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Optimal control of a conventional hydropower system with hydrokinetic/wind powered pumpback operation

Dissertation (MEng)--University of Pretoria, 2017.

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Other Authors: Xia, Xiaohua
Format: Thesis
Language:English
Published: University of Pretoria 2017
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access_status_str Open Access
author2 Xia, Xiaohua
author_browse Xia, Xiaohua
author_facet Xia, Xiaohua
collection Thesis
dc_rights_str_mv © 2017 University of Pretoria. All rights reserved. The copyright in this work vests in the University of Pretoria. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, without the prior written permission of the University of Pretoria.
description Dissertation (MEng)--University of Pretoria, 2017.
format Thesis
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institution University of Pretoria (South Africa)
language English
last_indexed 2026-06-10T12:37:51.329Z
license_str Other — see source repository
provenance_str_mv Harvested via OAI-PMH from UPSpace — University of Pretoria Institutional Repository
publishDate 2017
publishDateRange 2017
publishDateSort 2017
publisher University of Pretoria
publisherStr University of Pretoria
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source_str UPSpace — University of Pretoria Institutional Repository
spelling oai:repository.up.ac.za:2263/61549 Optimal control of a conventional hydropower system with hydrokinetic/wind powered pumpback operation Xia, Xiaohua Fazil.wamalwa@gmail.com Sichilalu, Sam M. Wamalwa, Fhazhil Hydraulic head Optimal control Minimum environmental flow Optimal pump scheduling Optimal pumpback operation UCTD Dissertation (MEng)--University of Pretoria, 2017. The need to ease pressure from the depleting fossil fuel reserves coupled with the rising global energy demand has seen a drastic increase in research and uptake of renewable energy sources in recent decades. Of the commonly exploited renewable energy resources, hydropower is currently the most popular resource accounting for 17% of the world's total energy generation, a portion which translates to 85% of the renewable energy share. However, despite the huge potential, hydropower is dependent on the availability of water resource, which is affected by climate change. During wet seasons, hydropower system operators are faced with a deluge of floods which results in excess power generation and spillage. The situation reverses in dry seasons where system operators are compelled to curtail power generation because of low water levels in the hydro reservoirs. The later situation is more pronounced in drought prone regions such as Southern Africa where some hydropower plants are completely shut down in dry seasons due to water shortage. This dissertation focuses on the application of optimal control to hydropower plants with pumpback retrofits powered by on-site hydrokinetic and wind power systems. The first section of this work develops an optimal operation strategy for a high head hydropower plant retrofitted with hydrokinetic-powered cascaded pumpback system in dry season. The objective of pumpback operation is to recycle a part of the downstream discharged water back to the main dam to maintain a high water level required for optimal power generation. The problem is formulated as a discrete optimisation problem to simultaneously minimise the grid pumping energy demand, minimise the wear and tear associated with the switching frequency of the two pumps in cascade, maximise restoration of the reservoir volume through pumpback operation and maximise the use of on-site generated hydrokinetic power for pumping operation. Simulation results based on a practical case study show the pumping energy saving advantages of the cascaded pumping system as compared to a classical pumped storage (PS) system. The second section of this work develops an optimal control system for assessing the effects of ecological flow constraints to the operation of a hydropower plant with a hydrokinetic-wind powered pumpback retrofit. The aim of the control law in this case is to use the allocated water to optimally meet the contractual obligations of the power plant. The problem is formulated as a discrete optimisation problem to maximise the energy output of the reservoir subject to some defined technical and hydrological constraints. In this system, pumping power is met primarily by the wind power generator output supplemented by the on-site generated hydrokinetic power. The excess hydrokinetic power is exported to the grid to meet the committed demand. Three different optimisation scenarios are developed: The first scenario is the baseline operation of the hydropower plant without any intervention. The second scenario incorporates the hydrokinetic-wind-powered pumpback operation in the optimal control policy. The third scenario includes the downstream flow constraint to the optimal control policy of the second optimisation scenario. Simulation results based on a practical case study show that ecological flow constraints have negative effects to the economic performance of a hydropower plant. MasterCard Foundation Scholars Program Centre of New Energy Systems University of Pretoria Electrical, Electronic and Computer Engineering MEng Unrestricted 2017-08-02T07:30:28Z 2017-08-02T07:30:28Z 2017-09-08 2017 Dissertation Wamalwa, F 2017, Optimal control of a conventional hydropower system with hydrokinetic/wind powered pumpback operation, MEng Dissertation, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, viewed yymmdd <http://hdl.handle.net/2263/61549> S2017 http://hdl.handle.net/2263/61549 en © 2017 University of Pretoria. All rights reserved. The copyright in this work vests in the University of Pretoria. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, without the prior written permission of the University of Pretoria. application/pdf University of Pretoria
spellingShingle Hydraulic head
Optimal control
Minimum environmental flow
Optimal pump scheduling
Optimal pumpback operation
UCTD
Optimal control of a conventional hydropower system with hydrokinetic/wind powered pumpback operation
title Optimal control of a conventional hydropower system with hydrokinetic/wind powered pumpback operation
title_full Optimal control of a conventional hydropower system with hydrokinetic/wind powered pumpback operation
title_fullStr Optimal control of a conventional hydropower system with hydrokinetic/wind powered pumpback operation
title_full_unstemmed Optimal control of a conventional hydropower system with hydrokinetic/wind powered pumpback operation
title_short Optimal control of a conventional hydropower system with hydrokinetic/wind powered pumpback operation
title_sort optimal control of a conventional hydropower system with hydrokinetic wind powered pumpback operation
topic Hydraulic head
Optimal control
Minimum environmental flow
Optimal pump scheduling
Optimal pumpback operation
UCTD
url http://hdl.handle.net/2263/61549