Reactor Solutions for Voltage Control of SWER Systems

Ergon Energy operates tens of thousands of kilometers of Single Wire Earth Return (SWER) distribution feeders in remote parts of Queensland to deliver electrical energy to small customer loads, scattered sparsely over vast areas. Ergon Energy has identified voltage regulation as one of the key issue...

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Main Authors: Mayer, J., Hosseinzadeh, N., Wolfs, Peter
Other Authors: Akthar Kalam
Format: Conference Paper
Published: Victoria University 2006
Online Access:http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/42508
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author Mayer, J.
Hosseinzadeh, N.
Wolfs, Peter
author2 Akthar Kalam
author_facet Akthar Kalam
Mayer, J.
Hosseinzadeh, N.
Wolfs, Peter
author_sort Mayer, J.
building Curtin Institutional Repository
collection Online Access
description Ergon Energy operates tens of thousands of kilometers of Single Wire Earth Return (SWER) distribution feeders in remote parts of Queensland to deliver electrical energy to small customer loads, scattered sparsely over vast areas. Ergon Energy has identified voltage regulation as one of the key issues being faced in this area, as loads continue to grow in rural distribution networks. These voltage regulation issues cause capacity limitations on the SWER feeders. Voltage drop during peak load periods is one issue, but high voltages during low load periods caused by the Ferranti effect is another key factor on long SWER feeders. Currently, Ergon uses fixed shunt reactors to control line overvoltages during low load periods, but these reactors add to the line load during peak load conditions. At AUPEC 2005, Central Queensland University presented a thyristor controlled reactor option as a potential solution to this problem. This paper follows on from this and presents two lower technology solutions, namely switched reactors and saturable reactors. Both options aim to reduce the steady state voltage range between peak load and low load, thus freeing up additional capacity on the SWER feeder for growing load. This paper presents the development of both options and comments on the suitability of the options to perform to the required specifications. PSCAD/EMTDCis used to model the problem.
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spelling curtin-20.500.11937-425082017-10-02T02:27:18Z Reactor Solutions for Voltage Control of SWER Systems Mayer, J. Hosseinzadeh, N. Wolfs, Peter Akthar Kalam Ergon Energy operates tens of thousands of kilometers of Single Wire Earth Return (SWER) distribution feeders in remote parts of Queensland to deliver electrical energy to small customer loads, scattered sparsely over vast areas. Ergon Energy has identified voltage regulation as one of the key issues being faced in this area, as loads continue to grow in rural distribution networks. These voltage regulation issues cause capacity limitations on the SWER feeders. Voltage drop during peak load periods is one issue, but high voltages during low load periods caused by the Ferranti effect is another key factor on long SWER feeders. Currently, Ergon uses fixed shunt reactors to control line overvoltages during low load periods, but these reactors add to the line load during peak load conditions. At AUPEC 2005, Central Queensland University presented a thyristor controlled reactor option as a potential solution to this problem. This paper follows on from this and presents two lower technology solutions, namely switched reactors and saturable reactors. Both options aim to reduce the steady state voltage range between peak load and low load, thus freeing up additional capacity on the SWER feeder for growing load. This paper presents the development of both options and comments on the suitability of the options to perform to the required specifications. PSCAD/EMTDCis used to model the problem. 2006 Conference Paper http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/42508 Victoria University fulltext
spellingShingle Mayer, J.
Hosseinzadeh, N.
Wolfs, Peter
Reactor Solutions for Voltage Control of SWER Systems
title Reactor Solutions for Voltage Control of SWER Systems
title_full Reactor Solutions for Voltage Control of SWER Systems
title_fullStr Reactor Solutions for Voltage Control of SWER Systems
title_full_unstemmed Reactor Solutions for Voltage Control of SWER Systems
title_short Reactor Solutions for Voltage Control of SWER Systems
title_sort reactor solutions for voltage control of swer systems
url http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/42508