopolar
systemis not used presently.

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 Fig 3: homopolar DC link
1.5 Typical layout of HVDC system:

The HVDC system has the following main components.

 Converter Station
 Converter Unit
 Converter Valves
 Converter Transformers
 Filters
o AC filter
o DC filter
o High-frequency filter
 Reactive Power Source
 Smoothing Reactor
 HVDC System Pole
1.5.1 Converter Station:

The terminal substations which convert an AC to DC are called rectifier

terminal while the terminal substations which convert DC to AC are called
inverter terminal. Every terminal is designed to work in both the rectifier and
inverter mode. Therefore, each terminal is called converter terminal, or
rectifier terminal. A two-terminal HVDC system has only two terminals and one
HVDC line.
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 Fig 4: schematic diagram of typical HVDC converter station

1.5.2 Converter unit:

The conversion from AC to DC and vice versa is done in HVDC converter stations by
using three-phase bridge converters. This bridge circuit is also called Graetz circuit. In

HVDC transmission a 12-pulse bridge converter is used. The converter obtains by

connecting two or 6-pulse bridge in series.

Fig 5: circuit for 6-pulse bridge

1.5.3 Converter transformer:

The converter transformer converts the AC networks to DC networks or vice versa.

They have two sets of three phase windings. The AC side winding is connected to the
AC bus bar, and the valve side winding is connected to valve Bridge. These windings
are connected in star for one transformer and delta to another.
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The AC side windings of the two, three phase transformer are connected in stars with
their neutrals grounded. The valve side transformer winding is designed to withstand
alternating voltage stress and direct voltage stress from Valve Bridge. There are
increases in eddy current losses due to the harmonics current. The magnetization in
the core of the converter transformer is because of the following reasons.

 The alternating voltage from AC network containing fundamentals and

severalharmonics.
 The direct voltage from valve side terminal also has some harmonics.
1.5.4 Filters:

The AC and DC harmonics are generated in HVDC converters. The AC harmonics are
injected into the AC system, and the DC harmonics are injected into DC lines. The
harmonics have the following advantages.

 It causes the interference in telephone lines.

 Due to the harmonics, the power losses in machines and capacitors

areconnected in the system.
 The harmonics produced resonance in an AC circuit resulting in over
voltages.
 Instability of converter controls.

The harmonics are minimized by using the AC, DC and high-frequency filters. The
types of filter are explained below in details.

 AC Filters – The AC filters are RLC circuit connected between phase and earth.
They offered low impedances to the harmonic frequencies. Thus, the AC
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 harmonic currents are passed to earth. Both tuned and damped filters are used.
The AC harmonic filter also provided a reactive power required for satisfactory
operation of converters.

 DC Filters – The DC filter is connected between the pole bus and neutral
bus. It diverts the DC harmonics to earth and prevents them from
entering DC lines.Such a filter does not require reactive power as DC line does not require
DCpower.

 High-Frequency Filters – The HVDC converter may produce electrical noise in

the carrier frequency band from 20 kHz to 490 kHz. They also generate radio
interference noise in the megahertz range frequencies. High-frequency filters
are used to minimise noise and interference with power line carrier
communication. Such filters are placed between the converter transformer and
the station AC bus.

1.5.5 Converter Valves:

The modern HVDC converters use 12-pulse converter units. The total number of
a valve in each unit is 12. The valve is made up of series connected thyristor modules.
The number of thyristor valve depends on the required voltage across the valve. The
valves are installed in valve halls, and they are cooled by air, oil, water or Freon.

Fig 6:circuit for 12-pulse converter

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1.5.6 Reactive power source:

Reactive power is required for the operations of the converters. The AC harmonic
filters provide reactive power partly. The additional supply may also be obtained from
shunt capacitors synchronous phase modifiers and static VAR systems. The choice
depends on the speed of control desired.

1.5.7 Smoothing reactor:

Smoothing reactor is an oil filled oil cooled reactor having a large inductance. It is
connected in series with the converter before the DC filter. It can be located either on
the line side or on the neutral side. Smoothing reactors serve the following purposes.

1. They smooth the ripples in the direct current.

2. They decrease the harmonic voltage and current in the DC lines.
3. They limit the fault current in the DC line.
4. Consequent commutation failures in inverters are prevented by smoothing
reactors by reducing the rate of rising of the DC line in the bridge when the
direct voltage of another series connected voltage collapses.
5. Smoothing reactors reduce the steepness of voltage and current surges
from the DC line. Thus, the stresses on the converter valves and valve surge
diverters are reduced.

1.5.8 HVDC System Pole:

The HVDC system pole is the part of an HVDC system consisting of all the
equipment in the HVDC substation. It also interconnects the transmission lines
which during normal operating condition exhibit a common direct polarity with

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 respect to earth. Thus the word pole refers to the path of DC which has the same
polarity with respect to earth. The total pole includes substation pole and
transmission line pole.

1.6 Analysis of Gratez circuit:

The basic module for HVDC converter is the three phase, full wave bridge circuit.
This circuit is also known as a Graetz Bridge. The Graetz Bridge has been universally
used for HVDC converters as it provides better utilization of the

convertertransformer and a lower voltage across the valve when not conducting, this
voltage is called Peak Inverse Voltage called PIV and is important for selection ofthe
Thyristor. The bridge converter is represented by th e equivalent circuit in fig. (3)
with transformer and source impedance with a loss less inductance. Direct current
is assumed to be ripple free and valves as ideal switches with zero resistance when
conducting and infinite resistance when not conducting.

Fig 7: circuit diagram for Graetz Bridge

Let the instantaneous line – to – neutral source voltages
beea = Em Cos( ωt+60º )
eb = Em Cos( ωt-60º )ec
= Em Cos( ωt-180º)
Then the line-to-line voltages are
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10
 eac = ea-ec = √3EmCos( ωt+30º )
eba = eb-ea = √3EmCos( ωt-90º )
ecb = ec-eb = √3EmCos( ωt+150º )
For the 6-valve bridge, with zero firing delay, the voltage waveforms across the
thyristors are shown in figure. At any given instant, one thyristor valve on either side
is conducting. The conducting period for the thyristor valve R1 is shown on the
diagram.

Fig 8: Thyristor voltage waveforms (α=0)

Fig 9: dc output waveforms (α=0)

It can be shown that for the 6-valve bridge, the total r.m.s. ripple is of the order of
4.2% of the d.c. value (for zero delay α=0 and zero commutation γ=0.
The use of a choke reduces the ripple appearing in the direct current transmitted. If E
is the r.m.s. line-to-line voltage, then if α=0 and γ=0, the direct output voltage is
given by

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1.6.1 Control angle (Delay angle):
The control angle for rectification (also known as the ignition angle) is the angle by
which firing is delayed beyond the natural take over for the next thyristor. The
transition could be delayed using grid control. Grid control is obtained by
superposing a positive pulse on a permanent negative bias to make the grid
positive.Once the thyristor fires, the grid loses control.
Assuming no commutation (2 thyristors on same side conducting simultaneously
during transfer), the voltage waveforms across the thyristors as shown in figure:

Fig 10: Thyristor voltage waveforms (with delay α)

In this case, the magnitude of the direct voltage output is given by the equation

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1.6.2 Commutation angle (overlap angle):
The commutation period between two thyristors on the same side of the bridge is the
angle by which one thyristor commutates to the next. During this period γ 2
conductingthyristors on the same side. This is shown in figure.

With both the delay angle and commutation being present, the magnitude of the direct
voltage may be determined from equation

An alternate method of derivation of the result is based on comparison of similar

areason the waveform. Figure

d.c. output = average value of waveform

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In this integral, in graphical form, area A1 can be replaced by area B1. Similarly, area
A2 can be replaced by area B2 and area A3 by area B3. The integral equation then
reduces to the form shown below.

Where √2 E is the peak value of the line voltage. Simplification gives the desired
result as in equation

1.6.3 Current Waveforms:

If Commutation is not considered, the current waveforms through each thyristor
(assuming a very high value of inductance Ld in the DC circuit to give complete
smoothing) is a rectangular pulse lasting exactly one-third of a cycle. This is shown in
figure for the cases without delay and with delay.

Fig 11: Thyristor current waveforms

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When commutation is considered, the rise and fall of the current waveforms would
be modified as they would no longer be instantaneous, as shown in figure.

Since each phase has 2 thyristors on the opposite half cycles, the a.c. current
waveformon the secondary side of the transformer has a non-sinusoidal waveform as
shown in figure

If commutation angle is not considered, we can easily calculate the r.m.s. value of the
AC current on the transformer secondary Is as in equation.

Usually harmonic filters are provided on the AC system, so that only the fundamental
component need to be supplied/absorbed from the AC system. From Fourier
analysis, it can be shown that the fundamental component is given as follows,
resulting in equation

If filters were not provided, it can be shown, using the Fourier series analysis, that the
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RMS ripple on the AC system would be 0.242 Id (or 31 % of the fundamental)
Note: For normal operation neglecting the commutation angle, in the
abovecalculations of the alternating current, gives rise to an error only of the
order of 1%.
As can be seen from the voltage and current waveforms on the AC side, the current
lags the voltage due to the presence of the delay angle α and commutation angle γ.

1.6.4 Inversion:
Because the thyristors conduct only in one direction, the current in a convertor
cannot be reversed. Power reversal can only be obtained by the reversal of the direct
voltage (average value) Vd.
For inversion to be possible, a high value of inductance must be present, and the
delay angle α>900 since Vd changes polarity at this angle. The theoretical maximum
delay forinversion would occur at α=1800.
Thus it is common practice to define a period of advance from this point rather than a
delay from the previous cross-over as defined for rectification. Thus we define β=π-
α as the ignition angle for inversion or angle of advance. Similarly extinction angle is
defined as δ =π-w. The definition of the commutation angle γ is unchanged. Thus β=
δ+γ.
Thus we have the practical relationship δ0 < β < π/2.

Fig 12: Thyristor voltage waveforms for inversion

Inversion cannot of course be carried out without a DC power source. Further, to
obtain the necessary frequency for the AC on inversion, the commutation
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voltageis obtained from either synchronous machines or from the AC system fed.
In isolated systems, L C circuits may also be sometimes used for the purpose.
Figure shows the thyristor voltage waveforms for inversion.

During inversion, each thyristor conducts during the negative half cycle, so that
the direct voltage waveform and the corresponding current have the form shown
in figure.

Fig 13: Direct voltage waveform & thyristor current waveform

The equations derived earlier for the convertor are valid. However, they are usually
written in terms of the variables β and δ instead of α and ω.

Since the direct voltage is always negative during inversion, it is common practice
to omit the negative sign from the expression. It can also be shown that

The power factor of the inverter can be shown to be given by the equation

It is common practice to operate the inverter at a constant extinction angle δ (100

to200).

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 Unit-II
Converter and HVDC system Control
2.1 Principle of DC link control:
A DC link is a connection which connects a rectifier and an inverter. These
links are found in converter circuits and in VFD circuits. The AC supply of a specific
frequency is converted into DC. This DC, in turn, is converted into AC voltage.

Fig 14: DC Link

The DC link is the connection between these two circuits. The DC link usually has a
capacitor known as the DC link Capacitor. This capacitor is connected in parallel
between the positive and the negative conductors.
The DC capacitor helps prevent the transients from the load side from going back to
the distributor side. It also serves to smoothen the pulses in the rectified DC.

2.2 control characteristics of converter:

The control characteristics of the convertor are the plots of the variation of the
direct voltage against the direct current. These are described in the following
sections.

2.2.1 Natural Voltage Characteristic (NV) and the Constant Ignition Angle (CIA)
control:
The Natural Voltage Characteristic corresponds to zero delay angle α=0. This

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has characteristic equation given byVd V0 (3wLc / )Id . The Constant Ignition Angle
control is a similar characteristic which is parallel to the NV characteristic with a
controllable intercept V0cosα.

2.2.2 Constant Extinction Angle (CEA) control:

The Invertor is usually operated at constant extinction angle. This has the
characteristic equation given by Vd V0 (3wLc / )Id . This is shown in below fig.

2.2.3 Constant Current Control (CC):

In a d.c. link it is common practice to operate the link at constant current rather
than at constant voltage. [Of course, constant current means that current is held
nearly constant and not exactly constant]. In constant current control, the power is
varied by varying the voltage. There is an allowed range of current settings within
which thecurrent varies.
2.2.4 Full Characteristic of Convertor:
The complete characteristic of each convertor has the N.V. characteristic and
equipped with C.C. control and the C.E.A. control. This is shown in figure for a single
convertor.

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2.2.5 Compounding of Convertors:
Figure shows a system of 2 convertors, connected by a hvdc link. Both
convertors are provided with CEA and CC control so that either can work as a rectifier
or an invertor. The compounded characteristics are shown in figure.

The margin setting Idm between the current setting Ids for the invertor and for the
rectifier is usually kept at about 10% to 20% of the current setting. The setting of the
convertor operating as rectifier is kept higher than the setting of that as invertor by
the margin setting Idm.

The usual operating point for power transfer is the intersection of the CC control of
the rectifier and the CEA control of the inverter. (For comparison, the characteristics
of convertor B have been drawn inverted). It must also be ensured by proper tap
changing that the N.V. characteristic of the convertor operating in the

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rectification mode ishigher than the C.E.A. characteristic of the inverter, as Vo of the
two ends are not necessarily equal.
With convertor A operating as rectifier, and convertor B operating as inverter, the
steady state current under all circumstances will remain within the upper limit (Ids +
Idm) and the lower limit Ids. That is, the system direct current will not change by more
than Idm under all operating conditions. By reversing the margin setting Idm, that is
making the setting of convertor B to exceed that of A, power flow can be
automatically reversed. Convertor B will then operate as a rectifier and A as an
inverter. The reversal of power occurs as a result of the reversal of polarity of the
voltage.
2.2.5 Compounding of Convertors:

The convertor operating equations for voltage Vd and current Id are expressed as
follows.

It is useful to draw the convertor chart in per unit. For this purpose the natural
selection for the base voltage is the maximum direct voltage output Vdo. There is no
such natural current base. Thus it is convenient to select the constant appearing in
equation for current as the base quantity.

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 UNIT-III
HARMONICS FILTERS AND REACTIVE POWER CONTROL
3.1 HARMONIC FILTERS:
The filter arrangements on the AC side of an HVDC converter station have two
main duties:
 to absorb harmonic currents generated by the HVDC converter and thus
toreduce the impact of the harmonics on the connected AC systems, like
ACvoltage distortion and telephone interference
 to supply reactive power for compensating the demand of the converter
station
3.1.1 Design Criteria for AC Filters:
3.1.1.1 Reactive Power Requirements:
The reactive power consumption of an HVDC converter depends on the active
power, the transformer reactance and the control angle. It increases with increasing
active power. A common requirement to a converter station is full compensation or
overcompensation at rated load. In addition, a reactive band for the load and voltage
range and the permitted voltage step during bank switching must be determined.
These factors will determine the size and number of filter and shunt capacitor banks.
3.1.1.2 Harmonic Performance Requirements:
HVDC converter stations generate characteristic and non-characteristic
harmonic currents. For a twelve-pulse converter, the characteristic harmonics are of
the order n = (12 * k) ± 1 (k = 1,2,3...). These are the harmonic components that are
generated even during ideal conditions, i.e. ideal smoothing of the direct current,
symmetrical AC voltages, transformer impedance and firing angles. The characteristic
harmonic components are the ones with the highest current level, but other
components may also be of importance. The third harmonic, which is mainly caused
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by the negative sequence component of the AC system, will in many cases require
filtering.

The purpose of the filter circuit is to provide sufficiently low impedances for the
relevant harmonic components in order to reduce the harmonic voltages to an
acceptable level. The acceptance criteria for the harmonic distortion depend on local
conditions and regulations. A commonly used criterion for all harmonic
components up to the 49th order is as follows: Dn individual harmonic voltage
distortion of order n in percent of the fundamental AC busbar voltage (typical limit
1%) Drms total geometric sum of individual voltage distortion Dn (typical limit 2%)
3.1.1.3 Network Impedance:
The distortion level on the AC busbar depends on the grid impedance as well as
the filter impedance. An open circuit model of the grid for all harmonics is not on the
safe side. Parallel resonance between the filter impedance and the grid impedance
may create unacceptable amplification of harmonic components for which the filters
are not tuned. For this reason, an adequate impedance model of the grid for all
relevant harmonics is required in order to optimize the filter design.
There are basically two methods to include the network impedance in the filter
calculations:
 to calculate impedance vectors for all relevant harmonics and grid conditions
 to assume locus area for the impedance vectors
The modelling of a complete AC network with all its components is very complex and
time-consuming. For this reason, the locus method is very often used. It is based on a
limited number of measurements or calculations. Different locus areas for different
harmonics or bands are often determined to give a more precise base for the
harmonic performance calculation.

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3.1.2 Requirements to Ratings:
3.1.2.1 Steady state calculation:
The voltage and current stresses of AC filters consist of the fundamental
frequency and harmonic components. Their magnitudes depend on the AC system
voltage, harmonic currents, operating conditions and AC system impedances. The
rating calculations are carried out in the whole range of operation to determine the
highest steady-state current and voltage stresses for each individual filter component.

3.1.2.2 Transient Calculation:

The objective of the transient rating calculation is to determine the highest transient
stresses for each component of the designed filter arrangement. The results of the
transient calculation should contain the voltage and current stresses for each
component, energy duty for filter resistors and arresters, and the insulation levels for
each filter component.
To calculate the highest stresses of both lightning and switching surge type,
differentcircuit configurations and fault
cases should be studied:
 Single-Phase Ground Fault
The fault is applied on the converter AC bus next to the AC filter. It is
assumed that the filter capacitor is charged to a voltage level corresponding to
the switching impulse protective level of the AC bus arrester.
 Switching Surge
For the calculation of switching surge stresses, a standard wave of
250/2500 with a crest value equal to the switching impulse protective level
ofthe AC bus arrester is applied at the AC converter bus.

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3.1.2.3 Filter Energization:
The AC filter is assumed to be energized at the moment for the maximum AC
bus peak voltage. This case is decisive for the inrush currents of AC filters.

3.1.2.4 Fault Recovery after Three-Phase Ground Fault:

Various fault-clearing parameters should be investigated to determine the maximum
energy stresses for AC filter arresters and resistors. The worst case stresses are
achieved if the HVDC converters are blocked after fault initiation, while the AC filters
remain connected to the AC bus after fault clearing and recovery of the AC system
voltage. In this case, a temporary overvoltage with high contents of non-characteristic
harmonics will occur at the AC bus due to the effects of load rejection, transformer
saturation and resonance between filter and AC network at low frequency.

3.1.3 DC Filter Circuits:

Harmonic voltages which occur on the DC side of a converter station cause AC
currents which are superimposed on the direct current in the transmission line. These
alternating currents of higher frequencies can create interference in neighbouring
telephone systems despite limitation by smoothing reactors. DC filter circuits, which
are connected in parallel to the station poles, are an effective tool for combating
these problems. The configuration of the DC filters very strongly resembles the filters
on the AC side of the HVDC station. There are several types of filter design. Single and
multiple-tuned filters with or without the high-pass feature are common. One or
severaltypes of DC filter can be utilized in a converter station.
3.1.3.1 Design Criteria for DC Filter Circuits:
The interference voltage induced on the telephone line can be characterized by
the following equation:
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The equivalent disturbing current combines all harmonic currents with the aid of
weighting factors to a single interference current. With respect to telephone
interference, it is the equivalent to the sum of all harmonic currents. It
also encompasses the factors which determine the coupling between the HVDC and
telephone lines:
 Operating mode of the HVDC system (bipolar or monopolar with metallic or
ground return)
 Specific ground resistance at point x the intensity of interference currents is
strongly dependent on the operating condition of the HVDC. In monopolar
operation, telephone interference is significantly stronger than in bipolar
operation.

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