Next Generation Power System Planning and Operation With Quantum Computation

Innovative solutions and developments are being inspected to tackle rising electrical power demand to be supplied by clean forms of energy. The integration of renewable energy generations, varying nature loads, importance of active role of distribution system and consumer participation in grid operation has changed the landscape of classical power grids. Implementation of smarter applications to plan, monitor, operate the grid safely are deemed paramount for efficient, secure and reliable functioning of grid. These smarter applications for modern power systems demand capabilities such as real-time monitoring, dynamic security analysis, stochastic power flow calculations, large-scale data analytics, and high-dimensional combinatorial and constrained optimization. Although sophisticated computations to process gigantic volume of data to produce useful information in a time critical manner is the paradigm of future grid operations, these enhanced functionalities impose significantly higher computational demands compared to traditional approaches used in conventional power systems. Advancements in quantum technologies holds promising solution for dealing with demanding computational complexity of power system related applications. In this article, we lay out clear motivations for seeking quantum solutions for solving computational burden challenges associated with power system applications. Next, we present the fundamental principles of quantum computing, introduce key quantum algorithms, and offer a comparison of the computational load between classical and quantum approaches for few important mathematical problems, indicating their relevance to various power system applications. Additionally, we provide an overview of quantum solutions for various power system related applications available in current literature and suggest future topics for research. We further highlight challenges with existing quantum solutions for exploiting full quantum capabilities. To this end, this article serves as a bridge for power engineers to the quantum domain by outlining fundamental principles of quantum computation, facilitating a smoother transition to the future of power system computations and also provides quantum experts with insights into new application areas for quantum computing within power systems.