ECOLONG LLC — Department of Energy SBIR Phase I: C56-01a

Description

C56-01a-274260The electric power grid is rapidly shifting from centralized and dispatchable power generation to more distributed and intermittent renewable-based power generation or Distributed Energy Resources (DERs), such as wind, solar photovoltaics (PV), and energy storage systems. This brings increasing complexity to the electric power grid, as it transitions from central stations with limited control points to ones with potentially millions of control points extended to the grid-edge. These DERs involve many different parties, such as grid operators, vendors, stakeholders, etc., this presents new cyberattack potential on the operational technology layer that challenges traditional cybersecurity defenses. Therefore, new solutions are needed to secure DERs to manage the evolving mix of resources that is cybersecure for the nation’s energy infrastructure. The Hybrid cyber protection DER-OT (HyDER-OT) project will develop a fault-tolerant, attack- resilient, multi-party system, which employs zero-trust architecture, data-driven Intrusion Detection System (IDS) protection schemes, and a retrofittable, hardware-based embedded field device. This hardware-agnostic multi-layer (from individual devices to systems, service aggregators, and the grid) cybersecurity solution enhances the performance and reliability of DERs, thereby improving grid resiliency and the security of operational technologies. This platform will be scalable and configurable to connect hundreds to thousands of smart digital devices, communication technologies, and legacy, retrofitted devices to support existing and emerging grid infrastructure. In Phase I, the project team will work together to deliver a functioning proof of concept of the integrated HyDER-OT platform that will be extensively tested to prime the solution for deployment. The technical objectives for the proposed Phase I project are: 1) Provision a zero- trust framework that cryptographically secures the exchange of DER data to ensure data provenance; 2) Integrate a retrofittable embedded field control device for advanced cybersecurity sensing and control; and 3) Deploy a hardware-agnostic multi-layer cyber intrusion monitoring and prevention tool. Over the years, the energy sector has seen an increase in cyber-attack frequency and magnitude risks due to the socio-economic repercussions that it may entail. This risk is expected to increase as new DER deployments proliferate across the nation due to increased interest in sustainability and favorable financial incentives. Therefore, appropriate cybersecurity postures must be adopted to ensure the safe deployment and reliable operation of our nation’s electric power grid, while helping to drive our social, economic and sustainability goals. This project will develop a HyDER-OT platform that will seek to advance the zero-trust architecture, state-of-the-art intrusion detection protection schemes, and self-healing strategies into a higher- level technology readiness level towards eventual commercialization.