Real-time demonstration of a Hierarchical Agent Based Voltage Instability Prevention system

In this work the implementation and real-time hardware-in-the-loop verification of a Hierarchical Agent-Based Voltage Instability Prevention (HABVIP) system are given. The basic control architecture attempts to restore a safe distance from the current power system operating point to the steady-state voltage stability limit. The control actions available to the HABVIP system are divided into three classes: increase of local generation, virtual load shedding via adjustment of voltage set points of under-load tap changers and smart control of flexible loads. Both the distance to instability and the amount of required (virtual) load relief are measured with the so-called maximum loadability index. The real-time demonstration set-up consists of a Real-Time Digital Simulator (RTDS) for emulating the test power system and the real-time industrial computers of TriPhase inverter systems for implementing the agent control. Based on the tests performed it can be concluded that a real-time hardware implementation of the HABVIP system is feasible and that voltage instability can be prevented with the proposed control architecture.