Full Description

This part of IEC 61400 defines and specifies the quantities that are determined to characterize the electrical characteristics of grid-connected power plants (PPs).

This document defines the measurement and test procedures for quantifying the electrical characteristics as basis for the verification of compliance of PPs, including:
• power quality aspects,
• steady state operation,
• dynamic response (undervoltage and overvoltage fault ride-through),
• disconnection from grid (grid protection),
• control performance.

This document defines a uniform functionality test and measurement procedure for the power plant controller (PPC), as a basis for the unit test of the power plant controller.

This document defines the procedures for assessing compliance with electrical connection requirements, including the aggregation methods for power quality aspects such as voltage variations, flicker, harmonics and interharmonics.

This document defines the procedures for measurement and fault recording, for example for the verification of power plant electrical simulation models in relation to undervoltage and overvoltage ride-through events.

These measurement procedures are valid for power plants, including the power plant controller and other connected equipment, necessary for the operation of the power plant. The measurement procedures are valid for any size of power plant connected to the point of connection (POC) at one connection point.

The procedures for assessing and verifying the compliance with grid connection requirements are valid for power plants in power systems with fixed frequency and a sufficient short-circuit power.

Out of the scope of this document are:
– evaluation of several power plants, i.e. the control by a cluster management of several power plants (PPs) or evaluation where the power plant is connected to several connection points;
– compliance test and performance requirements, including pass or fail criteria;
– specific component test and validation of the PP equipment (switchgear, cables, transformers, etc.), which are covered by other IEC standards;
– wind power plant model validation, as defined in IEC 61400-27-2;
– load flow calculation methods and load flow study guidelines;
– test and measurement of the communication interface and system of the PP as defined in the IEC 61400-25 series.

NOTE For the purposes of this document, the following terms for system voltage apply, based on IEC 60038:
– low voltage (LV) refers to 100 V Un ≤ 1 kV;
– medium voltage (MV) refers to 1 kV Un ≤ 35 kV;
– high voltage (HV) refers to 35 kV Un ≤ 230 kV;
– extra high voltage (EHV) refers to Un 230 kV.