HVDC Light® is ABB’s own patented, state-of-the-art, power system designed to transmit power underground and under water, as well as over long distances
HVDC Light® is ABB’s own patented, state-of-the-art, power system designed to transmit power underground and under water, as well as over long distances. It offers numerous environmental benefits, including ‘invisible’ power lines, neutral electromagnetic fields, oil-free cables and compact converter stations.
HVDC Light® is HVDC technology based on voltage source converters (VSCs). With extruded DC cables, power ratings from a few tens of MW to over 1000 MW are available.
HVDC Light® cables have extruded polymer insulation (XLPE). Their strength and flexibility make the HVDC Light® cables well suited for severe installation conditions both underground as a land cable and as a submarine cable.
The converter station design is based on VSCs employing state of the art turn-on/turnoff IGBT power semiconductors that operate with high frequency pulse width modulation. HVDC Light® has the capability to rapidly control both active and reactive power independently of each other, to keep the voltage and frequency stable. This gives total flexibility in location of the converters in the AC system since the requirements of short-circuit capacity of the connected AC network is low (SCR down to zero).
CONVERTER STATIONS
The HVDC Light® converter station design is based on a modular concept. For DC voltages up to ±150 kV, most of the equipment is installed in enclosures at the factory. For the highest DC voltages the equipment is installed in buildings. The converter stations have a very small installation footprint on site, while all equipment except the power transformers is indoors. Well-proven and tested equipment at the factory makes installation and commissioning quick and efficient.
The stations are designed to be unmanned. They can be operated remotely or could even be automatic, based on the needs of the interconnected AC networks. Maintenance requirements are determined mainly by conventional equipment such as the AC breakers and cooling system.
CABLE SYSTEM
The cable system comprises cables, accessories and installation services. The cables are operated in bipolar mode, one cable with positive polarity and one with negative polarity. The strength and flexibility of the HVDC Light® cables makes them perfect for severe installation conditions:
- The submarine cables can be laid in deeper waters and on rough seabed terrain.
- Ploughing makes installation of land cables very cost effective.
ENVIRONMENTAL BENEFITS:
- Magnetic fields are reduced substantially since HVDC Light® cables are laid in pairs with DC currents in opposite directions.
- Risk of oil spill, as in paper-oil-insulated cables, is eliminated.
- The cable insulation is PE based and not dangerous.
- The cable metals can be reused.
Furthermore, power transmission via cables
Ensures
- no visual impact
- no ground current
APPLICATIONS
HVDC Light® is an alternative to conventional AC transmission or local generation in many situations. Possible applications include:
- Connecting wind farms to grids
- Underground power links
- Powering islands
- Oil & gas offshore platforms; power from shore
- Asynchronous grid connection
- City centre in-feed
HVDC Light® was introduced in 1997. A number of underground transmissions up to 350 MW are in commercial operation and more are being built.