Deploying drones

Two-thirds of the energy sector deploys drones for a variety. In wind, the unmanned aerial vehicles are a safer alternative to having inspectors scale turbine towers.

Unmanned aerial vehicles have streamlined turbine blade inspections by keeping boots on the ground and drones in the sky. Fewer trips up turbines minimize fall and drop risks for O&M technicians and, with drones, inspection on a single turbine can be finished in 15 minutes. The tiny aircraft can work on predetermined paths and fly much closer to blades than a person can safely reach.

Drones are deployed by about for two-thirds of the energy sector, according to a white paper, and it’s believed more companies will follow.

Production tax credits expire

The Production Tax Credit (PTC), initially enacted in 1992, runs up to 2020. The PTC let wind developers take advantage of a tax credit per-kilowatt-hour when selling produced energy to off-takers. It has been a successful incentive for wind development — as well as geothermal energy, hydroelectric and others — with a higher tax credit amount than the remaining eligible energy sources.

Despite off and on years in the 1990s and 2000s, PTC established a foothold in 2015 when it was extended through 2019. The American Wind Energy Association (AWEA) predicts the wind industry won’t falter after the PTC expires, “because the PTC has been successful in helping establish a reliable, competitive domestic wind industry,” the organization’s website states. But the kilowatt-hour tax cuts will no longer be available.

However, if construction on new wind projects starts by December 31, 2019, they are still eligible for the tax credit.

Cybersecurity

Wind farms and other energy utilities can work at higher efficiencies using the latest operating and monitoring programs, however, as automation advances so does the need for proper protection. Top cybersecurity officials said they’re trying to keep pace with outside threats attempting to breach the regulating software used in the energy sector.

If control of a wind farm is seized by outside parties, they can potentially damage the turbine towers. Having access to a turbine’s braking system and suddenly stopping the spinning blades can be harmful. Unauthorized users can also send inaccurate information back to turbine analysts.

Director of National Risk Management Bob Kolasky said data analytics and data aggregation are necessary to predict and assess cyber threats. Companies can prevent attacks by investing in a cybersecurity workforce and establishing best practices and security standards in houses. Work accounts should have multiple levels of security, with passwords changed regularly to prevent breaches.

Predictive maintenance

Experts predict artificial intelligence will become a standard for industries across the board. Using all the available data in a company, AI can learn how operations are carried out, and eventually make predictive suggestions with a lower margin for error than humanly possible.

For wind, the machine will eventually learn a wind farm’s controls, component failures, and loads on individual turbines. This means O&M technicians can skip analyzing turbine data and focus on other tasks, like fixing the component failures the AI predicted.

Wind simulations

What if wind developers could study turbine component designs prior to manufacturing and installation? The National Renewable Energy Laboratory released an open-source program called the Simulator for Wind Farm Applications (SOWFA), which, as the name suggests, gives developers the option to simulate wind, weather, and terrain efficiency on a turbine site.

Simulation saves wind EPCs from the trial-and-error of hands-on component field testing, while also giving predictive measurements for on an existing wind farm.

Once in operation, SOWFA can pinpoint inefficiencies in a wind farm, alleviating underperforming turbines, component degradation, and other operating concerns. Having testing complete at an early stage cuts costs for a total wind farm project.

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EnergyTech2015 will be held in Cleveland, Nov 30 to Dec 2 at the Wolstein Center at Cleveland State University.

In this post-9/11 world, it is not hard to imagine foreign agents working to damage U.S. infrastructure. The FBI recently admitted that ISIS has tried unsuccessfully to penetrate the national grid. “In fact, three carefully placed electromagnetic pulse or EMP weapons detonated about 80 miles up can damage most of the exposed electronics in the U.S., and big parts of the grid,” Juhasz added.

To secure the energy needed for a civilized future, a comprehensive systems approach is essential. “The grid has been evolving since the early 1900s and designers have done a good job so far, but there has been insufficient systems attention to its design until recently. Readers will recall the 2003 blackout that disabled a large part of the U.S.,” he said. While the utilities are doing a good job keeping the grid functioning, we are at risk from events such as severe weather and even cosmic events such as geomagnetic disruptions – solar outbursts.

A wind farm could power an isolated micro grid. In the event of a massive grid outage, wind power could be a source of standalone generation for a community. Learn more at EnergyTech2015.

A comprehensive end-to-end approach to grid design is essential. This is what the conference sponsor International Council of System Engineers, INCOSE, is about. It is a 10,000-member international society with an entire focus dedicated to understanding systems behavior and characterizing systems in terms of architecture, their function, and interfaces to their I/O system. “If we take this approach, it lets us do a comprehensive study of the grid and other critical infrastructures that depend on the grid. We can identify vulnerable points and strengthen them,” said Juhasz.

As for new technology, the conference will introduce hybrid aircraft electrical systems as a solution, and more. “There is a lot of development in aerospace, and this is NASA’s contribution to the conference. A lot of technology has been developed for hybrid electric aircraft, which we believe has terrestrial application in micro grids and elsewhere. We need a systems approach so that in case of a fault or attack, damaged segments of the grid are rapidly isolated from the rest of it so we don’t have cascading failures. Switching devices in micro grids will provide useful and applicable developments,” he said.

Juhasz also suggested that a wind farm could power an isolated micro grid. In the event of a massive grid outage, wind power could be a source of standalone generation for a community. “Of course, there is no one solution to grid problems so we have to consider a comprehensive, all-of-the-above approach for the best results.”

There are four different themes for the event with an overarching one of Securing our energy future. Track one is about the global dynamics of energy and identifying the megatrends in this area. “We are shifting away from coal and must bring on new sources of energy, and the right mix of the sources. Track 2 will introduce new technology. Track 3 will cover a great deal of systems work in building models and comprehensive system models. Track 4 deals with managing risk factors, recognizing vulnerabilities, lessening the vulnerabilities, understanding the kind of risks, and making sure we have sustainable and safe power sources.”

For a more detailed schedule: www.energytech2015.com/overview/

Solutions to such enormous challenges demand the best in human ingenuity coupled with efficient, sophisticated computing tools and rigorous methods to managing system risk and life-cycle decision support.

Now in its 5th year, EnergyTech 2015 seeks the convergence of the best minds in policy, systems engineering and applied technology to address some of the critical issues of our time. Experts from Industry, Academia, and Government will present a wide range of perspectives on these challenges.

Paper authors, panelists, and tutorial presenters are encouraged to address ways in which Systems Engineering principles, processes and perspectives are performed today and how the critical infrastructure sectors such as energy will benefit from these practices.

Register here: www.energytech2015.com/registration/

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Now that the Senate and House have passed legislation, the bills will move to a conference to resolve differences and produce a compromise bill that can be sent to President Obama for his signature.

In response to the Senate vote, NEMA President and CEO Kevin J. Cosgriff noted that, “NEMA member companies offer their customers ever-increasing levels of internet-enabled functionality in their products. Cybersecurity is always front-of-mind as manufacturers develop new products, especially those installed in homes, hospitals, buildings, transportation, and the electric grid. Congress has taken an important first step by passing information sharing legislation, but there is more work to be done to protect against cyber- and physical-threats. We look forward to working with Congress and the administration as they do so.”

As electrical and medical imaging products become increasingly connected to the Internet and each other, NEMA is focused on helping manufacturers protect their businesses and their products from cyber-threats.

In June 2015, NEMA published Supply Chain Best Practices, a white paper that addresses U.S. supply chain integrity throughout the product lifecycle. The document identifies a recommended set of supply chain best practices and guidelines that electrical equipment and medical imaging manufacturers can implement during product development to minimize the possibility that bugs, malware, viruses, or other exploits can be used to negatively impact product operation. The paper can be downloaded at www.nema.org/Supply-Chain-Best-Practices.

The National Electrical Manufacturers Association (NEMA) represents nearly 400 electrical, medical imaging, and radiation therapy manufacturers. Our combined industries account for more than 400,000 American jobs and more than 7,000 facilities across the United States. Domestic production exceeds $117 billion per year. Our industry is at the forefront on electrical safety, reliability, resilience, efficiency, and energy security.

National Electrical Manufacturers Association

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