The electric power industry has undergone extensive changes over the past several decades and has become substantially more complex, dynamic, and uncertain. This evolution has led to the availability of more detailed data about system conditions from devices such as phasor measurement units used for wide-area visibility and advanced meter infrastructure on the distribution grid. Grid operators and planners could use this data to optimize their decision-making, giving the electric industry sophisticated tools to dramatically improve electric delivery system efficiency, reliability, resilience, and security.

However, working with the large volume and variety of data to make it more relevant and actionable to grid operators and utilities pose challenges. Moving traditionally offline operational data and measurement-based analytics to real-time situational awareness of grid conditions will require significant advancements in algorithms and computational approaches.

The Office of Electricity’s (OE) Advanced Grid Modeling program supports building capacity and capability within the electric sector to analyze the electricity delivery system using Big Data, advanced mathematical theory, and high-performance computing to assess the current state of the grid, mitigate reliability risks, and understand future needs.

To address these challenges, the program’s objectives are to:

  • Support the transformation of data to enable preventive actions rather than reactive responses to changes in grid conditions.
  • Direct the research and development of advanced computational and control technologies to improve the reliability, resiliency, security, and flexibility of the Nation’s electricity system.
  • Help system operators and utilities prevent blackouts and improve reliability by expanding wide-area, real-time visibility into the conditions of the grid.
  • Support performance improvement of modeling tools and computations that are the basis of grid operations and planning.
  • Support the tracking and expansion of quantitative risk and uncertainty methods by federal and state-level energy system decision-makers regarding energy infrastructure investments.

Building and maintaining effective public-private partnerships is vital to our success. In achieving this vision, OE is fostering strategic, university-based power system research capabilities. Such partnerships facilitate additional research and development, and enable the industry (and ultimately, consumers) to capitalize on the benefits of making this wealth of data more accessible and actionable. 

NATIONAL LAB ACTIVITIES

Argonne National Lab: https://www.anl.gov/egs/advanced-grid-modeling

Brookhaven National Lab: https://www.bnl.gov/isd/AGM/index.php

Los Alamos National Lab: https://science-innovation.lanl.gov/science-programs/applied-energy-programs/agm/

Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory: https://gridintegration.lbl.gov/advanced-grid-modeling

Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory: https://gs.llnl.gov/energy-homeland-security/advanced-grid-modeling

Pacific Northwest National Laboratory: https://www.pnnl.gov/about-AGM-program

Oak Ridge National Laboratory: https://www.ornl.gov/electricity/advanced-grid-modeling

Sandia National Laboratory: https://energy.sandia.gov/programs/electric-grid/advanced-grid-modeling/

RELATED LINKS

Introduction to Sandia's Advanced Grid Modeling Program
Center for Ultra-Wide-Area Resilient Electric Energy Transmission Networks (CURENT)
National Academy of Sciences Study – Analytic Research Foundations for the Next-Generation Electric Grid
Grid Science Winter School and Conference
SUNDIALS: SUite of Nonlinear and DIfferential/ALgebraic Equation Solvers