Simulation-based validation for smart grid environments

Large and complex systems, such as the Smart Grid, are often best understood through the use of modeling and simulation. In particular, the task of assessing a complex system's risks and testing its tolerance and recovery under various attacks has received considerable attention. However, such tedious tasks still demand a systematic approach to model and evaluate each component in complex systems. In other words, supporting a formal validation and verification without needing to implement the entire system or accessing the existing physical infrastructure is critical since many elements of the Smart Grid are still in the process of becoming standardized for widespread use. In this paper, we describe our simulation-based approach to understanding and examining the behavior of various components of the Smart Grid in the context of verification and validation. To achieve this goal, we adopt the discrete event system specification (DEVS) modeling methodology, which allows generalization and specialization of the entities in the model for a customized simulation with specific scenarios. In addition, we articulate metrics for supporting our simulation-based verification and validation and demonstrate the feasibility and effectiveness of our approach with a real-world use case.