1
Modeling and Analysis of Electrical Power Systems for Resilience Austin Cameron, Mechanical Engineering Systems Mentor: Nathan Johnson, Associate Professor, Director of Laboratory for Energy And Power Solutions The Polytechnic School Problem Statement: Microgrids are rapidly increasing in demand as a solution to provide electricity to one billion people living in remote areas of the world. However, the scale of this demand cannot be met with conventional engineering practices. Designers need a rapid way to assess geographical, financial, and technical scope when planning development of microgrids. Solution Statement: A case study of an off-grid village in Niger (Tagris) will be completed to illustrate how to reduce design time by 80% or more and provides a generalizable process to create viable technical and business solutions for sustainment and resilience of off-grid power projects. Step 1: Acquire Village Data Step 6: Complete Resilience Analyses Step 5: Optimize Network Characteristics Step 2: Translate GIS Data Step 3: Perform Power Flow Step 4: Assemble Full Network Model • QGIS satellite imagery • Equipment location (shapefiles) • Network peak load profile • ArcGIS, Python, Excel • Format data CSV files - generation sources, busbars / loads, connections • Motor starting impact: village water pump • Network voltage drop during initial, starting, and running status • Complete system model • Asset selection, sizing, and placement • Financial metrics • XENDEE power system design / analysis tool (EPRI’s OpenDSS technology) • Import data CSV’s • Network voltage drop • Equipment loading • Identify system vulnerabilities
