CIRCE presents its latest technological developments applied to smart grids at ENLIT Europe

For the second consecutive year, CIRCE-Technological Center has participated in ENLIT Europe, one of the main international exhibitions in the energy sector. The fair, focused on utilities, serves to annually present products and services related to smart grids and the optimization of energy consumption. It aims to connect industries, inspire action and help evolve towards a decarbonized and digitized energy system for the energy transition.   

From November 28 to 30, more than 12,000 visitors have visited the Porte de Versailles exhibition and conference center in Paris, where CIRCE has had its own stand within the Spanish pavilion, managed by ICEX. There it has shown two European projects in which it is involved: eFORT and REEFLEX, focused on flexibility and cybersecurity in the network. In addition, it has shown its leadership as a center of innovation and international knowledge with the latest technological advances applied to smart grids in which it is currently immersed:  

• Test automation and customer support tool for the complete deployment of IEC61850 digital substations. This tool is used for a more efficient execution of validation tests and has the following capabilities: IEC 61850 connection and Discovery with substation IEDs; capture and display of IEC 61850 protocol messages from the network; interpretation of data according to signal dictionary; checking of received signaling with expected values in tests; sending of GOOSE messages; execution of MMS commands; assisted tests based on standardized validation protocols; free execution tests and result logging. The development not only reads IEC 61850 information, but also interprets it according to the company's criteria. Relating the received signaling to a standardized signal dictionary makes automatic evaluation of results possible thanks to the integration of well-defined test protocols into the solution.

   

• Virtualization for substation monitoring, control and protection. This service is integrated from the perspective of substation engineering. It represents the evolution of engineering as it is traditionally known, reaching a higher, more efficient and significantly more robust stage than what has been used so far. The new electrical infrastructures with IEC 61850 are characterized by interoperability and digitization. In this new technological landscape, CIRCE offers all the services related to this innovative operational approach: take a look at the software solutions for IEC 61850 networks and equipment that we have available.

   

• Network simulation analysis laboratory (RTDS): Do you know the benefits of performing Validation Tests with RTDS (Real Time Digital Simulator) Technology? It provides the ability to perform laboratory tests in real time to study the interaction between intelligent equipment and the electrical grid. These tests provide information about the behavior of the intelligent equipment and its interaction with the grid, helping in its development, debugging and validation before its commercialization. The lab is equipped with 2 racks and 10 PB5 processor boards, along with multiple digital and analog inputs and outputs. In addition, it operates with communication protocols such as IEC 61850 (SV and GOOSE), IEC-103, DNP-3, C37.118-PMU, and voltage and current amplification equipment from DOUBLE ENGINEERING. Check out our service for RTDS Test and Simulation.

• IEC 61850, development of proprietary software tools for equipment validation and FAT/SAT testing: C libraries for customized publications and subscriptions, based on SCL, GOOSE and SV; graphical tools for reading and emulation of GOOSE messages with full flexibility; IEC 61850 IED interface testing; MMS client/server for firmware development and automatic testing according to standardized protocols with results interpretation.
• Smart Grid Virtualization. As new trends in the virtualization of Smart Grid functions emerge, CIRCE has led the development of several virtual modules for the control and protection of Spanish TSO substations. Data acquisition modules, IEC 61850 and ANSI 21 and 87 services have been developed. The obtained MVP is able to manage up to 10 transport bays in a single general purpose hardware. Open source and real-time Linux resources are integrated in these high-performance applications.

• Cybersecurity applied to the power grid. Smart Grid and SAS cybersecurity testbed based on open source tools and docker containers to easily evaluate response measures against cyber-attacks to critical infrastructures without affecting their availability. Several DER and SAS use cases have been validated in this testbed, where different assets and improvised explosive devices of substations have been tested according to end-user specifications or standards-based best practices.  Resources dedicated to this lab section at CIRCE include 90+ cores, GPUs and industrial communication devices.
• Development and implementation of advanced IEC61000-4-30 / IEC 62586-2 network quality algorithms. CIRCE has developed a network quality library in C language that performs Class A normative calculations according to IEC 61000-4-30 standards and IEC 62586-2 functional and uncertainty tests. Encapsulating all normative calculations in a library allows their easy and efficient integration in different equipment and architectures. This ensures quality and speed, which are essential in the monitoring and management of the power grid. In addition, the technology center features a series of automatic verification tests in accordance with 62586-2 ensuring that any changes are aligned with grid quality standards. Its unique ability to run efficiently on both low-power microcontrollers and, for example, Linux servers, enables a level of flexibility that ensures network quality remains consistent and of a high standard on a variety of platforms, from compact and efficient devices to more complex and powerful systems.

eFORT, in search of resilience and security of power grids

Regarding European projects, the eFORT project is a project funded by the European Union, which aims to make European power grids more resilient and reliable in the face of failures, cyber-attacks, physical disturbances and data privacy issues. It aims to increase power system stability by developing technologies to identify, prevent and mitigate risks and vulnerabilities. from compact and efficient devices to more complex and powerful systems.

REEFLEX: replicable, interoperable and cross-sectoral solutions and energy services for demand-side flexibility markets

Moreover, the objective of the REEFLEX project is to generate niche opportunities for new cross-sectoral energy services provided by SMEs and start-ups in demand-side flexibility markets and thus increase the participation of energy consumers in demand-side flexibility markets. By developing an interoperability platform and a service catalog, the project aims to maximize the flexibility of distributed energy resources by taking into account different end-user profiles and infrastructure constraints.  

ENLIT, escenario de los actos finales de los proyectos europeos frESCO, INSULAE y BEYOND

ENLIT también ha contado una zona dedicada a los proyectos europeos que ayudan a promover la transición energética. El primer escenario se ha centrado principalmente en estrategia y política; el segundo en las tecnologías y las soluciones que ayudarán a lograr los objetivos del Pacto Verde; y el tercero, dedicado a talleres y eventos finales, como los del BEYOND, frESCO e INSUALE. Los dos últimos, coordinados por CIRCE.

• The frESCO project, which ended in November, unveiled its results: new business models for innovative energy service packages for residential consumers. Within this framework, new energy performance contracts have been developed to evolve energy market trends towards new hybrid schemes.
• The INSULAE project session demonstrated how to contribute to the EU Clean Energy Initiative for Islands by providing an Investment Planning Tool (IPT) capable of creating action plans for islands to generate their own sustainable and low-cost energy.
• And finally, the BEYOND project also presented its final conclusions. This offers a Big Data platform implementation and AI analytics toolset for innovative energy service ecosystems based on data sharing for the building sector and beyond. The platform enables data consumers to search, find and use data generated by buildings and optimize their operation and energy performance.