Hardware-in-the-loop simulator of a flow control system for centrifugal pumps

A hardware-in-the-loop model of a centrifugal pump is proposed. The new simulator consists of the pump and pipeline imitators built on the basis of the variable speed drives connected via the programmable logical controller and Profibus communication components. The mathematical description of the flow maintenance represents a core of the simulation methodology. To study the system, a series of tests have been conducted that proved the designed system flexibility and accuracy in flow control imitation at the steady-state pumping mode.