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At least 739 records · Page 41

Mitigating Interference from Urban Air Mobility Vehicles on Satellite Communication Links by Using Vortex Radiometry

Vortex radiometers (VR) establish an early warning system for communication systems by generating concentric annular beam patterns around the active link. Received power peaks are monitored as interfering signals traverse overhead, allowing the VR to estimate source velocity. From this information the VR determines 1) when a fade will occur, 2) how long the fade will persist for and 3) how intense the fade will be. This paper demonstrates how VRs can be used to increase the resilience of communication systems used in urban air mobility applications.

vortex radiometry↗

APIS: Honeybee Foraging Task Assignment for Use in Uncertain and Unreliable Environments

Multiagent Cyber-Physical-Human (CPH) systems in realistic environments operate under uncertain conditions. Communication among agents, aimed at reducing the uncertainty, is itself subject to uncertainty. We propose to manage uncertainties in autonomous, long-duration operations of multiagent systems via a modified Honeybee Foraging (HBF) behavioral scheme. The resulting system, Autonomous Persistent Intelligent Swarm (APIS),incorporates two new behaviors to ameliorate informational uncertainty. When “scouting”, agents are tasked based on informational quality and reliability rather than solely on priorities. When “dancing”, agents are tasked to rendezvous with other dancing agents to exchange information at close range, where successful communication is guaranteed. When coupled with uncertainty-aware modeling across agents, these behaviors improve situational awareness and resilience of the system, enabling it to function under more uncertain conditions arising during long-duration missions.

Autonomous systems↗

APIS: Honeybee Foraging Task Assignment for Use in Uncertain and Unreliable Environments

Multiagent Cyber-Physical-Human (CPH) systems in realistic environments operate under uncertain conditions. Communication among agents, aimed at reducing the uncertainty, is itself subject to uncertainty. We propose to manage uncertainties in autonomous, long-duration operations of multiagent systems via a modified Honeybee Foraging (HBF) behavioral scheme. The resulting system, Autonomous Persistent Intelligent Swarm (APIS),incorporates two new behaviors to ameliorate informational uncertainty. When “scouting”, agents are tasked based on informational quality and reliability rather than solely on priorities. When “dancing”, agents are tasked to rendezvous with other dancing agents to exchange information at close range, where successful communication is guaranteed. When coupled with uncertainty-aware modeling across agents, these behaviors improve situational awareness and resilience of the system, enabling it to function under more uncertain conditions arising during long-duration missions.

Autonomous systems↗

Alternative Metrics for Evaluating the Resilence of Advanced Life Support Systems

Ensuring the safety of the crew is a key performance requirement of a life support system. However, a number of conceptual and practical difficulties arise when devising metrics to concretely measure the ability of a life support system to maintain critical functions in the presence of anticipated and unanticipated faults. Resilience is a dynamic property of a life support system that depends on the complex interactions between faults, controls and system hardware. We review some of the approaches to understanding the robustness or resilience of complex systems being developed in diverse fields such as ecology, software engineering and cell biology and discuss their applicability to regenerative life support systems. We also consider how approaches to measuring resilience vary depending on system design choices such as the definition and choice of the nominal operating regime. Finally, we explore data collection and implementation issues such as the key differences between the instantaneous or conditional and average or overall measures of resilience. Extensive simulation of a hybrid computational model of a water revitalization subsystem (WRS) with probabilistic, component-level faults provides data about off-nominal behavior of the system. The data are used to consider alternative measures of resilience as predictors of the system's ability to recover from component-level faults.

Bell, Ann Maria↗

Review of Design Elements within Power Infrastructure Cyber–Physical Test Beds as Threat Analysis Environments

Cyber–physical systems (CPSs) are an integral part of modern society; thus, enhancing these systems’ reliability and resilience is paramount. Cyber–physical testbeds (CPTs) are a safe way to test and explore the interplay between the cyber and physical domains and to cost-effectively enhance the reliability and resilience of CPSs. Here a review of CPT elements, broken down into physical components (simulators, emulators, and physical hardware), soft components (communication protocols, network timing protocols), and user interfaces (visualization-dashboard design considerations) is presented. Various methods used to validate CPS performance are reviewed and evaluated for potential applications in CPT performance validation. Last, initial simulated results for a CPT design, based on the IEEE 33 bus system, are presented, along with a brief discussion on how model-based testing and fault–injection-based testing (using scaling and ramp-type attacks) may be used to help validate CPT performance.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗

Mitigating Interference from Urban Air Mobility Vehicles on Satellite Communication Links by Using Vortex Radiometry

Vortex radiometers (VRs) establish an early warning system for communication channels by generating concentric annular beam patterns around the active link. Peaks in received power are monitored as interfering signals traverse overhead, allowing the VR to estimate source velocity. From this information the VR determines 1) when a fade will occur, 2) how long the fade will persist for and 3) how intense the fade will be. This paper demonstrates how VRs can increase the resilience of communication systems used in urban air mobility applications.

Schemmel, Peter J.↗

A Scalable Transmission and Distribution Co-simulation Platform for IBR-heavy Power Systems

The integration of Inverter-Based Resources (IBRs) into power systems, including both transmission and distribution networks, poses challenges for studying grid dynamic behaviours under various operating conditions and system events. This paper addresses the urgent need to investigate the influence of IBRs on grid dynamics, and their potential to enhance power system reliability and resilience. We propose a flexible, scalable transmission and distribution co-simulation platform, using opensource tools only for assessing the impact of grid-following (GFL) and grid-forming (GFM) IBRs on dynamic stability at various renewable penetration levels (up to 100%). This platform enables researchers to explore different contingencies at transmission, distribution, or both, providing a comprehensive evaluation of grid status. A series of case studies, including both small and large T&D systems with varying GFL/GFM configurations and contingencies, have been conducted. The results not only robustly validate our co-simulation framework, but also provide invaluable insights for effective IBR management in the power grid.

grid management↗

Dynamical Downscaling of Earth System Model Data for Energy System Analysis

Assessing energy resources (e.g., solar, wind, and hydro) under future scenarios requires datasets with sufficient spatial and temporal detail to capture variability and extreme events. While global-scale Earth System Model (ESM) projections are widely used, their coarse resolution limits direct application to regional energy system analyses. Dynamical downscaling offers a robust approach to generate physically consistent, fine-scale datasets that better represent local atmospheric processes impacting energy resources. In this work, we present a two-stage approach for producing high-resolution historical and future projections over the contiguous United States (CONUS). First, we optimize the Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) model configuration for energy-relevant variables - solar irradiance, wind speed, and precipitation - by conducting ERA5-driven simulations at 8-km and 28-km resolution. Multiple physics schemes and model configurations within the WRF are evaluated against observational datasets including the National Solar Radiation Database (NSRDB), the Parameter-elevation Regressions on Independent Slopes Model (PRISM), and the Stage IV multi-radar/multi-sensor precipitation product for the CONUS domain. Using the best-performing configuration, we dynamically downscale MPI-ESM1-2-HR simulations for 2000-2060 under SSP2-4.5 and SSP5-8.5 scenarios at 4-km spatial and hourly temporal resolution. This presentation will provide a comprehensive analysis of the results from multiple numerical experiments and high-resolution ESM projections. In addition, we will discuss potential applications of our high-resolution datasets within the energy sector and outline future research avenues dedicated to evaluating how extreme weather events influence system performance and resilience.

24 POWER TRANSMISSION AND DISTRIBUTION↗

A Secure and Adaptive Hierarchical Multi-Timescale Framework for Resilient Load Restoration Using a Community Microgrid

Distribution system integrated community microgrids (CMGs) can partake in restoring loads during extended duration outages. At such times, the CMGs are challenged with limited resource availability, absence of robust grid support, and heightened demand-supply uncertainty. Here, this paper proposes a secure and adaptive three-stage hierarchical multi-timescale framework for scheduling and real-time (RT) dispatch of CMGs with hybrid PV systems to address these challenges. The framework enables the CMG to dynamically expand its boundary to support the neighboring grid sections and is adaptive to the changing forecast error impacts. The first stage solves a stochastic extended duration scheduling (EDS) problem to obtain referral plans for optimal resource rationing. The intermediate near-real-time (NRT) scheduling stage updates the EDS schedule closer to the dispatch time using new obtained forecasts, followed by the RT dispatch stage. To make the decisions more secure and robust against forecast errors, a novel concept called delayed recourse is designed. The approach is evaluated via numerical simulations on a modified IEEE 123-bus system and validated using OpenDSS and hardware-in-loop simulations. The results show superior performance in maximizing load supply and continuous secure distribution network operation under different operating scenarios.

24 POWER TRANSMISSION AND DISTRIBUTION↗

Optimal Operation for Resilient and Economic Modes in an Islanded Alaskan Grid

Legacy energy management systems for distribution system or microgrids are typically driven by economics. During extreme events, resiliency can be defined as ability of the system to keep supplying critical loads. Resilient operation during extreme events (e.g. avalanche in Alaska) may require decision variables to be different and conflicting with economic operation. Operational objectives are driven by a complex consideration of the economic, reliable and resilient operation of the system: economic and reliable in normal operating state and resilient during extreme events. Challenge is to move between economic and resilient operation in optimal manner and setting up problem formulation and constraints specially with Distributed Energy Resources (DERs). In this paper, we focus on striking a balance between optimal economic and resilient operation using novel formulation and developed tool called Resiliency Enabled Energy System Operation Toolbox (RE-ESOT). Simulation results are provided for a real islanded grid in Alaska with battery energy systems.

50 EE - Wind and Water Power Program - Water (EE-4↗

2021 Annual Report Laboratory Directed Research & Development

The Department of Energy’s (DOE) Laboratory Directed Research and Development (LDRD) program is an essential pathway for innovation, capability growth, and research staff development at Idaho National Laboratory (INL). This program enables timely and agile response to national security, energy, and environmental challenges that motivate INL’s mission to discover and demonstrate innovative nuclear energy solutions and other clean energy options as well as securing our critical infrastructure. This report highlights INL’s LDRD projects concluding in fiscal year (FY) 2021 which included innovative research and development (R&D) across INL’s five science and technology initiatives: nuclear reactor sustainment and expanded deployment, integrated fuel cycle solutions, integrated energy systems, advanced design and manufacturing for extreme environments, and secure and resilient cyber-physical systems.

99 GENERAL AND MISCELLANEOUS↗

Planning for the storm: Considering renewable energy for critical infrastructure resilience

This study uses the renewable energy optimization model to assess three critical facilities in North Carolina. Techno-economic results were then compared to analyses completed for critical facilities in California and New York to assess energy system cost effectiveness. Though solar photovoltaic (PV) arrays are cost-effective across each of the three North Carolina facilities, adopting battery storage to enable PV to operate with existing diesel generators in a hybrid energy system reduces the economic value of the system. This is in contrast to more economically viable systems in California and New York. All of these systems also offer unquantified resilience benefits by extending operation from hours to weeks across the facilities. If decision makers were able to value the resilience benefits offered by each system or utility rate structures were changed to incentivize battery storage during normal operations, it would impact these assessments. Even so, this analysis provides decision makers a key set of cost benchmarks when considering how they might improve resilience at their critical operations.

29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY↗

Idaho National Laboratory Energy Cybersecurity Programs Update

This brief presentation provides a status update on three Idaho National Laboratory energy cybersecurity programs of particular interest to NERC Reliability and Security Technical Committee annual in-person Security Groups summit. Public information on the following three programs is included: Cybersecurity for Operational Technology Environments (CyOTE™) program Cyber-Informed Engineering (CIE) Cyber Testing for Resilient Industrial Control Systems (CyTRICS) program, and associated high-level information on the Energy Software Bill of Materials POC, Executive Order 14017, and the Energy Cyber Sense Act

24 POWER TRANSMISSION AND DISTRIBUTION↗

Workflows Community Summit 2022: A Roadmap Revolution

Scientific workflows have become integral tools in broad scientific computing use cases. Science discovery is increasingly dependent on workflows to orchestrate large and complex scientific experiments that range from the execution of a cloud-based data preprocessing pipeline to multi-facility instrument-to-edge-to-HPC computational workflows. Given the changing landscape of scientific computing (often referred to as a computing continuum) and the evolving needs of emerging scientific applications, it is paramount that the development of novel scientific workflows and system functionalities seek to increase the efficiency, resilience, and pervasiveness of existing systems and applications. Specifically, the proliferation of machine learning/artificial intelligence (ML/AI) workflows, need for processing large-scale datasets produced by instruments at the edge, intensification of near real-time data processing, support for long-term experiment campaigns, and emergence of quantum computing as an adjunct to HPC, have significantly changed the functional and operational requirements of workflow systems. Workflow systems now need to, for example, support data streams from the edge-to-cloud-to-HPC, enable the management of many small-sized files, allow data reduction while ensuring high accuracy, orchestrate distributed services (workflows, instruments, data movement, provenance, publication, etc.) across computing and user facilities, among others. Further, to accelerate science, it is also necessary that these systems implement specifications/standards and APIs for seamless (horizontal and vertical) integration between systems and applications, as well as enable the publication of workflows and their associated products according to the FAIR principles.

97 MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTING↗

All Hazards Approach to Grid Modernization

Resilience hazards for electric power systems are on the rise, exacerbated by both a rise in extreme weather events and manmade physical and cyber attacks. At the same time, grid modernization challenges plague the United States, covering everything from increased electrification and ambitious renewable energy targets to aging infrastructure and regulation that lags behind today’s challenges. This talk will cover an all-hazards risk based approach that addresses both rising resilience and grid modernization challenges. Examples of this approach taken for national laboratory research projects will be discussed, including a deep dive into a project that addressed black start, resynchronization, distributed control, and cybersecurity challenges for an operational microgrid up to sub-transmission voltages. As takeaways from this project are translated from demonstration scale to real-world exercises, key lessons are noted on the translation from research into practice and how this can inform risk-based research moving forward

17 WIND ENERGY↗

Pillars of Innovation Across Southeast Idaho & the Interstate-15 Corridor

Since 1949, Idaho National Laboratory (INL) has been home to developing civilian and defense nuclear reactor technologies and managing spent nuclear fuel. Today, INL is the nation’s nuclear energy research laboratory, sustaining the safe and efficient operation of existing reactors, powering science in space, and breaking ground on the future fleet of advanced nuclear reactors. INL is only one of many rising technology resources in the region, however. Along the Interstate 15 (I-15) corridor, technology and cybersecurity industries and intellectual assets are rapidly expanding. Creating an innovation hub in this region would unite capabilities to solve current and future challenges in nuclear reactor sustainment and expanded deployment, integrated fuel cycle solutions, integrated energy systems, advanced materials and manufacturing for extreme environments, and secure and resilient cyber-physical systems.

29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY↗

The Impact of Cultural Values and Organizational Processes on Nuclear Security Operations

Human performance is a pivotal factor in the design, testing, maintenance, and operation of security systems. The effectiveness of these systems relies not only on the capabilities, limitations, motives, and attitudes of the individuals involved, but also on the quality of training, instructional content, and evaluation methods provided. To uphold security standards, seamless integration between technologies and operators necessitates reliable human input. In security operations, human errors, often attributed to blame, sanctions, low motivation, individual accountability, or complacency, are primary causes of system failures. Complacency, characterized by a false sense of security, reflects a lack of awareness of potential threats and is a significant contributing factor to lapses in security. Security incidents arise from various factors, many extend beyond individual control, highlighting the need for a holistic approach to human performance that integrates organizational processes and team collaboration. Historically, errors have been attributed to individual moral or cognitive failures. However, insights from Operational Experiences (OEs) suggest that organizational processes weakness and deficiencies in nuclear cultural values contribute more significantly to security failures than individual mistakes. This paper consolidates lessons learned from diverse international nuclear security cultures and aims to highlight the importance of security culture in shaping global perspectives on nuclear security. It underscores the role of cultural values in shaping nuclear security practices and enhancing the resilience of security systems in the nuclear sector.

Zineddin, Dr. Z. [ORNL] (ORCID:0009000848740725)↗

Coupling of the Electricity and Transportation Sectors - Part II: Risk Assessment

This comprehensive report explores the intricate interplay through “sector coupling” between the Transportation Sector, Energy Sector, and the critical infrastructure challenges faced by the United States. Aligned with the ambitious federal goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions, the report analyzes the present vulnerabilities in the fossil fuel supply chain, highlighting instances where the dependence on this industry has been susceptible to local and global disruptions. With a focus on risk assessment, this report establishes a framework to compare the fossil fuel-based transportation sector with the burgeoning electrified sector, considering the evolving technologies in electric vehicles (EVs) and the nascent charging infrastructure. This study delves into the historical reliability of fossil fuel-based transportation and identifies opportunities for strengthening sector coupling between transportation and the electric sector. Assessments of the gasoline-diesel supply chain provide insights into both opportunities and threats, offering a roadmap for creating a more reliable and resilient electrified transportation system. We modeled sectoral coupling scenarios for the current internal combustion engine (ICE)-based and future EV-dominant landscapes, leveraging qualitative sector attributes to identify relative strengths and weaknesses in Part 1 of the report. In this report (Part 2) we continue to understand the role of the electricity sector on transportation and develop a semi-quantitative methodology is employed to evaluate and compare the risks associated with the fossil fueled and electric transportation sector during emergency scenarios, drawing from real-world events like hurricanes and geopolitical disruptions. Different operational scenarios for the fossil fuel and electrified sectors have been developed to understand the risks associated with them. This report concludes with recommendations for the architectural designs of electric charging infrastructure, underlining the need for informed decisions in the transition towards a sustainable and resilient transportation future.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗