Module 4

Need for Automatic generation control and

Voltage control
• Need is because active and reactive power
demands are never steady and continually change
with rising and falling of the load.
• Real power depends on frequency or i.e. P α f
• Reactive power depends on voltage i.e. Q α V
• Consider a steam turbo generator, i/p is steam here,
we need to continuously regulate the i/p steam to
match the active power demand
• Also, the m/c speed will vary with consequential
change in frequency i.e P will change.
• Also the excitation of generator must be
continuously regulated to match the reactive power
demand with reactive generation or else, the
voltage at various system buses will go beyond the
prescribed limits.
• In modern pwr systms manual regulation is not
possible and hence automatic generation and
voltage regulation equipments are used.
 Load frequency and excitation voltage regulation of a
turbo generator - (Basic generator control loop)
• The basic generator control loop figure is as shown-
 Basic generator control loop explanation-
• In an interconnect power system load frequency
control LFC and automatic voltage regulation AVR
equipments are installed for each generator
• The controller are set for a particular operating
condition and
• They take care of small changes in load demand to
maintain the frequency and voltage magnitude
within the specified limits
• Changes in real power are mainly dependent on
changes in rotor angle,ω and thus the frequency
• Changes in reactive power is dependent on the
voltage magnitude i.e. on generator excitation
• Excitation system time constant is much smaller
than the prime mover (turbine) time constant
• And its transient delay is much faster and doesn’t
effect load frequency control dynamic
• Thus cross coupling between LFC loop and AVR loop
is negligible
• And hence both can be analyzed separately
Automatic voltage regulator AVR
(Alternator voltage regulator scheme figure-)
 AVR consists of -
• Main exciter which excites the alternator field to
control the output voltage
• The exciter field is automatically controlled through
e = Vref –VT and
• Suitably amplified through voltage and power
amplifiers.
• It is a type of system that requires constant error e
for a specified voltage at generator terminals
• The block dgm consists of
• 1. Potential transformer – It gives a sample of
terminal voltage VT
• 2. Differencing device- It gives the actuating error
e = Vref –VT , which initiates the corrective action
of adjusting the alternator excitation
Error waveform is suppressed - carrier modulated
carrier frequency being system frequency of 50Hz
• 3. Error amplifier – It demodulates and amplifies
the error signal. Its gain is ka
• 4. SCR power amplifier and exciter field – it provides
the necessary power amplification to the signal for
controlling the exciter field.
Assuming the amplifier time constant to be small
enough to be neglected , the overall transfer
function of these two is-
 Ke / (1 + Tef s)
Where Tef is exciter field time constant
• 5. Alternator – Its field is excited by the main
exciter voltage VE. Under no load it produces a
voltage proportional to field current. The no load
transfer function is
Kg / (1 + Tgf s)
Where Tgf is generator field time constant
The load causes a voltage drop, the effect is
schematically represented by block G2.
• 6. Stabilizing transformer - Tef and Tgf are large
enough time constants to impair the system
dynamic response. Now, dynamic response of a
system can be improved by internal derivative
feedback loop. The derivative feedback in this
system is provided by means of a stabilizing
transformer excited by exciter output voltage, VE.
The transfer function of stabilizing transformer is
VE = R1 ist + L1 dist
dt
Vst = M dist
dt
• Taking the Laplace transform
 Load frequency control
(single area case )
• Consider power output of generator of closely knit
electric area so as to maintain scheduled frequency.
In such area, all gnrtrs speed up and speed down
together maintaining their relative power angle.
Such an area is called single area(vertical area)
• For turbo generator, there are three models
a) Governor model or turbine speed governing system
b) Turbine model
c) Generator-load model
• a) Governor model or speed governing system of
turbo generator
• Speed governing system consists of
1. speed governor- senses change in speed/frequency
2. linkage mechanism – provides movement to control
valve in proportion to change in speed
3. hydraulic amplifier – low power pilot valve movmnt
is converted to high power piston valve movement
• 4. speed changer – provides steady state power o/p
setting to turbine
 b) Turbine model
• Relation between change in power o/p of steam
turbine ΔPt to change in steam valve opening ΔXE
• Non-reheat turbine with single gain factor KT and
single time constant TT
 c) Generator-load model
• Relation between change in frequency as a result of
change in generation when the load changes
 Load frequency control and Economic
dispatch control
• Load frequency control with integral controller
achieves zero steady state frequency error and a
fast dynamic response, but
• It exercises no control over the relative loadings of
various generating stations (i.e. economic dispatch)
of the control area.
• e.g. , if a sudden change in load occurs, in the
vertical area, the load frequency control changes
the speed change settings of governor of all
generating units of the area, so that together these
units match the load and ‘f’ returns to set value.
• Some vertical over loadings of individual units can
be exercised by adjusting the gain factor ki.
• A permanent stationary solution can be achieved by
using a separate or independent control for the
load frequency and the economic dispatch.
• While the load frequency controller is a fast acting
control (few seconds), and regulate the system
around a set operating point,
• The economic dispatch controller is a slow acting
control(every minute), and adjusts the speed
change setting.