Coordinated Control of PV Solar System as STATCOM (PV-STATCOM) and Power System Stabilizers for Power Oscillation Damping

This paper presents a novel control of PV solar farm as a STATCOM (PV-STATCOM) coordinated with Power System Stabilizers (PSSs) for damping of electromechanical oscillations in a power system. A two-area power system with a 150 MW PV solar plant connected at the midpoint of the tie line is simulated in PSCAD/EMTDC software. During contingencies, the capacity of the PV inverter remaining after real power generation is utilized for dynamic reactive power exchange to accomplish power oscillation damping. The advantage of master-slave feature in PSCAD/EMTDC software is utilized for performing the optimization and controller coordination. It is demonstrated that a coordinated control of PV-STATCOM and PSS can effectively enhance the damping of power oscillations, leading to higher power transfers in lines. This novel control of PV solar farms will result in a more optimal utilization of the expensive PV system asset for grid stabilization and enhancement of power transmission capability.