Network Delay Caused by Cyber Attacks on SVC and its Impact on Transient Stability of Smart Grids

Abstract—A smart grid is a typical cyber-physical system, which presents a tight coupling between cyber communications and a physical power network. Cyber security of smart grid is becoming a major concern throughout design and implementation of smart grid applications and technology. Therefore, it is essential to study the impact of cyber attacks on smart grids. This paper discusses cyber attacks that induce communication network delays and their impact on transient stability. Cyber attacks are launched on measured data for a FACTS device (static var compensator – SVC) that connects to the IEEE 39 bus benchmark system. Case studies are presented which analyze the impact of two types of communication delays, fixed and random, on transient angle stability and transient voltage stability on the benchmark system. The test system and cyber attacks are modeled with DSAToolsTM. Simulation results show that some network delays induced by cyber attacks can make the system unstable. Index Terms – cyber security, smart grid, cyber attack, SVC, transient stability, communication network delay I