Stories of Technology, Innovation, & Entrepreneurship in the Southeast

Covering half of North America, the U.S. electric grid functions somewhat like a vast, complex organism.

Fortunately, researchers at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) have developed a new simulation platform for understanding and predicting the behavior of this modern grid. Using a combination of mathematical tools, automation, and analysis, the approach provides highly accurate results with less computing time at a lower cost, increasing the reliability of electricity.

Simulation uses mathematical approaches to reproduce the dynamics of a real-world system. This allows utilities and planners to analyze grid management methods without any risk to safety, equipment or electrical service. ORNL researchers refined a cutting-edge grid modeling approach called Electromagnetic Transient simulation (EMT), which is especially effective for analyzing the split-second reactions of modern power electronics. This capability helps operators prevent cascading blackouts and unsafe operating conditions in modern electric grids brimming with power electronics.

“We are trying to understand electronics and systems in a way that mimics their real behavior with higher fidelity,” said ORNL Researcher Phani Marthi. “The challenge today is that high-fidelity EMT simulation is extremely time-consuming to simulate large-scale modern power grid systems.”

The ORNL simulation approach is tackling those challenges, as Marthi and his co-authors explained in a paper that was presented in the best paper session at the July general meeting of the IEEE Power and Energy Society.

Representing the next phase of ORNL’s national leadership in EMT simulation, the ORNL tool is called RE-INTEGRATE for its enhanced speed and accuracy at simulating large-scale power systems that integrate many power electronics.

In the past, the grid relied on the natural momentum of huge rotating mechanical machines and power flowing in a single direction along established paths, like a locomotive on a track. But today, power electronics make the grid respond more like a sports car, with rapid electronic adjustments instead of built-in momentum. Unfortunately, today’s grid is not fully ready for that speed. RE-INTEGRATE helps utilities map the best route for the grid of the future.

RE-INTEGRATE advances will be presented during an EMT simulation workshop at ORNL, co-hosted by the North American Electric Reliability Corporation Oct. 7-9 in Knoxville.

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