CH 1 Introduction PDF

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Course notes on Power Systems

Prepared by G/Tsadik Teklay (M.Sc. in Electrical Power Engineering, Adigrat University), September 2015
CHPATER 1: INTRODUCTION
1.1.
What is Power System?
A power system consists of a few generating plants, situated close to resources, supplying
electric power to various types of loads spread out over large area, through large
complex
transmission
and
distribution
network. Voltage levels are reduced in stages.
Distribution system supplies power to different loads. Thus power system network is large,
complex and very expensive.
A power system is compose of four main components:
Power Production / Generation
Power Transmission
Power Distribution
Power Consumption (utilization) / Load
Of course, we also need monitoring and control systems. So, monitoring and control systems
are essential components of a power system.

1.2. Brief History of Electric Power Systems

In 1878, Thomas A. Edison began work on the electric light and formulated the concept of a
centrally located power station with distributed lighting serving the a surrounding area. He
perfected light by October 1879, and the opening of historic Pearl Street Station in New York
City on September 4, 1882, marked the beginning of electric utility industry. At Pearl Street,
dc generators, the called dynamos, were driven by steam engines to supply an initial load of
30 kW for 110-V incandescent lighting to 59 customers in 1-square-mile area. From this
beginning in 1885 through 1972, the electric utility industry grew at a remarkable pace-a
growth based on continuous reductions in the price of electricity due primarily to technological
accomplishment and creative engineering.
The introduction of the practical dc motor by Sprague Electric, as well as the growth of
incandescent lighting, promoted the expansion of Edisons dc systems. The development of
three-wire 220-V dc systems allowed load to increase somewhat, but as transmission
distances and loads continued to increase, voltage problems were encountered. These
limitations of maximum distance and load were overcome in 1885 by Willian Stanleys

development of a commercially practical transformer. Stanley installed an ac distribution

system in Great Barrington, Massachusetts, to supply 150 lamps. With the transformer, the
ability to transmit at high voltage with corresponding lower current and lower line-voltage
drops made ac more attractive than dc. The first single-phase ac line in the United States
operated in 1889 in Oregon, between Oregon City and Portland-21 km at 4 KV.
The growth of ac systems was further encouraged in 1888 when Nikola Tesla presented a
paper at a meeting of the American Institute of Electrical Engineers describing two-phase
induction and synchronous motors, which made evident the advantages poly-phase versus
single-phase systems. The first three-phase line in Germany became operational in 1891,
transmitting power 179 km at 12 kV. The first three-phase line in the United States (in
California) became operational in 1893, transmitting power 12 km at 2.3 kV. The three-phase
induction motor conceived by Tesla went on to become the workhouse of the industry.
In the same year that Edisons steam-driven generators were inaugurated, a waterwheeldriven generator was installed in Appleton, Wisconsin. Since then, most electric energy has

been generated in steam-powered and in water-powered (called hydro) turbine plants. Today,
steam turbines account for more than 85% of U.S. electric energy generation, whereas hydroturbines account for about 7%. Gas turbines are used in some cases to meet peak loads.
Coal is the most widely used fuel in the United States due to its abundance in the country.
Although many of these coal-fueled power plants were converted to oil during the early 1970s,
that trend has been reversed back to coal since the 1973/74 oin embargo, which caused an
oil shortage and created a national desire to reduce dependency on foreign oil. In 2004,
approximately 50% of electricity in the United States was generated from coal.
The early ac systems operated at various frequencies including 25, 50, 60, and 133 Hz. In
1891, it was proposed that 60 Hz be the standard frequency in the United States. In 1983,
25-Hz systems were introduced with the synchronous converter. However, these systems
were used primarily for road electrification (and many are now retired), because they had
disadvantage of causing incandescent lights to flicker. In California, the Los Angeles
Department of Power and Water operated at 50 Hz, but converted to 60 Hz when power from
the Hoover Dam became operational in 1937. In 1949, Southern California Edison also
converted from 50 Hz to 60 Hz. Today, the two standard frequencies for generation,
transmission, and distribution of electric power in the world are 60 Hz (in the United States,
Canada, Japan, Brazil) and 50 Hz (in Europe, the former Soviet Republics, South America
except Brazil, India, and also Japan). The advantage of 60-Hz systems is that generators,
motors and transformers in these systems are generally smaller than 50-Hz equipment with
the same ratings. The advantage of 50-Hz systems is that transmission lines and transformers
have smaller reactances at 50 Hz than at 60 Hz.
Along with increases in load growth, there have been continuing increases in the size of
generating units. The principal incentive to build larger units has been economy of scale-that
is, a reduction in installed cost per kilowatt of capacity for larger units. However, there have
also been steady improvements in generation efficiency. For example, in 1934 the average
heat rate for steam generation in the U.S. electric industry was 17,950 BTU/kWh, which
corresponds to 19% efficiency. By the 1991, the average heat rate was 10,367 BTU/kWh,
which corresponds to 33%efficieny. These improvements in thermal efficiency due to
increases in unit size and in steam temperature and pressure, as well as to the use of steam
reheat, have resulted in savings in fuel costs and overall operating costs.
There have been continuing increases, too, in transmission voltages. From Edisons 220-V
three-wire dc grid to 4-kV single-phase and 2.3-kV three-phase transmission, ac transmission
voltages in the United \States have risen progressively to 150, 230, 345, 500, and now 765

kV. And ultra-high voltages (UHV) above 1000 kV are now being studied. The incentives for
increasing transmission voltages have been: (1) increases in transmission distance and
transmission capacity, (2) smaller line-voltage drops, (3) reduce line losses, (4) reduced
right-of-way requirements per MW transfer, and (5) lower capital and operating costs of
transmission. Today, one 765-kV three-phase line can transmit thousands of megawatts over
hundreds of kilometers.
In 1954, the first modern high-voltage dc (HVDC) transmission line was put into operation in
Sweden between Vastervik and the island of Gotland in the Baltic sea; it operated at 100 kV
for a distance of 100 km. The first HVDC line in the US was the 400-kV, 1360-km Pacific
Intertie line installed between Oregon and California in 1970. As of 2000, four other HVDC
lines up to 400 kV and five back-to-back ac-dc links had been installed in the United States,
and a total of 30 HVDC lines up to 533 kV had been installed worldwide.
For an HVDC line embedded in an ac system, solid-state converters at both ends ot the dc
line operate as rectifiers and inverters. Since the cost of an HVDC transmission line is less
than that of an ac line with the same capacity, the additional cost of converters for dc
transmission is offset when the line is long enough. Studies have shown that overhead HVDC
transmiision is economical in the United States for transmission distances longer than about
600 km.
In the United States, electric utilities grew first as isolated systems, with new ones continously
starting up throught the country. Gradually, however, neighbouring electric utilities began to
interconnect, to operate in parallel. This improved both reliability and economy. An
interconnected has has many agvantages. An interconnected utility can draw upon anothers
rotating generator reserves during a time of need (such as a sudden generator outage or load
increase), thereby maintaining continuity of service, increasing reliability, and reducing the
total generators that need to be kept running under no-load conditions. Also, interconnected
utilities can schedule power transfers during normal periods to take advantage of energy-cost
differences in respective areas, load diversity, time zone differences, and seasonal conditions.
For example, utilities whose generation is primarily hydro can supply low-cost power during
high-water periods in spring/summer, and can receive power from the interconnection during
low-water periods in fall/winter. Interconnection also allow shared ownership of larger, more
efficient generating units.
While sharing the benefits of interconneted operation, each utility is obliged to help neighbors
who are in trouble, to maintain scheduled intertie transfers during normal periods, and to
participate in system frequency regulation.

In addition to the benefits/obligations of interconnected operation, there are disadvantages.

Interconnections, for example, have increased fault currents that occur during short circuits,
thus requiring the use of circuit breakers with higher interrupting capability. Furthermore,
although overall system reliability and economy have improved dramatically through
interconnection, there is a remote possibility that an initial disturbance may lead to a regional
blackout, such as the one that occurred in August 2003 in the northeastern United States and
Canada.
1.3.
Computers in Power System Engineering
As electric utilities have grown in size and the number of interconnections has increased,
planning
for future expansion has become increasingly complex. The increasing cost of
additions and modifications has made it imperative that utilities consider a r range of design
options, and perform detailed studies of the effects on the system of each option, based on a
number of assumptions: normal and abnormal operating conditions, peak and off-peak
loadings, and present and future years of operation. A large volume of network data must
also be collected and accurately handled. To assist the engineer in this power system planning,
digital computers and highly developed computer programs are used. Such programs include
power-flow, stability, short-circuit, and transient programs.
Power-flow programs compute the voltage magnitudes, phase angles, and transmission-line
power flows for a network under steady-state operating conditions. Other results including
transformer tap settings and generator reactive power outputs, are also computed. Todays
computers have sufficient storage and speed to efficiently compute power-flow solutions for
networks with 100,000 buses and 150,000 transmission lines. High-speed printers the print
out the complete solution in tabular form for analysis by the planning engineer. Also available
are interactive power flow programs, whereby power-flow results are displayed on computer
screens in the form of single line diagrams; the engineer use these to modify the network
with a mouse or from a keyboard and can readily visualize the results. The computers large
storage and high-speed capabilities allow the engineer to run the many different cases
necessary to analyze and design transmission and generation expansion options.

Stability programs are used to study power systems under disturbance conditions to
determine whether the synchronous generators and motors remain synchronism. System
disturbances can be caused by the sudden loss of a generator or transmission line, by sudden
load increases or decreases, and by short circuits and switching operations. The stability
program combines power-flow equations and machine-dynamic equations to compute the
angular swings of machines during disturbances. The program also computes critical clearing
times for network faults, and allows the engineer to investigate the effects of various machine
parameters, network modifications, disturbance types, and control schemes.
Short-circuits programs are used to compute three-phase and line-to-ground faults in power
system networks in order to select circuit breakers for fault interruption, select relays that
detect faults and control circuit breakers, and determine relay settings. Short-circuit currents
are computed for each relay and circuit breaker location, and for various system-operating
conditions such as lines or generating units out of service, in order to determine minimum
and maximum fault currents.

Transients programs compute the magnitudes and shapes of transient overvoltages and
currents that result from lightning strikes and line-switching operations. The planning
engineer uses the results of a transients program to determine insulation requirements for
lines, transformers, and other equipment, and to select surge arresters that protect
equipment against transient overvoltages.
1.4. Energy Control Center

For reliable and economical operation of the power system it is necessary to monitor the
entire system in a control center. The modern control center of today is called the energy
control center (ECC). The ECC provides the functions necessary for monitoring and
coordinating the minute-by-minute physical and economic operation of the power system.
Energy control centers are equipped with on-line computers performing all signal processing
through the remote acquisition system. Computers work in a hierarchical structure to properly
coordinate different functional requirements in normal as well as emergency conditions. Every
energy control center contains a control console which consists of a visual display unit (VDU),
keyboard, and light pen. Computers may give alarms as advance warnings to the operators
(dispatchers) when deviation from the normal state occurs. The dispatcher makes judgements
and decisions and executes them with aid of a computer. Simulation tools and software
packages written in high-level language are implemented for efficient operation and reliable
control of the system. This is referred to as SCADA, an acronym for Supervisory Control and
Data Acquisition.

The system control function traditionally used in electric utility operation consists of three
main integrated subsystems: the energy management system (EMS), the Supervisory control
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and data acquisition (SCADA), and the communications interconnecting the EMS and the
SCADA (which is often thought of as part of the SCADA itself).
1.4.1.
SCADA
There are two parts to the term SCADA. Supervisory control indicates that the operator,
residing in the energy control center (ECC), has the ability to control remote equipment. Data
acquisition indicates that information is gathered characterizing the state of the remote
equipment and sent to the ECC for monitoring purposes.
The monitoring equipment is normally located in the substations and is consolidated in what
is known as the remote terminal unit (RTU). Generally, the RTUs are equipped with
microprocessors having memory and logic capability, together with some form of telemetry
to provide the communication link to the ECC.
Relays located within the RTU, on command from the ECC, open or close selected control
circuits to perform a supervisory action. Such actions may include, for example, opening or
closing of a circuit breaker or switch, modifying a transformer tap setting, raising or lowering
generator MW output or terminal voltage, switching in or out a shunt capacitor or inductor,
and the starting or stopping of a synchronous condenser.
Information gathered by the RTU and communicated to the ECC includes both analog
information and status indicators. Analog information includes, for example, frequency,
voltages, currents, and real and reactive power flows. Status indicators include alarm signals
(over-temperature, low relay battery voltage, illegal entry) and whether switches and circuit
breakers are open or closed. Such information is provided to the ECC through a periodic scan
of all RTUs. A 2 second scan cycle is typical.
1.4.2.
Communication technologies
The form of communication required for SCADA is telemetry. Telemetry is the measurement
of a quantity in such a way so as to allow interpretation of that measurement at a distance
from the primary detector. The distinctive feature of telemetry is the nature of the translating
means, which includes provision for converting the measure into a representative quantity of
another kind that can be transmitted conveniently for measurement at a distance. The actual
distance is irrelevant. Telemetry may be analog or digital. In analog telemetry, a voltage,
current, or frequency proportional to the quantity being measured is developed and
transmitted on a communication channel to the receiving location, where the received signal
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is applied to a meter calibrated to indicate the quantity being measured, or it is applied directly
to a control device such as a ECC computer.
Forms of analog telemetry include variable current, pulse-amplitude, pulse-length, and
pulse-rate, with the latter two being the most common. In digital telemetry, the quantity
being measured is converted to a code in which the sequence of pulses transmitted indicates
the quantity. One of the advantages to digital telemetering is the fact that accuracy of data
is not lost in transmitting the data from one location to another. Digital telemetry requires
analog to digital (A/D) and possible digital to analog (D/A) converters, as illustrated in Fig. 4.
The earliest form of signal circuit used for SCADA telemetry consisted of twisted pair wires;
although simple and economic for short distances, it suffers from reliability problems due to
breakage, water ingress, and ground potential risk during faults.
Improvements over twisted pair wires came in the form of what is now the most common,
traditional type of telemetry mediums based on leased-wire, power-line carrier, or microwave.
These are voice grade forms of telemetry, meaning they represent communication channels
suitable for the transmission of speech, either digital or analog, generally with a frequency
range of about 300 to 3000 Hz.
Leased-wire means use of a standard telephone circuit; this is a convenient and
straightforward means of telemetry when it is available, although it can be unreliable, and it
requires a continual outlay of leasing expenditures. In addition, it is not under user control
and requires careful coordination between the user and the telephone company. Power-line
carrier (PLC) offers an inexpensive and typically more reliable alternative to leased-wire. Here,
the transmission circuit itself is used to modulate a communication signal at a frequency much
greater than the 60/50 Hz power frequency. Most PLC occurs at frequencies in the range of
30-500 kHz. The security of PLC is very high since the communication equipment is located
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inside the substations. One disadvantage of PLC is that the communication cannot be made
through open disconnects, i.e., when the transmission line is outaged. Often, this is precisely
the time when the communication signal is needed most. In addition, PLC is susceptible to
line noise and requires careful signal-to-noise ratio analysis. Most PLC is strictly analog
although digital PLC has become available from a few suppliers during the last few years.
Microwave radio refers to ultra-high-frequency (UHF) radio systems operating above 1 GHz.
The earliest microwave telemetry was strictly analog, but digital microwave communication
is now quite common for EMS/SCADA applications. This form of communication has
obvious advantages over PLC and leased wire since it requires no physical conducting medium
and therefore no right-of-way. However, line of sight clearance is required in order to ensure
reliable communication, and therefore it is not applicable in some cases.
A more recent development has concerned the use of fiber optic cable, a technology capable
of extremely fast communication speeds. Although cost was originally prohibitive, it has now
decreased to the point where it is viable. Fiber optics may be either run inside underground
power cables or they may be fastened to overhead transmission line towers just below the
lines. They may also be run within the shield wire suspended above the transmission lines.
Additional communication technologies include use of satellites, VHF and UHF radio, spread
spectrum radio, and internet/intranet systems.
One easily sees that communication engineering is very important to power system control.
Students specializing in power and energy systems should strongly consider taking
communications courses to have this background. Students specializing in communication
should consider taking power systems courses as an application area.
1.4.3.
Energy Management System (EMS)
The EMS is a software system. Most utility companies purchase their EMS from one or
more EMS vendors. These EMS vendors are companies specializing in design, development,
installation, and maintenance of EMS within ECCs. There are a number of EMS vendors in
the U.S., and they hire many power system engineers with good software development
capabilities.
During the time period of the 1970s through about 2000, almost all EMS software
applications were developed for installation on the control centers computers. An attractive
alternative today is, however, the application service provider, where the software resides on
the vendors computer and control center personnel access it from the Internet. Benefits
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from this arrangement include application flexibility and reliability in the software system and
reduced installation cost.
The EMS consists of 4 major functions: network model building (including topology processing
and state estimation), security assessment, automatic generation control, and dispatch.
These functions are described in more detail in the following subsections.
1.4.3.1. Network Model Building

A network model is necessary in order to determine whether operating conditions are safe
under the existing topology and also under the event that one or more components fail and
are outaged. The network model must reflect the correct topology and the correct operating
conditions relative to the actual network conditions. The information available to construct
the network model includes the status indicators and the analog measurements available from
the SCADA. The result of the network model builder is a power flow model. Network model
building takes place in two steps, topology processing and state estimation.
Topology Processing: The topology of the network characterizes the connectivity between
buses (nodes), the shunt elements at each bus, and which generators are connected to each
bus. This information comes to the EMS from the SCADA in the form of status indicators for
each circuit breaker and switch at all buses. This information is referred to as the bus sectionbreaker-switch data and provides a mapping of individual bus sections at each substation and
how they are connected. Different bus sections connected by closed breakers or switches are
electrically a single node. A key step in topology processing is to recognize these situations in
order to minimize the number of nodes in the resulting network model.
Effectively, then, topology processing converts bus section-breaker-switch data into so-called
bus-branch data. The bus-branch data is appropriate for modeling the transmission line and
transformer
connections
between
substations,
rather
connections at each substation, as illustrated in Fig. 5.
than
the
precise
bus-section
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The impedances of all network elements are stored in an EMS database, and this information,
when combined with the output of the topology processor, is enough to establish the system
topology.
State Estimation: Given the topology of the system, it still remains to determine the operating
conditions, i.e., the bus voltages, load levels, and generation levels. At first glance, this
appears to be an easy problem just take the corresponding information from the SCADA.
However, one must recognize the reality of data unavailability and of data error.
Data unavailability comes from two sources. First, there may be some substations that have
no SCADA. Second, there may be some substation RTUs or telemetry systems that are
unavailable due to maintenance or unexpected trouble.
Data error comes from the fact that all analog measurement devices contain some
measurement error. Typically this error is small for any single device, but the use of many
thousands of devices, each having small error, can result in significant inaccuracy in regards
to the overall system analysis. The state estimator is a program that receives the SCADA
measurement information and then uses statistical procedures to obtain the very best
estimate of the actual state of the system. The result of state estimation is a power flow model
that can be used for security assessment.
1.4.3.2. Security Assessment
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Security assessment determines first, whether the system is currently residing in an

acceptable state and second, whether the system would respond in an acceptable manner
and reach an acceptable state following any one of a pre-defined contingency set. A
contingency is the unexpected failure of a transmission line, transformer, or generator.
Usually, contingencies result from occurrence of a fault, or short-circuit, to one of these
components. When such a fault occurs, the protection systems sense the fault and remove
the component, and therefore also the fault, from the system.
Of course, with one less component, the overall system is weaker, and undesirable effects
may occur. For example, some remaining circuit may overload, or some bus may experience
an undervoltage condition. These are called static security problems.
Dynamic security problems may also occur, including uncontrollable voltage decline,
generator overspeed (loss of synchronism), or undamped oscillatory behavior.
Almost all EMS today are capable of performing static security assessment, because it only
requires a power flow program to do so. Very few EMS are capable of performing dynamic
security assessment, however, because the assessment tools are more complex and
computationally intense. However, dynamic security assessment tools are rapidly becoming
more prevalent in EMS with the continued growth in computational and algorithmic
efficiency.
1.4.3.3. Automatic Generation Control

The purpose of AGC is to regulate the system frequency and power interchange between
control areas. It ensures that frequency is brought back to the nominal value and inter-area
power flow is regulated.
1.4.3.4. Economic Dispatch

The economic dispatch an optimization problem whose objective is to minimize the total cost
of generation in order to supply the demand. Different generators may have different cost of
generating power. A power plant or system operator may wish to re-adjust the generator
power in various units for maximum economic benefit. This adjustment of generation is
generally done manually and is called economic dispatch.
One can come across the acronym SCED, which stands for security-constrained economic
dispatch. The SCED is also an optimization problem. It is similar to EDC in that it typically has
the same objective of minimizing the total cost of generation in order to supply the demand.
Yet it extends the EDC to account for the equality constraints governing the real and reactive
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power flowing out of each bus and therefore, its optimal solutions are more realistic. More
important, it offers the capability
to determine the effects of different
electrical
constraints on the system economic operation. The security constrained aspect of the SCED
accounts for flow constraints imposed by security considerations identified through
contingency analysis.
1.5. Computer Analysis

For a power system to be practical it must be safe, reliable, and economical. Thus many
analyses must be perfromed to design and opertate an electrical system. However, before
going into system analysis we have to model all components of electrical pweer systems.
Therefore, we neeed to properly model transmisssion lines, transformers and generators.
Design of a power sysetm, its operation and expansion requires much analysis. This course
presents method of power sysetm analysis with the aid of a personal computer and the use
of Power World Simulator/MATLAB. Some of the basic analysis covered in this course are:
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Power Flow Analysis
Fault Analysis (symmetrical and unsymmetrical)
Stability Studies
Transient Studies
1.6. Brief Introduction to Power System Components
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1. Power Generation
These are the station responsible for power generation and most of the time the are located
near the resources. We can classify them into two:
i.
Conventional energy sources

- Steam/Thermal Power Plants
- Nuclear Power Plants
- Hydro Power Plants
ii.
Non-conventional Energy Sources

- Wind Energy
- Solar Energy
- Ocean/Tidal Energy
- Geothermal Energy
- Biomass Energy
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Note we can also classify the as Renewable and non-renewable:
Non-renewable: Thermal power plants that use fossil fuel (coal, oil natural gas) and
nuclear power plants
Renewable: hydro, nuclear, solar, wind, geothermal, biomass etc
2. Power Transmission System

Electric power transmission is the bulk transfer of electrical energy, from generating power
plants to electrical substations located near demand centers.
The power plants typically produce 50 cycle/second (Hertz), alternating-current (AC)
electricity with voltages between 11kV and 33 kV. At the power plant site, the 3-phase voltage
is stepped up to a higher voltage for transmission on cables strung on cross-country towers.
To have greater efficiency, High voltage (HV) and extra high voltage (EHV) transmission is
the next stage from power plant to transport the generated power over long distances at
voltages like; 230 kV, 400 kV and 500 kV etc. Power transformers are used to setup the
voltage levels for power transmission on cross-country.
Transmission system consists of
transformers, transmission towers and transmission lines.

Where transmission is over 1000 km, high voltage direct current transmission is also favoured
to minimize the losses.
Sub-transmission network at 132 kV, 110 kV, 66 kV or 33 kV constitutes the next link towards
the end user.
Note: according to EN 60 071, voltage levels are classified as follows:
Below 1kV: Low Voltage (LV)
Between 1 kV and 45 kV: Medium Voltage (MV)
Between 45 and 300 kV: High Voltage (HV)
Between 300 kV and 750 kV: Extra High Voltage (EHV)
Above 800 kV: Ultra High Voltage (UHV)
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Ethiopia: 230 kV, 132 kV, 400 kV, and 500 kV
Subtransmission
Subtransmission is part of an electric power transmission system that runs at relatively
lower voltages. It is uneconomical to connect all distribution substations to the high main
transmission voltage, because the equipment is larger and more expensive. Typically, only
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larger substations connect with this high voltage. It is stepped down and sent to smaller
substations in towns and neighborhoods.
There is no fixed cutoff between subtransmission and transmission, or subtransmission and
distribution. The voltage ranges overlap somewhat. Voltages of 69 kV, 115 kV and 138 kV
are often used for subtransmission in North America.
N.B: Most of the time voltages from 66 to 132 kV are classified as subtransmission voltage
levels.
3. Distribution network
An electric power distribution system is the final stage in the delivery of electric
power; it carries electricity from the transmission system to individual consumers.
The distribution system is responsible for the conveyance of the bulk power in the
transmission to the consumers with lower voltage networks.
To distribute the electric power among the consumers (usually using MV overhead
lines)
Distribution substations step-down the transmission voltage level to lower voltage
levels (suitable for the loads/consumers.
Distribution substations connect to the transmission system and lower the
transmission voltage to medium voltage ranging between 2 kV and 35 kV (e.g. 12
kV, 13.8 kV, 15 kV, 6.6 kV, etc) with the use of transformers. Primary distribution
lines carry this medium voltage power to distribution transformers located near the
customer's premises.
Distribution transformers again lower the voltage to the utilization voltage of
household appliances, shopping centers, and other local loads and typically feed
several customers through secondary distribution lines at this voltage (380 or 400
V). Commercial and residential customers are connected to the secondary
distribution lines through service drops. Customers demanding a much larger
amount of power (like large industrial plants) may be connected directly to the
primary distribution level or the sub-transmission (secondary transmission) level.
For example Messobo Cement factory is supplied by the 132 kV sub-transmission
like.
Most of the distribution networks operate radially for less short circuit current and
better protective coordination.
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23

General layout of electricity networks. The voltages and loadings are typical of a European
network.
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Distribution transformers or service transformers

Figure below shows the distribution transformer, also called service transformer, which
reduces the feeder voltages (e.g. 15 kV) to levels usable by the consumer eg. 380 V.
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4. Power Consumption
Industrial customers (Mesbo Cement Factory)
Commercial customers (Hotel)
Residential customers (My home)
Electrical substation
A substation is a part of an electrical generation, transmission, and distribution system.
Substations transform voltage from high to low, or the reverse, or perform any of several
other important functions. Between the generating station and consumer, electric power may
flow through several substations at different voltage levels.
Substations may be owned and operated by an electrical utility, or may be owned by a large
industrial or commercial customer.
Elements of a substation
Substations generally have switching, protection and control equipment, and transformers.
In a large substation, circuit breakers are used to interrupt any short circuits or overload
currents that may occur on the network. Smaller distribution stations may use recloser circuit
breakers or fuses for protection of distribution circuits. Substations themselves do not usually
have generators, although a power plant may have a substation nearby. Other devices such
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as capacitors and voltage regulators may also be located at a substation (Voltage regulators
to raise or lower the distribution voltage as required).
.
Elements of a substation A:Primary power lines' side B:Secondary power lines' side
1.Primary power lines 2.Ground wire 3.Overhead lines 4.Transformer for measurement of
electric voltage 5.Disconnect switch 6.Circuit breaker 7.Current transformer 8.Lightning
arrester 9.Main transformer 10.Control building 11.Security fence 12.Secondary power lines
Substations may be on the surface in fenced enclosures, underground, or located in specialpurpose buildings. High-rise buildings may have several indoor substations. Indoor
substations are usually found in urban areas to reduce the noise from the transformers, for
reasons of appearance, or to protect switchgear from extreme climate or pollution conditions.
Where a substation has a metallic fence, it must be properly grounded to protect people from
high voltages that may occur during a fault in the network. Earth faults at a substation can
cause a ground potential rise. Currents flowing in the Earth's surface during a fault can cause
metal objects to have a significantly different voltage than the ground under a person's feet;
this touch potential presents a hazard of electrocution.
Types
Substations may be described by their voltage class, their applications within the power
system, the method used to insulate most connections, and by the style and materials of the
structures used. These categories are not disjointed; to solve a particular problem, a
transmission substation may include significant distribution functions, for example.
Transmission substation
A transmission substation connects two or more transmission lines. The simplest
case is where all transmission lines have the same voltage. In such cases, substation
contains high-voltage switches that allow lines to be connected or isolated for fault
27

clearance or maintenance. A transmission station may have transformers to convert

between two transmission voltages, voltage control/power factor correction devices
such as capacitors, reactors or static VAR compensators and equipment such as phase
shifting transformers to control power flow between two adjacent power systems.
Transmission substations can range from simple to complex. A small "switching
station" may be little more than a bus plus some circuit breakers. The largest
transmission substations can cover a large area (several acres/hectares) with multiple
voltage levels, many circuit breakers and a large amount of protection and control
equipment (voltage and current transformers, relays and SCADA systems).
Distribution substation
A distribution substation are used to reduce voltage levels of transmission and subtransmission systems to distribution level. This allows power to be delivered by
distribution lines/feeders to distribution transformers that further reduce the voltage
to a level useable by the customer. It is uneconomical to directly connect electricity
consumers to the main transmission network, unless they use large amounts of power,
so the distribution station reduces voltage to a level suitable for local distribution.
The input for a distribution substation is typically at least two transmission or sub
transmission lines. Input voltage may be, for example, 115 kV or 132 kV, or whatever
is common in the area. The output is a number of feeders. Distribution voltages are
typically medium voltage, between 2.4 kV and 33 kV depending on the size of the area
served and the practices of the local utility. The feeders run along streets overhead
(or underground, in some cases) and power the distribution transformers at or near
the customer premises (industrial, commercial, and residential customers).
Figure IV-6 shows a relatively small electric distribution substation that reduces Unitils
34.5 kV sub-transmission voltage to 13.8 kV, which is then distributed to industrial,
commercial, and residential customers).
28

29

30

31

Consider
The generator voltage is around 11 to 33 kV. This relatively low voltage is not appropriate for
the transmission of energy over long distances. At the generating station a transformer is
used to increase the voltage and reduce the current. In Fig. above the voltage is increased to
500 kV and an extra-high -voltage (EHV) line transmits the generator-produced energy to a
32

distant substation. Such substations are located on the outskirts of large cities or in the center
of several large loads. As an example, in Arizona, a 500-kV transmission line connects the
Palo Verde Nuclear Station to the Kyrene and West wing substations, which supply a large
part of the city of Phoenix.
The voltage is reduced at the 500 kV/220 kV EHV substation to the high-voltage level and hig
h-voltage lines transmit the energy to high-voltage substations located within cities. At the
high-voltage substation the voltage is reduced to 69 kV. Sub-transmission lines connect the
high-voltage substation to many local distribution stations located within cities. Subtransmission lines are frequently located along major streets.
The voltage is reduced to 12 kV at the distribution substation. Several distribution lines
emanate from each distribution substation as overhead or underground lines. Distribution
lines distribute the energy along streets and alleys. Each line supplies several step-down
transformers distributed along the line. The distribution transformer reduces the voltage to
230/115 V, which supplies houses, shopping centers, and other local loads. The large
industrial plants and factories are supplied directly by a sub-transmission line or a dedicated
distribution line as shown in the Fig. above.
The overhead transmission lines are used in open areas such as interconnections between
cities or along w ide roads within the city. In congested areas within cities, underground cables
are used for electric energy transmission. The underground transmission system is
environmentally preferable but has a signicantly higher cost. In Fig .above the 12-kV line is
connected to a 12-kV cable which supplies commercial or industrial customers. The gure also
shows 12-kV cable networks supplying downtown areas in a large city. Most newly developed
residential areas are supplied by 12-kV cables through pad-mounted step-down transformers
as shown in the Figure.
One Line Diagram

In power engineering, a one-line diagram or single-line diagram (SLD) is a simplified
notation for representing a three-phase power system. The one-line diagram has its largest
application in power flow studies, short circuit analysis, and stability studies. Electrical
elements such as circuit breakers, transformers, capacitors, bus bars, and conductors are
shown by standardized schematic symbols.[1]Instead of representing each of three phases
with a separate line or terminal, only one conductor is represented. It is a form of block
diagram graphically depicting the paths for power flow between entities of the system.
Elements on the diagram do not represent the physical size or location of the electrical
33

equipment, but it is a common convention to organize the diagram with the same left-to-right,
top-to-bottom sequence as the switchgear or other apparatus represented. A one-line
diagram can also be used to show a high level view of conduit runs for a PLC control systems.
34

Power Flow Analysis in Power World Simulator
35

The case of Ethiopia

Ethiopian Electric Power Corporation (EEPCO) is the sole electric utility company responsible
for generation, transmission (high voltage lines), distribution and selling of electricity
throughout the country.
EEPCO operates two power supply systems, namely the main interconnected system
(ICS) and the self-contained system (SCS). The main ICS, which serves the major towns and
industrial centers, has a total installed capacity of 2022.2 MW. This generation capacity
is contributed by hydropower plants having a total installed capacity/Firm energy
generation capacity of 1842.6 MW. The diesel stations are required to mitigate the power
shortage due to seasonal influence on the hydro reservoirs. The SCS supplies isolated load
centers, which are far from the ICS, mostly using diesel plants as a source of generation.
Currently this system has an aggregate installed capacity of about 37.38 MW, of which 31.23
MW is being generated from diesel stations. The remaining balance of 6.15 MW is
being generated from small hydro power plants located at Sor, Yadot and Dembi [4].
At the generation power plants, power is generated at 10.5 kV, 15 kV, and 13.8 kV. The
electric energy generated from the main hydro power plants is transported through
high voltage transmission lines rated 45 kV, 66 kV, 132 kV, 230 kV and 400 kV.
36

The power distribution in both ICS and SCS is effected at primary voltage of 33 kV and 15
kV lines and step down to 380 V and 220 V of customer's level.
The Energy Resource Potential of Ethiopia
Electricity Generation
System
installed capacity4,130.7 MW
Hydropower
3,909.4 MW ((94%)
Wind
171 MW (4%)
Geothermal
7.3 MW (0.177%)
Diesel stand by
43 MW (1%)
37

38

Ashegoda wind farm:
Installed capacity 120 MW (costed 230 million Euros, performed by the

French companies Vergnet and Alstom WIND)
30 wind mills (each with 1 MW)finalized by by March 2012,
54 wind mills (each with 1.67 MW).finalized finalized at the beginning of

September 2013.
Hydropower Plants
List of power supply from each station

S.No. Stations
Capacity (MW)
Koka
42.00
Awash II
32.00
Awash III
32.00
39

Finchaa
134.00
Finchaa Amerit Neshe
97.00
Melka Wakena
153.00
Tis Abay I
11.40
Tis Abay II
73.00
Gilegel Gibe I
210.00
11
Dire Dawa
40.00
12
Awash 7 killo
35.00
13
Tekeze
300.00
14
Gilgel Gibe II
420.00
15
Beles
460.00
16
Gilgel Gibe III
1870 (completed by
june 18, 2015)
Power Plants under Construction

No
Hydro plants
1
2
Genale III
Grand Renaissance
Wind Farms
Adama II
Installed
Capacity (MW)
Average Energy
(GWh/yr)
254
6000
1,200
15,700
153
479
40

41

Gilgel Gibe II
42

Gilgel Gibe III (1870 MW)

10 x 187 MW Francis-type
43

44

45

46

Sub-Regional Power Interconnection
47

Power System under Construction:

Dam Construction:
48

49

Intake:
50

Power House
51

52

53

Switch Yard/ Substation
54

55

56

57

Transmission Line
58

59

60

Every large-scale power system has three major components:
generation: source of power, ideally with a specified voltage and

frequency
load or demand: consumes power; ideally with a constant resistive

value
transmission system: transmits power; ideally as a perfect

conductor
61

Additional components include:
distribution system: local reticulation of power (may be in place of

transmission system in case of microgrid),
control equipment: coordinate supply with load.
62

63

64

The corporation has two electric energy supply systems: the Interconnected
System (ICS) and the Self Contained System (SCS). The main energy source of ICS is
Hydro power plants and for the SCS mini hydro's and diesel power generators
allocated in various areas of the country.
Tekeze
The powerhouse contains four 75 MW (101,000 hp) turbines,[2] generating 300 MW (400,000 hp) of
electricity. A 105 kilometres (65 mi) transmission line connects it to the national grid at Mek'ele.
At the time of its completion, the 188 metres (617 ft) Tekez Dam was Africa's largest arch
dam.
[1]
65

An energy management system (EMS) is a system of computer-aided tools used by operators of electric
utility grids to monitor, control, and optimize the performance of the generation and/or transmission
system. This monitor and control functions are known as SCADA; the optimization packages are often
referred to as "advanced applications".
Distribution System
In this report, the distribution system will be defined as that portion of the
electric system extending from the distribution substation to the end
customer, including the customers meter. The portion of the electric system
from the secondary (low voltage) side of the distribution transformer to the
customer meter is normally referred to as a service or service drop.
Distribution poles in New Hampshire are typically jointly owned by
the local electric utility and the local telephone company to minimize the
number of poles needed to provide both services. Distribution poles may also
be used to support electric equipment, street lighting, cable TV lines, fiber
optic lines, and municipal alarm and communication lines. A considerable
amount of electric and communications material may be attached to a single
66

pole.

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1

Course notes on Power Systems

What is Power System?

network. Voltage levels are reduced in stages.

A power system is compose of four main components:

Power Production / Generation

Power Consumption (utilization) / Load

Course notes on Power Systems

1.2. Brief History of Electric Power Systems

Course notes on Power Systems

development of a commercially practical transformer. Stanley installed an ac distribution

Course notes on Power Systems

Course notes on Power Systems

Course notes on Power Systems

In addition to the benefits/obligations of interconnected operation, there are disadvantages.

Computers in Power System Engineering

Course notes on Power Systems

Course notes on Power Systems

1.4. Energy Control Center

Course notes on Power Systems

Course notes on Power Systems

Course notes on Power Systems

Course notes on Power Systems

Energy Management System (EMS)

Course notes on Power Systems

1.4.3.1. Network Model Building

connections at each substation, as illustrated in Fig. 5.

Course notes on Power Systems

1.4.3.2. Security Assessment

Course notes on Power Systems

Security assessment determines first, whether the system is currently residing in an

1.4.3.3. Automatic Generation Control

1.4.3.4. Economic Dispatch

Course notes on Power Systems

to determine the effects of different

1.5. Computer Analysis

Course notes on Power Systems

Power Flow Analysis

Fault Analysis (symmetrical and unsymmetrical)

1.6. Brief Introduction to Power System Components

Course notes on Power Systems

Conventional energy sources

Non-conventional Energy Sources

Course notes on Power Systems

Note we can also classify the as Renewable and non-renewable:

Renewable: hydro, nuclear, solar, wind, geothermal, biomass etc

2. Power Transmission System

Transmission system consists of

transformers, transmission towers and transmission lines.

Course notes on Power Systems

Ethiopia: 230 kV, 132 kV, 400 kV, and 500 kV

Course notes on Power Systems

Course notes on Power Systems

Course notes on Power Systems

Course notes on Power Systems

Distribution transformers or service transformers

Course notes on Power Systems

Industrial customers (Mesbo Cement Factory)

Commercial customers (Hotel)

Residential customers (My home)

Course notes on Power Systems

Course notes on Power Systems

clearance or maintenance. A transmission station may have transformers to convert