A Mixed Integer Linear Programming Based Load Shedding Technique for Improving the Sustainability of Islanded Distribution Systems
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
8-1-2020
Abstract
In recent years significant changes in climate have pivoted the distribution system towards renewable energy, particularly through distributed generators (DGs). Although DGs offer many benefits to the distribution system, their integration affects the stability of the system, which could lead to blackout when the grid is disconnected. The system frequency will drop drastically if DG generation capacity is less than the total load demand in the network. In order to sustain the system stability, under-frequency load shedding (UFLS) is inevitable. The common approach of load shedding sheds random loads until the system's frequency is recovered. Random and sequential selection results in excessive load shedding, which in turn causes frequency overshoot. In this regard, this paper proposes an efficient load shedding technique for islanded distribution systems. This technique utilizes a voltage stability index to rank the unstable loads for load shedding. In the proposed method, the power imbalance is computed using the swing equation incorporating frequency value. Mixed integer linear programming (MILP) optimization produces optimal load shedding strategy based on the priority of the loads (i.e., non-critical, semi-critical, and critical) and the load ranking from the voltage stability index of loads. The effectiveness of the proposed scheme is tested on two test systems, i.e., a 28-bus system that is a part of the Malaysian distribution network and the IEEE 69-bus system, using PSCAD/EMTDC. Results obtained prove the effectiveness of the proposed technique in quickly stabilizing the system's frequency without frequency overshoot by disconnecting unstable non-critical loads on priority. Furthermore, results show that the proposed technique is superior to other adaptive techniques because it increases the sustainability by reducing the load shed amount and avoiding overshoot in system frequency.
Keywords
unprecedented frequency variations, distributed generation, cascaded blackout, load priority, stability index of loads, mixed integer linear programming, frequency overshoot
Divisions
sch_ecs
Funders
Universiti Malaya (Grant No. GPF055A-2018)
Publication Title
Sustainability
Volume
12
Issue
15
Publisher
MDPI
Publisher Location
ST ALBAN-ANLAGE 66, CH-4052 BASEL, SWITZERLAND