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Title: A Survey of Wireless Communications for the Electric Power System

Technical Report ·
DOI:https://doi.org/10.2172/986700· OSTI ID:986700

A key mission of the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Electricity Delivery and Energy Reliability (OE) is to enhance the security and reliability of the nation’s energy infrastructure. Improving the security of control systems, which enable the automated control of our energy production and distribution, is critical for protecting the energy infrastructure and the integral function that it serves in our lives. The DOE-OE Control Systems Security Program provides research and development to help the energy industry actively pursue advanced security solutions for control systems. The focus of this report is analyzing how, where, and what type of wireless communications are suitable for deployment in the electric power system and to inform implementers of their options in wireless technologies. The discussions in this report are applicable to enhancing both the communications infrastructure of the current electric power system and new smart system deployments. The work described in this report includes a survey of the following wireless technologies: • IEEE 802.16 d and e (WiMAX) • IEEE 802.11 (Wi-Fi) family of a, b, g, n, and s • Wireless sensor protocols that use parts of the IEEE 802.15.4 specification: WirelessHART, International Society of Automation (ISA) 100.11a, and Zigbee • The 2, 3, and 4 generation (G )cellular technologies of GPRS/EDGE/1xRTT, HSPA/EVDO, and Long-Term Evolution (LTE)/HSPA+UMTS.

Research Organization:
Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE
DOE Contract Number:
AC05-76RL01830
OSTI ID:
986700
Report Number(s):
PNNL-19084; TD5017010; TRN: US201020%%500
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English