Development and Experimental Hardware Validation of Novel Variable Speed Hydropower Control Schemes for Emerging Applications and Water Resource Paradigms

Recent opportunities for new hydropower generation in the United States have often been in non-powered dams and run-of-river type flows occurring in low-impact natural areas and unregulated conduits. At the same time, a changing water resource paradigm is challenging some existing generation in drought stricken areas where supply reservoirs behind many medium and high head units are at historically low levels. The result is a developing market space which is potentially best captured by machines capable of variable speed operation. Variable speed units have a wider range of operating conditions compared to their synchronous counterparts and have already proven their resilience through a 20+ year history in pumped hydro applications. This work develops a control scheme for variable speed hydropower units operating to deliver a set-point power through flow controlling gates. This control scheme increases both the hydrologic operating range of a unit as well as the speed of response to grid contingencies under droop and automatic generator control. Results from simulation are confirmed on hardware

Frequency control studies: A review of power system, conventional and renewable generation unit modeling

Over the last decades, renewable energy sources have increased considerably their generation share in power systems. As a consequence, in terms of frequency deviations, both grid reliability and stability have raised interest. By considering the absence of a consensual set of models for frequency control analysis, both for the different generation units (conventional and renewables) and the power system itself, this paper provides extensive and significant information focused on the models and parameters for studies about frequency control and grid stability. An extensive analysis of supply-side and power system modeling for frequency stability studies over the last decade is presented and reviewed. Parameters commonly used and assumed in the specific literature for such simulations are also given and compared. Modeling of generation units are described as well, including both conventional and renewable power plants.The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper

Modeling and Optimal Operation of Hydraulic, Wind and Photovoltaic Power Generation Systems

The transition to 100% renewable energy in the future is one of the most important ways of achieving "carbon peaking and carbon neutrality" and of reducing the adverse effects of climate change. In this process, the safe, stable and economical operation of renewable energy generation systems, represented by hydro-, wind and solar power, is particularly important, and has naturally become a key concern for researchers and engineers. Therefore, this book focuses on the fundamental and applied research on the modeling, control, monitoring and diagnosis of renewable energy generation systems, especially hydropower energy systems, and aims to provide some theoretical reference for researchers, power generation departments or government agencies

The Future of Power Storage in South Eastern Europe

The European Commission’s Joint Research Centre (JRC) and the Ministry of Energy and Industry of Albania held a joint workshop on the future role of energy storage in South Eastern Europe on 21 -22 October in Tirana. The workshop was attended by 40 specialists from academia, government, regulatory bodies, power industry and consultancies from both EU accession and candidate countries as well as from EU Member States. The participants actively discussed the technical, financial and regulatory challenges of the energy systems of the Western Balkans, and options of how these could be overcome. The event served as a forum for sharing and critically reflecting experience gained in Western Europe during the last decade. The workshop held in Tirana was part of the Enlargement and Integration Action. The present report summarizes the interventions of the participants, the discussions and conclusions of the workshop.JRC.F.6-Energy Technology Policy Outloo

Analysis of emerging technologies in the hydropower sector

The paper reviews recent research and development activities in the field of hydropower technology. It covers emerging and advanced technologies to mitigate flow instabilities (active and passive approach) as well as emerging magneto-rheological control techniques. Recent research findings on flow instabilities are also presented, especially concerning fluid-structure interaction and transient operating conditions. As a great number of the existing large-scale hydroelectric facilities were constructed decades ago using technologies that are now considered obsolete, technologies to achieve the digitalisation of hydropower are also analysed. Advances in the electro-mechanical components and generator design are presented; their potential role to adapt hydropower to the current operating conditions is also highlighted. The text explores current efforts to advance hydropower operation, mainly in terms of European projects. It provides a detailed overview of the recent efforts to increase the operational range of hydraulic turbines in order to reach exceptional levels of flexibility, a topic of several recent research projects. Variable speed hydropower generation and its application in pumped storage power plants are presented in detail. Moreover, revolutionary concepts for hydroelectric energy storage are also presented with the analysis focusing on underwater hydro storage and hydropower's hybridisation with fast energy storage systems. Efforts to minimise hydropower's environmental footprint are also presented via the utilisation of small-scale and fish-friendly installations

Advancements in Hydropower Design and Operation for Present and Future Electrical Demand

With current infrastructure, meeting the ever-growing demand for electrical energy across the globe is becoming increasingly difficult. The widespread adoption of both commercial and residential non-dispatchable renewable energy facilities, such as solar and wind, further taxes the stability of the electrical grid, often causing traditional fossil fuel power plants to operate at lower efficiency, and with increased carbon emissions. Hydropower, as a proven renewable energy technology, has a significant part to play in the future global electrical power market, especially as increasing demand for electric vehicles will further amplify the need for dispatchable energy sources during peak charging times. Even with more than a century of proven experience, significant opportunities still exist to expand the worldwide hydropower resources and more efficiently utilize existing hydropower installations. Given this context, this Special Issue of Energies intended to present recent developments and advancements in hydropower design and operation. This Special Issue includes five articles, authored by international research teams from Japan, Pakistan, Sweden, Norway, the United States, and China. The authors bring the collective expertise of government research laboratories, university professors, industry research engineers, computer scientists, and economists. The articles explore advancements in hydroturbine and pump-turbine design, power plant operation, auxiliary equipment design to mitigate environmental damage, and an exploration of community-owned small hydropower facilities

Renewable Energy

Renewable Energy is energy generated from natural resources - such as sunlight, wind, rain, tides and geothermal heat - which are naturally replenished. In 2008, about 18% of global final energy consumption came from renewables, with 13% coming from traditional biomass, such as wood burning. Hydroelectricity was the next largest renewable source, providing 3% (15% of global electricity generation), followed by solar hot water/heating, which contributed with 1.3%. Modern technologies, such as geothermal energy, wind power, solar power, and ocean energy together provided some 0.8% of final energy consumption. The book provides a forum for dissemination and exchange of up - to - date scientific information on theoretical, generic and applied areas of knowledge. The topics deal with new devices and circuits for energy systems, photovoltaic and solar thermal, wind energy systems, tidal and wave energy, fuel cell systems, bio energy and geo-energy, sustainable energy resources and systems, energy storage systems, energy market management and economics, off-grid isolated energy systems, energy in transportation systems, energy resources for portable electronics, intelligent energy power transmission, distribution and inter - connectors, energy efficient utilization, environmental issues, energy harvesting, nanotechnology in energy, policy issues on renewable energy, building design, power electronics in energy conversion, new materials for energy resources, and RF and magnetic field energy devices

Power Electronics Technology for Large-Scale Renewable Energy Generation

Grid integration of renewable energy (REN) requires efficient and reliable power conversion stages, particularly with an increasing demand for high controllability and flexibility seen from the grid side. Underpinned by advanced control and information technologies, power electronics converters play an essential role in large-scale REN generation. However, the use of power converters has also exposed several challenges in conventional power grids, e.g., reducing the system inertia. In this article, grid integration using power electronics is presented for large-scale REN generation. Technical issues and requirements are discussed with a special focus on grid-connected wind, solar photovoltaic, and energy storage systems. In addition, the core of the energy generation and conversion—control for individual power converters (e.g., general current control) and for the system level (e.g., coordinated operation of large-scale energy systems)—is briefly discussed. Future research perspectives are then presented, which further advance large-scale REN generation technologies by incorporating more power electronics systems

Complementing a Kaplan hydropower turbine with a battery energy storage : BESS sizing for shared FCR-N market participation and reduction of turbine control movements

Pohjoismaisen sähköjärjestelmän sähkönlaatu on huonontunut viime vuosikymmenten aikana ja samalla normaalin taajuusalueen ulkopuolella vietetty aika on kasvanut. Verkkoon liittyy tulevaisuudessa entistä enemmän uusiutuvaa energiaa hydyntäviä voimalaitoksia, jotka ovat luonteeltaan epäsäännöllisiä. Tämän työn tarkoituksena on tutkia energiavaraston asentamista Kaplan vesivoimaturbiinin rinnalle. Tämän vuoksi työssä tutkitaan olemassaolevia erilaisia teknologioita energian varastoimiseen. Näistä teknologioista valittiin yksi tähän tarkoitukseen sopiva. Energiavaraston teknologiaksi valittiin Lithium akku. Käytössä olevan vesivoimalaitoksen Kaplan -turbiineja käytiin testaamassa useampaan otteeseen. Näiden testien tarkoituksena oli muun muassa energiavaraston koon mitoittaminen, turbiinisäätimen parametrien testaus ja hienosäätö. Akkuihin perustuva energiavarasto voisi vähentää turbiinin ohjaustarvettu sen osallistuessa taajuusohjattuun käyttöreservikauppaan. Uusi ohjain, joka vastaisi kuorman jakamisesta energiavaraston ja turbiinin välillä on kehitteillä VEO:lla. Tässä työssä ehdotetulle ratkaisulle saatiin arvioitua noin 5 vuoden takaisinmaksuaika investoinneille.The frequency quality of the Nordic power system has deteriorated over the last decades. The number of minutes outside the normal frequency band area has increased. Furthermore, an oscillating behaviour of the grid has been observed with a growing amplitude. This oscillating behaviour increases the control work carried out by the hydropower turbines. One of the main reasons for this development is the growing amount of power generation that is coming from intermittent energy sources, such as wind and solar. The objective of the thesis is to explore the possibility to combine an electrical energy storage to an operational Kaplan turbine hydropower plant. To fulfil the objective, background work on different energy storage technologies was carried out by reviewing different technologies against each other for the sake of finding the most fitting technology for the purpose. A battery energy storage was chosen as the technology for the proposed application. Measurements were made on operational Kaplan turbines to narrow down the scale of needed energy and power output for the electrical energy storage. Tests were carried out on different turbine governor models to find an optimal control scheme for the turbine. A BESS could reduce the control movements of a Kaplan turbine operating in frequency control mode. A new controller that would share the primary frequency control regulation between the turbine and BESS is under development at VEO Oy. The payback time for an in-vestment was found to be approximately 5 years