DIESEL ENGINE GENERATORS FOR BLACK START AND SUPPLY EMERGENCIES.

Author:

Ivan V.W. Hunt PB Power (N.Z.) Ltd., P.O. Box 668, 163 Thorndon Quay, Wellington.
http://www.pbpower.co.nz

Email hunti@pbworld.com Presented by: Ivan V.W. Hunt.

Electrical Engineers Association Annual Conference; Auckland, 16 & 17 June 2000.

6-4-2000

ABSTRACT: Diesel generators can be used to black start main generation following a system failure or to allow key industrial and commercial customers to continue operation following a supply outage. Such generator sets have particularly arduous service requirements and can be inappropriately rated. Oversizing results in unnecessary cost, while undersizing will usually not enable the required performance. This paper examines and summarises the main critical and peculiar electrical, mechanical and control characteristics and requirements for determining an appropriate diesel engine generator. While the main focus of the paper is on the black starting of generation equipment, many of the issues discussed are relevant to the restoration of supply to industrial and commercial loads. 1. INTRODUCTION After recent industry deregulation and the Auckland power crisis, leaders in the power industry are questioning the reliability of power systems and predicting an increased likelihood of power-system blackouts. Reliability could be affected by changes in the relationships between key industry players, complexity of procedures and a culture shift from co-operation and co-ordination to competition and confidentiality. As a result, transmission systems are being required to operate in a manner for which they were not designed; with power flows being determined by unplanned market mechanisms, rather than by carefully structured plans to move power from generators to base loads. Power system reliability can also be adversely affected by external factors that were not considered in the system design process. Scientists predict a high-point this year for geomagnetic storms, caused by unusual radiation flares from the sun. Previous geomagnetic storms over Quebec, in 1989, caused a complete blackout in the province for 12 hours. Power systems are prone to failure due to computer software glitches, or even hacking by pimply faced high school students. Consider also the NATO bomb successfully deployed in Kosovo that uses a graphite spray: with the ability to temporarily cause power system outages. The probability of future large power system blackouts is increasing. When the blackouts occur, component parts of large interconnected power systems will be called upon to start generating from electrically black situations. Critical thermal power stations could be called upon to use black start diesel generators to provide auxiliary power for starting their main generating plant. Portions of power-systems without black start facilities, or with improperly functioning sets, may have problems responding to the crisis. The importance of having properly designed black start or standby diesel generator sets, that function properly, has subsequently increased. 2. LOAD REQUIREMENTS

The electrical auxiliary power required to enable a thermal power station to start up and generate into a dead or black transmission system, will depend on the size and type of station involved. However the common requirement is that of a continuous low level resistive type load for such devices as control room lighting, control and instrumentation. With initiation of the start sequence, various electric motors, restive loads and transformer type loads will sequentially be switched on. The main electrical auxiliary power required for a typical 12 MW combined cycle unit, consisting of a gas and steam turbine with common electrical generator and heat recovery steam generator, is shown in table 1.

L o a d d e s c rip tio n . M i s c . d i s t r i b u ti o n b o a r d . G T lu b r i c a t i n g o il h e a t e r G T lu b r i c a t i n g o i l p u m p G T e n c lo s u re v e n t fa n G e n e r a t o r e n c lo s u r e v e n t f a n G T s ta rtin g G T lu b . o i l c o o l in g f a n H R S G c irc u la tin g p u m p H R S G d e a ra to r p u m p H R S G fe e d p u m p H R S G c o o li n g a ir f a n H R S G in d u c e d d ra u g h t fa n

L o a d ty p e r e s i s ta n c e re s is ta n c e m o to r m o to r m o to r m o to r m o to r m o to r m o to r m o to r m o to r m o to r

L o a d s iz e 5 kW 18 kW 22 kW 15 kW 5 kW 120 kW 18 kW 75 kW 30 kW 110 kW 11 kW 220 kW

Table 1: Main auxiliary loads for a 12 MW combined cycle unit. 3 LOAD CHARACTERISTICS Resistance type loads are those with a unity or close to unity power factor for transitory and steady state conditions, and can include lighting, heating, control and instrumentation. Switching of these loads will only result in stepped increases in power from the generator and engine. Motor type loads are usually at a lagging power factor, due to reactive power being required for motor excitation purposes during both transitory and steady state conditions. The electric motor type most commonly used for thermal power-station auxiliary load requirements is the squirrel cage induction motor; which is usually started direct on line, by simply connecting full rated voltage to the stationary motor. At the instant of switch on, the motor will draw anywhere between six to eight times the full load rated current, at very low lagging power factor. Generally the higher the rating of the motor, the less the ratio becomes. (The author has experienced ten times full load current, on some Japanese manufactured motors). The current will decrease to the full load value, and power factor will increase as the motor accelerates to its rated speed, in typically a few seconds. The low initial power factor and large inrush currents produce large initial transitory apparent power (kVA) requirements from the power supply. A typical direct on line motor starting profile at rated voltage is shown in figure 1, where the power supply source is assumed to have zero impedance. With supply taken from a small generator there will be significant source impedance, which will generate voltage dips and transitory corrections by the AVR. This will cause initial corresponding variations to the kVA and kW curves and slightly increase the motor acceleration time.

700

kVA
600 500 400 300 200 100 0 0 1 2 3 4 5 6

kW/kVA

kW

Time (seconds)

Figure 1: Typical direct on line, motor starting. Thyristor operated soft start devices are also used to start squirrel cage induction motors by varying the thyristor phase angle firing. This method of starting controls the inrush current to typically 300% of full load current, or lower depending on the application. However it reduces the start-up torque of the motor, which correspondingly increases the time to accelerate to rated speed. These devices can generate considerable harmonic distortion of the power supply. A typical soft start, motor starting profile, for the same motor shown in figure 1, is shown in figure 2.
700 600 500 400

kW/kVA

kVA
300 200

kW
100 0 0 1 2 3 4 5 6

Time (seconds)

Figure 2: Typical soft motor start. Some large electric motors, forming part of a black start sequence, will require speed control at start up as well as current inrush limiting facilities. An example is the electric starter motor required for a gas turbine. A typical 10 MW gas turbine operating on open cycle, will require a 120 kW induction starter motor, and take approximately 2.5 minutes to accelerate to speed. For this situation, it is common to supply the motor from a variable speed drive (VSD), which will electronically control the voltage amplitude and frequency to produce the slow mechanical acceleration required by the connected turbine. Modern VSDs work so that large motor inrush currents at very low lagging power factors are not drawn from the supply. They

usually take power from the supply at a powerfactor close to unity and generate minimal harmonics. Loads incorporating a transformer in the circuit will draw a transitory transformer magnetising inrush current at the moment of switch on. The peak value of the inrush current can exceed the full load rating of the transformer or be up to 500 times the steady state value of the magnetising current; depending on the point on the voltage waveform at which the circuit is switched. The transient waveform will be at a low lagging power factor and can also be offset and hence contain considerable harmonics. 4 GENERATOR VOLTAGE REGULATION

A sudden electrical load applied to a generator will cause a voltage depression at the generator terminals. This is due to the load current producing a volt drop across the internal reactance of the generator. The generator reactance and particularly the amount of reactive power drawn by the load influence the degree of voltage depression. The voltage depression is largely independent of the level of the load already carried by the generator. If the generator excitation remained constant after load application: the voltage would sag away, generally following the time constant of the generators subtransient reactance. However an automatic voltage regulator will regulate it back to the pre load level. This will result in a generator terminal voltage dip, the amplitude and duration being determined by: the load current and power factor, generator subtransient reactance, response time of the AVR and excitation system, and the characteristics of the generator field winding. A typical generator voltage variation is shown in figure 3.
AVR operating Load applied

Generator Voltage (p.u.)

1.0

AVR tolerance

AVR not operating recovery time 0 0

Time

Figure 3: Generator voltage variation. Direct on line starting of large induction motors will cause severe voltage dips; due to the high transient currents and exceptionally low power factor, of typically 0.3 lagging. Excessive or prolonged voltage dips can detrimentally affect the starting of large induction motors connected to the generator. This is because the starting torque of the motor is proportional to terminal voltage squared, so a voltage dip to 0.9 per unit will result in a decrease in starting torque to 0.81 per unit. Should the motor terminal voltage sag to a critically low value and for a critically long time, it is possible that the motor would not develop enough torque to accelerate to rated speed. The motor could alternatively take an exceptionally long time to

accelerate to rated speed. In either case the result could be overheating and burn out, due to the duration of the excessive current and consequent heating within the motor. Voltage dips will also cause other operating fully loaded induction motors fed from the generator to draw current beyond their rating, and further drop the generator terminal voltage. Should this cumulative action continue for a long enough time period, the operating motors will also overheat and possibly fail or trip. A general rule when starting unloaded induction motors from generators is to keep the voltage dip to less than 0.8 per unit rated voltage. However if the motors are loaded at start up and other motors are also operating, a smaller allowance may be required. Excessive voltage dips can also enable A.C. powered control contactors to open unexpectedly during a critical part of a black start process, and effectively abort the start up sequence. Excessive voltage dips will also affect emergency lighting and computers, should their supply be taken from the generator source. 5 ENGINE SPEED GOVERNING All black-start diesel generators will operate with the engine governor set for isochronous control, which maintains the engine-generator at constant speed with no governor droop, while not synchronised to the electrical power system. Should the black start generator be required to operate connected in parallel with the main electrical grid, either for changeover or periodic testing purposes, then the governor will have to be switched to speed droop regulation mode. Most modern solid state governors can readily operate in either mode. 6 ENGINE TYPE

Diesel engines are loosely categorised as: - High speed; over 1,000 rpm. - Medium speed; 400 1,000 rpm. - Low speed; up to 400 rpm. The engines will either use the two or four stroke working cycle; with the two stroke type generally being lighter and smaller in size than four stroke engines of the same power rating. An important advantage of the four-stroke engine, for black start duty, is the simple and reliable lubricating oil system. There is no complicated process required for mixing lubricating oil with the fuel. The engines can also be naturally or forced aspirated by means of blowers, turbochargers or superchargers. Four stroke diesel engines will perform naturally aspirated or with turbocharging. However two stroke diesel engines will not perform naturally aspirated and must be provided with scavenging for the exhaust gases by auxiliary means, to enable the engine to start and operate. This can be initially provided by an electric motor driven compressor, which is switched off when the engine speed and load are such that the turbocharger can provide the necessary air pressure to the engine. Because black start engines will have minimal auxiliary electric power available for scavenging purposes, two stroke diesel engines are not favoured for black start duty.

ENGINE ASPIRATION

By fitting a turbocharger and after cooler to a naturally aspirated diesel engine, the output power can typically be increased by 50%. As the cost of these items is small in relation to the rest of the engine, and reliability is now high; their use is common. A typical turbo-charger consists of a set of high-speed turbine blades and a set of high-speed air compressor blades, housed in separate casings, and mounted on either end of a common shaft. The engine exhaust gas passing through the turbine, before being exhausted to atmosphere, causing typical rotational speeds of 50,000 rpm. Ambient air drawn into the compressor portion is compressed before being directed to the engine cylinders for combustion with the injected fuel. The resulting forced aspiration of the engine produces an increase in engine power. The amount of additional power developed is proportional to rotational speed of the turbo-charger. A schematic representation of a typical turbocharger is shown in figure 4.

ambient air in

exhaust gas to stack

compressor compressed air

shaft

turbine exhaust gas from engine

after cooler inlet air to engine

Figure 4: Typical turbocharger schematic. After coolers are designed to cool the compressed air leaving the turbocharger, before entry to the engine cylinders. This reduces the engine working temperature and hence increases engine life. It also increases the air density, thereby increasing power output and reducing specific fuel consumption. Turbochargers should ideally operate with uniform exhaust gas and compressed air flow rates. Should either rate suddenly change, the turbocharger can become unstable and cause surging, sending pulsating fluctuations of compressed air to the engine, or even cause the engine to stall. This can be caused by a sudden increase in load on the engine. Such a sudden step requirement for increase in engine output power would require a corresponding large stepped increase in air input to the engine. Most turbo-chargers cannot instantly handle this requirement, as the rotational mass of the turbine/compressor will take a finite time to increase in rotational speed to enable the air compressor portion to produce the additional air requirements. Hence there will be a characteristic time lag between increased power requirements and actual power produced. An additional complication with turbochargers is that there are various methods of connecting them to the engine, each method producing different mechanical power output characteristics.

The constant pressure type of turbocharger connection requires all the engine cylinders to exhaust into a single large diameter pipe, which absorbs the gas pulse energy and provides an almost constant input gas pressure to the turbine. The advantages of this connection include high turbine efficiency, good performance at high load and a simple exhaust manifold. The disadvantages include low available energy at the turbine, poor performance at low speed and load, and poor turbocharger acceleration. This connection method is shown in figure 5.
air in exhaust constant pressure exhaust manifold exhaust valves engine inlet valves inlet air manifold

Figure 5: Constant pressure turbocharging. The pulse type of turbocharger connection requires the engine exhaust gases to be transmitted to the turbine through groups of small diameter pipes; providing pulses of gas pressure to the turbine. The advantages include high energy available at the turbine, good performance at low speed and load, and good turbo-charger acceleration. The disadvantages include poor turbine efficiency at very high ratings, complex exhaust manifold and possible pressure wave reflections. This connection method is shown in figure 6.
air in exhaust pulse exhaust manifolds

exhaust valves engine inlet valves inlet air manifold

Figure 6: Pulse turbo-charging. A naturally aspirated engine having the same mechanical power rating as a turbocharged engine will not have any of the turbocharger associated transient problems, but will be much larger in size and more expensive. 8 CONTROL SYSTEMS Most diesel-generator sets utilise the following control equipment: A generator automatic voltage regulator (AVR), for the proportional control of the generator field current and hence generator magnetic flux, which in turn regulates generator voltage and reactive power.

An engine governor, for the proportional control of the diesel fuel valve or fuel pump, which regulates the engine speed and generator frequency together with power generated. A generator protection relay, for the digital control of the generator circuit breaker. An engine protection system, for the digital control of the engine. A manual or automatic engine start-up and shut down facility.

Modern technology, microprocessor based instruments are commercially available to carry out these functions, and are available in individual instrument cases for the specific control system required. Control wiring between these instruments and the engine and generator transducers complete the control system. These systems are low cost, reliable, readily available and usually also provide digital monitoring of generator and engine parameters with alarm facilities and the capability for remote monitoring and alarming via a distributed control system. 9 CONTROL DELAYS

In a diesel engine there is a time delay between any increase in the engines load and the responsive increase in output power from the engine, due to the necessary change in speed of the air and fuel flow to the engine. This is known as manifold lag or delay. The naturally aspirated engine has less manifold lag than a turbo-charged engine. The turbo-charged engine has an additional manifold lag due to the exhaust gases changing the turbo-charger speed before the correct amount of air can be delivered to the engine. In a naturally aspirated diesel engine with solid tubing between the fuel pump and the injectors; any correction of energy level from the pump almost instantaneously arrives at the injectors; hence the manifold lag is less that that of a turbo-charged engine. The process of detecting engine speed deviation from the required value and altering fuel and air to the engine to bring it back to the required speed, involves an associated time delay which is known as governor delay. In all diesel engines there is also a time delay between a change in input fuel level to the engine and a change in output power. This is due to the time period between power strokes of the engine and is known as engine power response delay. A four stroke engine will require two complete revolutions before additional power is developed, while two stroke engines will only require one complete revolution of the engine. This delay will therefore be shorter in a high- speed engine and longer in a low-speed engine. The moment of inertia of the complete rotating mass of the engine and generator greatly influences the time it takes to return from abnormal to normal speed and is known as the flywheel effect or moment of inertia delay. An engine-generator requires significant time to accelerate or de-accelerate the rotational mass of its moving parts. High-speed engines coupled to generators with a minimum number of poles respond more quickly than slow-speed engines coupled to multi-pole generators with large overall diameters. Any request by the generator automatic voltage regulator to change generator voltage or Vars will require a change to the magnetic flux within the generator; this being determined by changes in the direct current passing through the generator main field winding. An instant

step change from one flux level to another cannot occur due to the time constant of the field winding preventing instantaneous current changes and is known as the excitation delay. The inductance and resistance of the field winding will influence this delay. If the generator is fitted with a rotating pilot exciter for control of the main generator field winding, then there will be an additional excitation delay due to the magnetic time constant of the pilot exciter. These delays can be shortened if field forcing is employed, where a reverse voltage is applied to force the field current to change quicker. Most types of digital, microprocessor type, control systems have built in delays due to the time delay caused by the scanning of multiple points or tags. The time it takes to perform all the required tasks and return to the first is known as the recursion time delay and is typically in the order of microseconds. Hence the affect is insignificant compared with the other much longer time delays. 10 GENERATOR AND ENGINE SELECTION The transient and steady state load profiles of all the black start switched loads, added together in their correct start up sequence, will give a good indication of the kW requirements of the engine and the kVA requirements of the generator. A typical load profile is shown in figure 7, where six 100 kW loads are sequentially switched on.

700

kVA
600 500 VSD Trans. Motor Load

kW kW/kVA
400 300 200 100 0 0 DOL Motor 6 12 18 24 Soft Start Motor Resistance Load Soft Start Motor

30

36

Time (seconds)

Figure 7: Typical overall load profile. The loads in this example include a direct on line started motor, a resistance load, two soft started motors, a transformer load and a VSD started motor. In this case a continuous engine rating of 600 kW and a generator continuous rating of 700 kVA would be required. The sequence of starting individual loads and load types has a direct bearing on engine and generator rating. For instance, in the above example, if the DOL and VSD started motors were transposed in the start up sequence: the engine minimum rating would increase to 900 kW and the generator rating increase to 1,200 kVA. Usually the sequence of switching individual loads is critical and pre-programmed to satisfy the mechanical and process control

requirements of the main plant. However re-scheduling non-critical auxiliaries could reduce the continuous ratings of engine and generator. Generator prospective fault current is inversely proportional to generator reactance and voltage dip directly proportional to reactance. The reactance value is influenced by generator frame size. Hence in an effort to control either fault current or voltage dip, the generator frame size could become a significant factor. The final value chosen is usually a compromise between these two conflicting requirements and cost. The power developed by a diesel engine is dependent on the manufacturers defined ambient air temperature, humidity, barometric pressure and fuel type. Any departure from these operating parameters will cause a corresponding alteration in power output. The engine power will also be defined with a continuous rating and overload rating, which will usually be 10% greater than the continuous rating for one hour. Hence the engine should be selected allowing for the climatic conditions and overloads expected. Other factors that could be considered before selecting the type and size include an allowance for future additional loads, acceptable AVR response to voltage dips and consideration of nearest commercially available sizes. Consideration could also be given to acceptable speed governor regulation and engine aspiration method for enabling acceptable step load changes, 11 OPERATION

Black start diesel generator sets should be commissioned and periodically tested using an actual black start situation to confirm the mechanical, electrical and control equipment integrity. Test starting diesel engines periodically and running them unloaded for short periods will not guarantee that they will function correctly at full load when required. Consistently operating unloaded will damage the engines by causing the cylinder bores to become glazed and injectors clogged. A convenient way of fully loading the engines for testing purposes, without actually doing a black start, is to synchronise them to the system and generate full rated electrical output into the system. This of course requires synchronising equipment for the generator, and is usually not provided. The small extra cost of providing synchronising equipment should be more than compensated for by increased reliability of the engine and black start power. 12 CONCLUSION

The choice of an appropriately sized and rated black start diesel generator set should be made after consideration of the transitory and steady state performance of the mechanical, electrical and control characteristics of the engine, generator and load, and how they all interact. The unusual transitory load requirements usually turn out to be the most troublesome to deal with. 13 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS The author is indebted to PB Power in the preparation of this paper.

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