HIGH VOLTAGE DIRECT CURRENT (HVDC)

TRANSMISSION

Instructor
Dr. Rajiv K. Varma

UNIVERSITY OF WESTERN ONTARIO

LONDON, ONTARIO
CANADA
 Kinds of DC Links

a) Monopolar link

b) Bipolar link

c) Homopolar link
 Power per Conductor and per Circuit

DC power per conductor AC power per conductor Ratio

pd / pa = √2 / cos Φ
pd = Vd Id pa = Va Ia cos Φ
Taking cos Φ = 0.945,
pd / pa =1.5
DC power per circuit AC power per circuit Ratio
Pd / Pa = 1
Pd = 2 pd Pa = 3 pa
Both lines carry the
same power.

• Vd and Va are the conductor-to-ground voltages

• Id and Ia are the currents per conductor
• cos Φ is the power factor
 Advantages of HV DC Transmission

• Greater power per conductor.

• Simpler line construction.
• Ground return can be used; hence each
conductor can be operated as an independent
circuit.
• No charging current.
• No skin effect.
• Cables can be worked at a higher voltage
gradient.
• Line power factor is always unity; line does not
require reactive compensation.
 Advantages of HV DC Transmission (cont’d)

• Less corona loss and radio interference, especially in

foul weather, for a certain conductor diameter and
rms voltage.
• Synchronous operation is not required; hence
distance is not required for stability.
• May interconnect ac systems of different
frequencies.
• Low short-circuit current on dc line.
• Does not contribute to short-circuit current of AC
system.
• Tie-line power is easily controlled.
 Disadvantages of HV DC Transmission

• Converters are expensive.

• Converters require much reactive power.
• Converters generate harmonics, requiring filters.
• Converters have little overload capability.
• Lack of HV dc circuit breakers hampers
multiterminal or network operation.
 Principal Applications of DC Transmission

• For cables crossing bodies of water wider than

20 mi (32 km)
• For interconnecting ac systems having different
frequencies or where asynchronous operation is
desired.
• For transmitting large amounts of power over
long distances by overhead lines.
• In congested urban areas or elsewhere where it
is difficult to acquire right of way for overhead
lines and where the lengths involved make ac
cables impractical.
Three-phase two-way, three-phase bridge, or Graetz
rectifier circuit.
(a) secondary line-to-neutral voltages ea, eb,
ec and in heavy lines, unfiltered
voltages of positive and negative DC
poles with respect to transformer neutral
point ;

(b) secondary line-to-line voltages and in

heavy lines, unfiltered direct pole-to-pole
voltage vd ;

(c) secondary line-to-line voltages and, in

lower heavy lines, voltage v1 across
valve 1 ;

(d) Condensed representation of valve

currents ;
(e) Transformer secondary current ia=i1-i4 ;

(f) Primary alternating line current

ia=(ic-ib) / T.
Bridge converter – schematic circuit for analysis. The valves
are numbered in their firing order.
 Waves of instantaneous EMFs of ac source:
line to neutral, ea, eb, ec; line to line, eac, eba, ecb.
 Instantaneous direct voltage
(shown by heavy line) of
bridge converter with ignition
delay angle α but no overlap.