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The modular multilevel converter (MMC) is recognized for many advantages over conventional 2-level or 3-level voltage source converters (VSC). One of the features is that it is possible to control the stored energy in the distributed submodule (SM) capacitors. The aim of this paper is to propose a methodology to develop the control system implemented on a 21-level MMC mock-up. This control must be first validated in a real-time (RT) simulation environment with an accurate MMC model representing the behaviour of the physical MMC mock-up. Then it is performed in the hardware-in-the-loop (HIL) simulation before the implementation. The power system is emulated in a real time simulator from Opal-RT Technologies, which is connected to an external control system programmed in a dual-core microcontroller. The developed HIL platform facilitates the tests of the control and protection system in all possible scenarios.

This paper deals with the conception and the development of a detailed EMT Model for MMC based on experimental results obtained from a mock-up. The main purpose is to illustrate how to exploit the performances of EMT simulation tools to develop a detailed model that represents accurately the behaviour of a physical MMC. According to step-by-step identification of the MMC element parameters, the idea is to perform a systematic method, which allows expanding an accurate EMT model considering the behaviour of the prototype and its environment. The first part depicts the MMC topology and the modelling approach of the Half-bridge Sub-Module (SM) using a detailed IGBT-based model. The second part of the simulation model conception concerns both control levels such as high-level and low-level controllers. The last part of the EMT model conception involves the modelling of measurement process, ADC (Analogue Digital Converter), sensors dynamics, the communication delays and especially the quantization effect. Finally, the obtained results from the final detailed EMT model is compared to the experimental behaviour for different active and reactive powers operating points in order to prove the effectiveness and the capability of the EMT modelling to reach a detailed and accurate model.

This study presents control strategies of offshore wind farms with dc series collector systems and modular multilevel converter based high voltage direct current (MMC-HVDC) transmissions. Series connection of dc wind turbines enables the collector system to establish the HVDC transmission voltage level with neither transformer nor centralized converter platform, indicating huge savings on offshore wind farm investment. However, severe wind variation imposes overvoltage on the wind turbines and may induce a cascade of failures of other series connected units. This paper first explains the wind farm design constrains bound by overvoltage limitation of wind turbine units. Then two kinds of control strategies, classical control and proposed HVDC global control, are presented to ensure every unit operating within safety limit. Wind farms with both control strategies are simulated. Finally, the two kinds of strategies are compared in terms of technical feasibilities, economical benefits and annual energy production rates. The results demonstrate that DC series offshore wind farms with proposed HVDC global control strategy imply competitive economic advantages of future integration of remote energy generation.

to ensure the operation of each wind turbine under a safe voltage level while no power production is lost in the wind farm. This paper first introduces the whole wind generation system. Then the steady state analysis of the dc series offshore wind farm and the overvoltage phenomenon are described, which lead to the proposal of the global control strategy. The detailed realization of the global control strategy by use of the MMC is given after a short recall of the MMC arm average model.

The exploitation of the abundant offshore wind energy far from the coast relies on the High Voltage Direct Current (HVDC) transmission which requires a dedicated offshore substation for converting power from AC into DC. The investment on the bulky offshore platform is high and its installation is complicated. This thesis deals with a pure DC offshore wind farm topology which exports its energy to onshore without using an offshore centralized power conversion substation. This wind farm is called Series Parallel Wind Farm (SPWF), which is comprised of several clusters of wind turbines interconnected in series, so that the output converters of the wind turbines step up the voltage to be high enough for direct power transmission. However, the series connection indicates that the independent operation of wind turbines becomes impossible. Unbalanced power production of wind turbines due to uneven wind speed distributed in the wind farm leads to wind turbines output voltage variation. The overvoltage limitation control strategy is then developed to ensure safe operation of the series connected wind turbines. It is first validated by being applied to a Point-to-Point (P2P) system using Multilevel Modular Converter (MMC) based HVDC transmission. After that, the SPWF is integrated into different Multi-Terminal DC (MTDC) systems. The results validate the feasibility of proposed strategy, and show its advantage that no power curtailment is required to limit the wind turbines output voltage.