A Cyber-Physical Platform to Assess Power System Operation With Communication Network and Heterogeneous Controllers

The modern power grid is evolving into a cyber-physical energy system that integrates power, intelligent electronic devices, and communication networks. To validate and verify innovative control and protection systems under realistic conditions, this article introduces a cyber-physical platform that evaluates power system operation while considering heterogeneous controllers and communication networks. The proposed platform includes network emulation, real-time power system simulation/hardware testbed, and controllers/agents, and uses the container concept to overcome the limitations of existing real-time co-simulation methods. It is scalable, flexible, and capable of testing different system scales and network topologies with different control scenarios. To demonstrate the effectiveness of the platform, an agent-based distributed secondary control was configured and deployed in a hybrid MVAC/DC network.