Transient Operation Research Articles

Numerical study on dynamic response characteristics of proton exchange membrane water electrolyzer under transient loading

Under dynamic operating conditions, the proton exchange membrane water electrolyzers are prone to voltage overshoot, resulting in fluctuations under transient operation. In this paper, a three-dimensional, two-phase, non-isothermal model is developed to investigate the role of various factors on the dynamic response characteristics of electrolyzers. The results demonstrate that the overshoot phenomenon can be significantly mitigated by using a linear loading strategy and a multi-step loading strategy compared to a step loading strategy. Meanwhile, the effect of the flow field structure was examined, revealing that single-serpentine flow field exhibited excellent dynamic response performance. Additionally, calculated through multiple evaluation methods, it was found that the effect of loading magnitude was significantly greater than that of the other factors, including temperature, flow field structure and anode porous transport layer porosity. Finally, under combined variable load conditions, research revealed that whereas single-serpentine flow field shown benefits regarding dynamic response and energy dissipation.

Anion exchange membrane electrolysis at work—Investigating impact of starting parameters and start-stop operation on cold start behavior and degradation

Water electrolysis is a key technology for the production of green hydrogen, with anion exchange membrane water electrolysis (AEMWE) showing promising properties. Future energy systems will require transient electrolysis operation to combine electrolysis with fluctuating renewably generated power. This study examines and optimizes the cold start process (ambient temperature and 0 V stack voltage) of an AEMWE stack system in terms of starting time, energy demand and degradation. The influence of relevant parameters such as voltage slope, target voltage, downtime and heating strategy on the starting process is experimentally quantified. A temporary increase in cell voltage during the starting process thereby represents a suitable compromise between acceleration of the startup and maintaining a low degradation. In addition, the start-stop degradation analysis with 150 cold starts per parameter set reveals that the degradation of the AEMWE stack during the starting process is independent of the maximum cell voltage and instead correlates with the steepness of the current slope. Using electrochemical impedance spectroscopy, the degradation is assigned to electrode processes. Under moderate starting conditions, degradation rates of 2–10 μV start−1 are observed. This shows that AEMWE is highly compatible with regular operational interruptions.

Improved Droop Control Strategy for Microgrids Based on Auto Disturbance Rejection Control and LSTM

This thesis proposes an improved droop control strategy design based on active disturbance rejection control and LSTM. This strategy uses the droop control method to coordinately control the distributed generation units (DGs) in a microgrid to achieve stable operation of the microgrid system. Linear-Auto Disturbance Rejection Control (LADRC) is introduced and an improved LADRC is designed based on the error principle. A disturbance compensation link is introduced on the basis of traditional LADRC to form ILADRC and a droop control strategy is used. Instead of improving the PD controller in LADRC, an improved droop control strategy is formed, which not only achieves natural decoupling between powers, but also improves the system’s immunity and transient operation capabilities. At the same time, in order to achieve adaptive parameter tuning in the improved droop control strategy, this article introduces long short-term memory (LSTM) to form an adaptive improved droop control strategy which further improves the system’s immunity and robustness. This article builds a simulation model through the MATLAB/Simulink simulation experiment platform and tests PI control and traditional droop control. The strategy and the improved droop control strategy designed in this thesis are experimentally compared and verified, and simulation analysis and verification are conducted on the two working conditions. The simulation results clearly demonstrate the superiority of the improved droop control strategy over PI control and traditional droop control, indicating that the correctness and reliability under various working conditions are verified.

Local temperature difference control of high temperature solid oxide electrolytic cell based on temperature observer

–High-temperature Solid Oxide Electrolysis Cell (SOEC) may generate excessive local temperature differences during transient operation, which can affect its electrochemical performance and thermal safety. Therefore, this study develops a localized temperature difference control strategy based on a temperature observer, which can avoid a series of issues such as sealing failure caused by the installation of thermocouples. Firstly, a discrete thermoelectric coupling model was developed, dividing SOEC along the flow direction into five nodes. This model was rigorously validated and refined using actual sensor data, including voltage and outlet temperature. Subsequently, a temperature observer for the SOEC's local temperature distribution was designed using a NARX neural network. Finally, an adaptive PID algorithm-based local temperature difference controller was developed, employing the local temperature data provided by the observer as the controlled variable. The effectiveness of the controller was verified under conditions such as excessive electrolysis current and air leakage. The test results show that the response time of the open-loop NARX observer is only 2 s, with the observation error controlled within 0.09K, providing a stable and reliable control variable for the local temperature difference controller. The local temperature difference control strategy effectively ensures that all thermal safety indicators remain within the specified range, demonstrating higher safety and reliability compared to traditional inlet and outlet temperature difference control methods.

Current Compensation for Faulted Grid-Connected PV Arrays Using a Modified Voltage-Fed Quasi-Z-Source Inverter

Large-scale photovoltaic (PV) systems are being widely deployed to meet global environmental goals and renewable energy targets. Advances in PV technology have driven investment in the electric sector. However, as the size of PV arrays grows, more obstacles and challenges emerge. The primary obstacles are the occurrence of direct current (DC) faults and shading in a large array of PV panels, where any malfunction in a single panel can have a detrimental impact on the overall output power of the entire series-connected PV string and therefore the PV array. Due to the abrupt and frequent fluctuations in power, beside the low-PV systems’ moment of inertia, various technical problems may arise at the point of common coupling (PCC) of grid-connected PV generations, such as frequency and voltage stability, power efficiency, voltage sag, harmonic distortion, and other power quality factors. The majority of the suggested solutions were deficient in several crucial transient operating features and cost feasibility; therefore, this paper introduces a novel power electronic DC–DC converter that seeks to mitigate these effects by compensating for the decrease in current on the DC side of the system. The suggested solution was derived from the dual-source voltage-fed quasi-Z-source inverter (VF-qZSI), where the PV generation power can be supported by an energy storage element. This paper also presents the system architecture and the corresponding power switching control. The feasibility of the proposed method is investigated with real field data and the PSCAD simulation platform during all possible weather conditions and array faults. The results demonstrate the feasibility and capability of the proposed scheme, which contributes in suppressing the peak of the transient power-to-time variation (dP/dt) by 72% and reducing its normalized root-mean-square error by about 38%, with an AC current total harmonic distortion (THD) of only 1.04%.

Advanced model for a non-adiabatic capillary tube considering both subcooled liquid and non-equilibrium two-phase states of R-600a

Previous empirical correlations have largely failed to predict the mass flow rate variations of R-600a during the transient pull-down operation of household refrigerators. This shortcoming is attributed to the fact that these correlations were developed for specific thermodynamic states of the refrigerant at the capillary inlet, whereas the thermodynamic state varies during transient operations, particularly involving non-equilibrium two-phase states. To address these limitations, a novel model has been developed. This model comprises two distinct sub-models corresponding to the refrigerant state at the capillary tube inlet: one for the subcooled liquid state and the other for the non-equilibrium two-phase state. These sub-models are integrated to account for the transitions in the thermodynamic state of R-600a at the capillary inlet. The integrated model demonstrates excellent agreement with observed variations in the R-600a mass flow rate during the pull-down operation of actual refrigerators. The mean absolute percentage error between the measured and estimated mass flow rates is approximately 10 % over the entire period of pull-down operations tested under various environmental conditions.

Optimal control of Hydrocarbon Reducer (HC) injection based on Trust-Region-Reflective Algorithm (TRRA) and physical models for Diesel Oxidation Catalyst (DOC)

The aim of this paper is to control the DOC outlet gas temperature between 600 ± 15 °C by optimizing the hydrocarbon (HC) injection into the Diesel Oxidation Catalyst (DOC) for active regeneration of the downstream Diesel Particulate Filter (DPF). First, based on the physical model of the DOC thermal dynamics, the energy conservation equation for the gas phase temperature is simplified by using variable substitution, and the energy conservation equation for the solid phase temperature is simplified by considering only the heat generated by the HC injection. By solving the simplified model using the Trapezoidal Rule-Backward Differentiation Formula 2 (TR-BDF2) method and optimizing the model parameters in combination with the Gauss-Newton method, the computational efficiency and accuracy were significantly improved. Next, the DOC downstream temperature observer is designed by combining the solution characteristics of the DOC model with the unscented Kalman filter (UKF) algorithm to ensure that the catalyst operates within the optimal temperature range. Then, this paper verifies the accuracy of the model and observer through bench tests covering four steady-state operation conditions and World Harmonized Transient Cycle (WHTC) test cycle, and the results show that the model and observer exhibit high accuracy in both steady-state and transient operation conditions. Finally, the DOC temperature was successfully maintained between 600 ± 15 °C by optimizing the control of the HC injection rate, thus achieving the expected temperature control target. These research results provide theoretical and practical support for diesel engine emission control and DPF active regeneration.

Analytical Neural Network System for the Helicopter Turboshaft Engines Operating Modes Classification

A novel neural network-based analytical system has been developed for classifying helicopter turboshaft engine operating modes during flight operations. This system utilizes a neural network architecture comprising an input layer with three neurons, two fully connected hidden layers, and an output layer with two neurons. The proposed approach demonstrates an exceptional recognition accuracy of 0.997 (99.7%) across steady-state, unsteady, and transient operating modes of helicopter turboshaft engines. A new method for training this neural network has been introduced, employing forward propagation, loss calculation, backpropagation, and weight updates, enhanced by an adaptive learning rate and the cross-entropy function as the loss criterion. The method also incorporates a novel modified Smooth ReLU activation function for hidden layer neurons. This innovation led to a near-perfect accuracy in network training and reduced the loss to 0.025 (2.5%), highlighting the high quality and reliability of the neural network in classifying engine operating modes during flight. Furthermore, it has been empirically shown that the application of this neural network significantly reduces type I errors by a factor of 2.09 to 2.14 and type II errors by 2.05 to 2.21 times compared to traditional classifiers based on ART-1 and BAM networks. This advancement marks a substantial improvement in classification accuracy and error minimization for helicopter turboshaft engine operating modes.

Identification of flame transfer functions during transient operation

Predicting thermoacoustic instabilities requires knowledge of the flame response to acoustic perturbations, which is characterized by the Impulse Response Function. Obtaining stability maps across an extensive parameter space is prohibitively costly with existing methods, both experimentally and numerically, as the data records must be obtained independently for each stationary operating condition. To address this problem, a nonparametric identification technique that enables the characterization of instantaneous Flame Transfer Functions (FTFs) under nonstationary operating conditions, based on a series expansion of the time-varying impulse response function (TV-IRF), is proposed. The technique is a direct extension of the Wiener-Hopf equation to nonstationary signals, yielding the linear minimum mean squared error estimator (LMMSEE) of the TV-IRF. This method is applied to data obtained from a model of a premixed, hydrogen-enriched swirl flame. It's hydrogen power fraction is rapidly varied from 12-43% over 100 milliseconds and the flame response to a band-limited, white-noise signal is computed. From the resulting input-output data, the TV-IRF is accurately estimated and the FTF for all hydrogen power fractions is obtained from a single data record. This method paves the way for cost-effective estimation of a map of FTF's from computational or experimental data, significantly reducing expenses in both cases.

Understanding human responses to air source heat pump noise: examining tonal changes and operating cycles

Air Source Heat Pumps are pivotal in the Government of the United Kingdom's target of achieving net zero carbon emissions by 2050. However, their widespread adoption faces challenges, with noise being among the main barriers to entry and a restricting factor at the planning stages. This study addresses concerns regarding noise propagation from outdoor units to indoor environments through a two-part experiment, aiming to capture human responses to Air Source Heat Pump noise based on the changes in the characteristics of noise emissions at various operating conditions, background noise levels, and source distances. The first part evaluates peoples' responses under static operating conditions to 20-second recordings, using the Self-Assessment Manikin scale and an annoyance scale. Following each recording, they used the Self-Assessment Manikin pictorial scale and an annoyance scale to report their response. In the second part, responses to transient Air Source Heat Pump operation cycles are assessed using 60-second recordings. Participants evaluated each recording at two points: after a transition in the operating cycle and at the end of the recording. The findings of the study provide insights into the human response to heat pump noise, essential for developing strategies to facilitate wider Air Source Heat Pump adoption.

Dynamic optimization of boiler for minimizing energy consumption in the intentionally transient process operation: effect of different interval number

Abstract Certain manufacturing or industrial processes may involve variable conditions, and intentionally transient boiler operation allows optimal adaptation to these variations. This helps maintain efficiency and reduce energy consumption during different process phases. Transient operation is inherent during the start-up and intermittent phases in reaching the pressure required for boiler operation. Optimizing these transient states can reduce energy consumption. Dynamic optimization of boilers is crucial for several reasons, especially in industrial and power generation settings. Boilers are used to produce steam or hot water for various processes, and optimizing their performance can lead to increased efficiency, reduced energy consumption, and improved overall system reliability. The dynamic optimization problems were solved using the orthogonal collocation method. Three problem optimizations were considered in this study: minimize process time (P1), minimize energy consumption without optimized final time (P2), minimize energy consumption with optimized final time (P3). The control/decision variables applied were firing rate, Q, and water feed flowrate, q f. From the simulation results, the control trajectories of P3 were chosen to be the most effective control operation to achieve the minimum energy consumption for reaching target pressure, i.e., 10.2 MPa, with a reasonable intermittent unit time. In practice, the selection of the number of intervals is often determined through a combination of domain knowledge, computational resources, and the desired level of accuracy. Sensitivity analysis and testing with different interval sizes can help in understanding the impact of this parameter on the optimization results. A greater interval time will decrease energy consumption.

Numerical modeling of heat transfer mechanism in remote sensing bulb of thermal expansion valves

Thermal management of automotive systems has garnered a lot of focus in recent times to improve the energy efficiency of vehicles and address the challenge of global warming. In combustible fuel vehicles, the heat pump compressor is driven by the engine power which leads to changes in operating condition of the cycle while the vehicle is in motion. In electric vehicles, a combined thermal management strategy handles both cabin and battery pack cooling/heating depending on the ambient conditions and power requirements by adjusting refrigerant flow rates and flow directions with sophisticated valves. Irrespective of the vehicle type, effective variable refrigerant flow control is prerequisite to ensure optimum thermal comfort with minimum energy. Thermal expansion valves (TXV) are the most widely used method for regulating mass flow rate of refrigerant during the expansion step of the vapor compression cycle based on the principle of trying to maintain a fixed degree of superheat at the evaporator outlet. Conventional models of the thermal expansion valve ignore the time lag between fluctuation of temperature at the evaporator outlet and the corresponding change in pressure of the TXV remote sensing bulb, treating the valve as an instantaneous element during transient operation. This paper presents a novel method for determining the temperature profile and time constant of the remote sensing bulb response using numerical methods, in an attempt to capture the dynamics of thermal expansion valve in active heat pump cycle. Finite difference method was used to solve for the conduction heat transfer between the bulb and the heat exchanger outlet tube in perfect thermal contact applying the necessary boundary conditions. This improved modeling approach will be helpful in better prediction of the dynamic behavior of thermal expansion valves and how it influences the evaporative heat exchanger performance during transient operations to determine control algorithm and strategies.

Preliminary analysis of startup and acceleration transient characteristics of helium-xenon cooled reactor direct brayton cycle system

Helium-xenon cooled reactor direct Brayton cycle system has excellent application prospects in small nuclear power plants due to its light weight, high compactness and simple structure. The safe startup of reactor system is very important, so the system startup scheme is designed. In addition, reactor system may be affected by external acceleration during operation. Whether reactor system can operate normally and safely after being affected by acceleration and its influence characteristics are not clear. In order to verify the feasibility of the system startup scheme and explore the acceleration influence characteristics, the system analysis program was developed to simulate the system startup transient operating conditions and the transient operating conditions of reactor system under the influence of acceleration. In the research of acceleration influence characteristics, acceleration has different periods, amplitudes, types and directions, and the load state is divided into load change with system output power and constant load. The results show that the designed system startup scheme can start reactor system safely. Reactor system can ignore the influence of acceleration when it has load change with system output power ability. If the load remains constant, reactor system cannot ensure continuous and stable operation after being affected by acceleration, which has the risk of Loss of Flow Accident (LOFA). The relevant research results provide theoretical reference and support for the design of the reactor system startup scheme and the research on the influence characteristics of acceleration on reactor system.

Techno-Economic Feasibility Study of Earth Air Heat Exchangers for Gas Turbine Inlet Air Cooling

In response to pressing energy crises and environmental concerns, enhancing the performance of existing energy conversion systems, such as gas turbines, and tapping into renewable resources have become critical imperatives. Escalating ambient temperatures poses a notable challenge, hampering the efficiency of gas turbines. This study rigorously explores the feasibility of earth-to-air heat exchangers (EAHEs) as a pragmatic solution to cool gas turbine inlet air. The primary objective is an exhaustive techno-economic analysis evaluating the long-term operational viability of EAHE systems. Employing the Taguchi method, the study optimizes the system geometry and pipe arrangement, focusing on four key control factors: pipe diameter, spacing, length, and depth. The pivotal optimization criterion is the levelized cost of energy (LCOE), encompassing thermal performance and economic viability. The net present value (NPV) and Discounted Payback Period provide supplementary insights into the economic prospects. Integral to the study is a novel and intricate hybrid analytical-numerical model that simulates the long-term transient operation of EAHE. Findings from a detailed case study unveil an optimized scenario yielding an LCOE amounting to 0.071 $/kWh, accompanied by a substantial NPV of 4.5 million dollars.

Natural gas-fueled HCCI engine performance and emission analysis and comparison with SI and spark-assisted operations

ABSTRACT The homogeneous charge compression ignition (HCCI) engine is a promising technology in terms of both soot and NOx emission. Natural gas (NG) is advantageous especially for HCCI engines with its single stage combustion, low C/H ratio, and high octane number. Since the main challenge of HCCI technology is stability and transient operations, using HCCI for constant speed operations may be advantageous. In this study, a CI diesel engine, which is used as a generator at constant speed, was modified and converted into an NG-fuelled, SI engine. Then, the engine was supplied with NG for SI, HCCI, and spark-assisted HCCI experiments. Spark-assisted operations were executed by using 3, 5, and 7 degree ignition advance values to assist HCCI combustion. In-cylinder pressure variations, exhaust temperature, specific fuel consumption, and emission values were investigated for comparison of different strategies. Experimental results showed that using the HCCI strategy and retardation of ignition advance of spark-assisted HCCI operations reduced maximum pressure. Therefore, these strategies improved NOx emissions, while HC emissions were slightly increased. The spark-assisted HCCI strategy improves the stability of operation while increasing CO emission. The specific fuel consumption value of HCCI was slightly higher than that of SI operation, while it was lower than spark-assisted strategies.

Robust Adaptive type 1 Fuzzy Logic Control for permanent magnet synchronous motor

In this paper we will present a new adaptive control technique based on type 1 fuzzy controllers to control the mechanical power generated by a permanent magnet synchronous motor, this machine is powered by two converters in series. One converter on the network side to control the direct current bus and improve the power factor on the network side, the other on the motor side to regulate the mechanical power (speed, torque) produced by our motor. We will then present a comparative study between the developed controller and other conventional controllers to highlight the best performing and most robust of each, this comparative study is based on a series of tests that we have carried out during the transient and continuous operation of our permanent magnet synchronous motor under the same conditions. The numerical simulations demonstrate the effectiveness of the implementation of the typical adaptive type 1 fuzzy control to achieve these objectives.

Crack fault diagnosis in rotor bearing system by transient and study state time domain analysis

Online condition monitoring methodologies for rotor dynamic systems are an emerging trend and an essential for safe system operation. During operation fatigue cracks in rotor shaft can lead to catastrophic failures if not identified at early stage. Therefore, these systems require a reliable crack fault detection methodology. The vibrations may induce in the system due to different type of faults, like shaft transverse cracks, oil whirl and whip. To make the detection methodologies robust and reliable, redundancy in crack detection methodologies is vital. The present research is a foolproof procedure to detect the travers fatigue crack in the rotor shaft. Rotor response, orbital pattern, and response FFT during transient (runup/cost down) and study state operations at 2X & 3X sub critical speeds are analyzed to identify the presence of crack in rotor bearing system. The rotor system is analyzed by numerical Finite Element Modeling (FEM) simulations and experimental means. Open Wedge Crack (OWC) and Breathing Wedge Crack (BWC) are modeled and their behavior is studied. The effectiveness of Newton Rapson method, Houbolt numerical method, and Harmonic Balance Method (HBM) in crack diagnosis are studied. Numerical FEM results are validated with experimental and published literature results. FEM simulated and experimental response FFT shows similar response behavior with presence of crack with 98 % correlation and less than 2 % error. FEM simulated and literature response orbital pattern at 2X sub critical backward speed are similar with less than 3 % error (97.76 % close) and at 2X sub critical forward speed are similar with less than 1 % error (99.33 %).

A smooth switching strategy for steady-state operation control and fault transient control of doubly fed induction generator

Abstract As the proportion of wind power generation systems in power systems continues to rise, their dynamic response during system malfunctions has gained significant importance. As the grid short-circuit ratio continues to decrease, traditional fault ride-through algorithms for wind power generators may no longer be applicable. This is evidenced by voltage oscillations under significant disturbances and overvoltage issues during low-voltage ride-through, which are further aggravated during asymmetric fault conditions. Therefore, this paper focuses on the low-voltage ride-through issues of doubly fed induction wind power generators in weak power grids. It investigates the steady-state operation and transient control schemes and proposes a smooth transition strategy for steady-state and fault transient operations of doubly fed wind power generators. This approach guarantees the synchronization of active and reactive power, mitigates steady-state reactive power imbalance, and prevents voltage fluctuations triggered by recurring low-voltage ride-through occurrences. Furthermore, during fault recovery, a ramped active power restoration approach is employed to mitigate the coupling of active and reactive power introduced by the phase-locked loop, enabling rapid and stable restoration of active and reactive power outputs. As a result, superior dynamic performance is achieved during both symmetric and asymmetric fault processes. Finally, the superiority of the proposed smooth transition strategy under different fault scenarios is validated through simulations with the RTLAB platform.

Data-driven study/optimization of a solar power and cooling generation system in a transient operation mode and proposing a novel multi-turbine modification concept to reduce the sun's intermittent effect

This study explores the integration of solar energy via parabolic trough collectors (PTC) with the Goswami cycle, focusing on evaluating life cycle costs (LCC) and energy performance in both steady-state and transient conditions. A suitable system configuration of a single-turbine Goswami cycle is designed for integration with PTC. Then, in the system's steady-state, a parametric study is performed based on the change in the design components. Subsequently, a multi-objective optimization method using energy and lifetime cost objectives are defined to identify the best system performance. This optimization technique utilizes artificial neural network (ANN) and the grey wolf optimizer (GWO) algorithm. Accordingly, the transient performance of the system is investigated during its optimal operating point using the TRNSYS software. Suitable controllers are considered for regulating power production and cooling system. Annual transient performance graphs of the systems are obtained. Following these investigations, a novel multi-turbine system is proposed. This configuration aims to enhance system reliability and diminish the reliance on storage devices by optimizing performance. The proper configuration of the five-turbine system with the required controllers is also provided. Hence, the method of dividing the turbine into similar turbines with lower capacity is a new concept proposed in this study. In the optimal state, it is observed that for 100 kW of net power output, 161 kW of effective cooling load can be achieved. At this configuration, the system's LCC amounts to 2.91 M. Moreover, during transient operation, an average power of 90 kW is attainable with a cooling load of 120 kW. The findings indicate that modifying the system from single turbine to five-turbines incurs an additional cost of approximately 9.2 % and reduces power output by 6 %. However, this modification significantly mitigates the transient impact of solar fluctuations.

System design and analysis of thermal power dispatch systems for boiling water reactors

Nuclear power plants are crucial to meeting net zero emission goals and achieving energy sustainability. Integrating these plants with clean energy technologies such as high-temperature steam electrolysis (HTSE) may improve the efficiency and economic competitiveness of these plants. The current study investigates the design and operation of a thermal power dispatch (TPD) system for coupling boiling water reactors (BWRs) to HTSE plants. The TPD system extracts a portion of the steam from the reactor’s main steam line and transfers its thermal energy to an HTSE plant through a power transport loop. A TPD system for 5 % steam extraction has been designed and the system performance during steady and transient operations has been analyzed. The TPD system dispatched a total of 197 MW thermal energy to the HTSE plant under nominal design conditions. Saturated steam at 7.17 MPa from the BWR plant was condensed and subcooled to a temperature of 168 °C, while a mass flow rate of 91.1 kg/s of superheated steam was dispatched to the HTSE plant. Furthermore, the system performance during transient operation showed a continuous transition from the initial hot standby mode to the nominal power dispatch level. The transient simulation results emphasized the importance of investigating component level performance for the TPD system design. The current results will guide future works on the development of integrated energy systems for hydrogen production or process heat applications.