Prof. Giancarlo Ferrari Trecate awarded an FNS grant

The goal of the COFLEX project is to develop networked control architectures for next-generation microgrids. Differently from state-of-art solutions, we aim at maximizing flexibility, by allowing generation and load nodes to enter/leave the microgrid over time. For guaranteeing safe and reliable operations, flexibility must be mirrored in the microgrid control layers. COFLEX will study methods for designing on-the-fly regulators of generation units and smart loads when they are plugged in or out, yet preserving fundamental properties of electric variables such as voltage stability. These plug-and-play controllers will allow to build microgrids in a modular way and let them grow/shrink seamlessly over time.