New Topology for Valve Performance Test Equipment of MMC based STATCOM

This study proposes a new topology for the performance test of a valve consisting of a modular multilevel converter (MMC)-based static synchronous compensator (STATCOM). The conventional valve performance test equipment requires high-voltage AC source of several kV rating because the number of submodules to be tested in a valve should be at least six or eight. However, the power source of the proposed scheme is DC and not AC source. The DC power source voltage range of the proposed test circuit is from several volts to several tens of volts. Therefore, the size and cost for the performance test equipment can be reduced considerably compared with the conventional method. The proposed scheme satisfies the requirements of the IEC 62927 standard. Simulations are conducted for a valve of 50[MVA] MMC-based STATCOM. Experimental results with a scale-downed setup show the validity of the proposed performance test topology.