Engineers tuned a power-line controller to reduce electrical wobbles between countries.

Power grids across the world face a serious issue called power oscillations, which are unwanted swings in electrical flow. Spain and France connect their electrical grids through a system called INELFE. This link sits inside the regular alternating current grid and uses specialized controllers to smooth out these swings. They do this by adjusting the flow of usable power, called active power. Teams from both countries worked together to update this system. They raised the power-damping controller's strength and enabled it to run alongside another tool called angle difference control. These updates aim to make the controller better at stabilizing large-scale swings across Continental Europe. To confirm the updates work safely, researchers performed extensive simulations and real-world field tests across various operating modes.

Why it matters

Power oscillations can destabilize electrical grids, leading to blackouts. By improving the controller, Transmission System Operators can keep the grid stable across France and Spain.

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