Compensating Unbalances in Synchronous Railway Traction Systems With Railway Power Conditioners

UPTEC ES 16002
Examensarbete 30 hp
Januari 2016
Compensating Unbalances in
Synchronous Railway Traction Systems
with Railway Power Conditioners
Matilda Örnkloo
Abstract
Compensating Unbalances in Synchronous Railway
Traction Systems with Railway Power Conditioners
Matilda Örnkloo
Teknisk- naturvetenskaplig fakultet

UTH-enheten The electrified railway presents significant challenges for the electrical grid. This is due
to the characteristics of the constructed railway system. Trains are single-phase loads,
Besöksadress: fed by two adjacent phases from the grid. Feeding phases will change continuously at
Ångströmlaboratoriet
Lägerhyddsvägen 1 every substation. This load characteristic will lead to unbalances and poor power
Hus 4, Plan 0 quality in the grid. The poor power quality is caused by the unbalance in currents,
voltage drops along the line, and induced harmonics from power electronic devices
Postadress: used in traction.
Box 536
751 21 Uppsala
To decrease the impact of the railway traction system in the public grid, Static Var
Telefon: Compensators (SVCs) and Static Synchronous Compensators (STATCOMs) have
018 – 471 30 03 been implemented. These installations offer voltage control, maintain balance and
Telefax: mitigate harmonics. This thesis investigates other power electronic technologies to
018 – 471 30 00 improve the power quality in the grid for the 50 Hz railway traction system.
Hemsida:
http://www.teknat.uu.se/student
Handledare: Antonios Antonopoulos

Ämnesgranskare: Urban Lundin
Examinator: Petra Jönsson
ISSN: 1650-8300, UPTEC ES 16002
Populärvetenskaplig Sammanfattning
I dagens elektrifierade järnväg ger tågdriften upphov till obalanser
i elnätet. Tågen matas från en kontaktlina ovanför rälsen. Kontak-
tlinan matas i sin tur med ström från transformatorer kopplade till
ett överliggande elnät. Konstruktionen med en matande kontaktlina
leder till en lastkaraktär som medför obalanser i elnätet.
När intensiteten ökar på järnvägen och allt tyngre laster transporteras
blir dessa obalanser större. Det kan medföra problem för andra kunder
i transmissionsnätet som efterfrågar el av bra kvalité. En bra elkvalité
innebär bland annat att den effekt som skickas ut på nätet består av
rätt spänningsnivå, har lite övertoner och håller rätt frekvens. Det
konventionella järnvägssystemet har enfas-transformatorer inkopplade
längs med bansträckningen. Dessa transformatorer tar två faser från
nätet och matar sin sekundära spänning till tågens kontaktlina samt
en till jord. Fasmatningen ändras kontinuerligt för att i större mån
dra en jämn effekt från nätet. Tågen är dock inte en konstant ef-
fektförbrukare, utan lasten varierar i och med tågens acceleration. Den
här lastkaraktären gör det mycket svårt att få ett balanserat nät. Det
finns även andra problem med dagens konventionella järnvägssystem
med enfas-transformatorer. När banan matas med spänning från olika
faser kan inte kontaktlinan över tågen vara en kontinuerlig ledare. Vid
varje transformatorstation måste linan styckas upp. Detta ger upphov
till sträckor där tågen kör utan effekttillförsel. Sträckningen varierar
i längd men kan vara upp till 1000 meter långa på vissa sträckor. Vid
installation av höghastighetslinjer är detta inte en önskvärd egenskap.
Studier har tidigare gjorts för att studera system som kan förbättra
elkvalitén i nätet. Tidiga lösningar har varit att installera reaktiva
effektkompenserare i nätet. Senare har även aktiv-effektkompenserare
studerats samt direktomvandling från högspänningsnätet genom en
tre-fas till en-fas konfiguration av två växelriktare.
Det här examensarbetet kommer att studera aktiv effektkompenser-

ing genom en så kallad Railway Power Conditioner. Efter en litter-
aturstudie valdes en topologi ut och dess analytiska uttryck togs fram
för att bestämma dess funktion. Vidare gjordes simuleringar på den
valda topologin med aktiv effektkompensering samt simuleringar på
ett konventionellt system för att kunna jämföra prestation. Simu-
leringar och beräkningar har utförts i PSCAD respektive i MATLAB.
Resultatet från simuleringarna visar tydligt vad som är problem med
dagens elektrifierade järnväg. Obalansen är stor och ger upphov till
dålig elkvalité som kan störa andra komponenter i elkraftssystemet.
3
Med den aktiva effektkompenseraren kunde däremot elkvalitén i nätet
förbättras avsevärt. Det finns idag redan realiserade system installer-
ade av denna typ i Shinkansen, Japan. För att avgöra vilken metod
som lämpar sig bäst för järnvägen krävs dock ytterligare studier både
inom systemlösningarnas tekniska prestation men även hur dessa kan
mätas ur ett ekonomiskt perspektiv.
4
Executive summary
This thesis show how the use of a conventional railway traction
system leads to unbalances in the electrical grid. Unbalances have a
negative impact on apparatus in the network, leading to lower over-all
performance of the power system. The power quality may even get
worse with trains running at higher speeds or trains with a heavier
load.
To mitigate this unbalance, power electronic devices can be installed.

This study show that railway power conditioners (RPCs) can mitigate
the unbalance in the grid, as they reduce the degree of current unbal-
ance significantly.
To determine if the RPC is a competitive solution for the railway

traction system, further studies must be performed. The system must
be investigated in terms of harmonics and in what way the harmonic
distortion from both the converters and the traction equipment on
the trains can be reduced. The RPC-system could be compared with
other compensation systems, such as with a STATCOM. The compar-
ison could include both cost and performance to determine the most
suitable solution.
5
Acknowledgement
I appreciate all the guidance, advice and encouragement that I have got
throughout this work, from people around me.
Especially I value the patience and assistance from my supervisor, Antonios

Antonopoulos at ABB Corporate Research, Västerås. With his pedagogical
explanations he could help me to overcome some mind barriers during the
work and without his support I would not have been able to finish this work.
I also appreciate the time my subject reviewer, Urban Lundin at Uppsala

University took to answering my questions and for reading my report. I also
would like to thank my proof reader and opponent Siddy Persson for
additional comments.
At last I would like to thank the Swedish state for the opportunity of free
education.
/Matilda Örnkloo, Uppsala
6
Contents
1 Introduction 9
1.1 Scope of the Project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
1.2 Background . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
1.3 Method . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
1.4 Structure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
1.5 System boundaries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
2 Conventional System with Single-phase Transformers 13

2.1 Consequences with unbalances . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
2.2 Symmetrical Components . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
3 Solutions to Mitigate Unbalances with Power Electronic De-

vices 16
3.1 Static Frequency Converter (SFC) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
3.2 Reactive power compensators, (SVC) and
(STATCOM) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
3.3 Railway Power Conditioner (RPC) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
4 Railway Power Conditioner, Design and Function 21

4.1 Special Design Transformers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
4.2 Generation of Current and Voltage References for an RPC
connected behind a V/V Transformer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
4.2.1 Control Schematic for the Railway Power Conditioner . 26
4.2.2 Parameter description and impact of parameter change 31
5 Simulations and Results for a Conventional system and a

system with the RPC implemented 32
5.1 Conventional System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
5.1.1 Case 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
5.1.2 Case 2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
5.1.3 Case 3 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
5.1.4 Case 4 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
5.2 Railway Power conditioner . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
5.2.1 Case 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
5.2.2 Case 2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
5.2.3 Case 3 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
5.2.4 Case 4 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
5.3 Unbalance factor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
6 Conclusion and Discussion 48
7
7 Future outlooks 49
8 References 50
8
1 Introduction
Trains appear as a single-phase loads in the public grid and create unbal-
ances. This leads to poor power quality and may disturb other customers in
the grid. When the traffic increases the issue becomes larger and solutions
to improve the power quality are necessary. The poor power quality appears
mainly from unbalances in the current on the grid side. The unbalances occur
due to the train-load characteristic and it has a negative impact on trans-
formers, generators and motors in the grid. It will also lower the capacity of
the transmission lines.
If the railway is placed in remote areas, the grid might be weaker and more
susceptible to voltage drops. Power-electronic device in the traction system
also increase the harmonic content in the railway. To mitigate these issues
SVCs and STATCOMs have been installed along the railway network. This
thesis will study alternative power electronic applications to improve the
power quality.
1.1 Scope of the Project

The purpose of this master thesis is to describe the unbalance problem in the
synchronous railway system, study what consequences it has in the electricity
network, and investigate systems that can mitigate these problems.
1.2 Background
The electrified railway system is divided into direct current (DC) and al-
ternating current (AC) systems. Early electrification before 1950 was done
using mainly DC systems or low-frequency AC systems. Later systems, de-
signed after 1950 are often electrified by AC with an industrial frequency at
50 or 60 Hz. This transition of electrification systems is due to the following
advancement in technology: Before the 50s railway-traction motors could not
be fed by industrial frequencies, but at lower frequencies 16 2/3 Hz or 25 Hz
[1]. To change the industry frequency from 50 Hz to a lower frequency that
the railway can operate with, rotary converters were historically used [1].
When modernizing low-frequency railways, nowadays, static converters are
installed that are based on semiconductor technology. Changing the railway
electrification system in a region is often associated with large investment
cost. Hence when a system is built and in operation, it will most likely be in
operation during a long time. A system will rather be upgraded than being
frequently redesigned from the beginning. Various system are, therefore, in
9
operation around the world.
DC systems are often fed by a low voltage, typically between 500 to 3500
Volts [1]. The comparative low voltage has to do with safety and constraints
regarding technology and economics at the time the DC systems were intro-
duced. The safety issue mainly refers to the fact that high-voltage breakers
were difficult and expensive to make at that time. A reasonable way to trans-
form the voltage easily between different DC voltage levels was not available.
However, with modern technology some of these constraints could be dealt
with [2]. DC systems also require a large current for a given power and as
result the resistive losses will increase. These systems are mainly used in
urban areas for subways or trams.
AC systems span a larger voltage range, typically between 15 kV up to 50

kV. For low-frequency railways (16 2/3 Hz), 15 kV is used and for industrial
frequency systems (50 or 60 Hz), 25 kV is used. Low-frequency railways can
be found in northern and central Europe since the standard was set when
traction-motor technology for higher frequencies was not mature. In America
there are some grids operating at 25 Hz, and in Japan where the country has
two frequency regions, 50 Hz and 60 Hz, most of the trains run at 60 Hz [3].
Modern electrification is generally done with industrial frequency at 50 Hz,
but still there are several different systems in operation in the world [1]. The
advantage with an AC system compared to a DC system is that a higher
voltage can be used. For the same power the trains can thereby be fed by a
lower current and the resistive losses are decreased. When higher power is
needed for the trains, the more obvious the advantage with AC systems will
be. With high speed trains, a DC system would require substations on fairly
short distances. This will not be viable since trains are occasional consumers
of power and do not require a constant power supply [1].
For modern railway electrification the most common system is a 25 kV AC

system at 50 Hz. It does not require a frequency converter and the transform-
ers can be lighter due to the higher frequency [1]. However, all AC systems
are still being fed as single-phase loads. In theory it would be better to draw
a three-phase current immediately from the grid and have more conductors
on the railway. That would reduce the problem of unbalances, but this has
not been a practical solution in reality. There are only a few three-phase
railway traction systems. More conductors at each railway system would
also cost too much since the loads are not a consumer of constant power.
10
1.3 Method
This thesis is divided into two main parts. The first part includes a literature
study to introduce the reader to the content and provide an overview over
the problem. The second part includes an attempt to find a solution for the
problem.
First investigations have been done on power electronic devices that can
mitigate unbalances in the electrical grid produced from the electrified rail-
way traction system. Main focus in the thesis has been on the Railway Power
Conditioner (RPC). The RPC is a power electronic device that has not been
widely investigated before. The converter configuration enables active power
to flow between two electrical subsystems, which can be compared to STAT-
COMs that mainly work with reactive compensation.
Both a typical railway traction system, in this thesis named Conventional

system and a conventional system with an RPC in operation are designed
and simulated in this thesis. The purpose with this is to be able to show the
performance of these systems when subjected to the same train-load. The
two systems are built in Power Systems Computer Aided Design (PSCAD).
PSCAD is a simulation program to build, simulate and model a system of
interest. PSCAD include both ready-made modules but also allow the user
to construct and write code for costume-made modules.
11
1.4 Structure
The main structure of the thesis include following four chapters
• Chapter 2 - Conventional System

The typical railway traction system used in the railway industry today
is described including its features
• Chapter 3 - Solutions to Mitigate Unbalances

This chapter describes power electronic solutions for the railway trac-
tion system to mitigate the unbalance in the electrical grid
• Chapter 4 - Railway Power Conditioner

The Railway Power Conditioner is described and investigated in terms
of an electrical analysis. Information from the investigation is further
on used for construction and control of the converter configuration in
PSCAD
• Chapter 5 - Simulations and Results

In this chapter results from the simulations are presented. Simulations
have been done on the conventional system and on a conventional sys-
tem with an RPC in operation. This to show their performance when
subjected to a train-load
1.5 System boundaries

This thesis only considers railway systems from a three-phase AC system
to the single-phase train load. The simulations are only done on systems
operating with a frequency at fixed value of 50 Hz. The grid is assumed to
be a three-phased sinusoidal system with no harmonic distortion and with
a fixed voltage amplitude, unless noted otherwise. The only reference to
harmonics will be in the rectified-traction-load characteristics and the railway
power conditioner. Power losses and fault investigations are not carried out
within the scope of this project.
12
2 Conventional System with Single-phase Trans-
formers
In a conventional traction system trains are being fed by two adjacent phases
through a single-phase transformer, as can be seen in figure 1. In order to
equally load all three phases, the phase connection changes in every substa-
tion. With this supply system the currents on the grid side will be unbalanced
at every single instant in time, due to the single-phase load characteristic.
Furthermore, the railway is required to have neutral zones, marked as NZ
in the figures, to divide the feeding sections that might vary in amplitude,
frequency or phase shift. During these sections the trains will have to run
unpowered [4].
The definition of a neutral zone is the distance where the train is not pow-
ered. For high-speed and heavy-loaded trains this is a drawback, so the
length and/or the amount of neutral zones should be reduced or avoided if
possible. In Denmark there has been a detailed study about neutral sections
since a high-speed railway is planned. For trains running at a speed below
200 km/h section insulators have been used and the neutral sections have
been 8 meters long. For high-speed trains, with speeds above 200 km/h this
construction does not fulfill the given standards and other types of neutral
sections have to be used, where most of them are over 100 meters long or
even up to 1000 meters long [4] [5].
The conventional system is simple, has a low investment cost, and the existing
knowledge is large in this technology. However, when the expectations on the
railway increases, regarding denser traffic and heavier loaded trains, certain
improvements or even a complete redesign of the whole system is required [6].
It is no longer viable to have unpowered distances in the railway system.

Moreover, the conventional system provides poor power quality in the grid.
A modern railway system should preferably be able to maintain the voltage
levels within given limits, mitigate harmonics from the traction equipment,
and reduce the negative-sequence currents in the system. The amount of
neutral zones should be reduced or avoided if possible.
13
Figure 1: Conventional railway feeding system with single-phase transformers
and a conductor divided by neutral zones
2.1 Consequences with unbalances

Under unbalanced situations, negative-sequence current will occur in the
grid. The magnitude of these negative sequence currents depends on the
degree of unbalance. The negative-sequence currents have a negative impact
on the grid and apparatuses that operate in the grid. It will decrease the
transmission capability, lower the output power from the transformer, and
disturb rotating machines like motors and generators [7].
Negative-sequence currents in electrical machines such as in a motor or a

generator will decrease their efficiency. The negative-sequence currents will
create a magnetic flux in the rotor that oppose the direction of rotation of the
rotor. A relative motion will occur between the magnetic flux and the rotor.
This will cause rotor heating problems and may lead to insulation failure and
mechanical problems [8]. Heating problems will demand extra cooling, and
the efficiency of the machine will decrease accordingly. The positive sequence
current will induce a magnetic flux in the same rotation as the rotor.
The negative-sequence current also affects the transmission lines. It flows

in the transmission lines and does not perform any actual work. It cause
additional power loss, and lower the transmission capability of the line.
14
Transformers will also be affected. The negative-sequence current in the grid
results in asymmetrical three-phase currents on the primary side of trans-
formers. The rated output of a transformer will be limited by the largest
current on the primary side, and thereby the output power will be lower.
This leads to additional losses in a transformer and heating of the iron. The
negative-sequence current may also disturb the relay protection in the grid
[7].
The consequences in the grid from negative-sequence currents are severe and
detrimental for most apparatus. The amount of negative-sequence current
should, therefore, be reduced as much as possible.
2.2 Symmetrical Components

With symmetrical components it is possible to analyze unbalances in a multi-
phase system in a simplified manner. The number of phases, n can be divided
in n systems of balanced phasors, called the symmetrical components. Each
set of symmetrical components is equal in length, and adjacent phasors will
be separated by the same angle [9]. However, since most electrical systems
operate with three phases the following description will be for a three-phase
system. The main concept with symmetrical components is to transform the
phase component to the new set of symmetrical components. The advantage
of this method is that the sequence networks are easier to analyze compared
to the three-phase network. Once the sequence networks are found, it is pos-
sible to transpose it to the three-phase network again [10]. This method can
be applied for both voltages and currents in the network.
The transformation from phase currents to the sequence currents can be
seen further down.
    0 
Ia 1 1 1 Ia
 Ib  = 1 a2 a  Ia1  (1)
2 2
Ic 1 a a Ia
1
Ia0 = (Ia + Ib + Ic ) (2)
3
1
Ia1 = (Ia + a2 Ib + aIc ) (3)
3
1
Ia2 = (Ia + aIb + a2 Ic ) (4)
3
15
3 Solutions to Mitigate Unbalances with Power
Electronic Devices
To improve stability of the grid, primarily regarding voltage levels, it is possi-
ble to have two feeding lines. Even if the grid dynamics may be improved with
this solution it will not solve the problems with negative-sequence currents
or harmonics. Double feeding lines will still require neutral zones to separate
the feeding phases. There are also other solutions for the load-unbalance
problem. Reactive-power compensators such as the SVC or STATCOMs can
be used. The term static refers to the fact that no rotating part is involved,
the devices use static semiconductor-based technology instead. Another in-
teresting solution that is less investigated compared to the aforementioned
ones is to use railway power conditioners (RPCs). In this project focus is
to investigate the RPC and its features. Simulations are performed on the
conventional system and the same system when the RPC is implemented.
Another available technology is static frequency converters (SFCs). SFCs
operate with converters that immediately convert a three-phase input to a
single-phase output and provide an in-line feeding system. This system does
not require any neutral zones. However, it is considered to be quite expensive
to install, as it requires full-power converters at every substation.
When a train brakes power is dissipated in the catenary. In a conventional

system with single-phase transformers this power will flow back up through
the transformer to the grid. This is often not desirable from the grid own-
ers view, as the power fed back to the grid will be an uncontrolled power
flow in time, magnitude and place. Therefore, there are often restrictions
regarding power fed-back and some trains are installed with certain brakes
to dissipate the excess power in terms of heat within the locomotive. With
highly dense traffic railways, such as metro lines, the power can to a larger
extent be used by adjacent trains in the system avoid feeding the power back
to the network. With a system design with SFCs, it is possible to control
the power flow feedback to the grid. All three phases can receive power in a
symmetrical manner. This is not possible with single-phase transformers [1].
3.1 Static Frequency Converter (SFC)

Recently, full converters are proposed for the 50 Hz railway system, similarly
to the full-converter design in the 3-phase AC 50 Hz to 1-phase AC 16.7
Hz systems, as shown in figure 2. The full-converter design consists of a
three-phase converter connected to a single-phase converter in back-to-back
16
configuration with a common DC-link. Active power, reactive power, and
harmonics can be controlled dynamically. This technology does not need
neutral zones as the catenary is separated from the feeding grid. This makes
the system flexible and suitable for fast and heavy-loaded trains. Step-up
and step-down transformers can be used to obtain the desirable rating on
the converters and for galvanic isolation against the grid [11]. The SFC is
controlled in a way that the grid sees a symmetrical load, and therefore, the
voltage requirements on the grid can be reduced. This technology can also
provide the possibility for regenerating power flow, i.e., braking energy from
the train can transferred to the grid. It can even improve the power quality
in the grid, but has a higher capital cost compared to other systems [6].
Figure 2: Static Frequency Converter connecting directly to the high power

grid through a coupling transformer
3.2 Reactive power compensators, (SVC) and

(STATCOM)
In order to improve the power quality, without tremendously increasing the
initial cost, FACTS devices can be installed in the conventional system. With
these devices it is possible to use lower grid voltage for the railway than
without them, since the unbalances will be reduced. Two common shunt-
connected devices used for dynamical balancing is the Static Var Compen-
sators (SVC) or the Static Synchronous Compensator (STATCOM). Both
17
technologies have been installed in several systems and have improved the
power quality in the grid. In a railway grid, they can offer dynamic voltage
control, mitigate harmonics and balance the load between phases. This tech-
nology has been installed for this purpose in Japan, England and France [3]
[12].
These reactive power compensators still require neutral zones, since the feed-
ing is done by single-phases transformers as in figure 3. SVCs and STAT-
COMs are typically connected to the grid via a coupling transformer to step-
down the voltage to a level that does not require a high rating of the com-
pensator. The voltage regulation is done by the switching devices and the
harmonics can be mitigated by additionally connected filters [12].
The STATCOM can also be connected in a system were the trains are fed
by the same combination of phases all along the line. This requires higher
ratings for the STATCOM, since the unbalances will be larger, as seen from
the grid. However, one can theoretically avoid having neutral zones with this
constellation. Section insulators might be needed between adjacent railway
sections. As a result this is not widely used in practice as this technology can
result in undesired power flows between two points in the grid. Through the
railway and up through the feeding sections [11]. STATCOMs and SVCs can
be suitable solutions for existing grids, since the infrastructure of the railway
grid is already in place with single-phase transformers at the feeding points,
and the STATCOM/SVC can be used as add-on equipment in the grid to
increase the power quality.
18
Figure 3: Conventional system with single-phase transformers, grid con-
nected to a STATCOM through a coupling transformer
3.3 Railway Power Conditioner (RPC)

Railway Power Conditioners (RPCs) were introduced by Japanese scholars
in the 90s and has been in commercial operation in Shinkansen since the
beginning of 2000 [13]. Similar devices have also been described in papers
in other constellations or with added components that improve their perfor-
mance [14]. RPCs do not have a unique definition, but they are often referred
to a conditioner placed after a special design transformer, such as a Scott or
V/V-transformer, as shown in figure 4. Furthermore the conditioners often
consist of two single-phase AC/DC- converters connected back-to-back with
a common DC-link. They are placed between the transformer secondary
sides.
These devices enable active power flow between two sections of the cate-
nary. During an upgrade of Shinkansen in 2002 several RPCs were installed
in the railway system to obtain a balanced public grid. Later demonstration
could show that balance were established between the phases but the RPC
could also compensate for reactive power and keep the voltage levels within
given requirements [13].
As modern trains also tend to a larger extent use pulse width modulation
(PWM) control the need of compensating reactive power is decreased while
19
the need of active power transfer still exists [15].
The major advantage with this technology is that total balance can be
achieved in the electrical grid. The major disadvantage is that this tech-
nology still requires neutral zones.
Figure 4: Railway power conditioner connected to the grid via a step-down

transformer
20
4 Railway Power Conditioner, Design and Func-
tion
The main purpose with an RPC is to:
• Transfer active power between two electrical subsystems
• Compensate reactive power on each side of the converters
• Mitigate harmonics
In this thesis no detailed investigation is done to study harmonics. Focus

has been on the first two items, transfer active power and reactive power
compensation. The RPC is connected on the secondary side of a traction
transformer. The traction transformer is often a special designed transformer
since the primary side connects to the three-phase grid and the secondary
side consists of two phases and one connection to ground.
4.1 Special Design Transformers

To obtain a more even distribution of loads when designing a railway traction
system it is common to use special-design transformers. Special-design trans-
formers include impedance-matching transformers or three-phase to two-
phase transformers. Common traction transformers are the Scott, the Wood-
bridge, the Le Blanc or the V/V transformer. Due to rapid changes in the
train loads on each side of the transformer output, the system cannot main-
tain its balance but still require an additional load compensator [16].
The choice of transformer will also affect the amount of negative-sequence

currents injected in the grid. The V/V-transformer will inject more negative-
sequence current than the Scott or the Woodbridge transformer [17]. How-
ever, the V/V transformer has other desirable characteristics, such as a simple
structure, and this is why it is widely used in railway traction systems [17].
4.2 Generation of Current and Voltage References for

an RPC connected behind a V/V Transformer
To determine the required output from the converter to keep the system
symmetrized, the electrical circuit must be analyzed. Figure 5 represents a
schematic overview of the system.
21
From the three-phase grid a V/V-transformer is connected to the RPC. The
V/V transformer is a transformer with three phases, two windings on the
primary side connected to the grid. On the secondary side there are two
phases connected to the load and one phase connected to the ground. Be-
tween the phases on the secondary side two converters can be connected in
back-to-back configuration. These two feeding phases are named according
to the voltage across them, the ac-side (ac) and the bc-side (bc).
Figure 5: System overview, V/V transformer with connected RPC. Iac and
Ibc represent the currents from the V/V transformer output-side and ILac and
ILbc represent the load currents. Between the two feeding phases the railway
power conditioner is placed. Two converters in a back-to-back configuration
ref ref
where Iac and Ibc determine the reference currents from the converters
In the initial system the three-phase voltages on the grid side are assumed
to be purely sinusoidal with a phase shift of 120 degrees. The grid-side
voltages are given in line-to-neutral values and the transformer turns ratio
is a constant called K. The transformer is assumed to be ideal. If the input
is symmetrical, then following equations can be written for the reference
currents. Omega, ω represents the angular speed of the grid.
VA = V1 cos(ωt) → IAref = I1 cos(ωt) (5)
VB = V1 cos(ωt − 2π/3) → IBref = I1 cos(ωt − 2π/3) (6)
VC = V1 cos(ωt + 2π/3) → ICref = I1 cos(ωt + 2π/3) (7)
22
Assuming that the railway system appears only as an active load at the
point of common coupling, the voltage and the current can be related by a
pure resistance, I1 = VR1 . The active power on the primary side of the grid
can be described
3
P1 = V1 I1 (8)
2
The train load on each of the secondary sides of the transformer can be
represented by one resistive part and one inductive part,
Zac = Rac + jωLac (9)
Zbc = Rbc + jωLbc (10)

The voltages on the secondary side can be described as
Vac (t) = V2 cos(ωt + ϕ) (11)
Vbc (t) = V2 cos(ωt + γ) (12)

The variables ϕ and γ represent the phase displacement from the initial
angular speed for the system, and occur due to the load characteristic. As-
suming that the train loads are PWM-controlled their reactive part can be
neglected and the currents can be expressed as
ILac (t) = ILac cos(ωt + ϕ) (13)
ILbc (t) = ILbc cos(ωt + γ) (14)

The active power on the secondary side
V2
P2 = (ILac + ILbc ) (15)
2
The active power drawn from the secondary side is assumed to be the same as
on the primary side for an ideal transformer. Form (8) and (15) it is possible
to find the current amplitude I1 . The ratio between the line-to-neutral and
line-to-line voltages and the transformer ratio must be considered at this
step. Assuming P1 and P2 are equal this yields the current amplitude on
primary side of the transformer, for a symmetrically shared load
√
k 3
I1 = (ILac + ILbc ) (16)
3
The reference input currents for a balanced system are expressed by
23
√
k 3
IAref = (ILac + ILbc ) cos(ωt) (17)
3
√
k 3
IBref = (ILac + ILbc ) cos(ωt − 2π/3) (18)
3
√
k 3
ICref = (ILac + ILbc ) cos(ωt + 2π/3) (19)
3
The reference currents on the primary side must now be transferred to the
secondary side. Figure 6 describes how the currents flow through the V/V
transformer. Uppercase letters refer to the primary side of the transformer
and lowercase letters refer to the secondary side.
Figure 6: Schematic over current division through the V/V transformer,

primary side is noted by uppercase letters and the secondary side is noted by
lowercase letters. The transformer has a three-phase input and two output-
feeding phases and one connected to ground. Primary voltage is set to 100
kV RMS, L-N and the secondary voltage 25 kV RMS.
The current on the primary side can be written as

Ipr.AC = iA (20)
Ipr.BC = iB (21)
24
Ipr.AC +ic = −Ipr.BC → iC = −Ipr.BC −Ipr.AC → iC = −iB −iA (22)
These currents must then be transferred to the secondary side of the

transformer
Isec.ac = +iac (23)

Isec.bc = +ibc (24)
1
Isec.ac = −ic −Isec.bc → ic = −Isec.ac −Isec.bc → ic = (Ipr.AC +Ipr.BC )
k
(25)
1
isec
C = (iA + iB ) (26)
k
The currents on the secondary side can now be expressed from the primary
side currents
1 1
iac = Isec.ac = − Iprim.ac = − iA (27)
k k
1 1
ibc = Isec.bc = − Iprim.bc = − iB (28)
k k
In figure 5 the current schematic is shown and the reference currents from
the converter can be described with (17), (18), (27) and (28)
1
iref
ac = −iac − iLac = iA − iLac (29)
k
1
iref
bc = −ibc − iLbc = iB − iLbc (30)
k
√
ref 3
Iac = (ILac + ILbc ) cos(ωt) − ILac cos(ωt + ϕ) (31)
√3
ref 3
Ibc = (ILac + ILbc ) cos(ωt − 2π/3) − ILbc cos(ωt + γ) (32)
3
When the reference currents are found for the converters, the voltages can be
calculated using Kirchhoffs voltage law. Reference voltage for the converter
must be the voltage over the catenary minus the voltage over the inductor,
as shown in figure 7.
25
Figure 7: Schematic over voltage division, Vac represent the voltage on the
feeding phase, VL1 is the inductor voltage and Vacref refers to the voltage
reference from the converter.
Vacref = Vac − VL1 → ref

VL1 = jωL1 Iac (33)
Vbcref = Vbc − VL2 → ref

VL2 = jωL2 Ibc (34)
The inductance in the coupling reactor will cause a phase shift of 90
degrees and the reference voltages on each side will be
√
ref 3
Vac = Vac −ωL1 ( (ILac +ILbc ) cos(ωt−π/2)−ILac cos(ωt+ϕ−π/2)) (35)
3
√
3
Vbcref = Vbc −ωL2 ( (ILac +ILbc ) cos(ωt−2π/3−π/2)−ILbc cos(ωt+γ −π/2))
3
(36)
The reference currents and voltages for both converters will be variables
for the control of the RPC.
4.2.1 Control Schematic for the Railway Power Conditioner

The main function with this power conditioner is to allow active power to
flow between two electrical subsystems. The power conditioner contains two
converters connected in back-to-back configuration with a common DC-link,
as in figure 8. These converters can operate in both rectification and inversion
mode.
26
Figure 8: Two converters in back-to-back configuration, each converter con-
sists of four switches two in each leg. The switching devices are Insulated-gate
Bipolar Transistors (IGBTs). The DC-link capacitor is set to 5 µF.
The controller should use the reference currents and voltages to sym-
metrize the currents on the grid side. This control system will use a sinu-
soidal pulse width modulation (SPWM) to create gate signals for the IGBTs.
The SPWM compares a reference signal to a carrier signal to create the gate
pulses. The carrier signal will be a triangular waveform with maximum out-
put of 1 and a minimum output of -1. The frequency is initially set to 10
kHz for the triangular waveform.
From chapter 4.2, equations for the reference currents and the reference volt-
ages can be found. The first attempt to build the controller only considered
the voltage references. In figure 9 the voltage reference, Vacref is normalized
over the DC-voltage. With a simple voltage control, the gate signals can be
found immediately after the comparison of the signal and the carrier signal
to determine if the switch should be in on-state or off-state. However, in this
case a simple voltage control was not sufficient and an additional step was
required.
27
Figure 9: Voltage control of the converter. The voltage reference is normal-
ized over the DC-voltage and further on compared to a carrier signal
The controller based on only the reference voltages created currents that
did not coincide with the reference currents. A control for the current was
M easured
necessary. In figure 10 the measured current, Iac is allowed to deviate
ref
from the reference current, Iac by a certain tolerance. In the simulations
the tolerance is set to 100 A. A smaller tolerance will create a current that
follows the reference current more accurately, but may cause unnecessarily
high switching frequency. A larger tolerance might not be able to create
currents and voltages that follow the references.
ref ref +tolerance

From the left side of the figure, Iac is compared with an upper limit Iac .
The output from the comparator is 1 if signal A is larger than B, or 0 if sig-
nal A is less than B. Further on in the input selector either A or B will be
let through depending on the control signal, Ctrl. Signal A is set to 0 and
signal B will either be 0 or 1 according to the voltage control output. When
the control signal is 1, signal A will be let through. If the control signal is
zero, signal B will be let through. The output from the first input selector
in figure 10 will further on be used in the second input selector.
The second input selector uses a similar operation procedure. The output
will determine if the device 1 and 2 will be on or off. This is the control func-
tion for one leg in one converter. For the second leg in the same converter a
similar procedure will be run as can be seen in figure 11.
28
Figure 10: Current control for gate 1 and gate 2. The current reference from
the converter is let to vary within a band of tolerance. When the current
appears outside this band the switches are forced to turn on or off depending
on if more or less current is required
ref
Figure 12 shows reference current, Iac plotted along with the measured
M easured
current, Iac and the band of limitation. The main purpose of the band
M easured
is to maintain the current within given limits. For example, if Iac is
under the band of limitation the current must be increased. This requires
higher voltage and the switches must operate in a way that result in a higher
voltage on the AC-side.
This is the control schematic for one of the converters, a similar concept
was built for the second converter. The limitation band can be adjusted by
changing the tolerance to obtain desirable accuracy.
29
Figure 11: Current control for gate 3 and gate 4. Similar function as the
previous figure 10
Figure 12: Current limitation of the converter AC-side with a band of toler-
ance 0.1 kA. Band of limitation is marked in red, the current reference in
dark blue and the measured current is marked in light blue.
30
With these control schematic it is possible to control the output from the
converter. In a further step also the DC-link voltage should be controlled to
maintain a constant voltage level.
4.2.2 Parameter description and impact of parameter change

In this study values on the components of the RPC are chosen similarly to
other simulated RPCs and some values are chosen after test simulations to
find suitable ones. The main purpose with this thesis is to build a simple
version of an RPC. In further studies it could be of interest to investigate
the RPC and its components more detailed. This includes investigations
regarding losses in the RPC, switching frequency in the IGBTs and DC-link
capacitor size.
The switching frequency for the IGBTs in the simulated model is set to
10 kHz. High frequency lead to higher losses since each time the switch closes
and opens losses occur. However too slow switching leads to slow respond
and might give current and voltages that do not follow the reference values.
Since this control has an additional current control to maintain the current
within the band of limitation the switching frequency will be slightly higher
than 10 kHz.
The DC-link in the RPC includes a smoothening capacitor. This capac-
itor shall reduce the ripple on the voltage waveform. The capacitor capaci-
tance in this design was set to 5 µH after test simulations. A large capacitor
can reduce the voltage ripple on the waveform but a too large capacitor will
lead to high cost. A too small capacitor might lead to a converter design
with poor performance.
In further studies the RPC could be optimized to find more suitable values
on the components in the design.
31
5 Simulations and Results for a Conventional
system and a system with the RPC imple-
mented
The main goal with this chapter is to show how the conventional railway
traction system and a conventional railway traction system with an RPC in
operation perform under the same loading conditions. These loading condi-
tions are divided into four cases.
All simulations are done with a three-phase grid voltage of 100 kV RMS and
the voltages are assumed to be purely sinusoidal with a phase shift of 120
degrees between the phases. The grid is considered strong if nothing else is
mentioned, and the frequency is set to 50 Hz.
The voltage after the traction transformer will be 25 kV RMS, either after
the conventional system with single-phase transformers or after the system
with an RPC and a V/V transformer.
The inductance of the grid represents the inductive behavior of a transmis-
sion line. The transmission lines on the secondary side of the transformer are
short lines (under 80 km), only a resistive and an inductive part is modeled
in this simulation. The train load is simulated as a rectified load with one
resistive part and one inductive part. The switching devices are Insulated-
Gate Bipolar Transistors (IGBTs) connected with an anti-parallel diode.
Simulations are mainly done with a load of 10 MW. A typical train load
can vary from a few MW up to 15 MW [1]. However, the train loads are
assumed to increase in the future, and also several of them may be running
within the same catenary section.
5.1 Conventional System

The first simulations were done on the conventional system with single-phase
transformers. The worst-case scenario occurs when all trains are being fed by
the same two phases all along the catenary. Here, the conventional system
is simulated with a load connected between two phases. The train will draw
current from these two phases, while no current will be drawn from the
third phase. The single-phase transformers are assumed to be ideal. The
conventional system was simulated in four cases.
32
5.1.1 Case 1
The first simulation was done with a strong grid i.e a low inductance of 3
mH, 0.01 p.u compared to the base-inductance.
Sb = 100 M V A
Vb = 100 kV
Zb = 100 Ω
Zb = Rb = Xb
Xb = jωL
Lb = 0.318 H
Two trains are assumed to draw a constant power of 10 MW each, in each

feeding section. The train is assumed to be a rectified load with one resistive
part of 62.5 Ω and one inductive part of 10 mH. The load is assumed to be
connected at the feeding point. As expected, the voltages are not affected by
the load since the grid inductance is set to a low value. The voltage wave-
forms can be seen in figure 13. However, the current waveforms are affected
severely by the loading conditions. Current is drawn only from two phases
through the transformer, and one phase-current will be zero, as shown in
figure 14. The two phase-currents will be separated with 180 degrees, in a
balanced situation it should be 120 degrees between all the three current
waveforms.
33
Figure 13: Grid voltages for the conventional system. Each feeding section
is loaded with 10 MW
Figure 14: Grid currents for the conventional system. Each feeding section
is loaded with 10 MW
34
5.1.2 Case 2
In the next simulation the grid inductance remains the same, 3 mH. The load
will remain the same as previously but the loads are assumed to be placed
50 km away from the feeding point. The transmission line is modelled as one
resistor of 5 Ω and one inductance of 70 mH. The voltage and the current
waveforms are not changing any significantly compared to the previously
case. The voltage waveforms are still good as shown in figure 15 and the
current waveforms in figure 16 are still as bad as before.
Figure 15: Grid voltages for the conventional system. Each feeding section
is loaded with 10 MW, 50 km from feeding point
35
Figure 16: Grid currents for the conventional system. Each feeding section
is loaded with 10 MW, 50 km from feeding point
5.1.3 Case 3
In case three one load of 50 MW is placed on the bc-side of the transformer
output. The distance from the feeding point and the load will be 50 km.
The load contains a 12.5 Ω resistor and one inductor of 10 mH. The other
section (the ac-side) is modeled as a section with no train connected to the
catenary. This is done by connecting a resistor of 62500 Ω. Neither in this
case did the voltage or current waveform change any significantly as can be
seen in figure 17 and 18.
36
Figure 17: Grid voltages for the conventional system. One section loaded
with 50 MW and the other section is modeled with no train connected
Figure 18: Grid currents for the conventional system. One section loaded
37
5.1.4 Case 4
In the fourth case the bc-section draws a power of 10 MW and the ac-section
initially draws a power of 1 MW. The 1 MW load contains of a load of 625
Ω and an inductor of 10 mH. After a certain time the train that draw a
power of 1 MW will accelerate. The load will hence increase to 50 MW
instantaneously, and to represent that, the resistor is changed to 12.5 Ω.
In this case, some disturbances can be observed in the voltage waveforms, as
in figure 19 and the current waveforms in figure 20. The rectified load draws
a high current and as can be seen in figure 20 the rectification will distort the
current waveforms. This will also be transferred to the voltage waveforms,
where some distortion is observable.
Figure 19: Grid voltages for the conventional system. One section is loaded
with 10 MW and the other section is modeled as a train that accelerates at
a certain time
38
Figure 20: Grid currents for the conventional system. One section is loaded
with 10 MW and the other section is modeled as a train that accelerates at
a certain time
39
5.2 Railway Power conditioner
The same system is now simulated with the addition of a railway power con-
ditioner, under the same conditions as the conventional system. The railway
power conditioner is placed between the two output phases at the secondary
side of a V/V-transformer. Feeding can be done in both directions from the
substation. The DC-link capacitor of the RPC has a capacitance of 5 mF.
Two single-phase transformers are connected between the converter and the
load-sides. The converter coupling-inductance on each side of the converters
is set to 4 mH, 10 percentage of the base-inductance. The RPC was also
simulated in four cases, the same as for the conventional system.
Sb = 50 M V A
Vb = 25 kV
Zb = 12.5 Ω
Zb = Rb = Xb
Xb = jωL
Lb = 0.039 H
5.2.1 Case 1
The first simulation was done with a strong grid, similar as case 1 for the
conventional system. Two trains are assumed to draw a constant power of
10 MW each, on each feeding section. The train is assumed to be a rectified
load with one resistive part of 62.5 Ω and one inductive part of 10 mH. As
can be seen in figure 21, the voltage waveforms have been slightly affected by
the switching actions of the RPC system. However, the current waveforms
for the grid currents have become much better with this system compared to
case 1 for the conventional system, as shown in figure 22.
40
Figure 21: Grid voltages for 10 MW load on both sections
Figure 22: Grid currents for 10 MW load on both sections
41
5.2.2 Case 2
In the next simulation the grid inductance remains the same at 3 mH. The
load will remain the same as previously, but the loads are assumed to be
placed 50 away km from the feeding point. The transmission line is modelled
as one resistor of 5 Ω and one inductance of 70 mH. The voltage waveforms,
shown in figure 23 will not be significantly affected compared to the previ-
ous case for the RPC. The current waveforms in figure 24 will still be well
balanced, even if the load characteristics is different (contains the 50-km line
impedance).
Figure 23: Grid voltages for 10 MW load on both sections placed 50 km from
feeding point
42
Figure 24: Grid currents for 10 MW load on both sections placed 50 km from
feeding point
5.2.3 Case 3
In case 3, one load of 50 MW is placed in the bc-catenary section, close to
the feeding point. The load on the ac-section is considered to be very small,
modeled as a large resistor of 62500 Ω. The voltage waveforms in figure 25
are not changed significantly during this load condition compared to previous
two cases for the RPC. The current waveform is, however, affected by the high
load. The rectified load will draw a high current and significant harmonic
distortion can be observed in the current waveforms in figure 26.
43
Figure 25: Grid voltages for the conventional system. One section loaded
Figure 26: Grid currents for the conventional system. One section loaded
44
5.2.4 Case 4
In the fourth case the bc-side draws a power of 10 MW the ac-side initially
draws a power of 1 MW. After a certain time the train that drew a power of 1
MW will accelerate. The load will hence increase to 50 MW instantaneously.
The voltage waveforms in figure 27 still remained stable. The load step
can be observed in the current waveforms in figure 28. The current wave-
forms before the acceleration were quite good-quality sinusoidal waveforms.
After the acceleration the waveforms are also of adequate quality, and the
balance among the three phases is still kept. However, some distortion can
be observed from the high load with rectified characteristics. There is ap-
proximately one period until the system reaches the steady state after the
acceleration instant.
Figure 27: Grid voltage waveform for train acceleration
45
Figure 28: Grid current waveform for train acceleration
46
5.3 Unbalance factor
From equation (3) and (4) the unbalance factor can be found. Equation (3)
will give the positive sequence current for a phase current and equation (4)
will give the negative sequence current for a phase. The unbalance factor is
determined as following:
I2
Kunbalance = | a1 | (37)
Ia
For the first case, the conventional system, described in 5.1.1. Values for the
phase currents are found during simulation.
Ia = 0 −175◦ A
Ib = 3.75 ∗ 103 287◦ A
Ic = 3.75 ∗ 103 108◦ A
The unbalance factor, Kunbalance for the conventional system is approximately

98 %.
For the equivalent case in 5.2.1, simulated with the RPC in operation, the
phase currents will be as following:
Ia = 171 −1.8◦ A
Ib = 163 237.6◦ A
Ic = 171 116.8◦ A
The unbalance factor, Kunbalance for the RPC-system is approximately 0.45

%.
47
6 Conclusion and Discussion
This study has shown that railway power conditioners (RPCs) can mitigate
unbalances in the grid, as they reduce the degree of current unbalance sig-
nificantly. In a conventional system, the unbalance factor can be nearly 100
%, when the train is the only load served by the grid. In the system with a
V/V-transformer and a connected RPC, the unbalance factor for the same
conditions decreased to about 0.45 %. The RPC could hence fulfill its pur-
pose.
The conventional system is simple, cheap and there is a large knowledge

base in this technology, but it creates poor power quality in the grid. In
practice the feeding from the single-phase transformers will be alternating
between the phases in the grid. This is done to equalize the average load
between the phases. However, the stochastic behavior of the train load will
make it impossible to have equal loading on all phases with single-phase
transformers. This may disturb other customers in the grid and lower the
over-all performance of the power system. The power quality may even get
worse with trains running at higher speeds or trains with a heavier load. To
obtain a better power quality, compensation must be implemented either on
the grid-side or at the railway-side.
The RPC can serve as a power compensator on the railway-side to sym-

metrize the grid currents. This device contains converters with switching
devices that will create harmonics. To obtain a better performance more
studies must be carried out to investigate its output harmonics, the losses
and the ratings of an RPC.
48
7 Future outlooks
To determine if this is a competitive solution for the railway traction sys-
tem, further studies must be performed. The system must be investigated in
terms of harmonics and in what way the harmonic distortion from both the
converters and the traction equipment on the trains can be reduced.
The RPC-system could also be compared with other compensation systems,

such as the STATCOM. The comparison could include both cost and perfor-
mance. In this study only the basic operation of the RPC has been inves-
tigated. The behavior of this system could be further analyzed under fault
conditions. It is also interesting to understand if the system can provide
further support to the electrical grid, during the time that no train load is
present.
49
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KTH Centrum for forskning och utbildning i järnvägsteknik, 4:de up-
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[2 ] L.Abrahamsson, T.Schütte, S.Östlund, Use of converters for feeding of

AC railways for all frequencies, Energy for Sustainable Development,
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51

Compensating Unbalances in Synchronous Railway Traction Systems With Railway Power Conditioners

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Compensating Unbalances in Synchronous Railway Traction Systems With Railway Power Conditioners

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UPTEC ES 16002

Teknisk- naturvetenskaplig fakultet

Handledare: Antonios Antonopoulos

Det här examensarbetet kommer att studera aktiv effektkompenser-

To mitigate this unbalance, power electronic devices can be installed.

To determine if the RPC is a competitive solution for the railway

Especially I value the patience and assistance from my supervisor, Antonios

I also appreciate the time my subject reviewer, Urban Lundin at Uppsala

/Matilda Örnkloo, Uppsala

2 Conventional System with Single-phase Transformers 13

3 Solutions to Mitigate Unbalances with Power Electronic De-

4 Railway Power Conditioner, Design and Function 21

5 Simulations and Results for a Conventional system and a

6 Conclusion and Discussion 48

1.1 Scope of the Project

AC systems span a larger voltage range, typically between 15 kV up to 50

For modern railway electrification the most common system is a 25 kV AC

Both a typical railway traction system, in this thesis named Conventional

• Chapter 2 - Conventional System

• Chapter 3 - Solutions to Mitigate Unbalances

• Chapter 4 - Railway Power Conditioner

• Chapter 5 - Simulations and Results

1.5 System boundaries

It is no longer viable to have unpowered distances in the railway system.

2.1 Consequences with unbalances

Negative-sequence currents in electrical machines such as in a motor or a

The negative-sequence current also affects the transmission lines. It flows

2.2 Symmetrical Components

When a train brakes power is dissipated in the catenary. In a conventional

3.1 Static Frequency Converter (SFC)

Figure 2: Static Frequency Converter connecting directly to the high power

3.2 Reactive power compensators, (SVC) and

3.3 Railway Power Conditioner (RPC)

Figure 4: Railway power conditioner connected to the grid via a step-down

• Transfer active power between two electrical subsystems

• Compensate reactive power on each side of the converters

In this thesis no detailed investigation is done to study harmonics. Focus

4.1 Special Design Transformers

The choice of transformer will also affect the amount of negative-sequence

4.2 Generation of Current and Voltage References for

VA = V1 cos(ωt) → IAref = I1 cos(ωt) (5)

VB = V1 cos(ωt − 2π/3) → IBref = I1 cos(ωt − 2π/3) (6)

VC = V1 cos(ωt + 2π/3) → ICref = I1 cos(ωt + 2π/3) (7)

Zac = Rac + jωLac (9)

Zbc = Rbc + jωLbc (10)

Vac (t) = V2 cos(ωt + ϕ) (11)

Vbc (t) = V2 cos(ωt + γ) (12)

ILac (t) = ILac cos(ωt + ϕ) (13)

ILbc (t) = ILbc cos(ωt + γ) (14)

Figure 6: Schematic over current division through the V/V transformer,

The current on the primary side can be written as

These currents must then be transferred to the secondary side of the

Isec.ac = +iac (23)

Vacref = Vac − VL1 → ref

Vbcref = Vbc − VL2 → ref

4.2.1 Control Schematic for the Railway Power Conditioner

ref ref +tolerance

4.2.2 Parameter description and impact of parameter change

5.1 Conventional System

Two trains are assumed to draw a constant power of 10 MW each, in each

Figure 22: Grid currents for 10 MW load on both sections

Figure 27: Grid voltage waveform for train acceleration