Simulation of power system substation communications architecture based on IEC 61850 standard

Changes in the wholesale electricity market alongside the difficulties in upgrading the transmission system have increased the complexity of power networks operations. This fact has placed heavier demands on developing new technologies to manage power systems reliably. Driven by the growing smart grid applications, ICT infrastructures are becoming more important for the communication of monitoring, control and protection information at both the local and wide area levels. IEC 61850 is a standard released by the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) for power utilities that can provide integrated and interoperable data communications. It defines communication between Intelligent Electronic Devices (IEDs) in substations and related system requirements. Although it was originally introduced for the automation of substations, the application of IEC61850 is expanding rapidly. In this paper, we present simulation and modelling of a typical power system substation communication infrastructure. Furthermore, the deployment of IEC 61850 for Wide Area Network (WAN) applications, such as Phasor Measurement Units (PMUs), will be investigated.