Pacific Northwest National Laboratory to focus on more resilient distribution systems

The Department of Energy’s (DOE) Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) announced five new projects aimed at improving distribution system reliability and integrating distributed clean energy resources.

The projects will utilize new funding from DOE for the department’s Grid Modernization Initiative. DOE announced on Tuesday that up to $32 million dollars will be given to seven projects, including the five involving PNNL.

Increasing Distribution Resiliency using Flexible DER and Microgrid Assets Enabled by OpenFMB will focus on a “self-healing” grid approach. A system for fault location, isolation and restoration will be implemented for connections between localized small solar power installations. North Carolina-based utility Duke Energy will test the strategies in its six-state service territory.

PNNL will also lead the team responsible for assessing each of the new projects. The Laboratory Value Analysis Team will use metrics developed by the Grid Modernization Laboratory Consortium to evaluate the economic value of the project impacts as well as validate the technologies and operations strategies for each project.

PNNL will also play a role in the Resilient Alaskan Distribution System Improvements using Automation, Network Analysis, Control, and Energy Storage (RADIANCE) project, which will seek to enhance resiliency in harsh weather, cyberthreats, and dynamic grid conditions.

The lab is also involved in the Integration of Responsive Residential Loads into Distribution Management Systems project. This initiative will research and test resilience and interoperability of open-source home energy management systems and distribution management systems.

The CleanStart-DERMS project will demonstrate the potential roles of distributed energy resources, such as microgrids and fuel cells, in outage recovery and power restoration.