Hitachi Review Vol. 59 (2010), No.

3 99

Hitachi’s Adjustable-speed Pumped-storage System

Contributing to Prevention of Global Warming

Osamu Nagura OVERVIEW: To help prevent global warming, it is anticipated that renewable
Mikisuke Higuchi sources of electric power will provide an increasing proportion of energy
Kiyohito Tani, Dr. Eng. needs. Because energy sources such as wind and solar power are dependent
on weather conditions, their output can vary widely. Usually, balancing
Takashi Oyake
supply and demand for power has been performed by adjusting the generation
output in response to varying load, but there is a need to improve the supply
and demand balancing functions of existing generation systems to allow the
addition of generation capacity produced from renewable energy sources.
Hitachi has developed a world-first adjustable-speed pumped-storage
generation system that incorporates active-power-based control to provide
a power supply and demand balancing function that can operate on time
scales from the order of seconds to the order of hours, something that is not
possible with conventional systems. It is anticipated that the addition of a
large number of adjustable-speed pumped-storage generation systems to the
electricity grid will help prevent global warming.

INTRODUCTION the future. Incorporating energy sources such as wind

PUMPED-storage power plants were first constructed and solar power from which it is difficult to obtain a
and operated in the early 1900s as a supply and demand steady power output into the electricity grid will reduce
balancing mechanism that worked on a time scale of the relative proportion of thermal, hydro, and other
hours by storing excess power during the night so that conventional power sources and this is likely to make
it could be supplied back during the daytime demand balancing supply and demand even more difficult.
peak. This has the potential to become a major impediment
The “adjustable-speed pumped-storage generation to providing a stable electricity supply.
system” developed by The Kansai Electric Power
Co., Inc. and Hitachi incorporates a function (active-
power-based control) that can control the power level
in both pumping and generation modes with a faster
response time than existing pumped-storage power
Upper reservoir
plant systems.
This feature allows the adjustable-speed pumped-
storage generation system to share the burden of Underground
balancing supply and demand during the night when power plant
demand is low that is normally handled mainly by
thermal power generation, and this in turn helps shorten
the operating time for thermal power generation and Lower reservoir
reduce CO2 (carbon dioxide) emissions. The Okawachi
Power Plant of The Kansai Electric Power has two
adjustable-speed pumped-storage generation systems
which were manufactured by Hitachi, have the largest
capacity of any such systems in the world, and have
Fig. 1—Bird’s-eye View of Okawachi Power Plant of The
been operating reliably for over 15 years. Kansai Electric Power Co., Inc.
It is also anticipated that the proportion of the power The site consists of upper and lower reservoirs along with a
supply provided by renewable energy sources such as power plant that was constructed underground to minimize the
wind and solar power will increase significantly in environmental impact.
 Hitachi’s Adjustable-speed Pumped-storage System Contributing to Prevention of Global Warming 100

The power level of adjustable-speed pumped- plants can adjust their power output. Most thermal
storage generation systems can change rapidly and this and hydro power plants shut down during the night
high-speed adjustment capability can help provide a when electricity demand is low. The higher proportion
stable supply of electricity even in electricity grids that of nuclear power during this time creates a potential
incorporate a significant proportion of wind, solar, and for problems with insufficient supply and demand
other variable power sources. balancing capacity.
Pumped-storage power plants require upper and Pumped-storage power plants which work by
lower reservoirs (dams) and are subject to severe site using excess power at night to pump water to an upper
restrictions to prevent damage to the environment. reservoir and then using this to generate electricity
The issues facing pumped-storage power plants in when the demand increases during the daytime have
Japan include a shortage of sites suitable for new been constructed in Japan since the 1930s as a way of
construction and that the construction, including balancing supply and demand over time between day
earthworks, of a new plant requires a dozen or more and night. However, the characteristics of the pump-
years. In response, Hitachi has also been working on turbines and the fact that the synchronous machines
developing technology for retrofitting an adjustable- used as motor-generators have a constant speed meant
speed capability to existing pumped-storage power that adjustment of the input power during pumping
plants that are already in operation. operation was almost never performed.
Overseas, because the construction of large hydro With the aim of using pumping-mode operation to
power plants involves building large dams, close perform supply and demand balancing during the night,
attention is paid to the impact on the environment. In The Kansai Electric Power and Hitachi commenced
contrast, because pumped-storage generation systems the development of an adjustable-speed pumped-
do not need large dams that obstruct the flow of major storage generation system in 1981. Following the
rivers because they reuse the water they collect over commissioning in 1987 of a 17.5-MW demonstration
and over again, and because the power plant can be plant that used adjustable-speed generation system at
built underground, the burden on the environment is The Kansai Electric Power’s Narude Power Plant, two
small and the momentum behind the introduction of separate adjustable-speed pumped-storage generation
adjustable-speed pumped-storage generation systems systems with a world-largest capacity of 400  MW
is growing, particularly in Europe and America where were commissioned in 1993 and 1995 respectively at
the proportion of renewable energy is continuing The Kansai Electric Power’s Okawachi Power Plant,
to increase. Hitachi has work ongoing on a range and these have been operating reliably since then (see
of different developments aimed at meeting these Fig. 1).
needs.
This article describes the background to the
development of adjustable-speed pumped-storage
generation systems, their technical characteristics, and
other related topics.

BACKGROUND TO DEVELOPMENT OF
ADJUSTABLE-SPEED PUMPED-STORAGE
GENERATION SYSTEMS
The load (demand) on an electricity grid varies
continuously depending on a wide range of factors
and the adjustments to keep supply and demand in
balance are made on the generation (supply) side. If
supply and demand get out of balance, variations occur
in the frequency, voltage, and other parameters and
Fig. 2—Assembly of Motor-generator for Omarugawa Power
this may impede the reliable delivery of electricity.
Plant of Kyushu Electric Power Co., Inc.
Accordingly, the generation output is continuously Scene from the assembly of the rotor for the motor-generator
adjusted in response to the varying load. Power plants which features the world’s highest rated speed of 576 to
can be broadly divided into nuclear, thermal, and 624 min-1. The rotor with a weight exceeding 400 t is to be
hydro power, but only thermal and some hydro power installed inside the stator.
 Hitachi Review Vol. 59 (2010), No. 3 101

In 2007, a 340-MW adjustable-speed pumped- in the field winding at the slip frequency. By applying
storage generation system with the world’s highest an appropriate voltage from the exciter based on this
speed was commissioned at the Omarugawa Power induced voltage, the active power in the secondary
Plant of the Kyushu Electric Power Co., Inc. (see circuit can be manipulated to control the speed.
Fig. 2). The thyristor-based cycloconverter that is used as
the exciter can cause the secondary circuit to operate in
PRINCIPLES OF OPERATION OF torque-producing or regenerative mode and this allows
ADJUSTABLE-SPEED PUMPED-STORAGE generation to be performed below the synchronous
GENERATION SYSTEM speed and pumping to be performed above the
Speed Control of AC Electric Motors synchronous speed. Also, by having the exciter supply
Although techniques for controlling the speed a current component corresponding to the air-gap flux,
of AC (alternating current) electric motors include what is known as the field current in a synchronous
a frequency control method called VVVF (variable machine, an internal induced voltage can be produced
voltage, variable frequency) and the Scherbius system to control the reactive power (see Fig. 3).
used for wound-rotor induction motors, the doubly-fed
system for wound-rotor induction motors was adopted Active-power-based Control
because it satisfies the requirement to duplicate the Development of speed control for AC electric
functions of the synchronous machine and for reasons motors has been ongoing aimed at applications such
of economics. as railways and elevators. In these fields, quality is
The doubly-fed system controls the speed of a determined by the ability to control speed in such
wound-rotor induction motor by varying the active a way that ride comfort can be maintained while
power in the secondary circuit (rotor winding or field accelerating and decelerating. For an adjustable-speed
winding). When the primary circuit of the wound-rotor pumped-storage generation system, in contrast, the
induction motor (stator winding or armature winding) main objective is to adjust the level of electric power
is connected to the power grid, a voltage is induced and therefore speed control as such does not determine
quality. Accordingly, Hitachi developed and adopted
active-power-based control which controls the active
Grid
power to be at the specified reference level.
Exciter
Changing the control target from speed to active
(Cycloconverter)
power makes it possible to perform high-speed active
power control regardless of the turbine characteristics
and to achieve a level of rapid response for active
power that is not possible using the conventional

10s
Generator voltage 18.0 kV

344.0 r/min
Speed 335.0 r/min 338.0 r/min 335.0 r/min
Internal vane 330.8 r/min
angle 330.5 r/min

Active power 160 MW

Speed Fr reference 128 MW
Active 160 MW
power 128 MW 128 MW
Rotor frequency Fc
Reactive
Stator frequency Fs power 128 MW 20 Mvar

Pump-turbine Field
Motor-generator current 3,500 A 3,750 A 3,500 A

Fig. 3—Configuration of Adjustable-speed Pumped-storage

Generation System Using Doubly-fed System. Fig. 4—Step Response for Active Power.
The motor-generator has a configuration similar to a wound- Because rapid control of the active power can be achieved
rotor induction motor and uses AC excitation supplied from a regardless of the turbine characteristics, it is possible to
cycloconverter via three-phase, four-wire collector rings. perform step changes in the level of active power.
 Hitachi’s Adjustable-speed Pumped-storage System Contributing to Prevention of Global Warming 102

generation equipment connected to the electricity grid For an adjustable-speed pumped-storage generation
(see Fig. 4). system, the operating conditions for the pump-turbine
cover a wide range and a runner design that can achieve
CHARACTERISTICS OF PLANT EQUIPMENT stable operation over the full adjustable speed range
AND CONTROL METHODS used in actual operation is needed because of the
Pump-turbine requirements to extend the adjustable input range when
The speed of a constant-speed machine that uses operating as a pump and to achieve high efficiency
a pump-turbine runner with fixed vanes (a “Francis when operating as a generator.
turbine”) is constant and the relationship between the The adjustable-speed pump-turbine runner supplied
head (determined by the dam water levels) and the to the Okutataragi Power Plant of Kansai Electric
motor input is a single fixed curve. In other words, the Power uses intermediate vanes and is designed to be
pump input for a given head is fixed. For a variable- used over a wide operating range (see Fig. 7).
speed machine that can vary its speed by a few percent
either side of its rated speed, in contrast, the motor
input for a given head can be changed (see Fig. 5 and
Fig. 6).

P pmax
Motor input Pp (MW)

n0
H max
H min

Head H (m) Fig. 7—Manufacture of Pump-turbine Runner with

Intermediate Vanes for Okutataragi Power Plant of Kansai
Fig. 5—Characteristics of Constant-speed Pump-turbine Electric Power.
Runner. A new design was adopted to facilitate adjustable-speed
Because the machine operates at the synchronous speed n 0 , the operation. The runner alternates long main vanes with short
relationship between the head H and the motor input Pp is fixed intermediate vanes to achieve improved efficiency and a wider
and cannot be adjusted. stable operating range.

P pmax Motor-generator
n max The stator has the same configuration as in
conventional synchronous machines and the armature
Motor input Pp (MW)

winding consists of insulated three-phase distributed

windings around an iron core made of layers of
n0
magnetic steel sheet. Like the stator, the rotor also
has a field winding that consists of three-phase
distributed windings around an iron core made of
layers of magnetic steel sheet or thin steel sheet, and
n min
the rotor is coupled to the stationary part via collector
H max
H min

rings. The collector rings have a three-phase, four-wire

Head H (m) configuration which includes a coupling for the neutral
phase. To generate a sinusoidal magnetomotive force
Fig. 6—Characteristics of Adjustable-speed Pump-turbine
Runner.
distribution in the air gap, a balanced three-phase
Because the unit can operate anywhere between its minimum alternating current is passed through the field winding.
speed n min and maximum speed n max , the operating conditions This configuration maintains stable operation because
can span a wide range. any unbalanced component present in the field current
 Hitachi Review Vol. 59 (2010), No. 3 103

flows to the neutral phase, thereby keeping a sinusoidal because it provides the same “function for maintaining
magnetomotive force distribution in the air gap. operation in the event of a grid fault” as the damper
A special insulation method with excellent winding in a conventional synchronous machine which
insulation performance and mechanical strength acts as a shunt for the electromotive force generated
was developed and adopted on the field winding to by the asynchronous current component while still
handle the high applied voltage and withstand the maintaining excitation. It has also become possible to
loads resulting from the strong centrifugal forces. The shrink the size of the arrestors used for suppressing
ability of the insulation to remain reliable over a long over-voltage. Also, the exciter circuit has a three-
operating life was also verified during the development phase, four-wire configuration that includes the neutral
phase and this reliability has also been proven in actual phase as well as the three-phase circuits and keeps
operation. the currents of the other two phases correct during
The ends of the field winding are supported by high-speed PN switching operation by allowing the
binding wrapped around the outside of the winding. unbalanced current component to flow to the neutral
The binding is made of stainless steel strip or high- phase.
strength fiber material. Because a rotor for a 300-MW- Also, because the thyristors are switched by an
class adjustable-speed motor-generator has a weight in external power supply, it is possible if the voltage drops
excess of 400 t and a diameter greater than 4 m, it is due to a grid fault or other reason that a commutation
assembled at the power plant to avoid transportation failure may occur resulting in an over-current condition
problems. due to the reduction in current control capacity.
Accordingly, the protection concept used on the system
Exciter identifies commutation failures by using a protection
The exciter is a cycloconverter that uses thyristors mechanism that can distinguish a commutation failure
as its converter elements. The thyristors are separately- from an internal fault that requires the unit to shut
excited converter elements that do not themselves down for its protection, and estimates the temperature
shut off the current flow but because they are better at of the thyristors based on the current passing through
withstanding over-current than self-excitation elements them and allows operation to continue provided the
for which the capacity to withstand over-current is thyristors remain within their permitted operating
determined by the shut-off current, they are by their range. By using this protection mechanism, if a grid
nature suited to large-capacity converters for power fault occurs, excitation can continue without causing
applications where over-current events caused by a short-circuit in the excitation circuit while making
problems on the grid or other external factors can be use of the ability of the thyristors to withstand over-
anticipated. current.
On the other hand, because thyristors do not
reverse-conduct, if current tries to flow in the Control Method
reverse direction, the current path becomes open- The excitation modes used for a parallel grid
circuit. On variable-speed machines, an alternating connection can be broadly divided into “slip excitation
electromotive force is generated in the rotor current if mode” and “synchronous excitation mode” and the
an asynchronous current component flows in the stator system can switch between these depending on the
of the generator due to a grid fault or other cause. While operating conditions.
this current can flow through a conducting thyristor Slip excitation mode is used during standard
if it is in the forward direction, if it is in the reverse adjustable-speed operation and active-power-based
direction, the current path becomes open-circuit control is performed by detecting the active power
and an over-voltage occurs. The control required to at the output terminal (system output) and using the
eliminate this over-voltage and maintain operation is output voltage of the exciter to control the phase of the
called “high-speed PN (positive-negative) switching.” field current so that the active power is equal to the
It works by detecting over-voltage independently in reference value. Also, excitation is performed at the
each phase and eliminates the over-voltage condition “slip frequency” which is the difference between the
by temporarily reversing the cycloconverter’s PN grid frequency and rotor frequency.
operation pairs in the over-voltage phase to allow the From the perspective of the motor-generator,
pulse current to flow. Use of high-speed PN switching slip excitation mode controls the phase of the field
improves the operational reliability of the system current and, because this corresponds to controlling
 Hitachi’s Adjustable-speed Pumped-storage System Contributing to Prevention of Global Warming 104

Load synchronizing force is generated by using a constant

reference
excitation frequency to lock the speed at the speed
corresponding to that excitation frequency. Although
Active
power Control to keep within adjustable speed range a variation occurs in the active power corresponding
(synchronous excitation method)
Speed to the change in effective head because the generator
Synchronous excitation: Recovery characteristics in this case are the same as for a
Synchronous excitation: Operation constant-speed machine (synchronous machine),
Synchronous
Slip excitation excitation Slip excitation because this variation in active power is kept to a lower
level than would be the case when controlling the speed
by adjusting the active power, using this control method
Active Sudden drop in active power has less of an effect on the grid during the transient
power
Control to keep within adjustable speed range condition (see Fig. 8).
(active power adjustment method)
Speed Also, because synchronous excitation mode
can lock the speed by using a synchronizing force
Slip excitation
independently of control, there is no need to switch
from active-power-based control to speed control and
Fig. 8—Control to Keep within Adjustable Speed Range.
it can be used in situations such as when starting or
Using synchronous excitation to control the speed to within stopping pumping and when an emergency stop is
the adjustable speed range results in a smaller variation in triggered by a protection function.
active power than when the speed is controlled by adjusting the
active power, and this reduces the effect on the grid during the CONCLUSIONS
transient. This article has described the background to the
development of adjustable-speed pumped-storage
the internal phase difference angle in a synchronous generation systems, their technical characteristics, and
machine, it means that active-power-based control can other related topics.
be performed at high speed. This control method allows The adjustable-speed pumped-storage generation
operation to continue without loss of synchronism in system was initially developed based on the concept of
situations such as when a grid earth fault causes a using a pumped-storage power plant to balance supply
sudden change in the phase of the grid voltage or the and demand during the night, and since then Hitachi
rapid re-closing of the circuit associated with such a has continued to develop and implement functions for
fault occurs. improving the operational convenience and reliability
Because active-power-based control is used, of the system which extend beyond just ensuring the
governor control only operates as a speed control reliability of the equipment to also include functions
mechanism and, during adjustable-speed operation, such as active-power-based control, continuity of
the turbine output is adjusted and its speed controlled operation in the event of a grid fault, and synchronous
so that it does not diverge dramatically from the excitation mode.
adjustable-speed operation range. Because operating Active-power-based control is a method for
in slip excitation mode causes a deviation in the active manipulating the operation of a synchronous machine
power and pump-turbine torque and this deviation by controlling its internal phase difference angle, and
manifests as a change in speed, deviations between the connecting such a system to the actual electricity grid
actual speed and the speed reference value set to the for testing is subject to considerable risks. Although the
governor occur more often than for a constant-speed technology was developed using an analog simulator
system and therefore the control method needs to work that simulates the turbine, motor-generator, exciter,
in harmony with active-power-based control. control system, and electricity grid to avoid these risks,
Synchronous excitation mode is used when it was ultimately necessary to verify the operation on
controlling the operation to prevent the speed the actual electricity grid.
diverging from the adjustable-speed operation range. To minimize the effect on the electricity grid while
The effective head changes suddenly if the guide still allowing the necessary testing to be carried out,
vanes are rapidly opened due to a sudden increase the development of the technology for the 400-MW-
in load or similar. If as a consequence the speed is class adjustable-speed pumped-storage generation
at risk of going outside the adjustable speed range, a system at the Okawachi Power Plant of Kansai Electric
 Hitachi Review Vol. 59 (2010), No. 3 105

Power was able to be performed using a 17.5-MW night and thereby extending the length of time that
demonstration plant at the Narude Power Plant that thermal power plants can be shutdown. Even if the
was connected to the actual electricity grid and used proportion of renewable energy increases, new needs
to conduct a large number of tests. are emerging for large-scale energy storage systems
Similarly, the ability to build adjustable-speed capable of adjusting the input and output of electric
pumped-storage generation systems with large capacity power and Hitachi intends to continue to develop
and high speed was made possible by the installation technology and contribute to the reliable supply of
of an adjustable-speed pumped-storage generation electricity.
system at the Omarugawa Power Plant of the Kyushu
Electric Power Co., Inc. which featured a very high
speed of 576 to 624 min-1 and a pump head that, at REFERENCES
more than 700  m, was unprecedented even among (1) Y. Nishi et al., “Excitation Current Control Method for
existing pumped-storage power plants. Alternating-current-excited Synchronous Machine,” 1992
For the pumped-storage generation equipment that Conference of the Power and Energy Technical Society of
had already been installed and was in operation at The Institute of Electrical Engineers of Japan, No. 11 (1992)
in Japanese.
the Okutataragi Power Plant of The Kansai Electric
(2) E. Kita, “Power Electronics Technologies for Hydroelectricity
Power Co., Inc., Hitachi also undertook technology Sector−Adjustable-speed Pumped Storage System,”
development to convert the system to adjustable- Electrical Review (Sep. 1993) in Japanese.
speed operation and this is expected to lead to even (3) E. Kita et al., “400-MW Adjustable-Speed Pumped-Storage
wider adoption of adjustable-speed pumped-storage Hydraulic Power Plant,” Hitachi Review 44, pp. 55-62 (Feb.
generation systems. 1995).
The technology that has already been developed (4) K. Tani et al., “Performance Improvement of Pump-turbine
for Large Capacity Pumped Storage Power Plant in USA,”
has contributed to a reduction in CO2 emissions by
Hitachi Review 58, pp. 198-202 (Oct. 2009).
allowing pumped-storage power plants to be used for
electricity supply and demand balancing during the

ABOUT THE AUTHORS

Osamu Nagura Mikisuke Higuchi

Joined Hitachi, Ltd. in 1980, and now works at Joined Hitachi, Ltd. in 1992, and now works at the
the Adjustable Speed Pumped Storage System Power Electronics Design Department, Information
Development Center, Hitachi Works, Power Systems & Control Systems Company. He is currently
Company. He is currently engaged in the design of engaged in the design of power electronics systems.
hydro power generation equipment. Mr. Nagura is Mr. Higuchi is a member of IEEJ.
a member of The Institute of Electrical Engineers of
Japan (IEEJ) and the International Council on Large
Electric Systems (CIGRE).

Kiyohito Tani, Dr. Eng. Takashi Oyake

Joined Hitachi, Ltd. in 1993, and now works at Joined Hitachi, Ltd. in 1989, and now works at
the Hydro Turbine Design Department, Hitachi the Power Plant Control Systems Engineering
Works, Power Systems Company. He is currently Department, Information & Control Systems
engaged in the hydraulic design of turbines for Company. He is currently engaged in the design of
hydro power generation. Dr. Tani is a member of control systems for hydro power equipment.
The Japan Society of Mechanical Engineers and the
Turbomachinery Society of Japan.