This paper is devoted to the description of a new approach for large-scale electric power systems (EPS) simulation, so-called hybrid simulation approach. The design and research of EPS require solving a large number of non-trivial tasks. Due to the well-known EPS specificity, mathematical modeling is the only way to proceed. According to the hybrid approach, several simulation techniques (analogue, digital, and physical) are used to achieve the best results. An analogue part provides the elimination of methodological integration error, which appears in a case of numerical methods usage. A digital part allows the realization of control and parameter changing algorithms on software level. In a physical part, the connection and switching of modeled elements are provided in a way as in real EPS. In addition, the paper presents hardware features of the simulator-hybrid real-time power system simulator (HRTSim), which is an alternative to the digital simulators currently used. The important part of this paper is the result of comparative analysis of transient processes oscillograms obtained by HRTSim and real disturbance recorders in Tomsk region power system, as well as HRTSim and real-time digital simulator.

The motivation for the presented research is based on the needs to develop new methods and tools for obtaining the information required to evaluate the mutual influence of HVDC and HVAC systems. This paper presents the specialized concept of a hybrid simulation for advanced modeling of VSC HVDC. The results obtained by the prototype of specialized hybrid processor of VSC HVDC model confirm the effectiveness of the proposed approach with respect to the detailed representation of commutation process of real power semiconductors and possibility of real-time simulation of all the processes in VSC and EPS as a whole without any decomposition and limitation on their duration.

The transience and unpredictability of processes in electric power systems (EPS) determine complexity of its control. This problem is especially relevant for EPS with renewable energy sources and flexible alternating current transmission systems technologies. Automatic control systems simplify the solution of this problem. Despite this, many issues related to EPS state control are solved by power system operators. Decision support systems (DSS) are applying to increase efficiency of operators work. However, existing algorithms in practice are inoperable in some cases: unrealizable decisions are formed, or decision cannot be found at all, etc. Another important problem is impossibility to preliminarily verify the proposed solution. In this regard, operators can additionally use EPS simulators, which are usually limited either by the size of simulated scheme or by the details of equipment mathematical models. The limitations are a consequence of numerical methods using, which are badly applicable for large-scale power systems simulation. In this article, a novel DSS has been developed based on a hybrid approach to EPS modeling combining properties and capabilities of several simulation techniques: analog, physical and digital. The implicit integration of differential equations in analog way makes possible modeling faster than real time. Such opportunity allows operator to verify more decisions and select the most effective ones. The algorithm for DSS application has been developed and described in the article. The properties and capabilities of the developed DSS are confirmed by experimental studies and tests in a real EPS.

Reliability and survivability of electric power systems (EPS) depend on transient stability assessment (TSA). One of the most effective way to TSA is time-domain simulation. However, large-scale EPS mathematical model contains a stiff nonlinear system of high-order differential equations. Such system cannot be solved analytically. At the same time, numerical methods are imperfectly applied for such system due to limitation conditions. To make it appropriate, the EPS mathematical model is simplified and additional limitations are used. These simplifications and limitations reduce reliability of simulation results. Consequently, their validation is needed. The most reliable approach to provide it is to compare the simulation results with the field data. However, in practice, there are not enough data for such validation. This paper proposes an alternative approach for validation – the application of a reference model instead of field data. A hardware-software system HRTSim was used as a reference model. This power system simulator has all the necessary properties and capabilities to obtain reliable information required for comprehensive validation of transient stability calculations in EPSs. Main disturbances leading to instability in EPSs are investigated to conduct the validation (processes in cases of faults, single-phase auto-reclosing operation and power system interconnection). Fragments of corresponding experimental studies illustrate the efficiency of the proposed approach. Obtained results confirmed the possibility of the developed approach to identify the causes of numerical calculation errors and to determine disturbances calculated with the significant error. In addition, experimental studies have revealed that numerical calculations error depends on disturbances intensity.

Currently, the number of distributed generation (DG) objects in the world is growing mainly due to renewable energy sources (RES). However, the integration of a large volume of DG based on RES into existing electric power systems (EPS) is associated with a number of significant problems. For a comprehensive study and solution of these problems, it is necessary to carry out detailed simulation of real EPS, which is not always feasible with the help of existing tools. Therefore, the article proposes the use of an alternative solution – the Hybrid Real-Time Power System Simulator (HRTSim). To confirm the properties and capabilities of the HRTSim, the simulation results of a test scheme obtained using the HRTSim and the widely used digital hardware-software complex RTDS were compared. The results of a comprehensive comparison in both complexes confirmed the adequacy of information about the processes in equipment and EPS as a whole, obtained by the HRTSim. Thus, it is proved that further use the HRTSim as a tool for detailed and adequate simulation of real EPS with DG will provide complete and reliable information about normal and abnormal quasi-steady-state and transient processes, which is necessary for reliable and efficient design, research and subsequent operation of EPS with DG.