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“Smarter Energy” – Improving reliability and efficiency of the electric power grid

smart energyAs energy demand and the power grid’s dependence on renewable generation increase, so does the demand for more reliable power delivery—and the need to improve how we produce and use energy. A professor in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at Texas A&M University is working on one solution that will change how electricity is delivered from suppliers to consumers.

Mladen Kezunovic, the Eugene E. Webb Professor, and his team received a $4.9 million grant from the U.S. Department of Energy’s Advanced Research Projects Agency–Energy (ARPA-E) for their research project, Robust Adaptive Topology Control (RATC).

Their grant is part of $156 million that ARPA-E awarded to 60 leading-edge research projects to dramatically improve how the U.S. produces and uses energy. The new ARPA-E selections focus on accelerating innovations in clean technology while increasing U.S. competitiveness in rare-earth alternatives and breakthroughs in biofuels, thermal storage, grid controls and solar-powered electronics.

The electric grid is subject to interruption from cascading faults caused by extreme operating conditions (such as overloads and energy transfer congestion) and malicious external attacks. The grid can also experience intermittent electricity generation from renewable energy sources, including wind and solar power. For instance, when favorable winds cease to blow, energy from wind power decreases and conventional sources of energy must make up the difference.

The grid’s susceptibility to such interruptions means that research into more efficient power delivery is especially important, Kezunovic says. He also directs the Smart Grid Center at the Texas A&M Engineering Experiment Station (TEES).

This article was published in Texas A&M Engineer magazine in 2012.

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