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At least 91 records · Page 5

Developing a PSCAD Model of the Reduced 240-Bus WECC Test System: Preprint

Fast-acting controls of inverter-based resources (IBR) introduce unprecedented dynamics to bulk power systems and island power grids, especially the high-frequency dynamics ranging from $>5$ Hz to hundreds of Hz. These oscillatory stability problems cannot be captured by the phasor domain simulations, e.g., in PSS/E, Powerworld and TSAT, due to insufficient modeling. Instead, they should be studied by electromagnetic transient (EMT) simulations by using proper EMT dynamic models. This paper develops and validates the PSCAD model of the reduced 240-bus Western Electricity Coordinating Council (WECC) test system. The PSCAD model will be released to the public, which can be used by both academia and power industry practitioners for studying the fast dynamic problems without any Critical Energy/Electric Infrastructure Information (CEII).

240-bus WECC test system↗

Stabilizing the Power System in 2035 and Beyond: Evolving from Grid-Following to Grid-Forming Distributed Inverter Controllers (Final Technical Report)

Under existing grid operations, large synchronous generators provide sufficient rotational inertia to form a rigid backbone for the bulk power system. With photovoltaics (PV) forecasted to provide more than 600 GW of generation by 2050 under the U.S. Department of Energy’s SunShot Initiative objectives, however, it is clear that power electronic inverters will play a dominant role in future systems, and low-inertia stability must be ensured to maintain system reliability. Today, the risks to system stability can be observed on geographically small islands, such as Hawaii, which contain a relatively large amount of installed PV. These risks stem from a fundamental shortcoming of contemporary control strategies—existing inverter controllers cannot guarantee grid stability. Given that future power systems driven by sustainable resources will be characterized by low inertia, locations such as Hawaii provide a glimpse into the obstacles facing future power systems. Considering these challenges, the aim of this project was to develop and demonstrate distributed inverter controllers that enable the reliable control of low-inertia power systems with hundreds of gigawatts of integrated PV.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗

EMT data generation

The integration of inverter-based resources (IBRs) in power systems is accelerating, bringing with it significant benefits such as reduced greenhouse gas emissions, improved grid resilience, and increased energy independence. Despite these advantages, the widespread adoption of IBRs introduces several challenges, including issues related to grid stability, increased operational complexity, and the need for updated regulatory frameworks. To address these challenges, IEEE released Standard 2800 in 2022, which sets forth the necessary interconnection capabilities and performance criteria for IBRs connected to transmission and sub-transmission systems. This standard outlines the performance requirements to ensure the reliable integration of IBRs into the bulk power system. Furthermore, in 2023, the North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC) published a reliability guideline for electromagnetic transient (EMT) modeling of BPS-connected IBRs. This guideline provides recommendations for developing EMT model requirements, performing model quality checks, and implementing verification practices specifically for EMT models representing BPS-connected inverter-based resources in reliability studies conducted by transmission planners and planning coordinators. These standards and guidelines have a profound impact on EMT studies for transmission networks, influencing system stability analyses, grid recovery and resynchronization processes, fault ride-through evaluations, protection and coordination strategies, advanced control methodologies, and the inclusion of IBRs in transient models of transmission networks. As a result, the generation of EMT data is crucial for conducting various transient-based studies to understand the impact of IBRs. EMT data generation use cases serve as the basis for scenarios in event detection and identification use cases, providing comprehensive details about EMT data generation for transmission grids with inverter-based resources. These use cases supply sufficient training and validation datasets for subsequent EMT analysis algorithms.

Xia, Qianxue↗

Assessing the Interactive Impacts of Energy Efficiency and Demand Response on Power System Costs and Emissions

Utilities are increasingly interested in integrating energy efficiency (EE) and demand response (DR) measures and technologies (as well as other distributed energy resources) as a strategic approach to improve their cost-effectiveness and performance. However, the specific EE and DR features that may be best integrated, the interplay between changing EE and DR resource potential, and resulting utility system impacts are not well understood. We quantify the impacts of EE and DR in isolation and in combination on bulk power system costs and emissions based on changes in generation expansion, transmission expansion, and dispatch patterns. The study methodology mimics utility resource planning and uses more novel techniques to select least-cost generation and transmission capacity from supply-and demand-side resources, as compared to more commonly used utility approaches that only consider supply-side resources. The results identify key EE and DR characteristics affecting each other’s power system value and the most valuable technologies and strategies that can be jointly deployed. We discuss implications for EE and DR cost-effectiveness frameworks, program design, and integrated resource planning.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗

Advanced grid-forming (GFM) inverter controls, modeling and system impact study for inverter dominated grids

Our main goals in this project are to understand: 1) the stability of the power system with very high penetration of PV or other inverter-based resources (IBR), 2) the interactions among IBRs and traditional generators, and 3) the impact of the GFM inverters on bulk power system. To achieve these goals, we took a holistic research and development approach. First, an impedance-based large system modeling and stability analysis tool was developed to aid the large IBR system small-signal stability analysis. Second, consensus-based control and transient overload ride through were developed to control and coordinate multiple GFM inverters in a large system to maintain transient stability during big grid events. Third, high fidelity electromagnetic transient (EMT) IBR models were developed and integrated into a large reduced WECC model to study the system impact from IBRs. Lastly, extensive validation tests of the GFM control which was developed in this project and implemented in two 1MW commercial solar inverters were performed using different validation platforms, e.g., control hardware-in-the-loop (CHIL) platform, power hardware- in-the-loop (PHIL) platform, and a real PV plant.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗

Solar-to-Grid: Trends in System Impacts, Reliability, and Market Value in the United States with Data Through 2019

With continued deployment of solar across the United States, assessing the interactions of solar with the power system is an increasingly important complement to studies tracking the cost and performance of solar plants. This project focuses on the historical contribution to reliability, trends in market value, and impacts on the bulk power system of solar deployed in the U.S. through the end of 2019.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗

Solar-to-Grid: Trends in System Impacts, Reliability, and Market Value in the United States with Data Through 2020

With continued deployment of solar across the United States, assessing the interactions of solar with the power system is an increasingly important complement to studies tracking the cost and performance of solar plants. This project focuses on the historical contribution to reliability, trends in market value, and impacts on the bulk power system of solar deployed in the U.S. through the end of 2020. The scope of this analysis includes the seven organized U.S. wholesale power markets and is based on historical hourly solar generation profiles for each individual plant larger than 1 MW or county-level aggregate profiles for smaller solar. In addition, we present a limited set of results for ten utilities that are outside of the independent system operator (ISO)/regional transmission organization (RTO) markets.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗

Understanding the Capabilities and Limitations of the Controls and Operations of High Voltage Direct Current (HVdc) Converters in Interconnected Electric Power Systems

This project will seek to build a fundamental understanding, and capability, to model and simulate the controls and operations of high voltage direct current (HVdc) converter stations in an electromagnetic simulation environment. While HVdc stations have been operated in the United States for over 50 years, these are typically simple two terminal point-to-point systems. Recently multi-terminal systems have begun to be deployed. The challenge with these new multi-terminal systems is that they often use different control schemes on the different terminals. The interactions of existing and new controls, and the fact that HVdc systems are rates in the 1,000’s of MWs means that small control instabilities can have dramatic impacts to bulk power systems. Despite these challenges, the operational capabilities of HVdc make them an attractive option for the transfer of the large amounts of renewable electricity that will be necessary for decarbonization of the nation’s electrical infrastructure and other sectors.

42 ENGINEERING↗

Optimization-Based Dynamic Voltage Support of Microgrids Using Energy Storage Systems

A microgrid network is characterized by a high R/X ratio, making the voltage more sensitive to active power changes compared to bulk power systems, where the voltage is regulated primarily by reactive power. Due to its sensitivity, voltage control approaches for microgrids should also consider the active power input coupling, making it very different from conventional power systems. Additionally, as the energy costs associated with active and reactive powers are different and the operational conditions of microgrids connected to active distribution systems vary over time, the ideal controller to provide voltage support must be flexible enough to handle these technical and operational constraints. This paper proposes a model predictive control approach to provide dynamic voltage support using energy storage systems. This approach uses a simplified predictive model of the system to solve the model predictive control problem. By proper selection of model predictive control weighting parameters, the quality of service provided can be adjusted to achieve the desired performance. A simulation study in MATLAB/Simulink validates the proposed approach for the Cordova, Alaska microgrid. Results show that the performance of the voltage support can be adjusted depending on the choice of weight and constraints of the controller.

24 POWER TRANSMISSION AND DISTRIBUTION↗

Open Source High Fidelity Modeling of a Type-5 Wind Turbine Drivetrain

The increasing integration of renewable energy resources in evolving bulk power system (BPS) is impacting the system inertia. Type-5 wind turbine generation has the potential to behave like a traditional synchronous generator and can help mitigate the impact on system inertia. A hydraulic torque converter (TC) and gearbox with torque limiting feature are integral parts of a Type-5 wind turbine unit. A high fidelity model of Type-5 wind turbine drivetrain is not openly and widely available for grid integration and transient stability studies. This hinders appropriate assessment of Type-5 wind power plant’s contribution to bulk grid resilience. This work develops and validates a TC model based on those generally used in automobile’s transmission system. Moreover, the concept of torsional coupling is leveraged to integrate the TC and gearbox system dynamics. The entire integrated model will be open sourced and publicly available for grid integration studies.

17 WIND ENERGY↗

Influence of Hybridization on the Capacity Value of PV and Battery Resources

Utility-scale systems that combine solar photovoltaic and battery (PV+battery) technologies are growing in popularity on the U.S. bulk power system. The business case for PV+battery systems depends on both their ability to reduce costs and their ability to generate value synergies associated with the provision of energy, capacity, and ancillary services. Capacity value can constitute a significant portion of the value PV+battery hybrids provide to the grid (e.g., through avoided or deferred capacity) and receive through revenues. Throughout this report, we define capacity value as the monetary value of a plant's contribution towards the planning reserve margin, which ultimately depends on market rules and structures. PV+battery hybrids do not always fit into current market structures because of the interactions between the PV and battery components. Unique considerations for the capacity value of PV+battery hybrids include the disparate nature of participation models for PV and battery technologies in existing market rules and the potential influence of a shared interconnection capacity; limitations imposed by a shared inverter; limited ability to charge the battery in advance of capacity events if charging must be sourced from the coupled PV; and challenges or uncertainties associated with co-optimizing the operations of the PV and battery components. Grid operators are currently considering how market structures can be modified to optimally determine the capacity value provided by PV+battery systems, and the rules of how they are integrated into markets are still being written. As with any resource, poorly designed rules could increase the cost of energy and reduce system reliability, while well-designed rules could allow markets to receive the full benefits hybrid systems can offer without overcompensating them for the services they provide. Well-designed rules for PV+battery systems must consider the unique aspects listed above, while leveraging the commonalities with existing resource types. In this report, we summarize the technical capability and market rules that influence the capacity value of PV+battery systems. We further discuss the potential tradeoffs between computational complexity and accuracy for the various ways in which grid operators can credit PV+battery systems for capacity. Finally, we describe markets for capacity, survey current wholesale market rules applying to PV+battery systems, and provide a snapshot of the current regulatory landscape for PV+battery systems.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗

The Effects of Climate Change on Interregional Electricity Market Dynamics on the U.S. West Coast

The United States (U.S.) West Coast power system is strongly influenced by variability and extremes in air temperatures (which drive electricity demand) and streamflows (which constrain hydropower production). As hydroclimate changes across the West Coast, a combination of forces may work in tandem to make its bulk power system more vulnerable to physical reliability issues and market price shocks. In particular, a warmer climate is expected to increase summer cooling (electricity) demands and shift the average timing of peak streamflow (hydropower production) away from summer to the spring and winter, depriving power systems of hydropower when it is needed the most. Here, we investigate how climate change could alter interregional electricity market dynamics on the West Coast, including the potential for hydroclimatic changes in one region (e.g. Pacific Northwest (PNW)) to “spill over” and cause price and reliability risks in another (e.g. California). We find that the most salient hydroclimatic risks for the PNW power system are changes in streamflow, while risks for the California system are driven primarily by changes in summer air temperatures, especially extreme heat events that increase peak system demand. Altered timing and amounts of hydropower production in the PNW do alter summer power deliveries into California but show relatively modest potential to impact prices and reliability there. Instead, it is future climate conditions (extreme heat) in California that may exert a stronger significant influence on prices and reliability in the PNW, especially if California continues to rely on its northern neighbor for imported power to meet higher summer demands.

24 POWER TRANSMISSION AND DISTRIBUTION↗

A Model for Hybrid Systems for Production Cost Modeling Studies Considering Ancillary Services

This paper introduces a model for simulating hybrid plants participating in energy and ancillary services for bulk power system studies. The model considers a hybrid plant comprised of a renewable energy source, a thermal power unit, a storage unit, fixed power loads, or any combination of these technologies. The model focuses on Production Cost Modeling (PCM) studies under the assumption of centralized dispatch. We present an example case study to illustrate the use of the model in a single-stage production cost model similar to those conducted by planning agencies. We explore the allocation of behind-the-meter ancillary services products and total energy participation to hybrid plant sub-assets and the resulting impacts on the system's ancillary service allocation. The model is implemented and simulated in a unit commitment problem in the RTS test system, which was modified to include a hybrid plant asset.

ancillary services↗

A Model for Hybrid Systems for Production Cost Modeling Studies Considering Ancillary Services: Preprint

This paper introduces a model for simulating hybrid plants participating in energy and ancillary services for bulk power system studies. The model considers a hybrid plant comprised of a renewable energy source, a thermal power unit, a storage unit, fixed power loads, or any combination of these technologies. The model focuses on Production Cost Modeling (PCM) studies under the assumption of centralized dispatch. We present an example case study to illustrate the use of the model in a single-stage production cost model similar to those conducted by planning agencies. We explore the allocation of behind-themeter ancillary services products and total energy participation to hybrid plant sub-assets and the resulting impacts on the system's ancillary service allocation. The model is implemented and simulated in a unit commitment problem in the RTS test system, which was modified to include a hybrid plant asset.

ancillary services↗

Adaptive Load Shedding as Part of Primary Frequency Response To Support Networked Microgrid Operations

Global changes in the deployment of distributed energy resources, control and communications technologies, business models, and regulatory policy are increasing the operational options for future distribution systems. One such option is the coordinated operation of distributed resources to form microgrids and networks of microgrids to support traditional bulk power systems during normal operations and critical end-use loads during outages. While individual standalone microgrids have been extensively studied and deployed, the coordinated operation of networked microgrids is operationally more challenging due to the dynamic boundaries and changing mix of generation resources. Here, this paper presents a method of using a distributed control architecture to support primary frequency response in networked microgrids operations. The support of primary frequency response is accomplished using the Open Field Message Bus reference architecture and Grid Friendly Appliance controllers.

29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY↗

Energy Resilience for Mission Assurance: Case Study Scoping Document

The Energy Resilience for Mission Assurance (ERMA) project—a Department of Energy Grid Modernization Lab Consortium effort carried out via a partnership among five national laboratories— seeks to develop metrics to quantify how improvements to energy system resilience translate to improved Department of Defense (DoD) mission assurance (MA) during wide-scale, long-duration outages of the bulk power system. DoD missions are integral to national security and highly dependent on electric power. However, energy system planners—both civilian and military—lack a clear and quantifiable mapping between electric power system resilience and MA, leaving a gap in their ability to understand and consider national security outcomes within their planning efforts. The ERMA project seeks to fill this gap, providing stakeholders with new capabilities to understand the impact of electric power system resilience on MA during hazard scenarios.

24 POWER TRANSMISSION AND DISTRIBUTION↗

BIL GRID-READY WIND: Reliable and Economical Grid Services Design, Implementation, and Demonstration at the Great Pathfinder Wind Power Plant

The GRID-READY WIND project aimed to demonstrate the ability of utility-scale wind power plants (WPPs) to deliver traditional and emerging grid services (GSs) in both grid-following (GFL) and grid-forming (GFM) modes through a centralized control framework, supplemented by local control adjustments at the wind turbine generator as needed. Throughout the project, the team offered recommendations on how the grid services demonstrated with WPPs could be applied to other inverter-based resources (IBRs), such as photovoltaic (PV) systems and battery energy storage systems (BESS), while considering the unique dynamics of these resources arising from their energy generation characteristics. The project sought to enhance the confidence of system operators (SOs) and planners in utilizing WPPs, alongside other IBRs such as PV plants and BESS, to provide essential grid services over extended periods under diverse operating conditions, thereby supporting their integration into the bulk power system.

17 WIND ENERGY↗

Cyber-Resilient Automatic Generation Control for Systems of AC Microgrids

In this paper we propose a co-design of the secondary frequency regulation in systems of AC microgrids and its cyber security solutions. We term the secondary frequency regulator a Micro-Automatic Generation Control (μ AGC) for highlighting its same functionality as the AGC in bulk power systems. We identify sensory challenges and cyber threats facing the μ AGC. To address the sensory challenges, we introduce a new microgrid model by exploiting the rank-one deficiency property of microgrid dynamics. This model is used to pose an optimal μ AGC control problem that is easily implemented, because it does not require fast frequency measurements. An end-to-end cyber security solution to the False Data Injection (FDI) attack detection and mitigation is developed for the proposed μ AGC. The front-end barrier of applying off-the-shelf algorithms for cyber attack detection is removed by introducing a data-driven modeling approach. Finally, we propose an observer-based corrective control for an islanded microgrid and a collaborative mitigation scheme in systems of AC microgrids. We demonstrate a collaborative role of systems of microgrids during cyber attacks. Furthermore, the performance of the proposed cyber-resilient μ AGC is tested in a system of two networked microgrids.

24 POWER TRANSMISSION AND DISTRIBUTION↗