NAPS, University of Waterloo, Canada, October 23-24, 2000 Digital Computer Solution of Power-Flow Problems J.B. WARD eh AE "HE. Capabilities of automatic digital computers, are receiving increasing attention in application to power syste problems. This paper presents a method forsolving on digital computersthe power- flow problem which is probably the most frequently encountered type of problem i the field of power system network analysis. Digital solution of this clase of problem ean furnish a valuable tool to supplement the ac network analyzer. In ‘many systemplanaing studies, the net- wore analyzer is stil the best means for providing quickly and economically re- fils of adequate accuracy. Tn some studies, sch as analysis of loses and i= Gremental losses, the setworke analyzer does not provide sulicient precision and, jn such cases, the digital computer solue tive gas a distinct advantage. Ta brief summary, the powerslow problem consists of imposing specified 0s War H.W. HALE ASIOGATE MEME Ac power input and voltage magnitude, or Fal and reactive rower input conditions, St the terminals of passive aetwork, ‘The desired solution wil provide complete input and voltag: information at the ‘terminals and pover flow in each branch of the network, A formal, closed form: of solution for even very simple networks with suc terminal conditions is almost hopelesly dlfielt, end some iterative process which converges on the solution is required. This feature is characteristic of analyzer solutions of the powersiow probiem, where successive adjustment of Toads and generaters is required to con- verge oa a simultzueous balance of all prescribed terina, conditions The digital solution of the powertlow problem as preseuted here follows four sajor steps P-9%6 Dorameters: The aode basis of extabihing 2 mathematical description of the network [is used, and ollsnominal tanaforier tare: ratio are treated rigorsaely Apart of forming « connec: ‘Hoa matic. The major part of sumerieal computation can be mechenized oa the computer 2._ erative solution for terminal voltages which salty. the preseibed. terminal Conditions: This ean be completely automa- tized 20 that che computer extries on the proces to some preseribed degree of pre GBion, In this part of the process, load nd geverator terminals must be handled Giferentiy, Decnuse at loads the known (quantities aze real and rescive. power, Shite at generators the known quantities fre Voltage magnitade aad power 3. Computation of complete terminal Information, Le, real and restive power, voltage magnitade, and voltage “phase ane, 1. Description of exe network consections Tate, ite "tapos Se enatag ts nu impedauces in the form of 2 Ust of pogiea Halen Digital Computer Solution of Power Flow Problems Jone 956Fig. 1. Sample sytem 4, Computation of individual tine flows Th the event that solution for loser is all that is desired, this last step can be ‘mitted, for with the precision provides By digital solution loser can be evaluated sccurately by a summation of terminal ‘The details of the several steps in this plan of computation will be presented in ‘he form of an example, withthe use of a simple network, This computation has ben organized for and worked out on the Purdue University electrodata computer. ‘This is a medium-speed stored-program sp with a 4,000-word magnetic ‘of course, be organized for other types of computers, The method has been pre pared for the Purdue computer in a {eneral program which will accept any network ofa size up to $0 busses and 200 branches Network Connections and Impedances Fig. 1 shows a Line diagram of the system uted to expla and ilustrate the power-low computation. Tn this diagram ‘he neutral bus is not shown, bat it iz considered as one of the’ nodes and is" sad as the reference for specification of node or bus voltage. ‘The fret step in coding the network ‘consists of labelling nodes and branches. (One generator is selected to act as the slack machine, at in analyzer studies, Since the loses are unknown, power put feanaot be specified at all terminals, and the sack machine serves to supply what- ever output is necessary to balance other terminal inputs end losses. The nodes or busses are numbered serially starting with the slack generator as number 1, and nurabering load and other generator busses in arbitrary order. The neutral bus, asthe reference for voltages of the ther nodes, is left until last and need 2ot bbe assigned a number. Branches are numbered serially ia arbitrary order Fig. 1 indicates that the line charging capacitance is lumped on busses at the Hine terminals, and each line-cherging capacitor thus indicated ie asigned & branch number, In Fig. 1, bus numbers are encircled and line or brenck mumbere are not, Off-nominal turaszatios are indicated on the diagram of Fig. 1 as m and 1 ‘The notation ‘used in Fig. 1 for such turnsratios is explained pictorilly ia Fig. 2. The diagram in Fig. 2(A) implies the more detailed representation shown ia Fig. 2(B). The ratio » can be greater than unity or less than unity, ‘but in the following dicussion the I-to-m ratio will be uniformly oriented with the terminal connected to the branch representing the associated transformer leakage impedasce. The description of the network is formulated frst in a table of edmittance coeficients az if all turns. ratios were, unity, then changes in appropriate values are made, a separate step, to represent effects of off-aominal turne-ration ‘The terminal currents and voltages can be completely specified by what will bbe referred to here as self and mutual admittances. The selfadmittance of node & denoted by YuGurhiBan is the sum of admittances of’ branches terminating on node 2. The mutual admittance between nodes & and m, denoted by Yaw = Gam + iBamy i the negative of the sum of admittances of branches which are conzected between ‘odes band m. Usually mutual admit- tances will consist of single branches, as in Fig. 1; however, parallel lines between, two busies can be identified separately if desired. By this definition, al lines fand transformers contribute to both fell and mutual admittance values, While capacitors or other constant i pedances to neutral contibute only to selfadmittances. The self- and mutual admittances are formed for each bus fexcept the neutral bus. This process of forming the sef- and mutwal admittances can be carried out manually by inspection of the numbered connection diagram with the use ofan adding machine. How- fever, in a large network, the conversion of branch impedances to admittances and then the formation of self- and mutual dmittances becomes a rather extensive computation. This can be mechanized fon the computer, as described in a later Of cours, itis implied in the previous paragraph that 2 tabulation of branch impedances is available. Table T ists the impedances, in perunit, astociated with the network: of Fig. 1. Each trans ° east bon) Fig. 2. Offmominal tmevtio epresenaton former impedance is specified on the voltage base associated “with the but opposite to the one connected to the turns-ratio symbol. For example, branch 7 impedance in Fig. 1 is expressed on the voltage base associated with bus 3, not bus 4. The turnsratios mand my to be fsed i the solution of this problem are sted at the bottom of Table I. Branch aadmittances as computed fram the given ‘impedances are alzo shown in Table I. ‘Terminal conditions specified for this network are listed ia Table TZ. Ta the P and Q columns, input to the network i listed at each terminal eg, loads appear fas negative numbers and-generation a= positive members. Bus 2 carries both a Toad and a generator, and the power quantity listed ia Table TIis the net generation, or the algebraic sum of the Scheduled load power and generator power output, ‘The generator reactive power foading will be obtained from the final solution by a suitable combination of the net resctive input tothe system given by the solution and the scheduled load reac tive power consumption. Synchronous condensers which are regulated to hold constant terminal voltage can be handled in the same way. Note that bus 4 has neither a load nor a generator, and this s indicated in Table TT asa specification of zero impressed power quantities ‘Treatment of Of-Nominal ‘Turns-Ratios In the node basis of formulating the network parameters, the presence of an ideal autotransformer in series with 2 Dranck influences ‘only the one st admittance of the node at which such twansformer is connected and the ove ‘mutual admittance associated with the branch it is in, The transformer and associated turn-atio of Fig. 2(B) can be represented by the equivalent con Seuration of Fig. 3. Here the branch {impedance is replaced by the correspond ing admittance. In forming the self- admittance of mode (5), the sum of mY, plus (1-nd Ys results in the original Tene 1956 Word, Fale—Divital Comuter Solution of Porer-Flow Problems 300 P-97Teble |. Branch Impedance, Per Unit sanauHeaas value, namely Yu So Ute sell-admitiance of the node opposite the autotransformer is not affected. The sun of the two branches of the equivalent 7 whieh terminate on node 6 yields ntl. And the mutual aduittanee between nodes 5 and 6 becoties ~n4¥ Thus, the follow: jg cules ean be Forte for altering the set of cll ind snulual adiittances as obtained initially by ignoring of-norsinal 1 Branch J connected between nodes and mt has tuen-atio ny at node &, aud to Yas the quantity ry aud add to Yam the quantity -0Y ‘This suggests a convenient proceduce for changing the transformer taps after the complete list of sel- and mutual admit. tances as been prepared and is stored i the computer memory. ‘Branch j, connected between nodes de and m, has a turnsratio of 31 node itis desired to change ths to ratio add to Yas the quantity (yma o and ad to Van the quantity - Hay =m ¥ @ Calculations for inital settings of taps or off-noainal tuas-ratios and for chang: ing taps can be carried out by the com puter, if desired, with the use of a sinall Subroutine: to. accomplish the required operations, ‘Tabulation of Self- and Mutual ‘Admittances A complete list of self and mutual admitlances for Fig. 1 is given in Table 11, including the eects of the given off-noninal turnsratios. Since the ed mittsnce matrix is symutetrical, thie labulation corresponds to a triangular mate, listing mutual adastlances only fone, The terns are ordered in sequence as they appear in successive cows of the lower triangle matrix. The triangular matric is suggested for the purpose of conserving memory spaceia the computer. For a large nctwork, it would require aliost tice as mich storage space to use the entire square array which includes the mutual terns twice, although this would facilitate locating desired data in ineaiory during computation. a the list of adinittances Vig of Table If, note that &, the first node number, is always Jess than o¢ equal to the second number. Ti this listing of parameters, admittance Yam will be found in a positon given by the folowing nwaber, counting dows row the fest entey mmm) s @ where & Sm, ‘This relation can be used in the compuler program to generate auddreses of desited admittance data, Iterative Method for Voltage Solution This section will describe the basic principles of an iterative procedure for proceeding from a teal set of terminal ‘Voltages to converge upon a corrected set of voltages which stisly presribed terminal power inputs of the type given in Table TI. Just how this method i inmplemented in an automatic computer will of course depend on the avaiable order code an etier characteristics of the stachine. Since most computers are designed to accent only real nuubers, the computa Lions involving complex mumtber repre- sentation of ae circuit quantities must be broken down into computation of respective teal and imaginary parts ‘The present scheme handles “complex * anette L Fig. 3. Equivalent = creuit So tinka SG ti8u Neate) « were Vis the oa suber of ade, unting the neta or reeence ne ‘The land iaginty pre ero eae gen by 6 tCm Danfo) © be= )Genfnt Bonen) o ‘Theschemeinvolves te following steps 1. The process i started with a complete st of estimated voltages Eyes tifes The Int estimate” for eae bis voltage, scept the slack geuerator, may be take S51040 Tor. convenience, “The slack Eenerater voltage. knows completely Sind the correct, ows phase value for is bus voltage i ured throughout? 2. This intial set of epprenimate voltages |S used in equation 4 to cicukte the in Dressed cutrent at bus 3 ‘Tye vesting uerent Zr isuzed withthe orginal extimate of Ey to compute the corespending power Input tothe network at but 2 3. The scheduled power and te vheduled voltage magaltsde’ or reactive power, de pending on whether the busin quetisn is Shroueratoe of loed bus, are ured to obtain 8 Correction in the estimate of Zy.” ‘This Correction is obtained on the Basie that Table IIL. Sell and Mutual Admitancer Including Of-Nominal Tar-Rator Tle lh Speed Temi Condom, mun a 4) rmandconvesion a of results to polar form, as for example ff tga Fe GWotege magoitudes and phase ale, is P#00 corte cm carried out at the completion of the itera- 4-5: ° Boch a tive proces. & nO. Saese pooch 2 “Tue generator and load curents of a” $4 ? i es netork, such as Tig. Lar related to the og hag 3 2 terminal voltage by Ge folowiag equa $3 oe 300 Ward, Haie—Digitol Computer Solution of PowerFlow Problems June 1958 P-98