arXiv subjects

Marta Molinas

Publications and source records attributed to Marta Molinas.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2026

On the Convergence of the Current-Constrained Power Angle Curve of Virtual Admittance-Based Grid Forming Converters

The current-constrained power-angle curve (PAC) is crucial for the transient synchronization stability (TSS) analysis of virtual admittance-based (VA) grid-forming (GFM) converters. Its formulation and application rely on the quasi-steady-state assumption critically, i.e., the active power can converge to its steady-state across the entire angle space in both a stable and fast manner. Despite this assumption is intuitively perceivable, it lack sufficient clarification, particularly on underlying behaviors if violated. To this end, this paper uncovers a new phenomenon on the non-uniform convergence of the VA-PAC. To achieve this, an eigen-sweep-based analysis of the full-order VA-PAC model with detailed controls is conducted, by which the existence of this issue is theoretically confirmed. On this basis, the open-loop stability and response-rate conditions of the full-order VA-PAC model for ensuring its convergence are clarified. Findings of this work can provide deeper insights into the existing TSS analyses of GFM converters, and are expected to provoke new analyses.

eess.SY↗

arXiv2026

Generalized Feedback Control Modeling Method for Control-Driven Converter Systems

Converters-based systems like wind farms manifest themselves as control-intensive systems, where control-driven stability issues frequently occur, e.g., oscillations. Such issues are popularly studied via circuit impedance-based methods. However, given its implicit controller modeling trait, the impedance-based methods have limitations in system analysis and designs involving large-scale controllers. To address this issue, this paper presents a novel frequency domain modeling framework, as a perspective shift from the circuit to the control system. Since the obtained model features a multi-input-multi-output (MIMO) feedback control structure and explicit controller placement, it is termed the Generalized Feedback Control (GFC) model. GFC modeling is conducted for both single and multi-converter cases, and the resulting models are validated by frequency scan and stability test. Moreover, advantages of the GFC method in achieving interaction analysis and stability-oriented designs of multi-controllers are demonstrated by three application examples, further suggesting its great potential for being applied to the analysis and design issues of converter systems involving large-scale controllers.

eess.SY↗

arXiv2026

From Symmetry to Stability: Quantifying Converter Grid Impedance Asymmetry as Indicator of Stability Margin

Although symmetricity in the converter controller is desirable for robust stability margins, a direct link between system-level asymmetricity and instability has yet to be clearly established. Converter control introduces three-phase asymmetricity through loops such as DC-link voltage control, a phase-locked loop , and a power synchronization loop. Furthermore, the inherently asymmetric topology of the two-level voltage-source converter, which converts a DC voltage into a three-phase balanced set, acts as the underlying origin of the asymmetries that propagate into the control structure. Consequently, establishing a direct relationship between system asymmetricity (rather than control asymmetricity alone) and the stability margin is essential for understanding the underlying instability mechanisms. In this work, asymmetricity is quantified using the Asymmetricity Quantification Index (AQI), derived from the sequence-domain representation of the interconnected converter-grid impedance. Within this domain, symmetricity is identified through the definition of symmetrical matrices, which serve as the benchmark against which asymmetricity is measured. A robust and generalized analysis correlates AQI with the stability margin, including both grid-following and grid-forming control structures connected to the power grid. It is found that instability arises from increased asymmetricity in the combined converter-grid system, which is dominated by asymmetric control loops and operating points. Thus, reducing asymmetricity without compromising controller functionality can improve stability margins. The analysis is validated in both control-hardware-in-the-loop and power-hardware-in-the-loop environments.

eess.SY↗

arXiv2025

AI-Based Impedance Encoding-Decoding Method for Online Impedance Network Construction of Wind Farms

The impedance network (IN) model is gaining popularity in the oscillation analysis of wind farms. However, the construction of such an IN model requires impedance curves of each wind turbine under their respective operating conditions, making its online application difficult due to the transmission of numerous high-density impedance curves. To address this issue, this paper proposes an AI-based impedance encoding-decoding method to facilitate the online construction of IN model. First, an impedance encoder is trained to compress impedance curves by setting the number of neurons much smaller than that of frequency points. Then, the compressed data of each turbine are uploaded to the wind farm and an impedance decoder is trained to reconstruct original impedance curves. At last, based on the nodal admittance matrix (NAM) method, the IN model of the wind farm can be obtained. The proposed method is validated via model training and real-time simulations, demonstrating that the encoded impedance vectors enable fast transmission and accurate reconstruction of the original impedance curves.

eess.SP↗

arXiv2024

An Extended Admittance Modeling Method with Synchronization Node for Stability Assessment of Converters-Interlinked System

Diverse synchronization dynamics within the grid-following (GFL)/grid-forming (GFM) converters-interlinked system are prone to induce oscillatory instabilities. To quantify their stability influences, frequency-domain modal analysis (FMA) method based on the impedance network can serve as a good reference. However, since the adopted impedance network only retains electrical nodes, oscillation information provided by the FMA method is mainly concerned with circuits (e.g., participation of nodes), which is not convenient for an intuitive probe of sync loops' participations. To address this issue, this paper proposes an extended admittance modeling method for FMA, the basis of which is the explicit characterization of GFL/GFM sync loops. First, a four-port extended impedance model (EIM) of converter with one virtual sync node is proposed. Its resulting extended impedance network (EIN) is formed for the converters-interlinked system. Then, the FMA method can be directly applied to those virtual sync nodes/branches, so as to realize an intuitive evaluation of sync dynamics' effects on oscillations. The effectiveness of the proposed method is validated by the frequency scanning and time domain simulations in a typical point-to-point HVDC system.

math.DS↗

arXiv2024

A Multilayer Eigen-Sensitivity Method Using Loop Gain Model for Oscillation Diagnosis of Converter-Based System

Loop gain-based eigen-sensitivity (LGES) is a useful frequency-domain tool for oscillation diagnosis of converter-based system. However, the existing theory is still scant in two aspects: participation factor (PF) is bound up with the frequency-domain modal characteristic that does not necessarily point to the stability as that of the time-domain eigen-sensitivity (i.e., PF of oscillation mode); a systematic LGES analysis framework containing both component- and parameter- level sensitivity is missing. These two factors hinder the application of LGES method on the proper evaluation of stability effects, which are closely related with the time-domain oscillation mode. To address these issues, this paper proposes a multilayer LGES method directed to the oscillation mode, and a full set of indices like PF, component and parameter sensitivity are established. The link from the eigen-sensitivity of frequency domain to that of time domain is revealed, through which it is shown how the proposed LGES method can facilitate the control parameter tuning-guided oscillation suppression. The effectiveness of the proposed LGES method is validated via case studies conducted on a generic AC/DC converter-based system.

physics.app-ph↗

arXiv2022

Marine Integrated Energy Microgrids

Marine sector decarbonization is another important battlefield for meeting the goal of climate action and ensuring the fulfillment of ambitions for a zero-emission society. Driven immediately by the policy incentives such as Energy Efficiency Design Index (EEDI) from International Maritime Organization(IMO), carbon taxation and labeling, a series of innovations centered around marine transportation are emerging from both industry and academia. As an efficient energy system form, the microgrid is playing an increasingly important role as the system constitution form for various marine energy systems. With specific concern about multi-energy integrations, the conventional definition of the microgrid needs also to be extended for an integrated energy system. In this paper, we will first introduce the extended concept of the microgrid as an integrated energy system and its applications in the marine sector, and then present the state of the art for the control, operation, and system integration for it and its clusters. The challenges and opportunities for marine integrated energy microgrids will also be discussed to shed light on future research.

eess.SY↗

arXiv2022

Three-Port Impedance Model and Validation of VSCs for Stability Analysis

Modern power system is undergoing a paradigm shift from the synchronous generators-based system to the power electronics converters-dominated system. With the high penetration of converters, serious stability problems are provoked, especially the wideband oscillations. Various studies have been conducted in this respect, while most of them separate the ac-side stability with the dc-side stability. However, for the stability analysis of the hybrid AC/DC grid, it is necessary to consider the converter ac-side and dc-side, simultaneously. In this paper, the stability analysis of voltage source converters (VSCs) considering both ac and dc dynamics is carried out. At first, the three-port AC/DC admittance model of VSCs is established, and the corresponding measurement method from simulations is presented to validate its accuracy. Secondly, based on such three-port model, two stability analysis methods are presented: the one is based on the system open-loop model, where the stability can be judged via the Generalized Nyquist Criterion (GNC); the other one is based on the system closed-loop model, whose stability can be predicted through the pole-zero calculation. At last, a test AC/DC system is built in MATLAB/Simulink, by which the effectiveness of the three-port model-based stability analysis is validated.

physics.app-ph↗

arXiv2021

A Practical Method for Automated Modeling and Parametric Stability Analysis of VSC with Periodical Steady State

Linear Time Periodic (LTP) framework-based analysis of Voltage Source Converters (VSCs) is becoming popular, a driven factor is that many of the existing VSC applications inevitably exhibit the periodic steady-state (PSS), e.g., VSCs with unbalanced grid connections and the operation of a modular multilevel converter (MMC). In these studies, acquisition of the VSC's PSS conditions is a necessary precondition for proper linearization and stability analysis, and the efficiency of this process is particularly important for parametric studies. To this end, this work develops a computational method for automating the LTP analyses of VSCs with an integrated PSS solver. The core of the method lies in a unified frequency-domain iteration process that is developed by applying the generalized averaging principle. Given this, modeling, stability analysis, as well as the solution of PSS conditions can be unified in one process. The algorithmic implementation of the method in MATLAB is elaborated. Application of the obtained tool in impedance generation and parametric stability test is presented with an unbalanced grid-tied VSC as the exemplification. Finally, PSCAD/EMTDC simulations further consolidate the validity of the results.

eess.SY↗

arXiv2019

Method for Mode Mixing Separation in Empirical Mode Decomposition

The Empirical Mode Decomposition (EMD) is a signal analysis method that separates multi-component signals into single oscillatory modes called intrinsic mode functions (IMFs), each of which can generally be associated to a physical meaning of the process from which the signal is obtained. When the phenomena of mode mixing occur, as a result of the EMD sifting process, the IMFs can lose their physical meaning hindering the interpretation of the results of the analysis. In the paper, "One or Two frequencies? The Empirical Mode Decomposition Answers", Gabriel Rilling and Patrick Flandrin [3] presented a rigorous mathematical analysis that explains how EMD behaves in the case of a composite two-tones signal and the amplitude and frequency ratios by which EMD will perform a good separation of tones. However, the authors did not propose a solution for separating the neighboring tones that will naturally remain mixed after an EMD. In this paper, based on the findings by Rilling and Flandrin, a method that can separate neighbouring spectral components, that will naturally remain within a single IMF, is presented. This method is based on reversing the conditions by which mode mixing occurs and that were presented in the map by Rilling and Flandrin in the above mentioned paper. Numerical experiments with signals containing closely spaced spectral components shows the effective separation of modes that EMD can perform after this principle is applied. The results verify also the regimes presented in the theoretical analysis by Rilling and Flandrin.

stat.ME↗

arXiv2018

Impedance Network of Interconnected Power Electronics Systems: Impedance Operator and Stability Criterion

Impedance is an intuitive and efficient way for dynamic representation of power electronics devices. One of the evident strengths, when compared to other small-signal methods, is the natural association with circuit theory. This makes them possible to be connected through basic circuit laws. However, careful attention should be paid when making this association since the impedances obtained through linearization are local variables, often referred to locally defined reference frames. To allow the operations of these impedances using basic circuit laws, a unified reference has to be defined. Though this issue was properly addressed on the state-space models, a thorough analysis and a clarification regarding the unified impedances and stability effects are still missing. This paper aims to bridge this gap by introducing the Impedance Operator (IO) and associated properties to the development of impedance networks. First, the IO for both the AC coupled and AC/DC coupled systems are presented and verified through impedance measurements in PSCAD. Then, three types of impedance network-based stability criterions are presented along with a clarification on the consistency of stability conclusions. Finally, the Nyquist-based analysis is explored, regarding the sensitivity to partition points, to open the discussion on the identification of systems weak points.

eess.SY↗

arXiv2018

EEG-based Subjects Identification based on Biometrics of Imagined Speech using EMD

When brain activity is translated into commands for real applications, the potential for human capacities augmentation is promising. In this paper, EMD is used to decompose EEG signals during Imagined Speech in order to use it as a biometric marker for creating a Biometric Recognition System. For each EEG channel, the most relevant Intrinsic Mode Functions (IMFs) are decided based on the Minkowski distance, and for each IMF 4 features are computed: Instantaneous and Teager energy distribution and Higuchi and Petrosian Fractal Dimension. To test the proposed method, a dataset with 20 subjects who imagined 30 repetitions of 5 words in Spanish, is used. Four classifiers are used for this task - random forest, SVM, naive Bayes, and k-NN - and their performances are compared. The accuracy obtained (up to 0.92 using Linear SVM) after 10-folds cross-validation suggest that the proposed method based on EMD can be valuable for creating EEG-based biometrics of imagined speech for Subjects identification.

q-bio.NC↗

arXiv2018

Impact of Digital Time Delay on the Stable Grid Hosting Capacity of Large-scale Centralized Photovoltaic Plant

In view of the trend towards extensive application of digital controllers in the PV inverter of large-scale centralized photovoltaic (LSCPV) plant and the increasing number of grid-connected LSCPV plants, this paper investigates in detail the influence of the digital time delay of the inverter digital controller on the stable grid-hosting capacity of LSCPV plant. The studies are based on the Norton equivalent model of the grid-connected LSCPV system considering the digital time delay when modelling the digital control system of the PV inverter. Taking into account the actual situation in LSCPV plant, the stable grid-hosting capacity of LSCPV is discussed for the cases in which the PV inverters in the LSCPV plant have the same and different digital time delay values by using the root-locus method. Simulation results of the digitally controlled grid-connected LSCPV system model validates the theoretical analysis.

eess.SY↗

arXiv2018

Understanding the Nonlinear Behavior and Frequency Stability of a Grid-synchronized VSC Under Grid Voltage Dips

Transients of a grid-synchronized voltage source converter (VSC) are closely related to over- currents and voltages occurred under large disturbances (e.g. a grid fault). Previous analysis in evaluating these transients usually neglect the nonlinear control effects of a VSC (e.g. phase-locked-loop, PLL). Therefore, potential stability issues related with nonlinear dynamics cannot be revealed properly. This work aims to move further in this respect. To better analyze and gain more insights into the nonlinear properties, dynamical analysis of a grid-tied VSC is conducted by parts. Specifically, the nonlinear behaviors of VSC power control loop (PCL) are firstly analyzed, in which the dynamics of PLL are assumed steady. Then, the nonlinear behaviors of PLL-dominant dynamics are further explored in detail, where the PCL is assumed steady. In this case, frequency instability and the mechanisms behind it are revealed. At last, effects of PQ controller regulation as well as controller bandwidth on the frequency stability are discussed. All the analysis and conclusions are verified by time domain simulations in PSCAD/EMTDC, where a switching model of VSC is adopted.

eess.SY↗

arXiv2018

Comparison of frequency estimation methods for wave energy control

A number of wave energy controllers tune the power take-off (PTO) system to the frequency of incident waves. Since real ocean waves are non-stationary by nature and not defined by a single frequency component, the PTO can be either tuned at a constant frequency characterized by the local spectrum, or continuously tuned to a representative wave frequency. In either case, a time-frequency representation of the waves is expected since the wave profile changes over time. This paper discusses about the PTO tuning problem for passive and reactive controllers, in real waves, by comparing different methods for time-varying frequency estimation: the extended Kalman filter (EKF), frequency-locked loop (FLL), and Hilbert-Huang transform (HHT). The aim is to verify the impact of such methods on the absorbed and reactive powers, and the PTO rating. It is shown that the mean estimated frequency of the EKF, and FLL, converges respectively to the mean centroid frequency, and energy frequency, of the excitation force spectrum. Moreover, the HHT mean frequency has no correlation with the spectral statistical properties. A comparison of the energy absorbed shows that up to 37% more energy is obtained with the HHT over the other estimation methods. Numerical simulations are performed with sea elevation data from the Irish coast.

eess.SY↗

arXiv2017

Harmonic State Space Modeling of a Three-Phase Modular Multilevel Converter

This paper presents the harmonic state space (HSS) modeling of a three-phase modular multilevel converter (MMC). MMC is a converter system with a typical multi-frequency response due to its significant harmonics in the arm currents, capacitor voltages, and control signals. These internal harmonic dynamics can have a great influence on the operation characteristics of MMC. However, the conventional modeling methods commonly used in two-level voltage-source converters (VSCs), where only the fundamental-frequency dynamic is considered, will lead to an inaccurate model that cannot accurately reflect the real dynamic characteristics of MMC. Therefore, the HSS modeling method, in which harmonics of state variables, inputs, and outputs are posed separately in a state-space form, is introduced in this paper to model the MMC in order to capture all the harmonics and the frequency couplings. The steady-state and small-signal dynamic HSS models of a three-phase MMC are developed, respectively. The validity of the developed HSS model of a three-phase MMC has been verified by the results from both the nonlinear time domain simulation model in MATLAB/Simulink and the laboratory prototype with 12 submodules per arm.

eess.SY↗

arXiv2017

A simple method for shifting local dq impedance models to a global reference frame for stability analysis

Impedance-based stability analysis in the dq-domain is a widely applied method for power electronic dominated systems. An inconvenient property with this method is that impedance models are normally referred to their own local reference frame, and need to be recalculated when referring to a global reference frame in a given network. This letter presents a simple method for translating impedance sub-models within a complex network, from their own reference frames to any given point in the network. What distinguishes this method is that by using a simple rotational matrix, it only needs impedance models in their own local reference frames, to be translated to a global reference in the network. By way of this method, standard circuit analysis rules for series and parallel connection are applicable, as proven in the letter. The method is defined and validated for impedances in the dq and modified sequence domains, and it is shown that the dependency on reference frame is marginal in the latter. An additional finding from the application of this method is that components or subsystems with a certain symmetry property called Mirror Frequency Decoupling are invariant to the choice of reference frame.

eess.SY↗

arXiv2017

Impedance Analysis of Modular Multilevel Converter Based on Harmonic State-Space Modeling Method

The small-signal impedance modeling of modular multilevel converter (MMC) is the key for analyzing resonance and stability of MMC-based ac power electronics systems. MMC is a converter system with a typical multi-frequency response due to its significant steady-state harmonic components in the arm currents, capacitor voltages, and control signals. Therefore, traditional small-signal modeling methods for 2-level voltage-source converters (VSCs) cannot be directly applied to the MMC. In this paper, the harmonic state-space (HSS) modeling approach is introduced to characterize the harmonic coupling behavior of the MMC. On this basis, the small-signal impedance models of the MMC are developed according to the harmonic linearization principle, which can include all the steady-state harmonic effects of the state variables, leading to the accurate impedance models. Furthermore, in order to reveal the impact of the internal dynamics and closed-loop control on the small-signal impedance of the MMC, three cases are considered in this paper, i.e., open-loop control, ac voltage closed-loop control, and circulating current closed-loop control. Finally, the analytical impedance models are verified by both simulation and experimental results.

eess.SY↗