Experience from a large European variable speed pumped storage plant in operation and potential benefits for the US Grid
The Linth-Limmern 2015 power plant (4 ×250 MW) in Switzerland is equipped with single stage pump-turbines (operating with the highest head in Europe), large asynchronous motor-generators and power converters allowing for a power variation in pump mode of approximately 30% and 30% minimum power generation in turbine mode.There are numerous advantages of Pumped Storage (PS) with Variable Speed (VS), perhaps the greatest being the ability to integrate efficiently with variable renewable generation which is a growing concern within the US.Other major advantages are flexible grid frequency regulation, even in pump mode, a greater ability to operate the units more efficiently over a wider operating range and a more dynamic power response.Following earlier publications about concepts, product development,and challenges on the plant integration and industrialization 1-3, this paper will discuss recent progress and lessons learned during commissioning and operation of the 250 MW VS units.The optimization of the pump-turbine, motor-generator and converter requires an in-depth understanding of the entire system.Due to the increased equipment complexity, commissioning is also more complex compared to conventional machines.The development of large double fed induction machines for hydro applications requires major efforts on design, manufacturing and assembly of the rotor components.The validation of the operational reliability of all individual components and their interaction is a key priority of GE Renewable Energy.Hence special measurements were performed during wet commissioning and type testing to confirm that temperatures and other critical parameters are within design range.The variable speed machines in the Linth-Limmern 2015 power plant offer flexibility;they were tested together with the grid operators.To prove compliance with the new grid code requirements (e.g.fault ride through capability) and to calculate the characteristic reaction of the units in case of grid faults, comprehensive network simulations were done.The simulation results, considering all main components such as machines, converters, transformers were used to define and validate the control and protection strategy with the plant owner.The paper concludes with a description of the characteristics of a VS PSP that are of interest for a transmission system operator.
Hydropower Storage Grid Stability Flexibility Variable Speed
Alexander Schwery Thomas Kunz G(o)khan Sari
GE Renewable Energy, CH-5242 Birr, Switzerland
国际会议
法国巴黎
英文
1-9
2019-03-13（万方平台首次上网日期，不代表论文的发表时间）