Project Name: Faster-than-Real-Time Simulation with Demonstration for Resilient Distributed Energy Resource Integration
Funding Opportunity: Advanced Systems Integration for Solar Technologies: Situational Awareness and Resilient Solutions for Critical Infrastructure
SETO Subprogram: Systems Integration
Location: Blacksburg, VA
SETO Award Amount: $3.5 million
Awardee Cost Share: $1.5 million
-- Award and cost share amounts are subject to change pending negotiations --
This project team will develop a system called the Measurement and Model Integrator for Ensuring Grid Security (MIEGS) that will enable the power system to better detect abnormalities, such as cyberattacks, and coordinate voltage control and grid stability in real time. To increase the integration of distributed energy resources like solar power, MIEGS will be able to handle changes in generation, such as those associated with solar, which change in response to weather conditions.
APPROACH
The team will develop a forecast model that uses satellite images and weather data to create 30-minute forecasts of solar generation and anticipated customer electricity usage. These forecasts can be coupled with faster-than-real-time models of power flow to anticipate the response of the system to changes in generation and electricity usage. Because the modeling can be done quickly, grid operators will be able to compare the actual response of the system against what was forecasted. Unexpected differences can be flagged for review and checked for cyberattacks or equipment failures. The team will demonstrate MIEGS and its ability to operate at scale on a Pepco Holdings power system.
INNOVATION
MIEGS will be a single integrated model that reaches from the electricity transmission system to small-scale distribution systems that run from substations to homes. Previous models have often separated these systems. New mathematical models will allow for faster calculation to better react to changes in grid conditions. Real-time measurements and forecasting will give the system better clarity on current grid operation, and grid operators will be able to monitor and control the system more easily to maintain stability and detect and react to abnormal events.
