A comprehensive smart grid is now available, and the Ontario Ministry of Energy may be leading this important initiative.

In 2014, The Ontario Ministry of Energy continued its leading-edge commitment toward advancing the smart grid. Through its Smart Grid Fund (SGF), the Ministry offered critical funding support to help advance a series of emerging technologies. One of the pioneering solutions supported by the SGF program has given birth to the next meaningful element of an intelligent grid; the intra-grid sensor.

The architecture of a distribution grid is rather simple – substations, endpoint meters, and the vast network of power lines, power poles and transformers that connect them. This network of poles, lines and transformers is the intra-grid, or sometimes referred to as ‘the heart of the grid’.

During the last decade, utilities around the world have greatly improved their Substation controls. Similarly, the deployment of Advanced Meter Infrastructure (AMI) has modernized the endpoint segment of many distribution grids. Unfortunately, neither substation controls nor AMI can accurately capture and report the dynamic grid conditions occurring between these opposing spectrums of the grid. And interestingly, the ‘intra-grid’ itself represents the most dynamic, most vulnerable and most volatile segment of every distribution grid on the planet. The US intra-grid for example, consists of approximately 2.2 million miles of power lines, and 50 million transformers which are virtually unmonitored at this time. Thus, while substation improvements and AMI have helped to create a ‘smarter grid’ throughout portions of the world, the achievement of a genuine smart grid has remained elusive due to a lack of visibility within the expansive intra-grid space… until now.

Intra-grid sensors, like those which were partially funded by the SGF, now present a cost-effective solution for achieving a comprehensive smart grid. These sensors are typically retrofit

onto distribution transformers within only a few minutes. Once the intra-grid sensors are installed, they immediately begin to capture and report vital information from within the heart of the grid. This accurate, timely information is provided to utility personnel via various paths to ensure accessibility and value.

Today, most utilities are suffering from aged transformers, unknown intra-grid conditions, significant power theft, and an increasing occurrence of reverse energy stemming from Distributed Energy Resource advancement (i.e., solar rooftop and wind sources). But this archaic trend can now be stopped. Intra-grid sensors are poised to eliminate these unknown conditions which are plaguing utility operators, unnecessarily driving costs upward for rate payers, and resulting in otherwise avoidable power outages around the world.

The value of intra-grid sensors is akin to the value of ‘fitness trackers.’ Throughout the last few years, multiple companies have provided consumers with fitness trackers that typically apply to the user’s wrist. Once attached, the fitness trackers capture a series of previously unknown, unique data points about one’s physical activity, heart rate, calories burned, sleep information, etc. Most fitness trackers are supported by applications which are accessed online via smart phones. In essence, fitness trackers now conveniently and accurately apprise users of their exercise and health information which was previously a mystery. While users may have exercised in the past, they truly had no idea of the factual information regarding their activities, or their bodies. Now they do. In this same manner, without intra-grid sensors, utility operators remain ‘blind’ to the actual conditions within the heart of the grid. For example, if any utility operator was asked to accurately advise how much power is stolen downstream of any transformer, or how much reverse energy is entering the grid at any transformer, or what the voltages, current spikes or actual loading was on a transformer, the honest answer would be the same for every operator… ”I do not know.”

That’s correct; while the global industry is in pursuit of a smart grid, no one really knows the facts associated with the perpetually changing conditions within the most expansive grid segment… the intra-grid.

While we may have great technology at the substation and endpoint meter segments, presently operators are indeed ‘blind’ within the heart of the grid. That is, until they apply cost-effective, intra-grid sensors to reveal a myriad of previously unknown information. Now, just like with a fitness tracker attached to one’s wrist, an intra-grid sensor attached to a transformer will reveal critical, granular, timely data that was never previously available. Vital information concerning the transformer itself, and the heart of the grid’s dynamic conditions no longer need to be a costly mystery for operators or rate payers.

The intra-grid sensor device is typically a lightweight self-contained apparatus that is comprised of sensor technology, metrology, onboard processing, onboard storage, and onboard communications. When deployed upon distribution transformers, actual information such as Energy, Current, Voltage, and transformer Temperature are made available to operators. These accurate data sets can be mathematically extrapolated to further expand the depth of understanding regarding the intra-grid conditions. Commonly supported by a back-end software platform, the timely intra-grid sensor information is received at an approved/secure point(s), then processed and presented to utility operators in a useable format; both historic and real-time information is now made available to operators. In some instances, intra-grid sensors have already evolved to provide automated alert capabilities. These alerting features allow operators to deploy sensors, program desired grid/asset conditions which serve as alarm tolerances, and then enjoy a ‘Hands-Free’ grid monitoring capability. Accordingly, the intra-grid sensors will provide email, and/or SMS text alerts immediately to operators, notifying them of problematic conditions within the grid. This automated alert feature permits operators to focus on other key areas while the intra-grid sensors function as a cost-effective, stealth watchdog.

The emergence of intra-grid sensors enables operators to receive notifications concerning undesirable grid conditions, and to establish historic intra-grid information for evaluation purposes. Both the real-time and historic data will significantly improve the way operators can understand and manage the distribution grid. Likewise, grid planning efforts can be greatly enhanced by reviewing and interpreting the intra-grid data this is now made available. It is this newest series of pioneering technologies that will complete the quest for a genuine smart grid throughout the globe. And, given the capability to upgrade/re-program these devices remotely via Over The Air capabilities, intra-grid sensors are now future-proof as well.

So, why are intra-grid sensors not being deployed on every transformer in the world? Why is this same technology not being leveraged at the OEM level to evolve smart technology onto new transformer assets? These are great questions which lead to thought-provoking answers.

To date, there has been a series of reasons as to why intra-grid sensors are not proliferating throughout the world’s distribution grids. Most obviously, the intra-grid sensor technology is relatively new; although several solution providers have clearly proven through years of deployment efforts that intra-grid sensors are reliable, accurate, durable, valuable, and cost-effective. Less obvious, many utilities have deployed AMI in hopes of gleaning information from within the heart of the grid, only to discover that AMI is unable to accurately capture and timely/reliably report upstream intra-grid information. As an example, the deployment of AMI has apparently fueled an increase in power theft because fewer utility personnel are now visiting customer locations monthly to take meter readings; this lack of utility personnel presence at customer locations has enabled power thieves to gain confidence about stealing power. Power thieves have learned that tapping in front of the AMI meter allows their theft activities to go undetected by a utility, especially when utility personnel almost never step foot on their property following an AMI deployment. To express the seriousness of this impact, the US alone reports approximately $6 billion per year being stolen from its grids. Additionally, as power theft increases, so does the unplanned loading on transformers which leads to accelerated transformer failures. These examples and others support that AMI is truly unable to report with precision the conditions and impacts that are occurring within the heart of the grid since power theft predominantly occurs in front of the endpoint meters thereby being undetected by AMI. To this end, since many utilities have invested millions of dollars in AMI, they must make sure they leverage AMI to its fullest, prior to moving onto the next stage of technology evolution – some utilities are just beginning to accept that AMI is unable to provide a comprehensive smart grid experience. Finally, some utilities are being advised that intra-grid readings can be extrapolated via algorithms, thereby reducing the need for intra-grid sensors. However, the truth is that any algorithm is only as reliable as the foundational data used to achieve the calculation. And, as the aforementioned point supports, so long as power thieves will continue to tap in front of AMI meters, and so long as GIS mapping contains inaccuracies of the transformer to downstream meters association, there is no way that accurate information about transformer loading, intra-grid voltages, reverse energy impacts, and power theft reconciliation can be reported with confidence to operators.

Rather than invest time and energy determining what intra-grid sensors do not address, or how we can find reasons not to deploy them, we must re-direct our industry focus toward how we will leverage this already-present, cost-saving, future proofed, pioneering technology. This global industry paradigm shift is not a luxury, it is a necessity. Now is the time for utilities to embrace this latest version of technology, to thereby reduce unnecessary costs and unnecessary outages for the benefit of their valued customers.

The fact is that intra-grid sensors are poised to directly benefit rate payers and utility operators through a series of value propositions. Another fact is that global utility operators now have the ability to truly improve the efficiency of their distribution grids – to proactively identify poor grid conditions and weakened assets that will otherwise lead to unnecessary outages; to truly identify and remedy power theft which creates unfair cost burdens on rate payers and introduces unplanned loading on assets; and to enable the embracement of energy conservation practices that will reduce our consumption of natural resources and improve our ability to maximize green energy sources such as wind and solar. In essence, there are many powerful reasons why intra-grid sensors are poised to advance our quest for an intelligent grid. The real fact is, intra-grid sensors are the missing link to achieving a comprehensive smart grid which will ultimately change the way we manage electricity, and will improve man-kinds’ sustainability on this amazing planet.

Thankfully, there are utilities in Ontario who have begun to deploy and leverage intra-grid sensors. Likewise, a multitude of utilities in the US, Latin America, the Caribbean, and Asia Pacific are now beginning to lead the way by leveraging intra-grid sensors. The early-adopters are starting to take action; the largest segment of the global utility industry will eventually follow suit as their peers share success stories. Thus far, the early adopter utilities have effectively:

1. Addressed DG/DER impacts including grid instability caused by serious voltage fluctuations, and reverse energy transformer overloading,
2. Identified failing transformer assets in advance of outages (i.e., preventive maintenance),
3. Identified under-sized and over-sized transformer assets (i.e., improved cost management)
4. Identified significant levels of power theft – several utilities have already located power theft levels from $150K to over $400K by just beginning to spot check suspect areas,
5. Monitored loading/overloading impacts associated with Electric Vehicle charging stations,
6. Identified serious imbalances on various legs of poly/three phase transformers,
7. Identified under and over voltages within their grid, (i.e., power quality and cost containment)
8. Identified Current spike levels and frequencies of occurrence,
9. Leveraged intra-grid sensor onboard RF Mesh communications modules serving as range extenders for enhancing hard-to-reach AMI meters not effectively serviced by the AMI infrastructure, and
10. Discovered substantial instances of GIS mapping errors which once corrected then permit accurate loading expectations and improved planning practices

In the near future, comprehensive smart grids will finally be achieved as each participating utility proactively leverages Substation controls, AMI, and the now-available missing link: Intra-grid sensors.
 

About the Author

Alan Snook is President and a founding member/owner of GRID20/20, Inc. Mr. Snook has led GRID20/20 since inception in 2011. Prior to his current role, Mr. Snook served as an Officer of a privately-held company. He also owns a business consulting firm. Alan is a 1986 graduate of the Pennsylvania State University where he earned a Bachelor of Science degree.