A synchrophasor application in voltage regulation

Ayeni, Tobiloba (2014) A synchrophasor application in voltage regulation. Other thesis, Murdoch University.

Abstract

As population growth increases power demand, power industries all around the world become increasingly complex; and therefore, unpredictable. Hence, it is not surprising that undesirable events such as voltage collapse and power blackout incidents occur more frequently. However, since the healthy operation of power systems not only increases distribution efficiency but also reduces cost and allows for a safe operation, the power industry is challenged with the development of countermeasures in order to mitigate the occurrence of these undesirable events and enable the maintenance of an acceptable level of operation at all times. Analyses of power blackout events have allowed the power industry to gain a clearer insight as to its causes which can be surmised in three points: loss of system stability, lack of situational awareness [1] and incorrect actions by network operators.

However, with the advent of synchrophasor technology, it is now possible to have real-time, time-synchronized network measurements. Furthermore, with the use of stability indices, it is possible to indicate system stability via scalar values. The combination of synchrophasor technology and stability indices eliminates, to a reasonable extent, the lack of situational awareness as it specifically enables network operators to assess system stability using reliable, real-time data.

As a presentation of one possible method of utilizing stability indices and synchrophasor technology, this project proposes the incorporation of synchrophasors and stability indices in voltage regulation procedures in order to improve system control and stability as well as mitigate the occurrence of voltage collapse and power blackout incidents. In the absence of an actual synchrophasor device, power system simulator (PowerFactory) is used to derive system data akin to those produced by a synchrophasor measurement device while programming software (Matlab) is used to simulate the calculations of the proposed method. In the case of insufficient regulatory devices and unstable systems, other methods to maintain an acceptable load voltage as well as a stable system are also briefly discussed.

Item Type:	Thesis (Other)
Murdoch Affiliation(s):	School of Engineering and Information Technology
Supervisor(s):	Crebbin, Gregory
URI:	http://researchrepository.murdoch.edu.au/id/eprint/23514

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