Smart grid modelling collaboration launched in Appalachian US

Tennessee Tech University is leading a three-year project across Appalachia to develop smart grid modelling and testing services.

The aim of the over $20 million project, which is being supported with $10 million from the Appalachian Regional Commission, is to develop and deploy services for utilities, energy tech startups and others to model and test smart grid scenarios prior to implementation.

In particular with much of the region rural, the rural electric coops should be better enabled to deploy smart grid technologies to better serve their communities and address challenges such as the rolling blackouts that have impacted consumers across the country during times of peak energy usage.

Such technologies include electronic vehicle (EV) charging stations, wind farms, solar PV arrays and battery storage.

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The work also is expected to benefit the expansion of battery manufacturing in Appalachia to fuel economic growth.

“It’s easy to take our power supply for granted, but sustainable solutions that engage the natural resources of our region to modernise our energy infrastructure are needed,” said John Liu, vice president for research at Tennessee Tech.

“We look forward to working with our partners to that end.”

Other partners in the multi-state collaboration, are located in Ohio, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, West Virginia and Tennessee.

The project is using the HILLTOP microgrid simulation platform, which was development previously by Tennessee Tech and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Lincoln Laboratory, with each collaborator focussing on a different aspect of the modelling services.

For example, the Penn State team will focus on bolstering the resilience of Tri-County Rural Electric Cooperative, which provides electricity to almost 20,000 people across an area of 13,000km².

Peter B. Idowu, professor of electrical engineering at Penn State Harrisburg, says the Appalachia regions are often left behind in advanced technologies and areas are remote and generally small without the resources needed to adapt smart grids.

“We’re providing the framework for regional utilities to develop their grid. They tell us what matters to them, and we’re helping them understand what their network could look like – what happens if they put a charging station in one spot over another or if they incorporate windmills? They can start to assess their situation and see what their best grid will look like before making decisions and committing the resources.”

Tennessee Tech expects that within one year of the project’s completion, it will have served and improved almost 500 businesses including seven rural electric utilities, one energy tech startup, 60 electrical engineering firms and 400 freelance software developers.

Economic impact analyses also will be conducted for the utilities to assess the impact of both the cost savings for the utility itself and the downstream effect on consumers and businesses.

The Appalachian Regional Commission is an economic development entity of the federal government and the 13 state governments of the region.