Contingency Analysis
Analysing N-1 . . . N-k Fault Outages
Introduction
Any network owner or operator has to consider the possibility of unplanned outages in the network,
and the effect that these can have on the system as a whole. For utility companies, it is essential
to analyse all credible events in order to ensure that system security will not be compromised in the
event of a fault, and that grid code requirements will still be met.
Such analysis is often referred to
as N-1 analysis or contingency
analysis. However, the coinciden-
tal failure of more than one pri-
mary network element, i.e. N-
2...N-k, must also be considered.
There is a need to evaluate the ef-
fect of such faults in terms of ther-
mal loadings and voltage stability,
together with effectiveness analy-
sis and the assessment of poten-
tial pre- and post-fault remedial ac-
tions.
With PowerFactory Contingency Analysis calculations generating results across a whole network,
for large numbers of different cases, and potentially including effectiveness information, efficient re-
porting is important. The user needs to be able to assess the network visually, to see at a glance
where there are potential issues. More importantly, it is essential that the results of the calculation
can be examined in detail, which means having access to ease-to-use reporting tools. Customised
post-processing of the raw results should also be an option.
POWER SYSTEM SOLUTIONS
MADE IN GERMANY
Contingency Analysis
1 Contingency Analysis Features
Contingency Analyis in PowerFactory is a load Time Phase analysis
flow based assessment of a network, and by de- As well as single time-phase analysis, where all
fault uses a standard balanced or unbalanced events are assumed to occur at the same point in
AC Load Flow, with alternatives being the faster time, a multiple time-phase analysis option allows
DC or AC Linearised calculations. Contingen- the user to take into account the relative times of
cies are defined using Fault Cases, which specify individual events during a fault scenario. For ex-
the faulted equipment and optionally extra events ample, transformer tapping, automatic switch op-
such as additional switch operations. Parallel erations or generation dispatch. A multiple-time
computing can be selected and configured by the phase case can be played out graphically using a
user, to utilise multiple cores of the computer. In trace function.
the following sections, the most important fea-
tures of the Contingency Analysis module are de-
scribed. Remedial Action Schemes
Remedial Action Schemes (RAS) are sets of ac-
Fault Case definition tions that are triggered by certain system states.
Fault cases can be defined automatically, based In the context of Contingency Analysis, a typ-
on user specification such as all lines or all bus- ical example might be the dispatch of genera-
bars, and stored in the project library. A Fault tion to reduce the post-fault overload on a cir-
Case typically consists of one or more short- cuit. In PowerFactory, the highly flexible RAS
circuit events. When the Fault Case is executed functionality allows for the modelling of a wide
in the Contingency Analysis, topology tracing is range of events, including user-defined variable
used to find and open the correct circuit break- changes, in response to trigger criteria, which can
ers. Users can customise Fault Cases to add, for be nested in order to model complex situations.
example, additional switch actions or generation RAS can be used in conjunction with either sin-
dispatch events. gle time-phase or multiple time-phase analysis.
Remedial Action Schemes
White Paper Version 1 2
Contingency Analysis
Dynamic Contingencies Time Sweep
Executing a large number of pre-defined contin- The Time Sweep feature is designed to allow the
gencies may not be the preferred approach when calculation to be executed multiple times, for ex-
what is needed is a rapid assessment to identify ample for every hour of a day. Making use of
the main problem areas. In PowerFactory, it is PowerFactory ’s Study Case time definition, the
possible to have the contingency cases defined Time Sweep Contingency Analysis will automat-
"on the fly", based on the initial load flow flow re- ically pick up time-varying data and time-related
sults. A typical use case would be to request con- topology changes such as network developments
tingencies to be executed for any circuit loaded and planned outages.
about a certain percentage level in the base load
flow case. This enables rapid assessment, which
can also be supplemented by static fault cases in
Presentation of results
the same analysis run. Detailed results of Contingency Analysis calcu-
lations are presented via inbuilt tabular reports.
This can include circuit loadings and potential
voltage violations, together with reporting of in-
Effectiveness Calculations formation such as loss of demand or generation,
Contingency Analysis can also incorporate effec- or islanding. In addition, summary values can be
tiveness calculations. The user specifies a set of viewed in a graphic or PowerFactory ’s Network
generators and/or phase-shifters, and the effec- Model Manager. All the results are stored in a file
tiveness of these against any circuit overloads are that can be accessed from within PowerFactory
returned, taking into account user-defined thresh- or externally. This makes it possible for users to
olds. This information can then be used to deter- write their own customised reporting scripts as an
mine the best pre- or post-fault remedial actions. alternative to the inbuilt reports.
2 Executive Summary
PowerFactory offers a comprehensive Contingency Analysis module, covering the whole process
from fault definition, through network analysis, to reporting of results. The package enables users to
carry out straightforward calculations very easily, whilst offering a wide range of more sophisticated
options such as dynamic contingency definition, multiple time-phase analysis and remedial action
schemes.
3 Licence Configuration
Required
✓ Contingency Analysis