High‐speed main protection for multiterminal LCC‐MMC‐UHVDC based on initial wave process comparison

Abstract The multiterminal LCC‐MMC‐UHVDC, which employs an LCC on the rectifier side and multiple FHMMCs on the inverter side, has emerged as a cutting‐edge technology. Nevertheless, distinct disparities in their protection requirements compared to those of conventional DC grids pose notable challenges in attaining the desired attributes. This paper first derives variation patterns in the time domain of initial waves under different fault conditions. By utilizing the theoretically calculated rate‐of‐change waveform for the backward current traveling wave in an external fault scenario as a reference, a main protection relay grounded in initial wave process comparison is proposed. This approach capitalizes on the disparity observed in internal faults with the theoretical waveform. To mitigate maloperations stemming from the employment of a non‐directional start‐up criterion in reverse fault scenarios, subtle noise patterns, mimicking the theoretical waveforms, are infused into the actual waveforms. This approach averts maloperations in reverse faults and obviates the need for added delays associated with directional start‐up criteria, thereby enhancing both speed and security. Case studies demonstrate that the proposed protection offers sufficient selectivity and a resistive tolerance of 600 ohms and boasts a speed of 0.2 ms, satisfying the requirements of 800 kV UHVDC systems.