A Cyber Secure Communication Architecture for Multi-Site Hardware_in_the_Loop Co_Simulation of DER Control

Existing approaches coordinating distributed energy resources (DERs) for grid services do not adequately evaluate the performance of such DER integration. Most studies are based on a single type of DER used for a single type of service, rather than the real-world requirements of coordinating a heterogeneous mix of DERs to provide multiple different grid services at different time-scales. Facilities also often face cybersecurity and interoperability challenges to experimenting and testing methodologies in this area. To overcome all of these challenges, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, United Technologies Research Center, Southern California Edison, and Spirae coordinated to develop a federation between their organizations. This federation implements a cybersecure connection that facilitates near real-time communication between the four different physical sites. This not only enables control of DERs at different physical locations but also lets the software and hardware objects perform control experiments in a cybersecure environment at different time-scales. The hardware systems can consist of microgrids, building management systems, and emulated power systems objects. This paper provides a detailed overview of the federation setup and describes what this federation can be used for.