Smart Grid milestones represent the building blocks of the Smart Grid.Completion of each requires the deployment and integration of various technologies and applications. “One size does not fit all” – the sequence for implementing these milestones and the degree of implementation will depend on the specific circumstances of those involved.
Consumer Enablement (CE) empowers consumers by giving them the information and education they need to effectively utilize the new options provided by the Smart Grid.CE includes solutions such as Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI), home area networks with in-home displays, distributed energy resources (DER), and demand response programs as well as upgrades to utility information technology architecture and applications that will support “plug-and-play” integration with all future Smart Grid technologies.
Advanced Distribution Operations (ADO) improves reliability and enables “self-healing.”ADO includes solutions such as smart sensors and control devices, advanced outage management, distribution management, and distribution automation systems, geographical information, and other technologies to support two-way power flow and microgrid operation.
Advanced Transmission Operations (ATO) integrates the distribution system with RTO operational and market applications to enable improved overall grid operations and reduced transmission congestion.ATO includes substation automation, integrated wide area measurement applications, power electronics, advanced system monitoring, and protection schemes and modeling, simulation, and visualization tools to increase situational awareness and provide a better understanding of real-time and future operating risks.
Advanced Asset Management (AAM) integrates the grid intelligence acquired in achieving the other milestones with new and existing asset management applications. This integration enables utilities to reduce operations and maintenance and capital costs and better utilize assets during day-to-day operations.Additionally, it significantly improves the performance of capacity planning, maintenance, engineering and facility design, customer service processes, and work and resource management.
Summary
It is this combination of values, principal characteristics and milestones that answers the question, “What is the Smart Grid?” Brief “sound bite” descriptions cannot do justice to this complex subject.
Joe Miller is theDOE/NETL Smart Grid Implementation Strategy Team Lead and Senior Vice President at Horizon Energy Group.
I would like to receive informatio about the impact of distributed generation in protection systems and how smart grids can influence this issue.
Best regards.
Angelo Rocha de Oliveira - 04/22/2009 - 09:48
Smart Enterprise
What we need to remember is that we are making the whole enterprise of power production and delivery Smart. This is Generation-transport-demand management in near real time; the 'Smart Enterprise'
The crucial area is not just short term operation but predictability in the timescales for operational planning and committing of main power plant to run. The result we want is for conventional fossil plant to run less often and more efficiently (full load when generating). The Power system is always in balance; Generation=Demand in real time. Generation and Demand have to be matched within close limits to keep the system running in a stable manner (frequency very close to 50Hz).
Excess synchronised plant on bars and part loading for reserve is required to cover uncertainity in prediction of future demand and generation output. Fast ramping of demand and short duration demand peaks also cause inefficient operation of fossil fired plant which is slow to load/deload and uses fuel just to starts up.
Renewable Generation output is seriously unpredictable in commitment timescales. We dont want fossil plant more extensively part loaded to provide excess reserve to cover extra uncertainty in renewables output and other areas. Part loading increases the fuel burn and emissions per MWh generated (effect is worse on CCGTs than UK Coal than US coal).
As regards using storage, Pumped Storage efficiency is only 75% and I'm not sure about the Hyrogen cycle efficiency from that storage technique. Some battery cycles are getting more efficient and can be amployed; also gives local resiliance to interruption and islanding after 'attack'.
With the Smart Grid we are effecting two way communication with customer premises to enable monitoring and active participation of demand and controllable (generally non-renewable) embedded generation. By aggregation of premises data to the utility systems and dissemination of price offers or trades and instructions back down the objective is to mobilise variations in customer premises import/export. This can cover Generation-Demand mismatch in various timescales and also change the demand on fossil plant (peak and fast ramp removal) to allow that generation to operate more efficiently and less often. In all this the System Operator has to ensure that Transmission is secure and the Distribution operator has to manage what is now an 'active' customer environment.
Thats it for the moment - I've hit the typing limit!!
Stephen Browning - 04/23/2009 - 00:52
Smart grid agency
Is the smart grid agency like an internet-server, to whom I can get contact by internet in order to make an contract but who makes a lot of "sophisticated" problems, when I want to get out ore change the internet-server
Dr. Hans Dieter Hammer - 04/29/2009 - 07:59
The state of today's grid
Joe - thanks for summarizing your thoughts. Could you please contrast the above points with what we currently have today? In other words, does today's power grid lack all of the above? If not, then could you detail what we do right today?
I can't imagine today's grid lacking in all the departments mentioned in your article?
Karthik Lakshminarayanan - 04/29/2009 - 14:14
On Smart grid values & principals
After reading the Values and principals, I agree more with one of the comments that asks - what is currently missing.
As a residential customer (that is majority of us as DOE is using our tax $) feel that most of the "values" you have noted are currently derived in any-town, USA.
There were similar thought process championing "how users will benefit", almost 10-years ago, when 'Deregulation' was in vogue.
Most ordinary folks , ones without PhD & reading articles posted here, are concerned. We think that, this entire process appears to be designed for T&D & grid operators and their suppliers, can get there wish list under guise of 'consumer benefits' where most consumers benefiting appear to be for very large users (one with lobbyist)- but ordinary tariff payers footing the bills.
May be it well help some of us - if you chart your value prop - what we have today & what incremental benefits we will get with smart-grid, using some measurable criteria.
Danny Naik - 04/30/2009 - 11:42
switch
If I could turn on/off the smart grid to my home at any time, that would make more sense. Especially if I could turn on/off smart applications on an individual basis. I think then people would feel they still have freedom with this issue.
Daniel White - 05/04/2009 - 22:11
It may be smart, but it still needs a brain...
Looking over the horizon I am convinced that to really make the smart grid work it will need a brain. I believe the company that is working on this for non-US markets is Schloer Consulting Group...see www.schloerconsulting.com. They are applying AI and a new way to do computing to the smart-grid-needs-a-brain problem--and they have the access they need to the expanding supercomputer in Slovenia--and they are working with IBM...and so on. SCG is a spin-off from RavenPack (see www.ravenpack.com). It is pretty interesting stuff.
Tim Tyler - 05/05/2009 - 09:35
Re: switch
I think you might have a misunderstanding of what the smart grid is, and what it really means for consumers, Daniel.
This article does a great job of emphasizing that there are a lot of different aspects of the 'smart grid'. There are big improvements that can be made in the generation, transmission and distribution of electricity, and these improvements will most certainly benefit end-consumers.
After we have this 'smart grid' infrastructure in place, then we can start thinking about customizable, consumer-driven electricity markets.
I think it is inevitable that consumers will be able to cede the control of their devices to run the grid more efficiently and cheaply. I believe these programs will be opt-in, and that they will only find adoption if they truly add value to the customer experience and bottom-line.
We can already see rudimentary implementation of this idea, where utilities are allowed to turn off air conditioners or water heaters for a short time, and the customers get a rebate on their electricity bill.
But there is still a lot of room for improvement as we gain access to more and more real-time data. I imagine that once consumers can start seeing the true cost of electricity in real-time, they will want to opt-in to programs that help them manage their electricity usage.
To me, smart-grid means efficiency. We are bringing the tech of the Internet to a system that has been desperately craving it for over 50 years. Smart grid will reduce costs for everyone involved, and I believe that is the message that will ultimately make the changes possible.
Tim McDougall - 05/21/2009 - 07:07
What Is the Smart Grid?
To me, Smart grid is a system with enough intelligence to balance the Power supply-demand situation and smart enough to protect the investment / equipment and deliver power without failure due to imbalances within the system. As we hear different definitions, I call this as VEL’s Smart Grid definition.
Challenges for smart grid: The process of making a grid smart becomes more challenging when the demand varies according to the time of the day, week, season etc and supply remains mostly constant with out any reasonable assurance of availability that can be effected by random events like weather, accidents, natural calamities etc.
Technology: However, the good news is that today’s technology promises enough tools to face these challenges. Some of those tools are:
SCADA (supervisory Control And Data Acquisition system) for system level monitoring instantaneous demand, supply and imbalance in the system and control the required parameters.
Energy billing software helps to provide incentives to consumers to adjust the pattern of their energy consumption to go with the supply-demand situation.
Intelligent Electronic Devices for monitoring required parameters. Devices such as Protection Relays, RTUs and Metering Devices can be programmed to do what needed to be done based on control from SCADA.
Communication protocols helps to exchange information between controlling and controlled devices. Thankfully, some of the above devices can speak multiple protocols.
Communication systems help to delivery of information exchange between devices on a real time basis, (typically events and responses should be in less than 2 to 3 AC cycle time, 30 to 60 Milliseconds) in a wide area of geographical location.
Human Machine Interface (HMI) for us to understand what is going on in the system.
Any questions? Please let me know
Velayudhan Panakal - 06/11/2009 - 16:21
Smart Grid for Rural Community in Developing World!!!
I have a query on the implementation of SMART GRID concept on the community funded(on partial subsidy support from donors) rural micro hydro schemes under isolated grid operation.
These schemes are operating separately & in isolation with one another while feeding their specific group of consumers. In case of outages & breakdowns of such scheme, the specific consumers connected to it remain short of supply, which is easily understood. As a result, all economic & commercial activities come to grinding halt at once. This is frequent phenomenon on such schemes.
Besides, in the developing economies, where the state is unable to invest on building capital intensive energy infrastructure & natural topography too creates difficulty in realizing this, I would like to know that how smart grid principle & technology can be used in the best interest of the rural community so that their energy needs can be addressed successfully and reliably.Also, Quality & Economy of such scheme being an important aspect cannot be neglected while considering the implementation.
I would be thankful for the technical ideas (engineering inputs) from experts on my above queries.
Kalyan Malla - 11/08/2009 - 22:48
Electrical Energy Management in Buildings of Pakistan
Untill unless power companies are not ready to work transparent and as per written approved policy,nothing will change except financial burdent on utilities.
In my openion, it is only reward and punishment phelosophy to have input and out put balance at all levels of any economic activity in any country round the globe.
Unfortunately there is not any legislation to control the currupt officials round the developing world.
There must be impartial institution with appropriate regional representation to implement such advanced technologies round the developing world, with maximum possible outputs as per designed targets.
Engr Muhammad Saleem Memon - 12/10/2009 - 20:45
How does smart grid helps to avoid outages and breakdo
To answer the question on how does smart grid implementation helps to avoid outages and breakdowns, we need to understand what smart grid do on such situations.
Power grid is analogous to a supply chain. Supply chain deals with materials from point of origin to point of consumption (normally to a business unit, Example a super market, not always to real consumers!!!). Materials are moved using a Carrier (Trucks for example) on Roadways from point of origin to point of consumption. When Electrical Energy is consumed, the carrier is Electrons, the roadways is electrical conductors (called grid) and need to be delivered to real consumers (at least when the grid is smart).
For Electrical Energy, there is no time lag between generation and consumption. For example, Electrical energy generated at Niagara Falls is consumed in a rotating giant wheel at Disney Amusement Park in Florida (far south in USA) or to a household in Yellow knife, North West territories, Canada (far north in American continent), at the same instant of time. This also makes the possibility to deliver energy to consumers spread in a wide geographical location from multiple points of generations. Then the system becomes more complex and needs very sophisticated decision making systems (that can make decisions much faster and dedicated than human brain) and fast acting Electronics devices to switch from failed generating station or a broken conductor (outages and breakdowns) to an available supply to deliver. But there is a cost attached.
Basically in most situations, a smart grid helps in outages and breakdowns by switching connection from a failed supply point to an available supply point. If such an infrastructure is already available in a grid that is isolated or not, making it SMART will definitely help.
Velayudhan Panakal - 02/07/2010 - 18:52
Smart Grid for home use to reduce power bill
While the home electricity is not in use there are
equipment that can reserve and put out the electricity back on the power grid, I am looking for the company or corporation who is in involved in this industry, thank you, 706-790-4676
Robert Francis Ingham - 06/26/2010 - 11:57
Smart Grid quality metrics
You have very clearly defined the expectations however, I would be interesrted in your views regarding defining one or more performance metric per expectation so that progress or lack of can be monitored based on actual data. Thx
Rohit Dave - 07/02/2010 - 03:12
AMI,ADO AAM,ATO informations.
I would like to get information about the information smart grid basic parts, mostly focused on Advanced metering infrastructure AMI, Advanced Distribution operation ADO, Advanced Transmission operation ATO, Advanced asset management AAM..
Three new demonstration projects caught our attention - a smart grid effort in Albuquerque's business district, a rapid recovery transformer study in Texas and a trial involving low voltage current sensor technologies in the UK. They also got us to thinking: At this stage in the smart grid build out, if you could design a demonstration project, what would it entail? That's our latest Tuesday Topic; click for the details.
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