Tutorial: Circuit-based Electromagnetic Transient Simulation

TL;DR

This tutorial introduces the fundamentals of electromagnetic transient (EMT) simulation from a circuit-theoretic perspective, aiming to educate students and professionals on how EMT tools operate, especially for large power grid analyses.

Contribution

It provides an accessible, circuit-based explanation of EMT principles and demonstrates simulations with linear and nonlinear examples, filling a gap in educational resources.

Findings

Demonstrates EMT simulations for linear and nonlinear systems

Provides foundational understanding of EMT tools for power grids

Highlights the need for scalable EMT simulation techniques

Abstract

The growing penetration of inverter-based resources and associated controls necessitates system-wide electromagnetic transient (EMT) analyses. EMT tools and methods today were not designed for the scale of these analyses. In light of the emerging need, there is a great deal of interest in developing new techniques for fast and accurate EMT simulations for large power grids; the foundations of which will be built on current tools and methods. However, we find that educational texts covering the fundamentals and inner workings of current EMT tools are limited. As such, there is a lack of introductory material for students and professionals interested in researching the field. To that end, in this tutorial, we introduce the principles of EMT analyses from the circuit-theoretic viewpoint, mimicking how time-domain analyses are performed in circuit simulation tools like SPICE and Cadence. We perform EMT simulations for two examples, one linear and one nonlinear, including induction motor (IM) from the first principles. By the document's end, we anticipate the readers will have a \textit{basic} understanding of how power grid EMT tools work.