Voltage Stability in Weak Connection Wind Farms
Fengquan Zhou, Géza Joós, Senior Member, IEEE and Chad Abbey, Student Member
Abstract--The total operating wind power capacity in the
world will increase fast, and these types of generating units will
also bring new opportunities and problems to the utilities and
customers. It becomes necessary and important to evaluate their
impact on the electrical network voltage stability, especially for
weak connected systems. This paper uses the detailed wind
energy conversion system and the full order induction generator
model to analyze the voltage stability in a weak connection wind
farm. The possibility of network voltage drop and instability are
investigated by the detailed electromagnetic transient simulation
program. Some techniques to improve the transient response of
voltage are also discussed.
Index Terms-- Induction generator, voltage stability, wind
farms, wind turbine.
I. INTRODUCTION
T HE total operating wind power capacity in the world has
increased from approximately 2000 MW in 1990 to well
over 16,000 MW by the end of 2000. Continued rapid growth
is expected, with a predicted 50,000 MW of operating wind
power capacity by year 2010 [1]. Driving forces for this
development are environmental concerns, Kyoto targets and
the improved cost efficiency of new wind farms.
As more and more attention is paid to the increase of wind
farm, a number of problems should be investigated in more
detail. When planning and developing large-scale wind power
plants in areas distant from the main power transmission
system, voltage control assessments and reactive power
compensation are increasingly important. Voltage stability of
the regional network may be a main limitation with respect to
maximum rating and operation of the wind power plant.
Technical constraints in relation to wind power integration in
weak grids may in general be associated with limited capacity
in parts of the grid and/or the adverse effect wind power can
have on voltage quality and stability. In certain situations,
however, local constraints regarding development of new
transmission lines or upgrading of existing lines can make it
interesting to utilize the existing lines to a level which in worst
case may imply operation beyond the normal technical
constraints of the system [2].
Voltage instability problems and collapse typically occur
on power systems that are not able to meet the demand for
reactive power, are heavily loaded and/or faulted. Voltage
stability is sometimes called load stability. In the present
This work was supported in part by the Natural Science and Engineering
Research Council of Canada (NSERC)
F. Zhou (fzhou@po-box.mcgill.ca), G. Joós, and C. Abbey are with McGill
University, Montréal, Québec, Canada, H3A 2A7.
work, however, the problems seem mainly to be connected to
the characteristics of the wind turbine generators more than
the ordinary loads in the system. On the other hand,
generation can also be viewed as a complex load, but with a
negative real part (representing production) in contrast to an
“ordinary” load. The voltage stability phenomenon covered by
the present work may be classified as transient voltage
stability, since the power output of the wind turbine generator
normally varies significantly within a time frame of a few
seconds, reflecting the incoming wind speed variations at the
wind turbine
This work focuses on the impact of wind farm on the grid
to which the wind farm is connected. The detailed models of
the wind energy conversion system (WECS) are designed and
simulated by the Electromagnetic Transients Program (EMTP).
The simulation results demonstrate that the electrical
instability of wind farms and network voltage are relative to
the short circuit capacity at the point of common connection.
The X/R ratio of the transmission line impedance also has
great impact on the output of the induction generators. Finally,
the effect of using rotor feedback control to improve the
transient response of the wind farm is been demonstrated.
II. WECS MODELS
A. Wind Energy Conversion Model
Tae Tles
Main Shaft Tgen Tag
Turbine Gearbox Generator
Rotor
Fig.1. Detailed model of a single wind energy conversion system
1) Blade Model
The torque got from the turbine rotor is shown:
1
Tae = πρCt (λ ) R 3 vw2 (1)
2
where ρ is the air density; R is the wind turbine radius;
λ=ΩbR/vw is the ratio of blade tip speed to wind speed; Ωb is
the wind turbine rotational speed (rad /sec.); and the wind
turbine blade aerodynamics is characterized by a non-
dimensional curve of torque coefficient CP as a function of tip
speed ratio λ for various blade pitch angle β, so Ct(λ)=Cp/λ.
2) Hub model
 dTlss 1
= (Tae − Tlss ) (2)
dt Tn ϕ qs = L s i qs + L m i qr′

where Tae is the wind turbine torque; Tlss is the turbine shaft  ϕ ds = L s i ds + L m i dr′
torque; and Tn is the hub time constant. where  ϕ ′ = L ′ i ′ + L i
qr r qr m qs
3) Gear box model 
ϕ
 dr ′ = L ′ i ′ + L m i ds
dΩ b 1
r dr

= (Tlss − Gr Tm ) (3) L = L + L
dt Jt  s ls m

 L r′ = L lr′ + L m

where Tm is the mechanical turbine torque; Gr is the gear box Mechanical system model is shown:
ratio; and Jt is the time constant of the combined inertia of the
wind turbine and gear box.
d p
The generator gets the mechanical power from the gear box  dt ω r = 2 J ( T e − F ω r − T m )
through some kind of coupling drive. Several types of  (6)
coupling systems such as compliant shaft, compliant shaft d θ =ω
 dt r

r
with coupling, rate coupling or stiff shaft may easily be tested.
The last one, which is represented by the following equation,
is considered here for its simplicity. where Rs, Lls : stator resistance and leakage inductance; R'r, L'lr:
Tm = K (θ G − θ g ) (4) rotor resistance and leakage inductance; Lm: magnetizing
inductance; Ls, L'r : total stator and rotor inductances; vqs, iqs :
Where K is the stiffness factor, θG and θg are the shaft angles q axis stator voltage and current; v'qr, i'qr : q axis rotor voltage
on the gear box side and generator side respectively. and current; vds, ids : d axis stator voltage and current; v'dr, i'dr :
d axis rotor voltage and current; φqs, φds: stator q and d axis
B. Induction Generator Detailed Model fluxes; φ'qr, φ'dr: rotor q and d axis fluxes; ω: angular velocity
of the stator; ωr : angular velocity of the rotor; θr: rotor
The induction machine d-q or dynamic equivalent circuit is angular position; p: number of pole pairs; Te: electromagnetic
shown is Fig. 2. According to this model, the modeling torque; Tm : Shaft mechanical torque; J : moment of inertia; F :
equations in flux linkage form are follows: combined rotor and load viscous friction coefficient.
In terms of the type of the induction generator, v'qr and v'dr
Rs ωφ ds Lls L’ lr (ω-ω r)φ’dr R’
r
have different definition. In this paper, using the squirrel-cage
+ + induction generator detailed model, v'qr and v'dr are set to zero.
iqs I’qr
v qs Lm v’qr III. IMPACT OF THE VOLTAGE DURING STABILITY OPERATION
When the network that wind farms connect with is a weak
- - network, the voltage stability is one of the most important
q axis factors that affect the wind farm’s stable operation. Fig. 3
ωφ qs L’ lr (ω-ω r)φ’qr R’ shows the network equivalent circuit of a wind farm
Rs Lls r connected with a weak network. The transmission line
+ +
impendence is Rl+jXl, and its value depends upon the
ids I’dr transmission type and the length. Qc is the compensation
vds Lm v’dr reactive power to the wind farm by adjusting the capacity of
the capacitors. In practice it has been found to be possible to
- - connect relatively high penetration of induction generators to a
d axis remote distribution network. The ratio of wind farm output
Fig.2. Induction generator detailed model real power rating to short circuit capacity (SCC) at the point of
common coupling (PCC) is limited.
Electrical system model is shown:
 d
 v qs = R s i qs + ϕ qs + ωϕ ds
dt Vs

v d Vt G1
= R s i ds + ϕ ds − ωϕ qs RT+jXT
 ds dt jX l PCC ……

 d
′
 v qr = R r′ i qr′ + ϕ qr′ + ( ω − ω r ) ϕ dr′ (5)
 dt
 d Gn
′
 v dr = R r′ i dr′ + ϕ dr′ − ( ω − ω r ) ϕ qr′ C
dt

T =
3 p 1
( ) ( ϕ ds i qs − ϕ qs i ds )
 e 2 2 ω
Fig.3. Wind farm with grid equivalent circuit
A. Impact of Variable Wind Speed on Voltage
Changes in wind speed often result in wind turbine active
and reactive power fluctuations. Typically, when the wind
farm connects with a weak network, voltage fluctuations
resulting in flicker can occur.
Fig. 4 shows a single WECS, where the output real power
changes with the wind speed. One finds that the voltage at the
terminal will change in the opposite direction. As the real
power increases, the voltage decreases.
Fig. 5 shows that when the wind farm connects with the
infinite bus, the voltage of the terminal can hold at 1.0 p.u.
But as the ratio of wind farm output with short circuit capacity
is increased from 5%-30%, the voltage drop goes beyond to
15% until stability is lost. Fig. 5 proves that the SCC at the
PCC is one of the important factors that affect the security and
stability of the WECS.
In order to understand the results more fully, one has to
turn to the model of the squirrel-cage induction generator in
Fig. 6.

Rs Xs V r Xr Rr

Is Ir
Vt Xm

X eq Req

I
V

Fig.6 Induction machine equivalent circuit

The equivalent impedance as seen across the stator terminal

can be written as Zeq=Req + jXeq so that the current associated
with an applied voltage V=V is I=IR+jIX where
IR=VReq/(Req2+ Xeq2) and IX=VXeq/(Req2+ Xeq2).

IR
Vt
φ
I
Fig.4. Wind speed, WECS real power and voltage (a) Terminal voltage; (b) IX jIXeq
IR eq
Output real power; (c) Wind speed

Req>0, motor operation

B. Impact of Short Circuit Capacity on the Penetration of
Wind Farm Fig. 7(a) Phasor diagram (motor)

I sR eq jI sXeq

IR
φ Vt

Req <0, generator operation

I IX

Fig. 7(b) Phasor diagram (generator)

Fig.7 (a) shows the phasors of V and I for positive values of

Req which corresponds to motoring operation when the slip s is
Fig.5. Increase the penetration of wind power output verse IG terminal positive. Consequently, the equivalent resistance Req in
voltage
Zeq=Req+jXeq is positive. The current phasor I lags the voltage
phasor V by an acute power angleφ. VIG
In induction generation operation the slip is negative. As
(Rr/s) is negative, the equivalent resistance Req in Zeq=Req+jXeq G1
Weak Grid
is negative when (Rr/s) dominates over Rs. Therefore IR=-
V|Req|/ (Req2+ Xeq2) is negative. But it can be shown that IX is R l+jX l PCC
G2
still negative. Fig. 7 (b) shows the current phasor with respect
to the rotor phasor voltage for induction generation operation. Vs
It is significant to note that whereas IR reverses direction, IX ……
does not. The conclusion is that the reactive current -jIX
continues to lag V by 900. The intent of this example is to Gn
dispel any hope that induction generation by the squirrel cage
machine will contribute to leading power factor. The lowering
of Vt with the increase of the output power of the induction Fig.9. Wind farm connection with a weak network
generator is because it increases the amount of current through
the transmission line impedance, Zl=Rl+jXl and the A. Increase the Short Circuit Capacity to Improve the
transformer impedance, Zt=Rt+jXt to cause larger voltage Transient Response of Wind Farm
drops from the source voltage Vs. Fig. 10 shows the transient response of the terminal voltage
C. Impact of Transmission Line Impedance X/R Ratio on the of the wind farms versus SCC when a three phase fault occurs
Voltage Stability at the PCC. When the ratio of wind farm output with SCC is
increased to 10%, the voltage can recover after the fault. In
When a remote wind farm connects with the distribution
addition as the SCC is increased, the dynamic response of the
network, in general, the transmission impedance ratio X/R is in
voltage increases as well.
the area from 2 to 10. For example, in offshore wind farm, the
submarine cable ratio is close to 2.

Fig.10. Terminal voltage in a weak network connection following a three

phase fault for different SCCs

Fig.8. Increase the ratio X/R verse IG terminal voltage B. Increase X/R Ratio to Improve the Transient Response of
Wind Farm
Fig.8 shows the relationship of the ratio X/R with the
terminal voltage of the induction generator. In this simulation
result, the ratio of wind farm output real power rating to SCC
is set 12%. When the ratio increases, the terminal voltage will
decrease, and the stability of voltage also decreases.

IV. DYNAMIC RESPONSE OF WIND FARMS

Wind farms equivalent circuit is shown in Fig. 9. In order
to test the voltage dynamic response of the wind farms, we set
a fault at the PCC.

Fig.11. Terminal voltage in a weak network connection following fault for
different transmission line impedance, X/R ratios (a) one phase-ground fault;
(b) three phase-ground fault.
Fig. 11 shows the curve of the terminal voltage of the wind
farms versus the transmission line impedance ratio X/R when
there is one-phase-ground fault (fault lasts 0.055s) at the PCC.
The SCC is set to 12%. Under one phase fault, when the ratio
increases from 2 to 10, the terminal voltage can recover
stability after clearing the fault. But if the fault is three-phase
fault, the situation will change. When the ratio is 2 and 4, after
clearing the three phase fault, the terminal voltage recovers to
the normal condition. All the induction generators retain
stability after the fault is cleared. But when the ratio is
increased to 6 or greater, the voltage cannot recover and the
wind farm loses stability.
C. Rotor Speed Feedback Control to Improve the Transient
Response of Wind Farm
When the voltage drops at the terminal of the wind farms,
the rotor speed of the induction generator will accelerates until
stability is lost. Therefore, the rotor speed feedback control in
the control system of the wind turbine can be used to improve
the dynamic response. When there is a three phase to ground
fault, the IG terminal voltage transient response is shown in
Fig. 12. If the wind turbine has rotor speed feedback control,
the voltage of the terminal can recover to the normal level.
Figs. 13 and 14 show the real power output and the slip of the
induction generators. They can hold stability if there is rotor
speed control in wind turbine.
Fig.12. Induction generator terminal voltage
Fig.13. Induction generator output real power
Fig.14. Induction generator slip
In general, the main purpose of the rotor feedback control
is to maintain the output of the wind generator constant. The
control system may increase the transient stability of the
induction generator which has the tendency to accelerate
following short circuit faults in the power system.
D. Use of Power Electronics Devices to Improve the
Transient Response of Wind Farm
There are other ways to control the voltage of wind farms.
One common way is by power factor control (PFC). The use
of PFC in the form of voltage control to improve the dynamic
stability of wind farm is obvious because PFC can adjust the
terminal reactive power that the wind farm requires.
The use of STATCOM for the dynamic reactive
compensation of wind farm to improve the voltage transient
response has been demonstrated by many researchers [5] [6].
The critical clearance time during three phase fault to maintain
system stability has been increased.
An even more effective method to improve dynamic
response is the use of superconducting magnetic energy
storage (SMES) or battery energy storage systems (BESS).
This is because SMES/BESS can not only adjust the reactive
power of the wind farms, but also adjust its real power. So the
SMES/BESS can absorb the output energy of the induction
generators during an imbalance in the rotor swing equation
under the fault condition.
V. CONCLUSION
This paper analyzes the detailed wind energy conversion
system model and the impact of different parameters and
control system to the voltage stability. Simulation results show
that:
(1) The short circuit capacity at the PCC will limit the
penetration of the wind farm. Simulation results show
that the maximum penetration of wind farm is about
20% of the SCC. When the penetration of wind
generation increases to 25-30% of the SCC, the wind
farm will be instable.
(2) The ratio X/R of the transmission line impedance will
affect the different voltage drop of wind farm. As the
ratio is increased, the voltage drop will increase as
well.
(3) Some useful methods to improve the voltage
transient response have been discussed, for example,
increasing the X/R ratio, and regulating the voltage
using PFC or other alternatives. Using rotor speed
feedback control can strongly improve the transient
stability of the induction generator.
The voltage profile is the main issue when considering
stable operation of a wind farm. In order to maintain the wind
farm’s stable operation and avoid over-speed of the induction
generators, sufficient dynamic stability improvements and
voltage control technologies should be taken into
consideration during the design of the wind farm. In addition,
the type of connection and the size of the wind farm will
dictate the amount of voltage support required.
VI. REFERENCES
[1] Tande, J.O.G.; Uhlen, K; “Wind turbines in weak grids-constraints and
solutions” Electricity Distribution, 2001. Part 1: Contributions. CIRED.
16th International Conference and Exhibition on (IEE Conf. Publ No.
482) , Volume: 4 , 18-21 June 2001 Pages:5
[2] Palsson, M.P.; Tande, J.O.G.; Toftevaag, T.; Uhlen, K.; “Large-scale
wind power integration and voltage stability limits in regional networks”
Power Engineering Society Summer Meeting, 2002 IEEE, Volume: 2,
2002 Page(s): 762 –769.
[3] Liew, S.N.; Strbac, G.; “Maximising penetration of wind generation in
existing distribution networks” Generation, Transmission and
Distribution, IEE Proceedings- , Volume: 149, Issue: 3, May 2002
Pages: 256 – 262.
[4] Seyoum, D.; Rahman, M.F.; Grantham, C.; “Terminal voltage control of
a wind turbine driven isolated induction generator using stator oriented
field control” Applied Power Electronics Conference and Exposition,
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[5] Smith, J.W.; Brooks, D.L.; “Voltage impacts of distributed wind
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[6] L. Holdsworth, N. Jenkins, G.Strbac; “Electrical stability of large,
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VII. BIOGRAPHIES
Fengquan Zhou received the B.Eng. Hons. Degree, M.Eng. Degree from
Tsinghua University, Beijing, P.R. China in 1993 and 1996, respectively. His
main research interests are in distributed generation, power system
automation, power system stability, and power electronics. At present he is a
graduate student studying in the Department of Electrical and Computer
Engineering, McGill University.
Géza Joós (M’82, SM’89) graduated from McGill University, Montreal,
Canada, with an M.Eng. (1974) and Ph.D. (1987).
His employment experience includes ABB, the Ecole de technologie
supérieure, Concordia University, and since 2001, McGill University,
Montreal, Canada. He is involved in fundamental and applied research related
mostly to the application of high-power electronics to power conversion and
power systems, an area in which he has published extensively.
He is Vice-Chair (2001-2003) of the Industrial Power Converter
Committee of the IEEE Industry Applications Society (IAS) and is active on a
number of IEEE Power Engineering Society working groups, including the
DC and FACTS Subcommittee of the Transmission and Distribution
Committee and Chair (2003- )
Chad Abbey (S’01) was born in Calgary, Alberta, Canada in 1977. He
received his degree in electrical engineering from the University of Alberta in
2002. He is currently pursuing his M. Eng degree at McGill University.
His research interests include power electronics and their application to
distributed generation.