The key to all of these sensors, says Bird, is that they only need to be placed in the vicinity of the components in a power system. This allows the researchers to "sensitively monitor the state of the power system without the need to tap into it directly," he says. This is advantageous because directly accessing the grid could be expensive and time-consuming. But sensing electrical signatures and magnetic fields are only part of the monitoring technology. Communication between sensing devices is also important. The researchers hope to employ the sort of wireless technology used in ad-hoc networks (see "Souped-Up Mesh Networks") so that the sensors themselves can adjust to each other's status if one is running low on power, for instance, to more effectively monitor the entire grid. "The advantage to this is that if an element fails, or a portion of the [sensor] grid malfunctions, the entire network will reconfigure to keep monitoring the grid," says Bird. Currently, there are other technologies, all much larger than the proposed UB system, that are being explored to monitor power grids, says Don von Dollen, program manager for the Electric Power Research Institute, in Palo Alto, CA. But the technology that will ultimately gain widespread adoption is the one that is the most cost-effective, he says. "It all comes down to price." Within the past few years, there have been advances in the fields of data processing, sensor technology, and communication--all necessary aspects of making a grid monitoring system technologically reliable and economically feasible. Research on micro sensors and wireless sensors, von Dollen says, is "an exciting area because there's an awful lot of potential." The UB researchers expect to have a prototype nano-scale sensor system within about five years, with a larger-system version coming in a few years, says Sarjeant. While the promise of nanotechnology is great, it is still a relatively new technology that's only received serious research attention for about 10 years, says Martin Moskovits, professor of chemistry and biochemistry at the University of California, in Santa Barbara. He notes that much of this new grid monitoring project will probably be "very exciting fundamental research," and practical issues will most likely need to be resolved as the work progresses. However, Moskovits believes it's worth it. "The grid affects so many of our lives," he says, "it's an excellent place to put effort." |
E-mail
Audio »
Print
Favorite
Share »
Digg this
Add to del.icio.us
Add to Reddit
Add to Facebook
Slashdot It!
Stumble It!
Add to Newsvine
Add to Connotea
Add to CiteUlike
Add to Furl
Googlize this
Add to Rojo
Add to MyWeb
A Power Grid Smartens Up
03/20/2008
Download
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Comments
I would argue that we should drop the whole notion of transmitting energy across long distances by electrity. All energy producers should decompose water the hydrogen and oxygen. The gases can be piped to the energy users who will make whatever electricity they need with on site hydrogen fuel cells. Hydrogen combustion will lsupply all heat needed for both domestic and industrial uses.
Pipelines are orders of magnititude more reliable than overhead wires. Gas in a pipe line serve as a large reservoir allowing long time operations even when the energy source is knocked out.
The by-product oxygen can used to eliminate many other forms of pollution, from sewage treatment to trash incineration to elemination of oxygen free dead zones in the coastal waters.
lowilliams
10/30/2006
Posts:17
… And fuel cells still cost a lot!
edsonbila
10/30/2006
Posts:7
As a raging reactionary, I am more concerned about 'upgrading' our grid with complicated and delicate parts that will be, no pun intended, nuked by EMP if and when we are attacked. At least the old-styled grids are robust.
kitk
10/31/2006
Posts:65