From July 2nd to 3rd, 2022, the 18th IET International Conference on AC and DC Power Transmission (ACDC 2022) was successfully held online. More than 800 experts and scholars, college teachers, students and professional and technical personnel from China, Canada, the United Kingdom, Germany, Nigeria and other countries participated online through the Tencent conference, and more than 40,000 audiences in various specialty fields watched online through live broadcast platforms such as Weibo, Bilibili, WeChat Video Account, Polaris Power Grid, and KouShare.

The IET International Conference on AC and DC Power Transmission (ACDC) is a prestigious international conference in the field of power systems. Most of the previous ACDC conferences were held in Europe and widely recognized and concerned by professional and technical personnel, scholars from research institutions, university researchers and industry experts. With the development of electric power research in China in recent years and the completion of several large-scale UHV transmission projects, in 2016, IET joined hands with Tsinghua University to introduce the conference to China for the first time. With the joint efforts of both parties and the great support of major industry partners, ACDC has successfully held the twelfth, the fourteenth and the sixteenth conferences in China. In 2022, IET once again teamed up with Tsinghua University and co-hosted the 18th International Conference on AC and DC Power Transmission (ACDC 2022) with State Grid Shandong Electric Power Company.

This conference is co-hosted by the Institute of Engineering and Technology (IET), Tsinghua University and State Grid Shandong Electric Power Company, organized by the Department of Electrical Engineering and Applied Electronics, the National Key Laboratory of New Power System Operation and Control, and the Energy Internet Innovation Institute of Tsinghua University, Tsinghua Sichuan Energy Internet Research Institute, State Grid Shandong Electric Power Company Electric Power Research Institute, Shandong Electrical Engineering Society, and High Voltage Committee of China Electrical Engineering Society and supported by Xi'an Xidian Power System Co., Ltd., Shandong Taikai DC Technology Co., Ltd. and Beijing Power Equipment General Factory Co., Ltd. Focusing on advanced AC and DC transmission technology supporting the construction of new power systems, the guests shared the latest research results in the field of AC and DC power transmission, and made extensive exchanges and discussions on the current hotspot technologies and development prospects in the field of AC and DC power transmission.

The opening ceremony and keynote forum of the conference were grandly held on July 2. Professor Zeng Rong, Vice President of Tsinghua University, delivered a welcome speech at the opening ceremony as the chairman of the conference. Mr. Paulo Lopes, Director of IET China, Sun Gang, Chief Engineer of State Grid Shandong Electric Power Company, and Lou Yantao, General Manager of Xi'an Xidian Power System Co., Ltd. and other guests attended and delivered speeches at the opening ceremony. The opening ceremony was presided over by He Jinliang, Professor of Tsinghua University and Chairman of the ACDC2022 Organizing Committee. Guests, speakers, industry experts and paper authors from conference organizers and supporting units attended the opening ceremony.

Group photo of ACDC2022 opening ceremony (partial)

At the end of the opening ceremony, the conference also presented awards for the best papers selected by the technical committee, 19 papers from universities and research institutes incluing Tsinghua University, Shanghai Jiaotong University, Tongji University, University of Manitoba, North China Electric Power University, Tianjin University and State Grid Smart Grid Research Institute won the first, second and third prizes respectively.

List of best papers

In the keynote report of the conference on the morning of the 2nd, Academician Li Licheng of China Southern Power Grid Corporation elaborated the “new power systems require power electronics technology”, “large-scale new energy power generation and grid incorporation have expanded the development space for power electronics technology, and in the future we need to make innovative practice and develop core technologies on high-performance power electronic devices, grid-incorporating power electronic converters, intelligent power electronic equipment, flexible DC transmission and flexible DC power grids”; Academician Chen Weijiang of State Grid Corporation shared his views on “Low-frequency AC power transmission”, “Flexible low-frequency AC power transmission system composed of high-voltage and large-capacity voltage source converters has the flexible power grid regulation capability similar to flexible DC power transmission, which is a new power transmission technology worthy of in-depth study”; Professor Sheng Kuang from Zhejiang University shared his views on “Development of Power Electronic Devices for Power Transmission”, “Power electronic devices are the core devices of power transmission and distribution systems, and improving voltage blocking and current conduction capabilities is the key to reducing system complexity, size and cost”; Professor Liu Jinjun from Xi’an Jiaotong University introduced that “Power electronics technology is driving the power transmission and distribution system into a new era”, “The research and development of power electronics-related and interdisciplinary technologies are facing many opportunities, and many challenging problems are found in these opportunities”.

On the afternoon of the 2nd, five other domestic and foreign experts continued to give the keynote report at the conference. Professor He Jinliang from the Department of Electrical Engineering and Applied Electronics of Tsinghua University gave a keynote report on “Micro Current and Voltage Sensors for Intelligent Power Transmission Systems"; General Manager Lou Yantao of Xi'an Xidian Power System Co., Ltd. shared his thoughts on “Application of IGCT in High-Power Power Electronic Equipment”; Professor Wang Zhongdong from the University of Exeter, UK, brought an elaboration entitled “Research on Thermal Performance of Infrastructure to Help Realize Zero-Carbon Grid”; Benjamin Marshall of the UK National HVDC Transmission Center shared the report on “Converter-led grid testing and demonstration performance: reducing life-cycle risks in projects”; The British national electricity system operator (ESO) Xiaoyao ZHOU gave a presentation on “Operating a Grid in a High IBR Network”.

The keynote report session was chaired by Yu Zhanqing, Chairman of ACDC2022 Technical Committee and an associate professor of Department of Electrical Engineering and Applied Electronics, Tsinghua University.

Keynote reports

With the great support of major universities, research institutes, power companies, and related societies and associations at home and abroad, ACDC2022 has received nearly 500 papers at home and abroad. After three rounds of review by a paper review committee composed of experts from many countries, 286 papers were finally selected, posted and presented at the online conference. On July 3, the conference specially invited the major forces of domestic academic and industrial circles to conduct in-depth discussions on the two themes of “Basic Sensing, Devices and Equipment for New Power System Construction” and “DC System Supporting New Power System Construction”. At the same time, 18 sub-forums were arranged at the conference, and heated discussions were conducted on 9 topics including AC power transmission and distribution technology, DC power transmission and distribution technology, DC power grid technology, power electronic devices, and power conversion technology. Experts and scholars from universities at home and abroad served as the chairmen of the sub-forums, respectively made academic reports on the topics and organized the participating authors to give oral presentations on their submitted papers. The topics of the 18 sub-forums were precise and the discussions were lively. A total of 119 online special reports were completed, and tens of thousands of people participated.

Special reports, session chair

With the development and engineering construction of China’s UHV AC and DC power transmission technology, China has gradually become the focus of attention in the world of power transmission technology. This conference discussed the latest progress and development path of AC/DC power transmission and distribution technology under the construction goal of “new power system”, which will definitely support the development of AC/DC power transmission and distribution technology, and contribute to the realization of the dual carbon goal and the construction of a new power system.