What is droop mode in gas turbine?

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1 Answer

Anonymous

Anonymous

Answered May 29, 2016 · 5 min read

Synchronous generators. Their speed is a function of their frequency (or, it can also be said that their
frequency is a function of their speed). But because they are synchronous generators no generator
can go faster or slower than the speed that is dictated by the frequency. And, because they are all
connected together and their rotors are locked into synchronism with each other (magnetically), the
prime movers which are mechanically coupled to the generators can't change their speeds either.

When a prime mover driving a synchronous generator is connected to a grid with other generators
and their prime movers, particularly a large or "infinte" grid, the frequency of the generator is
controlled by the frequency of the grid. And, since the speed of the prime mover is a function of the
frequency of the generator (I'm talking about prime movers that are mechanically coupled to
synchronous generator rotors), then the speed of the prime mover is fixed.

No synchronous generator (nor its prime mover) can run faster or slower than the other
synchronous generators (and their prime movers) on the grid. It's just not physically possible for one
generator to be running at 50.134 Hz and another to be running at 52.27 Hz, and still another to be
running at 49.65 Hz if they are all connected to the same grid which is operating at 50.001 Hz. It just
can't happen.
So, while a lot of texts try to describe droop in the way you did, in the real world, it just doesn't work
that way, except when there's just one machine driving a load independent of any other machine.
And in that case, the prime mover control system is usually operating in Isochronous Speed Control,
not in Droop Speed Control.

To make a prime mover (which is providing the torque input that the generator is converting to
amps that is being converted to torque by motors which are also connected to the grid) stably
control its power output while connected in parallel with other generators and prime movers on a
grid, the control systems employ straight proportional control. And that proportional control is
called droop control, droop speed control.

By the way, stably controlling power output when connected to a grid in parallel with other prime
movers and their generators is my definition of "sharing load."

Droop speed control looks at a prime mover's speed reference and it's actual speed, which is a
function of the grid frequency.

To increase the power output, the speed reference is increased. But, since the speed can't actually
change the increased error between reference and actual speed is converted to increased fuel flow.
That increased fuel flow, which would tend to increase the speed, which can't increase appreciably,
is still extra torque. And the generator converts that extra torque into more amps. All of this is done
very smoothly and all the prime movers and their generators behave nicely and work together to
provide the load. If the "load" on the generator is to be increased, then the turbine speed reference
is increase again, the error between the actual speed and the speed reference increases again, which
increases the fuel flow which increases the torque which increases the amps.

When turbine operators are watching the watt meter and twisting the governor handle in the Raise
direction to get the watt meter reading to increase, they aren't changing the watt reference they are
changing the turbine speed reference.

Droop speed control is straight proportional control in the strictest, purest sense of the word. There
is no reset or integral action to increase the fuel to make the actual speed be equal to the reference.
It can't be equal to the reference (if the reference is more than the actual speed); it's not physically
possible. And droop speed control makes use of that impossibility to stably control the fuel in
proportion to the error.

The error can change for either of two reasons: a change in the speed reference, or a change in the
actual speed. It's not common (in most parts of the world!) for the actual speed (grid frequency) to
change. But when the grid frequency (and hence the actual speed) does change, the control system
"automatically" reacts to the change because the error changes and adjusts the fuel to try to
compensate for the change in actual speed relative to the speed reference.

So now you can imagine what happens when the turbine speed references of all the prime movers
connected to a large, "infinite" grid are all fairly constant, which means the errors between their
speed references and their actual speeds are all fairly constant, and the grid frequency changes.
Since frequency and speed are directly proportional, the error between actual speed and speed
reference changes. If the grid frequency decreases, then the error increases which increases the
fuel--of all the machines because they are connected together to the grid.

Each prime mover's governor (control system) will respond to a change of frequency as a function of
the amount of droop that the control system is programmed to have. A 1% change in frequency on a
machine with 5% droop will result a 20% change in load, nominally, supposing the machine was
running at 80% of load or less to begin with. A unit with 4% droop will respond with a 25% change in
load, nominally, again presuming the machine was running at 75% or less than rated load to begin
with.

Some manufacturers use the above scenario, what happens to the power output of a machine
whose primer mover is operating in droop speed control when the grid frequency changes as their
definition of "load sharing".

It's important to note that if a machine is operating at rated power output on droop speed control
and the grid frequency decreases, the prime mover cannot increase its power output any further.
And a LOT of prime movers connected to a large "infinite" grid at any one time are operating at
rated power output. So even though they are in droop speed control they can't pick up any
additional load by increasing their power output when the grid frequency decreases. They're just
along for the ride at that point. And if the turbine is a combustion turbine, a single shaft combustion
turbine, well that's not good for the grid. But, that's for another thread.

Now, a machine which is said to have 5% droop will nominally reach rated output when the speed
reference reaches approximately 105% of rated speed. Nominally is the operative word here. A
machine with 4% droop will reach its rated power when the speed reference is 104%.

So, mull this over. Search the archives of Forum for Automation Professionals with the 'Search'
feature and ask more questions. This is not a complicated subject, but a lot of what has been written
in many texts is very theoretical and very confusing.

I like to describe droop one way like this: We are telling the turbine to run faster than it can when
we increase the turbine speed reference. In other words, we are "allowing" the turbine speed to
droop below the set point, AND we are making use of the the fact that under normal conditions the
actual speed is relatively constant and use the error between the two signals to control the amount
of fuel or steam or water or whatever energy source is being used in the prime mover.

As a side benefit of this, if the actual speed does change for some reason the control will
automatically respond in the appropriate way to try to help maintain the grid frequency.

It's a wonderful thing, droop speed control. It's so simple, and so powerful. All at the same time.

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