Development and Analysis of Small Signal DQ-Frame Model for Low Frequency Stability of Train Converters

Abstract: In order to meet the increasing demand for sustainable transportation, trains need to run with tighter schedules, more departures and more trains in depot. Multiple trains in depot has been linked to low frequency instability at many locations around the world. The instability originates in the interaction between the infrastructure and trains, specifically the line converter module (LCM). The phenomenon has been studied during the last two decades. Today there are a number of methods used to analyse low frequency stability, although these methods are usually slow and cumbersome. In this project a modelling approach is proposed for a linear small-signal DQ-frame admittance model of the LCM. The model describes the relationship of the low frequency oscillations between the line voltage and line current. Similar linear models have been derived previously, although the design of the specific train modelled is in part significantly different from the design of the trains modelled previously. The main difference is in the DQ-transformation for the phase locked loop (PLL), which in this thesis is implemented with a DFT-based method, and the implementation of the current controller (CC) which in this thesis is implemented in the stationary reference frame. The LCM and infrastructure (modelled as an impedance) is then analysed as a feedback loop using dominant poles analysis, regularly used in control theory. The result from the proposed model was evaluated using methods that are common in the industry. Furthermore, as the LCM is a complex system and the impact of different components and control parameters is not fully understood, the proposed model is used to examine how changing different parameters affect the overall stability of the system. The correlation between the results from the proposed model and the methods used for evaluation implies that the modelling approach is accurate. The two main benefits of the proposed model is that the method is much faster than most other methods for low frequency analysis, the proposed model is useful for testing different parameter configurations and changes in the design of the LCM.