The comparisons to the build out of the computing network are usually apt: electronics (especially wireless devices) in the home and on the grid will enable a brave new world of much more efficient power transmission and management on a vast scale. That’s pretty much where the comparison to the computing network stops. via How Continue reading →
transmission
With the simple flick of a light switch, you are connected to “the machine.” The North American electric grid — the world’s most complex transmission and distribution system — also is referred to as the world’s largest machi via New Lab to Help Utilities “See” Grid of the Future | Renewable Energy News Article.
Not all of the electricity produced by generating plants gets to its destination: estimates say the insulator system is responsible for up to 7% of the power loss that occurs during transmission. With that firmly in mind, IBM and electricity grid builder ABB are using supercomputers to study and possibly develop a more efficient, more Continue reading →
Transmission regulators are thinking big. A federal commission has delivered a 650-page blueprint for transmission planners that emphasizes regional coordination and gives public policy added weight in determinations for the expected build-out. via FERC Rule Dissected | RenewablesBiz.
The EISA states that it is “the policy of the United States to support the modernization of the nation’s electricity transmission and distribution system to maintain a reliable and secure electricity infrastructure.” This effectively means that the federal government will take a number of actions to encourage and regulate development of a smart grid. via Continue reading →
Grid transmission systems have adopted new technologies more readily than in systems in the distribution segment of the grid. Nonetheless, Smart Grid Analysis believes that as Smart Grids are deployed worldwide, changes are coming to the transmission sector that will create new opportunities, not just for systems firms, but also for firms that manufacture electronic Continue reading →
The global ‘smart grid’ merges two networks, the power network, which manages power, and the communications network, which encompasses the Internet. The ‘power network’ describes the electrical generation, transmission, and distribution grid that is considered to be the engineering wonder of the 20th century. The ‘communications network’ is considered the Internet marvel of the 21st Continue reading →
The U.S. electrical grid is the largest interconnected machine on Earth: 200,000 miles of high-voltage transmission lines and 5.5 million miles of local distribution lines, linking thousands of generating plants to factories, homes and businesses. The National Academy of Engineering ranks it as the greatest engineering achievement of the 20th century. What it cannot do Continue reading →
The creation of 300 jobs via Eirgrid’s new transmission network indicates how digital networks and future green industries are inextricably linked, says Communications Minister Eamon Ryan TD. Will the green economy become a mainstream phenomenon? Much of the infrastructure is in place. Overall, it will take 10 to 20 years. It will start off like Continue reading →
American Transmission Co. has entered into two agreements with the United States Department of Energy, accepting investment grants totaling $12.7 million to invest in smart grid technologies to be incorporated into ATC’s transmission system. “We are pleased to enter into these agreements and take part in the effort to more fully deploy smart grid technologies Continue reading →
Now that Electric Transmission Texas, LLC (ETT) has activated the largest utility-scale battery in the United States, it seems the aphorism “everything’s bigger in Texas” has been extended beyond steaks and steer to include the improvement of transmission reliability and smart grid usage. The 4-megawatt NAS sodium-sulfur battery was energized on March 31 to the Continue reading →
The smart grid idea aims to save money, reduce pollution, lower costs and create new “green” jobs. Smart grid is a phrase that refers to a number of things at the same time. It refers to the modernization of the electrical grid itself — the way electricity is transmitted over long distances and then brought to Continue reading →
British Gas, the major electrical and gas utility in the United Kingdom, has decided to go with Landis+Gyr to build the 1 million smart meters it plans to deploy throughout its coverage area. This is a big victory for the Swiss meter maker, which is racing against American contenders like Itron and Echelon. Landis+Gyr builds Continue reading →
What is a Smart Grid? The electric grid is almost like a living organism. Electricity flows through the grid as controllers work to keep things working properly — bringing power plants online, estimating load, balancing the peaks and valleys of demand, and so on. You can think of today’s existing grid as a “broadcast” system Continue reading →
Two Triangle companies well-known in the power industry are teaming up to gain an edge in the fast-emerging market for smart-grid technology. Sensus of Raleigh and ABB in Cary announced their partnership Tuesday in Tampa, Fla., at a conference for the electricity transmission and distribution industry. The partnership will combine ABB’s strength in power transmission Continue reading →
I spoke on the phone today to a consultant doing research into transmission issues. My first statement to him was, “That must be hard info to find.” He chuckled and replied, “It’s all about the smart grid these days, isn’t it?” Indeed it is. And the smart grid is, let’s face it, all about distribution. Continue reading →
Back in September 2009 I blogged about six rules that tell you when you have a Smart Grid. The third rule is: You know you have a Smart Grid when the transmission and distribution portions of the grid are optimized for distributed energy generation/storage. This rule becomes reality when microgrids are ubiquitous. The Smart Grid Continue reading →
This research report about selected Smart Grid components presents an in-depth analysis of the development, applications, products, manufacturers, and trends in the development of transmission and distribution (T&D) system automation, energy storage, and microgrids in the United States and around the world. T&D system automation is vital to smart grid development, is badly in need of repair, and has not Continue reading →
Technology available today can be employed to create viable, sustainable, smart cities. That will be the message that Bob Gilligan, vice president–transmission and distribution for GE Energy Services, will deliver to delegates at the Chatham House conference, “The Future of Cities.” via GE Smart Grid Technologies Build Sustainable 21st Century Cities – MarketWatch.
Public Service Electric & Gas Co. has proposed expansion of an existing 230-kilowatt power line and approximately 80-foot towers from Berwick, Pa. to Roseland. It is proposing a double circuit line with one circuit being operated at 500 kV and the second circuit being energized at 230 kV. The existing single line now on the right-of-way Continue reading →
