Scalable Energy Networks to Promote Energy Security

In an age of fluctuating energy prices and environmental concerns, engineers and scientists are locked into a worldwide race to improve energy technologies. Through hard work and investment, these innovators are creating more efficient photovoltaic cells, responsive energy management software, and wireless energy transmission devices. Some of the greatest potential gains, however, remain to be harvested through energy system integration and networking, which ultimately will transform all forms of energy into a fungible commodity. Consider current challenges of converting energy and synchronizing sources with loads--for example, capturing solar energy to provide hot water and heat at night, or supplying transportation fuel. We need a paradigm shift that dissolves existing boundaries and enables us to manage energy seamlessly and interchangeably. Modern information networks enable data conversion, distribution, and access through flexible hardwaresoftware components that readily integrate into an endless variety of applications. This network approach has evolved rapidly in recent years, and may offer a useful example for energy systems. Two decades ago, only a few imagined the capability to check out a book or rent movies online today, school children routinely download entire movies onto their telephones with high-resolution screens that are too small for older adults even to watch.