October 2010

Smart Grid (cont.)

As for the ubiquitous electric meter and the new generation thereof, in the most common of arrangements, the devices connect through a wireless “mesh” network, (operating at the same frequencies as many wireless LANs: “WiFi” etc.). In addition to metering, the funding calls for the installation of 200,000 smart transformers, 700 automated substations (about 5 percent of the nation's total), 1,000,000 in-home displays and 345,000 load control devices in homes.

An additional $2.3B was allocated in January 2010 for the “energy manufacturing sector” as part of the $787B American Reinvestment and Recovery Act. With all those beans rolling around it is no wonder that energy sector is so dynamic. It is much the same overseas; China in particular is rolling out a lot of capacity in alternative energies and will soon eclipse Germany as the number one wind power generating economy.

Boulder, Colorado, USA - World's First Smart Grid City

According to 2008 data from the US Energy Information Administration there is approximately $1.1TW (terrawatts or trillions of watts) of generating capacity in the US, with the highest portion of electricity generated by natural gas, followed by coal, nuclear and hydroelectric (wind is approximately 2.3% of the total, solar contributes a mere 0.4 percent). The nuclear industry, aging and in a slow process of revitalization in the US, has gained a more centrist-acceptance as worries over greenhouse gasses eclipses the concern over radioactive wastes (sort of) and better reactor designs yield less noisome byproducts.

MORE (http://www.eia.doe.gov/cneaf/electricity/epa/epat1p2.html)

Feng-Ri (Wind-Sun). One of the challenges of the evolving electrical system is the need to cope with non-continuous sources, such as wind and solar. While these sources have the benefit of being distributed (and therefore potentially back-up “islands” of power), the grid is designed for “nominally-static” or steady-state sources with predictable outputs (more or less). Voltage and frequency coordination is fairly tight. The discontinuous nature of wind requires that close regulation is maintained at the connection to the grid; this is achieved by inverter technologies that match the voltage, phyase, power factor and frequency at the tie point. As the flow of electricity will vary, the cost for generating the power will also fluctuate. To optimize the value of electricity dynamic pricing structures will be built into the SmartGrid network. This dynamic pricing will allow smart appliances, for example, to minimize operational cost by coordinating with the network during peak demand times.

For example, “Smart Dryers” will receive a “price signal” from a smart meter; the price signal tells the connected appliances what the rates are at a given time. When demand is high and the prices high, too, the dryer will go into a low energy mode. This will increase the drying time to 60 minutes, rather than 35 minutes, but the attendant cost of electricity will be lower. Other implementations of energy management methodologies will be rolled out in new model appliances, such as refrigerators that will schedule defrosting cycles during low demand (low rate) times.

http://collaborate.nist.gov/twiki-sggrid/bin/view/SmartGrid/WebHome

http://smartgrid.ieee.org/

Meters and devices will be linked to one another over wireless and wired connections in a large “mesh network,” much like a multi-dimensional bucket brigade, each meter passing information along over the common nodes. The system, a mix of technologies, will have robustness and special features—and potential vulnerabilities.

Technology Features. For all of these devices to operate together—and to respond to nascent threats—an array of technologies are being considered, designed and actively developed. The Department of Energy lists five fundamental technologies that will drive the Smart Grid (from DOE’s “The Smart Grid: An Introduction):

• Integrated communications, connecting components to open architecture for real-time information and control, allowing every part of the grid to both ‘talk’ and ‘listen’
• Sensing and measurement technologies, to support faster and more accurate response such as remote monitoring, time-of-use pricing and demand-side management
• Advanced components, to apply the latest research in superconductivity, storage, power electronics and diagnostics
• Advanced control methods, to monitor essential components, enabling rapid diagnosis and precise solutions appropriate to any event
• Improved interfaces and decision support, to amplify human decision-making, transforming grid operators and managers quite literally into visionaries when it come to seeing into their systems

END

<< back to page 1

back to top ^