Systems Engineering Issues in Microgrids for Military Installations

Abstract

This article investigates the systems engineering issues involved in the design of microgrid systems for military installations. A review of how microgrids function including major system elements is provided from a systems engineering perspective for non‐microgrid experts. Specific issues that systems engineers are beginning to address and that remain to be addressed are highlighted. The activities of the INCOSE Critical Infrastructure Protection and Recovery (CIPR) Working Group demonstrate the growing importance of systems engineers to addressing microgrid issues. The increasing interest within the US Department of Defense in improving microgrids on installations shows the need to address issues that are specific to military microgrids.

Energy Resilience Impact of Supply Chain Network Disruption to Military Microgrids

“…• IDENTIFIABLE. The system has both physical and functional boundaries with an external interface at the utility grid junction [9,10]. From a systems engineering perspective, the microgrid not only encompasses the physical equipment and software but also the people (e.g., operators, maintenance organizations, etc.)…”

“…From a systems engineering perspective, the microgrid not only encompasses the physical equipment and software but also the people (e.g., operators, maintenance organizations, etc.) and processes required to ensure system operability [10,11].…”

“…Existing research [10,14,22,25,36,79,80,86,87,143,144] has repeatedly identified SCN disruption as a significant threat to military microgrids. However, to our knowledge, the downstream impact has yet to be quantified.…”

Defense Installation Energy Resilience for Changing Operational Requirements

“…Several recent publications focus on systems engineering approaches to improve energy resilience for national security installations [2][3][4][5]. However, most exigent work assumes a constant operational environment with predictable loads.…”

“…Many facilities involved with national security and defense have implemented microgrids to improve energy resilience. A microgrid is a system of system (SOS) consisting of interconnected loads and distributed energy resources (DERs) within an established electrical boundary specifically designed to operate in either a grid-connected or islanded mode [4]. Generally, national security installation microgrids are sized to protect critical loads, defined as those supporting safety, process reliability, and operational requirements [8].…”