On the Electromagnetic Performance Prediction of Turbo Synchronous Condensers Based on Wound-Field Flux Switching Machine Design

The revival of the old synchronous condenser (SC) technology is presently occurring. Hence, this study is proposed on the electromagnetic design and evaluation of turbo wound-field flux switching machines (WF-FSMs) for SC operation, for the first time. Unlike classical wound-field rotating machines, WF-FSMs do not need brushless exciters while possessing a robust topology. A design process based on the frozen permeability technique in static 2-D finite element analysis script-based package, which enhances both iterative and analytic adjudications, is proposed to accurately predict the SC operation. To attain the specific design requirements (∼300 MVAR, 16 kV), a global-optimized model (GOM) of the SC machine is obtained through a stochastic optimization process involving multiple objectives. Based on the GOM, simple torque ripple minimization techniques are implemented, from which a final benchmark design is selected. The proposed SC analytical design procedure is then tested and the expected V-curves clearly obtained. The whole design approach is further verified by experimenting on a small-scale prototype, which when synchronized to the grid, confirms the novelty and feasibility of the proposed SC design and operation.