Physics
National Grid Physics
The National Grid in physics refers to the interconnected network of transmission lines and substations that deliver electricity from power plants to consumers. It plays a crucial role in maintaining a stable and reliable supply of electricity across a region or country. The physics of the National Grid involves understanding the principles of electrical power transmission and distribution.
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3 Key excerpts on "National Grid Physics"
- David S. Ginley, David Cahen(Authors)
- 2011(Publication Date)
- Cambridge University Press(Publisher)
PART 6 Energy storage, high-penetration renewables, and grid stabilization 42 Toward the smart grid: the US as a case study S. Massoud Amin 1 and Anthony M. Giacomoni 2 1 Technological Leadership Institute, College of Science and Engineering, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA 2 Electrical and Computer Engineering Department, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA 42.1 Focus Electric power systems constitute the fundamental infrastructure of modern society. Electric power grids and distribution networks, often continental in scale, reach vir- tually every home, office, factory, and institution in developed coun- tries and have made remarkable, albeit remarkably insufficient, penetration in developing coun- tries such as China and India. 42.2 Synopsis The electric power grid can be defined as the entire apparatus of wires and machines that connects the sources of electricity, namely the power plants, with customers and their myriad needs. Power plants convert a primary form of energy, such as the chemical energy stored in coal, the radiant energy in sunlight, the pressure of wind, or the energy stored at the core of uranium atoms, into electricity, which is no more than a temporary, flexible, and portable form of energy. It is important to remember that electricity is not a fuel: it is an energy carrier. At the end of the grid, at factories and homes, electricity is transformed back into useful forms of energy or activity, such as heat, light, torque for motors, or information processing. Electric power grids which once were “loosely” interconnected networks of largely local systems, increasingly host large-scale, long-distance wheeling of power (the movement of wholesale power from one company to another, sometimes over the transmission lines of a third-party company) from one region to another. Likewise, the connection of distributed resources, primarily small generators at the moment, is growing rapidly.
eBook - PDFModern Electricity Systems
Engineering, Operations, and Policy to Address Human and Environmental Needs
- Vivek Bhandari, Rao Konidena, William Poppert(Authors)
- 2022(Publication Date)
- Wiley(Publisher)
1 1 Essentials of Power and Control 1.1 Introduction The electrical grid is one of the most amazing hidden parts of our modern tech- nological society. Is it not amazing that the small wires can move enough elec- trons to power massive machines and light millions of square feet in a fraction of a second? Further, it is done with some semblance of control without worrying about its underlying factors. So, what are the physical, mathematical, and sociopo- litical dimensions of electrical energy? Traditionally, we have been unaware of these dimensions because we were just the end-user, aka an “electron-taker” (like “price-taker” in economics). At most, we would worry about getting reliable and affordable power. For example, how many of us know that when a branch of a tree (literally) falls in a distribution line the distribution utility’s (including in the most advanced countries like the United States) major source of information is the phone call that you make to the utility? Yes, the distribution utilities might still not have much automation or many sensors and so must rely on phone calls. Even in a place where there are wholesale markets, many of us are not aware that electricity is traded like shares on the stock exchange. We would not want to be involved in the power system operations. We would not care about power system operations or attributes such as environmental values in the past. These days, consumers are becoming sophisticated consumers or even “pro- sumers” (a consumer who also produces energy). The prosumer (we) wants reliable, affordable, cleaner, and resilient power. We want to improve the effi- ciency of our use, and some even want to generate local energy and contribute to the grid. Our decisions, actions, and involvement affect the physics, mathematics, and sociopolitical aspects of traditional power systems.
eBook - PDFUnderstanding Electric Power Systems
An Overview of the Technology and the Marketplace
- Jack Casazza, Frank Delea(Authors)
- 2004(Publication Date)
- Wiley-IEEE Press(Publisher)
From some of the substations there are interconnections to other companies. Taken together, this arrangement of transmission lines tied together at various substations provides a degree of redundancy in the delivery paths for the electric energy. Power engineers have coined the terms “the grid”, the “bulk power system” and “the interconnection” to describe the delivery system. Figure 2.5 shows the three large grids in the United States and Canada: the Eastern Interconnection, the Western Interconnection and ERCOT, the Texas system. The generators within each grid operate in synchronism with one another. The Canadian Province of Quebec is interconnected to the eastern United States grid by non-synchronous HVDC ties. GRID 21 Western Interconnection Eastern Interconnection ERCOT Interconnection NERC Interconnections Figure 2.5. The three interconnected electric systems in the United States and Canada.*** *** Source—NERC. 3 23 This chapter describes, as simply as possible, the applicable physical laws and concepts needed to understand the physical operation of an electric power system. In Chapters 10 to 17 the commercial operation of the system is covered. An attempt has been made to present the material in a non- technical (i.e., as few equations as possible) manner. It is important to remember that the operation of an electric power system is governed and described by the laws of physics, which are unchanging, whereas the commercial operations are subject to man-made rules which are subject to modification and change. There is an interrelationship between the two in that the rules established for commercial operations must recognize and respect the physical laws by which the power system operates and the commercial rules often determine the design and operation of the system. A note on terminology is warranted. As the electric utility industry devel- oped, an associated jargon evolved, some of which you have already been exposed to in Chapter 2.
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