Infrastructure Security
The Infrastructure Security program develops and applies technologies and analytical approaches to secure the nation’s critical infrastructure against natural or malicious disruption.
Our nation’s energy infrastructure faces two foundational challenges as we seek our vision towards an energy independent and secure future. First, elements of the infrastructure, such as the electricity transmission and distribution network, have not significantly changed since their initial creation over a century ago. It is clear that new approaches are required for the grid to accommodate the integration of intermittent renewable energy sources such as solar and wind. Second, the reliability and resilience of our grid is central to our national security. For example, robust and secure power is essential to key infrastructure such as military installations. Economically, electricity outages presently cost our economy $150 billion annually.
The reliability and security of the energy infrastructure is an essential requirement for the mission readiness of military facilities and for high-consequence private enterprises. The Energy Surety Microgrid developed by Sandia improves the reliability and performance of the energy infrastructure.
The goal of Energy Storage Systems (ESS) is to develop advanced energy-storage technologies and systems, in collaboration with industry, academia, and government institutions, that will increase the reliability, performance, and competitiveness of electric generation and transmission in utility-tied and off-grid systems.
The Infrastructure Security Program Area works with several government agencies in the area of cybersecurity to ensure the integrity and availability of the nation’s cyber infrastructure.
Understanding the linked, interdependent nature of the nation’s critical infrastructure in order to enhance preparedness, protection, response, recovery, and mitigation is a hard problem—one that requires the capabilities of a national laboratory. It is through high-performance computer modeling and analysis that Sandia can quantify and qualify the interactions of political, health, social, economic, and technical systems.