Simulating the Effects of Inertia and Frequency Response Services on Transient Propagation in a Networked Grid

Abstract

As part of climate change mitigation efforts, there has been acceleration in the deployment of distributed renewable generation replacing conventional thermal power plants in grids across the world. As a result, there has been a change in the aggregate and regional inertial capacity, with consequences for the stability of these networks and their ability to withstand large variations in frequency. Building on previous work that successfully simulated frequency events on the GB grid using a single bus model, this paper describes a networked grid model using an algebraic differential system of equations. This is used to simulate the effects of localized variation in inertia and frequency response services on the propagation of transients across a network. Using this model, the effects of varying responses to transients can be investigated, and grids of varying scales and topologies can be compared to determine differences in their response to outages. The propagation of disturbances across domains within the network that have different frequency response characteristics can be examined with a view to drawing conclusions about the optimal deployment of frequency response services, and their relative cost-effectiveness in delivering a stable supply as the proportion of renewable generation in the energy mix grows.