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The National Science Foundation (NSF), under its Major Research Instrumentation (MRI) initiative, recently gave a
grant to The College of New Jersey for acquisition of advanced power engineering and renewable energy laboratory
hardware from Lab-Volt Systems. These funds are under the direction of principal investigator Dr. Anthony Deese - an
Assistant Professor within the Department of Electrical and Computer (ECE) Engineering.
Lab-Volt needed to provide an hardware solution, composed of "scaled" three-phase AC power supplies,
transformers, transmission lines, and synchronous as well as induction machines, that would reproduce the structure
and behavior of an electric power system, like that operated by energy companies.
To answer this demand, Lab-Volt engineering worked closely with Dr. Deese to create a solution using equipment
(both hardware and firmware) from its Electric Power Technology Training Program, 8010 Series, that would recreate
a fully functional electric power grid with all the different types of components and technologies involved. The
picture below shows the simplified schematic of that grid.
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TCNJ laboratory simplified schematic
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That grids includes the following technologies :
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• Transmission lines network
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Total of 6 variable-length three-phase transmission lines are included
Three-phase transformers
• Remote controlled contactors and loads
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Line connection through contactors
Resistive and inductive loads
Shunt capacitors
Induction machines with adjustable loads
SCADA controlled through a National Instruments LabVIEW interface
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• In-depth monitoring of voltage, current, phase angle, power, energy …
and more … at several points in the system
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• Synchronous generators (2) with realistic hydraulic turbine emulation
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Fully configurable using Lab-Volt LVDAC-EMS software
Field current automatic control
Network synchronization (live bus) or stand-alone generator (dead bus)
• Renewable energy sources
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Small-scale wind turbine with realistic emulation
Solar panel emulation
Lead-acid batteries
• Three-phase rectifier/inverter to transfer power from the renewable energy sources (DC) to the three-phase
network
6 • High-voltage DC transmission link (HVDC)
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Conversion from AC to DC and back to DC to transfer DC power on a transmission line
Screenshot of the SCADA controlled network
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Screenshot of the HVDC transmission control interface
All these technologies were already developed and used through Lab-Volt Electric Power Technology Training
Program, 8010 series, but used only separately through the courseware. This project gave the opportunity to connect
all this Lab-Volt equipment together to recreate the behavior of an actual grid. This setup is also reconfigurable, i.e.
all the components can be rearranged for further experiments as all the connections are not fixed.
TCNJ laboratory setup in Lab-Volt facility
This setup will allow TCNJ students and researchers the unique ability to manipulate the parameters and topology of
a physical power system as well as observe the effect of their actions. For example, one may remove a large
generator or transmission line from the emulated grid and watch a "blackout" occur. This hardware, in addition to
components associated with a "traditional" power system, will provide TCNJ students and researchers with access to
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emerging "smart grid" technologies - including photovoltaic cells, wind turbines, battery storage, solid-state power
electronic converters, and embedded data acquisition / actuation capability.
Equipment involved in this laboratory
Although this is a particular configuration of our equipment, the Lab-Volt 8010 Series modules can be rearranged in
many ways to answer the different needs any customer might have. If you are interested in this project or have a
particular project with which we can help you, don’t hesitate to contact us at 1-800-Lab-Volt.
For more information on this laboratory or the equipment involved, here is a list of interesting links :
• Smart Electric Power System (SEPS) Laboratory :
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Lab-Volt Electric Power Technology Training Program
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https://sites.google.com/site/anthonydeesephd/lab
http://www.labvolt.com/products/alternative-and-renewable-energy/solar-energy/renewable-energy-training-systems-8010
http://www.labvolt.com/downloads/datasheet/dsa8010.pdf
Lab-Volt Data Acquisition and Control Interface, Model 9063
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http://www.labvolt.com/downloads/download/88890_00.pdf
http://www.labvolt.com/products/electricity-and-electronics/electromechanical/data-acquisition-and-control-interface-9063
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Lab-Volt Four-Quadrant Dynamometer / Power Supply, Model 8960
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LVDAC-EMS – Free to try software that monitors and controls all the technologies in the system (inverters,
thyristors, HVDC link, synchronous generation, in-depth monitoring)
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http://www.labvolt.com/downloads/download/9063 resources.pdf
Lab-Volt YouTube Channel
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http://www.labvolt.com/products/electric-powercontrols/electricity-and-electronics/four-quadrant-dynamometerpower-supply-8960
http://www.youtube.com/user/LabVoltLtd/featured
Lab-Volt Smart Grid Offering
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http://www.labvolt.com/downloads/download/88831_00.pdf
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