Synchronization Equipment Adjustment Study

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This project, developed for the later National Energy Control Center (CENCE), now DOCSE and ICE, focused on determining optimal settings for synchrocheck relays (SC) used in Costa Rica’s national power grid. These devices are critical during switching operations to prevent harmful transients when reconnecting transmission lines.

The report reviews international methodologies and selects the one proposed by Dr. Jan Machowski due to its practicality and reliance on static models rather than dynamic EMTP simulations. It uses four protection-based criteria to calculate the maximum allowable phase angle difference for safe reconnection.

The selected method was implemented in Python, validated with IEEE 14-bus test cases, and applied to 12 real-world scenarios using regional system data. Results showed that most synchrochecks could be safely configured with angle thresholds above 15°, although some lines required more restrictive values (e.g., 4.9° for Rio Claro to Progreso tramission line RCL–PRO).

A user-friendly software tool was developed to automate this methodology, compatible with DOCSE's simulation tools and designed to export results in Excel format and facilitate the analysis.