A Support Vector Machine Based Technique for Fault Detection in A Power Distribution Integrated System with Renewable Energy Distributed Generation

Abstract

The integration of renewable energy distributed generation (REDG) into the energized distribution power grid has become more popular in recent years. This has been escalated by the general global energy shortages. The REDG has proven to be effective for energy sustainability and reliability. However, there are technical challenges which arise from integrating REDG into the energized power grid. These challenges include the effectiveness of power grid protection against faults. In this paper, a fault diagnostic algorithm is proposed to detect faults in a power system integrated with REDGs. The algorithm utilizes wavelet packet transform (WPT) for signal filtering, support vector machine (SVM) for fault classification and detection. The proposed algorithm is validated using the Eskom 90 bus electrical system and the results obtained show that faults can be detected with a high accuracy of 99%. The Eskom 90 bus system is modelled using DigSilent platform and the algorithm is tested on the WEKA software.