Critical Infrastructure could include facilities such as communication towers, electrical substations, hospitals, and water treatment plants. Without a steady flow of electrical power to operate these facilities, public safety could become compromised. Many of these facilities have on-site resources, such as a diesel generator, to mitigate this risk. This may work for short-term electrical outages, but what happens during a widespread outage that lasts a week or more?
An uncomfortably familiar situation such as this arose in Puerto Rico following the devastation of Hurricanes Maria and Irma. Many areas were without power for months. What could be done to mitigate risks to critical infrastructure during these events? A great solution for securing the electrical power could be developed through renewable energy resources. These resources could be designed to provide the normal daily power for facilities, such that the electrical grid would be the back-up power, and not vice versa. Through this solution, critical infrastructure would be capable of ongoing function even when the surrounding electrical grid is down.
It is encouraging to see that one of the studies regarding Puerto Rico’s electrical grid rebuild includes focus on providing such renewable energy resources to critical infrastructure.
From the report:
Build Back Better:
Reimagining and Strengthening the Power Grid of Puerto Rico
Page 30: As natural disasters such as Hurricanes Irma and Maria occur in the future, it is imperative that critical infrastructure and remote, isolated communities can restore power to key services in a timely manner. Moreover, these critical loads may need to operate in isolation for days at a time. A large-scale investment in microgrids can pave the way for a more resilient Puerto Rico.
A microgrid is a specific section of the electric grid –representing as large an area as an entire community, down to as small an area as a single building – that has thecapability of “islanding” itself from the rest of the electricgrid and operate in isolation for hours or even days at a time, while most of the year they retain connection to the centralized grid. This is accomplished via the strategic deployment of DER such as solar, battery storage, backup generators, and control equipment.
The WG recommends pursuit of two specific deployment alternatives to harden portions of the PREPA electrical system, particularly those serving critical infrastructure and loads:
• Critical infrastructure such as hospitals, police and fire stations, emergency shelters, critical communications infrastructure (i.e., cellphone towers), water treatment plants, airports, sea ports, telecommunication centers, commercial centers, and industrial centers could operate in isolation and provide much-needed services to Puerto Ricans immediately after a natural disaster. Industrial, airport, sea port, commercial, and telecom sites may be considered, first as an expense to those entities and second, as an alternative to the recommendations provided should implementation become untimely. The installation of onsite backup generation, combined heat and power systems (CHP), rooftop solar, battery storage, and building energy management systems at strategically located sites can create a series of self-powered, autonomous centers to help the local communities recover in the immediate aftermath of a storm.
• Remote communities that are more difficult to return to service after an outage, or that are served by a single utility line, could remain disconnected from the grid while still providing much-needed electricity to both critical infrastructure as well as local grocery stores, gas stations, and community centers. The installation of solar, battery storage, feeder automation control systems, load control equipment, and similar technologies could allow for these communities to more quickly recover from natural disasters.
Here at U.I.I., research regarding the integration of renewable energy resources for the security of critical infrastructure has been under development. If you are interested in research on this subject, contact us!