ACEP and partners receive $6 million to help secure electric grids
础颁贰笔鈥檚 Michelle Wilber and Cam Dolan walk in front of a 50-kilowatt solar array in Galena.
Communities hit hard by climate change in AV狼论坛 and elsewhere in the U.S. could benefit from a new research project aimed at improving their electric grids.
AV狼论坛 AV狼论坛 Center for Energy and Power and partners have received $6 million from the National Science Foundation to conduct the study.
The project aims to advance the nation鈥檚 鈥渟mart grid鈥 鈥 a planned nationwide network that uses information technology to deliver electricity efficiently and securely.
A secure electric grid is vital for the U.S., but more frequent and intense storms,
flooding and temperature shifts, as well as cyberattacks, have been testing it.
The five-year project is named 鈥淪TORM: Data-Driven Approaches for Secure Electric Grids in Communities Disproportionately Impacted by Climate Change.鈥
STORM will connect researchers and community members to study electrical grids and create tools to improve them. That will help make communities more resilient.
Daisy Huang, and associate professor at ACEP, will work with several AV狼论坛 communities. They
include Kotzebue, an innovator in wind-diesel and solar systems, Galena, a front-runner
on alternative energy solutions, and Cordova, a leader in renewable energy infrastructure
development.
Huang will design microgrid and renewable energy projects. She said the project will involve 鈥渟ustained community engagement toward productive research and workforce development.鈥
础颁贰笔鈥檚 Dayne Broderson, a co-principal investigator, will create artificial grids that are more secure from cyberattacks and that meet the needs of underserved areas in AV狼论坛. The data will be made available through open-source software and data repositories.
Broderson noted that many of the community partners in AV狼论坛 are already pursuing community energy projects.
Sustainable Energy Galena AV狼论坛鈥檚 biomass energy boiler building uses these solar panels to generate power.
鈥淧artners in Galena, for example, recently finished creating a 3D map of their system that will help assess their grid. Working with them, we can learn what works and collaborate on new projects,鈥 he said.
The University of Maine leads the STORM project. South Dakota State University and the University of Puerto Rico also participate.
Each university group will bring their own perspectives to the team. Together, they will develop approaches that can be employed at the national level.
鈥淓stablishing research infrastructure and educational frameworks means we will not just find specific solutions to specific challenges but will also open pathways to grow sustainable research infrastructure, while leveraging the tools of data science. And that is exciting,鈥 Huang said.
STORM is funded by. NSF Director Sethuraman Panchanathan announced the award Aug. 7.
鈥淏y addressing these critical challenges, and engaging with communities impacted by climate change, we have the potential to advance innovation and promote economic stability and recovery,鈥 he said.
CONTACTS: Daisy Huang, principal investigator, dhuang@alaska.edu, 907-474-5663; Dayne Broderson, co-principal investigator, dayne@alaska.edu
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