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This work presents a technique to estimate on-line the global inertia of an electric power system by exploiting the footprint of the principal frequency system dynamics. This method can estimate the inertia provided as a whole by synchronous machines, as well as by converter-interfaced generators controlled to emulate the behavior of the former through virtual inertia. Probing tones are injected by a grid-forming converter-interfaced generator and its virtual rotor speed is used to extrapolate its footprint. As a result, the method requires neither measuring the active power exchange of each synchronous generator nor extrapolating their rotor speeds. Since the proposed technique is entirely data driven, it does not require any model of the power system generators/prime-movers/controllers and of the interconnecting grid. The method is comprehensively tested on a modified version of the IEEE 39-BUS system and a dynamic version of the IEEE 118-BUS system, both containing grid-forming converter-interfaced generators. • An important and timely issue: how to estimate the inertia of an entire power system? • We present a technique to estimate on-line the inertia of an electric power system. • The proposed technique is entirely data driven. • This approach is adequate to accurately estimate also the inertia by converter-interfaced generators. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The frequency behavior of an electric power system right after a power imbalance is determined by its inertia constant. The current shift in generation mix towards renewable energy sources is leading to a smaller and more variable inertia, thereby compromising the frequency stability of modern grids. Therefore, real-time inertia estimation methods would be beneficial for grid operators, as their situational awareness would be enhanced. This paper focuses on an inertia estimation method specifically tailored for synchronous generators, based on the extended Kalman filter (EKF). Such a method should be started at the time of disturbance, which must be estimated accurately, otherwise additional errors could be introduced in the inertia estimation process. In this paper, the sensitivity of the EKF-based inertia estimation method to the assumed time of disturbance is analyzed. It is shown that such sensitivity is influenced by the initially assumed inertia constant, the use time of the filter and by the time required for primary frequency regulation to be activated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]