Integrated modeling of the electric grid, communications, and control

Purpose – This paper aims to address a central concern in modeling and simulating electric grids and the information infrastructure that monitors and controls them. The paper discusses the need for and methods to construct simulation models that include important interactions between the physical and computational elements of a large power system. Design/methodology/approach – The paper offers a particular approach to modeling and simulation of hybrid systems as an enabling technology for analysis (via simulation) of modern electric power grids. The approach, based on the discrete event system specification, integrates existing simulation tools into a unified simulation scheme. The paper demonstrates this approach with an integrated information and electric grid model of a distributed, automatic frequency maintenance activity. Findings – Power grid modernization efforts need powerful modeling and simulation tools for hybrid systems. Research limitations/implications – The main limitation of this approach is a lack of advanced simulation tools that support it. Existing commercial offerings are not designed to support integration with other simulation software products. The approach to integrating continuous and discrete event simulation models can overcome this problem by allowing specific tools to focus on continuous or discrete event dynamics. This will require, however, adjustments to the underlying simulation technology. Originality/value – This paper demonstrates an approach to simulating complex hybrid systems that can, in principle, be supported by existing simulation tools. It also indicates how existing tools must be modified to support our approach.