Distribution Automation Tutorial

Chapter 1
Distribution Automation
Fundamentals
Anil Pahwa
IEEE PES General Meeting,Pittsburgh, PA - July 20-24, 2008
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STATE OF DISTRIBUTION
SYSTEMS
Investment equivalent to generation
(roughly 40%)
Much greater than transmission
systems
Teaching and research interest has
been low

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STATE OF DISTRIBUTION
SYSTEMS
Customers are directly affected by
distribution system problems
Not enough information is available
Still most of the operation are manual

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WHY AUTOMATION?
To improve
Efficiency
z Reliability
z Quality
z

How?
z

Use advanced communication and

computer technology
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DISTRIBUTION
AUTOMATION
IEEE Definition: [1988 tutorial]
z

A system that enables an electric utility to

remotely monitor, coordinate, and operate
distribution components in a real-time
mode from remote locations.

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SCADA SYSTEMS
Commonly used in transmission
systems
Metered and status data
Operators aid
No closed-loop control

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AM/FM SYSTEMS
Mapping and facilities management
Geographical and electrical maps
Very little real-time feature

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AM/FM FUNCTIONS
Facility mapping
Right-of-way tracking
Inventory management
Equipment maintenance
Work orders
Trouble call management
Trend: DA, SCADA and AM/FM Systems are merging
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COMMUNICATION
Power-line carrier
Radio
Cellular
z Packet
z 900 MHz
z

Fiber optic
Satellite
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BENEFITS OF AUTOMATION
Released capacity
Reduced losses
Increased service reliability
Life extension of equipment
Effective utilization of assets

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FUNCTION
CATEGORIZATION
Monitoring
Control
Protection

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MONITORING FUNCTIONS
Meter reading
System and equipment status
Unusual events

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CONTROL FUNCTIONS
Switching operations
Feeder sectionalizers
z Capacitor banks
z

Change of settings
Capacitor bank control
z Voltage regulators
z Protective equipment
z

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PROTECTION FUNCTIONS
Overcurrent protection
Distance protection
Differential protection

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14

ANOTHER
CATEGORIZATION
Information management
Reliability management
Efficiency management
Voltage/var management
Load management
Power quality management
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15

FAULT LOCATION
Information from protective devices
Information from customers
z
z
z

Telephone calls
AMR devices at customer-end
Other devices located in the system

Deduction based on incomplete and

imprecise information
Communication bottlenecks in the event of
widespread outages due to storms
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SERVICE RESTORATION
Isolate faulted part of the system
Find alternate paths to supply power to
healthy parts of the system
z
z
z

Keep loading within limits

Keep voltage within limits
Do this as quickly as possible

Account for cold load pickup for long outages

z

Step-by-step restoration may be required

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17

FEEDER RECONFIGURATION
Usually done under normal conditions
Reduce losses
Balance load on transformers in
proportion to capacity
z

Lower losses and higher reliability

Minimize voltage drop on the feeders

Not possible to achieve all the
objectives simultaneously
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TRANSFORMER LIFE
EXTENSION
Monitor load, oil and winding
temperature
Health of the transformer using
dissolved gas analysis
Controlled loading of transformers
under emergencies

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19

EQUIPMENT MONITORING
AND CONTROL
Reclosers and breakers
z
z
z

Change settings remotely

Record energy interrupted by the contacts
Refurbish contact only when necessary

Labor and parts savings

Capacitor switching for voltage/var control
Load-tap-changer and regulator control
System monitoring
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VOLTAGE/VAR CONTROL
Switch capacitors on demand
Microprocessor-based controllers to account
for different conditions and factors
Monitor health of capacitors
Voltage regulator control
z
z

Based on measured voltage at the regulated point

Override normal operation in emergencies to
reduce load

Coordinated control of capacitors and

regulators
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SUBSTATION TRANSFORMER
LTC CONTROL
Use measured data on the feeders to
select tap values
Prevent circulating currents under
parallel operation
Reduce voltage under emergencies to
reduce load
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DISTRIBUTION SYSTEM
MONITORING
Voltage, current, real power, reactive
power, equipment status
Real-time data for control functions/alarms
z Archived data for forecasting and planning
z Recording of disturbances and transient
events
z

Useful for restoration to pre-disturbance state

z Diagnostics
z

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CUSTOMER LEVEL
FUNCTIONS
Demand-side management
Automated meter reading
Remote service connect/disconnect

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RECENT TRENDS
Emergence of new technologies
New measuring devices and sensors
Powerful and refined communications
equipment
Highly advanced computing equipment
Advanced power electronics
Advanced protection equipment
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DRIVERS FOR ADVANCED DA

Increased emphasis on system efficiency,
reliability, and quality
Performance-based rates
Sensitive loads
Need to do more with less
Real-time analysis tools for faster decisions
Smart Grid
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VALUE OF RELIABILITY AND

QUALITY
Different customers need different
levels of reliability and quality
Power quality parks
Potential customers and their
willingness to pay higher rates for
premium service

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PROBABILISTIC NATURE OF
FAILURES
Failures on distribution systems are
random
Several factors increase the probability
of failure
z

Trees, wind, lightning, animals

Map effects of these factors to identify

feeders with higher probability of failure
Target these feeders for automation
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COMPUTATIONAL
INTELLIGENCE
Central vs. Distributed
Data transmission bottlenecks
Distributed intelligence to alleviate
bottlenecks
Hierarchical communication and
computation
Balance between central and local
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NEW SENSORS
Advances in sensor technology
New information
New applications
Lower cost with higher quantities

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ASSET MANAGEMENT
Important for utilities
Enhance with advanced DA
Monitor condition
Manage real-time loading
Schedule maintenance
Increase utilization
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