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Electric Energy T&D - Index

Electric Energy T&D - EE Magazine March / April - Index

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Scheu: The concept of “intelligence” as
applied to power systems is centered on the
idea of pushing sensory and analytic capabilities
further down the system hierarchy. In a smart
grid, more can be done locally at the substation
- or even the device level - sometimes without
involving the operators or the computing
resources in the control center. Utilities are
already implementing smart devices in various
applications (e.g., fault detection). The smart
grid concept simply extrapolates this trend to
encompass the entire grid.
EET&D: What are the key characteristics
that separate the intelligent grid from legacy
power systems?
Scheu: Some of today’s networks do
incorporate certain “smart” elements, but
generally not in a comprehensive way. The
intelligent grid, therefore, is comprehensively:
• Self-healing, being able to manage
itself with less reliance on operators,
particularly in terms of quick response to
changing conditions
• predictive, in terms of identifying potential
outages before they occur and also in
applying operational data to equipment
maintenance practices
• Real-time, in terms of communications
and control functions
• optimized to maximize reliability,
availability, security, efficiency and
economic performance
All of this is predicated on the widespread
deployment of technologies designed to
bring the required level of intelligence to
various grid components as well as the
communication and control systems that
administer the system as a whole.
EET&D: What are the basic principles that
underlie all of the intelligence technology
being developed today?
Barnoski: There are a number of specific
technology areas that enable the smart grid, but
perhaps more importantly, there are two basic
principles that underlie all of the technology.
First is the idea of interoperability and by extension,
open systems. For several years now, there
has been a decisive move in the utility IT world
away from proprietary standards and protocols
40 I March-April 2008 Issue
toward commonly used commercial products.
This is especially true of the non-specialized
system components (e.g., databases) where offthe-shelf
tools are taking the place of customdeveloped
applications.
The second underlying principle is real-time,
two-way communications, which in turn
facilitates the functionality improvements
envisioned by the smart grid concept. A highly
robust communications function is therefore
a prerequisite for all of the detection and
analysis that characterize the smart grid.
EET&D: What are the benefits to utilities
and to customers of automating more of the
operational decisions that in the past were
made by human beings?
Scheu: Improved interfaces and decision
support amplify human decision-making,
and transform grid operators into knowledge
workers. This speaks to the transformation of
the utility enterprise that will come with the
realization of the intelligent grid.