RII Track-4:NSF: Isolated Amorphous Microgrid Design with Accelerated Power System Analysis and Network Layout (IMPALA)

离网远程电力系统，这里指的是微电网，是向阿拉斯加农村居民提供电力的关键，也是一个有前途的解决方案，可以解决截至2019年世界上仍有10%的人无法用上电的问题。开发署的可持续发展目标7(`负担得起的清洁能源‘)旨在到2030年增加所有人获得负担得起的清洁能源的机会。据估计，到2030年，30%的新带电连接将由微电网提供服务(农村地区高达70%)。存在许多微电网规划和开发工具。但是，这些工具中使用的网络设计方法和假设之间存在严重的不一致。最佳实践中的这种不一致和不确定性不利于快速部署可持续稳定的微电网，这是实现联合国可持续发展目标7所必需的。国际和国家对远程隔离微电网发展的需求推动了一系列新的微电网工具的创建，这些工具在缺乏对网络布局和电力系统设计假设的比较分析以及标准的工程和经济性能指标的情况下发展起来。这份名为“RII Track-4：NSF：带加速电力系统分析和网络布局的隔离无定形微电网设计(IMPALA)”的EPSCoR RII Track-4研究员提案将评估远程隔离微电网开发工具方法和相关性能指标，以提供有助于开发更稳定、负担得起和可持续的微电网的标准和工具。该项目的目标是提供有助于开发更稳定、可负担和可持续的微电网的标准和工具。该项目将促进阿拉斯加大学费尔班克斯大学(UAF)阿拉斯加能源与电力中心的Cicilio博士与亚利桑那州立大学(ASU)能源与电力解决方案实验室之间的合作。通过与亚利桑那州立大学能源与电力解决方案实验室(LEAPS)团队的合作，Cicilio博士将获得由LEAPS团队开发的快速测绘方法和相关工具。快速测绘方法将成为微电网开发的基准工具，用于测试网络设计方法的变化。快速绘图工具旨在降低可行性评估和工程规划成本，提高速度，提高数据分析准确性，改进电力工程方面的技术细节，并将全面的技术和财务分析整合到一个工具中。Cicilio博士将在这项提案中将几个关键参与者聚集在一起，以推动产生的有效和适用的指标和方法来满足这些需求。该项目将利用以前与OnePower Africa建立的联系，通过与亚利桑那州立大学作为主办机构的新合作，增加地理多样性和经验多样性，为项目的评估提供信息。将评估与阿拉斯加、莱索托、尼日尔和塞拉利昂的项目合作伙伴有关的全球现有和潜在的微电网站点，以确定可能影响这些方法性能的区域特征。这将导致更可持续、负担得起和更稳定的微电网，不仅对非洲案例研究，而且对阿拉斯加农村地区也有影响。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

Off-grid remote power systems, referred to here as microgrids, are key to providing electricity to rural Alaskans and are also a promising solution that addresses the fact that 10% of the world still lacks access to electricity as of 2019. The UNDP Sustainable Development Goal 7 (``Affordable and Clean Energy'') aims to increase affordable and clean energy access for all by 2030. It is estimated that 30% of newly electrified connections will be served by microgrids by 2030 (up to 70% in rural areas). Numerous microgrid planning and development tools exist. However, there are significant inconsistencies between network design methods and assumptions used in these tools. Such inconsistencies and uncertainty in best practices are detrimental to the rapid deployment of sustainable and stable microgrids necessary to meet the UN Sustainability Development Goal #7. The need for international and national remote isolated microgrid development has driven a flurry of new microgrid tool creation, which has grown in absence of comparative analysis of network layout and power system design assumptions, and standard engineering and economic performance metrics. This EPSCoR RII Track-4 Fellow Proposal entitled "RII Track-4:NSF: Isolated Amorphous Microgrid Design with Accelerated Power System Analysis and Network Layout (IMPALA) will assess remote isolated microgrid development tool methods and associated performance metrics to inform standards and tools that will aid the development of more stable, affordable, and sustainable microgrids.The objective of this project is to inform standards and tools that will aid the development of more stable, affordable, and sustainable microgrids. The project will develop a collaboration between Dr. Cicilio at the University of Alaska Fairbanks (UAF) at the Alaska Center for Energy and Power and the Laboratory for Energy And Power Solutions at Arizona State University (ASU). Through collaboration with ASU’s Laboratory for Energy And Power Solutions (LEAPS) team, Dr. Cicilio will be provided access to the Rapid Mapping Methodology and associated tools developed by the LEAPS team. The Rapid Mapping Methodology will be the baseline microgrid development tool which will be adapted to test variations in network design methods. The Rapid Mapping tool was built with aims to reduce feasibility assessment and engineering planning costs, increase speed, increase data analysis accuracy, improve technical detail in respect to power engineering, and incorporate comprehensive technical and financial analysis into one tool. Dr. Cicilio will bring together several key players in this proposal to drive impactful and applicable resulting metrics and methods to address these needs. This project will leverage the prior established connection with OnePower Africa with the new collaboration with ASU, as the host institution, to increase the geographical diversity and diversity of experience to inform the project’s evaluations. Existing and potential microgrid sites across the globe associated with project partners in Alaska, Lesotho, Niger, and Sierra Leone will be assessed to determine regional characteristics that may impact the performance of these methods. This will lead to more sustainable, affordable, and stable microgrids with implications not just to the African case studies but for rural Alaska as well.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.