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Abstract-At the residential level, devices which are in place now and expected in the future have the ability to provide reactive power support. Inverters which connect distributed generation such as solar panels and pluggable hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) to the grid are an example. Such devices are not currently utilized by the power system. We investigate the integration of these end-user reactive-power-capable devices to provide voltage support to the grid via a secure communications infrastructure. We show how to determine effective locations in the transmission system and how to control reactive power resources at those locations. We also discuss how to determine reactive support groups which parallel the regions of the secure communications architecture that is presented. Ultimately, our goal is to present how the Smart Grid can allow the utilization of available end-user devices as a resource to mitigate power system problems such as voltage collapse.

Simulation and analysis of power systems often involves modeling extremely complex systems. This is particularly true when the model involves not just the electrical power system, but also other networks layered on top of the power system, such as the accompanying financial transactions. Such layered networks can often involve interactions that are not at all obvious. Interactive visualization can be a very effective means for determining otherwise hidden relationships between various elements in the network. This paper describes a 3D virtual environment developed to allow users to interactively visualize such information and relationships. The paper describes the architecture used to develop this environment, and then provides several examples of how the environment is used to provide an interactive visualization of power system economic and security information.