Grant: Research Tools and Instruments

Modern electrical energy systems are rapidly evolving and becoming more complex due to their growing integration with smart energy grids and increased utilization of power-electronic-based distributed renewable energy resources. Planning, development and safe operation of these systems are only possible with reliable offline computer studies and real-time simulations. Thousands of engineers in control centers and research facilities around the world are working full-time conducting studies. Canada has been a leader in developing state-of-the-art computerized tools and solutions that enable the design and operation of electric power systems of various scales. Widely accepted electromagnetic transient (EMT) programs, e.g. ATP, Microtran, EMTP-RV, PSCAD, RTDS, Opal-RT's RT-LAB, Matlab's SimscapeElectrical, and Powertech Labs' transient stability DSATools, etc., all have originated from and/or developed by Canadian researchers/companies which are now extensively used throughout the world as industry-standard tools.******To support UBC's long-time tradition in developing computationally efficient models and simulation techniques, the requested equipment will be used to build the planned power-hardware-in-the-loop real-time (P-HIL-RT) simulation platform for studies and operational optimization of integrated ACDC energy systems. With the distribution system of UBC campus as the benchmark, the proposed P-HIL-RT simulation platform will extend the research capability by connecting the simulation hardware and control algorithms with the existing installed ACDC power infrastructure and future power equipment, which facilitates conducting detailed studies on a building and campus-wide system. The requested equipment will also be used for emulating additional converters/energy sources/loads/storage and other components of distribution system, where new/advanced models of power components will be verified and tested in real-time with experimental hardware, which is envisioned to help predict and prevent potential blackouts and failures in realistic power grids.******The requested equipment will stimulate and support new initiatives, and will provide the experimental facility for several existing and future Collaborative Research and Development programs, Alliance grants, and Discovery Grants currently undertaken and planned by members of the UBC's Electric Power and Energy System research group (comprises Drs. J. Jatskevich, J. Marti, C. Chen, H. Dommel, W. Dunford, and M. Ordonez), the results of which will boost the modelling capabilities of modern and future simulation tools which is a top-notch expertise and business for many Canadian companies. The planned P-HIL-RT simulation platform will also provide a concurrent opportunity for about 40 students to receive valuable training and acquire unique expertise. This will enable Canada to lead the new paradigms of integrating alternative energy resources and the evolving future smart energy systems.