Hydropower is an important part of the Swedish electricity supply and meets about 45% of the annual electricity needs in the country. Hydropower uses the height difference between inflow and outflow to power turbines and produces electricity. In Sweden, there are about 200 dams with a drop height greater than 15 m, and too high levels at any of these dams would lead to a dam break with extensive consequences. An important area in which a lot is invested today is dam safety, which is about avoiding uncontrolled flooding of the dam.
Knowledge of drop height and water flow is necessary for hydropower to calculate the power produced and when dimensioning dams, waterways, and generators. Saturations on the inflow to a watercourse are very complicated and time-consuming, however, the outflow through the spillway can be calculated with mathematical correlations. Spillways refer to openings in the dam that are used to carry away water volumes. Thus, there are different types of spillways, and what influences the choices are aspects such as cost, weather conditions, etc. To avoid possible flooding of a dam, the spillways are often dimensioned with respect to the amount of water they should carry away. A requirement that is often made is that it must be able to carry away the highest water level (HHQ) of a watercourse.
The level in the water reservoir is measured with the help of sensors that are in different places by the dam and measured high levels lead to different alarm functions being triggered. The regulation of the water level then takes place by carrying away water in a controlled manner through the spillway.
By simulating the regulation process of the water level in a virtual environment, different scenarios that can arise during reservoir management can be tested in an economical way and find suitable control strategies. Simulations are also one of the tools highlighted in industry 4.0, which can contribute to future solutions in automation projects. In the work, the various components of a hydropower plant are studied, and an intended method is presented for creating a virtual model of the level control process in Siemens SIMIT, controlling the model via a virtual PLC unit and visualizing the process on an HMI screen.