IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON SMART GRID, VOL. 6, NO.
1, JANUARY 2015
Design and Active Control of a Microgrid Testbed
Greg Turner, Member, IEEE, Jay P. Kelley, Student Member, IEEE, Caroline L. Storm,
David A. Wetz, Jr., Senior Member, IEEE, and Wei-Jen Lee, Fellow, IEEE
Abstract—Researchers at the University of Texas at Arlington
(UTA) have installed a novel Microgrid testbed architecture that
will be used for educational and research purposes. This paper
documents the architecture of the UTA grid, the development of
the national instruments based active control system, and some
of the research progress made thus far. The specific commercial
off the shelf components that make up the hardware in the sys-
tem, which is actually broken up into three independent smaller
grids, is described. A custom interconnection architecture will
also be discussed that enables the three individual Microgrids to
operate independently or in an actively interconnected mode of
operation. The implementation of system control software will
be presented in terms of the state machine used to develop the
software. Finally, experimental data gathered from the dynamic
performance of the Microgrid will be presented.
Index Terms—Microgrid, renewable energy, smart grid.
I. I NTRODUCTION
HE UNITED States (U.S.) Department of Energy (DoE)
T has a goal to upgrade the nation’s electrical grid to a
more intelligent, efficient, robust, and reliable architecture by
2030 [1]. This architecture is commonly referred to as the
smart grid due to the integration of a sensor and communica-
tion network capable of monitoring and controlling the flow of
energy in real-time. As stated on the DoE’s website, the smart
grid can be thought of as the computerizing of the electric
utility grid. Part of this involves having real time commu-
nication among the various utility operation centers, sensor
networks, and the electricity consumers [2], [3]. The smart
grid architecture integrates many different energy generation
technologies which can include solar panels, fuel cells, wind
turbines, batteries, coal fired, hydro, nuclear, and natural gas
power generation facilities, among others. The variety of dis-
tributed generation sources enables energy to be generated and
consumed in the most efficient, affordable, and reliable man-
ner at all times. Energy storage systems are also distributed
throughout the grid to ensure that energy is always available
to serve critical loads in the event of an outage or for use in
mitigating the intermittence of the renewable energy resources
such as wind and solar.
Manuscript received December 19, 2013; revised April 14, 2014 and
May 29, 2014; accepted July 12, 2014. Date of publication August 7, 2014;
date of current version December 17, 2014. This work was supported by the
U.S. Department of Energy’s National Energy Technology Laboratory under
Contract DE-OE000036. Paper no. TSG-00926-2013.
The authors are with the Electrical Engineering Department, University
of Texas at Arlington, Arlington, TX 76019-0016 USA (e-mail:
gregory.turner@mavs.uta.edu).
Color versions of one or more of the figures in this paper are available
online at http://ieeexplore.ieee.org.
Digital Object Identifier 10.1109/TSG.2014.2340376
1949-3053 c 2014 IEEE. Personal use is permitted, but republication/redistribution requires IEEE permission.
See http://www.ieee.org/publications_standards/publications/rights/index.html for more information.
73
The large component count, the complex control
architecture, and the development and implementation
of safety standards makes implementing the smart grid an
extremely large undertaking. Therefore, the DoE continues
to sponsor many research efforts at universities, national
laboratories, and industrial facilities within the U.S. in order
to make the smart grid concept a reality. Many of these
research efforts are purely software based simulations of
Microgrid operation and control theory [4], [5] while others
have developed hardware platforms on which to evaluate how
the hardware and control systems behave in complex scenar-
ios [6], [7]. Each of the hardware platforms developed are
unique with each having their own strengths and weaknesses.
Researchers at the University of Texas at Arlington (UTA)
have utilized their expertise in power system and control sys-
tem design to develop a three-tiered hierarchical structure to
describe the Microgrid control system [8]. The primary and
secondary tiers of this hierarchy deal with the actual control
of power electronic elements in the Microgrid for the pur-
pose of producing ac power from dc and also maintaining
proper voltage and frequency stability. The testing of these
control schemes are most easily performed in MATLAB or
other simulation environment. In the third, or tertiary, level
of this hierarchy the control system is concerned with opti-
mal performance of power flow of the Microgrid when it
is connected to a utility grid and possibly interconnected to
other Microgrids. The testing of optimal high level perfor-
mance control schemes is difficult to test in a MATLAB
simulation environment and is better suited for testing in an
actual Microgrid with real hardware. A flexible architecture
that enables multiple Microgrid to be connected together and
while serving multiple arbitrary loads is the goal of the UTA
Microgrid testbed.
Universities such as Santa Clara [9] and Illinois Institute of
Technology (IIT) [10] have transformed parts of the power sys-
tem of their respective universities into a Microgrid. This type
of sustainable infrastructure enables each university’s respec-
tive researchers to use their grid as an educational tool as
well as a research platform. Because the grid is actually being
used by the university for its electricity service, it enables
researchers to observe how this type of grid responds to real
life events. While this is very beneficial, it is also restrictive
in a research setting since the grid’s loads can no longer be
readily altered for the purpose of laboratory experimentation.
Power interruption in these grids may have severe conse-
quences to the users. This decreases the university’s ability
to focus on design and development research in exchange for
a higher focus on applications based studies. West Virginia
74
University has implemented their Microgrid in a community
setting so the operational use of a Microgrid by ordinary
people, in what they call an ETOWN, can be studied [11].
For those unfamiliar, an ETOWN is a small city that is actu-
ally a living laboratory. Research performed in the ETOWN is
used to determine the success of a certain technology in a lim-
ited setting before integrating it into the larger environment.
The technologies and human practices necessary for a city to
leave a low carbon footprint are being developed.
Other universities and industrial researchers have devel-
oped isolated testbeds to be used for architecture and control
system development. The consortium for electric reliability
technology solutions (CERTS) was founded in 1999 as a
way to get a team of researchers at four national labora-
tories, nine universities, and eight industrial organizations
working together to solve these complex challenges. The uni-
versity members include Arizona State, UC Berkeley, Cornell,
Georgia Tech, University of Illinois, Iowa State, Texas A&M,
University of Wisconsin, and Washington State. The main
CERTS Microgrid testbed is located at the Walnut Test facility
in Columbus, Ohio and it is primarily operated by American
Electric Power. The CERTS Microgrid was created for the
development a semi-universal Microgrid control architecture
that can be widely used rather than each installation requiring
a custom engineered control system [12], [13].
Along the same lines, researchers at the University of Texas
at Arlington (UTA), with support from the DoE’s NETL,
have installed a Microgrid testbed on campus for educa-
tional and research purposes. The unique features of the
UTA grid include the use of a national instruments (NI)
CompactRio embedded control system and the novel sys-
tem architecture which consists of three Microgrids operating
independently or in an interconnected manner. This design
allows the study of novel architectures and peer based com-
munication strategies to be carried out. Solar, wind, and
fuel-cell renewable energy sources have been installed and
integrated with the legacy electrical grid, a diesel generator,
and energy storage modules. A description of the grid capa-
bilities and research benefits will be discussed in the sections
that follow.
II. H ARDWARE A RCHITECTURE
UTAs Microgrid testbed is divided into three sub-grids. A
block diagram of the current setup is shown in Fig. 1. Each
sub-grid has its own distributed energy source (DES), dynam-
ically reconfigurable real-time control system, and dedicated
loads. This enables each of the sub-grids to function as an
independent Microgrid. A central ring architecture enables
each sub-grid to service or source either of the other two via a
central ac bus. This architecture was chosen for two reasons.
First, the DoEs smart grid concept involves the communica-
tion and interconnection of several independent Microgrids,
in what could be considered smart nodes, to promote system
reliability and efficiency. Second, the Department of Defense’s
(DoDs) planned electrical architectures involve the communi-
cation of several different DESs configured in various smaller
grid configurations throughout the platform or base installa-
tion [14]. Therefore, the current UTA configuration supports
both of these agencies’ missions.
IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON SMART GRID, VOL. 6, NO. 1, JANUARY 2015
Fig. 1. Block diagram of the UTA Microgrid testbed.
The UTA Microgrid incorporates several different renew-
able energy sources along with a conventional diesel generator
and the legacy electrical grid to power the testbed loads.
Each of the three sub-grids harnesses wind energy through
the installation of 300 W HiVAWT vertical axis wind tur-
bines [15] and solar energy via 230 W Schott solar panels [16].
A total of 1.2 kW of wind turbines and 2.76 kW of solar
panels is installed. Each of the three sub-grids has four,
∼30 V, 230 W solar panels installed that are connected in
a 2 series/2 parallel configuration. The solar panels installed
on sub-grid one and three are fed into each grid’s own ded-
icated FLEXmax 60 maximum-power-point-tracking (MPPT)
charge controller manufactured by Outback Power [17]. Each
of the series stacked solar panels connected on sub-grid two
is fed into its own Xantrex C40 pulse width modulated
(PWM) charge controller [18]. The different charge controllers
were chosen so that researchers and students could com-
pare the difference between the MPPT and PWM charging
technologies. The MPPT charge controller is more sophisti-
cated than the PWM controller in that it actively monitors the
renewable source voltage and the battery voltage. The volt-
age from the renewable source is then converted to the best
voltage that will maximize the current into the battery. The
overall effect is that maximum power is always transferred to
the battery. Microgrid 1 has two DS300 wind turbines installed
while the other two only have one. Each of the wind turbines
are fed directly into its own 400 W MPPT charge controller
manufactured by HiVAWT.
In addition to the renewable DESs discussed above, sub-
grid one has a NEXA 1.2 kW proton exchange membrane
(PEM) fuel cell manufactured by Ballard Power Systems [19]
installed. The working voltage of the fuel cell starts out at 45 V
and decreases down to 26 V as the output power approaches
1.2 kW. A 5 kW dc-dc buck converter developed by Zahn
Electronics conditions the fuel cell’s unregulated power and
ties it into the grid’s 24 V dc bus [20]. Each sub-grid has
two series connected 12 V—1150 CCA DieHard Platinum gel-
cell batteries for energy storage [21]. The regulated dc output
TURNER et al.: DESIGN AND ACTIVE CONTROL OF A MICROGRID TESTBED 75

TABLE I
voltage from each charge controller ties into the batteries D ISTRIBUTED E NERGY S OURCE (DES) S PECIFICATIONS
which provide energy when the ac grid is unavailable or
the cost of energy from the legacy grid is prohibitive. While
gel-cell batteries are currently installed, future plans include
installing other forms of electrochemical energy storage, such
as lithium-ion batteries, lithium-ion capacitors, and super-
capacitors in order to understand the benefits these new
technologies offer for driving both conventional and high
power Smart loads.
The 24 V dc bus on each of the sub-grids connects directly
to a dedicated dc/ac sine wave grid-tie inverter manufactured
by Outback Power Systems. A GTFX1424 [22], 1400 W
inverter is installed on sub-grid’s two and three while a
GTFX2524 [23] 2500 W inverter is installed on sub-grid one
due to the higher input power available. Each inverter can TABLE II
operate in an islanded or grid-tied mode of operation and out- C HARGE C ONTROLLER AND I NVERTER S PECIFICATIONS
puts a 60 Hz, single phase, 120 V ac sine wave. The output
of each inverter goes through a no-fuse-breaker (NFB) first
that automatically opens in an overcurrent event for safety.
Second, the current feeds into a digitally controlled solid state
relay (SSR) [24], which provides controllability using a real
time control system. Finally, each SSRs output feeds energy
to its respective sub-grid’s main ac bus.
Each grid has dedicated loads connected to its respective
central ac bus via a series connection of a NFB and a SSR
to ensure safety, controllability, reliability, and flexibility. A
3.6 kW, ac/dc, 63803 programmable load manufactured by
Chroma Systems [25] is connected on each grid as a means
to simulate a realistic load profile and implement a transient
loading capability. In addition to the programmable loads, con-
ventional loads such as light bulbs, fans, etc. can also be
installed on each grid and controlled using the load’s dedi- Table II. A simple connection diagram of the entire testbed
cated SSR. The digital controllability enables researchers to just described is shown in Fig. 2 and photographs of various
develop load shedding algorithms which ensure that the most portions of the testbed are shown in Figs. 3–6.
critical loads will have power in the event of a shortage. In its current configuration, each Microgrid has four load
In the normal mode of operation, the inverters operate in lines, each of which is connected to the ac bus via its own NFB
a grid-tied fashion, connected to the central ac bus, using the and SSR for safety and independent controllability, respec-
legacy electrical grid as a reference. This mode of operation tively. The first two load lines of each Microgrid are connected
allows the inverters to use the legacy grid to power loads and in parallel to a Chroma model 63803 programmable ac/dc
charge energy storage devices. Once charged, the energy stor- Load. This type of load is programmable in constant current,
age system can be used to serve the loads. This mitigates constant resistance, constant voltage, constant power, and rec-
the intermittence of the renewable generation (RG) resources tified load modes of operation. It can dissipate 3.6 kW with
and provides ancillary services to the grid. In the event of a a peak operating voltage of 350 VRMS and current of 108
legacy grid outage, the inverters automatically convert over Apeak/36ARMS . The programmable load will be used to sim-
to an islanded configuration, using the batteries to source the ulate normal household and industrial load profiles and induce
loads. If any particular grid’s energy storage runs low and crit- transient loads onto the grid. The other two load lines on each
ical loads are still in need of power, the ac output bus from any grid are currently configured to power conventional 120 VAC,
of the other Microgrids can connect to the central ac bus, act- 60 Hz loads via a standard U.S. plug connections. In the
ing as the new reference grid, and source power to the grid(s) future, it is hoped that more Smart loads will be developed
in need. commercially and installed on the grid.
Finally, in addition to all of the other DESs already men- In addition to conventional ac loads, the grid is configured
tioned, a DuroStar DS7200Q, 6 kW diesel generator is also to test how transient dc loads and faults impact the quality of
installed [26]. If the energy from the legacy grid is too expen- the voltage on the main ac bus. This is accomplished by con-
sive or otherwise unavailable and the energy storage runs low, necting two insulated-gate-bipolar-junction (IGBT) transistors
the generator can source the ac input of any sub-grid’s inverter in parallel between the dc energy storage and a high power
via its connection to the central ac bus. The type, quantity, adjustable impedance load. Each switch can hold off 1.7 kV,
and power rating of each of the DESs installed is listed in conduct 2.4 kA continuously, as long as the collector tempera-
Table I and that of the different charge controllers is found in ture stays below 80◦ C, and can conduct a peak surge current of
76
Fig. 2. Schematic of Microgrid testbed installed at UTA.
Fig. 3. Photograph of the solar panels, wind turbines, and diesel generator
(housed beneath the solar panels to shield it from the weather) on the roof of
UTAs engineering laboratory building (ELB).
Fig. 4. Laboratory photograph of the Microgrid testbed.
20 kA for roughly 10 ms [27]. Initially a low impedance load
that is almost purely resistive is being used. A series/parallel
connection of up to 20–100 m high energy disk resistors
IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON SMART GRID, VOL. 6, NO. 1, JANUARY 2015
Fig. 5. Close-up photograph of the NFB and SSR relays used to control
Microgrid 1 (MG1) and the legacy electrical grid (LG).
enable the load to vary easily from roughly 8 m up to
2 Ohms.
Finally, each sub-grid has its own real-time digital acqui-
sition and control system installed, as seen in Fig. 7. A
dedicated NI CompactRIO has been installed on each sub-
grid. The CompactRIO’s hardware architecture incorporates
a reconfigurable field-programmable gate array (FPGA) chas-
sis, an embedded controller, and the ability to easily swap
out different I/O modules as needed [28]. The CompactRIO
is programmed using NIs LabVIEW graphical programming
tools and can be used in a variety of embedded control and
monitoring applications. Each grid’s CompactRIO has eight
I/O modules installed that give it digital output, digital input,
analog output, and analog input capability. The digital and
analog output signals are primarily used for relay and device
TURNER et al.: DESIGN AND ACTIVE CONTROL OF A MICROGRID TESTBED
Fig. 6. NEXA 310-0027 Ballard 1.2 kW PEM fuel cell.
Fig. 7. National instruments CompactRIO data acquisition and digital
control system.
control. The digital and analog input channels are used for
real-time monitoring, data collection, and feedback control.
Each CompactRIO can be controlled using a single, remotely
accessible, visual user interface. The voltage and current at
nearly every input and output in each of the different sub-
grids is monitored using voltage probes and Hall effect current
sensors whose outputs are fed directly to the analog input
channels on the sub-grid’s respective control system. The
name, quantity, and specifications of all the hardware that
makes up each sub-grid’s CompactRIO is listed in Table III
below.
III. C ONTROL S OFTWARE D EVELOPMENT
The design of the software used to control the Microgrid
is easy to conceptualize in terms of a state machine. A state
machine is a mathematical model used to develop a logical
process or in this case, design a software application. It can
be thought of as a machine with a finite number of operational
conditions called states. The machine can be in only one state
at a time and can transition to another state based on some
event or trigger. Therefore, designing the software is a matter
of defining the states and deciding on the events which cause
the states to transition from the current state to the next state.
The specific states a Microgrid may need to transition into
could vary widely depending on the application for which it is
being used. In any case, there are almost always critical loads
which must be powered at all times and loads which can be
shed in the event of a power shortage. The state machine must
transition between states as efficiently as possible ensuring that
first the critical loads are serviced and second that the grid is
operating in the most efficient and reliable manner possible
at any given time. With this later demand in mind, it can be
imagined that the state machine would prioritize use of the
77
TABLE III
NI C OMPACT RIO DATA ACQUISITION AND C ONTROL S YSTEM
S PECIFICATION
renewable sources as much as possible before switching to
the utility or other backup for power. The inverters in this
Microgrid are capable of sourcing power simultaneously from
a local dc bus and an external ac bus, but there is very limited
programmatic control of this behavior because they are off-the-
shelf components and not custom built for this application.
This limitation on the control of the inverters is actually a
benefit to the researchers interested in demonstrating a con-
trol system capable of switching sources while maintaining
continuous service to local loads. In residential applications,
efficiency will often be given the highest priority as this is an
application where few critical loads may exist. On the other
hand if a Microgrid is employed in a military forward oper-
ating base (FOB), higher priority would be given to ensuring
that essential needs such as the communications headquarters,
medical station, and radar/weapons systems are always pow-
ered. This will often require the grid to automatically shed any
unnecessary loads in order to always ensure critical loads are
being powered. In either residential or FOB applications, it
can be envisioned that multiple Microgrids may be located in
close proximity and the ability of the state machine to seam-
lessly interconnect them as individual grids fall short of the
power demanded from them is critical.
The first step in the creation of a state machine is to decide
on the possible operational states of the Microgrid. These
states used in the machine developed here include RG, RG
charging, battery backup, grid tied, and dark.
RG is the state where the system is being powered by
renewable resources and the batteries are fully charged. This
would be the most desirable state for the system. This state
would also include the sell-back of any excess power to the
legacy grid. In the RG Charging state, the system is running
off of RG, but the batteries are also being recharged. The
Battery Backup state is for when the system is running off of
78
TABLE IV
M ICROGRID S TATE M ACHINE
the batteries. In this state, RG is not available for some rea-
son. Grid Tied is the state where the system has switched to
being powered primarily from an external ac source. The peer
to peer network connecting all the Microgrids allows each
one to request power from an adjacent Microgrid or switch
to the legacy grid. The power fed into each inverter’s util-
ity grid connection can either come from the legacy electrical
grid, the backup diesel generator, or even another Microgrid.
In this state, renewable energy is insufficient for the local
loads and the batteries have been depleted beyond some pre-
determined amount. Also, in this state the batteries may be
recharging from the external source. Finally, if all possible
sources are unavailable there is a Dark state where all loads
are left unpowered.
Within each state, the objectives of the overall system must
be considered. For instance, within the RG state there are con-
siderations for the threshold at which the system will make a
transition. For the system presented here the only consideration
is for the servicing of the local loads. But the control model
is capable of being extending to include other objectives.
Economic objectives could include load shedding that would
take advantage of fluctuating electricity prices.
To complete the state machine, a set of transition events
must be defined for each state. For each transition event, one
of other states must be chosen as the next state. Each transition
event causes the state of the system to move from the current
state to a different or next state. Table IV describes the states
for a general purpose Microgrid.
Fig. 8 provides a graphical representation of Table IV.
The legend at the bottom of the figure describes some
numerical values to conditions that define the state. For
example, the Battery State condition is described with four
numerical values to represent the four conditions of the battery
(charged, charging, supplying, or depleted). The actual imple-
mentation of the state machine is achieved using LabVIEW
software embedded in each CompactRIO’s FPGA. Utilizing
the real time data monitoring and input/output capability, the
IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON SMART GRID, VOL. 6, NO. 1, JANUARY 2015
Fig. 8. Microgrid state machine.
CompactRIO acts as an autonomous control system based on
the state machine just discussed. Resources on creating soft-
ware from an abstract state machine design are found in [29].
The LabVIEW application used to run the Microgrid can also
use preestablished use cases. One useful property of the appli-
cation is to set the battery level to a depleted state in order
to affect the state machine. This allows test case transitions
to be triggered without actually waiting for the batteries to
discharge.
IV. E XPERIMENTAL DATA
The data presented here demonstrates the dynamic
Microgrid operation. The data measurements are sampled at
a rate of 50 ms or about every three cycles of the 60 Hz ac
waveform. It is possible to adjust this sample rate from the
Microgrid LabVIEW application.
In Fig. 9, the dc bus currents are shown in a steady state
operation for about five seconds in time along the x-axis. At
this particular moment in time, the wind is calm and no usable
energy is provided by the wind turbines (orange line). There is
no load connected to the ac bus, but the inverter (gray line) is
still drawing some positive current from the dc bus for stand-
by operation. This current is coming mostly from the solar
panels (blue line). The solar panel charge controller is oper-
ating as to provide just enough current to the inverter. The
battery current (yellow line) shows that it follows precisely
the current from the solar panels. When the solar panel cur-
rent is above the required inverter current, the battery current
is also positive indicating that the battery is in a charging state
(positive current going into the battery). In the areas where the
solar panel current is below the inverter current, the battery
TURNER et al.: DESIGN AND ACTIVE CONTROL OF A MICROGRID TESTBED
Fig. 9. Microgrid steady state.
Fig. 10. Microgrid load dynamics.
current becomes negative indicating that it supplying current to
the inverter. In either case, this plots shows a renewable source
and energy storage elements working together to support the
overall system operation.
Fig. 10 starts out similar to Fig. 9 in that it shows how
the solar panel charge controller is supplying current to the
inverter with excess current going to charge the batteries. One
additional plot line has been added to show the ac current out-
put of the inverter (dark blue line). The connection of two large
loads on the ac bus produce a current draw from the inverter
which cannot be satisfied by the solar panels. The batteries
supplement the solar panels on the initial spike and also on
the subsequent steady current draw. The loads on the ac bus
operate normally and there is no disruption of power service
to the loads. When the loads are turned off, the system returns
to the initial operating mode. This dc bus current values have
been scaled so that the ac currents measured on the inverter
output can be visually compared to the dc bus current going
into the inverter. The ac currents are measured as RMS values.
Fig. 11 shows longer term dynamics in the system (about
one minute of time along the x-axis). In this plot, there is a
constant ac load on the ac bus indicated by the steady draw
of dc current by the inverter and the steady ac current output
of the inverter. This particular plot was captured to show
the effect of clouds going past the solar panels. For about
the first 80% of this plot the current from the solar panels
it not sufficient to supply the inverter due to clouds passing
over the panels. During this time period, the battery provides
79
Fig. 11. Microgrid long term solar operation.
Fig. 12. Microgrid operation on loss of solar power.
the additional current needed to keep the dc current into the
inverter constant. The sharp dip in the middle of the graph is
the location where the solar panel charge controller switches
modes from normal operation to a stand-by mode where the
controller focuses on supporting the voltage level of the dc
bus while the battery supports the extra current needed to
keep the system running. The sharp upward spike of the solar
panel current near the end of the plot is the point where the
clouds have passed. The controller returns to normal operation
supplying current to the inverter and charging the battery.
The previous plots show that the batteries do a fine job
of providing current any time that the renewable sources are
unable to provide enough current to the inverter. This is exactly
the type of operation needed for an islanded grid operation.
But what about the dynamic performance of the grid when
power needs to come from outside the grid. Fig. 12 shows
the performance of the system when the grid experiences an
unexpected outage of the renewable resources.
The application has been designed to sense the outage and
switch to an alternate source. In this case, power is con-
nected into the ac input of the inverter from the ring bus
which is being supplied from another Microgrid. The inverter
is designed to automatically switch to its ac input when the dc
supply drops. A small delay occurs while the inverter syncs
to the new source. This delay is an adjustable setting in the
inverter itself. For this example, it has been set to its minimum
value and results in the delay shown of about 12 s. The plot
shows the initial outage of the solar panel at about the 12 s
80
mark and the subsequent response of the batteries to sup-
port the inverter current. The complete loss of power from
the solar panels triggers the inverter to switch from the dc bus
(gray line) to the alternate source (green line). The transition is
seamless to the ac bus of the Microgrid and service is uninter-
rupted (dark blue line). In this case the power is coming from
an adjacent Microgrid which happens to have excess power to
spare. As power from the solar panel is restored, the system
makes a transition back to using power from the dc bus.
V. C ONCLUSION
In order to successfully operate, maintain, and upgrade the
future smart grid, it is crucial to ensure that the next generation
of scientists and engineers are experienced and educated in
this critical technological area. With the support of DoE, UTA
has built a Microgrid testbed to be used for research and edu-
cational purposes. Having real off-the-shelf hardware enables
high level control system designs, defined here as tertiary
control concerned with the long term power flow in an inter-
connected Microgrid system. The Microgrid testbed is divided
into three sub-grids. In the normal mode of operation, each of
three subgrids function as an independent Microgrid. When
needed, the sub-grids can also operate in an interconnected
fashion to source each other’s critical loads. This architec-
ture was chosen to increase system reliability, efficiency, and
robustness. The testbed will be a vital tool for designing
and testing control systems that do not lend themselves to
traditional simulation techniques.
ACKNOWLEDGMENT
The authors would like to thanks the DoE and NETL for
their continued support. Any opinions, findings, and conclu-
sions or recommendations expressed in this publication are
those of the authors, and do not necessarily reflect the views
of the sponsor.
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Greg Turner (M’94) is from Dallas, TX, USA. He
received the B.S. and M.S. degrees in electrical engi-
neering from the University of Texas at Arlington,
Arlington, TX.
He has been involved in the industry for many
years as a Software Developer primarily develop-
ing software for embedded systems. His dissertation
topic is “Control System Designs for Autonomous
Microgrid Systems.”
TURNER et al.: DESIGN AND ACTIVE CONTROL OF A MICROGRID TESTBED 81

Jay P. Kelley (S’11) was born in Grand Prairie,
TX, in 1989. He received the B.Sc. degree in elec-
trical engineering from the University of Texas at
Arlington, Arlington, TX, in 2012. He is currently
pursuing the M.S. degree in electrical engineering
from the University of Texas at Arlington. His the-
sis is focused on understanding the impact that high
pulsed power loading has on a Microgrid’s dc or ac
bus.
Caroline L. Storm was born in Austin, TX, USA.
She is currently pursuing the B.Sc. degree in elec-
trical engineering from the University of Texas at
Arlington, Arlington, TX.
Wei-Jen Lee (S’85–M’85–SM’97–F’07) received
the B.S. and M.S. degrees from National Taiwan
University, Taipei, Taiwan, and the Ph.D. degree
from the University of Texas at Arlington, Arlington,
TX, USA, in 1978, 1980, and 1985, respectively, all
in electrical engineering.
In 1985, he joined the University of Texas at
Arlington, where he is currently a Professor with the
Electrical Engineering Department and the Director
of the Energy Systems Research Center. His cur-
rent research interests include utility deregulation,
renewable energy, smart grid, Microgrid, arc flash, load forecasting, power
quality, distribution automation and demand side management, power systems
analysis, online real time equipment diagnostic and prognostic system, and
microcomputer based instrument for power systems monitoring, measurement,
control, and protection. He has served as the primary investigator (PI) or
Co-PI for over ninety funded research projects. He has published over 240
journal papers and conference proceedings. He has provided onsite train-
ing courses for power engineers in Panama, China, Taiwan, Korea, Saudi
Arabia, Thailand, and Singapore. He has refereed numerous technical papers
for IEEE, Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET), and other profes-
sional organizations. He is a Registered Professional Engineer in the State of
Texas.

David A. Wetz, Jr. (S’01–M’06–SM’13) was born

in El Paso, TX, USA, in 1982. He received the B.Sc.
degree in electrical engineering, the B.Sc. degree in
computer science, and the M.Sc. and Ph.D. degrees
in electrical engineering from Texas Tech University,
Lubbock, TX, in 2003, 2004, and 2006, respectively.
He was a Post-Doctoral Fellow with the Institute
for Advanced Technology (IAT) from 2006 to 2007
and a Research Associate from 2007 to 2010. While
at IAT, his research was concentrated on improving
the basic understanding and fieldability of electro-
magnetic launchers for the U.S. Army, Navy, and Air Force. He joined
the Electrical Engineering Faculty at the University of Texas at Arlington,
Arlington, TX, as an Assistant Professor in 2010. His current research interests
include pulsed power, power electronics, energy storage, and power system
analysis.
Dr. Wetz won an Office of Naval Research Young Investigator Award in
2011.