Analysts in the energy sector believe smart grids are one of the best ways to optimize electricity consumption today.
Smart grid performance is largely the result of the digital and technological revolution experienced over the last couple of decades – especially due to the boom of connected IoT devices. In this context, smart grids may be destined to experience the same fate, as they are now developed all around the world.
In fact, many energy experts feel that smart grids may be the future of traditional electricity grids.
A smart grid transmits real-time information on electricity usage and consumption to all network operators (producers, distributors and consumers). The idea is simple: to use this real-time information to adjust electricity flows and ensure better energy efficiency.
A smart grid can also be thought of as an “IOT-enabled application.” This means that a smart grid allows utilities and customers to exchange electricity and information. That’s why we talk about a “smart” grid. In fact, it is a two-way data flow, useful for both sides of it.
Smart grid technology mainly includes sensors, wireless modules, monitoring systems, and robust ICT infrastructures.
With the focus increasingly turning to renewable energy, smart grids are an important part of managing these typically less reliable sources of power. Since, for instance, solar panels can’t generate energy during the nighttime, smart grids can store power and release it according to the demand a grid is facing.
This guarantees a reliable power supply, which is good for the environment, too. By storing surplus energy generated by renewable sources previously considered unreliable, smart grids can help countries wean themselves off fossil fuels.
By measuring energy supply, power can be provided exactly when and where it is needed, making the smart grid a far less wasteful way of supplying energy. This in turn reduces fuel use and cost.
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Additionally, Tonex offers nearly 400 classes, seminars and workshops in close to four dozen categories of systems engineering training.
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