As America’s power grid reaches its limits scientists at the Department of Energy’s Argonne National Laboratory are looking for better ways to simulate the power grid of the future.  Simulations help the DOE understand the security, capacity, and infrastructure requirements of America’s electricity demand.

The Argonne National Laboratory focuses on solving problems related to science and technology.  It was the first national laboratory founded in America and it regularly conducts research at the cutting-edge of technology.  Researchers collaborate with researchers from hundreds of companies, universities, and government agencies.

Much of the power grid relies on technologies that were a marvel more than a century ago but are antiquated today.  Very little of it is networked in a way that can be analysed and monitored.  Eventually, the power grid in its current state will become totally obsolete as intermittent power supplies from wind and solar energy are integrated.

Smart meters give consumers and utility companies visibility into how energy is used and are based upon digital technologies unheard of in the late 19th century.  In the future plug-in hybrid vehicles will further increase the demand for power and could also serve as mini-repositories that sell power back to the grid during times of critically-high demand.

These developments have forced energy researchers to re-examine how America’s power supply operates and what the security needs are.  Efficiency is also a major concern within the smart grid.

The DOE Argonne National Laboratory hosted a workshop for industry experts from federal agencies, national laboratories, and universities.  The workshop focused on the challenges facing the power grid.

“Modelling and simulation have proved to be effective tools for the power industry on many levels," said Mark Petri, Argonne's technology development director.  Petri also helped organise the workshop.  "We need to develop a comprehensive and integrated approach that will enable us to better understand the full implications of an evolving power grid as we plan for future demand and power sources."

The discussion topic at the workshop was the need to find new ways to simulate America’s power grid.  Scientists and researchers need new models that mimic the creation and flow of electricity and the diverse infrastructure connections made throughout the new smart grid.  With these new models, scientists can discover new ways to increase the smart grid’s reliability, efficiency, and security.

“Implementing smart grid technologies on a large scale will not be trivial,” said Petri.  “The challenges go beyond technical and economic issues.  The smart grid technologies could fundamentally change now the national power grid systems operate and respond to disruptions.”

New technologies present significant hurdles that must be surpassed for the scientists to create meaningful models that simulate a large power grid.

“In the short term these simulations could help devise ways to solve the problem of grid congestion, which currently costs consumers many hundreds of millions of dollars each year,” explained Petri.  “Even small improvements in grid efficiency that better models and simulations would produce would make the investment cost-effective.”

The workshop was sponsored by the United States Department of Homeland Security Science and Technology Directorate and the findings have been published in a report titled “National Power Grid Simulation Capability: Needs and Issues.”

 

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