Diesel-Off Research at ACEP’s ETF

After months of preparing the Energy Technology Facility for the Hatch flywheel installation and then providing technical support to Hatch engineers who were onsite for several weeks of testing, the ET F is  being transformed for its next research project.  ACEP’s Power Systems Integration (PSI) team will soon be utilizing the ETF to develop control strategies and refine technology to operate a microgrid in “diesel-off” mode, that is by using only variable renewable energy sources to demonstrate whether “diesel-off” is feasible, researchers will be using the newest addition to the ETF: a 320 kVA PCS100 inverter developed by ABB joined with a 540 VDC/1000 Ah valve regulated lead-acid (VRLA) battery bank.

Initial results involving the Williams MLC200 flywheel showed that the system was capable of supporting diesel-off mode for a short period of time.  PSI researchers intend to show that by connecting the ABB inverter to the newly built out battery bank, longer term diesel-off operation will be possible.

LEFT:  New ABB inverter located in ETF.

RIGHT:  Battery bank in the process of being built out and integrated.  Photos courtesy of M. Frey, ACEP/UAF.