Transient losses in synchronizing renewable energy integrated power networks

This paper quantifies the transient power losses incurred in re-synchronizing a network of generators and loads. The power system is represented using a network preserving model with loads and asynchronous generators modeled as frequency dependent power injections, which we refer to as `first-order oscillators´. Coupling these models with the swing equations of traditional generators leads to a mixed-oscillator system. The power flows used to maintain network synchronization induce resistive (real power) losses in the system, which we quantify through an H₂ norm that is shown to scale with network size. Our results also show that given a fixed network size, this H₂ norm is the same for first-order, second-order and mixed-oscillator systems, provided that the damping coefficients are all equal. Therefore, if the renewable power generators being added to a power network can be controlled so that their effective dampings match those of the existing generators, they will not increase transient power losses in the system.