The U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE's) Integrated Energy Systems Office (IESO) works with electric grid operators, utilities, regulators, academia, and industry participants to create new strategies for maintaining reliable operation of the grid.
Utilities have deployed renewable power to provide larger portions of electricity generation. However, some utilities have expressed concerns about how variable renewable energy sources may impact electric power system operations. For example, wind speed is always fluctuating—so the energy from wind is always changing. This variability adds uncertainty for grid operators beyond what is present due to variations in electricity demand (also called load).
As the nation moves toward a modern energy system, it is increasingly important for grid operators to understand how they can plan for and operate a system that reliably integrates variable or inverter-based power into system operations. Additionally, it is important to develop capabilities that enable new power plants to provide much needed grid services (e.g. frequency and voltage support) that can improve the reliability and resilience of the electric grid.
Goal
The office's goal in renewable systems integration is to drive strategic research and development of advanced energy solutions, focusing on enhancing grid reliability and resilience, fostering U.S. technological leadership across a variety of energy generation sources, and reducing the cost of energy for Americans. IESO develops innovative grid integration solutions for advanced energy resources and loads that drive grid expansion, mitigate problems caused by inverter-based resources, and enhance reliability and cyber-physical security.
Current Research Project Highlights
IESO and DOE National Laboratory researchers work with industry partners on projects aimed at better understanding integration issues and building confidence in the reliability of variable generation.
IESO has supported projects in the Grid Modernization Initiative through the Grid Modernization Laboratory Consortium (GMLC), which is a strategic partnership between DOE and its national laboratories to collaborate on grid modernization.
To explore DOE-funded grid integration projects related to wind energy, see the summaries below or view our Wind R&D Projects Map and select Program Area: Grid Integration.
IESO’s grid integration portfolio focuses on four areas to enable cost-effective, cyber-secure, and reliable grid operation:
- Transmission Adequacy and Access
- Grid Reliability and Resilience
- Hybrid Systems
- Cybersecurity of Electricity Generation Technologies
Transmission Adequacy and Access
The long-lived nature of transmission infrastructure requires careful upfront analysis to evaluate where new transmission infrastructure is needed for new generation, ensure that new or existing lines are best utilized, understand the benefits of new transmission development, and identify solutions to expediate interconnection to the nation’s electric grid.
i2X is a DOE program led by IESO in close collaboration with national laboratories, including Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. The mission of i2X is to enable simpler, faster, and fairer interconnection of renewable energy resources while enhancing the reliability, resiliency, and security of our distribution and bulk-power electric grids. The i2X program offers technical assistance to directly support stakeholders in improving interconnection practices and processes for electricity distribution and transmission systems. The technical assistance is specific to the interconnection of renewable energy technologies including solar, wind, storage, or electric vehicle charging facilities, or a hybrid integration of these technologies.
The Transmission Optimization with Grid-Enhancing Technologies project, led by Idaho National Laboratory (INL), is developing new modeling and simulation methodologies, conducting a full-scale, multi-faceted field exercise, and enhancing further research on the impact of grid-enhancing technologies (GETs). GETs are hardware and software that increase the capacity, efficiency, and reliability of the transmission grid. This project builds on previous work from INL—involving technology such as Dynamic Line Rating—which acknowledges higher line ratings when it is windy and allows for greater wind generation. Overall, GETs focus on improving the transmission grid to enable larger integration of renewable sources such as wind and solar.
The cross-cutting High-Voltage Direct Current (HVDC) COst REduction (CORE) initiative, aims to reduce the cost of HVDC voltage source converter (VSC) transmission systems by 35% by 2035 to promote widespread adoption of the technology. HVDC transmission requires switching power sources from AC to DC and back again to connect to the grid, and using a HVDC VSC to conduct the power switch is optimal as it can turn itself on and off when needed, enabling consistent grid stability. Cost-effective HVDC VSC transmission systems will enable and simplify interconnection of renewable resources onto the nation’s grid.
Grid Reliability and Resilience
Changes in the national electricity generation mix require that weather-based generation sources—such as wind and solar energy—improve their ability to provide the suite of grid services that has historically been provided by conventional generation sources. This section of IESO's research portfolio focuses on advancing the capabilities of energy technologies to provide the full suite of grid reliability services. Projects in this section also develop models and tools that support reliable system operation.
Short circuit analysis is used to determine the force of short circuit currents—currents that introduce large amounts of destructive energy in the forms of heat and magnetic force into a power system. This project, led by Sandia National Laboratories in collaboration with Clemson University, is developing standardized comprehensive models of wind turbine generators to determine how well they respond to short circuits in a power system. The goal of the project is to expand wind turbine generator models for accurate modeling of hybrid wind systems.
This project, led by NLR in collaboration with team members from Det Norske Veritas group, General Electric (GE) Research, and Virginia Polytechnic University, studied the protection of multi-terminal high-voltage direct current (MT-HVDC) systems. MT-HVDC, a meshed DC network that can connect the DC side of several offshore wind HVDC converters, is a promising transmission technology that could enable cost-effective and reliable integration in U.S. coastal regions. This project aimed to understand MT-HVDC response during electrical disturbances, enhance protection zones, and develop a roadmap for HVDC breaker requirements.
The Universal Interoperability for Grid‐Forming Inverters (UNIFI) Consortium, co-led by NLR, the University of Washington, and the Electric Power Research Institute, creates an extensive R&D ecosystem to evaluate and design grid-forming inverters, which are electronic devices that allow inverter-based energy sources to restart the grid independently. The goal of the consortium is to develop a universal set of guidelines that enable seamless integration of inverter-based resources like solar, wind, batteries, and electric vehicles to the future grid.
This project, led by NLR with team members from Idaho National Laboratory and Auburn University, conducted a study of the impacts on grid reliability and stability of Type 5 wind turbine generation. Different from other types of wind turbines that connect to the grid through converters, Type 5 turbines use synchronous generators—electro-mechanical devices that converts mechanical energy from turbines into electrical energy in the form of alternating current for grid connection. The project investigated the characteristics of Type 5 wind turbines through modeling and simulation and evaluated its value in systems with very high shares of wind power and other inverter-based resources.
Hybrid Systems
In addition to the efforts focusing specifically on the needs of variable renewable energy technologies, new market opportunities or alternative products may exist to couple various generation, load, and storage technologies to unlock new capabilities. IESO’s unique role in providing national laboratory facilities and scientific understanding, along with experience in supporting industry, can enable the realization of these opportunities.
This NLR-led multi-lab project will answer key technical, operational, and financial questions around the implementation and operation of cost-effective, gigawatt-scale hydrogen production facilities in the United States that use renewable sources like wind to produce green steel and ammonia. The project is co-funded by IESO and the Alternative Fuels and Feedstocks Office.
Cybersecurity
The nation's energy infrastructure has become a major target for cyberattacks over the past decade. Increased integration of inverter-based energy technologies to the grid also increases opportunities for potential cyberattack. IESO is interested in gaining a better understanding of the current state of the art in cybersecurity, including an assessment of the gaps and research needs related to cybersecurity for inverter-based energy systems of various scales.
This project, led by INL, will deliver deployable cybersecurity tools and training specific to the wind industry. The toolkit will include a standardized, repeatable cybersecurity financial risk assessment that provides insight and guidance for investment decisions surrounding operational technology cybersecurity programs in the wind industry. The toolkit will also include information about wind systems for accurate modeling and risk evaluation.
This research project, co-led by NLR and INL with industry input, will perform an offshore wind cybersecurity assessment that will include a reference architecture, a simulation to analyze cybersecurity risks, and recommendations to better secure offshore wind energy. This information will allow DOE to evaluate the steps needed to address cyber security including communication and control architecture for existing offshore wind and transmission networks.
Programmable Logic Controllers (PLCs) are widely used by the wind industry to monitor and control wind turbine sensors and provide real-time data to detect errors, enabling quick response and recovery. Sandia National Laboratories developed a PLC-monitoring tool, called WeaselBoard, to detect when sophisticated malicious attackers conduct cyber exploits on PLCs. Leveraging WeaselBoard, this Sandia and NLR-led project developed host-based intrusion detection technologies—which are cybersecurity solutions that monitor IT systems for suspicious activity—for wind systems. The tool will bolster communication systems, detect and alert on malicious wind operations, and increase response and recovery time following cyber attacks.
Past Research Project Highlights
Some highlights of past DOE-funded grid R&D include large-scale studies of future scenarios with high penetrations of variable renewable generation, such as the Interconnections Seam Study, North American Renewable Integration Study, Eastern Renewable Generation Integration Study, and Western Wind and Solar Integration Study. Some DOE-funded grid operation R&D highlights include studying how wind technology can stabilize grid through grid forming control, how software technology can use live weather data to calculate transmission line limits and enhance grid efficiency, and how wind can cool transmission lines thereby increasing transmission line capacity. Highlights of wind cybersecurity projects include the Roadmap for Wind Cybersecurity.
Learn more on our Past Research Project Highlights web page.
Grid Integration Featured Publications
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DOE report details near- to long-term solutions to enable simpler, faster, fairer interconnection of clean energy sources to the transmission grid. -
This report details the use of dynamic line rating technology to rate a gen tie-line associated with a proposed wind farm.
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NREL Uses Advanced Grid Research Environment for First-Ever Example of Type-3 Turbines Using Grid-Forming Controls
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