NSF Engineering Research Center for Ultra-wide-area Resilient Electric Energy Transmission Network

NSF ERC的超广域弹性电能传输网络（CUERC）将开发转换技术，以实现输电基础设施在长距离和多个时间尺度上的可靠运行。也许未来几十年最重要的技术挑战将是如何在不严重依赖化石燃料的情况下满足能源需求。电力系统传输基础设施必须在任何可行的解决方案中发挥关键作用。不幸的是，电网正在老化，并且已经超出其设计限制。当诸如风能和太阳能的可再生能源达到显著水平时，无法实现效率、可靠性和安全性方面的期望性能，这将增加系统操作的复杂性和不确定性。通过智能计量更好地控制需求提供了一个绝佳的机会。然而，运营一个拥有数万条输电线路、总线和可能数百万个控制点的超大型复杂电网所面临的核心挑战仍未得到解决。为了避免未来的输电网络不稳定和拥塞瓶颈，并最大限度地减少连锁故障的风险，迫切需要系统运行的超广域协调。ERC将寻求根本性的突破，并研究在大陆范围内实现弹性输电网络所需的技术，同时教育新一代具有全球视野的电力和能源系统工程领导者。具体而言，拟议的ERC研究将：-开发新的系统方法，以利用广域测量和通信的进步，从而在大陆超宽范围内采取协调行动。具有成本效益的全球定位系统（GPS）时间同步广域测量，毫秒级数据速率可以将当今的精细监控和数据采集（SCADA）系统转变为高分辨率系统，实现动态观测和控制。使控制和信息结构扁平化，减少层级，在电网的所有级别上取代传统的不灵活的操作策略。现有的网格控制需要被一个更简单，更扁平的本地控制结构所取代，并在全球态势感知的指导下运行。利用高性能计算能力，实现预测控制（和快速响应）的大规模和超实时仿真，以确保安全可靠的运行。在大陆范围内实时计算网格的“动态”将是可行的。研究使用广泛分配的高功率电子执行器与传输级储能相结合，以在扰动和适度供需失衡期间稳定电网，从而实现高速潮流控制，以充分利用互联系统中的资产。

The NSF ERC for Ultra-wide-area Resilient Electric Energy Transmission Network (CURENT) will develop transforming technologies to allow reliable operation of the electric transmission infrastructure across vast distances and over multiple time scales. Perhaps the most important technical challenge over the next several decades will be how to address energy needs without heavy reliance on fossil fuels. The electric power system transmission infrastructure must play a critical role in any viable solution. Unfortunately, the power grid is aging and already operating outside its design limits. Desired performance in efficiency, reliability, and security cannot be attained when renewable sources such as, wind and solar, reach significant levels that will add complexity and uncertainty to system operation. Allowing greater control of demand with smart metering provides an excellent opportunity. Yet, the core challenge facing operation of an extremely large, complex electric network with tens of thousands of transmission lines, buses and potentially millions of control points, remains unaddressed. Ultra-wide-area coordination for system operation is critically needed to avoid future transmission network instabilities and congestion bottlenecks and to minimize the risk of cascading failures. This ERC will seek the fundamental breakthroughs and investigate the enabling technologies needed to achieve a resilient transmission network on a continental scale, while educating a new generation of electric power and energy systems engineering leaders with a global perspective coming from diverse backgrounds. Specifically, the proposed ERC research will:--Develop new systems methodologies to take advantage of advancements in wide-area measurement and communication to allow coordinated action on a continental ultra-wide scale. Cost effective, Global Positioning System (GPS) time synchronized, wide-area measurements with milliseconds data rate can transform today's granular Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) system into a high resolution system, enabling dynamic observation and control.--Flatten the control and information structure so it is less hierarchical and can replace, at all levels of the power grid, traditional inflexible operations strategies. The existing grid controls need to be replaced by a simpler, flatter structure of local control operating with guidance from global situational awareness.--Draw on high performance computing capability to realize large-scale and faster-than-real-time simulation for predictive control (and fast response) to ensure secure and reliable operation. Real-time calculation of the "dynamic state" of the grid on a continental scale will be feasible.--Investigate the use of widely allocated high power electronic actuators coupled with transmission level energy storage to stabilize grids during disturbances and moderate supply-demand imbalances resulting in high speed power flow control for full use of assets across the interconnected system.