A Comparative Study of Interface Techniques for Transmission and Distribution Dynamic Co-Simulation

Abstract

Transmission and distribution (T&D) dynamic cosimulation is a practical and effective approach to leverage existing simulation tools for transmission and distribution systems to simulate dynamic stability and performance of T&D systems in a systematic manner. Given that these tools are developed as stand-alone programs and there are inherent differences between them, interface techniques become critical to "bridge" them. Two important unsolved questions are: 1) which interface technique is better and should be used, and 2) how the modeling and simulation capabilities in these tools that are available and can be exploited for co-simulation should be considered when selecting an interface technique. To address these questions, this paper presents a comparative study for different interface techniques that can be employed for T&D dynamic co-simulation. The study provides insights into the pros and cons of each interface technique, and helps researchers make informed decisions on choosing the interface techniques.

Transmission and Distribution (T&D) Quasi-Static Co-Simulation: Analysis and Comparison of T&D Coupling Strength

“…For example, in [17] and [18], an unbalanced three-phase integrated T&D system model is developed where boundary variables were exchanged iteratively between TS and DS. However, in [18]- [20], the necessity of tightly coupled T&D co-simulation has been reported only for dynamic studies and the error analysis for the non-iterative approach in quasistatic power system model is missing. Furthermore, models in [17] and [18], do not test the approach for a large-scale integrated T&D system.…”

“…Owing to the need for capturing T&D interactions, lately, increasing efforts have been put forward to develop simulation tools capable of combined T&D modeling and analysis. The existing frameworks can be broadly categorized as (1) standalone T&D system models [9]- [11], and (2) T&D cosimulation platforms [12]- [20].…”

Integrated Transmission-and-Distribution System Modeling of Power Systems: State-of-the-Art and Future Research Directions

“…In the TD-2 approach presented in refs. [14,44], the MATE approach was used to split only distribution networks at each location where they would connect to a transmission network. Moreover, although the entire transmission network was solved in three sequences, the distribution networks were solved in three-phase and then converted to a three-sequence representation for the consistent solution of the MATE-based combined T&D network to obtain the link currents.…”

Advancements in co‐simulation techniques in combined transmission and distribution systems analysis

“…Owing to the requirements for combined T&D analysis, several methods have been proposed for combined modelling. The related literature can be classified into two broad categories: (i) using unified stand‐alone T&D model [11, 12], and (ii) using co‐simulation approach [9, 10, 13, 14]. While, unified stand‐alone models simulate T&D systems in one common software platform, in a co‐simulation approach, T&D systems are solved independently using their own solvers and the boundary variables (variables at PCC) are exchanged to model their mutual effects.…”