A comparison between
Electrically triggered
thyristor (ETT) and Light- ETT vs. LTT for
triggered thyristor (LTT) for
HVDC applications.
HVDC
ABB Power Technologies.
Power Systems DC - 1
abb.com/hvdc
Thyristor triggering in HVDC applications
IP
FP
TCU FP TMU IP
FP = Firing pulse
IP = Indicating
pulse
Electrically triggered thyristor (ETT) Light-triggered thyristor (LTT)
! The ETT is triggered by the thyristor control ! The LTT is triggered directly by an optical pulse
unit (TCU). ! The LTT is self-protected against overvoltage
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! The TCU is energized by the main circuit, and
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! Separate recovery protection is provided
triggering is initiated by an optical pulse
! The TMU monitors the LTT
! The TCU protects and monitors the ETT
Thyristor and wafer
The thyristor gate is located in the
center of the wafer
! The gate is designed for either electrical
control (ETTs) or optical control (LTTs)
! The ETT gate connects to the outer
control cable via a simple electrical
cable and a hermetic feed-through
! The LTT gate needs an internal light-
guide of glass and an external optical
connector in order to connect to the
external light-guide
! Electrical triggering is main stream for
thyristors, and is necessary for
advanced components like GTOs and
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IGBTs
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ETT vs LTT in commercial HVDC installations
ETT LTT
Light-sensitive region and
overvoltage protection
Light
Electrical Single-stage
Cathode
gate contact amplifying gate Multi-stage amplifying gate Cathode
Anode Anode
! Simple gate design because of powerful ! Complicated gate design due to low optical
gate signal power
! 10 major wafer processing steps. Standard ! 16 major wafer processing steps. More complex
encapsulation and testing. High production encapsulation and testing. Reduced production
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yield yield
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! Precise external overvoltage protection in ! Temperature dependent internal overvoltage
TCU protection with large production spread
! Highest voltage rating 8.8 kV ! Highest voltage rating 8 kV
Thyristor Control Unit (TCU) for ETT
*) *)
ABB design
! Hybrid components
technique:
! Compact layout
! High reliability
! Only low voltage electronics
Old type of TCU
! Ready for firing in all
operating conditions
! Discrete components design
! Totally encapsulated in
! High voltage/high power components
ABB Power Technologies
metallic housing
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included in circuit board electronics
! Pre-charging needed for firing
*) The photographs
! Not encapsulated - prone to are of the same scale
disturbances
Features of the ABB type TCU
Optional:
On-line supervision of specific
thyristor level conditions such as
! Thyristor temperature
! Snubber circuit impedance
! Optical performance
Standard features:
! Quickly energized from the main circuit, even by a lightning impulse
! Ready for triggering in all operational conditions due to the very fast
energization, even directly after a network fault
! Protective triggering against thyristor overvoltages:
! Overvoltage in forward blocking state
! Very fast rate-of-rise of the voltage in forward blocking state
! Transient forward overvoltage during reverse recovery
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! Low light power requirement for control. Light emitting diodes are
sufficient
! On-line monitoring of thyristor level blocking ability
! On-line indication in case of protective firing
Thyristor level electronics ABB ETT vs. LTT
The ABB Thyristor Control Unit :
! Normal and protective firing
! Thyristor performance monitoring
! Approximately 40 components and
100 solder joints
! Estimated commercial operation
experience (end of 2004):
The circuit boards 350 000 unit years (45 000 units)
are approximately
of the same scale.
LTT Monitoring Unit :
! Thyristor voltage monitoring
! DC voltage grading
! Approximately 130 components and 280
solder joints
! Recovery protection not included "
ABB Power Technologies
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additional module electronics needed
! Estimated commercial operation
experience (end of 2004):
8 100 unit years
ETT and LTT optical systems
LTT system with external recovery
ETT system
protection
Valve potential Valve potential
Thyristor level
Thyristor level
100 kV
Grading
capacitor
Valve Optical
Valve
control unit star
control unit
coupler
Electronics,
Laser diode
To next optical
! For 12 thyristors: star coupler
! 24 light guides
! 24 optical connectors ! For 12 thyristors:
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at ground level Non-
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! 31 light guides redundant
! 24 optical connectors
at valve potential ! 17 optical connectors component
at ground level
! 45 optical connectors
at valve potential
The ABB Konti-Skan test valve with LTTs
The 125 kV, 1050 A test valve
! In commercial operation since May
1988, replacing a mercury arc valve
! 48 LTTs in series
! Two types of light sources tested:
! Light-emitting diodes, one per thyristor
! Powerful laser diodes serving groups
of thyristors via optical star couplers
! Technically functioning, but no
advantage in comparison with ABBs
ETT concept
The 7 kV, 45 cm2 thyristor
! Directly light-triggered
ABB Power Technologies
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! Built-in overvoltage protection
during off-state and recovery
ABB converter valves for HVDC transmission
ABB has selected the ETT approach
for superior performance
ABB Power Technologies
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Converter valves in the Three Gorges-Changzhou
transmission
Characteristics of the ABB solution with ETTs
! Proven high reliability
! 14 000 ETTs with 5 wafers installed (end 2004). No thyristor
failure during commercial operation reported.
! Low maintenance requirements. Scheduled maintenance
interval 5 years for modern installations.
! Full redundancy in case of a component failure (optical
system, electronics, or thyristor)
! Low risk of commutation failures
! Robust thyristor design
! High-tech solution for thyristor triggering and protection
ABB Power Technologies
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Conclusions
! The LTT concept is a technological dead-end
! The ETT concept is a robust and reliable
design with lower complexity
! ABB has
! used ETTs for HVDC since 1967
! tested LTTs for HVDC during 17 years since
1988
Electrically triggered thyristors are superior!
ABB Power Technologies
Power Systems DC - 12 -
www.abb.com/hvdc
