Smart Grid – An Outline

Shyam Penubolu
 Agenda

 Overview of existing electricity grid

 Benefits of the smart grid
 Components of the smart grid
 Smart grid players – participating companies

Smart Grid – An Outline 2

  Overview of existing electricity grid
 Benefits of the smart grid
 Components of the smart grid
 Smart grid players – participating companies

Smart Grid – An Outline 3

 The Grid is Already Smart!

In the USA:
 9200 electricity generating units
 300,000 miles of transmission
lines
 99.97% reliable
 Termed as the greatest
engineering achievement of the
20th century by the National
Academy of Engineering

Smart Grid – An Outline 4

 So, what are the issues?
Does not address modern concerns such as:
 Reliability: increasing number of black-outs
If Alexander Graham Bell
– Slow mechanical switches
were somehow transported
– No automated analytics to the 21st century, he would
– No situational awareness not begin to recognize
 Energy Efficiency the components of modern
telephony – cell phones,
 National Economy increasingly dependent texting, cell towers, PDAs,
on electronic equipment.
 Affordability: etc. – while Thomas Edison,
– Rising fossil fuel costs triggering increase in one of the grid’s key early
energy costs architects, would be totally
– Grid not prepared to easily accommodate familiar with the grid.
renewable sources
 Climate Change: Electricity accounts for - From DOE's Smart Grid:
40% of GHG emissions. An Introduction

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 Some Startling Numbers
 Power outages cost $180 billion per year
 Growth in peak demand exceeds growth in transmission by almost
25% every year
 If the grid were just 5% more efficient, the energy savings would
equate to eliminating 53 million cars
 Sun Microsystems estimates that a blackout costs the company $1
million every minute.
 Load from chip technologies and automated manufacturing is about
40% currently. Expected to reach 60% by 2012.
 In 2000, the one-hour outage that hit the Chicago Board of Trade
resulted in $20 trillion in trades delayed.
 Average efficiency of legacy grids is 33% whereas the efficiency of
those using modern technologies is 60%

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 Overview of existing electricity grid
Benefits of the smart grid
Components of the smart grid
Smart grid players – participating companies

Smart Grid – An Outline 7

 Benefits to Consumers
 Can monitor their energy consumption in real-
time.
 Can control their consumption based on real-
time pricing information
– the control can be automated
– even possible via the web.
 Can power electric and plug-in/hybrid
vehicles and
 feed locally generated energy back to the
grid.

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 Benefits to Utilities
 Monitor load in real-time, anticipate demand and
automatically adjust energy flows
 Peak Load Balancing – interact with customers to
reduce demand at peak load
 Enable integration of external renewable energy
sources to pump electricity back into the grid
 Fault Isolation – advanced sensors allow quick
isolation of faults in the network and speedy recovery
 Power Plant Growth – better management of demand
and supply allows utilities to reduce need for
additional power plants

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 Overview of existing electricity grid
Benefits of the smart grid
Components of the smart grid
Smart grid players – participating companies

Smart Grid – An Outline 10

 Components of the Smart Grid

The Smart Grid is a widely

distributed electricity delivery
network, characterized by 2-way
flow of electricity and information
and is capable of monitoring
everything from power plants to
customer appliances.

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 Key Smart Grid Technologies
 Integrated Communication:
enables 2-way communication for monitoring and controlling grid
components in real-time.
 Sensing and Measurement:
enable remote monitoring and more accurate response.
 Advanced Components:
apply the latest research in superconductivity, fault tolerance, storage
etc. .
 Advanced Control Methods:
monitor essential components, enabling rapid diagnosis and precise
solutions to events.
 Improved Interfaces and Decisions Support:
enable grid operators and managers to take informed decisions.

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 Integrated Communications – Key Benefits
 Enable the grid to become a dynamic, interactive
medium for 2-way real-time information and power
exchange.
 Appropriate media that will provide the necessary
infrastructure to transmit information accurately,
securely, reliably.
 Enhances reliability – enables Distributed Energy
Resources (DER) and Demand Response (DR).
 Enhances security – better detection of physical and
cyber threats to the grid
 Economic benefits to both users and utilities via real-
time pricing information, DR, DER etc.

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 Integrated Communications – Current State
 Communications too slow and not integrated
 Mostly, no standards exist, currently under development – e.g.
OpenAMI, IEEE is working on Broadband Power Line (BPL)
 BPL is being deployed in some cases but Wireless is emerging
as a viable alternative
 Exception where a standard is available is Substation
Automation (SA) – IEC 61850.

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 Communication Technologies
Technology Comments
Broadband Over Communication over low and medium voltage lines


Power Line Currently being used for Automatic Meter Reading (AMR), DER, DR,
video monitoring etc.
Multiple Consists of a master radio transmitter/receiver and several remote
Address System transmitters/receivers
Radio Currently deployed for Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition
(SCADA) and Distribution Automation (DA).
Spread- Point to multi-point, secure radio-system where frequency hops in a
spectrum radio particular band.
systems Used as last-mile connection to a main communications system


WiFi Short-range wireless communication based on IEEE 802.11b and IEEE

802.11g standards.
 Useful for communication within the premises.
WiMax  4G Wireless technology that provides longer distance communications
(10 – 30 miles) with data rates of 75 Mbps
Can be used as the core transmission and distribution communications
system that supports WiFi applications for SA or DA.

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 Communication Technologies

Technology Comments
Cellular 3G Family of standards that includes GSM EDGE, UMTS and HSPA.
Data rates up to 14 Mbps downlink are possible.
Can be applied as a low-cost solution for SA to control, monitor
substation performance when small bursts of information are
needed
Very Small Satellite-based 2-way communication that offers data rates of 56
Aperture Terminal kbps to 4 Mbps
(VSAT) Typically used for narrowband communication such as in SCADA.


Power-line carrier  Low-to-medium speed communication over electric power lines

 Supports AMI deployments and grid control functions, such as
load shedding
Fibre-to-the-home Broadband communication over fiber-optic connections to
(FTTH) customer premises
 Can be used in connecting the end users – homes and industrial
facilities

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 Integrated Communications – Future
 Integrated communications will enable the grid to
become a dynamic, interactive medium for real-time
information and power exchange.
 Open communications standards
 Appropriate media that will provide the necessary
infrastructure to transmit information accurately,
securely, reliably.

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 Advanced Sensing and Measurement
Current customer-focused advances:
Consumer gateway:
– Advanced meter reading
– Real-time pricing
– Integration of energy generated by customer
– Building energy management system
– Remote power quality monitoring

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 Advanced Sensing and Measurement

Residential consumer network -

a subset of consumer gateway

 Advanced Meter
 Uses digital technology to
read and record electrical
parameters

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 Utility focused advances
Wide-area Monitoring System (WAMS):
– GPS based PMUs measure voltage and current at various locations on
the grid
– Provides global view of the grid, automatically monitors it and alerts
the operator in case of (possible) issues
– Combines phasor data with SCADA for enhanced state estimation
– Most promising of all the technologies
Dynamic line rating technology
– Measures the ampacity (current carrying capability) of lines in real-time

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 Utility focused advances
– Conductor/compression connector sensor:
• Determines line rating by measuring the conductor
temperature and line sag
• Communication via BPL or wireless

– Insulation contamination leakage current sensor:

• Continuously monitors leakage current to determine
key parameters
– Advances in protection – Digital relays that have
replaced electro-mechanical ones have better fault
isolation, detection and self-checking diagnostics

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 Advanced Sensing and Measurement - Future
Customer focused:
– Solid-state meters are the future
– Will record usage at different times of day
– Will listen to real-time pricing signals sent by the provider and
display to user
– May be capable of controlling loads based on customer profile
– May even provide non-utility services such as fire and burglar alarms

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 Advanced Sensing and Measurement - Future
Utility focused:
– Tools that will provide info on:
• Power factor
• Power quality throughout the grid
• Phasor relationships (WAMS)
• Equipment health and capacity
• Meter tampering
• Vegetation intrusion
• Fault location
• Transformer and line loading
– New host software systems will collect, store, analyze, and process the
abundance of data that flows from these modern tools
– Future digital relays that employ computer agents will further enhance reliability

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 Advanced Components – Current State
Both AC and HVDC transmission
equipment requiring power
electronics. These devices
aid in:
 Voltage control at various
load conditions
 Power quality enhancement
 Reactive power balance
 Stability problems in long-
distance transmission
Smart Grid – An Outline
Examples of devices using power
electronics (FACTS – Flexible AC
Transmission System):
 Universal Power Flow Contoller: does
reactive power compensation and flow
control
 DVAR (Dynamic VAr): Mobile device.
Provides voltage support and
improves power quality
 MV SVR: Boosts load voltage during
source voltage sags caused by faults
in the utility distribution grid or in the
transmission system
 Static VAr Compensator: Most
important and most prevalent device.
Improves transmission line efficiency
by resolving dynamic voltage
problems
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 Advanced Components – Current Research
 Superconductivity
– First Generation Wire
– High-temperature
Superconductor (HTS) Cable
– 2G Wire (5-10 years
development required)
 DER – small capacity – 3 to
10000 KW power generation,
located close to where energy
is used.
 Distributed Generation–
Wind, Solar PV, Fuel Cells
and Microturbines.
Smart Grid – An Outline
DER: Distributed Storage:
 NaS battery
 Vanadium Redox battery
 Ultra-capacitors
 Composite conductors: allows
doubling of amperage limits without
modifications to line support or
towers.
 Aluminum conductor composite core
cable
Aluminum conductor composite

reinforced cable
 Annealed aluminum, steel supported,
trapezoid cross section conductor
wire
 Grid-friendly appliances – that can be
switched off or on to modulate load
during system disturbances.
25
 Advanced Components – Role of Plug-in Hybrid EVs (PHEV)
 According to NREL’s research, the following are the benefits of
PHEVs:
 Significant reduction in oil consumption
 Utilities can control the time at which PHEVs are recharged. Say,
overnight when the demand is low
 PHEVs can be used to store energy that can be used in periods of
extreme demand or system emergencies.

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 Advanced Control Methods (ACM)
 ACM refers to the devices and algorithms that analyze the
current state of the grid and predict fault conditions.
 ACM may also take automatic corrective actions to prevent
outages and power quality disturbances
 Currently deployed ACM have a local scope and do not have a
system-wide perspective
 ACM relies on three areas:
– Distributed Intelligent Agents – semi-autonomous entities that
respond to local conditions rapidly. E.g. Energy Management
Systems
– Analytical Tools such as Phasor Measurement Analyzer, System
Performance Monitoring, Simulation and Prediction
– Operational Applications such as SA, DA and DR

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 Advanced Control Methods - Future
 ACM will process real-time information received from
Low cost Intelligent Electronic Devices (IEDs)
 PMUs integrated with GPS time signals will be
deployed to provide the grid status, and will enable
prediction of grid instabilities
 System diagnosis at local, regional and system-wide
levels
 Advanced Data Analysis will help in load forecasting,
risk analysis, planning and maintenance
 Take autonomous actions when appropriate or
present data to human operators

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 Integrated Interfaces and Decision Support (IIDS)

 IIDS helps present complex smart grid data in a

simple manner and not let operators feel swamped by
data overload.
 IIDS enables operators to analyze the state of the grid
and predict issues rapidly
 Techniques include animation, colour contouring and
virtual reality
 Currently, the required amount and quality of data is
not available
 Research being done in the area of visualization
 Progress mostly happening in the area of
transmission

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 Integrated Interfaces and Decision Support - Future

 IIDS will enable operators at generation,

distribution, transmission levels to get a
better understanding of the state of the grid.
 Improved information sharing among uses via
integration with enterprise-wide technologies
such as:
– GIS
– Weather forecasting
– Work management system and
– Asset management processes

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 Overview of existing electricity grid
Benefits of the smart grid
Components of the smart grid
Smart grid players – participating companies

Smart Grid – An Outline 31

 Cisco
 Aiming to be a one-stop shop for end-to-end distribution and transmission secure
communication infrastructure
 Offer Cisco’s data center portfolio to enable data collection and storage for smart
grid data analysis and optimization
 Software for centralized management and control – distribution management,
automated metering infrastructure, GIS, asset management etc.
 Partnering with smart meters and other smart grid device vendors to create an
ecosystem that utilities have multiple options
 Has announced a building energy management software product called EnergyWise:
– integrated platform for monitoring and controlling energy usage of computers, phones,
HVAC, lighting etc.
– leverages capabilities of products from partner companies:
• Computer power management from Verdiem
• Network management software from SolarWinds
• Building controls from Schneider Electric.

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 IBM
 Aims to be the system integrator for smart grid infrastructure
 Formed the Global Intelligent Utility Network – an alliance of innovative
utilities
 Goals of the alliance – optimize usage of wind energy, energy efficiency
and reliability.
 The alliance helps share experiences and best practices.
 The alliance has also created a Smart Grid maturity model

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 GE
 Smart appliances such as washing machines and dryers that
can respond to Demand Response commands
 Smart HomeEnergy Manager – a device to link smart
appliances
 Smart meters, smart thermostats, grid sensors, wind turbines
and energy storage

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 Google
 Google PowerMeter software:
– enables access to home energy usage information from any
computer/mobile
– Tracks historical data and predicts future trends
 Google working with utilities and smart energy meter
manufacturers to interoperate with PowerMeter.
 Not a big player in Smart Grid currently but a company to
watch.

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 Other Key Players – Smart Meters

Itron Won a 5.3 million smart meter contract from S. California

Edison. Working with several other utilities.
A $1.6 billion public company
Landis & Gyr Has won smart meter deals worth over $400 million.

A $1.25+ billion public Swiss company



Sensus Plans to install 430,000 smart meters in Hawaii.



Metering US based public company


Systems
SmartSynch Startup making smart meters that communicate over
GPRS/WiFi using IP network technology
About $80 million in funding from Credit Suisse, Battelle
Ventures, Beacon Group, Endeavor Capital Management,
GulfSouth Capital, Innovation Valley Partners, Kinetic
Ventures, OPG Ventures and Siemens Venture Capital

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 Other Key Players – Smart Meters

Gridpoint A startup, working on helping utilities balance energy loads through

hardware and software.
Total funding of $214 million. Investors include Altira Group, Craton Equity
Partners, Goldman Sachs, New Enterprise Associates, Perella Weinberg
Partners, Quercus Trust, Robeco and The Susquehanna International Group of
Companies.
Silver Spring Sells IP based hardware and software to connect utilities and customers


Networks About $250 million funding received. Investors include Google Ventures,
Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, Northgate Capital, Edison Electric Institute,
JVB Properties.
eMeter Sells software to help utilities manage the grid having smart meters in homes
and businesses.
$56 million funding received from Sequoia Capital, Foundation Capital,
Siemens Corporation & DBL Investors.
Greenbox A startup, developing a dashboard that helps consumers monitor and cut
Technologies energy consumption.
Acquired by Silver Spring Networks in Oct 09.


Powerit Provides an energy management system to reduce energy costs through

Solutions demand control and demand response
About $13 million funded by @Ventures, Expansion Capital, Siemens Venture
Capital and Arcelor Mittal.

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 Key Players in Smart Grid – Networks

Tendril Makes home energy management software as well as

hardware such as energy displays and smart plugs
$43 million received from RRE Ventures, Vista Ventures,
Access Venture Partners, Appian Ventures, VantagePoint,
Good Energies.
Trilliant Makes open standards based software and hardware for time-
of-use metering and two-way communication
 $40 million funded by MissionPoint Capital, Zouk Ventures
EnerNOC Provides demand response services. Helps Industrial and
commercial building owners reduce their energy consumption
over a peak-demand time period.
$7.75 million received from New Atlantic Ventures, Foundation
Capital, Braemer Energy and Draper Fischer Jurvetson
Comverge Provides demand response services. Over 500 utility clients
already.
$41 million funding from Rockport Capital Partners, Nth
Power, EnerTech Capital Partners, Ridgewood Capital,
NorskHydro Ventures.

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 Other Key Players - Utilities
 Southern California Edison –
– installing computerized systems to ensure a more rapid, accurate,
automated response to grid problems
– Replacing legacy electro-mechanical devices with digital ones for
increased efficiency and reliability
– Installing advanced sensors and control systems to respond to
stress rapidly.
– SmartConnect program to install 5 million smart meters. The smart
meters
 PG&E
– Over 5 million smart meters installed

 XCel Energy
– SmartGridCity initiative in Boulder, CO.
– Adding green energy to the mix
– Deploying smart meters and smart devices in homes
– Digitally enhanced and resilient energy grid
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 Other Key Players - Utilities
 Austin Energy
– Smart Grid intiative called Pecan Street Project
– Involves deployment of 500,000 smart devices and 410,000 smart meters
– On the network side, 3000 computers and network devices and 2500
sensors
 Sempra Energy
– 1.4 smart meters in San Diego region by 2011
– Smart Grid demonstration funded by the Dept of Energy and California
Energy Commission:
• Incorporated solar power generators on homes and small businesses.
• Coordinated new peak load management technology.
• Improve overall power quality.
• Leveraged smart meters.
• Integrated and remotely control distributed generation storage devices
to allow access to electricity in emergencies.
 Oncor
– Won a $7.3 million Federal grant for demonstrating Dynamic Line Rating
(DLR).
– The DLR demo will showcase monitoring technology to reduce
transmission-line congestion and increase the carrying capacity of the
transmission lines.

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 Thank You!

Smart Grid – An Outline 41