Restructuring And Innovating Of Power System Analysis And Power Electronics Courses At The University Of Northern Iowa

Abstract

This paper presents; (1) innovating changes to a course, power system analysis (PSA), and (2) development of a new course, industrial applications of power electronics (IAPE) aided with advanced power system simulation studies at the University of Northern Iowa (UNI), Electro- Mechanical Systems (EMS) – Engineering Technology division of Industrial Technology Department. Basic energy and power concepts will be introduced in required major core courses and this change will provide students the core background in power along with additional breadth in digital systems, signal theory, and basics of modern control theory. Students will also be introduced to power quality issues of grid-connected solar and wind powered systems in both classes. Real-time power monitoring studies will be part of the laboratory sessions of the PSA course. The PSA course will be dealing with mostly the complete system and related topics, while the IAPE course will be concentrating on individual devices and drives. Since the EMS program does not have a physical power system simulator yet, a well-known power system simulation program PSCAD/EMTDC developed by Manitoba HVDC Research Center will be used as a digital simulation tool in both courses. Two example cases are simulated, and the results are reported in this study. The first one is a power system fault study, which includes generator, transformers, transmission lines, circuit breakers, and three separate loads including one 500 HP induction motor. The second case study is an AC/DC power system interaction based on a proposed 1000 MW High Voltage Direct Current (HVDC) transmission line between Wyoming and California in order to export Wyoming’s rich electrical power resources.

I. Introduction

Although electrical power engineering education continues to be a great area in the U.S., traditional energy system and electrical machinery courses have been adversely affected by the lack of undergraduate and graduate enrollments at the University of Northern Iowa as well as at some other U.S. colleges. The traditional power and electrical machinery courses are based on an overwhelming amount of analysis starting from the introduction to three-phase and magnetic circuits to machine theory, and systems. Therefore, this may be one reason for declining student interest in power system and machinery courses. However, there are a lot of opportunities for a dynamic professor to attract students to engineering and technology teaching and research in the electrical power area by stimulating interdisciplinary topics using modern control, digital systems, fuzzy logic, neural networks, and signal processing. There are many promising studies documenting the results in curriculum development in energy and power area. An interconnected power systems laboratory aided with data acquisition and