Degradation Trend Prediction of Pumped Storage Unit Based on MIC-LGBM and VMD-GRU Combined Model

The harsh operating environment aggravates the degradation of pumped storage units (PSUs). Degradation trend prediction (DTP) provides important support for the condition-based maintenance of PSUs. However, the complexity of the performance degradation index (PDI) sequence poses a severe challenge of the reliability of DTP. Additionally, the accuracy of healthy model is often ignored, resulting in an unconvincing PDI. To solve these problems, a combined DTP model that integrates the maximal information coefficient (MIC), light gradient boosting machine (LGBM), variational mode decomposition (VMD) and gated recurrent unit (GRU) is proposed. Firstly, MIC-LGBM is utilized to generate a high-precision healthy model. MIC is applied to select the working parameters with the most relevance, then the LGBM is utilized to construct the healthy model. Afterwards, a performance degradation index (PDI) is generated based on the LGBM healthy model and monitoring data. Finally, the VMD-GRU prediction model is designed to achieve precise DTP under the complex PDI sequence. The proposed model is verified by applying it to a PSU located in Zhejiang province, China. The results reveal that the proposed model achieves the highest precision healthy model and the best prediction performance compared with other comparative models. The absolute average (|AVG|) and standard deviation (STD) of fitting errors are reduced to 0.0275 and 0.9245, and the RMSE, MAE, and R2 are 0.00395, 0.0032, and 0.9226 respectively, on average for two operating conditions.

Roadmap to Profitability for a Speed-Controlled Micro-Hydro Storage System Using Pumps as Turbines

Storage technologies are an emerging element in the further expansion of renewable energy generation. A decentralized micro-pumped storage power plant can reduce the load on the grid and contribute to the expansion of renewable energies. This paper establishes favorable boundary conditions for the economic operation of a micro-pump storage (MPS) system. The evaluation is performed by means of a custom-built simulation model based on pump and turbine maps which are either given by the manufacturer, calculated according to rules established in studies, or extended using similarity laws. Among other criteria, the technical and economic characteristics regarding micro-pump storage using 11 pumps as turbines controlled by a frequency converter for various generation and load scenarios are evaluated. The economical concept is based on a small company (e.g., a dairy farmer) reducing its electricity consumption from the grid by storing the electricity generated by a photovoltaic system in an MPS using a pump as a turbine. The results show that due to the high specific costs incurred, systems with a nominal output in excess of around 22 kW and with heads beyond approximately 70 m are the most profitable. In the most economical case, a levelized cost of electricity (LCOE) of 29.2 €cents/kWh and total storage efficiency of 42.0% is achieved by optimizing the system for the highest profitability.

Research on Seepage Control of Jurong Pumped Storage Hydroelectric Power Station

Based on the geological and hydrogeological conditions of the Jurong Pumped Storage Hydroelectric Power Station (JPSHP), a 3D groundwater flow model was developed in the power station area, which took into account the heterogeneity and anisotropy of fractured rocks. A control inversion method for fractured rock structural planes was proposed, where larger-scale fractures were used as water-conducting media and the relatively intact rock matrix was used as water-storage media. A statistical method was used to obtain the geometric parameter values of the structural planes, so as to obtain the hydraulic conductivity tensor of the fractured rocks. Combining the impermeable drainage systems of the upper storage reservoir, underground powerhouse and lower storage reservoir, the 3D groundwater seepage field in the study area was predicted using the calibrated model. The leakage amounts of the upper storage reservoir, powerhouse and lower storage reservoir were 710.48 m3/d, 969.95 m3/d and 1657.55 m3/d, respectively. The leakage changes of the upper storage reservoir, powerhouse and lower storage reservoir were discussed under the partial and full failure of the anti-seepage system. The research results provide a scientific basis for the seepage control of the power station, and it is recommended to strengthen the seepage control of the upper and lower storage reservoirs and the underground powerhouse to avoid excessive leakage and affect the efficiency of the reservoir operation.

Nonlinear Modeling of Dynamic Characteristics of Pump-Turbine

Hydropower is a kind of clean energy, which can effectively reduce the consumption of fossil energy and is one of the main fields of new energy development. Pumped storage power station not only provides a solution for storing electric energy and generating excess, but also is a clean, efficient, economical and safe power system regulation method with high quality. Accurate modeling of a pump-turbine, as the core equipment of a pumped storage unit, is the key to safe and stable operation of the pumped storage unit. At present, a method of simplifying the external characteristics of a pump-turbine into a first-order linear model is widely used, which cannot effectively and accurately reveal the nonlinear dynamic characteristics of the unit in transition process. In order to meet the demand of high-precision simulation of the unit, a new method of identifying Taylor series expansion considering nonlinearity based on the torque characteristic formula and the flow characteristic formula is proposed, which is applied to the pump-turbine external characteristic model, and retains the second derivative term, making the model a second-order nonlinear model, and thus, the pump-turbine model becomes a nonlinear model. The nonlinear model established is used to simulate the load increase and load rejection of the unit, and the results are compared with those for the linear model. The comparison shows that the nonlinear model established for the pump-turbine can reveal the dynamic response of the unit more effectively and accurately than the linear model, and provide a further guarantee for the safe and stable operation of pumped-storage units, which is of great significance to hydropower energy development.

Hopf Bifurcation and Parameter Sensitivity Analysis of a Doubly-Fed Variable-Speed Pumped Storage Unit

The doubly-fed variable speed pumped storage unit is a storage system suitable for joint operation with renewable energy sources to smooth the imbalance between renewable energy supply and electricity demand. However, its working principle and operation control are more complex than those of constant speed pumped storage. In this study, a nonlinear model of doubly-fed variable speed pumped storage units (VSPSUs) considering nonlinear characteristics of the head loss is established. The study finds that a supercritical Hopf bifurcation occurs in the system, and the area enclosed by the lower side of the bifurcation line and the coordinate axis is the stability domain of the system. The active power step perturbation from −0.3 to 0.3 will gradually reduce the area of the stability domain and narrow the adjustable range of the control parameters. In addition, the sensitivity of the model full state variables and the primary and secondary relationships to the changes of subsystem parameters is analyzed systematically using the trajectory sensitivity. It is found that there is a large difference in the sensitivity of different state variables to the parameters. The state variables are much more sensitive to the transfer coefficient of hydraulic turbine torque to guide vane opening, the unit inertia time constant, and the controller proportional gain change than other parameters, which are defined as highly sensitive parameters. The receiver response time constant and the turbine flow-to-head transfer coefficient are the corresponding low-sensitivity parameters.

A Hybrid Novel Fuzzy MCDM Method for Comprehensive Performance Evaluation of Pumped Storage Power Station in China

Considering the goals of carbon peaking and carbon neutrality, along with their related policies, pumped storage power stations are set to develop quickly in China. The comprehensive performance of pumped storage power stations must urgently be evaluated, which can help investors in decision making and provide a reference for policymakers. In this paper, a hybrid novel fuzzy multicriteria decision-making (MCDM) method combining the fuzzy best worst method (BWM) and fuzzy TOPSIS was proposed for the comprehensive performance evaluation of pumped storage power stations in China. The fuzzy BWM was utilized to determine the criteria weights describing the comprehensive performance of pumped storage power stations, while the fuzzy TOPSIS was used to rank the comprehensive performance of pumped storage power stations. The index system for the comprehensive performance evaluation of pumped storage power stations in China incorporated economic, social, and environmental aspects. The comprehensive performance of four pumped storage power stations in China was empirically evaluated using the proposed hybrid novel fuzzy MCDM method, and the results indicate that pumped storage power station PSPS2 exhibited the best comprehensive performance, followed by pumped storage power stations PSPS1 and PSPS4, whereas pumped storage power station PSPS3 had the worst comprehensive performance. A sensitivity analysis and comparative analysis were also conducted. The results indicate that the proposed hybrid novel fuzzy MCDM method, combining the fuzzy BWM and fuzzy TOPSIS for comprehensive performance evaluation of pumped storage power stations, is robust and effective.