Innovative smart grid control technologies

The smart electric power grid will evolve into a very complex adaptive system under semi-autonomous distributed control. It will be spatially and temporally complex, non-convex, non-linear and non-stationary, with lots of variability and uncertainties beyond what the traditional power system experiences today. The distributed integration of intermittent sources of energy and energy storage to a power grid further adds complexity and challenges to modeling, control and optimization of the grid. Innovative control technologies are needed to handle the growing complexity of a smart grid, maximize the penetration of renewable energy, and provide maximum utilization of available energy storage, especially plug-in electric vehicles. In this panel paper, innovative control technologies, which are dynamic, stochastic, computational and scalable, and which show promise for achieving the goals of a smart grid, are presented.