The Sandy National Laboratory (Sandia NaTIonal Laboratories) and the Polytechnic Institute of University of Montana (Montana Tech University) a recent joint show has been 100 global R & D Award (R&D 100 Awards) control system, through the use of the new smart grid technology in the western power grid to suppress the oscillation of power system (area Inter-area oscillaTIon) the phenomenon of problem.

It is reported that the new control system enables utilities to transmit more electricity through transmission lines, thereby reducing the cost of utilities and consumers, and providing higher stability for power grid.

The regional oscillation of the power system means that the transmission lines have different oscillation frequencies between the two ends of the public utility and the customers. If more power and oscillation are increased, it is possible to disturb the power output and even break out. So far, the only safe and effective way to prevent destructive oscillations is to reduce the amount of electricity transmitted through the transmission line.

Sandy National Laboratory Engineer said, in most cases, the regional power system oscillation phenomenon does not adversely affect or affect the operation; however, once the summer or a peak period electricity in large transportation situation, it may cause serious regional oscillation system.

For example, in August 1996 the regional oscillation phenomenon because become more and more strong, which makes the whole western America power grid by impact split, the American Southwest and northwest regions of the whole power grid to isolate the influence of large-scale power outages for millions of people in a field, including Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Oregon, Nevada, New Mexico and Washington.

Although the regional oscillation phenomenon been identified in more than 40 years, but because of lack of real-time measuring data of the whole power grid, so to develop a safe and efficient, can suppress or control the oscillation phenomena become difficult, or face must pay the huge cost and time consuming.

The new control system has been successful in taking a positive response to the intensification of the oscillating frequency. Such a running principle is like a seesaw. When one end of the vibration touches the relative high point, it can push down the original oscillation through force and make it show the effect of reaction force.

Because accurate grid real-time data is crucial to ensure that the whole control system can resist strong oscillation phenomenon safely, the research team has set up a monitoring system that can prevent data quality from occurring. Researchers point out that when the data are too old, many unexpected situations may emerge. So the team set up a number of sensors to make data queries in the northern and southern regions every 16 milliseconds.

Sandy, the sub National Laboratory Manager, said that this is the first successful demonstration of the wide area damping control of power system in the US, and this system has also solved a North South mode of the power system in western North America. As for the next step, it is designed to design multiple regional oscillations that can simultaneously suppress different modes in a single large power system.