R&D Fast Facts - Smart Grid
Researchers
- Mohamad Musavi, professor and chair of the Dept. of Electrical and Computer Engineering (207) 581-2243
What is a smart grid?
A modern electricity network that is capable of integrating emerging alternative energy sources and can meet the future growth in energy demand in an efficient and reliable manner.
What is UMaine’s role?
With its faculty and students, UMaine provides the best opportunity for developing and testing smart grid technologies and assisting the utilities in their implementation and education of their workforce, according to Musavi.
Why do we need a smart grid?
Numerous distributed sources of alternative energy are being researched and implemented throughout the world, but consumers won’t be able to efficiently and reliably access tidal, wind, solar and other sources of energy unless a more modern electricity transmission system is created. This particularly is a problem for those who reside in rural areas, of which Maine has many.
In addition to the delivery of energy, the smart grid will provide a two-way communication and control between the consumers and power utilities for management of distributed energy resources. The smart grid would be able to collect real time information, analyze, detect, respond to and restore system outages, and improve security with resilience against physical and cyber attacks.
Why Maine?
Not only do we need a smart grid system in Maine to access affordable alternative energy resources, but it could serve as an economic engine since Maine has an abundant amount of renewable energy resources. It also will serve as an energy delivery corridor between Canadian renewable energy sources and the centers of energy consumption in southern New England and New York, according to Musavi.
What’s next?
UMaine is continuing to work with the state’s electric utilities and energy sector, and if funding and support from the university, the state, and federal government are made available, Musavi estimates it will take three to five years to develop the Maine smart grid.
Project partners:
Maine electric utility and energy companies.
