AOI-2, A Novel Access Control Blockchain Paradigm for Cybersecure Sensor Infrastructure in Fossil Power Generation Systems

Technical Report · Mon Jan 30 04:00:00 EST 2023

DOI:https://doi.org/10.2172/1958622· OSTI ID:1958622

Panat, Rahul ^[1]; Goyal, Vipul ^[2]

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1. Carnegie Mellon Univ., Pittsburgh, PA (United States); Carnegie Mellon University
2. Carnegie Mellon Univ., Pittsburgh, PA (United States)

Fossil power generation systems are increasingly vulnerable to attack from both cybercriminals as well as internal threats. These vulnerabilities demand that emerging technologies such as blockchains be utilized to secure the data involved in the information flows within the Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) systems of the fossil power generation plants. The publicly accessible blockchain protocols, although secure, are visible to everyone. Even private blockchains currently are unable to support different levels of access to different participants, which is a critical requirement for the existing SCADA systems running the power plants. In light of the above, novel blockchain protocols that are specifically adapted to fossil power generation environments need to be developed in order to achieve the goal of cybersecure sensor networks. In this work, we address this question by creating a novel blockchain technology, namely smart private ledger, for cybersecure communication within the fossil power generation systems. A lab-scale sensor network consisting of strain and temperature sensors is constructed to develop the ledger. The technology has hierarchical access control which is compatible with the existing SCADA systems in fossil power plants. The sensor data is used with cryptographic digital signatures and secret sharing protocols within the nodes of the blockchain technology. The research results will lead to cybersecurity for machine-to-machine interactions, infrastructure for secure data logging for sensors, decentralized data storage, and second-layer technologies for high volume machine-to-machine interactions in the power plants. The work aims to largely address the concerns for the security of distributed sensor networks in such systems that can be compromised by insider threats and by cybercriminals. The research has led to the training of the next generation of engineers and scientists in the important areas of sensor engineering and blockchain technology.

• Research Organization: Carnegie Mellon Univ., Pittsburgh, PA (United States)
• Sponsoring Organization: USDOE
• DOE Contract Number: FE0031770
• OSTI ID: 1958622
• Report Number(s): DE-FE0031770
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

01 COAL, LIGNITE, AND PEAT
20 FOSSIL-FUELED POWER PLANTS
42 ENGINEERING
97 MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTING
99 GENERAL AND MISCELLANEOUS
Blockchains
Etherium
Fossil Energy
SCADA Systems
Sensor Networks