MATLAB/Simulink Versus Refined Real Time Simulation of an Alternative Electrical Energy System in Dynamic Aspects

Dynamic behavior of alternative energy based Hybrid Power System (HPS) is commonly analyzed using Matlab/ Simulink. This way of simulation has the limitation in interfacing the model with hardware for real time control, which in turn limits in span of the simulation and consumes more time for simulation. Besides, simulator choice for the designed dynamic model is also constrained. Though, this simulation results may satisfies the system performance, the same may not be implemented practically in real time scenarios. This raises a new thought of modeling the HPS, which can be practically implementable. Hence, this paper proposes an original philosophy for modeling and simulation of HPS with improved simulation capabilities like fidelity, speed, and effective real time control. The method uses Programmable Logic Controllers (PLCs) instead of Matlab/Simulink for modeling and simulation of HPS dynamics. This supports effective control through a real time controller, and also provides Human Machine Interface (HMI). The constituents of HPS are Photo Voltaic (PV) cells, Fuel cell (FC), Diesel generator (DG), Inverter, and Wind Turbine (WT) system, and are combined for islanding mode. For the system, the dynamics are obtained and compared with the conventional simulation. Energy management unit monitors the load conditions and switches the sources accordingly. Keywords— Hybrid Power System (HPS), Renewable Energy Sources, Programmable Logic Controller (PLC), Energy Management and Control units, Dynamic characteristics