Determination of suitable locations for shunt compensators in multi-machine power systems: A systematic approach

With the widespread and active consideration of installation of flexible AC transmission systems (FACTS) controllers for better controllability in a p ower grid, appropriate placement of these devices is becoming increasingly important. Improperly placed FACTS controllers fail to give the optimum per formance and, in some cases, can even be counterproductive. As FACTS contro llers are expected to maintain stability and security margin in a system fo r high power transfer level, proper placement strategies of these devices m ust be examined from different stability considerations; i.e., voltage stab ility, small signal stability, and transient stability, In this paper, a st rategy for placement of shunt compensators has been proposed based on a com bined consideration of voltage stability and small signal stability for a m oderately large multimachine pourer system. The results are also validated with the help of electromagnetic transient simulation.