Synchronous condensers, with their ability to provide grid stabilizing inertia, are making a comeback
Installed at strategic intervals along a transmission system, synchronous condensers are electrical rotating equipment that produce or absorb reactive power to keep the current flowing consistently to the grid - helping to ensure reliable power is available for those who need it, when they need it. The company's latest synchronous condenser offerings have undergone many developments since 1919, when
The original 10 Mvar model has evolved over the past century to meet evolving grid demands.
- 1919: First GE air-cooled synchronous condenser rated +10 MVARs
- 1928: First GE hydrogen-cooled synchronous condenser rated +12.5 MVARs
- 2008: First "modern era" synchronous condenser installed for the sole purpose of "grid reliability"
- 2011: First synchronous condenser conversion from a 473 MVA generator to a +360/-210 Mvar synchronous condenser, allowing for seasonal conversion between generator and synchronous condenser
- 2014: First GE air-cooled synchronous condenser rated +250 MVARs
- 2017: World's largest
- 2018: First 625 MVA liquid-cooled turbogenerator converted to synchronous condenser in
- 2018: High inertia synchronous condensers rated 4 x +250 MVARs with world's largest flywheels
- 2019: Installation of the world's most efficient air-cooled +100 Mvar synchronous condenser
Synchronous condenser technology has been around almost as long as the electric grid itself to support transmission system reliability. As the grid became more mature and reliable over the decades, synchronous condenser eventually became regarded as obsolete, with many utilities discontinuing use of the technology. Today, however, as the grid has experienced increasing instability, the technology is undergoing a major comeback with all major synchronous condenser manufacturers reporting higher sales.
"The biggest factor in this renaissance is the changing generation mix of less traditional thermal energy and more wind and solar energy," said
FACTS devices such as SVCs and STATCOMs are good at supplying reactive power quickly. They are less helpful at handling low system inertia, a measure of the stored energy within the mechanical rotating machine as well as low short-circuit strength in the power grid. Synchronous condensers can help meet these reactive power needs and boost system inertia and short-circuit strength.
Advanced technological improvements are also driving the acceptance of synchronous condensers. While older analog control systems and rheostats were unable to provide adequate response to dynamic events, the latest machines come with digital field exciter control systems and protective relays. The speed and precision of modern exciters allow the performance of new synchronous condensers to rival their SVC counterparts. Moreover, machine manufacturing and construction have advanced over the years. Slow speed 10- or 12-pole condensers are a thing of the past, and today's better-insulated, brushless machines offer significantly higher reliability and availability with reduced maintenance costs.
"As the demands of the grid have changed over the past 100 years,
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