Modern Energy Management Systems: Real‐Time Management of the Interconnected Electricity Grid

Abstract

Abstract The widespread availability of electricity has had a profound effect on societies worldwide. In fact, in 2002, electrification was selected by the US National Academy of Engineers as “the most significant engineering achievements of the last century.” The electricity supply chain or the power grid is one of the most complex machines in existence that is meant to work round the clock. It consists of millions of components that work together. The energy management system (EMS) was developed to manage electricity supply across the high‐voltage grid. The EMS has evolved over many decades in a quest to maintain the integrity and successful 24/7 operation of the electric power grid. It is a real‐time, computer‐based solution and they have been deployed for decades at utility control centers. This chapter describes the history and evolution of the EMS from its digital genesis in the 1970s to the capabilities of today's modern EMS that are essential to manage the future grid. Today's modern EMS has evolved into a vast, diverse conglomeration of monitoring devices and advanced computer and communications technology that measures power system field conditions every few seconds (moving toward subseconds) and automatically issues controls as needed. Operators are provided timely alerts and information to ensure prompt decisions can be made to ensure reliability of the grid. Operational benefits of some innovative emerging subsecond technologies are described, such as fast synchronous phasor measurements and fast‐acting control devices. Challenges posed by the recent growth of renewable energy resources, distributed energy sources, microgrids, and customer demand‐side management are also addressed. Finally, successful practical implementations of a modern EMS are described along with some concluding thoughts and takeaways for the future.