Explore the Capability of Power Electronic Converters in Providing Power System Virtual Inertia

The penetration of power electronic converters is increasing rapidly in modern power systems. However, a power system with a large portion of power converters is a low-inertia grid. Recently, the virtual inertia control is implemented to increase the power system inertia. In addition, only converters integrating distributed generations are considered to provide virtual inertia in the previous researches. Actually, all grid-connected converters can produce virtual inertia by utilizing the energy stored in the capacitors without modifying existing system hardware. The capability of converters in emulating virtual inertia depends on topologies, and operating conditions, etc., which need to be further investigated. However, none of the literature analyzes the capability of converters in producing virtual inertia, which will be explored in this paper. Commonly used converters are studied in this paper to identify the inertia that can be provided by them. The analysis is validated through simulation and experimental results.