Figure 1: Protected with a grid test bed through the network grid protection system of the Advanced Protection Laboratory of Oak Ridge National Laboratory. Displayed as: (1) Real-time simulator; (2) 5 A amplifier; (3) 1 A/120 V amplifier; (4) Power supply; (5) Clock antenna; (6) Main display clock; (7) SEL- 451 from Schweitzer Engineering Laboratories, Inc. (SEL) Relay; (8) Ethernet switch; (9) SEL-735m; (10) SEL-3530-4 Real-time Automation Controller (RTAC); (11) SEL-734m; (12) Auxiliary Display Clock; (13) SEL-3555 RTAC; (14) Supervisory control and data acquisition screen; (15) Distributed ledger technology (DLT) screen; (16) Cisco Ethernet switch; (17) DLT device; (18) Host computer; (19) Human-computer interface computer; (20) DLT computer; (21) SEL Blueframe computer; (22) Real-time simulation monitor; (23) Event detection monitor.
Modern grids have intelligent electronic devices (IEDs), such as protective relays, which use internal logic to detect electrical failures. The power supply, communication and control architecture of the power grid is becoming increasingly complex, largely due to the integration of distributed energy (DERS). This makes detecting failures more difficult and increases the vulnerability of communication and control systems to cyberattacks. To address this problem, Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) researchers Gary Hahn, Emilio Piesciorovsky, Raymond Borges Hink and Aaron Werth have developed a new system, Cyber Grid Guard (CGG), to enhance existing electrical fault detection system. Their findings were published in journals Electricity and energy systemsdescribe this new system. It uses advanced technology to detect and confirm electrical faults in the mid-voltage grid, making the power supply system safer and more reliable. The power grid with network grid shield system is shown in Figure 1.
The ORNL team developed a network grid protection system as a backup tool to support existing fault detection methods. The team tested the system in a simulated environment, designed to replicate the conditions of medium-voltage electric substations, which are facilities that manage the distribution of power from the power plant to the local area. “Our approach ensures not only failure detection, but also the integrity and security of the data used in these critical assessments,” Hahn said.
The researchers demonstrated the system’s ability to identify electrical faults by analyzing data from specialized communication signals. These signals, known as general-purpose substation event (Geese) messages, are fast digital communications that can convey critical operational updates in the power grid. The network grid shield uses distributed ledger technology, a secure system that creates unchanged and dispersed data records to ensure accuracy and transparency – check and confirm that all information used for fault detection remains accurate , and will not be tampered with.
Four types of electrical failures were tested, such as problems involving one or more electrical phases, which refer to a single power cord in an electrical system. The Cybergrid Guard successfully identified and confirmed each fault. Unlike the traditional approach that relies solely on the internal mechanisms of the grid equipment, the network grid protector operates independently, providing additional accuracy and security. Such independent operations are particularly valuable in situations where errors, misconfigurations or cyber attacks can damage major fault detection systems. Network grid protection is not about replacing existing systems, but is aimed at enhancing its performance by filling potential gaps in fault diagnosis, which can enhance its performance.
The core of system effectiveness is its ability to verify data integrity. The network grid shield uses encryption technology (a method for encode information for security purposes) to ensure that all information remains secure and cannot be changed without detection. “This integration of network security principles and electrical fault detection is an increasingly complex and stable guarantee
Cyber threats,” Hahn explained.
Researchers are planning to expand the capabilities of the system to address the increasing complexity of the power grid. Renewable energy sources such as solar and wind are becoming increasingly common, and with it new challenges are raising in grid management. Researchers envision network grid protection as a tool that not only detects faults, but also continuously monitors grid performance to ensure consistent operation and stability.
The grid faces an increase in the demand for safety and resilience (i.e. their ability to withstand and recover from interruptions), and technologies such as network grid protectors play a crucial role in addressing these challenges. The researchers’ work shows that advanced fault detection methods are combined with strong data security practices to solve long-standing problems and evolve challenges in power system reliability.
Journal reference
Gary Hahn, Emilio Piesciorovsky, Raymond Borges Hink, Aaron Werth, “Fault phase was detected in a medium voltage main feeder using a network grid shield system with distributed Ledger technology.” Electricity and energy systems2024. doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijepes.2024.110162
Acknowledgements
The study was supported by the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Electricity (DOE), which supported the U.S. DOE under a contract with UT-Battelle, LLC. The manuscript was written by UT-Battelle, LLC under contract with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) DE-AC05-00OR22725. The U.S. Government retains and publishers, by accepting the publication of this article, acknowledges that the U.S. Government retains non-regular, paid, irrevocable, global licenses to publish or reproduce the published form of the manuscript, or to allow others to do so Do, or allow others to do so, for the purposes of the U.S. government. DOE will have public access to federally sponsored research results under the DOE Public Access Plan (http://energy.gov/downloads/doe-public-access-plan).
About the Author
Gary Hahn He is a research software engineer in the ORNL Grid Communications and Security Group. His background and research interests include data engineering, industrial Internet, supervised control and data acquisition, and embedded software. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Computer Science from the University of Tennessee Knoxville. He is part of the team that won the R&D 100 Award in 2019. Contact: [email protected]
Emilio C. Piesciorovsky Graduated with a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering from the National Technical University of Argentina (1995). He received his Master of International Marketing from La Plata State University in Argentina (2001). He has served as an engineer at Pirelli Power Cables and Systems, SDMO Industries, ABB and Casco Systems. After earning his MS (2009) and Ph.D. (2015) from Kansas State University, he served as a postdoctoral fellow at Tennessee Technical University and ORNL. He is currently a professional technician and laboratory space manager at ORNL Power Systems Reserve. He is the author/co-author of over 50 publications and is a senior member institute for electrical and electronic engineers. Contact: [email protected]
Raymond Borges Hink He is a cybersecurity research scientist with ORNL and co-supervised researchers, and is used in several efforts in the field of cybersecurity of cyber physical systems, developing algorithms for analyzing distributed systems and detecting abnormalities in the electrical power grid. As co-principal investigator, he developed proposals that received more than $6 million in funding. Through these projects, Raymond works with scientists, engineers and technicians at Duke University; the Electricity Commission in Chattanooga, Tennessee; the Department of Energy’s Electricity Office; and the Department of Homeland Security’s Science and Technology Bureau. He has written several publications in these areas and has multiple IT and security certifications from Microsoft and Comptia. Contact: [email protected]
Aaron W. Worth is an ORNL researcher whose efforts focus on the cybersecurity of critical infrastructure, including the power grid. He received his PhD in Computer Engineering from the University of Alabama in Huntsville, where he developed a test bed for overseeing control and data acquisition systems as well as experimental intrusion prevention systems. He received service as a network scholarship and completed internships with the Tennessee Valley Administration and Sandia National Laboratory. He received his Master of Electrical Engineering from Vanderbilt University, focusing on cyberphysical systems and a Bachelor of Electrical Engineering from the University of Alabama in Huntsville. Contact: [email protected]
