WAMS-based detection and early-warning of low-frequency oscillations in large-scale power systems

The phasor measurement units (PMU) and wide-area measurement systems (WAMS) have been widely established in modern power systems to improve the monitoring of the system behavior as well as the system control. In this paper, an integrated scheme for the monitoring and detection of low-frequency oscillations has been developed, based on our extensive experience in using Prony algorithm for oscillation analysis in practical WAMS projects. By analyzing the real-time synchro-phasors, the proposed scheme is competent to identify the characteristics of the low-frequency oscillations in real-time and alert the operators once the oscillation is under-damped or divergent. To ensure accurate monitoring of system dynamics and reliable detection of dangerous oscillations with noise-polluted WAMS measurements, several key signal-processing techniques are implemented, including delicate designing of prefilters, Prony analysis result correction, and comprehensive indices for stability evaluation. In the end, the developed scheme is tested with simulated signals and measurements from practical power systems. Its applications to large-scale power grids for detection and early-warning of low-frequency oscillations are also presented. The results have convincingly demonstrated the validity and practicability of the developed scheme.