An Investigation of the Low Voltage Ride through Function of GE DFIG Wind Turbines for Electro-Mechanical Simulations

Abstract

Doubly-fed induction generator (DFIG) wind turbine has become the most widely used wind turbine in wind farms, since it presents noticeably advantages such as decoupled controls of active and reactive powers, and the use of a power converter with a rated power of 25% of total system power. As the penetration of wind power in power system increases, it is required that the wind turbine remained connected and actively contributed to the system stability during and after faults and disturbance. One common approach for a DFIG to obtain such low voltage ride through (LVRT) function is to install a crowbar circuit across its rotor terminals, which short circuit the rotor side converter when over-current is detected in the rotor. A detailed model of LVRT function normally requires electromagnetic simulations. However, the time consuming computational process is prohibitive for the studies of the integration of wind farms into large scale power systems. Electromechanical simulations are more suitable for such engineering applications. GE has incorporated the LVRT function into its recently released DFIG wind turbine model for Electro-mechanical simulations. This paper has implemented this model and verified the effectiveness of the LVRT function.