A smart power system restoration based on the merger of two different strategies

Power System Restoration (PSR) is carried out after a partial or complete blackout of a network. Its objective is to restore the power system as quickly as possible while satisfying all the constraints previously defined by grid codes. Two main strategies are currently used worldwide. The 'build-up' strategy sectionalises the power system affected by the blackout. This strategy creates small subsystems and then applies parallel power system restoration. On the other hand, the 'build-down' strategy preserves the complete network structure and energises the skeleton of the system. The decision of which strategy is undertaken depends mainly on the network topology. As both strategies have their advantages, this paper proposes to merge these in order to be benefited by both and, therefore, obtain an improved PSR. The proposed methodology can improve the restoration process of large scale networks affected by a complete blackout. The proposed methodology is implemented and validated on the IEEE 118-bus test system. Results from these studies demonstrate the effectiveness of the method to restore the network quickly. © 2012 IEEE.