Grid Developing Digital Twin for Electricity Grid to Ease Transition to Renewables

Published 12 December 2019

The rapid transition to renewable energy threatens to cause major problems to the very expensive electricity grid in the Netherlands. Researchers are now working on a “digital twin” to make it possible to study the grid effectively.

The rapid transition to renewable energy threatens to cause major problems to the very expensive electricity grid in the Netherlands. In his quest for solutions, Professor Peter Palensky is now working on a “digital twin” to make it possible to study the grid effectively.

Imagine you have been working quietly for years in the confines of a large academic institute, and, all of a sudden, dramatic changes turn your familiar world on its head. The spotlights are pointing in your direction and suddenly all eyes are on you. What would you do?

This is exactly what happened to Peter Palensky, professor at TU Delft. His specialism – intelligent electricity grids – has suddenly become a hot topic in recent years. The rapid transition to renewable energy has raised an important question: is our existing electricity grid capable of withstanding such far-reaching changes? Palensky and his colleagues need to answer that key question to prevent the move towards increased sustainability from falt Palensky is certainly not the type to shy away from a challenge like that. Quite the contrary. “As a scientist, it’s actually quite a privilege to find yourself in this position,’ he says. ‘It’s as if we are at a turning point in history and have a real chance of changing the world for the better. It’s an absolutely huge responsibility, but one day we may be able to say to our children: we did it.”

Everyone an energy producer
For around fifty years, everything remained more or less the same. Every country had several large energy plants that delivered electricity on the grid for millions of customers, in other words citizens and companies. But the emergence of renewable energy has suddenly added countless new energy producers, because every wind turbine or solar panel is actually an energy plant in itself. All of a sudden, the citizens are no longer customers, but actually the suppliers! Very variable suppliers, as well, since wind speeds and solar power tend to fluctuate.

“This green revolution brings some huge problems of adaptation with it,” says Palensky. “For example, think of the countries that have to connect large wind farms to the existing electricity grid. Suddenly connecting a large amount of new capacity can completely change the dynamics of a country’s electricity grid, even leading to a power failure in the worst case.”

This means that research is required. A great deal of research. Will the Dutch grid be capable of