Load flow analysis A load flow solution determines the bus voltages and the flows in all branches

i n a given set of conditions. A load flow study is a series of such calculations made when certain equipment parameters are set at different values, or circuit c onfiguration is changed by opening or closing breakers, adding or removing a lin e, etc. Load flow studies are performed to check the operation of an existing sy stem under normal or outage conditions, to see if the existing system is capable of supplying planned additional loads, or to check and compare new alternatives for system additions to supply new load or improve system performance. Generall y, the study engineer has a predefined set of criteria that the system must meet . These include the following: Voltage criteria, such as defined in IEEE Std 14119932 Flows on lines and transformers must be within defined thermal ratings Gener ator reactive outputs must be within the limits defined by the generator capabil ity curvesThe voltage criteria are usually divided into an acceptable voltage ra nge for normalconditions and a wider range of acceptable voltage under outage co nditions. The thermalcriteria for lines and transformers may also have such a di vision, allowing for a temporaryoverload capability due to the thermal time cons tant of the equipment or additional forcedcooling capabilities of transformers.A study normally begins with the preparation of base cases to represent the diffe rentoperating modes of the system or plant. The operating condition normally cho sen ismaximum load. (Here maximum load refers to the maximum amount of coinciden tloaded, not the sum of all the loads. See 4.9 for an explanation of load divers ity and loadmodeling.) When maximum load occurs at different times on different parts of thesystem, several base cases may be needed. The base cases should repr esent realisticoperating conditions. Abnormal conditions and worst-case scenario s will be addressedlater in the study. The base cases are analyzed to determine if voltages and flows arewithin acceptable ranges. Sample outputs are shown in 6 .6. If voltages or overloadproblems are noted, system changes can be made to the load flow data and the caseresolved to see if the changes are effective in reme dying the problem. To remedy low-voltage problems, possible changes include the following:Change in transformer tap positions Increase in generator schedule volt age Addition of shunt capacitors System reconfiguration to shift load to less heav ily loaded lines Disconnection of shunt reactors Addition of lines or transformers To remedy heavy line or transformer loadings, most of the same remedies apply. I ngeneral, the first two of the above remedies will not help heavy loadings due t o large realpower (watt) flows. Real power flows from the generators to the load s. Real power flow isdetermined by the phase angle of the supply bus leading the phase angle of the loadbus, with voltage magnitudes having a secondary effect. However, reactive power flow isprimarily determined by the voltage magnitude wit h reactive power flowing from thehigher voltage bus to the lower voltage bus. Re al and reactive power flow, beingprimarily influenced by different constraints, can flow in different directions on the sameline. Transformer off-nominal taps c an change the relative relationship of the voltage onthe primary and secondary b us and thus can change the reactive power flow, while thereal power flow is larg ely unaffected by a change in tap position. When the base casevoltages and flows are in the desired range, the system must be examined to checkoperation under a bnormal conditions (contingency analysis). These conditions includethe following : Loss of a transmission line or cable Loss of a transformer Loss of a generator bnormal supply conditions When the load flow model is changed, for example, to represent a line outage, a newsolution is obtained. The voltage and flows are checked against their respect ive criterion.If necessary, further system changes are made to correct the probl ems noted. Incontingency analysis, it is important to note that several outages may cause systemproblems; but the different remedies applied may not help equall y for all outages. Tominimize the number and cost of the remedies, it is necessa ry to choose those remediesthat have the most beneficial effects for the most ou tages. The load flow analysis is usedto design a system that has a good voltage profile and acceptable line loadings duringnormal operation and that will contin

ue to operate acceptably when one or more linesbecome inoperative due to line da mage, lightning strokes, failure of transformers, etc.Performing a series of loa d flow cases and analyzing the results provides operatingintelligence in a short time that might take years of actual operating experience to obtain.In addition to the benefits described above, a study of reactive power flows on thebranches can lead to reduced line losses and improved voltage distribution. Reduction in kVA demand due to power factor correction can lead to lower utility bills for an industrialplant. The size and placement of power factor correction capacitors a nd the setting of generator scheduled voltages and transformer tap positions can be studied with loadflows. Knowledge of branch flows supplies the protection en gineer with requirements for proper relay settings. The load flow studies can al so provide data for automatic load anddemand control, if needed.The load flow is also used to check the effects of future load growth and theeffectiveness of pl anned additions. These studies are performed in the same way asstudies of the pr esent system. The future loads are determined and entered into themodel. Base ca se conditions are studied and additions made, if necessary, to get thesystem to meet the performance criteria. Then outage conditions are studied and againsyste m changes may be required. Studies of future systems vary in that there are usua llymore alternative ways of solving the problems encountered. The load flow is t he tool thatallows the alternatives to be compared in terms of their effectivene ss under normal andcontingency conditions. Coupled with other studies as well as cost and reliability data,the results lead to the selection of the best alterna tive