Power Swing in Systems with Varying Penetration of Grid-forming IBRs: Protection and Dynamics

Integration of inverter-based resources (IBRs) reshapes conventional power swing patterns, challenging the operation of legacy power swing protection schemes. This paper highlights the significant consequences of the distinctive power swing patterns exhibited by grid-forming IBRs (GFM-IBRs). The swing mechanism involving GFM-IBRs is elucidated using analytical modeling of GFM-IBRs with various power synchronization loops (PSLs). With varying GFM-IBR penetration levels and different generator scenarios, the performance of power swing protection functions is examined, including power swing blocking (PSB) and out-of-step tripping (OST). Additionally, the IEEE PSRC D29 test system is employed to present power swing protection results in a large-scale power system integrated with synchronous generators (SGs) and IBRs. The results indicate that, GFM-IBRs with sufficient voltage support capability can provide positive impact on power swing dynamics, and power swing protection performance can be enhanced by emulating the inertia and droop mechanism of SGs and rapidly adjusting the active power output. However, with high penetration levels of GFM-IBRs, OST maloperation may occur in scenarios with inadequate voltage support capability.