A Nondiverging Power Flow Using a Least-Power-Type Theorem

Design of a mine electric power system requires that power flow studies be conducted to guarantee that all motor operating and starting loads can be met while maintaining acceptable bus voltage levels. If future loads are overestimated, then the iterative technique used to solve for the system voltage profile will often diverge, leaving no clue for the designer as to the cause of the divergence. A new power-flow formulation based on Newton´s method is described which can aid in determining the area of the power system in which a load has been incorrectly estimated. Experimentation with this formulation shows that mismatches tend to be concentrated at an overloaded bus. Inspection of the mismatches saves the system designer time by pointing out areas of the system where a problem, such as an incorrectly specified bus load, may exist.