Unified Platform for Automated Tests of Inverter-Based Resources with Harware-in-the-loop

Luiz F. R. Menegazzo; Anderson L. N. Severo; Lucas Bisêlo Piton; Catherine Marquioro de Freitas; Ricardo Jochann Franceschi Bortolini; Lucas Vizzotto Bellinaso; Leandro Michels; Fernanda de Morais Carnielutti

doi:10.18618/REP.e202443

Authors

Luiz F. R. Menegazzo Universidade Federal de Santa Maria https://orcid.org/0009-0006-5824-8633
Anderson L. N. Severo Universidade Federal de Santa Maria https://orcid.org/0009-0000-5706-1574
Lucas Bisêlo Piton Universidade Federal de Santa Maria https://orcid.org/0009-0007-4031-5508
Catherine Marquioro de Freitas Universidade Federal de Santa Maria https://orcid.org/0009-0008-9067-192X
Ricardo Jochann Franceschi Bortolini Universidade Federal de Santa Maria https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7314-7762
Lucas Vizzotto Bellinaso Universidade Federal de Santa Maria https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0979-0948
Leandro Michels Universidade Federal de Santa Maria https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7961-8836
Fernanda de Morais Carnielutti Universidade Federal de Santa Maria https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8257-7580

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.18618/REP.e202443

Keywords:

CHIL, Inverter-based Resources, Hardware-in-the-loop, Photovoltaic Inverter, Test automation, Test Platform

Abstract

Testing of inverter-based resources (IBRs) faces challenges in establishing standardized procedures across all product development stages. Most of the testing approaches use Hardware-in-the-Loop (HIL) during the early stages independently from the final product testing, which can lead to discrepant results. To solve these issues, this paper proposes a unified platform for automatically testing IBRs. It can be used during all product development stages, from pure simulation to Controller Hardware-in-the-Loop (CHIL) and finally on the complete commercial product, ensuring uniform test procedures with different test setups. A case study describing compliance tests of grid-connection codes of photovoltaic (PV) inverters are presented to demonstrate the proposed approach. Experimental tests were performed in accordance to Brazilian grid-connection codes in an ISO/IEC 17025 accredited laboratory. The results obtained with the proposed platform in CHIL and full-hardware showed high similarity with the ones obtained with the accredited laboratory, validating the proposed approach. In addition, the platform can be used to perform tests not specified in standards and to verify the performance of IBRs in operating conditions that are often difficult to be tested in laboratory. Ensuring consistent test procedures, the platform facilitates comparable results along all the testing stages, reducing the product development cycle.

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Author Biographies

Luiz F. R. Menegazzo, Universidade Federal de Santa Maria

received his B.S. degree in Electrical Engineering in 2021, followed by his M.Sc. degree in Electrical Engineering from the Federal University of Santa Maria (UFSM), Santa Maria, Brazil, in 2023. He has been a researcher with the Power Electronics and Control Group (GEPOC) since 2018. His research interests include hardware-in-the-loop, test automation, photovoltaic systems, and power electronics. Additionally, he is a member of the technical standards committees ABNT/CB-003/CE 003 082 and IEC/TC 82.

Anderson L. N. Severo, Universidade Federal de Santa Maria

graduated in control and automation engineering in 2021 from the Federal University of Santa Maria (UFSM), Santa Maria, Brazil, where he obtained a master's degree in electrical engineering in 2024. He is currently Technical Manager of the Photovoltaic Testing Laboratory at Federal University of Santa Maria and Researcher at the Power and Control Electronics Research Group (GEPOC) at UFSM. His research interests include measurement algorithms for test certification, uncertainty analysis, photovoltaic inverters and power electronics for renewable energy.

Lucas Bisêlo Piton, Universidade Federal de Santa Maria

bachelor's degree in electrical engineering in 2024 from the Federal University of Santa Maria (UFSM), Santa Maria, Brazil. He currently works at WEG SA in the commercial engine research and development sector, Jaraguá do Sul, Brazil.

Catherine Marquioro de Freitas, Universidade Federal de Santa Maria

obtained her bachelor's degree in electrical engineering in 2020 from the Universidade Regional do Noroeste do Estado do Rio Grande do Sul (UNIJUÍ), Ijuí, Brazil. She received her master's degree in electrical engineering in 2023 from the Federal University of Santa Maria (UFSM), Santa Maria, Brazil. She currently works at the Integrated Operations Center of the energy distributor CEEE-D Equatorial, Porto Alegre, Brazil.

Ricardo Jochann Franceschi Bortolini, Universidade Federal de Santa Maria

received the B.Sc. in Control and Automation Engineering by Federal University of Santa Maria (UFSM) in 2015, M. Sc. and Dr. in Electrical Engineering from Federal University of Santa Maria (UFSM) in 2018 and 2023 respectively. He worked as Technical Manager at the Photovoltaic Inverters Testing Laboratory in the Smart Grids Institute (INRI-UFSM), from 2017 to 2023. Since 2023, he is R\&D\&I Project Manager at the INRI-UFSM Embrapii unit (Brazilian Company of Research and Industrial Innovation). Besides, he is a researcher at GEPOC and a member of SOBRAEP and IEC. Your main research interests include renewable energy, power electronics, system testing and validation and hardware-in-the-loop.

Lucas Vizzotto Bellinaso, Universidade Federal de Santa Maria

received his B.S. and M.S. degrees in electrical engineering in 2012, followed by his M.Sc. and Ph.D. degrees in electrical engineering from the Federal University of Santa Maria (UFSM), Santa Maria, Brazil, in 2014 and 2017, respectively. Since 2015, he has been with the Power Electronics and Control Group (GEPOC) at the same university, where he is currently Professor. His research interests include PV systems, power electronics and control applied to renewable energy systems, and safety of PV systems. Additionally, he is currently National Secretary of ABNT/CB-003/CE 003 082, the Brazilian mirror committee of IEC TC 82.

Leandro Michels, Universidade Federal de Santa Maria

(S'97 M'08) received the B.S and Ph.D. degrees from the Federal University of Santa Maria (UFSM), Brazil, in 2002 and 2006, respectively, both in electrical engineering. Since 2009 he has been with the Power Electronics and Control Research Group (GEPOC) at UFSM, where he is currently an Associate Professor. He was director of Smart Grids Institute (INRI/UFSM) and of the Unit on Energy and Mobility of Brazilian Company of Research and Industrial Innovation (Embrapii). Dr. Michels is Research Productivity Grant level DT-1A of Brazilian National Council for Scientific and Technological Development (CNPq). He has works in the field of photovoltaic systems as manager of the laboratory of PV inverters, in working groups to develop of IEC and Brazilian photovoltaic standards, as well as in R\&D projects with industry. His current research interests include photovoltaic systems, modeling and control of static converters and standards compliance.

Fernanda de Morais Carnielutti, Universidade Federal de Santa Maria

received the bachelor's degree in electrical engineering in 2010 from the Federal University of Santa Maria (UFSM), Santa Maria, Brazil, where she received the master's and doctoral degrees in electrical engineering in 2012 and 2015, respectively. From 2016 to 2018, she was a Professor with the Federal University of Santa Maria, campus Cachoeira do Sul. She is currently a Professor with the Federal University of Santa Maria, campus Santa Maria and a Researcher with the Power Electronics and Control Research Group (GEPOC), UFSM. Her research interests include control and modulation of static power converters, multilevel converters, power electronics for renewable energies, microgrids and model predictive control. Dr. Carnielutti is a member of the IEEE Power Electronics Society, IEEE Industrial Electronics Society, and IEEE Industry Applications Society.

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