Building Blocks for the Grid

摘要

The electric utility industry is shaping not only the transmission grid with power electronics, but all facets of electric consumption. Supply and demand is a relatively simple concept. Customers want electricity and utilities supply it to them. What makes it trickier is moving from the straightforward point-to-point transmission system to a complex mesh network covering fantastic distances. The global trend is toward larger power networks with longer transmission lines, more generation and higher consumption of electricity. With networks came the requirement for redundancy to increase reliability, and reliability became the utility's prime directive.