Nirmal Nair

Presentations:

Distribution System Automation and Smart Grid Standards

Nirmal has made foundational contributions towards implementation of smart grid standards including IEC61850 (and IEEE1547) protection and automation schemes, for electrical distribution networks. IEC61850 is an international standard defining communication protocols for intelligent electronic devices at electrical substations. It first appeared as a “Smart Grid” standard in 2003. He played a pioneering role in engineering and deployment of distribution system automation and adaption of IEC61850 in distribution substations in New Zealand (NZ).

His work contributed to understanding limitations of IEC 61850 when implementing automation logic in substation, with implementation by grid operators in New Zealand. Thus, his work on testing and exploration of synergies with other standards like IEEE1547, IEC61499 and IEC61131 gained attention internationally.

He continues contributing towards renewable integration, voltage collapse, blackouts, resilience, cyber-physical security and special protection schemes. His contributions through peer-reviewed papers and ongoing participation in several standards, several technical reports and invited presentations at major IEEE and CIGRE conferences. He has co-authored five books, two book chapters, and inventor on two patents on power system relaying and automation.

This workshop will provide attendees with an overall view of these experiences as the world rapidly attempts to decarbonize and the practical experiences of New Zealand Distribution utilizes experiences in this space Reference: “A Decade with IEC61850: New Zealand distribution utilities share their experiences using IEC61850 standards” T&D World magazine March 2018.

Effective Fault-ride through (FRT) and Smart Load-shedding for Secure Renewable Grid

To prepare for increased large-scale wind integration New Zealand grid undertook to develop two distinct Fault-ride through design, due to its network being two AC electrical islands interconnected by High-Voltage DC links, that all on-shore wind farms must comply. It is difficult, if not ineffective, to reuse other FRT curves developed for strongly interconnected grids spread across larger geographies. Traditional generators are represented using well understood synchronous models while non-synchronous renewables utilize simplistic models for grid integration which was acceptable for lower renewable penetration levels.

The first part of this workshop will share concepts that could be used contribute and validate realistic large-scale wind farm models, whose grid interaction control complies to New Zealand FRT island-based characteristics mandated.
One natural consequence due to large-scale intermittent renewables, particularly during low generation time-periods, is resorting to load-shedding for system stability.

The second part of this workshop will share contributions towards adapting traditional Automatic Under-Frequency Load Shedding (AUFLS), used for blackout prevention, to make it multi-stage and deploy as an extended reserve electricity market products like Virtual Power Plant. The role of regulation to enable growth of these new products and challenges thereof to integrate with standard wholesale and electricity market structures will also be shared with the prism of public-private capital investment and participation.

Literature and reports from across IEEE PES and CIGRE Study Committee C5 Electricity Market and Regulation will form the practice underpinnings for this workshop.

Emergent Digital Substations: Principles, Applications and Standards

With the emergence of highly distributed, decentralized and digitalized nature of networks, particularly distribution systems, there is a need to establish first-order principles that will help guide developing guides and standards to help implement various applications and services that are being conceived globally. This presenter has co-edited a Book “IEC 61850 Principles and Applications to Electric Power Systems https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/978-3-031-24567-1 that is helping shape electricity network utilities globally embarking upon increased substation building activities, including in New Zealand where the presenter currently resides

This tutorial will identify those principles and then extend it towards emergent applications that are likely to be supported during this transitions and potential risks and challenges. The presenter has been is an early pioneer of IEC 61850 contributing towards research, policy, practice, implementation and driving maturity and growth of its deployments in actual substations and for newer digital substation designs.

The future application case-exemplar will be based on the other expertise domain of this presenter around Effective Fault-ride through (FRT) and Smart Load-shedding for Secure Renewable Grid Integration which will provide good education/research context to the attractiveness of using Digital Substation architecture for future emerging AC-DC network architecture of power systems. This will be based on ongoing work in NZ around the research program https://www.fan.ac.nz/ .

This tutorial will also share the requirements and demands that will be posed on electrical power systems to be handle not only high-impact low probability events like earthquakes that New Zealand is prone to https://quakecore.nz/research-qc2/ip4/ but also adapting to increasing high-impact low frequency severe climatic extreme events like flooding, typhoons, extreme heat-cold. Increased flexibility, agility and responsiveness will be demanded of substation automation and control which Digital substation can be configured to operate through existing human-machine expertise or futuristic modes armed through machine-learning and Artificial Intelligence supported algorithms and processes.

This presentation could be delivered both as a lecture or a 3.5 hours Tutorial based on the intended audience.