Specify the matching of motor drive and electric machine in prime mover emulators

In either a hardware-in-the-loop (HIL) testbed of power system or a testing of an experimental machine such as a new electric generator, it would be necessary to substitute a surrogate mechanical power source for a prime mover that is not available or inapplicable onsite. In order to meet this need, the behavior of the prime mover can be emulated by an electric machine energized and controlled by a power electronic motor drive. The prime mover can be various mechanical power sources such as gas turbine, diesel engine and wind turbine, etc. In this research, we focus on using controlled alternative-current (AC) electric machines, i. e. induction machines and synchronous machines, to emulate prime movers. Based on linearization and power balance, an equation is derived to specify the matching of motor drive and electric machine in prime mover emulators (PMEs). This equation helps the selection of a motor drive and an electric machine in appropriate pair for a prime mover to be emulated. It also helps the design of test items for PMEs. The effectiveness of the matching equation has been verified by simulation tests in Matlab/Simulink.