The electric power industry has undergone extensive changes over the past several decades and become substantially more complex, dynamic, and uncertain, as new market rules, regulatory policies, and technologies have been adopted. As the electric delivery system continues to evolve, the availability of more detailed data about system conditions from devices such as phasor measurement units (PMUs) used for wide area visibility and advanced meter infrastructure (AMI) used for dynamic pricing and demand response will help improve the system’s reliability and flexibility.
Working with the large volume and variety of data to make it more relevant and actionable to grid operators and utilities, however, poses significant challenges. Continuing to shift operational data analytics from a traditionally off-line environment to further expand real-time situational awareness of grid conditions and measurement-based, faster control will require significant advancements in algorithms and computational approaches.
To address these challenges, OE's Advanced Modeling Grid Research Program objectives are to:
Support the transformation of data to enable preventative actions rather than reactive responses to changes in grid conditions;
Direct the research and development of advanced computational and control technologies to improve the reliability, resiliency, security, and flexibility of the nation’s electricity system;
Help system operators and utilities prevent blackouts and improve reliability by expanding wide-area real-time visibility into the conditions of the grid;
Support improvement of the performance of modeling tools and computations that are basis of the grid operations and planning; and
Support the tracking and expansion of the use of quantitative risk and uncertainty methods by federal and state level energy system decision makers regarding energy infrastructure investments.
To achieve these objectives, OE’s Advanced Modeling Grid Research Program is advancing work in four main areas: Data Management and Analytics; Mathematical Methods and Computation; Modeling and Simulation; and Operator Tools and Decision Support. Building and maintaining effective public-private partnerships is vital. In achieving this vision, OE is fostering strategic, university-based power system research capabilities. Such partnerships facilitate additional research and development, and enable industry (and ultimately, consumers) to capitalize on the benefits of making this wealth of data more accessible and actionable.
RELATED LINKS
Center for Ultra-Wide-Area Resilient Electric Energy Transmission Networks (CURRENT)
National Academy of Sciences study -- Analytic Research Foundations for the Next-Generation Electric Grid
Grid Science Winter School and Conference
SUNDIALS: SUite of Nonlinear and DIfferential/ALgebraic Equation Solvers
Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
OE Seeking Subject Matter Experts to Serve as Technical Reviewers
April 2011 Computational Needs Workshop Proceedings