CHAPTER 16

STATE-SPACE REPRESENTATION
OF HVDC GRIDS
Eduardo Prieto-Araujo1 and Fernando Bianchi2
1
Research Group CITCEA, Electrical Engineering Department, Technical University of
Catalonia (UPC), Barcelona, Spain
2
Research Group Wind Energy, Electrical Engineering Department, Catalonia Institute
for Energy Research (IREC), Barcelona, Spain

16.1 INTRODUCTION

A methodology to obtain the state-space model of a generic multi-terminal HVDC

grid (HVDC grid) is described. The procedure is based on combining the equations
describing the different parts of the transmission grid. As a result, a simple model of
a defined HVDC grid could be obtained to perform either steady-state or dynamic
analysis.

16.2 MULTI-TERMINAL GRID MODELING

16.2.1 Grid Structure

A multi-terminal high-voltage direct current (HVDC grid) grid can be represented as
an interconnection of nodes and branches [1]. The different AC systems connected
to the grid through AC/DC VSC converters are considered either input or output
power nodes. Transmission lines interconnecting the described nodes are defined as
branches. Also, grid connections where only cables converge are defined as interme-
diate nodes. A simplified example of an offshore HVDC grid is shown in Figure 16.1.
It is compounded by m AC systems injecting power to the grid, n AC systems extract-
ing power from the grid, and p intermediate connection nodes and r branches. Notice
that the number of intermediate connections and branches depend on the particular
interconnection pattern.

HVDC Grids: For Offshore and Supergrid of the Future, First Edition. By Dirk Van Hertem, Oriol Gomis-Bellmunt, and Jun Liang.
© 2016 The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, Inc. Published 2016 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

333
334 CHAPTER 16 STATE-SPACE REPRESENTATION OF HVDC GRIDS

Figure 16.1 A node and branch scheme of an HVDC offshore grid.

16.2.2 AC Systems Connected to the HVDC Grid

AC systems are connected to the HVDC grid through VSC-HVDC power converters.
An averaged model of the converter [2] is considered to represent its behavior inside
the HVDC grid. This model approaches the AC side of the converters as three voltage
sources and approaches the DC side as a current source together with a capacitor, as
shown in Figure 16.2.
Using this simplified representation, each AC system is modeled from the DC
grid side as a DC current source, as illustrated in Figure 16.3. At the converter DC
side, the power flow in the node k is represented by a current ik coming from a source
of value
Pk
ik = (16.1)
Ek

IDC Ua
IDC
q1 q2 q3
Ub
Uabc

Uc
q4 q5 q6

Figure 16.2 Average equivalent representation of a three-phase VSC converter.

 16.2 MULTI-TERMINAL GRID MODELING 335

Figure 16.3 Equivalent representation of the wind farm and the AC grid converters for a
DC grid analysis.

where Pk is the incoming power and Ek is the DC voltage at the node k. It will
be assumed that the voltage Ek remains close to the nominal values E0 . Under this
assumption, the current ik can be assumed proportional to the power Pk .

16.2.3 Branches
Transmission lines interconnecting the different grid nodes are modeled by 𝜋-
equivalent circuits [3]; see Figure 16.4. When several lines are connected to the
same node, only one equivalent capacitor Ck is used to represent it, in order to reduce
the number of the model variables.

∑
l
Ck = Ci (16.2)
i=1

Figure 16.4 𝜋-circuit modeling a branch element.

336 CHAPTER 16 STATE-SPACE REPRESENTATION OF HVDC GRIDS

16.2.4 Intermediate Nodes

Several transmission lines in the HVDC grid may join two or more terminals at
intermediate points. These types of nodes are considered intermediate nodes. Again,
the number of capacitances placed in parallel can be reduced to an equivalent capac-
itance, considering the association of the 𝜋-equivalent corresponding circuits using
(16.2).

16.2.5 Equivalent Circuit Model

An equivalent circuit can be obtained from the interconnection of the nodes and
branches after the above-mentioned simplifications. An example of a HVDC offshore
grid for wind power integration is shown in Figure 16.5.
Next, in Figure 16.5, equivalent scheme variables are described:
r R1 ... Rr are the branch equivalent resistances of the different lines of the grid.
r L1 ... Lr are the branch equivalent inductances of the different lines of the grid.
r iL ... iL are the currents flowing through the different elements of the grids.
1 r

Offshore Onshore

AC WFVSC DC L1 iL R1 AC GSVSC DC
1

i m+p+1
Wind Grid
farm i1 E1 C1 iC i Cm+p+1 C m+p+1 connection
1
1 E m+p+1 1

R2 Pm+p+1
P1 iL2
AC WFVSC DC L2 L3 iL3 AC GSVSC DC
R3

Wind i m+p+2
C2 iC i Cm+p+2 Grid
farm i2 E2 2
Cm+p+2 connection
2 2
E m+p+2

P2 Pm+p+2

iLr-4 iLr-1
AC WFVSC DC Rr-4 L r-4 Rr-1Lr-1 AC GSVSC DC

Intermediate
Cm+p+n-1 im+p+n-1
Wind connection Grid
im-1 Em-1 C m-1 iC iC connection
farm m-1 m+p+n-1
m-1 Em+p+n-1 n-1
Cm+p
R r-3 Em+p
Pm-1 iL iL Pm+p+n-1
r-3 r-2 iL
AC WFVSC DC L r-3 r
AC GSVSC DC
Rr-2 Lr-2 Rr Lr
Cm+p+n im+p+n
Wind
im E m Cm iC iC Grid
farm m m+p+n connection
m Em+p+n n

Pm Pm+p+n

Figure 16.5 Offshore HVDC grid simplified equivalent model.

 16.2 MULTI-TERMINAL GRID MODELING 337
r C1 ... Cm+p+n are the equivalent capacitors resulting from the parallel association
of the different capacitors of the models involved in the grid.
r E1 ... Em+p+n are the n + m voltages measured at the capacitors placed in parallel
with the current sources of the equivalent scheme, in addition with the p voltages
measured at the capacitors located in the intermediate connection points.
r iC ... iC are the currents flowing each of the capacitors of the grid equivalent
1 m+p+n
scheme.
r P1 ... Pm i Pm+p+1 ... Pm+p+n represent the power transmitted by each of the
converters connected to the represented grid. The first m variables are related
to the wind farm converters, and the following n variables are related to the
grid side converters.
r i1 ... im i im+p+1 ... im+p+n represent the current flowing through the current
sources presented at the equivalent scheme of the HVDC grid. The value of
these sources is obtained from the relation between the power flowing the
converter and the voltage present at its terminals:
P
i= (16.3)
E

16.2.6 State-Space Representation

Then, using circuits laws and after some variable manipulations, it is possible to find
a set of first-order differential equations describing the dynamic behavior of the entire
HVDC grid. These differential equations are known as the state-space representation
and can be expressed in the following compact form [4, 5]:
dx
Dynamic equation: = Ax + B𝑤 𝑤 + Bu u
dt
Noncontrolled outputs equation: z = Cz x (16.4)
Controlled output equations: y = Cy x
The equation variables are described as follows:
r x is the state vector.
r ẋ is the derivative of the system state vector.
r u is the controlled input vector.
r 𝑤 is the noncontrolled or perturbation input vector.
r y is the controlled output vector.
r z is the noncontrolled output vector.
r A is the state matrix.
r Bu is the controlled input matrix.
r B𝑤 is the noncontrolled input matrix.
r Cy is the controlled output matrix.
r Cz is the noncontrolled output matrix.
338 CHAPTER 16 STATE-SPACE REPRESENTATION OF HVDC GRIDS

A, B𝑤 , Bu , Cz , and Cy are matrices of suitable dimensions. These matrices are

obtained after arranging the variables and applying matrix computation laws.
The state vector x consists of internal variables that characterize the entire state
of the system. In an electrical system, the currents in the inductors and the voltages in
the capacitors are commonly selected as states. Therefore, in the case of the HVDC
offshore grid in Figure 16.5, the state vector is given by
x = [E1 , ⋯ , Em+p+n , iL1 , ⋯ , iLr ]T
Each node has one capacitor and each branch has one inductor, therefore the total
number of states is n + p + m + r.
The inputs are divided into two vectors: The vector u gathers the variables
that can be used to control the system and 𝑤 are disturbances, that is, external
variables that are not possible to manipulate. In the case of the HVDC offshore
grids, the inputs of the system are the current injected or extracted by the converters,
therefore
𝑤 = [i1 , … , ij , … , innc ]T , j ∈ nc
u = [i1 , … , ij , … , inc ]T , j ∈ c
where nc corresponds to the set of indexes of the nodes where the converters inject
or extract power without voltage control and c denotes the set of indexes of the
nodes where the voltage control is applied. Notice that the relation nc + nnc = m + n
must be held.
Similarly, the output is partitioned into two vectors. The vector y contains the
variables that can be used in the control of the DC voltage. On the other hand, z
stands for the vector of variables that are not available to be used by the controller.
In the HVDC grid scheme, the controllers can only use the information provided by
the voltage at the nodes where the voltage control is applied. The rest of the voltages
must also be maintained close to the rated values but they cannot be fed back to the
controllers. Hence,
z = [E1 , … , Ej , … , Ennc ]T j ∈ nc
y = [E1 , … , Ej , … , Enc ]T j ∈ c
The transfer matrix of the system
[ ]
Gz𝑤 (s) Gzu (s)
G(s) = (16.5)
Gy𝑤 (s) Gyu (s)
is obtained from the state-space equation (16.4), where
Gz𝑤 (s) = Cz (sI − A)−1 B𝑤
Gzu (s) = Cz (sI − A)−1 Bu
Gy𝑤 (s) = Cy (sI − A)−1 B𝑤
Gyu (s) = Cy (sI − A)−1 Bu
The transfers matrices Gzu and Gyu relate the currents imposed by the controller with
the controlled and nondirectly controlled voltages, respectively, whereas the transfer
 16.3 FOUR-TERMINAL GRID EXAMPLE 339

matrices Gz𝑤 and Gy𝑤 connect the current not used in the control with the controlled
and nondirectly controlled voltages, respectively. Figure 16.6 shows the DC multi-
terminal matrix transfer function diagram representation, relating the controlled and
non controlled inputs and outputs of the system. The existing relation between the
system variables is again described schematically in Table 16.1.

Non-controlled
w

Controlled Gyw Gzw

inputs /
Control Non-controlled
action outputs /
Gyu z Controlled voltages
u
Controlled
Gzu y outputs /
Controlled voltages
Figure 16.6 DC multi-terminal grid model matrix transfer function diagram representation.

TABLE 16.1 DC Multi-Terminal Grid Matrix Transfer

Functions Classification

Outputs

Inputs Noncontrolled (z) Controlled (y)

Noncontrolled (𝑤) Gz𝑤 Gy𝑤

Controlled (u) Gzu Gyu

16.3 FOUR-TERMINAL GRID EXAMPLE

A simple four-terminal HVDC grid is used to illustrate the modeling methodology

presented in previous Sections [6]. The four-terminal grid is depicted in Figure 16.7
and consists of two offshore wind farm converters WFC1 and WFC2 and two onshore
grid side converters GSC1 and GSC2. The four-terminal HVDC grid has two power
input nodes, two power output nodes, and three branches representing the cables
linking the converters. The capacitors are the result of combining the capacitances of
the nodes and the corresponding branch side, as explained in Section 16.2.
Two scenarios are analyzed. In the first case, it is assumed that droop voltage
control is applied in both grid side converters whereas the wind farm converters
inject all the wind power available. In the second scenario, due to a fault in the AC
grid, both wind farm converters regulate the DC voltages and the grid side converters
extract power from the HVDC grid at their maximum capacity. Thus, in these cases
the state-space variables selection will change depending on which are the system
340 CHAPTER 16 STATE-SPACE REPRESENTATION OF HVDC GRIDS

TABLE 16.2 Four-Terminal Example Variable Definition

Grid parameters Nomenclature

Line resistance R1
Line resistance R2
Line resistance R3
Line inductance L1
Line inductance L2
Line inductance L3
Capacitances Ck
Rated line current irtd
L
Rated input current irtd
k
Converter rated power Pk
Rated DC voltage Ek
Reference voltage E0

voltages that must be controlled. Table 16.2 summarizes the nomenclature used to
represent the multi-terminal DC grid variables used in the model.

16.3.1 Case 1: Droop Voltage Control in the AC Grid Side

Applying circuit laws to the four-terminal grid in Figure 16.7, the following differ-
ential equations can be obtained:

Figure 16.7 Four-terminal grid used to illustrate the modeling methodology.

 16.3 FOUR-TERMINAL GRID EXAMPLE 341

dE1 1 dE2 1
= iC1 , = i (16.6)
dt C1 dt C2 C2
dE3 1 dE4 1
= i , = i (16.7)
dt C3 C3 dt C4 C4
diL1 1
= (−R1 iL1 + E1 − E3 ) (16.8)
dt L1
diL2 1
= (−R2 iL2 + E1 − E2 ) (16.9)
dt L2
diL3 1
= (−R3 iL3 + E2 − E4 ) (16.10)
dt L3

and the following algebraic equations can be obtained:

iC1 = i1 − iL1 − iL2 (16.11)

i C2 = i2 − iL3 + iL2 (16.12)
i C3 = −i3 + iL1 (16.13)
i C4 = −i4 + iL3 (16.14)

There are four capacitors and three inductors; therefore, the variables E1 , E2 , E3 , E4 ,
iL1 , iL2 , and iL3 are sufficient to completely define the state of this system, that is,

x = [E1 E2 E3 E4 iL1 iL2 iL3 ]T

As the WFCs are injecting all available power into the grid and in the GSCs are
regulating the DC voltages, the input and output result divided into

𝑤 = [i1 i2 ]T , u = [i3 i4 ]T
z = [E1 E2 ]T , y = [E3 E4 ]T

The purpose of the droop voltage control applied on the right side of the four-terminal
grid in Figure 16.7 is to maintain the DC voltage stable when the currents coming
from the wind farm converters WFC1 and WFC2 change. Therefore, the vector of
these currents is the disturbance 𝑤 and the control input u is the vector of the currents
of the GSCs i3 and i4 . The voltages measured and fed back to the controller are the
voltages E3 and E4 whereas the voltages E1 and E2 are not available for the controller,
but it is desirable to maintain them close to the rated value.
342 CHAPTER 16 STATE-SPACE REPRESENTATION OF HVDC GRIDS

After the previous definitions, substituting the currents in the capacitors in

(16.6)–(16.7) by the relations (16.11)–(16.14) and reorganizing the differential equa-
tions, the matrices in the state-space representation (16.4) result:

⎡0 0 0 0 − C1 − C1 0 ⎤
⎢ 1
1
1 ⎥
⎢0 0 0 0 0 C2
− C1 ⎥
⎢ 1
2⎥
⎢0 0 0 0 C3
0 0 ⎥
⎢ 1 ⎥
A=⎢0 0 0 0 0 0 C4 ⎥
⎢1 0 − L1 0
R
− L1 0 0 ⎥⎥
⎢ L1 1 1
⎢1 − L1 0 0 0
R
− L2 0 ⎥
⎢ L2 2 2 ⎥
⎢0 1
0 − L1 0 0 − L3 ⎥
R
⎣ L3 3 3⎦

1
⎡ C1
0 ⎤ ⎡ 0 0 ⎤
⎢ 1 ⎥ ⎢ 0 0 ⎥
⎢ 0 C2 ⎥ ⎢ ⎥
⎢ 0 0 ⎥ ⎢− 1 0 ⎥
⎢ ⎥ ⎢ C3 ⎥
B𝑤 = ⎢ 0 0 ⎥, Bu =⎢ 0 − C1 ⎥
⎢ ⎥ ⎢ 4
⎥
⎢ 0 0 ⎥ ⎢ 0 0 ⎥
⎢ 0 0 ⎥ ⎢ 0 0 ⎥
⎢ ⎥ ⎢ ⎥
⎣ 0 0 ⎦ ⎣ 0 0 ⎦
[ ]
1 0 0 0 0 0 0
Cz =
0 1 0 0 0 0 0
[ ]
0 0 1 0 0 0 0
Cy =
0 0 0 1 0 0 0

16.3.2 Case 2: Droop Voltage Control in the Wind Farm Side

In the second case of study, it is assumed that a simultaneous fault in both AC
grids forces the GSCs to enter in current limitation mode. In this circumstance, the
WFCs are responsible for regulating the DC voltage. Hence, the control inputs are
the currents injected by the WFCs and the disturbances are the currents extracted by
the GSCs, that is,

𝑤 = [i3 i4 ]T , u = [i1 i2 ]T

On the other hand, the measured variables are the wind farm side voltages and the
nondirectly controlled variables are the grid side voltages, that is,

z = [E1 E2 ]T , y = [E3 E4 ]T
 REFERENCES 343

The state-space model have the same matrix A but the input and output matrices are
now given by
1
⎡ 0 0 ⎤ ⎡C 0 ⎤
⎢ 0 0 ⎥ ⎢ 1 1 ⎥
⎢ ⎥ ⎢ 0 C2 ⎥
⎢− 1
0 ⎥ ⎢ 0 0 ⎥
⎢ C3 1 ⎥ ⎢ ⎥
B𝑤 = ⎢ 0 − C ⎥, Bu = ⎢ 0 0 ⎥
⎢ 4
⎥ ⎢ ⎥
⎢ 0 0 ⎥ ⎢ 0 0 ⎥
⎢ 0 0 ⎥ ⎢ 0 0 ⎥
⎢ ⎥ ⎢ ⎥
⎣ 0 0 ⎦ ⎣ 0 0 ⎦
[ ]
0 0 1 0 0 0 0
Cz =
0 0 0 1 0 0 0
[ ]
1 0 0 0 0 0 0
Cy =
0 1 0 0 0 0 0

16.4 CONCLUSIONS

In this chapter the mathematical modeling of a HVDC grid is detailed. Using 𝜋-

cable models and VSC converter equivalent representation, a complete grid model
can be straightforwardly obtained. Different mathematical model representations are
provided including state-space representation and transfer function matrices. Two
case studies are presented to exemplify the procedure to develop HVDC grid model
to analyze the grid during normal and AC fault conditions. The proposed model
applies for both cases, considering that the controlled variables are different due to
the fact that the voltage regulation is performed by GSC in normal operation and by
WFC during voltage sags.

REFERENCES
1. J. Reeve, “Multiterminal HVDC power systems,” IEEE Transactions on Power Apparatus and Systems,
vol. PAS 99, no. 2, pp. 729–737, 1980.
2. G. Zhang, Z. Xu, and Y. Cai, “An equivalent model for simulating VSC based HVDC,” in Proceedings
of the IEEE/PES Transmission and Distribution Conference and Exposition, vol. 1, 2001, pp. 20–24.
3. P. Kundur, Power System Stability and Control. New York: McGraw-Hill Professional, 1994.
4. K. Ogata, Modern Control Engineering, ser. Instrumentation and controls series. Prentice Hall, 2010
[Online]. Available: http://books.google.es/books?id=Wu5GpNAelzkC
5. S. Skogestad and I. Postlethwaite, Multivariable Feedback Control, Analysis and Design, Hoboken,
NJ: John Wiley & Sons, 2007.
6. E. Prieto-Araujo, F. Bianchi, A. Junyent-Ferre, and O. Gomis-Bellmunt, “Methodology for droop
control dynamic analysis of multiterminal VSC–HVDC grids for offshore wind farms,” Power Delivery,
IEEE Transactions on, vol. 26, no. 4, pp. 2476–2485, Oct. 2011.