HIGH VOLTAGE d.c.

TRANSMISSION 123

Under abnormal condition i.e., low rectifier voltage condition, the rectifier current control
finds the current to be less than its setting and hence tries to bring it to its setting by increasing
the rectifier voltage, by decreasing ignition angle delay. It is unable to do so, however, either
because the delay is already zero or because the minimum control overrides the current control.
The other possibility to increase the current is to reduce inverter voltage. Therefore, the inverter
operates at a higher extinction angle than the minimum specified value. This happens because
the current regulator fires the inverter thyristor before the C.E.A. Control has a chance to
do so.
Under normal operating condition or low inverter voltage, the inverter current regulator
sees that the measured current is more than its own setting, it tries to lower the current by
raising the inverter voltage. For this, it must decrease the extinction angle δ by decreasing the
ignition advance angle β. It cannot do because the C.E.A. regulator is already igniting the
thyristors before the current regulator would do so.
In many d.c. transmission lines each converter sometimes works as a rectifier and at
other times as an inverter. At times both the converters may be expected to operate as inverters
e.g., de-energization of a d.c. line. Therefore, each converter is given a combined characteristic
as shown in Fig. 5.20 consisting of three linear portions C.I.A, C.C. and C.E.A.

Converter I Id Converter II

(a)

Converter I

CIA
Converter II
I-Rectifier
CEA
II-Inverter

CC

O Id

I-Inverter
II-Rectifier CEA

Converter I

CIA (b)

Fig. 5.20 Reversal of power (a) Block diagram (b) Control characteristics.

The power is transmitted from Converter I to Converter II as per the thick line
characteristics of Fig. 5.20. i.e., Converter I acts as a rectifier whereas Converter II as the
inverter. If the direction of power is to be reversed i.e., Converter II to work as rectifier and
Converter I to work as an inverter, Characteristics are changed to those shown by dotted line.