PTDF-based automatic restoration path selection

After a power system blackout, system restoration is a critical task for the dispatchers. With the stringent requirements for faster and more efficient system restoration, an objective transmission restoration path selection procedure, including the option to check constraints, may be more responsive in handling unexpected system changes and in providing directed guidance to the dispatchers to identify the optimal transmission path and to deliver power to other power plants or to pick up load as needed. This paper presents a power transfer distribution factor (PTDF)-based path selection approach for large-scale power systems. Two types of restoration performance indices are utilized considering all possible restoration paths, which are then ranked according to their expected performance characteristics as reflected by the restoration performance index. PTDFs and weighting factors are used to determine the ordered list of restoration paths, which can enable the load to be picked up by lightly loaded lines or relieve stress on heavily loaded lines. Test results which are primarily concerned with load restoration in the outaged system are provided based on a realistic restoration exercise for the Western region of the Entergy transmission system.