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IEEE Power Engineering Society General Meeting

Quantum Distributed Microgrid Control

Pouya Babahajiani, Peng Zhang

Published Jul 17, 2022• 4 citations
Publisher

Abstract

To empower flexible and scalable operations, distributed control of multi-inverter microgrids, based on classical communication networks among distributed energy resources, has attracted considerable attention. Notwithstanding this, resilience of the current schemes on classical communication makes microgrids vulnerable to cyber attacks. Inspired by quantum properties of quantum bits, in this paper, we devise a novel synchronization mechanism. We extend the synchronization framework utilized in distributed control algorithms to networks of quantum systems. By employing the architecture of quantum network, security of the protocol can be enhanced. Test results on two representative ac and dc microgrids validate the efficacy and universality of the quantum distributed control.

DOI
10.1109/pesgm48719.2022.9916709

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To empower flexible and scalable operations, distributed control of multi-inverter microgrids, based on classical communication networks among distributed energy resources, has attracted considerable attention. Notwithstanding this, resilience of the current schemes on classical communication makes microgrids vulnerable to cyber attacks. Inspired by quantum properties of quantum bits, in this paper, we devise a novel synchronization mechanism. We extend the synchronization framework utilized in distributed control algorithms to networks of quantum systems. By employing the architecture of quantum network, security of the protocol can be enhanced. Test results on two representative ac and dc microgrids validate the efficacy and universality of the quantum distributed control.
To empower flexible and scalable operations, distributed control of multi-inverter microgrids, based on classical communication networks among distributed energy resources, has attracted considerable attention as it can guarantee synchronization and provide suitable remedies to the problem of improper power sharing. Notwithstanding this, resilience of the current schemes on classical communication makes microgrids vulnerable to cyber attacks. Inspired by recent revolutionary breakthroughs in quantum communication, in this paper, we devise a novel synchronization mechanism. We extend the synchronization framework utilized in distributed control algorithms to networks of quantum systems by generating pinning terms and coupling mechanism for the new synchronization rule via exploiting proper quantum jump operators and observables, and show that the quantum system will converge to a time-variant target state. Our devised quantum distributed controller (QDC) gives rise to a novel quantum communication scheme for distributed control of microgrids and enables microgrids to exploit the state-of-the-art quantum communication frameworks as communication infrastructure. Test results on two representative AC and DC networked microgrids validate the efficacy and universality of the quantum distributed control.
Distributed control of multi-inverter microgrids has attracted considerable attention as it can achieve the combined goals of flexible plug-and-play architecture guaranteeing frequency and voltage regulation while preserving power sharing among nonidentical distributed energy resources (DERs). However, it turns out that cybersecurity has emerged as a serious concern in distributed control schemes. Inspired by quantum communication developments and their security advantages, this paper devises a scalable quantum distributed controller that can guarantee synchronization, and power sharing among DERs. The key innovation lies in the fact that the new quantum distributed scheme allows for exchanging secret information directly through quantum channels among the participating DERs, making microgrids inherently cybersecure. Case studies on two ac and dc microgrids verify the efficacy of the new quantum distributed control strategy.
The integration of information and communication technologies has introduced cybersecurity challenges to microgrid (MG) apart from bringing more flexibility, reliability, and resilience. Especially in the upcoming quantum era, the existing cryptographic systems are vulnerable to attacks from quantum computers. Motivated by these challenges, this article proposes a quantum-key-distribution (QKD)-based MG distributed control framework for cybersecurity enhancement. To defend the side-channel attacks and make the framework practical enough for industrial applications, measurement-device-independent QKD (MDI-QKD) is introduced. The following contributions are made in this work. 1) A novel QKD-based quantum-secure control architecture is established to assure the data transmission security in MG distributed control. 2) MDI-QKD with asymmetric protocol is used to form a scalable QKD network for MG control. 3) A method for fast parameter optimization based on deep neural network (DNN) is proposed to adjust the parameters in QKD systems in real-time. Simulations are carried on a 13-bus MG to demonstrate the working principles of the proposed control scheme. The test results also prove the feasibility of the DNN-based parameter optimizer.
Quantum networks present a potent solution to secure microgrid communication in the quantum era. Efficient quantum network routing protocols play an important role in developing practical and resilient quantum network-based microgrids. In this paper, we make the following contributions: 1) establish lightweight-yet-holistic routing tables for scalable and low-latency quantum routing in microgrids; 2) devise efficient distributed local routing protocols for quantum network-enabled microgrids; and 3) integrate the devised protocols in a real-time QNetGrid testbed and evaluate their performance under different scenarios. Experiments validate the efficacy of the devised methods and provide insights for developing efficient quantum network routing for cyber-resilient microgrids,
Existing microgrid communication relies on classical public key systems, which are vulnerable to attacks from quantum computers. This paper uses quantum key distribution (QKD) to solve these quantum-era microgrid challenges. Specifically, this paper makes the following novel contributions: 1) it devises a novel QKD simulator capable of simulating QKD protocols; 2) it offers a QKD-based microgrid communication architecture for microgrids; 3) it shows how to build a quantum-secure microgrid testbed in an RTDS environment; 4) it develops a key pool sharing (KPS) strategy to improve the cyberattack resilience of the QKD-based microgrid; and 5) it analyzes the impacts of critical QKD parameters with the testbed. Test results provide insightful resources for building a quantum-secure microgrid.
The microgrid faces increasingly severe communication security challenges due to its open and highly interactive characteristics. However, the traditional trust architecture cannot cope with the dynamically changing identity authentication requirements, and data transmission based on classical encryption is vulnerable to attacks from quantum computers. Existing quantum-secure microgrid research typically requires both parties to possess full quantum capabilities, which limits its practicality in real-world deployments. To address these challenges, this paper proposes a semi-quantum secure commu nication framework for microgrids. Firstly, a semi-quantum authentication model based on zero-trust architecture is introduced to support dynamic and secure identity verification between the microgrid central controller (MGCC) and distributed energy resources (DERs). Secondly, a semi-quantum key distribution (SQKD) scheme is integrated, requiring only the MGCC to be fully quantum-capable, thereby reducing system complexity. Additionally, a dynamic key provisioning strategy is designed based on DERs' energy characteristics to improve resource efficiency and system security. Experimental results and analysis provide valuable insights for the design and deployment of semi quantum-enabled microgrid communication.