As winter storms continue to strain power grids across the country each year, grid reliability is becoming increasingly important. Massive power grid failures, such as the 2021 grid failure in Texas, are highlighting serious problems in centralized grid structures.
As a result, many organizations and communities that need reliable power in the face of uncertain conditions are looking for new ways to structure their grid. Microgrids are one such innovation designed to solve many challenges of the traditional power grid, through increased efficiency and resilience.
Read on to learn the ins and outs of microgrids, why they offer unique benefits and how they might impact the future of power systems.
What is a microgrid?
Put simply, a microgrid is a localized form of power grid that is able to operate independently and as part of a larger grid. It provides power to a geographic area with specific boundaries, and operates to nearby areas such as a rural town, a college campus or a business park.
Traditional “central grids” are designed to transmit energy over long distances across the country. For example, the Western Interconnection grid stretches from Western Canada to Baja California in Mexico, covering over 1.8 million square miles across 14 states. Microgrids have a much smaller area of coverage, and are able to run with or without the central grid.
Microgrids can operate independently thanks to their distributed energy resources (DERs), which are made up of a variety of different sources. A microgrid’s DERs could include rooftop solar panels, battery storage and industrial generators.
This network of loads (the facilities using power) and DERs (the sources providing power) make a microgrid much more sophisticated than a typical backup power system (such as an uninterruptible power supply), which aren’t designed to be run continuously. Microgrids can connect and disconnect from the larger grid, and are designed to be completely autonomous when needed, with a central control system of its own.
Why is a microgrid useful?
Microgrids offer unique benefits due to their self-sufficient design. Large-scale central grids are notoriously susceptible to cascading outages, such as the Northeast Blackout of 2003 that impacted over 55 million people.
Because microgrids are capable of running independently from the central grid when needed, they can provide more reliable power in the face of natural disasters or other incidents that cause large-scale outages. These microgrids are supported by various energy resources like generators and battery supply that allow them to keep running when the larger grid fails.
The independence of microgrids also allows for much more control over the area it covers, allowing the controller to optimize the grid for specific uses within the microgrid. This can cut down significantly on costs by reducing resource use where it’s not needed and pushing it to other areas, minimizing wasted energy. The microgrid’s controller can also collect data about the particular ways energy is being used on the grid, providing useful information that can further optimize the grid’s functionality.
Microgrids also tend to be more efficient because the electricity doesn’t need to travel as far as it does in a central grid. In some cases, the overall power loss from a power plant to consumers can reach up to 15% as electricity dissipates in transit. But in the case of a microgrid, generators and other DERs are nearby the users, allowing for a much more efficient use of energy.
Microgrid example: Princeton University
Princeton University is notable for having a microgrid of its own on campus, which can operate independently as well as synchronized with the local utility grid. It’s powered by a 15,000 KW gas turbine that is supplemented by a 4,500 KW solar panel field.
According to a 2015 study, the primary purpose of the grid is to cut down on energy costs: when energy is cheaper to purchase from the utility, the microgrid draws from it. But when the microgrid can produce its own electricity at a cheaper rate, it will run independently of the grid.
But beyond the financial benefits, Princeton’s microgrid enables the university to reduce its carbon footprint through the incorporation of a solar field that operates on sunny days. This helps the institution meet its sustainability goals and contributes to a healthier campus environment.
The Princeton microgrid has also proven itself useful in adverse weather conditions, such as during Hurricane Sandy in October of 2012. When the massive hurricane knocked out power for the surrounding area for several days, Princeton’s microgrid began running independently from the main grid and allowed the campus to stay heated and powered after just 20 minutes of downtime.
Power your world with confidence
Microgrids offer a way to circumvent the challenges that come with traditional power grids, and provide more reliable power to organizations that need to be able to stay up and running. Their versatile nature also provides an opportunity to introduce more renewable energy into power grids across the country.
Depco specializes in helping Power Your World With CONFIDENCE, through a tried and tested method of quality assurance that guarantees reliability. If you’re looking to improve your power systems’ reliability, speak to one of our experts.