Intern develops metrics for designing a synthetic microgrid model

August 24, 2023

This article is part of a series highlighting ACEP’s 2023 cohort of eighteen undergraduate interns. To read about other projects and learn more about the program, please visit the ACEP Internship Program website.

Audrey Eikenberry is from Fairbanks, Alaska and is pursuing an electrical engineering degree at the University of Alaska Fairbanks. This summer she worked on the Synthetic Microgrid Model project under the mentorship of Phylicia Cicilio. The project aims to generate models of rural Alaskan communities using available data and power systems software.

Eikenberry’s work to develop metrics for the synthetic microgrid model provided base metrics for building the grid model and a validation method for the Synthetic Microgrid Model that will provide a publicly available model for researchers to test their own research. These metrics will also give researchers a greater understanding of the unique power system infrastructure of rural Alaskan towns.

This internship gave Eikenberry the opportunity to learn about specific rural Alaskan power grids and to analyze their characteristics in order to generate statistics, using software such as Excel, QGIS, and PowerFactory.

Throughout her internship, Eikenberry was “so intrigued by how diverse the energy infrastructure is across Alaskan microgrids and how it is evolving with the implementation of renewables.”

“There is so much to learn from these communities that have all taken different approaches to creating dependable power systems in the face of economic and climate challenges,” she said.

This internship is funded through the National Science Foundation Research Experiences for Undergraduates program. View the final presentation for this project on ACEP’s YouTube Channel. For more information on this project, please contact Phylicia Cicilio at pcicilio@alaska.edu.