Optimal PMU placement for power system state estimation with random communication packet losses

Phasor measurement units (PMUs) become important to state estimation for power systems by providing globally synchronized measurements of real-time phasors of voltage and currents with a high sampling rate. However the large quantities of measurement data produced by PMUs brings a serious burden to the communication system, which aggravates communication constraints such as the packet loss rate. In this paper, a novel optimization criterion for choosing PMU placements is proposed, considering random communication packet losses. Based on this criterion, a simplified optimal solution searching algorithm is given. Finally numerical simulations are given to test the validity of this algorithm. The dependence of the optimal PMU placement solution on the packet loss rate is indicated as well.