Topic 6: Diesel Hybrid RAPS Systems Standalone Diesel Generator Systems Standatone diesel generators form the basis for most of the Remote Area Power Supply (RAPS) systems aantatralia and in many other parts of the world. ‘They have been used in such applications for many years and have earned a reputation for robustness and reliability [A diesel generator consists ofa diesel engine, which converts the chemical energy’ in the diesel fue ino ‘nsehanical encray (gencrally in the form of a rotating shaft), and a gencrator or allemator that converts Mae notational mechanical energy’ into electrical energy. This latter process uses the old high school formula for electromagnetism: Cail + Magnet + Movement = Electricity. The rotating shaft causes the magnetic field in a coil to continuously vary thus producing an electric current. ‘Advantages and Disadvantages ‘There arc a number of advantages and disadvantages that can be identified for a standalone diesel ‘generator RAPS system. In terms of advantages, the following points can be made: Power is available on demand Reliable and robust ‘* Service support usually readily available ‘© Good waveform for ae power out Good voltage regulation Can provide large currents and have good temporary overload characteristics Relatively low capital cost per kW of output In terms of disadvantages the following points ean be made: # Relatively high operating and maintenance costs © Need to transport fuel to site ‘© Need to store fuel on site fen noisy and smelly Need regular maintenance Waste fuel if not run at near fall load conditions Significant maintenance problems if run at low fonds (due to incomplete or inefficient combustion of fucl in the cylinders and subsequent glazing of the cylinder walls) Water or dirt contaminating fuel can cause problems Fuel consumption characteristics of diesel generators If we plot fuel consumption versus load for a diesel generator we often get almost a straight line, The line cuts the y-axis at a value above zero a reflection of the fact that the diesel generator when idling will continue to consume fuel even though itis not producing any power. If we convert such fuel consumption values into specific fuel consumption (SFC) values (ie kWh/litre) we get a curve that drops off quite rapidly as the load reduces. An example of these two curves for a typical small diesel is shown in the following figure, © Murdoch Universitysel Typical Fuel Consumption for a Small 3.5 Ss ae} 2 | Specific Fuel | alae ‘Consumption (kWh!) 5 2 + Fuel Consumption | a fc aa B15 a B11 5 Ros oO 0 1 2 3 4 5 Load (kW) Figure 1: Fuel consumption and specific fuel consumption for atypical small diesel ‘This figure shows the reduction of SFC as the load approaches zero, This reflects the increasing. importance of the idling fuel consumption when the load is small. The nature of these curves shows that if 2 diesel operates at low load values it will generally be operating at quite low efficiencies. This is illustrated in the following example. Consider a situation where a small 4.5 kW diesel operates 24 hours per day meeting the load profile shown in Figure 2 below. The load is constant and the diesel is relatively well loaded at 67% of its rated ‘output, As a result the diesel operates relatively efficiently. In this instance the average daily efficiency is quite good at 2.69 kWhilitee. Now consider a situation where the peak load is still 3 KW but the daily load profile is as shown in Figure 3, Such a load profile is often considered typical of a domestic load profile in Australia where there are Toad peaks at breakfast, lunch and tea with the largest peak occurring in the evening period. If the same diesel is used to meet this load profile then it would spend considerable periods, especially during the night and early morning, operating at very low loads. This leads to relatively high fuel consumption and poor efficiency. In the case of the load profile shown in Figure 3, the average daily efficiency is 1.87 KWhilitre - much lower than the earlier value. This highlights the disadvantages of operating a diesel generator at low loads. In fact it explains why in many places that rely solely on diesel generators, the Eenerators are only operated for limited periods of the day when the loads are Kept high. For the remainder of the day there is no power. @ Murdoch University 2 34Daily Load Profile 1 Fuel Consusmption (V/hr) row norawnnaea 53 RR Hour of Day Figure 2: A constant daily load and the fuel consumption of a small diesel generator supplying this load. Daily Load Profile 2 Load (kW) Fuel Consusmption (W/hr) ron nr Or mewn @ 21 23 Hour of Day Figure 3: A typical domestic load profile and the fuel consumption of a small diesel generator supplying this load ‘The problem highlighted above raises the question as to how load profiles such as that in Figure 3 can be supplied in an efficient manner. One possible solution is the use of diesel hybrid systems. ‘© Murdoch University 3 35Multiple Diesel Systems In larger systems one of the methods of overcoming the problem of diesels operating at low loads is to use ‘multiple diesel systems, A series of similar sized diesels can be used in which the number of diesels supplying power at any one time is determined by the load at that time and any spinning reserve requirements for the system. This type of system and a typical operation scenario is illustrated below. Multiple Diesel System Diesel Engine Diese Diese Engine ‘Typical Community Load Profile - Multiple Diesels 1 f= Folie me ‘Time of Day Fig 4: The structure and typical daily operation of a multiple diesel system ‘© Murdoch University 36Another approach is to use two or more different sized diesel generator sets and to select the most ‘appropriate unit for the current load situation. In this situation smaller diesel gensets are used to meet low loads periods while larger diesels are started and used to supply high load periods. The deployment of the diesels can be done manually by an operator who is familiar with the typical daily load profile or automatically by a control system that reacts to changes in load conditions. This type of system and a typical operation scenario is shown below. Dual Diesel System Eme F4 v—- | f en | i Loads ZO ate Ching Sich {ype Community Load Prof -Dua Del Opsraion my i ie al z | i : 7 > 7% Time of Fig 5: The structure and typical daily operation of a dual diesel system In smaller community situations diesel/battery/inverter systems are an alternative solution to the problem of low loading of diesel generator set @ Murdoch University 37Diesel/Battery/nverter systems A diesel/battery/inverter system, as the name implies, consists of a diesel generator, a battery bank for storing electrical energy and an inverter that converts de power into ac power. ‘The principle of operation of such systems is as follows. In periods of low load the battery and inverter are used to meet the demand, In periods where the load is high the diese! generator operates and meets the load and charges the battery ‘The result is that the diesel operates at a well-loaded state, and hence at good efficiency (refer to example in the previous section). Tt does not have to operate during the periods of low load when it would be operating very inefficiently (and causing extra maintenance problems because of cylinder glazing). ‘The disadvantages of such systems are the losses introduced by using the battery bank and the inverter. OF the energy stored in the battery, perhaps only 75% to 80% can be retrieved and used to provide power to the load. An inverter, being an energy conversion device, also has losses associated with its operation. For a good inverter, efficiencies when it is well loaded can be above 90%. However, at low loads the efficiency can drop off quite rapidly. However, despite such negative aspects, diesel/battery/inverter systems can provide 24 hour power in a reasonably efficient manner. ‘There are a number of ways to set up such systems: + Switched hybrid systems + Series hybrid systems © Parallel hybrid systems ‘We use the term hybrid system to reflect the fact that the load can be met from a number of sources (in this case diesel or battery). Series hybrid system Schematic diagram A schematic diagram of a series diesel hybrid system is shown in Figure 6 below. The main components are a diesel generator, a battery charger, a battery bank, and an inverter. Series Hybrid System ma) Z| Engine * i Battery Charger Inverter Loads Genarator Battery Figure 6: A series diesel hybrid RAPS system © Murdoch University 6 38Description of operation When the battery is sufficiently charged the system provides power from the battery and inverter. ‘The inverter draws de power from the battery and supplies the ac power requited to the load (see Figure 7a), ‘When the battery falls below a certain state of charge (generally estimated by a certain battery voltage) the diesel generator will start up and provide de power which will meet the load via the inverter and also charge the battery (see Figure 7b). These modes of operation are illustrated in Figure 7 below. Series Hybrid System — Inverter Operating mom aml(= [ror] A (@) The operation ofa series diese! hybrid RAPS system when providing power from the battery Series Hybrid System — Diesel Generator Operating Battery Charger tnvorter cae] — P, Diesel ~ Z| & My & Loads, Engine | P oad ele | P3=PisPz WI Pi>P | tn Battery (b) The operation of a series diese! hybrid RAPS system when providing power from the diesel generator Figure 7: The operation of a series diesel hybrid RAPS system ‘© Murdoch University 39In terms of the energy flows in such a system consider a series hybrid RAPS system meeting the typical domestic load described earlier. The following graphs in Figure 8 show two possible diesel operation schedules, both of which will provide sufficient energy to the battery from the surplus diesel output to meet the load for the remainder of the day. In other words the battery state of charge will be the same at the end of the day as it was at the start of the day. A series hybrid system would not distinguish between these two scenarios even though it would seem more efficient to use the diesel generator to meet the high Toads. In fact the calculations indicate that the average daily specific fuel consumption for scenario | is 2.1 KWh/l while that for scenario 2 is 1.9 kWhv/I (where the kWh's referred to are the actual load kWh). A closer inspection of the system schematic and the graphs in Figure 8 will reveal that some of the surplus, diesel energy shown by the cross-hatched bars will actually be used to overcome losses in the battery ‘charger when the diesel is meeting the load directly. ‘This was accounted for in the above numbers. Advantages and disadvantages ‘The overall efficiency of such a system is relatively low because of the large number of components in the power supply system. The output of the generator passes through a battery charger and inverter before providing the load. Each of these introduces losses. If the energy is stored in the battery then losses are introduced because, of the energy supplied to the battery during charging, only 75% to 80% would be retrievable when energy is required from the battery. Also each component has to be capable of providing the peak load as, in its simplest form there is no control over when the diesel or inverter is operating. Diesel operation is controlled by the battery state of charge alone. This also means that the battery bank hhas to be quite large which is an additional cost for the system. ‘© Murdoch University 40Daily Load Profile 2 - Series Hybrid System Operation 5 45 —— 4 Excess Diesel | Output Used to 35 Charge Battery | = Load = — I 3 8 ro oR Oe om wR @ Hour of Day (a) Scenario 1: Diesel operation during high load period in a series diesel hybrid system (Diesel operating for hours 13 to 24) Daily Load Profile 2 - Series Hybrid System Operation ae ; — Excess Diesel S ae THA Output Used to i Charge Batter [ | pload ae Load (kW) co tN casanae ro oKnaernannnan a 2ereaa Hour of Day (b) Scenario 2: Diesel operation during low load period in a series diesel hybrid system (Diesel operating for hours 1 to 13) Figure 8: Two possible operational scenarios for a series diesel hybrid system ‘© Murdoch University aSwitched hybrid system Schematic diagram A schematic diagram of a switched hybrid system is shown in Figure 9 below, The main components ate 4 diesel generator, a battery bank, an inverter, a battery charger and a switch to change between the diesel and the battery/inverter power sources. ‘Switched Hybrid System Diesel Engine Generator Ori cne: onata time Inverter |e Loads Battery Charger ~ (A “18 Figure 9: A switched hybrid RAPS system Description of operation As discussed above, the principle of operation of a diesel hybrid system is to use the battery and inverter in periods of low load and the diesel generator in periods of higher loads. In a switched hybrid system a time elock is often used to change the system operation from one mode to the other. It can also be done ‘manually. When the system is in diesel operation mode, the diesel generator supplies power to the load and also to a battery charger that recharges the battery bank (see Figure 10a). When the system is in inverter mode, the inverter takes de power from the battery and converts it into the ac power required by the load (see Figure 10b). These modes of operation are illustrated in Figure 10 below. (© Murdoch University 0 42‘Switched Hybrid System - High Load Periods Pi Diesel Engine Generator Only one onata time: Loads, _ i Pp Inverter N Battery Charger —/| Battery ~ Only on when DG on (a) The operation of a switched hybrid RAPS system when the diesel generator is operating, Switched Hybrid System - Low Load Periods Diesel Engine Loads, P Inverter Pr Battery Charger — Pi>P Battery N — ‘Only on ‘when DG on (b) The operation of a switched hybrid RAPS system when the inverter is operating Figure 10: The operation of a switched hybrid RAPS system (© Murdoch University 43Figure 11 below show a possible diesel operation scenario for the switched hybrid RAPS system meeting the typical domestic load profile discussed earlier. In this scenario the surplus diesel capacity is just sufficient to provide the load for the remainder of the day when the diesel is not operating. This mode of operation would occur if the time clock was set to swap to diesel operation at 2 pm and to revert to inverter operation at midnight. If the time clock operated the diesel for a lesser number of hours then the net effect would be to gradually flatten the batteries over a number of days. If the time clock was set to un the diesel for a larger number of hours then, if the battery was fully charged after the 10 hours shown, in Figure 11, some of the energy would not be able to be used and the load on the diesel would probably fall to that of the loud only. By comparing Figures 10 and 11, it can be seen that the switched hybrid system operates the diesel for a lower number of hours -a result of the fact that for a considerable period of the time the diesel is meeting the load directly, with no losses due to battery chargers and inverters (as in the series system), For the scenario shown in Figure 11, the average daily specific fuel consumption is 2.5 kWh. Daily Load Profile 2 - Switched Hybrid System Operation | excess Diesel Output Used to Charge Battery Hour of Day Figure 11: A possible diesel operation scenario for the switched hybrid RAPS system Advantages and disadvantages Because the switch from one mode to the other is either set by a time clock or done manually, there is no way of optimising the system operation (especially if the time clock changeover is utilise). However, the fact that the diesel generation is generally in the periods of higher load means that improvements in efficiency are achieved. Also there is the possibility of quiet operation in the night time which can be a significant benefit. {© Murdoch University 44Parallel hybrid system Schematic diagram A schematic diagram of a parallel hybrid system is shown in Figure 12 below. The main components are a diesel generator, a battery bank, a bi-directional inverter, and a control system which automatically controls and synchronises the different sources. A bi-directional inverter is an inverter that can operate as both an inverter (converting de power into ac power) and in reverse as a battery charger (converting ac power into de power) Power electronics is utilised and controlled so that the transition from inverting to battery charging is continuous - there is no discontinuity in supply when the inverter moves from one ‘mode to the other. ‘The controller can control the inverter so that the power flow is of whatever magnitude and direction is required Parallel Hybrid System Diesel Engine Generator 5 Loads Battery Bi-directional Inverter ‘Automate contrat and synchronisatrion Figure 12: A parallel diesel hybrid RAPS system Description of operation ‘The simplest way to understand the operation of the parallel diesel hybrid RAPS system is to consider the situation as the load increases gradually from very low to very high. At the very low load situation the system provides the load from the battery bank and the inverter (see Figure 13a). When the load increases to a certain fraction of the inverter capacity, or the battery is discharged to a certain level, the controller starts the diesel, allows it to warm up, synchronises the inverter and diesel outputs (that is, it ensures that the outputs from the diesel and the inverter are in phase) and then connects the diesel to the load. The inverter will move to battery charging and the diesel generator will meet the load and provide additional power for battery charging (sce Figure 13b). As the Toad continues to increase a greater fraction of the output from the diesel generator will be supplied to the load and the amount of battery charging will ‘© Murdoch University 3 45decrease. If the load continues to increase above the level that can be supplied by the diesel on its own , the diesel and the inverter will both provide power to meet this high load (see Figure 13c). In this manner the system can efficiently meet the load over a wide range of loads. As the load falls the inverter will move back to battery charging and diesel will provide power to the load and for battery charging. When the battery is fully charged the diesel will continue to meet the load until the load drops to a level where the inverter can meet the load on its own. ‘The controller will then disconnect the diesel and the system will revert to the initial condition where the load is met by the battery bank and the inverter. Parallel Hybrid System - Low Loads oe La} ae Generator Loads, P Bi-directional Inverter Automatic control and synchronisatrion (a) The operation of a parallel diesel hybrid system at low load conditions © Murdoch University Uy 46Parallel Hybrid System - Medium Load Pt Diesel Engine — Generator c— Loads, Pp L ~ Bi-directional i bones Inverter Automatic contro! and synchronisatrion (©) The operation of parallel diesel hybrid system at medium load conditions Parallel Hybrid System - High Loads Diesel Engine Loads, i Pp Battery Bi-directional Inverter Automatic contrat Pi+P2=P and synchronisatrion (©) The operation of a parallel diesel hybrid system at high load conditions Figure 13: The operation of parallel diesel hybrid RAPS system © Murdoch University 4aA parallel hybrid RAPS system could produce the same diesel operational scenario as that shown in Figure I. However, the operation of the diesel would not be controlled by a time clock, rather it would be controlled by what was happening in the system. ‘The diesel start would be triggered by the controller sensing either a flat battery or a load too high for the inverter. The diesel operation would be terminated when either the load dropped to a level appropriate for inverter only operation and/or when the battery is fully charged. Therefore, if the flat battery signal was sensed at 2 pm and the controller determined that the battery was sufficiently charged at midnight then the diesel operation would look at shown in Figure I. However, there would be many other possible diesel operation scenarios depending on the battery state of charge and the relationship between the load and the inverter size. ‘Advantages and disadvantages ‘The parallel hybrid system can provide the system load in an optimal manner with the best source meeting the load at any one time. The diesel generally operates at a well-loaded condition and so operates efficiently, This mode of diesel operation also minimises the diesel maintenance requirements. Also because the diese! and inverter can operate in parallel the size of these components can be lower than in the other systems mentioned above. Alternatively the system can be more adaptable to growth in system load. ‘The principal disadvantage is the additional cost incurred in using a bi-directional inverter and the micro-processor based control system that supervises the system operation. Diesel/Battery/Inverter Systems with Renewables With the battery and inverter already in place, the DBI system is in a good position to have a renewable input added to the system. This will reduce the fuel consumption and so will only be viable if the reduction in fuel consumption outweighs the additional expense of installing and operating the renewable components Can add ‘Photovoltaic array and battery charge controller, as shown in Figure 14 for a parallel hybrid system © Wind turbine and wind turbine charge controller/dump load as shown in Figure 15 for a parallel hybrid system. One of the challenges in the operation of such systems is to ensure that any output from the relatively expensive renewable inputs can be utilised to maximum effect. For example, if the battery has just been fully charged by the diesel and the load is very low, the renewable may be producing power that Cannot be utilised anywhere in the system. © Murdoch University 48Parallel Hybrid System - With PV Array Diesel + Engine i Generator aay Loads Bi-directional Inverter ‘Automatic control and synchronisation Charge PV Array Controller Figure 14: A parallel hybrid RAPS system with a PV renewable input Parallel Hybrid System - With Wind Turbine Diesol ¢ Engine ; -— Generator | Ballory Loads Bi-directional Inverter ‘Automatic control Charge and synchronisatrion Controller “dump Wind Turbine load Figure 15: A parallel hybrid RAPS system with a wind renewable input ‘© Murdoch University. 0 49