Modeling and control of hydraulic wind power transfer systems

Abstract

Hydraulic wind power transfer systems deliver the captured energy by the blades to the generators differently. In the conventional systems this task is carried out by a gearbox or an intermediate medium. New generation of wind power systems transfer the captured energy by means of high-pressure hydraulic fluids. A hydraulic pump is connected to the blades shaft at a high distance from the ground, in nacelle, to pressurize a hydraulic flow down to ground level equipment through hoses. Multiple wind turbines can also pressurize a flow sending to a single hose toward the generator. The pressurized flow carries a large amount of energy which will be transferred to the mechanical energy by a hydraulic motor. Finally, a generator is connected to the hydraulic motor to generate electrical power. This hydraulic system runs under two main disturbances, wind speed fluctuations and load variations. Intermittent nature of the wind applies a fluctuating torque on the hydraulic pump shaft. Also, variations of the consumed electrical power by the grid cause a considerable load disturbance on the system. This thesis studies the hydraulic wind power transfer systems. To get a better understanding, a mathematical model of the system is developed and studied utilizing the governing equations for every single hydraulic component in the system. The mathematical model embodies nonlinearities which are inherited from the hydraulic components such as check valves, proportional valves, pressure relief valves, etc. An experimental prototype of the hydraulic wind power transfer systems is designed and implemented to study the dynamic behavior and operation of the system. The provided nonlinear mathematical model is then validated by experimental result from the prototype. Moreover, this thesis develops a control system for the hydraulic wind power transfer systems. To maintain a fixed frequency electrical voltage by the system, the generator should remain at a constant rotational speed. The fluctuating wind speed from the upstream, and the load variations from the downstream apply considerable disturbances on the system. A controller is designed and implemented to regulate the flow in the proportional valve and as a consequence the generator maintains its constant speed compensating for load and wind turbine disturbances. The control system is applied to the mathematical model as well as the experimental prototype by utilizing MATLAB/Simulink and dSPACE 1104 fast prototyping hardware and the results are compared.