Impact Analysis of Cyber-Events on Distributed Voltage Control with Active Power Curtailment

Advanced distributed control algorithms can assist in efficiently operating the power distribution systems with Distributed Energy Resources (DERs), while ensuring resiliency during critical events like cyber-attacks. In this work, we assess the resiliency of the developed distributed feedback-based Volt-Watt controller. In this regard, a Cyber-Physical System (CPS) test-bed, which uses OpenDSS for power system simulation and Mininet for communication network emulation and simulated various attack scenarios, has been utilized. Multiple attacks, including Denial of Service (DOS), Man in the Middle (MitM), and replay attacks, were modeled and deployed in the Mininet emulation. We observe that simulated attacks impact depends on the system configuration, system dynamics, attack type, embedded control, and supporting cyber systems.