Substation Automation Systems Management

Current operational status of iReact equipped substations can be monitored in real-time through a web-based GUI, easily accessible by laptop or smartphone. Remote access of iReact units enables full configuration as well as immediate safety countermeasures such as the manual disconnection of a faulty or malfunctioning component.

Excessive reactive power presence can often increase a power system’s losses. Switched capacitor banks of modern substations can mitigate the negative effect of reactive power (power factor correction), while decreasing the total transformer load and relieving the transmission system of additional real and reactive power transfer. Surpassing the outdated manual switching, iReact’s ability of automated and optimized capacitor bank switching further improves the reactive compensation strategy and introduces a more effective way of capacitor bank management.

Capacitor bank switching actions slightly affect the distribution side’s voltage magnitude of the substation’s transformer. iReact’s operation parameters include critical voltage sensitive mechanisms, such as On-Load Tap Changers (OLTCs), avoiding thus potential conflicts of corrective actions. iReact-3, together with the iReact-TAP sensor, can efficiently monitor and coordinate OLTC and capacitor banks with specially designed capacitor switching profiles (e.g. high PV penetration case profile). Using historical information and optimization algorithms, the switching profiles are configured for optimal Volt/VAr operation.

Real-time and historical substation data are stored in a well-structured database, where further analysis is possible. Data mining techniques can provide custom visualized reports of valuable operational and economic information, such as profits from total power loss reduction, average load peak value and more. Built-in maintenance indicators of substation equipment improve maintenance time accuracy and equipment efficiency according to custom criteria (e.g. total OLTC moves).

The iReact-Prognosis provides simulation functionalities with the capability to predict short-term load data variations at the substation, by processing and manipulating historical and real-time load data and weather conditions. Advanced algorithms in iReact units process the predicted load datasets and schedules the regulating actions of the substation equipment. The scheduling objective focuses on discarding redundant short-term regulating actions, such as OLTC tap “oscillations”. Real-time SAS management is considered as supervisory and corrective in this scheme.