DOE
Carl Imhoff manages the Electric Infrastructure market sector within Pacific Northwest National Laboratory's Energy and Environment Directorate. Former NARUC President Paul Kjellander is Senior Advisor at Public Utilities Fortnightly.
Extreme weather conditions combined with a big shift toward decarbonization have stressed the electric transmission grid recently, putting the electric and utilities industry in the news, sometimes not always in the best light. To change that, a welcome innovation, courtesy of DOE's Pacific Northwest National Lab, needs its story told.
The Dynamic Contingency Analysis Tool or DCAT is that innovation, which allows grid operators to evaluate and get ahead of risks, instead of waiting for a power outage to realize weak spots on the electric grid during an emergency. It came to fruition via PNNL's grid modernization research and development program, which created DCAT and other tech to advance clean, reliable, and secure power delivery.
PUF sat down with Carl Imhoff, who leads that PNNL program, which encompasses research on grid energy storage, microgrids, transmission planning, smart grid innovation, grid analytics, and other aspects of the power system. Here, PUF's Paul Kjellander discusses DCAT and what it means for utilities.
PUF's Paul Kjellander: You lead the Electric Infrastructure Program at Pacific Northwest National Lab, and identify vulnerabilities in the grid, related to emergency situations. You're working with a Dynamic Contingency Analysis Tool, DCAT. How is that a game changer?