Control of Synchronization in two-layer power grids

TL;DR

This paper models power grid synchronization using a two-layer network with a communication layer controlling the grid, demonstrating effective control strategies through simulations on the Italian high voltage grid under various perturbations.

Contribution

It introduces a two-layer network model combining power grid dynamics with a communication control layer, exploring different topologies and control methods for synchronization.

Findings

Control schemes exchanging information among all generators are highly effective.

The proposed control method maintains synchronization under severe perturbations.

Systematic simulations validate the robustness of the control strategies.

Abstract

In this work we suggest to model the dynamics of power grids in terms of a two-layer network, and use the Italian high voltage power grid as a proof-of-principle example. The first layer in our model represents the power grid consisting of generators and consumers, while the second layer represents a dynamic communication network that serves as a controller of the first layer. In particular, the dynamics of the power grid is modelled by the Kuramoto model with inertia, while the communication layer provides a control signal $P_i$ for each generator to improve frequency synchronization within the power grid. We propose different realizations of the communication layer topology and different ways to calculate the control signal. Then we conduct a systematic survey of the two-layer system against a multitude of different realistic perturbation scenarios, such as disconnecting generators, increasing demand of consumers, or generators with stochastic power output. When using a control topology that allows all generators to exchange information, we find that a control scheme aimed to minimize the frequency difference between adjacent nodes operates very efficiently even against the worst scenarios with the strongest perturbations.