A new approach for automatic damping classification from generator swing curves

As environmental and economic pressures force operators to run their systems ever closer to their maximum capacity, detailed analysis is required to ensure quality and security of supply are not compromised. Time domain simulation is a popular technique used to perform such analyses on large, complex power systems which has the distinct advantage over many other techniques of retaining all nonlinear characteristics of the system and plant. One problem with time domain simulation is that of interpreting the results it produces. This paper discusses some of the existing techniques used to assess generator damping along with their inadequacies. It then goes on to describe a new, robust technique for performing this function and presents results and comparisons with the traditional methods