A study on service restoration of distribution networks considering uncertainty in data measurements

Electrical power distribution networks, whose component is distribution substations, distribution feeders, and sectionalizers, are operated to maintain the power supply reliability and the power quality using imprecise power demand measurements in each load section. The recent growth in penetration of photovoltaic generation systems (PVs) has brought new difficulties in the distribution network operations. This is because distribution operators cannot monitor or control status of PVs; nevertheless, the solar-irradiation-dependent PV output intensifies uncertainty in the demand measurements. If the PV installation keeps growing steadily, it will become more difficult to operate the distribution networks appropriately. In this paper, the authors focus on service restoration in the distribution networks, and propose a problem framework and its solution to determine the optimal restoration configuration in consideration of the extensive PV installation. There are two distinctive features in this study, 1) the reconfiguration problem of distribution networks is reformulated taking into account of the imprecise measurements of the electricity consumption and the PV output, and 2) an enumeration-based rigorous solution is applied to the reformulated problem. The validity of the authors' proposal is verified through numerical simulations and discussions on their results.