Automated low frequency load cutoff

The power grid is changing, new types of generation are increasingly coming on line at both the commercial and consumer scale. As technology improves, energy harvesting, by various means, will force the grid to adapt. Traditional means of control and management may become strained or inadequate for the future grid. The grid is also becoming smarter with increasing interaction between utilities and consumers, and as it becomes more interconnected and interactive, new threats from these interconnections arise. The drive to reduce costs and make the grid more efficient will inevitably push the operation of the grid closer to the safe limits making it increasingly likely small triggers will cause wide scale problems. One potential solution is making the system controls layered with a series of different control mechanisms including both automated and centralized systems. This article explores and demonstrates the development and potential impact of one such consumer level control mechanism. Specifically, we developed a prototype system by which non-essential, non-time critical “dumb” loads can be made to respond to detected events observable in the system frequency, and thereby assist in the recovery from larger events. This system responds in a totally automated fashion without communications or control signals, and thus provide a measure of immunity from communications problems and could replace a small amount of reserves that would otherwise be required. We examine here the construction, operation and potential benefits of such a device.