IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON INDUSTRY APPLICATIONS, VOL. IA-22, NO.

6, NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 1986 1091

Force-Commutated Reactive-Power Compensator

LOREN H. WALKER, FELLOW, IEEE

Abstract-A reactive-power compensator (RPC) is a type of static var

compensator (SVC) that is used to dynamically correct power factor to -l-_ I~~~
prevent voltage variation (flicker) in ac power sources due to large 20MVA
dynamic loads. It also minimizes total source current. Thus the applica- THYRISTOR 20 MVAr 20 MVA
CONTROLLE D i r t

tion of an RPC or SVC to a load may allow addition of substantial new REACTOR CAPACITORS LOAD
load to existing feeders or substations. A reactive-power compensator SvC
suited to industrial ratings (1.0-25 MVA) is described. It utilizes a force- I2 2
commutated current-source bridge to provide both leading and lagging O - 20 MVAr 20 MVAr 0-20 MVAr
LAG LEAD LAG
reactive power. The ability to operate both leading and lagging can reduce
by 2:1 the ratings of the RPC itself and the capacitors and magnetics (a)
associated with it. The characteristics of the power circuit, the means used
to control it, and the resulting dynamic performance is described. Speed
of response compares favorably to the thyristor-controlled reactors now
in common use as SVC's at higher MVA ratings. This RPC is suited to
compensate any balanced three-phase dynamic load. +10 MVA
FOR-CE 20
2 MVA
COMMUTATED
-"& |_1 -

LOAD
Y
RPC 10 VAr I

INTRODUCTION
YNAMIC static var compensators are increasingly being
used to raise the amount of load that can be carried by a
given utility power installation [1]. The compensators to be
discussed herein are usually located adjacent to a large cyclic
or intermittent load. They are controlled to cancel the effect of
the load on the voltage of the bus, so that even large cyclic
loads will not introduce voltage flicker into nearby sensitive
loads. Proper application of such a compensator can allow
substantial expansion of an existing plant without the necessity
of increasing the rating of the utility feeders and transformers
supplying a plant. Dynamic compensation of reactive power
often improves the performance of the cyclic load it compen-
sates,
The new force-commutated compensator, called a reactive-
power compensator (RPC), is suited to cyclic loads of
moderate rating (1.0-25 MVA), which are balanced three-
phase loads. These include motors, drives, rectifiers, and most
industrial processes, with the specific exception of arc
furnaces, which are not balanced loads. Dynamic performance
of this RPC is similar to the fastest available SVC's. For loads
larger than 25 MVA, this RPC can be used as an interpolator
between steps of switched capacitance to provide compensa-
tion up to any total load.
The important characteristic of this force-commutated RPC
is that it can provide either leading or lagging reactive power.
This allows it to be of approximately one-half the rating of
some other SVC approaches for a given application. Fig. 1
Paper IPCSD 86-24, approved by the Static Power Converter Committee of
the IEEE Industry Applications Society for presentation at the 1984 Industrial
and Commercial Power Systems Conference, Atlanta, GA, May 7-10.
Manuscript released for publication June 25, 1986.
The author is with Drives Systems Operations, General Electric Company,
1501 Roanoke Boulevard, Salem, VA 24153.
IEEE Log Number 8610534.
b
CAPA TORS .~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
10 MVAr LAG to 10 MVAr 0-20 MVAr
10 MVAr LEAD LEAD LAG
(b)
Fig. 1. Equivalent installations of static var compensation, TCR, and RPC.
(a) Compensator draws lagging current only. (b) Compensator draws
leading or lagging current.
illustrates this. The example load requires 0-20 MVA reactive
(MVAr) of varying lagging reactive power. The conventional
method of compensation is shown in Fig. 1(a) using 20-MVAr
capacitors and a 20-MVAr static var compensator of the
thyristor-controlled reactor (TCR) type. This TCR can pro-
duce only lagging vars. Thus the capacitor is rated to be able to
provide the peak lagging demand of the load. The compensator
is rated to cancel the capacitor bank when the load requires no
compensation. Thus both the compensator and the capacitor
are rated 20 MVAr.
Fig. l(b) shows the application of the force-commutated
RPC to the same load. Since the compensator can either cancel
the capacitor current or reinforce it, both the capacitor and the
RPC can be one-half the rating of those of the TCR approach
in Fig. 1 (a).
A second advantage of the symmetrical force-commutated
RPC is that when the load is at a typical nonpeak continuous
operating point (for example, requiring 10 MVAr or half the
available compensation), the capacitors approximately match
the compensation demand and the RPC operates near zero
current. In the TCR approach shown in Fig. 1(a), the
compensator will be at 10 MVAr under these same conditions.
The TCR will be at zero current only at the instants of peak 20-
MVAr demand by the load. Thus the duty-cycle losses (and
harmonic currents) drawn by the force-commutated compen-
sator are minimized by its symmetrical operation capability.
An additional advantage of the force-commutated RPC is
that the usual problems associated with application of any

0093-9994/86/1 100-1091$01 .00 © 1986 IEEE

1092 IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON INDUSTRY APPLICATIONS, VOL. IA-22s NO. 6, NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 1986

power-factor correction capacitor (resonances, no-load rise,

etc.) are much less severe when the capacitor is only half as
big.
DESCRIPTION OF THE COMPENSATOR
Power Circuit
The power circuit of the force-commutated RPC is shown in
Fig. 2. The thyristors, diodes, and commutating capacitors are
arranged in a bridge configuration exactly like those of a
current-source inverter (CSI) of the auto-sequentially-commu-
tated type [3]. The ac terminals of the bridge are connected to
the source of power through small isolating reactances. The dc
terminals of the bridge are shorted through a dc inductor. This
configuration has been mentioned by other authors [2] but not CURRENT INVERTER (CSI) DC
discussed in detail. INDUCTOR

In lagging operation the bridge acts as a conventional 6- Fig. 2. Power circuit of force-commutated reactive-power compensator.
pulse phase-controlled rectifier without forced commutation,
gated near 900 phase retard. The dc voltage across the
inductor is near zero, and the dc current is regulated by LINE TO
NEUTRAL
controlling small deviations from the 900 gating angle, c. To VOLTAGE
the ac source, the fundamental component of current drawn is __ I - LINE
at zero power factor lagging (due to the 900 gating delay) and CURRENT

of adjustable magnitude. Ideal waveforms in this mode are

II~~~~~~~~~~~~LN

I\N\VN ~ ~ ~ ~ ~+ ~DC
shown in Fig. 3(a).
In leading operation, gating to the thyristors is ideally
advanced (rather than retarded) 90° from the a = 0 position.
The forced commutation, which is required when gating is VOLTAGE
earlier than a = 0°, is provided by the commutating
capacitors. The dc link voltage is near zero at a = 900,
leading as it is at a = 900 lagging, and the magnitude of dc (a)
current can be adjusted by small changes of gating angle. To LINE TO
the ac source, the fundamental component of current drawn is / \/ NEUTRAL
VOLTAGE
at zero power-factor leading, and of adjustable magnitude.
Ideal waveforms in this mode of operation are shown in Fig. _ LINE
CURRF.NT
3(b).
The foregoing description of the operation of the force-
commutated RPC is sufficient to understand its application,
but a number of second-order effects, which will be discussed,
must be considered to design or control the bridge.
Typical Installation
7/4/tV/1/1v ~~~~~~~DC VOLTAGE

Fig. 4 shows typical installations of an RPC to compensate a (b)

new or existing dynamic load requiring 2.5-MVAr compensa-
tion. The RPC bridges are designed for a nominal input
voltage of up to 630-V ac. Thus they can be put directly in
parallel with dc drives or other loads in the 480-600-V range
as shown in Fig. 4(a). If the nominal load voltage is higher
than 630-V ac, a transformer is provided for the RPC as shown
in Fig. 4(b). Each bridge is rated for approximately ± 1.25
MVA, or a swing of 2.5 MVA. A capacitance of 1.25 MVA is
provided for each bridge. The capacitors are separated into
two banks; the inductors tune the capacitors to the fifth and
seventh harmonic frequencies. If the load requires more than
2.5 MVA (peak) of correction, then additional bridges are
added, using the same control.
The RPC bridge requires isolating reactance to avoid
introducing notches or spikes on the ac voltage. In the high-
voltage case the RPC transformer serves this function. In the
Fig. 3. Idealized waveforms of RPC. (a) Lagging operation. (b) Leading
operation.
low-voltage case, small reactors (Ls) are added as shown in
Fig. 4(a) (typically 3 percent reactance on the RPC bridge
base). Note that the VA rating of the RPC transformer in Fig.
4(b) is, at most, the rating of the bridge; e.g., for a 2.5-MVA
correction, a 1.25-MVA transformer is used. Note also that in
the case of a low-voltage load (Fig. 4(a)) the presence of the
RPC and capacitors reduces substantially the rating of the
transformer.
Fig. 5 shows a 5-MVAr RPC installation under test. Each of
the two bridges (rated + 1.25 MVAr each) is housed in a
cabinet that is 52" x 30" x 92". Cooling is by forced air
with integral blower. The control cabinet, capable of control-
ling up to four bridges or 10 MVAr is 36" x 24" x 92".
WALKER: REACTIVE POWER COMPENSATOR
4160V _ ? 600v
(typ)
Ls % L 7 DYNAtI C
Ld I BRIDGE
1.25 MVAr Net
+1.25 MVAr
(a)
4160v
(typ)
(b)
Fig. 4. Typical installations of 2.5-MVA RPC. (a) Compensating a low-
voltage load. (b) Compensating a high-voltage load.
Fig. 5. MVAr 12-pulse force-commutated reactive-power
bridges and controls.
The two bridges are connected as a 12-pulse unit for
minimizing harmonics.
Fig. 6 shows one of the RPC cabinets with the covers
opened. In the bottom are the commutating capacitors. In the
center are the thyristors and diodes with their heat sinks and
gate-pulse amplifier cards. Each semiconductor or gating card
can be individually removed by disconnecting it and drawing it
out. Also in the center area are six di/dt chokes, one in series
with each thyristor (not shown on Fig. 2). In the top are the
blowers, filters, and fuses (when used). Not shown in Figs. 5
and 6 are the dc inductor, power-factor correction capacitors,
and optional input transformer. All are of conventional design.
The size of the magnetics varies with application, since in
many applications the bridge spends much of its time near zero
vars. The dc inductor (core and coil) may be as large as 50"
x 27 " x 50" if the bridge must operate and continuously
compensate the capacitor when the dynamic load is off.
Losses in the RPC bridge at full-rated vars are about 1.5
percent of rated VA. The losses in the associated dc inductor
can be chosen based on economic factors, but typical losses
1093
LOAD
Fig. 6. Interior of ± 1.25-MVAr force-commutated RPC bridge.
are 0.5 percent of the VA handled. Losses in these two
elements add up to 2 percent of the VA at peak rating, but duty-
cycle losses in an application typically will be below 1/2
percent of the peak MVAr rating. This is because the RPC
bridge tends to operate around the zero-var point with only
brief excursions to peak leading or lagging VA, and because
much of the loss is proportional to the square of current.
DESIGN AND APPLICATION
Static Characteristic
compensator
Fig. 7 shows the static-control characteristic of the force-
commutated RPC. The broken-line characteristic is the ideal
characteristic that might be expected. In the range of gating
angle where dc voltage is large and positive (a = 800 lead to
0 to 80° lag), an undesirably large dc current would be
expected to flow. This is marked on Fig. 7 as the "excess
current region". In the region of negative dc voltage (a = 900
lag to 2700 lag), zero current would be expected as shown by
the broken line. And in the regions near ce = 900 lag and a =
900 lead (2700 lag), the current would be controlled from zero
to full value over a few degrees of ca.
The actual control characteristic is shown in the solid curve.
In the lagging var quadrant near a = 900, the actual
characteristic deviates only slightly from the ideal, reflecting
the resistance of the actual circuit and the effect of the source
reactance on commutation. Outside this region the actual
characteristic deviates sharply from that expected. The reason
for this deviation is the commutation time of the CSI inverter
when in the force-commutated mode.
It is a characteristic of the auto-sequential CSI inverter that
the thyristors commutate almost immediately on gating, but
the commutation of the diodes may be delayed for several ms
1094
- 1.0 PER UNIT
LAGGING
VARS
IDEAL
CHARACTERISTIC
ACTUAL
CHARACTERISTIC
GATING ANGLE, ALPHA (FROM VAB ZERO)
00 30 60 90 120 150 1 0 210 240
',EXCESS CURRENT\
\REGION \ //
LEADING
VARS
ACTUAL
-1.0
PER UNIT
Fig. 7. Static-control characteristic of force-commutated RPC.
after the thyristors are gated. The delay between thyristor
commutation and diode commutation is the time it takes to
reverse the charge on the commutating capacitors. Since it is
the diodes that connect to the ac power source rather than the
thyristors (see Fig. 2), the phase angle of the current in the
source is determined by the diode commutation time rather
than the thyristor commutation time. Thus if power factor is to
be zero, diode commutation must take place near a = 900 or
a = 2700 so that zero real power will flow. The broken-line
ideal characteristic on Fig. 7 represents the time of diode
commutation while the solid line represents the gating time of
the thyristors. The thyristor gating time always leads the diode
commutation time. The amount of this delay between gating
the thyristor and commutating the diodes when in forced
commutation is approximately inversely proportional to cur-
rent magnitude at the time of commutation. Thus at large
leading currents (near the bottom of Fig. 7), the capacitors
discharge quickly and the horizontal distance between the
solid-line actual thyristor gating angle and the broken-line
diode commutating angle is at a minimum. As current
decreases (proceeding upward and to the left on Fig. 7),
current decreases and commutation time stretches as the
reciprocal of current.
This commutating time would stretch to infinity at zero dc
current, but that point is never reached. As current is reduced
from the maximum leading value, commutating time stretches
reciprocally until a point is reached where the current in one
diode has still not commutated when the next thyristor in the
given set of three is gated. This occurs when the commutating
IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON INDUSTRY APPLICATIONS, VOL. IA-22, NO. 6, NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 1986
delay has reached 120° (point B). It corresponds to an a of
150° = 270° - 1200 in Fig. 7. Further advance of a beyond
this point produces no further change in current until forced
commutation ceases at point C. The Appendix provides an
analysis of the factors that determine commutation time,
leading to an analytical expression for the solid-line control
characteristic.
In the region C-D of the control characteristic of Fig. 7,
commutation is line commutation, or the normal mode of
operation for a three-phase full-wave bridge rectifier. The six
diodes conduct most of the time, either carrying the dc current
or keeping the capacitors charged to source voltage. Since the
270 300 330 360 diodes are already in conduction when the thyristors are gated,
commutation proceeds without abnormal delay. The control
/EXCE T characteristic is much as expected.
A consequence of the conduction of the diodes for much of
CUN
EIN3v/.
the time in lagging operation is that the commutating capaci-
tors can be viewed as connected directly across the ac source.
Thus they function as power-factor correction capacitors,
drawing a fixed leading load from the ac source. This opposes
the desired lagging load in much of this region and thus
IDEAL
CHARACTERISTIC
reduces the effective rating of the bridge as a source of lagging
vars.
The effect of the commutating capacitors on the bridge in
lagging operation is evident in Fig. 8. This figure relates dc
current to reactive VA. In the leading mode of operation (left
side of Fig. 8) dc current is related to leading vars by the
classical relation for a three-phase bridge:
Q(vars)= Id Vs (1)
1r
where
Q reactive voltamperes,
Id dc current,
Vs line-to-line source voltage (rms).
This relationship applies in region A-B of Fig. 8. The regions
denoted by A, B, C, D on Fig. 8 correspond to those similarly
labeled on Fig. 7.
At the point labeled B, C on Fig. 8, dc current has reached
the minimum value that may be force-commutated. The bridge
reverts to natural commutation and goes into lagging opera-
tion, but the output vars are still leading. The dc current must
build to a substantial value in the lagging direction (I cap)
before the net reactive VA reaches zero. The current I cap is
the dc equivalent of the leading fundamental current drawn by
the commutating capacitors when the bridge is not in forced
commutation. The Appendix gives an expression for the
magnitude of the I cap.
In the lagging range of operation, dc current is approxi-
mately equal to the sum of the expected value given by (1) and
the constant-value I cap. Due to the larger dc current in the
lagging range, the rating of the RPC is not truly symmetrical
but slightly smaller in lagging than in leading operation.
Waveforms
The idealized waveforms of current and voltage were shown
in Fig. 3. Actual internal waveforms are somewhat more
WALKER: REACTIVE POWER COMPENSATOR
Fig. 8. Relationship of dc current to ac current.
IDEAL
AJ11LlIK
(a)
7- LAG \| |
LAG
IDEAL
/ LEAD
(b)
LEAD
LU
t
Fig. 9. Comparison of ideal and actual waveforms at terminals of RPC bridge. (a) Lagging. (b) Leading. (Actual waveforms at 750
kVAr on ± 1250-kVAr RPC bridge.)
complex. The currents and voltages at the terminals of the
installation in a real application are quite sinusoidal, as will be
shown. The low harmonic content is maintained by the
filtering effect of the tuned power-factor correction capacitors
always included in the installation of an RPC.
Within the RPC, currents and voltages are as shown in Fig.
9. If the currents were pure 120° square waves, the voltage at
the terminals of the bridge would be a shown in the idealized
sketches. In lagging operation the voltage would show a series
of notches caused by the effect of current commutation on the
reactors (Ls) in series with each phase of the source (Fig. 2).
In leading operation these notches would be displaced 1800 in
time phase so that they appear as spikes on the voltage
waveform. The spikes shown in the sketch of leading
operation in Fig. 9 have the shape of quarter-cycle sinewaves
characteristic of the CSI commutation [3].
1095
LAGGING
VVOLTAGE
.2Z
CURRENT
LEADING
.4I VOLTAGE
CURRENT
The actual waveforms in leading operation, as shown in the
photograph of Fig. 9, are very much like the ideal in both
current and voltage. In lagging operation the commutating
capacitors, which are now redundant, cause the commutations
of current to be followed by a resonant backswing. The
capacitors are almost always drawing current, and this adds an
ac component to the expected flat-topped current during the
conduction of a phase. The polarity of the ripple is such as to
reduce the fundamental component of lagging current as was
previously noted. The effect of the commutating capacitors on
the terminal voltage of the bridge is to soften the repeated
notches. Note that the voltage waveforms shown are on the
RPC side of the inductor Ls. The spikes and notches appear
primarily across that inductance and do not appear on the
source.
Fig. 10 shows the net current drawn by the RPC bridge
1096 IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON INDUSTRY APPLICATIONS, VOL. IA-22, NO. 6, NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 1986

(a)

(b)

Fig. 10. Current waveforms. (a) In capacitors and RPC bridge. (b) In RPC
bridge alone.

RPC CURRENT-4V P

P = POWER
Q = REACTIVE VA
Inductive Positive
Fig. 11. Overall control diagram.

alone and the total current drawn from the power source by the the point of common coupling between the load facility and the
RPC and the tuned capacitors in the power-factor correction power authority or utility.
bank. The effectiveness of the capacitors in absorbing the Any in-phase current drawn by the load will cause a voltage
harmonics of the bridge is evident. drop across Ru. Any lagging reactive load drawn will cause a
voltage drop across Xu. Any leading load drawn will cause a
System Controls voltage rise across Xu.
Fig. 11 shows the system controls for the RPC. This control It is possible to draw a controlled leading reactive load that
is suited to provide either 1) unity power factor, 2) constant will cause a voltage rise, compensating exactly the voltage
power factor other than unity, or 3) undisturbed voltage. In the drop due to real load. If such a compensating current is caused
undisturbed-voltage mode, the RPC does not attempt to to flow and no other reactive power is allowed to flow, then
correct voltage changes due to causes other than the compen- the voltages Vp will be undisturbed by the presence of the
sated load, but it does remove any disturbance to the voltage dynamic load.
source due to the changes in real or reactive power in the The obvious method of voltage control, that of sensing the
compensated load. The other two operation modes are voltage Vp and controlling the RPC to maintain it constant, is
simplifications of the undisturbed voltage mode. not desirable here. If the utility voltage were low due to causes
Undisturbed Voltage Mode: The control approach for outside the load facility, the entire leading capability of the
undisturbed voltage involves compensating the load's real RPC could be consumed in an attempt to hold up the utility
current with leading current, and compensating the load's voltage. This would prevent the RPC from performing its
reactive current to zero. Consider the power circuit shown in desired function: that of preventing dynamic swings (flicker)
Fig. 11. The elements Xu and Ru represent the impedance of on the source. Although this problem could be overcome with
the power system supplying the point at which voltage is to be a special control, there are other reasons to avoid the feedback
maintained undisturbed. This point, labeled Vp, is typically control of voltage. Both stability and speed of responses are
WALKER: REACTIVE POWER COMPENSATOR 1097

VARS VARS G
LEADING LAGGING
Fig. 12. RPC bridge controls.

enhanced by the method used, because the RPC regulator is account for the effect of the impedances Rp and Xp if they are
dynamically independent of other regulators and other loads significant.
on the power bus. It can maintain voltage variation below 1 It should be further noted that all the power calculators
percent with very rapid (10 pu/s) changes in the compensated shown on Fig. 11 sense instantaneous three-phase power, so
load. A control that sensed voltage would have to be slower by that their output responds instantly and has low ripple when
more than 10:1 to provide stability. loads are balanced.
To accomplish the undisturbed voltage mode, the current is Other Control Modes: All other control modes are
measured at IL on the power circuit of Fig. 11. This is the simplifications of the undisturbed voltage mode. For the
combined current of the dynamic load and the capacitors. IL constant-power-factor mode, the function Fv is made linear.
and VT are used as input to control blocks Cl and C2 to This calls for a net reactive load proportional to real load. For
calculate the load's real and reactive components PL and QL. the unity-power-factor mode the output Fv is made zero. The
Blocks Cl and C2 are implemented as shown in [5]. The real RPC vars are the opposite of the sum of the vars in the load
power component PL is input to a nonlinear function Fv. This and capacitors leaving no net reactive power in the source.
function calculates the exact amount of leading load needed to
compensate the existing real power. The output of the block RPC Controls
Fv is labeled "total var command" because no reactive power The RPC controls respond to the RPC var command. They
other than that needed to compensate the real power will be include a reactive-power calculator; block C3, which mea-
allowed to flow. To calculate the var command to the RPC sures the vars of the RPC bridge; and the RPC bridge controls,
bridge, the signal proportional to existing reactive VA in the which determine the gating angle of the bridge thyristors. A
load and capacitors QL is added to the total var command. The block diagram of the RPC controls is shown in Fig. 12. The
resulting summation is the RPC var command. If the RPC block C3 is repeated from Fig. 11. The concept of the bridge
perfectly follows this command, then the load's reactive controls is to provide a feed-forward nonlinear function that
power will be absorbed and the effects of its real power will be sets the gating angle a to approximately the correct value, and
compensated by leading power. a proportional plus integral regulator that trims the value of a
It should be noted that the function Fv is valid for both to the exact value needed. The feed-forward element is the
positive and negative real power since many of the loads to be bridge-model nonlinear network, block NL. It produces an
compensated are regenerative. This function must be individu- output characteristic that models the bridge-control character-
ally adjusted for the values of Xu and Ru in each installation. istic (Fig. 7). If it were driven directly by the RPC var
If these values are known from previous fault studies then they command, then it would be a classic feed-forward function,
can be preset to avoid field adjustment. The location of current providing the precise value of a needed for each level of the
transformers feeding the power calculators in Fig. 11 causes RPC var command. It is shown to be driven partly by this
the real power losses of the RPC bridge and reactor to be command and partly by the var feedback. The result is that in
uncompensated. These losses are small and can be neglected. any steady-state condition, the sum of the two inputs to
If it is desired to compensate these losses, the controls can be junction S2 is the same as the RPC var command, and the
modified slightly to do this. The function Fv may also have to output of the bridge model is the desired value of a. When the
1098 IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON INDUSTRY APPLICATIONS, VOL. IA-22, NO. 6, NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 1986

RPC var command changes suddenly and the var feedback has
not yet moved, the ratio of the two gains at the input to S2
defines the amount of transient forcing supplied by the bridge
AC Current
model. The gain K is chosen to make the dynamic response of
the RPC similar in the leading and lagging modes of operation.
The output of the bridge model is combined at junction SI (10 msec/div)
with the output of the PI regulator and clamp. The input to the
PI regulator is the error between the RPC var command and DC Current
the present value of actual bridge vars. The summation of the
output of blocks PI and NL provides the net oa command to the
firing circuit. Fig. 13. Response of RPC to step in a.
In operation the bridge model provides the large swings in a
necessary to provide control when operation is in a region
where a must change rapidly. The PI regulator provides the
primary control of a in operating regions such as the lagging
VAR Command
region, where only small changes are required in a. The PI (0.1 PU Step)
regulator also assures that there are no steady-state errors in
following the RPC var command.
(5 msec/div)
Control Dynamics VARS
(0.04 PU/div)
When a normal 6-pulse phase-controlled bridge circuit is
inductively loaded and controlled by a closed-loop current
regulator, the maximum crossover frequency of the regulator (a)
is fixed by the transport delay introduced by the discrete or
sampling nature of the power circuit. The maximum crossover
can be calculated by several means, but one commonly used is
to model the statistical transport delay, which is in the range VAR Command
(0.1 PU Step)
0-60° at line frequency as a fixed delay of 300, the average
value. If the 1800 phase shift allowed at the crossover
frequency of the regulator is apportioned as 900 to the (5 msec/div)
statistical delay and 900 to the dc inductor, then the maximum
crossover frequency is approximated as follows: VARS
(0.1 PU/div)

1800 = 900 + 300 WC (2) (b)

Ws
xc-os (3)
where
WC crossover frequency for a normal bridge,
Ws frequency of the power source (rad/s).
For a 60-Hz source, WC = 1131 rad/s.
Following a similar line of reasoning, the maximum
crossover of the RPC bridge is determined by the delay
between a change in the var command signal and the
commutation of the next diode affected by a change in gating
angle. In the dynamic characteristic, as well as the static, it is
the time of commutation of the diode, not the thyristor, which
determines the operating point of the RPC.
As was noted in connection with the discussion of the static
characteristic, the maximum delay that can exist between the
gating of a thyristor and the conduction of the corresponding
diode is 1200. This is not a statistical delay (as the gating of the
thyristors) but a deterministic delay that is present at every
gating when the RPC is operating at light leading vars. Thus
the maximum crossover frequency WRPC of the regulator loop
closed around the RPC bridge is determined by the sum of a
1200 deterministic delay and a 300 statistical delay due to
Fig. 14. Closed-loop response of RPC to step in var command. (a) Lagging
operation. (b) Leading operation.
thyristor gating. By analogy to (2) and (3):
1800 = 900 + (1200 + 300) WRPC (4)
WS
WRPC -3/5ws. (5)
For a 60-Hz source the maximum crossover frequency is 226
rad/s. A practical crossover frequency for well-damped
operation is in the range 140 rad/s. This would correspond to a
rise time of about 7 ms. This is as fast as other static var
compensator designs suited to these ratings. In particular, it is
similar to the response of the thyristor-controlled reactor.
Fig. 13 shows the transient response of the bridge and firing
circuit to a step change in a. The response appears to be
instantaneous, with the new value of ac current achieved on
the first gating. The delay that limits the closed-loop response
is not evident since the time of the control step is not shown.
Fig. 14 shows the response of the closed loop in the lagging
and leading modes of operation. In lagging operation, the 63-
percent rise time is approximately 6 ms and the transport delay
is indiscernable on this data. In leading operation, the 63-
WALKER: REACTIVE POWER COMPENSATOR 1099

percent rise time is again about 6 ms, and a transport delay of

about 4 ms (860) is evident. For comparison, the thyristor-
controlled-reactor (TCR) type of var compensator has a 0.40
transport delay that is (statistically) 0-1800, for an average of
900 transport delay. The response of the RPC is probably
slightly faster than the TCR when the RPC operates lagging,
0.20
and slightly slower when the RPC operates leading.
The transient response of the RPC is made nearly syimmetri-
cal in the leading and lagging modes by balancing the
proportional gain of the PI regulator and the K and 1-K factors 0.10
in the input to the bridge model, NL. The transport delay in
the leading mode cannot be removed or compensated. By
making the transient response more or less uniform over the
operating range of vars, the system regulators can be stabilized
classically to produce a desired response.
Test results on system dynamic response will be discussed
later in the paper.
Harmonics
The dynamic loads to be compensated by an RPC or var
compensator are often those loads that draw harmonic currents
themselves. The addition of the compensator with its banks of
tuned capacitors usually reduces the harmonics drawn by both
the load and the added RPC bridge so that the net harmonic
current drawn from the line is less with the RPC installed than
without. Nonetheless, the harmonic current magnitudes drawn 1 5 7 11 13 17 19 23 25
by the RPC bridge must be quantified to rate the capacitor HARMONIC NUMBER
network. 00.0
(a)
Figs. 15(a) and 15(b) show the ideal harmonic characteristic 0.40 ^
of the RPC bridge current, assuming an ideal 1200 square-
wave current, compared to measured harmonic data at full-
load leading and lagging on the RPC bridge. The harmonic 0.05

magnitudes in Fig. 15 are stated as a ratio to the bridge rating

~ ~ HROI C UM E
(peak leading or peak-lagging fundamental current). Since the 0.01

waveforms (Fig. 9) of the force-commutated RPC deviate

from the ideal square-wave pattern, it would be expected that
the actual harmonics deviate from the ideal. In both leading
and lagging operation, the fifth and seventh harmonics are 0.004P
higher than ideal while harmonics of order 17th and higher are 1 5 7 11 13 17 19 23 25

substantially lower than ideal. The values of the fifth and HARMONIC NUMBER

seventh harmonics are of interest only for applications

requiring 2.5 MVAr or less correction. For ratings larger than
this the force-commutated RPC will be connected in a 12-pulse
configuration which reduces fifth, seventh, 17th, and 19th
harmonics to very small values.
Figs. 16 and 17 compare the ideal harmonics of a thyristor-
controlled reactor (TCR) var compensator to the ideal harmon-
ics of a force-commutated RPC. In Figs. 16 and 17 the
harmonic currents are stated as a ratio to the current that
corresponds to the full var range (leading to lagging) of the
compensator. This is required to make a valid comparison of
the RPC to other static var compensator approaches which
draw only lagging vars. This comparison is made as a function
of operating level of the compensators. Data on the TCR is (b)
Fig. 15. Harmonic currents of bridge. (a) Operated at full-rated load
from [1, page 190]. leading. (b) Operated at full-rated lagging.
Fig. 16 shows the case where both the RPC and TCR are 6-
pulse. This is for ratings less than 2.5 MVAr. Harmonic levels
in the RPC (straight lines) are higher than those of the TCR
1100 IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON INDUSTRY APPLICATIONS, VOL. IA-22, NO. 6, NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 1986

Dynamic Performance
Testing of the RPC system for dynamic response and
linearity was performed using a triangular-wave var reference
to simulate a dynamic load reversing as quickly as possible.
The amplitude of the reference was adjusted to cause the RPC
bridge to swing to its maximum limits. The frequency of the
triangle wave was increased until the vars produced by the
bridge could no longer track the reference. Data taken by this
method is shown in Fig. 18.. In the top traces the reference is at
low frequency, 1.6 Hz, demonstrating the linearity of the
RPC. Close examination of the response curve shows a slight
distortion of the response when crossing from the lagging to
the leading mode of operation. This is a dynamic effect not
present with a steady command.
In the lower traces of Fig. 18, the triangle-wave reference is
0 0.25 0.50 0.75 1.0 at 5.7 Hz. The performance has deteriorated so that the RPC
FULL
LEAD PER UNIT OF FULL VAR RANGE
FULL
LAG
does not quite reach-the peak leading vars commanded, and the
Fig. 16. Ideal harmonic currents of force-commutated RPC compared to disturbance in crossing from lagging to leading operation has
those of thyristor-controlled reactor (TCR) in rating range where both are become obvious. This is considered the linearity limit of the
6-pulse. RPC. It requires the bridge to go from full-rated lagging to
0.125 - full-rated leading in less than 0.1 s. The RPC will respond if
commanded to change up to five times this rate, as was shown
HARMON IC CURRENT
FULL REACTIVE CURRENT RANGE
in Figs. 13 and 14, but its response will not be linear during
0.10 the rapid change.
To relate this data to the small signal transient response of
the bridge alone, as shown in Fig. 14, it is noted that the RPC
. 07 5 0 2.5 MVAr 4RATING <25 MVAr
regulator had a crossover frequency of 140 rad/s. It would be
expected to follow a sinusoidal reference at frequencies less
than 140 rad/s (22 Hz). To follow a triangle reference with
0.05 significant third and fifth harmonic content, the limit in
reference frequency might be expected to be 140/5 = 28 rad/s
= 4.5 Hz. This is consistent with the large signal perform-
0.025 ance.
Maintaining Voltage Undisturbed
The RPC was tested when configured in the undisturbed
0 .25 0.5 0.75 1.0
FULL
voltage mode by compensating a load consisting of a large 6-
FULL
LEAD PER UNIT OF FULL VAR RANGE LAG pulse motor drive driven through a rapid speed reversal with a
Fig. 17. Ideal harmonic components of force-commutated RPC compared to mechanical load which was primarily inertial. Figs. 19 and 20
those of thyristor-controlled reactor (TCR) in rating range where TCR is 6-
pulse and RPC is 12-pulse. show this test of the reactive power compensator, which
compensates a thyristor-controlled motor drive. The RPC is
(curved lines) except near the center of the operating range. As controlled in the undisturbed voltage mode, and the scales are
previously discussed, the RPC bridge tends to operate in pu VA on the base of the RPC bridge rating. Fig. 19 shows the
center of its range much of the time. conditions with the RPC turned off and power factor capaci-
For ratings greater than 2.5 MVAr, the RPC will be 12- tors disconnected. The load demand for real and reactive
pulse. The TCR may also be 12-pulse but this is not common power is shown in traces 3 and 4. The resulting swing in
in TCR ratings below 25 MVAr. Thus in the primary rating source voltage is shown in trace 5, with a maximum dip of 5.5-
range of the RPC, between 2.5 MVAr and 25 MVAr, the RPC percent. The var command shown in trace 1 was the signal
will have 12 or more pulses and the TCR will be 6-pulse. provided by the system regulator to the RPC bridge. It always
Harmonic comparisons in this case are shown in Fig. 17. The calls for leading compensation because there are no capacitors
RPC harmonic currents (straight lines) are smaller than those connected. The RPC bridge is prevented from responding.
of the TCR (curved lines) because the fifth and seventh Note that the var command saturates at the rating of the RPC
harmonics of the RPC are almost eliminated by the 12-pulse bridge.
connection, while those of the TCR remain. It should be Fig. 20 shows the same conditions with the RPC bridge
emphasized that the harmonic content of either the TCR or active and the associated power-factor correction capacitors
RPC can be reduced to acceptable levels by properly tuning connected. The load demand in traces 3 and 4 is the same as
the power-factor correction capacitors. The data in Figs. 15- Fig. 19. The var command is shifted toward lagging by the
17 is without these capacitors. steady-state effect of the capacitors, bringing it into the range
 WALKER: REACTIVE POWER COMPENSATOR

LEAI1 .
rrace I
I
.
!
1
J:1 i
; :-
- t
;--::.;'' i' "t ,:
:: S7 ,
s
LAG 1. O
I k L/ A
li ldi 7 . 5, :fi: :: , \ r X 1gx ii
R.PC
LEAD1.0
0 Frace 2
LAG 1. 0

LOAD
LAG 1.0 VARS
rrace 3
LEA -. ''''-'' ,.,,
L A1.O0
O_
Trace 4
- . osec 5 .76
Hz VAR COMMAND
RPC BRIDGE VARS
4 . ; _; ;ffDLAG- :;--: - ::--
I
r t. - .-. - j 1 ! -- .: ~-::: _ _

NO LOAD Trace 5
-S%
Fig. 20. Test of reactive-power compensator. RPC and capacitors on.

of the RPC bridge. The bridge is allowed to respond to the var

command as shown in trace 2. The load voltage in trace 5 is
V/\ Al-..-ItLL.Viki.:...-.:.l.ZIN.4.;.. maintained at the no-load value within ±0.5 percent except
=-74. for a brief dip to -0.7 percent at the sudden application of
. LEAD l_ load. The goal was ± 1-percent maximum deviation in
voltage.
Fig. 18. Response of RPC to triangle wave reference from full lag to full CONCLUSION
lead.
The power circuit and control approach described provide
high-performance compensation for balanced three-phase
LEAD1.0 loads. They allow a 2:1 reduction in rating of capacitors,
0
transformers, and switchgear in many static var compensator
LAG 1. 0O
applications.
APPENDIX
LEAD1.& Commutation Time and Static-Control Characteristic of
0
Trace 2
the Force-Commutated Bridge
LAG 1. 0.
Fig. A-1 shows the power circuit involved in commutation
of the force-commutated RPC. To perform a closed-form
LAG 1.0 analysis, three assumptions will be made.
0- 1) The thyristors commutate instantaneously when gated,
LEADI.O- without loss of capacitor energy.
2) The dc link current does not change during commuta-
MOTOR1. 0 -
tion.
0.
3) The instantaneous ac voltages do not change during
REGEN 1.O. commutation of the diodes (time t2, as will be defined, is
small with respect to the period of the full cycle of
+5%
source voltage).
None of these assumptions are fully valid, but the results of
NO LOAD'
the analysis model the waveforms and control characteristics
-5%
closely.
Fig. 19. Test of reactive-power compensator. Only motor is active; Fig. A-i: States in the Commutation of the Bridge
capacitors are disconnected; RPC is off; system control is active.
The steps in commutation from path Ti-DI (Fig. A-l(a)) to
path T2-D2 will be described. The corresponding waveforms
are shown in Fig. A-2.
1102 IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON INDUSTRY APPLICATIONS, VOL. IA-22, NO. 6, NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 1986

commutation will be:

Vc= Vs 2+Id VL/C (A.1)
where
Vs ac source voltage, line-to-line (rms),
Id current in the dc inductor,
L 2 Ls, the line-to-line commutating inductance of the
source (see Fig. 2),
C 3/2 CA, the effective commutating capacitance (see
Fig. 2><
The time tl it takes to discharge this capacitor to the peak of
(a) (b) the source voltage is
C
ti=(Vc+ 2Vs) Id
-

Substituting (A. 1) gives

2V2 VsC
(A.2)
Id
The time for the state of Fig. A-I(c) is a quarter-cycle of the
resonant circuit:
7r ,
t2=- LC . (A.3)
2
(c) (d) For purposes of this analysis, commutation will be deemed
Fig. A-1. Steps in commutation from path TI-DI to path T2-D2. (a) Initial to have occurred when current has decayed to one-half its peak
state. (b) Time tl. (c) Time t2. (d) Final state. value. This is because the diode commutation must be centered
at a = 2700 for the circuit to be at zero power factor leading.
When thyristor T2 is gated (tO in Fig. A-2), the thyristor This half-current occurs at the end of t3 on Fig. A-2. This time
commutates quickly, T2 comes on and Ti goes off, transfer- is given by
ring the current to the T2-Di path shown in Fig. A-l(b). In t3=- , LC.
7r
(A.4)
this state the capacitor C discharges linearly at constant current 3
Id from an initial charge in the direction shown until its charge
matches the instantaneous voltage of the source VAB. This The total commutating time tc is the time from the gating of
state ends when diode D2 conducts. The time the circuit thyristor T2 until the phase current decays to one-half value in
remains in the state shown in Fig. A-1(b) is labeled TI on Fig. diode DI. It is given by the sum of tl and t3 (A.2), (A.4):
A-2.
When diode D2 conducts, the current takes the paths shown 22 VsC (
+ 1+-
7r" LC. (A.5)
tc=
in Fig. A- 1(c). The current waveforms are those of a resonant Id \ 3/
circuit formed by the capacitor C and the two inductors Ls.
The current in diode DI decays cosinusoidally and that in This time tc converted to an angle cstc in electrical degrees is
diode D2 increases similarly until the current in DI goes to the angle by which the gating of thyristor T2 must precede the
zero, placing the circuit in the final state shown in Fig. A-l(d). time oa = 270° if the diode is to commutate at 2700. (A.5) thus
The time spent in the state of Fig. A-i (c) is shown as t2 on relates gating angle to dc current, and can be rearranged to
Fig. A-2. define the static-control characteristic of the bridge in leading
As the circuit enters the final state shown in Fig. A- I (d), the (force-commutated) operation.
capacitor voltage is exactly reversed so the conditions for the The relationship between gating-angle a and tc is (by
next commutation are established. inspection of Fig. 7)
Nonlinear Control Region A-B: In Fig. 7 the control wstc= 2700 -a. (A.6)
region A-B, from maximum leading current to a = 150°, is
the region in which current is controlled by commutation time Substituting (A.6) into (A.5) and rearranging to be explicit in
of the force-commutated bridge. Id gives
Several authors [31, [4] have analyzed this circuit when 2V2
commutating at zero power factor so only the results will be Id= VsCws sLC. (A.7)
stated here. 37r a 7r+'
The initial voltage on the capacitor at the beginning of 2 3
WALKER: REACTIVE POWER COMPENSATOR 1103

+VC

Source
Voltage

tlIt2 -t

tc It3 t

- -VC

I
Tl Thyristor Ti Current
0

fE
T2
.L
--E ~ .~~
Thyristor T2 Current ~~~~~~~~~~
iZ_ ~ ~~~~
,

Dl Diode DI Current
i 1
D2 Diode D2 Current
I~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~atforcecommutat.1---
Fig. A- TIming

Fig. A-2. Timing at force commutation.

This is the static-control characteristic in the leading region A-

B as shown in Fig. 7 expressed in terms of dc current. To
express it in terms of leading vars, first the fundamental rms
Lagging
component of source current is related to dc current by the Reactive
usual relation for a three-phase bridge: VoltAmperes
Gating Angle, alpha
900 1200 50°
Is Id-F6/ 7.
1 300 2100 2,7f00
= (A.8) 2400

The apparent power drawn by any balanced three-phase load is

(A. 12)

S= VsIs"i3. (A.9) (A. 10)

So the reactive power drawn by the bridge in leading operation Leading
Reactive
is given by combining (A.7), (A.8), and (A.9): VoltAmperes

12/r
Q= VS2wSC (A. 10)
/37r 7r
2 -t-13)
This expression is valid in region A-B of Fig. 7, from
maximum leading current to oa = 150°. Fig. A-3 shows a plot Fig. A-3. Calculated static-control characteristic.
of this expression.
Constant Current, Region B-C, Fig. 7: The preceding
1104 IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON INDUSTRY APPLICATIONS, VOL. IA-22, NO. 6, NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 1986
analysis showed that the capacitor voltage conditions for each
commutation in a group of three thyristors are set up by the
previous commutation. This can be true only if the commuta-
tion is complete (diode current has fully transferred) before the
next thyristor in the commutating group is gated. Thus the
preceding analysis is valid until commutation takes 120°, or a
= 2700 - 1200 = 1500. If the thyristor is gated earlier than
1500 (but still not early enough for natural commutation) then
the current will not drop below that necessary to discharge the
capacitor. Thus current is constant over the region of a from
approximately 90° to 1500 (region B-C on Fig. 7).
This minimum current for 60-Hz operation is analogous to a
maximum frequency for light-load operation when a current
source inverter is used as a motor drive as discussed in [3],
[4]. The value of minimum current is that which corresponds
to a commutating time of 120°. Commutating time in this case
is tl + t2, until the current is zero in the diode. The value of
current I min is found by setting a = 1500 in (A.7) and
substituting t2 for t3:
I min= VswsC
2wr/3- (l+) COS - appreciated.
Similarly the reactive VA in the constant-currerit region are
given by reference to (A. 10):
12/xr
Q= Vs2wsC
2ir/3- (l+2) os"fCi
Note on Fig. A-3 that the vars given by (A. 10) at a = 1500
are lower than the minimum given by (A. 12). Since diode
i
nextit.guilshed
current lasts slightly after ca = 270 in (A. 10), the iext thyristor
begins to conduct before the diode is completely c extinguished.
Thus the transition from (A. 10) characteristi c to (A.12)
characteristic begins at slightly higher than 15 00.
a
Extra DC Current in Lagging Operation
The offset in dc current in the lagging region ( I cap on Fig.
8) is equal to the bridge dc current necessary tc )draw an ac
source current equal to that of the two deltas of. cornmutating
capacitors.
When net vars are zero there is no fundamenta1 drop across
Ls, so the voltage across the two deltas of capac Sitance is Vs.
The ac current drawn by the capacitors Ic will bIe
Ic=2Vi VswSC,.
C- 3/2CA)
if equivalent capacitor C is defined as before (( 3- 2CI)
then
Ic= (4/,53) Vsw,C.
A dc current of equal fundamental component ,I cap will be Society. He holds 50 US patents.
given as in (A.8) by
I cap=- Ic. (A. 15)
Substituting (A. 14) into (A. 15) yields the value for I cap in
Fig. 8:
I cap= 3
3
VswsC. (A. 16)
The offset between the ideal value of Id and the actual Id in
Fig. 8 is not exactly constant but decreases slightly as lagging
vars are increased. This is because the fundamental voltage
across the deltas of capacitors is reduced by the fundamental
voltage drop across the inductances Ls. When Vs in expres-
sion (A. 16) is corrected for this drop, the correct value of Id
can be calculated at any value of lagging vars.
ACKNOWLEDGMENT
This circuit configuration was suggested by Mr. W. K.
Boice (General Electric Company; retired). The assistance of
(A. 11) Mr. T. J. Kolb in evaluating and refining the RPC is greatly
REFERENCES
[1] T. 1. E. Miller, Reactive Power Control in Electric Systems. New
York: John Wiley & Sons, 1982.
[2] Laszlo Gyugyi, "Reactive power generation and control by thyristor
circuits," IEEE Trans. Ind. Appl., vol. IA-15 no. 5, pp. 521-532,
Sept./Oct. 1979.
[31 W. Lienau, "Commutation modes of a current source inverter,"
(A. 12)
presented at Second IFAC Symp. on Control in Power Electronics and
Electrical Drives, pp. 219-229, Dusseldorf, W. Germany, 1977.
[4] T. A. Lipo and L. H. Walker, "Design and control techniques for
extending high frequency operation of a CSI induction motor drive,"
IEEE Trans. Ind. Appl., vol. IA-19, no. 5, pp. 744-753, Sept./Oct.
1983.
[5] H. A. Kagi, Y. Kanazawa, and A. Nabae, "Instantaneous reactive
power compensators comprising switching devices without energy
storage components," in Conf. Record of IEEE/IAS Ann. Meeting,
Mexico City, 1983, pp. 825-830.
Loren H. Walker (M'59-SM'78-F'86) received
the B.E.E. degree from the University of Florida,
Fig. Gainesville, in 1958, and the S.M. degree from the
- - Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge,
[cap on
in 1961.
lcommutating He worked at the General Electric Company from
1958-1969, primarily in the development of solid-
state inverters and cycloconverters for military and
aircraft applications. This included work in load
R division and protection of paralleled systems of
solid-state ac power sources. He worked at Exide
Power Systems of ESB Inc. from 1970-1972, where he developed a new line
of large uninterruptible power supplies. His design included parallel redun-
dant operation and was the first such system to be fully digitally controlled. He
(A. 13) rejoined General Electric in 1973 and worked at the Corporate Research and
Development Center, Schenectady, NY, where he worked on a wide range of
solid-state power conversion applications including high-frequency lighting,
switching power supplies, and high-power inverters. Since 1976 he has
worked in the Drive Systems Department of General Electric Company at
Salem, VA. His primary work at this location has been the development of
variable-frequency drives for large ac motors, and on the static reactive-power
(A. 14) compensators.
Mr. Walker is a Registered Professional Engineer in the State of Virginia,
and a member of the Industry Applications Society and the Power Engineering