first published week of: 09/26/2016
Until 2013, an electricity substation in California was surrounded by nothing more than a chain link fence, just like thousands of others across the United States. That fence proved ineffective when gunmen fired up to 150 rounds at the substation, causing more than $15 million in damage to 17 transformers. Although the substation owner prevented loss of service to customers by diverting power, it was clear that a similar attack at a large substation had the potential to knock out power to millions of people.
In response to this attack and others, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission enacted new standards for physical security of critical substations.
As a result, Idaho National Laboratory (INL) developed and demonstrated a patent-pending ballistic barrier system to protect substations from attack.
INL’s ballistic barrier system is designed to protect substations from potential threats as varied as bullets, vehicles laden with explosives and tornado-strength winds. This effort is part of the lab’s growing mission to make the nation’s critical infrastructure -- including the grid -- more reliable, safe and resilient.
“We are trying to be proactive and provide solutions to threats when they emerge,” said Chad Landon, head of INL’s Defense Systems Materials Technology and Physical Analysis department. “Based on the 2013 incident and similar situations, we decided to come up with a solution.”
It’s called the Transformer Protection Barrier, designed by INL Armor Technical lead Henry Chu. The prototype is robust enough to protect transformers from high-powered rounds of ammunition, yet relatively inexpensive and easy to set up and move around, unlike permanent systems requiring concrete footings. Each barrier unit consists of four components: an A-shaped frame, two armor cassettes that slide into the frame, and the “top hat” -- an optional armor extension.