Electrical Power and Energy Systems 64 (2015) 11661175

Contents lists available at ScienceDirect

Electrical Power and Energy Systems

journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/ijepes

Adaptive three-phase power-ow solutions for smart grids with plug-in

hybrid electric vehicles
Nien-Che Yang , Wei-Chih Tseng
Department of Electrical Engineering, and Innovation Center for Big Data and Digital Convergence, Yuan Ze University, 135 Yuan-Tung Road, Chung-Li 32003, Taoyuan, Taiwan, ROC

a r t i c l e

i n f o

Article history:
Received 11 October 2013
Received in revised form 12 August 2014
Accepted 26 August 2014
Available online 30 September 2014
Keywords:
Actual phase frame
Distributed energy resources
Loop frame of reference
Plug-in hybrid electric vehicles
Smart grids
Three-phase power ow

a b s t r a c t
This paper introduces an adaptive three-phase power ow method for smart grids with plug-in hybrid
electric vehicles (PHEVs). The proposed method is developed based on the loop frame of reference. The
operations of smart grids are inherently unbalanced because of the incomplete three-phase feeder
arrangements, nonsymmetrical conductor spacing of three-phase underground cables and overhead
lines, unbalanced loads, and a variety of distributed energy resources (DERs). Therefore, the proposed
method was developed based on the actual phase (abc) frame, rather than the sequence-component
frame. To adapt the network topologies of smart grids, two solution strategies are used, one for radial
smart grids and the other for non-radial smart grids. To demonstrate the validity and capability of the
proposed algorithm, four IEEE feeder systems and an actual Taiwan Power Company (Taipower) distribution system are used as benchmarks for comparison purposes. The test results show that the proposed
method is accurate, efcient, and adaptable, and it therefore has good potential for smart grid energy
management system (EMS) applications.
2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Introduction
With the ongoing depletion of fossil fuels, environmental pollution, and global climate change, energy-saving applications and
renewable energy sources are generally becoming more attractive.
To encourage the development of applications for distributed
energy resources (DERs) and electric vehicles (EVs), several
rewards have been offered with respect to the purchase price of
electricity. In Ireland, it is estimated that by 2020, 10% of vehicular
trafc will be electric-powered, and the use of electric vehicles
(EVs) is predicted to reduce the associated CO2 emissions by 50%
[1]. In the Netherlands, it is anticipated that by 2020, there will
be 10 GW of installed wind power contributing to the grid. In addition, the Dutch government has the ambition of realizing one million EVs in use by 2020 [2]. In other words, the electric grid in the
Netherlands will need to be capable of dealing with 10 GW of wind
power and one million EVs. To achieve the objectives outlined in
the Kyoto Protocol for the reduction of CO2 pollution, in 2011,
the Romanian government subsidized all purchases of EVs [3].
Meanwhile, in Germany, the penetration of renewable energy
sources is expected to increase to 35% by 2020 [4]. The introduction of EVs is one of the options employed to ll the gap between
Corresponding author. Tel.: +886 3 4638800x7114; fax: +886 3 4639355.
E-mail address: ncyang@saturn.yzu.edu.tw (N.-C. Yang).
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ijepes.2014.08.007
0142-0615/ 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

the xed energy demands and uctuating energy sources. However, the widespread need for battery charging stations may significantly affect the power plant scheduling. The potential effects of
the implementation of plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs)
and battery electric vehicles (BEVs) on the power systems of Denmark, Finland, Germany, Norway, and Sweden for the period up to
2030 have been discussed in [5].
In recent years, there have been global trends with respect to
energy-saving and renewable energy applications. In [6], an optimal investment model for integrated power and transport systems
was proposed. The integrated model can be used to calculate the
optimal investments for both power plants and vehicular technologies. To maximize customer comfort in smart buildings with minimum energy consumption, a multi-objective technology based on
particle swarm optimization (PSO) was proposed in [7]. In [8], the
PSO algorithm was used to determine the optimal placement of
different types of distributed generations (DGs). The optimal locations and sizes of DGs can be determined by minimizing the power
distribution losses. In [9], an improved PSO (IPSO) and Monte Carlo
algorithm were proposed to nd the optimal size and location of
DGs. The multi-objective function was adopted to minimize the
costs of active and reactive losses, and to improve the voltage prole and reliability of the distribution systems. In [10], the IPSO and
Monte Carlo algorithm were used to determinate the optimal location of automatic devices in order to minimize the cost of realizing

N.-C. Yang, W.-C. Tseng / Electrical Power and Energy Systems 64 (2015) 11661175

1167

Nomenclature
n
e
b
l
b
C
Co
C
Cb
C

v

i
i
b
i
[z]
[zb]
[z]
b Loop
V
bI Loop
b Loop
Z

number of the nodes in the network

number of the elements in the network
number of the branches in the network
number of the links in the network
augmented loop incidence matrix
open loop incidence matrix
basic loop incidence matrix
basic loop incidence matrix corresponding to the
branches in C
basic loop incidence matrix corresponding to the links
in C
vector of voltages across the elements
vector of currents through the elements
vector of currents through the branches of the network
vector of currents through the links of the network
primitive impedance matrix of the entire smart grid
network
primitive impedance matrix of the branches of the entire smart grid network
primitive impedance matrix of the links of the entire
smart grid network
voltage vector of an interconnected network
current vector of an interconnected network
augmented loop impedance matrix

reliable distribution systems. In [11], a generic mixed-integer linear programming model was proposed to minimize the operating
cost of both electrical and thermal supply, as well as the demand
in a residential microgrid. In [12], a mixed-integer linear programming (MILP) model of a home energy management (HEM) system
was proposed. Several case studies comprising different DER strategies based on dynamic pricing and peak power limiting were realized to evaluate the technical and economic impacts of energy
storage systems (ESSs) and DGs. In [13], the evaluation of a hybrid
system comprising wind, solar, hydrogen, and thermal power systems was implemented in order to realize the concept of a virtual
power plant. In [14], a real-time performance analysis of an optimally-sized hybrid energy system was proposed. The obvious
trend in newer energy technologies is the incorporation of DER
and PHEV applications.
With the application of DERs and PHEVs, it is possible to realize
many advantages such as reductions in greenhouse gas emissions,
the retardation of global warming, more effective energy usage, an
enhancement of the voltage prole, a reduction of network power
losses, the postponement of investments involving the expansion
of transmission and generation systems, and improvements in network reliability and continuity. In contrast, the parallel operations
of DER and PHEV charging demands of the power grid may alter
the traditional system operating rules and pose new challenges
related to power quality and safety. To diagnose power-ow problems caused by DER and PHEV applications, there is the need for a
three-phase power-ow solution algorithm with high performance
and robust adaptability.
In 1918, the symmetrical components method was introduced
by Fortescue [15]. In a three-phase power system, the symmetrical
components method is usually used to analyze unbalanced threephase power systems under normal and abnormal conditions.
The symmetrical components method allows the three-phase
unbalanced phasors of a three-phase system to be resolved into
three balanced systems of phasors. That is, a set of three-phase
components can be transformed into a set of positive-, negative-,
and zero-sequence components. The sequence-component
method-based power-ow solution algorithms [1621] are used

V Bus
IBus

vector of bus voltages

vector of bus injected currents

i1;cal

V Bus

vector of bus voltages at the (i + 1)-th iteration

i
DV Bus
V Spec
Slack

residuals of bus voltages at the i-th iteration

U Bus

column vector of dimension b  1; all elements are 1

deceleration factor
bus voltage k for DER unit at the i-th iteration

voltage of the slack bus

V k;DER
i
Ik;DER

Pk, DER
Qk, DER
pfk, DER
i

V k;PHEV
i
Ik;PHEV

PPHEV,
PPHEV,
tmax

aPHEV

equivalent injected current k for DER unit at the i-th

iteration
specied active power for DER unit at the bus k
specied reactive power for DER unit at the bus k
specied power factor for DER unit at the bus k
bus voltage k for PHEV at the i-th iteration

equivalent injected current k for PHEV at the i-th

iteration
dem active power demand for PHEV
max maximum power capacity of PHEV
maximum charging time of PHEV
constant parameter for PHEV charging process

to analyze both balanced and unbalanced three-phase power systems. In [16], a decomposed three-phase AC power-ow method
based on the sequence component frame was proposed. In this
method, an unbalanced three-phase problem can be resolved into
three sub-problems with weak mutuality. The positive sequence
power ow is solved using Newtons iterative algorithm. In [17],
a decoupling compensation method based on symmetrical component theory was presented. Several sequence-decoupled models,
such as conductors, transformers, generators, and loads are
involved in this method. In [18], a multiphase power-ow method
was developed to form all network components found in power
systems. Three-phase power-ow algorithms for microgrids and
active distribution systems were proposed in [1921]. Several
sequence component models of synchronous machine-based and
electronically-coupled DERs were developed using this method.
In addition, two different algorithms were used in this sequential
power-ow method. The single-phase backward/forward (BW/
FW) sweep algorithm is used for the power ow analysis of a single-phase lateral. The three-phase sequence component frames
power ow is used for the analysis of three-phase networks. In
[22], a load-ow method for weakly meshed balanced distribution
networks was developed using active and reactive powers as ow
variables. In [23], a NewtonRaphson power ow with two constant matrices of conductance and susceptance was proposed. In
this method, the Jacobian matrix still needs to be solved using
bi-factorization or lower and upper triangular matrix (LU)
factorization.
The aforementioned studies focused mainly on balanced and
unbalanced three-phase systems. However, the presence of single-phase and two-phase feeders in three-phase distribution systems complicates the use of symmetrical sequence networks
[24]. Smart grids are basically unbalanced; therefore, three-phase
power-ow solution methods that are based on actual three-phase
representation may provide more accurate results [25].
A number of three-phase power-ow solution methods, such as
the BW/FW sweep method [2631], the direct ZBR method [32],
and the loop frame-based method [33], were developed based
on the actual phase (abc) frame. However, treatments for

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N.-C. Yang, W.-C. Tseng / Electrical Power and Energy Systems 64 (2015) 11661175

non-radial distribution systems have not yet been developed. In

fact, smart grids are radial, meshed, or mixed-type arrangements.
In order to enhance the performance of the proposed method,
two proposed solutions are used to deal with two different kinds
of smart grids, i.e., radial smart grids and non-radial smart grids.
For non-radial smart grids, only the augmented loop incidence
b is required. However, for radial smart grids, the solution
matrix C
of the proposed algorithm can be further simplied. That is, only
the open-loop incidence matrix Co is required for radial smart
b and matrix Co can be built by the network
grids. Both matrix C
topology from input data. In other words, the unbalanced powerow problems can be solved by the corresponding incidence
matrix without the need for other complex procedures. Time-consuming procedures such as LU factorization, inversion of the bus
admittance matrix YBus or Jacobian matrix, and the complicated
building algorithm of the ZBus impedance matrix are not necessary
in the proposed algorithm. To accurately analyze the smart grids, it
is important to describe in detail the characteristics of each network component. Because of space limitations, only DER and PHEV
models are introduced in this paper. The rest of the paper is
organized as follows. Section Basic concepts presents the basic
concepts of graph theory and Section Proposed algorithm
proposes an adaptive three-phase power-ow algorithm. Then,
Section Mathematical models of DERs and PHEVs for power-ow
analysis introduces the mathematical component models of DERs
and PHEVs for power-ow studies, while Section Numerical
Results presents the test results. We conclude the paper in
Section Conclusions.

reference node and a bus. The number of basic loops in an oriented

graph is equal to the number of links. In addition, the number of
open loops in an oriented graph is equal to the number of branches.
In an open loop incidence matrix Co, Co(i, j) = +U if element i is in
the jth open loop and is assigned in the same direction as that of
the jth open loop; Co(i, j) = U if element i is in the jth open loop
and is assigned in the opposite direction as that of the jth open
loop. All other elements are zero matrices.
With minimum data preparation, the basic loop incidence
b can be formed
matrix C and augmented loop incidence matrix C
as expressed in (1) and (2).

where U denotes a unity matrix of dimension  .

b matrix, we used
In order to clearly illustrate the formation of the C
the sample system shown in Fig. 1.
b
For the sample system shown in Fig. 1, the corresponding C
matrix is represented as (3).

Basic concepts
In graph theory, a graph is a collection of objects and line segments that connects several objects. An object is regarded as a vertex and a line segment is regarded as an edge. In electrical
networks, the nodes and elements are regarded as vertices and
edges, respectively. An element is directed if it is assigned a direction from one terminal to the other; otherwise, it is called undirected. A node is a terminal of an element, and may be incident
to one or more elements.
A subgraph is a subset of all nodes of a graph, but with no closed
path, and is also called a tree. The elements of a tree are called
branches. Those elements of a graph that are not involved in the
tree are called links. For a smart grid with n nodes, e elements, b
branches, and l links, b = n1 and e = b + l can be obtained. Based
on graph theory, the basic loop incidence matrix C and augmented
b of the oriented graph used to represent a
loop incidence matrix C
network can be formed as follows.
Basic loop incidence matrix C
A basic loop incidence matrix C is used to describe the incidence
of elements to basic loops of a directed connected graph. In a basic
loop incidence matrix C, C(i, j) = +U if element i is in the jth basic
loop and is assigned in the same direction as that of the jth basic
loop; C(i, j) = U if element i is in the jth basic loop and is assigned
in the opposite direction as that of the jth basic loop, where U is a
unit matrix. The dimension of U is equal to the number of phases of
element i. For single, double, and three-phase elements, the dimension of U is 1  1, 2  2, 3  3, respectively. All other elements are
zero matrices.

A linear graph can only be used to describe the geometric interconnection of the elements of a network. To form the entire smart
grid network model, we should consider all of the electric and
magnetic behaviors of individual network components in the
smart grid. The primitive network matrices and incidence matrices
are combined to describe the performance of the smart grid. In this
paper, the actual phase frame and the loop frame of reference are
adopted.

Substation
0

1 abc

3
4 b Branch
5
c5
2 bc

Node

6
bc

Open loop
Basic loop

b
Augmented loop incidence matrix C
By combining the basic loop incidence matrix C and open loop
b can
incidence matrix Co, the augmented loop incidence matrix C
be formed. Here, an open loop is dened as a path between the

bc
7

Link

Fig. 1. One-line diagram of sample smart grid.

N.-C. Yang, W.-C. Tseng / Electrical Power and Energy Systems 64 (2015) 11661175

Each element has two variables v and i, where v denotes the

voltage across the element and i denotes the current through the
element. The performance of the components can be expressed
by the primitive impedance matrix [z] or primitive admittance
matrix [y]. In terms of the impedance form, the performance equation of the primitive network

m zi

b t as follows.
is pre-multiplied by C

btm
b t zi
C
C

1169

where [zb] is the primitive impedance matrix of the branches of the

entire smart grid.
Substituting (2) and (15) into (14), we obtain

16
Referring to (11), the loop currents of an augmented network can be
obtained by (17).

According to Kirchhoffs voltage law, the algebraic sum of the

source voltages around each loop is

btm
b Loop C

V

Therefore,

b t zi
b Loop C
V

17
where ib is the vector of currents through the branches of the network and IBus denotes the vector of bus-injected currents. Therefore,
for open loops, the currents are directed in the opposite directions
from the corresponding bus-injected currents.
Substituting (16) and (17) into (13), we obtain

b Loop , and the

The power in the interconnected network is bI Loop V
 t

sum of the powers in the primitive network is i m. Because the
power is invariant, the power in the interconnected and primitive
networks must be equal. That is,
t

 t

b Loop i m

bI Loop V

b Loop from (6), yields

Substituting for V
t

 t 

b tm
 i
bI Loop C

10

Therefore, the currents through the elements of the primitive

network are

i C
bbI Loop

11

Substituting from (11) into (7),

b t z C
bbI Loop
b Loop C
V

12

The performance equation of the network in the loop frame of

reference is

b Loop Z
b LoopbI Loop
V

sponding bus. The bus voltage vector V Bus can be rewritten as

19

where U Bus is a column vector. All elements of U Bus are 1.

According to (19), the bus voltage vector V Bus at the (i + 1)-th
iteration can be formulated as
i1;cal

V Bus

V Spec
Slack U Bus Z1 IBus

20

Here, the shunt elements of feeders, transformer banks, and

AVRs, as well as shunt capacitor/inductor banks, load demands,
DERs, and PHEV charging demands are all modeled as current
injections. For individual phase nodes, we obtain the sum of all
of the injected currents.
i
At the i-th iteration, the residuals of bus voltages DV Bus can be
written as
i
i1;cal
i
DV Bus
V Bus
 V Bus

21

13

At the (i + 1)-th iteration, the bus voltages are computed by

(22). The iteration process is continued until the residuals of bus
voltages are less than the predetermined tolerance.

14

V Bus V Bus a  DV Bus

Then,

b t z C
b
b Loop C
Z

For open loops, the voltages across the open loops are equal to
the difference between the slack bus voltages V Spec
Slack and the corre-

V Bus V Spec
Slack U Bus Z1 I Bus

 , then
Because this equation is valid for all values of v
t
t
bt
i bI Loop C

18

i1

22

b Loop is the voltage vector of an interconnected network, bI Loop

where V
b Loop is the
is the current vector of an interconnected network, and Z
augmented loop impedance matrix.

where a is generally a deceleration factor.

Proposed algorithm

For a non-radial smart grid, the primitive impedance matrix [z]

of the entire smart grid, including the branches and links, can be
expressed as (23).

In order to realize good performance using the proposed

method, the treatments of the proposed algorithm are divided into
two categories: (1) treatments for radial smart grids and (2) treatments for non-radial smart grids. In this section, we describe in
detail the derivation of the proposed algorithm.
Treatments for radial smart grids
For a radial smart grid, the primitive impedance matrix [z] of
the entire smart grid is represented as (15).

15

Treatments for non-radial smart grids

23
where [zb] and [z] represent the primitive impedance matrix of the
branches and links for the entire smart grid, respectively.
Substituting (2) and (23) into (14), we obtain

24
Referring to (11), the loop currents of an augmented network can be
obtained by (25).

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N.-C. Yang, W.-C. Tseng / Electrical Power and Energy Systems 64 (2015) 11661175

25
where ib and i are the vectors of currents through the branches and
links of the network, respectively. IBus denotes the vector of the businjected currents. Therefore, for open loops, the currents are directed in opposite directions from the corresponding bus-injected currents. For basic loops, each element of i is equal to a current
through a link in the corresponding basic loop.
Substituting (24) and (25) into (13), we obtain

26
For open loops, the voltages across the open loops are equal to
the difference between the slack bus voltages V Spec
Slack and the corresponding bus. For basic loops, according to Kirchhoffs voltage law,
the algebraic sum of the voltages around a loop is zero.

After Krons reduction is performed, the bus voltage vector V Bus

can be formulated as



1
V Bus V Spec
Slack U Bus Z1  Z2 Z4 Z3 I Bus

27

where U Bus is a column vector. All elements of U Bus are 1.

According to (27), the bus voltage vector V Bus at the (i + 1)-th
iteration can be formulated as
i1;cal

V Bus



i
1
V Spec
Slack U Bus Z1  Z2 Z4 Z3 I Bus

At the i-th iteration, the residuals of bus voltages

obtained by (29).
i
i1;cal
i
DV Bus
V Bus
 V Bus

28
DV i
Bus

can be

29

At the (i + 1)-th iteration, the bus voltage can be updated by

(30).
i1

V Bus V Bus a  DV Bus

Fig. 2. Flowchart of the proposed algorithm.

30

N.-C. Yang, W.-C. Tseng / Electrical Power and Energy Systems 64 (2015) 11661175

where a is generally a deceleration factor.

By employing two different solution strategies for the proposed
algorithm, the radial smart grids and non-radial smart grids are
handled. The owchart of the proposed algorithm is shown in
Fig. 2.
Mathematical models of DERs and PHEVs for power-ow
analysis

Ik;DER

Pk;DER jQ k;DER

1171

!

V k;DER

32

where Pk,DER and pfk,DER are the specied active power and power
factor for the DER unit installed in bus k, and Qk,DER is the calculated
i
reactive power of the DER unit. V k;DER is the bus voltage k for the
DER unit at the i-th iteration.
Plug-in hybrid electric vehicle demands

In the near future, the global trend in green energy is expected

to be the incorporation of DER and PHEV charging demands into
smart grids. To analyze the future smart grids, it is necessary to
present a detailed representation of the fundamental component
models such as substation transformers, feeders, shunt capacitors/reactors, distribution transformer banks, AVRs, load demands,
as well as DERs and PHEVs. Because of space limitations, only DER
and PHEV models are introduced in this paper.

The power consumption behaviors of PHEV battery systems are

totally different from the power generation behaviors of DERs. All
PHEV battery systems can be regarded as chemical energy storage
devices. Therefore, their charging and discharging processes are
chemical processes. That is, the charging behavior of a PHEV battery system can be modeled by the following exponential formula
[36]. If the PHEV needs td hours to be fully charged, the active
power demand from the power grid can be determined by

Distributed energy resources



PPHEV;dem P PHEV;max  1  eaPHEV td =tmax

DERs can be classied into two categories: (1) distributed generations (DGs) and (2) distributed storages (DSs). Further, the output characteristic of DGs can be subdivided into two groups: (1)
stable energy resources and (2) unstable energy resources. Fuel
cells and micro turbines are considered to be stable energy
resources, while wind power and solar power are unstable energy
resources. Different energy resources incorporated with different
power converters will result in specic output characteristics
[19,30,31,34,35].
In addition to the DG techniques, several forms of energy storage systems are used in smart grids. These DS systems may contain
battery, ywheel, and supercapacitor applications. Electrical
energy in the form of chemical energy is stored in battery systems.
During grid-power interruptions, ywheel systems can support
critical loads. Supercapacitor systems are high power-density storage devices.
In DS technologies, a power electronic interface is used to convert the energy into ac power grids. With power electronic devices,
the DERs can technically generate an internal reactive power to
cancel any internal reactive power demand. As a result, the DERs
can be operated at a unity power factor. The reactive power for a
DER unit can be obtained by (31) as follows.

Hence, for bus k, the equivalent injected current of the PHEV is

Q DER PDER tancos1 pfDER

31

Hence, for bus k, the equivalent injected current of a DER unit is

Table 1
Accuracy comparison for IEEE 13 bus distribution system.

Ik;PHEV 

P PHEV;dem
i

V k;PHEV

33

!
34

where PPHEV, max is the maximum power capacity of the PHEV,

i
V k;PHEV is the bus voltage k for a PHEV at the i-th iteration, tmax
denotes the maximum charging time of a PHEV, and aPHEV is a constant parameter for the charging process of a PHEV, which is provided by the manufacturer.
Numerical results
In this study, we implemented the proposed three-phase
power-ow algorithm using the MATLAB R2009b software package, and tested it on a Windows 8.1-based Intel Core i7-2600 PC.
Four IEEE test feeders (i.e., 13 Bus, 34 Bus, 37 Bus, and 123 Bus Test
Systems) [37], and a practical Taipower distribution system were
used as benchmarks to demonstrate the proposed algorithm. For
the radial smart grid test, four IEEE feeder systems were used to
assess a variety of distribution features of the proposed algorithm.
For the non-radial smart grid test, a practical Taipower distribution
system was used to evaluate the convergence and performance
characteristics of the proposed algorithm. For nearly 30 years,
the commercial software package Electrical Transient Analyzer

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N.-C. Yang, W.-C. Tseng / Electrical Power and Energy Systems 64 (2015) 11661175

Table 2
Mismatches of magnitudes of bus voltages between the calculated solutions and IEEE
results.

Table 5
Mismatches of angles of bus voltages between ETAP results and IEEE results.

Table 3
Mismatches of angles of bus voltages between the calculated solutions and IEEE
results.

Table 6
Mean absolute error and mean absolute percentage error for bus voltages between
the calculated solutions and IEEE results.
Test case

IEEE
IEEE
IEEE
IEEE

MAE

13
34
37
123

MAPE

Mag. (p.u.)

Angle ()

Mag. (%)

Angle (%)

0.00015
0.00210
0.00268
0.00047

0.048
0.251
0.322
0.025

0.015
0.206
0.272
0.046

0.177
0.479
0.634
0.333

16

Number of Iteraons

16

Table 4
Mismatches of magnitudes of bus voltages between ETAP results and IEEE results.

16

14
12
10

8
6
4

Normalized Execuon Time

18

IEEE-13

IEEE-34

IEEE-37

IEEE-123

150.00

16

15.73

14.94

14

13.03

12.15

12

120.00

80.00

46.77

6
4
0

140.00

100.00

10

160.00

2.50
1.00

60.00

4.40
20.67

3.00

40.00
20.00

22.97

0.00

IEEE-13

IEEE-34

Proposed method

IEEE-37

Reducons in Execuon Times (%)

IEEE-123

Gauss implicit ZBUS method

Reducons in execuon mes (%)

Fig. 3. Comparisons of numbers of iterations and normalized execution times for
radial smart grid tests.

Program (ETAP) has been the most comprehensive and widely used
tool for the design, simulation, operation, control, optimization,
and automation of generation, transmission, distribution, and
industrial power systems. Therefore, ETAP was used to verify the
relatively high accuracy of the proposed algorithm for the IEEE
13 Bus feeder system. Then, a popular and generalized power-ow

solution algorithm, namely, the Gauss implicit ZBUS method, was

used as a benchmark in all cases. In this study, the convergence
tolerance was set as 104 p.u. For the proposed algorithm, all of
the execution times of the performance tests were normalized
using the execution time of the IEEE 13 Bus feeder system.

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N.-C. Yang, W.-C. Tseng / Electrical Power and Energy Systems 64 (2015) 11661175

Accuracy comparison

Table 7
Test cases for non-radial smart grid.

The IEEE benchmark systems were used to demonstrate the

accuracy of the proposed algorithm for radial smart grids. These
benchmark systems can be used to examine the distribution features of the power-ow solution algorithm. Table 1 shows the nal
converged results obtained by both the proposed algorithm and
ETAP for the IEEE 13 Bus feeder system. Tables 2 and 3 show the
mismatches of the magnitudes and angles of bus voltages for the
nal converged voltage solutions obtained by the proposed algorithm and the IEEE results, respectively. The maximum mismatches of the magnitudes and angles of bus voltages for the
nal converged solutions and the IEEE results are shown to be less
than 0.0006 p.u. (0.0610%) and 0.02 (0.8032%), respectively.
Tables 4 and 5 also show the mismatches of the magnitudes and
angles of bus voltages for the nal converged voltage solutions
obtained by the ETAP results and the IEEE results, respectively.
The maximum mismatches of the magnitudes and angles of bus
voltages for the ETAP results and the IEEE results are up to
0.0058 p.u. (0.5908%) and 0.06 (2.3438%), respectively. We
observe that the proposed algorithm has a relatively high accuracy
compared with ETAP. The mean absolute error (MAE) and mean
absolute percentage error (MAPE) for the magnitudes and angles
of the bus voltages for the nal converged voltage solutions
obtained by the proposed algorithm and the IEEE results are shown
in Table 6. The results clearly indicate that the nal converged voltage results obtained by the proposed algorithm are almost identical to the IEEE results.

Case
No.

No. of
loops

0
1
2
3
4
5
6

0
1
2
3
4
5
6

Connection locations

A33A16
A33A16,
A33A16,
A33A16,
A33A16,
A33A16,
A22A17

A29A15
A29A15,
A29A15,
A29A15,
A29A15,

A27A28
A27A28, A5A18
A27A28, A5A18, A32A36
A27A28, A5A18, A32A36,

numbers of iterations and normalized execution times for the

radial smart grid tests. Using the proposed algorithm, the percentage reductions in the execution times range between 20.67% and
150%.
Non-radial smart grids
To perform the non-radial smart grid test, a practical Taipower
distribution system, which is shown in Fig. 4, was used as a benchmark. The distribution of discrete loads for this sample system can
be found in [38]. Because some buses are tied together, the sample
system will become a non-radial smart grid. Six cases shown in
Table 7 are used to verify the convergence and performance characteristics of the proposed algorithm for non-radial smart grids.
Comparisons of the number of iterations and normalized execution
times for non-radial smart grid tests are shown in Fig. 5. It can be
clearly seen that the convergence and performance characteristics
of the proposed algorithm are not sensitive to the number of loops.
Using the proposed algorithm, the percentage reductions in the
execution times range between 54.93% and 56.03%.

Execution time test

To demonstrate the performance of the proposed algorithm, the
radial smart grid tests and non-radial smart grid tests were performed as follows.

Robustness test
Radial smart grids
To perform the radial smart grid test, these four IEEE test
systems are used as benchmarks. Fig. 3 shows the results of the

To verify the convergence rate of the proposed algorithm,

we performed robustness tests for unbalanced loads and large

A22
780 MVAsc
69 kV

A1

A26

25MVA
Zs = 15 %

L20
0.56km

L24
0.09km

L19
0.16km

11. 4 kV

A2
A3

Lumped Load of A4
other feeders

A5

A6

L23
A25 0.11km

L1
1.4km

A19

L5
0.31km

L17
0.46km
L6
0.24km

L7
0.63km
A8

A7
L16
0.99km

L31
0.89km

L22
0.12km

A24

L33
A35 0.12km
L30
0.15km

L21
0.13km

A31

A23

CB

L32
0.11km

L29
0.25km

AB

L8
L9
L10
L11
L12
0.62km
0.62km 1.06km 1.55km 0.53km
A10
A13
A9
A12
A14
A11
L25
1.41km

L26
0.23km
A28

A18

A32

AC

CB

L18
0.15km

L3
0.12km
L4
0.14km

A20

CA

L2
0.58km

A33

A21

BA

L27
1.57km
A29

Fig. 4. A practical Taipower distribution system.

A37

L35
0.54km

AC

L13
0.24km

L34
1.3km
L28
0.49km A30
A36
BC

A27

A34

A15

L14
0.8km

L15
0.11km

A16
L36
0.32km

A17
BA

A38

1174

N.-C. Yang, W.-C. Tseng / Electrical Power and Energy Systems 64 (2015) 11661175

single-phase loads. Here, a practical Taipower distribution system,

which is shown in Fig. 3, was used as a sample system.
Unbalanced loads
A smart grid is basically unbalanced. To investigate the effects
of unbalanced three-phase loads on the convergence rate of the
proposed algorithm, the loads in the sample system are rst
assumed to be three-phase balanced. Then, the loads in Phase A
are increased by the same amount as those in the three-phase
loads. The load imbalance factor (LIF) is dened as the ratio of
the loads in Phase A to the summation of the loads in Phase B
and Phase C. Fig. 6 depicts the effects of unbalanced three-phase
loads on the convergence rate of the proposed algorithm after
three iterations. Here, the LIF is increased from 1.0 to 10.0. As
can be seen from Fig. 6, the growth rate of the maximum mismatch
of bus voltages is inversely proportional to the LIF.

Large single-phase loads

To examine the effects of large single-phase loads on the convergence rate of the proposed algorithm, the loads in Phase A are
increased while the loads in Phase B and Phase C are kept constant.
Here, a load factor (LF) is used to adjust the loads in Phase A. Fig. 7
illustrates the effects of large single-phase loads on the convergence rate of the proposed algorithm after three iterations. The
LF is increased from 0.5 to 5. As can be seen from Fig. 7, when
the LF is less than 2, the maximum mismatches of bus voltages
are linearly proportional to the LF. Compared with Figs. 6 and 7,
it can be seen that the convergence rate is more sensitive to large
single-phase loads than unbalanced loads. The test results show
that the proposed algorithm still has robust convergence characteristics and high performance, even for extremely poorly conditioned cases.
Deceleration factor test

Number of Iteraons

3
2
2

In order to examine the validity of the proposed algorithm for a

broad range of deceleration factors, we increased the deceleration
factor from 0.5 to 1.5, and the effects of the deceleration factor on
the convergence rate of the proposed algorithm are shown in
Table 8. The results show that the deceleration factor may have a
signicant effect on the convergence rate of the proposed algorithm for poorly conditioned cases, i.e., IEEE 34 and IEEE 123 cases.
For these cases, the deceleration factor shall be smaller than 1.0.

1
1

Normalized Execuon Time

4
4
3

Case0
56.03
3.55

Case1
54.93
3.55

Case2
54.93
3.55

Case3
55.24
3.58

Case4

55.63
3.56

55.24

Case5

3.58

3.58

50.00
40.00

3
2 2.27

2.29

2.29

2.31

2.29

2.31

2.31

30.00
20.00

10.00

1
0

Case6

55.24

0.00

Case0

Case1

Case2

Case3

Proposed method

Case4

Case5

Case6

Reducons in Execuon Times (%)

Fig. 7. Robustness test for large single-phase loads.

Gauss implicit ZBUS method

Reducons in execuon mes (%)

Fig. 5. Comparisons of numbers of iterations and normalized execution times for
non-radial smart grid tests.

Fig. 6. Robustness test for unbalanced loads.

Table 8
Deceleration Factor Tests.

X: the proposed method diverges for the case.

N.-C. Yang, W.-C. Tseng / Electrical Power and Energy Systems 64 (2015) 11661175

Using the variable deceleration factor technique [39], the convergence rate of the proposed algorithm can be further improved.
The results shown above prove that the proposed algorithm has
high adaptability for both radial smart grids and non-radial smart
grids. That is, the proposed algorithm can converge efciently and
robustly by considering the network topology characteristics of
smart grids.
Conclusions
In this paper, we proposed an adaptive three-phase power-ow
method for smart grids with PHEV charging demands. Practically,
smart grids may cover both primary and secondary distribution
systems; therefore, smart grids are unbalanced. In this paper, the
proposed algorithm was developed based on the actual phase
frame and the loop frame of reference. The system network topologies of smart grids and the power consumption behaviors of PHEV
charging demands have successfully been incorporated by the proposed algorithm.
For non-radial smart grids, only the augmented loop incidence
b is required. For radial smart grids, the solution procedure
matrix C
of the proposed algorithm can be further simplied. That is, only
the open-loop incidence matrix Co is required for radial smart
b and Co may be built by the network
grids. Both the matrices C
topology from input data. In other words, the unbalanced powerow problems can be solved by the corresponding incidence
matrix without the need for other complex procedures. Time-consuming procedures, such as LU factorization, inversion of bus
admittance matrix YBus or Jacobian matrix, and complicated building algorithm of the ZBus impedance matrix are not necessary in the
proposed algorithm. Therefore, the proposed algorithm is suitable
as a solution engine for optimal problems.
To validate the convergence rate and efciency of the proposed
algorithm, four IEEE sample feeders and a practical Taipower distribution system were adopted as benchmarks. Radial smart grids
and non-radial smart grids are handled separately by employing
two different solution strategies for the proposed algorithm. Our
test results reveal that the proposed algorithm has high adaptability for both radial smart grids and non-radial smart grids. The proposed method has good potential for smart grid EMS applications.
Acknowledgement
This paper has been sponsored by National Science Council,
Taiwan, R.O.C. (NSC 102-3113-P-155-001 & NSC 102-2221-E155-040).
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