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Cover of the Analytic Research Foundations for the Next-Generation Electric Grid, courtesy of the National Academies Press. Enlarge Image

Climate change. Renewable energy sources. National energy independence. These and other dynamics related to our energy infrastructure will profoundly shape the future of the U.S. electric grid and the analytical challenges and mathematical advances needed to cope with them.

A new book, released by a special committee of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, contains recommendations for recent research and policies to improve the mathematical foundations for the next-generation grid. Their recommendations are in four areas:

data availability modeling capabilities improved algorithms, and the organizational structure needed to integrate improvements in these areas and to make them accessible to a large community of researchers.

Commissioned by the Department of Energy and convened by the National Research Council, the Committee on Analytic Research Foundations for the Next-Generation Electric Grid consisted of 15 members with academic, industrial, and national laboratory expertise in power systems and relevant mathematical areas. Jeff Dagle, PNNL Chief Electrical Engineer, was on the committee and initiated the recommendation for investments in technology to “future proof” the grid.

“These are no-regrets investments in advanced technology that will be useful and relevant regardless of how our nation’s electricity future unfolds,” said Dagle.

The committee’s analysis and recommendations are designed to help direct future research as the grid evolves, and to give the nation’s R&D infrastructure the tools it needs to effectively develop, test, and use this research. For more details, the book is available on the National Academies website.