PowerFactory 2024

User Manual
F2024

POWER SYSTEM SOLUTIONS

MADE IN GERMANY
DIgSILENT PowerFactory
Version 2024

User Manual

Online Edition

DIgSILENT GmbH

Gomaringen, Germany

January 2024
 Publisher:
DIgSILENT GmbH
Heinrich-Hertz-Straße 9
72810 Gomaringen / Germany
Tel.: +49 (0) 7072-9168-0
Fax: +49 (0) 7072-9168-88

Please visit our homepage at:

https://www.digsilent.de

Copyright DIgSILENT GmbH

All rights reserved. No part of this
publication may be reproduced or
distributed in any form without written
permission of the publisher.

January 2024
r11580
Contents

I General Information 1

1 About this Guide 2

1.1 Contents of the User Manual . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

1.2 Used Conventions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

2 Contact 3

2.1 Direct Technical Support . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

2.1.1 PowerFactory Support Package . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

2.1.2 Licence Support Package . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

2.2 Knowledge Base . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

2.3 General Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

3 Documentation and Help System 6

4 PowerFactory Overview 8

4.1 General Concept . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

4.2 PowerFactory Simulation Functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

4.3 General Design of PowerFactory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

4.4 Type and Element Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

4.5 Data Arrangement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15

4.5.1 DIgSILENT Library . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15

4.5.2 Custom Global Library . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15

4.5.3 Project Library . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

4.5.4 Diagrams . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

4.5.5 Network Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

4.5.6 Variations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

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4.5.7 Operation Scenarios . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

4.5.8 Study Cases . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

4.5.9 Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

4.6 Project Structure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

4.6.1 Nodes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

4.6.2 Edge elements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

4.6.3 Branches . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

4.6.4 Cubicles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

4.6.5 Switches . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

4.6.6 Substations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

4.6.7 Secondary Substations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

4.6.8 Sites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

4.6.9 Branch Elements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

4.7 User Interface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

4.7.1 Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

4.7.2 Desktop (SetDesktop) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21

4.7.3 Tab groups (SetTabgroup) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21

4.7.4 Key Features of the user interface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

4.7.5 Menu Bar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24

4.7.6 Main Toolbar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25

4.7.7 The Output Window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29

4.7.8 Use of Colouring in PowerFactory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31

4.8 Scripting in PowerFactory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33

4.8.1 DIgSILENT Programming Language (DPL) Scripts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33

4.8.2 Python Scripts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34

II Administration 35

5 Program Administration 36

5.1 Program Installation and Configuration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36

5.2 PowerFactory Configuration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37

5.2.1 General Page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37

5.2.2 Database Page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37

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5.2.3 Workspace Page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37

5.2.4 External Applications Page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37

5.2.5 Network Page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38

5.2.6 Geographic Maps Page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39

5.2.7 Advanced Page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39

5.3 Licence . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40

5.3.1 Select Licence . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40

5.3.2 Activate / Update / Deactivate / Move Licence . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40

5.3.3 Licence and Maintenance Status . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41

5.4 Workspace Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41

5.4.1 Show Workspace Directory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42

5.4.2 Import and Export Workspace . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42

5.4.3 Show Default Export Directory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42

5.5 Offline Mode User Guide . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42

5.5.1 Functionality in Offline Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42

5.5.2 Functionality in Online Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45

5.5.3 Terminate Offline Session . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45

5.6 Housekeeping . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45

5.6.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45

5.6.2 Configuring Permanently Logged-On Users . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45

5.6.3 Configuring Housekeeping Tasks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46

5.6.4 Project Archiving . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46

5.6.5 Configuring Deletion of Old Projects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46

5.6.6 Configuring Purging of Projects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47

5.6.7 Configuring Emptying of Recycle Bins . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48

5.6.8 Delete orphaned archive files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48

5.6.9 Purge of object keys . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48

5.6.10 Monitoring Housekeeping . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48

5.6.11 Summary of Housekeeping Deployment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48

6 User Accounts, User Groups, and Profiles 50

6.1 PowerFactory Database Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50

6.2 The Database Administrator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51

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6.3 Administration Menu . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52

6.3.1 User Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52

6.3.2 Security and Privacy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52

6.3.3 Calculation Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52

6.3.4 Housekeeping . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52

6.4 Security and Privacy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53

6.4.1 Audit Log . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53

6.4.2 Login Policy Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53

6.4.3 Idle Session Timeout . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54

6.4.4 External Data Access . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54

6.4.5 Privacy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54

6.5 Creating and Managing User Accounts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54

6.6 Creating User Groups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56

6.7 User Interface Customisation (Profiles) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56

6.7.1 Tool Configuration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58

6.7.2 Configuration of Toolbars . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59

6.7.3 Configuration of Menus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60

6.7.4 Configuration of Dialog Pages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61

6.7.5 Configuration of Dialog Parameters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61

6.7.6 References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62

7 User Settings 63

7.1 Data/Network Model Manager Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63

7.2 Window Layout . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64

7.3 Graphic Windows Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65

7.3.1 General tab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65

7.3.2 Advanced tab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65

7.4 Output Window Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66

7.5 Profile Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67

7.6 Functions Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67

7.7 Editor Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67

7.8 Colours Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68

7.9 StationWare Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69

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7.10 Offline Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69

7.11 Parallel Computing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70

7.12 Miscellaneous Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70

7.13 Hotkeys and Quick Access . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71

7.13.1 Hotkeys . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71

7.13.2 Quick Access . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73

III Handling 75

8 Basic Project Definition 76

8.1 Defining and Configuring a Project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76

8.1.1 Project Dialog . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77

8.1.2 Project Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79

8.1.3 Activating and Deactivating Projects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84

8.1.4 Exporting and Importing Projects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85

8.1.5 External References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87

8.1.6 Including Additional Documents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88

8.2 Project Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88

8.3 Creating New Grids . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90

9 Network Graphics 91

9.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91

9.2 Graphic Windows and Database Objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91

9.2.1 Network Diagrams and other graphics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91

9.2.2 Active Graphics, Study Case and Desktop . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92

9.2.3 Single Line Graphics and Data Objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93

9.2.4 Creating New Graphic Windows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94

9.2.5 Page Tab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94

9.2.6 Tab Group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95

9.2.7 Drawing Tools . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95

9.2.8 Active Grid Folder (Target Folder) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97

9.3 Graphic Commands and Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97

9.3.1 Freeze Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97

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9.3.2 Rebuild . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97

9.3.3 View commands . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97

9.3.4 Select commands . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99

9.3.5 Diagram Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99

9.3.6 Drawing Format . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103

9.3.7 Layers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103

9.3.8 Show Legend Layer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108

9.3.9 Show Result Layer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 109

9.3.10 Colouring Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 109

9.3.11 Node Default Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113

9.3.12 Print and Export Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114

9.3.13 Diagram Layout Tool . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114

9.3.14 Element Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114

9.4 Graphical Symbols of Elements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 116

9.4.1 Create a new symbol based on a library symbol . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 116

9.4.2 Create a new symbol from the Data Manager . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117

9.5 Result Boxes, Text Boxes and Labels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118

9.5.1 Result Boxes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118

9.5.2 Text Boxes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 120

9.5.3 Labels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 120

9.5.4 Free Text Labels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 120

9.6 Annotations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121

9.6.1 Annotation of Protection Device . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122

9.7 Geographic Diagrams . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122

9.7.1 Using an External Map Provider . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 123

9.7.2 Using Local Maps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 126

9.8 Graphic Windows Hotkeys . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 127

10 Data Manager and Network Model Manager 129

10.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 129

10.2 Data Manager and Network Model Manager Features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 130

10.2.1 Browser window layout . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 130

10.2.2 Selecting objects and general object-specific actions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 132

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10.2.3 Detail Mode and browser tabs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 132

10.2.4 Flexible Data Page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133

10.2.5 Sorting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 134

10.2.6 Finding objects by name . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 134

10.2.7 Auto-filter functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 135

10.2.8 Editing objects from a Data Manager or Network Model Manager . . . . . . . . 135

10.2.9 Other context menu options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 137

10.2.10 Display of multi-dimensional attributes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 137

10.2.11 Exporting and importing data in spreadsheet format . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 139

10.3 Data Manager Features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 144

10.3.1 Address bar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 144

10.3.2 Navigating the database hierarchy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 145

10.3.3 Searching and filtering . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 145

10.3.4 Adding, deleting and moving objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 147

10.3.5 Data import and export . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 149

10.3.6 Input Window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 150

10.4 Network Model Manager Features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 151

10.4.1 Object classification . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 151

10.4.2 Saving of filters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 152

10.4.3 Scenario Manager . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 152

11 Building Networks 153

11.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 153

11.2 Defining Network Models using the Graphical Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 153

11.2.1 Adding New Power System Elements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 153

11.2.2 Nodes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 154

11.2.3 Edge Elements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 154

11.2.4 Cubicles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 156

11.2.5 Marking and Editing Power System Elements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 156

11.2.6 Interconnecting Power Subsystems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 157

11.2.7 Substations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 159

11.2.8 Sites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 164

11.2.9 Composite Branches . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 165

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11.2.10 Single and Two Phase Elements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 166

11.3 Lines and Cables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 166

11.3.1 Defining a Line (ElmLne) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 168

11.3.2 Defining Line Sections . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 169

11.3.3 Defining Line Compensation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 169

11.3.4 Defining Line Couplings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 169

11.3.5 Defining Cable Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 172

11.4 Neutral Winding Connection in Network Diagrams . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 177

11.5 Defining Network Models using the Data Manager . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 179

11.5.1 Defining New Network Components in the Data Manager . . . . . . . . . . . . . 179

11.5.2 Connecting Network Components in the Data Manager . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 179

11.5.3 Defining Substations in the Data Manager . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 180

11.5.4 Defining Composite Branches in the Data Manager . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 180

11.5.5 Defining Sites in the Data Manager . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 181

11.6 Drawing Existing Elements using the Diagram Layout Tool . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 181

11.6.1 Action . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 182

11.6.2 Node Layout . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 184

11.6.3 Edge Elements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 185

11.6.4 Protection Devices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 186

11.6.5 Bays and Sites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 186

11.6.6 Miscellaneous . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 187

11.6.7 Interchanges . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 188

11.7 Drawing Existing Elements using Drag & Drop . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 188

12 Study Cases 190

12.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 190

12.2 Creating and Using Study Cases . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 191

12.2.1 The Study Case Manager . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 191

12.3 Summary Grid . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 192

12.4 Study Time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 193

12.5 The Study Case Dialog . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 193

12.5.1 Basic Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 194

12.5.2 Calculation Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 194

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12.6 Variation Configuration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 194

12.7 Operation Scenarios . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 194

12.8 Commands . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 195

12.9 Events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 195

12.9.1 Broken Conductor Event . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 196

12.9.2 Dispatch Event . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 196

12.9.3 External Measurement Event . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 197

12.9.4 Inter-Circuit Fault Events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 197

12.9.5 Events of Loads . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 197

12.9.6 Message Event . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 197

12.9.7 Outage of Element (EvtOutage) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 197

12.9.8 Parameter Events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 198

12.9.9 Save Results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 198

12.9.10 Save Snapshot event . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 198

12.9.11 Short-Circuit Events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 198

12.9.12 Stop Events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 199

12.9.13 Switch Events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 199

12.9.14 Synchronous Machine Event . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 199

12.9.15 Tap Event . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 199

12.9.16 Power Transfer Event . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 199

12.10 Simulation Scan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 199

12.11 Results Objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 200

12.12 Triggers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 200

12.13 Desktop . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 200

13 Libraries 201

13.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 201

13.2 DIgSILENT Library . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 201

13.2.1 Versioning in the DIgSILENT Library . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 202

13.3 Custom Global Library . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 202

13.4 Project Library . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 202

13.5 Equipment Type Library . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 203

13.6 Operational Library . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 205

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13.6.1 Circuit Breaker Ratings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 206

13.6.2 Coincidence Definitions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 207

13.6.3 Demand Transfers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 207

13.6.4 Fault Cases and Fault Groups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 208

13.6.5 Capability Curves (Mvar Limit Curves) for Generators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 209

13.6.6 Planned Outages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 212

13.6.7 Planned Outages IntOutage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 212

13.6.8 QP-Curves . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 214

13.6.9 QV-Curves . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 214

13.6.10 Remedial Action Schemes (RAS) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 214

13.6.11 Running Arrangements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 214

13.6.12 Thermal Ratings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 217

13.6.13 V-Control-Curves . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 218

13.7 Reports Library . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 218

13.8 Scripts Library . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 218

13.9 Templates Library . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 219

13.9.1 General Templates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 220

13.9.2 Substation Templates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 221

13.9.3 Busbar Templates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 222

13.9.4 Composite Branch Templates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 222

13.10 Dynamic Models Library . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 222

13.11 Quasi-Dynamic Models Library . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 223

13.12 Protection Devices Library . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 224

13.13 Harmonics Library . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 224

14 Grouping Objects 225

14.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 225

14.2 Areas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 225

14.3 Virtual Power Plants . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 226

14.3.1 Defining and Editing a New Virtual Power Plant . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 227

14.3.2 Applying a Virtual Power Plant . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 227

14.3.3 Inserting a Generator into a Virtual Power Plant . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 227

14.4 Boundaries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 227

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14.4.1 Boundary Definition Tool . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 228

14.4.2 Element Boundary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 229

14.5 Circuits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 230

14.6 Feeders . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 231

14.6.1 Feeder Tools . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 233

14.7 Meteorological Stations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 237

14.8 Operators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 238

14.9 Owners . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 238

14.10 Paths . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 238

14.11 Routes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 240

14.12 Zones . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 240

15 Operation Scenarios 241

15.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 241

15.2 Operation Scenarios Background . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 241

15.3 How to use Operation Scenarios . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 243

15.3.1 How to create an Operation Scenario . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 243

15.3.2 How to save an Operation Scenario . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 244

15.3.3 How to activate an existing Operation Scenario . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 245

15.3.4 How to deactivate an Operation Scenario . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 245

15.3.5 How to identify operational data parameters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 246

15.4 The Operation Scenario Manager . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 247

15.4.1 Accessing the Operation Scenario Manager . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 247

15.4.2 Selecting scenarios and setting up variable configurations . . . . . . . . . . . . 248

15.4.3 Viewing and editing data within the Operation Scenario Manager . . . . . . . . . 250

15.5 Working with Operation Scenarios . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 250

15.5.1 How to view objects missing from the Operation Scenario data . . . . . . . . . . 251

15.5.2 How to compare the data in two operation scenarios . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 251

15.5.3 How to view the non-default Running Arrangements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 251

15.5.4 How to transfer data from one Operation Scenario to another . . . . . . . . . . . 252

15.5.5 How to update the default data with operation scenario data . . . . . . . . . . . 253

15.5.6 How exclude a grid from the Operation Scenario data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 253

15.5.7 How to create a time-based Operation Scenario . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 253

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15.6 Advanced Configuration of Operation Scenarios . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 255

15.6.1 How to change the automatic save settings for Operation Scenarios . . . . . . . 255

15.6.2 How to modify the data stored in Operation Scenarios . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 255

16 Network Variations and Expansion Stages 257

16.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 257

16.2 Variations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 258

16.3 Expansion Stages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 259

16.4 The Study Time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 259

16.5 The Recording Expansion Stage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 260

16.6 The Variation Scheduler . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 260

16.7 Variation and Expansion Stage Example . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 261

16.8 The Variation Manager . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 262

16.8.1 Stage Order . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 263

16.8.2 Object Modifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 264

16.8.3 Attribute Modifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 265

16.9 Variation and Expansion Stage Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 266

16.9.1 Applying Changes from Expansion Stages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 266

16.9.2 Consolidating Variations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 266

16.9.3 Splitting Expansion Stages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 266

16.9.4 Comparing Variations and Expansion Stages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 267

16.9.5 Colouring Variations the Single Line Graphic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 268

16.9.6 Variation Conflicts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 269

16.9.7 Error Correction Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 269

17 Parameter Characteristics, Load States, and Tariffs 271

17.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 271

17.2 Parameter Characteristics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 271

17.2.1 Time Characteristics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 274

17.2.2 Profile Characteristics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 278

17.2.3 Scaling Factor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 279

17.2.4 Linear Functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 279

17.2.5 Vector Characteristics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 280

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17.2.6 Matrix Parameter Characteristics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 281

17.2.7 Parameter Characteristics from Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 281

17.2.8 Characteristic References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 282

17.2.9 Edit Characteristic Dialog . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 282

17.2.10 Characteristics Tab in Data Filters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 282

17.2.11 Example Application of Characteristics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 283

17.3 Load States . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 286

17.3.1 Creating Load States . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 286

17.3.2 Viewing Existing Load States . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 286

17.3.3 Load State Object Properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 287

17.3.4 Example Load States . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 287

17.4 Load Distribution States . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 289

17.4.1 Creating Load Distribution States . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 289

17.4.2 Viewing Existing Load Distribution States . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 289

17.4.3 Load Distribution State Object Properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 289

17.4.4 Example Load Distribution States . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 290

17.5 Tariffs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 291

17.5.1 Defining Time Tariffs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 291

17.5.2 Defining Energy Tariffs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 292

18 Reporting and Visualising Results 294

18.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 294

18.2 Result Boxes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 294

18.2.1 Editing Result Boxes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 294

18.3 Variable Selection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 296

18.3.1 Selection Page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 297

18.3.2 Editor Page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 300

18.3.3 Format/Header Page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 300

18.4 Documentation of Device Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 301

18.4.1 Documentation of Device Data - Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 301

18.4.2 Documentation of Device Data - Filter/Annex . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 302

18.5 Output Reports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 302

18.5.1 Report Generation Command . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 303

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18.5.2 PDF Viewer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 307

18.5.3 Report Manager . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 308

18.5.4 Report Templates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 308

18.5.5 Report Designer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 311

18.6 Comparisons Between Calculations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 314

18.7 Results Objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 314

18.7.1 Exporting Results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 316

18.7.2 Results in Database Format . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 317

18.8 Plots . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 319

18.8.1 Plot Area . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 321

18.8.2 Data Series . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 322

18.8.3 Complex Data Definition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 326

18.8.4 Axes and Gridlines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 328

18.8.5 Plot Legend . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 330

18.8.6 Plots Toolbar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 331

18.8.7 Context Menu Tools . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 337

18.8.8 User-Defined Styles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 339

18.8.9 Plot Types . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 339

19 Data Extensions 355

19.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 355

19.2 Data Extension Configuration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 355

19.2.1 Creating Data Extensions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 355

19.2.2 User Defined Classes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 356

19.3 Using Data Extensions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 356

19.4 Sharing Data Extensions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 357

20 Data Management 358

20.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 358

20.2 Project Versions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 358

20.2.1 What is a Version? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 358

20.2.2 How to Create a Version . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 359

20.2.3 How to Rollback a Project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 360

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20.2.4 How to Check if a Version is the Base for a Derived Project . . . . . . . . . . . . 360

20.2.5 How to Delete a Version . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 361

20.3 Derived Projects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 361

20.3.1 Derived Projects Background . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 361

20.3.2 How to Create a Derived Project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 363

20.4 Comparing and Merging Projects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 364

20.4.1 Compare and Merge Tool Background . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 364

20.4.2 How to Merge or Compare Two Projects Using the Compare and Merge Tool . . 365

20.4.3 How to Merge or Compare Three Projects Using the Compare and Merge Tool 365

20.4.4 Compare and Merge Tool Advanced Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 367

20.4.5 Compare and Merge Tool ’diff browser’ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 368

20.5 How to Update a Project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 373

20.5.1 Updating a Derived Project from a new Version . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 373

20.5.2 Updating a Base Project from a Derived Project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 375

20.5.3 Tips for Working with the Compare and Merge Tool . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 375

20.6 Sharing Projects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 375

20.7 Combining Projects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 376

20.7.1 Project Combination Assistant . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 376

20.7.2 Project Connection Assistant . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 377

20.7.3 Final Project State . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 379

20.7.4 Project Normalisation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 379

20.8 Database Archiving . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 379

21 Task Automation 381

21.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 381

21.2 Configuration of Task Automation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 382

21.2.1 Basic Options Page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 382

21.2.2 Parallel Computing Page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 383

21.2.3 Output Page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 384

21.3 Task Automation Results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 384

21.4 Parallel Computing Manager . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 385

21.4.1 Basic Options Page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 386

21.4.2 Communication page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 386

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22 Scripting 387

22.1 The DIgSILENT Programming Language - DPL . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 387

22.1.1 The Principle Structure of a DPL Command . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 388

22.1.2 The DPL Command . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 389

22.1.3 The DPL Script Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 391

22.1.4 The DPL Script Language . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 392

22.1.5 Access to Other Objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 397

22.1.6 Access to Locally Stored Objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 398

22.1.7 Accessing the General Selection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 398

22.1.8 Accessing External Objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 399

22.1.9 Remote Scripts and DPL Command Libraries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 400

22.1.10 DPL Functions and Subroutines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 403

22.2 Tabular Reports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 403

22.2.1 Basic Structure of a Tabular Report . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 404

22.2.2 The Tabular Report Command . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 404

22.2.3 A minimal Tabular Report . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 406

22.2.4 Handling different kinds of data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 406

22.2.5 Advanced Features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 407

22.2.6 Tabular Report Callback Script Reference . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 410

22.3 Python . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 412

22.3.1 Installation of a Python Interpreter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 412

22.3.2 The Python PowerFactory Module . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 413

22.3.3 The Python Command (ComPython) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 414

22.3.4 Running PowerFactory in Non-interactive Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 417

22.3.5 Performance of Python Scripts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 417

22.3.6 Debugging Python Scripts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 418

22.3.7 Example of a Python Script . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 419

22.4 Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 419

22.5 Add On Modules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 420

22.5.1 Add On Module framework . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 421

22.5.2 Creating a new Add-on Module command . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 422

22.5.3 Executing an Add-on Module command . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 423

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22.5.4 Adding Add On Modules to the User-Defined Tools toolbar . . . . . . . . . . . . 424

23 Interfaces 425

23.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 425

23.2 DGS Interface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 425

23.2.1 DGS Interface Typical Applications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 426

23.2.2 DGS Structure (Database Schemas and File Formats) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 427

23.2.3 DGS Import . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 427

23.2.4 DGS Export . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 429

23.3 ANAREDE and ANAFAS Interface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 431

23.4 PSS/E File Interface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 431

23.4.1 PSS/E File Types and Versions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 431

23.4.2 Importing PSS/E Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 431

23.4.3 Exporting a project to a PSS/E file . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 432

23.5 PSS/U Interface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 433

23.5.1 Importing PSS/U Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 433

23.6 PSS/ADEPT Import Converter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 434

23.7 NEPLAN Interface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 435

23.7.1 Importing NEPLAN Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 435

23.8 INTEGRAL Interface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 436

23.8.1 Importing Integral Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 436

23.8.2 Export Integral Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 437

23.9 PSS SINCAL Interface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 437

23.9.1 Importing PSS SINCAL Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 437

23.10 UCTE-DEF Interface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 437

23.10.1 Importing UCTE-DEF Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 438

23.10.2 Exporting UCTE-DEF Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 438

23.11 CIM Interface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 439

23.11.1 Importing CIM Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 439

23.11.2 Exporting CIM Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 440

23.12 CGMES Tools . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 441

23.12.1 CIM Data Import . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 441

23.12.2 CIM Data Export . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 442

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23.12.3 CIM to Grid Conversion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 442

23.12.4 Grid to CIM Conversion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 443

23.12.5 CIM Data Validation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 444

23.12.6 Import and Export of the EIC as additional parameter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 444

23.13 Functional Mock-Up Interface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 444

23.14 OPC Interface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 444

23.14.1 OPC Interface Typical Applications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 445

23.15 StationWare Interface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 446

23.15.1 About StationWare . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 446

23.15.2 Component Architecture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 446

23.15.3 Fundamental Concepts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 448

23.15.4 Configuration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 452

23.15.5 Getting Started . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 453

23.15.6 Description of the Menu and Dialogs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 463

23.16 API (Application Programming Interface) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 468

IV Power System Analysis Functions 469

24 Load Flow Analysis 470

24.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 470

24.2 Technical Background . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 472

24.2.1 Network Representation and Calculation Methods . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 474

24.3 Executing Load Flow Calculations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 477

24.3.1 Basic Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 477

24.3.2 Active Power Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 478

24.3.3 Advanced Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 481

24.3.4 Calculation Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 484

24.3.5 Outputs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 488

24.3.6 Load/Generation Scaling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 489

24.4 Detailed Description of Load Flow Calculation Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 489

24.4.1 Active and Reactive Power Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 490

24.4.2 Voltage Dependency of Loads . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 497

24.4.3 Feeder Load Scaling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 498

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24.4.4 Temperature Dependency of Lines and Cables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 502

24.4.5 Load Flow initialisation and saving of results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 503

24.4.6 Load flow calculation for train simulation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 504

24.5 Results Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 506

24.5.1 Viewing Results in the Single Line Diagram . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 506

24.5.2 Flexible Data Page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 507

24.5.3 Standard Reports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 507

24.5.4 Diagram Colouring . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 507

24.5.5 Load Flow Sign Convention . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 508

24.5.6 Results for Unbalanced Load Flow Calculations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 508

24.5.7 Update Database . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 509

24.6 Troubleshooting Load Flow Calculation Problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 510

24.6.1 General Troubleshooting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 511

24.6.2 Data Model Problem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 512

24.6.3 Some Load Flow Calculation Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 512

24.6.4 Too many Inner Loop Iterations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 513

24.6.5 Too Many Outer Loop Iterations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 514

25 Short-Circuit Analysis 517

25.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 517

25.2 Technical Background . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 518

25.2.1 The IEC 60909/VDE 0102 Part 0/DIN EN 60909-0 Method . . . . . . . . . . . . 520

25.2.2 The ANSI Method . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 523

25.2.3 The Complete Method . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 525

25.2.4 The IEC 61363 Method . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 527

25.2.5 The IEC 61660 (DC)/VDE0102 part 10(DC)/DIN EN 61660 Method . . . . . . . 528

25.2.6 The ANSI/IEEE 946 (DC) Method . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 530

25.3 Executing Short-Circuit Calculations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 530

25.3.1 Toolbar/Main Menu Execution . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 530

25.3.2 Context Menu Execution . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 531

25.3.3 Faults on Busbars/Terminals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 531

25.3.4 Faults on Lines and Branches . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 532

25.3.5 Multiple Faults Calculation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 532

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25.4 Short-Circuit Calculation Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 534

25.4.1 Basic Options (All Methods) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 534

25.4.2 Output (All Methods) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 537

25.4.3 Verification (Except for IEC 61363, IEC 61660 and ANSI/IEEE 946) . . . . . . . 537

25.4.4 Basic Options (IEC 60909/VDE 0102 Method) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 537

25.4.5 Advanced Options (IEC 60909/VDE 0102 Method) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 538

25.4.6 Basic Options (ANSI C37 Method) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 541

25.4.7 Advanced Options (ANSI C37 Method) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 542

25.4.8 Basic Options (Complete Method) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 543

25.4.9 Advanced Options (Complete Method) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 544

25.4.10 Basic Options (IEC 61363) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 547

25.4.11 Advanced Options (IEC 61363) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 548

25.4.12 Basic Options (IEC 61660 Method) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 548

25.4.13 Advanced Options (IEC 61660 Method) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 549

25.4.14 Basic Options (ANSI/IEEE 946 Method) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 550

25.4.15 Advanced Options (ANSI/IEEE 946 Method) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 550

25.5 Results Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 551

25.5.1 Viewing Results in the Single Line Diagram . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 551

25.5.2 Flexible Data Page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 551

25.5.3 Predefined Reports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 552

25.5.4 Diagram Colouring . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 552

25.6 Capacitive Earth-Fault Current . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 553

26 Contingency Analysis 554

26.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 554

26.2 Short Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 554

26.2.1 Contingency Analysis Objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 555

26.2.2 Results Recording . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 556

26.2.3 Configuring Network Restoration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 556

26.2.4 Visualisation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 557

26.3 Contingency Analysis Toolbar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 557

26.3.1 Contingency Definition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 557

26.3.2 Contingency Analysis Command . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 557

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26.3.3 Contingency Comparison . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 558

26.3.4 Show Contingencies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 558

26.3.5 Show Fault Cases / Groups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 558

26.3.6 Remedial Action Schemes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 558

26.3.7 Edit Results Variables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 558

26.3.8 Tracing Buttons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 558

26.3.9 Contingency Analysis Reports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 558

26.3.10 Load Contingency Analysis Results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 558

26.4 Command dialog and Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 559

26.4.1 Basic Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 559

26.4.2 Recording of Results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 560

26.4.3 Time Phases . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 562

26.4.4 Effectiveness . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 565

26.4.5 Time Sweep . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 566

26.4.6 Topology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 567

26.4.7 Screening . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 568

26.4.8 Output . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 569

26.4.9 Linearised Calculation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 569

26.4.10 Parallel Computing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 569

26.4.11 Calculating an Individual Contingency . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 570

26.4.12 Representing Contingency Situations

Contingency Cases . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 570

26.5 Reporting Results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 572

26.5.1 Predefined Reports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 572

26.5.2 Customised reports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 575

26.6 Trace Function for Multiple Time Phase and/or RAS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 575

26.7 Creating Contingencies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 575

26.7.1 Creating Contingencies Using the Contingency Definition Command . . . . . . . 576

26.7.2 Creating Contingencies Using Fault

Cases and Groups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 577

26.7.3 Creating Dynamic Contingencies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 578

26.8 Fault Cases and Groups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 579

26.8.1 Browsing Fault Cases and Fault Groups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 580

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26.8.2 Defining a Fault Case from Network Element(s) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 580

26.8.3 Defining Fault Cases using the Contingency Definition Command . . . . . . . . 581

26.8.4 Representing Contingency Situations with Post-Fault Actions . . . . . . . . . . . 581

26.8.5 Defining a Fault Group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 582

26.9 Comparing Contingency Results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 582

26.10 Managing variables to be recorded . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 584

26.10.1 Using filters to enable selective results recording . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 584

26.11 Remedial Action Schemes (RAS) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 585

26.11.1 Creating a RAS object . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 585

26.11.2 Trigger Conditions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 586

26.11.3 Logical combinations of triggers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 586

26.11.4 Remedial actions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 586

26.11.5 RAS groups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 587

26.11.6 Using Remedial Action Schemes in Contingency Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . 587

26.11.7 Results and reporting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 587

26.11.8 Visualising RAS using the Trace Function . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 589

26.12 Load Contingency Analysis Results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 590

26.12.1 Load Individual Contingencies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 590

27 Quasi-Dynamic Simulation 591

27.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 591

27.2 Technical background . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 591

27.3 How to execute a Quasi-Dynamic Simulation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 593

27.3.1 Defining the variables for monitoring in the Quasi-Dynamic simulation . . . . . . 594

27.3.2 Considering maintenance outages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 595

27.3.3 Considering simulation events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 595

27.3.4 Running the Quasi-Dynamic simulation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 597

27.3.5 Configuring the Quasi-Dynamic Simulation for parallel computation . . . . . . . 598

27.3.6 Configure the Quasi-Dynamic Simulation for real time simulation . . . . . . . . . 599

27.3.7 Use Neural Network approximation in the Quasi-Dynamic Simulation . . . . . . 599

27.4 Analysing the QDS results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 599

27.4.1 Plotting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 600

27.4.2 Quasi-Dynamic simulation reports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 600

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27.4.3 Statistical summary of monitored variables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 600

27.4.4 Loading Results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 601

27.5 Developing QDSL models . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 601

27.5.1 PowerFactory objects for implementing user defined models . . . . . . . . . . . 602

27.5.2 Overview of modelling approach . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 605

27.5.3 Algorithm flow of user defined Quasi-Dynamic models . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 606

27.5.4 Scripting Functions for Quasi-Dynamic Simulation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 609

27.5.5 Example: Modelling a battery as a Quasi-Dynamic user defined model . . . . . 614

28 RMS/EMT Simulations 623

28.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 623

28.2 Calculation Methods . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 625

28.2.1 Balanced RMS Simulation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 625

28.2.2 Three-Phase RMS Simulation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 626

28.2.3 Three-Phase EMT Simulation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 626

28.3 Calculation of Initial Conditions command . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 626

28.3.1 Initial Conditions - Basic Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 627

28.3.2 Initial Conditions - Step Size . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 630

28.3.3 Initial Conditions - Solver Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 631

28.3.4 Initial Conditions - Simulation Scan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 635

28.3.5 Initial Conditions - Noise Generation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 635

28.3.6 Initial Conditions - Real Time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 636

28.3.7 Initial Conditions - Snapshot . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 636

28.3.8 Advanced Simulation Options - Load Flow . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 637

28.4 Results Objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 638

28.4.1 Monitoring variables of an element . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 640

28.4.2 Saving Results from Previous Simulations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 641

28.5 Simulation Events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 641

28.6 Executing the Simulation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 644

28.7 Creating Simulation Plots . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 644

28.8 Simulation Scan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 645

28.8.1 Fault Ride Through Scan Module . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 645

28.8.2 Frequency Scan Module . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 647

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28.8.3 Loss of Synchronism Scan Module . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 649

28.8.4 Synchronous Machine Speed Scan Module . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 649

28.8.5 Variable Scan Module . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 650

28.8.6 Voltage Scan Module . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 651

28.9 Save/Load Snapshot . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 653

28.9.1 Saving a snapshot . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 653

28.9.2 Loading a snapshot . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 653

28.10 Single/Multiple Domain Co-simulation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 654

28.10.1 Overview of the Single/Multiple Domain Co-simulation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 654

28.10.2 Configuring the Internal Co-simulation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 656

28.10.3 Performing a Co-simulation and Retrieving Results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 658

28.10.4 The “Initial conditions for co-simulation” (ComCosim) Command . . . . . . . . . 659

28.10.5 Terms and Definitions for Co-simulation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 662

28.11 Co-simulation with External Application . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 663

28.11.1 Overview of the Co-simulation with External Application . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 663

28.11.2 Configuring the Co-simulation with external application . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 664

28.11.3 Performing out a Co-simulation and Retrieving Results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 673

28.11.4 The “Preparation as FMU Agent” (ComCosimsetup) Command . . . . . . . . . 674

28.11.5 FMU Agent I/O and FMU Agent objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 677

28.11.6 The “Initial conditions for co-simulation” (ComCosim) Command . . . . . . . . . 678

28.11.7 Terms and Definitions for Co-simulation with External Application . . . . . . . . 679

28.12 Frequency Response Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 680

28.12.1 Basic Usage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 680

28.12.2 Basic Data Page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 681

28.12.3 Output Page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 683

28.12.4 Advanced Page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 684

28.12.5 Output Plots . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 684

28.12.6 Output Results Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 684

28.12.7 Application notes and guidelines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 684

28.13 Frequency Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 688

28.13.1 Prony Analysis Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 688

28.13.2 Basic Usage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 690

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28.13.3 Basic Options Page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 691

28.13.4 FFT Page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 692

28.13.5 Prony Analysis Page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 693

28.13.6 Recalculation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 694

28.13.7 Output Plots . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 695

28.13.8 Output Results Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 695

28.13.9 General Recommendations on the Use of Prony Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . 697

28.13.10 Quick Overview of Used Formulas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 700

29 Models for Dynamic Simulations 702

29.1 System Modelling Approach . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 703

29.1.1 Overview of dynamic models in PowerFactory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 703

29.1.2 Model availability within PowerFactory : Built-in or User-defined models . . . . . 704

29.1.3 Externally interfaced versus PowerFactory native models . . . . . . . . . . . . . 705

29.1.4 Complete Power Equipment simulation models . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 706

29.1.5 Compilation of PowerFactory native dynamic models . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 706

29.2 High-level Control System Representation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 708

29.2.1 Data Structures for Dynamic Models within PowerFactory . . . . . . . . . . . . . 708

29.2.2 Composite Model Frames and Composite Models . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 708

29.2.3 Creating a new Composite Model Frame . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 711

29.2.4 Drawing a high-level control system in a Composite Model Frame . . . . . . . . 712

29.2.5 Configuration of Composite Model Frame components . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 715

29.2.6 Creating and configuring a Composite Model . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 719

29.2.7 Array signal distribution/aggregation in high-level control systems . . . . . . . . 722

29.2.8 Using power system measurements in a high-level control system . . . . . . . . 740

29.3 DSL: Integrating DSL Models into a Simulation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 741

29.3.1 DSL Models and DSL Model Types . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 741

29.3.2 Creating a DSL Model . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 745

29.3.3 Saving and plotting model variables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 745

29.3.4 Example of a DSL Model implementation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 745

29.4 DSL: The DIgSILENT Simulation Language . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 748

29.4.1 Introduction to DSL . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 748

29.4.2 Structure of a dynamic model using DSL . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 749

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29.4.3 Terms and Abbreviations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 751

29.4.4 General DSL Syntax . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 751

29.4.5 DSL Variables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 752

29.4.6 DSL Model Structure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 754

29.4.7 Initial Conditions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 754

29.4.8 Equation Code . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 759

29.4.9 Various model definitions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 761

29.4.10 DSL Macros . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 762

29.4.11 Events and Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 763

29.4.12 Advanced DSL Features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 763

29.4.13 Graphically defined DSL Model Types . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 764

29.5 DSL: Overview of the DSL Model Type . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 764

29.5.1 Creating a new DSL Model Type . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 764

29.5.2 The Edit Dialog of the DSL Model Type . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 764

29.6 DSL: Creating DSL Model Types using Block Diagrams . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 771

29.6.1 Drawing Diagrams of DSL Model Types . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 773

29.7 DSL: Coded DSL Model Types (non-graphically defined) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 779

29.8 Modelica: Integrating Modelica Models into a Simulation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 780

29.8.1 Modelica Models and Modelica Model Types . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 780

29.8.2 Creating a new Modelica Model . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 782

29.8.3 Saving and plotting model variables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 782

29.8.4 Support of PowerFactory functionalities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 782

29.8.5 Example of a Modelica Model implementation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 782

29.9 Modelica: A Non-proprietary, Object-oriented, Equation-based Language . . . . . . . . . 785

29.9.1 Modelica: Overview of an Open and Comprehensive Systems Modelling Lan-

guage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 785

29.9.2 Supported Modelica functionality . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 785

29.9.3 Terms and definitions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 785

29.10 Modelica: Creating Modelica Models using Block Diagrams . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 787

29.10.1 Graphical environment for Modelica Models . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 788

29.10.2 Developing Modelica Models . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 790

29.10.3 Integrating Modelica Models into a PowerFactory simulation . . . . . . . . . . . 799

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29.11 Modelica: Creating Modelica Models using Code . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 802

29.11.1 Dynamic model definition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 802

29.11.2 Dynamic model parameterisation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 804

29.12 Modelica: Overview of the Modelica Model Type . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 805

29.12.1 Creating a new Modelica Model Type . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 805

29.12.2 The Edit Dialog of the Modelica Model Type . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 805

29.13 Modelica: Overview of the Modelica Model (ElmMdl) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 813

29.14 Interfaces for Dynamic Models . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 815

29.14.1 Functional Mock-Up Interface (version 2.0) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 815

29.14.2 External C Interface acc. to IEC 61400-27 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 820

29.14.3 DSL-C Interface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 822

29.14.4 MATLAB Interface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 825

29.15 Developing User-defined Power Electronics Models for EMT Simulation . . . . . . . . . . 825

29.15.1 Model development as a Submodel of a built-in element . . . . . . . . . . . . . 826

29.15.2 Model development as an independent EMT model . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 828

29.16 DSL Reference . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 834

29.16.1 DSL Standard Functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 834

29.16.2 DSL Special Functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 835

29.16.3 DSL Global Library Macros . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 852

30 System Parameter Identification 853

30.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 853

30.2 Performing a Parameter Identification . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 854

30.2.1 Basic Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 854

30.2.2 Controls / Compared Signals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 855

30.2.3 PSO (Particle Swarm Optimisation) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 857

30.2.4 Nelder Mead . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 857

30.2.5 DIRECT (DIviding RECTangle) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 857

30.2.6 Random Number Generation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 857

30.2.7 Gradient Calculation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 858

30.2.8 Stopping Criteria . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 858

30.2.9 Output . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 859

30.3 Algorithms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 860

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30.3.1 Problem Description . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 860

30.3.2 Particle Swarm Optimisation (PSO) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 860

30.3.3 Nelder Mead . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 862

30.3.4 DIRECT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 863

30.3.5 BFGS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 864

30.3.6 Legacy (Quasi-Newton) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 865

30.4 What solver should I pick? (Pros and Cons of the different solvers) . . . . . . . . . . . . 865

30.4.1 PSO - Particle Swarm Optimisation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 865

30.4.2 Nelder-Mead . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 865

30.4.3 DIRECT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 865

30.4.4 BFGS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 865

30.4.5 Legacy (Quasi-Newton) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 866

30.5 What can I do if a solver has difficulties in finding good parameters? . . . . . . . . . . . . 866

30.5.1 PSO - Particle Swarm Optimisation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 866

30.5.2 Nelder Mead . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 866

30.5.3 DIRECT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 866

30.5.4 BFGS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 867

30.5.5 Legacy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 867

31 Modal Analysis / Eigenvalue Calculation 868

31.1 Theory of Modal Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 868

31.2 How to Execute a Modal Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 871

31.3 Modal/Eigenvalue Analysis Command . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 871

31.3.1 Basic Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 871

31.3.2 Algorithm . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 873

31.3.3 Results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 874

31.3.4 Output . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 875

31.4 Viewing Modal Analysis Results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 878

31.4.1 Modal/Eigenvalue Analysis Results Command . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 879

31.4.2 Modal Analysis Results in Built-in Plots . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 880

31.4.3 Eigenvalues Results in Single Line Diagrams . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 886

31.4.4 Modal Analysis Results in the Output Window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 886

31.4.5 Modal Analysis Results in the Data Browser . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 887

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32 Protection 889

32.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 889

32.1.1 The modelling structure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 890

32.1.2 The relay frame . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 891

32.1.3 The relay type . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 891

32.1.4 The relay element . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 892

32.2 How to define a protection scheme in PowerFactory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 893

32.2.1 Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 893

32.2.2 Adding protective devices to the network model . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 894

32.2.3 Graphical representations of protection devices in single line diagrams . . . . . 896

32.2.4 Locating protection devices within the network model . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 898

32.3 Basics of an overcurrent protection scheme . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 899

32.3.1 Overcurrent relay model setup - basic data page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 899

32.3.2 Overcurrent relay model setup - max/min fault

currents tab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 900

32.3.3 Configuring the current transformer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 901

32.3.4 Configuring the voltage transformer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 903

32.3.5 Configuring a combined Instrument transformer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 905

32.3.6 How to add a fuse to the network model . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 906

32.3.7 Basic relay blocks for overcurrent relays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 907

32.4 The time-overcurrent plot . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 912

32.4.1 How to create a time-overcurrent plot . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 913

32.4.2 Understanding the time-overcurrent plot . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 914

32.4.3 Showing the calculation results on the time-overcurrent plot . . . . . . . . . . . . 914

32.4.4 Displaying the grading margins . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 915

32.4.5 Adding a user defined permanent current line to the time-overcurrent plot . . . . 916

32.4.6 Configuring the auto generated protection diagram . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 916

32.4.7 Overcurrent plot options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 916

32.4.8 Axes and Gridlines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 920

32.4.9 Plot Legend . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 920

32.4.10 Altering protection device characteristic settings from the time-overcurrent plot . 920

32.4.11 How to split the relay/fuse characteristic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 920

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32.4.12 Equipment damage curves . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 923

32.5 Basics of a distance protection scheme . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 934

32.5.1 Distance relay model setup - basic data page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 934

32.5.2 Primary or secondary Ohm selection for distance relay parameters . . . . . . . 934

32.5.3 Basic relay blocks used for distance protection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 935

32.6 The impedance plot (R-X diagram) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 942

32.6.1 How to create an R-X diagram . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 942

32.6.2 Understanding the R-X diagram . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 943

32.6.3 Configuring the R-X plot . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 944

32.6.4 Modifying the relay settings and branch elements from the R-X plot . . . . . . . 946

32.7 The relay operational limits plot (P-Q diagram) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 947

32.7.1 How to create a P-Q diagram . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 947

32.7.2 Understanding the P-Q diagram . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 947

32.7.3 Configuring the P-Q plot . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 948

32.7.4 Modifying the starting element settings from the R-X plot . . . . . . . . . . . . . 950

32.8 The time-distance plot . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 950

32.8.1 Forward and reverse plots . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 951

32.8.2 The path axis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 952

32.8.3 Methods of calculating tripping times . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 952

32.8.4 Short-circuit calculation settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 953

32.8.5 The distance axis units . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 954

32.8.6 The reference relay . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 954

32.8.7 Capture relays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 954

32.8.8 Double-click positions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 954

32.8.9 The context menu . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 955

32.9 Basics of a differential protection scheme . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 955

32.9.1 Differential relay model setup-basic data page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 955

32.9.2 Basic relay blocks used for differential protection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 955

32.10 Differential Plots . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 956

32.10.1 Magnitude biased differential diagram . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 956

32.10.2 Phase comparison differential diagram . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 957

32.11 The Short-Circuit Sweep command . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 958

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32.12 Short-Circuit Sweep Plots . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 960

32.12.1 Configuration of Short-Circuit Sweep plots . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 961

32.13 Protection coordination assistant . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 963

32.13.1 Technical background . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 963

32.13.2 General Handling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 966

32.13.3 Basic Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 967

32.13.4 Overcurrent Protection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 968

32.13.5 Distance Protection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 971

32.13.6 Grading Times . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 983

32.13.7 Advanced Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 983

32.13.8 Prerequisites for using the protection coordination tool . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 983

32.13.9 How to run the protection coordination calculation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 984

32.13.10 How to output results from the protection coordination assistant . . . . . . . . . 984

32.14 Accessing results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 988

32.14.1 Quick access to protection plots . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 988

32.14.2 Tabular protection setting report . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 990

32.14.3 Results in single line graphic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 992

32.15 Protection Audit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 992

32.15.1 Protection Audit Command Handling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 993

32.15.2 Protection Audit Results Command Handling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 994

32.15.3 Report Handling and interpretation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 998

32.16 Short circuit trace . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1001

32.16.1 Short Circuit Trace Handling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1003

32.17 Protection Graphic Assistant . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1005

32.17.1 Reach Colouring . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1006

32.17.2 Short-Circuit Sweep Plot . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1008

32.17.3 Diagram Update . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1010

32.18 Building a basic overcurrent relay model . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1011

32.19 Appendix - other commonly used relay blocks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1014

32.19.1 The frequency measurement block . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1014

32.19.2 The frequency block . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1015

32.19.3 The under-/overvoltage block . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1015

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32.20 Relay block technical references . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1015

33 Arc-Flash Hazard Analysis 1016

33.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1016

33.2 Arc-Flash Hazard Analysis Background . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1016

33.2.1 General . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1016

33.2.2 Determination of arc duration and consideration of arcing current . . . . . . . . 1017

33.2.3 Input Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1018

33.2.4 Arc Models and Ranges of Calculation Models . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1020

33.3 Arc-Flash Hazard Analysis Calculation Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1023

33.3.1 Arc-Flash Hazard Analysis Basic Options Page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1023

33.3.2 Arc-Flash Hazard Analysis Advanced Options Page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1025

33.4 Arc-Flash Hazard Analysis Results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1026

33.4.1 Viewing Results in the Single Line Graphic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1026

33.4.2 Arc-Flash Reports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1026

33.5 Example Arc-Flash Hazard Analysis Calculation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1028

34 Cable Analysis 1031

34.1 Cable Sizing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1032

34.1.1 Cable Models for Cable Sizing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1032

34.1.2 Cable Sizing Calculation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1035

34.1.3 Cable Sizing Results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1041

34.2 Cable Ampacity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1043

34.2.1 Cable Models for Cable Ampacity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1044

34.2.2 Cable Ampacity Calculation Command . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1050

34.3 Cable Ampacity Report . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1052

35 Power Quality and Harmonics Analysis 1053

35.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1053

35.2 Harmonic Load Flow . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1054

35.2.1 Basic Options Harmonic Load Flow . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1054

35.2.2 Results/Output . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1056

35.2.3 IEC 61000-3-6 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1057

35.2.4 Advanced Options Harmonic Load Flow . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1057

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35.2.5 Harmonic Load Flow Result Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1058

35.3 Frequency Sweep . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1063

35.3.1 Basic Options Frequency Sweep . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1063

35.3.2 Advanced Options Frequency Sweep . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1065

35.3.3 Frequency Sweep Result Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1065

35.4 Modelling Harmonic Sources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1067

35.4.1 Definition of Harmonic Injections . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1068

35.4.2 Assignment of Harmonic Injections . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1073

35.4.3 Frequency Dependent Parameters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1074

35.5 Flicker Analysis (IEC 61400-21) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1075

35.5.1 Continuous Operation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1076

35.5.2 Switching Operations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1076

35.5.3 Flicker Contribution of Wind Turbine Generator Models . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1077

35.5.4 Definition of Flicker Coefficients . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1077

35.5.5 Assignment of Flicker Coefficients . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1078

35.5.6 Flicker Results Variables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1078

35.6 Short-Circuit Power . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1079

35.6.1 Balanced Harmonic Load Flow . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1079

35.6.2 Unbalanced Harmonic Load Flow . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1079

35.6.3 Sk Result Variables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1080

35.6.4 Short-Circuit Power of the External Grid . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1080

35.7 Definition of Result Variables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1081

35.7.1 Definition of Variable Selections . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1082

35.7.2 Definition of Frequency Dependent Network Equivalent Data . . . . . . . . . . . 1082

36 Connection Request Assessment 1084

36.1 How to execute a Connection Request Assessment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1084

36.2 Connection Request Assessment: D-A-CH-CZ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1085

36.2.1 Basic Options D-A-CH-CZ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1086

36.2.2 Advanced D-A-CH-CZ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1088

36.3 Connection Request Assessment: BDEW, 4th Supplement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1088

36.3.1 Basic Options BDEW . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1089

36.4 Connection Request Assessment: VDE-AR-N 4100/4105 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1090

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36.4.1 Basic Options VDE-AR-N 4100/4105 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1091

36.5 Connection Request Assessment: VDE-AR-N 4110 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1093

36.5.1 Basic Options VDE-AR-N 4110 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1094

36.6 Connection Request Assessment Report . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1096

37 Flickermeter 1097

37.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1097

37.2 Flickermeter (IEC 61000-4-15) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1097

37.2.1 Calculation of Short-Term Flicker . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1097

37.2.2 Calculation of Long-Term Flicker . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1098

37.3 Flickermeter Calculation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1098

37.3.1 Flickermeter Command . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1098

37.3.2 Data Source . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1098

37.3.3 Signal Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1099

37.3.4 Advanced Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1100

37.3.5 Input File Types . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1101

37.3.6 How to use the Flickermeter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1103

38 Optimal Power Flow 1104

38.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1104

38.2 AC Optimisation (Interior Point Method) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1104

38.2.1 AC Optimisation - Basic Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1105

38.2.2 Controls/Constraints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1108

38.2.3 AC Optimisation - Initialisation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1110

38.2.4 AC Optimisation - Algorithm . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1111

38.2.5 AC Optimisation - Iteration Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1112

38.2.6 AC Optimisation - Results/Output . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1113

38.3 DC Optimisation (Linear Programming) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1114

38.3.1 DC Optimisation - Basic Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1115

38.3.2 DC Optimisation - Controls/Constraints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1116

38.3.3 DC Optimisation - Algorithm . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1118

38.3.4 DC Optimisation - Iteration Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1118

38.4 Contingency Constrained DC Optimisation (LP Method) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1119

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38.4.1 Contingency Constrained DC Optimisation - Basic Options . . . . . . . . . . . . 1119

38.4.2 Contingency Constrained DC Optimisation - Controls/Constraints . . . . . . . . 1120

38.4.3 Contingency Constrained DC Optimisation - Algorithm . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1121

38.4.4 Contingency Constrained DC Optimisation - Iteration Control . . . . . . . . . . . 1121

38.4.5 Contingency Constrained DC Optimisation - Results/Output . . . . . . . . . . . 1121

38.5 Troubleshooting Optimal Power Flow Problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1122

38.5.1 Verification of Load Flow Options and Results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1122

38.5.2 Verifications of OPF Constraints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1122

38.5.3 Verification of the OPF Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1123

38.5.4 Step-by-Step Approach . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1123

39 Unit Commitment and Dispatch Optimisation 1125

39.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1125

39.2 Application Cases for the Unit Commitment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1125

39.2.1 Full Unit Commitment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1126

39.2.2 Market Simulation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1126

39.2.3 Redispatch Calculation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1126

39.3 Unit Commitment Command . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1127

39.3.1 Basic Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1127

39.3.2 Objective Function . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1127

39.3.3 Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1128

39.3.4 Constraints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1130

39.3.5 Results/Output . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1132

39.3.6 Maintenance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1133

39.3.7 Algorithm . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1133

39.3.8 Parallel Computing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1135

39.4 Handling of results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1136

39.4.1 Reports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1136

39.4.2 Plots . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1136

39.4.3 Colouring Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1136

39.4.4 Load Unit Commitment Results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1137

39.4.5 Flexible Data Page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1137

39.5 Generating Units . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1137

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39.5.1 Controls and Limits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1138

39.5.2 Operating Costs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1138

39.5.3 Redispatch Costs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1139

39.5.4 Start-Up/Shut-down Costs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1140

39.5.5 Constraints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1140

39.6 Storage Units . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1140

39.6.1 Efficiency curves . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1141

39.7 Virtual Power Plants . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1141

39.8 Other Network Elements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1142

39.8.1 Transformers, voltage regulators and shunts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1142

39.8.2 Tap Controllers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1142

39.8.3 Loads . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1142

39.8.4 Boundaries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1143

39.8.5 Terminals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1143

39.8.6 Lines and Bays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1143

39.8.7 Regions: Grids, Zones and Areas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1143

39.8.8 HVDC Converters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1143

39.8.9 Advanced constraint settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1143

39.9 Troubleshooting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1144

39.9.1 Solver Selection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1144

39.9.2 Soft Constraints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1144

39.9.3 Performance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1144

39.9.4 Voltage Controlling Elements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1145

39.9.5 Reference Machine . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1145

39.9.6 Not regarded Constraints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1145

39.9.7 Rolling horizon and time dependencies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1145

39.10 Redundant Constraint Filter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1145

39.10.1 Basic Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1146

39.10.2 Algorithm . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1146

39.10.3 Results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1148

40 Transmission Network Tools 1149

40.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1149

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40.2 PV Curves . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1150

40.2.1 PV Curves Calculation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1150

40.2.2 PV Curves Plot . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1152

40.2.3 Outputs and Results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1152

40.3 QV Curves . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1153

40.3.1 QV Curves Calculation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1154

40.3.2 QV Curves Plot . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1156

40.4 Power Transfer Distribution Factors (PTDF) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1157

40.4.1 Calculation Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1157

40.5 Transfer Capacity Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1159

40.5.1 Basic Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1159

40.5.2 Constraints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1160

40.5.3 Output . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1161

40.5.4 Iteration Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1162

40.5.5 Advanced . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1162

40.6 Flow Decomposition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1164

40.6.1 Technical Background . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1165

40.6.2 Flow Decomposition Command . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1166

40.6.3 Flow Decomposition Tabular Report . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1167

40.6.4 Flow Decomposition Plots . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1168

41 Distribution Network Tools 1169

41.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1169

41.2 Hosting Capacity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1170

41.2.1 Technical Background . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1171

41.2.2 Hosting Capacity Analysis Configuration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1172

41.2.3 Results of the Hosting Capacity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1179

41.3 Backbone Calculation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1182

41.3.1 Basic Options Page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1182

41.3.2 Scoring Settings Page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1183

41.3.3 Tracing Backbones . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1184

41.3.4 Example Backbone Calculation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1184

41.4 Voltage Sag . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1185

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41.4.1 Calculation Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1185

41.4.2 How to Perform a Voltage Sag Table Assessment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1186

41.4.3 Voltage Sag Table Assessment Results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1187

41.5 Low Voltage Load Flow Calculation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1188

41.5.1 Technical Background . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1189

41.5.2 Setting up Low Voltage Loads . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1190

41.5.3 Low Voltage Load Flow Configuration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1193

41.5.4 Results of the Low Voltage Load Flow Calculation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1197

41.6 Tie Open Point Optimisation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1197

41.6.1 Technical Background . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1197

41.6.2 How to run a Tie Open Point Optimisation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1198

41.6.3 Results of the Tie Open Point Optimisation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1203

41.7 Phase Balance Optimisation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1204

41.7.1 Objective functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1204

41.7.2 Methods . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1205

41.7.3 Elements considered . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1206

41.7.4 Representation of solution . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1206

41.7.5 Output . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1206

41.8 Voltage Profile Optimisation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1206

41.8.1 Optimisation Procedure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1208

41.8.2 Basic Options Page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1209

41.8.3 Output Page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1210

41.8.4 Advanced Options Page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1211

41.8.5 Results of Voltage Profile Optimisation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1211

41.9 Optimal Equipment Placement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1212

41.9.1 Optimal Equipment Placement Configuration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1213

41.9.2 Results of the Optimal Equipment Placement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1220

41.9.3 Troubleshooting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1222

41.10 Optimal Capacitor Placement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1223

41.10.1 OCP Objective Function . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1223

41.10.2 OCP Optimisation Procedure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1225

41.10.3 Basic Options Page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1225

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41.10.4 Available Capacitors Page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1227

41.10.5 Load Characteristics Page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1227

41.10.6 Advanced Options Page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1228

41.10.7 Results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1229

41.11 Optimisation Algorithms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1230

41.11.1 Genetic Algorithm . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1230

41.11.2 Simulated Annealing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1232

42 Outage Management 1233

42.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1233

42.2 Creating Planned Outages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1233

42.2.1 Creating Planned Outages from Graphic or Network Model Manager . . . . . . 1233

42.2.2 Creating Planned Outages in Data Manager . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1234

42.2.3 Recurrent Outages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1234

42.2.4 Adding Additional Events to an Outage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1235

42.3 Handling Planned Outages using the Outage Management Toolbox . . . . . . . . . . . . 1236

42.3.1 Show Planned Outages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1236

42.3.2 Apply Planned Outages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1236

42.3.3 Reset All Planned Outages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1236

42.3.4 Start Recording . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1236

42.3.5 Outage Schedule Report . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1236

43 Economic Analysis Tools 1238

43.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1238

43.2 Techno-Economical Calculation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1238

43.2.1 Technical Background . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1238

43.2.2 Techno-Economical Calculation Command . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1240

43.2.3 Handling of Results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1244

43.2.4 Example Calculation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1245

43.3 Techno-Economical Study Case Comparison . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1248

43.3.1 Additional Techno-Economical Calculation Quantities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1248

43.3.2 Techno-Economical Study Case Comparison Command . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1249

43.3.3 Techno-Economical Study Case Comparison Example . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1250

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43.4 Power Park Energy Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1252

43.4.1 Power Park Energy Analysis Configuration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1252

43.4.2 Power Park Energy Analysis Report . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1256

43.4.3 Visualisation of Power Park Energy Analysis Results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1257

44 Probabilistic Analysis 1258

44.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1258

44.2 Technical Background . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1259

44.2.1 Distributions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1259

44.2.2 Modelling Dependencies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1262

44.2.3 Probabilistic Analysis Methods . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1263

44.2.4 Statistics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1265

44.2.5 Distribution Estimation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1266

44.2.6 Distribution Fitting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1268

44.3 Object Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1269

44.3.1 Distributions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1269

44.3.2 Dependencies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1271

44.3.3 Distribution Estimation Command . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1273

44.3.4 Probabilistic Analysis Command . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1274

44.3.5 Continue Probabilistic Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1275

44.3.6 Probabilistic Analysis Player . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1275

44.3.7 Results File Handling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1275

44.3.8 Representation of results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1276

45 Reliability Analysis 1280

45.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1280

45.2 Technical Background . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1282

45.2.1 Reliability Assessment Procedure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1283

45.2.2 Stochastic Models . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1284

45.2.3 Calculated Results for Reliability Assessment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1285

45.2.4 System State Enumeration in Reliability Assessment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1291

45.3 Setting up the Network Model for Reliability Assessment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1292

45.3.1 Defining Stochastic Failure and Repair Models . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1292

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45.3.2 Defining Feeders for Reliability Assessment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1299

45.3.3 Configuring Switches for Reliability Assessment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1300

45.3.4 Load Modelling for Reliability Assessment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1302

45.3.5 Modelling Load Interruption Costs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1304

45.3.6 System Demand and Load States . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1304

45.3.7 Defining Fault Clearance Based on Protection Device Location . . . . . . . . . . 1304

45.3.8 Considering Planned Maintenance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1304

45.3.9 Specifying Individual Component Constraints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1305

45.3.10 Considering Switching Rules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1305

45.4 Running The Reliability Assessment Calculation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1305

45.4.1 How to run the Reliability Assessment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1305

45.5 Results of the Reliability Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1313

45.5.1 Load Reliability Results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1313

45.5.2 Creating Reports using the Report Generation command . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1314

45.5.3 Tabular report of Contributions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1315

45.5.4 Selecting loads for post-processing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1315

45.5.5 Viewing Results in the Single Line Diagram . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1315

45.5.6 Viewing Results in the Data Browser . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1317

45.6 Loss of Grid Assessment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1318

45.6.1 Basic Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1318

45.6.2 Protection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1319

45.6.3 Output . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1319

45.6.4 Results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1320

46 Optimal Power Restoration 1321

46.1 Failure Effect Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1321

46.2 Animated Tracing of Individual Cases . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1326

46.3 Optimal RCS Placement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1327

46.3.1 Basic Options Page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1327

46.3.2 Output Page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1328

46.3.3 Advanced Options Page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1328

46.3.4 Example Optimal RCS Calculation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1329

46.4 Optimal Manual Restoration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1329

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46.4.1 OMR Calculation Prerequisites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1330

46.4.2 Basic Options Page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1330

46.4.3 Advanced Options Page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1331

46.4.4 Definition of the objective function . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1332

46.4.5 Example of an Optimal Manual Restoration Calculation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1333

46.5 Optimal Recloser Placement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1335

46.5.1 Technical Background . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1335

46.5.2 Basic Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1336

46.5.3 Results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1337

46.5.4 Optimal Recloser Placement Reports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1337

47 Generation Adequacy Analysis 1339

47.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1339

47.2 Technical Background . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1339

47.3 Database Objects and Models . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1342

47.3.1 Stochastic Model for Generation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1342

47.3.2 Power Curve Type . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1343

47.3.3 Meteorological station . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1343

47.4 Assignment of Stochastic Model for Generation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1344

47.4.1 Definition of a Stochastic Multi-State Model . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1344

47.4.2 Stochastic Wind Model . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1345

47.4.3 Time Series Characteristic for Wind Generation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1345

47.4.4 Demand definition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1347

47.5 Generation Adequacy Analysis toolbar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1347

47.5.1 Generation Adequacy Initialisation command . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1347

47.5.2 Run Generation Adequacy command . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1349

47.6 Generation Adequacy results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1350

47.6.1 Distribution (Cumulative Probability) Plots . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1350

47.6.2 Monte-Carlo Draws (Iterations) Plots . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1352

47.6.3 Convergence Plots . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1353

47.6.4 Summary of variables calculated during the Generation Adequacy Analysis . . . 1355

48 Sensitivities / Distribution Factors 1356

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 CONTENTS

48.1 Overview of Sensitivity / Distribution Factors Calculations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1356

48.1.1 Terminology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1356

48.1.2 Result Quantities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1357

48.2 Sensitivities / Distribution Factors Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1357

48.2.1 Basic Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1357

48.2.2 Results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1358

48.2.3 Advanced Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1360

48.2.4 Output . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1362

48.2.5 Modal/Eigenvalue Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1362

48.3 Reporting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1362

48.3.1 General . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1362

48.3.2 Thresholds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1363

48.3.3 Used Format . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1363

48.3.4 Report output . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1363

48.4 Troubleshooting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1363

49 Network Reduction 1365

49.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1365

49.2 Technical Background . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1366

49.2.1 Network Reduction using Ward method . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1366

49.2.2 Network Reduction using REI Method . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1366

49.2.3 Network Reduction using Regional Equivalents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1367

49.2.4 Network Reduction for Dynamic Equivalent . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1367

49.3 How to Carry Out a Network Reduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1367

49.3.1 How to Backup the Project (optional) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1368

49.3.2 How to run the Network Reduction tool . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1368

49.3.3 Expected Output of the Network Reduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1368

49.4 Network Reduction Command . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1370

49.4.1 Basic Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1370

49.4.2 Ward Equivalent . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1371

49.4.3 REI Equivalent . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1371

49.4.4 Regional Equivalent . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1373

49.4.5 Dynamic Equivalent . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1374

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CONTENTS

49.4.6 Outputs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1375

49.4.7 Advanced Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1376

49.4.8 Verification . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1377

49.5 Network Reduction Example . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1378

49.6 Tips for using the Network Reduction Tool . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1379

49.6.1 Network Reduction doesn’t Reduce Isolated Areas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1379

49.6.2 The Reference Machine is not Reduced . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1380

50 State Estimation 1381

50.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1381

50.2 Objective Function . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1382

50.3 Components of the PowerFactory State Estimation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1383

50.3.1 Plausibility Check . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1384

50.3.2 Observability Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1384

50.3.3 Non-linear optimisation (state estimation) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1385

50.4 State Estimation Data Input . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1386

50.4.1 Measurements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1386

50.4.2 Editing the Element Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1391

50.5 Running SE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1392

50.5.1 Basic Setup Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1392

50.5.2 Bad Data Detection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1395

50.5.3 Non-Linear optimisation (state estimation) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1396

50.5.4 Output . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1397

50.6 Results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1397

50.6.1 Output Window Report . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1397

50.6.2 External Measurements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1398

50.6.3 Estimated States . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1399

50.6.4 Colour Representation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1400

51 Motor Starting 1402

51.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1402

51.2 How to define a motor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1402

51.2.1 How to define a motor Type and starting methodology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1402

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 CONTENTS

51.2.2 How to define a motor driven machine . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1404

51.3 How to run a Motor Starting simulation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1404

51.3.1 Basic Options Page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1404

51.3.2 Output Page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1406

51.3.3 Motor Starting simulation results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1408

51.3.4 Motor Starting Example . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1409

52 Artificial Intelligence 1412

52.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1412

52.2 Technical Requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1413

52.3 Technical Background . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1413

52.3.1 Neural Network Architecture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1414

52.4 How to create and use a Neural Network . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1414

52.5 Setup for Neural Network command . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1415

52.5.1 Basic Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1416

52.5.2 Input Variables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1416

52.5.3 Output Variables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1416

52.6 Neural Network Training command . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1416

52.6.1 Basic Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1416

52.6.2 Data Generation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1417

52.6.3 Neural Network Training . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1418

52.6.4 Random Number Generation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1419

52.7 Output of Neural Network Training . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1419

52.7.1 Dataset Object . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1419

52.7.2 Neural Network Object . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1419

52.7.3 Consistency Check . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1420

52.8 Trouble Shooting for Neural Networks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1420

52.8.1 The Probabilistic Analysis does not converge. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1420

52.8.2 The validation error does not decrease during the epochs. . . . . . . . . . . . . 1421

52.8.3 The approximation of the neural network is not good enough . . . . . . . . . . . 1421

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CONTENTS

V Appendix 1423

53 The DIgSILENT Output Language 1424

53.1 Format string, Variable names and text Lines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1425

53.2 Placeholders . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1425

53.3 Variables, Units and Names . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1426

53.4 Colour . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1428

53.5 Advanced Syntax Elements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1428

53.6 Line Types and Page Breaks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1429

53.7 Predefined Text Macros . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1429

53.8 Object Iterations, Loops, Filters and Includes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1430

54 Standard Functions DPL and DSL 1431

Bibliography 1433

Glossary 1437

DIgSILENT PowerFactory 2024, User Manual xlvi

 Part I

General Information
Chapter 1

About this Guide

This User Manual is intended to be a reference for users of the DIgSILENT PowerFactory software.
This chapter provides general information about the contents and the used conventions of this docu-
mentation.

1.1 Contents of the User Manual

The first section of the User Manual provides General Information, including an overview of PowerFac-
tory software, a description of the basic program settings, and a description of the PowerFactory data
model.

The next sections describe PowerFactory administration, handling, and power system analysis func-
tions. In the Power System Analysis Functions section, each chapter deals with a different calculation,
presenting the most relevant theoretical aspects, the PowerFactory approach, and the corresponding
interface.

The online version of this manual includes additional sections dedicated to the mathematical description
of models and their parameters, referred to as Technical References. To facilitate their portability,
visualisation, and printing, the papers are attached to the online help as PDF documents. They are
opened by clicking on the indicated links within the manual.

It is recommended that new users commence by reading Chapter 4 (PowerFactory Overview), and
completing the PowerFactory Tutorials.

1.2 Used Conventions

Conventions to describe user actions are as follows:

Buttons and Keys Dialog buttons and keyboard keys are referred to with bold and underline text
formatting. For example, press the OK button in the PowerFactory dialog, or press CTRL+B
on the keyboard.
Menus and Icons Menus and icons are usually referenced using Italics. For example, press the User
Settings icon , or select Tools → User Settings. . .
Other Items “Speech marks” are used to indicate data to be entered by the user, and also to refer to
an item defined by the author. For example, consider a parameter “x”.

DIgSILENT PowerFactory 2024, User Manual 2

Chapter 2

Contact

For further information about the company DIgSILENT, our products and services please visit our web
site, or contact us at:

DIgSILENT GmbH

Heinrich-Hertz-Str. 9

72810 Gomaringen / Germany

www.digsilent.de

2.1 Direct Technical Support

DIgSILENT experts offer direct assistance to PowerFactory users with valid maintenance agreements
via telephone or online via support queries raised on the customer portal.

To register for the on-line portal, select Help → Online User Registration. . . or go to directly to the
registration page (link below). Log-in details will be provided by email shortly thereafter.

To log-in to the portal, enter the email (or Login) and Password provided. When raising a new support
query, please include the PowerFactory version and build number in your submission, which can
be found by selecting Help → About PowerFactory. . . from the main menu. Note that including
relevant *.pfd file(s) may assist with our investigation into your query. The customer portal is shown
in Figure 2.1.1.

Phone: +49-(0)7072-9168-50 (German)

+49-(0)7072-9168-51 (English)

User Registration: https://www.digsilent.de/en/user-registration.html

User Login: https://www.digsilent.de/en/user-login.html

DIgSILENT PowerFactory 2024, User Manual 3

CHAPTER 2. CONTACT

Figure 2.1.1: DIgSILENT customer portal

2.1.1 PowerFactory Support Package

Sometimes as part of a ticket investigation customers are asked to provide a “PowerFactory Support
Package”. This can be generated from within PowerFactory from the top menu by doing Help →
Support→ Create Support Package. . . . The support package can be saved on the user’s computer
then attached to the ticket. The contents of the “PowerFactory Support Package” are listed in the
Advanced Installation and Configuration Manual.

2.1.2 Licence Support Package

If a customer’s problem is thought to be licence related, the customer may be asked to provide a
“Licence Support Package”. This can be generated from the Licence Manager, where a Create Licence
Support Package button is provided. The support package can then be saved on the user’s computer
then attached to the ticket.

2.2 Knowledge Base

A “Knowledge Base” database of information, based on an FAQ format, is available for any users
(whether registered or not) to look for answers to their questions. The knowledge base contains
interesting questions and answers regarding specific applications of PowerFactory.

Knowledge Base: https://www.digsilent.de/en/faq-powerfactory.html

DIgSILENT PowerFactory 2024, User Manual 4

 2.3. GENERAL INFORMATION

2.3 General Information

For general information about DIgSILENT or your PowerFactory licence, please contact us via:

Phone: +49-(0)7072-9168-0

Fax: +49-(0)7072-9168-88
E-mail: [email protected]

DIgSILENT PowerFactory 2024, User Manual 5

Chapter 3

Documentation and Help System

PowerFactory is provided with a complete help package to support users at all levels of expertise.
Documents with the basic information of the program and its functionality are combined with references
to advanced simulation features, mathematical descriptions of the models and of course application
examples.

PowerFactory offers the following help resources, which can be accessed either directly from PowerFac-
tory or from the DIgSILENT download area (https://www.digsilent.de/en/downloads.html):

• Getting Started: a document describing the first steps to follow after receiving the installation DVD
or downloading the software from the DIgSILENT download area. The Getting Started document
covers the basic installation options.

• Advanced Installation and Configuration Manual: in this document, advanced installation

options e.g. multi-user database, installation on an application server, and the Offline mode
installation, are covered. The Offline mode guide is available in Section 5.5: Offline Mode User
Guide.
• Tutorials: information for new users and hands-on tutorials. Access via Help menu of PowerFac-
tory.
• User Manual: this document. Access via Help menu of PowerFactory. Current and previous
manuals (PDF files) can also be found on the in the DIgSILENT download area.
• Technical References: description of the models implemented in PowerFactory for the different
power systems components. The technical reference documents are available on the menu Help
→ Technical References.
• Additional Packages: additional information and/or examples about specific PowerFactory func-
tions are available on the menu Help → Additional Packages. The additional packages are:
– Programming Interface (API)
– DGS Data Exchange Format
– OPC Interface
– DPL Functions Extensions
– Dynamic Models C Interface
• Context Sensitive Help: pressing the key F1 while working with PowerFactory will lead directly
to the related topic inside the User Manual.
• PowerFactory Examples: the window PowerFactory Examples provides a list of application
examples of PowerFactory calculation functions. Every example comes with an explanatory
document that can be opened by clicking on the Show Documentation button ( ). Additionally,
videos demonstrating the software handling and its functionalities are available.

DIgSILENT PowerFactory 2024, User Manual 6

 The PowerFactory Examples window will “pop up” automatically every time the software is open,
this could be deactivated by unchecking the Show at Startup checkbox. PowerFactory Examples
are also accessible on the main menu, by selecting File → Examples. . . .

• Release Notes: for all new versions and updates of the program Release Notes are provided,
which document the implemented changes. They are available on the menu Help → Release
Notes
• Knowledge base: accessible via the menu Help → Support→ Online Knowledge Base (FAQ),
described in Chapter 2: Contact

• Technical Support: accessible via the menu Help → Support→ Online Support Centre, de-
scribed in Chapter 2: Contact
• Website: www.digsilent.de
• Social Media:
– YouTube
– Facebook
– Twitter
– LinkedIn

DIgSILENT PowerFactory 2024, User Manual 7

Chapter 4

PowerFactory Overview

The calculation program PowerFactory from DIgSILENT, is a computer-aided engineering tool for the
analysis of transmission, distribution, and industrial electrical power systems. It has been designed
as an advanced integrated and interactive software package dedicated to electrical power system and
control analysis in order to achieve the main objectives of planning and operation optimisation.

“DIgSILENT ” is an acronym for “DIgital SImuLation of Electrical NeTworks”. DIgSILENT Version 7 was
the world’s first power system analysis software with an integrated graphical single-line interface. That
interactive single-line diagram included drawing functions, editing capabilities and all relevant static and
dynamic calculation features.

PowerFactory was designed and developed by qualified engineers and programmers with many years
of experience in both electrical power system analysis and computer programming. The accuracy and
validity of results obtained with PowerFactory has been confirmed in a large number of implementations,
by organisations involved in the planning and operation of power systems throughout the world.

To address users’ power system analysis requirements, PowerFactory was designed as an integrated
engineering tool to provide a comprehensive suite of power system analysis functions within a single
executable program. Key features include:

1. PowerFactory core functions: definition, modification and organisation of cases; core numerical
routines; output and documentation functions.
2. Integrated interactive single line graphic and data case handling.
3. Power system element and base case database.
4. Integrated calculation functions (e.g. line and machine parameter calculation based on geometri-
cal or nameplate information).
5. Power system network configuration with interactive or on-line SCADA access.
6. Generic interface for computer-based mapping systems.

Use of a single database, with the required data for all equipment within a power system (e.g. line
data, generator data, protection data, harmonic data, controller data), means that PowerFactory can
easily execute all power simulation functions within a single program environment - functions such as
load flow analysis, short-circuit calculation, harmonic analysis, protection coordination, stability analysis,
and modal analysis.

Although PowerFactory includes highly-sophisticated power system analysis functions, the intuitive user
interface makes it possible for new users to very quickly perform common tasks such as load flow and
short-circuit calculations.

The functionality purchased by a user is configured in a matrix-like format, where the licensed calcu-
lation functions, together with the maximum number of buses, are listed as coordinates. The user can

DIgSILENT PowerFactory 2024, User Manual 8

 4.1. GENERAL CONCEPT

then, as required, configure the interface and functions according to their requirements.

Depending on user requirements, a specific PowerFactory licence may or may not include all of the
functions described in this manual. As requirements dictate, additional functionality can be added to a
licence. These functions can be used within the same program interface with the same network data.
Only additional data, as may be required by an added calculation function, need be added.

4.1 General Concept

The general PowerFactory program design concept is summarised as follows:

Functional Integration

PowerFactory software is implemented as a single executable program, and is fully compatible with
Windows 10 and Windows 11. The programming method employed allows for fast selection of different
calculation functions. There is no need to reload modules and update or transfer data and results
between different program applications. As an example, the Load Flow, Short-Circuit, and Harmonic
Load Flow analysis tools can be executed sequentially without resetting the program, enabling additional
software modules and engines, or reading and converting external data files.

Vertical Integration

PowerFactory software uses a vertically integrated model concept that allows models to be shared for
all analysis functions. Studies relating to “Generation”, “Transmission”, “Distribution”, and “Industrial”
analysis can all be completed within PowerFactory. Separate software engines are not required to anal-
yse separate aspects of the power system, or to complete different types of analysis, as PowerFactory
can accommodate everything within one integrated program and one integrated database.

Database Integration

One Database Concept: PowerFactory provides optimal organisation of data and definitions required
to perform various calculations, memorisation of settings or software operation options. The Power-
Factory database environment fully integrates all data required for defining study cases, Operation
Scenarios, single line graphics, textual and graphical Results, calculation options, and user-defined
models, etc. Everything required to model and simulate the power system is integrated into a single
database which can be configured for single and/or multiple users.

Project Management: all data that defines a power system model is stored in “Project” folders within
the database. Inside a “Project” folder, “Study Cases” are used to define different studies of the system
considering the complete network, parts of the network, or Variations on its current state. This “project
and study case” approach is used to define and manage power system studies with object-oriented
software. PowerFactory uses a structure that is easy to use, avoids data redundancy, and simplifies the
task of data management and validation for users and organisations. The application of study cases
and project Variations in PowerFactory facilitates efficient and reliable reproduction of study results.

Multi-User Operation: multiple users each holding their own projects or working with data shared from
other users are supported by a “Multi-user” database operation. In this case the definition of access
rights, user accounting and groups for data sharing are managed by the PowerFactory Administrator
user.

Offline Mode: in some instances, a network connection to a server database may not be available. To
address this, PowerFactory provides functionality to work in Offline Mode. The required project data is
cached to the user’s local machine, which can then later be synchronised to the server database. Offline
Mode functionality includes the ability to lock and unlock projects and to edit projects as read-only.

User Interface Customisation

By default, “Base Package” and “Standard” user profiles are available in PowerFactory. Profiles can

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be selected from the main menu under Tools → Profiles. The “Base Package” profile limits the icons
displayed on the main toolbar to those typically used by new users, such as load flow and short-circuit
commands. The database Administrator can create and customise user profiles, in particular:

• Customise the element dialog pages that are displayed.

• Customise element dialog parameters. Parameters can be Hidden (not shown) or Disabled
(shown but not editable).
• Fully configure Main Toolbar and Drawing Toolbar menus, including definition of custom DPL
Commands and Templates with user-defined icons.
• Customise Main Menu, Data Manager, and context menu commands.
Chapter 6: User Accounts, User Groups, and Profiles (Section 6.7 Creating Profiles) details the cus-
tomisation procedure.

Database, Objects, and Classes

PowerFactory uses a hierarchical, object-oriented database. All the data, which represents power sys-
tem Elements, single line graphics, study cases, system Operation Scenarios, calculation commands,
program Settings etc., are stored as objects inside a hierarchical set of folders. The folders are arranged
in order to facilitate the definition of the studies and optimise the use of the tools provided by the
program.

The objects are grouped according to the kind of element that they represent. These groups are
known as “Classes” within the PowerFactory environment. For example, an object that represents a
synchronous generator in a power system is of a Class called ElmSym, and an object storing the settings
for a load flow calculation is of a Class called ComLdf. Object Classes are analogous to computer file
extensions: each Class has a specific set of parameters that defines the objects it represents. As
explained in Section 4.7 (User Interface), the edit dialogs are the interfaces between the user and an
object; the parameters defining the object are accessed through this dialog. This means that there is
an edit dialog for each class of object.

The main classes that the PowerFactory user is likely to come across fall into these categories:
• *.Elm* Network elements
• *.Typ* Type objects, assigned to network element in order to configure parameters often supplied
by manufacturers.
• *.Int* Structural objects, for example *.IntFolder
• *.Set* These objects generally contain settings
• *.Com* Command objects, for example *.ComLdf for the load flow command

Note: Everything in PowerFactory is an object; an object is defined by its Class and the objects are
stored according to a hierarchical arrangement in the database tree.

4.2 PowerFactory Simulation Functions

PowerFactory incorporates a comprehensive list of simulation functions, described in detail in part

Power System Analysis Functions of the manual, including the following:

• Load Flow Analysis, allowing meshed and mixed 1-,2-, and 3-phase AC and/or DC networks
(Chapter 24)
• Short-Circuit Analysis, for meshed and mixed 1-,2-, and 3-phase AC networks (Chapter 25)

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• Sensitivities / Distribution Factors, for voltage, branch flow and transformer sensitivities (Chap-
ter 48)
• Contingency Analysis (Chapter 26)

• Quasi-Dynamic simulation, which allows the user to perform several load flow calculations in a
period of time (Chapter 27)
• Network Reduction (Chapter 49)
• Protection Analysis (Chapter 32)

• Arc-Flash Hazard Analysis (Chapter 33)

• Cable Analysis, including cable sizing and cable ampacity calculation (Chapter 34)
• Power Quality and Harmonics Analysis (Chapter 35)

• Connection Request Assessment (Chapter 36)

• Transmission Network Tools (Chapter 40), including:
– PV curves calculation
– QV curves calculation
– Power Transfer Distribution Factors
– Transfer Capacity Analysis
– Flow Decomposition

• Distribution Network Tools (Chapter 41), including:

– Hosting Capacity Analysis
– Backbone Calculation
– Voltage Sag
– Low Voltage Load Flow Calculation
– Tie Open Point Optimisation
– Phase Balance Optimisation
– Voltage Profile Optimisation
– Optimal Equipment Placement
– Optimal Capacitor Placement
• Outage Management: tool for management of planned outages (Chapter 42)

• Probabilistic Analysis (Chapter 44)

• Reliability Analysis Functions:
– Reliability Assessment (Chapter 45)
– Optimal Power Restoration (Chapter 46)
– Optimal Remote Control Switch (RCS) Placement (Section 46.3)
– Optimal Manual Restoration (Section 46.4)
– Generation Adequacy Analysis (Chapter 47)
• Optimal Power Flow (Chapter 38)
• Unit Commitment and Dispatch Optimisation (Chapter 39)
• Economic Analysis Tools (Chapter 43), including:
– Techno-Economical Calculation (Section 43.2)
– Power Park Energy Analysis (Section 43.4)

• State Estimation (Chapter 50)

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• RMS Simulation: time-domain simulation for electromechanical transients (Chapter 28)

• EMT Simulation: time-domain simulation of electromagnetic transients (Chapter 28)

• Motor Starting Functions (Chapter 51)

• Modal / Eigenvalue Analysis (Chapter 31)
• System Parameter Identification (Chapter 30)
• Artificial Intelligence (Chapter 52)

4.3 General Design of PowerFactory

PowerFactory is primarily intended to be used and operated in a graphical environment. That is, data is
entered by drawing the network elements, and then editing and assigning data to these objects. Data is
accessed from the graphics page by double-clicking on an object. An input dialog is displayed and the
user may then edit the data for that object.

Figure 4.3.1 shows the PowerFactory Graphical User Interface (GUI) when a project is active. The GUI
is discussed in further detail in Section 4.7

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Figure 4.3.1: PowerFactory Main Window

All data entered for objects is hierarchically structured in folders for ease of navigation. To view the data
and its organisation, a “Data Manager” is used. Figure 4.3.2 shows the Data Manager window. The
Data Manager is similar in appearance and functionality to a Windows Explorer window.

Within the Data Manager, information is grouped based on two main criteria:

1. Data that pertains directly to the system under study, that is, electrical data.
2. Study management data, for example, which graphics should be displayed, what options have
been chosen for a Load Flow Calculation command, which Areas of the network should be
considered for calculation, etc.

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Figure 4.3.2: PowerFactory Data Manager

Note that most user-actions can be performed in both the single line graphic and the Data Manager.
For example, a new terminal can be added directly to the single line graphic, or alternatively created in
the Data Manager. In the latter case, the terminal could be shown in the single line graphic by using
the Diagram Layout Tool, by “dragging and dropping” from the Data Manager, or by creating a new
Graphical Net Object in the Data Manager (advanced).

4.4 Type and Element Data

Since power systems are constructed using standardised materials and components, it is convenient to
divide electrical data into two sets, namely “Type” data and “Element” data sets.

• Characteristic electrical parameters, such as the reactance per km of a line, or the rated voltage
of a transformer are referred to as Type data. Type objects are generally stored in a global library
(either the DIgSILENT Library or a Custom Library) or Project Library, and are shown in red. For
instance, a Line Type object, TypLne ( ).
• Data relating to a particular instance of equipment, such as the length of a line, the derating
factor of a cable, the name of a load, the connecting node of a generator, or the tap position of a
transformer are referred to as Element data. Element objects are generally stored in the Network
Data folder, and are shown in green. For instance, a Line Element object, ElmLne ( ).

Consider the following example:

• A cable has a Type reactance of “X” Ohms/km, say 0.1 Ohms/km.

• A cable section of length “L” is used for a particular installation, say 600 m, or 0.6 km.
• This section (Element) therefore has an reactance of X * L Ohms, or 0.06 Ohms.

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Note that Element parameters can be modified using Operation Scenarios (which store sets of network
operational data), and Parameter Characteristics (which can be used to modify parameters based on
the study case Time, or other user-defined trigger).

4.5 Data Arrangement

The PowerFactory database supports multiple users (as mentioned in 4.1) and each user can manage
multiple projects. “User Account” folders with access privileges only for their owners (and other users
with shared rights) must then be used. User accounts are of course in a higher level than projects.

Figure 4.5.1 shows a snapshot from a database as seen by the user in a Data Manager window, where
there is a user account for “User”, and one project titled “Project”. The main folders used to arrange
data in PowerFactory are summarised below:

Figure 4.5.1: Structure of a PowerFactory project in the Data Manager

4.5.1 DIgSILENT Library

A global library (called “DIgSILENT Library”) is supplied with PowerFactory, it contains a wide range
objects and is accessible to all users. The DIgSILENT Library sub-folders discussed in detail in
Chapter 13, section 13.2 (DIgSILENT Library).

4.5.2 Custom Global Library

When several users work for the same company, there is often a need to share a custom library between
these users. Instead of copying the library from user to user, a better approach is to create an additional
library in the global area which will be visible for all the users.

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More information about how to define a Custom Library and the versioning of it is available in Chapter 13,
section 13.3 (Custom Global Library).

4.5.3 Project Library

The Project Library contains the equipment types, network operational information, scripts, templates,
and user-defined models (generally) only used within a particular project. A particular project may have
references to the project library and / or global library. The Project Library folder and sub-folders are
discussed in detail in Chapter 13, section 13.4 (Project Library).

4.5.4 Diagrams

Single line graphics are defined in PowerFactory by means of graphic folders of class IntGrfNet ( ).
Each diagram corresponds to a IntGrfNet folder. They are stored in the Diagrams folder ( ) of the
Network Model. Single line diagrams are composed of graphical objects, which represent components
of the networks under study. Graphical components reference network components and symbol objects
(IntSym).

The relation between graphical objects and network components allows the definition and modification
of the studied networks directly from the single line graphics. Network components can be represented
by more than one graphical object (many IntGrf objects can refer to the same network component).
Therefore, one component can appear in several diagrams.

These diagrams are managed by the active study case, and specifically by an object called the Desktop.
If a reference to a network diagram is stored in a study case’s Desktop, when the study case is activated,
the diagram is automatically opened. Diagrams can be easily added and deleted from the Desktop.

Each diagram is related to a specific Grid (ElmNet). When a grid is added to an active study case, the
user is asked to select (among the diagrams pointing to that grid) the diagrams to display. References
to the selected diagrams are then automatically created in the corresponding Desktop.

Chapter 9 (Network Graphics), explains how to define and work with single line graphics.

4.5.5 Network Data

The Network Data folder holds network data (Element data) in “Grid” folders and object Grouping
information.

Grids

In PowerFactory, electrical network information is stored in “Grid” folders (ElmNet, ). A power system
may have as many grids as defined by the user. These grids may or may not be interconnected. As long
as they are active, they are considered by the calculations. Data may be sorted according to logical,
organisational and/or geographical areas (discussed further in Section 4.6: Project Structure).

Note: A Grid (and in general any object comprising the data model) is active when it is referred to by
the current study case. Only objects referred in the current (active) study case are considered for
calculation. In the Data Manager, the icon of an active Grid is shown in blue, to distinguish it from
inactive Grids.

For details of how to define grids refer to Chapter 8.Basic Project Definition, Section 8.3 (Creating New
Grids).

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Grouping Objects

In addition to Grid folders, the Network Data folder contains a set of objects that allow further grouping
of network components. By default, when a new project is created, new empty folders to store these
grouping objects is created inside the Network Model folder.

For details of how to define grouping objects, refer to Chapter 14: Grouping Objects.

4.5.6 Variations

During the planning and assessment of a power system, it is often necessary to analyse different vari-
ations and expansion alternatives of the base network. In PowerFactory these variations are modelled
by means of “Variations”. These are objects that store and implement required changes to a network,
and can be easily activated and deactivated. The use of Variations allows the user to conduct studies
under different network configurations in an organised and simple way.

Variation objects (IntScheme, ) are stored inside the Variations folder ( ) which resides in the
Network Model folder. Variations are composed of “Expansion Stages” (IntStage), which store the
changes made to the original network(s). The application of these changes depends on the current
study time and the activation time of the Expansion Stages.

The study time is a parameter of the active study case, and is used to situate the current study within a
time frame. The activation time is a parameter given to the Expansion Stages, to determine whether or
not, according to the study time, the changes contained within the Expansion Stages are applied to the
network. If the activation time precedes the study time, the changes are applied to the original network.
The changes of a subsequent expansion stage add to the changes of its predecessors.

In order that changes to the network configuration are applied and can be viewed, a Variation must be
activated. These changes are contained in the expansion stage(s) of this active Variation. Once the
Variation is deactivated, the network returns to its original state. Changes contained in an Expansion
Stage can be classified as:

• Modifications to network components.

• Components added to the network.
• Components deleted from the network.

Note: If there is no active Operation Scenario, modifications to operational data will be stored in the
active Variation.

4.5.7 Operation Scenarios

Operation Scenarios may be used to store operational settings, a subset of Element data. Operational
data includes data that relates to the operational point of a device but not to the device itself e.g. the tap
position of a transformer or the active power dispatch of a generator. Operation Scenarios are stored in
the Operation Scenarios folder.

4.5.8 Study Cases

The Study Cases folder holds study management information. Study cases are used to store information
such as command settings, active Variations and Operations Scenarios, graphics to be displayed, and
study results. See Chapter 12 (Study Cases) for details.

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4.5.9 Settings

Project settings such as user-defined diagram styles for example, which differ from global settings, are
stored inside the Settings folder. See section 8.1.2 (Project Settings)

4.6 Project Structure

Most of the data referred to in the previous section 4.5 is project data. The default high-level arrange-
ment of this data in the project is as shown here:

Figure 4.6.1: Basic Project Hierarchy

The structure of project data depends on the complexity of the network, use of the model, and user
preferences. The user has the flexibility to define network components directly within the Grid, or to
organise and group components in a way that simplifies management of project data.

Consider the example network data arrangement shown in Figure 4.6.2 In this case, two busbar systems
(ElmSubstat in PowerFactory ) have been defined, one at 132 kV, and one at 66 kV. The two busbar
systems are grouped within a Site, which includes the 132 kV / 66 kV transformers (not shown in
Figure 4.6.2). A Branch composed of two line sections and a node connects “132 kV Busbar” to
“HV terminal”. Grouping of components in this way simplifies the arrangement of data within the
Data Manager, facilitates the drawing overview diagrams, and facilitates storing of Substation switching
configurations.

Figure 4.6.2: Example Project Structure

The following subsections provide further information regarding the PowerFactory representation of key

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network topological components.

4.6.1 Nodes

In PowerFactory, nodes connecting lines, generators, loads, etc. to the network are generally called
“Terminals” (ElmTerm). Depending on their usage within the power system, Terminals can be used to
represent Busbars, Junctions, or Internal Nodes (their usage is defined by a drop down menu found
in the Basic Data page of the terminal dialog). According to the selected usage, different calculation
functions are enabled; for example the short-circuit calculation can be performed only for busbars, or
for busbars and internal nodes, and so on.

4.6.2 Edge elements

The term “Edge Element” refers to an element connected to a node or to more than one node. Includes
single-port elements such as loads, and multi-port elements such as transformers.

4.6.3 Branches

Elements with multiple connections are referred to “branches” (as distinct from a Branch Element
(ElmBranch), which is a grouping of elements, discussed in Section 4.6.9). Branches include two-
connection elements such as transmission lines and transformers, and three-connection elements such
as three-winding transformers, AC/DC converters with two DC terminals, etc.

For information about how to define transmission lines (and cables) and sections refer to Chapter 11:
Building Networks. Technical information about transmission line and cable models is provided in
Technical References Document (Line (ElmLne)).

4.6.4 Cubicles

When any edge element is directly connected to a Terminal, PowerFactory uses a “Cubicle” (StaCubic)
to define the connection. Cubicles can be visualised as the panels on a switchgear board, or bays
in a high voltage yard, to which the branch elements are connected. A Cubicle is generally created
automatically when an element is connected to a node (note that Cubicles are not shown on the single
line graphic).

4.6.5 Switches

To model complex busbar-substation configurations, switches (ElmCoup) can be used. Their usage
can be set to Circuit-Breaker, Disconnector, Switch Disconnector, or Load Switch. The connection of
an ElmCoup to a Terminal is carried out by means of an automatically generated Cubicle without any
additional switch (StaSwitch) object.

4.6.6 Substations

Detailed busbar configurations are represented in PowerFactory as Substations (ElmSubstat). Sep-

arate single line diagrams of individual substations can be created. Substation objects allow the use
of running arrangements to store/set station circuit breaker statuses (see Section 13.6.11: Running
Arrangements).

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For information about how to define substations refer to Chapter 11: Building Networks.

4.6.7 Secondary Substations

Secondary Substations (ElmTrfstat) are smaller, simpler substations, typically used for single-transformer
connections.

4.6.8 Sites

Network components including Substations and Branches can be grouped together within a “Site”
(ElmSite). This may include Elements such as substations / busbars at different voltage levels. For
information about how to define sites refer to Chapter 11: Building Networks.

4.6.9 Branch Elements

Similar to Substations, Terminal Elements and Line Elements can be stored within an object called a
Branch Element (ElmBranch). Branches are “composite” two-port elements that may be connected to
a Terminal at each end. They may contain multiple Terminals, Line sections (possible including various
line types), and Loads etc, but be represented as a single Branch on the single line graphic. As for
Substations, separate diagrams for the detailed branch can be created with the graphical editor.

For information about how to define branches refer to Chapter 11: Building Networks, sections 11.2 and
11.5.

4.7 User Interface

An overview of the PowerFactory user interface is provided in this section, including general discussion
of the functionality available to enter and manipulate data and graphics.

4.7.1 Overview

4.7.1.1 General handling

The PowerFactory user interface consists of a number of tool windows and tool bars, which can be freely
moved around or docked, as the user chooses, and the Desktop, which is the term used to describe the
main graphical window, together with other so-called “floating” windows.

Tool windows and tool bars

The tool windows are:

• Project Overview

• Drawing Tools
• Output Window

By default, these are “docked” into position, but can be resized or moved around as required. A window
is moved by clicking on the top portion of the window and dragging to the required position. This can
simply be an “undocked” location, but if the tool window approaches a position where it can be docked,
this will be indicated by a blue background as shown here:

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 4.7. USER INTERFACE

Figure 4.7.1: Docking a tool window

Toolbars can also be moved around. The icons are divided into sets separated by a barrier , and a
set of icons can be moved by clicking on the barrier and dragging it to the required location.

A useful option to be aware of is Reset windows layout, which is found in the main Window menu. This
will restore the various tool windows to their default positions. Note that this does not affect the graphical
window layout, split etc., as this is a study-case specific configuration.

The Desktop and the options available for working with the tabbed windows in PowerFactory are
described in the next subsections.

4.7.2 Desktop (SetDesktop)

The term Desktop is used to describe the main graphical window, together with other so-called “floating”
windows. A tabbed view concept is used, and in the main graphical window, the currently-selected
graphic is often referred to as the active graphic.

If the user wishes to see more than one graphic at the same time, split-screen working can be used.
The screen can be split either vertically or horizontally at any one time, and graphical pages moved
between the splits (or new splits created) by right-clicking on the graphic tab and choosing the relevant
option. The options available are listed in the Network Graphics chapter, in section 9.2.5.

The Desktop object, previously called the Graphics Board, contains information about the windows
being displayed. It is found in the Study Case.

There are a number of DPL and Python scripting methods for SetDesktop objects. Please refer to the
relevant scripting reference document for information.

4.7.3 Tab groups (SetTabgroup)

The term “Tab Group” refers to a window where multiple views are grouped together, each in its own
tab. This can be a docked group, being the group of tabs seen in the main graphical window, or a
floating group, which typically contains items such as the Data Manager, the Network Model Manager,
or reports. Information about the tab groups is held within the Desktop object.

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Working with tabs

Right-clicking on any tab offers a number of options, dependent on the context. Tabs can be moved
from one group to another and new tabs can be created using the + sign. Renaming or duplication of
tabs is possible in some cases.

With the exception of the Data Manager, tab groups will close when the Desktop is closed (when the
study case or project as a whole is deactivated).

There are a number of DPL and Python scripting methods for SetTabgroup objects. Please refer to the
relevant scripting reference document for information.

Working with tab groups

Any tab group, whether docked or in a floating window, offers a menu of options accessed via the ( )
icon.

The options presented depend upon the whether the user is working with the docked group in the
main graphic window, or a floating group. Some options may be greyed out, if they are not currently
applicable.

• Open Recently Closed: allows the user to open the recently closed diagrams and plots.
• Open Diagram: allows the user to open existing diagrams.
• Open Plot Page: used for opening the existing plot pages.
• Open Report Document: used for opening existing reports.

• Export All Table Reports: If the tab group contains more than one tabular report, this allows all
reports to be exported at once.
• Export All Report Documents: If the tab group contains more than one PDF-format report, this
allows all reports to be exported at once.

All open plots and diagrams in the tab group are then individually listed and can be selected as the
active tab.

Further options allow all the tabs in a group to be moved or closed:

• For docked groups:

– Move All tabs to Left/Right or Move All tabs Up/Down: this option can be used to simultane-
ously move all the tabs of one tab group to another tab group. (Only shown if the window is
already split)
– Move All tabs to New Floating Group: the selection of this option enables the user to simul-
taneously move all the tabs of a particular group to a floating window.
• For floating groups:
– Move All tabs to Main Window: allows the user to simultaneously move all the tabs in a
floating window to the main window.
• For all groups:
– Close All tabs: closes all the tabs of a particular group.

4.7.4 Key Features of the user interface

The main PowerFactory window is shown in Figure 4.7.2.

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Figure 4.7.2: PowerFactory user interface

Key features of the main window are as follows:

1. The main window includes a description of the PowerFactory version, and standard icons to
Minimise, Maximise/Restore, Resize, and Close the window.

2. The main menu bar includes drop-down menu selections. The main menu is discussed further in
Section 4.7.5 (Menu Bar).
3. The Main Toolbar includes commands and other icons. The Main Toolbar is discussed in further
detail in Section 4.7.6 (Main Toolbar).
4. The Graphical Editor displays single line diagrams, block diagrams and/or simulation plots of the
active project. Studied networks and simulation models can be directly modified from the graphical
editor by placing and connecting elements.
5. When an object is right-clicked (in the graphical editor or in the Data Manager) a context menu
with several possible actions appears.

6. When an object is double clicked its edit dialog will be displayed. The edit dialog is the interface
between an object and the user. The parameters defining the object are accessed through this edit
dialog. Normally an edit dialog is composed of several “pages”. Each page groups parameters
that are relevant to a certain function. In Figure 4.7.2 the Load Flow page of a generator is shown,
where only generator parameters relevant to load flow calculations are shown.

7. The Data Manager is the direct interface with the database. It is similar in appearance and
functionality to a Windows Explorer window. The left pane displays a symbolic tree representation

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of the complete database. The right pane is a data browser that shows the content of the currently
selected folder. The Data Manager can be accessed by pressing the Data Manager icon ( )
on the left of the main toolbar. It is always ’floating’, and more than one can be active at a
time. Depending on how the user navigates to the Database Manager, it may only show the
database tree for selecting a database folder, or it may show the full database tree. The primary
functionality of the Data Manager is to provide access to power system components/objects. The
Data Manager can be used to edit a group of selected objects within the Data Manager in tabular
format. Alternatively, objects may be individually edited by double clicking on an object (or right-
click → Edit).
8. The output window is shown at the bottom of the PowerFactory window. The output window is
discussed in further detail in Section 4.7.7 (The Output Window).
9. The Project Overview window is displayed by default on the left side of the main application window
between the main toolbar and the output window. It displays an overview of the project allowing
the user to assess the state of the project at a glance and facilitating easy interaction with the
project data.
10. The Drawing Tools window is by default also on the left-hand side of the user interface. In Fig-
ure 4.7.2 it is behind the Project Overview, but it can be selected via the tab, and will automatically
come to the front if “freeze mode” is removed (see section 9.2.7 for more information.)

11. PowerFactory has a very flexible window moving and docking concept that aims to optimise work
when using more than one monitor, allowing the user to:
• create as many groups of tabs rightward or downward in the Main Window as required and
freely move the tabs between these groups
• create a new floating window by moving a tab from the Main Window or from an already
existing floating window
• move tabs from a floating window to the Main Window (docking) or to another already existing
floating window
Moving and docking options apply to both tabs displaying single-line diagrams and those con-
taining plots. Even tabular reports can be moved or docked freely as described above. The
different moving and docking options can be accessed by right-clicking on the tab. Another
method, perhaps more intuitive, is to simply drag the tab to the centre of the screen to create
a new floating window or to an existing window to add the tab to it.
12. PowerFactory dynamically adapts to any screen resolution and DPI scaling setting. The appli-
cation perfectly respects DPI scaling when moving windows between two screens of different
resolution settings, e.g. when working with a laptop and an additional monitor, or two monitors of
different resolution settings.

4.7.5 Menu Bar

The menu bar contains the main PowerFactory menus. Each menu entry has a drop down list of menu
options and each menu option performs a specific action. To open a drop down list, either click on the
menu entry with the left mouse button, or press the Alt key together with the underlined letter in the
menu. Menu options that are shown in grey are not available, and only become available as the user
activates projects or calculation modes, as required.

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Figure 4.7.3: The help menu on the Menu bar

For example as show in Figure 4.7.3:

• To access PowerFactory tutorial: Press Alt-H to open the help menu. Use the keyboard to select
Tutorial. . . .

• To access the User Manual: Left click the Help menu. Left-click the option User Manual to open
the electronic User Manual.

4.7.6 Main Toolbar

The main PowerFactory toolbar provides the user with quick access to the main commands available
in the program (see Figure 4.7.2). Buttons that appear in grey are only active when appropriate. All
command icons are equipped with balloon help text which are displayed when the cursor is held still
over the icon for a moment, and no key is pressed.

Note that the visibility of buttons to an individual user may depend on the User Profile. See section 6.7
for more details about this.

To use a command icon, click on it with the left mouse button. Those icons that perform a task will
automatically return to a non-depressed state when that task is finished. Some command icons will
remain depressed, such as the button to Maximise Output Window. When pressed again, the button
will return to the original (non-depressed) state.

This section provides a brief explanation of the purpose of the icons found on the upper part of the
toolbar. Icons from the lower part of the toolbar are discussed in Chapter 9 (Network Graphics (Single
Line Diagrams)). Detailed explanations for each of the functions that the icons command are provided
in the other sections of the manual.

Open Data Manager

Opens a new instance of the Data Manager. If the option “Always open new Data Manager” is
not enabled (default), using the icon or Ctrl+D to open the Data Manager will present the
existing Data Manager if one is already open; if enabled, a separate new Data Manager tab will

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be created.

For more information on the Data Manager refer to Chapter 10 (Data Manager and Network
Model Manager).

Open Network Model Manager

Opens the Network Model Manager, which is a browser for all calculation relevant objects. It
provides a list of all elements (coloured in green) and types (coloured in red) that are in an active
Grid: e.g. transformer types, line elements, composite models, etc.

If the option“Always open new Network Model Manager” is not enabled (default), using the
icon to open the Network Model Manager will present the existing Network Model Manager if one
is already open; if enabled, a separate new Network Model Manager tab will be created.

For more information, see Chapter 10 (Data Manager and Network Model Manager).

Study Case Manager

Deactivates the currently-active study case and opens the Study Case Manager window. See
section 12.2.1 for more details.

Date/Time of Study Case

Displays the date and time for the case calculation. This option is used when parameter charac-
teristics of specific elements (e.g. active and reactive power of loads) are set to change according
to the study time, or a Variation status is set to change with the study time.

Edit Trigger

Displays a list of all Triggers that are in the active study case. These Triggers can be edited in
order to change the values for which one or more characteristics are defined. These values will
be modified with reference to the new Trigger value. All Triggers for all relevant characteristics
are automatically listed. If required, new Triggers will be created in the study case. For more
information, see Chapter 17: Parameter Characteristics, Load States, and Tariffs. Section 17.2.

Network Data Assessment

Activates the Network Data Assessment command dialog to generate selected reports on net-
work data or to perform model data verification. For more information see Section 25.6: Capaci-
tive Earth-Fault Current or Section 24.6: Troubleshooting Load Flow Calculation Problems.

Calculate Load Flow

Activates the Load Flow Calculation command dialog. For more information about the specific
settings, refer to Chapter 24: Load Flow Analysis.

Calculate Short-Circuit

Activates the short-circuit calculation command dialog. For more information, refer to Chapter 25:
Short-Circuit Analysis.

Edit Short-Circuits

Edits Short-Circuit events. Events are used when a calculation requires more than one action or
considers more than one object for the calculation. Multiple fault analysis is an example of this. If,
for instance, the user multi-selects two busbars (using the cursor) and then clicks the right mouse
button Calculation → Multiple Faults. . . a Short-circuit event list will be created with these two
busbars in it.

Execute Script

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Displays a list of scripts that are available. See Section 4.8.1 for a general description of DPL
scripts, and Chapter 22: Scripting for detailed information.

Generate Reports

Used to generate inbuilt or customised reports, which can then be viewed using PowerFactory ’s
Report Viewer or exported in a number of different formats. Depending on the calculation, one or
more reports can be created. For more information, refer to Chapter 18:Reporting and Visualising
Results, Section 18.5.

Insert Plot

Opens the Insert Plot dialog, where different types of plot can be selected. For more information
refer to Chapter 18:Reporting and Visualising Results, Section 18.8.

Documentation of Device Data

Presents a listing of device data (a device is the model of any physical object that has been
entered into the project for study). This output may be used in reports, and for checking data that
has been entered. Depending on the element chosen for the report, the user has two options;
generate a short listing, or a detailed report. For more information refer to Chapter 18: Reporting
and Visualising Results, Section 18.4.

Comparing of Results On/Off

Turns on/off comparing of calculation results. Used to compare results where certain settings
or designs options of a power system have been changed from one calculation to the next. For
more information refer to Chapter 18: Reporting and Visualising Results, Section 18.6.

Edit Comparing of Results

Enables the user to select the cases/ calculation results that are to be compared to one another,
or to set the colouring mode for the difference reporting. For more information refer to Chap-
ter 18:Reporting and Visualising Results, Section 18.6.

Update Database

Utilises the current calculations results (i.e. the calculation ’output’ data) to change input param-
eters (i.e. data the user has entered). An example is the transformer tap positions, where these
have been calculated by the Load Flow command option “Automatic Tap Adjust of Tap Changers.”
For more information refer to Chapter 24: Load Flow Analysis, Section 24.5.7.

Save Operation Scenario

Saves the current operational data to an Operation Scenario (e.g. load values, switch statuses,
etc.). See Chapter 15: Operation Scenarios.

Break

Stops a transient simulation or DPL script that is running.

Reset Calculation

Resets any calculation performed previously. This icon is only enabled after a calculation has
been carried out.

Note: If Retention of results after network change is set to Show last results (User Settings, Miscella-
neous page), results will appear in grey on the single line diagram and on the Flexible Data tab
until the calculation is reset, or a new calculation performed.

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Undo

This is used to undo the last action which caused information to be written to the database.

User Settings

User options for many global features of PowerFactory may be set from the dialog accessed by
this icon. For more information refer to Chapter 7: User Settings.

Maximise Graphic Window

Maximises the graphic window. Pressing this icon again will return the graphic window to its
original state.

Maximise Output Window

Maximises the output window. Pressing this icon again will return the output window to its original
state.

Change Toolbox

In order to minimise the number of icons displayed on the taskbar, some icons are grouped based
on the type of analysis, and are only displayed when the relevant category is selected from the
Change Toolbox icon. In Figure 4.7.4, the user has selected Simulation RMS/EMT, and therefore
only icons relevant for RMS and EMT studies are displayed to the right of the Change Toolbox
icon. If, for example, Reliability Analysis were selected then icons to the right of the Change
Toolbox icon would change to those suitable for a reliability analysis.

Figure 4.7.4: Change Toolbox selection

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4.7.7 The Output Window

In addition to results presented in the single line graphics and / or Data Manager, the output window
displays other textual output, such as error messages, warnings, command messages, device docu-
mentation, results of calculations, and generated reports, etc. This section describes output window
use and functionality.

4.7.7.1 Sizing and Positioning the Output Window

The default location of the output window is “docked” (fixed) at the bottom of the main window, but like
the other tool windows it can be moved around or resized.

Two additional options for the output window are:

• Pressing the Maximise Graphic Window icon ( ) on the main toolbar to enlarge the graphical
window by hiding the output window.

• Pressing the Maximise Output Window icon ( ) icons on the main toolbar to enlarge the output
window.

Moreover, when the output window is “undocked”, it is possible for the user to maximise, minimise or
close it using the standard icons.

4.7.7.2 Output Window Options

The contents of the output window may be stored, edited, printed, etc., using the icons shown on the
right-hand pane of the output window. Some commands are also available from the context menu by
right-clicking the mouse in the output window pane.

Opens the User Settings dialog on the Output Window page.

Turns the auto scrolling function on and off. When on, the the last line of the output window is
displayed after each action, otherwise the output window remains at the last position viewed.

Saves the selected text, or the complete contents of the output window if no selection was made, to
a text, html or csv file.

Copies the selected text to the Windows Clipboard. Text may then be pasted in other programs.

The contents of the output window are displayed and immediately saved in a file.

Redirects the output window to be printed directly.

Searches the text in the output window for the occurrences of a given text.

Clears the output window by deleting all messages. Note that when the user scrolls back and clicks
on previous messages in the output window, the output window will no longer automatically scroll
with new output messages. The Clear All icon will “reset” scrolling of the output window. Ctrl\End
can also be used to “reset” scrolling.

4.7.7.3 Using the Output Window

The output window facilitates preparation of data for calculations, and identification of network data
errors. Objects which appear blue in the output window generally have a hyperlink so that they can be
clicked with the left mouse button to open an edit dialog for the object. Alternatively, the object can be

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right-clicked and then Edit, Show in Data Manager, or Mark in Graphic selected. This simplifies the task
of locating objects in the single line diagrams.

Additionally, options to jump between message types are available when selecting the option Go to →
Next/previous message

4.7.7.4 Output Window Filters

In the output window, shown in figure 4.7.5, the messages are not only coloured, but icons are also
used to indicate the category (error, warning, info, events,...); these categories can be filtered using the
predefined filtering tabs. There is also a text filter, to find specific text strings in the output messages.

Figure 4.7.5: Output window

The messages in the output window are classified as following:

Error message: red.

Warning message: dark yellow.

Information messages: black.

Events messages: blue.

Output text: black.

The button Clear all filters can be used to remove all the selected filters.

These settings can also be changed in the User Settings dialog (User Settings → Data/Network Model
Manager ) as described in chapter 7.

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4.7.7.5 Copying from the Output Window

The contents of the output window, or parts of its contents, may be copied to the built-in editor of
PowerFactory, or to other programs. The lines that are to be copied are determined by the output
window settings; by default what is shown in the output window is copied. The filters can be used to
show only the messages of interest.

4.7.8 Use of Colouring in PowerFactory

Colouring is used widely in PowerFactory for the presentation of data and visualisation of results.
Generally speaking, the user can either configure the colour scheme, or simply let PowerFactory apply
default settings. In this section, the general approach and options are described.

It should be noted that in some contexts, in particular the colouring of curves in plots, colour palettes
are offered. In other contexts, the user simply configures the chosen colour directly.

4.7.8.1 Colour palettes

A number of colour palettes are available. The use of palettes is particularly useful when configuring
colours for plots, because by selecting a palette, the user automatically assigns a harmonious set of
colours to the curves on the plot, according to the desired appearance.

The palettes available include PowerFactory Standard, which is the default palette, and PowerFactory
Classic, which consists of the colours that were formerly used as a default colours in PowerFactory.

Figure 4.7.6: Choosing colours from the PowerFactory Standard palette

In addition, users can create, store and use their own colour palettes within their projects, using
individual colour definition.

4.7.8.2 Individual colour definition

The configuration of individual colours is done via the Select Colour dialog, shown in Fig 4.7.7 (this
dialog is also reached when clicking on More colours . . . in the dialog shown in figure 4.7.6). Colours
can be defined using the standard HSV, RGBA or HTML formats, or simply by clicking on the colour
panel. Another option is to use the Pick Screen Colour button to reproduce any colour visible on the
user’s screen.

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Figure 4.7.7: The Select Colour dialog

This dialog also allows the user to add a colour which they have defined to the list of custom colours,
which will then be available for future use.

4.7.8.3 Colouring of plots

For many of the functions in PowerFactory, the results can be presented in plots. The various plot
options are described in Section 18.8, but the general principle is that the user can select a palette and
then the colours will be automatically assigned from that palette. Nevertheless, the user still has the
option to configure the colouring of individual curves.

4.7.8.4 Colouring of elements in diagrams

There are wide-ranging options available for the colouring of single line diagrams, substation diagrams
and geographic diagrams, which are all described in Section 9.3.10.1. These colouring options are
based around network elements, and the user has the freedom to configure the colours used, via the
Colour Settings buttons found in the Diagram Colouring Scheme dialog, which open the colour settings
dialog.

On the General page of the colour settings dialog, the user will find an option to select a colour palette
for diagrams. Selecting this palette will not automatically change any colour settings, but it will mean
that the colours from the palette are offered as a default range when colours are subsequently defined
for elements.

4.7.8.5 Colouring in the Network Model Manager and Data Manager

Some grouping objects such as Zones or Boundaries have colours associated with them. These
colours are individually configurable, with the same option as above to assign a default palette for
colour selection.

Another use of colour in the Network Model Manager and Data Manager is the colouring of fields in the
flexible data page. These colours can be changed via the user settings (see Section 7.8), using the

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 4.8. SCRIPTING IN POWERFACTORY

Select Colour dialog.

4.8 Scripting in PowerFactory

For automating tasks in PowerFactory, two scripting options are available: use of the inbuilt DIgSILENT
Programming Language DPL, or scripting using Python.

4.8.1 DIgSILENT Programming Language (DPL) Scripts

DPL offers an interface to the user for the automation of tasks in PowerFactory. By means of a
simple programming language and in-built editor, the user can define automation commands (scripts)
to perform iterative or repetitive calculations on target networks, and post-process the results.

To find the name of an object parameter to be used in a DPL script, simply hover the mouse pointer over
the relevant field in an object dialog. For example, for a general load, on the Load Flow page, hover the
mouse pointer over the Active Power field to show the parameter name plini.

User-defined DPL scripts can be used in all areas of power system analysis, for example:

• Network optimisation

• Cable-sizing
• Protection coordination
• Stability analysis
• Parametric sweep analysis

• Contingency analysis

DPL scripts may include the following:

• Program flow commands such as ’if-else’ and ’do-while’

• PowerFactory commands (i.e. load-flow or short-circuit commands: ComLdf, ComShc)

• Input and output routines
• Mathematical expressions
• PowerFactory object procedure calls

• Subroutine calls
DPL command objects provide an interface for the configuration, preparation, and use of DPL scripts.
These objects may take input parameters, variables and/or objects, pass these to functions or subrou-
tines, and then output results.

By default, DPL commands are stored inside the Scripts folder of the project.

Consider the following simple example shown in Figure 4.8.1 to illustrate the DPL interface, and the
versatility of DPL scripts to take a user-selection from the single line graphic. The example DPL script
takes a load selection from the single line graphic, and implements a while loop to output the Load
name(s) to the output window. Note that there is also a check to see if any loads have been selected by
the user.

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Figure 4.8.1: Example DPL Script

For further information about DPL commands and how to write and execute DPL scripts refer to Chap-
ter 22 (Scripting), and the DPL Reference.

4.8.2 Python Scripts

In addition to DPL it is also possible to use the Python language to write scripts to be executed in
PowerFactory.

This can be done in one of two ways:

• The script can be written directly in a Python object (ComPython) in PowerFactory, or

• For more complex scripts, a Python script can written in an external editor and linked to the Python
command (ComPython) inside PowerFactory.

For further information about the Python command and how to write and execute Python scripts refer to
Chapter 22 (Scripting), and the Python Reference.

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 Part II

Administration
Chapter 5

Program Administration

This chapter provides information on how to configure PowerFactory, and how to log on. More de-
tailed descriptions of the installation, database settings and additional information can be found in the
Advanced Installation and Configuration Manual.

5.1 Program Installation and Configuration

In general there are 3 primary questions to consider before installing PowerFactory software, which will
determine the installation settings:

• Licence: Where should the licence key(s) reside?

• Installation: Where should PowerFactory be installed?

• Database: Where should the database reside?

Once PowerFactory has been installed, it can be started by clicking either on the Desktop or by selecting
PowerFactory in the Windows Start menu. PowerFactory will then start and create a user account upon
the initial user log-in. If the user is working in a single-user-database environment, PowerFactory will
take the username from Windows by default.

The user will then be automatically logged on. If more user accounts are subsequently created, the
user can switch to other users, or the Administrator account can be used to change the login policy so
that a dialog is presented when the user starts to log in. See section 6.4.2 for more information.

In a multi-user-database installation (see Chapter 6: User Accounts, User Groups, and Profiles) new
accounts and passwords are created by the administrator. The ’Administrator’ account is created when
installing PowerFactory and is used to create and manage users’ accounts in a multi-user environment
(see Chapter 6: User Accounts, User Groups, and Profiles). To log on as Administrator, the shortcut
from the Windows Start Menu can be used. When already running a PowerFactory session, the user
can select Tools → Switch User in the main menu to log-on as Administrator.

For further information about the role of the database administrator refer to Section 6.2: The Database
Administrator. Many of the activities carried out by the Administrator are easily accessed using the
Administration menu; this is found on the main toolbar but is only visible if the user is logged on as
Administrator. See Section 6.3 for further details.

Changes to the application settings can be made using the PowerFactory Configuration dialog. Once
PowerFactory is started, the Configuration dialog can be accessed via Tools → Configuration in Pow-
erFactory ’s main menu. Administrator rights are necessary to perform changes to these settings.

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 5.2. POWERFACTORY CONFIGURATION

5.2 PowerFactory Configuration

The configuration of the application is stored in an “ini” file located with the executable.These settings
can be changed within PowerFactory via the Configuration (SetConfig) dialog, which is available via
Tools → Configuration. Depending on where the file is stored, Windows administrator rights might be
required to change these settings.

5.2.1 General Page

On this page the user can select the application language for the session.

5.2.2 Database Page

This page allows the user to specify what kind of database will be used. The options are:

• A single-user database which resides locally on each computer

• A multi-user database (used in conjunction with the appropriate licence) which resides on a remote
server. Here all users have access to the same data simultaneously. In this case, user accounts
are created and administrated exclusively by the Administrator.

PowerFactory provides drivers for the following multi-user database systems:

• Oracle
• Microsoft SQL Server
• PostgreSQL

For further information regarding the database configuration refer to the Advanced Installation and
Configuration Manual.

5.2.3 Workspace Page

The Workspace page allows the user to set the workspace directory and the workspace backup direc-
tory. The workspace is used to store the local database, results files and log files. For further information
regarding options for configuring and using the workspace, refer to Chapter 5.4.

5.2.4 External Applications Page

The External Applications page is used to configure the external programs.

Python

• Interpreter: the Python Interpreter to be used can either be selected by version or by directory.
• Version: a number of Python versions are supported.
• Used Editor: there are three options to set the Python editor:
– internal: uses the internal editor provided by PowerFactory. This editor is the same used
when writing DPL scripts. More information about this editor can be found in section 22.1.3.
– system default: uses the system’s default editor for Python files (*.py); if no editor is defined
as default for Python files, then the default editor for text files (*.txt) is used. This is the default
option.

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CHAPTER 5. PROGRAM ADMINISTRATION

– custom: here the user can customise which editor should be used to open Python files.

C\C++ Compiler

A C\C++ Compiler can be configured here in order to enable the compilation functions of PowerFactory
native dynamic DSL and Modelica models (see Section 29.1.5 for more information on compiling user
defined dynamic models)

The following Version options are available:

• MinGW
• Visual Studio 20xx
The MinGW compiler is installed by default with PowerFactory and hence no other third party installa-
tion packages are required in order to make use of a C/C++ compiler. Detailed licence information for
MinGW itself, the MinGW runtime and additional libraries can be found in the installation directory of
PowerFactory, subfolder MinGW → licences.

If Visual Studio is installed, then it can be used for dynamic model compilation purposes by setting in
PowerFactory the specific Visual Studio version (selected in the Version field).

Note: Make sure that the selected Visual Studio compiler version is already installed on the host
computer in order for PowerFactory to correctly operate.

If a Visual Studio version is selected, then the Shell Extension of Visual Studio must be set.

PDF Viewer

Here the User can select which program should be used to open “.pdf” files. The are three options to
set the PDF viewer:
• system viewer: uses the system’s default editor for pdf files (*.pdf). This is the default option.
• Sumatra PDF: uses “Sumatra PDF” which is included in the PowerFactory installation.
• custom: here the user can customise which viewer should be used to open pdf files (*.pdf).

PyTorch

In the Directory field should be specified the path to the folder where the copies of the corresponding
*.dll files are stored. For further information regarding PyTorch is available in the Advanced Installation
and Configuration Manual.

5.2.5 Network Page

The Network page is used to specify an HTTP proxy in the case where the user’s computer connects
to the internet via a proxy server.

Proxy configuration

Three options are available for specifying the proxy configuration, including options to change the proxy
settings externally to PowerFactory if required.
• Use the system proxy settings.

• Configure the proxy manually, supplying the host name and port number.
• Provide a path to a proxy auto-configuration file (PAC).

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Proxy authentication

If it is necessary to provide authentication details to the proxy, this option is also checked, and the
relevant protocol selected from the drop-down list. Unless the username and password are to be taken
from the Windows user authentication details, they are entered here.

There is also a “Check internet Connection” button to check whether the configuration has been set up
successfully.

5.2.6 Geographic Maps Page

On the Geographic Maps page, the default settings for background maps can be changed. The following
parameters can be set:

• Map Tile Cache

– Directory: map cache directory where downloaded map tiles are stored (default: workspace
directory). A custom directory can be specified if the cache should be shared across different
PowerFactory installations.
– RAM cache limit: this setting can be used to limit the amount of application memory that
should be used.
• Network Settings
– Preferred tile size [pixels]: pixel dimensions of map tiles.
– Max server connections: maximum number of map tiles that are downloaded simultane-
ously.
– Download time-out: timespan after which a non-finished tile download is cancelled. This
value may need to be increased for slow/unstable internet connections.
• Google Maps account
If Google Maps is to be used as the map provider, the “Google Maps account” data must be set
on this page as well. To acquire a licence, please contact Google sales: (http://www.google.
com/enterprise/mapsearth).

Similarly, the licence keys for other map providers can be entered.

5.2.7 Advanced Page

General tab

• Paths in the Additional Directories in PATH field are used to extend the Windows path search.
Typically this is required for the Oracle client.
• Directories for external digex* libraries (DLL): In each row, set one directory path where legacy
“digexdyn” or “digexfun” compiled DLL dynamic models may be located. First row is set by default
to “$(InstallationDir)”, representing the installation directory of PowerFactory (for more information
on PowerFactory installation, refer to the Advanced Installation and Configuration Manual). The
use of dynamic models based on legacy “digexdyn” and “digexfun” interfaces is recommended to
be avoided, whenever possible. Refer to Section 29.14 for information on recommended practice
of interfacing external dynamic models with PowerFactory.
Note: PowerFactory is supplied based on a 64 bit architecture, hence 64 bit compiled DLL files
of all interfaced external models are required. Therefore, make sure that all DLL files within
the assigned path(s) for external digex* libraries do support 64 bit architecture.

Advanced tab

Settings on the Advanced tab should only be changed under the guidance of the PowerFactory support
(see Chapter 2 Contact).

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5.3 Licence

5.3.1 Select Licence

In order to run PowerFactory, the user is required to define licence settings in theDIgSILENT Power-
Factory Licence Manager, its dialog can be accessed via Tools → Licence→ Select Licence. . .

Note: The PowerFactory Licence Manager can be started externally using the corresponding shortcut
in the main installation folder of PowerFactory or in the Windows start menu.

The Licence Access defines the type of licence, which can be a local licence (either a licence file or a
USB dongle) or a network licence.

Automatic search

This option searches automatically local and network licences via a broadcast and chooses the first one
found without further input.

Local Softkey / USB dongle

If local softkey / USB dongle is chosen, the Local Licence Settings require the selection of a Licence
Container. The locally found containers are available in the drop-down-list.

Network licence

If network licence is chosen, the server name has to be selected from the drop-down-list or entered
manually in the Network Licence Settings. Pressing will refresh the list of available licence servers
in the network. For the specified server the Licence container can be chosen from a drop-down-list or
entered manually.

Selected Licence:

The field on the right side of the dialog shows various details relating to the selected licence. This
includes the order ID (useful for any contact with the sales department), the customer ID (useful for
contact with technical support), the maximum number of concurrent users for a multi user environment
and a list of the licensed additional modules. Note that the expiry date of the maintenance period for
the licence is also shown.

If problems with the licence occur, the button Create Licence Support Package creates a zipped file with
the needed information for the support to identify the cause of the problems.

5.3.2 Activate / Update / Deactivate / Move Licence

These options are relevant for local licences, where the user has to manage the licence. In a network
licence environment, this is done by the network administrator.

For the activation, the update and the deactivation process the licence related Activation Key has to be
entered into the upcoming dialog.

A PowerFactory software licence softkey can be moved between computers a limited number of times
per year. The licence move is a two-stage process:
1. An activated licence needs to be transferred back to the DIgSILENT server via the Deactivate
Licence feature of the Licence Manager.

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 5.4. WORKSPACE OPTIONS

2. The deactivated licence can be activated again on any computer.

More information regarding licence types and their management is available in the Advanced Installation
and Configuration Manual.

5.3.3 Licence and Maintenance Status

Via Help → About PowerFactory, users can get a summary of their PowerFactory installation, including
version number, available calculation functions, and licence and maintenance information.

Left-clicking on the traffic light icon located in the lower right corner of the main window status bar gives
quick access to this Help/About dialog, in which detailed information about licence and maintenance
status can be found, as shown in Figure 5.3.1.

Figure 5.3.1: Licence and Maintenance Status

Two states are monitored and categorised according to a traffic light colour system.

State of time-limited licences

• Green: licence can be used for at least 6 days

• Yellow: licence expires in less than 6 days

• If the licence has expired, PowerFactory will not start

State of maintenance contract

• Green: maintenance contract is valid for at least 46 days

• Yellow: maintenance contract expires in less than 46 days

• Red: maintenance contract has expired

Note: The traffic light icon shows the more severe of the two states with the time-limited licence state
having priority if both states have equal severity.

5.4 Workspace Options

By selecting Tools → Workspace from the main menu, the options described below are available.

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5.4.1 Show Workspace Directory

The workspace directory can be seen by clicking Tools → Workspace→ Show workspace directory.

5.4.2 Import and Export Workspace

The ability to export and import the workspace can be a convenient way of transferring settings and
local databases from one installation to another. The location of the directory can be configured via the
PowerFactory Configuration menu.

To import the workspace, select Tools → Workspace→ Import Workspace. . . . This is a convenient way
to import the entire workspace after a new installation.

To export the workspace, select Tools → Workspace→ Export Workspace. . . . The package will be
saved as a .zip file.

5.4.3 Show Default Export Directory

The selection Tools → Workspace→ Show Default Export Directory from the main menu shows the user
the directory that is used for the export. In particular, this directory is used for automated backups, e.g.
before migration. The location of the directory can be configured via the PowerFactory Configuration
menu.

5.5 Offline Mode User Guide

This section describes working in offline mode. Installation of the offline mode is described in the
Advanced Installation and Configuration Manual.

The Offline Mode concept was introduced with users of multi-user databases in mind. Users who have
a Team Edition licence make use of a multi-user database because of the benefits it brings in terms of
sharing data. Sometimes, however, users wish to work detached from the main database. The following
terms are used in this section:

• Online: Connected to, and working in, the multi-user database

• Offline: Disconnected from the multi-user database and working in a local database cache.

5.5.1 Functionality in Offline Mode

5.5.1.1 Start Offline Session

Preconditions:
• A PowerFactory user account must already exist in the online database. The PowerFactory
“Administrator” user is able to create user accounts.

• A user can only start an offline session if he/she is not currently logged on.

Note: the Administrator user is only allowed to work in online mode (not in offline mode).

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To create an offline session, follow these steps:

• Start PowerFactory. In the Log-on dialog enter the user name and password.

• On the Database page, enter the Offline Proxy Server settings (see Figure 5.5.1)

Figure 5.5.1: Log-on dialog, Database page

Note: Using a floating licence with the offline mode allows working with PowerFactory without
connection to the licence server. Please note, that the usage of floating licences has to be
included in the network licence and activated in the user settings.

• Press OK
• If the usage of a floating licence is configured, PowerFactory will generate the floating licence and
adapt the licence settings. PowerFactory has to be started again afterwards.
• An information dialog appears, saying “Offline database isn’t initialised yet. The initialisation
process may take several minutes”.
• Press OK
• Following initialisation, the usual PowerFactory application window is shown.

5.5.1.2 Release Offline Session

• From the main menu, select File → Offline→ Terminate Offline session
• A warning message is shown to confirm the synchronisation
• Press Yes

• All unsynchronised local changes will then be transferred to the server and the local offline
database is removed.
• If a floating licence has been used in offline mode, this licence will be returned to the licence
server.

5.5.1.3 Synchronise All

Synchronises global data (new users, projects added, projects removed, projects moved) and all sub-
scribed projects.

• Open the main menu File → Offline→ Synchronise all

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5.5.1.4 Subscribe Project for Reading Only

• Open the Data Manager and navigate to the project.

• Right-click on the project stub. A context menu is shown.
• Select Subscribe project in offline mode for reading only.

The project will then be retrieved from the Offline Proxy Server and stored in the local Offline DB cache.

5.5.1.5 Subscribe Project for Reading and Writing

Write access to the project is required.

• Open the Data Manager and navigate to the project.

• Right-click on the project stub. A context menu is shown.
• Select Subscribe project in Offline mode for reading and writing.

5.5.1.6 Unsubscribe Project

• Open the Data Manager and navigate to the project.

• Right-click on the project. A context menu is shown.
• Select Unsubscribe project in Offline mode.

5.5.1.7 Add a New Project

A new project is created in offline mode. It is available only in this offline session. Later this project
should be published to other users and synchronised to the online database.

• Create a new project or import a PFD project file.

• Open the Data Manager and navigate to the project.
• Right-click on the project stub. A context menu is shown.

• Select Subscribe project in Offline mode for reading and writing.

5.5.1.8 Synchronise Project

Synchronises a subscribed project. If the project is subscribed for reading only, the local project will be
updated from the online database. If the project is subscribed for reading and writing, the changes from
the local offline database will be transferred to the online database.

• Open the Data Manager and navigate to the project

• Right-click on the project stub. A context menu is shown.

• Select Synchronise

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5.5.2 Functionality in Online Mode

5.5.2.1 Show Current Online/Offline Sessions

The session status for each user is shown in the Data Manager.

Users who are working online appear like this , and those working offline like this .

5.5.3 Terminate Offline Session

There may occasionally be cases which require that an offline session be terminated by the Adminis-
trator; e.g. if the computer on which the offline session was initialised has been damaged and can no
longer be used, and the user wants to start a new offline session on a different computer.

The Administrator is able terminate a session as follows:

• Right-click on the user; the context menu is shown.
• Select Terminate session
• A warning message is shown to confirm the synchronisation.

• Press Yes

5.6 Housekeeping

5.6.1 Introduction

Housekeeping automates the administration of certain aspects of the database; in particular purging
projects, emptying user recycle bins and the deletion of old projects. Housekeeping is triggered by the
execution of a Windows Scheduled Task; this can be set up to run at night, thus improving performance
during the day by moving regular data processing to off-peak times. An additional benefit to housekeep-
ing is that users will need to spend less time purging projects and emptying recycle bins, something that
can slow down the process of exiting PowerFactory.

Housekeeping is only available for multi-user databases (e.g. Oracle, SQL Server). For details on
scheduling housekeeping, see the PowerFactory Advanced Installation and Configuration Manual.

5.6.2 Configuring Permanently Logged-On Users

Normally, housekeeping will not process data belonging to logged-on users; however, some user
accounts (e.g. those for a control room) may be connected to PowerFactory permanently. These
users can be configured to allow housekeeping to process their data while they are logged on.

This is done from the User Settings dialog, Miscellaneous page, by selecting Allow housekeeping task
to operate when user is connected.

Regardless of this setting, housekeeping will not operate on a user’s active project.

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5.6.3 Configuring Housekeeping Tasks

The Housekeeping command (SetHousekeeping) is used to control which housekeeping tasks are
enabled.

It is recommended that the user move this object from Database \System\Configuration\Housekeeping
to Database∖Configuration∖Housekeeping, in order to preserve the user’s configuration throughout
database upgrades.

The following sections discuss the different housekeeping tasks available in the Housekeeping dialog.

5.6.4 Project Archiving

Project archiving provides the following options:

• Disable: Archiving is not used.

• Immediate archiving by the user: by selecting “Archive” from the context menu, the project will
be immediately archived and placed in the archive directory.
• Deferred archiving by Housekeeping job: by selecting “Archive” from the context menu, the
project will be immediately archived, but not placed in the archive directory. This will happen
automatically depending on the Housekeeping settings.

Important: The archive directory can be defined under “Tools\Configuration\Database\Archive”

A project cannot be archived unless it is deactivated. By right-clicking on the project a context menu
will appear. By selecting “Archive”, the project will be moved to the Archived Projects folder of the user
(IntUser ). If specified in the Housekeeping archiving options, the project will be immediately placed in
the archive directory.

Conversely, archived projects may also be restored. To restore an archived project, the user must select
“Restore” from the context menu which appears after right-clicking on a deactivated project.

5.6.5 Configuring Deletion of Old Projects

If the option Remove projects based on last activation date has been selected in the Housekeeping
dialog, when the Housekeeping is executed, for each user, each project will be handled according to
the selected Action.

The Action options are:

• Delete project: deletes the project

• Archive project: archives the project
The project properties determine whether a project can be automatically deleted or archived.

The settings are found on the Storage page of the project dialog, and by default the option “Housekeep-
ing project deletion” is not selected. If it is selected, a retention period can be specified, by default 60
days.

These defaults can be changed for new projects by using a template project (under Configuration/De-
fault in the Data Manager tree).

The settings for multiple projects can be changed in a data manager on the Storage tab, as shown below
in Figure 5.6.1. A value of ’1’ is equivalent to the Housekeeping option Delete project being selected.

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Figure 5.6.1: Setting parameters for multiple projects

A project will be deleted/archived by the housekeeping task if it meets the following criteria:
1. The project is configured for automatic deletion/archiving on the Storage page of the project
properties.

2. The last activation of the project is older than the retention setting on the project.
3. It is not a base project with existing derived projects.
4. It is not a special project (e.g. User Settings, or anything under the System or Configuration trees).

5. The project is not locked (e.g. active).

6. The owner of the project is not connected, unless that user is configured to allow concurrent
housekeeping (see Section 5.6.2).

5.6.6 Configuring Purging of Projects

A PowerFactory project contains records of changes to data, which makes it possible to roll back the
project to an earlier state using versions (see section 20.2). However, as the user works with the project
and makes changes to it, the number of records increases and it is useful to remove older, unwanted
records in a process known as “purging”.

If Purge projects has been ticked in the Housekeeping dialog, when the Housekeeping is executed,
each project will be considered for purging. A project that is already locked (e.g. an active project) will
not be purged.

The criteria used by Housekeeping to purge a project are:

• If the project has been activated since its last purge.
• If it is now more than a day past the object retention period since last activation, and the project
has not been purged since then.

• If the project is considered to have invalid metadata (e.g. is a pre-14.0 legacy project, or a PFD
import without undo information).

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Once housekeeping has been configured to purge projects, the automatic purging of projects on acti-
vation may be disabled by the user, thus preventing the confirmation dialog popping up. To do this, the
option Automatic Purging should be to Off on the Storage page in the Project Properties dialog. This
parameter can also be set to Off for multiple projects (see Section 5.6.5 for details).

5.6.7 Configuring Emptying of Recycle Bins

If Delete recycle bin objects is set in the Housekeeping dialog, when Housekeeping is executed, each
user’s recycle bin will be examined.

Entries older than the number of days specified in the Housekeeping dialog will be deleted.

There is also an option Prevent manual clearing of recycle bin. If the Administrator sets this, individual
users will not be able to clear their own recycle bins, or delete individual objects therein.

5.6.8 Delete orphaned archive files

This option is provided to allow the housekeeping of archived projects. If the reference to an archived
project is subsequently removed from the database, that archived project is “orphaned”: there is no
point in retaining it in the archive as it could no longer be restored to the database. This option allows
the housekeeping process to delete such orphaned archive files.

5.6.9 Purge of object keys

Object keys are unique identifiers that are created whenever projects are exported. Their purpose is
to facilitate the “marrying-up” of a derived project with its base project when both are imported into
another database. It is possible to manually purge object keys for an individual project, and this will
delete object keys relating to objects which no longer exist. This option in the housekeeping settings
allows that process to be automated, but as the analysis of all projects in this way is resource-intensive,
this option should only be selected following DIgSILENT advice.

5.6.10 Monitoring Housekeeping

In order to ensure that housekeeping is working correctly, it should be regularly verified by an adminis-
trator. This is done by inspecting the HOUSEKEEPING_LOG table via SQL or the data browsing tools of
the multi-user database. For each run, housekeeping will insert a new row to this table showing the start
and end date/time and the completion status (success or failure). Other statistics such as the number
of deleted projects are kept. Note that absence of a row in this table for a given scheduled day indicates
that the task failed before it could connect to the database. In addition to the HOUSEKEEPING_LOG
table, a detailed log of each housekeeping run is stored in the log file of the housekeeping user.

5.6.11 Summary of Housekeeping Deployment

The basic steps to implement housekeeping are:

1. Set up a Windows Scheduled Task, as described in the PowerFactory Advanced Installation and
Configuration Manual.

2. Configure those users expected to be active during housekeeping, as described in Section 5.6.2.
3. Configure the Housekeeping dialog as described in Section 5.6.3.

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4. If using the project deletion/archiving task, configure automatic deletion/archiving properties for
new projects, as described in Section 5.6.5.
5. If using the project deletion/archiving task, configure automatic deletion/archiving properties for
existing projects, as described in Section 5.6.5.
6. Regularly monitor the HOUSEKEEPING_LOG table to verify the status of housekeeping runs, as
described in Section 5.6.10.

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Chapter 6

User Accounts, User Groups, and

Profiles

This chapter provides details of how to create and manage user accounts, user groups, and profiles.
The information in this chapter is particularly relevant for a multi-user database (i.e. Team Edition), and
will not generally be of so much interest to a user with a single-use installation.

Key objectives of the user account managing system are to:

• Protect the ’system’ parts of the database from changes by normal (non-administrator) users.
• Configure and manage access to the database, via options for the authentication mode to be used
and options for password management.
• Manage settings relating to data security and privacy.
• Facilitate both the sharing of user data and the restriction of data visibility between one user group
and another.

The user account managing system provides each user with their own “private” database space. The
user is nevertheless able to use shared data, either from the common system database or from other
users, and may enable other users to use data from their private database.

The user account managing system manages this whilst using only one single database in the back-
ground, which allows for simple backup and management of the overall database.

The default name for a PowerFactory user (unless using Team Edition) is the Windows user name,
which is automatically created when PowerFactory is started for the first time.

6.1 PowerFactory Database Overview

A brief introduction to the top level structure of the PowerFactory database is convenient before pre-
senting the user accounts and their functionality.

The data in PowerFactory is stored inside a set of hierarchical directories. The top level structure is
constituted by the following folders:

• Configuration: contains company specific customising for user groups, user default settings,
project templates and class templates for objects. The configuration folder can only be edited by
the administrator and is read only for normal users.
• System: contains all objects that are used internally by PowerFactory. The system folder contains

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default settings provided by DIgSILENT and these should not be changed. They are automatically
updated upon migration to a new PowerFactory version.
• DIgSILENT Library: contains all standard types and models provided with PowerFactory. The
main library folder is read only for normal users.
• User accounts: contain user project folders and associated objects and settings.

The structure described above is illustrated in Figure 6.1.1

Figure 6.1.1: Basic database structure

6.2 The Database Administrator

A database administrator account is created with the PowerFactory installation. The main functions of
the administrator are:

• Creation and management of user accounts.

• System database maintenance under the guidance of the DIgSILENT customer support.

Under a multiuser database environment, the administrator is the only user with permissions to:

• Add and delete users.

• Define users groups.
• Set individual user rights.

• Restrict or allow calculation functions.

• Set/reset user passwords.
• Create and edit Profiles (see Section 6.6 for details).

• Configure various settings such as housekeeping processes, parallel processing configuration,

password security options etc.

The administrator is also the only user that can modify the main library and the system folders. Although
the administrator has access to all the projects of all the users, it does not have the right to perform any
calculations.

To log on as administrator, there are two options:

• Select the Shortcut in the Windows Start Menu PowerFactory 20nn (Administrator).

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• Log into PowerFactory as a normal User and select via the Main menu Tools → Switch User.
Select Administrator and enter the corresponding password.

For further information about the administrator role, refer to the Advanced Installation and Configuration
Manual.

6.3 Administration Menu

To assist the administrator, an Administration menu is provided to give easy access to the more impor-
tant settings; this is found on the main toolbar but is only visible if the user is logged on as Administrator.
These are the options available from this menu:

6.3.1 User Management

The options available here are:

• Show Users. . .
• Show Groups. . .
• User Manager. . .
These are used to manage User accounts and User Groups as described in Sections 6.5 and 6.6.

6.3.2 Security and Privacy

The options available here are:

• Audit Log. . .
• Login Policy. . .
• Idle Session Timeout. . .

• External Data Access. . .

• Privacy. . .
These are described in Section 6.4 below.

6.3.3 Calculation Settings

The options available here are:

• Parallelisation. . . : This allows the administrator to configure the Parallel Computing Manager.
• Linear Programming. . . : This brings up a dialog which enables the administrator to configure
which internal and external linear programming solvers should be made available to users who
are using the Unit Commitment and Dispatch Optimisation module. See Section 39.3.7.2.

6.3.4 Housekeeping

This gives access to the dialog for setting up Housekeeping tasks. Details can be found in Section 5.6.

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6.4 Security and Privacy

This section gives an overview of the security and privacy features which can be managed by the
administrator. Note that more detail is provided in the Advanced Installation and Configuration Manual.

6.4.1 Audit Log

The Audit Log is a log of key activities on the database, and is useful for the administrator of a multi-user
database.

6.4.1.1 Enabling the Audit Log

The log can be enabled by the administrator via the Administration Menu (Administration → Security
and Privacy → Audit Log. . . ), where a retention period is also set. By default the log is not enabled, and
it should be noted that if the log is enabled then later disabled, all records will be lost. The information
in the Audit log is securely held in the database itself.

6.4.1.2 Using the Audit Log

An Audit Log command ComAuditlog can be created by the Administrator user and used to access the
information in the log. The command options are:

• Report, to generate a high-level report to the output window

• Export, to export a detailed report
• Check Integrity As an additional assurance, it is possible to carry out a data integrity check on
the Audit Log data to detect any data manipulation.

A more detailed description of the Audit Log and what it contains can be found in the Advanced
Installation and Configuration Manual.

6.4.2 Login Policy Options

6.4.2.1 Authentication Mode

Here the administrator determines what authentication (username and password) mode will be used.
The options are:
• PowerFactory authentication provides built-in user management, where the users must enter
their PowerFactory usernames and passwords

• Active Directory authentication uses the external Windows Active Directory for user authenti-
cation
• No authentication
If the Active Directory authentication is selected, then the user can click on the “...” to the right of each
group to select the Active Directory group, then give it an appropriate name within PowerFactory. All
groups must be within the same domain. It should be noted that only one user in the second group
(Administrators) may be logged in at any one time.

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6.4.2.2 Password Policy

If the authentication mode PowerFactory authentication is selected, further options appear, allowing
the administrator to impose rules to enforce regular password changes and/or put in place rules on
password quality, such as length and character diversity.

6.4.3 Idle Session Timeout

In this option, the administrator can set a time-limit after which any idle PowerFactory session will
be terminated. Such a session will be closed down in an ordered way, but it should be noted that
unsaved scenario changes will be lost. A session will only be considered as idle if there has been no
activity for the prescribed time, where “activity” means user activity such as mouse-clicks or keyboard
actions. However, if a command is being executed (for example a long-running simulation, or a script),
PowerFactory will wait until the command has been completed before terminating the session.

As well as being a good security measure, setting an Idle Session Timeout is useful in a multi-user
environment because the licences are released back to the licence server.

6.4.4 External Data Access

The External Data Access dialog allows the administrator to specify permitted addresses in order to
manage access to data outside PowerFactory. This control is related to IntUrl and IntDocument objects
which are being used to access external data.

6.4.5 Privacy

This feature is available to allow database administrators to manage the visibility of user names. There
are two options, which by default are not enabled:
• Enable recording of modifying user in object, which if checked will mean that the “Object
modified by” information will include the PowerFactory user name.
• Display system account in user object, which if checked will mean that the Windows username
will appear in the IntUser object when the user has an active session.

6.5 Creating and Managing User Accounts

In the case of an installation with a local database, the default name for a PowerFactory user is the
Windows user name, which is automatically created when PowerFactory is started for the first time. (see
Chapter 5: Program Administration). In this case the program will automatically create and activate the
new account, without administrator intervention. In order to create other PowerFactory users if required,
the ’User Manager’ object can be used as described below:

In multi-user database installations, the administrator creates new user accounts by means of a tool
called the ’User Manager’, which is found in the Configuration folder.

To create a new user:

• Log on as Administrator. You can do so by starting the PowerFactory Administrator shortcut in the
Windows Start menu or by switching the user via Tools → Switch User in the main tool bar.
• The User Manager can be accessed from the Administration menu on the main toolbar: Adminis-
tration → User Management→ User Manager. . .

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 6.5. CREATING AND MANAGING USER ACCOUNTS

• Press the Add User. . . button.

The User edit dialog will be displayed. The settings are the following:

• General page
– User Name: user Name that will be used for login to PowerFactory at startup
– Full Name: full Name of the appropriate user. In case, that the parameter User Name is set
to be an abbreviation.
– Change Password: the administrator can change the user password here, without knowing
the previous password. If this button is clicked by the user itself, the current password has to
be entered as well.
– Force password change: can be selected by the administrator.
– User sharing: by adding different users into the list of permitted users, access for these users
can be granted to login to the appropriate user account. If User A is in the list of permitted
user, User A can access the user account without entering the user password.
• Account page:
– Publishing user: by setting this flag, the user can be defined to be a publishing user. This
means, that the user is visible to other users within the database and marked with a different
symbol within the data manager. This option can be used to provide an user within the
multiuser database, who publishes projects.
– User account enabled: this setting can be used to enable/disable the user Account
– User account is time-limited: this option will set the account to be time limited and therefore
can be used for temporary users within the database.
– Force Authentication server usage: setting this option also requires the definition of an
authentication server within the PowerFactory configuration as explained in the manual.
• Password Policy page: On this page, the default Password policy (see section 6.4.2) can be
customised by the administrator for the user.
• Licence page: if a licensed version with a restricted number of functions is used (i.e. you may
have 4 licences with basic functionality, but only 2 stability licences), the Licence tab may be used
to define the functions that a user can access. The Multi-User Database option should be checked
for all users that will access the multi user database.
As an alternative to allocating access to certain licence functions to individual users, it is possible
to allocate access via User Groups instead. See section 6.6 below.
• Parallel Computing: here it can be defined whether the user is allowed to use parallel processing
possibilities within PowerFactory. The “User defined” setting allows the individual user to cus-
tomise the globally-defined allowed processes number to a lower number if required, for example
to free up resources for other applications.
• Optimisation: the Unit Commitment module (see Chapter 39) offers the possibility to use in-built
or external linear problem solvers, the latter requiring an additional licence module. Here, the
administrator enables access to the preferred solver(s).

Existing users can be viewed via the Administration menu on the main toolbar: Administration → User
Management→ Show Users. . . . The administrator can edit any user account to change the user name,
set new calculation rights or change the password. To edit an existing user account:

• Right-click on the desired user and select Edit from the context menu. The User edit dialog will be
displayed.

Any user can edit her/his own account by means of the User edit dialog. In this case only the full name
and the password can be changed.

Note: The administrator is the only one who may delete a user account. Although users can delete
all projects inside their account folder, they cannot delete the account folder itself or the standard
folders that belong to it (i.e. the Recycle Bin or the Settings folder).

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6.6 Creating User Groups

User groups are a useful way for managing various access rights and permissions within a multi-user
database environment. For example, any project or folder in a user account may be shared, either with
everybody or with specific user groups. User groups can also be used in conjunction with Profiles (see
section 6.7) and for controlling access to licence modules.

User groups are created by the administrator via the User Manager. To create a new user group:

• Log on as Administrator.
• The User Manager can be accessed from the Administration menu on the main toolbar: Adminis-
tration → User Management→ User Manager. . .
• Press the Add Group. . . button.

• Enter the name of the new group, optionally a description and press Ok.
• The new group is automatically created in the User Groups directory of the Configuration folder.

Existing groups can be viewed via the Administration menu on the main toolbar: Administration →
User Management→ Show Groups. . . . The administrator can change the name of an existing group by
means of the corresponding edit dialog (right-clicking on it and selecting Edit from the context menu).
Via the context menu, groups can also be deleted.

The administrator can add users to a group by:

• Copying the user in the Data Manager (right-click on the user and select Copy from the context
menu).
• Selecting a user group in the left pane of the Data Manager.

• Pasting a shortcut of the copied user inside the group (right-click the user group and select Paste
Shortcut from the context menu).

Users are taken out of a group by deleting their shortcut from the corresponding group.

The administrator can also set the Groups Available Profiles on the Profile tab of the Group dialog.

In addition, the Licence page of the User Group can be used to configure which licence modules
members of the group will have access to. For any individual user, the licence modules available to
that user will be all those selected in that individual user’s account set-up, plus any additional licence
modules made available to the group(s) to which the user belongs.

For information about sharing projects, refer to Section 20.6 (Sharing Projects).

6.7 User Interface Customisation (Profiles)

Profiles can be used to configure aspects of the Graphical User Interface, such as toolbars, menus, di-
alog pages, and dialog parameters. By default, PowerFactory includes “Base Package” and “Standard”
profiles, selectable from the main menu under Tools → Profiles. Selecting the “Base Package” profile
limits icons shown on the Main Toolbar to those that are used with the Base Package of the software.
The “Standard” profile includes all available PowerFactory icons.

Profiles are created in the Configuration → Profiles folder by selecting the New Object icon and then
Profile. An administrator can create and customise profiles, and control User/User Group selection of
profiles from the Profile tab of each group.

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 6.7. USER INTERFACE CUSTOMISATION (PROFILES)

Figure 6.7.1 shows the Profile dialog for a new profile, CustomProfile, and Figure 6.7.2 illustrates
aspects of the GUI that may be customised using this profile. This section describes the customisation
procedure.

Figure 6.7.1: Profile dialog

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CHAPTER 6. USER ACCOUNTS, USER GROUPS, AND PROFILES

Figure 6.7.2: GUI Customisation using Profiles

6.7.1 Tool Configuration

Definition of Icons

Icons can be defined in the Configuration → Icons folder by selecting the New Object icon and then
Icon. From the Icon dialog, icon images can be imported and exported. Icons should be 24 pixels by 24
pixels in Bitmap format (recommended to be 24-bit format).

Command Configuration

The User-defined Tools toolbar can be used to make commonly-used tools such as scripts and Add On
Modules available to users. Changes and additions to the User-defined Tools toolbar can only be made
by the Administrator; from the menu Administration → Tool Configuration. . . , the fields described below
can be edited.
• Command: in this field, the relevant command or script is selected from the location where it has
been stored.
– Scripts: scripts may be stored within the Tool Configuration itself or in the Configuration,
Scripts folder
– Com* objects: generally, commands Com* are stored within the Tool Configuration itself.
– Add On Modules: add on module commands can be stored in the Configuration, Add On
folder.

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• Edit: if selected, the DPL command dialog will appear when a Command is executed. If de-
selected, the DPL command dialog will not appear when a Command is executed.
• Icon: previously created icons can be selected, which will be shown on the menu where the
command is placed. If no icon is selected, a default icon will appear (a Hammer, DPL symbol, or
default Com* icon, depending on the Class type).
Template Configuration

• Template: the name of the template. The name may be for a unique template, or include
wildcards (such as *.ElmLne) for selection of a group of templates. Templates should be in
’System/Library/Busbar Systems’ folder, or in the ’Templates’ folder of the active project.
• Drawing mode: the drawing mode can be set where there are multiple diagrammatic representa-
tions for a template (such as for a substation). Three options are available:
– Blank will place the default (detailed) graphic of the template.
– Simplified will place the simplified graphic of the template.
– Composite will place a composite representation of the template.

• Symbol name: sets the representation of templates with a composite drawing mode (e.g. Gen-
eralCompCirc or GeneralCompRect).
• Icon: previously created icons can be selected, which will be shown on the menu where the
template is placed. If no icon is selected, a default icon will appear (a Template symbol or custom
icon).
• Description: this description will be displayed when a user hovers the mouse pointer over the
icon. If left blank, the template name will be displayed.

6.7.2 Configuration of Toolbars

The Main Toolbar and Drawing Toolbars can be customised using the Toolbar Configuration. The field
Toolboxes may either refer to a Toolbox Configuration (SetTboxconfig) or a Toolbox Group Configuration
(SetTboxgrconfig), which may in-turn refer to one or more Toolbox Configurations.

Figure 6.7.3 shows an example where there is a main toolbox, and a toolbox group. The toolbox group
adds a Change Toolbox icon to the menu, which allows selection of Basic Commands and Custom
Commands groups of commands.

Figure 6.7.3: Toolbar Configuration

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Each toolbox can be customised to display the desired icons, such as illustrated in Figure 6.7.4

Figure 6.7.4: Toolbox Configuration

Prior to customising the displayed buttons and menu items etc, the user should first define any required
custom Commands and Templates. A Tool Configuration object can be created in the Configuration
→ Profiles folder, or within a user-defined Profile, by selecting the New Object icon and then Tool
Configuration. If created in the Profiles folder, the commands will be available from the “Standard”
profile. Conversely, if the Tool Configuration object is created within a profile (SetProfile) the commands
and templates will only be available for use in this profile. If there is a Tool Configuration within a user-
defined profile, as well as in the Profiles folder, the Tool Configuration in the user-defined profile will
take precedence. Optionally, customised icons can be associated with the Commands and Templates.

6.7.3 Configuration of Menus

The Main Menu, Data Manager, Graphic, Plots, and Output Window menus can be customised from
the Menu Configuration dialog. The Change to Configuration View button of the Profile dialog is used
to display description identifiers for configurable items, such as illustrated in the context menu shown in
Figure 6.7.5. The Menu Configuration includes a list of entries to be removed from the specified menu.
Note that a Profile may include multiple menu configurations (e.g. one for each type of menu to be
customised).

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Figure 6.7.5: Menu Configuration

6.7.4 Configuration of Dialog Pages

The Dialog Page Configuration may be used to specify the Available and Unavailable dialog pages
shown when editing elements, such as illustrated in Figure 6.7.6. Note that Users can further customise
the displayed dialog pages from the Functions tab of their User Settings.

Figure 6.7.6: Dialog Page Configuration

6.7.5 Configuration of Dialog Parameters

The Dialog Configuration may be used to customise element dialog pages, such as illustrated for a
Synchronous Machine element in Figure 6.7.7. “Hidden Parameters” are removed from the element
dialog page, whereas “Disabled Parameters” are shown but cannot be modified by the user. A Profile
may include multiple dialog configurations (e.g. one for each class to be customised).

Note that if a there is a Dialog Configuration for say, Elm* (or similarly for ElmLne,ElmLod), as well as
a dialog Configuration for ElmLne (for example), the configuration settings will be merged.

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Figure 6.7.7: Dialog Configuration

Note: Configuration of Dialog parameters is an advanced feature of PowerFactory, and the user should
be cautious not to hide or disable dependent parameters. Seek assistance from DIgSILENT
support if required.

6.7.6 References

Profiles can also contain references to configurations. This allows several profiles to use the same
configurations. These referenced configurations can either be stored in another profile or in a subfolder
of the “Profiles” folder (e.g. a user-defined profile can use configurations from a pre-defined profile).

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User Settings

The User Settings dialog offers general settings which can be configured by the user individually. The
dialog may be opened either by clicking the User Settings button ( ) on the main tool bar, or by
selecting the Tools → User Settings. . . menu item from the main menu.

7.1 Data/Network Model Manager Settings

The Data/Network Model Manager settings include:

Browser

• Save data automatically (tabular input): the Data Manager and the Network Model Manager
will not ask for confirmation every time a value is changed in the data browser when this option is
selected.
• Confirm delete action: causes a confirmation dialog to appear whenever something is about to
be deleted.

Data Manager

• Sort automatically: specifies that objects are automatically sorted (by name) in the data browser.

• Remember last selected object: The last selected object will be remember when a new Data
Manager window is opened.

• Always open new Data Manager: if not enabled (default), using the icon or Ctrl+D to open
the Data Manager will present the existing Data Manager if one is already open; if enabled, a
separate new Data Manager tab will be created.

• Always open new Network Model Manager: if not enabled (default), using the icon to open
the Network Model Manager will present the existing Network Model Manager if one is already
open; if enabled, a separate new Network Model Manager tab will be created.

Operation Scenario

• If Save active Operation Scenario automatically is enabled, the period for automatic saving
must be defined.
• Automatically migrate to current configuration during activation: the default is for this option
to be selected. This means that after migration to a new version of PowerFactory, the operation

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scenarios will be migrated when a project is activated, and any new scenario data attributes will
be assigned values based on the current status of the object. If the option is not selected, the
scenario will not be migrated (and values will not be assigned) until that scenario is saved, and
this may be the user preference. Note however that the scenarios have to be migrated to the
current PowerFactory version if the Operation Scenario Manager (see Section 15.4) is used.

Export/Import data (DZ/DZS)

Configures the export and import as follows:

• Binary data: saves binary data, such as results in the result folders, to the ’DZ’ export files
according to selection.
• Export references to deleted objects: will also export references to objects which reside in the
recycle bin. Normally, connections to these objects are deleted on export.
• Export ’Modified by’: enables the export of information about who last changed an object
(attribute ’modified by’). This information could conflict with data privacy rules and is therefore
configurable.

Custom library

In the Used library field, the user can specify the additional global library to be displayed when assigning
a type.

More information about creating a custom global library is available in section 4.5.2: Custom Global
Library.

Reset column widths

When this button is pressed, the width of the columns in the Data Manager and Network Model Manager
are set to their default value.

Hotkeys

This button brings up a filtered list of hotkey assignments, showing just those context-dependent hotkeys
applicable to the Data Manager or Network Model Manager.

7.2 Window Layout

Here the user has some options for customising the default appearance and layout of the windows.

Tabbed Document Interface

The graphical pages are displayed as tabbed documents, with the tabs by default at the top of each
page.

• Show tab icons: icons can be shown on the tabs, to help the user distinguish between different
pages. With the option turned off, the tabs take up less space.
• Show confirmation dialog when closing diagrams: users may prefer not to have the confirma-
tion dialog. Closed (but not deleted) diagrams can of course be re-opened.

• Tab position: if the user prefers, the tabs can be shown at the bottom of the graphics.

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Drawing Toolbox

Here the user can select whether group headers and/or element labels in the drawing toolbox should
be shown or not. These options can also be changed within the toolbox itself.

7.3 Graphic Windows Settings

7.3.1 General tab

Open desktop on study case activation

Causes the graphics windows to re-appear automatically when a study case is activated. When not
checked, the graphics window must be opened manually via Window → Desktop.

Grid representation

The style and colour options allow the user to configure the appearance of the background grid, which
is visible when freeze mode is turned off. The colour can be set back to default using a button at the
bottom of the page.

Mark in Graphic

• The colour and opacity used when the objects are marked in the graphics can be defined.
• Highlight small elements using additional markers: sometimes small objects such as termi-
nals are hard to spot even when highlighted. If this option is selected, the position of such objects
will be indicated using a marker.

• Zoom-in on marked elements: if this is selected, the graphic where the object is to be shown will
be zoomed in so that the object can be more easily seen. The level of zoom for both schematic
and geographic diagrams can be configured by the user.

Background colours

To change the configuration of the background colour for:

• Window: graphic windows

• Graphic page: diagrams
• Model: dynamic model elements
• Model type: dynamic model types

The colours can be set back to default using the button Reset colours at the bottom of the page.

Limit number of open site and substation diagrams

The user may set a limit to restrict the number of opened graphic pages.

7.3.2 Advanced tab

Cursor

Defines the cursor shape:

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• Arrow: a normal, arrow shaped cursor.

• Tracking Cross: a small cross.

Acceleration of Zooming

The higher the Acceleration factor, the more zoom there will be for a given mouse operation.

Update Graphic while Simulation is running

The graphic will be updated during the simulation.

General Options

• Show Text only if height will be least: text smaller than the selected size will not be shown

• Diagram window margin: the graphical pages are by default shown against a dark background,
with a small margin. The size of that margin can be adjusted here.
• Open diagrams in freeze mode on study case activation: if selected (default option), diagrams
cannot be modified until the freeze button is clicked.

• Allow resizing of branch objects: if the option is enabled, the user can left click an edge element
within the single line diagram and then resize it.
• Show “Edit Graphic Object” in context menu: if the option is enabled, when the user right-
clicks on an element within the single line graphic, the option Edit Graphic Object will be offered.
• Snap textboxes: by default, this option is not enabled, allowing the user to position text-boxes
precisely. However, selecting the option makes it easier to align text boxes with each other.

7.4 Output Window Settings

Enable Message filter

When un-checking this box, the filter buttons are removed from the output window.

Displayed Messages

This is where the filters used in the output window are defined. This, however, can be directly done in
the output window.

Message format

• No date and time: the messages in the output window will be printed without a time stamp.
• Date and time to the second: the date and time of the system up to the second will be shown in
every line of the output window.
• Date and time to the millisecond: the date and time of the system up to the millisecond will be
shown in every line of the output window.
• Full object names: when an object is printed, the complete name (including the location path) is
printed.

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Font

The font used in the output window is set by clicking on the icon .

Show confirmation dialog before clearing messages

This option is normally checked, to avoid users accidentally losing messages that they need, but
deselecting it allows users to clear the output more quickly.

7.5 Profile Settings

PowerFactory provides standard profiles which define the configurations of the toolbars seen by the
users. It is also possible for the Administrator to set up additional profiles, in order to provide customi-
sation for different users (see Section 6.7 for details).

Here, the user can select the required profile and see the configuration details.

Also on the profile page, are settings relating to Hotkeys and the Quick Access menu (see section 7.13):

• Edit Hotkeys... to bring up the Edit Hotkeys. . . dialog, also accessible via the main Tools menu.
• Confirm reassignment of key sequence: selected by default, this ensures that the user has to
confirm reassigning a key sequence if another hotkey already uses it.
• Confirm hotkey reset if it leads to reassignment: selected by default, this ensures that the user
has to confirm if resetting a hotkey to default will affect another hotkey.

• Confirm reset of multiple hotkeys: selected by default, this ensures that the user has to confirm
if resetting multiple hotkeys even if confirmation for resetting individual hotkeys is not requested.
• Edit Quick Access... to bring up the Edit Quick Access. . . dialog, also accessible via the main
Tools menu.

7.6 Functions Settings

The functions settings page provides check boxes for the function modules that are accessible from the
Data Manager or from the object edit dialogs. The user may choose to see only certain modules in
order to “unclutter” dialogs.

This may also be used to protect data by allowing only certain calculation functionality to be seen by
certain users. This is particularly useful in a multi-user environment or when inexperienced users utilise
PowerFactory.

7.7 Editor Settings

The editor used for DPL scripts, DSL equations and, if selected, Python scripts, can be configured on
this page.

Options

• Enable Auto Indent: automatically indents the next line.

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• Enable Backspace at Start of Line: will not stop the backspace at the left-most position, but will
continue at the end of the previous line.
• View Blanks and Tabs: shows these spaces.

• Show Selection Margin: provides a column on the left side where bookmarks and other markings
are shown.
• Show Line Numbers: shows line numbers at the beginning of each line. This option is very useful
when locating errors in the script.

• Enable Autocomplete: a list of possible functions will be shown when writing a word inside the
editor.
• Tab Size: defines the width of a single tab.

Tabs

Toggles between the use of standard tabs, or to insert spaces when the tab-key is used.

Colours. . .

Pressing this button opens the Editor colour settings dialog from which it is possible to specify a
different colour scheme for each programming language used in the software as well as a separate
colour scheme for use in the descriptive text fields of PowerFactory database objects. Different colours
can be assigned for each different predefined class of data. By default a preview mode is shown
where the impact of the chosen colouring scheme on an editable sample of text or code can be seen.
An overall summary of the selected colour schemes can be shown by pressing the Overview button
and from this view, colouring schemes can also be adjusted as well as copied and pasted from one
column (programming language) to another. The default colouring scheme can be restored for each
programming language independently by selecting the reset button, when the relevant tab is selected.

The button can be used to specify the appearance of the text used within the PowerFactory editor.
The font, font style, size, effects and writing system can all be defined.

Hotkeys. . .

This button brings up a filtered list of hotkey assignments, showing just those context-dependent hotkeys
applicable when using editors.

7.8 Colours Settings

To make it easier for users to identify the different sources of data easily, background colouring of the
data fields is used, both in the network model manager and in the element dialogs.

As can be seen in Figure 7.8.1, the user can select different colours. See Section 4.7.8 for information
about configuring colours. In addition, because data might belong to more than one category (e.g.
operation scenario data which also has associated characteristics), the user can set priorities according
to which information is considered more important. A Reset to default button allows the user to reset
all these settings to their default values.

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Figure 7.8.1: Data colouring options

7.9 StationWare Settings

When working with DIgSILENT ’s StationWare connection options are stored in the user settings.The
connection options are as follows:

Service Endpoint

Denotes the StationWare server name. This name resembles a web page URL and must have the form:

• https://the.server.name/psmsws/PSMSService.asmx or
• https://192.168.1.53/psmsws/PSMSService.asmx

https denotes the protocol, the.server.name is the computer name (or DNS) of the server com-
puter and psmsws/PSMSService.asmx is the name of the StationWare application.

Note: The default StationWare configuration requires SSL for the StationWare applications (web GUI
and web services). Use http instead of https, if SSL is not enabled for your StationWare
applications.

Username/Password

Username and Password have to be valid user account in StationWare. A StationWare user account
has nothing to do with the StationFactory user account. The very same StationWare account can be
used by two different PowerFactory users.The privileges of the StationWare account actually restrict
the functionality. For device import the user requires read-access rights. For exporting additionally
write-access rights are required.

7.10 Offline Settings

These settings are only relevant if the installation has been configured to enable Offline mode to be
used (see Section 5.5). Users will normally leave these settings at their default values.

• Id contingent size: it is necessary, when starting an Offline session, to reserve object IDs in the
main database so as to avoid any conflicts. This parameter specifies the number of IDs to be
reserved, and therefore the number of objects that could be created.
• Id contingent warning threshold: once the user reaches this percentage of the above number
of IDs, a warning is issued. This can act as a prompt for timely resynchronisation of the user’s
changes.

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7.11 Parallel Computing

The settings for parallel computing are centrally defined by the Administrator, as described in Sec-
tion 21.4.

However, an individual user may wish to modify the settings and it is possible to do so on this page. A
typical reason for this would be that the user wishes to make use of parallel computation but does not
want to use the maximum allowed number of cores, because of a need to work on other applications
outside PowerFactory at the same time. Here the user can opt to use fewer (but not more) cores than
the maximum set by the Administrator.

On the Advanced tab, there are two more options:

• Max. waiting time for process response: the default setting here is 50 s. A shorter time risks
stopping processes which are still executing tasks, and a longer time could slow down the overall
execution time. This setting should be changed only with care.
• Transfer complete project to all processes: the default is for this not to be selected. This is
because normally PowerFactory transfers all data required. Only in exceptional circumstances
should it be set, and the user should be aware that there is likely to be an adverse effect on
performance.

7.12 Miscellaneous Settings

7.12.0.1 General

Localisation

• Decimal Symbol: selects the symbol selected to be used for the decimal point. It can be either
takes from the system, or defined by the user.

Retention of results after network change

When the option Show last results is selected, modifications to network data or switch status etc. will
retained the results, these will be shown on the single line diagram and on flexible data pages in grey
until the user reset the results (e.g. by selecting Reset Calculation, or conducting a new calculation).

Check for application updates

PowerFactory will remind the User if there are new updates available for the software. In this field is
defined how often PowerFactory shall check for available updates. By default there will be a reminder
every 14 days. The possible options are:

• Manually: the User will check for updates manually, no reminder will be shown.
• On each application start: a reminder will be shown every time PowerFactory is started.
• According to interval: a reminder will be shown according to the time defined in this field.

Edit Filter before Execute

If this is selected, when the user uses a filter, a dialog box appears and the user may first change some-
thing or immediately press Apply; if this option is not checked then filters are just applied straightaway.

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Allow housekeeping task to operate when user is connected

This option is only active if housekeeping is enabled.

7.12.0.2 Confirmation Dialogs

• Show ’Remove Contingencies’ confirmation dialog in Contingency Analysis: when existing

contingencies will be removed because they will be overwritten by new ones (e.g. when using the
Contingency Definition tool), the default behaviour is to ask the user to confirm, in case of error. If
the user prefers not to be asked, this option should be deselected.
• Show ’Reset Calculation’ confirmation dialog: this option can be deselected if the user does
not want to be asked for confirmation when using the Reset Calculation button.
• Show ’Exit’ dialog: when the user closes PowerFactory, a confirmation dialog normally appears.
In addition to confirming that the user wishes to exit, it offers options relating to project purging
and recycle bin emptying. There is also a Show on exit option which can be un-checked. This
user setting is another way of disabling the confirmation dialog, or of course re-enabling it.
• Show backup reminder dialog: if this option is set, the user will receive a reminder about making
a database backup when logging in.

• Show ’Variation is recording’ notification: if selected (default value), a small window with
the message “Variation is recording” will be displayed if an expansion stage is active and a
modification is made that will be stored in the expansion stage.
• Confirm delete action: if this option is set, a confirmation dialog will appear whenever something
is about to be deleted.

• Confirm reassignment of key sequence: selected by default, this ensures that the user has to
confirm reassigning a key sequence if another hotkey already uses it.
• Confirm hotkey reset if it leads to reassignment: selected by default, this ensures that the user
has to confirm if resetting a hotkey to default will affect another hotkey.

• Confirm reset of multiple hotkeys: selected by default, this ensures that the user has to confirm
if resetting multiple hotkeys even if confirmation for resetting individual hotkeys is not requested.

7.13 Hotkeys and Quick Access

7.13.1 Hotkeys

Hotkeys are shortcuts used to speed up work within PowerFactory. Fixed standard hotkeys such as F5
for refresh or Ctrl+C for copying are supplemented by user-definable hotkeys for actions such as running
a load-flow calculation (default: F10), opening the User Settings dialog (default: Ctrl+U) or marking a
selected object in a graphic (default: Ctrl+M).

There are two categories for actions that the user can assign key sequences to:

• Global actions: These are actions triggered via an icon in one of the main toolbars or selecting
an item from a main menu. They do not depend on the currently active window or control but can
only be executed if no modal dialog is open.

• Context-dependent actions: These actions can only be executed if a specific window or control
is currently active.

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It is worth noting that for commands, it is possible to assign two different key sequences, one to open
the command dialog and another to directly execute the command. An example of this is the existing
default settings of Ctrl+F10 to just open the Load Flow command dialog, and F10 to execute the Load
Flow command without opening the command dialog.

A particular hotkey sequence can be used for more than one context-dependent action (in different
contexts), but a hotkey assigned to any global action must be unique.

7.13.1.1 Assigning hotkeys (Edit Hotkeys. . . dialog)

The Edit Hotkeys. . . dialog can be opened from the main menu using Tools → Edit Hotkeys. . . . It can
also be accessed from any main toolbar icon via right-click, or from the User Settings dialog, Profile
page. (Note that these settings are not part of the User Profile as such, but are just part of the more
general user customisation.)

There are two drop-down menus at the top of the dialog:

• Category enables the user to show the list of Global Hotkeys, Context-dependent Hotkeys or
Fixed Hotkeys.
• View is only available if Global Hotkeys is selected and offers the choice between a list of actions
from the main toolbars (including all the calculation toolboxes) or a list of actions from the main
PowerFactory menu.
In the panel below, available actions are listed, and hotkeys can be assigned in one of two ways:
• Click once in the relevant Key Sequence field and type the key sequence directly; or
• Use right-click or double-click to bring up the Set Key Sequence dialog, which provides more
options and information.
At the bottom of the dialog there is an option to create a hotkey sheet, which enables the user to
generate a PDF that lists all the hotkeys currently defined.

There are also options to Export the current hotkey configuration to file, or Import a new hotkey
configuration, enabling users to share a common configuration of hotkeys. Note that an import will
completely replace the existing hotkey configuration.

Finally, a Reset button allows the user to reset all hotkeys to default.

7.13.1.2 Allowed key sequences and potential conflicts

The key sequences that can be allocated by the users are subject to some constraints, but typical
key sequences that can be used are function keys (with some exceptions) and many combinations
consisting of one or more modifiers (e.g. Ctrl, Alt) and a main key.

To avoid unexpected and unwanted behaviour, some key sequences are prohibited:

• Key sequences commonly used in Windows, such as Ctrl+C and Ctrl+Alt+Del

• Key sequences used to access entries in the main PowerFactory menu (such as Alt+F to open
the File menu)
• Key sequences used by the fixed hotkeys

If hotkeys are defined using the Set Key Sequence dialog rather than simply typing into the field, the
user will be informed if the sequence entered is invalid.

Users should also be aware that some key sequences (such as Window+L) are deliberately not captured
by PowerFactory, so as not to disrupt their normal function. Similarly, if the user is running another

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application that captures and recognises certain keystrokes, these combinations may never reach
PowerFactory.

Another consideration is that the user could define a hotkey using a sequence that has already been
assigned to a different action. By default, there are checks in place to prevent accidental overwriting.
This is configurable; see section 7.5.

7.13.1.3 Assigning hotkey to toolbar icons

As an alternative to using the Edit Hotkeys. . . dialog for assigning hotkeys to actions from the toolbars,
it is possible to simply right-click on any active icon and Assign key sequence. . . . This brings up the Set
Key Sequence dialog directly.

7.13.1.4 Assigning hotkey to user-defined scripts

To execute user-defined scripts via a hotkey, scripts can be added to the User-defined Tools toolbar,
then a hotkey can be assigned to the relevant command.

7.13.2 Quick Access

PowerFactory offers a Quick Access menu, which - as long as no modal dialog is open - can be called
up from anywhere in the GUI via the hotkey Ctrl+Q (this is configurable).

7.13.2.1 Managing Quick Access (Quick Access. . . dialog)

The Quick Access. . . dialog can be opened from the main menu using Tools → Edit Quick Access. . . . It
can also be accessed from any main toolbar icon via right-click, or from the User Settings dialog, Profile
page. (Note that these settings are not part of the User Profile as such, but are just part of the more
general user customisation.)

At the top of the dialog are:

• A View drop-down menu, which offers the choice between a list of actions from the main toolbars
(including all the calculation toolboxes) or a list of actions from the main PowerFactory menu.
• A Filter field, which helps the user to find the required action.

Selected items are added or removed using the double arrows between the two panes, and the order
of the list of menu items can be managed using the Move up and Move up buttons.

There are also options to Export the current Quick Access configuration to file, or Import a new Quick
Access configuration, enabling users to share a common configuration of Quick Access items. Note
that an import will completely replace the existing Quick Access configuration.

7.13.2.2 Adding/removing toolbar actions

As an alternative to using the Edit Quick Access. . . dialog for adding actions to the Quick Access menu,
it is possible to simply right-click on any active icon and Add <command> to Quick Access . . . .

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7.13.2.3 Assigning user-defined scripts to the Quick Access menu

User-defined scripts can be added to the User-defined Tools toolbar, where they are then available for
inclusion in the Quick Access menu.

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 Part III

Handling
Chapter 8

Basic Project Definition

The basic database structure in PowerFactory and the data model used to define and study a power
system is explained in Chapter 4 (PowerFactory Overview). It is recommended that users become
familiar with this chapter before commencing project definition and analysis in PowerFactory. This
chapter describes how to define and configure projects, and how to create grids.

8.1 Defining and Configuring a Project

There are three methods to create a new project. Two of them employ the Data Manager window and
the third employs the main menu. Whichever method is used the end result will be the same: a new
project in the database.

Method 1: Using the main menu:

• On the main menu choose File → New→ Project.

• Enter the name of the project. Make sure that the Target Folder is set to the folder in which the
project should be created. By default it is set to the active user account folder.
• Press Execute.

Method 2: Using the element selection dialog from the Data Manager:

• In the Data Manager click on the New Object button ( )

• In the Filter as you type field, type project or IntPrj. Select Project.

• Press Ok. The project folder dialog will then open. Press Ok.

Method 3: Directly via the Data Manager:

• Locate the active user in the left-hand pane of the Data Manager.

• Place the cursor on the active user’s icon or a folder within the active user account and right-click.
• From the context menu choose New → Project. . . . Press Ok. The project folder dialog will then
open. Press Ok.

Note: The ComNew command is used to create objects of several classes. To create a new project it
must be ensured that the Project option is selected.

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In order to define and analyse a power system, a project must contain at least one grid and one
study case. After the new project is created (by any of the methods described), a new study case
is automatically created and activated. A dialog used to specify the name and nominal frequency of a
new, automatically-created grid pops up. When the button OK is pressed in the grid dialog:

• The new grid folder is created in the newly-created project folder.

• An empty single line diagram associated with the grid is opened.

The newly-created project has the default folder structure shown in Figure 8.1.1. Although a grid folder
and a study case are enough to define a system and perform calculations, the new project may be
expanded by creating library folders, extra grids, Variations, Operation Scenarios, Operational Data
objects, extra Study Cases, graphic windows, etc.

Projects can be deleted by right-clicking on the project name in the Data Manager and selecting Delete
from the context menu. Only inactive projects can be deleted.

Note: The default structure of the project folder is arranged to take advantage of the data model
structure and the user is therefore advised to adhere to it. Experienced users may prefer to
create, within certain limits, their own project structure for specific advanced studies.
The default structure of the project, can be modified from the Administrator account. The default
structure is defined in a project held the folder: System → Configuration→ Default.

Figure 8.1.1: Default project structure

8.1.1 Project Dialog

The project (IntPrj) dialog can be accessed by selecting Edit → Project Data→ Project. . . on the main
menu or by right-clicking the project folder in the Data Manager and selecting Edit from the context
menu.

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The Basic Data page contains basic project settings:

• Pressing the button in the Project Settings field opens the Project Settings dialog (SetProj).
See section 8.1.2 for more information regarding the settings of the project.
• When a project is created, its settings (i.e. result box definitions, report definitions, flexible page
selectors, etc.) are defined by the default settings from the system library. If these settings are
changed, the changes are stored in the folder “Settings” of the project. The settings from another
project or the original (default) ones can be taken by using the buttons Take from existing project
or Set to default. The settings can only be changed when a project is inactive.
• Pressing the Contents button on the dialog will open a new data browser displaying the main
folders included in the current project directory.

The Sharing page of the dialog allows the definition of the project sharing rules. These rules are
particularly useful when working in a multi-user database environment. Further information is given in
Chapter 20 (Data Management).

The Derived Project page provides information if the project is derived from a master project.

Further information is given in Chapter 20 (Data Management).

The Combined Project panel enables the user to combine additional projects with the current project if
it is active. See section 20.7.1.3 for more details.

The Storage page provides information about the records stored in the project. A PowerFactory project
contains records of changes to data, which makes it possible to roll back the project to an earlier state
using versions (see section 20.2). However, as the user works with the project and makes changes to it,
the number of records increases and it is useful to remove older, unwanted records in a process known
as “purging”. By default all changes within the last 7 days will be retained.

The Migration page provides information about the migration status of the project. The significance of
the information displayed on the Migration page is described as follows:

• Migration status: this status flag provides an indication to the user as to whether the project has
already migrated to the relevant PowerFactory major version.
• Project ID, Object ID and Timestamp ID: these IDs represent the respective database IDs and
would be relevant for the user while raising a Support request for Migration related queries.
• Migrated to Build: this represents the last build ID of the database currently being used to which
the project is migrated. This information can be provided while raising Migration related Support
queries.
• Migrate Variations and Operation Scenarios folder: applying this option will update the project’s
folder structure to match the latest default structure. The basic project structure was modified
with PowerFactory version 2020 so that the Variations and Operation Scenarios folders are
now situated directly under the Network Model folder. Existing projects are not migrated to
the new structure by default when databases are migrated to the new structure, as this could
cause problems with user-defined scripts. Instead, a dedicated option to “Migrate Variations and
Operational Scenario folder” is provided on the Migration page in order for the user to manually
adapt the project structure.
• Down Migration of Plot Pages: since PowerFactory 2021, a new plot framework has been
introduced. However, if there is a requirement to export a project consisting of plots based on the
new framework and to subsequently import it in a PowerFactory version which only supports
the old plot framework, then the user can choose to migrate down the plot pages to the old
framework using Migrate down before exporting the project. This operation will create additional
plot pages in the project based on the old framework. Once the project has been exported
then there is a possibility for the user to delete these additionally created plot pages using the
Purge down migrated pages option.

The Miscellaneous page contains the following:

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• The Tags field is a free-text field, which can be used to add user-specific labels to the project.
• The button Calculate, in the Licence Relevant Nodes field, calculates the number of nodes
relevant to the PowerFactory licence; this number is the number of equipotential nodes in the
network.

The Description page is used to add user comments and the approval status.

8.1.2 Project Settings

The project settings dialog (SetPrj) can be accessed by selecting Edit → Project Data→ Project Set-
tings. . . on the main menu or by pressing the button in the Project Settings field of the project’s
dialog. The pages of the dialog are described in the following sections.

8.1.2.1 Validity Period

PowerFactory projects may span a period of months or even years, taking into account network expan-
sions, planned outages and other system events. The period of validity of a project specifies the time
span the network model is valid for.

The validity period is defined by the Start Time and End Time of the project. The study case has study
time, which must fall inside the validity period of the project.

Start Time: Start of validity period.

End Time: End of validity period.

Status: This flag enables the user to label a project as Draft or Issued. It does not have any effect on
functionality.

8.1.2.2 Formats and Units

On this page, units for the data entry and display of variables can be selected.

Input Variables

• Units: this parameter is used to change the system of measurement used when displaying
element parameters. By default, results are entered and displayed in metric (SI) units. British
Imperial units can be used instead, by selecting one of the options English-Transmission or
English-Industry. The Transmission option uses larger units where appropriate (i.e. miles rather
than feet for line length).
• Lines/Cables Length unit, m: for metric length units, this parameter allows the user to select the
preferred prefix (such as k to use kilometers rather than meters).
• Loads/Asyn. Machines P,Q, S unit VA, W, var: this parameter allows the user to select the
preferred prefix (such as M to use megawatts rather than watts).
• Static Generators/Synchr. Machines P,Q, S unit VA, W, var: this parameter allows the user to
select the preferred prefix (such as M to use megawatts rather than watts).
• Currency Unit: for displaying values relevant for cost-related calculations, this parameter allows
selection from a range of currency units (abbreviated in accordance with ISO 4217).
• Default frequency: the default frequency can be configured in this field. All new objects that use
a nominal frequency are then initialised accordingly with the default nominal frequency. (Existing
objects are not affected by any change to this setting).

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Output Variables

Use the drop-down menus to adjust the preferred prefix for the output variables. It is possible to define
different settings for Load Flow and Simulation and for Short-Circuit calculation types.

The number of decimals can be defined independently for each of the following output variable:

• Voltage
• Current
• Power

• Percent (%)
• Degree
• Per unit (p.u.)
• Other units

8.1.2.3 Calculation Options

On the Calculation Options page, additional parameters used during the calculation are defined. The
following options are available:

General

• Base Apparent Power: this is the value used during the calculation; the base power of each
element is defined by its rated value.
• HV voltage level: this describes the voltage threshold for network elements to be considered as
high voltage elements. This information is used in various commands when defining acceptable
load flow errors.

• MV voltage level: this describes the voltage threshold for network elements to be considered as
medium voltage elements. The upper range is defined by the threshold given in Min. voltage for
HV voltage level. This information is used in various commands when defining acceptable load
flow errors.
• Min. Resistance, Min. Conductance: the minimum resistance and conductance that will be
assigned to the elements if none is defined.
• Threshold Impedance for Z-model: this parameter is used to control the modelling of currents
(Y- and Z-models are used internally and this parameter controls the small-impedance threshold
for swopping from one to the other). This control is designed to enhance the robustness of the
algorithm and the user is recommended to leave the parameter at its default setting.

The Set to default button can be used to restore all the values to the default ones.

Topology

• Settings for slack assignment: this option only influences the automatic slack assignment (e.g.
if no machine, or more than one machine, is marked as “Reference Machine”)
– Auto slack assignment:
* Method 1: all synchronous machines can be selected as slack (reference machine);
* Method 2: a synchronous machine is not automatically selected as slack if, for that
machine, the option on its Load Flow page: Spinning if circuit-breaker is open is disabled.
* Off: auto slack assignment is switched off; the grid will be considered as de-energised if
no reference machine is defined.

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– Priority for Reference Machine: the criteria used for automatic selection of a reference
machine are described under the Load Flow options, in section 24.3.2. However, the way
in which the machines are prioritised for selection can be influenced using this setting. The
options are:
* Rated Power: Snom is used as the criterion, as described in page 495
* Active Power Capability: Pmax-Pmin is used instead of Snom
* Active Power Reserve: Pmax-Pgini is used instead of Snom
– Auto slack assignment for areas without connection to fictitious border grid: for large
network models covering multiple systems connected by so-called “fictitious border grids”,
this option can be used in conjunction with a Fictitious border grid flag on the ElmNet object,
to have more control over which areas will be considered in the calculation, so that remote
parts of the network that are not of interest for a particular study can be excluded. The default
is for this option to be active.
• Automatic Out of Service Detection: when calculations are executed, if the Automatic Out
of Service Detection parameter is selected, the calculation will treat de-energised elements as
though they have been made Out of Service (using the Out of Service flag). This means that they
will not be considered in the calculations and no results will be displayed for them. It should be
noted that this parameter does not affect elements which are isolated only by open circuit breakers
(as opposed to other switch types). These are retained in the calculation because they could be
energised via switch close actions at some point.

• Determination of supplying transformers: for a distribution network, this flag alters the way in
which calculations determine which elements are supplied by which substations. If only voltage
controlling transformers are considered, step-up transformers will not be considered as supplying
transformers. This affects some calculations such as reliability analysis and the colouring mode
Topology, Supplied by Substation.

The Set to default button can be used to restore all the values to the default ones.

Lines/Branches

• Calculation of symmetrical components for untransposed lines: the selection of one of these
methods defines how the sequence components of lines in PowerFactory will be calculated:
– Method 1: apply the 012-transformation (irrespective of line transposition). This is the
standard method used;
– Method 2: first calculate a symmetrical transposition for untransposed lines, and then apply
the 012-transformation.
• Earth wire reduction of towers: when overhead lines are modelled using towers, the earth-wires
are reduced before matrix transposition is carried out. In older versions the matrix was transposed
first, so this setting allows users to use the older method if this is required for compatibility reasons.
• Consider line compensation current for line loading calculation: If selected, the total line
current (sum of the line current plus the line compensation current) is considered when calculating
the line loading. Otherwise, only the line current (without the line compensation current) is used
to calculate the line loading.

The Set to default button can be used to restore all the values to the default ones.

Result file

For many calculations, the results are recorded in a result file, which by default uses a proprietary binary
format. The PowerFactory result object (ElmRes) refers to this result file, which is typically stored in the
workspace directory.

On this tab, the user can opt to have result files written instead in an open database format (SQLite).
This allows post-processing based on direct file access to be more easily implemented. Details of the
internal layout of the database-based result files can be found in section 18.7.2.

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8.1.2.4 Graphic

On the Graphic page, several parameters relevant for the graphical interface can be adjusted. The
following options are available:

General

• When connecting component to busbar create

– Circuit-Breaker: when a component is connected to a busbar in a single line graphic, a
switch (class StaSwitch) is automatically created. By default this switch will be a circuit
breaker.
– Switch type depending on nominal voltage: if this option is selected instead, there is the
option to have different switch types created for two voltage levels (e.g. low and high voltage
systems), with the threshold specified by the user.
• Variations
– Show inactive elements from other variations: by default, inactive elements (for example
elements created in a expansion stage which is not yet active) are displayed on network
diagrams if they are not in freeze mode. They are shown in the colour selected on the first
option of the colouring scheme, Energising Status, even if that option is deselected. If the
Show inactive elements from other variations project setting is deselected, inactive elements
will not be visible.
• Insertion of new substations
– Insert substations with bays: when new substations are created, it is possible to include
Bay elements (ElmBay ). These group together the network elements that normally constitute
a standard bay connection of a circuit to a busbar within the substation. This grouping is
useful for visualisation but is also used by the Load Flow Calculation option Calculate max.
current at busbars: see section 24.3.3.

Text Boxes

Customise fonts used for Single Line and Block diagrams. Text boxes used for Labels and Results
• Default fonts for Single Line Diagrams: to customise fonts for Labels, Results and Title and
Legends.
• Default fonts for Block Diagrams: to customise fonts for Blocks/slots, Signals and Title and
Legends.
• Show jump-to labels at graphically half-connected lines: to show additional labels for connec-
tions going from one diagram into another diagram.

Plots

• Use new plot framework: to enable the use of the new plot framework (e.g. class types GrpPage,
PltLinebarplot, Plt) introduced with PF2021. By default, this option is active. The older plot
framework can be used by deactivating this option.
• Default colour palette: to select a different colour palette than the default provided by PowerFac-
tory.
• Default plot style: to select a different plot style than the default provided by PowerFactory.

• Names in plot legends: for element names shown in plot legends, the user has the option to
include additional information to show where the element is located, e.g. site or substation (short
name).

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Geographic

• Coordinate system: the setting determines in which coordinate space the geographic coordi-
nates of net elements in the project are stored/interpreted. The user can select from a range of
coordinate systems (identified by their EPSG codes) or define their own customised system.
• WGS-84 bounds: these fields show the bounds of the selected system in WGS-84 coordinates.
They can be modified if the selected option is custom.

8.1.2.5 Miscellaneous

Display name

This option modifies the way the names of the elements (attribute e:cDisplayName) are displayed, it
affects graphics and reports. The options are:
• Show element name only: only the name of the element will be displayed, e.g. “BB” for a busbar
within a substation and site.
• Prepend parent element: the name of the parent element will be displayed in front of the element
name, e.g. “Substation/BB” for a busbar within a substation and site. This is the default option.
• Prepend site and/or substation name: it can be decided if the name of the site and/or the
substation should be displayed in front of the name of the element, e.g. “Site/Substation/BB” for a
busbar within a substation and site.

Switching Actions

• Isolate with earthing: if this option is selected, when a planned outage is applied, the equipment
will not only be isolated but earths will be applied, for example on the terminals at either end of a
line. Similarly, when using the right-click → Isolate (with earthing) option, earths will be applied.
• Isolate opens circuit-breakers only: when equipment is isolated using a planned outage, this
option determines whether it is switched out using just circuit breakers or whether isolators adja-
cent to the breakers are also opened.

Planned Outages

• Consider automatically upon study case activation: if this option is selected, relevant Int-
Plannedout outages are automatically applied when a study case is activated.
• Creation of Planned Outages: outages can be represented using IntPlannedout objects (see
chapter 42), and the default is that any new planned outage created will be of this class. If the
user wishes instead to create the older IntOutage objects, this project setting should be changed
to “Create IntOutage (obsolete)”.
• Application sequence of Planned Outages: hen users apply planned outages (IntPlannedout),
the outcome can depend on the order in which they are applied, and there are default rules based
on outage start time and the outage Priority flags (see section 42.3.2 for details). This project
setting allows the user to modify those rules. The default setting is “Time-based application (time
before priority)”

8.1.2.6 External Data

External Data Directory:

this is a folder on the user’s hard disk, in which data files related to the PowerFactory project, such as
images or Python scripts, are stored. The filepath has to be absolute, but can contain the placeholders

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shown on the dialog box:

• “$(InstallationDir)” for the installation directory of PowerFactory ;

• “$(WorkspaceDir)” for the workspace directory.

Once defined, the external Data Directory can be used to link files to PowerFactory objects by the
following abbreviation:

• “$(ExtDataDir)”

Check existence of referenced files:

if this button is clicked, PowerFactory checks to see that all external files referenced in the project exist
and reports those not found.

Display reminder after file selection: for certain file reference parameters, it is expected that the file
will be in the External Data area and, if this check box is enabled, a dialog box will come up if a different
location is specified. Note that it is permitted to select files outside the External Data directory; the
dialog is just a reminder that the External Data directory is recommended.

8.1.2.7 Data Verification

Nominal Voltage Check

• Max. allowed difference over Lines/Switches/Fuses: these are the maximum permitted per-
centage differences between the nominal voltages at the two ends of a line or the two sides of a
switch/fuse (as a percentage of the higher voltage). With differences above these thresholds, a
load flow will fail with an error message; for smaller differences (but > 0,5%) a warning is given.
• Max. allowed deviation from Terminal Voltage, for transformers and for other elements:
there is a check when running a load flow that the rated voltage of a transformer or other element
is not too low compared with the nominal voltage of the terminal to which it is connected. With dif-
ferences above these thresholds, a load flow will fail with an error message; for smaller differences
(but > 10%) a warning is given.

Line couplings

• Allowable difference in lengths of lines: this is the maximum permitted percentage difference
in the length of those lines which are part of the same line coupling.

8.1.2.8 Substation/Site Types

Includes a list for substation and site types, configurable by the user, which can be used in geographic
diagrams to distinguish graphically between different types of substation/sites by assigning different
symbols to each type in the list. In a substation itself, the Substation Type is selected from the same
list, in the Description page.

8.1.3 Activating and Deactivating Projects

To activate a project use the option File → Activate Project from the main menu. This shows a tree with
all the projects in the current user’s account. Select the project that should be activated. Alternatively, a
project may be activated by right-clicking on it in the Data Manager and using the context menu.

The last 5 active projects are listed under File in the main menu. The currently active project is the first
entry in this list. To deactivate the currently active project, select it in the list. Alternatively, you may

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choose the option File → Deactivate Project from the main menu. To activate another project, select it
in the list of the 5 last active projects.

Upon project activation, the user may see a message about project purging. The purge function is
described above in section 8.1.1, Storage page.

Note: Only one project can be activated at a time.

8.1.4 Exporting and Importing Projects

Projects (or any folder in the database) can be exported using the *.pfd (PowerFactory Data) file format,
or by exception for older applications by using the *.dz format. It is recommended to use the PFD
format (*.pfd) whenever possible when exporting projects: the consumption of memory resources is
significantly lower than with the old file format (*.dz) and functions such as historic data, time stamps
and former versions are not supported by the old *.dz format.

The Snapshot Export method, described in section 8.1.4.2, creates a file in a *.dzs format.

8.1.4.1 Exporting a Project

To export a project, select File → Export. . . → Data. . . from the main menu or click on the icon of the
Data Manager. Alternatively projects can be exported by selecting the option Export. . . on the project
context menu (only available for inactive projects).

After the user selects the place where the project should be stored and its name, the PFD Export dialog
described below opens.

• Objects to export: this table shows all top-level objects that will be exported within the *.pfd file.
• Export current state: this option is visible if the project (or, object in the Objects to export
table) has Versions defined. If enabled (default), the current state of the project will be exported.
Otherwise, only the state of the selected Version/s will be exported.

• Versions to export: this table shows all Versions of the Objects to export, if any are available. By
disabling the checkbox for specific Versions, the user can define which Version should or should
not be exported. For master projects, the corresponding Version for the derived project must be
selected. See Section 20.3.1 for further details.

• Export data in retention period: if enabled, data changes from within the retention period will
be exported. See Section 8.1.1 for further details.
• Export ’Modified by’: if enabled, the information who last changed an object is exported (attribute
’modified by’). This information could conflict with data privacy rules and is therefore configurable.
• Export external data files (e.g. results files): if enabled, calculation results (i.e. results files,
plot data, etc.) will be exported. Otherwise, the calculation must be repeated after importing.
• Export derived project as regular project: this option is only available for derived projects, see
Section 20.3.1. If enabled, a derived project will be exported as an ’adequate’ project. In this case
no master project is required. It should be noted that this project can no longer be reused as a
derived project.

• Export to former PowerFactory version: if the project is intended to be imported into a for-
mer PowerFactory version, this flag must be activated and the version specified. The button
Check compatibility for target version can be used to check for possible problems when ex-
porting to the selected version.

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Also, when this option is used, the Text encoding can be selected. It should be only modified if the
computer’s code does not align with the coding of the project, e.g. a Cyrillic project with English
MS Windows settings (Latin code).

• PFD file: the path where the *.pfd file will be saved.

8.1.4.2 Snapshot Export

The Snapshot Export function enables the currently active status of a project to be exported, such that
only the relevant objects are included. A project exported in this way is potentially a much smaller file,
which nevertheless when reimported into PowerFactory can be used to reproduce analysis carried out
in the original project study case.

Unlike the existing Project Export, where the project must first be deactivated, the Snapshot Export is
performed on an active project. This way, PowerFactory can determine exactly which objects are active
and which data are applicable as a result of an active scenario or active variations.

To carry out a snapshot export from a project, the required study case and scenario (if used) should be
activated. Then File → Export→ Project Snapshot (*.dzs). . . from the main menu is selected.

When the Snapshot Export is executed, the resulting file outside PowerFactory has the file extension
.dzs. It can be imported just like a .pfd or .dz file and when activated can be used to perform the usual
calculations such as load flow or simulations. Furthermore, it is possible for merge processes to be
carried out between it and the source project, for example if there is a need to include additional data
from the source project.

The Snapshot Export captures only the data required to reproduce the results of the active study case.
Therefore the following objects, for example, will not appear in the resultant project:

• Variations: changes in active variation stages are consolidated. The exported project will contain
therefore no variations.
• Inactive study cases, scenarios and grids: inactive study cases, scenarios and grids are not
exported. The exported project will have one study case, and no scenarios; if a scenario had been
active in the source project, the data will be represented in the network data.
• Unused library objects: only objects which are in use are exported, so unused information such
as type data which are not referenced will not be exported.
• Characteristics: the parameters which are modified by Characteristics will be set at the values
determined by the Characteristics, but the Characteristics themselves will not be exported.
• Operational Library: operational data such as Thermal Ratings, which may contain variations,
will be reduced to just the currently active values.

8.1.4.3 Importing a Project

There are several options to import projects:

• By selecting File → Import→ Data. . . from the main menu.

• By clicking on the icon in the Data Manager.

• By selecting Import. . . on the project context menu (only available for inactive projects).
• Drag and Drop the *.pfd file onto the PowerFactory GUI.
The user can select the file type to be imported from the drop-down menu in the Open dialog which
opens. Only when using the Drag & Drop option for the import, the type of file is automatically selected
by PowerFactory.

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The PFD import dialog has three parts:

The File information panel contains information about the file to be imported, including:

• Contents: list of all the projects included in the imported file.

• Date and Time: information about when the file was exported.
• Exported by: user that exported the file.
• Target version: the target version set when the project/s was exported.
• Source version: the PowerFactory version from which the project/s was exported.

• Number of projects: the number of projects included in the file.

• Number of records: number of data stored in the project. The number and type of records in a
project are shown in the Storage page of the project’s edit dialog.
• Original Path: the original location from where the file was exported.

• Missing or unreadable referenced object: if there are missing references, they are listed in this
field.

The field Base projects and versions in original database shows the base project and version of the
base, when importing a derived project. See Section 20.3.1 for further details.

In the Import options panel in the PFD import dialog contains the following options:

• New Path: by default, the project will be imported in the current location in the Data Manager. In
this field, a different path can be specified.
• Text encoding: specifies the code used in the project. It should be only modified if the project
code does not align with the coding of the computer, e.g. Cyrillic project with English MS Windows
settings (Latin code).

• Activate project after import: automatically activates the project after importing it.
The import and export of information in other data formats is described in Chapter 23.

8.1.5 External References

In order to avoid problems when exporting/importing projects, it is recommended to check for external
references before exporting the project. This can be done via the project context menu, selecting the
External References sub-menu and then the option Check for External References. The user can
then select the External Locations, such as the DIgSILENT Library or the “Configuration” folder. After
pressing OK, a list of external project references is displayed in the output window.

If external references are found, these can be packed before the project is exported. This can be done
through the context menu of the project, by accessing the External References sub-menu and selecting
the option Pack External References. Similar to the option described above, the user can select the
External Locations. By pressing OK, a new folder in the project structure called “External” is created,
which contains all formerly external objects.

The Clear Unresolvable References option allows the user to remove external references to objects that
cannot be found, for example because they have been deleted or archived. It is important to mention
that this option does not solve problems associated with incomplete data (e.g. no type found).

Note: The options described above are only selectable after the project has been deactivated.

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To review the use of type objects, standard models, etc. from the DIgSILENT Library (and other external
libraries) in a particular project, the option Show External Types from the External References sub-menu
can be used. This generates a report in the output window, containing those types that are not stored
inside the project library. Objects from external libraries can be opened up from the list in the output
window. In addition, for each item listed, the number of objects using it is given. This acts as a hyperlink
which can be used to bring up a list of objects in the project referencing this item.

As explained in Section 13.2.1, all the main objects in the global libraries are managed using versions.
Via the option Show Updates for External Types from the External References sub-menu, the user can
check whether later versions are available, and see what has been changed in the later versions.

8.1.6 Including Additional Documents

It may be useful sometimes to provide additional information such as a detailed documentation about a
network element, to the user of a project. Such information can be provided by creating an IntDocument
object within the project, for example within the project library.

This is done by using the New Object button ( ), and selecting IntDocument from the list.

In the IntDocument object, there is a Filename field, which is populated by selecting the file location.
This is sufficient to provide access to a document which is outside the PowerFactory database, but there
is also an Import option, which enables the user to import the document itself into the PowerFactory
database.

Such IntDocument objects (whether simply links or containing the actual document) can also be created
elsewhere in the database, for example in the Configuration area. Network elements have a field
called “Additional Data” on the description page, which is a convenient place to hold a reference to
an IntDocument object.

8.2 Project Overview

The Project Overview is illustrated in Figure 8.2.1. It is a dockable window, displayed by default on the
left side of the main application window between the main toolbar and the output window. It displays
an overview of the project allowing the user to assess the state of the project at a glance and facilitates
easy interaction with the project data. The window is docked by default, but can be undocked by the user
and displayed as a floating window that can be placed both inside and outside of the main application
window.

To dock an undocked Project Overview window, it should be moved all the way to the left border of the
main window, until the mouse reaches the border.

If required, the window can be closed by the user. To close or reopen the window, toggle the option
Window → Project Overview from the main menu.

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Figure 8.2.1: Project overview

The following objects and information can be accessed via the Project Overview.

• Study Cases
– Active Study Case
– Inactive Study Cases
– Current Study Time
• Operation Scenarios
– Active Scenario Schedulers
– Active Scenarios
– Inactive Scenarios
• Variations
– Recording Expansion Stage
– List of active Variations with active and inactive Expansion Stages as children
– List of inactive Variations with inactive Expansion Stages as children
• Grid/System Stages
– List of active Grids
– List of inactive Grids
• Trigger
– Active triggers

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Entries for active objects are displayed with bold text, entries for inactive objects are displayed as
disabled/grey.

Modifications to the objects and their status can be done directly in the Project Overview window.

8.3 Creating New Grids

When defining a new project, a grid is automatically created. If additional grids are required, various
methods may be used to add a grid folder to the current network model:

1. Select Insert → Grid with Diagram. . . on the main menu.

2. Right-click on the Network Data folder (in the active project) in a Data Manager window and select
New → Grid. . . from the context menu.
3. On the Project Overview window, right-click on the Grids and select New → Grid. . . .

The dialog to create a new grid will then appear. There the grid name, the nominal frequency and a grid
owner (optional) may be specified. After the OK button has been pressed, the new grid is created in the
Network Data folder and a reference in the Summary Grid object of the selected active Study Case is
created.

As indicated in Chapter 12 (Study Cases), grids can be later added or removed from the active Study
Case by right-clicking on the grid and selecting Activate/Deactivate.

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Network Graphics

9.1 Introduction

PowerFactory works with three different classes of graphics which constitute the main tools used to
design new power systems, controller block diagrams and displays of results:

• Single Line Diagrams (described in this chapter)

• Block Diagrams for User-defined Dynamic Models (UDM) (described in Section 29.2 (for High-level
Control System Representation), Section 29.6 (for DSL Models) and Section 29.10 (for Modelica
Models))
• Plots (described in Section 18.8: Plots)

Diagrams that are displayed are held in the Desktop object; (see Section 9.2.2 for more information).

When working with graphics, many hotkeys are available for common actions. These are listed in section
9.8.

9.2 Graphic Windows and Database Objects

In the PowerFactory graphic windows, graphic objects associated with the active study case are dis-
played. Those graphics include single line diagrams, station diagrams, block diagrams and plots. Many
commands and tools are available to edit and manipulate symbols in the graphics. The underlying data
objects may also be accessed and edited from the graphics, and calculation results may be displayed
and configured.

Many of the tools and commands are found in the drop down menus or as buttons in the toolbars, but by
far the most convenient manner of accessing them is to use the right mouse button to display a “context
menu”. The menu presented is determined primarily from the cursor position.

9.2.1 Network Diagrams and other graphics

Four types of graphical pages are used in PowerFactory :

1. Single Line Diagrams (schematic and geographical network diagrams) for entering power grid
definitions and for showing calculation results.

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2. Detailed graphics of sites, substations or branches (similar to network diagrams) for showing
busbar (nodes) topologies and calculation results.
3. Block Diagrams for designing dynamic models and relays.

4. Plot Pages for creating plots, e.g. for the results of a time domain simulation.

The icon Diagrams ( ) can be found inside the Data Manager. Grids, substations, branches, sites
and dynamic models types (Composite Model Frame, DSL Model Type and Modelica Model Type in
PowerFactory terminology) each have a graphical page. In order to see the graphic on the screen,
open a Data Manager and locate the graphic page object you want to show, click on the icon next to it,
right-click and select Diagrams → Show Diagram. This option is also available directly by right-clicking
on the object. The graphic pages of grids and substations are to be found in the subfolder Diagrams
( ) under the Network Model folder.

Note that it is also possible to store Diagrams within the Grid, although this is generally not recom-
mended.

Figure 9.2.1: The Diagrams folder inside the Data Manager

9.2.2 Active Graphics, Study Case and Desktop

The graphics that are displayed in an active project are determined by the active study case. The
study case has a folder called the Desktop (SetDesktop), which contains graphic page objects that are
linked to the graphics to be displayed. The desktop is automatically created and maintained and should
generally not be edited by the user.

Graphic pages and other pages (tabs), such as the Data Manager or reports, can be freely moved
from one docked or floating window to another. The organisation of these tabbed windows is done
automatically via Tab Group objects (SetTabgroup), also held within the desktop.

Consider the project shown in figure 9.2.2. There are several diagrams in the Diagrams folder, but the
desktop folder in the study case has a reference to only some of them and thus only these graphics will
be shown when the study case is activated.

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The page tab, which is normally at the top of the graphic, offers options for handling the graphics in the
desktop. See section 9.2.5 for details.

The study case and desktop folder will also contain references to any other graphics that have been
created when the study case is active, such as plot pages.

Figure 9.2.2: Relationship between the study case, desktop and single line diagrams

9.2.3 Single Line Graphics and Data Objects

When building a new network, it is usually recommended that this is done from a single-line diagram.
As each objects is created, the associated graphical representation is created too. For more information
about building a network, see Chapter 11.

In a simple network there may be a 1:1 relationship between data objects and their graphical repre-
sentations, i.e. every load, generator, terminal and line is represented once in the graphics. However,
PowerFactory provides additional flexibility in this regard. Data objects may be represented graphically
on more than one graphic, but only once per graphic. Thus a data object for one terminal can be
represented graphically on more than one graphic. All graphical representations contain the link to the
same data object.

Furthermore, graphical symbols may be moved without losing the link to the data object they represent.
Likewise, data objects may be moved without affecting the graphic.

The graphics themselves are saved in the database tree, by default in the Diagrams folder of the Network
Model. This simplifies finding the correct representation of a particular grid, even in the case where there
are several graphic representations for one grid.

When the drawing tools are used to place a new component (i.e. a line, transformer, etc.) a new data
object is also created in the database tree. A graphic object therefore has a reference to a grid folder.

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The new data objects are stored into the ’target’ folders that the graphics page are associated with. This
information may be determined by using the Diagram Settings button ( ).

Since data objects may have more than one graphic representation the deletion of a graphic object
should not mean that the data object will also be deleted. Hence the user may choose to delete only
the graphical object (right-click → Delete Graphic Object only ). In this case the user is warned that the
data object will not be deleted. This suggests that a user may delete all graphical objects related to a
data object, with the data object still residing in the database and being considered for calculations.

When an element is deleted completely (right menu option Delete) a warning message will confirm the
action. This warning may be switched off in the User Settings dialog, Data/Network Model Manager
page, Confirm Delete Action.

9.2.4 Creating New Graphic Windows

A new graphic window can be created by using Insert on the main menu. Two of the options in this menu
concern the creation of elements with their respective graphics: Insert → Grid with Diagram and Insert
→ Dynamic Model→ Composite Model Frames/DSL Model Type/Modelica Model Type. The other three
other options allow the insertion of diagrams of existing elements or plots:

• Schematic Diagram: creates a schematic diagram and sets the target folder to the active grid. If
there is more that one active grid, a dialog to select the target grid will be shown.

• Geographic Diagram: creates a geographic diagram of the network.

• Plot: presents a dialog box where the user selects the required plot type. Another dialog box
enables parameters to be entered. Once these are confirmed, the plot is then displayed.

New diagrams can also be inserted using the Create new tab icon ( ) in a fixed graphic window or
floating group, and selecting the relevant options.

9.2.5 Page Tab

The page tab of the graphic window shows the name of the graphic. By default the tab is at the top
of the window, but a user setting (Window Layout page) enables the user to change this if required.
Another user setting allows the user to show icons on the page tab, to indicate the type of graphic. The
order of the page tabs is easily changed by using drag-and-drop.

A number of options are offered when right-clicking on the page tab. Some of these relate to split-screen
working and the options offered will depend on whether the screen is split horizontally or vertically, and
also on how many tabs are already open in a group. The options offered to the user also depend on the
type of graphic, but this is the complete list of options available:

• Move to group above/below or Move to left/right group: for split-screen working, move to an
existing group. (See section 4.7 for more details)
• Move rightward/downward to new group: for split-screen working, start a new group (See sec-
tion 4.7 for more details)
• Rename page. . . : displays a dialog to rename the graphic.

• Close tab: closes the graphic page, removing it from the desktop in the study case, but not deleting
the graphic object itself, if one exists.
• Delete page (for plots) will close the graphic page and delete the page from the study case.
• Delete diagram (for single-line diagrams and geographic diagrams) will close the graphic page
and delete the diagram itself.

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• Duplicate page: used for creating copies of plot pages.

• Convert to permanent diagram: if a new detailed diagram of a substation or site has been created,
this option enables the user to save it as a permanent graphic.

The name of the active (i.e. currently-presented) graphic is shown in bold. But the above options are
available whether the graphic tab is active or not. Tabs can be multi-selected by using the CTRL key (to
select individual tabs) or the Shift key (to select a range of tabs), and the selected tabs will be coloured
blue; then appropriate options can be applied to the selected tabs.

9.2.6 Tab Group

The tab group offers a drop-down menu consisting of a list of options that allows the opening of diagrams
and plots (and other information such as reports). For details of the options available in this menu,
please refer to section 4.7.3.

9.2.7 Drawing Tools

The Drawing Tools tool-window appears by default on the left-hand side of the graphic window, where it
shares the space with the Project Overview. The tool icons shown in the Drawing Tools window form a
tool-box which is specific to the type of graphic that is currently selected.

See figure 9.2.3 for two examples.

The Drawing Tools are only available for use if the graphic is not in freeze-mode. A graphic may be
unlocked from freeze mode using the icon on the graphic tool bar or the similar icon at the top of the
Drawing Toolbox itself.

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(a) Single Line Diagrams (b) Composite Model Frame

Figure 9.2.3: Drawing Toolbox examples

The user can customise the Drawing Tools window in several ways:

• Group headers can be shown or not.

• Element labels can be shown or not.
• A group filter allows the user to show only certain groups. Alternatively, if the group headers are
shown, the plus and minus icons can be used to expand or collapse individual groups.

• There is a text filter for filtering by element label. This is case-insensitive and will find any
occurrence of the given text string in the element labels, but only in the groups which are currently
visible.
In addition, the Drawing Tools tool-window features a dynamically generated category, called
Recently Used, which contains the most newly used icons. Once produced, it is automatically situated
at the top of the Drawing Toolbar toolbox and, as any other grouping category, can be collapsed
(minimised) and/or hidden. To avoid cluttering, it only shows at most one full row of icons, i.e. the
number of shown icons depends on the width of the Drawing Tools tool-window.

Note: An icon is considered as used when it is selected and unselected by the user.

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9.2.8 Active Grid Folder (Target Folder)

On the status bar of PowerFactory (figure 9.2.4), the active grid folder is displayed on the left-most field,
indicating the target folder (grid) that will be modified when changes are made in the network diagram.
The active target folder can be changed double-clicking this field and then selecting the desired target
folder. This can be useful if the user intends to place new elements on a single line diagram, but have
the element stored in a different grid folder in the Data Manager.

Figure 9.2.4: The Status Bar

9.3 Graphic Commands and Settings

In this section the commands and settings that are available in PowerFactory to configure and use
the graphic windows are introduced. The sub-sections of this section are divided as illustrated in
figure 9.3.1. Some of these commands are also available from the main menu under View.

Further commands available from the context menus of elements are also listed towards the end of this
section (9.3.14).

Figure 9.3.1: Graphics Toolbar

9.3.1 Freeze Mode

The Graphical Freeze Mode button locks the diagram from graphical changes, no network elements
can be added or deleted. Note that the status of switches can still be modified when freeze mode is on.

9.3.2 Rebuild

The drawing may not be updated correctly under some circumstances. The rebuild function updates
the currently visible page by updating the drawing from the database.

9.3.3 View commands

9.3.3.1 Zoom In

When pressing the Zoom In button, the cursor changes to a magnifying glass. The mouse can then
be clicked and dragged to select a rectangular area to be zoomed. When the frame encompasses the
area you wish to zoom into release the mouse button.

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Alternatively, by pressing Ctrl and using the mouse scroll wheel it can be zoomed in and out with the
mouse cursor as reference point. Using the Ctrl+- and Ctrl++ keys, zooming is also possible referenced
to the centre of the visible area. If in addition Shift is pressed, the reference changes to the mouse
cursor.

Note: The Acceleration Factor for zooming and panning can be changed on the Advanced tab of the
Graphic Window page in the User Settings dialog.

9.3.3.2 Zoom All

The button Zoom all zooms to the page extends.

9.3.3.3 Zoom Level

This button adjusts the zoom level based on a number of presets, or a user-defined zoom level (given
in percentage).

9.3.3.4 Pan Tool

Use the Pan tool to pan the single line diagram (when not at the page extends). The pan tool is
activated with pressed middle mouse button, too. Alternatively, the mouse scroll wheel can be used to
scroll vertically, and Ctrl+→ / ↑ / ← / ↓ used to scroll vertically and horizontally.

9.3.3.5 View Bookmarks

The View Bookmarks allows to save the current view and restore that view at a later date. The
bookmarks may be used with different network diagrams (single line, geographic, detailed substation
graphic) of the same or different grids. In big networks this feature allows to switch very quickly between
diagram details to check e.g. the impact of operational changes in loads/feed-in at different places in
the network.

By clicking View → Bookmarks→ Add Bookmark. . . the name will be asked, under which the current
view is stored and displayed in the list of the View Bookmarks. To edit, delete already existing or even
create manually new bookmarks, click on View → Bookmarks→ Manage Bookmarks. . . . An object
browser with all existing bookmarks appears. They can directly be changed using the object browser or
by opening the Edit-dialog for single bookmarks. The IntViewBookmark -objects contain the reference
to the diagram, the position and size of the View Area. To further accelerate the workflow Hotkeys are
set automatically for the bookmarks, which can be changed, too. If the current view should be assigned
to the opened bookmark, the button « From View may be pressed.

9.3.3.6 Search in Diagram

It is possible to search for network elements within a graphic, using the icon in the graphic toolbar.
The search facility automatically lists possible objects as the user types.

On geographic diagrams (see section 9.7), it is also possible to search for places such as towns or
streets.

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If the user wishes to restrict the search to geographic places rather than network elements, the prefix
“geo:” can be used.

9.3.3.7 Navigation Pane

The Show Navigation Pane icon is used to open or close the navigation pane.

The navigation pane provides the user an overview of the whole network in a small window. It is
available for all graphics but plots. When zooming-in on a part of the grid, the navigation pane provides
an overview of the whole network and highlights the part of the network that is currently being shown in
the diagram.

The frame within the navigation pane can be moved around in order to see different parts of the network.

The navigation pane is enabled for every diagram by default, but can be disabled for specific diagrams.
This is done by first clicking on the Diagram Settings icon ( ), then the dialog, go to the Advanced tab
within the Basic Attributes and disable the option “Allow Navigation Pane”.

9.3.4 Select commands

9.3.4.1 Rectangular Selection

The Rectangular Selection icon is used to select a rectangular section of the diagram. This icon is
by default pressed, however the Pan Tool or Free-form Selection may also be used.

9.3.4.2 Free-form Selection

The button Free-form Selection is used to select a custom area of the diagram.

9.3.5 Diagram Settings

Each graphic window has its own settings, which may be changed using the Diagram Settings button
. The available settings of the dialog are described in the following sections.

9.3.5.1 Basic Attributes page

The General-tab offers the following settings:

• Name: the name of the graphic

• Target folder for network elements: the reference to the database folder in which new power
system elements created in this graphic will be stored.

• Default view area: when the user has zoomed into part of the graphic, the icon can be used
to zoom out again. By default, this will be to the full area of the graphic, but by selecting a book-
marked area here, as the default view area, this “zoom all” can be customised. This is useful for
users of large networks who are only interested in a specific region. (See section 9.3.3.5 for more
information about bookmarks.)
• Write protected: if enabled, the single line graphic can not be modified. The drawing toolboxes
are not displayed and the freeze icon becomes inactive.

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• Line style for cables: is used to select a line style for all cables.
• Line style for overhead lines: is used to select a line style for all overhead lines.

• Node width factor: the width of points and lines for nodes and busbars.
• Offset factor when drawing one-port devices: defines the length of a connection when a one
port device (e.g. load, shunt) is drawn by clicking on the busbar/terminal. This is the default
distance from the busbar in grid points.
• Allow individual line style: permits the line style to be set for individual lines. The individual style
may be set for any line in the graphic by right-clicking on the line and selecting Graphic Object →
Set Individual Line Style. This may also be performed for a group of selected lines/cables in one
action, by first multi selecting the elements.
• Allow individual line width: as for the individual line style, but may be used in combination with
the “Line Style for Cables/Overhead Lines” option. The individual width is defined by selecting
the corresponding option in the right mouse menu (may also be performed for a group of selected
lines/cables in one action).
• Diagram colouring: by default, changes of the active Colouring Scheme take effect on every
diagram (Default). By setting the option to Colouring scheme, the scheme of the current diagram
can be configured separately. Press Manage. . . to open an object browser with a list of the
available colouring scheme settings. Copy the existing or create a new one and alter it to the
wished scheme. Close the object browser and choose the new colouring scheme out of the drop
down list.

The Advanced-tab offers the following settings:

• Allow navigation pane to be shown: if checked, the Navigation Pane can be activated by clicking
on the Show Navigation Pane button , otherwise the button will be grayed out.
• Show tooltip on network elements: if this is selected, information about network elements will
be shown if the user hovers the mouse over the element.

The Coordinates Space page should generally only be configured with the assistance of DIgSILENT
support staff. Note that if Use Scaling Factor for Computation of Distances is selected on the Co-
ordinates Space page, it is possible to calculate the length of lines on the Single Line Diagram by
right-clicking and selecting Measure Length of Lines. In geographic diagrams, this option is activated
by default.

9.3.5.2 Schematic Diagram page

When a schematic diagram (overview, single line or detailed) is active, the Schematic Diagram page
will be available with the following options:

Drawing aids

• Snap elements to grid: snaps the elements onto the drawing raster.
• Line routing: defines the orthogonalisation of the connecting lines between branch elements and
terminals, the options are:
– Non-orthogonal: connections will be drawn exactly as their line points were set.
– Orthogonal: allows only right-angle connections between objects.
– Semi-orthogonal: the first segment of a connection that leads away from a busbar or
terminal will always be drawn orthogonally. The Semi-orthogonal offset defines the length of
the first orthogonal segment.

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Size factors for

Defines the size of the symbols in the diagram for sites, substations, edge elements and line end sym-
bols. The connection circles on simplified substations is a width factor used in single line diagrams: in
single line diagrams multiple busbar substations are only represented by their main busbars. Connected
elements may be connected to each of the busbars by changing the state of the internal switches. The
currently active connection is shown in the diagram by a filled circle, the not connected ones by hollow
circles. The width of the circles is defined in this field.

Note: The settings for the cursor type for the graphic windows (arrow or tracking cross) may be set in
the User Settings dialog, see section 7.3 (Graphic Windows Settings). This is because the cursor
shape is a global setting, valid for all graphic windows, while all graphic settings described above
are specific for each graphic window.

9.3.5.3 Text Boxes page

The following options are available:

• Allow individual fonts for text boxes: self-explanatory.

• Use fonts from project settings: this option allows the user to use the font configuration (i.e.
font type, style, size, effects) defined in the Project Settings. When activated, a button is available
to access the corresponding Project Settings page.
• Labels
– Nodes: in case the option Use fonts from project settings is not active, the user can cus-
tomise the font characteristics. The option Show frame shows a frame in the text boxes
corresponding to node labels.
– Branches: in case the option Use fonts from project settings is not active, the user can
customise the font characteristics. The option Show frame shows a frame in the text boxes
corresponding to branch labels.
– Background: specifies the transparency of label boxes:
* Opaque: means that objects behind the label box cannot be seen through the label box.
* Transparent: means that objects behind the label box can be seen through the label
box.
• Results
– Nodes: in case the option Use fonts from project settings is not active, the user can cus-
tomise the font characteristics. The option Show frame shows a frame in the text boxes
corresponding to node results.
– Branches: in case the option Use fonts from project settings is not active, the user can
customise the font characteristics. The option Show frame shows a frame in the text boxes
corresponding to branch results.
– Background: specifies the transparency of result boxes:
* Opaque: means that objects behind the result box cannot be seen through the result
box.
* Transparent: means that objects behind the result box can be seen through the result
box.
– Always show result boxes of detailed couplers: self-explanatory.
– Space saving representation of result boxes on connection lines: self-explanatory.
• Title and legends: in case the option Use fonts from project settings is not active, the user can
customise the font characteristics corresponding to the title and legends.
• Show line from general text boxes to referenced objects: may be disabled to unclutter the
graphic.

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9.3.5.4 Switches page

• Switch state symbol at connection end: selects the switch representation (see figure 9.3.2):
– Permanent box: shows a solid black square for a closed and an frame line for an open
switch (9.3.2a).
– Old style switch: shows the switches as the more conventional switch symbol (9.3.2b).

(a) Permanent box (b) Old Style switch

Figure 9.3.2: Different switch symbols

• Display frame around switches: draws a frame around the switch itself (breakers, disconnectors,
etc.). This only applies to user-drawn breakers and disconnectors.

• Create switches when connecting to busbar: self-explanatory.

• Show connected busbars as small dots in simplified substation representation: defines how
the connection points on busbars are represented in busbar systems.

9.3.5.5 Geographic Diagram page

The settings on this page define the appearance of the graphical representation of network elements in
the geographic diagrams. This page is only visible when a geographic diagram is active.

• Size factors for: defines the size of the symbols in the diagram for sites, substations, terminals,
edge elements, text, line loads and section transitions and line end symbols.
• Geographic scale threshold for visibility of: in extensive networks with a high scale level, edge
elements (except lines) and switch state boxes at line ends, are hidden at a specified scale level
to improve the clarity of the diagram. The threshold for the visibility can be changed in this field.

• Line width: sets the width of all the lines in the geographic diagram.
• Distance factor for one-port devices: defines the distance of all drawn one-port-devices (e.g.
load, shunt) to their connected nodes. This is the default distance from the busbar in grid points.
• Margin at full zoom: since in geographic diagrams there is no border, this value defines the
margin shown if Zoom All is pressed.
• Show coordinates in latitude/longitude: shows the coordinates of the current cursor position
in latitude and longitude in the Status Bar. Otherwise the position is displayed as X/Y values
representing UTM-coordinates. The border values of the area represented by the diagram are
listed in the tab Coordinate Space of the Basic Attributes page (9.3.5.1).

• Prefer branch coordinates: this option affects elements which are grouped to branches (Elm-
Branch). If the branch itself has geographic coordinates, they will be used in the geographic
diagram, otherwise the coordinates of the elements contained in the branch are taken into account.
• Show Scale: shows or hides the scale in the diagram.

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Substation Types tab

The settings in this tab are related to the graphical representation of substations in geographic diagrams.
The dialog offers the possibility to distinguish graphically different types of substations and improve the
clearness of the diagram by adding additional data through the substation symbol. A possible use of
this feature can be seen in the geographic diagram ’Overview Diagram’ of the Application Example ’MV
Distribution Network’ (File → Examples).

The column ’Substation Type’ of the Assignment Table is the list, of which one element may be chosen
in the drop down list Type in the Description-page of the Substation-dialog, opened by right-clicking on
a graphical substation element and choosing Edit Substation. The list contains the Substation Types
defined in the according page of the Project Settings dialog.

The column ’Symbol’ is storing the name of the symbol, which is searched by default in the subfolder
Database/System/Library/Graphic/Symbols/SGL/Composites. As additional source, the project’s sub-
folder Settings/Additional Symbols is taken into account.

9.3.6 Drawing Format

The drawing area for single line diagrams, block diagrams and plots is modified in the Drawing Format
dialog, accessed using the button. A predefined paper format can be selected as-is, edited, or a new
format can be defined. The selected paper format has ’Landscape’ orientation by default and can be
rotated by 90 degrees by selecting ’Portrait’. The format definitions, which are shown when an existing
format is edited or when a new format is defined, also show the landscape dimensions for the paper
format.

It is not possible to draw outside the selected drawing area. If a drawing no longer fits to the selected
drawing size, then a larger format should be selected. The existing graphs or diagrams are repositioned
on the new format (use Ctrl+A to mark all objects and then grab and move the entire graphic by left
clicking and holding the mouse key down on one of the marked objects; drag the graphic to a new
position if required).

9.3.7 Layers

The single line, geographic and block diagrams use transparent layers of drawing sheets on which the
graphical symbols are placed. Each of these layers may be set to be visible or not, and layer depth
functionality is built in, meaning that the user can select the order in which layers sit on top of one
another.

Which layers are visible and exactly what is shown on a layer is defined in the Diagram Layer Configu-
ration dialog, accessed through the graphic toolbar ( ) or selecting View → Layers. . . from the main
menu.

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Figure 9.3.3: Diagram Layer Configuration (SetLevelvis)

As shown in Figure 9.3.3, the Diagram Layer Configuration dialog has three pages:

• Diagram Layers, where default and user-defined layers are created, modified, selected and
ordered
• Element Details, where symbols related to specific elements are selected to be visible or not
• Switch Markers, where layers specifically to switch annotation are selected visible or not

These are described in more detail in the following subsections.

Note: It is possible to mix annotation graphical objects with other graphical objects in any user-defined
layer. Nevertheless, there is still an “Annotation Layer” where such objects will by default be placed
when created. See Section 9.6 for more details.

9.3.7.1 Diagram Layers

On this page, the default and user-defined layers are listed. The visibility of any one layer is determined
by the check-box. New layers can be created using the Add layer button and deleted using the
Delete layer button. The detailed configuration of any layer can be changed using the Edit layer button,
or by double-clicking on the layer name. The order of the layers can be changed using the up and down
arrows to the right of the list (see Figure 9.3.3 above).

Depending upon the type of graphic, the following layers are available as a default:

Diagram Type:
Configuration SL Single Line,
Layer Content
Options GEO Geographic,
B Block
Title Graphic title Edit title SL/GEO/B

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Diagram Type:
Configuration SL Single Line,
Layer Content
Options GEO Geographic,
B Block
Results boxes legend and colour
Legends Edit legends SL/GEO
legend
Annotations Additional graphical information See Section 9.6 SL/GEO/B
Command Command buttons used mostly
Text boxes format SL/GEO
buttons for scripts
Plots Plots placed in the diagrams Plots background SL/GEO/B
Boxes with calculation results.
Results Text boxes format SL/GEO/B
See Note below
Boxes with names and addi-
Labels tional data description, if config- Text boxes format SL/GEO/B
ured
Symbols for the elements of the
Net elements Text boxes format SL/GEO/B
grid
Separate visibility
Boxes and arrows, together with and configuration
Interchanges SL/GEO
associated results boxes of boxes and
arrows
Accented colouring of the dia-
Heatmap none SL/GEO
grams
Graphical representation of re-
Relays Text boxes format SL
lays
Current/voltage Contains the drawn current and
Text boxes format SL
transformers voltage transformers
Text boxes format
Bay representation and Site
Bays and Sites and style of bays SL
frames
and sites
Load/generation Shows circles for load and gen- Selection of S, P or
GEO
distribution eration around substations Q, colour-settings
Map Provider (see
Geographical map used as
section 9.7), map
Geographic map the background to allow easier GEO
type and graphic
drawing of the diagram
settings
Additional Text explanation
Device data Text boxes format B
given in the device symbol
Definition each block is based
Block Definition Text boxes format B
on
Signals Name of the signal transmitted Text boxes format B
Graphic used as the back-
Name of file with
ground (“wallpaper”) to allow
Background graphics (WMF,
easier drawing of the diagram SL/B
image BMP, JPEG, PNG,
or to show additional information
GIF, TIF)
(map information)
Table 9.3.1: Predefined diagram layers in the layers dialog

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9.3.7.2 Element Details

For some elements shown on diagrams, additional details can optionally be shown, such as the vector
groups for transformers or symbols to indicate the number of phases of a line. On the Element Details
page, such details are turned on or off, with additional configuration for the Power flow direction arrows
option.

• Lines:
– Connection points: dots at the connections between edges and buses/terminals and signal
connections to blocks.
– Connection arrows: double-arrow at connections where the end point is not represented in
the current diagram.
– Phases: number of phases of a line/cable, shown as parallel lines.
– Sections and line loads: symbols at lines consisting of sections and/or where line loads are
connected.
– Line compensations: symbols at the ends of the lines, indicating the presence of line com-
pensation.
– Fuses in bays: symbol for fuses located in bays.
• Transformers, machines, shunts:
– Vector groups: vector group for rotating machines and transformers.
– Tap positions: positions of taps for shunts and transformers.
• Power flow direction arrows: arrows to represent the power flow, which can be configured for:
– Active power
– Reactive power
– Active power (zero sequence)
– Reactive power (zero sequence)
– Active power (negative sequence)
– Reactive power (negative sequence)
In addition, the flow arrows can be animated, by selecting the option Show animation

9.3.7.3 Switch Markers

On the Switch Markers page, markers specific to operation and/or status of switches (ElmCoup or
StaSwitch) can be selected and configured:

Remotely controlled substations

This type of marker indicates if sites (ElmSite), substations (ElmSubstat) or secondary substations
(ElmTrfstat) host remote controlled switches. This switch attribute can be defined in the field Fault
Separation/Power Restoration, on the page Reliability of the switch edit dialog.

If checked, an user-defined colored circle is displayed behind sites, substations and secondary substa-
tions, where at least one switch within the aforementioned grouping object is set to be remote-controlled.

This switch mark is only visible if the grouping object has a Composite Node (Beach Ball) graphical rep-
resentation. Additional information about node graphical representation can be found in section 11.2.7.

Tie open points

The marker suggests that a feeder (ElmFeeder) terminates at the open switch.

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If this option is selected, an user-defined colored circle is shown around open switches, if different
feeders are found on either side, also if no feeder is detected at all on one side.

In addition, in the case that the switch at which the feeders terminate is located within a site, substation
or secondary substation, the circle mark will be also displayed on diagrams where a composite node
representation of the grouping object exists. It should be noted that the mark will be only presented
at the composite node representation of a grouping object, if none of the connected branch objects
already shows a tie open point circle at its line end.

Normally open switches

This is self-explanatory. A circle mark is depicted around switches, if the normal state of a switch is
open. The attribute that specifies whether the normal state of a circuit breaker is open can be defined
in the Tie Open Point Optimisation page of the switch edit dialog.

For those cases where normally open switches are located within a site, substation or secondary
substation, the circle mark will be also displayed on diagrams where a composite node representation
of the aforementioned grouping object exists. It should be noted that the mark will be only presented
at the composite node representation of a grouping object, if none of the connected branch objects
already shows a normally open switch at its end.

Open standby switches

It shows if despite opening a switch within a substation or secondary substation, elements on both
sides of the switch remain supplied. In other words, it suggests that the aforementioned elements are
still connected to a source (standby). The annotation mark works only for devices which belong to a
substation or secondary substation (Bus couplers are excluded).

Reclose switches

If this option is selected, an user-defined coloured circle is shown around switches that have the option
Consider as switch with automatic reclosing device selected on the Reliability page of the switch.

9.3.7.4 Working with Layers

Each graphic symbol in a single line, geographic or block diagram is assigned by default to the cor-
responding layer at first. All busbar symbols, for example, are drawn on the Net elements layer by
default, their name boxes on the layer Labels. Graphic symbols may be shifted onto other layers by
right-clicking them in the single line graphic and selecting the option Shift to Layer from the context
menu, then selecting the layer from the list presented. Should an object disappear when it has been
re-assigned to a layer, the visibility of the target layer should be checked. Moving symbols from one
layer to another is normally needed when only a few symbols from a certain group should be made
visible (for instance the result boxes of one or two specific junction nodes), or when user defined layers
are used. This allows to hide some elements or text boxes to improve the clarity of the diagram, or to
show additional information for e.g. printing purposes.

Note: Certain names and result boxes are, by default, not visible. An example is the names and result
boxes for internal nodes. This is done to reduce clutter on the graphic. To display such labels,
simply right-click on the object and select Text Boxes → Show Labels.

The default layer for annotations is called Annotations Layer, which is empty until the first annotation
object is inserted. If the user creates new layers, annotation objects can easily be shifted from one to
another by right-clicking on them, selecting Shift to layer and select the destination layer from the list.
More information about annotations can be found in section 9.6.

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For some layers, for example Text Boxes or Results, when the layer is edited to change the configuration,
a target may be set; this target will be the focus of the performed configuration command. Various
actions or settings may be performed, such as e.g. changing the font using the Change Font button.
The configuration page may also be used to mark (select/highlight) the target objects in the graphic
using the Mark button.

The options available to configure a layer depend on the type of Layer. Table 9.3.1 shows for each layer
in which way its content can be changed in format.

As an example, suppose that a part of the single line graphics is to be changed, for instance, to allow
longer busbar names. To change the settings, the correct graphical layer is first selected. In this
example, it will be the Labels layer. In this layer, only the busbar names are to be changed, and
the target must therefore be set to All Nodes. When the layer and the target has been selected, the
width for object names may be set in the Settings area. The number of columns may be set using the
Visibility/Width button. Alternatively, the Adapt Width will adapt all of the object name placeholders
to the length of the name for each object. Changing a setting for all nodes or all branches at once will
overwrite the present settings.

The visibility of the layer can be selected within the edit dialog of that layer (as well as in the main
Layers dialog), and - as additional options - users can choose to set maximum and/or minimum zoom-
dependent visibility levels, so that objects are not shown outside these zoom levels. For geographic
diagrams the limits are expressed in terms of a map-scale such as 1:5000, for schematic diagrams as
a percentage zoom level.

Many layers have an option to make the objects selectable or not. This can be useful if the layer contains
annotation objects, for example.

For certain layers for example the Results layer, the Labels layer and user-defined layers, there is the
possibility to define dedicated colours. The colours can be set using the colour palettes within the object
dialog of each layer. See section 4.7.8.1 for more information about the use of colour palettes. After
selection of the colour, the colouring mode for layers can be activated using the Diagram Colouring icon
. This allows the user to easily distinguish between the different layers present in the drawing and to
easily identify which elements belong to each respective layer.

9.3.8 Show Legend Layer

The legend blocks can be turned on and off from the Layers dialog (see 9.3.7), or from the single line
diagram toolbar ( ).

The results legend block describes the contents of result boxes (for information about result boxes
see 9.5).

Because more than one type of result box is normally used in the Single line graphic, for instance, one
for node results and another one for branch results, the legend box normally shows more than one
column of legends. After changing the result box definitions, it may be necessary to manually resize the
legend box in order to show all result box legends.

The Legend Box definition dialog is opened by right-clicking the legend block and selecting Edit from
the context menu. The font and format shown may be configured. When opening a new graphic the
legend will appear by default.

The other block is the colour legend block, which updates automatically based on the colouring options
selected.

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9.3.9 Show Result Layer

Results layer can be easily toggled on and off without going into the Layers command by using the icon
Show Result Layer ( ) on the graphics toolbar.

9.3.10 Colouring Options

9.3.10.1 Diagram Colouring

The single line and geographic diagrams have an automatic colour representation mode. The Diagram
Colouring icon on the diagrams toolbar will open the diagram colouring representation dialog (alter-
natively, select View → Diagram Colouring on the main menu). This dialog is used to select different
colouring modes and is dependent if a calculation has been performed or not. If a specific calculation
is valid, then the selected colouring for that calculation is displayed.

As described below, colours are selected via the Colour Settings button found in the Diagram Colouring
dialog. Clicking on this button brings up a new dialog, which has two pages. On the first page called
“General”, the user has the option to select a colour palette. This is not essential, but if a palette is
selected, the user will find that colours from this palette will be offered as a default selection when
configuring colours for elements in diagrams or in a Network Model Manager or Data Manager. For
general information about configuring colours and the use of colour palettes see Section 4.7.8.

The Diagram Colouring has a 3-priority level colouring scheme implemented, allowing colouring ele-
ments according to the following criteria: 1𝑠𝑡 Energising status, 2𝑛𝑑 Alarm and 3𝑟𝑑 “Normal” (Other)
colouring.

Energising Status: if this check box is enabled “De-energised” or “Out of Calculation” elements
are coloured according to the settings in the “Project Colour Settings”. The settings of the “De-
energised” or “Out of Calculation” mode can be edited by clicking on the Colour Settings button.

Alarm: if this check box is enabled a drop down list containing alarm modes will be available. It
is important to note here that only alarm modes available for the current calculation page will be
listed. If an alarm mode is selected, elements “exceeding” the corresponding limit are coloured.
Limits and colours can be defined by clicking on the Colour Settings button.

“Normal” (Other) Colouring: here, two lists are displayed. The first list contains all available
colouring modes. The second list contains all sub modes of the selected colouring mode. The
settings of the different colouring modes can be edited by clicking on the Colour Settings button.

Every element can be coloured by one of the three previous criteria. Also, every criterion is optional
and will be skipped if disabled. Regarding the priority, if the user enables all three criteria, the hierarchy
taken into account will be the following:

• “Energising Status” overrules the “Alarm” and “Normal Colouring” mode. The “Alarm” mode
overrules the “Normal Colouring” mode.
The graphic can be coloured according to the following list. Availability of some options will depend on
the function that is selected (e.g. ’Voltage Violations’ does not appear when the ’Basic Data’ page is
selected, but does when the ’Load Flow’ page is selected) and on the licence (e.g. Connection Request
is only available if the advanced function Connection Request Assessment is part of the licence).

Energising Status:

• De-energised
• Out of Calculation
• De-energised, Planned Outage

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Alarm:
• Feeder Radiality Check (Only if “Feeder is supposed to be operated radially” is selected).
• Outages
• Overloading of Thermal/Peak Short Circuit Current
• Voltage Violations/Overloadings
“Normal” (Other) Colouring:

• Results
– Fault Clearing Times
– Voltage Angle (colouring according to absolute or relative voltage angles and angle dif-
ferences along branch elements; relative voltage angles do not reflect transformer vector
groups, while absolute voltage angles include the angle shift caused by transformer vector
groups)
– Voltages / Loading
– Loading of Thermal / Peak Short-Circuit Current
– Arc Energy
– Incident Energy
– PPE-Category
– Connection Request: Approval Status
– Contribution to EIC
– Contribution to ENS
– Contribution to SAIDI
– Contribution to SAIFI
– Loads: Average Interruption Duration
– Loads: Load Point Energy Not Supplied
– Loads: Yearly interruption frequency
– Loads: Yearly interruption time
– Optimal Manual Restoration
– Hosted Power
– Probabilistic Analysis
– Unit Commitment - Redispatch
– State Estimation
• Topology
– Boundaries (Definition)
– Boundaries (Interior Region)
– Connected Components
– Connected Components, Voltage Level
– Connected Grid Components
– Energising Status
– Feeders
– Missing graphical connections
– Outage Check
– Station Connectivity
– Station Connectivity (Beach Balls only)
– Supplied by Secondary Substation

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– Supplied by Substation
– System Type AC/DC and Phases
– Voltage Levels
• Primary Equipment
– Cross Section
– Year of Construction
– Forced Outage Duration
– Forced Outage Rate
• Secondary Equipment
– Measurement Locations
– Power Restoration
– Relays, Fuses, Current and Voltage Transformers
– Switches, Type of Usage
• Groupings (Grids, Zones, Areas...)
– Areas
– Grids
– Layers
– Meteo Stations
– Operators
– Owners
– Paths
– Routes
– Zones
• Variations
– Modifications in Recording Expansion Stage
– Modifications in Variations
– Original Locations
• User-defined
– Individual
The list User-defined may be used to define own colouring schemes. Pressing Manage Filters. . .
opens an object browser with the list of all available user-defined filters, found in the subfolder Settings/-
Colouring/Colouring Scheme. New filter sets (IntFiltset) can be created, containing several General
Filter objects (SetFilt) with an assigned colour and the conditions, under which an element is coloured.
This allows to implement very specific filters to identify graphically elements in the diagram with certain
properties or results.

9.3.10.2 Heatmaps

In PowerFactory, heatmaps can be used to illustrate the state of a grid by colouring the area around
network elements. The colour definition is carried out as described in section 9.3.10.1.

To use the colour definition for heatmaps, click on the Heatmap button . On the General page of the
dialog, the basic settings for the creation of the heatmap can be selected. The colour settings dialog
(explained in section 9.3.10.1) is accessible from this page. The Mode shows which type of colouring is
used.

The resolution of the Heatmap can be:

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• Low
• Medium

• High
• User-defined (in pixels)

Note: The amount of time required to generate each heatmap increases with the specified resolution.
Since the optimal settings for heatmaps vary for each grid, the process of finding this optimum
might take a few iterations. Therefore it is advised to start with a small or medium resolution.

A background colour for the heatmap may additionally be set.

The General page defines the general settings for the Heatmap and the Advanced page defines
specifics regarding the colouring. Five different parameters can be set; the first two being:
• Number of closest influence points: defines the number of reference points taken into account
when colouring a certain point of the Heatmap.
• Contour sharpness: defines the smoothness of the transition between differently coloured areas.
The other three parameters define the Fading Area, i.e. the orthogonal transition from the element
colouring to the background colour:

• Begin: defines how far away from the centre of the element on the lateral axis the colouring
begins to fade to the background colour.
• Extent: defines how far away from the centre of the element on the lateral axis the colouring ends
to fade to the background colour.

• Fading exponent: defines how fast the colour between Begin and Extent will fade to the back-
ground colour.

Figure 9.3.4 shows an example of a Heatmap, which is coloured according to loading, over- and under-
voltage.

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Figure 9.3.4: Example of a heatmap coloured according to loading, over- and under-voltage

9.3.11 Node Default Options

Figure 9.3.5 shows the commands available for setting node default options. These are discussed in
further detail in this section.

Figure 9.3.5: Node default options

Default Voltage Levels for Terminals and Busbars:

The default voltage level for terminals can be set in this field. New terminals placed on the single line
diagram will have this voltage (e.g. 110 kV, 0.4 kV).

Default Phase Technologies for Terminals:

The default phase technology for terminals can be set in this field. New terminals placed on the single
line diagram will be of this type (e.g. three-phase ABC, single-phase, DC, etc.).

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9.3.12 Print and Export Options

9.3.12.1 Print

This function is accessed via the button, the menu File → Print or via the hotkey Ctrl+P. It opens a
print preview, showing the diagram to be printed. The dialog offers all the options that the user would
expect, including a Print Setup dialog, accessed via the icon.

If only part of the diagram is to be printed, the selection of the area can be done within the print preview
dialog. There is also a Pages option, which allows the user to print selected graphic pages.

On the Page Setup field, the format, orientation and frame of the page can be set. For the diagrams,
there is an additional option to print as poster (i.e. print the diagram in several pages).

9.3.12.2 Exporting Graphics

Graphics can be exported in a wide range of formats, using the Export Diagram function. This is
accessed either from the main toolbar, using File → Export Diagram. . . , or by using the icon on the
graphic toolbar.

If only part of the diagram is to be exported, the selection of the area can be done within the preview
dialog. For PDF exports, there is also a Pages option, which allows the user to select graphic pages to
be exported.

9.3.13 Diagram Layout Tool

The Diagram Layout Tool is a powerful feature to create graphical representations of network
topologies. The tool offers a manual, semi- and fully automatic creation of nodes and branch elements,
which are not yet graphically represented in the current network diagram. The options and the dialog
are described in detail in section 11.6.

9.3.14 Element Options

In addition to the options available from the graphics toolbar, there are many edit options which are
available for elements in the graphic, using the context menu (i.e. right-click).

Show in Data Manager: this option lets the user edit the data of the selected object. The object will be
selected in its project folder within the list of the other objects and can be double-clicked to open its edit
dialog. See chapter 10 (Data Manager and Network Model Manager) for more information.

Delete: this function deletes both the database and graphical objects for the selected element(s). A
warning message will appear first - this may be switched off in the “User Settings” dialog; see section 7.3
(Graphic Windows Settings)). Also accessed through the keyboard: Del key.

Note: To delete graphical objects only, right-click the selected element/s and select Delete Graphical
Object only.

Cut: this function cuts the selected objects. Objects can then later be pasted as discussed below. Also
accessed through the keyboard:Ctrl+X key.

Copy: copies the selected objects to the clipboard. Also accessed through the keyboard: Ctrl+C key.

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Paste: pastes all objects from the clipboard into the current drawing. The objects are pasted at the
current graphical mouse position. Objects that are copied and pasted create completely new graphic
and data objects in the graphic that they are pasted into. Also accessed through the keyboard: Ctrl+V
key.

Note: To copy and paste just the graphic, Paste Graphically Only should be chosen from the right-
click menu. Similar results are obtained when using the “Draw Existing Net Elements” tool (see
Section 11.6: Drawing Existing Elements using the Diagram Layout Tool).

Note: The undo command undoes the last graphic action and restores deleted elements, or deletes
created elements. The undo command is accessed through the undo icon ( ) or by pressing
Ctrl+Z.

Disconnect: disconnects the selected element/s. When right-clicking at the end of a connection ele-
ment a different/reduced menu is shown which allows disconnecting just the selected side (Disconnect
Side)

Connect: right-click and select Connect to connect an element.

Reconnect: used to disconnect a selected element and then re-connect it. The branch to be connected
will be ’glued’ to the cursor. Left clicking a bar or terminal will connect the element. When right-clicking
at the end of a connection element a different/reduced menu is shown which allows reconnecting just
the selected side (Reconnect Side)

Rotate: rotates symbols clockwise, counter-clockwise, or 180 degrees. It is generally preferable to

disconnect an element before rotating it. Right-click and select Graphic Object → Rotate.

Redraw: right-click and select Graphic Object → Redraw to redraw a selected element. When right-
clicking at the end of a connection element a different/reduced menu is shown, which allows reconnec-
tion of just the selected side (Graphic Object → Redraw Side)

Move: marked objects can be moved by left clicking them and holding down the mouse button. The
objects can be moved when the cursor changes to an arrowed cross ( ). Hold down the mouse button
and drag the marked objects to their new position. Connections from the moved part of the drawing to
other objects will be adjusted.

Edit Line Points: right-clicking and selecting Graphic Object → Edit Line Points will show the blue
circles (’line points’) that define the shape of the connection. Each of these circles can be moved by left
clicking and dragging them to a new position. New circles can be inserted by left clicking the connection
in between circles. Line points are deleted by right-clicking them and selecting the Graphic Object →
Delete Line Point option from the context menu. This menu also presents the option to stop (end) the
line point editing, which can also be done by left clicking somewhere outside the selected lines.

Push to Back: to select a particular object when multiple objects are lying on top of each other in
network graphics, there is a possibility to temporarily push the selected elements back. For this purpose,
press the CTRL key and then right-click on the element, which is to be pushed to the back. The Push
to Back option appears at the bottom of the context menu that appears. Subsequently, right-clicking
on the overlapping objects will select the element which has not been pushed back, the user can then
either move the element graphically or choose any of the element edit options from the context menu.
Alternatively, the combination of pressing ALT and the left mouse button can be used to select the top
level element.

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9.4 Graphical Symbols of Elements

The symbols used for the graphical representation of the elements can be changed. PowerFactory
offers a number of symbols per element; these symbols are located in the Database in folder System
→ Library → Graphic→ Symbols. To change the symbol used, right-click on the element and select
Graphic Object → Select Symbol. . . and a window with the list of available symbols for the selected
element will be displayed.

The original symbol used for the graphical representation of the elements can be used as a template
to design a new symbol according to the user’s needs or even create a completely new symbol from
scratch. Both options are described in the following sections.

9.4.1 Create a new symbol based on a library symbol

To use an existing symbol from the system library to create a user-designed symbol, the following steps
should be followed:

• Right click on a graphical representation of the element and select Graphic Object → Open
Symbol in Graphical Editor. . . .
• An info window will be displayed, indicating that a copy of the library symbol will be created in the
project settings. Click on Yes to create the new symbol.
• Assign a name to the new symbol in the displayed input dialog.

• A graphic of the symbol will be opened in a new window group (or the additional existing one).
• An example is shown in Figure 9.4.1.

Figure 9.4.1: Graphic Symbol of a Synchronous Machine

The connection points of the element are represented by small blue circles and numbers. These can
only be modified changing the XY coordinates defined in the edit dialog of the symbol, which can be
opened using the Show Model Dialog button from the toolbar.

The Properties table contains the following:

• Icon Dimensions: the size of the icon, i.e. the size in mm of the white area where the symbol is
drawn.

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• Shown Element Details: the details of the element shown in the graphical symbol. By default it
takes what is defined on the Element Details page of the layers configuration (see section 9.3.7.2).
Selecting the different checkboxes will show the graphical representation of the following details:
– Phases
– Vector groups
– Tap positions

• Shown Symbol Areas: the graphical symbol is divided in areas. The checkboxes selected on this
part correspond to what is actually displayed in the diagram. Selecting the different checkboxes will
show the different graphical representations of the element (e.g. delta or star neutral connection)

The different parts of the symbol can be modified by clicking on them. For example, when clicking on
the circle of the synchronous machine, the Properties window will change as shown in Figure 9.4.2, and
the properties of this selected part, such as the line style, width, colour and angle, can be modified.

Figure 9.4.2: Changing the style of the symbol

The new symbol will be automatically saved and applied to the selected element. It can however be
used for other elements of the same class if the symbol is selected as described before (Right-click
→ Graphic Object→ Select Symbol. . . ). Alternatively the Data Manager can be used to filter all the
graphical objects using the original symbol (parameter sSymNam) and assign the new symbol.

9.4.2 Create a new symbol from the Data Manager

Although it is recommended to use the existing symbols as template to build new ones, it is possible to
build a new graphic symbol from scratch in the Data Manager as follows:

• Go to the folder Settings → Additional Symbols within the project.

• Click on the New Object ( ) icon and select Symbol

• The symbol dialog will open, the following fields should be defined on the General page:
– Symbol Description: a description of the symbol (e.g. element represented in the symbol)
– Object Type: class of the element that will use the symbol (e.g. ElmSym)
– Type of graphical representation: select between node (substations, terminals), branch (branch
elements, e.g. generators, loads, transformers, etc.) and dummy (a graphic that does not
necessarily represent an element)
– Maximum number of connections: the number of connections of the element

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– Connection points: the XY coordinates of the connection points of the symbol, which can be
set to 0,0 or some other small value as a starting point
– The Open symbol editor button can be used to open the diagram of the symbol
– The symbol dialog can be closed using OK

Once the symbol editor is opened, the drawing tools Annotations can be used to insert lines, free-
form polygons, square, circles and text. (If the drawing tools are not visible on the left-hand side of the
PowerFactory window, use the icon to unfreeze the graphic.) The connection point should be visible;
zoom in if necessary.

Alternatively, the symbol can be defined with a Modelica compatible code on the Geometry page of the
edit dialog of the symbol.

The Modelica symbols have per default a bigger size than the symbols used in PowerFactory. To
change the size of the symbol, the option Rescale Symbol, accessible by right-clicking on the symbol
background, should be used. PowerFactory ’s default symbols have usually a width of 5 mm.

9.5 Result Boxes, Text Boxes and Labels

PowerFactory uses result boxes, text boxes, and labels in the single sine diagram to display calculation
results and other useful information. Figure 9.5.1 illustrates an example of this.

Figure 9.5.1: Results boxes, text boxes, and labels available in PowerFactory

9.5.1 Result Boxes

General

Result boxes are generally set up so that there are a series of different formats for each calculation
function, with variables appropriate to that function. In addition, the format differs for the objects class
and/or for individual objects. For example, following a load flow calculation, branch and edge elements
will have different formats compared to nodes, and an external grid will have an individual, different,
format as compared to the branch and edge elements.

Although the result boxes in the single line graphic are a very versatile and powerful way for displaying
calculation results, it is often not possible to display a large (part of a) power system without making
the result boxes too small to be read. PowerFactory solves this problem by offering balloon help on
the result boxes. Positioning the mouse over a result box will pop up a yellow text balloon with the text

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displayed in a fixed size font. This is depicted in figure 9.5.1. The result box balloon always states the
name of the variable, and may thus also be used as a legend.

Reference points

A result box is connected to the graphical object for which it displays the results by a “reference point”.
Figure 9.5.1 shows the default reference points for the result box of a terminal. A reference point is a
connection between a point on the result box (which has 9 optional points), and one of the “docking”
points of the graphical object. The terminal has three docking points: on the left, in the middle and on
the right. The reference point can be changed by:

• Right-clicking the result box with the graphics cursor (freeze mode off), and selecting Change
Reference Points.
• The reference points are shown: docking points in green, reference points in red. Select one of
the reference points by left-clicking it.

• Left-click the selected red reference point, and drag it to a green docking point and drop it.
• An error message will result if you drop a reference point somewhere else than on a docking point.

Result boxes can be freely moved around the diagram. They will remain attached to the docking point,
and will move along with the docking point. A result box can be positioned back to its docking point by
right-clicking it and selecting Reset Settings from the menu.

Editing Result Boxes

PowerFactory uses separate result boxes for different groups of power system objects, such as node
objects (i.e. busbars, terminals) or edge objects (i.e. lines, loads). For each type of result box, a different
result box definition is used.

A number of these predefined formats are available for display; they may be selected by right-clicking a
result box to get the Format for Edge Elements (in this example) option, which then presents a number
of formats that may be selected. The active format is ticked ( ) and applies for all the visualised edge
elements.

It is also possible to select predefined formats for a specific element class. If the edge element is for
example an asynchronous machine, in the context menu it will be also possible to get the option Format
for Asynchronous Machine, which shows the predefined formats for the element class Asynchronous
Machine (ElmAsm). The selected format will in this case apply only to the visualised asynchronous
machines.

If the user wants to create a specific format that is different from the pre-defined ones, the Edit Format
for Edge Elements (or Node Elements) option should be used. Note that the new format will be applied
to the entire group of objects (edge or node objects).

If a created format is expected to be used for just one specific element, then the Create Textbox option
should be used. An additional result box/ textbox will be created, using the current format for the object.
This may then be edited. Information about text boxes is given in 9.5.2.

When the Edit Format option has been selected, the user can modify the variables and how are they
showed as described Chapter 18: Reporting and Visualising Results, Section 18.2.1: Editing Result
Boxes.

Formatting Result Boxes

Result boxes can be formatted by means of the context menu (right-clicking the desired result box). The
available options include:
• Shift to layer (see 9.3.7).

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• Rotate
• Hide

• Change the font type and size of the text

• Change the width
• Change colour
• Set the text alignment

• Adapt width
• Change reference points
• Reset Settings, only available after changes have been made).

Resetting Calculation Results

When pressed, the Reset Calculation icon ( ) will clear the results shown on the Single Line Diagram.
By default, PowerFactory will also clear the calculation results when there is a change to network data
or network configuration (such as opening a switch). However, if Retention of results after network
change is set to Show last results in the User Settings (see Section 7.1: General Settings), results will
appear in grey on the Single Line Diagram and on the Flexible Data page until the calculation is reset, or
a new calculation performed. Reset Calculation can also be accessed from the main Calculation menu
or using F12.

9.5.2 Text Boxes

As mentioned before, text boxes are used to display user defined variables from a specific referenced
object within the single line graphic. To create a text box, right-click on the desired object (one end of
the object when it is a branch element) and select Create Textbox. By default a text box with the same
format of the corresponding result box will be generated.

The created text box can be edited, to display the desired variables, following the same procedure
described in 9.5.1. In this case after right-clicking the text box, the option Edit Format should be
selected. By default the text boxes are graphically connected to the referred object by means of a
line. This “connection line” can be made invisible if the option Show line from general text boxes to
referenced objects from the Text Boxes page of the Diagram Settings dialog ( ) is disabled.

9.5.3 Labels

In the general case, a label showing the name of an element within the single line graphic is automat-
ically created with the graphical objects (see figure 9.5.1). The label can be visualised as a text box
showing only the variable corresponding to the name of the object. As for text boxes, the format of
labels can be set using the context menu.

9.5.4 Free Text Labels

Free Text Labels (see figure 9.5.1) can be anchored to an element on the single line diagram, and used
to display custom text. The are created by right-click and selecting Text Boxes → Create Text Label.

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9.6 Annotations

The Annotations feature offers the user the opportunity to include additional graphical information in one
or more configurable layers in the single line, geographic or block diagrams. Examples include:

• Built-in graphical annotation elements

• Text
• Icons (bitmap files)
• Plots

Note: The Annotation Layer is the default layers for new annotation objects, but users can choose
to move such objects into their own user-defined layers, which can also contain other graphical
objects.

The annotation elements are as follows:

• Graphical annotation
– Line:
– Polyline:
– Arrow:
– Polyline with arrow:
– Polygon:
– Rectangle:
– Circle:
– Pie:
– Arc:

• Text:

• Icons (bitmap files):

• Plots:
Except the icons and plots, all the annotation elements can be drawn directly in the diagram. Before
placing an icon in the diagram, an available icon-object has to be selected or if not yet existing, created.
To insert a plot into the diagram, an already existing plot can be selected from the list in the object
browser, which opens after pressing the button.

It is possible have multiple layers that contain annotations. To do this, the user should click on the
button and then use the Add layer button to make a user-defined layer, selecting Net elements,
annotations, text boxes from the drop-down menu for Layer Type.

Export graphical layer

To export a graphical layer the user should press the Edit layer button, then go to the Annotations page
of the dialog. Using the Export button, the user can export the layer as an *.svg file.

Import graphical layer

To import a graphical layer, the user should first create the new layer as described above, then use the
Import button on the Annotations page.

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9.6.1 Annotation of Protection Device

Adding a protection device into the single line diagram is described in section 32.2.2.

9.7 Geographic Diagrams

In PowerFactory it is possible to specify terminal GPS coordinates, and automatically generate geo-
graphic diagrams. GPS coordinates (latitude and longitude) are entered on the Description page of
terminals and lines, on the Geographical Coordinates tab. One geographic diagram can be created per
project by either:
• Opening the Data Manager, right-clicking on an active grid and selecting Diagrams → Show
Geographic Diagram.
• On the main menu, under Insert → Geographic Diagram.
The geographic diagram provides a visual representation of the network and includes all terminals and
lines for which GPS coordinates have been entered.

One port elements (e.g. loads, shunts, generators) can also be represented in the geographic diagram.
The Diagram Layout Tool can be used to automatically draw all the edge elements in the diagram (see
section 11.6.1.2).

The settings for the geographic diagram are defined in the Diagram Settings, Geographic Diagram page
(see section 9.3.5.5).

An additional layer called Load/Generation Distribution is available for geographic diagrams, in order to
illustrate the magnitude of network load and generation (apparent power), as illustrated in Figure 9.7.1.
The Layers dialog is accessed using the icon, and for information about working with layers, see
Section 9.3.7 (Layers). If the Load/Generation Distribution layer is edited, the colours and other settings
can be changed on the Load/Generation page. (For general information about configuring colours, see
Section 4.7.8.

Note that the displayed size of circles does not change as the user zooms in and out of the diagram.

Figure 9.7.1: Load/Generation Distribution example

Maps can be used as background images and can be specified on the Configuration page of Layers

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( ). Maps from the following providers are pre-configured:

• OpenStreetMap (OSM), featuring free-of-charge mapnik-style maps

• Esri ArcGIS©, including road maps, satellite, and hybrid maps

• Google Maps©1 , including road maps, satellite/aerial, hybrid, and topographic maps
• Bing Maps, including road and satellite maps
• IGN Géoportail, including road maps, satellite and special maps

• Local map files, stored in plain text-files

To use the map data of some providers, special licence keys are necessary, which can be stored in the
Geographic Maps page of the configuration dialog accessed via Tools → Configuration.

9.7.1 Using an External Map Provider

If an external map provider from the internet is used, the Map layer can be chosen from (depending on
which map layers the provider offers):

• Roadmap
• Satellite/Aerial

• Hybrid
• Topographic

The following parameters are available:

• Saturation adjustment
• Brightness adjustment

These parameters are valid in the range -100 % and +100 % and can be used to highlight either the
map or the network elements.

Figures 9.7.2 and 9.7.3 illustrate small distribution grids where OpenStreetMap, and Esri ArcGIS©
satellite maps, respectively, are used as the background image providers.

1 requires Google Maps for Business account: http://www.google.com/enterprise/mapsearth

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Figure 9.7.2: Network example with OpenStreetMap data

Figure 9.7.3: Network example with satellite background map (ESRI ArcGIS©)

Besides usage of pre-configured built-in map services, PowerFactory supports the use of user-configured
map services based on the standardised WMS/WMTS protocol. The WMS are defined by the Adminis-

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trator in the Configuration folder as shown in figure 9.7.4

Figure 9.7.4: Web Map Services folder location

A new Web Map Service can be created by clicking on the button New Object ( ) in the Data Manager
and selecting Hyperlink (IntUrl). In the edit dialog of the hyperlink, the field Resource type must be set
to Map Service.

Once Address, Map server protocol and the rest of the fields of the edit dialog are set, it is possible to
verify the connection to the Map Service by clicking on View.

Once a Web Map Service is defined by the Administrator, the user can select the desired map by
configuring the Background layer of the geographic diagram, as shown in figure 9.7.5

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Figure 9.7.5: Background layer configuration

Note: A Web Map Services folder can also be created directly under the user or project and used as
described above.

9.7.2 Using Local Maps

To display background images (e.g. maps) on the geographic diagram, the map provider must be
selected as Local map files (on the Layers dialog, Configuration page). A File for reading background
images must be selected. This facilitates ’tiling’ of multiple images in the background of the GPS graphic
if required.

The File is simply a text file with semicolon delimited entries, as follows:

Image_filename; X1; Y1; X2; Y2

Where:

• Image_filename is the name of the image file. If it is not in the same directory as the File, it should
include the file path.
• X is the latitude and Y is the longitude.
• (X1,Y1) are the bottom-left coordinates of the image.

• (X2,Y2) are the top-right coordinates of the image.

• The # symbol can be used to comment-out entries.

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9.8 Graphic Windows Hotkeys

When working with network graphics, many commonly used actions can be carried out using hotkeys
or key-and-mouse combinations. These are listed below.

Note: Some of the hotkeys below are only available when Freeze Mode is off.

Combination Where/When Description

Single Line Graphic, Block Dia-
Ctrl + - Zoom out
grams, Plots
Single Line Graphic, Block Dia-
Ctrl + + Zoom in
grams, Plots
Single Line Graphic, Block Dia-
Ctrl + Scrolling Zoom in/out
grams, Plots
Open detailed graphic of substa-
Ctrl + Double-click Busbar system
tion
Press Mouse Scroll Wheel Single Line Graphic, Block Dia- Panning, Moving the visible part
+ Moving grams, Plots of the graphic
Only textboxes inside the rubber
Alt + Area selection band are marked, no parent ob-
jects
Textbox and Parent-Object are
Alt + Left-click Textbox
marked
Ctrl + A All elements are marked
Single Objects from a Busbar
Ctrl + Alt + Moving Marked Object
system can be moved
The stub length of blocks in
Ctrl + Alt + Moving Block block diagrams remains when
shifting
Line-Routes will move to the ter-
Ctrl + Alt + Moving Marked Terminal minal, instead of terminal to the
line
Symbol of the connected branch
Ctrl + Alt + Moving Marked Node
element will not be centred
Ctrl + C Marked Element Copy Element
Single Line Graphic, Block Dia-
Ctrl + V Paste Element
gram
Single Line Graphic, Block Dia- Will open the Define Layer dia-
Ctrl + L
grams log to create a new layer
Multiselect elements, all clicked
Ctrl +Left-click Element
elements are marked
Ctrl + Left-click Inserting Loads/Generators Rotate element 90∘
Ctrl + Left-click Inserting Busbars/Terminals Rotate element 180∘
Ctrl + M Element dialog Mark Element in the graphic
Ctrl + P Open Print Dialog
Ctrl + X Marked Element Cut
Esc Connecting Mode Interrupt the mode

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Combination Where/When Description

Interrupt and change to graphic
Esc Inserting Symbol
cursor
Mark only the symbol of the ele-
S + Left-click Element
ment
Move only the symbol of the ele-
S + Moving Marked Element
ment
Element can only be moved in
Shift + Moving Marked Element
the direction of axes
After rotation, textbox can be
Shift + Moving Marked Textbox
aligned in the direction of axes
Change connection side of sym-
Tab Inserting Symbol
bol
Place symbol, press mouse but-
ton and move cursor in the direc-
Left-click Inserting Symbol tion of rotation to rotate the sym-
bol in this direction (depending
on Ortho-Type)
Table 9.8.1: Graphic Window Hotkeys

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Chapter 10

Data Manager and Network Model

Manager

10.1 Introduction

The Data Manager and the Network Model Manager are two ways of accessing data within a Power-
Factory project. Both are opened via icons from the main toolbar, and in each case a browser window
is presented to the user.

Figure 10.1.1: The Data Manager and the Network Model Manager

The two browsers are similar in appearance, each having a left and right pane and many similar icons in
the tool bar. They also share many features and functionalities. However, the information and the way
that is presented is different between the two, and users will find that both are essential tools, depending
on the task at hand.

• The Data Manager enables the user to access all the objects in a database. Inside a project, this
is not just network elements but also objects such as study cases, network variations, libraries
and scripts. Everything is shown in its hierarchical structure in the left-hand pane, enabling users

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to easily see where a particular object is located within this hierarchy. Typically, the Data Manager
is used when a network is being created or modified, or users need to look outside the project at
other parts of the database.
• The Network Model Manager is a browser for all calculation-relevant objects in the currently-
active project. This means network elements and types, together with other objects related to
these, such as characteristics. In the Network Model Manager, these object are not shown in
a hierarchical arrangement but are sorted by class. This enables the user, for example, to see
all lines together, regardless of where they are located in the network or in the project hierarchy.
Typically, the Network Model Manager is used to get an overview of network element parameters
and for looking at calculation results.

Note: Elements that are “hidden” (for example created in a network variation expansion stage that is
not currently active) will not appear in the Network Model Manager, but will be visible as greyed-
out objects in the Data Manager.

The Data Manager can be opened by clicking on the icon on the main toolbar.
The Network Model Manager can be opened by clicking on the icon on the main toolbar.

By default, the Network Model Manager and Data Manager will open as tabs in the same floating
window. This is part of a general logic that is applied to ensure that tabs in floating windows are
by default grouped together according to their type. However, as with other tabs, it is easy to move
Network Model Manager and Data Manager tabs into other groups. It is also possible to rename the
tabs and to duplicate them.

Note: By default, the Data Manager and Network Model Manager can only be opened once, but the
legacy behaviour of multiple instances can be allowed by selecting the relevant options on the
Data/Network Model Manager page of the User Settings dialog, as described in Chapter 7 (User
Settings).

General information about the use of tab groups in PowerFactory can be found in Chapter 4 (Power-
Factory Overview), section 4.7.3.

The rest of this chapter is divided into three sections:

• Section 10.2 describes the many features and functionality that are common to both the Data
Manager and Network Model Manager.
• Section 10.3 describes features that are only available when using the Data Manager.
• Section 10.4 describes features that are only relevant for the Network Model Manager.

10.2 Data Manager and Network Model Manager Features

The Data Manager and Network Model Manager have many features in common. This section describes
the features and functionality which are the same or similar in the two browsers.

10.2.1 Browser window layout

Both the Data Manager and the Network Manager consist of two panes, above which a toolbar gives
access to commonly used actions. At the bottom of the window is a status bar.

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10.2.1.1 Toolbar icons

The icons seen in the Data Manager (DM) and/or Network Model Manager (NMM) toolbars are listed in
table 10.2.1 below. (The list does not include the special options available on the Scenario tab of the
Network Model Manager.)

More detail about some of these features can be found in later sections.

Icon Action Use Comment

New Object Create a new object DM only
Edit Object Edit the selected object
Delete Object Delete the selected object
Cut Object Cut the selected object prior to pasting it elsewhere DM only
Copy Object Copy the selected object DM only
Copy (with col- Copy selected data together with the column headings, so
umn headers) that it can be pasted into a spreadsheet
Select Detail Mode, where only objects of a selected class
Detail Mode
are displayed, together with all their attributes
Detail Mode
Select the class to be shown in Detail Mode
Class Select
Variable Define which variables should be shown on a Flexible Data
selection Page
Search for objects using an existing filter or by creating a
Find DM only
new filter
Edit the filter, only active when objects are already being
Edit Filter NMM only
filtered
Save the filter, only active when objects have been tem-
Save Filter NMM only
porarily filtered
Delete Filter Delete a saved filter NMM only
Hide out-of- Hide out-of-service objects and objects that are not rele-
service. . . vant for calculation
Hide inactive Hide inactive objects (e.g. those that become active in a
DM only
objects future expansion stage)
Show other users in a multi-user database, together with
Show All Users DM only
any projects that are shared with the current user
Formats and Allow data formats and units to be configured in the Project Flexible
Units Settings Data Page
Input Window Open the Data Manager Input Window DM only
Update the contents of the browser, for example when a
Refresh
new object has been added to the network
Import Data Import data into PowerFactory
Export Data Export data out of PowerFactory DM only

Table 10.2.1: Data Manager and Network Model Manager icons

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10.2.1.2 Status bar

The status bar shows the current status and settings of the Data Manager or Network Model Manager.
Some of the fields may be double-clicked in order to change the settings.

The status bar contains the following fields:

• “Pause: on/off” (visible only when an Input Window has been opened in a Data Manager - see
section 10.3.6) shows the status of the message queue in the input window. With pause on, the
command interpreter is waiting, which makes it possible to create a command queue. Double-
clicking on this field will toggle the setting.
• “Ln N” shows the number of the currently selected row.
• “N object(s) of M” shows the number of elements shown in the browser window and the total
number of elements in the current folder.
• “N object(s) Selected:” shows the number of currently selected objects.
• “Drag & Drop: on/off” shows the current drag & drop mode. Double clicking this field will toggle
the setting.

10.2.2 Selecting objects and general object-specific actions

When a location in the project hierarchy is selected on the left-hand side of the Data Manager, the
contents of that location (the “children” objects) will be shown in the right-hand pane. Similarly, when
object class is selected on the left-hand side of the Network Model Manager, all elements of that class
will be shown on the right-hand side.

In both cases, an object can be selected on the right-hand side by clicking on its icon in the first column.
Then various actions can be carried out, such as deleting, copying or showing information about the
element. The options available can be accessed by right-clicking on the object and selecting the action
from the context menu. Many of the more common actions are also available using icons along the top
of the browser window, as described above.

Note that objects that are relevant for calculations are tagged with a check-mark sign following a
calculation. Editing one of these objects will reset the calculation results.

10.2.3 Detail Mode and browser tabs

The icon is used to toggle Detail Mode on and off.

When Detail Mode is off, as is the default for the Data Manager, all objects within a selected location
will be shown on the right-hand side, regardless of their class. The data fields displayed will be limited
to common fields, such as Name, Type, Out of Service and the Object modified date.

When Detail Mode is turned on, as is the default for the Network Model Manager, only objects of the
selected class will be listed. The selection of the class can be made using the icon. As can be seen
in Figure 10.2.1 below, once Detail Mode is activated, access to the many object attributes is possible,
using the function-specific tabs. If required, the tabs to be shown can be restricted, via the Functions
page of the User Settings (see section 7.6).

Tabs can be selected by clicking directly on the required tab, using the left and right arrows, or
using the down-arrow in order to select a tab from the list.

The Flexible Data, Scenarios (Network Model Manager only), Characteristics and Distribution tabs are
highlighted by colouring. The colours reflect those selected in the User Settings (refer to section 7.8)

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for these types of data.

Figure 10.2.1: Data Manager with Detail Mode off (above) and on (below)

10.2.4 Flexible Data Page

When the Data Manager or Network Model Manager is in Detail Mode, page tabs will be seen for each
calculation function.

In addition, a Flexible Data page, normally used to display calculation results, allows the user to define
a custom set of data to be displayed.

The default format for the calculation results displayed in the Flexible Data page depends on the
calculation just executed: Following a load-flow calculation, the default variables for terminals are line-
to-line voltage, per unit voltage and voltage angle. Following a short-circuit calculation the default
variables are initial short-circuit current, initial short-circuit power, peak current etc. There is also a
default selection of attributes that are shown when no calculation has been executed.

Figure 10.2.2 is an example of a Flexible Data page showing load flow calculation results.

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Figure 10.2.2: The Flexible Data Page

10.2.4.1 Customising the Flexible Data page

The variables to be displayed on a Flexible Data page are customised using the variable selection dialog,
which is opened by clicking on the icon. The dialog will open showing the variables corresponding
to the most recent calculation.

The Variable Selection object is described in Section 18.3: Variable Selection.

There are other ways of changing the format of a Flexible Data page:

• Column order: The order of the columns (except: Name, In Folder and Grid) can be changed
simply by clicking on a column heading and dragging it to a new location.
• Number format: For columns that contain numbers, the number format can be by right-clicking
on the column header of the variable and selecting Edit Number Format . . . . A new window will
appear where the user can define the number representation.

• Project settings: The icon can be used to access the Formats and Units page of the project
settings. Here, settings such as the units and the number of decimal places shown for calculation
results can be changed. (See section 8.1.2 for more information.)

10.2.5 Sorting

In the Data Manager or Network Model Manager, the order of the objects can be sorted by clicking
on any column heading. This will cause the objects to be sorted alphabetically or numerically as
appropriate. Clicking again will reverse the order. Sorting on multiple columns in sequence can also
be useful. For example, a user may be interested in the voltage at terminals after running a load flow
calculation. If the user sorts on u, Magnitude p.u first, and then sorts on Nom.L-L Volt kV, the outcome
will be that the terminals are sorted by voltage level and within the voltage level sorted by calculated
voltage.

10.2.6 Finding objects by name

In the Data Manager or Network Model Manager, it is possible to find a particular object by typing the
start of its name. This is done by clicking on the icon of one of the objects in the table and typing the

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first letter or first few characters of the name of the required object. Note that if more than one character
is typed, these must be done in quick succession.

The characters that are typed must be letters or numbers, and letters should be lower-case (the search
is not case-sensitive)

10.2.7 Auto-filter functions

Columns within the Data Manager, browser windows or the Network Model Manager can be filtered.
This is done using these steps:

• Click on the down arrow in the column header of the table. A window will open.
• A list of all the distinct entries in that column will be shown.
• Option: Selection
– Use the check-boxes to select what should be shown in the table. The others will be hidden.
– The list that is displayed can also be restricted by typing characters into the search field. Only
items containing those characters will be shown.
• Option: Custom. . .
– In addition to the possibility of selecting existing entries, custom filters can be used by
choosing the radio button Custom. . . and confirming with OK.
– A new window will open, in which up to two filters can be combined via an AND or an OR
relation. The options are:
* Equals
* Is not equal to
* Contains
* Does not contain
* Starts with
* Does not start with
* Ends with
* Does not end with
* Special
– Once a criterion has been selected, a drop-down box will appear, from which one of the
entries may be chosen or text may be entered.
– The filter is confirmed by clicking on OK.

Filtered columns are indicated by a blue column heading and a filter symbol in the lower right corner
of the column header. If the mouse is hovered over the heading of a filtered column, the applied filter
settings will be shown.

When auto filters are used in the Data Manager, they are temporary; they will be lost if a different
location is selected on the left-hand side of the browser.

However, in the Network Model Manager, the filter or filters that are applied form the Current Working
Filter, which can be saved for future use. This is described further in section 10.4.2.

10.2.8 Editing objects from a Data Manager or Network Model Manager

10.2.8.1 Editing objects via individual object dialogs

Right-clicking on an object and selecting Edit, or simply double-clicking on its icon, will open the Edit
dialog for that object. Edits can then be made, saved by clicking on OK, or discarded by clicking on
Cancel.

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10.2.8.2 Editing object attributes directly in the browser

Some object attributes can also be changed directly from the Data Manager or Network Model Manager,
without the need to open the object dialog. Editing directly from the browser like this does open up the
possibility of changing an attribute for multiple objects at the same time. However, the options for editing
are dependent upon the type of field to be changed. Some general points to note are:

• When an object is selected in the browser, a small black triangle indicates this in the first column
(where the icons are shown). When one of the attributes for this object is being edited, this marker
changes to an Edit marker . The actual change is not committed to the database until the user
clicks away from the object and this Edit marker disappears.
• Copying and pasting data within editable attribute fields is generally possible.

• Right-clicking on a field will bring up edit options for that field.

• For some (Boolean) attributes, a double-click can be used for toggling the value. For other fields,
for example where a number is to be entered, double-clicking on the field makes it editable, so
that the contents can be changed.

• Some fields are actually references to other objects. In these cases, double-clicking on the field
will open the dialog for the referenced object, so the right-click context menu can be used instead
if the intention is to change the reference.

10.2.8.3 The Modify Value(s). . . feature

One of the options offered in the context menu when editing an object attribute is Modify Value(s). . . .
This can be used on a single attribute cell, but is normally used on a selection of the same attribute for
multiple objects.

As an example, the Derating Factor is to be changed for several lines at once. As shown in Figure 10.2.3,
the Derating Factor field is multi-selected for the six lines, then right-click is used to access the context
menu.

Figure 10.2.3: Modify values option

When Modify Value(s). . . is selected, the dialog opens and three options are presented, as shown in
Figure 10.2.4. The editable field shown at the bottom of the dialog depends on the option selected.

• Relative: change the values using a percentage specified in the Scale Factor field.

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• Relative to Sum: scale the values, each by the same factor, so that their sum will be the value
specified in the New Sum Value field.
• Absolute: Set all the selected parameter fields to the same value specified in the Value field.

Figure 10.2.4: Modify values dialog

10.2.9 Other context menu options

This section lists some of the other useful options found in the context menu when right-clicking on an
object in the Data Manager or Network Model Manager.

Show All References: produces the list of objects that have links, or references (plus the location of
the linked object), to the selected object. The list is written to the output window. This option can
be used, for example, to obtain a list of elements that all use the same type. The listed object
names have hyperlinks to the objects themselves.
Select All: selects all objects in the browser.

Mark in Graphic: marks the highlighted object(s) in one or more single line diagram. This feature can
be used to identify an object.
Goto Busbar: (Data Manager) opens the folder in the database browser that holds the busbar to which
the currently selected element is connected. If the element is connected to more than one busbar,
a list of possible busbars is shown first.

Goto Connected Element: (Data Manager) opens the folder in the database browser that holds the
element that is connected to the currently selected element. If there is more than one connected
element, which is normally the case for busbars, a list of connected elements is shown first.
Calculation: opens a second menu with several calculations which can be started, based on the
currently selected objects. A short-circuit calculation, for example, will be executed with faults
positioned at the selected objects, if possible. If more than one possible fault location exists for the
currently selected object, which is normally the case for station folders, a short-circuit calculation
for all possible fault locations is made.

10.2.10 Display of multi-dimensional attributes

Some object attributes are not just single values but consist of a vector (1-dimensional array) or matrix
(2-dimensional array). Such attributes can be viewed in an additional window by double clicking on the
attribute cell. Figure 10.2.5 shows an example of such a multidimensional attribute.

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Figure 10.2.5: Displaying multidimensional attributes (arrays) in the Data Manager

For the particular case of matrices of complex numbers, as shown in Figure 10.2.6, it is also possible to
select which of the variables should be displayed in the additional window.

Figure 10.2.6: Displaying matrices of complex numbers in the Data Manager

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10.2.11 Exporting and importing data in spreadsheet format

The Data Manager or Network Model Manager browser looks and acts like a spreadsheet program as
far as creating and editing power system objects is concerned. To enable and simplify the use of power
system element data which is stored in spreadsheet programs such as the Microsoft Excel or the Lotus
123 programs, the browsers offer “Spreadsheet Format” import and export facilities.

10.2.11.1 Export to Spreadsheet Programs (e. g. MS EXCEL)

All data visible in the data browser may be exported as it is. The export format is such that most common
spreadsheet programs can read in the data directly (space-separated ASCII). Exporting data is carried
out as follows.
• Select a range of data in the data browser. Such a range may contain more than one column and
more than one row, but the cells must be contiguous.
• Right-click the selected range.
• Now you have different options:
– If you want to copy the content of the marked cells only, simply select Copy from the context
menu.
– If you want to copy the content of the marked cells together with a description header, select
the Spread Sheet Format option. This opens a second menu which offers the choice between
writing the Spreadsheet export to a file (Write to File), or to put it on the Windows Clipboard
(Copy (with column headers)). See Figure 10.2.7.
– Alternatively, the icon in the toolbar can be used to do Spread Sheet Format → Copy
(with column headers).

• The exported data can now be pasted into a spreadsheet program.

• The cell colourings are kept when the data is pasted into an Excel spreadsheet.

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Figure 10.2.7: Exporting a range of data

10.2.11.2 Import from Spreadsheet Programs (e. g. MS EXCEL)

There are two methods available for importing data from a spreadsheet program.

The first method is used to change parameters of existing objects via a direct import of “anonymous”
numerical data, with the term “anonymous” indicating that the imported data has no parameter descrip-
tion. The size of the imported value range and the required data are checked. Importing invalid values
(e.g. a power factor of 1.56) will result in an error message.

The second method can be used to create new objects (or replace whole objects) by importing all the
data from a spreadsheet.

Spreadsheet Import of Values

The import of values (anonymous variables), i.e. cells of a table, is explained by the following example:

In Figure 10.2.8, a range of active and reactive power values is copied in a spreadsheet program. In
Figure 10.2.9, this range is pasted to the corresponding fields of 6 load objects by right-clicking the
upper leftmost field that is to be overwritten.

In contrast to the import of whole objects, the anonymous import of data does not need a parameter
description. This would complicate the import of complete objects, as the user would have to enter all
parameters in the correct order.

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Figure 10.2.8: Copying a range of spreadsheet data

Figure 10.2.9: Pasting spreadsheet data from clipboard

Spreadsheet Import of Objects and Parameters

With this kind of import, it is possible to import whole objects (in contrast to the import of pure values
described above). The object import uses a header line with the parameter names (which is necessary
in addition to the cells with the pure values). This header must have the following structure:

• The first header must be the class name of the listed objects.
• The following headers must state a correct parameter name.

This is shown in Figure 10.2.10.

Figure 10.2.10: Excel required format

Figure 10.2.11 shows an example of valid spreadsheet data of some line types and some 2-winding
transformer types.

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Figure 10.2.11: Example of valid spreadsheet data

The data are imported into PowerFactory as follows:

• Select the header line and one or more objects lines.
• Copy the selection. See Figure 10.2.12 for example.

• Right-click the folder browser in the Data Manager to which the objects are to be imported. Select
Spread Sheet Format → Import Objects from Clipboard, as shown in Figure 10.2.13.

Figure 10.2.12: Selecting object data in spreadsheet

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Figure 10.2.13: Importing objects from clipboard

The result of the object import depend on whether or not objects of the imported class and with the
imported names already exist or not in the database folder. In the example of Figure 10.2.14, none of
the imported objects existed in the database and so all were created. The example shows the database
in detail mode.

Figure 10.2.14: Result of spreadsheet object import

Note: New objects are created in the PowerFactory database folder only when no object of the imported
class and with the imported name is found in that folder. If such an object is found, its data will be
overwritten by the imported data.

Remarks

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• Object Names: Object names may not contain any of the characters:
*
?=",∖∼|
• Default Data: When an imported object is created, the imported data is used to overwrite the
corresponding default data. All parameters that are not imported will keep their default value.
• Units: The spreadsheet values are imported without units. No conversion from MW to kW, for
example, will be possible. All spreadsheet values therefore have to be in the same units as used
by PowerFactory.

10.3 Data Manager Features

This section describes functionality which is only available in the Data Manager.

10.3.1 Address bar

Figure 10.3.1: Data Manager address bar

The Data Manager address bar (see Figure 10.3.1) displays the file-path of the location currently
selected on the left-hand side of the Data Manager, but also offers a number of features to help the
user easily navigate the data structure.

Autocomplete

If the user starts typing a location in the address bar, matching locations will be listed, from which the
user can select the one that is wanted.

Switch to. . .

On the left-hand side of the address bar there are left- and right-arrows, which can be used to switch to
the previous or next selected folder, whilst the up-arrow is used to switch to the parent folder.

Favourites

A selected location can be added to (or removed from) the “favourites” list by clicking on the star-icon to
the right of the address bar.

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Selecting common locations

On the far left-hand side of the address bar there is a down-arrow, which gives access to several
features:

• History: This lists the locations viewed since the Data Manager was opened.
• Favourites: This presents the list of favourite locations
• Current user
• Active project
• Active study case

10.3.2 Navigating the database hierarchy

There are several ways to “walk” up and down the database tree:

• Use the mouse: all folders that have a small arrow next to them may be expanded by double-
clicking on the folder, or by single clicking on the arrow.
• Use the keyboard: the arrow keys are used to walk up and down the tree and to open or close
folders (left and right arrows). The Page Up and Page Down keys jump up and down the tree in
big steps and the - and + keys may also be used to open or close folders.
• Use the toolbar in combination with the browser window. Double-click objects in the browser to
open the corresponding object. This could result in opening a folder, in the case of a common or
case folder, or editing the object dialog for an object. Once again, the action resulting from your
input depends on where the input has occurred (left or right side of the Data Manager).

• The buttons Switch to parent folder ( ) and Step into folder ( ) on the Data Manager toolbar
can be used to move up and down the database tree.

10.3.3 Searching and filtering

Advanced filtering capability is provided with the Find function . A filter is normally defined to find a
group of objects, rather than individual objects (although the latter is also possible). Advanced search
criteria can be defined, e.g. lines with a length in the range 1 km to 2.2 km, or synchronous machines
with a rating greater than 500 MW etc.

Clicking on the Find ( ) in the Data Manager allows the user to apply a predefined filter or to define a
new filter, called “General filter”. If a new filter is defined, the database folder that will be searched can
be defined.

General Filters defined by the user are objects stored in the folder Settings∖Filters within the project.

The options in the General Filter dialog window are:

Name: Name of filter.

Object filter: This field defines either the part of the search definition or all of it, and is optional.
Examples are as follows:
• *.ElmSym: Include element objects of the class synchronous machines.
• *.TypSym: Include type objects of the class synchronous machines.
• Lahney.*: Include all objects with the name Lahney.
• Lahney.Elm*: Include all element objects with the name Lahney.
• D*.ElmLod: Include all load element objects whose names start with D.

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• A drop down list providing various object classes can be accessed with .
Look in: This field is available if a filter is defined within the Data Manager. It allows the user to specify
the folder in the database that will be searched. The selection is not saved as part of the filter; if
the filter is later re-used, it will be set to the currently selected location (folder).
Check boxes:

• Include Subfolders: will search the subfolders of the root folder specified as well as the root
folder itself. The search can be stopped at the matching folder.
• Relevant Objects for Calculation: will include only those objects considered by the active
study case (if no study case is active, the search is meaningless and no search results will
be returned).
• Interconnecting Branches: will search for branch elements that interconnect grids.

The OK button will close the search dialog, but save the filter object to the Settings∖Filters folder. This
makes it available for further use. The Cancel button will close the dialog without saving the changes.
This button is useful if a search filter will only be used once.The Apply button starts the actual search.
It will scan the relevant folders and will build a list of all objects that match the search criteria.

Once the search is complete, a list of results is returned in the form of a new data browser window.
From this browser, the returned objects can be marked, changed, deleted, copied, moved, etc.

Advanced search options allow more sophisticated expressions as search criteria. These are specified
in the Advanced page of the General Filter dialog (Figure 10.3.2). The filter criterion is defined in terms
of a logical expression, making use of parameter names. Objects will be included in the data browser if,
for their parameters, the logical expression is determined to be true. An example of a logical expression
is 𝑑𝑙𝑖𝑛𝑒 > 0.7. The variable dline refers to the length of a line, and the effect of such a filter criterion is
to limit the data in the browser to lines having a length exceeding 0.7 km. The logical expressions can
be expanded to include other relations (e.g. >=), standard functions (e.g. sin()), and logical operators
(e.g. .and.).

Note: Parameter names can be object properties or results. The parameter names for object properties
are found, for example, by letting the mouse pointer hover over an input field in an object’s
dialog window. Parameter names for result variables are found from variable selections, which
are described in Section 18.3 Variable Selection.

Figure 10.3.2: Filter dialog - Advanced page

Search literally is used to search for user defined strings “inside” parameter fields. The user can specify
if the search is done in a specific parameter; if the field in Parameter is left blank, all parameter fields
will be searched for this string.

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As stated before, the objects matching the filter criteria are displayed in a data browser. They may also
be highlighted in the graphic using the “Colour representation” function described in Chapter 9 (Network
Graphics). The colour to be used in this case can be specified under the page Graphic of the General
Filter dialog.

Note: New filters are saved to the Settings∖Filters folder in the project and are available for use directly,
using the right-click context menu. To use a saved filter on a grid, for example: right-click on the
grid and Find → Local Filters→ Filter Name (e.g. Lines longer than 700 m). Then click on Apply
to execute the search.

10.3.4 Adding, deleting and moving objects

10.3.4.1 Adding new objects

Generally, new network components are added to the database via the graphical user interface (see
Section 11.2: Defining Network Models with the Graphical Editor), such as when a line is drawn between
two nodes, creating not only the graphical object but also the corresponding element data in the relevant
grid folder. However, users may also create new objects “manually” in the database, from the Data
Manager.

Certain new folders and objects may be created by right-clicking on folders in the Data Manager. A
context menu is presented, offering a choice of objects to be created that will “fit” the selected folder.
For example, right-clicking a grid folder will allow the creation (under the New menu) of a Branch, a
Substation, a Site or a Folder object. The new object will be created in the folder that was selected prior
to the new object button being pressed. This folder is said to have the “focus” for the requested action.
This means that some objects may not be possible to create since the focused folder may not be suited
to hold that object.

For instance: A synchronous machine should not go into a line folder. A line folder should contain
only line routes, line sections and cubicles. The cubicles in their turn should contain only switches or
protection elements.

To access the whole range of objects that may be created, the New Object icon can be used ( ). This
is found the Data Manager toolbar and presents the dialog shown in Figure 10.3.3.

The New Object dialog displays only the objects that can be added, which depends on the type or class
of the originally selected folder.

To simplify the selection of the new objects, a filter is used to sort the object list. In the filter field, it is
possible to type the either the name of the new element (e.g. three-winding transformer) or its class
(e.g. ElmTr3).

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Figure 10.3.3: The New Object dialog

After the selection for a new object has been confirmed, the new object dialog will close, the new object
will be inserted into the database and the edit dialog for the new object will open. If this dialog is closed
by pressing the Cancel button, the whole action of inserting the new object will be cancelled: the newly
created object will be deleted from the active folder. The dialog for the new object may now be edited
and the OK button pressed to save the object to the database.

As any other object, folders can be created either by using the context menu or by using the
icon. Common folders (IntFolder objects) may have an owner name entered, for documentation or
organisational purposes. In this way it should be clear who has created the data. Descriptions may
also be added. An existing folder may be edited by using the Edit icon on the toolbar or by using
right-click.

The folder may be a “Common” or “Library” folder. These attributes can be changed in the edit-folder
dialog. These settings have the following meaning:

• Common folders are used for storing non-type objects: electrical elements, command objects,
settings, projects, etc.
• Type folders are used as “libraries” for type objects.

10.3.4.2 Deleting objects

A folder or object which is selected may be deleted by pressing the Delete key on the keyboard, by
clicking the icon on the toolbar of the Data Manager, or by doing right-click, Delete.

When deleting an object on the Data Manager or in the Single Line diagram, this object will be deleted
immediately from the database. Only the Undo button or Ctrl-Z can restore the element and its
references to the original location.

Because most power system objects that are stored in the database are interconnected through a
network topology or through type-element relationships, deleting objects can cause anomalies in the

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database consistency. For this reason, the user will be asked to confirm the deletion, unless this option
has been suppressed via the Data/Network Model Manager page of the User Settings (see section
7.1).

10.3.4.3 Cutting and pasting, coping and moving objects

Cut, Copy and Paste

Cutting, copying and pasting may be achieved in different ways:

1. By using the Data Manager tool bar buttons.
2. By using the normal MS Windows shortcuts:
• Ctrl-X will cut a selection,
• Ctrl-C will copy it,
• Ctrl-V will paste the selection to the active folder.
Cutting a selection will colour the item-icons grey. The cut objects will remain in their current folder
until they are pasted. A cut-and-paste is exactly the same as moving the object, using the context
menu. All references to objects that are being moved will be updated. A cut-and-paste operation
can be cancelled by pressing the Ctrl-C key after the Ctrl-X key has been pressed.
3. By using the context menu. This menu offers Cut, Copy and Move options. The Move option will
open a dialog in which the target folder can be selected. When the selected objects have been
cut or copied, the context menu will then show Paste, Paste Shortcut and Paste Data options.
• Paste will paste the selection to the focused folder.
• Paste Shortcut will not paste the copied objects, but will create shortcuts to these objects.
A shortcut object acts like a normal object. Changes made to the shortcut object will change
the original object. All other shortcuts to this original object will reflect these changes imme-
diately.
• Paste Data is only be available when just one object is copied, and when the selected target
object is the same kind of object as the copied one. In that case, Paste Data will paste all
data from the copied object into the target object. This will make the two objects identical,
except for the name and the connections.
4. By dragging selected objects to another folder. The “Drag & Drop” option must be enabled first by
double-clicking the “Drag & Drop” field in the Data Manager status bar (if it is greyed out). When
the Drag & Drop option is on, it is possible to copy or move single objects by selecting them and
dragging them to another target/destination folder, either in the database tree or in the database
browser window.

Note: When dragging and dropping, a COPY of the object will be made (instead of moving it) if the Ctrl
key is held down when releasing the mouse button at the destination folder.

10.3.5 Data import and export

Data can be exported from PowerFactory, or imported into PowerFactory, using the and icons in
the Data Manager. Examples of data to be exported or imported include whole PowerFactory projects,
DPL scripts, or folders of data to be shared with other users.

Data export

A selected part of the database can be written to a “.pfd” file using the button Export Data. . . . A
“File Save” dialog will appear, where a filepath is selected and a filename specified.

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An alternative is to right-click on the folder or object to be exported and select the option Export. . . .

The exported part of the database may be a complete project, a library, or a specific object in the
browser window. Exporting a folder (i.e a project, grid, library, etc.) will export the complete content of
that folder, including subfolders, models, settings, single line graphics, etc.

It is even possible to export a complete user account. However, only the administrator is able to import
an user-account. Exporting the user-account on a regular basis is a practical way to back up your data.

It is possible to export data from another user account, or even to export another user account com-
pletely. However, only the visible (shared) data will be exported.

Data Import

Exported data can be re-imported or imported into another database by selecting the target location on
the left-hand side of the Data Manager and clicking on the Import Data. . . button. This will open a
“File Open” dialog where, the “.pfd” data-file can be selected.

The “.pfd”-file will be analysed and error messages will be displayed when the file is not a genuine
PowerFactory data file, or if it is corrupted. If the file format has been found to be correct, a dialog will
appear which shows the data and version of the file. The default target folder is also shown, but another
target folder can be selected by clicking on the down-arrow ( ).

When exporting and importing projects and other data, it is important to understand what is included in
the exported file, and what is not. If a PowerFactory project has references to other objects external to
the project, it can cause problems if this is not correctly handled.

To understand the export/import process in more detail, please see Chapter 8 (Basic Project Definition),
section 8.1.4

10.3.6 Input Window

The input window is for the more experienced users of DIgSILENT PowerFactory. It is closed by default,
but can be opened via the icon. Almost all commands that are available in PowerFactory through
the menu bars, pop-up menus, icons, buttons, etc., may also be entered directly into the input window,
using the PowerFactory commands.

The contents of the input window can be saved to file, and commands can be read back into the window
for execution.

PowerFactory also has special command objects which carry one single command line and which are
normally used to execute commands. In this way, complex commands can be saved in the same folder
as the power system for which they were configured.

10.3.6.1 Input Window Commands

In principle, everything that can be done in DIgSILENT PowerFactory can be done from the command
line in the input window. This includes creating objects, setting parameters, performing load-flow or
short-circuit calculations.

Some commands that are available are typically meant for command line use or for batch commands.
These commands are rarely used in another context and are therefore listed here as “command line
commands”, although they do not principally differ from any other command.

Cd Command Moves around in the database tree by opening another folder at a relative position
from the currently open folder.
Example:

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cd...∖gridB∖Load1

Cls Command Clears the output or input window.

cls/outclears output window

cls/inpclears input window completely
cls/inp/doneclears only previously executed commands
.../y asks for confirmation

Dir Command Displays the contents of a folder.

Example:
dir Study Case

Ed Command Pops up the dialog of a default command, i.e. “ldf”, “shc”, etc.
Example:
ed ldf

Exit Command Queries or sets a variable.

Example:
man/set obj=Load_1.elmlod variable=plini value=0.2

Pause Command Interrupts the execution of the command pipe until a next pause command is
executed.

Pr Command Prints either the contents of the output window or the currently active graphics
window.

Rd Command Opens and reads a file.

Stop Command Stops the running calculation.

Wr Command Writes to a file.

10.4 Network Model Manager Features

In this section, some additional features that are only found in the Network Model Manager are de-
scribed.

10.4.1 Object classification

In the Network Model Manager, objects are grouped according to class. On the left hand side of the
Network Model Manager window the classes of all calculation relevant objects are displayed with their
names and symbols. To give structure to the list, they are sorted into groups, such as Substations, Ter-
minals and Switches or Lines, Series Impedances and Transformers. By double-clicking on the group’s
name, its contents can be hidden or shown. If one of the classes is selected, all calculation relevant
objects will be listed on the right side of the browser window, and Detail Mode is automatically
activated.

Figure 10.4.1 shows the Network Model Manager window, where some of the groups are collapsed and
the class Busbar is selected.

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Figure 10.4.1: The Network Model Manager window

10.4.2 Saving of filters

As described above in section 10.2.7, data shown in a Network Model Manager can be filtered. The filter
or filters that are applied then form the Current Working Filter, and further options become available:

• If one or more columns are filtered, the Edit Filter button will become active. Clicking on this
will open an edit dialog, in which a filter name can be entered. Within this dialog, it is also possible
to modify the individual column filter(s) by double clicking the relevant cell(s) in the Filter column.

• The Current Working Filter is temporary. That means, if the Network Model Manager window is
closed, the applied filters will all be discarded. However, the Current Working Filter can be saved
under any name to reuse it, by clicking the Save Filter button. A window will appear, enabling
the user to name the filter.

• Unwanted filters can also be deleted from the list of saved filters, by selecting a Filter from the
drop-down list in the icon bar and clicking on the Delete Filter button.

Saved filters are stored in the Settings∖Filters folder of the project, in subfolders according to the element
class.

10.4.3 Scenario Manager

The Scenarios tab appears only in the Network Model Manager, not in the Data Manager, and it has a
particular function. When the Scenario tab is selected, it activates the Scenario Manager, which is used
to view and edit data held in Operation Scenarios. This functionality is described in detail in Chapter 15
(Operation Scenarios), section 15.4.

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Building Networks

11.1 Introduction

This Chapter describes basic processes for setting up a network model in PowerFactory. Network
models are usually constructed via a network graphic, or the Data Manager of the project. Therefore it
is useful to have some understanding of these two concepts before starting. See Chapters 9 (Network
Graphics) and 10 (Data Manager and Network Model Manager).

11.2 Defining Network Models using the Graphical Editor

This section explains how the tools of the Graphical Editor are used to define and work with network
models. Some basic terms to understand are:

• Node: a node is another name for a terminal, which is an object of class ElmTerm. Other objects
such as loads and lines are connected to the nodes.

• Edge element: any element connected to a terminal (e.g. load, shunt, line, switch, transformer).
It can be a single-port element or have more than one port.
• Branch element: an edge element that is connected between two or more nodes (e.g. switch, line,
transformer). It has more than one port.

• Cubicle: the cubicle is not an element represented on the diagram; it is internal to a terminal and
can be thought of as the point where an object is connected to the terminal.

11.2.1 Adding New Power System Elements

When new elements are created via a diagram graphic, they will by default be stored in the folder of the
grid associated with that graphic (“Target folder for network elements”).

PowerFactory provides a Drawing Toolbox from which elements can be selected. This toolbox is only
visible to the user when a project and study case are active and the open graphic is made editable by
deselecting the Freeze Mode button ( ). The Drawing Toolbox will then be seen on the right-hand
side of the GUI. The process is that elements are first created and then their parameters subsequently
edited through the element and type dialogs. Information about the element and type parameters are
given in the Technical References Document.

To create a new power system element, left-click once on the corresponding icon in the toolbox. Then

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the cursor will have this symbol “attached” to it. Then a left-click on the graphic will create a new element
of the selected class. The Esc key, or right mouse-click, can be used to stop this process.

Power system elements are placed and connected in the single line graphic by left clicking on empty
places on the drawing surface (places a symbol), and by left clicking on nodes (makes a connection).
It is therefore recommended to start by creating at least some of the nodes (terminals) in the network
first.

The connection between edge elements and terminals is carried out by means of cubicles. When work-
ing with the graphical editor, the cubicles are automatically generated in the corresponding terminal.

Note: When connections to terminals are defined with switch elements of the class ElmCoup (circuit
breakers), cubicles without any additional switches (StaSwitch) are generated.

11.2.2 Nodes

When starting to build a network, it is usual to first place the required terminals (ElmTerm) on the
graphic. There are several representations of terminals available in the Drawing Toolbox. Note that
terminals have a parameter e:iUsage, which is set to Busbar, Internal Node or Junction Node; by
default this will be set to Busbar unless the “point” representation is selected.

Busbar. This is the most common representation of a node.

Busbar (Short). Looks the same as a Busbar but is shorter and the results box and name is placed
on the Invisible Objects layer by default. Typically used to save space or reduce clutter on the graphic.

Junction / Internal Node. Typically used to represent a junction point, say between an overhead line
and cable. The results box and name is placed on the Invisible Objects layer by default.

Busbar (rectangular). Typically used for reticulation and / or distribution networks.

Busbar (circular). Typically used for reticulation and / or distribution networks.

Busbar (polygonal). Typically used for reticulation and / or distribution networks.

Busbars (terminals) should be placed in position and then, once the cursor is reset, dragged, rotated
and sized as required. Re-positioning is performed by first left clicking on the terminal to mark it, then
clicking once more so that the cursor changes to , and then holding the mouse button down and
dragging the terminal to a new position. Re-sizing is performed by first left clicking on the terminal to
mark it. Sizing handles appear at the ends.

11.2.3 Edge Elements

Edge elements are elements which connect to nodes.

Single port elements (loads, machines, etc.) can be positioned in two ways. The simplest method is
to select the symbol from the toolbox and then left click the busbar where the element is to be placed.
This will draw the element at a default distance under the busbar. In case of multi busbar systems, only
one of the busbars need be left-clicked. The switch-over connections to the other busbars will be made
automatically.

The “free-hand” method first places the element symbol wherever desired, that is, first click wherever
you wish to place the symbol. The cursor now has a “rubber band” connected to the element (i.e. a
dashed line), left-clicking on another node will connect it to that node. To create corners in the joining

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line left click on the graphic. The line will snap to grid, be drawn orthogonally, as determined by the
“Diagram Settings” that have been set.

If a single port element is connected to a terminal using the first method (single left click on busbar), but
a cubicle already exists at that position on the busbar, the load or machine symbol will be automatically
positioned on the other side of the terminal, if possible.

Note: By default all power system elements are positioned “bottom down”. If the element has already
been placed and one wishes to flip it to the other side of the terminal, it can be done by selecting
the element and the right-click → Graphic Object→ Flip at Node.

Once drawn, an element can be rotated using the context menu by right-click → Graphic Object→
Rotate.

Double port elements (lines, transformers, etc.) are positioned in a similar manner to single port
symbols. By left-clicking the first busbar, the first connection is made. The second connection line
is now held by the cursor. Again, left-clicking the drawing area will create corners. Double-clicking the
drawing area will position the symbol (if not a line or cable - e.g. a transformer). The second connection
is made when a node is left clicked.

Triple port elements (e.g. three-winding transformers) are positioned in the same manner as two port
symbols. Clicking the first, and directly thereafter the second node, will place the symbol centred
between the two nodes, which may be inconvenient. Better positioning will result from left clicking
the first busbar, double-clicking the drawing space to position the element, and then making the second
and third connection.

The ’free-hand’ method for two and triple port elements works the same as for one port elements.

Note: Pressing the Tab key after connecting one side will leave the second leg unconnected, or jump to
the third leg in the case of three port elements (press Tab again to leave the third leg unconnected).
Pressing Esc or right-click will stop the drawing and remove all connections. If the element being
drawn seems as if it will be positioned incorrectly or untidily there is no need to escape the drawing
process; make the required connections and then right-click the on the element and select Graphic
Object → Redraw. . . , to redraw the element whilst retaining the data connectivity.

It is recommended that the connections for a transformer are always made in order of voltage, starting
with the highest voltage connection.

It is possible to insert a terminal into an existing line in the single line diagram by placing the terminal on
the line itself. This splits the line into two, defaulting at 50 %. If the terminal is then moved, the adjacent
line sections will automatically be redrawn. If the terminal needs to be moved (graphically) along the
line, this can be done by holding the Ctrl+Alt keys whilst moving the terminal. Note that both these
adjustments are just graphical and do not change the actual lengths of the two lines.

Annotations are created by clicking one of the annotation drawing tools. Tools are available for drawing
lines, squares, circles, pies, polygons, etc. To draw these symbols left click at on an empty space on
the single line diagram and release the mouse at another location (e.g. circles, lines, rectangles). Other
symbols require that you first set the vertices by clicking at different positions and finishing the input
mode by double-clicking at the last position.

For further information on defining lines, see Section 11.3 (Lines and Cables).

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11.2.4 Cubicles

A cubicle (StaCubic) in PowerFactory is an object which stores information about the connection
between an edge element and a node element. Whenever an edge element is connected to a node
element it must be connected via a cubicle. However, the cubicle is created automatically when an edge
element and a node are connected and the user does not generally need to take special measures to
facilitate the creation of the cubicle.

In the data manager cubicles are stored within node elements. A node element can contain cubicles
which do not have an edge element associated with them. This can happen if for example an edge
element is connected to a node and then disconnected. A cubicle is automatically created during the
connection but is not automatically deleted upon disconnection and therefore remains in the node. If
alternatively the edge element was deleted instead of disconnected, in this case, the cubicle would also
be deleted. If an attempt is made to connect an edge element to a node containing such unassigned
cubicles then PowerFactory will give the user a choice of unassigned cubicles to which they can
connect.

In addition to storing information about the associated connection, a cubicle is also used as a storage
location for certain objects. For example, relays, switches, circuit breakers and measurement devices
can all be stored inside cubicles. Only one switching device (StaSwitch) can be stored inside a cubicle
and this device can be used to toggle the connection between the edge element and the node element.
By default a switching device is always created in a cubicle, but the user can also choose to remove the
switching device if required.

11.2.5 Marking and Editing Power System Elements

A left-click on an element selects it and it then becomes the “focus” of the next action or command.
For branch elements, the parts near their connection to nodes are treated differently and show specific
context menu options regarding the marked side of the element (e.g. to insert a new device at the line
end or to disconnect the line). To get all the menu options anyway, hold down the Ctrl-key while clicking
the right mouse button.

The element can be un-marked or de-selected by clicking on another element, by clicking onto some
free space in the graphic or just by pressing the Esc key.

There are different ways to select several objects at once:

• Pressing the Mark All Elements button ( ), or using Ctrl+A to mark all graphical elements.

• If the Rectangular Selection button ( ) is pressed (default condition), a set of elements can be
selected by clicking on a free spot in the drawing area, holding down the left mouse button, moving
the cursor to another place, and release it. All elements in the so defined rectangle will now be
marked.

• One or more objects can be marked holding down the Ctrl key whilst marking the objects.
• Holding down the Alt-key while clicking on the same object again marks all the adjacent objects.
Doing this several times marks more and more connected objects.
• If the area to be selected cannot be covered with a rectangular form, the Free-form Selection
button ( ) can be used to select a custom area of the diagram.
The data of any element (its edit dialog) may be viewed and edited by either double-clicking the graphic
symbol, or by right-clicking it and selecting Edit. If multiple objects are selected, right-click → Edit will
bring up a data browser.

The option Show in Data Manager will show the element in a Data Manager environment. The object
itself will be selected (highlighted) in the Data Manager and can be double-clicked to open the edit
dialog. A new Data Manager will be opened if no Data Manager is presently active. The edit dialogs for

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each element may be opened from this data browser one by one, or the selected objects can be edited
in the data browser directly.

Note: The position of an object in the database tree can be found by:
• Opening the edit dialog. The full path is shown in the header of the dialog.
• Using the keyboard shortcut Ctrl+E, which opens the Data Manager with the element marked
in the folder hierarchy.
• Right-clicking the object and selecting Show in Data Manager. This will open a new database
browser when required, and will focus on the selected object.

11.2.6 Interconnecting Power Subsystems

Interconnections between two different graphics can be done in one of two ways:

1. Representing a node in another diagram by copying (right-click → Copy ) the node in the first
graphic and pasting just the graphic object (right-click → Paste Graphically Only ) into the second
diagram. Both graphical objects are then associated with the same element; no new element is
created.
2. Ensure that there is a node to connect to in the graphics that are to be interconnected. Then
connect an edge element between the two graphics.

Example

In this example a line will be used to interconnect two regions using the second method. See fig-
ure 11.2.1.
1. Select a line drawing tool from the toolbox and create the first connection as normal by left clicking
a node (see figure 11.2.1a).
2. Double-click to place the symbol. Your cursor is now attached to the line by a “rubber band”.
Move the cursor to the bottom of the drawing page and click on the tab of the graphic that the
interconnection is to be made to (see figure 11.2.1b).
3. Once in the second graphic left click to place the line symbol (see figure 11.2.1c) and then left
click on the second node.
The interconnected leg is shown by a symbol.

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(a) First step

(b) Second step

(c) Third step

Figure 11.2.1: Interconnecting Power Subsystems

Note: The first method of interconnection, that of representing a node in two, or more, different graphics,
may lead to confusion at a later point as the ’inflow’ and ’outflow’ to the node will not appear correct
when just one graphic is viewed - especially if a user is not familiar with the system. The node may
be right-clicked to show all connections in what is known as the “detailed diagram” (menu option
Diagrams → Show Detailed Diagram of Substation). Thus, the second method may be preferred.
To check for nodes that have connections on other graphics the Topology → Missing graphical
connections diagram colouring may be employed.

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11.2.7 Substations

Substations (ElmSubstat) and Secondary Substations (ElmTrfstat) can be created from predefined
templates or from templates previously defined by the user by means of the icons located in the Drawing
Tools toolbox, as explained below.

Depending on the user’s preferences and taking into account the degree of detail required in the
graphical representation of the network, the substations can be displayed as Composite Nodes, which is
suitable for overview diagrams, or have a so-called Design View, which provides a simplified represen-
tation with additional information on connectivity. A detailed representation of the substation topology is
also offered. The different graphical representations are depicted in Figure 11.2.2.

(a) Composite Node (Beach Ball) (b) Design View

(c) Detailed Graphic

Figure 11.2.2: Substation graphical representations

Note: Before starting to create new substations, the user may wish to consider whether it would be
useful to have Bays (ElmBay ) created within the substation. If so, these can be automatically
created if the necessary project setting is selected. See section 8.1.2.4. More information about
Bays is given in section 11.2.7.3.

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11.2.7.1 Creating a Substation from predefined templates

Substation representation: Composite Node

To create a substation from a predefined template with a graphical representation as a “Composite

Node” (also “Beach Ball” or “Single Node”), the following steps should be taken:

• From the Drawing Tools toolbox, select one of the following Busbar Systems:
– Click on for a substation represented by a circle
– Click on for a substation represented by a rectangle
– Click on for secondary substation
• Select the required substation template from the browser that appears.
• Click on the drawing area to place the symbol. The substation is automatically created in the Grid
set as target folder for network elements.
• Close the window with the templates. Alternatively press Esc or right-click on the mouse to get
the cursor back (browser will close automatically).
• To name the substation, right-click its symbol, select Edit Substation. . . from the context menu
and rename it appropriately.
• Resize the substation symbol as required, by clicking on it and dragging one of the corners or
sides.

Note: The nominal voltage of the substation can be set before drawing it, via the Node default option
on the graphics toolbar (see 9.3)

To highlight the connectivity within a substation represented by means of a composite node, the user
can use Diagram Colouring. For this, press the button to open the diagram colouring scheme dialog.
Choose the “function” for which the colouring mode is relevant (for example, the Basic Data page) and
then select Other → Topology → Station Connectivity.

Substation representation: Design View

To create a substation from a predefined template with a “Design View” representation, the following
steps should be taken:

• From the Drawing Tools toolbox, select one of the following Busbar Systems:
– Click on for a Single Busbar
– Click on for a Single Busbar with Tie Breaker
– Click on for a Double Busbar
– Click on for a Double Busbar with Tie Breaker
– Click on for a 1 1/2-Busbar
– Click on for a Single Busbar with Tie Breaker and Bypass
– Click on for a Double Busbar with Bypass
– Click on for a Double Busbar with Tie Breaker and Bypass
• Click on the drawing area to place the symbol. The substation is automatically created in the Grid
set as target folder for network elements.
• Press Esc or right-click on the mouse to get the cursor back.

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• To name the substation, right-click its symbol, select Edit Substation. . . from the context menu
and rename it appropriately.

Note: The nominal voltage of the substation can be set before drawing it via the Node default option
on the graphics toolbar (see 9.3). Alternatively, the user can change the nominal voltage of one of
the terminals forming the busbar system and update the nominal voltage of all the terminals inside
the station.

Switching substation representation

It is possible to change the graphical representation of the substation, i.e. to switch from a composite
node representation to a design view and vice versa. To do this, select the composite node represen-
tation of the substation with a right-click and choose the option Convert to design view, or select one or
more of the busbars in design view and Convert to beach ball.

Substation representation: Detailed Graphic

Predefined substation templates have a detailed graphical representation. To access it:

• If the substation is represented via a composite node, there are two ways to open its detailed
graphic page. The first is to double-click on the corresponding composite node in the overview
diagram. The second is right-click its beach ball symbol and select Diagrams → Show Detailed
Diagram from the context menu.
• If the substation has a design view representation, its detailed diagram can be opened by selecting
the option Diagrams → Show Detailed Diagram of Substation from the context menu.

On the detailed graphic of the substation, it is possible to display the names of neighboured substation-
s/sites next to the lines leaving the substation, as illustrated in figure 11.2.3. This is set in the Project
Settings, with the option Show jump-to labels at graphically half-connected lines on the Graphics page,
tab Text Boxes.

Figure 11.2.3: Displaying the names of neighboured substations in detailed graphic of substation

Note: Detailed graphics of substations can be generally accessed from the Data Manager. For this, the

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user has to go to the Diagrams folder (in Network Model), find the graphic object of the substation
and open it by selecting Diagrams → Show Diagram from the context menu.

11.2.7.2 Creating a Substation from templates previously defined by the user

The following steps describe the general procedure for inserting a previously defined user template:

• From the Drawing Tools tool-window select the General Busbar System symbol ( )
• Select the required substation template from the browser that appears. If the Templates folder in
the project library contains just one template, no window is opened and the user can place the
substation in the drawing area as described in the following step.
• Click on the drawing area to place the symbol. The substation is automatically created in the Grid
set as target folder for network elements.
• Close the window with the templates. Alternatively press Esc or right-click on the mouse to get
the cursor back (browser will close automatically).
• To name the substation, right-click its symbol, select Edit Substation from the context menu and
rename it appropriately.
• Resize the substation symbol as required, by clicking on it and dragging one of the corners or
sides.

Note: To make use of user-defined substation templates, such templates have to be created first.
Information about creating user-defined templates can be found in sections 13.9.2 and 13.9.3.

11.2.7.3 Substation Bays

The Bay object ElmBay is used to group together the network elements that normally constitute a stan-
dard bay connection of a circuit to a busbar within a substation. This grouping is useful for visualisation
and organisation of the substation.

The rated current can be specified for each bay and a Thermal Rating object can be linked to it, allowing
the bay capabilities to be distinguished from those of the connected element.

If the detailed diagram of the substation is viewed, the bays are highlighted by rectangular blocks (by
default pale grey). These blocks are not just annotation - users can move additional elements into the
area and they will also be moved into the Bay object in the project hierarchy. The Bay representation
can be manually resized but will also expand automatically to encompass all objects that form part of
the bay.

Additional bays may be added using the Bay icon in the toolbox.

Note that the bay representation on the graphic is held within a layer called “Bays and Sites”, so may be
made visible or invisible as required. The colour can also be configured.

11.2.7.4 Substation Switching Rules

Switching Rules (IntSwitching) store switching actions for a selected group of switches that are defined
inside a substation. The different switching actions (no change, open or close) are defined by the user
considering different fault locations that can occur inside a substation. By default, the number of fault

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locations depends on the number of busbars and bay-ends contained inside the substation; although
the user is allowed to add (and remove) specific fault locations and switches belonging to the substation.
The switch actions will always be relative to the current switch positions of the breakers.

The selection of a Switching Rule for a substation is independent of the selection of a Running Arrange-
ment and if required, the reference to the switching rule in a substation can be stated to be operational
data; provided the user uses the Scenario Configuration object. For more information on the scenario
configuration refer to Chapter 15 (Operation Scenarios).

The typical application of Switching Rules is in contingency analysis studies or reliability analysis
studies, where the predefined switching rules could be immediately applied after a fault. For example,
a busbar fault in a double-busbar system could be followed by switching the connections to the other
healthy bus bar. The Switching Rules are composed of a matrix, which defines the required switch
actions for several fault locations in the substation. Please refer to 26.4.6.1 for the application in
contingency analysis.

Switching Rules are also considered during Reliability Analysis (see Chapter 45)

To create a switching rule

• Edit a Substation, either by right-clicking on the substation busbar from the single line graphic, and
from the context menu choosing Edit Substation, or by clicking on an empty place in the substation
graphic, and from the context menu choosing Edit Substation. This will open the substation dialog.

• Press the Select button ( ) in the Switching Rule section and select New. . .
• The new Switching Rule dialog pops up, where a name and the switching actions can be specified.
The switching actions are arranged in a matrix where the rows represent the switches and the
columns the fault locations. By default the fault locations (columns) correspond to the number of
busbars and bay-ends contained inside the substation, while the switches correspond only to the
circuit breakers. The user can nevertheless add/remove fault locations and/or switches from the
Configuration page. The switch action of every defined breaker in the matrix can be changed by
double clicking on the corresponding cell, as illustrated in figure 11.2.4. Press afterwards OK.

• The new switching rule is automatically stored inside the substation element.

Figure 11.2.4: Switching Rule Dialog

To select a Switching Rule

A Switching Rule can be selected in the Basic Data page of a substation dialog (ElmSubstat) by:
• Opening the substation dialog.

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• Pressing the Select button ( ) in the Switching Rule section. A list of all Switching Rules for the
current substation is displayed.
• Selecting the desired Switching Action.

To apply a Switching Rule

A Switching Rule can be applied to the corresponding substation by pressing the Apply button from
within the switching rule dialog. This will prompt the user to select the corresponding fault locations
(busbars) in order to copy the statuses stored in the switching rule directly in the substation switches.
Here, the user has the option to select either a single fault location, a group or all of them.

The following functional aspects must be regarded when working with switching rules:
• A switching rule can be selected for each substation. By default the selection of a switching rule
in a substation is not recorded in the operation scenario. However, this information can defined
as part of an operational scenario by using the Scenario Configuration object (see Chapter 15
(Operation Scenarios).

• If a variation is active the selection of the Switching Rule is stored in the recording expansion
stage; that is considering that the Scenario Configuration object hasn’t been properly set.
To assign a Switching Rule

The Assign button contained in the switching rule dialog allows to set it as the one currently selected
for the corresponding substation. This action is also available in the context menu in the Data Manager
(when right-clicking on a switching rule inside the Data Manager).

To preview a Switching Rule

The Preview button contained in the switching rule dialog allows to display in a separate window the
different switch actions for the different fault locations of the corresponding substation.

11.2.7.5 Substation - Meteorological Station

A meteorological station ElmMeteostat can be selected for substations and sites to link meteorological
data such as ambient temperature, wind speed and solar irradiance. This data will then be used by
Thermal Rating object IntThrating assigned to the bays and/or terminals to determine the actual nominal
current.

11.2.8 Sites

As noted in section 4.6.8, a site is normally used to group network components, for example, substations
of different voltage levels at the same location. Due to this particular characteristic, site elements do not
have predefined templates inside the software.

The site element can be represented in overview and/or geographic diagrams; a detailed representation
can also be defined.

11.2.8.1 Creating a New Site in Overview and Geographic Diagrams

Site elements can be represented by a square or a circle using the buttons and from the Drawing
Toolbar. For geographic diagrams, only the circular representation is available.

To draw a new site:

• Click on one of the site symbols ( )

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• Click on the overview diagram to place the symbol. The site is automatically created in the active
grid folder.
• Press Esc or right-click on the mouse to get the cursor back.

• Resize the site symbol as required.

• Right-click on the site and select Edit Site to open the edit dialog of the element.
Once the site is defined, a detailed diagram is automatically created. It is possible then to draw all the
elements directly inside the Site diagram, using detailed substation diagram templates as explained in
section 11.2.7.1.

If the site already exists it is possible to use the Diagram Layout Tool to generate its detailed represen-
tation automatically. See section 11.6 for more information about the Diagram Layout Tool.

The resizing and colouring according to connectivity of the site can be done as explained in sec-
tion 11.2.7.1.

11.2.8.2 Site Frames

In some overview diagrams, it may not be sufficient to use site objects for all sites; and users may want
to see more detail at certain sites. This can be done by using a representation of the site as a frame
within which the substations can also be seen.

Figure 11.2.5: Substations within a site frame in an overview graphic

The site can be introduced into the graphic using the graphic object , which draws the site as a
rectangular frame. The user can then create new substations within this frame and they will become
part of the ElmSite. The Site frame will automatically resize to accommodate the new substation
representations.

This new graphical option gives the user the flexibility to show sites as single symbols or in more detail,
as required, and the site frame representation is held within a graphical layer called “Bays and Sites”,
so may be made visible or invisible as required.

11.2.9 Composite Branches

New composite branches (ElmBranch) can be created in the Data Manager using the procedure de-
scribed in Section 11.5.4 (Defining Composite Branches in the Data Manager). The definition and
connection of the branch components can then be done in the single line diagram that is automatically
generated upon creation of a new branch.

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Branches are created in single line diagrams using previously defined templates. To create a new
branch from a template:

• Click on the Composite Branch symbol ( ) in the Drawing Toolbox. If there is more than one
branch template (in the Templates library), a list will appear, so that the correct one can be
selected.
• If the branch is to be connected to two terminals of the same single line graphic, simply click once
on each terminal.

• If the branch is to be connected to a terminal from another single line diagram, you have to ’Paste
graphically’ one of the terminals on the diagram where you want to represent the branch, or
connect across pages as discussed in Section 11.2.6 (Interconnecting Power Subsystems).
• If the branch is to be connected to terminals from a substation, click once on each composite
node to which the branch is to be connected. You will be automatically taken inside each of those
composite nodes to make the connections. In the substation graphic click once on an empty spot
near the terminal where you want to connect the branch end, and then on the terminal itself.
A diagram of the newly created branch can be opened by double clicking on its symbol. In the new
diagram it is possible to rearrange the branch configuration and to change the branch connections.

Details of how to define branch templates can be found in Section 13.9.4 (Composite Branch Tem-
plates).

11.2.10 Single and Two Phase Elements

It is possible to define the phase technology of elements such as terminals, lines, and loads. In instances
where the number of phases of a connecting element (e.g. a circuit breaker or line) is equal to the
number of phases of the terminal to which it connects, PowerFactory will automatically assign the
connections. However, when connecting single-phase elements to a terminal with greater than one
phase, or two-phase elements to terminals with greater than three phases, it is sometimes necessary to
adjust the phase connectivity of the element to achieve the desired connections. The phase connectivity
can be modified as follows:

• Open the dialog window of the element (by double-clicking on the element).
• Press the Figure >> button to display a figure of the elements with its connections on the bottom
of the dialog window.
• Double-click on the dark-red names for the connections inside this figure.

• Specify the desired phase connection/s.

Alternatively, click the right arrow ( ) next to the terminal entry and specify the desired phase connec-
tion/s.

Note: It is possible to colour the grid according to the phases (System Type AC/DC and Phases). For
more information about the colouring refer to Section 9.3.10.1 (Diagram Colouring).

11.3 Lines and Cables

This section describes specific features and aspects of line and cable data models used in PowerFac-
tory. Detailed technical descriptions of the models are provided in Technical References Document.

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In PowerFactory, lines and cables are treated alike, they are both instances of the generalised line
element ElmLne. A line may be modelled simply as a point-to-point connection between two nodes
and will refer to a line (TypLne), tower (TypTow), a tower geometry (TypGeo), a line coupling (ElmTow),
or a cable system coupling (TypCabsys, TypCabmult) type. Alternatively, lines may be subdivided into
sections referring to different types.

Note: Anywhere that ’line’ is written in this section, ’lines and/or cables’ may be read, unless otherwise
specified.

The three basic line configurations are shown in figure 11.3.1:

1. Top line: The simplest line is a single line object (ElmLne) connected between two terminal objects
via two cubicle objects.

2. Middle Line: Line (ElmLne) objects can also be cascaded or subdivided. Again, with each ElmLne
connected between two terminal objects via two cubicle objects.
3. Bottom line: Line (ElmLne) objects can also be subdivided into line section objects (ElmLnesec).
The ElmLne object is again connected via cubicle objects between two terminal objects, but here
the line section (ElmLnesec) objects constituting the line are not specifically connected between
terminals themselves meaning the number of cubicles and terminals associated with such a
configuration could be substantially reduced.

Figure 11.3.1: Basic line configurations

Cascading line objects together can be useful where it is necessary to explicitly represent the transpo-
sition of conductors. It is also possible to give each separate cascaded line a different conductor/cable
type or tower geometry. Further, it is possible to branch off towards loads, generators and other
substations (for example) at the intermediate terminals and include additional switching devices in the
line. It may also be a useful representation to approximate the behaviour of a distributed parameter
model using lumped parameter models.

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An arrangement of ElmLnesec objects is generally used to represent circuits or parts of circuits con-
sisting of multiple conductor/cable types. Such arrangements being typical of low voltage and medium
voltage distribution networks.

In addition to the configurations described above, objects known as branch (ElmBranch) objects can be
defined to organise and simplify the handling of complex composite arrangements of lines. Handling of
these objects is described in sections 11.2.9 and 11.5.4.

11.3.1 Defining a Line (ElmLne)

The simplest line model is a point-to-point connection between two nodes. This is normally done in the
single line graphic by selecting the ( ) icon and by left clicking the first terminal, possibly clicking on
the drawing surface to draw a corner in the line and ending the line at the second terminal by left clicking
it. This will create an ElmLne object in the database. When this object is edited, the following dialog will
appear.

Figure 11.3.2: Editing a transmission line

The dialog shows the two cubicles to which the transmission line is connected (terminal i and terminal
j). The line edit dialog shows the name of the node (in brown) in addition to the name of the cubicle (in
blue). The actual connection point to the node is the cubicle and this may be edited by pressing the edit
button ( ). The cubicle may be edited to change the name of the cubicle, add/remove the breaker, or
change phase connectivity as discussed in Section 11.2.10 (Single and Two Phase Elements).

The type of the line is selected by pressing the ( ) next to the type field. Line types for a line are:
• The TypLne object type, where electrical parameters are directly written (the user can select if the
type is defined for an overhead line or a cable).
• Tower types (TypTow and TypGeo), where geometrical coordinates and conductor parameters are
specified, and the electrical parameters are calculated from this data. Selection of the tower type
will depend on the user’s requirement to link conductor type data to the line element as in TypGeo
(for re-use of the one tower geometry with different conductors), or to link conductor type data to
the tower type as in TypTow (for re-use of one tower geometry with the same conductors).

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• Cable definition types (TypCabsys), used to complete the definition of a cable system. It defines
the coupling between phases, i.e. the coupling between the single core cables in a multiphase/multi-
circuit cable system.

Once the lines (or cables) have been created it is possible to define couplings between the circuits that
they are representing by means of line coupling elements ElmTow (for overhead lines) and cable system
coupling elements ElmCabsys (for cables).

Details of how to create Line Sections, Cable Systems, and Line Couplings are provided in the follow-
ing sections, and further information about line/cable modelling is given in the Technical References
Document.

11.3.2 Defining Line Sections

To divide a line into sections:

• Press the Sections/Line Loads/Compensation button in the line dialog. This will open a data
browser showing the existing line sections (if any).

• Click on the New Object icon ( ) and select the element Line Sub-Section (ElmLnesec).
• The edit dialog of the new line section will appear, and the type and length of the new section can
be entered.

11.3.3 Defining Line Compensation

It is possible to define the Line Compensations at one or both ends of a line element. In order to achieve
that, following steps should be followed:

• Press the Sections/Line Loads/Compensation button in the line dialog. If there are existing line
compensations then they will be listed in the opened data browser.

• Next, click on the New Object icon ( ) and select the element Line Compensation (ElmL-
necomp).
• The edit dialog of the new line compensation will appear. Based on the selected Input Mode, the
parameters can be updated.

11.3.4 Defining Line Couplings

The Line Couplings element (ElmTow) is used to represent electromagnetic coupling between trans-
mission lines. In order to define a line coupling, a tower type (TypTow or TypGeo) determining the
geometrical characteristics is required, along with the conductor type (TypCon) of the circuits.

Since line coupling occurs between lines on the same tower or between lines running approximately
parallel to each other, the lines should be the same length; if they are not, a warning message will be
displayed when calculations are executed and the shorter length will be considered for the coupling. To
facilitate this line objects can divided into two objects with one of the divided parts assigned a length as
well as a coupling to other line objects of the same length. The other divided part can be assigned the
remainder of the length of the circuit and no coupling.

The line coupling can be directly defined in the Data Manager; however it is easier to do it from the
single line diagram as follows:

1. Select the Line Couplings icon from the drawing tools ( ) and with the left mouse button held
down, drag the cursor over the lines in the single line diagram. Alternatively, select the lines, right-
click on them and select Network Models → Line Couplings→ New. . . from the context menu. In

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both cases, a graphical representation of the tower will be automatically added to the diagram as
shown in figure 11.3.3.

Figure 11.3.3: Graphical representation of the Line Coupling element

When using the Data Manager to define the line coupling, if the graphical representation is wanted,
the Diagram Layout Tool should be used.
2. A dialog pointing to the Equipment Type Library will open. At this point you have to select the
tower type, either a TypTow or a TypGeo. If none of them are yet available, the button New Object
( ) can be used to define a new tower type. In this example a TypTow will be used.
3. On the edit dialog of the tower type, shown in figure 11.3.4, the number of circuits and earth wires
should be defined. Then the conductor types should be selected, by double clicking on the TypCon
field.

Figure 11.3.4: Tower Type (TypTow)

4. Once again, a dialog pointing to the Equipment Type Library will open to select the conductor type.
If no type is yet available, the button New Object ( ) can be used to define a new conductor type
(TypCon).

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5. On the edit dialog of the conductor type, shown in figure 11.3.5, the rated voltage and current,
number of subconductors, model and measurements should be defined.

Figure 11.3.5: Conductor Type (TypCon)

6. Separate conductor types can be used for each circuit and earth wires. Note that earth wires are
only to be entered if the Input Mode is set to Geometrical Parameters.
7. Once the conductors are defined, the rest of the parameters of the tower type should be entered.
The transposition can be selected as:
• None
• Circuit-wise
• Symmetrical
• Perfect
More information about these options can be found in the Technical References Document (Over-
head Line Constants).
8. On the Geometry page of the tower type edit dialog, the disposition of the conductor can be
defined by inserting the coordinates in metres, on the right side of the dialog, an image of
the location of the phases is shown. The button Calculate can be used to get the matrix of
impedances; more information about the calculation and values obtained is also available in the
technical reference for the Overhead Line Constants.

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Figure 11.3.6: Geometry of the Tower Type (TypTow)

9. Once the tower type is defined, click on the OK button. A new dialog will open, where the lines
(ElmLne) are assigned to the circuits. Select the line for each circuit and click OK. Now the line
coupling element (ElmTow) is complete. Note that once a line coupling has been assigned to a
line element, the type of the line changes to line coupling.

The example above uses a TypTow tower type, but line couplings can also be defined using the tower
geometry type TypGeo. The main difference is that within the tower type (TypTow) the geometry of
the tower is associated with the corresponding conductor types of each circuit and therefore the tower
type contains all data of the overhead line transmission system as required for the calculation of the
electrical parameters. The tower geometry type (TypGeo), however, does not contain a reference to
the conductor type, so that the definition is not complete and the conductor types are added later on in
the line (ElmLne) or coupling (ElmTow) elements. This makes the tower geometry type (TypGeo) more
flexible, and it is therefore the preferred option when combining the same tower geometry with different
conductor types.

The following figure presents a comparison of line couplings using different tower types.

(a) Using Tower Type (b) Using Tower Geometry Type

Figure 11.3.7: Line Couplings Element

11.3.5 Defining Cable Systems

A cable system can be used to calculate and represent the impedance of a cable or group of cables
including the calculation of mutual impedances developed between all conductors comprising the sys-

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tem. Unlike the simple TypLne representation of a cable the input data does not include sequence
impedance data but rather includes geometrical data e.g. the relative positions of individual cables and
individual cores as well as data about the construction of the cables for example the core material, the
core cross section, the insulation type, or the presence of a sheath and armour. It is from this data
that PowerFactory calculates the impedances and admittance matrices of the arrangement, which are
subsequently used to represent the system in the various calculations.

Figure 11.3.8 illustrates that there are essentially two different kinds of cable system that can be
constructed in PowerFactory.

(a) Cable system with coupling between ElmLne objects (b) Cable system based on a single ElmLne object

Figure 11.3.8: Cable System Overview

The cable system shown on figure 11.3.8a illustrates two line objects (ElmLne) which are coupled
together using a Cable System Element object (ElmCabsys). Although only two line objects are illus-
trated it is important to realise that practically there is no limit to the number of ElmLne objects which
can be coupled. Further, the ElmLne objects being coupled can have 1,2 or 3 phases and they can
represent many different types of conductor for example a phase conductor, a neutral, a sheath or an
armour with the type of conductor they represent likely to correspond with the designation of the node
on which they are terminated. They can also be connected at different voltage levels. Each ElmLne
representing one or more phase conductor is referred to as a circuit in the ElmCabsys and TypCabsys
objects. Each circuit must be assigned a Single Core Cable type (TypCab) or a Multicore/Pipe Cable
type (TypCabmult). If sheaths or armours of the cables are to be considered then this is specified in the
TypCab or TypCabmult objects.

Note: If a Multicore/Pipe Cable type (TypCabmult) is assigned to the Cable Definition (TypCabsys),
only one circuit is allowed.

Since coupling generally occurs between cables sharing a route over the part of the route where the
cables run approximately parallel to each other, the cables coupled in this cable system arrangement

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should be specified to have the same length; if they are not, a warning message will be displayed when
calculations are executed and the shorter length will be considered for the coupling. To facilitate this
Line objects can divided into two objects with one of the divided parts assigned a length as well as a
coupling to other line objects of the same length. The other divided part can be assigned the remainder
of the length of the circuit and no coupling.

The cable system can be directly defined in the Data Manager; however it is easier to do it from the
single line diagram as follows:

1. Select the Cable System element from the drawing tools ( ) and with the left mouse button held
down, drag the cursor over the cables in the single line diagram. Alternatively, multi-select the
cables to be coupled, right-click on them and select Network Models → Cable System→ New. . .
from the context menu. In both cases, a graphical representation of the cable system will be
automatically added to the diagram.
When using the Data Manager to define the cable system, if the graphical representation is
wanted, the Diagram Layout Tool should be used.

2. A dialog pointing to the Equipment Type Library will open. At this point you are asked to select a
TypCabsys object. If no appropriate existing types are available, the button New Object ( ) can
be used to define a new Cable System Type.
3. On the basic data page of the dialog of the cable definition type, shown in figure 11.3.9, the
number of circuits should be defined. Then the cable types should be selected, by double clicking
on the TypCab, TypCabmult field.

Figure 11.3.9: Cable Definition Type (TypCabsys)

4. Once again, a dialog pointing to the Equipment Type Library will open for selection of a Single
Core or Multicore/Pipe Cable Type. If no appropriate type is yet defined, the button New Object
( ) can be used to define a new type.
5. On the Basic Data page of the dialog of the Single Core Cable type, shown in figure 11.3.10,
the rated voltage, and details of the core construction should be defined along with the charac-
teristics of the various conducting, insulating and semi-conducting layers from which the cable
is constructed. If a sheath or armour is to be considered then the relevant checkbox should be
selected to confirm that it exists.

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Figure 11.3.10: Single Core Cable Type (TypCab)

6. On the Basic Data page of the dialog of the Multicore/Pipe Cable Type, shown in figure 11.3.11,
just as for the Single Core Cable type the rated voltage, and details of the core construction should
be defined along with the characteristics of the various conducting, insulating and semi-conducting
layers from which the cable is constructed. Again, if a sheath or armour is to be considered then
the relevant checkbox should be selected to confirm that it exists. Note that additionally here it
is possible to select whether the Pipe Type model or the Multicore model is to be used. Note
also that depending on which model is selected, different data may be entered in the additional
tabs defining either the multicore common outer layers or the pipe. Finally the geometry of the
conductors within the arrangement should be defined using the Conductor coordinates tab.

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Figure 11.3.11: Multicore/Pipe Cable Type (TypCabmult)

7. Separate Single Core Multicore/Pipe Cable types can be used for each circuit.
8. Once the types are defined, the rest of the parameters of the Cable Definition should be entered.
9. On the Circuit Position tab of the Cable Definition Basic Data dialog, one of two possible options
for a circuit position definition can be selected. With Phase coordinates input the positions of the
circuits can be defined by inserting the X- and Y-coordinates of each conductor. With Automatic
equidistant assignment the user can set up a circuit for Flat or Trefoil formation with an equidistant
Phase distance, see example in Figure 11.3.12. An image on the right side of the dialog shows
the resulting location of the phases. The button Calculate can be used to get the matrix of
impedances; more information about the calculation and values obtained is also available in the
technical reference for Cable Systems.

Figure 11.3.12: Geometry of the Cable Definition (TypCabsys)

10. Once the Cable Definition is defined, click on the OK button. A new dialog will open, where the
lines (ElmLne) are assigned to the circuits. Select the line for each circuit and click OK. Now
the Cable System element (ElmCabsys) is complete. Note that once a line coupling has been
assigned to a line element, the type of the line changes to line coupling.

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The cable system on figure 11.3.8b illustrates a more simple cable system configuration where coupling
between ElmLne objects is not to be considered. In this case a Cable definition (TypCabsys) is assigned
directly to an individual line object. This line object can also represent 1,2 or 3 phases and can also
represent many different types of conductor for example a phase conductor, a neutral, a sheath or an
armour with the type of conductor they represent again likely to correspond with the designation of the
node on which they are terminated.

The ElmLne objects associated with this configuration can actually be used to represent multiple circuits
and for considering the coupling between them. However, there is one limitation in that each circuit
must be identical. Each circuit must be assigned the same Single Core Cable type (TypCab) or a
Multicore/Pipe Cable type (TypCabmult). If sheaths or armours of the cables are to be considered then
this is specified in the TypCab or TypCabmult objects. However, in this case these cannot be considered
explicitly by representation with their own ElmLne object as they could be with the coupled cable system.

For this configuration it is easiest to define the cable system via the associated ElmLne dialog. In this
case the type parameter of the line should be selected or defined with selection of the class TypCabsys.
The TypCabsys itself is defined exactly as described for the coupled cable system.

11.4 Neutral Winding Connection in Network Diagrams

PowerFactory offers the user the option to explicitly represent the neutral connections and interconnec-
tions of the following commonly used elements:
• Power transformers (ElmTr2, ElmTr3 and ElmTr4)

• Shunt elements (ElmShunt)

• External grids (ElmXnet)
• Synchronous (ElmSym) and asynchronous machines (ElmAsm)
• Static generators (ElmGenstat)

• PV systems (ElmPvsys)
• Neutral earthing elements (ElmNec)
• Harmonic Filter (ElmFilter )

• Step-Voltage Regulator (ElmVoltreg)

The interconnection of separate neutral wires is illustrated with the help of the Synchronous Generator.

A separate neutral connection can be activated by choosing the option N-Connection on the Zero
Sequence/Neutral Conductor tab on the basic data page of the element as shown in figure 11.4.1,
the graphical symbol of the object will change. An illustration for the Synchronous Generator element is
shown in figure 11.4.2. Please note, once the N-Connection via a separate terminal option is selected,
the Vector Groups layer can no longer be hidden in the single line diagram.

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Figure 11.4.1: Zero Sequence/Neutral Connection Tab

Figure 11.4.2: Generator with N-Connection via separate terminal

To connect the neutral of the Element to a neutral busbar, right-click on the element and select Con-
nect. . . . An example of a single line diagram with the interconnection of neutral wires is shown in figure
11.4.3. A Neutral terminal is configured by ensuring that the Phase Technology of the terminal is set to
N as shown in figure 11.4.4.

Figure 11.4.3: Grid with neutral winding connection

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Figure 11.4.4: Set neutral Terminal

11.5 Defining Network Models using the Data Manager

In this section it is explained how the tools of Data Manager are used to define network models.

11.5.1 Defining New Network Components in the Data Manager

This section deals with defining and connecting network components using the Data Manager. General
information about editing data objects in the Data Manager can be found in Chapter 10 (Data Manager
and Network Model Manager), section 10.3.4.

New network components can be directly created in the Data Manager. This is done by clicking on the
target grid/expansion stage (left pane) to display its contents in the browser (right pane). Then the New
Object icon is used; the required object class is selected or the class name typed in directly.

11.5.2 Connecting Network Components in the Data Manager

To connect newly created branch elements to a node, a free cubicle must exist in the target terminal. In
the ’Terminal’ field (Terminal i and Terminal j for two port elements, etc.) of the edge element you have
to click on the ( ) arrow to select (in the data browser that appears) the cubicle where the connection
is going to take place.

To create a new cubicle in a terminal you have to open its edit dialog (double click) and press the
Cubicles button (located at the right of the dialog). A new browser with the existing cubicles will appear,
press the New Object icon and select Cubicle (StaCubic) from the list. The edit dialog of the new
cubicle will appear; by default no internal switches will be generated. If you want a connection between
the edge element and the terminal through a circuit breaker, you have to press the Add Breaker button.
After pressing OK the new cubicle will be available for connecting new elements.

Note: New users are recommended to create and connect elements directly from the single line graph-
ics. The procedures described above are intended for advanced users.

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11.5.3 Defining Substations in the Data Manager

The concept and the application context of substations is presented in Section 4.6 (Project Structure). A
description of the procedure used to define new substations with the Data Manager is given as follows.
For information about working with substations in the graphical editor refer to Section 11.2 (Defining
Network Models using the Graphical Editor).

To define a new substation from the Data Manager:

• Display the content of the grid where you want to create the new substation.
• Right-click on the right pane of the Data Manager and select New → Substation. . . from the
context menu.
• The new substation edit dialog will appear. There you can change the name, assign running
arrangements and visualise/edit the content of the substation (directly after creation it is empty).
• After pressing OK the new substation and an associated diagram (with the same name of the
substation) will be created.
The components of the new substation can be created and connected using the associated single
line diagram or using the Data Manager; the first option is recommended. For the second option, the
Contents button is used to bring up a browser, where the new components can be created using the
New Object icon.

Components of a substation can of course be connected with components of the corresponding grid or
even with components of other networks. The connection in the Data Manager is carried out following
the same procedure discussed in the previous section.

For information about working with substations in the graphical editor refer to Section 11.2 (Defining Net-
work Models using the Graphical Editor). For information about the definition of Running Arrangements
refer to Section 13.6.11 (Running Arrangements).

11.5.4 Defining Composite Branches in the Data Manager

The concept and the application context of composite branches (ElmBranch) is discussed in Section 4.6
(Project Structure), and a description of how to define branches from within the diagram is provided in
Section 11.2 (Defining Network Models using the Graphical Editor). This section explains how to define
new branches from within the Data Manager.

Branches can be defined in the Data Manager as follows:

1. To create a Branch template, navigate to the Library → Templates folder in the Data Manager.

2. Right-click on the right pane of the Data Manager and select New → Branch. . . from the context
menu.
3. In the branch edit dialog, define the name of the branch and press OK.
4. Now navigate back to the branch edit dialog (right-click and ’edit’, or double click), and select
Contents to add terminal and line elements etc. to the template as required. The internal
elements can be connected as discussed in Section 11.5.2.
5. Use the fields ’Connection 1’ and ’Connection 2’ to define how the branch is to be connected to
external elements.
6. To create an instance of the Branch from the created Branch template, either:
• Select the Composite Branch icon and connect the branch to existing terminals on the
Single Line Diagram.

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• Select the Composite Branch icon and place the branch on the single line diagram, press
Tab twice to place the branch without making any connections. Then connect the branch to
external elements by right-clicking and selecting ’Connect’, or double-clicking the branch and
selecting external connections for the relevant internal elements (e.g. lines). Select Update
on in the Branch dialog to update the external connections.
Alternatively, for a single Branch (i.e. not using Templates) the branch can be defined in the grid folder.

11.5.5 Defining Sites in the Data Manager

The concept and the application context of sites are presented in the Section 4.6 (Project Structure).

To define a new site from the Data Manager do the following:

• Display the content of the grid where you want to create the new site.

• Right-click on the right pane of the Data Manager and select New → Site. . . from the context
menu.
• The new Site edit dialog will appear.
• After pressing OK the new site will be created.

Note: It is possible to move objects from a grid to a Substation, Branch, Site, etc. and vice versa.

11.6 Drawing Existing Elements using the Diagram Layout Tool

This section provides information about how to draw network components from existing objects. Power-
Factory separates strictly the electrical (and therefore for calculations relevant) data of network elements
from their graphical representation in the diagrams. Calculations of networks without any graphical
representation is possible.

Designing new (extensions to) power system grids, is preferably done graphically. This means that the
new power system objects may be created in a graphical environment. After the new components are
added to the design, they can be edited, either from the graphical environment itself (by double-clicking
the objects), or by opening a Data Manager and using its editing facilities.

It is however possible, to first create objects in the Data Manager (either manually, or via data import
using e.g. the DGS format), and subsequently draw these objects in one or more single line diagrams.
If the imported data contains geographical coordinates, a geographic diagram can be created automat-
ically by right-clicking on the Grid in the Project Overview window and choosing Diagrams → Show
Geographic Diagram.

If no geographic coordinates are given or if a single line diagram should be created, PowerFactory
provides the Diagram Layout Tool to do that.

The following sections describe the options and possibilities of the Diagram Layout Tool , located in
the graphic icon bar.

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11.6.1 Action

11.6.1.1 Generate new diagram

When this option is selected from the Action mode part of the Diagram Layout Tool dialog, it is possible
to create graphical representations of grids and network elements. It’s a quick way to get a graphical
overview of a network, offering visualisation of, for example, results or topology (colouring schemes for
feeders, zones, etc.). The options in the Generate new diagram for part of the dialog are:

• entire grid: with this option a complete new diagram of the selected grid is automatically drawn.
It is possible to select more than one grid; in this case one diagram showing all the selected grids
will be created.
Additional settings when using the option Generate new diagram for → entire grid are set in
pages Node Layout (section 11.6.2), Edge Elements (section 11.6.3) and Protection Devices
(section 11.6.4)
• k-neighbourhood: if this option is used, a complete new diagram will be generated, starting with
the selected elements and extending as far as specified. The “k-neighbourhood” logic is described
below in section 11.6.1.2.
• detailed representation of: this option can be used for substations, branches, sites and termi-
nals. It creates a detailed diagram with all the elements contained inside the original element. No
additional settings are needed.
• feeder: with this option a complete new schematic feeder diagram is created. It is possible to
select more than one feeder; in this case a separate diagram will be created for each feeder.
This option replaces the previous option Show → Schematic visualisation by Distance or Bus
Index of the feeder. See Section 14.6 (Feeders) for further information on how to define feeders.
Additional settings when using the option Generate new diagram → Feeder are set in pages Node
Layout (section 11.6.2) and Edge Elements (section 11.6.3).

• area interchange type: this option generates an interchange diagram, used to show the power
flows between defined parts of the network. Grids, Areas or Zones may be selected.
The diagram will consist of summary boxes for those regions, and arrows showing power flows
between the regions, held in a separate, configurable graphic layer. The thickness of each power
arrow indicate the relative size of the power interchange.
Additional settings when using the option area interchange type are set in page Interchanges
(section 11.6.7).

11.6.1.2 Auto-insert elements into current diagram

When this option is selected from the Action mode part of the Diagram Layout Tool dialog, it is possible
to insert additional elements into an existing diagram. This option is only available if the diagram is not
in “freeze” mode.

The options in the Insert elements into current diagram part of the dialog are:

• K-neighbourhood expansion: this action creates graphical elements starting from a selection
of elements already graphically represented in the diagram. A selection of elements is therefore
necessary. If some or all graphic elements are selected before opening the Diagram Layout Tool,
these elements are automatically inserted into the Start elements selection. Alternatively the Start
elements can be selected directly from the dialog using Select. . . or in the Neighbourhood
Expansion settings.
Starting from every selected element, the connected and not yet graphically represented neigh-
bours are created and subsequently also their neighbours. The depth of this recursive algorithm
is defined by the K-factor, which can be configured in the Neighbourhood Expansion settings.
This approach offers a step-by-step creation of a diagram, where an intervention after each step
is possible to adapt the final appearance of the network diagram.

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Additional settings when using the Auto-insert element into current diagram → K-neighbourhood
expansion option are set in pages Node Layout (section 11.6.2), Edge Elements (section 11.6.3)
and Protection Devices (section 11.6.4)

• Edge elements: this action automatically completes the current diagram with the branch elements
which are not yet graphically represented. It is only available for diagrams which already contain
some existing graphical node elements. Additional settings when using the option Auto-insert
element into current diagram → Edge elements are set in pages Edge Elements (section 11.6.3)
and Protection Devices (section 11.6.4)

• Protection devices: when this option is selected, protection devices are included into the current
diagram according to the options set on the Protection Devices page described in section 11.6.4.
• Bays and sites: this option enables the graphical representation of sites and bays to be added to
existing diagrams, taking into account the options on the Bays and Sites page (section 11.6.5).

• Miscellaneous: when this option is selected, the miscellaneous objects selected on the Miscel-
laneous page described in section 11.6.6 will be inserted in the diagram.
• Area interchange type: the graphical representation of the power interchanges between network
regions (Grids, Areas or Zones) is added to currently-active graphic. This consists of summary
boxes for those regions, and arrows showing power flows between the regions, held in a separate,
configurable graphic layer. The thickness of each power arrow indicate the relative size of the
power interchange.
Additional settings when using the option area interchange type are set in page Interchanges
(section 11.6.7).

11.6.1.3 Assisted manual drawing

This action replaces the earlier Drawing existing Net Elements tool. Upon execution, a window will
appear, listing all the elements which are not yet graphically represented in the diagram. This option is
only available if the diagram is not in “freeze” mode.

Drawing Existing Busbars

Click on the symbol for busbars ( ) in the drawing toolbox. The symbol of the busbar (terminal) is now
attached to the cursor.

If the list is very large, press the button Adjacent Element Mode ( ). This activates the selecting of
distance (number of elements) from elements in the selection of the Neighbourhood Expansion. Select
the Distance of 1 in order to reduce the number of busbars (terminals) shown.

If the button Use drawn nodes as starting objects ( ) is also selected, the list will be filtered based on
all drawn nodes (not just a single starting node).

If Show elements part of drawn composite nodes ( ) is selected, elements internal to already drawn
composite nodes will be shown in the list. However, since they are already drawn as part of the
composite node, they should not be re-drawn.

The marked or selected element can now be visualised or drawn by clicking somewhere in the active
diagram. This element is drawn and disappears from the list.

Note that the number of elements in the list can increase or decreases depending on how many
elements are a distance away from the element lastly drawn. Scroll down the list, in case only certain
elements have to be visualised.

Close the window and press Esc to return the cursor to normal. The drawn terminals (busbars) can be
moved, rotated or manipulated in various ways.

Drawing Existing Lines, Switches, and Transformers

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Similar to the busbars, elements like lines and transformers connecting the terminals in the substation
can be drawn. Execute the Assisted manual drawing action of the Diagram Layout Tool. For lines
select the line symbol ( ) from the drawing toolbox, for 2 winding transformers select the 2-winding
transformer symbol ( ), and so on.

Similar to terminals, a list of all the lines (or transformers, or elements which have been chosen) in the
network, that are not in the active diagram, is shown.

For each selected line (or transformers...) a pair of terminals, to which the line is connected, are marked
in the diagram. Click on the first terminal and then on the second. The selected line is drawn and
removed from the list of lines.

Continue drawing all lines (or transformers...), until the list of lines is empty or all the lines to be drawn
have been drawn. If a branch cannot be completely drawn (for example, when the terminal at only one
end of a line is shown on the diagram), it is possible to draw a first line section, then press Tab or double
click on the diagram and arrows will appear to indicate that the line connects to a terminal that is not
shown.

Note: Before placing elements onto the graphic users may find it useful to configure and display a
background layer. This will be an image of an existing single line diagram of the system. It may be
used to ’trace’ over so that the PowerFactory network looks the same as current paper depictions;
see Section 9.3.7 for more information on layers.

11.6.2 Node Layout

The settings regarding the Node Layout take effect on the following actions:
• Generate new diagram for
– entire grid
– k-neighbourhood
– feeder
• Auto-insert element into current diagram
– K-neighbourhood expansion
The following options are available for node insertion:

• Node spacing: this option defines the distance between the newly created nodes in the diagram
and can be set to low, medium or high.
• Representation of sites and substations: one of the following options can be selected to
represent sites ElmSite, substations ElmSubstat and secondary substations ElmTrfstat:
– detailed: the detailed diagram of the composite element, including all the internal elements
(i.e. nodes, switches, transformers, lines, etc.) will be added to the diagram.
– single node: the sites and substation will be drawn using a “beach ball” representation (circle
or rectangle).
– design view: a simplified view of the sites and substations (i.e. without internal elements) will
be added to the diagram.
• Consider physical line lengths: with this option checked, the length of the graphical representa-
tion is based on the corresponding line length. The graphic object length is not strictly proportional
to the actual line length, but nevertheless gives a good view in the diagram of the relative line
lengths.
• Adjust diagram size: the size of the diagram defined in the Drawing Format is ignored and
overwritten by the algorithm, which uses as much space as is needed. To get clearer outputs, this
option should be selected. The new drawing size is saved and can be reused in other diagrams.

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If the option Generate new diagram for → feeder is selected, the options of the Node Layout page
include:

• Layout Style: this option defines the layout of the feeder; the options are Rectangular and Tree.
Rectangular is usually recommended, since it provides the best overview of the topology of the
feeder. For very large feeders, however, the rectangular layout may become too large. In this case
the tree-like layout may be better, since it produces a narrower layout.
• Layout Direction: defines whether the feeder should be drawn from top to bottom or left to right.
• Horizontal/Vertical node spacing: this option defines the distance between the feeder nodes,
can be set to low, medium or high.
• Representation of sites and substations: as explained in the options for node insertion.
• Minimise extent of switches and fuses: when this option is selected, the representation of
switches and fuses is reduced to generate a smaller diagram.
• Use graphic settings from currently shown diagram: the settings of the feeder diagram will be
taken from the diagram where the Diagram Layout Tool was executed.
• Consider backbones: if selected, backbones (if available) are emphasised by laying them out
strictly vertically (straight line from top to bottom). Otherwise, the longest path within the feeder
will be laid out vertically.

11.6.3 Edge Elements

The settings on the Edge Elements page take effect on the following actions:
• Generate new diagram for
– entire grid
– k-neighbourhood
– feeder
• Auto-insert element into current diagram
– K-neighbourhood expansion
– Edge elements
The following options are available in the Edge Elements page:
• Insert edge elements: if this is not checked, the Diagram Layout Tool only creates graphical
representations of nodes (or composite elements, if the Draw each composite as single node
option is selected in the Node Layout page). If the option Auto-insert element into current diagram
→ Edge elements is selected, the edge elements are always inserted and so the setting of this
option is ignored in that case.
• Ortho Type: if set to Ortho, all inserted branch elements will consist of only vertical or horizontal
sections. The opposite option is Ortho Off, where the branch elements show a direct point-to-point
connection between the according start and end nodes. With the option set to Semi-Ortho, the
branches have a orthogonal part near the start and end node and in between a direct connection.
• Consider composite branches (ElmBranch): when selected, the branches will be drawn as one
single element, otherwise all the internal elements of the branch will be included in the diagram.
• Insert one-port devices connected to substations: this option should be checked to make sure
that all the one-port elements (e.g. loads, shunts) connected to the substation are inserted into
the diagram regardless of the representation of the substation.
• Insert classes only: this option can be used as a filter to insert elements of particular classes. To
achieve that, the class name of the element can be mentioned in the provided field. Also, there is
a possibility for the user to insert the elements of different classes and for that purpose a comma
operator “,” should be used to separate the class names.

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11.6.4 Protection Devices

The settings on the Protection Devices page take effect on the following actions:
• Generate new diagram for
– entire grid
– k-neighbourhood
• Auto-insert element into current diagram
– K-neighbourhood expansion
– Edge elements
– Protection devices

The following options are available in the Protection Devices page:

• Insert protection devices: if checked, the Diagram Layout Tool inserts graphical representations
of the protection devices. If the option Auto-insert element into current diagram → Protection
devices is selected, the protection devices are inserted anyway.
• Relays: to insert graphical representations of relays (ElmRelay ).

• CTs and VTs: to insert graphical representations of current transformers (Stat) and voltage
transformers (StaVt) .
An example of automatically inserted protection devices is shown in figure 11.6.1

Figure 11.6.1: Protection devices in the single line diagram

11.6.5 Bays and Sites

The settings on the Bays and Sites page take effect on the following actions:
• Generate complete diagram
– Entire grid
– k-neighbourhood
• Auto-insert element into current diagram
– K-neighbourhood expansion
– Edge elements
– Bays and sites

On the Bays and Sites page, the options to show the Bay and Site representations can be selected
independently.

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The option Bays in sections should be selected to insert bays on section couplers of the substations.

It should be noted that if Auto-insert element into current diagram and Bays and sites are selected on
the Actions page, this will override the main Insert bays and sites option on the Bays and Sites page;
however, the two individual sub-options Bays and Sites will be observed.

11.6.6 Miscellaneous

The settings on the Miscellaneous page take effect on the following actions:

• Generate complete diagram for

– entire grid
– k-neighbourhood
• Insert element into current diagram
– K-neighbourhood expansion
– Miscellaneous
On this page, the graphical representations of the following elements can be included in an existing
diagram, as shown in figure 11.6.2:

• Feeders
• Metereological stations
• Areas
• Zones

• Operators
• Owners
• Boundaries

• Paths
• Towers
• Cable systems
• Load flow controllers

• Measurement devices
• User-defined objects (created using Data Extensions)

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Figure 11.6.2: Single line diagram showing additional elements

11.6.7 Interchanges

The settings on the Interchanges page take effect on the following actions:

• Generate new diagram for

– area interchange type

The options on the Interchanges page give the user some control over the positioning of elements on
the graphic:

• prefer geographic positions will use the Geographical Coordinates of the network elements.
• consider positions from current diagram is typically used if an overview diagram is currently
active, for example.
• set positions arbitrarily the layout will be determined automatically.

On the Show field, the user can choose what should be displayed in the area interchange diagram:
active power (P), reactive power (Q) or both (P and Q).

11.7 Drawing Existing Elements using Drag & Drop

As an alternative to using the Diagram Layout tool, it is possible to create graphical objects for existing
network elements by using drag & drop:

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1. Enable the Drag & Drop feature in a Data Manager window by double-clicking the Drag & Drop
message in the status bar.
2. Select the data object in the Data Manager by left clicking on its icon.

3. Hold down the left mouse button and move the mouse to the graphic drawing area (drag it).
4. Position the graphical symbol and release the mouse button to drop the object.
5. A new graphical symbol is created, which is representing the selected element in the diagram. No
new data object is created.

This approach should be used carefully.

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Chapter 12

Study Cases

12.1 Introduction

The concept of study cases was introduced in Chapter 4 (PowerFactory Overview). Study cases
(IntCase, ) define the studies to be performed on the system being modelled. They store everything
created by the user to perform calculations, allowing the easy reproduction of results even after deacti-
vation/reactivation of the project. By means of the objects stored inside them, the program recognises:

• Parts of the network model (grids and expansion stages) to be considered for calculation;
• Calculations (and their settings) to be performed on selected parts of the network;
• Study time;
• Active variations;
• Active operation scenario;
• Calculation results to be stored for reporting;
• Graphics to be displayed during the study.
• The last-selected function toolbox (i.e. which function toolbox was last selected using on the
main toolbar)

A study case with a reference to at least one grid or expansion stage has to be activated in order to
enable calculations. A project that contains more than one grid, which has several expansion stages for
design alternatives, or which uses different Operation Scenarios to model the various conditions under
which the system should operate, requires multiple study cases. All of the study cases in a project are
stored inside the study cases folder ( ) in the project directory.

Note: Only one study case can be active at a given time. When activating a study case, all the grids,
Variations and Operation Scenarios that it refers to will also become active.

Without study cases, it would be necessary to manually activate the relevant grid and/or expansion
stage multiple times in order to analyse the resulting power system configuration. Similarly, it would
be necessary to define over and over again the same calculation command setup used to analyse the
behaviour of the selected network.

In addition to storing the objects that define a network study, study cases set the units used for the
output of calculation results, and allow the definition of specific options for the calculation algorithms.

The following sections describe the main objects stored inside study cases.

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12.2 Creating and Using Study Cases

When a new project is created, an empty study case is automatically created and activated. This new
study case has default settings. The user can later modify these settings using the study case dialog.

The user may define several study cases to facilitate the analysis of projects containing more than one
grid, several Expansion Stages, different Operation Scenarios or simply different calculation options. To
create a new study case:
• Open the Data Manager and go to the study cases folder. Right-click on the folder and select New
→ Study Case. . . from the context menu. Enter the name of the new study case in the dialog that
pops up and (if desired) modify the default settings.
Only one study case can be active at any given time. To activate or deactivate a study case:
• Open the Data Manager. The active study case and the folder(s) where it is stored are highlighted.
Right-click on the active study case and choose Deactivate from the context menu. To activate
an inactive study case place the cursor on its name, right-click and choose Activate. Study cases
may also be activated via the Project Overview Window.
A study case can have more than one grid. Only the objects in the active grids will be considered by the
calculations. To add an existing grid to the active study case:
• Open the Data Manager and go to the Network Data folder. Right-click the desired grid and select
Activate from the context menu. The grid will be activated and any relevant graphics will be opened
(following a user selection). To remove an active grid, select Deactivate.
Variations are considered by a study case when they are activated. The Expansion Stages are applied
according to the study case time, which is set by the Study Time stored inside the study case folder.
More than one variation can be active for a given study case. However there can be only one recording
stage. For further information, refer to Chapter 16 (Network Variations and Expansion Stages). To add
(activate) a Variation to the active study case:
• Right-click on the Variation and select Activate from the context menu. The Variation will be
activated and stages will be highlighted depending on the study time.
An Operation Scenario can be activated or deactivated via the context menu, or by using the option File
→ Activate Operation Scenario/Deactivate Operation Scenario from the main menu. Upon activation,
a completeness check is performed (i.e. a check that operational data is available for all components).
This is reported in the PowerFactory output window. If an Operation Scenario is active, all operational
data attributes in property sheets or in the Data Manager are highlighted in blue by default. This indi-
cates that changes to these values will not modify the base component (or Variation) but are recorded
by the active Operation Scenario. Upon deactivation, previous operational data is restored. If the
Operation Scenario was modified, user confirmation is requested regarding the saving of changes. For
further information about working with Operation Scenarios, refer to Chapter 15 (Operation Scenarios).

Note: Only one study case can be activated at a time. Although network components and diagrams
can be edited without an active study case, calculations cannot be performed. Variations and
Operation Scenarios used by a study case are automatically activated upon activation of the
corresponding study case.

12.2.1 The Study Case Manager

The Study Case Manager simplifies the management of study cases, by providing an overview of all
existing study cases with all active Operation Scenarios, Variations, Grids and Triggers. There is a
column for each study case, with the component objects listed on the left, as shown in Figure 12.2.1.

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The Study Case Manager can be accessed by clicking on the icon on the main toolbar or from Data
→ Study Case Manager in the main menu. Upon opening the Study Case Manager the active study
case will be deactivated, but will be reactivated when the Study Case Manager window is closed.

Figure 12.2.1: Study Case Manager

The Study Case Manager not only provides an overview but can also be used to manage the setup of
individual study cases, as it allows the activation/deactivation of:
• Operation Scenarios
• Variations

• Grids
• Triggers
simply by double-clicking on the cell entries - without the need to activate the study cases themselves.
Since the time of the active study case defines which Expansion Stage is active, it is only possible to
activate or deactivate Variations, but not Expansion Stages. Depending on the study time, the recording
Expansion Stage will be marked in bold.

Note: When folders are used to store study cases, only the study cases in the folder selected (within
the Study Case Manager) will be shown.

12.3 Summary Grid

The primary task of a study case is to activate and deactivate a calculation target, which is a combination
of grids and optionally expansion stages from the network model. The Summary Grid object holds
references to the grids which are considered in the calculation (i.e. the active grids). Grids may be added

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to or removed from the currently active study case by right-clicking on them in the database tree or the
project overview window and Activate or Deactivate them. A reference to the activated/deactivated grid
is automatically generated in or deleted from the Summary Grid.

A grid cannot be activated without an active study case. With no study case active, the Activate action
from the context menu of a grid will show a dialog, where a new study case can be created or an existing
one can be chosen in order to activate the grid.

12.4 Study Time

Study cases have a study time which defines the point in time to analyse.

The study time must be inside the Validity Period of the project, which specifies the time span for
which the project is valid (see Chapter 8: Basic Project Definition, Section 8.1.2 (Project Settings)).
PowerFactory will use the study time in conjunction with time-dependent network expansions (see
Chapter 16: Network Variations and Expansion Stages) to determine which network data is applicable
at that point in time. The study time may be changed in order to analyse a different point in time. The
Expansion Stages will be activated/deactivated in accordance with the study time.

The status bar at the bottom of the PowerFactory program window shows the currently study time.

The simplest way to change the study time is:

• Double-click on the Study Time shown in the status bar of PowerFactory.
• Enter the date and time or press the Date and Time buttons in order to set the study time to the
current time of the computer on which PowerFactory is being run.
• Press OK and close the window.
There are several alternative ways to edit the study time.

Alternative 1: Edit the study time like a trigger:

• Press the button Date/Time of Calculation Case in the main toolbar of PowerFactory.
• Enter the date and time or press the Date and Time buttons in order to set the study time to the
current time of the computer on which PowerFactory is being run.
• Press OK to accept the changes and close the window.
Alternative 2: Edit the study case from within the study case dialog:

• Activate the project and browse for the study case in the Data Manager.
• Right-click on the study case and select Edit from the context menu.
• On the Basic Data page use the drop-down arrow to bring up a standard calendar menu.
• Set the study time.

• Press OK and close the window.

12.5 The Study Case Dialog

To edit the settings of a study case, select Edit → Project Data→ Study Case. . . from the main menu,
or alternatively right-click on the study case in the Data Manager and select Edit from the context menu.
A dialog will appear.

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12.5.1 Basic Data

On the Basic Data page, the user can define the name and an owner of the study case. The grids that
are linked to a study case may be viewed by pressing the Grids button.

The study time can be edited by using the drop-down arrow to bring up a standard calendar menu.

Please note that the study time can also change if the recording expansion stage is set explicitly (see
Chapter 16: Network Variations and Expansion Stages).

Note: To edit the study time one can alternatively press on the “Date/Time of Calculation Case” button
. This will open the study time window. In addition, the time of the simulation case is displayed
in the lower-right corner of PowerFactory. Double-clicking on this field provides access to the
same window.

12.5.2 Calculation Options

The Calculation Options page is used to configure the basic algorithm for the study case calculations.
The following options are available:
• General tab:
– Topological processing: The Breaker reduction mode determines the internal calculation
topology of the grid. In particular, electrically equivalent areas of a detailed substation are
identified and merged for an efficient internal treatment. If the check box Calculate results for
all breakers is ticked, results of reduced elements may then be post-calculated.
– Solution of linear equations: The solution of linear equation systems is an intrinsic part of
most calculations in PowerFactory, such as load flow, short-circuit or the RMS/EMT simula-
tion. Since version 15.2, these equation systems can either be solved by a direct factorisation
method or an iterative method. The latter method has been developed to meet the increas-
ing demands of modern applications where interconnected, large-scale networks must be
analysed. In contrast to traditional direct methods, the implemented iterative solver is able to
solve even very large systems with controlled precision.
– The button Set all calculation options to default will restore all default options on the Cal-
culation Options tab.
• The other tabs (Jacobian Matrix, Optimisation Matrix, Simulation Matrix and Advanced)
include additional calculation options to tune the performance and the robustness of the linear
system solver. Please note that alteration of default options is only recommended under the
supervision of the DIgSILENT support experts.
The Description page is used for user comments.

12.6 Variation Configuration

Similar to the Summary Grid, the Variation Configuration object (IntAcscheme ) contains references
to the active variations.

12.7 Operation Scenarios

A reference to the active Operation Scenario (if any) is always stored in the study case. Similar to
Variation Configurations and Summary Grids, when a study case is activated, the Operation Scenario (if

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 12.8. COMMANDS

any) whose reference is contained, will be automatically activated. The reference to the active Operation
Scenario will be automatically updated by the program.

12.8 Commands

In PowerFactory a calculation (i.e load flow , short-circuit , initial conditions of a time-domain

simulation , etc.) is performed via ’Calculation Commands’, which are the objects that store the
calculation settings defined by the user. Each study case stores its own calculation commands, holding
the most recent settings. This ensures consistency between results and calculation commands and
enables the user to easily reproduce the same results at a later date. When a calculation is performed
in a study case for the first time, a calculation command is automatically created inside the active study
case. Different calculation commands of the same class (i.e different load flow calculation commands:
objects of the class ComLdf or different short-circuit calculation commands: objects of the class
ComShc ) can be stored in the same study case. This allows the user to repeat any calculation with
identical settings (such as fault location, type, fault impedance, etc.) as last performed in the study case.
The calculations are only performed on active grids.

Figure 12.8.1 shows a study case, which contains a load flow calculation command ( ), a command
for an OPF calculation , a command for the calculation of initial conditions , and a command to
run a simulation . The dialog of each of calculation command in PowerFactory is described in the
chapter corresponding to that calculation function.

Figure 12.8.1: Calculation commands in a study case

Actions such as generating a report of the actual calculation results or the state of the defined net-
work components are carried out via commands. For information about reporting commands refer to
Chapter 18 (Reporting and Visualising Results).

Note: As with any other object, calculation commands can be copied, pasted, renamed and edited.

12.9 Events

Simulation Event objects are used to define simulation events. For time-domain simulations, events are
stored within the Study Case → Simulation Events/Fault folder (see Chapter 28: RMS/EMT Simulations,

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Section 28.5 for a general description). For short-circuit studies, they are stored in the Study Case →
Short Circuits folder. For other steady-state calculations that utilise Simulation Events, they are stored
within the Operational Library → Faults folder. PowerFactory offers several kinds of events:

• Broken Conductor Event (EvtBrkcond)

• Dispatch Event (EvtGen)
• External Measurement Event (EvtExtmea)

• Intercircuit Fault Events (EvtShcll)

• Events of Loads (EvtLod)
• Message Event (EvtMessage)
• Outage of Element (EvtOutage)

• Parameter Events (EvtParam)

• Save Results (EvtTrigger )
• Save Snapshot (EvtSave)

• Short-Circuit Events (EvtShc)

• Stop Events (EvtStop)
• Switch Events (EvtSwitch)
• Synchronous Machine Event (EvtSym)

• Tap Event (EvtTap)

• Power Transfer Event (EvtTransfer )

12.9.1 Broken Conductor Event

This event type can be used to simulate a broken conductor in a line element. The user can specify
which phase is broken and whether specific short-circuit conditions apply on either or both sides of the
break. The broken conductor event can be used in the complete short-circuit calculation (if the multiple
faults option is enabled in the short-circuit command) and in dynamic simulations.
• Fault location: defines at which point of the line the event is applied (seen from terminal i).
• Conductor interruption: specifies the phase(s) to be interrupted. Either all phases can be
selected or, if this option is disabled, individual phases can be checked/unchecked.

• Fault at side 1: check this option to apply a fault at side 1 (towards from terminal i) and configure
it accordingly.
• Fault at side 2: check this option to apply a fault at side 2 (towards from terminal j) and configure
it accordingly.

12.9.2 Dispatch Event

The user specifies the point in time in the simulation for the event to occur, and a generation element
(ElmSym, ElmXnet or ElmGenstat) or Ward-Equivalent element (ElmVac).

There is the option to define either an incremental change or a move to a specified set-point.

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12.9.3 External Measurement Event

External measurement events can be used to set and reset values and statuses of external measure-
ments.

12.9.4 Inter-Circuit Fault Events

This type of event is similar to the short-circuit event described in Section 12.9.11 (Short-Circuit Events
(EvtShc)). Two different elements and their respective phases are chosen, between which the fault
occurs. As for the short-circuit event, four different elements can be chosen:

• Busbar (StaBar )
• Terminal (ElmTerm)
• Overhead line or cable (ElmLne)

12.9.5 Events of Loads

The user specifies the point in time in the simulation for the event to occur, and a load or set of load
element(s) (ElmLod, ElmLodlv, ElmLodmv or ElmLodlvp). Optionally a set of loads SetSelect can be
also selected. The value of the load (s) can then be altered using the load event. The power of the
selected load(s) can be changed as follows:

• Step Changes the current value of the power (positive or negative) by the given value (in % of the
operating power of the load) at the time of the event.

• Ramp Changes the current value of the power by the given value (in % of the operating power of
the load), over the time specified by the Ramp Duration (in seconds). The load ramping starts at
the time of the event.

12.9.6 Message Event

A message will be printed to the output window at the specified time in the simulation.

12.9.7 Outage of Element (EvtOutage)

The Outage of Element event can be used to take an element out of service at a specified point in
time. It is intended for use in steady-state calculations (e.g. short-circuit calculations and reliability
assessment) and dynamic simulation.

Out of service: check/uncheck this flag in order to enable/disable this event.

Execution Time: defines the simulation/calculation time when this event is to be executed.

Element: the target element of this event is to be assigned here.

Type of Outage Event:

• Take element out of service - the Element is set to out of service at the defined Execution Time;

• Bring element back into service - the Element is put back in service at the defined Execution Time
(this option is not supported in dynamic simulation);

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• Reinsert all outaged elements - all elements outaged by previously executed outage events are
put back in service (this option is not supported in dynamic simulation);
• Take element and its controls out of service - the Element is set to out of service at the defined
Execution Time along with all associated controls. Associated controls are all DSL elements
(and only those ones) which are referenced into a slot of a composite model whose Main slot is
occupied by the target Element.

Note: The event can be used to take elements out of service in time-domain simulations, however it
is not possible to bring an outaged element back into service using this event during a transient
simulation. This is only possible in steady-state calculations. The following message will be
displayed if the user attempts to bring a previously-outaged element back into service using
Outage of Element:
t=000:000 ms - Outage Event in Simulation not available.
Use Switch-Event instead!

12.9.8 Parameter Events

With this type of event, an input parameter of any element or DSL model can be set or changed. First,
a time specifying when the event will occur is specified. An element or set of elements SetSelect must
then be specified/selected using the down-arrow button . Choose Select. . . from the context menu,
and insert the name and the new value of the element parameter. In case a selection is used all
elements within the selection have to share the same element parameter.

12.9.9 Save Results

This event is only used for PowerFactory Monitor applications. It cannot be used during time-domain
simulations.

12.9.10 Save Snapshot event

This event is used in a time-domain simulation whenever the current simulation state (a simulation
snapshot) is to be saved. Further information on how to configure, save and load a simulation snapshot
can be found in Section 28.9.

Event options:

• Out of service - Check this flag in order to disable its execution. Un-check this flag in order to
activate it.
• Execution time - define the Absolute/Relative execution time of this event. The Absolute time
reference is 0 seconds. The relative time reference is the current simulation time (if the simulation
is reset/initialised, then the relative time fields are not available).

12.9.11 Short-Circuit Events

This event applies a short-circuit on a busbar, terminal or specified point on a line. The fault type (three-
phase, two-phase or single-phase fault) can be specified, as can the fault resistance and reactance and
the phases which are affected. Note that during EMT simulation, a short circuit event is ignored if fault
resistance or reactance is negative.

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The duration of the fault cannot be defined. Instead, to clear the fault, another short-circuit event has to
be defined, which will clear the fault at the same location.

12.9.12 Stop Events

Stops the simulation at the specified time within the simulation time frame.

12.9.13 Switch Events

To create a new switch event, press the icon on the main menu (if this icon is available), which will
open a browser containing all defined simulation events. Click on the icon in the browser and select
Switch Event.

After pressing OK, the reference to the switch (labelled Breaker or Element) must be manually set. Any
switch in the power system may be selected, thus enabling the switching of lines, generators, motors,
loads, etc. The user is free to select the switches/breakers for all phases or only those for one or two
phases.

It should be noted that more than one switching event must be created if, for instance, a line has to be
opened at both ends. These switch events should then have the same execution times.

12.9.14 Synchronous Machine Event

The Synchronous Machine Event is used to change the mechanical torque of a synchronous machine
(ElmSym) in a simple manner. The user specifies the point in time in the simulation for the event to
occur, and an active synchronous machine. The user can then define the additional mechanical torque
supplied to the generator. The torque can be positive or negative and is entered in per-unit values.

12.9.15 Tap Event

The user specifies the point in time in the simulation for the tap event to occur, and a shunt or transformer
element (ElmShnt, ElmTr2, etc). The Tap Action can then be specified.

12.9.16 Power Transfer Event

The Power Transfer event (EvtTransfer ) is used to transfer demand from a load object, or output from
static generator, to other load objects or static generators respectively. The user specifies the source
object (ElmLod or ElmGenstat) and the destination object or objects, which must be of the same class.
Then separate percentage figures are input for active and reactive power. If more than one Power
Transfer event is to be used, it is important to consider the order in which they will be executed, as
this could affect the final outcome. Power Transfer events may be used in RMS simulations, Outage
Management and Faults Cases for contingency analysis.

12.10 Simulation Scan

For details of Simulation Scan modules, refer to Chapter 28: RMS/EMT Simulations, Section 28.8.

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12.11 Results Objects

The results object (ElmRes ) is used to store tables with the results obtained after the execution of a
command in PowerFactory. Results Files are described in chapter ch:ReportingResults: Reporting and
Visualising Results, section 18.7.

For Contingency Analysis, the results object can optionally contain a filter (SetFilt), to restrict the
recording of results to a specified part of the network. The use of such a filter is described in the
Contingency Analysis chapter, in section 26.10.1.

12.12 Triggers

As described in Chapter 17 (Parameter Characteristics, Load States, and Tariffs), parameter charac-
teristics are used to define parameters as ranges of values instead of fixed amounts. The parameter
characteristics are set over user defined scales. The current value of the parameter is at the end
determined by a trigger object (SetTrigger, ), which sets a current value on the corresponding
scale. For example if the value of a certain parameter depends on the temperature, a characteristic
over a temperature scale is set. The current value of the temperature is defined by the trigger. The
current value of the temperature determines the current value of the parameter, according to the defined
characteristic.

Once a parameter characteristic and its corresponding scale are set, a trigger pointing to the scale is
automatically created in the active study case. The user can access the trigger and change its value as
required.

PowerFactory offers different types of characteristics and scales, and each scale points to a trigger from
the active study case. By default, scales are stored in the Scales folder within the Characteristics folder
in the Operational Library. Information regarding the use and definition of characteristics, scales and
triggers is given in Chapter 17 (Parameter Characteristics, Load States, and Tariffs).

12.13 Desktop

The study case has a folder called the Desktop (SetDesktop), which contains graphic page objects that
are linked to the graphics to be displayed. The desktop is automatically created and maintained and
should generally not be edited by the user.

Graphic pages and other pages (tabs), such as the Data Manager or reports, can be freely moved
from one docked or floating window to another. The organisation of these tabbed windows is done
automatically via Tab Group objects (SetTabgroup), also held within the desktop.

The references in the Desktop folder are created when the user activates a grid on a active study case.
The user can display other graphics by right-clicking in a network diagram and selecting Mark in Other
Graphic or Diagrams → Show Detailed Diagram.

Graphics can be removed by right-clicking the tab at the top of the page and selecting Close tab.

More information about the desktop and working with tab groups can be found in sections 4.7.2 and
4.7.3.

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Libraries

13.1 Introduction

There are three types of libraries in PowerFactory :

• 13.2 DIgSILENT Library
• 13.4 Project Library

• 13.3 Custom Global Library

The organisation of the libraries is similar for all the library types. Therefore in the following sections,
after the main libraries are described, each of the subfolders included in the DIgSILENT and project
library are described.

13.2 DIgSILENT Library

A global library (called “DIgSILENT Library”) is supplied with PowerFactory ; it contains a wide range
objects and is accessible to all users. When a database is migrated to a new PowerFactory version, the
DIgSILENT Library will be refreshed with all the new and updated information and if a user were to have
made changes and additions, all that information would be lost, which is why it is not recommended to
modify this library.

The DIgSILENT Library contains:

• Composite model frames, DSL and Modelica models, and DSL macros (i.e. transfer functions and
logic blocks, etc.) (see Section 13.10: Dynamic Models Library)

• Type data for standard components such as conductors, motors, generators, and transformers
(see Section 13.5: Equipment Type Library)
• Harmonic current spectrums and frequency characteristics (see Section 13.13: Harmonics Li-
brary)

• Operational data (e.g. predefined characteristics for loads, coincidence definitions) (see Sec-
tion 13.6: Operational Library)
• Models and type data for protection devices (see Section 13.12: Protection Devices Library)
• Quasi-Dynamic models (see Section 13.11: Quasi-Dynamic Models Library)

• Pre-defined report templates (see Section 13.7)

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• Standard scripts (see Section 13.8: Scripts Library)

• Pre-defined model templates (see Section 13.9: Templates Library)

13.2.1 Versioning in the DIgSILENT Library

All the main objects (types, models etc.) in the DIgSILENT Library are managed using versions. The
versioning distinguishes between major and minor versions. For example a type object might be at
v002.1, where the main version number (002 in this example) is incremented when a comprehensive
change to the object is made, and the minor version number (.1 in this example) is incremented when a
small change that will not affect calculation results is made. Elements that are no longer maintained by
DIgSILENT are marked as obsolete.

A version page shows the version number and a Change Log to indicate the modification history.

When the DIgSILENT global library is updated, for example due to the installation of a new version
of PowerFactory, all minor version changes will be implemented automatically. This means that a new
minor version will replace the previously released version of an element. If a new major version of an
element is released, the corresponding previous versions will be automatically retained in subfolders.

13.3 Custom Global Library

When several users work for the same company, there is often a need to share a custom library between
these users. Instead of copying the library from user to user, a more convenient approach is to create
an additional library in the global area which will be visible for all the users.

The custom library should be defined by the Administrator as follows:

• Right-click on the “Database” folder

• Select New → Library. . . from the context menu
• Choose a library name and click OK

The new library is now created at the same level of the hierarchy as the DIgSILENT global library.

The user groups with access to the library, and their level of access, are defined on the Sharing page
of the edit dialog of the library.

Several libraries can be created, but only one can be edited by a user at a time. In order to edit the
library, it has to be active; the library is activated using right-click → Activate.

Once an additional global library is added, it should be set in the User Settings as Used Library (see
chapter User Settings, Section 7.1).

The versioning of the Custom Global Library works in exactly the same way as for the PowerFactory
project, described in Section 20.2: Project Versions.

13.4 Project Library

The project library stores the following categories of data:

• Dynamic models (see Sections 13.10: Dynamic Models Library and 13.11: Quasi-Dynamic Mod-
els Library)
• Equipment types (see Section 13.5: Equipment Type Library)

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• Operational data (see Section 13.6: Operational Library)

• Reports (see section 13.7: Reports Library)
• Scripts (see Section 13.8: Scripts Library)
• Templates (see Section 13.9: Templates Library)

Unlike global libraries, which are accessible to all users, the project’s local library stores project-specific
data. It can only be used by the project owner and users sharing the project.

13.5 Equipment Type Library

The Equipment Type Library is used to store and organise type data for each class of network compo-
nent.

In the DIgSILENT Library, folder Equipment Types, the following element types are available:
• Busbar Trunking Systems
• Busbars
• CTs (current transformers)
• Cables
• Conductors
• Induction Machines
• Loads
• PV Panels
• Switches
• Synchronous Machines
• Towers
• Transformers
• VTs (voltage transformers)
For the project, once a new project is created, an Equipment Type Library is automatically set by the
program within the Library folder inside the project.

To create or edit a folder in the Equipment Type Library of an active project:

1. Right-click on the Equipment Type Library folder in the left pane of the Data Manager and select
New → Project Folder. . . from the context menu (or to edit an existing folder, right-click the folder
and select Edit). The project folder edit dialog is displayed.
2. In the Name field, enter the name of the new folder.
3. In the Folder Type field, select Generic.
4. In the Class Filter field, write the name of the type class(es) to be allowed in the folder (case
sensitive). If more than one class is to be allowed, write the class names separated by commas.
An asterisk character (* ) can be used to allow all classes.
5. In the Icon field, select Library.

To create new type objects in the library folders, select the New Object icon and the appropriate
type class; alternatively, types can be copied from other projects or the DIgSILENT library.

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Note: If a class filter is applied to the library folder, only the objects belonging to the class will be
shown in the New Object dialog. An error message is displayed when pasting objects with a class
different than the defined one the type class.

Figure 13.5.1 shows the equipment library of a project containing generators, loads, and transformers
types, sorted using library sub-folders.

Figure 13.5.1: The Equipment Library

There are two options available for defining the type data for network components:
1. Select Type: the Data Manager pointing to the DIgSILENT Library, shown in Figure 13.5.2, is
launched. The Project Library button can be used to quickly switch between the global and local
libraries.

Note: If an additional library is defined in the global area (see Section 13.3) and set in the User
Settings (see Section 7.1), an additional button will be available in the dialog

2. New Project Type: a new type will be defined and automatically stored in the local Equipment Type
Library.

Figure 13.5.2: Libraries buttons shown when assigning a type

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13.6 Operational Library

The Operational Library is used to store and organise operational data for application to a number of
elements, without the need to duplicate operational information.

To illustrate, consider an example where there are two generators, “G1” and “G2”. The units have
slightly different type data, and thus unique type models. The Mvar Limit Curves for these units are
identical, and so the user wishes to create only a single instance of the capability curve. By defining a
Capability Curve in the Operational Library, a single capability curve can be linked to both generators.

Similarly, various circuit breakers may refer to the same short-circuit current ratings. A Circuit Breaker
Rating object can be defined in the Operational Library and linked to relevant circuit breakers.

Characteristics can also be assigned to many element parameters. The use of Characteristics is
described in detail in Chapter 17. Such characteristics are normally held in the Characteristics folder of
the Operational Library.

The DIgSILENT Library includes a number of standard load characteristics within the folder Operational
Data → Characteristics→ BDEW Profiles, as well as coincidence definitions for electrical vehicles,
households and heatpumps within the folder Operational Data → Coincidence Definitions.

The Operational Library inside the project library contains the following folders:

• CB Ratings (see Section 13.6.1: Circuit Breaker Ratings)

• Characteristics (see Chapter 17: Parameter Characteristics, Load States, and Tariffs)
• Coincidence Definitions (see Section 13.6.2: Coincidence Definitions)

• Common Mode Failures (see Section 45.3.1.6: Common Mode Stochastic Model (StoCommon))
• Demand Transfers (see Section 13.6.3: Demand Transfers)
• Faults (see Section 13.6.4: Fault Cases and Fault Groups)
• Generator Cost Curves (see Section 39.5.2.1, Chapter 39: Unit Commitment and Dispatch Opti-
misation)
• Generator Efficiency Curves (see Section 39.6.1, Chapter 39: Unit Commitment and Dispatch
Optimisation)
• Mvar Limit Curves (see Section 13.6.5: Capability Curves (Mvar Limit Curves) for Generators)

• Outages (see Section 13.6.6: Planned Outages)

• Probabilistic Assessment (see Chapter 44: Probabilistic Analysis)
• QP-Curves (see Section 13.6.8: QP-Curves)
• QV-Curves (see Section 13.6.9: QV-Curves)

• Remedial Action Schemes (RAS) (see Section 13.6.10: Remedial Action Schemes (RAS))
• Running Arrangements (see Section 13.6.11: Running Arrangements)
• Tariffs (see Chapter 17: Parameter Characteristics, Load States, and Tariffs)

• Thermal Ratings (see Section 13.6.12: Thermal Ratings)

• V-Control-Curves (see Section 13.6.13: V-Control-Curves)

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13.6.1 Circuit Breaker Ratings

Circuit Breaker Ratings objects (IntCbrating) contain information that define the rated short-circuit
currents of circuit breakers (objects of class ElmCoup). They are stored inside the CB-Rating folder
in the Operational Library. Any circuit breaker (ElmCoup) defined in the Network Model can use a
reference to a Circuit Breaker Rating object in order to change its current ratings.

The parameters defined by a circuit breaker rating are:

• Three phase initial peak short circuit current.
• Single phase initial peak short circuit current.
• Three phase peak break short circuit current.
• Single phase peak break short circuit current.
• Three phase RMS break short circuit current.
• Single phase RMS break short circuit current.
• DC time constant.
Additionally, the values for the Bay Infrastructure Ratings can be defined. These represent the ratings
for the structural components of the circuit breaker mounting.

• Three phase initial peak short circuit current

• Single phase initial peak short circuit current
• Three phase RMS break short circuit current
• Single phase RMS break short circuit current

Note: The complete ratings for circuit breakers are not used for any calculations in PowerFactory.
The entries are intended for informational and scripting purposes. Similarly, this applies to the
parameters belonging to the Complete Ratings option of Switch Types (TypSwitch).

To create a new circuit breaker rating in the operational library:

• In the Data Manager open the CB Ratings folder.

• Click on the New Object icon .

• Select Circuit Breaker Rating (IntCbrating) and press Ok.
• The new circuit breaker rating dialog will then be displayed. Set the corresponding parameters
and press Ok.
To assign a circuit breaker rating to a circuit breaker (ElmCoup object) from the network model:
1. Go to the Short-Circuit Complete page of the element’s dialog.

2. In the Ratings field click on the button to select the desired rating from the CB Ratings folder.
The parameters defined in the circuit breaker ratings can be made to be time-dependant by means of
variations and expansion stages stored inside the CB Ratings folder.

For information regarding short-circuit calculations, refer to Chapter Short-Circuit Analysis. For further
information about variations and expansion stages, refer to Chapter Network Variations and Expansion
Stages.

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Note: Variations in the CB Ratings folder act “locally”, they will only affect the circuit breaker ratings
stored within the folder. Similarly, the variations of the Network Model will only affect the network
components from the grids.

Note: Circuit breaker elements (ElmCoup) must be distinguished from Switch objects (StaSwitch); the
latter are automatically created inside cubicles when connecting an edge element (which differs
to a circuit breaker) to a terminal. Ratings can also be entered in the TypSwitch object.

13.6.1.1 Example Time-Dependent Circuit Breaker Rating

Consider an example where a substation circuit breaker “CB” operates with different ratings depending
on the time of the year. From 1st January to 1st June it operates according to the ratings defined in a
set of parameters called “CBR1”. From 1st June to 31st December it operates with the ratings defined
in a set of parameters called “CBR2”.

This operational procedure can be modelled by defining a circuit breaker rating “CBR” in the CB Ratings
folder, and a variation “CB_Sem_Ratings” containing two expansion stages. The first expansion stage
should activate on the 1st January and the second on the 1st June. The first task is the definition of the
time-dependant circuit breaker rating “CBR”. To set the parameters of “CBR” for the first period:

1. Set a study time before the 1st June to activate the first expansion stage (the Variation “CB_Sem_-
Ratings” must be active).
2. Edit the parameters of “CBR” (previously defined) according to the values defined in “CBR1”. The
new parameters will be stored in the active expansion stage.
3. To set the parameters of “CBR” for the second period:
4. Set a study time after the 1st June to activate the second expansion stage;
5. Edit “CBR” according to the values of “CBR2”. The new parameters will be stored in the active
expansion stage.

Once the ratings for the two expansion stages have been set, and the circuit breaker rating “CBR” has
been assigned to the circuit breaker “CB”, the study time can be changed from one period to the other
to apply the relevant ratings for “CB” (note that the variation must be active).

13.6.2 Coincidence Definitions

Coincidence Definitions (objects class IntCoincdef ) describe the simultaneity of load demand, for ex-
ample of households or of electric vehicle charging. Coincidence Definitions are typically used in low
voltage power system analysis to assess maximum load demands and associated voltage drops, see
Section 41.5.

13.6.3 Demand Transfers

Note that Demand Transfers make use of the IntOutage object, which has now been superseded by
the new IntPlannedout object described in section 13.6.7. Therefore, users wishing to create IntOutage
objects will need to enable a project setting: on the Project Settings, Miscellaneous page select Create
IntOutage (obsolete).

The active and reactive power demand defined for loads and feeders in the network model can be
transferred to another load (or feeder) within the same system by means of a Demand Transfer (objects

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class IntOutage). This transfer only takes place if it is applied during a validity period defined by the
user (i.e. if the current study time lies within the validity period).

To create a new load demand transfer:

1. In the Data Manager, open the Demand Transfer folder.

2. Click on the New Object icon .

3. Select Planned Outage (IntOutage) and press Ok.
4. Set the validity time, the source and target loads/feeders and the power transfer.

Note: If there is a demand transfer, which transfers load between two loads (ElmLod) belonging to
different feeders (ElmFeeder ), then the same MW and Mvar value is transferred from one feeder
to the other.

A demand transfer is only possible if an active operation scenario (to record the changes) is available.
The Apply all button will automatically apply all transfers that are stored in the current folder and which
fit into the current study time. Before execution, the user is asked if the current network state should
be saved in a new operation scenario. The same demand transfers can be applied as many times as
desired during the validity period.

If a non-zero power transfer has been executed and the source’s power is less than zero, a warning is
printed to the output window indicating that the power limit has been exceeded. The applied transfers
can be reverted by using the Reset all button.

When the current operation scenario is deactivated, all load transfers executed while the operation
scenario was active will be reverted.

For information about operation scenarios refer to Chapter Operation Scenarios.

13.6.4 Fault Cases and Fault Groups

This section discusses the data structure of the Faults folder, and the objects contained within it. The
functionality of Event objects is described in Section 28.5: Events (IntEvt).

The Faults folder stores two types of subfolders:

1. Fault Cases folders, which in turn store objects that represent Simulation Events or Faults .
Simulation Events/Fault may contain a number of individual Events (Evt* ), e.g. short-circuits
events, switching events.
2. Fault Groups folders store Fault Groups (IntFaultgrp) objects, which in turn reference Fault Cases.
The following sections provide a details of how to define Fault Cases and Fault Groups.

13.6.4.1 Fault Cases

A fault case can represent a fault in more than one component, with more than one event defined. There
are two types of Fault Cases:

1. Fault cases without switch events (Type 1): Independent of the current topology and only
stores the fault locations. The corresponding switch events are automatically generated by the
contingency analysis tools.

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2. Fault Case with at least one switch event (Type 2): A Fault Case of Type 2 predefines the
switch events that will be used to clear the fault. No automatic generation of switch events will
take place.

To create new fault case (object of class IntEvt):

1. Multi-select the target components on a single line diagram.
2. Right-click and select Operational Library → Fault Cases from the context menu.
3. Select from the following options:
• New Single Fault Case: This creates a single simultaneous fault case including all selected
elements. A dialog box containing the created fault case is opened to allow the user to specify
a name for the fault case. Press Ok to close the dialog and saves the new fault case.
• New Multiple Fault Cases, n-1: This creates an n-1 fault case for each selected component.
Therefore the number of fault cases created is equal to the number of components selected.
The fault case is automatically created in the database after selection.
• New Multiple Fault Cases, n-2: This creates an n-2 fault case for each unique pair among
the selected components. Therefore the number of fault cases is (𝑏 · (𝑏 − 1)/2) where “b” is
equal to the number of selected components. The fault case is automatically created in the
database after selection.
• New Mutually Coupled Lines/Cables, n-k : This creates fault cases considering the simul-
taneous outage of each coupled line in the selection.
The fault cases created will consist of short-circuit events applied to the selected components. All
breakers (except for circuit breakers, which are used to model a circuit breaker failure) will be ignored.

• If only breakers are included in the selection, an error message will be issued.
• If a simple switch (not a circuit breaker) is included in the selection, a warning message will be
issued that this switch will be ignored.
• If a circuit breaker is contained in the selection, then an Info message will be issued, that the CB
will be used for modelling a CB failure and will not be handled as a fault location.

Note: In the case that a branch is selected, the short-circuit event is generated for a (non-switch device
with more than one connection) component of the branch. The component used in the event
is: “Connection 1” if suitable, otherwise “Connection 2” if suitable, otherwise a suitable random
component of the branch (line, transformer . . . ).

13.6.4.2 Fault Groups

New Fault Groups are created in the Data Manager as follows:

1. Open the target Fault Groups folder and select the New Object icon .
2. Select Fault Group from the list and click OK.
3. In the edit dialog, specify the name and use the button Add Cases to add Simulation Events/Fault
(IntEvt) to the Fault Group.

13.6.5 Capability Curves (Mvar Limit Curves) for Generators

Reactive Power operating limits can be specified in PowerFactory through definition of Capability Curves
(IntQlim). They are stored in the Operational Library, within the Mvar Limit Curves folder. Syn-
chronous generators (ElmSym) and static generators (ElmGenstat) defined in the network model can

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use a pointer to a capability curve from the Load Flow page of their edit dialog. When executing a Load
Flow (with Consider Reactive Power Limits selected on the Basic Options page) the generators’ reactive
power dispatch will be limited to within the extends of the defined capability curve. For information about
the dispatch of synchronous generators, refer to the synchronous machine technical reference in the
Technical References Document. For information on Load Flow calculations and reactive power limits,
refer to Chapter 24 (Load Flow Analysis).

Note: If Consider active power limits is selected on the Basic Options page of the Load Flow Calculation
command, active power is limited to the lesser of the Max. Active Power Operational Limits and
the Max. Active Power Rating specified on the synchronous machine Load Flow page.

13.6.5.1 Capability Curves IntQlim

Basic Data

The Basic Data page consists of tables to enter the reactive power capabilities as well as an auto-
matically generated graphical representation of the given curves. The input table changes based on
whether the voltage dependency of the reactive power capability is considered or not. This can be set
via Configuration → Consider voltage dependent limits. The values for the curves can either be entered
as absolute values (i.e. MW and Mvar) or in per-unit, which can be selected on the Configuration page
as well.

• Without voltage dependent limits: In this case, the user can provide the minimum and maximum
reactive power limits at certain active power setpoints in a table with the title Capability Curve.
The active power must be entered in ascending order. The reactive power limits between two row
entries are linearly interpolated.
• With voltage dependent limits: If this setting is activated, the user can enter the capability
curve using the Matrix for Qmin and the Matrix for Qmax. The rows containing the voltage
reference points in p.u. and columns containing the active power reference points are set on
the Configuration page. The capability curve is graphically depicted for each voltage level. The
limits are linearly interpolated depending on the operating voltage and active power of the network
element.

Note: The breakpoints in the curve at the voltage levels set in the reactive power capability curve
definition are smoothed for load flow calculations. This may lead to slight deviations close to the
reference voltages. Additional precision can be achieved by adding supporting voltages close to
the reference voltage with the respective linearly interpolated reactive power limits.

Configuration

This page contains the configuration for the data input on the Basic Data page.

• Input Model: This switches the input for the values of the active and reactive power defined on
the Basic Data page between absolute (i.e. MW and Mvar) or per-unit (p.u.) values.
• Consider voltage dependent limits: This option allows to consider the voltage dependency
of the reactive power capability curves. By activating this setting, the user can enter the voltage
reference points in ascending order as Rows. Additionally, the active power set points, which were
previously set on the Basic Data page, are now entered on the Configuration page as Columns.

Note: The per-unit values for the active and reactive power of the capability curves refer to the nominal
apparent power of the respective network element. If the element consists of multiple parallel units

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(i.e. Number of parallel units (ngnum) on the Basic Data page of the generator greater than one)
the absolute power limit is applied to each individual unit.

13.6.5.2 Defining Capability Curves

To define a new generator Capability Curve:

1. Open the folder Mvar Limit Curves from the Operational Library.

2. Click on the New Object icon and select Capability Curve. The new capability curve dialog will
be displayed.
3. Right-click on Append Row(s) to add the required number of rows to the table and enter data
points to define the generation limits.
4. To apply a Capability Curve to a generator:
• Locate the Reactive Power Limit section on the Load Flow page of the synchronous ma-
chine’s or static generator’s dialog.
• Press next to Capability Curve.
• Choose Select and then select the required curve in the Mvar Limit Curves folder of the
Operational Library (the required curve can also be created at this step by selecting the New
Object icon .
5. Select a capability curve and press OK.
Capability curves are included in operation scenario subsets; meaning that if a capability curve is
selected/reset from a generator when an operation scenario is active, the change will be stored in
the operation scenario. Once the operation scenario is deactivated, the assignment/reset of the curve
is reverted. For information on working with operation scenarios, refer to Chapter 15 (Operation Sce-
narios).

To enter a capability curve for information purposes only (i.e. a capability curve which is not to be
considered by the calculation), enter it on the Advanced tab of the Load Flow page. Then select User
defined Capability Curve and enter the curve as a series of points in the table. Right-click on the rows
to append, delete or insert new rows.

13.6.5.3 Defining a Variation of a Capability Curve

Similar to circuit breaker ratings (see Section 13.6.1 (Circuit Breaker Ratings), Capability Curves can
become time-dependant by means of variations and expansion stages stored inside the Mvar Limit
Curves folder.

To create a time-dependent variation for a Capability Curve, navigate to theMvar Limit Curves folder in
the left pane of a Data Manager window. Right-click on the folder and select New → Variation. . . . Name
the variation, press OK, name the Expansion Stage, and press OK. Changes to Capability Curves are
recorded in the active expansion stage.

To activate a variation of a Capability Curve, open the Data Manager. Right-click the Variation object
in the Mvar Limit Curves folder and select Activate.

For general information about variations and expansion stages refer to Chapter 16 (Network Variations
and Expansion Stages).

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13.6.6 Planned Outages

Planned Outage objects (IntPlannedout) are normally stored in the Outage folder of the Operational
Library. They can be applied to an active study case to model expected outages of network elements
for maintenance, network expansion etc. Figure 13.6.1 shows the dialog box of a Planned Outage
object, illustrating the following features:
• Start and End date of the period for which the Planned Outage is valid.
• Outaged components.
• Buttons to apply and reset the outage, view the events and record additional events.

Figure 13.6.1: Planned Outage object dialog

Changes to switch positions and other parameters resulting from the application of Planned Outages
will be taken into account for all calculations but are only effective as long as the study case is active. A
new toolbar has been provided for the handling of Planned Outages. Please see chapter 42 for how to
create Planned Outage objects and handle them via the toolbar.

13.6.7 Planned Outages IntOutage

Note that this subsection refers to the original IntOutage object, which is now superseded by the
IntPlannedout object described in section 13.6.6. Users wishing to create IntOutage objects will need
to enable a project setting: on the Project Settings, Miscellaneous page select Create IntOutage
(obsolete).

A Planned Outage is an object used to check and/or apply an Outage of Element or Generator Derating
over a specified time period. Planned Outages are stored within the Operational Library in the Outages
folder.

• For the Outage of Element type, PowerFactory automatically isolates the referenced components.
The switches connecting the target elements with the other network components are open and the
terminals connected to the elements are earthed (if the Earthed option in the terminal (ElmTerm)
dialog is checked). Note that the target element can only be earthed if it is directly connected

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(without switches in the cubicle) to terminals, which are then connected through switches to the
network terminals.
• For a Generator Derating, a reference to the generator which is to be derated and the magnitude
of the MW reductions is specified. For the Generator Derating, the maximum active power that
can be dispatched (defined on the Load Flow page of the generator element dialog, in the section
Operational Limits) is recalculated as the difference between the maximum active power (section
Active Power: Ratings) and the MW reductions.

Note: If a Planned Outage object is defined in the Outages folder of the Operational Library, only the
outage types Outage of Element and Generator Derating are enabled. Similarly if outage objects
are defined in the Demand transfer folder, only the outage type Demand Transfer is enabled.

13.6.7.1 Defining Outages and Deratings

To create a new Element Outage or Generator Derating:

1. In the Data Manager, open the Outages folder.

2. Click on the New Object icon , select Planned Outage and press Ok.

3. The Planned Outage dialog will be displayed. In the Outage Type frame of the dialog, the options
Outage of an Element and Generator Derating will be enabled. Set the desired Outage Type,
Start Time and End Time.
4. The definition of a Planned Outage requires reference(s) to relevant network components. To
create a reference:
• Press the Contents button of the outage object.
• In the data browser that is displayed, create a reference to the target element by selecting
the New Object icon (IntRef ).
• Press the button in the Reference field to select the target element.
• Press Ok to add the reference.
5. (Generator Derating only) Specify the MW Reduction (see previous section for details) for the
generator derating.
6. To apply the Planned Outage, press the Apply button (the Apply button is only available if the
study time lies within the outage period, and an Operation Scenario is active).

Applied outages and generator deratings can be reset using the Reset button.

13.6.7.2 Checking Outages and Deratings

The Check All button in the Planned Outage dialog is used to verify if the actions defined for the
target element(s) have been performed (right-click a Planned Outage and select Check to perform an
individual check). Only the outages within a valid period are considered. Outages marked as Out of
Service are not regarded (even if the study time lies within the outage period).

For an Outage of Element, the energising state is always determined by a connectivity analysis. Any
component that is connected to an External Grid or a reference Generator is considered to be energised.
All other components are considered to be de-energised (if circuit breakers are open). A de-energised
component is earthed if a topological connection to a grounding switch or an earthed terminal exists
(terminal with the Earthed option checked).

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Note: If the outaged element is a Branch Element (ElmBranch), all contained elements are checked.
If any of these elements is not correctly outaged, the whole branch is reported as not correctly
outaged.

The fulfilment of programmed outages can also be checked via the use of the colour representation
function available within the single line graphic by setting the Colouring option to Outage Check from
the colour representation dialog . The following states are coloured, according to user preferences:

• Components that are energised, but should be outaged.

• Components that are de-energised and not earthed, but should be outaged.
• Components that are de-energised and earthed, but should NOT be outaged.
• Components that are de-energised, not earthed and should be outaged.
• Generators that are not derated, but should be outaged.
• Generators that are derated, but should NOT be outaged.

13.6.8 QP-Curves

Q(P)-curves (IntQpcurve) are used by generators (ElmSym, ElmGenstat and ElmAsm), loads (ELm-
Lod) and station controllers (ElmStactrl) when the controller mode Q(P)-Characteristic is selected. In
this mode, the reactive power control follows a user-specified characteristic, so that the reactive power
setpoint is adapted according to the active power output.

A detailed description of the Q(P)-curves is provided in Technical References Document (Q(P)-Curve

IntQpcurve).

13.6.9 QV-Curves

Q(V)-curves (IntQvcurve) are used by static generators (ElmGenstat), station controllers (ElmStactrl)
and loads (ELmLod) when the controller mode Q(V)-Characteristic is selected. In this mode, the
reactive power control follows a user-specified characteristic, so that the reactive power setpoint is
adapted according to the voltage.

A detailed description of the Q(V)-curves is provided in Technical References Document (Q(V)-Curve

IntQvcurve).

13.6.10 Remedial Action Schemes (RAS)

Remedial Action Schemes (IntRas) and Remedial Action Scheme groups may be used during contin-
gency analysis. If the user creates Remedial Action Schemes and groups, they will be stored here in
the Operational Library. See chapter 26, Section 26.11 for more information.

13.6.11 Running Arrangements

Running Arrangement objects store operational data (switch status) for a single substation. As
shown in Figure 13.6.2, a Running Arrangement uses a reference to the substation object (ElmSubstat)
whose switch statuses are stored. A Start Time and End Time is used to specify the validity period of
the Running Arrangement. Running arrangements are stored in the Running Arrangements folder in
the Operational Library.

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Figure 13.6.2: RA object dialog

Different configurations of the same substation can be defined by storing the corresponding switch
statuses in Running Arrangements. Different Running Arrangements can then be easily selected during
a study. If a running arrangement is selected for a substation, the status of the substation switches
cannot be modified (i.e. they become read-only). If there is no setting for a switch in a Running
Arrangement (i.e. the Running Arrangement is incomplete), the switch will remain unchanged but
its status will also be set to read-only. If the current Running Arrangement is deselected, switch status
will be reverted to the status prior to application of the Running Arrangement, and write-access will be
re-enabled. Running arrangements are defined and selected in the substation object dialog Basic Data
page.

Note: Running arrangements store only the status of switches of class ElmCoup. The status of switches
which are automatically created in a cubicle following the connection of a edge element (StaSwitch
objects) are not considered in a running arrangement.

Further details of how to create, select, apply, and assign Running Arrangements are provided in the
following sections.

13.6.11.1 Creating a Running Arrangement

To store the current status of the switches in a substation, a Running Arrangement object must be
created. To create and save a new Running Arrangement (RA):
1. Click on an empty place in the substation graphic, and from the context menu choose Edit Sub-
station. Open the substation dialog.
2. Click Save as to store the switch settings of the substation as a new RA. This button is only
available if there is currently no RA selection active.

3. In the new RA dialog is displayed, specify a name and time period, and press Ok. The new RA is
automatically stored in the Running Arrangements folder in the Operational Library.
An Overwrite button is available in the substation dialog (if no RA is selected), to store current switch
statuses to an existing RA.

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The Assign button contained in the Running Arrangement (RA) dialog facilitates the selection of the
RA as the one currently selected for the corresponding substation. This action is also available in the
context menu in the Data Manager (when right-clicking on an RA inside the Data Manager). It should
be noted that assignment is executed immediately and cannot be undone by pressing the cancel button
of the dialog.

Figure 13.6.3: Running Arrangement Dialog

A Mark related substation in graphic button is provided on the Running Arrangement object. This can
be used to display the related substation diagram or find the related substation in an overview graphic.

It is also possible to do this using the Mark in Graphic option in the context menu displayed when
right-clicking on a Running Arrangement in a Data Manager.

13.6.11.2 Selecting a Running Arrangement

A Running Arrangement (RA) can be selected in the Basic Data page of a substation dialog:
1. Open the substation dialog.

2. In the Running Arrangement frame of the Substation dialog, select from a list of previously
defined RA’s.

3. Select the desired RA. This selection is immediately reflected in the substation graphic.
While an RA is selected, the switch statuses of a substation are determined by this RA and cannot be
changed by the user (i.e. they are read-only).

If there is no setting for a switch in an RA (i.e. the RA is incomplete), such a switch will remain
unchanged but its status is also set to read-only.

Furthermore, there is a button Select by Study Time (also available via the context menu when right-
clicking on the Data Manager), which selects a valid RA automatically according to the study time. If
there are multiple RAs valid for the current study time, or if there is no valid one, a warning is printed to
PowerFactory ’s output window (nothing is selected in this case).

13.6.11.3 Applying and Resetting a Running Arrangement

An active Running Arrangement (RA) can be applied to a substation by pressing the Apply and Reset
button from within the substation dialog. This action copies the statuses stored in the RA directly in the
substation switches. It is only available only if an RA is selected. The RA will be deselected afterwards.
An RA can be directly set as the substation’s selected RA, using the Assign button (from within the RA
dialog).

The following functional aspects must be regarded when working with running arrangements:

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• An RA can be selected for each substation. If an operation scenario is active, the selection of
an RA in a substation is recorded in the operation scenario (i.e. the RA selection is part of the
operational data included in the operation scenario subset).

• If a variation is active (and there is no active operation scenario), the selection of the RA is stored
in the recording expansion stage.
• While an RA is selected, the switch statuses of the corresponding substation are determined by
the RA and can not be modified. Any attempt to change such a switch status will be rejected
and a warning message will be printed to the output window. The switch statuses preceding the
activation of an RA remain unchanged and are restored when deselecting the RA.
• The switch statuses stored in the RA could be incomplete due to the activation of a variation or a
modification made to the network model. For example, if an RA was defined and then deactivated,
and then later new switches were added to a substation. In this case if the RA is re-activated, a
warning would be printed to the output window and the current switch statuses, which depend on
the base network, active variations and active operation scenario, remain unchanged. Missing
switch statuses will be added only when performing the Save as or Overwrite functions (available
in the substation dialog).
• Switch statuses stored in the RA, and which are currently not required (depending on expansion
stages) are ignored and remain unchanged. In this case a summary warning is printed during the
RA activation.
• It is not possible to add a new switch to a substation while a running arrangement is selected.
Additionally, it is not possible to delete an existing switch from this substation. In both cases the
action is blocked and an error message is issued.
For information regarding operation scenarios and their application refer to Chapter 15 (Operation
Scenarios).

13.6.12 Thermal Ratings

Thermal Ratings objects (IntThrating) allow the definition of continuous and post-fault operational
ratings for certain branch elements. Thermal Ratings objects are stored in the Thermal Ratings folder in
the Operational Library. Depending on their configuration, one-, two- or three-dimensional matrices can
be defined for the continuous ratings that take the ambient temperature, wind speed and solar irradiance
into account. Similarly, short term post-fault ratings can be defined which additionally take the preload
and duration into account. The meteorological dependencies use the settings from the meteorological
station (ElmMeteostat, see chapter Meteorological Stations) that is referenced by the respective branch
element. If the branch does not reference such a station, the following default values are assumed:

• Ambient temperature: 20 °C

• Wind speed: 0 m/s

• Solar irradiance (GHI): largest defined value in W/m2

The following section provide an overview on how to define thermal ratings object. A detailed description
is provided in Technical References Document (Thermal Ratings IntThrating).

13.6.12.1 Defining and Using Thermal Ratings

References to Thermal Ratings are defined on the Basic Data page of the dialog of the target branch
elements. Elements that can use references to Thermal Ratings are:

• Transmission lines (ElmLne).

• Transformers (ElmTr*).

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• Series reactors (ElmSind).

• Series capacitors (ElmScap).

• Bays (ElmBay ).
To create a new Thermal Ratings object:
1. Open the folder Thermal Ratings from the Operational Library.

2. Click on the New Object icon and select Thermal Ratings.

3. The new object dialog is displayed.
4. Depending of the options set on the Configuration page, there will be tables on the Continuous
Ratings and Short Term Ratings pages.

The values of a thermal rating object can be edited at any time by double-clicking on it to open the
Thermal Ratings dialog. Similar to Circuit Breaker Ratings and Capability Curves, Thermal Ratings
objects can be made to be time-dependant by means of variations and expansion stages stored inside
the Thermal Ratings folder (refer to the Circuit Breaker Ratings section for an explanation on how to
define time-dependant operational objects).

When a contingency analysis (ComSimoutage) is configured, the user can define a post-contingency
time. According to the pre-fault loading found by the load flow used to calculate the base case,
and the post-contingency time (if specified), the ratings to be used in the contingency load flow are
determined (based on the referred Thermal Ratings object). The loading of the branch elements
after the contingency load flow are calculated with respect to the new ratings. For information about
contingency analysis refer to Chapter 26 (Contingency Analysis).

13.6.13 V-Control-Curves

The curves in this folder, i.e. V-Control-Curve (IntVctrlcurve) are used by transformers, if the user wishes
to define the voltage setpoint according to the power or current flow through the transformer.

13.7 Reports Library

The DIgSILENT Library contains the templates for the predefined reports used in PowerFactory. These
are found in the Reports folder, in subfolder Documents, and are grouped according to the calculation
function that they relate to.

The Reports folder in a project is used for storing user-defined report templates.

Information about using the standard reports and creating user-defined reports can be found in section
18.5.

13.8 Scripts Library

In the Scripts Library within a project, all the Python and DPL scripts created by the user are stored.

The DIgSILENT Library offers a list of predefined scripts that can be copied or directly used by all users.
The scripts in this library are updated when changes that affect them are made in the PowerFactory
development and in this case, a new version of the script is generated.

The scripts available and maintained in the DIgSILENT Library are:

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• Efficiency ratio calculation: calculates the efficiency ratio (EffR) of a selection of expansion
stages, expressing the benefits due to grid extension with respect to the investment costs [in %]
• EvaluateTececoCalcForStudyCases: evaluates the techno-economical effects of different study
cases compared to one dedicated base study case.
• HermanBeta: calculates the voltage drop at single buses or at all buses of a feeder using the
Herman Beta algorithm.
• Impedance Loci: scans a user-defined impedance loci representing the short-circuit impedance
of an external network and determines by means of an iterative Harmonic Load Flow calculation
those R-X values resulting in the highest voltage harmonic distortion at each harmonic frequency.
• RadialFeedersReport: creates a tabular report of feeder calculation parameters.
• RunRelForStudyCases: activates the selected study cases and runs the reliability command
stored inside the cases. A result file with the results of the runs is created. Plots and reports are
created automatically.
• Stochastic Switching: executes a multi-run EMT simulation for line switching analysis. It varies
the dispersion and scatter times and reports result extrema and probabilities.
More information about how to use the scripts and is available in the Description page of each script
(DPL Command).

More information about working with scripts is available in chapter Scripting.

13.9 Templates Library

The Templates folder is used to store and organise templates of network components (or groups of
components) for re-use in a power system model. Components from templates are created using the
graphical editor. There are two types of templates:

1. General Templates: used to group a set of network elements, described in detail in section 13.9.1.
2. Templates of composite elements: templates of substations, busbars or composite branches
containing all the internal elements (including diagrams) . See sections 13.9.2, 13.9.3 and 13.9.4
for more information.
The DIgSILENT Library contains a wide range of pre-defined model templates, including:

• Distributed Energy Resources

• FACTS
• Grid-forming Converters
• HVDC
• Loads
• Photovoltaic
• Plant Controllers
• Steam/Gas/Diesel Power Plants
• Storage Systems
• Variable Speed Drives
• Wind Turbines (including DFIG, Fully Rated, IEC and WECC)

More information about the predefined templates is available in section Overview of Template Docu-
mentation of the Technical References Document.

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13.9.1 General Templates

General Templates are used for grouping and packaging objects into a data container that can be stored
within the project library or a global library for future use. General Templates are intensively used when
a fully packaged power equipment model is defined, with one such model containing various functional
components, for example:
• Built-in models (e.g. static generators, PWM converters);

• User defined load flow / Quasi-dynamic simulation models (e.g. QDSL models);
• Measurement devices for dynamic simulation (e.g. voltage and current measurement objects);
• User-defined dynamic controller models (e.g. power and voltage controllers, fault-ride through
controllers).

Furthermore, all external references of the contained objects can be additionally packed, thus making
sure that all required elements are stored in the General Template. Consequently, General Templates
enable PowerFactory users to group and pack all of the above objects into a single data container that
can later on be easily and safely shared across PowerFactory project boundaries.

In order to create a General template, do the following:

• The source data for a General Template is an already operational and configured model. There-
fore, once a power equipment model / User-defined model is configured and operational in a
project, go to the single line diagram of the grid in which this model is existing.

• Make sure that the diagram is unlocked (i.e. freeze mode deactivated )
• Select all graphically defined elements shown in the grid’s single line diagram which belong to the
model.

• Right-click on the selected elements and choose Define Template. As a result, a copy of each
selected element is created in a newly created General Template object (IntTemplate) located
within the project library (Library → Templates).
• If the selected elements are part of a dynamic simulation model (i.e. they have a referenced
Composite Model to parameter c_pmod (if existing), then a copy of the referenced Composite
Model is added to the template. Furthermore, all contained objects within the selected elements
and the referenced Composite Model are copied. Lastly, note that the copied elements maintain
their references to other objects within the template (i.e. the references and connections to objects
within the template are not lost).

Note: The template contains by default only the directly copied elements (as previously detailed) but
without storing any possibly existing library type objects.

• If the library objects shall be included in the template (recommended action, in order to completely
separate the contained model from other source project folders), then open the Edit dialog of the
General Template and click the Pack button. A subfolder is created within the template containing
all referenced library objects.
• Click on Check button to verify whether any contained objects have references to objects located
outside the template.
• Click on Contents button to display the contents of the template. If needed, further elements/ob-
jects can be manually added to the template e.g. DPL scripts, further library objects etc.
• Once the template has been created, it can be used within the existing project or exported outside
PowerFactory (as a .pfd file) or to other projects within the same PowerFactory database.

In order to export a General Template outside PowerFactory, do the following:

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• Open the Data Manager and deactivate the current project (if any).
• Navigate and locate the General template of interest (by default, found in the Library → Templates
folder of a PowerFactory project.
• Select the General Template and click the Export Data button . Alternatively, from the file menu
click File → Export→ Data (*.pfd,*.dz). . . .
• Follow the normal export procedure. The template is now saved in a .pfd file which can be shared
outside PowerFactory.
• The .pfd file can now be imported in other PowerFactory programs. When importing the template,
it should always be imported into the Library → Templates subfolder of the destination project.
The General Template can also be imported into a Custom Global Library.
In order to copy a General Template from one project to another one located in the same PowerFactory
database, do the following:
• Open the Data Manager and deactivate the current project (if any).
• Locate and copy the General Template of interest
• Activate the project in which the template is to be added.
• Navigate to the project’s Library → Templates and paste the template there.
In order to make use of a General template (e.g. deploy the contained model into a network), do the
following:
• Show the single line diagram of the Grid in which the model shall be deployed. Make sure that the
diagram is un-frozen, such that the Drawing Tools toolbar is shown.

• Click on the General templates

• A selection window with all available project templates is shown (the “Project Templates” option
on the left side pane of the window, corresponds to the Library → Templates project folder).
• Alternatively, it is possible to choose a template from one of the following folders:
– DIgSILENT Library Templates: pre-defined templates provided with the PowerFactory instal-
lation
– Library Busbar System: templates for substations
– Custom Global Library: predefined templates stored in the Custom Library. It will only be
shown if the library is set as Used Library in the User Settings (see chapter User Settings,
Section 7.1).
• Click once on the General Template of interest in order to select which template shall be deployed.
• Click once in the single line diagram in order to activate the General Template drawing mode. If
done so, the cursor will change appearance by overlaying the template’s graphic. The template is
not deployed at this stage.
• The mouse cursor can now be moved to an area in the single line diagram of the grid in order to
conveniently deploy the General Template.
• When appropriately positioned, click once to deploy the template into the grid at the current
location, containing all template’s elements (including the non-graphical ones).

13.9.2 Substation Templates

Existing substations can be used as “models” to define templates, which may be used later to create
new substations. A new substation template is created by right-clicking on one of the busbars of the
detailed substation single line diagram and selecting Define substation template from the context menu.
This action will copy the substation together with all of its contents (including its diagram even if it is not
stored within this substation) in the Templates folder.

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Note: In case of creating templates which contain graphical information the default settings of the
names and result boxes defining their graphical representation (font, frame, size,...) are copied
into the template diagram so that they appear as in the source object(s).

For further information about working with substation templates, refer to sections Creating a Substation
from predefined templates and Creating a Substation from templates previously defined by the user.

13.9.3 Busbar Templates

Similar to creating substation templates, existing busbars can be used as a “models” to create user-
defined templates, which may be used later to create new busbars. A new busbar template is created
by right-clicking on the detailed single line diagram or simplified diagram of busbar and selecting Define
substation template from the context menu. This action will copy the busbar together with all of its
contents (including detailed and simplified diagrams) in the Templates folder. If the detailed busbar
configuration has been modified, it is possible to right-click the (existing) simplified representation in the
main single line diagram and select Update representation.

Busbars that have been created by the user in this way can be added to the single line diagram by
selecting the General Busbar System icon ( ). Note that for a busbar to be accessible from this icon,
both detailed and simplified diagrams must be included within the busbar template, as in the previously
described method.

13.9.4 Composite Branch Templates

Composite Branch templates can be defined as follows:

1. To create a Branch template, navigate to the Library → Templates folder in the Data Manager.
2. Right-click on the right pane of the Data Manager and select New → Branch. . . from the context
menu.
3. In the branch edit dialog, define the name of the branch and press Ok.
4. A new (empty) single line diagram will be displayed. Draw the required elements (for example, a
terminal with two lines connected, with each line connected at one end only).
5. To create an instance of the Branch from the newly created Branch template, navigate back to the
main grid diagram, then select the Composite Branch ( ) icon and connect the branch to existing
terminals on the Single Line Diagram.
Alternatively, composite branches can be defined in the Data Manager as described in Chapter 11
(Building Networks), Section 11.5.4 (Defining Composite Branches in the Data Manager).

13.10 Dynamic Models Library

The Dynamic Models folder in the DIgSILENT Library contains a large number of predefined dynamic
model types, which are available to all users and can either be directly used from this library or copied
to the project library and modified. Models of the following categories are included:

• DSL Macros: contains a selection of DSL macro types used to build DSL models. The complete
list of DSL macros in PowerFactory is available in the DSL Macros Documentation, which can also
be accessed via the Help menu: Help → Technical References→ DSL Macros.

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• FACTS: contains DSL model types and composite model frames for several flexible alternating
current transmission systems (FACTS).
• HVDC: contains composite model frames and DSL model types for HVDC models (high voltage
direct current).
• Inverter Based Resources/Storage: contains DSL model types and composite model frames
with regard to inverter based resources such as wind and photovoltaic generation and storage
systems.
• Modelica: contains a selection of Modelica model types, which can be used as building blocks to
create higher level Modelica models.
• Motor Loads: contains composite model frames, motor driven machines (objects class Elm-
Mdm*) and DSL model types regarding motor loads.
• Synchronous Generator Power Plants: contains several DSL model types including frames, ex-
citation systems, governors, power system stabilisers and limiters etc. for synchronous generator
power plants.
• Various: contains further DSL model types, e.g. of PLL elements (phase-locked loop) or gener-
ating unit protection.

Dynamic models from the following sources are available:

• DIgSILENT : These models were developed by DIgSILENT and do not necessarily comply with
any standard.
• CGMES: DSL model types according to CGMES (Common Grid Model Exchange Standard)
Profile 2.4.15 and Profile 3.1, defined by ENTSO-E (European Network of Transmission System
Operators for Electricity). CGMES Profile 3.1 models are at the same time compatible with
IEC 61970 – Part 457: Common Information Model (CIM) for Dynamics Profile, Edition 2.0. The
complete list of models and their description is available in the Technical References.
• IEC: DSL model types that comply with IEC standards, in particular for wind turbine modelling
according to the [31] standard.
• IEEE: DSL model types that comply with IEEE standards or technical reports. More information
about which standard is used and the model itself is available in the Description page of each DSL
model type.
• PSS/E compatible: DSL model types that where developed to be compatible with the ones
available in the software PSS/E. More information about the PSS/E Interface is available in chapter
Interfaces, section23.4.
• WECC: DSL model types according to WECC documentation (Western Electricity Coordination
Council).

Within the project, dynamic models are stored inside the project library Dynamic Models. More infor-
mation about how to develop and work with dynamic models is available in chapter Models for Dynamic
Simulations.

13.11 Quasi-Dynamic Models Library

The Quasi-Dynamic Models folder in the DIgSILENT Library contains predefined quasi-dynamic models
types that can be used during a quasi-dynamic simulation. The list includes:

• Battery Type 1 (Voltage Measurement)

• Battery Type 2 (Power Measurement)
• Battery Type 3 (Current Measurement)

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• Electric Vehicle (Load)

Within the project, quasi-dynamic models are stored inside the project library Dynamic Models. More
information about quasi-dynamic simulation and how to develop and modify quasi-dynamic models is
available in chapter Quasi-Dynamic Simulation, sections 27.3 and 27.5.

13.12 Protection Devices Library

The Protection Devices folder in the DIgSILENT Library is a relay model library which contains models
of both generic and manufacturer-specific relays.

For more information on these blocks please refer to the Protection Devices Library, where all the
protection devices are listed and additional detailed documentation is provided.

13.13 Harmonics Library

The Harmonics library within the DIgSILENT Library contains data that can be used during harmonic
analysis, the available folders are:

• Frequency Characteristics: includes several frequency polynomial characteristic which repre-

sent inductances and resistances dependent on the frequency. Information about how to use
these characteristic is available in chapter Power Quality and Harmonics Analysis, section 35.4.3.
• Harmonic Current Spectrums: includes types used to define current spectrum of harmonics.
Mode information about the definition of harmonics injections is available in chapter Power Quality
and Harmonics Analysis, section 35.4.1.

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Grouping Objects

14.1 Introduction

This chapter describes the management and functionality of the objects used to group network compo-
nents.

Among the various applications of grouping objects is their use for visualisation in network diagrams.
For this reason, many of these grouping object classes include the possibility of associating colours with
the objects. For general information about configuring colours, see Section 4.7.8.

14.2 Areas

To facilitate the visualisation and analysis of a power system, elements may be allocated into areas
(ElmArea ). The single line diagrams can then be coloured according to these areas and special
reports after load flow calculations (’Area summary report’ and ’Area interchange report’) can be gen-
erated. Area objects are stored inside the Areas folder ( ) within the Network Data.

New areas can be defined directly from the single line diagram, using the drawing tools, as follows:

• Click on the Area icon from the drawing tools ( )

• With the left mouse button held down, circle the elements that should belong to the area. Make
sure that at least one terminal is within the selection.
• A graphical representation of the area will be automatically added to the diagram as shown in
figure 14.2.1.

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Figure 14.2.1: Graphical representation of an area)

To add elements to an existing area:

• Multi-select the components belonging to the new area (in the Data Manager or in a single line
diagram).
• Right-click on the selection and select Network Groupings → Area→ Add to. . . from the context
menu.

Note: The context menu of the elements can also be used to define an area: Network Groupings →
Area→ New. . .

New areas can also be defined in the Data Manager; however, using this option will not automatically
create a graphical representation of the area. Graphical representations of existing areas can be
inserted in a single line diagram using the Diagram Layout Tool.

In the edit dialog of the new area you can select a colour to represent the area in the single line diagrams.
Using the Edit Elements button you can have access to all the element belonging to that area in a data
browser, then you can edit them. The Mark in Graphic button may be used to locate the components
of an area in one or more single line diagrams.

14.3 Virtual Power Plants

Virtual power plants are used to group generators in the network, in such a way that the total dispatched
active power is set to a target value. The dispatch of each generator (the Active Power field available in
the Dispatch section of the Load Flow page in the generator element dialog) is scaled according to the
virtual power plant rules (must run, merit of order, etc.), in order to achieve the total target value.

Virtual power plant objects (ElmBmu ) are stored inside the Virtual Power Plants folder ( ) within
the Network Data directory.

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14.3.1 Defining and Editing a New Virtual Power Plant

A new virtual power plant can be defined using the drawing tools, as follows:

• Click on the Virtual Power Plant icon from the drawing tools ( )

• With the left mouse button held down, circle the generators that should belong to the virtual power
plant
Alternatively a virtual power plant can be defined by multi-selecting the generators in a single line
diagram and selecting Network Groupings → Virtual Power Plant→ New. . . from the context menu.

In both cases, a graphical representation of the virtual power plant will be automatically added to the
diagram.

The rules that determine the dispatch of the selected generators are set in the virtual power plant dialog.
The total active power to be dispatched is set in the field Active Power Setpoint. The dispatch of the
belonging generators (variable e:pgini from the Load Flow page of the generator) is set by pressing
the Apply button. If the ’Maximal active power sum’ of the included generators (sum of the maximal
active power operational limit of the generators) is smaller than the active power to be dispatched, an
error message will be displayed. Otherwise the dispatch is set according to the defined Distribution
Mode:

According to merit order Distribution of the dispatched active power is done according to the
priorities given to each generator in the Merit Order column of the ’Machines’ table (this value
can also be set in the Automatic Dispatch tab of the Load Flow page of the generators dialog).
Lower values have higher priority. Generators with the option ’Must Run’ checked are dispatched
even if they have low priority (high value). It is assumed that the merit of order of all generators
in the virtual power plant is different. If not an error message appears after the Apply button is
pressed.

According to script The rules for the dispatch are set in user defined DPL scripts, which are
stored inside virtual power plant object. To create new scripts or to edit the existing ones you
must open a data browser with the Scripts button.

14.3.2 Applying a Virtual Power Plant

Check that the active power set for the virtual power plant is less than or equal to the maximum power.
Press the Apply button.

14.3.3 Inserting a Generator into a Virtual Power Plant

Generators are added to an existing virtual power plant in their edit dialog, by adding a reference on
the Automatic Dispatch tab of the Load Flow page. Note that a generator can only belong to one virtual
power plant. Merit order and must run properties can be defined as required.

Generators can also be added to a virtual power plant by right-clicking on the element (in the single line
diagram or in the Data Manager) and choosing Network Groupings → Virtual Power Plant→ Add to. . .
from the context menu.

14.4 Boundaries

Boundaries are used in the definition of network reductions and to report the interchange of active and
reactive power after a load flow calculation. Boundary objects (ElmBoundary ) may define topological

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regions by specifying a topological cut through the network.

Boundaries are defined by the cubicles that determine the cut through the network, these cubicles
together with the orientations define the corresponding “Interior Region”. Topologically, the interior
region is found searching through the network starting at each selected cubicles towards the given
direction. The topological search continues until either an open switch or a cubicle that is part of the
boundary list is found. Any open switch that is found by this search is considered to be part of the
interior region.

Boundaries can be defined using the Boundary Definition Tool, directly on the branch elements by right-
clicking on them and selecting Network Groupings → Boundary → New. . . or using the Boundary icon
from the drawing tools ( ).

Boundaries can be adapted by modifying the Boundary Definition table within the boundary object or by
adding additional cubicles by right-clicking on them and selecting Network Groupings → Boundary →
Add to. . . .

The boundaries are stored in the project folder Boundaries ( ) within the Network Data.

14.4.1 Boundary Definition Tool

The Boundary Definition Tool ( ) is located within the Additional Tools toolbox as shown in figure 14.4.1.

Figure 14.4.1: Additional Tools toolbox

The following options are available when using the Boundary Definition Tool command:

14.4.1.1 Basic data

Based on regional elements

Zones, areas, grids and even existing boundaries can be used to define a boundary. The selection

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supports multiple elements of the same type.

When regional elements are used, some additional options are available for the user:

• One common boundary: single boundary containing all the interior elements of the composing
regions.

• Separate boundary for each region: a number of boundaries corresponding to the number of
regions will be defined with corresponding interior elements.
• All boundaries between neighbouring regions: each combination between selected regions is
considered and corresponding boundary is defined.

Based on branch elements

Branch elements (e.g. lines, transformers) can be used to define a boundary, PowerFactory will perform
a topological search to define the interior elements. To finishing defining the interior region, the user
can check the Assign selected branch elements to interior region checkbox on the Basic Data page of
the command dialog.

In addition the Boundary Definition Tool offers the possibility to define the boundary only if it splits the
network into two separated regions.

14.4.1.2 Advanced

The options available on this page depend on whether the boundary is based on regional elements or
branch elements.

Use fictitious border network

This option is available when the boundary is being created based on regional elements. It is intended
specifically for networks that have a “fictitious border grid”, which contains the nodes marking the
borders between adjacent grids. This is a typical configuration in European networks to facilitate CIM
(CGMES) data interchange. The option is relevant when one common boundary is to be created. If
this option is checked, the fictitious border grid must also be selected. Then, those fictitious border grid
elements which connect adjacent regions that have been selected to define the common boundary will
also be included.

Choice of the border inside a branch (*.ElmBranch)

The option Prefer the longest line modelled as distributed parameters is available when the boundary is
being created based on branch elements, and is relevant when the user is defining a boundary for the
purpose of carrying out a co-simulation calculation (see section 28.10). It gives the user control over the
positioning of the boundary border within an ElmBranch so as to ensure that the co-simulation regions
are connected via lines of sufficient length.

14.4.2 Element Boundary

The element boundary ElmBoundary edit dialog is accessible by double clicking on the boundary
element, using either the Data Manager or the Network Model Manager.

To add cubicles to an existing Boundary:

• In the Boundary dialog, right-click on the table (on the number of a row) that lists the included
cubicles.
• Select Insert rows, Append rows or Append n rows from the context menu.
• Double click on the Boundary Points cell of the new line.

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• Select the target cubicle using the data browser that pops up.
After selecting the desired cubicle, the terminal and the branch element connected to it are added to
the Busbar and Branch cells on the table. By default the Orientation (direction used to determine the
interior region) is set to the branch; you can change it in order to direct the definition of the internal
region to the connected terminal.

Cubicles can be retired from a boundary by selecting Delete rows from the context menu of the table in
the element dialog.

The selected colour underneath the boundary name is used when representing the boundary in single
line diagrams ( ). Each element in the graphic is coloured according to the following criteria:

• If it uniquely belongs to one interior region of a boundary to be drawn, its colour will be assigned
to that specific boundary colour.
• If it belongs to exactly two of the interior regions of the boundaries to be drawn, its will be
represented with dashed lines in the specific boundary colours.
• If it belongs to exactly more than two of the interior regions of the boundaries to be drawn, its will
be represented with dashed lines in black and the colour selected for multiple intersections.

14.4.2.1 Boundary object buttons

The Edit Interior Elements button can be used to list in a data browser all the components included in
the internal region. The Mark Interior Region button marks all the components of the interior region in
the selected network diagram.

Topological changes in the network that affect the defined interior regions are automatically detected by
the program.

The Check Split button can be used to check whether or not the boundary is a closed boundary which
splits the network into two parts.

Related to the Check Split is an option Topological search: stop at open breakers. Some boundaries
may only split the network because particular breakers are open, i.e. they effectively rely on these
breakers to ensure that they are “splitting” boundaries. By selecting the Topological search: stop at
open breakers option, this ensures that they are taken into account. In some cases, a boundary may be
“splitting” only if the Topological search: stop at open breakers option is selected; in such a case the user
can find out which switches are critical by using the Report open switches making boundary split
button to get a list of these switches.

The Colour graphic according to this boundary will set the colouring option of the currently active
graphic according to the Boundary Definition of the boundary in question. This is to help users visualise
large boundaries in particular, as they create or modify them. (Note that if the original colouring scheme
needs to be restored subsequently, this will have to be done manually.)

14.5 Circuits

Circuits are objects of class ElmCircuit ( ), and are used to group branches in order to clarify which
branches are connected galvanically. Each branch (ElmBranch) can have a reference to any defined
circuit object. This feature allows branches to be sorted according to the circuit to which they belong.

To create a new Circuit:

• In the Data Manager open the Circuits folder from the Network Model.
• Click on the New Object icon.

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• The edit dialog of the new Circuit pops up. Give a name to the new object and press Ok.
Branches are added to a circuit using the pointer from the ’Circuit’ field of the branch dialog. The button
Branches in the Circuit dialog opens a data browser listing the branches that refer to that circuit.

Note: Circuits that are created or deleted when a recording expansion stage is active; become avail-
able/not available only if the corresponding variation is active and the expansion stage activation
time is earlier than the current study time.

14.6 Feeders

When analysing a system it is often useful to know where the various elements are receiving their power
supply from. In PowerFactory this is achieved using Feeder (ElmFeeder ).

A feeder is defined at a line or transformer end, and then the feeder definition algorithm searches the
system from the definition point to determine the extent of the feeder. The feeder ends when:
• An open breaker is encountered; or
• The end of a line of supply is encountered; or

• ’Terminate feeder at this point’ is enabled in a cubicle (optional); or

• A higher voltage is encountered (optional).
Once a feeder has been defined it may be used to scale the loads connected along it according to a
measured current or power, to create voltage profile plots or to select particular branches and connected
objects in the network. Following load flow calculations, special reports can be created for the defined
feeders. To distinguish the different feeder definitions, they can be coloured uniquely in the single line
graphic. All feeder objects are stored in the Feeders folder ( ) within the Network Data folder. A new
feeder is created by right-clicking on a cubicle (that is, with the cursor close to the breaker in the single
line diagram) and selecting Network Groupings → Feeder → New. . . .

Alternatively, the Feeder icon from the drawing tools ( ) can be used to define a feeder at the end of a
line/transformer. In both cases, the graphical representation of the feeder will be added to the diagram.

The feeder dialog presents the following fields:

Name
Cubicle Is a reference to the cubicle where the Feeder was created. It is automatically set by the
program once the Feeder is created.

Zone Reference to the Zone (if any) to which the feeder belongs. A Feeder is assigned to the zone of
the local busbar/terminal.
Colour Sets the colour be used when the Feeder Definitions colouring mode ( ) is engaged in the
single line diagram.

Terminate feeder when. . . A feeder will, by default, terminate when a higher voltage level is encoun-
tered, however, this may not always be desirous. This may be prevented by un-checking this
option. The feeder will now continue ’past’ a higher voltage level and may be terminated at
a user defined cubicle if desired. To manually terminate a feeder right-click a branch element
above the breaker (to select the desired cubicle where the feeder is going to end) and select Edit
Cubicle. The cubicle dialog will be presented, and the ’Terminate feeder at this point’ option may
be checked.

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Orientation The user may select the direction towards the feeder is defined. ’Branch’ means that
the feeder starts at the cubicle and continues in the direction of the connected branch element.
’Busbar’ means that the Feeder is defined in the direction of the connected Terminal.

Load Scaling In any system some loads values may be accurately known whilst others are estimated.
It is likely that measurement points exist for feeders in the system as well, and thus the power
that is drawn through this feeder is also known. The load scaling tool assists the user in adjusting
these estimated load values by scaling them to match a known feeder power or current that has
been measured in the real system. More information about the use of the Load Scaling Function
is given below.
Elements The Mark in Graphic button may be used to show all the elements of a Feeder in one or
more single line diagrams. The Edit button is used to list all the elements belonging to a Feeder
in a data browser.
To use the Load Scaling tool first define which loads may be scaled by enabling the ’Adjusted by Load
Scaling’ option on the Load-Flow tab of the load dialog. All of the loads in a feeder may also be quickly
viewed by editing the feeder from the feeders folder.

Load scaling is now performed by the load flow calculation function when:
• At least one feeder is defined with load scaling according to a current or power.
• The option ’Feeder Load Scaling’ is enabled in the load-flow command dialog (basic options).
• At least one load exists in the feeder area for which
– A change in operating point affects the load-flow at the feeder position
– The option ’Adjusted by Load Scaling’ has been enabled.

The load-flow calculation will then adjust the scaling of all adjustable loads in the feeder areas in such
a way that the load-flow at the feeder equals the current or power set-point.

The feeder setpoint is influenced by the zone scaling. This means that the current or power flow as
calculated by the load-flow could differ from the setpoint in the feeder dialog when the busbar where the
feeder is defined is part of a zone.

For instance, a feeder has a set-point of 1.22 MVA. The busbar is in a zone and the zone-scale is set to
0.50. The flow at the feeder position will thus be 0.61 MVA.

For information about colouring the single line graphic according to feeder definitions refer to Chapter 9:
Network Graphics. For information about voltage profile plots, refer to Chapter 18 (Reporting and
Visualising Results).

Defining Feeders from a Terminal Element

Often it is useful to be able to quickly setup a feeder or many feeders from a ’source’ bus within the
system. There is a specific methodology within PowerFactory for this purpose. The procedure is as
follows:
1. Right-click the target terminal where the feeder/s should be defined from.

2. Choose the option Network Groupings → Feeder → New. . . from the context menu that appears.
This step is illustrated in Figure 14.6.1.
3. PowerFactory will automatically create Feeder objects for each of the connected two terminal
elements, for example lines and transformers. The list of created feeders is displayed in a pop-up
window. The default name for each feeder is the concatenation of the terminal name and the
connected object.
4. Adjust the feeder colours and definitions as required and remove any unwanted feeders.

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Figure 14.6.1: Definition of Feeders from a terminal by right-clicking the terminal

Note: The Load Scaling options are part of the operation scenario subsets; therefore they are stored
in the active operation scenario (if available). The Load Scaling options are stored in the active
expansion stage (if available) if no active operation scenario is active. feeders that are created
or deleted when a recording expansion stage is active; become available/not available only if the
corresponding Variation is active and the expansion stage activation time is earlier than the current
study time.

14.6.1 Feeder Tools

Feeder Tools is a set of three tools that can be used only in radial systems to change voltage, technology
from a particular point downwards.

Note: Additional functions for feeders like Backbone Calculation or Phase Balance Optimisation are
available in the module Distribution Network Tools, described in chapter 41

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14.6.1.1 Voltage Change Tool

The Voltage Change Tool automatically changes type data (for transformers, lines, loads and motors)
and element data such that the primary voltage can be changed to a specified voltage value. The tool
will change the voltage from a particular point downwards but is limited to the HV side. This will enable
the voltage level of a network to be changed for planning studies, taking into account all downstream
equipment.

14.6.1.2 Technology Change Tool

The Technology Change Tool automatically changes type data (for transformers, lines, loads, motors)
and element data such that the primary number of phases or neutrals (commonly referred to as ’tech-
nology’) can be changed to a specific number of phases/neutrals. The tool will change the technology
from a particular point downwards but is limited to the HV side.

Note: If a device such as a transformer or shunt device is no longer compatible (number of phases
and/or phasing is not supported) then the device is set out of service and is reported to the user.

14.6.1.3 Feeder Tool Command

Feeder Tools is a built-in command (ComFeedertool) in PowerFactory and can be started via the right-
mouse context menu, by clicking on an element of a feeder as shown in Figure 14.6.2. A radial feeder
must be defined prior to using the command.

Figure 14.6.2: Feeder Tool

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The voltage, technology and balancing tools are all related and are integrated in PowerFactory as
one command having different options for enabling/disabling each individual tool. Any combination
of the three tools can be used. For example, a user may want to evaluate the alternative where an
existing 19 kV SWER line is to be changed to a 22 kV three-phase line. In this case, the line type
voltage, phasing and technology will all need to change. The transformers should then be changed to
equivalent single- or dual-phase transformers (depending on their original secondary technology) with
22 kV phase-to-phase connected primary windings.

Since Voltage and Technology Tools are more intrinsically related than the Auto Balancing Tool, the
first tools are meshed into one algorithm. The Auto Balancing Tool runs independently of Voltage and
Technology Tools but requires a convergent load flow. If the user wishes to apply all tools in one run
(Voltage, Technology and Balancing), then the algorithm of Voltage and Technology Tools is performed
followed by execution of the Auto Balancing Tool.

14.6.1.4 How to use the Voltage and Technology Tool

When selecting the Voltage Change Tool, the user should specify the voltage level in kV (Previous
Voltage) that will be replaced, and the New Voltage. Both voltages should be specified as phase-phase
voltages, even if there is no phase-phase voltage available; for example when the previous or new
technology is 1 PH or 1 PH-N. When selecting the Technology Change Tool, the user should specify
the New Technology from the drop-down list and then proceed as follows:

1. A radial feeder must be defined.

2. A Start Element (terminal or line) must be selected:
• If the Start Element is a terminal, then this is defined as the Start Terminal.
• If the Start Element is a line, then the Start Terminal is defined as:
– For the Voltage Tool: the line terminal nearest to the feeder definition point
– For the Technology Tool: the line terminal more distant from the feeder definition point.

Note: The algorithm uses a top-down approach: working from the Start Terminal downwards to
the Stop Point

3. Definition of Stop Point for Voltage/Technology Tools: The voltage/technology changes will stop
at transformers or open points. For transformers, only the primary voltage/technology is changed.
This means that the transformer secondary voltage/technology and secondary network remains
unchanged. If the transformer technology (three phase, single phase or SWER) is not compatible
with the new primary technology, then the transformer will be disconnected. This will occur when
a three-phase primary network supplies a three-phase transformer and the primary technology
is changed to a non-three-phase technology. In this case, the transformer will be disconnected.
Likewise, three-phase machines cannot be connected to a non-three-phase technology. (Note:
Out-of-service elements are not Stop Points for Voltage/Technology Tools.)
4. Setting the new type/element voltage: If Voltage Change Tool is selected, the new voltage is equal
to the New Voltage specified by the user. A voltage change can be performed independent of a
technology change. If Technology Change is disabled, the voltage change will be associated with
the existing technology.
5. Setting the new type/element technology: If Technology Change Tool is selected, the new technol-
ogy is that of the New Technology specified by the user. A technology change can be performed
independent of the voltage (the voltage will not be changed).
6. A Linking Object must be provided.
The selection of a new Type is not automated as there may be several types that could be
compatible with a particular scenario. The solution for this is a linking database object. This
linking object stores the relationships between old and new types for different new voltage and/or
technology changes. This linking object can be saved in a project or library. It should be added to
and modified each time a technology/voltage change is performed.

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If for any network element a new type that should match a specific new voltage/technology is not
found, the user can choose how the program should proceed by selecting one of the following
Linking Object options:
• Prompt for new type selection: the user should manually select which type should be used.
If the selected type is still not valid (see item 7: Validation rules for types), the program
will present new options: (i) the user can select a new type again, (ii) ignore replacing this
type, or (iii) interrupt algorithm execution. Otherwise, if the selected type is valid (see item 7:
Validation rules for types), the existing record in Linking Object is updated or in the event that
it does not exist, a new one will be created.
• Automatically creates new type: a new type that matches the required voltage/technology is
automatically created and the existing record in the Linking Object is updated, or in the event
that it does not exist, a new one will be created.
• Do not change the old Type: the old type is not replaced and the corresponding element is
put out-of-service. Changes, if necessary, should be manually performed after the command
execution.
An example of a Linking Object is shown in Figure 14.6.3. The voltage tolerance (parameter vtol)
for comparison between type voltage and new voltage can be optionally specified. The default
value is 30 %. Records in Linking Object should be unique for each combination of Old Type, New
Voltage and New Technology. Validation rules (see item 7) are applied when the user presses the
OK button or/and automatically (i.e. within the algorithm).

Figure 14.6.3: Linking Object

7. Validation rules for types:

a. The new type voltage must be equal to the new voltage (item 4) or inside its tolerance
specified by parameter vtol in the Linking Object (item 6). If this rule fails, the message
“The Type selected voltage is incompatible with the new voltage” is shown. This rule does
not apply to the load type (TypLod).
b. For the motor type (TypAsmo, TypAsm), the number of phases must be equal to or greater
than the old number of phases. If this condition is not met the message “Cannot supply a
three-phase motor from a single or bi/dual phase” is shown.
c. For the 2-winding transformer type (TypTr2), the number of phases must be equal to or
greater than the old number of phases. If this condition is not met the message “Cannot
supply a three-phase secondary network from a single or bi/dual phase primary” is shown.
d. As stated in item 3, the voltage/technology changes will stop at the primary of a transformer
so that the secondary network remains unchanged. Despite this, the algorithm does not limit
the selected 2-winding transformer type to the same secondary voltage/technology.

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e. For the line type (TypLne) the number of phases and neutrals must be equal to the one
required by the new technology specified by the user. For the 2-winding transformer type
(TypTr2), motor type (TypAsmo, TypAsm) or load type (TypLod), the number of phases and
neutrals must be less than or equal to the one required by the new technology. If this
condition is not met the message “The type selected technology is incompatible with the
new technology” is shown.
f. The algorithm will change a type object when:
• The actual type voltage/technology is not compatible with the new voltage/technology;
• The actual type voltage/technology is compatible with the new voltage/technology but
the change operation is specified in the Linking Object.
If the type is incompatible with the new voltage/technology and a new type has not yet been
specified in the Linking Object for a particular old type, New Voltage and New Technology
combination, then one of the following predefined actions will occur:
• Prompt for new type selection: during this process the user can select or create a new
type, where the default parameters are the same as those for the old type. Once a new
type has been selected or created, it will be checked to ensure that it is compatible with
the new voltage/technology. If it is still incompatible, the user will be asked whether to
select again or to put this element out-of-service. The changes/additions are stored in
the Linking Object so that they are available for future reuse.
• Automatically creates a new type: a compatible type is created where the default param-
eters are the same as those for the old type. The changes/additions are stored in the
Linking Object so that they are available for future reuse.
• Do not change the type: no new type is selected and the element is set out-of-service.

14.7 Meteorological Stations

Meteorological Stations (ElmMeteostat) hold information about the meteorological conditions of

ambient temperature, wind speed and global horizontal irradiance for a certain location. This information
can be used by other objects. An example for this is the usage by a thermal rating object for the
determination of continuous and short-term ratings. Thus, meteorological stations can be linked to
certain network elements such as lines and generators, but also to sites and substations to be valid
for all the contained elements within these objects. For objects for which meteorological stations can
be individually selected, those selections will take precedence over that of the parent object. The
meteorological stations are stored in the folder Network Data.

Meteorological stations can be defined either via the element that is to be part of the meteorological
station (from any of the generator elements described in Section 47.4), via the single line diagram by
right-clicking on an appropriate element and selecting Network Groupings → Meteorological Station→
New. . . from the context menu or by using the Meteorological Station icon from the drawing tools ( ).

Note: The ability to define a Meteorological Station for generators is dependent upon whether at least
one of the “member” generators has the options Generator and Wind Generator selected on its
Basic Data page. If these options are not selected, the context menu entry is not visible.

Note: A graphical colouring mode exists for Meteorological Stations, so that they can be visualised in
the single line graphic.

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14.8 Operators

For descriptive purposes, it is useful to sort network components according to their operators. Addition-
ally, system operators may find it advantageous to generate summary reports of the losses, generation,
load, etc. according to their designated region(s). PowerFactory allows the definition of operators, the
assignment of network components to these operators, and the identification of operators on single line
diagrams by means of operator elements (ElmOperator, ), these are stored in the Operators folder
( ) within the Network Data.

There are different ways to define a new operator:

1. From the single line diagram:
• Right click on the element/s
• Select Network Groupings → Operator → New. . .
2. Using the drawing tools
• Click on the Operator icon from the drawing tools ( )
• With the left mouse button held down, circle the elements where the operator should be
assigned
3. From the Data Manager:
• Open the Operators folder from the Network Data
• Click on the New Object icon
• Select operator

The first two options will also insert a graphical representation of the operator in the single line diagram.
The Data Manager option will not automatically create a graphical representation of the operator.
Graphical representations of existing operators can be inserted in a single line diagram using the
Diagram Layout Tool.

Network elements (class name Elm* ) such as terminals, switches, lines, generators, transformers,
relays, composite models , substations and Branches can be assigned to an operator by means of
the reference Operator from the Description page of their edit dialog.

14.9 Owners

For descriptive purposes it is useful to sort network components according to their owners. Additionally,
for network owners it may prove advantageous to generate summary reports of the losses, generation,
load, etc. for their region(s). Similar to Operators, PowerFactory allows the definition of network owners,
and the assignment of network components to them, by means of Owner objects.

The Owner objects (ElmOwner, ) are stored in the ’Owners’ folder ( ) in the Network Data directory.
They are created following the same procedure described for operators. Network elements (class
name Elm* ) such as terminals, switches, lines, generators, transformers, relays or composite models
(ElmComp), Substations (ElmSubstat) and Branches (ElmBranch) can be assigned to an operator by
means of the reference ’Operator’ from the Description page of their dialog.

14.10 Paths

A path (SetPath, ) is a set of two or more terminals and their interconnected objects. This is used
primarily by the protection module to analyse the operation of protection devices within a network.

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The defined paths can be coloured in a single line graphic using the colouring function. New paths are
stored inside the Paths folder ( ) in the Network Data directory.

To create a new Path:

• In a single line diagram select a chain of two or more terminals and their inter-connecting objects.

• Right-click on the selection.

• Select the option Network Groupings → Path→ New. . . from the context menu.
• The dialog of the new path pops up, give a name and select the desired colour for the correspond-
ing colour representation mode in the single line diagram. The references to the objects defining
the Path (First/Last Busbar First/Last Branch) are automatically created by the program, according
to the selection.
• After pressing Ok the new path is stored in the Paths folder of the Network Data.
Alternatively, the path can be created as follows:

• In the single line diagram, select the first element to be included in the path definition by pressing
left mouse button and select the last element in combination with CTRL+Shift keys. As a result,
the shortest path between the first and last element will be highlighted.
– In order to constrain the route, additional elements can also be selected in combination with
CTRL key.
– The paths with multiple end terminals can be created by selecting the multiple end terminals
using left mouse button in combination with CTRL+Shift keys.
– In order to consider the state of switches and to define a path consisting of closed switches
only, select the last element of the path using left mouse button in combination with CTRL+Shift+A
keys.
• Next, right-click on the selection.
• Select the option Network Groupings → Path→ New. . . from the context menu.

• Consequently, a new path is created. The names of the first and the last elements are used for
defining the corresponding path name. However, the name can be further edited, if required.
By using the Elements button of the Path dialog you can have access to all the element belonging
to the path in a data browser, there you can edit them. The Select button may be used to locate the
components of the path in a single line diagram. With the Toggle button you can invert the order of the
objects limiting the path (First/Last Busbar First/Last Branch). This order is relevant when evaluating
directional protective devices.

In cases where a path forms a closed ring the First Busbar button of the SetPath dialog can be used to
specify at which busbar the path should be considered to begin and end. This can be particularly useful
when displaying the path on a time distance diagram.

New objects can be added to a path by marking them in a single line diagram (including one end of the
target path and a busbar as the new end) right-clicking and selecting Network Groupings → Path→ Add
to. . . to from the context menu. Objects can be removed from a Path (regarding that the end object of a
Path must be always a busbar) by marking them in the single line diagram, right-clicking and selecting
Network Groupings → Path→ Remove Partly from the context menu. The option Network Groupings →
Path→ Remove will remove the firstly found path definition of which at least one of the selected objects
is a member.

For information about the colouring function refer to Chapter 9: Network Graphics. For information about
the use of the path definitions for the analysis of the protective devices, refer to Chapter 32 (Protection).

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14.11 Routes

Routes are objects which are used to group line couplings (tower elements). Each coupling (ElmTow)
can have a reference to any defined route (ElmRoute, ). Each route has a colour that can be used to
identify it in single line diagrams, when the corresponding colouring function is enabled.

For information regarding line couplings refer to the technical reference for the transmission line model
(see Technical References Document).

14.12 Zones

Components of a network may be allocated to a zone object (ElmZone, ) in order to represent

geographical regions of the system. Each zone has a colour which can be used to identify the elements
belonging to it in the single line graphic if the colouring is set to Groupings → Zones. These elements
can be listed in a browser format for group editing; additionally all loads belonging to the zone can be
quickly scaled from the zone edit dialog. Using the ’Scaling Criteria’-Button, the total active or apparent
power demand can be set as absolute values in MVA or MW. The zone scaling factor is then calculated
accordingly. Another special scaling factor is provided for all generators, its plant category is set to
’Wind’ and which are not part of other controllers: The Wind Generation Scaling Factor.

Reports for the defined zones can be generated following calculations.

Upon being defined, zones are by default stored inside the Zones folder ( ) in the Network Data folder.

New zones can be defined directly from the single line diagram, using the drawing tools, as follows:

• Click on the Zone icon from the drawing tools ( )

• With the left mouse button held down, circle the elements that should belong to the zone, making
sure that at least one terminal is within the selection.
• A graphical representation of the zone will be automatically added to the diagram.

The option Network Groupings → Zone→ Add to. . . can be selected when a zone(s) have already
been defined. Single-port elements are automatically assigned to the zone of the node that they are
connected to. For multi-port elements (such as lines or transformers), one of the available terminals has
to be chosen, from which the zone assignment is inherited.

Note: The context menu of the elements can also be used to define a zone: Network Groupings →
Zone→ New. . .

New zones can also be defined in the Data Manager; however, using this option will not automatically
create a graphical representation of the zone. Graphical representations of existing zones can be
inserted in a single line diagram using the Diagram Layout Tool.

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Chapter 15

Operation Scenarios

15.1 Introduction

Operation Scenarios are used to store operational data such as generator dispatch, load demand, and
network line/switch status. Individual Operation Scenarios are stored within the Operations Scenarios
folder, and can be easily activated and deactivated. This Chapter describes PowerFactory operation
scenarios.

Note: Parameter Characteristics can also be used to modify network operational data - see Sec-
tion 17.2 (Parameter Characteristics) for details.

15.2 Operation Scenarios Background

Operation Scenarios are used to store network component parameters that define the operational point
of a system. Examples of operational data include generator power dispatch and a load demand.
Operational data is typically distinguished from other component data because it changes frequently.
Compare for instance, how often a generator changes its power set-point, with how often the impedance
of the generator transformer changes.

Storing recurrent operation points of a network and being able to activate or deactivate them when
needed accelerates the analyses of the network under different operating conditions. PowerFactory
can store complete operational states for a network in objects called operation scenarios (IntScenario,
).

Operation scenarios are stored inside the operation scenarios folder ( ) in the project directory.
You can define as many operation scenarios as needed; each operation scenario should represent
a different operational point.

Figure 15.2.1 shows a project containing six operation scenarios, and the contents of the ’High Load -
No Infeed’ scenario (i.e. its subsets) are shown in the right pane of the Data Manager.

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Figure 15.2.1: Operation Scenarios and Subsets

A new operation scenario is defined by saving the current operational data of the active network com-
ponents. Once they have been created, operation scenarios can be activated to load the corresponding
operational data. If an operation scenario is active and certain operational data is changed, these
changes are stored in the active operation scenario (if you decide to save the changes). If the current
operation scenario is deactivated, the active network components revert to the operational data that
they had before the activation of the operation scenario (this is the ’default’ operational data). Changes
made to the ’default’ operational data do not affect data within existing operation scenarios.

Operation scenario data stored within each operation scenario is separated into subsets, with one
subset of operational data created for every grid in the network model. It is possible to ’exclude’ the
operational data for individual grids. This prevents the operation scenario from saving the operational
data for any subset where this option is active. For example, you might be working with a network model
with four grids, say North, South, East and West. Perhaps you do not wish to store operational data
for the ’West’ grid because the models in this grid have fixed output regardless of the operational state.
By excluding the operational data subset for this grid, the default data can be used in all cases, even
though the operational data is different in the other three grids.

When working with active operation scenarios and active expansion stages, modifications on the op-
erational data are stored in the operation scenario whereas the expansion stage keeps the default
operational data and all other topological changes. If no operation scenarios are active and new
components are added by the current expansion stage, the operational data of the new components
will be added to the corresponding operation scenario when activated.

Note: When an operation scenario is active, the operational data can be easily identified in network
component dialogs and in a Network Model Manager because it is shown with a blue background.
The colouring is configurable by the user: see Section 7.8

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15.3 How to use Operation Scenarios

This sub-section explains how to complete the common tasks you will need when working with operation
scenarios. The most common tasks are creating a new operation scenario, saving data to an operation
scenario, Activating an existing operation scenario, Deactivating an operation scenario and identifying
parameters stored within an operation scenario.

15.3.1 How to create an Operation Scenario

There are two ways to create an operation scenario.

Method 1

Follow these steps:

1. In the Data Manager, right-click on the Operation Scenarios folder in the active project.

2. Select New → Operation Scenario. . . from the context menu as shown in Figure 15.3.1. The
dialog of the new operation scenario pops up.

Figure 15.3.1: Creating a new operation scenario object using the Data Manager.

3. Enter the name for the operation scenario in the name field.

4. Press OK. The operation scenario will appear as a new object within the Operation Scenarios
folder.
Method 2

Follow these steps:

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1. From the main PowerFactory menu go to the File menu and select File → Save Operation Sce-
nario as. . . . The dialog of the new operation scenario pops up.
2. Enter the name for the operation scenario in the name field.

3. Press OK. The new operation scenario is created within the operation scenarios’ project folder
and automatically activated and saved.

15.3.2 How to save an Operation Scenario

Why do you need to save Operation Scenarios?

Unlike all other PowerFactory data, changes to operational data are not automatically saved to the
database if an operation scenario is active. So, after you update an operation scenario (by changing
some operational data) you must save it. If you prefer automatic save behaviour, you can activate an
automatic save option setting - see Section 15.6.1.

How to know if an Operation Scenario contains unsaved data

If any operational data (of a network component) is changed when an operation scenario is active, the
unsaved status of it is indicated by an asterisk (* ) next to the icon for the operation scenario as shown
in Figure 15.3.2. The other situation that causes an operation scenario icon to appear with an asterisk
is when new network components are added to the model. Any operational parameters from these
models are not incorporated in the active operation scenario until it is saved.

Figure 15.3.2: An asterisk indicates unsaved changes in operation scenarios

Options for saving an Operation Scenario

There are four ways to save a modified operation scenario to the database. They are:
• The menu entry Save Operation Scenario in PowerFactory ’s main file menu.
• The button Save in the dialog window of the operation scenario.

• The button Save Operation Scenario ( ) in the main icon bar.

• The context menu (right mouse button) entry Action -> Save of the operation scenario (see
Figure 15.3.3).

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Figure 15.3.3: Saving an operation scenario using the context menu

Note: The button Save as from the operation scenario dialog (only available for active operation sce-
narios) can be used to save the current operational data as a new operation scenario. The new
operation scenario is automatically activated upon being created.

15.3.3 How to activate an existing Operation Scenario

Switching between already available operation scenarios is a common task. There are two methods for
activating an existing operation scenario.

Method 1

Follow these steps:

1. Go to the operation scenarios’ folder within your project using the Data Manager.
2. Right-click the operation scenario that you wish to activate. The context menu will appear.
3. Choose the option Activate from the menu. If a currently active operation scenario contains
unsaved data, you will be prompted to save or discard this information.

Method 2

Follow these steps:

1. From the main file menu choose the option Activate Operation Scenario. A pop-up dialog will
appear, showing you the available operation scenarios.
2. Select the operation scenario you wish to Activate and press OK. If a currently active operation
scenario contains unsaved data, you will be prompted to save or discard this information.

Note: The active operation scenario can be displayed in the status bar. To do this right-click the lower
right of the status bar and choose Display Options → Operation Scenario.

15.3.4 How to deactivate an Operation Scenario

There are two ways to deactivate an active operation scenario.

Method 1

Follow these steps:

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1. Go to the ’operation scenarios’ folder within your project using the Data Manager.
2. Right-click the operation scenario that you wish to deactivate. The context menu will appear.

3. Choose the option deactivate from the menu. If the operation scenario contains unsaved data,
you will be prompted to save or discard this information.
Method 2

From the main file menu choose the option Deactivate Operation Scenario. If the operation scenario
contains unsaved data, you will be prompted to save or discard this information.

Note: On deactivation of an operation scenario, previous operational data (the ’default’ operational
data) is restored.

15.3.5 How to identify operational data parameters

Because the operation scenario only stores a subset of the network data, it is useful to know exactly
what data is being stored by the operation scenario. This is relatively easy to see when you have
an active scenario. Data that is stored in the operation scenario is shown with a blue background.
This appears in both the object dialogs and the Data Manager browser as shown in Figures 15.3.4
and 15.3.5.

The colouring is configurable by the user: see Section 7.8.

Figure 15.3.4: Blue highlighted operational data in an element dialog

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Figure 15.3.5: Blue highlighted operational data in a browser window

15.4 The Operation Scenario Manager

The Operation Scenario Manager is a tool which has been introduced to enable users who work with
operation scenarios to compare data between scenarios and easily copy data values from one scenario
to another.

It will be noted that some of the “How to” tasks covered in section 15.5 also enable the user to view
and copy data. In other words, there can be different ways of achieving the same result, but the choice
of method will in the end depend on the precise task at hand. The Operation Scenario Manager is
particularly useful for viewing the same data attributes for various scenarios together.

15.4.1 Accessing the Operation Scenario Manager

The Operation Scenario Manager can be accessed via the Network Model Manager (see Chapter 10),
presenting itself as a special Scenarios tab (the second of four “special” tabs) within the network
model manager itself. Alternatively, the Operation Scenario Manager can be started from the context
menu accessed by right-clicking on the title heading of the “Operation Scenarios” section in the Project
Overview window.

When the Scenarios tab is used for the first time in a project, there will be little to see, because no
scenarios have been selected to be viewed, and the configuration of variables to be shown for each
element class has not yet been set up.

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15.4.2 Selecting scenarios and setting up variable configurations

In the descriptions below, the references such as “(1)” refer to this figure, 15.4.1:

Figure 15.4.1: The Operation Scenario Manager

15.4.2.1 Selecting scenarios

The Select Operation Scenarios button (1) is used to specify for which scenarios the data shall be
displayed. An option to see the “No Scenario” data i.e. the underlying values, is also available.

It can be seen in the Operation Scenario Selection dialog that a Short Name is listed in addition to the
full scenario name. This scenario attribute is used for the column headings, as a way of avoiding the
practical difficulties of having many scenarios with long names only differing by characters at the end of
the name. If the user has not populated this field, the full name will be used instead.

15.4.2.2 Defining variable configurations

The variables to be displayed must also be selected. The concept is that the Operation Scenario
Manager can be used with a number of different customised Variable Selection configurations, which
the user first sets up and can then select as required from the drop-down Variable Selection menu (2).

When the Operation Scenario Manager tab is opened for the first time, the Variable Selection field will
show “- - None - -”. The user can then select an element class from the left hand pane of the network
model manager and click on the Edit Variable Selection button (3) to start setting up the configuration.
Variables are selected via standard variable selection (*.IntMon) dialogs, and the configuration can
include one or more element classes.

Note: The Variable Selection object (*.IntMon) is described in Section 18.3: Variable Selection.

When the variable selection dialog is displayed using the operation scenario manager, the variables are
filtered by default to show only operational variables. This filter can be deselected using the Scenario
relevant only checkbox.

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If non-operational variables are selected, then the operation scenario manager will display an additional
column for each selected variable with the column header Flexible Data assigned as highlighted in figure
15.4.2.

Figure 15.4.2: Flexible Data Column in Operation Scenario Manager

Once the user starts setting up the configuration, this then becomes the “- - Current Working Selection
- -”. When all the required variables have been selected, the configuration can be saved (4) with a
user-specified name.

Configurations can be edited at any time, or deleted (5) as required.

15.4.2.3 Location of variable configurations within the project

The user can set up a number of variable selection configurations, and these are stored within the
project Settings folder. Within this folder, there is a Scenario Manager Selection Set, and this can
contain any number of folders, each of which will then have one or more *.IntMon variable definitions,
as shown in Figure 15.4.3 below. It is these folders which are the named configurations that are selected
via the drop-down menu seen in Figure 15.4.1 (2).

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Figure 15.4.3: Variable Selection configurations for the Operation Scenario Manager

15.4.3 Viewing and editing data within the Operation Scenario Manager

When scenario data is viewed in the Operation Scenario Manager, the data is grouped into blocks,
one for each data attribute selected in the configuration. Within each block, the values for each of the
selected scenarios are seen. The usual sorting and filtering options are available.

In addition to being able to view the data, the user can also modify values as expected in the Network
Model Manager, including copying and pasting from one column to another.

Note: It is very important for users to realise that when scenario data is changed in any scenario
which is not currently active, that change will be automatically saved in the scenario. Only in the
currently-active scenario will the normal option remain, to save or discard data changes. Care
must be taken therefore, when making any changes to data in the Operation Scenario Manager.

15.5 Working with Operation Scenarios

In this section the operation scenario administrative tasks are explained. This includes reporting oper-
ational scenario data status, comparing operation scenarios, viewing the non-default running arrange-
ments, applying data from one operation scenario to another (copying), updating the base network
model, excluding grids from the operation scenario and creating a time based operation scenario.

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15.5.1 How to view objects missing from the Operation Scenario data

When you add a component to a network, the data is not automatically captured in the active operation
scenario until you save the scenario. The operation scenario appears with an asterisk next to its name
in the Data Manager. If you want to get a list of all the objects that have operational data that is missing
from the active scenario, then you need to print the operation scenario report. To do this, follow these
steps:

1. Open the active operation scenario dialog by finding the operation scenario in the Data Manager
right-clicking it and selecting Edit from context menu.
2. Press the Reporting button. A list of objects with data missing from the operation scenario is
printed by PowerFactory to the output window.

Note: If you double click a listed object in the output window the dialog box for that object will open
directly allowing you to edit the object. You can also right-click the name in the output window and
use the function ’Mark in Graphic’ to find the object.

15.5.2 How to compare the data in two operation scenarios

It is sometimes useful to compare data in two separate operation scenarios so that key differences can
be checked. To compare two operation scenarios:

1. Deactivate all operation scenarios that you wish to compare. Only inactive operation scenarios
can be compared.
2. Open the first operation scenario dialog by finding the operation scenario in the Data Manager
right-clicking it and selecting edit from context menu.

3. Press the Compare button. A data window browser will appear.

4. Choose the second operation scenario and press OK. A report of the operation scenario differ-
ences is printed by PowerFactory to the output window.

15.5.3 How to view the non-default Running Arrangements

Any running arrangements that are assigned to substations will be stored as part of the operational
data. The operation scenario has a function that allows you to view any substations with active running
arrangements that are different from the default running arrangement for that substation. The default
running arrangement is determined by the running arrangement that is applied to the substation when
no operation scenarios are active. To view all the non-default Running Arrangements follow these steps:
1. Open the active operation scenario dialog by finding the operation scenario in the Data Manager,
right-clicking it and selecting edit from context menu.

2. Press the Reporting RA button. PowerFactory prints a report of the non-default Running Ar-
rangements to the output window.

Note: Most of these actions are also available in context menu when right-clicking on an operation
scenario (Action → . . . ).

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15.5.4 How to transfer data from one Operation Scenario to another

As explained in the chapter introduction, within each operation scenario there is a subset of operation
scenario data for each grid in the network model. Therefore, there are two options when transferring
data from one operation scenario to another, either copying all the operation scenario data at once, or
only copying a subset of data for an individual grid. Both methods are explained within this section.

Furthermore, whether operational data is to be transferred for the whole scenario or one grid only, it is
also possible to be selective about which data is transferred, by setting up and using Scenario Apply
Configurations.

15.5.4.1 Transferring operational data from one grid only

To transfer the operational data from a single grid subset to the same grid subset of another operation
scenario follow these steps:
1. Activate the target operation scenario.
2. Right-click the source operation scenario subset.
3. From the context menu select Apply. A pop-up dialog will appear asking you if you really want to
apply the selected operational data to the active operation scenario.
4. Click OK. The data is copied automatically by PowerFactory. Warning, any data saved in the
equivalent subset in the active scenario will be overwritten. However, it will not be automatically
saved.

15.5.4.2 Transferring operational data from a complete operation scenario

To transfer the operational data from a complete operation scenario to another operation scenario follow
these steps:

1. Activate the target operation scenario.

2. Right-click the source operation scenario.
3. From the context menu select Apply. A pop-up dialog will appear asking you if you really want to
apply the selected operational data to the active operation scenario.
4. Click OK. The data is copied automatically by PowerFactory. Warning, any data saved in the
active scenario will be overwritten. However, it will not be automatically saved.

15.5.4.3 Transferring selective operational data using Scenario Apply Configurations

If the user wants to be selective about which data is transferred, this can be done by setting up Scenario
Apply Configurations within the project, then using these in conjunction with the Apply command.

Creating Scenario Apply Configurations

If creating Scenario Apply Configurations for the first time in a project, first carry out this step in the
Settings folder of the project:

• Click on the Settings folder and use the New Object icon to create an object Scenario Apply
Configurations (SetOpdselection).

Once this is created, one or more scenario apply configuration folders may be created within it. Each
will define a set of data items to be copied when that folder is selected in the Apply command. To create
and populate each folder, follow these steps:

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• First use New Object icon to create a folder within the Scenario Apply Configurations (SetOpdse-
lection). Give it a meaningful name such as “Generator MW”.
• Within the folder, use New Object icon to create one or more Variable Selection (IntMon) objects.
These are used to specify an element class (e.g. ElmSym) and which variables (e.g. pgini) are to
be copied for this element class when this folder is selected.

Using Scenario Apply Configurations

Once the above configurations have been created, the folder names will appear as options when the
Apply command is used to copy data from one scenario to another, so instead of applying all the data,
the user would have option, using the example above, of just copying the generator MW set points by
selecting “Generator MW”.

15.5.5 How to update the default data with operation scenario data

As a user, sometimes you need to update the default operational data (the operational data parameters
that exist in the network when no operation scenario is active) with operational data from an operation
scenario within the project. To do this:
1. Deactivate any active operation scenario.
2. Right-click the operation scenario that you want to apply to the base model.
3. From the context menu select Apply. A pop-up dialog will appear asking you if you really want to
apply the selected operational data to the base network data
4. Click OK. The data is copied automatically by PowerFactory. Warning, any data saved in the base
network model will be overwritten.

15.5.6 How exclude a grid from the Operation Scenario data

Background

By default, each operation scenario contains several subsets, one for each grid in the network model.
For example, you might be working with a network model with four grids, say North, South, East and
West. In such a case each operation scenario would contain four subsets. Now it might be the case
that you do not wish to store operational data for the ’West’ grid because the models in this grid have
fixed output etc. regardless of the operational state. By excluding the operational data subset for this
grid, the default data can be used in all cases, even though the operational data is different in the other
three grids.

How to exclude a Grid from the Operation Scenario

1. Select an operation scenario using the Data Manager.
2. Double-click the subset of the grid that you wish to exclude (you can only see the subsets in the
right panel of the Data Manager). A dialog for the subset should appear.
3. Check the ’Excluded’ option and the operational data from this grid will not be included within the
operation scenario the next time it is saved.

15.5.7 How to create a time-based Operation Scenario

Background

By default, operation scenarios do not consider the concept of time. Therefore, when you activate
a particular operation scenario, the operational parameters stored within this scenario are applied to

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network model regardless of the existing time point of the network model. However, sometimes it is
useful to be able to assign a ’validity period’ for an operation scenario, such that if the model time is
outside of the validity period, then the changes stored within the operation scenario will be ignored and
the network model will revert to the default parameters.

The concept of validity periods can be enabled in PowerFactory by using the Scenario Scheduler. There
are two tasks required to use a ’Scenario Scheduler’. Firstly, it must be created, and secondly it must
be activated. These tasks are explained below.

How to create a Scenario Scheduler

To create a Scenario Scheduler follow these steps:

1. Go to the operation scenarios folder within your project using the Data Manager.

2. Click the New Object icon . An object selection window will appear.
3. From the displayed list, choose the Scenario Scheduler (IntScensched).

4. Press OK. The scenario scheduler object dialog will appear as shown in Figure 15.5.1. Give the
scheduler a name.

Figure 15.5.1: The Scenario Scheduler (IntScensched) dialog

5. Double-click on the first cell within the operation scenario. A scenario selection dialog will appear.
6. Choose an operation scenario to schedule.
7. Adjust the start time of the schedule by double clicking the cell within the Start Time column.

8. Adjust the end time of the schedule by double clicking the cell within the End Time column.
9. Optional: To add more scenarios to the scheduler, right-click an empty area of the scheduler and
Append Rows. Repeat steps 5-9 to create schedules for other operation scenarios.
How to Activate a Scenario Scheduler

When first created, a scenario scheduler is not automatically activated. To activate it, follow these steps:

1. Go to the operation scenarios’ folder within your project using the Data Manager.
2. Right-click the scenario scheduler object that you wish to activate and choose the option Activate
from the context menu. The operation scenario validity periods defined within the scenario sched-
uler will now determine whether an operation scenario is activated automatically based on the
study case time.

Note: It is possible to create more than one scenario scheduler per project. However, only one may
be active. Also, if you have defined overlapping validity periods for operation scenarios within
the scenario scheduler, then the operation scenario listed first (lowest row index) in the scenario
scheduler will be activated and all other scenarios ignored.

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15.6 Advanced Configuration of Operation Scenarios

This sub-section describes some advanced configuration options for the operation scenarios. This
includes adjusting the automatic save settings and modifying the data that is stored within the operation
scenarios. Note for new users, it is recommended to use the default settings.

15.6.1 How to change the automatic save settings for Operation Scenarios

As mentioned in Section 15.3.2, by default operation scenarios do not automatically save your modifi-
cations to the network data operational parameters at the time the changes are made. As a user, you
can enable automatic saving of operation scenario data and you can alter the automatic save interval. It
is also possible to change the save interval to 0 minutes so that all operational data changes are saved
as soon as the change is made. To change the save interval for operation scenarios, follow these steps:

1. Open the PowerFactory User Settings by clicking the ( icon on the main toolbar).
2. Select the Data Manager page.
3. In the operation scenario section of the page, enable the option Save active Operation Scenario
automatically.

4. Change the Save Interval time if you would like to alter the automatic save interval from the default
of 15 minutes. Setting this value to 0 minutes means that all operation scenarios will be saved
automatically as soon as operational data is modified.

Note: If an operation scenario is active any changes to the network model operational parameters
are stored within such an scenario. If no operation scenario is active, then the changes are
stored within the network model as usual, within a ’grid’ or within a ’recording expansion stage’. A
changed operation scenario is marked by a “* ” next to the operation scenario name in the status
bar. In the Data Manager the modified operation scenario and operation scenario subset are also
marked ( ).

15.6.2 How to modify the data stored in Operation Scenarios

Background

PowerFactory defines a default set of operational data for each object within the network model. This
is the information that is stored within the operation scenarios. However, it is possible to alter the
information that is stored to a limited extent by creating a Scenario Configuration. The procedure is
divided into two tasks. Firstly, a special Scenario Configuration folder must be created and then the
object definitions can be created within this folder.

Task 1: Creating a Scenario Configuration Folder

To create a scenario configuration folder follow these steps:

1. Go to the Settings folder within the project using the Data Manager.

2. Click the New Object icon . A object selection window will appear.

3. Choose the Scenario Configuration (SetScenario). A scenario configuration dialog will appear.
You can rename it if you like.
4. Press OK.

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Task 2: Defining the Operational Data Parameters

Once you have created the scenario configuration folder (task 1 above), then you can create the object
definitions that determine which parameters are defined as operational data. Follow these steps:
1. Deactivate any active operation scenario.

2. Open the Scenario Configuration folder object using the Data Manager.
3. Press the Default button. PowerFactory then automatically creates the object definitions accord-
ing to the defaults.
4. Open the object definition that you would like to change by double clicking it. The list of default
operational data parameters is shown in the Selected Variables panel of the dialog box that
appears.
5. You can remove an operational parameter of this object by double clicking the target parameter
from the Selected Variables panel. Likewise, a variable can be added to this list by clicking
the black triangle underneath the cancel button and then adding the variable name to the list
of parameters.

6. Once you have altered the defined parameters, click OK.

7. Repeat steps 4-6 for as many objects as you would like to change.
8. Open the scenario configuration folder object again (step 2) and press the Check button. Power-
Factory will notify you in the output window if your changes are accepted.

Note: Some variables cannot be removed from the default operational parameters due to internal
dependencies. If you need to remove a certain variable but the check function doesn’t allow
you to, it is suggested that you contact DIgSILENT support to discuss alternative options.

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Network Variations and Expansion

Stages

16.1 Introduction

As introduced in Chapter 4 (PowerFactory Overview), Variations and Expansion Stages are used to
store changes to network data, such as parameter changes, object additions, and object deletions. This
Chapter describes how to define and manage Variations, and presents an example case. The term
“Variation” is used to collectively refer to Variations and Expansion Stages.

The use of Variations in PowerFactory facilitates the recording and tracking of data changes, indepen-
dent of changes made to the base Network Model. Data changes stored in Variations can easily be
activated and deactivated, and can be permanently applied to the base Network Model when required
(for example, when a project is commissioned).

The concept of having a “permanent graphic” in PowerFactory means that graphical objects related to
Variations are stored in Diagrams folders, and not within Variations. When a Variation is inactive, its
graphic (if applicable) is shown on the Single Line Graphic in yellow. Turning on Freeze Mode ( )
hides inactive variations graphics.

When a project uses Variations, and the user wants to make changes to the base network model
directly, Variations should be deactivated, or the Study Time set to be before the activation time of the
first Expansion Stage (so that there is no recording Expansion Stage).

In general there are two categories of data changes stored in Variations:

1. Changes that relate to a future project (e.g. a potential or committed project). The changes may
be stored in a Variation to be included with the Network Model at a particular date, or manually
activated and deactivated as required by the user.
2. Changes that relate to data corrections or additions based on the current (physical) network. The
changes may be stored in a Variation in order to assess the model with and without the changes,
to track changes made to the model, and to facilitate reversion to the original model in case the
changes are to be revised.
Notes regarding Variations and Expansion Stages:

• General:
– The user may define as many Variations and Expansion Stages as required.
– Variations and Expansion Stages cannot be deleted when active.
– Variations may also be used to record operational data changes, when there is no active
Operation Scenario.

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– Expansion Stages are by default sorted according to their activation time in ascending order.
– To quickly show the recording Expansion Stage, project name, active Operation Scenario,
and Study Case, hover the mouse pointer over the bottom right corner of the PowerFactory
window, where (by default) the project name is shown. To change this to display the recording
Expansion Stage, choose Display Options → ’Recording’ Expansion stage.
• Activating and deactivating Variations:
– Active Variations and Expansion Stages are shown with blue icons in the Data Manager and
Project Overview.
– The Activation Time of Expansion Stages can only be modified when the parent Variation is
inactive.
– To activate or deactivate single or multiple Variations in the Data Manager, navigate to
the “Variations” folder, select and right-click on the Variation(s) and choose to activate or
deactivate the selected Variation(s).
– In the active Study Case, the “Variation Configuration” object stores the status of project
Variations. It is automatically updated as Variations are activated and deactivated.

• Recording changes:
– Whenever network data changes are recorded, an information box will appear for 10 seconds.
This tells the user where (in which Variation and Expansion Stage) the changes are being
recorded.
– Elements in PowerFactory generally include references to Type data. Changes to Type data
are not recorded in Expansion Stages. However, changes to Element Type references are
recorded.
– When there are multiple active Expansion Stages, only the ’Recording’ Expansion Stage
stores changes to Network Data (shown with a red circle icon and bold text). There can be
only one recording Expansion Stage per study case.
– With the exception of objects added in the active ’Recording’ Expansion Stage, objects
(e.g. Terminals in the base network model) cannot be renamed while there is a ’Recording’
Expansion Stage.

• DPL:
– Deleted objects are moved to the PowerFactory Recycle Bin, they are not completely deleted
until the Recycle Bin is emptied. If a DPL script is used to create an Expansion Stage,
and Expansion Stage objects are subsequently deleted, re-running the DPL script may first
require the deleting of the Expansion Stage objects from the Recycle Bin. This is to avoid
issues with references to objects stored in the Recycle Bin.

16.2 Variations

To define a new Variation (IntScheme):

1. First, either:
• From the Main Menu, select Insert → Variation.
• In a Data Manager, right-click on the Variations folder ( ) and from the context menu select
New → Variation. . . .
• In a Data Manager, select the Variations folder and click on the New Object icon . Select
Variation (IntScheme) from the list and press Ok.
2. Define the Variation Name.
3. Optionally set the Variation Colour. This is used to highlight modifications introduced by the
Variation in the Single Line Graphic.

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4. On the second page of the Basic Data tab, optionally select Restricted Validity Period for the
Variation. If a restricted validity period is defined, the variation will effectively be ignored outside
this time range. This option is not normally used, as the same effect can be achieved by having
an expansion stage which changes the network and a second which restores the original state.
The “starting” and “completed” Activation Time are set automatically according to the Expansion Stages
stored inside the Variation. The “starting” time is the activation time of the earliest Expansion Stage,
and the “completed” time is the activation time of the latest Expansion Stage. If no Expansion Stages
are defined, the activation time is set by default to 01.01.1970.

To activate a previously defined Variation, in the Data Manager, right-click on the Variation and from the
context menu select Activate. The Variation and associated Expansion Stages will be activated based
on their activation times and the current study case time.

In the Variation dialog, the Contents button can be used to list the Expansion Stages stored within the
Variation.

16.3 Expansion Stages

To define a new Expansion Stage (IntSstage):

1. First, either:
• Right-click on the target Variation and select New → Expansion Stage. . . .
• Select the target Variation and click on the New Object button in the Data Manager’s
toolbar. Select Expansion Stage (IntStage) from the list and press Ok.
2. Define the Expansion Stage Name.
3. Set the Expansion Stage Activation Time.
4. Optionally select to Exclude from Activation to put the Expansion Stage out of service.
5. Optionally enter Economical Data on the Economical Data page (see Section 43.2 (Techno-
Economical Calculation) for details).
6. Press OK.
7. Select whether or not to set the current Study Time to the Activation Time of the defined Expansion
Stage. See Section 16.5 for details.
From the Expansion Stage dialog, the following buttons are available:

• Press Contents to view changes introduced by the Expansion Stage.

• Press Split to assign changes from the recording Expansion Stage to a target (see Section 16.9.3).
• Press Apply to apply the changes of an Expansion Stage (only available if the parent Variation is
inactive). Changes are applied to the Network Model, or to the recording Expansion Stage (see
Section 16.9.1).

16.4 The Study Time

The study case Study Time determines which Expansion Stages are active. If the Study Time is equal to
or exceeds the activation time of an Expansion Stage, it will be active (provided that the parent Variation
is active, and provided that “Exclude from Activation” is not selected in the Expansion Stage or an active
Variation Scheduler). The Study Time can be accessed from:

• The Date/Time of Study Case icon .

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• Clicking on the lower right corner of the PowerFactory window, where the time of the active Study
Case is displayed.
• The Main Menu under Edit → Project Data→ Date/Time of Study Case. . . and then use the
drop-down arrow to open up a standard calendar dialog.
• The Data Manager in the active Study Case folder, object “Study Time”.

16.5 The Recording Expansion Stage

When a Variation is activated for a study case, the active Expansion Stage with the latest activation time
is automatically set to the recording Expansion Stage. If there are multiple Expansion Stages with this
same activation time, the stage that previously set to the recording stage will remain as the recording
Expansion Stage. Changes made to the network data by the user are saved to this stage.

As changes are made, an information box will appear for 10 seconds. This tells the user where (in which
Variation and Expansion Stage) the changes are being recorded.

As discussed previously, the Study Time can be changed in order to set the active Expansion Stages,
and as a consequence, set the “recording Expansion Stage”. To simplify selection of the recording
Expansion Stage, in the Data Manager it is possible right-click an Expansion Stage, and select Set
’Recording’ Expansion stage to quickly modify the Study Time to set a particular Expansion Stage as
the recording Expansion Stage.

As noted in 16.1, unless an Operation Scenario is active, changes made to operational data are stored
in the recording Expansion Stage.

16.6 The Variation Scheduler

As an alternative to setting the activation time of Expansion Stages individually, Variation Schedulers
(IntSscheduler ) may be used to manage the activation times and service status of each Expansion
Stage stored within a Variation. Multiple Variation Schedulers can be defined within a particular Varia-
tion, but only one may be active at a time. If there is no active Variation Scheduler, the Expansion Stage
activation times will revert to the times specified within each individual Expansion Stage.

To define a Variation Scheduler:

1. Open a Data Manager, and navigate to the Variation where the Scheduler is to be defined. Then,
either:
• Right-click on the Variation and select New → Variation Scheduler. . . .
• Click on the New Object button and select Variation Scheduler (IntSscheduler ).
2. Press the Contents button to open a data browser listing the included stages with their activation
times and service statuses, and modify as required.
The activation time and status of Expansion Stages referred to be a Variation Scheduler can only be
changed when the Variation is active, and the Variation Scheduler is inactive. Note that Expansion
Stage references are automatically updated in the scheduler.

Note: If the parent Variation is deactivated and reactivated, the Variation Scheduler must be re-activated
by the user, if required.

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16.7 Variation and Expansion Stage Example

Figure 16.7.1 shows an example project where there are two Variations, “New Connection” and “New
Line”.

With the current study case time, some expansion stages are active and some are not. Active stages
are indicated by their icon being coloured blue. The recording stage is also indicated:
• Expansion Stage “Ld1” is shown with a blue icon, so is active. But it also has its name shown
in bold, and this, together with the marker against the icon, shows that it is the recording
Expansion Stage.
• Expansion Stage “Ld2” has no colouring; it is inactive.
• Expansion Stage “Line and T2” is shown with a blue icon; it is active.
The Variation Scheduler “Scheduler1” within the “New Connection” Variation, shown with a blue icon
and bold text, is active.

Therefore, the activation time and service status of each Expansion Stage within the Variation “New
Connection” is determined from the activation times specified in this Variation Scheduler. The alternative
Variation Scheduler “Scheduler2” is inactive (only one Variation Scheduler can be active at a time).

Also shown in Figure 16.7.1 on the right-side pane are the modifications associated with Expansion
Stage “Ld1”. In this stage, a load and an associated switch and cubicle has been added.

Note that graphical changes are not included in the Variation.

Figure 16.7.1: Example Variations and Expansion Stages - Data Manager

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Figure 16.7.2 shows the Single Line Graphic of the associated network. Since the Expansion Stage
“Ld2” is inactive, the Load “Ld2” is shown in yellow.

Figure 16.7.2: Example Variations and Expansion Stages - Single Line Graphic

16.8 The Variation Manager

The Variation Manager is a tool which enables users to have an overview of their Network Variations
and Expansion Stages in a Gantt-chart like format. It can be accessed from the main tool bar, using
the icon. In Figure 16.8.1 below, the Variation Manager is used to show several Variations in a
project. In this project, the Network Variations have been arranged into subfolders, according to the
year. Each Variation is represented by a blue horizontal bar in the chart, and each Expansion Stage by
a short vertical bar. The sections following describe the options and features available in the tool, with
reference to this example.

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Figure 16.8.1: Variation Manager, Stage Order tab

16.8.1 Stage Order

16.8.1.1 Selecting the Variations to be shown

By default, all the Variations will be shown in the Variation Manager, but the user can restrict what
is shown by clicking on the icon (1). Then, Variations and/or folders containing Variations can be
selected as required. Several options for selecting Variations are offered, including an option to select
Variations relating to a particular network element. The Variations are listed on the left-hand side,
with two columns (“Activation starting” and “Activation completed”) to indicate when each Variation and
Expansion Stage is active. If the project contains Variation Schedulers, another column will appear to
indicate which Variations include a Variation Scheduler.

16.8.1.2 Timeframe and resolution

By default, the period of time covered in the Variation Manager view will be set automatically according
to the first and last Expansion Stage activation time of the selected Variations. This time period can
be adjusted using the drop-down calendar from the start and end date fields (2). If the time period is
restricted by the user such that not all selected Variations can be displayed in full, this is indicated by the
start and/or date being highlighted in bold, and by arrows within the chart indicating that not everything
is displayed.

If the time period has been restricted, the full time period is easily restored using the icon (3).

In addition to managing the time period shown, the user is able to select the time resolution from a
drop-down menu (4).

The “Fit time scaling into window” icon (5) will adjust the view so that everything can be seen without
the need for a scroll-bar (note that this can result in the resolution being changed). There is also a
“Refresh” icon . To further adjust the view, the user can change the column widths manually (in the
same way as in a spreadsheet).

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16.8.1.3 Study case time and recording stage

If the current study case time is within the period shown in the Variation Manager, it will be shown as a
red line (6). By double-clicking on this line, the user can change the study case time, which may in turn
affect which Expansion Stage is the recording stage. Note that the current recording stage is indicated
on the left-hand side of the view, by the symbol , and highlighted in red in the chart.

16.8.1.4 Looking at the Variations in detail

On the right-hand side of the Variation Manager, each blue horizontal bar (8) represents a network
Variation, which can be edited by double-clicking on the bar. Likewise, each short vertical bar (9) is
linked to an Expansion Stage, and these are also editable in order to see the contents.

The amount of information shown on the left-hand side of the Variation Manager can be controlled by
the user, via the Settings icon (7), which also offers options for the format of the times and dates
shown.

The Variations on the left-hand side can be expanded to show the individual Expansion Stages (as in
Figure 16.8.1) or not, as required.

Using right-click on the Variations or Expansion Stages on the left-hand side brings up a context menu.
As well as other expected options, there are two options specific to the Variation Manager:
• When only a portion of the chart is visible, Show in Chart can be used to scroll the chart
automatically so as to see the selected Variation or Expansion Stage.
• Include in displayed time period can be used on Variations or Expansion Stages which are not
shown because they lie outside the currently-specified time period. The displayed time period will
be automatically expanded so that they can be seen.
• Selecting Show Object Modifications for a Variation will open up an Object Modifications tab
(see 16.8.2) for that particular Variation.

16.8.2 Object Modifications

The Object Modifications tab provides detail of the modifications recorded in the selected Variation(s),
at an object level. Most of the options at the top are the same as described above in section 16.8.1 for
the Stage Order tab.

As well as the button for selecting Variations, there is a button for selecting objects (the default being
“All Objects”). This button will bring up a dialog box for the selection of objects to be viewed. There
is a column of checkboxes for selecting objects, and column showing the element class, which can be
filtered. Objects can be selected/deselected individually, but also these four options may be used:

• Select All

• Select Visible: Elements that are visible (depending on the filter applied to the element class
column) are added to the selection.
• Deselect Visible: Elements that are visible (depending on the filter applied to the element class
column) are removed from the selection.

• Deselect All

In addition, the icon allows the user to toggle between displaying the objects in a list or in a
hierarchical view.

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On the left-hand side, a number of columns provide information about the object modifications listed.
Any of these columns can be used to filter the data: for example, filtering on the Conflicts column
provides an easy way of checking for potential errors in the use of Variations in the project.

• Number of references (#): The number of times the object is referenced in the selected Variations
• Existing in base grid (B): Shows whether the object already exists in the underlying grid or is
only added in a Variation
• Added (+): Indicates that the object is added in a Variation

• Modified (*): Indicates that the object is modified in a Variation

• Deleted (x): Indicates that the object is deleted in a Variation
• Scheduler(s): If Variation Schedulers are present in the project, this column will be visible, to
indicate affected objects

• Conflicts (!): Possible conflicts are identified. For example, modifying a non-existent object will
flag up an error, whereas deleting a non-existent object or adding an already-existing object will
flag up a warning. It should be noted that the conflict identification only takes account of the
selected Variations.

Right-clicking on any of the objects brings up a context menu, with a number of options for viewing data
related to this object. In particular, the option Show Attribute Modifications enables the user to examine
in detail the changes made to the attributes of the selected object. This option will bring up a new
Attribute Modifications tab, as described in the next section.

The Gantt chart on the right-hand side is similar to that for the Variations, described in 16.8.1.4 above. It
shows information about the creation, modification and deletion of network elements, and each element
can be accessed directly by double-clicking on the blue horizontal bar.

16.8.3 Attribute Modifications

The Attribute Modifications tab does not appear by default when the Variation Manager is first opened,
but is generated for an object using the Show Attribute Modifications context menu in the Object
Modifications tab, or from the Data Manager or Network Model Manager using the option Variations
→ Show Attribute Modifications.

16.8.3.1 Viewing attribute modifications

This view shows a history for all the attributes which are modified in any of the selected Variations. Each
column shows the Variation and Expansion Stage in which a change occurs, the changed values being
shown in bold. The activation time of the Expansion Stage is also shown in the column heading, and
the tool tip for this activation time also considers and lists schedulers and the times with and without
scheduler.

It might be that some attribute changes are of little interest to the user. The Settings dialog, accessed
via the Settings icon , includes an Ignored attributes button, which allows the user to specify (by
element class) attributes which should not be considered relevant by the Variation Manager.

16.8.3.2 Editing attribute modifications

As well as looking at the attributes that have been modified via the Network Variations, the user is also
able to make changes directly within the expansion stages, by editing the data in the table. This can be
used, for example, to make corrections if an erroneous value is spotted. The edits will directly change

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the relevant Expansion Stage. It is not possible, however, to change attributes which are not already
modified within any of the selected/listed Variation(s).

As well as the option to edit the data in the table directly, right-clicking on a value brings up a context
menu for editing, including options to apply the selected value to all the relevant Expansion Stages, or
a selection of them.

16.9 Variation and Expansion Stage Management

16.9.1 Applying Changes from Expansion Stages

Changes stored in non-active Expansion Stages can be applied to the Network Data folder, or if there is
an active recording Expansion Stage, to the recording Expansion Stage. To apply the changes, either:
• In the Data Manager, right-click the Expansion Stage and select Apply Changes, or in the Ex-
pansion Stage dialog press Apply (only available if the Expansion Stage is within a non-active
Variation).
• In the Data Manager, select item(s) within an inactive Expansion Stage, right-click and select
Apply Changes. If required, delete the item(s) from the original Expansion Stage.

16.9.2 Consolidating Variations

Changes that are recorded in a projects active Variations can be permanently applied to the Network
Data folder by means of the Consolidation function. After the consolidation process is carried out, the
active (consolidated) Expansion Stages are deleted, as well as any empty active Variations.

To consolidate an active Variation(s):

1. Right-click on the active study case and from the context menu select Consolidate Network
Variation.
2. A confirmation message listing the Variations to be consolidated is displayed. Press Yes to
implement the changes.

3. View the list of consolidated Variations and Expansion Stages in the output window

Note: Variations stored within the Operational Library must be consolidated in separate actions. To
consolidate a Variation stored in the Operational Library, right-click and from the context menu
select Consolidate.

16.9.3 Splitting Expansion Stages

Changes stored in the recording Expansion Stage can be split into different Expansion Stages within
the same Variation using the Merge Tool.

To split an Expansion Stage:

1. Open the dialog of the recording Expansion Stage and press Split. Alternatively, right-click and
from the context menu select Split.
2. A data browser listing the other Expansion Stages from the parent Variation is displayed. Double-
click on the target Expansion Stage.

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3. The Merge Tool window is displayed, listing all the changes from the compared Expansion Stages.
Select the changes to be moved to the “Target” stage by double-clicking on the Assigned from cell
of each row and selecting Move or Ignore. Alternatively, double-click the icon shown in the “Target”
or “Source” cell of each row.
4. Press Split. All the changes marked as Move will be moved to the target Expansion Stage, and
the changes marked as Ignore will remain in the original “Base” stage. Once completed, the
Variation is automatically deactivated.

16.9.4 Comparing Variations and Expansion Stages

Variations and Expansion Stages can be compared, as can any other kind of object in PowerFactory,
using the Merge Tool. To compare objects using the Merge Tool, a “base object” and an “object to
compare” must be selected. The comparison results are presented in a data browser window, which
facilitates the visualisation, sorting, and possible merging of the compared objects. Comparison results
symbols indicate the differences between each listed object, defined as follows:

• The object exists in the “base object” but not in the “object to compare”.

• The object exists in the “object to compare” but not in the “base object”.

• The object exists in both sets but the parameters’ values differ.

• The object exists in both sets and has identical parameter values.

To compare two Variations:

1. In an active project, right-click on a non-active Variation and from the context menu select Select
as Base to Compare.
2. Right-click on the (inactive) Variation to compare and from the context menu select Compare to
“Name of the base object”.
3. The Merge Tool dialog (ComMerge) is displayed. By default, all of the contained elements are
compared. The Compare fields can be configured however, to compare only the objects or
selected subfolders.

4. Once the Compare options are set, press the Execute button.
5. When prompted, select Yes to deactivate the project and perform the comparison.
Figure 16.9.1 shows an example comparison of two Variations (based on the example presented in
Section 16.7), where the Variation “New Line” is set as the “Base” for comparison. The “Assigned from”
options are set such that all Expansion Stages from both “New Line” and “New Connection” Variations
will be merged into a single Variation, which will retain the name of the “Base” Variation “New Line”.

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Figure 16.9.1: Merge Tool Window

Refer to Chapter 20: Data Management, Section 20.4 (Comparing and Merging Projects) for further
details on use of the Merge Tool.

16.9.5 Colouring Variations the Single Line Graphic

The single-line graphic colouring function offers three modes which may be used to identify changes
from Variations and Expansion Stages. To set the colouring mode, go to Diagram Colouring, and under
Other select Variations / System Stages, and the desired mode from the following:

• Modifications in Recording Expansion Stage. Colours can be defined for Modified, Added, and
Touched but not modified components.
• Modifications in Variations / System Stages. Objects are shown in the colour of the Variation in
which the object is last added or modified.

• Original Locations. Objects are shown in the colour of the grid or the Variation in which the object
is added.
The use of colouring in network diagrams is described in Section 9.3.10.1, and more detail about the
use of colours and colour palettes can be found in Section 4.7.8.

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16.9.6 Variation Conflicts

Active Expansion Stages with the same activation time must be independent. This means that the
same object can not be changed (modified, deleted, or added) in active Expansion Stages with the same
activation times. If there are dependent Expansion Stages, when the Variation is activated PowerFactory
will display an error message to the output window and the activation process will be cancelled. Other
conflicts that may arise during the activation of a Variation:

• The same object is added by more than one Expansion Stage. In this case the latest addition is
applied and a warning message is displayed in the output window.
• A previously deleted object is deleted. In this case the deletion is ignored and a warning message
is displayed in the output window.
• An object is changed or deleted in a Expansion Stage but it does not exist. In this case the change
is ignored and a warning message is displayed in the output window.
• A deleted object is changed in a Expansion Stage. In this case the change is applied to the
deleted target object and a warning message is displayed in the output window.

16.9.7 Error Correction Mode

As well as recording the addition and removal of database objects, variations also record changes to
database objects. Human error or the emergence of new information can result in a need to update a
change. Suppose that at some time after the change has been introduced, the user wishes to update
the change. If additional variations have been created since the change was introduced, this will be
hard to achieve. The user must first remember in which Expansion Stage the change was introduced,
then they must make this Expansion Stage the Recording Stage before finally updating the change or
rectifying the error. The Error Correction mode is intended to simplify this procedure. The following
example illustrates use of the Error Correction Mode.

Suppose that a project is planned consisting of a base case and 2 Variations, namely Variation 1 and
Variation 2. Suppose that the base case network contains a line object (ElmLne) of length 1 km. When
Variation 1 is recorded, the length of the line is updated from the base case value to a new value of
10 km. This change is recorded in the Expansion Stage associated with Variation 1. Subsequently, the
user creates Variation 2 and records a new set of changes in the Expansion Stage of Variation 2. The
user makes no changes to the line object in Variation 2, but suddenly realises that the length of the line
is incorrect. The length should be 15 km not 10 km. If the user makes a change to the line length while
Variation 2 is recording this change will be recorded and applied while Variation 2 is activated. However,
as soon as Variation 2 is deactivated, providing Variation 1 is activated, the line length will return to the
10 km value. This is incorrect and the error is therefore still present in the project.

Instead of recording the change in the recording Expansion Stage of Variation 2, the user should turn
on the Error Correction Mode. This can be achieved by first ensuring that the Project Overview Window
is visible. (If not, select Window → Project Overview). Then, by right-clicking in the Project Overview
on the title line of the Network Variations section. A context menu as illustrated in Figure 16.9.2 will
appear. The option Error Correction Mode should be selected from the context menu.

Figure 16.9.2: Activating Error Correction Mode

Once the Error Correction Mode has been switched on, any changes introduced will now, not automati-
cally be stored in the Recording Expansion Stage. Instead, they will be stored in the Expansion Stage

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containing the record of the last change to the object in question. For the example described, this will be
in the Expansion Stage associated with Variation 1, where the length was updated from 1 km to 10 km.
The 10 km value will be updated to 15 km. If the Error Correction Mode is now switched off, again by
right-clicking in the Project Overview Window, the user can proceed knowing that the error has been
eliminated from the project.

Please note, if any change to the line had been recorded during Variation 2 prior to the application of the
Error Correction Mode, not necessarily a change to the length of the line, but a change to any ElmLne
parameter, then with Error Correction Mode active, the change would be recorded in the Recording
Expansion Stage of Variation 2. This is because the Expansion Stage containing the record of the last
change to the object in question would in fact be the one in Variation 2. In this case, the error would still
be present in the project.

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Chapter 17

Parameter Characteristics,
Load States, and Tariffs

17.1 Introduction

This chapter provides details on how to define and use characteristics, load states, load distribution
states, and tariffs.

It is useful to be aware that when element parameters have characteristics applied to them, they appear
differently coloured in both the element dialogs and in a network model manager. By default, the
colouring for characteristics is lilac (pale purple). Note that both the colour and its priority can be
changed in the User Settings (see Section 7.8).

17.2 Parameter Characteristics

General Background

In PowerFactory any parameter may be assigned a range of values (known as a “characteristic”) that is
then selectable by date and time, or by a user-defined trigger. The range of values may be in the form
of a scaling factor, a one-dimensional vector or a two-dimensional matrix, such as where:
• Load demand varies based on the minute, day, season, or year of the study case.

• Generator operating point varies based on the study being conducted.

• Line/transformer ratings, generator maximum power output, etc. vary with ambient temperature.
• Wind farm output varies with wind speed, or solar farm output varies with irradiance.

The assignment of a characteristic may be made either individually to a parameter or to a number of

parameters. New characteristics are normally defined in either:
• The Characteristics folder of the Operational Library within the project.
• A global Characteristics folder directly in the Database → Library (see section 13.3: Custom
Global Library).

Studies which utilise characteristics are known as ’parametric studies’.

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Scales and Triggers

The value of the characteristic is defined by the value of the scale. New scales are normally defined in
the Scales folder within the Characteristics folder in the Operational Library.

When a scale is created, a means to ’set’ the scale, and thereby to set the parameter to the correspond-
ing value, is required. This is called a trigger (SetTrigger, ). After a new scale has been defined,
a trigger is automatically created in the active study case folder (see also Chapter 12, Section 12.12:
Triggers). When a trigger is edited and a ’current’ value is set the scale is set and the parameter value
is changed. When a different study case is activated, or a new study case is created, and a load-flow is
performed, all relevant triggers are copied into the study case folder and may be used in the new study
case. Triggers for characteristics may be created at any time in the Data Manager within the Library
→ Operational Library → Characteristics→ Scale folder, or at the time the Characteristic is created.
Triggers for characteristic can generally be accessed from either:

• The Date/Time of Study Case icon ( ).

• The Trigger of Study Case icon ( ).

Figure 17.2.1 illustrates an application of scales and triggers, where the study case time is used to set
the output of a load based on the hour of the day.

Figure 17.2.1: Illustration of Scales and Triggers

Available Characteristics

Table 17.2.1 shows a summary of the Parameter Characteristics available in PowerFactory. Note: Click
on Characteristic description to link to the relevant section.

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Characteristic Description of Application

17.2.1: Time Characteristics Parameter(s) are to be modified based on the day, week, or
month set in the Study Time. Parameter states may be inter-
polated between entered values.
17.2.2: Profile Characteristics Parameter(s) are to be modified according to seasonal variation
and the day, week and month set in the Study Time.
17.2.5: Vector Characteristics
Discrete parameter states are to be selectable.
with Discrete Scales
17.2.5: Vector Characteristics
Parameter states may be interpolated between entered values.
with Continuous Scales
17.2.5: Vector Characteristics
Parameter(s) are to be modified with frequency.
with Frequency Scales
17.2.5: Vector Characteristics
Parameter(s) are to be modified based on a user-defined scale
with Time Scales
referencing the Study Time.
17.2.6: Matrix Parameter Char-
Parameter states are based on two variables, and may be
acteristics
interpolated between entered values.
17.2.7: Parameter Characteris-
Parameter states and the trigger (optional) is to be read from a
tics from Files
file.
17.2.4: Linear Function Parameter varies according to a mathematical relationship.
17.2.8: Characteristic Refer-
Reference link between a parameter and a Characteristic.
ences

Table 17.2.1: Summary of Parameter Characteristics

Usage

The “Usage” field at the bottom of the characteristic dialog can be used to specify how “Values” are
applied to the parameter that the characteristic is associated with:

• Relative in % will multiply the parameter by the percentage value.

• Relative will multiply the parameter by the value.
• Absolute will replace the current parameter with the absolute value entered. (not available for the
Scaling Factor characteristic)

When the Absolute option is selected, an additional field for the Unit is available. In this field there are
two options:

• Default unit: the unit defined in the project settings will be used.
• User defined: an exponent for the unit can be specified. Then PowerFactory will automatically
convert the entered value to the unit specified in the project settings.

Characteristic Curves

For continuous characteristics, various approximation methods are available to interpolate and extrapo-
late from the entered Values:
• Constant: holds the Y-value in between X-values.

• Linear: uses a linear interpolation.

• Polynomial: uses a polynomial function with a user defined degree.
• Spline: uses a spline function.

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• Hermite: uses Hermite interpolation.

The approximation curve will be shown in the diagram page of the Characteristic dialog. The inter-
polated Y-value may vary considerably depending on the entered data and the approximation function
applied.

Figure 17.2.2 highlights the difference between interpolation methods for an example characteristic with
a continuous scale (shown on the horizontal axis from -20 to +45). For instance, at a trigger value of
25, linear interpolation will give an output value of 60, whereas constant interpolation will give an output
value of 40.

Figure 17.2.2: Approximated characteristics

Note that Approximation methods are not available for discrete characteristics.

Creating a Characteristic

To create a Characteristic, right-click on the desired parameter (e.g. ’Active Power’), right-click and
select Add project characteristic or Add Global Characteristic and create the desired characteristic. It
is also possible to edit the existing characteristic by selecting the option Edit Characteristic. Details of
how to create the different types of characteristics are provided in the following sub-sections, including
an example application of characteristics.

17.2.1 Time Characteristics

General background on characteristics and their properties is provided in Section 17.2. The time
characteristic determines the value of the parameter according to the study time (SetTime).

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Recurrence

When using the time characteristic (ChaTime), the user has the option to set a Recurrence period for
the characteristic values. The available options are:

• Daily
• Weekly

• Monthly
• Yearly
• None

If the values are to be supplied locally via a table (see below for the descriptions of different data
sources), the user will also see a field called Resolution. The resolution that can be selected depends
upon the recurrence period.

A special case is the selection of yearly recurrence with a resolution of “Seasons”. If this option is
selected, a new Seasons page name appears on the left-hand side of the dialog. On this page, the user
is able to configure the required seasons. Once this is done, the values can be entered on the Curve
page.

There are four options for defining the data source of values used in a time characteristic: Table, File,
Result File and Database. The Table data is stored internally within PowerFactory. The File data is
stored externally to PowerFactory in a Comma Separated Values (*.csv) file or User Defined Text File.
For the Result File option, the characteristic is created from data in an existing results file, and the
Database option enables the data to be taken from a database outside the PowerFactory database, for
which access information has to be provided by the user, as described below.

Time characteristic using internal table

To define a project time characteristic for a parameter using a table:

• In the edit dialog of the target network component right-click on the desired parameter.
• Select Add project characteristic → Time Characteristic . . .

• Click the New Object button

• The edit dialog of the Time Characteristic will be displayed. Define the parameter name and select
’Data Source’ Table.
• Select the desired ’Recurrence’ and the ’Resolution’.

• Define the ’Usage’ and ’Approximation’ and enter the characteristic values in the table.
• Press OK.

Time characteristic using an external file

To define a project time characteristic for a parameter using an external file:

• In the edit dialog of the target network component right-click on the desired parameter.
• Select Add project characteristic → Time Characteristic . . .

• Click the New Object button

• The edit dialog of the Time Characteristic will be displayed. Define the parameter name and select
’Data Source’ File.
• Select the desired ’Filename’ and file ’Format’.

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• Define the file configuration including the ’Unit’ of time or ’Time Stamped Data’ format, ’Time
Column’ and ’Data Column’ and ’Column separator’ and ’Decimal separator’.
• Define the ’Usage’ and ’Approximation’.
• Press OK.

Time characteristic using a Result File

To define a project time characteristic for a parameter using a result file:

• In the edit dialog of the target network component right-click on the parameter for which the
characteristic is to be defined.
• Select Add project characteristic → Time Characteristic . . .

• Click the New Object button

• The edit dialog of the Time Characteristic will be displayed. Define the parameter name and select
’Data Source’ Result File.
• Use the drop-down arrow to select the Result File.
• Select the element whose results are to be used.
• Select the relevant parameter.
• Define the ’Usage’ and ’Approximation’.
• Press OK.

Time characteristic using a Database

When defining characteristics which use data from an external database, the user has to set up an
ODBC Database Configuration object, or select an existing Database Configuration. These database
configurations can exist within the project, in a folder, or in a configuration area, for example.

If defining a new configuration, this can be done from the ChaTime dialog, using the drop-down arrow
next to Database. This is described below, as part of the process of setting up the characteristic.

To define a project time characteristic for a parameter using an external database:

• In the edit dialog of the target network component right-click on the parameter for which the
characteristic is to be created.
• Select Add project characteristic → Time Characteristic . . .

• Click the New Object button

• The edit dialog of the Time Characteristic will be displayed.
• Define the parameter name and select “Data Source” Database.
• Using the drop-down arrow next to Database in the Database panel of the dialog, the database
configuration details are either selected or a new configuration created like this:
– Navigate to the chosen location for the new object.
– Click the New Object button
– Select the database system and the ODBC driver. Oracle, PostgreSQL and SQL Server
are offered explicitly as database system options; a fourth option Generic enables the user
to select any available ODBC driver, but in this case the user must determine which of the
remaining fields needs to be populated.
– Enter the server name.
– Enter the access details (Username and password) for the database system.

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– Enter the database name.

• Two Table modes are offered, as illustrated in figure 17.2.3 below:
– “Value Column” is used when individual database tables exist for individual element charac-
teristics. In this case the user must provide the Table name, the Time Column name and the
Value Column name.
– “Id Column” is used if there is a common table, where data for more than one characteristics
is stored. In this case, the table will have an additional column for id-references, and so the
column name and id must be supplied.
• The Time offset: The values in the time column are normally assumed to be UTC times, which are
therefore independent of the local time zone or daylight saving regime. If the user wishes to enter
local times instead, the Time offset is used to make the necessary adjustment to these values to
convert them to UTC times. For example, if the values in the time column are in Central European
Time (CET i.e. UTC+01:00), the Time offset should be “-1.0”.
• Select the relevant parameter.
• Define the ’Usage’ and ’Approximation’.

• Press OK.

Figure 17.2.3: Database table modes

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Note: When setting up the database, users should be aware that the read performance for large tables
can be vastly improved by ensuring that there are appropriate table indexes. The value column-
based table should have an index on the Timestamp column (e.g. with “CREATE INDEX Index-
Name ON Table (Timestamp)”); the id-based table should have an combined index on both the
Timestamp and the Id column (e.g. with “CREATE INDEX IndexName ON Table(Timestamp,Id)”).

Note: When defining characteristics with time stamped data, be aware of daylight savings.
• In summer when the clocks are put forward 1 hour, the time stamps from 02:00 AM to 02:59
AM do not occur this day. PowerFactory expects that these time stamps do not occur in the
time characteristic either. Time stamps within this time range will be ignored.
• In winter when the clocks are put back 1 hour, the time stamps from 02:00 AM to 02:59 AM
occur twice this day. PowerFactory expects that these time stamps only occur once in the
time characteristic. Multiple definitions for the same time stamp will be ignored.

Discrete Time Characteristics

The discrete time characteristic (ChaDisctime) is provided for backward compatibility with previous
versions of PowerFactory. It is more restricted than the time characteristic and hence its use is limited
since PowerFactory version 15.1. Similar to the time characteristic, the discrete time characteristic uses
an internally defined series of time scales that are convenient to use to define the characteristic. The
user simply selects a scale (e.g. day of the week) and enters the corresponding values.

17.2.2 Profile Characteristics

General background on characteristics and their properties is provided in Section 17.2.

The profile characteristic is used to select a time characteristic (ChaTime) corresponding to individual
days or group of days and each season. The profile characteristic can also be used to select a time
characteristic for certain holiday days.

To define a project profile characteristic for a parameter:

• In the edit dialog of the target network component right-click on the desired parameter.

• Select Add project characteristic → Profile Characteristic . . .

• Click the New Object button

• The edit dialog of the Profile Characteristic will be displayed.

• Select the ’Seasons’ page and define one or more seasons with a ’Description’, ’Start Day’, ’Start
Month’, ’End Day’ and ’End Month’. Note that Seasons can not overlap with each other.
• Select the ’Groups of Days’ page and define grouping for each day and holiday.

• Select the ’Holidays’ page and define one or more holidays with a ’Description’, ’Day’, ’Month’, if it
is ’Yearly’ or select a holiday ’Year’.
• Select the ’General’ page, right-click and Select Select Element/Type. . . or double-click on each
relevant cell and select or create a time characteristics for each group of days, holiday and season.

• Press OK.

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Yearly Growth Characteristic

In addition to seasonal characteristic variation, a yearly growth characteristic can also be defined. A
yearly growth characteristic is defined using a time characteristic (ChaTime) with a recurrence value of
“None”, for the specified years.

17.2.3 Scaling Factor

General background on characteristics is provided in Section 17.2.

Scaling factors are used when a parameter should be multiplied by a certain value or percentage.
For example, a scaling factor could be used to multiply the Active Power value of one or more static
generators by 0.5. If a parameter is assigned several scaling factors, it will be multiplied by their product.

To define a project scaling factor for a parameter:

• In the edit dialog of the target network component right-click on the desired parameter (e.g. ’Active
Power’).

• Select Add project characteristic → Scaling Factor. . .

• Click the New Object button

• The edit dialog will be displayed. Set the value of the factor. The associated trigger is automatically
created in the current study case.
• Define the ’Usage’ “relative” or “relative in %”.
• Press OK.

17.2.4 Linear Functions

General background on characteristics and their properties is provided in Section 17.2.

Linear Functions are used when a parameter should vary according to a mathematical relationship,
with reference to a scale value “x”. For example, a linear function may reference a Scalar and Trigger
(TriVal) with a Unit of ’Temperature’. Then, if the temperature is set to, say, 15 deg, the parameter that
this characteristic is applied to will thus be multiplied by the value of the linear function 2 · 15 + 3 = 33.

To define a project linear function for a parameter:

• In the edit dialog of the target network component right-click on the desired parameter (e.g. ’Active
Power’).
• Select Add project characteristic → Linear Function. . .

• Click the New Object button

• The edit dialog will be displayed. Click ’Select’ from the drop down menu next to ’Scale’ and select
an existing scale and press OK, or create a new scale:
– Click on the New Object button to create a Scalar and Trigger (TriVal) and set the desired
units of the scale. The associated trigger is automatically created in the current study case.
– Press OK.
• Define the ’Usage’ and enter the parameters ’A’ and ’b’ of the linear function 𝐴 · 𝑥 + 𝑏.
• Press OK.

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17.2.5 Vector Characteristics

Vector Characteristics may be defined with reference to Discrete Scales, Continuous Scales, Frequency
Scales, and Time Scales.

Vector Characteristics with Discrete Scales (TriDisc)

General background on characteristics and their properties is provided in Section 17.2.

A discrete parameter characteristic is used to set the value of a parameter according to discrete cases
set by the trigger of a discrete scale. A discrete scale is a list of cases, each defined by a short text
description. The current value is shown in the characteristic dialog in red, according to the case that is
currently active.

To define a new project discrete parameter characteristic:

• In the edit dialog of the target network component right-click on the desired parameter.
• Select Add project characteristic → One Dimension - Vector. . .

• Click the New Object button

• The edit dialog of the one dimension vector characteristic (generic class for one dimensional
characteristics) will be displayed. Click ’Select’ from the drop down menu next to ’Scale’ and
select an existing scale and press OK, or create a new scale as follows:
– Make sure that the scales library is selected (Operational Library → Characteristics→ Scale).
– Click on the New Object button and select Discrete Scale and Trigger (TriDisc).
– Write the name of the scale cases (one case per line).
– Press OK.
• Define the Usage and Approximation and enter the characteristic values.
• Press OK.
The diagram page for the discrete characteristic shows a bar graph for the available cases. The bar for
the case that is currently active (set by the trigger) is shown in black.

Vector Characteristics with Continuous Scales (TriCont)

General background on characteristics and their properties is provided in Section 17.2.

A continuous parameter characteristic is used to set the value of a parameter (’Y’ values) according to
the ’X’ values set in the continuous scale.

To define a new project continuous parameter characteristic:

• In the edit dialog of the target network component right-click on the desired parameter.
• Select Add project characteristic → One Dimension - Vector. . .

• Click the New Object button

• The edit dialog of the one dimension vector characteristic (generic class for one dimensional
characteristics) will be displayed. Click ’Select’ from the drop down menu next to ’Scale’ and
select an existing scale and press OK, or create a new scale:
– Click on the New Object button and select Continuous Scale and Trigger (TriCont).
– Enter the unit of the ’X’ values.
– Append the required number of rows (right-click on the first row of the Scale table and select
Append n rows) and enter the ’X’ values.
– Press OK.

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• Define the ’Usage’, enter the characteristic ’Y’ values, and define the ’Approximation’ function.
• Press OK.

Vector Characteristics with Frequency Scales (TriFreq)

General background on characteristics and their properties is provided in Section 17.2.

A frequency characteristic is a continuous characteristic with a scale defined by frequency values in

Hz. The definition procedure is similar to that of the continuous characteristics, although the Frequency
Scale (TriFreq) is selected.

Vector Characteristics with Time Scales (TriTime)

General background on characteristics and their properties is provided in Section 17.2.

Time parameter characteristics are continuous characteristics using time scales. A time scale is a
special kind of continuous scale that uses the global time trigger of the active study case. The unit of
the time trigger is always a unit of time but may range from seconds to years. This means that changing
the unit from minutes to hours, for instance, will stretch the scale 60-fold. The units ’s’, ’m’, and ’h’ are
respectively, the second, minute and hour of normal daytime. A Time Scale may be used, for example,
to enter four equidistant hours in a year (1095, 3285, 5475, and 7665).

The definition procedure is similar to that of the continuous characteristics, although the Time Scale
(TriTime) scale is selected.

17.2.6 Matrix Parameter Characteristics

General background on characteristics and their properties is provided in Section 17.2.

When defining a matrix parameter characteristic, two scales must be defined. The first scale, that for
columns, must be a discrete scale. The scale for rows may be a discrete or continuous scale.

To define a new project matrix parameter characteristic:

• In the edit dialog of the target network component right-click on the desired parameter.
• Select Add project characteristic → Two Dimension - Matrix. . .

• Click the New Object button

• The edit dialog of the matrix characteristic will be displayed. Click ’Select’ from the drop down
menu next to each ’Scale’ and select an existing scale and press OK, or create a new scales.
Scales can be defined as discussed in previous sections.
A column calculator can be used to calculate the column values, as a function of other columns. This
is done by pressing the Calculate. . . button. Once the values have been entered and the triggers have
been set, the ’Current Value’ field will show the value to be used by the characteristic.

17.2.7 Parameter Characteristics from Files

General background on characteristics and their properties is provided in Section 17.2.

When a series of data is available in an external file, such as an Excel file, or tab or space separated
file this data may be utilised as a characteristic if the “Parameter Characteristic from File” (ChaVecfile
object) is used. The external file must have the scale column for the data series in column 1.

To define a new parameter characteristic from file:

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• In the edit dialog of the target network component right-click on the desired parameter.
• Select Add project characteristic → Characteristic from file. . . or Add global characteristic →
Characteristic from file. . .
• The corresponding library (local or global) will open and there click on the New Object button
to create a new Parameter Characteristic from file (ChaVecfile)
• Complete the input data fields, including:
– Define (or select) a scale and trigger. Scales can be defined as discussed in previous
sections.
– Generally the ’Column’ should be set to the default of ’1’. The field is used for specialised
purposes.
– Set the ’Factor A’ and ’Factor B’ fields to adjust or convert the input data. The data contained
in column 2 of the external file will be adjusted by 𝑦 = 𝑎𝑥 + 𝑏 where “x” is the data in the
external file and “y” is what will be loaded into the characteristic.
– Set the ’Usage’ and ’Approximation’.
– Once the file link has been set, press the Update button to upload the data from the external
file to the characteristic.

17.2.8 Characteristic References

When a characteristic is defined for an objects parameter, PowerFactory automatically creates a char-
acteristic reference (ChaRef object). The characteristic reference is stored within the PowerFactory
database with the object. The characteristic reference acts as a pointer for the parameter to the
characteristic. The characteristic reference includes the following parameters:
Parameter the name of the object parameter assigned to the characteristic. This field cannot be
modified by the user.
Characteristic the characteristic which is to be applied to the parameter.
Inactive a check-box which can be used to disable a characteristic reference.

The ability to disable the characteristic for individual objects using the object filter and the Inactivate
option makes data manipulation using characteristics quite flexible.

17.2.9 Edit Characteristic Dialog

Once a parameter has a characteristic defined, then an option to Edit characteristic(s) becomes visible
on the parameters context menu, i.e. select parameter and right-click → Edit characteristic(s). Once
selected, the Edit characteristics dialog appears which lists all the characteristics referenced by the
parameter. The Edit characteristics dialog provides a graphical representation of the characteristic and
allows characteristics to be inserted, appended and deleted. The Edit characteristics dialog also allows
modification of individual characteristics values, triggers and characteristic activation and deactivation.

Note: By default the value of the first active characteristic is assigned to the parameter.

17.2.10 Characteristics Tab in Data Filters

When viewing elements in a Data Manager or Network Model Manager, parameter characteristics
information can be seen by selecting the Characteristics tab. For this tab to be visible, it must be enabled
in the User Settings, on the “Functions” page. An example of a Network Model Manager showing the

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Characteristics tab is shown in Figure 17.2.4 (remember that the browser must be in “detail” mode to
see these tabs). Note also that the data colouring indicates that characteristics are applied.

Figure 17.2.4: Network Model Manager Characteristics tab

The Characteristics tab shows all characteristics defined for the displayed objects, together with the orig-
inal value and the current value as determined by the characteristic. In the example, various scales are
applied to modify the active power from 100 MW to the “Current Value”. The current values will be used
in all calculations. New characteristics for individual or multiple elements can be defined by selecting
the relevant fields and doing right-click → Characteristic/Distribution→ Add project characteristic. . . .

The Characteristics tab will only show a particular characteristic column when at least one of the objects
has that characteristic defined for a parameter. It is thus necessary to define a characteristic for one
object prior to using the browser, when the user would like to assign characteristics, for the same
parameter, for a range of other objects. To define a Project “High-Low” loading characteristic for all
loads, for instance, can thus be done by performing the following steps.
• Create a discrete scale in the grid folder.

• Create a vector characteristic using this scale in the grid folder.

• Edit one of the loads, right-click the active power field and assign the vector characteristic to the
relevant parameter.
• Open a browser with all loads, activate the “detail” mode and select the Characteristics tab.

• Select the characteristic column (right-click → Select Column) and then right-click the selected
column.
• Use the Select Project Characteristic. . . option and select the vector characteristic.

17.2.11 Example Application of Characteristics

Consider the following example, where the operating point of a generator should be easily modified by
the user to predefined values within the capability limits of the machine.

Firstly, the Active Power of the synchronous generator is set to the maximum capability of 150 MW.
Then, a vector characteristic is added to the Active Power parameter. To create a new Project Vector
Characteristic, right-click on the Active Power parameter (pgini) and select Add project characteristic
→ One Dimension - Vector. . . . Click on the New Object icon and define a characteristic called “Active
Power” in the ChaVec dialog.

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A new discrete scale is required. To create the scale, click on the arrow next to Scale and select
Select. . . . Click on the New Object icon and create a new Discrete Scale and Trigger (TriDisc). The
Discrete Scale and Trigger is named “Output Level”, with three cases as shown in Figure 17.2.5.

Figure 17.2.5: Active Power Discrete Scale and Trigger

Click on OK to return to the Vector Characteristic. Define the values for the different loading scenarios.
Values are entered in %, and thus Usage is set to ’relative in %’. Figure 17.2.6 shows the resultant
vector characteristic, including a reference to the Scale “Output Level” and the current parameter value.

Figure 17.2.6: Active Power Parameter Characteristic

Next, a matrix characteristic is added to the Reactive Power parameter of the generator in a similar
fashion to the Active Power characteristic. A new discrete scale named “Operating Region” is created
(for the Columns) and the three operating regions “Underexcited”, “Unity PF” and “Overexcited” are
defined.

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The scale “Operating Region” is linked to the Scale for Columns, and the previously defined scale
“Output Level” is selected for the Scale for Rows. Absolute Mvar values are entered in the Matrix
Characteristic as shown in Figure 17.2.7.

Figure 17.2.7: Reactive Power Matrix Characteristic

Now that the characteristics and triggers are defined, the “Operating Region” and “Output Level” triggers
can be used to quickly modify the operating point of the generator (see Figure 17.2.8).

Figure 17.2.8: Setting of Discrete Triggers

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17.3 Load States

This section describes Load States, as used in Reliability and Optimal Capacitor Placement calcula-
tions.

17.3.1 Creating Load States

Pre-requisites:

Prior to creating load states, a time-based parameter characteristics must be defined for at least one
load in the network model. See Time Characteristics (ChaTime) in Section 17.2.1 and Vector Charac-
teristics with Time Scales (TriTime) in Section 17.2.5 for more information on parameter characteristics,
as well as the example later in this section.

Follow these steps to create the load states:

1. For calculation of load states:
• (Reliability) click the ’Create Load States’ icon ( ) on the reliability toolbar and select ’Load
States’. Optionally inspect or alter the settings of the Reliability Calculation and Load Flow
commands.
Note: Optionally choose the option to “Consider Generators” to consider time varying power
feed-in of generators. If selected, the generator power state will additionally be contained
within the clusters. Please note, that the Load and Generator States can only be applied
for Reliability assessment.

• (Optimal Capacitor Placement) Click on ’Load Characteristics’ page of the Optimal Capacitor
Placement command and select ’Create Load States’.
2. Enter the time period for calculation of load states:
• (Reliability) Enter the year.
• (Optimal Capacitor Placement) Enter Start Time and End Time. The time period is inclusive
of the start time but exclusive of the end time.
3. Enter the Accuracy. The lower accuracy percentage, the more load states are generated.
4. Optional: Limit the number of load states to a user-defined value. If the total number of calculated
load states exceeds this parameter then either the time period of the sweep or the accuracy should
be reduced.
5. Optional: Change the threshold for ignoring load states with a low probability by altering the
’Minimum Probability’. If selected, states with a probability less than this parameter are excluded
from the discretisation algorithm.
6. Click Execute to generate the load states.

17.3.2 Viewing Existing Load States

After you have generated the load states as described above, or if you want to inspect previously
generated load states follow these steps:

1. Using the Data Manager, select the ’Reliability Assessment’ or ’Optimal Capacitor Placement’
command within the active Study Case.

2. Use the filter ( ) (in the Data Manager window) to select the ’load states’ object. There should
now be created load states visible in the right panel of the Data Manager.
3. Locate the ’load states’ object and double-click to view the load states.

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17.3.3 Load State Object Properties

The load states object properties are as follows:

Basic Data

• year: The Year used to create the load states.

• Number of loads: Number of loads and generators considered in the load cluster object.

• Number of states: This equals the number of columns in the “Clusters” table.
• Loads: Table containing each load considered by the load states creation algorithm and their
peak demand.
• Clusters: Table containing all load clusters. The first row in the table contains the probability
of the corresponding cluster. The remaining rows contain the power values of the loads. Every
column in the table contains a complete cluster of loads with the corresponding power.

Diagram Page

• Displayed Load: Use the selection control to change the load displayed on the plot.

The plot shows the cluster values (P and Q) for the selected load where the width of each bar represents
the probability of occurrence for that cluster in the given year.

17.3.4 Example Load States

The example below shows how load states can be generated for a network model with four Loads (Ld1,
Ld2, Ld3, and Ld4).
1. The Vector Characteristic shown in Figure 17.3.1 is applied to both Active Power and Reactive
Power of load Ld4 only, with the associated Time Scale shown in Figure 17.3.2 Ld4 is initially set
to 3.1 MW, 0.02 Mvar.

Figure 17.3.1: Load State Vector Characteristic

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Figure 17.3.2: Time Scale for Load State Characteristic

2. Load States are generated by clicking Create Load States (as discussed in the preceding section).
3. PowerFactory calculates the resultant Load States:
• The maximum value of each load 𝐿𝑝 is determined for the time interval considered. In the
example, Ld4 has a peak load of 4.03 MW.
• The ’load interval size’ (𝐼𝑛𝑡) is determined for each load, where 𝐼𝑛𝑡 = 𝐿𝑝 · 𝐴𝑐𝑐 and ’Acc’ is
the accuracy parameter entered by the user. For the example above using an accuracy of 10
%, the interval size for Active Power is 0.403 MW.
• For each
(︀ 𝐿 )︀hour of the time sweep and for each load determine the Load Interval: 𝐿𝐼𝑛𝑡 =
𝐶𝑒𝑖𝑙 𝐼𝑛𝑡𝑖
where 𝐿𝑖 is the load value at hour ’i’.
• Identify common intervals and group these as independent states.
• Calculate the probability of each state based on its frequency of occurrence.

The independent states and their probabilities are shown in Figure 17.3.3. Load states for Ld4 vary
according to the characteristic parameters, where the states from characteristic values of 93 % and
100 % have been combined due to the selection of 10 % accuracy in the calculation. Load states for
Ld1, Ld2, and Ld3 do not vary, since characteristics were not entered for these loads.

Figure 17.3.3: Load States (SetCluster) dialog box

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17.4 Load Distribution States

This section describes how to create load distribution states, as used by the Reliability calculation.

17.4.1 Creating Load Distribution States

Pre-requisites:

Prior to creating load distribution states a substation/s must have been defined within the model. A
distribution curve must have also been defined (accessed from the reliability page of the substation/s).

Follow these steps to create the load distribution states:

1. Click the ’Create Load States’ button ( ) on the reliability toolbar. The load states creation dialog
will appear.
2. Optional: Use the Reliability Assessment selection control to inspect or alter the settings of the
Reliability Calculation command. This selection control points to the default reliability command
within the active Study Case.

3. Optional: Use the Load Flow selection button to inspect and alter the settings of the load flow
command. This selection control points to the default load-flow command within the active Study
Case.
4. Enter the Minimum Time Step in hours (suggested to be the minimum step size on the load
distribution curve).

5. Enter the Maximum Power Step (0.05 p.u. by default).

6. Optional: Force Load State at S = 1.0 p.u. so that a state is created at P = 1.0 p.u., irrespective of
the load distribution curve data and step sizes entered.
7. Click Execute to generate the load distribution states.

17.4.2 Viewing Existing Load Distribution States

After you have generated the load states as described above, or if you want to inspect previously
generated load states follow these steps:
1. Using the Data Manager, select the ’Reliability Assessment’ Command within the Active Study
Case.

2. Optional: Use the filter ( ) (in the Data Manager window) to select the ’load distribution states’
object. There should now be created load distribution states visible in the right panel of the Data
Manager.
3. Locate the ’load distribution states’ object and double-click to view the load states.

17.4.3 Load Distribution State Object Properties

The distribution load states object properties are as follows:

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Basic Data

Year The Year used to create the load states.

• Clusters: Table containing all substation clusters. The first row in the table contains the probability
of the corresponding cluster. The remaining rows contain the power values of the substations.
Every column in the table contains a complete cluster of substations with the corresponding power.
• Number of substations: Number of substations considered in the Distribution State object.

• Number of states: This equals the number of columns in the Distribution State table.

Diagram Page

Displayed Station: Use the selection control to change the load displayed on the plot

The plot shows the cluster values (Apparent power in p.u. with reference to the substation load) for the
selected substation where the width of each bar represents the probability of occurrence for that cluster.

17.4.4 Example Load Distribution States

In this example, a Load Distribution Curve is entered for a substation.

1. The Load Distribution Curve shown in Figure 17.4.1 is entered for the substation (Apparent power
in p.u. of substation load).

Figure 17.4.1: Substation Load Distribution Curve (IntDistribution)

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2. Load States are generated by clicking Create Load Distribution States (as discussed in the pre-
ceding section).
3. The resultant Load Distribution States are shown in Figure 17.4.2. ’Force Load State at S =
1.0 p.u.’ has not been selected in this instance.

Figure 17.4.2: Load Distribution States (SetDistrstate)

17.5 Tariffs

This section describes the definition of Time Tariffs (as used in Reliability calculations), and Energy Tar-
iffs (as used in Reliability calculations and Optimal RCS Placement calculations, and Techno-Economical
calculations).

17.5.1 Defining Time Tariffs

A time tariff characteristic can be defined by taking the following steps:

1. Choose the Select option from the ’Tariff’ selection control on the Reliability page of the
load element. A Data Manager browser will appear with the Operational Library → Tariff folder
selected.

Note: Optional: If you have previously defined a ’Tariff’ characteristic and want to re-use it, you
can select it now. Press OK to return to the load element to reliability page.

2. Create a time tariff object by pressing the New Object button from the data browser toolbar.
3. Select Time Tariff and press OK. A ’Time Tariff’ dialog box will appear.
4. Select the unit of the interruption cost function by choosing from the following options:
$/kW Cost per interrupted power in kW, OR
$/customer Cost per interrupted customer, OR
$ Absolute cost.
5. Enter values for the Time Tariff (right-click and ’Append rows’ as required).
6. Press OK to return to the load element reliability page.

Example Time Tariff

An example Time Tariff characteristic is shown in Figure 17.5.1. In this example, ’Approximation’ is set
to ’constant’, i.e. no interpolation between data points, and ’Unit’ is set to $. An interruption to a load for
a duration of 200 minutes would lead to a cost of $20, irrespective of the active power consumption.

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Figure 17.5.1: Example Time Tariff

17.5.2 Defining Energy Tariffs

An energy tariff characteristic can be defined by taking the following steps:

1. Choose the ’Select’ option from the ’Tariff’ selection control on the reliability page of the load ele-
ment. A Data Manager browser will appear with the Operational Library → Tariff folder selected.
2. Optional: If you have previously defined a ’Tariff’ characteristic and want to re-use it, you can
select it now. Press OK to return to the load element to reliability page.

3. Create an energy tariff object by pressing the New Object button from the data browser toolbar.
4. Select ’Energy Tariff’ and press OK. An ’Energy Tariff’ dialog box will appear.

5. Enter Energy and Costs values for the Energy Tariff (right-click and ’Append rows’ as required).
6. Press OK to return to the load element reliability page.

Example Energy Tariff

An example Energy Tariff characteristic is shown in Figure 17.5.2. In this example, ’Approximation’ is
set to ’constant’, i.e. no interpolation between data points. A fault which leads to energy not supplied of
2.50 MWh would result in a cost of

$9,20 · 2,50 · 1000 = $23000 (17.1)

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Figure 17.5.2: Example Energy Tariff

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Chapter 18

Reporting and Visualising Results

18.1 Introduction

This chapter introduces the tools and options in PowerFactory for presenting the calculation results.
Key concepts in this topic are Result Boxes, Output Reports, Results Objects, Variable Selection and
Plots. The structure of this chapter is as follows:

• Section 18.2 provides the instructions for customising the result boxes displayed in the single-line,
overview and detailed diagrams. Instructions about selecting the predefined formats are given in
chapter Network Graphics, section 9.5.
• Section 18.3 describes the Variable Selection object, which is used to define the variables to be
presented, either in the Result Boxes, Flexible Data page or Results Files.
• Section 18.5 describes Report Generation command, used for generating inbuilt or customised
reports.
• Section 18.6 describes the option to compare steady state calculations results.

• Section 18.7 describes the Results File object to store results or selected variables.
• Section 18.8 lists and describes all the plot types available in PowerFactory and the tools used to
modify/customise them.

18.2 Result Boxes

Results are displayed with help of result boxes in the single line diagrams. Several predefined formats
can be selected, as described in Chapter 9, Section 9.5 (Result Boxes, Text Boxes and Labels).

The result box itself is actually a small output report, based on a form definition. This form definition is
used to display a wide range of calculated values and object parameters, and can be also be used to
specify colouring or user defined text.

18.2.1 Editing Result Boxes

To edit result boxes the so-called “Format” dialog is used. In this dialog, text reports can be defined, from
very small result boxes to more complex and comprehensive reports within DIgSILENT PowerFactory.

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The Format object (IntForm), shown in Figure 18.2.1, will be used in most cases to change the contents
of the result boxes in the single line graphic; the Format dialog is accessed by right-clicking on a result
box and selecting the option Edit format for. . . .

Figure 18.2.1: The Format dialog

The format defined in this dialog can be saved for later use by clicking on the button To Library and
defining a user-specific name for it.

Such saved formats are stored in the user’s own settings folder, and can therefore be selected for use
in any of the user’s projects.

This Format dialog has a page to change the format by selecting variables and a page to manually
define a format. What is displayed on this page depends on the input mode; that can be changed using
the button Input Mode. Both options are described in the following sections.

18.2.1.1 Input Mode - User Selection

When using this input method it is possible to select any number of parameters out of all available
parameters for the selected object or class of objects. This includes model parameters as well as
calculated values.

Different variables can be added by appending new rows. By double clicking on the corresponding row
in the column Variable, a Variable Selection showing the list of all available variables will appear. More
information about Variable Selection is available in section 18.3.

It is also possible to define how the variable will be shown by selecting the columns Show Name,
Show “=”, Decimal Places and Show Unit. A preview of the result box is shown in the Preview field.

18.2.1.2 Input Mode - Format Editor

This is the most flexible, but also the most difficult mode. In this mode, any text and any available
variable, in any colour, can be entered in the Form. The highly flexible DIgSILENT output language
allows for complex automatic reports. The User defined button acts like the input mode User Selection

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with one important difference: where the User Selection mode is used to redefine the complete form
text, the User defined button appends a line for each set of variables to the existing form text.

For example if the active and reactive power of an element have been selected using the input mode
User Selection, when switching to Format Editor the variables will be shown in the DIgSILENT output
language code like this:

#.## $N,@:m:P:_LOCALBUS
#.## $N,@:m:Q:_LOCALBUS

This example shows the basic syntax of the DIgSILENT output language:

• The ’#’ sign is a placeholder for generated text. In the example, each line has a placeholder for
a number with two digits after the decimal point (’#.##’). The first ’#’-sign stands for any whole
number, not necessary smaller than 10.
• The ’$N’ marks the end of a line. A line normally contains one or more placeholders, separated
by non-’#’ signs, but may also contain normal text or macro commands.
• After the ’$N’, the list of variable names that are used to fill in the placeholders have to be added.
Variable names must be separated by commas. Special formatting characters, like the ’@:’-sign,
are used to select what is printed (i.e. the name of the variable or its value) and how.

The Format Editor offers options for the unit or name of the selected variable. If the Unit-show option is
enabled, a second placeholder for the unit is added:

#.## # $N,@:m:P:_LOCALBUS,@:[m:P:_LOCALBUS
#.## # $N,@:m:Q:_LOCALBUS,@:[m:Q:_LOCALBUS

The ’[’-sign encodes for the unit of the variables, instead of the value.

The same goes for the variable name, which is added as

# #.## $N,@:∼m:P:_LOCALBUS,@:m:P:_LOCALBUS
# #.## $N,@:∼m:Q:_LOCALBUS,@:m:Q:_LOCALBUS

where the “∼” -sign encodes for the variable name. With both options on, the resulting format line

# #.## # $N,@:∼m:P:_LOCALBUS,@:m:P:_LOCALBUS,@:[m:P:_LOCALBUS

will lead to the following text in the result box:

P -199,79 MW

Other often-used format characters are ’%’, which encodes the full variable description, and ’&’, which
encodes the short description, if available.

For a detailed technical description of the report generating language, see Appendix 53 (The DIgSILENT
Output Language).

18.3 Variable Selection

Variable Selection (IntMon) objects are used to select and monitor variables associated with objects in
the data model. The variable selection object can be used to select the variables to be recorded during
a calculation (e.g. RMS/EMT simulation, quasi-dynamic simulation, harmonic analysis) and to define
the variables to be displayed in the result boxes and in the Flexible Data page (see Section Flexible
Data Page).

An example of a variable selection dialog is shown in Figure 18.3.1.

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Figure 18.3.1: Example of a variable selection dialog

18.3.1 Selection Page

The Selection page contains three main areas: object, available variables and selected variables.

18.3.1.1 Object or Class Name

The object field has a reference to the object whose variables are monitored and the class of the
selected object. If no object has been selected, the Class name field becomes active. For some
calculations, for example quasi-dynamic simulation and contingency analysis, the class name is used
instead of the object.

These fields are usually automatically assigned by the way the dialog is opened.

18.3.1.2 Available Variables

In the Available variables field, the variables to be monitored can be selected. There are three filters
to help to find the variables: the Group and Dialog page / Calculation determines which variables are
displayed in the Available variables window and the Filter variables as you type can be used to filter the
displayed variables, either by description or by name.

The displayed variables can be filtered with the Group and Dialog page / Calculation filters as follows:

• Group All: all the variables of the object/class are displayed.

• Group Input data: input parameters that belong directly to the selected object, which can be
additionally filtered using the Dialog page filter, where one of the pages of the edit dialog of the
object can be selected. The options also include All and Not displayed in dialog.

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• Group Results: previously know as Calculation Parameters, are variables derived from the
primary calculations (i.e. currents, loading, power, losses, etc.), from input data (i.e. the absolute
impedance of a line, derived from 𝑖𝑚𝑝𝑒𝑑𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒/𝑘𝑚 * 𝑙𝑖𝑛𝑒𝑙𝑒𝑛𝑔𝑡ℎ), or that have been transformed
from input data to a format useful for calculation (actual to per unit), or that are required for such
transformation (e.g. rated power). The parameters that actually are available depend on the object
type.
Results can be filtered using the Calculation filter, where one of the calculations or the options All
and Independent of calculation can be selected.

• Group Results per connection: Monitored or measured variables. These are the outputs as
calculated by a calculation function selected via the Calculation filter.
• Group Results per bus: variables that belong to the bus/es where the element is connected.
Can be filtered using the Calculation filter, where one of the calculations or the options all and
independent of calculation can be selected.

• Group Signals and states: variables that can be used as interface between user-defined and/or
PowerFactory models (inputs and outputs). These variables are accessible whilst an iteration
is being calculated, whereas the other variables sets are calculated following an iteration. The
signals and states can be:
– Input signal (IN)
– Output signal (OUT)
– State variable (STATE)
– State derivative (d/dt)

The Balanced checkbox can be used, depending on the type of calculation to be monitored, to toggle
between balanced and unbalanced variable selections. When not checked, i.e. unbalanced variables
are required, an additional column Phase, will be shown with an indication of which variables are phase-
wise.

The columns of the Available variables area can be sorted by clicking on them or further filtered using
the drop-down arrow on each column header.

For variables that are linked to an object, i.e. variables whose unit is an object (e.g. Int*, Elm*, Typ*,
Sta*), an additional button Select referenced variables is displayed when clicking on the variable row.
If the linked object can only be one class, a new variable selection dialog will open to select the variables
of the referenced object. Otherwise, i.e. if the object can be more than one class, a dialog will open to
select first the corresponding class as shown in Figure 18.3.2 for the variable Type of a line.

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Figure 18.3.2: Referenced variables of a TypLne

User-defined variables are shown when the dialog page Data Extensions is selected. Additional infor-
mation about Data Extensions is available in Chapter 19.

Clicking on the checkbox on the left side of the variable will add that particular available variable to
a Selected variables list. To multi-select variables, select them first and then click on one of the
checkboxes.

18.3.1.3 Selected Variables

The selected variables are displayed on the Selected variables window. Depending on the variable type,
additional columns will be displayed.

• Bus: for the variables of the Results per connection and Results per bus groups, of elements
having more than one connection, an additional column called Bus will be displayed. Here the
different buses can be selected.
• Phase: when selecting unbalanced variables (Balanced checkbox unchecked), the corresponding
phase/s can be selected in the column Phase.
• Function: for complex variables, the column Function should be used to define which variable
should be displayed, as shown in Figure 18.3.3.

Figure 18.3.3: Complex variables selection

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• Statistic: for double statistic variables, typical result of an optimisation, the column Statistic can
be used to select the statistical values of the control variables.
• Subindex: for arrays, vectors, matrices and multi-line strings variables, the column subindex
should be used to define the index to be displayed.

Note: The indexing of the variable depends on the object:

– Stored results (e.g. Results objects) use 0-based indexing
– Vector variables use 0-based indexing
– Modelica Models internally use 1-based indexing
For more information, refer to the Technical Reference documentation of a specific model or
to the Modelica dynamic models described in Section 29.8

18.3.1.4 Print Values

The Print values button on the right side of the dialog will display the current values of all the selected
variables in the output window.

If the variable definition is being done for a time domain simulation (RMS/EMT), the option Display
Values during simulation in output window will be visible. By checking this box and selecting the option
Display results variables in output window in the simulation command, the values calculated for the
selected variables during a simulation will be displayed in the output window.

18.3.2 Editor Page

On the Editor page, the variables can be manually input. Or copied to be used in, for example a script.
All the variables’ names are preceded by a letter depending on the group and type of variable; these
can be:

• e: for the group Input data

• m: for the group Results per connection

• n: for the group Results per bus

• c: for the group Results
• s: for the group Signals and states
• t: for the parameters of the referenced object “type”

• r: for the parameters of a referenced object

18.3.3 Format/Header Page

The Format/Header page is only visible when selecting the variables of the flexible data page (Fig-
ure 18.3.4) and can be used to change column headers and the format of the displayed variables.

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Figure 18.3.4: Customising flexible data page formats and column headers

More options for customising the flexible data page are given in section Customising the Flexible Data
page.

18.4 Documentation of Device Data

The Output of Device Data command (ComDocu), also referred to as Documentation of Device Data, is
a way of listing the data associated with the PowerFactory network elements, types etc. in the project.
It can be accessed by clicking on the icon on the main tool menu. When the command is executed,
the information is written to the output window.

18.4.1 Documentation of Device Data - Settings

The Short Listing

The “Short Listing” reports only the most important device data, using one line for each single object,
resulting in concise output. Like the “Output of Results”, the “Short Listing” report uses a form to
generate the output. This form can be modified by the user. When the report form is changed, it is
stored in the “Settings” object of the active project, so does not influence the reports of other projects.
The output of objects without a defined short listing will produce warnings like:

Short Listing report for StoCommon is not defined.

The Detailed Report

The detailed report outputs all device data of the elements selected for output. In addition, type data can
be included (“Print Type Data in Element”). Device Data is split into the different calculation functions like
“Load-Flow” or “Short-Circuit”. The “Basic Data” is needed in all the different calculations. “Selected
Functions” shows a list of the functions whose data will be output. To report the device data for all

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functions, simply move all functions from left to right. If “Selected Functions” is empty no device data
will be output.

Device Data

• Use Selection: the set of reported elements depends on the Use Selection setting. If Use
Selection is checked one element or a set object must be chosen for output. If Use Selection
is not checked, the Filter/Annex page specifies the set of elements for the report.
• Annex: each class uses its own annex. There is either the default annex or the individual annex.
To use the default annex check Use default Annex. Changes of the annex are stored in the
Settings of the active project. The local annex is stored in the Documentation of Device Data
command. To modify the local annex press the Change Annex button.
• Title: most reports display a title on top of each page. The reference Title defines the contents of
the header.

18.4.2 Documentation of Device Data - Filter/Annex

If one wants to report elements without defining a set of objects, Use Selection on the Device Data
page must not be checked. The objects in the list Selected Objects will be filtered out of the active
projects/grids and reported. Available Objects shows a list of elements which can be added to the
Selected Objects list. The list in Available Objects depends on the Elements radio button. Elements in
the left list are moved to the right by double-clicking them. The text in the Annex input field will be set
as default annex for the selected class.

The Annex for Documentation

The Annex for Documentation stores the annex for the documentation of results. The annex number
and the page number for the first page are unique for each class.

• Objects: this column shows the different classes with their title.
• Annex: this column stores the annex number shown in the Annex field of the report.

• First Page: this column defines the start page for the class in the report. The first page number
depends on the class of the first element output in your report. The page number of its class is
the page number of the first page.

18.5 Output Reports

The results of calculations are presented to users in a number of different ways, depending on the par-
ticular calculation function. Many functions have their own dedicated tabular reports, but PowerFactory
also has a flexible reporting system, which is able to generate reports in PDF and many other formats.
This reporting capability is provided by the Report Generation (ComReport) command, accessed via
the icon, found on the main toolbar. The use of the command and different options available are
described in section 18.5.1.

For certain calculations, reports were previously generated just as ASCII text in the output window, but
now the user can instead easily create individual or combined reports, which make use of inbuilt report
templates (see section 18.5.4).

Reports may be exported or simply viewed as PDFs in PowerFactory using the PDF Viewer, described
in section 18.5.2

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Although the creation of standard reports is very easy, users can also create and use new report
templates, either completely from scratch or based on existing templates. This is done using the Report
Designer ; see section 18.5.5 for more information.

18.5.1 Report Generation Command

The Report Generation command is used once a calculation has been executed, and by default will
offer to the user all reports that are relevant for these latest calculation results. The user can select one
or more reports and decide whether these should be generated separately or combined into one. There
are options for filtering what should be reported and options regarding report format and exporting.

By default, reports are viewed using the inbuilt PDF viewer (see section 18.5.2). They appear as tabs in
the graphic window, and are stored as objects in the desktop of the active study case. The alternative
is to generate reports to be exported from PowerFactory.

There are two reports that are offered as standard, whatever calculation has just been executed:

• General Settings
This report shows user settings and selected configuration details, together with the settings of
the currently active project.
• Project Overview
This report provides an overview of the contents of the currently active project, including details of
the active study case.

18.5.1.1 Basic Options

Available Reports

This list is divided into four sections:

• Project Library: this will only be shown if the project contains new or customised report templates
in the project library.
• Custom Library: this will only be shown if users have created a custom library (see section 4.5.2)
and stored new or customised report templates in it.
• DIgSILENT library: standard report templates are listed, appropriate to the calculation just exe-
cuted.
• DIgSILENT library - Legacy: Any applicable “Legacy” ASCII or tabular reports are listed here.
Other settings within the dialog do not affect these reports. Note that this list does not include the
main tabular reports that are generated using function-specific report commands.
Reports are selected using the check boxes, and these reports then appear in the Selected Reports
panel to the right.

Other options are available via a context menu (right-click), for reports other than the “legacy” reports.
Actions such as copying reports into other libraries, or deleting them, are only available if the user has
write-access to the target library.
• Open the edit dialog of the selected report
• Copy the selected report to another library
• Duplicate the report
• Delete a report
Underneath the list is a Create new report. . . button, which allows the user to create a new report
template. Section 18.5.5 describes this process.

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Selected Reports

This is the list of reports to be generated. It can be modified by clicking on a report and using buttons
below to move it around in the list, or remove it. Drag and drop can also be used to change the order of
the reports.

Parameters

Some reports require input parameters to be set. If any of the selected reports has parameters, a blue
message "Parameters are required for some selected reports, see page Parameters" will appear. The
Parameters page is described below (section 18.5.1.4).

Document

In this panel, the user chooses whether to generate separate reports or merge them into one document,
in which case a name can be chosen.

Manage

The Manage button takes the user to the Report Manager, described in section 18.5.3. For normal
report generation using the inbuilt templates, there is no need to use this.

18.5.1.2 Page Layout

This page of the report dialog allow the user some control over the appearance of the document.

Page format

This part of the dialog allows the user to customise the format of the report if required, although the
default is to use the format already built in to the selected reports.

A drop-down menu offers a wide range of standard document formats, and a separate drop-down menu
gives the choice between Landscape and Portrait.

For customised sizing, a New. . . button allows the user to create a new SetFormat object with the
required dimensions. Such user-defined page format objects are held in the Settings folder of the
project, and will be added to the drop-down menu list. A selected format can also be edited, using the
Edit. . . button.

Title Page

This refers to the design of the (optional) title page and contents.

The inbuilt options are:

• PowerFactory Title Page Design: (Default) A front title page and a contents page
• PowerFactory Title Page Basic: Just a contents page

The right-arrow gives access to the currently-selected title page template; the down-arrow brings up
further options:
• Select: A dialog is presented, showing the available title page templates, both those in the
DIgSILENT library and any user-defined templates. At the bottom of the dialog, a Create new. . .
button can be used to create a custom title page report template. See section 18.5.5.
• Copy: To copy the currently-selected template.
• Paste: To paste in a previously-copied template.

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• Reset: Can be used to clear the selection, so that there will be no title page at all.

Header/Footer

In a similar way to the title page, the header and footer can be selected. Note that the header contains
a date, which is automatically generated as the current date.

Title information

The fields in this panel allow the user to provide a title to the report, with the term “Project” intended in
a general sense, rather than being necessarily the PowerFactory project name. These fields are only
editable if the selected Title Page or Header/Footer templates make use of them.

Title page parameters

These parameters allow additional information to be supplied to the title page template. For example,
the default PowerFactory Title Page Design (DIgSILENT Library) template has three parameters; these
can be used to provide three extra lines of information on the front page of the report.

Header/Footer parameters

These parameters allow additional information to be supplied to the header and footer templates. For
example, the default PowerFactory Header (DIgSILENT Library) template has a parameter for showing
or not showing the DIgSILENT logo.

Use custom style

By default, reports are generated using a default DIgSILENT style, which contains colour, font and
format settings for components such as report titles, chapter headers, data cells, and so on. All the
reports in the DIgSILENT library uses the DIgSILENT default style and users, too, can apply the
DIgSILENT default style to their own reports.

In order to customise the look of user-defined or DIgSILENT reports, users can change the settings of
the default style and create a custom style. To find out how to create customised styles, see section
18.5.5.2.

18.5.1.3 Filters

On this page, the user is able to control the amount of reported output by applying filters. These filters
limit the network elements that are “collected” for reporting. All the filters are multiplicative, for example
if the voltages are restricted to the range 110-220 kV and a grouping filter is applied for Grid 1, the only
terminals reported will be those in Grid 1 that also lie within the required voltage range.

Restrict voltage levels

Minimum and maximum voltage levels may be specified here.

Grouping filter

Groupings refer to the grouping objects Grids, Feeders, Operators, Owners, Zones, Areas and Bound-
aries, which can be used to group network elements. If this option is selected, only elements within the
specified grouping objects will be considered. The Operation is also selected as follows:
• Union: an element is considered if it is contained in any of the selected groupings.

• Intersection: an element is only considered if it is contained in all of the selected groupings.

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Custom filter

Custom filters are defined by the user and can be used to select elements according to other rules.
General information about setting up filters can be found in section 10.3.3.

Selection filter

This option is provided so that output can be restricted, if required, to a specific set of network elements.
These network elements can be selected as a set. To define a set, the user can select the required
elements then do right-click, Selections → Set - General.

18.5.1.4 Parameters

Aside from the filters described above, some reports have parameters as input, enabling the user to
determine what should be reported. For example, a report of voltage violations will have parameters
specifying the limits of allowed voltage. On this page, it is possible to view and modify any parameters.
A drop-down menu allows the selection of each relevant report.

18.5.1.5 Export

By default, reports are generated as PDFs and viewed using the PDF Viewer built into PowerFactory.
The alternative is to export reports, for which PDF or one of many other file formats can be selected.
If reports are exported as PDF and automatically opened (see below) the PDF viewer used will be
determined by the setting on the External Applications page of the PowerFactory Configuration dialog
(see section 5.2.4).

Export generated documents

If this option is selected, a target folder for the exported documents must be defined.

Export File format

The default, and recommended, format for exporting files is PDF, but a number of other formats are also
available.

Open documents after export:

• Not selected: the reports are simply created in the specified location.
• Selected: the reports are automatically opened after being created.

Document Settings

Depending on the file format selected, additional options such as Image quality are offered. Specifically,

• Enable smooth upscaling (PDF): Used to improve the appearance of the report if low resolution
images are used.
• PDF/A Compliance (PDF): PDF/A is a standard that identifies a “profile” for electronic documents
that ensures that the documents can be reproduced exactly the same way in future years. This
option can be used to ensure compliance with the selected standard.
• Embed fonts (PDF): By default this option is not selected. If the PDF document makes use of
proprietary fonts on the user’s computer, embedding such fonts could risk breach of terms and
conditions when the document is shared. The option can of course be selected if there are no
such concerns.

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• Author (PDF): An author’s name can be assigned; this will be seen in the document properties
when the document is opened.
• Export report pages to separate Excel sheets (Excel)
• Export page breaks (Excel)
• Continuous page (HTML 5 (ZIP archive))

18.5.2 PDF Viewer

When a PDF report is viewed inside PowerFactory, the inbuilt report PDF Viewer is used. This presents
the reports in a separate panel of the graphic window, in one or more tabs. These can be managed as
with other graphic and reporting tabs, for example moved to form a floating window.

When a report is generated to be viewed inside PowerFactory, it is saved in the desktop of the active
study case. The report objects are persistent, meaning that they are not deleted when the tab is simply
closed (as opposed to actively selecting a context menu option on the tab to delete the report). To look
at reports again after they have been closed, the Windows menu in the main tool-bar or the drop-down
arrow at the left-hand end of the graphics tool-bar both offer an option Open Report Document. . . . This
will bring up a dialog showing the reports available in the study case; it also provides a convenient way
to access and delete unwanted reports.

The options available in the viewer toolbar are:

• Bookmarks: if this button is active, the “Bookmarks” pane is shown to the left of the document; it
acts as a table of contents and can be used to navigate the report.
• Zoom and pan: these buttons work in the same way as for network graphics.
• Zoom to page: if this button is active, the zoom factor is automatically adapted to display complete
pages.
• Fit to width: if this button is active, the zoom factor is automatically adapted in order to display
the complete (page) width of the document.
• Zoom factor box: This can be used to change the zoom factor to one of the pre-set values or a
manually-entered value.
• Search field and Find Previous/Next buttons: a text string can be typed into the field and the
Find Previous/Next buttons used for searching. The search is case-insensitive.
• Copy: used to copy currently selected text.
• Export: the document can be exported to a selected location.
• Print: Opens the standard printing dialog. A selected report can also be printed using File →
Print. . . or Ctrl+P.
Below the document, page navigation buttons are provided. General information about the document
(title, author and creation date) is also shown.

Hyperlinks

Where appropriate, hyperlinks are generated for network elements mentioned in the report. A left-click
on such a hyperlink will open the edit dialog of the element; right-clicking gives access to other options
such as mark in graphic.

Using the Report Designer, users may include a variety of links (e.g. to their company’s web site) in
the reports they have created. For security reasons, these links are not clickable in the PDF Viewer.
The links will work, however, when the report is exported and then opened in another PDF viewing
application.

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18.5.3 Report Manager

On the right-hand side of the Report Generation Command dialog, a Manage button gives access
to the Report Manager command. This lists all available report templates (including title page and
header/footer templates) from the DIgSILENT library, and where applicable the Custom library and the
Project library of the currently active project.

Reports may be managed in two ways:

1. By right-clicking on a listed report. This brings up a context menu; the options available depend
on whether the template is inside the project library or is elsewhere.

2. Using the two buttons above the list:

Create new report. . .

If this button is used, a new report template is added to the Project library and its Report template
(IntReport) dialog is opened. Note that if the dialog is cancelled, the newly created report is removed
again. Section 18.5.4 below describes the Report template.

Copy report to project library. . . , Copy report to custom library. . .

The Copy report to project library. . . button allows the user to select a report template and copy it to
the project library; it will then open its Report template dialog. Report templates can be selected from
any location (e.g. project libraries of other projects or locations outside of any of the three libraries). If a
report is currently selected in the report table, that report will be initially selected when clicking on this
button.

Likewise, if the user has write-access to a custom library, a Copy report to custom library. . . button will
be available. This works in a similar way.

Show filter, sorting and column options

If this box is checked, a range of options is presented, that allows the user to manage the list of report
templates. The Name field can be used to search for templates by name: enter a text string, then click
away from the field.

18.5.4 Report Templates

If a report template is edited, for example by double-clicking on a report template that is listed in the
Report Manager, the report template dialog opens. The following sections explain the options available
on each page of the dialog.

18.5.4.1 Basic Options

• Usage: The intended use of the report template can be selected, i.e. whether it should be treated
as a regular report or used as a Title Page or Header/Footer template.

• Localised name: This shows the localised text (i.e. text that depends on the current PowerFactory
application language) that should be used as the report name. The icon can be used to edit it. If
no localised text is set, the object name (as given in the Name field) is used as report name. User-
defined localised texts can be added and edited on the Localisation page (see section 18.5.4.4
below).
• Restrict to specific calculation models: Newly created reports are considered calculation-
independent, i.e. they can be selected in the Report Generation Command for any active cal-

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culation or even if no calculation is active. This button allows the user restrict a report to specific
calculation modules.
• Supported calculation modules: This panel and the two buttons below are only visible if a
restriction is in place. It shows the list of calculation modules for which this report is available.
• Edit. . . : This button can be used to edit the restrictions list.
• Remove restrictions: This button can be used to remove restrictions, so that the report is
available for all calculation functions.
• Use settings from command in Report Designer: If the report template has been opened
from within a Report Generation command (ComReport) (either by editing an existing template or
creating a new one), this option allows the user to transfer some of the options from the Report
Generation command into the Report Designer if/when it is used, namely:
– Any net element filters enabled on the Filters page of the command will be applied to the
collected objects that are used to create tables. This is especially useful when editing a
report template while working in a large project.
– Instead of using their initial values, the parameters of the report template are filled with the
respective values defined in the command.
– In the (rare) case that the report template has dependencies (i.e. objects required by built-in
extensions), the dependencies set in the command (instead of the ones set on the Depen-
dencies page, see below) are used.

18.5.4.2 Variable Selection

This page allows the addition, editing and removal of the Variable Selections (IntMon objects) that will
be used to create object tables used by the Report Designer.

Note: After removing variables from a Variable Selection or deleting a complete Variable Selection, the
report might need to be opened in the Report Designer in order to remove any references to the
corresponding field or table.

The Show generated tables. . . button allows the user to view all tables generated by the report template,
including:
• Object tables, which are based on Variable Selections;
• Meta tables, which provide information about the fields of their corresponding object table;
• the Localisation and UserLocalisation tables (see Localisation page, section 18.5.4.4), which
contain internal and user-defined localised texts, respectively;
• the Parameters table (see Parameters page, section 18.5.4.5), listing all report parameters (filled
with the respective initial values);
• tables created by the Extension Script and any built-in extensions of the report (see Extensions
page, section 18.5.4.6).
After selecting a table in the Table list, the name and source of the selected table, together with its data,
are shown on the right-hand side of the dialog. In some cases, the source can be edited directly using
the Edit. . . button.

18.5.4.3 Images

This page allows the user to add link documents (IntDocument) to report templates. The Report
Designer can then include these in the report design template.

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18.5.4.4 Localisation

On this page, it is possible to define localised texts for each supported PowerFactory language. In the
Visible columns panel, the user selects which language columns should be visible in the Localisation
table below.

When the report is compiled, each localised text in the Localisation table will be added as field (using
the identifier as field name) to the UserLocalisation table and the currently-set PowerFactory application
language will determine which column of the localisation table is used to fill the fields (using English as
default whenever a cell in the corresponding column is empty).

Figure 18.5.1 below shows an example.

Figure 18.5.1: Defining localised texts in a report template

Selecting localised texts

Using the icon next to the Localised name field on the Basic options page (see above) or double-
clicking on a cell in the Localised name column of the Parameters table (see next subsection) will open
the Select localised text dialog. This dialog allows the user to select a localised text from the current
report template Localisation table or one of the pre-defined localised texts from the DIgSILENT library.
In addition, it is possible to remove a previously set localised text.

18.5.4.5 Parameters

Report templates can offer parameters, which are used to dynamically adapt or change the behaviour,
content, layout or other characteristics of a report. Each parameter is represented by a field in an
automatically created table with name “Parameters”, allowing it to be directly accessed when editing the
report template in the Report Designer.

Each parameter is represented as a row in the Parameters table and has the following properties:

• Identifier: the name of the parameter and its corresponding field in the Parameters table;

• Data type: the data type (string, boolean, integer or floating point value) of the parameter. The
data type boolean is internally treated as an integer that can only be set to 0 (=False) or 1 (=True).

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• Initial value: the default value for the parameter. Users can change this value on the Parameters
page of the Report Creation command (ComReport) dialog.
• Localised name: the localised name of the parameter, used when displaying it on the Parameters
page of the Report Creation command (ComReport) dialog. If no localised text is set, the identifier
is displayed instead.

Whenever the created tables of a report template are viewed or it is opened in the Report Designer,
each parameter field is filled with its initial value. When the report template is selected in a Report
Creation command (ComReport), its parameters use the values provided on the Parameters page (of
the Report Generation command) instead. See section 18.5.1.4.

18.5.4.6 Extensions

Extensions allow users to create customised tables and supply additional objects to be collected when-
ever the report template is compiled (or opened in the Report Designer).

Users can create an extension in the form of an Extension script, which is a DPL (ComDpl) or Python
(ComPython) scripting command that utilises the Report template (IntReport) scripting API. The script
is created using the Create extension script. . . button. Once an extension script has been created, it
can be edited using the arrow next to its name and can be deleted using the Delete extension script. . .
button. Please note that a report template can only contain one extension script.

Some reports in the DIgSILENT library use inbuilt extensions. These extensions are not based on
scripts but rely on inbuilt PowerFactory functionality and cannot be edited by users. In such a case, the
message “This report uses built-in extensions to create additional tables” will be seen on the Extensions
page.

18.5.4.7 Dependencies

This page is only visible if the report template uses inbuilt extensions (see previous subsection) that
require specific objects such as result files in order to work properly.

The Dependencies table enables these required objects to be temporarily provided so that the report
template can be designed and tested with all required data available. Please note that dependencies
are not stored persistently in the Report Template and need to be selected on the Basic Options page
of the Report Generation command (ComReport) dialog before it is executed.

18.5.4.8 Design Template

The design template defines the look and layout of the report and is created and modified whenever the
report template is opened in the Report Designer.

In some cases, users might want to abandon a previously created design template and start designing
from scratch. This can be achieved by pressing the Clear button on this page.

18.5.5 Report Designer

Many users will just make use of the standard reports provided within PowerFactory, but some users
may wish to customise these a little, or create entirely new report templates to their own design.

This is done using the Report Designer. The functionality is provided by Stimulsoft Reports software,
a comprehensive tool for report design, integrated into PowerFactory. A brief overview of the Report

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Designer is given in section 18.5.5.1 below, but its use is described in more detail in the Reporting
Tutorial.

As well as using the Report Designer to create new and amended report templates (including title page
and header and footer templates), it is also used for creating custom styles, which can be selected
on the Page Layout page of the Report Generation command. The general process for doing this is
described in sections 18.5.5.2 and 18.5.5.3.

18.5.5.1 Report Designer overview

The Report Designer window is divided into four main components, the page design area, the main
menu bar at the top, the toolbox on the left-hand side and the Properties / Report Tree / Dictionary
panels on the right-hand side.

Page design area

This is the central part of the window, which shows the design view of the current page. Much of the
design work consists of creating elements in this area and adjusting their position and size. Most other
menus and panels refer to elements currently selected in the page design area.

Menu bar

This menu, at the top of the window, gives access to sub-menus for styling, design and insertion options.
It also provides an option for previewing a report as it is being developed.

• Home: allows styling of the currently selected element

• Insert: components such as pages, bands, labels or charts can be inserted into the document
• Page: offers settings for the current page (such as margins and orientation), design grid options
and allows showing or hiding of the toolbox and each of the panels
• Layout: provides alignment options for the currently selected element(s) and offers the possibility
to lock them (preventing any changes to position or size)
• Preview: when activated, this sub-menu turns the Page Design Area into a preview of the report
document, using the currently provided data

Toolbox

The Toolbox on the left side of the window offers quick access to the entries of the “Insert” sub menu of
the menu bar.

Properties / Report Tree / Dictionary panels

The area on the right-hand side of the window displays one three different panels. Buttons at the bottom
of this area allow the user to select the required panel.

Properties panel

This panel provides a tabular overview of all properties of the currently selected element. In addition to
properties that can be more conveniently edited from the menu bar, the table also contains advanced
properties that are not available elsewhere. In particular, it gives access to the events of a component
(flash symbol tab), which allow for more advanced scripting and dynamic functionalities.

Report tree panel

This panel shows the document structure, including all pages, bands and elements. It can be helpful
for selecting specific elements directly whenever selection in the page design area proves difficult due

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to overlapping elements.

Dictionary panel

This panel offers access to the main database and other data-related entries. Many entries can be
dragged and dropped directly into the Page Design Area to insert a label or table.

18.5.5.2 Custom Styles (general)

By default, reports are generated using a default DIgSILENT style, which contains colour, font and
format settings for components such as report titles, chapter headers, data cells, and so on. All the
reports in the DIgSILENT library uses the DIgSILENT default style and users, too, can apply the
DIgSILENT default style to their own reports.

In order to customise the look of user-defined or DIgSILENT reports, users can change the settings
of the default style and create a custom style. However, the custom style needs to contain the same
categories (report titles, chapter headers, etc.) as the DIgSILENT default style in order to work properly.

Creating a custom style

Typically, the user will make a copy of an existing report template, save it in the project library and
customise the style of this copied template. (To make the copy, right click on the standard report in the
Available Report list and select “Copy to project library”.)

The report template can then be edited using right-click, Edit. . . . In the edit dialog for the report
template, the Designer. . . button will be active, and can be used to open the Report Designer.

The following steps can then be followed:

• Go to the Home tab.
• To determine the specific component style used by a component of the report, select the compo-
nent in the Page Design Area, switch to the Properties Panel and look for the entry “Component
Style”.
• Then from the main menu at the top, click on (Style) → Style Designer
• Expand the “DigsiStyle” folder and click the relevant category (component style) to see the settings
on the right-hand side.
• Settings can be changed as required.
• The Style Designer can be closed using “OK” in order to see the effect of the changes.
• Then the Style Designer can be opened again and under the top menu, Actions → Save As. . . , to
save the custom style in a selected folder.
• Finally, the Report Designer can be closed. There is no need to save the changed report template
if there are no other changes that the user wishes to keep.

Importing the custom style into PowerFactory

In the above section, the custom style has been created and saved. In order to use your custom
style in a report, you will first need to load the saved style (sts) file into a Document (IntDocument) in
PowerFactory :

• In the Data Manager, select a folder, or create a new folder, for storing report styles.

• Use the New Object icon and type in, and select, “Document”.
• Open the Document object. On the Basic Data page, the ellipse icon (. . . ) is used to select the
style (sts) file.

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• The Document object now has a link to the stored style. The user also has the option to import
the style into the database.

Using a custom style

In the Report Generation command, there is an option on the Page Layout page to “Use custom style”.

The down-arrow next to “Style (general)” can then be used to select previously saved style document
(IntDocument) object.

With the setting and custom styles selected, every document created by executing this Report Genera-
tion command will use that custom style.

18.5.5.3 Custom Styles (table of contents)

The “table of contents” component uses a separate style file, and the process is similar to that for the
general style document.

To create a custom style document, open a report in the designer that contains a table of contents.
Select the table of contents component, switch to the Properties pane and look for the property “Styles”
(in the property group “1 Table Of Contents”). Double click on the value “Styles” of the property to open
the Style Designer for the Table of Contents. Adapt the styles, and save the style file.

The style document is then imported in the same way as described above and selected using the down-
arrow next to “Style (table of contents)” on the Page Layout page.

18.6 Comparisons Between Calculations

At many stages in the development of a power system design, the differences between certain settings
or design options become of interest. For a single calculation, the “absolute” results are shown in the
single line graphics and in the flexible data page of the elements.

When pressing the Comparing of Results on/off button ( ), the results of the calculation are “frozen”.
Subsequent calculations results can then be shown as deviations from the first calculation made. The
subsequent calculation results are stored together with the first result. This allows the user to re-arrange
the comparisons as desired by pressing the icon.

The differences between cases are coloured according to the severity of the deviation, making it possible
to recognise the differences between calculation cases very easily.

The set of calculated comparisons may be edited to select the cases which are to be compared to each
other or to set the colouring mode. When the icon on the main toolbar is pressed, the Compare
dialog will open.

With the Compare dialog, the two cases which are to be compared can be selected. Furthermore, a list
of colours may be set which is then used to colour the results displayed in the result boxes, according
to certain levels of percentage change.

18.7 Results Objects

The results object (ElmRes, ) is used by PowerFactory to store tables of results. By default, the
results are stored in a proprietary binary format, generally sparsely populated according to recording

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options selected by the user. However, the user can, via the project settings (see 8.1.2.3), choose
instead to store the results in an open database format (SQLite). This allows post-processing based on
direct file access to be more easily implemented. Section 18.7.2 gives details of the internal layout of
the database-based result files.

The typical use of a results object is in writing specific variables during a transient simulation, or during a
data acquisition measurement. Results objects are also used in scripts, contingency analysis, reliability
calculations, harmonic analysis, etc.

The results object edit dialog shows the following fields:

• Name: the name of the results object

• File path: is the path where the results file is saved
• Last modification: date when the results file was changed the last time

• Default for: the default type of calculation

• Info: information about the currently stored data including:
– the time interval
– the average time step
– the number of points in time
– the number of variables
– the size of the results file
• Trigger-Times: trigger times (in case of a Triggered default use)

The Clear Data button will clear all result data.

Note: Clearing the data will delete all calculated or measured data in the results file. It will not be
possible to restore the data.

The default type settings (Default for field) are used for two purposes:

1. Creating a new results object and setting the default type to Harmonics, for instance, will cause
the harmonics command dialog to use this results object by default.
2. Setting the default type to Triggered will cause the calculation module to copy and temporarily
store signals in that copied results object, every time a Trigger Event becomes active. The
Triggered default type enables the trigger time fields.

When the Output Protocol is pressed, all events that happened during the simulation, recorded by the
results object, will be written again into the output window. So one can check which events took place
during the last simulation.

The contents of a results object are determined by one or more monitor Variable Selection (IntMon)
objects. These monitor objects can be edited by pressing the Variables button. This will show the list
of monitor sets currently in use by the results object.

Selecting a set of result variables, using monitor objects is necessary because otherwise all available
variables would have to be stored, which is practically impossible.

By clicking on the Variables button, the list of recorded variables is displayed, if the list is empty a new
variable selection can be added by clicking on the New Object icon ( ). More information about the
definition of variable selections is available in section 18.3.

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18.7.1 Exporting Results

The stored results for the monitored result variables can be exported by pressing the Export button in
the results object. This will activate and open the Result Export command (ComRes), which enables
the definition of the format and the file type used to export the results.

18.7.1.1 Results Export - Basic Options

On this page the Results File and its information is displayed, and the type of export to be executed can
be defined.

Export to

The following options are available:

• Output window
• Windows clipboard
• Measurement file (ElmFile)
• ComTrade
• Text file
• PSSPLT Version 2.0
• Comma Separated Values (*.csv)
• Database
If the last option (Database) is used, there is a requirement to configure the access to the database via
an ODBC Database Configuration object (*.SetDatabase), or select an existing database configuration.
These database configurations can exist within the project, in a folder, or in a configuration area, for
example. If a new database configuration is to be defined, these are the steps:

• Navigate to the chosen location for the new object.

• Click the New Object button

• Select the database system and the ODBC driver. Oracle, PostgreSQL and SQL Server are
supported.
• Enter the access details (Username and password) for the database system.
• Enter the database name.

Number format

The format used to export the numbers from the results file can be changed between Decimal and
Scientific. The number of decimal places or significant digits, depending on the format used, can also
be specified.

This option is only visible when exporting to:

• Output window
• Windows clipboard
• Measurement file (ElmFile)
• Text file
• Comma Separated Values (*.csv)

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Use system separators

When exporting to a comma separated values (*.csv) file, it is possible to select the separators for the
columns and the decimals. One can either choose the system separators or define specific ones.

Variable selection

By default, the option Export all variables is selected, which mean that all the results for all monitored
variables are exported. But also a selection of variables can be made by selecting the option Export
only selected variables.

18.7.1.2 Results Export - Advanced Options

On this page, additional options such as the individual step size and the columns headers of the results
file for the export can be defined.

Export

• Values: the results values will be exported

• Variable description only: the description of the recorded variables is exported. This is useful for
reviewing the stored data.
• Object header only: also useful for reviewing the recorded data; will only export the columns
headers.

Interval

A User-defined interval for the time/x-scale can be set as the minimum and maximum value of the first
recorded variable (in time domain simulations this is of course the time).

Shift time

When this box is checked, a new start time can be defined. This will “move” the results to the starting
time.

Column header

Here is possible to customise the column header to be exported not only for the element (e.g. name,
path, foreign key), but also for the variable (e.g. parameter name, short or long description)

18.7.2 Results in Database Format

As mentioned above, it is possible for users via a project setting to have results written in a database for-
mat, which facilitates post processing based on direct file access. This subsection details the database
layout used in the result files.

Table objectLookup holds the mapping from id to “orig_index” and “fullPath”.

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id orig_index fullPath

0 0 ../time
1 1 ../obj_1
2 2 ../obj_2
3 3 ../obj_3

Table 18.7.1: objectLookup

Table dataLookup holds the information about recorded parameters and the corresponding object, and
the tableName and columnName where the recorded parameters are stored. This table also holds
extended information about the parameter such as the displayed name (varName), its unit (varUnit)
and so on.

Table steps holds the recording steps. Typically column[0] and (time:t).

id C1

0 00:00
1 01:00
2 02:00
3 03:00

Table 18.7.3: steps

Data tables T0, T1. . . :

id C1 C2 C3

0 1.01 2.01 3.01

1 1.02 2.02 3.02
2 1.03 2.03 3.03
3 1.04 2.04 3.04

Table 18.7.4: Data table T0

id tableName columnName objectId varName varUnit varDesc shortDesc typeCode bufferIndex

0 steps C1 0
1 T0 C1 1
2 T1 C1 1
3 T0 C2 2
4 T0 C2 2
5 T0 C3 3
6 T0 C3 3

Table 18.7.2: dataLookup

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id C1 C2 C3

0 1.51 2.51 3.51

1 1.52 2.52 3.52
2 1.53 2.53 3.53
3 1.54 2.54 3.54

Table 18.7.5: Data table T1

18.8 Plots

Plots are used for displaying results graphically. The most common use of a plot is to show the results of
a time-domain simulation such an EMT or RMS simulation, but there are various other applications, for
example to graphically display voltage profiles, results of a harmonic analysis, results of modal analysis,
among others. These could be in the form of a bar graph, a plotted curve, single displayed variables or
tables of values.

All signals, parameters, variables or other values from PowerFactory can be shown in a plot. The
variables are normally floating point numbers, but it is also possible to show discrete variables and
binary numbers, for example an out of service flag or the switching operation of a circuit-breaker.

The plots are inserted using the Insert Plot icon from the main menu ( ), which will open the insert
plot dialog, shown in figure 18.8.1.

Once a plot has been created, it is held in the desktop of the active study case. If the user closes
the plot using the x on the tab, or by right-clicking on the tab and selecting Close page, the plot is still
retained. It can be re-opened from the Window menu of the main toolbar, by selecting the option Open
Plot Page. If the user wants to delete the plot completely, this is done by right-clicking on the tab and
selecting Delete page.

There are various designs of plot available. The plots can be filtered by the functions where they are
normally used. Some plots are typically used for more that one category (e.g. curve plots) and some
are meant to be used for specific functions (e.g. correlation plot, time-overcurrent plot). All the plots are
listed under the category (All) and the recently used in category (Recent).

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Figure 18.8.1: Insert Plot dialog

All the available plots are described in section 18.8.9 or in the corresponding chapter (for calculation-
specific plots).

The plots have several areas that should be edited separately:

• The curve area (Data Series) that can be edited either by right-clicking on the plot and selecting
Edit Shown Data. . . , or by double-clicking on the area where the curve is displayed. The functions,
common to all the plot types, are described in the Data Series section (18.8.2).
• The plot area, described in section 18.8.1, that can be edited by double-clicking on an empty area
of the plot page (e.g. close to the border).
• The axes and gridlines, accessible by right-clicking on an axis and selecting Edit Axis. . . , or by
double-clicking on it. These are described in section 18.8.4.
• The legend, described in section 18.8.5 and accessible by right-clicking on the legend and select-
ing Edit Legend. . . , or by double-clicking on it.

The tools available for modifying plots, such as labels and constants, can be applied equally to most
plot types and are described in section 18.8.6.

The plots can be exported by selecting the option File → Export→ Diagram. . . from the main menu or
using the Diagram Export icon on the plots toolbar.

The following formats are supported:

• Portable Document Format (*.pdf)
• Enhanced Windows Metafile (*.emf)
• Scalable Vector Graphics (*.svg)
• Portable Network Graphics (*.png)
• Tag Image File Format (*.tif, *.tiff)
• File Interchange Format (*.jpg, *.jpeg, *.jpe, *.jfif)

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• Windows Bitmap (*.bmp)

• Windows Metafile (*.wmf)

• Graphics Interchange Format (*.gif)

18.8.1 Plot Area

The plot dialog summarises all the information on the plot, providing the links to all the parts of the plot.
In addition, the style and layout of the area outside the curve can be personalised. It can be edited by
double-clicking on an empty area of the plot page (e.g. close to the border).

18.8.1.1 Basic

On this page, the name of the plot can be modified. In addition, the following links are available:

• Curves: a link to the Data Series, described in section 18.8.2.

• Title: clicking on the select arrow opens the edit dialog of the plot title with the following fields:
– Title: to define visibility and displayed name
– Positioning and Layout: to define the location of the title of the plot
– Text Format: to define the font size and colour
– Border and Background: to define the style of the title
– Floating position: if the title is moved from the default position, a floating position can be set
in this field.

• Legend: a link to the plot legend dialog, described in section 18.8.5.

18.8.1.2 Axes

The plot axes often needs to be synchronised for all plots in the Study Case or for all plots on one plot
page, for instance to show the same time-scale in all plots.

In this page, the sharing of the axis can be defined. This can also be done by right-clicking on the axis
and selecting → Axis Sharing.

The sharing options are:

• Local: the axis scale, labelling and format are only valid for the local plot.

• Page: all the plots on the plot page will use the same axis scale, labelling and format.
• Desktop: the axis settings will apply to all the plots in the study case.
The scale, labelling and format options, described in section 18.8.4, can be accessed by clicking on the
button by the Used Axis field.

Additional axes can be added using the button Create.

18.8.1.3 Style and Layout

On the Style and Layout page, the following display options can be selected:

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Border and Background

• Draw border: to define outside border and colour of the plot area, i.e. the “non-gridded area”.

• Fill background: to define the background colour of the plot area.

Plot Position on Page (mm)

Defines the position of the plot on the page. Usually this is set using the Automatic Arrangement
Commands described in section 18.8.6.4, but it is also possible to define the position on the page using
these fields.

Element Padding (mm)

Defines the size of the plot area outside the curve; this is particular useful when using a coloured
background.

Axis Visibility

In this panel, the user can set the visibility of the axes.

18.8.2 Data Series

The Data Series in the base for almost all the plot types. To edit the Data Series, right-click on the plot
and select Edit Shown Data. . . , or double-click on the area where the curve is displayed. The pages of
the edit dialog are described in the following sections.

18.8.2.1 Curves

The data in the curves page is entered in the following panels:

Data Source

• Calculation type: the calculation type is set automatically when the plot is inserted, based on the
category selected on the Insert Plot dialog. This setting automatically determines other settings
for the plot (e.g. scales).

• Auto-search results: this is a reference to the currently active results file (ElmRes). With this
selection the currently used result file of the last calculation is chosen. More information about
results objects is available in section 18.7
• Select results individually per curve: this option gives the user the possibility to choose another
result file. The result file should be specified in the Curves table.

Curves

The definition table for the curves is used to specify the results file (optional), element and variable for
each curve as well as its representation. Each line in the Curves table is used to define one curve.

• The first column allow the visibility of the curve on the plot to be set.

• If the option Select results individually per curve is selected, the next column is for the results
object from which the data to plot the curve will be read.
• There then follows a column for the power system element, which is selected from the available
elements in the results object.

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• The next column is for the actual variable for the curve, selected from the variables in the results
object, belonging to the selected element.
• The following columns allow the user to specify the style of the individual curve.
• The last column, named Label, can be used to add additional information for the curve legend.

Note: As well as the option to edit colours individually by double-clicking on the colour square, there
are two further options which are offered in the context menu by right-clicking on the colour box.
These are:
• Apply Colour Palette: this will apply the selected colour palette and change all curve colours
accordingly
• Auto-Assign Subsequent Colours: if a different standard colour has been selected for the
first curve (for example), the remaining curves will be assigned the subsequent colours from
same palette.

Only the elements and variables stored in the results file can be plotted. Additional curves can be
added by right-clicking and selecting Insert Rows or Append (n) Rows. Similarly, to delete a marked
curve definition from the list, Delete Rows can be selected.

Several elements can be selected and PowerFactory will automatically insert the corresponding number
of rows. In the same way, several variables of the same element can be added in one step by selecting
them together.

Note: The position of the curve (i.e. front or back) is automatically assigned by the row numbering,
however, it is possible to change it by right-clicking on the curve (on the plot) and selecting Move
Curve → Backwards/Forwards

Plot Features

In this panel, additional features for the curves, including shape, transformation and stacking of curves
are defined.

• Additional curve shapes: when this option is checked, two additional columns are shown in the
Curves table:
– On the column Shape, one of these options can be selected: Curve, Steps, Filled curve,
Filled steps and Bars.
– If one of the filled shapes is selected in the Shape column, the filling style can be changed in
the column Fill Style
• Data transformation: this option allows the transformation of the data on the curve according to
the following options:
– Normalisation: the values of the variable can be normalised to a nominal value ( specified in
the column Nom. Value).
– Binarisation: transforms the values of the curve into binary data: if a value is bigger than 0.5,
it is set to 1, otherwise is to 0.
– Functions: probabilistic functions can be used to convert the data. More information can be
found in section 18.8.9.6.

Note: The options for data transformation might vary depending on the calculation type.

• Curve stacking: this option can be used if more than one curve is shown and will “pile up” the
values of the curves as:

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– Values
– Absolute values
– Relative values
– Percentage

Export Button

When clicking on the Export. . . button on the right of the plot, the Result Export command, described
in section 18.7.1, with a time interval set to the time displayed on the plot can be executed to export the
result values of the plotted variables.

Filter Button

It is possible to add additional filters to the curves presented in the plot; it should be noted that when a
filter is defined it is applied to all the curves displayed in the plot. The Curve Filter command specifies
the type of filter applied to the data read from the results object. The following filter settings are available:

• Disabled: no filtering will be performed.

• Moving average: the filtered curve is the running average of the last n points. The first n-1 points
are omitted.
• Moving balanced average: the filtered curve is the running average of the last (n-1)/2 points, the
current point and the next (n-1)/2 points. This filter thus looks ahead of time. The first and last
(n-1)/2 values are omitted; n must be an odd number.
• Average: the filtered curve contains the averages of each block of n values; every n-th value is
shown.
• Subsampling: the filtered curve only contains every n-th value. All other values are omitted.

• Deviation from initial value: the curves are shifted, so that for each curve the values are all
relative to the first value.

Note: A curve filter can only be applied at the end of the simulation or measurement. Points added
during a simulation or measurement are not filtered.

Processed and Aggregated Results

The curve plots have the option to define a user defined signal. This option allows calculation of addi-
tional results based on the arithmetic manipulation of one or more results calculated by PowerFactory
and recorded in a results object (ElmRes ).

A new user defined signal, can be defined by clicking on the Create. . . button on the edit dialog of the
curve plot. An example of the calculated result dialog is shown in Figure 18.8.2.

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Figure 18.8.2: The calculated results object

The calculated results object dialog includes the following fields:

• Name: the name of the calculated results object

• Input Parameters
– Results: defines the results object in which the arithmetic operands are located.
– Operands: defines the elements and variable names of the operands within the results object.
Additional operands can be inserted or appended by right-click → Insert Row(s) or Append
(n) Row(s).
• Result
– Name: defines the name of the user defined curve
– Description: a free text field for description of the curve
– Unit: user defined variable unit
– Formula: DSL expression for arithmetic calculation; operands are defined in accordance with
the naming convention in the Input Parameters field i.e. in1, in2, in3 etc.

More information about the DSL syntax is available in section 29.4.

The buttons Manage. . . and Add to table. . . can be used for editing the defined variables and adding
them to the Curves table.

18.8.2.2 Text Format

The label fonts and number formats can be updated using this page as described in section 18.8.4.3.

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18.8.2.3 Style and Layout

On the Style and Layout page, the following additional display options can be selected:

Curve Area Position (mm)

If Auto-Position Curve Area is selected, the position of the curve is automatically set to fit the page size.
If it is deselected, the border of the plot will appear as shown in figure 18.8.3 and the user can set the
size and position of the plot.

Figure 18.8.3: Resizing a Curve Plot

Border and Background

• Draw border: to define outside border and colour of the curves area.
• Fill background: to define if the curves area should be filled, and select the colour.

Colour palette

Link to the colour palette being used. The use of colouring in PowerFactory is described in section
4.7.8. A new colour palette can be selected using the Select arrow .

The colour palette can also be changed by right-clicking on the plot area and selecting the option Apply
Colour Palette. . . from the context menu or by using the button Colouring in the plots toolbar. When
a new colour palette is selected, the colours of the curves will all be changed automatically.

18.8.3 Complex Data Definition

The complex data definition is an alternative of the Data Series and is mainly used for the vector plot.
In order to edit the Complex Data Definition, right-click on the plot and select Edit Shown Data. . . , or
double-click on the area where the curve is displayed. The pages of the edit dialog are described in the
following sections.

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18.8.3.1 Variables

The data in the curves page is entered in the following panels:

Data Source

• Element Variables: if the plot is inserted by right-clicking on the element, the element and
complex variable are automatically defined on the Variables table. Otherwise the element and
complex variable can be selected by double clicking on the corresponding fields.

• Result File: this option enables the user to add the results file (ElmRes). More information about
results objects is available in section 18.7.
– Select results individually per curve: this option gives the user the possibility to choose
another result file. The result file should be specified in the Variables table.

Variables Table

The variables definition table for the curves is used to specify the results file (optional), element and
complex variable for each plot as well as its representation. Each line in the Variables table is used to
define one plot.

• The first column allow the visibility of the curve on the plot to be set.
• If the option Select results individually per curve is selected, the next column is for the results
object from which the data to plot the curve will be read.
• There then follows a column for the power system element, which is selected from the available
elements in the results object.
• The next column is for the complex variable for the plot, belonging to the selected element.
• The following columns allow the user to specify the style of the individual plot.

Note: The assignation of colours and styles can be done automatically by right-clicking on the
colour/style and selecting Auto Assign Subsequent Colours /Line Styles/Line Widths.

• The last column, named Description, can be used to add additional information for the plot.

Additional curves can be added by right-clicking and selecting Insert Rows or Append (n) Rows. Simi-
larly, to delete a marked curve definition from the list, Delete Rows can be selected.

Several elements can be selected and PowerFactory will automatically insert the corresponding number
of rows. In the same way, several variables of the same element can be added in one step by selecting
them together.

Time Point Selection

Once the result file is added to the plot, Time Point Selection option can be used to investigate the
results at different points in time. Furthermore, the cursor can be added to the plots in order to keep a
track of the result variables in both the vector and dynamic simulation plots simultaneously.

Plot Features

• Vector labels: the vector labels provides the user the possibility to update the labels of the vectors
in the plot according to the requirements. If None is selected then no labels will be displayed. The
Automatic option automatically detects the labels based on the complex variables representation.
Moreover, the user can explicitly set the labels in polar or cartesian system using Coordinates,
Polar or Coordinates, Cartesian respectively. The Phase Only option can be used to display the
labels based on the respective phases of each vectors.

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• Draw arrow heads: the arrow heads can be drawn on the vectors by enabling this option.
• Vector transformation: using this feature, it is possible to transform a complex variable using
another variable or a constant. As required, various operations such as addition, subtraction, mul-
tiplication and division in addition to shift can be applied to the complex variable. The information
about these operations has to be provided in the Variables table. Also, the information about the
operation being applied to the complex vector is visible in the plot legend. Figure 18.8.4 shows an
example of the implementation of vector transformation feature in the edit dialog of the plot.

Figure 18.8.4: Different operations for vector transformation

18.8.3.2 Unit Scaling

This page allows the user to set the scaling of the units of multiple vectors being displayed in the plot.
There is a possibility to determine the unit scales automatically by enabling the corresponding option.
And if required, the users can define their own scales for the units to normalise the individual vectors by
disabling the Determine unit scales automatically option.

18.8.3.3 Text Format

The label fonts and number formats can be updated using this page as described in section 18.8.4.3.

18.8.3.4 Style and Layout

On the Style and Layout page, the following additional display options can be selected as described in
section 18.8.2.3.

18.8.4 Axes and Gridlines

Each of the axes can be edited either by double click or by right-click → Edit Axis. The plot axis dialog
options are described in this section.

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18.8.4.1 Scale

The options presented in the Scale page depend on whether the edited axis is a x- or a y-axis.

Axis mode

This option is only available for the x-axis and is automatically set depending on the plot type. Alterna-
tively, can be selected by the user. The options are:
• Default: depends on the type of simulation and the results object created during the previous
simulation.
• Time: the x-axis is set to time and an additional field for the time unit is displayed.
• Date and time: used by default in quasi dynamic simulation plots, the format for the date and hours
and the time period can be specified.

• Frequency: the x-axis is set to frequency and an additional field for the frequency unit is displayed.
• Discrete (net elements): used in bar plots, where network elements are shown in the x-axis

Scale Type

For the x-axis, for all the modes, except the Date and time, the scale can be set to linear or logarithmic.
The y-axis can additionally be set to dB.

The option Reversed will change the direction of the scale.

Range

The Minimum and Maximum limits of the axes can be set manually.

Scale to Contents

The scaling of the axis is done according to the data available, for the x-axis is by default 0 % and for
the y-axis 10 %. The option Limit minimum to origin if possible will set the minimum to zero. The option
Scale when calculation data changes will automatically update the scale of the axis after the calculation
is executed.

18.8.4.2 Axis Labelling

On this page, the grid lines and styles are defined.

Tick Mark Positions

• Step size in data space: PowerFactory tries to find the ticks that would best fit with the data. For
this, a reference value can be set to force the origin.
• Fixed number of tick marks: the number of ticks a fixed number of subdivisions between the
minimum and maximum limits.

For both options, the option Determine tick positions automatically can be selected. This option de-
termines the number of ticks depending on what would look best on the plot page. If the option is
unchecked, the user can select either the step size (for the step size in data space option) or the
number of ticks (for the fixed number of tick marks option).

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Line Style

Options to alter the width, line style and colour of the ticks and grid lines.

18.8.4.3 Text Format

In the Font Style panel, the following options can be set:

• Font: font size, type and effects.

• Label colour and offset: the colour of the axis values and the distance between the axis and the
text.
• Show unit: to display the unit of the axis.
In the Number Format panel, the following options can be set:

• Format: the user can select between concise, fixed decimals and scientific.
• Digits: if the option concise is selected, the user can set the maximum number of digits to be
displayed.
• Decimals: if the option fixed decimals or scientific is selected, the user can set the number of
decimal places to be shown.
• Exponent character: the user can select between E and e for the scientific option.

18.8.5 Plot Legend

The edit dialog of the legend can be accessed either by double-clicking on it or by right-click → Edit
Legend. These are the options available:

Show legend

Defines the visibility of the legend.

Positioning and Layout

• Position: the position of the legend. Options are:

– Floating
– Top left
– Top centre
– Top right
– Bottom left
– Bottom centre
– Bottom right
– Left
– Right
• Layout: the layout of the legend. Options are:
– Automatic: based on the size of the plot and number of variables
– Columns: organise in columns; an additional field for the number of columns is displayed
– Horizontal

• Margin: the distance in mm to the axis/curve area.

• Padding: defines the size of the box around the legend, particulary useful when defining a
background colour for the legend.

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• Include only drawn curves: only the curves with results will be shown on the legend, otherwise
the legend of those curves is shown greyed-out.
• Reverse item order: change the order of the legend items.

Text Format

• Font: font size, type and effects.

• Always show units: displays the units of the variables.
• Use short variable description: short description of all the variables.

• Line spacing: defines the spacing of the legend text.

Border and Background

• Draw border: to define outside border of the legend and the colour of it.
• Fill background: to define if the legend should be filled and the colour to be used.

Floating position

If the position of the legend is set to floating, the location of the legend in mm can be set in this field.

18.8.6 Plots Toolbar

There are numerous tools which help the user interpret and analyse data and calculation results. Most
of the tools are accessible directly through plot toolbar, which is displayed when a plot is inserted. Each
of the icons of the plot toolbar, shown in figure 18.8.5 and the additional context menu options are
described in the following sections.

Figure 18.8.5: Plots Toolbar

18.8.6.1 Insert Plot

The icon inserts a plot in the existing page. Clicking on this button opens the Insert Plot dialog,
described in section 18.8.

18.8.6.2 Edit Plots on Page

The icon opens the dialog for defining curves of several plots. If the variables of only one plot are
to be changed, it is suggested to edit the dialog of the plot itself by double-clicking it. This procedure is
more convenient.

This dialog gives a very good overview over the diagrams on the plot page and the variables, axis and
curve styles. Figure 18.8.6 shows an example of the dialog.

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Figure 18.8.6: Editing all plots on the plot page

Each line of the table named Curves defines a variable shown on the panel. The variables definition
applies to the plot shown in the first column. When the dialog is opened the plots are sorted from left to
right and from top to bottom and are numbered accordingly.

All data and settings of each variable are displayed in the table, and the columns are used exactly like
the columns in the table of a plot.

The Default Result File for Page can be used to set the default result file for all the plots on the page.

The buttons Colouring, Width and Style set those values automatically per plot.

The Colouring button will set the colours according to the “PowerFactory Standard” palette regardless
of which palette the user has selected as a default for plots.

18.8.6.3 View and Select Commands

• Rebuild: updates the currently visible page by updating the drawing from the database.

• Zoom In: changes the cursor to a magnifying glass. The mouse can then be clicked and
dragged to select a rectangular area of the plot to be zoomed.

• Hand Tool: if a zoom is applied, can be used to pan the plot.

• Zoom All: zooms to the page extends.

• Zoom Level: zooms to a custom or pre-defined level.

Note: Ctrl+ mouse scrolling can be used to zoom in and out

18.8.6.4 Automatic Arrangement Commands

A plot’s size and position is usually set automatically. There are two different modes for automatically
arranging the plots in the plot page:

• Arrange plots on top of each other

• Arrange plots automatically

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The modes can easily be changed by pressing the one or the other button. The relative positions of
plots can also easily be changed: mark the plot by clicking it, then ’drag’ the plot across another plot.

Note: This option of exchanging the plots by dragging is only possible when one of the arrangement
buttons are active. If you deactivate both buttons by unselecting them in the toolbar, the plots can
freely be moved by dragging them on the panel

18.8.6.5 Scale Buttons

• Scale x-axes automatically: scales all the x-axes according to the start and end of the results
file.
• Scale y-axes automatically: scales all the y-axes according to the maximum and minimum
values of the variables in the results file.
• Zoom x-axis: zooms in a certain range of the x-axis (if the axis is shared, the zoom is applied
to all plots sharing the axis definition).

• Zoom y-axis: zooms in a certain range of the y-axis (if the axis is shared, the zoom is applied
to all plots sharing the axis definition).

• Move x-scale: moves the position of the x-axis (is applied to all plots sharing the axis
definition).

• Stretch/compress x-scale: modifies the x-axis scales in order to compress or stretch the
shown curve (is applied to all plots sharing the axis definition).

Note: The scale buttons are inactive if there are no plots shown at all or if the x or y axes cannot be
scaled automatically.

18.8.6.6 Add Curve Label

A number of Curve Labels tools are available in the Drawing Toolbox, which will be displayed if the user
clicks on the Add Curve Labels button .

Figure 18.8.7: Curve Labels Tools

There are different styles of labels available for labelling curves and graphics. Setting labels is possible
in most of the different plots, although some of the labels are not available in all plot types. Labels are
all created in the same way.

Most of the label buttons are only active after clicking on the curve. After selecting the appropriate label
from the sub-option of label, a rubber band from the cross to the mouse is shown. A click with the left
mouse button sets the label, the right mouse button cancels. The following labels are available:

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• Text Label: displays user-defined text above and below a line connected to the curve.

• Label with Curve Value: displays the x/y coordinates of selected point.

• Label with Definable Format: displays the name of the element.

• Gradient Label: displays the difference in x and y values (dx and dy) between two points, and
also the gradient (dy/dx) and the value of 1/dx.

• Statistic Label: helps to analyse a curve, by labelling, for example, its extrema.

• Delete Statistic Label: delete existing statistic label.

Text, Curve Value and Gradient labels

The text, value and gradient labels are defined using the same object type.

Figure 18.8.8 shows the three different labels.

The VisValue edit dialog contains the following fields:

• Value: displays the connected curve position of the label. For labels created as a value-label this
position is displayed automatically as label text. “x-Axis” displays the x axis value and “y-Axis” the
y axis value. “Time” is only visible for plots showing a trajectory.
• Text on Top and on Bottom: text written above and below the horizontal line.

• Alignment: defines the horizontal alignment of the displayed text.

• Delete label when new simulation is started: this option, if activated, will remove the existing label
from the plot if the simulation is executed again.

Figure 18.8.8: Text, Value and Gradient labels

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Label with Definable Format

The format-label displays text printed using a form. It is typically used to show the name of the object
whose variable is shown in the curve. It is useful when several curves with the same colour are plotted.

The form is different for each type of diagram. It is either defined locally per label or defined for all
diagrams of the same type in the activated project. The format-label dialog is shown in the following
figure.

Figure 18.8.9: Edit dialog of the label with definable format

• Value: displays the connected curve position of the label. x-Axis displays the x axis value and
y-Axis the y axis value.
• Data Object: reference to the object of which the plotted curve parameter is derived. If Data
Object is not set the label itself is taken as the Shown Object.
• Shown Object: object output by the form, see Data Object described above.
• Edit Used Format: shows the used Format Manager. The used format is either the local format or
the one defined for all plots of the same type in the active project.
• Set Default Format: sets the used format as the one used for all plots of the same type in the
active project.
• Delete label when new simulation is started: this option, if activated, will remove the existing label
from the plot if the simulation is executed again.

Statistic Labels

The statistic label function provides the possibility to label the following values of the curves:

• Minimum or Maximum in the visible area of the plot

• Global Minima or Maxima
• Local Minima or Maxima
• Global Average
• Average of the visible area of the plot
• Integral of the visible area of the plot

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• Energy (Integral calculation available specifically for the load duration plot)
• Global statistical mean value of the probabilistic data

• Global confidence interval for mean value of the probabilistic data

To remove statistic labels from a curve, the button Delete Statistic Labels can be used.

18.8.6.7 Multi-Curve Tracking

Enabling “Multi-Curve Tracking” mode means that when the mouse is hovered over a point in the
plot, a tooltip will appear, giving information about the current value on the x-axis as well as all y-axis
values for the curves. The tooltip follows the mouse while it is moved over the plot and therefore makes
it very easy to see individual results without zooming in, even if lines are on top of each other, or very
close together.

Additionally, once the curve is clicked, even if this option is not selected, a label with the values of the
curve at the position of the mouse is shown. The keyboard arrows can be used to move along the curve.

18.8.6.8 Frequency Analysis

When the button is clicked, the frequency of an area of the curve can be analysed. More information
about the frequency analysis is available in section 28.13.

18.8.6.9 Cursors

The buttons and can be used to add a vertical line in all the plots of the page. These cursor can
be used to compare plots instead of defining separate x-constants in every plots.

18.8.6.10 Title Block

The icon shows or hides the title block of the page.

The title can be defined or changed by double-clicking on it.

For details about the settings of the title object refer to Chapter 9: Network Graphics.

18.8.6.11 Edit Plot Page

Whenever a plot is inserted, a Plot Page is automatically created, the Plot Page being one of the
possible page types in a Desktop. The edit dialog can be opened by clicking on the Edit Plot Page ( )
icon and the pages are described below.

Basic Data

• Name: name of the page, also modifiable by right-clicking on the tab and selecting → Rename
Page.
• Page auto layout: defines the layout of the plots on the page. This option is the same as using the
plot arrangement buttons, described in section 18.8.6.4.
• Curve area alignment: aligns the plots on the page, options are:

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– Off
– Shared axes only
– All plots on page
• Colour palette: link to the colour palette being used. A new colour palette can be selected using
the Select arrow .
• Style: link to the user-defined style used in the plot page. A new style, if already defined, can
be selected using the Select arrow . Information about how to create user-specific styles is
available in section 18.8.8.
• Results: to define the Results File object used for all the plots in the plot page. The result column
of the plots need not be set for most calculations: the plot itself will look for the results element to
display automatically.

Advanced

The settings on this page show the visibility of the page, which tab group it is, and whether it is the
currently selected window within that group. Note that although these settings can be changed manually
from the dialog, such changes will not take effect until the desktop is reopened, e.g. by reactivation of
the study case.

18.8.6.12 Page Format

The page format is modified using the icon. In the Page Format, the drawing size and the page
format are defined. The plot page uses the page format set in the desktop.

In addition a local page format can be created for each Plot Page by selecting the option Create local
Page Format from the context menu.

18.8.6.13 Colouring

The button Colouring can be used to select the used colouring palette on the Plot Page. When a
new colour palette is selected, the colours of the curves will all be changed automatically.

The use of colouring in PowerFactory is described in section 4.7.8.

18.8.6.14 Export Diagram

The Export Diagram icon opens a dialog offering options for exporting the graphic. A range of file
formats is supported.

18.8.6.15 Print

The Print Diagram icon opens the print preview page. The printer and margins to be used can be
selected in this dialog.

18.8.7 Context Menu Tools

As well as the tools of the plot toolbar, the following additional tools are available via the context menu,
displayed by right-clicking on the plot.

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Copy Plot to New Page

This option will create a new Plot Page containing only the selected plot.

Add Intersection Line

The intersection line is used to display a straight line, which can be the y-values for a constant x-quantity,
the x-values for a constant y-quantity or a line with a slope in the form of 𝑦 = 𝑚𝑥 + 𝑏.

The appearance of constant labels can be modified using the following settings:

• Style: changes the representation of the constant label as follows:

– Line Only: displays only the solid line and the related label.
– Line with Intersections: shows a solid line including label and indicates the values when
intersections with the curves of the plot.
– Short Line Only (Left/Right/Top/Bottom): indicates the constant value at the bottom/top re-
spectively at the right/left side of the plot.
– Short Line/Intersection (Left/Right/Top/Bottom): indicates the constant value at the bottom/-
top respectively at the right/left side of the plot and the intersections with curves.
– Intersection Only: shows only the intersection points with the curves.

• Label: either the default value (name of the variable in the axis) or defined by the user.
• Position: defines the position of the constant value label as follows:
– None: displays no label at all.
– Outside of Diagram: creates the label between the border of the Plot and the diagram area.
Labels of constant x values are created above the diagram area, labels of constant y values
to the right of the diagram area.
– Above Line (right): shows a label above the line if y is constant; the label will be on the right
hand side.
– Below Line (left): shows the label below the line on the left hand side.
– Left of Line (top): shows a label on the left side of the line if x is constant; the label will be on
the top end.
– Right of Line (bottom): shows the label right of the line on the bottom end.

• Value: defines the constant value, either X or Y. The dialog shows if either an X or Y is set. Also
the actual position of the cross will be shown as an x- or y-value. It is not possible to change a
constant X into a constant Y label other than by removing the old label and creating the new one.
• Colour: specifies the colour of the line and the labels/intersections.

• Linestyle and Width: specifies the line style and line width for the line shown. Invisible if Show
Values is set to Intersections Only.
• m and b: if the intersection line is a Line Equation, the m and b values should be defined in these
fields.

Export Shown Data

This option opens the Result Export command, described in section 18.7.1, with the user-defined
interval on the Advanced Options page of the command defined by the time range of the data currently
visible in the plot.

If the option is selected when right-clicking on a plot, the variables correspond to the curves displayed
on that plot only. Right-clicking on the grey area (plot page) will open the export dialog including all the
variables available on the plot page (i.e. variables from all the plots).

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18.8.8 User-Defined Styles

The user-defined styles are stored in a folder called Plot Style Templates within the Settings folder of
the active project. A new style is created by right-clicking on the plot or on the plot page and selecting
Style → Save Style as. . . .

The style can be changed by right-clicking on the plot or on the plot page and selecting Change Style

Inside the user-defined style, a template of the plot page, described in section 18.8.1, is stored and can
be modified.

18.8.9 Plot Types

All the available plots are listed below, grouped by category, and described either in the following
sections or in the corresponding chapter (for calculation-specific plots).

1. Simulation RMS/EMT
• Curve plot (section 18.8.9.1)
• Curve plot with two y-axes (section 18.8.9.2)
• Vector plot (section 18.8.9.10)
• XY curve plot (section 18.8.9.3)
2. Quasi-Dynamic Simulation
• Curve plot (section 18.8.9.1)
• Complete generation (section 18.8.9.8)
• Plant categories (section 18.8.9.7)
• Renewable and fossil (section 18.8.9.9)
• Duration curve (section 18.8.9.6)
• Curve plot with two y-axes (section 18.8.9.2)
• XY curve plot (section 18.8.9.3)
3. Unit Commitment
• Curve plot (section 18.8.9.1)
• Complete generation (section 18.8.9.8)
• Plant categories (section 18.8.9.7)
• Renewable and fossil (section 18.8.9.9)
• Duration curve (section 18.8.9.6)
• Curve plot with two y-axes (section 18.8.9.2)
• XY curve plot (section 18.8.9.3)
4. Modal/Eigenvalue Analysis
• Eigenvalue plot (section 31.4.2.1)
• Mode bar plot (section 31.4.2.2)
• Mode polar plot (section 31.4.2.3)
5. Power Quality and Harmonic Analysis
• Curve plot (section 18.8.9.1)
• Harmonic distortion (section 35.2.5.1)
• Curve plot with two y-axes (section 18.8.9.2)
• Waveform plot (section 35.2.5.2)
• XY curve plot (section 18.8.9.3)

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6. Frequency Sweep
• Curve plot (section 18.8.9.1)
• Curve plot with two y-axes (section 18.8.9.2)
• XY curve plot (section 18.8.9.3)
7. Probabilistic Analysis
• Convergence of statistics (section 44.3.8.3)
• Distribution estimation (section 44.3.8.5)
• Distribution fitting (section 44.3.8.6)
• Correlation plot (section 44.3.8.4)
8. Protection and Arc-Flash Analysis
• Current comparison differential plot (section 32.10.1)
• Curve-input (section 18.8.9.11)
• Phase comparison differential plot (section 32.10.2)
• R-X plot (section 32.6)
• Relay operational limits plot (P-Q diagram) (section 32.7)
• Short-circuit sweep plot (section 32.12)
• Time-distance plot (section 32.8)
• Time-overcurrent plot (section 32.4)
9. Power Park Energy Analysis
• Curve plot (time series)
• Generation curves (basic analysis)
• Losses curves (basic analysis)
• Wind speed cumulative probability (basic analysis)
• Wind speed probability (basic analysis)
• Annual load duration curve
10. Optimal Equipment Placement
• Curve plot (section 18.8.9.1)
• Complete generation (section 18.8.9.8)
• Plant categories (section 18.8.9.7)
• Renewable and fossil (section 18.8.9.9)
• Duration curve (section 18.8.9.6)
11. Flow Decomposition
• Curve plot (section 18.8.9.1)
• Curve plot with two y-axes (section 18.8.9.2)
• XY curve plot (section 18.8.9.3)
12. General
• Curve plot (section 18.8.9.1)
• Bar plot (section 18.8.9.4)
• Binary bar plot (section 18.8.9.5)
• Curve plot with two y-axes (section 18.8.9.2)
• Curve-input (section 18.8.9.11)
• Vector plot (section 18.8.9.10)
• XY curve plot (section 18.8.9.3)
13. Virtual Instruments (section 18.8.9.12)

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• Digital display
• Horizontal scale
• Measurement instrument
• Vertical scale
14. Others
• Button
• Command button
• Network graphic
• Picture
• Schematic path
• Text
• Voltage profile (along feeder) (section 18.8.9.13)
• Voltage sag plot

18.8.9.1 Curve Plot

Curve plots are the “basic” diagrams and are typically used to display one or more plotted curves from
the results of a simulation (EMT, RMS, Quasi-dynamic). The Data Series of this plot type is described
in section 18.8.2. The following figure shows an example of a curve plot.

Figure 18.8.10: Curve Plot

18.8.9.2 Curve Plot With Two Y-Axes

A curve plot with two y-axes is typically used for displaying together quantities which have very different
scales. The Data Series of this plot type is as described in section 18.8.2, the main difference being the
additional y-axis.

The following figure shows an example of a curve plot with two y-axes.

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Figure 18.8.11: Curve Plot (two y-axes)

18.8.9.3 XY Curve Plot

This plot shows one variable plotted against a second variable. The two variables can be completely
independent from each other and do not have to belong to the same element. The differences in the
Data Series of this plot type compared with the one described in section 18.8.2 are:

• Additional columns for the element and variable on the x-axis.

• A specific time range to be displayed can be defined.

• Is it not possible to add processed and aggregated results.

The following figure shows an example of a XY curve plot.

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Figure 18.8.12: XY Curve Plot

18.8.9.4 Bar Plot

The bar plot is used to visualise steady-state values such as voltages, currents and power. A bar plot
can be inserted after a calculation has been executed using the Insert Plot dialog or directly by right-
clicking on an element(s) and selecting the option Plots → Bar-Diagram→ “variable”. An example of the
bar plot is shown in the following figure.

Figure 18.8.13: Bar Plot

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The Style and Layout page of the edit dialog of the bar plot is the same as that of the Data Series,
described in section 18.8.2.3. The Curves page is different, as described below.

x-Axis Elements

The x-Axis Elements table consists of the elements whose variables are shown in the plot. If the plot is
inserted by right-clicking on the element, the elements are automatically defined. Otherwise the element
can be selected by double clicking on the corresponding field.

Curves

On the Curves table, the user can select the variables to be displayed. The default shape is Bars and
the fill style can be specified by the user.

18.8.9.5 Binary Bar Plot

The Binary Bar Plot can be used to illustrate digital signals. The Data Series is as the one described in
section 18.8.2 and the following options are set by default:

• Plot Features:
– Additional curve shapes
– Data transformation: Binarisation
– Curve stacking: Values
• Curves table:
– Shape: Filled steps

An example of the binary bar plot is shown at the bottom of figure 18.8.14.

Figure 18.8.14: Binary Bar Plot

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18.8.9.6 Duration Curve

With the Duration curve plot it is possible to evaluate the utilisation of specific elements such as
transformers or different power plants over a given time period. After a Quasi-Dynamic Simulation
is executed, for example, the loading of a transformer can be illustrated.

Figure 18.8.15: Duration curve of the loading of a transformer over the duration of a day

The edit dialog of the Data Series of this plot type is the same as the one described in section 18.8.2.
The following options are set by default:
• Plot Features:
– Additional curve shapes
– Data transformation: Functions
• Curves table:
– Shape: Steps
– Column Function set. See description below.
Double clicking on the column Function opens the Distribution estimation dialog, which contains the
following options:

• For the Method that is used to determine the duration curve, Histogram or Bootstrapping can be
selected. A detailed description on the methods can be found in section 44.2.5.
• The Curve can be defined through several different functions: Cumulative distribution function,
Probability density function, Quantile function and Mirrored quantile function. More details can be
found in section 44.2.1.1.
• The different methods that are used for the Estimation are User-defined, Automatic parameter
deduction, Rice Rule, Freedman-Diaconis choice and Scotts Rule. Detailed descriptions of the
estimation methods can be found in section 44.2.5.2.

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18.8.9.7 Plant Categories

The Plant categories plot is one of the energy plots and used for displaying the proportion of all defined
plant categories from the total generation in a network.

An example of the plot is shown here:

Figure 18.8.16: Total generation in a grid divided into different plant categories

The edit dialog of the Data Series of this plot type is the same as the described in section 18.8.2. The
following options are set by default:

• Plot Features:
– Additional curve shapes
– Data transformation: Energy plot
– Curve stacking: Values
• Curves table:
– Shape: Filled steps

The plant categories plot can be customised as follows:

• In the Curves table all available plant categories are shown by default; however, the user can use
the checkbox on the Visible column to show only some categories.
• In the column Group, the defined grouping object for each category is used. By default the
Summary Grid is selected to represent all calculated generation in the network. It has to be
noted that different grouping objects can be defined for the same category, but no element is
allowed to be defined in several grouping objects.
• The order of the stacking of the curves is defined as the first entry is displayed in the plot on the
bottom, while the last entry that is defined is displayed on the top. This however, can be modified
on the plot by right-clicking on a curve and selecting Move Curve → Upwards/Downwards.
• Changing the stacking to Percentage or Relative values standardises the values to 100 % or 1 to
illustrate the share of the shown variables.

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The following options available for the curve plots are not available for the energy plots:
• Filter. . . button

• Export. . . button

18.8.9.8 Complete Generation

The Complete generation plot is one of the energy plots and displays the total generation in a network.
Therefore it can be used to show, for example, the total generation in different areas of the grid, as
shown here:

Figure 18.8.17: Total generation in a grid divided into different areas

The pages on the edit dialog of the plot are the same as for the energy plot Plant categories described
in section 18.8.9.7.

The only difference is the default entry for the Curves, since all plant categories are summed up as
Group Generators for the whole summary grid.

18.8.9.9 Renewable and Fossil

The Renewable and fossil plot is one of the energy plots and displays the renewable and fossil shares
of the generation in a network.

An example of the plot is shown here:

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Figure 18.8.18: Total generation in a grid divided into renewable and fossil categories

The pages on the edit dialog of the plot are the same as for the energy plot Plant categories described
in section 18.8.9.7.

The only difference is the default entry for the Curves since the plant categories in the grid are divided
into fossil and renewable categories.

18.8.9.10 Vector Plot

A vector plot is used to visualise complex values such as voltages, currents and apparent power as
vectors. A complex variable can be defined and shown in one of two different representations:
• Polar coordinates, e.g. magnitude and phase of the current
• Cartesian coordinates, e.g. active-and reactive power

Note: A vector plot can be shown after a load flow calculation or before and after a transient simulation.

A vector plot can be inserted using the Insert Plot dialog or directly by right-clicking on the element and
selecting the option Plots → Insert Vector Plot→ “variable”

Figure 18.8.19 shows an example of a vector plot with vector transformation feature enabled.

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Figure 18.8.19: Vector plot with vector transformation

In this type of plot, instead of the Data Series, a Complex Data Definition (PltComplexData) as described
in section 18.8.3 is used.

18.8.9.11 Curve-Input Plot

The curve input command is used for measuring printed curves. The original curves must be available
in one of the supported formats and are displayed as a background in the curve input plot as shown in
figure 18.8.20. This plot then allows plot points to be defined by successive mouse clicks.

Figure 18.8.20: Curve-Input Plot

The curve input plot allows the measurement and editing of single curves or group of curves at once.
The measured curve points will be stored in a Matrix object, which is why, before inserting this plot, it is

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necessary to define or select the corresponding matrix.

The matrix object should be created inside the project, for example in the Study Case folder, by opening
the Data Manager and once inside the Study Case folder (or selected folder), clicking on the New Object
icon ( ).

Since several elements can be added to the study case folder, the displayed list is very long. Use the
filter to select the object Matrix (IntMat) as shown in figure 18.8.21.

The matrix should have at least two columns and one point (inside the curve) has to be manually
defined.

Figure 18.8.21: Defining new matrix

The fields of the curve-input plot edit dialog are:

• Background: by clicking on the button the location of the graphic file to be used as background
image can be selected; several formats are supported.
• Limits: this is used to set the range of the axes of the curves as they are in the graphics file.
• Scale: the options Linear and Log. (logarithmic) can be selected and should be as per the graphic
file.

• Curves: two different types of curves can be input:

– Single: each matrix input defines a single curve. The first column in the matrix holds the
x-values, the second one the y values. Other columns are ignored.
– Set of Curves: only the first matrix is used for input. The first column in the matrix holds the
x-values, the other columns hold the y-values of each curve in the group of curves.
• Interpolation: the measured curve is drawn between the measured points by interpolation. The
available modes of interpolation are:
– Linear
– Cub. Spline
– Polygon
– Hermite
• Curves Tables: the matrix or list of matrices to be used has to be set in this table.

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The rest of the setting of the plot are done using the context menu, which is accessed by right-clicking
on the plot. The settings are described below in the order they should be executed.

• Set Axis: with this option the origin of the axes and the length of the axes can be adjusted
according to the figure imported.
– Origin: sets the origin of the graph to be inserted
– x-Axis (y=Origin): sets the x-axis dependent on the y-axis origin.
– x-Axis: sets the x-axis independent of the y-axis.
– y-Axis (x=Origin): sets the y-axis dependent on the x-axis origin.
– y-Axis: sets the y-axis independent of the x-axis

• Active Curve: sets the curve to modify

• Input: specifies the input mode:
– x/y-Pairs: each left mouse click adds a point to the curve.
– Drag & Drop: turns on the “edit mode”: all points can be dragged and dropped to change
their y-position or left click and delete the point with the Del key.
– Off: switches off the measurement mode

• Interpolate All: interpolates undefined y values for all curves for all defined x-values
• Interpolate N: interpolates undefined y values of curve N for all defined x-values

18.8.9.12 Virtual Instruments

The virtual instruments are basically measurement instruments that can be inserted into the plot to
present steady state values. The variable can be displayed with one of the following instruments:

• Digital display
• Horizontal scale

• Vertical scale
• Measurement instrument

An example of all the available measurement instruments is shown on the right side of the following
figure; the maximum and minimum limits, as well as the element and the variable presented should be
defined in the edit dialog of the instrument.

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Figure 18.8.22: Measurement Instruments

18.8.9.13 Voltage Profile Plot

The Voltage Profile Plot (along feeder) shows the voltage profile of a radial network based on the load
flow calculation results. The Voltage Profile Plot is directly connected to a feeder object defined in the
network, so it can only be created for parts of the system where a feeder is assigned.

The Voltage Profile Plot requires a successful load flow calculation before it can display any results.
The voltage profile plot can be inserted, as all the plots, using the Insert Plot dialog, however, since it is
linked to one or more feeders, in this case it is recommended to create the plot directly from the context
menu of the feeder element, selecting Show → Voltage Profile.

An example of a voltage profile plot is shown here:

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Figure 18.8.23: Voltage profile along feeders

Customising the Voltage Profile Plot

Scales Page

The x-axis variable can be set to one of the following options:

• Distance: shows the distance from the beginning of the feeder in km.
• Bus Index: each bus is numbered sequentially from the beginning of the feeder and all of the
buses are displayed equidistantly on the plot.
• Other: this option allows plotting against a user defined variable. Only variables available at all
terminals in the feeder can be used.
By default, any branch with a loading greater than 80 % will appear red on the voltage profile plot and
any branch loaded less than the Lower Limit will be coloured blue. These colours and limits can be
adjusted in the Branch Colouring field.

The Parallel Branches option is required because the voltage profile plot only shows a single connection
line between nodes, regardless of how many parallel branches connect the two nodes. If there is a
situation where one of these parallel lines is below the Lower Limit and another is above the Upper
Limit, then the parallel branches option determines whether the single line in the voltage profile plot is
either the line with the maximum loading or the line with the minimum loading.

Curves Page

On the Curves page, the colour and style of the displayed feeders can be modified; also, a display filter
can be configured to show only the nodes with a nominal values between the specified values and to
ignore nodes with voltages below a specified limit.

Advanced Page

On this page the frame of the plot and the visibility of the legend can be defined. The colour of the
busbar (terminal) names on the voltage profile plot can also be modified as follows:
• Off: does not display any bus names

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• Black: shows all names in black

• Coloured acc. to Feeder: colours the bus names according to the colour of the different feeders.

The context menu of the plot shows additional functions regarding the voltage profile plot including:
• Edit Feeder: opens the edit dialog of the feeder related to the plot.
• Edit Data: opens the edit dialog of the selected line, transformer or other element.
• Show in Data Manager: shows the selected element in the Data Manager.

• Mark in Graphic: marks the selected element in the single line graphic(s).

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Chapter 19

Data Extensions

19.1 Introduction

Introduced in PowerFactory 2018, the Data Extensions functionality allows users to extend their data
models by adding user-defined attributes for elements and other objects in a PowerFactory project.
Furthermore, if the users find that defining additional attributes for existing objects is not sufficient to
address their needs, it is also possible to define entire new classes of object.

The definitions of the attributes, which are done on an object class basis, include the data type (such as
integer, double, string), description, unit and default value. Once defined, the new attributes are treated
by PowerFactory in the same way as the in-built attributes, available to scripts, DGS interface etc. Data
Extensions are specific to the project, but the configuration can be copied from one project to another,
where the new Data Extensions will be aggregated with any existing Data Extensions.

19.2 Data Extension Configuration

19.2.1 Creating Data Extensions

To create Data Extensions within a project, select from the main toolbar Tools → Data Extensions→
Configuration. The Data Extension Configurations are stored in the project Settings folder, and the
required *.SetDataext will be automatically created as required.

When the Tools → Data Extensions→ Configuration command is used, a dialog box appears, which
allows the user to create new Data Extensions or modify or delete existing ones.

To create a new Data Extension variable definition, follow these steps:

• Use the New Object icon ; this will then create a new IntAddonvars object, where the attributes
are configured.

• Select or type in the name of the class for which the attributes are to be configured. “Wildcards”
(e.g. Elm*) may be used if the attributes are to be made available to multiple classes. Note that if
the class name is not recognised as an existing class, it will be assumed that the user wishes to
create an entirely new class (see section 19.2.2 below)

• Give the definition a meaningful name.

• Use right-click to append rows in the table below.

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• Populate the rows as required. The Name is the actual attribute name and the Description will
appear, for example, as a column heading if the attribute is used in a flexible data page.
• The attribute Type is selected from a drop-down list, and the Unit and Initial Value can also be
specified as required.
• By clicking on More. . . an Additional Options dialog opens, in which the previous described
attributes as well as the following three additional attributes can be defined:
– With the attributes Minimum value and Maximum value the permissible range for the values
can be defined. Note: These fields are only available for data types “int” and “double”.
– The attribute Allowed values can be used to define which values are to be selectable from
a drop-down menu. Multiple values must be separated by a semicolon (e.g. 0;1;3;5). Note:
This field is only available for data types “int”, “double” and “string”. Additionally, the fields for
the minimum and maximum value will be disabled.
• Click on OK to save the new definition.
Note that once Data Extensions have been created, further additions or changes will result in a need to
migrate the data within the project, and a version will be created in case there is a need to roll back to
the state prior to the change.

Modifications to Data Extensions must be done using the Tools → Data Extensions→ Configuration
command. Modifications cannot be done by going to the Settings folder of the project and accessing
the Data Extensions directly there. It should also be noted that it is currently not possible to change an
attribute’s type in an existing Data Extension. The attribute must be deleted, the configuration saved
and then the attribute can be redefined with a new type.

19.2.2 User Defined Classes

In an enhancement to the above process, the user can choose to define a completely new class of
object, then ascribe the attributes to this new object class.

To define a new object class, follow the above steps but instead of using an existing class name enter
a new class name. PowerFactory will create the new class, prefixing it with “Ext” to indicate that it is a
user-defined class.

Once the new class is defined, objects of that class can be created and handled like other objects in the
project, for example being populated with data and accessed via DPL or Python scripts.

19.3 Using Data Extensions

The new attributes can be treated in much the same way as existing attributes, for example added to
flexible data pages or accessed by scripts.

Characteristics can also be added to the new variables. If the reference to the characteristic (ChaRef
object) is created via a script, it needs to be named “p#attrname”.

To add a new attribute to a flexible data page (see Chapter 10 (Data Manager and Network Model
Manager), section 10.2.4 for more information about the use of flexible data pages), open up the Variable
Definition dialog and select Data Extension on the left-hand side.

They have a prefix p, rather than the e used for the built-in attributes, so for example if Data Extension
for synchronous machines includes a new attribute Size, the parameter will be shown as p:Size.

The value of a Data Extension attribute can be modified within the object’s edit dialog (select the Data
Extension page) or in a Flexible data page, as with other parameters. Attributes of primitive data types,

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i.e. integer and double, can be edited in place. For more complex attributes including strings, double-
clicking into the cell opens a dedicated edit value dialog. Although it is not possible to type such values
directly in a flexible data page, it is still possible to copy and paste them from one object to another.

As mentioned in the introduction, Data Extensions can be used by scripts, DGS imports etc. Recording
in scenarios is also supported; however, this is restricted to attributes of type string, integer, double or
object.

It is possible to rename existing data extensions and user-defined classes via DPL or Python, using
RenameParameter and RenameClass.

19.4 Sharing Data Extensions

Having created Data Extensions in one project, users may wish to use them in other projects. It is
possible to fetch Data Extension configurations from another project using the command Tools → Data
Extensions→ Copy settings from project. This process is additive, i.e. the fetched Data Extensions will
be added to any existing Data Extensions in the project. However, the user will be required to resolve
any conflicts such as duplicate attribute names for the same object class.

Another option open to users if they have Data Extensions which they want to use routinely is to create
them in the default project (in the Configuration, Default folder) so that every new project created in the
database will automatically have them.

As the Data Extensions are part of the project, they are therefore retained when moving or copying
projects. Likewise, they are also retained when projects are exported as .pfd or snapshot export .dzs
files, but will not be retained if the older .dz export is used.

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Chapter 20

Data Management

20.1 Introduction

The basic elements of project management within the PowerFactory environment were introduced in
Chapter 4 (PowerFactory Overview). They allow the user to generate network designs and administer
all input information and settings related to PowerFactory calculations and analyses. The project itself
is much more than a simple folder which stores all objects which comprise a power system model; it
allows the user to do advanced management tasks such as: versioning, deriving, comparing, merging
and sharing. These advanced features simplify data management in multi-user environments.

The following sections explain each of the data management functions in more detail:

• Project Versions;

• Derived Projects;
• Comparing and Merging Projects;
• How to update a Project;
• Sharing Projects;

• Combining Projects; and

• Database Archiving.

20.2 Project Versions

The section explains the PowerFactory concept of a version. The section first explains what a version
is and when it can be used. Next the procedure for creating a version is explained. Specific procedures
related to versions such as rolling back to a version, checking if a version is the basis for a derived
project and deleting a version are then explained.

20.2.1 What is a Version?

A Version is a snapshot of a project taken at a certain point in time. Using versions, the historic
development of a project can be controlled. Also, the previous state of a project can be recovered by
rolling back a version. From the PowerFactory database point of view, a version is a read-only copy of

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the original project (at the moment of version creation), which is stored inside a Version (IntVersion, ).
Versions are stored inside the original project in a special folder called Versions.

The concept of versions is illustrated in Figure 20.2.1. At time 𝑡0, the project ’SIN’ is created. After a
time, 𝑡1, when the owner has made several changes they decide to make a copy of the project in its
current state by creating the version ’V1’. After more time, 𝑡2, and after more changes with respect to
’V1’, another version ’V2’ is created by the owner. The version control can continue with time like this,
with versions accumulating with a periodicity of 𝑡.

After versions are created, the owner can revert the project to the state of the version by using the
Rollback function. This destroys all modifications implemented after a version was created (including
all versions created after the rolled-back version.

Figure 20.2.1: Project versions

20.2.2 How to Create a Version

This sub-section describes the procedure for creating a version. To create a version of the active project
follow these steps:

1. Right-click on the active project.

2. Select New → Version. . . from the context menu. Alternatively, use the option File → New Version
from the main PowerFactory menu. The dialog for the new version appears.
3. Set the desired options (explained in the next section) and press OK. PowerFactory automatically
creates and stores the version in the Versions folder (which is automatically created if it does not
yet exist).

20.2.2.1 Options in the Version Dialog

Point in Time By default this is set to the system clock time when the version was created. However, it
is also possible to enter an earlier time (back to the beginning of retention period of the project).

Note: Setting a Point in Time earlier than the clock time means that the version is created considering
the state of the project at the time entered. This can be used for example, to revert the project to
a previous state, even though other versions have not yet been created.

Notify users of derived projects If this option is enabled, when a user of a project that is derived from
the active project activates their derived project, they are informed that the new version is available.
Thereafter, updates of the derived project can be made (for further information about derived projects
refer to Section 20.3).

Complete project approval for versioning required If this option is enabled, PowerFactory checks if
all the objects in the active project are approved. If Not Approved objects are found, an error message
is printed and the version is not created.

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Note: The Approval Status is found on the Description page in the dialog of most grid and library
objects.

20.2.3 How to Rollback a Project

This sub-section describes the use of the Rollback function to revert a project to the state of a version
of that project. For example, consider a project called ’V0’, created at a point in time, 𝑡. If a Rollback to
’V0’ is completed, the project returns to its state at the creation of ’V0’. After the Rollback, all changes
implemented after ’V0’ (i.e. after V0’s point in time) are deleted. Also, all versions newer than ’V0’ are
removed. This concept is illustrated in Figure 20.2.2.

Figure 20.2.2: Example of a rollback

To complete a rollback

1. Deactivate the target project.

2. Right-click on the version that you wish to rollback to and select the option Rollback to this version
from the context menu.
3. Press OK when the confirmation message appears.

Note that a Rollback is not allowed (and therefore not enabled in the context menu) if a newer version
of the project exists and this version is the base of a derived project. A rollback cannot be undone!

Note: A version can only be deleted if it does not have derived projects.

20.2.4 How to Check if a Version is the Base for a Derived Project

The following steps should be followed to check if a version is the base for a derived project:

1. Activate the project.

2. Go to the Versions folder inside the project.

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3. Right-click on the Version that should be checked. This should be done via the right window pane
in the Data Manager, not the main Data Manager tree.
4. Select the option Show Derived Projects.

5. A list of derived projects will be shown in PowerFactory ’s output window.

20.2.5 How to Delete a Version

To delete a version:
1. Activate the project containing the version.
2. Go to the Versions folder inside the project.

3. Right-click on the Version that should be deleted.

4. Select the option Delete.

20.3 Derived Projects

This section explains the concept of a derived project. For background information regarding the use of
derived projects, see sub-Section 20.3.1. In addition, sub-Section 20.3.2 describes the procedure for
creating a derived project.

20.3.1 Derived Projects Background

As is often the case, several users might wish to work on the same project. To avoid large amounts of
data duplication that would be required to create a project copy for each user, DIgSILENT has developed
a virtual copy approach called derived projects. From the user’s point of view, a derived project is like
a normal copy of a project version. However, only the differences between the original project version
(the base project) and the virtual copy (the derived project) are stored in the database. Because the
derived project is based on a version, changes made to the base project do not affect it. Like ’normal’
projects, derived projects can be controlled over time by the use of versions, but these derived versions
cannot be used to create further derived projects.

Note: A derived project is a local ’virtual copy’ of a version of a base project (master project):
- It behaves like a “real copy” from the user’s point of view.
- Internally, only the data differences between the base project and the derived project are stored
in the database.
- This approach reduces the data overhead.

In a multi-user database, the data administrator might publish a base project in a public area of the
database. Every user can subsequently create their own derived project and use as if it is the original
base project. Changes made by individual users are stored in their respective derived projects, so that
the base project remains the same for all users.

In a single-user database, the data administrator must export the base project. The user of the derived
project must always have this project imported. However, different users of the same base project can
exchange their derived project. Therefore the derived project should not be exported with option Export
derived project as regular project enabled. See Section 8.1.4 for further details.

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The purpose of a derived project is that all users work with an identical power system model. The
derived project always remains connected to the base project.

The concept of derived projects is illustrated in Figure 20.3.1; here version ’Version3’ of the base project
(’MasterProject’) was used to create ’DerivedProject’. After ’DerivedProject’ was created, two versions
of it were created.

Figure 20.3.1: Principle of derived projects

At any stage, the data administrator might create a version of a base project which has derived projects
from other versions of the base project. The user might wish to update their derived project with one of
these new versions. Alternatively, the data administrator might like to incorporate changes made in a
derived project to the base project. All of these features are possible, by using the Compare and Merge
Tool, explained in Section 20.4.

Figure 20.3.2: Derived projects in a multi-user database

In the Data Manager, a derived project looks like a normal project. The Derived Project page of its
dialog has a reference where the user can see the base project and the version used to derive the
project.

Users are notified of changes in the base project if: there is a new version of the base project (newer
than the currently-used version) which has the option Notify users of derived projects enabled (the
user/administrator enables this option when creating a new version), and the option Disable notification
at activation disabled (found on the Derived Project page of the project dialog).

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The user may update a derived project when they next activate it, provided that the conditions stated
above are met. The newest version that can be used to update a derived project is referred to (if
available) in the Most recent Version field of the dialog. Users can compare this new version with their
own derived project and decide which changes to include in the derived project. For comparing and
accepting or refusing individual changes, the Compare and Merge Tool is used. For information about
the Compare and Merge Tool refer to Section 20.4.

Figure 20.3.3: New version of base project in a multi-user database

Figure 20.3.4: Merging the new version of the base project into derived projects

20.3.2 How to Create a Derived Project

The most direct and intuitive method for creating a Derived Project is by means of the Data Manager,
as explained below:

1. Right-click on the desired base project in the left pane of the Data Manager,
2. Select the option Create Derived Project from the context menu,
3. Select the source Version of the base project using the data browser that appears automatically,
4. Edit, if required, the predefined settings of the Derived Project and
5. Press OK.

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After the derived project is created, it can be used in a similar way as a regular project.

Note: • The base or master project has to have at least one version before other projects can be
derived from it.
• A derived project cannot be used as a base project, i.e. it is not possible to create a derived
project from another derived project.
• Whether a project is derived or not can be checked on the Derived Project page of the project
dialog.
• To create a derived project from a base project stored in another user’s account, read access
is required. See Section 20.6 for further details.

The derived project can be exported as a “Regular Project” or with the base project. This option can be
selected from the Export dialog.

20.4 Comparing and Merging Projects

This section describes the procedure for comparing and merging projects within the PowerFactory
database. There are many circumstances whereby it may be desirable and/or necessary to merge
data from multiple projects. For example, when the data administrator updates a master project that is
the base project for a derived project that a user is working with. The Compare and Merge Tool (CMT)
can be used to update the user’s project with the data changes, yet also allows the user control over
which changes are implemented.

This section is separated into six sub-sections. Firstly, the background of the CMT is presented. The fol-
lowing sub-section explains the procedure needed for merging together or comparing two projects. Sub-
Section 20.4.3 explains the procedure for merging or comparing three projects. In sub-Section 20.4.4,
the advanced options of the CMT are explained. The CMT uses a diff browser for showing the
differences and conflicts between compared projects and also for allowing data assignments. This
is explained in sub-Section 20.4.5.

20.4.1 Compare and Merge Tool Background

When working collaboratively in a multi-user environment, a data administrator might often need to
update the master project to create a version based on updates completed by one or more users to
projects derived from the master project. The Compare and Merge Tool (CMT) is used for this purpose.
This tool can be used for project comparison in addition to the merging of project data. It is capable of
a two-way comparison between two projects and also a three-way comparison for three projects.

Internally, PowerFactory refers to each of the compared projects according to the following nomencla-
ture:

• <Base> Project - the base project for comparison.

• <1st> - the first project to compare to the <Base> project.

• <2nd> - the second project to compare to the <Base> project and to the <1st> project (three-
way comparison only).

The CMT compares the chosen projects and generates an interactive window known as the CMT diff
browser to show the differences. For a two-way merge, the changes found in the <1st> project can be
implemented in the <Base>, provided that the user selects <1st> as the source (<Base> is by default
the target). When merging three projects together, the target is either the <1st> or <2nd> project.

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20.4.2 How to Merge or Compare Two Projects Using the Compare and Merge
Tool

This section describes the procedure for merging together or comparing two projects using the Compare
and Merge Tool (CMT) (ComMerge). Note that the comparison is completed using a similar procedure
but with slight differences that will also be explained here.

To merge or compare two projects:

1. In the Data Manager, right-click on an inactive project and choose Select as Base to Compare.
2. Right-click on a second (inactive) project and select Compare to [Name of Base Project]. The
CMT options dialog will appear. The <Base> and the <1st> project are listed in the Compare
section of the dialog.

3. Optional: If a third project should be included in the comparison, the box next to <2nd> must be
checked. The third project can then be selected with a data browser by using the icon. See
Section 20.4.3 for a more detailed explanation of the 3-way comparison.

4. Optional: If the base and compare projects should be swapped around, press the button. This
would be the case if Project A should be the <1st> project and Project B should be the <Base>.
5. Select one of the options Compare only, Manually or Automatically. The differences between
these three choices are:
• Compare only: If the two projects should only be compared and no merge is desired, then
select Compare only. This disables the merge functionality and only the differences between
the two projects will be shown.
• Manually: When this option is selected, the user will be asked to make assignments (i.e.
to choose the source project data for common objects that are merged together). For this
option, the target project can also be selected. Selecting <Base> will merge changes into
the <Base> project, whereas selecting <1st> will instead merge changes into the <1st>
comparison project.
• Automatically: When this option is selected, PowerFactory will attempt to automatically
merge the two projects together, by automatically making data assignments. In a two-way
comparison, merging will be automatically into the base project (the base is automatically
assumed to be the ’target’ for the merging procedure). Note that if conflicts are detected
during an automatic merge, the CMT will automatically switch to manual mode.

6. Press Execute to run the compare or merge. The CMT diff browser will appear (unless an
automatic merge was selected and no conflicts were identified by PowerFactory ). Interpreting
and using the diff browser is described in Section 20.4.5.

Note: It is possible to assign user-defined names to each of the compared projects. This makes it
easier to recognise which project is being referred to by the CMT later on in the diff browser (see
Section 20.4.5). For example, the user might wish to name two compared projects ’Master’ and
’User’, respectively. User-defined names can be implemented by typing the desired name in the
as ... field in the CMT options dialog. These user-defined names are limited to a maximum of 10
characters.

20.4.3 How to Merge or Compare Three Projects Using the Compare and Merge
Tool

This section describes the procedure for merging or comparing three projects using the Compare and
Merge Tool (CMT). The comparison procedure is completed using a similar method to that used for a
two-way merge or compare, but with minor differences that will be explained here.

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To merge or compare three projects:

1. In the Data Manager, right-click an inactive project and choose Select as Base to Compare.

2. In the window on the right of the Data Manager, hold the CTRL key to multi-select a second and
third inactive project.
3. Right-click the multi-selection and select the option Compare to “<project>”. The CMT options
dialog will appear as shown in Figure 20.4.1. The <Base>, the <1st> and the <2nd> project are
listed in the Compare section of the dialog.

Figure 20.4.1: Compare and Merge Tool options dialog for a three-way merge

4. Select one of the options Compare only, Manually or Automatically. The differences between
these three choices are:
• Compare only: If only two projects should be compared and no merge is required, then select
the radio button Compare only. This disables the merge functionality and only the differences
between the two projects will be shown.
• Manually: When this option is selected, the user will be asked to make assignments (to
choose the source project data for common objects that are merged together). Using this
option, the target project can also be selected. For a three-way merge, merging cannot
be done into the <Base>, meaning that either the <1st> or the <2nd> project must be
selected.
• Automatically: When this option is selected, PowerFactory will attempt to merge the three
projects together, via automatic data assignments. As for the option Manually, the target
can be either the <1st> or <2nd> project. Note that if ’conflicts’ are detected during an
automatic merge, the CMT will automatically switch to manual mode.
5. If using options Manually or Automatically, the assignment priority must also be selected, by
choosing an option from the Assign drop-down menu. This defines the default assignment in
the CMT diff browser (or automatic merge) when PowerFactory identifies conflicts. For example,
say the CMT identifies that the load ’L1’ has an active power of 10 MW in <Base>, 12 MW in
<1st> and 13 MW in <2nd>. By choosing the option Automatically and favour 1st, the default
assignment for ’L1’ would be <1st>, and a power of 12 MW would be assigned to this load in the
target project (provided that the user did not manually alter the assignment).
6. Press Execute to run the compare or merge. The CMT diff browser will appear (unless an
automatic merge was selected and no conflicts were identified by PowerFactory ). Using the diff
browser is described in Section 20.4.5.

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Note: It is possible to assign user-defined names to each of the compared projects. This makes it
easier to recognise which project is being referred to by the CMT later on in the diff browser (see
Section 20.4.5). For example, the user might wish to name two compared projects ’Master’ and
’User’, respectively. User-defined names can be implemented by typing the desired name in the
as ... field in the CMT options dialog. These user-defined names are limited to a maximum of 10
characters.

20.4.4 Compare and Merge Tool Advanced Options

20.4.4.1 General

Object Identification

Use a key value: Used to define the key value that PowerFactory will use to align the objects irrespec-
tive of their name and location. This can be useful when combining grid models from different
sources when different names are used and/or the folder structure may not fit perfectly. The
following options are available for the key value:
• Foreign key: the foreign key defined on the Description page of the object will be used
• CIM RDF ID: the CIM RDF ID Mapping defined on the Description page, Advanced tab of
the elements will be used.
Search correspondents for added objects: This option is only available for a three-way merge and
is enabled by default. If enabled, PowerFactory can automatically align two independently added
objects as being the same object. This option can be useful when completing a comparison
on projects where users have added the same object (same name) in each of their respective
projects, and the user would like to ensure that PowerFactory identifies this object as being the
same object. Note that this option is only considered when the Use a key value is set to None.

Attribute Modifications

Consider approval information: By default this option is disabled, which means that information on
the Description page under Approval Information is not compared. For example, if this option is
disabled and an object’s Approval status changes from Not Approved to Approved or vice versa,
then this modification would not be registered by the CMT comparison engine.
Consider CIM Data: the information located within the CIM Model library will also be considered by the
CMT, this is the default option.
Consider Data Extensions: the Data Extensions defined in the project will also be compared/merged,
this is the default option.

20.4.4.2 Advanced

Depth

This option controls whether the CMT compares only the selected objects or also all objects contained
within the compared objects. By default, Chosen and contained objects is enabled which means
the CMT compares all objects within the selected comparison objects. This is generally the most
appropriate option when merging projects.

Ignore differences <

This field defines the tolerance of the comparison engine when comparing numerical parameters. If
the difference between two numerical parameters is less than the value entered into this field, then the
comparison will show the two values as equal, =.

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20.4.5 Compare and Merge Tool ’diff browser’

After the CMT options have been set, press the Execute button to start the CMT comparison. The
comparison and assignment results are then presented in a data browser window (the CMT diff browser
window shown in Figure 20.4.2). The diff browser is divided into three parts:

• Data Tree window on the left;

• Comparison and Assignment window on the right; and

• Output window at the bottom.

These features are explained in the following sections.

Figure 20.4.2: Compare and Merge Tool diff browser after a three-way merge

Output Window

The output window displays reports from the context menu (right-click), and other error information.

How to use the Comparison and Assignment window

In the CMT Comparison and Assignment Window, a list of the compared objects is shown. The
window appears slightly different depending on whether a two-way merge, a three-way merge or a
comparison has been performed. For instance, after a comparison, the Assigned from and Assignment
Conflict columns are not shown. After a two-way merge, the columns with the project names will show
<Base> and <1st> (or user-defined names), whereas after a three-way merge they will show <1st>
and <2nd>. A comparison result symbol, indicating the differences found for each object from the list,
is displayed in the columns <Base> and <1st> after a two-way merge and in columns <1st> and
<2nd> after a three-way merge. The possible combinations of these symbols are shown and explained
in Tables 20.4.1 and 20.4.2.

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Base 1st Comment

The object has been removed from the <1st> project
The object has been added to the <1st> project
A parameter of the object has been modified in the <1st> project
The object is identical in both projects

Table 20.4.1: Possible results after a two-way comparison or merge

1st 2nd Result Comment

Objects are identical in all projects
A parameter of the object is modified in the
<2nd> project
A parameter of the object is modified in the
<1st> project
A new object in the <2nd> project
A new object in the <1st> project
Object removed from the <2nd> project
Object removed from the <1st> project
Modified in both projects but the same
modifications in both
Modified in both projects but the modifica-
tions are different
Modified in the <1st> project and re-
moved from the <2nd> project
Modified in the <2nd> project and re-
moved from the <1st> project
Identical object added to both projects
Object added to both projects but param-
eters are different
Object removed from both projects

Table 20.4.2: Possible results after a three-way comparison or merge

For a project merge (i.e. the Merge option was enabled in the command dialog), the Assigned from
must define the source project of the changes to implement in the target project. All listed objects must
have an Assignment. If a certain change should not be implemented in the target; then the ’target’
project must be selected as the source.

Special attention should be paid to all results indicated by the ’conflict’ symbol . This symbol shows
that the objects are different in both compared projects or that another error has occurred. In the case
of conflicts, the user must always indicate the source project for the data.

In a two-way merge, the only available sources for assignment are the <Base> (which is also the
target) and <1st>. In a three-way merge, the possible sources are <Base>, <1st> and <2nd>. The
assignment can be made manually by double-clicking on the corresponding cell in the Assigned from
column and selecting the desired source, or double-clicking the <Base>, <1st> or <2nd> cell that
the user wishes to assign. However, this task can be tedious in large projects where there are many
differences. To rapidly assign many objects, the objects can be multi-selected and then Assign from . . .
or Assign with Children from . . . can be selected from the context menu (right-click).

Following the assignment of all the objects, the projects can be merged by pressing the Merge button.
The changes are then automatically implemented in the target project.

Note: The Comparison and Assignment window always shows the selected object in the Data Tree

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window in the first row.

Data Tree Window

The window on the left side of Figure 20.4.2 shows the Data Tree, which is similar in appearance
to PowerFactory ś Data Manager tree. This window shows the compared objects in a normal project
tree structure. At each level of the tree, there is an indication on the right showing the status of the
comparison of the contained objects (and the object itself).

The legend for the comparison indication is shown in Table 20.4.3.

Icon/Text Meaning
Assignments/comparison is okay
Conflicts exist
Mixed/<Base>/<1st>/<2nd> The text indicates the assignments
within by indicating the assigned
project. If assignments within are from
multiple different sources, then ’Mixed’
will be shown.
Assignments missing
Bold red font Three-way merge - information will be
lost during the merge
Two-way merge - information could be
lost during the merge

Table 20.4.3: Data Tree window legend

Diff Browser Toolbar

As previously mentioned, the objects displayed in the CMT window can be sorted and organised by the
toolbar as shown in Figure 20.4.3. The buttons available are explained in this section.

Figure 20.4.3: Compare and Merge Tool ’diff browser’ toolbar

Modifications to be shown The Modifications to be shown drop-down menu allows the results
in the comparison windows to be filtered according to their comparison status. Possible filter
options for a three-way comparison are:

• All objects
• All modifications (default)
• All modifications in <1st> (show all modifications, additions and deletions in the <1st> project)

• All modifications in <2nd> (show all modifications, additions and deletions in the <2nd> project)
• All modifications in both (show only those objects which exist in both projects and have been
modified in both projects)
• All modifications in both but different (show only those objects which exist in both projects and
have been modified in both projects to different values)
• Added in <1st> (show only objects added to the <1st> project)

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• Modified in <1st> (show only objects modified in the <1st> project)

• Deleted in <1st> (show only objects deleted from the <1st> project)

• Added in <2nd> (show only objects added to the <2nd> project)

• Modified in <2nd> (show only objects modified in the <2nd> project)
• Deleted in <2nd> (show only objects deleted from the <2nd> project)

The following options are available for a two-way comparison:

• All objects
• All modifications

• Added in <1st>
• Modified in <1st>
• Deleted in <1st>

Only one option can be selected at a time.

Show all objects inside chosen object This button will list all compared objects and also
all contained objects (at every level of the tree).

Show graphical elements Pressing this button will prevent graphical differences from ap-
pearing in the Comparison window. Because graphical changes often occur, and are usually
trivial (i.e. a slight adjustment to the x-axis position of an object), this button is extremely useful
for organising the data.

Detail mode and Detail mode class select The functionality of these two buttons is
identical to their function in the Data Manager.

Show only not assigned Filters the display to show only objects not yet assigned. This filter
is only available when the merge option is used. By default all assigned and unassigned objects
are displayed.

Show only Objects with assignment conflicts Only objects with assignment conflicts are
displayed. This filter is only available when the merge option is used. By default objects with and
without assignment conflicts are displayed.

Group dependent objects If this option is enabled, dependent objects are listed indented
underneath each listed comparison object. A dependent object is defined as an object that is
referenced by another object. For example, a line type (TypLne) is a dependent object of a line
element (ElmLne), as are the cubicles that connect the line element to a terminal. If the objects
are grouped and not filtered otherwise, every object has to be listed at least once but can be
listed several times as a dependency. Non-primary objects (such as graphical elements) are only
listed separately if they are not listed as a dependency for another object.

Dependent objects are not filtered. By default, the grouping of dependent objects is not displayed
because this type of display can quickly expand to become unusable (because in a typical project
there are many dependencies).

Diff window right-click menu options

A context menu can be accessed by right-clicking on a cell or an object in the Data Tree window or
in the Comparison and Assignment window. The following options are available: Show Object
. . . A project selection window will appear so that the user can select to show specific object data.
After the reference project has been selected, the dialog of the selected object is then displayed.
The dialog is read-only.

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Output Modification Details This prints a report to the output window showing the details of the
differences for the selected objects. The format of the report is an ASCII table with the modified
parameters as rows and the parameter values in each compared project as columns. The date
and time of the last modification along with the database user who made the last change are
always shown in the first two rows.

Output Non-OPD Modification Details This option is similar to the Output Modification Details
option, but it only shows the modifications that are not classed as Operational Data.

Align Manually This option allows the compared objects to be realigned across the compared
projects. What this means is that disparate objects can instead be compared directly. This could
be useful for example when two different users have added an object to their derived projects but
each has given it a slightly different name, even though the objects are representing the same
’real world’ object. The CMT would see these objects as different objects by default. In this case,
the data administrator might wish to tell PowerFactory that these two different objects are the
same object. This can be achieved using the Align Manually function.

Ignore Missing References For every compared object, missing references can be optionally
ignored. The assignment check will then not check the references of the object. Missing refer-
ences can also be considered again by using the Consider Missing References option. By default
missing references are not ignored.

Set Marker in Tree A right-click in the Data Tree window allows the user to set a marker within
the Data Tree. This has the functionality similar to a bookmark and the user can return to this
point in the Data Tree at any time by using the Jump to Marker ”...” in Tree. Note that it is only
possible to set one marker at a time; setting a new marker will automatically overwrite the last
marker.

Diff window buttons

The various diff window buttons (as highlighted in Figure 20.4.4) will now be explained.

Figure 20.4.4: Compare and Merge Tool ’Diff window’ with buttons highlighted

Check This button checks that all assignments are okay. The following conflicts are checked for

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all compared objects:

• Missing assignment;

• Missing parent (parent object of an assigned object will not exist in the target after merge.)
• Missing reference (referenced object of an assigned object will not exist in the target after merge.)
All conflicts are printed as errors to the output window of the CMT. Conflicts are listed in groups
and with the icon in the Data Tree and in the Comparison and Assignment window.

Recompare After a realignment, it is necessary to run the CMT again using this button to update
the comparison results.

Merge The merge procedure updates the target by copying objects or parameters or by deleting
objects according to the assignments. Before the merge procedure is started, an assignment
check is done. The merge procedure is cancelled if the check detects conflicts. If no conflicts
are detected, the diff browser is closed and then the merge procedure is started. After the merge
procedure is complete, all data collected by the CMT is discarded.

Info The Info dialog called by the Info button shows more information about the comparison:
• Database path of the top-level projects/objects that are being compared;
• Target for merge (only if merge option is active);

• Selected comparison options;

• Number of objects compared;
• Number of objects modified; and
• Number of objects with conflicts (only if merge option is active).

20.5 How to Update a Project

There are two common procedures that users and data administrators need to complete when working
with master projects and other user projects that are derived from versions of this master project:
• Updating a derived project with information from a new version; and
• Updating a master project with information from a derived project.
This section explains these two procedures and also provides tips for working with the CMT.

20.5.1 Updating a Derived Project from a new Version

When a derived project is activated after a new version of the Base project has been created (provided
that the flag Notify users of derived projects was checked when the version was created and that the
derived project option Disable notification at activation is unchecked), then the user will be presented
with the dialog shown in Figure 20.5.1.

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Figure 20.5.1: New version available dialog

The options offered in the notification dialog are:

• Merge new version with derived project and. PowerFactory automatically generates a tem-
porary copy derived from the new version. It then executes a 3-way comparison with the base
version of the user’s project (as the base), the derived project (as <1st>) and the temporary copy
(as <2nd> and target). In the case of a conflict, one of the following actions will be taken:
– favor none: The CMT diff browser is displayed, and the user can then resolve the conflict(s)
by defining how the changes should be assigned.
– favor derived project: Conflicts are resolved automatically by favouring the user’s modifica-
tions, thereby discarding modifications in the base.
– favor new version: Conflicts are resolved automatically by favouring the base’s modifica-
tions, thereby discarding the user’s modifications.
• Get new version and discard modifications in derived project. The derived project is auto-
matically replaced by the new version. All user modifications will be lost.
• Merge manually. Use the CMT to merge the modifications manually. The results of the com-
parison are displayed in a CMT diff browser, where the user defines how the changes should be
assigned. After these assignments have been defined, the new version and the derived project
are merged to the temporary copy, when the user clicks on the Merge button. The derived project
is then automatically replaced by the temporary copy (now containing information from the new
version), which is deleted.
• Notify me again in. . . . The user enters the desired time for re-notification, and the derived project
is activated according to how it was left in the previous session. The notification is deactivated for
the indicated number of days.

Note: In a multi-user environment, updated versions of the base project can be released regularly and
the user will often be presented with the new version notification in Figure 20.5.1. In many cases,
the user will not want to apply the updated version because they will be in the middle of a project
or other calculation and may not want to risk corrupting or changing their results. Therefore, the
option Notify me again in. . . is the recommended choice because it will leave the user’s project
unchanged.

If the Cancel button is used, the project is activated as it was left in the previous session. The notification
will appear following the next activation.

An alternative way to manually initiate the above procedure is to right-click on the derived project and
select the option Merge from base project. This feature is only possible with deactivated projects.

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20.5.2 Updating a Base Project from a Derived Project

Changes implemented in derived projects can also be merged to the base project. In this case, the
option Merge to base project must be selected from the context menu available by right-clicking on the
derived project. As in previous cases, the CMT is started and conflicts can be manually resolved using
the diff browser.

20.5.3 Tips for Working with the Compare and Merge Tool

One of the most common uses of the CMT is for merging changes made by users to their derived
projects back into the master project to create an updated version for all users. This kind of task is often
performed by the data administrator. For this task it can help to follow the steps outlined below:

1. Check the user’s modifications with a 2-way merge (derived vs. base; What changes were made?
Are all changes intended? Modifications which were made by mistake should be corrected in the
user’s derived model before continuing with the merge procedure.). The check of the modifications
should be done by the user and the data administrator.
2. The data administrator creates a new derived project based on the most recent version of the
’master’ model.
3. A three-way merge is performed, selecting the version on which the user’s derived project is based
on as ’base’, the derived project created in the previous step as <1st> and the user’s derived
project as <2nd>. The changes are merged into <1st> (target).
4. The resulting model is then validated. Conflicts which could not be resolved automatically by the
CMT are corrected manually.
5. The validated model (derived project in data administrator account) is merged to the base model
by using the context menu entry Merge to Base Project. This will not cause problems if the master
model has not been changed since deriving the model in step 2.
6. A new version is created by the data administrator and the users are informed.

Note: The Compare and Merge Tool can be used to compare any kind of object within a PowerFactory
project. The functionality and procedure to follow is similar to that explained in this section for
project comparison and merging.

20.6 Sharing Projects

In PowerFactory, any project can be shared with other users according to the rules defined by its owner.
Projects are shared with groups of users and not directly with individuals. Therefore, users must be part
of a group (created and managed by the data administrator) in order to access shared projects.

Depending on the access level that the owner assigns to a group, other users can get:
• Read-only access to the shared project, which allows the copying of objects and the creation of
derived projects from versions within the shared project;

• Read-write access, which allows users full control over all objects within the project.
This includes project activation, but does not include the creation of versions.
• Full access, which allows the user to modify the sharing properties and create versions.

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Each access level includes the rights of the lower levels.

Deletion of a project is only possible by the project owner.

To share a project:

1. Open the project dialog by right-clicking on the project name and selecting the option Edit.
2. Select the Sharing page;
3. Right-click within the Groups or Sharing access level columns on the right side of the Sharing
information table to insert (or append) a row(s);
4. Double-click in the Groups cell of the new line and select the group with whom the project is
shared using the data browser;
5. Double-click on the Sharing access level to select the desired access level.

A shared project is marked with the symbol in the Data Manager. To display all the available users
on the Data Manager, click on the Show All Users icon ( ). Only the shared projects of the other users
will be displayed.

For information regarding user groups and the data administrator, refer to Chapter 6 (User Accounts
and User Groups).

20.7 Combining Projects

In version 2017 of PowerFactory, a new tool was introduced which enables two or more projects to be
combined. It is a two-stage process: first, the Project Combination Assistant is used to bring the two
networks and all associated data into one project, then the Project Connection Assistant can be used
to make connections between the two networks at known common points. Buttons which give easy
access to these functions can be found in the “Additional Tools” toolbar.

Note: Within any individual PowerFactory project, if a foreign key is defined for any element (on the
Description page of the element), that foreign key must be unique. However, when projects are
to be combined it is quite possible that there will be duplication of foreign keys. This can be
deliberate, to facilitate the connection process (see section 20.7.2.2) but may also be coincidental.
In either case, the situation is managed by prefixing all foreign keys with characters which make
them unique. For example, a foreign key of “LA234” from the first project would be changed to
“001:LA234”.

20.7.1 Project Combination Assistant

The Project Combination Assistant can be used either to combine two or more projects into one new
project, or to incorporate further projects into an already active project.

20.7.1.1 New Combined Project

Before starting the combination process, it is first necessary to ensure that the source projects all have
a Version defined; the user will need to specify which Version is to be used when the combination
process is executed. Please see section 20.2 for more information about versions. It may also be worth
thinking about how the networks will be connected in the next step, to ensure that the necessary data
configuration has been made, although this can also be done after the two projects are combined.

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To start the project combination, first of all ensure that there is no project active, then bring up the
Project Combination Assistant tool, either via the icon on the Additional Tools toolbar, or via the File →
New→ Combined Project . . . option from the main menu, or by right-clicking on the user name in Data
Manager, then New → Combined Project. . . .

A list of projects is then made by adding project and version references. Once this has been done, the
process is run by pressing the Execute button. The new project is created and activated.

20.7.1.2 Structure of Combined Project

The resultant structure of the combined project can be seen in figure 20.7.1, below. In this example two
projects have been combined.

Figure 20.7.1: Structure of combined project

The folders seen in the figure, which are automatically created, take the names of the source projects
and allow the user to clearly identify where each object came from. Initially no study cases or grids are
active. The user can now use the Project Connection Assistant (20.7.2) to establish the links between
the two networks.

20.7.1.3 Incorporating additional Projects

Another possibility for combining projects is to start with an active project and incorporate an additional
project or projects into it. In this case, the target project must be active but there should be no study
case active. The Project Combination Assistant is then launched using the button on the Additional
Tools toolbar. As described above, the source project is then specified, including the required version.

20.7.2 Project Connection Assistant

The Project Connection Assistant offers two methods for automatically making the connections
between two networks at the common points in their grids: connection via terminals, or connection via
switches.

Following the process of creating a new project described in section 20.7.1.1, a new active study case
must first be created before the connection process can start. To do this, right-click on one of the source
study cases and select the option Apply network state. The same can be done on the other source study
case(s), in which case all the settings of those study cases, i.e. the active scenarios, variations and the

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summary grid will also be copied to the currently active Study Case. These settings might affect the
network topology so it can make a difference for the connection algorithm if they are not added, but it is
optional.

At this point it is still possible to make any adjustments to the data (e.g. foreign keys or node names) to
ensure that the next step runs smoothly.

20.7.2.1 Connection Using Common Terminals

With this approach, the common points in the two networks are identified as nodes, i.e terminal elements
ElmTerm. In each of the source projects, all the relevant ElmTerm objects should be separated into a
designated grid; in the example in figure 20.7.1, the grid is called Fictitious Border Node. There is
no restriction on the name of the grid but the same name must be used in each source project. The
default method by which the nodes within the connecting grids are matched up is to use the node names
(loc_name). However the user can specify an alternative parameter such as the CIM RDF id (cimRdfId).

The Project Connection Assistant is launched from the Additional Tools toolbar. It should be noted that a
new Variation will be created during the process, which will record all the changes made. The user then
selects the connection method “by virtual nodes” from the drop-down menu and specifies the virtual
nodes grid. It doesn’t matter which of the virtual nodes grid is selected; the tool searches for all grids of
this name.

When the Execute button is pressed, the matching nodes in the various virtual node grids are consoli-
dated into new terminals in a new virtual node grid. The source virtual node grids are deactivated.

20.7.2.2 Connection Using Elements with Foreign Keys

As an alternative to specifying terminals as connection points, it is possible to identify the connection

points as elements with identical foreign keys. Currently, only switch elements are permitted for this
process. Such switches must only be connected to one terminal, indicating that the other side is
available for connection. If necessary, the terminal on the outer side of the switch can simply be deleted.

The connection tool searches from switches which have the same foreign key in the two models and
will then execute a connection process using any switches connected only on one side. The process
involves the removal of one switch and connecting the other switch in its place, as shown in figure 20.7.2.
The switch is always left open after this process.

Figure 20.7.2: Network connection using paired switches

To carry out the connection process, the Project Connection Assistant is launched from the Additional
Tools toolbar. The user should select the connection method “by foreign key” from the drop-down menu,
then press Execute.

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Once the connection process is complete, a report is presented to the user in tabular format, listing the
matching switches. Any switches found which had identical foreign keys but could not be connected
because they were already connected to terminals at both sides will be highlighted.

20.7.3 Final Project State

Once the project combination and connection processes are complete, the result will be a useable
project for the whole network. The project structure, with separate folders for components originating
from the different source projects, will remain. The connection activities are captured in variations,
which can be deactivated if the user wishes to see the state before connection. As mentioned above,
foreign keys will have been modified to avoid duplication.

The user should review the connected network to ensure that it correctly represents the desired state.
For example, it may be necessary to remove load objects that previously represented lower voltage
networks which are now modelled. If connections were made using terminals, the user should consider
whether changes need to be made as a result of the original terminals being deleted, for example check
that station controllers which referenced terminals in the virtual node grid are now pointing to the new
terminals at the interface points.

If it is found that the networks have not been connected as expected, the user should check carefully
that the names or foreign keys of the matching elements are precisely the same (remembering that
these names/keys are case-sensitive).

Before executing any calculations, the user should be aware that when projects are combined no
command objects are copied from the source projects (as there would be no way of knowing which
are the preferred settings). Any calculations will therefore initially take the default settings.

20.7.4 Project Normalisation

As described in Section 20.7.1.2, the contents of the project are organised into dedicated folders,
making it easy to identify the original sources of the different data items. In some cases, users would
like to take a further step of completely integrating the data into a single folder structure. Although it is
possible to do this “normalisation” manually, there is also a tool provided, to do this very easily:

• Deactivate the combined project

• Edit the project and go to the Combined Project page
• Click on the Normalise button

20.8 Database Archiving

An archiving function for decreasing the used database storage space and increasing performance of
large multi-user databases is available. Older projects that are currently not used, but which are still
important for possible future use can be archived.

Archiving describes the process of automatically exporting and deleting projects from the database and
storing them in a restorable way in the file system. The actual workload is shifted to the housekeeping
job which can be run overnight, where export and delete operations do not interfere with the users.
Archiving can either be done by the user selecting a project for archiving, or by using DPL scripts.

In multi-user database environments, the user can easily send projects to the archive folder via the
context menu (right-click) for each project, and selecting “Archive”. The archived projects are exported
from the database and are placed in a separate folder (“Archived Projects”) for long-term storage. The
user thereby increases system performance and the speed of general database operations (e.g. project

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loading/closing). All information regarding the initial project location is also saved allowing the user to
restore projects to the exact location from which they originated.

Projects can be restored into the active database by executing the “Restore” command in the context-
sensitive (right-click) menu of each project.

For more information on this topic, see Chapter 5 Program Administration, Section 5.6: Housekeeping.

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Chapter 21

Task Automation

21.1 Introduction

The Task Automation command (ComTasks) enables the PowerFactory user to run a list of various
tasks ranging from specific PowerFactory power system analysis calculation functions up to generic
data handling/processing jobs (via scripts) in parallel or sequentially. Using this command it is possible
to execute tasks defined in multiple study cases (with any number of calculation commands per case)
or multiple independent calculation commands (organised within a single study case). The Parallel
Computation feature makes full use of a host machine with multi-core processor architecture.

To successfully execute the Task Automation command the user first needs to configure a list of
calculation functions (e.g. ComLdf, ComSim) or scripts (e.g. ComDpl, ComPython) for every designated
study case and then PowerFactory processes automatically the assigned tasks. Depending on the
selected configuration options, a task may represent one study case or one calculation command
within a study case (refer to Section 21.2.2 for more information). Most calculation commands can be
used within the Task Automation tool given that the specific command actions are acting on the same
PowerFactory project data. Generally speaking, a calculation command is designated in PowerFactory
by the object class prefix “Com”.

Task Automation offers enhanced possibilities for power network studies execution, with examples such
as:

• Already developed PowerFactory projects containing complete power grid analyses which are
organised in various study cases, as is usually the case, can be directly used for parallel compu-
tation;

• Calculation intensive dynamic simulations can be configured with individual simulation events /
operation scenarios by creating multiple study cases. Then, the list of study cases can be passed
to the Task Automation command for parallel computation.

For information on how to configure the Task Automation command, refer to Section 21.2.

For information on the Parallel Computing Manager object, refer to Section 21.4.

For information on how to locate and manage the results generated by the Task Automation command,
refer to Section 21.3.

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21.2 Configuration of Task Automation

A new Task Automation command can be created via:

• the Menu Bar: Click on Calculation → Task Automation. . .
• the Main Toolbar:
– Click on Change Toolbox icon ( ) and select the Additional Tools toolbox
– Click on Task Automation icon ( )

• the Data Manager:

– With a project active, open the Data Manager and click on the Study Cases project folder
– From the Data Manager toolbar click on the New Object icon ( )
– Select Task Automation (ComTasks) from the list and click on the OK button.
• Scripting, by creating a Task Automation object (ComTasks). Special care needs to be taken when
configuring the Task Automation object using a script in the sense that assigning references (e.g.
study cases or specific commands) to the Basic Options page fields (e.g. vecCases and curTasks)
is done via the dedicated DPL functions described in the DPL Reference document.
The Task Automation command dialog has the following pages:
• Basic Options

• Parallel Computing
• Output.

21.2.1 Basic Options Page

Selection of study cases: This dialog pane contains a list of existing study cases that may be
considered for the Task Automation command. Study Cases can be added to the list via the Add button.
The Remove all button removes all items within the current list. The checkboxes in the Ignore column
exclude a specific study case from the cases being considered by the calculation without removing it
from the list.

Selection of commands/additional results: This dialog pane stores information on the calculation
commands (Com*) to be executed by the Task Automation for each study case that is added to the
Selection of study cases list as previously described. The commands list is unique for each study case.
The currently shown list is valid for one specific study case as selected via the drop down menu Study
case. Calculation commands (Com*) can be added to the list via the Add button. As a prerequisite,
each selected command must be located within the referenced study case folder. The Remove all
button removes all items within the current list. The Ignore checkbox excludes a specific command from
the list without removing its entry.

Additional Results: Several commands generate results files during their execution, such a case being
for example the Contingency Analysis command (ComSimoutage). Others, like a conventional load flow
calculation (ComLdf ), do not, while the results are stored temporarily in the memory. To address this
latter case, the user can choose to write an additional results file per command (by ticking the checkbox
in the Additional results column). Variables that shall be recorded in that results file after the execution
of the command can be configured by double-clicking/right-clicking on the corresponding cell of the
Result variables column.

Results: This field reference defines the folder where the additional results files of the currently selected
study case will be located after the Task Automation command is executed. Moreover, this folder will
contain references to all results files that have been generated by a calculation command within this
study case.

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Note: There is one Results-folder per study case. The shown field reference corresponds to the
currently selected study case as shown in the drop down menu Study case.

21.2.2 Parallel Computing Page

The Task Automation command can be executed sequentially, thereby processing command after
command, or in parallel mode, using the built-in process parallelisation algorithm.

The following settings are subject to user configuration:

Parallel computation: By ticking this checkbox, the user switches from the sequential execution to
the parallel task processing; by unchecking it, the sequential execution of tasks is adopted. If parallel
computation is selected, a minimum number of tasks can be specified via the setting Minimum number of
packages. If the user selects fewer tasks than this number, the ComTasks will be executed sequentially.

Parallel Computing Manager: A reference to the Parallel Computing Manager which administrates
the parallelisation settings is added. The Parallel Computing Manager is described in Section 21.4. If
the Parallel Computation checkbox is ticked, the number of processor cores that are practically used by
PowerFactory (as configured in the Parallel Computing Manager and dependent on the local machine
characteristics) is displayed. Clicking the Edit button ( ) next to the Parallel Computing Manager
reference will open the parallel computing configuration object. Further details on the settings used in
this object are presented in Section 21.4.

The use of the Parallel Computing feature is dependent on the particular PowerFactory user settings as
defined via the PowerFactory Administrator account. Enabling Parallel Computing for a particular user
is achieved by following the procedure below:
• Log in PowerFactory using the Administrator account;

• Within the Data Manager, open the specific PowerFactory user account Edit Dialog;
• Click on the Parallel Computing page;
• Tick the Allow Parallel Computing checkbox.

Note: If a user is not allowed to perform a parallel computation an info-message is displayed in the
Parallel Computing page.

Distribute packages: The radio-button Distribute packages determines the definition of a task (pack-
age) in the context of distribution of tasks to the parallel processes:

• If By study case is selected, a task is defined as a study case and all commands configured for a
specific study case are processed sequentially by the Task Automation command within a single
parallel process. This setting is handy when commands belonging to one study case list depend
on each other.

• If By command is selected, a task is defined as an individual command. Every command is

executed by the Task Automation independently of the other commands within the same study
case. Furthermore, commands within the same study case may be queued for execution in
different parallel processes in order to maximise performance. This option can be used when
commands are independent of each other.

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Note: The Distribute packages option is disabled for sequential execution of the Task Automation. In
this case, the option By study case is always chosen and commands are executed in the defined
order (as specified in the Selection of commands/additional results list). If the option By study
case is chosen for parallel computation, different study cases are assigned to different parallel
processes. In particular, the execution of a command in a later study case in the list should not
rely on the execution of commands in a previous study case.

Database changes of parallel processes: the radio-button Database changes of parallel processes
defines, which data shall be transferred from the parallel process to the master process and merged
into the database:

• If Merge all changes to master process is selected, all changes, which have been made within
the parallel process, are transferred to the master and merged into the database. In this case the
changes of the database correspond to a sequential execution.
• If Transfer only results files to master process is selected, the parallel processes will run in read-
only mode. That means, all modifications are temporarily stored in the internal memory of the
computer. After a parallel process has finished, only the results (i.e. pointers to results files)
are transferred to the master process, to be written back into the database. In addition to the
advantage that the database is not changed by the parallel processes in this way, the amount of
data, which has to be transferred to the master process, is significantly reduced. This results in a
performance increase.

Note: The Database changes of parallel processes option will only be available if a parallel calculation
is possible (Parallel computation box is checked and settings of the Task Automation allow a par-
allel execution → emphasised by the blue text in the Parallel computation field). For a sequential
execution (emphasised by the red text in the Parallel computation field) the Database changes of
parallel processes option will be disabled.

21.2.3 Output Page

Output per package defines the behaviour of the Task Automation command with respect to Output
Window reporting. The Output per package radio button has the following settings subject to user
configuration:
• Detailed calculation status The behaviour of this option is dependent on the task execution
mode:
– Sequential Task Execution: All messages of executed commands are shown in the output
window.
– Parallel Task Execution: A message is issued when the calculation of a task starts and one
on success or failure at the task end. Details about which command failed in the task are
additionally issued.
• Short (only issue errors) The behaviour of this option is dependent on the task execution mode:
– Sequential Task Execution: Only errors issued during the calculation command execution are
displayed.
– Parallel Task Execution: one message is issued when the calculation of a task starts and
another one at the calculation end (reporting execution success or failure).

21.3 Task Automation Results

The Task Automation executes a series of commands either sequentially or in parallel using different
local machine processor cores and parallel processes. Therefore, there will be no single set of results

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readily available after executing the Task Automation command. The results of an individual command
(i.e. from the Selection of commands/additional results list) are recorded during its execution or right
after it finished by means of an additional results file.

The available tools for obtaining results from the Task Automation command are summarised below:

• The calculation status of individual commands is issued in the output window during the task
processing as described in Section 21.2.3. Moreover, there is an error summary of all failed com-
mands per study case printed to the output window at the end of executing the Task Automation
command.
• Beside results files created during the execution of individual commands, additional results files
can be defined which are created after the individual command execution. Pre-defined variables
can be recorded, as shown in Section 21.2.1. Note that all such results files together with
references to results files generated during the calculation are added to a results folder per study
case (as defined in the Task Automation command).
• Access all these results files in a summarised tree-structure manner, where the icon Task Automa-
tion - Show results ( ) can be used. The icon is available from the main toolbar, Additional Tools
toolbox, next to the Task Automation command.
• Result log files are created for each parallel process. The log files are saved under the PowerFac-
tory workspace folder, “db-process-1\log” subfolder (e.g. C:\Users\MyUser\AppData\Local\DIgSILENT
\PowerFactory
textbackslash Workspace.nnnnnnn\db-process-1\log). These files provide further information on
the execution details of each parallel process.

21.4 Parallel Computing Manager

When creating a new Task Automation command or any other command which supports parallel compu-
tation (e.g. Contingency Analysis, Quasi Dynamic Simulation, Reliability Analysis, etc.), PowerFactory
links the specific command to a Parallel Computing Manager object (e.g. as seen in the Parallel Com-
puting page of the Task Automation command dialog). This object contains the necessary settings for
the parallel computation of tasks and by default it is located in within the PowerFactory database under
“/System/Configuration/Parallel Computation”. This object has read-only rights for a non-administrator
PowerFactory user account: it can be used by the Task Automation command (or any other command
which supports parallel computation) but cannot be edited by the normal user. However, it is possible
for a user to customise the Parallel Computing Manager settings in order to use fewer cores than the
maximum defined by the Administrator. See Section 7.11 for details.

Alternatively, it is possible to create a user defined settings object by following the steps below:
• Log in PowerFactory using the administrator account;
• Using the Data Manager, verify under the “/Configuration” folder if there exists a subfolder named
“Parallel Computation” whose key (parameter loc_name) is “Parallel”. If it does not exist then
create a new folder, give it a suitable name and assign the “Parallel” key to it;
• Create a new Parallel Computing Manager object (“*.SetParalman”) under the newly created
system folder (e.g. “Parallel Computation” folder) and give it a suitable name;
• Edit and modify corresponding settings by opening the Parallel Computing Manager Dialog;
• Log out of the Administrator account and log in with the normal PowerFactory user account;
• Go back to the “Parallel Computing” page of the specific command and notice the changed
reference to the newly created Parallel Computing Manager object.

The Parallel Computing Manager has the configuration options as summarised below:
• Basic Options page

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– Master host name or IP

– Parallel computing method
– Max. number of processes on local machine

• Communication page
– Communication method

Note: The Parallel Computing Manager settings can be changed only by the Administrator account.

21.4.1 Basic Options Page

Master host name or IP: The machine name or IP address of the master host. If only the local multi-
core machine is used, the name can be “localhost”.

Parallel computing method:

• Local machine with multiple cores: all the parallel processes will be started in the local machine.

Max. number of processes on local machine:

• Number of cores: all cores available in the machine will be used for parallel computing.
• Number of cores minus 1: use N-1 cores (N is the number of cores available in this machine).
• User defined: the number of parallel processes as specified by the given table will be started
in the local machine. The first column of the table is the number of cores available in the local
machine and the second column is the number of parallel processes to be started. For a specific
machine, the corresponding row in this table is found according to the number of available cores
and then the number of parallel processes in the second column is used. If the row is not found
(not specified in this table), all cores are used by default.

21.4.2 Communication page

Communication method: The network data can be transferred to parallel processes either via file or
TCP/IP protocol.

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Chapter 22

Scripting

This chapter describes the options available for scripting in PowerFactory, which are based around two
programming languages: the DIgSILENT Programming Language DPL and Python.

Section 22.1 looks at the in-built programming language DPL and Section 22.2 shows how this can be
used to build tabular reports. Section 22.3 introduces the open source programming language Python.

The remaining two sections of the chapter provide information about the text editor used for scripting
and the concept of Add On Modules, which can be used with either DPL or Python.

22.1 The DIgSILENT Programming Language - DPL

The DIgSILENT Programming Language DPL serves the purpose of offering an interface for automating
tasks in the PowerFactory program. The DPL method distinguishes itself from the command batch
method in several aspects:
• DPL offers decision and flow commands
• DPL offers the definition and use of user-defined variables
• DPL has a flexible interface for input-output and for accessing objects
• DPL offers mathematical expressions
The DPL adds a new dimension to the DIgSILENT PowerFactory program by allowing the creation of
new calculation functions. Such user-defined calculation commands can be used in all areas of power
system analysis, such as
• Network optimising
• Cable-sizing
• Protection coordination
• Stability analysis
• Parametric sweep analysis
• Contingency analysis
• etc.

Such new calculation functions are written as program scripts which may use
• Flow commands like “if-then-else” and “do-while”

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• PowerFactory commands (i.e. load-flow or short-circuit commands)

• Input and output routines

• Mathematical expressions
• PowerFactory object procedure calls
• Subroutine calls

22.1.1 The Principle Structure of a DPL Command

The principle structure of a DPL script is shown in Figure 22.1.1.

Figure 22.1.1: Principle structure of a DPL command

The DPL command ComDpl is the central element, which connects different parameters, variables or
objects to various functions or internal elements and then outputs results or changes parameters.

The input to the script can be predefined input parameters, single objects from the single line diagram or
the database or a set of objects/elements, which are then stored inside a so called “General Selection”.

This input information can then be evaluated using functions and internal variables inside the script.
Also internal objects can be used and executed, like

• a calculation command, i.e. ComLdf, ComSim, etc., especially defined with certain calculation
options
• subscripts also released in DPL
• filter sets, which can be executed during the operation of the script

Thus the DPL script will run a series of operations and start calculations or other functions inside the
script. It will always communicate with the database and will store changed settings, parameters or
results directly in the database objects. Almost every object inside the active project can be accessed
and altered.

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During or at the end of the execution of the DPL script, the results can be output or parameters of
elements may be changed. There is the possibility to execute a predefined output command ComSh or
to define one’s own outputs with the DPL commands available.

22.1.2 The DPL Command

The DPL command element ComDpl contains the script code (or a reference to a so called remote
script), the definition of input and output parameters, a description and information about versions. DPL
command objects can therefore be divided into:

• Root commands, which have their own scripts on the Script page of the dialog.

• Referring commands, which use the scripts of remote DPL commands by only adapting input and
output parameters and external objects.

22.1.2.1 Creating a new DPL Command

A DPL Command ComDpl can be created by using the New Object ( ) icon in the toolbar of the Data
Manager and using the filter to select DPL Command from the list. After pressing OK, a new DPL
command is created.

The dialog is now shown and the parameters, objects and the script can now be specified.

This dialog is also opened by double-clicking a DPL script, by selecting Edit from the context menu or
by selecting the script from the list when pressing the icon .

22.1.2.2 Defining a DPL Commands Set

The DPL command holds a reference to a selection of objects (General Selection). At first this general
selection is empty, but there are several ways to define a special set of object used in the DPL command.
This “DPL Commands Set” (SetSelect) can be specified through:

• Select one or more elements in the single line diagram. Then right-click the selection (one of the
selected elements) and choose the option Selections → Set - DPL Commands→ New. . . from
the context menu.
• It is also possible to select several elements in the Data Manager. Right-click the selection and
choose the option Selections → Set - DPL Commands→ New. . . from the context menu.

22.1.2.3 Executing a DPL Command

To execute a DPL command or to access the dialog of a script, the icon can be activated. This will
pop up a list of available DPL and Python scripts from the global and local libraries.

The easiest way to start a DPL command AND define a selection for it is to:
• Select one or more elements in the single line diagram or in the Data Manager and then right-click
the selection.

• Choose the option Execute Script from the context menu.

• Then select a DPL script from the list. This list will show DPL scripts from the global libraries, as
well as from the local library.
• Select a DPL script, insert/change the variables and then press the button Execute

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Note: The custom global library will only be shown if the library is set as Used Library in the User
Settings (see chapter User Settings, Section 7.1).

In this way the selection is combined into a DPL Commands Set and the set is automatically selected
for the script chosen.

Only one single DPL command set is valid at a time for all DPL scripts. This means that setting the DPL
command set in one DPL command dialog, will change the DPL command set for all DPL commands
in the database.

Note: To choose different sets for various DPL scripts you can either use different selection object
SetSelect like the “General Set”. Or new DPL command sets can be created and selected inside
the active study case.
This is done by pressing the New Object icon , and using the filter to select the object Set
(SetSelect).

The interface section Input Parameters is used to define variables that are accessible from outside the
DPL command itself. DPL commands that call other DPL commands as subroutines, may use and
change the values of the interface variables of these DPL subroutines.

The list of External Objects is used to execute the DPL command for specific objects. A DPL command
that, for example, searches the set of lines for which a short-circuit causes too deep a voltage dip at a
specific busbar, would access that specific busbar as an external object. Performing the same command
for another busbar would then only require setting the external object to the other busbar.

22.1.2.4 Results

On this page, the Result parameters can be defined. These parameters are results from the script
and they are stored inside the results object. Hence it is possible to access them through the variable
monitor and display them in a plot. In addition to the value itself, the name, the type (if a string, object
or number), the unit and the parameter description can be entered.

22.1.2.5 DPL Script Page

The most important part of a DPL command is of course the DPL script code. That script is written on
the Script page of the DPL command dialog. As an alternative to writing the code directly, the command
can reference an existing script by selecting it as a Remote script.

On this page the DPL code of an already defined script is shown and/or new command lines can be
inserted for modifying this script or writing a new script. The available commands and the DPL language
are described in the following sections.

The edited program code also features highlighting specially suited for handling DPL scripts.

22.1.2.6 DPL Script Encryption

PowerFactory offers the possibility to encrypt the script code of a DPL command. The encryption action
can be initiated by pressing the corresponding button in the edit dialog of the DPL command object
(does not work for commands with a remote script referenced). The encryption process then asks in

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a dialog for a password and its confirmation. The password is only needed to decrypt the script at a
later stage. The encrypted script can be executed without entering the password. After completing the
encryption with OK, the code is hidden and only the name of the command itself, the values of the input
parameters and external objects can be changed. If there are subscripts stored as contents, they will
be encrypted with the same password, too.

Note: The user should be aware that encryption can never guarantee complete security. The chosen
technology balances the requirements for security with the usability and performance of encrypted
models. Generally, users are advised to share models only with trusted partners.

The encryption is reversible; an encrypted script can be decrypted using the corresponding button in the
edit dialog of the encrypted ComDpl-object. After entering the password and confirming with OK, the
script returns to its original status, where all properties may be changed and the script code is shown.

Note: The encrypt-action affects the script for which it is executed and does not create an encrypted
copy of the ComDpl-object.

22.1.3 The DPL Script Editor

The Script page of the DPL command includes a built-in editor based on the Scintilla editing component
(http://www.scintilla.org), which offers the following features:

• Auto-completion: when typing a new word, a list of suitable suggestions for keywords, global
functions, variable names (defined within the current script or as input/result variables) and sub-
scripts will pop up. Using the arrow keys the user may explore all suggestions, and insert the
currently selected suggestion. The autocompletion can be deactivated in the editor settings.

Note: The suggestion lists do not contain deprecated names.

• Bracket match checking: when the cursor stands before an opening or closing bracket, the
editor will check if the brace is matched. If it is, the bracket and its partner are highlighted in blue.
If the bracket, however, is not matched, it will be highlighted in red.
• Automatic bracket insertion: when typing in an opening bracket, the editor will automatically
insert a matching closing bracket and position the caret between the two brackets. Additionally, if
the caret stands before a matched closing bracket, typing a closing bracket of the same type will
simply result in the caret moving forwards. This helps users who are not familiar with automatic
bracket insertion avoid inserting unnecessary additional closing brackets.
• Automatic quote character insertion: similar to automatic bracket insertion; when typing in a
single quote character (’), the editor will automatically insert an additional single quote character
and position the caret between the two quote characters. Additionally, if the caret stands before a
quote character, typing a quote character of the same type will simply result in the caret moving
forwards.
• Zoom-in/Zoom-out: using the key combination Ctrl + Mousewheel will increase or decrease the
zoom. Note that this only temporarily modifies the used font size and has no effect at all on the
font size that the user chose in the editor font settings. The key combination Ctrl + 0 restores the
font to its original size.
• Selection highlighting: whenever text is selected (not counting column selections and selections
that span more than one line), all occurrences of the selected text in the current document are
lightly highlighted using the last known search settings.

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• Instance-independent search terms and search settings: whenever the user opens the find
(or find/replace) dialog, the chosen search term and search settings are used in every open
editor component. This enables users to search the same term with the same settings in multiple
documents without having to call the find (or find/replace) dialog for each one of them.
• Advanced syntax styling: the script will be coloured according to this scheme: keywords are
blue, (recognised) global function and method names are light blue, string literals are red, number
literals are turquoise, operators are light brown, identifiers are dark blue, comments are green.

To open the editor (22.4) in an additional window press the icon on the bottom side of the Script
page of the DPL Command dialog. Note that when the script is opened in an additional window, it
cannot be edited via the DPL Command.

22.1.4 The DPL Script Language

The DPL script language uses a syntax quite similar to the C++ programming language. This type of
language is intuitive, easy to read, and easy to learn. The basic command set has been kept as small
as possible.

The syntax can be divided into the following parts:

• variable definitions
• assignments and expressions
• program flow instructions
• method calls

The statements in a DPL script are separated by semicolons. Statements are grouped together by
braces. Example:
1 statement1;
2 statement2;
3 if (condition){
4 groupstatement1;
5 groupstatement2;
6 }

22.1.4.1 Variable Definitions

DPL uses the following internal parameter types

• double, a 15 digits real number
• int, an integer number
• string, a string
• object, a reference to a PowerFactory object
• set, a container of objects
Vectors and Matrices are available as external objects.

The syntax for defining variables is as follows:

[VARDEF] = [TYPE] varname, varname, ..., varname;

[TYPE] = double | int | object | set

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All parameter declarations must be given together in the top first lines of the DPL script. The semicolon
is obligatory.

Examples:
1 double Losses, Length, Pgen;
2 int NrOfBreakers, i, j;
3 string txt1, nm1, nm2;
4 object O1, O2, BestSwitchToOpen;
5 set AllSwitches, AllBars;

22.1.4.2 Constant parameters

DPL uses constant parameters which cannot be changed. It is therefore not accepted to assign a value
to these variables. Doing so will lead to an error message.

The following constants variables are defined in the DPL syntax:

SEL is the general DPL selection
NULL is the “null” object
this is the DPL command itself
Besides these global constants, all internal and external objects are constant too.

22.1.4.3 Assignments and Expressions

The following syntax is used to assign a value to a variable:

1 variable = expression;
2 variable += expression;
3 variable -= expression;

The add-assignment “+=” adds the right side value to the variable and the subtract-assignment “-=”
subtracts the right-side value.

Examples:
1 double x,y;
2 x = 0.5*pi(); ! x now equals 1.5708
3 y = sin(x); ! y now equals 1.0
4 x += y; ! x now equals 2.5708
5 y -= x; ! y now equals -1.5708

22.1.4.4 Standard Functions

The following operators and functions are available:

• Arithmetic operators: +, -, * , /
• Standard functions ( all trigonometric functions based on radians (RAD))

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function description example

sin(x) sine sin(1.2)=0.93203
cos(x) cosine cos(1.2)=0.36236
tan(x) tangent tan(1.2)=2.57215
asin(x) arcsine asin(0.93203)=1.2
acos(x) arccosine acos(0.36236)=1.2
atan(x) arctangent atan(2.57215)=1.2
sinh(x) hyperbolic sine sinh(1.5708)=2.3013
cosh(x) hyperbolic cosine cosh(1.5708)=2.5092
tanh(x) hyperbolic tangent tanh(0.7616)=1.0000
exp(x) exponential value exp(1.0)=2.718281
ln(x) natural logarithm ln(2.718281)=1.0
log(x) log10 log(100)=2
sqrt(x) square root sqrt(9.5)=3.0822
sqr(x) power of 2 sqr(3.0822)=9.5
pow (x,y) power of y pow(2.5, 3.4)=22.5422
abs(x) absolute value abs(-2.34)=2.34
min(x,y) smaller value min(6.4, 1.5)=1.5
max(x,y) larger value max(6.4, 1.5)=6.4
modulo(x,y) remainder of x/y modulo(15.6,3.4)=2
trunc(x) integral part trunc(-4.58823)=-4.0000
frac(x) fractional part frac(-4.58823)=-0.58823
round(x) closest integer round(1.65)=2.000
ceil(x) smallest larger integer ceil(1.15)=2.000
floor(x) largest smaller integer floor(1.78)=1.000

Table 22.1.1: DPL Standard Functions

• Constants:

pi() pi
twopi() 2 pi
e() e

Table 22.1.2: DPL Internal Constants

22.1.4.5 Program Flow Instructions

The following flow commands are available.

if ( [boolexpr] ) [statlist]
if ( [boolexpr] ) [statlist] else [statlist]
do [statlist] while ( [boolexpr] )
while ( [boolexpr] ) [statlist]
for ( statement ; [boolexpr] ; statement ) [statlist]

in which

[boolexpr] = expression [boolcomp] expression

[boolcomp] = "<" | ">" | "=" | "<=" | ">=" | "<>"
[statlist] = statement; | { statement; [statlist] }

• Unary operators: “.not.”

• Binary operators: “.and.” | “.or.” | “.nand.” | “.nor.” | “.eor.”

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• Parentheses: {logical expression}

Examples:
1 if (a<3) {
2 b = a*2;
3 }
4 else {
5 b = a/2;
6 }
7 while (sin(a)>=b*c) {
8 a = O:dline;
9 c = c + delta;
10 }
11 if ({.not.a}.and.{b<>3}) {
12 err = Ldf.Execute();
13 if (err) {
14 Ldf:iopt_lev = 1;
15 err = Ldf.Execute();
16 Ldf:iopt_lev = 0;
17 }
18 }
19 for (i = 0; i < 10; i = i+1){
20 x = x + i;
21 }
22 for (o=s.First(); o; o=s.Next()) {
23 o.ShowFullName();
24 }

Break and Continue

The loop statements “do-while” and “while-do” may contain “break” and “continue” commands. The
“break” and “continue” commands may not appear outside a loop statement.

The “break” command terminates the smallest enclosing “do-while” or “while-do” statement. The exe-
cution of the DPL script will continue with the first command following the loop statement.

The “continue” command skips the execution of the following statements in the smallest enclosing “do-
while” or “while-do” statement. The execution of the DPL script is continued with the evaluation of the
boolean expression of the loop statement. The loop statement list will be executed again when the
expression evaluates to TRUE. Otherwise the loop statement is ended and the execution will continue
with the first command following the loop statement.

Example:
1 O1 = S1.First();
2 while (O1) {
3 O1.Open();
4 err = Ldf.Execute();
5 if (err) {
6 ! skip this one
7 O1 = S1.Next;
8 continue;
9 }
10 O2 = S2.First();
11 AllOk = 1;
12 DoReport(0); !reset
13 while (O2) {
14 err = Ldf.Execute();
15 if (err) {
16 ! do not continue

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17 AllOk = 0;
18 break;
19 }
20 else {
21 DoReport(1); ! add
22 }
23 O2 = S2.Next();
24 }
25 if (AllOk) {
26 DoReport(2); ! report
27 }
28 O1 = S1.Next();
29 }

22.1.4.6 Input and Output

The “input” command asks the user to enter a value.

input(var, string);

The input command will pop up a window with the string and an input line on which the user may enter
a value. The value will be assigned to the variable “var”.

The “printf” command can be used to write text to the output window.

printf(string);

The string may contain “=-” signs, followed by a variable name. The variable name will then be replaced
by the variable’s value.

Example:
1 double diameter;
2 input(diameter, 'enter diameter');
3 printf('the entered value = %f',diameter);

The example results in the pop up of a window as depicted in Figure 22.1.2.

Figure 22.1.2: The input window

The following text will appear in the output window:

the entered value = 12.3400

Refer to the DPL Reference for more information about the printf command.

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22.1.5 Access to Other Objects

With the syntax for the parameter definitions, program flow and the input and printf, it is already possible
to create a small program. However, such a script would not be able to use or manipulate variables of
“external” objects. It would not be possible, for instance, to write a script that replaces a specific line by
possibly better alternatives, in order to select the best line type. Such a script must be able to access
specific objects (the specific line) and specific sets of objects (the set of alternative line types).

The DPL language has several methods with which the database objects and their parameters become
available in the DPL script:

• The most direct method is to create an object, or a reference to an object, in the DPL command
folder itself. Such an object is directly available as “object” variable in the script. The variable
name is the name of the object in the database.
• The DPL command set may be used. This method is only useful when the order in which the
objects are accessed is not important. The DPL command set is automatically filled when a
selection of elements is right-clicked in either the single line graphic or the Data Manager and the
option Execute Script. . . is selected.
• The list of external objects is mainly used when a script should be executed for specific objects or
selections. The list of external objects is nothing more than a list of “aliases”. The external object
list is used to select specific objects for each alias, prior to the execution of the script.

22.1.5.1 Object Variables and Methods

If a database object is known to the DPL command, then all its methods may be called, and all its
variables are available. For example, if we want to change a load-flow command in order to force an
asymmetrical load-flow calculation, we may alter the parameter iopt_net. This is done by using an
assignment:
1 Ldf:iopt_net = 1; ! force unbalanced

In this example, the load-flow objects is known as the objects variable “Ldf”. The general syntax for a
parameter of a database object is
1 objectname:parametername

In the same way, it is possible to get a value from a database object, for instance a result from the
load-flow calculations. One of such a result is the loading of a line object, which is stored in the variable
c:loading. The following example performs the unbalanced load-flow and reports the line loading.
Reported value is always represented in the unit selected in PowerFactory. In our case returned value
is in % but for example returned value for active power (m:P:bus1) can be represented in MW, kW, etc.

Example
1 00. int error;
2 01. double loading;
3 02. Ldf:iopt_net = 1; ! force unbalanced
4 03. error = Ldf.Execute(); ! execute load-flow
5 04. if (error) {
6 05. exit();
7 06. } else {
8 07. loading = Line:c:loading; ! get line loading
9 08. printf('loading=%f', loading ); ! report line loading
10 09. }

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This examples is very primitive but it shows the basic methods for accessing database objects and their
parameters.

22.1.6 Access to Locally Stored Objects

Locally stored objects (also called “internal objects”) can be accessed directly. They are known in the
DPL script under their own name, which therefore must be a valid DPL variable name. It will not be
possible to access an internal object which name is “My Load-flow\∼{}1* ”, for instance.

Internal objects may also be references to objects which are stored elsewhere. The DPL command
does not distinguish between internal objects and internal references to objects.

The example DPL script may now access these objects directly, as the objects “Ldf” and “Line”. In
the following example, the object “Ldf”, which is a load-flow command, is used in line 01 to perform a
load-flow.
1 00. int error;
2 01. error = Ldf.Execute();
3 02. if (error) {
4 03. printf('Load-flow command returns an error');
5 04. exit();
6 05. }

In line 01, a load-flow is calculated by calling the method Execute() of the load-flow command.
The details of the load-flow command, such as the choice between a balanced single phase or an
unbalanced three phase load-flow calculation, is made by editing the object “Ldf” in the database. Many
other objects in the database have methods which can be called from a DPL script. The DPL contents
are also used to include DPL scripts into other scripts and thus to create DPL “subroutines”.

22.1.7 Accessing the General Selection

Accessing database objects by storing them or a reference to them in the DPL command would create
a problem if many objects have to be accessed, for instance if the line with the highest loading is to be
found. It would be impractical to create a reference to each and every line.

A more elegant way would be to use the DPL global selection and fill it with all lines. The Data Manager
offers several ways in which to fill this object DPL Command Set with little effort. The selection may
then be used to access each line indirectly by a DPL “object” variable. In this way, a loop is created
which is performing the search for the highest loading. This is shown in the following example.

Example
1 00. int error;
2 01. double maxi;
3 02. object O, Omax;
4 03. set S;
5 04.
6 05. error = Ldf.Execute(); ! execute a load-flow
7 06. if (error) exit(); ! exit on error
8 07.
9 08. S = SEL.AllLines(); ! get all selected lines
10 09. Omax = S.First(); ! get first line
11 10. if (Omax) {
12 11. maxi = Omax:c:loading; ! initialise maximum

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13 12. } else {
14 13. printf('No lines found in selection');
15 14. exit(); ! no lines: exit
16 15. }
17 16. O = S.Next(); ! get next line
18 17. while (O) { ! while more lines
19 18. if (O:c:loading>maxi) {
20 19. maxi = O:c:loading; ! update maximum
21 20. Omax = O; ! update max loaded line
22 21. }
23 22. O = S.Next();
24 23. }
25 24. printf('max loading=%f', maxi); !print results
26 25. Omax.ShowFullName();

The object SEL used in line 08 is the reserved object variable which equals the General Selection in
the DPL command dialog. The SEL object is available in all DPL scripts at all times and only one single
“General Selection” object is valid at a time for all DPL scripts. This means that setting the General
Selection in the one DPL command dialog, will change it for all other DPL commands too.

The method AllLines() in line 08 will return a set of all lines found in the general selection. This
set is assigned to the variable “S”. The lines are now accessed one by one by using the set methods
First() and Next() in line 09, 16 and 22.

The line with the highest loading is kept in the variable “Omax”. The name and database location of this
line is written to the output window at the end of the script by calling “ShowFullName()”.

22.1.8 Accessing External Objects

The DPL contents make it possible to access external objects in the DPL script. The special general
selection object (“SEL”) is used to give all DPL functions and their subroutines access to a central
selection of objects. i.e. the DPL Command Set.

Although flexible, this method would create problems if more than one specific object should be ac-
cessed in the script. By creating references to those objects in the DPL command itself, the DPL
command would become specific to the current calculation case. Gathering the objects in the general
selection would create the problem of selecting the correct object.

To prevent the creation of calculation-specific DPL commands, it is recommended practice to reserve

the DPL contents for all objects that really “belong” to the DPL script and which are thus independent
on where and how the script is used. Good examples are load-flow and short-circuit commands, or the
vector and matrix objects that the DPL command uses for its computations.

If a DPL script must access a database object dependent on where and how the DPL script is used, an
“External Object” must be added to the external object list in the DPL root command. Such an external
object is a named reference to an external database object. The external object is referred to by that
name. Changing the object is then a matter of selecting another object.

In Figure 22.1.3, an example of an external object is given. This external object may be referred to in
the DPL script by the name “Bar1”, as is shown in the example.

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Figure 22.1.3: DPL external object table

Example:
1 sagdepth = Bar1:u;

22.1.9 Remote Scripts and DPL Command Libraries

To understand the DPL philosophy and the resulting hierarchical structure of DPL scripts, it is important
to understand the following:
• A DPL command either executes its own script or the script of another, remote, DPL command.
In the first case, the DPL command is called a “root command” and the script is called a “local
script”. In the second case, the DPL command is called a “referring” command and the script
is called a “remote script”.
• A root command may define interface variables that are accessible from outside the script and
which are used to define default values.
• Each root command may define one or more external objects. External object are used to make
a DPL command run with specific power system objects, selections, commands, etc.
• A referring command may overrule all default interface values and all selected external objects of
the remote command.
• Each DPL command can be called as a subroutine by other DPL commands.

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The use of remote scripts, external objects and interface variables makes it possible to create generic
DPL commands, which may be used with different settings in many different projects and study cases.

The easiest way to develop a new DPL command is to create a new ComDpl in the currently active
study case and to write the script directly in that DPL object. In such a way, a DPL “root command” is
made. If this root command needs DPL subroutines, then one or more DPL command objects may be
created in its contents. Each of these subroutines will normally also be written as root functions.

The newly written DPL command with its subroutines may be tested and used in the currently active
study case. However, it cannot be executed when another study case is active. In order to use the DPL
command in other study cases, or even in other projects, one would have to copy the DPL command
and its contents. This, however, would make it impossible to alter the DPL command without having to
alter all its copies.

The solution is in the use of “remote scripts”. The procedure to create and use remote scripts is
described as follows.

Suppose a new DPL command has been created and tested in the currently active study case. This
DPL command can now be stored in a safe place making it possible to use it in other study cases and
projects.

This is done by the following steps:

• Copy the DPL command to a library folder. This will also copy the contents of the DPL command,
i.e. with all its DPL subroutines and other locally stored objects.

• “Generalise” the copied DPL command by resetting all project specific external objects. Set all
interface variable values to their default values. To avoid deleting a part of the DPL command,
make sure that if any of the DPL (sub)commands refers to a remote script, all those remote
scripts are also stored in the library folder.

• Activate another study case.

• Create a new DPL command (ComDpl) in the active study case.
• Set the “Remote script” reference to the copied DPL command.
• Select the required external objects.

• Optionally change the default values of the interface variables

• Press the Check button to check the DPL script
The Check or Execute button will copy all parts of the remote script in the library that are needed for
execution. This includes all subroutines, which will also refer to remote scripts, all command objects, and
all other objects. Some classes objects are copied as reference, other classes are copied completely.

The new DPL command does not contain a script, but executes the remote script. For the execution
itself, this does not make a change. However, more than one DPL command may now refer to the same
remote script. Changing the remote script, or any of its local objects or sub-commands, will now change
the execution of all DPL commands that refer to it.

Note: PowerFactory is delivered with several ready-to-use scripts, which are located in the correspond-
ing folder in the global library (see section 13.2: DIgSILENT Library). They can be used as root
commands for remote scripts or adapted as required, enhancing their functionality. The descrip-
tion and version page contain information about their functionalities, parameters and handling.

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22.1.9.1 Subroutines and Calling Conventions

A DPL command may be included in the contents of another DPL command. In that case, the included
DPL “subroutine” may be called in the script of the enclosing DPL command. In principle, this is not
different from calling, for example, a load-flow command from a DPL script.

As with most other commands, the DPL command only has one method:

int Execute(); executes the DPL script.

The difference is that each DPL subroutine has different interface parameters, which may be changed
by the calling command. These interface parameters can also be set directly at calling time, by providing
one or more calling arguments. These calling arguments are assigned to the interface parameters in
order of appearance. The following example illustrates this.

Suppose we have a DPL sub-command “Sub1” with the interface section as depicted in Figure 22.1.4.

Figure 22.1.4: Interface section of subroutine

The calling command may then use, for example:

1 ! set the parameters:
2 Sub1:step = 5.0;
3 Sub1:Line = MyLine;
4 Sub1:Outages = MySelection;
5 ! execute the subroutine:
6 error = Sub1.Execute();

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However, using calling arguments, we may also write:

1 ! execute the subroutine:
2 error = Sub1.Execute(5.0, MyLine, MySelection);

22.1.10 DPL Functions and Subroutines

The DPL syntax is very small because it mainly serves the purpose of basic operations like simple
calculations, if-then-else selections, do-while loops, etc..

The strength of the DPL language is the possibility to call functions and to create subroutines. A function
which can be called by a DPL command is called a “method”. Four types of methods are distinguished:

Internal methods These are the build-in methods of the DPL command. They can always be
called.

Set methods These methods are available for the DPL “set” variables.

Object methods These methods are available for the DPL “object” variables.

External methods These are the methods which are available for certain external PowerFactory
objects, such as the load-flow command, the line object, the asynchronous machine, etc.

Refer to the DPL Reference for a description of these functions including implementation examples. The
DPL Reference is also accessible selecting Help → Scripting References→ DPL from the main menu.

22.2 Tabular Reports

Tabular reports are a powerful tool for generating your own personalised data views and showing all the
information you want to extract from the PowerFactory model in one table. Before starting to create your
own tabular reports, you should be familiar with the DPL programming language (Section 22.1). The
command ComTablereport extends the DPL programming language with a simple framework to create
tables. The command ComTablereport is not available in Python. In Python the use of a external GUI
framework like TKInter or Qt is recommended. It is also possible to create a Tabular Report with DPL
and use Python subroutines to calculate the contents.

Tabular Reports provide the following features:

• Display user-defined data in a table:

– Allows the user to sort the table by each column.
– Allows the user to use a data filter for each column.
– Provides a callback function to add cell data editing features.
– Provides a callback function to add additional entries to cells context menu.
– Allows copy and paste of the table data.
• Allows the addition of global programmable selection filters and input data.

• Allows the addition of extra buttons to trigger user defined actions.

• Allows a user-defined data plot to be displayed instead of the table.
• Allows the user to export the table content to a HTML or Excel file.

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22.2.1 Basic Structure of a Tabular Report

A Tabular Report always consists of a ComTablereport object and one or more callback ComDpl objects
as children. The ComTablereport only supports the following predefined set of ComDpl objects:

• Init optional The Init script is called only once, when the report is displayed the first time.
• Create mandatory The Create script is called every time, when the report is displayed or rebuilt.

• Edit optional The Edit script is called after the user changes a cell.
• Action optional The Action script is called after the user selects a user-defined entry from the
context menu.
• ButtonPressed optional The ButtonPressed script is called after the user presses a button.

Only the Create object is mandatory. The concept is quite simple. The whole report is defined with the
Create function. If something changes, the whole report has to be rebuilt from scratch with the Create
function.

22.2.2 The Tabular Report Command

The Tabular Report element ComTablereport itself contains only a few attributes:

• Name loc_name The name of the ComTablereport object.

• Use Selection iSelection A flag indicating whether the report use a Selection as input.
• Class Filter sFilter A class filter, which is applied to the input selection to extract only the relevant
elements for the report.

• Description attributes Additional attributes to provide a short and a detailed description.

• Version attributes Additional attributes to provide version, author and copyright information.
The ComTablereport object provides a wide variety of functions, to define the tabular report, as shown
in Figure 22.2.1 below. Please refer to the function descriptions in the DPL Reference.

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Figure 22.2.1: ComTablereport functions

22.2.2.1 Creating a new Tabular Report Command

A tabular report command element ComTablereport can be created by pressing the New Object icon
, and using the filter to select Tabular Report (ComTablereport) from the list.

Note: By default, a tabular report that has been generated will be closed when the active desktop is
closed. The ComTablereport offers options in the Scope panel to modify this behaviour, either by
executing the report again when the desktop is opened again or by only closing it when the active
project is deactivated.

After creating the ComTablereport object, a new ComDpl object with the name Create has to be added
as a child of the ComTablereport object. See 22.2.3 for an example. Other ComDpl functions (see
22.2.6) may be added optionally.

22.2.2.2 Executing a Tabular Report Command

To execute and show a Tabular Report:

• Right-click at the ComTablereport object and choose Execute from the context menu.
• or Open or Edit the ComTablereport object and press the Execute button.
If the Tabular Report uses a Selection:
• Select some elements in a single line diagram or in the data manager.

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• Then right-click and choose from the context menu Show Tabular Report
• Then select a ComTablereport object from the list. (This step is omitted if there is only one Report
with a Selection.)

22.2.3 A minimal Tabular Report

A minimal tabular report is built from a ComTablereport with a DPL script ComDpl Create as child.
Section 22.2.2.1 describes how to create these. With the following code in the Create script, the report
will show a table with 2 columns and a row with the words Hello World.

Example 1 “Hello world report” Create script:

1 object oReport;
2 oReport = this.GetParent();
3 oReport.AddTable('Table ID');
4 oReport.AddColumn('Table ID', 'Column 1 ID', 'First Column');
5 oReport.AddColumn('Table ID', 'Column 2 ID', 'Second Column');
6 oReport.AddRow('Table ID', 'Row 1 ID');
7 oReport.SetCellValueToString('Table ID', 'Column 1 ID', 'Row 1 ID', 'Hello');
8 oReport.SetCellValueToString('Table ID', 'Column 2 ID', 'Row 1 ID', 'World');

As the first step, the script has to access the ComTablereport object. This command object is always
the parent of the Create script. So a simple this.GetParent() will work. As the second step, a table with
an identifier is defined with the function AddTable(’Table ID’). Use this table identifier in all subsequent
functions to define the table. In the next step the table columns will be defined. With each call to the
AddColumn function a new column is defined with its own column identifier and a column header text.
In a similar way the rows of the table will be defined. The function SetCellValueToString fills the content
of a cell with a string value. To refer a specific cell, the defined table, column and row identifiers must
be used.

To test the report, you have to execute the tabular report (see 22.2.2.2), but not the Create script.

22.2.4 Handling different kinds of data

In the first example, the function SetCellValueToString was used to fill the table cells with content. To
view different kinds of data, there are several similar functions. See the DPL Reference for a description
of all these functions. The following example demonstrates the use of some of these functions. This
example requires an active project with at least some lines (ElmLne objects) in the network model. You
could use one of the PowerFactory example projects to test the report.

Example 2 “Lines report” Create script:

1 set aLines;
2 object oReport,
3 oLine;
4 string sRowId;
5

6 oReport = this.GetParent();
7 oReport.AddTable('Table ID');
8 oReport.AddColumn('Table ID', 'line column', 'Line');
9 oReport.AddColumn('Table ID', 'name column', 'Name');
10 oReport.AddColumn('Table ID', 'parallel column', 'Number of\nparallel Lines');
11 oReport.AddColumn('Table ID', 'length column', 'Length\n[m]');
12 oReport.AddColumn('Table ID', 'out column', 'Out of\nService');
13

14 aLines = GetCalcRelevantObjects('*.ElmLne');
15 for(oLine = aLines.First(); oLine; oLine = aLines.Next()){

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16 sRowId = oLine.GetFullName();
17 oReport.AddRow('Table ID', sRowId);
18 oReport.SetCellValueToObject('Table ID', 'line column', sRowId, oLine);
19 oReport.SetCellValueToString('Table ID', 'name column', sRowId, oLine:loc_name);
20 oReport.SetCellValueToInt('Table ID', 'parallel column', sRowId, oLine:nlnum);
21 oReport.SetCellValueToDouble('Table ID', 'length column', sRowId, oLine:dline);
22 oReport.SetCellValueToCheckbox('Table ID', 'out column', sRowId, oLine:outserv);
23 }

Some of these functions not only show plain data, but provide additional features. If a PowerFactory
object is shown with the function SetCellValueToObject, a double click in the cell opens the edit dialog
of this object. In addition, there is a new entry in the context menu of the cell, which will mark the object
in a graphic. The SetCellValueToCheckbox expects a boolean value, which is displayed as a checkbox.

22.2.5 Advanced Features

22.2.5.1 Programmable Filters and Input Values

The ComTablereport function AddListFilter adds a drop-down list to the report. The drop-down list
has an identifier and a visible name. The function AddListFilterEntries can be used to add entries to
the list. To get the selected entry, the Create script has to define a string input parameter with the
name s<identifier>. When the Create script is called the first time to generate the report, this parameter
contains the default value, or an empty string if no default value is set. Every time the user selects a new
entry from the drop-down-list or another event refreshes the report, the Create script is called again with
the selected entry in the input parameter s<identifier> to recreate the report. In the example below, the
drop-down list is given the identifier UFilt. So the Create script should contain a string input parameter
sUFilt. This parameter defines the currently selected entry. The function SetListFilterSelection can be
used to set the selected entry in the drop-down list.

Example 3 “Drop-down list report” Create script:

1 object oReport;
2 oReport = this.GetParent();
3 oReport.AddListFilter('UFilt', 'Usage');
4 oReport.AddListFilterEntries('UFilt', 'Busbar');
5 oReport.AddListFilterEntries('UFilt', 'Junction');
6 oReport.AddListFilterEntries('UFilt', 'Internal');
7 oReport.SetListFilterSelection('UFilt', sUFilt);

If all the list information is available at once, it is possible to shorten the above code and create the whole
drop-down list with one call to AddListFilter. To distinguish the list entries, they have to be separated by
“\n”.

Example 3 “Drop-down list report” Create script change:

1 oReport.AddListFilter('UFilt','Usage:','Busbar\nJunction\nInternal',aDummy,sUFilt);

With this code it is possible to create different views of the report, depending on the input parameter
sUFilt.

The ComTablereport function AddTextFilter creates an additional text input field in the report. In contrast
to the drop-down list, the report will not trigger an automatic rebuild if the user changes the text. Instead,
the user has to press the Refresh button at the end of the text field. To obtain the user input, the Create
script has to define the input parameter s<identifier>

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Example 4 “Input value report” Create script:

1 object oReport,
2 oReport = this.GetParent();
3 oReport.AddTextFilter('TFilt', 'Text input', '', sTFilt);

The Create script can also modify the user input. For example, if the user must be able to input
numbers, the script code can just convert the input in a number and discard any invalid input data.

Example 4 “Input value report” Create script:

1 object oReport,
2 string sCurrentValue,
3 int iNumber, iRes;
4

5 oReport = this.GetParent();
6 iNumber = 0;
7 iRes = sscanf(sNFilt, '%d', iNumber);
8 sCurrentValue = sprintf('%d', iNumber);
9 oReport.AddTextFilter('NFilt', 'Nominal Voltage above', 'KV', sCurrentValue);

The above code always resets the input to 0 if the user enters invalid data. Sometimes it may be useful
to remember the last valid value to restore. In this case a hidden filter can be used with the function
AddInvisibleFilter. The hidden filter does nothing but preserve the data between 2 consecutive calls of
the Create function. Again the Create script has to define the string input parameter s<identifier> to get
the value back in the call of the function.

Example 4 “Input value report” Create script:

1 object oReport,
2 string sCurrentValue,
3 int iNumber, iRes;
4

5 oReport = this.GetParent();
6 iNumber = 0;
7 iRes = sscanf(sOldValue, '%d', iNumber);
8 iRes = sscanf(sNFilt, '%d', iNumber);
9 sCurrentValue = sprintf('%d', iNumber);
10 oReport.AddInvisibleFilter('OldValue', sCurrentValue, NULL);
11 oReport.AddTextFilter('NFilt', 'Nominal Voltage above', 'KV', sCurrentValue);

The third parameter of the function AddInvisibleFilter takes a PowerFactory object as input. To get this
object back in the next call, the Create script has to define an external object o<identifier> as input.

22.2.5.2 Edit Cells

The ComTablereport function SetCellEdit makes an individual cell editable. To identify the cell the
defined table, column and row identifiers must be used. In addition, the callback ComDpl script Edit
must be provided as a child of the ComTablereport. This callback report takes five input parameters:

• sColumnId string The column identifier of the changed cell.

• sRowId string The row identifier of the changed cell.

• sNewValue string The new value, if the cell contains a string.
• iNewValue int The new value, if the cell contains an int.

• dNewValue double The new value, if the cell contains a double.

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It is the responsibility of the programmer to change the underlying value with the Edit callback script.
With the help of this script the user input can also be changed or rejected, if it is invalid. Every time
the user changes a cell, the Edit callback script is called. Following the execution of the Edit script, the
Tabular Report is rebuilt with a call of the Create script. To assist the edit process, a set of cell-specific
objects can be passed with the call of the function SetCellEdit. These objects will be available in the
Edit callback script as external input objects:
• oEditObject1 The first object passed from the Create script with SetCellEdit.
• oEditObject2 The second object passed from the Create script with SetCellEdit.

• oEditObject<X> The Xth object passed from the Create script with SetCellEdit.
As an example of a tabular report with editable cells, you can extend the script from chapter 22.2.4. Add
a new set variable to the Create script at line 1.

Example 2 “Lines report” Create script extension:

1 set aEditSet;

Add the following code to the Create script before line 23.

Example 2 “Lines report” Create script extension:

1 aEditSet.Clear();
2 aEditSet.Add(oLine);
3 oReport.SetCellEdit('Table ID', 'name column', sRowId, aEditSet);
4 oReport.SetCellEdit('Table ID', 'parallel column', sRowId, aEditSet);
5 oReport.SetCellEdit('Table ID', 'length column', sRowId, aEditSet);
6 oReport.SetCellEdit('Table ID', 'out column', sRowId, aEditSet);

Add a new ComDpl object Edit to the tabular report. Define the input parameter (see above) and an
external object oEditObject1. Fill the script content of the Edit script with the following code:

Example 2 “Lines report” Edit script:

1 object oLine;
2 int iColumnCmp;
3 oLine = oEditObject1;
4 iColumnCmp = strcmp(sColumnId, 'name column');
5 if (iColumnCmp = 0){
6 oLine:loc_name = sNewValue;
7 }
8 iColumnCmp = strcmp(sColumnId, 'parallel column');
9 if (iColumnCmp = 0){
10 oLine:nlnum = iNewValue;
11 }
12 iColumnCmp = strcmp(sColumnId, 'length column');
13 if (iColumnCmp = 0){
14 oLine:dline = dNewValue;
15 }
16 iColumnCmp = strcmp(sColumnId, 'out column');
17 if (iColumnCmp = 0){
18 oLine:outserv = iNewValue;
19 }

With this script all visible attributes of the line could be changed. Note: this example modifies the
attributes of the lines of your active project!

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22.2.5.3 Additional Context Menu Entries

The ComTablereport function AddCellAction adds a new entry to the context menu of a cell. To identify
the cell the defined table, column and row identifiers must be used. The fourth parameter is the Action
Identifier and the fifth parameter defines the text of the context menu entry. In addition, the callback
ComDpl script Action must be provided as a child of the ComTablereport. This callback script takes two
input parameters:

• sActionId string The Action Identifier, which was defined with the call of AddCellAction.
• aObjects set The set of objects, which were passed through with the call of AddCellAction.

The callback function Action is always called if the user selects an additional entry from the cell context
menu. The function AddCellAction provides an optional parameter refresh to define whether the report
shall be rebuilt after the execution of the Action script or not. The default is set to rebuild the report with
a call of the Create script.

22.2.5.4 Additional Buttons

The ComTablereport function AddButton adds a new button with an identifier and a label to the top
of the tabular report. The callback ComDpl script ButtonPressed must be provided as a child of the
ComTablereport. This callback script takes one input parameter.

• sButtonId string The Button Identifier which was defined with the call of AddButton.

The callback function ButtonPressed is always called if the user presses a button in the tabular report.
The function AddButton provides an optional parameter refresh, which defines whether the report shall
be rebuilt after the execution of the ButtonPressed script or not. If the callback script ButtonPressed
changes the content of table, the parameter refresh will be always set to 1.

22.2.5.5 Using a Selection

If the tabular report must be able to show user defined pre-selected elements, it must have set the
Use Selection iSelection attribute of the ComTableReport. See chapter 22.2.2 for a description of the
ComTableReport attributes. In addition, the report must be stored in the report folder Library\TableReport
of the project. The exact name of the report folder depends on the PowerFactory language settings
at the time of project creation. If both conditions are fulfilled, the report can be executed with a
user selection (see 22.2.2.2). Inside the Create or Init callback scripts the ComTablereport function
GetSelection provides access to this selection. If the ComTablereport attribute Class Filter sFilter is
set, the function GetSelectedElements could be used instead. This function returns an already filtered
set of selected objects.

22.2.6 Tabular Report Callback Script Reference

22.2.6.1 Init

• optional
• called only when the report is opened the first time

• no input parameter

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22.2.6.2 Create

• mandatory
• called if the report is created or rebuilt
• input parameter passed through from AddInvisibleFilter, AddListFilter, AddMultiListFilter, AddTab-
ularFilter or AddTextFilter :
– s<FilterId> string The selected value of a filter.
• external input objects passed through from AddInvisibleFilter, AddListFilter or AddMultiListFilter :
– o<FilterId> The selected object of a filter.

22.2.6.3 Edit

• optional
• called if:
– a cell defined with SetCellEdit is changed by the user or
– a filter defined with AddInvisibleFilter, AddListFilter, AddMultiListFilter, AddTabularFilter or
AddTextFilter is changed by the user
• input parameters:
– sColumnId string The column identifier of the changed cell or the filter identifier of the
changed filter.
– sRowId string The row identifier of the changed cell.
– sNewValue string The new value, if the cell contains a string, or the new value of the changed
filter.
– iNewValue int The new value, if the cells contains an integer.
– dNewValue double The new value, if the cells contains a double.
• external input objects:
– oEditObject1 The first object passed from the Create script with SetCellEdit or the selected
object of a changed filter.
– oEditObject2 The second object passed from the Create script with SetCellEdit.
– oEditObject<X> The Xth object passed from the Create script with SetCellEdit.

22.2.6.4 Action

• optional
• called if the user selects an additional context menu entry defined with AddCellAction.
• input parameters:
– sActionId string The Action Identifier which was defined with the call of AddCellAction.
– aObjects set The set of objects, which were passed through with the call of AddCellAction.

22.2.6.5 ButtonPressed

• optional
• called if the user presses a button defined with AddButton.
• input parameter:
– sButtonId string The Button Identifier which was defined with the call of AddButton.

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22.3 Python

This section describes the integration of the Python scripting language in PowerFactory and explains the
procedure for developing Python scripts. The Python scripting language can be used in PowerFactory
for:
• Automation of tasks

• Creation of user-defined calculation commands

• Integration of PowerFactory into other applications
Some of Python’s notable features include:

• General-purpose, high-level programming language

• Clear, readable syntax
• Non-proprietary, under liberal open source licence
• Widely used

• Extensive standard libraries and third-party modules

– Interfaces to external databases and Microsoft Office-like applications
– Web services, etc.
The integration of Python into PowerFactory makes the above-mentioned features accessible to users
of PowerFactory.

To execute a Python script the following steps have to be considered:

1. Python interpreter has to be installed. (Subsection 22.3.1)
2. Python file .py that contains code of the script has to be created by external editor. After being
created .py file can be link to the ComPython object inside of PowerFactory. (Subsection 22.3.3)
3. In each .py file PowerFactory Python module ’powerfactory.pyd’ has to be imported. (Subsection
22.3.2)
4. To run the script the User has to execute the (ComPython) object. (Subsection 22.3.3.2)

22.3.1 Installation of a Python Interpreter

When PowerFactory is installed, the installation does not include a Python interpreter and therefore
this must be installed separately. The recommended Python versions are available on https://www.
python.org/downloads/. All supported Python versions can be checked inside of the PowerFactory
Configuration dialog (see Figure 22.3.1) here is also where a preferred Python version can be selected.

PowerFactory requires a Python interpreter for 64-bit. To avoid issues with third-party software, the
Python interpreter should be installed with default settings (for all users), into the directory proposed by
the installer.

Depending on the functions to be performed by a particular Python script, it may be necessary to install
a corresponding Python add-on/package. For example, Microsoft Excel can be used by Python scripts if
the “Python for Windows Extensions” PyWin32 (http://sourceforge.net/projects/pywin32/)
package is installed, which includes Win32 API, COM support and Pythonwin extensions.

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22.3.2 The Python PowerFactory Module

The functionality of PowerFactory is provided in Python through a dynamic Python module (“power-
factory.pyd”) which interfaces with the PowerFactory API (Application Programming Interface). This
provides Python scripts with access to a comprehensive range of data in PowerFactory :
• All objects

• All attributes (element data, type data, results)

• All commands (load flow calculation, etc.)
• Most special built-in functions (DPL functions)
A Python script which imports this dynamic module can be executed from within PowerFactory through
the new Python command ComPython (see Section 22.3.3), or externally (PowerFactory is started by
the Python module in non-interactive mode) (see Section 22.3.4).

22.3.2.1 Python PowerFactory Module Usage

To allow access to the Python PowerFactory module it must be imported using the following Python
command:
1 import powerfactory

To gain access to the PowerFactory environment the following command must be added:
1 app = powerfactory.GetApplication()

A Python object of class powerfactory.Application is called an application object. Using the application
object from the command above(“app”), it is possible to access global PowerFactory functionality.
Several examples are shown below:
1 user = app.GetCurrentUser()
2 project = app.GetActiveProject()
3 script = app.GetCurrentScript()
4 objects = app.GetCalcRelevantObjects()
5 lines = app.GetCalcRelevantObjects("*.ElmLne")
6 sel = app.GetDiagramSelection()
7 sel = app.GetBrowserSelection()
8 project = app.CreateProject("MyProject", "MyGrid")
9 ldf = app.GetFromStudyCase("ComLdf")

The listed methods return a data object (Python object of class powerfactory.DataObject) or a Python
list of data objects. It is possible to access all parameters and methods associated with a data object.
Unlike DPL syntax, Python syntax requires use of the dot (.) operator instead of the colon (:) in order to
access element parameters of objects (i.e. name, out of service flag, etc.).

Examples:
1 project = app.GetActiveProject()
2 projectName = project.loc_name
3 project.Deactivate()

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All other object parameters (calculated, type, measured, . . . ) are to be called by GetAttribute() method
and using the colon (:), as is done in DPL.
1 lines = app.GetCalcRelevantObjects("*.ElmLne")
2 line = lines[0]
3 currLoading = line.GetAttribute("c:loading")

For printing to the PowerFactory output window, the following application object (e.g. “app” object)
methods are provided:
1 app.PrintPlain("Hello world!")
2 app.PrintInfo("An info!")
3 app.PrintWarn("A warning!")
4 app.PrintError("An error!")

Printing the string representation of data objects to the PowerFactory output window makes them
selectable (i.e. creates a hyperlink string in the output window):
1 project = app.GetActiveProject()
2 app.PrintPlain("Active Project: " + str(project))

A list of all parameters and methods associated with an object can be obtained using the dir() function
as shown below:
1 project = app.GetActiveProject()
2 app.PrintPlain(dir(project))

22.3.2.2 Python PowerFactory Module Reference

A Python Module Reference document is available in the Help menu containing a list of offered functions.
Python reference

22.3.3 The Python Command (ComPython)

In contrast to DPL, the Python command only links to a Python script file. It stores only the file path of
the script and not the file itself.

The script may be executed by clicking on the Execute button of the corresponding dialog. Editing the
script file is possible by clicking the Open in External Editor button.

The preferred editor may be chosen in the External Applications page of the PowerFactory Configuration
dialog by selecting the Tools → Configuration. . . menu item from the main menu (see section 5.2.4).
Python scripts may be created in any text editor as long as the script file is saved using the UTF-8
character encoding format. The Python version can be selected in the PowerFactory Configuration
dialog.

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Figure 22.3.1: Selection of a preferred Python editor program

On the Basic Options page of the Python command (ComPython), the user can define Input parameters
and External objects. The Input parameter table in the dialog is used as in DPL to define variables that
can be accessed from outside of the Python script. Input parameters may be the following data types:
double, int and string. All other fields (Name, Value, Unit, Description) are user definable.

The External object table allows the direct configuration of objects under investigation. An external
object is an object external to the Python command that the user wants to access in the script. By
defining the External object here, the user avoids accessing it via Python methods inside the script
(thereby allowing the script to execute faster).

Important: To access an external object or input parameter in Python, the user has first to get the script
and can then access the parameter through ScriptObj.ExternObjName:
1 script=app.GetCurrentScript() #to call the current script
2 extObj=script.NameOfExternObj #to call the external object
3 inpPar=script.NameOfInpPram #to call input parameter

Result parameter section is to be found on the Results page. The Result parameters represents results
from the script and they are stored inside the specified results object. The Script page contains three
sections:Remote script,Script file and Interface version. Remote script offers a selection of a remote
script, which is used instead of the code defined in the Script file section. A remote script can be
advantageous in cases where the user has multiple Study Cases using the same script code, but
different input parameters. If the user wants to use a remote script, then modifying the master script will
affect all the Python scripts that refer to it. If the user had locally-defined scripts, then they would need
to change the code in each of them.

Python Script: The source of the Python script can be selected. Two options are available:
• External: An external *.py Python script file has to be selected under Script file.
• Embedded: The script is embedded in the ComPython-object and can directly be developed
using the internal editor (see Section 22.4). Please note that only single file Python scripts are
supported.
Script file will be available if External (see above) is selected. It is a field that contains the path of the
Python script file (*.py).

Embedded Code: Available if option Embedded (see above) is selected. The Python script is embedded

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in the ComPython-object and can directly be developed in the editor.

Interface Version refers to the returned value of some Python methods. For example if selecting

Version 1-“old interface version”. Data object methods with arguments such as the method GetPage()
from the class SetDesktop return list containing [[returned value],argument of the following entries] :
1 list(DataObject, ...) SetDesktop::GetPage(str,[int])

Version 2- “new interface version”. Methods like the method GetPage() returns just the result, without
input parameters.
1 DataObject SetDesktop::GetPage(str,[int])

The Python command may also contain objects or references to other objects available in the PowerFac-
tory database. These can be accessed by clicking on the Contents button. New objects are defined
by first clicking the New Object icon in the toolbar of the Python script contents dialog and then
selecting the required object from the New Object window. References to other objects are created by
defining a reference object “IntRef”. Note: Python supports different access to this objects than DPL.
See example
1 script=app.GetCurrentScript()
2 ContainedObject=script.GetContents('Results.ElmRes')

22.3.3.1 Creating a New Python Command

To create a new Python command click on the New Object ( ) icon in the toolbar of the Data Manager
and use the filter to select Python Script (ComPython) from the list. Then press OK and a new Python
command will be created. The Python command dialog is then displayed. The name of the script,
its input parameters and the file path to the script, etc, can now be specified. The Python command
dialog is also opened by double-clicking a Python script; by selecting Edit from the context menu or by
selecting the script from the list after clicking on the main toolbar icon Execute Script ( ).

22.3.3.2 Executing a Python Command

A Python command may be executed by clicking the Execute button in the dialog.

Alternative methods for executing a Python script include:

• From the Data Manager:
– Right-click on the Python command and select Execute from the context menu.
– Right-click in a blank area and select Execute Script from the context menu. A list of existing
DPL and Python scripts contained in the global and local libraries will pop up. Select the
required Python script and click OK.
• From the single line diagram:
– Select one or more elements in the single line diagram. Right-click the marked elements
and select Execute Script from the context menu. A list of existing DPL and Python scripts
contained in the global and local libraries will pop up. Select the required Python script and
click OK.

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– A button may be created in the single line diagram to automate the execution of a specific
Python script.
• From the main toolbar:
– Click the icon Execute Script . A list of existing DPL and Python scripts from the global
and local libraries will appear. Select the specific Python script and click OK.

Note: The custom global library will only be shown if the library is set as Used Library in the User
Settings (see chapter User Settings, Section 7.1).

22.3.4 Running PowerFactory in Non-interactive Mode

PowerFactory may be run externally by Python. In order to do this, the script must additionally add the
file path of the dynamic module (“powerfactory.pyd”) to the system path. Example:
1 # Add powerfactory.pyd path to python path.
2 import sys
3 sys.path.append("C:\\Program Files\\DIgSILENT\\PowerFactory 2020\\Python\\3.7")
4

5 #import PowerFactory module

6 import powerfactory
7

8 #start PowerFactory in non-interactive mode

9 app = powerfactory.GetApplication()
10

11 #run Python code below

12 #.....................

The PowerFactory environment can be accessed directly from the Python shell as shown in Fig-
ure 22.3.2

Figure 22.3.2: Python shell

Note: If an error message appears when importing the powerfactory module stating “ DLL load failed:
the specified module could not be found”, this often means that the corresponding Microsoft Visual
C++ Redistributable are not installed on the computer.

22.3.5 Performance of Python Scripts

The execution time of a Python script can vary strongly depending on the used environment set up.
There are dedicated environment functions Python Reference to improve the performance of a script.

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One example for a possible performance improvement is disabling the User Break -button. This button
has a huge impact on the execution time of some scripts, because every few simulation steps Python
has to check, whether the button has been pressed. The SetUserBreakEnabled()-function allows to
disable and enable the break button freely during the execution of a script.

22.3.6 Debugging Python Scripts

As with any other Python script, it is possible to remotely debug scripts written for PowerFactory by
using specialised applications.

22.3.6.1 Prerequisites

The recommended IDE for debugging is Eclipse (www.eclipse.org) with the Python add-on PyDev
(www.pydev.org).

1. Install Eclipse Standard from www.eclipse.org/downloads/

2. Open Eclipse
3. Click “Install New Software . . . ” in the “Help” menu
4. Add the repository http://pydev.org/updates and install PyDev

22.3.6.2 Debugging a Python script for PowerFactory

The following is a short description of remote debugging with PyDev. For more information please con-
sult the remote debugger manual of PyDev (http://pydev.org/manual_adv_remote_debugger.
html).
1. Start Eclipse
2. Open Debug perspective
3. Start the remote debugger server by clicking “Start Debug Server” in the “Pydev” menu
4. Start PowerFactory
5. Prepare the Python script for debugging:
• Add “pydevd.py” path to sys.path
• Import PyDev debugger module “pydevd”
• Start debugging calling pydevd.settrace()
Example:
1 #prepare debug
2 import sys
3 sys.path.append ("C:\\Program Files\\eclipse\\plugins\\
4 org.python.pydev_2.8.2.2013090511\\pysrc")
5 import pydevd
6

7 #start debug
8 pydevd.settrace()

6. Execute the Python script

7. Change to Eclipse and wait for the remote debugger server
It is not possible to stop and restart the remote debugger server while running PowerFactory.

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22.3.7 Example of a Python Script

The following example Python script calculates a load flow and prints a selection of results to the output
window. The script can be executed from within PowerFactory.
1 if __name__ == "__main__":
2 #connect to PowerFactory
3 import powerfactory as pf
4 app = pf.GetApplication()
5 if app is None:
6 raise Exception("getting PowerFactory application failed")
7

8 #print to PowerFactory output window

9 app.PrintInfo("Python Script started..")
10

11 #get active project

12 prj = app.GetActiveProject()
13 if prj is None:
14 raise Exception("No project activated. Python Script stopped.")
15

16 #retrieve load-flow object

17 ldf = app.GetFromStudyCase("ComLdf")
18

19 #force balanced load flow

20 ldf.iopt_net = 0
21

22 #execute load flow

23 ldf.Execute()
24

25 #collect all relevant terminals

26 app.PrintInfo("Collecting all calculation relevant terminals..")
27 terminals = app.GetCalcRelevantObjects("*.ElmTerm")
28 if not terminals:
29 raise Exception("No calculation relevant terminals found")
30 app.PrintPlain("Number of terminals found: %d" % len(terminals))
31

32 for terminal in terminals:

33 voltage = terminal.GetAttribute("m:u")
34 app.PrintPlain("Voltage at terminal %s is %f p.u." % (terminal , voltage))
35

36 #print to PowerFactory output window

37 app.PrintInfo("Python Script ended.")

22.4 Editor

PowerFactory has an integrated editor which can be used to write and execute scripts or as normal
text editor. The editor can be reached by pressing “ctrl e” on the keyboard or from the script page of a
ComDpl/ComPython dialog by right-clicking somewhere in the code and selecting “Open Text Editor”.

The editor will open as a tab in the active tab group, and the available tools are shown in the Editor
Toolbar ; note that the same tools are available when using the page Script of ComDpl/ComPython
command by using the context menu.

Open external text file

Save file. If the file is a script the changes will be saved to the script object. Otherwise the file will
be saved as a .txt file

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Print the current file

Check the syntax of the script. Only available for DPL scripts

Execute the current script. The button is interpreted as save and execute.

A browser with the script contents is shown.

With this Edit icon the edit dialog of the script is opened.

Cut part of the text.

Copy part of the text.

Paste the copied or cut text.

The text of the script will be deleted

Undo the last operation.

Redo the last operation.

With the Search icon the user can activate a Find, a Replace or also a Go To function inside the
editor.
Find/replace/go to the next matching word.

Find/replace/go to the previous matching word.

With this icon bookmarks can be set in the editor.

Go to the next bookmark.

Go to the previous bookmark.

Clear all the existing bookmarks.

Open the User Settings dialog in the Editor page. More information is given in section 7.7.

When editing is complete, press the icon or icon and the script will be synchronised with the
main dialog.

The editor can be closed by clicking on the x in the tab. If not closed, the edit window will be retained
as part of the active desktop and will be available again when that desktop is reactivated. It is possible
to modify this by right-clicking on the tab and selecting “Detach from Desktop”.

22.5 Add On Modules

The purpose of Add On Modules is to allow the user more flexibility in the processing of calculations
and the presentation of results. By using Add On Modules the user can, for example, execute a number
of different calculations and present the results together on a graphic or in a report. Furthermore,
the concept of user-defined variables is introduced, these being variables created by the user in order
to store results, parameters, or any other information relevant to the process. After a module has
been executed, the user-defined variables may be accessed in the same way as the standard results
variables, for example being selected to display in a flexible data page. An Add On Module is created
and executed using an Add-On Command (ComAddon), which can be stored within a project or stored
in a central location and accessed via the user-defined toolbar.

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22.5.1 Add On Module framework

The Add On Module is created using an ComAddon command, which typically consists of the following
components:

• A DPL or Python script, which:

– uses a CreateModule command to create the Add On module;
– may include a range of calculation commands such as ComLdf and ComShc;
– includes commands to transfer results variables or other information to the user-defined
variables;
– uses a FinaliseModule command to complete the Add On module and make the results in
the user-defined variables available to the user.
• One or more User-defined variable definitions IntAddonvars; these are where the user specifies a
set of user-defined variables for a particular element class.

As can be seen in figure 22.5.1 below, the Add On command object also specifies two other pieces of
information:

Module Name: This is the name that will be given to the module itself. When the command is executed,
the module is created and this name will appear, for example, when the user selects variables to
display on a flexible data page.
Module Key: This is a key used internally by PowerFactory. It is used as a reference so that the
appropriate flexible data, graphic colouring and result boxes are used when the command is
executed. It is possible, if appropriate, for several Add On commands to use the same module
key.

Figure 22.5.1: Add On Command object

So when the Add On command is executed, the Add On module that is created can be regarded as
a bespoke PowerFactory function, handled in the same way as other functions such as a load flow or
RMS simulation, but offering great flexibility for the user.

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22.5.2 Creating a new Add-on Module command

To create a new Add On Module in a study case, the following steps can be followed:

• In a Data Manager, select the study case and click on the New Object icon .
• Use the filter to select from the list an “Add On” command (ComAddon) and confirm with OK.

• Give the Add On a name and a key and confirm the edit dialog with Close.
• Select the Add On on the left side in the tree hierarchy of the Data Manager and press the New
Object icon again.

• Four options are available initially. The DPL Command (ComDpl) or Python Script(ComPython)
can be selected to create the script for the module. The third option, Variable Definition of Add On
(IntAddonvars) is used to create the user-defined variable definitions (IntAddonvars). The fourth
option, Flexible Data (SetFoldflex), offers the possibility to define a new tab (like the flexible data
page) and a predefined set of displayed variables.

• Once a script exists, any additional objects created in the module can only be user-defined variable
definitions IntAddonvars or the definition of an additional flexible data page SetFoldlfex.
• The IntAddonvars is configured to set up the user-defined variables. In the example in figure 22.5.2
below, short-circuit results variables are defined, one for each phase, and also line loading, line
length and an internal counter from the script.

Figure 22.5.2: Example of user-defined variable definitions for line elements

The setup of an additional flexible data page could be done as follows:

• Create a Flexible Data definition SetFoldflex inside the Add On.

• Execute the Add On.

• Open the Network Model Manager and look at the object classes for which Add On variable
definitions were created.
• Switch to the newly created, user defined flexible data tab at the bottom.

• Add user defined and whatever parameters of interest to the displayed variables via the Variable
Selection .

• With the variable selection done for all object classes of interest, the corresponding settings can
be copied into the Add On. Navigate in the Data Manager to the Settings folder of the project and
within it to the newly created flexible data page.
• Copy the Flexible Page Selector objects (IntMonsel) and paste them inside the Add On Flexible
Data definition (see figure 22.5.3).

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• When this Add On is then executed in another project, the additional flexible data page will contain
the configured sets of variables.

Figure 22.5.3: Definition of additional flexible data page and corresponding variable selections for the
object classes.

For the user-defined variables, supported data types include integer, double, string, object (reference),
arrays and matrices; for edge elements, variables can be defined as per phase and/or per connection
quantities.

Within the script itself, important features are the command CreateModule();, which is followed by all
the required calculations and data manipulation, new DPL and Python methods used for the handling
of the variables, and the FinaliseModule(); command, which is used once the calculations and data
manipulation are complete and which defines the point at which no more changes are made to the
user-defined variables and the results are ready to be viewed.

22.5.3 Executing an Add-on Module command

Add-on Modules can be executed directly or from an icon on the Additional Tools toolbar as shown in
figure 22.5.4 below. Clicking on this icon will bring up a list of all Add On commands stored in the active
study case or in the Add On folder in the Configuration area (see section 22.5.4).

Figure 22.5.4: Running Add On modules from the Additional Tools toolbar

When the script has been executed, it is possible to access the user-defined variables in a flexible data
page as shown in figure 22.5.5 below, or add them to a result box.

If an additional flexible data page is defined in the Add On, the corresponding flexible data page can be
selected and further adapted.

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In figure 22.5.5, it can be seen how the Add On Module name appears on the left-hand side together
with the standard PowerFactory calculation functions.

Figure 22.5.5: Selecting user-defined variables for a flexible data page

22.5.4 Adding Add On Modules to the User-Defined Tools toolbar

Add On Modules can be made available for use in different projects and (in the case of a multi-
user database) by other users, by adding the Add-On commands to the User-defined Tools toolbar.
Section 6.7.1 describes how the User-defined Tools toolbar is configured; the Add On Module command,
including contents, is placed in the Add On folder of the Configuration folder.

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Chapter 23

Interfaces

23.1 Introduction

PowerFactory supports a wide set of interfaces. Depending on the specific data exchange task the user
may select the appropriate interface.

The interfaces are divided as follows:

• Interfaces for the exchange of data according to DIgSILENT specific formats:
– DGS
– StationWare (DIgSILENT GmbH trademark)
• Interfaces for the exchange of data using proprietary formats:
– PSS/E (Siemens/PTI trademark)
– NEPLAN (NEPLAN AG trademark)
– INTEGRAL
– PSS/SINCAL (Siemens/PTI trademark)
– Functional Mock-up Interface (Modelica Association trademark)
• Interfaces for the exchange of data according to standardised formats:
– UCTE-DEF
– CIM
– OPC

• Programming interfaces for integration with external applications

– C++ API

The above mentioned interfaces are explained in the following sections.

23.2 DGS Interface

DGS (DIgSILENT) is PowerFactory ’s standard bi-directional interface specifically designed for bulk data
exchange with other applications such as GIS and SCADA, and, for example, for exporting calculation
results to produce Crystal Reports, or to interchange data with any other software package.

Figure 23.2.1 illustrates the integration of a GIS (Graphical Information System) or SCADA (Supervisory
Control And Data Acquisition) with PowerFactory via the DGS interface

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Here, PowerFactory can be configured either in GUI-less or normal mode. When used in GUI-less
mode (engine mode), PowerFactory imports via DGS the topological and library data (types), as well
as operational information. Once a calculation has been carried out (for example a load flow or short
circuit), the results are exported back so they are displayed in the original application; which in this
example relates to the SCADA or GIS application. The difference with PowerFactory running in normal
mode (see right section of Figure 23.2.1) is that, besides the importing of data mentioned previously, the
graphical information (single line graphics) is additionally imported, meaning therefore that the results
can be displayed directly in PowerFactory. In this case, the exporting back of the results to the original
application would be optional.

Figure 23.2.1: DGS - GIS/SCADA Integration

Although the complete set of data can be imported in PowerFactory every time a modification has
been made in the original application, this procedure would be impractical. The typical approach in
such situations would be to import the complete set of data only once and afterwards have incremental
updates.

23.2.1 DGS Interface Typical Applications

Typical applications of the DGS Interface are the following:

• Importing to PowerFactory
– Data Import/Update into PowerFactory from external data sources such as GIS (Network
Equipment), SCADA (Operational Data) and billing/metering systems (Load Data) in order to
perform calculations.

• Exporting from PowerFactory

– Performing calculations in PowerFactory and exporting back the results to the original appli-
cation.

• Integration
– Importing data sets to PowerFactory from GIS or SCADA, performing calculations, and
exporting back results to GIS or SCADA.

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23.2.2 DGS Structure (Database Schemas and File Formats)

PowerFactory ’s DGS interface is strictly based on the PowerFactory data model. Data can be imported
and exported with DGS using different file formats and database schemas.

The following databases or file formats are supported:

• Databases
– Oracle DB Server (ODBC client 10 or newer)
– Microsoft SQL Server (ODBC driver 2000 or newer)
– System DSN (ODBC)
– Generic ODBC

• File Formats
– DGS File - ASCII
– XML File
– Microsoft Excel File (2003 or newer)
– Microsoft Access File (2003 or newer)
Important to note here is that the content of the files is the same, the only difference being the format.

Note: Due to changes in the format, DGS is available in several versions. It is highly recommended to
always use the latest available DGS version.

The core principle of DGS is to organise all data in tables. Each table has a unique name (within
the DGS file or database/table space) and consists of one or more table columns, where generally all
names are case-sensitive.

More information on DGS and examples can be accessed by selecting from the main menu Help →
Additional Packages→ DGS Data Exchange Format

23.2.3 DGS Import

To import data via the DGS interface, the general procedure is as follows:
• From the main menu go to File → Import→ DGS Format. . . which opens the DGS-Import dialog.
• Specify the required options in both the General and Options pages, and click on the Execute
button.

When importing DGS files, the user has two options:

1. Importing into a new project. With this option selected a newly generated project is left activated
upon completion.
2. Importing into an existing project. If an operational scenario and/or a variation is active at the
moment the import takes place, the imported data set will be divided correspondingly. For example
importing breaker status (opened/closed) while an operational scenario is active will store this
information in the operational scenario.
The following sections describe each of these options.

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23.2.3.1 General Page

Import into New Project By choosing this option, a project will be created where all the DGS data
will be stored. The user will have the option of specifying a specific name and location (other than the
default).

Import into Existing Project By choosing this option, the DGS data will be imported into an already
existing project. Here, the data can be selective and its not required that the imported data must be
complete. In some cases, most of the objects already exist and only an update is required for some of
them.

Import from The source of the data to be imported is specified with this option. If a File Format source
is selected then the location and type of data (DGS, XML, MDB or XLS) must be specified. If a Database
source is selected, then a service, User and Password information is required (the SQL server option
will require an extra Database information).

23.2.3.2 Options Page

The visible options depend on the DGS version being used, and on the users choice of the Import
Format.

Options for DGS version 4.x

Predefined Library
A predefined library located somewhere else in the database can be selected. The option of
copying the library into the project is available.

Create Switch inside Cubicle

In cases where the source data has no switches defined inside the cubicles, the enabling of
this option will create the switches automatically during the import. If switches already exist in a
certain cubicle, the creation of switches in that particular cubicle is ignored.

Replace non-printable characters

If the source data contains not allowed characters (∼, ?, etc.), they are replaced by an underscore
character.

Options for DGS version 5.x

Open single line diagram(s)

If the DGS source contains graphics objects for single line diagrams, these will be opened
automatically after import.

Dataset Import (only available if a Database Schema is selected as Import Format)

For DGS version 5 or higher, a labelled version of the data in the source data base can be
selected for import. The labelled versions are mainly used to chose a time-dependent state of
the data. The label name is input in the field Label.

Options for DGS versions 6.x and 7.x

The options for DGS version 5.x are available for DGS versions 6.x and 7.x as well. In addition, the
options described below can be configured.

Global type library

The DGS import in earlier versions only allows for references to existing objects within the active
project. With the DGS versions 6.x and 7.x, a global type library can be selected. Elements in
the DGS source can refer to the foreign key of types in the selected global library.

Partial Import (only available if a Database Schema is selected as Import Format)

For DGS version 6 or higher, labelled regions can be selected for import in the source data base.

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The labelled regions can be used to select specific voltage levels or sub-grids from the bulk data
set. The label names are input in the field Labels separated by commas.

The option pages for all DGS versions contain the field

Additional Parameters
This field is specified for internal use only. No extra information is required by the user.

More detailed information on DGS and examples can be accessed by selecting from the main menu
Help → Additional Packages→ DGS Data Exchange Format

23.2.4 DGS Export

In contrast to the DGS Import, where it is not relevant if a project is active or not; the DGS Export is
based on what information is active at the moment the export takes place. In other words, only the active
project, with the corresponding active Study Case, active Scenario, and active Variations are exported
(objects are exported in their current state). Furthermore, the export can be fully configured, meaning
that the user has the option of selecting the amount of information to be exported per class object. In
general, the following data can be exported:

• Element data
• Type data
• Graphic data
• Result data (e.g. load flow results)
To export data via the DGS interface, the general procedure is as follows:

• Create an Export Definition

• Activate the project to be exported, considering which Study Case, Scenario and Variations should
be active.
• From the main menu go to File → Export. . . → DGS Format. . . which opens the DGS-Export
dialog.
• Specify the required options in both the General and Options pages, and click the Execute button.

The following sections describe each of these options.

Note: Pre-defined export definitions are provided with the PowerFactory installation and are available
by selecting from the main menu Help → Additional Packages→ DGS Data Exchange Format

23.2.4.1 General Page

DGS Version
Version of the DGS structure.

Format
Output format. Either as ASCII, XML, MS Excel or MS Access file (for Excel or Access, Microsoft
Office must be installed on the computer) or as Oracle, MS SQL Server, ODBC DSN or generic ODBC
databases (respective data base drivers must be installed.).

File Name or Data Base Service

Depending on the Output Format, a file name for the output file or the data base service and user
access information are required.

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Insert Description of Variables

If checked, a description of the column headers is included in the output file (only available for ASCII,
XML and MS Excel).

Variable Sets
Select the variable set definition for export. The data exported will be according to the variable definition
specified (see the explanation at the beginning of the section). It is required to select a folder that
contains the monitor variable objects (IntMon) related to each class that is to be exported.

23.2.4.2 Options Page

The visible options mostly depend on the DGS version 5.x, 6.x or 7.x and on the users choice of the
Export Format.

DPL Script
Independent of the DGS version, the user can select a DPL script. This DPL script is automatically
executed before DGS export.

Options for DGS version 5.x

Allow hierarchy and references of exported objects to be incomplete

If this option is set, error messages because of references to external objects (e.g. types in the
global library) that will not be exported are omitted. Furthermore, the export of data classes is
possible although their parent-folder class is not contained in the variable definition set.

Allow user-defined table names

With this option, a prefix and suffix can be added to all table names on DGS export. The prefix
or suffix is defined in the field Additional Parameters.

Export as dataset (available for export to data base formats only)

This option is used to write the exported data to a specifically labelled data set (session state)
into the data base. A label identifier must be given. Optional, a description can be added.

Options for DGS version 6.x and 7.x

All options for DGS version 5.x are available for DGS versions 6.x and 7.x. In addition, the following
options exist:

Use operator column

DGS 6.x and 7.x support an explicit marker OP to mark a data record to be created (C), updated
(U), Merged (M), deleted (D) or Ignored ((I) on DGS import. On the field Default operator, the
user can chose the default value of the operator.

Categorisation of data for partial import (available for export to data base formats only)
This option is used to define for each grid (ElmNet) in the active project a data part in the data
base. In addition, certain data types and elements are labelled with respect to their meaning in
the context of this partial export: global types, local types, boundary set (branches connecting
elements that belong to different grids), other elements (e.g. characteristics). The names of these
labels are input in the respective fields (all fields should be filled in). In addition, a global library
folder can be selected to include referenced types from this library on DGS export.

The Advanced tab contains independent of the DGS version always the field:

Additional Parameters
This field is specified for internal use only. No extra information is required by the user.

More detailed information on Variable Sets definitions (IntMon) can be accessed by selecting from the
main menu Help → Additional Packages→ DGS Data Exchange Format.

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23.3 ANAREDE and ANAFAS Interface

ANAREDE is a network calculation software product from Electrobras Cepel (Brazil), for the analysis
of steady state phenomena in electrical power systems. ANAREDE *.pwf files can be imported and
exported.

Similarly, importing and exporting of ANAFAS *.ana files is now possible, where ANAFAS is Electrobras
Cepel’s network calculation software for short-circuit analysis in electrical power systems.

23.4 PSS/E File Interface

Although both import and export functions for PSS/E files are integrated commands of PowerFactory,
the export function is licensed separately. For more information on prices and licensing contact the
sales department at [email protected].

PSS/E Import supports versions 27 to 35 and can be carried out by going to the main menu and
selecting File → Import→ PSS/E. . . .

In the same manner, and provided the appropriate licensing exists, a project can be exported in PSS/E
format by selecting from the main menu File → Export→ PSS/E. . . .

For exports, PSS/E versions 27 to 33 are supported.

23.4.1 PSS/E File Types and Versions

PowerFactory is able to convert the following PSS/E ’Source Format’ file types:

RAW Power Flow Data (Import and Export) * .raw or * .rawx extension.
SEQ Sequence Data (Import and Export) * .seq extension.

DYR Dynamics Data (Import and Export) * .dyr extension.

PowerFactory is not able to convert the following PSS/E ’Binary Format’ file types:

SAV Power Flow Data “Saved Case”: needs to be converted to RAW format in PSS/E.

SNP Dynamics Data “Snapshot”: needs to be converted to DYR format in PSS/E.

SLD Single Line Data “Slider Data”: not supported by PowerFactory.
DRW Single Line Data: not supported by PowerFactory. Instead, diagrams can be created in Power-
Factory using the diagram layout tool.

23.4.2 Importing PSS/E Data

PowerFactory is able to convert both steady-state data (for load-flow and short-circuit analysis) and
dynamic data files.

Before starting the next steps for importing a PSS/E file, make sure that no project is active. Once this
has been confirmed, select from the main menu File → Import→ PSS/E. The PSS/E Import command
dialog will be displayed, asking the user to specify various options.

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23.4.2.1 Basic Options

• Raw file: Location of the PSS/E raw data file. By default the program searches for * .raw or * .rawx
extensions.
• Sequence file: Location of the PSS/E sequence data file. By default the program searches for
*
.seq extensions.
• Dynamics file: Location of the PSS/E dynamics data file. By default the program searches for
*
.dyr extensions.

Note: From PowerFactory 2020 onwards the drw file is no longer converted/imported. Instead, network
graphics can be generated after import into PowerFactory, using the Diagram Layout Tool.

Import into
• Name: The project name that will be assigned to the converted/imported file in PowerFactory.
• in: Location in the Data Manager tree where the imported file will be stored.

23.4.2.2 Advanced Options

Unit of length:
Lengths in the PSS/E raw files can be interpreted as kilometres or miles.

Additional Parameters:
This field does not need to be used.

23.4.3 Exporting a project to a PSS/E file

This function allows the export of the network model in PSS/E format. The export comprises both
steady-state and dynamic data sets. The correct conversion of dynamic models is only possible for
the standard IEEE models. Models which the user implemented in PowerFactory ’s DSL can not be
automatically translated and must be modelled as user-defined controller types separately in PSS/E.

To export a project in PSS/E format select File → Export. . . → PSS/E. . . from the main menu.

23.4.3.1 Basic Options

PSS/E Version - Version of the exported PSS/E file (27 to 33).

Raw file - Path and file name for the PSS/E RAW file, containing the symmetrical description of the
model. By default the program selects the * .raw extension.

Sequence file - Path and file name for the PSS/E SEQ file, containing the additional description of the
model necessary for unbalanced conditions. By default the program selects the * .seq extension.

Dynamics file - Path and file name for the PSS/E DYN/DYR file, containing the dynamic models of the
project. By default the program selects the * .dyr extension.

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23.4.3.2 Advanced Options

Convert Motors to Generators if P<0 - With this option enabled, all asynchronous machines in
generator mode will be converted to synchronous machines.

Export branch as single equivalent line - Selecting this option will convert the branch models to an
equivalent line.

Convert SVS to generator - This option defines how the SVS elements will be exported. Three options
are available:

• No: the SVS elements won’t be exported.

• Only voltage controlled: will convert the SVS elements with control mode set to Voltage Control
(Load Flow page of the element) to generator models.
• Always: all the SVS elements will be converted to generator models.

Base Apparent Power - Base for the power values given in per-unit system.

Min (Zero) Impedance Branch - Minimum impedance for ideal connections.

PSS/E Bus Number - This option defines the naming convention when exporting terminals ElmTerm.
Three options are available:

• Automatic: the number assigned will be according to the name (in ascending/alphabetical order).
• Use Serial Number: the serial number information stated in the Description page of each terminal
will be used for assigning the PSS/E bus number.
• Use Characteristic Name: the characteristic name information stated in the Description page of
each terminal will be used for assigning the PSS/E bus number.

Export PSS/E-Area index as - The way the Area index is defined in PSS/E is defined here; two options
are available:
• Grid: the exported file will have the areas defined according to the Grids defined in the Power-
Factory model.

• Area: the exported file will have the areas defined according to the Areas defined in the Power-
Factory model.
Additional Parameters:
This field does not need to be used.

23.5 PSS/U Interface

PowerFactory offers the user the option to import PSS/U files. The following files are supported:

• *.dat
In addition, data dictionaries can also be imported.

23.5.1 Importing PSS/U Data

To import data via the PSS/U interface, the general procedure is as follows:

• From the main menu go to File → Import→ PSS/U. . . which opens the Convert PSS/U files dialog.

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• Click on the dots (. . . ) to select the *.dat-file and specify the required options and click on the
Execute button.
Once the import process has been executed, the project (new or existing) is left activated upon comple-
tion.

The following section describes each of the dialog options.

23.5.1.1 General Settings

Nominal Frequency Nominal frequency of the file to be converted/imported.

File Type Choose the *.dat file from your system that should be converted.
Save Converted Data in PowerFactory offers the possibility to import the project into an existing project
or to create new project for the import. If no project is selected PowerFactory will create a new
project.
Common Conversion Settings Following settings are available:
• Line Length in miles instead of km: The unit of the line length of the input file.
• Import Graphic Information: A graphic will automatically be created based on the information
of the input file.
• Create switch within branches: If this option is selected switches are created at the beginning
and the end of every branch. It is recommended to choose this option, so that lines can be
switched off later on.
Construction Data Dictionary Choose the *.con file with the corresponding construction data dictio-
nary. If no dictionary is selected the types are created automatically based on the *.dat file.
Machine Data Dictionary Choose the *.mot file with the corresponding machine data dictionary. If no
dictionary is selected the types are created automatically based on the *.dat file.
Additional Parameters Additional parameters for the import. This field is normally left blank.

23.5.1.2 Options

On the options page additional parameters regarding the graphic are specified.

Automatic Drawing of Network Elements Defines which elements should be drawn automatically.
Offset Factor for semi-orthogonal branches Sets the offset factor for semi-orthogonal line routing in
PowerFactory. This factor is applied if the nodes in PSS/U were plotted as bars rather than points.
Scaling Factor The scaling factor defines the graphical distance between the nodes.

23.6 PSS/ADEPT Import Converter

PSS/ADEPT is a former network calculation software product provided by Siemens, and for a num-
ber of years the import of older PSS/ADEPT formats (PSS/U) into PowerFactory has been possible.
PSS/ADEPT HUB and Construction Dictionary files can be imported.

HUB files (*.dmp) are ASCII files that contain all the significant data of the network, including the
graphics. Construction Dictionary files (*.con) contain line and cable type data.

Construction Dictionary files are not mandatory for the import.

The import dialog can be started in two ways:

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• File - Import - PSS/ADEPT...

• Data Manager - Input Window - ed/adept

23.7 NEPLAN Interface

The NEPLAN interface in PowerFactory allows the import of NEPLAN files exported from version 5 of
NEPLAN, specifically:

NEPLAN 5

• Node Table (*.ndt) containing the node data, such as rated voltages and loads.
• Element table (*.edt) containing the branch data, such as lines and transformers.
• GIS/NMS Interface (*.cde) containing the graphical information of all the networks which are part
of the NEPLAN project.

23.7.1 Importing NEPLAN Data

To import data via the NEPLAN interface, the general procedure is as follows:
• From the main menu go to File → Import→ Neplan. . . which opens the NEPLAN-Import dialog.
• Specify the required options and click on the Execute button.
The NEPLAN data import always creates a new PowerFactory project. Once the import process has
been executed, the newly generated project is activated.

The user has the option of importing the data with or without graphical information. That is, if the user
selects importing the data without graphical information, only the topological and electrical data will get
imported, and no single line graphic will be generated. In order to import NEPLAN 5 graphics, the path
to the NEPLAN files should not contain spaces.

Importing NEPLAN 5 files

When importing NEPLAN 5 files, the user is only required to select the * .ndt. By doing so, the
corresponding * .edt file is automatically imported also. This basically means that a * .edt file must
be present otherwise the import will not be executed. The * .cde file is however optional. Additionally, all
three files must have the same name and must be in the same folder.

Importing NEPLAN 5 data from an Access database

Alternatively, the NEPLAN data can be provided via an Access database (* .accdb format).

Note: To open the NEPLAN database file (* .accdb) during the import to PowerFactory, MS Access is
required.
A NEPLAN import error message may appear if the Microsoft Office installation type is different
from that of PowerFactory. If Microsoft Office 32bit is used, Microsoft only installs the 32bit ODBC
driver by default. PowerFactory (which is 64bit) needs the 64bit ODBC driver.
The user should install the missing driver from here:
https://www.microsoft.com/en-US/download/details.aspx?id=13255
We recommend “Microsoft Access Database Engine 2010 Redistributable” instead of the newer
2016 version, which requires more rights and a work-around for a successful installation.

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23.7.1.1 Basic Options

Neplan Files
• Location on the hard disk of the NEPLAN * .ndt file or * .accdb.
Import into
• New Project: The project name that will be assigned to the converted/imported file in PowerFac-
tory.
• in: Location in the Data Manager tree where the imported file should be stored.

23.7.1.2 Advanced Options

Automatic busbar system detection No longer used.

Import Graphic Information

If this option is enabled, and a * .cde file made available, the the graphical information is imported and
the single line diagram is generated.

• Additional Rotation Angle for 1-port Elements (deg): If a value different than 0 is stated, then
the single port elements (loads, generators, motors, etc.) are rotated counter clockwise (degrees)
with respect to the original position.
• Automatically scale to A0: If this option is selected, then the graphic is rescaled according to
the A0 page format.
• User defined scaling factor: allows the user to customise the scaling.

Additional Parameters:
This field does not need to be used.

23.8 INTEGRAL Interface

PowerFactory offers the user the option to import Integral files for Load Flow and Short Circuit analysis.
The following files are supported:

• *.dvg
• *.dtf

• *.xml

Furthermore Integral files can be export as *.xml files.

23.8.1 Importing Integral Data

To import Integral data, the procedure is as follows:

• From the main menu go to File → Import→ Integral. . . (this will open the Integral import dialog).

In the ’Import into’ field the user can enter a project name, and the PowerFactory user for this project
can be selected. The Integral data import always creates a new PowerFactory project.
The *.xml Integral files contain graphical information. However, for older Integral files with the ending
*.dvg and *.dtf it is necessary to select graphical data with the ending *.bild.

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More information about the Integral Import is available in the German version of the User Manual.

23.8.2 Export Integral Data

The Integral export converts the PowerFactory project into an *.xml file in Integral format. Therefore
’XML Data’ must be defined as the path where to store the xml file. If the ending .xml is not given, it will
automatically added.

More information about the Integral Export is available in the German version of the User Manual.

23.9 PSS SINCAL Interface

PowerFactory offers the user the option to import MS Access database files from PSS SINCAL for Load
Flow and Short Circuit analysis. The following files are supported:

• *.mdb

23.9.1 Importing PSS SINCAL Data

The procedure to import PSS SINCAL data is as follows:

• From the main menu go to File → Import→ Sincal. . . (this will open the PSS SINCAL import
dialog).
• Select the file location of the MS Access database file of the SINCAL project (usually named
database.mdb) in the field Database name.

• In the Import into field, the user can enter a project name, and the PowerFactory user for this
project can be selected.

The PSS SINCAL data import will always create a new PowerFactory project.

The SINCAL *.mdb database files contain graphical information. This information is converted into a
PowerFactory network diagram.

Note: To open the SINCAL database (*.mdb) during the import to PowerFactory, MS Access is required.
A SINCAL import error message may appear if the Microsoft Office installation type is different
from that of PowerFactory. If Microsoft Office 32bit is used, Microsoft only installs the 32bit ODBC
driver by default. PowerFactory (which is 64bit) needs the 64bit ODBC driver.
The user has to install the missing driver from here:
https://www.microsoft.com/en-US/download/details.aspx?id=13255
We recommend “Microsoft Access Database Engine 2010 Redistributable” instead of the newer
2016 version, which requires more rights and a work-around for a successful installation.

23.10 UCTE-DEF Interface

In PowerFactory, both export and import of UCTE-DEF (Union for the Co-ordination of Transmission
of Electricity - Data Exchange Format) is supported. The UCTE interface is currently intended for
importing/exporting grid data of a country belonging to the former UCTE community.

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The data contained in these files correspond basically to load flow and short circuit (3 phase) type data.
Furthermore, it only considers specific UCTE voltage levels according to voltage level codes, as well as
UCTE specific country codes, such as DK for Denmark, P for Portugal, etc.

Important to note here is that from 1𝑠𝑡 of July 2009, ENTSO-E (European Network of Transmission
System Operators for Electricity) took over all operational tasks of the 6 existing TSO associations in
Europe, including the Union for the Coordination of Transmission of Electricity (UCTE).

For more information related to the UCTE format, refer to the ENTSOE website: https://www.entsoe.eu

23.10.1 Importing UCTE-DEF Data

To import data via the UCTE interface, the general procedure is as follows:
• From the main menu go to File → Import→ UCTE. . . which opens the UCTE-Import dialog.
• Specify the required options and click on the Execute button.
Once the import process has been executed, the project (new or existing) is left activated upon comple-
tion.

The following section describes each of the UCTE import dialog options.

23.10.1.1 General Settings

Import into
New Project By choosing this option, a project will be created where all the UCTE data will be stored.
The user will have the option of specifying a specific name and location (other than the default).
Existing Project By choosing this option, the UCTE data will be imported into an already existing
project.

File Type
Add UCTE Files Location on the hard disk of the UCTE files. Two types of files are available: * .uct and
*
.ucte.
Options

Import for DACF process With this setting the user has the option to import the Day Ahead Forecast.
Convert negative loads to generators With this option enabled, negative loads defined in the UCTE
file will be converted to generators in the PowerFactory model.
Convert transformer equivalent to common impedance With this option enabled, transformer equiv-
alents defined in the UCTE file will be converted to common impedances in the PowerFactory
model.
Ignore reactive power limits for generators With this option enabled, the reactive power limits of the
generators defined in the UCTE file will be ignored .
Additional Parameters This field is specified for internal use only. No extra information is required by
the user.

23.10.2 Exporting UCTE-DEF Data

As in the other export interfaces, the UCTE Export is based on the active project at the moment the
export takes place. To export data via the UCTE interface, the general procedure is as follows:

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• Activate the project to be exported, considering the which Study Case, Scenario and Variations
should be active.
• From the main menu go to File → Export. . . → UCTE. . . which opens the UCTE-Export dialog.

• Specify the required options, and click on the Execute button.

The following section describe each of these options.

23.10.2.1 General Settings

File Type
UCTE Data Location on the hard disk where the UCTE files will be stored. Two types of files are
available: * .uct and * .ucte.
Grids Selection of which grids to export.

Options

Export UCTE voltage >= Only the elements having a voltage greater than the UCTE voltage specified
are exported.
Export branch as single equivalent line By enabling this option the export will convert the PowerFac-
tory branch definitions into single equivalent lines.
Use first character of characteristic name as branch order code If checked, the characteristic name
(first character) is used in the branch order code of the exported UCTE file.
Additional Parameters This field is specified for internal use only. No extra information is required by
the user.

23.11 CIM Interface

In PowerFactory, both export and import of CIM (Common Information Model) is supported. The CIM
interface is currently intended for importing/exporting the following profile:

• CGMES
• ENTSO-E 2009
CIM is defined in IEC-61970, and its purpose is to allow the exchange of information related to the
configuration and status of an electrical system. For more information relating to CGMES, please see
section 23.12 below.

23.11.1 Importing CIM Data

To import data via the CIM interface, the general procedure is as follows:
• From the main menu go to File → Import→ CIM. . . which opens the CIM-Import dialog.
• Specify the required options and click on the Execute button.
Once the import process has been executed, the project (new or existing) is left activated upon comple-
tion.

The following section describes each of the CIM import dialog options.

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23.11.1.1 General Page

Import from
Profile Currently the profiles ENTSO-E 2009, CGMES 2.4.15 and CGMES 3.0.0 are supported.
CIM File Location on the hard disk of the CIM files. Two types of files are supported: * .zip and * .xml.
Separated Files With this setting the user has the option to import the equipment, topology and solved
state files separately. This option is just available for ENTSO-E 2009.
Import into
New Project By choosing this option, a project will be created where all the CIM data will be stored.
The user will have the option of specifying a specific name and location (other than the default).

Active Project By choosing this option, the CIM data will be imported into the active project.
Additional Parameters This field is specified for internal use only. No extra information is required by
the user.

23.11.2 Exporting CIM Data

As in the other export interfaces, the CIM Export is based on the active project at the moment the
export takes place. To export data via the CIM interface, the general procedure is as follows:

• Activate the project to be exported, considering which Study Case, Scenario and Variations should
be active.
• From the main menu go to File → Export. . . → CIM. . . which opens the CIM-Export dialog.

• Specify the required options, and click on the Execute button.

The following sections describe each of these options.

23.11.2.1 General Page

Export to
Profile Currently the profiles ENTSO-E 2009, CGMES 2.4.15 and CGMES 3.0.0 are supported.
CIM file Location on the hard disk where the CIM files will be stored. Two types of files are supported:
*
.zip and * .xml.

23.11.2.2 Advanced Options

Grids Selection of which grids to export.

Following options are just available for ENTSO-E 2009 export. To perform a node reduction for CGMES
export, the Grid to CIM command needs to be configured accordingly (see Section 23.12.4).
• Perform node reduction: Internal nodes and switches are reduced to create a bus-branch model.
• Convert motors to CIM SynchronousMachine
• Convert voltage controlled SVS to CIM SynchronousMachine

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23.12 CGMES Tools

The CGMES Tools provide an additional interface to CIM. These tools are accessible via the main menu
in PowerFactory under Tools → CGMES Tools.

The import and export of a CIM file is also accessible via File → Import→ CIM. . . or File → Export→
CIM. . . .

This section describes these tools and uses the following naming conventions:
• Model folder stores all CIM data.
• Archive contains all corresponding CIM Models.

• CIM Model stores all data contained in a single instance file (mainly CIM Objects and names-
paces).
• CIM Object stores all data contained in a single object.
The CGMES Tools separates each action (i.e. the import and export of CIM data) into two steps. To
import data from a CIM file (XML or ZIP format) into PowerFactory, the first step is to import the CIM
data into CIM objects (CIM Data Import). This offers the user the possibility to directly interact with the
CIM data from within PowerFactory. The second step is to convert the CIM objects into a grid model
(CIM to Grid Conversion). To export grids from PowerFactory, they must first be converted to CIM
objects (Grid to CIM Conversion). These may still be modified if required, and also directly reimported.
The newly-created CIM objects can then be exported as a ZIP or XML file in conformity with the CIM
data structure (CIM Data Export).

23.12.1 CIM Data Import

CIM data can either be imported via the File or the Tools menu. The import via the File menu is explained
in section 23.11.1.

Import via CGMES Tools

The CIM Data Import is accessible in PowerFactory under Tools → CGMES Tools→ CIM Data Import.
The following options for the import location are available:
• New archive in new project creates a new project with the given name and imports the data into
an archive with the same name.

• New archive in active project imports the data into a new archive with the given name, within
the currently active project.
• Existing archive in active project imports the data into the given archive; data models that are
already contained in the archive will not be modified.
Import of instance data belonging to a profile (XML file)

By selecting “New archive in new project”, the name of the project and the file to import can be
specified. Upon clicking the Execute button, the content of the XML file will be imported. This step
results in an active project containing the “CIM Model” folder, which itself has a single archive. This
archive contains the model representations from the XML file.

Import of multiple profiles instance data (ZIP file)

By selecting “New archive in new project”, the name of the project and the file to import can be
specified. Upon clicking the Execute button, the content of the ZIP file will be temporarily extracted and
imported. This step results in an active project containing the “CIM Model” folder, which has a single
archive. This archive contains the model representations from the ZIP file.

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Import of multiple files

To import several files in a row, the destination Existing archive in active project must be used. The
archive created by the first step must be selected as the “Path” for all subsequent files. This will import
the data into the archive provided.

23.12.2 CIM Data Export

The CIM Data Export is accessible via one of the following options:

• File → Export→ CIM. . .

• Tools → CGMES Tools→ CIM Data Export
• right-click → CIM Data Export on a CIM Archive
The archive selected as “Source data” will be exported. This can be fine-tuned by an option for each
available profile instance. The option “Create archive for each CIM model” can be used to match the
DACF and D2CF requirements by ENTSO-E to upload each individual profile within a separated zip
file. In all cases the naming rules can be defined per profile. As these rules might be different for
various processes, the naming rules can be configured on the “Advanced Options” page according to
the individual needs for each profile.

23.12.3 CIM to Grid Conversion

The CIM to Grid Conversion is accessible under Tools → CGMES Tools→ CIM to Grid Conversion or
right-click → CIM to Grid Conversion on a CIM Archive. To convert all data contained in an imported
archive, select “CIM archives to convert” followed by Execute. This will additionally consider any valid
difference models contained in the archive. To import a base model only, the difference models must
be deleted before conversion. If only specific profile information should be exported, select “Convert
selected” and specify the profiles that should be considered. It should be noted that the resulting subset
of profiles still needs to be complete in terms of dependencies. Additional information (e.g. SSH data)
can be added to already converted models (i.e. EQ/TP); these must be selected as “CIM archives with
additional data”.

To convert an archive including models that have dependencies on other models not included in the
archive (e.g. the boundary grid), the other models must be specified as “CIM archives with additional
data”.

For both selections “CIM archives with additional data” as well as “CIM archives to convert” the user may
either select a single or multiple CIM archives in order to convert multiple archives at once or reference
to multiple ones (e.g. the Boundary and the used EQ file) accordingly.

On the Advanced option page, all available profiles in the selected archive will be shown on per MAS
basis in the “Modelling Authority Sets” table. These MAS will be linked to existing grid elements if a
matching rdfID is found, but can be adjusted manually if needed. Additionally the user can define how
to deal with the models per MAS. Therefore, the options convert, link and ignore are available, where
link means that the model is not converted, but only linked (e.g. an old version of a boundary is used).
In case of conversion of an already existing (referenced) model, this will be updated in terms of new
elements are added.

Note: A regular task in CGMES is to update the currently used boundary file. This can be achieved
by referencing the old boundary grid in the CIM to Grid conversion and converting it. This way
a merged boundary will be created (nodes that are used in the original Boundary that are not
existing anymore in the new one will remain).

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23.12.4 Grid to CIM Conversion

The Grid to CIM Conversion is accessible under Tools → CGMES Tools→ Grid to CIM Conversion.

The following options for the destination are available:

• New archive converts the networks into a new archive with the given name.
• Existing archive imports the data into the archive specified in “Target Archive”; if the archive
already contains models for the selected networks, the original models will be preserved.
• CIM Archives with additional data is used when references to other archives are required.

For “CIM Archives with additional data” the user may either select a single or multiple CIM archives for
example to manage dependencies on the correct Boundary grid.

Profile version: A drop-down menu allows the user to select which of the supported CGMES versions
should be used.

A model for each profile selected will be created per network in the target archive. By default all profiles
are selected. Boundary grids will only be exported with EQ and TP profiles (the respective boundary
versions).

23.12.4.1 Advanced Options

Further information for the model to be converted can be altered under the Advanced Options page:

Convert network selection The PowerFactory networks to be converted can be selected by ticking
the checkbox. Only activated networks can be converted. If one of the networks is to be treated as
boundary grid, the corresponding checkbox must be ticked as well. Each network to be converted must
have a Modelling Authority Set (MAS) URI. This is set to “unset” by default, but can be modified.

• Two or more networks can be associated to a common Modelling Authority Set. In such a case,
all networks and data associated to a MAS will be exported into the same model set.
• If the selection contains two or more Modelling Authority Sets (apart from the Boundary network),
and SV and/or DL profiles are selected for export, these instance data will be exported into
an “Assembled” model set. Otherwise, if only one MAS is converted (apart from the Boundary
network) SV and DL data will be exported into the same model set as EQ and TP models.

The option Create difference models creates a difference model, when selected. Note that difference
models can only be created if Existing archive is selected as the destination. This archive should contain
the base models for the difference models.

In order to create a bus-branch model, the option Create bus-branch model can be selected. When
ticked, an internal reduction from a node-breaker model to a bus-branch model is done automatically.
The resulting CIM archive will be a bus-branch model according to CGMES.

In addition, the following information can be optionally set:

• Version is an optional parameter to define the model version

• Description is an optional parameter to describe the model
• Additional Parameters are inputs causing specific behaviour and do not need to be used.

Note: CGMES is very strict in defining the hierarchy of the network elements. Therefore the network
selected for conversion needs to fulfil some requirements. Further information can be found in the
according tutorial under Help → Tutorial. . .

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23.12.5 CIM Data Validation

The CIM Data Validation is accessible under Tools → CGMES Tools→ CIM Data Validation or right-click
→ CIM Data Validation on a CIM Archive.

This data validation is based on the UML profile information and can be used on CIM archives to validate
their CGMES profile compliance. The archives used for this validation can be selected via “CIM Archives
or Models”. Therefore a multiselection is possible.

Note: This build-in validator can be used to validate archives of third parties or in case there are issues
in the conversion (e.g. missing dependencies). The validator is not officially supported by the
ENTSO-E.

23.12.6 Import and Export of the EIC as additional parameter

Grid to CIM Conversion

The “IdentifiedObject.energyIdentCodeEic” attribute is not applicable to PowerFactory data-model. How-

ever, it is possible to assign an “EIC” to a PowerFactory element, by adding the following “User Attribute”
entry at the end of the description field of PowerFactory elements:

<Attribute Name=“EIC” Type=“string”>the code</>

For PowerFactory elements where no “EIC” is provided, no “IdentifiedObject.energyIdentCodeEic” is

set in the corresponding CIM object.

CIM to Grid Conversion

The “IdentifiedObject.energyIdentCodeEic” attribute is not applicable to PowerFactory data-model, thus

is converted as a “User Attribute” entry at the end of the description field in PowerFactory elements as
follows:

<Attribute Name=“EIC” Type=“string”>the code</>

If no “IdentifiedObject.energyIdentCodeEic” is set in a CIM object, the entry will not be created in

the corresponding PowerFactory element. For CIM object classes which have no representation in
PowerFactory, the “EIC” code is not converted, thus not visible in PowerFactory data-model (e.g.
RegulatingControl, GeneratingUnit etc.).

23.13 Functional Mock-Up Interface

For a detailed description on the FMI refer to Section 29.14.1: Functional Mock-Up Interface.

23.14 OPC Interface

PowerFactory ’s OPC interface is an asynchronous communication and data exchange mechanism used
in process interaction and is widely applied in SCADA and control systems. This OPC implementation
assumes that the PowerFactory software is executed as an OPC Client while the OPC Server is
controlled via the external source. OPC server libraries are available from various manufacturers. An
example of a freeware OPC Server is that available from Matrikon (“MatrikonOPC Simulation Server”).

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PowerFactory supports both OPC DA (data access) and OPC UA (unified architecture) standards.

Figure 23.14.1 illustrates the integration of a SCADA system with PowerFactory via the OPC interface.
In this OPC implementation, PowerFactory can be used either in GUI-less or normal mode. Some
further characteristics of this integration include:
• OPC Client/Server exchange of any PowerFactory object parameter as well as any signal (bi-
directional Data Exchange).
• PowerFactory listening mode to receive any data or signal from a registered OPC Server.
• PowerFactory sending mode to write back any data or signal to a registered OPC Server.

Figure 23.14.1: SCADA -PowerFactory integration via the OPC interface.

The OPC interface can be configured in two different modes:

• Offline
– The bi-directional data exchange is carried out through an explicit command given by the user
in PowerFactory. For example, by pressing a button predefined by the user in PowerFactory.

• Online
– The bi-directional data exchange is automatically carried out at a certain frequency rate;
where the frequency rate is determined by the user.

23.14.1 OPC Interface Typical Applications

Some typical applications of the OPC Interface are the following:

• SCADA Online State Estimation
• SCADA Simulation Mode, for example dispatcher load flow, switching validation.

• SCADA Training Simulator

• Importing to PowerFactory
– in order to update the operational data.
– in order to reflect the Operator actions, such as breaker status and tap positions.
– in order to perform state estimation based on the measured network data.
• Exporting from PowerFactory
– in order to update the SCADA interface with the calculated results.

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23.15 StationWare Interface

This chapter describes the StationWare interface. An introduction into StationWare is provided in
Section 23.15.1.

The following two sections describe the overall StationWare architecture (Section 23.15.2) and the
conceptual differences between PowerFactory and StationWare (Section 23.15.3).

Both PowerFactory and StationWare have to be configured before they can be used together (Sec-
tion 23.15.4).

The Getting Started section (Section 23.15.5) provides an introduction to the most important features.
The complete documentation can be found in the section ’Description of the Menu and Dialogs’ (Sec-
tion 23.15.6).

The terms StationWare and PSMS are used synonymously throughout this chapter. PSMS stands
for Protection Settings Management System, and stresses the more internal and technical part of
StationWare.

23.15.1 About StationWare

DIgSILENT StationWare is a centralised asset management system for primary and secondary equip-
ment. It provides a reliable central protection settings database and management system for the
complete power system data, both to manage the various control parameters and to centrally store
power system related information and data, based on the latest .NET technology.

StationWare stores and records all settings in a central database, allows modelling of all relevant
work flow sequences, provides quick access to device manuals, interfaces with manufacturer-specific
relay settings software, and integrates with PowerFactory software, allowing powerful and easy-to-use
settings co-ordination studies.

Modern numerical relays have a large number of settings that are determined, stored and communi-
cated by proprietary software solutions (these may be suitable for only one particular manufacturer or
only one series or type of relay). This results in a fragmented and distributed settings “database”. DIgSI-
LENT StationWare provides a single system that incorporates all different device protocols, thereby
providing one manageable software data storage system, based on modern IT techniques, facilitating
data interfacing and exchange in a transparent and straightforward manner.

PowerFactory ’s data exchange facility allows it to access the settings stored in StationWare, such that
these may be used as input to the powerful PowerFactory system simulation and protection settings
tools. Settings that are calculated by using these tools may then be transferred back to StationWare.

23.15.2 Component Architecture

DIgSILENT StationWare is a so-called Client-Server Application: the functionality is distributed over at

least two computers: client and server. Figure 23.15.1 gives an overview of the components.

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Figure 23.15.1: Architecture overview

There are usually several clients. One main advantage of this architecture is that the data is stored in
one central database on the server. One client connects to the server and fetches the data from there,
modifies it, and then stores it back to the server. These changes are visible on other clients.

DIgSILENT StationWare server provides two interfaces to access from client machines:
• Visualisation by means of a standard web browser. The HTML interface can be used with an usual
web browser (e.g. Microsoft Internet Explorer or Mozilla Firefox).
The browser displays HTML pages which are created by StationWare’s HTML front end. The
HTML pages are transferred using the HTTP(S) protocol on top of the TCP/IP internet protocol.
HTML allows to present all kind of data e.g. plain text, tables or images.
Additionally HTML provides concepts to achieve interactivity: by submitting HTML forms or press-
ing on hyperlinks data is sent to the server. The server interprets such requests and creates new
HTML pages which are displayed by the browser again.
• The web service interface, similar to the HTML interface uses the HTTP(S) protocol to communi-
cate with the web service frontend, though no HTML pages are transferred but lower-level data
(SOAP/XML encoded). The web service client application is responsible to present this data
conveniently.
PowerFactory is able to play the role of a web service client. It integrates parts of StationWareś
data and concepts smoothly into its own world.

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Note: The default StationWare configuration requires SSL for the StationWare applications (web GUI
and web services). Please use HTTP instead of HTTPS, if SSL is not enabled for your StationWare
applications. In the following, the expression HTTP(S) is used.

The functionality of the HTML interface is covered in the StationWare manual. The remainder of this
chapter focuses on PowerFactory as client.

23.15.3 Fundamental Concepts

Although StationWare and PowerFactory store data and settings associated with primary devices such
as lines, transformers, . . . and secondary devices, i.e. relays, CTs, VTs and circuit breakers, the two
systems utilise different concepts to deal with this data.

In StationWare it is possible to model a location hierarchy and associate the devices to nodes in this
hierarchy (e.g. substations). This has no equivalent in PowerFactory, where the devices are stored
inside the parent grid (ElmNet) object.

Conversely, PowerFactory allows to the creation of a topological representation of networks which is

not supported in StationWare.

This section describes the concept mismatch between PowerFactory and StationWare. In order to use
the StationWare interface, it is important to understand the differences between both applications.

Location

In StationWare each device belongs to exactly one location. There are different location types e.g.
Region, Area, Site, Substation, or Bay. The locations are organised in a hierarchy tree as shown in
Figure 23.15.2.

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Figure 23.15.2: StationWare locations

In PowerFactory the data is organised in projects (IntPrj). A project may have one or more grids
(ElmNet) which in turn contain net elements e.g. terminals, cubicles, and relays (ElmRelay ). See
Figure 23.15.3 for a typical PowerFactory project.

Figure 23.15.3: PowerFactory project

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StationWare’s location concept and PowerFactory ’s project/grid concept hardly fit together. That’s the
reason why the data mapping between PowerFactory and StationWare begins at the device level which
is the subject of the next sections.

Device

StationWare manages a set of devices e.g. relays, CTs, VTs, circuit-breakers, . . . . Each device is
associated with a device type e.g. ABB DPU2000R or SEL421 003. In addition, each device has an
unique ID: the device ID.

In PowerFactory a relay is represented by an ElmRelay object which references exactly one TypRelay
object. The ElmRelay object contains several sub-components e.g. the I> component (a RelToc
object), the Logic component (RelLogic), or the Ios component (RelMeasure). See Figure 23.15.4
for an example. The device ID is used to link one StationWare device to one PowerFactory device. The
PowerFactory device e.g. an ElmRelay object stores the StationWare device ID as foreign key.

Figure 23.15.4: PowerFactory relay

Device State

A device’s state is in StationWare called setting. A setting is a list of parameters, and describes the
state of one device completely. An parameter is a tuple of
• parameter name,

• parameter type which can be an arbitrary integer or floating point number, optionally with a range
restriction, or a string, or a enumeration type.,
• a default value,
• an optional unit.

A complex relay may have thousands of parameters. In StationWare the setting parameters are organ-
ised in so-called setting groups. A setting group groups the parameters together which belong somehow
together. It’s often defined by the device manufacturer. Each parameter belongs to exactly one setting
group. Inside a group the parameter name is unique.

The device type defines which parameters and groups characterise a device. Table 23.15.1 shows an
example of a possible device type. There are two setting groups G and H. Group G has the parameters
a, b, and c, group H has the parameters d and e.

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Group Name Type Default Unit

G a integer in [0,10] 0 A
b float -0.32 l/s
c float in [0.03, 4.65] 1.0
H d string ’DEFAULT’
e enum ’yes’, ’no’, ’maybe’ ’yes’

Table 23.15.1: Settings Definition

According to this parameter definition a device can have settings as shown in tables 23.15.2 or 23.15.3.

Group, Name Value

G,a 7
G,b 23.43
G,c 1.1
H,d ’abc’
H,e ’maybe’

Table 23.15.2: Settings Example 1

Group, Name Value

G,a 8
G,b 0
G,c 1.1
H,d ’abcdef’
H,e ’yes’

Table 23.15.3: Settings Example 2

On the PowerFactory side there are neither settings nor groups. There is the ElmRelay object and its
sub-objects. These objects can have parameters. See Table 23.15.4 for a definition and Table 23.15.5
for an example. The TypRelay type defines components and parameters.

StationWare parameters are mapped to PowerFactory parameters and vice versa. The mapping is
non-trivial since only a small subset of the parameters (the calculation-relevant data) is modelled in
PowerFactory and vice versa. Additionally there is no one-to-one relationship between the Station-
Ware and PowerFactory parameters; i.e. a PowerFactory parameter may be calculated from several
StationWare parameters.

Component Parameter Type

i> o integer
Logic p string
q enum ’enabled’,’disabled’
los r float
s float

Table 23.15.4: Parameter Definition

Some relays support multiple setting groups (MSG) also called parameter sets. Such relays have
the same group many times (c.f. table 23.15.5). The groups H1, H2, and H3 have the same set of
parameters (c and d). The relay models in PowerFactory do not support this concept. Instead of
modelling all MSGs, only one instance of the H groups is provided.

In this case a group index parameter defines which of the MSGs actually is transferred from StationWare
to PowerFactory.

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Lifecycle Phase

In StationWare each setting has one lifecycle phase e.g. Planning or Applied. At each point in time
a device can have a set of settings e.g. three Planning settings, one Applied setting and 12 Historic
settings.

Component Parameter Value

i>:o 8
Logic:p ’HIGH’
Logic:q ’enabled’
los:r 18,5
los:s 19,5

Table 23.15.5: Parameter Example

Group Name Type Default Unit

G a integer in [0,10] 0 A
b float -0.32 l/s
H1 c string ’DEFAULT’
d float in [0.03,1.65] 1.0
H2 c string ’DEFAULT’
d float in [0.03,1.65] 1.0
H3 c string ’DEFAULT’
d float in [0.03,1.65] 1.0

Table 23.15.6: Multiple Setting Group Definition

In PowerFactory a device has exactly one state (or setting). Therefore when data is transferred between
PowerFactory and StationWare always a concrete device setting in StationWare must be specified.

For PowerFactory purposes a special PowerFactory planning phase is introduced. The transfer direc-
tions are specified as follows:
• Imports from StationWare into PowerFactory are restricted to Applied and PowerFactory
settings. Applied denotes the current applied setting (Applied) or a previous applied (Historic)
setting.

• Exports from PowerFactory to StationWare are restricted to the PowerFactory setting. (Applied
and Historic settings are read-only and can never be changed).
(Actually PowerFactory ś sophisticated variant management is similar to the phase concept, but there is
no obvious way how to bring them together.)

23.15.4 Configuration

In order to transfer data between PowerFactory and StationWare both systems must be configured.

StationWare Server

An arbitrary StationWare user account can be used for the StationWare interface in PowerFactory. The
user must have enough access rights to perform operations e.g. for the export from PowerFactory to
StationWare write-rights must be granted.

The bi-directional transfer of settings is restricted to lifecycle phases

1. of the phase type PLANNING or REVIEW and

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2. with a cardinality constraint of 1 i.e. there may exist one or no such setting for one device.
Ensure that at least one phase fulfils these requirements, and there exists a setting of this phase.

PowerFactory Client

The client operating system must allow connections to the server (network and firewall settings etc.).

Nothing has to be done in the PowerFactory configuration itself. The TypRelay in the Library must of
course support StationWare - PowerFactory mapping.

23.15.5 Getting Started

The mapping between PowerFactory object attributes and calculation results with StationWare device
settings or process attributes, or additional attributes of devices, is done via flexible DPL scripts. These
scripts have access not only to data in PowerFactory objects themselves, but also to other related
objects e.g a relay type object or relay sub-blocks.

To be able to transfer data from PowerFactory to StationWare and vice versa, suitable DPL scripts have
to be created and placed in an appropriate location in the project library folder.

Figure 23.15.5: Structure of the project library folder

The scripts for importing/exporting device settings should be located in the sub-folder “Settings” of the
StationWare folder inside the Project in PowerFactory.
Project\Library\StationWare\Settings.

For importing/exporting additional attributes from StationWare DPL scripts should be located in the sub-

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folder “Attributes”. To be able to export results from PowerFactory to StationWare the corresponding
script should be located in the sub-folder “Results”. None of these folders are by default in project library
folder and must therefore be created.

Important: DPL scripts for import/export relay settings must be saved in the same folder as the relay
model (as contents of a TypRelay object).

In difference to the data exchange of device settings, additional attributes and results, the DPL import/-
export scripts for relay settings can refer to mapping tables which simplify the mapping of individual
parameters and the implementation of dependencies between parameters. Therefore, there are two
different ways of exchanging relay settings. Either the mapping of the parameters in the DPL script
code or the parameter mapping in mapping tables. Depending on which variant is selected, the
basic DPL scripts differ. More information about the different mapping possibilities can be found in
the documentation for Protection Devices Library.

23.15.5.1 Import/Export of Relay Settings

This section is a simple walk-through and covers the most essential StationWare interface functionality.

By using a basic PowerFactory project and basic StationWare substation, it describes

1. how relays in StationWare and PowerFactory are created,

2. how these relays are linked,

3. how settings can be exported from PowerFactory to StationWare

4. how settings can be imported again into PowerFactory.

All (especially the more advanced) options and features are described in the section ’Description of the
Menu and Dialogs’ (see Section 23.15.6).

Prepare substation in StationWare

We begin with the StationWare side. We create a substation and two relays within:

• Start the web browser,

• log on to the StationWare system,
• create a new substation titled Getting Started,
• create two relays named Getting Started Relay 1 and Getting Started Relay 2 in the Getting
Started substation.

In the HTML interface the station detail page should look as shown in Figure 23.15.6.
• Go to the detail page of the Getting Started Relay 1 (Figure 23.15.7).

Since we have just created the device it has no settings, yet. Later it will contain a PowerFactory setting
which reflects the relay state on the PowerFactory side.

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Figure 23.15.6: Substation

Figure 23.15.7: Device

Prepare project in PowerFactory

Create a new PowerFactory project and create a simple grid within:

• Start PowerFactory,
• create a new project titled GettingStarted,
• draw a simple grid with two terminals (ElmTerm) connected by a line (ElmLne) as shown in
Figure 23.15.8.

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Figure 23.15.8: Grid

Now add a relay to the upper terminal:

• Right-click the cubicle quadrangle with the mouse. A context menu pops up.
• Select Devices → Relay → New. . . as shown in Figure 23.15.9.
A dialog pops up that allows you to specify the settings of the new relay (ElmRelay ).

• Insert Getting Started Relay 1 as Name,

• select an appropriate Relay Type which supports StationWare import/export (see Figure 23.15.10),
• press OK,

• in the same way add a relay Getting Started Relay 2 to the second terminal.

PowerFactory ’s object filter mechanism gives an overview over all devices inside the current project.

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Figure 23.15.9: Cubicle context menu

• Press the icon (Open Network Model Manager. . . ) in the toolbar and select the class
(ElmRelay ) to filter out all non-relay objects.

All calculation relevant relays (actually there only the two we created above) are displayed in a table
(see Figure 23.15.11).

Link Relays and establish a Connection

Now the PowerFactory relays must get linked to the StationWare relays. To be able to make a connec-
tion:

• Ensure that the DPL Import/Export scripts are saved in the same folder as the relay model. If
mapping tables are used, ensure that the path and the name of the mapping tables is set in the
DPL Import/Export scripts.

• Mark both relay icons with the mouse.

• Press the right mouse button.

A context menu pops up as shown in Figure 23.15.12.

• Select the StationWare menu item,

• select the Select Device ID item.

A Log on to StationWare server dialog pops up. Since this is the first time PowerFactory connects to
the StationWare server some connection settings must be entered.

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Figure 23.15.10: Relay dialog

• Enter the Server Endpoint URL of the StationWare server. The URL should have a format similar
to
http(s)://192.168.1.53/psmsws/PSMSService.asmx.

• Enter Username and Password of a valid StationWare user account.

Figure 23.15.11: Relay display

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Figure 23.15.12: Device context menu

Figure 23.15.21 shows the dialog settings.

Figure 23.15.13: Log on dialog

• Press OK.

The connection procedure may take some seconds. If the server could be accessed and the user could
be authenticated a success message is printed into the output window

Established connection to StationWare server

’https://192.168.1.53/psmsws/PSMSService.asmx’(version 18.2.6981) as user
’Administrator’

Otherwise an error dialog pops up. Correct the connection settings until the connection is successfully
created. The section ’Description of the Menu and Dialogs’ (Section 23.15.6) explains the connection
options in detail.

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Having established a connection to the server, a browser dialog pops up which displays the location
hierarchy as known from the StationWare HTML interface. The dialog is shown in Figure 23.15.14.
• Navigate to the Getting Started substation,

• select the Getting Started Relay 1 device,

• press OK.

Figure 23.15.14: Browser dialog

Now the PowerFactory relay is “connected” to the StationWare device.

• In the same way select Getting Started Relay 2 for the second PowerFactory relay.

Export and Import Settings

Having linked PowerFactory to StationWare devices, the transfer between both systems can be started.
• Mark the relays with the mouse and right-click to get the relay context menu as shown in Fig-
ure 23.15.12.
• Select the Export Settings. . . in the StationWare menu entry.

A ComStationware dialog is shown which allows to specify the export options. See section ’Export and
Import Settings’ in the chapter 23.15.6 for all export options.

• Select PowerFactory as lifecycle phase,

• press Execute.

After a few seconds the relay settings are transferred to the server, and the output window contains the
message

Exported 2 of 2 device settings successfully

The result can now be observed in the StationWare HTML interface.

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Figure 23.15.15: Device detail page

• Navigate to the relay detail view of the Getting Started Relay 1 relay (see Fig. 23.15.15)

Observe the new created PF setting. The phase of this setting is PowerFactory.
• Switch to the settings detail page of the new PowerFactory setting (see Fig. 23.15.16).

Figure 23.15.16: Setting detail page

The setting values should correspond to the relay state in PowerFactory. In the same way the Getting
Started Relay 2 relay has a new PF setting.

Now try the opposite direction and import a setting from StationWare into PowerFactory.
• Modify the PF settings in StationWare by entering some other values.
• In PowerFactory mark the relays with the mouse and right-click to get the relay context menu as
shown in Figure 23.15.12.

• Select the Import Settings. . . in the StationWare menu entry.

Again the ComStationware dialog pops up as known from the export.
• Leave the default settings,
• press Execute.

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Again the result of the settings transfer is reflected in the output window:

Imported 2 of 2 device settings successfully

• find ElmRelay object parameters changed according to the changes on the StationWare side

All import options are described in detail in the section 23.15.6: Import/Export Options.

23.15.5.2 Import/Export of the Additional Attributes

Additional attributes represent additional information which users may find useful for a location, device
or settings within a device. These are not directly part of a settings record but are user-defined. For
example, a common additional attribute that is useful for a feeder or substation location is the nominal
voltage level in kV. Primary elements such as lines do not posses settings but instead parameters.
Parameters such as length or impedance are then presented by the use of additional attributes.

Figure 23.15.17: Additional attributes on the ’Device’ page

The following information for additional attributes can be imported/exported:

• Name of the attribute
• Description
• Unit
• Value (Bool, String, Integer, Real, Enumeration, Data Time)
• Type (Attribute, Propagate, Overall Status, Revision Number)

Import/export of additional attributes also requires that the DPL script be saved in the appropriate place
(see Section 23.15.5). All actions are similar to those described for settings (see Section 23.15.5.1) .

23.15.5.3 Export of the calculation results

Calculation results data exchange is only possible in one direction: from PowerFactory to StationWare.
It is important to know that PowerFactory stores calculation results in attributes of temporary so-called
“calculation objects”.

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This data will be exchanged between “calculation objects” and StationWare process objects.

Preparation of StationWare for importing result data

Inside a StationWare project, define the process lifecycle, category and type. This process object
should be configured to be capable of result data storage and presentation (e.g. “ArcFlashLabel Type”
see 23.15.18).

Important: Process lifecycle must posses a phase named “PowerFactory ” of type “Planning”.

Figure 23.15.18: Process types page in StationWare

After being defined, the process should be created and have a device assigned to it.

Figure 23.15.19: Location page where process is created

Preparing PowerFactory for export of result data

In PowerFactory it is important to have the DPL transfer script created and saved in a proper place
inside the project library folder (see Section 23.15.5). It is necessary to use separate scripts for each
calculation type and for each PowerFactory object class.

Connection of PowerFactory and StationWare

Refer to Section 23.15.5.1.

Export of results

Refer to similar section 23.15.5.1.

23.15.6 Description of the Menu and Dialogs

This section describes all options and features concerning the StationWare interface.

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The Device Context Menu

Almost all functionality can be accessed by the device context menu. Mark one or more objects which
supports the StationWare transfer e.g. ElmRelay
• in the object filter (Figure 23.15.12)
• in the Data Manager as shown in Figure 23.15.20.

Figure 23.15.20: Device context menu

The StationWare submenu contains the entries as follows:

Import X. . . opens the ComStationware dialog and sets the device selection according to the
above selected device objects. The ComStationware dialog settings are explained in detail in
Section 23.15.6: The ComStationware Object.

Export X. . . does the same for the export direction.

Select Device ID. . . starts the Browser dialog (Figure 23.15.24) to link this device to a Station-
Ware device. The dialog is subject of Section 23.15.6 : The Browser dialog.

Reset Device ID resets the device ID.

Connect. . . terminates the current StationWare session if it’s already existing. Shows a Log On
dialog. The connection settings are covered by Section 23.15.6. This may be useful when you
are using several StationWare accounts and want to switch between them.

Disconnect terminates the StationWare session

Connection

Similar to the HTML interface the StationWare interface in PowerFactory is session - oriented: when
a user logs on to the system by specifying a valid StationWare account (username and password) a
new session is created. Only inside such a session StationWare can be used. The account privileges
restrict the application functionality e.g. an administrator account is more powerful than a usual user
account.

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Figure 23.15.21: Log on dialog

Working with PowerFactory for the first time, the StationWare server is required, and the log on dialog
is as shown in Figure 23.15.21.

The StationWare connection options are stored in the user settings (Figure 23.15.22). After each
successful logon the user settings are updated.

Figure 23.15.22: Log on dialog

As mentioned in the Architecture section (Section 23.15.2) StationWare is a client-server application.

The StationWare server component is located on a server machine in the internet. The client component
is the PowerFactory application which is running on a client machine.

The technology PowerFactory and StationWare use to communicate is called web services and is
standardised like many other internet technologies (HTML, HTTP(S)). The server computer (or more
exactly the StationWare service application on the server computer) has a ’name’ by which it can be
accessed. This ’name’ is called service endpoint and resembles a web page URL:

https://the.server.name/psmsws/PSMSService.asmx

or

https://192.168.1.53/psmsws/PSMSService.asmx

http(s) denotes the protocol, the.server.name is the computer name (or DNS) of the server computer
and psmsws/PSMSService.asmx is the name of the StationWare application.

The connection options are as follows:

Service Endpoint The Service Endpoint denotes the StationWare server ’name’ as described
above

Username/Password Username and Password have to be valid user account in StationWare. A

StationWare user account has nothing to do with the PowerFactory user account.

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The very same StationWare account can be used by two different PowerFactory users. The privileges
of the StationWare account actually restrict the functionality. For device import the user requires read-
access rights. For exporting additionally write-access rights are required.

The Browser Dialog

As mentioned in the Concept description (see Section 23.15.3: Device) the StationWare device ID
is stored as Foreign Key in the e.g. ElmRelay object dialog (Description page) as shown in Fig-
ure 23.15.23.

Figure 23.15.23: ElmRelay dialog

A more convenient way is to use the Browser dialog shown in Figure 23.15.24. The dialog allows to
browse through the StationWare location hierarchy and select a device. The hierarchy data is cached to
minimise network accesses. Due this caching it’s possible that there may exist newly created locations
or devices which are not displayed in the browser dialog. The Refresh button empties the cache and
enforces PowerFactory to re-fetch the correct data from the server.

The ComStationware Object

In PowerFactory almost everything is an object: relays are ElmRelay objects, users are IntUser objects,
and grids are ElmNet objects, . . .

What may be on the first sight confusing is the fact that actions are objects as well: for a short-circuit
calculation a ComShc object is created. The calculation can be performed with several options e.g.
3-Phase, single phase, or 3 Phase to Neutral.

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Figure 23.15.24: Browser dialog

You can even specify the fault location. All these calculation options are stored in the ComShc object.
Every action object has an Execute button which starts the action. In fact there is a large number
of parameterised actions like load flow calculation (ComLdf ), simulation (ComSim), there is even a
ComExit object that shuts down PowerFactory. All objects which can ’do’ something have the Com
prefix.

Since the StationWare interface is actually ’doing’ something (it does import data, it does export data) it
is implemented as a ComStationware object.

The ComStationware object is used both for the import and the export. It is located in the project’s study
case according to PowerFactory convention.

By default the study case of a new project contains no ComStationware object. It is automatically
created when it is first needed, as well as the ComShc object is instantiated at the time when the first
short-circuit calculation is performed.

Import/Export Options

The ComStationware dialog provides import/export options as follows:

Transfer Mode select Import/Export from StationWare as Transfer Mode

Transfer Data select Import/Export Data from StationWare (Attributes, Settings, Results of last
calculation)

Check only Plausibility if the Check only Plausibility flag is enabled the import is only simulated
but not really executed.

Lifecycle Phase/Time stamp A list of available lifecycle phases is shown.

• PowerFactory selects the current setting with PowerFactory phase as source setting.
• If Applied is selected the current Applied setting is transferred. If additionally a Timestamp value
is entered the setting that was applied at this time is transferred which may either be Applied or
Historic.

The Timestamp format is in ISO format: e.g. 2005-02-28 22:27:16

The time part may be omitted. Then 00:00:00 AM is assumed.

All Devices If All Devices is enabled, all calculation-relevant devices are imported/exported.

Device Selection Unless All Devices is enabled, the Device Selection provides a more subtle

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way to specify which devices are to be transferred.

The Device Selection is automatically set if the Device Context Menu mechanism (Section 23.15.6:
The Device Context Menu) is used.

All Settings Groups/Group Index This parameter specifies how multiple settings groups (MSG)
are handled.

The import/export transfer is started by pressing Execute.

23.16 API (Application Programming Interface)

For a detailed description on the API, a reference document is available via the main menu Help →
Additional Packages→ Programming Interface (API)

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 Part IV

Power System Analysis Functions

Chapter 24

Load Flow Analysis

24.1 Introduction

Whenever evaluating the operation and control of power systems, the electrical engineer is typically
encountered with questions such as:

• Are the voltages of every busbar in the power system acceptable?

• What is the loading of the different equipment in the power system? (transformers, transmission
lines, generators, etc.)
• How can I achieve the best operation of the power system?
• Does the power system have a weakness (or weaknesses)? If so, where are they located and
how can I countermeasure them?

Although we may consider that the above questioning would arise only when analysing the behaviour
of “existing” power systems; the same interrogations can be formulated when the task relates to the
analysis of “future” systems or “expansion stages” of an already existing power system; such as evalu-
ating the impact of commissioning a transmission line or a power plant, or the impact of refurbishment
or decommissioning of equipment (for example shutting down a power plant because it has reached its
life expectancy).

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Figure 24.1.1: Power System Analysis: System Operation and System Planning

Taking into account these two aspects: 1) Present operation and 2) Future operation, is how power
should be analysed. From one side, an operation or control engineer requires relevant information to
be available to him almost immediately, meaning he must be able to obtain somehow the behaviour
of the power system under different configurations that can occur (for example by opening or closing
breakers in a substation); on the other side, a planning engineer requires obtaining the behaviour of
the system reflecting reinforcements that have not yet been built while considering the corresponding
yearly and/or monthly load increase. Regardless of the perspective, the engineer must be able to
determine beforehand the behaviour of the power system in order to establish, for example, the most
suitable operation configuration or to detect possible weakness and suggest solutions and alternatives.
Figures 24.1.2 and 24.1.3 illustrate the system operation and planning aspects.

Figure 24.1.2: Power system operation example

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Figure 24.1.3: Power system planning example

24.2 Technical Background

Load flow calculations are used to analyse power systems under steady-state non-faulted (short-circuit-
free) conditions. Where steady-state is defined as a condition in which all the variables and parameters
are assumed to be constant during the period of observation. We can think of this as “taking a picture” of
the power system at a given point in time. To achieve a better understanding let us refer to Figure 24.2.1.
Here a 24 hour load demand profile is depicted. The user can imagine this varying demand to be the
demand of a specific area or region, or the demand of a whole network. In this particular case the
load is seen as increasing from early in the morning until it reaches it’s maximum at around 18:00
hrs. After this point in time, the total load then begins to decrease. A load flow calculation is stated
to be a steady-state analysis because it reflects the system conditions for a certain point in time,
such as for instance at 18:00 hrs (maximum demand). As an example, if we require determining the
behaviour of the system for every hour of the day, then 24 load flows need to be performed; if the
behaviour for every second is required then the number of load flow calculations needed would amount
to 86 400. In PowerFactory, the active power (and/or reactive power) of the loads can be set with
a Characteristic so they follow a certain profile (daily, weekly, monthly, etc.). By doing so, the active
power will change automatically according to the date ant time specified. For more information refer to
Chapter 17(Parameter Characteristics, Load States, and Tariffs).

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Figure 24.2.1: Example of a Load Demand Curve

A load flow calculation will determine the active and reactive power flows for all branches, and the
voltage magnitude and phase for all nodes.

The main areas for the application of load flow calculations can be divided in normal and abnormal
(Contingency) system conditions as follows:

Normal System Conditions

• Calculation of branch loadings, system losses and voltage profiles.

• Optimisation tasks, such as minimising system losses, minimising generation costs, open tie
optimisation in distributed networks, etc.
• Calculation of steady-state initial conditions for stability simulations or short-circuit calculations
using the complete superposition method.

Abnormal System Conditions

• Calculation of branch loadings, system losses and voltage profiles.

• Contingency analysis, network security assessment.

• Optimisation tasks, such as minimising system losses, minimising generation costs, open tie
optimisation in distributed networks, etc.
• Verification of system conditions during reliability calculations.

• Automatic determination of optimal system resupplying strategies.

• Optimisation of load-shedding.
• Calculation of steady-state initial conditions for stability simulations or short-circuit calculations
using the complete superposition method (special cases).

Regarding the above definitions of ”normal” and ”abnormal” system conditions, a distinction should be
made in terms of the manner simulations should be performed:

Simulation of normal operating conditions: Here, the generators dispatch as well as the loads are
known, and it is therefore sufficient for the load flow calculation to represent these generators
dispatch and to provide the active and reactive power of all loads. The results of the load flow

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calculation should represent a system condition in which none of the branch or generator limits
are exceeded.
Simulation of abnormal operating conditions: Here a higher degree of accuracy from the models
is needed. It can no longer be assumed that the entire system is operating within limits. The
models must be able to correctly simulate conditions which deviate from the normal operating
point. Hence the reactive power limits of generators or the voltage dependency of loads must be
modelled. Additionally, in many applications, the active power balance cannot be established with
a single slack bus (or machine). Instead, a more realistic representation of the active and reactive
power control mechanisms have to be considered to determine the correct sharing of the active
and reactive power generation.

Besides the considerations regarding abnormal conditions presented above, the assumption of bal-
anced systems may be inappropriate for certain distribution networks. State of the art computational
tools for power systems analysis must be therefore able to represent unbalanced networks for load flow
calculations as well.

The calculation methods and the options provided by PowerFactory ’s load flow analysis function allow
the accurate representation of any combination of meshed 1-, 2-, and 3-phase AC and/or DC systems.
The load flow tool accurately represents unbalanced loads, generation, grids with variable neutral
potentials, HVDC systems, DC loads, adjustable speed drives, SVSs, and FACTS devices, etc., for
all AC and DC voltage levels. With a more realistic representation of the active and reactive power
balance mechanisms, the traditional requirement of a slack generator is left optional to the user.

The most considerable effect of the resistance of transmission lines and cables is the generation of
losses. The conductor resistance will at the same time depend on the conductor operating temperature,
which is practically linear over the normal range of operation. In order to carry out such type of analysis,
PowerFactory offers a Temperature Dependency option, so that the conductor resistance is corrected
according to the specified temperature value.

For very fast and reliable analysis of complex transmission networks, where only the flow of active power
through the branches is considered, PowerFactory offers an additional load flow method, namely “DC
load flow (linear)”, which determines the active power flows and the voltage angles within the network.

The following sections introduce the calculation methods and the options provided with PowerFactory ’s
load flow tool. This information is a guide to the configuration of the PowerFactory load flow analysis
command . Additional information about special options are given in 24.2. Further technical details
related to the models (Network Components) implemented in PowerFactory for load flow calculations
are provided in the Technical References Document.

24.2.1 Network Representation and Calculation Methods

A load flow calculation determines the voltage magnitude (V) and the voltage angle (𝜗) of the nodes,
as well as the active (P) and reactive (Q) power flow on branches. Usually, the network nodes are
represented by specifying two of these four quantities. Depending on the quantities specified, nodes
can be classified as:

• PV nodes: here the active power and voltage magnitude are specified. This type of node
is used to represent generators and synchronous condensers whose active power and voltage
magnitude are controlled (synchronous condensers P=0). In order to consider equipment limits
under abnormal conditions (as mentioned in the previous section), reactive power limits for the
corresponding network components are also used as input information.
• PQ nodes: here the active and reactive power are specified. This type of node is used to
represent loads and machines with fixed values. Loads can also be set to change (from their
original 𝑃0 and 𝑄0 values at nominal voltage) as a function of the voltage of the node to which
the load itself is connected. Elements specified as PQ (for example synchronous machines, static
generator’s, PWM converters or SVS’s) can be “forced” by the algorithm so that the P and Q
resulting from the load flow are always within limits.

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• Slack node: here the voltage magnitude and angle are fixed. In traditional load flow calculations
the slack node (associated with a synchronous generator or an external grid) carries out the
balancing of power in the system.

• Device nodes: special nodes used to represent devices such as HVDC converters, SVSs, etc.,
with specific control conditions (for example the control of active power flow at a certain MW
threshold in a HVDC converter, or the control of the voltage of a busbar by an SVS).

Note: In traditional load flow calculations, asynchronous machines are represented by PQ nodes,
assuming that the machine operates at a certain power factor, independent of the busbar voltage.
Besides this traditional representation, PowerFactory offers a more accurate “slip iteration” (AS)
representation based on the model equivalent circuit diagrams. For further information refer to the
Technical References Document

In contrast to other power system calculation programs, PowerFactory does not directly define the
node characteristic of each busbar. Instead, more realistic control conditions for the network elements
connected to these nodes are defined (see the Load Flow page of each element’s dialog). For example,
synchronous machines are modelled by defining one of the following control characteristics:

• Controlled power factor (cos(𝜙)), constant active and reactive power (PQ);
• Constant voltage, constant active power (PV) on the connected bus;
• Secondary (frequency) controller (slack, SL).

It is also important to note that in PowerFactory the active and reactive power balance of the analysed
networks is not only possible through a slack generator (or external grid). The load flow calculation tool
allows the definition of more realistic mechanisms to control both active and reactive power. For further
information refer to Section 24.4.1.

Phase Technology

PowerFactory offers the possibility to model single-, bi- and three-phase AC networks with and without
the neutral conductor and DC networks. The system type (AC, DC or AC/BI) and the number of phases
are defined in the nodes.
• ABC corresponds to a three phase system with a phase shift of 120∘ between the phases.
• BI represents a dual phase system with a 180∘ phase shift between both phases.

• 2PH is used if only two of the three phases of an ABC-system are connected.
• 1PH is the choice if only a single phase has to be modelled.
• xxx-N considers an additional neutral conductor for the xxx phase technology.
Edge elements with 1, 2 or 3 phases can be connected to nodes with a corresponding phase technology.
For e.g. lines or transformers, the phase technology is set in their types, whereas e.g. the balanced or
unbalanced power demand of loads can be configured directly in the element.

This leads to a high flexibility in modelling any desired network with varying phase technologies in the
same or different projects and calculating the resulting power flows.

AC Load Flow Method

In PowerFactory the nodal equations used to represent the analysed networks are implemented using
two different formulations:

• Newton-Raphson (Current Equations).

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• Newton-Raphson (Power Equations, classical).

In both formulations, the resulting non-linear equation systems must be solved by an iterative method.
PowerFactory uses the Newton-Raphson method as its non-linear equation solver. The selection of
the method used to formulate the nodal equations is user-defined, and should be selected based on
the type of network to be calculated. For large transmission systems, especially when heavily loaded,
the standard Newton-Raphson algorithm using the “Power Equations” formulation usually converges
best. Distribution systems, especially unbalanced distribution systems, usually converge better using
the “Current Equations” formulation.

In addition to the Newton-Raphson iterations, which solve the network nodal equations, PowerFactory
applies an outer loop when the control characteristic of automatic transformer tap changers and/or
switchable shunts is considered. Once the Newton-Raphson iterations converge to a solution within the
defined tolerance (without considering the setpoint values of load flow quantities defined in the control
characteristic of the tap changers/switchable shunts), the outer loop is applied in order to reach these
target values. The actions taken by the outer iterative loop are:

• Increasing/decreasing discrete taps;

• Increasing/decreasing switchable shunts; and
• Limiting/releasing synchronous machines to/from max/min reactive power limits.

Once the above-listed actions are taken, a new Newton-Raphson load flow iteration takes place in order
to determine the new network operating point.

In the classical load flow calculation approach, the unbalance between phases are neglected. For the
analysis of transmission networks this assumption is generally admissible. In distribution networks this
assumption may be inappropriate depending on the characteristics of the network. PowerFactory allows
the calculation of both balanced (AC Load Flow, balanced positive sequence) and unbalanced (AC Load
Flow Unbalanced, 3-phase (ABC)) load flows according to the descriptions above.

DC Load Flow Method

In addition to the “AC” load flow calculations presented in this section, PowerFactory offers a so-called
“DC” load flow calculation method. The DC load flow should not be interpreted as a method to be used
in case of DC systems given that it basically applies to AC systems.

Some occasions we may require performing fast analysis in complex transmission networks where only
a reasonable approximation of the active power flow of the system is needed. For such situations the DC
load flow can be used. Other applications of the DC load flow method include situations where the AC
load flow has trouble converging (see Section 24.6: Troubleshooting Load Flow Calculation Problems).

In this particular method, the non-linear system resulting from the nodal equations is simplified due to
the dominant relation that exists between voltage angle and active power flow in high voltage networks.
By doing so a set of linear equations is thereby obtained, where the voltage angles of the buses are
directly related to the active power flow through the reactance of the individual components. The DC
load flow does not require an iterative process and the calculation speed is therefore considerably
increased. Only active power flow without losses is considered. Summarising, the DC load flow method
has the following characteristics:

• The calculation requires the solving of a set of linear equations.

• No iterations required, therefore fast, and also no convergence problems.
• Approximate solution:
– All node voltage magnitudes fixed at 1.0 per unit.
– Only active power and voltage angles calculated.
– Losses are neglected.

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24.3 Executing Load Flow Calculations

A load flow calculation may be initiated by:

• Pressing the icon on the main toolbar;

• Selecting the Calculation → Load Flow . . . option from the main menu.
The following pages explain the load flow command options. Following this, some hints are given
regarding what to do if your load flow cannot be solved.

The following pages describe the different load flow command (ComLdf ) options. For a more detailed
technical background regarding the options presented here, refer to Section 24.4. If the execution of
the Load Flow Calculation leads to errors, refer to Section 24.6 for troubleshooting. The analysis of the
results is however described in Section 26.5.

24.3.1 Basic Options

24.3.1.1 Calculation Method

AC Load Flow, balanced, positive sequence: performs load flow calculations for a single-phase,
positive sequence network representation, valid for balanced symmetrical networks. A balanced repre-
sentation of unbalanced objects is used (for further details refer to Section 24.2.1).

AC Load Flow, unbalanced, 3 Phase (ABC): performs load flow calculations for a multi-phase network
representation. It can be used for analysing unbalances of 3-phase systems, e.g. introduced by
unbalanced loads or non-transposed lines, or for analysing all kinds of unbalanced system technologies,
such as single-phase- or two-phase systems (with or without neutral return). For further details refer to
Section 24.2.1. Unbalance specific results are described in Section 24.5.6.

DC Load Flow (linear): performs a DC load flow based on a set of linear equations, where the voltage
angles of the buses are strongly related to the active power flow through the reactance of the individual
components (for further details refer to Section 24.2.1).

24.3.1.2 Active Power Regulation

Automatic tap adjustment of phase shifters: this option allows the automatic tapping of phase
shifters (quadrature boosters) which have automatic tapping enabled. It will be effective both for DC
and AC load flow calculations.

Consider active power limits: active power limits for models (as defined on the element’s Load Flow
tab) participating in active power balance, will be applied. If this option is disabled, the active power
output limits may be violated, in which case a warning is issued. Note that it is possible to be selective
about which machine models are considered in this respect; section 24.3.3 describes how the models
can be selected.

24.3.1.3 Voltage and Reactive Power Regulation

This option is available only for AC load flow calculations.

Automatic tap adjustment of transformers: adjusts the taps of all transformers which have the option
Automatic Tap Changing enabled on the Load Flow page of their element dialogs. The tap adjustment
is carried out according to the control settings defined in the transformer element’s dialog (for further
information refer to the Technical References Document).

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Automatic tap adjustment of shunts: adjusts the steps of all switchable shunts that have the option
Switchable enabled on the Load Flow page of the shunt’s element dialog (for further information refer to
the Technical References Document).

Consider reactive power limits: considers the reactive power limits of models. If the load flow cannot
be solved without exceeding the specified limits, a convergence error is generated. If this option is
not enabled, PowerFactory will print a warning message if any of the specified limits are exceeded.
Note that it is possible to be selective about which machine models are considered in this respect;
section 24.3.3 describes how the models can be selected.

24.3.1.4 Temperature Dependency: Line/Cable Resistances

. . . at 20∘ C: the resistance of each line, conductor and cable will be according to the value stated in the
Basic Data page of their corresponding type (at 20∘ C).

. . . at Maximum operating temperature: the resistance of each line, conductor and cable will be ad-
justed according to the equation (24.26) described in Section 24.4.4 and the Temperature Dependency
option stated in its corresponding type (TypLne, TypCon, TypCab).

. . . at Operating temperature: when this option is selected, the specified individual operating temper-
ature for each line and cable is used (specified on the Load Flow page of the element).

. . . at Temperature: when this option is selected a global operating temperature can be specified in the
load flow command that is applied to all lines and cables.

24.3.1.5 Load Options

Consider Voltage Dependency of Loads: the voltage dependency of loads with defined voltage
dependency factors (Load Flow page of the general- and complex load types) will be considered.

Feeder Load Scaling: scales loads with the option Adjusted by Feeder Load Scaling enabled on the
Load Flow page of their element dialog according to the Scaling Factors specified in the Load Scaling
section of the feeder element. In this case, the Scaling Factor specified on the Load Flow page of
load element dialog is disregarded. For the purpose of unbalanced load flows, if the option Phasewise
scaling is selected on the Load Flow page of the feeder elements, different set points can be specified
for each phase.

Details of the scaling process can be found in section 24.4.3.

24.3.2 Active Power Control

24.3.2.1 Active Power Control

As explained in Section 24.4.1, PowerFactory ’s load flow calculation offers several options for maintain-
ing power balance within the system under analysis. These options are:

as Dispatched: if this option is selected and no busbar is assigned to the Reference Busbar (Refer-
ence Bus and Balancing section of the Active Power Control tab), the total power balance is established
by one reference generator/external grid (“slack”-generator). The slack generator can be directly defined
by the user on the Load Flow page of the target element. The program automatically sets a slack if one
has not been already defined by the user.

according to Secondary Control: power balance is established by all generators which are considered
by a “Secondary Controller” as explained in Section 24.4.1. Active power contribution is according to
the secondary controller participation factors.

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according to Primary Control: power balance is established by all generators having a Kpf -setting de-
fined (on the Load Flow page of a synchronous machine element dialog), as explained in Section 24.4.1.
Active power contribution is according to the droop of every generator.

according to Inertias: power balance is established by all generators, and the contribution of each is
according to the inertia (acceleration time constant) as explained in Section 24.4.1.

24.3.2.2 Balancing

If as Dispatched is selected in the Active Power Control section of the tab, further options regarding the
power balancing method are available:

by reference machine: for each isolated area, the reference machine will balance the active power.

by load at reference bus: this option is valid only when the reference busbar has been defined. The
load with highest active power injection at the reference bus will be selected as the slack (such as to
balance the losses).

by static generator at reference bus: as in the case of Balancing by Load, this option is valid only
when the reference busbar has been defined. The static generator with the highest rated apparent
power at the reference bus will be selected as the slack (i.e. to balance the losses).

Distributed slack by loads: when this option is selected, only the loads which have the option Adjusted
by Load Scaling enabled in the isolated area will contribute to the balancing. The distribution factor
calculated for a load is determined by the following equation:

𝑃𝑖𝑛𝑖,𝑖
𝐾𝑖 = 𝑛 (24.1)
∑︁
𝑃𝑖𝑛𝑖,𝑗
𝑗=1

where,

𝑃𝑖𝑛𝑖 is the initial active power of the load.

Distributed slack by synchronous generators: all the synchronous generators in the isolated area
will contribute to the balancing. As in the Distributed slack by loads option, the distribution factor
calculated for a generator is determined by the following equation:

𝑃𝑖𝑛𝑖,𝑖
𝐾𝑖 = 𝑛 (24.2)
∑︁
𝑃𝑖𝑛𝑖,𝑗
𝑗=1

where,

𝑃𝑖𝑛𝑖 is the initial dispatched power of the generator.

Distributed slack by synchronous generators and static generators: same as Distributed slack by
synchronous generators, but taking into account also static generators.

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24.3.2.3 Reference Bus

Reference Busbar: a different busbar to the one connecting the slack machine (or network) can be
selected as a reference for the voltage angle. In this case the user must specify the value of the voltage
angle at this selected reference bus, which will be remotely controlled by the assigned slack machine
(or network).

Angle: user-defined voltage angle for the selected reference busbar. The value will be remotely
controlled by the slack machine (external grid). Only available if a Reference Busbar has been selected.

Note: Only one reference node can be set. Networks with multiple isolated areas automatically select
a reference bus according to the by reference machine setting except for the isolated area with
the user defined reference node. The balancing by load at reference bus and by static generator
at reference bus are only available for one isolated area.

24.3.2.4 Interchange Schedule

This option is available only when the Distributed slack by loads, Distributed slack by synchronous
generators or Distributed slack by synchronous generators and static generators is selected. It allows
the loads or generation in a region to be scaled up or down to control the interchange of this region.
The regions can be defined by Grids, Boundaries, Zones or Areas.

In the load flow page of the grid, boundary, zone and area elements, the following operational parame-
ters are available:

• Consider Interchange Schedule: enables or disables the Interchange Schedule for this region.
By default this option is not selected.
• Scheduled active power interchange: for setting the expected active power interchange.

Figure 24.3.1: Consider Interchange Schedule option in the Load Flow page of the Grid element
(ElmNet)

Note: Each boundary with a considered interchange schedule must define an interior and an exterior
region. Furthermore each network element can only be associated to one boundary with an inter-
change schedule. The respective boundaries must therefore be disjointed. Detailed interchange
schedules can be implemented with power frequency controllers (ElmSecctrl).

Prior to version 2017 of PowerFactory, it was not possible to execute contingency analysis with this
option to consider interchange schedule selected, but from version 2017 onwards, Contingency Analysis
supports the use of interchange schedules for contingencies, provided that they are also considered in
the base case.

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24.3.3 Advanced Options

24.3.3.1 Tap Adjustment

Method

• direct: this method will include the tap controller models in the load flow calculation (i.e. in
the internal loop involving the Newton-Raphson iterations). The new tap positions will then be
calculated directly as a variable and are therefore known following a single load flow calculation.
• stepped: this method will calculate a load flow with fixed tap positions, after which the required tap
changes are calculated from the observed voltage deviations and the tap controller time constants.
The load flow calculation is then repeated with the new tap positions, until no further changes are
required. These tap adjustments take place in the outer loop of the calculation.

Further information on these methods can be found in the Technical References Document of corre-
sponding elements of interest.

Min. Controller Relaxation Factor

The tap controller time constants are used in the automatic tap changer calculations to determine the
relative speed of the various tap controllers during the load flow iterations. The relaxation factor can be
used to slow down the overall controller speeds (in case of convergence problems, set a factor of less
than 1.0), or to speed them up (for a faster load flow, set a factor of greater than 1.0).
Reducing the relaxation factor results in an increased number of iterations, but yields greater numerical
robustness.

Automatic detection of tap hunting

Occasionally, users executing a load flow calculation can find that it fails to converge in the outer loop
just because a transformer is toggling between one tap position and another. To avoid this situation the
load flow algorithm will detect such behaviour and stop the affected transformer from tapping further.
By default, the corrective measure will be taken after three transitions, but this number is configurable
by the user.

Automatic detection of repeated reactive power limitations

A similar preventative measure to the detection of transformer tap hunting is applied to generators,
which can also toggle between being at a reactive power limit and being released from that limit. By
default, the corrective measure will be taken after the generator has been released from its limit three
successive times, but this number is configurable by the user.

24.3.3.2 Operational Limits

Consider operational limits for tap changer: this option globally enables or disables the operational
tap limits of transformers. If this option is disabled the limits from the transformer type are used.

Here it is also possible to specify which element classes should have their active and/or reactive power
limits observed. These selections come into play if the options Consider active power limits and/or
Consider reactive power limits are selected on the Basic Options page of the Load Flow Command
dialog, as described in section 28.3.1.

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Considered Models for Active Power Limits

The following element classes can be independently selected:

• Synchronous machine (ElmSym)

• Static generator (ElmGenstat)
• Asynchronous machine (e.g. ElmAsm)
• PWM converter (e.g. ElmVsc)
An additional flag Limit active power also for const. P machines, which by default is selected, can be
deselected if the user does not want limits to be considered for constant P machines.

Consider reactive power limits scaling factor

This option is only available if Consider reactive power limits is enabled. If selected, the reactive power
limits of generators are scaled by the relaxation factors: Scaling factor (min) and Scaling factor (max)
which are set on the Load Flow page of the generator element’s dialog. Note that the reactive power
limits of generators are also defined on the Load Flow page of the generator element’s dialog by one of
the following: maximum/minimum values, or according to the generator’s assigned type.

Considered Models for Reactive Power Limits

Here it is possible to specify which element classes should have their reactive power limits observed.
The following element classes can be independently selected:

• Synchronous machine (ElmSym)

• Static generator (ElmGenstat)
• Asynchronous machine (e.g. ElmAsm)
• PWM converter (e.g. ElmVsc)
• Static Var system (ElmSvs)
• External grid (ElmXnet)
• Reference machine

The last option makes it possible to ignore the reactive limits on the reference machine even if they
are observed for other machines of the same class. This option is only relevant if the flag for the
corresponding element class has been checked, and the flag for the reference machine is not checked.
(If the flag for the corresponding class has not been checked, then limits will not be observed for the
reference machine whatever the setting.)

An additional flag Limit reactive power also for const. Q machines, which by default is selected, can be
deselected if the user does not want limits to be considered for constant Q machines.

24.3.3.3 Simulation Options

This tab is not only important for load flow but also for other calculation functions such as transient
simulation. Utilising the options on this page can result in improved performance; i.e. the speed of a
transient simulation may improved when protection devices are neglected in the calculation.

Consider Protection Devices

Calculates the tripping times for all modelled relays and fuses. This will also show the load currents in
the overcurrent plots and/or the measured impedance in the R-X diagrams. Disabling this option will
speed up the calculations.

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Ignore Composite Elements

Disables all controller models. The panes Models Considered and Models Ignored are used to disable
specific groups of controller models. Model names can be moved between these panes by either
double-clicking on them or by selecting them and using the arrow buttons. Enabling this option may
result in faster convergence, or an increased likelihood of convergence for systems which are otherwise
difficult to solve.

24.3.3.4 Advanced

Station Controller

Available on Advanced tab of the Advanced Options page. The options presented in this field determine
the reactive power flow from generators participating in station controllers (ElmStactrl). Refer to section
Load Flow Controllers of the Technical References Document for information on station controllers and
their control modes.

Modelling Method of Towers

• with in/output signals: the equations of the lines are modelled in the tower. It should be noted
that selecting this option will result in slower performance.

• ignore couplings: inter-circuit couplings are ignored.

• equations in lines: the constant impedance and admittance matrices are calculated by the tower
and used to develop the equations of the lines. The equations involving coupling are modelled
in the lines; consequently, using this option results in faster performance than using option with
in/output signals.

Use this load flow for initialisation of OPF

The results of this load flow calculation are used to initialise the OPF calculation.

Calculate max. current at busbars

This option calculates the maximum current that will be seen along a busbar. In reality, the current along
the different sections of a busbar will be dependent on the layout of the substation. Since the busbar
has no length in PowerFactory, the connection points of circuits connected to the busbar can be defined
using Bay objects (ElmBay ). If a substation is created using Bay objects, the numbering of the Bays
allows the load flow calculation to calculate the current flows on the busbar and hence the maximum
current seen (Imax). To configure a project such that new substations are created with Bays, the user
should go to Project Settings → Graphic→ Insert substations with bays.

Train simulation

This option enables a performance-optimised consideration of changing locations of trains (train ele-
ments), which are moved along lines within the network model. The option is only relevant for load
flow calculations that are part of a train simulation. The lines which represent railway tracks with
overhead contact lines (catenary) or conductor rails have to be marked accordingly as line for train
simulation. Single-phase AC lines (AC, AC/BI) as well as DC lines are supported for train simulation.
Only if the two aforementioned options are selected (Train simulation and Line for train simulation), are
trains considered with their locations on lines. Otherwise a train element can only be connected to a
terminal (node), as any other network element with fixed location, or is (without connection to a terminal)
neglected in load flow calculation. For further information on train simulation, refer to section 24.4.6.

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Consider coincidence of low-voltage loads

Note: The usage of coincidence curves is handled in the more sophisticated Low Voltage Load Flow
Calculation (ComLvldf ) that is part of the PowerFactory Distribution Network Tools, and described
in section 41.5. However, a simple approach with a pre-defined coincidence function is possible
in the normal Load Flow, as described in the following.

If this option is selected, a ’low voltage load flow’ is calculated, where load coincidence factors are con-
sidered, to produce maximum branch currents and maximum voltage drops. Since coincidence factors
are used, the results will not obey Kirchhoff’s current law. After the load flow has been successfully
executed, maximum currents (Imax), maximum voltage drops (dumax) and minimum voltages (umin,
Umin) are displayed in every branch element and at every busbar. Losses are calculated based on
average values, and maximum branch loading is calculated using maximum currents.

For this calculation, low voltage loads (ElmLodlv and ElmLodlvp) are modelled with a “Base Load”
and an “Additional Load”. While the “Base Load” is fixed, the “Additional Load” is influenced by the
coincidence factor. It is defined by the LV load type (TypLodlv ) and the “Utilisation Factor” in the LV load
in Load Flow → Additional Load→ Load per customer. The maximum value of the “Additional Load”
(which is dependent upon the number of customers, 𝑛) is described by the following formula:

𝑆𝑚𝑎𝑥 (𝑛) = 𝑛 · 𝑔(𝑛) · 𝑆𝑚𝑎𝑥 (24.3)

Where 𝑆𝑚𝑎𝑥 is the maximum “Additional Load” per connection (customer) and the function 𝑔(𝑛) de-
scribes the maximum coincidence of loads, dependent upon the number of connections, 𝑛. If a Gaus-
sian distribution is assumed, the coincidence function is:

1 − 𝑔∞
𝑔(𝑛) = 𝑔∞ + √ (24.4)
𝑛

The average value of the “Additional Load” is calculated with 𝑔∞ · 𝑆𝑚𝑎𝑥

Voltage Drop Analysis

This option appears if Consider coincidence of low-voltage loads is selected. For the consideration of
the stochastic nature of loads, PowerFactory offers two calculation methods:
• Stochastic Evaluation: more theoretical approach, and can also be applied to meshed network
topologies.
• Maximum Current Estimation: applies stochastic rules only for the estimation of maximum
branch flows. Based on the maximum current flow in each branch element, maximum voltage
drops are calculated and added along the feeder. Obviously, this method has its limitations in
case of meshed LV networks.

24.3.4 Calculation Settings

24.3.4.1 Algorithm

Load Flow Method

As explained in Section 24.2.1, the nodal equations used to represent the analysed networks are
implemented using two different formulations:

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• Newton-Raphson (Current Equations)

• Newton-Raphson (Power Equations, classical)

In both formulations, the resulting non-linear equation systems must be solved using an iterative method.
PowerFactory uses the Newton-Raphson method as its non-linear equation solver. The selection of the
method used to formulate the nodal equations is user-defined, and should be selected based on the
type of network to be calculated. For large transmission systems, especially when heavily loaded, the
classical Newton-Raphson algorithm using the Power Equations formulation usually converges best.
Distribution systems, especially unbalanced distribution systems, usually converge better using the
Current Equations formulation.

24.3.4.2 Iteration Control

The options on this tab relate to the non-linear equation solver and are therefore only available for
PowerFactory ’s AC load flow calculation methods.

Max. Number of Iterations for

The load flow calculation comprises an inner loop involving the Newton-Raphson method (see Sec-
tion 24.2.1), and an outer loop to determine changes to tap settings and to consider generator reactive
power limits. Default values for the maximum number of iterations for these two loops are 25 iterations
for the inner loop, and 20 iterations for the outer loop.

• Newton-Raphson Iteration: the inner loop of the load flow involves the Newton-Raphson itera-
tions. This parameter defines the maximum number of iterations (typically 25).
• Outer Loop: the outer loop of the load flow calculation will determine changes to the tap changer
(depending on the tap adjustment method selected), and considers reactive power limits of gen-
erators, etc. These are adjusted in the outer loop and then a new iteration of the inner loop is
started again (see Section 24.2.1). The maximum number of outer loop iterations (typically 20) is
set by this parameter.
• Number of Steps: problematic load flows with slow or no convergence may be improved by
starting a load flow calculation for a low load level, then increasing the load level gradually in
the given number of steps. This is achieved by setting the Number of Steps to a value greater
than one. For example, nsteps = 3 begins a load flow at a load/generation level of 1/3 and then
increases the power to 100 % over two further steps.

Max. Acceptable Load Flow Error for

A higher precision or a faster calculation can be obtained by changing the maximum allowable error (i.e.
tolerance). The values of the calculated absolute error for nodes, or the calculated relative errors in the
model equations, e.g. voltage error of voltage controlled generators, are specified here.

• Nodes: maximum Iteration Error of Nodal Equations (typical value (Default): 1 kVA). The thresh-
olds can be distinguished and entered for different voltage levels, where the voltage levels itself
are definable as well in the project settings:

– Bus Equations (HV): Default 𝑈𝐻𝑉 > 66 kV

– Bus Equations (MV): Default 𝑈𝑀 𝑉 > 1 kV
– Bus Equations (LV): 𝑈𝐿𝑉 > 0 kV
• Model Equations: maximum Error of Model Equations (typical value: 0.1 %).

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Iteration step size

• automatic adaptation: default option.

• fixed relaxation: when this option is selected, a Relaxation Factor can be entered. A Newton-
Raphson relaxation factor smaller than 1.0 will slow down the convergence speed of the load
flow calculation, but may result in an increased likelihood of convergence for systems which are
otherwise difficult to solve.

This following option can be used to reduce the time taken by a load flow that is not reaching a
convergent solution.
• Trim unreasonable Newton-Raphson steps: if this option is selected, the user specifies a limit
to the number of iterations to be carried out when convergence is not being reached.

Automatic Model Adaptation for Convergency

The PowerFactory load flow calculation will always first try to find a solution using non-linear mathe-
matical power system models. If a solution cannot be found, and this option is enabled, an adaptive
algorithm will change these models slightly to make them more linear, until a solution is found. Any
model adaptations are reported in the output window.

Iteratively, starting from Level 1 up to Level 4, some types of models are adjusted in order to find a
solution. The adaptations of the models for each level are the following:
• Level 1
– Loads: All voltage dependency factors are set to minimum 0.5
– Generators and external grids: Reactive power limits are disabled
– Transformers: tap control is disabled
– Motors: The rotor resistance is not allowed to vary
• Level 2
– Loads: All voltage dependency factors are set to minimum 0.8
– Generators and external grids: Reactive power limits are disabled
– Transformers: tap control is disabled
– Motors: The rotor resistance is not allowed to vary

• Level 3
– Loads: All voltage dependency factors are set to minimum 2
– Generators and external grids: Reactive power limits are disabled
– Transformers: tap control is disabled
– Motors: The rotor resistance is not allowed to vary
• Level 4
– Loads: All voltage dependency factors are set to minimum 2
– Generators and external grids: Reactive power limits are disabled and voltage equation are
linearised
– Transformers: tap control is disabled
– Motors: The rotor resistance is not allowed to vary
The models are not only linearised but also simplified. If Level 4 is reached, the user should consider
switching to the DC load flow method.

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24.3.4.3 Initialisation

This page allows the user to influence the way in which the load flow calculation is initialised. The default
settings are suitable in most cases.

Note: Not all the options listed below are available for DC load flows. In particular, the options to save
results and use these as a starting point for subsequent load flows are only applicable for AC load
flow calculations.

No Topology Rebuild

Will speed up large sets of consecutive load flow calculations. Enabling this option means that the
topology of the system will not be rebuilt when calculating the next load flow. If no topological changes
will be made to the system between these consecutive load flow calculations, then this option may be
enabled.

Max. transformer phase shift

When a network contains phase-shift transformers whose tap settings cause a large voltage change,
the initial condition of the load flow can be far from the solution, which can result in non-convergence.
To avoid this problem, the load flow calculation can introduce the phase shift more gradually. For any
phase-shift transformer where it is detected that the total phase shift will be greater than the specified
threshold (the default is 20∘ ), it will be broken down into two or more steps, in successive outer loops.

Voltage magnitude initialisation

When initialising the voltages for a load flow calculation, the starting point for the voltage magnitude is
always the voltage setpoint of the reference busbar. By default, the starting voltages of other terminals
are then determined taking into account their nominal voltage and the rated voltage of branch elements
connecting them when tracing through the network. This means that - for example - if the rated voltages
of a transformer (defined by its type) do not quite align with the nominal voltages of the terminals to
which it is connected, this is taken into account when calculating the initial voltage magnitudes. If the
rated voltage of a line does not align with the nominal voltage of a terminal it is connected to, this will
also be taken into account. The options below allow the user to modify this default approach if required.

• Use voltage setpoint at reference busbar: terminal voltage magnitudes are simply initialised at
the same p.u. value as the reference busbar
• Consider ratio of rated to nominal voltage (Default setting): take into account the voltage
ratios calculated for transformers and other branch elements when determining the initial voltage
magnitudes
• Consider ratio of rated to nominal voltage for all branches except transformers: as with the
default setting, but not considering transformers
• Consider ratio of rated to nominal voltage for transformers only: as with the default setting,
but only considering transformers

Starting point

This panel contains options relating to the initialisation of the load flow calculation. The load flow can
be initialised from a “flat start” (which is the default), or starting from the last calculated results, or from
saved results. More details about this functionality can be found in section 24.4.5

• Start from last calculated results if available: If previous results have not been reset, these will
be used as the starting point for the load flow. This will be the case even if the Start from saved
results flag is checked.

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• Start from saved results: Use previously saved results.

– Source: the user selects the source of the saved results, which can either be in memory or
in a file. If “from a file” is selected, the user must supply the file name and location.

The Save results button becomes active once a successful load flow calculation has been run. Clicking
on the button brings up a new dialog with the following options:

• To memory: Results to be stored in memory

• To a file: Results to be stored in a file, whose name and location can be specified by the user (but
otherwise will default to the workspace)

• Adapt starting point settings in the Load Flow command: Ensures that the Load Flow com-
mand is set up correctly to use these stored results.

If results are to be saved to a file, the user must choose whether objects should be identified by object
ID or full path name. See section 24.4.5.2 for more information about these options.

24.3.5 Outputs

Show Outer Loop messages

Will print a report concerning the outer loop iterations, which may be used to solve convergence
problems.

Show Convergence Progress Report

Will print a detailed report throughout the load flow calculation. When enabling this option the Number
of reported buses/models per iteration can be stated. As a result, the required number of buses and
models with the largest error will be reported (e.g. by stating 3, the 3 buses and models with the largest
error will be printed out in the output window). As in the case of Outer Loop messages, this information
can be useful in solving convergence problems.

Maintain load flow results if calculation fails

The results of the last iteration will be displayed. These may be used to identify and solve convergence
problems.

Check Control Conditions

This option is selected by default and lists all elements in the output window whose control conditions
(e.g. reactive power limits, etc) have not been fulfilled. The arrow button allows the user to select
which control devices should be checked:

• Generator

• Transformer
• Shunt and SVC
• Station Controller

• Tap Controller
• Others

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24.3.6 Load/Generation Scaling

On this page it is possible to define global scaling factors for loads, generators, motors and night storage
heaters that will be used only during the execution of the Load Flow Calculation.

The following categories are available:

Loads

The active/reactive power of the following elements is scaled by the Load Scaling Factor:
• General Load (ElmLod)

• MV Load, load part (ElmLodmv )

• LV Load (ElmLodlv and ElmLodlvp)

Generation

The active/reactive power of the following elements is scaled by the Generation Scaling Factor:
• Static Generator (ElmGenstat)

• Synchronous Generator (ElmSym), when connected as a Generator

• Asynchronous Generator (ElmAsm), when connected as a Generator
• DFIG Generator (ElmAsmsc), when connected as a Generator

• MV Load (ElmLodmv ), generation part

Motors

The active/reactive power of the following models is scaled by the Motor Scaling Factor:
• Synchronous Motor (ElmSym), when connected as a Motor

• Asynchronous Motor (ElmAsm), when connected as a Motor

• DFIG Motor (ElmAsmsc), when connected as a Motor

Night storage heaters

In LV Loads (ElmLodlv and ElmLodlvp), the active power in Load Flow → Additional Load→ Night
Storage Heater is scaled by the Night storage heater Scaling Factor.

Zone Scaling

The Load Scaling Factor of a zone (parameter curscale) can be applied either to all loads or just loads
which have the Adjusted by Load Scaling parameter selected.

24.4 Detailed Description of Load Flow Calculation Options

The following sections describe the options available in the Load Flow Calculation command in detail.

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24.4.1 Active and Reactive Power Control

24.4.1.1 Active Power Control

Besides the traditional approach of using a slack generator to establish the power balance within the
system, PowerFactory ’s load flow calculation tool provides other active power balancing mechanisms
which more closely represent the reality of transmission networks (see selection in the Active Power
Control page of the load flow command). These mechanisms are implemented in the steady-state
according to the control processes that follow the loss of large power stations:

As Dispatched: as mentioned at the beginning of this section, the conventional approach in load flow
calculations consists of assigning a slack generator, which will establish the power balance within the
system. Besides this traditional approach, PowerFactory offers the option of balancing by means of a
single or a group of loads (Distributed Slack by Loads). Under such assumptions, the active power of the
selected group of loads will be modified so that the power balance is once again met; while leaving the
scheduled active power of each generator unchanged. Other methods of balancing include considering
the participation of all synchronous generators according to their scheduled active power (Distributed
Slack by Generation).

According to Secondary Control: if an unbalance occurs between the scheduled active power values
of each generation unit and the loads plus losses, primary control will adapt (increase/decrease) the
active power production of each unit, leading to an over- or under-frequency situation. The secondary
frequency control will then bring the frequency back to its nominal value, re-establishing cost-efficient
generation delivered by each unit. Secondary control is represented in PowerFactory ’s load flow
calculations by network components called Power Frequency Controllers (ElmSecctrl). If the Active
Power Control option According to Secondary Control is selected, the generators considered by the
Power Frequency Controller establish the active power balance according to their assigned participation
factors. It is also possible, within the group of controlled generators, to implement a merit order priority; if
this option is selected in the Power Frequency Controller, generators with the highest merit order priority
will be dispatched first, as far as their operational limits allow, then the generators with successively
lower merit order priorities as required.

In cases where the total required MW change in generation exceeds the total available on generators
with a non-zero merit-order, the remainder will be distributed between generators with a zero merit-
order, according to the Primary Frequency Bias (Kpf) of these generators, those with a higher Kpf being
used first.

(For further information, refer to the Technical References Document).

According to Primary Control: shortly following a disturbance, the governors of the units participat-
ing in primary control will increase/decrease their turbine power and drive the frequency close to its
nominal value. The change in the generator power is proportional to the frequency deviation and is
divided among participating units according to the gain (𝐾𝑝𝑓 ) of their primary controllers and which is
depicted in Figure 24.4.1. If the Active Power Control option According to Primary Control is selected in
PowerFactory ’s load flow command, the power balance is established by all generators (synchronous
generators, static generators and external grids) having a primary controller gain value different than
zero (parameter Prim. Frequency Bias in the Load Flow page - Figure 24.4.2). The modified active
power of each generator is then calculated according to the following equation:

𝑃𝑖 = 𝑃𝑖−𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑝𝑎𝑡𝑐ℎ + ∆𝑃𝑖 (24.5)

where

𝑃𝑖 is the modified active power of generator 𝑖,

𝑃𝑖−𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑝𝑎𝑡𝑐ℎ is the initial active power dispatch of generator 𝑖 and
∆𝑃𝑖 is the active power change in generator 𝑖.

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The active power change of each generator (∆𝑃𝑖 ) will be determined by its corresponding primary
controller gain value (𝐾𝑝𝑓 −𝑖 ) and the total frequency deviation.

∆𝑃𝑖 = 𝐾𝑝𝑓 −𝑖 · ∆𝑓 (24.6)

where

𝐾𝑝𝑓 −𝑖 is the primary controller gain parameter of generator 𝑖 and

∆𝑓 is the total frequency deviation.

The total frequency deviation (∆𝑓 ) can be obtained according to:

∆𝑃𝑇 𝑜𝑡
∆𝑓 = ∑︀ (24.7)
𝐾𝑝𝑓

where ∆𝑃𝑇 𝑜𝑡 corresponds to the active power change sum of every generator:

𝑛
∑︁
∆𝑃𝑇 𝑜𝑡 = ∆𝑃𝑗 (24.8)
𝑗=1

Figure 24.4.1: Primary Frequency Bias

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Figure 24.4.2: Primary Frequency Bias (𝐾𝑝𝑓 ) Setting in the Load Flow Page of the Synchronous
Machine Element (ElmSym)

Consider the following example:

Three generators supply a load.

• G1, has a set dispatch of 2 MW and a primary controller gain of 2 MW/Hz.

• G2, has a set dispatch of 2 MW and a primary controller gain of 2 MW/Hz.
• G3, has a set dispatch of 3 MW and a primary controller gain of 1 MW/Hz.
• G3 is set as the reference machine.
An as dispatched active power control indicates that a total active power output of 5 MW is required
from the 3 generators to supply the connected load:

G1 and G2 each supply 2 MW corresponding with their dispatch setpoints.

As the reference machine, G3 supplies the final 1 MW.

The mismatch between the supplied power and the dispatched power is therefore.

∆𝑃𝑇 𝑜𝑡 = 5 𝑀 𝑊 − 7 𝑀 𝑊 = −2 𝑀 𝑊 (24.9)

The total frequency deviation is therefore:

−2 𝑀 𝑊
∆𝑓 = = −0.4 𝐻𝑧 (24.10)
5 𝑀 𝑊/𝐻𝑧

The active power deviation between the dispatch setpoint of each generator and its primary controlled
output is therefore:

∆𝑃𝐺1 = 2 𝑀 𝑊/𝐻𝑧 · −0.4 𝐻𝑧 = −0.8 𝑀 𝑊 (24.11)

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∆𝑃𝐺2 = 2 𝑀 𝑊/𝐻𝑧 · −0.4 𝐻𝑧 = −0.8 𝑀 𝑊 (24.12)

∆𝑃𝐺3 = 1 𝑀 𝑊/𝐻𝑧 · −0.4 𝐻𝑧 = −0.4 𝑀 𝑊 (24.13)

Finally, The primary controlled output of each generator is therefore:

𝑃𝐺1 = 2 𝑀 𝑊 − 0.8 𝑀 𝑊 = 1.2 𝑀 𝑊 (24.14)

𝑃𝐺2 = 2 𝑀 𝑊 − 0.8 𝑀 𝑊 = 1.2 𝑀 𝑊 (24.15)

𝑃𝐺3 = 3 𝑀 𝑊 − 0.4 𝑀 𝑊 = 2.6 𝑀 𝑊 (24.16)

According to Inertias: immediately following a disturbance, the missing/excess power is delivered from
the kinetic energy stored in the rotating mass of the turbines. This leads to a deceleration/acceleration
and thus to a frequency decrease/increase. The power balance is established by all synchronous
machines if the Active Power Control option According to Inertias is selected in the load flow command.
Individual contributions to the balance are proportional to the inertia/acceleration time constant of
each generator (defined on the RMS-Simulation page of the synchronous generator type’s dialog and
depicted in Figure 24.4.3). This relation can be mathematically described as follows:

𝑃𝑖 = 𝑃𝑖−𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑝𝑎𝑡𝑐ℎ + ∆𝑃𝑖 (24.17)

where
𝑃𝑖 is the modified active power of generator 𝑖,
𝑃𝑖−𝑑𝑖𝑠𝑝𝑎𝑡𝑐ℎ is the initial active power dispatch of generator 𝑖 and
∆𝑃𝑖 is the active power change in generator 𝑖.

The active power change of each generator ∆𝑃𝑖 is determined by its inertia gain and the initial frequency
response as follows:

∆𝑃𝑖 = 𝐽𝑖 · 𝜔𝑛 · 2𝜋 · 𝑅𝑜𝐶𝑜𝐹𝐶𝑜𝐼 |𝑡=0+ (24.18)

where
𝑅𝑜𝐶𝑜𝐹𝑖𝑛𝑖,𝐶𝑜𝐼 is the initial Rate of Change of Frequency for the Center of Inertia and
𝐽𝑖 is generator’s the moment of inertia.

The respective load flow signal representing the 𝑅𝑜𝐶𝑜𝐹𝑖𝑛𝑖,𝐶𝑜𝐼 , which is used to set the active power of
the Synchronous Machines, is s:dFin. The inertia of each machine is described by

𝑇𝑎𝑔,𝑖 2 · 𝐻𝑖
𝐽𝑖 = 𝑆𝑛,𝑖 · = 𝑆𝑛,𝑖 · (24.19)
𝜔𝑛2 𝜔𝑛2

where
𝜔𝑛 is the rated angular velocity,
𝑆𝑛,𝑖 is the generator’s rated apparent power),
𝑇𝑎𝑔,𝑖 is the generator’s acceleration time constant rated to 𝑆𝑛,𝑖 and
𝐻𝑖 is the generator’s inertia constant rated to 𝑆𝑛,𝑖 with 𝑇𝑎𝑔,𝑖 = 2 · 𝐻𝑖 .

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Note: The generator’s rated apparent power 𝑆𝑛,𝑖 must be exchanged with the rated active power in all
presented equations if 𝐻𝑖 or 𝑇𝑎𝑔,𝑖 are rated to the active power instead of the apparent power.

The 𝑅𝑜𝐶𝑜𝐹𝐶𝑜𝐼 |𝑡=0+ is a simplified estimation of a system’s frequency response to an active power
imbalance and depends on the weighted sum of the inertia constant. It is calculated with

𝑓𝑛 · ∆𝑃𝑠𝑦𝑠
𝑅𝑜𝐶𝑜𝐹𝐶𝑜𝐼 |𝑡=0+ = (24.20)
2 · 𝑆𝑛,𝑠𝑦𝑠 · 𝐻𝑠𝑦𝑠

where
𝑓𝑛 is the nominal system frequency,
∆𝑃𝑠𝑦𝑠 is the total active power imbalance of the system,
𝑆𝑛,𝑠𝑦𝑠 is the sum the nominal apparent power of all generators 𝑘 contributing to the inertia and
𝐻𝑠𝑦𝑠 is the weighted system inertia constant, which is calculated as

∑︀𝑘
𝑖 𝐻𝑖 · 𝑆𝑖
𝐻𝑠𝑦𝑠 = ∑︀𝑘 (24.21)
𝑖 𝑆𝑖

Figure 24.4.3: Inertia/Acceleration Time Constant Parameter of the Synchronous Machine Type
(TypSym). Simulation RMS Page

Figure 24.4.4 illustrates the different types of active power control.

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Figure 24.4.4: Frequency Deviation Following an Unbalance in Active Power

Note: The Secondary Control option will take into account the participation factors of the machines de-
fined within a Power-Frequency Controller (ElmSecctrl) in order to compensate for the frequency
deviation. In such a case, the final steady state frequency is considered to be the nominal value
(number 1 in Figure 24.4.4). The Primary Control option will take into account the frequency droop
(MW/Hz) stated in every machine in order to determine the active power contribution. Depending
on the power unbalance, the steady state frequency will deviate from the nominal value (number
2 in Figure 24.4.4). The According to Inertias option will take into account the inertia/acceleration
time constant stated in every machine in order to determine its active power contribution. In this
case, depending on the power unbalance, the steady state frequency will deviate from the nominal
value (number 3 in Figure 24.4.4).

Forced voltage angle control

This setting is not part of the load flow command but an option for synchronous machines and static
generators, which are marked as reference machines. By default, the voltage angle of such machines,
which have not been selected as the reference machine by PowerFactory, is automatically calculated
during the load flow. However, some network elements, such as the coupling of a 50 Hz system to a
16 2/3 Hz system, may require a specific voltage angle to control the power flow. The voltage angle of
an individual machine, which is set on the Load Flow → General page of a synchronous machine or a
static generator, can be forced using the Forced voltage angle control (const. phi) option on the Load
Flow → Advanced page. This option is only visible, if the element is set as a reference machine. It is
also possible to use a QDSL model for more complex voltage angle controllers.

24.4.1.2 Reference Machine Selection

The reference (slack) machine for a load flow calculation can be selected directly. This is done for
synchronous and static generators (ElmSym) and ElmGenstat) via the checkbox Reference Machine
(ip_ctrl) on the Load Flow page. In addition, voltage sources (ElmVac), which are not Ward Equivalents,
as well as external networks (ElmXnet) with the bus type slack (SL) are considered. However, if the
reference machine is not clearly defined for a network or an isolated part of the network, PowerFactory
selects an element to act as the reference machine. This is the case, if none or multiple network
elements are selected. It should be noted that the automatic selection of a reference machine is subject
to a project setting for Automatic Slack Assignment, described in section 8.1.2.3.

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Automatic Determination of Reference Machine if none selected

PowerFactory designates a reference machine if the reference machine is not defined and the network
does not contain any other slack element. The applied logic is designed to ensure that a strong network
element is selected. The priority of each viable network element with relevant settings is calculated
using the factor according to the table below.

Element Variable Setting Factor

External Grid
bustp ̸= SL Snom
ElmXnet
Synchronous Machine
ip_ctrl 0 Snom
ElmSym
PWM Converter
i_acdc ̸= Vac-phi 0.00001 · Snom
ElmVsc, ElmVscmono
AC Voltage Source itype Extended Ward Equivalent Pgen + 0.001
ElmVac itype Ward Equivalent 0.1 · (Pgen + 0.001)

Table 24.4.1: Reference machine prioritisation factors (no element set to reference machine)

Note: In the case that method 2 is selected in the project setting for Auto slack assignment, syn-
chronous machines without the attribute Spinning if circuit breaker is open (i_spin=0) are not
considered unless they’re actively set to be considered as a reference machine. Further details
are described in section 8.1.2.3.

Automatic Determination of Reference Machine with more than one selected

If multiple network elements are set as reference machines, a similar prioritisation as described above
according to the element class and size takes place. The respective factors are listed in the table below.

Element Variable Setting Factor

External Grid
bustp SL 100 · Snom
ElmXnet
Static Generator
ip_ctrl 1 Snom
ElmGenstat, ElmPvsys
Synchronous Machine
ip_ctrl 1 Snom
ElmSym
PWM Converter
i_acdc Vac-phi 0.00001 · Snom
ElmVsc, ElmVscmono
AC Voltage Source
itype Voltage Source 0.01 · Unom · usetp
ElmVac

Table 24.4.2: Reference machine prioritisation factors (several elements set to reference machine)

Note: For synchronous machines ElmSym and static generators ElmGenstat, the user has a further
possibility to influence the choice of slack machine. Within the project settings, Advanced Calcu-
lation Parameters page, there are three options for Priority for Reference Machines. These are:
• Rated Power: Snom is used as the criterion, as in the table above
• Active Power Capability: Pmax-Pmin is used instead of Snom
• Active Power Reserve: Pmax-Pgini is used instead of Snom

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24.4.1.3 Reactive Power Control

The reactive power reserves of synchronous generators in transmission networks are used to control the
voltages at specific nodes in the system and/or to control the reactive power exchange with neighbouring
network zones. In PowerFactory ’s load flow calculation, the voltage regulator of the generators has a
voltage setpoint which can be set manually (defining a PV bus type as introduced in Section 24.2.1), or
from an Automatic Station Controller (ElmStactrl). This Automatic Station Controller combines several
sources of reactive power to control the voltage at a given bus. In this case the relative contribution of
each reactive power source (such as generators and SVSs) is defined in the Station Controller dialog.
For further details about the use and definition of Automatic Station Controllers refer to the Technical
References Document.

24.4.2 Voltage Dependency of Loads

All non-motor loads, as well as groups of non-motor loads that conform a sub-system, for example, a
low-voltage system viewed from a medium voltage system, can be modelled as a “general load”.

Under “normal conditions” it is permissible to represent such loads as constant PQ loads. However
under “abnormal conditions”, for example during voltage collapse situations the voltage-dependency of
the loads should be taken into account.

Under such assumptions, PowerFactory uses a potential approach, as indicated by Equations (24.22)
and (24.23). In these equations, the subscript 0 indicates the initial operating condition as defined in
the input dialog box of the Load Type.

(︃ (︂ )︂𝑒_𝑎𝑃 (︂ )︂𝑒_𝑏𝑃 (︂ )︂𝑒_𝑐𝑃 )︃

𝑣 𝑣 𝑣
𝑃 = 𝑃0 𝑎𝑃 · + 𝑏𝑃 · + (1 − 𝑎𝑃 − 𝑏𝑃 ) · (24.22)
𝑣0 𝑣0 𝑣0

where,

𝑐𝑃 = (1 − 𝑎𝑃 − 𝑏𝑃 )

(︃ (︂ )︂𝑒_𝑎𝑄 (︂ )︂𝑒_𝑏𝑄 (︂ )︂𝑒_𝑐𝑄 )︃

𝑣 𝑣 𝑣
𝑄 = 𝑄0 𝑎𝑄 · + 𝑏𝑄 · + (1 − 𝑎𝑄 − 𝑏𝑄) · (24.23)
𝑣0 𝑣0 𝑣0

where,

𝑐𝑄 = (1 − 𝑎𝑄 − 𝑏𝑄)

By specifying the particular exponents (e_aP, e_bP, e_cP and e_aQ, e_bQ, e_cQ) the inherent load
behaviour can be modelled. For example, in order to consider a constant power, constant current or
constant impedance behaviour, the exponent value should be set to 0, 1 or 2 respectively. In addition,
the relative proportion of each coefficient can be freely defined using the coefficients aP, bP, cP and
aQ, bQ, cQ. For further information, refer to the General Load technical reference in the Technical
References Document.

Note: These factors are only considered if the “Consider Voltage Dependency of Loads” is checked in
the Load-flow Command window. If no Load Type (TypLod) is assigned to a load, and the load
flow is performed considering voltage dependency then the load will be considered as Constant
Impedance.

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24.4.3 Feeder Load Scaling

In radially operated distribution systems the problem often arises that very little is known about the
actual loading of the loads connected at each substation. The only information sometimes available
is the total power flowing into a radial feeder. To be able to still estimate the voltage profile along the
feeder a load scaling tool is used. In the simplest case the distribution loads are scaled according to the
rated power ratings of the transformers in the substations. Of course, more precise results are obtained
by using an average daily, monthly or annual load.

This is illustrated in Figure 24.4.5. Here, the measured value at the beginning of the feeder is stated
to be 50 MW. Throughout the feeder there are three loads defined, of which only for one of them the
load is precisely known (20 MW). The other two loads are estimated to be at around 10 MW each.
PowerFactory ’s load flow analysis tool offers a special Feeder Load Scaling option so that the selected
groups of loads (scalable loads) are scaled accordingly in order to meet the measured value.

Figure 24.4.5: Radial Feeder. Feeder Load Scaling Option

In PowerFactory the following options for Feeder Load Scaling are available:

• No scaling.
• Scaling to measured apparent power.
• Scaling to active power.
• Scaling to measured current.
• Scaling Manually.
• Scaling to measured reactive power.
• Scaling to measured power factor.

Furthermore, the previous options can be combined; for example, scaling a selected groups of loads in
order to meet a measured active power and power factor.

Note: Loads that are to be scaled must be marked as such (Adjusted by Load Scaling), also the load
scaling must be enabled in the load flow command option (Feeder Load Scaling).

The feeder load scaling process also can take into account the different type of load behaviour rep-
resented. Figure 24.4.6 illustrates just this. Here, a radial feeder consisting of three different type of
loads is depicted (constant power, constant current and constant impedance). Under such assumptions,
performing a load flow calculation with the option Consider Voltage Dependency of Loads (see previous
Section), will result in calculated base quantities according to the type of load specified; for example,

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Ibase for the constant current load and Zbase for the constant impedance load. If in addition to the
voltage dependency of loads, the Feeder Load Scaling option is enabled, the calculated scaling factor
𝑘 is applied according to the type of load defined in the feeder.

Figure 24.4.6: Feeder Load Scaling Factor Considering Different Behaviour of Loads

In PowerFactory, the number of Feeder definitions is not limited to the number of radial paths repre-
sented in the model. This means that the user can define more than one feeder element (ElmFeeder )
along the same radial path, as indicated in Figure 24.4.7 In this particular example, both Feeder 1 and
2 have the same specified orientation (→ Branch). While Feeder 1 is defined from the beginning of the
radial path, Feeder 2 is defined after load L2. This particular type of feeder representation is termed as
Nested Feeders. Since Feeder 1 is defined from the beginning of the radial path, every load (L1, L2, L3
and L4), as well as every feeder (Feeder 2) along this path will be considered as part of its definition.
Since Feeder 2 is along the path defined for Feeder 1; Feeder 2 is nested in Feeder 1.

In such cases, executing the load flow (with the option Feeder Load Scaling) will treat the two feeders as
independent. Although nested, Feeder 1 will only try to scale loads L1 and L2 according to its setting,
while Feeder 2 will scale loads L3 and L4. If Feeder 2 is placed Out of Service, then Feeder 1 will scale
all the loads along the radial path (L1, L2, L3 and L4).

Figure 24.4.7: Nested Feeder Definition

Note: In order to consider a load in the feeder-load-scaling process, the option Adjusted by Load
Scaling has to be enabled. In this case, the individual Scaling Factor of the load is not taken
into account but overwritten by the feeder-scaling factor.

For further information on Feeder definitions refer to Chapter 14, Section 14.6 (Feeders).

Additionally, loads can be grouped in zones, areas or boundaries so the scaling factor can be easily
edited. In case of zones, there will be an additional Zone Scaling Factor.

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Calculation process and Equations

This section explains how the scaling is carried out for the various scaling options. There are two ways
of scaling: Manual scaling where a scaling factor is supplied, and scaling to setpoint, where the setpoint
is supplied and the scaling factors are calculated in order to meet this setpoint. In the equations below,
the variables scale and scalephi are the quantities which are passed as signals for the load object
scaling.

24.4.3.1 Manual scaling, balanced Feeder Load Scaling

For balanced Feeder Load Scaling (flag scalePhaseWise inside ElmFeeder is off), manual scaling is
enabled by selecting “Manually” in the drop-down menu. (i_scale = 4 for the first set point, i_scale = 3
for the second set-point.)

Manual scaling using the first control introduces an additional scaling factor scale for the specific feeder.
This scaling factor scale is equal to the user-supplied factor scale0, and is applied to the apparent power
of each scalable load in the feeder:

𝑆𝑛 = 𝑆𝑜 * 𝑠𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑒

where 𝑆𝑛 is the ’new’ apparent power of the load and 𝑆𝑜 is the ’old’ apparent power.

Manual scaling using the second control introduces an angle scalephi for the specific feeder. This
scaling factor scalephi is equal to the user-supplied Power Factor cosphiset. Each scalable load inside
the feeder is then set to the same power factor scalephi:

𝑃𝑛 = 𝑃𝑜 * cos(𝑠𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑒𝑝ℎ𝑖)
𝑄𝑛 = 𝑄𝑜 * sin(𝑠𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑒𝑝ℎ𝑖)

where 𝑃𝑛 , 𝑄𝑛 are the ’new’ active and reactive power consumptions of the load, and 𝑃𝑜 , 𝑄𝑜 are the ’old’
active and reactive power consumptions.

24.4.3.2 Manual scaling, phasewise Feeder Load Scaling

For phasewise Feeder Load Scaling (flag scalePhaseWise inside ElmFeeder is on), manual scaling is
enabled by selecting “Manually” (i_scale = 4) in the drop-down menu.

Only the first control may be set to Manual if phasewise scaling is being used.

The equations in this instance are complex and outside the scope of the User Manual.

24.4.3.3 Scaling to setpoint: Balanced Feeder Load Scaling

For balanced Feeder Load Scaling (flag scalePhaseWise inside ElmFeeder is off), the loads inside a
feeder may be scaled to meet a given setpoint:

Therefore:
• additional controls / signals are introduced: scale and / or scalephi
• additional setpoint equations are written at the feeding point

Feeding point equations:

When feeder set points have been specified, scale and scalephi have to be determined for each feeder
so that when the loads are scaled, the specified set points are met. The requirements at the feeder
points can be expressed as follows:

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Given some setpoint 𝑠 and some calculated value 𝑣 at the feeding point (for example, 𝑠 is some
measured value of apparent power at the feeding point, and 𝑣 is the calculated apparent power at
the feeding point), the equation reads as:
𝑠 = 𝑣.

Equations first setpoint, balanced Load Flow

Let 𝑐𝑢𝑟 be the current at the feeding point and 𝑢 the voltage at the feeding point.

• Apparent power scaling: 𝑆𝑠𝑒𝑡 = |𝑢 * 𝑐𝑢𝑟|.

¯
• Current scaling: 𝐼𝑠𝑒𝑡 = |𝑐𝑢𝑟|.
• Active power: 𝑃 𝑠𝑒𝑡 = ℜ(𝑢 * 𝑐𝑢𝑟).
¯

Equations second setpoint, balanced Load Flow

Let 𝑐𝑢𝑟 be the current at the feeding point and 𝑢 the voltage at the feeding point.

• Reactive power scaling: 𝑄𝑠𝑒𝑡 = ℑ(𝑢 * 𝑐𝑢𝑟).

¯
• Power factor scaling: Let 𝑎𝑛𝑔𝑙𝑒𝑠𝑒𝑡 equal 𝑎𝑐𝑜𝑠(𝑐𝑜𝑠𝑝ℎ𝑖𝑠𝑒𝑡) in the case of inductive scaling, and
equal −𝑎𝑐𝑜𝑠(𝑐𝑜𝑠𝑝ℎ𝑖𝑠𝑒𝑡) in the case of capacitive scaling. Then the equation reads 𝑎𝑛𝑔𝑙𝑒𝑠𝑒𝑡 =
𝐴𝑟𝑔(𝑢 * 𝑐𝑢𝑟).
¯

Equations, unbalanced Load Flow

The equations for balanced Feeder Load Scaling with unbalanced Load Flow are similar to the equations
in the case of the balanced load flow. The only difference is that the phasewise calculated values at the
feeding point are summed up (sum of complex powers) in order to meet the setpoint.

Load equations:

When Feeder Load Scaling is enabled, additional controls scale and scalephi are introduced to control
the power consumption of the loads.

These controls are applied to the power consumption of the loads depending on the setting i_scale,
i_scalepf inside the feeder:

• All combinations of settings i_scale and i_scalepf in ElmFeeder, except Active Power control and
Reactive power control:
If i_scale is not 0: Apparent power of the load is scaled:
𝑆𝑛 = 𝑆𝑜 * 𝑠𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑒 (24.24)
where 𝑆𝑛 is the ’new’ apparent power of the load, and 𝑆𝑜 is the ’old’ apparent power.
If i_scalepf is not 0: Power factor of the load is adjusted to equal scalephi:
𝑃𝑛 = 𝑆𝑜 * cos(𝑠𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑒𝑝ℎ𝑖)
𝑄𝑛 = 𝑆𝑜 * sin(𝑠𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑒𝑝ℎ𝑖), (24.25)
where 𝑃𝑛 , 𝑄𝑛 are the ’new’ active and reactive power consumptions of the load, and 𝑆𝑜 is the ’old’
apparent power.
• Active Power scaling and Reactive Power scaling: In this case a more involved scaling algorithm
is used, in order to improve convergence. This is outside the scope of the User Manual.

24.4.3.4 Scaling to setpoint: Phasewise Feeder Load Scaling

For phasewise Feeder Load Scaling (flag scalePhaseWise inside ElmFeeder is on), the loads inside a
feeder may be scaled per phase to meet a given setpoint:

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Therefore:
• additional controls / signals are introduced: scale1r, scale1s, scale1t and scale2r, scale2s, scale2t

• additional setpoint equations are written at the feeding point

Feeding point equations:

The feeding point equations in this case are written per phase. They follow the same logic as for
balanced Feeder Load Scaling.

Load equations:

In this case, a more involved scaling algorithm is used in order to support phasewise scaling. This is
outside the scope of the User Manual.

Note: The phasewise load scaling is quite sensitive in terms of phase shifts. In case that a transformer
(or other equipment) is located between the feeder begin and the scaled load, which causes a
significant phase shift, the scaling algorithm might not find a solution.

24.4.4 Temperature Dependency of Lines and Cables

The most important effect of the resistance of transmission line and cable conductors is the generation
of losses (I2 R). Resistance will also affect the voltage regulation of the line due to voltage drop (IR).

The resistance of a conductor is mainly affected by the operating temperature, and its variation can be
considered practically linear over the normal range of operation (an increase in temperature causes an
increase in resistance).

In PowerFactory, the load flow calculation has different options for considering the Temperature Depen-
dency of resistance for lines and cables:

• at 20∘ C: When this option is selected, the load flow calculation uses the resistances (lines and
cables) stated in the Basic Data page of the corresponding component (TypLne, TypCon, TypCab).
• at Maximum operating temperature: When this option is selected, the load flow calculation uses
the corrected value of resistance with the maximum operating temperature of each line (Specified
on the Load Flow page in the Type).
• at Operating temperature: When this option is selected, the specified individual operating tem-
perature for each line and cable is used (specified on the Load Flow page of the element).
• at Temperature: When this option is selected a global operating temperature can be specified in
the load flow command that is applied to all lines and cables.

The following equation is used to determine the temperature dependent resistance:

𝑅 = 𝑅20 [1 + 𝛼(𝑇 − 20∘ 𝐶)] (24.26)

where,

𝑅20 is the resistance at temperature 20∘ C (Basic Data page of the corresponding type)

𝛼 is the temperature coefficient in 𝐾 −1

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𝑇 is the operating temperature of the line. It can be the maximal operating temperature (line type), the
individual operating temperature (element) or a global temperature (load flow command).

𝑅 is the resistance at temperature 𝑇

Figure 24.4.8: Temperature Dependency Option Setting in the Load Flow page of the line type (TypLne)

Additionally, the resistance temperature dependency can be defined by specifying either the resistance
at maximum operating temperature, the temperature coefficient (1/K) or the conductor material (Alu-
minium, Copper or Aldrey).

Table 24.4.3indicates the electrical resistivities and temperature coefficients of metals used in conduc-
tors and cables referred at 20∘ C/68∘ F (taken from IEC 60287-1 standard).

Material Resistivity (Ω-m) Temperature coefficient [K−1 ]

Aluminium 2.8264 · 10−8 4.03 · 10−3
Copper 1.7241 · 10−8 3.93 · 10−3

Table 24.4.3: Electrical Resistivities and Temperature coefficients of Aluminium and Copper

24.4.5 Load Flow initialisation and saving of results

By default, an AC load-flow calculation begins with a so-called flat start, where nodes are initialised
based on the set point of the reference node and the voltage ratios along the paths through the network.
There is often, however, an advantage in terms of performance if a load flow calculation can take as its
starting point the results of a previous calculation.

On the Initialisation page of the Load Flow command, options are available for (a) saving load flow
results for future use and (b) selecting the last available load flow results, or selecting saved results, to
be used as a starting point for the calculation. The options on this page are listed in section 24.3.4.3.

The option to Start from last calculated results if available can be selected for either DC or AC calcula-
tions. If the results from a successful load flow calculation are available (i.e. have not been reset), they
will be used as the starting point for the next load flow calculation. It should be noted that this option will
take precedence over the option to use saved results.

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The option to Start from saved results, and associated Save results button are only available for AC
load flow calculations. Starting from saved results is possible even when the network has changed in
the interim, though of course if the network has changed significantly, starting from saved results could
make convergence harder rather than easier.

24.4.5.1 Saving results to be used as a starting point in future load flow calculations

When calculation results are available, they can be saved using the Save results button. There are two
options for saving results:

• Save to memory: This is the default and simplest option. Results stored in memory are available
until the study case is deactivated, but only one set of results is held.
• Save to a file: The user can specify a file name and a location, although a default name and
location are presented and can be used. The default location is the user’s workspace directory.
The user can overwrite existing results or provide a new file-name to enable multiple result files
to be saved. The advantage of saving results into a file is that they remain available for use
after PowerFactory has been restarted, or even if a project has been imported into a different
PowerFactory installation.

If the Adapt starting point settings in the Load Flow command flag is selected, this will ensure that the
Load Flow dialog is automatically configured to use these saved results as a starting point for future
load flow calculations.

24.4.5.2 Object Identification when saving results

When saving results to a file, the user must specify how objects are to be identified when the results
are used as the starting point for future calculations, so that each result can be assigned to the correct
element. Two options are offered:

• Via object ID: The target object for each result is identified by the unique object ID for the element.
This has the advantage that it does not matter if a project has been moved around in a database
since the results were saved. It is also the faster of the two options. However, it will not work if a
project has been exported and reimported (because the objects will have new object IDs).
• Via full path name: This is slower than the first option, but has the advantage that it will still work
if the project has been replaced (in the same location in the database) by another project of the
same name and structure.

24.4.6 Load flow calculation for train simulation

A train simulation combines a mechanical simulation of the forces (tractive effort, running resistance),
acceleration/deceleration, speed and location of trains with the electrical load flow calculation of the
moving trains in railway power supply networks. In the electrical load flow calculation, voltage de-
pendencies of the power demand and power recuperation (regenerative braking) and dependencies
of the power factor of trains are taken into account, along with the electrical characteristics of the
railway power supply system. The results of the electrical load flow calculation have an impact on
the mechanical calculation, especially if the power demanded by trains cannot be covered completely
due to characteristics of the electric system.

PowerFactory supports the electrical part of the train simulation by a dedicated load flow calculation,
in which train elements are considered, in a performance-optimised manner, to change their location
and move along lines. To enable this dedicated type of load flow calculation, the option Train simulation
has to be enabled, which is found in the Advanced Options → Advanced of the load flow calculation
command (see Section 24.3.3.4).

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The electrical characteristics of the trains are defined and entered in train elements (*.ElmTrain) and
train types (*.TypTrain). The location of a train (of a train element) within the network model during the
train simulation is defined as a connection to a line with the exact position on the line (or as a connection
to a terminal node if a train is at the beginning or end of a line). The location is usually set via DPL or
Python function SetPosition, which can be called by the mechanical simulation tool or an additional tool,
which links PowerFactory with the mechanical simulation tool:

int train_object.SetPosition(object line or terminal,

double position on line)

with “train_object” being a train element (*.ElmTrain).

Returns
1 An error occurred.
0 Otherwise, i.e. train set successfully on position.

A train simulation typically consists of a sequence of several thousand load flow calculations. Thus,
any non-essential steps, for example automatically resetting the calculation results, should be avoided.
To achieve optimal performance with respect to simulation speed, disabling the automatic reset of
calculation results is recommended in Python scripts. Additional information on the Python function
below is provided in the Python Reference.
1 app.SetAutomaticCalculationResetEnabled(0)

Note: Usually, this is only necessary for Python scripts. The option to automatically reset calculation
results is not enabled by default for DPL scripts. The respective function can be found in the
DPL Reference.

The power demand of the train model comprises traction power and auxiliary power. Generative
braking (power recuperation) is supported as well. Reactive power or power factor is considered,
with either constant power factor or power factor depending on the train’s active power and speed,
or voltage at pantograph and speed. Several options are available to represent the voltage depen-
dency of traction/recuperation power. As well as the voltage-dependent current limitation according to
EN 50641:2020 (which includes current limitation according to EN 50388), flexible user-defined input
of voltage-dependent limitation of active power or current magnitude via a look-up table, linear current
reduction below a voltage threshold, and voltage-dependent power demand are supported.

The lines which represent railway tracks with overhead contact lines (catenary) or conductor rails have
to be marked as Line for train simulation (dialog window of line element: Basic Data → Advanced→
Line for train simulation). Single-phase AC lines (AC, AC/BI) as well as DC lines are supported for train
simulation. The train positions on those lines are typically considered with a resolution of a few metres
(depending on the line impedance per length, which represents the loop impedance per length of the
track’s power supply lines and rails; resolution typically better than 20 m). The minimum resolution of
train distances is displayed in line’s dialog window. Only if the option Line for train simulation together
with the Train simulation option of the load flow calculation are selected, are trains considered with
their locations on lines. Otherwise a train element can only be connected to a terminal (node), as any
other network element with fixed location, or is (without connection to a terminal) neglected in load flow
calculation.

A train simulation typically contains of a sequence of several thousands of load flow calculations.
To achieve optimal performance with respect to simulation speed, enabling the following calculation
settings is recommended:

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• Load flow calculation option Train simulation: This option enables the possibility to place trains
(train elements) on lines (single-phase line elements), as described above. The option is found in
the Advanced Options → Advanced of the load flow calculation command (see Section 24.3.3.4)

• Load Flow Method: Newton-Raphson (Current Equations). This method usually provides a more
robust convergence behaviour in the case of unsymmetrical networks. The load flow method is
found in the Calculation Settings → Algorithm of the load flow calculation command (see Section
24.3.4).
• Load flow initialisation setting No Topology Rebuild: This option suppresses building the topology
of the power system again, when calculating the next load flow. The option is found in Calculation
Settings → Initialisation of the load flow calculation command (see Section 24.3.4.3).
• Load flow initialisation setting Start from last calculated results if available: By enabling this option,
the results of the previous load flow calculation will be used as the starting point for the next load
flow calculation. The option is found in Calculation Settings → Initialisation→ Starting point of the
load flow calculation command (see Section 24.3.4.3).
• An Operation Scenario (see Chapter 15) should be active during the train simulation: This avoids
permanent database updates during the simulation run, when changing operational data such as
location or power of trains.
Result quantities available from the analysis include the voltage, current and resulting active and reactive
power at the train pantographs, the current and power flows through individual components of the railway
power supply network and equipment loading.

Coupling PowerFactory for calculation of the electrical quantities with an external tool that does the
mechanical simulation of speed and position of the running trains based on time schedule, track layout,
mechanical forces and power etc., establishes a simulation environment for closed-loop train simulation,
as specified in EN 50641 (Railway applications - Fixed installations - Requirements for the validation of
simulation tools used for the design of traction power supply systems). For simple train systems, e.g.
small metro systems with independent train routes, implementation of the mechanical train simulation
using Python or DPL scripts within PowerFactory may be sufficient and suitable as well.

24.5 Results Analysis

In PowerFactory the results can be displayed directly in the single line diagram, in tabular form or by
using predefined report formats. Also available are several diagram colouring options in order to have
a “quick” overview of the results.

24.5.1 Viewing Results in the Single Line Diagram

Once a load flow calculation has been successfully executed, the result boxes shown in the single-line
diagram will be populated. There is a result box associated with each “side” of an element. So for
example a load has one result box, a line two result boxes, and a three-winding transformer three result
boxes. In PowerFactory these elements are collectively called edge elements. In addition, there are
result boxes for nodes or buses.

The information shown inside a result box depends on the element to which it is associated. Several
predefined formats can be selected, as described in Chapter 9: Network Graphics, section 9.5. Re-
sult boxes can also be personalised as described in Chapter 18: Reporting and Visualising Results,
section 18.2.

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24.5.2 Flexible Data Page

Once a load flow calculation has been successfully executed, pressing the Open Network Model Man-
ager. . . button ( ) located on the main menu will open a browser window with a list of all classes on
the left side of the window that are currently used in the calculation. Clicking any of the classes will
display all elements of that class that are currently used in the calculation in a table on the right side of
the window. The left-most tab-page at the bottom of the browser is the Flexible Data tab page. Click
on this tab page to show the flexible data. To change the columns in the flexible page, press the Define
Flexible Data button ( ). This will bring a selection window where the set of variables can be edited.
Section 18.3 in Chapter 18: Reporting and Visualising Results, describes the Variable Selection object
which is use to define the variables to be presented.

24.5.3 Standard Reports

In addition to viewing the results on a diagram or in the Network Model Manager, the user can generate
one or more reports, using the Report Generation (ComReport) command, which is accessed via the
icon on the main toolbar. Most of these are presented by default as PDF reports, using PowerFactory ’s
inbuilt PDF Viewer, although some “legacy” reports appear as tabular reports or as ASCII output in the
output window. The Report Generation command will present all report options that are applicable to the
Load Flow Analysis command that has been executed, and the selected reports can be generated as
separate documents or combined into one. There is also the option to export reports from PowerFactory
in various different formats.

For more information about reports and the Report Generation command, see Chapter 18: Reporting
and Visualising Results, section 18.5. It should be noted that reports which are viewed internally in
PowerFactory are stored in the desktop of the study case, even after they have been closed, until they
are actively deleted by the user.

A Verification Report can also be generated when the command is executed (see Section 49.4.6). This
appears as an ASCII report in the output window.

24.5.4 Diagram Colouring

When performing load flow calculations, it is very useful to colour the single line-diagram in order to have
a quick overview of the results, for example if elements have a loading above 90 % or if the voltages of
the busbars are outside the specified limits. In PowerFactory there is the option of selecting different
colouring modes according to the calculation performed.

The use of colouring in network diagrams is described in Section 9.3.10.1, and more detail about the
use of colours and colour palettes can be found in Section 4.7.8.

If a specific calculation is valid, then the selected colouring for this calculation is displayed. As an exam-
ple, if the user selects the colouring mode Zones for No Calculation and Low and High Voltage/Loadings
for the load flow calculation, then the initial colouring will be according to Zones. However, as soon as
the load flow is calculated, the diagram will be coloured according to Low and High Voltage/Loadings.
If the load flow calculation is reset or invalid, the colouring mode switches back to Zones.

The Diagram Colouring has also a 3-priority level colouring scheme also implemented, allowing colour-
ing elements according to the following criteria: 1𝑠𝑡 Energising status, 2𝑛𝑑 Alarm and 3𝑟𝑑 “Normal”
(Other) colouring.

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Energising Status

If this check box is enabled “De-energised” or “Out of Calculation” elements are coloured according to
the settings in the “Project Colour Settings”. The settings of the “De-energised” or “Out of Calculation”
mode can be edited by clicking on the Colour Settings button.

Alarm

If this check box is enabled a drop down list containing alarm modes will be available. It is important
to note here that only alarm modes available for the current calculation page will be listed. If an alarm
mode is selected, elements “exceeding” the corresponding limit are coloured. Limits and colours can
be defined by clicking on the Colour Settings button.

“Normal” (Other) Colouring

Here, two lists are displayed. The first list will contain all available colouring modes. The second list
will contain all sub modes of the selected colouring mode. The settings of the different colouring modes
can be edited by clicking on the Colour Settings button.

Every element can be coloured by one of the three previous criteria. Also, every criterion is optional and
will be skipped if disabled. Regarding the priority, if the user enables all three criterions, the hierarchy
taken into account will be the following:

“Energising Status” overrules the “Alarm” and “Normal Colouring” mode. The “Alarm” mode overrules
the “Normal Colouring” mode.

24.5.5 Load Flow Sign Convention

By default, PowerFactory has the following load flow sign convention (Mixed Mode):

Branches:

Power Flow going out of the Busbar is positive while going into the busbar is negative.

Loads:

Power Flow going out of the Busbar is positive while going into the busbar is negative. Here, the
term load considers “General Loads”, “Low-Voltage Loads”, “Motors”, “Shunts/Filters” and “SVS”. A
synchronous machine stated as a “Motor” will have also this sign convention.

Generation:

Power Flow going out of the Busbar is negative while going into the busbar is positive. Here, the
term Generation considers “Generators”, “External Grids”, “Static Generators” and “Current and Voltage
Sources”. An asynchronous machine stated as a “Generator” will have also this sign convention.

24.5.6 Results for Unbalanced Load Flow Calculations

One of PowerFactory ’s strengths lays in the modelling and simulation of asymmetric networks with
individual phases (also neutrals). The unbalanced load flow calculation leads to phase/conductor
specific results. In addition unbalance factors for voltage, current and power are calculated.

The percentaged unbalance factor (for voltage) is calculated for node elements as ratio of the negative
and positive sequence voltage. The current unbalance factor is calculated similarly with negative and

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positive sequence currents. It is evaluated for each side of all branch elements, where in addition the
power unbalance factor is calculated. It is defined as follows:
Let 𝑁 be the number of phases, and let
𝑁
1 ∑︁
𝑆ˆ = 𝑆𝑖
𝑁 𝑖=1

be the average complex power (at one end) of a branch element, where 𝑆𝑖 , 𝑖 = 1, . . . ,𝑁 are the complex
powers on phases 1, . . . ,𝑁 . Let
𝑁
1 ∑︁
𝑆¯ = |𝑆𝑖 |
𝑁 𝑖=1

be the average of the absolute values of the powers on the different phases. Then the power unbalance
factor 𝑠𝑏 for the branch element 𝑏 is defined as
¯ max {|𝑆𝑖 − 𝑆|}.
𝑠𝑏 := (1/𝑆) ˆ
𝑖=1,...,𝑁

Note: The power unbalance factor is calculated for every side of all branch elements. Due to its
definition, the voltage and current unbalance factor however is only calculated for three phase
elements, where the transformation into symmetrical components is possible.

For feeder elements, the unbalance factors of all assigned elements are analysed, the maximum and
average values identified and stored into dedicated variables. In addition the unbalance factors of the
feeding point (the branch element, from which the feeder starts) are available.

24.5.7 Update Database

Input (data that has been entered by the user) and output (parameters that have been calculated) data
is kept separate in PowerFactory. Output data, such as the new tap positions following an automatic tap
adjustment calculation, does not overwrite the settings that are originally entered, unless the Update
Database (ComDbupd) command on the main toolbar is executed.

Note: The corresponding input parameters of the database will be overwritten by the calculated values.

Network components

• Update: apply the changes to either the whole system, the set from a custom selection (SetSe-
lect) or filtered elements (SetFilt).

Apply update

This section contains the selection of elements and the respective attributes, that are updated by the
command.

• Transformers -Taps: update either the tap position of all transformers, only phase shifting or only
not phase shifting transformers.
• Loads: update either P and Q setpoints, the scale factor or all three values of the loads (ElmLod).
• MV Loads - Distribution Transformer Taps: update the tap position of the distribution transform-
ers of MV load elements (ElmLodmv ).
• Shuts/Filters - Steps: update the step position of Shunts and Filters (ElmShnt).

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• SVSs - TCR and Capacitive Steps: update the TCR and the capacitive step position of SVSs
(ElmSvs).
• Asynchronous Machines, DFIGs: update any combination of the P, Q and V setpoints of Asyn-
chronous Machines (ElmAsm) and DFIGs (ElmAsmsc).
• Synchronous Machines: update any combination of the P, Q and V setpoints of synchronous
machines (ElmSym).
• Static Generators: update any combination of the P, Q and V setpoints of static generators
(ElmGenstat).
• External Grids: update any combination of the P, Q and V setpoints of external grids (ElmXnet).
• Extended-/Ward Equivalents: update any combination of the P and Q setpoints of (Extended)
Ward Equivalents (ElmVac).

• PWM Converters: update any combination of the P and Q setpoints of PWM converters (e.g.
ElmVsc).

Update reactive power (DC load flow or for option ’only P’ or ’P and V’)

This section is only available if a DC load flow as carried out and the ’only P’ or the ’P and V’ option is
selected for any of the applicable elements mentioned above.

• do not update: the reactive power is not adjusted and the power factor of the element can change.
• according to const. power factor: the reactive power of the respective elements is adjusted to
retain the previous constant power factor setpoint.

Example:

A Load Flow is calculated with the options Automatic tap adjustment of transformers and Automatic
tap adjustment of shunts enabled. The calculated tap and shunt positions can be seen in the single
line diagram, but the input data parameters in the element data dialog remain as originally entered.
If the Update Database command is carried out, the input parameters are now overwritten by the
calculated values found on the single line diagram.

24.6 Troubleshooting Load Flow Calculation Problems

In general, if a solution can be found (in other words, the network is mathematically solvable), Pow-
erFactory will find a solution. In some cases the user may have made an error which will not allow a
solution to be found; such as a large load causing a voltage drop so large that a voltage collapse results.
In a real-world power system the same problem would be found.

When creating a network for the first time it is best to enter the data for only a small part or ’path’ of the
network and solve the network by calculating a load flow. PowerFactory has a data verification process
in which certain checks are performed, such as whether a line is connected between nodes of the same
voltage; and the correct voltage orientation of transformers, etc.

Typical reasons for non-convergence in the load flow are:

• Data model problem.

• Too many inner loop iterations.

• Too many outer loop iterations.
• Excessive mismatch.

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• Tap hunting.
Clearly this is not an exhaustive list of problems, but these are the main causes of non-convergence
and that will be discussed in this section.

24.6.1 General Troubleshooting

The place to search for the causes of the non-convergence problem is in the PowerFactory output
window. Here, there can be three different types of messages printed out, which are the following:

Info messages

Information detailing the load flow convergence (inner and outer loop iterations). Information of genera-
tors with reactive power compensation at output limit. Information on the total number of isolated areas
(see 24.6.3).

Warning messages

Warning messages do not need to be corrected for the load flow to solve, however they could give you
an indication of where the problem is. Take note of the warning messages and evaluate them in terms
of your system. Important warnings, such as “Exceeding Mvar limit range” may not be acceptable.
“Unsupplied Areas” messages indicate that an isolated area with “Consumers” (such as loads and
motors) is without a generator, power source or external supply.

Error messages

Error messages must be corrected for a load flow to solve. Error messages could be generated by
PowerFactory ’s data checking function, which include messages such as missing type!. In most
cases the messages have links to the data base and graphic. The following options can be performed
in order to trace errors:

• Use the Network Data Assessment tool ( ).

• Once errors have been detected, open the problematic element dialog window by double clicking
on the name directly from the output window. Or alternatively, right-click mouse button over the
name and select Edit, or Show in Data Manager, or Mark in Graphic.

The amount of information being printed to the PowerFactory output window can be changed by the
user. Once error messages have been analysed and corrected and the load flow still does not solve,
the user may want to print more detailed information on the convergence progress.

Tick the Show Convergence Progress Report option found in the Outputs page of the load flow dialog
(refer to Section 49.4.6).

This will print messages to the output window that can provide clues as to where the convergence
problems may lie.

The single line graphic can also be coloured to show low and high voltages and overloadings. This will
also provide a good indication of possible problems. Look at the undervoltage nodes and overloaded
elements and investigate why they are overloaded; look at load setpoints, line lengths and line type data
(the impedances may be too high, for example).

Note: As explained above, there are 3 different types of messages that are printed to the output window:
warning, error and information messages. Only error messages must be corrected for a load flow
to solve. Take note of the warning messages and evaluate them in terms of your system, however
these do not need to be corrected for the load flow to solve. “Unsupplied Areas” means that an
isolated area with “Consumers” is without a generator, power source or external supply.

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If there is still no convergence then set the option Out of Service for most of the elements (see each
elements Basic Data tab). Following this, bring these elements back into service, one at a time, from
the source element downwards, performing a load flow calculation each time.

When experiencing large unbalances, such as when there are a number of single or dual phase
elements, or when using power electronics elements, select the Newton-Raphson (Current Iteration)
option on the Advanced page of the load flow dialog.

24.6.2 Data Model Problem

In PowerFactory, there are three different levels of data verification implemented:

Parameter Level

Checks the consistency of the input parameter; for example, entering a negative value in the length of
the line will prompt an error message. Other verifications implemented include checking if the parameter
imputed is within certain limits.

Object Level

Checks the consistency of the data being imputed from the component itself; for example, checking
if the magnetising losses of a transformers are less that the total magnetising apparent power (i.e.
magnetising current), checking if the inputting of the manufacture’s data results in a feasible torque-slip
characteristic, etc.

System Level

Checks the consistency of the data being imputed from a system point of view; for example, check-
ing if lines/cables are connected between the same voltage levels, checking if the HV/MV/LV side of
transformers is compatible with the voltage level of busbars, checking if there are missing types, etc.

Data model problems can normally be fixed easily as the output window message refers directly to the
element causing the problem.

Typical cases of data model problems are:

• missing type!: it indicates that input data (electrical data defined in types) is missing. In most
cases the messages have links to the data base and graphic.
• Check control conditions!: it normally appears when more than one controller (for exam-
ple a station controller) is set to control the same element, such as the same busbar. PowerFactory
will print the name of the controlled element to the output window. Starting from the controlled
element, access the controllers to fix the problem.

• Line connected between different voltage levels!

24.6.3 Some Load Flow Calculation Messages

• Grid split into 182 isolated areas

An “isolated area” indicates that a busbar or a group of busbars are not connected to the slack
busbar. An isolated generator or an isolated external grid forms an isolated area. An isolated area
refers basically to nodes.

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Each isolated area is assigned an index (Parameter name b:ipat) and needs a load flow refer-
ence (slack) of its own.
These busbars can be found by colouring the single line graphic according to isolated grids.

• 2 area(s) are unsupplied

An “unsupplied area” is an isolated area with “Consumers” (such as loads and motors) without
a generator, power source or external supply. That is U=0 and I=0. Unsupplied areas belong to
the group of isolated areas. The unsupplied areas can be identified by displaying the following
parameter in the “Consumers” components (loads, synchronous/asynchronous motors):
– r:bus1b:ipat Gives the Index of the isolated area
– r:bus1:b:imode=0 Indicates there is no slack in the isolated area therefore indicating its
unsupplied.
– r:bus1:b:imode>0 Indicates the area is supplied.
• Outer loop did not converge. Maximum number of iterations reached
Fore some hints on this type of error refer to Section 24.6.5.

24.6.4 Too many Inner Loop Iterations

Too many inner loop iterations are “normally” related to voltage stability (voltage collapse) problems.
For example, a large load causing voltage drops so high that a voltage collapse results. Also very weak
connections resulting from faults or outages may lead to voltage collapse during contingency analysis.

The problem will not only be found in the simulation but would be found in the real world as well!

The main causes leading to a voltage stability problem can be summarised as follows:

• Excessive active power demand leading to a high voltage drop.

• Lack of reactive power compensation.

Diagnosis and Solution:

The main source of Information is the output window. Enable the Show Convergence Progress Report
option found in the Outputs page of the load-flow dialog. Analyse the convergence of the inner loop
iterations: check the progress in the load flow error for nodes and model equations:

• Are they increasing or decreasing?

• If the error is not continuously decreasing, it could be an indication of a voltage stability problem.

• Identify the element (load, generator) with high convergence error. Use the Mark in Graphic
option to identify the zone of the network having the problem.

Several possible countermeasures can be undertaken to fix the problem:

• Use the Iteration Control options on the load flow command (increasing the number of stairs as
the first option, typically to 3).
• Load shedding: disconnect the load identified as responsible for the high convergence error.
• Connect additional reactive power compensation.

• Using the flexible data page, check if there are any heavily loaded circuits, these indicate weak
connections.

Once the load flow converges, check if there are areas with voltages with high deviation from operating
voltages.

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24.6.4.1 Excessive Mismatch

Where there is a large mismatch between demand and generation (> 15 %) the load flow is unlikely to
converge. This is typified by a large number of iterations followed by warnings or errors such as:

No convergence in load flow! Equation system could not be solved.

Check Control Conditions!

Depending on the size of the mismatch, the failure might occur during the initial Newton-Raphson
or during subsequent outer loop iteration. There may also be a large number of maximum/minimum
reactive power reached and transformer tap statements.

Solution:

• Set the option Show Convergence Progress Report on the Outputs page and observe which
elements are having the highest mismatches. These elements should be closely checked.
• Check the mismatch on the Reference machine by performing a DC load flow as Dispatched
allowing for normal losses. Rebalancing the network might alleviate convergence problems.

24.6.5 Too Many Outer Loop Iterations

Outer loops iterations are required to calculate discrete tap positions of transformers, number of steps
of switchable reactive power compensation, etc. in order to match the voltage profile or reactive power
control specified by the user.

Too many outer loop iterations is referring to a solution that is too far away from the starting point (default
tap positions) to converge in the allowed number of outer loop iterations.

Diagnosis and Solution:

The outer-loop does the following:

• Increasing/Decreasing discrete taps.

• Increasing/Decreasing switchable shunts.
• Limiting/Releasing synchronous machines to/from max/min reactive power limits.

If the outer loop does not converge, it can have the following reasons:
• Tap upper and lower limits are too close, so that the voltage can never be kept in the desired
range.
• The same with switchable shunts.
• Other toggling effects, for example synchronous machine limits and tap positions don’t find a
stable solution.
The main source of Information is the output window. Check first the following:

• Is the number of messages reducing with each outer loop iteration?

The following messages in the output window may indicate a problem and lead to a non-convergent
solution.

--------------------------------
’\....\Transformer.ElmTr2’:
Maximum Tap Position reached
--------------------------------

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The message indicates that more/less reactive power is required at this location (the tap is at maxi-
mum/minimum position). The message indicates therefore an area in the network where a lack/excess
of reactive power is likely to happen.

--------------------------------
’\....\Generator.ElmSym’:
Reactive Power Limit left
--------------------------------

This will lead to a convergence error. A load flow calculation without considering reactive power limits
may find a solution. Check then required reactive power at the generator.

--------------------------------
’\....\Generator.ElmSym’:
Maximum Reactive Power Reached
--------------------------------

Basically means that there is no regulation margin in the specified generators.

In general the results from the last iteration should be available to view on the output window.

• Is the mismatch always in the same (or similar) location?

• How far away from the solution was the original starting point?

All actions (except for shunt switching) are displayed in the output window by blue messages. Observing
these messages allows to conclude what the reason for the convergence problem was, for example
if a synchronous machine toggles between limited/released, the problem is related to this particular
machine.

• If no toggling can be observed, increasing the maximum number of outer iteration loops may help.
• If the load flow converges, improve the convergence of subsequent calculations by saving the tap
positions ( ).

If the load flow does not converge after a large number of iterations then other methods of improving
convergence are:

• Use the direct method on the advanced options page of the load flow command.
• Set the maximum tap changes per iteration to be a small number, for example 1. This will result
in PowerFactory not changing all tap changers at once by several steps but only by maximum of
1 step at once. In larger networks this is often improving the convergence.
• Perform a load flow without automatic taps and shunt adjustment. If the load flow does not
converge in this case, it could be an indication that the load is exceeding the voltage stability
limits, thus the load is too high.

24.6.5.1 Tap Hunting

Tap hunting can be easily recognised when one or more transformers oscillate between tap positions
until the number of outer loop iterations is exhausted. This is normally due to the transformer (controller)
target voltage dead band being smaller than the transformer tap step size.

This problem of no converging load-flow with the stepped tap changing method is caused by a slightly
different way of the iteration to reach the correct tap position and load-flow results. This might result in
a non-convergence in the outer loop, when the controller range (Vmax-Vmin) of the tap changer is near
to the value of the additional voltage per tap.

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Solution:

• Change the minimum relaxation factor on the Advanced Options page of the load flow command
to a smaller value. This might help the load flow to converge.
• Check if the dead bands of the target or controlled busbars of the corresponding transformers are
correctly set. Also check if the tap changer data on the load flow page of the transformer type is
correct.
• Disable the automatic tap changing of the transformers where tap hunting occur. Run the load
flow (it should converge in this case!) and then check the sensitivity of the tap changer increasing
and decreasing the tap position by one step. Verify the results against the dead band of the target
busbar.

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Chapter 25

Short-Circuit Analysis

25.1 Introduction

Power systems as well as industrial systems are designed so that loads are supplied safely and reliably.
One of the major aspects taken into account in the design and operation of electrical systems is the
adequate handling of short-circuits. Although systems are designed to stay as free from short circuits
as possible, they can still occur. A short-circuit condition generally causes large uncontrollable current
flows, which if not properly detected and handled can result in equipment damage, the interruption of
large areas (instead of only the faulted section) as well as placing personnel at risk. A well-designed
system should therefore isolate the short-circuit safely with minimal equipment damage and system
interruption. Typical causes of short-circuits can be the following:

• Lightning discharge in exposed equipment such as transmission lines.

• Premature ageing of the insulation due mainly to permanent overloading, inappropriate ventilation,
etc.
• Atmospheric or industrial salt “Build-Up” in isolators.
• Equipment failure.
• Inappropriate system operation.

One of the many applications of a short-circuit calculation is to check the ratings of network equipment
during the planning stage. In this case, the planner is interested in obtaining the maximum expected
currents (in order to dimension equipment properly) and the minimum expected currents (to aid the
design of the protection scheme). Short-circuit calculations performed at the planning stage commonly
use calculation methods that require less detailed network modelling (such as methods which do not
require load information) and which will apply extreme-case estimations. Examples of these methods
include the IEC 60909/VDE 0102 method [27], the ANSI method and the IEC 61363 method [9] for AC
short circuit calculation and the IEC 61660 method [8] and ANSI/IEEE 946 method [32] for DC short
circuit calculation. A different field of application is the precise evaluation of the fault current in a specific
situation, such as to find out whether the malfunction of a protection device was due to a relay failure or
due to the consequence of improper settings (for example an operational error). These are the typical
applications of exact methods such as the superposition method (also known as the Complete Method),
which is based on a specific network operating point.

Using the Complete Method it is possible to calculate results which take account of the procedures
outlined in Issue 1 (1992) and Issue 2 (July 2020) of the ENA Engineering Recommendation G74.

The short-circuit calculation in PowerFactory is able to simulate single faults as well as multiple faults
of almost unlimited complexity. As short-circuit calculations can be used for a variety of purposes,
PowerFactory supports different representations and calculation methods for the analysis of short-circuit
currents.

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This chapter presents the handling of the short-circuit calculation methods as implemented in Power-
Factory. Further background on this topic can be found in Section 25.2.

25.2 Technical Background

Beside load flow calculations, short-circuit is one of the most frequently performed calculations when
dealing with electrical networks. It is used both in system planning and system operation.

Typical application examples of short-circuit analysis in system planning include:

• Ensuring that the defined short-circuit capacity of equipment is not exceeded with system expan-
sion and system strengthening.
• Co-ordination of protective equipment (fuses, over-current and distance relays).
• Dimensioning of earth grounding systems.

• Verification of sufficient fault level capacities at load points (e.g. uneven loads such as arc
furnaces, thyristor-driven variable speed drives or dispersed generation).
• Verification of admissible thermal limits of cables and transmission lines.
Example applications of short-circuit analysis in system operation include:

• Ensuring that short-circuit limits are not exceeded with system reconfiguration.
• Determining protective relay settings as well as fuse sizing.
• Calculation of fault location for protective relays, which store fault disturbance recordings.

• Analysis of system faults, e.g. misoperation of protection equipment.

• Analysis of possible mutual interference of parallel lines during system faults.

AC short circuit calculation quantities available in PowerFactory are shown in Figure 25.2.1, also a
graphical representation of the AC short-circuit current time function is illustrated in Figure 25.2.2. Note
that the quantities relating to the IEC 61363 standard [9] and DC short-circuit quantities calculated in
DC short circuit standards IEC 61660 and ANSI/IEEE 946 are not shown in Figure 25.2.1.

Note: The current waveform for a DC short circuit calculation is dependent on the type of DC current
source(s), for more information refer to Section 25.2.5 and Section 25.2.6 and the relevant IEC
and ANSI/IEEE standards.

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Figure 25.2.1: Areas of Application of Short-Circuit Calculations

According to IEC 60909 [27] the definition of the currents and multiplication factors shown in Fig-
ure 25.2.1 are as follows:

• 𝐼𝑘𝑠𝑠 initial symmetrical short-circuit current (RMS),

• 𝑖𝑝 peak short-circuit current (instantaneous value),
• 𝐼𝑏 symmetrical short-circuit breaking current (RMS),
• 𝐼𝑡ℎ thermal equivalent short-circuit current (RMS),
• 𝜅 factor for the calculation of the peak short-circuit current,
• 𝜇 factor for the calculation of the symmetrical short-circuit breaking current,
• 𝑚 factor for the heat effect of the d.c. component,
• 𝑛 factor for the heat effect of the a.c. component, besides the above currents, the Complete
Method introduces the following current definition:
• 𝑖𝑏 peak short-circuit breaking current (instantaneous value).

Figure 25.2.2: Short-Circuit Current Time Function

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The fundamental difference between the assumptions used by the calculation methods is that for
system planning studies the system operating conditions are not yet known, and therefore estimations
are necessary. To this end, the IEC (and VDE) methods which use an equivalent voltage source at
the fault location have become generally accepted in countries using IEC based standards. For AC
fault calculation, the IEC 60909 [27] (and VDE 0102) methods work independently of the load flow
(operating point) of a system. The methods are based on the nominal and/or calculated dimensions
of the operating point of a system and uses correction factors for voltages and impedances, to give
conservative results. For the calculation of minimum and maximum short-circuit currents, different
correction factors are applied. However, it should be mentioned that both IEC 60909 and VDE 0102 do
not deal with single phase elements (except single phase elements in the neutral conductor).

Another very similar method for AC fault calculation is the ANSI method, predominately used in North
America but accepted in other countries as well. The ANSI method is based on the IEEE Stan-
dards C37.010 [1] which is for equipment applied in medium and high voltage systems (greater than
1000 Volts) and C37.13 [4] which is for power circuit breakers in low voltage systems (less than 1000
Volts).

For AC short-circuit calculations in a system operation environment, the exact network operating con-
ditions are well-known. If the accuracy of the calculation according to approximation methods such
as IEC 60909 [27] is insufficient - or to verify the results of these methods - the superposition method
can be used. The superposition method calculates the expected short-circuit currents in the network
based on the existing network operating condition. If the system models are correct, the results from
this method are always more exact than the results of the approximation method (such as IEC 60909).
Often the system analyst must, however, ensure that the most unfavourable conditions are considered
with respect to the sizing of plant. This may require extensive studies when using a superposition
calculation method.

Other short circuit calculation methods available in PowerFactory include:

• IEC 61363 [9]: Calculation of short-circuit currents on marine or offshore electrical systems such
as ships.
• IEC 61660 [8]: IEC standard for the calculation of short-circuit currents in DC auxiliary systems in
power plants and substations.
• ANSI/IEEE 946 [32]: ANSI/IEEE standard for the calculation of short-circuit currents in DC power
Systems for Stationary Applications.

25.2.1 The IEC 60909/VDE 0102 Part 0/DIN EN 60909-0 Method

The IEC 60909/VDE 0102 part 0/DIN EN 60909-0 [27] calculation is a simplified short-circuit calculation
method which doesn’t require accurate system loading information to be present in the network model
in order to produce useful results. Unlike the complete method (see section 25.2.3), a preceding load-
flow calculation is not required. Instead, the system nominal voltage at the point of fault is increased
or decreased by a specific safety factor (the so called c factor) with the intention of producing either
conservatively high or conservatively low results according to the user’s specific requirement. Since
loading information is not considered, this method is particularly useful in the design stage of a project
where detailed operational data for the network will not yet be available. Where detailed operational
data for the network is available the complete method should produce more accurate results and may
be more appropriate.

Note: IEC 60909 [27], VDE 0102 and DIN EN 60909-0 are intended for usage with three phase
networks only.

The equivalent voltage source at the faulted bus is illustrated in Figure 25.2.3. The equivalent voltage
source method can be derived from the superposition method. The main simplifications are as follows:

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• Nominal conditions are assumed for the whole network, i.e. 𝑈 𝑖 = 𝑈 𝑛,𝑖
• Load currents are neglected, i.e. 𝐼𝑂𝑝 = 0.

• A simplified simulation network is used, i.e. loads are not considered in the positive and negative
sequence network.
• To ensure that the results are conservatively estimated, a correction factor, c, is applied to the
voltage at the faulted busbar. This factor differs for the calculation of the maximum and the
minimum short-circuit currents of the network.

Figure 25.2.3: Illustration of the IEC 60909/VDE 0102 Method

IEC Impedance Correction Factors

The short-circuit calculation based on the above simplifications may be insufficient for some practi-
cal applications. Therefore, the standards determine that in some specific circumstances additional
impedance correction factors should be applied to the physical impedances of the network elements.

As an example consider that the short-circuit contribution of a synchronous generator depends heavily
on the excitation voltage and on the unit transformer tap changer position. The worst-case value of this
impedance is considered by applying a correction factor (< 1).

This idea is illustrated in Figure 25.2.4. The correction factor c should be determined so that 𝐼𝑘′′ =
′′
𝐼𝑘,𝐼𝐸𝐶 . The IEC 60909 standard defines an equation for the correction factor for each element type.

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Figure 25.2.4: Principle of Impedance Correction (IEC/VDE Method)

As illustrated in Figure 25.2.1, IEC 60909 requires the calculation of the initial symmetrical short circuit
current in order to derive the rest of the physical quantities, each of which is a function of the following:

• R/X ratio,
• Machine characteristics
• Synchronous generator type of excitation system,
• Contact parting time,
• Type of network (if it’s radial or meshed),
• Determination if the contribution is “near to” or “far from” the short-circuit location,

Regarding the type of network, IEC 60909 describes three methods for the calculation of (peak short-
circuit current) in meshed networks which are defined as follows:

Method A: Uniform Ratio R/X The 𝜅 factor is determined based on the smallest ratio of R/X of
all the branches contributing to the short-circuit current.

Method B: Ratio R/X at the Short-Circuit Location For this method the 𝜅 factor is multiplied by
1.15 to cover inaccuracies caused by using the ratio R/X from a network reduction with complex
impedances.

Method C: Equivalent Frequency An equivalent impedance 𝑍𝑐 of the system as seen from

the short-circuit location is calculated assuming a frequency 𝑓𝑐 = 20𝐻𝑧 (for a nominal frequency
𝑓𝑐 = 50𝐻𝑧) or 𝑓𝑐 = 24𝐻𝑧 (for a nominal frequency 𝑓𝑐 = 60𝐻𝑧). This is the recommended Method
in meshed networks.

Note: In PowerFactory methods B and C are available to the user. Method C is the one recommended
in meshed networks. For more information refer to Section 25.4.5

As the IEC 60909 standard includes a worst-case estimation for minimum and maximum short-circuit
currents, some PowerFactory elements require additional data. These elements are:

Lines In their type (TypLne), the maximum admissible conductor temperature (for minimum short-
circuit currents) must be stated. Line capacitances are not considered in the positive/negative
sequence systems, but must be used in the zero-sequence system.

Transformers Require a flag indicating whether they are unit or network transformers. Network
transformers may be assigned additional information about operational limits which are used for
a more precise calculation of the impedance correction factor. Unit transformers are treated
differently depending on whether they have an on-load or a no-load tap changer defined in the
transformer type (TypTr2).

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Synchronous Machines Subtransient impedances are used. Additionally, information regarding

the voltage range must be given.

Asynchronous Machines The ratio of starting current to rated current is used to determine the
short-circuit impedance.

For calculations according to IEC 60909 version 2016 and VDE 0102 version 2016, which additionally
include the handling of doubly-fed induction generators and full size converters, the following parameters
are included as well.

Doubly Fed Induction Generator kappaWD can be entered, which is used to calculate the peak
short-circuit current.

Doubly Fed Induction Generator iWDmax is the maximum instantaneous short-circuit current

Doubly Fed Induction Generator ratio RWD/XWD

Full Size Converter is modelled by a current source in the positive sequence. The current that
depends on the type of short circuit can be entered.

Refer to the IEC 60909 [27] standard to find detailed information regarding specific equipment models
and correction factors for each element.

25.2.2 The ANSI Method

ANSI provides the procedures for calculating short-circuit currents in the following standards:

• ANSI/IEEE Standard C37.010 [1], IEEE Application Guide for AC High-Voltage Circuit Breakers
Rated on a Symmetrical Current Basis.
• ANSI/IEEE Standard C37.13 [4] , IEEE Standard for Low-Voltage AC Power Circuit Breakers
Used in Enclosures.
• ANSI/IEEE Standard 141 [6], IEEE Recommended Practice for Electric Power Distribution of
Industrial Plants (IEEE Red Book).
• ANSI/IEEE Standard C37.5 [2], IEEE Application Guide for AC High-Voltage Circuit Breakers
Rated on a Total Current Basis. (Standard withdrawn).

ANSI C37.010 details the procedure for equipment applied in medium and high voltage systems consid-
ering a classification of the generators as either “local” or “remote” depending on the location of the fault,
as well as taking into account motor contribution. The procedure also covers first cycle and interrupting
time currents, with emphasis on interrupting time currents.

ANSI C37.13 details the procedure for power circuit breakers applied in low voltage systems (less than
1000 Volts), while mainly focusing on first-cycle currents, impedance of motors and the fault point X/R
ratio. Typically, fuses and low voltage circuit breakers begin to interrupt in the first half cycle so no
special treatment for interruptive current is given. It could be the case however, that nevertheless the
equipment test include a dc component specification.

Due to the differences in the high and low voltage standards, it would be understandable to say that
two first-cycle calculations are required. The first calculation would be for high voltage busbars and a
second calculation would be for low-voltage busbars.

In IEEE/ANSI Standard 141-1993 [6] (Red Book) a procedure for the combination of first cycle network is
detailed. There is stated that in order to simplify comprehensive industrial system calculations, a single
combination first-cycle network is recommended to replace the two different networks (high/medium-
voltage and low voltage). This resulting combined network is then based on the interpretation of the
ANSI C37.010 [1], ANSI C37.13 [4] and ANSI C37.5 [2] there given.

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Total and Symmetrical Current Rating Basis of Circuit Breakers and Fuses according to ANSI
Standards

Depending on the circuit breaker year of construction different ratings are specified. High-voltage circuit
breakers designed before 1964 were rated on “Total” current rating while now a day’s high-voltage circuit
breakers are rated on a “Symmetrical” current basis. The difference between these two definitions is on
how the asymmetry is taken into account. While a “Total” current basis takes into account the ac and
dc decay, “Symmetrical” current basis takes into account only the ac decay. To explain further these
definitions refer to Figure 25.2.5.

Figure 25.2.5: Asymmetrical Short-Circuit Current

The DC component “DC” is calculated according to the following equation:

𝑃1 − 𝑃2
𝐷𝐶 = (25.1)
2

The RMS value of the ac component (RMS) is then calculated as:

𝑃1 + 𝑃2
𝑅𝑀 𝑆 = (25.2)
2.828

The total interrupting current in RMS is then:

√︀
𝑇 𝑜𝑡 = 𝐷𝐶 2 + 𝑅𝑀 𝑆 2 (25.3)

From the above, Equation (25.2) corresponds to the “Symmetrical” current calculation and Equation
(25.3) to the “Total” current calculation.

Some of the main ANSI guidelines for the calculation of short-circuit currents are the following:

• The pre-fault busbar voltage is assumed to be nominal (1.0 p.u.).

• The fault point X/R ratio is calculated based on a separate resistance network reduction which is
latter used to calculate the peak and total asymmetrical fault current.
• Depending on the location of the fault, the generator currents being fed to the short circuit are
classified as “local” or “remote”. A remote source is treated as having only a dc decay, while a local

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source is treated as having a dc and ac decay. Depending on this classification, corresponding

curves are used in order to obtain the multiplication factors.

According to ANSI standard, the following short-circuit currents are calculated:

• 𝐼𝑠𝑦𝑚𝑚 symmetrical momentary (first cycle) short-circuit current (RMS),

• 𝐼𝑠𝑦𝑚𝑖 symmetrical interrupting short-circuit current (RMS),

• 𝐼16𝑎𝑠𝑦𝑚𝑚 asymmetrical momentary (Close and Latch - Duty) short-circuit current (RMS). Obtained
by applying a 1.6 factor to 𝐼𝑠𝑦𝑚𝑚
• 𝐼27𝑝𝑒𝑎𝑘𝑚 peak short-circuit current (instantaneous value). Obtained by applying a 2.7 factor to
𝐼𝑠𝑦𝑚𝑚 ,
• 𝐼𝑎𝑠𝑦𝑚𝑚 asymmetrical momentary (Close and Latch - Duty) short-circuit current(RMS). Obtained
by applying a factor to 𝐼𝑠𝑦𝑚𝑚 according to the calculated X/R ratio,
• 𝐼𝑝𝑒𝑎𝑘𝑚 peak short-circuit current (instantaneous value). Obtained by applying a factor to 𝐼𝑠𝑦𝑚𝑚 ,
according to the calculated X/R ratio.

25.2.3 The Complete Method

The complete method is a superposition method of short-circuit analysis which can produce more
accurate calculation results given realistic pre-fault loading of the system. The short-circuit results are
determined by superimposing the set of healthy load-flow results for the network state at the moment
before short-circuit inception (Figure 25.2.6a), with a set of results representing the system in the faulted
state (Figure 25.2.6b). In the faulted state all network voltage sources are shorted whilst an additional
voltage source is connected at the fault location injecting a voltage equal and opposite to the pre-fault
voltage at that location, as determined from the load flow calculation.

The load flow calculation will account for the excitation conditions of the generators, the tap positions of
regulated transformers and the switching status of the network according to the control options of the
associated load flow command and the configuration of the models in the network.

Since accurate loading information is key for the accurate determination of fault currents, this method
is particularly useful for mature network models where detailed operational data for the network should
be readily available. For networks which are still in the design stage it may be more appropriate to use
another short circuit calculation such as the IEC 60909 method (see section 25.2.1), as this should
produce more conservative results.

The superposition of the load flow and faulted state of the system is illustrated in Figure 25.2.6c.

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Figure 25.2.6: Illustration of the Complete Method procedure

The complete method is not constrained to three phase systems and may also be used for calculating
short circuits in unbalanced network representations. However, note that for unbalanced network
representations and indeed for unbalanced short circuits it must be initialised with an unbalanced load
flow calculation.

The complete method additionally allows for the calculation of transient short circuit currents. In order
to consider this accurately it is necessary to provide additional data in the machine models included in
the network model. Further information on these parameters can be found in the associated technical
references.

The Complete Method is not a calculation carried out in accordance with any specific standard. It
is based on a more comprehensive set of data than is used by the simplified calculations of the
standards and should theoretically produce more accurate results for the subtransient (initial) short-
circuit currents. Just as the IEC 60909 standard derives additional result parameters from these currents
via the application of various factors the complete method does the same. However, where possible
these calculations are enhanced to take account of the additional transient results which are available.
These enhancements are documented in the Issue 2 (July 2020) of the ENA Engineering Recommen-
dation G74. However, some examples of how the complete short circuit calculation results have been
enhanced are also outlined below. The mentioned quantities can be identified in Figure 25.2.1.
• A more precise Peak Short-Circuit Current 𝑖𝑝 is calculated based on the accurate subtransient
short-circuit current (which is calculated using the complete method) and the R/X ratio (which is
based on the IEC 60909 standard[27]);
• The Short-Circuit Breaking Current 𝐼𝑏 (RMS value) is calculated based on the subtransient short-
circuit current and the transient short-circuit current (both of which are calculated by the complete
method);
• The Peak Short-Circuit Breaking Current 𝑖𝑏 is calculated from the RMS short-circuit breaking
current 𝐼𝑏 and the decaying d.c. component;

• The Thermal Equivalent Short-Circuit Current 𝐼𝑡ℎ is calculated based on the IEC standard, using

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the m and n factors (see Figure 25.2.1). The n-factor calculation uses the transient current instead
of the steady-state current;
• Additionally, loads can have a contribution to the short-circuit current, which can be defined in the
load element (Fault Contribution section of Complete Short-Circuit tab).

Using the Complete Method it is possible to calculate results which take account of the procedures
outlined in Issue 1 (1992) and further developed in Issue 2 (July 2020) of the ENA Engineering Recom-
mendation G74. The Issue 2 update introduced two additional short-circuit models for converter driven
plant, specifically a doubly fed induction generator model and a full size converter model. In PowerFac-
tory the configuration of these models is carried out in either static generator models ElmGenstat or
in a doubly fed induction machine models ElmAsmsc. With further information on the configuration of
these models available in the associated technical references.

25.2.4 The IEC 61363 Method

The IEC 61363 standard [9]describes procedures for calculating short-circuit currents in three-phase
AC radial electrical installations on ships and on mobile and fixed offshore units.

The IEC 61363 standard [9]defines only calculation methods for three phase (to earth) short circuits.
Typically marine/offshore electrical systems are operated with the neutral point isolated from the hull
or connected to it through an impedance. In such systems, the highest value of short-circuit current
would correspond to a three phase short circuit. If the neutral point is directly connected to the hull,
then the line-to-line, or line-to ship’s hull short-circuit may produce a higher current. Two basic system
calculation approaches can be taken, “time dependent” and “non-time dependent”.

According to the IEC 61363 standard [9], PowerFactory calculates an equivalent machine that feeds di-
rectly into the short circuit location. This machine summarises all “active” and “non-active” components
of the grid.

The short-circuit procedure in IEC 61363 [9] calculate the upper envelope (amplitude) of the maximum
value of the time dependent short-circuit (see Figure 25.2.2). The envelope is calculated using particular
machine characteristics parameters obtainable from equipment manufacturers using recognised testing
methods, and applying the following assumptions:

• All system capacitances are neglected.

• At the start of the short-circuit, the instantaneous value of voltage in one phase at the fault point
is zero.
• During the short-circuit, there is no change in the short-circuit current path.
• The short-circuit arc impedance is neglected.
• Transformers are set at the main tap position.
• The short-circuit occurs simultaneously in all phases.
• For generator connected in parallel, all generators share their active and reactive load proportion-
ally at the start of or during the short-circuit.
• During each discrete time interval, all circuits components react linearly.

The exact guidelines on how this is achieved is specified in the standard.

Because the standard considers specific system components and models (“active” and “non-active”)
some of the models that can be used in PowerFactory will have no description according to the standard
(such as External Grids, Voltage Sources, Static Generators, etc.). How these elements are considered
and transformed to a replacement equivalent machine is described in the Technical References Docu-
ment.

According to this method, the following short-circuit values are calculated:

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• 𝐼”𝑘 initial symmetrical short-circuit current,

• upper envelope of short-circuit current 𝐼𝑘 (𝑡) ,

• 𝑖𝑑𝑐 (𝑡) decaying (aperiodic) component of short-circuit current,

• 𝑖𝑝 peak short-circuit current,
• 𝐼𝑘 steady-state short-circuit current.

The calculating formulae and methods described produce sufficiently accurate results to calculate the
short-circuit current during the first 100 ms of a fault condition. It is assumed in the standard that during
that short time the control of the generators has no significant influence on the short circuit values. The
method can be used also to calculate the short-circuit current for periods longer than 100 ms when
calculating on a bus system to which the generators are directly connected. For time periods beyond
100 ms the controlling effects of the system voltage regulators may be predominant. Calculations
including the voltage regulator effects are not considered in this standard.

In PowerFactory besides the standard IEC 61363 [9] method, an EMT simulation method is available
which considers also the first 100 ms of a three phase short-circuit.

25.2.5 The IEC 61660 (DC)/VDE0102 part 10(DC)/DIN EN 61660 Method

The equivalent standards The IEC 61660 (DC)/VDE0102 part 10(DC)/DIN EN 61660 [8] describe
a detailed method for calculating short-circuit currents in DC auxiliary systems in power plants and
substations. Such systems can be equipped with the following equipment, acting as short-circuit current
sources:

• rectifiers in three-phase AC bridge connection.

• stationary lead-acid batteries.
• smoothing capacitors.

• DC motors with independent excitation.

The IEC 61660 standard [8] defines equations and equivalent circuits which approximate the time-
dependent fault contribution of different DC current sources. The standard also defines correction
factors and approximation methods to determine the total DC short circuit current at the point of fault. A
graphical representation of the DC short-circuit current time function of different DC sources is illustrated
in Figure 25.2.7.

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Figure 25.2.7: DC Short-Circuit Current Time Function of different sources

In accordance with standard IEC 61660 [8], PowerFactory calculates the total DC fault current by
considering all of the DC current sources feeding in to the short circuit location. How different elements
are considered and modelled is described in the Technical References Document. Figure 25.2.8 shows
the IEC 61660 standard approximation function which covers the different short circuit current variations.
The equations which describe the function are detailed in IEC 61660.

There is no upper nominal voltage limit defined for the application of this method.

Figure 25.2.8: IEC 61660 standard DC short-circuit approximation function

According to the IEC 61660 method, the following short-circuit values are calculated:

• 𝑖𝑝 peak short-circuit current

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• 𝐼𝑘 quasi steady-state short-circuit current

• 𝑡𝑝 time to peak

• 𝜏𝑟 rise-time constant
• 𝜏𝑑 decay-time constant
• 𝑇𝑘 short-circuit duration

25.2.6 The ANSI/IEEE 946 (DC) Method

The IEEE 946 standard [32] describes a recommended practice for the design of DC auxiliary power
systems for nuclear and non-nuclear power stations. It also covers dc power system design in sub-
stations and telecommunication applications. The standard provides guidance on the selection of
equipment including ratings, interconnections, instrumentation, control and protection. The calculation
approach implemented in PowerFactory for the 2020 revision of the standard is equally applicable for
calculations conducted in accordance with the 1992 revision of the standard. A notable difference
between IEC 61660 and IEEE 946 is that for the latter, no provision is made for the consideration of
smoothing capacitors as sources of short circuit current in its calculation. Provision is however made so
that sources of short circuit current can be represented using rectifier, battery and DC motor models.

The IEEE 946 standard [32], is closely linked to General Electric’s Industrial Power Systems Data
Book [42]. The IEEE 946 standard includes examples for the calculation of short-circuit contribution
from a battery and a battery charger, whilst the GE Industrial Power Systems Data Book includes a
methodology for calculation of the DC fault contribution of Batteries, DC machines and Rectifiers. The
DC short circuit calculation in PowerFactory is in accordance with the approach taken in the IEEE
standard and the GE Industrial Power Systems Data Book. How different elements are specifically
considered and modelled is described in the Technical References Documentation.

According to the IEEE 946 method, the following short-circuit values are calculated:

• 𝑖𝑝 peak short-circuit current

• 𝐼𝑘 quasi steady-state short-circuit current
• 𝑇𝑛 network time constant

• 𝑅𝑅 rate of rise of short-circuit current

Calculation cases requiring DC voltage supply above 1000 V nominal are excluded by the standard for
the application of this method.

25.3 Executing Short-Circuit Calculations

There are different methods of initiating the short-circuit calculation command ComShc in PowerFac-
tory, which may result in a different configuration of the command. These methods are described in
Sections 25.3.1 and 25.3.2.

25.3.1 Toolbar/Main Menu Execution

The short-circuit command may be executed from the toolbar or main menu in PowerFactory as follows:

• By pressing the icon on the main toolbar; or

• By selecting the Calculation → Short-Circuit→ Short-Circuit. . . option from the main menu.

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If the user is performing the short-circuit for the first time (by using one of the above options), the short-
circuit command will be configured in a certain manner by default; that is the command will be set by
default to execute a short-circuit calculation on all busbars/terminals in the network. If a short-circuit
calculation has been already performed (the command exists in the study case) the settings displayed by
the short-circuit command will be according to the most recent short-circuit calculation. As an example,
if the user performs a short-circuit calculation according to ANSI for only one busbar in the system, the
next time the user executes again the short-circuit, the command will have the most recent settings, that
is, in this case according to ANSI and for the specified busbar.

25.3.2 Context Menu Execution

The short-circuit command may be executed from the context menu in PowerFactory by selecting an
element(s) in the single-line diagram, right-clicking and selecting one of the following options:

• Calculation → Short-Circuit→ Short-Circuit. . . : performs a short-circuit calculation for each ele-

ment selected by the user. It should be noted that the short-circuit calculation for each element is
carried out completely independently of the short-circuit calculation for each other element. For
this calculation, only the following combinations of elements may be selected:
– Single or multiple terminals/busbars; or
– A single line; or
– A single branch.
If several terminals/busbars are selected for analysis, the results of each individual short-circuit
calculation will be displayed together on the single-line graphic.
• Calculation → Multiple Faults. . . : performs a short-circuit calculation according to the complete
method, for the ’simultaneous’ short-circuit of all elements selected by the user. Any combination
of busbars, terminals, lines and branches can be selected for this calculation. Additionally, switch/-
circuit breaker open/close operations can also be included in the calculation. When this calculation
is selected, the option Multiple Faults in the ComShc dialog will be automatically ticked.

25.3.3 Faults on Busbars/Terminals

The short-circuit command should first be called using one of the methods described in Sections 25.3.1
and 25.3.2. The simplest way to calculate several busbar/terminal short-circuits individually and to then
combine the results into one diagram is to select the option All Busbars (or alternatively, Busbars and
Junction Nodes) in the Fault Location section of the Short-Circuit Calculation ComShc dialog. Note that
to access this option, Multiple Faults in the dialog must be un-selected.

If the user would instead like to select from the single-line diagram a single busbar/terminal, or multi-
select several busbars/terminals for calculation, the dialog will be configured as follows:

• When only a single busbar/terminal is selected, and Calculation → Short-Circuit→ Short-Circuit. . .

is chosen from the context menu, the Fault Location reference (bottom of dialog) is set to the
selected element.
• When two or more busbars/terminals are selected and Calculation → Short-Circuit is chosen from
the context menu, the Fault Location reference (bottom of dialog) is set to a so-called “Selection
Set” SetSelect object, which contains a list of references to the selected busbars/terminals.

In either case, various options for the calculation can be modified. Refer to Section 25.4 for a detailed
description of the options available. It should be noted that selecting or deselecting the option Multiple
Faults may change the selection of fault locations and may therefore lead to a calculation for locations
other than the busbars/terminals selected in the single line graphic. After pressing the Execute button,
the calculation is executed and, if successful, the results are displayed in the single line graphic. In
addition, a result report is available and may be printed out.

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Once a selection of fault locations is made and the short-circuit calculation is performed, it is simple to
execute further calculations based on the same selection of elements. This can be done by the following
alternative means of executing the short-circuit calculation command:

• By pressing the icon on the main toolbar; or

• By selecting the Calculation → Short-Circuit→ Short-Circuit. . . option from the main menu.

The short-circuit setup dialog then shows the previously selected busbars/terminals in the Fault Location
section under User Selection.

25.3.4 Faults on Lines and Branches

It is not only possible to calculate short-circuits on busbars and terminals, but also on lines and branches.
It should be noted, however, that only a single line or a single branch can be selected at a time, for each
short-circuit calculation. It is not possible to select multiple lines and/or branches for calculation. To
calculate a short-circuit on one of these types of elements, proceed as follows:

• From the single-line diagram, select a single line or a single branch where the fault should be
calculated.
• Right-click on the element and select Calculation → Short-Circuit→ Short-Circuit. . . . The short-
circuit command ComShc dialog opens and the user can then define the location of the fault
relative to the element’s length (see Figure 25.3.1), including which terminal the fault distance
should be calculated from. It should be noted that the Short-Circuit at Branch/Line section of this
tab is only available when a line or branch has been selected for calculation.
• Clicking the button located in the Short-Circuit at Branch/Line section of the tab will enable the
user to select whether the fault location is defined as a percentage or as an absolute value.

Figure 25.3.1: Configuration of Line/Branch Faults in ComShc dialog

When a fault on a line/branch is calculated, a box containing the calculation results is displayed next to
the selected element.

25.3.5 Multiple Faults Calculation

Multiple faults involve the simultaneous occurrence of more than one fault condition in a network. This
option is only available for the complete method. To calculate simultaneous multiple faults, proceed as
follows:

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• Select two or more elements (i.e. busbars/terminals, lines, ...) and right-click.
• Select the option Calculation → Multiple Faults. . . . The Short-Circuits dialog pops up, displaying
the short-circuit event list. A 3-phase fault is assumed by default at all locations in the event list.
Click OK. The Short-Circuit command dialog then pops up. In this dialog, the Multiple Faults
option is ticked in combination with the complete short-circuit method.
• Finally, press Execute to start the calculation.

In cases where the event list has to be adapted to reflect the intended fault conditions (that is, not
necessarily the calculation of 3-phase faults), please proceed as follows:

• Open the short-circuit events object using one of the following methods:
– In the Fault Location section of the short-circuit ComShc dialog, press the Show button (see
Figure 25.3.2; or
– Press the icon located on the main tool bar (just besides the short-circuit command
button); or
– In a Data Manager window, open the IntEvtshc object from the current study cases.

Figure 25.3.2: Accessing the Short-Circuit Events List

• A window opens up which shows the list of events (that is short-circuits at the selected locations).
When double-clicking on one entry in this list (double-clicking on the entire row), a window with a
description of the event is opened.

• The short-circuit event settings can now be modified. The list of fault locations consists of a “Short-
Circuit Event List”(IntEvtshc) object, which holds one or more short-circuit events (EvtShc). Each
of these events has a reference to a fault location (a busbar/terminal, line, etc.) and displays a
short description of the fault type. An example is shown in Figure 25.3.3.

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Figure 25.3.3: A Short-Circuit Event (EvtShc)

Note: To re-use the event list (IntEvtshc) later, this object can be copied to a user-defined folder in the
Data Manager. This will prevent it from being modified during future calculations. When repeating
the calculation with the same configuration, the reference in Calculation → Multiple Faults. . . can
be set to this object. The other option would be to copy the events to the Fault Cases folder
located in the “Operational Library/Faults” folder of the project. The user would then need to press
the From Library button (25.3.2).

25.4 Short-Circuit Calculation Options

The following sections describe the options available in PowerFactory ’s short-circuit calculation com-
mand. Some of these options are dependent upon the selected calculation method, therefore separate
sections dedicated to each method are presented.

25.4.1 Basic Options (All Methods)

The options presented in this section are common to all implemented calculation methods and are used
to define the general settings of the short-circuit calculation. The specific options for each method are
presented below in separate sections.

The sections of the short-circuit command dialog, which are common to all calculation methods are:

Method

PowerFactory provides the following calculation methods for short-circuit calculation:

• VDE 0102 [27] (the German VDE standard);
• IEC 60909 [27] (the International IEC standard);

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• ANSI (the American ANSI/IEEE C37 standard);

• complete (superposition method which considers the pre-fault load-flow results (see Section 25.2.3);

• IEC 61363 [9];

• IEC 61660 (DC) [8]; (the International IEC standard for DC short circuit calculation)
• ANSI/IEEE 946 (DC) [5] (the ANSI/IEEE standard for DC short circuit calculation).
The specific options for each of these methods are available on the Advanced Options page of the
short-circuit command ComShc dialog.

Fault Type

The following fault types are available:

• 3-Phase Short-Circuit

• 2-Phase Short-Circuit
• Single Phase to Ground
• 2-Phase to Ground
• 1-Phase to Neutral

• 1-Phase Neutral to Ground

• 2-Phase to Neutral
• 2-Phase Neutral to Ground
• 3-Phase to Neutral

• 3-Phase Neutral to Ground

• 3-Phase Short-Circuit (unbalanced)
The fault types with a neutral conductor should only be used for systems which are modelled using
neutral conductors.

Fault Impedance (Except for IEC 61363)

The fault impedance corresponds to the reactance and the resistance of the fault itself (such as the
impedance of the arc or of the shortening path). This can be defined by means of an enhanced model,
where line to line (𝑋𝑓 (𝐿 − 𝐿), 𝑅𝑓 (𝐿 − 𝐿)) and line to earth 𝑋𝑓 (𝐿 − 𝐸), 𝑅𝑓 (𝐿 − 𝐸)) impedances are
regarded (note: requires option Enhanced Fault Impedance to be enabled). If the option Enhanced
Fault Impedance is not enabled, fault impedances are defined by their equivalent values, 𝑋𝑓 and 𝑅𝑓 .

Figures 25.4.1 to 25.4.3 illustrate the differences between the enhanced and the simplified represen-
tation of fault impedances for the following fault types: (i) 3-phase short-circuits; (ii) 2-phase faults to
ground; and (iii) 2-phase faults.

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Figure 25.4.1: Fault Impedance Definition: 3-Phase Short-Circuit

Figure 25.4.2: Fault Impedance Definition: 2-Phase to Ground Fault

Figure 25.4.3: Fault Impedance Definition: 2-Phase Fault

Fault Location

The fault location selection options are:

• At User Selection: In this case a reference to a single terminal/ busbar/ line/ branch or to a
selection of busbars/ terminals SetSelect, as explained in Sections 25.3.3 and 25.3.4must be
given.
• At Busbars and Junction Nodes: For every terminal (ElmTerm) in the network whose Usage is
set to Busbar or Junction Node, a short-circuit calculation is carried out, independently (one after
the other).
• At All Busbars: For every terminal (ElmTerm) in the network whose Usage is set to Busbar, a
short-circuit calculation is carried out, independently (one after the other).

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If the option Multiple Faults has been ticked when the Complete Method is being used, a reference to
a set of fault objects (IntEvtshc), as explained in Section 25.3.5, must be set. This is done in the Fault
Location section of the dialog; using the Short Circuits reference.

Note: Multiple faults will only be calculated for the Complete Method, when the option Multiple Faults is
enabled. When this option is enabled, a short-circuit calculation is carried out for each individual
fault location, simultaneously. When this option is disabled, cases where more than one fault loca-
tion have been selected (i.e. several busbars/terminals), a sequence of short-circuit calculations
is performed (i.e. each short-circuit calculation is carried out independently of each other short-
circuit calculation).

25.4.2 Output (All Methods)

Results from the calculation can be reported using any of a number of inbuilt tabular or ASCII reports
(written to the output window). These can be executed separately after the calculation, as described
in section 25.5.3, or the Show output option on this page can be selected so that the reports are
automatically generated as soon as the calculation is complete.

The selection of reports is made either beforehand using the icon on the main toolbar, or the right
arrow next to “Command” here on this page can be used to access the underlying command, where the
selection may be made.

25.4.3 Verification (Except for IEC 61363, IEC 61660 and ANSI/IEEE 946)

When enabled (Verification page), the user can enter thresholds for peak, interrupting and thermal
maximum loading. The Verification option will then write a loading report to the output window with
all devices that have higher loadings than the defined max. values. This report shows the various
maximum and calculated currents for rated devices. Rated devices include, for instance:

• Lines which have a rated short-time current in their line type which is greater than zero; and
• Breakers or coupling switches which have a type with a valid rated current.

25.4.4 Basic Options (IEC 60909/VDE 0102 Method)

In general, note that the calculation according to IEC 60909 [27] and VDE 0102 does not take into
account line capacitances, parallel admittances (except those of the zero-sequence system) and non-
rotating loads (e. g. ElmLod). Single phase elements are considered only if they are located in the
neutral conductor.

Published

This option offers a sub-selection for the selected Method, where the version of the standard to be used
can be selected according to the year in which it was issued. The most recent standard is 2016, however
1990 and 2001 are still available for the verification of documented results. If 2016 is selected, wind
farms (ElmGenstat), solar systems (both ElmGenstat and ElmPvsys) and asynchronous generators
(ElmAsm) will all be supported in the short-circuit calculation.

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Calculate

The drop-down list offers the choice between the minimal or maximal short-circuit current.

If external grids are defined, the corresponding maximum or minimum value will be selected automati-
cally. For example if in the short circuit command you select “Calculate” according to “Maximum Short
Circuit currents”, the maximum short circuit value from the external grid is considered for the calculation.

The equivalent voltage source is based on the nominal system voltage and the voltage factor c. The
voltage factor c will depend on the voltage level and on the selection of the “Calculate according to. . . ”
stated in the short-circuit command.

Max. Voltage tolerance for LV systems

In accordance with the IEC/VDE standard, this voltage tolerance is used to define the respective voltage
correction factor, 𝑐. The voltage tolerance is not used when a user-defined correction factor is defined.

Short-Circuit Duration

The value for the Break Time is used to calculate the breaking current of a circuit breaker. For more
information on Break Time see Section 25.4.8. The value for the Fault Clearing Time (Ith) is required
for the equivalent thermal current.

Note: The fields Method, Fault Type, Fault Impedance, Output and Fault Location are described in
Section 25.4.1.

25.4.5 Advanced Options (IEC 60909/VDE 0102 Method)

Generally, the Advanced Options page is used for settings to tune the various short-circuit calculation
methods. Familiarisation with the IEC/VDE standard before modifying these options is strongly recom-
mended.

Grid Identification

The calculation of the factor kappa is different in the cases of meshed or radial feeding of the short-
circuit. Normally PowerFactory will automatically find the appropriate setting. The option Always
meshed will force a meshed grid approach.

Voltage Factor c

The standard defines the voltage factor c to be used for the different voltage levels. In special cases the
user may want to define the correction factor. In this case, there are several options.
1. Standard defined table: the table defined in the corresponding version of the standard IEC 60909/VDE 0102
will be used.
2. User defined equivalent voltage source factor: the explicitly entered equivalent voltage source
factor, which is displayed in the Advanced Options, will be applied to the voltage source at the fault
location. Note that a different factor can be entered for the maximum calculation as compared to
the minimum calculation by changing the calculation option on the basic options page. For the
impedance correction factor calculation, the table according to the standard will be used.
3. User defined table: equivalent voltage source factors can be entered in a user defined table.
4. User defined table and equivalent voltage source factor: adaptable user defined equivalent voltage
source factor table for application in calculation of impedance correction factors, together with

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the possibility to enter the equivalent voltage source factor explicitly. This factor is displayed in
the Advanced Options and will be applied to the equivalent voltage source for the Short Circuit
calculation. Note that a different factor can be entered for the maximum calculation as compared
to the minimum calculation by changing the calculation option on the basic options page.

Asynchronous Motors

Whether the calculation considers the influence of asynchronous motors on short-circuit currents de-
pends on this setting, which may be selected to Always Considered, Automatic Neglection, or Confir-
mation of Neglection.

1. Always Considered - asynchronous motors will always be considered.

2. Automatic Neglection - asynchronous motors will automatically be neglected if its contribution is
not higher than 5 % of the initial short-circuit current calculated without motors.
3. Confirmation of Neglection - user will be informed via an input dialog if a motor contribution is not
higher than 5 % of the initial short-circuit current calculated without motors. Using the dialog the
user can choose if the asynchronous motor should be neglected or not.

Conductor Temperature

When activating the User-Defined option, the initial (pre-fault) conductor temperature can be set man-
ually. This will influence the calculated maximum temperature of the conductors, as caused by the
short-circuit currents.

Decaying Aperiodic Component

Allows for the calculation of the DC current component, for which the decay time must be given.
According to the IEC/VDE standard, methods 𝐵, 𝐶 and 𝐶 ′ can be selected.

The following nomenclature is used:

• 𝑇𝑏 )Breaker Time (see Short-Circuit command)

• 𝑓𝑛 )Nominal frequency
• 𝐼𝑘′′ )Initial short-circuit current

Method B: Uses the complex calculated equivalent impedance of the network with a security factor of
1.15:

√ ′′ 𝑅
𝑖𝐷𝐶 = 2 · 𝐼𝑘 · 𝑒−𝜔·𝑇𝑏 · 𝑥 (25.4)

Method C Uses the R/X ratio calculated with the equivalent frequency method. The equivalent fre-
quency is dependent on the breaking time (see Table 25.4.1). This method is recommended for
maximum accuracy.

√ 𝑅
−𝜔·𝑇𝑏 · 𝑥 𝑓
𝐼𝐷𝐶 = 2 · 𝐼𝑘′′ · 𝑒 𝑓 (25.5)

𝑅𝑓 𝑅𝑐 𝑓𝑐
= · (25.6)
𝑋𝑓 𝑋𝑐 𝑓𝑛𝑜𝑚

𝑓𝑛 * 𝑇𝑏 <1 < 2.5 <5 < 12.5

𝑓𝑐 /𝑓𝑛 0.27 0.15 0.092 0.055

Table 25.4.1: Breaking Times

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The ratio Rc/Xc is the equivalent impedance calculated at the frequency given by:

𝑓𝑐
𝑓𝑐 = · 𝑓𝑛𝑜𝑚 (25.7)
𝑓𝑛𝑜𝑚

Method C’ Uses the R/X ratio as for the peak short-circuit current, thus selecting the ratio fc/fn = 0.4.
This option speeds up the calculation, as no additional equivalent impedance needs to be calculated.

Peak Short-Circuit Current (Meshed network)

In accordance with the IEC/VDE standard, the following methods for calculating kappa can be selected:

Method B’ Uses the ratio R/X at the short-circuit location.

Method C(1) Uses the ratio R/X calculated at a virtual frequency of 40% of nominal frequency (20 Hz
for fn = 50 Hz, or 24 Hz for fn=60 Hz), based on the short-circuit impedance in the positive sequence
system.

Method (012) Uses an R/X ratio calculated at a virtual frequency like C(1). However, the impedance
of the system as seen from the fault location from which the ratio is calculated, will be based on a
combination of positive-, negative- and zero-sequence impedances, with the combination depending
on the fault-type carried out. This method is not mentioned in IEC 60909-0 but is demonstrated in
IEC 60909-4.

Calculate Ik

The steady-state short-circuit currents can be calculated using different means to consider asynchronous
machines:

Without Motors Asynchronous motors will not be considered in the calculation of the current 𝐼𝑘 .
The motors will be treated as disconnected.

DIgSILENT Method Considers all asynchronous motors according to their breaking current. The
breaker opens after the maximum possible time.

Ignore Motor Contributions Partial short circuit contributions from motors will be displayed in the
associated branch elements feeding into the fault. However, these contributions will be ignored
for the calculation of the current flowing in the point of fault itself.

Consider Protection Devices

This option will calculate measured currents for all, only main or only backup protection devices and will
evaluate tripping times. To increase the speed of the calculation, this option can be set to none when
protection devices do not need to be analysed.

Calculate max. Branch Currents = Busbar Currents

This option is used to change the way that the “max” result variables (e.g. m:maxIkss, m:maxIb, m:maxip
etc) of branch objects are calculated. If this option is activated, the more conservative, total current
flowing in the busbar, is used to determine the variables. Otherwise the variables are calculated as
described in the note below.

Note: Consider two external networks connected together by a branch element such as a circuit
breaker. For a three phase fault on either terminal of the circuit breaker the current flowing in
the fault will have a contribution from both external networks. However, the current flowing in the
circuit breaker will include a contribution from only one of the external networks. The maximum
current the circuit breaker could be exposed to (assuming a fault could be applied to either of its

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terminals) will depend on which external network provides the most current and not on the total
current flowing in the fault. If a fault is applied at the connected terminal of a circuit breaker, the
maximum current seen by the circuit breaker can be evaluated as 𝑚𝑎𝑥([𝐼𝑏𝑢𝑠𝑏𝑎𝑟 −𝐼𝑏𝑟𝑎𝑛𝑐ℎ ], [𝐼𝑏𝑟𝑎𝑛𝑐ℎ ]).
The “max” parameters can be used for recording such maximum currents and these parameters
can then be compared against the manufacturer ratings of the circuit breaker. Alternatively, the
total current flowing in the fault (𝐼𝑏𝑢𝑠𝑏𝑎𝑟 ) may also be used as a conservative overestimate.

Automatic Power Station Unit detection

The IEC/VDE standard forces a different impedance correction factor to be applied to separate genera-
tors and transformers than that applied to a unit/block (power station) consisting of a generator including
its step-up transformer. PowerFactory tries to detect power stations.

When this option is enabled two additional parameters will appear:

1. Maximum search distance over line < [m] length defined here represents the maximum length of
the line that can be connected from the low voltage side of a transformer and the transformer will
still be taken into account by the power station unit detection algorithm. If the line from the low
voltage side of the transformer is longer, transformer will not be considered in a power station unit
detection.
2. Consider generators < [kV] defines the voltage level where the power station unit detection will be
performed.
When this option is disabled, block transformers must be marked accordingly by setting the Unit Trans-
former option available in the VDE/IEC Short-Circuit page of the transformer element dialog.

If the option power station unit detection is activated, short circuit command will start from all suitable
generators in the network and look for the transformer in order to detect power station unit so that the
corresponding impedance factor can be applied. If this option is not activated, short circuit command
will look for all transformers with Unit Transformer option on the VDE/IEC Short-Circuit page set to true
and will search for the suitable generator directly connected on its low voltage side.

25.4.6 Basic Options (ANSI C37 Method)

Prefault Voltage

Value of the pre-fault voltage. In ANSI, the pre-fault voltage is the system rated voltage (1.0 p.u.).
Although a higher or lower voltage can be used in the calculation if operation conditions show otherwise.

Consider Transformer Taps

The ANSI standard optionally allows the current tap positions of the transformers to be considered. This
can be selected here.

NACD Mode

Depending on the location of the fault, ANSI classifies the different currents being fed to the short circuit
as “local” or “remote”. A remote source is treated as having only a dc decay, while a local source is
treated as having a dc and ac decay. Depending on this classification, corresponding curves are used
in order to obtain the multiplication factors.

In PowerFactory the ANSI short-circuit method has the option of selecting the NACD (No AC Decay)
mode.

The NACD factor is the ratio of remote current contribution to the total fault current: NACD = 𝐼𝑟𝑒𝑚𝑜𝑡𝑒 /𝐼𝑓 𝑎𝑢𝑙𝑡 .
This NACD factor is used to calculate the breaker currents, including the DC component of the current.

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The remote current contribution required to evaluate the NACD factor is the sum of all remote generator
contributions (induction generators, synchronous machines, and external grids).

The calculation of the NACD factor can be very time consuming, as the contribution of each generator
is calculated individually. Therefore, different approximation methods can be selected, which represent
the most common interpretations of the ANSI standard:

Interpolated The NACD factor is calculated, and the correction factor for the asymmetrical fault
current is interpolated between the “dc decay only” and “AC/DC decay” curves with the following
equation: 𝑀 𝐹 = 𝐴𝐶/𝐷𝐶𝑓 𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑜𝑟 + (𝐷𝐶𝑓 𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑜𝑟 − 𝐴𝐶/𝐷𝐶𝑓 𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑜𝑟) * 𝑁 𝐴𝐶𝐷 If (NACD = 1) then only
the DC factor is used; if (NACD = 0) then only the AC/DC factor is used.

Predominant The NACD factor is calculated. If the resulting factor is greater than or equal to
0.5, then the “dc decay only” curve is used, which means that the remote generation is higher
than the local generation.

All Remote All contributions are set to ’remote’; the NACD factor is not calculated, but assumed
equal to 1 and only the “dc decay only” curve is used.

All Local All contributions are set to ’local’; the NACD factor is not calculated, but assumed equal
to 0 and only the “AC/DC decay” curve is used.

Current/Voltages for

The calculation mode for the currents and voltages to be evaluated:

LV/Momentary Evaluates the subtransient short-circuit currents.

LV/Interrupting Evaluates the breaker currents.

30 Cycle Evaluates the 30-cycle (steady-state) current.

Note: The fields Method, Fault Type, Fault Impedance, Output and Fault Location are described in
Section 25.4.1.

25.4.7 Advanced Options (ANSI C37 Method)

Calculate

This option is used to select the various currents (according to the ANSI standard) which are to be
calculated. The options are as follows:

• Momentary Current (Close and Latch Duties)

• Interrupting Current
• 30 Cycle Current

System

The selection of a particular System will determine which reactance multipliers are to be used for the
rotating equipment. According to the IEEE 551-2006 standard, different reactance multipliers should
be used for such equipment in medium/high voltage networks and low voltage networks. In order to
consider the system in its entirety, the IEEE 551-2006 provides a convenient multivoltage approach.

The selection of the System is as follows:

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• Multivoltage: this option uses reactance multipliers according to the multivoltage system approach
and considers all voltage levels.
• HV/MV: the reactance values according to the high/medium voltage levels are used and only these
voltage levels are considered.
• LV: the reactance values according to the low voltage level are used and only the low voltage level
is considered.
• HV/MV/Separate LV: the reactance values corresponding to the high/medium and low voltage
levels, respectively, are used and all voltage levels are considered.

The checkboxes allow the selection of the currents to be calculated.

Bypass Series Capacitance

Series capacitances may be optionally bypassed for the ANSI short-circuit calculation, or bypassed
depending on the type of short-circuit being calculated. The series capacitor bypass options are as
follows:

• No Bypassing
• All Currents

• LV & Interrupting & 30 Cycle Current

• 30 Cycle Currents

X/R Calculation

The user may select between a complex number X/R ratio calculation, or a calculation which considers
R and X separately. The fault point X/R will determine the system dc time constant and consequently
the rate of decay of the transient dc current. Although in PowerFactory the X/R ration can be calculated
from the complex network reduction, using this approach will not insure a conservative result. In an
attempt to provide a conservative approach, ANSI C37.010 requires that the X/R ratio be determined
by a separate R network reduction.

Consider Protection Devices

This option will calculate measured currents for all, only main or only backup protection devices and will
evaluate tripping times. To increase the speed of the calculation, this option can be set to none when
protection devices do not need to be analysed.

Calculate max. Branch Currents = Busbar Currents

This option is used to change the way that the “max” result variables (e.g. m:maxIkss, m:maxIb, m:maxip
etc) of branch objects are calculated. If this option is activated, the more conservative, total current
flowing in the busbar, is used to determine the variables. Otherwise the variables are calculated as
described in the note in the corresponding paragraph from the IEC 60909/VDE section (section 25.4.5).

25.4.8 Basic Options (Complete Method)

As opposed to the calculation methods according to IEC/VDE and ANSI, which represent short-circuit
currents by approximations, the complete method evaluates currents without using approximations. This
accurate evaluation of the currents takes into account the system conditions immediately prior to the
onset of the fault.

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Load Flow

The pre-fault system condition used by the complete method can be determined either by the evaluation
of a load flow, or by means of a simplified method, which initialises the internal voltages of all compo-
nents that contribute to the short-circuit current with their nominal values, multiplied by a scaling factor,
𝑐.

The load flow command used to initialise the short-circuit calculation (when Load Flow Initialisation on
the Advanced Options page is selected, see Section 25.4.9) is displayed next to the button labelled
Load Flow ( ). The load flow command can be accessed and modified by pressing this button .
The load flow command displayed here is initially taken from the currently active study case.

Short-Circuit Duration

The value for the Break Time (when set to “Global”) is used to calculate the breaking current of circuit
breakers. Depending on the user selection, the value used for the break time within the calculation is:

global When set to “Global”, the breaking current is calculated according to the Break Time
specified in the short-circuit command.

min. of local When set to “min. of local”, the breaking current is calculated according to
the shortest Break Time of all circuit breakers (defined in the Complete Short-Circuit page of
ElmCoup objects) connected to the busbars being studied.

local When set to “local” , the breaking current is calculated for each connected circuit-breaker
according to its own Break Time (defined in the Complete Short-Circuit page of ElmCoup ob-
jects), however, the busbar results will show the breaking current according to the shortest Break
Time of all circuit breakers.

Note: The fields Method, Fault Type, Fault Impedance, Output and Fault Location are described in
Section 25.4.1.

25.4.9 Advanced Options (Complete Method)

Initialisation

The user may select to initialise the complete method by one of the following options:

• the load flow calculation referred to in the Load Flow field of the Basic Options tab; or
• the nominal voltages with a user-defined correction factor (c-Factor ). It should be noted that this
option is only available in the dialog when Load Flow Initialisation is not selected.

Peak, DC Currents, R/X ratio (ip, ib, idc)

This option allows the definition of the method used to determine the factor kappa (𝜅) and the 𝑅/𝑋𝑏
ratio, required for the calculation of the peak and the DC component of the short-circuit current. The
methods available correspond to those given in the IEC/VDE standard.

B Uses the ratio R/X at the short-circuit location. In this case both ratios (𝑅/𝑋𝑝 for the calculation
of 𝜅, and 𝑅/𝑋𝑏 ) are equal.

Method C(1) Uses the ratio R/X calculated at a virtual frequency of 40% of nominal frequency
(20 Hz for fn = 50 Hz, or 24 Hz for fn=60 Hz), based on the short-circuit impedance in the positive
sequence system (as for Method C from the IEC 60909 standard). It should be noted that the
IEC correction factors are not considered in this case.

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Method (012) Uses an R/X ratio calculated at a virtual frequency like C(1). However, the
impedance of the system as seen from the fault location from which the ratio is calculated,
will be based on a combination of positive-, negative- and zero-sequence impedances, with the
combination depending on the fault-type carried out. (This method is not mentioned in IEC 60909-
0 but is demonstrated in IEC 60909-4)..

Current Iteration

The current iteration approach is intended to be used for equipment models which have current injection
behaviour during short circuit calculations which is described by non-linear equations that require an
iterative solution in order to obtain an accurate result. If the option is selected, a fast current iteration
algorithm is initiated during execution of the short circuit calculation for all applicable models.

Acceptable current error The iteration aims to achieve a set of solutions where the maximum
tolerance between successive iterations for all relevant models is within the specified setting.
When this is achieved, the algorithm terminates.

Relaxation factor Typically, the algorithm converges upon a solution within 5-10 iterations but
if necessary, the convergence of the algorithm can be slowed down by setting a lower value of
relaxation factor. This can help to achieve convergence upon an acceptable solution where with
a higher relaxation factor this was not possible or can speed up convergence by avoiding toggling
between extreme solution states at each iteration.

Max. number of iterations Used to prevent an excessive number of iterations from being
computed. A higher maximum setting can be specified in order to accommodate more iterations
if necessary.

Detailed convergence output By selecting this checkbox, a report on the progress of the current
iteration algorithm can be printed to the output window.

Models which are impacted by the Current iteration option are described below:

• Generator models such as Static generators (ElmGenstat) with current source injection short
circuit model configurations as follows:
– Dynamic voltage support
– Doubly fed asynchronous generator
– Full size converter.
• Series capacitor models (ElmScap) where the Consider Metal Oxide Varistor option is selected. In
this case, the current iteration is used to determine the operating point of the metal oxide varistor.

More information on the calculation approach with and without the current iteration option is available in
the Technical References associated with the listed models.

Note: The current iteration approach is also used to ensure that the maximum current injection limit is
respected for generators with current source injection short circuit models. Without consideration
of the current iteration approach, it is possible that the current injection of these models can exceed
the specified maximum current.

Skip transient calculation

By default, transient and subtransient currents and associated parameters will be calculated when short
circuit analysis is carried out using the Complete method. However, the user now has the option to omit
the transient calculations if these results are not required, leading to a shorter execution time.

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Consider Protection Devices

This option will calculate measured currents for all, only main or only backup protection devices and will
evaluate tripping times. To increase the speed of the calculation, this option can be set to none when
protection devices do not need to be analysed.

Consider motors for min. short-circuit calculation

Motor contributions are usually ignored during a minimum short circuit calculation. However, with this
option the user can choose to consider the motor contributions.

Calculate max. Branch Currents = Busbar Currents

This option is used to change the way that the “max” result variables (e.g. m:maxIkss, m:maxIb,
m:maxip, etc.) of branch objects are calculated. If this option is activated, the more conservative, total
current flowing in the busbar, is used to determine the variables. Otherwise the variables are calculated
as described in the note in the corresponding paragraph from the IEC 60909/VDE 0102 section (section
25.4.5).

Overhead Line Modelling: Phase Matrices

For the unbalanced short-circuit calculation, PowerFactory always uses the phase component matrix.
The following options define which phase matrix is used:

• Untransposed: the short-circuit calculation uses the untransposed phase matrix.

• Symmetrically Transposed: the short-circuit calculation uses the symmetrically transposed phase
matrix for untransposed lines.

Calculate relay tripping with

This setting determines which result variables of the short circuit calculation are used for the calculation
of certain relay block tripping times, for certain fault calculations. In PowerFactory the default approach,
when using the complete short circuit method, is to consider the tripping of relays in response to subtran-
sient short circuit result parameters. The setting described in this section offers an alternative approach
for certain cases. The main application of this setting is for examining tripping times of overcurrent relays
with time delayed elements or a combination of time delayed elements and instantaneous elements, in
time overcurrent plots.

Note: Care should be taken when using this setting, as not all relay blocks and fault calculations react
in the same way to the setting. The setting affects blocks RelIoc, RelToc, RelChar, RelFuse and
RelUlim. Other blocks are unaffected by the setting. The setting does not directly alter the output
signals from any instrument transformers supplying relays; instead the outputs of the relay blocks
that are affected by the setting are directly adjusted. The setting only applies when individual fault
cases are being considered. The option should be set to ’subtransient’ when a short circuit sweep
is being carried out in relation to a time-distance diagram.

There are three options:

• Subtransient Values: some relay elements are not time delayed and react very quickly to short
circuits i.e. within the subtransient period following fault inception. For these relay elements it may
therefore be more appropriate to estimate their tripping time using subtransient short circuit result
values. This option is the default option and can be selected for those cases. Currents shown in
relay plots will represent the subtransient short circuit current.
• Transient Values: relay elements which are time delayed will not normally respond during the
subtransient time period following fault inception but will operate later, once the time delay has

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elapsed. For these relay elements it may be more appropriate to estimate their tripping time using
transient short circuit result values. This option can be selected for those cases. Currents shown
in Time Overcurrent plots will represent the transient short circuit current.

• Mixed Mode: most relays consist of a combination of relay elements, some with instantaneous op-
eration and some with time delayed operation. If this option is selected, PowerFactory will evaluate
the tripping time of instantaneous or very fast acting elements against the subtransient calculation
results while evaluating the tripping time of time delayed elements against the transient calculation
results. When selected, it is necessary to specify the duration of the expected subtransient period.
Any element that has a tripping time in excess of this setting in response to subtransient calculation
results will have its tripping time evaluated against the transient calculation results, while the
tripping times of the remaining elements will be evaluated against the subtransient calculation
results. In this case currents shown in Time Overcurrent plots can represent either transient or
subtransient currents. In cases where both currents are relevant, both will be shown on the same
plot.

25.4.10 Basic Options (IEC 61363)

Calculate Using

In that section the user could select between the options:

• Standard IEC 61363 Method

• EMT Simulation Method

With the first option the short-circuit is calculated according to the IEC 61363 standard [9]this is outlined
in Section 25.2.4. This short-circuit calculation method is only an approximation and therefore the
results are not exact.

When selecting the EMT method PowerFactory calculates for each fault case a three phase short-circuit
with a fault impedance of 0 ohm on the selected locations. This additional, high precision short-circuit
calculation method provides further valuable information, and especially when power systems objects
must be considered, which are not covered by the IEC 61363 standard[9].

The Break Time input parameter represents the contact separation time for circuit-breakers. The default
setting is 100 ms.

If the EMT Simulation Method option is active the configuration of the Simulation and also the Simulation
Results are available. The Simulation option displays the *.ComSim dialog that is described in more
detail in Chapter 28 (RMS/EMT Simulations). The simulation time is set per default to 160 ms. This is
necessary because the short circuit is started after phase A voltage crosses zero and because the first
100 ms after the short-circuit are displayed as results.

The Simulation Results pointer indicates where the results of the EMT short-circuit simulation will be
stored (ElmRes). Typically no changes are required. In another note, this EMT simulation setup (Initial
Conditions and Run Simulation command) is stored separately from the normal EMT simulation in order
to avoid confusion.

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Fault Impedance

The Fault Impedance option is disabled since the IEC 61363 [9] standard considers the short-circuit
impedance to be zero.

Create Plots

By enabling the Create Plots option, the user can select between the following:

• Show only short-circuit currents at faulted terminal With this option selected, PowerFactory will
create automatically a time domain plot of the short-circuit current at the selected terminal, which
includes its upper envelope and DC component.
• Show all short-circuit current contributions With this option selected PowerFactory will create
automatically a time domain plot of the short-circuit current at the selected terminal and a plot
for all connected elements to the faulted terminal. Each created plot will consist of the short-circuit
current, the upper envelope and the DC component.

25.4.11 Advanced Options (IEC 61363)

The settings available on the advanced options page of the IEC 61363 dialog will depend on the selected
calculation method.

Standard IEC 61363 [9]

With the standard calculation method the pre-load condition can be configured. The available options
are:

• use load flow initialisation: if this option is selected, a load flow calculation is first carried out (a
reference to the low flow command is shown). If the load flow is successful, the results are then
used to calculate the short circuit.
• use rated current/power factor: if this option is selected, the preload condition is obtained from
the rated values of the grid elements (no load flow calculation is executed).
• neglect preload condition: if this option is selected, no preload information is used to calculate
the short circuit.

Furthermore, the user will notice the option ’Consider Transformer Taps’. According to the standard
however, all transformers should be considered with their main position, therefore this option should be
normally disabled.

EMT Simulation Method

If the short-circuit is calculated using the ’EMT simulation method’, in the Advanced Options page the
user will have the option to assume the inertia as infinite, meaning that if selected, the acceleration time
constant of all rotating machines will be set to 9999 seconds.

25.4.12 Basic Options (IEC 61660 Method)

The Basic Options page of the Short-Circuit Calculation dialog provides options to set the fundamental
settings of the IEC 61660 DC short circuit calculation. The calculation according to IEC 61660 [8] can
be undertaken considering minimum and maximum fault conditions and a DC fault impedance.

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Calculate

The drop-down list offers the choice between the minimum or maximum short-circuit current. Depending
on the selection PowerFactory will select model parameters from the provided data to taking account of
the following requirements.

For the maximum short-circuit case the standard requires the following considerations:

• resistance of joints (in busbars and terminations) is ignored.

• the conductor resistance is referred to 20∘ C.

• rectifier current limiting controls are disabled.

• decoupling diodes are considered as either blocked (infinite impedance) or conducting (zero
impedance) depending on setting and batteries are assumed to be fully charged (maximum
voltage).

For the minimum short-circuit case the standard requires the following considerations:

• resistance of joints is considered.

• the conductor resistance is referred to the maximum operating temperature.

• the contribution of rectifiers is set at the rated short-circuit current.

• battery operation is considered at the minimum voltage.
• individually specified resistances of decoupling diodes are considered.

The equivalent voltage source is based on the nominal system voltage and the pre-fault voltage factor.

Short-Circuit Duration

The Short-circuit duration (Tk_dc) is set here. The default value is 1 second.

Note: The fields Method, Fault Impedance, Output and Fault Location are described in Section 25.4.1.

25.4.13 Advanced Options (IEC 61660 Method)

The Advanced Options page contains more detailed settings applicable to the IEC 61660 calculation
method. Detailed familiarisation with the IEC 61660 standard [8] on which this calculation is based, is
strongly advised before modifying these options.

Initialisation

This option is provided by PowerFactory to give the user more flexibility and represents a potential
enhancement of the calculation standard. Instead of using the nominal system voltage a Pre-fault
voltage factor applicable to the nominal voltage can be specified.

Apply Line Loop Impedance

If this option is selected the command will double the inductance and resistance of line elements used
in the calculation so as to account for the resistance and inductance of the return conductor.

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Joint Resistance For Lines

If the minimum fault level calculation is selected on the Basic Options page, the Joint Resistance for
Lines parameters will become visible on the Advanced options page. Here it is possible to specify
whether a globally specified line termination (joint) resistance value is used for all line terminations
or alternatively whether the local values should be used. The locally specified values are specified
geometrically using data from the line elements and types themselves according to equations from the
standard. It is assumed that a joint is present at each end of each line element. The geometry and
resistance of both of these joints is considered to be identical irrespective of whether a global value or
a local value calculation is conducted.

Consider Protection

This option will calculate measured currents for all, only main or only backup protection devices and will
evaluate tripping times. To increase the speed of the calculation, this option can be set to none when
protection devices do not need to be analysed.

25.4.14 Basic Options (ANSI/IEEE 946 Method)

The Basic Options page of the Short-Circuit Calculation dialog provides options to set the fundamental
settings of the IEEE 946 DC short circuit calculation. The calculation according to IEEE 946 [32] can
be used to undertake short circuit calculations considering minimum and maximum fault conditions
including or excluding a DC fault impedance at the point of fault.

Calculate

The drop-down list offers the choice between the minimum or maximum short-circuit current. For the
maximum short-circuit case the following assumptions are applied:

• the conductor resistance is referred to 20° 𝐶.

• rectifier impedance is adjusted to use minimum impedance parameterisation.
• decoupling diodes are considered as either blocked (infinite impedance) or conducting (zero
impedance) depending on a setting in the individual model.

For the minimum short-circuit case:

• the conductor resistance is referred to the maximum operating temperature.
• individually specified resistances of decoupling diodes are considered.

The equivalent DC voltage source is based on the nominal system voltage.

Short-Circuit Duration

The Short-circuit duration (Tk_dc) is set here. The default value is 1 second.

Note: The fields Method, Fault Impedance, Output and Fault Location are described in Section 25.4.1.

25.4.15 Advanced Options (ANSI/IEEE 946 Method)

The Advanced Options page contains more detailed settings applicable to the ANSI/IEEE 946 calcula-
tion method. Detailed familiarisation with the IEEE 946 recommended practice document [32] on which
this calculation is based, is strongly advised before modifying these options.

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Apply line loop impedance

If this option is selected the command will double the inductance and resistance of line elements used
in the calculation so as to account for the resistance and inductance of the return conductor.

Approximate equivalent rectifier resistance value

The Industrial Power Systems Data Book [42] describes a detailed step by step by step procedure
for calculating rectifier short circuit current contributions within which, an equivalent rectifier resistance
is determined, however, the book offers the alternative possibility of using a more easily calculated
approximate value for the rectifier resistance. If the checkbox is selected then the approximate value is
used for the rectifier resistance otherwise the mentioned alternative resistance is used. Only those
rectifiers which have been selected to use the Industrial Power Systems Data Book model will be
affected by this setting.

Consider Protection Devices

This option will calculate measured currents for all, only main or only backup protection devices and will
evaluate tripping times. To increase the speed of the calculation, this option can be set to none when
protection devices do not need to be analysed.

25.5 Results Analysis

In PowerFactory the results can be displayed directly in the single line diagram, in tabular form or by
using predefined report formats. Several diagram colouring options are also available which facilitate a
simplified results overview.

25.5.1 Viewing Results in the Single Line Diagram

Once a short-circuit calculation has been successfully executed, the result boxes shown in the single-
line diagram will be populated. There is a result box associated with each “side” of an element.

The information shown inside a result box depends on the element to which it is associated. Several
predefined formats can be selected, as described in Chapter 9: Network Graphics, section 9.5. Re-
sult boxes can also be personalised as described in Chapter 18: Reporting and Visualising Results,
section 18.2.

25.5.2 Flexible Data Page

Once a short-circuit calculation has been successfully executed, pressing the Open Network Model
Manager. . . button ( ) located on the main menu will open a browser window with a list of all classes
on the left side of the window that are currently used in the calculation. Clicking any of the classes will
display all elements of that class that are currently used in the calculation in a table on the right side of
the window. The left-most tab-page at the bottom of the browser is the Flexible Data tab page. Click
on this tab page to show the flexible data. To change the columns in the flexible page, press the Define
Flexible Data button ( ). This will bring a selection window where the set of variables can be edited.
Section 18.3 in Chapter 18: Reporting and Visualising Results, describes the Variable Selection object
which is used to define the variables to be presented.

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25.5.3 Predefined Reports

There are a number of predefined report formats available to the user following a short-circuit calcula-
tion. The Report Generation command (ComReport) can be accessed from the icon on the main
tool-bar, and lists the available reports, which are mostly in the “DIgSILENT Library - Legacy” section.

A general description of reports and the Report Generation command can be found in Chapter 18:
Reporting and Visualising Results, section 18.5, but is should be noted that much of the functionality of
the command is not available for these “legacy” reports.

The reports are available in both tabular format and as ASCII output, written to the output window. To
change from one format to the other, select the report so that it appears in the list of Selected Reports on
the right-hand side, then right-click on it to bring up the underlying command, where the Tabular/ASCII
selection may be made.

As mentioned in section 25.4.2, the short-circuit command can be configured so that reports are
automatically generated when the command has been executed.

25.5.4 Diagram Colouring

When performing short-circuit calculations, it is very useful to colour the single line-diagram in order
to have a quick overview of the results, for example if elements have a loading above rated short-time
current or if peak short-circuit currents are higher than the specified values. In PowerFactory there is
the option of selecting different colouring modes according to the calculation performed.

The use of colouring in network diagrams is described in Section 9.3.10.1, and more detail about the
use of colours and colour palettes can be found in Section 4.7.8.

If a specific calculation is valid, then the selected colouring for this calculation is displayed. As an
example, if the user selects the colouring mode “Areas” for “No Calculation” and “Loading of Thermal/-
Peak Short-Circuit Current” for the short-circuit calculation, then the initial colouring will be according
to “Areas”. However, as soon as the short-circuit is calculated, the diagram will be coloured according
to “Loading of Thermal/Peak Short-Circuit Current”. If the short-circuit calculation is reset or invalid,
the colouring mode switches back to “Areas”. The Diagram Colouring has also a 3-priority level
colouring scheme also implemented, allowing colouring elements according to the following criteria:
1st Energising status, 2nd Alarm and 3rd “Normal” (Other) colouring.

• Energising Status: if this check box is enabled “De-energised” or “Out of Calculation” elements
are coloured according to the settings in the “Project Colour Settings”. The settings of the “De-
energised” or “Out of Calculation” mode can be edited by clicking on the Colour Settings button.
• Alarm: if this check box is enabled a drop down list containing alarm modes will be available. It
is important to note here that only alarm modes available for the current calculation page will be
listed. If an alarm mode is selected, elements “exceeding” the corresponding a limit are coloured.
Limits and colours can be defined by clicking on the Colour Settings button.
• “Normal” (Other) Colouring: here, two lists are displayed. The first list will contain all available
colouring modes. The second list will contain all sub modes of the selected colouring mode. The
settings of the different colouring modes can be edited by clicking on the Colour Settings button.

Every element can be coloured by one of the three previous criteria. Also, every criterion is optional and
will be skipped if disabled. Regarding the priority, if the user enables all three criterions, the hierarchy
taken account will be the following:

“Energising Status” overrules the “Alarm” and “Normal Colouring” mode. The “Alarm” mode overrules
the “Normal Colouring” mode.

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25.6 Capacitive Earth-Fault Current

In medium-voltage networks, resonant grounding can be used for suppressing transient ground-fault
currents, thereby continuing power supply during single-phase earth faults. The dimensioning of the arc
suppression coil (Petersen coil) depends on the capacitive earth-fault current of the grounded network
area. The exact compensation of the capacitive earth-fault current by an inductive coil current of equal
magnitude results in a minimum residual fault current.

In PowerFactory the capacitive earth-fault current of lines and cables in relation to the grounding device
impedance and its rated current can be displayed for each grounding area in the network model in a
pre-defined tabular report. Starting from a substation or node, a grounding area subsumes all parts of
the network that are connected in the zero-sequence system to this substation or node.

To access this functionality in PowerFactory :

• Open the Network Data Assessment command ( ) and select “Reports”

• Select “Capacitive earth current”
• Press Execute to generate the tabular report
For each grounding area, the following results are shown in individual columns:

• Grounding Area: the starting point for the search of connected components in the zero-sequence
system
• Number of lines: the number of lines belonging to the grounding area
• Ice [A]: the lumped-sum capacitive earth-fault current of the lines for each grounding area

• Number of grounding devices: the number of grounding devices for each grounding area
• Effective grounding: the type of effective grounding (isolated, compensated or solid)
• Grounding device: the grounding devices for each grounding area are listed
• Re [Ohm]: the grounding resistance for each grounding device

• Xe [Ohm]: the grounding reactance for each grounding device

𝑈𝑟
• Ir [A]: the rated current for each grounding device 𝐼𝑟 = √
3|𝑅𝑒 +𝑗𝑋𝑒 |
.

To output these results to Excel or to HTML click the icon and select either Export as HTML for
HTML output in the default web browser, or Export to Excel to export the results to an Excel workbook.

Note: If network element data is modified, the report is not automatically updated. The option Refresh
available via the icon must be used to update the report.

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Chapter 26

Contingency Analysis

26.1 Introduction

In Chapter 24 (Load Flow Analysis) the general aspects of load flow analysis and its main areas
of application are presented. Two perspectives are discussed: that of planning and that of system
operation; it is made clear that the behaviour of the system must always be analysed under both normal
and abnormal conditions.

The term “contingency analysis” is essentially referring to the analysis of abnormal system conditions.
In general, contingency analysis can be considered as the process of evaluating the network states
resulting from unplanned “outages” of single elements (such as transformers, busbars, transmission
lines, etc.) or groups of elements, in terms of post-fault loads and voltages.

Contingency analysis can be therefore used to determine power transfer margins or for detecting the
risk inherent in changed loading conditions. This chapter deals with deterministic contingency analysis.
The structure of this chapter is as follows:

• Section 26.2 gives a short overview of the contingency analysis functionality and associated
concepts.
• Section 26.3 looks at the Contingency Analysis toolbar and describes briefly what each button
does.
• Section 26.4 describes the various options of the Contingency Analysis command in detail.
• Section 26.5 looks at the standard reporting options available once the analysis has been run.
• Section 26.7 explains the different methods for creating contingencies.
• Section 26.8 goes into detail about the use of fault cases.
• The remaining sections cover various other aspects of Contingency Analysis such as Remedial
Action Schemes and managing variables to be recorded.

26.2 Short Overview

This section gives an overview of the Contingency Analysis functionality, together with some basic
concepts which are useful to know. More detail is available in the following sections.

Contingency Analysis is generally executed using from the Contingency Analysis toolbar (see 26.3),
where the Contingency Analysis command dialog allows the user to select which contingencies are to
be analysed and specify settings as required.

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There are two basic types of contingency analysis: AC, using an iterative AC load flow calculation,
or DC, using the DC load flow (which is faster and also useful for cases when AC convergence is
difficult). Contingency analysis consists of a base case load flow, then subsequent load flows where
each contingency is considered in turn in order to analyse its effect on the network.

The user will also see a third method in the Contingency Analysis dialog, namely “AC Linearised Cal-
culation”. This is a fast calculation method for contingency analysis, which represents the contingency
case by using equivalent injections to reduce the flow through the faulted area to zero. The injections
are calculated using a linearised estimate and the process avoids the need for a new load flow to be
run for the contingency case. Where the algorithm detects that the linear method is not suitable for
a particular contingency case it will revert to the standard method. The linearised method is faster
than the traditional contingency analysis using a full load flow, but it does not consider the response of
controllers and so is a more approximate method.

One important concept to appreciate is that of time phases. There are two basic options: Single Time
Phase and Multiple Time Phase. You will find a detailed explanation of this concept in section 26.4.3.

When executing the contingency analysis, you may notice in the output window some messages about
the Optimised and the Standard methods used in PowerFactory. The Optimised method makes use of
the existing Jacobian matrix from the base case and is used where possible, as it is faster; the Standard
method is required when topology changes mean that the matrix needs to be rebuilt, and it is somewhat
slower. This is all handled automatically by the Contingency Analysis function.

Nevertheless, there is an option to always use the Standard method, but this may greatly increase the
calculation time.

Once the analysis has been run, the in-built reports can be used to look at the results.

The remainder of this section provides some additional information which may be useful in understand-
ing how Contingency Analysis works.

26.2.1 Contingency Analysis Objects

Contingency Analysis is executed using the Contingency Analysis Command, ComSimoutage, which is
stored in the Study Case. The command will execute individual contingencies.

The contingency objects are called ComOutage. They can contain simply a list of elements to be “out-
aged” to represent a fault on the network, or - more commonly - references to Fault Cases (*.IntEvent),
which define the fault using one or more events, with associated times. Fault cases are stored in the
Operational Library.

26.2.1.1 Creating Contingencies before running the analysis

Contingency cases can be generated in three different ways:

• Via the definition and use of Fault Cases and Fault Groups; and/or

• Using the Contingency Definition (ComNmink ) command, via its toolbar icon ( )

• By selecting component(s) in the single-line graphic or filter, right-clicking and selecting Calcula-
tion → Contingency Analysis. . .

Contingency cases can be created using references to user defined Fault Cases and Fault Groups
(introduced in Chapter 13: Libraries, Section 13.6.4) from the Operational Library. By means of a
topological search, PowerFactory determines which circuit breakers must be opened in order to clear
the faults, and generates the corresponding contingency cases. See Section 26.8 for more details.

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Alternatively, contingencies can be created using the Contingency Definition command, as described in
Section 26.7.1 (Creating Contingency Cases Using the Contingency Definition Command).

It is also possible to select elements via a graphic or filter, and then right-click Calculation → Contin-
gency Analysis. . . . The contingency container of the contingency command will then be populated by
contingency cases for each of the selected elements. Existing fault cases in the Operational Library will
be checked and any which are found for the selected elements will be used. Where no fault case is
found for a particular element, one will be created.

26.2.1.2 Dynamic Contingencies

For some applications, the contingencies of interest are very much dependent on the operational state
of the network. For example, faults on circuits which are already heavily loaded will be more significant
than faults on lightly-loaded circuits. The user has the option therefore to create contingencies “on the
fly”, so-called dynamic contingencies.

This is done via the Contingency Analysis dialog, and is described in more detail in Section 26.7.3. This
feature is particularly useful for contingency timesweep (see 26.4.5), as the contingency requirements
may vary with time.

It is possible to use both static contingencies (as described above in Section 26.2.1.1) and dynamic
contingencies in one Contingency Analysis calculation.

26.2.2 Results Recording

Results from contingency analysis are stored in results files outside the project, in the workspace area
or in the result file directory (depending upon configuration).

The results files are then referenced from within the project (so that to the user they appear to be
contained in the project) and they can be accessed for reporting or for exporting to a range of different
formats and locations.

Options within the Contingency Analysis command dialog (Recording of Results page) allow the user
to set voltage and loading limits to control the amount of information recorded, as well as specifying
variables to be recorded. Additional filters for results recording can be defined.

If the in-built reporting is used, this offers further filtering of results of interest to the user, including
maximum loading of branch elements, exceeded voltage limits, etc. Refer to Section 26.4 (Contin-
gency Analysis command and options) for further information on configuring the reporting settings, and
Chapter 12 Study Cases, Section 12.11 (Results Objects) for information on handling results objects
(ElmRes) in PowerFactory.

26.2.3 Configuring Network Restoration

In PowerFactory, there are options available for reconfiguring the network following a fault.

One option is the use of Remedial Action Schemes, described later in section 26.11.

Alternatively, the contingency analysis can be setup to consider (or not consider) predefined switching
rules of substations; refer to Chapter 11: Building Networks, Section 11.2.7 for further information. The
Switching Rule defines switching actions for different fault locations (arranged in a matrix) that can be
reflected at a certain time. These switching actions will always be relative to the current switch positions
of the breakers.

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26.2.4 Visualisation

When contingency analysis is carried out by pressing Execute in the ComSimoutage command, the
user will be able to display results on graphics. The result boxes show in this case the results of the
final load flow carried out at the end of the calculation. However, if the graphic is coloured using the
colouring option Voltages / Loading, the colouring for each element will reflect the result of the “worst”
contingency result for that particular element.

A useful option for visualising the effect of a single contingency is to execute it alone. Then the actual
network state resulting from that contingency, including the power flows and resultant voltages, will be
seen in the graphic. This is described in section 26.4.11.

26.3 Contingency Analysis Toolbar

To access the various contingency analysis related functions within PowerFactory, click on the icon
Change Toolbox and select “Contingency Analysis”. The figure below shows the functions available
on the Contingency Analysis Toolbar.

Figure 26.3.1: Contingency Analysis Toolbar Functions

26.3.1 Contingency Definition

This button gives access to the Contingency Definition Tool, which provides an easy method for the user
to generate fault cases or contingencies. See section 26.7.1.

26.3.2 Contingency Analysis Command

Once the contingencies have been set up, the ComSimoutage command can be configured as required
and executed. The configuration is highly flexible to cater for different users’ requirements. All the
options are described in section 26.4.

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26.3.3 Contingency Comparison

A tool is provided to allow the user to compare the results of different contingency analysis. See
section 26.9 for details.

26.3.4 Show Contingencies

This button can be used to look at the current selection of contingencies.

Normally these are presented as a single list, but if the Dynamic Contingencies option has been used
and dynamic contingencies have been generated, the contingencies are presented in a tree-structure
so that the static and dynamic contingencies are separately listed.

26.3.5 Show Fault Cases / Groups

This button gives access to the Faults folder of the Operational Library.

26.3.6 Remedial Action Schemes

This button gives access to the Remedial Action Schemes folder of the Operational Library. See
section 26.11 for a description of Remedial Action Schemes.

26.3.7 Edit Results Variables

For each element class relevant to the contingency analysis, there is a standard set of results variables
which are recorded in the results file (see section 26.10). The user can specify additional variables and
this button provides easy access to the variable definitions.

26.3.8 Tracing Buttons

For Multiple Time Phase calculations, a Trace function is available. See section 26.6 for details.

26.3.9 Contingency Analysis Reports

A set of in-built reporting scripts is available. These are described in Section 26.5.

26.3.10 Load Contingency Analysis Results

Once a contingency analysis calculation has been executed, it is possible to load results into memory
at a later time. This feature is described in Section 26.12.

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26.4 Command dialog and Options

26.4.1 Basic Options

This section describes the options of the Contingency Analysis Command, and their purpose. Some of
the options are different depending on whether a Single Time Phase or Multiple Time Phase calculation
is being done, and these differences are indicated in the description.

26.4.1.1 Calculation Method

• AC Load Flow Calculation. The contingency analysis uses an iterative AC load flow method to
calculate the power flow and voltages per contingency case.

• DC Load Flow Calculation. The contingency analysis uses a linear DC load flow method to
calculate the active power flow per contingency case.
• AC Linearised Calculation. This is a fast calculation method for contingency analysis, which
represents the contingency case by using equivalent injections to reduce the flow through the
faulted area to zero. The injections are calculated using a linearised estimate and the process
avoids the need for a new load flow to be run for the contingency case. Where the algorithm
detects that the linear method is not suitable for a particular contingency case it will revert to the
standard method. The linearised method is faster than the traditional contingency analysis using
a full load flow, but it does not consider the response of controllers and so is a more approximate
method.

• Linearised screening + AC Load Flow for critical cases. The contingency analysis will perform
two runs (if required). First it will use a linearised load flow method to calculate the active power
flow per contingency case; if for certain contingencies loadings are detected to be above a certain
threshold, then these cases will be recalculated using the iterative AC load flow method. The
choice of screening method and the criteria (thresholds) to be used for the AC recalculation of
critical cases are entered on the Screening page (see section 26.4.7).

26.4.1.2 Static Contingencies

The Static contingencies section of the Basic Data tab, as shown in Figure 26.4.1, allows the display,
addition and removal of the static contingencies selected for analysis.

Figure 26.4.1: Static contingencies Section of Contingency Analysis Dialog

• Show: displays a list of all defined contingencies.

• Add Cases/Groups: used to create the contingency cases (ComOutage objects) based on fault
cases and/or fault groups. A fault case contains events: one for the fault location, and (optionally)
others specifying post-fault actions. Fault groups contain a set of references to fault cases. In order
to use the Add Cases/Groups option, the fault cases and/or groups must have been previously
defined in the Operational Library. If these have been defined, when the Add Cases/Groups
button is pressed, a data browser listing the available fault cases/groups appears. The user can
then select the desired fault cases/groups from this browser and press OK. The corresponding
contingencies are then created automatically by PowerFactory. One contingency is created for

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each selected fault case, and one contingency is created for each fault case referred to within
each selected fault group. For further information on fault cases/groups, refer to Section 26.8
(Creating Contingency Cases Using Fault Cases and Groups).

• Remove All: removes all contingency cases (ComOutage objects) stored in the contingency
analysis command.

26.4.1.3 Dynamic Contingencies

If the Dynamic contingencies option is selected, the user can then configure one or more filters for
generating dynamic contingencies during the contingency analysis. This feature is described in sec-
tion 26.7.3.

26.4.1.4 Consider Remedial Action Schemes (RAS)

• Consider Remedial Action Schemes (RAS): If this option is enabled, all selected RAS (unless
Out of Service) will be applied during the Contingency Analysis calculation. See section 26.11 for
more information about Remedial Action Schemes.

The selection of RAS works in exactly the same way as the selection of Contingencies as described
above, with options to remove, add and view the selected RAS.

26.4.2 Recording of Results

26.4.2.1 Elements and variable selection

• Results for AC/DC: Depending on the calculation method selected, the reference to the corre-
sponding results file object (ElmRes) is defined. If, for example, the calculation method DC Load
Flow + AC Load Flow for Critical Cases is selected, two results file objects will be referenced (one
for AC calculations and another for DC calculations). The results stored in this file are filtered
according to the global threshold set in the Limits for Recording panel, and also according to the
individual limits defined within each component’s respective dialog (such as on the Load Flow
page of the element’s own dialog). For further information on results objects, refer to Chapter 12
Study Cases, Section 12.11 (Results Objects).

There are also three buttons which give the user direct access to the “results object” (*.ElmRes), which
is held inside the Study Case:
• The Element Filter button allows the user to set up or modify filters in order to prescribe for which
elements results should be recorded (for example, according to nominal voltage).

• The Variable Selection button allows the user to change the variable selection for the recording
of results. There is a default set of variables which are recorded during the analysis and it is
possible to add additional variables, like the bay loading or the busbar loading. It is also possible
to remove variables, even those which are normally included. This gives the user great flexibility
but removing variables should be done with care: if variables required by the in-built reports are
removed, for example, those reports will fail to run.

Note: For the busbar loading also the according load flow setting need to be applied (see Sec-
tion 24.3.3.4).

• The Add default variables button allows the user to restore all default variables to the selection
used for the recording of results.
The user can optionally record additional information about the contingency cases:

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• Record additional result variables: If this is selected, information will be recorded for each
contingency to indicate the following outcomes:
– Processed (meaning that the calculation was run)
– Not solved (a subset of “Processed”; no converged solution)
– Inactive (not processed because no components interrupted; the elements may be already
out of service, for example)
– Causing grounding (not processed because events would cause network to become earthed)
– Causing islanding (results in isolated area(s) where the loads are still supplied)
– Causing blackouts (results in isolated area(s) where the loads are no longer supplied)
– Causing substation split or merge (results in a change in the number of coupled busbars in
at least one substation)
– Causing loss of load (at least one load is no longer supplied)
– Causing loss of generation (at least one generator is no longer connected)
It is then possible to generate a summary report (a count of all these outcomes for the contingency
run) and/or a report which gives the detail at a contingency level. Refer to Section 26.5.1 for more
information about the reporting.

26.4.2.2 Limits for Recording

These parameters set the global threshold used to determine whether a calculated result is recorded
in the Results object. Whenever one of the defined constraints is violated, the calculated result (for the
corresponding contingency case and network component) is recorded.

• Different Limits for n-1 and n-k: If required, the limits can be set differently for different order
faults, that is, different thresholds can be specified for n-1 and n-k (k>1) faults.
• Recording limits:
– Record thermal loadings above (%) Only loadings exceeding this value will be recorded in
the results file for the corresponding component.
– Record if absolute voltages is below (p.u.) Voltages lower than this value will be recorded
in the results file for the corresponding terminal. The absolute value is used to cover DC
elements that may have a negative voltage.
– Record if absolute voltages is above (p.u.) Voltages higher than this value will be recorded
in the results file for the corresponding terminal. The absolute value is used to cover DC
elements that may have a negative voltage.
– Record voltage step changes above (%) Voltage changes (change as a percentage of
pre-fault) larger than this will be recorded in the results file for the corresponding terminal.
– Change of voltage angle above (deg) Changes in the voltage angle above this limit will be
recorded. If the value is set to 180 deg no voltage angels will be recorded. Take in mind
that by default the voltage angle of busbars is not recorded during the Contingency Analysis.
Therefore the angle need to be added to the result variables in beforehand.

Note: If the voltage is outside of the steady state limits defined in the busbar, it will always be recorded,
irrespective of the recording limits.

26.4.2.3 Recording filters

• Recording filters for contingency loading results

– Do not record if the base case is above (%) If the pre-fault load flow elements have
loadings above this value, then they are not recorded in the results.

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– Do not record if the absolute change in loading is below (%) Decrease the recorded
elements by filtering out elements which are less effected by the contingency.
• Recording filters for contingency voltage results
– Do not record if the absolute base case voltage is below (p.u.) If the pre-fault voltages
of the elements are below this value, then they are not recorded in the results.
– Do not record if the absolute base case voltage is above (p.u.) If the pre-fault voltages
of the elements are above this value, then they are not recorded in the results.
– Do not record if the absolute change in voltage is below (p.u.) Decrease the recorded
elements by filtering out elements with little change in voltage.
• Additional option:
– Record asynchronism of busbars next to the fault (deg) This option recorders the voltage
angle between the busbars around the fault if it is above the defined threshold. This is
to check whether a fault could lead to a malfunction of an automatic circuit recloser. The
parameter “Record busbars if asynchronism above” decreases the recorded elements by
filtering the faults that leads to a voltage angle difference below the threshold. This parameter
is not recorded for contingencies including transformers. The maximal asynchronism is
reported within the summary report (see Section 26.5.1.4).

26.4.3 Time Phases

The Time Phases page allows the user to change between Single Time Phase and Multiple Time Phase
and select appropriate settings according to the method.

Single Time Phase

Single Time Phase analysis uses a load flow calculation to assess the effect on the network of each of
the specified contingencies in turn, at a particular time after the fault or as a steady-state final condition.

The single time phase contingency analysis function first performs a pre-fault (base) load flow calcula-
tion. Following this, for each contingency it performs a corresponding post-contingency load flow, which
takes one or more primary components out of service. A final base case load flow is carried out at the
end of the calculation.

By default, all calculations will use the same load flow settings, these being those defined in the Load
Flow Calculation command (ComLdf ) in the Study Case. However, some settings can be changed
for the contingency case. For example, different Active Power Control methods may be used in the
base load flow and the contingency analysis (with one exception that active power control according
to secondary control in the contingency load flow is only supported if the base case load flow is also
secondary controlled).

The results of the single time phase contingency analysis correspond to the steady-state operational
points of the network being studied, considering each one of the defined contingencies at the given Post
Contingency Time, which is found on the Time Phases page of the Contingency Analysis command
dialog.

It is important to mention here that if the load flow command being used by the contingency analysis
has Automatic tap adjustment of transformers or Automatic tap adjustment of shunts selected, they will
only be considered if their time constants are not greater than the current Post Contingency Time.

Likewise, events in the fault cases (see section 26.8) have times associated with them, and so will not
be considered if their times are later than the Post Contingency Time.

If the Consider Specific Time Phase flag is not enabled at all (and therefore there is no Post Contingency
Time defined), then these constraints do not apply and the outcome is effectively the eventual steady
state, with all actions taken.

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The Post Contingency Time is also relevant if Thermal Rating objects that have short-term ratings are
being used. Short-term ratings allow circuits to be operated at a level higher than their normal rating for
a prescribed time. The Post Contingency Time is used to determine the applicable short-term rating for
reporting purposes.

Multiple Time Phase

As with Single Time phase, the multiple time phase contingency analysis function first performs a
pre-fault (base) load flow calculation. Following this, for each contingency one or more load flows is
calculated (depending on the number of time phases which have been specified). A final base case
load flow is carried out at the end of the calculation. All the results are stored, so that the state of the
network at each time phase can be reported.

The general principles described above also apply to Multiple Time Phase. The Multiple Time Phase,
however, allows the user to specify more than one time phase and each contingency will be analysed at
each of the requested time phases. The change in calculation results between one time phase and the
next will result not only from the relationship between the calculation time and tap controller /shunt time
constants, but also from the relationship between the calculation time and the time associated with the
events in the fault cases.

Multiple Time Phase calculations are always executed using the Standard method, so although it
is possible to use the Multiple Time Phase option with only one time phase being considered, for
performance reasons the Single Time Phase would be preferable in that case.

Each defined time phase uses a corresponding load flow calculation, and by default, this is the same
load flow calculation as that used for the base case load flow. If the option Allow different settings in
the Base Case versus Contingency Load Flow section of the Multiple Time Phases page is selected,
the user can define individual load flow commands for each time phase, as illustrated in Figure 26.4.2.
Access to each load flow command and its settings is via the button.

Figure 26.4.2: Different Settings for Base Case and Contingency Load Flows

There are some restrictions in which settings are allowed to be different between the different load flows
(i.e. base case and the various time phases). Specifically, there is a restriction regarding the use of the
Active Power Control option According to Secondary Control: Secondary Control can only be used in a
time phase if it is used in the base case load flow, and if Secondary Control is used for one time phase
it must be used for all.

The Contingency Analysis time phases (which are essentially load flow commands) are stored within a
folder inside the ComSimoutage command and can be accessed in by clicking on the button next to
each defined time phase in the Calculation Settings section of the Time Phases tab; by doing so, the
edit dialog of the corresponding load flow command is opened.

Note: Transformer tap changer controllers and switchable shunts are only considered by a time phase
if their time constants are smaller than the current Post Contingency Time. The operational
thermal ratings of branch elements during a contingency (if ’short term’ thermal ratings (see
Section 13.6.12) have been defined) will also depend on the duration of the contingency (i.e.
the current Post Contingency Time).

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26.4.3.1 Method

• Single Time Phase. Performs the contingency analysis for a single time phase.

• Multiple Time Phase. Performs the contingency analysis for multiple time phases.

26.4.3.2 Base Case versus Contingency Load Flow

• Use same settings. Uses the settings from the base case load flow for the contingency case load
flow.
• Allow different settings. Allows different settings for the base case load flow and the contingency
case load flow.

26.4.3.3 Calculation Settings for Single Time Phase

• Base Case Load Flow. Only available when option Allow different settings is selected. This is
a reference to the load flow command used to calculate the network operational point before the
simulation of contingencies. The settings of this load flow command can be edited by pressing the
button.

• Contingency Load Flow. Only available when option Allow different settings is selected. This is
a reference to the load flow command used to assess the network in contingency situations. It
takes account of the Post Contingency Time. The contingency load flow command referred to by
the Contingency Load Flow is always stored inside the contingency analysis command itself. The
settings of this load flow command can be edited by pressing the button. The Contingency
Load Flow command settings can be set to those of the currently used by the Base Case Load
Flow command by pressing the button.

Note: If no ’Contingency Load Flow’ command is defined, the ’Base Case Load Flow’ command is
used to asses the network under contingency situations. In this case the action of automatic
transformer tap changers and switchable shunt compensators is directly considered (provided
that the corresponding options are selected in the ’Basic Options’ page of the assigned load flow
command).

• Consider Specific Time Phase. Only available when option Use same settings is selected in the
Base Case versus Contingency Load Flow section. This option must be enabled to define a post
contingency time.

• Post Contingency Time (End of Time Phase) This value defines the time phase of the contin-
gencies. This means that all events with an event time less than or equal to this are considered in
the contingency.

26.4.3.4 Calculation Settings for Multiple Time Phase

• Base Case Load Flow.

Only available when option Allow different settings is selected. This is a reference to the load flow
command used to calculate the network operational point before the simulation of contingencies.
The settings of this load flow command can be edited by pressing the button.

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• Time Phase n
Lists the defined time phase(s). The button next to each time phase can be used to remove
the corresponding time phase. If the option Allow different settings has been selected on the Ad-
vanced Options tab, the Time Phase will have its corresponding load flow accessible by pressing
the button next to the defined time phase.
– Add Time Phase Opens an input dialog to define the new time phase by entering its Post
Contingency Time. If the option Allow different settings has been selected on the Advanced
Options tab, the previous load flow settings (i.e. those with the preceding occurrence in time)
will be used for the new time phase. In the case that there is no previous time phase load
flow, the base case settings will be used for the new time phase.
– Use Base Case Settings for All Copies the settings from the base case load flow to all time
phase load flows.
New time phases can be defined in the data browser by clicking on the Add Time Phase button.
Existing time phases can be deleted using the button. Note that after several time phases
have been defined, this list is then scrollable using the up/down arrow buttons ( ) available
in the dialog.
• Post contingency time for order identification
The order of the contingencies stored inside the command is calculated according to the time
defined in this field. Only the events (actions) taking place before this point in time are considered
when calculating the contingency order.

Note: In PowerFactory a region is defined as a set of topologically connected components. A

region is interrupted if it is energised (topologically connected to a network reference bus)
before a fault and de-energised afterwards. The order of a contingency corresponds to the
number of interrupted regions at the time of its calculation (i.e. the ’Post contingency time for
order identification’).

26.4.4 Effectiveness

Only available for Single Time Phase

The Effectiveness page of the contingency analysis command, allows the display, addition and removal
of quad boosters (or tap controllers containing quad boosters) and generators in order to calculate their
effectiveness.

The effectiveness is only calculated if the loading of the respective element is recorded.

26.4.4.1 Calculate Quad Booster Effectiveness

Quad Booster Effectiveness is a measure of the ability of a quad booster transformer to alter the power
flow on a given circuit. It is normally defined per tap as a percentage change or actual power flow
change. When this option is checked, the user has to define a list of transformers (quad boosters) or
tap-controllers to be considered in the analysis. If a tap-controller is selected, the effectiveness will
be calculated for the case where all the transformers associated with that tap-controller are tapped in
parallel. The following buttons can be used:

• Show: shows a list of the transformers/tap-controllers for which the effectiveness should be
calculated.
• Add: adds references to transformers/tap-controllers for which the effectiveness should be cal-
culated. Only transformers where the additional voltage per tap is different to 0 and multiples
of 180 degrees will be listed (Load Flow page of the transformer type (TypTr2) Phase of du
parameter).

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• Remove All: removes all references to transformers/tap-controllers for which the effectiveness is
currently calculated.

Two calculation methods are available:

• Linearisation of transformer tap changes: uses linearised load flow equations around the
operating point to derive sensitivities to quad booster tap positions.
• Discrete transformer tap assessment: actually solves the load flow at the current operating
point, then with the tap position increased by one tap and then with it decreased by one tap. The
change which decreases the overload on the branch is then stored as the sensitivity.
This method provides a more accurate assessment in cases when a strong dependence of the
impedance on the current tap position is present, which, e.g., may result from a user-defined
measurement report for the transformer.
For a DC calculation, the algorithm additionally checks whether the degree of dependence be-
tween the impedance and the current tap position is significant. If this is not the case the (faster)
linearisation algorithm is used.

26.4.4.2 Calculate Generator Effectiveness

Generator effectiveness is a measure of the ability of a generator to alter the apparent power flow on a
given circuit or network element.

It is normally defined per MW injection (at the adjacent busbar of a generator) as a percentage change
or actual power flow change. When this option is checked, the user has to define a list of generators to
be considered in sensitivity analysis, the following buttons can be used for that purpose:

• Show Gen.: shows a list of the generators for which the effectiveness should be calculated.
• Add Gen.: adds references to generators for which the effectiveness should be calculated.

• Remove All: removes all references to generators for which the effectiveness is currently calcu-
lated.

26.4.5 Time Sweep

Only available for Single Time Phase

PowerFactory provides a Calculate Time Sweep option, whose settings allow the automatic modification
of the date and time of the active Study Case according to a list predefined by the user. The Time
Sweep calculation is designed for cases where the contingency analysis needs to be done for many
different times (for example, each hour of a day), to take into account different system conditions such
as changing load and generation.

Note: When enabled, the Time Sweep will automatically change the Date and Time of the active Study
Case. However, in order for the Study Case to activate the corresponding scenario automatically,
a Scenario Scheduler (IntScensched) object needs to first be created and afterwards activated.
Once the execution of the contingency analysis has finished, the Study Case date and time is
restored to its original setting. For more information on the Scenario Scheduler refer to Chap-
ter 15(Operation Scenarios)

To add study times to the list, first enable the Calculate Time Sweep option, then right-click anywhere in
the table and select Insert Rows (alternatively select Append Rows or Append n Rows). To modify the
date and time, double-click on the corresponding Study Time cell. Additionally, the user has the option

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to ignore previously defined Study Times by enabling the Ignore flag. This ensures that the contingency
analysis will not take into account the ignored Study Times in the calculation.

Planned outages

If this option is selected, the contingency analysis will automatically apply for each time-step any planned
outages (*.IntPlannedout) which are valid for that time-step.

The button Show Used Ones can be used to show a list of all currently considered outages. Only those
outages that occur during the defined simulation period on the basic data page are shown in this list.

The button Show All can be used to open the planned outages folder in a data navigator. From here it
is possible to see all outages that are defined within the project, including those that are not applicable
during the time sweep period.

26.4.6 Topology

26.4.6.1 General tab

Handling of busbar fault

• Open both local and remote breakers. For a bus fault, not only all local breakers which are
directly connected to this bus, but also relevant remote breakers will be opened to isolate this bus
and isolate the connected branches.
• Open local breakers only. Only the local breakers, which are directly connected to this bus will
be opened to isolate this fault..

Contingency Analysis for specific region:

If this option is selected, the analysis can be restricted to part of the network, defined by a selected
Grid, Area, Zone or Boundary. The rest of the network will be reduced and therefore only contingencies
containing elements within the monitored region will be executed; likewise only results pertaining to
elements within the monitored region will be reported.

If the reference bus does not lie within the monitored region, it will not be reduced, but be retained along
with the slack machine.

It is possible to extend the region using the parameter Region extension by k-neighbourhood, which
extends the monitored network from the cubicles at the edge of the region by the specified number of
elements, the default being 1. There is also an option to recalculate the base case load flow, or not,
after running the contingencies. This base case load flow will be for the entire system.

Consider Switching Rules of Substations.

If this option is selected, any predefined switching rules in substations will be considered. The Switching
Rule defines switching actions for different fault locations (arranged in a matrix) that will be done
right after the fault. During the preprocessing of the contingency analysis, a topology search will be
automatically carried out for each contingency to find out the interrupted elements. If any terminal in
a substation is identified as interrupted in a contingency, the corresponding switch actions specified by
the Switching Rule will be immediately applied after fault for that contingency. The additional execution
time required is negligible. These switching actions will always be relative to the current switch position
of each breaker. If the Switching Rule tries to operate a breaker which is already in that status, that rule
will be ignored. For more information on Switching Rules, refer to Chapter 11, Section 11.2.7.4.

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26.4.6.2 Advanced tab

Four options are available on the Advanced tab:

• Node Reduction Mode: By default, any unsupplied components, for example a transformer which
is switched out, will be removed from the calculation. On this page, an option is made available
for users to prevent unsupplied components from being removed, for example if they wish to be
able to include events or a RAS designed to switch in such components when the contingency is
calculated.
• Update Contingencies before running calculation: if this option is selected, the list of inter-
rupted elements for each ComOutage object will be updated. This provides additional information
but also results in an increase in total calculation time.
• Topology rebuild: If this option is selected, the network topology will be rebuilt prior to the base
case load flow, resulting in an increased total calculation time. If not selected, the topology rebuild
will only take place as required.
• Always use standard method: If this option is selected, PowerFactory uses the standard method
for all load flows and not for only those where the optimised method did not converge. This option
is not available if the linearised calculation or the linearised screening is selected.

26.4.7 Screening

The options on this page are only available if the calculation method Linearised screening + AC Load
Flow for critical cases has been selected on the Basic Options page. With this option, a fast initial
screening of contingencies is carried out, and cases that are identified as critical are then re-run using
an AC Load Flow.

• Screening Method: The initial fast screening of contingencies can be carried out using one of
two methods:
– The normal DC load flow calculation
– The AC linearised calculation.
Either of these two methods gives a solution which is potentially less accurate than the normal full
AC analysis but have the benefit of being faster. Note that if DC screening is selected, the results
from the initial screening will be in the DC results file, whereas the critical cases will be in the AC
results file.
• Criteria for AC Recalculation of critical cases: Here the user specifies the criteria for identifying
the critical cases to be recalculated using the AC load flow method. Either or both options may be
selected.
– Simple loading criterion: The maximum loading of a component is greater than or equal to
the first value specified; for example 100% (parameter name: maxLoadAbs);
– Combined loading criteria: The maximum loading of a component is greater than or equal
to the second value specified; for example 80% (parameter name: maxLoad) and the max-
imum relative change of loading compared to the base case is equal to or greater than the
value specified; for example 5% (parameter name: stepLoad).
• Components to be ignored: There may be elements in a network for which high loading is
not considered important, and such loadings should not (on their own) make a contingency case
critical. The user can create a set of such elements so that they will not trigger a critical case.
This set of components is assigned via the Components to be ignored field.
• Ignore components that are overloaded in base case: If any component is loaded in the base
case above the maximum loading threshold for critical cases, it is probable that most if not all
contingencies would then cause a similar loading and so be considered critical. In that situation,
the screening does not make sense, and so the calculation stops with a warning. This flag allows
the user to override this action, with a request to ignore any loadings above the threshold for
components which were loaded above the threshold in the base case.

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• Screen only recorded elements: This option can be used to ignore, for the purpose of screening,
loadings on elements which are not going to be recorded. It is useful if the element filtering option
is used (see 26.4.2).

26.4.8 Output

Output per Contingency Case

• Short. Displays only the number of iterations required for each contingency case.
• Detailed. Displays the full load flow output per contingency case.
• Show triggered RAS for each contingency in the output window. If this option is enabled, a
message will be output each time a RAS is triggered during the analysis. The message includes
the name of the RAS as a hyperlink.

26.4.9 Linearised Calculation

The following options are only presented if the calculation method “AC Linearised Calculation” is se-
lected on the Basic Options page, or if screening is selected and “AC Linearised Calculation” is used as
the screening method.

Sensitivity threshold used for linearised method

For a calculation using the linearised method, sensitivities have to be stored in memory. In general
terms the more sensitivities values are stored, the more contingencies can be calculated using the
linearised method (therefore the faster the overall calculation), However, storing this data consumes
memory. The thresholds on this page enable the user to have some control over the memory usage by
setting thresholds for the storing of sensitivities.

• Minimal considered branch sensitivity: Expressed as a percentage with 0.000001 as a default.

• Minimal considered bus sensitivity: Expressed as a percentage with 0.000001 as a default.

26.4.10 Parallel Computing

Only available for Single Time Phase

The computation time required to perform a contingency analysis largely depends on the size of the
power system and the number of contingencies considered. For lengthy analyses, parallel computation
of contingencies speeds up the process by distributing the calculation effort over multiple processor
cores of the host machine or in a distributed network with a number of remote machines.

There are two types of settings associated with the Parallel Computing option.

The first and more general group of settings are the ones related to the management of the parallel
computation function (computing method and the assignments of parallel processes). Settings for
parallel computing are defined centrally by the Administrator, as described in Section 21.4. However, the
user can made certain modifications to these settings, via the User Settings dialog (see Section 7.11).
Therefore, on this page there is a link to the Parallel Computing page of the User Settings, from where
a further link to the Parallel Computing Manager will be found.

The second group of settings are the ones related to the execution of the contingency analysis; and
which are located in the Parallel Computing page of the contingency analysis command.

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• Enable Parallel Contingency Analysis for AC, DC or Time Sweep. If the corresponding option
is enabled, the contingencies will be calculated in parallel; otherwise the contingency analysis is
executed in its default mode (i.e. sequential calculation).
• Minimum Number of Contingencies. The parallel contingency analysis will be started only if the
number of contingencies is greater than this setting.
• Package Size for Optimised Method and Package Size for Standard Method. The master
distributes the contingencies to the parallel processes per package. The package size indicates
how many contingencies will be calculated by a parallel process each time. The contingencies
can be calculated using either optimised method or standard method. As the standard method is
much slower than optimised method, the package size of the standard method should be smaller
than that used for the optimised method to balance the calculation.

26.4.11 Calculating an Individual Contingency

To calculate an individual contingency, click on the Show button in the contingency analysis command
dialog (see Figure 26.4.1) to open the list of contingencies included in the analysis. From here the user
can right-click on a contingency of interest, and select Execute from the context menu. Additionally,
the corresponding element can be marked in the single line graphic by right-clicking on the contingency
object in the list and selecting Mark in Graphic from the context menu.

26.4.12 Representing Contingency Situations

Contingency Cases

Contingency cases (ComOutage objects) are objects used in PowerFactory to define contingency
situations within the analysed networks. A contingency case determines which components are put on
outage. When a contingency analysis (ComSimoutage) is executed, the contingency analysis command
considers each of the contingency cases stored inside it, taking the corresponding components out of
service and performing a contingency load flow.

As mentioned previously, the contingency cases used by a specific contingency analysis command are
stored inside the command itself. Contingency cases are created either by using Fault Cases and/or
Fault Groups (see Section 26.8), or via the Contingency Definition command ( , see Section 26.7.1).
Once the contingencies have been defined in the contingency command, the cases can be viewed by
using the Show button available in the dialog (see Figure 26.4.1). Additionally, the contingency cases
within the active study case’s contingency analysis command may be viewed by clicking on the Show
Contingencies icon ( ), located on the main toolbar (only available when the Contingency Analysis
toolbar is selected). In both cases a new data browser showing the defined contingencies is opened,
with the contingencies listed inside. By double-clicking on a contingency from the list, the corresponding
dialog for that particular contingency is opened (as illustrated in Figure 26.4.3). The dialog displayed in
Figure 26.4.3 shows the following fields:

• Name. Name of the contingency case.

• Not Analysed. If enabled, the case is not considered by the contingency analysis command.
• Number. An identification number given to the contingency and which is stored in the results.
This number can be used for reporting purposes.
• Fault Case. Reference to the fault case (if any) from where the contingency case originated.
• Fault Group. Reference to the fault group (if any) from where the contingency case originated.
This field is only available if the contingency case has an associated fault group.
• Events Used for this Contingency As shown in figure 26.4.3, the user can specify whether to
generate the events based on the fault case definition (automatically), or to use locally defined
events. If the user chooses to use locally defined events, then the ComOutage object which

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defines the contingency (located in contingency command of the study case) can be modified
independently.
• Interrupted Components. This is a table showing the components put on outage by the contin-
gency case. The table, which is read-only, is automatically generated when the contingency case
is created.
• Fault Type. Displays the fault type and the contingency order. See Figure 26.8.1.
• Contingency Analysis. Reference to the contingency analysis command where the contingency
case is stored.

The Mark in Graphic button highlights the interrupted components in the single line diagram.

Figure 26.4.3: Contingency Cases (ComOutage objects)

Normally, contingency cases (ComOutage objects) are analysed by the contingency analysis command
(ComSimoutage) in which they are stored. However, each contingency case provides the functionality
of a command itself, and can be executed individually using the Execute button at the top right of the
ComOutage dialog. In this case the actions taken by the circuit breakers, which must switch to clear
the fault, are shown in the single line graphic (only if the contingency case was created using fault
cases/groups).

Note: The ’Interrupted Components’ table is updated by the program each time the contingency anal-
ysis is executed.

For further information on contingency cases generated using fault cases and/or fault groups, refer to
Section 26.8 (Creating Contingency Cases Using Fault Cases and Groups). For information on contin-
gency cases created using the Contingency Definition (ComNmink ) command, refer to Section 26.7.1
(Creating Contingency Cases Using the Contingency Definition Command).

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26.5 Reporting Results

26.5.1 Predefined Reports

The built-in Contingency Analysis reports are by default presented in tabular format, although many are
also available as ASCII reports. They are accessed via the Contingency Analysis Reports button ( )
in the Contingency analysis toolbar. This brings up the following dialog:

Figure 26.5.1: Contingency Analysis Reports dialog

26.5.1.1 Basic Options page

On this page, AC or DC results can be selected according to the calculations executed, and there is a
link to the relevant result file. The reports are selected on the other pages, so here on the Basic Options
page there is an overview of which reports are to be generated.

Timesweep reports

If the Time Sweep option has been used (see section 26.4.5), the panel called Study times will become
active. Two options are available:

• Study time summary: will result in reports containing the results from all study times; for each
result, the Study Time as well as the contingency is displayed. In addition, once the report has
been generated, the user may also select the individual study times from within the report.
• Single study time: provides a drop-down list of the study times, from which required study time
can be selected.

The following reports are available when the study time summary option is selected:

• Maximum Loadings
• Voltage Steps
• Maximum Voltages
• Minimum Voltages
• Non-convergent Cases
Advanced tab

On the Advanced tab, the user can change the format of the reports from Tabular to ASCII. Note that
some reports are not available in ASCII format.

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26.5.1.2 Loading and Effectiveness page

Loading Reports

• Worst loading violations: reports the greatest loading violation for each component (according
to the specified loading limit), considering all contingencies. Any such component is reported only
once, i.e. it is reported for the contingency causing this violation.

• All loading violations: all overloaded components (according to the specified loading limit) for
each contingency are displayed in a single list.
• Loading violations per case: all overloaded components (according to the specified loading
limit) for each contingency are displayed in separate lists (i.e. one list per contingency case).

A typical tabular report is shown below in Figure 26.5.2. Note the options to export to html or Excel
and the fields for selecting limits. In the individual columns, the usual filtering and sorting options are
available. Within the table, references to objects can be used to edit the object itself or mark it in graphic.

Figure 26.5.2: Tabular Report of Loading Violations

Effectiveness Reports

• Generator effectiveness: generators having an effectiveness greater than or equal to the speci-
fied value (%/MW) are displayed in a single list. The Delta P indicates whether generation increase
or decrease reduces the overload. A (+) means that the generation needs to be increased
whereas a (-) indicates a need to decrease. The Max. Effectiveness gives the maximum change
in loading of the overloaded element possible for this generator with regard to its limits.
• Quad-booster effectiveness: Quad-booster transformers (phase-shifters) having an effective-
ness greater than or equal to the specified value (%/tap) are displayed in a single list, with an
indication of which direction of tap change reduces the overload.

Filters

• Branches: report highest loading only: this can reduce the amount of reporting when the
network contains many branches consisting of multiple line elements.
• Suppress contingency violation if base case is violated: This is typically used to filter out
overloads which are inherent in the network and are of little interest.
• Loading threshold: results for elements loaded at or above this limit will be reported (subject to
the above two filters).

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26.5.1.3 Voltage page

Voltage Reports

• Voltage steps: all voltage deviations of terminals (between the base case and the contingency
case) for each contingency are displayed in a single list. Reports the highest voltage deviation of
terminals (between the base case and the contingency case) considering all contingencies. Any
such terminal is reported only once. Only terminals with the highest voltage deviation greater than
the specified maximum voltage step are reported.
• Voltage angle step: all voltage angle deviations of terminals between the base case and the
contingency case are displayed in a list. Keep in mind that the voltage angle steps limit of the
report must be higher as the limit for the recording filter within the calculation command (see
section 26.4.2.3) to receive a correct report.

• Voltage violations per case: all busbars with exceeding voltage (maximum or minimum) are
displayed in separate lists.
• All voltage violations, Maximum voltage: reports all voltage violations of a terminal (greater
than or equal to the specified upper voltage limit) considering all contingencies.

• All voltage violations, Minimum voltage: reports all voltage violations of a terminal (less than
or equal to the specified lower voltage limit) considering all contingencies.
• Worst voltage violations, Maximum voltage: reports the greatest voltage violation of a terminal
(greater than or equal to the specified voltage limit) considering all contingencies. Any such
terminal is reported only once (i.e. it is reported for the contingency causing this violation).

• Worst voltage violations, Minimum voltage: reports the greatest voltage violation of a terminal
(less than or equal to the specified voltage limit) considering all contingencies. Any such terminal
is reported only once (i.e. it is reported for the contingency causing this violation).
• Asynchronous busbars next to fault: reports all contingency cases leading to a voltage angle
difference of the connected busbars above the defined asynchronism angle. For each contingency
the highest angle difference for the connected busbar during the contingency is shown as well as
the angle difference in the base case. If no angle difference for the base case is shown it might be
the case that the voltage angle was not recorded and need to be added to the variable selection.
This option is just visible if Record asynchronism of busbars next to the fault is selected on the
recording filters page (see section 26.4.2.3).

Filters
• Suppress contingency violation if base case is violated: This is typically used to filter out
voltage violations which are inherent in the network and are of little interest.

26.5.1.4 Summary page

• Non-convergent cases: the non-convergent cases of the contingency analysis are listed.
• Summary variables: If the option record additional result variables has been selected as de-
scribed in Section 26.4.2 above, this report can be used to see the summary of outcomes. In
addition this summary also shows the number of contingencies causing a critical asynchronism in
case the according recording filter was selected.
• Summary variables per contingency: Likewise, the summary variables can be shown at con-
tingency level. For contingencies which cause loss of generation and/or demand, the report also
includes the number of generation/load objects lost, together with the total MW and Mvar loss.
For each contingency that does not include a transformer the maximal voltage angle difference
between the interrupted busbars is reported.

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26.5.2 Customised reports

Although the tabular reports are already predefined, the user can modify them if required. The report
formats are accessed via the Format tab on the relevant page of the Report Contingency Analysis
Results dialog and using the right-arrow icon.

Alternatively, users can write their own reporting scripts, which directly access the results in the ElmRes
results file.

26.6 Trace Function for Multiple Time Phase and/or RAS

The Trace functionality allows the user to visualise the changing system state calculated in a Multiple
Time Phase contingency analysis, or in a contingency analysis which incorporates Remedial Actions
Schemes (RAS), using either Single or Multiple Time Phase.

First the Contingency Analysis command is configured. Then the trace is initiated using the Start Trace
button ( ) on the Contingency Analysis toolbar. When this button is pressed, a dialog opens allowing
the user to select a contingency. Following the selection of a contingency by the user and pressing
OK, the contingency dialog is closed and the base case load flow is executed. The execution of the
first event(s) and all subsequent event(s) is triggered by pressing the Next Time Step button ( ) on
the main toolbar. At each time step the load flow calculation results and the state of the network
circuit breakers are displayed in the single line graphic. It should be noted that the Next Time Step
evaluates events according to their time of occurrence, and not according to the time phases defined
in the Contingency Analysis command. After the last time event(s) have been executed, the Next Time
Step button becomes inactive. The Stop Trace button ( ) can be pressed to clear the calculation.
Alternatively, the Trace button in each ComOutage dialog can be used to initiate the Trace for that
particular contingency.

Note that the Trace Function is only available for static contingencies, not dynamic contingencies (see
section 26.2.1.2)

26.7 Creating Contingencies

There is an important distinction to be made between contingencies which use fault cases and those
which do not:

If a contingency does not use a fault case, the “faulted” equipment is simply taken out of calculation. If
there is a fault case, the faulted equipment can be removed through the operation of circuit breakers
(either explicitly or by using in-built topology tracing). Consider the example in Figure 26.7.1 below,
where a fault on a transformer is being modelled. For realistic modelling, the use of fault cases is
generally recommended.

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(a) Contingency without fault case (b) Contingency with fault case

Figure 26.7.1: Use of fault cases in contingency analysis

26.7.1 Creating Contingencies Using the Contingency Definition Command

The Contingency Definition command (ComNmink ) is used to automatically generate contingency cases
based on selected components. It is accessible via the Contingency Analysis toolbar using the
button. The Contingency Definition command can be used to automatically generate contingency cases
either for the complete system or from pre-defined sets of elements.

The Contingency Definition command offers the following options:

26.7.1.1 Creation of Contingencies

To create contingencies as opposed to fault cases, this option is selected:

• Generate Fault Cases for Library. Generates fault cases which are stored in the Fault Cases
folder (Operational Library, Faults) as explained in 26.8. In case the regarding fault cases already
exists a warning is printed out.
• Generate Contingency Cases for Analysis. Generates contingencies which are stored in the
contingency analysis command.

26.7.1.2 Outage Level

• n-1. Creates single cases for each of the selected components.

• n-2. Creates cases for every unique combination of two selected components.

• n-k cases of mutually coupled lines/cables. Creates cases for every set of mutually coupled
lines/cables. If for example, three lines are modelled as having a mutual coupling, by selecting
this option a fault case is created considering the simultaneous outage of the three coupled lines.

26.7.1.3 Network Components

There are three main options if selecting Network Components:

• Whole System Cases generated for the whole network, with options to choose which element
classes should be considered.
– Lines/cables. Cases according to the selected outage level will be generated for all lines
and cables (ElmLne objects) in the system.

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– Transformers. Cases according to the selected outage level will be generated for all trans-
formers (ElmTr2, ElmTr3, ElmTr4 objects) in the system.
– Generators. Cases according to the selected outage level will be generated for all syn-
chronous generators (ElmSym objects) in the system.
– Series Capacitors. Cases according to the selected outage level will be generated for all
series capacitors (ElmScap objects) in the system.
– Series Reactors. Cases according to the selected outage level will be generated for all
series reactors (ElmSind objects) in the system.

• Selection This option allows the user to use a set of elements. Such sets are stored in the Study
Case.
• Filtered Elements This option allows the user to select elements according to a user-defined
filter. Using this option, it is possible for example to run a load flow and select elements based on
load flow results such as loading.

The selection of elements to outage in the Contingency Definition command can also be created by the
use of DPL scripts. Refer to the ComNmink methods in the DPL Reference.

When the Contingency Definition command is executed and the option “Generate Contingency Cases
for Analysis” is selected, it generates the corresponding contingency cases according to the options
and elements selected. The Contingency Analysis command, which is automatically created inside the
current active Study Case is then automatically opened, and the analysis can be run. Note that when a
new list of contingencies is created using the Contingency Definition command, the previous content of
the contingency analysis command is overwritten.

26.7.1.4 Outputs

Fault case folder

If the contingencies are created using fault cases, there are two options for selecting the fault case
folder:

• Prompt user to select

• Predefined folder
Naming of created contingencies or fault cases

The newly created contingency or fault case is automatically given a name. There are two options
available for the naming:
• Use name(s) of outaged element(s)

• Use site/substation/branch name in addition to outaged element(s) name(s)

26.7.2 Creating Contingencies Using Fault

Cases and Groups

If fault cases are to be used to create contingencies, this can be done in various ways:

1. First create fault cases then use them to populate the Contingency Analysis Command or
2. Select one or more objects and right-click, Calculation → Contingency Analysis. . . or

3. Select one or more objects and right-click, Calculation → Execute single contingency

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The creation and management of Fault Cases is described in detail in Section 26.8

For Option 1, the required fault cases are selected within the Contingency command dialog, as de-
scribed in section 26.4.1.2.

Option 2 enables one to populate the Contingency Analysis command with fault cases for the elements
of interest. If relevant fault cases already exist in the project, they will be selected. For elements for
which no fault cases exist, they will be created in the Faults, Fault Cases folder of the Operational
Library. To use the function, the element(s) are selected, then right-click, Calculation → Contingency
Analysis. . . . The Contingency Analysis command will be presented, already populated with the required
fault cases, and the analysis can be run.

Option 3 offers the possibility of executing a single contingency case directly from a selected element
or element(s) without going via the contingency command dialog at all. This is slightly different from in
section 26.4.11, where the contingency has already been created and is being selected to be run on its
own. But the visualisation of the results is the same.

The purpose of the option described here is to be able to select an element or group of elements and
execute a relevant fault case. A fault case, possibly containing additional post-fault actions, may already
exist in the library and this is an easy way to find it and run it.

To use the function, the element(s) are selected, then the user should do right-click, Calculation →
Execute Single Contingency. If a suitable fault case exists in the Operational Library it will be executed
(if there is more than one, the user may choose which to use); if no suitable fault case exists then
one will temporarily be created and executed but not retained afterwards. In either case, the post-fault
results from the contingency are available on the graphics or via element filters.

26.7.3 Creating Dynamic Contingencies

Dynamic contingencies are contingency cases which are not defined before executing the contingency
analysis, but are generated “on the fly” by the contingency command, using criteria which have been
supplied by the user. It is possible to use both the normal static contingencies and dynamic contingen-
cies in one Contingency Analysis calculation.

The Dynamic contingencies option is selected on the basic data page and the user then defines one or
more filters.

(Note that even if more than one filter is used, the numbers in the Order column are not relevant.)

The default is a filter based on the loading in the base case load flow. During the contingency analysis,
contingencies are then created for any element which meets at least one of the criteria. To avoid
confusion with static contingencies of the same name, dynamic contingencies will be named after the
element but prefixed with an underscore (e.g. _Line01).

After running the analysis, the user can make use of the Show contingencies button on the Contingency
Analysis toolbar to see the contingencies, both static and dynamic (if any are created).

A Fault location field provides a link to the object which was faulted in the contingency.

In addition, information about the contingencies created will be seen in the output window.

For the purposes of reporting, the dynamic contingencies are treated exactly the same way as static
contingencies.

Dynamic contingencies are particularly useful for contingency timesweep (see 26.4.5), as the contin-
gency requirements may vary with time.

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26.8 Fault Cases and Groups

Contingency cases created from fault cases can be regarded as contingency situations produced in
a network as a consequence of the clearing of a fault. Fault cases without switching events (created
following the procedure described in Chapter 13: Libraries, Section 13.6.4: Fault Cases and Fault
Groups) are used to automatically generate contingency cases in the contingency analysis command,
by pressing the Add Cases/Groups button and selecting the desired objects from the data browser that
pops up.

For every selected fault case, the calculation automatically detects which circuit breakers must open
in order to clear the defined fault(s). All components which lose their connection to the network
reference bus following the switching actions that clear the fault(s), are regarded as ’interrupted’ and
are subsequently added to the Interrupted Components table of the corresponding contingency case.
In other words, these components are put on outage by the contingency case. Depending on the fault
defined in the fault case that generates a contingency, the Fault Type field in the contingency case dialog
(Figure 26.8.1) is set to:

• Busbar fault:
If the contingency originates from a fault on a busbar
• n-k fault:
With contingency order equal to k (where k >= 0). k corresponds to the number of network
regions (sets of topologically connected components) which are disconnected during a fault, by the
switching actions performed. It should be noted that the switching actions which are considered
depend on the post contingency time used by the update (this time differs between single- and
multiple time phase analysis).

Figure 26.8.1: Fault Type Field in the Contingency Case (ComOutage) Dialog

Note: In PowerFactory an interrupted component is a network primary element that is energised before
a fault and de-energised afterwards. A component is considered to be energised if it is topologi-
cally connected to a network reference bus. A region is defined as a set of topologically connected
components. Like components, regions can have energised, de-energised and interrupted states,
depending on their connection to a network reference bus.

Contingency cases can be created from fault cases/groups, which reside in the Operational Library, by
pressing the Add Cases/Groups button in the contingency analysis command (see Section 26.4.1 (Ba-
sic Options) and Figure 26.4.1). In the case of creating contingencies from fault group(s), a contingency
case will be generated for each fault case referred to in the selected fault group(s).

Note: The ’topological search’ algorithm used by the program to set contingency cases from fault cases
requires the explicit definition of at least one reference bus in the analysed system. A bus is
explicitly set as a reference if it has connected to it either a synchronous generator (ElmSym), or an
external grid (ElmXnet) with the option ’Reference Machine’ enabled (available on the element’s
’Load Flow’ tab).

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26.8.1 Browsing Fault Cases and Fault Groups

There are two types of subfolders inside the Faults folder in the Operational Library : Fault Cases and
Fault Groups.

In order to make a new folder of either of these types, left-click on the Faults folder and then press
the New Object button ( ) on the Data Manager toolbar. Select whether a new Fault Cases or Fault
Groups folder should be created.

The Fault Cases folder holds every contingency (n-1, n-2, or simultaneous) defined for the system, as
described in Section 26.8.2 (Defining a Fault Case). Alternatively, several fault cases can be selected
and stored in a Fault Group, as described in Section 26.8.5 (Defining a Fault Group).

26.8.2 Defining a Fault Case from Network Element(s)

To define a fault case for an element in the grid, select it in the single-line diagram. Then right-click and
choose one of: Operational Library → Fault Cases→ New Single Fault Case or Operational Library →
Fault Cases→ New Multiple Fault Cases, n-1 (or New Multiple Fault Cases, n-2) or Operational Library
→ Fault Cases→ New Mutually Coupled Lines/Cables, n-k.

If Multiple Fault Cases, n-2 is selected, fault cases will be created for the simultaneous outage of every
unique combination of two elements in the selection. If the user selects New Single Fault Case, a fault
case will be created for the simultaneous outage of all elements in the selection.

If Mutually Coupled Lines/Cables, n-k is selected, then fault cases will be created for the simultaneous
outage of each coupled line in the selection.

Alternatively, a filter can be used. This can be done (for example) with the help of the Open Network
Model Manager. . . button ( ), to list all elements for which outages are to be defined. These elements
can then be highlighted and the user can then right-click on the highlighted selection and choose (for
example) Operational Library → Fault Cases. The Simulation Events/Fault dialog opens, as shown in
Figure 26.8.2, where the user can enter the desired name of the fault case in the Name field.

On the Advanced tab of the Basic Data page of the same dialog, the user can create the corresponding
switch events, by clicking on the Create button.

Figure 26.8.2: Creation of Fault Case (IntEvt)

For further background on fault cases, refer to Chapter 13: Libraries, Section 13.6.4 (Fault Cases and
Fault Groups).

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26.8.3 Defining Fault Cases using the Contingency Definition Command

Another way of creating a set of fault cases is to use the Contingency Definition Command. In sec-
tion 26.7.1, the use of this tool to either create fault cases or contingencies without fault cases is
described.

26.8.4 Representing Contingency Situations with Post-Fault Actions

As a default, if a fault case is created for a fault it will just contain one or more short circuit events. In this
case, the Contingency Analysis uses a topological search to find which breakers need to be opened to
isolate the faulted elements.

But a fault case can define such switch operations explicitly and can also include additional switch
actions and other events to represent post-fault actions.

The types of events which are allowed in the contingency analysis as post-fault actions are:

• Load Event (EvtLod)

• Dispatch Event (EvtGen)
• Switch Event (EvtSwitch)

• Tap Event (EvtTap)

• Power Transfer Event (EvtTransfer )

The list of Events is displayed by clicking on the Events button in the fault case (IntEvt) dialog. Events
can be edited and/or deleted and new events can be created by using the New Object icon at the
top of the opened browser window.

If the post-fault actions which are going to be created include switch events, it is very important to
understand how these are handled within when a fault case is executed as a contingency:

Note: By default, a simple fault case created for a circuit, for example, will contain just a short-circuit
event for the relevant element(s). When the contingency is executed, topology tracing is used to
determine which circuit breakers need to be opened in order to isolate the faulted elements.
The user has an option to create these events within the fault case by using the Create button on
the Advanced tab. This is not normally needed but can be useful if the user wishes to change the
events in order to model some different switching behaviour.
The default behaviour of PowerFactory is to assume that if there are switch events present in the
fault case, the user wants only these switch events to be executed and no others. In other words,
it does not execute any additional switch events in order to isolate the elements. This means that
if the user has a fault case which contains just a short-circuit event, and then adds a single open-
switch event (to represent a post-fault action), this then would be the only switch to open. This of
course is not desirable.
So, if the user wants to ensure that the faulted element is isolated and the extra switch event is
considered, there are two possible approaches:
• Use the Create button to create all the events needed to isolate the faulted equipment (and
adjust if required), then add the extra switch event.
or
• Do not create the events, and instead select the “Always create switch events to clear the
faults” option on the Advanced tab of the fault case. Then the correct breakers will be opened
to isolate the faulted equipment and the post-fault actions executed.

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Contingencies are created based on fault cases defined in the Operational Library. These fault cases
define the location of the fault events, and may also define post contingency actions taken to isolate
the fault and mitigate the effects of the outage of the component(s). Whenever a new contingency is
created, a link from the ComOutage object to the fault case is set. New contingencies can be created
in a Contingency Analysis command by clicking on the Add Cases/Groups button in the Configuration
section of the Basic Data page (see Section 26.4.1: Basic Options).

26.8.5 Defining a Fault Group

To define a fault group, left-click on the Fault Groups folder. Then click on the New Object button ( ).
A Fault Group dialog will be displayed. In this dialog the user can specify the name of the fault group
in the Name field, and add fault cases to this new group using the Add Cases button. Click the Cases
button to view existing cases (if any) in the fault group.

Note: When a fault group is defined and fault cases are added to it, a reference is created to each of
these fault cases. The fault case itself resides in the Fault Cases subfolder. This means that if an
item in the fault group is deleted, only the reference to the fault case is deleted. The fault case
itself is not deleted from the Fault Cases subfolder.

26.9 Comparing Contingency Results

In order to compare contingencies in a fast and easy way, PowerFactory provides a Contingency Com-
parison function ( ). The Contingency Comparison function is only enabled if the user has previously
defined the contingency cases in the Contingency Analysis command, as explained in sections 26.7.1
and 26.7.2. The general handling of the Contingency Comparison function is as follows:

1. Define the contingency cases in the Contingency Analysis command (see sections 26.7.1 and 26.7.2).

2. Click on the Contingency Comparison button ( ). A window will pop up allowing the user to select
the required contingency cases (Figure 26.9.1). The selection can correspond to one, several, or
all contingency cases.

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Figure 26.9.1: Selection of Contingency Cases for Comparison

3. By clicking on the OK button, the Comparing of Results On/Off button (Figure 26.9.2) is enabled
and the selected contingency cases are automatically executed.

Figure 26.9.2: Comparing of Results Button

4. The single line graphic result boxes will display the results, based on the comparison mode and
the two compared cases. By default, the comparison is made between the Base Case and the
last selected contingency case in the list.

5. To change the comparison mode and/or the cases to be compared, click on the Edit Comparing
of Results button (Figure 26.9.2). The Compare dialog will pop up displaying the current settings.
To change the cases to be compared, click on the black arrow pointing down ( ) and select a
different case (Figure 26.9.3).

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Figure 26.9.3: Selection of other Cases for Comparison

6. If the contingency analysis is defined with time phases, the compare dialog will have the option of
selecting the time phase.
7. Once the calculation is reset (for example by either making changes in the model or by clicking on
the Reset Calculation button), the comparison mode will be disabled.
Note that the comparison of contingency results feature is only available for static contingencies, not
dynamic contingencies (see section 26.2.1.2)

26.10 Managing variables to be recorded

In the Study Cases chapter, section 12.11, there is a description of how results variables are managed,
using the ElmRes object. For contingency analysis, a minimum set of variables for each element class
is recorded, which is detailed in each relevant variable selection IntMon object, but it is possible to add
additional variables to these IntMon objects if required.

The Variable Selection object is described in Section 18.3: Variable Selection.

A further option to control the results being recorded is to use a user-defined filter within the ElmRes
object, as described below.

26.10.1 Using filters to enable selective results recording

Sometimes the user may only be interested in results for part of the network being analysed and so
wishes to record results selectively, based on the region of interest. For this purpose, it is possible
to introduce a filter into the contingency analysis ElmRes object. An advantage of this approach,
particularly with large networks, is that it reduces the size of the results file.

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Results to be recorded may be filtered according to Grid, Area, Zone or Boundary. To create a filter,
select the ElmRes object in the study case and then press the New Object icon. From the list, select
General Filter (SetFilt).

Within the new filter, the Object Filter should be set to all elements. If results are to be filtered for a
specific grid, this can be selected directly using the down-arrow next to “Look in”. If an Area, Zone
or Boundary is to be used, first select the Boundary, Zone or Area in a Network Model Filter or Data
Manager, and copy it. Then within the filter, use the down-arrow next to “Look in” and select Paste.

Buttons are available on the Recording of Results page of the Contingency Command dialog, to allow
easy access to the ElmRes object.

26.11 Remedial Action Schemes (RAS)

An important analysis requirement for transmission system operators in particular is to study the man-
agement of the network when a fault occurs and post-fault actions have to be taken. One way to do this
is to create post-fault actions by adding events to the relevant fault cases, as described in section 26.8.4.
Using this approach, however, has its limitations: firstly, the post-fault action will always be executed for
these fault cases and secondly, if the same post fault action is appropriate for many contingencies, it
must be modelled separately for each.

The Remedial Action Schemes functionality takes a different approach. The concept is that there is a
library of Remedial Action Schemes (RAS), each of which consists of one or more trigger conditions and
one or more events which model remedial actions. The RAS are selected as required in the Contingency
Analysis command and then the remedial actions are executed for every fault case which meets the
trigger conditions.

26.11.1 Creating a RAS object

RAS are stored in the “Remedial Action Schemes (RAS)” folder of the Operational Library. When a new
RAS is created, the user will specify one or more trigger conditions and one or more events to represent
the remedial action(s). All triggers and remedial actions which have been created for a particular RAS
are stored as contents in the RAS and can be selected or not as required.

As an example, these are the steps required to create a simple RAS to model generation reduction for
a post-fault overload on a line:

Select the Contingency Analysis toolbar then click on the icon (Show Remedial Action Schemes).
In the RAS subfolder, use the New Object icon to create a new Remedial Action Scheme (IntRas). The
RAS object is created and will automatically be given a unique Sequence number, used to determine
the order of execution of RAS, should more than one be triggered for a particular contingency. These
sequence numbers can be changed by the user.

On the left-hand side of the IntRas dialog box, click on the Create Condition button. Use the drop down
arrow next to Element selection to select the line whose overloading is to act as a trigger. Using the
drop-down menu, select the Type of Condition as Loading continuous. The percentage loading can be
selected as required and the Check condition left as Post-Fault.

Now the Remedial action is created, for which the sequence of actions is slightly different. Firstly, on
the RAS dialog, select the type of event. For this example, it will be Dispatch Event. Then press the
Create button. In the new dialog box, select the generator which is to provide the remedial action and
the required change in active power, then press OK.

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26.11.2 Trigger Conditions

Below is a list of possible trigger conditions. The trigger condition must be appropriate for the element
selected, otherwise an error message will be generated. The dialog box for the trigger also includes a
Check button for validating the trigger condition which has been set up.

• Energising status

• Switch status
• Voltage
• Voltage step
• Voltage angle step

• Active power flow

• Loading (continuous)
• Boundary flow

• User-defined

The listed options are provided in order to enable users to easily set up triggers that are expected to be
most commonly used, but the User-defined option allows for more customer-specific requirements.

For some of the triggers the user can select if the condition is for the pre-fault or the post-fault condition.
In case of User-defined conditions also the difference between pre-fault and post-fault value can be
used as a trigger.

26.11.3 Logical combinations of triggers

If more than one trigger is created, they can be combined using an And or an Or operator. For more
complex combinations, the user can create logical gates using the Create gate button, and these also
allow criteria to be negated. Logical gates can be nested.

26.11.4 Remedial actions

Below is the list of possible Remedial actions, defined in terms of events. These are the standard events
allowed in Contingency Analysis fault cases. It is possible to define execution times for the events; this
will be taken into account in conjunction with the time phase of the analysis.

• Switch event
• Dispatch event
• Tap event

• Power transfer event

• Load event

Note: A RAS may contain a number of triggers and remedial actions, but only those selected in the
dialog box are active.

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26.11.5 RAS groups

RAS objects are stored in the Remedial Action Schemes (RAS) folder of the Operational Library. If an
existing project does not already have such a folder, it will be created automatically if the user creates
a RAS using the process described above. There are two subfolders: the RAS subfolder where the
RAS objects themselves are stored, and the RAS Groups folder, where groups of references to RAS
objects may be created. These RAS groups are analogous to the Fault Groups in the Faults folder (see
section 26.8.5) and are handled in a similar way.

26.11.6 Using Remedial Action Schemes in Contingency Analysis

RAS objects are not fault-case specific, but will take effect for any contingency which meets the trigger
conditions. Should the user wish a RAS to be fault-case-specific, this can be done by including a
relevant trigger (such as circuit breaker operation or change in energising status).

Because the RAS are not fault-case-specific, users may want to be selective about which RAS are
included in their calculations. One way to do this is to make use of the Out of Service flags on the RAS
objects themselves; this flag will be observed in all study cases.

However, the more usual way to determine which RAS objects are used during the Contingency Analysis
is to select the RAS and/or RAS Groups via the Contingency Analysis command dialog. This RAS
selection is then defined for the particular study case.

The relevant parameters for executing RAS are:

Consider Remedial Action Schemes (RAS) (Basic Data page)

If this option is enabled, all selected RAS (unless Out of Service) will be applied during the Contingency
Analysis calculation.

Show triggered RAS for each contingency in the output window (Output page)

If this option is enabled, a message will be output each time a RAS is triggered during the analysis. The
message includes the name of the RAS as a hyperlink.

Selection of RAS works in exactly the same way as the selection of Fault cases, with options to remove,
add and view the selected RAS.

26.11.7 Results and reporting

It is important to understand the way in which the Contingency Analysis handles the RAS and exactly
what results are available to the user after the calculation, either via the standard reports or directly from
the results files for customised reporting scripts.

26.11.7.1 Single Time Phase

With the single time phase calculation, the results which are recorded in the results file are always the
results of the contingency analysis after all triggered remedial action events have taken effect. This is the
case regardless of whether the triggers can be determined prior to the fault case execution (topological
criteria) or are dependent upon analysis results.

With the Post-Contingency End of Time Phase option selected, the remedial actions executed will take
into account the execution times of the remedial action events: if this is longer than the specified Time
Phase time, the remedial action event will not be taken into account. If a Post-Contingency End of Time

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Phase time has not been specified, all events in a triggered RAS will take place regardless of their
execution times.

In the results file, for each contingency executed, the triggered RAS objects are recorded (up to a
maximum of 10 RAS per contingency).

26.11.7.2 Multiple Time Phase

Using Multiple Time Phase contingency Analysis in conjunction with RAS operation allows the user to
evaluate in detail a sequence of events, for example if the entire remedial action scheme consists of a
number of events which are expected to occur after various times after they have been triggered. The
logic followed by the calculation can be illustrated by means of an example:

Use of two RAS to model post-fault generation changes

Consider a RAS called RAS1, which is intended to model the situation in which an overload on a line is
alleviated by reductions in generation:

1. A fault occurs which overloads line L. This triggers reduction in generation from two generators,
G1 and G2.
2. After 8 minutes, generator G1 reduces generation by 100 MW.
3. Five minutes later, 13 minutes after the fault, generator G2 reduces generation by 50 MW.

RAS1 will contain one trigger (1) and two remedial actions (2) and (3), which consist of Dispatch events
occurring at 8 minutes and 13 minutes respectively.

The user also creates RAS2, to model the fact that if the output from G1 is reduced below a certain level,
another generator G3 in a different part of the network should have its output increased to compensate.

1. The generation level at G1 goes below a prescribed threshold of, say 250 MW.

2. After 7 minutes, generator G3 increases generation by 100 MW.

RAS2 will contain one trigger (G1 generation drops below the specified level) and one remedial action,
which consists of a Dispatch event on generator G3 with an Execution Time of 7 minutes.

Let us assume that the user sets up a Multiple Time Phase calculation, with the following time phases
defined:

• 0 minutes
• 5 minutes
• 10 minutes
• 15 minutes
• 20 minutes

This will be the outcome:

0 minutes : Line L is overloaded. The trigger for RAS1 is activated, but nothing happens yet to reduce
the load.
5 minutes : Line L is overloaded. The trigger for RAS1 is already activated, but still nothing happens
yet to reduce the load because the first event only occurs 8 minutes after being triggered.
10 minutes : Now that more than 8 minutes have passed after RAS1 was triggered, the first generation
change is taken into account and the active power on Line L is reduced. This drop in generation
at G1 also triggers RAS2.

15 minutes : Now that more than 13 minutes have passed, the second generation change is also taken
into account and the active power on the line is further reduced. However, it is not yet 7 minutes
since RAS2 was triggered, so the associated event on G3 has not yet taken place.

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20 minutes : Now that it is more than 7 minutes since RAS2 was triggered, the associated increase in
generation at G3 will also be taken into account, resulting in the final state of the network for this
sequence of events.

Figure 26.11.1: RAS timings in Multiple Time Phase Contingency Analysis

This example illustrates some important points relating to Multiple Time Phase calculations with RAS:

• In a multiple time phase contingency analysis, if a RAS is triggered in one time phase, the
associated remedial action(s) will not have any effect until the next or later time phase, even if
the actions have zero Execution Time.
• If remedial actions have a non-zero Execution Time, the timing starts when the RAS is triggered,
not at time zero (unless of course, the first time phase studied is at 0s and the RAS is triggered at
that point).
• RAS are only triggered at calculation points. Thus, in the example above RAS2 is triggered
at the 10 minute point. If this were a real situation, the drop in generation at G1 would have
happened after 8 minutes and therefore triggered the timer for the RAS2 at that time (resulting in
G3 increasing output at 15 minutes), but we do not have a calculation point at 8 minutes, so the
trigger is at 10 minutes and the increase is not observed until the 20 minute timephase.

26.11.8 Visualising RAS using the Trace Function

It may be helpful to visualise the effect of Remedial Action schemes on a particular contingency by using
the Trace function (see 26.6). When the use of RAS is enabled in the Contingency Analysis command,
the Trace Function is available and the post-fault states can be seen first without and then with the
triggered RAS(s) in a single time phase calculation, and similarly the complete sequence of events can
be followed in a multiple time phase calculation.

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26.12 Load Contingency Analysis Results

This option is accessed using the icon on the Contingency Analysis toolbar. When a Contingency
Analysis is executed, the results are stored in the associated results file. However, once the calculation
has been reset, the results are no longer immediately available to be viewed on a diagram or in a
Network Model Manager.

The Load Contingency Analysis Results option makes it possible for the results to be loaded back into
memory, and summary quantities such as maximum loading viewed. To do this, use the icon to bring
up the dialog box, select the required results file (if not already selected) and Execute.

Results which have been loaded back into memory are indicated with a grey background. This acts as
a reminder to the user that these are previously-stored results and may no longer be consistent with the
current network model if the model has been changed in the interim.

26.12.1 Load Individual Contingencies

The loading of results into memory also offers a further possibility: results from individual continency
calculations can be loaded into memory, which then allows the contingency to be examined in more
detail on the graphic or in a Network Model Manager. To do this, use the icon to bring up the dialog box,
select the required results file (if not already selected), select the required contingency and Execute.

The advantage of this process, compared with executing individual contingencies as single contingen-
cies, is that various contingencies can be viewed without having to re-run the calculation,

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Quasi-Dynamic Simulation

27.1 Introduction

PowerFactory includes the Quasi-Dynamic Simulation toolbox, a dedicated time varying load flow
calculation tool that can be used for medium to long term simulation studies. This tool completes a
series of load flow simulations spaced in time, with the user given the flexibility to select the simulation
period and the simulation step size. To achieve this, the Quasi-Dynamic Simulation makes use of
time based parameter characteristics (refer to Chapter 17), variations and expansion stages (refer to
Chapter 16), planned outages, simulation events and user defined time-dependent models.

The Quasi-Dynamic Simulation can be executed either sequentially (by default) or in parallel (via the
parallel computing options).

The parallel computation (refer to Section 27.3.5) increases calculation performance by making full use
of a machine’s multi-core processor architecture.

For equipment and controls whose physical behaviour is known (e.g. via test measurements) the
System Parameter Identification function can be used along with a non-parameterised simulation model
in order to obtain an accurate representation of the system. The parameter identification dialog is
opened by clicking . More details are available in Chapter 30.

This chapter is divided into several parts. Section 27.2 covers the technical background of the Quasi-
Dynamic Simulation. Section 27.3 describes how to execute a Quasi-Dynamic simulation, Section 27.4
discusses how to analyse the output of the simulation, while Section 27.5 describes the modelling
requirements and procedure for building user-defined Quasi-Dynamic Simulation models.

27.2 Technical background

The load flow calculation, detailed in Chapter 24 considers the network under a single set of operating
conditions. In most electrical systems, engineers are interested in the performance of the system
during worst case operational conditions. However, due to the complexity of the network, it might be
difficult to intuitively understand which operating scenarios and network states cause such conditions.
Consequently, to determine the worst case operating conditions, engineers often must run several
different load-flow simulations with a range of operating conditions. This is usually achieved by modelling
the network dependence on time because most operational parameters have an underlying dependence
on time. For example:

• Load is dependent on time due to daily and seasonal cyclic load variation.
• Renewable sources such as solar and wind generation vary with solar insolation and wind speed

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which are in turn functions of time.

• Network variations, maintenance outages, faults and unscheduled outages normally have some
time dependence.

• Equipment ratings can also change due to the effects of wind and temperature.

Often when considering load flow variation over time, it is not the variations on a timescale of seconds
(power system transients) that are of interest, but rather the behaviour of a network in timescales of
minutes/hours up to months/years. It is, of course, possible to run a time domain simulation (RMS
domain) with explicitly modelled dynamic controllers to simulate such a network (for more information
refer to chapter 28). Nevertheless, many of the time constants existing in stability models are much
smaller than the simulation time steps being discussed here (e.g. the synchronous machine short-
circuit time constants do not play any significant role in a medium- to long-term dynamic simulation,
although they are represented in stability type simulations). These additional modelling considerations
take a large computational effort and involve much unnecessary complexity if only the quasi-steady
state load flow conditions are of interest. Consequently, a reasonable and pragmatic approach is to
simulate so-called “Quasi-Dynamic” phenomena using a series of load-flow calculations with various
model parameters being time dependent. Furthermore, to fit with real-world applications where control
actions are executed based on the historical development (time dependence between consecutive time
points), Quasi-Dynamic simulation uses the concept of state variables which are defined by their time
derivative equations, as it is normally the case for time-domain simulations (refer to Section 27.5 for
more information and examples).

Consider a simplified power system network consisting of four loads, two conventional synchronous
machines and a solar photovoltaic power plant, linked by transmission lines. A single line diagram of
the network is shown in Figure 27.2.1.

Figure 27.2.1: Single line diagram of example network

In this case, the load would vary depending on the time of day, the solar output would vary also
depending on the insolation and consequently the conventional generators would be required to produce
varying levels of output to balance the system load and generation. The engineer might be interested to

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see the line thermal loading and voltage in the network over a period of say one week or perhaps even
the seasonal variation over the course of one year. DPL or Python scripts could be written to achieve
this, however by making use of the built-in parameter characteristics in PowerFactory and using the
Quasi-Dynamic simulation tool, it is possible to complete such simulations very efficiently.

Figure 27.2.2 shows an example of the type of output that can be generated using this tool. The
figure shows a clear cyclical pattern in the generation output, the line loading and the bus voltages.
After determining the critical cases of such a simulation, the engineer might also like to complete more
detailed RMS or EMT simulations on such cases to investigate potential short term issues. In this way,
the Quasi-Dynamic simulation can be a useful screening tool.

Figure 27.2.2: An example of weekly power flows in the example system calculated using the Quasi-
Dynamic simulation tool

27.3 How to execute a Quasi-Dynamic Simulation

These are the steps taken when running a Quasi-Dynamic simulation:

• Defining the Result Variables to be monitored during the simulation. Refer to Section 27.3.1.
• Defining the Maintenance Outages and the Simulation Events to be applied during the simula-
tion. Refer to Sections 27.3.2 and 27.3.3.
• Running the simulation. Refer to Section 27.3.4.

• Plotting and analysing the results. Refer to Section 27.4.

Optionally, the following preparatory steps may need be taken into consideration:

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• The setup of time characteristics for quantities that are time varying in the network. Refer to
Chapter 17 for more information on parameter characteristics.
• Configuring the network variations to model planned network changes. Refer to Chapter 16.

• Configuring the operation scenario to be applied during the simulation. Refer to Chapter 15.
• Configuring the model controllers (via user-defined models). Refer to Section 27.5.

The following sections explain these aspects in additional detail.

27.3.1 Defining the variables for monitoring in the Quasi-Dynamic simulation

Before running the Quasi-Dynamic simulation, it is necessary to tell PowerFactory which variables to
record. To do this:

1. Click and select Quasi-Dynamic Simulation.

2. Click the button. A dialog will appear.

3. Select the type of results to be defined, either AC, AC unbalanced or DC. Note that the type
of variables being monitored should match the type of load-flow calculation being used for the
simulations.

4. Click OK. A tabular list showing the currently monitored variables will appear. By default Power-
Factory will record some default variables for Areas, Feeders, Grids, Terminals, Zones and Branch
elements.

Note: The default variable selection for Branch elements only contains transformer and line ele-
ments. Switches (ElmCoup and StaSwitch) are not part of this default selection and have to
be added additionally.

5. Optional: Modify the default variables:

(a) Double-click the icon for the object. The variable selection dialog will appear.
(b) Select the variables that shall be stored. You can optionally filter them by Group or Calcula-
tion.
(c) Click OK to return to the tabular list of variables.
6. Optional: Add recorded variables for another type of element/s:
(a) Click the icon. A blank dialog will appear.
(b) To add recorded variables for all objects of a specific class (for example all PV systems):
i. Enter the object class in the Class Name field. For example to record variables for all PV
systems enter “ElmPvsys”.
ii. Press tab to update the dialog.
iii. Select the variables that shall be stored. You can optionally filter them by Group or
Calculation.
iv. Click OK to return to the tabular list of monitored variables.
(c) To add recorded variables for a specific object:
i. Click the button next to Object.
ii. Choose Select . . . . A database navigation dialog will appear.
iii. Locate target object and select it.
iv. Press OK to open the variable selection dialog.
v. Select the variables that shall be stored. You can optionally filter them by Group or
Calculation.

7. Click Close to close the list of monitored variables.

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27.3.2 Considering maintenance outages

In the Quasi-Dynamic simulation it is possible to consider planned maintenance outages - this can
also include planned generator derating. To do this the simulation uses the PowerFactory objects
IntPlannedout and IntOutage. For more information about defining planned outages refer to Sec-
tion 13.6.7.

To make the Quasi-Dynamic simulation consider the defined planned outages:

1. Select the Maintenance & Events page in the Quasi-Dynamic simulation command.

2. Check Planned Outages to automatically consider all outages during the simulation.
3. Optional: Click Show Used Ones to show a list of all currently considered outages. Only outages
that occur during the defined simulation period on the basic data page are shown in this list.

Note: There must be at least one calculation time that lies within the execution time of the outage
for it to be considered. For example, an outage at 23:30 is not executed in a Complete Day
simulation with a Step Size of 1h, as the last calculation time would be 23:00.

4. Optional: Click Show All to open a data navigator on the planned outages folder. From here it
is possible to see all outages that are defined within the project. Note, even those outages that
would not occur during the simulation period are shown in this view.

27.3.3 Considering simulation events

27.3.3.1 Overview

Various events are supported by Quasi-Dynamic Simulation either being pre-defined or generated via
user defined Quasi-Dynamic models (QDSL models; see section 27.5). This section provides an
overview to the available simulation events and their usage, as they apply to Quasi-Dynamic Simulation.
See Chapter 12, Section 12.9 for a detailed description of each type. Out of all possible events, the
following are currently supported by Quasi-Dynamic Simulation:

• Dispatch event (EvtGen):

From the firing time on, the active- and reactive power of the selected model (used in the calcu-
lation, i.e., incorporating characteristics and scaling, etc.) is incremented by the entered values.
This means that, at any simulation point, the calculation value of the model is determined and if
the simulation time has passed the execution time of a dispatch event, this calculation value is
incremented again.
• External Measurement Event (EvtExtmea):
Used to set and reset values and statuses as well as communication failure and restoration of
external measurements.
• Load Event (EvtLod):
A load step event increments the calculated load demand values at every point after the firing
time. In particular, the absolute increment at a calculation time depends on the calculation value,
since a proportional step change is entered in the event.

• Message Event (EvtMessage):

If the execution time lies within the simulation period, the entered message is issued. Note that
this event type is fired only once! Also note that the message is only issued when Show detailed
output is selected in the QDS command.

• Parameter Event (EvtParam):

This event enables changing signal parameters (s:) and calculation parameters (c:) during the
simulation. It is also fired for every calculation point after its execution time.

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• Stop Event (EvtStop):

If this event is fired, the simulation will finish the current step and then stop. Results will be
available until the stopping time and the calculation is valid.

• Switch Event (EvtSwitch):

The switch event is executed once after the execution time. It is never fired again, if another event
for the same switch exists that has a later execution time and the simulation time has passed this
later event firing time.
• Tap Event (EvtTap):
The calculated tap position of a transformer or shunt is determined for every calculation point.
If a tap event has its execution time after the simulation time, a decrease/increase by one tap is
executed or the tap is simply set to the selected value. Note that it is also fired for every calculation
point after its execution time.
• Outage Event (EvtOutage):
The outage event is executed once after the execution time. It is never fired again, if another event
for the same element exists that has a later execution time and the simulation time has passed
this later event firing time.
• Transfer Event (EvtTransfer ):
Portions of active and/or reactive power can be shifted from one load to another or even multiple
other loads. It can also be used to shift power between static generators.

There are several ways to access Event objects:

• From the Data Manager, in the Events of Quasi-Dynamic Simulation object stored within the
currently active Study Case;

• From the Quasi-Dynamic Simulation ( ComStatsim) command, Maintenance & Events page, it is
possible to Select; ( ), Edit ( ) the currently selected Events of Quasi-Dynamic Simulation;

• From the Quasi-Dynamic Simulation toolbar by clicking the Edit Events icon. A list of all pre-
defined events will be displayed including the absolute execution time when the event will occur
and the related object.
To create a new user defined event, do the following:

• Click the Edit Events icon to open the Events of Quasi-Dynamic Simulation

• Use the New Object icon in the toolbar to create a new event.
• The event type can be chosen from the list in the selection dialog which appears. Customisation
of each event object is done by following the event description provided in Section 12.9.

Remarks:
• Events for QDS have a different GUI from that for dynamic simulation events. In particular, only
events with a given (absolute) execution time within the calculation period will be fired.
• There is a difference between pre-defined events by the user and events that were fired by a
QDSL model (27.5.4). If fired by a QDSL model, an event is also contained in the Events of
Quasi-Dynamic Simulation folder until the calculation is reset. The firing is executed in the same
fashion as for pre-defined QDS events.

27.3.3.2 Use of events

• Simulation events flag - If the flag is set, PowerFactory considers and applies the relevant pre-
defined simulation events during the simulation. The relevant events are those pre-defined events
that occur in the specific time period (as defined in the Time period pane of the Basic Data page).
If this flag is not set then neither pre-defined nor QDSL events are triggered during the simulation.

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• Show used ones - Shows a list of all currently considered events. Only those events that occur
in the defined simulation period are shown in this list.

Note: There must be at least one calculation time that is smaller or equal to the execution time of
an event for it to be considered. For example, an event at 23:30 is not executed in a Complete
Day simulation with a Step Size of 1h, as the last calculation time would be 23:00.

• Show all - Opens the Data Manager on the events folder. From here it is possible to see all events
that are currently defined for this study case. Note, even those events that would not occur during
the simulation period are shown in this view.
• Remove all events - Removes all events within the events folder.

27.3.4 Running the Quasi-Dynamic simulation

To run a Quasi-Dynamic Simulation perform the following actions:

1. Click and select Quasi-Dynamic Simulation.

2. Click to open the Quasi-Dynamic Simulation dialog.

3. Edit the Basic Options → Load Flow pane:
• Selection of Load Flow type to be used during each simulation time step:
– AC Load Flow, balanced
– AC Load Flow, unbalanced, 3-phase (ABC)
– DC Load Flow (linear).
• Settings: Click to edit and configure the Load Flow calculation settings used by the Quasi-
Dynamic Simulation.
• When the load flow results are approximated by a Neural Network, as described in chap-
ter 27.3.7, the selected neural network is linked here.
4. Edit the Basic Options → Time Period pane - the time period to run the simulation can be selected
as follows:
• Complete Day - a specific user defined day can be selected as simulation time range. The
day is chosen in the corresponding field Day
• Complete Month - a specific user defined month can be selected as simulation time range.
The month is chosen in the corresponding field Month
• Complete Year - a specific user defined year can be selected as simulation time range. The
year is chosen in the corresponding field Year
• User defined calculation times - specific user defined calculation times can be added for
the simulation (using the time format dd:mm:yyyy hh:mm:ss). The simulation will only be
executed at the defined calculation times. The User also has the option to ignore certain
points in time by activating the associated option.
• User defined time range - a customisable time period can be chosen for simulation by defining
the Begin and End time points (using the time format dd:mm:yyyy hh:mm:ss).
5. Edit the Basic Options → Step size - Sets the time step size of the Quasi-Dynamic Simulation.
A fixed step size simulation algorithm is used for time advance. The step size is defined by the
Step (integer value) and the Unit. The Unit can be selected from the corresponding drop-down
list (Seconds, Minutes, Hours, Days, Months or Years).
6. Basic Options → Results - This field provides a link to the results object (ElmRes) that stores the
calculation results. A different results object can be selected if required.
7. Edit the Calculation Settings page:
• Consider time-dependent states of models - Set this flag to consider the time-dependency of
Quasi-Dynamic Simulation models (ElmQdsl).

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• Max. number of control loops - If the flag Consider time-dependent states of models is set,
then the Max. number of control loops becomes relevant for the calculation. This number
is used to limit the number of control iterations of a Quasi-Dynamic user-defined model. For
more information refer to Section 27.5.3.

Note: The Quasi-Dynamic Simulation does not support the Parallel computing method if the
Consider time-dependent states of models flag in the Calculation settings page is set.
• Initialisation of load flow - the initialisation of the load flow can either be Based on previous
load flow results or a Full initialisation can be selected for each time step. If Based on
previous load flow results is selected, the last valid load flow results will be used for the
initialisation. If the calculation with these initial conditions fails, a Full initialisation is automat-
ically executed as a fallback strategy.
8. Configure the Output report:
• Off - No output report is printed to the output window.
• Short output - A limited output report for each load flow calculation is shown.
• Detailed output - This option displays more detailed information and a full load flow output
per time step in the output window.
9. Click Execute to execute the simulation.

10. If required, the simulation can be stopped before completion by clicking on the Break button ( )
in the main toolbar.

Note: After starting the Quasi-Dynamic simulation, PowerFactory will determine the number of load-
flows required based on the entered Step size settings and print this information to the output
window. The total time it takes PowerFactory to complete the simulation varies depending on the
time period being simulated and the step size. A progress bar will be displayed at the bottom of
the PowerFactory graphical user interface.

27.3.5 Configuring the Quasi-Dynamic Simulation for parallel computation

PowerFactory supports the parallel execution of the Quasi-Dynamic Simulation. This is achieved via
the Parallel Computing page of the Quasi-Dynamic Simulation command dialog. A number of options
are provided in this page and described further below.

Parallel computation: This checkbox enables/disables the parallel computing feature. Tick this check-
box to enable parallel computing, un-tick it to disable the feature.

Minimum number points in time: The minimum number of time points needed for creating a parallel
process. If the actual number of time points is less than this parameter, the calculation will be carried
out sequentially (not in parallel).

Package Size: This parameter specifies how many time points will be distributed to a parallel process
(this is called one package). When a process finished its assigned package, the main process will
distribute the next package to this parallel process.

Note: Generally speaking, the package size is related to the calculation effort of one time point. If
the network is rather large and one time point for the load flow calculation is computationally
intensive, the package size should be small, otherwise in the end, it may happen that all other
parallel processes have finished the calculation while one single process will still be executing for
a long time to finish its whole package. On the other hand, if the calculation is fast for one time
point, the package size should not be too small, otherwise lots of execution of time will be wasted
in communication between the main process and parallel processes.

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Parallel Computing Manager: The parallel computation settings are stored in a Parallel Computing
Manager object (SetParalman). Further information on the particular configuration is found in Sec-
tion 21.4.

Note: It is important to note that the Quasi-Dynamic Simulation does not support the Parallel computing
method if the Consider time/dependent states of models flag in the Calculation settings page is
set.

27.3.6 Configure the Quasi-Dynamic Simulation for real time simulation

QDS real time simulation can be executed if the option Real-time simulation is set to Synchronised by
system time. This option can be found within the Real time settings of the QDS command.
Furthermore the step duration can be adjusted, meaning that apart from the system time, one QDS time
step will be executed every entered time per step or using a Relative step duration with a percentage
Ratio between real time and calculation time. For proper real time simulations, it is recommended to set
the Step duration to relative, entering the percentage value of 100%.
The real time simulation capability can be applied if the OPC interface is used in QDS. Further informa-
tion about the OPC Interface can be found in chapter 23.14.

27.3.7 Use Neural Network approximation in the Quasi-Dynamic Simulation

In addition to the load flow calculation, PowerFactory also supports the use of neural networks for the
Quasi-Dynamic Simulation. This is especially useful in larger power grids or when a lot of load flow
calculations have to be executed, since neural networks can speed up the calculation immensely.

In comparison to the load flow calculation, a neural network does not have to solve equations based on
physical laws (e.g. Kirchhoff’s circuit law) to determine the steady-state load flow results, but it is able
to predict the results purely by analysing available data. In order to approximate the results, it has to be
trained in beforehand, so it can learn the behaviour of the network in different situations. To evaluate
the training status of the neural network, the Average validation error can be assessed.

The neural network can be selected on the corresponding page in the QDS command. All information
on how to set up and train a neural network can be found in chapter 52.

If the option Check consistency is selected, a consistency check will be performed before starting the
calculation to ensure that the current network model is consistent with the one used for the training.

Note: Time-dependent states like the State of Charge (SOC) of a battery can’t be estimated by the
neural network and are therefore not considered.

Note: All calculation settings and output variables are set by the neural network and can therefore not
be changed in the QDS command anymore.

27.4 Analysing the Quasi-Dynamic simulation results

The Quasi-Dynamic simulation results can be presented in tabular form using the built-in reports, and in
graphical form using the standard PowerFactory plot interface. Furthermore, PowerFactory also stores

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summary statistics for every analysed variable. This section explains how to produce these three types
of output.

27.4.1 Plotting

To produce an output plot of the Quasi-Dynamic simulation results follow these steps:

1. Click the icon. A standard PowerFactory plot dialog will appear.

2. Select the desired variables in the curves section.
3. Optional: Adjust the plot options according to your preferences. Refer to Section 18.8 for more
information on configuring standard plots in PowerFactory.
4. Click OK to create the plot in a new page.

27.4.2 Quasi-Dynamic simulation reports

The Quasi-Dynamic Simulation Report provides a means to summarise and examine system conditions
over the simulated time period. There are three different reports available:

• Loading Ranges;
• Voltage Ranges; and
• Non-convergent cases.

The loading ranges report shows the maximum and minimum loading of each monitored branch element
and also the time that each of these occurred.

The voltage ranges report shows the minimum and maximum observed voltages at each monitored
terminal and the times that each of these occurred.

The non-convergent cases report shows a list of all the cases that did not converge and the time that
they occurred.

To show the reports:

1. Click the icon. A dialog for configuring the reports will appear.
2. Choose the reports to be produced.
3. Optional: Enable a loading range filter. You can use this to only show branch elements that
exceeded a certain loading during the simulation. Note it is possible to alter the value of this filter,
in the report later on.
4. Optional: Enable a voltage range filter. Here you can enter a lower limit and an upper limit. Only
those terminals that had voltages recorded outside this range will show up in the report. It is also
possible to alter these values in the report subsequently.
5. Click OK to show the reports. They will be displayed in separate windows.

6. Optional: Click and choose Export to Excel or Export to HTML to export the results to Excel
or in an HTML format.

27.4.3 Statistical summary of monitored variables

Conveniently, PowerFactory also calculates summary statistics for every monitored variable in the
Quasi-Dynamic simulation. The following quantities are determined automatically:

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• Average (mean)
• Maximum

• Minimum
• Time of maximum
• Time of minimum
• Range

• Standard Deviation. Note this is population standard deviation calculated according to:
⎯
− 2
⎸ ∑︀ (︁ )︁
𝑥− 𝑥
⎸
⎷
𝜎= (27.1)
𝑛

• Variance = 𝜎 2
• Only for monitored variables of active power: Energy over the entire period

To show these results:

1. Click the icon and select the target object type of interest.
2. Click the Flexible data tab.

3. Click the icon to define the shown variables.

4. Ensure the AC Load Flow Sweep page is selected.
5. Select the desired variables. For example “avg” is the mean value of the variable during the
simulation and “std” is the population standard deviation.

27.4.4 Loading Results

This option is accessed using the icon on the Quasi Dynamic Simulation toolbar. When a Quasi
Dynamic Simulation is run, the results are stored in the associated results file. However, once the
calculation has been reset, the results are no longer immediately available to be viewed on a diagram
or in a Network Model Manager.

This Load Time Sweep Results option makes it possible for the results to be loaded back into memory,
and summary quantities such as maximum loading viewed, together with the individual load flow results
for a selected time. To do this, use the icon to bring up the dialog box, select the required date and time
and Execute.

Results which have been loaded back into memory are indicated with a grey background. This acts as
a reminder to the user that these are previously-stored results and may no longer be consistent with the
current network model if the model has been changed in the interim.

27.5 Developing QDSL models

PowerFactory allows the creation of user defined load flow and Quasi-Dynamic models (referred through-
out the text as QDSL models) such to obtain customisable steady state behaviour of various power
system equipment. This is done using the PowerFactory class objects TypQdsl and ElmQdsl.

Furthermore, to fit real-world applications where control actions are executed based on historical devel-
opment, Quasi-Dynamic simulation extends the functionality of user defined models with the concept of

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states. These state variables are defined by their time derivative equations, as it is normally the case for
time-domain simulations. There are several situations where the time dependency between consecutive
steady states must be considered. Examples include:
• Slow reacting equipment (e.g. slow varying generating units belonging to secondary control
equipment reacting in the range of hours on large setpoint steps);
• Slow reacting controllers - Control systems with time constants comparable to or greater than the
simulation time step (e.g. Transformer/shunt tap changers, etc.);
• Certain quantities might be time dependent but cannot be provided as a time characteristic, i.e.
the values over the whole simulated time range are not known apriori (prior to execution of the
simulation) but only a starting value is available. Consider for example the state of charge of a
battery system, fuel remaining/consumed in a diesel generator set, etc.

27.5.1 PowerFactory objects for implementing user defined models (TypQdsl

and ElmQdsl)

Two objects are available in PowerFactory for creating user defined models:

• Quasi-Dynamic model type (TypQdsl, library type object). Represents the type definition of a
Quasi-Dynamic model. It is referred throughout this Section as QDSL type;
• Quasi-Dynamic model (ElmQdsl, network element object). Represents the network model in-
stance of a certain user defined model (of type TypQdsl). It is referred throughout this Section as
QDSL element.

27.5.1.1 Creating the Quasi-Dynamic model type TypQdsl

A new QDSL type object TypQdsl may be created in the project library (default location is Library
→ Dynamic Models). The QDSL type must be edited and all the necessary scripting code must be
introduced.

To create a QDSL type (TypQdsl) do the following:

• Using the Data Manager, navigate to Library → Dynamic Models) folder in the active project. Use
the New Object toolbar icon and select the object Quasi-Dynamic Model Type;
• Alternatively, using the Data Manager, right-click inside the Library → Dynamic Models) folder in
the active project and select New. . . → Quasi-Dynamic Model Type from the context menu;
• Alternatively, if a QDSL element (ElmQdsl) is already available, one can open the element’s dialog
and create a new QDSL type by clicking on Select ( ) → New Project Type. This action will create
a new QDSL type within the project’s Library → Dynamic Models folder.

The QDSL type (TypQdsl) dialog is divided in several sections with the following properties:

Basic Data page options:

• Variables table - Two variable types are available: state variables and parameters. Parameters
should be constants that define the particular specification of a model. States determine the
time-dependent behaviour. They are integrated with respect to their differential equations during
Quasi-Dynamic simulations. All variables defined within this table are accessible from all model
scripts.
• Connected network elements - Specific PowerFactory objects can be used as referenced objects.
This table defines the names to identify them in the model scripts of a QDSL type (TypQdsl).
Member variables can be accessed within all model scripts as it is typically done within a DPL
script. The input/output flag defines the type of reference object. Set it to input if the referenced
object is used as measurement point (reading variables). Set it to output if the referenced object

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is being controlled. This flag is particularly useful for dealing with the initialisation order of inter-
referenced user defined models (e.g. one ElmQdsl model QDSL1 may be controlled by a second
one, named QDSL2; in this case QDSL2 will be provided as a Connected network elements item
for QDSL1 and be set to “Input” type). Alternatively, QDSL1 could be set as an output of QDSL2.
Results page options:
• Results table - The list of result variables can be defined. All result variables are of type double.
Like state variables or parameters, result variables can be recorded in the results file of a Quasi-
Dynamic Simulation. In particular, their time-dependent character can be captured.

Initialisation page options:

• Initialisation script - The initialisation script defines part of the model behaviour. The script is used
to initialise the model state variables and other parameters (for details refer to Section 27.5.3).
Load Flow page options:

• All options within this page are used for all load flow based calculations (and are not specific to
Quasi-Dynamic Simulation).
• Linear Model flag - Check this flag if the load flow Equations script is representing a linear model
in its inputs and outputs (for further details refer to Section 27.5.3).

• Inputs/Outputs for load flow equations - As described in Section 27.5.3, the Equations script of the
load flow part does not allow direct access to any monitoring (m:) and calculation variable (c:). A
limited set of variables which can be accessed within the Equations script is provided for selection
within this table. Each class of network elements (PowerFactory class objects starting with “Elm”)
includes an extensive number of variables from which the user may choose the set of interest. To
insert one variable do the following:
– Insert an empty row in the table (if not there already)
– In the first column, type in the variable name/identifier to be used in the Equations script.
This name is arbitrary (but must be unique in the model) and is chosen by the user.
– Select the usage (second column) Input if the variable is a measurement (e.g. a remote
voltage measurement on a busbar) or Output if it is a controlled variable (e.g. the reactive
power setpoint of a static generator).
– In the Class name column type the class associated to the object (e.g. for a busbar, the class
is ElmTerm). If in doubt, one can open the dialog of any network element of the same class
and, in the dialog header, the path, element name and element class are provided (e.g. for a
static generator - “Grid\Static Generator.ElmGenstat”).
– Double click the empty field in the Variable name column and select from the list of available
variables the one which is of interest.
– If an input variable is selected, then the Bus/Phase name must also be selected. Double click
the corresponding empty field and select the appropriate bus/phase.
• Equations tab/script - The Equations script is one of the model scripts that define the model
behaviour. The script must contain the model’s inner loop load flow equations and during execution
of any given arbitrary inner loop it must be differentiable and the set of equations should be fixed.
(for further details refer to Section 27.5.3).
• Control tab/script - The Control script is one of the model scripts that define the model behaviour.
The script must contain the model’s outer loop load flow control equations (for further details refer
to Section 27.5.3).
Quasi-Dynamic Simulation page options:

• Equations tab - The Quasi-Dynamic Equations script is one of the model scripts that define the
model behaviour. The script is executed once per time step and must contain the model’s time
derivative equations of all time-dependent quantities (state integration, etc.). For further details
refer to Section 27.5.3.

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• Control tab - The Control actions for Quasi-Dynamic Simulation script is one of the model scripts
that define the model behaviour. It can be executed multiple times in order to achieve a steady
state control output at a certain time step. The script must contain the model’s outer loop Quasi-
Dynamic control actions, e.g. triggering of events or limitation of states. (for further details refer to
Section 27.5.3).

Note: The Quasi-Dynamic Simulation command (ComStatsim) does not consider by default the
time dependency of QDSL models (i.e. by default, the model scripts within the Quasi-
Dynamic Simulation page of the QDSL type TypQdsl are not executed). The initialisation
and load flow scripts of the QDSL model will still be included in the calculation. This sim-
plification brings the advantage that, by default, the Quasi-Dynamic simulation contains a
set of decoupled load flows which can be independently executed (e.g. within a parallel
computation algorithm). To consider the time dependency of models, make sure that the flag
Consider time-dependent states of models in the Calculation Settings page of the Quasi-
Dynamic Simulation command dialog is set.

Version page:

A number of version control fields are available, as follows:

• Company
• Author

• Version
• Last Modified
• Release Notes

QDSL Model Encryption

PowerFactory offers the possibility to encrypt the script code of a QDSL type (Quasi-Dynamic Model
Type). The encryption action can be initiated by pressing the corresponding button in the edit dialog of
the QDSL Type object. The encryption process will ask in a dialog for a password. The password will
be required for later decryption and is not needed for running simulations using the QDSL type. After
successful encryption, the code is hidden and only the name of the QDSL type itself can be changed.

The encryption is reversible; an encrypted script can be decrypted using the corresponding button in the
edit dialog of the encrypted TypQdsl-object. After entering the password and confirming with OK, the
script returns to its original status, where all properties may be changed and the script code is shown.

Note: The user should be aware that encryption can never guarantee complete security. The chosen
technology balances the requirements for security with the usability and performance of encrypted
models. Generally, users are advised to share models only with trusted partners.

27.5.1.2 Creating the Quasi-Dynamic Model ElmQdsl (QDSL element)

Based on an already created QDSL type object TypQdsl (located in the project/global library folder)
any number of new QDSL elements can be created in the network folder, representing instances in the
power system of the type definition object. Similarly with dynamic models (DSL based), parameters in
the QDSL type object (TypQdsl) are only used as literals while in the QDSL element ElmQdsl actual
values of these parameters are assigned.

To create a new QDSL element, do the following:

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• Using the Data Manager, navigate in the active project to Network Model → Network Data→
[Target Grid] folder (where [Target Grid] represents the network where the model is intended to
be deployed). Use the New Object toolbar icon and select the object Quasi-Dynamic Model;
• Alternatively, from the single line diagram, right-click on any network element that shall be con-
trolled and select Network Models → Quasi-Dynamic Model→ New. . . . Then a QDSL type can
be selected or defined and the model is automatically created in the respective grid folder.

The QDSL element (ElmQdsl) dialog is divided in several sections with the following properties:

Basic Data page options:

• Supported calculation methods - Selection of the types of load flow calculations for which the
model is considered:
– Balanced and unbalanced AC Load Flow
– Balanced AC Load Flow only
– Unbalanced AC Load Flow only
• Type - The intended QDSL type can be assigned here via the selection icons.
• Out of service flag - Set this flag in order to disable the model. To enable the model this flag must
be unset.
• Parameters table - Out of the Variables table declared in the model definition Variables table, all
the parameters are listed here. Values for all parameters defined in the Variables table of the
QDSL type (TypQdsl) are assigned here.
• Connected network elements - Within this table, specific PowerFactory objects can be used
as referenced objects. Addressing a specific referenced object is done in the scripts via the
corresponding object name (declared in the QDSL type).
Load Flow page options:

• Network elements of inputs/outputs - Within this table, assignment of the referenced elements
is effected for the declared input/output variables within the QDSL type object, Load Flow page,
Inputs/Outputs for load flow equations table. Only network elements of the declared class (as
defined in the QDSL type) can be selected for a specific row.
Description page - A standard Description page is made available for version control purposes.

27.5.2 Overview of modelling approach

The two PowerFactory objects described above, QDSL type (TypQdsl) and element (ElmQdsl) provide
the framework of integrating a user defined Quasi-Dynamic model QDSL model.

The scripting language for all the model definition (TypQdsl) scripts is DigSILENT Programming Language
(DPL). Refer to Chapter 22 for a comprehensive description of DPL. Further documentation is available
within the DPL Reference which provides a full description of available functions. The DPL Reference
can be accessed in the PowerFactory program from the main menu at Help → Scripting References→
DPL. Functions that can be used within the QDSL model scripts are marked appropriately in the DPL
Reference documentation by a star (*) suffix (e.g. GetFromStudyCase*). There are functions (without
a star (*) marking) that are not available within the model scripts, e.g. the execution of a short circuit
ComShc command is not allowed. Besides the available DPL functions, there exist several functions
which are specific to QDSL model scripts only. They are listed and described in Section 27.5.4.

PowerFactory provides seamless integration of QDSL models within the Load Flow calculation and
the Quasi-Dynamic Simulation engines. This means that once a QDSL model is implemented it will
be active for both Load Flow (ComLdf ) and Quasi-Dynamic Simulation (ComStatsim) commands and
any other command which subsequently makes use of any of the two. A high level overview of the
integration of the user defined models within a PowerFactory project is shown in Figure 27.5.1. The

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user is provided a high degree of flexibility in terms of interaction with the power system model via the
comprehensive scripting functionality. Any number of QDSL models can be created. Each model may
control one or several network elements. Moreover, each model may measure power system quantities
of one or several network elements. This allows development of complex control schemes applicable
for all load flow based calculations.

Figure 27.5.1: Integration of QDSL models within the PowerFactory project

27.5.3 Algorithm flow of user defined Quasi-Dynamic models

The simulation procedure of a QDSL model that includes time-dependent state variables is shown in
Figure 27.5.2. Here, the time advance from a generic discrete absolute time point (𝑡𝑘 ) to the next time
point (𝑡𝑘+1 ) is exemplified, with 𝑡𝑘+1 depending on 𝑡𝑘 and the parameter Step provided in the Basic
Options page:

𝑡𝑘+1 = 𝑡𝑘 + 𝑆𝑡𝑒𝑝

Figure 27.5.2: QDSL models - Simulation Procedure

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With reference to Figure 27.5.2, within a QDSL model the following blocks of user defined code may be
programmed in the QDSL type:
1. Initialisation block (A)
2. Load Flow Equations block (B)
3. Load Flow Control block (C)
4. Quasi-Dynamic Simulation Control block (D)
5. Quasi-Dynamic Simulation Equations block (E)
In the following, a short description of the intended functionality of each block is given:

A. - Initialisation script:
• This script is used for the purpose of initialising the model state variables, the result variables
and parameters. Initialisation can be done with a constant value or via a calculation based
on certain network element parameters. Therefore, the user can even overwrite parameteri-
sation of parameters set in the QDSL element tables);
• This script is relevant for Load Flow calculation and Quasi-Dynamic simulation;
• When executing a Quasi-Dynamic Simulation (ComStatsim), this block is executed once for
each QDSL element only the first time the respective model is inserted into the calculation.
Insertion may happen at the beginning of the simulation or, if added within an expansion
stage, at the activation time of the expansion stage containing it. If a QDSL element is
outaged at a certain moment in time then, upon re-insertion at a subsequent instance, it will
be re-initialised. Any subsequent time steps occurring after the model insertion will have the
effect of bypassing the execution of the Initialisation block (i.e. will not be executed);
• When executing a simple Load Flow calculation (ComLdf ) this block is executed once before
running the load flow iterations;
• Within this script the user has access to a limited list of environment variables, i.e. ele-
ment parameters (e.g. battery:e:sgn) of elements being provided as Connected network
elements in the Basic Data page of the QDSL type TypQdsl. Neither monitoring variables
(e.g. m:P:bus1 of ElmGenstat) nor calculation variables (e.g. c:loading of ElmGenstat) are
available within this script;
• Signals of controlled models (e.g. s:id_ref of ElmGenstat) can also be initialised here.
B. - Load Flow Equations script:
• This script is used for solving the model load flow equations of a fixed state (e.g. determina-
tion of the battery power injection such that the load flow reaches steady state; neither the
charging mode nor the state of charge should change within this script);
• This script is relevant for Load Flow calculation and Quasi-Dynamic simulation;
• The equations must be differentiable in its inputs/outputs and fixed until the outer loop control
script is called;
• Monitoring variables are available here only via the Inputs/Outputs for load flow equations
table available in the Load Flow page of the QDSL type TypQdsl. A comprehensive number
of variables are made available for each build-in model type. Refer to the technical reference
of each power system model for a specific listing of available variables;
• The DPL function SetEquation is used to formulate the load flow equation of a certain load
flow model output. For each load flow model output (as explicitly defined in the Inputs/Outputs
for load flow equations table available in the Load Flow page of the QDSL type TypQdsl)
there must be exactly one SetEquation command that will characterise the output. Refer
to the specific function description for further information (e.g. Should a model contain five
output signals, then five SetEquation equations must be formulated - one for each output);
• Linear Model flag: the load flow Equations script is assumed to be linear in all inputs and
outputs. For such models, if set, there is a certain performance improvement that can be
obtained. Convergence behaviour must be checked on individual basis. Do not set this flag
if the model is not linear.

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Note: For example, assuming that the load flow equation function of a certain model is
defined by:

𝑓 (𝑃𝑠𝑒𝑡 ) = 𝑃𝑠𝑒𝑡 − 2 = 0
𝑑𝑓
= 1 = constant =⇒ model is linear, in the only output 𝑃𝑠𝑒𝑡
𝑑𝑃𝑠𝑒𝑡
Assuming the load flow equation function of a certain model is defined by equation below
(where 𝑃𝑖𝑛𝑖 is a parameter):

𝑓 (𝑃𝑠𝑒𝑡 , 𝑢𝑖 , 𝑢𝑟 ) = 𝑃𝑠𝑒𝑡 − (𝑢2𝑟 + 𝑢2𝑖 ) · 𝑃𝑖𝑛𝑖 = 0

Calculating the first order derivative of the function with respect to its inputs:

𝑑𝑓
= 1 = constant =⇒ model is linear in 𝑃𝑠𝑒𝑡
𝑑𝑃𝑠𝑒𝑡
𝑑𝑓
= −2 · 𝑃𝑖𝑛𝑖 · 𝑢𝑖 = not constant =⇒ model is non-linear in 𝑢𝑖
𝑑𝑢𝑖
𝑑𝑓
= −2 · 𝑃𝑖𝑛𝑖 · 𝑢𝑟 = not constant =⇒ model is non-linear in 𝑢𝑟
𝑑𝑢𝑟

C. - Load Flow Control script:

• This script checks for convergence of the load flow outer-loop control algorithm. The machine
state of the model may be changed here in order to reach a satisfactory operating point (e.g.
determination whether a battery is in charging or discharging operation modes depending on
measured network conditions, i.e. measured busbar voltage, measured power transfer via a
branch, etc.);
• This script is relevant for Load Flow calculation and Quasi-Dynamic simulation;
• Within this script, all monitoring variables and calculation quantities of referenced models or
DPL-retrieved models are available;
• Convergence criterion: by default, the algorithm decides internally whether the model triggers
an additional control loop by observing changes in result variables or states of the QDSL
model or the signals of the connected network elements controlled by the model. The thresh-
old triggering outer loops is defined in the load flow command. Alternatively, the user can take
control over the convergence decision by calling the DPL function SetControlLoopFinished.

D. - Quasi-Dynamic Simulation Control script:

• This script has a similar purpose as its Load Flow counterpart, i.e. to check for convergence
in the Quasi-Dynamic Simulation solution at time step 𝑡𝑘 ;
• This script is relevant for Quasi-Dynamic simulation only;
• With reference to the algorithm flow (see Figure 27.5.2), the script may be executed multiple
times until a steady state condition is reached within the Quasi-Dynamic loop (defined by
transitions “control change”, “convergent inner loop” and “convergent outer loop”). The script
is run once more at the end of the time step iteration, after the results have been saved for
time 𝑡𝑘 and the integration has been performed for time 𝑡𝑘 + 1 for the purpose of limiting the
newly integrated state variables, thereby ensuring feasible conditions for the next time step;
• Simulation events can only be generated within this script. Typically, after a simulation
event has been applied to the network one further iteration of the Load Flow loop should
be executed. Therefore, events are triggered immediately. It is not possible to create events
in the QDS control block which is executed between time steps 𝑡𝑘 and 𝑡𝑘+1 . To distinguish
between the different QDS control blocks, use the function IsDuringFinalControlQdsScript;
• Within one time step, a single event of a given type can be applied on a single target network
element by one QDSL element. Multiple events can be generated on different elements;

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• Within this script, all monitoring variables and calculation quantities of referenced models or
DPL-retrieved models are available;
• Convergence criterion: by default, the algorithm decides internally whether the model triggers
an additional control loop by observing changes in result variables, state variables, triggering
of events etc. Alternatively, the user can take control over the convergence decision by calling
the function SetControlLoopFinished. Non-convergence is triggered when the maximum
number of outer loops is exceeded. This threshold is a Quasi-Dynamic Simulation command
parameter, available in the Calculation Settings page. (parameter “Max. number of control
loops”).

E. - Quasi-Dynamic Simulation Equations script:

• This script is executed once per simulation time step and contains statements of all state
variables differential equations. It is the only location where state derivative equations may
be defined;
• This script is relevant for Quasi-Dynamic simulation only;
• Formulation of state derivatives is similar to the Dynamic Simulation Language (DSL) of the
Stability/EMT user defined models, i.e. each dot suffixed state variable represents the time
derivative of the corresponding state variable and must be assigned a single user defined
equation. For example, assuming that 𝑆𝑂𝐶 is defined as a state variable and represents the
percent state of charge of a battery, 𝐸𝑖𝑛𝑖 is the battery’s capacity in MWh, then:

SOC. = -Pset * 100. / (Eini * 3600.); ! slope of SOC

• It is possible to use derivatives of state variables in all QDSL scripts. Derivatives can be
accessed via a 𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑡𝑒𝑛𝑎𝑚𝑒 : 𝑑𝑡 statement (e.g. given a generic state variable 𝑥, the derivative
value is called using 𝑥 : 𝑑𝑡 or alternatively 𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑠 : 𝑠 : 𝑥 : 𝑑𝑡). The format 𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑡𝑒𝑛𝑎𝑚𝑒. is only
allowed when defining the state derivative equation and never when retrieving the actual
value for further calculation;
• Within this script, all monitoring variables and calculation quantities of referenced models or
DPL-retrieved models are available;

27.5.4 Scripting Functions for Quasi-Dynamic Simulation

function description
CreateEvent Creates a simulation event with a certain execution time
CreateMultiLoadEvent Creates a simulation load event defined for multiple loads
GetSimulationTime Retrieves the current simulation time
GetStepSizeSeconds Returns simulation step size in seconds
SetEventParameter Function used to set a certain event parameter
SetEquation Defines the load flow equation of one load flow output variable
GetEquationMismatch Retrieves the current value of the SetEquation of a certain index
Enables the user to govern the outer loop behaviour of the
SetControlLoopFinished
Control scripts
IsOutaged() Checks if element is outaged
Retrieves the outer loop iteration number of the current load flow
GetControlLdfIteration()
calculation
Enables to distinguish between the QDS Control between time
IsDuringFinalControlQdsScript() steps and the QDS Control block in the outer loop within a time
step, see Figure 27.5.2

Table 27.5.1: Overview of DPL functions for Quasi-Dynamic simulation

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CreateEvent

Creates an event of a given type for the Quasi-Dynamic simulation. This event exists only
temporarily in the study case folder of the Quasi-Dynamic simulation and will be deleted when
the calculation is reset. Note that events can only be created in the Control script (for the Quasi-
Dynamic simulation) of QDSL models. For further details about QDS-Events, please refer to
section 27.3.3. object CreateEvent(string eventType, [double executionTime])

Arguments:

eventType (obligatory) : Type of event to be created, e.g., EvtGen, EvtParam, EvtSwitch, etc.
executionTime (optional) : Execution time for the event (in seconds since 00:00 01.01.1970GMT).
If not set, the current simulation time is used.

Return value:

If successful, the event that was created is returned.

Example:

The following example shows how a Dispatch event for a generator is created and executed at
the next time step:
1 double time;
2 object event, gen1;
3 set setGens;
4

5 time = GetSimulationTime();
6 event = CreateEvent('EvtGen', time+1);
7

8 setGens = GetCalcRelevantObjects('ElmSym');
9 gen1 = setGens.First();
10

11 if ({event<>NULL}.and.{gen1<>NULL}) {
12 SetEventParameter(event, 'loc_name', 'GenEvtQDSL');
13 SetEventParameter(event, 'p_target', gen1);
14 SetEventParameter(event, 'dP', 1.0);
15 SetEventParameter(event, 'dQ', 2.0);
16 }
17

CreateMultiLoadEvent

Creates a load event for multiple loads during Quasi-Dynamic simulation. This event exists only
temporarily in the study case folder of the Quasi-Dynamic simulation and will be deleted when
the calculation is reset. Note that events can only be created in the Control script (for the Quasi-
Dynamic simulation) of QDSL models.

object CreateMultiLoadEvent(set setOfLoads, [double executionTime])

Arguments:

setOfLoads : Set of all loads to be considered by the event.

executionTime (optional):Execution time for the event (in seconds since 00:00 01.01.1970GMT).
If not set, the current simulation time is used.

Return value:

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If successful, the event that was created is returned.

Example:

The following example shows how a multi-load event is created and scheduled for the current
time step:
1 object load,
2 event;
3 set setLoads,
4 allLoads;
5

6 allLoads = GetCalcRelevantObjects('ElmLod');
7 load = allLoads.First();
8 setLoads.Add(load);
9 load = allLoads.Next();
10 setLoads.Add(load);
11 event = CreateMultiLoadEvent(setLoads);
12

13 if (event<>NULL) {
14 SetEventParameter(event, 'loc_name', 'MultiLoadEvent1');
15 SetEventParameter(event, 'iopt_type', 0);
16 SetEventParameter(event, 'dP', 1.0);
17 SetEventParameter(event, 'dQ', 2.0);
18 }
19

GetSimulationTime

Get the current simulation time during Quasi-Dynamic simulation (in seconds since
00:00 01.01.1970GMT).

double GetSimulationTime ()

Arguments: -

Return value:

Returns the current simulation time (in seconds since 00:00 01.01.1970GMT).

GetStepSizeSeconds

Get the Quasi-Dynamic simulation step size in seconds. If user-defined calculation times are
used, the step size to the next point in time is returned.

double GetStepSizeSeconds ()

Arguments: -

Return value:

Returns the step size in seconds.

SetEventParameter

Setup the parameters of a (temporary) event created during Quasi-Dynamic simulation by a

QDSL model.

bool SetEventParameter(Object event, string paramName, int|double|string|object value)

Arguments:

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event: Event whose parameter shall be modified.

paramName: Parameter name to be modified for event object.

value: New value to set for parameter paramName of event object.

Return value:

Returns non-zero if setting the parameter failed.

Example:

Refer to example of CreateMultiLoadEvent.

SetEquation

Equations are formulated and solved in the form f(x)=0. The number of equations for a QDSL
model is equal to the number of outputs defined. Here the currently calculated value for the
equation of a certain index is set. This function must be called for every index 0,...,(number of
outputs-1). Note that this function can only be called in the load flow Equations script of QDSL
models.

bool SetEquation (int eqIdx, double eqValue)

Arguments:

eqIdx:The index of the equation to set the value (zero-based).

eqValue:The currently calculated value to set for the equation.

Return value:

Returns non-zero if setting the equation value failed.

Example:

The following example shows how an equation f(in, out):=out-in = 0 can be formulated and solved
for one input in and one output out.
1 SetEquation(0, in-out);

The variable 𝑖𝑛 represents in the example above an Output signal as declared within the Load
Flow page of the QDSL type, table Inputs/Outputs for load flow equations. The variable 𝑜𝑢𝑡
represents the setpoint value to be obtained within the load flow inner loop by the variable 𝑖𝑛.
The variable 𝑜𝑢𝑡 is typically calculated within the Equations script. Example, where 𝑢 and 𝑖𝑛 are
defined in Table 27.5.2 and 𝑃𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑒𝑑 is a parameter:
1 double out;
2 out = Prated * u ;
3 SetEquation(0, in-out);

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Name Usage Class name Variable name Bus/phase name

in Output ElmGenstat pset
u Input ElmGenstat u1 bus1

Table 27.5.2: Inputs/Outputs for load flow equations of QDSL type

GetEquationMismatch

Equations are formulated and solved in the form f(x)=0. The number of equations for a QDSL
model is equal to the number of outputs defined. Here the currently calculated value for the
equation of a certain index is obtained.

double GetEquationMismatch(int eqIdx)

Arguments:

eqIdx: The index of the equation to get the value (zero-based).

Return value:

Returns the value of the equation at index eqIdx on success. If not successful, this function
returns -1.

Example:

The following example shows how the value of equation 0 can be obtained:
1 double mismatch;
2

3 mismatch = GetEquationMismatch(0);
4 printf('The error in equation 0 is %f', mismatch);
5

SetControlLoopFinished

Function enabling the user to govern the outer loop behaviour of the control scripts for the Load
Flow or Quasi-Dynamic simulation. If the function is not called the algorithm decides internally
whether the model triggers an additional control loop. If the function is called, the user can decide
when the model has converged.

bool SetControlLoopFinished (bool isFinished)

Arguments:

isFinished:

• 𝑖𝑠𝐹 𝑖𝑛𝑖𝑠ℎ𝑒𝑑! = 0 - This model will not trigger another outer loop.
• 𝑖𝑠𝐹 𝑖𝑛𝑖𝑠ℎ𝑒𝑑 = 0 - The model has not converged satisfactorily yet. Another outer loop is demanded
by the user.
Return value:

Returns zero, if the control statement could be successfully set.

Example:

The following example shows how the user can decide whether another loop is necessary (in the
control script):

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1 if (gen:m:P:bus1 > 1.0) {

2 gen:s:pset = 0.5;
3 SetControlLoopFinished(0);
4 }
5 else {
6 SetControlLoopFinished(1);
7 }
8

IsOutaged()

Function to determine whether or not an object is currently calculation-relevant, in-service and

not outaged (e.g., by a contingency).

bool object.IsOutaged ()

Arguments: -

Return value:

Returns one, if object is currently outaged.

GetControlLdfIteration()

Function to determine the current outer loop iteration number for the control actions of the current
Load Flow calculation (starting with 0). The control script on the Load Flow tab of a Quasi-
Dynamic Model Type is executed once per outer loop.

int GetControlLdfIteration()

Arguments: -

Return value:

The current outer loop iteration number for the control actions of the current Load Flow calcula-
tion. Otherwise -1.

IsDuringFinalControlQdsScript()

Function to distinguish whether the current Quasi-Dynamic Simulation Control block is executed
between time steps as part of the outer loop within a time step, see Figure 27.5.2.

int IsDuringFinalControlQdsScript()

Arguments: -

Return value:

Returns one, if called in the QDS Control block between time steps. Otherwise 0.

27.5.5 Example: Modelling a battery as a Quasi-Dynamic user defined model

This section does not intend to give a specification on modelling a battery system, but rather a high
level overview of a Battery model which can help the reader to understand the modelling requirements
within Quasi-Dynamic Simulation.

With reference to Figure 27.5.3 a very simple AC power system that contains a PV unit, an AC load

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and an AC/DC converter interfaced battery unit is considered. In this arrangement, one possible
battery control strategy would be to measure the AC power flow through the supply line such that
the contribution of the battery system at a certain moment in time can be correlated with the generated
photovoltaic and the consumed load powers.

Figure 27.5.3: Example of Battery System considering branch flow measurement

Having knowledge of the power flow through the supply line, the actual power balance between the PV
system and the AC load can be easily calculated as:

𝑃𝑝𝑣 + 𝑃𝑙𝑜𝑎𝑑 = 𝑃𝑙𝑖𝑛𝑒 − 𝑃𝑏𝑎𝑡𝑡 = 𝑃𝑚𝑒𝑎𝑠

A valid battery control strategy (refer to Figure 27.5.4) would be to verify the power throughput 𝑃𝑚𝑒𝑎𝑠 .
For the periods when 𝑃𝑚𝑒𝑎𝑠 is positive (hence the PV system is generating more power than the load
can consume) the battery system may charge to replenish the state of charge. For the periods when
𝑃𝑚𝑒𝑎𝑠 is negative (hence the load consumes more power than the PV can generate) the battery system
may discharge to minimise the power net import from the supply network. A deadband may also be
introduced in order to avoid unwanted behaviour (using 𝑃𝑆𝑡𝑎𝑟𝑡𝐹 𝑒𝑒𝑑 and 𝑃𝑆𝑡𝑎𝑟𝑡𝑆𝑡𝑜𝑟𝑒 thresholds). Hence,
a charging/discharging operation mode can be identified based on the power flow through the supply
line. This operation mode, 𝑐ℎ𝑎𝑟𝑔𝑒𝑃 is defined as below:
⎧
⎪1, battery charging
⎪
⎨
𝑐ℎ𝑎𝑟𝑔𝑒𝑃 = 2, battery inactive (27.2)
⎪
⎪
⎩
3, battery discharging

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Figure 27.5.4: Example of a generic battery control strategy

An important parameter of a battery model is the battery’s state of charge (expressed in %) and defined
as the percentual fraction of the energy still available in the battery (in 𝑀 𝑊 ℎ) over the total energy
when the battery is fully charged (denoted by 𝐶 and expressed in 𝑀 𝑊 ℎ). The state of charge is hence
a state variable of a battery model, with 0 ≤ 𝑆𝑂𝐶 ≤ 100. In its most simple representation of a battery,
the time dependence of the battery’s state of charge 𝑆𝑂𝐶 can be defined by the following differential
equation:

𝑑 −𝑃𝑏𝑎𝑡𝑡 · 100
𝑆𝑂𝐶 =
𝑑𝑡 𝐶 · 3600
where 𝑃𝑏𝑎𝑡𝑡 is the AC power (in MW) flowing through the battery branch, under the assumption of a
unity transfer efficiency between the AC and DC side of the battery converter system.

Further considerations must be taken in the QDSL model in order to limit the charging/discharging
modes of the battery depending on the current 𝑆𝑂𝐶 at any given moment in time. This operation mode,
𝑐ℎ𝑎𝑟𝑔𝑒𝐸 is defined as below:
⎧
⎪1,
⎪
⎨ 𝑆𝑂𝐶 ≤ 𝑆𝑂𝐶𝑚𝑖𝑛
𝑐ℎ𝑎𝑟𝑔𝑒𝐸 = 2, 𝑆𝑂𝐶𝑚𝑖𝑛 ≤ 𝑆𝑂𝐶 ≤ 𝑆𝑂𝐶𝑚𝑎𝑥 (27.3)
⎪
⎪
3, 𝑆𝑂𝐶 ≥ 𝑆𝑂𝐶𝑚𝑎𝑥
⎩

where 𝑆𝑂𝐶𝑚𝑎𝑥 and 𝑆𝑂𝐶𝑚𝑖𝑛 are the maximum and the minimum allowed state of charge setpoints
respectively, and 0 ≤ 𝑆𝑂𝐶𝑚𝑖𝑛 ≤ 𝑆𝑂𝐶𝑚𝑎𝑥 ≤ 100.

The model state variables and parameters can be defined as provided in Table 27.5.3. These parame-
ters are accessible from all model scripts.

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state variable SOC % State of charge

parameter Eini MWh Storage Energy Size
parameter SOCini % Initial state of charge
parameter SOCmin % Minimal state of charge
parameter SOCmax % Maximal state of charge
parameter Pstore MW Rated charging power
parameter PFullStore MW Pmeas where maximum charging is reached
parameter PStartStore MW Pmeas where charging starts
parameter Pfeed MW Rated discharging power
parameter PStartFeed MW Pmeas where discharging starts
parameter PFullFeed MW Pmeas where maximum discharging is reached
parameter orientation 1=terminal j is closest, otherwise -1

Table 27.5.3: Parameters and state variables of user defined Quasi-Dynamic model

The model results can be defined as below. The results include the operation modes 𝑐ℎ𝑎𝑟𝑔𝑒𝑃 and
𝑐ℎ𝑎𝑟𝑔𝑒𝐸, which can be used in the model scripts as well (they can be updated over time, depending on
the grid situation):

Pmeas MW Measured power (PV and load)

chargeE Operation area w.r.t. energy
chargeP Operation area w.r.t. power
iniSOCoob Initial SOC out of bounds flag

Table 27.5.4: Results of user defined Quasi-Dynamic model

The Initialisation script (block A in Figure 27.5.2) must deal with initialising all the operation modes and
the initial state of charge of the battery, as shown here:
1 double pmeas;
2 SOC = SOCini;
3 pmeas = 0.; ! arbitrary value being provided; load flow has not been yet executed
4 ! measured power operation area
5 chargeP = 0.;
6 if ({PFullStore <= PStartStore}.or.{-PStartFeed <= -PFullFeed}) {
7 chargeP = 0; ! Error
8 Warn('PFullStore must be > than PStartStore and PFullFeed > than PStartFeed');}
9 else if (pmeas < PStartFeed) chargeP = 3;
10 else if (pmeas > PStartStore) chargeP = 1;
11 else chargeP = 2;
12 ! energy operation area
13 iniSOCoob = 0; ! Inside bounds
14 if (SOCmin >= SOCmax) {
15 chargeE = 0; ! Error
16 Warn('SOCmin must be < than SOCmax.');
17 }
18 else if (SOC > SOCmax) {
19 chargeE = 3;
20 iniSOCoob = 1;}
21 else if (SOC = SOCmax) chargeE = 3;
22 else if (SOC = SOCmin) chargeE = 1;
23 else if (SOC < SOCmin) {
24 chargeE = 1;
25 iniSOCoob = 1;}
26 else chargeE = 2;

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The load flow outer loop equations (Load Flow Control script, i.e. block C in Figure 27.5.2) are respon-
sible with changing the charging/discharging operation mode 𝑐ℎ𝑎𝑟𝑔𝑒𝑃 such that the battery system is
operating on the correct region as defined in Figure 27.5.4. Additionally, the verification of the current
value of the state of charge 𝑆𝑂𝐶 must be considered by appropriately updating the 𝑐ℎ𝑎𝑟𝑔𝑒𝐸 operation
mode. Based on the previous considerations, the load flow control DPL script can be programmed as
shown here:
1 Pmeas = Pline*orientation - Pbatt; ! negative=load
2 ! measured power operation area
3 if (chargeP > 0) { ! Not initial error
4 if (Pmeas < -PStartFeed) chargeP = 3;
5 else if (Pmeas > PStartStore) chargeP = 1;
6 else chargeP = 2;
7 }
8 ! energy operation area
9 if (chargeE > 0) { ! Not initial error
10 if (SOC >= SOCmax) {
11 chargeE = 3;
12 if ({iniSOCoob = 0}.and.{SOC > SOCmax}) {
13 SOC = SOCmax;
14 }
15 }
16 else if (SOC <= SOCmin) {
17 chargeE = 1;
18 if ({iniSOCoob = 0}.and.{SOC < SOCmin}) {
19 SOC = SOCmin;
20 }
21 }
22 else {
23 chargeE = 2;
24 iniSOCoob = 0; ! Inside limits now
25 }
26 }

The load flow inner loop equations (Load Flow Equations) must consider a fixed state of the battery
model (i.e. the charge operation modes, 𝑐ℎ𝑎𝑟𝑔𝑒𝑃 and 𝑐ℎ𝑎𝑟𝑔𝑒𝐸, the state of charge of the battery
𝑆𝑂𝐶 and any other operational flags do not change within this script). The amount of power being
consumed/generated by the battery in the discharge/charge operation modes can be defined as below
using a linear function that considers a reduction factor depending on the value of 𝑃𝑚𝑒𝑎𝑠 with respect to
four other thresholds ( 𝑃𝐹 𝑢𝑙𝑙𝐹 𝑒𝑒𝑑 , 𝑃𝑆𝑡𝑎𝑟𝑡𝐹 𝑒𝑒𝑑 , 𝑃𝐹 𝑢𝑙𝑙𝑆𝑡𝑜𝑟𝑒 and 𝑃𝑆𝑡𝑎𝑟𝑡𝑆𝑡𝑜𝑟𝑒 ):
⎧
𝑃𝑚𝑒𝑎𝑠 +𝑃𝐹 𝑢𝑙𝑙𝐹 𝑒𝑒𝑑
⎨𝑃𝑓 𝑒𝑒𝑑 · (1 − −𝑃𝑆𝑡𝑎𝑟𝑡𝐹 𝑒𝑒𝑑 +𝑃𝐹 𝑢𝑙𝑙𝐹 𝑒𝑒𝑑 ), discharging
⎪
⎪
𝐹 𝑢𝑙𝑙𝑆𝑡𝑜𝑟𝑒 −𝑃𝑚𝑒𝑎𝑠
𝑃 𝑏𝑎𝑡𝑡 =
⎪ −𝑃𝑠𝑡𝑜𝑟𝑒 · (1 − 𝑃𝐹𝑃𝑢𝑙𝑙𝑆𝑡𝑜𝑟𝑒 −𝑃𝑆𝑡𝑎𝑟𝑡𝑆𝑡𝑜𝑟𝑒 ), charging
⎪
⎩
0, battery inactive

The measured and the controlled quantities of the QDSL model are, as shown in Figure 27.5.3, 𝑃𝑙𝑖𝑛𝑒
and 𝑃𝑏𝑎𝑡𝑡 . They are declared within the Load Flow page of the QDSL type as below. Further to that,
within the Load Flow page of the QDSL element the actual network elements (the battery element and
the supply line) will need to be assigned.

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 27.5. DEVELOPING QDSL MODELS

Name Usage Class name Variable name Bus/phase name

Pbatt Output ElmGenstat pset
Pline Input ElmLne Psum bus2

Table 27.5.5: Inputs/Outputs for load flow equations of QDSL type

Considering the previous observations, the Load Flow Equations script (block B in Figure 27.5.2) can be
defined using DPL as shown below. Note the use of the DPL function SetEquation, which provides the
statement for controlling the output power of the battery 𝑃𝑏𝑎𝑡𝑡 (static generator element in PowerFactory )
to the calculated setpoint 𝑃𝑔𝑒𝑛 . Note also the generator sign convention chosen when computing the
setpoint 𝑃𝑔𝑒𝑛 such to comply with the requirements of the Static Generator element (positive 𝑃𝑔𝑒𝑛
means discharging, negative 𝑃𝑔𝑒𝑛 means charging, as in Figure 27.5.4).
1 double Pgen,
2 redFac;
3 Pmeas = Pline*orientation - Pbatt; ! negative=load
4 redFac = 1.0;
5 if ({chargeP = 3}.and.{chargeE >= 2}.and.{chargeE > 0}) {
6 if (Pmeas > -PFullFeed)
7 {redFac = 1 - ((Pmeas + PFullFeed)/(-PStartFeed + PFullFeed));}
8 Pgen = Pfeed * redFac; ! discharge = GEN, feeding
9 }
10 else if ({chargeP = 1}.and.{chargeE <= 2}.and.{chargeE > 0}) {
11 if (Pmeas < PFullStore)
12 {redFac = 1 - ((PFullStore - Pmeas)/(PFullStore - PStartStore));}
13 Pgen = -Pstore * redFac; ! charge = LOAD, storing
14 }
15 else {
16 Pgen = 0.;
17 }
18 SetEquation(0, Pbatt - Pgen);

The Quasi-Dynamic Simulation Equations script (block E in Figure 27.5.2) must contain the statements
for the time derivatives and other time-dependent variables. In this case, the only time-dependent
quantity is the state of charge variable 𝑆𝑂𝐶. Hence, the Quasi-Dynamic Equations script contains this
DPL code:
1 SOC. = -Pbatt * 100. / (Eini * 3600.); ! slope of charge/discharge in %

The Quasi-Dynamic Simulation Control script (block D in Figure 27.5.2) is only a variation of the load
flow Control script (since no additional simulation events are generated), as shown below:
1 ! energy operation area
2 if (chargeE > 0) { ! Not initial error
3 if (SOC >= SOCmax) {
4 chargeE = 3;
5 if ({iniSOCoob = 0}.and.{SOC > SOCmax}) {
6 SOC = SOCmax;
7 }
8 }
9 else if (SOC <= SOCmin) {
10 chargeE = 1;
11 if ({iniSOCoob = 0}.and.{SOC < SOCmin}) {
12 SOC = SOCmin;
13 }
14 }

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 CHAPTER 27. QUASI-DYNAMIC SIMULATION

15 else {
16 chargeE = 2;
17 iniSOCoob = 0; ! Inside limits now
18 }
19 }

Implementing the model and running one simulation for a generic load curve, the results shown in
Figure 27.5.5 and 27.5.6 are obtained.

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Figure 27.5.5: Power Flow and state of charge SOC behaviour during a one day simulation

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Figure 27.5.6: 𝑃𝑚𝑒𝑎𝑠 - sum of PV and Load power in kW; 𝑃𝑏𝑎𝑡𝑡 - battery power output in kW

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Chapter 28

RMS/EMT Simulations

28.1 Introduction

The RMS/EMT simulation functions available in PowerFactory are able to analyse the dynamic be-
haviour of small and large power systems. The underlying framework makes it possible to model a wide
range of complex systems, such as large transmission grids, renewable generation plants or industrial
networks, while taking into account electrical, mechanical and control parameters.

Transients, stability analyses and dynamic control problems are important during the planning, design
and operation of modern power systems. Such studies can be conducted using time-domain simulations
for varying time periods. A wide range of either ac, dc or ac/dc based systems may be necessary to
be analysed (e.g. transmission systems with detailed models of power plants, HVDC systems, power
electronics based generation, railway systems, variable speed drives motor start-up).

Transients in electrical power systems can generally be classified according to three possible time
frames of interest:

• short-term, or electromagnetic transients;

• mid-term, or electromechanical transients;
• long-term transients.

PowerFactory supports the following time-domain simulation methods (described in section 28.2):
• RMS balanced - A basic function which uses a symmetrical steady-state (RMS) network model
for mid-term and long-term transients under balanced network conditions (refer to Section 28.2.1);
• RMS unbalanced - A three-phase function which uses a steady-state (RMS) network model for
mid-term and long-term transients under balanced and unbalanced network conditions, i.e. for
analysing dynamic behaviour after unsymmetrical faults (refer to Section 28.2.2);
• Instantaneous values - An electromagnetic transient (EMT) simulation function using a dynamic
network model for electromagnetic and electromechanical transients under balanced and un-
balanced network conditions. This function is particularly suited to the analysis of short-term
transients (refer to Section 28.2.3).
The simulation methods use an iterative procedure to solve AC and DC load flows at any given time point
(algebraic equations), along with the solution for dynamic model state variables (differential equations).

Before the start of a simulation, the user may configure what type of network representation should be
used in the simulation, what step sizes to use, which events to handle and where to store the results.

Upon start of a simulation, PowerFactory determines the initial conditions for all power system ele-
ments (including all controller units and mechanical components) based on a valid load flow calculation

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CHAPTER 28. RMS/EMT SIMULATIONS

(described in Chapter 24).

The process of performing a dynamic simulation typically involves the following steps:

1. Calculation of initial values, including a load flow calculation (refer to Section 28.3)

2. Definition of result variables (refer to Section 28.4)

3. Definition of simulation events (refer to Section 28.5)
4. Execution of simulation (refer to Section 28.6)
5. Creation of simulation plots (refer to Section 28.7)

6. Exporting results (optional, refer to Section 18.7.1).

For all simulation methods, PowerFactory provides a Simulation Scan function which greatly simplifies
the task of monitoring power system wide variables (e.g. voltage, frequency, generator loss of synchro-
nism) and issuing corresponding actions. This function is documented in Section 28.8.

Based on the aforementioned sequential time domain simulation methods (RMS balanced, RMS unbal-
anced and EMT), PowerFactory supports the following co-simulation functions:

• Single/Multiple Domain co-simulation (described in Section 28.10)

• Co-simulation with external solver (described in Section 28.11)
Whenever dynamic models need to be analysed in frequency domain, the Frequency Response Anal-
ysis function can be employed, enabling users to create Bode or Nyquist plots. Refer to Section 28.12
for more information.

If time domain curves (e.g. simulation results) need to be analysed in frequency domain, PowerFactory
provides two signal frequency analysis functions, as documented in Section 28.13:
• Fourier Analysis, using Fast Fourier Transform (FFT), and
• Prony Analysis.
User defined dynamic models can be developed, configured and included in a dynamic simulation.
These models are based on the DSL framework, described in Chapter 29.

For equipment and controls whose physical dynamic behaviour is known (e.g. via test measurements)
the System Parameter Identification function can be used along with a non-parameterised simulation
model in order to obtain an accurate representation of the system. More details are available in
Chapter 30.

PowerFactory provides a dedicated toolbar for accessing the different dynamic simulation commands.
The toolbar can be shown by clicking the Change Toolbox button and selecting Simulation RM-
S/EMT. It is also possible to execute some of the fore mentioned functions via the main menu: Calcula-
tion → Simulation RMS/EMT. The following functions are available in the toolbar:

• Calculate Initial Conditions

• Start Simulation

• Stop Simulation

• Create Simulation Plot

• Initial Conditions for co-simulation

• Prepare co-simulation with ext. solver

• Save Snapshot

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 28.2. CALCULATION METHODS

• Load Snapshot

• Edit Result Variables

• Edit Simulation Events

• Edit Simulation Scan

• Calculation of Frequency Response

• System Parameter Identification

28.2 Calculation Methods

28.2.1 Balanced RMS Simulation

The balanced RMS simulation function considers dynamics in electromechanical, control and thermal
devices. It uses a symmetrical, steady-state representation of the passive electrical network. Using this
representation, only the fundamental components of voltages and currents are taken into account.

Depending on the models of generators, motors, controllers, power plants and motor driven machines
used, the following studies may be carried out:

• transient stability (e.g. determination of critical fault clearing times);

• mid-term stability (e.g. optimisation of spinning reserve and load shedding);

• oscillatory stability (e.g. optimisation of control device to improve system damping);
• motor start-up (e.g. determination of start-up times and voltage drops);

Various events can be included in the simulation, for example:

• start-up and/or loss of generators or motors;

• stepwise variation of loads;

• load-shedding;
• line and transformer switching/tripping;
• symmetrical short-circuit events;
• insertion of network elements;

• power plant shut down;

• variations of controller setpoint;
• change of any system parameter.

Because of the symmetrical network representation, the basic simulation function allows the insertion
of symmetrical faults only.

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CHAPTER 28. RMS/EMT SIMULATIONS

28.2.2 Three-Phase RMS Simulation

If asymmetrical faults or unbalanced networks have to be analysed, the three phase RMS simulation
function must be used. This simulation function uses a steady-state, three-phase representation of
the passive electrical network and can therefore compute unbalanced network conditions, either due to
unbalanced network elements or due to asymmetrical faults. Dynamics in electromechanical, control
and thermal devices are represented in the same way as in the basic RMS simulation function.

Asymmetrical electromechanical devices can be modelled, and single-phase and two-phase networks
can also be analysed using this analysis function.

In addition to the balanced RMS simulation events, unbalanced fault events can be simulated, such as:

• single-phase and two-phase (to ground) short-circuits;

• phase to phase short-circuits;

• inter-circuit faults between different lines;
• single- and double-phase line interruptions.

All of these events can be modelled to occur simultaneously or separately, hence any combination of
symmetrical and asymmetrical faults can be modelled.

28.2.3 Three-Phase EMT Simulation

Voltages and currents are represented in the EMT simulation by their instantaneous values, so that the
dynamic behaviour of passive network elements is also taken into account. This is necessary for the
following applications:

• DC and harmonic components of currents and voltages;

• Exact behaviour of inverter-driven machines;
• Exact behaviour of HVDC transmission systems;

• Non-linear behaviour of passive network elements such as transformer saturation;

• Over-voltage phenomena in switching devices;
• Lightning strikes and travelling waves;

• Analysis of the exact behaviour of protection devices during faults.

The high level of detail used to represent the modelled network means that all phases and all defined
events (symmetrical and asymmetrical) can be simulated. The EMT function can also be used for the
simulation of longer-term transients. However, due to the passive network elements being represented
dynamically, the integration step size has to be significantly smaller than in the case of a steady-state
representation and as a result, the calculation time increases.

28.3 Calculation of Initial Conditions command

The Calculation of initial Conditions command (ComInc) dialog allows the configuration of simulation
solver settings, such as the simulation type (i.e. RMS or EMT, balanced or unbalanced) and simulation
step size.

The available configuration pages of the Calculation of initial Conditions command dialog are:

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 28.3. CALCULATION OF INITIAL CONDITIONS COMMAND

• Basic Options: selection of simulation type (RMS, EMT; balanced, unbalanced), load flow com-
mand, results object, event list and reference system.
• Step Size: start time, integration step sizes and output step size can be specified here, along with
step size adaptation parameters.
• Solver Options: includes various iteration, integration, algorithm and event control parameters.
• Simulation Scan: simulation scan options.
• Noise Generation: defines parameters of the noise generation for stochastic applications.

• Real Time: defines parameters for real-time applications.

• Snapshot: save snapshot options.

28.3.1 Initial Conditions - Basic Options

The Basic Options are used to select the simulation type and the network representation. References to
the results object (described in section 28.4), the event list (described in section 28.5) and the load flow
command are available for inspecting or editing these objects, by clicking on the respective icon.

28.3.1.1 Basic Options - General

Verify initial conditions

If the initial conditions can be fulfilled, the power system will be in a steady-state condition. When the
Verify initial conditions option is enabled, then the condition dx/dt = 0 is checked for all state variables. If
one or more of the state variable derivatives does not equal zero, the power system may start ’moving’
from the very beginning of the simulation, even without the application of an external event. In this case
the user should carefully analyse the relevant controller or model and its defined initial conditions.

All warnings or error messages issued in the output window should be checked. Typical problems
include devices which are overloaded or operate above or below signal limits from the beginning of the
simulation.

An error message displayed in the output window may appear as follows:

Some models could not be initialised.

Please check the following models:
’Simple Grid AVR Common Model.ElmDsl’:
Initial conditions not valid !

Automatic step size adaptation

This option enables the step size adaptation algorithm, and can be used to considerably speed-up the
simulation. PowerFactory adjusts the step size to the actual course of the dynamic simulation. Based
on the local truncation error, PowerFactory calculates an optimal step size that keeps the numerical
error within the specified limit. A step size controller adjusts the integration step size. As a result, when
fast transients have decayed, PowerFactory automatically increases the step size and speeds up the
simulation process considerably.

In the case of events (external or internal), the step size is always set back to the minimum step size.
This way, the behaviour of the system during a transient event is represented with the best accuracy.

If the error exceeds the specified limit or the simulation does not converge with an integration step larger
than the minimum step, the simulation algorithm steps back and repeats the integration with a smaller
integration step in order to reduce the error or to achieve convergence.

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Further parameters to adapt this algorithm are defined on the Step Size page (see section 28.3.2).

Reuse previous load flow results

When the calculation of initial conditions is carried out at the start of a simulation, a load flow needs to be
run. If many simulations are to be performed and therefore the initial conditions must be repeatedly re-
calculated, the repeated load flows could cause a considerable time overhead. If the option is selected,
the load flow results from the calculation of initial conditions are retained and used in subsequent initial
conditions calculations.

28.3.1.2 Basic Options - Reference system

The reference defines the reference frequency for RMS simulation. Table 28.3.1 gives an overview of
the resulting reference frequency, depending on the settings for reference and reference system area.
The isolated areas refer to the isolated areas detected by the topology check of the load flow calculation.

Reference

• Element: the reference of the system is a single element.

• Centre of inertia: the reference is the calculated centre of inertia.

• Nominal frequency: the reference is constant throughout the simulation and equal to 1 p.u.

Reference system area

• Global: one single reference is used when executing the simulation. It should be used if the
separated areas are re-synchronised again later in the simulation.
• Local (individual in each isolated area): this is the default option. A local reference is selected for
each isolated area.

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Reference
Isolated Areas of the same Isolated Areas of different
Reference System
nominal frequency nominal frequency
Area
Reference frequencies are cal-
culated for isolated areas of the
same nominal frequency. Isolated
The reference frequency is taken
areas of a different nominal fre-
Element Global from one reference element for
quency have a different reference
the whole power system.
frequency. Isolated areas of a the
same nominal frequency have the
same reference frequency.
The reference frequency is calcu- The reference frequency is calcu-
Element Local
lated for each isolated area. lated for each isolated area.
The reference frequency is calcu-
lated according to the centre of in-
The reference frequency is cal- ertia of all machines in the whole
Centre of culated according to the centre power system (irrespective of the
Global
inertia of inertia of all machines in the individual nominal frequencies of
whole power system. isolated areas, as the global ref-
erence frequency is expressed in
p.u.).
The reference frequency is calcu- The reference frequency is calcu-
lated individually for each isolated lated individually for each isolated
Centre of
Local area, according to the centre of area, according to the centre of
inertia
inertia of the machines of the iso- inertia of the machines of the iso-
lated area. lated area.
Nominal The reference is always 1 p.u. The reference is always 1 p.u.
N/A
frequency nominal frequency. nominal frequency.

Table 28.3.1: Reference systems for simulation

Reference system calculation method

If the option Element is selected from the Reference frame, the additional options are available:

• Implicit: this calculates the angle in every iteration, i.e. introduces additional dependencies in the
system equations.
• Explicit: this uses the angle value calculated in the previous time step to avoid additional depen-
dencies.

After running initial conditions, the reference element(s) is (are) displayed in the output window (only if
the option Element was selected as reference).

Synchronous machine out of step detection

The out of step detection is based on the angle 𝑓 𝑖𝑟𝑒𝑙 (rotor angle of the synchronous machine with
respect to the rotor angle of the local reference). It is functional only for RMS type simulations. Two
options are available:

• Out of step is detected when the rotor angle 𝑓 𝑖𝑟𝑒𝑙 reaches the detection angle.
• Out of step is detected when the rotor angle 𝑓 𝑖𝑟𝑒𝑙 changes by the detection angle from its initial
operating point.

The detection angle can be changed by the user and its default value is 360 degrees.

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Calculate maximum rotor angle deviation

PowerFactory can also calculate the maximum deviation between the rotor angles of the synchronous
machines in the system. This variable, called dfrotx, can then be selected for display from the variables
of all synchronous generators in the system. It can be used as an indicator for the synchronous
operation of a large transmission system.

28.3.2 Initial Conditions - Step Size

In this page additional options are defined depending on whether the option Automatic step size adap-
tation on the Basic Options page is activated or deactivated.

28.3.2.1 Step Size - General

Integration step size

When using a fixed step size for the simulation, the integration step size for EMT or RMS has to be set.

• Electromechanical transients (RMS) (typical value: 0.01 s)

• Electromagnetic transients (EMT) (typical value: 0.0001 s

When using a variable step size, the following values should be entered:

• Electromagnetic transients / electromechanical transients: minimum step size for EMT and RMS
simulations, respectively.
• Maximum step size: maximum step size for the simulation.

Start time

The start time of the simulation. This is typically negative, allowing the first event to be analysed to take
place at t=0 s.

Note: When setting up time-domain simulations, it is very important to use the correct time steps in
order to be able to observe phenomena in the results. For the RMS simulation the minimum time
step should always be smaller than the time constants in the system. In controllers one must
consider both the open-loop and the closed-loop time constants. For electromagnetic transients,
e.g. when analysing travelling waves, the smallest travelling time would be the upper limit for the
minimum time step.

In addition to the Newton-Raphson based algorithm for the solution of “weak” non-linearities (i.e. satu-
ration effects in synchronous and asynchronous machines), the simulation function allows interrupts for
the simulation of “strong” non-linearities (i.e. switches, two-slope transformer saturation or thyristors).
These interrupts can also occur between time steps.

In the case of this kind of interrupt, all time-dependent variables are interpolated to the instant of interrupt
and the simulation restarts at that point. This prevents numerical oscillations.

Enforced synchronisation

This option can be used to get simulation results at every specified time. E.g. if the period of the
enforced synchronisation is set to 1 s there will additional results at every second regardless of step
size.

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Record results

It is often unnecessary to plot every single calculated time step, and this reduction in plotted data can
also result in a reduced simulation time. For this purpose the output sampling step for the output graphs
can be set, so that not every point in time throughout the simulation time will be plotted. By selecting
a larger output sampling step, the simulation process will speed up without influencing the calculation
process. It should be noted, however, that fast changes may not be seen in the reported results. The
following options are available:

• After interruption or lapse of output step: the results will be recorded at every output sampling
step which is defined by entering a sampling ratio.
• At synchronised point in time: the period defined in the enforced synchronisation field will be used
to determine the sampling step.

28.3.2.2 Step Size - Automatic Adaptation

If option Automatic step size adaptation is enabled on the Basic Options page, further step size options
are available on the Automatic Adaptation tab. These options are:

• Reset automatic step size at interruption: the step size is set to the minimum after any interruption
• Use maximum step size at start: this option can be selected to speed up the beginning of the
simulation.
• Advanced step size algorithm selected: if the option is selected, the step size algorithm is based
on the integration of the prediction error. In addition, the algorithm is looking for an optimal step
size. The options of this method are:
– Maximum prediction error (typical value: 0.01)
– Time constant for RMS/EMT Simulation
• Advanced step size algorithm not selected: if the option is un-selected, the step size algorithm
is based on the increase and decrease by speed factor and prediction error. The options of this
method are:
– Maximum prediction error (typical value: 0.01)
– Minimum prediction error (typical value: 0.001)
– Delay for step size increase (number of steps) (typical value: 10)
– Speed factor: increase (default value: 1.5)
– Speed factor: decrease (default value: 2)
– Maximum increase of step size for RMS (typical value: 0.05 s)
– Maximum increase of step size for EMT (typical value: 0.001 s)

Note: The simulation time can be very sensitive to some of these parameters. For example, when the
maximum time step is increased, the duration of calculating transients may not always decrease.
If this time step is increased over an “optimal” time step the simulation time may increase as well.
It is strongly recommended to critically observe the simulation time and the results for different
simulation parameters.

28.3.3 Initial Conditions - Solver Options

The solver options may be used to tune the performance of the simulation algorithm. Less experienced
users are recommended to use the default values.

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28.3.3.1 Solver Options - General

Integration control

• Maximum error for dynamic model equations (typical value: 0.1 %)

• Damping factor for RMS (typical value: 1)

• Damping factor for EMT (typical value: 0.99)

Note: The damping factor range is between 0 and 1. A value of 0 corresponds to use as numerical
integration method the Backward Euler (implicit) method. If set to 1 then the trapezoidal integration
(implicit) method is applied. A value between these two results in a combination of the two
methods.

If the simulation method is set to EMT, and the automatic step size adaptation option is selected, the
integration factors can be adapted by using the additional option Apply AC-adaptation.

Iteration control

• Maximum error for bus equations: the iteration error for bus equations depends on the rated power
of the machines and the voltage levels. As an adequate starting value, should be set to:
errsm = 10*errlf, where errlf is the maximum acceptable load flow error for each node. Checking
is best done by plotting some voltages at generator busbars. If voltage steps are observed, the
value of errsm should be reduced.

• Maximum error for network model equations:

this error can be entered separately for the high, medium and low voltage level. The thresholds of
these levels can be defined in the project settings.
(typical value: 1 %)

• Maximum number of iterations: specifies the maximum number of iterations at each integration
step which are allowed to reach the maximum tolerable bus-error errsm. During the transient
simulation process, the typical number of iterations required is between 1 and 5. Under certain
conditions, i.e. after switching operations, up to 25 iterations may be observed. (typical value: 25)
• Iteration limit to recompute Jacobian matrix (typical value: 5)

Simplifications

The use of these options will result in a faster simulation.

• Fast connection of A-stable models outputs: optimises the output equations formulation for A-
stable models.

• Fast convergence check: determines convergence via advanced heuristics instead of checking
each single equation.
• Fast computation of outputs: uses the last available output from the solution process instead of
recomputing each single quantity.
• Fast independent solution of network and dynamic models: determines convergence sequentially
and independently on network and dynamic models rather than simultaneously.

Note: A requirement for using the independent solution of network and dynamic models algorithm
is that “small” integration steps are used with respect to the dynamics involved.

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28.3.3.2 Solver Options - Models

Initialisation

• Solve dynamic model equations at initialisation: the dynamic equations of the non-A-stable models
are solved at initialisation together with network and A-stable models which are always solved.
• Issue warnings for multiple initialisation of signals: a warning is issued when a DSL model input
signal is initialised by two different models.

A-stable integration algorithm

The A-stable integration algorithm is only used in RMS-simulation.

If this option is enabled, PowerFactory uses an A-stable numerical integration algorithm for models
to solve the simulation. In this case the dynamic model equations and network equations are solved
simultaneously. This algorithm is (slightly) slower for small step sizes but convergence is improved for
large step sizes. Typical applications are long-term simulations, in which the simulation step size is
increased considerably after fast transients have decayed. Another typical application is systems with
power electronics. Even if power electronics devices are usually equipped with very fast controls, the
A-stable algorithm still allows reasonable step sizes, at which the relaxation method would fail.

When using a conventional partitioned method (not an A-stable algorithm), the integration step size must
be adjusted to the eigenvalues of a system. Such a method means a mutual solution of dynamic model
equations and network equations until convergence is reached: this algorithm is fast for small step sizes
but fails to converge when the step size is increased. This is the best choice for classical transient
stability applications, but if excessively large step sizes are used, the numerical solution becomes
unstable, even if fast modes have fully decayed and are no longer apparent in the system.

With the PowerFactory A-stable algorithm, the step size can be adjusted to the actual course of all state
variables without considering numerical stability. When fast transients have decayed, the step size can
be adjusted to the speed of slower transients, etc.

If some very fast modes are not of interest, a large step size can be selected from the beginning, and
the algorithm will automatically smooth fast variations. A typical application of this type of algorithm is
the simulation of long-term phenomena, where it is necessary to increase the simulation step size to
the range of minutes, even if fast modes are present in the system.

However, if power electronics are involved, characteristic time constants can be extremely short (i.e.
1 ms), even if a stability model with steady-state equations for the electrical network is used. Hence,
using a classical integration algorithm would require the use of step sizes significantly smaller than the
smallest time constant of the system, otherwise it would be numerically unstable.

Note: A requirement for using the A-stable integration algorithm is that only “true” input and output
signal variables are used for exchanging information between different models.

It is also possible to specify the usage of an A-stable algorithm for some element models only (i.e. not
for all models), so that it is possible to run only a portion of the models with the A-stable algorithm (for
example the power electronic converters or fast controllers). This option is available in the dialogs of
the elements.

With the A-stable algorithm, these systems can be analysed with reasonable step sizes. Hence, the
A-stable algorithm cannot be described as using simplified models but as a different type of numerical
integration algorithm.

There are three options available:

• Apply per element: the algorithm is applied only in the elements with the A-stable flag selected.

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• Apply to all elements: the algorithm is applied to all the elements.

• Apply per element and composite model: the algorithm is applied to all the elements inside the
composite model if the A-stable flag is selected in at least one of those elements.

DSL

• Direct application of events: all internal DSL events stemming from select(), lim() and limstate()
functions are applied directly within one step.
• Fast direct interpolation of buffers: allows for faster interpolation of buffers (delay and movingavg)
which leads to better performance and convergence in simulations that may use integration steps
which are larger than the delay or the movingavg constants of the model.
• Automatic compilation: for increased simulation performance, automatically compile all currently
non-compiled DSL models of level 5 or higher. PowerFactory automatically monitors the state
of relevant DSL models, so any subsequent runs on an unchanged DSL model will not trigger
a re-compilation. Conversely, if any modification has been applied to a DSL model then a re-
compilation is triggered for that specific model. If this option is set, but due to various reasons the
compilation process fails either partly or entirely (e.g. no compiler is available, some DSL models
cannot be compiled, etc.), then those DSL models which failed to compile will be run as Interpreted
models. Refer to Section 5.2.4 for information on C-Compiler settings and Section 29.1.5 on
general compilation functionality of PowerFactory native dynamic models.

28.3.3.3 Solver Options - Advanced

Event control

• Maximum number of repeat event loops: maximum number of times that a given integration step
can be repeated in order to schedule upcoming events. Once the maximum number is reached,
any further events will not be scheduled until the next step.
• Maximum number of zero-length interruptions: maximum number of times that an integration step
can be restarted after a zero-length interruption. Once the maximum number is reached, any
further zero-length interruptions will not be scheduled until the next step.

• Maximum number of reschedule event loops: maximum number of times that a rescheduling of
upcoming events can be called. Once the maximum number is reached, no further rescheduling
is allowed until the next step.
• Resolution factor: this parameter (kres) determines the time interval used to synchronise events.
PowerFactory executes all events that occur within a time interval of duration 𝑘𝑟𝑒𝑠 * 𝑑𝑡𝑚𝑖𝑛 at the
same instant in time. A value of 0 implies that events are executed precisely in time, but may lead
to slow simulations.

• Reset integration formula after reinitialisation of algebraic equations. If an event occurs, the
integration formula order is temporarily reinitialised to 1 to avoid numerical oscillations, before
being gradually restored to the specified value;
• Integration formula restoration steps after reset: number of steps used to gradually restore the
specified integration formula after a reinitialisation of its order to 1.
• Accelerated solution of equation system: The solution of dynamic equations applies advanced
techniques to accelerate the simulation performance, especially in the case of high-frequent
clocked systems or in the presence of high-frequent switching devices. In addition, it applies
non-precise time point evaluation for clocked models defined via Modelica Model (ElmMdl).

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Reinitialise algebraic equations at interruption

• Disable: if an interruption event occurs, the algebraic equations are not re-initialised at interruption
time;
• Enable for systems containing only AC elements: if an interruption event occurs, the algebraic
equations are reinitialised at interruption time if and only if the power system model contains
exclusively AC elements. If this is the case, it leads the solver to the calculation of v(𝑡− ) and v(𝑡+ ),
hence two values at the same time instant, one before the occurrence of the event, and one after.
The two generated value sets are stored in the result file at the same time point.
• Enable: if an interruption event occurs, the algebraic equations are reinitialised at interruption
time for all power system configurations, with or without DC elements. If enabled, it leads to
the calculation of v(𝑡− ) and v(𝑡+ ), hence two values at the same time instant, one before the
occurrence of the event, and one after. The two generated value sets are stored in the result
file at the same time point. If DC elements are existing in the system then results during the
interruption event may be inaccurate.

Behaviour at user-defined events

• Postprocessing: wait for the integration step to end, then apply event.
• Interruption: stop instantly and interpolate, then apply event.

• Repetition: apply event during step, then repeat the integration step.

Signal buffer

Number of additional signals that can be allocated during the simulation.

28.3.4 Initial Conditions - Simulation Scan

Different variables can be monitored during the simulation and events triggered accordingly by the use
of the simulation scan.

There are several types of simulation scan modules, described in detailed in section 28.8. For the
modules to be considered, the Active flag should be selected on this page.

New modules can be created by clicking on the Show button and then on the New Object ( ) icon.
The button Remove all will delete all the existing simulation scan modules.

28.3.5 Initial Conditions - Noise Generation

The Noise Generator element (ElmNoise) can be used in a transient simulation to produce a noise
signal based on random numbers. On the Noise Generation page of the ComInc dialog, the random
number generation method can be selected. The random number generator can be selected to Auto-
matic, which is the default value and the most commonly used.

Alternatively, the option User defined may be selected, in which case the random seed of the noise
generator can be entered manually. The information about the last used seed is also shown, so the
results of a former simulation can be reproduced exactly.

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28.3.6 Initial Conditions - Real Time

The Real-time simulation options can be configured here, as follows.

Real-time simulation

• Off : No synchronisation with system time is performed. Use this setting for an offline (non real-
time) simulation.
• Synchronised by system time: Attempts to synchronise the simulation with the system time by
periodically pausing the simulation. This setting can not speed up the simulation if it is slower than
real time to begin with and thus should only be used if it is known that the simulation can run at or
above Real-Time speed. If the simulation effort temporarily increases above real-time (e.g. by an
event causing a lot of switching actions), this option will attempt to catch up until it is back in sync
with respect to the start of the simulation.
• Synchronised by system time, no catch-up: Same as the previous option, attempts to synchronise
the simulation with the system time. However this option will attempt to maintain Real-Time be-
haviour for each synchronisation interval and will not catch up after the simulation effort temporarily
exceeds Real-Time.

Synchronisation with system time

• Ratio between real time and calculation time: The ratio between the elapsed simulation time
(within PowerFactory) and the elapsed system time targeted by the Real-Time simulation. A value
above 100 % will cause the simulation to proceed faster than real time (e.g. with a value of 200 %,
10 s of simulation time will take 5 s of system time) while a value lower than 100 % will cause the
simulation to run slower (e.g. at 50 %, 10 s of simulation time will take 20 s of system time). As
above, this setting can not speed up the simulation.
• Time interval used for synchronisation: The interval (in simulation time) at which the simulation
waits to synchronise with the system time. Setting a value such that interval / factor < 20 ms
(where factor is the previous setting) is ineffective.

Interface

These options control how communication via protocols such as OPC is handled during Real-Time
simulation.
• Update - at each step: Communication will happen at every simulation step.
• Update - use interval: Communication will happen at the interval set below.
• Update - Interval: Interval for communication (in system time)
• Send and receive after initialisation: Communication will happen once after the initial conditions
have been calculated.

28.3.7 Initial Conditions - Snapshot

This page provides further configuration options for the Save/Load Snapshot functionality of the time
domain simulation. The Save/Load Snapshot is described in more detail in Section 28.9.

28.3.7.1 Save snapshot via event pane

During the simulation it is possible to define events that can trigger saving a simulation snapshot. The
event required is a Save Snapshot event type (EvtSave).

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This pane provides the user the possibility to choose the PowerFactory behaviour in the case of such an
event, by saving the snapshot:
• In non-persistent memory slot or

• In file.
If the option In non-persistent memory slot is selected then the simulation is saved only temporary in the
local memory. As such, the snapshot is lost upon closing the PowerFactory application. If the snapshot
is intended to be permanently saved, then the option In file needs to be chosen, along with a valid
directory path to be provided in the subsequent Directory field.

28.3.7.2 Load snapshot at initialisation

Activate this checkbox in order to load a snapshot at initialisation. The options are:
• From non-persistent memory slot or

• From file.
If the option From non-persistent memory slot is selected then the snapshot is loaded from memory,
as the last saved snapshot of the active study case. The snapshot is lost upon closing the Power-
Factory application. If the option From file is selected, then the snapshot is loaded from the particular
snapshot file.

The used snapshot stores and applies the following simulation settings (hence, the parameters within
the Calculation of initial conditions are ignored):
• Simulation method
• Network representation
• Integration step size parameters

An Info pane is available, displaying specific information regarding the used snapshot.

28.3.8 Advanced Simulation Options - Load Flow

There are further options which can influence the simulation process and its results. In the load flow
command dialog (ComLdf, see also Chapter 24: Load Flow) on the Advanced Options page, Simulation
tab, the influence of protection devices or various controller models can be selected to be ignored, in
which case the chosen models or protection devices will be ignored during the simulation as well as in
load flow and other calculations. This is illustrated in Figure 28.3.1.

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Figure 28.3.1: Advanced Simulation Options in the Load Flow command dialog

The options available for the consideration of protection devices are:

• none: no protection devices are considered in the calculations

• all: all protection devices are considered
• main: only protection devices in operation which are defined as ’main’ devices are considered.

• backup: only ’backup’ protection devices are considered.

For the controller models, there is the possibility to ignore all controllers and mechanical elements with
the option Ignore Composite Elements. If only some specific model types should be ignored during the
simulation, they can be moved from the left window Models Considered to the right window, Models
Ignored.

28.4 Results Objects

During an EMT or RMS simulation, a large number of available variables are changing over time.
Time dependent variables which can be monitored within a dynamic simulation fall into the following
categories:

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• Currents, Voltages and Powers

• Bus Results

• Signals
– Input signals - subcategory “IN” (e.g. for a synchronous generator, variable “ve” - Excitation
voltage)
– Output signals - subcategory “OUT” (e.g. for a synchronous generator, variable “ie” - Excita-
tion current)
– State variables - subcategory “STATE” (e.g. for a synchronous generator, variable “phi” -
Rotor Angle)
– Derivatives of state variables - subcategory “d/dt” and denoted by “state:dt”, where “state” is
the name of a state variable (e.g. for a synchronous generator, variable “phi:dt” - derivative
of Rotor Angle, i.e. rotor speed)
• Calculation Parameter
• Element Parameter

• Reference Parameter
To reduce the available data and to narrow down the number of variables to those necessary for the
analysis of each particular case, a selection of these signals for later use has to be defined.

Therefore, one or more results objects containing the result variables can be configured. The simulation
function needs the reference to a results object to store the results.

The command dialogs for calculation functions, that produce signals, have results object references, as
depicted in Figure 28.4.1 for the Initial Conditions dialog.

Figure 28.4.1: Results Object Reference

Such a results object reference refers to the currently used results object. The downward arrow button
( ) is used to select or reset the reference, or to edit the contents of the referenced results object.

The right-arrow button ( ) is used to edit the results object itself. When the button is pressed, the
ElmRes dialog is opened. It is possible to access to the list of variables stored inside the results object
by pressing the Variables button.

An easier way to edit or inspect the results object is to press the Edit Result Variables icon on the main
toolbar ( ), or to select the Calculation → Simulation RMS/EMT → Result Variables. . . option from
the main menu. This will enable the user to edit the contents of the currently selected results object in
the Initial Conditions command dialog. Results objects (ElmRes) are covered in detail in Chapter 18
(Reporting and Visualising Results).

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28.4.1 Monitoring variables of an element

It is many times useful to record variables of an element for various purposes e.g. plotting a variable
versus simulation time. To record one or several element variables, these need to be explicitly defined
as monitored variables belonging to a Results object (ElmRes).

To add a variable to a Results object, do the following:

• Make sure that any previously executed calculation (if any) is reset . Otherwise, it is not possible
to add new variables to a Results object. One exception: it is possible to add monitored variables
if the previously executed calculation is the Calculation of Initial Conditions.
• If the element is reached using the Data Manager or the Network Model Manager :
– navigate and identify the element whose variables are to be added.
– Right-click the element and choose Results Variables → Simulation RMS/EMT. . . .
• If the element is reachable directly from the single line diagram:
– Right-click the element and choose Results Variables → Simulation RMS/EMT. . . .
• If there exist multiple Results objects in the active study case, then a selection window is shown.
Choose the Results object in which the variables will be added.
• The contents of the Results object is shown in a new window. The element of interest is shown in
this list as well. Double click the element’s icon.
• The Variable Selection window is shown. Select the corresponding variables.

Note: The Variable Selection object is described in Section 18.3: Variable Selection.

28.4.1.1 Displaying current values of scalar/array variables in the Data Manager /Network Model
Manager

The current value of a scalar/array variable can be shown using the Network Model Manager, as follows:
• Make sure that either the Calculation of Initial Conditions or a Run Simulation has been previously
executed (such that results are available)
• Open the Network Model Manager and go to the element category of interest (e.g. Modelica
Models).
• Select the element of interest (e.g. a specific Modelica Model) and click the Variable Selection
( ) button
• The Variable Selection window is shown. Select the corresponding variables.

Note: The Variable Selection object is described in Section 18.3: Variable Selection.

• After adding the variables of interest, click OK.

• New columns are added to the Flexible Data page, one for each added variable.
• If the variable is a scalar, then its current value is displayed in the relevant field (column of the
variable, row of the element).
• If the variable is an array, then the value of the first cell in the array is displayed in the relevant field
along with trailing dots. Double click the relevant field in order to show the current values of the
entire array variable.
A similar procedure can be applied while using the Data Manager.

Further description of displaying multidimensional attributes is provided in Chapter 10, Section 10.2.10.

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28.4.2 Saving Results from Previous Simulations

The variables to be monitored are stored (by default) in the results object called “All calculations” within
the Study Case. The results of the variables in the current simulation are stored in this file also. If the
results of two different simulations are to be displayed, e.g. in one plot, there is the possibility to save
the results object of a previous simulation simply by copying the results object “All calculations” and
renaming it.

This can be done easily in the Data Manager, by copying and pasting the results object “All calcula-
tions” into the active Study Case folder. A second results object will be created with the name “All
calculations(1)”.

In the next simulation, the default results object “All calculations” will be overwritten with the new results,
but the copied results will not be modified and can be displayed together with the new simulation results
in one plot. For further information see Chapter 18: Reporting and Visualising Results, section 18.8
(Plots).

28.5 Simulation Events

This section provides a general description of Events, as they apply to time-domain simulations. See
Chapter 12: Study Cases, Section 12.9 (Events) for a detailed description of the event types.

There are several ways to access events objects:

• From the Data Manager, in the Simulation Events/Faults object stored within the Study Case.

• From the Calculation of Initial Conditions command, using the Show button on the Selection of
simulation events.
• From the Simulation RMS/EMT toolbar by pressing the Edit Simulation Events icon. A list of
the currently defined events will be displayed, including the set simulation time, when the event
will occur, and the related object. Note that a duration for a 3-Phase Short-circuit is not specified,
rather, another event is created to clear the fault.

When creating a new event, use the New Object icon in the toolbar. The event type can be chosen
from the displayed list, as shown in Figure 28.5.1. The events can also be modified during a simulation
by stopping the calculation, editing the events and continuing the simulation.

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Figure 28.5.1: Defining a New Simulation Event

An alternative way of defining events is as follows: upon calculation of the initial conditions ( ), or
when the simulation is already running, double-click on the relevant cubicles to create switch events.
Additionally, the user can right-click on an element and then select an element-related event such as
Simulation Events → Switch Event. . . , Simulation Events → Load Event. . . or Simulation Events →
Short-Circuit Event. . . .

During a simulation all previous events (i.e. events which have already occurred), are shown in grey
and can no longer be edited or changed. When the simulation is finished or is stopped manually, the
events which are still to come in the simulation can be altered and new events can be created.

Note: At the end of a simulation the event list shows all events, in grey. They can no longer be modified
for this simulation, because the simulation could be restarted from this point on. To change the
events for a new simulation one must first initialise the calculation again ( ), so that the simulation
time is reset to the beginning.

EMT Simulation: Various options of triggering breaker close events

The breaker switching event (EvtSwitch) enables a circuit breaker to be closed:

• depending on execution time

• at voltage zero crossing
• on minimum absolute voltage across contacts
• on maximum absolute voltage across contacts
• on maximum positive voltage across contacts
• on maximum negative voltage across contacts

Further customisation options are available when closing a breaker at voltage zero crossing or on
minimum absolute voltage across contacts, as shown in Figure 28.5.2.

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Figure 28.5.2: Additional options for breaker close events

Load Event used on a selection of load elements

It is possible to apply a single load event (EvtLod) to multiple load elements by referencing a selection
object (SetSelect) as shown in Figure 28.5.3.

Figure 28.5.3: Referencing multiple loads to a single load event

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Parameter Event used on a selection of elements

It is possible to apply a single parameter event (EvtParam) to multiple elements by referencing a

selection object (SetSelect).

28.6 Executing the Simulation

Upon successful calculation of the initial conditions (i.e. execution of ComInc ), the simulation can
be started via Start Simulation on the Simulation RMS/EMT toolbar. In the case that the calculation
of the initial conditions has not yet been been performed, Start Simulation will automatically execute
the initialisation.

The Run Simulation (ComSim) dialog has a link to the used initial conditions command and additional
options for the displayed messages can be set in the Display in output window and Internal Dynamic
Model warnings fields.

Note: The Start Simulation button is deactivated and can’t be used if the previous simulation lead to
an error. In this case, either the command Reset Calculation or Calculation of Initial Conditions
must be executed first.

The simulation is performed for the time interval between the start time defined in the initial conditions
command (ComInc), and the stop time, which is specified in the simulation (ComSim) dialog. After a
simulation has finished, it may be continued by pressing Start Simulation again and entering a new
stop time. In this case, the stop time can also be entered relative to the current simulation time.

A running simulation can be interrupted by one of the following options. Stop Simulation pauses the
simulation after the current simulation time step. In this stage, additional events can be created, results
may be viewed or the simulation end time can be adapted. The simulation can then be continued by
pressing Start Simulation again. Pausing and continuing the simulation may be done as often as
required. In contrast, using Break on the main toolbar stops the simulation immediately. If this
occurs during an iteration or while convergence issues occur, an error is thrown. In any case, the
current results of the simulation are saved, however, the simulation can not be continued afterwards if
the break leads to an error. During each simulation, a progress bar will be displayed at the bottom of the
PowerFactory graphical user interface. The progress bar will disappear once the simulation is finished
or interrupted.

28.7 Creating Simulation Plots

After a simulation is executed, the results can be visualised in a plot. Pressing the Create Simulation
Plot icon ( ) from the Simulations RMS/EMT toolbar opens the Insert Plot dialog where the typical
plots used for RMS/EMT simulation are displayed.

Further information about plot types and handling is available in Chapter 18: Reporting and Visualising
Results, subsection 18.8 (Plots).

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28.8 Simulation Scan

Simulation scan modules can be defined and accessed as explained in section 28.3.4 or by using the
Edit Simulation Scan icon ( ) from the Simulations RMS/EMT toolbar. The available simulation scan
objects are described in the following subsections.

Note: After creating a new simulation scan module, the initial conditions should be executed with the
option Active on the Simulation Scan page enabled. Otherwise the modules will not be considered.

28.8.1 Fault Ride Through Scan Module

The Fault Ride Through (FRT) scan module (ScnFrt) monitors variables of various elements (e.g. the
voltage on a busbar) in the power system and continuously verifies these signals for validity against a
user defined FRT characteristic. Validity is defined by comparing the waveform of the measured signal
with the FRT characteristic and requiring the measured signal not to be below the characteristic longer
than a specific user defined period (which can be set to zero). The triggering of the comparison (i.e.
the scan start time) is done by comparing the measured signal with a constant threshold parameter.
The first time that the signal is lower than the threshold, the FRT scan module is triggered and the
two waveforms (measured signal and FRT characteristic) start to be compared one against the other.
Should the FRT scan module detect a FRT characteristic violation of the measured signal(s) then,
depending on user choice, the simulation can be stopped, or a message can be printed to the output
window (without simulation interruption).

The Fault Ride Through Scan Module options are described in the following sections:

28.8.1.1 Fault Ride Through Scan - Basic Options

Ignored

If this flag is set, then this scan module is not active.

Scan Location

• Whole System: applies the FRT scan module to all calculation relevant elements of the class
defined in Class name.
• User defined: applies the FRT scan module to a set of elements or to a single element. The set
or the single element can be selected using the associated drop down menu ( Select. . . )
• Class name: elements matching this class name will be added to the monitoring list. If a single
element is chosen in the User defined field then the class is automatically selected.

Variable

• Voltage: the voltage of the scan location will be monitored

• Other: a variable different than voltage should be monitored. The name of the variable has to be
entered and it must correspond to a valid variable name of the element class being monitored.

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Limit Curve Type

• Lower limit: the curve will be set as the lower limit of the monitored variable

• Upper limit: the curve will be set as the upper limit of the monitored variable

Action

• Display message: if the limit is violated, a corresponding message is displayed in the output
window.
• Stop simulation: the dynamic simulation is stopped if the limit is violated and a corresponding
message is displayed in the output window.
• Stop with error: this option is only visible if the Stop simulation option is selected. A simulation
error is thrown in addition to stopping the simulation.
• Trigger: if the limit is violated, a trigger is activated and if an action is triggered, a corresponding
message is displayed in the output window. The trigger can be selected or edited with the and
buttons respectively.

Display Messages

• All: all the messages, including activation of the scan are printed in the output window.

• Violations only: only the violations of the FRT curve are printed.

28.8.1.2 Fault Ride Through Scan - Limit Curve

FRT Table

This table allows the user to insert the FRT characteristic using a set of points in format (time,value).
Each row corresponds to a single point on the FRT time characteristic. The characteristic is shown
under the table.

Activation threshold

This value sets the fault detection threshold. During a simulation (and provided that the FRT scan is
“active”), the first time that any of the monitored variables goes below the activation threshold, the FRT
scan module will issue a fault start event and report it to the output window.

Duration

Once a fault is detected, the value of the monitored signal(s) is compared to the FRT characteristic. If
the Duration is zero and once any of the monitored values is below the characteristic, the case is treated
as a FRT characteristic violation. If the Duration is not zero, the specific monitored value (that has been
triggering the fault detection) must remain below the characteristic for Duration seconds in order to treat
the case as a violation. The purpose of using a Duration parameter is to avoid spurious actions.

Multiple fault detection

By selecting this option, an additional threshold can be defined. This threshold will “reset” the fault
detections if the curve stays over the Reignition threshold, for a time defined in the Minimum duration
field.

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28.8.1.3 Fault Ride Through Scan - Unbalanced Options

Unbalanced network representation

The voltage to be measured is defined in this field, the following representations are available:
• PH-PH

• PH-N
• PH-E
• Pos. Seq.
• PH. Tech.

Phase Technology will use the representation defined in the busbar element. If a representation different
than the one recorded in the results file is selected, a warning will be issued and the recorded one will
be automatically selected.

Unbalanced fault detection

• Any phase crosses threshold: all phases are monitored using the same curve, as soon as one
phase crosses the threshold.
• All phases cross threshold: all phases are monitored using the same curve, as soon as all phases
cross the threshold.
• Each phase crosses threshold independently: each individual phase is monitored independently
as soon as the corresponding phase crosses threshold, i.e. three different fault detection mes-
sages will be displayed (if the Display Messages option in the Basic Option page is set to All)

Unbalanced violation

• Any phase violates limit: the violation is detected as soon as the first phase violates the limit.
• All phases violate limit: violation message is triggered when all the phases violate the limit.

• Each phase violates limit independently: each phase is evaluated independently, when the Action
is set to Display Message, messages for each phase will be printed in the output window.

28.8.1.4 Fault Ride Through Scan - Time Settings

Activation time

• The activation time, defined in Hours, Minutes and Seconds, represents the time in simulation
when the FRT Scan module should start the monitoring of variables. The values of monitored
variables prior to the activation time are ignored and not considered in the assessment.
• Time step: defines the sample time with which the scan is performed.

28.8.2 Frequency Scan Module

The frequency scan module (ScnFreq) monitors bus frequency.

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28.8.2.1 Frequency Scan Module - Basic Options

Ignored

If this flag is set, then this scan module is not active.

Scan Location

• All busbars: applies the frequency scan module to all the busbars (ElmTerm) relevant for calcula-
tion.
• User defined:only a set of elements or a single element is monitored.

Scan measurement

This module can be defined to measure either the Frequency or the Frequency gradient. The Nominal
frequency can be set to any frequency value.

Detection of multiple violations

If the simulation is not stopped, all the frequency violations will be detected, i.e. the curve is continuously
scanned.

Action

• Display message: if the limit is violated, a corresponding message is displayed in the output
window.

• Stop simulation: the dynamic simulation is stopped if the limit is violated and a corresponding
message is displayed in the output window.
• Stop with error: this option is only visible if the Stop simulation option is selected. A simulation
error is thrown in addition to stopping the simulation.

• Trigger: if the limit is violated, a trigger is activated and if an action is triggered a corresponding
message is displayed in the output window. The trigger can be selected or edited with the and
buttons respectively.

28.8.2.2 Frequency Scan Module - Limits

The limits for the frequency violation detection are set in this page. The Maximum and Minimum limits
should be defined.

28.8.2.3 Frequency Scan Module - Time Settings

Activation time

• The activation time, defined in Hours, Minutes and Seconds, represents the time in simulation
when the frequency scan module should start the monitoring of variables. The values of monitored
variables prior to the activation time are ignored and not considered in the assessment.

• Time step: defines the sample time with which the scan is performed.

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28.8.3 Loss of Synchronism Scan Module

The loss of synchronism scan module (ScnSync) monitors the internal generator model signal “Out of
Step” of synchronous machines (ElmSym). The out of step detection can be defined on the Reference
System tab of the Basic Options page on the Initial Conditions command.

Scan location

Defines whether the scan has to be applied to the whole system, a selection of objects or a single
object.

Activation Time

Defines the time at which monitoring should start (till end) in Hours, Minutes and Seconds. Set the Time
step to define the intervals at which the scan should be performed.

Action

• Display message: if the limit is violated, a corresponding message is displayed in the output
window.
• Stop simulation: the dynamic simulation is stopped if the out of step signal is detected. The
corresponding message is displayed in the output window.
• Stop with error: this option is only visible if the Stop simulation option is selected. A simulation
error is thrown in addition to stopping the simulation.

• Trip generator: if the signal out of step is detected, the generator that has lost synchronism is
disconnected, a corresponding message is displayed in the output window. After this event is
triggered, it is still possible to reconnect the generator.
• Trigger: a trigger is activated and if an action is triggered a corresponding message is displayed in
the output window. The trigger can be selected or edited with the and buttons respectively.
• Trip generator and set out of service: if the signal out of step is detected, the generator that
has lost synchronism is disconnected and set to out of service along with all associated controls.
Associated controls are all DSL elements (and only those ones) which are referenced into a slot
of a composite model whose Main slot is occupied by the target generator. A corresponding
message is displayed in the output window. After execution of this event, it is not possible to
reconnect the generator or any of the associated controls.

28.8.4 Synchronous Machine Speed Scan Module

The synchronous machine speed scan module (ScnSpeed) monitors speed of synchronous machines.
If a limit is violated, it displays message, stops the simulation, trips the generators that have violated the
limit or activates a predefined trigger.

Scan location

Define whether the scan has to be applied to the whole system, a selection of objects or a single object.

Speed settings

Maximum and Minimum speed limits are defined.

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Activation time

• The activation time, defined in Hours, Minutes and Seconds, represents the time in simulation
when the variable scan module should start the monitoring of variables. The values of monitored
variables prior to the activation time are ignored and not considered in the assessment.
• Time step: defines the sample time with which the scan is performed.

Action

• Display message: if the limits are violated, a corresponding message is displayed in the output
window.
• Stop simulation: the dynamic simulation is stopped if the scan module triggers. A corresponding
message is displayed in the output window.
• Stop with error: this option is only visible if the Stop simulation option is selected. A simulation
error is thrown in addition to stopping the simulation.

• Trip synchronous machine: if the limits are violated, the corresponding generator is disconnected
and a message is displayed in the output window. After this event is triggered, it is still possible to
reconnect the generator.
• Trigger: a trigger can be assigned using this option. If the limits are violated, the trigger is
automatically activated. A corresponding message is displayed in the output window.
• Trip synchronous machine and set out of service: if the limits are violated, the corresponding
generator is disconnected and set to out of service. This option is particularly useful if disabling
associated DSL models is needed. A corresponding message is displayed in the output window.
After triggering this event, there is no possibility of reconnecting the generator.

28.8.5 Variable Scan Module

The variable scan module (ScnVar ) monitors a selected element variable and triggers a display mes-
sage or stops the simulation if a defined limit is violated.

Scan Location

• Whole System: scans all calculation relevant elements of the class defined in Class name.
• User defined: applies the scan module to a set of elements or to a single element. The set or the
single element can be selected using the associated drop down menu ( Select. . . )
• Class name: elements matching this class name will be added to the monitoring list. If a single
element is chosen in the User defined field then the class is automatically selected.

Detection of multiple violations

If the simulation is not stopped, all limit violations of the variable are detected, i.e. the value is continu-
ously scanned and the selected action started in case of new violations.

Variable

The name of the variable has to be entered and it must correspond to a valid variable name of the
element class being monitored.

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Settings

Define the variables Maximum limit and Minimum limit.

Activation Time.

Define the time at which monitoring should start (till end) in Hours, Minutes and Seconds. Set the Time
step to define the intervals at which the scan should be performed.

Action

• Display message: if the limit is violated, a corresponding message is displayed in the output
window.
• Stop simulation: the dynamic simulation is stopped if the limit is violated and a corresponding
message is displayed in the output window.
• Stop with error: this option is only visible if the Stop simulation option is selected. A simulation
error is thrown in addition to stopping the simulation.
• Trigger: if the limit is violated, a trigger is activated and if an action is triggered a corresponding
message is displayed in the output window. The trigger can be selected or edited with the and
buttons respectively.

28.8.6 Voltage Scan Module

The voltage scan module (ScnVolt) monitors bus voltage and triggers a display message or stops the
simulation if a defined limit is violated.

28.8.6.1 Voltage Scan Module - Basic Options

Ignored

If this flag is set, then this scan module is not active.

Scan Location

• All busbars: applies the voltage scan module to all the busbars (ElmTerm) relevant for calculation.
• User defined: only a set of busbar or a single one is monitored.

Scan measurement

This module can be defined to measure either the Voltage or the Voltage gradient during a specified
Time window.

Detection of multiple violations

If the simulation is not stopped, all the voltage violations will be detected, i.e. the curve is continuously
scanned.

Unbalanced network representation

The voltage to be measured is defined in this field, the following representations are available:
• PH-PH

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• PH-N
• PH-E

• Pos. Seq.
• PH. Tech.
Phase Technology will use the representation defined in the busbar element. If a representation different
than the one recorded in the results file is selected, a warning will be issued and the recorded one will
be automatically selected.

Action

• Display message: if the limit is violated, a corresponding message is displayed in the output
window.
• Stop simulation: the dynamic simulation is stopped if the limit is violated and a corresponding
message is displayed in the output window.

• Stop with error: this option is only visible if the Stop simulation option is selected. A simulation
error is thrown in addition to stopping the simulation.
• Trigger: if the limit is violated, a trigger is activated and if an action is triggered a corresponding
message is displayed in the output window. The trigger can be selected or edited with the and
buttons respectively.

28.8.6.2 Voltage Scan Module - Limits

Voltage

Define the Maximum limit and Duration (max. limit), and the Minimum limit and Duration (min. limit).

Recovery thresholds

• No thresholds: no recovery thresholds are considered.

• Individual thresholds for violation and recovery detection: different thresholds are defined for the
maximum and minimum voltage limits. The parameter Duration below/above the threshold defines
the minimum time the value has to be within the limits to be recognised as a recovery.
• Common threshold for violation and recovery detection: one unique value is defined as recovery
threshold.

28.8.6.3 Voltage Scan Module - Time Settings

Activation time

• The activation time, defined in Hours, Minutes and Seconds, represents the time in simulation
when the voltage scan module should start the monitoring of variables. The values of monitored
variables prior to the activation time are ignored and not considered in the assessment.
• Time step: defines the sample time with which the scan is performed.

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28.9 Save/Load Snapshot

When carrying out simulations in PowerFactory, it is possible to save the current simulation state for
later use. This can greatly increase productivity, especially if the simulation state has been obtained as
a result of a time-consuming simulation.

The Save Snapshot as well as the Load Snapshot actions can be performed easily from the Simulation
RMS/EMT toolbar. The snapshot can either be saved in memory, in which case the information is
lost once PowerFactory is closed, or in an external file, such that the simulation state can always be
recovered at a later date.

Note: The Load/Save Snapshot supports all built-in and DSL based models. Furthermore, all DLL
models generated via the C-Interface (as documented in Section 29.14.3) are also supported.

28.9.1 Saving a snapshot

Saving a snapshot can be done either manually or automatically.

In order to manually save a snapshot, do the following:

• Prepare a dynamic simulation and make sure that it initialises without errors;
• Run the simulation up to the time point which should be saved in the snapshot;

• Click on Save Snapshot icon in the RMS/EMT Simulation toolbar. Choose between the
following options:
– In non-persistent memory slot - the snapshot is saved in a temporary location in memory; as
such, the snapshot is lost upon closing the PowerFactory application;
– In file - the snapshot is permanently saved on the disk (or similar permanent storage device);
in this situation make sure to provide a valid directory path and corresponding file name for
the snapshot within the subsequent File field; using this option will enable users to load the
snapshot even after restarting PowerFactory.

In order to automatically save a snapshot, do the following:

• Define Save Snapshot events (EvtSave) in the simulation queue and set the event trigger time
to the simulation time instant at which the simulation will be saved. Save Snapshot events are
detailed in Section 12.9.10;
• Make sure that you have accordingly configured the options in the Calculation of Initial Condi-
tions (ComInc) dialog, page Snapshot. Further information on these options are available in
Section 28.3.7;
• Prepare a dynamic simulation and make sure that it initialises without errors;
• Run the simulation. The Save Snapshot event is triggered automatically and a snapshot is
consequently saved.

28.9.2 Loading a snapshot

Loading a snapshot can be done by executing the following steps:

• Make sure that you have activated in PowerFactory the same project with the same study case
that has been used for saving the snapshot.
• Execute the Calculation of initial conditions and make sure that it has run successfully.

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• Click on the Load Snapshot icon in the RMS/EMT Simulation toolbar and point to the snapshot
that is to be loaded. The snapshot can be available either in the memory (if the Save Snapshot
command has been previously executed and saved a snapshot in the non-persistent memory) or
on the disk. After selecting the snapshot click on Execute. The simulation state will be loaded and
the simulation initialised at snapshot time.
• Continue running the simulation from that point.
• All queued events that are defined after the saved execution time will be applied during the
simulation. All events defined for execution prior to the snapshot time will be disregarded.

• Result files are written with the starting time point equal to the snapshot time.

Note: Snapshots are only compatible within the same major PowerFactory version. As such, snapshots
cannot be used for a different major version than the one they have been exported from. It should
also be noted, that their functionality can be compromised if network elements are changed (e.g.
modification of line parameters, DSL or DLL equations)

28.10 Single/Multiple Domain Co-simulation

This section provides guidance on the basic usage and configuration of the Single/Multiple domain co-
simulation tool. The terms and definitions used in co-simulation are detailed in Section 28.10.5. An
overview of the co-simulation concepts is given in Section 28.10.1. For information on how to configure
the co-simulation tool, Section 28.10.2 is to be followed. Information regarding the execution and plotting
of co-simulation results is provided in Section 28.10.3.

28.10.1 Overview of the Single/Multiple Domain Co-simulation

PowerFactory provides an integrated co-simulation tool for executing time domain analysis of power sys-
tems. This Single/Multiple domain co-simulation tool is a fully integrated PowerFactory solution which
does not require any third party interfaces or software. From this perspective, the Single/Multiple domain
co-simulation is fundamentally different from the external solver based co-simulation tool described in
Section 28.11, where PowerFactory is intended to run in a co-simulation environment composed of one
or multiple third-party solvers.

Based on the standard dynamic simulation tool (presented in Section 28.2), PowerFactory supports the
following co-simulation domains:

• RMS balanced;
• RMS unbalanced;
• EMT.

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Figure 28.10.1: Example of co-simulation domains and corresponding interface elements

In terms of possible domain configurations, the Single/Multiple domain co-simulation supports the
following choices:
• for single domain co-simulation:
– RMS balanced - RMS balanced or
– RMS unbalanced - RMS unbalanced or
– EMT - EMT;
• for multiple domain co-simulation:
– RMS balanced - RMS unbalanced - EMT (as illustrated in figure 28.10.1) or
– RMS balanced - RMS unbalanced or
– RMS balanced - EMT or
– RMS unbalanced - EMT.

Note: None of the configurations above imposes a specific restriction on the number of definable
regions e.g. a RMS balanced - RMS balanced single domain co-simulation may have more than
two co-simulation regions. Each region is assigned to a single logical processor core; the number
of logical cores in a machine defines the maximum number of regions that can be used in a co-
simulation. As such, in terms of performance and flexibility, machines with a high number of cores
are better suited for execution of co-simulation runs.

Two co-simulation Methods are available, as follows:

• Implicit (exact approach): - this method provides accurate results compared with a normal se-
quential run. The method requires that the boundary between regions is defined on long enough
AC power lines such that it can account for the associated transmission delays. The AC lines must
be manually set to use the “Distributed parameter” model (available in the Basic Data page of the
line element dialog).
• Explicit (approximate approach): this method delivers reliable results (approximate, but not exact
in comparison with a sequential simulation) while providing further flexibility in the choice of the
boundary definition. The co-simulation interface can be defined on any set of AC lines without a
particular requirement on line length and the associated transmission delays.

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28.10.2 Configuring the Internal Co-simulation

The calculation function for setting up a co-simulation is called from the Initial conditions for co-simulation
(ComCosim ) command.

This command must be successfully executed before the actual co-simulation can be run (done via the
Run simulation (ComSim ) command). Practically, the co-simulation procedure is as follows:

• Set up boundary objects for each region;

• Assign boundaries and other configuration settings within the Initial conditions for co-simulation
command ComCosim (refer to Section 28.10.4 for more information);
• Configure simulation options for each region based on calculation of initial conditions (ComInc
) object(s);
• Define variable results for elements of interest;
• Execute the Initial conditions for co-simulation (ComCosim ).

• Execute the Run simulation (ComSim ) command for the intended simulation duration.
An example of a Single domain co-simulation configuration is shown in Figure 28.10.2.

Figure 28.10.2: Co-simulation configuration options (example)

Further guiding notes:

• Boundary objects (ElmBoundary ) are used to define the co-simulated regions and thereby
the co-simulation interface. The interior region of each boundary needs to contain all elements
belonging to the specific co-simulation region. Boundaries need to overlap either on the line
element(s) which represent the co-simulation border (so-called “Branch-based splitting”) or on the

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common bus elements at the co-simulation border (so-called “Node based splitting”). An example
for a Branch-based splitting is shown in Figure 28.10.3, whereas a Node-based splitting is shown
in Figure 28.10.4. Both figures show a simple two area power system interconnected via two AC
lines, a candidate for a co-simulation split on two regions. For the Branch-based splitting, the two
AC lines need to be contained within both boundary objects (as overlapping elements), in order
to correctly identify the co-simulation interface. In this example, two boundary objects need to
be defined; then the boundaries are assigned to individual regions within the Initial conditions for
co-simulation . Alternatively (Figure 28.10.4) a Node-based splitting can be used, where two
common AC buses need to be contained within both boundary objects (as overlapping elements),
in order to correctly identify the co-simulation interface.
• Configuration of simulation options is done via the Initial conditions for co-simulation by editing
the default Calculation of Initial Conditions (ComInc) command (in the case of Single domain
co-simulation) or by assigning individual Calculation of Initial Conditions (ComInc) command
objects for each region (in the case of Multiple domain co-simulation). A user-defined common
synchronisation period can be configured in the ComCosim command which will define the rate
by which regions are synchronised across the co-simulation interface(s). Based on the two area
example above, a multiple domain co-simulation could be configured as shown in figure 28.10.2
• Definition of results follows the standard procedure adopted for a typical sequential dynamic
simulation. PowerFactory will automatically manage and organise the storage location of results
for a given element, depending on the region to which it belongs. At the end of a co-simulation
run, there will be one results file (ElmRes) for each region.

Region 2

Boundary definition
for Region 1

Boundary definition
for Region 2

Region 1

Figure 28.10.3: Boundary definition using Branch-based splitting of a two area power system

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Region 2

Boundary definition
for Region 2
Co-simulation
interface

Boundary definition
for Region 1

Region 1

Figure 28.10.4: Boundary definition using Node-based splitting of a two area power system

The region splitting methods are supported as shown in Table 28.10.1.

Explicit co-simulation
Splitting Method Current/Voltage Multi-port Implicit co-simulation
source equivalent Thevenin equivalent
Node-based X
Branch-based X X X

Table 28.10.1: Supported splitting method for Co-Simulation

28.10.3 Performing a Co-simulation and Retrieving Results

To perform a co-simulation, execute the following steps:

• Make sure that the co-simulation has been successfully configured (refer to Section 28.10.2).

• Open the Initial conditions for co-simulation (ComCosim ) command dialog:

– Go to the Basic Options page and select either the Single domain or the Multiple domain
Co-simulation type.
– Configure the Synchronisation period appropriately. The synchronisation period will influence
highly the simulation results and the overall performance. The co-simulation domain choice
and the dynamic properties of the power system have a direct influence on the optimum
choice of the Synchronisation period.
– Configure other settings according to specific requirements (for a detailed description of
options refer to Section 28.10.4)
– Execute the Initial conditions for co-simulation (ComCosim ) command. Prior to running
the co-simulation, the Initial conditions for co-simulation is to be executed. PowerFactory

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automatically starts the required parallel processes and initialises the simulation in each
region.

• Execute the simulation using the Run Simulation (ComSim ) command. After the simulation
has been executed, results can be plotted, exported or post-processed as for any other dynamic
simulation.
• At the end of a co-simulation, the Results (ElmRes) object linked in the Basic Options page of the
Initial conditions for co-simulation (ComCosim) has the following structure:
– Region 1 - Results object(ElmRes): contains the results of all elements within Region 1.
– Region 2 - Results object(ElmRes): contains the results of all elements within Region 2.
..
.
– Region 𝑛 - Results object(ElmRes): contains the results of all elements within Region 𝑛.
• Visualise and analyse results. The simulation results of elements within each region can be shown
in a plot, as follows:
– Click the Insert Plot icon , choose a Curve plot and then OK.
– Under column Element select the element of interest. Click OK.
– Under column Variable select the variable of interest. Click OK.
Note: PowerFactory automatically identifies the region in which the element is placed and
automatically retrieves the variable of interest from the corresponding Results object.
The name of the variable contains a suffix denoting the region from which the values are
taken e.g. “@Region1”

28.10.4 The “Initial conditions for co-simulation” (ComCosim) Command

The single/multiple domain co-simulation makes use of the Initial conditions for co-simulation command
. The command options are described below.

Basic Options page - General tab

Co-simulation type:
• Single domain (RMS-RMS,EMT-EMT): choice of a single domain co-simulation (with internal
solver)

• Multiple domain (RMS-EMT): choice of a multiple domain co-simulation (with internal solver)
• Co-simulation with external application: this option configures PowerFactory to execute a co-
simulation based on an external solver (more information on this type of co-simulation can be
found in Section 28.11).
Method:

• Implicit method (exact approach): choice to apply an implicit co-simulation method;

• Explicit method (approximate approach): choice to apply an explicit co-simulation method;
Number of selected regions for co-simulation: this field provides overview information on the number
of regions that have been already configured for use in a co-simulation; the regions are defined in the
Single/Multiple Domain page.

Synchronisation period: via this field, a user-defined fixed synchronisation period between the co-
simulated regions can be provided;

Start time: field available for Multiple domain (RMS-EMT) option only; the simulation in each region is
initialised at the Start time;

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Initial settings: field available for Single domain (RMS-RMS,EMT-EMT) option only; a reference link to
a single Calculation of initial conditions (ComInc) command which is to be used for all regions of the
co-simulation;

Results: A selection link to the results file (ElmRes) which aggregates all co-simulation results of
elements is provided.

Basic Options page - Advanced tab

Update plots during simulation: Depending on this flag, the time domain plots which show co-simulation
results can be updated either during or at the end of the co-simulation run. For improved performance,
the flag should be un-checked.

Prediction for explicit method: A prediction algorithm is available for the explicit method;

Display messages of all regions: During the simulation run, if this flag is checked, then the output
window will include all generated messages of the simulated regions;

Reuse parallel processes: Check this flag if already-created parallel processes are to be re-used;

Parallel computation settings: A link to the parallel computation settings is provided. Further information
on the Parallel computation settings and the Parallel computing manager is available in Section 21.4.

Indication of used/available cores for co-simulation: Information is provided on the number of used and
available processor cores for a co-simulation run.

Single/Multiple Domain page - Regions tab

Definition of regions: the regions to be used in the co-simulation can be defined within this tabular
list. In the case of a Multiple domain co-simulation, a specific Calculation of initial conditions (ComInc)
command can be assigned for each region in the Settings column. The domain used for each region
is shown in the Domain column, and can be changed within the corresponding Calculation of initial
conditions (ComInc) command (along with all other settings).

Note: If no Boundary element is existing in the Boundaries folder (Network Model → Network Data→
Boundaries), then the boundary selection field is inactive. Boundary objects must be defined first.

Create remaining region: If the regions in the table do not completely cover the grid, this is indicated
by a message and a button is provided to create a region covering the remainder of the grid. If the co-
simulation method is set to Explicit and the Remote network representation is set to Multi-port Thevenin
equivalent, then this region is created to make a node-based split, otherwise it is created to make a
branch-based split.

Network partitioning: If the Regions table is empty or the network is completely covered, then the
automatic partitioning function is available via the Network partitioning pane. The Partition Network
button can be used to automatically split the currently active power system into a customisable number
of regions. All power system changes applied by the network partitioning tool are recorded in a
dedicated Network Variation.

The following customisation options can be set prior to partitioning the network:
• Number of regions: Set a positive integer number greater than or equal to 2. The set value defines
the number of regions that shall be created by the partitioning algorithm.

• Only distributed parameter lines admissible as boundary branches: Check this option in order for
PowerFactory to identify as eligible boundary branch components only branches configured as

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a Distributed Parameter line model. Otherwise, all branches are considered in the partitioning
algorithm.
• Automatic adjustment of boundary branches to “Distributed Parameter”: Check this option in
order for PowerFactory to automatically adjust branches which are initially configured as Lumped
Parameter line model, to Distributed Parameter line model. The option creates, if necessary, new
types sharing the same data as the original types. Whenever the existing data is incompatible
with a Distributed Parameter line model, the parameters are appropriately adjusted using default
values (e.g. zero values for line capacitance are changed to non-zero default values). Whenever
the case, boundary branches are referenced to the newly created branch types. Changes to the
boundary branch are recorded within the dedicated Network Variation.

Elements excluded from being boundary branches: A user defined set can be selected. Select here
those elements which are not intended to be used as boundary branches for co-simulation.

Event locations: Check this option in order to automatically add to the fore-mentioned set those ele-
ments involved in pre-defined simulation events (which are appearing in the Simulation Events queue).

Single/Multiple Domain page - Transformation tab

Transformation settings: In the case of a Multiple domain co-simulation, this tab allows the conversion of
electrical quantities between the RMS and EMT domains to be appropriately configured. The following
options are available:
• Same transformation for all: Same transformation settings are used for all boundary branches
involved in the co-simulation; at the bottom of the dialog, the relevant RMS-EMT transformation
settings (SetTransf ) object is linked.
• Different transformation per region: For each set of two neighbouring regions one transformation
is assigned. All possible combinations are defined in the associated list.

Note: Whenever available, the tabular list can be automatically populated by clicking on the button
Reset and load all. For each possible combination in the list, the Settings column can be con-
figured with RMS-EMT transformation settings (SetTransf ) objects. The current list is completely
removed by clicking on the button Clean up. Additionally, the Clean up command will also delete
the unused transformation settings (SetTransf ) objects, usually located inside the Initial conditions
for co-simulation command object.

Single/Multiple Domain page - Remote Network Representation tab

The options in this tab are active only for Explicit method (approximate approach) method of co-
simulation.

Equivalent for remote networks pane has the following options:

• Current/Voltage sources at boundary buses: The applied network reduction method uses simple
current/voltage sources at the boundary buses for the representation of remote networks.
• Multi-port Thevenin equivalent: The network reduction computes a multi-port equivalent of the
entire remote network of each region. The method has the following options:
– Conversion to stable EMT equivalent where required: The reduced network equivalent may
sometimes be numerically unstable due to the existence of negative resistances. If this flag
is active, then any negative resistance is set to zero.
– Boundaries without slack pane:
* Alternative slack locations: select the bus/set of buses where a reference machine
(slack) element is to be inserted in case one or a set of regions have missing refer-
ence machine elements. A region(boundary) without reference machine is a region that
contains only passive elements, loads and no elements with grid-forming capability (e.g.

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synchronous machines, static generators with reference machine capability). If no bus

or set of buses is assigned, then the program automatically assigns reference machine
elements (a voltage source element), in regions with missing reference machines at the
Boundary /Edge nodes.
Simulation Master page: this page is only relevant for the co-simulation with external application.
Refer to Section 28.11 for further information.

FMU Agent page: this page is only relevant for the co-simulation with external application. Refer to
Section 28.11 for further information.

28.10.5 Terms and Definitions for Co-simulation

The most important terms needed for co-simulation are detailed below.
• Co-Simulation: Simulation in parallel of different sub-systems which form a coupled problem.

• Co-Simulation domain: The analysis domain of the coupled problem. Typically, for power
system analysis tools the co-simulation domains will be one of the three available time-domain
simulation methods, as described in Section 28.2.
• Simulation unit: A Simulation unit consists of one time domain simulator and its associated
power system model in a combined Co-Simulation.
• Region: Within the Single/Multiple domain co-simulation, multiple simulation units can be in-
cluded, while the associated power systems model of each unit is referred to as a Region. This
is due to the fact that in the case of power system analysis applications the linking between the
simulation units is typically done at the border between physically separated regions of the power
system, as shown in Figure 28.10.1. Co-simulation domains are assigned individually for each
region.
• Neighbouring regions: A region 𝑖 is a neighbouring region with respect to region 𝑗 if at least
one electrical connection path exists between the two regions that does not cross through another
region.

• Interface elements: The intersection between the elements of a region and one of its neighbour-
ing regions defines the interface elements of the two regions. Interface elements can be AC lines
(branch-based splitting) or terminals (node-based splitting)

Note: For a valid co-simulation, the following is required:

– the interface elements must consist only of AC line elements.
– it is not allowed to include dynamic models whose controls span across co-simulation
regions.

• Boundary: Boundary objects (ElmBoundary ) are PowerFactory grouping objects which specify a
topological cut through the power network (refer to Section 14.4 for more information). Boundary
objects are used within co-simulation to define the interface elements of neighbouring regions.
The co-simulation Boundary is defined by a boundary object which cuts the power network via
all AC line elements which separate one region from all other neighbouring regions. As a conse-
quence, the number of co-simulation regions equals the number of co-simulation boundaries. The
elements of a co-simulation region are the interior region elements of the associated co-simulation
boundary object.

• Boundary branch: An interface element which is an ac line (ElmLne). Practically, boundary

branches are those ac line elements that are common between a region and one neighbouring
region.

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28.11 Co-simulation with External Application

This section provides guidance on the configuration and use of the Co-simulation with External Appli-
cation. This section is organised as follows:
• An overview of the Co-simulation with External Application is provided in Section 28.11.1.
• The configuration of the co-simulation tool is provided in Section 28.11.2.
• The execution and plotting of co-simulation results are detailed in subsection 28.11.3.
• The Preparation as FMU Agent (ComCosimsetup) command is described in subsection 28.11.4
• The FMU Agent I/O (ElmAgentio) and FMU Agent (ElmAgent) objects are described in subsec-
tion 28.11.5
• The Initial conditions for co-simulation (ComCosim) command is detailed in subsection 28.11.6
• The terms and definitions are given in subsection 28.11.7.

28.11.1 Overview of the Co-simulation with External Application

PowerFactory supports the Functional Mock-up Interface (FMI) as a standard framework for the Co-
simulation of power systems. As such, PowerFactory can be used to coordinate several Functional
Mock-Up Units (FMUs) in a combined power systems Co-simulation, as shown in Figure 28.11.1. The
components supported by PowerFactory and, potentially, by a generic third-party software are
correspondingly marked.

FMU Agent
Simulation .FMU
Master FMI 3rd Region Solver 3rd
Agent Process 1

FMU Agent
.FMU
FMI 3rd Region Solver 3rd
Agent Process n

.FMU 3rd
FMU Agent
FMI Region Solver PowerFactory

Master Process 3rd Third party software

Figure 28.11.1: Architecture of the co-simulation with external application

The Simulation Master interacts with other applications (i.e. tool-coupling) or with other standalone
FMUs via the .FMU files. Furthermore, PowerFactory can generate FMUs utilised by an FMI-compliant

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simulation tool for the purpose of Co-simulation. As such, PowerFactory creates multiple FMUs, one
for each defined region of an existing power system model. A PowerFactory -created .FMU can only be
linked with a PowerFactory -hosted FMU Agent, and viceversa.

The FMI link is a compiled library access connection (the .FMU files must be located on the
Simulation Master ’s local machine), compliant with the FMI standard and having a specific set of
input/outputs signals being exchanged (refer to Section 28.11.2.6). The methods by which the required
set of exchanged signals are computed in an FMU is not specified, each FMU Agent being responsible
for proper signal evaluation.

The green and orange links are not specified by the FMI standard. In the case of PowerFactory
FMU Agents, the link is based on the TCP/IP communication protocol. Other FMU Agents can imple-
ment customised interfaces, independently of the Co-simulation for external application requirements
(in other words, the way in which the data are transferred across these interfaces is not relevant to the
Co-simulation for external application function). There are no other particular requirements between the
Master Process and the Agent Processes, except that the required interface links ( , and )
must be functional and available.

The Co-simulation with External Application is designed for (but not restricted to) two main use cases,
as follows:
• Co-simulation between PowerFactory and a third party software: power system models developed
in PowerFactory and others in a third party tool may be included in a combined Co-simulation.
• Distributed Co-simulation between multiple PowerFactory applications: multiple PowerFactory
instances located in different locations can carry out a Co-simulation via a TCP/IP based network.
The FMI standard specifies two main components:

• FMI for Model Exchange (FMU model import/export)

• FMI for Co-simulation (FMU model import/export)
The FMI for Co-simulation component is relevant for the Co-simulation with external application.

Each FMU agent is responsible for supporting the designated Co-simulation domains and with exchang-
ing the relevant signals. The framework for Co-simulation supports the following domains:
• RMS balanced

• RMS unbalanced
• EMT
Two PowerFactory commands are used for co-simulation with an external application:

• Preparation as FMU agent (ComCosimsetup ) - detailed in Section 28.11.4

• Initial conditions for co-simulation command (ComCosim ) - detailed in Section 28.11.6

28.11.2 Configuring the Co-simulation with external application

The Co-simulation is configured according to the following procedure:

• Definition of regions - Section 28.11.2.1
• Checking requirements for power system elements relevant to FMI signal exchange - Sec-
tion 28.11.2.2

• Generation of .FMU files - Section 28.11.2.3

• Configuring the PowerFactory FMU Agents - Section 28.11.2.4

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• Configuring the Simulation Master - Section 28.11.2.5

• Execution of co-simulation A co-simulation can be executed whenever all FMUs (and their
corresponding .FMU files) are generated and the co-simulation pre-requisites are fulfilled. Refer
to Section 28.11.3 for information on how to execute a co-simulation using external application.

28.11.2.1 Definition of regions

In PowerFactory this is done by creating a Boundary object (ElmBoundary ) for each region. Refer
to Section 14.4 for more information on boundaries, their definition and usage.

Note: Boundaries can be defined using the Boundary Definition Tool or directly from the single line
diagram by selecting one (or multiple) branch elements, right-clicking and selecting Network
Groupings → Boundary → New. . . . For co-simulation, the definition from the single line diagram
is typically used.

The boundary ’s interior region defines each Co-simulation region. The internal region elements and
external region elements can be easily identified. The way the boundary must be defined (i.e. the
network splitting method) is dependent on the choice of the remote network equivalent. The available
network splitting methods are shown in Table 28.11.1 as a function of the remote network equivalent.
The two splitting methods are graphically demonstrated using a two area example in Figure 28.11.2
(Branch-based) and Figure 28.11.3 (Node-based). In the case of Branch-based splitting it is apparent
that two boundaries must be defined at the connecting cubicles of a branch element (an AC line element)
and have the Orientation towards the branch. In the case of Node-based splitting it is apparent that two
boundaries must be defined at the same connecting cubicle of a branch element and have opposite
orientations (one pointing towards the branch, another one pointing towards the busbar). The same
procedure can be applied to any other more complex network configurations.

Remote Network Equivalent

Splitting Method Current/Voltage Multi-port
source equivalent Thevenin equivalent
Node-based X
Branch-based X X

Table 28.11.1: Supported splitting method for Co-Simulation

Note: It is important to underline that in the case of Branch-based splitting the interface elements must
be a set of AC lines.

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Region 2

Boundary definition
for Region 1

Boundary definition
for Region 2

Region 1

Figure 28.11.2: Boundary definition for Branch-based network splitting method of a two area power
system

Region 2

Boundary definition
for Region 2
Co-simulation
interface

Boundary definition
for Region 1

Region 1

Figure 28.11.3: Boundary definition for Node-based network splitting method of a two area power
system

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28.11.2.2 Checking requirements for power system elements relevant to FMI signal exchange

The relevant elements for FMI signal exchange are those elements directly connected to edge nodes.
Each of these elements must have a power system wide unique foreign key. The foreign key must not
be empty for any such relevant element.

Note: Each PowerFactory object has a dedicated foreign key attribute (“for_name”), found in the De-
scription page of the element’s Edit dialog. Third party software must also define a compliant
foreign_key for each relevant element.

28.11.2.3 Generation of .FMU files

Based on the defined regions and foreign keys corresponding .FMUs are generated. An .FMU de-
scribes all input/output signal connections of the contained region to any other .FMUs (describing the
neighbouring regions). In PowerFactory this process involves the configuration and execution of the
Preparation as FMU agent (ComCosimsetup ):

Note: Refer to Section 28.11.4 for more information on configuration settings of the command.

• The previously defined boundary objects are selected.

• The remote network equivalent options (Current-/Voltage-source/Multi-port Thevenin) are selected
depending on the previously made choice for the remote network representation when boundaries
were defined.
• The command allows the (a) network reduction of the remote network for each region, (b) the
creation of relevant FMU objects (internal PowerFactory objects) and (c) the creation of relevant
.FMUs (external file).
• If the defined regions do not completely cover the power system, an additional .FMU is created
for the rest of the system. For correct operation, make sure that foreign keys are defined for the
elements connected to the edge nodes of the rest of the system as well.
• The set of signals being exchanged must be identified at this stage. Comprehensive informa-
tion regarding the selection of signals, their purpose and the used format is provided in Sec-
tion 28.11.2.6.

28.11.2.4 Configuring the PowerFactory FMU Agents

For each PowerFactory -generated .FMU one PowerFactory instance must be started and a FMU Agent
must be configured using the Initial conditions for co-simulation command (ComCosim ). The settings
used in this case are:

• Basic Options page → General tab→ Co-simulation type: Co-simulation with external application
• Basic Options page → General tab→ Task : Run as FMU Agent
• FMU Agent page configuration. Refer to Section 28.11.6 for more information on configuration
settings.

Preparation of the FMU Agents

On the PowerFactory side, a project can be prepared for co-simulation with an external application by
using the command Preparation as FMU agent (ComCosimsetup ). An example of a configuration
setup based on a two area power system (refer to figure 28.10.4) is shown in figure 28.11.4.

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Figure 28.11.4: Co-simulation with external application - configuration options (example)

The command is able to perform the following tasks:

• Reduce and create FMU Agents: performs network reduction of the power system regions which
are to be simulated externally and creates corresponding FMU Agent I/O objects for each active
list entry.

Note: The FMU Agent I/O object (ElmAgentio) is described in detail in Section 28.11.5

• Reduce only: performs network reduction of the power system regions which are to be simulated
externally. It also creates new FMU Agent I/O objects but no .FMU files. This option is useful
when the FMUs are already created but the network variations or the network reduction must be
re-created/re-executed e.g. some subsequent topological modifications have been made to the
system.
• Create single FMU Agent: creates one single .FMU file based on an already existing FMU Agent
I/O object (ElmAgentio).

Note: The FMU Agents can be created based on an explicit (default) or an implicit co-simulation
algorithm. The implicit co-simulation method is intended only for a co-simulation in which all
FMI Agents are PowerFactory instances.

28.11.2.5 Configuring the Simulation Master

Based on one PowerFactory instance, a Simulation Master is configured using the Initial conditions for
co-simulation command (ComCosim ). The settings used in this case are:
• Basic Options page → General tab→ Co-simulation type: Co-simulation with external application
• Basic Options page → General tab→ Task : Run as simulation master

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• Simulation Master page configuration. Refer to Section 28.11.6 for more information on configu-
ration settings.

Preparation of the Simulation Master

A separate PowerFactory instance is required to be available. The PowerFactory project which has
been used to generate the FMU Agents must be activated on this new PowerFactory instance. None
of the FMU Agent specific study cases are to be used (i.e. the automatically generated cases upon
execution of the ComCosimsetup command). Instead, the original study case should be used. To
configure the Simulation Master, do the following:

• With the original study case active, open the Initial conditions for co-simulation command (Com-
Cosim ).
• Set the command according to the previously described settings, namely: Co-simulation type:
Co-simulation with external application; Task : Run as simulation master.

• Go to the Simulation Master page. The previously generated FMU Agents are automatically
loaded. Each row in the tabular list contains a reference to an FMU Agent object (ElmAgent).
The FMU Agent object defines the file path to the previously generated .FMU file existing on the
Simulation Master machine. Also, the FMU Agent can be set to out of service.
• The Add Agent command can be used to add another FMU Agent. This is useful whenever a
third party or externally generated .FMU file is available, yet it was not previously generated by
the Preparation of FMU Agent command.

28.11.2.6 Exchanged .FMU signals with the Simulation Master

Depending on the boundary definition and of the configured Co-simulation domain, the FMUs must
exchange a specific set of signals at each synchronisation time with any neighbouring FMU. When
mixing Co-simulation domains (RMS balanced, RMS unbalanced, EMT), PowerFactory exchanges the
“simplest” of the two signal types, i.e. balanced preferred over unbalanced and RMS preferred over
EMT type signals, as shown in Figure 28.11.5.

FMU „A“
RMS RMS
EMT
FMU „B“ Balanced Unbalanced
RMS
Balanced
RMS
Unbalanced

EMT

Figure 28.11.5: Selection of Signal domain depending on Co-Simulation domain of two participating
FMUs

When using Branch-based splitting and the remote network is represented using a Current-/Voltage-
source equivalent, the interchanged signals for each FMU are listed in Table 28.11.2. where:
• {foreign key} is the foreign key (object attribute for_name) of one interface relevant element;

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 Signal Domain Input/ Signal names Unit Description
Output
Input {foreign key}.bus{0/1}.{U/I}.re kV/kA Real part of positive sequence voltage/current
Input {foreign key}.bus{0/1}.{U/I}.im kV/kA Imaginary part of positive sequence voltage/current
RMS Balanced
Output {foreign key}.bus{1/0}.{I/U}.re kA/kV Real part of positive sequence current/voltage
Output {foreign key}.bus{1/0}.{I/U}.im kA/kV Imaginary part of positive sequence current/voltage
Input {foreign key}.bus{0/1}.{U/I}.A.re kV/kA Real part of phase A to ground voltage/phase A current
Input {foreign key}.bus{0/1}.{U/I}.A.im kV/kA Imaginary part of phase A to ground voltage/phase A current
Input {foreign key}.bus{0/1}.{U/I}.B.re kV/kA Real part of phase B to ground voltage/phase B current
CHAPTER 28. RMS/EMT SIMULATIONS

Input {foreign key}.bus{0/1}.{U/I}.B.im kV/kA Imaginary part of phase B to ground voltage/phase B current

DIgSILENT PowerFactory 2024, User Manual

Input {foreign key}.bus{0/1}.{U/I}.C.re kV/kA Real part of phase C to ground voltage/phase C current
Input {foreign key}.bus{0/1}.{U/I}.C.im kV/kA Imaginary part of phase C to ground voltage/current
RMS Unbalanced
Output {foreign key}.bus{1/0}.{I/U}.A.re kA/kV Real part of phase A current/phase A to ground voltage
Output {foreign key}.bus{1/0}.{I/U}.A.im kA/kV Imaginary part of phase A current/phase A to ground voltage
Output {foreign key}.bus{1/0}.{I/U}.B.re kA/kV Real part of phase B current/phase B to ground voltage
Output {foreign key}.bus{1/0}.{I/U}.B.im kA/kV Imaginary part of phase B current/phase B to ground voltage

splitting and a Current-/Voltage-source remote network equivalent

Output {foreign key}.bus{1/0}.{I/U}.C.re kA/kV Real part of phase C current/phase C to ground voltage
Output {foreign key}.bus{1/0}.{I/U}.C.im kA/kV Imaginary part of phase C current/phase C to ground voltage
Input {foreign key}.bus{0/1}.{U/I}.A kV/kA Phase A to ground instantaneous voltage/phase A instantaneous current
Input {foreign key}.bus{0/1}.{U/I}.B kV/kA Phase B to ground instantaneous voltage/phase B instantaneous current
Input {foreign key}.bus{0/1}.{U/I}.C kV/kA Phase C to ground instantaneous voltage/phase C instantaneous current
EMT
Output {foreign key}.bus{1/0}.{I/U}.A kA/kV Phase A instantaneous current/phase A to ground instantaneous voltage
Output {foreign key}.bus{1/0}.{I/U}.B kA/kV Phase B instantaneous current/phase B to ground instantaneous voltage
Output {foreign key}.bus{1/0}.{I/U}.C kA/kV Phase C instantaneous current/phase C to ground instantaneous voltage

670
Table 28.11.2: Signal interface specification for one common branch of two FMUs using Branch-based
 28.11. CO-SIMULATION WITH EXTERNAL APPLICATION

• bus{0/1} identifies the side of the branch that the signal is taken from;
• U indicates that a voltage signal is being sent/received on this side;

• I indicates that a current signal is being sent/received on this side;

• A/B/C indicates the relevant phase being used;
• re/im indicates that either the real or the imaginary part of the positive sequence vector is used.

Note: • PowerFactory will always send voltage on one side of the branch and current on the other.

When using Node-based splitting and a Multi-port Thevenin equivalent representation of the remote
network, the interchanged signals for each FMU are listed in Table 28.11.3. Elements within the local
boundary generate output signals; elements not within the local boundary (which are thus removed in
the network reduction procedure) generate input signals.

Where:

• {foreign key} is the foreign key (object attribute for_name) of one interface relevant element;
• bus{0/1} identifies the side of the branch that the signal is taken from;
• U indicates that a voltage signal is being sent/received on this side;

• I indicates that a current signal is being sent/received on this side;

• A/B/C indicates the relevant phase being used;
• re/im indicates that either the real or the imaginary part of the positive sequence vector is used.

Note: • For FMUs using Node-based splitting and a Multi-port Thevenin remote network equivalent
the interface relevant elements are those elements connected to the common terminal.
• Both voltage and current are transferred in this approach.
• The generated signals (without the signal type dependent decorations) can be viewed in the
ElmAgentio that is generated during preparation.

Further important notes:

• The reference system of each FMU is assumed to be Nominal frequency.
• When a PowerFactory FMU is used, PowerFactory applies the following Calculation of Initial
Conditions settings: Reference (iopt_coiref ) set to “Nominal Frequency”.
• Frequency is implicitly exchanged between FMUs via the voltage and current signals. For exam-
ple, in an RMS simulation, when the phasor voltage quantities are stationary, then the frequency
is nominal 𝑓 = 𝑓 𝑛. When the phasor voltage quantities are oscillatory with a constant frequency
𝑑𝑓 , then the actual frequency is 𝑓 = 𝑓𝑛 + 𝑑𝑓 .

• if the FMUs are connected via multiple common nodes/branches, then for each common node/branch
one set of signals (as per Tables 28.11.2 and 28.11.3) will exist in the interface.
• The foreign key is used to identify each common node/branch of two FMUs.

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 Signal Domain Input/ Signal names Unit Description
Output
Input {foreign key}.bus{0/1}.U.re kV Real part of positive sequence voltage
Input {foreign key}.bus{0/1}.U.im kV Imaginary part of positive sequence voltage
RMS Balanced
Output {foreign key}.bus{0/1}.I.re kA Real part of positive sequence current
Output {foreign key}.bus{0/1}.I.im kA Imaginary part of positive sequence current
Input {foreign key}.bus{0/1}.U.A.re kV Real part of phase A to ground voltage
Input {foreign key}.bus{0/1}.U.A.im kV Imaginary part of phase A to ground voltage
Input {foreign key}.bus{0/1}.U.B.re kV Real part of phase B to ground voltage
CHAPTER 28. RMS/EMT SIMULATIONS

Input {foreign key}.bus{0/1}.U.B.im kV Imaginary part of phase B to ground voltage

DIgSILENT PowerFactory 2024, User Manual

Input {foreign key}.bus{0/1}.U.C.re kV Real part of phase C to ground voltage
Input {foreign key}.bus{0/1}.U.C.im kV Imaginary part of phase C to ground voltage
RMS Unbalanced
Output {foreign key}.bus{0/1}.I.A.re kA Real part of phase A current
Output {foreign key}.bus{0/1}.I.A.im kA Imaginary part of phase A current
Output {foreign key}.bus{0/1}.I.B.re kA Real part of phase B current

splitting and a Multi-port Thevenin remote network equivalent

Output {foreign key}.bus{0/1}.I.B.im kA Imaginary part of phase B current
Output {foreign key}.bus{0/1}.I.C.re kA Real part of phase C current
Output {foreign key}.bus{0/1}.I.C.im kA Imaginary part of phase C current
Input {foreign key}.bus{0/1}.U.A kV Phase A to ground instantaneous voltage
Input {foreign key}.bus{0/1}.U.B kV Phase B to ground instantaneous voltage
Input {foreign key}.bus{0/1}.U.C kV Phase C to ground instantaneous voltage
EMT
Output {foreign key}.bus{0/1}.I.A kA Phase A instantaneous current
Output {foreign key}.bus{0/1}.I.B kA Phase B instantaneous current
Output {foreign key}.bus{0/1}.I.C kA Phase C instantaneous current

672
Table 28.11.3: Signal interface specification for one common node of two FMUs using Node-based
 28.11. CO-SIMULATION WITH EXTERNAL APPLICATION

28.11.3 Performing out a Co-simulation and Retrieving Results

Prerequisites: With reference to Figure 28.11.1, the following requirements are enforced for a suc-
cessful co-simulation:
• The co-simulation has already been configured; refer to Section 28.11.2.
• Availability of PowerFactory instances:
– One PowerFactory instance is required for operating the Simulation Master
– For each PowerFactory generated .FMU, one PowerFactory instance is required.

• For each “third party” .FMU it is assumed that the requirements of the third party software are
fulfilled.
• Each communication link schematically represented in the figure is assumed to be operational.
To carry out a co-simulation, execute the following steps:

• Make sure that the co-simulation case has been successfully configured (refer to Section 28.11.2).
• For each PowerFactory -generated .FMU one PowerFactory instance must be started and config-
ured as follows:
– Each PowerFactory instance must contain the source project with the FMU specific study
case active (an FMU dedicated network variation is also active). Network variations corre-
sponding to other FMUs should not be activated in this PowerFactory instance.
– FMU Agent must be configured using the Initial conditions for co-simulation command (Com-
Cosim ). The applied settings in this case are:
* Basic Options page → General tab→ Co-simulation type: Co-simulation with external
application
* Basic Options page → General tab→ Task : Run as FMU Agent
* FMU Agent page configuration: The corresponding FMU Agent I/O object is automati-
cally listed. It is possible to open this object and review the defined electrical input and
output signals which will be linked via the FMI. The connection TCP/IP port of the agent
is shown (and editable).
– If the FMU Agent is configured, then click Execute. In the output window the FMU Agent will
provide relevant messages on the operation status.
– Re-do the steps above for each participating FMU Agent, one for each PowerFactory pro-
cess.
• Based on one PowerFactory instance, a Simulation Master is configured using the Initial condi-
tions for co-simulation command (ComCosim ). The settings used in this case are as previously
detailed: Co-simulation type: Co-simulation with external application; Task : Run as simulation
master.
• Go to the Simulation Master page and review the already configured information. Now set the
Synchronisation period and the Start time.
• Click Execute in order to initialise the co-simulation. All participating FMU Agents should now
make contact with the Simulation Master and compute the initial conditions in the individual
regions.
• From the Simulation Master open the Start Simulation (ComSim) command dialog and set the
simulation time.
After the simulation has been executed, results can be plotted, exported or post-processed as for any
other dynamic simulation.
• At the end of a co-simulation, the Results (ElmRes) object linked in the Basic Options page of the
Initial conditions for co-simulation (ComCosim) contains the results of elements corresponding to
each FMU Agent. Results of elements belonging to external FMU Agents are not available.

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• View and analyse results. The simulation results of elements within each region can be shown in
a plot, as follows:
– Click the Insert Plot icon , choose a Curve plot and then OK.
– Under the “y-Axis” page, double-click on an empty field of the column Results file of the
Curves tabular list.
– Select the co-simulation Results object
– Under column Element select the relevant element.
– Under column Variable select the variable of interest. Click OK.

28.11.4 The “Preparation as FMU Agent” (ComCosimsetup) Command

The co-simulation with external application makes use of the Preparation as FMU Agent command
. The command executes a network reduction for each of the defined boundaries/regions and
correspondingly generates FMUs/.FMUs. The changes to the power system model applied for each
boundary are stored in a network variation. A set of 𝑛 network variations are generated, one for each
region. For each FMU Agent a dedicated study case is created.

Basic Options page

Preparation steps:
• Reduce and create FMU Agents: performs network reduction of the power system regions which
are to be simulated externally and creates corresponding FMU Agent I/O objects for each active
list entry. It creates one study case and one network variation for each FMU Agent I/O object. The
network variation stores the network reduction modifications applied to the whole system.
• Reduce only: performs network reduction of the power system regions which are to be simulated
externally. It also creates new FMU Agent I/O objects but no .FMU files. This option is useful
when the FMUs are already created but the network variations or the network reduction must be
re-created/re-executed e.g. some subsequent topological modifications have been made to the
system.
• Create single FMU Agent: creates one single .FMU file based on an already existing FMU Agent
I/O object (ElmAgentio). Note, the FMU Agent object (ElmAgentio) is described in detail in
Section 28.11.5.

Tabular input options for Reduce and create FMU Agents:

• Active: For each row entry of this table (i.e. FMU Agent), a checkbox is available to include or
exclude the row from the preparation step.
• Boundaries: For each FMU Agent, one boundary element (ElmBoundary ) can be set in the
corresponding field. The boundary defines the relevant region for this FMU Agent.
• Simulation method: For each FMU Agent, the simulation method can be selected in this field.
• Communication: Choose between Local, TCP/IP LAN and TCP/IP WAN;
• IP address: For the FMU Agent whose communication is not local, this field defines the IP address
of the FMU Agent. If the FMU Agent is placed behind a router, this IP address is the router’s
address.
• WAN port: (optional) For each FMU Agent whose communication is TCP/IP WAN, this field defines
the WAN’s external port which will be accessed by the PowerFactory .FMU.

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 28.11. CO-SIMULATION WITH EXTERNAL APPLICATION

Note: Reduce and create FMU Agents is the default option used. The original, fully defined power
system, study case should be used. Based on the power system topology of this study case, a
number of FMU Agents can be defined. Upon execution of this command, for each FMU Agent, a
new dedicated study case is generated along with required configuration.

Tabular input options for Reduce only :

• Active: For each row entry of this table (i.e. FMU Agent), a checkbox is available to include or
exclude the row from the preparation step.

• Regions/ElmBoundary: For each FMU Agent, one boundary element (ElmBoundary ) can be set
in the corresponding field. The boundary defines the relevant region for this FMU Agent.
• Simulation method: For each FMU Agent, the simulation method can be selected in this field.

Note: Reduce only is typically used when only topological changes are applied on a given FMU Agent
which do not affect other FMUs nor do they result in different boundary settings/configuration. In
this situation, the dedicated study case for the targeted FMU Agent should be activated, and this
option then used.

Input options for Create single FMU Agent:

• FMU Agent I/O definitions / ElmAgentio: in this table, the relevant boundaries can be selected,
one for each FMU Agent. One .FMU file is generated for each entry row.
• Network: For all PowerFactory FMU Agents, the network type can be selected for the interface
links and ) depicted in Figure 28.11.1. If checkbox is not set, the communication network
is local (i.e. using loopback interface “127.0.0.1” in the machine hosting the Simulation Master
process). If checkbox is set, the communication network is defined by subsequent fields IP
address and WAN port.
• Communication: Choose between Local, TCP/IP LAN and TCP/IP WAN;
• IP address: For the FMU Agent whose communication is not local, this field defines the IP address
of the FMU Agent. If the FMU Agent is placed behind a router, this IP address is the router’s
address.
• WAN port: (optional) For each FMU Agent whose communication is not local and the machine
hosting the FMU Agent is behind a router, this field defines the router’s external port which will be
accessed by the PowerFactory .FMU.

Note: Create single FMU Agent is typically used when an already created FMU Agent I/O object is
available (obtained via the Preparation as FMU Agent command) but the .FMU file still needs to
be created. In such a situation, the dedicated study case for the targeted FMU Agent should be
activated, and this option further used.

Method: Choose between Implicit method(exact approach) and Explicit method(approximate approach).
Note that the Implicit method is only available when all co-simulation units are PowerFactory FMU
Agents, and each one is set to support the Implicit method.

Load flow: A reference link to the currently used Load Flow Calculation command is provided.

Initial conditions: A reference link to the currently used Initial Conditions command is provided.

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CHAPTER 28. RMS/EMT SIMULATIONS

Reduction page - Transformation Settings:

Transformation settings - this pane can be configured in order to appropriately represent the conversion
of electrical quantities between the RMS and EMT domains. The following options are available:
• Same transformation for all: A single transformation method is used for all boundary branches
involved in the co-simulation; at the bottom of the dialog, the relevant RMS-EMT transformation
settings (SetTransf ) object is linked.
• Different transformation per region: For each set of two neighbouring regions one transformation
is assigned. All possible combinations are defined in the associated list.

Note: Whenever available, the tabular list can be automatically populated by clicking on the button
Reset and load all. For each possible combination in the list, the Settings column can be con-
figured with RMS-EMT transformation settings (SetTransf ) objects. The current list is completely
removed by clicking on the button Clean up. Additionally, the Clean up command will also delete
the unused transformation settings (SetTransf ) objects, usually located inside the Initial conditions
for co-simulation command object.

Reduction page - Remote Network Representation:

Equivalent for remote networks pane has the following options:

• Current/Voltage sources at boundary buses: The applied network reduction method uses simple
current/voltage sources at the boundary buses for the representation of remote networks.
• Multi-port Thevenin equivalent: The network reduction computes a multi-port equivalent of the
entire remote network of each region. The method has the following options:
– Conversion to stable EMT equivalent where required: The reduced network equivalent may
sometimes be numerically unstable due to the existence of negative resistances. If this flag
is active, then any negative resistance is set to zero.
– Boundaries without slack pane:
* Alternative slack locations: select the bus/set of buses where a reference machine
(slack) element is to be inserted if one or a set of regions have missing reference
machine elements. A region (boundary) without reference machine is a region that
contains only passive elements, loads and no elements with grid-forming capability (e.g.
synchronous machines, static generators with reference machine capability). If no bus
or set of buses is assigned, then the program automatically assigns reference machine
elements (a voltage source element), in regions with missing reference machines at the
Boundary /Edge nodes.

FMU page - General:

FMU base name: The FMU’s name

Output folder: The folder where the .FMU files are saved.

Local port: The IP port of the FMU Agent for inbound connections from the Simulation Master can
be configured here. If multiple FMU Agents are generated, then this field defines the local port of the
first FMU Agent, any subsequent FMU Agents being assigned local ports which are indexed starting
with the first one. The end of range local port (the local port of the last FMU Agent) is provided as an
information message.

Encrypt communication: For all PowerFactory FMU Agents, TCP/IP communication can be encrypted
using this flag.

Configured Co-Simulation: A reference to the Initial Conditions for Co-Simulation is automatically pro-
vided here for easy access. The settings of this object can be easily accessed using this reference.

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 28.11. CO-SIMULATION WITH EXTERNAL APPLICATION

FMU page - Additional Info:

Author: A user-defined text field for storing author information that is saved in the .FMU.

Version: A user-defined text field for storing version information that is saved in the .FMU.

Copyright: A user-defined text field for storing copyright information that is saved in the .FMU.

Description: A user-defined text field for storing description information that is saved in the .FMU.

Licence: A user-defined text field for storing licence information that is saved in the .FMU.

Output page: Choose between short and detailed output messages.

28.11.5 FMU Agent I/O and FMU Agent objects

The FMU Agent I/O object (ElmAgentio) has the following configuration options:

Basic Data page

• Out of service: flag to disable the FMU Agent I/O

• Simulation methods of remote boundaries: The simulation domain can be selected for each
boundary

• Transformation settings - this pane can be configured in order to appropriately represent the
conversion of electrical quantities between the RMS and EMT domains. The following options
are available:
– Same transformation for all: A single transformation method is used for all boundary branches
involved in the co-simulation; at the bottom of the dialog, the relevant RMS-EMT transforma-
tion settings (SetTransf ) object is linked.
– Different transformation per boundary: For each boundary one transformation is assigned.
All possible combinations are defined in the additional table column.

Grid Connections page

• Electrical Inputs: the FMI compliant input signals are listed in this tab
• Electrical Outputs: the FMI compliant output signals are listed in this tab
• Additional Information: this tab provide information regarding the branches used for the network
equivalent (these are common impedance (ElmZpu) elements).

The FMU Agent object (ElmAgent) has the following configuration options:

Basic Options page:

• Name: the name of the object
• Path: the file path to the .FMU file

• Out of service: flag to disable the FMU Agent

• Further information detailing the properties of the .FMU file.
Signals page:

• List of signals: provides a tabular list of all signals exchanged by the FMU Agent, along with
individual signal details.
Description page:

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CHAPTER 28. RMS/EMT SIMULATIONS

• Description: a text field which contains an FMU text description (if any);
• License: a text field which contains an FMU licence description (if any);

28.11.6 The “Initial conditions for co-simulation” (ComCosim) Command

The co-simulation with external application makes use of the Initial conditions for co-simulation com-
mand . As the command is described in detail in Section 28.10.4, only the relevant information
regarding the external application based co-simulation is given here.

Basic Options page - General tab

Co-simulation type: select the option “Co-simulation with external application”.

Task pane:
• Run as simulation master
• Run as FMU Agent
Options for Run as simulation master :

• Information message: The number of selected regions for co-simulation

• Synchronisation period: via this field, a user-defined fixed synchronisation period between the
co-simulated regions can be provided;
• Start time - the co-simulation start time (identical for all FMU Agents)

Options for Run as FMU Agent:

• Information message: The number of neighbouring regions for co-simulation (for the specified
FMU Agent)
• Initial conditions: a reference to the Calculation of initial conditions (ComInc) command which is
to be used for the FMU Agent;
• Results: A selection link to the results file (ElmRes) which stores the co-simulation results for the
FMU Agent.

Simulation Master page

• The previously generated FMU Agents are automatically loaded. Each row in the tabular list
contains a reference to an FMU Agent object (ElmAgent). The FMU Agent object defines the file
path to the previously generated .FMU file existing on the Simulation Master machine. Also, the
FMU Agent can be set to out of service.
• The Add Agent command can be used to add another FMU agent. This is useful whenever a
third party or externally generated .FMU file is available, yet it was not previously generated by
the Preparation of FMU Agent command.

FMU Agent page (these settings are applicable only for PowerFactory .FMUs)
• Port: the local TCP/IP port of the FMU Agent for inbound requests from the .FMU. Note, changing
the port number here without updating the .FMU file will lead to a broken connection.

• Initial conditions: (informative) a reference to the Calculation of initial conditions (ComInc) com-
mand which is to be used for the FMU Agent;
• Simulation command: (informative) a reference to the Run simulation (ComSim) command which
is to be used for the FMU Agent;

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 28.11. CO-SIMULATION WITH EXTERNAL APPLICATION

• (informative) The corresponding FMU Agent I/O object is automatically listed. It is possible to
open this object and review the defined electrical input and output signals which will be linked via
the FMI.

28.11.7 Terms and Definitions for Co-simulation with External Application

The terms and definitions used for the Co-simulation with External Application are detailed below.

Co-Simulation: Simulation in parallel of different sub-systems which form a coupled problem. Each
sub-system represents a part of a power system dynamic simulation model.

Simulation unit: A Simulation unit consists of one time domain simulator (referred to as a solver ) and
its associated power system model (referred to as a region).

Co-Simulation with external application: A co-simulation involving PowerFactory simulation units

and (optionally) third-party developed simulation units. The Co-Simulation with external application
follows a distributed computing architecture, allowing simulation units to be executed on different ma-
chines.

Co-Simulation domain: The analysis domain of the coupled problem. Within the PowerFactory ’s co-
simulation with external application the co-simulation domains are: RMS balanced, RMS unbalanced
and EMT (refer to Section 28.2).

Simulation master: A computer program that coordinates all simulation units in a combined co-
simulation with external application.

Region: Within the co-simulation with external application, multiple simulation units can be included,
while the associated power systems model of each unit is referred to as a Region. This is due to the fact
that in the case of power system analysis, the linking between the simulation units is typically done at
the border between physically separated regions of the power system, as shown in Figure 28.10.1. The
co-simulation domains are individually assigned for each region. A region is defined in PowerFactory
by an associated Boundary object (ElmBoundary ). Boundary objects are saved in Network Model →
Network Data→ Boundaries folder of the PowerFactory project.

Internal region elements: Those power system elements which are located inside the region. In
PowerFactory the internal region elements are identical with the internal elements of the Boundary
object defining the region.

External region elements: Those power system elements which are located outside the region. In
PowerFactory the external region elements are the elements external to the Boundary object defining
the region.

Neighbouring region: A region 𝑖 is a neighbouring region with respect to region 𝑗 if at least one
electrical connection path exists between the two regions that does not cross through any other region.

Interface elements: The intersection between the elements of a region and one of its neighbouring
regions defines the interface elements of the two regions.

Edge node (of a region): Any node (terminal) in the power system model which is directly connected
with elements both within and outside the respective region. In PowerFactory a node is defined by the
terminal object, of class ElmTerm. The Edge nodes must not necessarily be internal region elements.

FMI: The Functional Mock-up Interface (FMI) is a free standard which facilitates the exchange of
simulation models among a large number of simulation programs. The FMI is a multi-purpose standard,
i.e. the co-simulation of power systems is only one application. Currently, more than 150 tools actively
support FMI. PowerFactory supports FMI version 2.0.

FMU: A Functional Mock-up Unit (FMU) component, according to FMI standard.

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.FMU: An FMU file (i.e. the realisation of an FMU), directly accessible by the Simulation Master. The
.FMU is compliant with the requirements of exchanged signals with the Simulation Master, as specified
in Section 28.11.2.6.

FMU agent: A Simulation Unit whose corresponding .FMU complies with the FMI for co-simulation
part of the FMI standard version 2.0.

Master process: A process of a computer program which contains the Simulation Master. The Master
process belongs to PowerFactory.

Agent process: A process of a computer program which contains the FMU agent. The Agent process
belongs either to PowerFactory or a third party program.

Foreign key: The elements connected to an edge node (of a region) are used in the signal definition
of the FMI compliant interface between the simulation master and the .FMU. These elements need to
be uniquely identified throughout the co-simulation interface using identifiers. For the purpose of co-
simulation with external application this unique identifier is called a foreign_key. Within PowerFactory
every object has a dedicated foreign_key (i.e. attribute “for_name”), found in the Description page of the
element’s Edit dialog. By default, the attribute for_name is empty, hence for all elements connected to
an edge node of any region it must be manually defined. This will ensure a correctly defined signal list
of each FMU. It is recommended to define a foreign_key using only letters and numbers and avoiding
special characters and blank spaces.

28.12 Frequency Response Analysis

PowerFactory supports the computation of the frequency response of dynamic models implemented in
DSL. The calculation uses time-domain simulation and it is implemented within the Frequency Response
Analysis command (ComFreqresp).

Frequency Response Analysis is intended for use within dynamic systems which are linear and time-
invariant around their initial operating point. Non-linear and discontinuous behaviour of dynamic models
may affect the accuracy of results. Special care needs to be taken in order to make sure that:
• a flat start simulation is existing as a prerequisite;

• the operating point does not change throughout the simulation;

• any dynamic models which, around their operating point, are non-linear, contain variations over
time or generate discontinuities are excluded from the simulation.

28.12.1 Basic Usage

To perform a Frequency Response Analysis calculation two approaches are possible:

• Via the Simulation RMS/EMT toolbox in the main toolbar:

– Click on the Calculation of Frequency Response icon
– The Frequency Response Analysis command dialog is shown.

• Via the Composite Model Graphic:

– Show the graphic of the Composite Model which contains the DSL model of interest.
– Right-click one input signal of a slot containing the DSL model of interest and choose Calcu-
lation → Calculation of Frequency Response. . .
– The Frequency Response Analysis command dialog is shown.
The Frequency Response Analysis calculation settings are configured using the command dialog via
the three available pages as below:

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• Basic Data
• Output

• Advanced
These pages are described in detail in the following subsections.

Once the settings have been configured, the calculation can be started using the Execute button.

28.12.2 Basic Data Page

In the Basic Data page - General, the following settings are available:

Plots pane: There are two options for generating plots:

• Bode: Check this flag in order to generate a Bode Diagram.
• Nyquist: Check this flag in order to generate a Nyquist Plot.

Frequency analysis data pane: here the frequency range of interest, the frequency step and the
individual frequency amplitude by which the input signal is being tested can be configured.

• Step: the frequency step in Hz used by the frequency response analysis. This parameter will
impact both the frequency step by which the input signal is tested and the step in the output plots.
Note that this parameter is inversely proportional to the duration of one simulation window.

• Start at step: the frequency step at which the frequency response analysis starts. The input field
accepts a non-zero integer number. This parameter will impact both the minimum frequency at
which the input signal is tested and the minimum frequency of the output plots.
• Minimum frequency: the actual minimum frequency in Hz being used in the calculation is
displayed next to the Start at step input field. This parameter can only be changed by modifying
parameters Start at step and Step.
• End at step: the frequency step at which the frequency response analysis ends. The input field
accepts a non-zero integer number. This parameter will impact both the maximum frequency at
which the input signal is tested and the maximum frequency of the output plots.

• Maximum frequency: the actual maximum frequency in Hz being used in the calculation is
displayed next to the End at step input field. This parameter can only be changed by modifying
parameters End at step and Step.
• Amplitude: the amplitude of the input signal at minimum frequency defined as an absolute value.
Note that this parameter can be adjusted upwards/downwards such that the particular model being
tested does not go out of the initial linear operating range.

Simulation data pane: this is used for configuring the dynamic simulation used by the Frequency
Response Analysis command.

• Initial conditions: the Initial conditions object being used is referenced within this field. Edit the
settings of the initial conditions according to the analysis requirements.

Note: Adjustments to initial conditions are possible and recommended in order to fine tune the
results. The calculation of initial conditions can be executed independently of the Frequency
Response Analysis in an initial stage in order to make sure that a flat start simulation is set
up. Note also that only fixed time step simulation is supported.

• Integration step size: the simulation integration step size in seconds is displayed. This value can
be changed via the Initial conditions object.

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• Recommended value: the recommended value of the simulation integration step size. This
parameter is shown if (and only if) the simulation integration step size is larger than this value.
Simulation integration step sizes smaller than the recommended value are accepted but may lead
to larger execution times. Simulation integration step sizes larger than the recommended value
are accepted up to the Nyquist criterion limit but may lead to inaccurate results.
• No. of windows: the number of windows used for the simulation. For simulations in which
a flat start simulation is not possible, a larger number of windows is required, and proportional
to the decay time of the initial transients. The calculation of the Frequency Response Analysis is
executed using the simulation results of the last window, while the results of all other time windows
are not considered.

Note: Adjusting the number of windows is needed only if the simulation does not have a flat start.
If this is the case, then one simulation using the aforementioned Initial conditions should be
performed independently of the Frequency Response Analysis calculation. The simulation
time until steady state is obtained should be measured and divided by the duration of one
window of the Frequency Response Analysis. The number of windows must then be greater
than this value.

• Simulation duration: the total simulation time in seconds is displayed.

Transfer function input/output definition pane: this pane is used for the selection of input and output
signals of the transfer function(s).

• Composite Model: the composite model which contains the DSL model of interest (optional
setting). This field limits/filters the selection of the Input DSL model being used to the ones which
are contained within this composite model. This setting can be useful in case of a project with a
large number of DSL models.
• Input DSL: the DSL model whose input signal is defined within the transfer function(s). The Input
DSL selection window contains either all calculation relevant common models within the active
project (if no Composite Model is selected) or all calculation relevant common models located
within the Composite Model (if such a Composite Model has been defined in the above field).
• Input signal: the input signal of the transfer function(s). A drop down list containing all available
input signals of the Input DSL model is made available. From the given signal list, define the input
signal of the transfer function(s).
• Output signal(s): the number of output signals (if any) of the transfer function(s) is displayed.
These output signals are defined using the Add button, shown using the Show button and re-
moved using the Remove All button. The number of generated transfer functions equals the
number of selected output signals. Each transfer function has the same input signal while the
output signal may differ.
• Show button: the output signal(s) being used for the computation of the transfer function(s) along
with the model(s) to which they belong can be shown as follows:
– Click on the Show button;
– Open the Variable Selection dialog corresponding to one of the elements shown in the list
(e.g. right-click the corresponding row and select Edit);
– The output signal(s) are listed within the Selected Variables field.
• Add button: one or more output signals can be defined using the Add button as follows:
– Click on the Add button;
– Select the element which contains the variable of interest. If not shown directly in the se-
lection dialog, other calculation relevant elements can be chosen by using the item Signal(s)
from other elements.
– Open the Variable Selection window corresponding to this element (e.g. if available directly
in the selection dialog then double-click element’s icon)

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– Identify the variable of interest (i.e. using either the Simulation RMS or the Simulation EMT
filters) and add it to the Selected Variables field.
– Click the OK button to add the variable

Note: The output signal(s) of the transfer function can be any calculation relevant variable,
not only output signals of DSL models. Nevertheless, do make sure that the output signal
has practical meaning within the context of the specific study.

• Remove All button: Use this button to remove all already selected output signals.
In the Basic Data page - Input signal diagram, the waveform of the injected fourier signal and the
amplitude spectrum (see Ch. 28.12.7) over one time window are shown.

28.12.3 Output Page

The following general settings are subject to user configuration on the Output page:

Results: The object in which the Frequency Response Analysis results are stored.

Output stability margin indices: If selected, the gain and phase margin indices are calculated and
displayed in the output window. If the Nyquist plot option is checked in the Basic Data page then the
Module and Delay margins are additionally printed to the output window.

Note: • The Gain margin, in dB, is the reciprocal of the magnitude of the open-loop transfer function
calculated at the frequency at which the phase angle is −180° (i.e. the phase crossover
frequency).
• The Phase margin, expressed in degrees, is calculated as 180° plus the phase angle 𝜑 of the
open loop transfer function at the frequency at which the magnitude of the open-loop transfer
function is unity (i.e. the gain crossover frequency).
• The Module margin is defined as the minimum distance between the Nyquist trajectory and
the critical point (-1,0).
• The Delay margin, in seconds, equals the phase margin divided by frequency 𝜔𝜑𝑚 . The
frequency 𝜔𝜑𝑚 represents the frequency on the Nyquist curve at which the phase margin is
calculated. The Delay margin represents the time it takes for a line containing the complex
plane origin and the phase margin crossing point to rotate clockwise with frequency 𝜔𝜑𝑚 until
it overlaps the line containing the complex plane origin and the critical point.

Normalise output signal: The transfer function magnitude is calculated including the magnitude of both
the input and output signals. If unchecked, the input signal magnitude is disregarded in the calculation
of the transfer function. For almost all analysis types, this flag is checked.

Bode plot pane: A number of options are available for customisation of the Bode Diagram.

• Show original signal: The time domain simulated waveform of the transfer function output signal
is shown within the Bode Diagram along with the magnitude and phase of the transfer function.
The time domain waveform of the output signal can be useful when adjusting the Frequency
Response Analysis parameters available in the Basic Data page (e.g. ensuring that the output
signal waveform is not saturated, etc.)
• Linear x-axis: The Bode Diagram is presented using a linear axis for the frequency.

Nyquist plot pane: A number of options are available for customisation of the Nyquist plot.

• Show original signal: The time domain simulated waveform of the transfer function output signal
is shown within the Nyquist plot along with the complex plane diagram. The time domain waveform
of the output signal can be useful when adjusting the Frequency Response Analysis parameters

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available in the Basic Data page (e.g. ensuring that the output signal waveform is not saturated,
etc.)
• Show positive frequencies only: The Nyquist plot is drawn using only the results corresponding
to non-zero positive frequencies.
• Complementary sensitivity margin: A guiding circle is shown on the Nyquist plot. Let 𝑀 be the
inverse of the complementary sensitivity margin (𝑀 is known in literature as the magnitude of the
closed-loop frequency response of unity feedback systems) then on the Nyquist plot a circle of
radius |𝑀/(𝑀 2 − 1)| and centered on (−𝑀 2 /(𝑀 2 − 1),0) is added. In general, all points on this
circle represent constant values of magnitude of the complementary sensitivity transfer function
or, in the case of unity feedback systems, constant values of magnitude of the closed loop transfer
function (i.e. M circle).

28.12.4 Advanced Page

The following general settings are subject to user configuration in the Advanced page:

Consider simulation events: If ticked, then any pre-defined RMS- or EMT-simulation events/faults will
be executed during the Frequency Response Analysis. If unticked (default), any pre-defined RMS- or
EMT-simulation events/faults will not be executed during the Frequency Response Analysis.

28.12.5 Output Plots

Upon executing the Frequency Analysis command, new plots are generated automatically and shown
on a new page. Depending on the command settings, the following plots are presented:

• Bode Diagram:
– Transfer function magnitude plot (magnitude over frequency)
– Transfer function phase plot (phase over frequency)
– (optional) Output signal waveform (time-series of the output signal in the last time window)
• Nyquist Plot:
– Nyquist curve (complex plane representation)
– (optional) Output signal waveform (time-series of the output signal in the last time window)

28.12.6 Output Results Files

Calculation results of the time domain simulation are stored in one Results Object (ElmRes) located
by default in the currently active study case (a subfolder of the Study cases project folder). The default
name of the results object is “Frequency Response”. Calculation results of the transfer function are
stored in the Results Object stored within the Plot itself for both magnitude and phase angle.

28.12.7 Application notes and guidelines

The procedure followed by the Frequency Response Analysis tool is as follows:

• Identifies the initial value of the input test signal by executing the Calculation of Initial conditions
without modifying the original system (step 1 in Figure 28.12.1). The initial value of the input test
signal will be stored and further used.
• Sets up a Fourier Source element and configures it. The configuration is done such that the
following injected signal components are programmed in the Fourier Source

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– the initial value of the test signal (when the upstream model was connected); this initial value
is programmed as being the DC component of the Fourier source
– all other sinusoidal signal injections of the Fourier Source.

• Replaces the original link between the tested input signal in the tested model and any signal
coming from an upstream model (if any) - refer to step 2 in Figure 28.12.1. The Fourier source
output is then connected to the input test signal of the tested model thus opening any loop in the
original model. If the variable in which the input test signal is to be injected is part of a closed loop,
then the user must create an additional input signal in the model that allows for the connection of
the Fourier source without opening the original closed loop.
• Runs a dynamic simulation
• Computes the FFT of the “input signal” 𝑢(𝑡). Computes the FFT of a second signal (regarded
as “output signal” 𝑦(𝑡)) from the simulation results (the user selects both input and output signals
from the command dialog; multiple output signals can be selected for the same calculation, which
results in multiple transfer function plots)
• Computes the quotient between the magnitude of the output/input FFT results at each calculated
frequency in the FFT.
• Computes the difference between the phase angles of the output and input FFT results at each
calculated frequency in the FFT.
• Displays a “Bode Plot” which contains the quotient of the magnitudes on one plot and the phase
angle difference in another plot as functions of frequency. This is regarded as the Bode plot of
the “transfer function” of the output/input pair. Alternatively, a Nyquist Plot can be generated, in
which the complex value of the transfer function for varying frequencies is displayed in the complex
plane.

Fourier (input test) signal definition in the Frequency Response Analysis

In the above, a two steps procedure is adopted for configuring and linking the Fourier Source signal with
the input signal under test, as depicted in Figure 28.12.1.

Figure 28.12.1: Setup procedure of the frequency response analysis tool

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As such, the implementation has no switch that makes the transition between the Fourier source and any
pre-existing upstream models (either DSL or of other type) that might be connected to that particular
signal. The initial value of the signal is identified from the calculation of initial conditions using the
original system, in which the Fourier source is not connected. This initial value is regarded as a bias
and programmed in the Fourier Source as a DC component (𝑢𝐷𝐶 ). The test signal 𝑢(𝑡) contains a
number of sinusoidal signal components, as further described:

𝐸𝑛𝑑𝑆𝑡𝑒𝑝
∑︁
𝑢(𝑡) = 𝑦𝐹 𝑂𝑈 𝑅𝐼𝐸𝑅 (𝑡) = 𝑢𝐷𝐶 + 𝐴𝑖 cos(𝜔𝑖 · 𝑡 ± 𝜑𝑖 ),
𝑖=𝑆𝑡𝑎𝑟𝑡𝑆𝑡𝑒𝑝

where:
• 𝑆𝑡𝑎𝑟𝑡𝑆𝑡𝑒𝑝 is the parameter Start at step and 𝐸𝑛𝑑𝑆𝑡𝑒𝑝 is the parameter End at step from the
calculation dialog described in Section 28.12.2
• 𝑖 is a given integer step between 𝑆𝑡𝑎𝑟𝑡𝑆𝑡𝑒𝑝 and 𝐸𝑛𝑑𝑆𝑡𝑒𝑝
• 𝐴𝑖 is the amplitude of the sinusoidal signal component at step 𝑖
• 𝜔𝑖 is the angular frequency of the sinusoidal signal component corresponding to step 𝑖 and equal
to 𝜔𝑖 = 2𝜋(𝑀 𝑖𝑛𝐹 𝑟𝑒𝑞𝑢𝑒𝑛𝑐𝑦 + (𝑖 − 1)𝑆𝑡𝑒𝑝). 𝑆𝑡𝑒𝑝 is the parameter Step from the calculation dialog
described in Section 28.12.2. Variable 𝑀 𝑖𝑛𝐹 𝑟𝑒𝑞𝑢𝑒𝑛𝑐𝑦 is equal to 𝑆𝑡𝑎𝑟𝑡𝑆𝑡𝑒𝑝 · 𝑆𝑡𝑒𝑝
• 𝜑𝑖 is the angular phase displacement of the sinusoidal signal injection at step 𝑖. The phase angle
is set constant to 𝜑𝑖 = 𝜋2 .
• in the equation above, a positive phase angle is chosen for every step 𝑖 = 𝑘 * 𝑆𝑡𝑎𝑟𝑡𝑆𝑡𝑒𝑝; a
negative phase angle is chosen for every step 𝑖 = 𝑘 * 𝑆𝑡𝑎𝑟𝑡𝑆𝑡𝑒𝑝 + 1, with k an integer number,
𝑘 = 1.. 𝐸𝑛𝑑𝑆𝑡𝑒𝑝
2 .

The amplitude parameter of each frequency component 𝐴𝑖 is defined as such:

𝐴0 𝐴0
𝐴𝑖 = =
𝜔𝑖 /(2𝜋) 𝑓𝑖
where 𝑓𝑖 is the frequency in Hz of the sinusoidal signal component at step 𝑖

The signal 𝑢(𝑡) has the following properties:

• the value of the signal at start time 𝑡0 = 0 is equal to 𝑢𝐷𝐶

• the value of the signal’s time derivative at start time 𝑡0 = 0 is equal to 0.

Practical application notes

Caution should be taken when parameterising the Frequency response analysis tool.

The following requirements need to be fulfilled:

• the analysed model is in a quasi steady-state operation point and that the excitation signal does
not move the operation point away to another one.
• the model is behaving linearly around its current operation point
The default value of the Amplitude parameter is set to 0.01 which sometimes might be too large to
maintain a linear operating point for the tested model. The maximum deviation of the test signal from
its DC bias is calculated as the sum of the magnitudes of all sinusoidal signal injections programmed in
the Fourier Source. As such, the norm of the test signal deviation fulfils:

𝐸𝑛𝑑𝑆𝑡𝑒𝑝
∑︁ 𝐴0
||𝑢(𝑡) − 𝑢𝐷𝐶 || <
𝑓𝑖
𝑖=𝑆𝑡𝑎𝑟𝑡𝑆𝑡𝑒𝑝

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Note: The optimal amplitude of the Fourier Source signal will depend on the typical range of the input
test signal and the degree of non linearity of the system (typically when signals are using a p.u.
system, then the Amplitude parameter should be relatively small e.g. 0.001 p.u.).

From the above, it is seen that for frequency step increments, the amplitude decays with a double linear
logarithmic characteristic, in which the characteristic will always intersect the frequency 1 Hz at 𝐴0 .
An example is provided in Figure 28.12.2, in which 𝐴0 = 0.01, 𝑆𝑡𝑒𝑝 = 0.1𝐻𝑧, 𝑆𝑡𝑎𝑟𝑡𝑆𝑡𝑒𝑝 = 1 and
𝐸𝑛𝑑𝑆𝑡𝑒𝑝 = 100.

Figure 28.12.2: Amplitude variation along frequency

For the above parameters, the resulting input test signal u(t) looks as in Figure 28.12.3 (where the DC
component is excluded):

Figure 28.12.3: Exemplary input test signal

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The No. of windows parameter should also be carefully selected. The Frequency Response analysis
simulates the system for a time duration of 𝑡 = 𝑁𝑤𝑖𝑛𝑑𝑜𝑤𝑠 /𝑆𝑡𝑒𝑝 [𝑠]. The last 1/𝑆𝑡𝑒𝑝 seconds in the
simulation will be used by the command to compute the transfer function. In this period it is important
that any external perturbation of the simulation quantities are avoided. For example, slowly decaying
transients should have already been extinguished, various simulation events should not be triggered,
etc. Sometimes, whenever frequency response results seem implausible, it is recommended to increase
the No. of windows parameter to a larger value and test whether the generated results are the same. If
different results are obtained this is an indication that the simulation signal has not yet reached a steady
state for that particular time window.

Finally, it is recommended that an in-depth analysis of the equations of the tested model is performed
to ensure that the simulation model does not introduce self-triggered events and to asses the effect of
discrete non-linearities on the frequency response.

28.13 Frequency Analysis

PowerFactory supports two important options for performing signal frequency analysis:
• Fourier Analysis, using Fast Fourier Transform (FFT), and
• Prony Analysis.
Both these are offered in the Frequency Analysis command (ComFrequency ).

28.13.1 Prony Analysis Overview

While the FFT Analysis is commonly known, Prony Analysis is a calculation method which allows to
calculate a frequency decomposition of a given signal. Prony Analysis belongs to the general topic of
exponential data fitting. This field of research aims to find a sum of exponentials which fits best to a
given series. Prony Analysis and FFT differ in several respects:

• Prony Analysis is not limited to a discrete grid of frequencies, whilst FFT is restricted to discrete
frequencies, i.e. Prony Analysis detects the exact frequency of a certain harmonic.
• Unlike FFT, Prony Analysis is able to detect and quantify harmonic wave trends in time, i.e.
increasing or decreasing waves (waves with damping) in the signal.

Prony Analysis decomposes a given signal into damped sinusoidal oscillations, the so-called modes
of a signal. In contrast to the Fast Fourier Transform (FFT), where the algorithm considers predefined
frequencies, Prony Analysis determines the exact values for the modes (frequency, phase, etc.).

The Frequency Analysis Tool offers the possibility to apply Prony Analysis for a single Time Point or
over a predefined Time Range (using a smaller sized sliding window sweeping between the start and
end time references with a given step size).

Note: A Time Point is defined here and throughout Section 28.13 as a single set of time contiguous
data points of a waveform. The set is delimited by a start and an end time. Each Time Point is
called, in this context, a Window.
A Time Range is defined here and throughout Section 28.13 as a set of time contiguous data
points of a waveform. The set is delimited by a start and an end time and may include a finite
number of Time Points/Windows.

The result for a calculation at a single Time Point is presented in bar diagrams showing the amplitude,
damping and energy of each mode, see Figure 28.13.1. Calculation of Prony Analysis over a given

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Time Range is useful to detect changes in harmonic, interharmonic or subsynchronous oscillations,

see Figure 28.13.2. Both figures below show an example of a generator current in a 60 Hz power
system in which a subsynchronous resonance is excited at t = 0.0 s. The subsynchronous resonance
causes a current component with a frequency of 39.7 Hz (ca. 20 Hz below fundamental frequency).
In addition there are current components with a frequency of 81.4 Hz (ca. 20 Hz above fundamental
frequency) and higher frequencies, which are well damped and therefore do not impact the system.

Figure 28.13.1: Prony Analysis results, three plots showing the magnitude, energy and damping of the
modes of a given signal for a single Time Point

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Figure 28.13.2: Prony Analysis calculated over a Time Range

28.13.2 Basic Usage

To perform a Frequency Analysis calculation several approaches are possible:

• Via the context menu:

– Make sure that at least one signal is shown in a plot (VisPlot)
– Right-click on any area of the subplot and from the context menu choose Frequency Analy-
sis. . . . The mouse pointer will change appearance to .
– Move the mouse pointer to the time which corresponds to the starting point of the used data.
Left click and hold while moving the mouse pointer to the time corresponding to the end point
of the used data. Release the left click mouse button.
– The Frequency Analysis command Dialog is shown.
• Via the Plot toolbar
– Make sure that at least one signal is shown in a subplot (VisPlot) of a Plot Page (SetVipage)
– Click on the Frequency Analysis icon located on the Plots toolbar. The mouse pointer will
change appearance to .
– Move the mouse pointer to the time which corresponds to the starting point of the used data.
Left click and hold while moving the mouse pointer to the time corresponding to the end point
of the used data. Release the left click mouse button.
– The Frequency Analysis command dialog is shown.

The Frequency Analysis calculation settings are configured using the command dialog via three pages:
• Basic Options
• FFT

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• Prony Analysis
A more detailed description of each page is provided in the following subsections.

After configuring the Frequency Analysis settings, click on Execute to carry out the calculation.

28.13.3 Basic Options Page

In the Basic Options page, the following settings are subject to user configuration:

Calculation method pane: The two calculation functions are made available via this pane:
• Fast Fourier Transform (FFT)

• Prony Analysis
Range of calculation pane: The Frequency Analysis command supports either the Single time point
or the Calculation over time options.

• Single time point: This range of calculation is supported for FFT and Prony Analysis. As input
data, a single Time Point is used.
• Calculation over time: This option is supported only by the Prony Analysis function. As input
data, a Time Range is used.

Note: As a prerequisite, the time range chosen for calculation over time (difference between End
Time and Start Time) must be larger than the corresponding time of the sliding window (the data
corresponding for reading a number of n samples where n is defined by parameter Size available
in the Prony Analysis page, Section 28.13.5.

Definition of range: If Calculation over time has been selected for Prony Analysis then the Definition
of range pane is shown with the following settings:
• Start time: Data range being used for calculation is defined by a start and an end time. The Start
time defines the point in time of the beginning of the Time Range with respect to the input variable
(as defined in the “Input Curves” field).

• End time: The End time defines the point in time corresponding to the last data point in the Time
Range.
• Estimated number of calculations: The number indicates an estimation of the total number of
Prony Analysis calculations. This number depends mainly on the Start time, End time (Basic
Options Page), the resampling and the Step size (of sliding window) (Prony Analysis Page)
parameters.

Note: In Prony Analysis , while moving (sliding) the Window over the defined Time Range with a certain
step size, the Calculation over time will run a Prony Analysis for each Window inside the Time
Range, as long as the Window fits inside the Time Range. For a trivial example, a signal is given
with evenly distributed data points with a sampling rate of 100 Hz. For the Prony Analysis based
on a Calculation over time the following options are set:
• Start Time = 0 s
• End Time = 1 s
• Size (of Window) = 40 samples
• No resampling
• Step size (of sampling window) = 20 samples

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Based on this input data a number of 4 calculations will be executed on these Windows: (1) 0s-
0.4s, (2) 0.2s-0.6s, (3) 0.4s-0.8s, (4) 0.6s-1.0s.

Input curves: Input signals can be defined in the table “Input curves”. Prony Analysis or FFT will be
calculated for all curves with the same settings.

Delete unused frequency calculation results. . . : The Frequency Analysis creates a results file
(.ElmRes) for each input curve and stores it in the subfolder “Signal Processing” of the currently active
Study Case folder. Removing the plots generated by Frequency Analysis from the plot page does not
automatically remove the previously generated results files. As a consequence, the “Signal Processing”
subfolder might get cluttered with a lot of unused objects (e.g. not shown in a plot, not used by a
DPL script, etc). PowerFactory keeps track of the results files which are currently in use by various
subplots and provides the possibility to clean up the “Signal Processing” subfolder. To do so, click on
the Delete unused frequency calculation results. . . button. A selection window containing all unused
results files is shown. To remove all unused files, select all objects and click OK.

28.13.4 FFT Page

The FFT page is organised in two tabs: General and Advanced. The following settings of the General
tab are subject to user configuration:

Window: The window pane configures the settings of the data used as input for the FFT calculation
with reference to the original signal.

• Size: This parameter sets the number of data samples being used by the FFT calculation. This
number fulfils the condition 𝑆𝑖𝑧𝑒 = 2𝑘 where 𝑘 is a positive integer. If a different number is typed
in, then PowerFactory replaces it by the power of 2 number closest to it.
• Begin: This parameter sets the starting time of the data set used for the FFT calculation.
• End: This parameter cannot be directly set. Being based on the window Size and Begin parame-
ters, PowerFactory automatically displays the time of the last used data point.
Fundamental Frequency: Let 𝑛 be the size of the time window, let 𝑓 be the fundamental frequency,
and let 𝑟 be the sampling rate. Then, the following relation applies:
𝑟
𝑓=
𝑛

Note: In particular, if no resampling is selected, the algorithm uses the raw input signal and therefore
the sampling rate is given. In this case, the size of window 𝑛 and the fundamental frequency 𝑓
depend on each other. In contrast, if the signal is resampled, 𝑛 and 𝑓 can be chosen freely, while
the sampling rate 𝑟 is adjusted according to equation above (i.e. 𝑓 = 𝑟/𝑛).

Resample signal (with linear interpolation): Check this box to enable resampling of input data using
linear interpolation.

Sampling rate: Provided that the Resample signal (with linear interpolation) checkbox is ticked, the
sampling rate in Hz can be defined using this parameter.

Note: Resampling for FFT Analysis employs an equidistant resampling algorithm with linear interpola-
tion of the given data. This might be particularly useful if the input data is not equidistant. In the
case of subsampling, the Frequency Analysis results may be wrong due to aliasing effects.

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The following settings of the Advanced tab are subject to user configuration:

Representation (magnitude) pane: This pane provides two options for computing the FFT magnitude
results as described below.
• Amplitude spectrum: The magnitude will remain unchanged if the Amplitude spectrum is cho-
sen.

• RMS spectrum: For √ currents and voltages, the setting RMS spectrum results in magnitude
multiplication by 1/ 2.
THD-Calculation pane: A separate variable is stored in the results file representing the harmonic
distortion (HD). This variable is calculated based on the options set in this pane, as described below.

The square-root of the sum of the squared HD values will give the total harmonic distortion (THD).

• Based on RMS-values: The variable contains magnitudes relative to the RMS value of the
magnitude of the first 50 modes, i.e. relative to:
⎯
⎸ 50
⎸∑︁
⎷ 𝑀 𝑎𝑔(𝑚𝑜𝑑𝑒𝑖 )2
𝑖=0

This result corresponds to the harmonic factor (HF) of the harmonic load flow calculation.
• Based on fundamental frequency values: The variable contains magnitudes relative to the
magnitude of the mode corresponding to the fundamental frequency.
This result corresponds to the harmonic distortion (HD) of the harmonic load flow calculation.

28.13.5 Prony Analysis Page

The Prony Analysis page is organised in two tabs: General and Advanced. The following settings of
the General tab are subject to user configuration:

Window pane: configures the sample Size, Begin and End times for a single Time Point used by the
Prony Analysis calculation with reference to the original signal.
• Size: this parameter sets the number of data samples being used by the Prony Analysis in a
single Time Point.
• Begin: if the Range of calculation is set to Single time point (refer to Section 28.13.3) then the
Begin parameter is made available for editing. This parameter sets the starting time of the Time
Point.
• End: if the Range of calculation is set to Single time point (refer to Section 28.13.3) then the End
time is shown, calculated based on the window Size, Begin parameters and the sample rate.
Number of modes: The total number of computed modes. This parameter is specified on a case-by-
case basis, considering the harmonic contents of the analysed signal. As a rule of thumb, being given
a signal containing a number of 𝑘 harmonics (including in 𝑘 the fundamental frequency as well), the
Number of modes should be chosen higher than 2𝑘 + 2.

Resample signal (with linear interpolation): Check this box to enable resampling of input data using
linear interpolation.

Sampling rate: Provided that the Resample signal (with linear interpolation) checkbox is ticked, the
sampling rate in Hz can be defined using this parameter.

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Note: Resampling for Prony Analysis employs an equidistant resampling algorithm with linear interpo-
lation of the given data. This might be particularly useful if the input data is not equidistant. In the
case of subsampling, the Frequency Analysis results may be wrong due to aliasing effects.

Sort according to: For calculation over time, sorting of the modes becomes necessary. The sorting
can be done according to different criteria, such as energy or error impact. The modes are named
mode 0, mode 1, ... according to the sorting algorithm. Modes with negative frequency are arranged
at the end (usually, half of the modes have negative frequency, as the modes should come in complex
conjugate pairs).

Note: Sorting affects the colouring of the plots as each colour in the plot corresponds to a mode.

When using the Calculation over time range of calculation, the resulting modes can be sorted according
to the following calculation variables:
• Energy
• Error impact
• Frequency
• Amplitude
• Damping
• Phase
Step size (of sliding window): If calculation over time is performed, the Step size can be adapted,
while the Begin parameter for the window is automatically set.

The following settings of the Advanced tab are subject to user configuration:

Set frequency to zero if absolute value of frequency is small: If the graphical representation is still
not satisfactory, this might be due to the fact that the mode being the DC part, will have a frequency
which is near zero, but not exactly zero - possibly sometimes positive, sometimes negative. Therefore,
as modes with negative frequency are arranged at the end, at some time points, the DC part is arranged
at the end, at other points it is arranged as expected. This leads to undesired colouring effects in the
plots. The settings provided on the advanced subpage of the Prony Analysis Set frequency to zero ...
will set the frequency to zero of all modes which have a frequency smaller than a given threshold. One
must be aware that this option will change the results, thus might increase the fit error. On the other
hand, the sorting of the modes should be more predictable with this setting enforced.

• Threshold: This parameter sets the threshold, in Hz, of the Set frequency to zero. . . option.

28.13.6 Recalculation

The user may re-run an already performed calculation with slightly modified settings. For example, in
order to find good calculation parameters, the user may modify just a few settings, and leave the rest as
it is. In this case:
• Double click the plot where the frequency analysis results are displayed.
• A button Recalculate allows to open the Frequency Analysis command with all the previously
used settings for the calculation of the specific Frequency Analysis results. These settings are
stored in the previously generated results file (ElmRes).
• After adjusting the settings as required, the Frequency Analysis can be executed again.

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Note: By default the old results file is overwritten. The user however can choose to generate a new
results file on the Basic Options page.

28.13.7 Output Plots

Upon executing the Frequency Analysis command, new plots are generated automatically and shown
on a new page together with the original signals. Depending on the command settings, along with the
original signals, the following plots are presented:

• FFT Analysis:
– FFT magnitude plot (magnitude over frequency)
– FFT phase plot (phase over frequency)
• Prony Analysis (Single time point):
– Mode Magnitude plot
– Mode Damping plot
– Mode Energy plot
• Prony Analysis (Calculation over time) - For each input curve, two pages with five plots are
generated:
– Page 1: Signal to noise ratio (SNR) plot
– Page 2: Mode Frequency plot
– Page 2: Mode Damping plot
– Page 2: Mode Amplitude plot
– Page 2: Mode Energy plot

28.13.8 Output Results Files

Calculation results are stored in Results Objects (ElmRes) under the “Signal processing” subfolder of
the active Study case folder. Each Frequency Analysis of a curve leads to a new results object.

There are three types of results objects:

• Prony Analysis (time range) (stores results of Prony Analysis using Calculation over time)
• Prony Analysis (stores results of Prony Analysis using Single time point)
• FFT Analysis
For all above Frequency Analysis functions, the calculation settings are saved and stored in the corre-
sponding results file. This is particularly useful in case of performing a Recalculate action or in order
to document the applied settings for a particular result.

Calculated variables: Prony Analysis using Calculation over time

The x-Axis variable is:

• time: Time

The calculation variables per mode are listed below:

• freq: Frequency
• damp: Damping

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• mag: Amplitude
• phi: Phase

• complConj: Complex conjugate mode (-1, if no complex conjugate exists)

• errImp: Error impact calculated as in (28.1).
• energy : Energy of the mode (refer to (28.2) and (28.3)).
The calculation results for the whole analysis are:

• diffSup: Maximal error to input series (refer to (28.4)).

• errRms: RMS error to input signal.
• snr : Signal to noise ratio. (refer to (28.5); for voltages or currents, the prefactor 10 is replaced by
20 in (28.5).)

Calculated variables: Prony Analysis using Single time point

The variable on the x-Axis is:

• freq: Frequency
The calculation results per mode are:

• damp: Damping
• mag: Amplitude
• phi: Phase
• complConj: Complex conjugate mode (-1, if no complex conjugate exists)

• errImp: Error impact calculated as in (28.1).

• energy : Energy of the mode as in (28.2) and (28.3)
Calculation results for whole analysis: (same in each row)

• diffSup: Maximal error to input series as in (28.4).

• errRms. RMS error to input signal.
• snr. Signal to noise ratio as in (28.5).

Calculated variables: FFT Analysis

The variable on the x-Axis is:

• fnow: Frequency
The calculation results per harmonic order are:
• FFT_mag: Amplitude

• FFT_phi: Phase
• FFT_re: Real part
• FFT_im: Imaginary part
• FFT_HD: Harmonic Distortion

• FFT_PSD: Power Spectrum Density

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Variable naming conventions: Prony Analysis generates “user defined variables” in the results files as
described above. For example, Prony Analysis using Calculation over time creates the following result
variables:

• mode0:freq(inputsignal). Refers to frequency of mode 0 of Prony Analysis of series “inputsignal”.

• snr(inputsignal). Refers to 𝑠𝑛𝑟 of Prony Analysis result of series “inputsignal”.
Variables generated from ComTrade files data are treated in an analogous way.

28.13.9 General Recommendations on the Use of Prony Analysis

Prony Analysis is, as many other frequency analysis tools are, sensitive to the applied input signal and
configuration settings. Validating the obtained results may prove to be an iterative process where the
calculation performance indices are evaluated. Further on, corrections to the used settings are applied
and the calculation is redone in order to maximise the quality of obtained results. The following indices
should be observed after performing a Prony Analysis:

• snr - Signal to noise ratio. This performance index supplies information on the quality of the
calculated signal 𝑦ˆ(𝑡) (based on the decomposition results) as compared with the original signal.
A high value of the snr indicates a good correlation between the calculated signal 𝑦ˆ(𝑡) and the
original signal 𝑦(𝑡).
• diffSup - Maximal error to input series. Small values indicate a good fit.

• errRms - RMS error to input signal. Small values indicate a good fit.

Determining which modes are relevant to the calculated signal is done by evaluating the following
results:
• energy - Energy of the mode. This variable provides information on the energy contents of the
specific mode. A relative comparison between the energy of each calculated mode can suggest
whether a specific mode is relevant for the calculated signal or not. Modes with less energy may
be regarded as fictitious modes. Typically these modes have a low amplitude as well.
• errImp - Error impact. A small error indicates important modes.

Consider the example of analysing the phase currents of a thyristor based rectifier (within a HVDC
station) before, during and after a network voltage transient (short circuit on an AC bus nearby). In
this example, only one performance index is optimised (signal to noise ratio snr ). The resulting current
waveform (for one phase), i.e. the original signal is shown in Figure 28.13.3.

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Figure 28.13.3: Original signal (AC phase current) to be processed by Prony Analysis

The input curve has a sample rate of approximately 20 kHz, unevenly spaced. For the Prony Analysis
based on a Calculation over time the following options are set:
• Start Time = -0.8 s

• End Time = 1.2 s

• Size (of Window) = 50 samples
• Resampling at 5 kHz (generating evenly spaced data)

• Step size (of sampling window) = 20 samples

• Number of modes = 12
Based on this input data the Prony Analysis is executed, with the snr represented by the red curve
in Figure 28.13.4. The signal to noise ratio snr is low (between 5 and 13 dB). The snr deteriorates
further during the transient (it consistently drops in the 0dB range), which is to be expected, as the
parameterisation algorithm does not fit well the calculated signal to the original one especially when
transients appear (a large band frequency spectrum is present). Improving the calculated curve implies
tuning the calculation settings as much as possible. As one solution, the following changes are applied:
• Start Time = -0.8 s

• End Time = 1.2 s

• Size (of Window) = 100 samples - changed to fit into one fundamental frequency (50Hz)
• Resampling at 5 kHz
• Step size (of sampling window) = 50 samples - changed to lower the total number of calcula-
tions (it has no practical effect on improving the results themselves)

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• Number of modes = 24 - enables the calculation to estimate the calculated signal based on
a higher number of modes, hence increasing the accuracy by reproducing a larger number of
frequency components of the original signal.

Based on this input data the Prony Analysis is executed once more, with the snr represented by the
green curve in Figure 28.13.4. A visible improvement is observed in both the steady state and the
transient ranges. Now, all other results of the individual modes can be confidently used further in the
analysis. Note that there are no standardised limits on the level of minimum snr for validating results,
moreover, the user being able to specify own requirements of pass/fail.

Figure 28.13.4: Evaluation of signal-to-noise ratio for different Prony Analysis settings

The final optimised results are shown in Figure 28.13.5. The first 6 modes sorted according to their
energy are shown (the option Sort according to has been set to Energy ). The typical low frequency
harmonic current spectrum of the rectifier is observed. The 17th and the 19th harmonics are not
displayed as the energy contained is too low. Furthermore, the damping, amplitude and energy of each
mode of oscillation are quantified providing valuable insight into the actual behaviour of the rectifier unit
(along with its controllers).

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Figure 28.13.5: Prony Analysis on AC phase current of a thyristor rectifier before/during/after a three
phase short circuit

28.13.10 Quick Overview of Used Formulas

Throughout the Frequency Analysis command, a series of formulas are relevant for understanding the
various result variables. The goal of Frequency Analysis is to represent an input signal as a sum of
modes, where 𝑦(𝑡) is the original signal:

𝑛−1
∑︁
𝑦(𝑡) ≈ mode𝑘 (𝑡).
𝑘=0

In the case of FFT Analysis:

mode𝑘 = mag · 𝑒𝑖phi · 𝑒𝑖𝑡2𝜋freq .
In the case of Prony Analysis:

mode𝑘 = mag · 𝑒𝑖phi · 𝑒𝑖𝑡·(damp+2𝜋freq) .

Letting 𝑦ˆ(𝑡) denote the calculated signal, and 𝑦ˆ−𝑙 (𝑡) the calculated signal where mode𝑙 is removed:
∑︁
𝑦ˆ−𝑙 (𝑡) = mode𝑘 (𝑡).
𝑘̸=𝑙

The error impact of a mode mode𝑙 is defined as:

√︃∫︁
errImp𝑙 := 𝑦−𝑙 (𝑡)))2 𝑑𝑡.
(𝑦(𝑡) − ℜ(ˆ (28.1)

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The energy of a mode which has no complex conjugate in the representation of 𝑦(𝑡) is defined to be:
∫︁
energy𝑘 := |ℜ(mode𝑘 (𝑡))|2 𝑑𝑡 (28.2)

The energy of a mode which has a complex conjugate in the representation of 𝑦(𝑡) is defined to be:
∫︁
energy𝑘 := |2ℜ(mode𝑘 (𝑡))|2 𝑑𝑡 (28.3)

In general, the input signal will differ from the calculated representation:

diffSup := sup |ˆ
𝑦 (𝑡) − 𝑦(𝑡)| > 0 (28.4)
𝑡∈Window

Another possibility to evaluate correctness is to determine the signal to noise ratio as calculated below:

√︁∫︀
𝑦ˆ(𝑡)2 𝑑𝑡
a := √︁∫︀
(𝑦(𝑡) − 𝑦ˆ(𝑡))2 𝑑𝑡

In many cases, the signal is relatively big with respect to noise. Therefore, it might be useful to consider
the signal to noise ratio on a logarithmic scale as below. This quantity is without dimension, however it
is defined to be in Decibel.

snr := 10 log(a)[𝑑𝐵] (28.5)

As the input data of the input signal comes in discrete measurements, almost all integrals above are
evaluated as sums.

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Chapter 29

Models for Dynamic Simulations

This Chapter is organised in the following sections:

• Section 29.1 - System Modelling Approach - An overview of dynamic modelling with PowerFactory

• Section 29.2 - High-level Control System Representation - A unified approach to creating inter-
connected dynamic models
• Section 29.3 - DSL: Integrating DSL Models into a Simulation
• Section 29.4 - DSL: The DIgSILENT Simulation Language - An easy to use dynamic systems
modelling language tailored for power systems simulation

• Section 29.5 - DSL: Overview of the DSL Model Type

• Section 29.6 - DSL: Creating DSL Model Types using Block Diagrams
• Section 29.7 - DSL: Coded DSL Model Types (non-graphically defined)

• Section 29.8 - Modelica: Integrating Modelica Models into a Simulation

• Section 29.9 - Modelica: a non-proprietary, object-oriented, equation based language
• Section 29.10 - Modelica: Creating Modelica Models using Block Diagrams
• Section 29.11 - Modelica: Creating Modelica Models using Code

• Section 29.12 - Modelica: Overview of the Modelica Model Type

• Section 29.13 - Modelica: Overview of the Modelica Model
• Section 29.14 - Interfaces for Dynamic Models

• Section 29.15 - Developing User-defined Power Electronics Models for EMT Simulation
• Section 29.16 - DSL: Technical Reference

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29.1 System Modelling Approach

29.1.1 Overview of dynamic models in PowerFactory

In the field of power system analysis, there exists a number of approaches for the representation of
dynamic models which roughly specify the way a simulation model is realised, packaged and used
within one or multiple simulation environments. These approaches depend largely on various criteria,
such as:
• the nature of the dynamic system (e.g. electrical, mechanical, control; time continuous or digital);
• adequacy of represented internal model functionality (ranging from basic to complex functions)
w.r.t. analyses in which the model is used;

• accuracy of simulation results w.r.t. reference models/equipment/data;

• the simulation domain (e.g. electromechanical transient i.e. RMS, electro-magnetic transients i.e.
EMT);
• the model specification source (manufacturer-based, standardised or other source);

• the level of model obfuscation required (e.g. open-source, compiled code, encrypted information);
• the intended range of operation scenarios (e.g. small signal or large signal disturbances).
Given the above criteria, dynamic models in PowerFactory can be categorised as follows (see Fig-
ure 29.1.1):

• Availability within PowerFactory : Built-in / User-defined;

• Model’s relation with PowerFactory : externally interfaced / PowerFactory native;
• Model’s native modelling language: DIgSILENT Simulation Language (DSL) / Modelica Lan-
guage;

• Model’s external interface type: Functional Mock-up Interface (refer to Section 29.14.1) / IEC
61400-27 (refer to Section 29.14.2).

Built-in dynamic
GEN models

GEN Controller

GEN
User-defined

Externally interfaced PowerFactory native

GEN
Functional Mock-up IEC 61400-27 PowerFactory DSL Modelica
Interface (FMI) specific

Figure 29.1.1: Types of dynamic models in PowerFactory

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29.1.2 Model availability within PowerFactory: Built-in or User-defined models

For many commonly used dynamic components (e.g. a synchronous machine), PowerFactory supplies
Built-in representations for RMS- and EMT-domain simulations. Built-in dynamic models are generally
available for any of the PowerFactory network elements, and are thoroughly described within the
Technical Reference Documentation (from PowerFactory click Help → Technical References→ Models).
A Built-in dynamic model denotes typically one power system component which is readily provided by
PowerFactory and has the following properties:

• shipped together with the PowerFactory simulation environment;

• self contained - does not require other external components in order to have it functional;
• packaged within a built-in PowerFactory object(s) e.g. for a synchronous machine component the
relevant objects are the Synchronous machine element (ElmSym) and the Synchronous machine
type (TypSym);
• parameterisable based on the built-in functionality;
• non-editable - not possible to make modifications to the internal model structure ;
• Data containment - the dynamic model is packaged internally within the PowerFactory data model
and is included within a PowerFactory project export/import process.
Built-in dynamic models are available for almost all network components, for example:
• synchronous and asynchronous machines;
• PWM converters, line commutated-converters;

• passive network components such as lines, transformers and cable systems;

• general purpose loads, etc.
On the other hand, there exists a large class of dynamic models whose structure does change de-
pending on any of the aforementioned criteria. Therefore, the term User-defined Models is introduced
to characterise those dynamic models whose internal realisation, not known a priori by the simulation
environment, is required to be implemented with a high degree of customisation capability. A large part
of this Chapter is dedicated to building or integrating User-defined Models using PowerFactory. The
terms Built-in and User-defined are therefore used to refer to the PowerFactory implementation nature
of a dynamic model. Examples of User-defined Models are: power electronics converter controllers,
voltage regulators of synchronous machines, fault-ride through blocks of renewable generators.

A User-defined dynamic model denotes one power system component which is typically developed
externally to the PowerFactory package and may have the following properties:
• Custom-made model structure - the internal model structure is created, modified and delivered by
a PowerFactory user (known as the Model developer ).
• Open model access - the model structure and implementation can be freely accessed by any third
party user (known as the Model user ). The Model developer has certain means of restricting/ob-
fuscating parts of the developed model structure, depending on the choice of native modelling
language. If the model is Externally interfaced then the model access may be restricted e.g. by
using only compiled code, when sharing model data.
• Graphical model representations - well-known signal block diagrams may be supported by User
defined models, depending on the choice of native modelling language and/or implementation.

• Data containment - the dynamic model is packaged within the PowerFactory data model and is
included within a PowerFactory project export/import process. User-defined Models based on
native modelling language can be completely contained within the PowerFactory data model.
User-defined Models based on externally interfaced components (e.g. external DLL files) are not
completely contained within the PowerFactory data model.

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PowerFactory supplies a flexible framework for developing User-defined Models, mainly based on the
DIgSILENT Simulation Language (DSL), and alternatively on Modelica Language. Model developers
are able to design customised dynamic models for various systems, typically in the area of control
engineering e.g. controllers for electrical generators. Full flexibility is possible in the model design/de-
velopment phase, process described in Sections 29.6 (for DSL) and 29.11 (for Modelica).

PowerFactory contains a broad range of User-defined dynamic models within the “DIgSILENT Library”.
Refer to the Technical References for a description of the standard models available in the DIgSILENT
library. The available library contains a large set of commonly used dynamic models, such as:
• standard IEEE models for excitation voltage controllers, prime movers and other associated con-
trol units commonly used for conventional generation;
• standard WECC models for stability analyses (e.g. renewables, SVS, load, HVDC);
• standard IEC models for stability analyses (e.g. wind turbine models acc. to IEC 61400-27);
• standard ENTSO-E models for stability analyses;
• DIgSILENT generic models for HVDC, PV, FACTS, Grid-forming Converters, Battery Systems,
etc.
For each of the above dynamic models located in the DIgSILENT Library, the benefits of using the
User-defined modelling environment are multiple:
• Model users have access to the internal structure of these dynamic models;
• Model users can copy locally and further develop the available models for their own needs;
• Implementation is transparent - unlike built-in models, the model equations are readily available
and the model behaviour can be understood in detail.

29.1.3 Externally interfaced versus PowerFactory native models

While depending on many criteria (e.g. the type of analysis, the availability of model information, the
Model developer modelling preferences, end-user access requirements), User-defined dynamic models
may exist as externally interfaced or as PowerFactory native dynamic models.

Externally interfaced models are typically generated using a third-party simulation modelling tool and
are coupled with PowerFactory via a set of input/output signals. These models typically follow one of
the existing standardised interfaces for exchanging models (e.g. FMI Standard, IEC 61400-27). Alter-
natively, a number of PowerFactory specific external interfaces are supported (e.g. DSL C Interface)
Model parameterisation structures may be transferred across the model interface for the purpose of
parameterising the dynamic model from within PowerFactory. Externally interfaced models require at
the interface boundary a specific link with the PowerFactory environment. The use of these models
typically covers the representation of detailed control equipment, which has already been designed
in a third-party simulation tool. The externally interfaced models may contain any internal model
functionality, the model’s realisation being independent of PowerFactory, up to the interface boundary,
where the interface specifications must strictly be complied with.

PowerFactory native dynamic models are models which are completely defined within PowerFactory
either using DIgSILENT Simulation Language (DSL) or the Modelica Language. PowerFactory native
dynamic models are based on an Interpreted model, which defines the model’s equations in an open
format (either using model code, block diagrams or a combination of these two). For various reasons
(e.g. performance improvement, further obfuscation of model’s internal structure), Interpreted models
can be compiled using specific interfaces (e.g. from a DSL Model to a DSL C Interface based model
- refer to Section 29.14.3 for more information). For simplicity, whenever a PowerFactory -specific or a
standardised interface is employed, then such models are regarded as Externally interfaced models.
For example, all User-defined models found in the DIgSILENT Library are available either as Power-
Factory native dynamic models or as Externally interfaced models using the DSL C Interface. Files
corresponding to the DIgSILENT Library compiled models are supplied with PowerFactory.

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DSL versus Modelica dynamic models

PowerFactory native dynamic models can be implemented using either DSL or Modelica. Choosing one
or the other depends on the Model developer, a choice which largely decides the way PowerFactory
processes these models.

Functional Mock-up Interface versus IEC 61400-27 interfaced models

An externally interfaced model can be integrated with a PowerFactory simulation if the interface is
compliant with one of the following interfaces:
• Functional Mock-up Interface (FMI) (see Section 29.14.1)

• IEC 61400-27 Interface (see Section 29.14.2)

Each of the available interfaces is discussed in the corresponding sections.

29.1.4 Complete Power Equipment simulation models

A complete Power Equipment simulation model is a relatively complex data set that needs to provide
specific PowerFactory functionality for the purpose of correct model operation under prescribed con-
ditions. The functionality may range from load flow calculation to RMS- and/or EMT-Simulation and
may be integrated within either Built-in or User-defined models. Such a complete Power Equipment
simulation model is composed of a large set of PowerFactory objects, each of these objects being
coordinated with the others.

To simplify the grouping, packaging and data containment of complete Power Equipment simulation
models, the concept of General Templates is introduced in PowerFactory. A General Template is able
to pack all objects belonging to a larger simulation model (including the Built-in and the User-defined
components) in order to facilitate easy data management, fast model deployment and worry-free sharing
of such complex models. Examples of Template models are provided in the Global Library (under
DIgSILENT Library → Templates), where a large set of various models can be easily deployed and
simulated in a PowerFactory project.

The use of General Templates as a means to create, use and share complete Power Equipment
simulation models is common in PowerFactory especially in the case of manufacturer specific simulation
models. Further information on the creation and use of General Templates is provided in Section 13.9.1.

29.1.5 Compilation of PowerFactory native dynamic models

29.1.5.1 C\C++ Compiler - availability and prerequisites

PowerFactory requires that a C\C++ Compiler is available in order to compile native dynamic models.

The PowerFactory installation provides an option (set by default) for including a freely available MinGW
C-Compiler. This compiler allows users to compile PowerFactory native dynamic models directly from
PowerFactory without the need to instal any additional third party software. If another compiler is to
be used, it can be configured separately. For more information on how to choose and configure the
C-Compiler within PowerFactory, refer to Section 5.2.4.

The availability of a C-compiler in PowerFactory (either MinGW or any other supported compiler),
impacts the capability of RMS- and EMT- simulations to support PowerFactory native dynamic models,
as follows:

• DSL models: In order to run power system simulations including DSL models, a C-Compiler is
not mandatory. Nevertheless, it is recommended to include a C-Compiler in order to benefit from

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the increased simulation performance provided by the Automatic compilation function (refer to
Section 29.1.5.2 for more information);
• Modelica models: In order to run simulations including PowerFactory Modelica models, a C-
Compiler is required. It is therefore mandatory that the PowerFactory installation includes the
integrated C-Compiler or a third party C-Compiler is configured (refer to paragraph “C\C++ Com-
piler” within Section 5.2.4).

29.1.5.2 Compilation of DSL models

DSL models can be compiled either manually or automatically:

• Manual compilation is described in Section 29.14.3;

• Automatic compilation is described here.

PowerFactory is capable of automating the process of model compilation, enabling users to benefit from
improved simulation performance without the need to manually compile individual DSL models.

The “Automatic compilation” option for DSL models is included in the “Calculation of initial conditions”
command (refer to Section 28.3.3 for more details). With this function, the initialisation command can
automatically check for compilation and compile all currently non-compiled DSL models of level 5 or
higher. The functionality is effective only at run-time, so users can still apply modifications to the existing
DSL models, even if PowerFactory has already generated compiled code for them. PowerFactory
automatically monitors the state of the DSL models as well, meaning that any subsequent simulation
runs on an unchanged DSL model will not trigger a re-compilation. Conversely, if any modification has
been applied to a DSL model then a re-compilation is triggered for that specific model.

29.1.5.3 Compilation of Modelica models

PowerFactory requires that Modelica models are pre-compiled before executing a dynamic simulation.
The process can be achieved as follows:
• manually, before run-time (i.e. before the execution of the Calculation of Initial Conditions com-
mand) - by setting the Modelica Model Type (TypMdl) to Compiled and assigning a corresponding
file path pointing to the compiled Modelica model file (.pfmu)

• automatically, at run-time (i.e. during the execution of the Calculation of Initial Conditions com-
mand) - for each calculation-relevant Modelica Model Type (TypMdl) which has not been manually
compiled. Each calculation-relevant Modelica model type (TypMdl) must successfully compile in
order for the initial conditions command to execute successfully.

Note: Calculation-relevant Modelica model types are those TypMdl objects referenced by an “in
service” Modelica Model (ElmMdl), currently being employed in the simulation.

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29.2 High-level Control System Representation

29.2.1 Data Structures for Dynamic Models within PowerFactory

From a data management perspective, data of dynamic models follow the same type/element con-
cept that exists throughout PowerFactory. That is, a clear separation is enforced between instance-
independent and instance-specific information. As such, dynamic data are separated in a PowerFactory
project as conceptually depicted in Figure 29.2.1.

Network
Data

Library
Data

Figure 29.2.1: Dynamic models data separation between Library and Network Data

Given the complexity of a large scale power-system analysis problem, the PowerFactory modelling
philosophy is targeted towards a strictly hierarchical system modelling approach, which combines both
graphical and script-based modelling methods.

29.2.2 Composite Model Frames and Composite Models

A high-level model definition and signal interconnection layer is defined using two PowerFactory specific
concepts: Composite Model Frames (BlkDef ) and Composite Models (ElmComp ). As concep-
tually shown in Figure 29.2.2, an arbitrary number of Composite Model Frames objects can be defined
in the Library.

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Composite
Model 1
Composite Composite
Model 2 Composite
Model Frame 1
Composite
Model Frame 1
ModelComposite
Frame 1
ModelComposite
Frame 1
ModelComposite
Frame 1
Model Frame n
Composite
Model m
Composite
Model 3

Network Library
Data Data

Figure 29.2.2: PowerFactory objects for implementation of high-level control systems

Each Composite Model Frame (BlkDef ) graphically defines a high-level control system signal flow
diagram, by means of a combination of Slots and interconnecting signals. Each Slot represents a
placeholder for corresponding network elements having a well defined functionality within this high-
level control system. Typically, slots are placeholders for controlled network elements (e.g. syn-
chronous machines, PWM converters, static generators), measurement devices (e.g. current or voltage
measurements), user-defined equipment controller components (e.g. excitation voltage regulators,
power system stabiliser units) or user-defined representations of physical components (e.g. turbine
mechanical shaft systems).

A Composite Model (ElmComp ) represents “an instance” in the power system of one specific
library Composite Model Frame. The graphical definition of the Composite Model Frame is read by
the referencing Composite Model and, for each slot within the frame’s diagram, a network element can
be assigned at this stage. Any number of Composite Models can be created on the basis of a single
Composite Model Frame, thus allowing a large number of similarly controlled power system compo-
nents to share the same high-level control structure. For example, to a large number of synchronous
generating units (e.g. “m”), a controller may be attached to each one by creating “m” Composite Models
that reference the same library located Composite Model Frame, frame which is designed for linking
synchronous generators with corresponding synchronous machine controllers (e.g. voltage regulators)
via pre-designated signal connections.

Note: The Composite Model and Composite Model Frame objects do not hold information about equip-
ment controllers, they only link such controllers with network elements and other measurement
devices based on the graphical diagram of the Composite Model Frame. The “controller” elements
are discussed/introduced further below.

A simple example for the high-level control system diagram of a synchronous generator is shown in
Figure 29.2.3. The diagram contains rectangular blocks (i.e. slots) interconnected between each
other using routed signal lines. Signal lines are directional and thus define the signal flow during a
dynamic simulation (as signal transfer from one slot to another). Individual slots are named based on
the functional scope within the high-level control diagram.

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CompositeModelFrame:

Pgen
Vgen

Vexc
0Power System Stabilizer (PSS) 0 Voltage Controller (VCO)
1 * 1 *
Vpss

Synchronous Machine (SYM) 0

ElmSym* 1
Av Pt
0 Primary Controller (PCO) Prime Mover Unit (PMU) 1 2
1 * *

Primary Controller Unit

Wgen

Figure 29.2.3: Example of a simple Composite Model Frame for conventional generation

The implementation details of individual slots are not defined by the Composite Model Frame or the
Composite Model. In fact, any component that complies with the given slot information is technically
allowed to be assigned to a slot (via the Composite Model). This allows flexibility in the selection of
the low-level control system components. For example, a large number of Power System Stabiliser
types are available. By de-coupling the high-level diagram from the low-level implementation, the slot
“Power System Stabilizer (PSS)” may accept any PSS type as long as the input/output signal names
(i.e. the interface signals) are compliant. A large number of DIgSILENT Library models take advantage
of this functionality; refer, for example, to the IEEE standard frames available at DIgSILENT Library →
Dynamic Models→ IEEE→ Frames, where only two main Composite Model Frames are used for the
entire IEEE conventional generation library.

One further example of a Composite Model Frame of a standardised WECC Wind Turbine Type 4 is
shown in Figure 29.2.4. As opposed to the previous example, this implementation is a bit more complex.
For many control systems, it is typical that the following functional blocks would be present:
• Measurement components

• Measurement pre-processing
• Control system functions
• Controlled/Actuated components
By visual inspection, it can be observed that measurement slots are placed on the left side of the
diagram, providing various measurement quantities to a number of control slots. Furthermore, a slot
corresponding to an actuated/controlled network element (e.g. a static generator) is placed on the right
side of the diagram. The diagram of a Composite Model Frame does not state which network element it
is to be assigned into any one slot, at most, it can add a filter for the class name of the targeted element.
The actual assignment of a target element to a specific slot is done by the Composite Model.

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Figure 29.2.4: Example of a Composite Model Frame for a standard based (WECC) type 4A wind
turbine

29.2.3 Creating a new Composite Model Frame

A Composite Model Frame (BlkDef ) is a block diagram which defines two or more slots, their input
and output signals, and the connections between them. A Composite Model Frame is always defined
graphically.

To create a new Composite Model Frame:

• from the main menu:
– Click Insert → Dynamic Model→ Composite Model Frame. . .
– In the newly shown dialog, give a name to the new object (of type BlkDef ) and then click OK.
– The diagram of the Composite Model Frame is now shown and it is ready to be customised
• from the Data Manager using the New Object button:
– Focus the Data Manager on the library subfolder Library → Dynamic Models
– Click on the New Object icon ( )
– Select Composite Model Frame
– In the newly shown dialog, give a name to the new object (of type BlkDef ) and then click OK.
– The diagram of the Composite Model Frame is now shown and it is ready to be customised
• from the Dynamic Models folder using the context menu (right-click):
– Right-click on the Dynamic Models folder on the left side of the Data Manager and select
New → Dynamic Model→ Composite Model Frame
– In the newly shown dialog, give a name to the new object (of type BlkDef ) and then click OK.

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– The diagram of the Composite Model Frame is now shown and it is ready to be customised
The newly created diagram will show a single rectangular block, which depicts the frame boundaries.
Within the frame boundary, the interconnected control system can be drawn. The diagram name
appears on the top left side.

Note: The boundary of a Composite Model Frame is not typically used to connect signals. There
exist special cases in which such a scenario is plausible. In these cases, the boundary’s left
and right edges (of the outer rectangle) can be used to route input or output signal lines that
connect outside the frame boundary. In such a situation, it is expected that this high-level control
system will be connected to other high-level controllers in a more complex arrangement e.g. where
communication between top-level controllers is required.

To show the Edit dialog of the Composite Model Frame do the following:

• Option 1: double click on any empty diagram area.

• Option 2: right-click on any empty diagram area and from the context-menu select Edit

29.2.4 Drawing a high-level control system in a Composite Model Frame

A new Composite Model Frame contains an empty diagram. The high-level controller is defined within
this diagram by adding Slots and interconnecting them using routed signal lines and (optionally) signal
labels.

Inside the diagram of a Composite Model Frame the following elements are allowed:

• Slots used to define placeholders of model components. Slots are customisable rectangular
blocks containing one or more input/output nodes. An Input/Output node is used to define an
input (green color) or an output (red color) of the Slot. The node types are color coded (refer to
Figure 29.2.5):
– Red: Output node (shown on the right side of a Slot)
– Green: Input node (shown on the left side of a Slot)
– Magenta: Input node, maximum limiting signal (shown on the top side of a Slot)
– Blue: Input node, minimum limiting signal (shown on the bottom side of a Slot)

• Routed signal lines used to link an output signal node with an input signal node
• Signal labels used to link signals without creating a routed signal

Figure 29.2.5: Example of various input/output node types of a Slot in a Composite Model Frame

With respect to the simple example shown in Figure 29.2.3, the basic components of a Composite
Model Frame are highlighted in Figure 29.2.6.

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Figure 29.2.6: Components of a Composite Model Frame

Drawing these objects can be enabled from the Drawing Tools. Additionally, the Drawing Tools
contains graphical annotations as well (e.g. line, polygon, rectangle and text components) as shown in
Figure 29.2.7.

Note: The diagram itself must be taken out of freeze mode ( ) in order to enable the use of of Drawing
Tools.

Figure 29.2.7: Drawing Tools for Composite Model Frames

To add a Slot to a diagram, do the following:

• Activate the Slot drawing mode by clicking the Slot ( ) icon in the Drawing Tools

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• Position the mouse in a relevant empty area of the diagram where a Slot is to be added and then
click to add it.
• Continue adding slots in the diagram or right-click an empty diagram area to deactivate the Slot
drawing mode
A Slot can be customised as follows:
• Double click the Slot in order to open its Edit dialog
• Apply changes to the slot configuration, based on the information provided in Section 29.2.5. As
a minimum, give it a relevant name.
• Enter the relevant input and output variables of the slot in the corresponding text fields. Each text
field allows one long text string that completely defines the input/output nodes of the slot. The
string can be customised as follows:
– A new node is added to the slot for each comma separated text segment. For example:
* typing in the Input Signals text field “ve,pt” will generate two input nodes, one node
corresponding to Input Signal “ve”, another node corresponding to Input Signal “pt”.
* typing in the Output Signals text field “i_a,i_b,i_c,u_a,u_b,u_c,” will generate six output
nodes, one node corresponding to Output Signal “i_a”, another node corresponding to
Output Signal “i_b”, and so on.
– A node can aggregate two or more variables by separating these variables with a semicolon.
For example:
* typing in the Input Signals text field “ve;pt” will generate one input node, corresponding
to Input Signals “ve” and “pt”.
* typing in the Output Signals text field “i_a;i_b;i_c,u_a;u_b;u_c,” will generate two output
nodes, one node corresponding to Output Signals “i_a”, “i_b” and “i_c” and another node
corresponding to Output Signals “u_a”, “u_b”, and “u_c”.
Once a number of slots have been deployed, including their corresponding input/output signals, the
slots can be interconnected using routed signal lines.

To add a Routed signal line (i.e. to interconnect Slot nodes of a diagram), do the following:

• Activate the Signal drawing mode by clicking the Signal ( ) icon in the Drawing Tools
• Start by positioning the mouse on top of an Output node of a slot and then left-click it. Alternatively,
a new branch-off signal can be created by clicking anywhere on an already existing Routed signal
line.
• Move the mouse along a required signal route and make intermediate clicks to confine the Routed
signal line within the desired path.

• Move the line path towards an Input node target destination and when on top of it, click once. The
signal connection between the source Output node and the destination Input node is created.
• Continue adding signal connections to the diagram or right-click an empty diagram area to deac-
tivate the Signal drawing mode
A Routed signal line can be customised as follows:

• Double click the Signal in order to open its Edit dialog

• Give a relevant Name to the Signal by editing the corresponding field. Note, the signal Name is
independent of the names of the Input and Output nodes, as defined in the source and destination
Slots.

• To learn more about Routed signal lines and better customise them, refer to the information
provided in Section 29.2.5.

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Using Signal labels

Slot nodes can be interconnected using a combination of Signal labels and Routed signal lines. Routed
lines can be “split” by Signal labels, thus allowing inter-connection of nodes without drawing a continu-
ous line between them. Signal labels can be regarded as “shortcuts” and come in handy especially in
cases of highly cluttered Composite Model Frames.

To add Signal labels to a Composite Model Frame, do the following:

• Activate the Goto drawing mode by clicking the Goto ( ) icon in the Drawing Tools. Goto labels
are used to be linked with an Output node of a slot (signal source). The signal of the Goto label
will be later on linked with the From label and finally conveyed to the Input node of a slot (signal
destination).
• Deploy the Goto label in an empty area next to the slot’s Output node which is of interest.

• Activate the Signal drawing mode by clicking the Signal ( ) icon in the Drawing Tools. Connect
the Output node of the slot with the Input node of the Goto label ( ). Exit the Signal drawing
mode by right-clicking in an empty area.
• Give a relevant name to the recently created Routed signal line (the signal name is further referred
to “SignalName”).

• Activate the From drawing mode by clicking the From ( ) icon in the Drawing Tools. From labels
are used to link an externally named signal (e.g. of a Goto label for example) with an Input node
of a slot (signal destination).
• Deploy the From label in an empty area next to the slot’s Input node (destination signal) of interest.

• Activate the Signal drawing mode by clicking the Signal ( ) icon in the Drawing Tools. Connect
the Output node of the From label ( ) with the Input node of the destination Slot. Exit the Signal
drawing mode by right-clicking in an empty area.

• Double click the newly created From label ( ). In its Edit dialog, set the text field Signal from to
be “SignalName”.
• A link is created between the Output node of signal source Slot and the Input node of a signal
destination Slot (refer to Figure 29.2.8 for a simple example).

Figure 29.2.8: Using Signal labels to inter-connect Output and Input nodes

29.2.5 Configuration of Composite Model Frame components

29.2.5.1 Customisation options for Slots

The Slot options are detailed as follows:

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• Name - assign a relevant name to this slot. The Slot name is shown in the diagram and is used
to identify the slot further when using a Composite Model.
• Sequence - This parameter accepts any integer number. It defines the order in which slots appear
in the Composite Model dialog. The Composite Model dialog displays a listing of all slots within
the referenced Composite Model Frame in a tabular format. The order in this tabular format, from
top to down is decided by the Sequence parameter: the slot having the smallest Sequence value
appears on top of the list (first row); the slot having the second smallest Sequence value appears
on row 2 of the list, and so on. Note, inserting new Slots to the diagram will index upwards the
Sequence value of these Slots (the highest value of any existing slot plus 1 is assigned to the last
inserted Slot)
• Type - [optional]; typically, no type is assigned to a Slot. It can be used to assign a specific DSL
Model Type (i.e. a DSL based controller). If assigned, the Slot automatically reads the inputs and
outputs of the DSL Model Type and applies them graphically by adding input and output nodes to
the Slot.
• Filter for pane:
– Class Name - [optional], the class name(s) of the components which may be assigned to this
slot can be stated here. During the Component assignment process of the Composite Model,
PowerFactory will only allow components of the specified class(classes) to be assigned to
this Slot. For example, if the Class Name of a slot is set to “ElmSym”, then only synchronous
machine elements will be eligible for component assignment in the Slot.
– Model Name - [optional], the model name(s) of the component which may be assigned to
this slot can be stated here. During the Component assignment process of the Composite
Model, PowerFactory will only allow components with the specified name(s) to be assigned
to this Slot. For example, if the Model Name of a slot is set to “Generator 1”, then only an
element named “Generator 1” will be eligible for component assignment in the Slot.
Note: The fields Filter for Class Name and Model Name accept standard PowerFactory filter
text formats. The symbol “*” is commonly used in both the fields Class Name and Model
Name in order to denote “any”. For example, when a slot is intended to contain objects
of any class starting with “Sta”, then the Class Name field shall contain “Sta*”.

• Classification pane:
– Linear - set this checkbox if the model to be contained in this slot is intended to be a linear-
time invariant model.
– Automatic, model will be created - seldomly used; when this option is activated, the
function Slot Update (refer to Section 29.2.6.1) automatically creates a DSL model and asks
for a DSL Model Type from the library.
– Local, model must be stored inside - This option is activated by default. If active, then
when a Slot Update is executed in the Composite Model, PowerFactory will only search for
elements which are stored inside the ElmComp for this slot. Any already existing reference
to models which are stored outside (e.g. the synchronous generator in a plant model) will be
removed from the Component assignment list.
– Main Slot - this flag identifies this Slot as being critical to the correct operation of the entire
high-level controller defined by this Composite Model Frame. Multiple slots of a Composite
Model Frame can be set to be Main Slot. The operation of a corresponding Composite Model
is affected by this flag as follows:
* if the component assigned to a Main Slot is out of service then the entire Composite
Model and its contents will not be considered during the current simulation.
* if a Slot marked as being a Main Slot does not have any component assigned to it then
the entire Composite Model and its contents will not be considered during the current
simulation.
• Upper Limitation pane:
– Limiting Input Signals - type in this text field the upper limitation input signals (if any),
delimited by commas. The input signals will be shown on the top side of the Slot (using
corresponding input nodes);

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• Lower Limitation pane:

– Limiting Input Signals - type in this text field the lower limitation input signals (if any),
delimited by commas. The input signals will be shown on the bottom side of the Slot (using
corresponding input nodes);
• Variables pane:
– Output Signals - type in this text field the model’s output signals (if any), delimited by
commas. The input signals will be shown on the left side of the Slot (using corresponding
input nodes). The numbers of output signals and shown output nodes need not be identical:
signals can be aggregated into a single output node by separating them using semicolons
(instead of commas).
– Input Signals - type in this text field the model’s input signals (if any), delimited by commas.
The input signals will be shown on the left side of the Slot (using corresponding input nodes).
The numbers of input signals and shown input nodes need not be identical: signals can
be aggregated into a single input node by separating them using semicolons (instead of
commas).

Note: How to identify signals (and their names) of a model in order to set the inputs/outputs
of a corresponding slot?
– If the slot is meant for a built-in model:
* Check the Technical Reference documentation of the specific built-in model (e.g.
generator, measurement device)
* Alternatively, using the Data Manager or the Network Model Manager, navigate to an
element of the same class as the targeted built-in model of the slot.
* Use the Flexible Data tab and open the Variable Selection window (e.g. right-click
on the Flexible Data tab and choose Variable selection).
* From the Variable Selection window, use the filter Group to get all the Signals and
States.
* A listing of all available signals is provided. Available signals may be inputs (type IN),
outputs (type OUT ), model states (type STATE) or model state derivative (type d/dt).
* From the provided list, outputs (type OUT ) can be set in the Output Signals field
of a Slot. These signals can therefore be taken from the built-in model and further
provided to other components placed in Slots. This is a typical use case in which a
network element (e.g. a measurement device) provides signals to a controller slot
via a specific signal.
* From the provided list, inputs (type IN) can be set in the Input Signals field of a
Slot. These signals can therefore be linked with other signals sourced from other
components placed in other Slots. This is a typical use case in which a network
element is controlled via a specific signal.
* Note: all signals in PowerFactory (and in DSL/Modelica) are case sensitive.
– If the slot is meant for a User-defined model (e.g. DSL or Modelica Model):
* Analyse the User-defined model and identify the inputs and outputs. This can be
done either by visual inspection of the model’s block diagram or by verifying the
declared inputs and outputs in the corresponding dialog windows of the controllers.
* Note: all signals in PowerFactory (and in DSL/Modelica) are case-sensitive.

Assigning a DSL Model Type to a Slot

A DSL Model Type (BlkDef ) can be assigned directly to a slot. This option will simplify the handling of
the slot and prevent errors due to mismatched signal names of slot and assigned block.

To assign the external form of a DSL Model Type to the selected slot, edit the slot by double-clicking it
and choose the select button for the “DSL Model Type” in the dialog. Now the DSL Model Type can
be selected, e.g. the type of controller or built-in element, which should be assigned to this slot later.

As an example, if the newly-defined slot ought to represent a synchronous machine’s automatic voltage
regulator (AVR) in the frame diagram, a predefined DSL Model Type can be chosen to insert the AVR

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model including input and output signals to this slot. A controller should only be assigned to a slot, when
only this type of controller is to be inserted into this slot, and no other model can be.

When the DSL Model Type is selected, the input and output as well as limiting signals will disappear
from the slot dialog. The filter for the class name will automatically be entered. When clicking on the
OK button, the slot will then show the right inputs and outputs according to the DSL Model Type.

Note: When a DSL Model Type is assigned directly to a slot, only the input/output signals are set
automatically. The internal equations/definitions of the DSL Model Type are not implemented in
the slot and the slot itself remains empty. There is always the need to create a DSL Model, which
is the model inserted into the slot of the composite model. When the slot refers to an outside DSL
Model Type, beware that this reference is also inside your project. If the reference to the definition
is invalid or changed, the slot may be changed as well. Therefore, assign a block very carefully.

29.2.5.2 Customisation options for Routed signal lines

Routed signal lines always connect one Output node (a source) with one Input node (a destination).
Routed signal lines always perform a one-to-one mapping of the declared variable(s) of the Output
node to the declared variable(s) of the Input node. This procedure is valid for any number of variables
that define an Input or an Output node.

In the trivial case in which one node represents one variable of the slot’s component, then the one-to-
one mapping translates to mapping one single variable to another one. For example, with reference
to Figure 29.2.6, the slot Voltage Controller (VCO) defines one output node as “Vexc”. The slot
Synchronous Machine (SYM) defines the input nodes as “ve,pt”. It logically results that the slot Voltage
Controller (VCO) will show one output node, whereas the slot Synchronous Machine (SYM) will display
two input nodes. The connection (manually done) between these slots has resulted in a Routed signal
line named “Vexc” that connects the single output of the Voltage Controller (VCO) to the first input node
of the Synchronous Machine (SYM) i.e. variable “ve”. A one-to-one mapping is obtained via the Routed
signal line named “Vexc” between the Voltage Controller (VCO) variable “Vexc” (which is an output
signal of this controller) and the Synchronous Machine (SYM) variable “ve” (which is an input signal of
this machine element).

A multi-variable Routed signal line is defined by connecting a multi-variable Output node with a multi-
variable Input node. Such a choice is useful in highly cluttered Composite Model Frames, where the
variables exchanged between slots need not be explicitly drawn using individual Routed signal lines.
For example two slots have six signals to inter-connect:
• Signal source Slot has output signals: i_a, i_b, i_c, u_a, u_b and u_c
• Signal destination Slot has input signals: I_a, I_b, I_c, U_a, U_b and U_c

The multi-variable Routed signal line functionality can be used to link the two slots with only two Routed
signal lines (instead of six), by grouping the signals based on their functionality (phase currents and
phase voltages). Consequently, the signal source Slot may state two output nodes by appropriately
adjusting the text field Output Signals to contain: “i_a;i_b;i_c,u_a;u_b;u_c”. The signal destination Slot
may state two input nodes by appropriately adjusting the text field Input Signals to contain: “I_a;I_b;I_-
c,U_a;U_b;U_c”. It is now possible to use two Routed signal lines and link the two slots together, as
shown in Figure 29.2.9.

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Figure 29.2.9: Example of a multi-variable Routed signal line

Important notes:
• The order of writing variables of the Output and Input nodes is important. The mapping between
source and destination variables is done by mapping the first variable in the multi-variable string
(e.g. “out_variable_1;out_variable_2;..”) of the Output Node to the first variable found in the multi-
variable string (e.g. “in_variable_1;in_variable_2;..”) of the Input node, the second variable of the
Output Node is mapped to the second of the Input Node and so on.
• The number of variables of the multi-variable string of the Output Node must be equal to the
number of variables of the multi-variable string of the Input Node

29.2.6 Creating and configuring a Composite Model

The Composite Model (ElmComp ) represents an “instance” of a Composite Model Frame in the
power system. The high-level control structure is conceptually defined within the Composite Model
Frame, but without assigning specific controlled equipment and controllers to it. The “Component
assignment” process is specific to a Composite Model. When a new Composite Model is created,
a reference to Composite Model Frame must be defined in order to obtain a functional system. The
Composite Model parses through the graphical definition of the Composite Model Frame and extracts
a list of all defined Slots.

To create a Composite Model (ElmComp ), do the following:

• using the Data Manager (option 1):
– Navigate inside a Network Data folder
– Click the New Object ( ) icon
– Select Composite Model and click OK
– Assign a Composite Model Frame to the Frame field in the Edit dialog of the Composite
Model. Further configure the model.
• using the Data Manager (option 2):
– Navigate inside a Network Data folder
– Right-click in the right side window of the Data Manager and from the context menu select
New → Others. . .
– From the dialog select Composite Model and click OK
– Assign a Composite Model Frame to the Frame field in the Edit dialog of the Composite
Model. Further configure the model.

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29.2.6.1 Component assignment in a Composite Model

When opening the Edit dialog of a Composite Model, users are presented with a tabulated assignment
list with two columns, as shown for example in Figure 29.2.10. The first column (entitled “Slots”) is an
ordered list of all contained Slots within the Composite Model Frame (based on the Sequence field of
each Slot). The second column (entitled “Net Elements”) is empty by default i.e. when newly creating
a Composite Model. To each field within this second column a reference to one object within the power
system model can be assigned. The process of referencing objects within the second column of a
Composite Model, thereby creating mappings between a specific slot and a specific power system
component is called the “Component assignment” of a Composite Model.

Figure 29.2.10: Example of a Composite Model for Conventional Generating Units

To assign a component to a slot, do the following:

• right-click the Net Elements field corresponding to the specific Slot

• Select the option Select Element/Type. A selection dialog is shown.
• Browse and identify the required component to be assigned and select it (by clicking on it in the
right side of the selection dialog)
• Click OK. The selected component is assigned to the slot.
Important notes:

• Any number of Composite Models can be created, each referencing to the same Composite Model
Frame.
• It is not possible for a Composite Model to reference to multiple Composite Model Frames.

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• Not all slots of a Composite Model must necessarily be assigned. There can be empty slots
assignments i.e. the Net Elements field corresponding to a specific slot can be left empty. In such
cases, any inputs/outputs connecting to/from this slot will not be connected by this Composite
Model.
• Slots in the Composite Model Frame may be pre-configured to accept (i.e. filter for) only specific
component classes or names.
• With reference to Figure 29.2.10, the Synchronous Machine (SYM) slot is intended to be assigned
a Synchronous machine element (built-in element). The slots Voltage Controller (VCO), Primary
Controller (PCO), Prime Mover Unit (PMU) and the Power System Stabilizer (PSS) are, however,
user-defined dynamic models. They may be assigned any of the supported User-defined model
types (refer to Figure 29.1.1 for an overview of allowed model types). For example, it is possible
to define corresponding controllers using DSL language by creating corresponding DSL Models
(using ElmDsl and BlkDef objects) for each functional component. Alternatively, Modelica Models
(using ElmMdl and TypMdl objects) can be used, leading to similar results.

• When inserting controller models into a slot, it is often the case that the controller element has not
yet been created. To create a new controller element during the component assignment process,
select New Element/Type from the slot’s context menu. PowerFactory will automatically jump to
the project Library and show a list of available DSL Model Types (BlkDef ). Selecting a DSL Model
Type from the project library or the global library will open the dialog of the newly-created DSL
Model, so that its parameters can be defined.
• If an element is already assigned to a slot, it is possible to edit the assigned element by simply
right-clicking and selecting Edit Element/Type.
• The right-mouse button menu entry Reset Element/Type will reset the slot, so that it is empty
again.

Note: Depending on the settings of the individual slot, the menu entry Reset Element/Type will
not only clear the marked slot but also delete the built-in or DSL Model, if it is stored inside
the composite model in the Data Manager.

Slot Update

The Slot Update button (found in the Basic Data page of the Edit Dialog of the Composite Model) re-
reads the slot information from the Composite Model Frame, checks for validity all existing Component
assignments and tries to re-assign components found inside the Composite Model.

If a specific assignment is found to be invalid then the assignment is reset. A Component assignment
is invalid when a model has been assigned to a slot which is not suited to receive the already assigned
type of model, i.e. a voltage controller cannot be assigned to a slot defined for a primary controller
model, or when the name of the model does not fit the Slot “Filter for” information.

All built-in models and DSL Models which have been created for a specific Composite Model are stored
in that Composite Model itself. The contents of a Composite Model is shown in the Data Manager where
the Composite Model is treated as a normal database folder. Basic power system equipment, such as
synchronous machines or static VAr compensators, are normally not stored inside the Composite Model,
but in the grid itself.

Furthermore, the Slot update will try to re-assign each model found in its contents to the corresponding
Slot. The options defined for each Slot are important, and are described in Section 29.2.5.

Show Graphic

To show the diagram of the Composite Model (bound to it), click the button Show Graphic in the Basic
Data page of the Edit Dialog of the Composite Model.

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29.2.6.2 Simplified creation of pre-defined Composite Models for standard elements

A simple method of defining Composite Models directly from the single line diagram of a grid is available
for a predefined set of Composite Model Frames. The method can be applied to the following network
elements:
• The synchronous motor and generator;
• The asynchronous motor and generator;
• The static VAr system.
For these elements, if a Composite Model is not already defined, then do the following:
• Right-click the element in the single line diagram
• Select Network Models from the context menu of the element.
• For a Synchronous machine choose one of the following options:
– Excitation System (exc) → New. . .
– Governor and Turbine (gov) → New. . .
– Power System Stabiliser (pss) → New. . .
• For a Asynchronous machine choose one of the following options:
– New Motor Driven Machine (mdm) → New. . .
– Motor Driven Machine (mdm) → from Library. . .
• For a static VAr system:
– Controller → New. . .
When a standard composite model is available for the selected object, a list of the available controllers
is shown. Selecting a controller will add it to the composite model, which is automatically created when
no composite model exists for the selected object.

29.2.7 Array signal distribution/aggregation in high-level control systems

Within many applications, it is common to use vector-based signals (one-dimensional signal arrays) that
are distributed to a high number of network elements having a similar structure. Two examples can be
mentioned:
• Individual dispatch of Wind Turbine Generators by a Power Plant Controller - for RMS-/EMT-
domain simulation (used as use case example in this Section)
• Dispatch of gate signals to individual MMC modules in a detailed HVDC-MMC based system - for
EMT-domain simulation (refer to Section 29.15.2 for an in-depth description)
The Vector of Objects element (IntVecobj) enables PowerFactory users to integrate the following high-
level control systems functions:
• Distribution of one or multiple array signals from one source component to several destination
components;
• Aggregation of one or multiple array signals from several source components to one destination
component.
A summary of the possible configurations for routing array signals (or sets of scalar signals) in a high-
level control system is given in Table 29.2.1.

Note: • By “scalar” it is meant that a scalar variable is defined at the Input or Output node e.g. “ua”
or “y_out”;

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Output Slot Output Node Type Input Slot Input Node Type
Configuration 1 Model array(1 : 𝑛) Model array (1 : 𝑛)
Configuration 2 Model array(1 : 𝑛) n Models (IntVecobj) scalar
Configuration 3 Model array(1 : 𝑛 · 𝑚) n Models (IntVecobj) array (1 : 𝑚)
Configuration 4 Model array(1 : 𝑛 · 𝑚) n Models (IntVecobj) m scalar
Configuration 5 Model array(1 : 𝑛) Model n scalar
Configuration 6 n Models (IntVecobj) scalar Model array (1 : 𝑛)
Configuration 7 n Models (IntVecobj) array(1 : 𝑚) Model array(1 : 𝑛 · 𝑚)
Configuration 8 n Models (IntVecobj) m scalar Model array(1 : 𝑛 · 𝑚)
Configuration 9 Model n scalar Model array (1 : 𝑛)
Configuration 10 n Models (IntVecobj) scalar n Models (IntVecobj) scalar
Configuration 11 Model scalar/array[index] n Models (IntVecobj) scalar
Configuration 12 Model array[index] Model scalar

Table 29.2.1: Possible configurations for routing array signals in a high-level control system

• By “𝑛 scalar” it is meant that a multi-variable (a set of scalar variables) is defined in the Input
or Output node, as per the details in Section 29.2.5.2 e.g. “ua;ub;uc”;
• By “array(1 : 𝑛)” or “array(1 : 𝑚)” “array(1 : 𝑛 · 𝑚)” it is meant that a one-dimensional array
variable can be defined in the designated Input or Output node e.g. “my_array_signal”. The
array size is declared here for clarity e.g. 𝑛, 𝑚 or 𝑛 · 𝑚, but it is not intended to be written in
the Input or Output Node entry fields;
• By “array[𝑖𝑛𝑑𝑒𝑥]” it is meant that one index (0-based) of a one-dimensional array variable can
be defined in the designated Input or Output node e.g. “my_array_signal[2]” extracts the third
value of array “my_array_signal”.
• The 𝑖𝑛𝑑𝑒𝑥 in array[𝑖𝑛𝑑𝑒𝑥] is an integer number corresponding to the array index (0-based)
being extracted from the whole array variable; Pay special attention to interconnecting Mod-
elica Models in a high-level control system, as array variables (and therefore input and
output signals as well) are 1-based in Modelica. For example, in the code of a Modelica
Model, the second index of an array variable is referred to by “my_array_variable[2]” (i.e. 1-
based). In a Slot, in order to extract the second index of the Modelica Model array variable
“my_array_variable” the Input or Output Node must contain “my_array_variable[1]” (i.e. 0-
based).
• By “Model” it is meant that an individual element is placed in the designated Slot e.g. a
synchronous machine element (ElmSym), a voltage measurement (StaVmea);
• By “𝑛 Models (IntVecobj)” it is meant that a Vector of Objects element is assigned to the
designated Slot. The Vector of Objects element defines (via its Edit dialog) a list of 𝑛
components (models) which are to be used in the array signal routing process.

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29.2.7.1 Configuration 1: From an array signal to an array signal

The connection of two array signals in a high-level control system is supported as shown in Fig-
ure 29.2.11.

„signal_out“

signal_out [1:n] n signal_in[1:n]

„signal_in“

Signal Source Slot Destination Slot

Composite Model Frame

Figure 29.2.11: Configuration 1: From an array signal to an array signal

Note: • The Output Signals text field of the Signal source Slot should contain the name of the
source array signal (e.g. “signal_out”);
• The Input Signals text field of the Destination Slot should contain the name of the destination
array signal (e.g. “signal_in”);
• The Signal source Slot and Destination Slot can be linked with multiple such connections
by adding similarly defined Output / Input nodes separated by commas. This is graphically
suggested by the gray coloured Output / Input nodes and their corresponding Routed signal
line.
• If the size of the input and output arrays does not match, an error message is issued and the
simulation is stopped.

Example 1: Linking two models each having an array signal

In this scenario, “Model 1” has an output signal 𝑠𝑖𝑔𝑛𝑎𝑙_𝑜𝑢𝑡 of size 𝑛 and “Model 2” has an input signal
𝑠𝑖𝑔𝑛𝑎𝑙_𝑖𝑛 of size 𝑛.

To connect the two signals, observe the following:

• The Output Signals text field of the Source Slot should contain “signal_out”;
• The Input Signals text field of the Destination Slot should contain “signal_in”.
Example 2: Linking one model containing multiple scalar outputs with one model having an
array signal input

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In this scenario, “Model 1” has three scalar output signals 𝑢𝑎, 𝑢𝑏 and 𝑢𝑐 and “Model 2” has an input
signal 𝑢 of size 3.

To connect the signals, observe the following:

• The Output Signals text field of the Source Slot should contain “[ua;ub;uc]”;

• The Input Signals text field of the Destination Slot should contain “u”.
Example 3: Linking one model containing one array output signal with one model having multi-
ple scalar inputs

In this scenario, “Model 1” has one output signal 𝑔𝑎𝑡𝑒 of size 6 and “Model 2” has six input signals 𝑔1,
𝑔2, 𝑔3, 𝑔4, 𝑔5 and 𝑔6.

To connect the signals, observe the following:

• The Output Signals text field of the Source Slot should contain “gate”;
• The Input Signals text field of the Destination Slot should contain “[g1;g2;g3;g4;g5;g6]”.

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29.2.7.2 Configuration 2: From an array signal to a scalar signal belonging to a set of n models

2.2.3 arr[]
The connection of :an
sel() connection
array signal with a scalar signal belonging to a set of n models is supported as
shown in Figure 29.2.12.

signal_out[1] signal_in
Model 1
„signal_out“

signal_out[1:n] n

„signal_in“
signal_out[n]
signal_in
Model n
Signal Source
Slot Slot for Vector of Objects
Composite Model Frame

Figure 29.2.12: Configuration 2: From an array signal to a scalar signal belonging to a set of n models

Note: • The Output Signals text field of the Signal source Slot should contain the name of the
source array signal (e.g. “signal_out”);
• The Input Signals text field of the Slot for Vector of Objects should contain the name of the
destination signal (e.g. “signal_in”). The destination signal name must be the same for all n
models of the set.
• The Signal source Slot and the Slot for Vector of Objects can be linked with multiple such
connections by adding similarly defined Output / Input nodes separated by commas. This
is graphically suggested by the gray coloured Output / Input nodes and their corresponding
Routed signal line.
• If the size of the output array is less than 𝑛, an error message is issued and the simulation is
stopped.

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29.2.7.3 Configuration 3: From an array signal to an array signal belonging to a set of n models

2.2.7 arr[]
The connection : sel(arr[])
of an connection
array signal with an array signal belonging to a set of n models is supported as
shown in Figure 29.2.13.

signal_out signal_in[1:m]
[1:m]
Model 1
„signal_out“

signal_out[1:m∙n] m∙n

„signal_in“
signal_out
signal_in[1:m]
[m(n-1):m∙n]
Model n
Signal Source
Slot Slot for Vector of Objects
Composite Model Frame

Figure 29.2.13: Configuration 3: From an array signal to an array signal belonging to a set of n models

Note: • The Output Signals text field of the Signal source Slot should contain the name of the
source array signal (e.g. “signal_out”);
• The Input Signals text field of the Slot for Vector of Objects should contain the name of the
destination array signal (e.g. “signal_in”); The destination array signal name must be the
same for all n models of the set.
• The Signal source Slot and the Slot for Vector of Objects can be linked with multiple such
connections by adding similarly defined Output / Input nodes separated by commas. This
is graphically suggested by the gray coloured Output / Input nodes and their corresponding
Routed signal line.
• An error message is issued when the dimension of the output signal is smaller than the
dimension of the input signal (k) multiplied by the number of selected elements. Further, an
error message is issued when the dimension of the output signal is not an integer of the input
signal dimension.

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29.2.7.4 Configuration 4: From an array signal to a set of scalar signals belonging to a set of n
models

2.2.7 arr[]
The connection : sel([g1;g2;..;gn])
of an array signal withconnection (DEMUX)
a set of scalar signals (a multi-variable Node) belonging to a set
of n models is supported as shown in Figure 29.2.14.

signal_out[1]
signal_in_1

signal_out[m]
„signal_out“ signal_in_m
Model 1
signal_out m∙n
[1:m∙n]
signal_out[m(n-1)]
signal_in_1
„signal_in_1;..;signal_in_m“

signal_out[m∙n]
Signal Source signal_in_m
Model n
Slot
Slot for Vector of Objects
Composite Model Frame

Figure 29.2.14: Configuration 4: From an array signal to a set of scalar signals belonging to a set of n
models

Note: • The Output Signals text field of the Signal source Slot should contain the name of the
source array signal (e.g. “signal_out”);
• The Input Signals text field of the Slot for Vector of Objects should contain the name of the
destination set of scalar signals (a multi-variableNode e.g. “signal_in_1;..;signal_in_m”). The
names and order of the destination set of scalar signals must be the same for all n models of
the set.
• The Signal source Slot and the Slot for Vector of Objects can be linked with multiple such
connections by adding similarly defined Output / Input nodes separated by commas. This
is graphically suggested by the gray coloured Output / Input nodes and their corresponding
Routed signal line.
• An error message is issued when the dimension of the output signal is smaller than the
total dimension of the input signal (k) (for one element) multiplied by the number of selected
elements. Further an error message is issued when the dimension of the output signal is not
an integer of the input signal dimension.

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29.2.7.5 Configuration 5: From an array signal to a set of scalar signals belonging to one model

The connection of an array signal with a set of scalar signals (a multi-variable Node) belonging to a one
model is supported as shown in Figure 29.2.15.

signal_in1
signal_in2

„signal_out“

signal_out [1:n] n

„signal_in1;signal_in2;..;signal_inN“

signal_inN

Destination
Signal Source Slot Slot
Composite Model Frame

Figure 29.2.15: Configuration 5: From an array signal to a set of scalar signals belonging to one model

Note: • The Output Signals text field of the Signal source Slot should contain the name of the
source array signal (e.g. “signal_out”);
• The Input Signals text field of the Destination Slot should contain the name of the destination
set of scalar signals (e.g. “signal_in1;..;signal_inN”);
• The Signal source Slot and Destination Slot can be linked with multiple such connections
by adding similarly defined Output / Input nodes separated by commas. This is graphically
suggested by the gray coloured Output / Input nodes and their corresponding Routed signal
line.
• An error message is issued if the dimension of the output signal is smaller than the total
dimension of all defined input signals.

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29.2.7.6 Configuration 6: From a scalar signal belonging to a set of n models to an array signal
of a model

The connection of a scalar signal belonging to a set of n models with an array signal of a model is
supported as shown in Figure 29.2.16.

Model 1
signal_out

„signal_out“
signal_out
[1:n] n
signal_in[1:n]

Model n
signal_out „signal_in“

Destination
Slot for Vector of Objects
Slot
Composite Model Frame

Figure 29.2.16: Configuration 6: From a scalar signal belonging to a set of n models to an array signal
of a model

Note: • The Output Signals text field of the Slot for Vector of Objects should contain the name of
the source array signal (e.g. “signal_out”). The name of the source signal must be the same
for all n models of the set.
• The Input Signals text field of the Destination Slot should contain the name of the destination
array signal (e.g. “signal_in”);
• The Slot for Vector of Objects and Destination Slot can be linked with multiple such con-
nections by adding similarly defined Output / Input nodes separated by commas. This is
graphically suggested by the gray coloured Output / Input nodes and their corresponding
Routed signal line.
• If 𝑛 is greater than the size of the input array, an error message is issued and the simulation
is stopped.

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29.2.7.7 Configuration 7: From an array signal belonging to a set of n models to an array signal
of a model

The connection of an array signal belonging to a set of n models with an array signal of a model is
supported as shown in Figure 29.2.17.

Model 1
signal_out[1:m]

„signal_out“
signal_out
[1:m∙n]
m∙n
signal_in[1:m∙n]

Model n
signal_out[1:m] „signal_in“

Destination
Slot for Vector of Objects
Slot
Composite Model Frame

Figure 29.2.17: Configuration 7: From an array signal belonging to a set of n models to an array signal
of a model

Note: • The Output Signals text field of the Slot for Vector of Objects should contain the name of
the source array signal (e.g. “signal_out”). The name of the source signal must be the same
for all n models of the set.
• The Input Signals text field of the Destination Slot should contain the name of the destination
array signal (e.g. “signal_in”);
• The Slot for Vector of Objects and Destination Slot can be linked with multiple such con-
nections by adding similarly defined Output / Input nodes separated by commas. This is
graphically suggested by the gray coloured Output / Input nodes and their corresponding
Routed signal line.
• An error message is issued when the dimension of the input signal is smaller than the
total dimension of the output signal (for one element) multiplied by the number of selected
elements. Further, an error message is issued when the dimension of the input signal is not
an integer of the output signal dimension (k). (𝑛𝑖𝑛 mod 𝑘 <> 0).

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29.2.7.8 Configuration 8: From a set of scalar signals belonging to a set of n models to an array
signal of a model

2.2.12 sel([g1;g2;..;gn])
The connection of a set of scalar: arr[] connection
signals (MUX) Node) belonging to a set of n models with an
(a multi-variable
array signal of a model is supported as shown in Figure 29.2.18.

signal_out_1

signal_out_m „signal_out_1;..;signal_out_m“
Model 1
m∙n
signal_in[1:m∙n]

signal_out_1 „signal_in “

signal_out_m
Model n Destination
Slot
Slot for Vector of Objects

Composite Model Frame

Figure 29.2.18: Configuration 8: From a set of scalar signals belonging to a set of n models to an array
signal of a model

Note: • The Output Signals text field of the Slot for Vector of Objects should contain the name of the
source set of scalar signals (e.g. “signal_out_1;..;signal_out_m”). The names of the source
set of scalar signals must be the same for all n models of the set.
• The Input Signals text field of the Destination Slot should contain the name of the destination
array signal (e.g. “signal_in”);
• The Slot for Vector of Objects and Destination Slot can be linked with multiple such con-
nections by adding similarly defined Output / Input nodes separated by commas. This is
graphically suggested by the gray coloured Output / Input nodes and their corresponding
Routed signal line.

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29.2.7.9 Configuration 9: From a set of scalar signals belonging to a model to an array signal
of a model

The connection of a set of scalar signals (a multi-variable Node) belonging to a model with an array
signal of a model is supported as shown in Figure 29.2.19.

signal_out1
signal_out2

„signal_out1;signal_out2;..;signal_outN“

n
signal_in[1:n]

„signal_in“

signal_outN

Source Destination
Slot Slot
Composite Model Frame

Figure 29.2.19: Configuration 9: From a set of scalar signals belonging to a model to an array signal of
a model

Note: • The Output Signals text field of the Signal source Slot should contain the name of the
source set of scalar signals (e.g. “signal_out1;..;signal_outN”);
• The Input Signals text field of the Destination Slot should contain the name of the destination
array signal (e.g. “signal_in”);
• The Signal source Slot and Destination Slot can be linked with multiple such connections
by adding similarly defined Output / Input nodes separated by commas. This is graphically
suggested by the gray coloured Output / Input nodes and their corresponding Routed signal
line.
• An error message is issued if the total dimension of the output signal does not match the
dimension of the input signal.

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29.2.7.10 Configuration 10: From scalar signals belonging to a set of n models to scalar signals
of a set of n other models

The connection of scalar signals belonging to a set of n models with scalar signals belonging to a set of
n other models is supported as shown in Figure 29.2.20.

signal_out signal_out(A1)
signal_in
Model A1 Model B1
„signal_out“

signal_out „signal_in“ signal_out(An)

signal_in
Model An Model Bn

Source Slot for Destination Slot for

Vector of Objects Vector of Objects
Composite Model Frame

Figure 29.2.20: Configuration 10: From scalar signals belonging to a set of n models to scalar signals
of a set of n other models

Note: • The Output Signals text field of the Source Slot for Vector of Objects should contain the
name of the source scalar signal (e.g. “signal_out”). The signal name must be the same for
all n models of the set.
• The Input Signals text field of the Destination Slot for Vector of Objects should contain the
name of the destination scalar signal (e.g. “signal_in”). The signal name must be the same
for all n models of the set.
• The Source Slot for Vector of Objects and the Destination Slot for Vector of Objects can
be linked with multiple such connections by adding similarly defined Output / Input nodes
separated by commas. This is graphically suggested by the gray coloured Output / Input
nodes and their corresponding Routed signal line.
• An error message is issued if one of the signals is an array (source or destination).

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29.2.7.11 Configuration 11: From one scalar signal (or one index of an array signal) of one
model to one scalar signal belonging to a set of n models

The connection of one scalar signal (or one index of an array signal) of one model with one scalar signal
belonging to a set of n models is supported as shown in Figure 29.2.21.

signal_in
Model 1
„signal_out“

signal_out[index] 1
or
signal_out
(a scalar signal)
„signal_in“
signal_in
Model n
Signal Source
Slot Slot for Vector of Objects
Composite Model Frame

Figure 29.2.21: Configuration 11: From one scalar signal (or one index of an array signal) of one model
to one scalar signal belonging to a set of n models

Note: • The 𝑖𝑛𝑑𝑒𝑥 in array[𝑖𝑛𝑑𝑒𝑥] is an integer number corresponding to the array index (0-based)
being extracted from the whole array variable; Pay special attention to interconnecting Model-
ica Models in a high-level control system, as array variables (and therefore input and output
signals as well) are 1-based in Modelica. For example, in a Modelica model, the second
index of an array variable is referred to by “my_array_variable[2]” (i.e. 1-based). In a Slot, in
order to extract the second index of the Modelica Model array variable “my_array_variable”
the Input or Output Node must contain “my_array_variable[1]” (i.e. 0-based).
• The Output Signals text field of the Signal source Slot should contain the name of the source
array signal (e.g. “signal_out” (if a scalar) or “signal_out[3] (if an array whose fourth value is
extracted)”);
• The Input Signals text field of the Slot for Vector of Objects should contain the name of the
destination scalar signal (e.g. “signal_in”). The destination signal name must be the same
for all n models of the set.
• The Signal source Slot and the Slot for Vector of Objects can be linked with multiple such
connections by adding similarly defined Output / Input nodes separated by commas. This
is graphically suggested by the gray coloured Output / Input nodes and their corresponding
Routed signal line.
• An error message is issued if the input signal is an array or no index is defined when the
output signal is an array.

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29.2.7.12 Configuration 12: From one index of an array signal of one model to one scalar signal
belonging to one model

The connection of one index of an array signal of one model with one scalar signal belonging to one
model is supported as shown in Figure 29.2.22.

„signal_out[index]“

1 signal_in
signal_out[index]

„signal_in“

Signal Source Destination

Slot Slot
Composite Model Frame

Figure 29.2.22: Configuration 12: From one index of an array signal of one model to one scalar signal
belonging to one model

Note: • The 𝑖𝑛𝑑𝑒𝑥 in array[𝑖𝑛𝑑𝑒𝑥] is an integer number corresponding to the array index (0-based)
being extracted from the whole array variable; Pay special attention to interconnecting Model-
ica Models in a high-level control system, as array variables (and therefore input and output
signals as well) are 1-based in Modelica. For example, in a Modelica model, the second
index of an array variable is referred to by “my_array_variable[2]” (i.e. 1-based). In a Slot, in
order to extract the second index of the Modelica Model array variable “my_array_variable”
the Input or Output Node must contain “my_array_variable[1]” (i.e. 0-based).
• The Output Signals text field of the Signal source Slot should contain the name of the source
array signal and its index (e.g. “signal_out[2]”);
• The Input Signals text field of the Destination Slot should contain the name of the destination
scalar signal (e.g. “signal_in”);
• The Signal source Slot and Destination Slot can be linked with multiple such connections
by adding similarly defined Output / Input nodes separated by commas. This is graphically
suggested by the gray coloured Output / Input nodes and their corresponding Routed signal
line.
• An error message is issued if no array index is defined.

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29.2.7.13 Example of an individually dispatched Power Plant Controller for wind turbines

As an example, a typical use case scenario is the individual dispatch of Wind Turbine Generators
(WTGs) by a Power Plant Controller (PPC). The WECC standard PPC system is used as reference
in this example. The standard WECC PPC high-level control system is by design intended for non-
individual dispatch of WTGs by a PPC, as it is apparent in Figure 29.2.23, which depicts the diagram of
the corresponding Composite Model Frame. The output signals 𝑄𝑒𝑥𝑡 and 𝑃 𝑟𝑒𝑓 are scalar quantities,
sourced from the Plant Level Control slot. This slot is a placeholder for a Power Plant Controller Model,
in this case implemented using DSL. From a PowerFactory integration perspective, the design of the
shown Composite Model Frame implies that the relevant PPC Composite Model must be assigned
to each WTG within the corresponding WTG’s Composite Model (a diagram of the WTG’s Compos-
ite Model Frame is shown in Figure 29.2.4, where the “Plant Control” slot is intended for the PPC).
Furthermore, the output signals 𝑄𝑒𝑥𝑡 and 𝑃 𝑟𝑒𝑓 are not individual dispatches for each WTG (they are
single-valued quantities).

Frame WECC Plant Control: Frame for WECC Renewable Energy Plant

Vreg_r;Vreg_i;Vreg
0 0
Voltage Measurement
StaVmea* Freq
1 1

Qext
0 0

Power Measurement Pbranch;Qbranch Plant Level Control

2
StaPqmea* ElmRep*

Pref
1 1

Current Measurement Ib_r;Ib_i;Ib

3
StaImea*

Figure 29.2.23: WECC (standard) PPC frame with non-individual dispatch of WTGs

For detailed, manufacturer specific PPC implementations, an individual generator dispatch is neverthe-
less typical. A modified version of the standard WECC PPC high level control system (Composite Model
Frame) is shown in Figure 29.2.24. The modified version of the WECC PPC system demonstrates the
individual dispatching of WTGs by using the Vector of Objects element (IntVecobj). An additional slot is
created in the new Composite Model Frame, which is a placeholder for the Vector of Objects element.

The signals which are to be conveyed (distributed) to the WTGs are to be declared in the Input field
of this new Slot. Note that, although identically depicted in the diagram, the signals to be distributed
(in the example, signals 𝑄𝑒𝑥𝑡 and 𝑃 𝑟𝑒𝑓 ) are required to be vectors (one-dimensional array signals).
Such vector signals can be generated using a Modelica Model (DSL Models support only scalar signal
outputs). Their size must be equal to 𝑛 · 𝑚, i.e. the number of elements assigned in the Vector of
Objects (𝑛) times the size of each individual destination signal (𝑚). In the trivial case of a destination

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signal being a scalar, the size of each vector must be 𝑛.

The signals which are to be extracted from the WTGs are to be declared in the Output field of the Slot.
The extracted signals (in the example, signals 𝑄𝑀 𝐼𝑁 and 𝑄𝑀 𝐴𝑋) are vectors (one-dimensional array
signals). Their size is equal to 𝑛 · 𝑚, i.e. the number of elements assigned in the Vector of Objects (𝑛)
times the size of each individual source signal (𝑚).

It is apparent that in this use case scenario, Configuration 2 was used to convey array signals from the
PPC to the WTGs and Configuration 6 was used to extract signals from the WTGs and send them to
the PPC.

WECC Plant Control (Individual Dispatch): Frame for WECC Renewable Energy Plant

Vreg_r;Vreg_i;Vreg
0 0
Voltage Measurement Qext
0 0 WTG Controllers 0
StaVmea* Freq Pref
1 1 1 1 IntVecobj* 1

Power Measurement Pbranch;Qbranch

2
StaPqmea*

Plant Level Control

ElmMdl*

Current Measurement Ib_r;Ib_i;Ib

3
StaImea*

QMAX
4
QMIN
5

Figure 29.2.24: WECC (modified) PPC frame with individual dispatch of WTGs

The Vector of Objects element is created in the corresponding Composite Model (of the PPC) and
assigned to this new Slot. The Vector of Objects must be configured to contain those control elements
that are to receive the signals. In the case of the WECC standard Type 4A wind turbine model, the
relevant model is the DSL Model “REEC_A Electrical Control Model”. The configuration of the Vector
of Objects element for a wind power plant containing four WTGs is shown in Figure 29.2.25. The order
within the configuration dialog of the Vector of Objects element is important! The demultiplexing logic
parses all these objects in ascending order (i.e. first element in the table is processed first, second
element is processed next, and so on).

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Figure 29.2.25: Assignment of WTG controllers to the Vector of Objects

Note: The tabular entry list of the Vector of Objects dialog has the following functionality:
• Multiple subsequent rows can be selected by holding down the Shift key and then clicking
rows of interest;
• The order can be changed using buttons Move up and Move down: select a row and then
click on one of these buttons - the selected element will consequently be moved up/down.
• Selected rows can be moved via Drag & drop (to start dragging, the mouse cursor has to be
placed over a cell of one of the two columns).

In the case at hand, the following applies:

• The source signals are the vector signals 𝑄𝑒𝑥𝑡 and 𝑃 𝑟𝑒𝑓 of the PPC Model, having each a size
4 · 1 = 4. The PPC Model is implemented using a Modelica Model (ElmMdl).
• The destination signal is stated within the Input Signals text field of the slot assigned to the
corresponding Vector of Objects element within the Composite Model Frame. The signals are
named 𝑄𝑒𝑥𝑡 and 𝑃 𝑟𝑒𝑓 and represent the active and reactive power dispatches of the WTG
controller, having a size 1;
• The destination elements are programmed within the configuration dialog of the Vector of Ob-
jects element (refer to Figure 29.2.25). Within this dialog there are 4 individual WTG Controller
elements added (DSL Models).
• The signal demultiplexing logic is as follows:
– the first destination element is the “REEC_A Electrical Control Model” (a DSL Model) of the
first WTG; the first index of each source signal 𝑄𝑒𝑥𝑡 and 𝑃 𝑟𝑒𝑓 will be assigned (in the same
order) to the destination components 𝑄𝑒𝑥𝑡 and 𝑃 𝑟𝑒𝑓 (which are scalars) of the “REEC_A
Electrical Control Model” of the first WTG.
– the second destination element is the “REEC_A Electrical Control Model” (a DSL Model) of
the second WTG; the second index of each source signal 𝑄𝑒𝑥𝑡 and 𝑃 𝑟𝑒𝑓 will be assigned
(in the same order) to the destination components 𝑄𝑒𝑥𝑡 and 𝑃 𝑟𝑒𝑓 (which are scalars) of the
“REEC_A Electrical Control Model” of the second WTG.
– the procedure continues until: (a) all destination elements have been parsed or (b) the last
index of the source signal has been reached.

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29.2.8 Using power system measurements in a high-level control system

Retrieving power system measurements (e.g. current, voltage and power) from specific points in the
network and linking them with a “Control system” is done by creating (and configuring) measurement
devices. The following measurement devices are typically used in a high-level control system:
• Current Measurement (StaImea)

• Voltage Measurement (StaVmea)

• PQ Measurement (StaPqmea)
• PLL Phase/Frequency Measurement (StaPll)
As described in Section 29.2.2, a User-defined model can be connected with built-in elements via
predefined sets of input or output signals using a Composite Model Frame. Each element class allows
for a specific set of signals that can be connected within a high-level control system. Although not
specifically forbidden, linking variables which are not input or output signals of elements should be
avoided as much as possible. This applies in particular to attributes which change during simulation.
For example, the electrical quantities available at busbar or branch elements should never directly be
used in a Composite Model Frame. Instead, the measurement devices should be used.

To create a new measurement device, do the following:

• from the single line diagram:

– locate the measurement point. For measuring voltage, current and power, a cubicle of a
terminal should be selected.
– Right-click the target cubicle and choose Devices → <Measurement Type>→ New. . . , where
the “<Measurement Type>” is one of the allowed device types, as provided in the selection
menu.
– The object is created inside the respective cubicle. Note that, if this measurement device is
moved to a different location, the measurement point is not automatically saved. This implies
that the corresponding field will need to be manually updated.
• from the Data Manager:
– Navigate to the location where the measurement device is to be placed. Typically, this can
either be the targeted measurement point i.e. a terminal cubicle or the Composite Model
object (which in this sense acts as a folder that stores the measurement devices).
– From the Data Manager toolbar, click New Object ( ).
– Select the measurement device of interest from the options shown, which can be filtered if
necessary using the device or class name of the measurement device.
• Apply measurement device configuration settings according to the specific application. Refer to
the Technical Reference documentation for detailed information.

Note: The object for PLL Phase/Frequency Measurements StaPll replaces the ElmPhi__pll object.
It is recommended to use the new StaPll object, which encompasses all previously available
functionalities of the ElmPhi__pll object as well as some additional enhancements. Please refer
to the Technical Reference documentation for a detailed description of the model. The outdated
ElmPhi__pll object can still be used in PowerFactory but will not be further developed.

To include a measurement device in a high-level control system (Composite Model Frame), do the
following:

• Identify the output signal(s) name(s) of the measurement device required to be linked in the
designed Control System.

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Note: How to identify the output signals (and their names) of a measurement device in
order to correctly set the outputs of a corresponding “measurement” slot?
– Check the Technical Reference documentation of the specific measurement device (refer
to the “Measurement Devices” section of the Technical Reference Overview) document.
Alternatively, the Technical Reference Overview is accessible in PowerFactory by select-
ing from the main menu Help → Technical References→ Models.
– Alternatively, use the Data Manager or the Network Model Manager to navigate to an
element of the same class as the targeted measurement device.
– Use the Flexible Data tab and open the Variable Selection window (e.g. right-click on the
Flexible Data tab and choose Variable selection).
– From the Variable Selection window, use the filter Group to get all the Signals and States.
– A listing of all available signals is provided. From the available list, use only the outputs
(type OUT ). The outputs (type OUT ) can be set in the Output Signals field of a Slot.
These signals can therefore be taken from the measurement device and further pro-
vided to other components placed in Slots. Note, all signals in PowerFactory are case
sensitive.

• Create a corresponding Slot in the Composite Model Frame to which the measurement device is
to be later assigned.
• Update the slot field Output with a list of output signals that are to be extracted from the mea-
surement device (e.g. for a voltage measurement, the signals 𝑢𝑟 and 𝑢𝑖 represent the real and
imaginary part of the positive sequence voltage in an RMS simulation - therefore, the Output
Signals field could be updated with the text “ur,ui”).
• Link the measurement signals of this slot with any other relevant input signals of slots in the control
system.

• When the Composite Model Frame is finalised, the typical approach of assigning the measure-
ment device element to a corresponding slot of a Composite Model is to be followed (refer to
Section 29.2.6).

29.3 DSL: Integrating DSL Models into a Simulation

29.3.1 DSL Models and DSL Model Types

Dynamic models, as discussed in Section 29.1, can be of various types. Invariably, the implementation
of User-defined dynamic models is realised using one of the following two options:

• using DSL specific objects: DSL Model (ElmDsl ) and DSL Model Type (BlkDef ), or

• using Modelica specific objects: Modelica Model (ElmMdl ) and Modelica Model Type (TypMdl
)
If discussing the first option, the implementation of a User-defined dynamic model follows the modelling
paradigms defined by the DIgSILENT Simulation Language, as explained in detail in Section 29.4.
The integration of a DSL dynamic model conceptually follows the same Type/Element principle found
throughout PowerFactory, and is graphically depicted in Figure 29.3.1. It is apparent that the DSL Model
(ElmDsl, ) represents one instance in the power system of a user-defined DSL Model Type (BlkDef
). A DSL Model is integrated within a slot of a Composite Model (a high-level control system) in order
to be interconnected with other control relevant components, with which the DSL Model will exchange
input and output signals, as defined in the Composite Model Frame.

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DSL Model Controller

Network Data
Objects
Composite Model
GEN
Library
DSL Model Data Objects
Controller GEN CONTROLLER
GEN DSL Model
Type

Composite Model
GEN

Composite Model
Controller Frame

Figure 29.3.1: Integration of DSL Models into a Simulation

A DSL Model instantiates a DSL Model Type with a specific set of parameter values. The initial
parameter values are either zero or the default ones, if existing. Default parameter values are those
pre-configured parameter values of a DSL Model saved (as a copy) inside the corresponding DSL
Model Type.

The benefit of using a DSL Model that stores the actual model parameter values is illustrated in Fig-
ure 29.3.2. It is apparent that two individual DSL Models can be defined and individually parameterised
while referencing the same controller structure (the same DSL Model Type) and controlling different
generators.

Composite Model Frame

DSL Model Type Data Library Level

Network Model Level

K=3.0 K=2.5
Voltage

Voltage

… G
~ … G
~
DSL GEN x DSL GEN y
Model Model

Composite Model Composite Model

Figure 29.3.2: Individual model parameterisation using DSL Models

Furthermore, DSL Models have the following characteristics:

• Any number of DSL Models can be defined in a power system model.

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• A DSL Model can reference only DSL Model Type

• A DSL Model Type can be referenced multiple times, by any number of DSL Models

• A single DSL Model can be assigned to one Slot of a given Composite Model
• Although seldomly the case, one single DSL Model can be assigned to Slots belonging to multiple
Composite Models. In such a case, the Model developer needs to be make sure that the input
signals that are connected to the DSL Model are unique e.g. it is not allowed to connect the same
input signal twice, once with a component of one Composite Model, then with another one of a
different Composite Model.
Two types of parameters are supported by a DSL Model:
• Scalar parameters e.g. gains, time constants, set-points,
• Array parameters: one- and two-dimensional array parameters.

If the referenced DSL Model Type defines one or more arrays (characteristics), then these arrays can
be customised within the DSL Model, using references to IntMat objects (recommended approach).
The IntMat objects will contain the actual arrays. Alternatively, arrays can be customised using the tab
“Advanced 1” (for one-dimensional arrays) and “Advanced 2” (for two-dimensional arrays) of the Edit
Dialog (legacy feature).

Characteristic parameterisation using references to IntMat objects (recommended approach)

DSL lookup Arrays/Matrices may be defined externally, using IntMat objects, provided that the array
variable names are declared using the prefix oarray_ or omatrix_:
• oarray_ - (e.g. “oarray_K”), external array, this option will use an external array characteristic for
a one dimensional function 𝑦 = 𝑓 (𝑥), where 𝑥 and 𝑦 characteristic value pairs are defined in two
columns. The array characteristic must be defined within an external object of type IntMat. The
IntMat object has to be stored inside the DSL Model (i.e. as child object). The object name must
match the string following the “_”. If this is done, then PowerFactory automatically assigns the
array object to the variable 𝑜𝑎𝑟𝑟𝑎𝑦_.... For example, if “oarray_K” is declared in the DSL block
definition parameter list, then the IntMat object must be named “K” and stored inside the DSL
Model which defines variable “oarray_K”. A combination of internal and external arrays (i.e. mixing
array_ and oarray_ variables) within a single DSL Model Type / DSL Model is not supported. The
“IntMat” object must have suitable dimensions; this means two columns and at least two rows
for linear approximation based functions and at least three rows in case of spline approximation
functions.

• omatrix_ - (e.g. “omatrix_WindPowerCoefficient”), external matrix, this option will use an external
matrix characteristic for a two-dimensional function 𝑦 = 𝑓 (𝑥𝑟,𝑥𝑐), where 𝑥𝑟 and 𝑥𝑐 are the row
and column arguments respectively, while 𝑦 is the function output value. The matrix characteristic
must be defined within an external object of type IntMat. The IntMat object has to be stored inside
the DSL Model (i.e. as child object). The name has to match the string, following the “_”. For
example, in the case of “omatrix_WindPowerCoefficient” DSL variable, the IntMat object would
have to be named “WindPowerCoefficient” and stored inside the DSL Model. If this is done, then
PowerFactory automatically assigns the matrix object to the variable 𝑜𝑚𝑎𝑡𝑟𝑖𝑥_.... A combination
of internal and external arrays (i.e. mixing matrix_ and omatrix_ variables) within a single DSL
Model Type / DSL Model is not supported. The “IntMat” object must have suitable dimensions,
i.e. at least three columns and at least three rows for linear approximation based functions and
at least four rows and four columns in case of spline approximation functions. The top row must
contain the 𝑥𝑟 values, the left column must contain the 𝑥𝑐 values. Both rows and columns must
be defined in ascending order for proper operation.
Characteristic parameterisation using tabular field entries of the DSL Model (legacy feature)

DSL lookup Arrays/Matrices may be defined internally, using the available tabular field entries, provided
that the array variable names are declared using the prefix array_ or matrix_:

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• array_ - (e.g. “array_K”), internal array, this option will create an array characteristic for a one
dimensional function 𝑦 = 𝑓 (𝑥), where 𝑥 and 𝑦 characteristic value pairs are defined in two
columns. The array characteristic is defined within the DSL Model (n.b. not within the DSL Model
Type) should at least one such variable name exist. Internal arrays may be defined in the tab
“Advanced 1” of the “Basic Data” page of the DSL Model edit dialog. The length of the array is
defined via the entry in the left cell of the first row. After adding the dimension an update is needed;
this can be done by switching back to the “Basic Data” page and then again to the “Advanced 1”
page.

• matrix_ - (e.g. “matrix_WindPowerCoefficient”), internal matrix, this option will create a two-
dimensional characteristic for a two-dimensional function 𝑦 = 𝑓 (𝑥𝑟,𝑥𝑐), where 𝑥𝑟 and 𝑥𝑐 are the
row and column arguments respectively and 𝑦 the function output value. The matrix characteristic
is defined directly within the DSL Model (n.b. not within the DSL Model Type) should at least one
such variable name exist. Internal matrices are defined in the tab “Advanced 2” of the “Basic Data”
page of the DSL Model edit dialog. The dimension of the matrix is defined via the entry in the first
two left cells of the first row. After adding the dimension an update is needed; this can be done by
switching back to the “Basic Data” page and then again to the “Advanced 2” page.
The characteristics are defined as follows:
One-Dimensional Characteristic In the row labelled Size, insert the number of rows in the first cell;
the number of columns is set automatically. If the number of rows is changed, jump to the previous
page and back again to update the characteristic.
Two-Dimensional Characteristic In the row labelled Size, insert the number of rows in the first cell
and the number of columns in the second cell. If one of these numbers is changed, jump to the
previous page and back again to update the characteristic.
In Figure 29.3.3 an example is shown for an array parameterisation.

Figure 29.3.3: DSL Model containing a two-dimensional characteristic

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29.3.2 Creating a DSL Model

To create a new DSL Model (ElmDsl ), do the following:

• using the Data Manager:

– Make sure that the Data Manager active directory is inside the folder “Network Model”
– Click the New Object ( ) icon and select DSL Model.
– Give the model a relevant name.
– Assign to the “Type” field a corresponding DSL Model Type

29.3.3 Saving and plotting model variables

It is many times useful to record DSL Model variables for various purposes e.g. plotting variable against
time. To record one or several DSL Model variables, they need to be explicitly defined as monitored
variables belonging to a Results object (ElmRes). To display the current values of model variables,
the Network Model Manager can be used. The process of monitoring results in a dynamic simulation
is described in detail in Section 28.4.1. The process of plotting the monitored variables is detailed in
Section 28.7.

Overlaying results of model variables in the block diagram of the DSL Model

For graphically defined DSL Models (refer to Section 29.6), it is possible to show the values of model
variables directly on the block diagram, as follows:
• Use the Data Manager or the Network Model Manager to navigate and identify to the DSL Model
of interest.
• Right-click the DSL Model and choose Diagrams → Show Diagram. The block diagram (if existing)
of the referenced DSL Model Type is shown, along with the current values of the graphically
labeled model variables. By default, the shown variables are: input and output signals, internally
routed signals, model parameters.

Note: The displayed values are relevant to the current simulation time. That is, if the simulation
is reset or the simulation has not been started yet, then no values are displayed. If the
simulation has been initialised, then the initial conditions values are shown. If the simulation is
run up to x seconds, then the values of the model variables at the simulation time x seconds
are shown.

29.3.4 Example of a DSL Model implementation

An example of a graphically defined DSL Model Type is shown in Figure 29.3.5, where a simple
excitation voltage controller is implemented.

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Figure 29.3.4: DSL Model Type of the voltage regulator, defined using graphical block diagrams

A DSL Model referencing the previously exemplified model thus “instantiates” the controller in the
power system. As a result, the DSL Model can be assigned to a slot of a relevant Composite Model
(e.g. see Figure 29.2.3) and thus be connected to a synchronous machine element (to be controlled).
Furthermore, whereas parameters of a DSL Model Type are literals, the DSL Model allows the users to
customise the parameter values and apply them to the controller, as shown in Figure 29.3.5.

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Figure 29.3.5: DSL Model for the synchronous machine voltage regulator

A graphically defined DSL Model Type may contain sub-blocks (known as Block References) pointing
either to a DSL Macro (see Figure 29.3.6) or to another graphically defined DSL Model Type (see
Figure 29.3.7). The structure of the DSL Model Type is thus recursive and the user should check that
this recursive structure does not contain circular references. A DSL Macro contains one or more DSL
expressions and forms a basic block for more complex transient models.

Figure 29.3.6: Implementation of the first-order low-pass filter with gain and limits block, using DSL

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Figure 29.3.7: Implementation of the PID controller block, using a block diagram

It is also possible to implement the DSL Model Type by directly using DSL code, as it was the case of
the simple DSL Macro shown in Figure 29.3.6.

29.4 DSL: The DIgSILENT Simulation Language

The DIgSILENT Simulation Language (DSL) is used to design and simulate dynamic models for repre-
senting various dynamic systems, including controllers of electrical equipment as well as other compo-
nents used in electric power systems.

The structure of a dynamic model using DSL is explained in Section 29.4.6

As for any other simulation or programming language, a special syntax is provided for the model
formulation. The DSL syntax is explained in Section 29.4.4.

29.4.1 Introduction to DSL

A decisive factor for reliable simulation results is the accuracy and completeness of system model
representation. In order to provide a very flexible modelling and simulation tool, which forms part of a
dynamic simulation program, a control system based simulation language is developed. The following
describes the main features of DSL:

• The simulation tool falls into the category of Continuous System Simulation Languages (CSSL);
• DSL includes a complete mathematical description of (time-) continuous linear and non-linear
systems;
• The simulation tool is based upon common control and logic diagrams, leading to a non-procedural
language, as the sequence of elements can be chosen arbitrarily. In other words, a DSL model

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can be converted into a graphical representation;

• Provision of flexible definition of macros, which could be: algebraic equations, basic control
elements like PID, PTn or even complete physical subsystems like valve groups or excitation
systems;
• Provision of various intrinsic functions such as: “select”, “lim”, “limits”, “lapprox”, “picdro” in order
to provide a complete control of models;
• Provision of various formal procedures for error detection and testing purposes such as: algebraic
loop detection, reporting of unused and undefined variables and missing initial conditions

The DIgSILENT Simulation Language is used to define User-defined dynamic controllers, which receive
input signals from the simulated power system and which react by computing various output signals.
During the simulation, the model equations of DSL models are combined with those describing the
dynamic behaviour of the power system components. These equations are then evaluated together,
leading to an integrated dynamic simulation.

The DSL main interfacing functions are:

Signal input and output channels: a large set of system variables can be used as input and outputs
Events: Conditions evaluated by DSL models may cause events to be sent to the program kernel where
they will be scheduled within the event queue.

Output and Monitoring: Conditions may trigger user-defined messages to be displayed in the output
window.

29.4.2 Structure of a dynamic model using DSL

A dynamic model implemented using DSL can be designed using two fundamentally different ap-
proaches:
• The dynamic model is built entirely using a single block that contains all model equations, using
DSL language. The resulting model is regarded as a monolithic block, whereas PowerFactory
directly interprets the model equations.
• The dynamic model is built using a series of interconnected sub-blocks, each sub-block being
responsible for a given model function. The sub-blocks are interconnected using a graphical block
diagram approach. PowerFactory is able to parse through the model’s block diagram and pack all
model equations belonging to various sub-blocks, equations which are subsequently interpreted
together as a monolithic block.
For simple models, the first approach is possible, whereas whenever models tend to be more complex,
there is a need to separate basic block functionality. Therefore, a hierarchical approach is made
available, by designing sub-blocks and sub-sub-blocks, where so called DSL macros form the lowest-
level building block of these models. A simplified example is provided in Figure 29.4.1.

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DSL Model Type

yi1 (as main model) yo1

yi2
K Sub-block
yo2

DSL Model Type (as sub-block)

yi 1 yo
1+sT K
DSL Model Type
(as DSL macro)
Figure 29.4.1: Simplified example of a hierarchically designed User-defined dynamic model

By inspection of Figure 29.4.1, it can be deduced that the DSL Model Type object (BlkDef ) is a highly
versatile functional block, that can be used in the following ways:

• Main Model (BlkDef , graphically defined) - the DSL Model Type is the top-level object of a
controller and its block diagram contains all control components

• Model used as a sub-block (BlkDef , graphically defined) - the DSL Model Type is included
either in the diagram of the Main Model or in that of a sub-block of the Main Model. This model is
only representing a part of the Main Model’s functionality.

• DSL Macro (BlkDef , defined using DSL code) - the DSL Model Type is included either in the
diagram of the Main Model or in that of a sub-block of the Main Model. DSL Macros typically
represent basic dynamic model functionality e.g. a gain, a first-order low-pass filter, an integrator,
etc. They are distinctly marked using the Macro flag in the edit dialog of the DSL Model Type.
Refer to Section 29.4.10 for more information.

Note: • It is the DSL Model Type representing the Main Model which is used as reference when
instantiating a DSL Model (ElmDsl) in the power system, and not the sub-blocks or the DSL
macro components
• The DSL Model Type representing the Main Model must contain initialisation conditions for
all models’ state variables, the relevant inputs and outputs. Typically, DSL Macros, although
containing state variables, do not contain relevant initial conditions. This is done on purpose,
in order to give flexibility to the model developer in the model initialisation process.
• The DSL Model Type representing the Main Model decides the DSL Level applied for the
entire model (including all sub-blocks or DSL Macros). More information regarding the DSL
Level is detailed in Section 29.5.2.2.

29.4.2.1 Defining DSL Models

A new DSL model is created either by entering the DSL code in the equation part of a DSL Model Type
(BlkDef ) object, or by creating a new Graphical Block Diagram. Both methods will result in a DSL Model
Type Object which holds the definition of the DSL model.

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The DSL Model Type objects thus serve two purposes in the process of constructing a DSL model:
• They hold the definitions and parts of a graphically constructed DSL Model Type, and the diagram
graphic which was used to define the model (discussed in detail in Section 29.6);
• They provide the framework in which new DSL Macros (discussed in Section 29.4.10) or DSL
Model Type (as model sub-blocks) can be defined.

29.4.3 Terms and Abbreviations

The following terms and abbreviations are used to describe the DSL syntax:

expr
• arithmetic expression, not to be terminated with a ’;’
• arithmetic operators: +, -, *, /
• constants: all numbers are treated as real numbers
• standard functions: sin(x), cos(x), tan(x), asin(x), acos(x), atan(x), sinh(x), cosh(x), tanh(x), exp(x),
ln(x), log(x) (base 10), sqrt(x) (square root), sqr(x) (power of 2), pow(x,y), abs(x), min(x,y), max(x,y),
modulo(x,y), trunc(x), frac(x), round(x), ceil(x), floor(x).
These standard functions are described in detail in Section 29.16 (DSL Reference).
• Parenthesis: (arithmetic expression)
All trigonometric functions are based on radians (RAD).

Example:
A = x1+2.45*T1/sin(3.14*y)

boolexpr
• logical expression, not to be terminated with a ’;’
• Logical relations: <, >, < > (inequality), >=, <=, =.
• Unary operators: .not.
• Binary operators: .and. .or. .nand. .nor. .eor.
• Parentheses: logical expression
Example:
A = x1>0.and..not.x2 <= 0.7.or.T1=0.0

string
anything within ’...’ (single quotation marks).

Example:
vardef(Ka)=’p.u.’;’Controller Gain’

29.4.4 General DSL Syntax

Line length: The maximum line length is 80 characters. Longer lines have to be broken by using the
’&’ sign in the first column of the continuing line. A ’&’ sign in the first column joins the current row and
its preceding row.

Example:
x1. = select({at<>0} .and. {bt>=10},
& (1-sqr(x1)/sqr(at))/Tw, 0)

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Line breaking cannot be used within names or strings.

Case sensitivity: All keywords, names, functions, variables, models, macros, etc. are case sensitive.

Blanks: All blanks are removed when the DSL code is processed. Exception: blanks in strings are
kept.

Comments: The “!” sign causes the subsequent text in a line to be interpreted as a comment.
Comments are not considered when the DSL code is processed.

Example:
! comments may start at the beginning of a line
x1. = select(at<>0, ! comments may be used in broken lines
& (1-sqr(x1)/sqr(at))/Tw, 0)

29.4.5 DSL Variables

The Model Variables are declared in the Basic Options page of the DSL Model Type Edit dialog - see
Section 29.5.2 for more information. A DSL model may use five different types of variables:

Output variables: An Output variable represents a variable that is available outside the scope of this
model. It can be connected externally to a different DSL model or a network element.
• Output variables are declared in the DSL Model Type Edit Dialog, page Basic Options (see
Section 29.5.2.1). If the DSL Model Type is graphically defined (see Section 29.6) then the Output
variables are automatically identified from the block diagram.
• Output variable names follow the DSL variable naming guidelines, detailed in Section 29.5.2.1.
• All output variables are real, internally represented using double variable types.
• If the Output variable is defined in a DSL Model Type used as a Main Model (see Section 29.4.2),
then an initialisation statement is required for this Output. Whether the initialisation is done within
the model itself or externally, by another model, depends on the practical arrangement.

Input variables: Input variables may originate from other DSL models or from power system elements.
In the latter case, currents and voltages, as well as any other signal available in the analysed power
system, become available to the DSL model.
• Input variables are declared in the DSL Model Type Edit Dialog, page Basic Options (see Sec-
tion 29.5.2.1). If the DSL Model Type is graphically defined (see Section 29.6) then the Input
variables are automatically identified from the block diagram.
• Input variable names follow the DSL variable naming guidelines, detailed in Section 29.5.2.1.
• All input variables are real, internally represented using double variable types.
• Parameter events (EvtParam) can be applied on an Input variable. The input value is changed by
this event at the event’s execution time provided that the input variable is not connected (i.e. there
exists no model that has an equation for this variable).
• If the Input variable is defined in a DSL Model Type used as a Main Model (see Section 29.4.2),
then an initialisation statement is required for this Input. Whether the initialisation is done within
the model itself or externally, by another model, depends on the practical arrangement.
State variables: State variables (time-continuous) are time-dependent signals which are implicitly
defined using their time derivative equation. The PowerFactory program evaluates the State derivative
equations at each time step and solves them for the next value of the State.

• State variables are declared in the DSL Model Type Edit Dialog, page Basic Options (see Sec-
tion 29.5.2.1). If the DSL Model Type is graphically defined (see Section 29.6) then the State
variables are automatically identified from the block diagram.

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• State variable names follow the DSL variable naming guidelines, detailed in Section 29.5.2.1.
• All State variables are real, internally represented using double variable types.
• A State variable cannot be used as an Output variable; whenever required, the use of an assign-
ment like y=x1 is recommended (i.e. Output variable equals State variable).
• The only time a State variable can be written on the left side of an equation is for when defining
its first-order derivative equation e.g. “x.=yi”. This means that only the derivative of a State can be
assigned an expression. It is not allowed to directly assign a value to a State.
• Parameter events (EvtParam) can be applied on a State. The State value is changed by this event
at the event’s execution time.
• States can be changed discontinuously from within the same DSL Model by using the DSL special
function reset.
• An initialisation statement is required for a State variable. Whether the initialisation is done within
this model or in any of the higher hierarchical levels of the model (if used as a sub-block), depends
on the practical arrangement.
Parameters: Parameters are constant variables which are used to customise the behaviour of a
dynamic model. They enable Model developers to use non-hardcoded variables within the control
structure while still allowing Model users to assign preferential values to these variables. Parameters
are declared in the DSL Model Type and visible and configurable in the DSL Model.
• Parameters are declared in the DSL Model Type Edit Dialog, page Basic Options (see Sec-
tion 29.5.2.1). If the DSL Model Type is graphically defined (see Section 29.6) then the Parameters
are automatically identified from the block diagram. Additional parameters can be defined using
the corresponding field in the Equations page.
• Parameter names follow the DSL variable naming guidelines, detailed in Section 29.5.2.1.
• All parameters are real, internally represented using double variable types.
• A parameter declared with the name “oarray_nnn” and “omatrix_nnn” (with “nnn” being a user
defined suffix containing characters defining the characteristic name), is automatically interpreted
to be either a one- (“oarray_nnn”) or a two-dimensional (“omatrix_nnn”) characteristic, being
instantiated externally of the DSL Model using IntMat objects (see Section 29.3). Parameter
names “oarray_nnn” and “omatrix_nnn” follow the DSL variable naming guidelines, detailed in
Section 29.5.2.1.
• Parameter events (EvtParam) can be applied on a parameter. The parameter value is changed by
this event at the event’s execution time. The change is non-persistent (i.e. the parameter value is
changed only during the simulation, but not permanently in the DSL Model)
• Parameters are not allowed to have initialisation statements.
Internal variables: Internal variables are defined and used in the DSL model to ease the construction
of a set of DSL equations.
• Internal variables are declared in the DSL Model Type Edit Dialog, page Basic Options (see
Section 29.5.2.1). If the DSL Model Type is graphically defined (see Section 29.6) then the Internal
variables are automatically identified from the block diagram. Additional internal variables can be
defined using the corresponding field in the Equations page.
• Internal variable names follow the DSL variable naming guidelines, detailed in Section 29.5.2.1.
• All internal variables are real, internally represented using double variable types.
• Parameter events (EvtParam) can be applied on an Internal variable. The variable value is
changed using this event to the prescribed value.
• Internal variables can be discontinuously changed during the simulation from within the same
DSL Model by using the DSL special function reset. This method is effective only if the Internal
variables does not have an equation statement (but only an initialisation statement).

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29.4.6 DSL Model Structure

DSL models are typically composed of several functional parts:

• The Model Interface, which states, among other things, the model name, title, classification and
declares the model variables. The Model Interface part is configured in the Basic Options page of
the DSL Model Type Edit dialog - see Section 29.5.2 for more information;

• Initialisation statements. The Initialisation of a model can be programmed in the Equations page
of the DSL Model Type - see Section 29.4.7 for more information; The direct (non-iterative)
initialisation of a model is discussed in Section 29.4.7.1. Furthermore, a Configuration Script
can be added to the DSL Model Type in order to facilitate a more flexible initialisation of the model
(refer to Section 29.4.7.3. The iterative model initialisation is discussed in Section 29.4.7.2.

• Equation code. The Equation code can be programmed in the Equations page of the DSL Model
Type - see Section 29.4.8 for more information;
• Various model definitions. Various other definitions (e.g. statements on limits or description of
parameters) are programmed in the Equations page of the DSL Model Type - see Section 29.4.9
for more information.

29.4.7 Initial Conditions

29.4.7.1 Direct Definition of Initialised Variables (Non-iterative)

inc(varnm) = expr

Definition of the initial condition of variable varnm. If inc(varnm) is not defined, the normal
assignment expression will be evaluated (only possible if varnm is of the intern or input type).
If inc(varnm) is defined, it will be evaluated when the model is reset.

inc0(varnm) = expr

Definition of the initial condition of variable varnm, for unconnected output or input variables. This
variant of the inc() statement is used only when the variable varnm could not be initialised through
the initial condition of the connected input or output signal. The inc0() statement is thus used to
make open input or output terminals possible.

incfix(varnm) = expr

This variant of the inc() statement is valid only in connection with automatic initialisation and is
used to determine the initial values in ambivalent situations. With incfix, one or more variables
can be directly initialised so that other variables can be initialised automatically.

Example:
An AVR model has two inputs, [upss , usetp ], and one output, [uerrs ]. Both inputs cannot
both be initialised automatically by the single output value, which is determined by the connected
machine. Therefore one of the inputs must be initialised as fixed, e.g. by incfix(upss)=0. The
initial value of usetp is now automatically determined, using upss=0.

29.4.7.2 Iterative calculation of initial conditions

Iterative solvers are available for determining initial values. The functions loopinc and intervalinc are
used to find the initial value for one set of parameters if the initial values of another set of parameters,
which are functions of the first set of parameters, are known. The iterative functions are used to find
the (approximated) values for the unknown parameters for which the known parameter take their initial
value.

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Note: • The iterative calculation of initial conditions and its underlying functions are not-supported
by the C Interface compiler (Section 29.14.3) using DSL level 6 or earlier. DSL models
containing one of these functions cannot be compiled.
• In case of algebraic loops in a model using DSL level 7, the system of equations needs to be
solved via a non-linear solver. The solver settings can be found in Basic Options → Advanced
when the “Allow iterative solver at initialisation” flag is set. Additionally, the solver allows the
initialisation of the derivative of a state variable.

inc(varnm.) = expr

Within DSL Level 7 and upwards, the derivative of state variables can be assigned. Definition of the
initial condition of a state variable varnm, in which the value of the state’s derivative is defined by expr.
An iterative method of solving this equation is automatically applied at initialisation.

loopinc(varnm, min, max, step, eps)

Performs a simple linear search for a single value for which the parameter varnm is closest to its
known initial value.

varnm = target variable, whose initial value is known

min = lower limit
max = upper limit
step = step size
eps = maximum error

Example:
inc(a) = loopinc(b, -5, 5, 0.01, 0.001)

• The initial value of variable a is searched for by evaluating parameter b, beginning at a=-5, ending
at a=5, with an increment of 0.01.
• Return value: the value of a for which the deviation of b from its known initial value, takes the
smallest value. A warning is given if the smallest deviation is greater than eps.
• Restriction: can only be used on the right side of an inc() statement

intervalinc(varnm, min, max, iter, eps)

Performs an “interval-division search” for a single value for which the parameter varnm is closest
to its known initial value.

varnm = target variable, whose initial value is known

min = lower limit, max = upper limit
iter = maximum number of iterations
eps = maximum error

Example:
inc(a) = intervalinc(b, -5, 5, 40, 0.001)

Explanation:
The initial value of the variable a is searched for, within the interval [-5,5] by successively dividing
the interval as long as the deviation of the variable b from its initial value is less than eps. The
iteration stops if the maximum number of iterations is reached, and a warning is given if the
smallest deviation is greater than eps.

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Restriction:
May only be used on the right side of an inc() statement

newtoninc (initexpr, start, [iter], [eps]) - DSL level 7 and onwards. Function requires either two
(initexpr, start) or four (initexpr, start, iter, eps) input arguments.

newtoninc (initexpr, start, iter, eps) - DSL level 6 and earlier. Function requires four input arguments
(initexpr, start, iter, eps).

Performs a Newton iterative search for one or more parameters by minimising the errors in a set
of coupled equations.

• initexpr = the expression which must equal the parameters whose initial value is sought

• start = the starting search value for the parameter whose initial value is sought

• iter
– DSL level 6 and earlier: the maximum allowed number of iterations
– DSL level 7 onwards: optional argument (supported for simplified migration to DSL level 7
from an earlier level). If provided, then the argument is ignored. Instead, the maximum
allowed number of iterations is taken from the DSL Model type (BlkDef ), parameter maxiter-
ation (available from the DSL Model type edit dialog, Basic Options → Advanced→ Iterative
solver options pane.

• eps
– DSL level 6 and earlier: the maximum allowed absolute error between initexpr and the
parameter whose initial value is sought.
– DSL level 7 onwards: optional argument (supported for simplified migration to DSL level 7
from an earlier level). If provided, then the argument is ignored. Instead, the maximum
allowed absolute error is taken from the DSL Model type (BlkDef ), parameter maxerror
(available from the DSL Model type edit dialog, Basic Options → Advanced→ Iterative solver
options pane.

Example (DSL level 6):

qt0 = 0.5
eps = 0.000001
maxiter = 100
inc(hedr) = newtoninc(hw-sqrt(qedr)*(Rds+Rdr), hw,
maxiter, eps)
inc(qt1) = newtoninc(Pt1/(4*dh*eta1), qt0, maxiter, eps)
inc(qt2) = newtoninc(Pt2/(4*dh*eta2), qt0, maxiter, eps)
inc(qt3) = newtoninc(Pt3/(4*dh*eta3), qt0, maxiter, eps)
inc(qt4) = newtoninc(Pt4/(4*dh*eta4), qt0, maxiter, eps)

Example (DSL level 7):

qt0 = 0.5
inc(hedr) = newtoninc(hw-sqrt(qedr)*(Rds+Rdr), hw)
inc(qt1) = newtoninc(Pt1/(4*dh*eta1), qt0)
inc(qt2) = newtoninc(Pt2/(4*dh*eta2), qt0)
inc(qt3) = newtoninc(Pt3/(4*dh*eta3), qt0)
inc(qt4) = newtoninc(Pt4/(4*dh*eta4), qt0)

The above examples show a part of the initial value definitions for a model where the initial values
of 5 parameters (hedr ,qt1 ,..,qt4) are sought simultaneously by setting up a system of coupled
equations and solving that system by the Newton method so that, eventually:

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√︀
ℎ𝑒𝑑𝑟 ≈ ℎ𝑤 − 𝑞𝑒𝑑𝑟 × (𝑅𝑑𝑠 + 𝑅𝑑𝑟) (29.1)

𝑞𝑡1 ≈ 𝑃 𝑡1/(4 × 𝑑ℎ × 𝑒𝑡𝑎1) (29.2)

𝑞𝑡2 ≈ 𝑃 𝑡2/(4 × 𝑑ℎ × 𝑒𝑡𝑎2) (29.3)

𝑞𝑡3 ≈ 𝑃 𝑡3/(4 × 𝑑ℎ × 𝑒𝑡𝑎3) (29.4)

𝑞𝑡4 ≈ 𝑃 𝑡4/(4 × 𝑑ℎ × 𝑒𝑡𝑎4) (29.5)

The following guidelines should be considered:

• Add the initial conditions to the complex block, as opposed to each primitive (such as a first-order
time lag).
• The general initialisation “direction” is from right to left, i.e. the outputs are normally known and
the inputs (or setpoints) have to be determined.
• If initial conditions are not defined for a certain variable, the simulation equations are used instead.
It should be therefore enough to specify the initial conditions of the state variables and input
variables.
• The option Automatic Calculation of Initial Conditions requires configuring, but does not require
correct initial conditions for each state/input variable. The initial values are only used to initialise
the iteration process. The incfix-function can be used to determine the initial values in ambiguous
situations.
• Use the option Verify Initial Conditions to check if the initial conditions lead to the correct result.
Initialisation logic for multiple DSL blocks containing inter-dependent variables

Complex initialisation procedures involving multiple DSL blocks are supported.

29.4.7.3 Configuration scripts for initialisation

A DPL based Configuration Script can be optionally added to any DSL model. The script is executed
automatically by the command Calculation of Initial Conditions (ComInc) after the successful execution
of the load flow calculation and prior to the actual model initialisation.

The functionality of the Configuration Script is two-fold:

• it provides a flexible way of configuring DSL model parameters;

• it allows DSL models to issue customised output window messages i.e. via DPL output window
methods e.g. Info().

The Configuration Script is linked within a DSL model as shown in Figure 29.4.2. It can be set up by
following these steps:
• Creating a DPL script within the DSL Model Type (BlkDef ) object. Within the script, users may
define various Result variables. Those results whose names match DSL model parameters will be
considered for overwriting the values assigned to DSL parameters. That is, during the calculation
of initial conditions, the pre-existent values of the DSL model parameters will be overwritten by the
Configuration Script.

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• Optional: the DPL script can be programmed to contain both Input parameters as well as External
objects.
• Referencing the DPL script to the DSL Model Type (BlkDef ) object, using the corresponding
field “Configuration Script” within Basic Options → Advanced tab of the Edit dialog of the Block
definition object.
• Creating a new DSL Model (ElmDsl) within the Network Model folder of the project (e.g. typically
within one of the “Grid” folders). This action will automatically create a corresponding DPL script
that references the previously defined Configuration Script.

• Optional: It is possible to assign instance-dependent attributes to the Configuration Script. Each

DSL Model contains a DPL script that references the remote script of the DSL Model Type. Those
Input parameters and External objects which were previously defined within the remote script
(refer to the optional step above), will be available for editing for each DSL model that shares the
same DSL Model Type. This provides increased flexibility, allowing each model to be differently
parameterised. For example, it is possible to link different external objects to each Configuration
Script.

Project

Results
DSL Model Configuration
Kp
Library Type Script
Ki

Parameters Parameters

DSL Kp 32 DSL Kp 14

Grid
Model 1 Ki 0.11 Model 2 Ki 0.22
Tm 1 Tm 3

Configuration Configuration auto

Script Script assigned
auto
assigned
Overwritten DSL parameter by script at initialisation (non-persistent)

Figure 29.4.2: Configuration Script functionality and inter-operation

Notes:

• The scripting language used for the Configuration Script is DIgSILENT Programming Language
(DPL). Refer to Chapter 22 for a comprehensive description of DPL. Further documentation is
available within the DPL Reference which provides a full description of available functions. The
DPL Reference can be accessed in the PowerFactory program from the main menu at Help
→ Scripting References→ DPL. Functions that can be used within the Configuration Script are
marked appropriately in the DPL Reference documentation with a star (*) symbol (e.g. GetFrom-
StudyCase*). There are functions (without a star (*) symbol) that are not available, e.g. the
execution of a load flow (ComLdf ) command is not allowed.
• Parametric changes made by the Configuration Script are non-persistent. When the simulation is
reset (e.g. by clicking the button Reset Calculation), the values of the modified DSL parameters
will be set back to their initial values - meaning that the Configuration Script does not permanently
modify project data.

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• The values of modified DSL parameters can be displayed using the Data Manager. After the
successful execution of the Calculation of Initial Conditions, do the following:
– Using the Data Manager or the Network Model Manager, navigate to and identify the DSL
Model that contains the modified parameter;
– Left-click the DSL model and activate the Detail Mode from the toolbar;
– Left-click on the Flexible Data tab and then on the Variable Selection button from the toolbar.
The Variable Selection window will be shown;
– Use the filter Group to get the Results and the filter Calculation to get Simulation RMS or
Simulation EMT (depending on the case).
– Select the modified parameter(s) in order to display them;
– Click OK and observe the parameter values being used (overwritten by the Configuration
Script).
• In Figure 29.4.2 above, an example is provided for the operation of a script. In this case, the
Configuration Script declares two result variables Kp and Ki. The Block definition contains three
parameters: Kp, Ki and Tm. This means that the script will overwrite only two model parameters:
Kp and Ki. In the figure, exemplary values are provided: for “DSL Model 1” parameter Kp has
an initial value of 3 and the script will overwrite it with the value 2. Similarly, parameter Ki has
an initial value of 0.1 and the script will overwrite it with the value 1. The overwritten values of
the parameters will be used for all subsequent calculations (e.g. initial conditions and simulation).
Further value modifications of these parameters will still be possible during the simulation as for
any other DSL parameter e.g. via Parameter events (EvtParam). The script allows assignment
of instance-dependent attributes. It implies that, depending on the script’s code, each DSL Model
may be configured with individual values for the two parameters. Consequently, the parameters
Kp and Ki of “DSL Model 2” will have been assigned different values. Note that at the end of the
simulation all modified parameters are automatically set back to their initial values.

29.4.8 Equation Code

Within the equation code, all equations necessary to build up the simulation models are included. The
set of equations defines a set of coupled differential equations which describe the dependency between
the input and output signals. The equations may describe simple linear, single-input single-output func-
tions, or highly complex non-linear, non-continuous, multi-input, multi-output functions. DSL Standard
Functions (described in Section 29.16.1) and DSL Special Functions (described in Section 29.16.2) can
be used within the model equations.

DSL is used to describe the direct relationship between signals and other variables. Expressions may
be assigned to a variable, or to the first derivative of a state variable. Higher order differential equations
have to be split up into a set of single order differential equations by the introduction of intermediate
state variables.

Therefore, as far the calculation of time-continuous state variables is concerned, a DSL model can be
conceptually described using state-space notation, as follows:

ẋ = A′ x + B′ u
(29.6)
y = C′ x + D ′ u

where:
A’ – System state matrix.
B’ – Input matrix
C’ – Output matrix
D’ – Feedforward matrix
x – Time continuous state variables vector
u – Input variables vector
y – Output variables vector

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The elements of matrices 𝐴′ , 𝐵 ′ , 𝐶 ′ and 𝐷′ , can be linear/non-linear, time dependent/independent,

continuous/discontinuous.

29.4.8.1 Equation Statement

The equation statements are used to assign expressions to variables, thus relating all variables in a set
of differential equations.

Syntax:

varnm = expr

Assigns expression “expr” to variable “varnm”.

Examples:
y = sin(a)+3*x1
y = .not. x1>2 .or. a<=3

varnm. = expr

Assigns expression expr to the first order derivative of the variable varnm.
Examples:
x1. = (xe-x1)/T1
x2. = x1

Remarks
• DSL assignments may occur in any sequence. The sequence does not influence the evaluation
of the assignments.
• All DSL variables are Real, represented using double precision floating point numbers. This is the
case even if assigned to a boolean expression, in which case the value for logical false is 0.0 and
for logical true is 1.0.
• When a variable z is used in a logical expression (i.e. y=.not.z), the logical 1 of z is tested by
evaluating (z>0.5):
y1 = .not.z is interpreted and equal to y1 = (z=<0.5)
There is no warning against mixing logical and non-discrete variables in expressions. Conse-
quently the following code will not cause a message to be emitted: depending on y, z will take the
value x1 + 4.0, or just x1:
y = .not. x1>2 .or. a<=3
z = 4.0*y + x1
• The assignment of a value to a variable takes place in an order which recognises the connections
between these variables. In the case of the following example, the second line will be evaluated
first, then line 1:
1. a = b+5
2. b = x1
3. x1. = 1
• Algebraic loops are not supported. In the following example, an error message will be displayed:
a = b+5
b = 2*a
• If there is no assignment to a variable varnm, varnm will keep its initial value. The right side
expression may not contain derivatives. Derivatives may only appear on the left side of the equal
sign. The first example is correct; the second is incorrect.
x1. = asin(a) ! Correct
a = sin(x1.) ! Not accepted
• Division by zero: the simulation solver automatically treats a division by zero as a division by a
small number (value used is 0.000001). On the other hand, within a compiled DSL model (see

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Section 29.14.3), the division by zero is executed according to C-language specifications. As

such, 𝑁 𝑎𝑁 (not a number) values may be generated for such cases. It is recommended to treat
within the DSL model any possible divisions by zero directly in the model equations e.g. replace
“.../Ve” with “.../max(0.000001,Ve)”.

29.4.9 Various model definitions

The Equation section of a DSL model is used to define parameter properties and initial conditions.

29.4.9.1 Unit and Parameter Description

vardef(varnm) = unitstring;namestring

Unit and name for variable varnm.

Examples:
vardef(Ton) = ’s’;’Pick up time for restart’ !defines unit and name
vardef(Ton) = ;’Pick up time for restart’ !only defines name
vardef(Ton) = ’s’; ! only defines unit

[varnm] = unitstring

Unit for variable varnm, maximum 10 characters.

Remark: A macro call causes error messages if the units of the substituted variables do not
match the defined units.

Example:
[Ton] = ’s’ ! defines unit

29.4.9.2 Valid Value Ranges

limits(varnm) = [/( minimum value, maximum value ]/)

Defines the valid interval for variable varnm. Violations of the interval limits during simulation will be
reported:

limits(yt)=(,1] is equivalent to output(yt>1,

’Maximum exceeded: yt=yt>1’)

The “(” and “)” brackets exclude the minimum or maximum value from the interval; the “[” and “]” brackets
include them.

Examples:
limits(x)=[min,max] ! min <= x <= max
limits(x)=(min,max] ! min < x <= max
limits(x)=(,max] ! x <= max
limits(x)=(min,) ! min < x

If required and if possible, the program automatically determines the smallest interval under several
intervals of the same variable.

Example:
limits(x)=(1,3) and limits(x)=(2,4] results in 2<x<3.

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Macro models often define limits for certain variables. The model which uses the macro might also
define limits for the variables which are used in the macro calls. The “smallest interval” method thus
gives the calling model the freedom to redefine parameter limits without violating the internal macro limit
definitions.

The limfix(varnm) function is a variant of the limits(varnm) function which is evaluated only at initial-
isation. Its use is encouraged for performance reasons whenever varnm is constant throughout the
simulation.

29.4.10 DSL Macros

A DSL Macro is a DSL Model Type, which is meant to be included as a building block in a higher level
DSL Model Type (BlkDef, shown as ). DSL Macros are typically predefined objects, available in a
model library e.g. the DIgSILENT Library. The Edit dialog of the DSL Model Type provides a checkbox
for identifying the object as a “Macro” (see Section 29.5.2 for more information).

A DSL Macro is included in a higher level DSL model by creating a Block Reference in the block diagram
of the higher level model.

To define a DSL Macro, do the following:

• Create the DSL Model Type (refer to Section 29.5.1).

• Make sure to leave the newly create diagram empty. It is recommended to close it.
• Open the Edit dialog of the newly created DSL Model Type and from Basic Options → General
tab set the flag “Macro”. The DSL Model Type is now interpreted as a DSL Macro.
• Customise the macro by declaring variables and writing the relevant equations. The procedure is
similar with the creation of a non-graphically defined DSL Model Type (refer to Section 29.7).
• Interact with the DSL Macro only via the Data Manager and do not edit or add components in the
block diagram of the DSL Macro.

Note: Although less usual, it is still allowed to define a DSL macro using a graphical definition. A graph-
ically defined DSL macro is atypical because such representations are not very often re-usable.
Moreover, such constructs are regarded as sub-blocks of a larger model (refer to Section 29.4.2).

A DSL macro, for example, might implement a low-pass filter, which may then be used to graphically
construct complex controllers which include this filter as a sub-component. A DSL Macro can be referred
to in more than one complex DSL Model Types at the same time. The benefits of using a DSL Macro
as a basic block of complex models are obvious:

• The developer of the complex model needs only to focus on the high level implementation, while
making use of the readily available DSL Macros from the DIgSILENT Library
• Creation of customised DSL macros is possible, with model developers being able to implement
and test the low-level functionality of the DSL macro using a separate test setup
• Code re-use: it is generally recommended that the code of a given component which is re-used
many times is unique.

29.4.10.1 DSL Macro Handling

A preparser substitutes each macro call with the equation code of the macro. The variables of the
macro DSL model are then replaced by the variables used in the macro call. The local variable names

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of macros thus disappear after the preparation process.

29.4.10.2 DSL Macro Example: Time-Continuous Integrator

Continuous equation:

∫︁
𝑦𝑜𝑢𝑡 = 𝑦0 + 𝑦𝑖𝑛 𝑑𝑡 (29.7)

Rewriting the continuous equation using the state variable x:

d
𝑦𝑜𝑢𝑡 = 𝑦𝑖𝑛 (29.8)
d𝑡

⎧ d
⎨ d𝑡 𝑥 = 𝑦𝑖𝑛
𝑦𝑜𝑢𝑡 = 𝑥 (29.9)
𝑖𝑛𝑐(𝑦𝑜𝑢𝑡 ) = 𝑦0
⎩

Finally the implementation in PowerFactory using DSL:

inc0(yin) = 0 !starts with 0 if no input signal is connected

inc0(yout) = y0 !starts with y0 if no output signal is connected
inc(x) = yout !starts with steady state
x. = yin
yout = x

29.4.11 Events and Messages

The DSL language provides procedures for the generation of an interrupt event and for sending mes-
sages to the output window:
• event(enable, trigger, ConfigurationString) generates a user defined event. Further information
is found in Section 29.16.2.
• reset(var, rst, val) generates DSL model internal events (user defined). Further information is
found in Section 29.16.2.
• output(boolexpr, message_string) outputs a message during the simulation. Further information
is found in Section 29.16.2.

Note: The events are accessed or created by opening the edit dialog of the DSL Model (double-click
on the DSL model in the Data Manager), and then pressing the button Events in the dialog. A
list of events already defined inside this model is displayed. The events generated via procedure
event() are added to the project’s global event list. The events generated via procedure reset() are
not added to the project’s global event list (as they are considered internal DSL events).

29.4.12 Advanced DSL Features

The numerical integration of DSL models, interrupt scheduling and input-output signal processing is
handled automatically by the program kernel. In addition, if the output of a DSL model is an electric

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current being added to the appropriate total bus current - which is the case if a load or generator model
is created - all Jacobian elements necessary for the iterative simulation procedure will be calculated
automatically.

Another useful feature of DSL is the algorithm implemented for numerical setup of the system matrix
for eigenvalue calculation purposes. Consequently, any model implemented at the DSL level will be
automatically taken into consideration when calculating the system eigenvalues or when applying the
modal network reduction approach (MRT). Of course, any signal limiting functions will be disabled
automatically for this calculation procedure.

29.4.13 Graphically defined DSL Model Types

To define graphically a DSL Model type, follow the instructions provided in Section 29.6.1. To access the
dialog of the DSL Model Type (BlkDef ), double-click on the frame box surrounding the diagram. DSL
Model Type objects are conceptually similar to “Grid Folders” in the PowerFactory database tree. They
are defined by graphically defining a controller block diagram of which they will store the graphical
information and all logic parts. These parts include signals, small standard components (adders,
multipliers, etc.) or DSL Macros.

Although a DSL Model Type object is created graphically, it allows for additional DSL equations to define
those aspects of the controller that would be otherwise difficult to enter in a graphical way.

29.5 DSL: Overview of the DSL Model Type

29.5.1 Creating a new DSL Model Type

To create a new DSL Model Type (BlkDef ):

• from the main menu:
– Click Insert → Dynamic Model→ DSL Model Type
• from the Data Manager using the New Object button:
– Focus the Data Manager on the library subfolder Library → Dynamic Models
– Click New Object
– Select DSL Model Type
• from the Dynamic Models folder using the context menu:
– right-click on the Dynamic Models folder on the left side of the Data Manager and select New
→ Dynamic Model→ DSL Model Type
• in each case, an empty diagram is created for drawing the model details

29.5.2 The Edit Dialog of the DSL Model Type

The Edit Dialog of the DSL Model Type (BlkDef ) contains a large set of relevant information about:
• Basic Options - General: selection of model type, model input and output variables, parameters,
state variables and limiting signals,
• Basic Options - Advanced: various advanced configuration options e.g. DSL level, use of DSL
configuration scripts, compilation options,
• Equations: initial conditions of variables as well as names and units of parameters,

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• Description: text based model description which can be customised,

• Version: further customisation regarding versioning.

29.5.2.1 Basic Options page - General tab

Name: the object’s name

Title: a user defined title can be provided using this field

Model type pane:

• DSL model: This is the standard DSL model type. In this case the Macro option is used to identify
the DSL Model Type as a macro inside the library.
• Compiled model: Enabling this option will require the selection of the corresponding DLL file (of
the compiled model) in an input dialog. For more information see Section 29.14.3 (C Interface).
• Macro flag: Check this flag if the block definition is meant to be a DSL macro (refer to Sec-
tion 29.4.10 for more information on DSL macros).
• Display name: If the Macro flag is checked then this text field can be freely defined by the user.
The Display name is shown in the graphic representation of models which make use of this macro
(i.e. in block diagrams). If the Display name is empty then the object name of the DSL Model Type
is shown in the block diagrams.
Variables pane:
• Input and output signals have to be defined for internal use inside the DSL Model Type. The
number and their name will then appear in the graphical diagram when the block is used.
• State variables are needed when not only linear, but also differential equations are used. Then,
for every first-order derivative one state variable must be specified.
• Parameters will appear in the DSL Model dialog and can then be specified. The parameter defined
in the DSL Model Type will automatically be inserted in the Block Reference. The names of the
parameters can be different in the Block Reference and in the DSL Model Type. Only the order
must be identical.
• Internal variables are only used inside the DSL Model Type but can not be set from outside.
Limiting parameters/input signals pane:
– Upper/Lower limiting parameters: Constant parameters may be defined here for representing
a limitation parameter; a corresponding graphical representation of the limiting parameter is
applied when using a graphical block diagram which includes this model.
– Upper/Lower limiting input signals: Input signals may be defined here for representing a lim-
itation signal; a corresponding graphical representation of the limiting input signal is applied
when using a graphical block diagram which includes this model.

Note: Guidelines for constructing variable names:

– characters allowed :
* small letters ( a − z )
* CAPITAL letters ( A − Z )
* digits ( 0 − 9 )
* underscore(_)
– special symbols are not allowed e.g. blank spaces and commas. Exception: under-
score(_) is allowed.
– first character should be an alphabet or underscore (digits are not allowed). If the first
character is an underscore, then the variable name must contain additional characters,
and at least one letter or digit.

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– variable name should not be reserved word (e.g. name of DSL standard function or DSL
special function, refer to Section 29.16)

DLL info pane (only for compiled model types):

• When a Compiled model is selected, this pane is shown and it will provide overview information
contained within the DLL. The information depends on the DLL file and interface type (e.g. C-
Interface or IEC-Interface)
• if a C-Interface based DLL file is used, then a Checksum field is also provided. This field, when
properly configured, represents the DSL checksum information of the original DSL block definition
used for generating the C-Interface source files.
DSL info pane:

• Checksum: The checksum of this model is shown. For compiled models their pre-programmed
checksum is shown. Whenever changes are applied to the model, PowerFactory will compare the
checksums of the compiled and the DSL model. If the two checksums are different, a correspond-
ing information message will be shown.

29.5.2.2 Basic Options page - Advanced tab

Initialisation options pane:

• The Automatic calculation of initial conditions option enables PowerFactory to process any existing
“incfix()” statements within DSL models. More information about the “incfix()” statement can be
found here.
• Partial initialisation in case of deadlock:
• Configuration Script: A configuration script (DPL based) can be referenced here. The script should
reside within the DSL Model Type(BlkDef ) object and will be run during the execution of the
Calculation of Initial Conditions command (ComInc). More information on its use is provided in
Section 29.4.7.3.
Classification pane (only for DSL model types):
• Level of the model enforces a certain prescribed behaviour of the DSL model equations. For
backwards compatibility reasons, DSL models may have a different level. The highest level that
can be selected represents the current (recommended) DSL level. For newly created models the
highest level should always be used. The existing DSL levels are described in Table 29.5.1.
For DSL macros, this field will decide the behaviour of the macro syntax checks (e.g. “reset”
keyword is reserved in DSL level 6 and upwards for the reset function, whereas in lower levels, the
keyword will be allowed for variable declarations). For DSL Models, the DSL level of the referenced
DSL Model Type decides the behaviour both at runtime as well as for the syntax checks. Any
DSL level settings contained in various DSL macros or lower-level sub-model components of the
highest level DSL Model Type are ignored.
• Linear: This user-defined flag is used to state whether the model is linear or non-linear. The
graphical representation of the block is changed accordingly in block diagrams i.e. a linear block
is illustrated using a single rectangle while a non-linear block is depicted using two concentric
rectangles. This field has no influence on the behaviour of the dynamic model during dynamic
simulation. Nevertheless, it can provide graphical information on the linear behaviour of the
constructed model, this field being especially useful for DSL macros.

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DSL Level Description

0 Model created in PowerFactory Build 57 or previous
1 List of all internal variables in header
2 DSL Level 1 plus user-defined sorting of parameters
3 DSL Level 2 plus lim function being precise in time
DSL Level 3 plus event function using boolean expression as condition:
4 event(boolean expression, . . . ), see Section 29.16.2. DSL Level 4 was
introduced with PowerFactory version 13.2.
DSL Level 4 plus additional DSL syntax checks and improved warnings. DSL
5 Level 5 was introduced with PowerFactory versions 15.2.9, 2016 SP4 and
2017.
DSL Level 5 plus newly developed additional DSL functions
• picontrol with variable non-windup limits,
• reset,
and improvements in behaviour of DSL functions
• loopinc, intervalinc and newtoninc,

• limstate and limstate_const,

6
• picdro and picdro_const,
• picontrol_const,

• and all DSL functions having min/max limits (internal check of max not
being smaller than min).
The improvements are linked with the DSL level to ensure that the dynamic
behaviour of existing models using previous DSL levels remains unchanged.
DSL Level 6 was introduced with PowerFactory version 2020.
DSL Level 6 plus the following improvements
• Improved DSL parser with significant performance improvement at
initialisation, especially for large DSL models,
• DSL allows the initialisation of the derivative of state variables e.g.
“inc(x.)=0” ,

• Internal model variables must always be declared, otherwise an error is

generated,
• inc() statements cannot include the following DSL special functions:
– select and select_const (instead, use selfix or selfix_const)
– lim and lim_const (instead, use selfix or selfix_const)
7 – limstate and limstate_const (instead, use these functions outside
inc() statements, the state variables will be limited at initialisation
as well)
– picontrol and picontrol_const
– picdro and picdro_const
– gradlim_const, movingavg, lastvalue and delay
• newtoninc - models containing this function can be compiled,

• selfix, aflipflop, limstate, loopinc and intervalinc - improved implementa-

tion
The improvements are linked with the DSL level to ensure that the dynamic
behaviour of existing models using previous DSL levels remains unchanged.
DSL Level 7 was introduced with PowerFactory version 2022.

Table 29.5.1: Description of DSL levels

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Interpolation of internal variables: Set this option in order to update DSL internal variables during the
occurrence of interpolation events.

Note: By default, PowerFactory does not update the internal variables of a DSL model during the
occurrence of interpolation events. It is only inputs, outputs and state variables that are updated by
default. This behaviour is highly useful for improving the performance of the simulation, especially
in event-rich simulation cases. Nevertheless, if stopping a simulation just after the occurrence of
an interpolation event, the recorded values of internal variables may be inaccurate. By activating
this option, the PowerFactory solver will ensure that internal variables are recalculated always,
thus delivering accurate results of DSL internal variables - at the cost of simulation performance.
This option is particularly useful during the DSL model development stage, in which the internal
variables are observed when debugging model behaviour.

Compilation options pane:

• Author, Company, Copyright and Version fields are used to store corresponding information in the
compiled model file.
• Check for Compilation: this button is functional only for DSL non-macro models of the highest
level. It checks that the syntax of the model complies with the requirements for compilation.

• Compile. . . : this button is functional only for DSL non-macro models of the highest level which
are not encrypted. This button starts the automatic DSL-to-C Interface Converter. A syntax check
is first performed and then, if successful, the corresponding C and Microsoft Visual Studio files
are written. These files must be compiled with an external compiler, then the Compiled model
option must be selected in the Model type frame and the resulting DLL file must be specified in
the dialog. For simplicity, these models will be referred to hereafter as ’compiled models’. For
more information see Section 29.14.3 (DSL C Interface).
Buttons - There are several buttons on the right side of the dialog, as follows.

Check:

“Check” will verify the model equations and output error messages if errors have occurred.
Otherwise the following message will be seen:

Check ’\TestUser.IntUser\Windparks.IntPrj\Library
\\emph{DSL Model Type}s\DFIG\Voltage Control.BlkDef’:
Block is ok.

Equations:

The “Equations” button will print the DSL equations to the output window, regardless of whether
they are defined graphically or on the Additional Equations page, as well as variable definitions.

Macro equat.:

This button prints all DSL Model Type equations (including the equations in the used DSL macros)
to the output window.

Pack:

Pack will copy all hierarchically lower referenced DSL sub-models (or DSL macros) used by a
DSL Model Type to the folder “Used Macros” inside the object itself. In this way there will no
longer be any external references. Beware: Once the Pack function is used, any further changes
to the previously referenced objects will have no influence on the current model anymore - the
hierarchically lower referenced DSL sub-models (or DSL macros) are no longer linked to the

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external objects. Therefore, if an error occurs in a specific macro it must be fixed separately in
each packed component.

Pack-> Macro:

This command will reduce the entire model (including DSL blocks and additional equations and
macros) to a single DSL model containing only equations. All graphical information will be lost. It
should be noted that this command is irreversible.

Encrypt:

DSL Model Types (BlkDef, usage: DSL Model) can be encrypted. The Encrypt command en-
crypts all existing model equations and generates a non-editable encrypted text of the Equations
page of the DSL Model Type.

Note: The user should be aware that encryption can never guarantee complete security. The chosen
technology balances the requirements for security with the usability and performance of encrypted
models. Generally, users are advised to share models only with trusted partners.

The Encrypt requires that the entire DSL Model Type is contained within itself (i.e. completely
packed: no external macros, all model code within the object). To easily achieve this the subse-
quent execution of the Pack and Pack -> Macro commands can be performed.

Note: If the Encrypt button is deactivated, then the execution of Pack and Pack->Macro should enable
the encryption. The Encryption function is functional only for licences containing the “DPL/D-
SL/QDSL Encryption” module.

Upon a successful encryption, a DSL model type can be shared with any third party in an
encrypted format. Note, the Pack->Macro command deletes any existing graphics (i.e. Block
Diagram) of the DSL Model Type. It should be noted that the encryption command is irreversible
and that no decryption function is available.

In order to encrypt a DSL model type perform the following actions:

• Create a back-up copy of the PowerFactory project, because the next steps cannot be undone;
alternatively export your project (as backup and for later use) before you perform the encryption
of the model;
• Activate the project;
• Open the dialog window of the DSL Model Type (BlkDef ) you want to encrypt;

• Click the Pack button: this action copies all used macros into a sub-folder of the DSL Model Type
(BlkDef );
• Then click the Pack->Macro button: this action removes the graphics and packs all equations into
one single DSL Model Type (BlkDef ) object. Any pre-existing DSL macro references are removed.

• Afterwards, click the Encrypt button in order to encrypt the DSL Model Type (BlkDef ).

Note: • Composite Model Frames cannot be encrypted. In order to obfuscate the internal realisation
of a composite model frame, it is possible to delete the Graphic sub-folder (folder type
IntGrfnet) located inside the Composite Model Frame object (BlkDef, usage: Composite
Model Frame).

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• The DSL Configuration Script is not encrypted using this function. To encrypt the Configura-
tion Script assigned to a DSL Model Type, please perform the encryption process from within
the script itself.

On the Equations page the (additional) equations of the DSL model can be provided. Further infor-
mation such as the initial conditions of state variables and the name and unit of parameters can be
specified. For DSL macros, this field is used to provide all the DSL equations that describe the macro
functionality. Figure 29.5.1 shows the additional equations for the DSL model of the basic first-order
limiter block.

Figure 29.5.1: DSL Model Type dialog, Equations page

29.5.2.3 Description page

A general purpose Description page is available for each DSL Model Type.

29.5.2.4 Version page

A Version page is available for each DSL Model Type.

Copyright field: This field allows to set a watermark/prove the ownership of a model. The field is
password protected and can be customised by the user. The following information is relevant:
• The copyright can be configured by clicking the Set button. If done so, the copyright information
can be entered. After typing in the copyright text, click OK. A password entry dialog is afterwards
provided, in which a user defined password can be entered.

Note: The Set button is not available for DSL Model Type objects which have been created in a
PowerFactory version prior to PowerFactory 2019.

• The entered copyright information is protected via the password. This object and any further
copies of this object inherit the copyright information and the corresponding password.

• Copyright information can be changed at a later point in time by clicking the Change button and
providing the original password;
• DSL Model Type objects which have been originally created in a PowerFactory version prior to
PowerFactory 2019 are not supporting the Copyright field (even if used/imported in PowerFactory
2019 or later).

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• DSL Model Type objects which are imported from a PowerFactory version equal to or greater than
PowerFactory 2019 inherit the Copyright field information.
The DIgSILENT library objects (e.g. DSL macros, DSL control models) support a versioning system.
For these objects, the following fields are relevant:

• Version: a field that states the current object version.

• Change log: a text field that provides a history change log of all previous versions.

29.6 DSL: Creating DSL Model Types using Block Diagrams

A block diagram of a DSL Model Type (BlkDef ) is a graphical representation of a multi-input multi-
output (MIMO) time differential equations system including non-linearities. The block diagram defines
one or more output signals as a function of one or more input signals.

A block diagram may thus be described as:

(𝑦0 , 𝑦1 , ...) = 𝑓 (𝑢0 , 𝑢1 , ...) (29.10)

where 𝑦0 , 𝑦1 , ... represent output signals of index 0, 1, ... and 𝑢0 , 𝑢1 , ... represent the input signals of
index 0, 1, ... .

Block diagrams consist basically of the following elements:

• Block References which are used to include other DSL Model Types.
• Summation Points which produce the single output y=(u_0+u_1+...)
• Multipliers which produce the single output y=(u_0*u_1*...)
• Divisors which produce the single output y=(u_0/u_1/...)
• Switches which produce the single output y=u_0 or y=u_1
• Input/Output nodes used to define an input (green color) or an output (red color) of relevant
components in the block diagram (e.g. inputs/outputs of Block References, Summation points,
switches etc.). The nodes are color coded:
– Red: Output node (shown on the right side of an element e.g. Block Reference)
– Green: Input node (shown on the left side of an element e.g. Block Reference)
– Magenta: Input node, maximum limiting signal (shown on the top side of an element e.g.
Block Reference)
– Blue: Input node, minimum limiting signal (shown on the bottom side of an element e.g.
Block Reference)
– Gray : Undefined node type
• Routed signal lines used to link an output signal node with an input signal node
• Signal labels used to link signals without creating a routed signal

Block references can be looked upon as macros that insert a low-level DSL Model Type in the graphical
representation of the hierarchically higher level DSL Model Type. A Block reference always points to
another DSL Model Type (which can be graphically defined or using DSL code e.g. a DSL macro).
PowerFactory is shipped with a large set of DSL Macros useful for most common controller elements
like PID-controllers, dead-bands, valve characteristics, etc., and can be found in the PowerFactory tree
under DIgSILENT Library → Dynamic Models→ Macros. These macros are provided in an open format,
where the DSL code is readily accessible. A Block reference is added to the block diagram by using
the icon in the Drawing Tools. This creates an empty block which can then refer to any existing
DSL Model Type in the global/project library. When the Type of the Block reference is assigned a DSL

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Model Type, PowerFactory inserts all available parameters of the referred type. The user may change
the name of any parameter, however ensure that the order of the parameters is not changed. The order
is important so that the right parameter is assigned to the parameters inside the DSL Model Type.

After a Block reference has been created, it will show any relevant input, output nodes. Routed signal
lines may then be connected to these points. It is allowed to refer to the DSL Model Type more than
once in the same block diagram. This way, it is possible to use a particular PID-controller, for instance,
twice or more in the same model. Routed signal lines are directional branches, connecting one output
with one or multiple input signals.

An example of a simple block diagram, comprising a multiplier, a summation point and a standard PI
block, is shown in Figure 29.6.1.

Simple_DSL_Model:

i1
0

xe Kp+1/sTi s1 3
0 12
o1
Kp,Ti

i2
1

Figure 29.6.1: Example of a Simple Block Diagram

When rebuilding a diagram (by pressing the icon), the DSL representation of the block diagram is
written to the output window. For the example block diagram in Figure 29.6.1, this results in the following
output:

o1 = ’Simple_DSL_Model’(i1,i2;x;Kp,Ti;s1,xe)
s1 = ’ Kp+1/sTi’(xe;x;Kp,Ti)
xe = i1*i2
o1 = s1+i2+i1

This simple example shows the whole meaning of the block diagram graphics: it is a convenient way to
define specific controllers, based on standard components.

However, it is possible to define exactly the same block diagram by entering similar DSL code in the
Equations page of an empty DSL Model Type and thereby create the model without having a graphical
representation.

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29.6.1 Drawing Diagrams of DSL Model Types

The creation of graphical DSL models is based on an intuitive and straightforward process. The
development process involves using the available Drawing Tools by selecting building blocks from the
Library Browser and drag-and-dropping the required blocks into the model diagram. Interconnecting
these functional blocks is done using any of the specialised Blocks and Signals elements.

Inside the diagram of a DSL Model Type the following elements are allowed:
• Block references
• Summation points

• Multipliers
• Divisors
• Switches

• Signal labels
• Routed signal lines
These objects can be selected from the Drawing Tools. Additionally, the Drawing Tools contains
graphical annotations as well (lines, polygons, rectangles, texts, etc.) as shown in Figure 29.6.2. The
diagram itself must be taken out of Freeze mode ( ) in order to enable the Drawing Tools.

Figure 29.6.2: Drawing Tools toolbar, Blocks and Signals and Annotations sections

29.6.1.1 Inserting a DSL Macro into a Diagram of a DSL Model Type

A DSL macro is inserted into the block diagram of a DSL Model Type by means of adding a Block
Reference, which is the actual instance that links to the DSL macro. As a DSL macro can be used
several times within the same DSL Model Type or in different DSL Model Types, the Block Reference
maps the parameters, state variables, internal variables and signals, which are defined in the DSL
macro with the associated parameters, state variables, internal variables and signals of the DSL Model
Type. Therefore, after adding a DSL macro via Block Reference, the parameters of the Block Reference
usually have to be customised to fit within the higher-level DSL Model Type; see next section 29.6.1.2.

To add a DSL macro (i.e. a Block Reference that links to the DSL macro) in the diagram of a DSL Model
Type:

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• Option 1 - inserting pre-defined DSL macros using the Drawing Tools

The Drawing Tools toolbar contains a library browser that lists all DSL macros from the global
DIgSILENT Library (see Section 13.10), from an additional custom global library (if existing, see
Section 13.3) and any user-defined DSL macros from the project library’s Dynamic Models folder.
Sub-folders and their contents are displayed in a tree structure. For quick access, it is possible to
search for particular macros using the filter function of the Drawing Tools toolbar. With a right-click,
it is possible to show the contents of a selected DSL macro.
– Open the Drawing Tools toolbar and find the Library section. Navigate to a folder which
contains the DSL macro of interest. You may use the filter function of the Drawing Tools
toolbar.
– Insert a DSL macro into the block diagram of a DSL Model Type using drag & drop:
* Select the DSL macro which should be inserted.
* Left-click on the DSL macro and keep the left mouse button pressed.
* Drag the DSL macro into the diagram.
* Drop it at the intended location by releasing the left mouse button.
– Or: Insert a DSL macro into the block diagram of a DSL Model Type using select & click :
* Select the DSL macro which should be inserted.
* Left-click the DSL macro and release the left mouse button. The DSL macro is now
“stuck” to the mouse cursor.
* Move the mouse to the location in the block diagram, where the DSL macro/Block
Reference should be deployed.
* Left-click again to deploy the DSL macro (i.e. to create a Block Reference that refers
to the DSL macro). This action can be repeated to insert the DSL macro at several
locations within the block diagram.
* Right-click or press ESC on your keyboard to release the DSL macro from the mouse
cursor (i.e. to finish the mode of inserting the DSL macro).
• Option 2 - manually creating the block using the Drawing Tools:

– Click on the Block reference item in the Drawing Tools.

– Click in an empty area of the diagram to deploy it.
– Use the Select button ( in Figure 29.6.3) to select a Type. The type of a Block Reference
is a DSL macro. Pre-defined DSL macros are located in the folder DIgSILENT Library
→ Dynamic Models→ DSL Macros (see Section 13.10). User-defined DSL macros are
typically stored in the local library of a project (Project → Library → Dynamic Models), or
in an additional custom global library (if one exists; see Section 13.3).

Note: The associated object classes and their interdependencies are:

• DSL Model Type: BlkDef (Block Definition). The DSL Model Type can be defined graphically
or by pure DSL text code.
• Block Reference: BlkRef. The Block Reference is the instance of a DSL macro within a
higher-level DSL Model Type.
• DSL Macro: BlkDef. A DSL macro is a DSL Model Type with the option Macro enabled.

The edit dialog of a Block Reference is shown by double clicking the block (refer to Figure 29.6.3).

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Figure 29.6.3: Block Reference dialog

Adjusting Block References

Block references can be resized by clicking once on the block and then holding and dragging from one
of the corners. The aspect ratio is maintained in this situation. When holding and dragging from one of
the sides, the block is adjusted only in one direction.

29.6.1.2 Customisation options for Block References

The Block Reference options are detailed as follows (refer to Figure 29.6.3):
• Display name - a read only field indicating either the Display Name of the referenced DSL Macro
or the internally assigned object name of the newly added Block Reference in case the Display
Name field of the referenced object (BlkDef ) is empty. The Display name can be used as an
indication of the functionality of this Block Reference. If a DSL Macro is assigned to the block
(i.e. the referenced BlkDef must have the flag Macro set), then the Display name (if not empty) is
added to the description label of the Block Reference in the diagram. If the Display name is empty
then the object name of the DSL Macro is shown instead in the diagram.
• Sequence - This parameter accepts any integer number. It defines the order in which the block’s
parameters are listed in a DSL Model that uses the main DSL Model Type. The DSL Model dialog
displays a listing of all parameters within the referenced DSL Model Type in a tabular format. The
order in this table, from top to down, is decided by this Sequence parameter: the parameters
belonging to the Block Reference with the smallest Sequence value will appear on top of the list
(first rows); the parameters belonging to the Block Reference with the second smallest Sequence
value will follow the first ones in the list (subsequent rows), and so on.
Note: – Multiple parameters belonging to the same Block Reference are added in their order
of appearance in the field Parameters of the Block Reference edit dialog.
– The DSL Model lists (and orders) parameters based on their functional scope. That is:
* the first block of ordered parameters in the list belongs to those parameters defined
in any Block Reference in the field Parameters of each Block Reference edit dialog.
* the second block of ordered parameters in the list belongs to those parameters
defined in the field Additional Parameters of the Equations page of the main DSL
Model Type edit dialog.
* the third block of ordered parameters in the list belongs to those parameters defined
in any Block Reference in the field Lower Limitation of each Block Reference edit
dialog.

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* the fourth block of ordered parameters in the list belongs to those parameters defined
in any Block Reference in the field Upper Limitation of each Block Reference edit
dialog.
– Inserting new Block References to the diagram will index upwards the Sequence value
of each newly added Block Reference (the highest value of any existing Block Reference
plus 1 is assigned to the last inserted block)

• Type - Reference to a DSL Model Type (mandatory). When assigned, the Block Reference
automatically reads the inputs and outputs of the DSL Model Type and applies them graphically
by adding input and output nodes to the block. Whenever the DSL Model Type is changed by
accessing this field, the Block Reference is automatically updated. If the changes to the DSL
Model Type are externally applied, then the block diagram must be Rebuild using the Rebuild
button.
• Title - a read only field which displays the Title field of the referenced DSL Model Type ).
• Upper Limitation - the Upper Limitation limiting parameters are automatically read from the
referenced DSL Model Type. If none, then the field is left empty. The Upper Limitation field is
initially set to a comma separated list of the originally declared parameter names in the referenced
DSL Model Type. The parameter names can be directly changed in this field. Although names
can be different, the order and number of the comma separated parameters is important and must
correspond to the order and number of the declared parameters in the referenced DSL Model
Type.
• Lower Limitation - the Lower Limitation limiting parameters are automatically read from the
referenced DSL Model Type. If none, then the field is left empty. The Lower Limitation field is
initially set to a comma separated list of the originally declared parameter names in the referenced
DSL Model Type. The parameter names can be directly changed in this field. Although names
can be different, the order and number of the comma separated parameters is important and must
correspond to the order and number of the declared parameters in the referenced DSL Model
Type.
• Parameters - the Parameters are automatically read from the referenced DSL Model Type. If
none, then the field is left empty. The Parameters field is initially set to a comma separated list
of the originally declared parameter names in the referenced DSL Model Type. The parameter
names can be directly changed in this field. Although names can be different, the order and
number of the comma separated parameters is important and must correspond to the order and
number of the declared parameters in the referenced DSL Model Type.
• State Variables - the State Variables are automatically read from the referenced DSL Model Type.
If none, then the field is left empty. The State Variables field is initially set to a comma separated
list of the originally declared state variables of the referenced DSL Model Type. The state variable
names can be directly changed in this field. Although names can be different, the order and
number of the comma separated state variables is important and must correspond to the order
and number of the declared states in the referenced DSL Model Type.
• Internal Variables - the Internal Variables are automatically read from the referenced DSL Model
Type. If none, then the field is left empty. The Internal Variables field is initially set to a comma
separated list of the originally declared internal variables of the referenced DSL Model Type. The
internal variable names can be directly changed in this field. Although names can be different, the
order and number of the comma separated internal variables is important and must correspond to
the order and number of the declared internal variables in the referenced DSL Model Type.

• Update button - the Update button is used to re-read and re-initialise the variable fields (up-
per/lower limitation, parameters, states and internal variables) according to the information in the
referenced DSL Model Type. Upon clicking this button, all previous data of the variable fields is
removed.

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29.6.1.3 Adding Calculation Blocks

Summation Point

Any node can be used as an input or an output node. Only one output node is allowed. Not
all nodes must be used. The sign of input nodes can be changed from the edit dialog of the
summation point.

Multiplier

Any node can be used as an input or an output node. Only one output node is allowed. Not all
nodes must be used. For example, the output of three input signals is: 𝑜𝑢𝑡 = 𝑖𝑛0 * 𝑖𝑛1 * 𝑖𝑛2 .

Divisor

The left side node is used for the numerator input signal. Any subsequent node (counting
clockwise) can be connected to an input. These input signals will be used as denominator terms.
Only one output node is allowed. Not all nodes must be used.

Switch

Two input signals can be applied to this block, which will be connected to the output according
to the value of the control signal (top node). If the control signal is 0.5 or less, the switch stays
in the default state, whereas a signal greater than 0.5 will cause the switch to change state. The
default state can be changed via the Edit dialog of the switch.

29.6.1.4 Connecting Signals

After drawing and defining the Block references, slots or other node elements, they can be connected
with Routed signal lines or Signal labels. After selecting the button from the Drawing Tools, a Routed
signal line is drawn by clicking on the Output node of a block and afterwards clicking on the Input node
of another block (an example is shown in Figure 29.6.4).

Figure 29.6.4: Routed Signal Lines of a DSL Model Type diagram

The routed signal lines can be edited in the corresponding dialog, which allows signal names to be
changed.

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29.6.1.5 Input and Output Signals of Block Diagrams

An input signal is defined by starting a Routed signal line from the left, top or bottom side of the Boundary
frame of the diagram.

An output signal is defined by ending a Routed signal line on the right side of the Boundary frame of
the diagram.

Note: The names of the input and output signals must be the same as the names of the input and
output signals defined in the slot or block to which it is intended to use this block diagram.

29.6.1.6 Using Signal labels

Nodes (e.g. of Block References) can be interconnected using a combination of Signal labels and
Routed signal lines as well. Routed lines can be “split” by Signal labels thus allowing inter-connection
of nodes without drawing a continuous line between the source and destination Node. Signal labels can
be regarded as “shortcuts” and come in handy especially in cases of highly cluttered diagrams of DSL
Model Types.

To add Signal labels to a diagram of a DSL Model Type, do the following:

• Activate the Goto drawing mode by clicking the Goto ( ) icon in the Drawing Tools. Goto labels
are used to be linked with an Output node of a source component (e.g. a Block Reference). The
signal of the Goto label will be later on linked with the From label and finally conveyed to the Input
node of a destination component (e.g. a Block Reference).
• Deploy the Goto label in an empty area next to the component’s Output node which is of interest.

• Activate the Signal drawing mode by clicking the Signal ( ) icon in the Drawing Tools. Connect
the Output node of the component with the Input node of the Goto label ( ). Exit the Signal
drawing mode by right-clicking in an empty area.

• Give a relevant name to the recently created Routed signal line (the signal name is further referred
to “SignalName”).

• Activate the From drawing mode by clicking the From ( ) icon in the Drawing Tools. From labels
are used to link an externally named signal (e.g. of a Goto label for example) with an Input node
of a destination component (e.g. a Block Reference).
• Deploy the From label in an empty area next to the component’s Input node (destination signal) of
interest.

• Activate the Signal drawing mode by clicking the Signal ( ) icon in the Drawing Tools. Connect
the Output node of the From label ( ) with the Input node of the destination component (e.g. a
Block Reference). Exit the Signal drawing mode by right-clicking in an empty area.

• Double click the newly created From label ( ). In its Edit dialog, set the text field Signal from to
be “SignalName”.
• A link is created between the Output node of signal source component (e.g. a Block Reference)
and the Input node of a signal destination component (e.g. a Block Reference) (refer to Fig-
ure 29.6.5 for a simple example).

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Figure 29.6.5: Using Signal labels to inter-connect Output and Input nodes

29.6.1.7 Equations page of the DSL Model Type

The drawn block diagram of a DSL Model Type typically describes the dynamic behaviour of the model.
There are cases in which additional instructions must be added to the model in order to fully characterise
its behaviour e.g. definition of initial conditions (using inc() function), definition of various variable units
and associated descriptions (using vardef() function). For this purpose, the Equations page can be
shown by left or double-clicking the enclosing rectangular boundary or by double clicking in an empty
area of the diagram.

29.7 DSL: Coded DSL Model Types (non-graphically defined)

Although less common, a DSL Model Type (BlkDef ) can be programmed entirely using DSL code
within the Equations page of the Edit Dialog. It can fully represent a dynamic system and include the
following functionality:
• Parameter descriptions: name and unit
• Allowed parameter ranges

• Initial conditions and functions which are used to calculate initial values.
• Algebraic and differential equations defining the dynamic model during simulation.
The usability of this alternative is restricted to models not exceeding several dozens of lines of code. A
more complex model is advised to be integrated using block diagrams, as model readability is an issue
with larger code snippets. An example of a time-continuous integrator with time constant 𝑇𝑖 is shown
further below:

1. vardef(Ti) = ’s’;’Time constant’ ! unit and description of parameter Ti

2. limfix(Ti) = (0,) ! a message is printed to output window if Ti<=0
3. inc(x) = yo ! initialisation statement: state variable x=yo
4. x. = yi/Ti ! equation 1 (applied during simulation): define the state
variable derivative equation
5. yo = x ! equation 2 (applied during simulation): assign output yo = x

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29.8 Modelica: Integrating Modelica Models into a Simulation

29.8.1 Modelica Models and Modelica Model Types

Dynamic models, as discussed in Section 29.1, can be of various types. Invariably, the implementation
of User-defined dynamic models is realised using one of the following two options:

• using DSL specific objects: DSL Model (ElmDsl ) and DSL Model Type (BlkDef ), or

• using Modelica specific objects: Modelica Model (ElmMdl ) and Modelica Model Type (TypMdl
)
If discussing the second option, the implementation of a User-defined dynamic model follows the
modelling paradigms specified by the Modelica language, as published by the Modelica Association.
The functionality supported in PowerFactory is described in Section 29.9.

The integration of a Modelica dynamic model conceptually follows the same Type/Element principle
found throughout PowerFactory, and graphically depicted in Figure 29.8.1. It is apparent that the
Modelica Model (ElmMdl, ) represents one instance in the power system of a user-defined Modelica
Model Type. A Modelica Model is integrated within a slot of a Composite Model (a high-level control
system) in order to be interconnected with other control relevant network components, with whom the
Modelica Model will exchange input and output signals, as defined in the Composite Model Frame.

Modelica Controller
Network Data
Model
Objects
Composite Model
GEN
Library
Modelica
Model Data Objects
Controller
Modelica
GEN GEN CONTROLLER
Model Type

Composite Model
GEN

Controller

Composite Model
Frame

Figure 29.8.1: Integration of Modelica Models into a Simulation

A Modelica Model ( ) instantiates a Modelica Model Type ( ) with a specific set of parameter
values. The initial parameter values are either zero or the default ones, if existing. Default parameter
values are those pre-configured in the Modelica Model Type (refer to option Show default/start values of
parameters/variables in “Variable Declarations” ). The benefit of using a Modelica Model that stores the
actual model parameter values is illustrated in Figure 29.8.2. It is apparent that two individual Modelica
Models can be defined and individually parameterised while referencing the same controller structure
(the same Modelica Model Type) and controlling different generators.

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Composite Model Frame

Modelica Data Library Level
Model Type
MODELICA CODE: Network Model Level
error:=reference-measurement;
dt := interval(x);
x:=x+error*dt;
control:=Kp*error+Ki*x;

Kp=3.0 Kp=2.5
Voltage

Voltage
… G
~ … G
~
Modelica GEN x
Modelica GEN y
Model Model

Composite Model Composite Model

Figure 29.8.2: Individual model parameterisation using Modelica Models

Furthermore, Modelica Models have the following characteristics:

• Any number of Modelica Models can be defined in a power system model.

• A Modelica Model can reference only one Modelica Model Type.
• A Modelica Model Type can be referenced multiple times, by any number of Modelica Models.

• A single Modelica Model can be assigned to one Slot of a given Composite Model.
• Although seldom the case, one single Modelica Model can be assigned to Slots belonging to
multiple Composite Models. In such a case, the Model developer needs to make sure that the
input signals that are connected to the Modelica Model are unique e.g. it is not allowed to connect
the same input signal twice, once with a component of one Composite Model, then with another
one of a different Composite Model.
Parameters can be either scalar or multi-dimensional, as follows:
• Scalar parameters e.g. gains, time constants, set-points. Note, in order that a parameter is
explicitly declared as a scalar, the Size field must be empty.

• Array parameters: one- and two-dimensional array parameters. In order that a parameter is
declared as an array, the Size field must contain a positive integer.

If the referenced Modelica Model Type (TypMdl ) defines one or more array parameters, then these
arrays can be customised within the Modelica Model, using the tab “Arrays” of the Edit Dialog of the
Modelica Model (ElmMdl ). Array parameters are defined using references to IntMat objects. The
IntMat objects will contain the actual arrays. A parameter array is a parameter variable whose Size
field is declared (it is assigned a value). Note, parameter arrays of size 1 can be defined by declaring a
parameter with Size equal 1. In order that a parameter is explicitly declared as a scalar, the Size field
must be empty. The array characteristic must be defined within an external object of type IntMat. The
IntMat object should be stored inside the Modelica Model (although not mandatory)

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29.8.2 Creating a new Modelica Model

To create a new Modelica Model (ElmMdl ), the following actions are required:

• using the Data Manager:

– Make sure that the Data Manager active directory is inside the folder “Network Model”
– Click the New Object ( ) icon and select Modelica Model.
– Give the model a relevant name.
– Assign to the “Type” field a corresponding Modelica Model Type (TypMdl)

29.8.3 Saving and plotting model variables

It is many times useful to record Modelica Model variables for various purposes e.g. plotting variable
against time. To record one or several Modelica Model variables, they need to be explicitly defined as
monitored variables belonging to a Results object (ElmRes). To display the current values of model
variables, the Network Model Manager can be used. The process of monitoring results in a dynamic
simulation is described in detail in Section 28.4.1. The process of plotting the monitored variables is
detailed in Section 28.7.

29.8.4 Support of PowerFactory functionalities

Modelica models, in addition to the Modelica Language specification, support the following PowerFac-
tory specific functionalities.

29.8.4.1 Initialisation

The Modelica Model Types (TypMdl) can be initialised to a steady-state operating point, which can be
determined by a load flow calculation (refer to Section 29.10.2.8)

29.8.4.2 Parameter events (EvtParam)

Parameter events (EvtParam) can be applied on a scalar Input variable of Real, Integer and Boolean
types. This event changes the input value at the event’s execution time, provided that the input variable
is not connected and has a declared start value.

29.8.5 Example of a Modelica Model implementation

An example of a Modelica Model Type is shown in Figure 29.8.3, where a simple discrete proportional-
integral controller is implemented using Modelica code. Alternatively, Modelica models can be conve-
niently developed using the graphical modelling environment described in Section 29.10.

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Figure 29.8.3: Modelica Model Type of a general purpose PI regulator

A Modelica Model referencing the previously exemplified type thus “instantiates” the model type in the
power system. As a result, the Modelica Model can be assigned to a slot of a relevant Composite Model
(e.g. see Figure 29.8.4) and thus be connected to an element to be controlled.

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Figure 29.8.4: Integration of the Modelica Model into a Composite Model

Furthermore, users can customise these parameters by assigning values and applying them to the
controller by configuring the Modelica Model, as shown in Figure 29.8.5.

Figure 29.8.5: Modelica Model dialog with parameterisation of a PI regulator

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29.9 Modelica: A Non-proprietary, Object-oriented, Equation-based

Language

29.9.1 Modelica: Overview of an Open and Comprehensive Systems Modelling

Language

The Modelica language is a state-of-the art systems modelling language. Its characteristics are that it
is: non-proprietary, object-oriented, equation-based. Using Modelica, it is possible to represent complex
systems covering a broad range of physical and systems control domains. A long list of open-source
and commercially available tools provide built-in support for Modelica. Using the current framework
of PowerFactory, it is possible to design, deploy and use discrete-time dynamic simulation models
(so called “synchronous systems” ) using Modelica language. Whenever a time-continuous non-linear
simulation model (e.g. using DSL) is not able to offer the required level of accuracy or functionality
for a given power systems component controllers then discrete-time (procedural) models offer the
capability of representing such detailed behaviour. The implementation supports both RMS- and EMT-
type simulation domains.

Figure 29.9.1: Modelica Language - a comprehensive systems modelling language

29.9.2 Supported Modelica functionality

With reference to the Modelica language specification (version 3.5), the functionality described in the
following sections of the Modelica specification is currently partially supported (mainly oriented for
representing Synchronous Systems - time discrete models):

• Introduction (Chapter 1)
• Lexical structure (Chapter 2)
• Operators and expressions (Chapter 3) (except specific parts of Sections 3.6.3, 3.7.1, 3.7.4, 3.7.5)

• Arrays (Chapter 10) (except specific parts of Sections 10.1, 10.3.5, 10.4.1, 10.4.2, 10.5, 10.5.2)
• Statements and Algorithm Sections (Chapter 11) (except specific parts of Sections 11.2.1.1,
11.2.2.1, 11.2.2.3, 11.2.4, 11.2.5, 11.2.7)
• Synchronous Language Elements (Chapter 16) (partially supported using the built-in dialogs)

• Annotations (Chapter 18) (partially supported for graphical objects)

29.9.3 Terms and definitions

Please refer to the Modelica Language specification for a complete description of the terms and defini-
tions used within Modelica. Within this section, only the most relevant terms are reviewed. For several

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PowerFactory -specific terms (not existing in the Modelica Language), a relevant description is provided
for the sake of clarity.

Block: (Modelica-specific) representing a specialised Modelica class: same as the model class, with
the restriction that each connector component of a Block must have prefixes input and/or output for all
connector variables.

Note: The purpose is to model input/output blocks of block diagrams. Due to the restrictions on input
and output prefixes, connections between blocks are only possible according to block diagram
semantics.

Component: (Modelica-specific) A component is an instance of a Modelica class object.

Modelica Model Type: (PowerFactory -specific) representing the Modelica Model Type (TypMdl)
PowerFactory object. It is used to define a Modelica Block in PowerFactory (refer to Section 29.8.1).

Modelica Model: (PowerFactory -specific) representing the Modelica Model (ElmMdl) PowerFactory
object. Modelica models facilitate the interfacing between the Modelica modelling environment and
the PowerFactory power system simulation model. The object stores Modelica Component data into
PowerFactory and represents one instance of a Modelica Model Type object. It is mainly used for
integration into High-level Control System representations (refer to Section 29.1) and interfacing it with
other PowerFactory models via the Composite Model (refer to Section 29.8.1).

Type: (PowerFactory -specific) A Type is a Modelica Model Type for which one or several Type
Instances may exist. Use Types to create a library of building blocks for block diagrams.

Type Instance: (PowerFactory -specific) The instance of a Type. Use Type Instances to add Types into
Modelica block diagrams. Type Instances are automatically created inside a model whenever users are
adding library blocks into a block diagram.

Subsystem (class): (PowerFactory -specific) A Subsystem (class) is a Modelica Model Type, which is
restricted to have only one instance (the corresponding instance must be unique). Use a Subsystem to
group components and add hierarchical structure.

Subsystem (instance): (PowerFactory -specific) The instance of a Subsystem (class). Use a Subsys-
tem to group components and add hierarchical structure to the model. Since there can only exist
one instance of Subsystem (class), the Subsystem (instance) is referred to throughout the text as
a Subsystem, for the purpose of simplicity. Subsystems are always stored inside other Modelica
Model Type objects and follow a strict hierarchical structure based on their location. Consequently,
a Subsystem is a child object of another Modelica Model Type (the latter is known as the parent
component of the Subsystem).

Top-level diagram: (PowerFactory -specific) Models defined using hierarchically structured block dia-
grams may contain several diagrams, each linked with specific diagrams via child-parent relationships.
A top-level diagram represents in this context the highest level block diagram, which contains all sub-
ordinated diagrams of an hierarchical block diagram design.

Top-level model: (PowerFactory -specific) The associated Modelica Model Type (TypMdl) whose
diagram is a top-level diagram is referred to as a Top-level Modelica Model Type or as a Top-level
model. Inputs and outputs of a Top-level model are meant to interconnect it with other PowerFactory
elements via High-level Control System Representations (as described in Section 29.2).

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PowerFactory term Equivalent Modelica term Usage

Modelica Model Type (TypMdl) Modelica Block Store Modelica Block data in
PowerFactory
Modelica Model (ElmMdl) Modelica Component Store Modelica Component data in
PowerFactory and allow interfacing
with other PowerFactory models
Type Modelica Block Use Types to create a library of
building blocks for block diagrams
Type Instance Modelica Component Use Type Instances to add Types into
Modelica block diagrams
Subsystem (class) Modelica Block Use a Subsystem to group components
and add hierarchical structure
Subsystem (instance) Modelica Component Use a Subsystem to group components
and add hierarchical structure

Table 29.9.1: Mapping of PowerFactory and Modelica Language concepts

29.10 Modelica: Creating Modelica Models using Block Diagrams

Use Modelica in PowerFactory to represent digital control systems using block diagrams. Using Mod-
elica block diagrams, it is possible to represent any type of clocked digital controller ranging from slow-
reacting wind power plant controllers (e.g. sample rate of 10 Hz) up to fast controllers for real-world
power electronic converters (e.g. sample rates between 1-10 kHz) and integrate them within a large
scale power system model to be analysed within an RMS- or EMT-simulation.

A block diagram of a Modelica Model Type (TypMdl ) is a graphical representation of a multi-input

multi-output (MIMO) digital control (clocked) system. The block diagram defines one or more output
signals as a function of one or more input signals.

Block diagrams consist of the following elements:

• Instances of Blocks : Components that represent structural or functional elements within the
model hierarchy and have inputs and/or outputs.
• Connectors : components used to connect signals with inputs and outputs of Blocks
• Labels : components used to create a connection between Blocks, which is not shown in the
Model Diagram.
• Signals : used to interconnect inputs and outputs of Blocks, Connectors and Labels.
• Annotations : used to provide simulation non-relevant details that better explain or characterise
the model’s internal realisation.
A Block instance can be of the following form:
• Type instance : Type instances represent instances of Modelica Model Types. The referenced
Type can be re-used within any number and across all hierarchical levels. It references a spe-
cific Modelica Model Type which contains all sub-ordinated model components. The referenced
Modelica Model Type can be a basic Modelica Model (defined using Modelica Language) or may
represent a sub-ordinated block diagram with a number of model components.
• Subsystem : a specialised Type, of which there exists only one instance (it is unique). Subsys-
tems are intended to group model components in a single element within the model hierarchy.
Subsystems are located inside Modelica Model Types. It references a specific Modelica Model
Type which contains all sub-ordinated model components. A Subsystem is unique and cannot be
referenced in multiple locations; copies of a Subsystem are independent from each other.

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Consequently, building blocks within a Modelica block diagram (Block instances) can either be Type
Instances or Subsystems.

29.10.1 Graphical environment for Modelica Models

The creation of graphical Modelica models is based on an intuitive and straightforward process. The
main components of the graphical development environment of Modelica models are highlighted in
Figure 29.10.1.

Drawing Tools Model canvas Component Properties

Library Browser

Figure 29.10.1: Overview of the Modelica models graphical environment

The development process involves selecting building blocks from the Library Browser and drag-and-
dropping the required blocks into the model using the Diagram view. Configuration of the deployed
building blocks (called components) can be directly performed via the Properties Browser (refer to
Section 29.10.2.7).

The following toolbar buttons are available within the Model canvas:

• Graphical Freeze Mode : freeze/unfreeze the edit mode of the canvas (refer to Section 9.3.1 );

• Rebuild : The graphic is rebuild based on the currently stored graphic data of the model and
any other dependent components (refer to Section 9.3.2 );

• Icon View : change the view mode to Icon view in order to edit the icon of the model;

• Diagram View : change the view mode to Diagram view in order to edit the Model Diagram;

• Show Model Dialog : click this button in order to show the Edit dialog of the corresponding
Modelica Model Type;

• Check Model : click this button to check the model for errors. PowerFactory will check for and
report any found errors to the Output Window, as well as highlight in the Model diagram the invalid
components;

• Highlight Invalid Components / : click this button to highlight invalid components within the
model diagram, if any. Invalid components are highlighted with red. For detailed information on
the particular error of each invalid component, click the Check Model button. If the Highlight
Invalid Components mode is active ( ), then click the button again to deactivate this mode;

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• Zoom In : activate the Zoom in mode in order to zoom into a certain region of the displayed
view (refer to Section 9.3.3.1);

• Pan Tool : activate the Pan Tool in order to navigate within the displayed view. Alternatively,
the Pan Tool is automatically active while clicking and holding the center mouse button anywhere
within the Model canvas (refer to Section 9.3.3.4);

• Zoom All : click the Zoom all button in order to show the entire view (refer to Section 9.3.3.2);
• Zoom-level : adjusts the zoom level based on a number of presets, or a user defined zoom level
(given in percentage) (refer to Section 9.3.3.3);

• View Bookmarks : shows the existing diagram bookmarks (refer to Section 9.3.3.5);

• Search in Diagram : searches within diagram for user defined keywords (refer to Section 9.3.3.6);

• Show Navigation Pane : toggles on/off the Navigation pane (refer to Section 9.3.3.7);

• Export Diagram : Exports the current view to a number of different supported formats. A dialog
window is shown for further configuration options (refer to Section 9.3.12.2);

• Print : Prints the current view. A dialog window is shown for further configuration options (refer
to Section 9.3.12.1);

29.10.1.1 Drawing Tools

The Library Browser provides access to global and project library building blocks. The global library
elements are sourced from the database folder: DIgSILENT Library → Dynamic Models→ Modelica.
The project library elements are sourced from the database folder: <project path> → Library → Dynamic
Models. A category of Connectors is provided where input and output signals of the model can be
inserted. A category of Labels is provided where sender and receiver labels are available, used for
simplified routing of signals.

Library Browser items can be inserted into the block diagram of a Modelica Model in two ways:

• Activate the Diagram view of the Model canvas and make sure the diagram is unfrozen;
• Method 1:
– Drag and drop an item into the block diagram;
• Method 2:
– Select an item from the library (left-click on item);
– Deploy the item into the block diagram (left-click on target area of diagram).
Furthermore, the Drawing Tools window provides an Annotations browser where graphical annotations
can be added to either the model’s block diagram (using the Diagram view) or the model’s icon (using
the Icon view).

29.10.1.2 Model canvas

The Model canvas supports two views:

• Diagram view
• Icon view
Using the Diagram view, all model components can be inserted into a model based on the available
elements of the Drawing Tools:

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• Annotation graphics: Various graphical annotation objects can be used for adding further simula-
tion non-relevant information to the model (e.g. text descriptions, explanatory graphics, etc)
• Library browser types: The actual building blocks of the block library can be inserted from the
Library browser.
Each model can have an icon of its own, which is shown whenever the model is being reused as a
component within a parent model (as a Type Instance or a Subsystem). The icon can be freely drawn
using the Icon view.

An example of a simple block diagram, comprising a simple PI controller, is shown in Figure 29.10.2.

Figure 29.10.2: Example of a diagram of a simple PI controller

29.10.1.3 Properties window

Configuration of the deployed building blocks (called components) can be directly performed via the
Properties window (refer to Section 29.10.2.7).

29.10.2 Developing Modelica Models

Development of Modelica Models within PowerFactory is largely based on the use of the graphical
modelling environment (described in Section 29.10.1) which enables users to develop simulation models
using hierarchical block diagram designs. This section guides users on how to create and configure such
models within PowerFactory.

29.10.2.1 Inserting a new Modelica Model Type diagram

A graphically defined Modelica model can be developed using the block diagram of a Modelica Model
Type. To create a new Modelica Model Type and its corresponding diagram, do the following:
• Activate a PowerFactory project where the model shall be created.
• Create a new graphically defined Modelica Model Type (refer to Section 9.2.4 for general informa-
tion on handling new PowerFactory graphic windows). One way of creating a new Modelica Model
Type is provided below:

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– From the Page Tab (Section 9.2.5), create a new graphics by clicking the icon;
– Select Dynamic Model → Modelica Model Type;
– Click Execute;
– The Edit dialog of a newly created Modelica Model Type ( ) is shown. Give a relevant
object name and then click OK;
Note: The name of the Modelica Model Type object must comply with the Modelica require-
ments for naming class objects, i.e. compliant with the identifier requirements of Section
2.3.1 of the Modelica language specification (version 3.5) e.g. no white spaces, name
starts with a letter or underscore (_)
• A new Modelica Model Type is created and an empty block diagram is made available.
• By default, the Diagram View is active. The diagram is by default unfrozen ( );
• The Modelica model can now be developed by inserting Types from the Library browser or by
creating new Subsystems, adding Connectors and interconnecting them with Signals.

29.10.2.2 Inserting a library Type into the block diagram

To add a Type instance to the block diagram:

• Open the Diagram view of the model;

• Unfreeze the diagram ;

• Use the Library browser to navigate inside the Global or the Project model library and identify the
Type to be inserted. Alternatively, use the “Filter as you type” entry field in order to search for
specific Types;
• Once identified, drag and drop the Type into the diagram. The inserted component is called a
Type instance;
• Move and resize the Type instance as needed;
• Connect the inputs and outputs of the Type instance with inputs or outputs of other model compo-
nents, as required;
• Configure the Type instance using the Properties window;
• To verify your design, click on the Check Model button. Make sure to correct any errors.
Note: When the Type itself is defined using a block diagram, then double-clicking on a corre-
sponding Type instance opens a read-only Component view in the same window. Conversely,
if the Type does not have a block diagram, then double-clicking on a corresponding Type
instance opens the model dialog of the corresponding Modelica Model Type .

29.10.2.3 Creating a new project library Type

If the existing library Types are insufficient for the specific model implementation, a new project library
Type can be created in one of two ways:

• Define from scratch a completely new Modelica Model Type as detailed in Section 29.11;
• Create a copy of an existing library Type and apply modifications to it. For this purpose, do the
following:
– Open the Data Manager and navigate to the location of the existing Modelica Model Type;
– Copy and paste this object into a location within the Project Library (<project path> →
Library → Dynamic Models);
– Apply modifications to the Type either graphically (if diagram exists) and/or within the relevant
sections of the Edit Dialog of the Modelica Model Type object (as detailed in Section 29.11.1).

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29.10.2.4 Connecting Signals between components

A signal can be drawn between two input/output nodes as follows:

• Position the mouse on the source node (can be an input or an output)
• Hold left click mouse button and drag towards the destination node
• Once the mouse position moves away from the source node, a dashed line is shown as temporary
guide line for the chosen signal path. Left mouse click can be released, while still allowing the
signal to be routed;
• Click along the required signal path as soon as the signal path changes direction; The procedure
can be repeated as often as needed;
• Position the mouse on top of the destination node and left click once more. The signal is now
connected between the two nodes.
• To verify your design, click on the Check Model button. Make sure to correct any errors.

Note: Signals are colour coded: Signals use blue for Real data types, orange for Integer data types
and violet for Boolean data types.

29.10.2.5 Model Connectors

The external inputs and outputs of the model can be created graphically using Connectors. They are
available from within the Library Browser.

To add a model input or output:

• Identify the input/output data type: Real, Integer or Boolean;
• Choose an appropriate connector from the Connectors category of the Library browser ;
• Drag and drop it into the diagram;
• Connectors may be moved anywhere within the model diagram in order to optimally organise the
model appearance;

• To verify your design, click on the Check Model button. Make sure to correct any errors.

Note: Connectors are colour coded: Real data type uses blue, Integer data type uses orange, Boolean
data type uses violet.

The connectors support scalar or array input and output signals with one of the supported data types.

Note: Pay special attention to the Variability property of input/output signals of top-level models. This
is set in the Variable Declarations page → Inputs/Outputs tabs of the Edit dialog of the top-level
model. Set Variability of an input signal to “continuous” if the input connects to a signal belonging
to a DSL model or a power system element. Set Variability of an input signal to “discrete” if the
input connects to a discrete signal of another model e.g. Modelica model or other built-in element
having discrete signals. When a model is not a top-level model, then the Variability of input/output
signals may be selected as “inherited”. In these situations, PowerFactory tries to automatically
identify the Variability attribute of input/output signals.

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Configuring model connectors using the Properties window

Click on the model connector in order to show the available options in the Properties window. The
following model connector properties can be customised via the Properties window.
• First index: Only shown if the first signal of the connector is a vector. Customises the first signal
𝐴 in the underlying 𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑛𝑒𝑐𝑡(𝐴,𝐵) statement of the connector. Leave empty to connect the whole
first vector signal. To select one index from the first vector signal, set a positive integer 𝑖 between
1 and the size 𝑛 of the first vector signal 𝑢[𝑛]. The connector will identify the vector index 𝑢[𝑖]
for connection. If the second signal 𝑦 of the connector is a scalar, then the equivalent Modelica
statement is 𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑛𝑒𝑐𝑡(𝑢[𝑖],𝑦). Otherwise, the Second index field is shown, refer to below item. The
below table provides an overview and guidance on various possible signal connections.
• Second index: Only shown if the second signal of the connector is a vector. Customises the
second signal 𝐵 in the underlying 𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑛𝑒𝑐𝑡(𝐴,𝐵) statement of the connector. Leave empty to
connect the whole second vector signal. To select one index from the second vector signal, set a
positive integer 𝑗 between 1 and the size 𝑚 of the second vector signal 𝑦[𝑚]. If the first signal 𝑢
is a scalar, then the equivalent Modelica statement is 𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑛𝑒𝑐𝑡(𝑢,𝑦[𝑚]). Otherwise, the First index
field is shown, refer to previous item. Consequently, the connector will connect the signal 𝑢[𝑖]
with 𝑦[𝑗], equivalent to 𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑛𝑒𝑐𝑡(𝑢[𝑖],𝑦[𝑗]). The below table provides an overview and guidance on
various possible signal connections.

Purpose First index Second index

Connect scalar to scalar <not shown> <not shown>
Connect vector to vector <leave empty> <leave empty>
Connect scalar to index of vector <not shown> j
Connect index of vector to scalar i <not shown>
Connect index of vector to index of vector i j

Table 29.10.1: Overview and guidance on signal connections using the First index and Second index

• Line style: Customises the line style of the connector.

• Line colour: Customises the line colour of the connector.
• Line width: Customises the line width of the connector.
• Smooth: Configures the smoothness property of the connector.

Configuration options of model connectors

The properties of model connectors are accessed by double clicking on the connector and are listed as
follows:
• Component name: Editable string field, must contain a Modelica compliant string for a component
name. The name of the component, must be unique within the same hierarchical level of the main
model. The component name is equivalent to the name of the input or output that the connector
represents.
• Model type: not used.
• Size(s): Editable value field, accepts a positive integer number or an integer parameter whose
instantiated value is a positive integer. This field refers to the size of the input/output variable
that it represents. The same field is also accessible via the edit dialog of the Modelica Model
Type in which the connector is placed, under the corresponding Variable Declarations page →
Inputs/Outputs tabs→ Size(s) field of the input/output signal that this connector represents.
The index field can contain a (comma-separated) list of indices with length up to the number of dimen-
sions of the connector. Each index can either be an unsigned integer between one and the size of
that dimension or the special : index indicating all values along this dimension should be kept. Any
dimension without an index (because the list is shorter than the number of dimensions of the connector)
are kept completely, as though index : was specified.

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29.10.2.6 Model labels

A Label pair (SenderLabel and a ReceiverLabel) is used to create a connection between two Modelica
components, connection which is not shown in the Model Diagram. This functionality is particularly
useful in Model Diagrams which are cluttered either by containing too many signals, or requiring con-
nections that span over the entire diagram. Labels are available in the Library under the “Labels”
Modelica Package (accessible via the Library Browser ). Two Labels are provided within this package:
SenderLabel and ReceiverLabel.

To create a connection between two Modelica Components (e.g. a “Source component” and “Destina-
tion component”) using Labels, do the following:

• Add to the Model Diagram a SenderLabel. Open the Modelica Component Dialog of the label
(e.g. double-click on it) and set a relevant Component name of the label, which easily identifies
the signal being transferred (note that the Component name must comply with Modelica specifi-
cations). The component name is automatically added to a list of available Sender labels that can
be selected by any Receiver label existing in the diagram;
• Move the label conveniently close to the “Source component” (e.g. a block) and connect the output
of the component with the input of the Sender label (refer to Subsection 29.10.2.4 for information
on how to connect signals between components);
• If the input of the Sender label is a vector (i.e. one-dimensional array), then set accordingly the
size of the vector in the Size field of the Modelica Component Dialog of the label. Otherwise,
leave the Size field empty. Note, that a one-dimensional array with one element (a vector of size
1) requires to set a value “1” in the Size field.
• Add to the Model Diagram a ReceiverLabel.
• Move the label conveniently close to the “Destination component” (e.g. a block) and connect the
output of the label with the input of the component;
• Click the label once (in order to show the Properties window) and select from the drop-down list
(named “y”) the linked sender label whose signal is propagated. The drop-down list contains a
listing of all Receiver labels that are currently existing in the Model Diagram.

• To verify your design, click on the Check Model button. Make sure to correct any errors.

29.10.2.7 Configuring model components using the Properties window

A model component (e.g. Type Instances, Subsystems, connectors) can be configured using the
Properties window, as follows:
• Using the Diagram view of a top-level model, navigate to and select (left click) the model compo-
nent;
• The Properties window is automatically updated with the properties of the selected model compo-
nent;
• Depending on the specific component characteristics, the component may have various parame-
ters, each with different usage.
• By default, parameter name, start/final value, description and further configuration options are
displayed for each entry.
An example showing the Properties of an integrator Type Instance is shown in Figure 29.10.3. Compo-
nent parameters are displayed in this window. If available, a short description of the meaning of each
parameter is provided. The start (default) value can be set directly for each parameter by entering a
value in the corresponding field. A valid value corresponds to (A) a constant value of the same data type
as the parameter (e.g. set 1.001 for a Real parameter, set 𝑡𝑟𝑢𝑒 for a Boolean parameter) or (B) a literal
parameter of the parent model (the Modelica Model Type whose diagram contains the component). For

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example, w.r.t. Figure 29.10.3, if setting the parameter 𝐾𝑖 of the integrator component to be equal
to 𝑃 𝐼_𝐾𝑖, it implies that the parent model (PI_Controller ) defines a parameter 𝑃 𝐼_𝐾𝑖 which can be
assigned to parameter values of various components.

Figure 29.10.3: Properties window of an integrator

The Properties window displays the following model component items:

• Scalar parameters
– Parameter name: Non-editable. Displays the name of the parameter.
– Value entry field: Accepts expression of parameter variability, returning a scalar type. Set
the default value of the parameter. Examples: “1.32”, “𝑠𝑞𝑟𝑡(𝐴) + 𝑠𝑖𝑛(0.5)”, “𝐵 − 𝐶”, where 𝐴,
𝐵 and 𝐶 are model parameters.
– Configuration wheel: Clickable. Provides access to additional parameter configuration op-
tions, as follows below.
* Final: Checkbox (on/off). If the parameter is intended to be hardcoded (the value
never changes and it should not be changeable by model users), then check the Final
checkbox. Such final parameters are removed from the list of editable parameters of
the Modelica Model (ElmMdl). Leave this checkbox unchecked if the parameter shall
be shown in the list of editable parameters of the Modelica Model (ElmMdl) (refer to
Section 29.10.3.2) .
* Min: Accepts expression of constant variability, returning a scalar type. For Real and
Integer parameters the minimum value can be set. Minimum values are shown in the Pa-
rameters page of the Modelica Model (ElmMdl). Examples: “−100.0”, “−230*𝑠𝑞𝑟𝑡(2/3)−
𝑠𝑖𝑛(0.5)”, “−3/2”.
* Max: Accepts expression of constant variability, returning a scalar type. For Real and
Integer parameters the maximum value can be set. Maximum values are shown in the
Parameters page of the Modelica Model (ElmMdl). Examples: “100.0”, “230 * 𝑠𝑞𝑟𝑡(2/3) +
𝑠𝑖𝑛(0.5)”, “3/2”.
– Parameter description: Non-editable. Displays the description of the parameter.
Configuration options of model components

Configuration options of model components are accessed from the model diagram. If the model
component is a Type Instance, then double click on the component. Alternatively, right click on the
component and select “Edit Component” from the drop down menu. If the model component is a
Subsystem, then right click on the component and select “Edit Component” from the drop down menu.
Following options are available:

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• Component name: Editable string field, must contain a Modelica compliant string for a component
name. The name of the component, must be unique within the same hierarchical level of the main
model.

• Model type: A reference to the model type being used by the component.
• Size(s): Editable value field, accepts a positive integer number or an integer parameter whose
instantiated value is a positive integer. This field defines the size of this component. Leave empty
if a single component is used. If an array of components of size 𝑛 is intended to be represented,
then set the size to 𝑛. Consequently, the component is multiplied (and represented) internally 𝑛
times, creating a vector of components. All input and output variables of the vector of components
increase dimension by 1 and size by 𝑛 e.g. a scalar input becomes a vector size 𝑛, a vector output
size 𝑚 becomes a matrix array size [𝑚,𝑛].

29.10.2.8 Model Initialisation

In order to initialise the model according to a load flow solution, two initialisation options, “Local” and
“External” (see column Initialisation in the corresponding sub-pages on page Variable Declarations) are
set for input and output variables. These choices are explained as follows:
• External: The input or output variables are initialised by the connected variables/signals.

• Local: A textual initialisation algorithm can be defined for inputs on the Local Initialisation page.
For outputs, the initialisation considers its graphical connections.
To initialise the model, follow these steps:
• Identify which input and output variables are known from the connected external models. Set
these variables to “External”.

• Find any of the internal variables of a model component (i.e. a Type Instance) that requires an
input that needs to be connected for initialisation purposes. If needed, add an input component
to the main model and connect it to the Type Instance. Set the initialisation Local or External as
required.

• Set the remaining input and output variables to “Local”.

• Write the initialisation algorithm on the Local Initialisation page (refer to Section 29.12.2.4). Note
that the order of the statements of this algorithm will be executed sequentially.
As an example, consider a simple excitation system implemented graphically defined Modelica in
Figure 29.10.4. The input signal 𝑢 and output signal 𝑢𝑒𝑟𝑟𝑠 should connect to a machine element’s
terminal voltage output and excitation voltage input, respectively. Therefore the Initialisation of these
two variables is set to “External”. The Type Instance of the first-order filter with gain 𝐾𝑒 requires its
internal variable to be initialised using an input. Initialisation of this input depends on the variable 𝑢𝑒𝑟𝑟𝑠;
therefore, set it to “Local”. The remaining two input variables (𝑣𝑏𝑖𝑎𝑠 and 𝑢𝑠𝑒𝑡𝑝) are also set to “Local”,
as their initial values are defined by formulas and not from outside.

The initialisation of the inputs 𝑖𝑛𝑖𝑡𝐹 𝑖𝑙𝑡𝑒𝑟, 𝑣𝑏𝑖𝑎𝑠 and 𝑢𝑠𝑒𝑡𝑝 depends on the externally initialised variables
𝑢, 𝑢𝑒𝑟𝑟𝑠 and on the parameter 𝐾𝑒. Next, the initialisation algorithm is defined under the “Local definition
of input start values” on page Local Initialisation (see the top right in Figure 29.10.4)

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Figure 29.10.4: Initialisation of graphically defined Modelica Model Type

29.10.2.9 Creating Subsystems

For graphically defined Modelica models it is possible to define multiple hierarchical levels using the
Diagram view. For this purpose, the existence of graphically defined Subsystems enable the grouping
of components into combined blocks and the subsequent insertion of a sub-ordinate hierarchical level
w.r.t. the parent component. Subsystems may be placed into other Subsystems as well, thus providing
a means of organising the model using multiple levels.

To create a Subsystem in the diagram:

• Right-click on an empty area of the diagram and choose “Create subsystem”.

• Double-click on the Subsystem block to open the diagram of the Subsystem (TypMdl) in the same
window;
• Develop the Subsystem by adding Connectors and library components.

• To verify your design, click on the Check Model button. Make sure to correct any errors.

To convert an existing library Type into a Subsystem:

• From the Model Diagram, right-click on the Type Instance to be converted.
• From the context menu, select “Convert Library Type into Subsystem”. The library Type is copied
within the model structure and the Type Instance is now linked to it. The block is now converted
into and treated as a Subsystem.
To convert an existing Subsystem into a library Type:
• From the Model Diagram, right-click on the Subsystem to be converted.
• From the context menu, select “Convert Library Type into Subsystem”. The Subsystem is moved
out of the model structure and into the project Library. The Subsystem is converted into a new
library Type and treated accordingly. The Type Instance is now linked to the library Type.

Note: Copying and pasting an existing Subsystem creates a separate copy of the referenced Modelica
Model Type (TypMdl). This ensures that Subsystem copies are also treated as unique and
separate components. Deleting a Subsystem also deletes the referenced Modelica Model Type
(TypMdl).

A simple example of a top-level model is presented in Figure 29.10.5. The PI controller model shown in
Figure 29.10.2 is used here as a Subsystem.

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measurement

reference PI
const

EnableControl control
const1

startTime=1 s k=0

Figure 29.10.5: Example of a simple top-level model including a subsystem

29.10.2.10 Navigating through the model hierarchy

Hierarchical models defined using block diagrams contain several block diagrams, each linked between
each other via a child-parent relationship. A Top-level diagram represents in this context the highest
level block diagram, which contains all underlying model Subsystems. The associated Modelica Model
Type (TypMdl) whose diagram is a top-level diagram is referred to as a top-level Modelica Model Type
(also known as Top-level model). A Top-level model is never a Subsystem.

To navigate through the model hierarchy of a Modelica Model, do the following:

• Open the Diagram view of the top-level Modelica Model Type (this is the highest level model)

• Double click a specific Subsystem in order to show its contents

• Continue double-clicking further contained Subsystems (if available) in order to move down into
the model hierarchy.
• Click the button Step up to parent component in order to move up the model hierarchy.

Note: The Step up to parent component button is shown as an up arrow ↑ on the top right corner
of the Diagram view, along with the current hierarchical position.

An example of navigating one level down into the model hierarchy is shown in Figure 29.10.6.

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Figure 29.10.6: Example of navigating down one level (into a subsystem) of a hierarchical model

29.10.3 Integrating Modelica Models into a PowerFactory simulation

Development of Modelica Models within PowerFactory is largely based on the use of the graphical mod-
elling environment (described in Section 29.10.1), which enables users to develop simulation models
using hierarchical block diagram designs. This section guides users on how to use Modelica models
within a PowerFactory simulation.

29.10.3.1 Integration of Modelica Models within high-level control system designs

The interfacing of a Modelica model follows the typical procedure of integrating a user defined con-
troller within a high-level control system representation, as detailed in Section 29.2 and Section 29.8.1.
Composite Model Frames and Composite Models fully support the interfacing of Modelica models with
the PowerFactory simulation environment. Consequently, Modelica models can take full advantage of
important PowerFactory features such as:
• Seamless integration with both RMS- and EMT-simulation functions;

• Integration within Complete Power Equipment simulation models (as described in Section 29.1.4).
• Integration with simplified, average and detailed models of power system equipment components
(e.g. refer to Section 29.15).
• Model initialisation capabilities based on steady state load flow solution;

• Support of array signals and multiplexing/demultiplexing of arrays within complex system configu-
rations (refer to Section 29.2.7);

29.10.3.2 Creation of Modelica Models based on graphically defined model types

Top-level models can be instantiated within PowerFactory as Modelica Models. A Modelica Model
(ElmMdl) element (PowerFactory object) represents the instance of a Top-level model. It includes all
necessary instance specific configuration options: parameterisation and interfacing with other Power-
Factory models or power system components.

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A Modelica dynamic model can be created by following these steps:

• Create a new Modelica Model (ElmMdl ) and set the model type (refer to Section 29.8.2)
• Parameterise the model (refer to information further below)
• Integrate it into a high-level control system (i.e. create a corresponding Composite Model (Elm-
Comp ) and assign the Modelica Model (ElmMdl ) to a relevant slot (see Section 29.2.6)
• Execute the simulation and test the model behaviour
The parameterisation of a graphically defined Modelica Model follows the typical procedure, as existing
for coded Modelica Models. The only difference may exist in the organisation of parameters into
hierarchical levels (shown using a tree-structure). The enforced hierarchy is automatically generated
based on the structure of the Top-level model.

One hierarchical parameter set for the Top-level model displayed in Figure 29.10.5 is shown in Fig-
ure 29.10.7. Parameters which are unnecessarily shown in this parameter list must be set to Final
(refer to Section 29.10.2.7 for more information) in order to be removed.

Figure 29.10.7: Example of a parameter set of a Modelica model

29.10.3.3 Executing simulations using Modelica Models

PowerFactory requires a C\C++ Compiler in order to simulate Modelica models. Please refer to Sec-
tion 29.1.5 for detailed information. Refer to the Chapter 28 for a detailed description of the dynamic
simulation within PowerFactory . As an overview, the process of performing a dynamic simulation
involving Modelica Models is standard:
1. Calculation of initial values, including a load flow calculation (refer to Section 28.3)
2. Definition of result variables (refer to Section 28.4)
3. Definition of simulation events (refer to Section 28.5)
4. Execution of simulation (refer to Section 28.6)
5. Creation of simulation plots (refer to Section 28.7)

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29.10.3.4 The Element view of Modelica Models

Modelica Models (ElmMdl) support an Element view mode, provided that the referenced Modelica
Model Type (TypMdl) is graphically defined. This view is especially useful during the stages of model
verification and validation, when internal attributes of a model must be quickly cross-checked at a certain
simulation time without creating a simulation plot.

Whenever the Modelica Model is integrated in a simulation and the simulation is executed up to a certain
simulation time (e.g. at initialisation), the Element view can be shown as follows:
• Navigate using the Data Manager to the Modelica Model (ElmMdl);

• Right-click and choose Diagrams → Show Diagram;

• A new diagram (read-only) is shown, containing the top-level model diagram. For clear distinction
between the Element View and other view modes, the background of such diagrams is always
shown in a light green color.

• Users can inspect the individual components and navigate through the model hierarchy (if subsys-
tems are included). Selecting a block within the diagram will display the currently used parameter
values, as well as the values for the input and output signals.
An example of the Element View is shown in Figure 29.10.8.

Figure 29.10.8: Example of the Element View of a Modelica model

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29.11 Modelica: Creating Modelica Models using Code

A Modelica dynamic model can be created by following these steps:

• Create a new Modelica Model Type (TypMdl ) (refer to Section 29.12.1)

• Define the dynamic model: set model variables, write the model’s Initial Algorithm and Algorithm
sections and verify the model’s correctness (refer to Section 29.11.1)

• Create a new Modelica Model (ElmMdl ) and set the model type (refer to Section 29.8.2)
• Parameterise the model (refer to Section 29.11.2)
• Integrate it into a high-level control system (i.e. create a corresponding Composite Model (Elm-
Comp ) and assign the Modelica Model (ElmMdl ) to a relevant slot (see Section 29.2.6)
• Execute the simulation and test the model behaviour

29.11.1 Dynamic model definition

A Modelica model can be easily defined using the Modelica language. Upon creation of the Modelica
Model Type, the structure of the Modelica dynamic model is fixed by the customisation options available
in the object.

29.11.1.1 Variable declarations

Model variables must be declared within the corresponding fields within the Variable Declarations page
of the Modelica Model Type dialog.

For example, a simple PI controller can have the following declared variables:

Variable Name Base Type Variability Size(s) Unit Description

reference Real continuous p.u. Reference signal (real, continuous-time)
measurement Real continuous p.u. Measured signal (real, continuous-time)

Table 29.11.1: Input Variables of a discrete PI Controller

Variable Name Base Type Variability Size(s) Unit Description

control Real discrete p.u. Control command (real, discrete-time)

Table 29.11.2: Output Variables of a discrete PI Controller

Variable Name Base Type Size(s) Unit Description

Kp Real Proportional gain
Ki Real 1/s Integral gain

Table 29.11.3: Parameters of a discrete PI Controller

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Variable Name Base Type Size(s) Unit Description

error Real p.u. Control error (real, discrete-time)
x Real p.u. State variable (integral action)
dt Real s Sample period

Table 29.11.4: Internal Variables of a discrete PI Controller

29.11.1.2 Initialisation section

The Modelica Model Type provides the section Initialisation under the page Algorithm. The Initialisation
section can be used to provide model statements that will be executed at the simulation initialisation.

For example, for the simple aforementioned PI controller, a model initialisation would contain the follow-
ing statements:

dt:=interval(x);
error:=reference-measurement;
control:=1;
x:=control/Ki;

Note, the Initialisation section does not specify the sample rate of the discrete model. This is done in
the Modelica Model.

Standard Modelica “if-statement” and “for-statement” can be included in the model code. These state-
ments can be nested as well (in the case of for only using a single iterator per statement). The “if-
statement”, when written inside the Initialisation section, can be unbalanced (the true branch needs not
have the same number of assignments as the false branch, the false branch is optional).

Note: In the Initialisation section, the following observations are relevant:

• Assignment statements may be used in this section. Assignments are executed sequentially.
• A Modelica Model supports forward initialisation. Other model variables (internal variables
and outputs) can be initialised (via assignments) based on the knowledge of the input vari-
ables.
• If an output variable is used in the Initialisation section (e.g. an internal variable is assigned),
then note that the start value of an output variable is defined in the Start field of the Outputs
tab of the Variable Declarations page of the Modelica Model Type (refer to Section 29.12.2.3).
If no Start value is assigned then the start value of the output is automatically set to zero.
• If the model has any inputs then each input is initialised from the external model it is con-
nected to.
• There should not be any assignments for inputs and parameters.

29.11.1.3 Simulation section

The Modelica Model Type provides the section Simulation under the page Algorithm. The Simulation
section can be used to provide model statements that will be executed at each discrete call during the
simulation. The statements are executed sequentially.

For example, for the simple aforementioned PI controller, the following statements would be contained
in the Simulation section:

error:=reference-measurement;
dt:=interval(x);

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x:=x+error*dt;
control:=Kp*error+Ki*x;

Note, the Simulation section does not specify the sample rate of the discrete model. This is done in the
Modelica Model. If the sample period needs to be used in the model (e.g. for the implementation of
an explicit integration algorithm), then the Modelica function “interval()” can be used to retrieve the time
period between two consecutive function calls.

Standard Modelica “if-statement” and “for-statement” can be included in the model code. These state-
ments can be nested as well (in the case of for only using a single iterator per statement). The “if-
statement”, when written inside the Simulation section, can be unbalanced (the true branch needs not
have the same number of assignments as the false branch, the false branch is optional)).

Note: In the Simulation section, the following observations are relevant:

• Assignment statements may be in this section. Assignments are executed sequentially.
• Each internal variable and output must have at least one assignment statement.
• There should not be any assignments for inputs or parameters.

If there is an unconnected input and there is a start value, the input is initialised to the start value.
However, if there is an unconnected input and no start value, an initialisation error will be triggered.

29.11.1.4 Model Initialisation

Follow the procedures outlined in Section 29.10.2.8 to define the initialisation according to the load flow
solution on the Local Initialisation page.

29.11.2 Dynamic model parameterisation

After instantiating the model (i.e. create a new Modelica Model), it can be parameterised within the
available Modelica Model dialog.

An example of the parameterisation of the previously discussed PI controller is shown in Figure 29.11.1.

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Figure 29.11.1: Modelica Model dialog with parameterisation of a PI regulator

29.12 Modelica: Overview of the Modelica Model Type

The Modelica Model Type supports both textual and graphical model implementations for algorithmic
models.

29.12.1 Creating a new Modelica Model Type

To create a new Modelica Model Type (TypMdl ):

• from the main menu:

– Click Insert → Dynamic Model→ Modelica Model Type

• from the Data Manager using the New Object button:

– Focus the Data Manager on the library subfolder Library → Dynamic Models
– Click New Object
– Select Modelica Model Type
• from the Dynamic Models folder using the right-click context menu:
– right-click on the Dynamic Models folder on the left side of the Data Manager and select New
→ Dynamic Model→ Modelica Model Type

29.12.2 The Edit Dialog of the Modelica Model Type

The Edit Dialog of the Modelica Model Type contains a large set of relevant information about:
• Basic Options - General: Model name, category and model type;

• Basic Options - Advanced: Initialisation options, FMU details;

• Variable Declarations;

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• Local Initialisation;
• Algorithm: text-based model algorithm can be defined here;
• Annotation: a graphical representation of the model is provided here;
• Description: text based description can be added here;
• Version: further information regarding versioning.

29.12.2.1 Basic Options page - General

Name: The object’s name.

Category: A user defined model category. A list of standard categories is available. A custom category
can be set as well. If using one of the available standard categories then both the Modelica Model Type
and any referencing Modelica Model will be separately categorised within the Network Model Manager,
according to their designated category. Furthermore, the icon appearance of both the Modelica Model
Type and any referencing Modelica Model is appropriately changed (e.g. a model having the “Automatic
Voltage Regulator (avr)” category will change the icon of a Modelica Model from to ).

Compiled model: Check this flag in order to reference a specific compiled model. Otherwise, leave this
checkbox unchecked. If a Compiled model is selected, then the Modelica Model Type can be linked to
an externally interfaced model based on either the FMI Standard (refer to Section 29.14.1), on the IEC
Interface (refer to Section 29.14.2) or on the PowerFactory -specific interface for Modelica models (such
models are obtained by the direct compilation of Modelica Model Type using the Compile button). For
FMI Standard models, an “.fmu” file shall be linked in the additional file path field. For IEC Interface
models, a “.dll” file shall be linked in the additional file path field. For the PowerFactory -specific interface
for Modelica models, a “.pfmu” file shall be linked in the additional file path field.

29.12.2.2 Basic Options page - Advanced

Initialisation: Optionally, set here a Configuration Script for flexible model initialisation. Configuration
Scripts are described in greater detail in Section 29.12.2.10. FMU: an information pane is shown that
provides logger settings of the loaded Functional Mock-Up Unit (FMU). This pane is active only if the
Simulation model type is set to Compiled model and a valid FMU path is provided.

29.12.2.3 Variable Declarations page

The Modelica Model Type supports the following variables:

• Inputs
• Outputs
• Parameters
• Internal Variables
These variables are described in more detail below.

Inputs: A tabular entry list of the model’s input variables is available. The input variable name, base
type, variability, initialisation, size, unit, description can be entered.

Input variables have the following properties:

• Name - the variable’s name, according to Modelica variable naming requirements.
• Base Type - The base type can be: Real, Integer or Boolean.

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• Variability - Choices are: continuous, discrete or inherited.

• Initialisation - Choices are: External, Local.
• Size - Set a size for this variable.
– Inputs can be scalars or one-dimensional arrays (vectors).
– Two- and multi-dimensional input arrays are not allowed.
– Leave field empty if a scalar is declared.
– One-dimensional input arrays (vectors) are declared by setting in this field a strictly positive
integer number or an integer parameter e.g. “3”, “size_in”, where 𝑠𝑖𝑧𝑒_𝑖𝑛 is an integer
parameter whose instantiated value must be strictly positive.
– The format is according to Modelica array specification e.g. “1”,“3”, “size_in”, “[1]”,“[10]”,
“[size_in]”.
– Note, by entering “1” in the Size field, PowerFactory interprets it as being a vector of size 1.
• Start - a value that is initially (at simulation start) assigned to the variable (to show this field, use
the corresponding checkbox in the “Show additional columns” pane).
• Min - a minimum value allowed for the variable (to show this field, use the corresponding checkbox
in the “Show additional columns” pane).
• Max - a maximum value allowed for the variable (to show this field, use the corresponding check-
box in the “Show additional columns” pane).
• Unit - a text string that defines the unit of this variable.
• Description - a text string that defines the description of this variable.
• Condition - a text string that defines a user defined condition applicable to this input. The Condition
must be a Boolean scalar expression of parameter variability e.g. “𝑒𝑛𝑎𝑏𝑙𝑒_𝑖𝑛𝑝𝑢𝑡” or
“𝑒𝑛𝑎𝑏𝑙𝑒_𝑖𝑛𝑝𝑢𝑡 == 𝑡𝑟𝑢𝑒”, where 𝑒𝑛𝑎𝑏𝑙𝑒_𝑖𝑛𝑝𝑢𝑡 is a Boolean parameter; “𝐴 > 𝐵”, where 𝐴 and
𝐵 are Real parameters. If the condition evaluates to true, then the input is enabled; if the
condition evaluates to false, then the input is disabled. The enabled/disabled behaviour is applied
graphically as well, via the corresponding connector, which is shown/hidden depending on this
Condition.
Show additional columns: The following additional options are available. Selecting these options on this
page also selects the same option on all other pages (e.g., Outputs).
• Minimum/maximum values: activate this checkbox in order to show the variable modifier fields
“Min” and “Max”.
• Default/start values: activate this checkbox in order to show the variable modifier fields “Default-
/Start”.

Outputs: A tabular entry list of the model’s output variables is available. The output variable’s name,
base type, variability, initialisation, size, unit, description can be entered.

Output variables have the following properties:

• Name - the variable’s name, according to Modelica variable naming requirements.
• Base Type - The base type can be: Real, Integer or Boolean.
• Variability - Choices are: discrete, inherited.
• Initialisation - Choices are: External, Local.
• Size - Set a size for this variable.
– Outputs can be scalars or one-dimensional arrays (vectors).
– Two- and multi-dimensional output arrays are not allowed.
– Leave field empty if a scalar is declared.

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– One-dimensional output arrays (vectors) are declared by setting in this field a strictly positive
integer number or an integer parameter e.g. “3”, “size_out”, where 𝑠𝑖𝑧𝑒_𝑜𝑢𝑡 is an integer
parameter whose instantiated value must be strictly positive.
– The format is according to Modelica array specification e.g. “1”,“3”, “size_out”, “[1]”,“[10]”,
“[size_out]”.
– Note, by entering “1” in the Size field, PowerFactory interprets it as being a vector of size 1.
• Start - a value that is initially (at simulation start) assigned to the variable (to show this field, use
the corresponding checkbox in the “Show additional columns” pane).
• Min - a minimum value allowed for the variable(to show this field, use the corresponding checkbox
in the “Show additional columns” pane).
• Max - a maximum value allowed for the variable (to show this field, use the corresponding check-
box in the “Show additional columns” pane).
• Unit - a text string that defines the unit of this variable.
• Description - a text string that defines the description of this variable.
• Condition - a text string that defines a user defined condition applicable to this input. The Condition
must be a Boolean scalar expression of parameter variability e.g. “𝑒𝑛𝑎𝑏𝑙𝑒_𝑜𝑢𝑡𝑝𝑢𝑡” or “𝑒𝑛𝑎𝑏𝑙𝑒_𝑜𝑢𝑡𝑝𝑢𝑡 ==
𝑡𝑟𝑢𝑒”, where 𝑒𝑛𝑎𝑏𝑙𝑒_𝑜𝑢𝑡𝑝𝑢𝑡 is a Boolean parameter; “𝐴 > 𝐵”, where 𝐴 and 𝐵 are Real param-
eters. If the condition evaluates to true, then the output is enabled; if the condition evaluates to
false, then the output is disabled. The enabled/disabled behaviour is applied graphically as well,
via the corresponding connector, which is shown/hidden depending on this Condition.
Show additional columns: The following additional options are available. Selecting these options on this
page also selects the same option on all other pages (e.g., Inputs).

• Minimum/maximum values: activate this checkbox in order to show the variable modifier fields
“Min” and “Max”.
• Default/start values: activate this checkbox in order to show the variable modifier fields “Default-
/Start”.

Parameters: A tabular entry list of the model’s parameters is available. The parameter name, base
type, size, minimum, maximum, unit and description can be entered.

Parameters have the following properties:

• Name - the parameter’s name, according to Modelica variable naming requirements.
• Base Type - The base type can be: Real, Integer or Boolean.
• Size - Set a size for this variable. Accepts an integer value or an integer parameter.
– Parameters can be scalars, one- or two-dimensional arrays.
– Multi-dimensional (size greater than 2) parameter arrays are not allowed.
– Leave field empty if a scalar is declared.
– One-dimensional parameter arrays (vectors) are declared by setting in this field a strictly
positive integer number or an integer parameter e.g. “3”, “size_par”, where 𝑠𝑖𝑧𝑒_𝑝𝑎𝑟 is an
integer parameter whose instantiated value must be strictly positive.
– Two-dimensional parameter arrays (matrices) are declared by using in this field two strictly
positive integer numbers or integer parameters e.g. “[3,3]”, “[1,size_par]”, “[size_par_row,size_-
par_col]” where 𝑠𝑖𝑧𝑒_𝑝𝑎𝑟, 𝑠𝑖𝑧𝑒_𝑝𝑎𝑟_𝑟𝑜𝑤, 𝑠𝑖𝑧𝑒_𝑝𝑎𝑟_𝑐𝑜𝑙 are integer parameters whose instan-
tiated values must be strictly positive.
– The format is according to Modelica array specification e.g. “1”,“3”, “size_par”, “[1]”,“[10]”,
“[size_par]”, “[3,3]”, “[1,size_par]”.
– Note, by entering “1” in the Size field, PowerFactory interprets it as being a vector of size 1.
This results in having this parameter interpreted as a vector and not as a scalar. Furthermore,
the parameter will be configurable using a referenced IntMat object in the Arrays tab of the
Modelica Model Edit dialog and not in the Scalar parameters tab.

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• Default - The default value of the parameter. This value can be overwritten in the Modelica Model
(to show this field, use the corresponding checkbox in the “Show additional columns” pane).
• Min - a minimum value allowed for the parameter (to show this field, use the corresponding
checkbox in the “Show additional columns” pane).
• Max - a maximum value allowed for the parameter (to show this field, use the corresponding
checkbox in the “Show additional columns” pane).
• Unit - a text string that defines the unit of this parameter.

• Description - a text string that defines the description of this parameter.

Show additional columns: The following additional options are available. Selecting these options on this
page also selects the same option on all other pages (e.g., Inputs).
• Minimum/maximum values: activate this checkbox in order to show the variable modifier fields
“Min” and “Max”.
• Default/start values: activate this checkbox in order to show the variable modifier fields “Default-
/Start”.
Internal variables: A tabular input list of the model’s internal variables is available. The internal variable
name, base type, size, unit and description can be entered. This list is only relevant for models created
using code (refer to Section 29.11).

Internal variables have the following properties:

• Name - the variable’s name, according to Modelica variable naming requirements.

• Base Type - The base type can be: Real, Integer or Boolean.
• Size - Set a size for this variable.
– Internal variables can be scalars, one- or two-dimensional arrays.
– Multi-dimensional (size greater than 2) internal variable arrays are not allowed.
– Leave field empty if a scalar is declared.
– One-dimensional internal variable arrays (vectors) are declared by setting in this field a strictly
positive integer number or an integer parameter e.g. “3”, “size_var”, where 𝑠𝑖𝑧𝑒_𝑣𝑎𝑟 is an
integer parameter whose instantiated value must be strictly positive.
– Two-dimensional internal variable arrays (matrices) are declared by using in this field two
strictly positive integer numbers or integer parameters e.g. “[3,3]”, “[1,size_var]”, “[size_-
var_row,size_var_col]” where 𝑠𝑖𝑧𝑒_𝑣𝑎𝑟, 𝑠𝑖𝑧𝑒_𝑣𝑎𝑟_𝑟𝑜𝑤, 𝑠𝑖𝑧𝑒_𝑣𝑎𝑟_𝑐𝑜𝑙 are integer parameters
whose instantiated values must be strictly positive.
– The format is according to Modelica array specification e.g. “1”,“3”, “size_var”, “[1]”,“[10]”,
“[size_var]”, “[3,3]”, “[1,size_var]”.
– Note, by entering “1” in the Size field, PowerFactory interprets it as being a vector of size 1.

• Min - a minimum value allowed for the variable (to show this field, use the corresponding checkbox
in the “Show additional columns” pane).
• Max - a maximum value allowed for the variable (to show this field, use the corresponding check-
box in the “Show additional columns” pane).

• Unit - a text string that defines the unit of this variable.

• Description - a text string that defines the description of this variable.
Show additional columns: The following additional option is available. Selecting this option on this page
also selects the same option on all other pages (e.g., Inputs).

• Minimum/maximum values: activate this checkbox in order to show the variable modifier fields
“Min” and “Max”.

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Models: A tabular entry list of the model’s dependencies with other Modelica Model Types. This list is
automatically configured when defining Modelica Models using block diagrams.

Labels: A tabular entry list of the model’s internal labels, used for simplified signal routing. This list is
automatically configured and updated when defining Modelica Models using block diagrams.

29.12.2.4 Local Initialisation page

A text field is provided under “Local definition of input start values” to define the local initialisation
algorithm. The input variables with initialisation choice: Local on page Variable Declarations can be
initialised by writing Modelica compliant algorithmic code based on inputs and outputs with initialisation
choice: “External” and parameters. At least one of the inputs must have the initialisation choice: “Local”
to make this page active.

29.12.2.5 Algorithm page

Initialisation: A text field for the initialisation statements is provided. Modelica compliant code can be
programmed here to initialise the model. This text field is only relevant for the models created using
code (refer to Section 29.11).

Simulation: A text field for the code to be executed during simulation. Modelica compliant code can be
programmed here to define the model behaviour during simulation. This text field is only relevant for the
models created using code (refer to Section 29.11).

Connections: If the model is graphically defined, then the graphical connections between the various
model components are specified here.

29.12.2.6 Annotation page

Annotation: A text field containing the Modelica Annotation code, relevant for various parts of the
graphical modelling environment.

29.12.2.7 Description page

A general purpose Description page is available for each Modelica Model Type.

29.12.2.8 Version page

A Version page is available for each Modelica Model Type.

Version: A Version text field

Author: An Author text field

Copyright: A Copyright text field

Checksum: An internally calculated model checksum.

Change log: A multi-line text field used to log model changes.

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29.12.2.9 Dialog buttons

Check: This button is used to check the model validity, including syntax checks of the model code.

Compile: This button is used to compile the model into a PowerFactory compliant binary file. The
generated binary uses a custom format and is exported as a “.pfmu” file. The compiled model file can
only be used within PowerFactory and it is typically employed for improving the simulation performance
or for sharing the model between PowerFactory users.

FMU Export: This button is used to export the model into a Functional Mock-Up Unit (FMU), compliant
with FMI version 2.0 (refer to Section 29.14.1.3 for more details).

Pack: If this model uses any references to external Types then use the Pack command to copy the
external Types into a dedicated folder located inside the object. It automatically reassigns the existing
references to these internal Types. The function allows simplified export and sharing of the Modelica
models across project boundaries or outside the PowerFactory database.

29.12.2.10 Configuration scripts for initialisation

A DPL based Configuration Script can be optionally added to any Top-level Modelica model. It can
be used to perform a run-time update of specific Modelica model parameters. The script is executed
automatically by the command Calculation of Initial Conditions (ComInc) after the successful execution
of the load flow calculation and prior to the actual model initialisation.

Note: What Modelica model parameters can be changed?

• Only parameters defined directly in the edit dialog of the Modelica Model Type of the Top-
level model;
• Only Real, Integer and Boolean parameters of a Modelica Model can be modified;
• For example, given the model parameters displayed in Figure 29.10.7, the following param-
eters can be modified by Configuration Script: 𝐸𝑛𝑎𝑏𝑙𝑒𝐶𝑜𝑛𝑡𝑟𝑜𝑙. Other parameters cannot be
changed using the configuration script.

The functionality of the Configuration Script is two-fold:

• it provides a flexible way of configuring Modelica model parameters;
• it allows Modelica models to issue customised output window messages at initialisation i.e. via
DPL output window methods such as Info().
The Configuration Script is linked within a Modelica model as shown in Figure 29.12.1. It can be set up
by following these steps:
• Creating a DPL script within the Modelica Model Type (TypMdl) object. Within the script, users
may define various Result variables. Those results whose names match Top-level Modelica model
parameters will be considered for overwriting the values already assigned to the Modelica Model
(ElmMdl) object. That is, during the calculation of initial conditions, the pre-existent values of the
Modelica model parameters will be overwritten by the Configuration Script.
• Optional: the DPL script can be programmed to contain both Input parameters and External
objects.
• Referencing the DPL script to the Modelica Model Type (TypMdl) object, using the corresponding
field “Configuration Script” within Basic Options → Options tab of the corresponding Edit dialog.
• Creating a new Modelica Model (ElmMdl) within the Network Model folder of the project (e.g.
typically within one of the “Grid” folders). This action will automatically create a corresponding
DPL script that references the previously defined Configuration Script.

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• Optional: It is possible to assign instance-dependent attributes to the Configuration Script. Each

Modelica Model contains a DPL script that references the remote script of the Modelica Model
Type. Those Input parameters and External objects which were previously defined within the
remote script (refer to the optional step above), will be available for editing for each Modelica
model that shares the same Modelica Model Type. This provides increased flexibility, allowing
each model to be differently parameterised. For example, it is possible to link different external
objects to each Configuration Script.

Project

Results
Modelica Model Configuration
Kp
Library Type Script
Ki

Parameters Parameters

Modelica Kp 3→2 Modelica Kp 1→4

Grid
Model 1 Ki 0.1→1 Model 2 Ki 0.2→2
Tm 1 Tm 3

Configuration Configuration auto

Script Script assigned
auto
assigned
Modelica parameter overwritten by script at initialisation (non-persistent)

Figure 29.12.1: Configuration Script functionality and inter-operation

Notes:
• The scripting language used for the Configuration Script is DIgSILENT Programming Language
(DPL). Refer to Chapter 22 for a comprehensive description of DPL. Further documentation is
available within the DPL Reference, which provides a full description of available functions. The
DPL Reference can be accessed in the PowerFactory program from the main menu at Help
→ Scripting References→ DPL. Functions that can be used within the Configuration Script are
marked appropriately in the DPL Reference documentation with a star (*) symbol (e.g. GetFrom-
StudyCase*). There are functions (without a star (*) symbol) that are not available; e.g. the
execution of a load flow (ComLdf ) command is not allowed.
• To modify a 𝑅𝑒𝑎𝑙 parameter of a Modelica model, the DPL result variable must be set to 𝑑𝑜𝑢𝑏𝑙𝑒;
• To modify an 𝐼𝑛𝑡𝑒𝑔𝑒𝑟 parameter of a Modelica model, the DPL result variable must be set to 𝑖𝑛𝑡;

• To modify a 𝐵𝑜𝑜𝑙𝑒𝑎𝑛 parameter of a Modelica model, the DPL result variable must be set to 𝑖𝑛𝑡;
an automatic type casting between integer (DPL) and Boolean (Modelica) occurs.
• Parametric changes made by the Configuration Script are non-persistent. When the simulation is
reset (e.g. by clicking the button Reset Calculation), the values of the modified Modelica model
parameters will be set back to their initial values - meaning that the Configuration Script does not
permanently modify project data.
• The values of modified Modelica model parameters can be displayed using the Data Manager.
After the successful execution of the Calculation of Initial Conditions, do the following:
– Using the Data Manager or the Network Model Manager, navigate to and identify the Model-
ica Model that contains the modified parameter;

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– Left-click the Modelica model and activate the Detail Mode from the toolbar;
– Left-click on the Flexible Data tab and then on the Variable Selection button from the toolbar.
The Variable Selection window will be shown;
– Use the filter Group to get the Results and the filter Calculation to get Simulation RMS or
Simulation EMT (depending on the case).
– Select the modified parameter(s) in order to display them;
– Click OK and observe the parameter values being used (overwritten by the Configuration
Script).

• In Figure 29.12.1 above, an example is provided for the operation of a script. In this case, the
Configuration Script declares two result variables Kp and Ki. The Block definition contains three
parameters: Kp, Ki and Tm. This means that the script will overwrite only two model parameters:
Kp and Ki. In the figure, exemplary values are provided: for “Modelica Model 1” parameter Kp
has an initial value of 3 and the script will overwrite it with the value 2. Similarly, parameter Ki has
an initial value of 0.1 and the script will overwrite it with the value 1. The overwritten values of the
parameters will be used for all subsequent calculations (e.g. initial conditions and simulation).
The script allows assignment of instance-dependent attributes. It implies that, depending on
the script’s code, each Modelica Model may be configured with individual values for the two
parameters. Consequently, the parameters Kp and Ki of “Modelica Model 2” will have been
assigned different values. Note that at the end of the simulation all modified parameters are
automatically set back to their initial values.

29.13 Modelica: Overview of the Modelica Model (ElmMdl)

The Modelica Model (ElmMdl object) can be configured using the corresponding edit dialog. The
relevant configuration options are detailed within this section.

Dialog Buttons
• OK : Close dialog and save changes.
• Cancel: Close dialog and do not save changes.

• Check : Checks if the model is correctly configured. If there are any issues, a detailed error
message is written to the output window.
Basic Data page

Following configuration options are available:

• Name: Set the name of this object.

Note: The name of the Modelica Model object must comply with the Modelica requirements for
naming class objects, i.e. compliant with the identifier requirements of Section 2.3.1 of the
Modelica language specification (version 3.5) e.g. no white spaces, name starts with a letter
or underscore (_)

• Type: Reference to the Modelica Model Type (TypMdl) being instantiated; the Modelica Model
Type may represent a dynamic model implemented using native Modelica Language, or an externally-
interfaced model (refer to Section 29.14 for more information on external models)

• Configuration script: Reference to the Configuration Script for initialisation that is used for this
model (if any)
• Out of Service: tick this box to set the model to “Out of Service”.

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Parameters page

The model parameters can be defined in the Parameters page. Scalar parameters are defined in the
Scalars tab. If the model contains sub-blocks, then a hierarchical parameter structure can be presented,
depending on the model’s internal realisation.

Additional Dialog Buttons

• Export to Clipboard: Copies the entire parameter list to the clipboard (applicable only to scalar
parameters)
• Set to default: Overwrites existing scalar parameters with the default parameter values

Array parameters are defined in the tab Arrays. PF allows one- and two-dimensional array parameters.
The array parameters must be defined using IntMat objects assigned in each corresponding field of an
array.

Vector parameters (one-dimensional arrays)

A vector 𝑥[𝑛] (of size 𝑛) is treated by default as a column vector, representing a matrix with 𝑛 rows and
1 column. For instantiating the vector parameter 𝑥[𝑛], then an IntMat object with 𝑛 rows and 1 column
must be created and assigned to the corresponding field.

A row vector 𝑥[1,𝑛] (of size 𝑛) is treated as a matrix with 1 row and n columns. For instantiating a row
vector parameter 𝑥[1,𝑛], then an IntMat object with 1 row and 𝑛 columns must be created and assigned
to the corresponding field.

Matrix parameters (two-dimensional arrays)

A matrix 𝑥[𝑛,𝑚] (𝑛 rows and 𝑚 columns, of size 𝑛 * 𝑚) can be defined by creating an IntMat object with
𝑛 rows and 𝑚 columns and subsequently assigning it to the corresponding field.

For Real arrays, the entry fields represent the actual values of the variable. For Integer arrays, the entry
fields are mapped using the math function round(). For Boolean arrays, an entry value of 0 is mapped
to 𝑓 𝑎𝑙𝑠𝑒, any other value is mapped to 𝑡𝑟𝑢𝑒.

Clocked Model page

Sampling options pane

The Modelica Model code within the Simulation section is called during simulation with a rate/period
defined by these parameters:
• Sampling period: - set the clock of the model by means of a Sampling period parameter
• Sampling rate: - set the clock of the model by means of a Sampling rate parameter
• According to integration step size: - The clock of the model is automatically chosen at runtime.
The sampling period is equal to the chosen simulation step size, as defined in the Calculation
of initial conditions → Step Size page. This option is only applicable if the automatic step size
adaptation (flag Calculation of initial conditions → Basic Options→ Automatic step size adaptation)
is unticked.

Note: The According to integration step size option is highly useful for models dedicated to post-
processing tasks (e.g. identification of minima and maxima of a large set of variables at each
simulation time step, RMS voltage computation according to various algorithms for later use in a
technical report, etc.) or for replicating the behaviour of legacy simulation environments based
purely on procedural models. However, whenever such models do influence the power system
simulation trajectory (e.g. models controlling power equipment), the simulation results obtained
with such models are inevitably simulation time step dependent. Therefore, special attention
should be paid when using such models in simulations.

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FMU page

If a Functional Mock-up Interface (FMI) based model (Functional Mock-up Unit - FMU) is configured in
the Modelica Model Type (refer to Section 29.14.1), then this page is active.

FMU Type - details which FMI standard is supported by the FMU. If the FMU supports multiple choices,
then the user may switch between them.
• Model Exchange - FMU is based on the “FMI for Model Exchange” standard

• Co-Simulation - FMU is based on the “FMI for Co-Simulation” standard

Sampling options pane

The FMU simulation code is called during simulation with a rate/period defined by these parameters:
• Sampling period: - set the clock of the model by means of a Sampling period parameter
• Sampling rate: - set the clock of the model by means of a Sampling rate parameter

• According to integration step size: - The clock of the model is automatically chosen at runtime.
The sampling period is equal to the chosen simulation step size, as defined in the Calculation
of initial conditions → Step Size page. This option is only applicable if the automatic step size
adaptation (flag Calculation of initial conditions → Basic Options→ Automatic step size adaptation)
is unticked. This option is only available for FMI for Co-Simulation based FMUs.

Note: The According to integration step size option is highly useful for models dedicated to post-
processing tasks (e.g. identification of minima and maxima of a large set of variables at each
simulation time step, RMS voltage computation according to various algorithms for later use in a
technical report, etc.) or for replicating the behaviour of legacy simulation environments based
purely on procedural models. However, whenever such models do influence the power system
simulation trajectory (e.g. models controlling power equipment), the simulation results obtained
with such models are inevitably simulation time step dependent. Therefore, special attention
should be paid when using such models in simulations.

Description page

A standard object description page is provided in order to configure general object settings.

29.14 Interfaces for Dynamic Models

29.14.1 Functional Mock-Up Interface (version 2.0)

The Functional Mock-up Interface (FMI) is a free standard which facilitates the exchange of simulation
models among a large number of simulation programs. Currently, more than 190 tools actively support
FMI. The benefits of a widely used and well established standard are readily available in PowerFactory
by allowing the import and export of Functional Mock-up Units (FMUs) .

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Figure 29.14.1: Functional Mock-Up Interface (FMI) standard, Modelica Association

29.14.1.1 Importing FMUs into PowerFactory

An overview of the proposed FMU Import tool-chain is shown in Figure 29.14.2, in which one or multiple
Functional Mock-Up Units (FMUs) can be integrated within a power system simulation executed in
PowerFactory.

External tool
FMI FMI
export import

.fmu
.fmu .TypMdl
.TypMdl

Figure 29.14.2: Overview of integrating Functional Mock-Up Units (FMUs) into PowerFactory

For example, the state-of-the-art control systems dynamic modelling environment Matlab® Simulink®
allows the export of a simulation model as a tool coupling FMU or as a standalone FMU compliant
with FMI standard (i.e. FMI version 2.0, FMI for co-simulation). These FMUs can be imported into
PowerFactory and used within a large scale RMS Simulation or a detailed EMT Simulation. In particular,
the integration of detailed simulation models (e.g. black-box, firmware code based) now becomes a
straightforward process of exporting an FMU from one tool, commonly used by model developers of
equipment, and importing it into PowerFactory, commonly used for executing power systems simula-
tions.

PowerFactory supports the following FMI Import components:

• FMI version 2.0 for Model Exchange (FMU model import)

• FMI version 2.0 for Co-simulation (FMU model import)
The integration of the FMUs is realised within PowerFactory by employing the object classes for Mod-
elica compliant dynamic models i.e. Modelica Model Type (TypMdl ) and Modelica Model (ElmMdl
). A fully automated process of importing the FMU is supported, thus allowing the power systems
engineer to focus on the analysis itself and to not waste time on the cumbersome integration of external
models into a power system model.

PowerFactory enforces a number of requirements on an FMU, as follows:

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• An input signal of an FMU can either be a scalar or a one-dimensional array.

• An output signal of an FMU can either be a scalar or a one-dimensional array.
• A parameter of an FMU can either be a scalar, a one- or a two-dimensional array.
• An internal variable of an FMU can be of any FMI supported type. Nevertheless, only scalar,
one- or two-dimensional array variables can be monitored in a Results object and subsequently
be plotted. Furthermore, the current value of only scalar, one- or two-dimensional array variables
can be displayed (e.g. using the Network Model Manager ).

Interface scope and limitations:

• FMI models can be used in both RMS and EMT simulations.
• FMI models based on FMI for Model Exchange are considered within the Modal/Eigenvalue
Analysis.
• FMI models based on FMI for Co-simulation are not considered within the Modal/Eigenvalue
Analysis.

29.14.1.2 How to integrate an FMU into PowerFactory

Perform the following steps:

• Create a new Modelica Model Type (TypMdl ) (refer to Section 29.12.1)

• On the Basic Options page set the Simulation model type to “Compiled model”
• Assign the file path to the FMU (file path must include the FMU file name and .fmu file extension).
Make sure the FMU supports 64-bit architecture.

Note: PowerFactory is supplied based on a 64-bit architecture; hence 64-bit compiled DLL files
of all interfaced external models are required.

• Switch to the Advanced tab of the Basic Options page and check the displayed FMU information.
• Check the Variable Declarations page. If successfully loaded then the model variables should be
listed (read-only) in this page.
• Click OK.

• Design/Create a Composite Model Frame (BlkDef ) that contains a corresponding Slot for the
FMU (see Section 29.2). Make sure that the FMU input and output signals are inter-connected
with other model components via the inputs/outputs of various Slots e.g. measurement devices
or generator elements.

• Create a Modelica Model (ElmMdl ) and reference to it the Modelica Model Type of the FMU
(see Section 29.8.2).
• Use the Edit dialog of the Modelica Model to access the parameter list of the FMU and configure
the model accordingly. Note, the parameterisation is shown using a tree-like view if parameters
are declared using parameter structures.

• Create a corresponding Composite Model (ElmComp ) and assign the FMU to a relevant slot
(see Section 29.2.6)
• Run the model in a power systems simulation using either RMS Simulation, EMT Simulation or a
single/multiple domain co-simulation, depending on the FMU model design and capability.

Note: Matlab® and Simulink® are registered trademarks of The MathWorks, Inc.
Please see mathworks.com/trademarks.

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29.14.1.3 Exporting FMUs from PowerFactory (ComFmuexport)

An overview of the proposed FMU Export tool-chain is shown in Figure 29.14.3, in which a Modelica
Model Type (TypMdl ) can be exported from PowerFactory and later on, imported in an FMI Import
compliant third party simulation tool.

External tool
FMI FMI
export import

.TypMdl .fmu

Figure 29.14.3: Overview of exporting a Modelica Model Type into an Functional Mock-Up Unit (FMU)

The FMU Export function exports a Modelica Model Type as a Functional Mock-up Unit (FMU) based
on the standardised Functional Mock-Up Interface (FMI), version 2.0. The FMU Export function is
supported only by PowerFactory licences containing the licensing module “FMU Export”.

PowerFactory exports the Modelica Model Type using both FMI variants:

• FMI for Model Exchange and

• FMI for Co-simulation.
A standard compatible .fmu file is generated upon finalising this process which includes: model param-
eterisation, model binary files and model source code.

Exported models are compatible for importing in any of the third-party tools currently supporting the
import function for either FMI for Model Exchange or FMI for Co-simulation.

29.14.1.4 How to export a Modelica Model Type from PowerFactory

Perform the following steps:

• Open the dialog of the Modelica Model Type (TypMdl ) to be exported

• Click on the button FMU Export.

• Customise the FMU Export via the shown FMU export dialog
• Click OK
The export is executed based on the following configuration options (found in the FMU Export dialog):

• Model To Export: A reference to the model to export. If the FMU Export is started by pressing
the FMU Export button of a given Modelica Model Type, then this field is automatically referenced
(and set to read-only).

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 29.14. INTERFACES FOR DYNAMIC MODELS

• Destination Folder: A text field where the file path of the exported FMU can be entered.
• Include Modelica code file (.mo): A checkbox that enables the export of the Modelica code file
along with the other FMU components.
• Include source code files: A checkbox that enables the export of the source code files along
with the other FMU components.
• Print compilation output: A checkbox that enables the FMU Export to print compilation mes-
sages to the PowerFactory output window.
• Sampling options:
– Sampling rate via sampling time parameter: The discrete model is exported using a
Sampling time parameter (name and value can be customised in the dialog)
– Sampling rate via sampling frequency parameter: The discrete model is exported using
a Sampling frequency parameter (name and value can be customised in the dialog)
– Sampling rate via hardcoded sampling time: The discrete model is exported using a
hardcoded Sampling time (value can be customised in the dialog)
– Sampling rate via hardcoded sampling frequency: The discrete model is exported using
a hardcoded Sampling frequency (value can be customised in the dialog)
Note, since the FMU Export is executed on the Modelica Model Type, any model parameterisation
done in the Modelica Model is not included in the FMU Export. Default values of parameters are
assigned, if existing, from the Default parameterisation fields (refer to option Show default/start values
of parameters/variables in “Variable Declarations” described in Section 29.12.2.2).

For example, for the simple PI controller exemplified in Section 29.11.1, the FMU Export function may
generate along with the standard C source and binary files, a corresponding Modelica model file (.mo
file), as follows:

model DiscreteController
parameter Real Kp(unit="")=0.05"Proportional gain";
parameter Real Ki(unit="1/s")=20"Integral gain";
input Real reference(unit="p.u.",start=1)"Reference signal (real, continuous-time)";
Real reference_clocked(unit="p.u.",start=1)"Reference signal (real, continuous-time)";
input Real measurement(unit="p.u.",start=1)"Measured signal (real, continuous-time)";
Real measurement_clocked(unit="p.u.",start=1)"Measured signal (real, continuous-time)";
output Real control(unit="p.u.")"Control command (real, discrete-time)";
Real control_clocked(unit="p.u.")"Control command (real, discrete-time)";
Real error(unit="p.u.")"Control error (real, discrete-time)";
Real x(unit="p.u.");
Real dt(unit="s");
Real internalTime___;
parameter Real Ts =0.05;

equation
when Clock(Ts) then
internalTime___ = time;
reference_clocked=sample(reference);
measurement_clocked=sample(measurement);
end when;
control=hold(control_clocked);

algorithm
if (firstTick(internalTime___)) then
error:= reference_clocked - measurement_clocked;
dt := interval(x);
control_clocked :=1;
x:= control_clocked /Ki;

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else
error:= reference_clocked - measurement_clocked;
dt := interval(x);
x:=previous(x)+error*dt;
control_clocked:=Kp*error+Ki*x;

end if;

end DiscreteController;

29.14.1.5 Using Snapshots with FMU models

PowerFactory supports serialisation of FMU states, by saving/loading the FMU state variables with-
in/from a model snapshot (more information on Snapshots is provided in Section 28.3.7). An FMU shall
be considered within a model Snapshot if the following FMU flags (within its model description XML)
are set to true:
• canGetAndSetFMUstate
• canSerializeFMUstate

29.14.2 External C Interface acc. to IEC 61400-27

It is possible to directly interface external models compliant with IEC 61400-27-2 Edition 1 Annex
G (and former IEC 61400-27-1 Edition 1 Annex F) specifications (referred to in this section as IEC
interface). The interfaced models can be used for both RMS and EMT type simulations (provided they
are appropriately designed and intended for the specific simulation type).

The IEC 61400-27-1 Edition 1 Annex F and IEC 61400-27-2 Edition 1 Annex G specify a common
standardised binary simulation model interface which can be interpreted by any third party software.
The advantage to this approach is that the same simulation model (i.e. binary code) can be used in
multiple simulation environments.

The integration of IEC interface models is realised within PowerFactory by employing the object classes
Modelica Model Type (TypMdl ) and Modelica Model (ElmMdl ). A fully automated process of
loading an IEC interface model is supported, thus allowing the user to focus on the analysis itself and
to not waste time on the cumbersome integration of external models into a power system model.

29.14.2.1 How to integrate an IEC interface model into PowerFactory

Carry out the following steps:

• Create a new Modelica Model Type (TypMdl ) (refer to Section 29.12.1).

• On the Basic Options page, check the “Compiled model” flag.
• Assign the file path to the DLL file (file path must include the file name and .dll file extension).
Note the selection dialog filters for specific file types - make sure that an IEC file (.dll) is selected.
Note: PowerFactory is supplied based on a 64-bit architecture, hence 64-bit compiled DLL files
of all interfaced external models are required.

• If successfully loaded, the model inputs, outputs and parameters are then listed (read-only) in
the corresponding fields of the Modelica Model Type. Furthermore, a complete list of model
information is provided in the Description page of the dialog, including relevant model param-
eters such as the sampling period of the model (parameter 𝐹 𝑖𝑥𝑒𝑑𝑆𝑡𝑒𝑝𝐵𝑎𝑠𝑒𝑆𝑎𝑚𝑝𝑙𝑒𝑇 𝑖𝑚𝑒 of the
“StaticExtSimEnvCapi” model information structure).

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• Click OK.

• Design/Create a Composite Model Frame (BlkDef ) that contains a corresponding Slot for the
IEC interface model (see Section 29.2). Make sure that the IEC interface model input and output
signals are interconnected with other model components via the inputs/outputs of various Slots
e.g. measurement devices or generator elements.

• Create a Modelica Model (ElmMdl ) and reference to the Modelica Model Type of the IEC
interface model (see Section 29.8.2).
• Use the Edit dialog of the Modelica Model to access the parameter list of the IEC interface model
and configure the model accordingly.

• Create a corresponding Composite Model (ElmComp ) and assign the Modelica Model to a
relevant slot (see Section 29.2.6).
• Run the model in a power systems simulation using either RMS Simulation, EMT Simulation
or a single/multiple domain co-simulation, depending on the IEC interface model’s design and
capability.

Note: The DSL Model Type (BlkDef ) also supports IEC interface models, for the purpose of
backward compatibility (legacy) with earlier PowerFactory versions. Nevertheless, it is rec-
ommended to migrate such configurations in order to use a Modelica Model Type. For
information on the use and configuration of IEC interface models using the DSL Model Type,
please refer to the IEC interface description provided in the PowerFactory 2022 User Manual.

29.14.2.2 Using dynamic models based on the IEC interface

The model can be integrated into a Composite Model Frame in the same manner as a typical Modelica
Model Type (as described in Section 29.6.1).

Under the Description page of the Modelica Model Type, the parameter 𝐹 𝑖𝑥𝑒𝑑𝑆𝑡𝑒𝑝𝐵𝑎𝑠𝑒𝑆𝑎𝑚𝑝𝑙𝑒𝑇 𝑖𝑚𝑒
of the “StaticExtSimEnvCapi” model information structure is displayed (with unit in seconds). The
simulation solver interacts by calling the functions “Model_Update” and “Model_Outputs” at integer
multiples of the sampling period 𝐹 𝑖𝑥𝑒𝑑𝑆𝑡𝑒𝑝𝐵𝑎𝑠𝑒𝑆𝑎𝑚𝑝𝑙𝑒𝑇 𝑖𝑚𝑒, in a precise manner (i.e. simulation
interrupt at precise time).

Interface variable names:

• The DLL Model developer is responsible with the correct definition of the interface. All variable
names used in this interface must comply with the specifications of the IEC Interface (although
not explicitly stated, the C variable naming rules should be adopted for all variables that are part
of the IEC Interface).
• The integration of the IEC Interface model into PowerFactory is done by connecting this model
using a Composite Model Frame. Scalar and vector (1-dimensional array) signals are supported
for the model’s inputs and outputs. Refer to Section 29.2.7 for information on how signals (scalars
or vectors) are interconnected within a user-defined dynamic model.

Interface scope and limitations:

• Simulation models based on the IEC 61400-27 Interface can be used in both RMS and EMT
simulations.
• Simulation models based on the IEC 61400-27 Interface are not considered within the Modal/Eigen-
value Analysis.
• The calculation of initial conditions procedure in PowerFactory RMS and EMT simulation is only
partly supported by the IEC Interface compliant models. That is, only forward initialisation is

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possible: outputs and internal model variables or states are initialised based on knowledge of
input quantities only. Inputs cannot be initialised by an IEC Interface compliant model.

29.14.2.3 Using Snapshots with IEC Interface models

PowerFactory supports saving/loading of IEC Interface model states to/from a model snapshot (more
information on Snapshots is provided in Section 28.3.7). An IEC Interface model is automatically con-
sidered within a model Snapshot if interfaced using Modelica objects (TypMdl\ElmMdl). The following
IEC Interface model state variables are saved/loaded into/from a Snapshot:

• InstanceExtSimEnvCapi → MiscStates

Note: • Model states stored within InstanceExtSimEnvCapi → ContinuousStates and Instance-

ExtSimEnvCapi → StateDerivatives are not saved within a PowerFactory model Snapshot
as these two fields are not used by PowerFactory.
• IEC Interface models using DSL Model objects (BlkDef \ElmDsl) are not included in a model
Snapshot.

29.14.3 DSL-C Interface

The DSL-C Interface provides the framework to create dynamic models developed entirely in the C
programming language. For simplicity, these models will be hereafter referred to as “compiled DSL
models”. It is possible to generate C-source code and compile DSL Model Types into binary files. The
generated C source files need to be compiled (using an external ANSI-C compiler) into a Dynamic Link
Library (DLL) in order to be used within a dynamic simulation.

The supported C compilers are listed on the External Applications page of the Configuration dialog
(accessed via Tools → Configuration).

PowerFactory provides “compiled DSL models” for all DSL models available in the “Standard Models”
global library database folder and those located in the “Standard Models” subfolder of the PowerFactory
installation (e.g. ’C:∖Program Files∖DIgSILENT∖PowerFactory XXXX∖Standard Models’).

29.14.3.1 DSL-to-C Interface Converter

Any DSL Model Type may be compiled into a DSL C Interface model using the automatic DSL-to-C
interface converter. As with any DSL model, it is recommended that the Calculation of Initial Conditions
of a DSL Model representing the DSL Model Type is performed and no internal DSL warnings are
displayed during the simulation. Creating a DSL C Interface model requires two steps:

1. Creation of C source files from the DSL Model Type; and

2. Compilation of source files into a DLL using an external compiler.
To create the C source files for an existing DSL Model Type (which must be a non-macro, highest-level
DSL Model Type), the following steps are required:

• Open the Advanced tab of the DSL Model Type dialog as shown in Figure 29.14.4;
• As Compilation options fill in the Author, Company, Copyright and Version fields with relevant
information;
• An initial check of the model is required and can be performed by clicking on Check for compilation
button. Check the output window for the verification status;

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• When a Block is ok message is displayed in the output window, the code generation process
may be started by clicking on the Compile button;
• A folder selection dialog is opened with a newly-created model folder within the PowerFactory
workspace location;
• Click on OK. If the process completes successfully, a status message will be reported in the output
window (e.g. Model ’BlockName’ created and stored as ’C:∖Users∖user∖AppData
∖Local∖DIgSILENT∖PowerFactory xxxx∖Workspace.nnnnnn∖db∖User Models∖
BlockName∖MyModel.c’).

Figure 29.14.4: DSL Model Type dialog, Basic Options page, Advanced tab

The generated source files are listed below:

• digusermodel.c - dDLLMain declaration function;

• digusermodel.def - module-definition file containing one or more module statements that describe
various attributes of the DLL;

• digusermodel.h - contains necessary function prototype declarations;

• digusermodeladvanced.h - contains additional function prototypes;
• BlockName.vcxproj , where “BlockName” is the name of the DSL Model Type from which the
source files have been created - Visual Studio 2012©project file;

• MathConstants.h - contains various mathematical constant definitions;

• ModelInterface.h - declaration of advanced functions;
• MyModel.c - C source file containing function definitions of the dynamic model.

The typical process of compiling the source files into a DLL should be followed according to the
instructions of the external compiler. In Visual Studio 2012, the “BlockName.vcxproj” project file can
be opened. The user needs to make sure that the 64-bit architecture is selected when building the DLL
in order to comply with PowerFactory requirements.

After creating the DLL, the file can be readily used in PowerFactory. On the General tab of the DSL
Model Type dialog, check the “Compiled model” radio button. A folder selection text box is shown.

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Introduce the file path (including the file name) in the text box or click on the “...” button to navigate and
select the DLL file. For future uses of the compiled model, PowerFactory stores the previously compiled
model directory path as default.

PowerFactory automatically loads the DLL and in the General tab of the DSL Model Type (shown in
Figure 29.14.5) it displays relevant information. The list of used variables (output and input signals, state
variables, etc.) is shown in the Variables area (non-editable) and a summary of the DLL-file is shown
in the “DLL info” area. The Source field states the name of the compiled model. The PowerFactory
version, creation date, author, company and copyright owner are shown. The checksum field contains
a 16-digit unique identifier of the original DSL model on which it has been based. If a DSL model is
defined as well, then the checksum of the DSL block will also be shown in the “DSL-info” area (below
the “DLL info” area). Based on the two available checksums, a direct comparison between the compiled
and the DSL model can be performed to verify their equivalence.

Figure 29.14.5: Compiled model options

The model can be integrated in a Composite Model Frame in the same manner as a typical DSL Model
Type (as described in Section 29.6.1).

More information about the DSL C Interface including the description of the interface and examples,
is available on the External C Interface for dynamic models, which is located in the “External C In-
terface” subfolder of the PowerFactory installation (e.g. ’C:\Program Files\DIgSILENT\PowerFactory
XXXX\External C Interface’).

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29.14.4 MATLAB Interface

Interfacing Matlab® Simulink® models with PowerFactory can be done using the Functional Mock-Up
Interface (FMI), described in Section 29.14.1.

Note: Matlab® and Simulink® are registered trademarks of The MathWorks, Inc.
Please see mathworks.com/trademarks.

29.15 Developing User-defined Power Electronics Models for EMT

Simulation

PowerFactory supports various commonly used power electronics (PE) based devices within several
built-in simulation models. For example:

• three phase line commutated converters are supported by the Rectifier/Inverter element (ElmRec)
and the HVDC-LCC element (ElmHvdclcc);
• three phase two-level and MMC type voltage source converters are supported by the PWM
Converter element (ElmVsc);
• three phase Static Var Systems can be built using the SVS element (ElmSvs).
There are many advantages to using built-in PowerFactory models for power electronics, ranging from
the simplicity in configuration to the full support of all relevant calculation functions. Nevertheless,
for power electronics equipment which is not directly supported by the built-in models or for which
various detailed studies require access to internal model components, PowerFactory provides users
the possibility to build customisable PE equipment. There are two main options when developing a user
defined PE equipment for EMT simulations:
• Simulation model development as a Submodel of a built-in element ;
• Simulation model development as an independent EMT model (neither belonging to nor devel-
oped under any specific built-in element).

If the PE equipment is developed within a built-in element, then it can be connected to the external
power system via predefined connection ports belonging to a Submodel. These ports can be either
AC or DC and correspond to the output terminals of the built-in model. In case of three-phase AC
terminals, the corresponding connection ports will be “per-phase” e.g. an ABC-N terminal will have 4
connection ports, one for each phase plus the neutral wire. This user defined PE equipment model will
be operational during EMT Simulation only. The connection ports will enable an electrical connection
between the Submodel and the external power system immediately after initialisation. More information
is available in Section 29.15.1.

If the PE equipment is developed outside a built-in model, then the modelling approach is standard
as with any other detailed model: individual components are added to the grid and linked such that
the topology and configuration of the model is adequately represented. The connection between the
DC components and the AC part of the model or the external power system can be done by using
the AC/DC Connector element. All PowerFactory calculation functions will be operational in such a
situation. Nevertheless, the AC/DC Connector element will link the AC and DC sides (and thus enable
an electrical connection) only within EMT simulation, immediately after initialisation. More information
is available in Section 29.15.2.

Note: DC components are typically used for PE models - in both modelling approaches, the power
electronics dedicated components (diode, IGBT, thyristor, MMC valve, etc) are DC elements.
Therefore, the PE models are intended to use “DC” components only (nevertheless, it is not

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forbidden to add AC components, if special cases require it). The PE model can afterwards be
connected to the AC power system either by directly using AC/DC Connectors in the single line
diagram (i.e. when the PE model is developed outside a built-in element) or via the connection
ports of a Submodel (when the PE model is defined within a built-in element). The DC elements
of the PE model are inter-connected by using DC nodes (terminals). Make sure that the rated
voltage of the internal DC nodes is appropriately set to a common value throughout the model.

29.15.1 Model development as a Submodel of a built-in element

The following built-in elements are currently supported:

• PWM Converter (ElmVsc and ElmVscmono)

• Static Var Systems (ElmSvs)

• DC-DC Converter (ElmDcdc)
• Static Generator (ElmGenstat)
• PV System Generator (ElmPvsys)

When developing a PE model within a built-in element make sure to assign a Submodel to one of the
supported network elements. To do so, follow these steps:
• From the single line diagram, right-click on the built-in element;
• From the available options, select Network Models → Submodel→ New. . . (if the element is not
supported, then this option will not be available);
• In the Submodel selection dialog click on the “Default Submodel templates” folder.
• Select the Submodel template which corresponds to the element class of the built-in element e.g.
for a PWM Converter/2 DC connections element (of class name ElmVsc) the template is named
“ElmVsc”). Click OK;

• The Edit dialog of the Submodel is displayed. Click OK;

• The Submodel single line diagram is created based on the template. The connection ports are
automatically added to the diagram (with their corresponding DC terminals). All DC terminals
have the same default voltage set to 100 kV. Make sure to change this value accordingly when
developing the model.
After the Submodel creation is complete, it is possible to add to the Submodel diagram all relevant DC
components by using the Drawing toolbar (if the diagram is frozen, it needs to be un-frozen in order
to add elements). Any element can be added to the diagram, nevertheless, all modelling rules and
requirements existing in the standard model creation apply to this Submodel as well. A selection of
these rules is provided below:
• Elements are linked between themselves using terminals;
• DC elements connect to DC terminals only - (typically, a Submodel will contain only DC elements
and terminals);

• AC elements connect to AC terminals only;

• Whenever load flow calculation is executed, the Submodel and its components will be included in
the calculation (but in a disconnected state, separated from the rest of the power system). This
means that the Submodel must comply with the load flow data model requirements as well.

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Note: Typically, the Submodel will not contain any voltage sources and hence, the Submodel will
be de-energised within load flow. Whenever voltage sources exist in the Submodel, then the
load flow calculation will energise the Submodel and the load flow will attempt to compute a
steady state operating point. Even in this situation, the Submodel is still considered as being
disconnected from the rest of the power system. On the other hand, the built-in model is
operational and will decide the power flows on its terminals. Therefore, the built-in element
to which this Submodel is assigned will not be influenced by its internal representation and
will continue to operate as defined within its Load Flow configuration page.

For example, a three-phase, three-level (3L) neutral point-clamped (NPC) inverter can be defined for
the PWM Converter element (ElmVsc) by implementing the corresponding topology using a Submodel,
as shown in Figure 29.15.1. The model is available here. The AC and DC connection ports are used
to link the internal components with the elements to which the built-in element terminals are connected
in the power system (either AC or DC power system parts, depending on the built-in element and
corresponding terminals).

Figure 29.15.1: Three-level NPC converter example

The control system is designed such that each individual IGBT is controlled via its gate signal. Since the
individual gate signal of one IGBT element is a scalar, the total number of gate signals is small i.e. 12.
Consequently, the control system does not require any vectors for transferring the gate signals to the
controlled elements, having therefore a typical DSL model structure as shown in Figure 29.15.2. Note
that the Converter slot is only required when the control system is intended to support also the control of
the built-in EMT Simulation model. This can be achieved, for example, whenever the Submodel element
is set to “Out of service”. In this case, the built-in element will ignore the Submodel and make use of the
dynamic controller’s output signals (i.e. the reference voltages) in order to internally generate the gate
signals. Within the example provided the built-in element is configured as a two-level, detailed converter
model (as an alternative choice).

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Figure 29.15.2: Three-level NPC converter - control structure

29.15.2 Model development as an independent EMT model

There are cases when there are no built-in elements that support the specific PE model configuration
(e.g. AC drives with multi-phase front ends). In such cases, the alternative is to directly develop the
simulation model within the single line diagram of a grid (ElmNet). When modelling as an independent
EMT model, make sure to use the AC/DC Connectors for connecting the DC components with the AC
part of the system. To do so, follow these steps:
• Choose a grid in which the PE model is intended to be developed (for models containing a large
number of components, a separate grid could be created).

• Within the single line diagram add corresponding AC/DC Connectors (ElmAcdconnector ) from
the Drawing Toolbar. If the PE model is a three phase system, then three AC/DC Connectors are
needed. The AC and DC sides of this element are correspondingly marked.
• Connect the AC/DC Connectors between an AC and DC terminals. It is assumed that the AC
terminals correspond to the external power system part and the DC terminals to the PE model
part. In the case of a multi-phase AC terminal, make sure to select the corresponding phase with
the relevant AC/DC Connector.
• Further expand the PE model topology starting from the available DC terminals. Use the available
DC components from the drawing toolbar (e.g. diodes, IGBTs, MMC Valves, DC current and
voltage sources, DC resistances and inductances).

• Each DC component is inter-connected with another one via a DC terminal. Use an internal node
bus type (i.e. dot terminal graphical representation) whenever useful.

Note: Since the PE model is developed directly within the single line diagram of a grid, the same rules
apply regarding data consistency as with any other DC part of an electrical system. The only
difference is that the AC/DC Connector acts as an open circuit during load-flow calculation (and
any other calculation except the EMT Simulation).

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For example, a 22 module, MMC based, STATCOM model can be represented in detail by developing
the PE model directly within the single line diagram of a grid, as shown in Figure 29.15.3.

Figure 29.15.3: Detailed MMC STATCOM example - topology in wye

In this model, the most relevant DC components are:

• MMC Valve (ElmMmcvalve) and

• AC/DC Connectors, per-phase (ElmAcdconnector ).

The MMC Valve model is configured as a full bridge, detailed model (in such a case, 4 IGBTs and a
capacitor are represented internally). The model also supports the half-bridge configuration. For both
configurations, the model can be set up either as a detailed (one single bridge), detailed equivalent
circuit (𝑛 series connected bridges, individual IGBTs and module capacitors) or aggregated (𝑛 series
connected bridges, single capacitor, controlled voltage source). For the detailed and detailed equivalent
circuit variants, the IGBTs can be controlled individually. For the detailed equivalent circuit and aggre-
gated variants, one MMC valve element can represent 𝑛 series connected half- or full-bridges. More
detailed information is available in the corresponding Technical Reference of this element.

The per-phase AC/DC Connectors (depicted as reactors on the right hand side of the diagram) can be
configured to model a resistance and/or an inductance. The arm inductance is therefore included within
the AC/DC Connectors.

The right-most terminal is an AC bus and connects the detailed STATCOM model with the upstream
AC power system (optional STATCOM transformer, supply network, etc.) - refer to Figure 29.15.4 for an
example.

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Figure 29.15.4: STATCOM’s connected upstream network

The control of the STATCOM is more elaborate (refer to Figure 29.15.5) and requires the use of
vector based signals within the corresponding Composite Model as well as a detailed PWM switching
strategy for MMCs. Therefore, besides the typical DSL control system implementation, two important
components are additionally employed:
• Pulse generator element (ElmPulsegen) and
• Vector of Objects (IntVecobj)

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Figure 29.15.5: Composite Model Frame of the STATCOM Controller

The Pulse generator element (refer to the configuration in Figure 29.15.6) is used to generate an
accurate set of gate signals for each MMC valve within a given arm of the STATCOM (in total three
Pulse generator elements). The input of the model is the per-phase reference arm voltage that is to be
generated at the entire arm’s connection points. The output is a vector based signal (named gate_A /
gate_B / gate_C) which, in this case, has size 4 · 22 = 88. For more detailed information, please refer
to the Technical Reference of the Pulse generator element (ElmPulsegen).

Note: Although the Pulse generator element demonstrates in this example the user-defined PE mod-
elling techniques outside built-in elements, the same Pulse generator element could be used also
for generating the gate signals for either (a) user-defined PE models represented inside built-in
elements or (b) the PWM Converter built-in model (ElmVsc) if configured as a detailed, Type 4
model (refer to the Technical reference of the PWM Converter for more information).

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Figure 29.15.6: Pulse generator model (built-in element) for gate signal generation

The Vector of Objects element (IntVecobj) is used to distribute the generated gate signal vector to
the individual MMC valves. A comprehensive description of the various possible configurations of
connecting array signals in a high-level control system is provided in Section 29.2.7.

In the current configuration, the Vector of Objects element demultiplexes the input vector into either
multiple scalars or sub-vectors, depending on the size of the source and destination signals. The source
signal is the incoming signal connected to the corresponding slot of the Vector of Objects element within
the Composite Model Frame. The destination signal is the input signal stated within the corresponding
slot of the Vector of Objects element within the Composite Model Frame. This signal name must match
one of the input signals of the controlled elements. The destination signal can be either a scalar or a
vector.

In the case at hand, the following applies:

• The source signal is the vector signal 𝑔𝑎𝑡𝑒 of the Pulse generator element having a size 4 · 22 = 88
• The destination signal is stated within the Input Signals text field of the slot assigned to the
corresponding Vector of Objects element within the Composite Model Frame. The signal is named
𝑔𝑎𝑡𝑒 and it represents the input signal of the MMC Valve element, having a size 4 (the MMC Valve
is configured as a Full Bridge);
• The destination elements are programmed within the configuration dialog of the Vector of Objects
element (refer to Figure 29.15.7). Within this dialog there are 22 individual MMC Valve elements
added.

• The demultiplexing logic is as follows:

– the first destination element is the MMC Valve element named “A01”; the first 4 indexes of the
source signal 𝑔𝑎𝑡𝑒 will be assigned (in the same order) to the destination signal 𝑔𝑎𝑡𝑒 (which
is a vector signal of size 4) of the MMC Valve “A01”.
– the second destination element is the MMC Valve element named “A02”; indexes 5 to 8 of the
source signal 𝑔𝑎𝑡𝑒 will be assigned (in the same order) to the destination signal 𝑔𝑎𝑡𝑒 (which
is a vector signal of size 4) of the MMC Valve “A02”.
– the procedure continues until: (a) all destination elements have been parsed or (b) the last
index of the source signal has been reached.

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Note: The order within the configuration dialog of the Vector of Objects element is important! The
demultiplexing logic parses all these objects in ascending order (i.e. first element in the table is
processed first, second element is processed afterwards, and so on). The order can be changed
using buttons Move up and Move down: select a row and then click on one of these buttons - the
MMC Valve element will consequently be moved up/down.

Figure 29.15.7: Distribution of the gate vector signal to the individual MMC valve elements

Note: Although the Vector of Objects element demonstrates in this example the user-defined PE mod-
elling techniques outside built-in elements, the same element could be used also for distributing
signals to either (a) user defined PE models represented inside built-in elements or (b) other
applications, completely unrelated to EMT Simulation of power electronics (e.g. Power Plant
Controllers dispatching individual wind turbines within an RMS Simulation).

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29.16 DSL Reference

29.16.1 DSL Standard Functions

DSL Function Short description Example

sin(x) sine sin(1.2) = 0.93203
cos(x) cosine cos(1.2) = 0.36236
tan(x) tangent tan(1.2) = 2.57215
asin(x) arcsine asin(0.93203) = 1.2
acos(x) arccosine acos(0.36236) = 1.2
atan(x) arctangent, atan(2.57215) = 1.2
result within (−𝜋/2,+𝜋/2)
atan2(y,x) principal value of arctangent of y/x, atan2(2.57215, 1) = 1.2
i.e. atan(y/x) shifted by ±𝜋 if x < 0, atan2(-2.57215, -1) = -1.9416
result within [−𝜋,+𝜋]
sinh(x) hyperbolic sine sinh(1.5708) = 2.3013
cosh(x) hyperbolic cosine cosh(1.5708) = 2.5092
tanh(x) hyperbolic tangent tanh(0.7616) = 1.0000
exp(x) exponential value exp(1.0) = 2.718281
ln(x) natural logarithm ln(2.718281) = 1.0
log(x) log10 log(100) = 2
sqrt(x) square root sqrt(9.5) = 3.0822
sqr(x) power of 2 sqr(3.0822) = 9.5
pow (x,y) power of y pow(2.5, 3.4) = 22.5422
abs(x) absolute value abs(-2.34) = 2.34
min(x,y) smaller value min(6.4, 1.5) = 1.5
max(x,y) larger value max(6.4, 1.5) = 6.4
modulo(x,y) remainder of x/y modulo(15.6, 3.4) = 2
trunc(x) integer part trunc(-4.58823) = -4
frac(x) fractional part frac(-4.58823) = -0.58823
round(x) closest integer round(1.65) = 2
ceil(x) smallest larger integer ceil(1.15) = 2
floor(x) largest smaller integer floor(1.78) = 1
time() current simulation time time() = 0.1234
pi() 𝜋 = 3.141592... pi() = 3.141592...
twopi() 2 · 𝜋 = 6.283185... twopi() = 6.283185...
e() 2.718281... e() = 2.718281...

Table 29.16.1: DSL Standard Functions

Remark:

• Names of DSL standard functions are reserved. Note that DSL model variables may not have any
reserved name.

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29.16.2 DSL Special Functions

DSL Function Short description

aflipflop “Analog” flip-flop function
balanced Function returning the balanced/unbalanced network representation
delay* Delay function
event Multi-purpose simulation event function
flipflop Logical flip-flop function
gradlim_const* Gradient limiter function
invlapprox Inverse lapprox function
lapprox Linear approximation based on a single dimensional array
lapproxext Linear approximation based on a single dimensional array (function extension)
lapprox2 Linear approximation based on a two dimensional array
lastvalue* Function returning the last valid value of a signal
lim_const Nonlinear limiter function with constant limits
lim Nonlinear limiter function
Function used to print a warning message if a constant parameter is outside
limfix
limits
limits Function used to print a warning message if a parameter is outside limits
limstate_const State variable limiting function with constant limits
limstate State variable limiting function
movingavg* Moving average filter implementation
output Function used for generating output window messages
outfix Function used for generating output window messages only at initialisation
picdro_const Logical pick-up/drop-off function with constant pick-up/drop-off arguments
picdro Logical pick-up/drop-off function
Function used in IEEE Std 421.5-2005 Std. PI controller implementations with
picontrol_const
constant limits
Function used in IEEE Std 421.5-2005 Std. PI controller implementations with
picontrol
variable limits
reset Function used to reset state variables and constant internal variables
rms Function returning the RMS/EMT simulation type
sapprox Spline approximation based on a single dimensional array
sapprox2 Spline approximation based on a two dimensional array
select_const Conditional function with constant true/false expressions
select Conditional function
Conditional function applied based on constant boolean expression with
selfix_const
constant true/false expressions
selfix Conditional function applied based on constant boolean expression
time Returns the current simulation time
vardef Function assigning a text description and unit to a specific variable
file Obsolete function
fault Obsolete function
mavg Obsolete function
Table 29.16.2: DSL Special Functions

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*Buffer based DSL function

Note: • The behaviour/availability of certain DSL special functions may be affected by the DSL level,
as summarised in Table 29.5.1.
• Names of DSL special functions are reserved. Note that DSL model variables may not have
any reserved name.

aflipflop [back]

aflipflop (x, boolset, boolreset)

Analog flip-flop function (with internal state and memory of input value).

Arguments:
• x - Input value to be stored
• boolset - Set expression to be evaluated as true or false. True is evaluated if 𝑏𝑜𝑜𝑙𝑠𝑒𝑡 >=
0.5. False is evaluated if 𝑏𝑜𝑜𝑙𝑠𝑒𝑡 < 0.5.
• boolreset - Reset expression to be evaluated as true or false. True is evaluated if 𝑏𝑜𝑜𝑙𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑒𝑡 >=
0.5. False is evaluated if 𝑏𝑜𝑜𝑙𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑒𝑡 < 0.5.
Return value:
• If internal state=0 then return the current value of x
• If internal state=1 then the value of x from the instant when internal state changed from 0
to 1.
The internal state will change during simulation as described below:
• changes from 0 to 1, if 𝑏𝑜𝑜𝑙𝑠𝑒𝑡 is true and 𝑏𝑜𝑜𝑙𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑒𝑡 is false (SET)
• changes from 1 to 0, if 𝑏𝑜𝑜𝑙𝑠𝑒𝑡 is false and 𝑏𝑜𝑜𝑙𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑒𝑡 is true (RESET)
• remains unaltered in all other situations. (HOLD)
balanced

balanced()
This function provides the balanced/unbalanced network representation mode used during a
dynamic simulation.

Arguments: none.

Return value: 𝑦𝑜 calculated as below:

⎧
⎨1 if RMS balanced simulation is executed
𝑦𝑜 =
⎩0 if RMS unbalanced or EMT simulation is executed

delay [back]

delay (x, Tdelay)

Delay function. This is a buffer based DSL function. Stores the value of 𝑥 at the current simulation
time (𝑇 𝑛𝑜𝑤) and returns the value of 𝑥 at time 𝑇 𝑛𝑜𝑤 − 𝑇 𝑑𝑒𝑙𝑎𝑦 where 𝑇 𝑑𝑒𝑙𝑎𝑦 must evaluate to a
time-independent constant and may therefore only consist of constants and parameter variables.
If it is smaller than the integration step size, the latter is used. The expression 𝑥 may contain
other functions.
Arguments:

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• 𝑥 - input to be delayed

• 𝑇 𝑑𝑒𝑙𝑎𝑦 - Amount (in seconds) by which the output of the function is delayed w.r.t. the input

Return value: Returns (at simulation time instant 𝑇 𝑛𝑜𝑤) the value of 𝑥 at time 𝑇 𝑛𝑜𝑤 − 𝑇 𝑑𝑒𝑙𝑎𝑦.

Example:
y = delay(yi, 1.0)

Delays input signal yi by one second.

Note: Using a time delay which is lower than the simulation time step range adopted during a simulation
will lead to a warning message printed to the output window.

event [back]

event(enable, trigger, ConfigurationString)

This function can create or call any kind of simulation relevant event. The event function is
enabled if the value of 𝑒𝑛𝑎𝑏𝑙𝑒 is greater than or equal 0.5. If the function is enabled, an event is
triggered each time the value of 𝑡𝑟𝑖𝑔𝑔𝑒𝑟 crosses zero on a rising edge (changes sign from - to +).

Arguments:
• 𝑒𝑛𝑎𝑏𝑙𝑒 - Enabling condition, if evaluates to true then function is enabled, if evaluates to false
then function is disabled; if function is enabled, the event can be executed, depending on
the trigger signal. The value of 𝑒𝑛𝑎𝑏𝑙𝑒 should be set constant throughout the simulation.
• 𝑡𝑟𝑖𝑔𝑔𝑒𝑟 - The 𝑡𝑟𝑖𝑔𝑔𝑒𝑟 signal, which will enable the execution of the event at the instants
when the sign of the 𝑡𝑟𝑖𝑔𝑔𝑒𝑟 argument changes from - to +.
• 𝐶𝑜𝑛𝑓 𝑖𝑔𝑢𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛𝑆𝑡𝑟𝑖𝑛𝑔 - A text string that configures the event.
Return value: None.

The following configuration options are available:

Option 1: New event based on predefined/preconfigured event with optional specification of

variable and value to change and optional specification of dtime delay

event(enable, trigger, ’name=ThisParameterEvent dtime=delay value=val variable=var’)

or
event(enable, trigger, ’name=ThisEvent dtime=delay var_name=val’)

Option 2: New parameter event with specification of target slot, variable and value to change,
and optional dtime delay

event(enable, trigger, ’target=ThisSlot name=ThisParameterEvent dtime=delay value=val

variable=var’)

Option 3: New user-defined event type with specification of target slot, variable and value to
change, and optional dtime delay

event(enable, trigger, ’create=EvtParam target=ThisSlot name=ThisEvent

dtime=delay value=val variable=var’)

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or
event(enable, trigger, ’create=ThisEvtType target=ThisSlot name=ThisEvent
dtime=delay var_name=val’)

The 𝐶𝑜𝑛𝑓 𝑖𝑔𝑢𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛𝑆𝑡𝑟𝑖𝑛𝑔 determines the details of the event call and which of the three options
(described above) will apply:

• string ThisEvtType (mandatory, only option 3)

Type of event to be created. To specify the type, use e.g. “EvtParam” for a parameter event
or “EvtSwitch” for a switch event, etc. (see section 28.5 for a list of available event types).
• string ThisSlot (mandatory, only options 2 and 3)
If “target=this” is defined, the event is applied to a signal of the present DSL model. If any
other name is given, the DSL interpreter checks the composite model where the present
DSL model (DSL Model) is used and searches for a slot with the given name. The event
is then applied to the element assigned to that slot. The DSL Model which calls the event
has to be stored inside the composite model.

• string ThisEvent (mandatory)

Name of the event created (option 3) or the external event to be started (option 1/2). The
external event must be stored locally in the DSL model. If “name=this” is set, a parameter
event will be created and executed automatically with the DSL element itself as the target.
• string ThisParameterEvent (mandatory)
Name of the parameter event created (option 3) or the external parameter event to be
started (option 1/2). The external event must be stored locally in the DSL model. If
“name=this” is set, a parameter event will be created and executed automatically with the
DSL element itself as the target.
• double delay (optional)
Delay time of the event after triggering (in seconds).
• double val (optional)
Value of the set parameter (only when “name=this” is set or when a parameter event is
created).
• string var (optional)
Variable name of the DSL model generating the event (if Option 1) or of the target element
(Option 2 and 3) (can be a parameter, state variable, internal variable or not connected
input signal) whose value will be set to “val” (only when “name=this” is set or when a
parameter event is created).
• string var_name (optional)
Name of the event’s variable that is to be changed (e.g. refer to Example 4 further below).
The parameter will be assigned the value “val” .
Remarks:
• For DSL level 6 or higher, if a DSL state variable or a constant internal variable needs to
be changed, it is recommended to use reset function instead.
• If the event()-definition according to options 2/3 is used, the create and target parameters
must be the first parameters of the 𝐶𝑜𝑛𝑓 𝑖𝑔𝑢𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛𝑆𝑡𝑟𝑖𝑛𝑔.
• The event command has changed from DSL Level 3 to DSL Level 4. With DSL Level 3
and smaller, a maximum number (MaxTrig) of trigger events was entered, event(MaxTrig,
. . . ) (with MaxTrig being set to 0, unlimited trigger events may be produced), instead of a
boolean expression for the condition, event(Condition, . . . ).
• The 𝐶𝑜𝑛𝑓 𝑖𝑔𝑢𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛𝑆𝑡𝑟𝑖𝑛𝑔 contains assignments (e.g. ’target=ThisSlot’ or ’value=val’).
The first term in an assignment (e.g. ’target=ThisSlot’ or ’value=val’) represents a fixed
identifier which does not change (remains as specified above). The only exception is the

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use of the ’var_name=val’ assignment, where the ’var_name’ identifier will be user-defined
(refer to example 4 below). The string of the first assignment term may not contain spaces.
• The second term in a 𝐶𝑜𝑛𝑓 𝑖𝑔𝑢𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛𝑆𝑡𝑟𝑖𝑛𝑔 assignment (e.g. ’target=ThisSlot’ or ’value=
val’) represents user-defined strings being assigned to the specific identifiers. The follow-
ing reserved keyword exists and can be used as described above: ’this’. The string of the
second term in the assignment may not contain spaces. For example, if the name of a
slot contains spaces, the following assignment is incorrect: ’target=Transformer Slot’. The
correct approach is to remove the spaces existing in the name of the Composite Model
Frame slot such that the string will not contain spaces e.g. ’target=Transformer_Slot’.
• The order of the assignments within the 𝐶𝑜𝑛𝑓 𝑖𝑔𝑢𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑜𝑛𝑆𝑡𝑟𝑖𝑛𝑔 is important for the correct
operation of the function and must be as specified above (refer to Options 1 - 3).
Example 1: The following example generates a new event based on predefined/preconfig-
ured event named “OpenBreaker”, which must be stored within the DSL Model containing the
code snippet. The “OpenBreaker” event must be already configured: target object and action, i.e.
close or open. A new event is triggered when 𝑦𝑜 changes sign from - to +. The delay time is 0.2s.

event(1,yo, 'name=OpenBreaker dtime=0.2')

Example 2: The example below shows a clock made with DSL using the second event option(
, ,“name=this ...”) which automatically creates and configures a parameter event. The variable
named xclock will be reset to value val=0 within dtime=0, if the integrator output xclock is larger
than 1. The input signal is a clock signal with the time period Tclock. The identifier “this” is used
to apply the event on the same DSL model which issued this event.

inc(xclock)=0
inc(clockout)=0
xclock.=1/Tclock
reset_clock=select(xclock>1,1,-1)
event(enable,reset_clock, 'name=this value=0 variable=xclock')
clockout=xclock

Example 3: This example generates an event for the purpose of a simple under-voltage load-
shedding relay. The element in the slot “Load” will be disconnected with a switch event “EvtSwitch”,
when the signal “u-umin” becomes positive. The event in the event list will be called “TripLoad”.
The default action of the EvtSwitch is “open”, therefore no additional arguments are needed. For
closing action the additional configuration “i_switch=1” has to be added. The DSL Model has to
be stored inside the composite model, which has the slot named “Load”.

event(1,umin-u, 'create=EvtSwitch name=TripLoad target=Load')

Example 4: This example shows how an event is generated (which is not a parameter event) and
one of its parameters is being changed. This is possible by adding to the 𝐶𝑜𝑛𝑓 𝑖𝑔𝑢𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛𝑆𝑡𝑟𝑖𝑛𝑔
the event’s parameter name followed by “=” and the assigned value afterwards. This example
generates an event that will decrease the tap position, because the parameter i_tap is set to 1.
Note that the use of the assignment ’value=1 variable=i_tap’ is not allowed in this case, because
’value=’ and ’variable=’ are operating only for parameter events (EvtParam):

event(enable, trigger, ’create=EvtTap target=TransformerSlot

name=TapEvent_Decrease i_tap=1’)

flipflop [back]

flipflop (boolset, boolreset)

Logical flip-flop function. Returns the internal logical state: 0 or 1.

Arguments:
• boolset - Set expression to be evaluated as true or false.

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• boolreset - Reset expression to be evaluated as true or false.

Return value: the internal state, with initial value assigned as boolset. The internal state will
change during simulation as described below:

• changes from 0 to 1, if 𝑏𝑜𝑜𝑙𝑠𝑒𝑡 is true and 𝑏𝑜𝑜𝑙𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑒𝑡 is false (SET)

• changes from 1 to 0, if 𝑏𝑜𝑜𝑙𝑠𝑒𝑡 is false and 𝑏𝑜𝑜𝑙𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑒𝑡 is true (RESET)
• remains unaltered in all other situations. (HOLD)

Note that the initial condition 𝑏𝑜𝑜𝑙𝑠𝑒𝑡 = 𝑏𝑜𝑜𝑙𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑒𝑡 = 1 will cause an error message at initialisation.

gradlim_const [back]

gradlim_const(input,min,max)
The function implements a gradient limiter of the input argument. This is a buffer based DSL
function.

Arguments:

• input - input signal to be limited

• min - lower bound of gradient limit

• max - upper bound of gradient limit

Return value: yo, the gradient limited value of the 𝑖𝑛𝑝𝑢𝑡.

Example, where 𝑦𝑖 is the function’s input signal and 𝑦𝑜 is the gradient limiter output:

yi = sin(2*pi()*50*time())
yo = gradlim_const(yi,-314.15,150)

Figure 29.16.1: Gradient limiter example

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invlapprox [back]

invlapprox (y, array_iiii)

invlapprox (y, oarray_iiii)
Inverse lapprox with array.

Arguments:
• y - Input argument for y-axis value of characteristic
• array_iiii or oarray_iiii - Function characteristic (array) containing two columns (one for x-
axis and another one for y-axis). The array_iiii is used if the lookup array is to be defined
internally within the DSL Model. The oarray_iiii is used if the lookup array is to be defined
externally of the DSL Model, using IntMat objects.
Return value: 𝑥, calculated as the inverse of the linear approximation y=f(x), where f is defined
by the array_iiii/oarray_iiii. It should be noted that the lookup array must be sorted in ascending
order and the y-values should be monotonic in order to avoid possibility of multiple solutions.

Note: DSL lookup Arrays/Matrices may be defined either directly within the DSL Model or externally,
using IntMat objects. The procedure of declaring that a certain variable is a DSL array/matrix is
done by naming the variable using a specific prefix, as described below:
• array_ - (e.g. “array_K”), internal array, this option will create an array characteristic for a
one dimensional function y=f(x), where 𝑥 and 𝑦 characteristic value pairs are defined in two
columns. The array characteristic will be possible to be defined within the DSL Model (n.b.
not within the DSL Model Type) should at least one such variable name exist. Internal arrays
may be defined in the tab “Advanced 1” of the “Basic Data” page of the DSL Model edit
dialog. The length of the array is defined via the entry in the left cell of the first row. After
adding the dimension an update is needed, this can be done by switching back to the “Basic
Data” page and then again to the “Advanced 1” page.
• matrix_ - (e.g. “matrix_WindPowerCoefficient”), internal matrix, this option will create a two-
dimensional characteristic for a two-dimensional function y=f(xr,xc), where 𝑥𝑟 and 𝑥𝑐 are the
row and column arguments and 𝑦 the function output value. The matrix characteristic is
defined directly within the DSL Model (n.b. not within the DSL Model Type) should at least
one such variable name exist. Internal matrices are defined in the tab “Advanced 2” of the
“Basic Data” page of the DSL Model edit dialog. The dimension of the matrix is defined via
the entry in the first two left cells of the first row. After adding the dimension an update is
needed, this can be done by switching back to the “Basic Data” page and then again to the
“Advanced 2” page.
• oarray_ - (e.g. “oarray_K”), external array, this option will use an external array characteristic
for a one dimensional function y=f(x), where 𝑥 and 𝑦 characteristic value pairs are defined
in two columns. The array characteristic must be defined within an external object of type
IntMat. The IntMat object has to be stored inside the DSL Model (i.e. as child object).
The object name must match the string following the “_”. If this is done, then PowerFactory
automatically assigns the array object to the variable 𝑜𝑎𝑟𝑟𝑎𝑦_.... For example, if “oarray_K”
is declared in the DSL Model Type parameter list, then the IntMat object must be named “K”
and stored inside the DSL Model which defines variable “oarray_K”. A combination of internal
and external arrays (i.e. mixing array_ and oarray_ variables) within a single DSL Model Type
/ DSL Model is not supported. The “IntMat” object must have proper dimensions, this means
two columns and at least two rows for linear approximation based functions and at least three
rows in case of spline approximation functions.
• omatrix_ - (e.g. “omatrix_WindPowerCoefficient”), external matrix, this option will use an
external matrix characteristic for a two-dimensional function y=f(xr,xc), where 𝑥𝑟 and 𝑥𝑐 are
the row and column arguments while 𝑦 is the function output value. The matrix characteristic
must be defined within an external object of type IntMat. The IntMat object has to be stored
inside the DSL Model (i.e. as child object). The name has to match the string, following
the “_”. For example, in the case of “omatrix_WindPowerCoefficient” DSL variable, the
IntMat object would have to be named “WindPowerCoefficient” and stored inside the DSL

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Model. If this is done, then PowerFactory automatically assigns the matrix object to the
variable 𝑜𝑚𝑎𝑡𝑟𝑖𝑥_.... A combination of internal and external arrays (i.e. mixing matrix_ and
omatrix_ variables) within a single DSL Model Type / DSL Model is not supported. The
“IntMat” object must have proper dimensions i.e. at least three columns and at least three
rows for linear approximation based functions and at least four rows and four columns in case
of spline approximation functions. The top row must contain the 𝑥𝑟 values, the left column
must contain the 𝑥𝑐 values. Both rows and columns must be defined in ascending order for
proper operation.

lapprox [back]

lapprox (x, array_iiii)

lapprox (x, oarray_iiii)
Linear approximation function.

Arguments:
• x - Input argument for x-axis value of characteristic
• array_iiii or oarray_iiii - Function characteristic (array) containing two columns (one for x-
axis and another one for y-axis). The array_iiii is used if the array is to be defined internally
within the DSL model. The oarray_iiii is used if the array is to be defined externally of
the DSL model, using IntMat objects. For more information on DSL lookup arrays and
matrices, refer to the note within the function invlapprox description.
Return value: output 𝑦, calculated as the linear approximation y=f(x), where f is defined by the
array_iiii. It should be noted that the array must be sorted in ascending order.

Example using internal array:

y = lapprox(1.8, array_valve)

Example using external array:

y = lapprox(1.8, oarray_valve)

lapproxext [back]

lapproxext (x, array_iiii)

lapproxext (x, oarray_iiii)
Same function as the linear approximation lapprox y=f(x), but instead to return a constant value
in case x is lower than the first given point in the array_iiii/oarray_iiii returns a value calculated
as follows: y = (yval(first point) + xe - xval(first point))*dy/dx (the derivative of the first interval is
used). The same logic is used if x is higher than the last point given in the lookup array. For more
information on DSL lookup arrays and matrices, refer to the note within the function invlapprox
description.

lapprox2 [back]

lapprox2 (xr, xc, matrix_iiii)

lapprox2 (xr, xc, omatrix_iiii)
Returns the linear approximation y=f(xr,xc) of a two-dimensional array, where f is defined by the
matrix_iiii/omatrix_iiii. xr represents the row value and xc the column value of the lookup matrix.
It should be noted that the axis must be sorted in ascending order.

Arguments:
• xr - Input argument for identifying the row position in the matrix_iiii
• xc - Input argument for identifying the column position in the matrix_iiii
• matrix_iiii or omatrix_iiii - Function characteristic (matrix) containing multiple rows and
columns. The matrix_iiii is used if the matrix is to be defined internally within the DSL

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Model. The omatrix_iiii is used if the lookup array is to be defined externally of the DSL
Model, using IntMat objects. For more information on DSL lookup arrays and matrices,
refer to the note within the function invlapprox description.

Return value: 𝑦 the linear approximation y=f(xr,xc) of a two-dimensional lookup array.

Example:
y = lapprox2(2.5, 3.7, matrix_cp)

lastvalue [back]

lastvalue(input)
This function returns the value of the argument input at the last valid iteration (different time
stamp). This is a buffer based DSL function.

Arguments:
• input - input argument

Return value: the value of the argument input at the last valid iteration

lim_const [back]

lim_const (x, min, max)

Nonlinear limiter function that limits input x between min and max. Expressions min and max
must evaluate to time-independent constants and may therefore only consist of constants and
parameter variables. Its usage is encouraged (as opposed to lim) for simulation performance
reasons whenever min and max are constants.

Arguments:
• x - quantity to be limited within the upper and lower bounds.
• min - lower bound limit
• max - upper bound limit
Return value: 𝑦𝑜 as defined below:
⎧
⎨min, if x < min.
⎪
⎪
𝑦𝑜 =
⎪max, if x > max.
⎪
if min ≤ x ≤ max.
⎩
x,

Example:
lim_const(yi,YMIN,YMAX)
! limit variable yi between YMIN and YMAX
! with YMIN and YMAX being DSL parameters

lim [back]

lim (x, min, max)

Nonlinear limiter function with definition as for lim_const, but with variable min and max limits.

Example:
lim(yi,yi_min,yi_max)
! limit variable yi between yi_min and yi_max
! yi_min and yi_max are DSL variables (e.g. limiting input signals of
a macro)

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limstate_const [back]

limstate_const (x, min, max)

Nonlinear limiter function for creating limited integrators. Argument x must be a state variable.
Expressions min and max must evaluate to time-independent constants and may therefore only
consist of constants and parameter variables. Its usage is encouraged (as opposed to limstate)
for performance reasons whenever min and max are constants.

Arguments:

• x - state variable to be limited within the upper and lower bounds.

• min - lower bound limit (constant)
• max - upper bound limit (constant)
Return value: The value of the state variable x.

Example:
x1. = xe/Ti;
y = limstate_const(x1,X1MIN,X1MAX);
! with X1MIN and X1MAX being DSL parameters

Remark:

The limstate and limstate_const are allowed only once per state variable. Use internal variables
in case the limited state is needed in several equations.

limstate [back]

limstate (x1, min, max)

Nonlinear limiter function for creating limited integrators.

This function is similar to limstate_const but with variable min and max limits.

Example:
x1. = xe/Ti;
y = limstate(x1,xmin,xmax);
! with xmin and xmax being DSL variables

Remark: The limstate and limstate_const are allowed only once per state variable. Use internal
variables in case the limited state is needed in several equations.

limfix [back]

limfix(param)=(min, max)
Function used to print a warning message to the output window if a parameter is outside the
specified limits at initialisation. Brackets [ and ] are used to indicate the inclusion of the end point
in the allowed range; Parentheses ( and ) are used to indicate the exclusion of the end point from
the allowed range. The use of this function is encouraged (as opposed to limits) for performance
reasons whenever param is constant throughout the simulation or if the check should only be
performed during the initialization.

Arguments:
• param - parameter to be verified for upper and lower bounds.
• min - lower bound limit
• max - upper bound limit
Return value: None.

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Example:
limfix(K)=(0,1] !to warn if parameter K is <= 0 or > 1 at initialisation

limits [back]

limits(param)=(min, max)
Function used to print a warning message to the output window if a parameter is outside the
specified limits throughout the simulation. Brackets [ and ] are used to indicate the inclusion of
the end points in the range; ( and ) are used to indicate the exclusion of the end points from the
range.

Arguments:

• param - parameter to be verified for upper and lower bounds.

• min - lower bound limit
• max - upper bound limit
Return value: None.

Example:
!To warn if xpos <= 0 or if xpos >= 1 throughout the simulation:
limits(xpos)=(0,1)
!To warn if xpos <= 0 throughout the simulation:
limits(xpos)=(0,)

movingavg [back]

movingavg(input,Tdel,Tlength)
This function allows the modelling of a moving average filter.

Arguments:
• input - input argument

• Tdel - Time delay, in seconds

• Tlength - Buffer length, in seconds

Return value: It returns the moving average value of the 𝑖𝑛𝑝𝑢𝑡 over a given time window of
duration 𝑇 𝑙𝑒𝑛𝑔𝑡ℎ. The window starts 𝑇 𝑑𝑒𝑙 + 𝑇 𝑙𝑒𝑛𝑔𝑡ℎ seconds before the present time and
ends 𝑇 𝑑𝑒𝑙 seconds before the present time. Variables 𝑇 𝑑𝑒𝑙 and 𝑇 𝑙𝑒𝑛𝑔𝑡ℎ must evaluate to time-
independent constants and may therefore only consist of constants and parameter variables.

output

output(boolexpr, message_string)
This function generates an output window message defined in the 𝑚𝑒𝑠𝑠𝑎𝑔𝑒_𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑖𝑛𝑔 depending
on the value of argument 𝑏𝑜𝑜𝑙𝑒𝑥𝑝𝑟. The value of 𝑏𝑜𝑜𝑙𝑒𝑥𝑝𝑟 is evaluated at each time step during
the simulation. The first time that this value is found to be true, the 𝑚𝑒𝑠𝑠𝑎𝑔𝑒_𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑖𝑛𝑔 is processed
and a message is sent to the output window. The output function is disabled afterwards until
the DSL model is reset, to prevent recurring messages. The parameters of the message can be
modified in the string by assigning a new value. The message_string may contain variables and
the special function num(boolexpr) or num(expr):
• Variable names which appear directly after an “=” sign will be substituted by their actual values;
hence, the line of code below may generate the message:

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maximum exceeded: yt=1.2 > ymax=1.0:

output(yymax,’maximum exceeded: yt=yt > ymax=ymax’)
• The num(expr) or num(boolexpr) will be substituted with the calculated value of the expression,
e.g.:
value=num(a+b) may produce value=3.5000
value=num(a+b) may produce value=3.5000

Arguments:
• boolexpr - Expression to be evaluated as true or false.
• message_string - String delimited by single quotes
Return value: None.

outfix

outfix(boolexpr, message_string)
This function is a variant of the output function. It is evaluated only at initialisation. Its usage is
encouraged for performance reasons whenever 𝑏𝑜𝑜𝑙𝑒𝑥𝑝𝑟 evaluates to a constant throughout the
simulation.

Arguments:
• boolexpr - Expression to be evaluated as true or false.
• message_string - String delimited by single quotes
Return value: None.

picdro_const [back]

picdro_const(boolexpr, Tpick, Tdrop)

This function implements a logical pick-up-drop-off function commonly used when designing
protection schemes (e.g. fault detection, signal out-of-range, etc.). Arguments Tpick and Tdrop
must evaluate to time-independent constants and may therefore only consist of constants and
parameter variables. Its usage is encouraged (as opposed to picdro) for simulation performance
reasons whenever the Tpick and Tdrop arguments evaluate to time-independent constants.

Arguments:
• boolexpr - Expression to be evaluated as true or false.
• Tpick - pick-up time delay in seconds (constant)
• Tdrop - drop-off time delay in seconds (constant)
Return value: the internal logical state: 0 or 1. The state is evaluated as below:

• changes from 0 to 1, if boolexpr = 1 (i.e. true), for a duration of at least Tpick seconds
• changes from 1 to 0, if boolexpr = 0 (i.e. false), for a duration of at least Tdrop seconds
• remains unaltered in other situations.

Example:
picdro_const(u1-0.9 < 0, 0.005, 0.01)
! detection of under-voltage operation mode

picdro [back]

picdro (boolexpr, Tpick, Tdrop)

Logical pick-up-drop-off function useful for relays. This function is similar to picdro_const but with

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variable Tpick and Tdrop arguments.

Arguments:
• boolexpr - Expression to be evaluated as true or false.

• Tpick - pick-up time delay in seconds (may be variable)

• Tdrop - drop-off time delay in seconds (may be variable)
Return value: the internal logical state: 0 or 1. The state is evaluated as for picdro_const.

picontrol_const [back]

picontrol_const(state,min,max,prop_input)
The function is commonly used when developing a standard parallel structure of a non-windup PI
controller as shown in Figure 29.16.2 and described in IEEE 421.5 (2005) standard. In the figure,
Kp and Ki are constant parameters and input is an input signal. Its usage is encouraged (as
opposed to picontrol) for simulation performance reasons whenever the min and max arguments
evaluate to time-independent constants.

Figure 29.16.2: PI Controller Structure acc. to IEEE 421.5

Arguments:

• state - state variable of the integral part

• min - lower bound of controller output 𝑦𝑜

• max - upper bound of controller output 𝑦𝑜

• prop_input - PI Controller proportional part (𝑖𝑛𝑝𝑢𝑡 * 𝐾𝑝)

Return value: yo, calculated as below:

⎧
⎨min,
⎪
⎪ if (prop_input + state) < min.
yo = max, if (prop_input + state) > max.
⎪
⎪
⎩
prop_input + state, otherwise.

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The argument state must be defined as a state variable, min and max arguments must eval-
uate to time-independent constants and may therefore only consist of constants and parameter
variables.

Additionally, this function limits the state variable based on the following considerations:

- if (prop_input + state) > max then state is frozen

- if (prop_input + state) < min then state is frozen

To implement the PI controller shown in figure 29.16.2, the following three DSL instructions need
be applied:

prop_input=Kp*input
state.=Ki*input
yo = picontrol_const(state,min,max,prop_input)

picontrol [back]

picontrol(state,min,max,prop_input)
The function is commonly used when developing a standard parallel structure of a non-windup PI
controller as shown in Figure 29.16.2 and described in IEEE 421.5 (2005) standard. This function
is similar to picontrol_const but with variable min and max arguments.

Remark: picontrol requires DSL Level 6 or higher.

reset [back]

reset(var,rst,val)
This function resets the variable 𝑣𝑎𝑟 to the value 𝑣𝑎𝑙 at specific instants during the simulation
depending on argument 𝑟𝑠𝑡. The event is triggered every time when the input signal 𝑟𝑠𝑡 crosses
the value 0.5 upon a rising edge. The reset procedure (unlike the event() function) is regarded
as being an internal DSL event, and so it only emits Output Window messages if the flag Display
internal DSL events is checked in the Run Simulation command dialog. The arguments 𝑣𝑎𝑟, 𝑟𝑠𝑡
and 𝑣𝑎𝑙 must refer to DSL model variable names declared within the DSL macro which calls the
𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑒𝑡 function (domain is the DSL macro namespace).

Arguments:

• var - DSL model variable that is reset. The variable can be a state variable or a constant
internal variable (i.e. by constant it is understood that the internal variable has an initial
condition statement only).

• rst - Variable based on which the reset event is triggered.

• val - Upon triggering the reset event, the resetted variable 𝑣𝑎𝑟 will be assigned the value
of argument 𝑣𝑎𝑙. Argument 𝑣𝑎𝑙 can be a value, a DSL variable or a DSL function returning
a value.

Return value: None.

Examples:
!Reset the state variable 𝑥_𝑖𝑑 to 0 when input voltage drops below 0.9 p.u.
x_id.=(id_ref-x_id)/Tid
reset(x_id, u<0.9, 0)

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or

!Set the constant internal variable 𝑡_𝑓 𝑎𝑢𝑙𝑡 to be equal with the simulation
!time when the internal variable 𝑓 𝑎𝑢𝑙𝑡_𝑑𝑒𝑡𝑒𝑐𝑡 is activated
inc(t_fault) = 0
fault_detect = picdro(u<UMIN,0.005,0.005)
reset(t_fault, fault_detect>0, time())

Remarks:

• 𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑒𝑡 function requires DSL Level 6 or higher (refer to Table 29.5.1 for more information). For
lower levels use event function instead.
• It is allowed to use multiple 𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑒𝑡 functions targeting the same or different variables to be reset.
• If the 𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑒𝑡 function is defined within the Equations page of a DSL model (i.e. not of a macro),
then the variable names are the DSL model variables (domain is the DSL model namespace).
rms [back]

rms()
Function retrieving the type of simulation being executed.

Arguments: none.

Return value: 𝑦𝑜 representing the dynamic simulation type:

⎧
⎨1 for RMS simulation (balanced/unbalanced)
𝑦𝑜 =
⎩0 for EMT simulation

sapprox [back]

sapprox (x, array_iiii)

sapprox (x, oarray_iiii)
Returns the spline approximation y=f(x), where f is defined by the array_iiii/oarray_iiii. It should
be noted that the array must be sorted in ascending order.

Arguments:

• x - Input argument for x-axis value of characteristic

• array_iiii or oarray_iiii - Function characteristic (array) containing two columns (one for x-
axis and another one for y-axis). For more information on DSL lookup arrays and matrices,
refer to the note within the function invlapprox description.

Return value: 𝑦, the spline approximation of y=f(x)

Example:
y = sapprox(1.8, array_valve) or y = sapprox(1.8, oarray_valve)

Note: The spline approximation should be used with care due to the risk of overshooting values.

sapprox2 [back]

sapprox2 (xr, xc, matrix_iiii)

sapprox2 (xr, xc, omatrix_iiii)
Returns the spline approximation y=f(xr,xc) of a two-dimensional array, where f is defined by the
matrix_iiii/omatrix_iiii. xr represents the row value and xc the column of the matrix.

Arguments:

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• xr - Input argument for identifying the row position in the matrix_iiii

• xc - Input argument for identifying the column position in the matrix_iiii

• matrix_iiii or omatrix_iiii - Function characteristic (matrix) containing multiple rows and

columns. The matrix_iiii is used if the matrix is to be defined internally within the DSL
Model. The omatrix_iiii is used if the array is to be defined externally of the DSL model,
using IntMat objects. For more information on DSL arrays and matrices, refer to the note
within the function invlapprox description.

Return value: 𝑦, the spline approximation of y=f(xr,xc).

Example:
y = sapprox2(2.5, 3.7, matrix_cp)

Note: The spline approximation should be used with care due to the risk of overshooting values!

select_const [back]

select_const(boolexpr, x, y)
Switch function used to output either argument x or y depending on the evaluation of argument
boolexpr. Arguments x and y must evaluate to time-independent constants and may therefore
only consist of constants and parameter variables. Its usage is encouraged (as opposed to select)
for performance reasons whenever x and y are constants.

Arguments:
• boolexpr - Expression to be evaluated as true or false.
• x - argument for true branch evaluation (constants)

• y - argument for false branch evaluation (constants)

Return value: x if boolexpr is true, otherwise y.

Example:
x1.=select_const(input>threshold, -1, 1)
! return -1 if input strictly greater than threshold
! return 1 if input smaller than or equal with threshold
! (evaluation of input and threshold as double numbers)

select [back]

select (boolexpr, x, y)
Switch function used to output either argument x or y depending on the evaluation of argument
boolexpr. The arguments x and y are allowed to be variable.

Arguments:
• boolexpr - Expression to be evaluated as true or false.

• x - argument for true branch evaluation (may be variable)

• y - argument for false branch evaluation (may be variable)
Return value: x if boolexpr is true, otherwise y.

Example:
x1.=select(xe1>xe2, xe1, xe2) !to select the biggest derivative

selfix_const [back]

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selfix_const(boolexpr,x,y)
Fixed switch function, returning x throughout the simulation if boolexpr is true at initialisation,
otherwise returns y. Arguments x and y must evaluate to time-independent constants and may
therefore only consist of constants and parameter variables. Its usage is encouraged (as opposed
to selfix) for simulation performance reasons whenever the x and y arguments evaluate to time-
independent constants.

Arguments:
• boolexpr - Expression to be evaluated as true or false.
• x - argument for true branch evaluation (constants)

• y - argument for false branch evaluation (constants)

Return value: x throughout the simulation if boolexpr is true at initialisation, otherwise y.

Example:
xramp.=selfix_const(T1>0, 1/T1, 0.0) !to avoid division by zero

selfix [back]

selfix (boolexpr, x, y)
Fixed switch function, returning x throughout the simulation if boolexpr is true at initialisation, else
y. The arguments x and y are allowed to be variable.

Arguments:
• boolexpr - Expression to be evaluated as true or false.
• x - argument for true branch evaluation (may be variable)
• y - argument for false branch evaluation (may be variable)

Return value: x throughout the simulation if boolexpr is true at initialisation, otherwise y.

Example:
x1.=selfix(T1>0, xe/T1, 0.0) !to avoid division by zero

time

time ()
Function that retrieves the current simulation time.

Arguments: none.

Return value: 𝑦𝑜, the current simulation time.

Example:
t=time()
y = sin(t) or
y = sin(time())

vardef [back]

vardef(var)
Function which assigns to argument variable var a text description and a unit. This function
may be applied only once to a certain variable, multiple use of vardef() statements on the same
variable will lead to error.

Arguments:

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• var - variable whose description and unit are assigned. The variable 𝑣𝑎𝑟 must be a variable
which has been already declared within the DSL Model Type.

Return value: None.

Example:

vardef(u1)='p.u.';'Positive sequence voltage'

Note: The function can be used on parameters, input and output signals, internal variables and state
variables. The unit and description strings are used in PowerFactory for various presentation
purposes (within plots, for data export) whenever the corresponding variable is recorded.

file

file (ascii-parm, expr)

OBSOLETE! Use an ElmFile object in the composite model instead.

fault

OBSOLETE! Use event function instead.

mavg

OBSOLETE! Use delay function instead.

29.16.3 DSL Global Library Macros

Refer to the DSL Macros Documentation for a description of the global library macros. The DSL Macros
Documentation is also accessible selecting Help → Technical References→ DSL Macros from the main
menu.

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System Parameter Identification

30.1 Introduction

The process of parameter identification for power system elements for which certain measurements
have been made is performed with the System Parameter Identification function using the icon .

The ComIdent command object is a high performance non-linear optimisation tool, which is capable
of a multi parameter identification for one or more models, given a set of measured input and output
signals. This identification is principally performed in the following way:

• A Measurement File object (ElmFile) is created which maps the raw measured data onto one or
more measurement signals. These signals may contain measurements from the network, from
elements or response signals. The measured data can be either a text file or a result object
(ElmRes) from another simulation.
• The measurement signals can be used as inputs by models of the power system elements for
which one or more parameters have to be identified, or they may be used to control voltage or
current sources. It is also possible to excite the system with simulation events (such as parameter,
switch or short circuit events).
• The output signals of the power system elements are fed into a comparator together with the
corresponding measured signals. The comparator (ElmDiff ) is thus given the measured response
on the excitation and the simulated response of the element models.
• The comparator calculates an objective function, which is the weighted sum of the differences
between the measured and the simulated response, raised to a whole power (by default to the
power of 2).
• The ComIdent command will collect all objective functions from all comparator objects in the
currently active study case and will minimise the resulting overall objective function. To do this,
the ComIdent command is given a list of parameters which are to be identified. The objective
functions are minimised by altering these parameters.

This whole process is visualised in Figure 30.1.1.

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Figure 30.1.1: The identification principle

Of course, Figure 30.1.1 only visualises the principle of the identification. All details of the PowerFactory
identification functions are described in the following sections. Some hints on selecting the proper
algorithm are given in section 30.4. Advice in case of stagnation can be found in section 30.5.

30.2 Performing a Parameter Identification

For performing a parameter identification there are three main components needed:
• The parameter identification command
• The controls, for defining the parameters which should be optimised

• The comparison object, for calculating the objective function which should be minimised
These major components are described in the following sections. First of all the interface of the
parameter identification function is described.

The identification process is executed by the ComIdent command. This command can be opened by
the icon on the main menu. This icon can be found on the RMS/EMT Simulation and Quasi-Dynamic
Simulation toolbar which is accessible by selecting the Change Toolbox icon ( ).

30.2.1 Basic Options

The Basic Options page allows the selection of the Identification type; there are currently three types
supported:

• Load Flow
• Simulation (RMS/EMT)
• Quasi-Dynamic Simulation

The Load Flow option allows the optimisation of load flow relevant parameters based on load flow
calculations. If this option is selected then the Optimised calculation will point to the load flow command
from the study case. The Additional command will be blank.

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The Simulation option allows the optimisation of any simulation relevant parameter. The simulation
method used can be either an RMS- or an EMT simulation. In this case the Optimised calculation
will point to the Calculation of initial conditions (ComInc) dialog from the active study case. The
Additional command will point to the Run Simulation (ComSim) command from the active study case.
The commands can be accessed by pressing the arrow button ( ).

The Quasi-Dynamic Simulation option allows the optimisation of relevant parameters based on quasi-
dynamic simulation. If this option is selected, then the Optimised calculation will point to the quasi-
dynamic simulation command from the study case. The Additional command will be blank.

Also on the Basic Options page is the selection of the Optimisation method offered. The following
algorithms can be selected, described in detail in section 30.3:

• Particle Swarm Optimisation

• Nelder Mead
• DIRECT (dividing rectangles)
• BFGS

• Legacy (Quasi-Newton)
Below this selection it can be configured whether the modifications done by the parameter identification
command should be recorded in the existing network (with its active variations and operation scenarios)
or in a new variation. It is important to note that the parameter identification command can modify any
numerical value in the active project. This includes also type data which is out of the range of the
variation recording (as long as the type is not stored in the grid). Using the option Create new Variation
can fail to record the modification if an operation scenario was active and the changed parameter
belongs to the operational data!

Finally on the Basic Options page, the Maximum number of iterations and the Maximum number of
objective function evaluations (not for the Legacy method) can be entered. These are the two major
stopping criteria. A refined configuration for the stopping criteria can be done on the Stopping criteria
page, as described in section 30.2.8. The parameters are also described in this section.

30.2.2 Controls / Compared Signals

The page Controls / Compared Signals offers access to the controls and the comparison object(s). The
controls define which parameter from which object will be identified. The comparison object calculates
the objective function signal which will then be minimised by the ComIdent.

Control:

A new Control can be created by pressing the button Add new control. This will then show a new
control of the type IntIdentctrl.
At first an Element has to be selected. This can be any object which has an impact on the calculation
results (depending on the selected calculation type either load flow, dynamic RMS/EMT simulation or
quasi-dynamic simulation).

After this the name of the parameter has to be entered. For some object classes (such as ElmDsl) a
drop down list with the available parameters is displayed; for other elements the parameter name has to
be entered manually. The parameter name can be found by opening the object and then hovering the
mouse pointer over the input field. The parameter name will be shown in a balloon text. After entering
the correct parameter name the actual value of this parameter is displayed below the input field.

The optimisation can be improved by entering Constraints. After ticking the checkboxes the Lower
bound can be entered, which has to be smaller than the initial value of the selected parameter. The
Upper bound has to be larger than the initial value of the selected parameter.

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Some of the algorithms can make use of a Mesh size definition (see section 30.3 for algorithm details).
Select for this the option User defined mesh size and enter a proper value for the Mesh size.

Each control has also the out of service option. The control will be ignored if this checkbox is selected.

All defined Controls can be displayed by pressing the button Show and edit controls in the ComIdent.
This will display a compact list with all existing Controls. The data can be modified like in the Data
Manager by selecting whole columns. New Control objects can be defined by pressing the “New Object”
button .

Comparison Object:

The objective function value (i.e. the cumulated difference between measured data and simulated data)
is calculated inside a Comparison object of the class ElmDiff. At least one comparison object is required
for the execution of the System Parameter Identification command. A new ElmDiff can be created by
pressing the button Create new comparison object. This will open a selection window for the location.
An active grid (or any sub folder) has to be selected as location. The System Parameter Identification
command will not consider the ElmDiff if it is stored outside the active grid!

The comparison object can be set out of service on the Basic Options page. Also an exponent can be
entered to weight the objective function. The Simulation page allows to enter pairs of signals which will
be used for the objective function calculation. A new pair can be added by right-clicking into free space
and then selecting Append Row(s). In each row two elements have to be selected. For each element
the signal has to be defined which is used for comparison. The signal cell will show a drop down list
after selecting the element. For some elements it is possible to manually overwrite the signal name (this
may be necessary if the proper signal was not displayed in the drop down field). After defining a signal
pair, which consists usually of a measured and a simulated signal, a weight has to be entered into the
last column. This allows an individual weighting of the different signals. Entering a zero will exclude this
signal pair from the objective function calculation.

In the lower section of the Simulation page a Weighting signal can be connected. This will allow a time
dependent weighting of the objective function signal. Via this it is possible to exclude sections of the
simulation or to emphasise other parts. Select for this an Element which has the weighting signal as
output. This is typically either a custom DSL Model or a measurement file object (ElmFile). Then enter
the name of the Signal. The measurement file object can either connect measured data (ComTrade or
measurement file format) or it can read from another result object (ElmRes).

The option Backward initialisation of signals can help to solve initialisation issues if the simulation model
requires the compared signal for initialisation. In this case the simulated signal has to be connected as
Element 2 / Signal 2. With the option Backward initialisation of signals enabled the initial value from
Signal 1 will be available on Signal 2 for initialisation.

The Load Flow page of the comparison object is very similar to the Simulation page. The major
difference is that the load flow identification has no time relation. Therefore there is also - beside the
definition via signals in the lower section - the possibility to directly enter a Comparison with reference
value. For this only the simulated signal has to be selected via Element and then Signal. The measured
value can be directly entered as Reference value.
It is important to note that only some elements which are considered for load flow calculation should
be selected on this page. Selecting a common model will result in an error. The measurement file
object (ElmFile) can also be used; remember in this case to enter a proper Load Flow Time in the
measurement file element on the load flow page.

The Load Flow page of the comparison object is also used for the quasi-dynamic simulation. Hence,
it is possible to compare signals of elements either to a constant reference value or to time dependent
signals, e.g. a measurement file object (ElmFile) as described above.

The objective function 𝑒 for load flow is calculated as the sum of powers of the absolute errors:

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𝑛
∑︁
𝑒= |(𝑚𝑖 − 𝑐𝑖 )𝑤𝑖 |𝑝 . (30.1)
𝑖=1

The objective function 𝑒 for simulation (RMS/EMT and quasi-dynamic) is calculated as the time integral
over the sum of powers of the absolute errors:

∫︁ 𝑛
𝑡𝑚𝑎𝑥 ∑︁
𝑒= |(𝑚𝑖 (𝑡) − 𝑐𝑖 (𝑡))𝑤𝑖 |𝑝 𝑑𝑡. (30.2)
𝑡0 𝑖=1

where

• 𝑚𝑖 is the measured response (e.g. Signal 1)

• 𝑐𝑖 the simulated response (e.g. Signal 2)
• 𝑤𝑖 is the weighting factor (i.e. for the difference signal nr. 1)
• 𝑝 is the power

Note: Optimisation steps with a simulation that is interrupted by an error or that leads to negative
results for the objective function are considered to be infinitely bad. This can be used to penalise
unwanted solutions by interrupting the simulation with an error thrown by a simulation scan as
described in chapter 28.8. Typical applications are for example FRT violations, pole slip or
convergence issues (see also the FAQ: How can I automatically stop a divergent simulation?).
Such results often should be disregarded and the computational effort of the System Parameter
Identification can be reduced.

30.2.3 PSO (Particle Swarm Optimisation)

The options on this page will be displayed if the proper Optimisation Method was selected on the Basic
Options page. For details about the algorithm and the associated options see section 30.3.2.

30.2.4 Nelder Mead

The options on this page will be displayed if the proper Optimisation Method was selected on the Basic
Options page. For details about the algorithm and the associated options see section 30.3.3.

30.2.5 DIRECT (DIviding RECTangle)

The options on this page will be displayed if the proper Optimisation Method was selected on the Basic
Options page. For details about the algorithm and the associated options see section 30.3.4.

30.2.6 Random Number Generation

The options on this page will be displayed if the proper Optimisation Method was selected on the Basic
Options page.

Algorithm: Where needed, random numbers are generated using a pseudorandom number generator.
It accepts a so-called seed. This is an integer used to initialise the internal state of the generator. Same

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seeds lead to the same pseudorandom number sequences the generator produces. Therefore, a seed
should be set if one wants reproducible results.

Parameters:
Seeding type: Two options: automatic and user defined. If automatic, a random seed will be drawn. If
user defined is selected the number given in the following parameter will be used to seed the random
number generator.

Seed: Used as a seed for the random number generator if user defined. Should be set if results must
be reproducible.

30.2.7 Gradient Calculation

The option on this page will be displayed if a gradient based Optimisation Method was selected on the
Basic Options page.

Algorithm: Let 𝑒𝑖 ∈ R𝑑 be the i-th canonical base vector of 𝑅𝑑 , i.e. 𝑒1 = (1, 0, 0, ...), 𝑒2 = (0, 1, 0,...), ...

30.2.7.1 Forward Differences

Partial derivatives are calculated by the formula

𝑓 (𝑥 + 𝛿𝑒𝑖 ) − 𝑓 (𝑥)
𝜕𝑖 𝑓 (𝑥) ≈ (30.3)
𝛿
with a small 𝛿 > 0.
For calculation of the gradient, this requires 𝑑 + 1 function evaluations.

30.2.7.2 Centered Differences

Partial derivatives are calculated by the formula

𝑓 (𝑥 + 𝛿𝑒𝑖 ) − 𝑓 (𝑥 − 𝛿𝑒𝑖 )
𝜕𝑖 𝑓 (𝑥) ≈ . (30.4)
2𝛿
This is more accurate than the forward differences, but also needs more function evaluations: For
calculation of the gradient, this requires 2𝑑 function evaluations.

Parameters:

Method for the numeric calculation of gradient (on page Gradient calculation): Forward or Centered
Differences according to the above description.

30.2.8 Stopping Criteria

Algorithm: The solvers will stop their iterations as soon as one of the stop criteria is satisfied. “As
soon as” thereby means “at the end of an iteration, as soon as they are satisfied”.

Parameters: The following parameters for stopping criteria can be set for all solvers.

Maximum number of iterations: Self explaining. For the Legacy solver, this equals the maximum
number of function evaluations.

Maximum number of objective function evaluations: The most important parameter for how long
the solver will run. It translates much more directly to execution time than the maximum number of

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iterations because the number of evaluations made in one iteration differs a lot, depending on the solver
and/or dimension.

Target objective value: If the solver finds an objective value ≤ this threshold, it will stop and return this
value as the optimum.

Minimal improvement in given number of iterations: Requirements for the minimum progress the
solver has to make may be defined here.

Number of iterations The number of iterations considered for the two following options may be speci-
fied here: Let 𝑁 denote this number of iterations.

Minimal absolute improvement of objective value: Min. abs. improvement of values since 𝑁
iterations.

Minimal relative improvement towards target objective value: Similar to the previous one, but
relative: Since 𝑁 iterations, the distance to the target value specified in the parameter Target objective
value must have decreased by this fraction.

30.2.9 Output

The Output page of the ComIdent allows a fine tuning of the information which will be written to the
output window during the execution. It enables the user to configure recording in a result object (class
ElmRes). The output window information can be controlled via the output per iteration options:
• Off: No information will be written to the output window
• Short: With this option, only the current iteration number together with the objective value (summed
output of all ElmDiff ) will be written to the output window.
• Detailed: With this option, the output of the calculation command used (load flow or dynamic
simulation) will also be written into the output window. This can result in a lot of data, especially if
the simulation is running into convergence issues.
For the second and third choice is also the option output choice of parameters available. If this option
is ticked then the currently used set of parameters (see section 30.2.2) is also printed to the output
window.

The option record iterations will create a new result object (class ElmRes) with the name Parameter
Identification which is located in the currently active study case. The result object will contain one row
per iteration of the ComIdent. The columns will contain the following data for the ComIdent:
• Evaluation (b:eval)

• Iteration (b:iter)
• Failed calculation (b:failedCalc)
• Objective function value (b:objectiveValue)
• Best objective function value (b:bestObjective)

• Iteration with best objective value (b:iterBestObjective)

• Evaluation with best objective value (b:evalBestObjective)
The result object will also record the parameters used for each evaluation.

The recorded data can either be used for showing the convergence of the identification process in a plot
(select for this the result object in the first column in the plot configuration) or it can be used for further
scripted analysis. Exporting the data via the ComRes is of course also supported.

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30.3 Algorithms

30.3.1 Problem Description

The goal of parameter identification is to find (global) minima of functions 𝑓 : Ω → R under the following
circumstances:
∏︀𝑑
• The domain Ω of 𝑓 is a bounded or unbounded box R𝑑 ⊇ Ω = 𝑅𝑑 ∩ 𝑖=1 [𝑎𝑖 , 𝑏𝑖 ] with −∞ ≤ 𝑎𝑖 <
𝑏𝑖 ≤ +∞.
• 𝑓 can be evaluated in arbitrary points 𝑥 ∈ Ω.
• No properties of 𝑓 are known, including information about continuity and differentiability, convexity,
number of local minima, etc. In particular, the gradient of 𝑓 is not available analytically.
User input:
• A starting point 𝑥0 ∈ Ω
• Optional: a “suggested mesh size” (one per dimension). It can be seen as the minimum resolution
at which one sees all relevant features of the function, or the inverse of the factor that the
dimension has to be multiplied with in order to have “normal” length scales.
Some solvers may rely on properties like differentiability of 𝑓 ; however, these are not guaranteed.

30.3.2 Particle Swarm Optimisation (PSO)

Particle Swarm Optimisation uses a set of particles evaluating the objective function while moving
around in the search space. The movement of the particles is influenced by

1. their current velocity,

2. their memory of the best location they have found so far,
3. knowledge about good locations found by other particles they are in contact with.

These three criteria are weighted (including some randomness of the weights). There exist various
communication patterns for point 3 leading to the different topologies supported in PowerFactory .
Additionally, special events are supported, such as beaming of particles.

Algorithm: Particle Swarm Optimisation operates with a cloud of points - the particles - that are
scattered over the search space and move in it as a swarm, i.e. they communicate with each other
about where to go in order to find small function values.
Nomenclature: Let 𝑥𝑔𝑙𝑜𝑏 be the location where the so far best function value was seen. Let accordingly
𝑥𝑝𝑒𝑟𝑠
𝑖 be the best value that particle 𝑖 has seen by itself, and 𝑥𝑙𝑜𝑐
𝑖 be the best location that the particles,
with which particle 𝑖 communicates, have seen. Depending on the exact variant of the algorithm, this
can be different groups of particles, ranging from a few to all other particles (in which case these are
equal to the global best location). Let finally 𝑥𝑐𝑢𝑟
𝑖 be the current position of particle 𝑖, and 𝑣𝑖𝑐𝑢𝑟 it’s
velocity, i.e. the displacement since the previous iteration.

The algorithm:

Initialise the swarm, then iterate the following loop until stopped:
1. Particles communicate with each other, i.e. their information about objective function values of
neighbours are updated according to the communication strategy used.
2. The particles move to their next locations, i.e. the 𝑥𝑐𝑢𝑟
𝑖 and 𝑣𝑖𝑐𝑢𝑟 are updated.

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3. Evaluation of the objective function at the new particle locations.

4. One or more special events may be triggered.
Communication strategies:
• Ring: Each particle has two neighbours such that the communication topology becomes cyclic.
• Stochastic Star: Every particle communicates with every other particle. At each iteration, each
particle decides randomly and independently, for which dimensions it wants to ”listen“.
• Communication via reference set: A reference set of locations is maintained. Particles commu-
nicate via the reference set.
Moving strategies:
• Standard: Let 𝑤𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑢𝑚 , 𝑤𝑝𝑒𝑟𝑠 , 𝑤𝑙𝑜𝑐 and 𝑤𝑔𝑙𝑜𝑏 be different weights. Then the update of the next
position of the particles is given by:

𝑥𝑐𝑢𝑟
𝑖 = 𝑥𝑐𝑢𝑟
𝑖 + 𝑤𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑢𝑚 * 𝑢𝑖1 · 𝑣𝑖𝑐𝑢𝑟
+ 𝑤𝑝𝑒𝑟𝑠 * 𝑢𝑖2 · (𝑥𝑝𝑒𝑟𝑠
𝑖 − 𝑥𝑐𝑢𝑟
𝑖 )

+ 𝑤𝑙𝑜𝑐 * 𝑢𝑖3 · (𝑥𝑙𝑜𝑐 𝑐𝑢𝑟

𝑖 − 𝑥𝑖 )

+ 𝑤𝑔𝑙𝑜𝑏 * 𝑢𝑖4 · (𝑥𝑔𝑙𝑜𝑏

𝑖 − 𝑥𝑐𝑢𝑟
𝑖 ),

for all particles 𝑖, where 𝑢1 to 𝑢4 are random numbers drawn uniformly from the unit interval (0,1).
• Cyber Swarm: Similar to the standard moving strategy. However, a reference set of locations is
maintained and this information is used for the update of the locations of the moving particles.
Special events: Beam particles to randomly chosen new locations if some given criteria are satisfied.

Parameters:

PSO Variant Three main types are available:

• Ring:
– Ring communication strategy
– Standard moving strategy
• Stochastic Star:
– Stochastic star communication strategy
– Standard moving strategy
• Cyber Swarm:
– Communication via reference set
– Cyber swarm moving strategy

Number of particles The number of particles may be automatic or user-defined. In case of “Automatic”,
the algorithm calculates a reasonable number of particles for the problem under consideration. User
defined can be any number ≥ 2, but numbers smaller than 10 or larger than 60 should not be chosen
without a special reason.

Movement of particles The following parameters define the weights for the moving strategies.

Weight for momentum The weight for the momentum, i.e. the current velocity, in the moving step. It is
best to be chosen between 0 and 1.

Weight for personal best result The weight for the personal best. If modified it should best be not
larger than 3.

Weight for local best The weight for the local best locations, which are the main guiding solutions in
the Ring and the Stochastic Star variant. If modified it may be chosen best not larger than 5.

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Weight for global best (Only for the Cyber Swarm variant) The weight for the global best solution. This
is the best member of the reference set. Suitable choices like for Weight for local best.

Beaming strategy Settings for the beaming events:

Beam particle after n iterations without improvement. n = Maximum number of successive itera-
tions in which a particle doesn’t improve its personal best, until it is beamed to another location.

Beam all after m iterations without improvement. m = Maximum number of successive iterations in
which the global best value ever seen by the whole swarm - 𝑓 𝑔𝑙𝑜𝑏 - is not improved. After this, the whole
swarm is scattered again around in the search space by beaming all particles to new locations.

Number of evaluations for the exploration of valleys If > 0, the beaming trajectory is scanned for
possible still unexplored side valleys, and this number of function evaluations is used to try to walk
further down into these side valleys. A number of 0 here means that the particles will just be beamed to
their new locations.

Cyber Swarm Configuration Two parameters to modify the maintenance of the reference set for the
cyber swarm algorithm.

Weight for quality in reference set This is the weight for the criterion “quality”, i.e. low function values,
for the maintenance of the reference set. The other criterion is “diversity”, i.e. distance between the
members of the reference set.

Cardinality of reference set The size of the reference set.

30.3.3 Nelder Mead

Algorithm: First, the initial simplex is constructed around the starting point, resulting in 𝑑 + 1 points
called the vertices of the simplex. The objective function is evaluated at the points, i.e. at the vertices
of the simplex. Then the iterations are done as follows:
1. Check if simplex is collapsed and has to be restarted or if a linesearch has to be performed.

2. Sort the values of the simplex vertices.

3. Calculate the gravitational centre of the face opposite to the worst point (which is a (𝑑 − 1)-
dimensional simplex itself). Call it 𝑥𝑜𝑝𝑝 .
4. Reflect the worst point at 𝑥𝑜𝑝𝑝 and evaluate:

𝑥𝑟 := 𝑥𝑜𝑝𝑝 + 𝜚 · (𝑥𝑜𝑝𝑝 − 𝑥𝑤𝑜𝑟𝑠𝑡 ); 𝑓𝑟 := 𝑓 (𝑥𝑟 ). (30.5)

𝜚 is a fixed value.
5. If 𝑓𝑟 is better than the best vertex of the simplex, expand further -

𝑥𝑒 := 𝑥𝑜𝑝𝑝 + 𝜉 · 𝜚 · (𝑥𝑜𝑝𝑝 − 𝑥𝑤𝑜𝑟𝑠𝑡 ); 𝑓𝑒 := 𝑓 (𝑥𝑒 ) (30.6)

with 𝜉 some given value - and replace the previously worst vertex by the better point among
{𝑥𝑟 , 𝑥𝑒 } and go to step 1.
6. If 𝑓𝑟 was still better than the second best vertex replace the previously worst vertex by it and go to
step 1.

7. if 𝑓𝑟 was at least better than the previously worst vertex, calculate an outer reflection point -

𝑥𝑜𝑢𝑡 := 𝑥𝑜𝑝𝑝 + 𝛾 · (𝑥𝑜𝑝𝑝 − 𝑥𝑤𝑜𝑟𝑠𝑡 ); 𝑓𝑜𝑢𝑡 := 𝑓 (𝑥𝑜𝑢𝑡 ) (30.7)

with 𝛾 some given value - and replace the previously worst vertex by the better point among
{𝑥𝑟 , 𝑥𝑜𝑢𝑡 } and go to step 1.

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8. If 𝑓𝑟 was not even better than the previously worst vertex, calculate an inner reflection point -

𝑥𝑖𝑛 := 𝑥𝑜𝑝𝑝 + 𝛾 · (𝑥𝑤𝑜𝑟𝑠𝑡 − 𝑥𝑜𝑝𝑝 ); 𝑓𝑖𝑛 := 𝑓 (𝑥𝑖𝑛 ). (30.8)

If now at least this brought an improvement in comparison to the worst vertex, replace the latter
one by 𝑥𝑖𝑛 and go to step 1.

9. If not, shrink the simplex towards its best vertex, i.e. vertex 𝑥𝑖 is replaced with 𝑥𝑏𝑒𝑠𝑡 + 𝜎 · (𝑥𝑖 − 𝑥𝑏𝑒𝑠𝑡 )
with 𝜎 some given value.
Behaviour in case of simplex collapse: If the simplex shrinks too much, it may be restarted. For
restart its extents are multiplied by a factor. It may additionally be rotated in a uniformly random fashion.

Linesearches: Linesearches may be triggered when specific conditions are met. The direction of the
linesearch has two contributions:
1. Gradient of the simplex.
2. The displacements from one point in the history to the next one.

These contributions are then weighted according to the settings and added.

Parameters:

Restart in case of simplex collapse Whether to restart it when it collapses or just to end the optimi-
sation. Collapsing might mean that the solver found a local minimum, especially in low dimensions. In
general, though, it is advisable to activate this, as it can get the simplex out of local minima (and stopping
in higher dimensions (more than 5 or so) often doesn’t even mean that there was a local minimum).

If no improvement since last restart, expand simplex Whether or not to expand the simplex when
repeatedly restarted from the same point. Recommended to activate.

by a factor of The factor by which the simplex extents are multiplied. A negative value is advised to
mirror the simplex and look into other directions.

Rotate it in a random fashion at every restart Whether or not to rotate the simplex upon restart. This
is considered more explorative than constructing it just along the coordinate directions. For settings of
random number generation: see section 30.2.6.

Linesearches in moving direction (recommended in dimensions >= 20) Whether or not to perform
the above described linesearch-add-on. In high dimensions, this can be useful, because the simplex
spends more time finding a good direction rather than moving into it. The linesearch can then detect
this moving direction and go directly into it. In lower dimensions, though, the simplex moves quite well
on its own.

Trigger linesearch after given number of improvements. . . One of the possible conditions to trigger
linesearch.

... or after N iterations without improvement. N = Further possible condition to trigger linesearch.

Required effectiveness compared to previous simplex search Quantity determining the effect of the
linesearch on the simplex displacement.

Weight of simlex based gradient for search direction Weight, with which the gradient of the simplex
enters the direction of the linesearch.

30.3.4 DIRECT

The method “DIviding RECTangles” natively works on bounded domains, evaluating the function at
the nodes of a hyperrectangle grid covering the search space, and iteratively refining this grid in the

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“potentially optimal” regions. If the function is known to be Lipschitz continuous, the potentially optimal
hyperrectangles in an iteration can be identified based on the function evaluations prior to that iteration.

Algorithm: This implements the DIRECT algorithm from

Lipschitzian Optimization Without the Lipschitz Constant

by Jones, Perttunen and Stuckman,
(Journal of Optimization Theory and Application, Vol 79, No. 1, October 1993)

It begins by normalising the search space into the hypercube [0,1]𝑑 . The transformation is affine
linear, except in case of unbounded domains. The solver evaluates at the centre of the hypercube
as initialisation of the following iteration loop:
1. Determine the set of potentially optimal (hyper)rectangles. A rectangle is potentially optimal if
there exists an 𝐿 > 0 such that, if this 𝐿 is assumed to be the Lipschitz constant of 𝑓 , based on
the function values on the rectangle centres, this rectangle contains the point where the smallest
function value is still possible (based on centre value and rectangle diameter).
2. Select from these rectangles the ones that promise a relative improvement of the currently known
best function value of at least 𝜀 > 0 (assuming the respective Lipschitz constant), i.e. the ones
that satisfy
𝑓𝑝𝑜𝑠𝑠𝑖𝑏𝑙𝑒 ≤ 𝑓𝑏𝑒𝑠𝑡 − 𝜀 · |𝑓𝑏𝑒𝑠𝑡 |. (30.9)
3. In each of these rectangles, evaluate the function on new centre points: these centre points
are those found by going one third of the rectangle length in the coordinate axis directions on
those coordinates along which the rectangle is longest (so these are between 2 and 2d points per
rectangle).
4. Subdivide the rectangles along the dimension determined in the previous step. There often is a
choice on how to subdivide them (for example, a square can be divided into thirds horizontally or
vertically). In those cases, subdivision is done such that the biggest subrectangles will contain
the best function values found in the previous step. (This is because they will be more likely to be
further examined in the future because of a larger diameter)
Parameters:
Minimal relative improvement for potential optimality This is the 𝜀 in the algorithm above. Bigger
values emphasise global search more, smaller values make the solver focus more on exploitation of
good regions it already found.

30.3.5 BFGS

Algorithm: A limited memory variant is provided. The algorithm maintains an approximation 𝐻 of the
Hessian matrix and works in the following way:
𝐻0 = 1𝑑×𝑑 (identity matrix)
𝑠𝑛 = − 𝐻∇𝑓 (𝑥𝑛 )
𝑥𝑛+1 = result of linesearch in direction 𝑠𝑛
1
𝜚𝑛 =
⟨∇𝑓 (𝑥𝑛+1 ) − ∇𝑓 (𝑥𝑛 ), 𝑥𝑛+1 − 𝑥𝑛 ⟩
(︁ )︁
𝐻𝑛+1 = 𝐻𝑛 − 𝜚𝑛 (𝑥𝑛+1 − 𝑥𝑛 )(∇𝑓 (𝑥𝑛+1 ) − ∇𝑓 (𝑥𝑛 ))𝑇 𝐻𝑛
(︀ )︀(︀ )︀𝑇
+ 𝐻𝑛 ∇𝑓 (𝑥𝑛+1 ) − ∇𝑓 (𝑥𝑛 ) 𝑥𝑛+1 − 𝑥𝑛
(︂⟨ )︂
2
⟩ 1 (︀ )︀(︀ )︀𝑇
+ 𝜚𝑛 ∇𝑓 (𝑥𝑛+1 ) − ∇𝑓 (𝑥𝑛 ), 𝐻𝑛 (∇𝑓 (𝑥𝑛+1 ) − ∇𝑓 (𝑥𝑛 )) + 𝑥𝑛+1 − 𝑥𝑛 𝑥𝑛+1 − 𝑥𝑛
𝜚𝑛
Before the linesearch, though, it is checked whether 𝜕𝑠𝑛 𝑓 (𝑥𝑛 ) < 0 (so if there is expected decrease). If
not, 𝐻𝑛 is reset to the identity matrix.

Parameters: Settings for gradient calculation, see 30.2.7.

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30.3.6 Legacy (Quasi-Newton)

Algorithm:

This solver exists mainly for legacy reasons; it was the only available algorithm in older PowerFactory
versions and implements a version of the Quasi-Newton method.

Parameters: No parameters to set.

30.4 What solver should I pick? (Pros and Cons of the different
solvers)

The following subsections give a description of the strong and the weak points of the solvers:

30.4.1 PSO - Particle Swarm Optimisation

PSO is quite a robust solver that optimises relatively well on a large variety of problems. It is therefore
a good choice if you don’t know much about your optimisation problem. In case of “easy” problems,
though (for instance, convex functions), gradient based solvers like BFGS will probably be faster in
convergence to the optimum.

30.4.2 Nelder-Mead

Also a relatively robust solver when the restarting option is active (on by default), and is especially good
in low dimensions. In dimensions above 20, performance decreases noticeably, though.

30.4.3 DIRECT

This is a global optimiser, which means that with a sufficient number of function evaluations, it will find
the global optimum in the specified bounds. However, the needed number of function evaluations can
be very high, especially in high dimensions, or if the bounds are set unnecessarily wide (or the mesh
size too big). It is therefore a good choice for a thorough examination of the search space when you are
sure about reasonable bounds and you can afford doing many function evaluations, but other solvers
get stuck in local minima. Another possibility is to run DIRECT with a moderate number of function
evaluations, and then start another, more local solver with the resulting parameters as the starting
point.

30.4.4 BFGS

This gradient-based solver is fast on “easy” problems like convex, differentiable functions, and perfor-
mance decrease in high dimensions is relatively moderate. However, it does not handle well functions
with a “rougher surface”, i.e. functions that have many local minima and/or discontinuities, piecewise
constant functions, etc.

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30.4.5 Legacy (Quasi-Newton)

Another gradient-based solver, provided mainly for backward compatibility. Offers optimisation in di-
mensions ≤ 49 only. For higher dimensions and the general case, take one of the above.

30.5 What can I do if a solver has difficulties in finding good

parameters?

Obviously, relaxing your stopping criteria (such as allowing more iterations and function evaluations)
potentially leads to better optimisation results.
The major possibility that you have when a solver has difficulties in the optimisation, though, is to try a
different solver. They are quite different in their approaches, so a problem that challenges one solver
might be solved with less effort by another one. See also section 30.4.
In addition, here is an overview of what could be good ideas if you keep the same solver:

30.5.1 PSO - Particle Swarm Optimisation

As PSO is stochastic, it might yield better function values already when restarted with a different random
seed. You can also try a different starting point for the optimisation. Another idea is to increase
the beaming frequency by entering smaller values for the parameters “Beam particle after n iterations
without improvement. n = ” and “Beam all after m iterations without improvement. m = ” and a larger
one for “Number of evaluations for the exploration of valleys”. This can allow the swarm to jump out
of local minima again. Alternatively, you might also want to try a different PSO variant, like the Cyber
Swarm, that searches more slowly, but also more thoroughly.

30.5.2 Nelder Mead

Nelder-Mead is sensitive to its starting point, so you could try a different one.
In general, make sure the restarting option is active, unless your problem is low-dimensional and you
just want to walk down into the nearest local minimum. If you are unsure if your suggested mesh size is
reasonable, start with a small one and set the parameter “If no improvement since last restart, expand
simplex by a factor of” to a larger value, like 10.0 or 15.0.
If you optimise in higher dimensions (more than 10 or 20), you can try enabling the “Linesearches in
moving direction” option with its settings.

30.5.3 DIRECT

DIRECT crucially depends on reasonable bounds and mesh sizes: If a parameter has lower and upper
bounds specified, the solver thoroughly examines the range between them, so giving an unnecessarily
wide range slows the solver down significantly. If a parameter is unbounded below or above (or totally
unbounded), the solver examines the area around the starting value most intensively, with the intensity
of the examination decreasing exponentially with distance to the starting point. The radius of intensive
search then depends linearly from the suggested mesh size, so again, reasonable values here are very
helpful to the solver.
If you optimise in high dimensions, be aware that DIRECT, as a global optimiser, is necessarily relatively
slow. You might run it a little and then switch to another, more local solver (see section 30.4).

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30.5.4 BFGS

If the solver stopped by itself (i.e. not by the stopping criteria you gave, such as maximum number
of function evaluations), you most likely found a local minimum of the function. Restarting the solver
then does not make sense. What you can do is try a different starting point for the optimisation, or pick
another solver.

30.5.5 Legacy

Try a different starting point or pick another solver. Lbfgs and Bfgs, for example, are similar algorithms,
but often more accurate.

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Chapter 31

Modal Analysis / Eigenvalue

Calculation

The Modal/Eigenvalue Analysis calculates the eigenvalues and eigenvectors of a dynamic multi-machine
system including all controllers and power plant models. This calculation can be completed at the
beginning of a transient simulation or at a time step when the simulation is stopped. Note that some-
times in the literature Modal Analysis is referred to as Eigenvalue Calculation or Small Signal Stability.
Throughout this chapter the calculation will generally be referred to as Modal Analysis.

This chapter provides a brief background on the theory of Modal Analysis, followed by a detailed
explanation on how to complete such an analysis in PowerFactory. The various methods of analysing
the results are also presented.

31.1 Theory of Modal Analysis

The calculation of eigenvalues and eigenvectors is the most powerful tool for oscillatory stability studies.
When doing such a study, it is highly recommended to first compute the “natural” system oscillation
modes. These are the oscillation modes of the system when all controller and power plant models
are deactivated so every synchronous machine will have constant turbine power and constant excita-
tion voltage. After determining these ’natural’ modes, the effects of controllers (structure, gain, time
constants etc.) and other models can be investigated.

After the initial conditions have been calculated successfully, which means that all time-derivatives of
the state variables should be zero (the system is in steady state), or the simulation has been stopped
at a point in time, the modal analysis calculates the complete system A-matrix (or at least a selection of
it) using numerical, iterative algorithms. The representation of the electrodynamic network model can
either be symmetrical or unsymmetrical, depending on the choice of a balanced or unbalanced RMS
simulation.

The computation time for the Modal Analysis is approximately proportional to the number of state space
variables to the power of three. Considering, that most power system objects and models will contain at
least several states (perhaps up to a dozen or more for some complex controllers), the calculation time
can rapidly increase as the size of the system being considered increases. For this reason, alternative
methods for calculating the system eigenvalues and eigenvectors must be used when the system grows
very large. PowerFactory supports two types of analysis methods.

A multi-machine system exhibits oscillatory stability if all conjugate complex eigenvalues making up
the rotor oscillations have negative real parts. This means that they lie in the left complex half-plane.
Electro–mechanical oscillations for each generator are then damped.

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More formally, assuming that one of the conjugate complex pair of eigenvalues is given by:

𝜆𝑖 = 𝜎𝑖 ± 𝑗𝜔𝑖 (31.1)

then the oscillatory mode will be stable, if the real part of the eigenvalue is negative

𝜎𝑖 < 0 (31.2)

The period and damping of this mode are given by:

2·𝜋
𝑇𝑖 = (31.3)
𝜔𝑖

(︂ )︂
1 𝐴𝑛
𝑑𝑖 = −𝜎𝑖 = · ln (31.4)
𝑇𝑝 𝐴𝑛+1

where 𝐴𝑛 and 𝐴𝑛+1 are amplitudes of two consecutive swing maxima or minima respectively.

The oscillatory frequencies of local generator oscillations are typically in the range of 0.5 to 5 Hz. Higher
frequency natural oscillations (those that are not normally regulated), are often damped to a greater
extent than slower oscillations. The oscillatory frequency of the between areas (inter-area) oscillations
is normally a factor of 5 to 20 times lower than that of the local generator oscillations.

The absolute contribution of an individual generator to the oscillation mode which has been excited as
a result of a disturbance can be calculated by:

𝑛
⃗ =
∑︁
𝜔(𝑡) 𝑐𝑖 · 𝜑⃗𝑖 · 𝑒𝜆𝑖 ·𝑡 (31.5)
𝑖=1

where:
⃗
𝜔(𝑡) generator speed vector
𝜆𝑖 i’th eigenvalue
𝜑⃗𝑖 i’th right eigenvector
𝑐𝑖 magnitude of excitation of the i’th mode of the system (at
t=0) (depending on the disturbance)
𝑛 number of conjugate complex eigenvalues (i.e. number of
generators - 1)

In the following c is set to the unit vector, i.e. c = [1, ..., 1], which corresponds to a theoretical disturbance
which would equally excite all generators with all natural resonance frequencies simultaneously.

The elements of the eigenvectors Φ𝑖 then represents the mode shape of the eigenvalue i and shows the
relative activity of a state variable, when a particular mode is excited. For example, the speed amplitudes
of the generators when an eigenfrequency is excited, whereby those generators with opposite signs in
Φ𝑖 oscillate in opposite phase.

The right eigenvectors Φ𝑖 can thus be termed the “observability vectors”. The left eigenvectors Ψ𝑖
measures the activity of a state variable x in the i-th mode, thus the left eigenvectors can be termed the
“relative contribution vectors”.

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Normalisation is done by assigning the generator with the greatest amplitude contribution the relative
contribution factor 1 or -1 respectively.

For a n-machine power system, n-1 generator oscillation modes will exist and n-1 conjugate complex
pairs of eigenvalues 𝜆𝑖 will be found. The mechanical speed 𝜔 of the n generators will then be described
by:

⎡ ⎤ ⎡ ⎤ ⎡ ⎤ ⎡ ⎤
𝜔1 𝜑11 𝜑21 𝜑𝑛1
⎢ 𝜔2 ⎥ 𝜑12 ⎥ 𝜑22 ⎥ 𝜑𝑛2 ⎥
⎥ · 𝑒𝜆1 𝑡 + 𝑐2 · ⎢ ⎥ · 𝑒𝜆2 𝑡 + . . . + 𝑐2 · ⎢ ⎥ · 𝑒𝜆𝑛 𝑡
⎢ ⎢ ⎢
⎣ · · · ⎦ = 𝑐1 · ⎣ (31.6)
⎢ ⎥ ⎢
··· ⎦ ⎣ ··· ⎦ ⎣ ··· ⎦
𝜔𝑛 𝜑1𝑛 𝜑2𝑛 𝜑𝑛𝑛

The problem of using the right or left eigenvectors for analysing the participation of a generator in
a particular mode i is the dependency on the scales and units of the vector elements. Hence the
eigenvectors Φ𝑖 and Ψ𝑖 are combined to a matrix P of participation factor by:

⎡ ⎤ ⎡ ⎤
𝑃1𝑖 𝜑1𝑖 · Ψ𝑖1
⎢ 𝑃2𝑖 ⎥ ⎢ 𝜑2𝑖 · Ψ𝑖2 ⎥
𝑃𝑖 = ⎢
⎣ ··· ⎦ = ⎣
⎥ ⎢ ⎥ (31.7)
··· ⎦
𝑃𝑛𝑖 𝜑𝑛𝑖 · Ψ𝑖𝑛

The elements of the matrix 𝑝𝑖𝑗 are called the participation factors. They give a good indication of the
general system dynamic oscillation pattern. They can be used to determine the location of eventually
needed stabilising devices to influence the system damping efficiently. Furthermore, the participation
factor is normalised so that the sum for any mode is equal to 1.

The participation factors can be calculated not only for the generator speed variables, but for all variables
listed in Table 31.1.1.

Name Unit Description

s:speed p.u. Speed
s:phi rad Rotor position angle
s:psifd p.u. Excitation flux
s:psi1d p.u. Flux in 1d-damper winding, d-axis
s:psi1q p.u. Flux in 1q-damper winding, q-axis
s:psi2q p.u. Flux in 2q-damper winding, q-axis

Table 31.1.1: Variables accessible for eigenvalue calculation

When are modal analysis results valid?

A modal analysis can be started when a steady-state condition is reached in a dynamic calculation.
Normally, such a state is reached following a load-flow calculation, followed by a calculation of initial
conditions. However, it is also possible to do a balanced/unbalanced RMS simulation and start a modal
analysis after the end of a simulation or during a simulation when you have manually stopped it.

Although, the modal analysis can be executed at any time in a transient simulation it is not recommended
that you do so when the system is not in a quasi-steady state. This is because each modal analysis is
only valid for a unique system operating point. Furthermore, the theory behind modal analysis shows
that the results are only valid for ’small’ perturbations of the system. So although you can complete
a modal analysis during a large system transient, the results obtained would change significantly if
the analysis was repeated a short time step later when the operating point of the system would be
significantly different.

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31.2 How to Execute a Modal Analysis

The Modal Analysis command may be initiated by:

1. Using the toolbar selection button to choose the Modal/Eigenvalue Analysis toolbar.
2. Selecting the Calculation → Modal/Eigenvalue Analysis option from the main menu.

To quickly complete the modal analysis and capture all eigenvalues using the default options, one can
press Execute in the subsequent dialog box and the calculation will start. All the options for the Modal
Analysis command are explained in the following sections.

Internal Calculation Procedure

When executing the Modal Analysis command by pressing Execute, the configured simulation state will
be used or recalculated (depending on the configuration settings). Then the modal analysis constructs
a system matrix from the load-flow and the dynamic data. The eigenvalues and eigenvectors are
calculated directly from that matrix. During this process, PowerFactory automatically linearises all
relevant power system models.

31.3 Modal/Eigenvalue Analysis Command

Within this section, the configuration settings of the Modal/Eigenvalue Analysis command are described,
based on their appearance in the command dialog.

31.3.1 Basic Options

31.3.1.1 Calculation method

QR/QZ-Method: uses the QR/QZ eigenvalue calculation method. Further configuration options are
provided within the Algorithm page (refer to section 31.3.2).

Note: The QR method is the “standard” method used in power system analysis. This method, originally
developed by J.G.F Francis, can compute eigenvalues of widely differing magnitudes for
higher-order systems. The QZ algorithm, on the other hand, is a numerically backward stable
method for computing generalised eigenvalues problems. Both methods calculate all of the
system’s eigenvalues.

Selective method(Arnoldi/Lanczos): uses the Selective method for eigenvalue calculation. The
Selective method can be configured in further detail via the available options within this dialog (see
information provided in section 31.3.1.3) and via the Algorithm page (refer to section 31.3.2).

Note: The Selective method (known as the Arnoldi/Lanczos method) only calculates a subset of the
system’s eigenvalues based on various constraints related with a particular reference point. This
method is often used in very large systems, where the use of either QR or QZ methods could be
very time consuming. The Selective method is especially useful if the user knows the target area
of interest for the eigenvalues.

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31.3.1.2 Operating Point for Calculation

Use current time in active simulation: if a simulation has already been executed, then apply this
option in order to use the system state at the current simulation time as basis for the eigenvalue
calculation.

Note: Various system states can be obtained depending on the active simulation:
• If only the Calculation of initial conditions command has been executed, then the system
state used will be the one at initialisation;
• If a simulation is run until time 𝑡𝑠𝑖𝑚 , the system state will be chosen at that particular time.
In all cases, a correct calculation of the eigenvalues can be done only if the system state is in an
equilibrium point, whereas all transients should have already been extinguished.

Recalculate initial conditions: the system state used for the calculation is obtained by executing a
pre-configured Calculation of initial conditions command. The command is provided as reference link
next to this option and can be modified accordingly.

The Modal/Eigenvalue Analysis supports balanced and unbalanced RMS simulation methods. More in-
formation about the options in the Calculation of initial conditions command can be found in Chapter 28:
RMS/EMT Simulations, Section 28.3.

31.3.1.3 Basic configuration of Selective method (Arnoldi/Lanczos)

Complex reference point (RP): Complex plane reference point defined using real part and imaginary
part/damped frequency, as below.
• Real part ( 𝜎𝑅𝑃 )
• Imaginary part ( 𝜔𝑅𝑃 )
• Damped frequency (equal with 𝜔𝑅𝑃 /2𝜋 )

Selection of eigenvalues closest to RP: the selective method determines eigenvalues closer to the
reference point using one of three different measures for closeness. The options are:

• Based on magnitude: eigenvalues whose magnitudes are closest to the magnitude of the refer-
ence point.
• Based on imaginary part: eigenvalues whose imaginary parts are closest to that of the reference
point.
• Based on real part: eigenvalues whose real parts are closest to that of the reference point.

This option can be further clarified using a diagram as shown in Figure 31.3.1. The three eigenvalue
pairs are as follows:

• A; -0.8 +/- 1.4. Magnitude 1.61

• B; -0.7 +/- 1.5. Magnitude 1.65
• C; -0.5 +/- 2.0. Magnitude 2.06

Say the reference point was set to the origin (0,0. Magnitude 0). Then using the first method above,
the closest eigenvalue pair would be A because this pair has a magnitude closest to the magnitude
of the reference point. Using method 2, the closest pair would also be A because this pair has the
smallest imaginary part with respect to the imaginary part of the reference point. Finally, using the third
method, the closest pair would be C because this pair has a real component closest to the real part of
the reference point.

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Figure 31.3.1: Illustration of different eigenvalue selection methods

Number of Eigenvalues: the maximum number of calculated eigenvalues. Using this parameter it is
possible to limit the total number of eigenvalues calculated by the Selective method. An eigenvalue pair
is defined as one eigenvalue mode for this calculation.

31.3.2 Algorithm

31.3.2.1 General

Calculate

• Left Eigenvectors (Controllability): calculates the left eigenvectors that are used to identify the
Controllability, i.e. the contribution of a variable to the activity of a particular mode. This option is
enabled by default.
• Right Eigenvectors (Observability): calculates the right eigenvectors that are used to identify the
Observability, i.e. the degree of activity of a state variable when a particular mode is excited. This
option is disabled by default.
• Participation Factors: calculates the participation factors for each state variable, these measure
the relative participation of the state variable in the mode. This option is disabled by default.

Note: The Controllability, Observability and Participation Factors for any mode can be visualised using
the Mode Polar Plot or Mode Bar Plot described in Section 31.4.2.

Algorithm options for QR/QZ-Method

If the QR/QZ-Method is selected in the Basic Options page, then specific customisation settings are
provided here.
• QR method using system reduction: use this option to use the QR method for the analysis. If,
for any reason, the QR method fails to generate a solution, then the QZ method is automatically
employed as fallback option.

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• QZ method for generalised system: use this option to apply the QZ method directly. The calcu-
lation using this method is slower compared to the QR method. The option should only be used,
when it is known that the QR-method will fail for the evaluated system.

• Apply algorithm for improved conditioning: this option computes a balancing transformation to
improve the conditioning of the eigenvalues and eigenvectors. It should be used if there are
elements with no impedance or virtual impedance in the network and/or if the results of the modal
analysis are outside of the expected range.

Algorithm options for Selective method

If the Selective method is selected in the Basic Options page, then specific customisation settings are
provided here.
• Initialisation of Arnoldi Iteration: the start vector of the iterative algorithm can be here customised.
The user may choose to use a random start vector or a standard unit vector(s) to initialise the
Arnoldi algorithm.

• Eigenvalue convergence tolerance: this parameter sets the eigenvalue convergence tolerance
within the calculation.

31.3.2.2 Advanced

Advanced options for QR/QZ-Method

• Direct construction of A-matrix (as in V13.2): legacy option, used to reproduce results generated
with PowerFactory version 13.2. Unless specifically required, it is recommended not to use this
option in any newer version.

Advanced options for Selective method

• Identification of Eigenvalues - consider identical if distance smaller: use this parameter to specify
the tolerance for eigenvalues when its eigenvectors are associated. Left and right eigenvectors
are calculated separately with this algorithm in PowerFactory.
• Omit eigenvalues if eigenvector-transformation fails: when this option is checked, eigenvalues
where the association between the left a right eigenvectors can not be found, will be ignored.

31.3.3 Results

Recording filter for eigenvalues: settings to restrict the recorded eigenvalues:

• Oscillatory modes only: record only modes which have non-zero imaginary part;
• Unstable modes only: record only modes which are on the right half side of the complex plane
• Min. real part / Max. real part: constrain eigenvalue results within a minimum/maximum real part
range
• Min. imag. part / Max. imag. part: constrain eigenvalue results within a minimum/maximum
imaginary part range
• Min. magnitude / Max. magnitude: constrain eigenvalue results within a minimum/maximum
magnitude range

• Min. damp. ratio / Max. damp. ratio: constrain eigenvalue results within a minimum/maximum
damping ratio range

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Report filtered out eigenvalues in output window: set this option in order to report to the output
window any eigenvalues which have been filtered out by the Recording filter for eigenvalues.

Results: a reference link to the Results object is provided. The Results object can also be changed
here, if needed.

31.3.4 Output

31.3.4.1 Output to MATLAB files

The Modal/Eigenvalue Analysis results can be exported to a MATLAB readable file format (sparse matrix
file). The user can select which results are to be exported. A short explanation of several of the exported
matrices is provided below.

The system representation of a non-linear dynamic system can be described in general terms using two
nonlinear functions 𝑓 and 𝑔, as below:

ẋ = 𝑓 (x,v)
0 = 𝑔(x,v,v̇)

where x is a vector of 𝑛 state variables, v is an 𝑚 length vector containing algebraic variables such as
passive power network variables and control variables of DSL models.

The linearised combined control and passive power system can be expressed using a set of equations
containing the partial derivatives of the state variables and network quantities, as follows:

[︃ ]︃ [︃ ]︃ [︃ ]︃ [︃ ]︃
I 0 ∆ẋ J Jxv ∆x
= xx (31.8)
0 M22 ∆v̇ Jvx Jvv ∆v

where:

• I is the identity matrix (𝑛 by 𝑛), M22 is an 𝑚 by 𝑚 matrix.

• Jxx (𝑛 by 𝑛 matrix) contains partial derivatives of a differential equation to the state variables;
• Jxv (𝑛 by 𝑚 matrix) contains partial derivatives of a differential equation to the network quantities;
• Jvx (𝑚 by 𝑛 matrix) contains partial derivatives of an algebraic equation to the state variables;

• Jvv (𝑚 by 𝑚 matrix) contains partial derivatives of an algebraic equation to the network quantities.

Note: Matrix M22 is normally zero, but not always, e.g. components in the DC power system contain
the DC voltage derivative, etc.

In a more concise representation, the linearised power system can be expressed as below:

[︃ ]︃ [︃ ]︃
∆ẋ ∆x
M =J (31.9)
∆v̇ ∆v

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where J (𝑛 + 𝑚 x 𝑛 + 𝑚) is the Jacobian matrix.

Based on the above, the system matrix Amat can be defined as below:

Amat = Jxx − Jxv Jvv −1 Jvx (31.10)

For the system matrix Amat , the following is true:

∆ẋ = Amat · ∆x (31.11)

Note: The input (B), output (C) and feedforward (D) matrices of a state space representation of a
system are not used within the linearised power system formulation, hence they are not available
within the Modal Analysis calculation.

The data that can be exported externally are:

• System matrix Amat : file Amat.mtl;

• System eigenvalues: file EVals.mtl;
• Left eigenvectors: file lEV.mtl;
• Right eigenvectors: file rEV.mtl;
• Jacobian matrix J: File Jacobian.mtl;
• M matrix: file M.mtl;
• Participation factors: file PartFacs.mtl.

Along with the above files, a description of the rows and columns for the Jacobian J and the system
Amat matrices is provided within two text documents named VariableToIdx_Jacobian.txt and Vari-
ableToIdx_Amat.txt, such that the corresponding states or algebraic variables can be identified.

The exported files are in an ASCII sparse matrix format “.mtl”. For conversion into a full matrix format in
the MATLAB environment, please refer to the MATLAB documentation (e.g. H = spconvert(D); full(H)).
To import and expand a sparse matrix in MATLAB, execute, for the example of the system matrix and
the right eigenvectors, the following commands:

» load Amat.mtl;
» load rEV.mtl;
» Amat = full(spconvert(Amat));
» rEV = full(spconvert(rEV));
Using the commands above, the variables 𝑟𝐸𝑉 and 𝐴𝑚𝑎𝑡 should have been loaded in the MATLAB
workspace as full matrices/vectors. A short list of useful MATLAB commands is provided below, de-
pending on the calculation type.

QR Method: this method is the only one which computes the system matrix Amat .
• To verify the j’th right eigenvector, the following applies:

Amat · rEV(j-th column) = 𝐸𝑣𝑎𝑙𝑠(j-th column) · rEV(j-th column) (31.12)

MATLAB code (returns the difference between the left and right terms):

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» Amat*rEV(:,j)-Evals(j)*rEV(:,j)

• To verify the j’th left eigenvector, the following applies:

lEV(j-th column)* · Amat = 𝐸𝑣𝑎𝑙𝑠(j-th column) · lEV(j-th column)* (31.13)

MATLAB code (returns the difference between the left and right terms):

» (conj(lEV(:,j))’ * Amat)’-Evals(j)*conj(lEV(:,j))

Note: The left eigenvectors require an additional conjugation before being used

• To verify the eigenvalues, the following commands need to be entered:

» D=eig(Amat)

» D=eig(Amat,M)

QZ and Arnoldi Methods: these two calculation methods do not generate the system matrix Amat .
• To verify the right eigenvectors, the following applies, where D is a diagonal matrix containing the
eigenvalues:

J · rEV = M · rEV · D (31.14)

MATLAB code to verify the j-th right eigenvector (returns the difference between the left and right
terms above):

» Jacobian *rEV(:,j)-M *rEV(:,j) *Evals(j)

• To verify the left eigenvectors, the following applies, where D is a diagonal matrix containing the
eigenvalues:

lEV* · J = D · lEV* · M (31.15)

MATLAB code to verify the j-th left eigenvector (returns the difference between the left and right
terms above):

» transpose(conj(lEV(:,j))) *J - EVals(j) *transpose(conj(lEV(:,j))) *M;

• To verify the eigenvalues, the following command needs to be entered:

» EIGEN=eig(Jacobian,M)

31.3.4.2 Output

The calculation command provides output window information. The contents can be customised as
follows:
• Short: brief output window messages documenting only the main steps in the calculation;
• Detailed: the calculation generates detailed information, useful sometimes for debugging various
scenarios.

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31.3.4.3 Report DSL models containing buffers or external function

This option will generate a message if a DSL model is using any of the buffer based DSL functions
(e.g. delay, movingavg, lastvalue) or an external DLL model (based on digexdyn, digexfun or
IEC61400-27-1 interfaces).

Note: C-Interface DLL models (i.e. compiled DSL models), described in 29.14.3, are not reported
by this option, unless a buffer based DSL function is used within this model. The reason is
that C-Interface DLL models are behaving within Modal Analysis identically as a DSL model
(uncompiled).

It should be noted that for buffer based functions and external DLL based models the linearisation
algorithm will generate a linear equation of the linearised output of the form Δ𝑦Δ𝑦𝑖 = 0, where 𝑦𝑜 and
𝑜

𝑦𝑖 are the output and the input of the buffer based function (or of the external DLL), respectively. The
buffer based functions are marked accordingly with a '*' symbol within table 29.16.2. Whenever such
functions are reported, it is recommended to verify the specific models in order to ensure correctness
of results.

Note: One example in which the use of buffer based functions does not affect Modal Analysis results
is the case when the function is being applied to a not connected input signal or to a time-
independent constant expression. In such a situation the result is clearly correct since the lin-
earised equation should be zero. If these functions are directly applied within a control feedback
path (e.g. on signals like voltage, current, power or others) then the eigenvalue analysis may lead
to inaccurate results. Further investigations are recommended in these cases.

More information about DSL Models is available in chapter 29: Models for Dynamic Simulations.

31.3.4.4 Report state variables that are assumed to be constant

This option will generate a message for those state variables of models that are assumed to be constant
at the current operating point.

For example, consider the following equation:

x. = select(yi>0,yi,select(yi<0,yi,0))

If yi=0 then the derivative of x. will always be zero.

When the option Report state variables that are assumed to be constant at the current operating point
is selected, a message will be displayed in the output window pointing to the DSL model where the
state variable was identified. The user can then check the model and determine whether the reported
states are within the supposed active path. If this is the case, an adjustment of the model code or
parameterisation may be indicated.

31.4 Viewing Modal Analysis Results

There are several ways to visualise the results of the modal analysis, including using the built-in
plots within PowerFactory, using the Modal/Eigenvalue Analysis Results command, visualising the
eigenvalues in the single line diagrams or using the predefined reports to print the result in the output
window. This section describes these options.

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31.4.1 Modal/Eigenvalue Analysis Results Command

The modal analysis results can be displayed in a convenient data browser specially designed for working
with these results, which is accessible by clicking on the Modal/Eigenvalue Analysis Results icon ( )
from the Modal/Eigenvalue Analysis toolbar. The options of this command are explained below.

Show Modes

When the option Modes is selected from the Shown values field, a table with the calculated variables
for each eigenvalue is displayed (see figure 31.4.1). The variables and the corresponding equations for
an eigenvalue 𝜆 = 𝜎 + 𝑗𝜔 are shown in table 31.4.1.

Name Unit Equation

Real part 1/s 𝜎
Imaginary part rad/s 𝜔
√
Magnitude 1/s 𝜎2 + 𝜔2
Angle deg 𝑎𝑡𝑎𝑛2(𝜎/𝜔)180/𝜋
Damped Frequency Hz |𝜔/2𝜋|
Period s |2𝜋/𝜔|
Damping 1/s −𝜎
√
Damping Ratio % −100𝜎/ 𝜎 2 + 𝜔 2
Ratio A1/A2 𝑒−2𝜋𝜎/|𝜔|
Logarithmic decrement −2𝜋𝜎/|𝜔|

Table 31.4.1: Variables calculated for each eigenvalue

Figure 31.4.1: Result variables for each mode

Show States

When selecting the option States from the Shown values field, the user can choose to show the state
variables of one mode, of all oscillatory modes or of a group of modes. In this way it is easier to identify
all the modes where a particular state variable participates.

The results in the eigenvalue Modes or States tables can be then sorted and filtered as show in
figure 31.4.2, where the states in which the speed of a certain generator participates are further filtered
to show just modes with a damping ratio less than 10 %.

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Figure 31.4.2: Results Filtering

It is also possible to display the list of state variables of a particular mode from the modes result table
by right-clicking on a mode and selecting Show State results.

Exporting the results from the Eigenvalues or States tables

The results shown in the Modal Analysis data browser can be exported to an external software program
(such as a spreadsheet tool) following these steps:

1. Select the data to be exported. To select all data press ctrl-A.

2. Click on the Copy (with column headers) icon ( . Alternatively right-click within the selection and
choose the option Spread Sheet Format → Copy (with column headers).
3. Open the external software and paste the data from the windows clipboard.

31.4.2 Modal Analysis Results in Built-in Plots

There are three special plot types in PowerFactory for visualising the results of a modal analysis
calculation: the eigenvalues plot, the mode bar plot and the mode polar plot.

Each type of plot can be automatically created by clicking on the Create Plot icon ( ) and selecting
the desired plot type from the Insert Plot dialog. The Modal/Eigenvalue Analysis plots are shown in
figure 31.4.3.

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Figure 31.4.3: Selection of the Modal Analysis plots

31.4.2.1 Eigenvalue Plot

Eigenvalue plots are inserted by choosing Eigenvalue plot from the insert dialog shown in figure 31.4.3.
The plot will appear in a new window. Note, that each time the option is selected, a new plot window
will be created.

Interpreting the Eigenvalues Plot

An example of an eigenvalue plot is shown in figure 31.4.4.

The Eigenvalue Plot displays the calculated eigenvalues in a two axis coordinate system. For the
vertical axis, it is possible to select among the imaginary part (𝑟𝑎𝑑/𝑠), or the damped frequency (𝐻𝑧) of
the eigenvalue. The horizontal axis shows the real part.

Stable eigenvalues are shown in green (default) and unstable eigenvalues in red (default). Each
eigenvalue can be inspected in detail by double clicking on it; this will open a dialog where the index, the
complex representation, the polar representation and oscillation parameters of the mode are displayed.

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Figure 31.4.4: The Eigenvalue Plot

Editing the Eigenvalue Plot

All settings that control the appearance of the eigenvalue plot can be accessed by double clicking on an
empty area of the plot. On the Shown Data page, the following options are available:

• Modal Analysis Results: to compare various scenarios and visualise the results of Modal Analysis
calculations, it is possible to add multiple result files corresponding to different scenarios to the
eigenvalue plots. Additionally, the colour and the size of the stable and unstable eigenvalues can
be adjusted.
• Plot Features: it is also possible to decide whether to display the stability borders when the
imaginary part is shown in the y axis. The Show Stability Borders option is used to shade the
area of the plot containing all the stable modes present in the displayed plot.
• Filter Options: here the display of eigenvalues on the plot is restricted according to defined criteria.
Eigenvalues can be restricted by range (independently in either the x or y axes) by selecting the
Restrict Range option. The Restrict Indexes options allows the user to choose, from the complete
list of eigenvalues, a limited subset to display on the plot. Alternatively, just the oscillatory modes
can be displayed by choosing the option Show Oscillatory Modes.
On the Style and Layout page, the following additional display options can be selected:

• Curve Area Position (mm): if Auto-Position Curve Area is selected, the position of the curve is
automatically set to fit the page size. If it is deselected, then the user can manually define the size
and position of the plot.
• Border and Background
– Draw border: to define outside border and colour of the curves area.
– Fill background: to define if the curves area should be filled, and select the colour.
• Colour palette: link to the colour palette being used. A new colour palette can be selected using
the Select arrow .

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Damping Ratio Constant

A constant showing a predefined damping ratio can be added into the plot by right-clicking on the plot
and choosing Add Constant damping ratio line. The use of this constant, shown in figure 31.4.5, simpli-
fies the graphical identification of the less damped modes. The damping ratio constant is automatically
adapted when changing the y-axis between Damped Frequency and Imaginary Part.

Figure 31.4.5: Damping Ratio Constants in Eigenvalues Plot

31.4.2.2 Mode Bar Plot

Mode bar plots can be inserted by choosing Mode bar plot from the insert dialog shown in figure 31.4.3.
When this option is selected, an edit dialog of the plot will open.

Editing the Mode Bar Plot

On the Shown Data page, the following options are available:

• Mode Selection: to choose the mode displayed on the plot. The observability, controllability or
participation factors will then be displayed for this mode. Note that it is also possible to enter the
real and imaginary values if the mode index is not known; PowerFactory will then automatically
select the closest mode.
• Shown values: to select to display either the Controllability, Observability or Participation Factors
for the selected mode.
• Filter Options: to choose to restrict the display of variables on the plot according to defined criteria.
Displayed variables can be restricted to a minimum contribution by selecting the Min. Contribution
option, or for greater control the variables to display can be selected manually by selecting the
User Defined States option and manually choosing the variables to display.
• Appearance: to adjust the colour and style of the bars and choose to show the state variable
legend annotation (value) for each bar.
• Scaling: configures the mode bar plot scale. If the Auto scale checkbox is ticked, then the plot is
autoscaled. Otherwise, the plot bar limit can be specified in the corresponding Radius limit field.

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• Plot Linking: this enables the user to link the mode bar plot to the eigenvalue plot. Moreover,
there is also the possibility to create linked mode bar plots directly from eigenvalue plots. This is
discussed in section 31.4.2.4.

On the Style and Layout page, the options are the same as the Eigenvalue Plot, described in sec-
tion 31.4.2.1.

Interpreting the Mode Bar Plot

An sample Mode Bar Plot is shown in Figure 31.4.6. The Mode Bar Plot displays the controllability,
observability or participation factors of variables for a user selected eigenvalue in bar chart form. This
allows easy visual interpretation of these parameters.

Figure 31.4.6: Example Mode Bar Plot

The mode bar plot can also be obtained in one of the following ways:
• From the eigenvalues plot: right-click on a mode and select Create Bar Plot for Mode → Control-
lability/Observability/Participation.
• From the modal analysis modes result: right-click on a mode and select Plots → Bar plot→
Controllability/Observability/Participation.

Note that the observability and participation factors are only shown if these calculations were enabled
in the Modal Analysis command as described in Section 31.3.2.1.

31.4.2.3 Mode Polar Plot

Mode polar plots can be inserted by choosing Mode polar plot from the insert dialog shown in fig-
ure 31.4.3. When this option is selected an edit dialog of the plot will open, with options available as
explained below. Note, every time this option is selected, a new plot window will be created.

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Editing the Mode Polar Plot

All settings that control the appearance of the Mode Polar Plot can also be accessed by double clicking
on an empty area of the plot. On the Shown Data page, the available options are very similar to the
Mode Bar Plot as described in section 31.4.2.2 and the Mode Selection, Filter Options, Appearance,
Scaling and Plot Linking can be altered in the same way. There are some additional options:

• Cluster: enabling this option will cluster variables with an angular separation less than the entered
value. A cluster shares the same diagram colour.
• Draw arrow heads: arrow heads can be drawn on the displayed vectors by enabling this option.

On the Style and Layout page, the options are the same as the Eigenvalue Plot, described in sec-
tion 31.4.2.1.

Interpreting the Mode Polar Plot

An example of a mode polar plot is shown in figure 31.4.7. The mode polar plot displays the control-
lability, observability or participation factors of variables for a user selected eigenvalue in polar form.
Variables are grouped and coloured identically if their angular separation is less than a user defined
parameter (default 3 degrees).

Figure 31.4.7: The Mode polar plot

The mode polar plot can also be obtained in one of the following ways:

• From the eigenvalues plot: right-click on a mode and select Create Polar Plot for Mode → Con-
trollability/ Observability/Participation.

• From the modal analysis modes result: right-click on a mode and select Plots → Polar plot→
Controllability/Observability/Participation.

Note that the observability and participation factors are only shown if these calculations were enabled
in the Modal Analysis Command as described in Section 31.3.2.1.

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31.4.2.4 Linked Mode Bar and Polar Plots

The eigenvalue plot is linkable to one or more polar or modal bar plots. Once the plots are linked, the
selection of an eigenvalue in the eigenvalue plot will automatically update the mode plots and display
the respective plots accordingly.

To create a Linked Mode Bar Plot, right-click on a mode (or group of modes) in the eigenvalue plot and
select Create Linked Mode Bar Plot → Controllability/Observability/Participation. To create a Linked
Mode polar plot, select Create Linked Mode Polar Plot → Controllability/Observability/Participation.

31.4.3 Eigenvalues Results in Single Line Diagrams

After the execution of the Modal Analysis command, it is possible to draw the eigenvectors of a particular
mode directly on a graphic (single line, overview or geographical diagram), with options to show right
eigenvectors, left eigenvectors or participation factors.

The eigenvectors can be drawn using the Draw Eigenvectors Arrow command ( ) from the Modal
Analysis toolbar or directly from the desired mode in the eigenvalues plot. The arrows will only be
drawn if the corresponding generator, or the substation/site where the generator belongs, is displayed
in the graphic.

31.4.4 Modal Analysis Results in the Output Window

The modal/eigenvales analysis results can be displayed in the output window using the Report Gener-
ation command, accessible by clicking on Generate reports icon ( ) from the main toolbar or via the
menu Output → Generate reports. . . .

The following options are available when selecting the Modal/Eigenvales Analysis from the command:

Modes

A report of all the calculated eigenvalues is printed in the output window.

Left Eigenvectors (Controllability)/Right Eigenvectors (Observability)/Participations

Selecting any of these options changes the dialog format to the one shown in figure 31.4.8. The
available options are:

• Mode Selection: the index of a specific mode can be selected. Alternatively the modes can be
Filtered by specifying the maximal damping and maximal period.
• Variable Selection: the variables to be displayed are selected
– Show all is used to show all variables (for example, speed, phi, psiD)
– Min. contribution is used to filter the displayed variables according to their contribution.
– User Defined States provides greater control over which variables are displayed. The button
Show shows the currently selected variables. More variables can be added using the Add
button whereas all variables can be removed by using the Remove All button.

Note: The Detailed check-box shows the bar chart in the report, whereas the normal report shows only
numerical values.

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Figure 31.4.8: Output of Results Command

31.4.5 Modal Analysis Results in the Data Browser

The Data Manager and Network Model Manager can be used to view the participations, controlla-
bility or observability for power system elements such as synchronous machines after completing an
modal/eigenvalues analysis. This option should only be used if none of the previous ways of presenting
the results is satisfactory.

To use the data browsers to see the modal analysis results, the following steps should be followed after
a modal analysis is executed:

1. Choose the mode index (eigenvalue) and state variable:

• Click on the Set Eigenvalue icon from the modal/eigenvalues analysis toolbar.
• Choose the Eigenvalue index for which the results are to be displayed.
• Choose the State Variable to view the results for by using the drop-down selection menu.
• Press the Execute button. It will appear as if nothing has happened - this is normal.
2. View the results in the browser:
• Select the synchronous machine icon from the object filter menu.
• Define the flexible data page by clicking on the corresponding icon ( ).
• Use the filter Group to get the Results and the filter Calculation to select Modal/Eigenvalue
Analysis

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• In the Available variables window, scroll to near the bottom until you see the variables Par-
ticipation, Magnitude. Select this variable and all eight other variables down to Observability,
Magnitude (signed).
• Press the OK button. Now you can scroll to the right in the flexible data page to view the
values of these variables.

Note: The results can only be displayed for one eigenvalue and variable at a time. For instance,
eigenvalue 3 and speed. Using the Modal Analysis Results Command (section 31.4.1) is easier.

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Chapter 32

Protection

32.1 Introduction

PowerFactory enables the user to define a protection scheme by integrating protective devices into the
system defined by a project’s network model. The software can be used to assist with the coordination
of protective devices and for generating graphical representations of protection system characteristics.
A relay model library is available in the “Protection Devices” folder of the DIgSILENT library which
contains models of both generic and manufacturer-specific relays.

The following plot types are supported by PowerFactory to assist in the visualisation of the protection
system performance:

• Current vs time plots (Time-overcurrent plots, section 32.4)

• Impedance plots (R-X diagrams, section 32.6)
• Relay operational limits plots (section 32.7)
• Distance vs time plots (Time-distance diagrams, section 32.8)
• Differential plots (section 32.10)
• Short circuit sweep plots (section 32.12)

Furthermore, PowerFactory allows for the creation of single line diagrams within which, the locations
of the protection devices can be illustrated. (for general information on single line diagrams refer to
Section 32.2.3)

The relay models in PowerFactory are fully integrated with many of the standard calculation functions
included in the software. Notably:

• Load flow calculation (chapter 24)

• Short circuit calculation (chapter 25)
• Dynamic simulations using the RMS calculation or the EMT calculation (chapter 28)
• Arc flash calculation (chapter 33)

However, there are also a number of protection specific calculation commands available which are
accessible via the Protection and Arc-Flash Analysis toolbox. The available commands are located in
the sections of this chapter as follows:

• Short circuit sweep command (section 32.11)

• Protection coordination assistant (section 32.13)

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• Protection Audit (section 32.15)

• Short Circuit Trace (section 32.16)

• Protection Graphic Assistant (section 32.17)

This chapter will describe how to setup a network model for protection analysis, how to use PowerFac-
tory ’s protection analysis functions and plots and how to output results from the analysis in convenient
settings reports.

The following section presents a general introductory overview of protection modelling within PowerFac-
tory. Although it is not a pre-requisite for the user to have an understanding of the internal modelling
approach in order to use PowerFactory ’s basic protection functions, an understanding will help the user
to appreciate the structure of the dialogs encountered when setting up a protection scheme. Users who
wish to move straight into the creation of a protection scheme may wish to skip this section.

32.1.1 The modelling structure

Protection devices form a group of highly complex and non-uniform power system devices. Any program
tasked with modelling these devices faces a difficult dilemma. On the one hand, the relay models should
be as flexible and versatile as possible to ensure that all types of protection relays can be modelled with
all of their features. On the other hand, the relay models should be as simple as possible to reduce the
amount of work and knowledge needed to define power system protection devices.

This dilemma is solved in PowerFactory by modelling protection devices using a tiered approach con-
sisting of three different levels. These levels are:
• the relay frame
• the relay type

• the relay element

Each of these levels fulfil a different role in the modelling of a protection device. Figure 32.1.1 shows
the relation of these three levels graphically.

Figure 32.1.1: Modelling structure for protection devices

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32.1.2 The relay frame

The relay frame specifies the general relay functionality using a diagram where functional blocks known
as slots are connected by signals. Slots for timers, measurement and logic elements can be defined.
It defines how many stages the relay consists of and how these stages interact. However, the relay
frame contains no mathematical or logical functions, rather these are specified by the internal types
referenced by the slots.

Each slot is defined by the number of input and output signals. The signal lines define how the slots
are interconnected. Relay frames are similar to the frames of Composite Models and are created in
the same way. See Chapter 29: Models for Dynamic Simulations, Section 29.2 (High-level Control
System Representation) for more information. Figure 32.1.2 shows an example of a relay frame for a
two stage overcurrent relay. The illustrated relay frame contains a measurement slot, two instantaneous
overcurrent slots (each representing one stage of the overcurrent relay) and a logic slot. Connections
between slots are illustrated by lines with arrowheads.

Figure 32.1.2: Typical relay frame

32.1.3 The relay type

The relay type associated with a specific relay frame, is defined by selecting a block definition for each
slot of the frame. Assigning a block definition to a slot converts the slot to a block, representing a
mathematical function which describes the behaviour of a physical element. For example, the type
of filter used for processing the input signals, or the type of relay operating characteristic. Because
many relays support more than one type of characteristic, a set of characteristics or functions can be
defined. In addition, the relay type specifies the ranges for the various relay settings, including whether
the parameters are set continuously or in discrete steps.

The relay type defines the library information for a specific manufacturer’s relay, which does not yet

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have any settings applied to it. The complete information described in the data sheet and manual is
contained in the relay type. An advantage of this split concept is the possibility of re-using a relay frame
for more than one relay type.

Figure 32.1.3 shows the type dialog associated with an instantaneous overcurrent slot as an example.
Parameters that normally cannot be influenced by the user, like the Pick-up Time, are defined in the
type as well.

Figure 32.1.3: Type dialog of an instantaneous overcurrent block

32.1.4 The relay element

The relay element models the actual relay in a power system. It refers to a relay type in the library,
which provides the complete relay structure including the setting ranges for all parameters. The actual
settings of the relay, for example, the reach or the pick-up settings, are part of the relay element settings,
considering the range limitations defined by the relay type.

CT and VT models are the input link between a relay element and the electrical network. For the
relay output, a tripping signal is sent directly from the relay element to a circuit breaker in the network.
To simulate busbar protection, differential protection, or tele-protection schemes, a relay element can
operate more than one circuit breaker.

Figure 32.1.4 shows the block element dialog belonging to the type dialog in Figure 32.1.3.

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 32.2. HOW TO DEFINE A PROTECTION SCHEME IN POWERFACTORY

Figure 32.1.4: Element dialog of an instantaneous overcurrent relay

32.2 How to define a protection scheme in PowerFactory

This section describes the procedures necessary for defining a protection scheme within PowerFactory.
It begins with a brief overview of the procedure followed by detailed instructions for how to define
protection devices within the PowerFactory model.

32.2.1 Overview

Before starting the modelling of a protection scheme, it is necessary to construct a model of the network
to be protected. See Section 11.2.

A protection scheme is defined by adding relays (or fuses) and their associated instrument transformers
at appropriate places within the network model. After adding the device models, the settings can
be manually adjusted, by using the automated coordination tools and plots, or by importing the relay
settings directly from StationWare (refer to Section 23.15).

The PowerFactory protection modelling features have been designed to support the use of “generic”
relays or “detailed” models of relays based on manufacturer specific devices.

For “generic” relays, PowerFactory includes the DIgSILENT Library containing some predefined generic
relays, fuses and instrument transformers that can be used to design schemes without requiring specific
details of a particular relay manufacturer’s range of products. This can be useful during the early stages
of the definition of a protection scheme. By creating a model with generic protection devices, the user
can confirm the general functionality of a scheme before relay procurement decisions are finalised.

For detailed definition and analysis of protection schemes, it is recommended to use detailed relay
manufacturer specific models. DIgSILENT offers many such models in the global DIgSILENT Library.
Of course, with thousands of different relay models in existence and more being created, in some
instances a model will not exist. In such cases, advanced users can define their own relay models or
contact DIgSILENT support for further advice.

The following section will explain how to add predefined protective devices (generic or manufacturer
specific) to a network model.

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32.2.2 Adding protective devices to the network model

Protection devices in PowerFactory must be placed within cubicles (refer to Section 4.6.4 for more
information on cubicles). There are several methods to add or edit the protection devices in a cubicle:

1. Through the protection single line diagram. Refer to Section 32.2.3.

2. Right-clicking on a switch-symbol (New devices):
(a) Right-click a switch symbol in the single line graphic as illustrated in Figure 32.2.1. This will
show a context menu.
(b) Choose Devices → Relay/Fuse/Current Transformer/Voltage Transformer → New. . . . A dia-
log for the chosen device will appear.
3. Right-clicking a switch symbol (Show All Devices):
(a) Right-click a switch symbol in the single line graphic as illustrated in Figure 32.2.1. This will
show a context menu.
(b) Choose the option Devices → Show All Devices. A dialog showing the devices currently
within the cubicle will appear.
(c) Click the icon. A dialog will appear.
(d) Choose the desired device type.
(e) Click OK and the dialog for the new device will appear.

4. Through the protected device (line, transformer, load etc):

(a) Double-click the target element to protect. A dialog showing the device basic data should
appear.
(b) Click the button next to the end of element where you want to place the protective device.
For a line element this will say “Terminal i/j” and for a transformer this will say “HV/LV-side”.
A menu will appear. See Figure 32.2.2 for example.
(c) Click Devices → Show All Devices.
(d) Click the icon. A dialog will appear.
(e) Choose the desired device type.
(f) Click OK and the dialog for the new device will appear.

5. Through the substation:

(a) Open a detailed graphic of the substation. Refer Section 11.2.7 for more information on
substation objects.
(b) Right-click the specific part of the substation where you would like to add the relay. A context
menu will appear. See Figure 32.2.3 for an example substation showing possible locations
where protection devices can reside.
(c) Choose Devices → Relay/Fuse/Current Transformer/Voltage Transformer → New. . . or De-
vices → Show All Devices and follow the remaining steps from 2b or 3c respectively. The
areas which can be right-clicked in a typical detailed substation graphic are ringed in Fig-
ure 32.2.3.

After completing one of the methods above, the created device also must be configured. Usually
this involves selecting a type and entering settings. Further information about configuring overcurrent
protection device elements is explained in Section 32.3 and distance protection devices in Section 32.5.

Note: When adding a protection device by right-clicking on a switch (Method 2), ensure the element
connected to the switch is not already selected. Otherwise, you will create devices at both ends
of the element. If you select the switch successfully, only half of the connected element will be
marked when the context menu appears.

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Figure 32.2.1: Adding a new relay to a single line diagram

Figure 32.2.2: Editing line protection devices

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Figure 32.2.3: Adding a new protective device to a detailed substation graphic

32.2.3 Graphical representations of protection devices in single line diagrams

Depending on the task at hand it may be useful to show graphical representations of relay models in
one or more single line diagrams. Users will commonly find themselves in one of two positions:

1) The network model already contains the protection devices of interest and the user simply want to
show the already existing devices in the single line diagram.

or

2) The user is about to start the process of adding new protection devices to the network model and
they wish to add graphical representations of the protection devices to the single line diagram as part
of this set-up process.

In the first instance, existing protection devices located within cubicles can be manually or automatically
added to the diagram using the Diagram Layout Tool tool (refer to Section 11.6).

In the second instance, protection devices can be added to the model as described in the remainder of
this section.

32.2.3.1 How to add relays to the protection single line diagram

To add a relay to the protection single line diagram:

1. Open an existing network diagram.

2. Click on the button on the drawing toolbar.

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3. Click on the cubicle or switch where the relay should be placed.

4. Optional: click and drag to reposition the relay to an alternative location.

Note: The relay icon in the protection diagram can also be resized. Select the relay and then click and
drag from the corner of the device.

32.2.3.2 How to add current transformers to the protection single line diagram

To add a current transformer to the single line diagram:

1. Open an existing network diagram.

2. Click on the button on the drawing toolbar.

3. Click on the cubicle or switch where the device should be placed.
4. Click on the relay to connect the secondary side of the CT.

Note: Before placing current transformers in the single line diagram it is recommended to first place the
relays to which the secondary side of the device has to be connected, in the diagram.

32.2.3.3 How to add voltage transformers to the protection single line diagram

To add a voltage transformer to the single line diagram:

1. Open an existing network diagram.

2. Click on the button on the drawing toolbar.

3. Click on the bus where the primary side of the VT should connect.
4. Click on the relay to connect the secondary side of the VT.

Note: Before placing voltage transformers in the single line diagram it is recommended to first place
the relays to which the secondary side of the device has to be connected, in the diagram.

32.2.3.4 How to add combined instrument transformer to the protection single line diagram

To add a combined instrument transformer to the single line diagram:

1. Open an existing network diagram.

2. Click on the button on the drawing toolbar.

3. Click on the cubicle or switch where the device should be placed.
4. Click on the relay to connect the secondary side of the CT.

5. Click on the relay to connect the secondary side of the VT.

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Note: Before placing combined instrument transformers in the single line diagram it is recommended
to first place the relays to which the secondary side of the device has to be connected, in the
diagram.

32.2.3.5 How to connect an instrument transformer to multiple relays

In some cases it might be desirable to connect a CT or VT to multiple relays. To do so follow these

steps:

1. Open an existing network diagram.

2. Click on the button on the drawing toolbar.

3. Click on the CT or VT that requires another connection.
4. Optional: Click at multiple points within the single line diagram to create a more complicated
connection path.
5. Click on the target relay for the connection.

32.2.4 Locating protection devices within the network model

Protection devices can be added to the network model by placing them in the single line diagram directly
as described in Section 32.2.3. However, in cases where the devices are not drawn directly in the single
line diagram, there are several methods to highlight the location of the devices in the single line diagram.
This section describes these methods.

32.2.4.1 Colouring the single line diagram to show protection devices

The single line diagram can be coloured to indicate the location of protective devices. To do this:

1. Click the button on the graphics toolbar. The diagram colouring dialog will appear.
2. Check the box for 3. Other.
3. Select Secondary Equipment from the first drop down menu.
4. Select Relays, Fuses, Current and Voltage Transformers from the second drop down menu.
5. Click OK to update the diagram colouring. The cubicles containing protection devices will be
coloured according to the legend settings.

32.2.4.2 Locating protective devices using the Network Model Manager

To locate protection devices using the Network Model Manager follow these steps:

1. Open the Network Model Manager by clickin on the icon from the main toolbar.

2. Click for relays, for fuses, for current transformers or for voltage transformers on the
left side of the window to show a list of all calculation relevant objects of one class in a tabular list
on the right side of the window.
3. Right-click the icon of one or more objects in the list. A context menu will appear.
4. Select Mark in Graphic. The cubicle/s containing the object/s will be highlighted in the single line
diagram.

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32.3 Basics of an overcurrent protection scheme

Section 32.2.2, explained the initial steps required to add a protective device to the network model.
When a new device is created within a network model there are a number of parameters to define in the
dialog which appears. This section will describe the basic steps required to specify these parameters
for overcurrent relays and fuses.

The following section, 32.4 describes the use of the main tool for analysing overcurrent protection
schemes, the time-overcurrent diagram.

32.3.1 Overcurrent relay model setup - basic data page

The basic data page in the relay model (ElmRelay ) dialog is where the basic configuration of the relay
is completed. Generally it is required to complete the following steps:

• Select the relay type (generic or manufacturer specific). Refer to Section 32.3.1.1.
• Select the instrumentation transformers. Refer to Section 32.3.1.2

• Enter the relay settings. Refer to Section 32.3.1.3.

32.3.1.1 Selecting the relay type

To select a generic relay type from the relay basic data page:

1. Click on the icon. A menu will appear.

2. Choose Select Type. . . . A data page will appear. Click on the button DIgSILENT Library to
access the global library on the left side of the page.

3. Navigate into the sub-folders under “Relays” and select the required relay type.
4. Click OK to assign the relay type. Note that the basic data page of the relay will now show many
different slots which are based on the configuration of the relay type.
To select a project relay type from the relay basic data page:

1. Click on the icon. A menu will appear.

2. Choose Select Type. . . . A data page will appear. Click on the button Project Library to access
the project library on the left side of the page.
3. Locate the relay either within the local library, or within any “Relay Library” in the user area.

4. Click OK to assign the relay type. Note that the basic data page of the relay will now show many
different slots. These are the functional protection blocks such as time-overcurrent, measurement,
differential, impedance and so on, which contain the relay settings. The number and types of slots
within the relay is determined by the relay type selected.

32.3.1.2 Selecting the relay instrument transformers

If there were some instrument transformers within the cubicle when the relay was created, then these
will automatically be assigned to the appropriate slots within the relay. However, if it is desired to select
an alternative instrument transformer then follow these steps:

1. Right-click the cell containing the instrument transformer. A menu will appear.

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2. Choose Select Element/Type. . . . A data browser will appear showing the contents of the relay
cubicle.
3. Select an alternative instrument transformer here, or navigate to another cubicle within your
network model.
4. Click OK to choose the instrument transformer.
If the cubicle where the relay was created does not contain any current transformers, then a Create CT
will appear at the bottom of the dialog. If the relay also has at least one VT slot, a Create VT button will
also appear. By clicking on these buttons it is possible to create a VT or CT and have them automatically
assigned to vacant slots within the relay. For instructions for configuring a CT refer to Section 32.3.3
and for configuring a VT refer to Section 32.3.4.

32.3.1.3 Entering the relay settings

To edit relay settings:

1. Locate the desired slot that you would like to modify. You may need to scroll down to locate some
slots in complicated relay models.
2. Double-click the target slot. The dialog for the clicked element will appear.

3. Enter or modify the settings.

32.3.1.4 Other fields on the relay basic data page

There are several other fields on the relay basic data page:

Application This field is for documentation and searching purposes only.

Device Number This field is also for documentation and searching purposes only.
Location By default these fields give information about the relay location within the network model
based upon the cubicle that it is stored within. However, it is possible to select an alternative
Reference cubicle. If an alternative reference cubicle is selected, then the relay will control the
switch within this cubicle. Furthermore, changing the reference location will also affect the auto-
matic assignment of instrument transformers and the cubicle where any instrument transformers
created using the Create VT or Create CT buttons will be placed.

32.3.2 Overcurrent relay model setup - max/min fault

currents tab

This tab can be used to record the minimum and maximum fault currents likely to be observed at
the relay location. This information can be useful when coordinating the relay characteristic using a
time overcurrent plot. The minimum values are stored for reference purposes only. In the case of the
maximum currents these settings can be used to limit the extent to which the tripping characteristics
of the relay will be shown in time overcurrent plots. For example if a relay is likely to see a maximum
current of 50kA there is little benefit in showing the tripping time of the relay at values above 50kA. This
extended part of the characteristic is extraneous and will simply clutter the plot. This visualisation is a
property of the time overcurrent plot itself and can be configured using the Cut Curves At setting in the
time overcurrent plot settings dialog described in section 32.4.7.

The values can be entered either manually or calculated automatically as follows. For maximum currents
the Calculate Max. Fault Currents button button can be pressed, in which case PowerFactory will
automatically calculate maximum short circuit currents at the local busbar according to the short circuit
method specified in the referenced Short-Circuit Command. For Maximum Phase fault current, a 3

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phase fault current will be used, whilst for the maximum earth fault current a single phase to ground fault
will be used. The calculated currents will automatically be assigned to the corresponding parameters.

For the minimum currents, the individual Get I branch buttons can be pressed. When these buttons are
pressed the current flowing in the branch during the active calculation will be extracted and assigned to
the corresponding parameter in the ElmRelay object. For example, if a load flow calculation is executed
before pressing the button, then the load flow current flowing in the relay’s branch will be entered as the
minimum current.

The Coordination Paths section of the dialog provide options based on a topological search extending
outwards from the relay location which can be used to differentiate between network elements located
in the forward direction relative to elements located in the reverse direction. The show buttons bring up
a browser containing network elements located in the associated direction, whilst the mark buttons can
be used to mark those elements in single line diagrams.

32.3.3 Configuring the current transformer

A new current transformer (CT) can be created as described in Section 32.2.2 (Adding protective
devices to the network model). Alternatively a CT can be created by using the Create CT button in
the relay model dialog.

The process of configuring the CT is:

1. Select/Create the CT type. Refer to Section 32.3.3.1 for information about the CT type.
2. Optional: If you would like to setup the CT to measure a location other than its parent cubicle or as
an auxiliary CT, you can choose this through the Reference parameter. Refer to Section 32.3.3.2
for further instructions.
3. Optional: Alter the Orientation. Positive current is measured when the flow is away from the node
towards the branch and the Orientation is set to Branch.
4. Set the Primary ratio through the drop down menu next to Tap. The available ratios are determined
by the selected CT type. If you choose the option Detect primary tap, PowerFactory will try
to automatically determine an appropriate tap based on the rating of the associated primary
equipment. If no type is selected the only ratio available will be 1A.
5. Set the Secondary ratio through the drop down menu next to Tap. The available ratios are
determined by the selected CT type.
6. Optional: Select the number of phases from the drop down menu next to No. Phases.
7. Optional: Choose a Y or D connection for the secondary side winding. This field is only available
for a 2- or 3-phase CT.
8. Optional: If the CT is 1 or 2-phase, the measured phases must be selected. These can be:
• a, b or c phase current;
• 𝑁 = 3 · 𝐼0 (1-phase CT’s only); or
• 𝐼0 (1-phase CT’s only)
9. Optional: If the CT is 3-phase, select the Phase Rotation. This defines how the phases of the
secondary side map to the phases of the primary side. For example, if you wanted the A and B
Phases to be flipped on the secondary side of the transformer, then you would choose a Phase
Rotation of “b-a-c”.
10. Optional: If the transformer includes additional cores, these can be modelled by selecting the Add
Core button. Added Current Transformer Core objects, will be stored inside the parent current
transformer object and can be easily accessed either by pressing the Edit Cores button or by
navigating and editing entries in the Additional Cores table which appears when the first core is
added. Additional core StaCtcore objects should reference objects of the type class TypCtcore,
see section 32.3.3.1. If no type is selected a ratio of 1:1 is assumed.

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If it is desired to model CT saturation, saturation information about the CT can be entered on the
“Additional Data” page of the CT element. This information is used only when the “detailed model” tick
box is selected, otherwise it is ignored by the calculation engine.

32.3.3.1 Configuring the current transformer type

The current transformer type dialog defines the range of ratios available to a referencing CT object.
The information about the connection of phases (Y or D) is defined in the CT element as discussed in
Section 32.3.3.

A CT element StaCt can be linked to two alternative type classes. The standard CT type class is TypCt
but alternatively a current transformer core type class TypCtcore can be selected. Both type classes
are suitable for most purposes and can both be used to represent multicore CTs as well as single core
CTs both multi and single phase. However, there may be circumstances, for example for data exchange
between PowerFactory and other software or vice versa where one type class may be preferred over
the other. Please note the following key differences between the two representations:

1. For a TypCt the represented winding ratios depend on the specified primary and secondary tap
ratings. The specific ratio in use depends on the user’s selection in the associated CT element
object StaCt.
2. For a TypCtcore the represented winding ratios are independent of the primary rating. The winding
ratios instead depend on the relevant ratio settings and the specified secondary rating. The
specific ratio in use depends on the user’s selection in the associated CT element object StaCt.
3. A CT element object (StaCt can refer to either a TypCt or a TypCtcore object.
4. A StaCtcore object can only refer to a TypCtcore type object. It cannot refer to a TypCt type object.
5. A StaCt object can store additional StaCtcore objects within it. This is not the case for StaCtcore
objects.
To add additional Primary or Secondary Taps for a TypCt object:
1. Right-click one of the cells in the tabular list of available taps. A menu will appear.
2. Choose Insert Row/s, Append Row/s or Append n Rows to add one or more rows to the table.
3. Enter the ratio of the tap. Note the tabular list must be in ascending order.
4. On the additional information page update the fields with the datasheet data.
To add additional ratio options for a TypCtcore object:

1. Specify a primary and secondary current rating for the device as a whole.
2. Right-click in one of the cells or in empty space in the tabular list of available ratios. A context
menu will appear.
3. Choose Insert Row/s, Append Row/s or Append n Rows to add one or more rows to the table.
4. Enter the new ratio to be considered. Note the tabular list must be in ascending order.
5. On the additional information page update the fields with the datasheet data.
For the additional data page the following accuracy parameters can be selected:
• The accuracy class
• The accuracy limit factor
• either
– The apparent power (acc. to IEC)
– The burden impedance (ANSI-C)

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– The voltage at the acc. limit (ANSI-C)

For more information on the CT model please refer to the measurement devices section of the Technical
References Overview Document.

32.3.3.2 Configuring a CT as an auxiliary unit, measuring circulating current in the delta wind-
ing of a 3 winding transformer or changing the measurement location

By default the CT measures the current within its parent cubicle. The Location fields Busbar and Branch
show information about the measurement location automatically. However, it is possible to configure the
CT to measure current in a different location. To do this:

1. Click the icon next to Reference. A data browser will appear.

2. Select either another cubicle, a switch, a three winding transformer or another CT where you
would like to measure current.

If you install a current transformer in one of the connecting cubicles of a delta winding of a three winding
transformer then if required, you can select the transformer itself as the reference location. The CT will
then measure the circulating current in the corresponding delta winding of the transformer instead of
measuring the line currents or I0 currents derived from the line currents. In this case the CT will interact
with the I0delta_ signals of the winding. With such a connection it is assumed that the CT will be single
phase and measuring I0 so there is no need to for any further configuration of the device.

If you select another CT, then this CT becomes an auxiliary CT with the final ratio from the primary
circuit to the CT secondary side the product of the ratios of the two CTs - this is indicated in the field
Complete Ratio. If you select another cubicle or switch then the CT will measure current at location of
the selected switch or cubicle.

32.3.4 Configuring the voltage transformer

A voltage transformer (VT) can be created as described in Section 32.2.2. Alternatively a VT can be
created by using the Create VT button in the relay element dialog.

The process of configuring the VT is then:

1. Select the VT type. Refer to Section 32.3.4.1 for information about the VT type.
2. Optional: Select the secondary winding type. If no type is selected, the available ratios will
be 1, 100, 110, 120 and 130. More information about the secondary type can be found in
Section 32.3.4.2.
3. Optional: If you would like to setup the VT to measure a location other than its parent cubicle or as
an auxiliary VT, you can choose this through the Reference parameter. Refer to Section 32.3.4.4
for further instructions.
4. Set the Primary voltage rating through the drop down menu in the Tap selection field. The available
ratios are determined by the selected VT type. If no type is selected, the available ratios will be 1,
100, 110, 120 and 130.

5. Set the Secondary voltage rating through the drop down menu in the Tap Selection field. The
available ratios are determined by the selected secondary winding type.
6. Specify the number of phases for the VT. If an open delta VT arrangement as illustrated in figure
32.3.1 is required then the number of phases should be specified as 1 and N chosen for the phase.

7. Optional: For 3 phase VTs Choose a Y or V (broken delta) connection for the winding connection.
A V connection is illustrated in figure 32.3.2. Note that this selection effectively configures both
the primary and secondary connections of the VT since it is assumed that a V connected primary

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winding will always correspond with a V connected secondary, likewise a Y connected primary
winding will always correspond with a Y connected secondary.
8. Optional: Click Additional Secondary Windings to open a dialog where extra secondary wind-
ings can be added. See Section 32.3.4.3 for more information about configuring additional sec-
ondary windings.
When a VT is created it is stored in the cubicle that was right-clicked or the cubicle the relay is stored
in.

Figure 32.3.1: The open delta (O) winding connection

Figure 32.3.2: The V winding connection

32.3.4.1 The voltage transformer type

The voltage transformer type defines the datasheet data of the voltage transformer along with a range
of potential voltage ratings for the primary winding. The voltage transformer can be configured as:

• Ideal Voltage Transformer. In this case no saturation or transformer leakage impedance values
are considered and the voltage transformer has a perfect transformation of primary measured
values into secondary quantities.
• Voltage Transformer. In this case saturation and transformer leakage effects are modelled
according to data entered on the Transformer Data page.

• Capacitive Voltage Transformer. In this case, the VT is modelled as a CVT according to the
parameters entered on the Transformer Data and Additional CVT Data page.
For more information on the VT model please refer to the measurement devices section of the Technical
References Overview Document.

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To configure additional Primary Taps:

1. Right-click one of the cells in the tabular list of available taps. A menu will appear.

2. Choose Insert Row/s, Append Row/s or Append n Rows to add one or more rows to the table.
3. Enter the ratio of the tap. Note the tabular list must be in ascending order.

32.3.4.2 Configuring the secondary winding type

The secondary winding is defined by the secondary winding type, and is similar to the primary VT type
where multiple Secondary Tap ratios can be defined. If a secondary winding is not selected, it has the
standard tap settings of 1, 100, 110, 120 and 130 V available.

The burden and power factor on this page are not calculation relevant and for information purposes only.
Therefore, the secondary winding type is always treated as an ideal transformer.

32.3.4.3 Additional VT secondary winding types

In some cases a VT has multiple secondary windings. For example, some VTs might have a regular
winding and then also an ’open delta’ winding for measuring the zero sequence voltage. It is possible
to configure a PowerFactory VT in the same way. To define an additional secondary winding type:

1. Click the VT element Additional Secondary Windings button.

2. Click the button. A dialog for the Secondary Voltage Transformer will appear.

3. Click the button.

4. Choose Select Type. . . and click on the Project Library button. The type is a secondary winding
type as described in Section 32.3.4.2.
5. Choose the Tap.

6. Select the Connection.

32.3.4.4 Configuring the VT as an auxiliary VT or changing the measurement location

By default the VT measures the voltage within its parent cubicle. The Location fields Busbar and Branch
show information about the measurement location automatically. However, it is possible to configure the
VT to measure in a different location. To do this:

1. Click the icon next to Location. A data browser will appear.

2. Select either another cubicle, a bus or another VT where you would like to measure voltage. If
you select another VT, then this VT becomes an auxiliary VT with the final ratio from the primary
circuit to the VT secondary side the product of the ratios of the two VTs - this is indicated in the
field Complete Ratio. If you select another cubicle or busbar then the VT will measure voltage at
location of the selected switch or cubicle.

32.3.5 Configuring a combined Instrument transformer

A combined instrument transformer is configured in much the same way as the standard current trans-
former and voltage transformer models described in the previous sections. The main difference is that
this model combines references to CT and VT type class objects within a single station element class
namely the StaCombi class.

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This has various benefits:

1. Real network combined instrument transformers can be more closely represented.

2. Facilitates easier data exchange between PowerFactory and other softwares.

3. Simplification of the network model is possible by grouping CTs and VTs into a single element
object.

Reference to the previous sections 32.3.3 and 32.3.4 provide detailed handling descriptions which can
be easily extrapolated for application to this model.

32.3.6 How to add a fuse to the network model

In PowerFactory the fuse element operates to some extent like an inverse time over-current relay with
a 1/1 CT. The fuse will “melt” when the current in the fuse element exceeds the current specified by the
fuse’s melt characteristic.

To add a fuse to the network model:

1. Either:
(a) Right-click a target cubicle and select the option Devices → Fuse→ New. . . . This is an
internal (or implicit fuse) located within the cubicle. Or:
(b) Add an explicit fuse model to the network by clicking the and connecting the device as
you would connect a line or transformer.

2. On the fuse dialog, click the button and choose Select Type. . . . A data page with the following
buttons will appear, select either:
(a) DIgSILENT Library. A global library will appear on the left side of the page showing you a list
of built-in fuses where you can select an appropriate one; or
(b) Project Library. A dialog will appear showing you the local project library where you can
choose a fuse type that you have created yourself.
3. Adjust other options on the basic data page. The options are as follows:
Closed If this is checked, the fuse will be in the closed (non melted) state for the calculation.
Open all phases automatically If this option is enabled, then should the fuse be determined
to melt, PowerFactory will automatically open all three phases on the switch during a time
domain simulation or short circuit sweep. This field has no effect on the load-flow or short-
circuit calculations.
No. of Phases This field specifies whether the fuse consists of three separate fuses (3 phase),
two fuses (2 phase) or a single fuse (1 phase). Note, when the one or two phase option is
selected and the fuse is modelled explicitly in the network model, the actual phase connec-
tivity of the fuse is defined within the cubicles that connect to the fuse. When the fuse is
modelled implicitly, a selection box will appear that allows you to select which phase/s the
fuse connects to.
Fuse type This field is used for information and reporting purposes only.
Device Number This field is used for information and reporting purposes only.
Compute Time Using Many fuses are defined using a minimum melt curve and a total clear
curve as illustrated in Figure 32.3.3 - the idea is that for a given current, the fuse would
generally melt at some time between these two times. In PowerFactory it is possible to
choose whether the trip/melt time calculations are based on the minimum melt time or the
total clear time.

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Figure 32.3.3: Fuse melt characteristics

32.3.6.1 Fuse model setup - other pages

On the VDE/IEC Short-Circuit and Complete Short-Circuit pages there is the option to configure the
fuse Break Time. This variable is used in the short circuit calculation of “Ib” when the Used Break Time
variable is set to local, or min. of local. Refer to Chapter 25 for more information on the calculation of
short circuits in PowerFactory.

On the Optimal Power Flow page, there is the option Exclude from Optimisation which if checked means
that the fuse will be ignored by the OPF and open tie optimisation algorithms. See Chapter 41 for further
information.

On the Reliability page, the fuse can be configured for Fault separation and power restoration. These
options are explained in detail in Chapter 46.

32.3.7 Basic relay blocks for overcurrent relays

Section 32.1 explained that all relay models contain slots which are placeholders for block (protection
function) definitions. There are many types of protection blocks in PowerFactory and each type has a
different function. Furthermore, there are various options and parameters within each of these blocks
that enable mimicking in detail the functionality offered by many relays. The relay model is completed
by interconnecting these different slots containing block definitions in various ways. Hence it is possible
to produce relay models with a large variety of operating characteristics. Advanced users are able to
define their own types of protection device. The creation of user defined protection devices is covered
in the Section 32.18.

The blocks contained within a relay are listed in the slot definition section of the relay model dialog. In

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general the user will need to define parameters within these relay blocks. The settings dialog can be
reached by double clicking on the block of interest in the net elements column.

If the user is interested in viewing a graphical representation of the interconnection of slots for a
particular relay then the user should navigate to relay type of interest in the Data Manager. By right-
clicking on this relay type icon and selecting Diagrams → Show Diagram, a graphical representation of
the relay frame will appear in a new window.

The following sections provide a brief overview of some of the basic protection blocks that can be used
to develop a relay model in PowerFactory. For more information on these blocks please refer to the
Protection Devices Library.

32.3.7.1 The measurement block

The measurement block takes the real and imaginary components of the secondary voltages and
currents from the VTs and CTs, and processes these into the quantities used by other protection blocks
in the relay model. Quantities calculated by the measurement block include absolute values of each
current and voltage phase and the positive and negative sequence components of voltage and current.

Depending on how the measurement block type is configured, it also allows for the selection of different
nominal currents and voltages. For example, this feature can be utilised to support relays that have
both 1A and 5A versions. If a relay does not need a nominal voltage, for instance an overcurrent relay
without directional elements, or if there is only one nominal value to choose from, the nominal voltage
and/or current selection field is disabled.

For EMT simulations, the measurement block type can also be configured for different types of signal
processing. This determines what type of algorithm is used for translating the input current and voltage
waveforms into phasor quantities for use by the protection blocks. Various DFT and FFT functions along
with harmonic filtering are available.

32.3.7.2 The directional block

A detailed discussion of the principles of directional protection is outside the scope of this user manual.
The reader is encouraged to refer to a protection text for more information on the general principles. A
very brief high level overview is presented in the following paragraphs.

In PowerFactory, there are two directional blocks the “RelDir” and the “RelDisDir”. The “RelDir” block
is the basic direction block and is typically used by over-current relay models to determine the direction
of the current flow. It provides a forward or reverse direction determination signal which can be fed into
subsequent overcurrent blocks. The block can also send a trip signal.

In its normal operating configuration, the block is determining the direction by comparing the angle
between a “polarisation” voltage and an “operating” current phasor. Various polarisation methods are
supported by the block including common ones such as self and cross polarisation. The block also has
a so-called Maximum Torque Angle (MTA). This is the angle by which the polarising voltage is rotated.
Consequently, the forward direction is determined by the MTA ±Angle Operating Sector (often 180°).
This principle is illustrated in Figure 32.3.4.

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 32.3. BASICS OF AN OVERCURRENT PROTECTION SCHEME

Figure 32.3.4: Directional relay principle diagram

The polarisation quantity 𝐴𝑝𝑜𝑙 is rotated over the angle 𝑀𝑇 (MTA). The rotated polarisation quantity 𝐴′𝑝𝑜𝑙
±AOS defines a half plane which forms the forward operating plane. The block will produce a tripping
signal if the operating quantity is detected in the selected direction, and if it exceeds the threshold
operating current, illustrated by the semi-circle Figure 32.3.4.

The second type of directional block in PowerFactory is the “RelDisDir”, this is normally used with
distance protection relays and is discussed in Section 32.5.3.8.

32.3.7.3 The instantaneous overcurrent block

The instantaneous overcurrent block is a protection block that trips based on current exceeding a set
threshold (pickup current setting). The block also supports the inclusion of an optional delay time
and directional features. Hence this block can be used to represent instantaneous, definite time and
directional overcurrent relay functionality. The available setting ranges for the pickup and the time delay
are defined within the type. The relay characteristic is shown in Figure 32.3.5. The total tripping time is
the sum of the delay time and the pickup time also configured within the relay type.

Figure 32.3.5: Instantaneous overcurrent tripping area

The block will not reset until the current drops under the reset level, which is specified by the relay type

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in percent of the pickup current: Ireset=IpsetKr/100%. See Figure 32.3.6 for a typical timing diagram.

Figure 32.3.6: Instantaneous overcurrent timing diagram

32.3.7.4 The time overcurrent block

The time-overcurrent block is a protection block that trips based on current exceeding a threshold
defined by an I-t characteristic. Most relays support the selection of several different I-t characteristics.
These characteristics can be shifted for higher or lower delay times by altering the time settings or
shifted for higher or lower currents by altering the pickup current. The ranges for these two settings
and the characteristics of the I-t curve are defined within the block type. Typical curves are shown in
Figure 32.3.7.

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Figure 32.3.7: I-t curves for different time dials

The pickup current defines the nominal value Ip which is used to calculate the tripping time. The I-t
curve definition states a minimum and a maximum per unit current. Lower currents will not trip the relay
(infinite tripping time), higher currents will not decrease the tripping time any further. These limits are
shown in Figure 32.3.8.

Figure 32.3.8: I-t curve limits

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The pickup current may be defined by the relay type to be a per unit value, or a relay current. The
nominal current defined by the measurement block (refer to Section 32.3.7.1) is used to calculate Ip. In
the case of a per unit value, the relay current value already equals Ip.

Altering the pickup current will thus not change the I-t curve, but will scale the measured current to
different per unit values. The following example may illustrate this:

• Suppose the minimum current defined by the I-t curve is imin=1.1 I/Ip.
• Suppose the measurement unit defines Inom=5.0 rel.A.
• Suppose pickup current Ipset=1.5 p.u.
– relay will not trip for 𝐼 < 1.10 · 1.5 · 5.0𝑟𝑒𝑙.𝐴 = 8.25𝑟𝑒𝑙.𝐴
• Suppose pickup current Ipset=10.0 rel.A
– relay will not trip for 𝐼 < 1.1 · 10.0𝑟𝑒𝑙.𝐴 = 11.0𝑟𝑒𝑙.𝐴

32.3.7.5 The logic block

The logic block in PowerFactory is responsible for two functions in the relay. Firstly, it combines the
internal trip signals from the other functional blocks, either with logical AND or OR functions and
produces an overall trip status and time for the relay in a single output. Secondly, it controls one or
more switches in the power system model that will be opened by the relay in the time determined by the
logical combination of the various tripping signals. If the relay is located in a cubicle and no switch is
explicitly specified within the logic block, the default behaviour is for the logic block to open the switch
within that cubicle.

32.4 The time-overcurrent plot

The time-overcurrent plot (PltOvercurrent) can be used for graphical analysis of an overcurrent pro-
tection scheme to show multiple relay and fuse characteristics on one diagram. Additionally, thermal
damage curves for lines and transformers can be added to the plot along with motor starting curves.
These plots can be used to determine relay tripping times and hence assist with protection coordination
and the determination of relay settings and fuses’ characteristics.

For simplified reporting of protection schemes, the time-overcurrent plot also supports visualisation of
the network diagram next to the plot like that illustrated in Figure 32.4.1. This diagram also shows the rel-
evant protection relays and instrumentation transformers with a colour scheme that matches the colour
settings of the main diagram to enable easy identification of protection devices, their characteristics and
their position in the network being analysed.

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Figure 32.4.1: Time-overcurrent plot showing the auto-generated graphic for the protection path

32.4.1 How to create a time-overcurrent plot

There are five different methods to create a time-overcurrent plot (VisOcplot). You can create this plot
by right-clicking the cubicle, the power system object, the protection device or the protection path. The
first three methods do not show the protection single line diagram to the left of the plot, while the last
two methods show it. These methods are explained in further detail in the following sections.

1. From the cubicle

(a) Right-click a cubicle containing overcurrent relays or fuses. The context menu will appear.
(b) Select the option Plots → Insert Time-Overcurrent Plot. PowerFactory will create a diagram
showing the time-overcurrent plot for all protection devices and fuses within the cubicle. See
Section 32.4.7 for how to configure the presentation of the plot.
2. From the power system object (line, cable, transformer)
(a) Select one or more objects such as transformers or lines. The context menu will appear.
(b) Select the option Plots → Insert Time-Overcurrent Plot. PowerFactory will create a diagram
showing the time-overcurrent plot with the defined cable/line or transformer overload charac-
teristic.
3. From the protection device
(a) Open a tabular view of the protection device either from the list of calculation relevant objects
(Network Model Manager) or in the Data Manager.
(b) Right-click the icon. A context menu will appear.
(c) Select Plots → Insert Time-Overcurrent Plot.

4. From the network graphic

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(a) Select the elements from the network graphic to be included in the protection path. For more
information regarding the graphical selection, please refer to the Section 14.10.
(b) Right-click on any element from the selection. A context menu will appear.
(c) Select Plots → Insert Time-Overcurrent Plot.
(d) As a result, a path will automatically be defined for the selected graphics and an auto-
generated schematic single-line diagram of the path will also be displayed to the left side
of the time-overcurrent plot.
5. From the protection path
(a) Navigate to the protection path in the Data Manager.
(b) Right-click the icon. A context menu will appear.
(c) Select Plots → Insert Time-Overcurrent Plot. Refer to Section 14.10 for more information on
defining paths. In this case, an auto-generated schematic single-line diagram of the path will
also be displayed to the left of the time-overcurrent plot. Additionally, multiple paths can be
selected by using the left mouse button in combination with the CTRL Key.

With the last two methods, it is possible to create the time-overcurrent plots for multiple paths on
separate pages or a single page. After selecting the desired paths, press the CTRL key and Select
Plots → Insert Time-Overcurrent Plot simultaneously to display the plots on separate pages. If the
CTRL key is not pressed then the plots will be displayed on the same page.

In methods 1-3, it is also possible to select the option Plots → Add to Time-overcurrent plot instead of
Plots → Insert Time-Overcurrent Plot. This will open a list of previously defined over current plots from
which any one can be selected to add the selected device to.

Note: To show the relay locations and thus to visualise cubicles containing relays, you can set the
colour representation of the single-line diagram to Relay Locations. If one of these locations is
then right-clicked, the option Plots → Insert Time-Overcurrent Plot is available.

32.4.2 Understanding the time-overcurrent plot

The time-overcurrent plot shows the following characteristics:

• Time-current characteristics of relays;
• Time-current characteristics of fuses, including optionally the minimum and maximum clearing
time;
• Damage curves of transformers, lines and cables;
• Motor starting curves; and
• The currents calculated by a short-circuit or load-flow analysis and the resulting tripping times of
the relays.
• If defined from a path, then the simplified single line graphic showing the main power system
objects, the protection devices and instrumentation transformers is displayed on the left of the
diagram.
See Figure 32.4.1 for an example.

32.4.3 Showing the calculation results on the time-overcurrent plot

The time-overcurrent plot shows the results of the short-circuit or load-flow analysis automatically as a
vertical ’x-value’ line through the graph. Because the current ’seen’ by each device could be different

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(due to parallel paths, meshed networks etc), a current line is drawn for each device that measures
a unique current. If the intersection of the calculated current with the time-overcurrent characteristic
causes the shown characteristic to trip, then the intersection is labelled with the tripping time. These
lines automatically update when a new load-flow or short-circuit calculation is completed.

32.4.4 Displaying the grading margins

To show a ’grading margin’ line, which shows the difference between the tripping times of each protec-
tion device:

1. After executing the calculation, right-click on the time-overcurrent plot. A context menu will appear.

2. Select the option Show Grading Margins. A dialog box will appear.
3. Enter the desired position of the vertical line in the ’Value’ field. Note this can later be adjusted by
dragging with the mouse.
4. Optional: Adjust the curve Colour, Width and Style to your preferences.

5. Optional: Choose the ’type’ of the current from the radio selection control.
6. Optional: Select ’User-defined’ and enter a custom label for the curve.
7. Press OK to show the grading margins on the plot. An example with the grading margins shown
using the default blue coloured curve is shown in Figure 32.4.2

Figure 32.4.2: Time-overcurrent plot with grading margins displayed in blue

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Note: The displayed grading margins shown by this method are the calculated grading margins based
on the relay settings and the calculated current. ’Predicted’ grading margins can also be shown
when dragging the sub-characteristics to alter the settings. Refer to Section 32.4.11.2.

32.4.5 Adding a user defined permanent current line to the time-overcurrent

plot

There are two ways to create a permanent vertical line on the time-overcurrent plot:

1. From any existing calculated short-circuit or load-flow calculated line:

(a) Right-click the line. A context menu will appear.
(b) Choose the option Set user defined. The line will now remain on the diagram when the
calculation is reset or another calculation is completed.
(c) Optional: Double-click the user defined line to edit its colour, width, style and alter the
displayed label.
(d) Optional: It is possible to drag the line using the mouse to alter its position on the diagram.
2. A new line not based on an existing calculation:
(a) Right-click the time-overcurrent plot avoiding clicking on any existing curve or characteristic.
(b) Choose the option Add Intersection Line → x-Constant. . . . A dialog will appear that allows
you to configure the properties of the line.
(c) Optional: Adjust the line properties such as width, colour, style and set a user defined label.
(d) Press OK to add the line to the diagram.

32.4.6 Configuring the auto generated protection diagram

The auto-generated protection diagram that is created when a time-overcurrent diagram is generated
from the protection path (see option 5 in Section 32.4.1) can also be manually adjusted by the user.

To edit this graphic:

1. Right-click the protection diagram within the time-overcurrent plot;

2. Select the option Show diagram in new tab. A single line graphic showing the diagram will appear
in a new tab. The diagram can be edited like a regular PowerFactory single line diagram and it will
automatically update in the time-overcurrent plot following any changes.

32.4.7 Overcurrent plot options

To access the time-overcurrent plot settings, right-click the time-overcurrent plot and select Edit Shown
Data... or double-click on the time-overcurrent plot.

32.4.7.1 Curves

Elements Is a table used to specify the protection device and network elements which will be repre-
sented in the plot. An entire relay (ElmRelay) object potentially comprised of multiple elements each with
different characteristics may be selected or alternatively individual relay block elements representing a
single characteristic may be selected. Additionally, primary network elements such as transformers,
motors and cables can be selected so that their damage characteristics will be displayed in the plot.
Each line in the Curves table is used to specify an additional relay or element. For each selected
element, the way that its characteristic is displayed can be configured in the other columns of the table:

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• Visible: Used to toggle the visibility of the curves associated with the corresponding element.
• Element: Specifies the element for which the characteristics should be plotted.

• Colour/Style/Width/Fill Style: Settings allow the user to specify the general appearance of the
associated time overcurrent characteristic.
• Split Curve: Can be used to split protection characteristics. More information can be found in
Section 32.4.11.
• Label: Can be used to specify custom information in the plot legend.

Protection path. This option is used to specify a pre-defined protection path. The Capture Elements
button can then be used to choose elements from the selected protection path which are not listed in
the Elements table and whose characteristics are to be plotted on the time-overcurrent plot.

Show section of single line graphic. When a time-overcurrent plot is generated for a particular
protection path, then the single line diagram of that path is displayed together with the time-overcurrent
plot. The Show section of single line graphic checkbox is specifically used to show or hide the single
line graphic of the protection path in the time-overcurrent plot. The button Edit can be used to manually
adjust the single line diagram of the protection path as an alternative to the method described in the
section 32.4.6.

Plot Features. The option Show coordination results can be selected to display the characteristics of
protection devices after the Protection Coordination Assistant has calculated relevant settings based on
a predefined set of rules (see section 32.13). The Overcurrent Coordination Assistant tool stores the
results in a result file which can be selected in the Result File column of the Elements table. The Result
File column is only shown in the Elements table when the option Show coordination results is selected.
This allows the user to compare the newly calculated protection device settings with the original ones.
To display the original settings, no result file should be selected and to display the settings calculated
by the Overcurrent Coordination Assistant, the corresponding result file should be selected.

The option Select sub curves can be selected to show the following additional columns in the Elements
table:

• Direction: This option can be used to display the characterstics based on their configured tripping
direction. The option All displays all the characteristics of a protection device irrespective of
the tripping direction. However, the options Forward or Reverse can be selected to display only
characteristics where the corresponding tripping direction has been selected.
• Characteristics: This option defines whether or not the displayed characteristic includes the ad-
ditional circuit breaker delays. The default option All shows both the minimum clearing time
characteristic (not including the breaker delay) and the total clearing time characteristic (including
the breaker delay). Alternatively, it is possible to display only one of these characteristics. An
example is highlighted in Figure 32.4.2. Note that the breaker delay time is specified in the basic
data of the switch type TypSwitch.
• Sub Curves: For primary network elements such as transformers, cables and motors, this option
can be used to include/exclude particular components of the associated characteristic such as
nominal current, damage curves or inrush peak current from the time-overcurrent plot.

32.4.7.2 Drawing Options

The Drawing Options page of the time-overcurrent options dialog shows the following:

Voltage Reference Axis. The following options can be set:

• Current unit: The current unit may be set to either primary or secondary (relay) amperes.
• Shown voltages: More than one current axis may be shown, based on different voltage levels. All
voltage levels found in the path when a time overcurrent plot is constructed are shown by default.

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A user defined voltage level may be added. Optionally, only the user defined voltage level is
shown.

Show relays. This option is used to display only certain types of relay characteristics. For example,
you might want to display only earth-fault relays on the diagram and ignore phase fault characteristics.
This could be done be selecting the ’Earth Relays’ option.

Recloser operation. The different recloser stages can be shown simultaneously or switched off in the
diagram.

Cut Curves at. This option determines the maximum extent of the displayed characteristics. For the
default option - - - - - - - - - - - - -, the displayed curves continue past the calculated short-circuit or load-
flow current to the full extent of the defined characteristic. If the option Tripping current is selected, only
the part of the curve less than the tripping current as determined by the active calculation is displayed.
The third option, Max. Short-Circuit/Rated Breaking Current means the curves will be displayed to the
extent of the maximum current defined within the Max/Min Fault Currents page within the protection
device as described in section 32.3.2 or alternatively to the rated breaking current of the associated
circuit breaker if this is lower.

Display results. This option is used to select how the calculated load-flow or short-circuit currents will
be displayed. Either the lines representing the calculated current values, the grading margins, both or
none may be selected.

Consider Breaker Opening Time. This option determines whether the relay characteristics will also
include the specified breaker (switch) opening time.

Show ’out of service’ units. The characteristics for units that are out of service are invisible by default.
However, a visible colour may be selected.

Show grading margins while drag&drop. When dragging curves, the grading margins of the curve
will be shown according to the margin entered. Refer to Section 32.4.11.2 for more information on
grading margins when dragging the time-overcurrent characteristics.

Points per curve. The number of plotted points per curve can be increased to show additional detail,
or reduced to speed up the drawing of the diagram.

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Figure 32.4.3: Time-overcurrent plot showing an overcurrent characteristic including also the breaker
delay time.

32.4.7.3 Text Format

In the Number Format panel, the following options can be set:

• Format: The user can select between concise, fixed decimals and scientific.
• Digits(maximum): If the option concise is selected, the user can set the maximum number of digits
to be displayed.
• Decimals: If the option fixed decimals or scientific is selected, the user can set the number of
decimal places to be shown.
• Exponent character: The user can select between ’E’ and ’e’ for the scientific option.
In the Label font panel, the following options can be set to customise the labels:

• Font: font, font style and size.

• Colour: the colour of the label.

32.4.7.4 Style and Layout

On the Style and Layout page, the additional display options can be selected as described in sec-
tion 18.8.2.3.

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32.4.8 Axes and Gridlines

The axes and gridlines are accessible by right-clicking on an axis and selecting Edit Axis..., or by double-
clicking on it. These are described in section 18.8.4.

32.4.9 Plot Legend

The legend is described in section 18.8.5 and accessible by right-clicking on the legend and selecting
Edit Legend..., or by double-clicking on it.

In addition, the legends in the time-overcurrent plots also support the Display name project setting as
described in section 8.1.2.5. For example, if the user changes this project setting and selects the Show
element name only option, then only the element name will be displayed in the time-overcurrent plot
legend.

32.4.10 Altering protection device characteristic settings from the time-overcurrent

plot

The time-overcurrent plots can be used to alter the relay characteristics graphically. This section
describes various procedures used to alter such characteristics.

32.4.11 How to split the relay/fuse characteristic

Often a complete relay characteristic is determined from a combination of two or more sub-characteristics.
For example, an overcurrent relay often has a time-overcurrent characteristic designed to operate for
low fault currents and overloads and a definite time characteristic that is typically set for high fault
currents. To alter relay characteristics graphically, every protection device must first be ’split’ so that
all characteristics are visible on the time-overcurrent plot. Figure 32.4.4 shows an example of such an
overcurrent relay before it is split (left plot) and after it is split (right plot).

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(a) Unsplit

(b) Split

Figure 32.4.4: Overcurrent relay characteristics in the time-overcurrent plot

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There are two methods to split a relay to show the sub-characteristics:

1. Method 1:
(a) Right-click the characteristic. The context menu will appear.
(b) Select the option Split Curve.
2. Method 2:
(a) Double-click the time-overcurrent plot avoiding any shown characteristics.
(b) In the table Elements of the displayed dialog, there is a column Split Curve. Check the Split
Curve box next to the relays and fuses that need to be split.
(c) Click OK to close the dialog.

Note: Fuses can also be split! When a fuse is split, the fuse characteristic can be dragged with the
mouse to automatically change the fuse type to another fuse within the same library level.

32.4.11.1 Altering the sub-characteristics

The first step is to Split the relay characteristic. See Section 32.4.11. After this there are two different
methods to alter the relay sub-characteristics:

1. By left clicking and dragging the characteristic.

(a) Drag to the left to reduce the current setting or to the right to increase the current setting.
(b) Drag to the top to increase the time setting or to the bottom to decrease the time setting.

2. By double-clicking a characteristic.
(a) Double click the target characteristic. A dialog for that characteristic will appear.
(b) Enter time and current numerical settings directly in the available fields.
(c) Optional: For time-overcurrent characteristics, the curve type (very inverse, standard inverse,
extremely inverse) can also be selected.

Note: Relay sub-characteristics cannot be dragged to positions outside the range defined within the
relay type, nor can they be dragged diagonally to simultaneously alter the time and current setting.

32.4.11.2 Showing grading margins during characteristic adjustment

The time-overcurrent plot option dialog (32.4.7), has an option for showing the grading margins. When
this option is enabled, the grading margins will appear whenever a time-overcurrent sub-characteristic
is dragged. These are represented as light blue colored characteristics above and below the main sub-
characteristic. The upper limit is defined by the characteristic operating time plus the grading margin
and the lower limit of the envelope is defined by the characteristic operating time minus the grading
margin. An example is illustrated in Figure 32.4.5. The original characteristic is labelled as “1”, the new
position as “2”, and the grading margins are labelled as “a”.

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Figure 32.4.5: Grading margins when moving a characteristic

32.4.12 Equipment damage curves

Equipment damage curves are used to aid the positioning of relay and fuse time-current characteristics
to ensure that thermal damage to equipment is minimised in the event of an overload or short-circuit.

The following types of damage curves exist:

• Conductor damage curve

• Transformer damage curve

• Motor starting curve

32.4.12.1 How to add equipment damage curves to the time-overcurrent plot

There are two methods to add damage curves to an time-overcurrent plot.

1. Method 1:
(a) Right-click a transformer, line or asynchronous machine object. A context menu will appear.
(b) Select (Plots → Insert Time-Overcurrent Plot).
2. Method 2:
(a) Right-click on an existing time-overcurrent plot, in an area of the plot which does not already
contain a characteristic. A context menu will appear.
(b) Select (Add Curve → Transformer Damage Curve / Conductor/Cable Damage curve / Motor
Starting Curve). A dialog with options for configuring the damage curve will appear. See
Sections 32.4.12.2, 32.4.12.3 and 32.4.12.4.

32.4.12.2 Transformer damage curves

In the transformer damage curve dialog the user is able to add a damage curve in accordance with
ANSI/IEEE C57.109. This standard differentiates between the damage curve of a transformer which is
expected to be subjected to frequent faults and one that is subjected to infrequent faults. In the former

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case, mechanical damage at high short circuit levels can be of significant concern. For category II
and III transformers in particular, accounting for mechanical damage, significantly alters the damage
characteristic of the transformer. An example of a time-overcurrent plot with two relay characteristics
and a category II transformer damage curve for a transformer subjected to frequent faults is shown in
Figure 32.4.6. The mechanical damage characteristic is ringed in the figure.

If the user wishes to define an alternative damage curve this can be achieved by selecting User Defined
curve → New project type, in the dialog.

Figure 32.4.6: Transformer damage curve

The transformer damage curve consists of four parts.

Rated Current Curve

The rated current curve represents the nominal operation limits of the transformer. For a three phase
transformer it can be calculated as:

𝑆𝑟𝑎𝑡
𝐼(𝑡) = 𝐼𝑟𝑎𝑡 = √ (32.1)
3· 𝑈𝑟𝑎𝑡

Where:

𝐼𝑟𝑎𝑡 rated current of the transformer [A]

𝑆𝑟𝑎𝑡 rated apparent power of the transformer [kVA]

𝑈𝑟𝑎𝑡 rated voltage of the transformer [kV ]

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 32.4. THE TIME-OVERCURRENT PLOT

Thermal and Mechanical Damage Curve

The thermal and mechanical damage curve represents the maximum amount of (short-circuit) current
the transformer can withstand for a given amount of time without taking damage. The transformer is
classified into one of four possible groups, depending on its rated apparent power and the insulation
type (see Table 32.4.1). Dry-type transformers can only be category I or II.

Classification Three-Phase Single-Phase

Category I 𝑆𝑟𝑎𝑡 ≤ 0.5𝑀 𝑉 𝐴 𝑆𝑟𝑎𝑡 ≤ 0.5𝑀 𝑉 𝐴
Category II 𝑆𝑟𝑎𝑡 ≤ 5.0𝑀 𝑉 𝐴 𝑆𝑟𝑎𝑡 ≤ 1.667𝑀 𝑉 𝐴
Category III 𝑆𝑟𝑎𝑡 ≤ 30.0𝑀 𝑉 𝐴 𝑆𝑟𝑎𝑡 ≤ 10.0𝑀 𝑉 𝐴
Category IV 𝑆𝑟𝑎𝑡 > 30.0𝑀 𝑉 𝐴 𝑆𝑟𝑎𝑡 > 10.0𝑀 𝑉 𝐴

Table 32.4.1: Categories for Transformers

The thermal damage part of the curve is identical for all categories of the respective insulation type
and is shown in Table 32.4.2. (taken from IEEE Standards Board, IEEE Guide for Liquid-Immersed
Transformer Through-Fault-Current Duration, New York: The Institute of Electrical and Electronics
Engineers, Inc., 1993. and IEEE Guide for Dry-Type Transformer Through-Fault Current Duration, New
York: The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, Inc., 2002. )

Liquid-Immersed Dry-Type
𝐼/𝐼𝑟𝑎𝑡 𝑡[𝑠] 𝐼/𝐼𝑟𝑎𝑡 𝑡[𝑠]
25 2 25 2
11.3 10 3.5 102
6.3 30
4.75 60
3 300
2 1800

Table 32.4.2: Thermal Withstand Capabilities

ANSI Mechanical Damage Curve

The mechanical part of the ANSI damage curve is only available for transformers of category II and
higher. For transformers of categories II and III this part is optional and depends on expected number
of fault currents flowing through the transformer over the transformers lifetime. Typically the mechanical
part should be considered if the transformer is expected to carry fault current more than 10 (category
II) or 5 (category III) times during its lifecycle. For category IV transformers the mechanical part of the
curve is always considered. See IEEE Standards Board, IEEE Recommended Practice for Protection
and Coordination of Industrial and Commercial Power Systems, New York: The Institute of Electrical
and Electronic Engineers, Inc., 1999, Page 426.

The mechanical part of the damage curve is a shifted part of the thermal damage curve. The three
points necessary to draw the mechanical damage curve can be calculated as follows:

1
𝐼1 = 𝐼𝑟𝑎𝑡 · ; 𝑡1 = 2,0𝑠 (32.2)
𝑢𝑘

𝑐𝑓 𝐾 𝐼1 2 · 𝑡1 2,0𝑠
𝐼2 = 𝐼𝑟𝑎𝑡 · ; 𝑡2 = 2 = 2 = (32.3)
𝑢𝑘 𝐼2 𝐼2 𝑐𝑓 2

𝐼3 = 𝐼2 ; 𝑡3 = 𝑖𝑛𝑡𝑒𝑟𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑤𝑖𝑡ℎ 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑚𝑎𝑙 𝑑𝑎𝑚𝑎𝑔𝑒 𝑐𝑢𝑟𝑣𝑒

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Where:

𝐼𝑟𝑎𝑡 rated current of the transformer [A]

𝑢𝑘 short-circuit voltage of the transformer [%]

𝐼
𝑘 heating constant with 𝐼𝑟𝑎𝑡 · 𝑡 = 𝐾 = 𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑠𝑡.

𝑐𝑓 fault current factor [-] −𝑐𝑓 = 70 for category II and 𝑐𝑓 = 50 for categories III and IV

ANSI Curve Shift

The damage curve is based on a three phase short-circuit on the LV-side of the transformer. In case
of unbalanced faults (Ph-Ph, Ph-E, Ph-Ph-E) the phase current on the HV side may be distributed over
multiple phases, depending on the vector group of the transformer. The standard (IEEE Standards
Board, IEEE Recommended Practice for Protection and Coordination of Industrial and Commercial
Power Systems, New York: The Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers, Inc., 1999.) therefore
suggests to multiply the rated current of the transformer by a shifting factor, thus enabling the engineer
to archive proper protection of a transformer for unbalanced faults. While the shift is only applicable
for “Dyn” vector-groups (according to the cited standard) and single-phase to ground faults, the same
principle of current reduction on the HV side also applies to other vector groups. The resulting shifting
factors and the corresponding fault type can be taken from Table 32.4.3.

Vector Group(s) Shift Factor Fault Type

Dd 0,87 Ph-Ph
Dyn/Dzn 0,58 Ph-E
Yyn/Zyn/Zzn 0,67 Ph-E

Table 32.4.3: ANSI Curve Shift Factors

IEC Mechanical Damage Curve

The mechanical part of the IEC damage curve is only available for the element specific damage curve
and consists of one point only [10]:

1
𝐼(2,0𝑠) = 𝐼𝑟𝑎𝑡 · (32.4)
𝑢𝑘

Where:

𝐼𝑟𝑎𝑡 rated current of the transformer [A]

𝑢𝑘 short-circuit to nominal current ratio [%]

Cold load curve

The cold load curve represents the maximum amount of current a transformer can withstand for a short-
time (typically several minutes) before taking damage. The curve is specific for each transformer and
the supplied loads and has to be provided by the user as a series of (I/t) pairs.

Inrush peak current curve

The inrush curve represents the amount of current which flows into the transformer when the transformer
is energised. The curve is represented by a straight line between the following two points:

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[1]
[1] 𝐼𝑖𝑛𝑟𝑢𝑠ℎ
𝐼(𝑇𝑖𝑛𝑟𝑢𝑠ℎ ) = 𝐼𝑟𝑎𝑡 · (32.5)
𝐼𝑛𝑜𝑚

[2]
[2] 𝐼𝑖𝑛𝑟𝑢𝑠ℎ
𝐼(𝑇𝑖𝑛𝑟𝑢𝑠ℎ ) = 𝐼𝑟𝑎𝑡 · (32.6)
𝐼𝑛𝑜𝑚

Where:

𝐼𝑟𝑎𝑡 rated current of the transformer [A]

𝐼𝑖𝑛𝑟𝑢𝑠ℎ
𝐼𝑛𝑜𝑚 inrush current to nominal current ratio [-]

𝑇𝑖𝑛𝑟𝑢𝑠 inrush duration [s]

Note: If only one of the two points is given, only this point is drawn.

Three Winding Transformers

The transformer damage curve can be used for 3-winding transformers. On the protection page of
the element, a drop-down box is available which allows the user to select which set of values (HV-MV
(default), HV-LV, MV-LV) should be used to calculate the curve. The equations remain identical, as there
are normally only two windings within a coordination path.

32.4.12.3 Conductor/cable damage curves

The conductor damage curve consists of four parts; a rated current curve, a short-time withstand curve,
a long time overload curve and an inrush curve. These components are discussed in the following text.

Rated Current Curve

The rated current curve represents the nominal operation limits of the conductor.

𝐼(𝑡) = 𝐼𝑟𝑎𝑡 (32.7)

Where:

𝐼𝑟𝑎𝑡 rated current of the line [A]

Short-Time Withstand Curve

The short-time withstand curve represents the maximum amount of (short-circuit) current the conductor
can withstand for short time periods (typically 1s) without taking damage.

There are two separate equations for this curve, both are drawn for 0.1s ≤ t ≤ 10s

Using the rated short-time withstand current:

√︂
𝑇𝑡ℎ𝑟
𝐼(𝑡) = 𝐼𝑡ℎ𝑟 · (32.8)
𝑡

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Where:

𝐼𝑡ℎ𝑟 rated short-time current of the line [A]

𝑇𝑡ℎ𝑟 rated short-time duration of the [s]

Using material data (only available for the generic type):

𝐹𝑎𝑐 · 𝑘 · 𝐴
𝐼(𝑡) = √ (32.9)
𝑡

Where:

𝐹𝑎 lateral conductivity [-]

𝐴 conductor cross-sectional area [𝑚𝑚2 /𝑘𝑐𝑚𝑖𝑙]

√ √
𝐴 𝑠 𝐴 𝑠
𝑘 conductor/insulation parameter [ 𝑚𝑚 2 / 𝑚𝑚2 𝑘𝑐𝑚𝑖𝑙]

The conductor/insulation parameter can be provided by the user or calculated according to the stan-
dards equations as follows:

IEC/VDE equations [49]:

√︂
𝜃𝑓 − 𝜃𝑖
𝑘 = 𝑐1 · ln(1 + ) (32.10)
𝑐2 + 𝜃𝑖

ANSI/IEEE equations [3]:

√︂
𝜃𝑓 + 𝑐2
𝑘= 𝑐1 · log (32.11)
𝜃𝑖 + 𝑐2

Where:

𝑐1 material constant [-]

𝑐2 material constant [-]

𝜃𝑓 max. short-circuit temperature [∘ C]

𝜃𝑖 initial temperature [∘ C]

Note: Both equations for the conductor/insulation parameter are slightly adapted (from the original form
in the standards) to fit into the same form of equation.

The values for the material constants can be taken from the table below.

Standard IEC/VDE ANSI/IEEE

Conductor Material Copper Aluminium Copper Aluminium
𝑐1 226 148 0.0297 0.0125
𝑐2 234.5 228 234 228

Table 32.4.4: Material Constants for Short-Term Withstand Calculation

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The initial temperature and final temperature 𝜃𝑖 and 𝜃𝑓 mainly depend upon the insulation of the
conductor. The initial temperature is usually the maximum allowable continuous current temperature,
whilst the final temperature is the maximum allowable short circuit temperature. Typical values for 𝜃𝑖
and 𝜃𝑓 are given in table 32.4.5.

Cable insulation Initial Final

and type temperature temperature
(∘ C) (∘ C)
Paper
1-6kV: belted 80 160
10-15kV: belted 65 160
10-15kV: screened 70 160
20-30kV: screened 65 160
PVC: 1 and 3kV
Up to 300mm2 70 160
Over 300mm2 70 140
XLPE and EPR 90 250

Table 32.4.5: Typical cable initial temperature and final temperature values (data from the BICC Electric
Cables Handbook 3rd edition)

The option User Defined may also be selected in the Calculate K field of the dialog, allowing the user
to enter a value for K manually. The dialog for doing this is illustrated in Figure 32.4.7.

Figure 32.4.7: Conductor/Cable damage curve

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CHAPTER 32. PROTECTION

Alternatively, rated short-circuit current and time may be entered if Rated Short-Time Current is entered
as the input method.

If the user wishes to define an alternative conductor/cable damage curve this can be achieved by
selecting User Defined curve → New project type.

Skin effect ratio or ac/dc ratio is a constant as defined in the NEC electrical code. The value is used
when carrying out calculations to IEEE/ANSI standards and is not typically referred to by IEC/VDE
standards. However, the user is given the option to specify this value when using either set of standards.

Long time overload curve

The overload page allows the user to define the overload characteristic of the conductor. If an overload
characteristic is required, it is necessary to ensure that the Draw Overload Curve checkbox is selected.

The user then has the option to define the overload curve according to ANSI/IEEE standards by
selecting the relevant checkbox. The equation used is as follows:

⎯ (︁ )︁2
⎸ 𝑡
⎸ 𝑇𝐸 −𝑇0 − 𝐼0 · 𝑒− 𝑘
𝐼𝐸 ⎷ 𝑇𝑁 −𝑇0 𝐼𝑁 𝑇𝑀 + 𝑇𝑁
= 𝑡 · (32.12)
𝐼𝑟 𝑎𝑡 1− 𝑒− 𝑘 𝑇𝑀 + 𝑇𝐸

Where,

𝐼𝐸 = Max overload temperature [∘ C]

𝐼𝑁 = Rated Current [A]

𝐼0 = Preload current [A]

𝑇𝐸 = Max overload temperature [∘ C]

𝑇𝑁 = Max operating temperature [∘ C]

𝑇0 = Ambient temperature [∘ C]

𝑇𝑀 = Zero resistance temperature value [-] (234 for copper, 228 for aluminium)

𝑘 = time constant of the conductor dependant on cable size and installation type [s]

Note that the value for TM is derived from the material assigned in the short circuit page which is only
visible when the field calculate k is set to ANSI/IEEE or IEC/VDE.

If the checkbox is left unchecked the equation used is as follows:

⎯ (︁ )︁2
⎸ 𝑡
⎸ 1 − 𝐼0 · 𝑒− 𝑘
𝐼𝐸 ⎷ 𝐼𝑁
= 𝑡 (32.13)
𝐼𝑁 1 − 𝑒− 𝑘

Where the variables are the same as in the previous equation. A constant designated as tau is
requested in the dialog. This is identical to the constant k except k has units of hours, while tau has
units of seconds.

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Inrush Curve

The inrush curve represents the amount of current that will flow into the conductor when the conductor
is energised. The curve consists of one point only.

𝐼𝑖𝑛𝑟𝑢𝑠ℎ
𝐼(𝑇𝑖𝑛𝑟𝑢𝑠ℎ ) = 𝐼𝑟𝑎𝑡 · (32.14)
𝐼𝑛𝑜𝑚

Where:

𝐼𝑟𝑎𝑡 rated current of the line or the damage curve input value [A]
𝐼𝑖𝑛𝑟𝑢𝑠ℎ
𝐼𝑛𝑜𝑚 inrush current to nominal current ratio [-]

𝑇𝑖𝑛𝑟𝑢𝑠ℎ inrush duration [s]

32.4.12.4 Motor starting curves

A motor starting curve is illustrated consists of two separate components, a starting curve and a damage
curve. This section describes the equations and references underpinning the two curves.

The characteristic currents and durations given in the edit dialog result in a step wise motor start current
plot, as depicted in Figure 32.4.8.

Figure 32.4.8: The motor start curve

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CHAPTER 32. PROTECTION

Motor starting curve equations

This section describes the underlying equations and references the respective standards.

Note: The equations in this section are given with respect to the rated current of the equipment. For
the correct drawing in the overcurrent plot, the currents will be rated to the reference voltage of
the plot.
𝑈𝑟𝑎𝑡
𝐼 = 𝐼𝑟𝑎𝑡 · (32.15)
𝑈𝑟𝑒𝑓

The motor starting curve consists of three parts; a rated current curve, the motor starting curve and the
motor inrush curve.

Rated Current Curve

The rated current curve represents the nominal operation limits of the motor and is drawn for 𝑇𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑟𝑡 < t.

𝑆𝑟𝑎𝑡
𝐼(𝑡) = 𝐼𝑟𝑎𝑡 = (32.16)
𝑈𝑟𝑎𝑡

Where:

𝐼𝑟𝑎𝑡 rated current time of the motor [A]

𝑆𝑟𝑎𝑡 rated apparent power (electrical) of the motor [kVA]

𝑈𝑟𝑎𝑡 rated voltage of the motor [kV ]

𝑇𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑡 starting time of the motor [s]

Motor Starting Curve

The motor starting curve represents the maximum amount of current that will flow into the motor while
it accelerates. The curve is drawn for 𝑇𝑖𝑛𝑟𝑢𝑠ℎ < t ≤ 𝑇𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑟𝑡 :

𝐼𝑙𝑟
𝐼(𝑡) = 𝐼𝑟𝑎𝑡 = (32.17)
𝐼𝑛𝑜𝑚

Where:

𝐼𝑟𝑎𝑡 rated current of the motor [A]

𝐼𝑙𝑟
𝐼𝑛𝑜𝑚 ratio of locked rotor current to nominal current of the motor [-]

𝑇𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑟𝑡 starting time of the motor [s]

𝑇𝑖𝑛𝑟𝑢𝑠ℎ inrush duration [s]

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Motor Inrush Curve

The motor inrush curve represents the amount of current that will flow into the motor when it is ener-
gised. The curve is drawn from 0,01 s ≤ t ≤ 𝑇𝑖𝑛𝑟𝑢𝑠ℎ :

𝐼𝑖𝑛𝑟𝑢𝑠ℎ
𝐼(𝑡) = 𝐼𝑟𝑎𝑡 = (32.18)
𝐼𝑛𝑜𝑚

Where:

𝐼𝑟𝑎𝑡 rated current of the motor [A]

𝐼𝑡𝑟
𝐼𝑛𝑜𝑚 ratio of inrush current to nominal current of the motor [-]

𝑇𝑖𝑛𝑟𝑢𝑠ℎ inrush duration [s]

Motor Damage Curve

The motor damage curve represents the maximum amount of current the motor can withstand for a
given time without taking damage. There are two curves available, one representing the damage
characteristic of the cold motor, one representing the damage characteristic of the hot motor. The
hot curve must be lower than the cold curve. The curve would actually follow an inverse current-time
characteristic but is reduced to a vertical line to indicate the damage region without cluttering the plot.
The motor damage curve is drawn from 𝑇ℎ𝑜𝑡 ≤ t ≤ 𝑇𝑐𝑜𝑙𝑑 :

𝐼(𝑡) = 𝐼𝑟𝑎𝑡 · 𝐼𝑙𝑟 (32.19)

Where:

𝐼𝑟𝑎𝑡 rated current of the motor [A]

𝐼𝑙𝑟 ratio of locked rotor current to rated current of the motor [-]

𝑇ℎ𝑜𝑡 stall time for the hot motor [s]

𝑇𝑐𝑜𝑙𝑑 stall time for the cold motor [s]

Synchronous Motors

The motor starting curve can be created for synchronous motors. Since synchronous motors are
started in asynchronous operation, the curve is identical to the asynchronous motor starting curve.
The parameter mapping for the synchronous machine is as follows:

Motor Starting Asynchronous Synchronous

Curve Motor Motor
Parameter Parameter Parameter
Rated Power Srat t:sgn t:sgn
Rated Voltage Urat t:ugn t:ugn
Locked Rotor aiazn t:aiazn 1 / (t:xdsss)
Current (Ilr/In)

Table 32.4.6: Synchronous Motor Parameter Mapping

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Note: By default the subtransient reactance (t:xdss) is used. If the flag “Use saturated values” in the
machine type is set, the saturated subtransient reactance (t:xdsss) is used.

32.5 Basics of a distance protection scheme

Section 32.2.2, explains the procedure to setup a protection device in PowerFactory. When a new
device is created within a network model there are a number of parameters to define in the dialog which
appears. This section will describe the basic steps that should be completed in order to specify these
parameters for distance protection relays. In many cases the setup is similar to overcurrent relay and
consequently only the main differences are highlighted in this section.

The following sections, 32.6 and 32.8 will cover the main graphical tools used for distance protection
analysis in PowerFactory.

32.5.1 Distance relay model setup - basic data page

The basic data page in the relay model (ElmRelay ) dialog is where the basic configuration of the relay
is completed. The procedure is the same as that used for setting up the over-current relay. Refer to
Section 32.3.1.

32.5.2 Primary or secondary Ohm selection for distance relay parameters

It is always possible to enter the reach setting/s of the distance mho (refer Section 32.5.3.3) and distance
polygon (refer Section 32.5.3.4) blocks in terms of primary Ohms or secondary Ohms. However, for the
purpose of the respective block types, and specifying the valid settings range, one of these quantities
must be configured as the default mode. Normally this is secondary Ohms, however some relays may
allow this to be primary Ohms and hence in PowerFactory it is possible to alter the default option. To do
this:

1. Go to the Advanced data page of the relay type.

2. Choose either Secondary Ohm or Primary Ohm.

3. Press OK to close the relay type.

There is another feature that is enabled if the Primary Ohm option is selected. This is the overriding of
the CT and VT ratio determined from the selected VT and CT automatically with custom settings. To do
this:

1. Enable the Primary Ohm option for impedance ranges as described above.
2. Select the Current/Voltage Transformer page of the relay element.
3. Click Set CT/VT ratio.

4. Enter the updated parameters of the CTs and VTs.

This feature could be used for instance to quickly see the effect of altering the CT or VT ratio without
having to modify the PowerFactory CT and VT objects.

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 32.5. BASICS OF A DISTANCE PROTECTION SCHEME

32.5.3 Basic relay blocks used for distance protection

The following sections provide a brief overview of some of the basic protection blocks that can be
found within distance relays in PowerFactory. Some of the protection blocks such as the measurement
block, logic block, directional, and overcurrent blocks that were discussed in Section 32.3.7 are also
used within distance relays. Consequently, this section only discusses those blocks that are unique to
distance relays. By necessity, this manual only provides a brief high level overview of the blocks. For
more information on these blocks please refer to the Protection Devices Library.

32.5.3.1 The polarising block

The purpose of the “Polarising” block is to provide “polarising” current and voltage signals to the distance
protection zones (either Mho or Polygonal). The block takes as input the following signals:

• Real and imaginary components of the three phase currents and voltages;
• Real and imaginary components of the zero sequence currents; and
• Optional: Real and imaginary components of the mutual zero sequence currents;
It produces as output:

• Real and imaginary components of the three phase-phase operating currents;

• Real and imaginary components of the three phase-ground operating currents;
• Real and imaginary components of the polarising phase-phase voltages;

• Real and imaginary components of the polarising phase-ground voltages;

• Real and imaginary components of the operating phase-phase voltages; and
• Real and imaginary components of the operating phase-ground voltages;
The calculation of the above components depends on the configuration of the block and the polarisation
method selected. The currently supported polarisation methods are:

• Voltage, Self
• Voltage, Cross (Quadrature)

• Voltage, Cross (Quad L-L)

• Positive Sequence
• Self, ground compensated

Further to this, polarising blocks allow for settings of earth fault (𝑘0) and mutual earth fault (𝑘0𝑚)
compensation parameters to be applied if these features are available in the relay model.

The user can click the Assume k0 button to automatically set the zero sequence compensation factor
of the polarising block to match the calculated factor for the protected zone.

32.5.3.2 The starting block

The starting block is used exclusively in distance relays as a means to detect fault conditions. It can be
configured to send a starting signal to protection blocks that accept such a signal. This includes Mho,
Polygonal and timer blocks. The fault detection method can be based on overcurrent or impedance.
Also, both phase fault and earth fault detection is supported by the block.

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32.5.3.3 The distance mho block

Distance protection using mho characteristics is the traditional method of impedance based protection
and was initially developed in electro-mechanical relays. Today, such characteristics are also supported
by numerical protection relays primarily for compatibility with these older units but also because most
protection engineers are inherently familiar with mho based protection. PowerFactory supports the
following types of mho characteristics:

• Impedance
• Impedance (digital)
• Impedance Offset
• Mho

• Mho Offset Mta

• Mho Offset X
• Mho Offset Generic

• Mho Offset 2 X
• Asea RAKZB Mho Offset
From the user perspective, the type of characteristic used by the block is dependent on the type, and the
user does not normally need to be concerned with its selection from the RelDismho dialog, an example
of which is shown in Figure 32.5.1.

Figure 32.5.1: Distance mho block

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 32.5. BASICS OF A DISTANCE PROTECTION SCHEME

The user is required simply to enter the settings for the replica impedance, either in secondary or
primary Ohms, and the relay angle.

The block also shows the impedance characteristics of the branch that it is protecting and the effective
reach of the relay in the Impedances section at the bottom of the dialog.

Note: The displayed impedance shown in blue text at the bottom of the mho block indicates the
impedance of the primary protection zone. This could be a single PowerFactory line element
or multiple line elements. PowerFactory automatically completes a topological search until it finds
the next terminal with type “busbar”, or a terminal inside a substation, or another protection device.
If the “protected zone” consists of multiple parallel paths, the displayed impedance is the one, out
of all branches, with the largest impedance.

The distance mho block does not have a time dial internally, instead it is connected to an external
timer block (refer Section 32.5.3.5) that controls the tripping time of the zone. However, the timer block
associated with the particular mho zone can be conveniently accessed by clicking the Timer button.

If the Timer button of a zone is greyed out, this means there is no timer block directly connected to the
zone. This could be the case if the zone is designed for instantaneous tripping.

32.5.3.4 The distance polygon block

Most modern numerical distance protection relays tend to support a so-called polygonal (also called
a quadrilateral) characteristic. The benefit of such characteristics is that they allow the definition of
independent resistive and reactive reaches. In particular, the ability to specify a large resistive reach is
a benefit for protecting against resistive faults.

Many modern relays also support other sophisticated features such as tilting polygons and double
directional elements to constrain the impedance characteristic to a more specific area. In fact, there is
not really such a thing as a standard polygonal characteristic with each manufacturer generally using
a slightly different, although often similar philosophy. Consequently, the PowerFactory polygonal block
has been designed to support a range of different characteristics including:

• Quadrilateral

• Quadrilateral Offset
• Polygonal (90°)
• Polygonal (+R, +X)
• Polygonal (Beta)

• Siemens (R, X)
• Quadrilateral (Z)
• ABB (R, X)

• ASEA RAZFE
• Quad (Beta)
• Quad Offset (Siemens 7SL32)
• EPAC Quadrilateral

• GE Quadrilateral (Z)

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As for the mho block, the user does not usually need to be concerned with the selection of the correct
characteristic as this is specified by the type and would have been defined by the developer of the relay
model.

An example of the dialog for the polygonal (beta) characteristic in PowerFactory is shown in Fig-
ure 32.5.2. In this case, the block is required to set the direction, the X reach, the R resistance, the X
angle, the Relay Angle and -R Ratio. Like the mho block, the timer for the zone can be easily accessed
through the Timer button.

The Impedance section at the bottom of the dialog shows the reach of the zone in absolute values, as
well as relative to the element directly connected to the cubicle where the relay is defined. The R and X
values of this element are also shown as a reference for the setup of the zone.

Note: One major difference between a polygonal block and a mho block is that the polygonal block
always requires a separate directional block. There is a convenient Directional Unit button that
gives access to the relevant directional unit directly from the polygonal dialog.

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 32.5. BASICS OF A DISTANCE PROTECTION SCHEME

Figure 32.5.2: Distance polygon block (Polygonal (Beta))

32.5.3.5 The timer block

In distance relay models, the timer block is used to either control the tripping time of distance polygon
blocks or to implement other time delays in the relay that cannot be implemented within a specific block.

The block has relatively simplistic functionality for steady state simulations, but can be configured also
as an output hold or a reset delay in time domain simulations. The block settings can be implemented
as a time delay in seconds, or as a cycle delay. If the timer block is used to control a distance polygon,
the delay can be started with a signal from the starting block.

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32.5.3.6 The load encroachment block

Many modern numerical distance protection relays include a so-called load encroachment feature. In
PowerFactory four types of load encroachment characteristics are supported:
• Schweitzer
• Siemens

• ABB
• GE
Most types of load encroachment can be supported by using a block with one of these characteristics.

The user does normally not need to concern themselves with selecting the appropriate characteristic
because this will have already been selected by the relay model developer. In this block the user is only
required to set reach and angle.

32.5.3.7 The power swing and out of step block

In PowerFactory the power swing block can be configured to trigger power swing blocking of distance
zones and to trip the relay when detecting out of step conditions. One or both of these functions can be
enabled in this block.

A power swing blocking condition is detected by starting a timer when the impedance trajectory crosses
an outer polygonal characteristic. If a declared time (usually two - three cycles) expires before the
trajectory crosses a second inner polygonal characteristic zone, then a power swing is declared and the
relay issues a blocking command to distance elements in the relay. The obvious potential downside to
this feature is that there is the potential to block tripping of distance zones for real faults. Fortunately,
the impedance trajectory for most real faults would cross the outer and inner zones of the power swing
characteristic nearly instantaneously and thus the timer would not expire and the zones would remain
unblocked.

The second function of the power swing block is the detection of unstable power swings and the issuing
of a trip command - this is known as out of step or loss of synchronism protection. Figure 32.5.3 shows
a typical power swing blocking characteristic in red, a stable power swing impedance trajectory in green
and an unstable power swing trajectory in blue. The difference between these two characteristics is that
the stable swing enters and exits the impedance characteristic on the same side, whereas the unstable
swing exits on the opposite side. Logic can be used to detect these different conditions and thereby
issue a trip when the unstable swing is detected.

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Figure 32.5.3: Stable (green) and unstable (blue) power swings

The power swing area can be configured using internal polygonal characteristics of which the ABB
and Siemens types are supported. Or alternatively, it can also be configured with external impedance
elements that provide inner zone and outer zone tripping signals to the power swing block.

Note: Out of step protection can also be configured with mho elements instead of polygonal elements.

The basic options of the power swing block are as follows:

PS. No. of Phases. Typically a power swing requires the impedance trajectories of all three phases to
pass through the outer and inner zones to declare an out of step condition. However, in some
relays this parameter is configurable.
Blocking configuration This parameter has three options:
• Selecting All Zones means that a power swing blocking signal will be sent to all distance
zones.
• Selecting Z1 means that a power swing blocking signal will be sent to only Z1 elements.
• Selecting Z1 & Z2 will send a power swing blocking signal to Z1 and Z2 distance elements
only.
• Selecting >= Z2 will send a blocking signal to all zones except zone 1.
Out of Step Checking this box enables the out of step tripping function, unchecking it disables it.
OOS No. of Crossings This field configures how many crossings of the impedance characteristic must
occur before an out of step trip is issued. For example, the blue trajectory in Figure 32.5.3 is
counted as one crossing.

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32.5.3.8 The distance directional block

The distance directional block is used by the polygonal blocks for determining the direction of the fault
and also constraining the characteristic. In PowerFactory several types of distance directional blocks
are supported:
• Earth

• Phase-Phase
• 3-Phase
• Multifunctional
• Multifunctional (digital)

• Siemens (Multi)
• ABB (Multi)

32.6 The impedance plot (R-X diagram)

The impedance or R-X plot shows the impedance characteristics of distance protection relays in the R-X
plane. Furthermore, the plot also shows the impedance characteristic of the network near the protection
relays displayed on the diagram. The plot is also “interactive” and can be used to alter the settings of
the distance zones directly, thus making it a useful tool for checking or determining optimal settings for
distance relays.

32.6.1 How to create an R-X diagram

There are three different methods to create an R-X diagram in PowerFactory. You can create this plot
by right-clicking the cubicle, the protection device or the protection path. These methods are explained
in further detail in the following sections.

1. From the cubicle:

(a) Right-click a cubicle where a distance relay is installed. A context menu will appear.
(b) Select the option Plots → Insert R-X Plot. PowerFactory will create an R-X diagram on a
new page showing the active characteristics for all relays in the selected cubicle.
2. From the relay element in the Data Manager (or other tabular list):
(a) Right-click the relay icon. A context menu will appear.
(b) Select the option Plots → Insert R-X Plot. PowerFactory will create an R-X diagram on a
new page showing the active impedance characteristics of this relay.
3. From the protection path:
(a) Right-click an element which belongs to a protection path. A context menu will appear.
(b) Select Network Groupings → Path→ Insert R-X Plot. . . from the context menu. PowerFac-
tory will create an R-X diagram on a new page showing the active characteristics for all relays
in the selected path.

In the first two methods, it is also possible to select the option Plots → Add to R-X Plot instead of Plots
→ Insert R-X Plot. This will open a list of previously defined R-X Plots from which any one can be
selected to add the selected device characteristics to.

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32.6.2 Understanding the R-X diagram

An example R-X diagram with two relays is shown in Figure 32.6.1. Shown on the plot is:

• The active zone impedance characteristics for each relay.

• The impedance characteristic of the network near the relay location - shown as a dashed line.

• The location of other distance relays nearby - shown as solid coloured lines perpendicular to the
network characteristic.
• The calculated impedances for each fault loop from the polarising blocks in each relay (shown as
lightning bolts on the plot and also as values within the coloured legends).
• The detected fault type as determined by the starting elements (shown in the coloured legend).
Note, this is not enabled by default, see Section 32.6.3.5 for instructions how to enable this.
• The tripping time of each zone (shown in the coloured legend). Note this is not enabled by default,
see Section 32.6.3.5 for instructions how to enable this.
• The overall tripping time of each relay (shown in the coloured legend).

Figure 32.6.1: A R-X plot with short-circuit results and two relays

Note the information shown on the plot can be configured by altering the settings of the R-X plot. Refer
to Section 32.6.3).

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32.6.3 Configuring the R-X plot

There are several ways to alter the appearance of the R-X diagram. Many configuration parameters can
be adjusted by right-clicking the plot and using the context menu. Alternatively, double-clicking the plot
avoiding the selection of any characteristics showing on the plot will show the plot dialog.

The following sections explain the various ways to alter the display of the plot.

32.6.3.1 Adjusting the grid lines in the R-X diagram

To change the grid settings in the R-X diagram:

1. Right-click the R-X diagram. A context menu will appear.

2. Select Grid. The grid options dialog will appear.
3. Select the Layout page.

4. To enable grid lines on the major plot divisions, check Main.

5. To enable grid lines on the minor plot divisions, check Help.

32.6.3.2 Changing the position of the R-X plot origin

Section 32.6.3.4 explains how the limits and size of the R-X diagram can be altered in detail. However,
it is also possible to reposition the origin of the plot graphically. To do this:

1. Right-click the R-X diagram exactly where you would like the new origin (0,0) point of the plot to
be. A context menu will appear.

2. Select Set origin. PowerFactory will reposition the origin of the plot to the place that you right-
clicked.

32.6.3.3 Centring the origin of the R-X plot

To centre the origin (0,0) of the plot in the centre of the page:

1. Right-click the R-X diagram. A context menu will appear.

2. Select Centre origin. PowerFactory will reposition the origin of the plot to the centre of the page.

32.6.3.4 R-X plot basic data page

The tabular area at the top of the dialog shows the currently displayed relays, and the colours, line styles
and line widths that are used to represent them on the plot. Each of these can be adjusted by double-
clicking and selecting an alternate option. Refer to Section 18.8 for more information on configuring
plots in PowerFactory.

The Axis area at the bottom of the dialog shows the settings that are currently used to scale the axes
on the plot. These settings and their effect on the plot is explained further in the following section.

• Scale. This number affects the interval between the tick marks on the x and y axis, in the units
specified in the Unit field. If the Distance (see below) field remains constant, then increasing this
number increases the size of the diagram and effectively zooms out on the displayed characteris-
tics.

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• Distance. This number affects the distance in mm between each tick mark. Remember that in
PowerFactory it is usual for plots and diagrams to be formatted in a standard page size (often A4).
Consequently, this number has the opposite effect of the scale - when the scale field is constant
increasing the distance effectively zooms into the displayed characteristics.
• x-Min. This field determines the left minimum point of the diagram. However, it also implicitly
considers the scale. Consequently, the true minimum is determined by the product of the Scale
and x-Min. For example, if the scale is 4 and x-Min is set to 2, then the minimum x axis value
(resistance) displayed would be -8.

• y-Min. The concept for y-Min is the same as x-Min with the minimum value determined by the
product of the scale and the specified minimum value.

Note: The user can ask PowerFactory to adjust the scale of the R-X diagram automatically based on
the set Distance. Click Characteristics to adjust the scale automatically to fit all the displayed
characteristics, or click Impedances to adjust the scale to fit all displayed network impedances.

32.6.3.5 R-X plot options

The R-X plot advanced settings can be accessed by right-clicking the plot and selecting Options from
the context menu, or by pressing the Options button in the edit dialog of the plot.

The options dialog has the following settings:

• Unit. This option affects whether the characteristics on the plot are displayed in primary or
secondary (relay) Ohm. It is also possible to select % of line which will display all characteristics
in terms of a % impedance of their primary protected branch. This latter option is quite useful for
visualising inspecting that the zone settings are as expected.
• Relays Units. This option is used to display only certain types of relay characteristics. For
example, it is possible to display only earth fault distance characteristics by selecting the option
Ph-E.
• Zones. This setting affects what zones are displayed. For example, to only show zone 1 charac-
teristics, “1” should be selected.
• Starting. This checkbox configures whether starting elements will be displayed on the diagram.

• Overreach zones. This checkbox configures whether overreach elements will be displayed on
the diagram.
• Power Swing. This checkbox configures whether power swing elements will be displayed on the
diagram.

• Load Encroachment. This checkbox configures whether load encroachment elements will be
displayed on the diagram.
• Complete shape. This checkbox enables the display of the complete polygonal characteristic,
when part of it would normally be invisible (and not a valid pickup region) due to the effect of the
distance directional element. Enabling it also allows the selection of the line style for the displayed
part of the characteristic that is not normally visible.
• Display. This option is used to select how the calculated load-flow or short-circuit current/equiv-
alent impedance will be displayed. The options are a short-circuit Arrow, a Cross or to Hide it
completely.
• Zone. User has an option to select what zone relevant results should be displayed in plot and in
legend.

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• Show Impedance. Different impedance values can be selected here: all, only smallest, Z<1.5*Zmin
and Z<5*Zmin .
• Force Positive Sequence Representation. By selecting this check box R-X plot will be showing
all measured impedance and measuring zones in the positive sequence representation only. This
make it easier to coordinate between relays of different manufacturers as well as coordinate
between measured impedance and measuring zones.
• Colour out of service units. By default out of service characteristics are invisible. However, Out
of service characteristics can be shown in a different colour making them visible on the plot.

• Default Length for Blinder Units. This options specifies the length of blinder units on the plot in
secondary Ohms.

Branch impedances page

This page specifies how the branch impedance elements are displayed on the diagram:

• Number of Relay Locations. Only the branches are shown up to the specified number of relay
locations. If zero, no branches are shown at all.
• Branches, max. Depth. Maximum number of branches shown from each relay location. If zero,
no branches are shown at all.
• Ignore Transformers. Transformer impedances are ignored when activated.

• Method. There are two methods for determining the branch impedance. The first, Input Data,
uses the entered impedance data of the branches specified in their respective types. The second
method, Calculated Impedance, effectively completes a short circuit sweep similar to that de-
scribed in Section 32.8.3 except that impedances are calculated rather than tripping times. One
scenario where this method is more accurate is when modelling the protection of a section of
network with multiple infeeds. Greater accuracy is achieved at the expense of calculation time.
• Show Branch Options. Here the line style and width can be selected.

Legend page

This page determines the configuration of the coloured legend visible after a short circuit or load-flow
calculations for each relay on the R-X diagram.

The following options are available:

• Show Calculated Impedances. Determines whether the impedances calculated for each fault
loop by the polarising block will be displayed in the legend.
• Detected Fault Type. Determines whether the fault type calculated by the starting element will
be displayed in the legend.
• Tripping Time of Relay. Determines if the overall tripping time of the relay will be displayed in the
legend.
• Tripped Zones. Determines if the tripping time of each zone that trips will be displayed in the
legend.

32.6.4 Modifying the relay settings and branch elements from the R-X plot

From the R-X plot, the settings of the characteristics shown can be inspected and altered if required.

To do this:

1. Double click the desired characteristic. The dialog for the characteristic will appear.

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2. Inspect and/or edit settings as required.

3. Click OK to update the characteristic displayed on the R-X diagram.

Also, it is possible to directly edit or inspect the branch elements shown on the diagram. To do so:
1. Double click the desired branch. The dialog for the branch will appear. Note that if you hover your
mouse over the element and leave it steady for a few moments the name of element will appear
in the balloon help.

2. Inspect or edit the branch parameters as required.

3. Click OK to return to the R-X diagram.

32.7 The relay operational limits plot (P-Q diagram)

The relay operational limits or P-Q diagram plot shows the starting characteristics of distance pro-
tection relays in the P-Q plane. Typically a network operator will deal with power quantities rather
than impedance, current or angle quantities when characterising the power flows and load in their
network. By representing the starting characteristic in the P-Q plane the network operator is better able
to compare their actual load data with the starting settings in the network’s distance relays so as to
assess whether particular load configurations might cause undesirable operation of network protection
relays. A load configuration resulting in a power flow which lies outside of the starting characteristic of
a distance relay in the P-Q plane will cause the relay to start and may therefore result in tripping of the
relay. The plot is intended to assist in avoiding such circumstances.

The plot is “interactive” and can be used to alter the settings of the relay starting element directly, thus
making it a useful tool for checking or determining optimal starting settings for distance relays.

32.7.1 How to create a P-Q diagram

1. Using the Insert Plot icon:

(a) This general method for creating any plot is described in section 18.8.
(b) The relay for which the starting is to be plotted should be entered as the Element in the
Relays table of the plot dialog.

32.7.2 Understanding the P-Q diagram

Two example P-Q diagram plots for two separate relays are shown in Figure 32.7.1. The plots show the
following:

• In both diagrams the horizontal axis represents active power whilst the vertical axis represents
reactive power.
• The diagram on the left relates to a distance relay utilising underimpedance starting.
• The diagram on the right relates to a distance relay utilising overcurrent starting.
• The regions bounded by the two characteristics represent operating points which will not cause
the starting to pick up. Operating points outside of these bounded regions will cause the starting
elements to pick up.
• Note that the operating characteristics displayed are scaled according to a voltage factor selected
in the plot settings. In the illustrated cases the voltage factor is selected to be 0.9 p.u. for both
locations.

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• The lightning bolt symbols indicate the operating points of the system as the relaying locations as
determined by the load flow calculation. Note that the load flow results are scaled according to
the voltage factor applied to the plot.

• In the legend, the operating point of the system as observed by the relays is quantified. Both the
voltage factor scaled and measured operating points are quantified.
• Note that for the left relay the operating point is quantified on a polar coordinate system, whilst for
the right relay the operating point is quantified on a Cartesian coordinate system. This is due to a
user selectable parameter in the plot settings.

Figure 32.7.1: A P-Q diagram plot with load flow results and starting characteristics for two separate
relays

Note the information shown on the plot can be configured by altering the settings of the P-Q plot. Refer
to Section 32.7.3).

32.7.3 Configuring the P-Q plot

There are several ways to alter the appearance of the P-Q diagram. Many configuration parameters
can be adjusted by right-clicking the plot and using the context menu. Alternatively, double-clicking in
empty space in the plot will show the plot dialog.

The following sections explain the various ways to alter the display of the plot.

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32.7.3.1 Changing the position of the P-Q plot origin

Section 32.7.3.5 explains how the limits and size of the P-Q diagram can be altered in detail. However,
it is also possible to reposition the origin of the plot graphically. To do this:

1. Right-click the P-Q diagram exactly where you would like the new origin (0,0) point of the plot to
be. A context menu will appear.

2. Select Set origin. PowerFactory will reposition the origin of the plot to the place that you right-
clicked.

32.7.3.2 Centring the origin of the P-Q plot

To centre the origin (0,0) of the plot in the centre of the page:

1. Right-click the P-Q diagram. A context menu will appear.

2. Select Centre origin. PowerFactory will reposition the origin of the plot to the centre of the page.

32.7.3.3 Switching from polar to Cartesian coordinates

To switch from polar to Cartesian coordinates or viceversa:

1. Right-click the P-Q diagram. A context menu will appear.
2. Select Polar. PowerFactory will select or deselect the option and coordinate system will change
correspondingly.

32.7.3.4 P-Q plot relays page

The tabular area in the plot dialog entitled relays lists the displayed relays along with the colours, line
styles and line widths that are used to represent their characteristics in the plot. Each of these can be
adjusted by double-clicking and selecting an alternate option. Refer to Section 18.8 for more information
on configuring plots in PowerFactory.

32.7.3.5 P-Q plot scale page

• Scale. This variable affects the interval between the tick marks on the x and y axis, in the units
specified in the Unit field. If the Distance (see below) field remains constant, then increasing this
number increases the size of the diagram and effectively zooms out on the displayed characteris-
tics.
• x-Min. This field determines the left minimum point of the diagram. However, it also implicitly
considers the scale. Consequently, the true minimum is determined by the product of the Scale
and x-Min. For example, if the scale is 4 and x-Min is set to 2, then the minimum x axis value
displayed would be -8.
• y-Min. The concept for y-Min is the same as x-Min with the minimum value determined by the
product of the scale and the specified minimum value.

Note: The user can ask PowerFactory to adjust the scale of the P-Q diagram automatically. Click Scale
to adjust the scale automatically to fit all the displayed characteristics

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32.7.3.6 P-Q plot options

Specific option relevant to the P-Q plot settings can be accessed by right-clicking the plot and selecting
Options from the context menu, or by pressing the Options button in the edit dialog of the plot.

The options dialog has the following settings:

• Power Calculation > Voltage factor. This option influences the voltage factor used to scale the
characteristic and scale the load flow calculation result as also described and illustrated in section
32.7.2
• Diagram marks > Show calculated PQ values. This option determines whether or not to display
a lightning bolt in the plot indicating the scaled load flow result observed at the relaying location
following a successful load flow calculation. See section 32.7.2 for an example.
• Legend > Show calculated PQ values. This option determines whether or not to display a legend
quantifying the scaled and unscaled load flow result observed at the relaying location following a
successful load flow calculation. See section 32.7.2 for an example.

32.7.4 Modifying the starting element settings from the R-X plot

From the R-X plot, the settings of the starting element shown can be inspected and altered if required.

To do this:

1. Double click the desired characteristic. The dialog for the characteristic will appear.
2. Inspect and/or edit settings as required.
3. Click OK to update the characteristic displayed on the R-X diagram.

32.8 The time-distance plot

The time-distance plot VisPlottz shows the tripping times of the relays as a function of the short-circuit
location. It is directly connected to a path definition so it can only be created if a path is already defined.
A path in a single line diagram is defined by selecting a chain of two or more busbars or terminals and
inter-connecting objects. The pop-up menu which opens when the selection is right-clicked will show a
Path . . . option. This menu option has the following sub-options:

• New: this option will create a new path definition

• Edit: this option is enabled when an existing path is right-clicked. It opens a dialog to alter the
colour and direction of the path
• Add To: this option will add the selected objects to a path definition. The end or start of the
selected path must include the end or start of an existing path.

• Remove Partly: This will remove the selected objects from a path definition, as long as the
remaining path is not broken in pieces
• Remove: This will remove the firstly found path definition of which at least one of the selected
objects is a member

There are a number of ways to create a time-distance plot but it should be noted that in each case a
path must first be defined. The elements which belong to a particular path can be highlighted by setting
the colour representation of the single-line diagram to Other → Groupings→ Paths. To create the plot
choose one of the following methods:

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• In the single line diagram right-click on an element which is already added to a path definition.
From the context menu select the option Plots → Insert Time-Distance Plot. PowerFactory will
then create a new object VisPlottz showing the time-distance plot for all distance relays in the
path.
• In the data manager or the network model manager right-click on an element which already
belongs to a path and select Plots → Insert Time-Distance Plot from the context menu. As above,
this will create a new object VisPlottz.
• Select the elements from the network graphic to be included in the protection path. For more
information regarding the graphic selection, please refer to the Section 14.10. Right-click on any
element from the selection. A context menu will appear. Select Plots → Insert Time-Distance Plot.
As a result, a path will automatically be defined for the selected elements and the time-distance
plot will be displayed.
• A Path object SetPath can be located in the Data Manager in the path folder in the project’s
Network Data folder. Select the “Paths” folder and right-click the path object on the right side of
the Data Manager. Then select Plots → Insert Time-Distance Plot from the context menu.
Additionally, multiple paths can be selected in the network graphic or in the Data Manager by
using the left mouse button in combination with the CTRL Key. As a result, multiple time-distance
plots will be displayed on separate pages. Moreover, the time-distance plot does not automatically
display the single line graphic of the selected path on the left side of the plot. In order to activate
this option, double click on the plot, navigate to the Scale page and select “Show Section of Single
Line Graphic”.

32.8.1 Forward and reverse plots

Figure 32.8.1: A forward time-distance plot

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Figure 32.8.1 illustrates a forward direction time-distance plot. The diagram shows all relay tripping
times for power flows in the forward (left to right) direction of the path. It is also possible to display
diagrams which show the tripping times of the relays for power flows in the reverse direction (right to
left). Three display options are available for the diagrams parameter specified on the Relays page of
the Time-distance plot dialog:

Forward/Reverse. Both diagrams are shown in the plot one below the other.
Forward. Only the forward direction diagram is shown.
Reverse. Only the reverse direction diagram is shown.

32.8.2 The path axis

Figure 32.8.2: A path axis

The path axis in Figure 32.8.2 shows the complete path with busbar and relay locations. Busbars/Ter-
minals are marked with a tick and the name. The coloured boxes represent relays and the left or right
alignment represents their direction. The path axis can represent many different units according to the
user’s needs see section 32.8.5

32.8.3 Methods of calculating tripping times

There are two alternative methods for the calculation of the tripping times shown in the plot. To change
the method, select the Method option in the context menu or double-click the plot to access the time-
distance plot dialog and edit the Method parameter on the Relays page.

Note: A third option (Coordination Results) associated with the distance protection coordination assis-
tant is also available as a selection option for this parameter. Please see section 32.13.10.3 for
more information.

The main difference between the calculation is in relation to their relative accuracy and speed.

Short-circuit sweep method The short-circuit sweep method is the more accurate method for charting
the variation in relay tripping time with fault position. However, the increase in accuracy comes
at the cost of performance. A routine is followed whereby a specified type of short circuit is
applied to the network model at regular positions between the first and the last busbar in the
path. At each short-circuit location the relay tripping times are established. The user can control
the step size between short circuit positions in order to speed up the calculation while ensuring
adequate accuracy. Furthermore the user has the option to enable an additional built in algorithm
to dynamically modify the step size at critical points on the path, to ensure that the relay operation
times are adequately assessed while optimising the calculation time performance. See section
32.11 for information on the short circuit sweep command.
One major advantage of this method is that it will illustrate the under-reaching and over-reaching
effects caused by infeeds and outfeeds that may be present in the protection coordination path. It
will also take into account all the settings of the relay model including starting settings, polarising
settings and the application of any signalling schemes. Further the response of the protection in
response to different types of faults can be analysed (e.g. 3ph, LL, LE, LLE etc with selectable

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fault impedances). Following calculation of the short circuit sweep it may be necessary to adjust
the network model (e.g. modify protection settings) and then rerun the sweep.
Kilometrical method This method is faster but is far less accurate than the short-circuit sweep method.
It is faster because no short circuit calculations are actually carried out and so detailed perfor-
mance of the relays is not examined. Only a very limited amount of information is extracted from
the relay models, the vast majority of the relay configuration is ignored. For distance relays the
impedance of the path is compared directly against the reach settings of the relays only. So for
example if zone 1 of a distance relay reaches 50km along a path and zone 2 reaches 80km along
a path, the plot will display a zone 1 tripping time taken from the relay for the first 50km followed
by a zone 2 tripping time for the next 30km.
This method will not account for the starting characteristic of a distance relay or any of the other
more detailed features a relay may have. For an overcurrent relay the plot will provide information
limited to the direction of operation and the operation time of definite time elements. The plot is
therefore unlikely to reflect the true performance of the protection scheme. However for distance
protection in particular, it does serve as an excellent visualisation of the base settings that have
been applied to a distance relay.

Ideally, the kilometrical method based plots and the short circuit method based plots complement each
other. For a particular study it may be worthwhile presenting kilometrical method based plots as well as
short circuit sweep method based plots. For example if settings have been adjusted to take account of
infeeds, the short circuit method based plot might illustrate a well coordinated system with the expected
reaches applying throughout the system. The corresponding kilometrical plot however, might be grossly
distorted illustrating that in order to achieve the good coordination represented by the short circuit
sweep, it was necessary to vastly increase the reach settings of the relay. This then raises the question
as to whether such a large increase is acceptable.

Conversely, a kilometrical method based plot might indicate that all reaches in the system are entirely
as expected but when the results are plotted using a short circuit sweep based plot it suddenly becomes
clear that the performance of the relay settings are completely inadequate. This could be due to many
reasons which should then be further examined. For example, effects of infeeds, poor selection of
starting settings etc.

32.8.4 Short-circuit calculation settings

If the method for the calculation of the time-distance plot is set to Short-Circuit sweep, the short-circuit
sweep command object ComShcsweep is used along with the short circuit command ComShc. The
commands can be accessed via the corresponding buttons on the Basic Options tab of the Relays page
of the Time Distance Plot dialog.

The Short-Circuit command is used to configure the type of short circuit to be carried out by the short
circuit sweep command. Here the type of fault can be selected as well as the calculation standard and
the fault impedance. Other typical short circuit command parameters are also available for configuration.

The Short-Circuit sweep command is used to define the step size between short circuit applications
as well as whether to apply an algorithm to dynamically vary the step size. Selection of the Iterative
option will enable the algorithm. The algorithm can be adjusted by setting the Precision and step size
parameters. The algorithm initially calculates short circuits along the path at locations separated by
the Step size parameter value. If a variation in the tripping time is detected between any two adjacent
short circuit calculations, the algorithm will sweep the region between the two short circuits using the
Precision (steps) parameter value.

Note: The easiest way to recalculate the short-circuit sweep for the time-distance plot is by simply
pressing the button . This is only needed when using the Short-Circuit Sweep method.

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32.8.5 The distance axis units

There are a number of possible distance axis units available:

• Length. Distance axis is shown in km depending on the line/cable length from the reference relay.
• Impedance (pri.Ohm). Distance axis shows the primary system impedance from the reference
relay to the remote end of the path.

• Reactance (pri.Ohm). Distance axis shows the primary system reactance from the reference
relay to the remote end of the path.
• 1/Conductance (pri.Ohm). Distance axis shows the primary system 1/Conductance from the
reference relay to the remote end of the path.

• Impedance (sec.Ohm). Distance axis shows the secondary impedance from the reference relay
to the remote end of the path.
• Reactance (sec.Ohm). Here the secondary reactance from the reference relay is measured on
the secondary side.

• 1/Conductance (sec.Ohm). Distance axis shows the secondary system 1/Conductance from the
reference relay to the remote end of the path.

32.8.6 The reference relay

The short-circuit sweep method needs to know which relay should be used as the origin of the distance
axis. This relay is named the reference relay. If no reference relay is selected, the distance is measured
from the beginning of the path. In cases where the reference relay is set, the busbar connected to the
reference relay is marked with an arrow.

The reference relay is set using either the graphic or by editing the Time-distance plot dialog. Changing
the reference relay graphically is done by clicking with the right mouse button on the relay symbol
and selecting Set reference relay in the context menu. If there is more than one relay connected to the
selected busbar, PowerFactory offer a list of relays which can be used. In the dialog of the time-distance
plot the Reference Relay frame is located at the bottom.

32.8.7 Capture relays

The Capture Relays button enables the user to easily add relays in the selected path to the time-
distance plot. In order to delete a relay from the diagram, the respective line in the relay list has to be
deleted.

32.8.8 Double-click positions

The following positions can be double-clicked for a default action:

• Axis. Edit scale

• Curve. Edit step of relay

• Relay box. Edit relay(s)

• Path axis. Edit Line
• Any other. Open the “Time Distance” edit dialog

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32.8.9 The context menu

If the diagram is right-clicked at any position, the context menu will pop up similar to the plot menu
described in Chapter 18: Reporting and Visualising Results, Section 18.8 (Plots).

There are some additional functions available in addition to the basic plots-methods for the time-distance
plot.

• Grid. Shows the dialog to modify the grid-lines.

• Edit Path. Opens the dialog of the displayed path definition (SetPath).

• Method. Sets the method used for calculation of tripping times.

• x-Unit. Sets the unit for the distance axis, km impedances,...
• Diagrams. Select whether diagrams show forward, reverse or both.

• Consider Breaker Opening Time.

• Report. This option prints out a report for the position of the relays, their tripping time as well as
all calculated impedances in the output window.

32.9 Basics of a differential protection scheme

Section 32.2.2 explained how to setup a protection device in PowerFactory. After a relay has been
created within the network model there are a number of parameters to define in the dialog which
appears. This section will describe the basic steps that should be completed in order to specify these
parameters for differential protection relays. In many cases the setup is similar to overcurrent relay and
consequently only the main differences are described in this section.

Section 32.10 will cover the main graphical tools used for differential protection analysis in PowerFac-
tory.

32.9.1 Differential relay model setup-basic data page

The basic data page in the relay model (ElmRelay ) dialog is where the basic configuration of the relay
is completed. The procedure is the same as for setting up an over-current relay. Refer to section 32.3.7.

32.9.2 Basic relay blocks used for differential protection

This section provides a brief overview of some of the basic protection blocks that can be found within
differential relays in PowerFactory. This section only describes those blocks that are unique to differen-
tial relays. This manual offers only a brief high level overview of the blocks. For more information on
these blocks please refer to the Protection Devices Library.

32.9.2.1 Differential block

The differential block is used for defining the device’s operate/restraint characteristic. The differential
thresholds, the restraint slopes [%], the slope threshold limit, the slope restraint shape, the restraint
current calculation logic and the differential trip delay can all be set in the differential block element.

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Inside the Differential Block Type (TypBiasidiff ) the user can also select the type of the block. This can
have a large impact on graphical presentation of parameters of the differential protection (see Section
32.10).

A Harmonic blocking feature is available for use during EMT simulation if the relevant harmonic currents
inputs are available. If at least one of the harmonic input currents is above the relevant harmonic
threshold the differential trip of the block is inhibited.

32.9.2.2 CT Adapter block

A CT Adapter block can be used where the ratio of a CT’s supplying a differential relay need to be
normalised. e.g. for a transformer differential protection where the CT’s are located at different voltage
levels and where a vector rotation may be introduced by the winding arrangement.

Two different types of CT adapter blocks are available: a 3 phase CT adapter and a single phase CT
adapter.

A CT Adapter block can be connected:

• To the outputs of a measurement block to simulate the behaviour of a microprocessor differential
device which internally compensates the currents coming from CTs
• Directly to the CT outputs to simulate the CT adapter for differential devices which do not include
a microprocessor.

32.10 Differential Plots

In PowerFactory two different types of differential diagrams are available:

• Magnitude biased differential diagram VisMagndiffplt (see subsection 32.10.1)
• Phase comparison differential diagram VisPcompdiffplt (see subsection 32.10.2)
Differential plots can be created by right-clicking on the cubicle or the protection device according to the
following instructions.
1. From the cubicle
(a) Right-click a cubicle containing differential relays. The context menu will appear.
(b) Select the option Plots → Insert Current Comparison Differential Plot or Plots → Add to Cur-
rent Comparison Differential Plot. PowerFactory will create a diagram showing the differential
protection plot, or it will open a list of existing plots where the selected device is presented
so that user can choose which plot he wants to see.
2. From the protection device
(a) Open a tabular view of the protection device either by editing devices within a cubicle, from
the list of calculation relevant objects (Network Model Manager) or from the Data Manager.
(b) Right-click the icon. A context menu will appear.
(c) Select Plots → Insert Current Comparison Differential Plot or Plots → Add to Current Com-
parison Differential Plot.

32.10.1 Magnitude biased differential diagram

This diagram is available for the following types of differential blocks:

• 3ph

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• 1ph
• Restricted Earth Fault

The X-axis represents the Restraint current and Y-axis the Differential current.

The differential characteristic depends upon the differential element (class “RelBiasdiff”) settings and is
available also when no calculation has been executed. The restraint current RMS values and differential
current RMS values are calculated by the differential element (“ RelBiasdiff” class) and are available
only when a calculation has been executed. The 1ph and the Restricted Earth Fault differential type
calculate an unique working point (a Restraint current value and a Differential current value), the 3ph
differential type calculates three working points (three Restraint current values and three Differential
current values)

Figure 32.10.1: PowerFactory magnitude biased differential diagram for 3ph differential protection
element

32.10.2 Phase comparison differential diagram

A phase comparison differential diagram (.VisPcompdiffplt) is available for the following types of differ-
ential blocks:
• 3ph Phase Comparison
• 1ph Phase Comparison
The Restraint Region depends upon the differential element (“RelBiasdiff” class) settings and is also
available when no calculation has been executed. The differential current vector is calculated by the
differential element and is available only when a calculation has been executed.

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Figure 32.10.2: Example of PowerFactory Phase comparison differential diagram for differential
protection element of the type 3ph Phase Comparison

32.11 The Short-Circuit Sweep command

The Short-Circuit Sweep Command is used to carry out short circuits at intervals along the length of
one or more specified paths. The short circuits of the sweep are carried out at constant intervals with
the user having control over the size of the interval so as to optimise the resolution of the sweep and
thereby improve the calculation time. Furthermore the user has the option to employ an iterative control
strategy over the sweep routine, using precision step sizes to ensure that step changes in the monitored
variables are not missed. The short-circuit locations can be specified in km, impedance, reactance and
1/conductance in primary ohms or secondary ohms. At each short circuit location, the user can specify
the types of fault event to be carried out (e.g. single phase to ground, 3 phase etc.) as well as the real
and the reactive parts of any fault impedance. More than one fault event can be carried out at every
short circuit location.

The short circuit sweep includes its own results file in which any result variable available in PowerFactory
can be monitored. For each fault event at each location, results can be stored in the results file and
made available for post calculation analysis and presentation in plots. The dialog of the command is
illustrated in figure 32.11.1.

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Figure 32.11.1: Short-Circuit Sweep command

In the Selection field a path or set of paths may be selected over which the short circuit sweep shall be
carried out.

The Results field specifies the results file which shall be used to store the results. In this results file it is
possible for the user to specify the result variables to be monitored throughout the calculation/

The Command field references a short circuit command. This command should be used to specify the
short circuit method and other settings e.g. maximum or minimum short circuit current or LV/Momentary,
LV/Interrupting or 30 Cycle Currents/Voltages (for ANSI calculations). It is not used to specify the fault
impedance or the fault type. This is specified in the fault events.

The fault events are specified using the fault case definitions field. By choosing the Add button a new
fault event is created and this can be configured by the user to specify a fault type and impedance.
Multiple fault events can be defined and later edited or removed using the Edit button or Remove All
button respectively.

On the second page of the Short circuit Sweep command dialog, the user can configure the sweep
routine and whether an iterative strategy should be used. In general the iterative approach is significantly
faster but can lead to more inaccurate results. The iterative step-size deduction employs interval
bisection to find the locations at which the tripping times of relays change. The algorithm starts with the
full length of each section of line of greater length than the specified Min. line length. It calculates a fault
at either end of the line and looks at the responses of the relays. If the algorithm detects that the relay
operating time changes for any relay, then it calculates a short circuit in the middle of the line. Depending
on whether the change happened in the first or the second half of the line it selects the corresponding
section and repeats the sequence until the location only changes by the specified Precision. This result
is recorded and then the process is repeated with the section between the found location and the end of
the line, until either no change is detected or the next position is the line end. The specified step size is
used, when two subsequent iterations yield positions which are within two times the specified Precision
of one another. In that case it is assumed that there is an IDMT characteristic in effect and the algorithm
continues using the fixed step size approach for this line.

The short circuit sweep command is used by a number of different features in PowerFactory including
the time-distance plot (see section 32.8), the Protection Audit tool (see section 32.15) and Short-Circuit

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Sweep plots (see section 32.12). In each of these cases its use has been integrated into the feature so
that the short circuit sweep does not need to be created, instead only configuration of the Short-Circuit
Sweep is actually required.

32.12 Short-Circuit Sweep Plots

Like the Time-Distance Plot described in section 32.8 the Short-Circuit Sweep Plot (VisSweepplot)
allows the user to tap into powerful capabilities of the short circuit sweep command ComShcsweep.
Unlike the time distance-plot, which can only display the variation in tripping with respect to fault location
across a path, the short-circuit sweep plot can be used to display the variation of any network parameter
with respect to fault location and fault type, across a particular path. For example, it is possible to easily
plot the variation in fault current or active power, flowing in a line in response to different fault locations,
and fault types, across a particular path which may or may not incorporate the monitored line. Some
typical plots are illustrated in figure 32.12.1.

Figure 32.12.1: Typical Short-Circuit Sweep Plots

The plot has clear applications in the protection field but it may also be used for other short circuit
applications if appropriate.

The user first defines the path which is to be swept by the short circuit sweep command, the result
parameters to be recorded are then defined and finally the short circuit cases to be applied during
the sweep are specified. The sweep is then executed and the results collected in a results file. The
plot accesses this results file in order to display the final characteristics. The x-axis of the plot can be
selected to length, impedance, reactance or 1/conductance, while the units of the y-axis depend on
the result parameter being examined. Each plot generated is specific to a particular fault case. For
example, one plot may relate to three phase, zero impedance faults, whilst another may be related to

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single phase to earth faults, with five ohms of fault resistance. However, it is straightforward to toggle
between the different cases using the plot's setting dialog.

For protection purposes, the plot allows the detailed behaviour of a relay to be examined in response
to the faults of the sweep. For example, a path defining a closed ring may be swept and the directional
element of a relay operating on the ring examined. In this case the plot might be used to gain insight
into how the angle between the extracted polarising and operating quantities of the relay change with
fault location and ultimately how the detected direction of the fault changes. This information may be
useful in explaining the tripping behaviour of the relay model, diagnosing problems with the settings or
design of the relay and finally in the selection of appropriate relay settings. The plot dialog also provides
an option to display setting thresholds taken from a user defined relay element. These thresholds can
be compared against the results of the sweep to help the user identify key transition points or values in
the plot.

32.12.1 Configuration of Short-Circuit Sweep plots

A feature has been included in the new protection graphic assistant tool (described in more detail in
section 32.17.2) to accelerate the process of generating useful plots specifically for protection purposes.
In addition to the method described there it is also possible to create these plots directly from the Insert
Plot icon in the main icon bar, or by right-clicking a single or multiple path objects in the Data Manager
and choosing Plots → Insert Short-Circuit Sweep Plot, or by right-clicking on an element in the single
line diagram belonging to a path and choosing Plots → Insert Short-Circuit Sweep Plot.

Figure 32.12.2: Short-Circuit Sweep Plot - Curves page

Moreover, the selection of elements from the network graphic can be directly used to create a Short-
circuit sweep plot. For more information regarding the the graphical selection, please refer to the
Section 14.10. Right-click on any element from the selection. Select Plots → Insert Short-Circuit

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Sweep Plot. A path will automatically be defined and the short-circuit sweep plot will be displayed. A
Path object SetPath can be located in the Data Manager in the path folder in the project’s Network Data
folder. Select the “Paths” folder and right-click on the path object on the right side of the Data Manager.
Then select Plots → Insert Short-Circuit Sweep Plot from the context menu. Additionally, multiple paths
can be selected in the network graphic or in the Data Manager by using left mouse button in combination
with the CTRL Key. As a result, multiple short-circuit sweep plots will be displayed on separate pages.
In whatever way the plot is created, once the plot has been created it is possible to configure the plot by
configuring the plot dialog as shown in figure 32.12.2.

On the Curves page of the dialog the Path can be selected if required. The x-axis unit can be set to
either length, impedance, reactance or 1/conductance. A pointer to the results file used by the Short-
Circuit sweep is displayed. It should be noted that the results file is stored within the Plot Page object in
the data manager, whilst the short circuit-sweep itself is stored within the study case.

The short circuit sweep (see section 32.11) can be configured and executed using the three buttons
named Edit SC-Sweep, Edit Short-Circuit and Execute SC-Sweep. The Edit SC-Sweep gives access
to the Short-Circuit Sweep command itself (ComShcsweep). Here different fault cases (i.e. different
types of fault e.g. 3 phase, single phase to ground etc., with different fault impedances) can be added
to the analysis. The algorithm which controls the number of short circuit locations examined can be
configured on the Advanced options page of the object. The sweep will carry out a series of short circuit
calculations at intervals along the length of the defined path and at each location it will record the result
variables as specified in the results file. The user can add or remove result variables to/from the results
file as required. The sweep will repeat the series of calculations for each fault case defined.

The short circuit calculation method to be used can be configured using the Edit Short-Circuit button.
Note that the Fault types are not configured here, rather they are configured as described in the previous
paragraph. Each Short-Circuit sweep plot relates a to a single fault case. The fault case to be displayed
is selected using the Displayed parameter. The drop down list will contain all fault cases specified in the
short circuit sweep command. To execute the short circuit sweep the Execute SC-Sweep button may be
used. Alternatively a feature has been included in the new protection graphic assistant tool to manage
the updating of plots including the execution of Short-Circuit sweep commands. This is described in
more detail in section 32.17.3.

The y-axis parameters to be displayed are specified in the Curves table. The colour, line style and line
width can all be configured as required.

On the Thresholds page of the plot shown in figure 32.12.3 it is possible to add additional characteristics
to the plot representing the setting thresholds of various relay elements. By plotting the thresholds along
with the results it is possible to easily observe where thresholds are exceeded and where they are not.
Again the colour, style and width of the threshold characteristic can all be configured as required.

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Figure 32.12.3: Short-Circuit Sweep Plot - Thresholds page

32.13 Protection coordination assistant

PowerFactory includes a protection coordination assistant that can assist with automatically determining
settings for overcurrent and distance protection devices. This section explains how to use this tool.

32.13.1 Technical background

This section provides a brief overview of overcurrent and distance protection coordination. The user
may wish to skip this section and move directly to the sections about configuring the tool if they are
already familiar with the basic principles of protection coordination.

32.13.1.1 Overcurrent coordination

Overcurrent protection coordination philosophies vary widely throughout industry so it is difficult to de-
scribe a definitive approach. However, in this section some basic principles of overcurrent coordination
will be described along with the necessary steps to derive equations for an automatic coordination
based on the described philosophy.

Overcurrent protection is most frequently applied in radial networks. For other situations where faults
are fed from multiple directions for example where there are separated sources in the system, ring
structures or a double circuit feeding two coupled busbar sections then there will be a requirement for
overcurrent devices to act on a measured fault direction in addition to the current magnitude.

If we focus on a the simple radial structure supplied from a single equivalent source, the overcurrent
philosophy for any overcurrent relay protecting equipment in that structure could be stated as follows:
• An overload stage should protect the connected equipment in case of currents higher than the

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permissable equipment current that could flow under normal operating conditions. Normally a
security factor of 20% is applied to avoid nuisance tripping. A formalised equation could state that
the overload stage should be set to 120% of the nominal equipment current rating.
• The instantaneous definite-time stage is required to detect the minimum short circuit current
expected to be seen for faults in the primary protection zone. For this purpose the minimum short
circuit current could be calculated and an additional security factor of 20% applied. A formalised
equation could state that the instantaneous stage should be set to trip at 80% of the minimum
short circuit current observed for faults located in the primary protection zone.
• Whether a third stage, the short-circuit stage, is applied might depend on the protection philos-
ophy. Where it is applied this stage could act as a backup stage for faults located on adjacent
equipment (in the backup protection zone). For this purpose as for the instantaneous stage,
minimum faults minimum short circuit current could be calculated, but in this case with faults
applied in the backup protection zone. Again, a security margin of 20% could be applied. In this
case a formalised equation could state that the tripping threshold should be set to 80% of the
minimum short circuit current in the backup protection zone, i.e. in the next connected equipment.

For a fault in a radial feeder structure with a relatively large source impedance where the source
impedance does not vary much if the fault is applied at different locations along the length of the feeder
(e.g. where there are no transformers, or long lines), then the currents also do not differ much when
the short circuit location is varied. In these cases, the selectivity is often ensured using time grading.
This means, that for a given fault, an upstream device detecting a fault in its backup zone will be set
so as to trip later than a downstream device detecting the fault in its primary protection zone. The time
difference between the specified tripping time of the upstream device as compared to the downstream
device is known as the grading time (and could typically be in the order of 300ms).

The coordination assistant in PowerFactory is able to automatically carry out network calculations
resulting in the specification of current and time tripping thresholds for overcurrent relays based on
formally specified equations and grading times. Where directional elements are specified then this
setting is also considered in the coordination.

32.13.1.2 Distance coordination

A distance protection scheme works by continuously measuring the voltage and current on a protected
circuit. These values can then be used to calculate an equivalent impedance. This impedance can
then be compared to a “reach” setting and the basic idea is that the relay should trip if the measured
impedance is less than the reach setting.

On an unfaulted circuit the voltage will be high (normally tens to hundreds of thousands of volts) and
the current much lower (normally tens to hundreds of Amps). Therefore, according to Ohms law, the
normal load impedance might typically be in the order of a few hundred Ohms.

Consider now a three phase bolted fault on a transmission circuit. The voltage falls to zero at the point
of fault whilst the current increases in proportion to the source voltage and the impedance between the
source and the fault. At the near end of the circuit where the protection relay and measuring CTs and
VTs are located, the voltage will drop and the current will increase. The ratio of the voltage at the source
to the fault current will be the impedance of the line to the point of the fault. Using this principle, relays
can be set to protect a certain ’zone’ of a line and accurately discriminate between nearby faults and
more distant faults.

In practical, distance protection relays use so-called “polarising” voltage and “operating” current quan-
tities to measure the impedance and to determine whether a fault is “in zone” or “out of zone”. A
separate directional element is often also employed to determine whether the fault direction is “forward”
or “reverse”. This element also uses “polarising” voltage and “operating” current quantities. For faults
close to the relay the measured voltage may drop so low that the relay is unable to accurately determine
a fault direction. In modern numerical distance protection relays, the polarising voltage quantities used
by the directional element often include a memory buffer component that allows the relay to determine
direction more accurately for such faults based on the voltage present before the fault occurred. Further

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detail on this and other aspects of distance protection can be found in many reference texts and the
interested user should refer to these for further information.

For the purpose of coordination, a basic distance protection scheme might consist of three zones of
protection configured as follows:

• Zone 1 that covers 80 % of the protected circuit and is set to instantaneous trip.
• Zone 2 that covers 100 % of the primarily protected circuit and a portion of the next adjacent
circuit. Zone 2 protection must be time delayed so that discrimination can be achieved with the
zone 1 protection on the adjacent circuit. A typical time delay is 400 ms.
• Zone 3 protection provides backup protection for the adjacent circuit and is often set to the
impedance of the primarily protected circuit + 100 % of the adjacent circuit. It has a longer time
delay than zone 2, typically 800 ms. For older mho relays this zone may be offset so as to provide
a degree of reverse reach (in addition to the forward reach) so as to provide backup for bus
protection systems.

This is quite a typical configuration but there are many other configurations in use and different parties
responsible for protection coordination have different philosophies for determining how the reach and
time settings of a distance relay should be determined. In general the various reaches for each zone
are normally determined from the network impedance, reactance or resistance of the protected lines.
However in each case different factors and offsets are applied according to company preference. These
preferences can usually be collated as a collection of setting rules.

If a network model has already been configured in PowerFactory, PowerFactory usually has access to
the network impedance data and topological connection data. If PowerFactory is also provided with key
facts about the relevant setting rules, then it is able to automatically calculate a set of reach settings
for each relaying location in the network in accordance with the relevant philosophy. The protection
coordination assistant is a tool which has been provided to facilitate this feature.

The protection coordination assistant automatically determines distance protection settings for the re-
lays or relaying locations it is provided with. The basic functionality of the coordination tool can be
illustrated with reference to an example network. Consider the simplified transmission network shown
in Figure 32.13.1. This network contains four busbars, three transmission lines along with associated
generation and load. The locations where distance protection devices are located are indicated with a
blue circle, and the direction in which they are “reaching” is indicated with blue arrows. Line impedance
parameters are shown above the centre of each line.

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Figure 32.13.1: Example simplified transmission system for the protection coordination example

For the purpose of this illustration, the coordination assistant might be required to determine the settings
for three zones and an overreach zone for each relay location shown. In this example, there are six
locations where settings would be determined. Therefore the coordination assistant would calculate a
minimum of 24 settings and maybe even more (depending on how the reach was specified in the relays).
Potentially the coordination assistant could be used to calculate the settings for an entire network. In
such a case, the potential benefits of using the tool are immediately apparent.

32.13.2 General Handling

Protection coordination is carried out in two steps. In the first step settings are calculated using the
protection coordination assistant command itself (ComProtassist ). In the second step the results of
the coordination are reported and where appropriate, applied to the relays in the network model. For the
second step a separate command called the protection coordination results command (ComCoordreport
) is used.

In order to carry out an automatic coordination, it is necessary to define the following things:

1. A network model suitable for the accurate calculation of loadflow and short circuit results
2. The relay locations

3. The protection philosophy setting rules

Relaying locations are specified by first adding relay (ElmRelay ) objects to the network model (if they
are not already present in the model) and by secondly specifying for which of those relays, settings
should be calculated, with the latter specification being made in the protection coordination assistant
command (ComProtassist) itself.

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The distance and overcurrent protection setting rules are also specified in the protection coordination
assistant command. Once the Protection coordination assistant has been configured, it is executed and
PowerFactory will then use the data available to it to calculate settings.

The following sub sections will go through the different options available for the configuration of the
protection coordination assistant and the protection coordination results command. They are organised
according to the page on which the options are specified.

32.13.3 Basic Options

Coordinated protection devices

The coordination assistant can be used to carry out both an overcurrent and distance protection coor-
dination at the same time or alternatively each coordination can be carried out separately. The check
boxes are used to specify which coordinations are to be considered by the assistant.

Note: The coordination assistant is available with both licenses Time-Overcurrent Protection and Dis-
tance Protection. However, please note, that the coordination of distance protection devices
requires the Distance Protection license.

Protection devices

The protection relays for which the coordination will be carried out can be specified via this option. The
devices are selected by clicking on the icon. Devices can either be selected directly or a grouping
element which contains devices, such as a set or a path can be selected.

Calculation commands

This field is only visible if the check box Overcurrent Protection is active. This is because loadflow
and short circuit calculations must be carried out in order to carry out an overcurrent coordination
whereas for the distance protection coordination only the network data is required. Within the PowerFac-
tory database the commands are located in the study case folder and can be accessed by clicking on the
icon to change the calculation settings. For the overcurrent coordination, the coordination assistant
will determine maximum and minimum short circuit currents for each protection device automatically
based on the fault types provided in the assistant and the locations of the devices. The following buttons
are used to handle the fault events:
• Edit Faults: Opens an overview windows with the existing fault events.
• Add Fault: Creates a fault event (EvtShc) where the fault type and fault impedance are specified.

• Clear All Faults: Deletes all existing fault events.

If no fault events are defined, the coordination assistant will use the selected fault type in the short circuit
command.

Results

The result file in which the results of the coordination(s) will be stored can be specified with the
parameter Result File. Under many circumstances it may not be necessary to adjust this parameter
but if necessary a specific result file can be selected by using the icon. The result file dialog itself
can be accessed by clicking the icon.

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Reporting

The Command parameter is used to reference an associated protection coordination results command.
As mentioned in section 32.13.2, the coordination process is a two step process where first results are
calculated and secondly results are reported. The checkbox option here is used to specify whether
the two steps are executed in one action (by execution of the Protection Coordination Assistant only)
or whether the two steps are executed separately. When the Reporting check box is selected, the two
steps are executed in one action, with the protection coordination results command as specified in the
Command parameter used for the second step. By clicking on the button it is possible to access and
configure the referenced command. If the Reporting check box is not selected, the coordination results
command must be executed manually as a second step once the first step is complete.

32.13.4 Overcurrent Protection

The assistant is able to coordinate overcurrent devices based on the phase currents observed by the
device under specific fault conditions. Different current equations can be defined for different equipment
types. The assistant automatially selects the relevant equation based on the relay location, direction
and connected equipment.

The equation sets can be split into two categories:

• Branch elements: Line, Transformer (HV-side), Transformer (LV-side), Busbar
• Single port elements: Load, Motor, Generator

Equations can be activated or deactivated according to the network layout and protection philosophy.
As a minimum, the equations for lines and loads should be active in order to calculate settings for all
equipment types. If for example only equations for lines are given, then relay settings for all elements
classed as branch elements are calculated according to the line equations. The same logic applies for
single port elements such as motors or generators. By default the equations for loads are applied to all
single port elements if alternative equations are not available.

Figure 32.13.2 shows an example network including equipment types and overcurrent protection de-
vices considered by the coordination assistant. The network structure is radial with a uni-directional
power flow because only one source is connected, at Station A. Based on the connected equipment
types, for each protection device the assistant selects a corresponding equation set. In this example
the following equations are used:
• Line equations: R AB and Fuse

• Transformer HV equations: R BC HV
• Transformer LV equations: R BC LV
• Motor equations: R ASM

• Busbar equations: R A Bus and R AB Bus

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Figure 32.13.2: Example network showing equipment types and overcurrent devices considered by the
coordination assisant.

If the network has more than one source, depending on the location of a fault, the power that flows
through a relay to the fault can flow in one of two directions. In other words the relay can be subjected
to bi-directional power flows. In such cases the user has little choice but to utilise directional discrim-
ination. Figure 32.13.3 shows an example network where two sources have the potential to produce
bi-directional power flows in the protection devices. Depending on the fault position every device in this
network is potentially able to see a bi-directional power flow. In order for the assistant to coordinate
the correct devices, the option Directional needs to be activated on the Protection page of each relay
element ElmRelay.

Figure 32.13.3: Example network with two sources for a directional overcurrent scheme.

Based on the given current equations the assistant determines the current settings for each overcurrent
protection device. Depending on the power flow direction and the directional setting of each relay, relay
grading pairs are identified and the specified time grading applied.

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32.13.4.1 Definition of current equations

Three overcurrent stage equations and one fuse equation can be defined for each equipment type. For
each equipment class the following input fields and options are available:
• Direction: An individual direction setting is specified for all overcurrent stages used for the equip-
ment class. The available directional options are non-directional, forward or reverse.
• Overload: For the overload stage a current equation can be defined using the available keywords.
Different characteristics can be selected in the Overload characteristic drop-down menu. It is
possible to select a definite-time characteristic or an inverse definite minimum time characteristic
such as inverse, very inverse, extremely inverse or long-time inverse.
• Short-circuit and Instantaneous: The equations for two definite-time overcurrent stages.
• Fuse: If the equipment type is protected by a fuse element, the equation defined in this field will
be considered to determine the fuse rating.
• Max. current: The maximum current which is seen by the overcurrent protection device is required
for every set of equations. If this current is not specified, the assistant will not calculate settings
for that equipment type.

The assistant offers a set of pre-defined keywords which are in fact current variables to determine
the current setting of each overcurrent stage. Current results from both load flow and short circuit
calculations are available. For short circuit currents the assistant calculates minimum and maximum
currents considering all defined fault types and the short circuit command specified in the Basic Options
page.

Note: The assistant determines minimum and maximum currents based on the application of faults at
key locations. These locations are associated with protection areas identified automatically from
the locations of the relays and the surrounding network topology. The location setting specified in
the short circuit command is not used in these cases.

The following list explains each available keyword in detail:

• I_nom: nominal current of the protected element. Please note, that loads do not offer a nominal
current which can be utilised by the coordination assistant. For busbars this keyword is only
meaningful when a nominal current is specified in the busbar’s type.
• I_ldf: load flow current measured at the relay location as a result of the load flow specified in the
page Basic Options.
• I_start: starting current of asynchronous machines. This keyword is only available when specify-
ing Motor equations.
• I_minAB: minimum short circuit current for a fault located at the remote limit of the first protection
area (AB) and measured at the relay location. For the example network in Figure 32.13.2 the
current I_minAB for device R AB would be for a fault at 100% of L AB seen from station A i.e a
fault effectively applied at Station B.
• I_maxAB: maximum short cicuit current for a fault located at the local limit of the first protection
area (AB) measured at the relay location. For the example network in Figure 32.13.2 the current
I_maxAB for device R AB would be for a fault at 0% of L AB seen from station A. i.e. a fault applied
just on the line side of the CT at Station A.
The remaining available keywords are: I_minBC, I_maxBC, I_minCD, I_maxCD. These currents are
determined in a similar way to I_minAB and I_maxAB but for the second (BC) and third (CD) protection
areas as determined from a topological search of the equipment and relays located in the vicinity of the
protection device. For the example network in Figure 32.13.2 the second protection area for device R
AB is between stations B and C and the third protection area between stations C and D.

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The equations are entered using the described keywords and standard mathematical operators (+,-,
/,*,max() and min()). When using the max() and min() operators, a maximum of two expressions can be
compared with each expression separated by a ";" character.

An example of typical usage for line equations is given below:

• Overload 𝐼𝑠𝑒𝑡𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 = 1,2 * 𝐼𝑛𝑜𝑚

• Short-circuit 𝐼𝑠𝑒𝑡𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 = 0,8 * 𝐼𝑚𝑖𝑛𝐵𝐶

• Instantaneous 𝐼𝑠𝑒𝑡𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 = 0,8 * 𝐼𝑚𝑖𝑛𝐴𝐵

32.13.4.2 Definition of minimum time delays

For each equipment class for which equations are defined, one minimum time delay can be defined
on the Timers tab. The delay specifies a fixed minimum timer setting for the fastest overcurrent stage.
Normally such time delays are set to zero. But for example if the overcurrent protection is only the
backup for a differential protection it might be required to apply a minimum delay for each overcurrent
device to grade with the differential protection.

When defining the equations used for Busbars an additional checkbox Assume reverse interlock is
available. The intention of a reverse interlock is to allow a very fast time setting to be employed by
busbar protection that would not normally coordinate with downstream protection. The fast acting stage
should only be released by the interlock for busbar faults. If this check box is selected activated, the
option prevents time grading from being applied to the instantaneous stage. Instead the assistant sets
the time delay of the instantaneous stage to the specified minimum time delay.

32.13.4.3 Fuse Characteristc definition

Under the tab Fuse Characteristic a generic fuse tripping single-line characteristic (e.g. an average
melt curve) can be defined on a per unit basis. The table Nominal currents is used to specify a range
of available fuse ratings which the coordination assistant can use to scale the generic characteristic
deriving a separate characteristic for each fuse rating. The assistant then selects an approriate fuse
characteristic according to the specified current equations and time grading.

32.13.5 Distance Protection

The majority of settings rules are defined across the various tabs located on this page of the command
dialog. Most setting rules are defined on a per zone basis.

The general tab of this page is illustrated in figure 32.13.4.

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Figure 32.13.4: Protection coordination assistant command - General tab of Distance Protection page

Most distance relays have a resistive reach which exceeds the resistance of the line being protected.
This is to ensure that faults are detected even when fault resistance is present. In order to try to
anticipate probable values of fault resistance an arc resistance is usually built into the specification of
setting rules for the resistive reach. The arc resistance is dependent on various factors but voltage level
can be used as the main differentiator.

The table in the Arc resistance field allows a user to specify the arc resistance to be considered at
different voltage levels. This means that if settings are being calculated for relays located in different
voltage networks, the assistant can automatically consider a different arc resistance for each of those
relays. The equations used for calculation of the arc resistance are defined on the tabs associated with
each zone and will be described in subsequent subsections.

Different arc resistances are sometimes considered for phase distance protection as compared to
ground distance protection since the factors which influence arc resistance potentially also vary for
such faults.

The Ratio RF(Ph-Ph) / RF(Ph-E) parameter in the Arc resistance field can be used to capture this.

Circular impedance characteristics are usually specified in terms of an impedance magnitude and an
angle. The impedance for each zone is usually specified by way of equations defined in the setting
rules. The calculated impedance for each zone is complex and will therefore have a magnitude and
an angle. The magnitude of the circular characteristic is usually specifically determined for each zone.
However, the angle is not always zone specific. Using The Angle calculation for circular characteristics
field the user can specify if this is the case. If the Zone 1 impedance angle option is selected then the
calculated impedance angle for Zone 1 is used for all zones. If the calculated impedance angle option
is selected then each zone will use the specific impedance angle calculated for that zone.

When the tool carries out the topological search of the network in the vicinity of the considered relays it
is possible that the search can encounter multiple parallel paths each of which satisfy the reach equation

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criteria. For example there could be identical parallel lines which meet the criteria for X_minBC (see
section 32.13.5.3). The Aggregate parallel branches in search direction setting controls how those
parallel paths are handled. In cases where the option is checked, the parallel lines will be aggregated
and an equivalent impedance selected for the parameter in question. In cases where the option is
unchecked the impedances will not be aggregated and the impedance of a single line shall be used.

32.13.5.1 Pre-defined coordination rules

There are a number of typical setting rule philosophies which are very widely used. Even in cases
where these typical rules aren’t adhered to exactly, the actual rules which are used often use the basic
structure of one of these typical rules as a basis. As such, these typical setting rules have been pre-
programmed in the tool for convenience and can be directly used or subsequently customised according
to user need. This section provides some background on the predefined coordination rules.

If the Pre-defined coordination rules button is pressed then the dialog as shown in figure 32.13.5 is
displayed.

Figure 32.13.5: Pre-Defined Coordination Rules dialog

There are three pre-defined groups of setting rules which can be selected using the Zone factors drop
down menu:

1. Independent
2. Cumulative
3. Referred to line 1

Depending on which option is selected a different set of Zone factor parameters are available for
configuration in the Zone factors field.

Once this dialog is configured as required and the OK button pressed, a set of equations corresponding
with the selected setting rules is populated in the tabs corresponding with each zone on the Distance
Protection page of the main dialog. The equations are self-evident on inspection of the tabs, but an
outline of the equations of the three predefined setting rules is provided here for reference.

In the equations listed below 𝑍𝐹 𝑎𝑐1 ,𝑍𝐹 𝑎𝑐2 , 𝑍𝐹 𝑎𝑐3 , 𝑍𝐹 𝑎𝑐1𝑏 and 𝑍𝐹 𝑎𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑙 are the zone factors specified
in the dialog illustrated in figure 32.13.5. Reach equations are defined on a per zone basis with zone
1b representing the overreach zone. Section 32.13.5.3 provides definitions of the variables not defined
above. Note that all impedances are complex.

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Independent method

The zone reactive reaches are determined as follows:

𝑋1 = 𝑋𝑚𝑖𝑛𝐴𝐵 × 𝑍𝐹 𝑎𝑐1 (32.20)

𝑋2 = 𝑋𝑚𝑎𝑥𝐴𝐵 + 𝑋𝑚𝑖𝑛𝐵𝐶 × 𝑍𝐹 𝑎𝑐2 (32.21)
𝑋3 = 𝑋𝑚𝑎𝑥𝐴𝐵 + 𝑋𝑚𝑖𝑛𝐵𝐶 + 𝑋𝑚𝑖𝑛𝐶𝐷 × 𝑍𝐹 𝑎𝑐3 (32.22)
𝑋1𝑏 = 𝑋𝑚𝑖𝑛𝐴𝐵 × 𝑍𝐹 𝑎𝑐1𝑏 (32.23)

The zone resistive reaches are determined as follows:

𝑅1 = 𝑅𝑚𝑖𝑛𝐴𝐵 × 𝑍𝐹 𝑎𝑐1 + 𝑅𝐹 (32.24)

𝑅2 = 𝑅𝑚𝑎𝑥𝐴𝐵 + 𝑅𝑚𝑖𝑛𝐵𝐶 × 𝑍𝐹 𝑎𝑐2 + 𝑅𝐹 (32.25)
𝑅3 = 𝑅𝑚𝑎𝑥𝐴𝐵 + 𝑅𝑚𝑖𝑛𝐵𝐶 + 𝑅𝑚𝑖𝑛𝐶𝐷 × 𝑍𝐹 𝑎𝑐3 + 𝑅𝐹 (32.26)
𝑅1𝑏 = 𝑅𝑚𝑖𝑛𝐴𝐵 × 𝑍𝐹 𝑎𝑐1𝑏 + 𝑅𝐹 (32.27)

The zone impedance reaches are determined as follows:

𝑍1 = 𝑍𝑚𝑖𝑛𝐴𝐵 × 𝑍𝐹 𝑎𝑐1 (32.28)

𝑍2 = 𝑍𝑚𝑎𝑥𝐴𝐵 + 𝑍𝑚𝑖𝑛𝐵𝐶 × 𝑍𝐹 𝑎𝑐2 (32.29)
𝑍3 = 𝑍𝑚𝑎𝑥𝐴𝐵 + 𝑍𝑚𝑖𝑛𝐵𝐶 + 𝑍𝑚𝑖𝑛𝐶𝐷 × 𝑍𝐹 𝑎𝑐3 (32.30)
𝑍1𝑏 = 𝑍𝑚𝑖𝑛𝐴𝐵 × 𝑍𝐹 𝑎𝑐1𝑏 (32.31)

If the primarily protected line consists of parallel lines the equations above for zone 2 and zone 3 are
modified as follows:

𝑋2 = 𝑋𝑚𝑎𝑥𝐴𝐵 + 𝑋𝑚𝑖𝑛𝐵𝐶 × 𝐾𝑝𝑎𝑟 × 𝑍𝐹 𝑎𝑐2 (32.32)

𝑅2 = 𝑅𝑚𝑎𝑥𝐴𝐵 + 𝑅𝑚𝑖𝑛𝐵𝐶 × 𝐾𝑝𝑎𝑟 × 𝑍𝐹 𝑎𝑐2 + 𝑅𝐹 (32.33)
𝑍2 = 𝑍𝑚𝑎𝑥𝐴𝐵 + 𝑍𝑚𝑖𝑛𝐵𝐶 × 𝐾𝑝𝑎𝑟 × 𝑍𝐹 𝑎𝑐2 (32.34)

𝑋3 = 𝑋𝑚𝑎𝑥𝐴𝐵 + 𝑋𝑚𝑖𝑛𝐵𝐶 × 𝑍𝐹 𝑎𝑐3 (32.35)

𝑅3 = 𝑅𝑚𝑎𝑥𝐴𝐵 + 𝑅𝑚𝑖𝑛𝐵𝐶 × 𝑍𝐹 𝑎𝑐3 + 𝑅𝐹 (32.36)
𝑍3 = 𝑍𝑚𝑎𝑥𝐴𝐵 + 𝑍𝑚𝑖𝑛𝐵𝐶 × 𝑍𝐹 𝑎𝑐3 (32.37)

Cumulative method

The zone reactive reaches are determined as follows:

𝑋1 = 𝑍𝐹 𝑎𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑙 × 𝑋𝑚𝑖𝑛𝐴𝐵 (32.38)

𝑋2 = 𝑍𝐹 𝑎𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑙 × (𝑋𝑚𝑎𝑥𝐴𝐵 + 𝑍𝐹 𝑎𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑙 × 𝑋𝑚𝑖𝑛𝐵𝐶 ) (32.39)
𝑋3 = 𝑍𝐹 𝑎𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑙 × (𝑋𝑚𝑎𝑥𝐴𝐵 + 𝑍𝐹 𝑎𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑙 × (𝑋𝑚𝑖𝑛𝐵𝐶 + 𝑍𝐹 𝑎𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑙 × 𝑋𝑚𝑖𝑛𝐶𝐷 )) (32.40)
𝑋1𝑏 = 𝑍𝐹 𝑎𝑐1𝑏 × 𝑋𝑚𝑖𝑛𝐴𝐵 (32.41)

The zone resistive reaches are determined as follows:

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𝑅1 = 𝑍𝐹 𝑎𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑙 × 𝑅𝑚𝑖𝑛𝐴𝐵 + 𝑅𝐹 (32.42)

𝑅2 = 𝑍𝐹 𝑎𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑙 × (𝑅𝑚𝑎𝑥𝐴𝐵 + 𝑍𝐹 𝑎𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑙 × 𝑅𝑚𝑖𝑛𝐵𝐶 ) + 𝑅𝐹 (32.43)
𝑅3 = 𝑍𝐹 𝑎𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑙 × (𝑅𝑚𝑎𝑥𝐴𝐵 + 𝑍𝐹 𝑎𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑙 × (𝑅𝑚𝑖𝑛𝐵𝐶 + 𝑍𝐹 𝑎𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑙 × 𝑅𝑚𝑖𝑛𝐶𝐷 )) + 𝑅𝐹 (32.44)
𝑅1𝑏 = 𝑍𝐹 𝑎𝑐1𝑏 × 𝑅𝑚𝑖𝑛𝐴𝐵 + 𝑅𝐹 (32.45)

The zone impedance reaches are determined as follows:

𝑍1 = 𝑍𝐹 𝑎𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑙 × 𝑍𝑚𝑖𝑛𝐴𝐵 (32.46)

𝑍2 = 𝑍𝐹 𝑎𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑙 × (𝑍𝑚𝑎𝑥𝐴𝐵 + 𝑍𝐹 𝑎𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑙 × 𝑍𝑚𝑖𝑛𝐵𝐶 ) (32.47)
𝑍3 = 𝑍𝐹 𝑎𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑙 × (𝑍𝑚𝑎𝑥𝐴𝐵 + 𝑍𝐹 𝑎𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑙 × (𝑍𝑚𝑖𝑛𝐵𝐶 + 𝑍𝐹 𝑎𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑙 × 𝑍𝑚𝑖𝑛𝐶𝐷 )) (32.48)
𝑍1𝑏 = 𝑍𝐹 𝑎𝑐1𝑏 × 𝑍𝑚𝑖𝑛𝐴𝐵 (32.49)

If the primarily protected line consists of parallel lines the equations above for zone 2 and zone 3 are
modified as follows:

𝑋2 = 𝑍𝐹 𝑎𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑙 * 𝑋𝑚𝑎𝑥𝐴𝐵 + 𝐾𝑝𝑎𝑟 * 𝑋𝑚𝑖𝑛𝐵𝐶 (32.50)

𝑅2 = 𝑍𝐹 𝑎𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑙 * 𝑅𝑚𝑎𝑥𝐴𝐵 + 𝐾𝑝𝑎𝑟 * 𝑅𝑚𝑖𝑛𝐵𝐶 + 𝑅𝐹 (32.51)
𝑍2 = 𝑍𝐹 𝑎𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑙 * 𝑍𝑚𝑎𝑥𝐴𝐵 + 𝐾𝑝𝑎𝑟 * 𝑍𝑚𝑖𝑛𝐵𝐶 (32.52)

𝑋3 = 1.10 * (𝑋𝑚𝑎𝑥𝐴𝐵 + 𝑋𝑚𝑖𝑛𝐵𝐶 ) (32.53)

𝑅3 = 1.10 * (𝑅𝑚𝑎𝑥𝐴𝐵 + 𝑅𝑚𝑖𝑛𝐵𝐶 ) + 𝑅𝐹 (32.54)
𝑍3 = 1.10 * (𝑍𝑚𝑎𝑥𝐴𝐵 + 𝑍𝑚𝑖𝑛𝐵𝐶 ) (32.55)

Referred to line 1 method

In this method, all the calculated zone impedances are based on the impedance of the first protected
line and the entered zone factors. The zone impedance settings are calculated as follows:

In general for this method, the zone factors entered should be ascending. PowerFactory will print a
warning to the output window when it detects this is not the case.

The zone reactive reaches are determined as follows:

𝑋1 = 𝑍𝐹 𝑎𝑐1 × 𝑋𝑚𝑖𝑛𝐴𝐵 (32.56)

𝑋2 = 𝑍𝐹 𝑎𝑐2 × 𝑋𝑚𝑎𝑥𝐴𝐵 (32.57)
𝑋3 = 𝑍𝐹 𝑎𝑐3 × 𝑋𝑚𝑎𝑥𝐴𝐵 (32.58)
𝑋1𝑏 = 𝑍𝐹 𝑎𝑐1𝑏 × 𝑋𝑚𝑖𝑛𝐴𝐵 (32.59)

The zone resistive reaches are determined as follows:

𝑅1 = 𝑍𝐹 𝑎𝑐1 × 𝑅𝑚𝑖𝑛𝐴𝐵 + 𝑅𝐹 (32.60)

𝑅2 = 𝑍𝐹 𝑎𝑐2 × 𝑅𝑚𝑎𝑥𝐴𝐵 + 𝑅𝐹 (32.61)
𝑅3 = 𝑍𝐹 𝑎𝑐3 × 𝑅𝑚𝑎𝑥𝐴𝐵 + 𝑅𝐹 (32.62)
𝑅1𝑏 = 𝑍𝐹 𝑎𝑐1𝑏 × 𝑅𝑚𝑖𝑛𝐴𝐵 + 𝑅𝐹 (32.63)

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The zone impedance reaches are determined as follows:

𝑍1 = 𝑍𝐹 𝑎𝑐1 × 𝑍𝑚𝑖𝑛𝐴𝐵 (32.64)

𝑍2 = 𝑍𝐹 𝑎𝑐2 × 𝑍𝑚𝑎𝑥𝐴𝐵 (32.65)
𝑍3 = 𝑍𝐹 𝑎𝑐3 × 𝑍𝑚𝑎𝑥𝐴𝐵 (32.66)
𝑍1𝑏 = 𝑍𝐹 𝑎𝑐1𝑏 × 𝑍𝑚𝑖𝑛𝐴𝐵 (32.67)

If the primarily protected line consists of parallel lines the equations above for zone 2 and zone 3 are
modified as follows:

𝑋2 = 𝑍𝐹 𝑎𝑐1 * 𝑋𝑚𝑎𝑥𝐴𝐵 + 𝐾𝑝𝑎𝑟 * 𝑋𝑚𝑖𝑛𝐵𝐶 (32.68)

𝑅2 = 𝑍𝐹 𝑎𝑐1 * 𝑅𝑚𝑎𝑥𝐴𝐵 + 𝐾𝑝𝑎𝑟 * 𝑅𝑚𝑖𝑛𝐵𝐶 + 𝑅𝐹 (32.69)
𝑍2 = 𝑍𝐹 𝑎𝑐1 * 𝑍𝑚𝑎𝑥𝐴𝐵 + 𝐾𝑝𝑎𝑟 * 𝑍𝑚𝑖𝑛𝐵𝐶 (32.70)

𝑋3 = 1.10 * (𝑋𝑚𝑎𝑥𝐴𝐵 + 𝑋𝑚𝑖𝑛𝐵𝐶 ) (32.71)

𝑅3 = 1.10 * (𝑅𝑚𝑎𝑥𝐴𝐵 + 𝑅𝑚𝑖𝑛𝐵𝐶) ) + 𝑅𝐹 (32.72)
𝑍3 = 1.10 * (𝑍𝑚𝑎𝑥𝐴𝐵 + 𝑍𝑚𝑖𝑛𝐵𝐶 ) (32.73)

32.13.5.2 Definition of reach equations

The core task when configuring the protection coordination assistant to replicate the required setting
rules is to define the reach equations. The reach equations are defined on the Zone 1, Zone 2, Zone 3
and Zone 4 tabs of the Distance protection page of the protection coordination assistant command. The
Zone 1 tab is illustrated in figure 32.13.6 and the Zone 2, Zone 3 and Zone 4 tabs are almost identical to
the Zone 1 tab. As mentioned in the previous section predefined coordination rules can be selected on
the General tab and if one is selected the equations will be populated on the relevant zone tabs. These
equations can then be modified according to user need.

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Figure 32.13.6: Zone 1 tab of the distance protection page of the protection coordination assistant
command

It can be seen that on the zone 1 tab resistance, reactance, and impedance reach equations can be
entered as well as equivalent overreach zone parameters. Both zones can be specified to be forward
looking, reverse looking or non directional using Direction drop down fields. The calculation of the
reaches can also be disabled if necessary by selecting the corresponding equations check box at the
start of the relevant field.

The equations are entered using standard mathematical operators (+,-, /,*,max() and min()) as well as
some special variables. These variables, also known as keywords are described in section 32.13.5.3.

When using the max() and min() operators, a maximum of two expressions can be compared with each
expression separated by a ";" character.

An example of typical usage for zone 2 is given below:

X2 = max( X_maxAB+0,6*X_minBC ; 1,2*X_maxAB )

R2 = max( R_maxAB+0,6*R_minBC ; 1,2*R_maxAB ) + RF
Z2 = max( Z_maxAB+0,6*Z_minBC ; 1,2*Z_maxAB )

For the zone 2, 3 and 4 tabs, the overreach zone equations are replaced with equations to be considered
if there are parallel lines in zone 1 but otherwise the handling is the same.

Note that different relay characteristics require different parameters to be specified. For example circular
characteristics are usually defined using an impedance, whilst polygonal relay characteristics require a
reactance and resistance setting. The coordination assistant will calculate all quantities providing it is
provided with corresponding reach setting rules and will report all results.

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32.13.5.3 Variables (Keywords) used in the definition of the reach equations

When defining setting rules a specific set of variables also known as Keywords must be used to define
the rules. These variables are described in this section. In general the variables which are available for
each equation are accessible by clicking the button at the end of the equation box.

Consider a portion of network as illustrated in figure 32.13.7 with a distance relay located at one end as
shown which has a CT located in the vicinity of Terminal A oriented towards Terminal B.

Note: All CT’s have an orientation specified in the CT element (StaCt) as either towards the associated
branch or towards the associated busbar. The orientation of a CT is used by PowerFactory ’s topo-
logical search algorithm to determine which relays are expected to coordinate with one another.
Distance relays are generally directional and where the CT’s of distance relays which are oriented
in the same direction, the distance relays are expected to coordinate

From the perspective of the relay, Terminal A is the busbar at which the relay is located. Terminal B
could be any busbar located at the end of a line in the direction in which the relay’s CT is oriented. In
the illustrated case there are two Terminal B’s since there is a tee off approximately half way along the
first line. Terminal C could be any terminal one line away from any Terminal B, likewise a Terminal D
could be any terminal one line away from a Terminal C and a Terminal E any terminal one line away from
a Terminal D. In this network there are certainly multiple Terminal C’s, D’s, and E’s but in this illustration
only one of each is explicitly represented. Note that a line can be composed of multiple sections. At
the end of a line section PowerFactory will only consider the line to be terminated if there is a current
transformer located at the end of the section which is orientated in the same direction as the original
relay’s CT or if there are no further lines to traverse. For the illustrated case a CT located in the vicinity
of the upper Terminal B oriented towards a Terminal C would terminate the line between Terminal A and
Terminal B. Whilst for the tee off circuit, there are no further lines to traverse at Terminal B, so the circuit
is terminated here.

Between each of these classified terminals there will be lines of differing impedances. Some will be long
and will likely have higher impedances some will be short and will likely have lower impedances. From
a coordination point of view the highest and lowest impedance connected between any two terminals is
considered to be of interest.

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Figure 32.13.7: Classification of terminals in a portion of a network

The classification of the terminals as A,B,C,D or E is important for the definition of setting rules because
these classifications are used in the variable names which can be used in the equations defining the
setting rules. Each available variable name is listed below:

Variables specifiable in Zone 1 equations onwards

X_minAB: The reactance of the minimum impedance line located between Terminal A and any Terminal
B.

X_maxAB: The reactance of the maximum impedance line located between Terminal A and any Termi-
nal B.

R_minAB: The resistance of the minimum impedance line located between Terminal A and any Terminal
B.

R_maxAB: The resistance of the maximum impedance line located between Terminal A and any Termi-
nal B.

Z_minAB: The impedance of the minimum impedance line located between Terminal A and any Terminal
B.

Z_maxAB: The impedance of the maximum impedance line located between Terminal A and any
Terminal B.

RF: The arc resistance, specifiable for resistive reach expressions only and adjusted according to the
voltage level at which the relay is installed and according to whether phase to phase or phase to ground
settings are being specified.

RLoad: Specifiable for resistive reach expressions only, this parameter is calculated based on the
ratings of the limiting component in the coordination path in terms of nominal current rating. The nominal
voltage and current of this limiting component is used to calculate a prospective load resistance using
the equation below:

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(︂ )︂
𝑈𝑛𝑜𝑚
𝑅𝐿𝑑 = √ (32.74)
3 × 𝐼𝑛𝑜𝑚

The searching algorithm considers only lines as limiting component of the primary plant. For different
zones RLoad could take different values since different zones could cover paths containing different
items of plant.

Additional variables specifiable in Zone 2 equations onwards:

X_minBC: The reactance of the minimum impedance line located between Terminal B and any adjacent
Terminal C, where Terminal B is the same Terminal that was selected for Terminal B in the section AB
part of the equation.

X_maxBC: The reactance of the maximum impedance line located between Terminal B and any adja-
cent Terminal C, where Terminal B is the same Terminal that was selected for Terminal B in the section
AB part of the equation.

R_minBC: The resistance of the minimum impedance line located between Terminal B and any adjacent
Terminal C, where Terminal B is the same Terminal that was selected for Terminal B in the section AB
part of the equation.

R_maxBC: The resistance of the maximum impedance line located between Terminal B and any adja-
cent Terminal C, where Terminal B is the same Terminal that was selected for Terminal B in the section
AB part of the equation.

Z_minBC: The impedance of the minimum impedance line located between Terminal B and any adjacent
Terminal C, where Terminal B is the same Terminal that was selected for Terminal B in the section AB
part of the equation.

Z_maxBC: The impedance of the maximum impedance line located between Terminal B and any
adjacent Terminal C, where Terminal B is the same Terminal that was selected for Terminal B in the
section AB part of the equation.

K_par: This variable is only available for specification in the special equations to be used where the
primarily protected lines covered by zone 1 are parallel lines. It is used to represent the impedance
reduction factor which can be calculated from the ratio of the impedances of the parallel lines making
up the circuit.

Additional variables specifiable in Zone 3 equations onwards:

X_minCD: The reactance of the minimum impedance line located between Terminal C and any adjacent
Terminal D, where Terminal C is the same Terminal that was selected for Terminal C in the section BC
part of the equation.

X_maxCD: The reactance of the maximum impedance line located between Terminal C and any adja-
cent Terminal D, where Terminal C is the same Terminal that was selected for Terminal C in the section
BC part of the equation.

R_minCD: The resistance of the minimum impedance line located between Terminal C and any adjacent
Terminal D, where Terminal C is the same Terminal that was selected for Terminal C in the section BC
part of the equation.

R_maxCD: The resistance of the maximum impedance line located between Terminal C and any adja-
cent Terminal D, where Terminal C is the same Terminal that was selected for Terminal C in the section
BC part of the equation.

Z_minCD: The impedance of the minimum impedance line located between Terminal C and any adja-
cent Terminal D, where Terminal C is the same Terminal that was selected for Terminal C in the section
BC part of the equation..

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Z_maxCD: The impedance of the maximum impedance line located between Terminal C and any
adjacent Terminal D, where Terminal C is the same Terminal that was selected for Terminal C in the
section BC part of the equation.

Additional variables specifiable in Zone 4 equations:

X_minDE: The reactance of the minimum impedance line located between Terminal D and any adjacent
Terminal E, where Terminal D is the same Terminal that was selected for Terminal D in the section CD
part of the equation.

X_maxDE: The reactance of the maximum impedance line located between Terminal D and any adja-
cent Terminal E, where Terminal D is the same Terminal that was selected for Terminal D in the section
CD part of the equation.

R_minDE: The resistance of the minimum impedance line located between Terminal D and any adjacent
Terminal E, where Terminal D is the same Terminal that was selected for Terminal D in the section CD
part of the equation.

R_maxDE: The resistance of the maximum impedance line located between Terminal D and any adja-
cent Terminal E, where Terminal D is the same Terminal that was selected for Terminal D in the section
CD part of the equation.

Z_minDE: The impedance of the minimum impedance line located between Terminal D and any adja-
cent Terminal E, where Terminal D is the same Terminal that was selected for Terminal D in the section
CD part of the equation.

Z_maxDE: The impedance of the maximum impedance line located between Terminal D and any
adjacent Terminal E, where Terminal D is the same Terminal that was selected for Terminal D in the
section CD part of the equation.

From the above it should be clear that reach equations must always be built up following a path
composed of the impedances of adjacent lines. It would not for example be possible to create a reach
equation composed of the impedances of the combination of elements highlighted in figure 32.13.8.

Figure 32.13.8: Example of an impossible combination of lines for a reach equation

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Additional variables specifiable in all zones

In addition to the variables documented above there is one additional set of variables available for use
in reach equations.

In some cases it might be desirable to specify reach equations in the forward direction based on the
impedances of lines extending behind the relaying location or reach equations in reverse direction based
on the impedance of lines extending in the forward direction. One example is in the implementation of
a reverse blocking scheme. For such cases the reverse impedances can be specified in the equations
simply by reversing the bus letters. So for example, the lowest impedance line connected at Terminal A
in the reverse direction from a forward looking zone would be specified as Z_minBA.

These variables are not accessible by clicking the button at the end of the equation box and must be
manually entered. This is simply because the variables are less widely used and would otherwise clutter
and potentially introduce confusion to the dialog.

Note this inversion in the variable name is not required for reverse looking zones derived from impedances
in the reverse direction. For such zones the normal variables are used but of course those variables will
be derived from a path extending in the reverse direction.

32.13.5.4 Definition of timer settings

The final tab on the Distance Protection page of the protection coordination assistant command is the
Timers tab. This is illustrated in figure 32.13.9

Figure 32.13.9: Timers tab of the distance protection page of the protection coordination assistant
command

The Min. time delays field contains timer settings for each zone which can be adjusted according to

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 32.13. PROTECTION COORDINATION ASSISTANT

need.

For some relays directional elements and starting elements provide backup protection for distance ele-
ments. The Calculate backup delays check box can be used to specify whether the tool will additionally
log these settings in the result file with the values specified according to the user requirement.

32.13.6 Grading Times

Grading Time

Different times can be specified depending on voltage level and protection device. Typically for the
distance coordination, only the Relay-to-Relay grading time for voltage levels above 1kV needs to be
considered. For the overcurrent coordination it is important if relays and fuses are graded in LV or
HV networks and if relays are coordinated with itself or with fuses and vice verca. Low voltage circuit
breakers (LVCBs) are considered as relays. Fuse-to-Fuse grading depends on the nominal current. The
grading time is always applied from the downstream protection device. For example if two protection
devices are located on the HV and LV side of a transformer, the HV protection device is graded to the
LV protection device based on the LV grading time.

Distance- to Overcurrent-protection

• No grading: The distance coordination algorithm ignores overcurrent devices.

• Fastest / Slowest definite time characteristic: The distance coordination algorithm detects over-
current devices in the search path and grades the zone according to the selected definite time
characteristic and the grading time. This option could be useful in distribution networks where a
distance zone covers multiple tee off transformers with overcurrent protection. To ensure selec-
tivity between the overcurrent device and the upstream distance device the coordination assistant
offers this option.

Overcurrent- to Distance-protection

• No grading: The overcurrent coordination algorithm ignores distance devices.

• Fastest / Slowest zone: The overcurrent coordination algorithm detects distance devices in the
search path and grades according to the specified zone timer.

32.13.7 Advanced Options

The advanced options page is used to tune the behaviour of the topological search algorithm used to
identify the relevant impedances of the network extending from each relay location.

The Stop criteria for topological search option can be used to limit the extent of the topological search in
order to improve performance of the tool. This is usually only relevant in large networks with many relays
where the topological search may continue for some time if it does not encounter a current transformer
from another relay or a fuse (provided the Consider fuses for coordination option is selected) indicating
the termination of a protected line.

32.13.8 Prerequisites for using the protection coordination tool

Before starting the protection coordination assistant, ensure the following:

1. A network model of the area has been completed in PowerFactory.

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2. The relays to be coordinated should be added to the model and instrument transformers, config-
ured with the appropriate ratios, assigned.

32.13.9 How to run the protection coordination calculation

To run the protection coordination follow these steps:

1. Click the icon on the main toolbar.

2. Select Protection and Arc-Flash Analysis.

3. Click the icon. A dialog for the Protection Coordination Assistant will appear.

4. Click the icon and choose the coordination or protection devices to coordinate.
5. Optional: Adjust options for the coordination on the relevant pages.

6. Click OK to run the coordination.

7. To analyse results of the coordination see Section 32.13.10.

32.13.10 How to output results from the protection coordination assistant

This section explains how the results from the protection coordination assistant can be analysed.

The graphical methods of analysis using plots and the tabular method using the built-in report are
discussed. Furthermore, there is an option to write the coordination results back to the protection
devices via the created tabular report.

Results are generated following execution of the protection coordination results command. Usually this
is done automatically on execution of the protection coordination assistant command thanks to a link
between the two objects specified in the protection coordination assistant command (as mentioned in
section 32.13.3). However, if this option is not selected the protection coordination results command
can be executed independently using the procedure below:

To output results from the protection coordination assistant follow these steps:
1. Execute the protection coordination tool. See Section 32.13.9 for instructions how to do this.

2. Click the icon from the protection toolbar. A dialog for choosing the output options will appear.
In the field Result selection the result file that the output is based on can be selected. If the user
wishes to output results from a different calculation, perhaps completed in another study case,
then this is where those results are selected.
3. Check the boxes for the reports that you would like PowerFactory to produce. The types of reports
are:
• Overcurrent protection settings: This option produces a tabular report for the overcurrent
coordination results if the option Create report is activated. Further information about the
overcurrent report is presented in section 32.13.10.1.
• Distance protection settings: This option produces a tabular report for the distance coordi-
nation results if the option Create report is activated. Further information about the distance
report is presented in section 32.13.10.2. The option Create Time-Distance Plot combined
with a valid Path Selection creates a time-distance diagram with the coordination results for
the selected path. In order to select the path click on the icon. General information about this
diagram is presented in section 32.8.

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32.13.10.1 Tabular report of the overcurrent protection coordination results

The report for overcurrent protection settings shows the coordination results for each overcurrent device.

Report header

• Show devices in: If the devices are part of a grouping element or substation this filter is enabled
and the devices can be filtered according to the selected element.
• Specific Device: This drop-down menu allows filtering of the report according to a specific device.

• Transfer settings to all devices: By clicking on this button, the calculated settings of the devices
shown in the report are written to the relevant overcurrent stages of the protection devices. If a
filter is enabled only the filtered devices are considered. Please note, that the existing settings are
overwritten. The assistant prints the overcurrent devices for which the settings are transferred into
the output window.

Interactive options

The cells of the report are interactive, meaning that the presented objects are linked to network objects
and that the basis of calculated results can be verified by right-clicking on the cell and selecting the
appropriate option. The following options are available for current and time delay results:
• Mark considered network elements in open graphic: For calculated current results the short circuit
location is marked in the open graphic. For calculated time delay results the coordinated devices
are marked in the open graphic.
• Show considered network elements: For calculated current setting results this option shows the
short circuit location in a browser window. For calculated time delay results the coordinated
devices are shown in a browser window.

Column description

• Protection device: lists the considered protection devices. Right-click and select Transfer settings
to device to write only the settings of one protection device back. By double clicking on the cell
the object dialog opens.
• Max. current: shows the results of the maximum current equation. Right-click and select one of
the previously described options to verify the short circuit location.

• Stage: lists the stages for which results are calculated.

• Direction: shows the directional setting of each protection device.
• Characteristic: lists the selected characteristic for each overload stage. The stages Short-circuit
and Instantaneous will be listed as Definite time.

• Current: shows the current setting for each stage according to the specified equation. Right-click
and select one of the previously described options to verify the short circuit location.
• Time delay: shows the selected time delay for each stage. Right-click and select one of the
previously described options to verify the coordinated devices.

Cell messages

There might be network configurations or other problems where the assistant cannot calculate the
settings. In such a case the report will show three dashes "- - -" in the relevant cells. By hovering the
mouse pointer over such a cell entry, a short message is displayed describing why the calculation failed.
The following list describes the messages and how the failure could be solved:

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• Equation not provided: If none of the stage equations or the fuse equation is provided this
message appears. Please check the equations for the relevant equipment type.
• Calculated value exceeds max. current: The maximum current equation is required for the time
grading. If this message appears, one stage equation leads to a higher current value than that
resulting from the maximum current equation, which is forbidden. Please check the maximum
current equation of the relevant equipment type.
• Nominal current could not be determined: In this case one equation uses the nominal current
variable and the protected element cannot provide this value. Please verify that the protected
element has a nominal current available.
• Topological path too short: This message indicates that the keywords or variables selected in the
stage equation reaches beyond the end of the network. Please check the equation of the relevant
stage.

• Orientation of the device is ambiguous: This is typically the case when a bi-directional power flow
is detected and the directional setting in the relay element is not activated. Please activate the
option Directional in the relay element.

Note: If you recalculate the protection coordination results, this report is not automatically updated -
you must use the option Refresh icon to update the report.

32.13.10.2 Tabular report of the distance protection coordination results

For each relay, the following results are produced:

Protection device. This column shows the name of each protection device for which settings have
been calculated. By right-clicking relays in this column it is possible to navigate to the relay
objects in graphics or in the database and it is also possible to transfer the calculated settings to
the specific device.
Zone. This column shows the zones for every protection device for which settings have been calculated.
By right-clicking zones in this column it is possible to transfer the calculated settings for the specific
zone only to the device.
Direction. This column indicates for each zone whether it is a forward, reverse or non directional zone.
Polygonal Reactance. This column shows the primary Ohm reactance for each zone. By right-clicking
on the figure and choosing Show traversed element or mark traversed elements in open graphic
it is possible to better visualise the reach of the setting.

Polygonal Resistance Ph-Ph. This column shows the primary Ohm phase to phase resistance for
each zone. By right-clicking on the figure and choosing Show traversed element or mark traversed
elements in open graphic it is possible to better visualise the reach of the setting.
Polygonal Resistance Ph-E. This column shows the primary Ohm phase to earth resistance for each
zone. By right-clicking on the figure and choosing Show traversed element or mark traversed
elements in open graphic it is possible to better visualise the reach of the setting.
Polygonal time delay. This column shows the time delay for each polygonal zone. By right-clicking on
the figure and choosing Show traversed element or mark traversed elements in open graphic it is
possible to visualise the other relay elements with which this time setting has been coordinated.

Circular Impedance. This column shows the primary Ohm impedance for each zone. By right-clicking
on the figure and choosing Show traversed element or mark traversed elements in open graphic
it is possible to better visualise the reach of the setting.

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Circular Angle. This column shows the primary Ohm angle of the impedance for the relay. Depending
on the setting of the Angle calculation for circular characteristics setting in the Protection coordi-
nation assistant, the angle may be calculated each zone or for zone 1 only.

Circular Time delay. This column shows the time delay for each circular zone. By right-clicking on
the figure and choosing Show traversed element or mark traversed elements in open graphic it is
possible to visualise the other relay elements with which this time setting has been coordinated.
The report can be filtered using the drop down lists at the top:

Show devices in. Use this filter to select a grouping object class.
Selected. Use this filter to select a specific grouping within the grouping class.
Show Characteristic. Use this filter to show circular or polygonal characteristics in isolation.

As mentioned above the calculated settings can be transferred to the devices individually by interacting
with the cells in the table. However, if after review of the settings it is determined that all settings should
be transferred to the relay devices in the network model then this can be done by pressing the Transfer
settings to all devices button. It is important to note that this process will overwrite existing settings in
the model. If this is a problem it is recommended to create a Variation prior to applying the settings.
Subsequently, it is easy to revert to the old settings by disabling the Variation. Refer to Section 16.2 for
more information about PowerFactory Variations.

To output these results to Excel or to HTML click on the corresponding export icon in the upper right
corner of the tabular report.

Note: If you recalculate the protection coordination results, this report is not automatically updated -
you must use the option Refresh icon to update the report.

32.13.10.3 Time distance diagrams from the protection coordination

Enabling the option Create Report when outputting the coordination results as described in Section 32.13.10,
automatically generates a time distance diagram showing the results from the previously completed
protection coordination. One diagram will be produced for each path. An example time distance diagram
for a coordination completed using the independent method is shown in Figure 32.13.10.

Note that the plot display can be configured by double-clicking the diagram. For further information
about time distance diagrams refer to Section 32.8.

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Figure 32.13.10: Time distance diagram showing the result from the protection coordination using the
independent method on the network shown in Figure 32.13.1

32.14 Accessing results

After all protection devices have been configured and graded, it is often desirable to create reports for
future reference. Aside from exporting the time-overcurrent, R-X or time-distance plots as graphical files
(see Chapter 18: Reporting and Visualising Results, Section 18.8.6: Tools for Plots), there are several
other methods described in subsections 32.14.2 and 32.14.3 to report the relay settings.

Subsection 32.14.1 describes how to access quickly to protection plots of relays.

32.14.1 Quick access to protection plots

In most of the protection projects, protection plots are indispensable. That is why some relays can
appear in various different protection diagrams or why some projects can posses huge number of plots.
To minimise possibility of confusion, there is an option that allows us to directly jump into all existing
protection plots that contain the relay of interest.

To quickly access the protection plots for some specific relay, the user should select the option Plots →
Show in Existing Protection Plot from the context menu. This option can be called from the Network
Model Manager (see Figure 32.14.1) or directly out of the network graphic (see Figure 32.14.2).

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Figure 32.14.1: Access through Object Filter

Figure 32.14.2: Access from the Grid

If the Relay appears in more than one diagram, after selection of In existing Protection Plots, the user
can select which diagram he is interested in (see Figure 32.14.3).

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Figure 32.14.3: selection of the plot

32.14.2 Tabular protection setting report

A report command specifically for protection can be accessed by either clicking on the Output of
Protection Settings icon on the Protection toolbar or alternatively via the “Output” entry in the main
menu.

The Output of protection settings command dialog(ComProtreport) has three pages:

1. Basic Options

2. Common Options
3. Specific Options

32.14.2.1 Basic Options

In this page the user chooses which equipment to generate reports for. First the user chooses general
classes of equipment from the options below:

• Instrument Transformers
• Overcurrent Protection

• Distance Protection
• Voltage Protection
• Frequency Protection

any combination of the above options may be selected. Each option which is selected will result in the
generation of a separate tabular report. I.e. if all five options are selected, five tabular reports will be
generated.

In the lower section of the page the user can choose to consider all protection devices in the active grid
or only a specific user defined subset. The following objects may be selected as a user defined subset:
SetSelect, SetFilt, ElmNet, ElmArea, ElmZone, ElmFeeder, ElmSubstat and ElmTrfstat. Additionally a
single protection device (ElmRelay, RelFuse) can also be selected.

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32.14.2.2 Common Options

The decimal precision section can be used to define the number of decimal places to which results are
given in the tabular reports. The precision for each unit can be defined individually.

The layout options section is used to configure the layout for each report. Depending on whether they
are selected, “Device, Location and Branch” will be the first three columns of the report.

If the show instrument transformers option is selected, additional columns will be added to the overcur-
rent, distance, voltage and frequency protection reports showing details of the instrument transformers.

If the Report settable blocks only option is selected, blocks which have no user configurable settings
will not be displayed in the report.

If the Arrange stages vertically option is selected, additional rows will be added to the report for each
protection stage, rather than including additional stages as additional columns.

If the Show ANSI code option is selected, each stage column will include the relevant ANSI code as
defined by IEEE (ANSI) C37-2.

32.14.2.3 Specific Options

The Over-/Undercurrent and Over-/Undervoltage sections of this page can be used to define whether
settings should be displayed in primary units, secondary units, or per unit. Any combination of the 3
options is possible.

This page is also used to limit the report for each type of protection to a specified number of phase and
earth fault protection stages.

One the ComProtreport dialog has been configured it can be executed.

The Tabular Report

An example of a tabular report generated when the ComProtreport dialog is executed is illustrated in
Figure 32.14.4:

Figure 32.14.4: ComProtreport Tabular report

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Relay models (and sometimes stages depending on the setting detailed above) are listed vertically while
settings are listed horizontally.

The downward pointing triangular icon at the top of the page can be used to export the report either as
HTML format or in excel spreadsheet format.

It is also possible to interact with the data within the report. For instance, if you double click on a
particular stage (or right-click and select Edit it is possible to edit the settings dialog for that stage.

Data within this table may also be copied and pasted if required, with or without column headers.

32.14.3 Results in single line graphic

The names of the relays or the tripping times may be made visible in the single line graphic by selecting
the following options in the main menu.

• Output - Results for Edge Elements - Relays

• Output - Results for Edge Elements - Relay Tripping Times

The first option (Relays), which is always available, will show the names of the relays in all cubicles.
The second option will show the tripping times of the relays after a load-flow or short-circuit calculation
has been carried out. If a relay does not trip, then a tripping time of 9999.99 s is shown.

It is also possible to colour the single line graphic depending on the tripping time of the protective
devices installed. This feature can be activated by clicking the diagram colouring button from the local
graphics window icon bar, then selecting: the protection tab → 3. Others→ Results→ Fault clearing
time.

32.15 Protection Audit

The protection audit tool allows a user to examine the performance of a protection system in a highly
automated manner where the rigorousness of the examination is fully configurable. The purpose of
the analysis is to give confidence to the user that their protection scheme performs in accordance with
their particular coordination and operation criteria and to identify where weaknesses or failures in the
scheme’s performance exist. The automated nature of the tool allows a multitude of fault scenarios to be
examined without burdening the user with the responsibility of maintaining high levels of concentration
during what would otherwise be a highly repetitive and time consuming task.

As a prerequisite for using this tool it is necessary that the user has a network model including a
protection scheme for which settings have already been defined. The verification process involves the
application of short-circuit calculations of various fault types throughout the relevant network area. The
user specifies the network area to be examined and then configures the fault cases to be applied. The
protection devices responsible for each network element are determined automatically by the feature.
The fault cases specified by the user are calculated at each network element and at additional relevant
locations within the selected area and the reaction of all protection devices to those faults is recorded.

Once the Protection Audit Command has been executed the results must be analysed. In order to
carry out this step of the analysis an additional command, the Protection Audit Results command
(ComAuditreport) is provided. The user configures this command with their particular coordination and
operation requirements so that it can determine the degree to which these requirements are met. The
output of the command is a set of tabular reports clearly highlighting critical and non-critical cases where
the protection scheme has failed to meet the requirements, as well as the cases where no problems
were recorded.

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32.15.1 Protection Audit Command Handling

The Protection Audit Command is initiated using the Protection Audit command (ComProtaudit) icon
available from the protection toolbox accessible by clicking the icon in the main menu.

The first stage of the analysis is to carry out short circuit calculations at locations throughout the network
and to examine the resulting tripping times of the defined protection devices. The tripping times are then
stored in a results file cross referenced to the relevant fault case. The fault cases to be applied as well
as other settings necessary to carry out this analysis are configured in the Protection Audit Command
(ComProtaudit). Once initiated, the command is stored within the active study case and is automatically
provided with a short circuit sweep command (ComShcsweep). The short circuit sweep command in
turn contains the short circuit command (ComShc) to be used throughout the analysis along with a
Short Circuits folder (IntEvtshc). The Short Circuits folder contains the short circuit events (EvtShc)
which define the individual fault cases to be applied throughout the analysis. See section 32.11 for
information on the short circuit sweep command.

PowerFactory automatically determines the circuit breakers and associated protection devices relevant
for the calculation using a topological search routine which is adapted according to the type of network
element under consideration.

Configuration of the Protection Audit command settings is explained in the sections below.

32.15.1.1 Protection Audit Command. Basic Options

Network area - Selection. The network area over which the analysis shall be carried out, should
be selected here. The network area can be defined in terms of individual primary network elements
or grouping objects or a general set containing references to a custom selection of individual primary
network elements or grouping objects. Grouping objects which are valid for the analysis are Path Def-
inition (SetPath) objects, Grid (ElmNet) objects, Area (ElmArea) objects and Zone (ElmZone) objects.
Substation (ElmSubstat), Branch (ElmBranch) and switch elements may not be selected.

Calculation commands

• Load Flow. A load flow command may be configured via this option. The load flow command will
be used to examine whether any protection devices have been unintentionally configured such
that they will trip during normal load conditions. The load flow command will also be relevant if the
fault cases are configured to use the complete short circuit method. Finally the load flow command
may be necessary to determine the pre-fault current for any thermal overload type protection or
fuse protection used in the network. The load flow command configured via this option is the
standard load flow command accessible from the main toolbar.

• Short-Circuit. The short circuit command to be used throughout the analysis can be configured
via this option. The most important setting here is likely to be the short circuit method to be
used for the analysis. e.g. IEC 60909, Complete etc. The short circuit fault types and the fault
impedance will be defined separately in the fault case definitions, which are configured via another
part of ComProtaudit command (see below). The short circuit command used by the calculation is
separate from the standard short circuit command accessible from the main toolbar. This means
it can have independent settings.

Fault case definitions. The fault cases to be examined during the analysis are defined in this section of
the dialog. A fault case is defined as a short circuit event (EvtShc) and is stored within a Short Circuits
folder. The contents of the Short Circuits folder can be accessed at any time by pressing the Edit button.
For each fault case a Fault type (e.g. 3 phase, single phase to ground etc) and a fault resistance and
reactance should be defined. It is envisaged that a user will ideally define multiple fault cases, and
examine different fault impedances, for each fault type, for each analysis so as to comprehensively test
their protection scheme.

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Considered network equipment

• Branches. If this option is selected, faults will be examined relevant for the protection of branch
elements such as lines located within the network area over which the analysis is to be carried
out. Fault cases will be applied at the terminals of the branches and at regular intervals along the
length of any line objects. Where protection devices are associated with the element, fault cases
will be applied on both sides of the relevant current transformers.
• Busbars. If this option is selected, faults will be examined relevant for the protection of busbar
elements located within the network area over which the analysis is to be carried out. Busbars are
considered to be terminal elements where the usage parameter of the terminal is set to “busbar”.
Fault cases will be applied at the busbars themselves and where protection is present in cubicles
contained within the busbar, fault cases will be applied on both sides of the relevant current
transformers.
• Step size for lines. Faults will be applied at regular intervals along the length of line elements
during the analysis. This setting determines the size of the interval to be applied.

Results - Results File. With this option the results file used to store the results of the analysis can be
selected and accessed. The results file is structured into multiple sub results files with one sub results
file being used per fault case examined. Another sub results file stores the results of the load flow
calculation and another contains details of the topological relationships of circuit breakers controlled by
protective devices. The default results file location is within the relevant study case.

Reporting - Command. This option provides access to the associated Protection Audit Results com-
mand which is described in section 32.15.2. By selecting the Reporting check box the user can choose
to additionally execute the Protection Audit Results command, when the Protection Audit command is
executed.

32.15.1.2 Protection Audit Command. Advanced Options

Stop criteria of topological search

• Max. Number of busbars. The command uses a topological search to locate the switches
controlled by protective devices, that are used to protect the elements in the network area under
examination. In some circumstances, for example where the network as a whole is much larger
than the protected area under examination, this search routine could lead to unnecessarily long
computation times. This option specifies the maximum number of busbars which can be swept
by the search routine before the search routine is halted. A value of 0 means that no limitation is
applied.
• Max. line length. Similar to the previous option, this option specifies the maximum line length
which can be swept by the search routine before the search routine is halted. A value of 0 means
that no limitation is applied.

32.15.2 Protection Audit Results Command Handling

The command is initiated using the Protection Audit Results command (ComAuditreport) icon
available from the protection toolbox accessible by clicking the icon in the main menu. It can also be
initiated directly from the Protection Audit command by selecting the Reporting checkbox as described
above.

Once the Protection Audit Command has recorded the tripping times of the network’s protection devices
in response to the various fault cases, the next stage is to analyse the results. A results file (ElmRes)
is made available containing all the data generated by the initial part of the analysis. The quantity
of the data generated can be significant and must be further analysed against the user’s particular
coordination and operation requirements before the results can be displayed in a meaningful way. This

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is done using the Protection Audit Results Command. Once initiated the command is stored within the
active study case.

The user’s particular coordination and operation requirements are entered into this command. Different
severities can be assigned to different conditions and locations. For example a coordination issue
between main and backup protection can be considered more severe than a coordination issue between
the second backup and an upstream device.

The output of the command is a set of tabular reports which can be oriented by network element or by
protection device. The tabular reports clearly highlight and differentiate between non-critical and critical
cases where the protection scheme has failed to meet the requirements. Cases where no problems
with requirements were recorded are also clearly indicated. The level of detail shown by the report can
be scaled according to the user’s needs.

Results can be assessed against:

• Fixed coordination margin

• Coordination margin based on the downstream circuit breaker delay

• Maximum allowed device tripping time
• Maximum allowed fault clearing time

Configuration of the Protection Audit Results command settings is explained in the sections below.

32.15.2.1 Protection Audit Results Command. Basic Options

Result selection- Results file. With this option the results file containing the results from the preceding
analysis can be selected and accessed. The results file is structured into multiple sub results files with
one sub results file being used per fault case examined. Another sub results file stores the results of
the load flow calculation and another contains details of the topological relationships of circuit breakers
controlled by protective devices. The default results file location is within the relevant study case.

Options

• Verify device coordination. This option enables the generation of a specific tabular report verify-
ing the coordination performance of the relays against the users requirements. The requirements
themselves are defined elsewhere as described in section 32.15.2.2.
• Verify tripping times. This option enables the generation of a specific tabular report verifying the
performance of the relays against the users requirements with respect to maximum tripping times.
The requirements themselves are defined elsewhere as described in section 32.15.2.3.

• Verify fault clearing time. This option enables the generation of a specific tabular report verifying
the performance of the relays against the users requirements with respect to maximum fault
clearing times. The requirements themselves are defined elsewhere as described in section
32.15.2.4.

Report style

• Network element oriented. If selected, each row of the generated reports will relate to a different
network element. Please see section 32.15.3.1 for further information.
• Protection device oriented. If selected, each row of the reports will relate to a different relay.
Please see section 32.15.3.2 for further information.

Colours used in report. Colouring is used throughout the tabular reports to assist in the interpretation
of the results. The colouring scheme used can be configured in this settings table. Colouring is
according to four levels of severity. The highest level of severity being a critical ’Failure’. Two levels

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of non critical failure are also allowed for, namely ’Warning’ and ’Notification’ and the lowest level of
severity is termed ’no issue’, where the user’s requirements are completely met.

Network Area - Output for. These settings allow the user to report results for all elements contained
within network area selection or alternatively to limit results to a subset of those elements.
• All recorded elements: this option is selected if the user wishes to report results for all elements
contained within the network area selection. If this option is selected results for all elements are
shown on the same page of the report.
• User Selection: this option is selected if the user wishes to restrict result reporting to a subset of
the recorded elements. When chosen, a selection table will appear to which rows can be manually
added and individual objects selected from the data manager. The buttons on the right hand side
can be used to quickly assist with this. Results associated with each item in the selection table
will be displayed on a different page of the output report.

32.15.2.2 Protection Audit Results Command. Device Coordination

The feature allows coordination of protection devices to either be verified against:

• a fixed, specified, coordination margin, where the duration of the breaker delays is ignored.
• a potentially variable coordination margin, based on the breaker delay of the downstream breaker.
In both cases it is verified that for a particular instance of a fault case the tripping time of the upstream
relay in the coordination pair is longer than the tripping time of the downstream relay by a value greater
than the coordination margin.

The settings on this page are only relevant if the verify device coordination check box is selected on the
basic options page of the command and will influence the results of the associated tabular report.

Coordination margin

• Use breaker delay. This check box determines whether breaker delays or alternatively a fixed
coordination margin should be used to verify coordination.
• Coordination margin. The fixed coordination margin which shall be used if breaker delays are
not to be considered.
• Safety margin. This parameter is only used if the Use breaker delay check box is selected. Under
those circumstances, taking the breaker delay of the downstream breaker as the initial coordina-
tion margin, this parameter will increase the coordination margin by the specified percentage.

• Default breaker delay. This parameter is only used if the Use breaker delay check box is selected.
The breaker delay is a parameter which is specified in the type of the circuit breaker. In some
cases this data may not be available or may not have been specified in the model. For those
cases PowerFactory will use the default value specified for this parameter.

Severity of failures. This settings table can be configured so as to specify the severity of different kinds
of failure. It is assumed that for primary coordination pairs, where one of the devices is topologically
located at a level directly above the other device that a coordination failure is a critical failure and so is
by default given the highest level of severity and not included in the table. For secondary and tertiary
failures, where the upstream device is two or three coordination levels above the downstream device,
the user has the option to select the severity level of a coordination failure. The three levels being
Failure, Warning, or notification in decreasing order of severity.

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32.15.2.3 Protection Audit Results Command. Tripping Times

The feature allows the maximum tripping time of the protection devices to be verified against:

• different classes of fault (3 phase, 2 phase and single phase)

• whether the fault being examined is on the primary item of equipment being protected, or a
secondary or tertiary item of equipment.

The tripping time of the relevant relays for the examined instance of the fault case will be verified against
the specified maximum tripping time.

The settings on this page are only relevant if the verify tripping times check box is selected on the basic
options page of the command and will influence the results of the associated tabular report.

Max. trip time. This settings matrix is used to specify maximum tripping times according to the different
classes of fault in combination with whether the network element on which the fault instance is applied
is considered to be primary, secondary or tertiary equipment from the point of view of the relay being
considered.

Severity of failures. This settings matrix can be configured so as to specify the severity of different
kinds of failure. The user has the option to select the severity level for each of the combinations defined
by the matrix. The three levels of severity being Failure, Warning, or Notification in decreasing order of
severity.

32.15.2.4 Protection Audit Results Command. Fault Clearing Times

The feature allows the maximum fault clearing time of the protection devices to be verified against
whether the fault being examined is on the primary item of equipment being protected, or additionally a
secondary or tertiary item of equipment. The maximum fault clearing time is distinct from the maximum
tripping time in that it takes into account the delay introduced by the circuit breaker as well as the delay
introduced by the relay, while the maximum tripping time considers the relay delay only.

The fault clearing time of the relevant relays-circuit breaker combinations for the examined instance of
the fault case will be verified against the specified maximum fault clearing time.

The settings on this page are only relevant if the verify fault clearing times check box is selected on the
basic options page of the command and will influence the results of the associated tabular report.

Max. fault clearing time. This settings table is used to specify maximum fault clearing times according
to whether the network element on which the fault instance is applied is considered to be primary,
secondary or tertiary equipment from the point of view of the relay being considered.

Severity of failures. This settings table can be configured so as to specify the severity of different
kinds of failure. The user has the option to select the severity level for primary, secondary or tertiary
equipment, with the three levels of severity being Failure, Warning, or Notification in decreasing order
of severity.

Default breaker delay. The breaker delay is a parameter which is specified in the type of the circuit
breaker. In some cases this data may not be available or may not have been specified in the model. For
those cases PowerFactory will use the default value specified for this parameter.

Critical fault clearing times (3-phase). Certain items of equipment may require specific fault clearing
times distinct from the general verification based on the Max. fault clearing time parameter described
above. For example verification may be required to ensure that disconnection of equipment occurs
within the critical fault clearing time of a particular generator such that dynamic stability problems do not
arise. For such cases it is possible to specify an alternative critical fault clearing time. The element with
the special requirement and the associated critical fault clearing time to be verified against three phase
fault cases are entered in the table.

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32.15.3 Report Handling and interpretation

The Protection Audit Results Command (ComAuditreport) was described in section 32.15.2. Once this
command has been executed, one or more reports may be generated. This section describes the
handling and interpretation of those reports.

The type of report is displayed in the header. There are three possible headers (verify device coordi-
nation, verify tripping time and verify fault clearing time). For each report, the Project title is displayed
as well as the active study case when the reports were generated. Three buttons are included on the
right hand side of the dialog. A refresh button, which may be used to rebuild the report under particular
circumstances. An html button which may be used to launch relevant software (e.g. a web browser)
and generate an html format version of the report. Finally The xls button will launch relevant software
to handle xls files (e.g. spreadsheet software) and will generate an xls format version of the report.

The Network Area section of the report will be selectable if the Network Area - Output for: user selection
option has been configured (see section 32.15.2.1) and can be used to move between pages, where
each page is associated with a different network area.

Two complimentary forms of report may be generated by selecting the relevant option on the Basic
Options page of the Protection Audit Results dialog (see section 32.15.2.1). The handling and interpre-
tation of these are described below.

32.15.3.1 Network element oriented

When selected, each row of the generated report(s) will relate to a different network element. Results
are presented in terms of a coloured bar. Segments of the coloured bar represent different fault positions
associated with the element. The segments are coloured according to the worst violation per fault
position on the element (i.e. if there are two warnings and one failure at for example 20% of a line, this
segment will be coloured according to the failure).

Figure 32.15.1 shows a typical example of a report. The first column of results, the Total column gives
an overview of the results considering all fault cases. In the subsequent columns results are grouped
into fault case classes. For instance if phase A to ground, phase B to ground and phase C to ground fault
cases are examined, these results will all be grouped together in the single phase to ground column. It
is also possible to see the results for the individual fault cases associated with a grouping. For example
to see the individual A,B or C phase to ground fault results click on one of the bars in the single phase
to ground column and select the Expand selected fault type button. The table will be rebuilt to list the
individual fault case results associated with the selected column. See figure 32.15.2.

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Figure 32.15.1: Network element oriented results example

Figure 32.15.2: Network element oriented results example - single phase to ground expanded view

32.15.3.2 Protection device oriented

When selected, each row of the generated reports will relate to a different relay model. Results are
presented in terms of a coloured bar. Each relay is determined to be responsible for providing either
primary, secondary or tertiary protection for certain items of equipment. For each item of equipment
the relay response will be examined for a finite number of fault case instances. Each segment of the
coloured bar represents a different fault case instance associated with the relay, relevant to the column
being examined. The segments are coloured according to the severity of the violation measured for
each fault case instance. e.g. a relay might be found to be responsible for providing primary protection
to a line, secondary protection to a switchboard and tertiary protection to a second line. A total of 25

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fault locations may be examined for these three items of equipment in relation to three different fault
cases, giving a total of 75 fault case instances. 10 cases may be found to be failures 15 to be warnings
and 50 to have no issue. In this example the bar in the Total column for that relay would be coloured
according to those proportions.

Figure 32.15.3 shows a typical example of a report. The first column of results, the Total column, gives
an overview of the results considering all fault case instances. In the subsequent columns results are
grouped into fault case classes. For instance if phase A to ground, phase B to ground and phase C to
ground fault cases are examined, these results will all be grouped together in the single phase to ground
column. It is also possible to see the results for the individual fault cases associated with a grouping.
For example to see the individual A,B or C phase to ground fault results click on one of the bars in the
single phase to ground column and select the Expand selected fault type button. The table will be rebuilt
to list the individual fault case results associated with the selected column. See figure 32.15.4.

Figure 32.15.3: Protection device oriented results example

Figure 32.15.4: Protection device oriented results example - single phase to ground expanded view

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32.16 Short circuit trace

The Short circuit trace is a tool based on the complete short circuit calculation method that allows the
user to examine the performance of a protection scheme in response to a fault or combination of faults;
where the response is examined in time steps and where at each time step, the switching outcomes of
the previous time step and the subsequent effect on the flow of fault current, is taken into consideration.

Consider a network as illustrated in Figure 32.16.1:

Figure 32.16.1: Short circuit trace example

Suppose that for a particular fault at bus 4, the relay controlling circuit breaker 1 trips significantly faster
than the relays controlling circuit breakers 2 and 3. Once circuit breaker 1 trips, the fault is not cleared
but the fault current is reduced, since the contribution from the external grid is removed.

With a single conventional static short circuit calculation it is not possible to take account of the fact
that the fault current seen by circuit breaker 3 reduces after circuit breaker 1 trips. The short circuit
calculation results will show a tripping time for circuit breaker 3 that is too quick. It will be based
on the incorrect premise that circuit breaker 3 sees contribution from both the external grid and the
synchronous generator for the entire duration of the fault.

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It should be possible to more accurately determine the sequence of operation of the protection scheme.
To clear the fault completely, circuit breaker 2 or circuit breaker 3 must trip. Due to the dynamic variation
in the fault current, the tripping times of the two circuit breakers are not immediately obvious. Ideally, a
dynamic simulation method should be used to accurately calculate the respective tripping times of the
two circuit breakers. However, a dynamic simulation is not always practicable and where the user is
willing to accept a reduced level of accuracy in exchange for a faster, simpler calculation result, then the
Short circuit trace should be considered.

Consider again the network illustrated in Figure 32.16.1 with a fault occurring at bus 4. All relays are
overcurrent relays with the relay controlling circuit breaker 1 having a significantly faster tripping time
than the other two relays. A sequence of events as illustrated in figure 32.16.2 occurs.

Figure 32.16.2: Short circuit trace sequence

The following describes how the Short Circuit Trace calculation arrives upon that sequence of events.

• Time Step 1 (𝑡 = 0): The fault occurs at bus 4. Fault current flows from both the synchronous
generator and the external grid according to the complete short circuit method of calculation. The
relay controlling circuit breaker 3 sees the fault current from both sources. The relays controlling
circuit breakers 1 and 2 see only the fault current from the sources present in their particular
branch of the network. The tripping time of each of the relays can be evaluated based on the
respective magnitudes of the current components seen by the relays and with reference to each
of the relay’s tripping characteristics.

• Time Step 2 (𝑡 = 0 + 𝑡1): According to the tripping times calculated at Time Step 1 it is established
that the relay controlling circuit breaker 1 will trip first in time 𝑡1. Therefore at stage 2 circuit
breaker 1 is opened and the complete short circuit method calculation is once again carried out
for a fault at bus 4. This time, the current seen by circuit breaker 3 only includes contribution from
the generator and not from the external grid.
That is not to say that the influence of the external grid is erased from the record during this
second time step. Where an inverse-time characteristic applies, the time spent in the previous
trace calculation step, with both sources supplying current is used to determine the initial state
of the relay moving into the second time step in order to better approximate the tripping time.
Additionally consideration has been given to accurate representation of cases where the function
responsible for the trip, changes between time steps (e.g. from DT to IDMT units).
For the purposes of this example it is assumed that circuit breaker 2 and circuit breaker 3 are
malcoordinated and circuit breaker 2 is established to be the next quickest to operate.
• Time Step 3 (𝑡 = 0 + 𝑡2): According to the tripping times calculated at Time Step 2 it is established
that the relay controlling breaker 2 is the next to trip and trips in time 𝑡2. Since the fault is
now isolated from all connected sources, fault current no longer flows and the short circuit trace
calculation is complete.

From the above, a sequence of operation for the protection scheme is established and specific protection
operating times are calculated, taking account of the variation in network topology that occurs during
the ongoing response of a protection scheme to a fault situation.

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32.16.1 Short Circuit Trace Handling

A command specifically for the Short Circuit Trace feature can be accessed by clicking on the Start
Short-Circuit Trace icon on the Protection toolbar. The command can also be executed from the context
menu by right-clicking on busbar or line in the data manager or single line diagram and by choosing
Calculation → Short Circuit Trace. . . . When executing the command from the context menu a short
circuit event referencing the selected item of equipment will automatically be generated and presented
to the user in a browser dialog. The user should use this to configure the nature of the short circuit to
be applied.

The Short-Circuit Trace command dialog (ComShctrace) has only one page which is illustrated in figure
32.16.3.

Figure 32.16.3: Short circuit trace command dialog

The Short-Circuit Trace Command

A link to the short circuit command (ComShc) to be used for the calculation is automatically generated.
This command is described in detail in the Chapter 25. Please note that for the Short Circuit Trace
function, some options are fixed. For instance, only the complete short circuit method may be selected
whilst the type of short circuit is specified in the short circuit event rather than in the command.

The Events part of the page is used to define the events to be applied at the beginning of the calculation.
The following kinds of events may be specified.
• Intercircuit Fault Events (EvtShcll)
• Outage Events (EvtOutage)
• Short-Circuit Events (EvtShc)

• Switch Events (EvtSwitch)

A list of the selected events can be easily accessed by pressing the Show button.

Predefined events can be selected from the project’s operational library by selecting the From Library
button.

All events can be removed from the event queue by pressing the Remove All button.

The Simultaneous Trip Tolerance setting is used to minimise the number of time steps presented for
cases where the operation of devices is expected to be practically simultaneous. If the breakers at both

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ends of a protected line (for example) operate in times which have a difference between them less than
the Simultaneous Trip Tolerance then operation of both devices will be presented during a single time
step corresponding with the switching time of the fastest operating device.

Once the simulation is ready to begin, press the execute button. At this point the simulation is initialised
and the short circuit events specified in the Basic Options page are applied to the network.

The user is presented with a tabular report as illustrated in figure 32.16.4. The header of the report
states the project name and the active study case along with the currently examined Time Step. Initially
this time step will correspond with the Switch Time of the fastest acting circuit breaker / protection
device combination. However, as the trace is progressed this value will be updated. The user is given
the option to display Only active devices (i.e. devices which are instigated to trip in response to the
fault) or All devices.

The devices themselves are shown in the first column of the table. It is possible to edit the devices by
double left clicking on the cells in this column. A context menu can be presented by right-clicking on a
cell in this column and from here it is possible to mark the location of the device in a single line diagram.
The Protection device Time [s] column presents the tripping times of the protection devices in response
to the fault during the examined time step. This time does not include any breaker delay introduced by
the associated switching device. The associated switching device is presented in the Switch column and
the total fault clearing time taking account of the breaker delay as well as the protection device operating
time is presented in the Switch Time [s] column. It is the Switch time which determines the sequence of
operation of the relays during the trace and therefore the examined Time steps. The device(s) identified
to trip during the examined time step are indicated with an arrow in the row header of the table.

By pressing the Next Time Step button the user can advance the trace to the next time step and the
table of results is updated (along with the single line diagram). The report also provides buttons which
allow the user to jump to the last time step or stop the trace.

The final column in the table Switch Blocked can be used to simulate failure of one or more switches to
operate during the trace. If the box corresponding with a device is checked in the table, upon pressing
the Next Time Step button the operation of the blocked switch will be disabled. The blocking will be
considered to occur before the results of the next time step are calculated. With the switch operation
disabled, one or more different protection devices will become the next switch to operate. In this way
the performance of back up protection for example can be examined.

The report can be refreshed as well as exported in html or xlsx file formats using the buttons in the top
right hand corner.

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Figure 32.16.4: Short-Circuit Trace Report

As an alternative to or in addition to using the report, the user can examine the results in the single line
diagram. The user can also advance through the simulation time step by time step or to the end of the
simulation by clicking on the relevant icons on the Protection toolbar. Further there is an additional icon
to stop the simulation at any time. The icons are illustrated in Figure 32.16.5.

Figure 32.16.5: Short Circuit trace icons

32.17 Protection Graphic Assistant

The Protection Graphic Assistant is a command which is accessible via the protection toolbox. The
assistant provides a convenient location where a number of graphical features relevant to protection
analysis can be initiated. On the basic options page of the command shown in figure 32.17.1 the user
can choose which of the features to execute. Each of the features is executed independently from each
other and only one feature can therefore be selected at a time. On this page the user should also select
the protection devices to be considered by the command.

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Figure 32.17.1: Protection Graphic Assistant - Basic Options

The following subsection describe the features themselves.

32.17.1 Reach Colouring

Reach colouring is used to visualise the zone reaches of protection relay distance elements. It can be
used to overlay the zone reaches of specified relays on the single line diagram, complementing other
methods of zone reach visualisation offered by the R-X plot and Time-Distance plot. A typical reach
colouring representation is shown in figure 32.17.2.

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Figure 32.17.2: Distance protection reach colouring in the single line diagram

In the figure the zone reaches of two relays at either end of a single line are examined. The reaches
of one of the relays is shown with solid brush style, while the reach of the other is shown with a thicker
brush filled with diagonal hatching. The colouring of the three zones is indicated in the diagram’s key.

Reach settings are extracted directly from the relay elements and PowerFactory scales the presented
reach, taking account of the drawn lengths of the lines in the single line diagram. Starting elements
based on impedance characteristics as well as overreach zones can also be visualised using the tool.

The Protection Graphic Assistant is used to configure the appearance of the reach colouring. Relays
are distinguished by line thickness and can be distinguished further by the selection of identifying brush
styles. Zones can be individually identified through the selection of appropriate colouring. Additionally,
the tool allows the width of the line colouring to be controlled. These attributes are configured on the
Reach Colouring page of the command’s dialog. This is illustrated in figure 32.17.3

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Figure 32.17.3: Protection Graphic Assistant - Reach Colouring

After addition of the protection reach colouring to the single line diagram, the colouring can later be
removed, by pressing the Protection Graphic Assistant icon a second time.

The visualisation provides the user particular insight into more complex topological cases such as with
the protection of parallel lines. In such a case for example, the tool will clearly illustrate the reach of
the second and third zones beyond the remote busbar and back towards the relaying location via the
parallel line, as well as the reach into other branches beyond the remote busbar into the remainder
of the network. Additionally, for a network model populated with distance elements, by examining the
visual gaps in the colouring, the tool may be used to effect a rapid protection audit. Thereby, helping
the user to identify gaps in the protection scheme.

32.17.2 Short-Circuit Sweep Plot

The Short-Circuit Sweep Plot itself was described in section 32.12 while this subsection describes the
use of the Short-Circuit Sweep Plot create feature of the Protection Graphic Assistant. This feature is
used to easily and quickly configure short-circuit sweep diagrams which are of particular relevance for
protection purposes.

If the feature is selected on the Basic Options page of the Protection Graphic Assistant an additional
field appears where the user is able to define the nature of the short circuit sweeps to be carried out
using the Short-Circuit Sweep command (see section 32.11 for more information on the short circuit
sweep command).

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Figure 32.17.4: Protection Graphic Assistant - Basic Options for Short-Circuit Sweep Diagrams

On the SC-Sweep Diagrams page of the Protection Coordination Assistant the user provides the com-
mand with the relays of interest and the path to sweep. The types of diagrams desired are also specified.
This is illustrated in figure 32.17.5.

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Figure 32.17.5: Protection Graphic Assistant - Short-Circuit Sweep Diagrams

The feature will then automatically determine the elements within the relays, and the corresponding
result variables that must be monitored during the short circuit sweep so as to create the diagrams
specified. The user can choose whether they are interested in phase-phase protection loops, phase-
earth protection loops or both. They can also choose to include tripping thresholds in the diagrams
and whether to display secondary result values (values calculated for the secondary side of the CT's
and VT's) or primary system values (values calculated on the primary side of the CT’s and VT’s). Once
executed the diagrams are created with a single plot page per relay. The corresponding short circuit
sweeps will also be executed and the results will be visible in the plots.

32.17.3 Diagram Update

Once short circuit sweep diagrams or time distance diagrams have been created it may be necessary
at some later stage to update the diagrams by re-executing the short circuit sweep behind them. A
change to network data or a change to one or more relay settings could motivate such a course of
action. The diagram update option in the Protection graphic assistant allows the user to update one or
more diagrams by re-executing each relevant short circuit sweep calculation in one go. The user has
the option to select all graphical plot pages or a defined selection of pages as required.

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 32.18. BUILDING A BASIC OVERCURRENT RELAY MODEL

32.18 Building a basic overcurrent relay model

Some advanced users may need to build their own relay models. This section will outline the procedure
for building a basic overcurrent relay model.

1. Create a new block definition for the relay frame

• Select Insert → Dynamic Model→ Composite Model Frame. . .
– Give the relay frame an appropriate name.
– Click OK. This creates a block definition object within the User Defined Models section
of the project library.
2. Construct the relay frame.
• Select the slot icon from the drawing toolbox located on the right side of the screen and place
6 slots within the block definitions arranged as illustrated in Figure 32.18.1 below.

Figure 32.18.1: Arrangement of slots

3. Configure the BlkSlot dialog for slot A.

• Slot A will be configured to be a CT slot. Double click on the slot symbol and the BlkSlot
dialog will appear.
• Enter an appropriate name for the slot eg. CT 3ph.
• Enter the class name as StaCt*.
• Ensure that only the box linear is checked in the classification field.
• Enter the following output signals under the variables field: I2r_A; I2i_A, I2r_B; I2i_B, I2r_C;
I2i_C. These signals will represent real and imaginary secondary currents for phases A, B
and C.

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• The way in which the signal list above is defined influences the way the signals are repre-
sented in the relay frame. Signals can be grouped together and represented by a common
terminal by separating the signals to be grouped with a semicolon. Where a group of signals
or a single signal is to be given its own terminal representation in the relay frame then the
signal or group of signals should be distinguishing from any other signals by separation with
a comma.
• Once configured, click OK. The CT slot should now be marked with three terminals, one for
each phase.

4. Configure the BlkSlot dialog for slot B.

• Slot B will be configured to be a Measurement slot. Double click on the slot symbol and the
BlkSlot dialog will appear.
• Enter an appropriate name for the slot eg. Measurement.
• Enter the class name as RelMeasure*.
• In the classification field, ensure that only the boxes linear and Automatic, model will be
created are checked
• Enter the following output signals under the variables field: I_A, I_B, I_C. These represent
RMS values of current for each phase.
• Enter the following input signals under the variables field: wIr_A; wIi_A, wIr_B; wIi_B, wIr_C;
wIi_C. These are real and imaginary current signals supplied by the CT block.
• Once configured click ok.

5. Configure the BlkSlot dialogs for slots C, D and E.

• Slots C,D and E will be configured to be time overcurrent blocks with each one representing
a different phase. Double click on the slot C symbol and the BlkSlot dialog will appear.
• Enter an appropriate name for the slot eg. TOC phase A.
• Enter the class name as RelToc*.
• In the classification field, ensure that only the boxes linear and Automatic, model will be
created are checked
• Enter the following output signals under the variables field: yout.
• Enter the following input signals under the variables field: Iabs. This represents the RMS
current signal for phase A supplied by the measurement block.
• Once configured click OK.
• Repeat the steps above for slot D and E. Name these slots TOC phase B and TOC phase C.

6. Configure the BlkSlot dialog for slot F.

• Slot F will be configured to be a Logic slot. Double click on the slot symbol and the BlkSlot
dialog will appear.
• Enter an appropriate name for the slot eg. Logic.
• Enter the class name as RelLogic*.
• In the classification field, ensure that only the boxes linear and Automatic, model will be
created are checked
• Enter the following output signals under the variables field: yout.
• Enter the following input signals under the variables field: y1, y2, y3.
• Once configured click OK.
All block dialogs should now be configured.
7. Connect the blocks together using signals.
• Select the signal icon from the drawing toolbox located on the right side of the screen.
• Connect blocks by clicking on the output terminal of the first block then by clicking on the
input terminal of the receiving block. If a route for the signal is required which is not direct,
intermediate clicks may be used.

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 32.18. BUILDING A BASIC OVERCURRENT RELAY MODEL

• If a signal is intended to be passed outside of the model then a signal should be terminated
on the box which surrounds the frame. In this instance the output from the logic block will be
passed outside of the model.
• Connect the blocks in the frame as illustrated in Figure 32.18.2.

Figure 32.18.2: Signal route definition

8. Rebuild the block definition

• Press the rebuild button on the local graphics window icon bar. Rebuilding the model will
capture all the internal signals (signals defined between slots) and external signals (signals
passed outside of the model) within the BlkDef model dialog. This concludes definition of the
relay frame. The next step is to define a relay type.

9. Create a relay type object

• Within the Data Manager go to the Equipment Type library folder in the project library and
select the New Object icon .
• In the dialog which appears select Relay Type.
• In the TypRelay dialog that appears give the relay type an appropriate name.
• In the relay definition field select the relay frame constructed earlier from the User Defined
Models section of the project library.
• Select the category as overcurrent relay.
10. Define the CT type
• The CT type can be selected by double clicking in the type column associated with the CT
row.
• The desired CT should be selected from the Data Manager.
11. Define the measurement type

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• The measurement type can be selected by double clicking in the type column associated with
the measurement row. For this example select the following options:
• Select Type to 3ph RMS currents
• Select nominal current to discrete with a value of 5.
• Select measuring time to 0.001
• Ensure no check boxes are selected.
12. Define the TOC types
• The TOC types can be selected by double clicking in the type column associated with the
rows of each of the three TOC slots. For this example select the following options for each
TOC type:
• Select IEC symbol I>t and Ansi symbol 51.
• Select type to phase A, B or C current depending on the slot.
• Select directional to none.
• Select current range to range type: stepped, minimum: 0.5, maximum: 2 and step size: 0.25.
• Check the characteristic includes pickup time box and set pickup time: 0.01s, Reset time:
0.04s and Reset Characteristic Configuration: Disabled.
• Select an existing relay characteristic from another relay or create a new relay characteristic
by creating a TypChatoc object.
• On the Total clear curve tab ensure no boxes are checked.
• On the blocking page, select consider blocking to disabled.
• Select release blocking time range to range type: stepped, minimum: 0 maximum: 10000
and step size: 0.01.
13. Define the Logic types
• The Logic type can be selected by double clicking in the type column associated with the
logic row.
• Select Breaker event to open.
• Select number of inputs to 4.
• Select number of block inputs to 4.
• Select a logical OR operation.

This concludes definition of the relay type.

To use the relay type a relay must be created within the network. The relay type can then be selected,
and the relay element parameters defined.

32.19 Appendix - other commonly used relay blocks

This section covers some of the other protection block not so far covered in the discussion throughout
the chapter so far.

32.19.1 The frequency measurement block

The frequency measurement unit is used to calculate the electrical frequency for the given Measured
Voltage. The Nominal Voltage is needed for per unit calculations. The Frequency Measurement Time
defines the time used for calculating the frequency gradient.

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 32.20. RELAY BLOCK TECHNICAL REFERENCES

32.19.2 The frequency block

The frequency block either trips on an absolute under-frequency (in Hz), or on a frequency gradient (in
Hz/s). Which condition is used depends on the selected type. The type also defines the reset time,
during which the defined frequency conditions must be present again for the relay to reset.

The time delay set in the relay element defines the time during which the defined frequency condition
must be violated for the relay to trip.

32.19.3 The under-/overvoltage block

The under-/overvoltage relay type may define the block to trip on either
• One of the three phase line to line voltages

• One particular line to line voltage

• The ground voltage 𝑈0 .
• The positive sequence voltage 𝑈1

• The negative sequence voltage 𝑈2

The relay element allows only for setting of the pickup voltage and the time delay.

32.20 Relay block technical references

A number of technical references are available which are relevant for protection. Please refer to the
Protection Devices Library for details on protection blocks and details regarding the CT and VT models.

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Chapter 33

Arc-Flash Hazard Analysis

33.1 Introduction

This chapter describes the tools available in PowerFactory to perform arc-flash hazard analysis, includ-
ing their technical background, descriptions of the Arc-Flash Hazard Analysis command and Arc-Flash
Reports dialogs, and an example calculation. The Arc-Flash Hazard Analysis command (ComArcflash)
can be accessed on the main toolbar under the Protection and Arc-Flash Analysis group by selecting
the Arc-Flash Analysis icon .

Note: DIgSILENT accepts no responsibility for the use of the Arc-Flash Hazard Analysis command,
or for the consequences of any actions taken based on the results. Use the Arc-Flash Hazard
Analysis command at your own risk.

Note: By default, results are entered and displayed in SI units. To change to British Imperial units, on
the main menu select Edit → Project Data→ Project Settings. . . , change the page to Formats and
units, and on the Input Variables tab, select the units to be “English-Transmission” or “English-
Industry”, from the drop down list.

33.2 Arc-Flash Hazard Analysis Background

33.2.1 General

Arc-flash hazard analysis calculations are performed to determine “...the arc-flash hazard distance and
the incident energy to which employees could be exposed during their work on or near electrical equip-
ment” [IEEE1584-2002][46]. One outcome of an arc-flash hazard analysis is to determine employee
Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) requirements.

The Arc-Flash command builds on the existing short-circuit calculation capabilities in PowerFactory, and
requires the following additional data, dependent on the Calculation Method selected:
• IEEE-1584-2002 [46]: Conductor Gap, Distance Factor, Working Distance, and Enclosure Type.

• IEEE-1584-2018 [47]: Conductor Gap, Working Distance, and Electrode configuration. For some
Electrode configurations additionally Dimensions of enclosure might be needed

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• NFPA 70E [51]: Working Distance and Enclosure Type.

• DGUV 203-077 [41]: Conductor Gap, Distance Factor and Working Distance.
• EPRI [43]: Arc Length, Statistical Correction Factor and Working Distance.

33.2.2 Determination of arc duration and consideration of arcing current

Arc duration is used by all arc flash calculation methods in combination with arcing current to calculate
incident energy and arc flash boundaries. Depending on the configuration of the command and the
availability of protection licence modules, it can either be specified directly or determined through
calculation based on protective device model tripping in response to short circuit calculation results.
If it is determined through calculation then it is necessary for PowerFactory ’s short circuit calculation to
consider the partial short circuit currents seen by each separate protective device. For such cases it is
necessary to determine the arcing current at the point of fault before the partial currents seen by the
protective devices can be considered. Depending on the calculation method, the arcing current value
used can vary as described below.

• IEEE-1584-2002: The bolted three phase, symmetrical, RMS fault current is calculated at the
accessible location using PowerFactory ’s short circuit calculation. At voltage levels of 15kV and
below, an arcing current (𝐼𝑎 ) is calculated from this quantity using the equation in the standard.
𝐼𝑎 is lower than the bolted short circuit current due to arc resistance. For voltage levels above
15kV 𝐼𝑎 is specified to be equal to the bolted fault current. An arc duration (fault clearing time)
is determined using 𝐼𝑎 . A reduced arcing current (𝐼𝑎,𝑚𝑖𝑛 ) is calculated from 𝐼𝑎 . According to the
standard the current corresponding with 𝐼𝑎,𝑚𝑖𝑛 should be 85% of 𝐼𝑎 . However, the reduction factor
specifiable in PowerFactory is user configurable. A second arc duration is determined from 𝐼𝑎,𝑚𝑖𝑛 .
The incident energy arising from the two combinations of arcing current and arc duration are
evaluated separately and the combination which results in the highest incident energy is selected.
• IEEE-1584-2018: The bolted three phase, symmetrical, RMS fault current is calculated at the
accessible location using PowerFactory ’s short circuit calculation. At voltage levels of 15kV and
below, three intermediate average arcing currents are calculated from this quantity using the
equation in the standard. A final arcing current (𝐼𝑎 ) is then calculated using equations from the
standard that depend on one or more of the previously calculated intermediate average arcing
currents as well as the open circuit voltage level of the fault location. In this case 𝐼𝑎 is lower than
the bolted short circuit current due to arc resistance. For voltage levels above 15kV 𝐼𝑎 is specified
to be equal to the bolted fault current. An arc duration (fault clearing time) is determined using
𝐼𝑎 . A reduced arcing current (𝐼𝑎,𝑚𝑖𝑛 ) considering an arcing current variation correction factor is
calculated from 𝐼𝑎 using another equation from the standard. A second arc duration is determined
from 𝐼𝑎,𝑚𝑖𝑛 . The incident energy arising from the two combinations of arcing current and arc
duration are evaluated separately and the combination which results in the highest incident energy
is selected.
• NFPA 70E AC: The bolted three phase, symmetrical, RMS fault current is calculated at the
accessible location using PowerFactory ’s short circuit calculation and the arcing current used
to evaluate the arc duration is directly equated with this value.
• DGUV 203-077 AC: The minimum bolted three phase, symmetrical, RMS fault current is calcu-
lated at the accessible location using PowerFactory ’s short circuit calculation. An arcing current
(𝐼𝑎 ) is calculated from this quantity using the equation in the standard. 𝐼𝑎 is lower than the bolted
short circuit current due to arc resistance. An arc duration (fault clearing time) is determined
using 𝐼𝑎 . Note that the arc flash power is calculated from the maximum bolted three phase,
symmetrical, RMS fault current, calculated using PowerFactory ’s short circuit calculation and the
incident energy is calculated by multiplying the arc flash power by the arc duration.
• EPRI: A single phase, phase A to ground, zero impedance, symmetrical, RMS fault current is
calculated at the accessible location using PowerFactory ’s short circuit calculation. An arcing
current (𝐼𝑎 ) and corresponding arc resistance can be calculated from this quantity using the
equations in [43]. 𝐼𝑎 is lower than the bolted short circuit current due to arc resistance. An
arc duration (fault clearing time) is determined using 𝐼𝑎 .

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• NFPA 70E DC: The bolted DC fault current is calculated at the accessible location using Pow-
erFactory ’s short circuit calculation and the arcing current used to evaluate the arc duration is
directly equated with this value.

• DGUV 203-077 DC: The bolted DC fault current is calculated at the accessible location using
PowerFactory ’s short circuit calculation. An iterative calculation to determine the arcing current 𝐼𝑎
is started using the equations from the standard. The initial estimate for the arcing current is taken
as half the previously calculated value of bolted DC fault current. 𝐼𝑎 is lower than the bolted short
circuit current due to arc resistance. An arc duration (fault clearing time) is determined using 𝐼𝑎 .

For the cases where the arcing current does not directly equate with the bolted (zero fault impedance)
short circuit current PowerFactory calculates the arcing current and corresponding partial arcing cur-
rents using a short circuit calculation where the fault resistance (representing the arc resistance) has
been tuned so as to produce the required arcing current at the accessible location. By doing this, and
if necessary, PowerFactory is then able to calculate the partial currents seen by and the corresponding
tripping times of all protective devices responsible for clearing the fault in order to determine the arc
duration.

33.2.3 Input Data

33.2.3.1 Guidance on input data values

The IEEE-1584 standard provides guidance on the selection of the Conductor Gap and Distance Factor.
Table 33.2.1 shows the recommended values from the standard.

System Voltage [kV] Equipment type Typical gap between Distance x factor
conductors [mm]

Open air 10-40 2.000

0.208-1
Switchgear 32 1.473

MCC and panels 25 1.641

Cable 13 2.000

>1-5 Open air 102 2.000

Switchgear 13-102 0.973

Cable 13 2.000

>5-15 Open air 13-153 2.000

Switchgear 153 0.973

Cable 13 2.000

Table 33.2.1: Factors for equipment and voltage classes [IEEE1584-2002][46]

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 33.2. ARC-FLASH HAZARD ANALYSIS BACKGROUND

Enclosure Equipment class Default bus Enclosure size (H x W x D)

type gaps [mm]

1 15 kV switchgear 152 1143 mm x 762 mm x 762 mm

2 15 kV MCC 152 914.4 mm x 914.4 mm x 914.4 mm

3 5 kV switchgear 104 914.4 mm x 914.4 mm x 914.4 mm

4 5 kV switchgear 104 1143 mm x 762 mm x 762 mm

5 5 kV MCC 104 660.4 mm x 660.4 mm x 660.4 mm

6 Low-voltage switchgear 32 508 mm x 508 mm x 508 mm

7 Shallow low-voltage 25 355.6 mm x 304.8 mm x <= 203.2 mm

MCCs and panelboards

8 Deep low-voltage MCCs 25 355.6 mm x 304.8 mm x > 203.2 mm

and panelboards

7 or 8 Cable junction box 13 355.6 mm x 304.8 mm x <= 203.2 mm

355.6 mm x 304.8 mm x > 203.2 mm

Table 33.2.2: Enclosure sizes for [IEEE1584-2018] arc-flash model [47]

Figure 33.2.1 shows the terminal element dialog in PowerFactory where parameters required for the
specific Arc-Flash Hazard Analysis Calculation method can be entered.

The terminals at which arc flash calculations are to be carried out are defined by designating those
terminals as accessible locations. An Accessible Location checkbox is available on the General tab of
the Arc-Flash Analysis page of each terminal (ElmTerm) object dialog. If the checkbox is selected, the
user may then enter input parameters relevant for the specific arc-flash calculation method to be used,
on the tab corresponding with the method.

If the terminal resides within a substation or within a bay, the Equipment Data field can be set to either
Local Values, From Substation, From Bay. When From Substation or From Bay is selected, a pointer to
the relevant substation or bay is shown in the dialog and the equipment data is taken from the selected
object instead of from the terminal.

Figure 33.2.1: Arc-flash data required for terminals

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CHAPTER 33. ARC-FLASH HAZARD ANALYSIS

Additional input data required for calculation of Fault Clearing Times/arcing time depends on the cal-
culation approach with regards to whether fixed times or calculated times based on protection device
modelling is to be used. This is discussed later in this chapter see section 33.3.1.2.

33.2.4 Arc Models and Ranges of Calculation Models

Depending on the calculation method used different arc models are applied. Furthermore, sometimes
the arc model used can vary depending on the rated voltage of the accessible location. In addition to
this the applicability of arc models are often limited by other factors related to the test conditions under
which the models were empirically derived. The following section aims to capture some of the details
regarding the applicable ranges of the different calculation models. For detailed information regarding
the range of applicability of the methods please refer to the standards and other source documentation
directly.

33.2.4.1 IEEE-1584-2002

The arc models and application range of the IEEE-1584-2002 method as derived from the standard is
as follows:

• For accessible locations rated with three phase line to line voltage levels in the range 208 V - 15
kV, the the empirically derived arc model specified in the standard applies.
• For accessible locations rated with three phase voltage levels higher than 15 kV PowerFactory
uses the theoretically derived Lee method for the arc model. This method is expected to produce
conservative results.

Note: For more accurate results at higher voltage levels the EPRI method arc model (see section
33.2.4.5) may be considered. However, care should be taken to ensure that the test configu-
rations considered in the derivation of the EPRI method are representative for the calculation
case being considered.

• System frequency must be 50 Hz or 60 Hz.

• RMS symmetrical bolted fault current should be between 700 A and 106 kA.
• All system grounding methods are supported.
• only conductor gaps betwe 13 mm and 152 mm are within the range of the model.
• Intended for three phase faults.

33.2.4.2 IEEE-1584-2018

The arc models and application range of the IEEE-1584-2018 method as derived from the standard is
as follows:

• For accessible locations rated with three phase line to line voltage levels in the range 208 V - 15
kV, the the empirically derived arc model specified in the standard applies.
• For accessible locations rated with three phase voltage levels higher than 15 kV PowerFactory
uses the theoretically derived Lee method for the arc model. This method is expected to produce
conservative results.

Note: For more accurate results at higher voltage levels the EPRI method arc model (see section
33.2.4.5) may be considered. However, care should be taken to ensure that the test configu-
rations considered in the derivation of the EPRI method are representative for the calculation
case being considered.

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• System frequency must be 50 Hz or 60 Hz.

• For voltage levels of 208 V to 600 V, RMS symmetrical bolted fault current should be between 700
A and 106 kA.

• For voltage levels of 601 V to 15 kV, RMS symmetrical bolted fault current should be between 200
A and 65 kA.
• For voltage levels of 208 V to 600 V, gaps between conductors should be between 6.35 mm and
76.2 mm.

• For voltage levels of 601 V to 15 kV, gaps between conductors should be between 19.05 mm and
254 mm.
• The model supports working distances of greater than or equal to 305mm. (see [47] for specific
details.)

• No limit on the fault clearing time. (see [47] for specific details.)
• Dimensions of enclosures tested (with open front end) for open circuit voltage of 600 V as per
Enclosure type 6 in table 33.2.2.
• Dimensions of enclosures tested (with open front end) for open circuit voltage of 2.7 kV as per
Enclosure type 5 in table 33.2.2.

• Dimensions of enclosures tested (with open front end) for open circuit voltage of 15 kV as per
Enclosure type 2 in table 33.2.2.
• Maximum height or width of enclosure = 1244.6𝑚𝑚
• Maximum opening area of enclosure = 1.549𝑚2

• Minimum width of the enclosure is greater than four times the gap between conductors (elec-
trodes)
• electrode configurations (VCB, VCBB, HCB, VOA, HOA), (see [47] for specific details.)

33.2.4.3 NFPA 70E AC

The arc models and application range of the NFPA 70E AC method as derived from the standard is as
follows:

• For accessible locations rated with three phase line to line voltage levels 600V and below, the
calculation method derived from the Doughty Neal Paper as described in citeNFPA70E is used.
• The Doughty Nealpaper method applies to 3 phase arcs with short circuit currents between 15kA
and 50kA.
• Typical working distances for Low voltage (600V and below) motor control centre and panelboards
= 455𝑚𝑚
• Typical working distances for Low voltage (600V and below) switchgear = 610𝑚𝑚
• For accessible locations rated with three phase line to line voltage levels greater than 600V, the
Ralph Lee calculation method as described in [51] is used.

• Typical working distances for medium voltage (above 600V) switchgear = 910𝑚𝑚

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33.2.4.4 DGUV 203-077 AC

The arc models and application range of the DGUV 203-077 AC method as derived from the standard
is as follows:

• The arc model as defined by the equations of the standard is used.

• The method is applicable for accessible locations having rated line to line voltage levels of between
50 V and 110 kV.
• The arcing current is assumed to be equal to half the RMS symmetrical bolted fault current low
voltages whilst at medium and high voltages it is considered as equal to the the RMS symmetrical
bolted fault current.

33.2.4.5 EPRI method

For the EPRI calculation method, an arc model is used as defined in [43] where it is noted that the
model has been derived from arc tests that satisfy the test setup parameters listed in table 33.2.3. The
results of the tests themselves are also reported on in [43].

The method as implemented in PowerFactory is intended to be used with single phase to ground, arc
flash events occurring in open air and involving longs arcs covering a gap length of 1 ft to 5 ft (0.31m to
1.5m) as is more commonly expected to occur in open air high voltage applications. However, the test
parameters in [43] do not explicitly specify a voltage range for the arc model. For this reason the method
has not been limited for application to a specific range of nominal voltage levels corresponding with the
rating of the accessible location(s). If the input parameters assigned to the accessible location(s) are
outside of the ranges defined by table 33.2.3, PowerFactory will execute the calculation but will issue
warning messages to the output window indicating that the relevant input parameters are outside of the
tested range of the EPRI equations.

Note: To comply with the recommendations of [43] the EPRI method should not be used with gap
lengths of less than 1 ft (0.31 m).

Parameter Description
Gap Orientation Vertical
Gap Length (ft) 1-5
Gap Length (m) 0.31 - 1.5
Current (kA rms) 8 - 40
Duration (s) 0.033 - 0.2
Duration (cycles) 2 - 12

Table 33.2.3: EPRI method Arc Test Parameters Considered in [43]

33.2.4.6 NFPA 70E DC

The application range of the NFPA 70E DC method as derived from the standard is as follows:

• For accessible locations rated with DC voltage levels up to 1000 V DC, the calculation method
derived from the Doan Paper as described in [51] is used.

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33.2.4.7 DGUV 203-077 DC

The application range of the DGUV 203-077 DC method as derived from the standard is as follows:

• The method described in [41] is used which is applicable for accessible locations having DC
voltage levels of between 50 V DC and 1.5 kV DC.

33.3 Arc-Flash Hazard Analysis Calculation Options

33.3.1 Arc-Flash Hazard Analysis Basic Options Page

33.3.1.1 Calculation

System type: select the network type associated with the arc flash fault locations to be considered in
the calculation: AC or DC. Depending on the system type, different arc flash calculation methods are
available

Method: one of the following may be selected:

• according to IEEE-1584 published 2002 (AC) [46]

• according to IEEE-1584 published 2018 (AC) [47]
• according to NFPA 70E (AC or DC) [51]

• according to DGUV 203-077 (AC or DC) [41]

• according to EPRI (AC) [43]

Fault Location At:

• User Selection: Selection of either a single location or a pre-defined set of locations. Locations
can be selected in single line diagrams or in tabular views by right clicking a single terminal or
multi-selection of terminals and choosing Calculation → Arc-Flash Analysis. This option is only
available, if at least one of the busbars in the selection is configured as an Accessible Location
(see Section 33.2.3).

• All Accessible Locations: Locations are all terminals where Accessible Location is selected on
the Arc-Flash Analysis page of the element dialog.

33.3.1.2 Arc Duration

One of the following may be selected:

Use Fixed Times: In this case, protection device models (and associated protection licence modules)
are not required by the calculation. The corresponding parameter Get Time from can be set to either:

• Global: An Arc Duration parameter can be specified in the command which is then used for all
accessible locations.
• Local: The fault clearing times for each accessible location are determined from the correspond-
ing Arc-Flash Analysis page of the relevant switch elements (ElmCoup and StaSwitch), where
the Switch Type has been set to “Circuit Breaker” on the Basic Data page. When this option is
selected an additional Maximum Time parameter may be set in the command dialog which is used
to specify the maximum fault clearing time to be used by the arc-flash command.

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Use Relay Tripping: In this case, the tripping time is based upon relay characteristics entered in
protection models which have been defined in the network model. This option can only be used where
the user’s licence includes Time-overcurrent or distance protection licence modules.

Note: Only devices where the Status parameter on the device Description page is set to “Approved”)
will be considered by the calculation.

The Arc-Flash Analysis command performs incident energy calculations using the evaluated tripping
time where the tripping time is based on the evaluated partial arcing currents (see section 33.2.2 for
more details). To determine the fault clearing time, Get Time from can be set to either:

• Initial: In this case the Arc-Flash command carries out a standard (not trace) short circuit cal-
culation to determine the fault clearing time based on the longest fault clearing time of any
element connected to the faulted terminal. For example, if two parallel lines are supplying a
faulted terminal, and the first line has a fault clearing time of 1 s, and the second line has a fault
clearing time of 2 s (where both clearing times are based on the Initial fault current) the Arc-Flash
command will take 2 s as the fault clearing time.
• Iteration: In this case the Arc-Flash command determines the fault clearing time from a Short-
Circuit Trace calculation. For example, assume that two parallel lines are supplying a faulted
terminal, and the first line has a fault clearing time of 1 s. Then, after the first line is cleared, the
second line sees a higher fault current, and subsequently clears the fault at 1.5 s. The Arc-Flash
command takes 1.5 s as the fault clearing time.

Note: When there are multiple sources of fault current at a faulted terminal with different fault clearing
times, PowerFactory takes the maximum clearance time of the connecting branch for all branches.

Maximum Time: This parameter is used to specify the maximum fault clearing time to be used by the
Arc-Flash command. It applies for cases where evaluation of the relay model tripping times produces
long tripping times. In such cases the value assigned to this parameter is used to determine the arc
duration and incident energy etc. instead of the calculated tripping time.

Note: The option Use Relay Tripping: Iteration changes the short-circuit method automatically to com-
plete. PowerFactory uses the Short-Circuit Trace function to determine the clearing time and the
function is only available in combination with the complete method. See Section 32.16 for further
information about the Short-Circuit Trace function.

Note: If System type: DC is selected, the option Use Relay Tripping: Iteration is not available.

33.3.1.3 Short-Circuit Calculation

Pointer to the Short-Circuit Calculation command. The short-circuit method will not be changed auto-
matically from AC to DC, since multiple methods are available in PowerFactory. The user should make
sure that the correct short-circuit method is selected in the short-circuit command before executing the
arc-flash command. Otherwise an error message will be displayed in the output window.

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33.3.1.4 Show Output

If this is selected, the Arc-Flash Reports (ComArcreport) command will be executed when the calcula-
tion is complete. This will generate a tabular report of results and/or an arc-flash label report according
to the options selected in the command. Note that the reports command can be configured via the
icon. See Section 33.4.2 for more details.

33.3.2 Arc-Flash Hazard Analysis Advanced Options Page

33.3.2.1 Arc-Flash Calculation Options

The parameters that are available on this page depend on the calculation method options which have
been selected on the Basic Options page.

Options common to IEEE-1584, NFPA 70E, and EPRI:

• Energy at Flash-Protection Boundary: This defines the energy at which the Arc-Flash protec-
tion boundary is calculated.

Note: If IEEE 1584:2018 is selected this parameter only influences the results for accessible
locations with a rated voltage of more than 15kV. i.e. at accessible locations where an arc
model is based on the Lee equations applies. Below this voltage the specific equations from
the standard are used to determine an Arc Flash Boundary that corresponds with an energy
density of 5𝐽/𝑐𝑚2 .

Specific options for IEEE-1584:2002:

• Arcing current variation: This option defines the percentage by which the expected arcing
current is reduced for the reduced arcing current calculation (see 33.2.2).
• Apply arcing current variation to nodes> 1kV: By selecting this parameter it is possible to
consider arcing current variation for medium voltage nodes rated from >1kV up to 15kV.

Note: In accordance with the standard PowerFactory does not consider reduced arcing currents
due to arcing current variation for accessible locations rated above 15kV.

• Iterative Energy Calculation: This option is only available if the Arc Duration option is set to
Use Relay Tripping and the Get Time from option is set to Iteration, on the Basic Options page.
When selected, PowerFactory uses the arcing current calculated at each step of the arc-flash
calculation’s short circuit trace for the determination of the final incident energy calculation. For
each step of the short circuit trace the arc resistance calculated during the initial calculation is held
at its initial value and the redistribution of short circuit currents resulting from the updated network
topology is considered. This option is not available with the 2018 version of the calculation since
the modified calculation equations do not allow for it.
for NFPA 70E with DC system type:

• Use detailed arc model: This option changes the arc model used in order to determine the
incident energy. With the checkbox off the Maximum Power Method described in [51] is used.
With the checkbox selected the Stokes and Oppenlander model described in [44] is used.
Specific options for DGUV 203-077:
• Min. arc energy: This option sets a minimum threshold where no PPE category is determined
(i.e. PPE category zero).
• Use worst-case assumption: This option changes the determination of the current limiting factor
and relative arc power so that the simplified equations are used in accordance with [41].

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33.3.2.2 PPE-Ratings

One of the following options can be selected for the PPE-Ratings:

• Acc. to NFPA 70E[51]: In this case default values from the standard are used. These ratings can
only be used for the IEEE-1584, NFPA 70E and EPRI calculation methods.
• Acc. to DGUV 203-077[41]: In this case default values from the standard are used. These ratings
can only be used for the DGUV 203-077 standard.

• User-Defined: In this case user-defined Category values can be entered in the PPE-Categories
table after inserting or appending rows. Note that the values should be entered in ascending order
and that the table changes according to the standard selected on the “Basic Options” page.

33.4 Arc-Flash Hazard Analysis Results

33.4.1 Viewing Results in the Single Line Graphic

Diagram Colouring

Terminals can be coloured according to the calculated PPE category, Incident Energy and the calculated
Loading of Thermal/Peak Short-Circuit Current. To set the diagram colouring mode, select the Diagram
Colouring icon, and then under 3. Other, select Results, and the desired colouring mode.

The use of colouring in network diagrams is described in Section 9.3.10.1, and more detail about the
use of colours and colour palettes can be found in Section 4.7.8.

Result Boxes

To show the default set of Arc-Flash result parameters (Arcing Current, Arcing Time, Working Distance)
in the single line diagram result boxes, right-click on a terminal result box and select Format for Short
Circuit Nodes → Arcing Current, Time, Distance. Energy and PPE results can also be displayed.

33.4.2 Arc-Flash Reports

The Arc-Flash Reports (ComArcreport) command dialog is accessed via the icon. It can be used
both to show calculation results in tabular format and to generate arc-flash labels. The command has a
pointer to the Result File storing the calculation results.

33.4.2.1 Create tabular report

If the user selects this option, a tabular report of pre-defined result variables will be generated. Further
options are available within the report itself. For each location shown in the report, three options are
available to further analyse the results. The options can be activated by either selecting a location (first
column Accessible Location) and clicking on the relevant button, or via a right click on the location cell
and by then selecting the relevant option in the context menu.

Show intermediate results: This option brings up a table with further results.

• For the IEEE-1584 methods both the full and reduced arc currents are shown, highlighting the
worst-case which is displayed in the overview table.
• For the DGUV 203-077 method this options shows more result variables such as the current
limiting factor or the relative arc power.

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Calculate short-circuit: This option executes the short-circuit command at the selected fault location.
A specific fault resistance is applied in order to reduce the short circuit current magnitude to a value
which corresponds with the calculated value of the arcing current. Calculate short-circuit trace: This
option executes the short-circuit trace calculation at the selected fault location. A specific fault resistance
is applied in order to reduce the short circuit current magnitude to a value which corresponds with the
calculated value of the arcing current.

Note: When using the options Calculate short-circuit or Calculate short-circuit trace, the user must
make sure that the commands are set correctly. The report option only changes the fault location
and resistance. Any other settings, e.g. fault type or method, need to be set manually.

When the arcing current is calculated using the report options, tripping times can be easily analysed
using the Time-Overcurrent plot or the overview table of the short-circuit trace function.

The tabular report can be exported in HTML or XLSX format, by using the icons at the top right-hand
corner of the report.

Note: If the incident energy exceeds the incident energy in the maximum PPE category, the result is
“N/A”.

33.4.2.2 Create report document (for arc-flash labels)

If this option is selected, the standard reporting functionality can be used to generate arc-flash labels.
A list of available reports will be presented, and the required reports can be selected. When the
command is executed, reports are presented as PDF documents in the active graphic window, using
PowerFactory ’s inbuilt PDF viewer. From there, the documents can be exported, using the icon.

It should be noted that the arc-flash reports which are viewed internally in PowerFactory are stored in
the desktop of the study case, even after they have been closed, until they are actively deleted by the
user.

Further options are available for users who want to customise the labels or export them in a different
format:

Customised labels

By default, the arc-flash labels are generated using a standard report template. This determines the
appearance of the label and the quantities shown. If the user wishes to modify this in any way, it can be
done by creating an entirely new template, or - more likely - by making a copy of the standard template
and modifying it. The new or changed template can then be stored in the project library or custom
library (if available).

The general process for creating and modifying templates is described in Chapter 18: Reporting and
Visualising Results, section 18.5, but for arc-flash labels, two options are available:

• In the Arc-Flash Report dialog, click on the Create new report. . . button to create a new report
template, which will be stored in the project library and can then be selected for use.

• After running Arc-Flash Analysis, open the main Report Generation command ( in the main
toolbar) and from here prepare a new report template or copy the existing report template into the
project or custom library and modify it as required. Then, when the Arc-Flash Reports command
dialog is opened, and Create report document selected, the new report will be offered as an
option.

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Creating labels in other formats

When labels are created using the dedicated Arc-Flash Reports (ComArcreport) command, they are
automatically created as PDF documents. But if the user requires the labels in another format such as
MS Word, this is also possible.

First, the Arc-Flash Analysis must be executed to ensure that this is the most recently-executed com-
mand. The main Report Generation command dialog is then opened, using the icon in the main
toolbar.

The report selection(s) are made on the Basic Options page; then, on the Export page, the Export
generated documents option is checked, the target location specified, and the report format and any
associated settings selected.

Then the command can be executed. Chapter 18: Reporting and Visualising Results, section 18.5 gives
more information about this general reporting command.

33.5 Example Arc-Flash Hazard Analysis Calculation

Consider the example network shown in Figure 33.5.1, where there are two parallel lines connected to
a terminal “Terminal”. For this example, the two lines have different protection characteristics, as shown
in Figure 33.5.2.

Figure 33.5.1: Example network single line graphic

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Figure 33.5.2: Protection characteristics

Arc-flash calculations are carried out using each method as follows:

• With Use Fixed Times and Get Time from Global selected, and with a total fault clearing time of
0.12 s, the key results are as follows:
– Incident Energy: 58 J∖cm2 .
– Boundary Distance: 683 mm.
– PPE Category: 3.
• With Use Fixed Times and Get Time from Local selected, and with a total fault clearing time of
0.10 s, the key results are as follows:
– Incident Energy: 49 J∖cm2 .
– Boundary Distance: 624 mm.
– PPE Category: 3.
• With Use Relay Tripping and Get Time from Initial selected (Figure 33.5.1), the key results are as
follows:
– Incident Energy: 37 J∖cm2 .
– Boundary Distance: 544 mm.
– PPE Category: 3.
• With Use Relay Tripping and Get Time from Iteration selected, the key results are as follows:
– Incident Energy: 28 J∖cm2 .
– Boundary Distance: 470 mm.
– PPE Category: 2.

Of particular interest is the difference in results for the case where Get Time from Initial is selected,
versus Get Time from Iteration. The former case gives conservative results (in this example), whilst in
the latter case, the fault clearing time is faster due to recalculation of the fault current (as discussed in
Section 33.3.1), and thus the calculated PPE requirement is lower.

A label is produced for “Terminal” (as described in 33.4), for the method where Relay Tripping, and Get
Time from Initial is selected. The resultant label is shown in Figure 33.5.3.

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Figure 33.5.3: Example arc-flash warning label

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Chapter 34

Cable Analysis

The cable analysis toolbox consists of two calculation tools:

• Cable Sizing ( ) command (ComCabsize), described in section 34.1

• Cable Ampacity ( ) calculation (ComAmpacity ), described in section 34.2

The cable sizing command uses static network calculations to verify the compliance of the configured
cables in the network model against typical constraints. Further, should the constraints not be met or if
an optimised selection of cable types is required it can be used to recommend cable types to meet the
specified constraints.

The ampacity calculation tool is used to calculate the cable ampacity of cable models based on cable
system objects (TypCabsys), given information on their geometry, construction, installation methods
and proximity to adjacent cables. It can also be used to calculate an adiabatic short circuit current
(short-time) rating of the cable.

In addition to the tools, additional features are built into various model classes which may be used
throughout the network model and these features are then used by the cable analysis tools to calculate
results. Specifically, features are built into line elements (ElmLne), line sub-section elements (ElmL-
nesec), line types (TypLne), single core cable types (TypCab) and multi core/pipe-type cable types
(TypCabmult). For the purpose of ampacity calculation, cable system objects (TypCabsys) can also be
embedded in a cable layout (ElmCablay ), which is particularly important for the calculation because of
the different thermal transitions.

For all these model classes the data required to parameterise the cable analysis features can be found
on the Cable Sizing and Cable Ampacity page of their respective object dialogs.

Note: Throughout this chapter it may be noticeable that cables are sometimes identified as line objects.
It should be made clear that the object classes line element (ElmLne), Line sub-section elements
(ElmLnesec) and Line Type (TypLne) can also be used to define cables despite their potentially
misleading names. A line type (TypLne) object can be identified as relating to a cable via its Cable
/ OHL parameter and a line element or line sub-section element (ElmLne or ElmLnesec) object
referencing one of the aforementioned line types should therefore also be considered to represent
a cable.

The features associated with cable analysis in PowerFactory shall be described in the following sections.

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34.1 Cable Sizing

The Cable Sizing command ( ) is used to size cables in the network to comply with user-defined
constraints. The main functionalities and applications are:
• Planning a network from scratch: Assign new cable types to existing line elements without a type

• Verify existing cable types against user-defined constraints

• Recommend optimised cable types and determine the necessary cross section to fulfil all con-
straints
• Simplified calculation of the derating factor considering the installation conditions according to
International Standards

It is important to note that the Cable Sizing command only works with the general Line Type (TypLne).
All available settings for the cable models are described in section 34.1.1.

All calculation settings are described in section 34.1.2.

The available reports are described in section 34.1.3.

34.1.1 Cable Models for Cable Sizing

In this chapter the available settings in the line element (ElmLne, ElmLnesec) and line type (TypLne)
are described for the Cable Sizing.

34.1.1.1 Line Type Parameters

The parameters defined on the Cable Sizing page of the Line Type TypLne as shown in Figure 34.1.1
define the characteristics of a cable which are usually given in datasheets and which are used during
the cable sizing process.

Figure 34.1.1: Line Type parameters for the Cable Sizing

To determine whether a cable type can be used at a certain location in the network, the following
parameters are necessary:

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 34.1. CABLE SIZING

• System Type: AC or DC system.

• Phases: Number of phases.

• Number of Neutrals: With or without explicitly modelled neutral.

• Rated voltage
For the sizing of cables the parameters defining the current carrying capacity are used:
• Rated Current: Used to determine thermal loading of the cable.

• Nominal Cross Section: Only informational.

• Rated Short-Time (1s) Current (Conductor): Defined on the page “Short-Circuit VDE/IEC” and
used to determine the thermal loading of the cable during short-circuits. Note, that the rated
current is adjusted depending on the short-circuit duration.

For the derating factor calculation and the cable selection according to International Standards the
parameters which define the construction of the cable are used:

• Conductor Material: Select either Copper, Aluminium, Aldrey (AlMgSi), Aluminium-Steel or Aldrey-
Steel.

• Insulation Material: Select either PVC, XLPE, Mineral, Paper, or EPR. Note that paper is valid only
for NF C13-200, and Mineral is valid only for 0.5 kV and 0.75 kV systems and copper conductors).
• Cable Cores: Select either multi-core or single-core.
• With Sheath: Select if the cable has a sheath cover. If mineral insulation is selected and this frame
is not checked, it is considered that the cable is bare with a metallic sheath.
– Sheath Type: Select metallic or non-metallic.
– Sheath Insulation: Select either PVC, XLPE, or EPR.
– Armoured Cable: If checked, an armoured cable construction will be considered, otherwise
a non-armoured cable construction is considered.
– Radial Cable Screen: If checked then each conductor has its own screening. This is valid
only for multi-core cables, since single-core cables always have radial screening.
– Exposed to touch: For copper conductors with mineral insulation, select if the cable is
exposed to touch.

The optimisation algorithm of the cable sizing also considers the costs of installing new cables. The
material cost is defined in the cable type:
• Line type cost: The material cost of the cable per kilometre.

• Availability : With the options in stock and remainder the cable type can be used during the sizing
process while a cable type which is not available can’t be installed.

Note: When multiple cable types fulfil all requirements, then the cable types with the lowest costs are
installed. Therefore, it is important to define line type costs.

34.1.1.2 Line Element Parameters

Line element parameters relevant to the Cable Sizing command are defined on the corresponding page
of line element objects (ElmLne, ElmLnesec) as shown in Figure 34.1.2.

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Figure 34.1.2: Line Element parameters for the Cable Sizing

The parameters on the “General” tab are used for the following purposes:

Installation conditions

General installation conditions for the cable can be defined here which are considered in the derating
factor calculation as well as the optimisation process when parallel cables are installed.

• Number of grouped cables (laid together) (npara): This is the number of cables which are
(currently) laid together in the same trench. This does not only include this line (ElmLne) but
possibly also other line elements in the network and is used for the derating factor calculation.
• Maximum number of grouped cables (maxPara): This describes the maximum amount of cables
that can be placed within the same trench. The limit is used when new parallel cables shall be
installed.

• Maximum parallel lines (cmaxPara): This is a calculation parameter which describes the maxi-
mum number of parallel lines of this particular line element (ElmLne).

cmaxPara = maxPara − (npara − nlnum) (34.1)

where
– cmaxPara is the maximum number of parallel lines of this line element
– maxPara is the maximum number of grouped cables in the considered trench
– npara is the current number of grouped cables in the considered trench
– nlnum is the current number of parallel lines of this line element (from the Basic Data page)
• Installation costs: This defines the total costs to install new cables (excluding the material costs
which are defined in the cable type).

Environment conditions

• Ambient temperature: Defines the ambient temperature at the considered location.

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• Soil type: Selection of all available soil types which correspond to certain thermal resistivities. The
values of the thermal resistivities for all soil types in different laying configurations for all standards
can be found in the system folder:
𝐷𝑎𝑡𝑎𝑏𝑎𝑠𝑒∖𝑆𝑦𝑠𝑡𝑒𝑚∖𝑀 𝑜𝑑𝑢𝑙𝑒𝑠∖𝐶𝑎𝑏𝑙𝑒 𝑆𝑖𝑧𝑖𝑛𝑔∖ . . . ∖𝑆𝑜𝑖𝑙 𝑇 ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑚𝑎𝑙 𝑅𝑒𝑠𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑖𝑣𝑖𝑡𝑦 (𝑡𝑦𝑝𝑒)

• Soil thermal resistivity : Alternative option ( ) to the soil type to directly define the soil thermal
resistivity.

Type Parameters

Shows all relevant parameters from the line type for the cable sizing.

User defined current

This definition can be used as an alternative to the load flow calculation. With this option no load flow
calculation is necessary and the current flowing over the cable can be defined via the input parameters:
• Current: Amplitude of the current flowing over the cable.
• Power Factor : Corresponding power factor of the defined current.
The user-defined current can be used for the sizing of the cable when the corresponding option in the
Cable Sizing command is selected. The following constraints can be considered:
• Thermal loading
• Voltage change along cable

Note: The input parameters for the user-defined current can e.g. be used for scripting purposes to
implement additional functionalities so size cables. One possibility could be the definition of the
user-defined current in relation to the upstream fuse.

The additional tabs describe specific input parameters for all International Standards which can be
used in the calculation. For more detailed information regarding these parameters the user is advised
to consult the source documents.

34.1.2 Cable Sizing Calculation

34.1.2.1 Basic Options

Mode
• If Verification is selected, then the command will assess the suitability of the existing cable types
against all selected constraints described in section 34.1.2.2.
• If Recommendation is selected, then new cable types or additional parallel lines will be suggested
in order to comply with all constraints.
• With the option Calculate derating factor, the command can determine the derating factor accord-
ing to the selected standard. The available standards are:
– IEC 60364-5-52 (International standard for LV cables up to 1 kV) [11]
– DIN VDE 0298-4 (German standard for LV cables up to 1 kV) [26]
– NF C15-100 (French standard for LV cables up to 1 kV) [12]
– BS 7671 (British standard for LV cables up to 1 kV) [20]
– DIN VDE 0276-1000 (German standard for MV cables from 1 kV up to 36 kV) [7]
– NF C13-200 (French standard for MV cables from 1 kV up to 36 kV) [19]

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Note: Only lines with the appropriate voltage level of the standard can be considered. The defini-
tion of the installation condition is done in each line element as described in section 34.1.1.2.

Cable type selection

This option is only available when the mode Recommendation is selected.

New cable types are recommended for appropriate cables with the following options:
• According to international standards is recommending new cable types directly from the selected
standard. New cable types with the determined cross-section are created into the selected Cable
type target folder and assigned to the appropriate cables. The construction of the new cable
types can be defined on the page Type Parameters of the Cable Sizing command as described in
section 34.1.2.3.

Note: Standards tables for cable ampacity, cross-section, derating factors, and impedances are
stored in the system library under 𝐷𝑎𝑡𝑎𝑏𝑎𝑠𝑒∖𝑆𝑦𝑠𝑡𝑒𝑚∖𝑀 𝑜𝑑𝑢𝑙𝑒𝑠∖𝐶𝑎𝑏𝑙𝑒 𝑆𝑖𝑧𝑖𝑛𝑔. Note, that
according to these standards, the Max. Operational Temperature as well as the Max. End
Temperature of the cable type is kept at the default values of 80 degree Celsius.

• User defined is recommending new cable types from a selected Cable type library which can be
defined ( ) as follows:
– Via Select. . . a folder or project folder from the global or project library can be selected.
– Via Select. . . multiple cable types (TypLne) can be marked from either the global or project
library. After pressing OK, a selection (SetSelect) with all marked types is created.
– Via Select Set. . . a pre-defined selection (SetSelect) of cable types can be chosen. The
selection has to be used for Cable Sizing and the type has to be Cable Sizing - Types.
– If a SetSelect is already defined, via Add to Set. . . additional cable types (TypLne) can be
added to the selection.
Lines

Defines all line elements (ElmLne) which are considered in the calculation.

• All lines considers all calculation relevant line elements in the project.
• Selected lines allows to define a group of line elements that shall be considered.
– Via Select. . . multiple line elements (ElmLne) can be marked directly. After pressing OK, a
selection (SetSelect) with all marked lines is created.
– Via Select. . . it is also allowed to define grids (ElmNet) and feeders (ElmFeeder ). All line
elements within the selected grouping objects will then be considered in the calculation.
– Via Select Set. . . a pre-defined selection (SetSelect) of line elements, grids and feeders can
be chosen. The selection has to be used for Cable Sizing and the type has to be Cable
Sizing - Lines.

Load Flow type

For the calculation of the currents over the investigated lines and voltages at the terminals different
options are available:

• Standard Load Flow: Executes a normal Load Flow calculation to determine the power flow in the
network.
• Low Voltage Load Flow: Executes a Low Voltage Load Flow calculation based on coincidence
curves to estimate the maximum currents in the network.
• User defined current: The currents over the investigated lines are defined in the elements itself as
described in section 34.1.1.2.

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Network Representation

Balanced, positive sequence or Unbalanced network representation can be selected. The Load Flow
command referenced below these radio buttons is automatically adjusted to the appropriate calculation
method based on this selection.

Load Flow, Short-Circuit

These are references (pointers) to the Load Flow and Short-Circuit command used by the calculation.
Depending on the selected load flow type either the Load Flow or Low Voltage Load Flow command is
selected. The Short-Circuit reference only appears when a user defined cable type selection is used.

34.1.2.2 Constraints

Thermal Limits

Thermal loading limits will be verified with the selected load flow calculation type.

Optionally select to consider Thermal constraints with two available options:

• Global limit for all lines: This is the default where all lines are verified against the defined Maximum
thermal loading.
• Individual limit per line: This option considers each component’s unique thermal loading limit.
Note, the thermal rating is specified in the field Max. Loading within the Load Flow tab of each
line.
Voltage Limits

Voltage limits will be verified with the selected load flow calculation type.

• Voltage change along cables: If selected, then the Maximum voltage change over each individ-
ual line is verified against the defined limit.

• Voltage constraints per terminal: Optionally select to consider Voltage constraints per terminal.
There are two options for terminal voltage drop and rise constraints:
– Global limit for all terminals (absolute value in p.u.): If selected, a Lower Voltage Limit as well
as an Upper Voltage Limit must be entered in the corresponding fields.
– Individual limit per terminal: Note, the voltage limits are specified in the Load Flow tab of
each terminal.
• Voltage constraints along feeder: For balanced calculations, optionally select to consider Volt-
age constraints along feeder. The Maximum voltage drop as well as the Maximum voltage rise
are calculated as the percentage voltage difference between the source terminal of the feeder and
the final terminal of the feeder. There are two options for feeder voltage drop and rise constraints:
– Global limit for all feeders. If this option is selected, then the Maximum voltage drop and the
Maximum voltage rise must be entered into the corresponding fields.
– Individual limit per feeder. Note, the maximum voltage drop and rise are specified in the Load
Flow tab of each feeder.

Note: Depending on the system topology, on the loads and on the length of the feeder, it might
not be possible to avoid voltage drop violations of some terminals or feeders. This can
be mitigated by the installation of a capacitor/s during a post-processing optimisation. See
Section 41.10: Optimal Capacitor Placement.

• Terminals to be checked: Two options are available to define which terminals in the network are
considered and verified against the defined voltage limits:
– Terminals of the selected lines only considers the terminals of the investigated lines.

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– All terminals considers each terminal in the network where the defined Sensitivity threshold
criteria is met. This ensures that only terminals in the investigated network area are verified
and violations can possibly also be solved.

Short-Circuit Limits

Short-circuit calculation will be executed with the linked Short-Circuit Calculation command. Only 3-
Phase faults are considered to size cables.

Optionally select to consider Short-circuit constraints. A Maximum Loading as a percentage of the

rated short-circuit current can be defined. The rated short-circuit current is defined in the type data
of the cables. Note, that the short-circuit duration has a big influence on the thermal loading and is
specified in the Short-Circuit Calculation command.

Network Consistency

This option, if enabled, forces the optimisation routine to complete a final “consistency” check of the
Line Type rated current based upon one of two criteria:
1. Sum of feeding cables >= Sum of leaving cables; or
2. Smallest feeding cable >= Biggest leaving cable.

To explain what is meant by “feeding cable” and “leaving cable” consider the example feeder shown in
Figure 34.1.3. This network is defined as a single “feeder” that begins at the “Source” terminal. Consider
now “Terminal A”. This terminal is supplied by “Line A” and is also connected to two other cables, “Line
B” and “Line C”. In this case, for “Terminal A”, “Line A” is considered as a “feeding cable” and Lines B
and C as “leaving cables”.

Figure 34.1.3: Example feeder network

Considering now “Terminal B”, Lines B and C are feeding cables whereas Lines D and E are “leaving
cables”. “Feeding cables” are defined as those cables with a power flow direction that is into the
connecting node. For a radial feeder with no embedded generation, this is generally the cables closest
to the beginning of the feeder. All other cables are defined as “leaving cables”.

In consistency check option 1, the cross sectional area (or rated current) of the feeding cables are
summated and compared with the sum of the cross sectional area (or rated current) of the leaving

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cables for each terminal. If the sum of the leaving cables is greater at any terminal then the network is
considered non-consistent.

For consistency check option 2, the smallest feeding cable is compared with the largest leaving cable
for each terminal. If the largest leaving cable is bigger than the smallest feeding cable, then the network
is considered non-consistent.

34.1.2.3 Type Parameters

Type parameter options are only applicable if the mode is set to Recommendation on the Basic Options
page and the cable type selection is done according to international standards.

The parameters are used to create a suitable cable type according to the selected standard.

• The following parameters can be defined for the cable types according to the International Stan-
dards:
– Conductor Material
– Insulation Material
– Cable Cores: Single-Core or Multi-Core
– If the cable shall be modelled With sheath, additional options are available:
* Sheath Type
* Sheath Insulation
* Optionally select if the cable is an Armoured Cable
* Optionally select if the cable has a Radial Cable Screen
• When the option Default cable impedance value is selected, the user can define impedance
values for the positive-, negative- and zero-sequences that are taken as default values for new
cable types. When this option is not selected, internal default values from the system folder
(𝐷𝑎𝑡𝑎𝑏𝑎𝑠𝑒∖𝑆𝑦𝑠𝑡𝑒𝑚∖𝑀 𝑜𝑑𝑢𝑙𝑒𝑠∖𝐶𝑎𝑏𝑙𝑒 𝑆𝑖𝑧𝑖𝑛𝑔∖ . . . ∖𝑅 − 𝑋 𝐷𝑒𝑓 𝑎𝑢𝑙𝑡 𝑉 𝑎𝑙𝑢𝑒𝑠) are used for the calcula-
tion. This only applies when new cable types are created and the Cable electrical parameters
(20 ° 𝐶) are not changed.

• For the definition of the Cable electrical parameters (20 ° 𝐶) there are different options available:
– When the option Not changed is selected, existing cable types will not be changed and newly
created cable types will be defined with default impedance values.
– The option Calculate according to IEC 60909 determines impedance values for the cable
depending on the cross-section and type parameters according to the IEC 60909 standard.
– The option Calculate according to UTE C 15-500 determines impedance values for the
cable depending on the cross-section and type parameters according to the UTE C 15-500
standard.

34.1.2.4 Output

Various output options for the results are possible.

• Output all derating factors: If this option is selected, then there will be a detailed output of all
derating factors in the output window. This option is only available when derating factors are
calculated according to international standards.
• Modify cables: If this option is selected, cables in the network can be modified according to the
calculation results, meaning that cable types and derating factors are directly assigned. Two
options are available to modify the existing cables in the network:
– Change existing network: If this option is selected, the cables in the network will be modified
according to the calculation results. Changes will be written directly into the grid or recorded
by the active expansion stage (if exists).

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– Create a new Variation with recommended Cables: If this option is selected, then a new
variation will be created containing the proposed modifications of the cables according to the
calculation results.

Results

This is a reference (pointer) to the results output. It is possible to select an alternative results file. The
structure of the Cable Sizing result file is explained in more detail in section 34.1.3.3.

34.1.2.5 Recommendation Options

All options for the recommendation of new cable types or additional parallel lines can be defined on this
page.

General

• Downsizing: If selected, cables that fulfil all constraints are allowed to be downsized meaning that
new types with lower cross sections are investigated which still fulfil all constraints. The resulting
cable type will just about fit all requirements.
• Maximum voltage deviation: This option is only used for user-defined cable selections. A
deviation of the cable type rated voltage in comparison to the nominal voltage in the network
can be defined. If “0%” is entered, the rated voltage on the cable type should match the nominal
voltage of the terminal to which it connects. If a non-zero value is entered, the rated voltage of the
cable type can differ by the defined percentage. If the deviation is larger than the given threshold,
the cable type cannot be used for a dedicated line. Important to note is that cables with a larger
rated voltage than the nominal voltage of the terminal can always be installed. So the threshold
only concerns cable types with lower rated voltages compared to the terminal’s nominal voltage.
• Safety margin for the cable current capacity: This option is only used for cable selections
according to international standards. A safety margin can be defined in percent. If a non-
zero safety margin is entered, a cable with higher capacity is selected according to the selected
standard which at least fulfils the safety margin requirement.

• Existing cable type replacement: This option is only used for cable selections according to
international standards. Two options are available when new cable types are created according
to the selected standard. Select whether to Use design parameters of the “Type Parameter”
page, in which case a new type will be created according to the type design parameters from the
command. Or, select to Use the existing design parameters of the cable type, in which case a
new type will be created according to the existing cable type from its rated values (only current
and cross-section values could be different). This is only applicable if the analysed cable has a
type assigned. Otherwise, a new type will be created according to the command parameters.
• Assign missing line types: Optionally select to Assign Missing Line Types when there are cables
in the network without types.

Parallel Lines

All options for the creation of parallel lines can be defined on this page. When selecting the option
Creation of parallel lines it is possible (in addition to higher cross sections) to install new parallel lines
in the network. This is only applies for the user-defined cable selection.

• Maximum number of parallel lines: The allowed number of parallel lines can be limited for each
line element (ElmLne) with this input parameter. There are two options available:
– Global limit for all lines: If this option is selected, then the defined Limit is globally applied to
all investigated lines.
– Individual limit per line: With this option each investigated line has its own individual limits
depending on the installation conditions. The settings and the calculation of the maximum
number of a line are described in section 34.1.1.2.

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 34.1. CABLE SIZING

• Priority for the optimisation process: When the creation of parallel lines is allowed, then the
calculation needs an objective function in order to decide to install cable types with a higher cross
section or additional parallel lines.
– Prioritise cross section against parallel lines: Cable types with higher cross section are
prioritised. Only if the cable type with the highest cross section can’t solve the constraints
additional parallel lines are installed.
– Prioritise parallel lines against bigger cross section: Additional parallel lines with the same
type as the existing one are prioritised. Only if the maximum number of parallel lines can’t
solve all constraints other types with higher cross sections are used.
– Minimise costs: The decision whether to install additional parallel lines or to use types with a
higher cross sections depends on the resulting cost. The solution that causes minimal costs
is determined. The costs in the line elements (ElmLne) as well as in the line type (TypLne)
are considered and need to be defined.
• Parallel lines between two busbars only: This option limits the installation of parallel lines for
a specific line element. If selected, only lines where both connecting terminals have the usage
busbar are considered for the creation of additional parallel lines.

34.1.2.6 Advanced Options

Consider DC cables

Optionally select to Consider DC cables in the calculation. It is only applicable if the mode is set
to Recommendation on the Basic Options page and the cable type selection is done according to
international standards. Note, that the DC cable sizing is not within the scope of the used international
standards. But DC cables can be sized with the same rules that apply for AC cables.

Ignore all lines for...

Optionally select to consider a voltage limit for the investigated lines. If selected, a Nominal voltage
above must be entered. All voltage levels that are higher than the defined limit are not regarded in the
calculation. This is only applicable if the mode is set to Verification or if the Recommendation is based
on the user-defined cable selection.

34.1.3 Cable Sizing Results

34.1.3.1 Cable Sizing Report

The Cable Sizing Report ( ) can be accessed via the corresponding icon. The Report Generation
command (see section 18.5.1) can create all available reports:

• Cable Verification: Verification report with all investigated constraints

• Reports for user-defined cable selection
– Initial Parameters for Recommendation: Includes all line parameters before the recommen-
dation process.
– Cable Verification for Recommendation: Includes the results of all lines before the recom-
mendation process.
– Cable Recommendation: Lists the recommended changes that were determined by the cable
sizing command.
• Reports for cable selection according to international standards
– Cables according to Int. Standards: Recommendation report with newly created types
according to the selected international standard

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34.1.3.2 Cable Sizing Tabular Report

The Cable Sizing Tabular Reports ( ) can also be created for the cable selection recommendation
according to international standards.

34.1.3.3 Cable Sizing Result File

Every result file (ElmRes) have an own structure. Input can be retrieved via line number or via an index.
The cable sizing result file has the following order:

• Initial value - Initial calculation of all parameters of feeder, ComCabsize, cables and terminals.
(index 0)

• Derating factors - Results of calculated derating factors for each cable. (index 20)
• Thermal cable verification - Only those cables’ variables are written which violate the thermal
constraint. (index 1)
• Thermal cable recommendation - Only those cables’ variables are written, for which a new cable
type is recommended during thermal recommendation process. The cost of improvement is also
written. (index 2)
• Thermal cables cannot be solved - Only those cables’ variables are written, that are unsolvable
and still violate thermal constraints after thermal recommendation process. (index 3)
• Voltage verification results regarding voltage change along all considered cables. (index 15)

• Voltage recommendation regarding voltage change - Only those cables’ variables are written, for
which a new cable type is recommended during the voltage recommendation process. The cost
of improvement is also written. (index 16)
• Voltage recommendation regarding voltage change along cables cannot be solved - Only those
cables’ variables are written, that are unsolvable and still violate voltage constraints after voltage
recommendation process. (index 17)
• Voltage verification - Only those terminals’ variables are written which violate voltage constraints.
(index 4)
• Voltage recommendation - Only those cables’ variables are written, for which a new cable type is
recommended during voltage recommendation process. The cost of improvement is also written.
(index 5)
• Terminals cannot be solved - Only those terminals’ variables are written which are unsolvable and
still violate voltage constraints after the voltage recommendation process. (index 6)

• Consistency verification - Only those terminal’s variables are written which violate network consis-
tency. (index 7)
• Consistency recommendation - Only those cables’ variables are written, for which a new cable
type is recommended during the consistency improvement process. The cost of improvement are
also written. (index 8)

• Consistency violation - Only those terminals’ variables are written that are unsolvable and still
violate network consistency after the recommendation process. (index 9)
• Changed cables load flow - Only those cables’ variables are written, for which a new cable type is
recommended after the complete load flow optimisation process. (index 10)

• Short-circuit verification - Only those cables’ variables are written which violate short-circuit con-
straints. (index 11)

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 34.2. CABLE AMPACITY

• Short-circuit cable recommendation - Only those cables’ variables are written, for which a new ca-
ble type is recommended during short-circuit recommendation process. The cost of improvement
is also written. (index 12)

• Short-circuit cables cannot be solved - Only those cables’ variables are written, that are unsolvable
and still violate short-circuit constraints after the recommendation process. (index 13)
• Changed cables - Only those cables’ variables are written, for which a new cable type is recom-
mended after the complete optimisation process. (index 14)

Results are indexed as follows when cables are selected according to international standards:
• Pre-recommendation results. (index 102)
• Post-recommendation results. (index 103)

• Post-recommendation results for current carrying capacity calculation (for standard DIN VDE 0276-
1000). (index 104)

34.2 Cable Ampacity

PowerFactory ’s Cable Ampacity calculation supports two methods described in literature to determine
the current rating of cables:
• IEC 60287 [24] [25] [14]

• Neher-McGrath [50]
The IEC 60287 standard series is an important international standard for the calculation of the electric
cable current rating.

The Neher-McGrath method is derived from the corresponding paper [50]. It does not have the status of
a standard, but some effects are taken into account that are not considered in the international standard.
In addition, the IEC 60287 standard is highly influenced by the work of J. H. Neher and M. H. McGrath.
For that, Neher-McGrath method is still a widely accepted method.

Note: Even if the two methods IEC 60287 and Neher-McGrath are related to each other, there can be
significant differences in the results due to the different parametrisations.

The Cable Ampacity calculation takes into account the physical model with the laying conditions and
calculates the heat flow and the temperatures via a thermal equivalent circuit, see Figure 34.2.1. That
is the basis for the cable ampacity calculation which can only be performed for detailed cable models.
In PowerFactory this is done with a Cable Definition (TypCabsys).

The Cable Ampacity calculation can be done for cables (ElmLne) or cable layouts (ElmCablay ). In
a cable layout (ElmCablay ) there can be a group of cables (ElmLne) or so called cable systems
(ElmCabsys). Cable systems (ElmCabsys) can also contain a group of cables (ElmLne).

It is necessary for the Cable Ampacity calculation, that the cables (ElmLne) have an assigned Cable
Definition (TypCabsys). Cable systems (ElmCabsys) can only be defined with an assigned Cable
Definition (TypCabsys). And every Cable Definition (TypCabsys) needs one or more Single Core
Cable Types (TypCab) or one Multicore/Pipe Cable Type (TypCabmult). Follow section 11.3.5 for more
information about detailed cable modelling.

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Figure 34.2.1: Cable Ampacity calculation - detailed cable model and thermal equivalent circuit

Within the Cable Definition (TypCabsys) there is a specification of a rudimentary laying condition (laying
in row or in trefoil, laying depth). In case of several circuits, the positions between the circuits can also
be entered there. This can be specified with the cable layout (ElmCablay ) too. The difference is that
circuits inside a Cable Definition (TypCabsys) are electrically coupled, cables (ElmLne) inside a cable
layout (ElmCablay ) are not electrically coupled. But with cable layouts, advanced laying conditions can
be defined, which is important for the thermal coupling and thus for the ampacity calculation.

More details about the cable layout are described in section 34.2.1.4.

Before carrying out the Cable Ampacity calculation it is necessary to provide a certain amount of input
data for the involved elements and types, see section 34.2.1.

34.2.1 Cable Models for Cable Ampacity

34.2.1.1 Cable System Type Parameters

Relevant settings in the Cable Definition (TypCabsys) ( ) dialog can be found on the page Cable
Ampacity.

• Regularly transposed: This option influence the calculation of the loss factor.
• Unequally loaded cables: If this option is unmarked (default), an equally loading of the cables is
assumed.

34.2.1.2 Core Cable Type Parameters

Data may be entered on the page Cable Ampacity in the dialog of the Single Core Cable Type (TypCab)
( ) or Multicore/Pipe Cable Type (TypCabmult) ( ). Both types have the following shared parameters:

• Max. Operating Temperature: Is the maximum operating temperature of the conductor for the load
flow calculation.

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 34.2. CABLE AMPACITY

• Max. End Temperature: Is the maximum temperature of conductor for the short-circuit calculation.
• Max. operating Temperature (screen): Is the maximum operating temperature of the screen (only
relevant for Neher-McGrath and if a screen exists).

• Surface emission coefficient: Absorption coefficient of solar radiation for cable surfaces.
• Dried and impregnated: This options influence the choice of the coefficients for the skin and
proximity effect.
• Fault duration: For the adiabatic short-circuit calculation. A value of 1 s (default) is recommended.

In case of a Multicore/Pipe Cable Type (TypCabmult), additional parameters can be set. The additional
parameters depend on the selected option on the Basic Data tab, if its a Pipe-type or a Multicore cable.

For pipe cable types:

• Pipe type: Defines the pipe material.

• Pipe thermal resistivity : Defines the pipe thermal resistivity.

For multicore cable types:

• Filler material: Defines the filler material between the conductors.

Additional parameters can be set for IEC 60287:

• Diameter reduction factor (common sheath): Defines the diameter reduction factor ot the common
sheath.
• Armour type: Armour as Metal tape or Metal wire can be selected.

• Belted cable (paper insulated): Defines, if the cable should be treat as belted cable.
• Skin effect factor ks: Specified coefficient for the skin effect (also avaiable for Single Core Cable
Type in case of unkown conductor material).
• Proximity effect factor kp: Specified coefficient for the proximity effect (also avaiable for Single
Core Cable Type in case of unkown conductor material).

Note: For a Multicore/Pipe Cable Type the factors ks and kp need to be user defined depending on the
conductor type and its insulation system. The table in the standard can help in the decision.

34.2.1.3 Line Element Parameters

Data may be entered on the page Cable Ampacity in the dialog of the line element (ElmLne) ( ).

The IEC 60287 tab and Neher-McGrath tab have the following shared parameters:

• Ambient temperature: Ambient temperature.

• Soil thermal resistivity : Thermal resistivity of the soil.

• Medium mean temperature: The initial value for the mean temperature of the medium within the
duct in case of ducted cable.
• Exposed to direct sunlight: Defines, if the cable is directly exposed to solar radiation.

The IEC 60287 tab has in addition:

• Dry soil resistivity : Thermal resistivity of dry soil.

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• Solar radiation intensity : Is the intensity of solar radiation which should be taken as 1000 W/m2
for most latitudes in case of cables exposed to solar radiation.
• Critical temperature of soil: This is the temperature of the boundary between dry and moist zones.
• Soil drying-out avoided: Selection leads to another calculation according to the standard.

Note: The Cable Ampacity calculation according to the IEC 60287 follows an approach of dry and moist
zones. Around the cable a dry zone is defined. Depending on the current and the generated heat,
the radius of the dry zone increases. To limit the extension of the dry zone a Critical temperature
of soil can be defined. If the option Soil drying-out avoided is selected, then the dry zone will be
reduced to a minimum, meaning that the soil around the cable will be exposed to minimal thermal
stress. This can often lead to very small maximum currents which are allowed to flow through the
conductor.

The Neher-McGrath tab has in addition:

• Wind velocity : Wind velocity, relevant for cables in free air.
• Medium diffusivity : Is a transport coefficient for the ambient medium.
• Load factor (lf): Factor for the utilisation of the cable.

Note: If the line (ElmLne) is used in a Cable Layout (ElmCablay ) and the Cable Ampacity calculation
is performed for that Cable Layout (ElmCablay ), the Cable Ampacity line element (ElmLne)
parameters will be overwritten by the cable layout parameter.

34.2.1.4 Cable Layout Parameters

The Cable Layout object (ElmCablay ) ( ) is an object specifically intended for use in the Cable
Ampacity calculation and can be used to define all factors relevant to the derating of groups of cables.
It conveniently brings the relevant parameters together in one object. With this object deratings can be
calculated for groups of cables which are similarly installed but differently constructed, for example, the
deratings applicable when a multicore cable is installed in a bank of ducts along with a 3 phase circuit
consisting of single core cables. The positions of the individual cables comprising each cable system
are geometrically defined. This data is then used to determine the influence of the physical proximity of
the cables to one another on their respective ampacities.

Note: Parameter for the installation data, laying geometry and ambient data of a Cable Layout (ElmCa-
blay ) are always prioritised over parameter in the line element (ElmLne) and the Cable Definition
(TypCabsys).

Note: The distinction between a Cable System object (ElmCabsys) and a Cable Layout object Elm-
Cablay may not be immediately obvious. Both elements are associated with the grouping of
cable circuits. However, it should be appreciated that the Cable System Element (ElmCabsys) is
associated with the calculation of cable impedances, whilst the Cable Layout Object (ElmCablay )
is associated with the calculation of the derated maximum current rating of the grouped cables.

Electromagnetically coupled cable systems (ElmCabsys) as well as uncoupled cable system objects
(TypCabsys) can be handled by the object. Multi-core cable system models are also supported by

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the calculation. Aerial, ground, duct and trench with multiple backfill layer installations as well as
ambient conditions can all be considered, with deratings being calculated in accordance with either
the IEC 60287 standard calculation method or the Neher-McGrath method.

For underground installations it is also possible to consider additional derating caused by the presence
of external heat sources such as nearby steam pipes for example. For an IEC 60287 calculation
additional consideration can be given to whether an aerially installed cable is installed with brackets,
ladder or cleats or alternatively clipped to a wall. For duct installations it is possible to define the
dimensions, spacing and material of the ducting.

The object can be defined by multi-selecting the relevant cable objects (lines with a TypCabsys as type)
in the Single Line Diagram or Data Manager, clicking the right hand mouse button on one of the selected
lines and then choosing the options Network Models → Cable Layout→ New. . . from the context menu.
The new object is stored in the Cable Layouts folder stored in the Network Data folder accessible via
the Data Manager.

All available parameters of the Cable Layout are described in the following sections:

Basic Data
• Location: Specify whether the cable grouping under consideration is buried in the ground or
mounted in the air. It is not possible to consider the derating effects of cables mounted in the
air on cables installed under ground or vice-versa. If a selected cable grouping contains a mixture
of circuits, some of which are installed underground and some above ground, only the ones with
a location corresponding to the Location setting will be considered by the calculation.
• Number of circuits: Specifies the number of rows in the Circuits table located under the setting.
Using this table, additional circuits can be added to the grouping.
• Laying: Specifies how the cable is laid in the chosen Location. The options available vary
depending on whether the Location is specified as Air or Buried. For cables installed above
ground the Laying parameter can be specified as either in free air or in duct banks. For buried
cables the options are directly in ground,in duct banks or in trough/trench. If cables are installed in
duct banks additional setting options are displayed for the definition of the duct bank. If the option
in trough/trench is selected an additional setting option is presented allowing the user to specify
whether the trough is backfilled or unfilled. If unfilled, then the user is also able to specify if the
cable is exposed to free air or not using a checkbox.
Installation Data

The options at the Installation Data page highly depends on the selection of the Laying at the Basic
Data page and if the location is in air or buried. Two tabs are available. One associated with the IEC
60287 method and one associated with the Neher-McGrath method.

• In case of a laying in free air, the following option can be set:

– Exposed to direct sunlight: This parameter have an influence on the calculation of the heat
dissipation.

Note: In case of the location on air, no additional data can be added for the Neher-McGrath
method.

• In case of a cable laying directly in ground, the option Ducted cables can be enabled. This
allows the user to set up a table with the selection of single cable which should be installed in a
duct. In case of a cable with an single core cable type (TypCab) the Ducting can be defined for
all phases or per phase. In case of a cable system (ElmCabsys), only one kind of ducting can
be selected for all circuits within the cable system. For Neher-McGrath, no additional data are
necessary since this configuration is not defined in the method.
• In case of a laying in duct bank , the following option can be set (in case for buried cables also for
Neher-McGrath):
– No. of ducts (vertical): Number of ducts one above the other.

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– No. of ducts (horizontal): Number of ducts next to each other.

– Vertical spacing between ducts: Vertical spacing between two ducts.
– Horizontal spacing between ducts: Vertical spacing between two ducts.
– Distance from surface: Distance from the surface to the middle of the duct bank system.
– Width: Width of the concrete block in which the ducts are embedded.
– Duct outer radius: Outer radius of each duct.
– Duct thickness: Thickness of each duct.

Note: Added installation data should not lead to conflicts with other data. For example, the outer
radius of the duct cannot be smaller than the cable itself.

Note: The position of each circuit in the ducts can be defined on the page "Laying Geometry".

• In case of a laying in trough/trench, the following option can be set:

– Trough/trench filling:
* Backfilled: The trough/trench is filled with some material.
* Unfilled: The trough/trench is unfilled.
– Trough/trench:
* Width: Width of the trough/trench.
* Depth: Depth of the trough/trench.
– In case of Unfilled, an option Exposed to free air can be enabled. This parameter have an
influence on the calculation of the heat dissipation.
– In case of Backfilled, there will be the option to increase the Number of backfill layers up to 3
as well as the setting for the Top layer thickness and Middle layer thickness.

Note: In case of the Neher-McGrath method, trough/trench thickness can be set for one layer.

For further information regarding the usage of the setting parameters, please refer to the source docu-
mentation for the relevant method.

Ambient Data

On this page of the object dialog information about the ambient conditions of the cable group is entered.
Two tabs are available. One associated with the IEC 60287 method and one associated with the Neher-
McGrath method. The parameters which are displayed depend on the combination of settings specified
on the Basic Data tab of the object.

• In case of a laying in free air the Air temperature can be set. At the IEC 60287 tab, a Solar
radiation intensity can be set too. In addition, a Wind velocity and a Solar radiation impact can ne
set on the Neher-McGrath tab.
• In case of a buried cable, the Ground temperature and (in case of IEC 60287) the Critical
temperature of the soil can be adjusted.
• In case of ducted cables or duct banks, the initial value for the Medium mean temperature in
the duct can be set.
• In case of a laying in trough/trench, an additional Surface conductance coefficient can be set on
the IEC 60287 tab.
• On the Neher-McGrath tab, a Medium diffusivity can be set, which is a transport coefficient for the
ambient medium.
• Thermal resistivity : In that category, depending on the input on the Basic Data tab, several
parameters can be set related to a part of the thermal resistivity of the cable layout, e.g. the
thermal resistivity of the Moist soil or of the Backfill material as well as the Duct material type in
case of ducts.

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For further information regarding the usage of the setting parameters, please refer to the source docu-
mentation for the relevant method.

External Heat Source

External heat sources are only supported for buried systems which are laying directly in ground or in
trough/trench. On this page of the object dialog information about any external heat sources acting
on the cable group can be entered. External heat sources might include for example an adjacent
steam pipe radiating heat. Two tabs are available. One associated with the IEC 60287 method and one
associated with the Neher-McGrath method. The Number of heat sources setting parameter determines
the number of rows in the associated table.

For further information regarding the usage of the setting parameters, please refer to the source docu-
mentation for the relevant method.

Advanced Data

This page is used to provide additional data which can influence the derating of the cable group. Two
tabs are available. One associated with the IEC 60287 method and one associated with the Neher-
McGrath method.

In case of the IEC 60287 method, the option Soil drying-out avoided can be selected which leads to a
more conservative calculation according to the standard to minimise the heat dissipation if the cables.

In case of the Neher-McGrath method, a global load factor can be selected which describes the general
utilisation of the cable.

Note: The IEC 60287 only considers a load factor of 100 %.

For further information regarding the usage of the setting parameters, please refer to the source docu-
mentation for the relevant method.

Laying Geometry

This page graphically illustrates the layout of the cable group. If a duct bank or a trench is used this
is also illustrated. The dimensions and geometry of the duct bank as defined on the Basic data page
directly influence the illustration of the duct bank. Note that the geometry of an individual cable system
is defined within the cable system type TypCabsys. When this cable system is then included as part of a
cable grouping in a Cable Layout object, the already defined geometrical relationships must continue to
be respected. A new Cartesian coordinate system for the cable group is defined with a specific origin.
The origin can be displayed by choosing the Display system reference point check-box. For all laying
methods except in duct banks, the origin from the cable system type is by default set equal to the origin
of the cable group. However, in many cases this can result in cables occupying the same space, so
by selecting the User-defined offset checkbox each line can be given a unique position relative to one
another. For cables installed in air, the positive direction of the Y-offset is upwards into the air. For
buried cables the positive direction of the Y-offset is into the ground.

For cables installed in duct banks, each duct has its own origin located at its centre. For each cable the
corresponding duct can be specified as Duct position within the Circuit in duct table. The duct position
numbering increases sequentially from left to right and from bottom to top.

Figure 34.2.2 show some example laying geometries for different cable layout settings.

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Figure 34.2.2: Cable Layout - Laying Geometry examples

A) Three single core cables buried in tough/trench with 3 backfill layers.

B) Six multicore cables buried with a duct bank.
C) One single core cable buried directly in ground with ducting per phase.
D) Two single core cables buried within a duct bank.
E) One single core cable in air within a duct bank.

34.2.2 Cable Ampacity Calculation Command

The objective Cable Ampacity calculation is to calculate the current in a way, to hold the temperature in
the cable under the max. allowable operating temperature. The temperature in the cable depends on
the heat sources in the cable or around the cable as well as on the heat transfer (thermal resistivity) to
the environment. The system can be described with an thermal equivalent circuit like in Figure 34.2.1
including heat sources and thermal resistances. The heat transfer calculation is based on an analytical
algorithm. The aim is to determination the inner conductor temperature.

To access the Cable Ampacity command (ComAmpacity ) select the Cable Ampacity ( ) from the
Cable Analysis toolbar.

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34.2.2.1 Basic Data

The Basic Data page of the Cable Ampacity command contains following input settings:

Method

• IEC 60287 (selected by default)

• Neher-McGrath
Selection

• Cables: Selection of either ungrouped or grouped cables. If the option Cables is selected, cable
ampacities will be calculated considering each selected cable independently. When selecting
the lines to be analysed, line objects will only be presented by the filter if a Cable Definition
(TypCabsys) is defined for the line.
• Cable layout: If the option Cable Layout is selected, Cable Layout objects should be chosen and
cable ampacities will be calculated taking account of the various special derating effects facilitated
by this object see section 34.2.1.4 for more information.

34.2.2.2 Output

• Results: Pointer to the Result File (ElmRes).

• Modify derating factor of lines: If this option is selected, there will be a modification in the derating
factor in the model to match the calculated maximum allowed current. The derating factor is
considered to be the ratio between the max. ampacity and the rated cable current. Could be done
in two different ways.
– Modifies derating factor in the existing network.
– Modifies derating factor in the new variation.

Note: The derating factor is an attribute within the line element. It is by default 1. The modification
is done based on the calculated value and the insert rated current in the Cable Definition (by
default 1 kA). To get a derating factor in a common scale, the rated current of the Cable
Definition can be set to a reasonable value.

34.2.2.3 Advanced Data

• Calculate adiabatic short-circuit rating: If this option is checked PowerFactory will calculate a short
circuit rating for the cable systems based on the adiabatic equation. The rating can be calculated
for each cable system for a time defined in the cable ampacity command itself, or alternatively,
times can be defined within individual cable systems (TypCab or TypCabmult) and with each time
considered independently for each cable. Once calculated, this rating along with the calculated
ampacity can then be used in further analysis, for example in the creation of cable damage curves
in time overcurrent plots for protection coordination or for comparison with the thermal equivalent
short circuit current calculated via short circuit analysis.
• Initial step: This value can be set to adjust the performance. The choice will not effect the final
result. A smaller value may lead to longer iteration process.
• CIGRE TB 880: The technical brochure CIGRE TB 880 [37] contains power cable rating examples
on the basis of the standard IEC 60287. Some special assumption Consider eddy current losses
for bonded cables are made which leads to slightly different results. This option should be used in
case of verification of the CIGRE TB 880 examples or in order to use specific assumption.

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34.3 Cable Ampacity Report

The Cable Ampacity Report ( ) command is used to print cable ampacity reports. This command
is independent of the calculation, the only requirement is the valid cable ampacity results file. The
command shall determine which options are available for the selected results file. The following inputs
are available in the cable analysis report dialog.

• Results: Pointer to the Result File (ElmRes).

• Report: Contains options whether to show additional data for the ampacity calculation.
• Used format: Pointer to the Form Manager to be used for the selected results file and report.

The report shows the calculated max. current. Furthermore it list up some additional variables like
the thermal resistances and the temperatures. Figure 34.2.1 can be used to check out the physical
representative of some variables.

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Chapter 35

Power Quality and Harmonics

Analysis

35.1 Introduction

One of the many aspects of power quality is the harmonic content of voltages and currents. Har-
monics can be analysed in either the frequency domain, or in the time-domain with post-processing
using Fourier Analysis. The PowerFactory harmonics functions allow the analysis of harmonics in the
frequency domain. The following functions are provided by PowerFactory :

• 35.2 Harmonic Load Flow (including harmonic load flow according to IEC 61000-3-6 [17] and
flicker analysis according to IEC 61400-21 [18])
• 35.3 Frequency Sweep

PowerFactory ’s harmonic load flow calculates harmonic indices related to voltage or current distortion,
and harmonic losses caused by harmonic sources (usually non-linear loads such as current converters).
Harmonic sources can be defined by either a harmonic current spectrum or a harmonic voltage spec-
trum. In the harmonic load flow calculation, PowerFactory carries out a steady-state network analysis
at each frequency at which harmonic sources are defined.

A special application of the harmonic load flow is the analysis of ripple-control signals. For this applica-
tion, a harmonic load flow can be calculated at one specific frequency only.

The harmonic load flow command also offers the option of calculating long- and short-term flicker
disturbance factors introduced by wind turbine generators. These factors are calculated according to
IEC standard 61400-21 [18], for wind turbine generators under continuous and switching operations.

In contrast to the harmonic load flow, PowerFactory ’s frequency sweep performs a continuous frequency
domain analysis. A typical application of the frequency sweep function is the calculation of network
impedances. The result of this calculation facilitates the identification of series and parallel resonances
in the network. These resonance points can identify the frequencies at which harmonic currents cause
low or high harmonic voltages. Network impedances are of particular importance in applications such
as filter design.

For both, the harmonic load flow and frequency sweep analysis, commands the option to consider
contingencies is available. This allows to analyse the network in all available fault cases.

PowerFactory provides a toolbar for accessing the different harmonic analysis commands. This toolbar
can be displayed (if not already active) by clicking the Change Toolbox button and selecting Power
Quality and Harmonic Analysis.

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The Power Quality and Harmonic Analysis toolbar provides icons to access four pre-configured com-
mand dialogs:

• Harmonic Load Flow

• Impedance Frequency Characteristic (Frequency Sweep)

• Flickermeter

• Connection Request Assessment

These command dialogs can also be accessed via PowerFactory ’s main menu:
• Calculation → Power Quality and Harmonics Analysis→ Harmonic Load Flow. . .
• Calculation → Power Quality and Harmonics Analysis→ Impedance Frequency Characteristic. . .
• Calculation → Power Quality and Harmonics Analysis→ Flickermeter. . .

• Calculation → Connection Request Assessment. . .

The Harmonic Load Flow and Frequency Sweep functions and their usage are described in this chapter.
The Flickermeter function is described in Chapter 37, the Connection Request Assessment is described
in Chapter 36.

35.2 Harmonic Load Flow

To calculate a harmonic load flow, click on the Calculate Harmonic Load Flow icon to open the dialog
for the Harmonic Load Flow (ComHldf ) command.

For a detailed description of how harmonic injections are considered by PowerFactory, refer to Sec-
tion 35.4 (Modelling Harmonic Sources), in which the analysis and the major harmonic indices are
described. A full list of available result variables and their definition is given in the dedicated docu-
mentation about Result Variables for Harmonics Analysis. The following sections describe the options
available in the harmonic load flow command.

35.2.1 Basic Options Harmonic Load Flow

35.2.1.1 Network Representation

Balanced. In the case of a symmetrical network and balanced harmonic sources, characteristic har-
monics either appear in the positive sequence component (7th, 13th, 19th, etc.), or in the negative
sequence component (5th, 11th, 17th harmonic order, etc.). Therefore, at all frequencies a single-
phase equivalent (positive or negative sequence) can be used for the analysis.

For calculations where the checkbox “Only positive sequence” is checked, the calculation for the har-
monic orders being naturally in the negative sequence will be performed with the positive sequence
impedance.

Unbalanced, 3-phase (ABC). For analysing non-characteristic harmonics (3rd-order, even-order, inter-
harmonics), unbalanced harmonic injections, or harmonics in non-symmetrical networks, the Unbal-
anced, 3-phase (ABC) option for modelling the network in the phase-domain should be selected.

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35.2.1.2 Calculate Harmonic Load Flow

Single Frequency. Selecting this option will perform a single harmonic load flow calculation at the
given Output Frequency (parameter name: fshow) or at the given Harmonic Order (parameter name:
ifshow). A common application for this input mode is the analysis of ripple control systems. The results
of the analysis are shown in the single line diagram, in the same way as for a normal load flow at the
fundamental frequency.

All Frequencies. Selecting this option will perform harmonic load flow calculations for all frequencies
for which harmonic sources are defined. These frequencies are gathered automatically prior to the
calculation. The results for all frequencies are stored in a results object, which can be used to create
bar chart representations of harmonic indices (see also Section 18.8 (Plots)). The results of the analysis
at the given Output Frequency are shown in the single line diagram.

Range of harmonic orders. Selecting this option will perform harmonic load flow calculations for all
frequencies within the defined range for which harmonic sources are defined.

35.2.1.3 Nominal Frequency, Output Frequency, Harmonic Order

Nominal Frequency. The harmonics analysis function in PowerFactory can only calculate harmonics
of AC-systems with identical fundamental frequencies. The relevant nominal frequency must be entered
here (usually 50 Hz or 60 Hz).

Output Frequency. This is the frequency for which order specific results may be displayed in the
single-line graphic or selected in a flexible data page. In the case of a Single Frequency calculation,
this is the frequency for which a harmonic load flow is calculated. When the option All Frequencies is
selected, this parameter only affects the display of results in the single line diagram or in flexible data
pages. It does not influence the calculation itself. A change made to the Output Frequency will cause
the Harmonic Order to be automatically changed accordingly.

Harmonic Order. This is the same as the Output Frequency but input as the Harmonic Order (f/fn).
The Harmonic Order multiplied by the Nominal Frequency always equals the Output Frequency. Both
floating-point and integer values are valid as inputs. A change made to the Harmonic Order will cause
the Output Frequency to be automatically changed accordingly.

35.2.1.4 Consider contingencies

Consider contingencies. When selected, harmonic load flow calculations for all defined fault cases
within the linked Contingency Analysis command are executed in addition to the base case (no con-
tingency). The results for each contingency are recorded in a dedicated result object which is further
described in section 35.2.2.

Note: Only the calculation method AC Load Flow Calculation is supported for the contingency analysis
within harmonic load flow calculations

Note: Only static contingencies are supported for the harmonic load flow calculation. The different
options shown in the command are described in section 26.4.1.2.

Note: The creation of contingency cases is described in section 26.2.1.1.

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35.2.1.5 Calculate Flicker

Calculate Flicker. When selected, the long- and short-term flicker disturbance factors are calculated
according to IEC standard 61400-21. See Section 35.5 (Flicker Analysis (IEC 61400-21)) for more
detailed information.

35.2.1.6 Calculate Sk at Fundamental Frequency

Calculate Sk at Fundamental Frequency. When selected, the short-circuit power, Sk, and impedance
angle, psik, are calculated at the point of common coupling (PCC) for all 3-phase buses in the network
being analysed. This calculation is only performed at the fundamental frequency. For an unbalanced
harmonic load flow, impedance ratios (as described in Section 35.6.2.1 (Calculation of Impedance
Ratios)) at 3-phase buses are also calculated. See Section 35.6 (Short-Circuit Power) for more detailed
information.

35.2.1.7 Load Flow

This displays the load flow command used by the calculation. Click on the arrow button to inspect
and/or adjust the load flow command settings.

The Load Flow settings define the temperature, for which the load flow is calculated. The same tem-
perature is used for the Harmonic Load Flow calculation, mentioned in the dialog under “Temperature
Dependency: Line/Cable Resistances”.

35.2.2 Results/Output

Results. This option is available if Calculate Harmonic Load Flow option All Frequencies or Range of
harmonic orders has been selected. It is used to select the target results object for storing the results of
the harmonic load flow. See Section 35.7 (Definition of Result Variables) for more information regarding
specifying and defining result variables.

The result object for the Harmonic Load Flow which is linked in the command consists of sub-result
objects:
• Order specific: contains order specific results for all recorded variables at each calculated fre-
quency (e.g. the harmonic distortion m:HD).
• Summary : contains all summary results for all calculated frequencies (e.g. the total harmonic
distortion m:THD).

When contingencies are considered, order specific result objects are created for each contingency as
well as the base case. The summary result object contains the summary results for each contingency
and the base case as well.

Summary results. Shows the recording options for the summary results.
• The button Variable selection shows all summary result variables that are recorded in the harmonic
load flow calculation. New variable selections can be defined according to section 35.7.1.

• The button Add default variables adds all default variables to the selected result file. Separated
by classes, the default summary variables are:
– Terminals (ElmTerm): m:THD (Total harmonic distortion in %)

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 35.2. HARMONIC LOAD FLOW

• The option Record if THD is above X % (referred to limit) is only available when contingencies are
considered and allows the user to only record summary results when they exceed a user-defined
limit referred to the defined Harmonic distortion limits.
– Example: Record if THD is above 50 % (referred to limit, which is for example 5 %), then the
summary results for an element are only recorded if its THD is above 2.5 %.
Order specific results. Shows the recording options for the order specific results.

• The button Variable selection shows all order specific result variables that are recorded in the har-
monic load flow calculation. New variable selections can be defined according to section 35.7.1.
• The button Add default variables adds all default variables to the selected result file. Separated
by classes, the default order specific variables are:
– Terminals (ElmTerm): m:HD (Harmonic distortion in %)
• The option Record if HD is above X % (referred to limit) is only available when contingencies are
considered and allows the user to only record order specific results when they exceed a user-
defined limit referred to the defined Harmonic distortion limits.
– Example: Record if HD is above 100 % (referred to limit, which is 1.5 % for the 5th), then the
order specific results for an element are only recorded if its HD for the 5th is above 1.5 %.
Harmonic distortion limits. This option is shown when contingencies are considered (Basic Options
page). It contains a selection of voltage-level dependent harmonic distortion limits which can be used
to limit the recording of the defined result parameters. When used, only results over a specified limit are
recorded.

Settings. Contains the selection of harmonic limits that are used to limit the recorded parameters.
For each row, a nominal voltage along with the corresponding distortion limits can be selected. The
Distortion Limits objects contain HD and THD limits.

Note: User-defined Distortion Limits objects (SetDisfc) can be created in the project under Settings →
Limits. Objects located here can be selected in the voltage-dependent harmonic limit selection in
the harmonic load flow command.

Record variables required for “Filter Analysis”. When selected, all required variables for the “Filter
Analysis” reports are recorded. A list of all default variables for shunts/filters is given in section 35.7.

35.2.3 IEC 61000-3-6

Treatment of Harmonic Sources

The alpha exponent values on this page will only be considered by the harmonic load flow (that is to
say that the calculation will be carried out according to the IEC 61000-3-6 standard [17]) if at least one
harmonic source in the network is defined as IEC 61000 (see Section 35.4.1 (Definition of Harmonic
Injections)). On this page, if According to IEC 61000-3-6 is selected, these tables display the alpha
exponent values as given in the IEC 61000-3-6 standard, as read-only values. If User Defined is
selected, the definition of the alpha exponent values is user-definable in terms of integer and/or non-
integer harmonic orders.

35.2.4 Advanced Options Harmonic Load Flow

35.2.4.1 Calculate HD and THD

Based on fundamental frequency values. All values are based on fundamental frequency values, as
defined by various standards.

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Based on rated voltage/current. All values are based on the rated voltage/current of the buses and
branches in the network, respectively.

35.2.4.2 Max. harmonic order for calculation of THD and THF

The harmonic order up to which RMS values are summed in the calculation of THD and THF.

35.2.4.3 Calculate Harmonic Factor (HF)

The calculation of the harmonic factor is optional as it requires extra processing time. Leave unticked if
performance is critical.

35.2.4.4 Calculate R,X at output frequency for all nodes

Calculates the impedance for all buses at the defined output frequency. Leave unticked if performance
is critical.

35.2.4.5 Calculation of Factor-K (BS 7821) for Transformers

Exponent used in calculation of factor-K (according to BS 7821) for transformers. This exponent
depends on the construction of the transformer and is usually available from the manufacturer. Typical
values lie between 1.5 - 1.7.

35.2.5 Harmonic Load Flow Result Analysis

35.2.5.1 Harmonic Distortion Plot

In order to display the harmonic distortion levels corresponding with each harmonic order, harmonic
distortion plots can be used. Harmonic distortion results can be displayed after the execution of a
harmonic load flow calculation. The Data Series of this plot type is described in section 18.8.2.

The selection of harmonic limits can be done on the same page of the data series dialog as the curve
definition, and the fill style and colours for the harmonic distortion limits are user-defined. Figure 35.2.1
shows an example of a harmonic distortion plot.

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Figure 35.2.1: Harmonic Distortion Plot

The Harmonic Distortion Plot can be automatically created for different terminals and contingencies by
using the Create Distortion Plot command described in section 35.2.5.3.

35.2.5.2 Waveform Plot

The waveform plot is used to display the waveform of a voltage or a current following a harmonic load
flow calculation. The harmonics are typically emitted by a harmonic voltage or current source, as
described in Section 35.4 (Modelling Harmonic Sources).

The waveform is calculated according to the following formula:

𝑛
∑︁
𝑢(𝑡) = 𝑢(𝑖) · cos(2𝜋(𝑓 (𝑖) · 𝑡 + 𝜙(𝑖)) (35.1)
𝑖=1

where:
𝑖 Index of frequency
𝑛 Number of frequencies
𝑡 Time
𝑓 (𝑖) Frequency at index i
𝑢(𝑖) Magnitude at frequency i
𝑝ℎ𝑖(𝑖) Angle at frequency i

If a successful harmonic load-flow calculation with the option All Frequencies is performed, the wave-
form plot will show the results of any distorted or pure sinusoidal variable, e.g. voltages or currents,
from any element in the network.

The waveform plot can be created even if the preceding harmonic load-flow is not active anymore. An
example plot of harmonic distortion is shown in Figure 35.2.2.

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Figure 35.2.2: Use of the Waveform Plot to display Harmonic Distortion

The variable definition requires a reference to the results object and the element as per the curve plot,
but in contrast to it, the magnitude of the variable and the angle relating to the magnitude can also be
defined.

The appropriate angle is automatically matched to the selected magnitude, if such angle is available in
the results and if the variable is a voltage or a current. When no appropriate angle is found, one may be
selected manually. Although the angle can be defined, the parameter is not obligatory.

The Waveform Plot Settings

The Data Series of this plot type is described in section 18.8.2. The usage, settings and tools for this
plot type are similar to the curve plot, described in Chapter 18: Reporting and Visualising Results,
section 18.8.9.1, however there are some specific settings unique to the waveform plot, these include
the step size and time range. The step size and time range are specified within the waveform plot
settings object stored in the “Settings” directory of the active project.

To change the waveform plot settings, open the data series plot dialog and edit the relevant Waveform
plot settings object located in the Function column of the Curves table, either by double clicking or by
choosing right-click → Edit. A common Settings Waveform Plot object (SetWave) is used to define the
Step Size and the displayed time Range for all curves shown in the plot (see Figure 35.2.3).

Figure 35.2.3: The waveform plot settings dialog

Step Size

The visible waveforms are calculated by the waveform plot itself.

The Number of Samples in Highest Frequency defines how many intermediate points of the highest
frequency are considered for the drawing of the waveform. In order to get a smooth waveform values
above 20 are recommended. The resulting Step Size is mentioned in the dialog together with the

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Highest Frequency calculated in the Harmonic Load Flow calculation.

Range

To be independent of the basic frequency, the time range of the waveform is entered in Number of cycles
of Basic Frequency. Basic Frequency and the resulting Range are shown for information.

35.2.5.3 Create Distortion Plot

The Create Distortion Plot command allows the automatic creation of harmonic distortion plots for
selected busbars/terminals and contingencies. With the generic Insert Plot icon the plots can be
created from scratch.

Results. The used result object for generating plots can be selected here for either balanced or
unbalanced AC harmonic load flow calculations. By default, the first found result object from the active
study case for the corresponding calculation method is used.

Plot type. Two different plot types are available to be created automatically:
• Distortion plot

• Waveform plot
Selection. A selection of recorded Elements as well as Contingencies that shall be plotted can be
made here.

Note: Selections can also be made directly from certain table reports by using the Create distortion
plot button as described in section 35.2.5.4.

Variable name. The available variables for the automatic creation of harmonic distortion plots can be
selected here. Only recorded variables are shown here.

Magnitude. The available magnitude variables for the automatic creation of harmonic waveform plots
can be selected here. Only recorded variables are shown here.

Angle. The available angle variables for the automatic creation of harmonic waveform plots can be
selected here. Only recorded variables are shown here.

Advanced Options. Additional options for the generation of plots can be selected on the Advanced
Options page.

• Show harmonic distortion limits: When selected, the linked Selection of Harmonic Limits is used
in the plot creation as well. For a terminal the harmonic limits of its corresponding nominal voltage
is taken.

Note: Harmonic distortion limits can only be displayed if the variable of the distortion limit matches
the plotted variable.

• Display each element in a separate plot: When not selected, the results of all elements are shown
in the same plot.
When selected, the results of each busbar/terminal are shown in a separate plot. The defined
maximum number of plots per page specifies how many plots are shown per plot page.

Note: While the results of recorded elements can be plotted on separate plots, the results of all
selected contingencies are always shown in the same plot.

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35.2.5.4 Harmonic Load Flow Tabular Reports

Several reports are available for the Harmonic Load Flow calculation via the corresponding icon in
the toolbox. The Harmonic Load Flow Reports provide a means to summarise and examine system
conditions over the simulated frequency range with and without considered contingencies.

The command consists of the following sections:

Basic Options. The used result file for generating reports is linked here as well as the voltage-
dependent Harmonic distortion limits that are displayed in the reports.

Overview. Different reports can be selected that provide a good result overview.
• Harmonic distortion (HD) violations: lists all HD violations at each recorded terminal and addition-
ally for each contingency which is considered.
• Harmonic distortion (HD) summary for a busbar/terminal: gives a detailed summary for one
terminal considering all analysed contingencies. For each harmonic order, the maximum HD value
is compared to its limit and the base case distortion. The number of contingencies that violate the
limit are additional given for each order. Only available when contingencies are considered.
• Highest total harmonic distortion (THD) for busbars/terminals: lists the highest THD value at each
terminal along with the contingency where it occurs. The number of contingencies that violate the
THD limit is also given. Can be filtered by a threshold. Only available when contingencies are
considered.
• Highest total harmonic distortion (THD) for contingencies: reports the maximum THD value along
with the terminal for each contingency. Only available when contingencies are considered.
• Failed contingencies: lists all contingencies for which the calculation failed. Only available when
contingencies are considered.

Note: Some reports include a Create distortion plot button, which can be used to create a plot directly
from the report. To do so, mark rows in the table that include terminals and contingencies that
shall be plotted and press the Create distortion plot button. All terminals and contingencies from
the selection will be transferred to the Harmonic Distortion Plot command to create HD plots which
is further described in section 35.2.5.3.

Detailed. Reports with detailed results for all terminals and considered contingencies can be selected
on this page.
• Total harmonic distortion (THD) for busbars/terminals: gives the total harmonic distortion at each
recorded terminal for a selected contingency which is additionally compared to the base case.
Can be filtered by a threshold.
• Harmonic order specific results for terminals: reports the harmonic distortion for each order and
at each recorded terminal for a selected contingency
Filter Analysis. Reports for all shunts and filters in the network can be selected on this page.

• Shunt/filter layout: gives an overview of all shunts and filters in the network and lists layout param-
eters of the used components for the fundamental and harmonics. Not available for contingencies.
• Shunt/filter results: reports detailed results for all shunts and filters in the network for each
recorded frequency. Different considered contingencies can be selected.

Note: If a report is missing values, please check the settings on the Results/Output page in the
Harmonic Load Flow command to verify if filters for recording results are defined. More information
in section 35.2.2.

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35.2.5.5 Load Harmonic Load Flow Results

To reload results of a specific harmonic order and contingency (if considered) into the network, the Load
Harmonic Load Flow Results icon can be used.

Results. The used result object to load results can be selected here for either balanced or unbalanced
AC harmonic load flow calculations. By default, the first found result object from the active study case
for the corresponding calculation method is used.

Contingency. The contingency which is to be considered can be selected here. If no contingency is

selected, then the results of the base case are loaded.

Results to be loaded. Options for which results are loaded into the network can be selected here.
• Summary results only: Only recorded summary results (e.g. THD) are loaded into the network.
• Summary and order specific results: All recorded summary results as well as order specific results
of a selected Harmonic order are loaded into the network. The selection contains all recorded
harmonic orders.

35.3 Frequency Sweep

To calculate frequency dependent impedances, the impedance characteristic can be computed for a
given frequency range using the Frequency Sweep command (ComFsweep). This function is available
by clicking on the Calculate Frequency Impedance Characteristic icon ( ) available in the Harmonics
toolbar.

Harmonic analysis by frequency sweep is normally used for analysing self- and mutual- network impe-
dances. However, it should be noted that not only self- and mutual-impedances can be analysed and
shown. The voltage source models (ElmVac, ElmVacbi) available in PowerFactory allow the definition
of any spectral density function. Hence, impulse or step responses of any variable can be calculated in
the frequency domain. Furthermore, a Frequency Dependent Network Equivalent Data element is used
to represent equivalent impedances and admittances between buses (refer to Section 35.7.2).

The most common application is the analysis of series and parallel resonance problems for filter design
purpose, power quality analyses or to verify oscillations seen in EMT simulations.
For the purpose of investigating the impact of capacitances on the network impedance and its reso-
nances, additional result variables of the impedance are available for a pure resistive/inductive network,
where all capacitive components will be neglected.

All analysis can be extended by considering contingencies as well in order to investigate different fault
cases along with the base case.

The following sections describe the options available in the harmonic frequency sweep command.

35.3.1 Basic Options Frequency Sweep

35.3.1.1 Network Representation

Balanced, positive sequence. This option uses a single-phase, positive sequence network represen-
tation, valid for balanced symmetrical networks. A balanced representation of unbalanced objects is
used.

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Unbalanced, 3-phase (ABC). This option uses a full multiple-phase, unbalanced network representa-
tion.

By default any balanced or unbalanced frequency sweep is initialised with a load flow calculation (ticked
“Load Flow Initialisation” setting). The load flow calculation is used to determine for example tap
positions of capacitor banks, shunt reactors, filters and transformers, where controls are configured
and where the load flow results have an impact on the impedances involved. If the checkbox is not set,
the network is considered with actual positions for tap changers, consumption values for loads, dispatch
power for generators, etc. and the frequency characteristic of the network impedance at each point of
interest is evaluated based on this actual state of the network and its components.

35.3.1.2 Impedance Calculation

The frequency sweep will be performed for the frequency range defined by the Start Frequency and
the Stop Frequency, using the given Step Size. The Automatic Step Size Adaptation option allows an
adaptive step size. Enabling this option will normally speed up the calculation, and enhance the level of
detail in the results by automatically using a smaller step size when required. The settings for step size
adaptation can be changed on the Advanced Options tab.

35.3.1.3 Nominal Frequency, Output Frequency, Harmonic Order

Nominal Frequency. This is the fundamental frequency of the system, and the base frequency for the
harmonic orders (usually 50 Hz or 60 Hz).

Output Frequency. This is the frequency for which the results in the single line diagram are shown.
This value has no effect on the actual calculation.

Harmonic Order. This is the harmonic order equivalent of the Output Frequency. The Harmonic Order
multiplied by the Nominal Frequency always equals the Output Frequency. Both floating-point and
integer values are valid as inputs.

35.3.1.4 Consider contingencies

When selected, frequency sweep calculations for all defined fault cases within the linked Contingency
Analysis command are executed in addition to the base case (no contingency). The results for each
contingency are recorded in a dedicated sub result object.

Note: Only the calculation method AC Load Flow Calculation is supported for the contingency analysis
within harmonic load flow calculations

Note: Only static contingencies are supported for the harmonic load flow calculation. The different
options shown in the command are described in section 26.4.1.2.

Note: The creation of contingency cases is described in section 26.2.1.1.

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35.3.1.5 Result Variables and Load Flow

Result Variables. Used to select the target results object which will store the results of the harmonic
frequency sweep. See Section 35.7 (Definition of Result Variables) for more information regarding
specifying result variables.

The result object for the Frequency Sweep which is linked in the command consists of sub-result
objects:
• Base case: for the calculation without contingency.

• Contingencies: for each contingency a dedicated result object with a corresponding name is
created to store the calculation results.
Load Flow. This displays the load flow command used by the calculation. Click on the arrow button to
inspect and/or adjust the load flow command settings.
The Load Flow settings define the temperature, for which the load flow is calculated. The same
temperature is used for the frequency sweep, mentioned in the dialog under “Temperature Dependency:
Line/Cable Resistances”. In case that the “Load Flow Initialisation” checkbox is not ticked, the temper-
ature can be selected manually in the frequency sweep dialog. The available temperature settings
correspond to the ones from the load flow command dialog.

The results of PowerFactory ’s frequency sweep analysis are the characteristics of the impedances over
the frequency range.

35.3.2 Advanced Options Frequency Sweep

Selecting the option Automatic Step Size Adaptation on the Basic Data page of the frequency sweep
command is one way to increase the speed of the calculation. This option enables the use of the step
size adaptation algorithm for the frequency sweep. With this algorithm, the frequency step between
two calculations of all variables is not held constant, but is adapted according to the shape of the
sweep. When no resonances in the impedance occur, the frequency step can be increased without
compromising accuracy. If the impedance starts to change considerably with the next step, the step
size will be reduced again. The frequency step is set such that the prediction error will conform to the
two prediction error input parameters, as shown below:

• Maximum Prediction Error (typical value: 0.01)

• Minimum Prediction Error (typical value: 0.005)

• Step Size Increase Delay (typically 3 frequency steps)

Calculate R, X at output frequency for all nodes. PowerFactory calculates the equivalent impedance
only at selected nodes over the complete analysed frequency range. When this option is selected,
following the harmonic calculation, the equivalent impedance is available for all nodes, but only for the
output frequency.

35.3.3 Frequency Sweep Result Analysis

35.3.3.1 Plots

With the help of plots, the results of the Frequency Sweep calculation can be analysed conveniently.
There are two plot types that are generally used:

• Frequency Sweep Curve: The selected impedance variable is plotted over the investigated fre-
quency range. The plot type Curve Plot is used as described in section 18.8.9.1.

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• R-X plot: The real and imaginary part of the impedance are plotted against one another. It is often
labeled as “Impedance Loci”. The plot type XY Plot is used as described in section 18.8.9.3.

Note: In the data series of the R-X plot, the generic option Specify time range can be used to
limit the plotted frequency range. The start and end time correspond to the start and end
harmonic order for the frequency sweep plot.

Both plots can be created automatically, also including contingencies, with the Create frequency sweep
plots command as described in section 35.3.3.2.

35.3.3.2 Create frequency sweep plots

The Frequency Sweep Plot command allows the automatic creation of frequency curves for the
impedance and its phase angle at selected busbars/terminals and contingencies. In addition, R-X plots
can be created to display the impedance in the R-X plane. With the generic Insert Plot icon the plots
can be created from scratch.

Results. The used result object for generating plots can be selected here for either balanced or
unbalanced AC calculations. By default, the first found result object from the active study case for
the corresponding calculation method is used.

Frequency sweep curve. When selected, frequency sweep curves can be created for the available
impedance variables. Only recorded variables for busbars/terminals (ElmTerm) are shown here.

R-X plot. When selected, R-X plots can be created for the available variables of the real and imaginary
part of the impedance. Only recorded variables for busbars/terminals (ElmTerm) are shown here.

Selection. A selection of recorded Busbars/Terminals as well as Contingencies that shall be plotted

can be made here.

Note: Selections can also be made directly from table reports by using the Create frequency sweep
plot button as described in section 35.3.3.3.

Advanced Options. Additional options for the generation of plots can be selected on the Advanced
Options page.

• Display each busbar/terminal in a separate plot: When not selected, the results of all busbars/ter-
minals are shown in the same plot.
When selected, the results of each busbar/terminal are shown in a separate plot. The defined
maximum number of plots per page specifies how many plots are shown per plot page.

Note: While the results of busbars/terminals can be plotted on separate plots, the results of all
selected contingencies are always shown in the same plot.

35.3.3.3 Frequency Sweep Tabular Reports

Several reports are available for the Frequency Sweep calculation via the corresponding icon in the
toolbox. The Frequency Sweep Reports provide a means to analyse the impedance and its resonances
over the simulated frequency range with and without considered contingencies.

The command consists of the following sections:

Basic Options. The used result file for generating reports is linked here. The report for Failed
contingency cases can be selected as well.

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Resonances. Different reports can be selected that provide a good result overview.
• All resonances: reports all occurring resonances over the analysed frequency range for each
recorded terminal and contingency.

• Resonances in a frequency range: resonances for each recorded terminal and contingency can
be filtered according to the frequency range of interest which can be defined by a Start and Stop
Frequency.
• Resonances near existing harmonic injections: takes existing harmonic injections from sources
in the network into account and lists all resonances which are close to the existing injections. All
resonances within the specified allowed frequency band around investigated orders will be listed
in the report.
For the Resonance detection available variables can be selected. A resonance is defined as local
maximum (parallel resonance) or minimum (series resonance) of the impedance where the sign of the
corresponding impedance angle changes.

Note: Some reports include a Create frequency sweep plot button, which can be used to create
a plot directly from the report. To do so, mark rows in the table that include terminals and
contingencies that shall be plotted and press the Create frequency sweep plot button. All terminals
and contingencies from the selection will be transferred to the Create frequency sweep plots
command to create impedance plots which are further described in section 35.3.3.2.

35.3.3.4 Load Frequency Sweep Results

To reload results of a specific harmonic order and contingency (if considered) into the network, the Load
Frequency Sweep Results icon can be used.

Results. The used result object to load results can be selected here for either balanced or unbalanced
frequency sweep calculations. By default, the first found result object from the active study case for the
corresponding calculation method is used.

Contingency. The contingency which is to be considered can be selected here. If no contingency is

selected, then the results of the base case are loaded.

Harmonic Order. Specify for which harmonic order the results shall be loaded into the network. Any
number (harmonic order) can be used in the input field. When it does not exist in the selected result
object, the nearest order is detected and used in the loading command.

35.4 Modelling Harmonic Sources

Every switched device produces harmonics and should therefore be modelled as a harmonic source. In
PowerFactory, harmonic sources can be either current sources or voltage sources. The models listed
in table 35.4.1 can be used to generate harmonics.
The spectrum type can either be a current spectrum, defined by the linked type (TypHmccur ) or a
voltage spectrum defined in the element itself or a linked type (TypHmcvolt). The list also highlights
those models where a type assignment is not mandatory to consider the element as harmonic source.
In those cases the model itself calculates the injected harmonic spectrum based on the preceding load
flow calculation and the resulting firing angle of the power electronics circuit. Apart from the user defined
assignment of a spectrum, an idealised and a more realistic spectrum considering overlap angles can
be selected.

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Object Spectrum Model

Element Remarks
class type spectrum
General Load ElmLod I
MV Load ElmLodmv I Norton Equivalent
ElmRecmono,
Rectifier/Inverter I ✓
ElmRec
ElmVscmono, Voltage source with series reactor
PWM Converter I/(U)
ElmVsc or Norton Equivalent
AC Current Source ElmIac, ElmIacbi I Inner Admittance
ElmGenstat,
Static Generator I Norton Equivalent
ElmPvsys
Static Var System ElmSvs I ✓
TCSC ElmTcsc I ✓
Separate definitions for inverter
HVDC LCC ElmHvdclcc I, I ✓, ✓
and rectifier side of the HVDC link
Doubly-Fed ElmAsm, Norton Equivalent or
I
Induction Machine ElmAsmsc pure current source
Synchronous machine ElmSym U Spectrum defined in type
AC Voltage Source ElmVac, ElmVacbi U Spectrum defined in element
External Grid ElmXnet U Spectrum defined in element

Table 35.4.1: List of models which can be configured as harmonic sources

See Section 35.4.1 (Definition of Harmonic Injections) for information on how to define harmonic injec-
tions for these sources based on the spectrum type.

Note: Harmonic injections can be modelled in EMT simulations using the Fourier source object. For
further details refer to the Technical References Document.

35.4.1 Definition of Harmonic Injections

When defining the spectrum via the Harmonic Sources type object, the harmonic infeeds can be entered
according to one of three options: Balanced, Phase Correct or Unbalanced, Phase Correct, or IEC
61000. The Harmonic Sources object is a PowerFactory ’type’ object, which means that it may be used
by many elements who have the same basic type. Multiple current source loads may, for example, use
the same Harmonic Sources object. Note that PowerFactory has no corresponding element for this
type.

Phase Correct Harmonic Sources

For the Balanced, Phase Correct harmonic sources option, in both balanced and unbalanced harmonic
load flows, the magnitudes and phases of positive and negative sequence harmonic injections at odd
integer harmonic orders can be defined. This facilitates the representation of typical power system
odd-order harmonics (without including triplen).

For the Unbalanced, Phase Correct harmonic sources option, the magnitudes and phases for the avail-
able phases of the harmonic injections at integer and non-integer harmonic orders can be defined. In

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the case of a balanced harmonic load flow, harmonic injections in the zero sequence are not considered,
and harmonic injections at non-integer harmonic orders are considered in the positive sequence. In the
case of an unbalanced harmonic load flow, harmonic injections in the zero sequence and at non-integer
harmonic orders are considered appropriately. See Table 35.4.3 for a complete summary.

IEC 61000 Harmonic Sources

The IEC 61000-3-6 standard [17] describes a “second summation law”, applicable to both voltage and
current, which is described mathematically as:

⎯
⎸ 𝑁
⃒𝑈𝑚,ℎ ⃒𝛼
⎸ ∑︁ ⃒ ⃒
𝛼
𝑈ℎ = ⎷ (35.2)
𝑚=0

where 𝑈ℎ is the resultant harmonic voltage magnitude for the considered aggregation of 𝑁 sources at
order ℎ, and 𝛼 is the exponent as given in Table 35.4.2 [17].

𝑚 are the harmonic injections where 𝑚 = 0 is the vectorial sum of all phase correct injections and
𝑚 = 1,2...𝑁 are IEC injections. The calculation process of the resulting harmonic magnitude can be
described with the following process:
1. First, for a given harmonic order consider a superposition of all the currents and voltages arising
in the network produced by all phase correct sources. The injections of all phase correct sources
are considered together. For a given location the current (or voltage) arising at that location from
each phase correct source is vectorially summed to the resulting magnitude (𝑚 = 0).
2. Then, consider each harmonic source connected to the network in isolation (with the other sources
disconnected). We only loop over individual sources if they are modelled according to IEC61000;
that is, these are truly considered “in-turn”. For each considered harmonic IEC source (𝑚 =
1,2...𝑁 ), at each harmonic order, the connected source will inject a current into the network and
this current will be distributed throughout the network according to the impedance and topology of
each branch of the network. Parallel units within a model are considered as separate sources.
3. Finally, for a given harmonic order, a superposition of all the currents and voltages arising in the
network produced by all phase correct sources and each IEC source is computed. For each
given location the magnitude of all phase correct contributions (𝑚 = 0) is taken into account, but
additionally for each given location the current (or voltage) arising at that location from each IEC
source (𝑚 = 1,2...𝑁 ) is summed using the second summation law (according to IEC 61000-3-6).

Alpha Exponent Value Harmonic Order

1 ℎ<5
1.4 5 <= ℎ <= 10
2 ℎ > 10

Table 35.4.2: IEC 61000-3-6 Summation Exponents According to Harmonic Order

The Harmonic Sources type set to option IEC 61000 allows the definition of integer and non-integer
harmonic current magnitude injections. In the case of balanced and unbalanced harmonic load flows,
zero sequence order injections and non-integer harmonic injections are considered in the positive
sequence. This is summarised in Table 35.4.3. It should be noted that in order to execute a harmonic
load flow according to IEC 61000-3-6, at least one harmonic source in the network must be defined
as IEC 61000.

Table 35.4.4 describes the consideration of the sequence components of the harmonic orders for the
AC voltage source (ElmVac, ElmVacbi), external grid (ElmXnet) and synchronous machine (ElmSym).

Additionally, the voltage source allows the following to be input for use in the Frequency Sweep calcula-
tion:

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• Spectral density of voltage magnitude;

• Spectral density of voltage angle;

• Frequency dependencies (in the form of a Frequency Polynomial Characteristic). See Section 35.4.3
(Frequency Dependent Parameters) and Chapter 17 (Parameter Characteristics, Load States, and
Tariffs) for further details.

Background Harmonics

PowerFactory facilitates the modelling of background harmonics. This is done using either the external
grid element (ElmXnet) or the AC voltage source element (ElmVac, ElmVacbi), on their respective
Power Quality/Harmonics pages. If only the harmonic voltage amplitude is known (and not the angle),
the IEC 61000 option can be selected. Table 35.4.4 describes the consideration of the sequence
components of the harmonic orders for the AC voltage source and external grid.

Selection of Type of Harmonic Sources

The Harmonic Sources object (TypHmccur ) is independent of whether the harmonic source is a voltage
or a current source. The decision as to whether harmonic sources are fed into the system as harmonic
voltages or as harmonic currents is made exclusively by the element to which the Harmonic Sources
object is assigned. The consideration by the calculation of the sequence components of harmonic
injections is given in Table 35.4.3.

Magnitudes and Phase Values

The quantities of the spectrum type are defined as percentage based on a reference value. The
reference value for current (or voltage) can be selected in the element, which uses the linked harmonic
spectrum. For phase correct spectra, either the fundamental frequency result, determined through the
preceding load flow calculation, or the rated value of the element can be chosen as reference. For
spectra acc. to IEC 61000, the reference is always the rated value. The injected current at frequency 𝑓ℎ
of an IEC source is therefore defined by:
𝐼ℎ = 𝑘ℎ · 𝐼𝑟 (35.3)
where 𝑘ℎ = 𝐼ℎ /𝐼𝑟 is the harmonic content defined in the spectrum and 𝐼𝑟 is the rated current of the
source element. As phase angle information is not available, only magnitudes can be used for the
calculation.

For phase correct spectra, the actual harmonic current of a current source at frequency 𝑓ℎ is calculated
by:

𝐼 ℎ = 𝑘ℎ · 𝑒Δ𝜙ℎ · 𝐼1 · 𝑒ℎ·𝜙1 (35.4)

where ⎧
⎪
⎪ 𝐼ℎ /𝐼1 if balanced
⎪
𝐼𝑎ℎ /𝐼𝑎1 if unbalanced phase a
⎨
𝑘ℎ = (35.5)
⎪
⎪
⎪ 𝐼𝑏ℎ /𝐼𝑏1 if unbalanced phase b
⎩
𝐼𝑐ℎ /𝐼𝑐1 if unbalanced phase c

⎧
⎪
⎪ 𝜙ℎ − ℎ · 𝜙1 if balanced
⎪
𝜙𝑎ℎ − ℎ · 𝜙𝑎1 if unbalanced phase a
⎨
∆𝜙ℎ = (35.6)
⎪
⎪
⎪ 𝜙𝑏ℎ − ℎ · 𝜙𝑏1 if unbalanced phase b
⎩
𝜙𝑐ℎ − ℎ · 𝜙𝑐1 if unbalanced phase c

The values at the fundamental frequency, 𝐼1 and 𝜙1 , are taken from a preceding load flow calculation if
the spectrum is applied based on the fundamental frequency value. If the spectrum is applied based on
the rated value, instead of the load flow result the rated current of the source element is used as base

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(𝐼1 = 𝐼𝑟 in equations 35.4 and 35.5) and only 𝜙1 is taken from the load flow calculation. A normal load
flow calculation is therefore required prior to a harmonic load flow calculation.

In the case of balanced systems in which only characteristic harmonics of orders 5, 7, 11, 13, 17,
etc. occur, the option Balanced, Phase Correct should be selected in the Type of Harmonics Sources
section. In this context, ’Balanced’ refers to characteristic harmonics. In the balanced case, the
harmonic frequencies are determined by the program and only characteristic orders are available in
the spectrum to assign values to (note that in the unbalanced case, the harmonic frequencies can be
freely-defined).

For harmonic sources which produce non-characteristic, unbalanced or inter-harmonics, the option Un-
balanced, Phase Correct should be set in the Type of Harmonics Sources section. In the Unbalanced,
Phase Correct case, the harmonic frequency, magnitude and phase angle of each phase can be chosen
individually for each harmonic frequency. This mode therefore caters for every possible kind of harmonic
source.

The problem commonly arises as to how one can represent the harmonic content in a system which
differs from the native modal system (positive, negative or zero sequence system). The following
example illustrates how to represent the 3rd harmonic in a positive or negative sequence system (as
opposed to the native zero sequence system).

In the symmetrical case, the phase shift between the three phases is:

𝐴 : 0∘
𝐵 : −120∘
𝐶 : +120∘ (−240∘ )

For harmonics of order 𝑛:

𝐴 : 0∘
𝐵 : −𝑛 * 120∘
𝐶 : +𝑛 * 120∘

Taking the 3rd harmonic as an example:

𝐴 : 0∘ (= 0∘ )
𝐵 : −360∘ (= 0∘ )
𝐶 : +360∘ (= 0∘ )

Consequently, the 3rd harmonic in the ideally balanced case is only effective in the zero sequence, as its
native modal system. For representing 3rd harmonics (and multiples thereof) in the positive sequence
system, the following phase correction needs to be entered:

𝐴 : 0∘
𝐵 : +(𝑛 − 1) * 120∘
𝐶 : −(𝑛 − 1) * 120∘

Again taking the 3rd harmonic as an example:

𝐴 : 0∘ (= 0∘ )
𝐵 : −360∘ + 240∘ (= −120∘ )
𝐶 : +360∘ − 240∘ (= +120∘ )

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Harmonic Harmonic Current Sequence Components of Harmonic Injections

Load Flow Source Type
Command
Setting

Balanced Balanced, • Positive (e.g. 7, 13, 19, ...), negative (e.g. 5, 11, 17, ...);
Phase Correct • Typical integer orders only.

Unbalanced, • Positive (e.g. 4, 7, 10, ...), negative (e.g. 2, 5, 8, ...);

Phase Correct • Triplen harmonics (e.g. 3, 6, 9, ...) are ignored and
non-integer harmonic orders (e.g. 5.5, 6.2, 8.35, ...) are
considered in the positive sequence.

IEC 61000 • Positive (e.g. 4, 7, 10, ...), negative (e.g. 2, 5, 8, ...);

• Triplen harmonics and non-integer harmonics are con-

sidered in the positive sequence.

Unbalanced Balanced, • As for balanced harmonic load flow.

Phase Correct

Unbalanced, • Positive, negative, zero sequence;

Phase Correct • Integer and non-integer harmonics.

IEC 61000 • As for balanced harmonic load flow.

Table 35.4.3: Consideration of Sequence Components of Harmonic Injections for TypHmccur

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 35.4. MODELLING HARMONIC SOURCES

Harmonic ElmVac/ElmXnet/ Sequence Components of Harmonic Injections

Load Flow ElmSym Setting
Command
Setting

Balanced • Positive (i.e. 4, 7, 10, ...), negative (i.e. 2, 5, 8, ...);

Phase Correct
• Non-integer harmonic orders (i.e. 5.5, 6.2, 8.35, ...) are
considered in the positive sequence.
• Triplen harmonics (i.e. 3, 6, 9, ...) are ignored (with
warning).

IEC 61000 • Positive, negative;

• Triplen harmonics and non-integer harmonics are in the
positive sequence.

Unbalanced • Positive, negative, zero sequence;

Phase Correct
• Non-integer harmonics are considered.

IEC 61000 • As for balanced harmonic load flow.

Table 35.4.4: Consideration of Sequence Components of Harmonic Injections for AC Voltage Source,
External Grid and Synchronous Machine

35.4.2 Assignment of Harmonic Injections

The assignment of harmonic injections to the elements listed in table 35.4.1 is done via the individual
element’s dialog on the Power Quality/Harmonics page containing the following settings:

• Harmonic Currents: Used to assign the Harmonic Sources type (TypHmccur ).

• Type of Harmonic Sources: Displays the type of harmonic source selected in the assigned
Harmonic Sources type (TypHmccur ).
• Harmonic current referred to. For phase correct sources, the harmonic current may be referred
to either the fundamental current or the rated current. If the harmonic current source type has
been selected to be IEC 61000, the harmonic current is always referred to the rated current and
this option is read-only.

Note: When a Norton Equivalent is used, be aware that the injected harmonic currents at the point
of connection differ from the harmonic injections (percentage values) entered in the Harmonic
Source (TypHmccur ). The harmonic injections are defined for the ideal (inner) current source.
Due to the Norton Admittance, the observed harmonic current at the terminal is lower than the
harmonic current the ideal (inner) source produces.

Harmonic injections defined for external grids (ElmXnet) and voltage sources (ElmVac, ElmVacbi) are
implicitly assigned, as they are defined on the elements’ respective Power Quality/Harmonics pages.
No further assignment is therefore necessary. See Section 35.4.1 (Definition of Harmonic Injections)
for further information.

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35.4.3 Frequency Dependent Parameters

Due to the skin effect and variations in internal inductance, resistances and inductances are usually
frequency dependent. This can be modelled in PowerFactory by associating a “frequency character-
istic” with these quantities. Two types of characteristic may be used: either a Frequency Polynomial
Characteristic (ChaPol) as illustrated in Figure 35.4.1, or a user-defined frequency table (TriFreq and
ChaVec). These kinds of characteristics are then assigned via the Power Quality/Harmonics page of
the corresponding element’s dialog, as illustrated by the example in Figure 35.4.2 for a line type.

Figure 35.4.1: The Frequency Polynomial Characteristic (ChaPol)

For the frequency polynomial characteristic object illustrated in Figure 35.4.1, the formula given by
(35.7) is used:

𝑓ℎ 𝑏
𝑦(𝑓ℎ ) = (1 − 𝑎) + 𝑎 · ( ) (35.7)
𝑓1

The parameters a and b are specified in the Frequency Polynomial Characteristic dialog. Variable y is
usually expressed as a percentage of the corresponding input parameters. For example, the resulting
line resistance is given by (35.8):

𝑅(𝑓ℎ ) = 𝑅 · 𝑦(𝑓ℎ ) (35.8)

An example of the use of the polynomial characteristic for a line type is shown in Figure 35.4.2.

Figure 35.4.2: Frequency Dependencies in a Line Type

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 35.5. FLICKER ANALYSIS (IEC 61400-21)

It is also possible to define frequency dependent characteristics using a vectorial parameter character-
istic (ChaVec).

The following objects can have frequency dependent parameters defined using a frequency character-
istic.

Lines, Cables and Series Impedances:

• Line type (TypLne)

• Series Reactor, Resistor, Capacitor (ElmSind, ElmScap))

• Series RLC-Filter (ElmSfilt)
Transformers and Grounding Elements:
• 2-, 3-, 4-winding transformers (TypTr2, TypTr3, TypTr4)

• Step-Voltage Regulator (TypVoltreg)

• NEC/NER (ElmNec)
Generators and Loads:

• Synchronous machine type (TypSym)

• Asynchronous machine types (TypAsmo, TypAsm1)
• Static Generator (ElmGenstat, ElmPVsys)
• Complex load type (TypLodind)

• Medium Voltage Load (ElmLodmv )

Sources:
• External Grid (ElmXnet)
• AC voltage source, single and double1 port (ElmVac, ElmVacbi)

• AC current source, single1 and double1 port (ElmIac, ElmIacbi)

Shunts and Filters:
• Shunt/Filter (ElmShnt)

• Harmonic Filter (ElmFilter )

Power Electronic Devices:
• PWM Converter, single and double port (ElmVscmono, ElmVsc)
• Thyristor Controlled Series Capacitor - TCSC (ElmTcsc)

Frequency-dependent impedances are automatically considered for lines represented by either a tower
type (TypTow, TypGeo) or a cable system type (TypCabsys).

35.5 Flicker Analysis (IEC 61400-21)

The IEC standard 61400-21 [18] describes the measurement and assessment of power quality charac-
teristics of grid connected wind turbine generators (WTGs). One of these power quality characteristic
parameters pertains to voltage fluctuations. Voltage fluctuations can produce undesirable effects on the

1 Frequency dependencies on spectral densities, considered only in the Frequency Sweep

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consumer side which may manifest as ’flicker’ (visible flickering effects from light sources), and voltage
changes (voltage magnitude being too high or too low).

In the assessment of a WTG’s power quality in terms of voltage fluctuations, the operation of WTGs
can be subdivided into two modes: continuous operation and switching operations (see Sections 35.5.1
(Continuous Operation) and 35.5.2 (Switching Operations) for definitions). These modes of operation
are considered by the PowerFactory flicker calculation, which calculates the short-term and long-term
flicker disturbance factors. See Section 35.5.6 (Flicker Results Variables) for a list of the flicker results
variables available. The calculation of flicker is performed optionally as part of the harmonic load flow
command. For a detailed description of how to configure and execute a harmonic load flow, including
the calculation of flicker, refer to Section 35.2.1 (Basic Options Harmonic Load Flow).

35.5.1 Continuous Operation

Continuous operation is defined in IEC standard 61400-21 as the normal operation of the wind turbine
generator (WTG) excluding start-up and shut-down operations. The short-term and long-term flicker
disturbance factors during continuous operation are defined in [18] as:

𝑆𝑛
𝑃𝑠𝑡 = 𝑃𝑙𝑡 = 𝑐(𝜓𝑘 ,𝑣𝑎 ) · (35.9)
𝑆𝑘

where 𝑃𝑠𝑡 is the short-term flicker disturbance factor; 𝑃𝑙𝑡 is the long-term flicker disturbance factor; 𝑐 is
the flicker coefficient for continuous operation; 𝜓𝑘 is the network impedance angle (degrees); 𝑣𝑎 is the
average annual wind speed (m/s); 𝑆𝑛 is the rated apparent power of the wind turbine (VA); and 𝑆𝑘 is the
short-circuit apparent power of the grid (VA).

• The short-circuit power 𝑆𝑘 is calculated under normal operating conditions at each bus in the
network according to section 35.6. Therefore, also the impedance of loads and generation units
in the network is taken into account.
• At each terminal to which a flicker source is connected, the complex impedance is calculated
between this terminal and all other terminals in the network. The network impedance angle 𝜓𝑘 is
derived from this calculation in order to determine the flicker coefficient 𝑐.

When more than one WTG exists at the point of common coupling (PCC), the summed short-term and
long-term flicker disturbance factors for continuous operation are described in [18] as:

⎯
⎸𝑁𝑤𝑡
1 ⎸ ∑︁
⎷ (𝑐(𝜓 ,𝑣 ) · 𝑆 )2
𝑃𝑠𝑡Σ = 𝑃𝑙𝑡Σ = 𝑘 𝑎 𝑛,𝑖 (35.10)
𝑆𝑘 𝑖=1

where 𝑁𝑤𝑡 is the number of wind turbine generators at the PCC.

35.5.2 Switching Operations

Switching operations are defined in IEC standard 61400-21 as start-up or switching between wind
turbine generators (WTGs). In this mode of operation, the short-term and long-term flicker disturbance
factors during switching operations are defined in [18] as:

𝑆𝑛
𝑃𝑠𝑡 = 18 · 𝑁10 0.31 · 𝑘𝑓 (𝜓𝑘 ) · (35.11)
𝑆𝑘

where 𝑁10 is the number of switching operations in a 10-minute period; 𝑘𝑓 is the flicker step factor; 𝜓𝑘
is the network impedance angle (degrees); 𝑆𝑛 is the rated apparent power of the wind turbine (VA); and
𝑆𝑘 is the short-circuit apparent power of the grid (VA).

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 35.5. FLICKER ANALYSIS (IEC 61400-21)

𝑆𝑛
𝑃𝑙𝑡 = 8 · 𝑁120 0.31 · 𝑘𝑓 (𝜓𝑘 ) · (35.12)
𝑆𝑘

where 𝑁120 is the number of switching operations in a 120-minute period; 𝑘𝑓 is the flicker step factor;
𝜓𝑘 is the network impedance angle (degrees); 𝑆𝑛 is the rated apparent power of the wind turbine (VA);
and 𝑆𝑘 is the short-circuit apparent power of the grid (VA).

When more than one WTG exists at the PCC, the short-term flicker disturbance factor under switching
operations is defined in [18] as:

[︂ 𝑁𝑤𝑡 ]︂0.31
18 ∑︁
𝑃𝑠𝑡Σ = 𝑁10,𝑖 · (𝑘𝑓,𝑖 (𝜓𝑘 ) · 𝑆𝑛,𝑖 )3.2 (35.13)
𝑆𝑘 𝑖=1

Likewise, the long-term flicker disturbance factor under switching operations is defined as:
[︂ 𝑁𝑤𝑡 ]︂0.31
8 ∑︁
𝑃𝑙𝑡Σ = 𝑁120,𝑖 · (𝑘𝑓,𝑖 (𝜓𝑘 ) · 𝑆𝑛,𝑖 )3.2 (35.14)
𝑆𝑘 𝑖=1

where 𝑁𝑤𝑡 is the number of WTGs at the PCC.

The relative voltage change (in units of %) due to the switching operation of a single WTG is computed
as [18]:

𝑆𝑛
𝑑 = 100 · (𝑘𝑢 (𝜓𝑘 ) · (35.15)
𝑆𝑘

35.5.3 Flicker Contribution of Wind Turbine Generator Models

The calculation of flicker according to IEC standard 61400-21 in PowerFactory considers flicker contri-
butions of the following generator models:

• Static generator (ElmGenstat)

• Asynchronous machine (ElmAsm)

• Doubly-fed asynchronous machine (ElmAsmsc)

In order for these models to be able to contribute flicker, their flicker contributions must first be defined
and assigned, as described in Sections 35.5.4 (Definition of Flicker Coefficients) and 35.5.5 (Assign-
ment of Flicker Coefficients).

35.5.4 Definition of Flicker Coefficients

Flicker coefficients are defined in PowerFactory by means of the Flicker Coefficients type (TypFlicker ),
as illustrated in Figure 35.5.1. When created, this is stored by default in the Equipment Type Library
folder in the project tree.

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Figure 35.5.1: Definition of Flicker Coefficients using the Flicker Coefficients Type (TypFlicker )

The Flicker Coefficients type allows the input of six parameters (all of which are defined in IEC standard
61400-21):

• Network Angle, psi (degrees). This is the network impedance angle and must be entered in
either the range [-180,180] (default), or [0,360]. Any mix of these ranges is not permitted. Network
angles must be entered in ascending order.
• Coefficient, c(psi). The flicker coefficient as a function of the network impedance angle.
• Step Factor, kf(psi). The flicker step factor as a function of the network impedance angle.
• Voltage Change Factor, ku(psi)The voltage change factor as a function of the network impedance
angle.
• Maximum Switching Operations: N10. The maximum number of switching operations in a 10-
minute period.
• Maximum Switching Operations: N120. The maximum number of switching operations in a
120-minute period.

35.5.5 Assignment of Flicker Coefficients

The Harmonics page of these elements’ dialogs contains a Flicker Contribution section or separate tab
which allows the assignment of Flicker Coefficients.

If the reference selection Flicker Coefficients is left unassigned, the generator is then considered to be
an ideal source for the flicker calculation.

35.5.6 Flicker Results Variables

Following the calculation of flicker according to IEC 61400-21, the following result variables for every
node in the network are available in the single line graphic. It should be noted that PowerFactory
calculates these flicker disturbance factors and relative voltage change for impedance angles with lines

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 35.6. SHORT-CIRCUIT POWER

at 20 degrees Celsius and at maximum operation temperature. The following result variables are the
worst-case values in the impedance angle range, which is based on the temperature range:

• Pst_cont; Plt_cont: short-term and long-term flicker disturbance factors for continuous operation
of the wind turbine generator/s;
• Pst_sw; Plt_sw: short-term and long-term flicker disturbance factors for switching operations of
the wind turbine generator/s;

• d_sw: relative voltage change (as a percentage).

For the mathematical definitions of these result variables, refer to Sections 35.5.1 (Continuous Opera-
tion) and 35.5.2 (Switching Operations).

35.6 Short-Circuit Power

For power quality assessment, the network impedance of the grid under normal operating conditions is
usually used as the basis for calculations. This impedance is represented by the short-circuit power, 𝑆𝑘,
of the grid. Hence, for power quality assessment at a point V in the grid, this short-circuit power, 𝑆𝑘𝑉 ,
under normal operating conditions is used instead of the short-circuit power of the faulted grid according
to short-circuit calculations. If the Harmonic Load Flow command option Calculate Sk at Fundamental
Frequency is enabled (see Section 35.2.1 (Basic Options Harmonic Load Flow)), the short-circuit power
of the grid under normal operation is available in the calculation results.

35.6.1 Balanced Harmonic Load Flow

For the balanced harmonic load flow, the calculation of the short-circuit power, 𝑆𝑘, at each bus is as
follows:
1
𝑆𝑘 = (MVA) (35.16)
|𝑍𝑏𝑢𝑠 |
where 𝑍𝑏𝑢𝑠 is the impedance calculated at the bus.

The calculation of the impedance angle, 𝑝𝑠𝑖𝑘, at each bus is as follows:

𝑝𝑠𝑖𝑘 = ∠𝑍𝑏𝑢𝑠 (degrees) (35.17)

where 𝑍𝑏𝑢𝑠 is the impedance calculated at the bus.

35.6.2 Unbalanced Harmonic Load Flow

For the unbalanced harmonic load flow, the calculation of the short-circuit power, 𝑆𝑘, at each bus is as
follows:
1
𝑆𝑘 = (MVA) (35.18)
|𝑍1𝑏𝑢𝑠 |
where 𝑍1𝑏𝑢𝑠 is the positive sequence impedance calculated at the bus.

The calculation of the impedance angle, 𝑝𝑠𝑖𝑘, at each bus is calculated as follows:

𝑝𝑠𝑖𝑘 = ∠𝑍1𝑏𝑢𝑠 (degrees) (35.19)

where 𝑍1𝑏𝑢𝑠 is the positive sequence impedance calculated at the bus.

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35.6.2.1 Calculation of Impedance Ratios

The following impedance ratios are calculated following an unbalanced harmonic load flow (if option
Calculate Sk at Fundamental Frequency has been selected):

|𝑍2|
𝑧2𝑡𝑧1𝑘𝑉 = (35.20)
|𝑍1|
𝑋0
𝑥0𝑡𝑥1𝑘𝑉 = (35.21)
𝑋1
𝑅0
𝑟0𝑡𝑥0𝑘𝑉 = (35.22)
𝑋0

35.6.3 Sk Result Variables

Following either a balanced or an unbalanced harmonic load flow calculation with the option Calculate
Sk at Fundamental Frequency selected, the following result variables are available for every 3-phase
bus in the network:

• SkV : short-circuit power (MVA)

• psikV : impedance angle (degrees)

For the mathematical definitions of these result variables, refer to Section 35.6.1 (Balanced Harmonic
Load Flow), and 35.6.2 (Unbalanced Harmonic Load Flow).

Following an unbalanced harmonic load flow with the option Calculate Sk at Fundamental Frequency
selected, the following additional result variables are available for every 3-phase bus in the network:

• z2tz1kV : Impedance ratio

• x0tx1kV : Impedance ratio
• r0tx0kV : Impedance ratio

For the mathematical definitions of these impedance ratio result variables, refer to Section 35.6.2.1
(Calculation of Impedance Ratios).

35.6.4 Short-Circuit Power of the External Grid

The external grid element, ElmXnet, allows the calculation of the network impedance to be based on
the short-circuit power, 𝑆𝑘, and impedance angle, 𝑝𝑠𝑖𝑘. This option can be selected in the external
grid element on the Power Quality/Harmonics page, by using the Use for calculation drop-down box
and selecting Sk. User input fields are then available for the short-circuit power, Sk (MVA), impedance
angle, psik (deg), and impedance ratios z2tz1kV, x0tx1kV, and r0tx0kV.

The impedance of the external grid, which is taken into account for power quality assessment, is
calculated internally based on either the short-circuit power, Sk, at normal operation; the maximum
short-circuit power, Sk”max for faulted operation; or the minimum short-circuit power Sk”min for faulted
operation, depending on the user’s selection.

Data for input parameters (SkV, psikV, z2tz1kV, x0tx1kV, and r0tx0kV ) can first be calculated from a
detailed network model using the Harmonic Load Flow command option Calculate Sk at Fundamental
Frequency (refer to Section 35.6.3 (Sk Result Variables)), performed, for example, by the network
operator. A third party, (i.e. a wind farm planner) could get this information for the point of common
coupling (PCC for the planned wind farm) from the network operator. The planner can then enter the
data into the external grid element, which is a simplified representation of the network as seen from the
PCC.

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35.7 Definition of Result Variables

In order to record the results of either the Harmonic Load Flow or Frequency Sweep calculation, the
variables of interest must be defined. However, for each of these calculations, a small selection of
variables are recorded by default in the results object defined on each command’s Basic Data page by
the Result Variables parameter. For the Harmonic Load Flow the following variables are recorded by
default:

• Harmonic order (-);

• Frequency (Hz);

• HD (%) (for terminals);

• Voltage across inductor (p.u.) (url) (for shunts/filters);
• Voltage across capacitor (p.u.) (uc) (for shunts/filters);
• Current through inductor (A) (IL) (for shunts/filters);

• Current through resistor Rp (A) (IRp) (for shunts/filters);

• Current through capacitor C (A) (IC) (for shunts/filters);
• Voltage across capacitor C1 (p.u.) (uc1) (for shunts/filters);
• Voltage across capacitor C2 (p.u.) (uc2) (for shunts/filters);

• Voltage across resistor Rp (p.u.) (urp) (for shunts/filters);

• Voltage across inductor (kV) (Url) (for shunts/filters);
• Voltage across capacitor (kV) (Uc) (for shunts/filters);

• Voltage across capacitor C1 (kV) (Uc1) (for shunts/filters);

• Voltage across capacitor C2 (kV) (Uc2) (for shunts/filters);
• Voltage across resistor Rp (kV) (Urp) (for shunts/filters);
• Voltage across inductor L1 (p.u.) (url1) (for harmonic filters);

• Voltage across resistor Rp1 (p.u.) (urp1) (for harmonic filters);

• Current through inductor L1 (A) (IL1) (for harmonic filters);
• Current through resistor Rp1 (A) (IRp1) (for harmonic filters);

• Current through capacitor C1 (A) (IC1) (for harmonic filters);

• Voltage across inductor L2 (p.u.) (url2) (for harmonic filters);
• Voltage across resistor Rp2 (p.u.) (urp2) (for harmonic filters);
• Current through inductor L2 (A) (IL2) (for harmonic filters);

• Current through resistor Rp2 (A) (IRp2) (for harmonic filters);

• Current through capacitor C2 (A) (IC2) (for harmonic filters);
• Voltage across inductor L1 (kV) (url1) (for harmonic filters);

• Voltage across resistor Rp1 (kV) (urp1) (for harmonic filters);

• Voltage across inductor L2 (kV) (url2) (for harmonic filters);
• Voltage across resistor Rp2 (kV) (urp2) (for harmonic filters);

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CHAPTER 35. POWER QUALITY AND HARMONICS ANALYSIS

For the Frequency Sweep, the following variables are recorded by default:

• Harmonic order (-);

• Frequency in Hz (Hz);

In order to define additional variables to be recorded, a two-step process is required of firstly creating
the desired Variable Selection and then selecting the variables for recording within these sets. These
steps are described in sections 35.7.1 (Definition of Variable Selections).

35.7.1 Definition of Variable Selections

To define a Variable Selection, right-click on a network component (or multi-select several network
components and right-click), either in the single-line diagram or in the Data Manager, and select the
option Results Variables → Harmonic Load Flow. . . ; or Results Variables → Frequency Sweep. . . . This
will add a new (but still empty) variable selection for the selected object to the results object (referred
to by parameter Result Variables on the Basic Options page of the Harmonic Load Flow or Frequency
Sweep command dialog).

All results of harmonic analysis, with the exception of the harmonic load flow using option Single
Frequency (for which no results are recorded), are stored in a normal results object (ElmRes). This
results object stores the result variables against the frequency for which they were calculated. For
more information about the results object, see Section 18.7 (Results Objects). To access the variable
selection objects, click on the Edit Result Variables button ( ) on the main toolbar. There are two
instances of this button: one associated with the Harmonic Load Flow and one associated with the
Frequency Sweep. Select the button associated with the relevant calculation. The variable selection
manager dialog will open which displays the result file type. If the list is empty, a new variable selection
can also be defined by clicking on the New Object button ( ) and the variables defined. Each variable
selection contains the variables of interest for a single object.

The Variable Selection object is described in Section 18.3: Variable Selection.

35.7.2 Definition of Frequency Dependent Network Equivalent Data

The purpose of this element is to provide a means to access the frequency dependent network equiva-
lent self- and mutual- impedances and admittances of the selected buses.

A Frequency Dependent Network Equivalent Data element (ElmEquivalent) can be defined by right-
clicking on multiple buses and selecting Network Models → Freq. Dep. Network Equivalent Data→
New. . . from the context menu. The element dialog will then be displayed, with the bus/es as an
entry in the shown table. Multiple buses can be selected/added to this table. The checkboxes for the
“Oscillating generator” and “Influencing device” only need to be selected if the radiality factor (RF) is
to be computed. If this is the case, then one box should be checked in each column; the “Oscillating
generator” terminal should be different from the “Influencing device” terminal.

The calculation results are the impedance and admittance matrices that represent the equivalent system
of user-selected buses. In addition, for the purpose of evaluating the risk of device-dependent sub-
synchronous oscillations (DDSO), a frequency-dependent network impedance based index known as
the “radiality factor” (RF) can be calculated, as described in literature2 .

2𝑌12 (𝑓 )
𝑅𝐹 (𝑓 ) = (35.23)
𝑌11 (𝑓 ) + 𝑌22 (𝑓 )

2 M. S. Annakkage, C. Karawita and U. D. Annakkage, “Frequency Scan-Based Screening Method for Device Dependent

Sub-Synchronous Oscillations”, in IEEE Transactions on Power Systems, vol. 31, no. 3, pp. 1872-1878, May 2016, doi:
10.1109/TPWRS.2015.2442653.

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where
𝑌11 (𝑓 ) equivalent frequency-dependent self-admittance seen at the oscillating generator
rotor side (bus 1)
𝑌22 (𝑓 ) equivalent frequency-dependent self-admittance seen at the influencing device
(bus 2)
𝑌12 (𝑓 ) frequency-dependent mutual admittance between bus 1 and bus 2

The resulting matrices must be defined and accessed using a zero-based index. The buses are ordered
in the matrices in the order that they appear in the equivalent element table (the first row in the table
corresponds to index 0, the second row to index 1 and so on). For example, assuming that two buses
have been selected, one configuration of results can be as follows:

Z:0:0:r The real part of the frequency dependent self-impedance (in Ohm) at the first bus
(index 0) defined in the Frequency Dependent Network Equivalent Data element.
Z:0:1:mag The magnitude of the frequency dependent mutual impedance (in Ohm) between
the first (index 0) and second buses (index 1) defined in the Frequency Dependent
Network Equivalent Data element.
Y:1:1:phi The angle of the frequency dependent self-admittance (in degrees) of the second
bus (index 1) defined in the Frequency Dependent Network Equivalent Data
element.

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Chapter 36

Connection Request Assessment

For power quality assessment, PowerFactory offers a Connection Request Assessment command (
ComConreq) and corresponding element ( ElmConreq). The Connection Request Assessment
command, in conjunction with the Connection Request element, facilitates the execution of a power
quality assessment according to the Method selected in the command.

36.1 How to execute a Connection Request Assessment

This section gives a small guideline and describes the steps for configuring and executing a new
connection request assessment in PowerFactory.

1. Place the connection request assessment element

• Use the corresponding element ( )) from the drawing toolbox to create a new connection
request element.
• The node to which the connection request is connected is used as the point of connection by
default. However, a user-defined junction point can be selected in the Connection topology
tab of each calculation method in the connection request element.
2. Configure the connection request
• On the Basic Options page of the connection request element, the considered guideline has
to be selected. It is recommended to only select one guideline.
• The connection request can be defined for the guideline that is to be assessed. Each
guideline has a dedicated page with all input parameters.
• The definition pages for each guideline are separated into tabs. Each tab corresponds to a
calculation and includes all necessary parameters.

Note: Some general hints about the definition and assessment of connection requests:
• The Installation/Power Plant definition tab in each guideline is always necessary to be
configured since it contains the basic definition.
• The other tabs only need to be configured if the calculation is to be executed, e.g.
when no Flicker assessment is to be done, the corresponding page does not need to
be modified.
• For a very simplified assessment (loading and slow voltage change) only the Installa-
tion/Power Plant definition tab has to be configured.
• For more information about the input parameters, consult the Technical References
Document of the connection request element (ElmConreq).

3. Execute the connection request assessment

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 36.2. CONNECTION REQUEST ASSESSMENT: D-A-CH-CZ

• To assess one or more connection requests in the network, open the Connection Request
Assessment command ( ).
• Select the guideline that is to be assessed and its edition or publiaction year.
• Optionally, it is possible to select specific Selected Feeder(s). This means that only network
elements in these feeders are taken into account for the assessment.
• Select the calculations that are to be executed.
• Select the Load Flow type that shall be used to evaluate voltage changes and loadings:
– Standard Load Flow (see Chapter 24)
– Low Voltage Load Flow (see Section 41.5)
4. Result evaluation
• Dedicated reports are available for each guideline in the DIgSILENT Library and can be
directly accessed with the Connection Request Assessment Report icon ( ).
• The reports can be created with the Report Generation command which is described in
Section 36.6.

Note: On the Parameters page of the Report Generation command, the details of the connection
request report can be adapted.

User-defined Limits

For the following standards, it is possible to select user-defined limits on the Advanced page of the
connection request assessment:

• D-A-CH-CZ, Edition 2 and 3

• VDE-AR-N 4100/4105, Published 2018
• VDE-AR-N 4110, Published 2018
For these standards, two options for the limits are available:

• Default: The default limits defined in the respective standard are taken for the assessment of the
different calculations.
• User-defined: The user can change the default limits defined in the respective standard and use
its own user-defined limits for the assessment of the different calculations. For the D-A-CH-CZ,
different limits can be selected for the HV, MV and LV voltage levels. It has to be noted that user-
defined limits might be not compliant with the standard. By using the button Restore defaults, the
user-defined limits are set back to its default values according to the respective standard.

Note: The user-defined Thermal loading limit for VDE-AR-N 4100/4105 and 4100 is multiplied
with the loading limit in the object. For example, if a line has a limit of 70 % and the limit is set
to 90 % in the command, this results in a total limit of 63 % (0.7 · 0.9 · 100%), which is taken
into account in the assessment.

36.2 Connection Request Assessment: D-A-CH-CZ

The selection of D-A-CH-CZ as the Method in the Connection Request Assessment command carries
out a power quality assessment according to Edition 2 ([15], [22]) or Edition 3 ([33], [34], [35], [36]). The
Edition can be selected in the command in addition to the method. These guidelines are valid for 50 Hz
networks, operating at low-voltage (LV), medium-voltage (MV) or high-voltage (HV) levels.

The assessment considers the following aspects of power quality:

• Voltage changes and flicker

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CHAPTER 36. CONNECTION REQUEST ASSESSMENT

• Voltage unbalance
• Harmonics (only Edition 2)

• Harmonics, interharmonics, supraharmonics (only Edition 3)

• Commutation notches
• Interharmonic voltages (only Edition 2)

The following assumptions apply to PowerFactory’s Connection Request Assessment according

to D-A-CH-CZ:

• Connection request elements are intended for use by the Connection Request Assessment. They
may be considered by the Load Flow but for all other calculations, it is recommended to set them
out of service.

• Calculations are valid for 50 Hz networks only;

• The PCC is the busbar to which the Connection Request element is connected;
• Each Connection Request element is assessed independently from all other Connection Request
elements (with the exception of slow voltage change assessment for generating stations);

• The short-circuit power, Sk, is calculated using a line/cable temperature of 70 ∘ C for LV networks,
and 20 ∘ C (Edition 2) respectively 70 ∘ C (Edition 3) for MV and HV networks.
• For the calculation of flicker, voltage changes are regular and rectangular;

• For the calculation of flicker, Plt=Pst (i.e. 2h observation period);

• Classifications of voltage levels (LV, MV and HV) are strictly according to [15], [22] and [33]. Dialog
options pertaining to HV networks are only available for Connection Request elements which are
connected to a HV PCC.

36.2.1 Basic Options D-A-CH-CZ

Method

• According to D-A-CH-CZ. Assesses network disturbances according to Edition 2 ([15], [22]) or

Edition 3 ([33], [34], [35], [36]).

Considered feeder(s)

• One or several feeders can be selected here in order to limit the area of assessment to the
selection.
– Limit violations are only assessed for elements within the selected feeder(s).
– For the calculation of the slow voltage change, only generation units within the selected
feeder(s) are considered.

Calculations

All calculations are carried out according to the selection of Method and Edition described above.

• Short-circuit power at the PCC. The short-circuit power at the point of common coupling (PCC)
is calculated by default and according to section 35.6.
– The short-circuit power, Sk, is calculated using a line/cable temperature of 70 ∘ C for LV
networks, and 20 ∘ C (Edition 2) respectively 70 ∘ C (Edition 3) for MV and HV networks.

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 36.2. CONNECTION REQUEST ASSESSMENT: D-A-CH-CZ

Note: The conductor temperature can be user-defined in the Connection Request Assessment
command on the Advanced page.

• Slow voltage change (generating stations only) Calculates the voltage change via a balanced
load flow.
– The PowerFactory elements that are considered as generation (for outaging) are: ElmSym,
ElmAsm, ElmGenstat, ElmPvsys, ElmVsc, ElmVscmono and ElmConreq. The criterion used
to detect this generation is based on their calculated power flow. It should be noted that
generation defined as part of an MV load ElmLodmv, for example, is not considered. Only
generation which is connected to higher voltage levels (HV) is not outaged. Therefore, users
may define any LV generation that should not be considered by the assessment as an MV
load.
– If a higher voltage level exists in the network, and any step-up transformers with tap-changing
functionality are found (i.e. using voltage control on the LV side), their tap changer will be
set to continuous for the assessment (and returned to their original setting upon completion
of the assessment). If a higher voltage level exists and no such transformers are found, a
warning is issued. This is to avoid any voltage changes in the HV network impacting on the
assessment at lower voltage levels.
• Voltage changes and flicker. Calculates the voltage change, d and flicker severity Pst, Plt at the
point of common coupling, and assesses these according to appropriate limits. For the calculation
of flicker, voltage changes are assumed to be regular and rectangular.
• Voltage change:
– If no step-up transformer is found in the network, an assessment regarding the sudden
voltage change will not be provided (i.e. it will be “N/A”). This is because the voltage drop
across the transformer can not be considered.
Note: In Edition 3 one or several supply transformers can be user-defined on the corre-
sponding page in the Connection Request element.

– An initial load flow is executed with the network as-is, and using the Load Flow command
configured as-is. The tap positions of transformers and shunts are then saved. The outage
of each connection request element in turn is then considered via a subsequent load
flow, however this time configured with Load Flow options Automatic tap adjustment of trans-
formers and Automatic tap adjustment of shunts deselected. Following the assessment, all
transformer and shunt taps are set back to their original positions.
• Voltage unbalance (only LV and MV). Calculates the voltage unbalance factor, kU, and assesses
this according to appropriate limits.
• Harmonics (only Edition 2). Assesses the harmonic content based on user input in the Connec-
tion Request element, and makes an assessment according to appropriate limits.For HV networks,
the consideration of resonances is optional.

• Harmonics, interharmonics, supraharmonics (only Edition 3). Assesses the harmonic content
based on user input in the Connection Request element, and makes an assessment according to
appropriate limits.
• Commutation notches (only LV and MV). Calculates the relative short-circuit voltage of the
commutation reactance, ukkom. It should be noted that no approval status is provided following
the Commutation Notches calculation, but instead a recommendation.
• Interharmonic voltages (only Edition 2). For LV and MV networks, assesses the effect of user-
defined interharmonic voltages in the flicker critical range and on the ripple control frequency.
For LV and MV networks, limits are taken from EN 61000-2-2. For HV networks, assesses the
user-defined harmonic load and user-defined interharmonic voltages against appropriate limits.

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CHAPTER 36. CONNECTION REQUEST ASSESSMENT

Resonances

Note: In Edition 2, resonances are only considered in HV networks.

• Consideration of resonances. Selection of either no consideration of resonances or approxi-

mate consideration of the first parallel resonance point. It should be noted that limits for reso-
nances are not a criteria for the assessment, but are output as information.
• Grid contains mostly. Selection of either cables or overhead lines. Used in the selection of the
resonance factor, 𝑘𝑣 (as defined in Edition 2 ([15], [22]) or Edition 3 ([33], [34], [35], [36])), which
is also dependent upon the harmonic order. It should be noted that the highest resonance factors
within the ranges stated in the guideline are chosen.

• Calculation of emission limits. Calculates the emission limits according to either the simplified
method or the general (detailed) method, as defined in the guideline of Edition 2 ([15], [22]) or
Edition 3 ([33], [34], [35], [36]).
• Operation Scenario. An Operation Scenario may be optionally specified for the calculation of the
actual short-circuit power, 𝑆𝑘𝑉𝑎𝑘𝑡 . This scenario should represent the typical network operation
(switching status, etc), and must yield an actual short-circuit power such that 𝑆𝑘𝑉 <= 𝑆𝑘𝑉𝑎𝑘𝑡 .
This implies that the network in its state at the time of execution of the Connection Request
command will produce a worst-case short-circuit power, 𝑆𝑘𝑉 . The Connection Request command
will then appropriately activate the specified scenario and deactivate it following the calculation of
𝑆𝑘𝑉𝑎𝑘𝑡 . If no scenario is specified, it is assumed that 𝑆𝑘𝑉𝑎𝑘𝑡 = 𝑆𝑘𝑉 .

36.2.2 Advanced D-A-CH-CZ

• Flicker strength of voltage changes (Edition 3): For the calculation of the flicker disturbance
factors, two different calculation approaches according to the guideline can be selected:
– Determination using the reference curve
– Analytical approach

36.3 Connection Request Assessment: BDEW, 4th Supplement

The selection of BDEW, 4th Supplement as the Method in the Connection Request Assessment com-
mand carries out a power quality assessment according to [16] and [23]. This guideline considers the
following aspects of power quality for 50Hz networks, operating at the medium-voltage (MV) level:

• Loading of network elements

• Admissible voltage changes

• Sudden voltage changes and flicker
• Harmonics, interharmonics and audio-frequency ripple control

• Commutation notches
• Maximum short-circuit current

The following assumptions apply to PowerFactory’s Connection Request Assessment according

to BDEW, 4th Supplement:

• Connection request elements are intended for use by the Connection Request Assessment. They
may be considered by the Load Flow and have a simplified consideration by the Short-Circuit. For
all other calculations, it is recommended to set them out of service.

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 36.3. CONNECTION REQUEST ASSESSMENT: BDEW, 4TH SUPPLEMENT

• Calculations are valid for 50Hz networks only;

• The junction point is that specified in the Connection Request element; otherwise is automatically
selected to be the busbar to which the Connection Request element is connected;

36.3.1 Basic Options BDEW

Method

• According to BDEW, 4th Supplement. Assesses network disturbances according to [16] and
[23].

Considered feeder(s)

• One or several feeders can be selected here in order to limit the area of assessment to the
selection.
– Limit violations are only assessed for elements within the selected feeder(s).
– For the calculation of the admissible voltage changes, only generation units within the se-
lected feeder(s) are considered.

Calculations

All calculations are carried out according to the selection of Method described above.

• Short-circuit power at junction point. The short-circuit power at the junction point is calculated
by default and according to section 35.6.
– The short-circuit power is calculated using a line/cable temperature of 70 ∘ C for LV networks,
and 20 ∘ C for MV and HV networks.
• Loading of network elements. Subsequent load flow calculations are executed for the following
cases: (i) loading without ElmConreq elements; (ii) loading with ElmConreq elements. Reports
overloadings (if any) of network equipment resulting from the VDE Connection Request elements.
If no overloadings occur, the five highest loadings in each case are displayed in the report.
• Admissible voltage changes. Uses the defined generation in any BDEW connection request
elements and executes a balanced load flow calculation. The same load flow calculation is then
carried out excluding all generation. The voltage change at buses is calculated and violations are
reported.
– The PowerFactory elements that are considered as generation (for outaging) are: ElmSym,
ElmAsm, ElmGenstat, ElmPvsys, ElmVsc, ElmVscmono and ElmConreq. The criterion used
to detect this generation is based on their calculated power flow. It should be noted that
generation defined as part of an MV load ElmLodmv, for example, is not considered. Only
generation which is connected to higher voltage levels (HV) is not outaged. Therefore, users
may define any LV generation that should not be considered by the assessment as an MV
load.
– If a higher voltage level exists in the network, and any step-up transformers with tap-changing
functionality are found (i.e. using voltage control on the LV side), their tap changer will be
set to continuous for the assessment (and returned to their original setting upon completion
of the assessment). If a higher voltage level exists and no such transformers are found, a
warning is issued. This is to avoid any voltage changes in the HV network impacting on the
assessment at lower voltage levels.
• Sudden voltage changes and flicker. Calculates the sudden voltage change, d and flicker
severity Plt at the junction point, and assesses these according to appropriate limits. The sudden
voltage change as a result of switching of the entire plant is calculated using a balanced load flow.

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CHAPTER 36. CONNECTION REQUEST ASSESSMENT

– If no step-up transformer is found in the network, an assessment regarding the sudden

voltage change will not be provided (i.e. it will be “N/A”). This is because the voltage drop
across the transformer can not be considered.
– An initial load flow is executed with the network as-is, and using the Load Flow command
configured as-is. The tap positions of transformers and shunts are then saved. The outage
of each connection request element in turn is then considered via a subsequent load
flow, however this time configured with Load Flow options Automatic tap adjustment of trans-
formers and Automatic tap adjustment of shunts deselected. Following the assessment, all
transformer and shunt taps are set back to their original positions.
• Sudden voltage change due to switching of the entire plant. When assessing the sudden
voltage change due to the plant (as opposed to the individual units), a step-up transformer is
required. If no step-up transformer is found in the network, an assessment regarding the sudden
voltage change will not be provided (i.e. it will be “N/A”). This is because the voltage drop across
the transformer can not be considered. An initial load flow is executed with the network as-
is, and using the Load Flow command configured as-is. The tap positions of transformers and
shunts are then saved. The outage of each connection request element in turn is then considered
via a subsequent load flow, however this time configured with Load Flow options Automatic tap
adjustment of transformers and Automatic tap adjustment of shunts deselected. Following the
assessment, all transformer and shunt taps are set back to their original positions.
• Harmonics. Assesses the harmonic content based on user input in the Connection Request
element, and makes an assessment according to appropriate limits.
• Commutation notches. Calculates the relative short-circuit voltage of the commutation reac-
tance, ukkom. It should be noted that no approval status is provided following the Commutation
Notches calculation, but instead a recommendation.
• Maximum short-circuit current. Uses the defined short-circuit current injection in any BDEW
connection request elements and executes a short-circuit calculation according to VDE. Short-
circuit current limit violations (obtained from busbar Types and line Types) are reported. The rated
short-time thermal current limits of busbars and lines are based on the Fault Clearing Time (Ith)
that is set in the short-circuit command.

Agreed service voltage, Uc

The supply voltage agreed between the system operator and the connectee. According to the standard
it needs to be defined and is used to calculate the limits for the Sudden voltage change.

36.4 Connection Request Assessment: VDE-AR-N 4100/4105

The selection of VDE-AR-N 4100/4105 as the Method in the Connection Request Assessment com-
mand carries out a power quality assessment according to VDE-AR-N 4100 [30] and VDE-AR-N 4105
[21] [28]. The VDE-AR-N 4100 assesses consumers while the VDE-AR-N 4105 assesses generators.
In PowerFactory consumers and generators can be considered in the same connection request if an
installation includes both types.

The guidelines consider the following aspects of power quality for 50Hz networks, operating at the
low-voltage (LV) level:

• Minimum short-circuit power at junction point

• Loading of network components
• Permissible voltage changes
• Rapid voltage changes and flicker
• Voltage unbalance

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 36.4. CONNECTION REQUEST ASSESSMENT: VDE-AR-N 4100/4105

• Harmonics, interharmonics and audio-frequency ripple control

• Commutation notches

• Maximum short-circuit current

The following assumptions apply to PowerFactory’s Connection Request Assessment according

to VDE-AR-N 4100/4105:

• Calculations are valid for 50Hz networks only;

• The junction point is that specified in the Connection Request element; otherwise is automatically
selected to be the busbar to which the Connection Request element is connected;

36.4.1 Basic Options VDE-AR-N 4100/4105

Method

• According to VDE-AR-N 4100/4105. Assesses network disturbances of generation units ([21] in

version 2011, [28] in version 2018) and loads ([30] in version 2018).

Considered feeder(s)

• One or several feeders can be selected here in order to limit the area of assessment to the
selection.
– Limit violations are only assessed for elements within the selected feeder(s).
– For the calculation of the Permissible voltage changes, only generation units within the
selected feeder(s) are considered.

Published

This option offers a sub-selection for the selected Method, where the version of the standard to be
used can be selected according to the year in which it was issued. The most recent standard is 2018,
however 2011 is still available for the verification of documented results. The selection of version 2018
enables the additional calculation of the minimum short-circuit power at junction point.

Calculations

All calculations are carried out according to the selection of Method described above.

• Short-circuit power at junction point. The short-circuit power at the junction point is calculated
by default and according to section 35.6.
– The short-circuit power is calculated using a line/cable temperature of 70 ∘ C for LV networks,
and 20 ∘ C for MV and HV networks.

Note: On the Advanced page in the Connection Request Assessment command there are two
options available to adapt the calculation of the short-circuit power:
– For the calculation the harmonic load flow or short-circuit command can be used.
– The conductor temperature can be user defined.

• Minimum short-circuit power at junction point. Applicable to the 2018 version of VDE-AR-N
4105 only. The assessment calculates the short-circuit power (see section 35.6) at the junction
point and at the supply transformer busbar and verifies the results against the rated power of
pre-selected Type-1 generators in the connection request element according to VDE-AR-N 4105
limits.

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CHAPTER 36. CONNECTION REQUEST ASSESSMENT

– For the calculation of the limits, the following elements are taken into account if selected in
the connection request element: synchronous generator (ElmSym), static generator (Elm-
Genstat), connection request generation unit (ElmConreq) and external grid (ElmXnet). The
user is required to specify those elements that represent “Type-1” elements according to the
standard.
– If no supply transformer is specified in the connection request element, an assessment of
N/A may be issued.

Note: On the Connection Topology page in the Connection Request element, the supply trans-
former can be defined or automatically searched.

• Loading of network components. Subsequent load flow calculations are executed for the follow-
ing three cases: (i) loading without ElmConreq elements; (ii) loading with ElmConreq elements
(Loads table only); and (iii) loading with ElmConreq elements (Generation/Storage Units table
only). This will ensure that the worst case is considered. Overloadings of network equipment
resulting from the VDE-AR-N 4100/4105 connection request elements are reported. If no over-
loadings occur, the five highest loadings from all cases are displayed in the report.
• Permissible voltage changes. Uses the generation defined in any VDE-AR-N 4105 connection
request elements and executes a balanced load flow calculation. The same load flow calculation is
then carried out excluding all generation. The voltage change at buses is calculated and violations
are reported.
– The assessment of the permissible voltage change requires that generation in the LV network
is outaged. The elements that are considered as generation (for outaging) are: ElmSym,
ElmAsm, ElmGenstat, ElmPvsys, ElmVsc, ElmVscmono and ElmConreq. The criterion used
to detect this generation is based on their calculated power flow. Only generation which is
connected to higher voltage levels (MV,HV) is not outaged.
– If a higher voltage level exists in the network, and any step-up transformers with tap-changing
functionality are found (i.e. using voltage control on the LV side), their tap changer will be
set to continuous for the assessment (and returned to their original setting upon completion
of the assessment). If a higher voltage level exists and no such transformers are found, a
warning is issued. This is to avoid any voltage changes in the HV network impacting on the
assessment at lower voltage levels.
• Rapid voltage changes. Calculates the sudden voltage change d for each generation unit and
load at the junction point, and assesses these according to appropriate limits.
• Rapid voltage changes due to switching of the entire plant. The rapid voltage change as a
result of switching of the entire plant is calculated using a balanced load flow. When assessing the
rapid voltage change due to the plant (as opposed to the individual units), a step-up transformer
is required.
– If no step-up transformer is found in the network, an assessment regarding the sudden
voltage change will not be provided (i.e. it will be “N/A”). This is because the voltage drop
across the transformer can not be considered.
– An initial load flow is executed with the network as-is, and using the Load Flow command
configured as-is. The tap positions of transformers and shunts are then saved. The outage
of each connection request element in turn is then considered via a subsequent load flow,
however this time configured with Load Flow options Automatic tap adjustment of trans-
formers and Automatic tap adjustment of shunts deselected. Following the assessment,
all transformer and shunt taps are set back to their original positions.
• Flicker. Calculates the flicker severity Plt of the individual generation units and loads as well as
the whole plant and assesses the flicker disturbance factors according to appropriate limits.
• Voltage unbalance. Calculates the voltage unbalance from user-input data and assesses this
according to the VDE-AR-N 4100/4105 limit.

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• Harmonics, interharmonics and audio frequency ripple control. Assesses the harmonic and
interharmonic content based on user input in the Connection Request element, and makes an as-
sessment according to appropriate limits. In version 2018, a simplified calculation is available. By
activating the option Simplified calculation of harmonic current limits in the command, simplifying
assumptions according to the standard are used. For the audio frequency ripple control it verifies
if the level is within the permitted range.
– The non-simplified assessment of all harmonic limits (version 2018) can only be done when
the pre-defined k-factors in the connection request element are not zero. When the reso-
nance factor 𝑘𝑣 and/or the share factors 𝑘𝐵, 𝑘𝐸 and 𝑘𝑆 are zero, the harmonic limits can’t
be calculated and a warning is printed into the output window.
– When the k-factors can’t be determined, it is recommended to use the Simplified calculation
of harmonic current limits (version 2018).
• Commutation notches. Calculates the relative short-circuit voltage of the commutation reac-
tance, ukkom. It should be noted that no approval status is provided following the Commutation
Notches calculation, but instead a recommendation.
• Maximum short-circuit current. Uses the short-circuit current injection defined in any VDE-AR-N
4100/4105 connection request elements and executes a short-circuit calculation according to IEC
60909 for a balanced 3-phase fault. The command Calculation option Max. short-circuit currents
is used and the Max. Voltage Tolerance for LV-Systems is temporarily set to 10%. Short-circuit
current limit violations (obtained from busbar and line types) are reported. The rated short-time
thermal current limits of busbars and lines base on the Fault Clearing Time (Ith) that is set in the
short-circuit command.

36.5 Connection Request Assessment: VDE-AR-N 4110

The selection of VDE-AR-N 4110 as the Method in the Connection Request Assessment command
carries out a power quality assessment according to [29]. It is valid from the year 2018 and replaces the
BDEW Medium-Voltage Guideline (including the 4th Supplement) from 2008 described in section 36.3.
This guideline considers the following aspects of power quality for 50Hz networks, operating at the
medium-voltage (MV) level:

• Minimum short-circuit power at junction point

• Loading of network components
• Admissible voltage changes

• Rapid voltage changes and flicker

• Voltage unbalance
• Harmonics, interharmonics and audio-frequency ripple control
• Commutation notches

• Maximum short-circuit current

The guideline not only applies to generation plants such as wind turbines, photovoltaic and combustion
engines but it also considers storage systems and mixed plant (consumption and generation). It should
be noted that only generating plants that fulfil the following criteria are considered for the Connection
Request Assessment:
• Plants with a maximum active power (based on the installed power) of 𝑃𝐴.𝑚𝑎𝑥 ≥ 135𝑘𝑊 .
• Plants existing of individual unit types (such as CHP generation units, wind and hydropower
generation units, Stirling generators, fuel cells and asynchronous generators) where at least one
of the units has a total effective power of 𝑃𝐸.𝑚𝑎𝑥 ≥ 30𝑘𝑊 .

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If only one or none of these requirements is fulfilled the assessment of the generation plant should be
carried out and certified according to the VDE-AR-N 4105 (see section 36.4) regardless of the voltage
level.

The following assumptions apply to PowerFactory’s Connection Request Assessment according

to VDE-AR-N 4110:

• The MV network should be radial with the higher level network represented by an equivalent
external grid
• There should be a single supply transformer (user-defined)

Note: On the Connection Topology page in the Connection Request element, the supply trans-
former can be defined or automatically searched.

36.5.1 Basic Options VDE-AR-N 4110

Method

• According to VDE-AR-N 4110. Assesses network disturbances according to [29].

Considered feeder(s)

• One or several feeders can be selected here in order to limit the area of assessment to the
selection.
– Limit violations are only assessed for elements within the selected feeder(s).
– For the calculation of the admissible voltage changes, only generation units within the se-
lected feeder(s) are considered.

Calculations

All calculations are carried out according to the selection of Method described above.

• Short-circuit power at junction point. The short-circuit power at the junction point is calculated
by default. According to VDE-AR-N 4110, the short-circuit command is used with the following
(automatic) configuration in order to calculate Skss at the junction point terminal:
– Method: IEC 60909
– Fault Type: 3-Phase Short-Circuit
– Calculate: Min. Short-Circuit Currents
– Conductor Temperature: 20 °𝐶
– Generation units (ElmSym, ElmAsm, ElmPvsys, ElmGenstat), external grids (ElmXnet) and
loads (ElmConreq, ElmLod, ElmLodmv, ElmVac) downstream of the supply transformer are
set out of service. The topological search ends when a step-up transformer or an open point
is reached.

Note: The conductor temperature can be user-defined in the Connection Request Assessment
command on the Advanced page.

• Minimum short-circuit power at junction point. The assessment calculates the short-circuit
power at the junction point and at the supply transformer busbar and verifies the results against
rated power of pre-selected Type-1 generators in the connection request element according to
VDE-AR-N 4110 limits.

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– For the calculation of the limits, the following elements are taken into account if selected in
the connection request element: synchronous generator (ElmSym), static generator (Elm-
Genstat), connection request generation unit (ElmConreq) and external grid (ElmXnet). The
user is required to specify those elements that represent “Type-1” elements according to the
standard.
– If no supply transformer is specified in the connection request element, an assessment of
N/A may be issued.
• Loading of network components. Subsequent load flow calculations are executed for the follow-
ing three cases: (i) loading without ElmConreq elements; (ii) loading with ElmConreq elements
(Loads table only); and (iii) loading with ElmConreq elements (Generation/Storage Units table
only). This will ensure that the worst case is considered. Overloadings of network equipment
resulting from the VDE-AR-N 4110 connection request elements are reported. If no overloadings
occur, the five highest loadings from all cases are displayed in the report.

• Admissible voltage changes. Uses the defined generation in any VDE-AR-N 4110 connection
request elements and executes a balanced load flow calculation. The same load flow calculation is
then carried out excluding all generation. The voltage change at buses is calculated and violations
are reported.
– The assessment of the admissible voltage change requires that generation in the MV network
is outaged. The elements that are considered as generation (for outaging) are: ElmSym,
ElmAsm, ElmGenstat, ElmPvsys, ElmVsc, ElmVscmono and ElmConreq. The criterion used
to detect this generation is based on their calculated power flow. It should be noted that
generation defined as part of an MV load ElmLodmv, for example, is not considered. Only
generation which is connected to higher voltage levels (HV) is not outaged. Therefore, users
may define any LV generation that should not be considered by the assessment as an MV
load.
– If a higher voltage level exists in the network, and any step-up transformers with tap-changing
functionality are found (i.e. using voltage control on the LV side), their tap changer will be
set to continuous for the assessment (and returned to their original setting upon completion
of the assessment). If a higher voltage level exists and no such transformers are found, a
warning is issued. This is to avoid any voltage changes in the HV network impacting on the
assessment at lower voltage levels.
• Sudden voltage changes. Calculates the sudden voltage change d for each unit at the junction
point, and assesses these according to appropriate limits.
• Sudden voltage change due to switching of the entire plant. For the load flow based sudden
voltage change (i.e. switching of the whole plant), the worst-case results are obtained considering
the following: (i) switching on/off the whole plant considering only the Loads table; and (ii) switch-
ing on/off the whole plant considering only the Generation/Storage Units table. This ensures that
the worst case is considered.
– When assessing the sudden voltage change due to the plant (as opposed to the individual
units), a step-up transformer is required.
– If no step-up transformer is found in the network, an assessment regarding the sudden
voltage change will not be provided (i.e. it will be “N/A”). This is because the voltage drop
across the transformer can not be considered.
– An initial load flow is executed with the network as-is, and using the Load Flow command
configured as-is. The tap positions of transformers and shunts are then saved. The outage
of each connection request element in turn is then considered via a subsequent load flow,
however this time configured with Load Flow options Automatic tap adjustment of trans-
formers and Automatic tap adjustment of shunts deselected. Following the assessment,
all transformer and shunt taps are set back to their original positions.
• Flicker. Calculated the flicker severity Plt of the individual generation units as well as the whole
plant and assesses the flicker disturbance factors according to appropriate limits. The calculation
of Pst for loads uses the Pst=1 curve as described in the D-A-CH-CZ guideline.

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• Harmonics, interharmonics and supraharmonics. Assesses the harmonic and interharmonic

content based on user input in the connection request element, and makes an assessment
according to appropriate limits. By activating the option Simplified calculation of harmonic current
limits in the command, simplifying assumptions according to the standard are used. For the audio
frequency ripple control it verifies if the level is within the permitted range.
– The non-simplified assessment of all harmonic limits can only be done when the pre-defined
k-factors in the connection request element are not zero. When the resonance factor 𝑘𝑣
and/or the share factors 𝑘𝐵, 𝑘𝐸 and 𝑘𝑆 are zero, the harmonic limits can’t be calculated and
a warning is printed into the output window.
– When the k-factors can’t be determined, it is recommended to use the Simplified calculation
of harmonic current limits.

• Commutation notches. Calculates the relative short-circuit voltage of the commutation reac-
tance, ukkom.
• Maximum short-circuit current. Uses the defined short-circuit current injection in any VDE-AR-
N 4110 connection request elements and executes a short-circuit calculation according to DIN
60909 for a balanced 3-phase fault. The command Calculation option Max. short-circuit currents
is used. Short-circuit current limit violations (obtained from busbar and line types) are reported.
The rated short-time thermal current limits of busbars and lines base on the Fault Clearing Time
(Ith) that is set in the short-circuit command.

Agreed service voltage, Uc

The supply voltage agreed between the system operator and the connectee. According to the standard
it needs to be defined and is used to calculate the limits for the Sudden voltage change.

36.6 Connection Request Assessment Report

Once a calculation is completed, the icon can be used to generate reports. This will bring up the
Report Generation (ComReport) command, where reports can be selected from a list of the reports that
are applicable to the calculation that has been executed. For those reports that accept input parameters
(such as an option to show detailed harmonic results), these can be supplied on the Parameters page
of the command dialog. Reports can be generated as separate documents or combined into one. By
default, reports are generated as PDFs and presented in PowerFactory ’s inbuilt PDF viewer, but it is
also possible to export reports from PowerFactory in various different formats.

For more information about reports and the Report Generation command, see Chapter 18: Reporting
and Visualising Results, section 18.5. It should be noted that reports viewed internally in PowerFactory
are stored in the desktop of the study case, even after they have been closed, until they are actively
deleted by the user.

The reports contain the following information:

• Basic Data of the connection request
• PCC Data
• Assessment status (overall, and per calculation)

• Detailed results per Calculation (depending on user selection of Calculations in Connection Re-
quest Assessment command dialog.)

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Chapter 37

Flickermeter

37.1 Introduction

In terms of power quality, the term flicker is used to describe the phenomenon of unwanted, rapidly
fluctuating light levels due to voltage fluctuations. The IEC 61000-4-15 standard specifies the function
and design of apparatus for the measurement of flicker, termed the Flickermeter. This Flickermeter
comprises five functional blocks which, via the use of multipliers, weighting filters, and smoothing and
squaring operations, perform the tasks of simulating the lamp-eye-brain chain response, and statistically
evaluating the flicker signal [13]. PowerFactory provides a Flickermeter command for the calculation of
the short-term and long-term flicker according to IEC 61000-4-15.

The following sections explain the calculation of short- and long-term flicker by the Flickermeter com-
mand, as well as its configuration and handling.

37.2 Flickermeter (IEC 61000-4-15)

37.2.1 Calculation of Short-Term Flicker

The short-term flicker value 𝑃𝑠𝑡 calculated according to IEC 61000-4-15 is a measure of the severity of
the flicker based on an observation period of 10 minutes. It is defined mathematically as follows [13]:

√︀
2
𝑃𝑠𝑡 = (0,0314 · 𝑃0.1 ) + (0,0525 · 𝑃1𝑠 ) + (0,0657 · 𝑃3𝑠 ) (37.1)
+(0,28 · 𝑃10𝑠 ) + (0,08 · 𝑃50𝑠 )

where the percentiles 𝑃0,1 ,𝑃1 ,𝑃3 ,𝑃1 0 and 𝑃5 0 are the flicker levels exceeded for 0.1; 1; 3; 10; and 50%
of the time during the observation period. The subscript 𝑠 used in the above formula indicates that
smoothed values should be used, which are defined as follows [13]:

𝑃30 + 𝑃50 + 𝑃80

𝑃50𝑠 = (37.2)
3
𝑃6 + 𝑃8 + 𝑃10 + 𝑃13 + 𝑃17
𝑃10𝑠 = (37.3)
5
𝑃2,2 + 𝑃3 + 𝑃4
𝑃3𝑠 = (37.4)
3
𝑃0,7 + 𝑃1 + 𝑃1,5
𝑃1𝑠 = (37.5)
3

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37.2.2 Calculation of Long-Term Flicker

The calculation of the severity of long-term flicker, 𝑃𝑙𝑡 , considers the short-term flicker severity values
over a longer period of time and is calculated according to the following equation [13]:

√︃
∑︀𝑁 3
3
𝑖=1 𝑃𝑠𝑡𝑖
𝑃𝑙𝑡 = (37.6)
𝑁

where 𝑃𝑠𝑡𝑖 (𝑖 = 1,2,3, . . .) are the consecutive 𝑃𝑠𝑡 values and 𝑁 is the number of observation periods. It
can be seen from [13] that when 𝑁 = 1, 𝑃 𝑙𝑡 = 𝑃 𝑠𝑡.

37.3 Flickermeter Calculation

37.3.1 Flickermeter Command

This command is accessible via the Flickermeter button in the Harmonics toolbar, which is accessi-
ble by selecting Harmonics/Power Quality when clicking on the button Change Toolbox .

37.3.2 Data Source

37.3.2.1 File Input

Import data from: specifies the type of data file containing the input data. There are five file types
available for selection as described in detail in chapter 37.3.5.

Filename: the name of the input data file.

Results File: relevant to Results File input files only. The name of the PowerFactory results file.

Configuration File: relevant to ComTrade input files only. The name of the corresponding configuration
file.

Info: a summary of information read from the file.

Use System Separators: relevant to comma-separated value (CSV) input files only. Tick the checkbox
to use the same separators for parsing the file as those used by the operating system. When unchecked,
separators are user-definable.

Separator for columns: in the case of a PowerFactory Measurement File as the input file type, this
indicates the character used as a separator for the columns in the file. In the case of a User Defined Text
File as the input file type, the separator may be selected as one of Tab, Space or Other (user-defined).

Decimal Separator: indicates the separator used for decimal numbers. This is user-definable for a
User Defined Text File as the input file type

37.3.2.2 Selection of Data for Calculation

This table allows the selection of input file data to be analysed. The leftmost column (with labels 𝑦1, . . .,
𝑦24’) provides a naming convention for the output of results, indicating which time-series signals from
the input file were analysed.

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Element: relevant only to a Results File input file type. Used to specify the element from the results file
for which a variable to analyse will be selected. This variable is then specified in the Variable column of
the same table

Variable: relevant only to a Results File input file type. Used to specify the variable for the Flickermeter
command to analyse. This variable is associated with the selected Element (see above).

Column Number: refers to the column/s in the input file which correspond to the time-series signal/s to
be analysed.

Variable Name: for ComTrade files, the variable name is automatically read from the input file and
displayed in the Variable Name column. No variable name is provided for other file types.

Calculate Pst: allows the user to select the signals in the input file for which to calculate the short-term
flicker (𝑃𝑠𝑡 ). Valid for all input file types with the exception of results files.

37.3.3 Signal Settings

37.3.3.1 Signal Settings

Signal Type: selection of either EMT or RMS input signal type. In EMT, RMS values are calculated by
squaring the signal and this introduces a small ripple which contributes to the flicker. In RMS however,
this ripple is not present. To calibrate the Flickermeter, one must use the signals defined in the standard
(i.e. modulation, etc.) and the results must lie within the defined tolerance band. In order to achieve this,
the minimum sampling frequency required for RMS signals is 800 Hz, because at 400 Hz the computed
flicker would otherwise be too low.

Specify start time: user-defined start time at which data should be read from file. This is an absolute
time value that exists within the input file, from which data will be read. If this value cannot be found in
the file, the next time point after the specified start time will be used instead.

Resample Data: the input data will be resampled by the user-defined New Sampling Rate. If the
time step of the data within the input file is not constant, the Flickermeter calculation will automatically
resample the data at the average sampling rate taken from the input file.

New Sampling Rate: user-defined sampling rate at which data will be resampled if option Resample
Data has been selected.

Note: The minimum sampling rate required for instantaneous input data is 400 Hz, and for RMS input
data is 800 Hz.

37.3.3.2 Calculation Settings

Observation Period: the time period over which the flicker will be analysed.

Calculate Plt: perform calculation of long-term flicker 𝑃𝑙𝑡 . When this option is checked, a results file is
written.

Observation Periods: the number of successive observation periods (or “time windows”) to analyse.

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37.3.4 Advanced Options

Input signals for Flickermeter can be either RMS or EMT signals. The algorithm treats both of these in-
puts the same, with the exception of the weight filter coefficients, scaling factor and the cut-off frequency
used. The weight filter coefficients are preset (see Table 37.3.1), however the scaling factor and cut-off
frequency are user-definable parameters and are described below.

37.3.4.1 Parameter Definitions

Cut-off Frequency Cut-off frequency of Butterworth filter (Hz). When using an RMS input signal, the
cut-off frequency is set to 50Hz; when using an EMT input signal, its default value is 35Hz but can be
user-defined.

Filter Offset The offset (in seconds) for the filters to stabilise. A positive, non-zero offset should always
be entered. When using an RMS input signal, the filter offset is set to 5s; when using an EMT input
signal its default value is 5s but can be user-defined. A value of 5s is the minimum amount of time
required to initialise the filters and to attenuate the initial transient.

Scaling Factor Calibration parameter. When using an RMS input signal, the scaling factor is set to
300469,4835 (defined as 2 / (0.0025*0.0025) / 1.065). When using an EMT input signal, its default
value is 303317,5 but can be user-defined.

Set to default Resets the Cut-off Frequency, Filter Offset and Scaling Factor to default values.

37.3.4.2 Constant Sampling Rate

Tolerance: tolerance for determining whether the sampling rate is constant or not. This tolerance is
considered on the Data Source page in the Info frame when displaying the Constant Sampling Rate
parameter.

37.3.4.3 Report

Results of the Flickermeter calculation are displayed in PowerFactory ’s output window provided that
Report has been selected.

Note: When executing the Flickermeter command within DPL, the command option ’Report’ must be
disabled.

Command: displays the command used to output results. The Flickermeter command will write results
to a results file provided that option Calculate Plt on the Signal Settings page has been selected. The
results file used can be accessed via the dialog which opens when the Command button is pressed.

Variable EMT (from IEC 61000-4-15) RMS

𝜅 1,74802 1,74
𝜆 2 · 𝜋 · 4,05981 2 · 𝜋 · 4,1
𝜔1 2 · 𝜋 · 9,15494 2 · 𝜋 · 9,15
𝜔2 2 · 𝜋 · 2,27979 2 · 𝜋 · 2,27979
𝜔3 2 · 𝜋 · 1,22535 2 · 𝜋 · 1,22535
𝜔4 2 · 𝜋 · 21,9 2 · 𝜋 · 1000

Table 37.3.1: Flickermeter Weight Filter Coefficients

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 37.3. FLICKERMETER CALCULATION

Additionally, results of the Flickermeter command can be viewed within the Data Manager as Flexible
Data of the Flickermeter command itself. The relevant variable names for selection when defining the
Flexible Data are 𝑏 : 𝑃 𝑠𝑡_𝑦1, . . ., 𝑏 : 𝑃 𝑠𝑡_𝑦24, for short-term flicker values; and 𝑏 : 𝑃 𝑙𝑡_𝑦1, . . ., 𝑏 : 𝑃 𝑙𝑡_𝑦24
for long-term flicker values). In this case, viewing the results of a Flickermeter calculation will appear
similar to that illustrated in Figure 37.3.1. It should be noted that when multiple Observation Periods
have been calculated, only the Plt results will be displayed (Pst results are shown as ’0’); and for a
single Observation Period the Pst results will be displayed. For further information on defining Flexible
Data, refer to Chapter 10 (Data Manager and Network Model Manager), Section 10.2.4.

Figure 37.3.1: Using Flexible Data to Access Flickermeter Results

37.3.5 Input File Types

The Flickermeter command can handle five different input file types. The configuration of the Flick-
ermeter command for each file type differs slightly, and is therefore described for each case in this
section.

Note: The minimum sampling rate required for instantaneous input data is 400 Hz, and for RMS input
data is 800 Hz.

37.3.5.1 ComTrade

If a ComTrade file has been selected as input to the Flickermeter command, the Configuration File
corresponding to the ComTrade data file is automatically displayed, as is the Sampling Rate as read
from the ComTrade configuration file. The Selection of Data for Calculation table shows the column
number and corresponding variable name as read from the ComTrade configuration file and also a
user selection for which the short-term flicker value should be calculated (checkbox in the Calculate Pst
column). In the example shown in Figure 37.3.2, a single variable has been selected for analysis. It can
be read from this table that this variable corresponds to column 1 of recorded data in the ComTrade input
data file. See Section 37.3.2 (Data Source) for information on other Flickermeter command options.

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Figure 37.3.2: Configuration of Flickermeter Command for ComTrade Input File

37.3.5.2 Comma Separated Values and User Defined Text Files

For a CSV file or user defined text file, the Selection of Data for Calculation table shows that variables
can be selected for analysis according to their corresponding column number in the input file. See
Section 37.3.2 (Data Source) for information on other Flickermeter command options.

37.3.5.3 PowerFactory Measurement File

The PowerFactory Measurement File is a simple ASCII file containing a column of data for each
variable recorded in it. The PowerFactory Measurement File can be used to record results from
other PowerFactory calculations and then used as input to the Flickermeter command. For further
information on the use of PowerFactory Measurement Files, refer to the technical references of the
Measurement File (ElmFile). See Section 37.3.2 (Data Source) for information on other Flickermeter
command options.

37.3.5.4 Results File

If a Results File has been selected as input to the Flickermeter command, the command dialog will look
similar to that shown in Figure 37.3.3. Using a PowerFactory results file as the input file type is practical
when the user wants to first record results from, for example, an EMS/RMS simulation in a results
file, and then analyse the flicker contribution of one or more variables from this file. In the example in
Figure 37.3.3, the specified Element in the Selection of Data for Calculation table is a terminal element
(named “LV Busbar”) recorded in the results file, with its corresponding voltage selected as the Variable
to analyse. See Section 37.3.2 (Data Source) for information on other Flickermeter command options.

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 37.3. FLICKERMETER CALCULATION

Figure 37.3.3: Configuration of Flickermeter Command for Results File

37.3.6 How to use the Flickermeter

The following steps present a small guideline on how to use the Flickermeter command:

1. Define the file type that is supposed to be analysed. The different types are described in chap-
ter 37.3.5.
2. Select the file which contains the measured/simulated data. Different options to configure the
command are described in chapter 37.3.2.
3. Depending on the data source selection, the Selection of Data for Calculation is done by selecting
elements and variables (ElmRes) or by ticking the checkbox “Calculate Pst” for the corresponding
column in the source file. This is generally necessary, not only when you want to calculate Pst.
4. Carry out the Signal Settings as described in chapter 37.3.3.
• Select whether the data are instantaneous values (EMT) or RMS values. Make sure that the
input data have a minimum sampling rate in order to obtain reliable results. For EMT signals,
we recommend a minimum sampling rate of 10 kHz.
5. Define the Observation Period as well as the number of periods that should be analysed as
described in chapter 37.3.3.2. Make sure that, depending on whether Pst and/or Plt should be
determined, that the input data contains a sufficient time range.

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Chapter 38

Optimal Power Flow

38.1 Introduction

The Optimal Power Flow (OPF) module in PowerFactory optimises a certain objective function in a
network whilst fulfilling equality constraints (the load flow equations) and inequality constraints (e.g.
generator reactive power limits). The user can choose between interior point and linear optimisation
methods. In the case of linear optimisation, contingency constraints can also be enforced within OPF.

The available methods are:

• AC optimisation (interior point method) (section 38.2)

• DC optimisation (linear programming (LP))(section 38.3)

• Contingency constraint DC optimisation (LP) (section 38.4)
An OPF calculation in PowerFactory can be initiated by one of the following means:

• Via the main menu Calculation → Optimal Power Flow / Unit Commitment → Optimal Power
Flow. . . ; or
• By selecting Optimal Power Flow / Unit Commitment from the Change Toolbox button ( ) and
then clicking on the Calculate Optimal Power Flow icon .

In both cases, the calculation is started by pressing the Execute button in the OPF command dialog.

The OPF functionality is licensed in two separate modules:

The OPF (Reactive Power Optimisation) module uses an AC load flow calculation and offers a range
of controls and constraints for the optimisation of a selected objective function such as reactive power
reserve.

The OPF (Economic Dispatch) module is an addition to the OPF (Reactive Power Optimisation)
module and cannot be acquired as a stand alone module. The Economic Dispatch module adds the
capability to optimise using cost-related controls such as generation active power dispatch. With this
module the DC OPF can be used together with the possibility to consider contingencies.

38.2 AC Optimisation (Interior Point Method)

If the AC Optimisation method is selected, the OPF performs a non-linear optimisation based on a state-
of-the-art interior point algorithm. The following sections explain the selection of objective function to be

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optimised, the selection of control variables, and the definition of inequality constraints.

Mathematical Background

The non-linear optimisation is implemented using an iterative interior-point algorithm based on the
Newton-Lagrange method. Recall that the goal of the optimisation is to minimise an objective function
f subject to the equality constraints imposed by the load flow equations and also to the inequality
constraints defined for various power system elements. This is summarised mathematically as follows:

𝑚𝑖𝑛 = 𝑓 (⃗𝑥)

subject to:

𝑔(⃗𝑥) = 0 ℎ(⃗𝑥) ≤ 0

where g represents the load flow equations and h is the set of inequality constraints. Introducing a slack
variable for each inequality constraint, this can be reformulated as:

𝑔(⃗𝑥) = 0 ℎ(⃗𝑥) + ⃗𝑠 = 0 ⃗𝑠 ≥ 0

We then incorporate logarithmic penalties and minimise the function:

∑︀
min = 𝑓 (⃗𝑥) − 𝜇 · 𝑖 𝑙𝑜𝑔(𝑠𝑖 )

where 𝜇 is the penalty weighting factor. In order to change the contribution of the penalty function:
∑︀
𝑓𝑝𝑒𝑛 = 𝑖 𝑙𝑜𝑔(𝑠𝑖 )

to the overall minimisation, the penalty weighting factor 𝜇 will be decreased from a user-defined initial
value (𝜇𝑚𝑎𝑥 ) to a user-defined target value (𝜇𝑚𝑖𝑛 ).

The smaller the minimum penalty weighting factor, the less the applied penalty will be for a solution
which is close to the constraint limits. This may result in a solution that is close to the limiting constraint
bounds (if necessary). However, a smaller minimum penalty weighting factor will result in a higher
number of iterations required.

38.2.1 AC Optimisation - Basic Options

38.2.1.1 Objective Function

The Optimal Power Flow command dialog, configured for AC optimisation, offers several objective
functions. These are:
• Minimisation of losses (total)

• Minimisation of losses (selection)

• Minimisation of costs
• Minimisation of load shedding
• Maximisation of reactive power reserve
– Based on rated power/control variable range
– Based on redispatch-/penalty costs

• Minimisation of control variable deviations

– Based on rated power/control variable range
– Based on redispatch-/penalty costs

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Minimisation of losses (total)

When this objective function is selected, the goal of the optimisation is to find a power dispatch which
minimises the overall active power losses.

Minimisation of losses (selection)

The sum of active power losses of all the elements within the set is minimised. To use this option a set
must be defined. The definition of the set is done by selecting the elements, right-clicking on them and
selecting Selections → Set - General→ New. . . . The newly created set is stored within the study case
folder.

Minimisation of costs

When this objective function is selected, the goal of the optimisation is to supply the system under
optimal operating costs. More specifically, the aim is to minimise the cost of power dispatch based on
non-linear operating cost functions for each generator and on tariff systems for each external grid.

Generator redispatch costs are not considered in this objective function.

For this purpose, it is necessary to introduce for each generator, a cost function for its power dispatch;
and for each external grid, a tariff system.

• Cost Functions for Generators: imposing an operating cost function on a generator element
is done as follows: on the Operating Cost tab of Optimal Load Flow page of each synchronous
machine (ElmSym) element’s dialog, it is possible to specify the operating costs of the unit with the
aid of the Operating Costs table (which relates active power produced (in MW) to the correspond-
ing cost (in $/h)). This data is then represented graphically beside the Operating Costs table, for
verification purposes. The number of rows that can be entered into the table is unlimited. To add
or delete table rows, right-click on a row number in the table and select the appropriate command
(i.e. Copy, Paste, Select All; Insert Rows, Append Rows, Append n Rows, Delete Rows, etc.). If
there are more than two rows, spline or piecewise linear interpolation can be selected.
• Tariff Systems for External Grids: an external grid contributes to the overall cost function by
a predefined tariff system. On the Optimal Load Flow page of each external grid (ElmXnet)
element’s dialog , the tariffs can be edited via the Incremental Costs table. This table relates the
cost (in $/MWh) over a certain range of active power exchange. The input data is represented
graphically beneath the Incremental Costs table. In addition, the user can enter a monthly no load
cost (in $/month), which can be interpreted as a vertical shift of the cost function.

In contrast to a synchronous machine, where the cost curve is directly expressed in $/h, the cost curve
of an external grid is defined by means of a tariff which holds within certain intervals. Mathematically
speaking, the cost curve of a synchronous machine is calculated as the interpolation of predefined cost
points, whereas the cost curve of an external grid is a piecewise linear function with predefined slopes
in each interval.

Note that this piecewise linear function is not differentiable at the interval limits. Since non-differentiable
functions might cause problems within the optimisation routine, PowerFactory smooths the cost function
slightly over a small range around the non-differentiable points. The width of this range can be defined
by the user through the Smoothing of Cost Function factor. A value of 0% corresponds to no smoothing
of the curve, whereas a value of 100% corresponds to full interpolation. The default value is 5%. It is
recommended to leave this value at its default setting.

Minimisation of load shedding

The goal of this objective function is to minimise the overall cost of load shedding, such that all con-
straints can be fulfilled. A typical application for this objective function is “Infeasibility Handling”. For
the above mentioned objective functions, it may occur that the constraints imposed on the network are
such that no feasible solution exists. This is evidenced by a lack of convergence of the optimisation. In

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such cases, it is highly likely that not all loads can be supplied due to constraint restrictions. Hence it is
recommended in these situations to firstly perform a Minimisation of Load Shedding.

In this (and only this) optimisation scenario, all load elements which have the option Allow load shedding
enabled will act as controls. This option is enabled in the load (ElmLod) element’s dialog on the Optimal
Load Flow page in the Controls section. All loads without this option enabled will behave as they would
in a conventional load flow calculation. In order to minimise the overall load shedding, for each individual
load, the user must specify the cost of shedding (in $ per shed MVA).

For each load that participates as a control in the optimisation, the scaling factor will be optimised. The
optimisation is such that the overall cost of load shedding is minimised. Additionally, the user can specify
the range over which the load may be scaled (options Min. load shedding and Max. load shedding).

Maximisation of reactive power reserve

The objective of this function is to maximise the overall reactive power reserve of all participating
generation units. There are three options to select how the maximisation is performed:

• Min. deviations from Q target value: if this option is selected the maximisation of reserve is
done by keeping the reactive power of the generators as close as possible to a defined value “Q
target”. The Q target value is set on the Optimal Power Flow page of the generator. It can be
defined as a percentage of the reactive power limits or a percentage of the rated power.
This approach is useful to reserve reactive power while monitoring both, critical voltage drop- and
rise scenarios.
• Min. deviations from min. Q: if this option is selected the target reactive power of the generator
is set to its lowest limit. This approach is particularly useful to reserve reactive power for a critical
voltage drop scenario.

• Min. deviations from max. Q:if this option is selected the target reactive power of the generator
is set to its highest limit. This concept is reserved for critical voltage rise scenarios.

Weighting of deviations: The weighting of the individual reserve of a generator among all participating
generators can either be based on the rated power and the control variable range in relative values or in
a more controllable format, based on the redispatch costs for reactive power change of the generators.
Penalty cost of other network equipment can be used in both cases.

Minimisation of control variable deviations

When this objective function is selected, the goal of the optimisation is to minimise changes to the
control variables whilst satisfying all the constraints.

The Weighting of deviations can be on rated power and the control variable range or based on the
redispatch costs in generators and the penalty cost in other network equipment. If the cost based
optimisation is used, a redispatch calculation can be carried out whilst considering separate costs for
active and reactive power change of generating units.

38.2.1.2 Advanced

On the Advanced tab it can be selected, if Penalty costs for control variable deviations for transformer
taps, shunt steps and HVDC power change shall be considered. The penalty costs for deviating from
the load flow operating point can be entered in each respective network element.

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38.2.2 Controls/Constraints

The global control and constraint settings determine which class of elements will be considered in
the optimisation. The general rule is as follows: a parameter will be considered as a control if the
corresponding flag is set on the Optimal Load Flow page of the element’s dialog and if, in addition,
the corresponding global parameter is set on the Controls/Constraints page the Optimal Power Flow
command dialog.

38.2.2.1 General

Controls

The user can specify which parameters might serve as potential degrees of freedom for the OPF
algorithm; i.e. which parameters will contribute as controls. The set of potential controls can be grouped
into four categories:

1. Generator active power dispatch (ElmSym, ElmXnet, ElmGenstat, ElmPvsys, ElmAsm (only if
DFIG and type is TypAsmo), ElmVsc, ElmVscmono)

2. Generator/SVS reactive power dispatch (ElmSym, ElmSvs, ElmXnet, ElmGenstat, ElmAsm (Only
if DFIG and type is TypAsmo), ElmPvsys, ElmVsc, ElmVscmono)
3. Transformer tap positions:
• 2-Winding Transformer (ElmTr2):
– Tap position, Tap Changer 1 (continuous or discrete)
• 3-Winding Transformer (ElmTr3):
– Tap position HV-side (continuous or discrete)
– Tap position MV-side (continuous or discrete)
– Tap position LV-side (continuous or discrete)
• 4-Winding Transformer (ElmTr4):
– Tap position HV-side (continuous or discrete)
– Tap position LV1-side (continuous or discrete)
– Tap position LV2-side (continuous or discrete)
– Tap position LV3-side (continuous or discrete)
• Step-Voltage Regulator (ElmVoltreg):
– S-Tap Position (continuous or discrete)
– L-Tap Position (continuous or discrete)
• Transformers can be combined into External Tap Controllers for the optimisation. This is
beneficial for parallel transformers to guarantee that their tap positions are synchronised
after the optimisation.
4. Switchable shunts (ElmShnt):
• Number of steps (continuous or discrete)

It should be noted that the load shedding will only be taken into account for the Minimisation of load
shedding objective function. In this case, all loads which allow load shedding are automatically used as
controls.

If enabled, the above mentioned control parameters serve as variable setpoints during the OPF. How-
ever, if a parameter is not enabled as a control parameter, the OPF will treat this parameter according
to the load flow settings. This could be a fixed position or a position found due to the option Automatic
tap adjustment of transformers being selected in the Load Flow Calculation command. In this mode,
the transformer tap position could be found in order to control the voltage of a certain node, or to be a
slave that is externally controlled by some other transformer tap.

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Constraints

The user can formulate various inequality constraints for certain system parameters, such that the OPF
solution lies within these defined limits. The inequality constraints can be defined as “hard constraints”
or “soft constraints”. If “hard constraints” are considered in the OPF it may result in no feasible solution
being found.

The handling of OPF constraints in PowerFactory is very flexible, and various categories of constraints
exist. A constraint is considered in the OPF if and only if the individual constraint flag is checked in the
element and the corresponding global flag is enabled in the OPF dialog.

The optimisation uses further constraints that are automatically imposed as soon as the corresponding
parameter is used as a control. Examples of such constraints are tap position limits and the number of
steps for switchable shunts.

Network elements and their available constraints are listed below:

• Synchronous Machine (ElmSym), Static Generator (ElmGenstat), Asynchronous Machine (El-

mAsm) (only considered if its type is TypAsmo, it is set as a Generator and its Machine Type
is Double Fed Induction Machine), PV System (ElmPvsys), External Grid (ElmXnet), PWM Con-
verter (ElmVsc, ElmVscmono):
– Minimum active power
– Maximum active power
– Minimum reactive power
– Maximum reactive power
• Lines (ElmLne):
– Maximum loading
• Transformers (ElmTr2, ElmTr3, ElmTr4, ElmVoltreg):
– Maximum loading
– Tap position range (if corresponding tap is a designated control parameter)
• Busbars and Terminals (ElmTerm):
– Minimum voltage
– Maximum voltage
• Shunts (ElmShnt):
– Controller steps range (if switchable steps are designated control parameters)
• Boundary (ElmBoundary ):
– Minimum active boundary flow
– Maximum active boundary flow
– Minimum reactive boundary flow
– Maximum reactive boundary flow
• Static Var System (ElmSvs):
– Minimum reactive power
– Maximum reactive power

Active and reactive power limits of generators and external grids

For generators and external grids, the user may impose up to four inequality constraints: namely a
minimum and maximum value for active power generation; and a minimum and maximum value for
reactive power generation. Active power limits are specified as MW values; reactive power limits may
be specified as either absolute values or as per unit values (i.e. referred to the type’s rated apparent
power). Alternatively, it is possible to directly use the reactive power limits specified in the synchronous
machine’s type (TypSym). Again, the user is free to select any number and combination of the available
constraints.

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Branch flow limits (max. loading)

Branch flow limits formulate an upper bound on the loading of any branch (ElmLne, ElmTr2, ElmTr3,
ElmTr4). The user has to specify a maximum value for the loading on the element’s Optimal Load Flow
page. If specified, this constraint is only taken into consideration if the corresponding flag (Branch flow
limits (max. loading)) in the OPF dialog is also ticked. Loading limits are supported for lines and 2- 3-
and 4-winding transformers.

Voltage limits of busbars/terminals

The maximum and minimum allowable voltages for each terminal or busbar element (ElmTerm) can
be specified in the corresponding element’s dialog. Therefore, each terminal or busbar may contribute
at most two inequality constraints to the OPF. Maximum and minimum voltage limits may be imposed
individually; i.e. it is possible to specify an upper limit without specifying a lower limit.

Boundary flow limits

PowerFactory boundary elements (ElmBoundary, icon ) define topological regions in a power system
by a user-specified topological cut through the network. Constraints can be defined for the flow of active
and reactive power in a network (over a defined boundary or between internal and external regions
of a boundary), and this constraint can then be enforced in OPF. For detailed information on defining
boundaries, refer to Section 14.4: Boundaries.

38.2.2.2 Soft Constraints

In the individual network elements, it can be specified whether a constraint shall be used as hard or
soft constraint. If the soft constraint option is selected, the optimisation may violate the set constraint
threshold, which is associated with certain costs/penalties. The penalty used is determined with the
Penalty factor for soft constraints, the default value of the penalty factor for soft constraints is 1000,
multiplied by a Scaling factor for soft constraint penalty, which can be specified in the individual network
element. This allows the violation of constraints to be weighted differently.

With the setting Enforce soft. . . it is possible to overwrite the setting in the network elements whether a
limit shall be interpreted as soft or hard. So for the selected constraints on the General tab all the limits
of a chosen class are interpreted as soft constraints, if the option Enforce soft. . . is selected.

38.2.2.3 Advanced

The power flow over an HVDC link can be controlled in the PWM Converter similar to a generator in
the OPF. HVDC controls are included in the generator active and reactive power control category. If
the controls or constraints for the PWM Converter sub category shall be enabled or disabled, this can
be done via the Additional controls and Additional constraints settings for active and reactive power for
HVDCs separately.

38.2.3 AC Optimisation - Initialisation

The non-linear optimisation requires initialisation to generate an initial starting condition. The Initialisa-
tion page of the OPF dialog allows the user to select the initialisation method. The user may choose
whether the initialisation is performed by using previous OPF results, load flow results or by a flat start.

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Initialise by flat-start

If this option is selected, the OPF will start with all node voltages set to 1 per unit. Note, that starting
from saved results or the load flow results is usually beneficial for the performance and the convergence
of the OPF.

Start from last calculated results if available

If this option is selected, the OPF checks whether previous OPF results are available and if so, uses the
results as starting point for the new calculation. This usually leads to a better and faster convergence of
the OPF. If no previous results are available, the fallback is Start with recalculation of load flow results.

Start with recalculation of load flow results

If this option is selected, the OPF checks whether an “OPF-initialising” load flow result has been
calculated prior to the OPF. Here, “OPF-initialising” means that the flag Use this load flow for initialisation
of OPF was enabled in the load flow command dialog before execution. This flag can be found on the
Advanced tab of the Advanced Options page in the load flow command dialog. The result of this load
flow is then used as a starting point for the iterative OPF interior-point algorithm. If no valid OPF-
initialising load flow result is found, the OPF will recalculate a new load flow.

Start from saved results

If this option is selected, the OPF uses saved results from a previous saved calculation (see Sec-
tion 38.2.3.1). There are two source options:

• from memory: one set of OPF results can be saved to memory. The results are kept in memory
as long as the current study case stays active.
• from a file: any AC OPF results can be saved to a “.opfs” file. If this option is selected, The file to
be used can be defined under File. Saved files can also be used after a PowerFactory restart.

38.2.3.1 AC Optimisation - Saving results

The Save Optimal Power Flow Results command will be shown in both cases and the user can specify
whether the current results shall be saved to memory or to a file. Furthermore the user can select, if
the object identification shall be done via object ID (internal ID that will work even if a parent folder of a
network element is renamed) or via full path name (full path in the database).

If the option To a file is selected the file path must be specified. If the option To memory is selected,
previously saved results in the memory will be overwritten. The command Save Optimal Power Flow
Results offers the option to Adapt the initialisation settings in the Optimal Power Flow command
directly, in order to use the currently saved results.

38.2.4 AC Optimisation - Algorithm

Solver The AC OPF offers two solver options the build in Standard solver and the open source Ipopt
solver.

Penalty Weighting Factor settings are available it the Standard solver is selected.

The penalty weighting factor determines the amount by which the penalty is applied. For example, the
smaller the specified penalty weighting factor, the less the penalty will be applied for solutions which are
close to constraint limits.

• Initial value: initial value of the penalty weighting factor.

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• Target value: target value of the penalty weighting factor.

• Reduction factor: a factor by which the current penalty weighting factor will be divided by between
the iterations.
• Adaption based on complementary slackness: the penalty weighting factor is adapted during the
optimisation. This leads to less iterations and better convergence of the OPF.
• Start outer loops with initial penalty factor: the penalty weighting factor is reset to the initial value
for each outer loop iteration.

38.2.5 AC Optimisation - Iteration Control

PowerFactory offers the user flexibility in configuring of the number of iterations and the convergence
criteria for OPF. The available options on the Iteration Control page of the OPF dialog are described
below.

The implementation of the Lagrange-Newton method means that the OPF will internally minimise the
resulting Lagrange function:

∑︁
𝐿(⃗𝑥,⃗𝑠,⃗𝜆) = 𝑓 (⃗𝑥) − 𝜇 · 𝑙𝑜𝑔(𝑠𝑖 ) + ⃗𝜆𝑇 · [𝑔(⃗𝑥) + ℎ(⃗𝑥) + 𝑠] (38.1)
𝑖

with the Lagrange multipliers (⃗𝜆).

The following parameters can be used to alter the stopping criteria for this iterative process. The
algorithm stops successfully if the following three criteria are fulfilled:

1. The maximum number of iterations has not yet been reached.

2. All load flow constraint equations g(x)=0 are fulfilled to a predefined degree of exactness (i.e.
within an allowable tolerance), which means:
• all nodal equations are fulfilled
• all model equations are fulfilled
3. The Lagrange function L converges. This can be achieved if:
• either the objective function itself converges to a stationary point, or the gradient of the
objective function converges to zero.

The following parameters are used to configure these stopping criteria. The alteration of the default
values for these parameters is recommended only for advanced users.

Maximum number of iterations

• Interior-point algorithm (inner loop): maximum number of iterations for the interior-point algorithm.
• Control loop (outer loop): maximum number of iterations of the outer loop.

Convergence of objective function

Options relating to the convergence criteria for the Lagrangian function: either the value of the function
itself is required to converge to a stationary point, or the gradient of the Lagrangian is required to
converge, as described below.

• Values of objective function become constant: if this option is selected, the user is asked to
enter a value for the Max. Change of Objective Function. If the change in value between two
consecutive iterations falls below this value, the Lagrangian is considered to have converged. The

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Max. Change of Objective Function is the value(in %), below which the Lagrangian is considered
to have converged.
• Gradient of objective function converges to zero: if this option is selected, the user is asked to
enter a value for the Max. Value for Gradient of Objective Function. If the gradient falls below this
value, the Lagrangian is considered to have converged. The Max. Value for Gradient of Objective
Function is the absolute value, below which the Lagrangian is considered to have converged.

For reasons of mathematical exactness, it is strongly recommended to select the latter option, gradient
of objective function converges to zero. If the underlying Jacobian matrix is numerically unstable,
this often results in oscillatory behaviour in the last iterations. Therefore, the latter method provides
assurance that the result is in fact a minimum.

Max. acceptable error for load flow equations

• Max. acceptable error for nodes: the maximum allowable error for the nodal equations (in kVA) can
be entered for high, medium and low voltage nodes as in the load flow command. The thresholds
can be defined in the project settings.
• Max. acceptable error for model equations: the maximum allowable error for the model equations
(in %).

38.2.6 AC Optimisation - Results/Output

38.2.6.1 Outputs

Prior to the non-linear optimisation, the OPF informs the user (in the output window) of the total number
of constraints and controls that will be considered in the subsequent calculation. This information is
detailed such that the imposed constraints and the participating controls are counted for each constraint
and control categories separately.
An outer loop is wrapped around the central non-linear optimisation algorithm. This outer loop is
required to perform rounding and optimisation of the evaluated tap and shunt positions to discrete
values (if desired by the user). The maximum number of outer loops is defined on the Iteration Control
page of the dialog. However, if no convergence is reached with the defined number of outer loops, the
user will be informed via a message in the output window that further outer loop iterations are required.

Three options are available to select the level of detail contained in output messages. These options
are available on the Output page of the OPF dialog and are described below.

Show convergence progress report

If this flag is checked on the Output page of the OPF command dialog, the user will get a detailed report
on the convergence of the non-linear optimisation. For each step of the iteration, the following figures
are displayed in the output window (actual displayed names are shown parenthesised in italics):

• The current iteration if the interior point algorithm (Iter );

• The current value of the penalty factor 𝜇 (PenFac)).
• The current values of the relaxation factors (Rlx1, Rlx2) for the primal and dual variables;
• The current error of the constraint nodal equations (in VA) (Error Nodes);
• The current error of the constraint model equations (Error Model Equations);
• The current error of the inequality constraints (Error Inequalities);
• The current value of the gradient of the Lagrangian function (GradLag);
• The current value of the objective function f to be minimised (ObjFunc);

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Show detailed max. nodal and model equation error elements

If this flag is checked, the algorithm outputs per iteration, the components which have the largest error
in the equality constraints (i.e. mismatch in the load flow equations).

Show marginal costs of constraints

If this flag is checked, the marginal costs of inequality constraints with respect to the objective function
can be issued. Then, the benefit on the objective of releasing a particular constraint of an element is
shown in the output window.

This information is issued per iteration and can be used to determine where limiting constraints of the
OPF are or which constraint is responsible for a possible infeasibility. The user can also define the
number of reported cost factors per iteration.

38.2.6.2 Results

The presentation of OPF results is integrated into the user interface, in that the OPF solution is available
via the complete set of variables available for conventional load flow calculations. These can be viewed
in the single line diagram or through a data browser.

The complete set of variables from conventional load flow calculations is available. For further informa-
tion on defining Flexible Data in PowerFactory, refer to Chapter 10 (Data Manager and Network Model
Manager), Section 10.2.4.

A number of text reports are available and can be selected via the Optimal Power Flow Report icon
( ) in the Optimal Power Flow toolbar. These reports are generated as text in the output window.

If an AC Optimal Power Flow calculation fails, the final results shown for the models are typically not
helpful to detect the reason for the failure. The user can choose which results processed during the
iterations of the algorithm should be restored and shown in case of failure, by selecting the desired
option from the Shown results drop-down menu. The available options are:

• Last iteration results, if feasible: the results of last iteration are shown if the OPF converged. It
could be the case, that better solution was found in the optimisation process, but with this option
the results from the last iteration are shown.
• Last iteration results: the results of last iteration are shown regardless whether the optimisation
converged or not. A feasible solution could have been found in the optimisation process, but will
not be shown if this option is selected.
• Best found feasible results (Default): this option will show the results of a successful optimisation
with the best value of the objective function. If there is no feasible solution, no results are shown.
A solution is feasible, if the “Errors of nodes” and the “Errors of the model equations” are below
the specified thresholds on the Iteration control page and the “Errors of inequalities” are resolved
(no constraint violation).
• Results with smallest error: if the optimisation finds a feasible solution, this solution is displayed
as with the default option Best found feasible results, but in case of non-convergence, the iteration
results with the smallest error are shown. The smallest error is defined as the sum of the “Error
nodes”, the “Error model equations” and “Error inequalities”. This can also be the solution of the
initial load flow.

38.3 DC Optimisation (Linear Programming)

The following describes the configuration of the DC optimisation formulation of OPF in PowerFactory.

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Internally, from the settings provided, a linear programming (LP) formulation of the problem is derived.
The load flow is calculated using the linear DC load flow method. For general information regarding DC
load flow, refer to Chapter 24 (Load Flow Analysis).

The result of the linear optimisation tool includes calculated results for control variables, such that all
imposed constraints are fulfilled and the objective function is optimised.

Provided that a feasible solution exists, the optimal solution will be available as a calculation result. That
is, the algorithm will provide a DC load flow solution where all generator injections and tap positions are
set to optimal values.

38.3.1 DC Optimisation - Basic Options

The OPF calculation is initialised by a load flow, which is displayed by the Load Flow parameter on the
Initialisation page of the OPF dialog. The user can inspect the load flow settings by clicking on the
button. The load flow command contained in the current study case is set here automatically. Within
the load flow command, the Calculation Method will be automatically set to DC Load Flow (linear) for
use by OPF (when Method is set to one of the LP variants).

38.3.1.1 Objective Function

The following objective functions are available when executing a DC Optimisation:

Feasibility Check

Performs a feasibility check of the network considering the specified controls and constraints (i.e.
performs a constrained load flow).

Minimisation of Costs

The objective is to minimise generation costs. To perform a cost minimisation calculation for each
generator, a cost factor needs to be entered:

Cost curve $/MWh per generator element ( ElmSym): the (linear) algorithm uses a fixed cost-factor
[$/MWh] per generator. This cost factor is the average cost considering the costs at the generator’s
active power limits. The selection of this objective function provides the option of calculating the
Locational Marginal Prices (LMPs). For further information on this option refer to: Shadow Prices and
Locational Marginal Prices (LMPs) (See 38.3.1.3).

Minimisation of generator redispatch

Minimises the change in generator redispatch from the generators’ initial value. The Weighting of
redispatch powers can be done For all generators equally or Based on redispatch costs.

38.3.1.2 Advanced

Costs for load shedding

If Allow Load Shedding is among the selected Controls (see Section 38.3.2) the cost for load shedding
can be enabled or disabled with this setting. If enabled, the individual cost terms for shedding from
the loads with enabled load shedding are used and multiplied with the global Scaling factor for load
shedding costs.

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Penalty costs for deviations from load flow transformer tap positions

If tap positions are to be optimised, different solutions can yield the same optimal value for the objective
function. One can therefore impose a term to the objective function, which forces the solution to be as
close as possible to the initial transformer tap positions. The options are:
• Off: no penalty costs used.
• Use global penalty costs: applying the global cost term to all controlled transformers.

• Use penalty costs from transformers: using the individual cost term from controlled. transformers

Redispatch costs for deviations from load flow generator dispatches

If the generator dispatch is to be optimised, different solutions can yield the same optimal value for the
objective function. One can therefore impose a term to the objective function, which forces the solution
to be as close as possible to the initial generators dispatch tap positions. The options are:

• Off: no penalty costs used.

• Use global redispatch costs: applying the global cost term to all controlled generators.
• Use penalty costs from generators: using the individual cost term from controlled generators.

This setting is available for all DC and DC contingency constraint objective functions, except for the
Minimisation of generator redispatch.

38.3.1.3 Shadow Prices and Locational Marginal Prices (LMPs)

If the option Calculate locational marginal prices (LMPs) is selected, the Locational Marginal Price
(LMP) is calculated. The Shadow Price is always calculated. The LMP represents the change in the
system’s total production costs based on a unit change of load at the bus. The calculation of LMP takes
into account the network constraints.

The system lambda represents the change in the system’s total production costs based on a unit change
of any load in the absence of network constraints.

With the Calculate Locational Marginal Prices (LMPs) option ticked, the execution of the OPF will (on
the fly) calculate the LMP for each busbar. The following quantities (current, voltage and powers) are
available for all busbars (i.e. ElmTerm elements with Usage set to Busbar ):

• LMP in $/MWh (Locational marginal price)

• SysLambda in $/MWh (System lambda)

In addition to the LMPs, the DC Optimisation always computes the shadow prices. These quantities
are available per component, which introduces a constraint to the system. The shadow price then
represents the change in the objective function if the constraint is released by a unit change.

38.3.2 DC Optimisation - Controls/Constraints

38.3.2.1 General

Controls

The basic role of each control for the DC Optimisation method is as described for the AC optimisation
method in section 38.2.2.1.

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The user can select from the following control variables (the names of the associated PowerFactory
elements are provided in parentheses):

• Generator active power dispatch (ElmSym)

In generator optimisation, for each selected generator a single control variable is introduced to
the system. The total number of generator controls in this case equals the number of selected
generators.
• Transformer tap positions (ElmTr2, ElmTr3, ElmTr4)
In tap optimisation, for each selected transformer a single control variable is introduced to the
system. The total number of tap controls in this case equals the number of selected transformers.
• Allow load shedding (ElmLod)
A separate control variable is introduced to the system for each selected load. The total number
of load controls in this case equals the number of selected loads. This control variable can be
selected in conjunction with any objective function.

Note: At least one type of control variable in the Controls section of the OPF dialog must be selected.

Constraints

The three constraints are as described for the AC optimisation method in section 38.2.2.1.

The available constraint classes are:

• Active power limits of generators: Active power dispatch constraints can be chosen on an individ-
ual basis (via a checkbox) per generator. The minimum and maximum constraints for generators
are set on the Optimal Power Flow page of the generators. It should be noted that generator
constraints are not implicitly imposed when active power dispatch is selected as a control. Tap
position constraints will be implicitly imposed whenever the corresponding tap is a designated
control variable.
• Branch flow limits (max. loading): Loading constraints can be chosen on an individual basis (via
a checkbox) per line element (ElmLne). If loading constraints are included, the maximum loading
limits will be calculated with respect to the type of the element, or with respect to a thermal rating
object (IntThrating). If a thermal rating object is selected, the limits will be calculated with respect
to the Continuous Rating value.
• Boundary flow limits: Boundary flow constraints can be chosen on an individual basis per bound-
ary element (ElmBoundary ).
For DC optimisation the following constraints are also imposed:

Transformer tap constraints (implicitly imposed)

Minimum and maximum tap positions for transformers (ElmTr2, ElmTr3,ElmTr4) are considered. These
constraints are implicitly imposed when transformer tap positions are specified as controls in the Con-
trols section of the dialog. This means that two constraints are introduced to the LP for the base case
tap position calculation.

Load shedding limits (implicitly imposed)

The minimum and maximum limit for load shedding for each applicable load (selected as control) are
considered if load shedding is used.

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38.3.2.2 Advanced

Calculation of Transformer Tap Positions

• Discrete controls (using direct method): this method calculates discrete tap position values within
the LP (known as the “direct method”). This method may provide better accuracy, however will
yield fewer solutions.
• Continuous controls (Using outer loop rounding): this method calculates continuous tap position
values and then rounds these values to discrete values in the outer loop of the calculation. This
method may be faster but the values may not be optimal.

Calculation method for transformer tap sensitivities

• Linearisation of transformer tap changes: uses linearised load flow equations around the operating
point to derive sensitivities to transformer tap positions.
• Discrete transformer tap assessment: provides a more accurate assessment in cases where there
is a strong dependence of the impedance on the current tap position (e.g. through use of a
measurement report). If the degree of dependence between the impedance and the current tap
position is not significant, the (faster) linearisation algorithm will be used.

A minimal Threshold for power flow constraints is offered. The value represents the minimum change
of active power flow in MW per control variable deviation (e.g. change of one tap for transformers and
infeed change of 1 MW from a generator) for a control to be considered for a respective constraint.

38.3.3 DC Optimisation - Algorithm

The Optimal Power Flow offers different solver choices for solving linear programs. There are build in
options available as well as the possibility to connect external commercial solvers. The solver specific
configuration parameters can be modified. For details of solver selection and configuration please refer
to the according section in the Unit Commitment chapter (39.3.7.2).

38.3.4 DC Optimisation - Iteration Control

Two outer loop settings are available: (i) control of the number of iterations of the algorithm; and (ii)
definition of a constraint tolerance. These settings are described below.

Outer Loop

Following the solution of the LP problem, it may be the case that loading constraints are not within
their boundaries. The reason is that for taps, the algorithm uses tap sensitivities which assume a linear
change in MW flow per tap step. Since these tap sensitivities depend on the initial tap position, the
result becomes inaccurate if the optimal tap position is far from the initial tap position. This inaccuracy
can be remedied by an additional outer loop. At each iteration, this outer loop starts with the optimised
tap positions which were calculated in the previous loop. The following Outer Loop settings can be
entered on this tab:

• Max. number of iterations: maximum number of outer loop iterations until all constraints are
fulfilled (within a defined tolerance). It should be noted that when Max. Number of Iterations is set
to ’1’, the LP is solved without outer loops.
• Max. acceptable error for constraints: maximum relative error (in %) by which a constraint can be
violated while still being considered a feasible solution.
• Check for constraint violations after optimisation: i this option is selected the violated constraints
are written to the output window after the OPF.

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Limitation of branch flow constraints

This option is useful for avoiding long calculation times for large systems. If selected, the LP is solved
via an iterative procedure which iterates until no further constraint violations are found (with respect to
the Max. Acceptable Error for Constraints parameter). It should be noted that the option Check for
Constraint Violations after Optimisation on the Advanced Options page must be selected in order to
utilise this iterative procedure. An initial set of branch flow constraints must be selected by the user, as
described below.

• Initial set of branch flow constraints: the set of branch flow constraints to be considered can either
be the set of N most highly loaded components or a user-defined set. In the case of the set
of N most highly loaded components, the program finds these automatically either by using a
contingency analysis calculation (in the case of a contingency constrained DC OPF) or by using
the initial load flow (for the other OPF methods). In the case of a user-defined set, the user
must define and assign a set of components. A set of components can be defined either via the
single line graphic or Data Manager, by multi-selecting the desired components, right-clicking and
selecting Define. . . → General Set. . . . This set can then be selected and assigned via the
button.
• Max. number of additional constraints per iteration: after solving the LP with an initial set of
constraints, the solution is checked against all loading constraints and overloaded components
are added to the LP. The parameter Max. number of additional constraints per iteration specifies
the maximal number of added components.

38.4 Contingency Constrained DC Optimisation (LP Method)

The Contingency Constrained DC Optimisation performs an OPF using DC optimisation (as described
in Section 38.3: DC Optimisation (Linear Programming)), subject to various user defined constraints
and subject also to the constraints imposed by a set of selected contingencies.

The Contingency Constrained DC Optimisation also considers user-defined post-fault actions. That is,
the optimisation can be carried out using contingency cases that include any specified post-fault action.
These actions include switch events, generator redispatch events, load shedding events and tap change
events.

In order for the OPF to consider post-fault actions, the contingency analysis command that is assigned
to the OPF must be set to “Multiple Time Phases”. The contingency cases can then be defined to
contain post-fault actions. For further information on defining contingency cases with post-fault actions,
see Chapter 26: Contingency Analysis.

In addition to the result variables available for DC optimisation, the contingency constrained OPF
provides result variables for the individual contingency cases.

38.4.1 Contingency Constrained DC Optimisation - Basic Options

38.4.1.1 Contingency Analysis

This is a reference to the Contingency Analysis (ComSimoutage) command to be used during the
contingency constrained OPF. The user can select and set this contingency analysis command via the
button, and view or edit the contingency analysis command settings using the arrow button . If
the user would like the contingency cases to use post-fault actions, the Method used by the contingency
analysis command must be set to Multiple Time Phases. See Chapter 26: Contingency Analysis.

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38.4.1.2 Objective Function

The selection of objective function for Contingency Constrained DC Optimisation includes the same
objective functions as those provided for DC Optimisation (see Section 38.3.1: Basic Options). Two
additional objective functions are provided:

Min. generator dispatch change (pre-to-postfault)

Minimises the sum of the generator dispatch changes between the base case and each contingency
case.

Min. transformer tap change (pre-to-postfault)

Minimises the sum of the tap position changes between the base case and each contingency case.

The Weighting of dispatch changes for both additional objective functions can be Based on redispatch
costs or For all generators equally. If the base case does not fulfill the selected constraints, the base
case will be adapted with the minimal required adjustments.

38.4.2 Contingency Constrained DC Optimisation - Controls/Constraints

38.4.2.1 Controls

The definition of control variables for the contingency constrained DC optimisation method differs slightly
from the DC optimisation method, however the basic fundamental role of each control is as described
for the AC optimisation method in Section 38.2.2.

The user can select how to handle the selected controls in the contingency cases, by enabling the
Separate contingency control for Generator active power dispatch and Transformer tap positions.

• Yes: for each selected control, a control variable is introduced for the base case and for each
contingency case. This will result in different setpoint for the base case and the contingency
cases.
• No: a single control variable is introduced to the system for each selected control. One common
setpoint is calculated for the base case and all contingency cases.

The separate control for contingency cases for Allow load shedding is always enabled. For the pre-to-
postfault objective functions the separate contingency controls have to be enabled for the corresponding
control class.

38.4.2.2 Constraints

This formulation of OPF performs a contingency analysis for a predefined set of contingencies (Co-
mOutage objects; i.e. a set of interrupted components per contingency case). The Max. Loading
(parameter name: maxload) for lines and transformers (ElmLne, ElmTr2, ElmTr3; (one constraint per
bus)) for each contingency case is considered in the calculation. For each loading constraint, the
number of constraints added to the LP will be: 2*(number of contingencies).

In addition to the constraints provided for DC optimisation (for further information see Section 38.3.2),
the contingency constrained DC optimisation method offers additional constraints:

Maximum number of tap changes per contingency

If this checkbox is ticked, then for each contingency, no more than the maximum tap position change
steps from the base case to the contingency case are allowed over all transformers (i.e. for a given
contingency, a constraint is enforced on the sum of all maximum difference of base case to contingency
case taps, over all transformers).

Transformer tap constraints (implicitly imposed)

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Minimum and maximum tap positions for transformers(ElmTr2, ElmTr3, ElmTr4) are considered. These
constraints are implicitly imposed when transformer tap positions are specified as controls in the Con-
trols section of the OPF command dialog.

38.4.3 Contingency Constrained DC Optimisation - Algorithm

As described for DC optimisation. Refer to Section 38.3.3.

38.4.4 Contingency Constrained DC Optimisation - Iteration Control

As described for DC optimisation. Refer to Section 38.3.4.

38.4.5 Contingency Constrained DC Optimisation - Results/Output

For contingency constrained DC OPF, results can be optionally recorded for those branches which
exceed a selected limit value. This can be done for both the non-optimised results and the optimised
results. For each recording of results (i.e. with optimised or non-optimised values) a separate results
file must be chosen.

Contingency Analysis results

Allows the selection of results files for the contingency analysis results with and/or without optimised
controls.

• Results (before optimisation): the results file in which to store the non-optimised results.
• Results (after optimisation): the results file in which to store the calculated (optimised) results.

Limits for Recording

The limits displayed here are set in the selected Contingency Analysis command on the Basic Options
page of the contingency analysis command dialog. They define the limits outside of which results
will be written to the results file(s). See Chapter 26: Contingency Analysis, Section 26.4.1 for further
information.

Reports

Following a contingency constrained DC OPF calculation, a number of text reports are available and
can be selected via the Optimal Power Flow Report icon ( ) in the Optimal Power Flow toolbar. These
reports are generated as text in the output window.

The following reports are offered:

• Optimal Solution: prints a detailed report to the output window, showing all optimal settings for
generators, transformers and loads, component-wise, for all contingencies. An additional flag
(Report only Contingency with max. Deviations) can be checked to show only the settings for the
contingency where the maximum deviation occurs.
• Optimal Solution (per Contingency): prints a detailed report to the output window, showing all
optimal settings, on a per-contingency basis.
• Maximum Loadings: prints a detailed report to the output window showing the maximum loadings
of components against the relevant contingency. The user may define the loading limit for which
to report violations, and may select whether to report only the highest loadings for branch compo-
nents. Moreover, this report facilitates the display of results before and after the optimisation.

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• Loading Violations: prints a report to the output window showing components with loading viola-
tions, against the relevant contingency. The user may define the loading limit for which to report
violations, and may select whether to report only the highest loadings for branch components.
Additionally, the reporting of violations in contingency cases may be suppressed if violations
already exist in the base case.
• Violations per Case: prints a report to the output window showing components with loading viola-
tions, on a per-contingency case basis. The user may define the loading limit for which to report
violations, and may select whether to report only the highest loadings for branch components.
Additionally, the reporting of violations in contingency cases may be suppressed if violations
already exist in the base case.

38.5 Troubleshooting Optimal Power Flow Problems

In general, if a solution can be found, i.e. the optimisation is mathematically solvable, PowerFactory
will find a solution. In some cases the number of controls and constraints, the bandwidth for the target
values and the cost definition of the generators, might lead to non-convergence.

It should be noted that executing an Optimal Power Flow calculation on a large network generally
requires careful adjustment of the controlled elements.

This section explains a typical approach to achieve convergence of an (AC) Optimal Power Flow calcu-
lation.

38.5.1 Verification of Load Flow Options and Results

Although the solution of the load flow calculation is only used as starting point of the optimisation if the
corresponding option is selected from the Initialisation page of the command, it should be noted that it is
always recommended to have a working load flow before performing an optimisation (see section 24.6:
Troubleshooting Load Flow Calculation).

Since the load flow solution is important to the optimal power flow calculation, the first step when
troubleshooting a non-convergent optimal load flow is to check the load flow results and options.

Some of the options for active power control and balancing are not supported by the OPF command.
The optimal power flow is solved with the following load flow options:

• Active power control set to As Dispatched

• Balancing set to by reference machine

Therefore, if these are not the options used by the load flow and the OPF is not set to flat start, the
Update Database command can be used to save the dispatch of the machines to a new operation
scenario. It is recommended to compare the results of the load flow with the original active power
control options against the results of the load flow after updating the database and the active power
control set As Dispatched and by reference machine.

38.5.2 Verifications of OPF Constraints

The introduction of constraints into the optimisation function has a big impact on the convergence. For
example, if no constraints are selected, the OPF might find a mathematical solution that is not physically
feasible (e.g. infinite active power on a generator); on the other hand having too many constraints
selected complicates the convergence process.

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In this sense, the regulation of active and reactive power options during the load flow, i.e. power limits
and tap changers, is also important for OPF. It is less likely that an OPF will converge if the constraints to
be considered during the OPF are violated during the load flow calculation, regardless of the initialisation
option selected; being too close to the limit might also make convergence difficult.

A good approach to verify this is to execute a load flow calculation and use the flexible data page of the
elements to check if the limits are violated, or nearly violated.

It is also important is to check whether the limits are “reasonable”. Sometimes limits are entered via
scripts or an import, and experience is that it is easy for the comma-separator of some limit to be in
the wrong place. Note that very broad limits might disturb the OPF since the problem might become
unbounded. Reasonable restrictions generally help. For the external grid, the default Q-limits are ±9999,
which is not helpful for OPF convergence.

Once this is done, it can be decided which elements should be considered in the OPF, by selecting the
corresponding check box of each element.

For the voltage limits, the OPF voltage constraint should not be set on terminals with internal or junction
node usage. Terminals with this usage belonging to a substation automatically take the value of the
substation.

It is generally beneficial to consider the respective limits for a selected control, for example the active
power limits of a controlled generator, to avoid unreasonable results for this control. On the other hand
it is possible in the OPF to select limits of non-controlled unit as constraint, for example the reactive
power limits of a generator without reactive power control enabled. This might be a valid approach for
some special cases, but generally a negative impact can be expected for the convergence behaviour.

38.5.3 Verification of the OPF Controls

The elements selected as controls should also be verified when troubleshooting an OPF. It is important
to note that if the elements selected for the control are also participating in station controllers, they won’t
be able to assist in maintaining a corresponding voltage setpoint during the optimisation.

38.5.4 Step-by-Step Approach

In a first step, the OPF should feature simple control variables which are not being used for control by
the Load Flow. Below is a step-by-step procedure for an OPF with Maximisation of Reactive Power
Reserve as objective function; the procedure is similar for other objectives.

1. Select all non-controlling units without capability curves (PQ-generators, not in station-controller,
not PV) from the set of potential control machines and mark the Reactive Power-control flag. Do
not select any limits yet!
2. Configure the OPF command as follows:
• Select Reactive Power controls.
• Initialise with Load Flow.
• Penalty weighting factor should start at 50 and terminate at 1.0e-05. In this way, we initially
give more weight to satisfying the constraints (at penalty 50) and finally give very little weight
to this, helping to find the optimal solution.
• Gradient value for convergence should be set to 1.0e-05 (helps to find the optimal solution).
3. Calculate the OPF and check the deviations from the Q-target values. If it does not converge, add
generators one-by-one to find the problematic control.
4. Configure the OPF command to include Reactive Power-constraints. Activate the Q-limits of the
currently participating units and run OPF again. If it does not converge, add constraint-pairs
(min/max) one-by-one to find the problematic constraints.

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5. Include all non-controlling units with capability curves in the tab Controls and Constraints on the
OPF page and optimise again. Generally, capability curves can cause difficulties in convergence
when they are voltage dependent or not differentiable. If it does not converge, add controls and
constraint-pairs (min/max) one-by-one to find the problematic ones.

In the next step, we can add generating units that are contained in a station controller or PV-generators
to the OPF:

1. Configure the OPF command to include voltage constraints.

2. If Q-setpoints are controlled by a station controller, the corresponding generation units can be
added to the OPF directly (controls / constraints). If the OPF shows convergence problems, a
boundary can be defined at the Q-setpoint cubicle of the station controller. Then, add Q-limits
(only) around that setpoint to the OPF in the boundary and activate Boundary Flow limits in the
OPF command.
3. For voltage controlling units: Find the controlled terminal of such a generation unit. Check the
calculated voltage in the Load Flow and define the upper and lower limit around this value with
some bandwidth. Activate the voltage constraints in the terminal.
4. Add the generation units (control/Q-constraints) to the OPF and run it. Do this one-by-one to
recognise problematic control variables and limits. Sometimes one may hit an essential controller
for the Load Flow.

If tap positions are added to the OPF, note the effect on station controllers: transformers which are
selected to participate in the optimisation will no longer be used by the station controllers, which can
lead to voltage set points not being met.

When further constraints (voltage or reactive power) are added, one must keep in mind that the selected
controls actually need to have an impact on these constraints. This can again be evaluated step-by-step.

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Chapter 39

Unit Commitment and Dispatch

Optimisation

39.1 Introduction

The Unit Commitment and Dispatch Optimisation allows the user to complement the electrical
calculations with market simulations, without any need for an external tool. It solves the unit commitment
linear-programming problem over a predefined period of time, while optimising the operating point of
the dispatched generators, for instance to minimise the overall operating costs. The module combines
functionalities of Quasi Dynamic Simulation with the Optimal Power Flow and the Contingency Analysis.
The Unit Commitment and Dispatch Optimisation functionalities are placed in the toolbar “Optimal Power
Flow / Unit Commitment”.

The Unit Commitment and Dispatch Optimisation can be executed based on a balanced AC load flow
or a linear DC load flow. A time range and step size for the simulation are defined, and the user can
specify whether contingencies should be considered for the optimisation. If contingencies are defined,
curative control actions can be taken into consideration.

The tool offers a wide range of configuration possibility and allows selective configurations to the
objective functions, the controls and constraints to match specific requirements.

The Unit Commitment and Dispatch Optimisation is referred to as Unit Commitment in a short form in
several places in PowerFactory and in the User Manual.

39.2 Application Cases for the Unit Commitment

The Unit Commitment and Dispatch optimisation module can be used in various setups, ranging from a
basic market simulation to a pure redispatch calculation. This can be achieved by selectively enabling
the constraints and controls in the network and differentiating in an AC or DC load flow based calculation.
In general the controls and constraints can be selectively enabled for single units or globally in the Unit
Commitment command. Thus, it is possible to optimise and investigate the whole system, only certain
network parts or even individual units.

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39.2.1 Full Unit Commitment

The main application is to execute a full Unit Commitment calculation for a network. Unit Commitment
optimises various control variables in an electrical network, such as the power dispatch of generators
and tap positions of switchable equipment, in order to achieve a common target. This can be done for
a single point in time or for a time range. The dependencies between the time steps can be considered
via minimum up and down times and ramp limits. Unit Commitment considers the network limitations
via definable constraints for equipment loading, power flow limitations and voltage ranges. The goal is
to match demand and generation at the most economical operating point by modifying the generator
dispatch or by load shedding. Each control variable has assigned costs as a basis for the optimisation.
In PowerFactory, the Unit Commitment function can directly provide a solution, without the need of
a later redispatch, since all the network constraints can be directly taken into account for the base
case and selected contingency cases in each time step. Usually, all costs in the system are minimised
whilst taking into account all network constraints directly in one execution of the command. If the Unit
Commitment is to be independent from the previous dispatch, the additional redispatch costs should
not be considered.

39.2.2 Market Simulation

The Unit Commitment and Dispatch Optimisation module can also be used to execute a market sim-
ulation without considering any (or only selected) network constraints. Thus, the resulting dispatch
represents the solution of a free, unconstrained market in which the cheapest units generate the
required power regardless of the feed-in point. A market simulation may be needed to determine
the power plant schedule of the unregulated marked and derive the required redispatch in a second
iteration.

The constraints of the generating units such as ramps and minimum downtimes can optionally be taken
into account, so as to have a feasible solution for the individual units. Also cross border flows can be
considered via boundary constraints. Usually the DC load flow based Unit Commitment is used when
executing a market simulation and the additional redispatch costs are not taken into account.

39.2.3 Redispatch Calculation

A pure redispatch calculation can be carried out with the Unit Commitment module by first executing
a market simulation without considering network constraints and then running a Unit Commitment
while regarding network constraints such as line loadings, and considering contingencies. The results
from the market simulation can also be imported into PowerFactory via characteristics, if the market
simulation is executed in an external program which might not be able to consider network constraints
for n-x cases. It might be a good option to disregard the operational costs in the objective function
for a redispatch calculation and work with positive and negative additional redispatch costs. Since
a redispatch calculation is strongly focussed on the network limitations, the AC load flow based Unit
Commitment should be used to consider the influence of the reactive power on the critical loaded
elements as well. Individual curative redispatch actions for each contingency can be computed in
addition to the base case solution if the curative redispatch option is enabled.

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39.3 Unit Commitment Command

39.3.1 Basic Options

39.3.1.1 Load flow

The Unit Commitment and Dispatch Optimisation can be executed based on an AC balanced load
flow calculation or a linearised DC load flow. If the AC load flow is selected, the Unit Commitment can
optimise the active and reactive power dispatch and can additionally include voltage and reactive power
constraints. For the DC-based simulation only the active power dispatch is optimised. The load flow
method is automatically set in the load flow command. Other load flow settings can be changed via the
pointer to the load flow command. Keep in mind that the optimisation is always linear. Therefore the
control parameters for an AC Load Flow based Unit Commitment are also set bases on the linearised
optimisation and can lead to deviations in set constraint values or even non-convergence.

39.3.1.2 Consider Contingencies

When ticked, one common dispatch is determined respecting base- and outage situations simultane-
ously. Only network constraints such as loading-, boundary- and voltage constraints are formulated
with the base case control variables for the contingencies. The constraint group can be individually
selected to feature contingency constraints. It is also possible to determine an optimal dispatch with
this tool incorporating all base case constraints only. In a second step, the algorithm can then write the
corresponding results for all contingencies to result files. The contingency command can be accessed
and modified via the pointer to the Contingency Analysis. Please note that only a very restricted part
of the contingency Analysis features is supported.

• Only Single Time Phase is supported

• Contingency screening and Remedial Actions are not supported

Contingency filters (see Section 39.3.4.4) can be defined to restrict the consideration of the individual
constraints to the most relevant ones.

If the option Use linearised calculation is selected, the contingency analysis will execute feasible
contingencies with a fast linearisation method (for AC or DC).

39.3.1.3 Time Period

The calculation time period can be defined via default time periods like a day a month or a year or as
a user-defined range. The calculation is then executed for certain time points over the defined time
period. These calculation points can either be equidistant with a specified step size or, if “User-defined
study times” is selected, individually defined.

39.3.2 Objective Function

The objective function of the minimisation can be defined by the user, who chooses either “Minimisa-
tion of total costs” or “User-defined”. “Minimisation of total costs” defines the complete objective
function with all function components, which then minimises the overall network operating costs. This
means all costs selected in the models will be used. If the “User-defined” objective function is chosen
the function components can be selected individually. If a function component is disabled, it disregards
the settings/costs in the corresponding network elements. The available function components are:

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• Minimise generator operating costs: The generator operating cost include the fuel costs,
emission costs and other fixed and variable costs. The operating costs can be defined via
a table directly in the generator or in a cost curve model for generators (ElmSym), external
grids (ElmXnet), static generators (ElmGenstat), PV-systems (ElmPvsys) or doubly-fed induction
machines (certain ElmAsm models), whenever they are not selected to be variable renewable
energy sources (VREs).
• Minimise additional generator redispatch costs: The objective function participation tries to
keep generator active power values as close as possible to the values prior to the optimisation
and can be defined for the same elements as above.
• Minimise generator start-up/shut-down costs: Start-up/shut-down costs can be defined for the
same elements as operating costs. The costs can be entered via a constant cost value, a simple
model with cold and warm-start-up costs or a step-function (via a table) depending on the off-line
time.

• Minimise curtailment of variable renewable energy sources (VREs): Curtailable elements

where the flag Variable Renewable energy source is ticked on the Unit commitment page can
reduce their injection. This part of the objective minimises the curtailment of these VREs. All
generator elements that feature production costs above can be selected to be VREs, but typically
they would be of class ElmGenstat or ElmPvsys.

• Minimise load shedding: Load shedding is a last emergency step for network operators. This
is possible for loads where the flag “Allow load shedding” is ticked on the Unit Commitment page.
This part of the objective minimises the shedding of loads based on the Load Flow values.
• Minimise control variable deviations of transformers, shunts and HVDCs: The objective
function participation tries to keep taps and HVDC-controls as close as possible to the values prior
to the optimisation, i.e., the Load Flow tap/control. Costs for deviations are defined within the indi-
vidual elements, which are ElmTr2, ElmTr3, ElmTr4, ElmVoltreg, ElmShnt, ElmVsc, ElmVscmono.
When minimising the taps/shunt controls or HVDC-controls it can mean keeping the positions as
close as possible to the values prior to the optimisation, i.e., the Load Flow tap/controls (default if
“Minimisation of total costs” is objective function) or as close as possible to the optimised values
of the previous timestep.

39.3.3 Controls

39.3.3.1 General

Controls

The controls offered depend upon the selected load flow method and the controls linked to reactive
power are not available if DC load flow initialisation is used. The supported controls are:

• Active power dispatch: Synchronous generators (ElmSym), external grids (ElmXnet), static gen-
erators (ElmGenstat), PV-systems (ElmPvsys) or doubly-fed induction machines (certain ElmAsm
models) may contribute such a control variable. HVDCs (ElmVsc, ElmVscmono) can also be
selected as control variables, if they are AC active power controllers in the load flow as well. The
slack or reference machine should be included as an active power control.

• Transformer tap positions: Quad-Boosters in particular can be very effective in reducing loading
violations. Elements that may participate here are ElmTr2, ElmTr3, ElmTr4, ElmVoltreg. The
general representation as continuous or discrete controls is configured on the Advanced page.
Please note that this only applies to controls that are selected to be discrete controls in the element
itself. Tap controllers for parallel transformers can be used.

• Load shedding: Loads can be shed to eliminate overloads, when this option is selected. The
priority is based on the cost in the element.

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• Reactive power dispatch (only AC): Synchronous generators (ElmSym), external grids (ElmXnet),
static generators (ElmGenstat), PV-systems (ElmPvsys) or doubly-fed induction machines (certain
ElmAsm models), HVDCs (ElmVsc, ElmVscmono) may contribute such a control variable. The
relation between reactive power and constraints such as bus voltages and loadings is usually
highly non-linear, especially for larger networks. But the optimisation itself is linear and uses
the linear sensitivities from the operating point before the optimisation. Thus, deviations and
mismatches can regularly occur when optimising the reactive power dispatch.
• Switchable shunts (only AC): This control may assist when it comes to voltage constraints /
stability.

Control variable limits: It can be selected whether the limits (which are defined in the network
elements) should be considered or not via list boxes on the right side of the control variables.

It is recommended to include the control variable limits to obtain realistic results. The available limits
are:

• Active power limits

• Transformer tap positions limits
• Load shedding limits
• Reactive power limits (only AC)

• Shunt tap positions limits (only AC)

Additional controls are available if the active or reactive dispatch controls are enabled, in order
to specify whether certain classes of generators/converters shall participate as controls in the Unit
Commitment.

• Active/reactive power controls for virtual power plants: The participation of virtual power
plants can be enabled or disabled for the unit commitment with this setting.
• HVDC active/reactive power controls are important for the redirection of power flows in order
to reduce overloads. This setting can be changed when active or reactive power controls are
selected.
• Allow curtailment of variable renewable energy sources: Generators marked as VRE can be
shed to eliminate overloads, when this option is selected. It is active and can be changed when
active or reactive power controls are selected. The priority is based on the cost in the element.

39.3.3.2 Curative Controls

Curative controls actions are only applicable if contingencies are considered in the Unit Commitment.
The curative capabilities of each control has to be specified individually in the network element. Under
the global setting Allow curative control variables the curative control actions can be enabled or
disabled for a corresponding control class (Active power dispatch, Transformer tap positions, . . . ) by
setting the Allowed control usage:
• Preventive only : Only the preventive controls of the corresponding class are used. The curative
controls are disregarded.
• Curative only : Only the curative controls of the corresponding class are used. The preventive
controls are disregarded.

• Preventive and Curative: Each control of the corresponding class is used as specified in the
network element.
The possible effect of curative actions is considered for the base case in the optimisation and thus a
more relaxed base case solution can be achieved. The costs of curative actions are neglected for the

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base case solution, since the probability of an actual activation is very low. The cost of curative actions
are used to determine which actions are to be applied for each contingency and each point in time.

The usage of curative actions strongly increases the size of the optimisation problem, thus longer solving
and execution times have to be expected compared to only using preventive control actions.

39.3.3.3 Advanced

Power balance: The option “Enforce control variable power balance” will force the Unit Commitment to
do a redispatch if required to keep the same power balance (sum of output of generators selected as
control) before and after the optimisation. If this option is not selected and the slack not included in the
Unit Commitment as a control, the optimisation would use this degree of freedom and reduce the infeed
of power with the controlled machines.

Modelling of Discrete Controls: Transformer tap positions and switchable shunts can either be mod-
elled as discrete variables in the optimisation, or as continuous variables which are rounded at the end
of the optimisation. This approach will be applied whenever there is an element in the system where
the control type of the tap/shunt is discrete.

Control variable values outside calculation time period: The historical and future dispatch situations
are important in a Unit Commitment calculation if time-dependent constraints are to be considered. If the
option “Not considered” is selected before or after the time period, it means that the Unit Commitment
can move the controls freely to any setpoint without the consideration of ramps or start up/shut down
costs. For example: If a generator is offline in the load flow the Unit Commitment can start it in the first
hour without any start up costs to any setpoint point without the limitations by ramps, since no history
is considered. If the variable values outside the calculation period should be considered, the options
“Non-optimised values of first calculation time” and “Non-optimised values of last calculation time” can
be selected. In this case, the load flow value from the first/last point in time is taken and a generator
that is for example offline at the start of the calculation period will have start up costs in the first time
step if it is started. Also the ramp limitations will apply for this first calculation step. If any further history
of control variables shall be considered, characteristics have to be used (e.g. on the “Must run”-flag or
directly on the setpoints).

39.3.4 Constraints

39.3.4.1 General

Constraints can be defined in the network elements and selected for consideration in the Unit Commit-
ment dialog. A constraint will only be active if it is specified in the network element and globally in the
Unit Commitment / Dispatch Optimisation command. Some constraints can be defined as soft or hard
constraints in the network elements.

Power flow / Voltage constraints are network constraints which can be considered for the Unit com-
mitment simulation. The constraints can be defined as hard or soft constraints
• Branch flow constraints (max. loading) are available for transformers and lines.
• Branch flow constraints (max. power) (AC only) are an addition to the branch flow constraints
based on max. loading and are available for transformers and lines if the max. loading option is
selected in an AC Unit Commitment. The max. loading option calculates the sensitivities as a
delta loading per control action. For the max. power option, an additional constraint is formulated
which is based on the sensitivity of a power change per control action. The power representation
can be adapted in the Advanced Algorithm settings (39.3.7.3). This option is beneficial if the
direction of the flow on a constraint branch is changing.
• Boundary flow constraints can be defined for boundaries to limit the active and/or reactive power
exchange over boundaries. A use case would be a limitation of the power exchange between

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neighbouring countries.
• Voltage constraints of busbars (AC only): This constraint keeps the voltage at busbars between
their upper and lower voltage limit.

Generator Constraints comprise further limitations of generators besides the power limits. The gener-
ator constraints can be defined in the generators which can be controlled by the Unit Commitment.
• Ramp rate constraints define the speed that the injected active power of a generator is able to
change over time (in MW/h). Moreover, there can be max. start-up ramps and shut-down ramps
defined. This constraint is always considered as a hard constraint.
• Minimum up-/down-times specify how long a unit must run, once switched on, or remain off,
once switched off. These are generally constraints with a high number of additional variables and
involving time-coupling. It is advised to add them with care. This constraint is always considered
as a hard constraint.

• Spinning reserve constraints are defined for regions (grids (ElmNet), zones (ElmZone) and ar-
eas (ElmArea)) and define the minimum value for the spinning reserve. Contributing generators to
the spinning reserve are defined on the generator “Load Flow” page via the checkmark “Consider
for region spinning reserve” on the “Automatic Dispatch” tab. The constraint value for the spinning
reserve is entered in MW and the available spinning reserve for a region can be determined by
checking its contents. This constraint can be defined as a hard or soft constraint in the network
elements.
• Energy/Storage constraints indicate whether the energy limits and target value at the end of a
unit commitment for storage models (ElmStorage) shall be considered (see 39.6).

39.3.4.2 Soft Constraints

Soft constraints are constraints that need not necessarily be satisfied by the optimiser. So the constraint
can be violated, but this results in a cost penalty. Whether a constraint is soft or hard has to be defined
in the network elements on the Unit Commitment page.

Also on the Advanced page of some network elements a different constraint type and different constraint
limit can be specified for contingencies, as well as a cost scaling factor that will be multiplied, for each
element, by the global costs for soft constraints.

The option Enforce type for active constraints offers a global control for the different constraint
classes (Branch flows, boundary flows, voltages, others) on whether the specified constraint type shall
be taken from each component/element or globally enforced as soft or hard constraint.

Penalty cost type for constraint violations: This option allows the user to force all costs for constraint
violations to be linear for all soft constraints. If “Linear for all soft constraints” is selected, this overrides
the selections in the network elements as to whether the cost for constraint violation shall be linear or
non-linear.

Linear penalty cost for constraint violations: Penalty costs for elements with linear soft constraints.
The value is multiplied by the individual scaling factor that can be specified in each network element.

Non-linear penalty costs: The use of non-linear soft constraints can be configured in this table if the
non-linear option enabled. Instead of constant costs as in the linear option, the costs change for discrete
violation ranges as specified in the table. The idea is to have increasing costs for more severe violations,
so that a solution with a larger number of slight violations is preferred over a solution with just a few very
severe violations.

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39.3.4.3 General Filters

The number of constraints has a big impact on the performance when executing a Unit Commitment
calculation. Hence, it is beneficial to reduce the number of constraints to be considered.

The margin filters are an option to reduce the number of constraints depending on the dispatch for each
time step.

Filter for power flow constraints: When loading/boundary constraints are formulated, the margin to
the max/min allowed values before the optimisation is calculated. This value indicates the likelihood of
the constraint being violated.

The setting “Do not consider, if constraint margin is greater than” allows the user to specify a
threshold that constraints with a higher margin are not used in the formulation of the optimisation
problem. This allows a leaner formulation for the solver and thus better performance, but there is a
risk that some filtered constraint may be violated after the optimisation. If a filtered constraint is violated
in the recalculation, a warning will be issued in the output window.

The Filter for voltage constraints option works in the same way as the filter for power flow constraints
and is available if voltage constraints are used in a AC based Unit Commitment.

39.3.4.4 Contingency Filters

The size of the optimisation problem increases significantly for each considered contingency. Therefore,
reducing the number of contingencies has a big impact on the performance. There are several filters
available to filter redundant and similar contingencies.

The options on this page will only be shown if contingencies are considered.

Filter by outage distribution factor: The outage distribution factor describes the change in power flow
on a circuit as a result of the (fault) outage of another circuit. The minimum absolute and relative outage
effect thresholds for consideration of contingency constraints can be entered.

Restrict number of critical constraints: The maximum number of contingency constraints which are
formulated in the MILP for a constraint can be limited separately for branch flows, boundaries and
busbar voltages. The selection of the most critical constraints is based on the effect of a contingency
on the element and its margin.

Filter equal constraints: Several constraints can be very similar in the Unit Commitment. It can be
sufficient to only considerer one of these similar constraints. Constraints are regarded as similar if the
Max. constraint value deviation and the Max. effectiveness deviation are under a specified threshold. In
the first step, groups of contingencies are assembled for each constraint based on the Max. constraint
value deviation and then the effectiveness values are compared within a group. If the option Use fast
comparison heuristic is enabled, the comparison of the effectiveness deviations are not compared one
by one for each contingency but with some heuristics to increase performance.

39.3.5 Results/Output

39.3.5.1 Results

The Unit Commitment and Dispatch Optimisation simulation writes three result files during execution.

These three files are contained as sub result files within one main result file (“Unit Commitment DC/AC”).
The sub result file “Unit Commitment (summary)” stores the overall simulation results and thus contains
only one row of data and is not editable.

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The “Unit Commitment (before optimisation)” result file saves the load flow results of each time step
before the optimisation and is equivalent to the results from a quasi dynamic simulation. The “Unit
Commitment (after optimisation)” result file saves the results after the optimisation.

The control variables, such as the power setpoints of controlled machines and tap positions of controlled
transformers, will automatically be recorded in the before and after optimisation result files for each time
step. Additionally, the settings on the Result-page offer the possibility to record other results of interest
in a convenient way. Besides this, the user can add other variables for recording for both result files or
in the main result file as in other calculations.

The available settings for the After optimisation results are:

• Record redispatch costs per time step: In addition to the automatically recorded control value
solutions, the respective costs can be written to the result file directly without the recalculation of
the optimal solution.
• Calculate and record load flow results with optimal controls: The optimal controls are cal-
culated by the solver and automatically recorded. If this options is selected, a second load flow
sweep will be calculated, verifying the solution by applying the optimal controls to the network with
this option. Only with this setting enabled, the following options for recording are available and
user defined variables can be recorded.
• Record all constraint result variables: If this option is enabled the results of all constraints are
recorded.

The option Record contingency results (after optimisation) is only available if the contingency option
on the basic options page is selected. If this option is enabled the full contingency result files are
recorded. If curative controls are enabled, the suboption Record curative control variables only
allows the user to limit the recording of results to the curative control variables.

The control variables are also automatically recorded for the Before optimisation results. In addition
with the option Record all constraint result variables all constraints will be recorded.

39.3.5.2 Output

Output: The user can choose whether there should be only a start and end message for the ComUc,
more details such as the current calculation step (time sweep, optimisation, critical contingency filtering,
etc.) or even the full output of the contingency time-sweep and optimisation.

Max acceptable error for constraints defines a threshold for which the optimal solution is chosen to
be verified on the Results page. When the solution is verified and violations are detected, there will be
sets of violation elements reported in the output window.

39.3.6 Maintenance

Planned outages can be defined on the maintenance page of the Unit Commitment dialog. The button
“Show all” opens the outage library folder and shows all available planned outages (IntPlannedout) of
the project. The button “Show used ones” shows a browser with the selected planned outages for the
simulation.

39.3.7 Algorithm

39.3.7.1 General

Restrict simultaneous optimisation period (rolling horizon): If this option is selected, the optimi-
sation is separated in time periods of length number of study times. These time periods are optimised

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individually, but using the optimisation results of the prior periods. The overlap is not used after the
optimisation; it is only there to consider an outlook on the variable behaviour for the next period. The
linear problem can therefore be reduced significantly in size by solving several sub problems. So using
this rolling horizon leads to a significant decrease in memory usage, an increase in performance and
can help to improve solvability. Keep in mind the minimisation can only find the optimum for each single
time period and the found solutions are therefore local optima. But if the time period is significantly
longer then the minimum up and down times of generating units the found local optimum will be very
close to the global optimum.

Update of effectiveness for power flow/voltage constraints: Calculating the sensitivities/effective-

ness of the control variables on power flow and voltage constraints can be demanding. A recalculation
is always needed when the topology of the network changes. Optionally, this can also be triggered after
a fixed number of calculation steps.

There is only a minor impact of dispatch changes to the effectiveness in DC calculations. Therefore it
is usually sufficient to do the recalculation only when the topology changes. For AC based calculations
the effectiveness is more dependent on the dispatch and it may be beneficial for the accuracy to
recalculate the effectiveness values more frequently or even for every time step. The recalculation
of the effectiveness values will impact the calculation times.

Thresholds for power flow/voltage constraints:

When loading/boundary/voltage constraints are formulated, the effectiveness (Sensitivity) of generators,

transformers, loads, HVDCs and shunts is calculated in order to estimate the constraint values with
varying controls.

In the optimisation all effective controls are considered for each constraint. The effectiveness thresholds
for determining which controls are to be considered can be specified relative in percent and as an
absolute sensitivity. The two thresholds are linked with an “OR”-condition. Setting a low threshold will
lead to a larger optimisation problem since more controls are considered for each constraint. A higher
effectiveness threshold may result in more uncertainties and potential overloads after the optimisation,
since some controls with small impacts are not considered but still change the resulting outcome of the
constraint element.

39.3.7.2 Solver

PowerFactory offers different possibilities to solve the mixed-integer linear program (MILP) given by the
Unit Commitment and Dispatch Optimisation. There are two internal MILP solvers available, that allow
the simulation of small to medium size optimisation problems:
• PowerFactory comes with two built in linear programming solvers, the “lp_solve”-solver and the
“cbc”-solver. The “cbc”-solver is the default and recommended, if no commercial solvers are
available.
• It is also possible to use commercial external MILP solvers for optimising large-scale Unit Com-
mitment problems. The supported external solvers are the IBM CPLEX-solver and the GUROBI-
solver. The solvers are not included in the purchase of the Unit Commitment and Dispatch Opti-
misation module and have to be acquired separately But the external solvers can fully integrated
in PowerFactory and only the link to the “.dll” has to be added as administrator in the Linear
Programming Configuration. The supported version for CPLEX are starting from 12.8 and for
GUROBI starting from 8.0.x. With new versions of PowerFactory, later versions of the external
solvers are supported on a regular basis. Also, a GUROBI server solution is supported to separate
the solving process from the set up and recalculation of the Unit Commitment.

• The “Unit Commitment and Dispatch Optimisation” also allows the export of the MILP problem as
an AMPL-file (.nl) so that the problem can be solved by any user-specific solver.
The solver is selected on the algorithm page of the Unit Commitment / Dispatch Optimisation com-
mand. In order to configure the solvers the User needs to log into PowerFactory as Administrator and

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access the Linear Programming Configuration. It is placed in Configuration → Optimisation→ Linear

Programming Configuration and can also be accessed via Administration → Calculation Settings→
Linear Programming Configuration. The built in solvers are included in the PowerFactory installation
and need no further configuration. But they can be enabled or disabled. The link to the “.dll” of the
external solvers has to be added here (If the solver is marked the list of its dialog becomes editable).
After configuring the solvers centrally, the solvers have to be specified for each user is the user edit
dialog on the Optimisation page. This allows to restrict the available solvers for each individual user.
When the problem is transferred to the solver the Unit Commitment and Dispatch Optimisation can not
be interrupted since this is an external process. If the simulation shall be interrupted the user has to
close PowerFactory.

Basic parameters: A time limit for the solving time of the solver can be set to avoid very long run times.

The optimisation problem is scaled by default to avoid numerical problems in the solving process.

Solver parameters configuration: Each MILP-solver has some input parameters which are preconfig-
ured with defaults. The inputs are different for each solver and can change or be extended as new solver
versions are linked. If the Advanced option is selected, a table with the available input parameters of
the selected solver is offered and the values can be modified, for example the relative optimality gap
(mipGapRel) and the absolute optimality gap (mipGapAbs).

39.3.7.3 Advanced

Restriction of branch flows (max. power): The constraints “Branch flow constraints (max. power)”
can be based on different implementations:
• Max. active and reactive power flow: The impact of power change is considered separately for
active and reactive power.
• Max. apparent power flow: The impact of power change is considered for active and reactive
power combined as apparent power.

• Max. active power flow only: Only the impact of active power change is considered. The reactive
power is assumed as constant.
• Max. reactive power flow only: Only the impact of reactive power change is considered. The
active power is assumed as constant.

Ignore violated constraints without effective controls: Some violated constraints cannot be cured by
the Unit Commitment and would lead to an infeasibility. An example would be an overloaded transformer
that is supplying a network area with no controls and a fixed power demand.

Handling of failures during load flow time sweep: A valid load flow calculation is needed for each
considered point in time to initialise the Unit Commitment. If this is not the case, the network model
should be adapted to achieve a valid pre-optimisation result. However, if this cannot be achieved, there
are two possible options to handle points in time with no load flow solution:

• Ignore and continue: use results of last time point for time-coupling constraints (ramps, downtimes,
etc.)
• Stop calculation
If there is a divergence in a contingency, the contingency will be ignored.

39.3.8 Parallel Computing

Parallel computation of contingencies is supported in Unit Commitment. In addition to a link to the

user’s Parallel computation settings, the following options are offered:

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• The Additional objects to transfer option may be needed to transfer some external objects which
are not stored in the project or the global library itself, since not all external references are
automatically resolved by the sub-processes.
• The Minimum number of contingencies to specify the threshold number of contingencies for the
use of parallel computation.

39.4 Handling of results

39.4.1 Reports

The Unit Commitment and Dispatch Optimisation toolbar includes a Report command . The available
reports are:

• Optimisation results:
– Optimal solution report: This report shows the resulting values for the control variables and
the corresponding costs for each network element participating in the Unit Commitment.
– Grid summary report: The resulting costs and redispatch amounts for each time step and
the complete simulation are displayed for each control element class. Different grouping
elements like grid, zones and areas can be selected as base for the report.
– Storage report: This report provides an overview over the stored, charged and discharged
energy of storage elements and the participation if the individual generating unit is connected
to the storage.
– Curative controls: This report shows the deployment of curative controls over the optimisa-
tion period. Curative actions can be summarized or filtered for each time step, contingency
and/or control.
• Time sweep load flow results:
– Loading Ranges: This report displays the elements loaded over a threshold within a speci-
fied time range.
– Voltage Ranges: This report displays the terminals violating a defined voltage band within a
specified time range.
– Non-convergent Cases: This report lists the points in time for which the load flow does not
converge before and after the optimisation.

An extra contingency report is available in the toolbar. This report opens the standard report from
the Contingency Analysis with time sweep and summary results for the contingencies considered in the
Unit Commitment and Dispatch Optimisation.

39.4.2 Plots

The create plot button is also included in the “Optimal Power Flow / Unit Commitment” toolbar.
Typical plots for the Unit Commitment and Dispatch Optimisation are On/Off curve of generators and
the redispatch over the simulation time.

The energy plots for time sweep calculations like the aggregated generation per plant category and
fossil vs renewable generation are also available like in the Quasi-Dynamic Simulation.

39.4.3 Colouring Mode

PowerFactory offers a colouring mode for the Unit Commitment and Dispatch Optimisation. The gener-
ation units and the substations can be coloured separately depending on the absolute redispatch cost or

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the relative redispatch in percent. The relative redispatch is calculated as absolute redispatch in MWh
per energy generation of a unit/in a station before the optimisation in MWh over the entire simulation
time frame.

The use of colouring in network diagrams is described in Section 9.3.10.1, and more detail about the
use of colours and colour palettes can be found in Section 4.7.8.

39.4.4 Load Unit Commitment Results

The Load Unit Commitment Results functionality allows to investigate the results of a Unit Com-
mitment directly in the network model based on the result file. The Load results of single point in time
option reloads the results of a specific point in time from the result file to the network elements. This
enables the user to investigate the results of critical hours in the network model in an efficient way
without executing a load flow calculation.

The Assign time characteristics with optimal controls functionality enables the user to write back the
resulting optimal controls from the result file to characteristics in a new study case or directly to the
existing network. This allows the user to execute continuing investigations and calculations based on
the Unit Commitment results directly. This offers also the possibility to execute a market simulation
without network constraints in a fist Unit Commitment and then do a second Unit Commitment with
enabled network constraints to do a redispatch calculation. The old characteristics and variations are
replaced by the unit commitment results. Please be aware that the applied time characteristics are
therefore only valid for the time range of the unit commitment.

The option Time sweep load flow results allows to reload the results of a specific time step from the
result file to the network elements. This enables the user to investigate critical hours in the network
model.

39.4.5 Flexible Data Page

There are two additional sets of statistics variables available for certain elements after the execution of
the Unit Commitment and Dispatch Optimisation in the variable selection on the flexible data page.

• Statistics: Currents, Voltages and Powers These variables contain statistical values for control
variables such as average, minimum, maximum and variance over the complete simulation time.

• Statistics: Calculation Parameter These variables contain statistical values such as redispatch
costs and amounts or loadings.

The other pages like “Calculation Parameter” and “Currents, Voltages and Powers” show the results of
the last time step of the simulation. Note: The summary result file also contains result parameters from
the entire simulation period.

39.5 Generating Units

It is essential for the simulation to specify which generating units shall participate in the Unit Commitment
and Dispatch Optimisation and assign costs to these units. The “Operating Costs”, “Redispatch costs”,
“Start-Up/Shut-down Costs” can only be defined on the Unit Commitment page of the element if the
generator (ElmSym, ElmGenstat, ElmPvsys, ElmAsm, ElmXnet) is participating as a control in the
Unit Commitment. Characteristics are generally supported by the Unit Commitment and Dispatch
Optimisation. So all costs and related variables can be adapted during a simulation.

Generating units can be categorised in different types:

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• Single thermal generating unit

• Variable renewable energy source (VRE)

• Coupled with storage model

• Part of Virtual Power Plant

39.5.1 Controls and Limits

If the generating unit is specified as Variable renewable energy source (VRE) it belongs to the
separate class of control variables. These can be curtailed to reduce overloads in the system. The
reactive power of generating units can not be curtailed.

If the generator is not a VRE, it can be selected whether the generator shall be part of the optimisation
as a control variable by varying its active and/or reactive power output. This can be defined via a
characteristic as well. The global setting for this control variable type is in the Unit Commitment /
Dispatch Optimisation command (ComUc).

If the active or reactive power controls is enabled, the operational limits of the generating unit can be
specified.

If the generating unit is coupled with a storage unit, either direct or via a virtual power plant, an extra
control can be enabled to Allow the consumption mode for this unit (e.g. Battery or pump storage)
and an additional set of operational limits for the consumption mode can be entered. Also Efficiency
curves can be defined for the generation and consumption mode (see 39.6.1)

The Control usage of a generating unit defines if the control is used in the Preventive only, Curative only
or Preventive and curative modes. If curative actions are enabled, a Max. curative power deviation is
to be specified for the control. The deviation describes the possible curative action in contingencies of
the generating unit for each point in time based on the base case (load flow) value after the optimisation.

39.5.2 Operating Costs

The Operating costs for the generating units and external grids can be entered on the operational
cost tap directly as “local cost definition” or specified via a “Generator Cost Curve” from the operational
library.

In the local cost definition the Operating/Fuel costs are entered via a table with different active power
nodes. The associated cost values are in USD/h, except for the external grid, where these costs are in
USD/MWh (The currency unit can be selected in the project settings / ElmPvsys is entered in USD/kWh).
This means that the slope of the curve is defined for the external grid, rather than the actual cost values
(similar to the OPF). The entered list for the active power has to be in an increasing order and are the
variable costs of the generating unit. The Fixed costs can be specified separately and are added to the
variable costs in the table. Additional Penalty costs in USD per MWh can be assigned to a generator.
An approximation curve, such as polynomial, spline, etc., will be used to generate a cost curve from
the entered data.

The Generator Cost Curve is described in 39.5.2.1

The resulting cost curve from the entered operation costs has to be linearised in both cases for the
market simulation. This can be done via the Piecewise linearisation for LP by using the resulting
average costs between the operating limits of the generating unit or linearisation of the cost curve by
equidistant or user specified breakpoints. If a linearised cost curve is used the size of the optimisation
problem increases with the number of break points. Therefore it is important to keep the number of
breakpoints as low as possible.

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The Operating costs plot displays the cost curve from the entered operational data with the specified
approximation and the linearised cost curve used in the solver.

39.5.2.1 Generator Cost Curves

Generator Cost Curves offer a flexible way to enter the cost data of a generating unit. The entered
costs in a cost curve can be modified during the Unit Commitment and Dispatch Optimisation simulation
by characteristics. The following components can be specified:

• Primary fuel costs (FuelC in USD/MWh_th), describe the cost for the primary energy source.
• Fixed costs (FixC in USD/h), are the fixed cost of the generating unit.
• Emission costs (EmisC in USD/t), specify the cost for the generating units emissions. The
emission amount is calculated via the Emission intensity (EmisInt in t/MWh_th) and the rated
efficiency of the generating unit. The emission cost are intended to represent the costs for CO2
certificates.
• Other thermal costs (OtThC in USD/MWh_th), are additional costs that can be added depending
on the fuel amount.
• Other electrical costs (OtElC in USD/MWh), are additional costs that can be added depending
on the electrical generation of the generating unit.
• Rated efficiency (Eff in p.u.): The rated efficiency is based on the rated power of the generator
and thus specified in per unit at certain percentages of the active power. A Spline, Piecewise
linear, Polynomial or Hermite Approximation is used for the cost curve. The cost curve is
displayed in USD per hour over the rated power of the machine in percent.

Based on the entered data the generator costs are calculated. The variable costs for each operation
point i of the generator can be calculated as follows from the individual components based on the active
power:

𝐹 𝑢𝑒𝑙𝐶 + 𝑂𝑡𝑇 ℎ𝐶 + 𝐸𝑚𝑖𝑠𝐶 * 𝐸𝑚𝑖𝑠𝐼𝑛𝑡𝑖

𝑉 𝑎𝑟𝑖𝑎𝑏𝑙𝑒𝐶𝑜𝑠𝑡𝑠𝑖 = ( + 𝑂𝑡𝐸𝑙𝐶) * 𝐴𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑣𝑒𝑃 𝑜𝑤𝑒𝑟𝑖 (39.1)
𝐸𝑓 𝑓𝑖

So the resulting online costs for each operating point i of the generating unit are:

𝑂𝑛𝑙𝑖𝑛𝑒𝐶𝑜𝑠𝑡𝑠𝑖 = 𝐹 𝑖𝑥𝐶 + 𝑉 𝑎𝑟𝑖𝑎𝑏𝑙𝑒𝐶𝑜𝑠𝑡𝑠𝑖 (39.2)

The operating cost plot in the Generator Cost Curve dialog is based on a 100 MW generating unit and
displays the resulting operating costs per hour over the rated efficiency. The same Approximations are
available as in the local cost curve definition (39.5.2).

39.5.3 Redispatch Costs

Additional redispatch cost can only be entered if the generating unit is not a VRE. The upward and
downward redispatch cost can be entered separately for the active power. The “Redispatch costs for
reactive power change” are entered in USD/Mvarh and have no differentiation between capacitive or
inductive reactive power. The additional redispatch costs penalise the deviation from the load flow
values prior to the optimisation.

If the generating unit is flagged as a VRE only the Costs for curtailment can be specified.

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39.5.4 Start-Up/Shut-down Costs

The Shut-down costs of a generating unit can be specified as a fixed amount in USD. There are
different possibilities to define the Start-up costs:
• Constant: The cost can be entered as a fixed amount equal to the Shut-down costs.
• Warm-/Cold start-up costs: The Start-up cost can be entered for a cold start and a warm start.
The cold start time specifies the downtime of the generating unit after which the start up costs are
switched from warm- to cold start.
• User-defined discretisation: The start up costs for different down times can be specified via a
table. Typically, the temperature dependence is exponential in time which can be modelled via a
step function here. Please note that these costs might drastically affect the performance of the
solver.

The cost for the Start-up over the down time of the generating unit are displayed in the diagram on the
right side of the tab.

39.5.5 Constraints

The constraints of a generating unit have to be defined in the unit itself. In the Unit Commitment /
Dispatch Optimisation command it can be specified whether a specific constraint should be regarded in
the simulation. The available limitations of generating units are:

• Ramp rate constraints The limitation for the ramp rate is distinct between ramp rates when the
generator is on-line and start-up/shut down ramp limits. The up and down ramp limits are defined
in MW/h or in p.u./h. The start up and shut down ramp limit can be entered in MW or p.u. This
means the first/last step of the generator is limited to a certain value.

• Start-up/shut-down time constraints When the optimiser decides to switch a machine off, it will
remain off for at least this specified time period. Similarly, a minimum up time can be defined.

When a generator is set as a control variable, the optimisation might decide to switch it off at some point
in time. This can be prevented with the Must run flag. It will prevent “Switch off” actions and can be set
via a characteristic. Note: Switch-on actions can be prevented by using planned outages.

Fix controls to Load Flow values is intended to be controlled by a characteristic and it allows the user
to specify the simulation points for which the generation unit is not participating in the Unit Commitment
and Dispatch Optimisation and so the operation point is kept at the load flow value.

The option Restriction to discrete active power values offers the specification of allowed discrete
operating points in percent. Herewith, the range for active power setpoints of controlled generators or
Virtual Power Plants in a Unit Commitment calculation can be restricted to a number of discrete values
defined in terms of the rated power. New rows can be added by right clicking in the table and selecting
the corresponding option from the context menu. The current operating point is added to the list with
the option Allow current active power value by default.

39.6 Storage Units

Storage models (ElmStorage) can be linked with generators and allow the generated and consumed
energy of the generators to be restricted.

Storage models can be linked directly with one generating unit (39.5) or with several generators via a
virtual power plant (39.7). A storage model can only be linked to one generating unit or one virtual
power plant. There are three storage types available:

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• Battery: This represents storage without any inflow but with a self discharge. The Capacity can
only be entered as energy in MWh.
• Hydropower: This represents storage with the possibility to have a natural inflow. Also all Energy
figures can be entered directly in MWh or as Water volumes which are then converted with the
Head of water.
• General Storage: This option allows the user to enter all storage properties in MW and MWh,
without specifying the storage technology.
The available constraints for the unit commitment are:

• Operational energy limits

• Energy constraint at study period end
• Energy at study period start
• Water spillage/self discharge
• Inflow/Additional charge
The rolling horizon (39.3.7) functionality will cause some drawbacks in the optimisation of storage units,
since the storage is then only optimised for the individual time range.

39.6.1 Efficiency curves

Storage models are linked to generators via efficiency curves. The efficiency curves can be distin-
guished between generation and consumption mode. If no efficiency curve is defined the efficiency of
1 p.u. or 100 percent is used. The rated efficiency of the conversion between stored energy and the
electrical infeed of a generating unit can be entered via a table and is then approximated. The efficiency
curve is then linearised for the optimisation. The options are:

• Use average efficiency w.r.t. operational limits

• Linearise efficiency between operational limits
• Use efficiency at max. operational limit
• Use efficiency at min. operational limit
• Use user-defined breakpoints

The recalculation is done exactly with the determined control values and small mismatches due to
linearisation imprecision can occur.

39.7 Virtual Power Plants

The basic functionality and handling of virtual power plants is described in 14. This section focusses
only on the aspects of a virtual power plant for a unit commitment. The idea of a virtual power plant in
the unit commitment is to combine several generating units into one unit for the optimisation. Possible
examples are the aggregation of all turbines of an wind park or the combination of all generators in one
region. Also virtual power plants can be used to link several generator/turbines of a hydro power plant
to one storage model (see 39.6). The available types of power plant usage of the virtual power plant
are:

• Thermal generation unit

• Variable renewable energy source (VRE)
• Coupled with storage model

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The usage types and the available constraints are, thus very similar to a single generating unit (see
39.5). In the virtual power plant the single limits and costs can either be aggregated from the single
units or entered globally in the virtual power plant. When using a global constraint the aggregated value
for the limits of the individual units should be respected, otherwise this may lead to infeasibility.

The unit commitment returns only one value for a control for the virtual power plant. This figure, for
example the active power contribution of the virtual power plant, has then to be distributed to the single
units within the virtual power plant. The options for the Power distribution to the single generating
units are:
• According to rated power
• According to dispatched power

• According to generation shift keys

The Respect individual operational machine limits flag will ensure that the individual limits of the
machines are respected in the distribution after the optimisation.

The virtual power plant is always a simplification for the optimisation in unit commitment. It is not
possible to use the linearised method for the contingency analysis if using virtual power plants.

39.8 Other Network Elements

39.8.1 Transformers, voltage regulators and shunts

The tap positions of transformers, voltage regulators and shunts can be defined as control variables to
govern active/reactive power flows. This control variable can be modelled as a discrete variable directly
or as a continuous variable, which simplifies the algorithm.

The Penalty costs per Tap deviation can specified in the element as well. The participation as a
control can be specified separately for each tap for 3- and 4-winding transformers

The maximum loading of transformers and voltage regulators can be defined as a hard or soft con-
straint.

39.8.2 Tap Controllers

If several transformers are connected in parallel or should be handled as a group, a tap controller can
be used. The tap controller aggregates all selected transformer as one control for the unit commitment
and guarantees coherent tapping of the transformers.

39.8.3 Loads

Loads (ElmLod, ElmLodlv, ElmLodmv) can also be used as control variable for the Unit Commitment
and Dispatch Optimisation by allowing load shedding. Costs for load shedding can be assigned to
each load in costs per MWh. The limits for the shedding of the load can be specified in percent of the
load’s apparent power. The Unit Commitment then sheds the load based on the before optimisation
load flow value. Note: For DC Unit Commitment this is only an active power value.

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39.8.4 Boundaries

The minimal and maximal active and reactive power flow over a boundary can be defined for the Unit
commitment. Each component can be activated separately and it can be defined whether the entered
active and/or reactive constraints should be soft constraints for the Unit Commitment and Dispatch
Optimisation.

The limits for the boundary flow can be specified as absolute limits or relative to the pre optimisation
load flow value.

39.8.5 Terminals

The voltages on the terminals can be limited for the Unit Commitment and Dispatch Optimisation. These
constraints can be entered as upper and lower limit in p.u. and specified as hard or soft constraints.

39.8.6 Lines and Bays

The maximum loading of lines and bays can be defined as a hard or soft constraint.

39.8.7 Regions: Grids, Zones and Areas

A minimum value for the spinning reserve in MW can be defined for regions (grids (ElmNet), zones
(ElmZone) and areas (ElmArea)). This can be defined as a hard or soft constraint. The available
reserve can be determined via the summation of the active power of the machines of the region.

39.8.8 HVDC Converters

The reactive power flow over HVDC branches can be controlled by the Unit Commitment. The minimum
and maximum power flow limits can be set in the element (ElmVsc, ElmVscmono) and Penalty costs in
USD/MVAh can be assigned.

39.8.9 Advanced constraint settings

On the “Advanced” tab on the “Unit Commitment” page of network elements which represent network
constraints in the unit commitment, such as lines, transformers, bays and boundaries, some additional
settings are available:

39.8.9.1 Max. loading constraint for contingencies

Separate constraint types and limits can be specified for each element for contingency situations.

39.8.9.2 Penalty cost for soft constraints

The cost for soft constraint violation is globally specified in the Unit Commitment command. The cost
can be specified as linear or non-linear, and for each constraint element it is possible to select which
option shall be used. The Cost scaling factor gives an additional possibility to scale the soft constraint
penalty for the element individually.

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39.8.9.3 Constraint filtering

In order to improve performance, it is possible to disregard certain less critical constraints by using
the filters of the Unit Commitment command. If certain constraints have to be considered in a certain
setup, the filtering can be disabled in for each network element by deselecting the Allow filtering by
constraint margin and/or Allow contingency filtering by number of critical constraints.

39.9 Troubleshooting

39.9.1 Solver Selection

The solver selection for the optimisation problems has not only an influence on performance but also in
the solvability itself. Some optimisation problems might not be solvable with the included solvers and
using a commercial solver might be beneficial This can be the case for large and complex problems
with a lot of time dependencies

39.9.2 Soft Constraints

The optimisation can become infeasible if a set constraint cannot be kept or cured with the given
controls. To avoid this soft constraints can be used. To influence the effect the price for violating
soft constraints can be set in the Unit Commitment command.

39.9.3 Performance

The total calculation time for a Unit Commitment execution in PowerFactory can be split in several parts,
with different possibilities for impact on the performance:
• Calculation of the original load flow results for each point in time to initialise the Unit Commitment:
The only possibility to increase performance in this step is to gain time in the load flow calculation
itself. Generally the DC load flow should be faster than the AC load flow. If AC load flow is
selected, improving the convergence behaviour can help; if possible, reduce the number of outer
loop iterations required.
• Calculation of sensitivities for the selected controls on the selected constraints: When formulating
the MILP the sensitivities are needed. Every topology change requires the calculation of new
sensitivities. If the topology does not change, the sensitivities can be assumed as constant. If this
is done the number of sensitivity calculations can be decreased (see 39.3.7.1).
• If contingencies are considered it is possible to use the linearised method which is generally faster.
Also parallel computation of contingencies is supported.

• Solving the MILP using an external solver: The time for solving the MILP itself can be influenced by
the solver selection and the adjustment of advanced solver parameters. Generally the commercial
solvers (CPLEX and GUROBI) are faster and are beneficial for large Unit Commitment problems.
The solving time can increase strongly (non-linearly) for more complex problems. Thus it is
generally recommended to use as few controls and formulate as few constraints as possible when
setting up a Unit Commitment, if performance is important. In addition, discrete controls and time
dependencies are expensive for the performance of the MILP. The rolling horizon also offers the
possibility to split up a large problem is several smaller problems which can help with performance
and also solvability.
• Recalculation with optimal controls is an optional feature to check the validity of the solution and
obtain the corresponding results. This step is optional and can be skipped to gain performance.

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39.9.4 Voltage Controlling Elements

If the network includes a lot of voltage controlling elements with narrow limits it can be the case that
certain setpoints cannot be kept after the optimisation and thus lead to non-convergent cases when
using an AC load flow.

39.9.5 Reference Machine

If the reference machine is not included as a control in the Unit Commitment the optimisation as a
degree of freedom will reduce the power of the controlled units. This delta will then be compensated
for by the reference machine. If the reference machine shall not actively participate but the described
power shift shall be avoided, the additional redispatch costs of the reference machine can be set to a
very high value.

The active power control can also be crucial for the load flow convergence after the optimisation. A
single slack might not be able to balance the active power especially if contingencies are considered.
An option to improve the convergence behaviour can be to select a distributed slack by generators.

39.9.6 Not regarded Constraints

In order to reduce the optimisation problem the Unit Commitment offers a constraint filter on the Al-
gorithm page. Some constraints may be neglected in the optimisation because of this filter. Also
the optimisation is always executed on the linearised system. This can result in deviations when
recalculating the system with a non-linear AC load flow. In general warnings will be raised if a constraint
is violated.

39.9.7 Rolling horizon and time dependencies

The rolling horizon (39.3.7) function will impact the optimisation of time depended constraints strongly.
This means constraints for max. downtimes and ramps can only be optimised for the specified time
range given by the number of simultaneous time steps and the step size. The overlapping time steps
with next period allows to consider these dependencies. The optimisation of the storage units is also
just done for the time specified with the rolling horizon and not globally if the rolling horizon is used. It
is recommended not using the rolling horizon if working with storage units.

39.10 Redundant Constraint Filter

The “Redundant Constraint Filter” is an extension tool of the Unit Commitment toolbox and offers a
powerful possibility to determine the relevant and limiting network constraints for a selection of controls.
The filter compares all the selected constraints and flags the limiting ones for the Unit Commitment.
Each constraint which is not flagged by the filter is therefore redundant and can be neglected for this
particular Unit Commitment setup.

In the Constraint Filter, contingencies are fully supported. Hence, it is possible to determine the Critical
Branch Critical Outage combinations (CBCOs or also called CNECs for Critical Network Element and
Contingency) for a single point in time or a specified time period. The Redundant Constraint Filter
also offers an option to replicate the mechanism of the flow based market coupling (FBMC) in Central
Western Europe (CWE).

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39.10.1 Basic Options

The Redundant Constraint Filter contains a link to the Unit Commitment command. The selected
settings in the Unit Commitment command determine which controls and constraints shall be regarded
and which contingency cases are considered. Also the constraint filters from the Unit Commitment
command can be used.

The individual Filters are available and can be applied selectively:

• Apply constraint filters from Unit Commitment: In the Unit Commitment command, constraint
filters and filters for contingency constraints can be specified (39.3.4.3 and 39.3.4.4). These
constraint filters are applied if this option is selected.
• Apply filter w.r.t control variable bounds: If several controls have an effect on a constraint,
the filter checks whether the constraint would be violated if the respective controls were on their
variable bounds. If there is no possibility for a violation, the constraint is redundant.
• Check redundancy w.r.t. contingency constraints: All contingencies are compared to find the
critical constraints for each constraint element. This filter supports parallel computing.
• Check redundancy w.r.t. whole system: Each constraint is checked against the entire system
regarding all controls and the remaining constraints to identify further redundancies.

39.10.2 Algorithm

39.10.2.1 General

Additional settings for the redundant constraint filter are:

• Relax constraint violations: If a constraint is already violated, either in the base load flow or a
contingency, this constraint will always be limiting in the MILP. If these violation are relaxed, the
overloads will be ignored and not be resolved. This means technically, that the loading limit of
each overloaded element is set to maximum loading value of this element in any contingency.
• Detailed constraint redundancy detection: This is only relevant for loading constraints. If a
branch element has several ends, the loadings are different for each end. Thus only the highest
loading of an element is considered. If this setting is active the loadings from all sides are
considered.
• Tolerated violation for redundant constraints: If the violation difference on a branch is smaller
then the specified threshold it is regarded as redundant.

The Modelling of discrete controls is possible as discrete or continuous.

Soft constraints can be ignored or considered as hard constraints.

39.10.2.2 Advanced

Advanced settings:

• Apply multi-threading for redundancy check: Multi-threading can be used to increase perfor-
mance. The multi-threading can only be applied in the “Check redundancy w.r.t. contingency
constraints” filter
• Apply filter w.r.t control variable effectiveness: This filter is designed to detect constraints
which have a relevant sensitivity to the selected control variables.

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The Initialisation of redundancy checks enables a selection between two algorithmic approaches.
Either starting with No constraints and adding constraints to the list of non-redundant constraints or
starting with All constraints and removing redundant ones accordingly. The result should be quite
similar but there can be differences since different sets of constraints can constrain the same set of
controls. The default is to start with “No constraints”, for better performance.

39.10.2.3 Advanced - Flow Based Marked Coupling

The setting Consider minimum RAM and net positions enables the replication of the flow based
market coupling (FBMC) mechanisms of Central Western Europe (CWE) in order to determine the
relevant critical branch / critical outage combinations (CBCOs). This option is only available if the Unit
Commitment command is set up for DC load flow calculation and usually only applied for one point in
time.

In the FBMC, a minimum availability margin (minRAM) for each considered branch has to be reserved
for the market from the branch capacity. Thus, the Min. RAM is equivalent to a loading percentage of
a branch that has to be available for the market. The branches to be considered as potential critical
branches have to be selected as constraints on the Unit Commitment page of each branch element and
the branch flow constraints have to be selected globally in the Unit Commitment command.

As a basis for the FBMC, an initial guess of the load flow situation for the hour of interest is needed
to determine the flows without trades in this situation. This is usually calculated with a prior market
simulation based on Net Transfer Capacities (NTCs) between the market regions and estimates for load
and renewable generation.

In order to calculate the fictive flow on each considered branch without market flows, it is assumed
that there will be no market flows between regions, if each region supplies itself. Therefore the net
positions, the difference between generation and demand of a region, is used to fictively correct the
branch flows from the load flow solution of the initial guess.

The net positions are shifted by a Delta net position for each region so that the region is supplying
itself (the generation is increased by the given value). However, special cases may apply for setting the
delta net position differently (for example because of fixed interchanges via HVDCs). The sensitivities
for the regions are calculated for each constraint branch and the resulting matrix is multiplied by the
vector of the Delta net positions in order to get the branch flows/loadings without market flows.

The region itself cannot be selected directly in the net position table, because the Redundant Constraint
Filter can only work with elements that are potential controls in the Unit Commitment. Therefore all
the relevant power plants of a region, which are active in the market, have to be added to one Virtual
Power Plant (ElmBmu) with their respective generation shift keys (GSKs). For the Virtual Power Plant
the respective delta net position of the region has to be specified. The Virtual Power Plants have to be
configured as for a Unit Commitment simulation: The active power control flag has to be enabled for the
Virtual Power Plant and the contained generators. Additionally, the contained generators should have
Generator usage set to “Part of Virtual Power Plant”.

The Fixed trading volume in the net positions table has to be set for the regions which have a fixed
trading volume and are not considered to be flexible in the later flow based market simulation. An
example of this would be a fixed trading volume from a neighbouring region that is not part of the
regions used in the later flow-based market simulation. This has to be specified for the filter since
the fixed trading volume is not controllable, but is part of the market flows and thus included as such
in the minRAM evaluation. To consider this accordingly, the Virtual Power Plant has to be configured
identically to the controllable ones and a delta net position has to be specified. The filter uses the Fixed
trading volume information to exclude the virtual power plant as an active control.

The base flows (without market flows) are then calculated with the delta net positions and the corre-
sponding sensitivities for the virtual power plants. Then, the allowed maximum loading is determined
by checking if the specified minRAM is available on each branch. If not, the maximum loading limit is
relaxed to meet the minRAM requirement. From this point the Redundant Constraint Filter applies the

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selected filters described in the previous subsections.

The “Redundant Constraint Filter” marks the relevant/critical CBCOs in the result file (39.10.3). If
information about the corresponding sensitivities and margins of the CBCOs is needed, post-processing
(via script) in combination with the Sensitivity Analysis is required.

39.10.3 Results

The Results are written to a result file. The result file is a matrix where the columns are all the regarded
constraints in the Unit Commitment and the rows correspond to the selected contingencies (The first row
represents the base case). The non-redundant Critical Branch Critical Outage (CBCO) combinations
are indicated with a “1”

The option Write results to output window complements the result file and gives the information about
the non-redundant constraints to the output window.

The Verification w.r.t. final system can be used to evaluate the selection made by the contingency
filter and the whole system filter. Due to numerical reasons it can happen that a constraint is invalidly
flagged as redundant. The verification goes over all the filtered constraints and compares them with the
final solution. If one of the constraints is not redundant, taking into account the Add. tolerated violation
for redundant constraints, it can be reported and/or added to the list of non-redundant constraints.
The following options are available for the verification:

• Off
• Report non-redundant constraints only

• Reactivate non-redundant constraints only

• Reactivate and report non-redundant constraints

39.10.3.1 Report

The dedicated report can also be used to visualise the non-redundant constraints found by the filter.

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Chapter 40

Transmission Network Tools

40.1 Introduction

The chapter presents the transmission networks tools available in PowerFactory :

• PV Curves Calculation (section 40.2.1)

• PV Curves Plot (section 40.2.2)

• QV Curves Calculation (section 40.3.1)

• QV Curves Plot (section 40.3.2)
• PTDF Calculation (section 40.4)
• Transfer Capacity Analysis (section 40.5)

• Flow Decomposition (section 40.6)

These tools are accessible as illustrated in Figure 40.1.1, and this chapter introduces each respective
tool, providing general descriptions and details pertaining to the command dialogs.

Figure 40.1.1: Accessing Transmission Network tools

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40.2 PV Curves

PV curves are essential for analysing the voltage stability of power systems. The PV Curves Calculation
finds the critical point of voltage instability by increasing the power demand of user-selected loads until
the load flow calculation no longer converges; i.e. until the stability limit is reached. The critical demand
is reported in the output window, and the voltage drop (V), and increasing power (P), can then be plotted
using the PV Curves Plot command, as illustrated in Figure 40.2.1.

Figure 40.2.1: Network PV curve

The calculation and the corresponding plots are made available via two separate commands, both of
which are available either via the Calculation main menu, under Transmission Network Tools, or the
main toolbar using the following icons:

• PV Curves Calculation (calculates the critical demand); see Section 40.2.1.

• PV Curves Plot (plots the PV curve); see Section 40.2.2.

In addition, the PV Curves Calculation is accessible via the single line diagram or Data Manager, when
right-clicking on network element/s and selecting Calculation → PV Curves. . .

40.2.1 PV Curves Calculation

The different pages options of the PV Curves Calculation command are explained below.

40.2.1.1 Basic Options

Calculation

Selection of either AC load flow, balanced or AC load flow, unbalanced, 3-phase (ABC). The Load Flow
button provides access to the Load Flow Calculation command settings. It should be noted that some

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load flow settings, such as Automatic Tap Adjust of Transformers, have a strong influence on the PV
Curves Calculation results. Decreasing the setting Break if no progress in X iterations (e.g. from 10 to
5) may significantly improve performance for some large systems. This setting is available in the Load
Flow Calculation command, Iteration Control page, Advanced Settings tab.

Consider contingencies

If this option is ticked, an existing Contingency Analysis command can be selected. The PV Curve
Calculation will apply each defined contingency and calculate the resulting PV curves accordingly.

Multiple time phase and single time phase contingencies are considered. The post-fault time of the
contingency is considered in the calculation when applying the contingencies, and must already be
defined in the Contingency Analysis command.

Regardless of whether contingencies are considered, the beginning of the PV Curve Calculation is
always executed with no contingencies in order to calculate the base case.

Scale loads

The loads that are to be increased can be those contained in either the Whole system or a User-defined
selection.

Loads with a value of zero as operating point are neglected. In order to consider negative loads and
motors, the corresponding checkboxes should be ticked.

Record terminal results

Selection of terminals for the PV curves may be either All busbars in system or a User-defined selection.
The latter may include terminals defined as internal nodes. The voltage and the gradient of the voltage
for each terminal are saved at each iteration in the file specified by Results. For each contingency a
separate sub-results file is created. These sub-results files can be accessed via the primary results file
(i.e. that specified by Results).

40.2.1.2 Iteration Control

Step size algorithm

Two step size algorithms are available for selection:

• Binomial search: doubles the step size up to the maximum step size (until the point of divergence)
and then continuously halves it until the minimum step size is reached.

• Adaptive step size (default): reduces the step size before reaching the stability limit.

Step size definition

Definition of the step size and the number of iterations, and therefore influences the accuracy, calculation
speed and smoothness of the plotted curves.

The Minimum step size defines the threshold of the iteration: it stops when the iteration step gets smaller
than this value, which ends the PV Curve Calculation of this case. The smaller this value is, the closer
the calculation gets to the stability limit, however more iteration steps are required which increases the
calculation time. Adjustment of the Maximum iterations is not recommended, rather adjustment of the
maximum step size (or the Multiplication factor, depending on what is of interest). The units of the
initial-, maximum- and minimum step size are in percent of the initial power demand of each load.

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Initial load scaling

Defines the starting point for the load scaling and therefore the starting point of the iteration. The Multi-
plication factor provides the user with the means to choose a different starting point for the calculation.
When set to ’1’, the PV Curves Calculation will start from the current operating point of the selected
loads.

Show detailed output

Provides information about each iteration, allowing the user to fine-tune the step size. For further
information refer to Section 40.2.3.1.

40.2.2 PV Curves Plot

By default, the PV Curves Plot command plots the critical busbar of the critical contingency. If the
calculation has been made with no consideration of contingencies, the base case will automatically
be selected. The PV Curves Plot options, outputs and results are explained in Section 40.2.2.1 -
Section 40.2.3.4.

40.2.2.1 Data input

The results file specified in, and created by, the PV Curves Calculation command (see Section 40.2.1).

40.2.2.2 Busbars

The selection of busbar/s for which PV curves are to be plotted. This can be set to Only plot critical bus-
bar or User-defined selection. If the PV Curves Calculation has been carried out with no consideration
of contingencies, the base case will be selected by default. If the calculation has been carried out with
consideration of contingencies, the critical busbar of the critical contingency will be plotted.

40.2.2.3 Contingencies

If the PV Curves Calculation has been executed with consideration of contingencies, the user can
either choose to plot the busbar of the critical contingency (default), or may select the busbar/s to
be plotted from the list of calculated contingencies. In the latter case, the contingencies should be
selected from the Contingencies table before selecting the associated busbars. For a selection of
multiple contingencies, the option Plot each contingency in a separate sub-plot causes the selected
busbars to be plotted for each contingency.

40.2.3 Outputs and Results

40.2.3.1 Output Window

During the calculation, the initial-, scalable- and critical demand are printed out for each contingency.
If the detailed output option is selected, the number of successfully converged load flows and the total
number of load flows for each contingency are displayed, as well as the load flow convergence, current
scaling factor and demand for each iteration-step (per contingency).

Following the calculation, a ’PV Curve Study Summary’ is printed in the output window, summarising
every contingency by showing the limiting bus and the power demand at the critical point of instability.

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The contingencies are sorted according to the power demand at the critical point. The most critical
contingency is reported; it is the contingency where the critical point has the smallest power demand.

40.2.3.2 Single Line Diagram

After the calculation, the single line diagram displays the results of the load flow calculation for the most
critical contingency at the critical point of calculation.

40.2.3.3 Results File

For every contingency a results file is created which contains the name of the contingency and a result
matrix which is organised as follows:
• The rows of the matrix represent each iteration step of the calculated power demand. The last
row is the maximum power demand and thus the critical point of the system.

• There are two columns for every busbar in the calculation: the first contains the voltage of each
iteration-step, and the second displays the gradient of the voltage (compared to the previous
row/iteration-step). After the calculation has finished, this gradient is also available on the Flexible
Data page for busbars, by selecting the calculation variable b:uGradient in the Variable Selection
editor.

40.2.3.4 Estimated Critical Busbar

The estimated critical busbar is the one with the highest gradient in the last converging iteration-step
(i.e. in the last row of the results file). If the total voltage drop from the first to the last iteration of this
bus is less than half the drop of the bus with the maximum drop, then the bus with the maximum drop
is considered to be the critical bus. The total drop of the busbar is checked in case the final gradient is
positive. This occurs when the load flow solver finds the wrong solution (e.g. in the iteration before the
last step), which might happen when the load scaling is too large near the stability limit.

40.3 QV Curves

QV curves are very useful when analysing voltage stability of power systems. The QV Curves show
the sensitivity and variation of bus voltages with respect to injected reactive power. Since all reactive
power control devices are designed to operate satisfactorily when a increase of reactive power (Q) is
accompanied by an increase in voltage (V), operation on the right side of the curve is stable and on
the left side unstable. The bottom of the curve, where the derivative dV/dQ is equal to zero, represents
not only the voltage stability limit but also the minimum amount of reactive power required for stable
operation.

When executing a QV Curves Calculation, the critical reactive power and voltage are reported in the
output window. The reactive power (Q) and corresponding voltage drop (V), can then be plotted in a QV
curve, as shown in Figure 40.3.1.

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Figure 40.3.1: Network QV curves

To execute a QV Curve calculation, at least one busbar should be selected. If there is more than one
study busbar, they will be calculated iteratively and not simultaneously.

The calculation and the corresponding plots are made available via two separate commands, both of
which are available either via the Calculation main menu, under Transmission Network Tools, or the
main toolbar using the following icons:

• QV Curves Calculation (executes the calculation); see Section 40.3.1.

• QV Curves Plot (plots the QV curve); see Section 40.3.2.

In addition, the QV Curves Calculation is accessible via the single line diagram or Data Manager, when
right-clicking on network element/s and selecting Calculation → QV Curves. . .

40.3.1 QV Curves Calculation

The different pages options of the QV Curves Calculation command are explained below.

40.3.1.1 Basic Options

Calculation

Selection of either AC load flow, balanced or AC load flow, unbalanced, 3-phase (ABC). The Load Flow
button provides access to the Load Flow Calculation command settings. It should be noted that some
load flow settings, such as Automatic Shunts Adjustment, have a strong influence on the QV Curves
Calculation results.

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Consider contingencies

If this option is ticked, an existing Contingency Analysis command can be selected. The QV Curve
Calculation will apply each defined contingency and calculate the resulting QV curves for each study
busbar accordingly.

Multiple time phase and single time phase contingencies are considered. The post-fault time of the
contingency is considered in the calculation when applying the contingencies, and must already be
defined in the Contingency Analysis command.

Regardless of whether contingencies are considered, the beginning of the QV Curve Calculation is
always executed with no contingencies in order to calculate the base case.

Analysed nodes

The terminals where the reactive power will be injected. When clicking on the select button ( ) the list
of busbars relevant for calculation is displayed. When a group of busbars is selected, a set named “QV
Curves Set” is automatically created inside the active study case.

Note: The analysis on 1-phase and 2-phase nodes is not supported.

Results

The voltage for each terminal is saved at each iteration in the file specified by Results. For each
contingency a separate sub-results file is created. These sub-results files can be accessed via the
primary results file (i.e. that specified by Results).

40.3.1.2 Voltage Iteration

Voltage range

Two options are available for selection:

• Global voltage range for each terminal: a global maximum and minimum voltage will be set for all
the busbars.
• Range around base case voltage of each terminal: the solution of the load flow will be used as
base voltage for each terminal, afterwards a range around this voltage can be defined for all the
selected busbars.

Voltage iteration

On this part it is possible to select the start (maximum) and end (minimum) of the voltage iteration, as
well as the step size, which will stay constant for each iteration.

Additionally, there is an option to continue the calculation if the starting (maximum) voltage load flow
does not converge. PowerFactory then reduces the starting voltage until the load flow converges.

40.3.1.3 Active Power Injection

By default the injection of active power at the study busbar(s) is set to zero. In the Active Power Injection
page it is possible to define a list or a range of additional active power injections on the busbar(s).

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If the User defined range option is selected, a minimum, maximum and step size for the active power
injection can be defined.

If the User defined list option is selected, a list of active power values can be defined. Additional rows
can be added by right-clicking and selecting Append Row.

For each set point a QV-Curve will be calculated.

40.3.1.4 Output

Normally the critical voltage and the amount of reactive power injected at the study busbar(s) are printed
in the output window; however additional output options can be printed in the output window, in case the
user is interested to see the iteration process. The following options are available in the Output page of
the QV Curves Calculation command:

• Voltage iterations: the reactive power and voltage values for each voltage iteration are printed.
• Messages of initial Load Flow of each curve: self explanatory.
• Deactivated voltage controllers: since the QV calculation controls the voltage at the selected
busbar, all the elements that might affect the voltage control (e.g. station controllers, tap changers,
voltage control of generators, etc.) are set to the base case value, for example, for a synchronous
machine with voltage control, the controller mode will be changed form const.V to const.Q, fixing
the dispatched reactive power value to the one obtained from the base case. Activating this option,
all the disabled controller devices are printed in the output window.

40.3.2 QV Curves Plot

By default, the QV Curves Plot command plots the critical busbar of the critical contingency. If the
calculation has been made with no consideration of contingencies, the base case will automatically be
selected. The QV Curves Plot options are explained below.

40.3.2.1 Basic Options

Data Input: the results file specified in, and created by, the QV Curves Calculation command (see
Section 40.3.1).

QV-Curves: the following options are available:

• Only plot critical case: this is the default option, it plots the critical contingency and busbar per
active power injection (if more than one active power injection is calculated).
• User defined selection: the user can select the contingencies and busbars to be plotted.
• Critical node for selected contingencies: only the critical busbars for the selected contingencies
are plotted. When this option is selected it is also possible to plot as many plots as contingencies.

40.3.2.2 Active Power Injections

If several active power injections are calculated when executing the QV Curves Calculation command
(see Section 40.3.1.3), it is possible to select between plotting all the active power injections or select
only some cases.

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40.3.2.3 Capacitors

In this page it is possible to define additional capacitors in every plotted QV curve. These additional
capacitors are useful to determine the behaviour of the system when compensated.

40.4 Power Transfer Distribution Factors (PTDF)

Power Transfer Distribution Factors (PTDFs) are used to evaluate the change in power flow across a
set of branches, while changing production and consumption, respectively, in two predefined regions.
Knowledge of these factors assists greatly when analysing the impact of commercial transactions on
cross-border transmission capacities. The PTDF command is available under the Transmission Network
Tools, and the following sections explain how to use it.

Since PowerFactory 2020, the earlier Load Flow sensitivities function has been extended and additional
distribution factor calculations developed. These include a more flexible and potentially faster PTDF
calculation. For details, please see chapter 48.

40.4.1 Calculation Options

40.4.1.1 Basic Data

Calculation Method

Selection of either AC load flow, balanced or DC load flow (linear). The Load Flow button provides
access to the Load Flow command settings.

Region data

The Region Data defines the exporting and importing regions. The interchange region can be a zone
(ElmZone), grid (ElmNet), area (ElmArea) or boundary (ElmBoundary ). The selection here should be
kept consistent; i.e. if areas are selected as ’Exporting regions’, then areas should also be selected as
’Importing regions’.

If more than one element is selected, a PTDF set is automatically created. If a PTDF - Export or Import
Set is available, then the user can select it by using the Select Set option.

Flowgates

The Flowgates are the interconnections between the exporting and importing regions; these can either
be automatically determined according to adjacent regions, or can be user-defined by selecting one or
more boundaries.

Scaling elements

These are the elements that are going to be scaled, and a selection of generators or loads is available. It
is possible to either use all the elements available in the regions or select a User defined set of ’Scaling
elements’.

• Generators: all synchronous machines (ElmSym) and Static Generators (ElmGenstat) that are
in-service and connected are considered.
• Loads: all loads (ElmLod) that are in-service and connected are considered.

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Generators scaling mode

If generators are selected as scaling elements, the user can select between different scaling modes:

• Rated active power: generation shift is proportionally scaled for the generators according to their
rated active power.
• Remaining active power: generation shift is scaled for the generators according to the “remaining
active power”. The definition of “remaining active power” depends on the location of the genera-
tors: for generators in the exporting region, the value equals the difference between the maximum
active power and operating active power; for generators in the importing region, the value equals
the difference between the operating active power and minimum active power.
• Merit-order table: generation shift is scaled for the generators according to the merit-order table.
When the Merit-order table option is selected, it is possible to define the power transfer between
the two regions.

40.4.1.2 Output of Results

The result of this calculation is the increase or decrease of power flow through the Flowgates according
to the change of power in both the exporting and importing regions. All possible combinations of ex-
porting and importing regions are calculated. An example result overview can be seen in Figure 40.4.1.
In this example, the regions are different grids and the Flowgates are user-defined boundaries. In the
tabular report each row represents the transaction between the exporting and importing regions, and
the PTDFs are provided in the corresponding cell of the Flowgate column.

Figure 40.4.1: PTDF result table

The results can be output in either ASCII or tabular format, selected on the Output page. There is a
link to the actual reporting command, which is the same reporting command used for the more general
Sensitivities / Distribution Factors calculation (see Chapter 48).

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40.4.1.3 Advanced Page

On the Advanced page, the user can define a set of scenarios (IntScenario) to calculate the PTDFs. If
no set is provided, PTDFs are only calculated for the current operation point.

40.5 Transfer Capacity Analysis

The Transfer Capacity Analysis determines the maximum power transfer capacity between two regions,
or between two sets of generators and/or loads, by scaling generation or load until a limit is reached.

If the region-based option is used, an importing and an exporting region are defined, and the capacity
is calculated either for the lines connecting the regions or across a user-defined boundary.

If the element-based option is used, the user has to specify a boundary for which the capacity will be
calculated.

40.5.1 Basic Data

40.5.1.1 General

Calculation Method

Selection of either AC load flow, balanced or DC load flow (linear). The Load Flow button provides
access to the Load Flow command settings.

Contingency constrained

The analysis is carried out considering the contingencies and settings defined in the Contingency
Analysis command. This command is accessible by clicking on the Edit arrow ( ).

Transfer capacity definition

Here, the user specifies how the elements for scaling are selected. The choice here determines which
other options are offered on this page.

• Region Based: The user will specify one importing and one exporting region, which can be grids
or grouping objects such as Areas.
• Element selection: The user will provide two sets of elements, Exporting and Importing. The sets
must be mutually exclusive.

Measured transfer capacity - for Region-based calculation

If the transfer capacity is calculated using Regions, there are two options for where the final transfer
should be measured.
• Interconnection lines: In this case the automatically-determined interconnection lines are used as
the interconnection border across which the transfer is measured and reported as the capacity.
• Boundary: This option can be selected if the user is in fact interested in the transfer across a
different border, which will be specified as a Boundary (ElmBoundary ).
Interconnection regions - for Region-based calculation

Two interconnection regions are selected; an interconnecting region can be a zone (ElmZone), grid
(ElmNet), area (ElmArea) or boundary (ElmBoundary ). The regions must be adjacent, i.e. have

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interconnecting lines, but must not overlap. The interconnecting lines are determined automatically
and can be shown via the button Show interconnection lines.

40.5.1.2 Scaling elements

In region-based calculation, the user may select between generators, loads or both. By default, all
relevant elements are scaled, but there are options for restricting the scaling to user-defined sets of
elements.

• Generators: all synchronous machines (ElmSym) and static generators (ElmGenstat) that are
in-service and connected are considered.
• Loads: all loads (ElmLod) that are in-service and connected are considered. The load shift is
proportionally scaled for the loads according to their active power at the operating point.

• Both generators and loads: all the generators and loads in-service and connected are scaled.

User defined elements - for Element-based calculation

Here, the user specifies the elements that will form the Exporting and Importing sets. Using the down-
arrow, the user can select elements or select a previously-defined set of elements. Generation or loads,
or a combination can be used, but the two sets must be mutually exclusive.

A boundary (ElmBoundary ), across which the transfer is to be measured, is also selected.

40.5.2 Constraints

40.5.2.1 Thermal Limits

If the option Consider thermal constraints is selected, the thermal constraints for branch elements are
considered. The available options are:

• Global constraint for all components: the limit defined in the Maximum thermal loading of compo-
nents field is used for all branch elements.
• Individual constraint per component: the limit defined on the Load Flow page of every branch
element is used.

Additionally, on the Advanced tab, a set of elements to consider can be defined.

The flag Continue calculation if base case is overloaded allows execution of the Transfer Capacity
Analysis even if relevant constraints are not complied within the base calculation. If this option is
selected, the user must specify a relaxation factor to be applied to the limits for those elements which
are overloaded in the base calculation.

40.5.2.2 Voltage Limits

If the option Consider voltage limits is selected, the voltage limits of all the terminals are considered for
the Transfer Capacity analysis. The available options are:
• Global constraint for all terminals: the limits defined in the Upper and Lower limit of allowed voltage
fields are used for all terminals.
• Individual constraint per terminal: the limits defined on the Load Flow page of the terminals are
used.

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Additionally, on the Advanced tab, a set of elements to consider can be defined.

The flag Continue calculation if base case has voltage violations allows execution of the Transfer
Capacity Analysis even if relevant constraints are not complied with in the base calculation. If this
option is selected, the user must specify a relaxation factor to be applied to the limits for those elements
where limits are violated in the base calculation.

40.5.2.3 Power Flow Limits

If one or several boundaries are selected as interconnection, this boundary can also be used as a
limit. On the Power Flow Limits page the minimum and maximum power flow across a boundaries is
defined via limits. The limit value can either be set globally or individually per boundary. If the option
“individual constraint per boundary” is selected, the active power limits of the boundary is defined within
the boundary on the Transfer Capacity Analysis page.

40.5.2.4 Advanced

• Consider constraints only for selected objects: with this option, a specific selection, for which
constraints will be applied, can be defined.
• Ignore all constraints for nominal voltage below or equal to: this option can be used to ignore the
constraints on the terminals under a certain voltage level.
• Consider active power limits: the active power limits of the generators are considered in the
analysis. The limit used is the minimum of the Operational limit and the Rating limit defined
on the Load Flow page of the generator.

40.5.3 Output

When the Transfer Capacity Analysis is executed, the operational point of the network is modified in
order to get a better solution. These modifications are not saved by default. However, the user can
choose to save the data for the last feasible solution by using the following options available on the
Output page:

• Do not save
• Save to a new operation scenario
• Save to a user defined operation scenario

If one of the options that creates a new operation scenario is selected, additional information about
the created scenario (e.g. Total transfer capacity for the last feasible solution) will be stored on the
Description page of the corresponding scenario.

The results of the Transfer Capacity Analysis are written in the output window as shown in Figure 40.5.1.
In the example shown, the scaling mode was selected for all generators. PowerFactory generates a
status report for each iteration while the power scaling process is running.

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Figure 40.5.1: Transfer Capacity Analysis output

40.5.4 Iteration Control

In the Initial Conditions the Initial scaling factor and the Initial step size for the analysis are defined. In
the Convergence Criteria the Min. step size and the Max. number of iterations are defined.

These factors can be used to speed up the calculation by starting closer to the limit of the transfer
capacity, and to increase the accuracy of the solution.

The initial scaling factor is used to define the starting point for the transfer capacity analysis. The
procedure is as follows:

• A load flow calculation is executed and the actual power flow between regions or across the border
is multiplied by the initial scaling factor,
• the selected loads and generators are then scaled accordingly,
• this dispatch is the starting point for the iterative calculation of the maximum power transfer
capacity.

In case the actual power flow is smaller than 1 kW, the dispatch of the exporting region is scaled, to get
the initial transferred power.

The initial step size is applied to the initial dispatch to calculate the first step. The Min. step size defines
the convergence step of the algorithm and therefore the accuracy.

40.5.5 Advanced

Use fictitious border network

This option is by default not selected and for most networks is not needed. It is provided for use with
networks where adjacent regions, normally modelling adjacent countries, are not connected directly but
via a so-called “fictitious border grid”, as shown in figure 40.5.2 below. In order that the calculation
recognises such configurations as interconnections, the option Use fictitious border network should be
checked, and the border grid selected.

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Figure 40.5.2: Network regions without and with fictitious border network

Generators scaling mode

If generators are selected as scaling elements, the user can select between different scaling modes:
• Rated active power: generation shift is proportionally scaled for the generators according to their
rated active power.
• Remaining active power: generation shift is scaled for the generators according to the “remaining
active power”. The definition of “remaining active power” depends on the location of the genera-
tors: for generators in the exporting region, the value equals the difference between the maximum
active power and operating active power; for generators in the importing region, the value equals
the difference between the operating active power and minimum active power.
• Merit-order table: generation shift is scaled for the generators according to the merit-order table.

• Generation shift key: this scaling mode allows the assignment of individual participation factors
for each power generating unit. Via their specification, it is possible to define how the regional
change in power generation has to be mapped to each of the generating units within the exporting
and the importing region.
The default set value of this attribute is 100% and it can be entered on the Advanced tab on the
Load Flow page.
The actual shift factors of the generators that assume the power transfer changes between the
exporting and importing regions, i.e. those set as “Dispatchable” on the field Generator Dispatch
(Automatic Dispatch tab), are generally calculated as follows:

𝐺𝑆𝐾𝑖,𝑖𝑛𝑖
𝐺𝑆𝐾𝑖,𝑎𝑐𝑡 = 𝑛 (40.1)
∑︁
𝐺𝑆𝐾𝑖,𝑖𝑛𝑖
𝑖=1

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40.6 Flow Decomposition

Power flows on a branch located somewhere in the power system can be classified by the locations of
the sources and sinks causing these power flows. The flow decomposition gives the possibility to trace
an active power flow on a branch element within the system, by analysing the sources (e.g. generators)
and the sinks (e.g. loads) causing this flow. The branch element can be either an internal or a cross-
border element connecting zones, areas or grids. Using this classification and a regional grouping, e.g.
zones, following flow types can be defined:
Loop Flow: A loop flow is a flow where the source and sink are in the same zone but the branch
element or even part of it is in another zone.
Transit Flow: A transit flow is a flow where the source, sink and the branch element or even part of it
are all located in different zones, e.g. an active power flow from a source in zone A to a sink in
zone C on a line in zone B.
Export Flow: An export flow is a flow on a branch element located in the same zone as the source with
a sink in another zone. This flow is just defined for internal elements.

Import Flow: An import flow is a flow where the sink is in the same zone as a part of the branch element
and the source is in another. Import/export flows on cross-border lines are always classified as
import flows.
Internal Flow: An internal flow is an active power flow where the source, the sink and the branch
element are located in the same zonal allocation.

The different flows are also visualised in figure 40.6.1. It is important to note that the flow definition
depends on the location of the branch element, e.g. a loop flow becomes an internal flow when it
reaches the zone of the source and the sink.

Figure 40.6.1: Definition of flow types according to zone

The flow decomposition is important for network planning to ensure sufficient free line capacity for the
market or to analyse potential measures to reduce e.g. loop flows.

It is also used for the allocation of loop and transmission flows for the cost sharing between different
system operators.

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40.6.1 Technical Background

Tracing electricity can be seen as a transportation problem of determining how the power injected
by generators is distributed between the lines and loads of the meshed network. The goal is to
trace electricity from a particular generator to a particular supplier. There are different calculation
methods that can be used for the flow decomposition. In PowerFactory the flow decomposition is
performed according to the Full Line Decomposition (FLD) method [38]. The FLD method is based on
the calculation of a power exchange matrix as described in detail by Bialek [38]. Further information
can be found in [52].

The used FLD method is composed of the following main steps:

1. Calculation of a DC load flow.

2. Obtain nodal power transfer distribution factor matrix (PTDF matrix). The nodal PTDF matrix
describes the linear relation between the power injections by generators and the active power
flows in the network elements.

3. Calculate power exchange matrix (PEX matrix). The PEX matrix contains the power that is
exchanged between each generator node and each load node. That means 𝑃 𝐸𝑋𝑖𝑗 is the power
produced in node 𝑖 for the load in node 𝑗.
4. With the PTDF and the PEX matrix, the power flow partitioning matrix (PFP matrix) is calculated.

5. In the last step the flow types are calculated by filtering and summing up the cells of the PFP
matrix.

The Flow Decomposition in PowerFactory supports the decomposition of the active power flow for DC
load flow calculation.

40.6.1.1 HVDC cycle flows

The HVDC cycle flows are calculated according to the method presented in [45]. Only HVDC-links with
two connections can be considered. The flow decomposition can neither be used for Multi-Terminal
HVDCs nor for HVDCs with generators or loads within the DC network. For all HVDCs in the system
the condition 𝑃AC inflow = 𝑃AC outflow needs to be satisfied.

The HVDC-link is analysed regarding the effect on the AC network. The flow on the DC line itself is not
decomposed.

40.6.1.2 PST cycle flows

For the calculation of the PTDF matrix, non-linear phase-depending impedances of the PST need to be
linearised. The linearisation is performed around the current operating point.

This may lead to a mismatch between the decomposed flows and the actual active power flow because
of linearisation errors.

40.6.1.3 Power Exchange Analysis

The Power Exchange Analysis gives information about which generator nodes and load nodes are
responsible for a specific flow, e.g. which generator-load pair is causing the whole or parts of the loop
flow. For this the PFP matrix is analysed to get all relevant elements causing this flow. Participations
below a user-definable threshold are neglected.

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40.6.2 Flow Decomposition Command

40.6.2.1 Basic Options

Method

The Flow Decomposition command offers two different calculation methods:

• Flow Decomposition: The Flow Decomposition decomposes the power flow on the selected
network components.
• Power Exchange Analysis: In addition to the Flow Decomposition, the Power Exchange Analysis
also calculates the corresponding sources and sinks for each flow types. Thus, not only the
different flow types on a line can be analysed, but also the cause for each specific flow. The
information can be recorded (see 40.6.2.3) and represented either for each element or grouping
wise (see 40.6.3.2).

Analysed network components

There are two different options to select the analysed network components:

• All cross-border branch elements

• User-defined branch elements
Only branch elements, e.g. lines, transformers or switches, can be analysed. In case of a user-defined
selection either one specific element or a set (*.SetSelect) can be selected.

Groupings

Groupings are important for the flow decomposition as they define the flow classification of the decom-
posed flow. There are three available options:
• Zones
• Areas

• Grids
In case “Zones” have been selected for the grouping and some elements do not have a zone defined,
all elements without a zone will be treated as if they were in the same zone. The same applies to areas.

Calculation times for decomposition

There are two options available:

• Current study time only: Calculates the flow decomposition just for one point in time.
• Calculation times of Quasi-Dynamic Simulation: Calculates the flow decomposition for all
points in time defined in the Quasi-Dynamic Simulation command.

In each case, the used calculation command is linked below the selection. Note that the Flow Decom-
position only supports DC load flow calculation.

The Power Exchange Analysis can be performed for the Current study time only.

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40.6.2.2 Algorithm

On the Algorithm page, thresholds for the calculation can be defined:

Min. power sensitivity (PTDF): Minimum effectiveness of a generator on a line to be used within the
PTDF matrix.
Min. transformer sensitivity (PSDF): Minimum effectiveness of a phase shift transformer to be used
within the PTDF matrix.
Treshold for power exchange matrix (PEX): Minimum value for exchange that is still considered.
For the load flow initialisation two options are available:

• Use last calculated load flow results if available

• Always recalculate load flow results
Multi-threading can be used to increase the performance of the flow decomposition.

40.6.2.3 Results/Output

Recorded results

In case of a Power Exchange Analysis, the additional option “Recorded results” is available on the
Results/Output page. There are three different options for the record of results:

• Grouping-based power exchange data only just records the source and sink of each flow
regarding the grouping. Therefore, not the source or sink itself is recorded but just e.g. the
zone.
• Node-based power exchange data only records for each flow the corresponding source and
sinks.
• All power exchange data (default) stores the grouping-based data as well as the node-based
data within the result file.

Output

There are three options for the output messages available:

• Off
• Short
• Detailed

40.6.3 Flow Decomposition Tabular Report

For the representation of the results a specific report is available. The report can be created using
the Flow Decomposition Tabular Reports command ( ). In case a Power Exchange Analysis was
performed there is the option to choose between different reports. All reports can be exported as html
or xlsx. The different reports are described below.

40.6.3.1 Flow Decomposition Report

The Flow Decomposition Report lists the different flow types per component (e.g. line). The report
contains the flow categories, as well as the total active power flow and the mismatch on the line. The

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mismatch is the difference between the active power flow and the sum of all flow parts. The cause for a
mismatch are non-linear tap depended impedances (see section 40.6.1.2).

40.6.3.2 Power Exchange Analysis Report

The Power Exchange Analysis Report contains for the flow on each analysed component the participat-
ing nodes. In the header of the report, the analysed component can be selected and a minimum flow
value can be set. It is also possible to show the power exchange analysis for all components.
• Groupings: The Power Exchange Analysis Report for Groupings sums up the participating gen-
erators and loads according to their grouping. This gives a good overview, especially in large
networks, but takes away the possibility of analysing the specific elements that cause a particular
flow.
• Nodes: In case the Power Exchange Analysis Report for Nodes is created, the node of the
generation and the node of the load are displayed in addition to the related grouping. Especially
in large networks, this can lead to long tables. In such cases, it is therefore advisable to set an
appropriate minimum flow value.
The Power Exchange Analysis Report for Nodes presents all existing flow types in one column
that can be filtered using the selector of the Flow Type column ( ).

Note that the report for groupings or nodes can only be displayed, if the corresponding option has been
selected on the Results/Output page of the Flow Decomposition command (see 40.6.2.3).

40.6.4 Flow Decomposition Plots

To visualise the results of a Flow Decomposition over time a plotting function is available. To create
a plot the Create Flow Decomposition Plot command ( ) can be used. This function creates a plot
visualising the change of the decomposed flows over time and is especially handy to visualise the
decomposed flows of a Quasi-Dynamic Simulation.

More information about plots is available in chapter Reporting and Visualising Results, section 18.8.9.

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Distribution Network Tools

41.1 Introduction

This chapter presents the PowerFactory Distribution Network Tools, which are dedicated functions for
the analysis and optimisation of distribution networks. Each section of this chapter introduces the
tool and its command dialogs. For the optimisation tools, the objective function and the optimisation
procedure are described, too.

The set of functions is organised into two sub-groups, namely Distribution Network Analysis and Distri-
bution Network Optimisation. The toolbox for each subgroup is accessible through the Change Toolbox
button on the Main Toolbar.

The toolbox “Distribution Network Analysis” is shown in Figure 41.1.1. It contains the following functions:

• Hosting Capacity Analysis, described in Section 41.2

• Backbone Calculation, described in Section 41.3
• Voltage Sag Table Assessment, described in Section 41.4

• Low Voltage Load Flow Calculation, described in Section 41.5

Figure 41.1.1: Distribution Network Analysis Toolbox

The Toolbox “Distribution Network Optimisation” is shown in Figure 41.1.2. It contains the following
functions:

• Tie Open Point Optimisation, described in Section 41.6

• Phase Balance Optimisation, described in Section 41.7

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• Voltage Profile Optimisation, described in Section 41.8

• Optimal Equipment Placement, described in Section 41.9

• Optimal Capacitor Placement, described in Section 41.10

Figure 41.1.2: Distribution Network Optimisation Toolbox

Additionally, the Section 41.11 provides a description of the stochastic optimisation algorithms used.

41.2 Hosting Capacity

The Hosting Capacity tool allows the analysis of the impact of adding generation (Distributed Energy
Resource (DER) Capacity) or load (Spare Load Capacity) to a power system.

Hosting capacity is generally defined as the amount of new generation or consumption that can be con-
nected to the grid without violation of system constraints (e.g. power quality for connected customers)
and without any network expansion. All constraints used to determine the level of possible generation
or load accommodation can be quantified using the performance index. This index can correlate
with voltage violation, loading violation, protection setup etc. and can be interpreted as the system
robustness. Therefore, the hosting capacity can also be defined as the amount of new generation or
consumption where the performance index reaches its limit. This is illustrated in the following figure:

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Figure 41.2.1: Performance Index limiting the max. amount of generation/load

41.2.1 Technical Background

In this section the process of the Hosting Capacity Analysis, depending on the command settings, is
described. It also contains references to the below sections describing the available settings (like cal-
culation objective, constraints, etc.), in order to quickly find the corresponding settings in the command.

As described in Section 41.2.2, first the hosting sites to be analysed have to be selected. From
the selection, the corresponding terminals (internal nodes are ignored) are collected, for which the
maximum hosting capacity or spare load capacity is calculated. The calculation objective (see Section
41.2.2.1) determines whether generation or load is scaled:

• When option “Distributed Energy Resource (DER) Capacity” is selected each node is processed
individually. A virtual generator (ElmGenstat) is internally connected to the first terminal from
the hosting sites selection. Beginning from the initial power value (see Sections 41.2.2.3 and
41.2.2.4), the power of this generator is scaled until one of the user-defined constraints is violated.
Then, the analysis continues with the next node until all hosting sites are processed.
• If the option “Spare Load Capacity” is selected, per default all loads already connected to the
terminals to be analysed are scaled simultaneously. The maximum spare load capacity is obtained
when one of the user-defined constraints is violated. Another option (see Section 41.2.2.1,
Advanced tab) allows each load to be analysed separately. Here, as well, only terminals to which
a load is already connected are processed. On the “Configuration” page (see Section 41.2.2.3)
however the user can activate the option “Connect new load”. In this case, the same algorithm as
for DER Capacity is used to increase the load at the terminals one after the other.
The algorithm used to obtain the maximum hosting or spare load capacity is based on the binomial
search method. It starts from an initial active power value. The power is then increased by the initial
step size defined on the Iteration Control page (see Section 41.2.2.4).

A load flow calculation is executed and the constraints defined by the user on the Constraints page (see
Section 41.2.2.2) are checked for limit violations. If no violation has occurred, the algorithm continues
with the double of the previous step size and checks again for violations. This process is kept up

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until a limit violation occurs. In this case, the half of the previous step size is used. This process
is continued until the algorithm converges to the correct solution without violations or the maximum
number of iterations is reached.

41.2.2 Hosting Capacity Analysis Configuration

The Hosting Capacity analysis can be opened by pressing Hosting Capacity Analysis button in the
Distribution Network Analysis Toolbox.

More information about the available settings can be found in the following subsections.

41.2.2.1 Basic Options Page

Hosting sites

In order to carry out the Hosting Capacity Analysis, so-called hosting sites must be specified. These
are the network nodes at which the generation or the demand is increased until a system constraint is
reached, allowing to assess the robustness of the network under analysis.

The hosting sites can be specified

• From the network graphic, Network Model Manager as well as Data Manager; by right-clicking on
the selection and choosing Calculation → Hosting Capacity Analysis. . . from the context menu.

• Via the Hosting Capacity Analysis command, by clicking on the button ( ) next to Hosting sites
and choosing the elements from the selection browser that appear after pressing the option
Select. . . .

A multiple selection of elements is possible in both methods, with a Set (SetSelect) being created
automatically. The set can be edited by clicking on the button ( ).

The network elements of the following classes can be assigned to the Hosting sites field:

• Terminal (ElmTerm)
• Substation (ElmSubstat)

• Secondary Substation (ElmTrfstat)

• Feeder (ElmFeeder)
• Area (ElmArea)
• Zone (ElmZone)

• Grid (ElmNet)

If a grouping object is selected, the calculation will extract the relevant terminals.

Calculation objective

1. Distributed Energy Resources (DER) Capacity: assessment of maximum connectible DER hosting
capacity for each terminal within the selection.
2. Spare Load Capacity: assessment of maximum connectible Load Capacity by terminal or overall
by increase the power demand of all loads simultaneously.

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Calculation method

The following methods are supported and can be used in the calculation:

• AC Load Flow, balanced, positive sequence

• AC Load Flow, unbalanced, 3-phase (ABC)
• DC Load Flow (linear)

The corresponding load flow command which is used in the calculation is linked ( ) under Base case
load flow settings. More information on the load flow settings can be found in chapter 24.3.

Load Flow type

Select the type of Load Flow that shall be used:

• Standard Load Flow (see Chapter 24)
• Low Voltage Load Flow (see Section 41.5)

Constraints

In this command section, the user has the possibility to specify which constraints have to be considered
during the calculation. Following options are available:

• Thermal limits
• Voltage limits
• Protection limits
• Power quality limits
• Short-circuit contribution limits

The last two constraint options are only available for selection if DER Capacity is selected as calculation
objective. Only asserted constraints can be configured in detail on the Constraints page as described
in chapter 41.2.2.2.

Advanced

The options on the Advanced page are only available when the calculation objective Spare Load
Capacity is selected.

Consideration of Loads

For the consideration of loads, the user has two options which are further described in chapter 41.2.2.3:
• All loads simultaneously: The possible load growth can be determined by scaling all loads in
the network simultaneously. This selection is only possible if the Standard Load Flow has been
selected as Load Flow type.
• Each load separately: Loads are treated independently. This means that the power demand of
each load is increased separately until one of the set limits is reached.
Load scaling factor

If All loads simultaneously is selected as method for the consideration of loads, two options for the
usage of a Load scaling factor are available:

• Equal distribution: The same scaling factor will be applied to all loads, depending only on the
actual step size (step). With this approach, the equation 𝑃𝑖 = 𝑃𝑖 ini · (1 + 𝑠𝑡𝑒𝑝) is used for each
load i.

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• Weighted scaling factor: The scaling factor that is applied to a load depends not only on the actual
step but also on its initial power. The larger the initial power of a load i, the larger the scaling factor
that is applied to it. This behaviour can be described with the equation 𝑃𝑖 = 𝑃𝑖 ini · (1 + 𝑃𝑃𝑖∑︀ini · 𝑠𝑡𝑒𝑝).

41.2.2.2 Constraints

The options available in the tabs of the page Constraints are described below.

General

• Ignore all constraints for nominal voltage below or above the given value.
• Constraints check
– Per feeder: Only constraints related to network elements within the investigated feeders will
be assessed. In addition, also the supplying substation, including the supply transformer and
terminals, is assessed.
– Whole system: Constraints are checked within the whole system.
– Specific elements: Constraints are only checked for a pre-defined Selection of elements.

Thermal Limits

Two option are available for configuring the thermal limit of branches:

• Global constraint for all components: If enabled, the user must enter a maximum thermal loading
percentage in the Maximum thermal loading of components field. Note that this option overrides
the individual component thermal limits.
• Individual constraint per component: If asserted, the thermal rating of each branch element is
considered individually during the analysis. Thermal ratings of a branch components can be set
on the field Max. Loading on the Load Flow page.

Voltage Limits for Terminals

The following options related to the voltage constraints at terminals are available:

• Consider Voltage Limits: If this option is enabled, then each terminal in the system is checked
against the defined thresholds.

Being the option Consider Voltage Limits asserted, two alternatives for configuring the voltage limits
become available:
• Global constraints for all terminals: If asserted, the limits set on the two fields available in the
command (Upper and Lower limit of allowed voltage) are used globally to check the constraints.
Note that this option overrides the individual terminal voltage limits.
• Individual constraint per terminal: If this option is selected, then the voltage of each terminal is
checked against its specific limits, which can be set within the data frame Steady State Voltage
Limits on the Load Flow page of the terminal edit dialog. Note that these local limits are only
available if the terminal Usage is either Busbar or Junction node.

If the calculation method AC Load Flow, unbalanced is selected on the Basic Options page, either the
line-ground or the line-line voltages can be selected for the 3-phase (ABC) voltage check :
• Line-ground, L-G
• Line-line, L-L

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Voltage Limits for Feeders

Next, the options concerning voltage limits within Feeders are described.

• Voltage drop/rise: It allows to define constraints related to the voltage variations along feeders.
Following sub-options are available:
– Global constraints for all feeders: The global limits defined in the command are considered
through the fields that are activated if the option is selected:
* Maximum Voltage Rise
* Maximum Voltage Drop
– Individual constraint per feeder: If selected, the limits defined in each feeder element are
considered. In feeders, these limits can be defined in the Limits for Voltage Change relative
to Feeding Point field, accessible in the Load Flow page of the element’s edit dialog.

• Voltage regulator tap change: If checked, allows you to define limits for the number of tap changes
with following sub-options:
– Max. allowed number of taps (regulator)
– Max. allowed number of taps (capacitors)
• Permissible voltage change (from no DER to full DER): The option allows you to define a limit
for the maximum voltage variation (Max. voltage change) between the extreme scenarios. The
following can be used to fine-tune the calculation performed for this analysis:
– Regulated load flow settings: A separate load flow command can be used for checking the
constraint (Max. voltage change). Its settings can be accessed through the button ( ). You
can use the button Reset to Base Case Settings to transfer all configurations from the load
flow command set on the Basic Data page.
– Generators to be switched off: This option can be found on the Advanced tab. The assess-
ment is based on the selected generators:
* All static generators from the feeder
* User-defined filter
• Voltage unbalance: This option is only available for selection if unbalanced calculations are
performed, i.e. if AC Load Flow, unbalance, 3-phase (ABC) is selected as calculation method.
If the option is selected, the definition of a constraint for the Maximum voltage unbalance factor
(parameter c:maxUnbFacU) becomes available.

Note: The settings

• Voltage rise/drop
• Voltage regulator tap change
• Permissible voltage change (from no DER to full DER)
only apply if the advanced option Ignore terminals which are not part of a feeder is selected (see
chapter 41.2.2.6) or the selection of Hosting sites only contains one or more feeders.

Protection Limits:

The user can choose between the consideration of all relevant protection devices or a user defined set
of protection devices. Please note that the Relay or fuse does not have to be modelled as a separate
device within the network model, but can also be defined through the circuit breaker setting Consider
as switch with protection device.
1. Reversed power flow option to prohibit the occurrence of reverse power flow during Hosting
Capacity analysis.
• Reversed power flow is analysed for switches where the setting Consider in the reversed
power flow analysis is set.

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2. Relay/fuse tripping option to set up relay or fuse tripping to be a hosting capacity limiting constraint.
3. Limit Fuse current change by the entered value in relation to base case Fuse current.

4. The Total fault contribution limits the maximum allowed fault contribution of one Generator in
relation to the base case Short-Circuit results.
• This constraint is only available for calculation objective Distributed Energy Resource Capac-
ity.

Power Quality:

1. The percentage Total Harmonic voltage distortion can be selected, where the limit will be assessed
based on the Harmonic Load Flow command (chapter 35.2).
2. Short-term flicker disturbance factor (continuous operation) according to Harmonic Load Flow
analysis can be defined.

Advanced:

1. Generators to be switched off

• Choose between all static generators to be switched off or a user defined set of generators.
• This set of generators will be used for assessment of Permissible voltage change within the
voltage limits constraints settings.
2. Short circuit calculation
• The Short Circuit calculation can be executed at all terminals within the feeder or only at the
DER location.

41.2.2.3 Configuration

Depending on the Calculation objective selected on the Basic Options page (see Section 41.2.2.1),
either the Distributed Energy Resource (DER) or the load to be connected can be configured. The
phase technology of the connected element is modified according to the phase technology of the
corresponding terminal.

Connected DER: Two options for the generator to be connected are available.

• Use generator with settings below: A Static Generator (ElmGenstat) is internally set up according
to the available settings on this page and used in the analysis.
• User-defined template: In order to allow more flexibility a Static Generator template can be
configured as required. It can be opened by clicking on the blue arrow . Please note that
options like the phase technology or the dispatch of the generator can be defined in the template
but are overwritten by the Hosting Capacity command.
For more information about the Static Generator model, please refer to the corresponding techni-
cal reference.

The following settings define the generator which is connected to the terminals during the analysis.
Some of them will only be available if Use generator with settings below is selected.

• DER power factor: The Power Factor used for the generator can be specified.
• User-defined active power limits: If activated, the initial and the final generated power can be
defined. If deactivated, the final generated power is not limited. The initial power is automatically
adapted to the voltage level, in order to accelerate the convergence process. The corresponding
mapping table is shown in Table 41.2.1.
– Final generated power: This value will limit the maximum active power that is connected to a
terminal, if the algorithm does not stop earlier because of a constraint violation.

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– Initial generated power: This value is useful if the hosted power value is approximately known
(this will accelerate the convergence process) or if the initial generated power defined in the
internal mapping table shown above is too big (algorithm will find no solution).

Note: Please ensure that the initial power value is below any constraint violating power. Otherwise, the
algorithm will not find a solution.

Voltage Level in kV Initial Power

< 9.5 5 kW
< 39.5 200 kW
< 100 1 MW
>= 100 10 MW

Table 41.2.1: Mapping Table: Nominal Voltage vs Initial Generated Power

• Short-circuit contribution: This field will only be available if Short-circuit contribution limits option
is enabled on the Basic Options page (see Section 41.2.2.1). More information about the effect of
the parameters R/X” and Short-circuit model are available in the technical reference of the Static
Generator.
• Harmonics contribution: This field will only be available if Power quality limits option is enabled on
the Basic Options page (see Section 41.2.2.1). Depending on the settings on the Power Quality
tab of the Constraints page (see Section 41.2.2.2), the following two settings are available:
– Harmonic currents: Available if Total harmonic voltage distortion option is activated. A
Harmonic Source (TypHmccur ) can be selected from a global or project library. It is assigned
to the generator that is connected to the terminals during the analysis. The definition of the
Harmonic Source is necessary to evaluate the effect of the increasing generation on the Total
Harmonic Distortion (THD) in the network.
– Flicker coefficients: Available if Short-term flicker disturbance factor (continuous operation)
option is activated. A Flicker Coefficient (TypFlicker ) can be selected from a global or project
library. The object is assigned to the generator that is connected to the terminals during the
analysis, in order to evaluate the Short-term flicker disturbance factor (continuous operation)
with increasing generation.

Connect new load: This option is only available if calculation objective Spare Load Capacity is chosen
and option Each load separately is enabled on the Advanced tab of the Basic Options page.

The Hosting Capacity algorithm will connect new loads depending on the following options:
• Do not connect: No new loads are connected, meaning that only existing loads are considered
and scaled independently.

• Only if no previously connected found: New loads are only connected to terminals where no load
element is already connected. Existing and new loads will be considered together and scaled
independently.
• Always connect: A new load is connected to all available terminals in the network. Only new loads
are considered and scaled independently.

Note: If the Low Voltage Load Flow is selected as Load Flow type on the Basic Options page, only
Always connect can be selected.

If the connection of loads for the analysis is allowed, the load to be connected can be configured,
depending on the Load Flow type.

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Load Configuration with Standard Load Flow

• Initial load active power: Active power value from which the algorithm starts

• Power factor:The Power factor used for the load can be specified

For the calculation of the Spare Load Capacity, the Power Factor of the loads can be configured in two
ways:

• Keep constant power factor: The power factor of the loads will be constant, which means that both
active and reactive power will be scaled equally.
• Keep constant reactive power: The reactive power of the loads will be constant, which means that
only the active power will be scaled. The power factor changes accordingly.

Load Configuration with Low Voltage Load Flow

• Coincidence definition: A coincidence definition for the new low-voltage load has to be selected
(see also section 41.5.2.1). If a fixed load should be assumed, it is suggested to create an
additional coincidence definition with 𝑔∞ = 1.

For the calculation of the Spare Load Capacity, there are two different ways how an increase in power
can be configured in the Consumption definition:

• Customer number increase: The maximum power from the coincidence definition is used and only
the number of customers in the new load is increased. If this configuration is selected, the Initial
customer count for the start of the iteration can be entered.
• Individual power increase: Only one customer is assumed in the new load and the individual
consumption of this load is increased, regardless of the maximum power in the coincidence
definition.

41.2.2.4 Iteration Control

On this page, settings affecting the iteration process and the convergence of the algorithm can be
specified.

Initial conditions: In this field, the initial step size can be defined. The first step is then calculated by
the initial power multiplied by the initial step size, e.g. 𝑃𝑛𝑒𝑤 = 𝑃𝑖𝑛𝑖 · (1 + 𝑠𝑡𝑒𝑝𝑖𝑛𝑖 /100%) = 1𝑀 𝑊 · (1 +
1%/100%) = 1.01𝑀 𝑊 .

Convergence criteria: Min. step size defines the smallest step size of the algorithm before it stops. A
value of 1% means a step size of 0.01 MW. The algorithm will also stop if the Max. number of iterations
is reached.

41.2.2.5 Output

Results: Link to the result object (ElmRes) for the Hosting Capacity Analysis. A result object can be
selected by clicking on and then Select. . . . An already selected one can be edited by pressing the
Edit button .

Note: Depending on which calculation objective (Distributed Energy Resource (DER) Capacity or
Spare Load Capacity ) is selected, a different result object (ElmRes) is automatically created and
assigned to the command.

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Additional options are available for the Output per iteration to select the level of detail that is written into
the output window.

41.2.2.6 Advanced

Ignore terminals which are not part of a feeder:

• Disabled: If a set of terminals is selected, the Hosting Capacity command does not automatically
search for the corresponding feeders. All nodes are processed individually.

• If activated, only terminals which are part of a feeder are processed. Furthermore, the algorithm
analyses the terminals feeder by feeder. It also affects the Spare Load Capacity option All loads
simultaneously (see Section 41.2.2.1). If this option is activated, all loads within a feeder are
scaled simultaneously.

Include feeder starting terminal: A feeder which is defined in the Branch direction does not automat-
ically include the feeder starting terminal. If this terminal should be considered in the Hosting Capacity
Analysis, this option can be activated.

Ignore time trigger: By activating this option, all time triggers will be ignored in the analysis. This can
be used to avoid a time dependency of the results.

Initialisation of load flow: To determine the hosting capacity of the system under investigation, the
algorithm iteratively executes load flow calculations. For the initialisation of each load flow, it is possible
to choose between the following options:

• Based on previous load flow results: A Load flow calculation uses the results of the previously
executed calculation for the initialisation (no flat-start).
• Full initialisation: A flat-start is used as initialisation of each load flow.

41.2.2.7 Parallel Computing

Parallel computation: By activating this option, a user-definable number of calculation objects (nodes)
is distributed to different cores, for which the solution of the Hosting Capacity analysis under consider-
ation of all selected constraints is then calculated and returned to the main process. Due to the parallel
computation the performance is multiplied, resulting in a significant reduction in the calculation time.

• Minimum number of calculation objects: The number of calculation objects must exceed this
number, in order that the analysis is executed in parallel.
• Package size for parallel process: Number of calculation objects/nodes that are transferred to
each core per cycle.

• Parallel computation settings: Refer to Section 21.4 for more information.

41.2.3 Results of the Hosting Capacity

This section informs about the possibilities to evaluate the Hosting Capacity results. For the analysed
terminals Statistics:Calculation Parameter are available that can be displayed in the Network Model or
Data Manager or in the Result Boxes in the single line or geographical diagram.

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Result Boxes:

By right-clicking on a result box of a terminal in the network graphic, a predefined format for the Hosting
Capacity can be selected (Format for Nodes → Hosted Power (P, Q)), in order to display the active and
reactive hosted power at the nodes.

Furthermore, different colouring schemes are available, in order to colour the schematic or geographical
diagrams according to different parameters. Several tabular reports help the user to easily find for
example the maximum hosted power or the limiting component. More information about the diagram
colouring and the reports can be found in the following sections.

General information about configuring colours can be found in Section 4.7.8.

41.2.3.1 Graphical Representation

Hosting Capacity Circles:

In geographic diagrams circles can be displayed around substations, sites, secondary substations and
nodes, whose sizes represent the power that can be connected without violating the user-defined
constraints. This option can be enabled/disabled by clicking on and editing the layer Load/generation
distribution. On the page Load/Generation the option to show the Hosting capacity circles can be
activated or deactivated and the colour for the circles (Circle colour ) can be defined (see section 9.7 for
more information). This option is available for the Displayed variables “P” and “Q”.

Diagram Colouring Scheme:

The colouring can be enabled by clicking on the Diagram Colouring. . . button and opening the
Hosting Capacity page. Activate 3. Others and select Results → Hosted Powers. By clicking on
Colour Settings. . . , the colouring mode can be determined.

Four colouring modes are available. For each one, the colour gradient can be defined in the alongside
table called Hosted Power.
• hosted power at nodes
• maximum feeder power

• minimum feeder power

• average feeder power

Note: The feeder colouring is only possible if feeders have been analysed (i.e. feeder object(s) selected
as Hosting Site).

Substation colouring: This option is only available if colouring mode hosted power at nodes is
selected. Substations can then be coloured according to the
• maximum power of connected terminals or

• minimum power of connected terminals.

Enable branch colouring: This option is only available if colouring mode hosted power at nodes is
selected. If enabled, branches can be coloured according to the
• maximum power of two connected terminals or

• minimum power of two connected terminals.

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41.2.3.2 Tabular Reports

The results can also be evaluated by tabular report. These can be created by clicking on the Hosting
Capacity Reports button in the Distribution Network Analysis toolbar. A dialog will open, in which
the tabular report types to be created as well as the constraints to report, can be selected.

Results: The result object (ElmRes) to be analysed can be selected by clicking on and then
Select. . . . A window showing all result objects contained in the active study case will open and the
result object can be selected.

Report tables: The following types of tabular reports can be selected:

• Feeders: The report shows the maximum, minimum and average hosted active power within the
analysed feeders. The tabular report will only display feeders that have been selected as Hosting
Sites.

• Terminals: For each analysed terminal the maximum active and reactive hosted power that can be
connected before a constraint is violated, the corresponding violated constraint (if selected, see
Constraints to report) and the limiting component are displayed. The limiting component is the
element at which a limit has first been violated.
• Ignored terminals: Lists all terminals that were selected but have been ignored in the Hosting
Capacity analysis.
Constraints to report: By selecting the following constraints, columns will be added to the tabular
report.
• Thermal

• Voltage
• Protection
• Power quality (only available for DER Capacity analysis)

Filters:

• Results per phase: If selected and an unbalanced analysis has been performed, columns will be
added in the tabular report, displaying the connectable power per phase.
• Show apparent power: If selected, a column will be added to the tabular report, displaying the
connectable apparent power.
• Colouring threshold: Threshold for the colouring of the limiting values. A value will be coloured in
red, if its relative value based on the limit in percent exceeds the threshold.
– Loading Colouring Threshold: Is used to colour loading values. For example: If the loading
threshold is set to 99.8% and the loading limit is 100%, all loading values over this threshold
will be coloured.
– Voltage Colouring Threshold: Is used to colour voltage values. For example: If the voltage
threshold is set to 1%, and the maximum and minimum voltage limits are 1.04 p.u. and
0.96 p.u. respectively, then all voltage values over 1.039 p.u. and under 0.961 p.u. will be
coloured.
– THD Colouring Threshold: Is used to colour THD values. For example: If the THD threshold
is set to 10% and the THD limit is 5%, all THD values over 4.5% will be coloured.

Used format: Links to the different format templates for the tabular reports.

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41.2.3.3 Load Hosting Capacity Results

By clicking on the Load Hosting Capacity Analysis Results button in the Distribution Network Analy-
sis toolbar, previous results can be reloaded.

In the dialog window, a Hosting Capacity result object has to be selected, by clicking on and then
Select. . . . From the selection browser the desired result object (ElmRes) can be selected. After
confirming with Execute, the results are reloaded and can be evaluated in the network graphic, the
Network Model Manager or Data Manager.

41.3 Backbone Calculation

This section describes the Backbone Calculation command (ComBbone) dialogs and presents an
example calculation. To run a Backbone Calculation, either:

• Select the Backbone Calculation icon under Distribution Network Analysis as shown in Figure 41.1.1.
• From the Data Manager, select and then right-click previously defined feeders and click Calcula-
tion → Backbone Calculation. . . .
• From the main menu, select Calculation → Distribution Network Analysis→ Backbone Calcula-
tion. . . .

The Backbone Calculation is used to determine the main paths between adjacent feeders connected via
open points, that may serve to restore lost load in case of failures inside a feeder. The command creates
objects in the Network Data folder (ElmBbone) with the Backbones constituent network elements. This
simplifies visualisation of the main path(s) between feeder(s), particularly in large distribution networks
where the main paths may not be apparent from the single line diagram.

Backbone objects are created for all feeders or a user-defined set of feeders based on path load, cross-
section, network structure, or scoring method criteria. The command can optionally consider existing
remote controlled switches at open points, and the availability of connections to alternative transformers
or substations when creating Backbones.

From the Backbone dialog, the Backbone contents (elements) can be viewed, marked in the graphic,
and checked (see example in Section 41.3.4). The Check Backbone button is used to verify that the
backbone object still defines a valid inter-feeder path matching its calculated parameters.

41.3.1 Basic Options Page

Generate backbones

Specify all feeders or a user-defined set of feeder/s for the Backbone Calculation.

Calculation based on:

Note: For all calculation methods, feeder is supposed to be operated radially must be selected on the
Basic Options page of the relevant Feeder/s.

• Path load: Backbones are determined based on the MVA load on the paths between adjacent
feeders.
– (Optional) specify the max. number of backbones per feeder.
– Optionally select to Report results to the output window, including details of backbone open
points.

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– Pointer to load-flow command (note for balanced calculations only).

• Cross section: Backbones are determined based on the cross-section of lines/cables connecting
adjacent feeders.
– (Optional) specify the max. number of backbones per feeder.
– Choose to determine backbone using either the mean cross section of lines in the path or
the minimum cross section in path.
– Optionally select to Report results to the output window, including details of backbone open
points, and minimum and mean cross-section.
• Network structure: Backbones are determined based on the network structure. If none of the
options are selected, Backbones are calculated for all feasible inter-feeder paths.
– (Optional) create backbones only if path leads to different substation.
– (Optional) create backbones only if path leads to different HV/MV-transformer.
– (Optional) create backbones only if tie open point is remote-controlled (as specified on the
Reliability page of each switch).
– Optionally select to Report results to the output window, including details of backbone open
points.
• Scoring method: Backbones are determined using a scoring algorithm based on the restoration
ability of the adjacent feeder. Scoring method settings are entered on the Scoring Settings page.
– (Optional) specify the max. number of backbones per feeder.
– Optionally select to Report results to the output window, including details of backbone open
points, and loading/voltages of limiting elements.
– Pointer to load-flow command (note for balanced AC calculation only).

41.3.2 Scoring Settings Page

If scoring method is selected on the Basic Options page, enter scoring settings on the Scoring Settings
page. Backbones are determined based on the restoration ability of every inter-feeder path using
Topology, Loading violation, and Voltage violation criteria.

For each criteria satisfied, the path receives the entered number of points. The path with the greatest
number of points is the “winning” path.

Topology scoring

Define scoring settings for Topology scoring criteria:

• Path leads to different substation.
• Path leads to different HV/MV-transformer.

• Tie open point is remote controlled.

• Greater than a specified number of remote-controlled switches on path. A path to another Feeder
receives the entered number of points if more (closed) remote-controlled switches than the entered
number are on the path of the Backbone contained in the initial feeder.

Loading violation scoring

Assign Points for loading violations based on individual loading constraints or global loading constraints.
If no element is overloaded, the calculation assigns the specified number of points. If global loading
constraints is selected, then Max. Loading should also be defined.

Define scoring settings for Loading violation scoring criteria:

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• Restoring transformer (restoration mode). Consider a path from initial “feeder A” to “feeder B”.
“Feeder A” is de-energised and the connection to “feeder B” via the tie open point is closed.
A load flow is calculated in this so-called restoring mode and the entered number of points is
assigned if the supplying HV/MV-transformer is not overloaded.
• On backbone of restoring feeder (normal mode). Consider a path from initial “feeder A” to “feeder
B”. A load flow is calculated (in so-called normal mode) and the entered number of points is
assigned if no element on the potential backbone path contained in “feeder B”, the restoring feeder
is overloaded in the base case.
• On complete backbone (restoration mode). Consider a path from initial “feeder A” to “feeder B”.
“Feeder A” is de-energised and the connection to “feeder B” via the tie open point is closed. A load
flow is calculated in this so-called restoring mode and the entered number of points is assigned if
no element on the potential backbone path is overloaded.
• In complete feeder (restoration mode). Consider a path from initial “feeder A” to “feeder B”. “Feeder
A” is de-energised and the connection to “feeder B” via the tie open point is closed. A load flow
is calculated in this so-called restoring mode and the entered number of points is assigned if
no element in the complete resulting feeder is overloaded (not only on the backbone as for the
previous option).

Voltage violation scoring

Define scoring settings for voltage violation criteria based on individual voltage drop/rise constraints or
global voltage drop/rise constraints. If global voltage drop/rise constraints is selected, then Max. drop
and Max. rise should also be defined. If no voltage limits are violated, the calculation assigns the
specified number of points.

• On backbone of restoring feeder (normal mode). Consider a path from initial “feeder A” to “feeder
B”. A load flow is calculated (in so-called normal mode) and the entered number of points is
assigned if no terminal on the potential backbone path contained in “feeder B” violates its voltage
drop constraint and voltage rise constraint.
• On complete backbone (restoration mode). Consider a path from initial “feeder A” to “feeder B”.
“Feeder A” is de-energised and the connection to “feeder B” via the tie open point is closed. A load
flow is calculated in this so-called restoring mode and the entered number of points is assigned if
no terminal on the potential backbone path violates its voltage drop and rise constraint.
• In complete feeder (restoration mode). Consider a path from initial “feeder A” to “feeder B”. “Feeder
A” is de-energised and the connection to “feeder B” via the tie open point is closed. A load flow
is calculated in this so-called restoring mode and the entered number of points is assigned if no
terminal in the complete resulting feeder violates its voltage drop and rise constraint (not only on
the backbone as for the previous option).

41.3.3 Tracing Backbones

When a Backbone is calculated, it always contains a connection to another Feeder via a tie open point.
In the worst case of an outage close to the feeding point of the initial feeder, the initial feeder is de-
energised by opening its feeding switch and restored by the second Feeder via the tie open point. These
restoration steps can be simulated for an existing Backbone using the Backbone trace functionality. The
trace buttons are located beside the ComBbone command, and can also be accessed via the main
menu Calculation → Distribution Network Analysis→ Start trace. . . .

41.3.4 Example Backbone Calculation

Consider a case where there are two parallel feeders with multiple open-points. A Backbone calculation
is conducted based on a criteria of minimum cross section in path, and with the Max. number of
backbones per feeder set to “1”. Backbone objects are created within the Network Data folder.

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To highlight Backbones, from the main menu select View → Diagram Colouring (or select the Diagram
Colouring icon).

Under 3. Other select Topology, Feeders. Click on Colour Settings, and on the Feeders page select
Highlight backbones.

Figure 41.3.1 shows the result, where the path through “Open Point 2” is highlighted as a result of the
cross section of conductors in this path. Refer to Section 41.3.3 for details of how to trace the Backbone
restoration steps.

Figure 41.3.1: Example Backbone Calculation

41.4 Voltage Sag

The Voltage Sag Table Assessment (ComVsag) can be used to assess the expected frequency and
severity of voltage sags within a network during an operating period, and determine the expected
number of equipment trips due to deep sags. The PowerFactory Voltage Sag tool calculates a short-
circuit at the selected load points within the system and uses the failure data of the system components
to determine the voltage sag probabilities.

Voltage sag analysis is similar to probabilistic reliability analysis, in that it uses fault statistics to describe
the frequency of faults, and then use these statistics to weight the results of each event and to calculate
the overall effects of failures. However, reliability analysis looks for sustained interruptions as one aspect
of quality of supply, whereas voltage sag analysis calculates the voltage drop during the fault until the
protection system has disconnected the defective component.

This section describes the calculation options, how to perform a Voltage Sag Table Assessment, and
how to view the results.

41.4.1 Calculation Options

41.4.1.1 Basic Options Page

Load selection

Reference to the set of load points. A load point can be defined by a busbar, terminal, or load.

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Short-circuit command

Displays the short-circuit command that is used. The options for the short-circuit type will be changed
during the voltage sag calculation, depending on the Advanced Options specified in the ComVsag
dialog. However, other settings can be inspected or changed by clicking on the Edit button ( ).

Results

Reference to the results file that is used for storage of results.

Exposed area limit

This defines the minimum remaining voltage for the voltage sag calculation to continue calculating short-
circuits at busbars which are further away from the selected load points. If short-circuits at all busbars
(at a certain distance away from all load points) result in voltages at the load points being higher than
this limit, then no further short-circuit will be analysed.

41.4.1.2 Advanced Options Page

TheAdvanced Options page shows the various short-circuit types that can be analysed by the voltage
sag assessment command. All components for which a failure model has been defined use the same
short-circuit frequency. The relative frequency for each type of short-circuit is entered uniformly for all
components.

41.4.2 How to Perform a Voltage Sag Table Assessment

A voltage sag table assessment is performed in two phases:

1. A results file with remaining voltages and short-circuit impedances is created by executing the
ComVsag command. This can be done by selecting one or more nodes, right-clicking and
executing the Calculation → Voltage sag table. . . option, or by initiating the command directly
from the Distribution Network Analysis toolbar by clicking on the Voltage Sag Table Assessment
icon ( ).
2. A voltage sag plot is created by selecting one or more of the nodes for which the ComVsag
command was executed, right-clicking and selecting the option Plots → Voltage sag plot
Alternatively,

• The Load selection in the ComVsag dialog can be completed manually with a set of objects. A
load point is defined by a terminal, a busbar, or by a single-connection element (a load, motor,
generator, etc.). These kinds of elements can be multi-selected from the single-line diagram
or Data Manager. Once selected, right-click on them and select Selections → Set - General→
New. . . from the context menu. This set can then be selected as the Load selection.

• A voltage sag plot can be created from the Insert Plot dialog ( ) manually, and the load points
can then be selected from the list of analysed load points.
If several objects are selected which are all connected to the same busbar, then that busbar will be
added only once to the set of load points.

The Load selection parameter in the voltage sag assessment command should be set to use the
SetSelect which has the Used for: Voltage sag table flag set. However, any other selection can be
assigned to the Load selection.

The voltage sag analysis simulates various faults at the selected busbars. The calculation starts with
the selected load points, and proceeds to neighbouring busbars until the remaining voltage at all load

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 41.4. VOLTAGE SAG

points does not drop below the defined Exposed area limit. The remaining voltages and the short-circuit
impedances for all load points are written to the results file specified by the Results parameter.

After all relevant busbars have been analysed, the sag table assessment continues by analysing short-
circuits at the midpoint of all lines and cables that are connected between the relevant busbars. Again,
the remaining voltages and short-circuit impedances for all load points are written to the results file.

After the complete exposed area has been analysed in this way, the results file contains the values for
Z_F1, Z_F2, Z_F0, Z_S1, Z_S2, Z_S0 and ura, uia, urb, uib, urc, uic for the two ends of all relevant
lines and cables and at their midpoints.

To reduce computation time, the written impedances are interpolated between the ends of a line and the
middle with a second-order polynomial. Then, the remaining voltages and various source impedances
are estimated. These estimated impedances are also interpolated between the ends and the midpoint.
The interpolated impedances are then used to estimate the remaining voltages between the ends and
the midpoints of the lines or cables. This quadratic interpolation gives a good approximation for longer
lines, as well as parallel lines.

41.4.3 Voltage Sag Table Assessment Results

The voltage sag tables are not calculated until a voltage sag plot is constructed. Upon reading the
remaining voltages, short-circuit frequencies and short-circuit impedances from the results file, a voltage
sag table is constructed for each selected load point.

Because there is no single definition of a voltage sag, the plot offers a selection of sag definitions:
• Minimum of Line-Neutral Voltages.
• Minimum of Line-Line Voltages.
• Minimum of Line-Line and Line-Neutral Voltage.

• Positive Sequence Voltage.

Secondly, the x-variable against which the sag frequency will be shown has to be selected. Possible
x-variables are:
• Remaining Voltage.

• Nom. Voltage at Shc-Busbar.

• Fault Clearing Time.
• Short-Circuit Type.

Additionally, the x-variable can be sub-divided according to a split-variable (parameter name: Split Bars
in). Possible split variables are:
• no split.
• any of the possible x-variables.

The same parameter cannot be selected for the x-variable and the split-variable.

An example of the resulting voltage sag plot, is shown in Figure 41.4.1.

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Figure 41.4.1: Example Voltage Sag Plot

The voltage sag plot always shows the annual frequency of occurrence on the y-axis.

The example plot shows a bar for each load point for each x-variable, which is the Remaining Voltage.
All three loads can be seen to suffer either deep sags (remaining voltage less than 0.4 p.u.), or shallow
sags, although the values at 0.8 p.u. are also significant. Each bar is subdivided to the nominal voltage
at SHC-Busbar. The shallow sags are caused by the low voltage network, as well as the deep sags.
The high voltage network seems to cause moderate voltage sags. This is caused by the fact that the
low voltage networks in this example are radially operated and the higher voltage networks are meshed.
More detailed information about a specific value in the voltage sag plot can be viewed in the balloon
help that appears when placing the mouse over a bar or part of a bar (without clicking).

The voltage sag plot dialog has a Report button which outputs the voltage sag plot data to the output
window. A table for each selected load point will be written in accordance to the selected Voltage Sag
definition, x-Variable and Split Bars in selection.

41.5 Low Voltage Load Flow Calculation

In low-voltage grids it is often not possible to make exact statements about the specific power consump-
tion of certain consumers. Furthermore, electrical loads such as electric vehicles and heat pumps can
lead to a greater utilisation of the existing power system and need to be considered. It is therefore
necessary to execute load flow calculations to evaluate the network utilisation with the use of as little
data as possible, only by categorising the types of load.

The Low Voltage Load Flow Calculation (ComLvldf ) enables the calculation of realistic maximum
loadings of branch elements like lines and transformers as well as minimum voltages at all nodes in
a network considering these requirements. Basically, the electrical loads only need to be categorised
in order to find bottlenecks in the grid without overestimating the criticality at the same time. The Low
Voltage Load Flow Calculation can be used in both radial and meshed grids and is based on the use
of Coincidence Definitions (IntCoincdef ) that take a stochastic approach for the power consumption of
multiple consumers into account.

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 41.5. LOW VOLTAGE LOAD FLOW CALCULATION

41.5.1 Technical Background

Coincidence curves 𝑔(𝑛) take the stochastic consumption behaviour of low voltage loads into account.
They depend on the number of customers 𝑛 of a specific load type that have an impact on the investi-
gated branch or node. The more consumers have to be considered, the less the share of each individual
consumer statistically becomes, since it is not to be expected that all consumers exhaust their maximum
permissible power at the same time. An example of a Coincidence Curve can be seen in Figure 41.5.1.

Figure 41.5.1: Exemplary Coincidence Curve for households

A calculation example is presented in the small example in Figure 41.5.2 with four 24 kVA loads. The
coincidence factors are 0.74 for two and 0.55 for four customers with the curve in Figure 41.5.1, which
leads to 35.4 kVA (instead of 2 · 24 kVA = 48 kVA) and 53.0 kVA (instead of 4 · 24 kVA = 96 kVA) in
the respective branches using Equation 41.1. It should be noted that Kirchhoff’s current law (the sum
of all currents is zero at each node) is not valid in these calculations, as the coincidence factor at each
branch connected to the same node can and often will be different.

𝑆max total = 𝑛 · 𝑔(𝑛) · 𝑆max (41.1)

Figure 41.5.2: Example of a simple calculation using coincidence curves

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In case of individual power settings 𝑆max,𝑖 in the loads (see Section 41.5.2.2), Equation 41.1 cannot
be applied. There are scenarios with power settings that differ greatly from one another and could
result in a total power that is smaller than one of the individual loads (𝑆max total < 𝑆max,𝑖 ). To avoid
this, Equation 41.2 is used to calculate the total power. For this, the power of all relevant loads (or
customers, if several customers are modelled with a single load element) is sorted in descending order
and a (𝑛 + 1)th power of zero is appended, so that the last power difference can be calculated. As to be
expected, Equation 41.2 has the same result as Equation 41.1 if the power of all loads is the same.

𝑛
∑︁
𝑆max total = [𝑖 · 𝑔(𝑖) · (𝑆max,𝑖 − 𝑆max,𝑖+1 )] (41.2)
𝑖=1

To decide which loads have an impact on a specific branch flow (in meshed networks) or node voltages
(in meshed and radial networks), a sensitivity analysis is used, see Chapter 48 for more information.
In those cases the calculation uses sensitivities instead of power values. Sensitivity thresholds for the
consideration can be applied, as explained in Section 41.5.3.2.

41.5.2 Setting up Low Voltage Loads

Low Voltage Loads (ElmLodlv and ElmLodlvp) can have a linked Low Voltage Load Type (TypLodlv ) in
Basic Data → Type. To use the Low Voltage Load Flow Calculation, this TypLodlv has to be extended
with a Coincidence Definition (IntCoincdef ) in Low Voltage Load Flow → Coincidence definition. It
is also possible to select an individual IntCoincdef directly in Low Voltage Loads without setting up a
TypLodlv. This is explained in Section 41.5.2.3.

41.5.2.1 Coincidence Definition

The Coincidence Definition object (IntCoincdef ) is used to define the coincidence curve 𝑔(𝑛) of a load
or a load category.

Default power values

For a quick set-up of existing or new loads, it is possible to define default values for power and power
factor. These values are applied in the Low Voltage Load Flow if the setting Individual power consump-
tion in the load element is disabled as explained in Section 41.5.2.2. The Input Mode can be set either
to “Apparent power (S)” or “Active power (P)”. If the maximum active power is entered, the maximum
apparent power is calculated with Equation 41.3.

𝑃max
𝑆max = (41.3)
cos 𝜑

Coincidence

As Input Mode it is possible to use either a “Formula” or a “Table” to define the coincidence curve.

Formula

If “Formula” is selected as Input Mode, Equation 41.4 is applied. Three parameters are used to define
the coincidence curve with this setting:
• Limit (ginf): Determines which coincidence factor results for 𝑛 → ∞

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• End of constant part (A): Gives the possibility to define a constant part with 𝑔 = 1. Application
examples could be heat pumps or electric vehicles, where the first “𝐴” units should not reduce the
consumption of each other.
• Exponent (B): Determines the steepness of the reduction of 𝑔. The higher “𝐵”, the faster the
decrease.

1 − 𝑔∞
𝑔(𝑛) = 𝑔∞ + (41.4)
(𝑛 + 1 − 𝐴)𝐵

If a Gaussian distribution is assumed (described with the default values 𝐴 = 1 and 𝐵 = 0.5), the
coincidence curve is given with Equation 41.5

1 − 𝑔∞
𝑔(𝑛) = 𝑔∞ + √ (41.5)
𝑛

Table

If “Table” is selected as Input Mode, an individual coincidence curve can be created. With a right-click
in the table, rows can be inserted, appended or deleted. In each row, a value for the “Number of units”
𝑛 and “Coincidence factor” 𝑔(𝑛) has to be entered. It is not necessary to define values for each possible
number of units as an automatic linear interpolation takes place between given values. The coincidence
factor of the last row is automatically used and displayed as limit value 𝑔∞ (ginf ).

41.5.2.2 Settings in the Low Voltage Load - General

• Number of Customers (NrCust): Determines how many customers are represented with this load
object. If no individual power consumption is used, the maximum theoretical power of the load
object is calculated with 𝑁 𝑟𝐶𝑢𝑠𝑡 · 𝑆max , where 𝑆max is taken from the linked coincidence definition.
• Adjusted by Load Scaling: Defines whether the load consumption is influenced by scaling factors
as used for the feeder loading scaling for example.

Individual power consumption

If the Individual power consumption is deactivated (as it is by default), power and power factor for the
load object are taken from the coincidence definition as explained in Section 41.5.2.1. However, if more
detailed knowledge about the specific power or the annual energy consumption is available, it is possible
to activate the Individual power consumption. Additional settings are shown in this case:

Input Mode

The input mode defines which values are given by the user. The available settings are the same as on
the Load Flow page of the low-voltage load and therefore use the same load variables:

• S,cos(phi): Apparent power and power factor

• P,cos(phi): Active power and power factor
• U,I,cos(phi): Voltage, current and power factor
• E,cos(phi): Yearly energy consumption, power factor, and consumption profile
Use consumption as

The inserted values for power or energy can represent different kinds of measurements or approaches,
therefore it has to be defined how these values should be interpreted in the calculation:

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• Theoretical sum: Values represent the maximum theoretical power of all customers in this load.
• Maximum per customer: Values represent the maximum theoretical power per customer in this
load.
• Maximum with coincidence: Values represent the resulting total power taking into account the
coincidence of all customers that are modelled with this load object. This selection therefore only
differs from Theoretical sum if the Number of Customers is larger than 1.
• Average (value for ginf): Values represent the total power of all customers in this load object with
the assumption 𝑛 → ∞ and therefore 𝑔∞ .
An example for these settings is presented in the next section along with the resulting values.

If Theoretical sum or Maximum per customer is selected, an Additional scaling factor can be specified
that scales the given power values. This makes sense, for example, when using the yearly energy in
combination with standard load profiles, as these already take coincidence into account. By using a
factor, the peak power can then be scaled up accordingly (the Velander equation is a popular example
to determine such a factor).

41.5.2.3 Settings in the Low Voltage Load - Coincidence Definition

Coincidence definition

• Used coincidence definition: By default, the coincidence curve that is selected in the linked
TypLodlv is applied (selection: “From type”). Alternatively, an “Individual” coincidence curve can
be selected for the specific load object. This enables to link a coincidence curve without using a
TypLodlv. It is also possible to set the coincidence definition to “None”.
• Consider coincidence: By default, all Low Voltage Loads are considered with their defined coin-
cidence. This selection can be deactivated, to ignore a specific load element in all other related
coincidence definitions and keep its power consumption to its maximum theoretical value.

Resulting values

If a Coincidence Definition is linked, the resulting values for active and apparent power are shown:
• theoretical: Maximum theoretical power consumption, when 𝑔 = 1 is applied.
• with coincidence: Power consumption, when 𝑔 is calculated with the selected coincidence def-
inition and the number of customers from the General tab. This part is only visible if Consider
coincidence is selected.
If Individual power consumption is selected for a load element, the selection Use consumption as from
Section 41.5.2.2 has an influence on the resulting values. The influence of this setting in a single load
element with the following exemplary assumptions is shown in Table 41.5.1:

• 𝑛=2
• 𝑔(2) = 0.7
• 𝑔(∞) = 0.1

Use consumption as 𝑆input in kVA 𝑆theoretical in kVA 𝑆with coincidence in kVA

Theoretical sum 10 10 7
Maximum per customer 10 20 14
Maximum with coincidence 10 14.29 10
Average (value for ginf) 10 100 70

Table 41.5.1: Influence of the Use consumption as setting on the resulting values

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Note: If the number of customers in the load element is 1, the resulting values “theoretical” and “with
coincidence” are always identical, since 𝑔(1) = 1.

41.5.3 Low Voltage Load Flow Configuration

The Low Voltage Load Flow Calculation (ComLvldf ) offers the possibility to adjust some global settings
that are explained in the following.

41.5.3.1 Basic Options Page

Load Flow configuration

The following calculation methods are supported and can be used in the calculation:
• AC Load Flow, balanced, positive sequence
• AC Load Flow, unbalanced, 3-phase (ABC)

The corresponding load flow command which is used in the calculation is linked ( ) in Load Flow.
More information on the general load flow settings can be found in Chapter 24.3.

Global scaling factors

It is possible to define global scaling factors for loads, generators and motors as explained in Sec-
tion 24.3.6.

Output

• Short: Only basic information about the status of the calculation is written to the output window.

• Detailed (full load flow output): Additional information about reference elements, iteration loops
and conditions of relevant controllers is written to the output window.

Note: QDSL models are ignored in the Low Voltage Load Flow Calculation.

41.5.3.2 Advanced Options Page

Additional scaling

In order to be able to quickly run through different scenarios, it is possible to adjust all loads in the
network that share a coincidence definition with global scaling settings.

• Scale elements without coincidence curve to zero: If selected, the power of all low-voltage loads
(ElmLodlv or ElmLodlvp) without a linked coincidence definition is set to zero.

• Scaling by curve: With the button ( ), a “Scaling Factors for LV Load Flow” object (SetLvscale)
can be selected. The corresponding SetLvscale, which is used in the calculation, is then linked
( ) and can be edited. See Section 41.5.3.3 for details about SetLvscale.

• Assess number of active units stochastically: If selected, a “Considered quantile” can be defined
to account for a probabilistic influence. This is explained in Section 41.5.3.3.

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Coupling of different curves

With the button ( ), a “Coupling Definition” (IntCrosscoinc) can be selected. The corresponding
Crosscoinc object is then linked ( ) and can be edited. See Section 41.5.3.4 for details about
IntCrosscoinc.

Threshold for consideration of effects

Sensitivity matrices are used to consider the relevant influence of all loads to branches and nodes in
the calculation. In large grids, especially if a high number of low voltage loads are modelled, these
matrices become large. Therefore, it is necessary to define thresholds to avoid a calculation with dense
sensitivity matrices and improve the performance. The influence of loads on a specific branch or node
with values below these thresholds in the sensitivity matrix is neglected. The default settings should be
used if there are no performance issues.

• Influence on power flow: threshold for the minimal considered influence of an added apparent
power at a node on the power flow though a branch element.
• Influence on voltage: threshold for the minimal considered influence of an added apparent power
at a node on the voltage at another node.

41.5.3.3 Scaling by coincidence curve

The object SetLvscale, that can be linked in the Advanced Options page of ComLvldf, is used to scale
low-voltage loads according to their coincidence curve. These curves have to be inserted in the table
Curves. This can either be done manually if only some curves are needed or automatically with the
button Add used curves.

There are two different possibilities to scale the loads by their coincidence curve with SetLvscale. Both
methods can be used simultaneously and are explained in the following.

Direct scaling of the power

By changing the “Scaling Factor”, the power of all ElmLodlv(p) using the corresponding coincidence
curve is directly adjusted. The number of customers and thus the effective coincidence factor is not
changed by this scaling.

Scaling with percentage of active units

Changing the percentage of “Active Units” influences the consumed power by changing the number
of considered customers that have an impact at a specific node in the grid. This makes it possible,
for example, to vary the penetration of the grid with electric vehicles and thus to carry out prognosis
studies.

In case of a radial feeder and identical power settings in all load elements, the influence of the “Active
Units” setting (AU) can exemplarily be calculated with the following equations (the smallest possible
value for 𝑛𝐴𝑈 is always 1):

𝐴𝑈
𝑛AU = ·𝑛 (41.6)
100 %

∑︁
𝑆max AU = 𝑛AU · 𝑔(𝑛AU ) · 𝑆max,𝑖 (41.7)
𝑛

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As explained in Section 41.5.1 this general approach has some limitations in case of individual power
settings of loads. Therefore, generally the Equation 41.8 is used to calculate the total power. If all 𝑆max,𝑖
are identical, the result is the same as calculated with Equation 41.7.

𝑛 [︂ (︂ )︂ ]︂
∑︁ 𝐴𝑈 𝐴𝑈
𝑆max total = 𝑖· ·𝑔 𝑖· · (𝑆max,𝑖 − 𝑆max,𝑖+1 ) (41.8)
𝑖=1
100 % 100 %

Note: It is possible to save the “Scaling Factor” and the “Active Units” settings in Operation Scenarios.
However, the corresponding fields in the object SetLvscale are not displayed in blue, as these
settings are stored in the objects ElmLvscale that are located in the SetLvscale. SetLvscale is
saved in the active Variation (if a Variation is present). This means that newly created SetLvscale
will be stored within a Variation, but are then also activated, deactivated and deleted with the
Variation.

Stochastic approach with considered quantiles

If a SetLvscale has been assigned and the option Assess number of active units stochastically is
activated, a Considered quantile can be set to enhance the Active Units scaling with the use of a
quantile function. The chosen quantile is used to determine the number of Active Units that is assumed
at a specific node in the grid.

The mechanism is explained in the following with an example. 10 customers with the same coincidence
definition are assumed and the Active Units scaling is set to 20 %. Without a Considered quantile this
would lead to a calculation with 2 active units assumed (20 % · 10 = 2). The quantile function is set to
95 %, which means that all cases within this probability shall be considered. In the following equations,
the probability of different numbers of active units are calculated with a binomial distribution:

(︂ )︂
10
𝑝0 loads active = · 0.20 · 0.810 = 0.107 → 10.7 % < 95 % (41.9)
0
(︂ )︂
10
𝑝≤1 loads active = · 0.21 · 0.89 + 𝑝0 loads active = 0.376 → 37.6 % < 95 % (41.10)
1
(︂ )︂
10
𝑝≤4 loads active = · 0.24 · 0.86 + 𝑝≤3 loads active = 0.967 → 96.7 % > 95 % (41.11)
4

It can be seen that the probability of 4 or less loads has a higher probability than the chosen quantile
of 95 %. Therefore, the Low Voltage Load Flow Calculation will assume 4 active units as this is the
extreme case with the chosen quantile. In comparison with the case without a Considered quantile (2
active units), the results will reflect a higher utilisation.

41.5.3.4 Coupling of different curves

By default, all coincidence curves are independent of each other, which means that the number of
customers for all given curves is counted separately. However, a coupling between different load
categories and their respective coincidence curves can be explicitly defined with the coupling object
SetCrosscoinc that can be selected in the calculation command (see Section 41.5.3.2). This coupling
definition can be used to define which load categories are mutually considered in the coincidence and
which are not.

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Curves

The coincidence curves (see Section 41.5.2.1) that shall be considered for the coupling can be de-
fined in this table. With the button Add all available curves all coincidence curves can be inserted
automatically. The way the button works depends on where the SetCrosscoinc is stored:
• IntCrosscoinc stored in the project library: All coincidence curves that are stored in the project
library or that are referenced in the project are automatically added.
• IntCrosscoinc stored in a custom global library: All coincidence curves that are stored in the
custom global library are automatically added.
• IntCrosscoinc not stored in a library: All coincidence curves that are stored in the same folder as
IntCrosscoinc are automatically added.

Mutual consideration

In this matrix the coupling between the selected coincidence curves can be defined. Only values in
the range 0 to 1 are allowed, where zero stands for no consideration and one for full consideration.
Intermediate values are also possible, a value of 0.5, for example, means that only half the number is
considered.

As an example, different load types could be set up for 11 and 22 kW charging stations, whose
coincidence should be coupled. On the other hand, the coincidence of households, heat pumps and
electric vehicles should possibly be completely independent of each other. An exemplary coupling
definition required for this behaviour can be seen in Table 41.5.2.

Household Heat Pump EV 11 kW EV 22 kW

Household 1 0 0 0
Heat Pump 0 1 0 0
EV 11 kW 0 0 1 1
EV 22 kW 0 0 1 1

Table 41.5.2: Exemplary mutual consideration matrix in the coupling definition

Symmetric consideration

The mutual consideration is symmetric by default. By deactivating the setting Symmetric consideration,
it becomes possible to define asymmetric mutual consideration matrices. This is useful, for example, if
charging stations are already integrated in some household loads, but have not been explicitly modelled.
Then it would make sense to take them into account for the coincidence of explicitly modelled charging
stations. On the other hand, however, the explicitly modelled charging stations should not be considered
for the coincidence calculation of households.

For the asymmetric case, the example in Table 41.5.3 can be read as follows: the coincidence curve
“Household” will consider the number of customers with the coincidence curve “EV” with zero, while the
coincidence curve “EV” will consider the number of customers with the coincidence curve “Household”
with the factor 0.5.

Household EV
Household 1 0
EV 0.5 1

Table 41.5.3: Exemplary asymmetric mutual consideration matrix in the coupling definition

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41.5.4 Results of the Low Voltage Load Flow Calculation

41.5.4.1 Result Variables

Most results of the Low Voltage Load Flow Calculation are stored in the same variables as for the normal
Load Flow Analysis, therefore the same user-defined routines and automations can be applied. While
the minimum values are shown for the voltages at nodes, the maximum values are entered for currents
and powers.

41.5.4.2 Feeder Load Scaling

As described for the normal Load Flow Analysis in Section 24.4.3, the feeder load scaling can also be
performed in a Low Voltage Load Flow Calculation if ElmFeeder objects have been defined. For this to
be considered in the calculation, two conditions must be met:

• The setting “Feeder Load Scaling” in the linked Load Flow command has to be activated.
• In each feeder with a defined setpoint, the setting “Adjusted by Load Scaling” must be activated
in at least one load element.

For the Low Voltage Load Flow Calculation one of the following setpoints can be selected for each
feeder object:

• No scaling
• Apparent Power
• Current
• Active Power

• Manually (To select an individual Scaling Factor )

Note: The selection of a Phasewise input for the Feeder Load Scaling is possible. However, the scaling
will be done for the sum of the three input values.

41.6 Tie Open Point Optimisation

The function of the Tie Open Point Optimisation (TOPO) (ComTieopt) is to optimise a radial system
of connected feeders by determining the best location for network open points. An open point can be
moved by the TOPO tool by opening and closing switches on the networks to be optimised.

This section is separated into three sub-sections. Firstly, the steps to access the TOPO tool are
described. Next, the background and function of the TOPO tool is presented and finally the procedure
for running a Tie Open Point Optimisation is described. The TOPO command can be accessed from
the Distribution Network Optimisation Tools, as shown in Figure 41.1.2

41.6.1 Technical Background

The function of the Tie Open Point Optimisation (TOPO) tool is best explained using an example.
Consider the network illustrated in Figure 41.6.1

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Figure 41.6.1: Example network for Tie Open Point Optimisation

The network consists of three feeders, one from each of the three “stations”. Each feeder begins at a
“station” and ends at one of the two illustrated open points. The two open points in this network are not
necessarily the optimum open points. For example, it might be more economic (i.e. less network losses
and / or less impact of outages) to shift these open points by closing the open switches and opening
two switches in different positions on the feeders. The purpose of the TOPO tool is determine these
optimum open points automatically. Additionally, the TOPO tool can automatically consider network
voltage and thermal constraints - for instance it might be economic to shift an open point in terms of
reducing systems losses, however doing so might cause a cable to overload.

41.6.2 How to run a Tie Open Point Optimisation

This section describes the procedure for running a Tie Open Point Optimisation (TOPO) calculation.
The steps are summarised below, and discussed in more detail in the following sections:

• How to Create Feeders.

• How to configure the Tie Open Point Optimisation Command.
• How to configure constraints for the Tie Open Point Optimisation.
• How to configure Switching Options.
• How to configure Reliability Options.
• How to configure the Advanced Options.
• How to configure Scenario/Time-Sweep Options.
• How to configure Output Options.

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How to Create Feeders

The TOPO tool requires that feeders are defined for the section of the network that you wish to opti-
mise. Additionally, the TOPO tool only works on radial feeders - mesh systems cannot be optimised
automatically. Furthermore, it is recommended that the target feeders for optimisation do not have any
overloaded components or voltage violations in the base case.

To define a feeder, right-click the cubicle at the beginning of the feeder and select the Network Groupings
→ Feeder → New. . . . Alternatively, for fast creation of multiple feeders right-click the bus the feeder/s
are connected to and select the option Network Groupings → Feeder → New. . . . More information on
feeders and feeder creation can be found in Chapter 14: Grouping Objects, Section 14.6.

How to configure the Tie Open Point Optimisation Command

After a set of feeders has been defined, open the TOPO tool and configure the basic options:

1. Click the Change Toolbox icon ( ) and select Distribution Network Optimisation.

2. Open the dialog for the Tie Open Point Optimisation tool ( ).
3. Use the selection control for Feeding Points to select previously defined feeder/s, or a feeder
“Set”. If the Select option is chosen and multiple feeders are selected, a “Set” of feeders will
automatically be created within the active study case. By default the set will be named ’Tie Open
Point Optim. - Feeder Set’.

Note: It is generally recommended to define all feeders in the network as Feeders, and to conduct
a TOPO calculation for ’All Feeders’.

4. Select the desired Objective Function to minimise losses and / or reliability indices. If Optimisation
of Reliability Indices or Cost Optimisation (Losses + Reliability) is selected, complete the required
fields on the Reliability page, see (How to configure Reliability Options).
5. “Method” can be selected, where the optimisation explores the meshes iteratively, uses a stochas-
tic optimisation according to section 41.11 (Simulated Annealing or Genetic Algorithm).
6. “Balanced, positive sequence” or “Unbalanced” network representation can be selected. The
Load-flow command referenced below these radio buttons is automatically adjusted to the correct
calculation method based on this selection.
7. Optional: You can inspect and alter the settings of the load-flow command that is used for deter-
mining the losses and identifying the constraints of the system by clicking the blue selection arrow
next to load-flow command.

How to configure constraints for the Tie Open Point Optimisation

It is optional whether you choose to consider thermal and voltage constraints for the Tie Open Point
Optimisation. If you wish to consider constraints follow these steps:
1. Open the Tie Open Point Optimisation dialog and select the Constraints page.
2. Optional: Choose to enable or disable the option Consider Thermal Constraints. If enabled,
the TOPO tool will automatically consider thermal constraints in the network. Therefore, if an
optimal point were to cause an thermal overload on any system component, then this would not
be considered as a valid open point for reconfiguration of the system. There are two more options
for thermal constraints:
• Global constraint for all components. This is the default option. If enabled you must enter a
maximum thermal loading percentage in the Max. thermal loading of components field. Note
this option overrides the individual component thermal limits.
• Individual constraint per component. Select this option to automatically consider each com-
ponent’s unique thermal rating. Note, the thermal rating for each component is determined
by the field Max Loading within the Tie Open Point Optimisation page of each component.

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3. Optional: Choose to enable or disable the option Consider Voltage Constraints. If this option is
enabled then each terminal in the system is checked against the Lower and Upper limit of allowed
voltage. If a particular open point causes a voltage violation, then such an open point cannot be
considered as “optimal”. There are two options for configuring the upper and lower voltage limits:
• Global constraints for all terminals (absolute value). If you choose this option then you must
enter an upper and lower voltage limit in the two corresponding fields within this dialog box.
• Individual constraint per terminal. If you choose this option, then each terminal has a unique
voltage limit which is assigned on the Tie Open Point Optimisation page of each terminal
(note that this excludes Substation internal nodes).
4. Optional: Choose to enable or disable the option Consider Voltage Drop / Rise. If this option is
enabled then each feeder in the system is checked against the Maximum Voltage Drop / Rise. If
a particular open point causes a voltage violation, then such an open point cannot be considered
as “optimal”. There are two options for configuring the maximum voltage drop / rise limits:
• Global constraints for all feeders (percent). If you choose this option then you must enter the
Maximum Voltage Drop and Maximum Voltage Rise in the two corresponding fields within
this dialog box.
• Individual constraint per feeder. If you choose this option, then each feeder has a unique
voltage drop / rise limit which is assigned on the Tie Open Point Optimisation page of each
feeder.

5. If the option Consider Boundary Constraints outside feeders is set, the boundary constraints,
applied on the boundaries “Reliability” settings are considered.
6. Choose the ignore all constraints for. . . option. You can use these options to optionally ignore
constraints where the nominal voltage is above or below user-defined thresholds entered here.
This can be useful for example to exclude all LV systems (say less than 1 kV) from the constraints
identification process as it may be acceptable to have these systems outside the “normal” range.

How to configure the Switching Options

The options in the Advanced page can generally be left on default values. The options are described
as follows:
• Switches to be optimised. These options configure the switches / elements considered by the
optimisation procedure.
– All switches. All switches will participate in the optimisation.
– Selected switches. Only the selected switch types will participate in the optimisation. For
example, if “Circuit-Breaker” and “Load-Breaker-Switch” are ticked, then both circuit breakers
and load breakers will be considered by the optimisation. The switch type is defined on the
switch element “Basic Data” page. Similar to Switch type, only the selected control types will
participate in the optimisation. The control type is defined in switch element “Reliability” page
in the “Sectionalising” field. Switches are considered in the optimisation only when its switch
type AND the control type satisfies the selected settings.
– Assume each edge element is switchable. If selected, lines that do not have a switch can
also be switchable (either out of service or in service).

How to configure Reliability Options

If Optimisation of Reliability Indices is selected, the user may select between optimisation of SAIFI or
EPNS indices on the Reliability page. Where:
• SAIFI (System Average Interruption Frequency Index) in units of [1/C/a], indicates how often the
average customer experiences a sustained interruption in one year. Note that the number of
customers at each load should be defined on the Reliability page.
• EPNS (Expected Power Not Supplied) is in units of [MW]. Multiplying EPNS by the study duration
gives the expected energy not supplied.

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Contingency definitions can be optionally considered for Busbar / terminals, Lines / Cables, and Trans-
formers.

If Cost Optimisation (Losses + Reliability) is selected, Costs for Losses and Interruption costs per
customer should be defined, as these are used in the Objective Function calculation to determine
the network configuration that optimises both Losses and Reliability.

How to configure Explore Meshes Options

• Maximum number of outer loops. This option controls the maximum number of outer loops which
is the total number of times the optimisation procedure will be repeated when searching for an
optimal solution.
• Maximum change in system losses. This option determines the threshold above which a change
in open point is considered. If the reduction in losses is below this threshold, the iteration will stop.

• Constraint Priority options can be selected for the relevant constraints. For example, consider the
following scenario:
– The TOPO calculation is to consider Global Thermal constraints, with the Max. thermal
loading of components set to 100 %, and Global Voltage Constraints with a Lower limit of
0.90 p.u.
– The constraint priorities for loading constraint is set to 1, and for voltage lower limit is set to
3.
– In the current configuration, a line is loaded to 102 % of rating.
– Shifting the open point causes the voltage at a terminal on an adjacent feeder to decrease
5 % below 0.90 p.u. (i.e. 0.855 p.u).
– As a result of the priorities, the thermal loading deviation will be “penalised” to a greater
extent than the voltage deviation, and the open point will change, despite the resultant voltage
deviation.

How to configure Simulated Annealing and Genetic Algorithm Options

Please refer to section 41.11 for details about this method and its input parameter.

How to configure Scenario/Time-Sweep Options

The Tie Open Point Optimisation can optionally be executed for different Operation Scenarios or certain
Study Times.

Note: It is important to note that when different Operation Scenarios or points in time are selected,
that the switching state in the network has to be the same for all investigated scenarios or study
times. If the switching states differ, the results are not reliable. The operating points of consumers
and generation units can of course vary.

The following options are available:

• Not considered: This option only considers the network in its current state (actual study time,
currently active scenario) for the optimisation.

• Scenarios: Different Operation Scenarios can be selected which are considered in the optimisa-
tion:
– Consideration of the “No scenario case”: The network in its current state (active study case) is
considered as well. Be aware, that when the considered study case has an active operation
scenario, the scenario will be deactivated. A weight factor can be entered for this case to
define its significance in the optimisation.

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– Definition of scenarios: All scenarios that should be considered in the optimisation can be
defined in this table. With a right-click into the open area of the table, new rows can be
appended to assign Operation Scenarios (IntScenario). Scenarios can optionally be ignored
and given a certain weight factor to define their significance in the optimisation.

Note: The entered weight factors are used to give certain scenarios a higher significance over
others. The weight factors are included in the objective function of the optimisation to
determine the optimal tie open point.

• Study Times: The calculation time period for the optimisation can be defined according to the
following options:
– Complete day: a specific user-defined day can be selected as simulation time period. The
day is chosen in the corresponding field.
– Complete month: a specific user-defined month can be selected as simulation time period.
The month is chosen in the corresponding field.
– Complete year: a specific user-defined year can be selected as simulation time period. The
year is chosen in the corresponding field.
– User defined calculation times: specific user-defined calculation times can be added for
the simulation (using the time format dd:mm:yyyy hh:mm:ss). The simulation will only be
executed at the defined calculation times. The user also has the option to ignore certain
points in time by activating the associated option.
Note: The optimisation will only be executed for the defined calculation times, while all other
points in time are not considered. Therefore, the user has to choose the calculation times
carefully to get reliable results.

– User defined time range: a customisable time period can be chosen for the simulation by
defining the Begin and End time points (using the time format dd:mm:yyyy hh:mm:ss).
– A fixed Step size is used for the simulation. The step size is defined by the Step (integer
value) and the Unit. The Unit can be selected from the corresponding drop-down list (Min-
utes, Hours, Days, Months or Years).

How to configure Output Options

There are several different output and result options available:

• Report objective value after each iteration: If selected, the objective value of the selected objective
function is printed into the output window after each iteration.
• The result objects Before Optimisation and After Optimisation are linked and can be selected here.
• Optional: Enable the Report flag. This control allows you to turn on the automatic printing of an
ASCII report to the output window.

• Change the Saving of solution option. The three options are as follows:
– Change existing network: This is the default option. The TOPO tool modifies the base
network model. Note that if a variation but no operation scenario is active, the changes
will be implemented in the variation. If an operation scenario is active, the results will be
saved in it.
– Record to operation scenario: If you choose this option a selection control appears and you
can choose an existing operation scenario to save the results of the Optimisation procedure
to. Alternatively, you can leave the selection empty and PowerFactory automatically activates
a new Operation Scenario called “Tie Open Point Optimisation Results”. Any changes made
to the network as a result of the optimisation procedure are stored within this operation
scenario. You can revert to the original network by disabling the scenario.
– Record to results only: This option does not save the optimisation results. The results are
only available in the corresponding result files.

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• Optional: Enable the Record multiple solutions option to get not only the one optimal tie open
point, but several suboptimal solutions according on the entered Number of solutions.

Note: The option Record multiple solutions is only available when

– the calculation method Generic algorithm is used,
– no additional operation scenarios or study times are considered (page Scenarios/Time-
Sweep)
– and the saving of solution option Record to operation scenario is used.
For each additional solution that could be found by the genetic algorithm (pay attention to
warning messages in the output window), a new Operation Scenario will be created.

41.6.3 Results of the Tie Open Point Optimisation

The newly found tie open point is saved in a new or existing operation scenario.

Note: The optimisation determines always one solution for optimal tie open points except when multiple
solutions are recorded. This is also the case when several operation scenarios or study times are
investigated.

All results are recorded in the dedicated results file before and after the optimisation.

41.6.3.1 Graphical Representation

The newly found tie open points will be automatically applied to the network model depending on
the results handling setting. In addition, the determined switching operations are highlighted in the
schematic diagram.

41.6.3.2 Reports

After executing a Tie Open Point Optimisation calculation, reports can be generated using the Tie Open
Point Optimisation Report icon , in the Distribution Network Optimisation toolbox.

This brings up the Report Generation command (ComReport), where the available reports are listed
and can be selected. Reports can be generated as separate documents or combined into one. By
default, reports are generated as PDFs and presented in PowerFactory ’s inbuilt PDF viewer, but it is
also possible to export reports from PowerFactory in various different formats.

For more information about reports and the Report Generation command, see Chapter 18: Reporting
and Visualising Results, section 18.5. It should be noted that reports viewed internally in PowerFactory
are stored in the graphics board of the study case, even after they have been closed, until they are
actively deleted by the user.

The following calculation-specific reports are available:

• Tie Open Point Optimisation

This report shows the results of the analysis. The switching actions in the network are shown,
together with the feeder results before and after the optimisation
• Tie Open Point Optimisation Settings
This report shows relevant parameters from the Tie Open Point Optimisation command.

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Note: When multiple operation scenarios or study times are investigated, the displayed results can be
interpreted as follows:
• Result variables that represent extreme values, like for example the minimum voltage, rep-
resent the minimum voltage that occurred in the feeder in any of the investigated operation
scenarios/study times.
• Other results variables, like for example the losses, represent the average losses that oc-
curred in the feeder considering all of the investigated operation scenarios/study times.

41.6.3.3 Load Tie Open Point Optimisation Results

The Load Tie Open Point Optimisation Results functionality ( ) allows the user to load the results from
the optimisation into the network. The loaded result file (ElmRes) can be selected under the option
Results after optimisation. To apply the new tie open points, the user has the following options:
• Change existing network: This option loads the tie open points from the selected result file into
the current network. If an operation scenario is active, the results will be recorded by it.
• Create new scenario: This option creates a new operation scenario with the name “Loaded TOPO
Results” which includes the new tie open points from the selected result file.
• Apply changes to multiple scenarios: This option loads the tie open points from the selected result
file to all scenarios that are selected in the corresponding table.

Note: The original switching state of each scenario, the changes should be applied to, has to be equal
to the scenario(s) that were used in the optimisation. The selected result file (after optimisation)
is only saving switching states that were changed during the optimisation.

41.7 Phase Balance Optimisation

Distribution networks are generally designed to support asymmetric loads and feed in. This fact leads
to asymmetric load flows, which can be calculated with PowerFactory using the unbalanced Load Flow
Calculation. The asymmetric load flows result in higher loadings and losses in single phases and
transformer windings and are therefore not welcome. In networks with a high number of asymmetric
loads and/or elements with less than 3 phases, the Phase Balance Optimisation offers a possibility
to distribute the connected phases of asymmetric elements in a way to minimise the power unbalance
in the network. The feature works on radially operated feeders using one of two possible algorithms to
satisfy the chosen objective function.

The following sections describe the objective functions of the Phase Balance Optimisation, the imple-
mented algorithms and the possibilities regarding the solution and its output.

41.7.1 Objective functions

The optimisation algorithm may be executed for two different objective functions. The minimised quantity
is in both cases the power unbalance 𝑠. It is defined for branch elements as follows:
Let 𝑁 be the number of phases, and let
𝑁
1 ∑︁
𝑆ˆ = 𝑆𝑖
𝑁 𝑖=1

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be the average complex power (at one end) of a branch element, where 𝑆𝑖 , 𝑖 = 1, . . . ,𝑁 are the complex
powers on phases 1, . . . ,𝑁 . Let
𝑁
1 ∑︁
𝑆¯ = |𝑆𝑖 |
𝑁 𝑖=1

be the average of the absolute values of the powers on the different phases. Then the power unbalance
factor 𝑠𝑏 for the branch element 𝑏 is defined as
¯ max {|𝑆𝑖 − 𝑆|}.
𝑠𝑏 := (1/𝑆) ˆ
𝑖=1,...,𝑁

The user can choose between the following two objective functions for the optimisation:
• Minimise average power unbalance: This function takes into account the power unbalance of
all 𝑀 branch elements, which are part of the analysed feeder. The average power unbalance is
defined as:
𝑀
1 ∑︁
𝑠¯ = 𝑠𝑏 .
𝑀
𝑏=1

• Minimise power unbalance at feeding point: This function permutes the connection of the
feeders elements to get a minimum power unbalance at the feeding point (branch element, where
feeder ’starts’), regardless the unbalance of the rest of the feeder elements.

41.7.2 Methods

To achieve the minimisation of power unbalance, three different algorithms are available to choose from:

• Large loads and generators first

• Simulated annealing
• Genetic Algorithm

All three methods have their advantages. The Large loads and generators first method is easier to
understand and to configure, and leads in most cases to very good solutions. The Simulated annealing
and genetic algorithm methods are more theoretical regarding the configuration, but due to the random
approach can find solutions for networks in which the power balance is difficult to achieve.

Large loads and generators first:

This algorithm iterates over all loads and generators in order of their apparent power, starting with the
largest load or generator. For each load or generator, it will permute the connections of the load or
generator or their supplying branch elements. After calculating the objective function for all possible
connections, it will choose the best connection for this load or generator.

Settings:

The behaviour of the algorithm can be controlled with the following two settings:
The setting ’Disconnect loads and generators at beginning’ will disconnect all loads and generators
before the algorithm starts to iterate, and in each iteration, the actual load or generator will be connected
to the grid in the best way for this iteration step. If this setting is not chosen, the actual load or generator
will be just reconnected.
At each iteration, the algorithm will evaluate several modifications. The threshold in the frame ’Accep-
tance of change’ determines the minimal improvement required for such a modification. If a modification
does not lead to an improvement larger than this threshold, it is not applied to the solution.

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Simulated annealing

This algorithm as well as the input parameters are described in detail in section 41.11.

41.7.3 Elements considered

The set of elements, whose connections are permuted during the optimisation can be parameterised
by the following settings:
• Allow phase permutation: defines, which types of elements are considered by the algorithm. At
least one box has to be checked.

• Elements with fixed phases: a selection of various elements may be chosen, which are excluded
from the optimisation.

41.7.4 Representation of solution

The optimised connections of the affected elements can be applied to the network by choosing one of
the two possible options:

The preferable option is to use ’Create new Variation’, where all connection changes will be stored into
a new variation. They can be undone by deactivating the newly created variation. This option is also
advantageous if the impact of the optimisation has to be analysed or if different settings have to be
compared between each other.

As alternative, the changes may be set directly in the network without creating a new variation. Select
this option only if surely intended!

After the execution of the optimisation the result boxes show the unbalance factors of power, current
(for branch elements) and voltage (nodes). By calculating another load flow, the result boxes are reset
to the normally shown variables.

41.7.5 Output

The Phase Balance Optimisation tool displays by default some information in the output window. The
internal and effective objective function value before and after the optimisation are printed (the internal
objective value may differ from the effective objective value due to an approximation made to achieve the
high performance). The number of modified elements, differentiated for the element types, are listed,
too. Additional information may be displayed by checking the following settings in the Output page of
the ComBalance-dialog:

• Output changed elements: lists after execution of the optimisation all elements, which were
changed including the affected phases.
• Report objective value after each iteration: displays the internal objective value for every
iteration in the output window.

41.8 Voltage Profile Optimisation

The Voltage Profile Optimisation (VPO) command (ComVoltplan) is used to optimise distribution trans-
former taps over the expected range of network load and generation conditions. It can be selected from
the Distribution Network Optimisation Tools, as shown in Figure 41.1.2. The VPO calculation considers
two scenarios:

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• A maximum demand/minimum generation scenario, or “Consumption Case”.

• A minimum demand/maximum generation scenario, or “Production Case”.

For the representation of the transformer and the supplied LV network the user can choose between
two possible modelling solutions:

• MV Load: This requires that loads be represented as medium voltage (MV) loads (ElmLodmv ).
MV load elements include transformer type data and LV network parameters, as illustrated in
Figure 41.8.1a.
• Transformer in a secondary substation: This requires that a MV/LV-transformer is located
within a secondary substation (ElmTrfstat). All supplied loads and generators that are modelled
to represent the LV network will be considered. The more detailed modelling gives the user
more accurate results for the voltage drop/rise over the transformer. An example is shown in
Figure 41.8.1b.

To show terminal colouring based on maximum/minimum LV grid voltages, select View → Diagram
Colouring from the main menu (or select the Diagram Colouring icon). Under 3. Other, select Results
→ Voltages / Loading. Click on Colour Settings, go to the second page of the Voltages / Loading page,
and select Consider LV grid voltages for colouring. In the example below, the minimum voltage is below
the lower limit and the maximum voltage is above the upper limit (the limits set in the colouring options)
and the terminal therefore shows two colours.

The load and generation scaling factors used in the tap optimisation calculation override the values
specified on the “Load Generation Scaling” page of the Load Flow Calculation, but the Load Flow
Calculation settings remain unchanged.

(a) MV load model (b) Transformer model supplying a LV network

Figure 41.8.1: Use of different transformer representations for the Voltage Profile Optimisation

Note: In the MV load model, the transformer tap changer is represented on the LV side of the trans-
former.

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41.8.1 Optimisation Procedure

The optimisation procedure can be summarised as follows:

1. If Distribution Transformer Tap Limits are specified by the user, the tap range of transformers will
be limited within Min. allowed tap position and Max. allowed tap position. This is illustrated in
Figure 41.8.2, where a transformer with seven tap positions is limited to taps “-1” to “2”, which
limits the transformer voltage rise to 7 % and voltage drop to -5 %. The height of each bar is
determined by the voltage rise and voltage drop across the transformer in the production and
consumption cases, respectively.

Figure 41.8.2: Distribution transformer tap limits

2. The Upper tap limit and Lower tap limit are calculated based on settings that will keep the range of
expected LV grid voltages within the Upper voltage limit and Lower voltage limit. This is illustrated
in Figure 41.8.3, where the limits are set to between 0.92 p.u. and 1.10 p.u. In cases where only
Production case or Consumption case is set, only the corresponding voltages within the LV grid
will be considered.

3. Both tap positions “0” and “1” would be acceptable, and maintain transformer voltage drop and
LV grid voltages within acceptable limits. The optimisation routine selects the optimal tap position
based on the objective function defined in the command. Figure 41.8.3 shows an example for the
objective function Maximisation of generation. The lower tap limit (position “0” in Figure 41.8.3) is
selected in order to minimise the voltage rise.

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Figure 41.8.3: Voltage limits for LV grids with the objective function Maximisation of generation selected

The possible scenarios for optimisation are summarised as follows:

1. There is a single tap position that will satisfy both LV grid lower and upper voltage limits -> this
tap is selected.
2. There are multiple tap positions that will satisfy both LV grid lower and upper voltage limits -> the
selected objective function defines which tap position is selected.
3. There is no tap position at all, that will satisfy either the lower nor upper voltage limits of the LV grid
-> PowerFactory will try to secure the LV grid violations of either the minimum (for Maximisation
of consumption) or maximum (for Maximisation of generation) voltage limit.
4. There are tap positions that will satisfy the LV grid upper voltage limit, but all of them violate the
lower voltage limit -> the highest tap position that will not violate the upper voltage limit is selected.
5. There are tap positions that will satisfy the LV grid lower voltage limit, but all of them violate the
upper voltage limit -> the lowest tap position that will not violate the lower voltage limit is selected.
Note that Distribution Transformer Tap Limits, if specified on the Advanced Options page, take prece-
dence over the Upper voltage limit and Lower voltage limit specified on the Basic Options page. This
means that if distribution tap limits are considered, a tap range is first determined which respects these
drop/rise limits over the MV/LV transformer (HV to LV side of the MV/LV transformer). Afterwards, an
optimal tap position which obeys the voltage limits (in the LV feeder) for the selected Calculated cases
is sought within this range.

41.8.2 Basic Options Page

• Calculation mode
– Optimisation: the tap of the distribution transformers will be set to the optimal position within
the given limits.

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– Verification: the tap position of the distribution transformers will remain as-is. The algorithm
checks whether this setting exceeds the given limits. This could be used to verify whether
the given tap positions in a network are still valid after changes within the LV grid.

• Calculation cases
– Consumption- and production case simultaneously: the consumption- and production
case will be calculated and shown in the results. In addition, a tap position which conforms
in both cases is selected.
– Consumption case only: the consumption case will be calculated with the Voltage limits for
LV grids. Hence, the tap position will be optimised for the highest possible voltage within the
limit. A typical application would be a LV grid with high power consumption and no generation
units.
– Production case only: the production case will be calculated with the Voltage limits for LV
grids. Hence, the tap position will be optimised for the lowest possible voltage within the limit.
A typical application would be a LV grid with a high proportion of photovoltaic.
• Objective function (only available for Calculation method: Optimisation)
– Maximisation of generation: if multiple tap positions of the distribution transformer meet the
given limits for the consumption- and/or production case, the result with the lowest voltage
level will be used.
– Maximisation of consumption: if multiple tap positions of the distribution transformer meet
the given limits for the consumption- and/or production case, the result with the highest
voltage level will be used.
• Voltage limits for LV grids
– Upper voltage limit: upper limit that the LV grid must not exceed (e.g. 1.1 p.u.).
– Lower voltage limit: lower limit that the LV grid must not fall below (e.g. 0.9 p.u.).
• Consumption case (not available for Production case only )
– Load scaling factor: percentage load scaling for the calculation of the consumption case
(e.g. 100 %).
– Generation scaling factor: percentage generation scaling for the calculation of the con-
sumption case (e.g. 0 %).
• Production case (not available for Consumption case only )
– Load scaling factor: percentage load scaling for the calculation of the production case (e.g.
25 %).
– Generation scaling factor: percentage generation scaling for the calculation of the produc-
tion case (e.g. 100 %).
• Load Flow calculation: a reference to the Load Flow command used by the optimisation algo-
rithm. A copy is made of the command meaning that any changes made do not affect the settings
of the original Load Flow command.

41.8.3 Output Page

In cases where Calculation method “Consumption- and production case simultaneously” is used, the
following option is available:

• Shown results
– Consumption case: the results for the consumption case are shown.
– Production case: the results for the production case are shown.

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41.8.4 Advanced Options Page

Distribution Transformer Tap Limits

Transformer Maximum Allowed Voltage Rise and Maximum Allowed Voltage Drop can be optionally
specified. These limits restrict the feasible range of taps in the optimisation procedure.

41.8.5 Results of Voltage Profile Optimisation

The result of the Voltage Profile Optimisation can be shown as a tabular or ASCII report, or as a voltage
profile plot.

Tabular and ASCII report

The tabular or ASCII reports, which show the recommended tap settings, including details of MV loads
with critical voltage drop or rise can be accessed after the Voltage Profile Optimisation has been calcu-
lated. This is done by clicking on “Reports Voltage Profile Optimisation” ( ). An example of the Optimal
Transformer Tap Positions section of the report is shown below in Figure 41.8.4 (results consistent
with Figure 41.8.1 and the discussion in Section 41.8.1). In the case where only the production or
consumption case are calculated, only the corresponding results will be available in the last columns
(voltages).

Figure 41.8.4: Voltage profile results

The recommended tap settings are also available on the Flexible Data page of MV loads under the
Voltage Profile Optimisation calculation parameter “c:nntap”. To update the network model with the
recommended tap settings, the user may either manually adjust MV load tap positions, or click the
Update Database icon on the main toolbar ( ), and update the case with the calculated distribution
transformer taps.

Voltage profile diagram

To display a plot of the resultant profile for one feeder for the consumption case, production case or both,
select the Voltage Profile Plot icon ( ). Figure 41.8.5 shows an example plot for the consumption case
only:

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Figure 41.8.5: Voltage profile plot for the consumption case

41.9 Optimal Equipment Placement

The Optimal Equipment Placement function ( ) allows the user to place storage units and voltage
regulators at optimal locations in the network. In addition, existing storage units and voltage regulators
can be optimised.

In distribution networks, the operator is often faced with temporarily high loading of equipment or
voltages that lie outside the required voltage band. Due to increasing decentralised generation units
and more variable loads, fluctuations in networks increase. Besides traditional network expansion, there
is need for more smart equipment such as batteries and voltage regulators. The Optimal Equipment
Placement function can therefore help to determine the right installation location of storage models and
voltage regulators.

There are several optimisation options available:

• Placement of new storage models with a pre-defined capacity
• Placement of new storage models with optimised capacity

• Optimise existing storage models

• Placement of new pre-defined voltage regulators
• Optimise tap positions of existing voltage regulators and transformers

Optimal Equipment Placement can be executed using a balanced AC load flow for a user-defined time
range and step size. The tool offers a wide range of configuration possibilities for the equipment to be
used, as well as constraints to match specific requirements.

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The objective function of the Optimal Equipment Placement is to minimise the total installation and
operation costs of the equipment under consideration, taking pre-defined constraints into account.

41.9.1 Optimal Equipment Placement Configuration

The Optimal Equipment Placement command can be found in the Distribution Network Optimisation
toolbar. More information about the available settings can be found in the following subsections.

41.9.1.1 Basic Options

Equipment type:

There are two equipment types available that can be used in the Optimal Equipment Placement:
• Voltage regulators
• Storage models
The options seen on the different pages of the command can change depending on the equipment type
used.

Feeder:

The optimisation will always be executed for one defined feeder. The necessary selection can be done
by clicking on the ( ) button and then press Select. . . . From the selection browser the desired feeder
(ElmFeeder ) for the investigation can be selected. Detailed information on feeders and how to define
them, can be found in Section 14.6.

Load Flow:

For each time step that is defined on the Time Sweep page in the command (see Section 41.9.1.5), a
balanced AC Load Flow calculation is executed. The command used can be edited by pressing the Edit
button ( ). Detailed information on the options of the Load Flow Calculation command can be found
in Section 24.3.

Saving of solution:

There are two options for saving the solution of the optimisation (newly placed/optimised equipment):

• Change existing network: If this option is selected, all changes will be directly recorded in the
current network configuration. If a variation with a recording expansion stage is present, the
changes will be recorded by this variation.

Note: It is important to be aware of the current network configuration and where the changes will
be recorded.

• Create new variation: This option will create a new variation with a dedicated Variation name. The
activation time of the expansion stage will be set to the first time step of the simulation.

41.9.1.2 Equipment

The input parameters and tables on the Equipment page depend on the Equipment type that is selected
for the optimisation. Here the user is able to define the available equipment for the Optimal Equipment
Placement.

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Voltage regulators:

The definition of new voltage regulators is done via the table for Available Equipment. The following
configurations can be defined:
• Type (TypVoltreg): The type of the Step-Voltage Regulator contains all electrical parameters.
Available types can be selected from the Equipment Type Library or can be newly created ( ).
More information on the different parameters of the type can be found in the corresponding
technical reference document.
• Voltage Regulator element (ElmVoltreg): For each row of the table a new Step-voltage Regula-
tor is created, which will use the defined type (TypVoltreg) in the same row. The following options
can be specified for the Optimal Equipment Placement:
– The parameter Position of tap 1 cannot be changed for new equipment. For existing Step-
Voltage Regulators this option can be either activated to optimise the tap position or deacti-
vated to leave the tap changer at its current position during the optimisation.
– The Penalty costs per Tap deviation is used by the solver to find the cheapest solution. This
is only a virtual parameter which does not contain actual operation costs.
Note: It is recommended to enter a value > 0 so that the solver can find the cheapest
available solution. Without penalty costs for a tap change, the solver can theoretically
change the tap position within the limits as often as possible, which is usually not wanted.

– The Max. loading of the voltage regulator can be considered in the optimisation. The user
has the option to turn this constraint off, or to define the maximum loading as hard or soft
constraint.
– Installation costs for one element.
– Maintenance costs for one element per year. The resulting maintenance costs depend on
the Planning Period of the optimisation.

• Min. number: Defines the minimum number of voltage regulators for each row that have to be
placed.
• Max. number: Defines the maximum number voltage regulators for each row that are allowed to
be placed.

For the definition of new voltage regulators, the button Add voltage regulator can be used. Al-
ternatively, the user can insert or append new rows by right-clicking into the table and choose the
corresponding option.

With the buttons Show chosen types and Show voltage regulators, the user can see a list of objects
that are defined in the table. The displayed table selection gives the user a good overview of the
parameters of the available equipment.

By activating the option Max. total number of placed voltage regulators the user can define the
maximum number of voltage regulators within the feeder being investigated. Note that existing voltage
regulators are included in the total number.

The Planning period for the Optimal Equipment Placement can be defined in years. With this param-
eter, the user is able to determine the total investment costs of the equipment for the defined planning
period.

• Installation Costs are defined in the Voltage Regulator (ElmVoltreg) and are only considered once
to install the new equipment.
• Maintenance Costs are defined per year in the Voltage Regulator (ElmVoltreg) and are scaled
according to the planning period.

The total costs over the whole Planning period can be found in the result file Summary (see Sec-
tion 41.9.1.7).

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 41.9. OPTIMAL EQUIPMENT PLACEMENT

In addition to the installation of new equipment, the Optimal Equipment Placement is also able to
optimise the operation of Existing Equipment. For this, the option Optimise tap positions of existing
voltage regulators and transformers is activated. For each existing transformer and voltage regulator
element within the feeder being investigated, the following options on the Optimal Equipment Placement
page can be configured:
• The parameter Position of tap 1 can be either activated to optimise the tap position of the element
or deactivated to leave the tap changer at its current position.
• The Penalty costs per Tap deviation is used by the solver to find the cheapest solution during the
optimisation. This is only a virtual parameter which does not contain actual operation costs.

Note: It is recommended to enter a value > 0 so that the solver can find the cheapest available
solution. Without penalty costs for a tap change, the solver can theoretically change the tap
position within the limits as often as possible, which is usually not wanted.

• The Max. loading can also be considered. The user has the option to turn this constraint off, or to
define the maximum loading as hard or soft constraint.
On the Advanced tab of the Equipment page, the strategy for the optimisation of the tap position can
be specified. For the Minimisation of voltage regulator and transformer tap change the user has
two options:

• Based on current/neutral position: Here the preferred tap position is the neutral tap position (for
new elements) or the current tap position (for existing elements) of the equipment, which can be
specified on the load flow page in each element.
• Based on optimised value of previous time point: Here the objective is to minimise the overall tap
changes, so the preferred tap position is the one of the previous time point.

Storage models:

The definition of new storage models is done via the table for Available Equipment. The Storage model
(ElmStorage) will be linked to the Static Generator (ElmGenstat) for each row to restrict the generated
and consumed energy by the charging/dischanging power of the generator. The following configurations
can be defined:

• Storage model (ElmStorage): For each row of the table a new storage model is created. It
contains all energy related parameters and constraints of the storage:
– Storage type: There are three storage types available. Battery, Hydropower and General
Storage.
– Capacity: Represents the size of the storage model. For the types Battery and General
Storage the capacity can only be entered in MWh. For Hydropower the capacity can be
entered in MWh or as water volumes which are then converted with the head of water.
– Operational energy limits: Minimum and maximum operational limits can be defined in p.u.
values. The limits can be considered as soft constraints.
– Energy constraint at study period end: Option to define the energy of the storage at the end
of the time period being investigated. The user can either define no constraint, a min. energy
that the storage should have or decide that the energy at study period end is equal to the
energy at study period start. It is possible to define the energy constraint at study period end
as soft constraint.
– Energy at study period start: It can be defined by a fixed value or it can be optimised by the
Optimal Equipment Placement.
– The Self-discharge of the storage model can be defined in p.u. per hour.
• Static Generator (ElmGenstat): For each row of the table a new generator is created. The gen-
erator is linked to the storage model of the same row and contains the power related parameters
and constraints as well as the costs:

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– Efficiency: For the generation and consumption mode an Efficiency curve (IntEffcurve) can
be selected. The user can define the rated efficiency in p.u. at different active power dis-
patches. More details on the different options for the piecewise linearisation of the efficiency
curve can be found in section 39.6.1.
– The parameter Optimise active power cannot be changed for new equipment. For existing
storage models this option can be activated to optimise the power dispatch.
– Active Power Operational Limits: The minimum power limit is used for the consumption mode
and defines the maximum charging power, while the maximum power limit is used for the
generation mode and defines the maximum discharging power.
– The Generation costs contain Penalty costs that represent the costs per MWh in generation
mode as well as Fixed costs per hour.
– The Consumption costs represent the costs per MWh in consumption mode.
– The General costs contain the Installation costs of the entire storage model as well as the
Maintenance costs per year.

• Min. number: Defines the minimum number of storage models for each row that have to be
placed.
• Max. number: Defines the maximum number storage models for each row that are allowed to be
placed.

• Optimise capacity: Option to optimise the capacity of the selected storage model (row). If this
option is selected, then the min. and max. capacity columns in the table will define the limits for the
optimal size. The capacity costs will be considered in the optimisation process. The objective of
the Optimal Equipment Placement is to find a large enough storage model to reduce the constraint
violations, that is as cheap as possible.

• Capacity costs: Costs per MWh for the storage model that is to be optimised.
• Min. capacity of the storage model that is to be optimised.
• Max. capacity of the storage model that is to be optimised.

For the definition of new storage models, the button Add storage can be used. Alternatively, the user
can insert or append new rows by right-clicking into the table and choose the corresponding option.

With the buttons Show chosen storage models and Show chosen generators, the user can see a
list of objects that are defined in the table. The displayed table selection gives the user a good overview
of the parameters of the available equipment.

By activating the option Max. total number of placed storage models the user can define the
maximum number of storage models within the feeder being investigated. Note that existing storage
models are included in the total number.

The Planning period for the Optimal Equipment Placement can be defined in years. With this param-
eter, the user is able to determine the total investment costs of the equipment for the defined planning
period.

• Installation Costs are defined in the Generator (ElmGenstat) and are only considered once to
install the new equipment.
• Maintenance Costs are defined per year in the Generator (ElmGenstat) and are scaled according
to the planning period.

• Operation Costs are defined in the Generator (ElmGenstat) and are calculated for the time period
being investigated. These costs contain the generation as well as the consumption costs and are
scaled according to the planning period.
The total costs over the whole Planning period can be found in the result file Summary (see Sec-
tion 41.9.1.7).

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In addition to the installation of new equipment, the Optimal Equipment Placement tool is also able
to optimise the operation of Existing equipment. For this, the option Optimise existing storage
models is activated. To optimise the power dispatch of existing storage models within the feeder being
investigated, the following options in the Generator (ElmGenstat) on the Optimal Equipment Placement
page can be configured:
• Optimise active power: If this option is activated, the active power dispatch of the storage model
will be optimised. If the option is deactivated, the power dispatch will not be changed.
• Active Power Operational Limits: The minimum power limit is used for the consumption mode and
defines the maximum charging power, while the maximum power limit is used for the generation
mode and defines the maximum discharging power.
• Separate consumption mode: If this option is activated, separate consumption power limits can
be defined. The max. power corresponds then to the maximum charging power of the storage
model.

Note: When the Separate consumption mode is active, the minimum operational limits will only
be considered for values > 0, because smaller values are already defined by the max. limit
of the other mode.

• Generation and Consumption costs per MWh and hour.

41.9.1.3 Locations

For the optimisation, a feeder has to be defined on the Basic Options page. Only locations within this
feeder are considered for the placement of new equipment. The following options are available to define
the candidate locations:

• All terminals
• Only busbars

• A user-defined Terminal selection. By clicking on the ( ) button and choose Select. . . , the
Candidate terminals from the selection browser can be selected.
Equipment that is to be optimised also needs to be located within the specified feeder.

41.9.1.4 Constraints

Within the feeder being investigated, the following General Constraints are considered:

• Consider thermal constraints (loading) of all components within the feeder:

– If the option Global constraint for all components is selected, then a Maximum thermal
loading has to be defined.
– If the option Individual constraint per component is selected, then the maximum loading
constraint can be specified within each component on the Optimal Equipment Placement
page.
– The Constraint type can either be regarded as hard or soft constraint.
Note: For the equipment being investigated, individual loading constraints can also be con-
sidered for candidate voltage regulators.

• Consider voltage limits of all terminals within the feeder:

– If the option Global constraint for all terminals is selected, then a Lower and Upper voltage
limit has to be defined.
– If the option Individual constraint per terminals is selected, then the voltage limits can be
specified within each terminal on the Optimal Equipment Placement page.

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– The Constraint type can either be regarded as hard or soft constraint.

• Soft constraints
– The constraints for the Optimal Equipment Placement can be either hard or soft constraints.
When soft constraints are defined, violations are allowed, but cause additional costs. These
costs are defined by the Penalty factor for soft constraints.
Note: The costs for soft constraints are only virtual to find the most cost-effective solution.
They are considered in the optimisation but not added to the total costs in the reported
results.

Furthermore, Advanced Constraints can be considered:

• Ignore all constraints for nominal voltage. . . :
– If this option is activated, the user can define voltage thresholds, above/below which all
constraints are ignored.
– The parameter < (below) defines the lower voltage threshold and > (above) defines the upper
voltage threshold.
• Constraints outside feeder:
– In addition to considering constraints within the feeder being investigated, voltage and loading
limits outside the feeder can also be observed. This allows the user to take into account
violations outside the feeder which have been caused by the new or optimised equipment.
– If the option In supplying substation is selected, an internal algorithm will find the substation
that is supplying the feeder. The constraints will then be considered for all elements within
the supplying substation.
– If the option For selection is selected, the user is able to define elements outside the feeder
where constraints should be observed. By clicking on the ( ) button and choose Select. . . ,
elements from the selection browser can be selected.
Note: When constraints outside feeder are considered, the optimisation does not only take
into account violations caused by the new equipment, but also tries to solve existing
constraint violations. Since new equipment may not have a big influence there, these
can cause the problem to become infeasible. The constraints outside the feeder should
therefore be chosen carefully.

Note: For the equipment being investigated, element-specific constraints are considered as well (see
section 41.9.1.2).

41.9.1.5 Time Sweep

The optimisation and placing of new equipment is always done for a user-defined time period. The
following options can be selected:

• Calculation time period:

– Complete day: a specific user-defined day can be selected as simulation time period. The
day is chosen in the corresponding field.
– Complete month: a specific user-defined month can be selected as simulation time period.
The month is chosen in the corresponding field.
– Complete year: a specific user-defined year can be selected as simulation time period. The
year is chosen in the corresponding field.
– User defined calculation times: specific user-defined calculation times can be added for
the simulation (using the time format dd:mm:yyyy hh:mm:ss). The simulation will only be
executed at the defined calculation times. The user also has the option to ignore certain
points in time by activating the associated option.

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Note: The optimisation will only be executed for the defined calculation times, while all other
points in time are not considered. Therefore, the user has to choose the calculation times
carefully to get reliable results.
– User defined time range: a customisable time period can be chosen for the simulation by
defining the Begin and End time points (using the time format dd:mm:yyyy hh:mm:ss).
• A fixed Step size is used for the simulation. The step size is defined by the Step (integer value)
and the Unit. The Unit can be selected from the corresponding drop-down list (Minutes, Hours,
Days, Months or Years).

41.9.1.6 Algorithm

Solver:

PowerFactory offers different possibilities for solving the mixed-integer linear program (MILP) problem
of the Optimal Equipment Placement function. The optimisation supports both internal solvers (lp_-
solver, cbc solver) as well as commercial external solvers like IBM CPLEX and GUROBI. More detailed
information on the different solvers can be found in section 39.3.7.2.
• The “Cbc”-solver is selected by default and is recommended if no commercial solvers are avail-
able.

One of the Basic parameters that can be defined is the Time limit. If activated, the user can set a time
limit for the solving time of the solver to avoid very long run times.

Note: If a very low time limit is set, the solver might not find the optimal solution or may find no solution
at all.

The Solver parameters configuration for each MILP-solver is usually set to pre-configured default values.
If the user wants to change the input parameters of the selected solver, the option Advanced can be
selected to modify the values.

Effectiveness:

To solve violated constraints within the feeder, the sensitivities/effectiveness of the equipment (gener-
ator, transformer, voltage-regulator) on the constraints has to be calculated. The option Thresholds for
power flow/voltage constraints allows the user to specify the Min. generator/transformer effectiveness
to be considered. If the effectiveness of an equipment on a constraint is below the defined limit, then it
is not considered in solving the constraint.

To Ignore violated constraints without effective controls, the corresponding option can be activated. If
this option is not active, a warning before the optimisation will inform the user that violated constraints
within the feeder can’t be resolved.

41.9.1.7 Results/Output

The Optimal Equipment Placement calculation writes three result files during execution. The main result
file is linked under the parameter Results. The linked result file contains three sub result files:
• “Optimal Element Placement (summary):” This result file records the overall results of the calcu-
lation including installation, maintenance and operation costs of the placed equipment as well as
equipment-specific result variables.
• “Optimal Element Placement (before optimisation):” This result file saves the load flow results of
each time step before the optimisation and is similar to the results of a Quasi-Dynamic Simulation.

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• “Optimal Element Placement (after optimisation):” This result file saves the load flow results of
each time step after the placement and optimisation of equipment.

Note: Additional variables that should be recorded by the Optimal Equipment Placement can be de-
fined by the user via the Edit button ( ) from the toolbar. A detailed description on defining new
variable can be found in section 27.3.1. By default, the result files before/after the optimisation
record all variables that are constrained or controlled by the optimisation. The variables recorded
in the summary result file are pre-defined and cannot be changed.

The Output options correspond to the degree of information that is shown on the Output Window for
the time period calculations before and after the optimisation. The user can choose between no output,
a Short summary or Detailed load flow information.

Note: When no output is selected, a summary report of the optimised equipment will still be written to
the Output Window.

Additionally, an Output message in case of constraint violations after the optimisation is written to the
Output Window. The Max. acceptable error for constraints defines a threshold against which the
optimal solution should be verified. When the solution is verified and violations are detected, there will
be sets of violation elements reported in the output window.

41.9.2 Results of the Optimal Equipment Placement

The newly placed or optimised equipment is either saved within a new variation or integrated into the
existing network (see Section 41.9.1.1).

The optimal power dispatch of storage units and the optimal tap position of voltage regulators that
are obtained by the Optimal Equipment Placement are stored within an additional result file “Optimal
controls” which is located in the active study case in a folder named “Result Characteristics Opt.
Placement”. The characteristics from this result file are created in the project Operational Library →
Characteristics→ “Placed equipment” and are linked to the corresponding equipment.

41.9.2.1 Output Window

For a first evaluation of the Optimal Equipment Placement results, the report in the Output Window can
be inspected. As well as the installed equipment and its configuration, the installation, maintenance and
operation costs are listed.

41.9.2.2 Graphical Representation

Newly placed equipment will be automatically built into the network model. In addition, the new equip-
ment is highlighted in any schematic diagram.

41.9.2.3 Flexible Data Page

After the execution of the Optimal Equipment Placement, there are additional statistical variables avail-
able for certain elements, in the variable selection on the flexible data page. For those, the addition
“statistics” can be found in the column Type in the table of the available variables.

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• Statistics: Currents, Voltages and Powers These variables contain statistical values for control
variables such as average, minimum, maximum and variance over the complete simulation time.
The statistical values are available for all variables that are recorded in the result files (see
Section 41.9.1.7).
• Statistics: Calculation Parameter These variables contain statistical values such as redispatch
costs and amounts or loadings. They are available for the optimised equipment.

Other variables, that have not been recorded, show the results of the last time step of the simulation.
Note: The summary result file also contains result parameters from the entire simulation period.

41.9.2.4 Plots

The Create curve plot button ( ) can be found in the “Distribution Network Optimisation” toolbar.
Similar to the Quasi-Dynamic Simulation curve plots over time, duration curves and energy plots are
available for the Optimal Equipment Placement.

41.9.2.5 Tabular Reports

The Optimal Equipment Placement Report ( ) is also found in the “Distribution Network Optimisation”
toolbar. Built-in reports are available for further analysing the Optimal Equipment Placement results:
• Optimisation results
– Optimal solution: This report lists the control elements (storage models, transformers/volt-
age regulators) and their power dispatch/tap position before and after the optimisation. The
costs of the equipment are also listed.
– Storage report: This report is specifically made to summarise the storage models of the
optimisation. Therefore different values such as storage energy at the start/end of the
optimisation as well as the generated/consumed energy and costs are listed.
– The Study time for the Optimisation results reports can be set to a single time point or to
summarise all investigated time points.
• Time sweep load flow results
– Loading ranges: This report lists the loading of all elements for the selected time range. A
threshold can also be defined, so as to only display elements which exceed this loading limit.
– Voltage ranges: This report lists the min. and max. voltage of all terminals for the selected
time range. Thresholds can also be defined, so as to only display elements which exceed
these lower or upper voltage limits.
– Non-convergent cases: This report lists the points in time where the load flow is not
converging before or after the optimisation.
– The results can either be reported Before or After the optimisation.
– The Time Range can be set to the Complete or a User defined time range.

41.9.2.6 Load Optimal Equipment Placement Results

The Load Time Sweep Load Flow Results functionality ( ) allows the user to reload the results from
the selected result file (ElmRes) to the network elements. The user can choose between the results
Before and After the optimisation. The results are loaded for a selected point in time of the available
Time Range. This enables the user to investigate critical hours in the network model.

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41.9.3 Troubleshooting

Some model setups can lead to an infeasible problem for the solver, which makes it impossible for the
Optimal Equipment Placement function to find a solution. In the following sections, some factors that
can cause the infeasibility are described:

41.9.3.1 Solver Selection

The solver selection usually only has an influence on the performance. When a Time Limit is specified,
it might be the case that the included solvers are not able to find a solution within the defined limited
time. Therefore, it might be beneficial to increase the time limit. For large and complex problems in
particular, the commercial solvers should be able to find optimal solutions much faster.

41.9.3.2 Soft Constraints

The optimisation can become infeasible if a set (hard) constraint cannot be kept or resolved with the
given controls. With more constraints and limited control options this problem increases. To avoid this,
soft constraints can be used instead of hard constraints. Soft constraints are allowed to be violated and
therefore the solver can find a solution more easily. To influence this effect, the price for violating soft
constraints can be set in the Optimal Equipment Placement command on the page Constraints (see
Section 41.9.1.4).

Note: Thermal and voltage constraints within the feeder are defined in the command. Additional
constraints of the equipment used also have to be considered.

41.9.3.3 Network Analysis

In general, network analysis before executing the Optimal Equipment Placement is always beneficial.
By executing a Quasi-Dynamic Simulation before the optimisation, the feeder can be investigated for the
specified time period. This can be especially beneficial if hard constraints are to be used. The following
list may help the user to investigate whether the equipment has the required capacity:
• Storage models:
– Capacity: Can the used storage model store enough energy for the time period under
investigation? It might help to optimise the capacity of new equipment.
– Energy Limits: The operational limits of the storage model as well as a required energy at
the start and end of the simulation can limit the capacity used.
– Charging/Discharging Power: In the generator linked to the storage model, the max. charging
and discharging power are defined. It might be beneficial to check whether the operational
limits allow the storage model to charge/discharge with the required power.
• Voltage regulators/Transformers:
– Available tap positions: Are there enough tap positions available to solve the voltage viola-
tions?
– Min. and max. voltage in feeder: In some feeders it might happen that the voltage of the first
node of the feeder is under the min. voltage limit or over the max. voltage limit. In that or
similar cases, no voltage regulator within the feeder can solve the problem.
• Locations:
– Are suitable locations for the placement of equipment available to solve the current constraint
violations?

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41.10 Optimal Capacitor Placement

Optimal Capacitor Placement (OCP) is an automatic algorithm that minimises the cost of losses and
voltage constraints (optional) in a distribution network by proposing the installation of new capacitors
at terminals along the selected feeder/s. The optimal size and type of capacitor is selected from a
list of available capacitors entered by the user. The algorithm also considers the annual cost of such
capacitors and only proposes new capacitors for installation when the reduction of energy loss and
voltage constraint costs exceeds the annual cost of the capacitor (investment, maintenance, insurance
etc).

The OPC functions can be found in the Distribution Network Optimisation toolbar and are as follows:
• The main Optimal Capacitor Placement command is started with the Calculate Optimal Capacitor
Placement icon ( ). The command and the various user-defined options are described in detail
in Sections 46.3.1 to 46.3.3.
• After a successful optimisation, the list of nodes (terminals) where capacitors are proposed for
installation can be accessed by selecting the Show nodes with New Capacitors icon ( ).
• Following a successful OCP, the list of proposed capacitors can be accessed with the Show New
Capacitors icon ( ).

• The Remove previous solution icon ( ) deletes the results (removes all placed capacitors) from
a previous OCP routine.
• To list all results from the OCP in a ASCII text report written to the output window use the Optimal
Capacitor Placement Reports icon ( ). The report also displays the original system losses and
voltage constraint costs and such costs after the installation of the proposed capacitors.

41.10.1 OCP Objective Function

The OCP optimisation algorithm minimises the total annual network cost. This is the sum of the cost of
grid losses, the cost of installed capacitors, and optionally the fictitious penalty cost of voltage violations:

𝑚
∑︁ 𝑛
∑︁
𝑇 𝑜𝑡𝑎𝑙𝐶𝑜𝑠𝑡𝑠 = 𝐶𝐿𝑜𝑠𝑠𝑒𝑠 + (𝐶𝐶𝑎𝑝𝑖 ) + (𝐶𝑉 𝑜𝑙𝑡𝑉 𝑖𝑜𝑙𝑖 ) (41.12)
𝑖=1 𝑖=1

Where:

• 𝐶𝐿𝑜𝑠𝑠𝑒𝑠 is the annual cost of grid losses (i.e. including the grid losses, not only the feeder/s
for which the optimal capacitor placement is performed). Essentially, this is the 𝐼 2 𝑅 loss of all
elements in the network.
• 𝐶𝐶𝑎𝑝𝑖 is the annual cost of a capacitor (investment, maintenance, insurance), as entered by the
user in the list of possible capacitors. m is the total number of installed capacitors.
• 𝐶𝑉 𝑜𝑙𝑡𝑉 𝑖𝑜𝑙𝑖 corresponds to a fictitious cost used to penalise a bus (terminal) voltage violation. 𝑛
is the total number of feeder terminals with voltage violations.
Note that if the OCP is not able to reduce the Total Costs by installation of a capacitor/s, the following
message will be reported:

Costs can not be reduced with the given “Available Capacitors”

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Evaluating the Voltage Violation Cost

As there is no ’real’ cost for a voltage violation, if the user wants to consider voltage violations as part
of the OCP algorithm, they must assign a ’fictitious’ cost for such violations. The voltage violation cost
is calculated based on the user specified voltage limits and penalty factors. The voltage limits are
defined in the Basic Options page of the OCP command dialog (’vmin’ and ’vmax’ parameters, see
Section 46.3.1: Basic Options Page). The penalty factors are defined in the Advanced Options page of
the same command (’weight’ and ’weight2’ fields, see Section 46.3.3: Advanced Options Page). The
penalty values are applied for voltages inside the admissible voltage band (parameter ’weight’: Penalty
Factor 1) and for voltages outside the admissible band (parameter ’weight2’: Penalty Factor 2).

There are two possible situations for a terminal voltage and the calculation for the fictitious voltage
violation cost is slightly different for each situation. The two situations are explained as follows:
1. In situation one, the voltage 𝑈 of a terminal is within the allowed voltage band (between vmax and
vmin) but deviates from the nominal voltage of 1 p.u. The penalty cost is calculated as:

𝐶𝑉 𝑜𝑙𝑡𝑉 𝑖𝑜𝑙 = 𝑤1 · ∆𝑈 (41.13)

where:
∆𝑈 is the absolute deviation from the nominal voltage in p.u. (∆𝑈 = |𝑈 − 𝑈𝑛 |).
𝑤1 is the penalty factor (parameter ’weight’) inside the admissible voltage band in $/% from the
Advanced Options page.
2. For situation two, the voltage 𝑈 is outside the allowed voltage band (greater than vmax or less
than vmin) and the penalty cost is calculated as:
𝑈 > 𝑈𝑛 + ∆𝑈𝑚𝑎𝑥 , if voltage is higher than max. limit:
𝐶𝑉 𝑜𝑙𝑡𝑉 𝑖𝑜𝑙 = 𝑤2 · (∆𝑈 − ∆𝑈𝑚𝑎𝑥 ) + 𝑤1 · ∆𝑈
or
𝑈 < 𝑈𝑛 − ∆𝑈𝑚𝑖𝑛 , if voltage is lower than min. limit:
𝐶𝑉 𝑜𝑙𝑡𝑉 𝑖𝑜𝑙 = 𝑤2 · (∆𝑈 − ∆𝑈𝑚𝑖𝑛 ) + 𝑤1 · ∆𝑈
where

• ∆𝑈 is the absolute deviation from the nominal voltage 𝑈𝑛 in p.u.

• 𝑈𝑛 + ∆𝑈𝑚𝑎𝑥 is the higher voltage limit in p.u.
• 𝑈𝑛 − ∆𝑈𝑚𝑖𝑛 is the lower voltage limit in p.u.
• 𝑤1 is the penalty factor (parameter ’weight’) for voltage inside the admissible voltage band in
$/% from the Advanced Options page.
• 𝑤2 is the penalty factor (parameter ’weight2’) for voltage outside the admissible voltage band
in $/% from the Advanced Options page.
The algorithm can be summarised in as follows:
• If the voltages are inside the admissible band the penalty cost applied is equal to 𝑤1 · ∆𝑈

• If the voltages are outside the admissible band the penalty cost applied is equal to the penalty
inside the band (𝑤1 · ∆𝑈 ) plus the factor 𝑤2 · (∆𝑈 − ∆𝑈𝑙𝑖𝑚 , with ∆𝑈𝑙𝑖𝑚 being either the maximum
or the minimum limit value of the admissible band.
Figure 41.10.1 illustrates the concept of the voltage band violation cost.

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 41.10. OPTIMAL CAPACITOR PLACEMENT

Figure 41.10.1: Fictitious cost assigned by voltage band violations

41.10.2 OCP Optimisation Procedure

To find the optimal configuration of capacitors, PowerFactory applies the following steps:

• First a sensitivity analysis determines the ’best’ candidate terminal; This involves evaluating the
impact on the total cost (Losses + Voltage Violations) by connecting the largest available capacitor
from the user-defined list of capacitors to each target feeder terminal. At this stage the cost of the
largest capacitor is excluded.
• Terminals are ranked in descending order of total cost reduction. The terminal that provides the
largest cost reduction becomes the ’best’ candidate terminal for a ’new’ capacitor.
• The optimisation routine then evaluates the cost reduction at the candidate terminal using each
available capacitor from the user-defined list including the cost of each capacitor. The ’best’
capacitor is the one that reduces the cost the most when also considering the annual cost of that
capacitor.
• Repeat step one but any terminals that have previously been selected as candidates for capacitor
installation are not included in the ranking of candidate terminals. The algorithm stops when all
terminals have had capacitors installed, or the installation of capacitors cannot reduce costs any
further.

Note: If Load Characteristics are considered, then the above algorithm will be completed for every
independent load state. See Section 41.10.5 for how the load states are determined.

41.10.3 Basic Options Page

Feeder

Here the target feeder for the optimum capacitor placement is selected. The feeder is a special
PowerFactory element that must be created by the user before it can be selected in this dialog (for
information about feeders refer to Chapter 14: Grouping Objects 14.6 (Feeders)).

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Method

• Optimisation; This option calculates the optimal placement for capacitors using the methodology
described in Section 41.10.2. The output of the analysis is printed to the output window and any
new capacitors are connected to the target terminal/s if the ’Solution Action’ - ’Install capacitors’
is selected.
• Sensitivity Analysis; Performs the sensitivity analysis that ranks the candidate terminals according
to their impact on the total loss cost excluding the capacitor cost. The output is presented in the
output window. This option provides a quick indication of the most effective place for a single
capacitor. No capacitors are installed if this option is selected.

Network Representation

Here either a ’Balanced, positive sequence’ or a ’Unbalanced’ network representation can be selected.
The Load-flow command referenced below these radio buttons is automatically adjusted to the correct
calculation method based on this selection.

Constraints

Here the voltage constraint limits (upper and lower) can be entered, along with a limitation for the ’Total
Reactive Power of all Capacitors’ that can be added by the Optimal Capacitor Placement tool. The
total reactive power of all capacitors includes all existing capacitors along the feeder plus any more
capacitors proposed by the optimisation tool.

Note: The voltage constraints are meaningless if penalty factors for deviations outside of the nominal
range are not entered as discussed in detail in Section 41.10.1: OCP Objective Function.

Energy Costs

The energy cost ($/kWh) can be entered manually or taken from an External Grid. Note, if more than
one External Grid exists in the network, the algorithm takes the first External Grid by database ID. The
calculation of the cost of the network losses is as follows:

𝑇 𝐶 = 𝑀 𝐶 × 8760 × 𝐿 (41.14)

where:
𝑇 𝐶 is the total cost per annum in $;
𝑀 𝐶 is the energy cost of losses in $/kWh; and
𝐿 is the total losses in kW.

Note that if characteristics are applied to the loads and the analysis uses the option ’Consider Load
Characteristics’ (see Section 41.10.5), then the losses calculation becomes a summation over each
time state considered.

Note: The default energy cost units are $/kWh. However, this can be changed to Euro or Sterling (£) via
the project settings from the main menu bar. Edit → Project. . . Project Settings→ Input Variables
tab→ Currency Unit.

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Solution Action

• Report only (do not modify network); The result of the optimisation is a report to the output window
only, no modifications are made to the network model.
• Install capacitors (modify network). If this option is chosen, the capacitors that the optimisation
proposes for the network will be automatically installed. However, note that the single line diagram
is not automatically updated, only the network model database. To draw the installed capacitors
in the SLD the option must be selected in the Advanced Options page (see Section 46.3.3). The
placed capacitors can be also visualised on the Voltage Profile Plot of the Feeder, see (Viewing
results on the Voltage Profile Plot) in Section 41.10.7.

41.10.4 Available Capacitors Page

On this page, the user defines the available capacitors for the OCP command. One capacitor is entered
per row. To add a new capacitor, right-click within any cell and select the option ’Insert Rows’, ’Append
Rows’ or ’Append n Rows’. The following fields are mandatory for each row:

• Ignored; If this option is checked, then the capacitor specified in this row will be ignored by the
OCP command.
• Q per Step Mvar; Here the rated reactive power of the capacitor in Mvar per step is specified.
• Switchable; If this option is enabled then the algorithm can use a capacitor with multiple steps.
• Max. Step; If the ’Switchable’ option is enabled, then this option specifies the maximum number of
steps available to the optimisation algorithm. The maximum available reactive power is therefore
Max. Step * Q per Step Mvar.
• Technology; Specifies whether the capacitor is Three-phase or Single-phase.
• Cost; Important. This is the total cost of the capacitor bank per annum. This is a critical parameter
for the OCP command as the capacitor will only be installed if the losses offset by its installation
are greater than the annual cost of the capacitor.

Note: It is theoretically possible to force the installation of a particular capacitor at an optimal location
on a feeder by defining a very low cost for the capacitor, and limiting the number of capacitors to
say, one.

Available Capacitors

• Allow use of each capacitor multiple times; This is the default option and it means that every
capacitor in the list can be used at more than one feeder terminal (multiple times).
• Use each capacitor only once; If this option is enabled then each capacitor can only be placed at
one terminal along the target feeder.

Treatment of 3-phase capacitors

This option allows the specification of the ’technology’ type for 3-phase capacitors. This option is only
available when the ’Network Representation’ is set to ’Unbalanced’ in the Basic Options page.

41.10.5 Load Characteristics Page

If load characteristics are to be considered by the optimisation algorithm, then the option ’Consider Load
Characteristics’ should be enabled on this page.

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Load States

Two options are available:

1. ’Use existing Load States’; If this option is selected then the system load state that is active in
the system (the load state observed as a result of a single load-flow at the current point in time)
will be used as the load state for the optimisation algorithm. For example, if there is a 1 MW load
with a active characteristic that gives the current load value of 0.6 MW, then the load used for the
optimisation will be 0.6 MW, not 1 MW.

2. ’Create Load States’; If this option is selected then PowerFactory automatically discretises all load
characteristics into a number of ’states’ using a sophisticated algorithm. The algorithm iterates
through every hour of the selected time period to determine the number of unique operating load
states that exist. Every operating state is assigned a probability based on the number of times
that it occurs and this probability is used to determine the cost of losses for each state.

41.10.6 Advanced Options Page

Candidate Buses

• All terminals in feeder; If this option is selected, every terminal in the feeder is considered as a
possible candidate for a ’new’ capacitor.
• Percentage of terminals in feeder; Selecting this option and entering ’x’ percent for the parameter
means the optimisation algorithm will only consider ’x’ percent of the feeder terminals as targets
(candidates) for ’new’ capacitors. The ranking of terminals is according to the Sensitivity Analysis
as described in Section 41.10.2.

Max. Number of Iterations

This parameter determines the maximum number of iterations of the optimisation algorithm before it
automatically stops. As a maximum of one capacitor is placed per iteration, this can effectively limit the
total number of capacitors that can be placed by the optimisation routine.

Max. Execution Time

This parameter specifies the maximum time the optimisation routine can run before it is automatically
interrupted.

Penalty Factors for Voltage Deviation

• Factor for Deviation from 1 p.u (weight); This parameter is used to determine the total ’fictitious
cost’ for terminals deviating from 1 p.u. The cost is applied to each phase of the terminal. For
example, if a three phase terminal voltage is measured at 0.95 p.u for each phase and the ’fictitious
cost rate’ is $10,000/% then the total cost of this deviation is $150,000 (5% * $10,000/% * 3).

Note: If no penalty costs are to be applied within the admissible band, this factor should be set to zero.
If this value is greater than zero, the program will add costs to all terminals with voltage different
than 1.0 p.u.

• Additional Factor outside range [vmin, vmax] (weight2); This parameter can be used to apply an
additional weighting factor to the first deviation factor when the terminal voltage falls outside the
voltage limits defined on the ’Basic Options’ page. The factor is cumulative, so using the previous
example and a additional factor of 20,000/% with a vmin of 0.975, the fictitious cost becomes
$300,000 (5% * $10,000/% + 2.5% * $20,000/%) * 3.

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Note: The values for the two voltage penalties ’weight’ and ’weight2’ should be carefully chosen be-
cause the target optimisation function is a sum of three objective functions (losses, capacitor cost
and voltage deviation cost). If the voltage weights are too high, the algorithm might not consider
the other two objectives. Likewise, if they are very low, the algorithm may not consider voltage
violations at all.

Print report after optimisation

The automatic printing of the optimisation results can be disabled by unchecking this option.

Draw the installed capacitors

This option draw the installed capacitors in the Single Line Diagram when checked.

41.10.7 Results

Three OCP tool-bar buttons give access to the optimisation results.

Show Nodes with New Capacitors

When pressing the Show Nodes with New Capacitors icon ( ), after a successful optimisation is
complete, a list appears of all terminals where capacitors are proposed for installation.

Show New Capacitors

Pressing the Show New Capacitors icon ( ) shows a list of proposed new capacitors.

Optimal Capacitor Placement Reports

The Optimal Capacitor Placement Reports icon ( ) is used to generate a report with the results of the
sensitivity analysis and the final optimisation procedure.

Viewing results on the Voltage Profile Plot

Following a successful optimisation, the ’new’ capacitors can be visualised on the voltage profile plot of
the feeder. To enable this, navigate to the voltage profile plot display after the optimisation and click the
rebuild button. An example of such a plot showing the placed capacitors is shown in Figure 41.10.2.

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Figure 41.10.2: Voltage profile plot showing the new capacitors after an Optimal Capacitor Optimisation.

Removing Capacitors Placed by the Optimal Capacitor Placement Routine

The capacitors placed by the OCP command can be removed at any time after the analysis has been
completed by using the Remove previous solution icon ( ). This button is like an ’Undo’ for the ’Optimal
Capacitor Placement’.

41.11 Optimisation Algorithms

Genetic Algorithm and Simulated Annealing are well suited to solve the following optimisation problems.
• Objective function is not differentiable
• Only “discrete” states are allowed
• Possibility of having lots of local minima
• large amount of solutions within the state space

41.11.1 Genetic Algorithm

To illustrate how the Genetic Algorithm improves the optimisation process, the procedure for solving the
Phase Balance Optimisation using this algorithm is shown below.

The starting point of this algorithm is the state space. This set contains all possible phase connection
permutations within the network as a sequence, the so-called genotypes. These permutations are

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coded numerically within the genotypes.

Figure 41.11.1 illustrates one genotype used for Phase Balance Optimisation. In this example, the
numbers are the coded possibilities for phase permutations at the different cubicles within the network,
whereas each vertical line represents one cubicle.

Figure 41.11.1: Sample genotype for Phase Balance Optimisation simulation

Out of the set of possible genotypes, a user-defined number of states is drawn and defined to be the
population.

Starting from this population, the single genotypes are mutated and crossed over.

Mutation means the replacement of single code numbers, in this example phase permutations. A
possible mutation is shown in figure 41.11.2.

Figure 41.11.2: Sample genotype mutation for Phase Balance Optimisation simulation

Crossover stands for the exchange of sequences of code numbers (genes) between two genotypes.
These two steps are executed in every iteration.

In each iteration, the objective function is calculated for each genotype within the population. In this
example, the objective function would be the power unbalance. The genotype representing the minimum
of the objective function is stored globally and gives the resulting optimum at the end of the optimisation.

Settings:

the algorithm stops if the ’Maximum number of iterations’ is reached or the objective value is less than
the defined value. If the latter is set to zero, the algorithm always stops after the maximum number of
iterations.
The population settings define how many genotypes will be considered.
The mutation rate defines the portion out of the population, for which a mutation will be executed.
The number of mutation points defines the number of mutations, executed within one genotype.
The number of crossover points defines the lengths of the sequence to be replaced during cross over
process.

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41.11.2 Simulated Annealing

Simulated annealing is a stochastic optimisation method, which reconnects the grid randomly, and
during a cool down of the ’system’ will reach a good solution. During the execution of the algorithm, a
so called temperature 𝑇𝑛 is tracked, which reduces the longer the algorithm lasts.

At each iteration 𝑛 of the algorithm, first a new proposal for possible solutions is generated. These
solutions are then applied to the grid and the objective value 𝑣𝑝 for this proposal is calculated.

If the objective 𝑣𝑝 is better than the last objective value 𝑣𝑙 (meaning 𝑣𝑝 < 𝑣𝑙 ), the algorithm accepts the
proposal and will continue with the next iteration step.

If the objective 𝑣𝑝 is worse than the last objective value 𝑣𝑙 , with some probability 𝑝𝑛 ∈ (0, 1) the algorithm
still accepts the proposal. Note, that in this case 𝑣𝑝 > 𝑣𝑙 . The probability 𝑝𝑛 decays as the temperature
𝑇𝑛 decays:
𝑝𝑛 ∝ exp{−(𝑣𝑝 − 𝑣𝑙 )𝐼𝑛 },
where 𝐼𝑛 = 1/𝑇𝑛 is the inverse temperature.

Some stopping criteria can be given, to determine when the algorithm should stop iterating.

Settings: the algorithm stops if the ’Maximum number of iterations’ is reached or the objective value is
less than the defined value. If the latter is set to zero, the algorithm always stops after the maximum
number of iterations.

The two settings in the frame for the inverse temperature 𝐼𝑛 define how fast the variation between two
iterations decreases.

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Chapter 42

Outage Management

42.1 Introduction

With version 2017 of PowerFactory, a new methodology for modelling planned outages of elements of
the network was introduced. The underlying principle is that in the active scenario, the network is intact.
When the Planned Outage objects (IntPlannedout) are applied, the network changes are just held in
memory rather than being applied in the scenario. Thus, resetting of outages becomes straightforward.
All calculations will take account of applied changes such as switch positions and earths.

In addition, it is possible to add a range of associated actions to an outage, such as additional switch
actions, transformer tapping and power transfer, which will subsequently be enacted whenever the
outage is applied. A “record” mode is provided, which lets the user define events such as switch
operations simply by carrying out the open and close actions via a diagram or filter.

An Outage Management toolbox is provided, to facilitate the handling of the Planned Outage objects.

42.2 Creating Planned Outages

By default, any new outages created will be objects of class IntPlannedout. Users wishing to create
IntOutage objects will need to enable a project setting: on the Project Settings, Miscellaneous page
select Create IntOutage (obsolete).

42.2.1 Creating Planned Outages from Graphic or Network Model Manager

To create a Planned Outage object, the elements to be outaged are first selected via a graphic or from a
Network Model Manager. Then right-click, Operational Library → Planned Outage→ New. . . is used to
create the object. The Start and End dates will by default be the start and end of the year to which the
study case refers, and these can be edited. The selected element(s) form the contents of the outage.
Two buttons are available to the user at this stage to visualise the outage on a graphic before it is
applied: The Outaged Comp. button can be used to show the contents of the Planned Outage and the
Affected Comp. button can be used to show all the affected components; this will include for example
loads which are isolated by an outage.

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42.2.2 Creating Planned Outages in Data Manager

Outages can also be created from the Outage folder in a Data Manager. The New Object icon is used
and the Element Planned Outage (IntPlannedout) selected from the list. Elements can then be selected
to populate the Outaged components list.

42.2.3 Recurrent Outages

It is possible to define a recurrence pattern for a planned outage. For example, a circuit may be
switched out for work at weekends but put back in service for weekdays, with this pattern being followed
throughout the outage duration.

42.2.3.1 How to define a recurrent outage

The Recurrent box should be checked, and then the Edit. . . button is used to set up the recurrence
pattern. The settings are used as follows:

The Start field and the two fields in the Duration panel are used to define the start time and the length
(in days and hours) of the outage period that will be repeated. Note that the start time does not have to
coincide with the main Start Time of the Planned Outage, as defined on the Basic Data page.

Then, in the Recurrence panel, the user defines how often this outage period is to be repeated.
• Daily: the outage period will be repeated every day or every n days, according to the number
specified.
• Weekly: the user can configure the recurrence to be every week or every n weeks, and also
chooses the days of the week when the outage should be applied.
• Monthly: the user can configure the recurrence to be every month or every n months; the days
where the outage is applied are either individually specified or a rule such as “the second Monday
of the month” is applied.
• Yearly: the user can configure the recurrence to be every year or every n years; the days where
the outage is applied are either individually specified or a rule such as “the first Monday of April”
is applied.

Figure 42.2.1 shows an example where a line is to be taken out of service for eight hours each weekend
day, but left in service during the week.

42.2.3.2 How recurrent outages are applied

When an outage which has recurrence defined is applied, both the main outage period and the actual
period of recurring outage as defined in the Recurrence Pattern dialog are considered in relation to the
study case time and date. The equipment will be considered as being out of service during the periods
defined in the Recurrence Pattern dialog. Outside these periods, the equipment will be in service.

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 42.2. CREATING PLANNED OUTAGES

Figure 42.2.1: Planned Outage with recurrence

42.2.4 Adding Additional Events to an Outage

A Planned Outage object can be modified to include events in addition to the outage of elements.
Typically, switch operations might be executed to alter the configuration of a substation, but transformer
tapping or Power Transfers can also be made. These are the events supported:
• EvtSwitch to open and close switches, or switch off and switch on elements
• EvtTap to change a tap setting
• EvtTransfer to transfer real and reactive power between load objects or between static generators.
• EvtParam to change other parameters such as generation or load set points
New events can be added to a particular Planned Outage object by editing the object and pressing the
Start Rec. button. This will automatically apply the outage to start with, then the dialog should be closed
and the user can return to the graphic or a filter of elements to start executing events which are to be
recorded in the Planned Outage object.

It will be noted at this point that the Record Events button in the Outage Management toolbox (see
section 42.3.4) will now appear depressed.

When all required events have been recorded, the Stop Rec. button in the Planned Outage object
should then be pressed.

When an outage is selected for recording, this is reported in the output window. The name of the
outage will also appear in the status bar (at the bottom of the PowerFactory window) and stay there
until recording is turned off again.

Alternatively, additional events can be added to an outage by editing the outage object, using the Events
button to view the events, and using the New Object icon to add more events.

When additional events have been added to an outage, they are stored in a IntEvtrel folder within the
Outage Object, called “Remedial Actions”. They can also be deleted from here if required.

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42.3 Handling Planned Outages using the Outage Management

Toolbox

The Outage Management toolbox offers the following options to facilitate working with Planned Outages.

42.3.1 Show Planned Outages

Pressing this button will bring up a filter of all the outage objects in the Outages folder of the Operational
Library.

42.3.2 Apply Planned Outages

Pressing this button will bring up a filter of all the outage objects in the Outages folder of the Operational
Library which are applicable for the current study case time. All or some of these may be selected, then
when OK is pressed these outages will be applied.

If multiple outages are selected, it is possible that there may be conflicts where more than one outage
(and its associated events) refers to the same network element. By default, outages are applied
sequentially according to the start date and time, but if outages have the same start date and time,
the Priority flags on the outage objects are used to determine the sequence of application: the lower
the number, the higher the priority, meaning that the outage with Priority =1 will be applied first, then the
outage with Priority =2 and so on.

However, this rule can be reversed using a project setting on the Miscellaneous page of the project
settings dialog, called Application sequence of Planned Outages (see section 8.1.2.5). With the default
setting of “Time-based application (time before priority)”, the application sequence rule is as described
above. With the other setting, “Priority-based application (priority before time)”, the logic is that outages
will be applied according to the Priority flags (Priority =1 first, and so on), and if some outages have the
same priority, then these will be applied in an order based on the start date and time, the earliest ones
being applied first.

In either case, if there are outages with both the same start date and time and the same priority, these
will be applied in alphabetical order of name.

42.3.3 Reset All Planned Outages

This button will reset all the Planned Outages which have been applied.

42.3.4 Start Recording

If this button is pressed, a filter of possible outages in which to record events is presented. An outage is
selected, and upon pressing OK the record mode is started, and additional events can be added to the
chosen Planned Outage by making changes via a graphic or data filter. For example, a switch may be
closed, a transformer tapped, a running arrangement selected or a load set point changed.

42.3.5 Outage Schedule Report

This button is used to generate a list of all Planned Outages for a defined time period. When the button
is pressed, a dialog box is presented which can be used to set the start and end date of the report.

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“Detect” buttons give the option to have the dates set automatically according to the start and end dates
of the earliest and latest Planned Outage objects. When the report is executed the list of Planned
Outages is presented in tabular format, including a bar-chart to give an overview of the outage plan.

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Chapter 43

Economic Analysis Tools

43.1 Introduction

This chapter presents the PowerFactory Economic Analysis Tools, which are dedicated functions for
the economic assessment and profitability evaluation of network development plans.

The Economic Analysis Tools module is accessible through the Change Toolbox button on the Main
Toolbar and contains the following tools:

• Techno-Economical Calculation, described in Section 43.2.

• Techno-Economical Study Case Comparison, described in Section 43.3.
• Power Park Energy Analysis, described in Section 43.4.

43.2 Techno-Economical Calculation

This section describes the PowerFactory Techno-Economical Calculation function. An overview, a tech-
nical background, a detailed explanation of the calculation command options as well as an explanatory
example are provided.

A Techno-Economical Calculation can be used to evaluate and compare network expansion strategies
from an economic and financial point of view. It allows the user to calculate the net present value of a
particular network expansion strategy, which is defined through Network Variations and their respective
Expansion Stages over time, considering several factors, among others:

• The monetary value of the equipment necessary for the renovation, optimisation or expansion of
the investigated network, its depreciation over time, its residual value and its expected useful life,
• Costs arising from technical losses in the grid as well as those arising from service interruptions,
• User-defined costs and additional annual costs (independent of the network expansion).

43.2.1 Technical Background

43.2.1.1 General Information

When considering the development of an electrical network, several solutions are often presented that
meet the technical requirements of the problem. A techno-economical analysis adds an economic-

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 43.2. TECHNO-ECONOMICAL CALCULATION

financial dimension to the network design problem and allows thus to include an additional decision
criterion when considering different strategies for the optimisation and expansion of the electrical power
supply system. In addition, a techno-economical analysis can also help to find the optimal allocation of
resources to maximise profitability.

In PowerFactory, the economic-financial value of planned measures to optimise or extend the network
is assessed using the Net Present Value (NPV). Most techno-economical evaluation professionals use
the NPV as a standard metric for the financial evaluation of projects. The NPV is calculated as the
difference between the present value of cash inflows and the present value of cash outflows over a
period of time. This can be expressed in general as:

𝑁
∑︁ 𝑁 𝐶𝐹𝑡
𝑁𝑃𝑉 = (43.1)
𝑡=0
(1 + 𝐷𝑅)𝑡

where:

• t is the time period.

• N is the total number of periods.
• NCF is the net cash flow at period t.
• DC is the discount rate.

In general, an investment with a positive NPV is profitable, while an investment with a negative NPV
results in a net loss. This concept is the basis for the NPV rule, which states that only investments with
a positive NPV should be made. When comparing alternative strategies, the NPV is a useful indicator.

The total NPV is calculated in PowerFactory as: NPV of investment - depreciated value + NPV of
interruption costs + NPV of cost of losses + NPV of additional costs. The higher the various NPVs,
the higher the total NPV and therefore in PowerFactory the strategy with the lowest NPV is the most
attractive.

43.2.1.2 Economical Data of a Network Strategy

In a techno-economical analysis, the objective is usually to evaluate the economic-financial value of a

given network expansion strategy. A strategy can be defined as the set of measures taken to improve
the network, together with their execution time.

In PowerFactory, a strategy can be captured through Network Variations (IntScheme) and their corre-
sponding Expansion Stages (IntSstage). In the Expansion Stages, the changes in the network and the
expected execution time (Activation Time) are saved.

In addition to the network modifications and their schedule, the Expansion Stages allow the definition of
essential parameters for the techno-economical analysis of a strategy. These set of parameters can be
define in the Economical Data tab of the Expansion Stage. Each of them is described below:

• Costs for expansion

– Investment costs
Investment costs are costs incurred by an investor, for example for the acquisition of assets,
land, buildings, plant, machinery etc. needed to successfully complete a project.
– Additional costs
Additional costs are costs which are not explicitly captured or defined by PowerFactory TEC.
This can include for example maintenance and operational costs.
• Commercial equipment value
– Original Value
The original value is the cost paid to initially acquire an asset. This cost normally includes

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CHAPTER 43. ECONOMIC ANALYSIS TOOLS

the cost to buy an asset, transport the asset to where it is intended to be used, install it, and
test it.
– Scrap value
Indicates the value of the individual components of an asset when the asset itself is consid-
ered no longer usable, because it has reached its expected useful life. The scrap value of an
asset is also known as residual value, salvage value, or break-up value.
– Expected life span
Assets are manufactured based on a given standard and the manufacturer also provides
proper guidelines for wiring, servicing and operation. The expected life span is a statistical
value of the average time an asset is expected to carry out specified services as designed
by the manufacturer. For example, transformers are generally designed with an expected life
span of 30 years, although in many countries transformers have been in service for more
than 50 years.

Note: The Expected life span is only used in the Techno-Economical Calculation. This means that a
Variation (IntScheme) is not taken out of service once its expectancy life is reached.

43.2.2 Techno-Economical Calculation Command

The following subsections describe the options available on each page of the Techno-Economical
Calculation Command (ComTececo ).

43.2.2.1 Basic Options

Calculation Points

Here it is possible to define the period to be considered as well as the points in time at which future
cash flows will be calculated.

• Calculate
The options in this data framework allow to define how the points in time for which cash flows are
calculated are determined. The following options can be chosen:
– once per year
If selected, calculations are performed at the beginning of each of the years within the
calculation period, i.e. 01.01.“year” 00:00:00:00.
– for every expansion stage
If selected, calculations are executed at the Activation Time of each Expansion Stage con-
sidered in the analysis.
– for user-defined dates
If selected, calculations are executed at each user-defined date. To add calculation points to
the table, right-click on it, select Insert Row(s) and specify the required dates. To automati-
cally populate the table of calculation points with once per year dates and for every expansion
stage dates, press the Get All Calculation Points button. The dates can then be edited as
required.

Note: Irrespective of the option selected, calculations are also carried out at the beginning and at the
end of the Calculation Period. That means that a start calculation on 01.01.Start 00:00:00 and an
end calculation on 31.12.End 23:59:59. are always performed.

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• Calculation Period
The parameters to be entered here define, on the one hand, the point in time at which future cash
flows are discounted and, on the other hand, the time horizon for which the analysis is carried out
and thus the network expansions to be considered. The following parameters are entered:
– Start
Defines the beginning of the period considered for the analysis.
– End
Defines the end of the period considered for the analysis.

Note: Only Expansion Stages whose Activation Time lies within the period defined by Start and End
are considered in the calculation of cash flows.

Strategy

A network development strategy can be captured in PowerFactory through Network Variations and
their corresponding Expansion Stages. In this section of the command it is possible to access the
Variations defined in the Network Model and select their status so they can be considered in the Techno-
Economical Calculation.

The Show Activated Variations button opens a dialog box that lists all Variations and it is possible to
activate or deactivate them according to the requirements of the case.

Additional Settings

The options in this data framework are particularly relevant for the calculation of the discounted cash
flow.
• Calculatory Interest Rate
Specifies the discount rate used in the net present value calculations. In other words, it is the
interest rate used to obtain the discounted value of future cash flows.
• Tolerance for Calculation Points (in days)
Defines a tolerance for the activation of Expansion Stages. If, for example, a calculation is to
be performed once per year, and all Expansion Stages with activation times within January of
that year are to be considered as in-service for the entire year, a tolerance of “31 days” could be
specified here.
• Incorporate load growth
Allows to consider the growth in load within each calculation interval. In contrast to the case
where no load growth is incorporated and costs for a calculation period are calculated only at
the beginning of calculation time point, enabling this flag will lead to a second cost calculation
at the end of the current calculation time point. Corresponding costs are then calculated using
a linear estimation based on both values. Load growth is defined via parameter characteristics
(see Chapter 17: Parameter Characteristics, Load States, and Tariffs for details of how to define
parameter characteristics).

Note: It should be noted that the Incorporate load growth option is only available it the calculation points
are calculated for every expansion stage or for user-defined dates.

43.2.2.2 Costs

On this page of the command, the user can configure which costs are to be considered in the Techno-
Economical Calculation. The function supports the consideration of the following costs:

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• Losses
• Interruption costs
• User defined costs
• Annual additional costs

In addition, as long as at least one of the first three options mentioned above has been activated, it is
possible to enable a check box to include a Tie Open Point Optimisation during the Techno-Economical
Calculation. Each of these costs is described in more detail below.

Losses

The options relate to technical losses in the network. Following options for considering network losses
are available:

• Not Considered
If selected, costs due to technical losses of the network under investigation are disregarded.
• Evaluate by Load Flow Calculation
If selected, the losses of the investigated network are considered and evaluated by means of a
Load Flow Calculation (ComLdf ) that is carried out at each of the points in time according to the
configuration made in Calculation Points.
A detailed description of the calculation options is given in Section 24.3.
• Evaluate by Quasi-Dynamic Simulation
With this option, the technical losses can be taken into account and calculated based on a Quasi-
Dynamic Simulation (ComStatsim), whose Time period is defined by the Techno-Economical
Calculation Command (ComTececo).
For a detailed description of these calculation options, refer to Section 27.3.

Note: Since the Quasi-Dynamic Simulation allows to consider the time dependencies of the variables
that determine the load flow and thus the losses in the network (generation dispatch, load de-
mand, etc.), more accurate results are obtained for the magnitude of the technical losses of the
investigated system.

Cost for losses

Provided that grid losses are taken into account, it is possible to enter the following parameters for the
calculation of loss costs:
• Costs for Losses (Load)
Indicates the costs due to the load-dependent part of the technical losses.
• Costs for Losses (no Load)
Specifies the costs due to the part of the losses that is not load-dependent.
• Consider user-defined set of substations/feeders only
Through this check box, the user can choose whether the losses of the whole network are used or
only a specific part is considered to calculate the costs. It should be noted that only Substations
(ElmSubstat) and/or Feeders (ElmFeeder ) can be added to Selection.
When a feeder, a substation or a set of feeders and substations is selected, the cost of losses is based
on the elements belonging to the feeders and/or substations.

Interruption Costs

If the check box is enabled, the costs of service interruptions are considered in the Techno-Economical
Calculation. These costs are evaluated by means of a Reliability Assessment (ComRel3).

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For details on the Reliability Assessment calculation command options, refer to Chapter 45.

When executing a Techno-Economical Calculation and considering interruptions costs, the following
options must be specified in the Reliability Assessment command:

• Basic Options → Calculation→ Load Flow Analysis

• Tariffs for either “Cost for energy not supplied” or “Costs for loads” should be globally specified on
the tap Costs. Tariffs are described in Section 17.5 (Tariffs).

Note: Tariffs can also be provided on the reliability tap of the loads. If values configured in the
load should be used, then the option for “Costs for loads” should be set to “Individual cost
curve per load”. Further information is given in section 45.3.4 (Load Modelling)

User-defined Costs

If this checkbox is enabled, a DPL Script can be linked next to Cost Assessment Script to consider
fully user-defined costs. This functionality may be required for detailed analysis, where factors besides
losses and interruption costs are to be considered in the calculation.

For a general description of DPL Scripts, refer to Section 4.8.1.

For a detailed discussion about the DIgSILENT Programming Language, refer to Section 22.1.

Optimise Tie Open Points

If selected, a Tie Open Point Optimisation (ComTieopt) is executed during the Techno-Economical
Calculation to re-configure the open points in the selected Feeders (ElmFeeder ), in order to minimise
the costs, according to the selected Objective Function in the linked calculation command.

For a detailed description of the Tie Open Point Optimisation, refer to Section 41.6.

Additional annual costs

This parameter indicates those annual costs that are independent of the grid development strategy.

Note: In the cost assessment, the Additional annual costs are added to the Additional Costs of the
considered Expansion Stages.

43.2.2.3 Results/Output

On this command tab, the user can configure various options relating to the outputs of the calculation.

Results

The results of the Techno-Economical Calculation are stored in a Results (ElmRes) object and can be
exported with the Export button in the Results object dialog. The Result Export (ComRes) command
enables the definition of the format and the file type used to export the results.

For a general description of the object Results (ElmRes), refer to Section 18.7.

Output

Here, the extension of the outputs of the Techno-Economical Calculation command can be defined. The
following options are available:

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• Short
If selected, a limited output report of the calculation process is shown.
• Detailed (full output of invoked commands)
If selected, the report provides detailed information on the calculation process for each of the
functions used by the Techno-Economical Calculation and for each calculation point.

As well as the output in the output window, reports can be generated using the icon. See section
43.2.3 for details.

43.2.2.4 Parallel Computing

PowerFactory supports the parallel execution of the Techno-Economical Calculation. This is achieved
via the Parallel Computing page of the command dialog. A number of options are provided in this page
and described further below.

• Parallel computation
By ticking this checkbox, the user switches from the sequential execution to the parallel task
processing. If the checkbox is not asserted, the sequential execution of tasks is adopted.
• Minimum number of calculation points
This parameter defines the minimum number of calculation points necessary to start a parallel
calculation. This means, if the number of calculation points is less than the entered number, the
calculation is run sequentially.
• Parallel computation settings
Provides a link to the Parallel Computing page in the User Options edit dialog. The options on the
General tab and the Advanced tab are described in detail in Section 7.11. Further information on
the Parallel computation settings and the Parallel Computing Manager is available in Section 21.4.

• Additional objects to transfer

This option may be needed to transfer some external objects which are not stored in the project
or the global library itself, since not all external references are automatically resolved by the sub-
processes.

43.2.3 Handling of Results

After executing a Techno-Economical Calculation, reports can be generated using the Techno-Economical
Calculation Report icon , in the Economic Analysis Tools toolbox.

This brings up the Report Generation command (ComReport), where the available reports are listed
and can be selected. Reports can be generated as separate documents or combined into one. By
default, reports are generated as PDFs and presented in PowerFactory ’s inbuilt PDF viewer, but it is
also possible to export reports from PowerFactory in various different formats.

For more information about reports and the Report Generation command, see Chapter 18: Reporting
and Visualising Results, section 18.5. It should be noted that reports viewed internally in PowerFactory
are stored in the desktop of the study case, even after they have been closed, until they are actively
deleted by the user.

The following calculation-specific reports are available:

• Calculation Settings
This report shows the settings used for the Techno-Economical Calculation.
• Costs of calculation periods
If this option is selected, a report of the cash flows for each of the calculation points is created.

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This includes the discounted values of the considered variables such as Investment Costs, De-
preciation of assets, Costs for Losses, User-defined Costs, etc. In addition, a summary report
displaying the Net Present Value of the considered network expansion strategy is included.

• Variation Input Data

This report shows the configurations of the active Expansion Stages containing economic data.

Note: Irrespective of the calculation option selected, the results are reported annually. This provides
user-flexibility to optimise the performance of the Techno-Economical Calculation, whilst retaining
the ability to compare annual results with different calculation options.

43.2.4 Example Calculation

Consider the following Techno-Economical Calculation example, which also consolidates functionality
presented on the following topics:

• Project Variations: Discussed in Chapter 16 (Network Variations and Expansion Stages).

• Reliability: Discussed in Chapter 45 (Reliability Assessment).

• Parameter Characteristics and Tariffs: Discussed in Chapter 17 (Parameter Characteristics, Load
States, and Tariffs).

The current year is “2010”. There are four 12 MW loads connected to DoubleBusbar/A and Dou-
bleBusbar/B. In the current arrangement the line “Existing Line” from “Sub 1” is lightly loaded (see
Figure 43.2.1).

High load growth is expected from 2010 to 2016, with constant demand thereafter. To model the
changes in demand, a One Dimension - Vector Characteristic from 2010 to 2020 has been defined
for each load. By setting the Study Time to 2014, it has been determined that “Existing Line” will be
loaded at close to the thermal rating in this year (see Figure 43.2.2).

Based on this, it has been determined that a new substation is required in 2015 to off-load the existing
line. Figure 43.2.3 shows the case with the Study Time set to 2015, and the new substation “Sub 2” in
service. Half of the load from “Sub 1” has been transferred to “Sub 2”. Note that the new substation has
been implemented as a PowerFactory Variation, and hence is shown with yellow dashed lines in cases
where the Study Time is prior to 2015.

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Figure 43.2.1: Example case, study time “2010”

Figure 43.2.2: Example case, study time “2014”

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Figure 43.2.3: Example case, study time “2015”

However, the previous analysis has not considered the economic impact of interruption costs. In the
“2010”, when there is an outage of the line from “Sub 1” there are no alternative paths to re-establish
supply to either load. With the new line and DoubleBusbar/A and B in service, there is an alternative
path to re-establish supply to loads in the event of an outage on either “New Line” or “Existing Line”.
To understand the economic implications of commissioning the project prior to 2015, in particular the
sensitivity of the cost of losses and cost of interruptions to the project commissioning date, a Techno-
Economical Analysis is performed for a number of Activation Times.

To perform the analysis, the Variation activation time T(act.) is varied from 2010 to 2015, and the Net
Present Value (NPV) of the Strategy is calculated over the period 2010 to 2020. In the example, outage
data has been entered for the lines “New Line” and “Existing Line”, and a Global Energy Tariff has
been defined for loads from the Reliability command Costs page. Due to the trade-off between Energy
Interruption Costs (increasing in this example due to load growth) and cost-benefits associated with
delaying the project (based on the specified interest rate), the optimum year for project commissioning is
determined to be 2011, and not 2015. The NPV is around 11 % lower in 2011 than in 2015. Table 43.2.1
below summarises the results of the Techno-Economical Calculations.

Table 43.2.1: Summary of Calculation Results

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43.3 Techno-Economical Study Case Comparison

Whether maintenance, replacements, improvements or expansions of power systems, the Techno-

Economical Calculation (TEC) tool enables utilities to analyse the impacts of network expansion on
the cost they necessitate over the years. The Techno-Economical Study Case Comparison (TECC)
enables the comparison of different planning strategies using Net Present values and other economical
quantities to be examined in this section.

The calculation of the quantities given in section 43.3.1 has been implemented as an internal command
(*.ComTececocmp), which is at the moment not available on the tool bar. This command enables the
cost evaluation and comparison of different strategies based on the NPV and the economical quantities
described in section 43.3.1. The TECC Command has several options, which are configured and driven
by the script “EvaluateTececoCalcForStudyCases” located in the DIgSILENT library.

43.3.1 Additional Techno-Economical Calculation Quantities

PowerFactory ’s Techno-Economical Calculation (TEC) can be used to analyse investment costs, cost of
losses, interruption costs, additional and user defined costs as well as cost benefits of expansion stages
using the Efficiency Ratio. The Efficiency ratio expresses the benefits of grid extension with respect to
the investment costs - for each expansion stage defining the grid extension process. In addition to the
Net Present Value the following techno-economical quantities are also supported:
• Internal rate of return (IRR)
• Estimated payback period
• Discounted estimated payback period (DPP)
To calculate these quantities an evaluation of costs (such as costs for losses or expected interruption
costs) with and without application of the investment/grid-expansion strategy have to be computed. The
strategy without applying the grid expansions is referred to as the “Base Case strategy”. At times this is
also referred to as the “Do Nothing” strategy. A strategy defines a plan of action to attain an objective or
set of objectives such as network expansion, comprising a number of steps. The strategy is modelled
in PowerFactory using a “Study Case”.

The following terminology will be used:

• T: Total number of time points for evaluating the costs (typically on a yearly basis).
• t: Current time period index.
• 𝐶𝑜𝑠𝑡𝐼𝑛𝑣𝑒𝑠𝑡
𝑡 : The investment costs for period t.

• 𝐶𝑜𝑠𝑡𝐵𝑒𝑛𝑒𝑓
𝑡
𝑖𝑡
: The benefits in costs for period t. This includes, e.g., the expected interruption costs,
costs for losses of the individual periods, as well as the depreciated value of the equipment.
• IRR: Resulting internal rate of return.
• IR: Calculatory interest rate.
• K: Pay Back Period.
Internal rate of return:
The internal rate of return (IRR) can be computed using the following equation:
𝑇 −1 𝑇 −1
∑︁ 𝐶𝑜𝑠𝑡𝐵𝑒𝑛𝑒𝑓
𝑡
𝑖𝑡 ∑︁ 𝐶𝑜𝑠𝑡𝐼𝑛𝑣𝑒𝑠𝑡
𝑡
𝑡
− 𝑡
=0 (43.2)
𝑡=0
(1 + 𝐼𝑅𝑅) 𝑡=0
(1 + 𝐼𝑅𝑅)

The above equation has to be solved to get the IRR. An internal rate of return of an investment is a
calculation interest rate, which results in a net present value of zero. In other words, an internal rate

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of return is the discount factor, the use which leads to discounted future payments corresponding to
today’s price or the initial investment. When this interest rate is greater than the calculation interest rate
then the investment is economical over the total investment period. Generally speaking, the higher an
internal rate of return, the more desirable an investment is to undertake.

Estimated payback period:

The estimated payback period is the minimum amount of time it takes until the investment costs, for
example of the grid expansion, are amortised by the benefits. It is calculated as minimum for values of
K > 0:
−1
(︃𝐾−1 𝑇
)︃
∑︁ 𝐵𝑒𝑛𝑒𝑓 𝑖𝑡
∑︁
𝑚𝑖𝑛 𝐼𝑛𝑣𝑒𝑠𝑡
𝐾>0 𝐶𝑜𝑠𝑡𝑡 − 𝐶𝑜𝑠𝑡𝑡 >= 0 (43.3)
𝑡=0 𝑡=0

In the formula, K is the first year (between 0 <= K <= T), so that the entire term >= 0. In other words,
the first year in which the benefits dominate the total costs from year 0 to K. The term payback period
refers to the amount of time it takes to recover the cost of an investment. Therefore, the estimated
payback period can help to decide whether an investment project will be carried out or not. In essence,
the shorter payback period an investment has, the more attractive it becomes.

Discounted estimated payback period:

The discounted estimated payback period is similar to the above estimated payback period, but all costs
are discounted using the calculatory interest rate. It is calculated as minimum for values of K > 0:
(︃𝑇 −1 −1
)︃
∑︁ 𝐶𝑜𝑠𝑡𝐵𝑒𝑛𝑒𝑓 𝑖𝑡 𝑇∑︁ 𝐶𝑜𝑠𝑡 𝐼𝑛𝑣𝑒𝑠𝑡
𝑚𝑖𝑛 𝑡 𝑡
𝐾>0 − >= 0 (43.4)
𝑡=0
(1 + 𝐼𝑅𝑅)𝑡 𝑡=0
(1 + 𝐼𝑅𝑅)𝑡

The discounted payback period is a method of investment calculation that can be used to determine
the profitability of a project. The discounted payback period indicates the number of years required to
recover the initial expenditure by discounting future cash flows and taking into account the time value of
money.

43.3.2 Techno-Economical Study Case Comparison Command

The TECC Command is configured and driven by the script “EvaluateTececoCalcForStudyCases” lo-
cated in the DIgSILENT library. This script should be used for comparison because it also provides a
report with the economic quantities described in section 43.3.1 for the various strategies.

43.3.2.1 Basic Options

Base case: The “Base case” study case is the study case to which literature as a “Do Nothing” strategy
where no network enhancements, which will result in investments are done.

Study Cases: A list of study cases (strategies) where different network enhancements or different
sources of costs or influence of parameters are being investigated. Study cases can be added or
removed from the list of study cases. They can also be ignored during the assessment.

The Button Add enables adding a new study case to the list of study cases and button Remove All
clears the list of study cases.

Tasks: A series of tasks to be executed can be configured.

• Run Techno-Economical Calculations; After running Techno-Economical Calculations results are
stored in the result file. So it is not necessary to re-run the calculation if the results of previous
calculations are to be analysed. If this option is selected, the Techno-Economical Calculation will
be carried out for all study cases. If not selected, existing results will be analysed.

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• Create summary result file; For each calculation TEC delivers results for the various NPVs along
the time line. However, to compare different strategies it important to use the sum of all these
values. With this option selected, values are written to a result file and can be assessed like other
parameters.
• Create time sweep result files in study cases; Usually, the Techno-Economical Calculation does
not store results for the various calculation time points for each strategy. Since it is at times
interesting to know that the NPV changes over the year, the time sweep results can be written into
a result file.

• Create plots for summary results; The summary result file contains the sum of the various TEC
quantities for each strategy. With this option these results can be plotted as bar diagrams
• Create plots for timesweep results; TEC quantities are calculated at each time point. This option
enables the display of changes of TEC quantities with time.

43.3.2.2 Plots

Results reporting and visualisation The creation of a report and the visualisation of results in plots
are core elements of this new tool. In the Techno-Economical Study Case Comparison command,
the user can select the plots to be created. For the Basic analysis, the following plot categories are
available:

• Net present value of total costs

• Net present value of total investments
• Net present value of cost for losses

• Net present value of expected interruption costs

• Net present value of user-defined costs

43.3.3 Techno-Economical Study Case Comparison Example

Techno-economical studies can not only be carried out to compare different strategies but can also be
geared for example at studying the impact of a parameter, e.g. interest rates on the NPV and other
quantities. For comparison studies based on TEC, it is always useful to create three groups of study
cases:
• Base case study case for comparison. This is known in most cases as the “Do Nothing” case.
• A set of study cases reflecting different investments and network enhancements.
• A third study case, an evaluation case, is the case where the Techno-Economical Comparison
study is configured and the results are represented. It could be one of the study cases above, but
it is recommended to have a separate study case for this purpose.
Unlike many functions in PowerFactory, which generally involve carrying out studies for a given study
case, the techno-economical comparison has to be carried out over a series of study cases as given
above. Therefore the “EvaluateTececoCalcForStudyCases” located in the DIgSILENT library is used to
automate this process. It configures and executes the TECC Command and generates a report for the
various TEC quantities.

Figure 43.3.1 and Figure 43.3.2 visualise an extract of the result plots that are created based on the
techno-economic analysis of an example network using the comparison command. Two strategies
having the same network expansions with the same investments, differing only by the fact that in one
case the Tie Open Point Optimisation is not considered, are studied. The interruption costs, the cost
of losses and user defined costs are considered in these two strategies and compared with the Base

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Case (“Do Nothing”). For the x-axis 0 → Base Case, 1 → Strategy with tie open point optimisation and
2 → Strategy with no tie open point optimisation

Figure 43.3.1: Example case, summary results

Figure 43.3.2: Example case, time sweep

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It is possible to create plots for all the supported and derived quantities. As well as these plots, a flexible
and adaptable tabular report is created.

Figure 43.3.3 shows an extract of an example results report based on the TEC comparison of two
strategies with a base case. This report is expandable and therefore the types and number of the
shown parameters can be configured by removing or adding more variables.

Figure 43.3.3: Example case, Report

This user-adaptable report compares the Base Case of the techno-economical quantities with the
benefits of grid expansion.

43.4 Power Park Energy Analysis

The Power Park Energy Analysis function provides an evaluation of profitability of power plants based
on load flow calculations.

Network calculations are essential when it comes to determining the network losses of a power park,
based on the possibly volatile infeed of the generating units, and the topology as well as the mode
of operation of the power plant internal network. The Power Park Energy Analysis tool combines the
powerful network calculation functions of PowerFactory with an economical evaluation. With this tool,
the user can conveniently determine important quantities such as energies, profit and loss for a power
plant, derived from network calculation results.

In the Power Park Energy Analysis tool, the following functions are available:

• Power Park Energy Analysis (see Section 43.4.1)

• Power Park Energy Analysis Report (see Section 43.4.2)

• Edit Result Variables (see Section 43.4.3.1)

• Create Curve Plot (see Section 43.4.3.2)

43.4.1 Power Park Energy Analysis Configuration

The Power Park Energy Analysis can be accessed by clicking on the Power Park Energy Analysis
button ( ) in the Economic Analysis Tools toolbox. In the following subsections, the settings for the
configuration of the Power Park Energy Analysis are described.

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43.4.1.1 Basic Options - General

There are three calculation methods available for the Power Park Energy Analysis:
• Basic Analysis
• Time-series Analysis
• Probabilistic Analysis

After choosing the desired calculation method for the Power Park Energy Analysis, the corresponding
command of the selected method is accessible via the button underneath the selection area of the
calculation methods.

With regard to the Basic Analysis method, the Load Flow Calculation command (see Section 24.3) is
linked in the Power Park Energy Analysis command. For the Time-series Analysis, the Quasi-Dynamic
Simulation command (see Section 27.3) is accessible. Likewise for the Probabilistic Analysis, the
calculation command (see Section 44.3.4) of the same name is linked. Further settings can be made
in these respective calculation commands, which are taken into account accordingly in the Power Park
Energy Analysis.

Basic Analysis

The Basic Analysis is particularly designed for power plants consisting of wind generators and is carried
out by using load flow calculations.

In order for the Basic Analysis to be executed, the user needs to define the corresponding generating
units in the power plant as wind turbines. This can be achieved by selecting the plant category “Wind” in
the basic options of the generating unit element. In addition, the load flow model of the wind generator
then needs to be configured with the “Wind speed input” and an associated “Wind Power Curve”.

Generator elements that can be configured accordingly are static generators, asynchronous generators
and synchronous generators.

At least one generating unit in the power park has to be modelled with wind speed input.

For the wind speed distribution of the entire power park a single Weibull distribution is used. This
implies that the wind speed distribution is identical for all wind turbines. The required data for the
Weibull distribution can be entered on the “Wind speed” tab (see Section 43.4.1.2).

Using the Basic Analysis method, the wind speed is swept from 0 m/s up to a value which is defined
via the “Confidence level” on the “Wind speed” tab (see Section 43.4.1.2). For each wind speed step,
the active power output of the corresponding wind turbines is determined using their individual wind
power curves. Based on load flow calculations, the electrical losses in the power plant internal network
as well as relevant energy key figures are determined for each wind speed step. The corresponding
probabilities for the respective wind speeds from the specified Weibull distribution are used to determine
further quantities such as average powers and average electrical losses.

For the Basic Analysis, the use of the balanced as well as unbalanced AC load flow calculation is
supported.

Time-series Analysis

The Time-series Analysis provides the option to perform the energy yield analysis of power parks
combined with an economical evaluation over a user-defined period of time.

This calculation method of the Power Park Energy Analysis is based on the Quasi-Dynamic Simulation
(27). It uses a series of load-flow calculations with various network model parameters considered time
dependent. Time based parameter characteristics can be provided in order to define time dependencies
for many input parameters of numerous elements. For example, to consider a variable active power

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injection of a generating unit over time, a time characteristic with regard to the active power input of the
unit can be used (refer to Chapter 17 for more information about characteristics).

In addition, within the Time-series Analysis user defined load flow and Quasi-Dynamic Models (QDSL
Models) of various power system equipment can be considered. For example, for a battery energy
system a Quasi-Dynamic Model can be created in order to represent the time dependent behaviour of
the battery system including its state of charge. For information about how to develop a Quasi-Dynamic
Model, refer to Section 27.5.

Following the link in the Power Park Energy Analysis to the Quasi-Dynamic simulation command ( ),
there are further options available for setting up the calculation using the Time-series Analysis. These
include the determination of the user defined time period for the analysis as well as the step size and
other calculation settings. Moreover, maintenance outages and simulation events can be created via
the ’Maintenance & Events’ tab in the Quasi-Dynamic simulation command. To consider maintenance
outages and simulation events refer to Sections 27.3.2 and 27.3.3.

Probabilistic Analysis

The Probabilistic Analysis method enables the user to carry out the energy analysis taking probability
distributions of various quantities into account. For this reason, the Probabilistic Analysis calculation
method of the Power Park Energy Analysis uses the Probabilistic Analysis module functionality (44).

For many input parameters, probability distributions can be provided to be considered in the Probabilistic
Analysis calculation method. For example with respect to a wind turbine configured with the load
flow model “Wind Speed Input”, a Weibull distribution can be provided for statistical modelling of wind
speeds. Further information about the assignment of distributions and available types can be found in
Section 44.2.1.

For cases where random quantities in the power system are not independent from each other, correla-
tions can be defined using copula elements. A copula element can, for example, be used in a wind farm,
where the wind turbines are located relatively close to each other. In such case, it could be assumed
that the wind speeds at the individual turbines do not differ fundamentally but are correlated to each
other. For a description of how to define a copula, see Section 44.3.2.

When selecting the Probabilistic Analysis calculation method in the Power Park Energy Analysis com-
mand, the calculation command of the Probabilistic Analysis module can be accessed via the button.
Here, further settings are available to the user. This includes the choice of either Monte Carlo or Quasi-
Monte Carlo method, the maximum number of samples, and the seeding type of the random number
generation.

Temperature Dependency: Line/Cable Resistances

For each calculation method of the Power Park Energy Analysis, the temperature dependency of
line/cable resistances can be configured using the dedicated drop-down menu. This allows the influence
of the cable and line temperature on the network losses to be investigated closely. The following
temperature options are available:

• 20 ∘ C
• Maximum operating temperature
• Operating temperature
• Temperature (specific temperature value)

Further information regarding the consideration of temperature dependency of lines and cables can be
accessed in chapter 24.4.4.

Power park

The power park can be specified by using one boundary element ( ). To select a boundary, click on
the button next to the words “Power park” and then Select. . . . This will open a list with the existing

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boundaries in the active project from which the user can select a boundary element.

In general, with boundary objects topological regions can be defined. This is used in the Power Park
Energy Analysis to distinguish between the power plant and the rest of the network. For a general
description of how a boundary can be defined, see Section 14.4.

Since boundaries are defined by the cubicles that determine the cut through the network, these cubicles
together with the orientation define the corresponding “Interior Region” which is in this case the power
park. For the proper definition of the power park, it is especially important to configure the orientation
of the boundary so that it points to the power plant. The busbar(s) at which the boundary is defined
represent the point of connection of the corresponding power park. All elements that are inside of the
interior region of the boundary are seen as part of the power plant and are considered in the evaluation
of the Power Park Energy Analysis.

Agreed active connection power

The “Agreed active connection power” represents the rated value of the active power of the power park.
It is used as a reference value for the calculation of the full load hours of the power plant.

43.4.1.2 Basic Options - Wind speed

The input data on the Wind speed tab is exclusively available for the Basic Analysis method.

Weibull curve data

For the Basic Analysis method, the user can define one Weibull distribution as a probability density
function for the wind speeds in the power park. The associated data for the Weibull curve that can be
provided are the scale factor and the shape factor. The input of the scale factor can also be changed to
the average wind speed via the adjacent button .

Confidence level

The confidence level is used to define the range between 0 m/s and maximum wind speed in which
the true wind speed is present with the specified probability of the confidence level. For example, a
confidence level of 0.99 can be interpreted such that there is a 99 % probability that the true wind speed
is less than or equal to the wind speed value calculated with the cumulative Weibull distribution function
using the confidence level of 0.99. Up to this certain wind speed value, the wind speed sweep is carried
out within the Basic Analysis method

Wind speed step size

The wind speed step size indicates the intervals at which the wind speed is swept over the given Weibull
distribution curve, up to the maximum wind speed value determined by using the confidence level. For
each step of the wind speed, a load flow calculation is executed.

43.4.1.3 Tariffs

Feed-in tariff

Based on the feed-in tariff and the amount of energy fed into the network to which the power park under
consideration is connected, the feed-in remuneration is calculated.

Consumer tariff

The consumer tariff can be provided for the determination of the costs of the consumed energy of the
power plant.

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43.4.1.4 Advanced Options

For the study year, there are three different options available for the Basic Analysis and the Probabilistic
Analysis calculation methods:

• Common year (total hours: 8760 h)

• Leap year (total hours: 8784 h)

• Mean year (total hours: 8765,82 h)

The study period for the Time-series Analysis can be configured via the associated command of the
Quasi-Dynamic Simulation.

43.4.1.5 Output/Results

Results

The results of the Power Park Energy Analysis are written in a result object, which can be selected next
to the “Results” label. By default, when the command of the Power Park Energy Analysis is opened
and no associated result object has been created yet, a new result object for the selected calculation
method of the Power Park Energy Analysis will be created automatically. This simplifies the handling of
the function.

The result objects used for the Power Park Energy Analysis contain sub-result objects, where the
calculated data is stored. In one sub-result object the results for the Power Park Energy Analysis
report is written. The other sub-result objects contain data series that, for example, can be visualised
using diagrams.

Output

For displaying messages of the Power Park Energy Analysis in the output window, the user can choose
between the following output options:

• Off
• Short output

• Detailed output (full load flow output)

43.4.2 Power Park Energy Analysis Report

43.4.2.1 Main reports

After the Power Park Energy Analysis has been carried out, the dedicated Power Park Energy Analysis
report command can be executed using the icon.

This will bring up the Report Generation (ComReport) command, where reports can be selected from
the list of available reports, with the generally used reports selected by default. Reports can be
generated as separate documents or combined into one. By default, reports are generated as PDFs
and presented in PowerFactory ’s inbuilt PDF viewer, but it is also possible to export reports from
PowerFactory in various different formats.

On the Basic Options page of the command, the result object from which the results of the Power Park
Energy Analysis are to be displayed in the report can be selected by clicking on the button and
then Select. . . . By default, the result object of the last execution of the Power Park Energy Analysis will
automatically be selected.

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For more information about reports and the Report Generation command, see Chapter 18: Reporting
and Visualising Results, section 18.5. It should be noted that reports viewed internally in PowerFactory
are stored in the desktop of the study case, even after they have been closed, until they are actively
deleted by the user.

43.4.2.2 Quasi-Dynamic Simulation report

If the Time-series Analysis method of the Power Park Energy Analysis is selected, it is also possible to
generate the Quasi-Dynamic Simulation report after the calculation has been run. This is done using
the icon.

43.4.3 Visualisation of Power Park Energy Analysis Results

43.4.3.1 Edit Result Variables

Before executing the Power Park Energy Analysis, the user can click on the button “Edit Result Vari-
ables” in the Economic Analysis Tools toolbox. This opens a dialog where the desired method for
the variable selection can be chosen. After confirming with OK another window opens for the result
variable selection. Click on the New Object button ( ) to create a new Variable Selection object and
choose the result variables for previously selected method of the Power Park Energy Analysis or edit
the Variable Selection objects, if they already exist. The selected result variables are recorded when
the command of Power Park Energy Analysis is executed and are then available for visualisation in
diagrams.

The Variable Selection object is described in Section 18.3: Variable Selection.

43.4.3.2 Create Curve Plot

For the visualisation of the results from the Power Park Energy Analysis, the user has access to various
diagram types. By clicking on the button in the Economic Analysis Tools toolbox, the dialog for
inserting a plot is opened. Pre-configured plots are available in the Power Park Energy Analysis
category. For results from the Time-series Analysis and the Probabilistic Analysis calculation methods,
plots from the “Quasi-Dynamic Simulation” and “Probabilistic Analysis” categories respectively can also
be selected. In this case, when selecting the variables for the plot curves in the “Data Series” window,
make sure to select in the Result File column a sub-result object from the result object of the Power Park
Energy Analysis (i.e. a sub-result object containing the recorded data series, which is stored inside the
result object of the Power Park Energy Analysis).

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Probabilistic Analysis

44.1 Introduction

The probabilistic analysis tool allows network assessment based on probabilistic input data rather than
assessment of individual operation scenarios or time sweep analysis. It becomes important as soon as
input parameters are known to be random or if one wants to simulate the grid at some time in the future
with forecast errors.

With this functionality PowerFactory takes account of recent trends in power system studies, where
stochastic assessment is seen as an alternative to pure worst-case assessment of grid capabilities.

Generally speaking, a probabilistic assessment processes probabilistic data input and produces stochas-
tic results, i.e. each result quantity will no longer be a fixed number but a distribution from which statistic
quantities (e.g. mean values, standard deviations, min, max, etc.) can be derived.

The new PowerFactory approach for probabilistic data input is very generic, which means that distribu-
tion curves can be assigned to any arbitrary input parameter. In this sense, the concept of distributions
is very similar to that of characteristics.

Also, our approach is generic in terms of the calculation functions to be supported. Probabilistic Analysis
is offered for:

• Load Flow Analysis;

• Optimal Power Flow.

The Probabilistic Analysis of Load Flow could be used, for example, in order to determine the distribu-
tions of the loadings of lines, given some forecast errors of a predefined weather situation. The Optimal
Power Flow may be interpreted as a dispatch strategy under some given objective. In this respect, the
Probabilistic Analysis of OPF allows the distribution of controls to be calculated.

The fundamental functions of this module, i.e.

• Processing of input data;
• Executing a simulation;

• Defining result variables for the analysis;

• Detailed investigation of results including visualising via stochastic plots;
are grouped in PowerFactory in the main toolbar “Probabilistic Analysis”.

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44.2 Technical Background

44.2.1 Distributions

For the probabilistic analysis distributions are necessary, because they provide the probabilities of
occurrence of different quantities. In PowerFactory several types of distributions on parameters are
available, which are described in more detail in the following sections:

• Predefined distributions, such as Normal, Weibull, Lognormal, etc.

• Distributions based on available characteristics.

• Distributions based on wind power curve and Weibull distribution.

Information about the dialogs of these objects can be found in Section 44.3.1, whereas the technical
background is described here.

44.2.1.1 Representation of Distributions

For most of the available distributions two different types of representation can be selected:

• Probability density function:

This function specifies the infinitesimal probability at any point x. The area between the probability
density function 𝑓 (𝑡) and the x-axis from a point 𝑎 to a point 𝑏 corresponds to the probability of
having a value between 𝑎 and 𝑏:
∫︁ 𝑏
𝐹 (𝑎 ≤ 𝑋 ≤ 𝑏) = 𝑓 (𝑡)𝑑𝑡 (44.1)
𝑎

• Cumulative distribution function: this representation can be obtained by integrating the proba-
bility density function. From this distribution the probability that the random variable is less than a
given value x can be extracted.

44.2.1.2 Predefined Distributions

Bernoulli distribution:
This distribution (RndBernoulli) is a probability distribution of a random variable with two possible
outcomes: 1 and 0. Value 1 occurs with a probability of 𝑝 (Probability of Success) and value 0 with
a probability of 𝑞 = 1 − 𝑝. The probability mass function 𝑓 of the Bernoulli distribution can be expressed
as:

𝑓 (𝑘; 𝑝) = 𝑝𝑘 (1 − 𝑝)1−𝑘 𝑓 𝑜𝑟 𝑘 ∈ {0,1} (44.2)

Mean and standard deviation of this function are calculated by:

√︀
𝜇 = 𝑝, 𝜎 = 𝑝(1 − 𝑝) (44.3)

Discrete finite distribution:

In this distribution (RndFinite) probabilities for discrete values can be defined. The probability 𝑝𝑘 of a
discrete value results from the specified weightings (𝑤):
𝑤𝑘
𝑝𝑘 = ∑︀𝑁 (44.4)
𝑖=1 𝑤𝑖

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Exponential distribution:
A continuous random variable 𝑋 satisfies the exponential distribution (RndExp) with the parameter 𝜆
(𝜆 > 0) (Rate), if it has the probability density function:

{︃
0 for 𝑡 < 0,
𝑓 (𝑡) = (44.5)
𝜆𝑒−𝜆𝑡 for 𝑡 ≥ 0

Mean and standard deviation of this function are calculated by:

1 1
𝜇= , 𝜎= (44.6)
𝜆 𝜆

This distribution is often used to answer questions related to durations of random time intervals, like the
lifetime of components, if signs of ageing are not being considered.

Geometric distribution:
This distribution (RndGeo) is derived from independent Bernoulli experiments. In PowerFactory the
probability distribution of the number 𝑌 of failures before the first success is used. The probability mass
function can be expressed as:

𝑓 (𝑘; 𝑝) = (1 − 𝑝)𝑘 𝑝 for 𝑘 ∈ {0,1,2,3,...} (44.7)

Mean and standard deviation of this function are calculated by:

√︂
1−𝑝 1−𝑝
𝜇= , 𝜎= (44.8)
𝑝 𝑝2

Log-normal distribution:
This distribution (RndLognormal) might be used for modelling household loads probabilistically. The
probability density function of this distribution with the parameters 𝜇𝐿 (Mean of logarithm) and 𝜎𝐿
(Standard deviation of log.) can be expressed as:
{︃
0 for 𝑡 ≤ 0,
𝑓 (𝑡) = log 𝑒 (log 𝑡−𝜇𝐿 )2 (44.9)
𝑡𝜎
√
2𝜋
exp − 2𝜎2 for 𝑡 > 0
𝐿 𝐿

Mean and standard deviation of this function are calculated by:

𝜎2
√︁
𝜇 = exp(𝜇𝐿 + 𝐿 ), 𝜎 = (exp 𝜎𝐿 2 − 1) exp (2𝜇 + 𝜎 2 )
𝐿 𝐿 (44.10)
2

Normal distribution:
This distribution (RndNormal) can be applied in order to represent real-valued random variables (like
quantities with measurement errors), for which the distribution is not known. The probability density
function of this distribution with the parameters 𝜇 (Mean) and 𝜎 (Standard deviation) can be expressed
as:

1 (𝑡−𝜇)2
𝑓 (𝑡) = √ 𝑒− 2𝜎2 (44.11)
𝜎 2𝜋

If 𝜇 = 0 and 𝜎 = 1 the standard normal distribution with the probability density function is obtained:
1 1 2
𝑓 (𝑡) = √ 𝑒− 2 𝑡 (44.12)
2𝜋

Uniform distribution
This distribution (RndUnif ), which is also called rectangular distribution, has a constant probability

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density in the interval [𝑎,𝑏]. In other words: all subintervals with the same length have the same
probability. The probability density function can be written as:
{︃
1
for 𝑎 ≤ 𝑡 ≤ 𝑏,
𝑓 (𝑡) = 𝑏−𝑎 (44.13)
0 for 𝑡 < 𝑎 or 𝑥 > 𝑏

The interval boundaries 𝑎 and 𝑏 can be calculated from the input parameters Mean (𝜇) and Magnitude
in PowerFactory by:
𝑎 = Mean − Magnitude 𝑏 = Mean + Magnitude (44.14)

The standard deviation can then be calculated by:

√︂ √︂
1 1
𝜎= (𝑏 − 𝑎)2 = (2 · Magnitude)2 (44.15)
12 12

Weibull distribution:
This distribution RndWeibull is often used to represent wind speed distributions. Its probability density
function with the parameters 𝛼 (Shape) and 𝛽 (Scale) is:
{︃
0 for 𝑡 < 0,
𝑓 (𝑡) = 𝛼 𝑡 𝛼−1 𝑡 𝛼 (44.16)
𝛽 (𝛽) exp [−( 𝛽 ) ] for 𝑡 ≥ 0

Mean and standard deviation of this distribution are calculated by:

√︃ [︂ (︂ )︂ (︂ )︂]︂
1 2 1
𝜇 = 𝛽 Γ(1 + ), 𝜎 = 𝛽2 Γ 1 + − Γ2 1 + , (44.17)
𝛼 𝛼 𝛼

in which Γ(𝑥) is the Gamma function:

∫︁∞
Γ(𝑥) = 𝑡𝑥−1 𝑒−𝑡 𝑑𝑡 for 𝑥 > 0. (44.18)
0

Parameter values of this distribution, in order to represent a wind speed distribution in a coastal area,
might be 𝛼 = 2 and 𝛽 = 9. For those values, the mean is 𝜇 = 7.976 𝑚/𝑠 and the standard deviation is
𝜎 = 4.169 𝑚/𝑠.

44.2.1.3 Transformed Distribution

This distribution (RndTransformed) can be used to transform any distribution using a Wind Power Curve
(TypPowercurve, see Section 47.3.2).

Figure 44.2.1 shows the process of transforming a distribution. In this example a Weibull distribution
(see upper left of the figure) is transformed with a wind power curve (upper right of the figure). The
result in form of a cumulative distribution function is shown in the lower plot of the figure. Since wind
speeds higher than 15 m/s lead to constant maximum power production of the wind turbine, a step can
be seen at 2.5 MW (rated power) of the cumulated distribution curve.

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Figure 44.2.1: Process of transforming a distribution

44.2.1.4 Distribution Based on Characteristics

The Distribution Based on Characteristics object (RndCha) estimates from an assigned characteristic a
distribution. Two estimation methods are available, which are described in Section 44.2.5.

44.2.2 Modelling Dependencies

In many cases, random quantities in power systems are not independent, but have some underlying
dependencies.
• Wind turbines which are not too far from each other.
• PV generation units which are located close together.
• Consumption of different households.
Correlations describe the linear dependency structure. Given some correlations, the space of possible
couplings of marginals leading to these correlations is still infinite. A further notion is required in order
to be able to determine dependency structures fully:
A 𝑑-dimensional copula is the joint cumulative distribution function of some random vector on the unit
cube [0,1]𝑑 with uniformly distributed marginals. In particular, a copula fully describes the distribution of
a random vector on the unit cube with uniformly distributed marginals.
More generally, let 𝑋 = (𝑋1 , ...𝑋𝑛 ) be a random vector. Let 𝐹1 , ..., 𝐹𝑛 be the corresponding distribution
functions of the marginals. Then the random variables 𝐹1 (𝑋1 ), ...𝐹𝑛 (𝑋𝑛 ) are uniformly distributed on
[0,1] and the joint cumulative distribution function of 𝐹1 (𝑋1 ), ...𝐹𝑛 (𝑋𝑛 ) is called the copula of (𝑋1 , ...𝑋𝑛 ).

An elliptic copula, which is used in PowerFactory, is the dependency structure of elliptic multidimen-
sional distributions.

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In order to draw random values from a random vector 𝑋 = (𝑋1 , . . . 𝑋𝑛 ) of given marginals and a
dependency structure defined by an copula coming from an elliptic multidimensional distribution 𝑌 =
(𝑌1 , . . . , 𝑌𝑑 ), the following procedure is chosen:

• Generate random sample of the elliptic multidimensional distribution 𝑌 = (𝑌1 , . . . , 𝑌𝑑 ).

• Transform the vector 𝑌 to coupled uniform distributions on [0,1]𝑑 : 𝑈𝑖 = 𝐹𝑌𝑖 (𝑌𝑖 ).
−1
• Transform the vector 𝑈 of uniforms back to the desired distribution: 𝑋𝑖 = 𝐹𝑋𝑖
(𝑈𝑖 ).
Therefore, the following copulas are provided in PowerFactory.

• The Gaussian Copula is the elliptic copula corresponding to multidimensional normal distribu-
tions.
• The t-Copula is the elliptic copula corresponding to multidimensional t-distribution.

The difference between these two Copulas is mainly defined by the tail dependence:

Let 𝑋1 , 𝑋2 be two random variables defined on a common probability space. Let 𝐹1 , 𝐹2 be the
distribution functions respectively. Set

𝜆𝑢 = lim 𝑃 [𝑋1 ≥ 𝐹1−1 (𝑞)|𝑋2 ≥ 𝐹2−1 (𝑞)],

𝑞→1

provided that the limit 𝜆𝑢 ∈ [0,1] exists. 𝜆𝑢 is called the coefficient of upper tail dependence of 𝑋1 and
𝑋2 . If 𝜆𝑢 = 0, 𝑋1 and 𝑋2 are called asymptotically independent in the upper tail. Otherwise, they are
called asymptotically dependent in the upper tail.

Where random variables are coupled according to the Gaussian Copula, the upper and lower tails are
asymptotically independent.
Conversely, the components of a distribution coupled according to t-Copula are asymptotically depen-
dent in the tails, where
• with increasing “Degree of Freedom” the tails become more and more independent and
• with increasing correlation factors, tails become more dependent.

44.2.2.1 Correction of non-positive definite correlation matrices

Usually, when estimating correlations from given data, it is not guaranteed that the resulting matrix is
nonnegative definite. Since it is an pre-requirement for applying elliptic copula, a correction-algorithm
is provided, which calculates the nearest (euclidean distance) positive definite matrix to some given
matrix.
As matrices with eigenvalues 0 introduce numerical instabilities, the user may give some lower bound
for the eigenvalues of the resulting matrix. In this case, the algorithm calculates the nearest (euclidean
distance) positive matrix satisfying the lower bound of the eigenvalues. The implemented algorithm
is iterative and stops on reaching some allowed error threshold or after a given maximum number of
iterations. As the user may want to keep some entries of the correlation fixed, the algorithm supports
keeping specified entries fixed. In this case, there might not exist a nearest positive definite matrix, and
the algorithm will then return no solution.

44.2.3 Probabilistic Analysis Methods

The Probabilistic Analysis supports the following analyses probabilistically:

• Load Flow Calculation

• Optimal Power Flow
Two main algorithms, each offering different advantages, have been implemented:

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• Monte Carlo method

• Quasi-Monte Carlo method

44.2.3.1 Random Number Generation

The random number generation is according to the commonly used Mersenne Twister pseudorandom
number generator where the Seed can be defined within the Probabilistic Analysis Command.

44.2.3.2 Monte Carlo Method

The Monte Carlo method draws individual samples randomly, as Figure 44.2.2a shows. Thus, there are
some regions with more and others with less information.

The Monte-Carlo method is a way to calculate numerically the expectation of some function 𝑓 : R𝑑 →
R which is subject to random input 𝑋, with 𝑋 taking values in R𝑑 . It generates 𝑁 identically and
independently distributed samples of 𝑋 : 𝑋1; ...𝑋𝑁 . Then the integral / expectation is approximated by:
∫︁ 𝑁
∑︁
𝐸[𝑓 (𝑋)] = 𝑓 (𝑋)𝑑𝑃 ≈ 𝑓 (𝑋𝑛 ) (44.19)
𝑛=1

where the convergence rate is of order √

𝑂(1/ 𝑁 ) (44.20)

Generally this means that in order to get one digit more precision, the Monte-Carlo method requires a
factor 100 more samples.

An important property of the Monte-Carlo Method is that the rate of convergence does not depend
explicitly on the dimension 𝑑 of the underlying space. Related to network models, this means that the
convergence is independent of the actual number of network elements.

When running Probabilistic Analysis according to the Monte-Carlo method, various well known statistic
parameters are automatically generated (see Section 44.2.4 for detailed information). These are:

• Mean,
• Standard deviation,
• Maximum,
• Minimum,
• Variance,
• 1st - 5th Moment and
• confidence interval for mean and standard deviation.

44.2.3.3 Quasi-Monte Carlo Method

The Quasi-Monte Carlo method uses special sequences, in order to cover the space more uniformly
(see Figure 44.2.2b). The rate of convergence of a Quasi-Monte-Carlo simulation is given by:
𝑂(𝑙𝑛(𝑁 )𝑑 /𝑁 ) (44.21)

which for a large number of samples 𝑁 behaves like 1/𝑁 . Thus, in order to get one digit more precision,
10 times more samples are required. Using this method, it has to be mentioned that the convergence
rate now depends on the dimension 𝑑, meaning the number of relevant elements within the network.

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(a) Monte Carlo (b) Quasi-Monte Carlo

Figure 44.2.2: Comparison of methods

44.2.3.4 Comparison of Methods

The difference between the methods lies in the sequence of samples as shown in Figure 44.2.2. Due
to that, the Quasi-Monte Carlo method usually converges faster than the Monte Carlo method, but
because of the dependence of individual samples the confidence interval estimation is not possible
(refer to Section 44.2.4 for more information about the confidence interval).

Method MC QMC
Calculation of confidence intervals Yes No
Convergence rate 1/sqrt(N) 1/N
One digit more precision: factor 𝑥 more samples x=100 x=10
Convergence depends on dimension No Yes

Table 44.2.1: Comparison between Monte Carlo (MC) and Quasi-Monte Carlo (QMC)

44.2.4 Statistics

Statistics are available for two different use cases:

• Statistical results files: the statistics, defined in the Probabilistic Analysis command, will be calcu-
lated and stored during Probabilistic Analysis in the Statistical Result file.
• Plots: statistics may be plotted for variables stored in the Samples Result file.

Let 𝑥 = 𝑥1 , . . . 𝑥𝑛 be the observed samples of a random quantity 𝑋 during Monte Carlo or Quasi-Monte
Carlo Simulation. The statistics are defined in the following way:

• Mean:
The empirical mean 𝑥
¯ of a variable is calculated by:
𝑛
1 ∑︁
𝑥
¯= 𝑥𝑖 (44.22)
𝑛 𝑖=1

• Variance:
The empirical variance 𝑠2 (𝑥) of a variable is calculated by:
𝑛
1 ∑︁
𝑠2 (𝑥) = ¯)2
(𝑥𝑘 − 𝑥 (44.23)
𝑛−1
𝑘=1

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• Standard deviation:
The empirical standard deviation 𝑠(𝑥) is calculated by:
√︀
𝑠(𝑥) = 𝑠2 (𝑥) (44.24)

• Moments (up to fifth order):

The empirical 𝑙-th moment 𝑚𝑙 (𝑥) is calculated by:
𝑛
1 ∑︁ 𝑙
𝑚𝑙 (𝑥) = 𝑥𝑘 . (44.25)
𝑛
𝑘=1

• Confidence interval of mean:

General meaning: the probability, that the true value is in the confidence interval, is greater than
1 − 𝛼 (𝛼 = level), as the number of observations goes to infinity.
Usually, the true probability distribution of the random quantity 𝑋 is unknown. Often, it is not
even known whether it is normally distributed or not. In such cases the estimation of a confidence
interval is possible, provided that the true probability distribution satisfies the central limit theorem.
Note: the central limit theorem relies on independent and identically distributed observations of
the random quantity. This is not the case for the Quasi-Monte Carlo Method.
The values for the upper and lower levels both have to be greater than 0 and less than 50.
• Confidence interval of standard deviation:
See Confidence interval of mean, but in this case for the standard deviation.
• Empirical probability:
The empirical probability for 𝑋 ∈ 𝐼 for some given interval 𝐼: 𝑝(𝐼,𝑥) is calculated by:
𝑛
1 ∑︁ 1
𝑝(𝐼,𝑥) = 1𝑥𝑘 ∈𝐼 = #{𝑥𝑘 ∈ 𝐼 : 1 ≤ 𝑘 ≤ 𝑛} (44.26)
𝑛 𝑛
𝑘=1

The following intervals are supported:

– Upper bounded: 𝐼 = (−∞, 𝑏], meaning that 𝑏 is inside the interval.
– Lower bounded: 𝐼 = (𝑎, ∞), meaning that 𝑎 is not inside the interval.
– Upper and lower bounded: 𝐼 = (𝑎, 𝑏].
• Maximum:
The maximum value of the observed variable within the complete analysis.
• Iteration with max. value:
The sample number of the maximum value of the observed variable within the complete analysis.
• Minimum:
The minimum value of the observed variable within the complete analysis.
• Iteration with min. value:
The sample number of the minimum value of the observed variable within the complete analysis.

Note: Confidence intervals are not available for a Quasi-Monte Carlo simulation (see Section 44.2.3.3).

44.2.5 Distribution Estimation

Two estimation methods are available, which are explained in the following subsections.
• Bootstrapping
• Histogram

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44.2.5.1 Bootstrapping

Bootstrapping is commonly used to re-sample the data in order to refine the estimation of the underlying
distribution. The approach used here is the most basic one, which does not re-sample and draws
randomly from the given sample.

In the case of a characteristic that means that all values from this characteristic are converted into a
cumulative distribution function, from which random numbers are drawn during the analysis.
This process of drawing samples is illustrated in Figure 44.2.3. A number between zero and one is
randomly drawn. The corresponding x-value is then taken for the analysis.

Figure 44.2.3: Bootstrapping - Cumulative distribution function

For photovoltaic power curves, the bootstrapping method may be more suitable than the histogram,
since this method uses each single value from the characteristic and therefore represents night hours,
in which the production of PV systems is zero, more realistic. If the histogram method were to be used,
it would be rather improbable that zero would be drawn from the sample.

Mean and Standard deviation of the distribution are calculated by:

⎯
𝑁 ⎸ 𝑁
1 ∑︁ ⎸ 1 ∑︁
𝜇= 𝑥𝑖 , 𝜎=⎷ (𝑥𝑖 − 𝜇)2 (44.27)
𝑛 𝑖=1 𝑁 𝑖=1

44.2.5.2 Histogram

For the generation of a histogram from a sample (with 𝑛 = number of samples), either the number of
bins 𝑘 or the bin width ℎ has to be defined. Note that the bin width is fixed, once the number of bins is
determined (and vice-versa), if the first bin begins at the first sample and the last bin ends at the last
sample. For the definition of the bins the following options are available:

User-Defined: the user is able to specify either the number of bins or the bin width.

Automatic: will choose the maximum number of bins obtained using the Rice Rule and the Freedman-
Diaconis choice.

Rice Rule: 𝑘 = 2 * 𝑛1/3

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3.5*𝜎
Scott’s Rule: ℎ = 𝑛1/3
, where 𝜎 is the standard deviation of the sample.

Freedman-Diaconis choice: ℎ = 2*𝐼𝑄𝑅 𝑛1/3

, where 𝐼𝑄𝑅 is the interquartile range of the sample. The
interquartile range is the difference between the first and the third quartile.

Figure 44.2.4 shows the probability density function of the histogram with 33 bins and a bandwidth of
0,02986 per unit. From this graphic the frequency of values within a specific interval can be extracted.
The histogram can also be represented as a cumulative distribution function, which is obtained by
integrating the probability density function.

Figure 44.2.4: Histogram - Probability density function

During the probabilistic analysis a value is randomly drawn from the sample. The algorithm checks to
which bin this value belongs and draws another value from within that bin, which is then used for the
analysis.

44.2.6 Distribution Fitting

The goal of distribution fitting is to determine the distribution of some random quantity based on some
statistical data. In PowerFactory, two fitting procedures are supported:
• Gram-Charlier A series

• Edgeworth expansion
Both fittings calculate distributions based on given moments 𝑚1 , . . . 𝑚𝑘 of the underlying distribution.

Note, that in both cases, the outcome is not necessarily a distribution function / probability density, but
just an approximation of the true distribution function / probability density.

In both cases, the approximate cdf / pdf are given as follows:

𝑛
∑︁
𝑝𝑑𝑓 : 𝑓 (𝑥) = 𝑐𝑗 𝜑(𝑗) (𝑥) (44.28)
𝑗=0
𝑛
∑︁
𝑐𝑑𝑓 : 𝐹 (𝑥) = 𝑐𝑗 Φ(𝑗) (𝑥), (44.29)
𝑗=0

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where 𝜑 is the probability density of the standard normal distribution, and 𝜑(𝑗) is 𝑗-the derivative of 𝜑.
Analogously Φ is the cumulative distribution function of the standard normal distribution, and Φ(𝑗) is
𝑗-the derivative of Φ. The coefficients 𝑐𝑗 are different for the different expansions, and depend on the
given moments of the underlying distributions. The order of the expansion is 𝑛.

The Gram-Charlier A series is based on the series representation of the characteristic function of
a distribution. In contrast, although having the same summands, the Edgeworth expansion uses a
different ordering of the summands which allows (with the help of the central limit theorem) for a more
precise control of the fitting error.

A rigorous treatment of series expansions for distributions may be found e.g. in [40] or [48].

44.3 Object Settings

In the following subsections the settings of the commands and objects related to the Probabilistic
Analysis are described.

44.3.1 Distributions

44.3.1.1 Assignment of distributions

Manual assignment of distributions: the manual assignment of distributions to parameters is possible

in two different ways:

• Object dialog: right-click on a parameter and select Add project distribution. . . and then choose
one of the provided distributions. Already assigned distributions can be edited by right-clicking on
the parameter and selecting Edit distribution(s). . . .
• Class Filters (e.g. Network Model Manager): select one or more cells (of one column) of a
desired parameter, right-click the selection and choose Characteristic/Distribution → Add project
distribution. . . . From the provided list, select the desired distribution.

Automatic assignment of distributions based on characteristics: if characteristics have been as-

signed to parameters, distributions can be estimated automatically using the Distribution Estimation
command (see Section 44.3.3).

If a distribution has been assigned to a parameter, its input field or the corresponding cell in the browser
will be coloured, depending on the user settings (see section 7.8).

44.3.1.2 Application of random values

For all available distributions two options for the Application of random values are available:
• Usage: in general, all types of distributions can be applied to parameters with a selectable Usage.
The available options are explained below. The description also contains a formula, in which 𝑝 is
the value of the parameter, 𝑑 the value of the distribution and 𝑟 the resulting value.
– Multiplicative in %: drawn percentage value is multiplied with the set parameter value.

𝑑
𝑟= ·𝑝 (44.30)
100

– Multiplicative: drawn value is multiplied with the set parameter value.

𝑟 =𝑑·𝑝 (44.31)

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– Absolute: drawn value (absolute value) is directly applied to the parameter.

𝑟=𝑑 (44.32)

– Additive in %: from the drawn percentage value and the set parameter value an absolute
value is calculated, which is added to the set parameter.

𝑑
𝑟= ·𝑝+𝑝 (44.33)
100

– Additive: from the drawn value and the set parameter value an absolute value is calculated,
which is added to the set parameter.
𝑟 =𝑑+𝑝 (44.34)
• Based on: the drawn value from the distribution can be applied to the “Original value” (the entered
value) or the “Characteristics value” (actual value).

Note: If Usage is set to Absolute, the Based on option is disabled.

44.3.1.3 Standard Distributions

The following predefined distribution functions are available:

• Bernoulli distribution (RndBernoulli)

• Exponential distribution (RndExp)

• Geometric distribution (RndGeo)
• Log-normal distribution (RndLognormal)

• Normal distribution (RndNormal)

• Uniform distribution (RndUnif )
• Weibull distribution(RndWeibull)

For more information about the theoretical background of these distributions (like adjustable parame-
ters), refer to Section 44.2.1.2.

44.3.1.4 Special Distributions

Transformed distribution (RndTransformed): two references have to be assigned to this distribution:

• Distribution: any kind of distribution (Rnd*) can be assigned.

• Transformation: a Wind Power Curve (TypPowercurve) can be assigned.

Further information about this distribution can be found in Section 44.2.1.3.

Discrete finite distribution (RndFinite): in order to define desired states, first the Number of states
has to be specified. By changing this number, rows are appended or deleted from the table on the
right. In this table values and their weights can be defined. Depending on the weights the probability is
automatically calculated, as described in Section 44.2.1.2.

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44.3.1.5 Distribution based on characteristics

In the following, the input options of the RndCha object are described:

Characteristics: reference to a time characteristic (ChaTime, ChaProfile and ChaVec with time trigger)
or objects, which internally have a characteristic, like PV Systems (ElmPvsys) with a Solar Calculation
model or MV (ElmLodmv ) or LV loads (ElmLodlv ) with a Consumption Profile. A characteristic can be
assigned by clicking on and Select. . . and choosing a desired object of the previously mentioned
classes.

Time Range of data: two options are available:

• Take whole range: the complete time range of the characteristic will be used.
• Restrict time range: a Time Range object (SetTimerange) can be assigned, in order to specify the
time range of the data. For more information about this object refer to Section 44.3.1.7.
Distribution Estimation: one of the methods described in Section 44.2.5 can be selected.

Note: If a PV System with Solar Calculation Model has been assigned as characteristic, the Bootstrap-
ping method will automatically be applied.

44.3.1.6 Parameter Distribution - Reference

This reference (RndRef ) is the equivalent to the Characteristic Reference (ChaRef ). It connects the
distribution with the element’s parameter.

44.3.1.7 Time Range

This object (SetTimerange) can be assigned to a RndCha object, in order to convert a specific time
range from a characteristic into a distribution. Within this object (SetTimerange) a start and end time
(date and time) can be defined.

44.3.2 Dependencies

Dependencies, representing for example the correlation in terms of power infeed of locally clustered
wind turbines, can be defined in different ways:

• Through Single Line Diagram

It is possible to multi select several elements within the SLD choosing Network Groupings →
Distribution correlation→ New. . .
• Through Element Filter
Within the Element Filter, it is also possible to mark several elements Network Groupings →
Distribution correlation→ New. . .
There is the possibility to choose between the correlation definitions, explained within the following
subsections.

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44.3.2.1 Elliptic Copula - equally

Within this element the correlation between elements and/or parameters can be defined.
Once several elements are defined according to Section 44.3.2, the table containing elements is filled.
In this stage, all parameters of the defined elements, where distributions are defined, will be correlated.
The column “Dists. (Distributions)” shows how many parameters are considered for every element
within the table. This can be enhanced by choosing a parameter within the column “Parameter”. In
this case, the correlation is only valid for this single parameter.
The correlation itself can be entered in the field “Correlation” and is valid for all selected Parameters.
Note, that when entering a correlation value lower than 1, the Copula type, “Gaussian” or “t-copula”,
according to Section 44.2.2 can be selected.

44.3.2.2 Elliptic Copula - detailed

Within this correlation element, coupled parameters can be defined, where a correlation parameter can
be entered for each individual pair of parameters, given within one row. This correlation can be set
within the table column “Correlation”. In addition, one “Default correlation factor” can be entered to
define the correlation between the parameters, where no explicit correlation is given within the table.
Again, it is possible to choose between the Copula type “Gaussian” or “t-copula” according to Sec-
tion 44.2.2.
On the Basic options page, there is also the possibility to “Show Matrix”, which is the overall correlation
matrix, containing every parameter to be correlated.
On the “Copula Correlation Matrix” page, there are several options to define the automatic correction
of Copula correlation matrix (if option “Automatically correct to pos. def. matrix” is enabled). The usage
of these parameters is explained in Section 44.2.2.1. The option “Keep specified entries fixed”
enables the specified correlation values defined within the Basic Options to be fixed, when the auto
correction tries to find a proper Copula Correlation matrix by adapting the non-specified entries.

44.3.2.3 Elliptic Copula - characteristics

This Copula element allows the user to automatically define copulas according to time characteristics.
To estimate the correlation between different characteristics, the user can tick the corresponding option
within the Distribution Estimation command, or link different characteristics manually within the Basic
Options page of the “Elliptic Copula - characteristics” Element. Further available options are explained
below:
• Correlation of parameters using same cha.:
The user can define whether all parameters using the same characteristics shall be “Fully cor-
related” or correlated with a “User-defined” correlation factor, which can be entered within the
“Characteristics” table on the same page.
• Restrict time range:
This setting allows the user to define a restricted time range out of which the correlation will be
estimated. More information about the time range object can be found in Section 44.3.1.7.
• Copula correlation Matrix:
These options refer to the separate page “Copula Correlation Matrix” and are explained below.
• The button Show correlation matrix of characteristics:
This button allows the user to access the correlation matrix as estimated by this “Elliptic Copula -
characteristics” Element.

The page “Copula Correlation Matrix” offers the possibility to define the automatic correction of the
copula correlation matrix. The procedure of this is explained in Section 44.2.2.1.

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44.3.3 Distribution Estimation Command

This command Distribution Estimation (ComRndest) can be opened by clicking the Distribution Estima-
tion button available in the Probabilistic Analysis toolbar. It creates Distribution based on charac-
teristics objects, which convert time characteristics or specific time ranges of those into distributions.
For more information about distributions based on characteristics and estimation methods, refer to
Sections 44.2.1.4 and 44.2.5 .

Characteristics
Within the first field called Characteristics the user can select which characteristics are to be converted
into distributions. There are two options:

• All active: for all active1 characteristics, distributions are created and assigned. If this option
is selected, there must be active characteristics in the project. Otherwise an error message will
occur when the command is executed.
The button Show input shows all active characteristics. Apart from time characteristics (ChaTime,
ChaProfile and ChaVec with time trigger), objects which internally have a characteristic, like PV
Systems (ElmPvsys) with a Solar Calculation model or MV (ElmLodmv ) or LV loads (ElmLodlv )
with a Consumption Profile, will also be listed.

• User-defined selection: by clicking on and Select. . . , a browser window with all active
characteristics will open, from which desired characteristics can be chosen. By confirming with
OK, a set (SetSelect), containing the selected characteristics, will automatically be created in the
active study case. If the Distribution Estimation command is executed, all parameters which refer
to the characteristics stored in this selection, will obtain a distribution.
By clicking on and Select Parameter. . . desired parameters, to which a characteristic has been
assigned, can be chosen. This selection is stored in a set (SetSelect), as well. For all parameters
contained in this set, distributions will be created and assigned to the corresponding parameters.

Two Estimation methods are available:

• Bootstrapping
• Histogram
The technical background information for these two methods can be found in Section 44.2.5.

By clicking the button Edit all references and distributions based on cha., a browser window will
open that shows all available references and distributions based on characteristics. This browser allows
the user to modify or delete existing distributions and references.

Time range
By activating the option Restrict time range a Time Range (SetTimerange) object can be assigned to the
command, which enables the possibility to convert only a specific time range from a characteristic into a
distribution. The reference to the time range object is applied to the Distribution based on characteristics
object. For more information about the time range object refer to Section 44.3.1.7. If the option Restrict
time range is deactivated the complete time range of the characteristic is used.

Advanced Options
On this page the Assignment of created distributions to parameters can be defined. Three options are
available:

• Do not assign: distributions are created but not assigned to the parameters.
• Ignore parameters which already have distributions assigned: new distributions will be cre-
ated, but for all parameters which already have a distribution assigned no new references will be
created. For all remaining parameters new references will be created and assigned to the new
distributions.

1A characteristic is called active, if it has been assigned to a parameter within the network.

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• Always assign and replace existing references: new distributions are created. Old references
are replaced by new ones, which refer to the newly created distributions.

If the check box Estimate correlations is selected, two options are available:
• Create new correlation: a new correlation (Elliptic Copula - characteristics (ElmCopellcha),
see Section 44.3.2.3) will be created and all characteristics which have been selected on the
Characteristics page, will be assigned to this copula.
• Add to existing correlation: an existing copula (ElmCopellcha, see Section 44.3.2.3) can be
selected, to which the characteristics defined on the Characteristics page will be added.

44.3.4 Probabilistic Analysis Command

The Probabilistic Analysis Command ( ) is the main Command in Probabilistic Analysis function within
PowerFactory. These are the settings for the command:

Basic Options:
• Analysed calculation:
Within this setting, it is possible to choose the calculation type to be Load Flow or Optimal Power
Flow.
– Load Flow:
Load Flow calculation is used to analyse power systems under steady-state non-faulted
conditions. All its available calculation settings are considered by the Probabilistic Analysis.
More information about the load flow and the settings of this command are available in
Chapter 24.

– Optimal Power Flow

The Probabilistic Analysis will analyse the Optimal Power Flow probabilistically. The Optimal
Power Flow (OPF) module optimises a certain objective function (e.g. Maximisation of reac-
tive power reserve) in a network whilst fulfilling equality constraints (the load flow equations)
and inequality constraints (i.e. generator reactive power limits). All its settings are considered
by the Probabilistic Analysis. More information about OPF and its settings are available in
Chapter 38.
The Probabilistic Analysis of the OPF can be used in order to determine the distributions of
controls for a dispatch strategy considering a given objective.
• Method:
As described in 44.2.3, it is possible to choose between the Monte Carlo (44.2.3.2) or Quasi-Monte
Carlo (44.2.3.3) methods.
• Max. number of samples:
Within this field, the number of samples can be defined.
• Pointer to Statistical results:
According to the chosen Method and Calculation type settings, the relevant Statistical results
file is given here. For more information about results files of the Probabilistic Analysis refer to
Section 44.3.7.
• Pointer to Sample results:
According to the chosen Method and Calculation type settings, the relevant Sample results file
is given here. For more information about results files of the Probabilistic Analysis refer to Sec-
tion 44.3.7.

Recorded Statistics
• Statistics recorded for all variables:
Within this table, all statistics to be recorded can be defined. Please note that the available

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statistics depend on the simulation method. A list of available statistics together with possible
settings is given in Section 44.2.4. The settings can be entered by editing the Statistics.
The Button “Set statistics to default” resets the “Statistics recorded for all variables” selection to
contain the default values.
• Statistics recorded for specific variables:
An additional option is to record statistics only for specific variables. Therefore, it is possible to
choose one single object or a class of objects within the column “Variables”. If the variable consists
of a class, a filter can be defined according to Section 44.3.7. The statistics to be recorded has to
be chosen within the column “Statistics”.
Advanced Options
• Random number generation:
The Seeding type can be selected to be “Automatic” or “User defined”. When set to be “User
defined”, a Seed value between 0 and (232 − 1) can be entered. This makes it possible to exactly
reproduce all samples drawn as described in Section 44.2.3.1.
• Output per sample:
If turned Off, no output will be shown during calculation of samples. Otherwise the output will
contain the information as described within the title.
• Consider distribution correlations:
This checkbox determines whether or not defined correlations will be considered during Proba-
bilistic analysis.
During the execution of Probabilistic Analysis command, the user can interrupt the calculation using this
button: (Stop Probabilistic Analysis).

44.3.5 Continue Probabilistic Analysis

Within the Continue Probabilistic Analysis command ( ), the user can enter the Max. number of
samples, which should be the resultant number of samples on completion of the simulation. The
currently executed and stored number of samples is given in the information field “Number of calculated
samples”.

44.3.6 Probabilistic Analysis Player

Investigation of worst and mean cases The Probabilistic Analysis Player can be used to reload
the results of a specific sample. This might be useful, for example, to analyse a sample in which a
specific line is overloaded. The sample number can be extracted from the statistics results file. After
the execution of this command the results can then be observed for example in the single line diagram
or on the Flexible Data page of the Network Model Manager.

44.3.7 Results File Handling

As for many other modules in PowerFactory, result variables have to be defined for the Probabilistic
Analysis2 as well, before the command is executed. For this analysis a distinction has to be made
between a:

• Sample results file and a

• Statistical results file.

2 Some standard parameters for selected object classes have already been predefined.

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Sample results: for the Sample result file, result parameters of the load flow calculation or the OPF
analysis like the “loading” of a line or the “active power dispatch” of a generator can be selected.
Statistical results: such parameters can also be selected for the Statistical result file. However, for this,
statistics (see Section 44.2.4) like the mean value or the standard deviation are recorded (dependent on
the settings on the Recorded Statistics page of the Probabilistic Analysis command, see Section 44.3.4).
The results files (ElmRes) for the Probabilistic Analysis are stored within an folder called Probabilistic
assessment inside the study case.

Within each iteration of the Probabilistic Analysis, samples are randomly drawn from the assigned
distributions and a Load Flow or Optimal Power Flow is executed. The results of each iteration for
the parameters to be recorded are stored within the Samples results file. After the maximum number
of samples has been reached, statistics are calculated for the selected variables and stored within the
Statistical result file.

Dependent on the Calculation Type and the Method selected in the Probabilistic Analysis as well as the
Load Flow or Optimal Power Flow command, different results files are used. For each of them, variables
can be defined individually.

Result variables can be defined by clicking the Edit Result Variables button from the Probabilistic
Analysis toolbar. A selection dialog will appear, in which the type of results file (Statistical or Sample
results) to be edited can be selected. After the confirmation of this dialog, a browser window opens,
which shows the content of the results file that has been selected in the Probabilistic Analysis command.
Information about the Variable Selection can be found in Section 18.3.
For Variable Selections that are applied to a complete class, a filter (see Chapter 10: Data Manager and
Network Model Manager, Section 10.3.3) can be defined. This makes it possible for example to record
parameters for elements of that class which are inside a specific area.

44.3.8 Representation of results

44.3.8.1 Single Line Diagram

After the execution of the Probabilistic Analysis, statistics can be observed in the single line diagram in
two different ways.

Result Boxes:
By right-clicking on a result box, different predefined statistics like the mean value and the standard
deviation for node voltages and branch flows can directly be selected (e.g. Format for Nodes → L-L
Voltage, Angle or Format for Edge Elements → Branch flow).
Of course every other variable recorded in the Statistical results file can be displayed in the result box
as well, by clicking on Edit Format for . . . .

Colouring:
Statistics can also be analysed by colouring the single line diagram as shown in Figure 44.3.1.

The use of colouring in network diagrams is described in Section 9.3.10.1, and more detail about the
use of colours and colour palettes can be found in Section 4.7.8.

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Figure 44.3.1: Colouring of statistics (mean value) of Load Flow quantities in the Single Line Diagram

The colouring can be enabled by clicking on the Diagram Colouring. . . button and opening the
corresponding Probabilistic Analysis page. Activate 3. Others and select Results → Probabilistic Load
Flow. By clicking on Colour Settings. . . , the statistic to be used for the colouring as well as the colour
gradation can be defined.

For Statistical results, the following options are available:

• Mean values;
• Maximum or minimum;
• Standard deviation;

• Empirical probability.
For more information about statistics, refer to Section 44.2.4.

Depending on the selected statistic, different colour gradations can be defined.

Note: In order to colour the diagram according to the Empirical probability, the corresponding statistic
has to be recorded in the statistics results file (by default it is not recorded). E.g. if the Empirical
probability for the interval Lower unbounded with an Upper bound of 0.95 has been recorded for
the node voltage “m:u”, the variable “m:u:empPrLow_-Inf_-_0_95” should exist and can therefore
be used for the graphical analysis.

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44.3.8.2 Network Model Manager

Statistics can be displayed on the Flexible Data page in the Network Model Manager. This makes it
possible to sort parameter values according to their size or apply existing filter functions. By clicking
on the Variable selection button , statistics and other variables can be chosen for the selected class
to be displayed on the Flexible Data page. For more information regarding variable selections refer to
Section 18.3.

44.3.8.3 Convergence of Statistics Plot

Choosing this plot, the convergence behaviour of single element’s parameter can be analysed. It is
possible to analyse the convergence behaviour of Mean and Standard deviation. In these cases, the
plots will show the corresponding value as well as the confidence interval for a user defined percentage
level. More information about statistics can be found in Section 44.2.4.

Figure 44.3.2: Convergence Plot of Line Loading Mean value (red) and upper (green) and lower (blue)
5% Confidence interval

44.3.8.4 Correlation Plot

The correlation gives the resulting correlation between two parameters. By default, two parameters of
one element can be selected. However, if “Show x-Element in table” is selected, the correlation between
two parameters of two different elements can be plotted.

44.3.8.5 Distribution Estimation Plot

The Distribution Estimation plot returns the resulting distribution of one sample result variable. For
this purpose, the sample results file is analysed. The methods that are used are Bootstrapping and
Histogram, as explained in Section 44.2.5, the only difference being that the input data is not a time
characteristic but the result of all samples available after Probabilistic analysis.
For Histogram method, the bin width is estimated automatically but can also be set manually by selecting

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“User-defined” within the Distribution estimation dialog.

A Distribution Estimation plot is shown in Figure 44.3.3 (red curve), which is estimated from the samples
of the recorded quantity. From the curve shape it can be supposed that the underlying distribution was
a uniform one.

44.3.8.6 Distribution Fitting Plot

The Distribution Fitting Plot gives the distribution fitting according to the methods, explained in Sec-
tion 44.2.6. In context with these methods, an order of fitting can additionally be entered for fitting.
The blue cumulative distribution function of Figure 44.3.3 is the result of the Edgeworth Expansion (Ord.
4) distribution fitting method, which uses the statistical results of the same element parameter selected
for the distribution estimation.

Figure 44.3.3: Cumulative distribution function. Comparison between Distribution Estimation -

Bootstrapping (red curve) and Distribution Fitting - Edgeworth Expansion, Ord. 4 (blue curve)

44.3.8.7 Load Probabilistic Analysis Results

Depending on the size of the network, the number of active distributions and correlations and the
number of samples of the analysis, the Probabilistic Analysis might take a long time. Execution of
other commands or changes in element parameters will cause the results of the Probabilistic Analysis
to be reset. In order to avoid another execution of this analysis to obtain the same results, the Load
Probabilistic Analysis results button can be used to reload an existing probabilistic results file. The
results can then again be analysed in the single line diagram or the Network Model Manager.

Note: Users reloading earlier results should be aware that they may not be compatible with the current
network state, if changes have been made since the analysis was executed.

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Chapter 45

Reliability Analysis

45.1 Introduction

Reliability assessment involves determining, generally using statistical methods, the total electric inter-
ruptions for loads within a power system during an operating period. The interruptions are described by
several indices that consider aspects such as:

• The number of customers [N];

• The connected load, normally expressed in [kW];
• The duration of the interruptions, normally expressed in [h] = ’hours’;
• The amount of power interrupted, expressed in [kW];
• The frequency of interruptions, normally expressed in [1/a] = ’per annum’;
• The repair times, which are normally expressed in [h] = ’hours’;
• The probabilities or expectancies, expressed as a fraction or as time per year ([h/a], [min/a]).

Network reliability assessment is used to calculate expected interruption frequencies and annual in-
terruptions costs, and to compare alternative network designs. Reliability analysis is an automation
and probabilistic extension of contingency evaluation. For such analysis, it is not required to pre-define
outage events, instead the tool can automatically choose the outages to consider. The relevance of
each outage is considered using statistical data about the expected frequency and duration of outages
according to component type. The effect of each outage is analysed automatically such that the
software simulates the protection system and the network operator’s actions to re-supply interrupted
customers. Because statistical data regarding the frequency of such events is available, the results can
be formulated in probabilistic terms.

Note: Reliability assessment tools are commonly used to quantify the impact of power system equip-
ment outages in economic terms. The results of a reliability assessment study may be used
to justify investment in network upgrades such as new remote control switches, new lines /
transformers, or to assess the performance of under voltage load shedding schemes.

This chapter deals with probabilistic Network Reliability Assessment. For information on PowerFactory ’s
deterministic Contingency Analysis, refer to Chapter 26 (Contingency Analysis).

The structure of this chapter is as follows:

• Technical Background, in Section 45.2;

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• Model Setup for Reliability Assessment, in Section 45.3;

• Description of Reliability Assessment Calculation Command, in Section 45.4;

• Analysis of Reliability Assessment Results, in Section 45.5;

• Description of Loss of Grid Assessment, in Section 45.6.

The Reliability Assessment functions can be accessed by selecting the Reliability Analysis toolbar from
the Change Toolbox icon. The Toolbox “Reliability Analysis” is shown in Figure 45.1.1.

Figure 45.1.1: Reliability Analysis Toolbox

The basic user procedure for completing a reliability assessment consists of the following steps as
shown in Figure 45.1.2. Steps on the left are compulsory, while steps on the right are optional and can
be used to increase the detail of the calculation.

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Figure 45.1.2: Reliability Assessment User Procedure

These procedures are explained in detail in the following sections.

45.2 Technical Background

The Reliability Assessment procedure considers the network topology, protection systems, constraints
and stochastic failure and repair models to generate reliability indices. The technical background of the
procedure and Stochastic Models is described in this section.

Note: A quantity is said to be stochastic when it has a random probability distribution. A simple example
of a stochastic quantity is the expected repair duration for an item of equipment, which is based
on the total number of repairs and repair duration. This measured data can be used to build
Stochastic Models, and perform analysis using statistical calculation methods.

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45.2.1 Reliability Assessment Procedure

The generation of reliability indices, using the Reliability Assessment tool also known as ’reliability
analysis’, consists of the following:

• Failure Modelling
• Load Modelling

• System State Creation

• Failure Effect Analysis (FEA)
• Statistical Analysis

• Reporting

Figure 45.2.1: Reliability Analysis: Basic Flow Diagram

The reliability analysis calculation flow diagram is depicted in Figure 45.2.1. The failure models describe
how system components can fail, how often they might fail and how long it takes to repair them when
they fail. The load models can consist of a few possible load demands, or can be based on a user-
defined load forecast and growth scenarios.

The combination of one or more simultaneous faults and a specific load condition is called a “system
state”. Internally, PowerFactory ’s system state generation engine uses the failure models and load
models to build a list of relevant system states. Subsequently, the Failure Effect Analysis (FEA) module
analyses the faulted system states by simulating the system reactions to these faults.

The FEA takes the power system through a number of post-fault operational states that can include
(some of them are only considered for the Distribution option in the reliability command, for a detailed
description refer to section 46.1):

• Fault clearance by tripping of protection breakers or fuses;

• Fault separation by opening separating switches;

• Power restoration by closing normally open switches, reconnecting busbars in substations or
establishing a backward recovery;
• Overload and voltage constraint alleviation by load transfer, load shedding and busbar transfer.

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The objective of the FEA function is to determine if system faults will lead to load interruptions and if so,
which loads will be interrupted and for how long.

The results of the FEA are combined with the data that is provided by the system state generation mod-
ule to create the reliability statistics including indices such as SAIFI, SAIDI and CAIFI. The system state
data describes the expected frequency of occurrence of the system state and its expected duration.
However, the duration of these system states should not be confused with the interruption duration. For
example, a system state for a line outage, perhaps caused by a short-circuit on that line, will have a
duration equal to the time needed to repair that line. However, if the line is one of two parallel lines then
it is possible that no loads will be interrupted because the parallel line might be able to supply the full
load current.

Even if the loads are interrupted by the outage, the power could be restored by network reconfiguration
- by fault separation and closing a back-feed switch. The interruption duration will then equal the
restoration time, and not the repair duration (equivalent to the system state duration).

45.2.2 Stochastic Models

A stochastic reliability model is a statistical representation of the failure rate and repair duration time for
a power system component. For example, a line might suffer an outage due to a short-circuit. After the
fault clearance, repair will begin and the line will be put into service again after a successful repair. If
two states for line A are defined as ’in service’ and ’under repair’, monitoring of the line could result in a
time sequence of outages and repairs as depicted in Figure 45.2.2.

Figure 45.2.2: Line availability states are described by the status of the line (in service or under repair).
Each of these states lasts for a certain time.

Line A in this example fails at time T1 after which it is repaired and put back into service at T2. It fails
again at T3, is repaired again, etc. The repair durations are also called the ’Time To Repair’ or ’TTR’.
The service durations 𝑆1 = 𝑇1 , 𝑆2 = 𝑇3 − 𝑇2 , etc. are called the ’life-time’, ’Time To Failure’ or ’TTF’.

Both the TTR and the TTF are stochastic quantities. By gathering failure data about a large group of
similar components in the power system, statistical information about the TTR and TTF, such as the
mean value and the standard deviation, can be calculated. The statistical information is then used to
define a Stochastic Model.

There are many ways in which to define a Stochastic Model. The so-called ’homogeneous Markov-
model’ is a highly simplified but generally used model. A homogeneous Markov model with two states
is defined by a constant Failure Rate 𝜆 and a constant Repair Rate 𝜇. These two parameters can be
used to calculate the following quantities:

• Mean Time to Failure, TTF = 1/𝜆;

• Mean Time to Repair, TTR = 1/𝜇;
• Availability, P = TTF/(TTF+TTR);
• Unavailability, Q = TTR/(TTF+TTR);

The availability is the fraction of time when the component is in service; the unavailability is the fraction
of time when it is in repair; and P+Q = 1.0.

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Example

If 7500 monitored transformers were to show 140 failures over 10 years, during which a total of 7360
hours was spent on repair, then:

140 1
𝜆= = 0.00187 (45.1)
10 · 7500 𝑎

1
𝑇𝑇𝐹 = = 536 𝑎 (45.2)
𝜆

7360
𝑇𝑇𝑅 = = 52.6 ℎ = 0.006 𝑎 (45.3)
140

1 1
𝜇= = 167 (45.4)
𝑇𝑇𝑅 𝑎

536
𝑃 = = 0.999989 (45.5)
536 + 0.006

0.006 𝑚𝑖𝑛
𝑄= = 0.000011 ≈ 6 (45.6)
536 + 0.006 𝑎

i.e. the expected outage duration is approximately 6 minutes per annum.

45.2.3 Calculated Results for Reliability Assessment

The network reliability assessment produces two types of indices:

• Load Point Indices

• System Indices

These indices are separated into frequency/expectancy indices and energy indices. Furthermore, there
are indices to describe the interruption costs. In addition, a dedicated set of indices is available for the
reliability evaluation of terminals and busbars.

Load point indices are calculated for each load, and are used in the calculation of many system
indices. This section describes the simplified equations for the reliability indices. However, note that the
PowerFactory reliability assessment calculations use more complex calculation methods. Nevertheless,
the simplified equations shown here can be used for hand calculations or to gain insight into the reliability
assessment results.

The reliability indices are driven by contingencies and their probability of occurrence, which lead to the
loss of supply of parts or the entire modelled network. For the interruptions and their consideration in
the index calculation, a differentiation is made between a sustained and a momentary loss of supply.
The reason for the one or the other may come from the source of the fault being of sustained or transient
nature or from the attempt of the network protection (reclosers) to restore the supply after detection of
a fault. The following results refer to sustained interruptions where not explicitly stated otherwise.

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45.2.3.1 Parameter Definitions

In the definitions for the reliability indices, the following parameters are used:

𝑖 Load point index

𝑘 Contingency index
𝑡𝑖,𝑘 Interruption Time at load point 𝑖 for contingency case 𝑘
𝑓 𝑟𝑎𝑐𝑖,𝑘 The fraction of the load which is lost at load point 𝑖, for contingency 𝑘
𝐶𝑖 Number of customers supplied by load point 𝑖
𝐴𝑖 Number of affected customers for an interruption at load point 𝑖
𝐹 𝑟𝑘 Frequency of occurrence of contingency 𝑘
𝑃 𝑟𝑘 Probability of occurrence of contingency 𝑘
𝐶 Number of customers
𝐴 Number of affected customers
𝐿𝑚 Total connected apparent power interrupted, for each interruption event, 𝑚
𝑟𝑚 Duration of each interruption event, 𝑚
𝐿𝑇 Total connected apparent power supplied
𝑃 𝑐𝑖 Contracted active power at load point 𝑖
𝐼𝑀𝑖 Number of momentary interruptions at load point 𝑖

For unsupplied loads, or for loads that are shed completely, 𝑓 𝑟𝑎𝑐𝑖,𝑘 = 1. For loads that are partially
shed, 0 <= 𝑓 𝑟𝑎𝑐𝑖,𝑘 < 1.

45.2.3.2 Load Point Frequency and Expectancy Indices

These indices are defined as follows:

ACIF: Average Customer Interruption Frequency, in [1/𝑎].

∑︁
𝐴𝐶𝐼𝐹𝑖 = 𝐹 𝑟𝑘 · 𝑓 𝑟𝑎𝑐𝑖,𝑘 (45.7)
𝑘

ACIT: Average Customer Interruption Time, in [ℎ/𝑎].

∑︁
𝐴𝐶𝐼𝑇𝑖 = 8760 · 𝑃 𝑟𝑘 · 𝑓 𝑟𝑎𝑐𝑖,𝑘 (45.8)
𝑘

LPIF: Load Point Interruption Frequency, in [1/𝑎].

∑︁
𝐿𝑃 𝐼𝐹𝑖 = 𝐹 𝑟𝑘 (45.9)
𝑘

LPIT: Load Point Interruption Time, in [ℎ/𝑎].

∑︁
𝐿𝑃 𝐼𝑇𝑖 = 8760 · 𝑃 𝑟𝑘 (45.10)
𝑘

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Note: The parameters ACIF, ACIT, LPIF, and LPIT are only calculated and considered if the duration of
the outage is longer than the time value “Calculation of SAIFI/SAIDI according to IEEE 1366”, that
is set within the Advanced Options of the Reliability Assessment command.

AID: Average Interruption Duration, in [ℎ].

𝐴𝐶𝐼𝑇𝑖
𝐴𝐼𝐷𝑖 = (45.11)
𝐴𝐶𝐼𝐹𝑖

TCIF: Total Customer Interruption Frequency, in [𝐶/𝑎].

𝑇 𝐶𝐼𝐹𝑖 = 𝐴𝐶𝐼𝐹𝑖 · 𝐶𝑖 (45.12)

TCIT: Total Customer Interruption Time, in [𝐶ℎ/𝑎].

𝑇 𝐶𝐼𝑇𝑖 = 𝐴𝐶𝐼𝑇𝑖 · 𝐶𝑖 (45.13)

TPCONTIF: Total Contracted Power Interruption Frequency, in [𝑀 𝑊 ℎ/𝑎].

∑︁
𝑇 𝑃 𝐶𝑂𝑁 𝑇 𝐼𝐹𝑖 = 𝐹 𝑟𝑘 · 𝑓 𝑟𝑎𝑐𝑖,𝑘 · 𝑃 𝑐𝑖 (45.14)
𝑘

TPCONTIT: Total Contracted Power Interruption Time, in [𝑀 𝑊 ℎ/𝑎].

∑︁
𝑇 𝑃 𝐶𝑂𝑁 𝑇 𝐼𝑇𝑖 = 8760 · 𝑃 𝑟𝑘 · 𝑓 𝑟𝑎𝑐𝑖,𝑘 · 𝑃 𝑐𝑖 (45.15)
𝑘

45.2.3.3 System Indices

SAIFI: System Average Interruption Frequency Index, in [1/𝐶𝑎]. It indicates how often the average
customer experiences a sustained interruption during the period specified in the calculation.
∑︀
𝐴𝐶𝐼𝐹𝑖 · 𝐶𝑖
𝑆𝐴𝐼𝐹 𝐼 = ∑︀ (45.16)
𝐶𝑖

SAIFI_P: Yearly Average Interruption Frequency (Contracted Power), in [1/𝑎]. It indicates how often
there are contracted power interruptions during the period of the calculation.
∑︀
𝑇 𝑃 𝐶𝑂𝑁 𝑇 𝐼𝐹𝑖
𝑆𝐴𝐼𝐹 𝐼_𝑃 = ∑︀ (45.17)
𝑃 𝐶𝑂𝑁 𝑇 𝑅𝐴𝐶𝑇𝑖

CAIFI: Customer Average Interruption Frequency Index, in [1/𝐶𝑎]. It is the mean frequency of sus-
tained interruptions for those customers experiencing sustained interruptions. Each customer is
counted once regardless of the number of times interrupted for this calculation.
∑︀
𝐴𝐶𝐼𝐹𝑖 · 𝐶𝑖
𝐶𝐴𝐼𝐹 𝐼 = ∑︀ (45.18)
𝐴𝑖

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SAIDI: System Average Interruption Duration Index, in [ℎ/𝐶𝑎]. It indicates the total duration of inter-
ruption for the average customer during the period in the calculation. It is commonly measured in
customer minutes or customer hours of interruption.
∑︀
𝐴𝐶𝐼𝑇𝑖 · 𝐶𝑖
𝑆𝐴𝐼𝐷𝐼 = ∑︀ (45.19)
𝐶𝑖

SAIDI_P: Yearly Average Interruption Duration (Contracted Power), in [ℎ/𝑎]. It indicates the total
duration of contracted power interruptions during the period of the calculation.
∑︀
𝑇 𝑃 𝐶𝑂𝑁 𝑇 𝐼𝑇𝑖
𝑆𝐴𝐼𝐷𝐼_𝑃 = ∑︀ (45.20)
𝑃 𝐶𝑂𝑁 𝑇 𝑅𝐴𝐶𝑇𝑖

CAIDI: Customer Average Interruption Duration Index, in [ℎ]. It is the mean time to restore service.

𝑆𝐴𝐼𝐷𝐼
𝐶𝐴𝐼𝐷𝐼 = (45.21)
𝑆𝐴𝐼𝐹 𝐼

ASAI: Average Service Availability Index. It represents the fraction of time that a customer is connected
during the defined calculation period.

𝐴𝑆𝐴𝐼 = 1 − 𝐴𝑆𝑈 𝐼 (45.22)

ASUI: Average Service Unavailability Index. It is the probability of having all loads supplied.
∑︀
𝐴𝐶𝐼𝑇𝑖 · 𝐶𝑖
𝐴𝑆𝑈 𝐼 = ∑︀ (45.23)
8760 · 𝐶𝑖

ASIFI: Average System Interruption Frequency Index, in [1/𝑎]. The calculation of this index is based on
load rather than customers affected. ASIFI can be used to measure distribution performance in
areas that supply relatively few customers having relatively large concentrations of load, predom-
inantly industrial/commercial customers
∑︀
𝐿𝑚
𝐴𝑆𝐼𝐹 𝐼 = (45.24)
𝐿𝑇

ASIDI: Average System Interruption Duration Index, in [ℎ/𝑎]. It is the equivalent of SAIDI but based on
load, rather than customers affected.
∑︀
(𝑟𝑚 · 𝐿𝑚 )
𝐴𝑆𝐼𝐷𝐼 = (45.25)
𝐿𝑇

MAIFI: Momentary Average Interruption Frequency Index, in [1/𝐶𝑎]. It evaluates the average frequency
of momentary interruptions. The calculation is described in the IEEE Standard 1366 ’IEEE Guide
for Electric Power Distribution Reliability Indices’.
∑︀
𝐼𝑀𝑖 · 𝐴𝑖
𝑀 𝐴𝐼𝐹 𝐼 = ∑︀ (45.26)
𝐶𝑖

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45.2.3.4 Load Point Energy Indices

LPENS: Load Point Energy Not Supplied, in [𝑀 𝑊 ℎ/𝑎].

⌢ ⌢
𝐿𝑃 𝐸𝑁 𝑆𝑖 = 𝐴𝐶𝐼𝑇𝑖 · (𝑃 𝑑𝑖 + 𝑃 𝑠𝑖 ) (45.27)

LPES: Load Point Energy Shed, in [𝑀 𝑊 ℎ/𝑎].

⌢
𝐿𝑃 𝐸𝑆𝑖 = 𝐴𝐶𝐼𝑇𝑖 · 𝑃 𝑠𝑖 (45.28)

Where 𝑃 𝑑𝑖 is the weighted average amount of power disconnected at load point 𝑖 and 𝑃 𝑠𝑖 is the
weighted average amount of power shed at load point 𝑖.

45.2.3.5 System Energy Indices

ENS: Energy Not Supplied, in [𝑀 𝑊 ℎ/𝑎]. It is the total amount of energy on average not delivered to
the system loads.
∑︁
𝐸𝑁 𝑆 = 𝐿𝑃 𝐸𝑁 𝑆𝑖 (45.29)

SES: System Energy Shed, in [𝑀 𝑊 ℎ/𝑎]. It is the total amount of energy on average expected to be
shed in the system.
∑︁
𝑆𝐸𝑆 = 𝐿𝑃 𝐸𝑆𝑖 (45.30)

AENS: Average Energy Not Supplied, in [𝑀 𝑊 ℎ/𝐶𝑎]. It is the average amount of energy not supplied,
for all customers.

𝐸𝑁 𝑆
𝐴𝐸𝑁 𝑆 = ∑︀ (45.31)
𝐶𝑖

ACCI: Average Customer Curtailment Index, in [𝑀 𝑊 ℎ/𝐶𝑎]. It is the average amount of energy not
supplied, for all affected customers.

𝐸𝑁 𝑆
𝐴𝐶𝐶𝐼 = ∑︀ (45.32)
𝐴𝑖

45.2.3.6 Load Point Interruption Cost

LPIC: Load Point Interruption Cost, in [𝑈 𝑆𝐷/𝑎].

∑︁
𝐿𝑃 𝐼𝐶𝑖 = 𝐿𝑃 𝐼𝐶𝑖,𝑘 (45.33)
𝑘

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where 𝐿𝑃 𝐼𝐶𝑖,𝑘 is the average interruption cost for load point 𝑖 and contingency case 𝑘, considering the
load point interruption costs function and the assessed distribution of the durations of the interruptions
at this load point for contingency case 𝑘.

Interruption costs are calculated differently depending on whether an Energy Tariff (IntTariffenergy ) or
a Time Tariff (IntTarifftime) is used.

On the one hand, if an Energy Tariff is selected:

𝐿𝑃 𝐼𝐶𝑖,𝑘 = 𝐹 𝑟𝑘 · 𝐸𝑖,𝑘 · 𝑇 𝑎𝑟𝑖𝑓𝑓𝑒𝑛𝑒𝑟𝑔𝑦 (𝑡𝑖,𝑘 ) (45.34)

where 𝐸𝑖,𝑘 is the energy not supplied at load point 𝑖 due the contingency 𝑘.

On the other hand, if a Time Tariff is selected:

𝐿𝑃 𝐼𝐶𝑖,𝑘 = 𝐹 𝑟𝑘 · 𝑃𝑖 · 𝑓 𝑟𝑎𝑐𝑖,𝑘 · 𝑇 𝑎𝑟𝑖𝑓𝑓𝑡𝑖𝑚𝑒 (𝑡𝑖,𝑘 ) (45.35)

where 𝑃𝑖 is the active power at load point 𝑖 before the contingency 𝑘 occurs.

For cost functions expressed in money per interrupted customer, the number of interrupted customers
is estimated for each interruption as the highest number of customers interrupted at any time during the
whole interruption duration.

45.2.3.7 System Interruption Costs

EIC: Expected Interruption Cost, in [𝑀 𝑈 𝑆𝐷/𝑎]. It is the total expected interruption cost.
∑︁
𝐸𝐼𝐶 = 𝐿𝑃 𝐸𝐼𝐶𝑖 (45.36)

IEAR: Interrupted Energy Assessment Rate, in [𝑈 𝑆𝐷/𝑘𝑊 ℎ]. It is the total expected interruption cost
per not supplied kWh.

𝐸𝐼𝐶
𝐼𝐸𝐴𝑅 = (45.37)
𝐸𝑁 𝑆

45.2.3.8 Indices for Busbars/Terminals

AID: Average Interruption Duration, in [ℎ].

∑︁
𝐴𝐼𝑇 = 8760 · 𝑃 𝑟𝑘 (45.38)
𝑘

AIF: Yearly Interruption Frequency, in [1/𝑎].

∑︁
𝐴𝐼𝐹 = 𝐹 𝑟𝑘 (45.39)
𝑘

AIT: Yearly Interruption Time, in [ℎ/𝑎].

𝐴𝐼𝑇
𝐴𝐼𝐷 = (45.40)
𝐴𝐼𝐹

Where the sum iterates through all contingencies leading to an unsupplied busbar (analogous to LPIF
and LPIT).

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45.2.4 System State Enumeration in Reliability Assessment

In PowerFactory, Reliability Assessment uses a System State Enumeration to analyse all possible
system states, one by one. A fast ’topological’ method is used which ensures that each possible
system state is only analysed once. State frequencies (average occurrences per year) are calculated
by considering only the transitions from a healthy situation to an unhealthy one and back again. This
is important because the individual system states are analysed one by one, and the (chronological)
connection between them is therefore lost.

The enumerated calculation method is fast for quick investigation of large distribution networks, but does
not compromise accuracy. Exact analytic averages are calculated. Distributions of reliability indices,
however, cannot be calculated. For example, the average annual unavailability in hours/year can be
calculated, but the probability that this unavailability is less than 15 minutes for a certain year cannot be
calculated.

The state enumeration algorithm can include independent failures, simultaneous (n-2) failures, common
mode failures, numerous load states and planned outages.

An overview flow diagram for the reliability assessment by state enumeration is shown in Figure 45.2.3.

Figure 45.2.3: Overview Flow Diagram for Reliability Assessment by State Enumeration

After the State Enumeration is complete, each simulated system state can be viewed using the ’tracing

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tool’ on the Reliability Toolbar, see Section 46.2 for more information.

45.3 Setting up the Network Model for Reliability Assessment

Prior to starting a Reliability Assessment Calculation, you must setup the Network Model with specific
reliability data models. This section discusses the following procedures:
• Defining Stochastic Failure and Repair Models, described in Section 45.3.1
• Defining Feeders for Reliability Assessment, described in Section 45.3.2
• Configuring Switches for Reliability Assessment, described in Section 45.3.3
• Load Modelling for Reliability Assessment, described in Section 45.3.4
• Considering Multiple System Demand Levels, described in Section 45.3.6
• Defining Fault Clearance Based on Protection Device Location, described in Section 45.3.7
• Considering Planned Maintenance, described in Section 45.3.8
• Specifying Individual Component Constraints, described in Section 45.3.9
• Considering Switching Rules, described in Section 45.3.10

45.3.1 Defining Stochastic Failure and Repair Models

PowerFactory allows the user to define models to capture the stochastic failure and repair behaviour of
system components. Stochastic failure models ( ) define the probability that a component will fail and
when it does fail, the mean time to repair the component. The following stochastic failure models are
supported by PowerFactory :

• Busbar/Terminal Stochastic Model (StoTypbar ), described in Section 45.3.1.1

• Line/Cable/Branch Stochastic Model (StoTyplne), described in Section 45.3.1.2
• Transformer and Shunt Stochastic Model (StoTyptrf ), described in Section 45.3.1.3
• Distribution Transformer Stochastic Model for MV Loads (StoTyptrf ), described in Section 45.3.1.4
• Generator Stochastic Model (StoGen), described in Section 45.3.1.5
• Common Mode Stochastic Model (StoCommon), described in Section 45.3.1.6
• Protection/Switch Failure Model, described in Section 45.3.1.7
• Double Earth Fault Failure Model, described in Section 45.3.1.8

This section describes each of these Stochastic Models and the procedure for defining them.

45.3.1.1 Bar Type Failures (StoTypbar )

The Bar Type Failures model (StoTypbar ) is a stochastic failure and repair model for nodes of a network.
It can be assigned to a Terminal (ElmTerm) or to its Busbar Type (TypBar ).

Note: Bar Type Failures can only be mapped to Terminals that are defined as Busbar or Junction Node.

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The following parameters can be defined on the Basic Data page:

• Failure frequency for terminal in [1/a].

• Additional failure frequency per connection in [1/a].

• Repair duration in [h].

Note: For a description of the parameters on the Earth Fault page, refer to Section Section 45.3.1.8.

The Additional failure frequency per connection allows the user to consider an incremental failure rate
due the failure of the circuit breakers connected to the terminal, without modelling this mode explicitly in
the associated circuit breakers. The forced outage rate of a given terminal then results from considering
its own failure frequency as well as the additional failure frequency per connection.

𝐹 𝑂𝑅1 = 𝐷𝑛𝐹 𝑟1 + 𝑁 𝐶𝐶𝐵 · 𝐷𝑛𝐹 𝑟2 (45.41)

where:

• FOR1 is the forced outage rate of the terminal in [1/a].

• DnFr1 is the failure frequency for terminal in [1/a].

• DnFr2 is the additional failure frequency per connection in [1/a].
• NCCB is the number of connected circuit breakers.

It should be noted that the additional failure frequency is added to the failure frequency of the Terminal
only if the connection is made via a circuit breaker or a disconnecting circuit breaker. The following
cases can be considered:

• Simple node (Terminal): The switching devices are modelled using Switch (StaCubic) objects.
Additional failure frequency is only added if the switch type is cbk (circuit breaker) or dcb (discon-
necting circuit breaker).
• Composite node (Substation or Secondary Substation). The switching devices are modelled using
Breaker/Switch (ElmCoup) objects. The additional frequency is only added to the failure frequency
for terminal if the switch type is cbk (circuit breaker) or dcb (disconnecting circuit breaker).

Note: Concerning the failure data, it should be noted that is possible to define the stochastic failure
model using either failure frequencies or outage expectancies. The Options button ( ) can be
used to select the most convenient input mode.

As mentioned above, the bar type failure model can be added to a Terminal element (ElmTerm) or to
its type (TypBar ). If you want to use the same stochastic model for several terminals of the same type,
then you should define it via the type. On the other hand, if you want to use a stochastic model for a
single element, then you should define it via the element.

Note: If you define a stochastic element model for a terminal that also has a stochastic model within its
corresponding type, the element model overrules the type model.

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45.3.1.2 Line/Cable/Branch Stochastic Model (StoTyplne)

It is possible to define a Stochastic Model for every line, cable or branch within the network. The
Stochastic Model can be defined either through the object type or through the object element. If you
want to use the same Stochastic Model for a number of different lines/cables then you should define it
through the object type reliability page. Alternatively, if you want to use a Stochastic Model for only one
element, then you should define it through the element reliability page.

Cable type definition

To define a Stochastic Model for a line or cable type follow these steps:

1. Open the dialog for the line type and select the Reliability tab.
2. Using the ’Stochastic Model’ selection control click the black triangle and select the option ’New
project type’. The dialog for the ’Line Type Failures’ will appear.
3. Enter the Sustained Failure Frequency. Note that the probability of the line failure is determined
using this value and the length of the line. For example, a 12 km line with a Sustained failure
frequency of 0.032(1/(𝑎 · 𝑘𝑚)) will have a failure probability of 12 · 0.032 = 0.384(1/(𝑎)).
4. Enter the mean repair duration in hours.
5. Enter the Transient Fault Frequency. Note this parameter is used for the calculation of the MAIFI.
6. Press OK twice to return to the element dialog.

Cable element definition

To define a Stochastic Model for a line, cable or branch element follow these steps:

1. Open the dialog for the line or branch element and navigate to the Reliability tab.
2. Using the ’element model’ selection control click the black triangle and select the option ’New
project type’. The dialog for the ’Line Type Failures’ will appear.
3. In case of branches, if the stochastic data for one of its components is defined, then you will only
see a summary of the stochastic data. If this is not the case, then an ’element model’ can be
selected for branches. This stochastic model is applied to all the branch components, i.e lines,
cable systems and tower models.
4. If reliability data are available for branches, then branches are treated like other elements
5. Enter the failure data and repair time data as described above for the line type.
6. Press OK to return to the element dialog.

Note: For a description of the parameters on the Earth Fault page, refer to Section Section 45.3.1.8.

45.3.1.3 Transformer and Shunt Stochastic Model (StoTyptrf )

It is possible to define a Stochastic Model for every transformer and Shunt within the network. The
Stochastic Model can be defined either through the object type or through the object element. If you
want to use the same Stochastic Model for a number of different transformers or Shunts then you should
define it through the object type reliability page. Alternatively, if you want to use a Stochastic Model for
only one transformer or Shunt element, then you should define it through the element reliability page.

Transformer type definition

To define a Stochastic Model for a transformer type follow these steps:

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1. Open the dialog for the transformer type and select the Reliability tab.
2. Using the ’Stochastic Model’ selection control click the black triangle and select the option ’New
project type’. The dialog for the ’Transformer Type Failures’ will appear.
3. Enter the failure frequency data (1/a).
4. Enter the mean repair duration in hours.
5. Press OK twice to return to the element dialog.
Transformer and Shunt element definition

To define a Stochastic Model for a transformer or shunt element follow these steps:
1. Open the dialog for the transformer or shunt element and select the Reliability tab.
2. Using the ’element model’ selection control click the black triangle and select the option ’New
project type’. The dialog for the StoTyptrf Type Failures will appear.
3. Enter the failure data and repair time data as described above for the transformer type.
4. Press OK to return to the element dialog.

Note: For a description of the parameters on the Earth Fault page, refer to Section Section 45.3.1.8.

45.3.1.4 Distribution Transformer Stochastic Model for MV Loads (StoTyptrf )

In PowerFactory, MV Loads can provide the functionality of a built-in distribution transformer. The fault
behaviour of the distribution transformer is the same as for other transformers, except for the fact that
the load connected behind the transformer is not supplied until the end of the repair duration.

To define a Stochastic Model for a distribution transformer within the MV Load element or type, open
the dialog for the MV Load element (ElmLodmv ) or its type (TypDistrf ) and select the Reliability tab. As
the failure model is based on the transformer (StoTyptrf ), the steps for the definition of this failure model
are equivalent to the ones described in Section 45.3.1.3.

45.3.1.5 Generator Stochastic Model (StoGen)

Within a network, it is possible to define a Stochastic Model for Generation (StoGen) for every generator
class (synchronous machines, static generators, PV systems, etc.) which can be used by both Reliability
Analysis and Generation Adequacy Analysis calculation functions. For further information refer to
Section 47.3.1. The Stochastic Model can only be defined via the network element. The failure model
can contain any number of load level states; each state representing the availability of the generator
over a year. This way, complete and/or partial outages can be modelled.

Upon execution of Reliability Assessment, PowerFactory creates a separate contingency for each
defined state. A load flow is calculated considering the reduced availability (including 0 %) of the
generator, and depending on constraint violations, load shedding and/or re-dispatch of alternative
generators may result.

The Stochastic Model for Generation includes an unlimited number of states with each defined accord-
ing to:

• State: Name of the state

• Availability [%]: Percentage of the rated power available
• Probability [%]: Probability that this state is valid (the sum of all probabilities must be 100 %)

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• Duration [H]: Time needed to solve the given failure

• Frequency [1/a]: Number of incidents that cause the given state per year
• Total Duration [h/a]: Total duration of the given state per year
Generator element definition

To define a Stochastic Model for a generator element follow these steps:

1. Open the dialog for the Generator element and select the Reliability tab.
2. Using the ’Stochastic Model’, click the black triangle and select the option ’Select. . . ’. The dialog
for the ’Equipment Types’ project library will appear.

3. Click the New Object button ( ) to create a Stochastic Model for Generation object (StoGen).
The dialog for the object should appear.
4. Enter the data according to one of the following:
• Probability and repair duration
• Repair duration and frequency per year
• Probability and frequency per year
5. Press OK to return to the element dialog.

45.3.1.6 Common Mode Stochastic Model (StoCommon)

A common mode failure (StoCommon) involves the simultaneous failure of two or more power system
components. An example is a distribution feeder where two lines with different voltages share the
same poles. If one or more poles fail, for example a car hits a pole, then both lines will be interrupted
simultaneously: these lines have a ’common failure mode’. Such a failure will usually be more likely
than the probability of the two lines failing independently at the same time.

In PowerFactory, it is possible to define a common mode failure object to consider such failures in the
reliability calculation. These Stochastic Models consider the common mode failure probability in addition
to the independent failure mode of each component within the model.

To define a common mode failure Stochastic Model through the single line diagram follow these steps:
1. Mark two or more network objects.
2. Right-click on one of the marked elements and chose Operational Library → Common Mode
FailureNew. . . .
3. To add a network element, add a cell below the last full cell by right-clicking within an empty area
of the dialog and selecting the option Append Row(s).
4. Double-click in the first empty cell of the ’Name’ column, to open an object selection browser.
5. Use the browser to find the object that is part of the Common Mode Failure that you are trying to
define.
6. Click OK to return to the Common Mode Failure dialog.
7. Repeat steps 3-6 to add more objects to the Common Mode Failure.
8. Click the ’Failure Data’ tab and enter the Sustained Failure Frequency, Mean Outage duration and
Transient Fault Frequency data.
9. Click OK to save the changes.

Note: Meaningful names are created for common modes based on the names of elements in the
common modes

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.
To define a common mode failure Stochastic Model through the Data Manager (not suitable for the first
Common Mode Stochastic Model) follow these steps:

1. Using the Data Manager, select the ’Common Mode’ failures folder within the ’Operational Library’.

2. Click the New Object button ( ) to create a Stochastic Common Mode failure object (StoCom-
mon). The dialog for the object should appear.

3. Double click in the first empty cell of the ’Name’ column, to open an object selection browser.
4. Use the browser to find the object that is part of the Common Mode Failure that you are trying to
define.
5. Click OK to return to the Common Mode Failure dialog.

6. Add a cell below the last full cell by right-clicking within an empty area of the dialog and selecting
the option ’Append Rows’.
7. Repeat steps 3-6 to add more objects to the Common Mode Failure.
8. Click the ’Failure Data’ tab and enter the Sustained Failure Frequency, Mean Outage duration and
Transient Fault Frequency data.
9. Click OK to save the changes.
10. Common mode failures can be defined between all elements with stochastic data, e.g.between
branches and other branches or between branches and other components.

11. System failure states created by PowerFactory could consist of common mode failure, mainte-
nance and protection failures.

45.3.1.7 Protection/Switch Failures

PowerFactory can consider the failure of the protection system to clear the fault as a stochastic proba-
bility within the reliability calculation. This is enabled by entering a ’Probability of Failure’ into the switch
object. To enter this data:

1. Open the dialog for the switch object where you want to enter the switch failure probability.
Normally switches are accessed by right-clicking their containing cubicle and selecting the option
Devices → Show All Devices.
2. On the Reliability page of the switch object, enter the ’Fault Clearance: circuit breaker fails to
open probability’ in percent. For example, a 5 % failure rate means that on average 1 out of 20
attempted fault clearance operations will fail.
3. “Unnecessary backup protection maloperation” gives the probability of the backup protection
operating unnecessarily. That is, the backup protection tripping in addition to the main protection
device.
4. “Frequency of spurious protection operation” gives the probability of a relay tripping spuriously,
without any indication.

Note: PowerFactory does not distinguish between a protection system failure and a switch failure. For
example, the reason that a switch fails to open could be caused by a faulty relay, a protection
mal-grading or a faulty circuit breaker. The cumulative probability of all these events should be
entered into the switch failure probability.

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45.3.1.8 Double Earth Faults

In ungrounded or resonant grounded systems, a single earth fault does not lead to tripping of overcurrent
protective devices and thus to an immediate disconnection of the faulted part of the system. Therefore,
it is generally said that the system can continue to operate for a short time despite the single earth fault.
However, if, due the overvoltage on the healthy phases that appears during a single earth fault, a second
earth fault occurs on the same feeder or on another feeder connected to the same earth system, high
fault currents will flow. These fault currents are extinguished by disconnection of the faulted elements
and thus lead to an interruption of service.

In PowerFactory, it is possible to define models for double earth faults in order to consider them for
reliability assessment. This can be done on the Earth Fault page of the StoTypbar, StoTyplne and
StoTyptrf stochastic failure models ( ), after enabling the Model Earth Faults option. The following
parameters can be defined:

• Frequency of single earth faults.

Refers to the frequency of single earth faults of the system component to which the stochastic
failure model is assigned.
• Conditional probability of a second earth fault.
Refers to the probability that a single earth fault will occur in the element to which the stochastic
failure model is assigned, given that a single earth fault has occurred in another system component
that is connected to the same grounding area.
• Repair duration.
Refers to the mean time required to repair the system component to which the stochastic failure
model is assigned.

Note: For contingencies considering a double earth fault, PowerFactory performs a conservative anal-
ysis, i.e. uses the longest repair duration to assess the effects of the fault.

If the Double earth faults option is enabled in the Reliability Assessment (ComRel3) calculation com-
mand, PowerFactory automatically generates a Contingency (ComContingency ) for each pair of net-
work elements meeting the following conditions:

• The Frequency of single earth faults of a first element is > 0, and

• The Conditional probability of a second earth fault of a second element is > 0, and

• The network elements are connected to the same grounding area, and
• The star point of the elements supplying that part of the network is either isolated (not connected)
or compensated (Peterson Coil option enabled).

Note: The failure frequency of a double earth fault contingency is evaluated using combinatorial prop-
erties of event probabilities. That is, the failure frequency is calculated as:

𝐹 𝐹𝐷𝐸𝐹 𝐶 = 𝐶𝐶𝐸𝑎𝑟𝐹 𝑟𝐴 · 𝐶𝐶𝐸𝑎𝑟𝑃 𝑟𝑜𝑏𝐵 + 𝐶𝐶𝐸𝑎𝑟𝐹 𝑟𝐵 · 𝐶𝐶𝐸𝑎𝑟𝑃 𝑟𝑜𝑏𝐴 (45.42)

where:
• FFDEFC is the failure frequency of a double earth fault contingency in [1/a].
• CCEarFr is the element’s frequency of single earth faults in [1/a].
• CCEarProb is the element’s conditional probability of a second earth fault in [%].

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45.3.2 Defining Feeders for Reliability Assessment

When performing a reliability calculation with the Distribution option set under ’Basic Options’, Power-
Factory requires that feeders have been defined in the model.

To create a feeder:
• Right-click on the cubicle at the head of the feeder and select the option Network Groupings →
Feeder → New. . . ; or
• For fast creation of multiple feeders, right-click the bus that the feeder/s are to be connected to
and select the option Network Groupings → Feeder → New. . . . More information on feeders and
feeder creation can be found in Chapter 14: Grouping Objects, Section 14.6(Feeders).
When executing the Reliability Assessment in distribution networks with a focus on optimal power
restoration, the meshes within feeders are restricted to be of the following kinds:

1. Mesh within the feeder

In this case, the feeder is supplied from one point and the mesh is within the feeder itself.

Figure 45.3.1: Mesh within feeder

2. Two feeders, starting from the same terminal, are connected

In this case, the feeders are connected and therefore result in a mesh as shown in figure 45.3.2.

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Figure 45.3.2: Mesh containing two feeders starting from the same terminal

45.3.3 Configuring Switches for Reliability Assessment

A critical component of the Failure Effect Analysis (FEA) is the behaviour of the switches and fuses in
the network model. Switches in PowerFactory are classified into five different categories:

• Circuit Breakers, which are automatic, usually relay-controlled, and may be equipped for remote
operation. They are used to clear faults and close back-feeds for power restoration;
• Disconnectors, used for isolation and power restoration;
• Load-Break-Switch, used for isolation and power restoration;

• Switch Disconnector, used for isolation and power restoration;

• Disconnecting circuit breaker, which is a circuit breaker with visual disconnection path.

All switches in PowerFactory are modelled using the StaSwitch or ElmCoup objects. The switch
category (CB, disconnector, etc.) is selected on the basic data page of the switch. This selection
has an impact on the options available on the Reliability page.

The actions that the FEA analysis takes depends on the configuration of these switches and, optionally,
the location of protection devices.

Configuration steps

To configure a switch for reliability analysis follow these steps:

1. Open the dialog for the switch and select the reliability page. This can be done directly by editing
switches modelled explicitly on the single line diagram, or for switches embedded within a cubicle,
by right-clicking the cubicle and selecting the option Devices → Show All Devices, to access the
switch.
2. Select the ’Sectionalising’ option. The following choices are available:
• Remote controlled (Stage 1); This option means that the actuation time of this switch is taken
from the global ’remote controlled’ switch actuation time. The default time is 1 min but this can

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be adjusted within the reliability command, see Section 45.4.1. Typically remote controlled
switches are circuit breakers controlled by relays or with communications from a control room.
• Indicator of Short Circuit (Stage 2); This option represents a switch that has an external
indication of status on the outside of the switch enclosure. This allows the operator/technician
to easily identify the switch status and actuate the switch.
• Manual (Stage 3); These switches need direct visual inspection to determine their status and
therefore take longer to actuate than either stage 1 or stage 2 switches.
3. Select the ’Power Restoration’ option. The following choices are available:
• Do not use for power restoration; If this option is selected the switch can only be used for
isolation of equipment or load shedding. It will not be used by the FEA calculation to restore
power.
• Direction dependency of the restoration:
– For switches (StaSwitch) and breakers (ElmCoup) in bays of substations feeding branches,
the following options are available for a direction dependency:
* From Branch to Node: If this option is selected, the switch will only be used for the
restoration if the branch side of the breaker is supplied. The switch will not be used
for power restoration in the opposite direction.
* From Node to Branch: If this option is selected, the switch will only be used to restore
power if the node side of the breaker is supplied. The switch will not be used for
power restoration in the opposite direction.
– For breakers (ElmCoup) connecting two terminals:
* From j to i: If the connection side j of the breaker is supplied, the breaker may be
used by the algorithm to restore the unsupplied side i of the breaker.
* From i to j: If the connection side i of the breaker is supplied, the breaker may be
used by the algorithm to restore the unsupplied side j of the breaker.
• Independent of direction; If this option is selected the switch will be used to restore power
flow regardless of the direction of the post restoration active power flow.
4. Enter the time to actuate switch (Stage 2 and 3 switches only); This field specifies the time taken
by the operator to actuate the switch. Note, this excludes the local access and access time if
the switch is within a substation. The total actuation time of such a switch is therefore the switch
actuation time + the substation access time + the local access time.
Fuses in PowerFactory are classified into four different categories:

• Fuse: A fuse, an electrical safety device, consists of or includes a wire or strip of fusible metal
which melts and interrupts the circuit when the current exceeds a specified threshold. Fuses
located in cubicles are purely protection devices acting on the corresponding switching device.
The corresponding switch will clear faults for the option Use switches with protection devices.
• Fuse Disconnector: A fused disconnector switch is a combination of a switch to disconnect the
circuit and a fuse to shut the circuit off in the event of a problem. When installing or maintaining
equipment on the circuit, or the circuit itself, the switch provides a method to manually shut off
the power. A fuse switch disconnector is a distribution device widely used in industry that can be
used to manually switch and interrupt circuits and disconnect the power supply. The function to
re-supply power is not yet supported by PowerFactory so it is only used to clear faults.
• Fuse Switch - Disconnector: Fuse load break switches are devices that provide protection against
overcurrent. They reinforce and enhance the safety of your electrical installations by ensuring the
on-load making and breaking of electrical circuits. A load break switch is a device that disconnects
the electrical current from an electric device or circuit when the current exceeds the nominal value.
Fuse load break switches have high current-limiting power fuses. These fuses can be replaced
safely. They also have an indicator of a blown fuse.
• Fuse Load-Switch: This is a Fuse Switch Disconnector for switching of loads.

Fuses basically support two functions in the reliability assessment:

1. They melt in order to clear faults.

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2. They can be replaced during the power re-supply step if the option “Replace melted fuse during
power restoration” is activated.
The complete switching times depend on the following settings:

• Switching procedure for fault separation / power restoration (page Restoration of reliability com-
mand)
• Remote-controlled switches: the time for the remote-controlled switches is taken from the reliability
command
• Access time of switches:
– “First Manual switch action after the fault”: Access time of terminals.
– “After a switch action at another busbar”: Local access time of terminals.
• Time to actuate switch:
– Remote-controlled switches: with time for remote-controlled switches from the reliability com-
mand.
– Switches for the “Short-circuit indicator” and “Manual” phases:
* For the first switch: Time to actuate the switch (as specified in ElmCoup/StaSwitch) + the
time for “First Manual switch action after the fault”
* For all other switches: Time to actuate the switch + the time “After a switch action at
another busbar”

The final time to actuate a switch is calculated as follows:

• The protection breakers/switches actuate immediately (at 0:00 minutes after the fault was applied).
• Switching procedure for fault separation / power restoration:
– Concurrently:
* Remote controlled switches: Are actuated at the time entered in the reliability command.
* All switches are operated at the same time at each stage, since each one of them
actuated at the same switch time “Time to actuate switch” + “Access times of Switches”
of the substation. The final switching time is the maximum of the switching times of all
the switches.
– Sequential (previous switching time is considered):
* Remote controlled switches: Are actuated at the time entered in the reliability command.
* Any other switch:
· Here the switching times are added up one after the other, i.e. the first manual switch
receives t1 = Time to actuate switch 1 + Access Time of switch 1(= “First manual
switch action after the fault”), the second receives t2 = t1 + Time to actuate switch 2
+ Access Time of switch 2(= “After a switch action at another busbar”), etc.

A switch however, will never be closed for power restoration before the corresponding area was sep-
arated from the fault. If an area can be separated from the fault after 15 minutes and the switch for
restoration is remote controlled (time of remote controlled switches is set to 3:00 minutes), it will be
restored after 15 minutes.

Note: The Sectionalising options are only considered when the ’Distribution’ reliability analysis option
is selected under ’Basic Options’. If the ’Transmission’ mode is selected, then all switches are
assumed to be remote controlled.

45.3.4 Load Modelling for Reliability Assessment

This section provides a general description of the load element parameters that are used by the
reliability calculation. The first sub-section describes how to input the number of customers that each
load represents and how to classify each load. The second sub-section describes how to define load
shedding and transfer parameters.

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45.3.4.1 Specifying the Number of Customers for a Load

Many of the reliability indices such as SAIFI and CAIFI are evaluated based on the number of customers
interrupted. Therefore, for accurate calculation of these indices it is important to specify the number of
customers that each load represents.

For the general load (ElmLod) and the MV load (ElmLodmv ), the Number of connected customers can
be entered on the Reliability page.
For the low voltage load (ElmLodlv ) and the partial LV load (ElmLodlvp), the Number of customers can
be entered directly on the Basic Data page.

Load Classification

Every load can be optionally classified into agricultural, commercial, domestic or industrial load. This
option does not affect the calculation of the reliability indices and is provided for categorisation purposes
only.

45.3.4.2 Specifying Load Shedding and Transfer Parameters

Load transfer and load shedding are used to alleviate violated voltage or thermal constraints caused
by the power restoration process. There is a distinction between load transfer for constraint alleviation,
such as described in this section, and load transfer for power restoration. Load transfer by isolating a
fault and closing a back-stop switch is considered automatically during the fault separation and power
restoration phase of the failure effect analysis.

If a violated constraint is detected in the post-fault system condition, a search begins for the loads
contributing to these overloads. The overloads are then alleviated by either:
• Transferring some of these loads, if possible; or
• Shedding some of these loads, starting with the lowest priority loads.
To define the load shedding parameters follow these steps:

1. Open the reliability page of the load element.

2. Enter the number of load shedding steps using the ’Shedding steps’ list box. For example, four
shedding steps means that the load can be shed to 25%, 50%, 75% or 100% of its base value.
Infinite shedding steps means that the load can be shed to the exact value required to alleviate
the constraint.
3. Enter the ’Load priority’. The reliability algorithm will always try to shed the loads with the lowest
priority first. However, high priority loads can still be shed if the algorithm determines this is the
only way to alleviate a constraint.
4. Enter the load transfer percentage in the ’Transferable’ parameter. This defines the percentage
of this load that can be transferred away from the current network. PowerFactory assumes that
the transferred load is picked up by another network that is not modelled, hence load transferring
in this way is equivalent to load shedding in terms of constraint alleviation. The difference is that
transferred load is still considered as supplied load, whereas shed load is obviously not supplied.
5. Optional: Use the selection control next to ’Alternative Supply (Load)’ to specify an alternative
load that picks up all transferred load.

Note: There is a critical difference between the transmission reliability and distribution reliability func-
tions. In distribution reliability all constraint alleviation is completed using switch actions, so
loads can only be fully shed (switched out) or they remain in service. However, by contrast,
the transmission reliability option can shed or transfer a percentage of the load.

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45.3.5 Modelling Load Interruption Costs

When supply to a load is interrupted, there is a cost associated with the loss of supply. PowerFactory
supports the definition of cost curves for load elements using Energy Tariffs and Time Tariffs. They can
be defined using the ’Tariff’ characteristic on the reliability page of the load element, as discussed in
Chapter 17: Parameter Characteristics, Load States, and Tariffs, Section 17.5 (Tariffs).

Projects imported from previous versions of PowerFactory may include Vector Characteristics for the
definition of cost curves, which are discussed in Chapter 17: Parameter Characteristics, Load States,
and Tariffs, Section 17.2.5 (Vector Characteristics with Time Scales).

45.3.6 System Demand and Load States

Considering Multiple System Demand Levels

If time-based characteristics for the feeder loads, generators or both are defined so that the demand
changes depending on the study case time, these states can be considered in the reliability analysis.
Therefore, the load demand for a one year period can be discretised and converted into several so-
called ’load states’, and a probability of occurrence for each state. The Reliability Command does
not automatically generate the load states. One possibility is the specification of load characteristics
for individual loads and generators, and the second is by specification of load distribution states for
substations. The procedures for each method is described in Chapter 17: Parameter Characteristics,
Load States, and Tariffs; Sections 17.3 (Load States) and 17.4 (Load Distribution States).

45.3.7 Defining Fault Clearance Based on Protection Device Location

The Reliability Calculation has two options for fault clearance:

• Use all circuit breakers; or
• Use only circuit breakers controlled by protection devices (fuses or relays).

With the option “Use circuit breakers”, only circuit breakers are considered as protection switches when
clearing faults. If the network model contains fuses, these fuses will not be considered as ’melted’
for fault clearance. The option “Use switches with protection device” uses protection devices for fault
clearance. Switches are only used if they have a protection device. Fuses are used for Fault clearing.
The second option is the more realistic option, because only locations within the network that can
automatically clear a fault will be used by the reliability calculation to clear the simulated faults.

Note: If there is no protection device entered in the network model, there is the possibility to define a
circuit breaker to be considered as switch with protection device for reliability calculations. This
setting can be found within the circuit breakers reliability page. “Fault Clearance: Consider as
switch with protection device”

45.3.8 Considering Planned Maintenance

The PowerFactory reliability calculation supports the definition and automatic inclusion of planned
network maintenance. Maintenance is implemented with a planned outage object. These objects
are found within the ’Outages’ sub-folder within the project ’Operational Library’. The following steps
describe the procedure for creating a planned outage:
1. On the single line diagram (or within the Data Manager), select the object (or objects) that you
would like to define an outage for.

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2. Right-click the selected object/s and from the menu that appears choose the option Operational
Library → Planned Outage→ New. . . . The dialog box for the planned outage will appear.
3. Using the Start Time selection control ’...’, enter the time that the outage begins.

4. Using the End Time selection control ’...’, enter the time that the outage ends.
5. Optional: Adjust the Outage Type. Typically you would leave this on the default ’Outage of Element’
option, but if you wanted to model a generator derating, then you would choose the ’Generator
Derating’ option.

Note: When the reliability calculation considers outages it creates a unique contingency case for every
contingency with the outage applied and also without the outage. For example, for a network with
two planned outages and six contingencies there will be a total of 6 · 3 = 18 cases.

45.3.9 Specifying Individual Component Constraints

The reliability calculation can automatically consider voltage and thermal constraints for the power
restoration process. There are two options for specifying constraints applied to branch, terminal, and
feeder objects as follows:

Global Constraints; All network constraints are based on the constraints specified on the constraints
page of the Reliability Command dialog.

Individual Constraints; If Individual Constraints are selected for branches, terminals, and / or feeders,
constraints should be defined by the user for each relevant object by taking the following steps:
1. Open the reliability page of the target terminal, branch (line/transformer), or feeder.
2. Enter the Max and Min Voltage limits, max loading, or voltage drop/rise for the terminal, branch,
or feeder respectively.

3. Click OK to close the dialog and save the changes.

45.3.10 Considering Switching Rules

Reliability Analysis in PowerFactory allows the user to consider predefined switching rules within sub-
stations according to section 11.2.7.4. Switching-rules are executed directly after protection operation.

45.4 Running The Reliability Assessment Calculation

The procedure for using the PowerFactory Reliability Assessment tool and analysing the results gener-
ated by the tool is described in this section.

45.4.1 How to run the Reliability Assessment

In PowerFactory the network Reliability Analysis is completed using the Reliability Assessment com-
mand (ComRel3 ). This command is found on the ’Reliability Analysis’ toolbar.

Alternatively, the commands can be executed for a single element by right-clicking the element and
selecting Calculation → Reliability Assessment. . . or Calculation → Optimal Power Restoration. . . .

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The options for the reliability command that are presented within its dialog are described in the following
sub-sections.

A reliability assessment is started when the Execute button is pressed. The calculation time required
for a reliability assessment can range from a few seconds for a small network only considering n-1 con-
tingencies, to several hours for a large network considering n-2 contingencies. A reliability assessment
calculation can be interrupted by clicking on the Break icon ( ) on the main toolbar.

45.4.1.1 Basic Options

The following options are available on the Basic Options page Reliability Assessment Command dialog.

Calculation

This section defines what kind of load flow calculation will be the base for the analysis and for the
constraints evaluation. The selection offers either a balanced or an unbalanced calculation. In addition,
the load-flow calculation command is linked as an object for the further configuration of specific options
such as the consideration of automatic tap adjustment, the slack assignment or the voltage dependency
of the loads.

Method

• Connectivity analysis: this option enables failure effect analysis without considering constraints.
A load is assumed to be supplied if it is connected to a source of power before a contingency, and
assumed to undergo a loss of supply if the process of fault clearance separates the load from all
power sources. Because constraints are not considered, no load-flow is required for this option
and hence the analysis will be faster than when using the alternative load-flow analysis option.
• Load flow analysis: this option is the same as the connectivity analysis, except that constraints
are considered by completing load-flows for each contingency. Loads might be disconnected
to alleviate voltage or thermal constraints. For the transmission analysis option, Generator re-
dispatch, load transfer and load shedding are used to alleviate overloads.

Calculation time period

• Complete year: the reliability calculation is performed for the current year specified in the ’Date/-
Time of the Calculation Case’. This can be accessed and the date and time changed by clicking
the button.
• Single Point in Time: the Reliability Calculation is completed for the network in its current state
at the actual time specified by the ’Date/Time of the Calculation Case’.

Note: If load states or maintenance plans are not created and considered, then these options make no
difference because the reliability calculation is always completed at the single specified time.

Network

• Distribution: the reliability assessment will try to remove overloading at components and voltage
violations (at terminals) by optimising the switch positions in the system. If constraints occur in
the power restoration process, loads will be shed by opening available switches. This option is the
recommended analysis option for distribution and medium voltage networks.

Note: The reliability command optimises switch positions based on load shedding priorities, and
not network losses.

• Transmission: thermal overloads are removed by generator re-dispatch, load transfer and load
shedding. First generator re-dispatch and load transfer is attempted. If these cannot be completed

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or do not remove the thermal overload, load shedding actions will occur. Generator re-dispatch
and load transfer do not affect the reliability indices. However, by contrast, load shedding leads to
unsupplied loads and therefore affects the reliability indices.

Automatic Contingency Definition

If the checkbox is selected, new contingencies will be created. If it is unchecked, existing contingencies
from previous calculations will be used for reliability assessment.

The ’Selection’ list presents two possible options for the contingency definition. These are:
• Whole system: PowerFactory will automatically create a contingency event for every object that
has a Stochastic Model defined.
• User Defined: Selecting this option shows a selection control. Now you can select a set of objects
(SetSelect), and contingencies will be created for each of these objects that has a Stochastic
Model defined.
In addition to the above contingency definition options, the automatic contingency definition can be
further controlled with the following, mostly self explanatory checkboxes:

• Busbars/Terminals
• Lines/Cables/Branch
• Transformers
• Generators: This flag is only available for the Load flow analysis method.
• Shunts/Filters/Ser. Impedances: Covers the parallel and series elements.
• Common Mode; This flag should be enabled for PowerFactory to create Common Mode contin-
gencies. See section 45.3.1.6 (Common Mode Stochastic Model) for more information.
• Independent second failures; This flag should be enabled for PowerFactory to consider n-2 out-
ages in addition to n-1 outages. Caution: n-2 outages for all combinations of n-1 outages are
considered. This means that for a system of n contingencies there are (𝑛 · (𝑛 − 1))/2) + 𝑛,
contingencies to consider. This equation is quadratic, and so to minimise the required time for
computation this option is disabled by default.
• Double-earth faults; This flag should be enabled for PowerFactory to consider double-earth faults.
See section 45.3.1.8 (Double Earth Faults) for more information.
• Protection/switching failures; This flag should be enabled for PowerFactory to consider the failure
to operate of protection devices or circuit breakers. See section 45.3.1.7 (Protection/Switch
Failures) for more information.
• Spurious protection operation; as explained in section 45.3.1.7.
• Backup protection maloperation; as explained in section 45.3.1.7.

45.4.1.2 Outputs

The following options are available on the Outputs page of the Reliability command.

Results

This option allows the selection of the result element (ElmRes) where the results of the reliability
analysis will be stored. Normally, PowerFactory will create a results object within the active study
case.

Show detailed output of initial load flow and top level feeders

If this option is checked, a detailed report of the initial load flow will be printed to the output window.

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45.4.1.3 Protection

Fault Clearance Breakers

• Circuit breakers: all switches in the system whose aUsage is set to Circuit Breaker can be used
for fault clearance.
• Switches with protection device: all circuit breakers in the system which are controlled by a
protection device (fuse or relay) can be used for fault clearance. Circuit breakers which are set to
have a protection device are also considered.

Further information is provided in section 45.3.7.

Create Contingencies

These settings are the same as in “Automatic Contingency Definition”, described in section 45.4.1.1.
For convenience they are displayed within this tab as well.

45.4.1.4 Restoration

Automatic Power Restoration

The options described below will only be available if Automatic Power Restoration is selected.

Load/Generator Priorities

The two settings will be used to evaluate the element’s priority value, entered by the user.

• Lowest priority number refers to most critical load/generator: this means that higher priorities
are shed first.
• Highest priority number refers to most critical load/generator

Switching procedures for fault separation/power restoration

• Concurrent Switch Actions: it is assumed that the switching actions can be performed immedi-
ately following the specified switching time. However, a switch can be closed for power restoration
only after the faulted element was disconnected. The analogy for this mode is if there were a large
number of operators in the field that were able to communicate with each other to coordinate the
switching actions as quickly as possible. Therefore, this option gives an optimistic assessment of
the ’smart power restoration’.
• Sequential Switch Actions: it is assumed that all switching actions are performed sequentially.
The analogy for this mode is if there were only a single operator in the field, who was required to
complete all switching. The fault separation and power restoration is therefore slower when using
this mode compared with the ’concurrent’ mode.

• Consider Sectionalising (Distribution analysis only): if enabled, the FEA considers the switch
sectionalising stage when attempting fault separation and power restoration.

Time to open remote controlled switches

The time (in minutes) taken to open remote controlled switches.

Tie Open Point Optimisation

After the isolation of failures, parts of the network may be unsupplied. However, the network can be
reconfigured by moving the tie open point in order to restore as much power as possible (partial power
restoration). This reconfiguration might lead to violations of constraints (e.g. overloading), which should
be avoided. For each sectionalising stage of switches, the optimisation method offers three power
restoration modes:

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• Disabled: no movement of tie open points

• Enabled without load transfer: tie open points can only be moved between the feeder affected
by the fault and a directly-bordering feeder. Only unsupplied loads are then transferred to and
restored by the neighbouring feeder.
• Enabled with load transfer: tie open points can be moved between a bordering feeder and a
second-level bordering feeder. In this case supplied loads not affected by the fault can also be
transferred to other feeders to increase the flexibility of the restoration algorithm.

First sectionalising is attempted using only stage 1 switches, if this is not successful then stage 1 and 2
switches are used. Finally, if this is not successful, then stage 1, 2 and 3 switches are used.

If Consider Sectionalising Actions is disabled, the stage of each switch is ignored and all switches will
be considered equally with one of the above mentioned methods.

Supplying substations

Backward recovery: Whenever a busbar, being the starting point of one or more feeders, is de-
energised after a fault (e.g. of an HV/MV-transformer), closing tie open points in one of the feeders can
restore the supply of the busbar and the other feeders from a neighbouring substation. This so-called
backward recovery is available for networks with explicit substation modelling (ElmSubstat, ElmTrfstat).
The algorithm finds the best feeder for resupplying the substation and the interrupted feeders. This can
improve the restoration quality for a loss of a substation significantly (see figure 45.4.1).

(a) Initial State (b) Resupply of Feeder 1

Figure 45.4.1: Example of Backward Recovery

The Backward recovery offers the following options:

• Do not allow: backward recovery will not be considered for restoration
• Allow but prefer standard recovery: backward recovery will only be used if the other restoration
options fail.
• Allow with user-defined preference: substations where backward recovery is allowed can be
selected here.
• Allow and prefer: whenever possible, backward recovery will be preferred over the other restora-
tion options.

Busbar transfer: Whenever a busbar in a multi-busbar substation with multiple transformers is unsup-
plied as a consequence of a fault, closing coupling breakers within the substation may be an option for

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restoration. This transfer of a busbar to the supply of another transformer is available in PowerFactory,
with one of these three options:
• Simple reconnection: an unsupplied busbar will be connected to the adjacent busbar. If constraints
violations remain, further measures will be considered, e.g. load shedding within feeders.
• Optimised without additional meshes: the algorithm will optimise the coupling breaker positions
in the substations to supply as much as possible of the unsupplied feeders, taking into account
the constraints. The transfer of busbars not directly affected by the fault to other transformers is
possible. The switching actions will not lead to additional meshes, e.g. the parallel operation of
transformers due to the busbar transfer.
• Optimised with and without meshes: Same as “Optimised without additional meshes” but with the
further freedom for the algorithm of creating new meshes, e.g. leading to parallel operation of
transformers.

Enhanced restoration

If this checkbox is enabled, the restoration uses a more precise algorithm to solve load flow convergence
issues during the restoration process. Setting this option can decrease the performance of the Reliability
assessment.

45.4.1.5 Costs

Costs for energy not supplied

If this option is selected, an Energy Tariff can be selected. Energy Tariffs are discussed in Chapter 17:
Parameter Characteristics, Load States, and Tariffs, Section 17.5.2(Defining Energy Tariffs).

Costs for loads

If this option is selected, a Global cost curve for all loads can be selected. Alternatively, ’Individual cost
curve per load’ may be selected, allowing the user to define tariffs for individual loads. In both cases,
a Time Tariff or Energy Tariff may be defined, as discussed in Chapter 17: Parameter Characteristics,
Load States, and Tariffs, Section 17.5 (Tariffs).

45.4.1.6 Constraints

For the method “Load flow analysis” (see Basic Options in 45.4.1.1), this page allows the user to define
the consideration and the limits for various constrained quantities. For the “Transmission” option only
the thermal constraints are available, for the “Distribution” option, the whole set of quantities is available
to be considered during the Optimal Power Restoration.

Consider Thermal Constraints (Loading)

If this option is enabled, thermal constraints are considered by the FEA.

• Global constraints for all components: constraints specified in ’Max thermal loading of compo-
nents’ apply to all components in percent value.
• Individual constraint per component: the maximum thermal loading limit is considered for each
component separately. This loading limit can be found on the Reliability page of each component.

Consider Voltage Limits (Terminals)

If this option is enabled terminal voltage limits are considered by the FEA.

• Global Constraint for all terminals: constraints specified in Lower and Upper Limit of allowed
voltage in p.u. that will apply to all terminals.

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• Individual Constraint per terminal: voltage constraints are considered for each terminal sepa-
rately. These constraints can be found on the Reliability page of each terminal.

Consider Voltage Drop/Rise

If this option is enabled feeder voltage limits are considered by the FEA.

• Global Constraint for all feeders: constraints specified in Maximum Voltage Drop and Rise in
percent value that will apply to all feeders.
• Individual Constraint per feeder: voltage Drop/Rise constraints are considered for each feeder
separately. These constraints can be found on the Reliability page of each feeder.

Consider Boundary Constraints outside feeders

If this option is set, the boundary constraints, applied on the boundaries “Reliability” settings are
considered during restoration.

Ignore all constraints for

Constraints are ignored for all terminals and components below the entered voltage level.

• Nominal voltage below or equal to: the voltage level in kV is specified here if ’Ignore all
constraints for...’ is enabled.

45.4.1.7 Maintenance

This page allows you to enable or disable the consideration of Maintenance based on the Planned
Outages you have defined. See Section 45.3.9, for more information on defining planned outages. The
following options are available on this page:

Consider Maintenance

If enabled, all maintenance that falls in the selected time period, whether it’s a year or a single point in
time, is considered.

• Show used planned outages: when clicked, this button will show a list of all planned outages
that will be considered by the calculation.
• Show all planned outages: when clicked, this button will show a list of all planned outages
created in the project, including those not considered by the analysis because they fall outside of
the selected time period.

45.4.1.8 Load Data

If the Reliability Calculation option ’Complete Year’ is selected on the basic options page, then the
following options are available on the Load Data page.

Load Variations

Enable the relevant flag to consider a constant load, load states (include generator states, if created
with corresponding settings) or load distribution states according to section 45.3.6 in the reliability
calculation. The reliability calculation does not create load states automatically. If this flag is enabled
but the states have not been created, then an error will be written to the output window and the reliability
calculation will stop. Otherwise the following two options are available:

Update/creation of States

• Manually: if selected, a button ’Create load states’ will be available. When clicked, it launches

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the ’Load state creation’ command after closing the reliability command (see Chapter 17 for more
information on load state creation).
• Automatically before running reliability calculation: when selected, a pointer to the load state
creation command is available.

45.4.1.9 Advanced Options

Events created during restoration

• Only store them in the results file: events will only be stored in the results file and not be
saved as separate events in the contingency. This minimises the number of objects created
in the database while performing calculations with many contingencies in large networks (e.g
if independent second failures or double earth faults are enabled).

• Also save them in the corresponding contingency: switch events, load shedding and load
transfer as well as generator redispatch events will be saved in the corresponding contingency.

Stop calculation if base case is overloaded

If this option is set, the reliability assessment will stop if the base case is overloaded. If not, a user
defined threshold can be specified.

Calculation of SAIFI/SAIDI according to IEEE 1366

• Do not consider interruptions shorter than or equal to: Only interruptions which last longer
than the entered duration will be classified as sustained interruptions and considered in the
calculation of the corresponding indices (e.g. SAIFI/SAIDI, see section 45.2.3.3).

For the calculation of the MAIFI, the following cases leading to momentary interruptions are considered:
• transient faults defined in the stochastic models of lines for which contingencies are being evalu-
ated in the reliability assessment
• if a recloser is involved in the fault clearance of a sustained fault, its reclosing attempts will be
counted as momentary interruptions
Reclosers can be configured as follows:

• ticked checkbox “Consider as switch with automatic reclosing device” on the Reliability page
• relay including a reclosing block assigned to the breaker
Enhanced consideration of automatic reclosing devices:

With this option ticked, transient faults on lines which are not protected through reclosers will lead to
sustained interruptions and be taken into account in the corresponding reliability indices.

Trace Functionality (Jump to Last Step)

A user-defined ’Time delay in animation’ can be entered to delay the animation of power restorations
when the Jump to Last Step icon is pressed.

Switch/Load events

• Delete switch events: A click on the button removes all switch events associated with the contin-
gencies stored inside the command.
• Delete load events: A click on the button removes all load and generator events associated with
the contingencies stored inside the command.

Calculation of Load Shedding in Transmission Networks

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The parameter “Only consider branch if loading before shedding exceeds” is a performance setting and
available only for the Transmission Network selection on the Basic Data page (see 45.4.1.1). For the
default value of 0 % all branch elements, respectively their loading, will be considered for the optimised
load shedding algorithm. In order to reduce the size of the optimisation problem, branches with a
comparably low loading in the base case may be excluded without any impact on the results.

45.4.1.10 Parallel Computing

Parallel calculation of Reliability Assessment is possible and can be activated on the Parallel Computing
page of the Reliability Assessment command dialog. The options provided on this page are described
below and only available if the parallelisation is activated for the user in the user settings.

Parallel computation of contingencies: if the checkbox is ticked, the Reliability Assessment is exe-
cuted in parallel. Otherwise, the calculation is run sequentially.

Minimum number of contingencies: this parameter defines the minimum number of contingencies
necessary to start a parallel calculation. This means, if the number of contingencies is less than the
entered number, the calculation is run sequentially.

Parallel Computing Manager: the parallel computation settings are stored in a Parallel Computing
Manager object (SetParalman). Further information on the particular configuration is found in Sec-
tion 21.4.

45.5 Results of the Reliability Analysis

45.5.1 Load Reliability Results

The Load Reliability Results Load Reliability Results icon can be accessed in the Reliability Analysis
toolbox. This will bring up the Load Reliability Results (ComRelresload) command, for the evaluation of
the results file.

The Reliability Analysis automatically writes all simulation results to a result object specified above.
After completing the Reliability Calculation, PowerFactory automatically evaluates the result object to
compute the reliability indices. A new reliability calculation will overwrite the existing result object. This
can be avoided by making a copy of the result object or using different study cases. The efforts for
reliability calculation can be very high depending on the size of the network. To avoid repeated calcula-
tions for the same network states, the existing result object can be evaluated once a reliability analysis
calculation has been executed. The command Load Reliability Results allows you to re-evaluate a result
object that has previously been created by this or another reliability calculation command.

The Load Reliability Results command has the following options.

• Result: Enables the selection of a reliability result object. By default it is set to the result object
on the output tab of the reliability command in the active study case.
• Considered load interruptions: Option to consider the evaluation for either all load interruptions
or for a set of selected loads.

The benefit of this is that you do not have to re-run the reliability calculation (which can be time
consuming compared with the results object evaluation) if you only want to recalculate the indices from
an already completed calculation. Furthermore, it allows to evaluate contributions to interruptions of
specific loads only.

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45.5.2 Creating Reports using the Report Generation command

The main Reliability Analysis reports can be accessed via the Reliability Reports icon in the Relia-
bility Analysis toolbox. This will bring up the Report Generation (ComReport) command, where reports
can be selected from the list of available reports. Reports can be generated as separate documents or
combined into one. By default, reports are generated as PDFs and are presented in PowerFactory ’s
inbuilt PDF viewer, but it is also possible to export reports from PowerFactory in various different formats.

For more information about reports and the Report Generation command, see Chapter 18 (Reporting
and Visualising Results), section 18.5. It should be noted that reports viewed internally in PowerFactory
are stored in the desktop of the study case, even after they have been closed, until they are actively
deleted by the user.

By default, results for the whole network are reported, but this can be customised on the Filters page,
as described in section 45.5.2.1 below. For example, selecting a set of loads or terminals will restrict
the output in the Load Interruptions or Node Interruptions respectively.

The available calculation-specific reports are:

• Contribution of Component Groups to System Indices: reports the contribution of Lines,

Cables, Transformers, Terminals, Generators, Common Mode Failures and Double-Earth Faults
to the system indices.
• Load Interruptions: reports the following indices for loads.
– TCIT
– TCIF
– AID
– LPENS
– LPIC
– ACIF
– ACIT

• Node Interruptions: reports the following indices, focused on nodes.

– AIT
– AIF
– AID
• Recovery Scheme: reports the recovery scheme for a selected contingency case. The contin-
gency case is selected using the down-arrow next to “Contingency”, underneath the “Available
Reports” box.
• System Summary: reports reliability indices per grid and for the whole system.

45.5.2.1 Using filters in the Report Generation command

The Report Generation command dialog has a Filters page. As a general rule, as described in Chapter
18 (Reporting and Visualising Results) in section 18.5.1.3, this allows the user to restrict the reporting
to just elements of interest.

However, for the Contribution of Component Groups to System Indices report and the System Summary
report, some specific additional functionality is implemented. In some cases, the user is not so much
interested in the contributions of the various contingencies to the overall reliability indices, but rather the
contributions to the reliability indices for a specific load or group of loads. This is achieved by selecting
loads, or grouping objects for loads (.e.g. zones) on the Filters page, which (as well as acting as a
general filter) triggers a post-processing of the results for these particular reports.

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45.5.3 Tabular report of Contributions

This report is generated using the icon. It returns the contribution of individual elements to the
system indices in a tabular form. This contribution is given as an absolute value and in percent.

The value columns allow the sorting and filtering of rows and corresponding contingency-related el-
ements to quickly identify the most critical components in the network affecting the various reliability
indices.

It is possible to generate a report of the contributions to the interruption of all or selected loads. Loads
can be specified by selecting individual loads or object groups such as Networks, Areas, Zones and
Feeders. Selecting a feeder is the equivalent to selecting all the loads in that feeder. The results
displayed in the tabular report or corresponding colouring in single line diagrams therefore do not relate
to the overall system indices but to the ’system indices’ for the selected loads.

The “Tabular report of Contributions” has the following options.

• “Contributions to”: Contributions can be displayed for SAIFI, SAIDI, ASIFI, ASIDI, ENS and EIC.

• “Report Contributions to Load interruptions”: Option to consider the evaluation for either all load
interruptions or for a set of selected loads.
• “Result”: Enables the selection of a reliability result object. By default it is set to the result object
on the output tab of the reliability command in the active study case.

45.5.4 Selecting loads for post-processing

As described in section 45.5.2.1 above, it is possible to create a report of contributions to the reliability
indices for specific loads.

In addition to the report, the user may wish to view such post-processed results in a diagram or the
Flexible Data page. To achieve this, the user can run the Contributions to Reliability Indices ComRelpost
command. This is done by going to the study case in the Data Manager and using the new object icon
to create a ComRelpost command object. The command can be configured as required, then
executed. (In fact, a “legacy” ASCII report will also be generated in the output window.)

Running this command before running the reporting command (ComReport) will not affect the content
of the reports. The content of the reports is instead managed using the filter options in the reporting
command, as described above. However, it will affect the diagram colouring and output shown on the
Flexible Data page, as described in the following two sections.

To see results for the full network again, the ComRelpost command can be re-run with the filter
deselected; it is not necessary to re-run the Reliability Assessment.

45.5.5 Viewing Results in the Single Line Diagram

You can view the Reliability Assessment Load Point Indices in three ways: in the load result boxes in
single line graphic, in the data browser (Data Manager, Network Model Manager or filtered element
lists) or according to the diagram colouring. This sub-section describes the first two of these methods.
The third method is described in section 45.5.5.2.

45.5.5.1 Result Boxes

After you have executed the Reliability Assessment Calculation, all loads within the Network Single Line
Graphic, will show the following load point indices:

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• LPIF: Load Point Interruption Frequency.

• LPIT: Load Point Interruption Time.

• LPIC: Load Point Interruption Costs.

As usual, with PowerFactory result boxes, you can hover the mouse pointer over the result box to show
an enlarged popup of the results.

Note: You can show any of the calculated load point indices in the load result boxes. To do this
modify the displayed variables as described in Chapter 18: Reporting and Visualising Results,
Section 18.3 (Variable Selection)

45.5.5.2 Diagram Colouring

For further analysis, which element contributes most to the reliability of a certain selection of customers,
it is possible to use the diagram colouring. The use of colouring when viewing the results of Reliability
Analysis is described below, but for general information about using colour in network diagrams please
refer to Section 9.3.10.1, and more detail about the use of colours and colour palettes can be found in
Section 4.7.8.

Note: The colouring seen in the diagram will relate to the currently loaded results. That is, if results
relating to particular loads have been selected using the command described in section 45.5.4,
the colouring will reflect these results.

The diagram colouring, especially for branches, terminals, MV Loads and generators can be according
to
• contribution to EIC,
• contribution to ENS,
• contribution to SAIDI,

• and contribution to SAIFI.

The colouring, especially for Loads, can be according to
• average interruption duration,

• load point energy not supplied,

• yearly interruption frequency,
• and yearly interruption time.
In addition, there are several colouring modes that can aid you when using the reliability assessment
functions. These are:
• Colouring according to Feeders; Use this to identify each Feeder and to see which feeder picks
up load when back-feed switches are closed.
• Colouring according to Connected Grid Components; Use this to identify de-energised sections
of the network during the fault isolation, separation and power restoration.
• Switches, type of usage. Use this mode to check the type of switches in the system when they
are not modelled explicitly in the single line diagram.

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To Colour According to Feeders

1. Click the Diagram Colouring button . The Diagram colouring dialog will appear.
2. Select the tab for the function you want to show the colouring mode for. For example, if you want
the feeder colouring to appear before a calculation, then select the Basic Data tab. If you want the
colouring to appear after a load-flow choose the load-flow tab.
3. Check the 3. Other box and select Topology from the drop down list.

4. Select Feeders in the second drop down box.

5. Optional: To change the feeder colour settings click the colour settings button. You can double
click the displayed colours in the colour column and select a different colour for each feeder as
desired.

6. Click OK to close the Diagram Colouring dialog and save your changes.

To Colour According to Connected Grid Components

The Connected Grid Components colouring mode displays all the network components that are elec-
trically connected together in the same colour. Other components are not coloured. To enable this
mode:
1. Click the Diagram Colouring button . The diagram colouring dialog will appear.

2. Select the load-flow tab.

3. Check the 3. Other box and select Topology from the drop down list.
4. Select Connected Grid Components in the second drop down box.

5. Click OK to close the Diagram Colouring dialog and save your changes.
To Colour According to Switch Type

The Switches: type of usage colouring mode displays all switches in the network with a different colour
depending on their switch type. For instance circuit breakers will be displayed in a different colour to
disconnectors. To enable this mode:
1. Click the Diagram Colouring button . The diagram colouring dialog will appear.

2. Select the tab for the function you want to show the colouring mode for. For example, if you want
the switch type colouring to appear before a calculation, then select the Basic Data tab. If you
want the colouring to appear after a load-flow choose the load-flow tab.
3. Check the 3. Other box and select Secondary Equipment from the drop down list.
4. Select Switches, Type of Usage in the second drop down box.

5. Optional: To change the switch colour settings, click the colour settings button. You can double
click the displayed colours in the colour column and select a different colour for each switch type
as desired.
6. Click OK to close the Diagram Colouring dialog and save your changes.

45.5.6 Viewing Results in the Data Browser

To view the load point and system reliability indices in the Data Browser (as a selectable spreadsheet
list), follow these steps:

1. Select the element or grouping element icon from the Network Model Manager button .
2. Choose the Flexible Data tab.

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3. Click the Define Flexible Data button , to show all available variables.
4. Add more variables to the Selected Variables by double-clicking the variable in the Available
Variables window.
5. Click OK to view the result variables in the data browser.

Note: Steps 3-5 are only required the first time you want to view the system reliability indices, or if you
want to change the displayed variables. PowerFactory ’remembers’ these settings within each
project.

Note: The results displayed will be the currently loaded results. That is, if results relating to particular
loads have been selected using the command described in section 45.5.4, this is what will be
shown.

45.6 Loss of Grid Assessment

A power station connection to the grid generally provides both a connection for the generated electricity
exported from the station and a separate connection for the supply of grid electricity to the station.
Of principal concern to critical power station operators is the potential for loss of the grid connection
to the station. Failures of the grid external to the power station are commonly referred to as Loss of
Grid events (LoG) and the corresponding frequency as Loss of Grid Frequency (LoGF) in probabilistic
analysis studies. Loss of Grid events are in effect “islanding” or isolation of a component from the grid.
The Loss of Grid Assessment (LoGA) in PowerFactory considers a user-defined time period, with Areas,
Zones or Boundaries delimiting the substations to be considered. The tool can analyse the impact of
various short-term events such as bad weather. LoGF is calculated for Substations and Secondary
Substations.

Failures of the following components are considered by LoGA:

• Lines and Cables
• Transformers
• Busbars
• Shunts
Only those components with reliability failure data are considered for the LoGA. The LoGA command
has several options, which are configured depending on data available.

45.6.1 Basic Options

Substation: The “Substation” refers to the substation (also transformer substation) whose LoGF has to
be calculated.

Calculation time period

• Complete year: the Loss of Grid Assessment is carried out for the current year, according to
the Study Case date. This can be accessed and the date and time changed by clicking the ( )
button.
• User defined time range: the LoGA can be carried out for a selected time range. This is the
case when certain events have to be considered. It is assumed that for that time the failure rate of
components.

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• Begin: Starting Date and time for time-banded assessment

• End: End Date and time of the period to be considered.

Note: Historical data indicates that, for example, overhead line related failure rates become highly
elevated during the relatively short periods of adverse weather (i.e. single or combined
conditions of high winds, rainfall, snowfall and lightning) experienced in different seasons
and different regions of a network. For calculations for the whole period PowerFactory
incorporates the average effect of such weather effects over an annual period. By selecting
the time range, the calculation of time-banded risk level of grid supply disconnection while
experiencing periods of adverse weather can be assessed.

For time-banded calculations the change in failure rates can be modelled by using characteristics on
the corresponding failure parameters.

Common Mode Failures

• Using existing: A common mode failure involves the simultaneous failure of two or more power
system components. For the definition of Common Mode see 45.3.1.6. For this option, it is
possible to “Show”, “Add” or “Remove All” common modes from the list of common modes to be
used for the LoGA.

• Detect automatically: With this option PowerFactory automatically determines the common
modes leading to LoG within the selected region, up to a given order.

Note: The common mode failures are created systematically and checked to avoid topological
duplicates with those created manually by the user. If topological duplicates are detected,
one of them is reported and removed from the list of common modes. Meaningful names are
created for common modes based on the names of elements in the common modes.

• Search Region: This is the region where common modes leading to LoG are automatically
detected. This can be a zone, area or a boundary.
• Maximum Order: This is the maximum order of common modes.

45.6.2 Protection

For the fault clearance during LoGA, it is possible to select either the option “Use circuit-breakers” or
“Use switches with protection device”.

Fault Clearance Breakers

• Use circuit breakers: All circuits breakers can be used for the clearing of faults.
• Use switches with protection devices: With this option PowerFactory automatically determines
all switches having protection devices as described in section 45.3.7 and uses these switches for
fault clearing.

45.6.3 Output

Results: A reference (pointer) to the results object.

Show load flow message: During the LoGA a series of load flows are carried out. Messages written
to the output window are by default suppressed. These can be enabled by activating this option.

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45.6.4 Results

The LoGA is carried out each time for one substation. The LoGA produces two basic result variables
for the relevant substation or secondary substation, which can be seen in a Network Model Manager:
• e:logf_freq: Loss of grid frequency
• e:logf_year: Time period between loss of grid events

All the common mode failure objects used or created during the LoGA are stored in the study case and
can be explored using the button Failures on the Output page of the command. Each common mode
contains the various components whose simultaneous failure would lead to a LoG.

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Optimal Power Restoration

The optimal power restoration functions can be accessed by activating the Optimal Power Restoration
toolbar using the icon on the toolbar selection control as illustrated in Figure 46.0.1

Figure 46.0.1: Optimal Power Restoration Selection

46.1 Failure Effect Analysis

The simulation of the system response to specific contingencies (ComContingency ) is called ’Failure
Effect Analysis’ (FEA). The System State Enumeration algorithm uses the FEA engine to analyse the
following steps after a contingency:
• Fault Clearance;

• Fault Isolation;
• Power Restoration;
• Overload Alleviation;

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• Voltage Constraint Alleviation;

• Load Transfer;

• Load Shedding;
FEA analysis for the network assessment can consider or ignore constraints. For overload alleviation,
the algorithm uses an AC load flow to search for overloaded branches and if any are identified then it
attempts to resolve them, firstly by load transfer and secondly by load shedding. If constraints are not
considered by the FEA, then a load-flow for each state is not required and consequently the simulation
is much faster.

For every simulated failure, a contingency is created by the FEA algorithm. If the calculation uses load
characteristics, a contingency is created for every combination of failure and load state. Likewise, when
maintenance (planned outages) are considered, there are more states for each outage and contingency
combination.

Fault Clearance

The fault clearance step of the FEA assumes 100% selectivity of the protection. Therefore, it is assumed
that the relays nearest to the failure will clear the fault. If protection/switching failures are considered
in the FEA, it is assumed that the next closest protection device (after the failed device) has 100%
selectivity. As described in (Protection/Switch Failures), PowerFactory does not consider separate
switch and protection failures, instead these are lumped together. In the pre-processing phase of the
reliability assessment, all breakers in the system that can be tripped by a relay, or fuse are marked as
’protection breakers’.

To clear the fault, the FEA starts a topological search from the faulted component/s to identify the closest
protection breaker/s that can clear the fault. These breaker/s are then opened to end the fault clearance
phase of the FEA. If it is not possible to isolate the fault because there are no appropriate protection
breakers, then an error message will be printed and the reliability assessment will end.

Fault Isolation

The next step of the FEA is to attempt to restore power to healthy network sections. It does this by
separating the faulted section from the healthy section by opening sectionalising switches.

The fault separation procedure uses the same topological search for switches as the fault clearance
phase. The fault separation phase starts a topological search from the faulted components to identify
the closest switches that will isolate the fault. These switches are subsequently opened. Note, all
closed switches can be used to separate the faulted area. The area that is enclosed by the identified
fault separation switches is called the ’separated area’. The separated area is smaller than, or equal to,
the ’protected area’. It will never extend beyond the ’protected area’.

The healthy section which is inside the ’protected area’, but outside of the ’separated area’ is called the
’restorable area’ because power can be restored to this area.

Power Restoration

The Power Restoration process of the FEA energises the healthy areas of the system after the fault
separation process has isolated the faulted area. Note that only open switches that are enabled for use
in power restoration will be considered by PowerFactory as candidate switches for power restoration.
Additionally, PowerFactory uses a ’smart power restoration’ procedure that also considers the direction
of the power restoration and the priority (stage) of the switch. The fastest candidate switch is always
selected when there is more than one restoration alternative. Each restorable area that is reconnected
to the supplied network is called a ’restored’ area. For more information about the switch configuration
for smart power restoration, see Section 45.3.3.

If switching actions are not possible in order to return loads and terminals in a separated area to service,
then these loads and terminals will remain interrupted for the mean duration of the repair, which is
normally several hours. However, if switching actions are possible to return the loads and terminals

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to service, they will only be interrupted for the time needed to open all separators and to close all
power restoration switches. The effects of network upgrades, including improved automation and remote
control of switches (by lowering switch actuation times), can be analysed.

An Optimal Power Restoration can also be conducted for a single contingency from outside the reliability
calculation through the Optimal Power Restoration command shown in Figure 46.0.1, or by right-clicking
an element and selecting Calculation → Optimal Power Restoration. . . .

Overload Alleviation

If the power restoration does not cause any thermal overloads or voltage violations (if applicable),
then the FEA can proceed to calculate the statistics for that state and then analyse the next state.
However, if thermal constraints are enabled, then PowerFactory will complete load-flows to check
that all components are still within their thermal capability after the power restoration is complete. If
necessary, load transferring, partial or full load shedding might be required to alleviate the thermal
over-load. Note load transferring and partial load shedding are only considered when ’Transmission’
is selected in the Reliability command Basic Options. The distribution option considers only discrete
switch actions. Therefore, loads must be fully shed or remain in service.

Voltage Constraint Alleviation (Distribution Option only)

If the ’Distribution’ option is selected in ’Basic Options’, voltage constraints for busbars/terminals and
feeders can be considered in addition to thermal constraints. The voltage constraint alleviation process
is similar to the thermal overload alleviation process, where loads will be shed if necessary to maintain
system voltages within the defined limits.

Load Transfer (Transmission Option only)

In some cases, load transfer switches and/or the alternative feeders are not included in the network
model where reliability assessment is completed. In these cases, the automatic power restoration
cannot switch an unsupplied load to an alternative supply. An example is when a (sub-)transmission
network is analysed and the connected distribution networks are modelled as single lumped loads. In
this scenario, transfer switches that connect two distribution networks will not be visible. Therefore, the
possibility of transferring parts of the lumped load model to other feeders can be modelled by entering
a transfer percentage at each lumped load. This transfer percentage defines the portion of the lumped
load that can be transferred ’away’ from the analysed network, without specifying to which feeder/s the
portion is transferred.

The use of the load transfer percentage (parameter name: Transferable on the load element’s Reliability
tab) is only valid when load transfer is not expected to result in an overloading of the feeders which pick
up the transferred loads.

Load transfer is used in the overload alleviation prior to the calculation of power at risk (see the following
section for further information). The power at risk is considered to be zero if all overloads in the post-fault
condition can be alleviated by load transfers alone.

Note: Load Transfer, either to a non-explicitly modelled network or the elements defined in each load,
is only executed if a post-contingency overload occurs (immediately or during the restoration
process).

Load Shedding

There are three basic variations of shedding that can be used:

• Optimal load shedding.
• Priority optimal load shedding.
• Discrete optimal load shedding.

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Optimal load shedding presumes that all loads can be shed precisely (an infinite number of steps).
PowerFactory attempts to find a solution that alleviates the overload with the lowest amount of load
shed.

PowerFactory uses linear sensitivity indices to first select those loads with any contribution to over-
loading. A linear optimisation is then started to find the best shedding option. The resulting minimum
amount of shed load is called the ’Power Shed’, because it equals the minimum amount of load that
must be shed to alleviate overloads after the power restoration. The power shed is multiplied by the
duration of the system state to get the ’Energy Shed’. The total energy shed for all possible system
states is reported after the reliability assessment is complete, and is referred to as the ’System Energy
Shed’ (SES).

Loads are shed automatically based on their allocated priority, with PowerFactory attempting to shed
low priority loads, prior to high priority loads wherever possible. In the transmission reliability option,
loads can be partially or fully shed, whereas in the distribution option, loads can only be fully shed.

Example

Figure 46.1.1 shows a simple network containing four loads, several circuit breakers (CB) and discon-
necters (DS) and a back-feed switch (BF).

Figure 46.1.1: Short-Circuit on Ln4

Fault clearance

The area isolated by the fault clearance procedure is called the ’protected area’. Figure 46.1.2 shows
the example network after the fault clearance functions have opened the protection breaker ’CB1’. The
protected area is the area containing all switches, lines and loads between ’CB1’ and the back-feed
switch, ’BF’. Therefore, during the clearance of this fault, loads 1, 2, and 3 are interrupted.

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Figure 46.1.2: Protected Area

Fault Isolation

Figure 46.1.3 shows the example network with the separation switches, ’DS2’ and ’DS4’ open. The
separated area now only contains the faulted line, Ln4. There are now two restorable areas following
the fault separation; the area which contains load 1, and the area which contains loads 2 and 3.

Figure 46.1.3: Separated Area Highlighted

Power Restoration

After the fault separation phase is complete, the following switch actions are required to restore power
to the two separate ’restorable’ areas:
• Separation switch ’DS2’ is ’remote-controlled’ and has a switching time of 3 minutes.

• Power to load 1 is restored by (re)closing the protection breaker, ’CB1’ which is also remote
controlled.
• Load 1 is therefore restored in 3 minutes (=0.05 hours).
• Power to load 2 and 3 is restored by closing the back-feed switch, ’BF’.

• Because the back-feed switch has a actuation time of 30 minutes, loads 2 and 3 are restored in
0.5 hours.
The network is now in the post-fault condition as illustrated in Figure 46.1.4.

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Figure 46.1.4: Power Restoration by Back-Feed Switch BF1 and CB1

Overload Alleviation and Load Shedding

Figure 46.1.5 shows a line overload in the post-fault condition in the example network: line ’Ln1’ is
loaded to 113%.

Figure 46.1.5: Overloaded Post-Fault Condition

In this example, loads 1, 2, 3 and 4 all contribute to the line overload on LN1, and consequently load
would be shed based on load shedding options and priorities set by the user to alleviate the constraint.

46.2 Animated Tracing of Individual Cases

After the Reliability Analysis has completed, it is possible to view the fault clearance, fault separation,
power restoration and load shedding actions completed by the algorithm for each contingency. To do
this:
1. Click the Fault Trace button on the Optimal Power Restoration toolbar. A list of available
contingencies will appear in a new window.
2. Select the contingency to consider and click OK. The network will be initialised to the state before
the inception of the fault.

3. Click the Next Step button to advance to the next system state. This will usually show the
system state immediately after the protection has operated and cleared the fault.

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4. Click the Next Step button to advance through more steps, each click advances one time step.

5. To stop the fault trace, click the Stop Trace button.

46.3 Optimal RCS Placement

Following a Backbone Calculation (see Section 41.3), an Optimal Remote Control Switch (RCS) Place-
ment can be performed to optimise placement of remote control switches within a feeder/s. The calcula-
tion optimises placement of a fixed number or optimal number of switches per feeder or backbone, with
an objective function that minimises Energy Not Supplied (ENS), balances ENS, or minimises Expected
Interruption Costs (EIC). The Optimal RCS Placement command is a heuristic planning tool, and may
precede a detailed reliability analysis.

To conduct an Optimal RCS Placement, reliability data should be specified on the Reliability page of
line elements (outages of other elements are not considered). See Chapter 45: Reliability Assessment,
Section 45.3 for details.

If the cost of interrupted load is to be considered, a global Energy Tariff must be defined, see Chapter 17,
Section 17.5.2: Defining Energy Tariffs for details.

The Optimal RCS command can be selected under Optimal Power Restoration toolbar, as shown on
Figure 46.0.1 This section describes the Optimal RCS Placement objective function and command
dialogs, and provides an example calculation.

Note: The Optimal RCS calculation requires that feeder is supposed to be operated radially be selected
on the Feeder Basic Options page.

46.3.1 Basic Options Page

Calculate optimal RCS

Specify all Feeders or a user-defined set of Feeder/s for the Optimal RCS calculation. To show the
Backbones to be considered by the calculation, select Active Backbones.

Objective Function:

The objective function of the Optimal RCS Placement command can be set to either:

• Minimise ENS by installing a specified number of RCS per feeder / backbone to minimise the
Energy Not Supplied.
• Balance ENS by installing an optimal or fixed number of RCS per feeder / backbone to balance
the Energy Not Supplied. This option may be used in some circumstances to plan the network
in a way that considers connections with many (or large) customers and connections with few (or
small) customers equitably.
• Minimise EIC by installing an optimal or fixed number of RCS per feeder / backbone to minimise
the Expected Interruption Cost.
– If this option is selected, a global Energy Tariff must be defined (see Chapter 17, Sec-
tion 17.5.2: Defining Energy Tariffs).
Number of RCS:
• With an objective function to Minimise ENS, specify:
– Number of new RCS per feeder / backbone.

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• With an objective function to Balance ENS or Minimise EIC, select to either Optimise number of
RCS or Fix number of new RCS.
– Specify the Number or Maximum number of new RCS per feeder / backbone.
– If the objective function is set to Minimise EIC, enter the Yearly costs per RCS in $ per annum.
Recording of results
• Select calculate results only to perform a calculation without making an modifications to the
network.
• Select save results in variations to save the results to a Variation. Note that by default the variation
will be inactive after running the Optimal RCS Placement.
• Select to change existing network to change the existing network. Note that this changes object
data in the base network.

46.3.2 Output Page

Results
A reference (pointer) to the results object.

Report
(Optionally) select the format of results printed to the output window. The report provides details of
the recommended remote control switches and their costs, and depending on the selected objective
function, energy not supplied or interruption costs results.

46.3.3 Advanced Options Page

RCS placement

Select to either determine on selected backbones simultaneously or for selected backbones separately.
• On selected backbones simultaneously (default):
Positions for optimal RCS are existing switches in all the backbones of a feeder. This results in
one set of optimal switches for the whole feeder.
• For selected backbones separately:
Positions for optimal RCS are existing switches in one of the backbones of a feeder. This results
in a set of optimal switches for each backbone of the feeder individually.

Backbones for RCS placement

Select to either optimise RCS for all backbones, or only for backbones up to a specified order (in which
case, define the maximum order). Note that if more than one backbone has been created for a feeder,
the main backbone will have order “1”, the second “best” candidate has order “2”, and so on.

Detailed output of results:

Optionally select detailed output mode to output additional details by “Section”, such as ENS, FOR, and
EIC (depending on the optimisation option selected).

Switching Time:

Set the Time to actuate RCS and Time to actuate manual switches (applied for all switches). These
parameters are used by the calculation to determine ENS and EIC.

Load flow calculation

Pointer to load-flow command (note for balanced calculations only).

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46.3.4 Example Optimal RCS Calculation

Consider the simple example shown in Figure 46.3.1 where two feeders with three loads each are
separated via three open points. Line outage rates and load parameters have been defined. To illustrate
line Forced Outage Rates, from the main menu select View → Diagram Colouring (or select the Diagram
Colouring icon). Under 3. Other select Primary Equipment → Forced Outage Rate. In the example,
there is a requirement to install a single Remote Control Switch (RCS) on each feeder to minimise the
ENS.

Figure 46.3.1: Example Optimal RCS Model

To calculate the optimal location(s) for remote controlled switches, a Backbone Calculation for all feeders
based on network structure is first executed (see Section 41.3 for details of how to run the Backbone
Calculation).

Next, an Optimal RCS calculation is executed for all feeders, with an objective function to Minimise ENS,
limited to 1 RCS per backbone. Note that the calculation will run twice in this example (once for each
feeder), and so two RCS’s will be recommended.

The calculation simulates outages of each line, and calculates the ENS for placement of RCS’s at each
location. In order to mitigate the impact of outages (in particular, from the “problem line” Line(1)) the
calculation recommends installation of remote control switches at locations “Switch2” and “Switch5” to
minimise the ENS.

46.4 Optimal Manual Restoration

The Optimal Manual Restoration (OMR) command (ComOmr ) can be found under the Optimal Power
Restoration toolbar (click on the Change Toolbox icon ( ) of the main toolbar). The OMR command
dialog is shown by clicking on the Optimal Manual Restoration icon ( ). The OMR calculation de-
termines the optimal sequence for operating manual switches when searching for location of a fault

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in a distribution network. This tool is intended for distribution networks with a radial feeder topology
which may contain remote control switches (RCS). The Optimal Manual Restoration tool defines the
locations of manual switches which are to be opened/closed and the corresponding sequential order
that a service team should open/close these switches in order to restore power safely to the greatest
number of consumers in the shortest possible time. The sequential order is defined by OMR levels:
level 1 corresponds to the first step in the OMR process, level 2 corresponds to the second step and
finally level 3 to the last one.

In this section the term switch refers to a coupler element ElmCoup or a switch element StaSwitch. The
concept of feeder pockets is used in the calculation. A pocket represents an enclosed area of the radial
network delimited by a remote control switch, open manual switches or a calculated OMR terminal. The
OMR calculation determines one OMR terminal per level for each pocket. All manually closed switches
connected to the OMR terminal are considered to have the same OMR level equivalent to the level for
which the OMR terminal has been assigned. Up to three OMR levels can be calculated i.e. Level 1,
Level 2 and Level 3. Level 1 pockets are areas enclosed by remote control switches and open manual
switches. Level II pockets are areas enclosed by remote control switches, open manual switches and
OMR level I switches. Similarly, Level 3 pockets are areas enclosed by remote control switches, open
manual switches and OMR switches of level 1 and 2.

46.4.1 OMR Calculation Prerequisites

The following network configuration conditions are required by the Optimal Manual Restoration calcula-
tion:
• A balanced Load Flow calculation must be available.
• The network must contain at least one defined feeder element ElmFeeder.

• Only radial networks will be processed. The option “Feeder is supposed to be operated radially”
available in the feeder’s Basic Data page must be selected for the relevant feeders.
• It is recommended that a Backbone calculation is first performed (see Section 41.3).
• There must be at least one remote control switch in the network.

• It is recommended to build the network using terminals or secondary substation layouts (ElmTrfs-
tat).

46.4.2 Basic Options Page

Determine ’OMR’ for

In this field the user must specify either All Feeders or Selected Feeders. If Selected Feeders option is
chosen then a user-defined set (SetSelect) of feeders can be defined for the OMR calculation.

Max. Number of ’OMR’ Levels

The maximum number of OMR levels can be set in this field with values between 1 and 3. All OMR
levels higher than this setting will not be calculated.

Min. Power in Pocket

The minimum consumption (sum of all load elements within a pocket) below which a delimited area will
not be considered as a pocket for the purposes of the calculation. This value applies to all OMR levels.

Backbone Order (Max.)

If a number of network backbones exist (e.g. following a Backbone calculation), the Backbone Order
(Max.) option defines the number of backbones to be considered for calculation (ordered according
to parameter e:cBbOrder of the backbone element ElmBbone). The elements contained within a
backbones of an order higher than this value will be considered as part of a non-backbone branch.

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Show Backbones button

The button Show Backbones provides access to the calculation relevant backbones. The Backbone
Order (Max.) option must be higher than or equal to 1 in order to for at least one calculation relevant
backbone to be shown.

Show Output
The Show Output checkbox enables the display of a calculation report in the output window.

46.4.3 Advanced Options Page

Penalty Factor
Penalty factors for switches depend on branch type and the level for which the OMR is being calculated.
Two settings are available for introducing penalty factors: Branches end at Manual Switch (default value:
20%) and Non-Backbone Branches (Level 1) (default value: 25%). The default values are referred to
below to illustrate their practical usage. Penalty factors are used differently depending on the OMR level
being calculated:

• OMR level 1:
– Switches located in backbone branches which end only with an RCS - no penalty factor is
applied, weighting factor is 1.0.
– Switches located in backbone branches which end only with a manual switch - 20% penalty
factor is applied, weighting factor is 0.8.
– Switches located in non-backbone branches which end only with an RCS - 25% penalty factor
is applied, weighting factor is 0.75.
– Switches located in non-backbone branches which end only with an open manual switch -
20% and 25% penalty factors are applied resulting to a weighting factor of 0.6.
– Switches located in non-backbone branches which end with an open RCS and an open
manual switch - 25% penalty factor is applied, weighting factor is 0.75.
• OMR level 2 and 3:
– Switches located in backbone branches which end with an open RCS - No penalty is applied,
weighting factor is 1.0.
– Switches located in backbone branches which end with an open manual switch - 20% penalty
factor is applied, weighting factor is 0.8.
– Switches located in non-backbone branches which end with an open RCS - no penalty is
applied, weighting factor is 1.0.
– Switches located in non-backbone branches which end with an open RCS and an open
manual switch - no penalty is applied, weighting factor is 1.0.
– Switches located in non-backbone branches which end with an open manual switch - 20%
penalty factor is applied, weighting factor is 0.8.
The term “network branches” is used for applying penalty factors. Branches are network paths starting
from the feeder’s starting terminal and ending at a final downstream element (a radial topology is always
assumed). For this purpose, branches are categorised according to the following criteria:

• Branches that end with an open manual switch that cannot be activated (parameter
e:iResDir of the switch element is set to “Do not use for power restoration”): Inaccessible (geo-
graphical limitation, old technology etc...). These branches are not used in the OMR calculation.
• Branches that end with an open manual switch that can be activated. For these branches the
manual restoration from the same feeder applies.
• Branches that end with a load element (does not lead to an open switch). These branches are not
used in the OMR calculation.
• Branches that end with an open remote control switch that cannot be activated. These types of
branches are not considered to lead to an open manual switch.

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• Branches that end with an open remote control switch that can be activated. For these branches
the remote control restoration from same feeder applies.
• Branches that end (within selected backbones) with an open remote control switch that can be
activated. These branches are considered as a tie open point restoration from another feeder.

Load Flow
A link to the Load Flow calculation settings is available by clicking on the blue arrow pointing to the right
of the Load Flow field. The balanced Load Flow calculation type is automatically chosen (Unbalanced
and DC Load Flow options are not supported).

46.4.4 Definition of the objective function

The aim of the OMR calculation is to minimise the following objective function:

∆𝑥 = |𝑃𝑢𝑝𝑅𝑒𝑔
𝑥 𝑥
· 𝐹𝑢𝑝𝑅𝑒𝑔 𝑥
− 𝑃𝑑𝑜𝑤𝑛𝑅𝑒𝑔 𝑥
· 𝐹𝑑𝑜𝑤𝑛𝑅𝑒𝑔 | (46.1)

The members of the above objective function are defined based on the following equalities:
∑︁ 𝑢𝑝𝑁 𝑆𝑡𝑎𝑟𝑡
𝑥 𝑥 𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑟𝑡𝑅𝑒𝑔
𝑃𝑢𝑝𝑅𝑒𝑔 = 𝑃𝑢𝑝 − 𝑃𝑢𝑝 − 𝑃𝑑𝑜𝑤𝑛 (46.2)
∑︁ 𝑢𝑝𝑁 𝑆𝑡𝑎𝑟𝑡
𝑥 𝑥 𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑟𝑡𝑅𝑒𝑔
𝐹𝑢𝑝𝑅𝑒𝑔 = 𝐹𝑢𝑝 − 𝐹𝑢𝑝 − 𝐹𝑑𝑜𝑤𝑛 (46.3)
∑︁
𝑥 𝑥 𝑑𝑜𝑤𝑛𝑁 𝑆𝑡𝑎𝑟𝑡
𝑃𝑑𝑜𝑤𝑛𝑅𝑒𝑔 = 𝑃𝑑𝑜𝑤𝑛 − 𝑃𝑑𝑜𝑤𝑛 (46.4)
∑︁
𝑥 𝑥 𝑑𝑜𝑤𝑛𝑁 𝑆𝑡𝑎𝑟𝑡
𝐹𝑑𝑜𝑤𝑛𝑅𝑒𝑔 = 𝐹𝑑𝑜𝑤𝑛 − 𝐹𝑑𝑜𝑤𝑛 (46.5)
(46.6)

where:
• 𝑥 is the terminal of the calculated pocket,
𝑥
• 𝑃𝑢𝑝𝑅𝑒𝑔 is the upstream active power at terminal 𝑥 with reference to the corresponding pocket,
𝑥
• 𝑃𝑑𝑜𝑤𝑛𝑅𝑒𝑔 is the downstream active power at terminal 𝑥 with reference to the corresponding pocket,
𝑥
• 𝐹𝑢𝑝𝑅𝑒𝑔 is the upstream forced outage rate (FOR) at terminal 𝑥 with reference to the corresponding
pocket,
𝑥
• 𝐹𝑑𝑜𝑤𝑛𝑅𝑒𝑔 is the downstream forced outage rate (FOR) at terminal 𝑥 with reference to the corre-
sponding pocket,
𝑥
• 𝑃𝑢𝑝 is the upstream active power at terminal 𝑥 with reference to corresponding feeder,
𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑟𝑡𝑅𝑒𝑔
• 𝑃𝑢𝑝 is the upstream active power at the corresponding pocket starting element with reference
to feeder,
𝑢𝑝𝑁 𝑆𝑡𝑎𝑟𝑡
• 𝑃𝑑𝑜𝑤𝑛 is the downstream active power of neighbouring pocket’s (upstream with respect to
terminal 𝑥) starting element with reference to feeder,
𝑥
• 𝐹𝑢𝑝 is the upstream FOR at terminal 𝑥 with reference to corresponding feeder,
𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑟𝑡𝑅𝑒𝑔
• 𝐹𝑢𝑝 is the upstream FOR at corresponding pocket’s starting element with reference to feeder,
𝑢𝑝𝑁 𝑆𝑡𝑎𝑟𝑡
• 𝐹𝑑𝑜𝑤𝑛 is the downstream FOR of neighbour pocket’s (upstream with respect to terminal 𝑥)
starting element with reference to feeder,
𝑥
• 𝑃𝑑𝑜𝑤𝑛 is the downstream active power at terminal 𝑥 with reference to corresponding feeder,
𝑑𝑜𝑤𝑛𝑁 𝑆𝑡𝑎𝑟𝑡
• 𝑃𝑑𝑜𝑤𝑛 is the downstream active power of neighbour pocket’s (downstream with respect to
terminal 𝑥) starting element with reference to feeder,
𝑥
• 𝐹𝑑𝑜𝑤𝑛 is the downstream FOR at terminal 𝑥 with reference to corresponding feeder and

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𝑑𝑜𝑤𝑛𝑁 𝑆𝑡𝑎𝑟𝑡
• 𝐹𝑑𝑜𝑤𝑛 is the downstream FOR of neighbour pockets (downstream with respect to terminal
𝑥) starting element with reference to feeder.
A manual switch is considered as being an OMR switch of a certain level if its associated terminal ∆𝑥
objective function is minimum compared with the objective functions of the other terminals within the
calculated pocket.

46.4.5 Example of an Optimal Manual Restoration Calculation

An example of the use of the Optimal Manual Restoration tool is shown here. Consider the MV
distribution network (20 kV) as displayed in Figure 46.4.1. Five feeders are defined, one main feeder
(Feeder A) supplies power in normal operation to the displayed network. Feeder A is radially operated
and containing a number of normally open switches. Several remotely controlled switches are also
defined and their associated substation is marked with a green circle.

Figure 46.4.1: Generic MV Distribution Network

A substation layout similar to the one shown in Figure 46.4.2 is used for all substations.

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Figure 46.4.2: Generic Substation Single Line Diagram

A backbone calculation (ComBbone) for Feeder A is performed on this network based on path load (see
Section 41.3 for details of how to run the Backbone Calculation), thus obtaining four backbones (from
main Feeder A to the other four).

Using the backbone information an OMR calculation may be performed with reference to main Feeder A.
The OMR calculation automatically updates the single line diagram with specific colours for the different
OMR levels for each switch and associated substation as in Figure 46.4.3.

Figure 46.4.3: OMR Calculation Results Shown in the Single Line Diagram using Different Colours

If the Show Output checkbox is enabled in the Basic Data page of the OMR command dialog then a
list of all the switches and their associated OMR level will be printed to the output window.

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 46.5. OPTIMAL RECLOSER PLACEMENT

46.5 Optimal Recloser Placement

Circuit breakers equipped with protection relays including automatic reclosure (ARC) functionality are
designed to handle fast and repetitive open-close duty cycles. These switching devices, which are
referred to as Reclosers, allow minimisation of the duration of outages - especially in the case of faults
of a transient nature -, leading to an increased availability of power supply to customers (reliability).
The “Optimal Recloser Placement” function, located in the “Optimal Power Restoration” toolbox,
determines the best candidate locations for reclosers, leading to the highest improvement in the target
reliability index.

Optimal Recloser Placement is based on the Reliability Assessment calculation function, evaluating the
contributions of circuit breakers to the target reliability index for faults within their protecting area. The
proposed recloser locations are highlighted in the network diagrams with red circles, reported in the
output window and may be directly configured in the model.

The following sections provide a short technical background followed by explanations of the command
dialog pages and its parameters.

46.5.1 Technical Background

An electrical network is subject to different types of faults that reduce the reliability of the power supply to
customers. Depending on the duration of an interruption, the reliability indices evaluated in the reliability
assessment account for either a sustained or momentary loss of supply. Even if the reasons for the faults
are manifold, the faults themselves can be classified into sustained and transient faults. Independent
from the fault classification, the fault clearance separates the faulted equipment by disconnecting the
protected area from the supply. Circuit breakers with reclosing functionality are able to restore the
supply by rapidly reclosing their contacts after having cleared a fault. For transient faults, where the
loss of supply leads to the extinction of an electric arc caused for example by a lightning strike on
an overhead line (one of the main causes for transient faults), the insulation medium “heals” during
the disconnection period and allows an immediate restoration of supply for the reclosing attempt. The
recloser logic attempts the reclosing a few times in case the fault is still present on the protected area.
Each failed attempt will lead to a momentary interruption and is considered in the MAIFI calculation.
This protection mechanism decreases the duration of customer interruptions as transient faults only
cause momentary instead of sustained interruptions to the power supply. For sustained faults on the
other hand, the reclosing attempts increase the number of momentary interruptions, based on the
number of failed attempts.

Due to the high share of transient faults in the overall fault rate for overhead lines, and the high success
rate of immediate power restoration with the reclosing attempts, reclosers are very popular and used
from distribution up to transmission networks for reliability improvement. In PowerFactory reclosers can
be considered for protection-related functions as well as for the reliability assessment.

Configuration of the breaker reclosing function

The Reliability Assessment calculation function supports two approaches regarding the modelling of
reclosers:

• simplified: ticked checkbox “Consider as switch with automatic reclosing device” on the Reliability
page of the breaker (ElmCoup and StaSwitch)
• detailed: relay including a reclosing block assigned to the breaker

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46.5.2 Basic Options

46.5.2.1 Candidate locations

The settings for candidate locations define which breakers will be considered as potential reclosers
in the optimal placement. Since the reclosing actions are preceded by a fault clearance, only circuit
breakers will be considered as candidates for the recloser placement. Two options are available:

• Circuit breakers: all breakers configured with the switch type “Circuit-Breaker” or “Disconnecting
Circuit-Breaker” on the Basic Data page are addressed by this selection
• Switches with protection device: all circuit breakers with an explicitly configured or modelled
protection device are addressed by this selection. The configuration of the protection device can
be as follows:
– protection relay (ElmRelay ) explicitly modelled and assigned to the breaker
– ticked checkbox “Consider as switch with protection device” on the Reliability page of the
breaker dialog
In addition to the general differentiation of breakers, two further options are available to restrict the
number of potential locations to realistic ones.

Exclude candidates that protect cables: since the reclosing actions address transient faults, which
occur only on overhead lines, breakers protecting cables or cable sections can be excluded by ticking
the checkbox. For protected areas with a mixture of overhead lines and cables, special attention is
needed for the thermal rating of the cables and the recloser configuration, since each failed reclosing
attempt stresses the cable sections thermally with almost no time to cool down in between.

Exclude specific candidates: When ticked, an option to select either single breakers or a selection
object (SetSelect) containing references to multiple breakers, is available. The corresponding breakers
will be ignored as potential reclosers in the optimisation.

46.5.2.2 Objective function

As objective function for the optimisation algorithm, the minimisation of the following reliability indices is
available:
• ENS: Energy Not Supplied
• SAIDI: System Average Interruption Duration Index
• EIC: Energy Interruption Costs

For the first two indices, the stochastic model including the failure rates and repair times are sufficient
for an optimisation. For the minimisation of the EIC, interruption costs have to be configured (globally
or locally) in the Reliability Assessment command.

46.5.2.3 Reliability assessment

Optimal Recloser Placement is based on the Reliability Assessment command, which is linked in the
dialog. The flag for “Enhanced consideration of automatic reclosing devices” on the Advanced Options
page is a mandatory requirement for Optimal Recloser Placement and is set therefore without the
possibility to untick it. In addition, the selection of candidate locations, being replicated in the Optimal
Recloser Placement command, is greyed out in the referenced Reliability command.

When Optimal Recloser Placement is called for the first time in the study case, an existing Reliability
command including all its configurations is copied as subobject to the Optimal Recloser Placement
(and if none is available, a new Reliability command object is created with default settings). Any change

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done after that to the original Reliability command directly within the study case will not be replicated
and considered by the command linked in the Optimal Recloser Placement command.

46.5.2.4 Settings for placement

Maximum number of reclosers to place: Defines how many candidate locations will be selected at
most as potential reclosers.

Maximum number of reclosers per feeder: If the reliability assessment covers a network with multiple
feeders, the Optimal Recloser Placement calculation will limit the reclosers per feeder to the entered
value. The value should be less than or equal to the Maximum number of reclosers to place.

Maximum number of reclosing attempts: The number of attempts is used for the evaluation of the
MAIFI considering the proposed reclosers. If the network is changed, the number will be replicated into
the breakers’ corresponding settings.

46.5.2.5 Recording of results

If the optimisation finds one or more locations which lead to an improved target reliability index, the
result is treated according to one of the following options:
• Calculate results only: The optimisation reports the proposed reclosers, but does not change
the relevant breaker settings.
• Change existing network: The optimisation changes the breaker settings of proposed recloser
locations by ticking the settings “Consider as switch with automatic reclosing device” as well as
“Consider as switch with protection device”. The number of attempts from the Optimal Recloser
Placement command is set for the breakers, too. The change will be performed on the base
network or on the recording expansion stage of an active variation.
• Save results in variation: The changes to the proposed recloser locations will be recorded by
an automatically created expansion stage and corresponding variation, for which the name can
be entered in the input field “Variation name”.

46.5.3 Results

On the Results page of the Optimal Recloser Placement command, the result object (ElmRes) is linked.
It contains the values for the contributions from each candidate location on the main reliability indices
with and without reclosing ability. The results are used by the Optimal Recloser Placement Reports
(see 46.5.4).

Show reports after calculation: If ticked, the linked Optimal Recloser Placement Reports command
is executed automatically, taking into account the configured settings (see 46.5.4).

Show output of Reliability Assessment: If ticked, the relevant output generated by the linked Reliabil-
ity command from the Basic Options page is reported in the output window. Otherwise it is suppressed.

46.5.4 Optimal Recloser Placement Reports

The Optimal Recloser Placement Reports can be accessed using the icon , to the right of the Optimal
Recloser Placement icon.

On the General tab, the result object (ElmRes) is linked, which has been filled by a preceding execution
of the Optimal Recloser Placement command. As reports, at least one of the following has to be

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selected:

Reliability indices: The report lists for the main reliability indices (ENS, EIC, SAIDI and MAIFI) the
values before and after the placement of the reclosers as well as the differences between the two cases.
If not selected as target index for the optimisation, the EIC may be zero if no costs were configured for
the reliability assessment.

Contributions of switches: The report lists for all candidate locations the impact onto the main
reliability indices (ENS, EIC, SAIDI and MAIFI). A negative value corresponds to an improvement, a
positive value an increase of the corresponding index. The latter is only the case for the MAIFI, which
is increased because of the increase of momentary interruptions due to failing attempts on sustained
faults and due to successful reclosing actions (a transient fault results in only a momentary interruption
instead of a sustained one, as it would be the case without the reclosing function).
In addition, the report provides some further information about the breakers, such as the Substation or
Site and Feeder (if relevant).

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Chapter 47

Generation Adequacy Analysis

47.1 Introduction

The ability of the power system to be able to supply system load under all possible load conditions is
known as System Adequacy. Specifically this relates to the ability of the generation to meet the system
demand while also considering typical system constraints such as:

• Generation unavailability due to fault or maintenance requirements;

• Variation in system load on an monthly, hourly and minute by minute basis;
• Variations in renewable output (notably wind generation output), which in turn affects the available
generation capacity.

The PowerFactory Generation Adequacy tool is designed specifically for testing of System Adequacy.
Using this tool, it is possible to determine the contribution of wind generation to overall system capacity
and to determine the probability of Loss of Load (LOLP) and the Expected Demand Not Supplied
(EDNS).

Note: The Generation Adequacy Assessment is completed using the Monte Carlo Method (probabilis-
tic)

47.2 Technical Background

The analytical assessment of Generation Adequacy requires that each generator in the system is
assigned a number of probabilistic states which determine the likelihood of a generator operating at
various output levels. Likewise, each of the system loads can be assigned a time based characteristic
that determines the actual system load level for any point of time. A simplified general illustration of the
Generation Adequacy assessment is shown in Figure 47.2.1.

In such a small example, it is possible to determine the generation adequacy analytically in a relatively
short time. However, as the number of generators, generator states, loads and load states increases,
the degrees of freedom for the analysis rapidly expands so that it becomes impossible to solve in a
reasonable amount of time. Such a problem is ideally suited to Monte Carlo simulation.

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CHAPTER 47. GENERATION ADEQUACY ANALYSIS

Figure 47.2.1: Generation Adequacy Assessment Illustration

Monte Carlo Method

In the Monte Carlo method, a sampling simulation is performed. Using uniform random number se-
quences, a random system state is generated. This system state consists of random generating
operating states and of random time points. The generating operating states will have a corresponding
generation power output, whereas the time points will have a corresponding power demand. The value
of Demand Not Supplied (DNS) is then calculated for such state. This process is done for a specific
number of draws (iterations). At the end of the simulation, the values of the Loss of Load Probability
(LOLP), Loss of Load Expectancy (LOLE), Expected Demand Not Supplied (EDNS), and Loss of Energy
Expectancy (LOEE) indices are calculated as average values from all the iterations performed.

Pseudo Random Number Generator

A Monte Carlo simulation relies on the generation of random numbers of “high” quality. As all computers
run deterministic code to generate random numbers, a software random number generator is known as
a pseudo random number generator (PRNG). There are various PRNGs available, some of which do not
display appropriate statistical qualities for use in Monte Carlo simulations, where very long sequences
of independent random numbers are required. PowerFactory uses an implementation of the ’RANROT’
PRNG. This generator displays excellent statistical qualities suitable for Monte Carlo simulations and is
also relatively fast.

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Example

To illustrate the process of a Monte Carlo simulation, an example is now presented using Figure 47.2.1
as the example network.

For each iteration, the operating state for each generator is randomly selected by generating a uniform
random number. For each of these states, the corresponding power output of the generator is calcu-
lated. The total generation power of the system is calculated by summing all the generator outputs.

For the same iteration, a time point in the system is randomly selected. For this time point, the power
demand of each load is obtained. The total demand of the system is calculated by summing all the load
demands. It is then possible to obtain the ’Demand Not Supplied’ (DNS) value for this iteration, where
DNS is defined as shown in equation 47.1.

∑︁ ∑︁
𝐷𝑁 𝑆 = 𝐷𝑒𝑚𝑎𝑛𝑑 − 𝐺𝑒𝑛𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 (47.1)

For example, in the first iteration, the generator states might be G1: 100%, G2: 100%, and G3:
75%. The corresponding outputs would be then G1: 100 MW, G2: 60 MW, and G3: 60 MW. The total
generation output is the sum of all the three generator outputs; 220 MW. Also, a random time point yields
Load A: 85 MW, Load B: 60 MW and Load C: 30 MW. The total system demand is the sum of all the load
demands; 175 MW. Since the generation is greater than the demand, all the demand is supplied and
the value of DNS is zero.

In a second iteration, the generator states might be G1: 0%, G2: 75%, and G3: 75%. The corresponding
outputs would be then G1: 0 MW, G2: 45 MW, and G3: 60 MW. The total generation output is now
105 MW. A second random time point yields say Load A: 60 MW, Load B: 50 MW, and Load C: 20 MW.
The total system demand is now 130 MW. In this case, the generation is smaller than the demand, so
there is demand that cannot be supplied. The demand not supplied is defined as the difference between
demand and generation - 25 MW in this iteration.

Continuing the analysis for a few subsequent iterations yields the results shown in table 47.2.1:

Draw G1 G2 G3 ΣG Load A Load B Load C ΣD DNS max(0, DNS

MW MW MW MW MW MW MW MW ΣD - ΣG) >0
1 100 60 60 220 85 60 30 175 0 No
2 0 45 60 105 60 50 20 130 25 Yes
3 80 0 90 170 110 35 10 155 0 No
4 100 60 60 220 40 50 15 105 0 No
5 80 45 90 215 60 40 20 120 0 No
6 80 60 0 140 90 50 5 145 5 Yes
Total 30 2

Table 47.2.1: Example Monte Carlo Analysis

Iteration six yields a second case where demand is not supplied.

Once the analysis has continued in this way (usually for several tens of thousands of iterations) various
indices of system adequacy can be calculated. The indices Loss of Load Probability (LOLP) and
Expected Demand Not Supplied (EDNS) are the critical measures. They are calculated as follows:

𝑁𝐷𝑁 𝑆
𝐿𝑂𝐿𝑃 = · 100% (47.2)
𝑁

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∑︀
𝐷𝑁 𝑆
𝐸𝐷𝑁 𝑆 = (47.3)
𝑁

where 𝑁𝐷𝑁 𝑆 is the number of iterations where 𝐷𝑁 𝑆 > 0 and 𝑁 is the total number of iterations.

Therefore, for the above example the indices are calculated as follows:

2
𝐿𝑂𝐿𝑃 = · 100 = 33,33% (47.4)
6

30
𝐸𝐷𝑁 𝑆 = = 5𝑀 𝑊 (47.5)
6

47.3 Database Objects and Models

There are several database objects in PowerFactory specifically related to the Generation Adequacy
Analysis, such as:

• Stochastic Model for Generation object (StoGen);

• Power Curve Type (TypPowercurve); and
• Meteorological Station (ElmMeteostat).

This section provides information about each of these objects.

47.3.1 Stochastic Model for Generation

The Stochastic Model for Generation object (StoGen) is used for defining the availability states of a
generator, an example of which is shown in Figure 47.3.1. An unlimited number of states is possible
with each state divided into:

State : name of the state

Availability [% ]: percentage of the rated power available
Probability [% ]: probability that this state is valid (the sum of all probabilities must always be 100 %)

Duration [h ]: time needed to solve the given failure

Frequency [1/a ]: number of incidents that cause the given state per year
Total Duration [h/a ]: total duration of the given state per year

While only the parameters Availability and Probability are used for the Generation Adequacy, all pa-
rameters are used for the Reliability Assessment, see Section 45.3.1.5.

This means that for each state, the total available generation capacity in % of maximum output must
be specified along with the probability that this availability occurs. Note that probability column is
automatically constrained, so that the sum of the probability of all states must equal 100 %.

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Figure 47.3.1: Stochastic Model for Generation dialog

The Stochastic model for generation object should reside within the project library, Equipment Type
Library.

Note that the generator maximum output is calculated as 𝑆𝑛𝑜𝑚 · cos 𝜃 where 𝑆𝑛𝑜𝑚 is the rated apparent
power and cos 𝜃 is the rated power factor.

47.3.2 Power Curve Type

The Power Curve Type (TypPowercurve) object is used to specify the wind speed (in m/s) vs rated power
output (p.u or MW) for wind turbine generators.

For wind-speed values between specified curve values, PowerFactory interpolates using the method
specified in the Approximation drop down menu. Interpolation options include:

• constant
• linear

• polynomial
• spline and
• hermite.

To change the Power unit, go to the configuration tab and choose either p.u or MW by selecting the
appropriate radio button.

47.3.3 Meteorological station

If a group of wind generators have a wind speed characteristic that is correlated, it can be represented
through the Meteorological Station object (described in Section 14.7).

Note that when two wind generators are correlated as members of the same Meteorological Station, they
may still have different average wind speeds defined within their Generation Adequacy page. During
the Monte Carlo Analysis, a random wind speed is drawn for each Meteorological Station. This wind

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speed is then applied to every wind generator in that Meteorological Station using the Weibull Stochastic
Model. Thus, the power is calculated according to the individual power curve of the generator.

When the generator is using time characteristics as a wind model, then the correlation is given by the
Monte Carlo drawn time, which is the same for all the generators of the system.

47.4 Assignment of Stochastic Model for Generation

For the Generation Adequacy Analysis, there is a distinction between Dispatchable (Conventional)
Generation and Non-dispatchable Generation. Dispatchable generation refers to generation that can
be controlled at a fixed output automatically, typically by varying the rate of fuel consumption. This
includes generation technologies such as gas thermal, coal thermal, nuclear thermal and hydro.

Non-dispatchable generation refers to generation that cannot be automatically controlled because the
output depends on some non controllable environmental condition such as solar radiation or the wind
speed. Wind turbine and solar photovoltaic generators are examples of such environmentally dependent
generation technologies.

47.4.1 Definition of a Stochastic Multi-State Model

For both Dispatchable and Non-dispatchable generation it is possible to assign a Stochastic Multi-State
model to define the availability of each unit. The availability is defined in a number of ’States’ each with
a certain probability as described in Section 47.3.1.

• Synchronous machine (ElmSym);

• Static generator (ElmGenstat) set as Fuel Cell, HVDC Terminal, Reactive Power Compensation,
Storage, or other Static Generator ;
• Asynchronous machine (ElmAsm); and
• Doubly-fed asynchronous machine (ElmAsmsc)

In all cases, the stochastic model object is assigned on the element’s Generation Adequacy page, under
Stochastic Multi-State Model.

Also, to consider the generation as dispatchable, the Wind Generation option in the Basic Data page of
the synchronous, asynchronous, and doubly fed machine should be disabled.

Definition of a Stochastic Model for Non-Dispatchable (Wind and Renewable) Generation

As for the dispatchable generation, the following 3-phase models are capable of utilising the stochastic
model for generation object, provided they are defined as generators and not as motors:

• Synchronous machine (ElmSym) set as Wind Generator ;

• Static generator (ElmGenstat) set as Wind Generator, Photovoltaic or Other Renewable
• Asynchronous machine (ElmAsm) set as Wind Generator ; and

• Doubly-fed asynchronous machine (ElmAsmsc) set as Wind Generator

Objects not considered in Generation Adequacy Analysis External Grids (ElmXnet), voltage
and current sources (ElmVac, ElmIac) are ignored in the Generation Adequacy analysis.

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47.4.2 Stochastic Wind Model

In addition to the stochastic multi-state model for generation described above, a stochastic wind model
may be defined on the element’s Generation Adequacy page (provided that the type of generation is a
wind generator). To enable this, navigate to the Generation Adequacy page and check the option Wind
Model.

When the Stochastic Wind Model is selected, the wind generation characteristic is described using the
Weibull Distribution. The mean wind speed, and shape factor (Beta) of the distribution can be adjusted
to achieve the desired wind characteristic for each wind generator.

In addition to describing the Weibull distribution using Mean Wind Speed and Beta, the following
alternate methods of data input can be used:

• Mean Wind Speed and Variance;

• Lambda and Variance;
• Lambda and Beta.

The input method can be changed by using the input selection arrow and choosing the desired method
from the input window that appears.

47.4.3 Time Series Characteristic for Wind Generation

If detailed data of wind generation output over time or wind speed over time is available, then this can
be used instead of a Stochastic Model. The data can be read by PowerFactory as either a ChaVec
characteristic or from an external file using the ChaVecfile characteristic. In both cases the information
required is one year of data in hourly intervals - although non integer values can also be specified in the
referenced data.

If the option Time Series Characteristics of Wind Speed is selected, then the actual wind generator
power output for each iteration is calculated automatically from the Wind Power Curve. If the option,
Time Series Characteristic of Active Power Contribution is selected then no power curve is required.

Data for multiple years can also be used by referencing an additional characteristic for each year. The
Generation Adequacy algorithm then selects a random wind speed or power value from one of the input
data years - essentially there is more data for the random Monte Carlo iteration to select from.

A screen-shot showing a wind generator model with three years of data is shown in Figure 47.4.1.

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Figure 47.4.1: Wind Model using Wind Output Data

Other Renewable Generation

Static Generators (ElmGenstat) of category Photovoltaic or Other Renewable cannot have a Stochastic
wind model definition. However, they may still have a Stochastic Multi-State model. Their output is
added to the aggregated non-dispatchable generation as described later in this chapter.

Consideration of Parallel Machines

The Generation Adequacy analysis automatically considers parallel machines defined in the basic data
of the generator object using the variable (ngnum), as shown in Figure 47.4.2. Each of the parallel
machines is treated independently. For example, a random operational state is generated for each of
the parallel machines. Effectively this is the same as if n machines were modelled separately.

Figure 47.4.2: Synchronous machine element with the parameter ngnum (number of parallel machines
highlighted).

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47.4.4 Demand definition

Unless a time characteristic is assigned to either the Active Power (plini) or Scaling Factor (scale0) vari-
ables of the load element, then the load is treated as fixed demand. This means that the demand value
does not change during the entire analysis. Both General Loads (ElmLod) and LV Loads (ElmLodlv )
are considered for the analysis.

More information about assigning time based characteristics to object variables can be found in Chap-
ter 17: Parameter Characteristics, Load States, and Tariffs.

47.5 Generation Adequacy Analysis toolbar

Once the Generation Adequacy toolbar is selected, the available buttons are shown in Figure 47.5.1.

Figure 47.5.1: Generation Adequacy Analysis toolbar buttons

47.5.1 Generation Adequacy Initialisation command

Before a Generation Adequacy Analysis can be completed, the simulation must be initialised. The avail-
able options of the Initialise Generation Adequacy Analysis command (ComGenrelinc) are explained in
this section.

47.5.1.1 Basic Options page

Network

• System Losses: here a fixed percentage of losses can be entered. This value is subtracted from
the total generation at each iteration.

• Load Flow Command: this is a reference to the Load Flow Calculation command that will be used
to obtain the network topology for the analysis. It must be set to AC load-flow balanced, positive
sequence or DC load-flow. A converging load flow is a requirement for the generation adequacy
analysis.

Demand Consideration

• Fixed Demand Level: if this option is selected, all load time characteristics are ignored and the
total demand is calculated at the initial iteration and used for all subsequent iterations.

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• Consider Time Characteristics: if this option is selected, any time characteristics assigned to loads
will be automatically considered in the calculation. Therefore, the total demand can vary at each
iteration.

Consider Maintenance Plans

If this option is enabled then any maintenance plans (out of service or derating) in the project will be
automatically considered. Consequently, when an iteration draws a time that falls within a planned
outage or derating, the outage (or derating) is applied to the target element resulting in a reduction in
available generation capacity.

To define a maintenance plan, right-click the target object from the single line graphic or from the Data
Manager and select the option Operational Library → Planned Outage→ New. . . For more information
on Planned Outages refer to Chapter 13: Libraries, Section 13.6.7 (Planned Outages).

Time Dependent Data

• Year of Study: the period considered for the Generation Adequacy Analysis is always one year.
However, it is possible for load characteristics to contain information for many years. Therefore,
the year considered by the calculation must be selected. Note that this variable does not influence
the wind speed or wind power data if the wind model for the generator references time series data
as described in Section 47.4.3 (Time Series Characteristic for Wind Generation). If more than one
year’s data is available, this simply increases the pool of available data for the analysis.
• Months, Days: these checkboxes allow the user to select the time period that will be considered
for the analysis. For instance, if only January is selected then the iteration time will be constrained
to within this month.

Time Intervals

The user can specify up to three time intervals for the time window in which the analysis will be
completed. The time interval starts at the From hour (0 minutes, 0 seconds), and ends at the To
hour (0 minutes, 0 seconds) inclusive.

47.5.1.2 Output page

• MC Draws: if this option is checked, then PowerFactory will automatically create Monte-Carlo
Draw plots after the simulation finishes. See Section 47.6 for details of the plots that are automat-
ically created. Note this will generate a new set of plots for each run of the analysis. So, if you
wish for an existing set of plots to be updated, then leave this option unchecked.
• Distribution: here the user can select the storage location for the distribution probabilities for the
entire analysis. This information is always retained in the database.
• Report: if this option is checked, then the user can specify a location for the results of the
simulation to be permanently stored within the database. This is the result of each iteration. If
this option is unchecked, then the results are deleted after each simulation run.

47.5.1.3 Advanced Options page

In the Advanced Options page, the user can change the option for the generation of random numbers
from auto to renew. If the renew option is selected, then the simulation can use one of a number of
pre-defined random seeds (A-K). As the software ’pseudo-random’ number generator is deterministic,
this allows for the exact sequence of random numbers to be repeated.

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47.5.2 Run Generation Adequacy command

The Run Generation Adequacy Analysis command (ComGenrel) appears in two styles depending on
the status of the calculation. If the calculation is being run for the first time, then it appears as shown in
Figure 47.5.2. On the other hand, if some iterations are already complete, then the calculation can be
continued and the dialog appears as shown in Figure 47.5.3.

Figure 47.5.2: Run Generation Adequacy command dialog (new simulation)

Figure 47.5.3: Run Generation Adequacy command dialog (post simulation)

Pressing Execute will run the Generation Adequacy Analysis. The button can be used to interrupt
the analysis before the set number of iterations is complete, if desired. Later, the simulation can be
resumed from the stop point using the Run Generation Adequacy Analysis command.

Max Number of Iterations

This specifies the number of iterations to be completed by the Monte Carlo Analysis. The default setting
is 100000.

Additional Iterations

After one analysis is completed, the Generation Adequacy Analysis can be extended for a number of
Additional Iterations. Especially in very large systems, it may be useful to run the first simulation with a
smaller number of initial iterations, say 20000 and then run additional iterations as necessary using this

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option.

Generation Adequacy

This reference provides a link to the generation adequacy initialisation command, so that the calculation
settings can be easily inspected.

47.6 Generation Adequacy results

Result plots for the Generation Adequacy Analysis can be manually created using the toolbar plot icons.
The different types of plots are explained in the following sections.

47.6.1 Distribution (Cumulative Probability) Plots

This button ( ) draws a distribution plot which is essentially the data from ’Monte-Carlo Draws’ plots
sorted in descending order. The data then becomes a cumulative probability distribution. An example
is shown in Figure 47.6.1.

Figure 47.6.1: Distribution (Cumulative Probability) Plots

Obtaining the LOLP from the Distribution Plots

The LOLP index can be obtained by inspection directly from the Distribution Plots if the demand is
constant. The LOLP can be read directly from the intersection of the Total Generation curve and the
Total Demand curve as demonstrated in Figure 47.6.2.

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When the demand is variable, then the LOLP index cannot be inferred from the above diagram. Fig-
ure 47.6.3 shows such a case. There is no intersection point even though the calculated LOLP index in
this case is 20 %. In such cases, the LOLP index must be inferred from the distribution plot of the Total
Reserve Generation. As shown in Figure 47.6.4, the intersection of this curve with the x-axis gives the
LOLP index.

Figure 47.6.2: Inferring the LOLP index directly from the intersection of the Total Generation and Total
Demand

Figure 47.6.3: Variable Demand - distribution of Total Generation and Total Demand

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Figure 47.6.4: Total Reserve Generation

47.6.2 Monte-Carlo Draws (Iterations) Plots

These plots are automatically generated if the MC Draws option is enabled in the Output page of the
initialisation command, alternatively, the button ( ) can be used. This button draws by default four
figures as shown in Figure 47.6.5. Each of the data points on the plots represents a single Monte Carlo
simulation.

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 47.6. GENERATION ADEQUACY RESULTS

Figure 47.6.5: Monte-Carlo Draws (Iterations) Plots

figure A displays the following:

• Total Available Capacity in MW;
• Available Dispatchable Generation in MW;

• Total Demand in MW;

figure B displays the following:
• Available Non-dispatchable capacity in MW;

figure C displays the following::

• Total Reserve Generation Capacity in MW;
figure D displays the following::
• Total Demand in MW;

• Residual Demand in MW;

47.6.3 Convergence Plots

This button ( ) creates the so-called convergence plots for the LOLP and EDNS. As the number of
iterations becomes large the LOLP index will converge towards its final value, likewise for the EDNS.
The convergence plots are a way of visualising this process. An example convergence plot is shown in
Figure 47.6.6.

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Figure 47.6.6: Example Convergence Plot

Note: By default, the convergence plot is zoomed to the plot extent and due to the number of iterations
it may be difficult to observe the upper and lower confidence limits. It is suggested that the ’Zoom
Y-axis’ and ’Zoom X-axis’ buttons are used to observe the confidence limits in greater detail.

On both plots, the upper and lower confidence intervals are also drawn.

The sample variance is calculated as follows:

𝑛
1 ∑︁
𝜎2 = · (𝑦𝑖 − 𝑦¯)2 (47.6)
𝑛 − 1 𝑖=1

where 𝑛 is the number of samples,𝑦𝑖 is the sample and 𝑦¯ is the sample mean. The 90 % confidence
interval is calculated according to the following formula:

𝜎
𝐶𝐿 = 𝑦¯ ± √ · 𝑧 (47.7)
𝑛

where z is the standard inverse probability for the Student’s t distribution with a confidence interval of
90 %. Note z tends to 1.645 (inverse normal) as the number of iterations becomes large.

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47.6.4 Summary of variables calculated during the Generation Adequacy Anal-

ysis

Name Internal Name Description

Available The sum of dispatchable capacity at
Dispatchable c:AvailDCap each iteration after the consideration of
Capacity the availability states
The sum of non-dispatchable capacity
Available Non- at each iteration after the consideration
Dispatchable c:AvailNDCap of the availability states and also the
Capacity stochastic/time models for wind gener-
ation
Total Available
c:AvailTotcap c:AvailNDCap + c:AvailDCap
Capacity
Total Demand considering any time
Total Demand c:DemTot
based characteristics
Demand min(C:DemTot, c:AvailTotcap * (1 -
c:DemS
Supplied Losses% / 100)
Demand Not
c:DNS c:DemTot - DemS
Supplied
Total reserve c:AvailTotCap - c:DemTot * (1 +
c:ResvTotGen
Generation Losses% / 100)
Reserve
c:AvailDCap - c:DemTot * (1 +
Dispatchable c:ResDGen
Losses% / 100)
generation
Used Non-
min(C:AvailNDCap, DemTot * (1 +
Dispatchable c:NDGen
Losses% / 100))
Generation
Used Dispatch- min(C:AvailDCap, DemTot * (1 +
c:DGen
able Generation Losses% / 100) - c:NDGen)
Total Used gen-
c:TotGen c:Dgen + c:NDGen
eration
Residual c:DemTot * (1+ Losses% / 100) -
c:ResidDem
Demand c:NDGen

Table 47.6.1: Generation Adequacy Calculated Variables

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Chapter 48

Sensitivities / Distribution Factors

PowerFactory ’s Sensitivities / Distribution Factors calculation (ComVstab) offers a range of sensitivity

analyses based on the linearisation of the system around the operational point resulting from a load
flow calculation. Formerly referred to as Load Flow Sensitivities, in version 2020 of PowerFactory, the
functionality was extended and renamed Sensitivities / Distribution Factors.

The ComVstab command dialog can be accessed by:

• using the Change Toolbox icon ( ) to select Additional Functions and then clicking on the
Sensitivities / Distribution Factors icon ( ); or
• right-clicking on a busbar/terminal or transformer and selecting Calculation → Sensitivities / Dis-
tribution factors. . . . In this case the command will be automatically set to calculate the sensitivity
to power injections / tap changes on the selected busbar or terminal.

48.1 Overview of Sensitivity / Distribution Factors Calculations

There is a range of sensitivity calculations available to the user, including single sensitivity calculations
(for example to power injections at a single busbar or multiple busbars concurrently) and multiple
sensitivities (for example to power injections at many busbars in turn). In addition to the base load
flow sensitivities, there are also options to consider contingencies, which lends another dimension to
the results.

If a single sensitivity calculation is being executed, the results can be viewed directly in a Network
Model Manager. For multiple sensitivities only the results of the last-executed calculation are shown
the Network Model Manager; reporting scripts can be used to access the complete set of results in the
result file.

48.1.1 Terminology

The Load Flow Sensitivities calculation is referred to as “Sensitivity / Distribution Factors” because within
the field of electricity transmission in particular such sensitivity calculations are referred to as distribution
factors.

Reference will be made to some of these; the acronyms used are explained in general terms here:

• PTDF (Power Transfer Distribution Factor): The change in power flow on a circuit for a given
power injection at one or more nodes.

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• LODF (Line Outage Distribution Factor): The percentage of the power flow of a circuit that can
be observed on another branch if there is an outage of the circuit.
• OTDF (Outage Transfer Distribution Factor): The change in power flow on a circuit for a given
pre-fault power injection at one or more nodes, under fault outage conditions. This quantity is
obtained by running a PTDF calculation for each contingency case.
• TCDF (Tap Change Distribution Factor): The change in power flow on a circuit as a result of
tapping on a transformer.
• PSDF (Phase Shift Distribution Factor): The change in power flow on a circuit as a result of
tapping a phase-shift transformer. In essence, PSDF=TCDF.

Note: Users of the Transmission Network Tools module (Section 40.4) may already be familiar with the
PTDF functionality provided there. Although the underlying calculation is the same, the approach
is somewhat different and the choice between the two will depend on the individual requirements
of the user. The PTDF calculation in the Transmission Network Tools module offers some flexibility
in terms of customising the generator and load changes, and allows the reporting of sensitivities
across flowgates, but is restricted to region-to-region factors; the PTDF calculation here has the
benefit of offering sequential busbar injections, as well as incorporating contingency analysis.

48.1.2 Result Quantities

Depending on the calculations executed, the following results will be available:

• On branch elements for a power-injection sensitivity: dP/dP, dP/dQ, dQ/dP and dQ/dQ.
Also dPloss/dP, dPloss/dQ, dQloss/dP and dQloss/dQ.
• On branch elements for a transformer-tap sensitivity: dP/dtap and dQ/dtap.
Also dPloss/dtap and dQloss/dtap.
• At terminals for a power-injection sensitivity: dv/dP, dv/dQ, dphi/dP and dphi/dQ.
• At terminals for a transformer-tap sensitivity: dv/dtap, and dphi/dtap.

48.2 Sensitivities / Distribution Factors Options

48.2.1 Basic Options

48.2.1.1 Calculation method

Here the load flow calculation method is selected and the Load Flow dialog can be accessed.

Note: If an unbalanced AC load flow is used, only busbar sensitivities can be calculated and the
reporting options are similarly limited.

48.2.1.2 Consider contingencies

As well as executing the requested sensitivity analyses on the base load flow, it is possible to provide a
set of contingencies so that the requested sensitivities are calculated for these too. Note that an option

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“Use linearised AC calculation” is provided. See Section 26.4 for more information about this option; it
can speed up the calculation but the results may not be so accurate.

48.2.1.3 Sensitivities / Distribution factors

Several options are available; it is possible to select more than one to be run during the sensitivity
analysis calculation, but they are separate calculations.

Busbar

This busbar injection option corresponds to a PTDF calculation. The user can select a single terminal
or a set of terminals for analysis. Unless only one terminal is selected, the user should also decide
whether the power injections should be concurrent or sequential. This option is found on the Advanced
Options page: see Section 48.2.3. On the other hand, the user can select regions such as Zones, Areas
and Grids etc. In this case the option “Calculate regional sensitivities” can be selected in the Advanced
Options page: refer to Section 48.2.3.

Along with busbars, several elements such as ElmGenstat, ElmLod, ElmPvsys, ElmSym and ElmVac,
are shown for the selection. For convenience the user can select the busbars by directly choosing the
corresponding generators and loads.

If the Consider contingencies option is selected, the PTDF calculations for the contingency cases
correspond to an OTDF calculation.

Phase Shift/Tap Change

This option corresponds to a PSDF calculation. The user can select a single transformer or tap con-
troller, or a set of transformer / tap controllers for analysis. Unless only one transformer / tap controller
is selected, the user should also decide whether the tapping should be concurrent or sequential. This
option is found on the Advanced Options page: see Section 48.2.3.

Sensitivity to HVDC

This option corresponds to a PTDF calculation. The user can select a HVDC element, or a set of HVDC
elements (ElmVsc, ElmVscmono, ElmRec and ElmRecmono) for analysis. If only this option is selected,
the options in the Advanced Options page (see Section 48.2.3) will be greyed out. In case of multiple
HVDC elements, the calculation is always sequential.

Line Outage Distribution Factors

This option corresponds to a LODF calculation. To enable this option, the Consider contingencies option
is selected and a set of contingencies must be made available.

Line Outage Distributions Factors are by default calculated for line elements. However, it is also possible
to calculate LODF for other branch elements, i.e. 2- or 3-winding transformers, series capacitors and
series reactors. To obtain these results, it is necessary to use the Variable Selection feature described
in the next section to select the relevant variables to be recorded. The Variable Selection (Intmon) dialog
should be opened for the relevant element class, and the “LODF” variables selected.

48.2.2 Results

48.2.2.1 General Tab

Elements for results

Here the user has the choice to take the default option of calculating results for the whole system or
applying a user-defined element filter.

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The User-defined filter option allows the user to set up or modify filters in order to specify for which
elements results should be made available. Using the filter to restrict results to elements of interest can
significantly reduce calculation times. The filter applies whether a result file is used or not.

Calculate sensitivities for reducible elements

Reducible elements are those such as switches, which have no resistance and can therefore effectively
be eliminated during calculations. Unless the user requires results for these elements, it is better to
leave this option unselected because it will improve the speed of the calculation.

Result File

In this panel, there is a link to the “results object” (*.ElmRes), which is held inside the Study Case. Note
that if contingency analysis has been included, there will be individual results files for each contingency
case. A button Sub-Results in the results object gives access to these.

Below the link to the results object, there are two further buttons relating to variable selection (the
default set of variables recorded in the result file depends on the calculation method selected on the
Basic Options page):

• The Variable Selection button allows the user to specify variable selections for the recording of
results. If no variables are selected for recording, the full set of default variables will automatically
be selected.
• The Add default variables button allows the user to include all default variables to the selection
used for the recording of results.

Note: When executing sensitivity analysis on a large network it is not recommended that the full set
of default variables is used. Instead, it is better to define specific variable definitions to restrict
the recording to what is required. This will help speed up the calculation. The Variable Selection
object is described in Section 18.3: Variable Selection.

Consider recording thresholds for branches

Two main thresholds can be set. One is a minimum reporting level for the relative quantities dP/dP,
dP/dQ, dQ/dP or dQ/dQ. The other is a minimum reporting level for “Changes per tap”, i.e. dP/dtap or
dQ/dtap.

In addition, a third threshold called Min. LODF will be available, if the Line Outage Distribution Factors
are being calculated.

Consider recording thresholds for terminals

Two thresholds can be set. One is for voltage changes, namely dv/dP, dv/dQ or dv/dtap. The other is
for changes in voltage angle, namely dphi/dP, dphi/dQ or dphi/dtap.

48.2.2.2 Advanced Tab

Calculate all sensitivity variables

This option, which is provided for consistency with earlier versions of PowerFactory, is only available
when calculations are for single elements (and without contingency analysis). It will be then selected by
default and means that all sensitivity values will be available to show in the flexible data page regardless
of the selection of variables to be recorded in the result file.

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48.2.3 Advanced Options

The user will not see all the options described below at any one time: the options presented are
dependent on the options selected on the Basic Options page.

48.2.3.1 Busbar Tab

Diagonal elements only This is a rather specific option which is only visible when just Busbar is
selected on the Basic Options page. It is used to calculate the sensitivities of the busbar by an injection
on the busbar itself.

Sensitivities for loadings and losses on branches cannot be calculated with this option active.

Power change

This setting relates to Busbar sensitivity calculations. If Each bus in turn is selected, a separate
sensitivity calculation for each specified terminal will be carried out. If All buses simultaneously is
selected, the calculation assumes a power injection at all the specified terminals at the same time.

Calculate regional sensitivities

By checking the box of this option it is possible to determine the sensitivities of regions (Zones, Areas
and Grids). This option is only available if All buses simultaneously is selected and also a region type
element has been chosen as busbar input on the Basic Options page. An injection of 1 MW will be
distributed over the buses in each region. The calculation of the regional sensitivities can be executed
also considering contingencies.

Calculate boundary sensitivity between adjacent regions

The sensitivities of the boundary between regions will be determined. The boundary will be automati-
cally internally created for the purpose of calculations. However, the boundary will not be stored in the
database. The results can be obtained in the busbar sensitivity (PTDF/OTDF) report.

Use fictitious border network

This option is by default not selected and for most networks it is not needed. It is provided for use in
networks where adjacent regions, normally representing adjacent countries, are not connected directly
but via a so-called “fictitious border grid”. The graphical representation of the fictitious border network
is shown in figure 48.2.1. The fictitious border network has to be selected in the grid model. If there is
no such network, then the box of this option can be left unchecked.

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Figure 48.2.1: Network regions without and with fictitious border network

Injection based on generation shift key (GSK)

In this case all generators will be taken into consideration for GSK. The GSK of generation units is given
in percentage value, which can be entered on the Advanced tab of the Load Flow page of generation
units: ElmSym, ElmStat, ElmPvsys, ElmXnet and ElmAsm.

Consider generators with the setting ’Out of service when active power is zero’

This option is only relevant (and visible) if the previous option (Injection based on generation shift
key (GSK)) is selected. Its purpose is to allow different approaches as to which generators are to
be regarded as out of service, therefore not considered for GSK. For normal load flow calculations,
generators which have the Out of service when active power is zero setting selected and have an active
power of zero are regarded as out of service. If the option is selected, which is the default, these
particular generators will be considered for GSK alongside the in-service generators.

48.2.3.2 Phase Shift / Tap Change

User-defined 3-/4-winding transformer control side

This option becomes visible once one or more three- or four-winding transformers have been selected
for sensitivity analysis. It allows the user to override the “side for tapping” setting on the individual
elements with a global setting.

Tap change

This setting relates to transformer sensitivity calculations, i.e. the Phase Shift/Tap Change option. If
Each transformer in turn is selected, a separate sensitivity calculation for each specified transformer or
tap changer will be carried out. If All transformers simultaneously is selected, the calculation assumes
that all tap at same time.

Calculation method for transformer tap sensitivities

There are two options for calculating transformer tap sensitivities:

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Linearisation of transformer tap changes uses linearised load flow equations around the operating
point to derive sensitivities to transformer tap positions.
Discrete transformer tap assessment actually solves the load flow twice, once at the current operat-
ing point and once when the tap position is changed by one tap up or down; the user specifies the
direction. Then, the flows and voltages of the two load flow solutions are compared to deduce the
sensitivity.
This method provides a more accurate assessment in cases when a strong dependence of the
impedance on the current tap position is present, which, e.g., may result from a user-defined
measurement report for the transformer.
For a DC calculation, the algorithm additionally checks whether the degree of dependence be-
tween the impedance and the current tap position is significant. If this is not the case the (faster)
linearisation algorithm is used.

48.2.4 Output

On this page the user can configure the amount of information written to the output window, with “Short
output” being the default.

• Off - Only the start and completion messages are seen.

• Short output - Information and warning messages from the sensitivities command will be seen,
but no load flow details. If contingency analysis is included, the “short” contingency reporting will
be output.

• Detailed output - This option displays more detailed information, including load flow and contin-
gency analysis reporting as specified in the respective command dialogs.

48.2.5 Modal/Eigenvalue Analysis

On this page, the user can select the option for Modal/Eigenvalue Analysis, in order to execute an
eigenvalue calculation on the sensitivity matrix. The number of eigenvalues to be calculated is defined
in the Number of Eigenvalues field. The eigenvalues are always calculated in order of their largest
magnitude, so selecting n eigenvalues will display the n eigenvalues in descending order according to
magnitude (note that the calculation time increases with n).

In the Display Results for Mode field, the user can specify the number of a specific eigenvalue, for which
the stability behaviour (i.e. the eigenvectors and participation factors) is to be analysed. The algorithm
then additionally calculates the (𝜕𝑃/𝜕𝑄) , (𝜕𝑄/𝜕𝑄) (branch sensitivities) and the (𝜕𝑣/𝜕𝑄), (𝜕𝜙/𝜕𝑄)
(bus sensitivities) which correspond to the mode specified.

48.3 Reporting

The results of the Sensitivities / Distribution Factors calculation can be reported using the icon.
Below, the reporting command options are described, and section 48.3.4 gives some information about
the expected output.

48.3.1 General

On the General tab, the Result File can be selected. This is only necessary if more than one result file
has been retained in the study case.

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The Use filter setting allows the user to filter the elements to be shown in the report. If not selected,
results for all relevant elements will be reported.

The remaining options on this page allow the user to select the individual reports to be generated. For
standard quantities such as PTDF or PSDF, specific reports are provided. For other sensitivity values,
the information will be found in the Busbar or Transformer reports.

These are the reports which are available:

• Busbar sensitivities
– PTDF/OTDF (dP/dP)
– dP/dP, dQ/dP, dv/dP, dphi/dP, dPloss/dP, dQloss/dP
– dP/dQ, dQ/dQ, dv/dQ, dphi/dQ, dPloss/dQ, dQloss/dQ
• Transformer sensitivities
– PSDF/TCDF (dP/dtap)
– dP/dtap, dQ/dtap, dphi/dtap, dv/dtap, dPloss/dtap, dQloss/dtap
• Sensitivities to HVDC(s)
• LODF values

The results of the variables dLoading/dP (c:dLoadingdP) and dLoading/dtap (c:dLoadingdtap) can be
seen by accessing the Flexible Data Page for lines and transformers.

48.3.2 Thresholds

This tab allows the user to set the thresholds for the branch and terminals sensitivities to be included in
the reports.

48.3.3 Used Format

This tab gives read access to the reporting formats, held in the System folder of the database.

48.3.4 Report output

A number of options are available within the reports themselves to customise what is shown, for example
for which end (bus1 or bus2) of the lines the results should be shown.

The column titled with Branch, Substation or Site shows the parent object of the injection busbar (or
phase-shift transformer).

If contingency analysis has been included in the calculation, it is possible to step through the results of
the base case and each contingency case within the reports.

On the right-hand side of each report, filters are available to allow the user to filter by element class or
specific elements so as to more easily view the results of interest.

48.4 Troubleshooting

If results are not obtained when running the calculation, or the results are not as expected, here is a
short list of things to check:

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• Consider the recording limits. Are they set appropriately?

• There are limits for filtering results within the reports. However, the user should bear in mind that
only recorded results can be reported.

• If the result variables being recorded have been customised, some information may be lost;
consider resetting them to the default set of variables.
• If the results are not as expected, check the options selected on the Advanced Options page, for
example power change on each busbar in turn versus a simultaneous power change.

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Chapter 49

Network Reduction

49.1 Introduction

This chapter explains how to use the PowerFactory Network Reduction tool. A typical application of
Network Reduction is when a network that is part of or adjacent to a much larger network must be
analysed, but cannot be studied independently of the larger network. In such cases, one option is
to model both networks in detail for calculation purposes. However, there might be situations when
it is not desirable to do studies with the complete model. For example, when the calculation times
would increase significantly or when the data of the neighbouring network is confidential and cannot be
published.

In these cases, it is common practice to provide a simplified representation of the neighbouring network
that contains only the interface nodes (connection points). These can then be connected by equivalent
impedances and voltage sources, so that the short circuit and load-flow response within the kept (non
reduced) system is the same as when the detailed model is used.

PowerFactory offers two static methods for producing an equivalent representation of the reduced
part of the network and calculating its parameters, valid for both load flow and short-circuit calcula-
tions, including asymmetrical faults such as single-phase faults. The first method is based on a Ward
Equivalent representation and the second method is based on an REI (Radial-Equivalent-Independent)
representation, which enables generators and/or loads to be retained and makes it possible to create
power injections according to fuel type.

In addition, a reduction of groupings into regional equivalents for AC load flow is available.

The above methods result in networks suitable for the “static” load flow and short circuit calculations,
but if (balanced) RMS simulations are to be carried out after reduction, a Dynamic equivalent option can
be selected. This uses the REI reduction method based on the aggregation of coherent synchronous
generation.

This chapter is separated into five parts. Firstly, the technical background of the PowerFactory Network
Reduction algorithms are explained. Section 49.3 then discusses the steps needed to run a Network
Reduction and Section 49.4 explains in detail each of the options of the PowerFactory Network Reduc-
tion tool. The penultimate part, Section 49.5, presents a simple example and the final section provides
some tips and tricks to consider when working with the Network Reduction tool.

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49.2 Technical Background

Some additional technical background on the Network Reduction tool is provided in the following sec-
tions.

49.2.1 Network Reduction using Ward method

49.2.1.1 Network Reduction for Load Flow

Network reduction for load flow is an algorithm based on sensitivity matrices. The basic idea is that the
sensitivities of the equivalent grid, measured at the connection points in the kept grid, must be equal to
the sensitivities of the grid that has been reduced. This means that for a given (virtual) set of ∆P and
∆Q injections in the branches, from the kept grid to the grid to be reduced, the resulting ∆u and ∆𝜙
(voltage magnitude and voltage phase angle variations) in the boundary nodes must be the same for
the equivalent grid as those that would have been obtained for the original grid (within a user defined
tolerance).

49.2.1.2 Network Reduction for Short-Circuit

Network reduction for short-circuit is an algorithm based on nodal impedance / nodal admittance
matrices. The basic idea is that the impedance matrix of the equivalent grid, measured at the connection
points in the kept grid, must be equal to the impedance matrix of the grid to be reduced (for the rows
and columns that correspond to the boundary nodes). This means that for a given (virtual) additional
∆I injection (variation of current phasor) in the boundary branches, from the kept grid to the grid to be
reduced, the resulting ∆u (variations of voltage phasor) in the boundary nodes must be the same for
the equivalent grid, as those that would have been obtained for the original grid (within a user defined
tolerance).

This must be valid for positive sequence, negative sequence, and zero sequence cases, if these are to
be considered in the calculation (unbalanced short-circuit equivalent).

49.2.2 Network Reduction using REI Method

The REI Equivalent is a methodology for network reduction which allows the flexibility to retain non-
linear elements within the reduced area, or represent them with REI equivalent elements. It is possible
to aggregate these reduced non-linear elements, with the option of grouping together generators of the
same production (fuel) type. The advantages of the REI method are:

• Generators/loads of deleted nodes can be identified.

• Losses are kept at their initial value by using a Zero Power Balance Network.
• Electrical distances between boundary nodes and generation in the deleted network can be kept.
• The reduced networks can potentially be used with other static calculation modules besides load
flow, such as contingency analysis and Optimum Power Flow.
• The ability to create equivalent injections per production type assists with system operators’
obligations under European Network Codes.

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49.2.3 Network Reduction using Regional Equivalents

The network reduction based on regional equivalents offers a non-deterministic approach where the
load and generation of a region is concentrated to one node. This node is then connected to other
nodes from reduced regions and to the retained network with artificial branch elements. The branches
have all the same standard value for the impedance in the beginning. The final impedance value for each
created connection is then determined by an optimisation with the Parameter Identification tool. The
target is to minimise the deviations of interchange flows compared to the original case. The impedance
optimisation can be executed for a Load Flow (one point in time) or a Quasi-Dynamic Simulation
(time sweep).

The advantages of this method are:

• Reduction for different operating points and time sweep calculations.
• Fewer equivalent elements compared to other reduction methods.
• User definable target function for the optimisation.

49.2.4 Network Reduction for Dynamic Equivalent

The dynamic network reduction is based on the aggregation of coherent clusters of synchronous
generators. In order to find the coherent clusters the network is excited, either by noise injection or
user defined simulation events, and the machines are grouped based on their response. Then, the
coherent machines are aggregated to an equivalent machine and obtained in the further reduction.
The rest of the to be reduced network is assumed to be passive and therefore reduced with a static REI
reduction. In the next step generic or user selectable controllers are added to the aggregated equivalent
machines and an optional parameter identification is carried out to adjust the controller parameters to
match the dynamic response of the reduced network to the pre-reduction behaviour.

Since this method is based on synchronous generation, dynamic equivalents can only be obtained if
the system to be reduced contains synchronous generation. If there are no synchronous generators in
the to-be-reduced system, a simplified static REI reduction is executed, where all network element are
aggregated to static loads. In general the equivalent network structure obtained by the dynamic network
reduction is only valid for balanced RMS-simulations and not for unbalanced RMS or EMT simulations.

49.3 How to Carry Out a Network Reduction

This section explains the process for running a Network Reduction. There are several steps that you
must complete to successfully reduce a network:

1. Create a boundary or boundaries to define the interior and exterior regions.

2. Create a backup of the project intended for reduction (optional).
3. Activate the Additional Functions toolbar and configure the Network Reduction Tool options.
4. Run the Network Reduction Tool.

It is necessary to define a boundary or boundaries before proceeding further with the Network Reduction
(except for the reduction with regional equivalents).

This process is described in detail in Chapter 14 Grouping Objects, Section 14.4 (Boundaries). How-
ever, to summarise, the boundary divides the network into two regions, the area to be reduced which is
referred to as the interior region and the area to be kept which is referred to as the exterior region.

The following section describes the process of backing up the project, running the Network Reduction
tool using the default options and describes the expected output of a successful network reduction.

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For more information about the options available within the Network Reduction tool, see Section 49.4:
Network Reduction Command.

49.3.1 How to Backup the Project (optional)

By default, the Network Reduction tool keeps all the original network data and the modifications needed
to reduce the network are stored within a new expansion stage that is part of a new variation. It will
only destroy the original data if the associated option within the command is configured for this (see
Section 49.4.6: Outputs).

However, if you want extra security to guarantee against data loss, in case for instance you accidently
select the option to modify the original network, then you should make a backup copy of the project
before completing the Network Reduction. There are three possible ways to do this:

• make a copy of the whole project and paste/store it with a name different to that of the original
project; or
• export the project as a *.pfd file (for information about exporting data refer to Section 8.1.4:
Exporting and Importing of Projects); or
• activate the project and create a Version of the project. For information about Versions refer to
Section 20.2 (Project Versions).

49.3.2 How to run the Network Reduction tool

This sub-section describes the procedure you must follow to run the Network Reduction using the default
options. Proceed as follows:

1. Activate the base Study Case for the project you wish to reduce.

2. Define a boundary or boundaries that split the grid into the part to be reduced (interior region),
and the part to be kept (exterior region). See Section 14.4 (Boundaries) for the procedure.
3. Open the boundary object(s) and use the Check Split button in the ElmBoundary dialog to check
that the boundary correctly splits the network into two regions. See Section 14.4 (Boundaries) for
more information about boundaries.

4. Select the Change Toolbox button from the main toolbar.

5. Press the Network Reduction icon from the Additional Functions bar. This opens the dialog for
Network Reduction Command (ComRed).

6. Select the boundary/boundaries you previously defined using the button .

7. Optional: If you wish to modify the settings of the command, do so in this dialog. The settings
and options are explained in Section 49.4 (Network Reduction Command). However, the default
options are recommended, unless you have a specific reason for changing them.
8. Press the Execute button to start the reduction procedure.

49.3.3 Expected Output of the Network Reduction

The default behaviour of the Network Reduction command is to create a Variation containing a single
Expansion Stage called ’Reduction Stage’. For more information see Chapter 16: Network Variations
and Expansion Stages. The Variation will be named automatically according to the reduction options
selected in the Basic Options page of the Network Reduction command. For example, for the default
options using the Ward Equivalent method, the Variation will be called Equ-LF [EW] - Shc[sym] @

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Boundary, whereas if the REI method is used, the Variation will be called Equ-LF [REI] @ Boundary.
Figure 49.3.1 shows an example of a network data model after a successful Network Reduction.

Figure 49.3.1: Variation and Reduction Stage after a successful Network Reduction using the default
options.

The Network Reduction tool also creates a new Study Case with a name that matches the new Variation
name. To return to your original network, all you need to do is activate the original study case that you
used to initiate the Network Reduction.

Note: The Variation and Study Case created by the Network Reduction tool are automatically activated
when the tool is run. To return to your original model you need to reactivate the ’base’ Study Case.

New objects added by the Network Reduction command

Depending on the network configuration and the options chosen within the Network Reduction com-
mand, during the Network Reduction process some new objects might be created.

In the case of the Ward Equivalent, there are two possible new object types:

• AC Voltage Source (ElmVac) ; and

• Common Impedance (ElmZpu)

In the case of the REI method, depending upon the options selected, there may also be created one or
more of these objects:
• Equivalent Node (ElmTerm)

• REI Load (ElmLod)

• REI Generator (ElmSym, ElmGenstat)
• REI SVS (ElmSvs)
For the Regional Equivalent the following elements are added:

• Nodes (ElmTerm)
• Loads (ElmLod)
• Generators (ElmSym, ElmGenstat)

• Transformers (ElmTr2)
• Common impedances (ElmZpu)
In addition to the elements in the REI reduction, the following elements can be added in a dynamic
network reduction:

• Composite Models (ElmComp)

• DSL Models (ElmDsl)

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• Measurements (StaVmea)

If the Ward Equivalent method is used, there will by default be one voltage source created for every
boundary node and one common impedance between every pair of boundary nodes (unless the calcu-
lated mutual impedance is greater than the user-defined threshold described in Section 49.4.7). These
objects are stored in the database but are not automatically drawn on the single line graphic. To insert
graphical representations of the new elements substituting the reduced network, the Diagram Layout
Tool may be used (see section 11.6). For the REI method, the number of impedance objects will be
greater because of the additional equivalent nodes, but the user-defined threshold still applies.

49.4 Network Reduction Command

In this section, the Network Reduction command options are explained.

49.4.1 Basic Options

49.4.1.1 Reduction type and method

The first option on the Basic Options page is the choice of the Reduction Type, between dynamic
equivalent and the static equivalent. The available Methods of the “Static equivalent” are the “Ward
equivalent”, the “REI equivalent” and the “Regional equivalent”. Dependent on this selection the options
on the following pages are offered accordingly.

49.4.1.2 Boundary

This option specifies which part of the grid should be reduced. The user may select a single boundary
or more than one; if more than one is selected, references to the selected boundaries are stored as a
set in the study case. Boundaries used for network reduction must separate the original grid into two
parts, the part that shall be reduced (external system) and the part that shall be kept (internal system)
and therefore must be splitting boundaries.

The option “To be reduced” defines which side of the boundary or boundaries shall be reduced. Thus the
interior region of the boundary doesn’t necessary equal the internal system for the network reduction.

If more than one boundary is used, there is a further requirement that they must not overlap, i.e. there
must be no elements that are contained within more than one of the boundaries.

For more information about boundaries, refer to Section 14.4 (Boundaries).

The ability to select multiple boundaries is particularly beneficial when using the REI method and,
for example, reducing many low-voltage grids. Depending upon the aggregation options, there is
the possibility, with just one boundary, of ending up with a very large generator or load which could
result in convergence difficulties. When multiple boundaries are used, the aggregation is done for each
boundary, giving a more robust result.

49.4.1.3 Regions

The selection of regions is offered instead of Boundary if the regional equivalent is selected. Grids,
zones, areas and boundaries are supported for this reduction, but different element classes cannot be
mixed for one reduction. Overlapping boundaries are not allowed.

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49.4.1.4 Load Flow

The load flow command is linked in the network reduction command. The load flow settings influence
the outcome of the reduction and can be adapted by opening the load flow command via the offered
pointer.

49.4.1.5 Quasi-Dynamic Simulation

If the Regional equivalent option is selected the user has the possibility to select either the Load Flow
or the Quasi-Dynamic Simulation as Calculation type. The according Command from the study case
will be automatically linked. The settings from the linked command will be used for the reduction.

49.4.2 Ward Equivalent

Load flow method The Ward reduction can be executed based on a AC balanced or a DC load flow.

Calculate load flow equivalent

If this option is enabled, as it is by default, the load flow equivalent models will be created by the
reduction tool. The AC balanced load flow method and the DC load flow method are supported for the
Ward Equivalent reduction and the method can be selected directly in the network reduction dialog.
When the option “Calculate load flow equivalent” is enabled, the study case Load Flow command can
be accessed and there are further options to define the type of equivalent models to be created.

Equivalent Model for Power Injection

The load flow equivalent is composed of mutual impedances between boundary nodes and power
injections (and shunt impedances) at boundary nodes. The power injection can be represented by
different models. For the load flow equivalent there are three options (models) available:

• Load Equivalent: a load demand.

• Ward Equivalent: an AC voltage source which is configured as a Ward Equivalent.
• Extended Ward Equivalent: an AC voltage source which is configured as an Extended Ward
Equivalent.

Calculate short-circuit equivalent

If this option is enabled, the short-circuit equivalent model will be created by the Network Reduction
tool. Currently, only the complete short-circuit calculation method is supported.

Asymmetrical Representation

This option is used to specify whether an unbalanced short-circuit equivalent will be created. If this
option is disabled, only a balanced short-circuit equivalent will be created, valid for the calculation of
3-phase short-circuits. If this option is enabled, an unbalanced short-circuit equivalent is created, valid
for the calculation of single-phase and other unsymmetrical short-circuits. This means the network rep-
resentation must include zero sequence and negative sequence parameters, otherwise the unbalanced
calculation cannot be done.

49.4.3 REI Equivalent

49.4.3.1 General

For a REI reduction, there are further options to specify which elements should be reduced:

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Reduction of non-linear elements

Using a set of drop-down menus, the user can select which elements are to be reduced and which are
to be retained during the reduction process. In detail:
• Synchronous generators
– Retain all: All synchronous generators will be retained.
– Retain all voltage controlled: all PV generators will be retained; PQ generators will be
reduced.
– Reduce all (default): all synchronous generators will be reduced and replaced by REI equiv-
alent elements.
• Static generators
– Retain all: All static generators will be retained.
– Retain all voltage controlled: all PV generators will be retained; PQ generators will be
reduced.
– Reduce all (default): all static generators will be reduced and replaced by REI equivalent
elements.
• Loads
– Retain all: All loads will be retained.
– Reduce all (default): all loads will be reduced and replaced by REI equivalent elements.
• Static Var Systems
– Retain all: All static Var systems will be retained.
– Retain all voltage controlled: all voltage controlled SVS will be retained; others will be
reduced.
– Reduce all (default): all SVS will be reduced and replaced by REI equivalent elements.

• Additional Elements: The user can specify an element or a set of elements to be retained, such
as important interchange lines between two countries.
Calculate short-circuit equivalent

If this option is enabled, the short-circuit equivalent model will be created by the Network Reduction
tool. Currently, only the complete short-circuit calculation method is supported.

Asymmetrical Representation

This option is used to specify whether an unbalanced short-circuit equivalent will be created. If this
option is disabled, only a balanced short-circuit equivalent will be created, valid for the calculation of
3-phase short-circuits. If this option is enabled, an unbalanced short-circuit equivalent is created, valid
for the calculation of single-phase and other unsymmetrical short-circuits. This means the network rep-
resentation must include zero sequence and negative sequence parameters, otherwise the unbalanced
calculation cannot be done.

49.4.3.2 Aggregation

Aggregation of nonlinear elements

All reduced elements can be simply aggregated together, or the generators and loads can be ag-
gregated separately, although if short-circuit equivalents are to be calculated as well as load flow
equivalents then it is necessary to keep the generators and loads separate.

Further sub-options are available:

All elements together

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• Subgroup generators...
– According to local controller
Group loads and generators separately
• Subgroup generators...
– According to local controller
And/Or
– According to model type and plant category
– According to model type and plant category and subcategory

• Subgroup loads...
– According to load classification

Single equivalent bus per substation: This option is only designed for reductions in low voltage
distribution networks and should not be used when reducing large network parts. If the option is used
a single equivalent bus is created for each substation (ElmSubstat not ElmTrfstat) instead of individual
busses for every group of aggregated REI elements. This helps to avoid loop flows due to very low
impedances.

49.4.3.3 Advanced

Minimisation of equivalent branches (REI reduction) This setting is only available in the REI reduc-
tion method and minimises the number of common impedances (ElmZpu) created in the reduction.

In each separated area of the “to be reduced system”, the equivalent network elements created in a
REI reduction are interconnected by common impedances to all boundary nodes. Also every pair of
boundary nodes of each separated area will be connected by a common impedance. For large systems
with many boundary nodes this leads to a high number of equivalent branches created during a network
reduction.

The setting “Minimisation of equivalent branches” on the “Advanced Options” page separates the “to
be reduced system” into smaller subsystems by retaining some nodes. These subsystems will then be
reduced separately. This leads to a significant decrease in the number of equivalent branches, but the
number of equivalent loads and generators will increase.

The minimisation algorithm is configured with different sets of parameters and the user has 4 different
selection possibilities
• Off: The minimisation is disabled. Output of the PowerFactory 2018 and older versions.

• Fast minimisation: A time optimised minimisation with large step sizes and a limited number of
separated areas.
• Standard minimisation: Recommended settings for the minimisation.
• Optimal minimisation: Time intensive minimisation with small step sizes.

49.4.4 Regional Equivalent

49.4.4.1 Aggregation

The elements in the reduced regions are aggregated to one artificial node. The Aggregation of
nonlinear elements-settings are identical to the ones in the REI-Reduction (49.4.3.2) and the user can
select if generators and loads are supposed to be grouped separately and to be further distinguished

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49.4.4.2 Impedance Identification

Equivalent impedances with a common Initial value are created between the nodes from the reduced
regions and the retained network parts. The impedance identification is using the Parameter Identifi-
cation in order to adapt the impedances to minimise the Interchange mismatches. The target function
can be customised in the Locations and weighting factors table. The default is the consideration of
the interchange of each reduced region with a weighting factor of 1. It is possible to add new locations
(regions and all boundaries) and adapt the weighting factors, but it is recommended to add the retained
regions and additional boundaries of importance with a higher weighting factor. The Upper bound of
equivalent impedance is adding limits to the optimisation. The Optimisation method used by the
parameter identification can be selected and certain Settings of the parameter identification can be
modified.

49.4.4.3 Advanced

If needed, the fictitious border network can be selected for the reduction.

Phase shift transformers can be used in combination with the common impedances for each intercon-
nection between the equivalent nodes and the retained network to avoid loop flows and thus achieve a
better solution. The Creation of phase shifters for loop flows is optional. If the option is enabled, the
default Phase shifter type can be adapted. The corresponding nominal voltage and the needed phase
shift are set automatically.

49.4.5 Dynamic Equivalent

49.4.5.1 Coherency page

The settings on this page influence the clustering of elements into coherent groups of synchronous
generators which will be aggregated in the reduction.

Disturbance In order to group the generators a balanced RMS simulation is carried out and the network
needs to be excited with a disturbance in order to get a response that can later be used for grouping.

The first option are Noise injections at the boundary nodes. Temporary current sources are created
to inject a random noise. This would reflect a wide range of disturbances with different excitation
frequencies and therefore a more general grouping.

The network can also be exited for specific Existing simulation events. This would then result in a better
tuned grouping for this exact excitation.

Identification method

The coherency between generators and their response can the evaluated in different ways. This has
an influence on how many groups are determined. In general more groups/equivalents lead to a higher
precision but less reduction.

Based on correlation coefficients: The response of a monitored signal can be used to obtain a cor-
relation factor between two generators via a cross correlation. A correlation factor of 1 means that
the machines are coherent and a factor of 0 means no correlation between the signals. A correlation
threshold of 0.8 is usually a good value for the correlation in a dynamic network reduction. The grouping
algorithm is starting with the largest machine which is not already in a group and adding all coherent
generators (which are not in a group) to this new group, with respect to the correlation factor. This
process is repeated until all generators are assigned to a group.

Hierarchical / Agglomerative clustering: Grouping the generators up to a specified threshold of the

Maximum distance / average distance. The distance between two signals is calculated via the ward

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linkage and the average distance is the average distance of all generator pairs. The maximum distance
is the maximum distance between any two generators in the same group.

The Monitored signal for the coherency identification can be selected from typical machine signals.

The According to local controller setting has the same influence as in the static REI reduction and
is differentiating the machines depending on their local load flow controller. This may be important for
load flow convergence.

Selective grouping According to model type and plant category is an option.

With the setting Stop after coherency identification the dynamic reduction can be stopped after this
step and the output will only be the displayed coherent groups in the output window.

49.4.5.2 Controllers page

Create controllers for equivalent generators The dynamic network reduction will create an equivalent
machine for each coherent group of generators. Controller models for these machines can be added.

Template: There are several simplified power plant model templates available which can be selected
(In the Configuration folder). With the Copy and Select option in the drop-down menu a template will
be copied to the network reduction command and can be modified there. Also user defined templates
can be copied to the network reduction command to be available in the dynamic reduction. A template
contains a Plant Model (ElmComp) with a Synchronous machine and the needed DSL models, and the
parameters to be optimised (IntIdentctrl) in the parameter optimisation for these machines.

Parameter identification The Parameter identification is optional and only available if controllers are
added to the equivalent machines.

One of the available Optimisation methods from the parameter identification can be selected directly
in the network reduction command. The default method for the parameter identification is the Particle
Swarm Optimisation.

The Simulation events are taken from the study case.

Settings is a pointer to the parameter identification command. The allowed iteration number can be
specified here. Depending on the settings the parameter identification can be very time consuming.

The Parameters to be tuned are taken from the controller templates and can be viewed and modified
here.

49.4.5.3 Advanced page

The Minimisation of equivalent branches is supported in the dynamic network reduction (see 49.4.3.3)

49.4.6 Outputs

The section describes the options available on the Outputs page of the Network Reduction command.
These options define how the Network Reduction command modifies the network model.

Note: In Scripting there is an additional output possibility. It allows the user to reduce the system only
in memory. Therefore the changes are only available during the runtime of the script. This is
increasing the performance since the changes are not written to the database.

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49.4.6.1 Calculation of Parameters Only

The equivalent parameters are calculated and reported to the output window. If this option is selected
then the Network Reduction command does not modify the network model.

49.4.6.2 Create a new Variation for Reduced Network (Default)

The equivalent parameters are calculated and a Variation will be automatically created to store the
reduced network model. If the project already includes System Stage(s) (from PowerFactory version
13.2 or earlier versions) then System Stage(s) will be created instead of a Variation.

49.4.6.3 Reduce Network without Creating a New Variation

The Network Reduction command will directly modify the main network model if this options is selected.
Therefore, this option will destroy data by deleting the ’interior’ region of the selected boundary, and
replacing it with its reduced model, so this option should be used with care. To avoid losing the original
grid data, backup the project as described in Section 49.3.1 (How to Backup the Project (optional)).

49.4.6.4 Clean up empty substations and bays

If this option is selected the empty substations and bays from the reduced systems will be removed
by the network reduction. Also the network elements will be created in the grid and not in the former
substations by the network reduction.

49.4.6.5 Show detailed output

Select this option in order to see detailed information about the objects that have been created as part
of the network reduction.

49.4.7 Advanced Options

This section describes the Advanced Options for the Network Reduction command.

49.4.7.1 Mutual Impedance (Ignore above)

As part of the Network Reduction process equivalent branches (represented using Common Impedance
elements) will be created between the boundary nodes, to maintain the power-flow relationship between
them. If such branches have a calculated impedance larger than this parameter they will be ignored
(not added to the network model).

By default, the number of these branches created will be N*(N-1)/2, where N is the number of boundary
nodes. A boundary node is defined for each boundary cubicle. Therefore, the number of created
branches can be very high. Normally many of these equivalent branches have a very large impedance
value, so their associated power flows are negligible and the branch can be ignored.

The default value for this parameter is 1000 p.u (based on 100 MVA).

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49.4.7.2 Calculate Equivalent Parameters at All Frequencies (only for static equivalents)

This option enables the calculation of frequency-related parameters. By default, the short-circuit equiv-
alent parameters are calculated at all frequencies relevant to short-circuit analysis (equivalent frequen-
cies for calculating the d.c. component of the short-circuit current):

• 𝑓 = 𝑓𝑛

• 𝑓 /𝑓𝑛 = 0.4
• 𝑓 /𝑓𝑛 = 0.27
• 𝑓 /𝑓𝑛 = 0.15

• 𝑓 /𝑓𝑛 = 0.092
• 𝑓 /𝑓𝑛 = 0.055

𝑓𝑛 is the nominal frequency of the grid (usually 50 Hz or 60 Hz).

If only transient and sub-transient short-circuit currents are important in the reduced network, the
calculation of frequency-related parameters can be skipped by unchecking this option.

49.4.8 Verification

49.4.8.1 Check Equivalent Results

If the option Check load flow results after reduction is enabled, the load flow results at the boundary
nodes after the network reduction will be checked against the original network results. A warning
message will be given if the results do not match (within the user defined Threshold for check ).

The results of the comparison between the original network and the reduced network are printed to the
output window.

The Check simulation results after reduction option is only available for the dynamic network reduction.

It the simulation results are checked, the Generate curve comparison plot for selected signals func-
tionality is creating a new plot page with plots for the before and after reduction behaviour of selected
signals.

For the regional reduction for a Quasi-dynamic simulation the variables for the comparison plots are
automatically selected based on the selected regions for reduction and optimisation.

For the dynamic network reduction, on the Advanced page the Signals to be checked can be specified,
either by a user defined variable selection (IntMon) or a auto selection of the first set of variables
(IntMon) from the result file of the elements from the retained system.

49.4.8.2 Check Deviation of Operating Point

If the option Save original operating point to results file on the Advanced page is enabled, the base
operating point for the Network Reduction will be automatically saved to two results files. These two
created files are:

• LdfResultforNR.ElmRes: voltage magnitudes and angles of all boundary nodes; and

• ShcResultforNR.ElmRes: short-circuit level at all boundary nodes, including 𝐼𝑘′′ (Ikss), 𝐼𝑘′ (Iks), 𝑖𝑝
(ip), 𝑖𝑏 (ib), 𝐼𝑏 (Ib), 𝑋𝑏 /𝑅𝑏 (𝑋𝑡𝑜𝑅𝑏 ), and 𝑋/𝑅 (XtoR).

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49.5 Network Reduction Example

This section presents a Network Reduction example using a small transmission network feeding a
distribution system from “Bus 5” and “Bus 6” as shown in Figure 49.5.1 and represents a reduction with
the Ward method.

The distribution system is represented by “Load A” and “Load B” and the corresponding two transform-
ers. As a user you would like to study the distribution system in detail but are not concerned with the
detailed power flow within the transmission system. Therefore, the Network Reduction tool can be used
to create a equivalent model for the transmission system.

The interior region (the area that shall be reduced) is shown shaded in grey, whereas the non-shaded
area is the exterior region that shall be kept. The procedure for completing the Network Reduction
according to these parameters is as follows (you can repeat this example yourself using the Nine-bus
System within the PowerFactory Examples):

Figure 49.5.1: Example System with Original Network

1. Select the lines “Line 5-7” and “Line 6-9”.

2. Right-click on the selected lines and choose the option Network Groupings → Boundary → New. . . .
The boundary dialog will appears.
3. Click on the Mark Interior Region button and verify that the region marked corresponds with the
region showed grayout in Figure 49.5.1.
4. Open the Network Reduction command dialog and select newly created boundary using the select
button ( ).
5. Press Execute. The Network Reduction tool will reduce the system.

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6. Now you can draw the new common impedance and equivalent ward voltage source elements
using the Diagram Layout Tool. The result of the Network Reduction is shown in Figure 49.5.2.

A load flow calculation or a short-circuit calculation in the reduced network gives the same results for
the distribution network as for the original (non-reduced) network.

Figure 49.5.2: Example System with Reduced Network

49.6 Tips for using the Network Reduction Tool

This section presents some tips for using the Network Reduction tool and some solutions to common
problems encountered by users.

49.6.1 Network Reduction doesn’t Reduce Isolated Areas

By default, the boundary definition search stops when encountering an open breaker. This means that
isolated areas can sometimes be excluded from the interior region and therefore are not reduced by the
Network Reduction tool. The solution to this problem is to disable the boundary flag Topological search:
Stop at open breakers. This option is enabled by default in all boundary definitions. It is recommended
to disable it before attempting a Network Reduction.

A related problem occurs with the project setting (Edit → Project→ Project Settings→ Advanced Cal-
culation Parameters) Automatic Out of Service Detection. It is recommended that this option is disabled
before attempting a Network Reduction. However, it is disabled by default, so if you have not made
changes to the default project settings you should not need to make any changes to this setting.

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49.6.2 The Reference Machine is not Reduced

The Network Reduction tool will not reduce a reference machine defined within the interior region. It
also leaves all network components that are topologically one bus removed from the reference machine
(and of non-zero impedance). For example, if the reference machine is a typical synchronous machine
connected to the HV system through a step up transformer, then the reduction tool will leave the
synchronous machine, the LV bus, the step up transformer and the HV bus within the reduced network.

It is recommended that the reference machine is found within the exterior region before attempting a
Network Reduction. The reference machine can be identified by checking the output window after a
load-flow calculation.

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Chapter 50

State Estimation

50.1 Introduction

The State Estimation (SE) function of PowerFactory provides consistent load flow results for an entire
power system, based on measurements, manually entered data and the network model.

State estimation has traditionally been used for transmission systems, where many redundant mea-
surements exist. Bad data from the measurement equipment should be identified and treated in order
to determine the most feasible currents and voltages within the grid before running any further analysis,
such as contingency analysis, security checks etc. In particular, it has been a task for grid operation
and has only required a symmetrical (balanced) calculation.

However, due to the constantly increasing number of distributed generation units and new loads, the
challenges at distribution level increase. At the same time, there are more and more measurement
devices in distribution systems (e.g. advanced metering systems) available. This makes state estimation
at distribution level possible. Due to the unbalanced load conditions in the distribution system, an
unbalanced state estimation is therefore necessary. In addition to the classic use case, state estima-
tion also becomes relevant for distribution system planning purposes in order to make realistic power
assumptions.

PowerFactory supports both calculation methods: balanced within the positive sequence system and
unbalanced in the 3-phase system.

The State Estimation requires measurements. The measurement types that are processed by the
PowerFactory State Estimation are:

• Active Power Branch Flow

• Reactive Power Branch Flow
• Branch Current (Magnitude)
• Bus Bar Voltage (Magnitude)

• Breaker Status
• Transformer Tap Position
Unfortunately, these measurements are usually noisy and some data might even be totally wrong. On
the other hand, there may be more data available than absolutely necessary and it is possible to improve
the accuracy of the estimated network status through redundant measurements.

The states that can be estimated by the State Estimation on the base of the given measurements vary
for different elements in the network:

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CHAPTER 50. STATE ESTIMATION

• General, LV and MV Loads

– (balanced or unbalanced) Active Power, and/or
– (balanced or unbalanced) Reactive Power, or
– (balanced or unbalanced) Scaling Factor, as an alternative
• Synchronous Machines
– Active Power, and/or
– Reactive Power

• Asynchronous Machines
– Active Power

• Static var System

– Reactive Power

• 2-,3- and 4-winding transformers

– Tap Positions (for all but one taps)

• Static Generator and PV System

– Active Power, and/or
– Reactive Power

• Step-Voltage Regulator
– (balanced or unbalanced) Tap Positions

50.2 Objective Function

The objective of a State Estimation is to assess the generator and load injections, and the tap positions
in a way that the resulting load flow result matches as close as possible with the measured branch
flows and bus bar voltages. Mathematically, this can be expressed with a weighted square sum of all
deviations between calculated (calVal) and measured (meaVal) branch flows and bus bar voltages:

𝑛 (︂ )︂2
−1 calVal𝑖 − meaVal𝑖
∑︁
𝑓 (⃗𝑥) = 𝜎𝑖 · (50.1)
𝑖=1
rating

where:
𝜎𝑖 = (accuracy𝑖 /100)

The state vector ⃗𝑥 contains all voltage magnitudes, voltage angles and also all variables to be estimated,
such as active and reactive power injections at all bus bars.

Because more accurate measurements should have a higher influence to the final results than less
accurate measurements, every measurement error is weighted with the corresponding standard devia-
tion 𝜎. This value should be based on the accuracy of the whole measurement configuration (general
measurement device, transformer instruments, transmission channels, etc.).

In this setting, the goal of a State Estimation is to minimise the above given function 𝑓 (⃗𝑥) under the side
constraints that all load flow equations are fulfilled.

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50.3 Components of the PowerFactory State Estimation

The State Estimation function in PowerFactory consists of several independent components, namely:
1. Preprocessing
2. Plausibility Check

3. Observability Analysis
4. Non-linear optimisation (state estimation)
Figure 50.3.1 illustrates the algorithmic interaction of the different components. The first Preprocessing
phase adjusts all breaker and tap positions according to their measured signals.

Figure 50.3.1: Variation of the PowerFactory State Estimation algorithm

The Plausibility Check is sought to detect and separate out, in a second phase, all measurements with
some apparent error. PowerFactory provides various test criteria for that phase of the algorithm.

In a third phase, the network is checked for its Observability. Roughly speaking, a region of the network
is called observable, if the measurements in the system provide enough (non-redundant) information to
estimate the state of that part of the network.

Finally, the State Estimation itself evaluates the state of the entire power system by solving the above
mentioned non-linear optimisation problem. PowerFactory provides various ways for copying with non-
observable areas of the network.

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In order to improve the quality of the result, observability analysis and state estimation can be run in
a loop. In this mode, at the end of each state estimation, the measurement devices undergo a so-
called “Bad Data Detection”: the error of every measurement device can be estimated by evaluating
the difference between calculated and measured quantity. Extremely distorted measurements (i.e.
the estimated error is much larger than the standard deviation of the measurement device) are not
considered in the subsequent iterations. The process is repeated until no bad measurements are
detected any more.

In the following, the distinct components of the PowerFactory State Estimation are explained in detail.

50.3.1 Plausibility Check

In order to avoid any heavy distortion of the estimated network-state due to completely wrong mea-
surements, the following Plausibility Checks can be made before the actual State Estimation is started.
Every measurement that fails in any of the listed Plausibility Checks will not be considered.

• Check for consistent active power flow directions at each side of the branch elements.
• Check for extremely large branch losses, which exceed their nominal values.
• Check for negative losses on passive branch elements.

• Check for large branch flows on open ended branch elements.

• Check whether the measured branch loadings exceed the nominal loading value of the branch
elements.
• Node sum checks for both, active and reactive power.

Each test is based on a stochastic analysis which takes into account the measurement’s individual
accuracy. The strictness of the above mentioned checking criteria can be continuously adjusted in the
advanced settings.

The result of the Plausibility Check is reported, for each measurement, on a detailed error status page
(see Section 50.6).

50.3.2 Observability Analysis

A necessary requirement for an observable system is that the number of available measurements is
equal or larger than the number of estimated variables. This verification can easily be made at the
beginning of every state estimation.

But it can also happen that only parts of the network are observable and some other parts of the system
are not observable even if the total number of measurements is sufficient. Hence, it is not only important
that there are enough measurements, but also that they are well distributed in the network.

Therefore, additional verifications are made checking for every load or generator injection whether it
is observable or not. The entire network is said to be observable if all load or generator injections
can be estimated based on the given measurements. PowerFactory does not only solve the decision
problem whether the given system is observable or not: If a network is not observable, it is still useful
to determine the islands in the network that are observable.

The Observability Analysis in PowerFactory is not purely based on topological arguments; it heavily
takes into account the electrical quantities of the network. Mathematically speaking, the Observability
Check is based on an intricate sensitivity analysis, involving fast matrix-rank-calculations, of the whole
system.

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 50.3. COMPONENTS OF THE POWERFACTORY STATE ESTIMATION

The result of the Observability Analysis can be viewed using the Data Manager. Besides, PowerFac-
tory offers a very flexible colour representation both for observable and unobservable areas, and for
redundant and non-redundant measurements (see Section 50.6.4).

Observability of individual states

The Observability Analysis not only identifies for each state (i.e., load or generator injections) whether
it is observable or not. It also subdivides all unobservable states into so-called “equivalence-classes”.
Each equivalence-class has the property that it is observable as a group, even though its members (i.e.,
the single states) cannot be observed. Each group then can be handled individually for the subsequent
state estimation.

Redundancy of measurements

Typically, an observable network is overdetermined in the sense that redundant measurements exist,
which for the observability of the system do not provide any further information. During the Observability
Analysis, PowerFactory determines redundant and non-redundant measurements. Moreover, it subdi-
vides all redundant measurements according to their information content for the system’s observability
status. In this sense, PowerFactory is even able to calculate a redundancy level which then indicates
how much reserve the network measurements provide. This helps the system analyst to precisely
identify weakly measured areas in the network.

Repair Unobservability

In case of unobservable states, PowerFactory has different treatment options to make a state estimation
possible:
• Using internally generated pseudo-measurements.
• Using user-defined pseudo-measurements.
• Using default values from the load flow simulation.
A pseudo-measurement is basically a measurement with very poor accuracy. The treatment should
set-up the model to force the non-linear optimisation algorithm to converge. All options are part of the
command configuration and are explained in more detail in section 50.5.1.

50.3.3 Non-linear optimisation (state estimation)

The non-linear optimisation is the core part of the State Estimation. As already mentioned in the
introduction, the objective is to minimise the weighted square sum of all deviations between calculated
and measured branch flows and bus bar voltages whilst fulfilling all load flow equations.

PowerFactory uses an extremely fast converging iterative approach to solve the problem based on
Lagrange-Newton methods. If the Observability Analysis in the previous step indicates that the entire
power system is observable, convergence (in general) is guaranteed.

Recall that the goal of the optimisation is to minimise the objective function 𝑓 (i.e., the square sum of
the weighted measurements’ deviations) under the constraint that all load flow equations are fulfilled.
Mathematically speaking, the aim is to find

min 𝑓 (⃗𝑥) (50.2)

under the constraint that

⃗𝑔 (⃗𝑥) = ⃗0 (50.3)

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CHAPTER 50. STATE ESTIMATION

where ⃗𝑔 is the set of load flow equations that need to be fulfilled. By the Lagrange-Newton method, we
thus try to minimise the resulting Lagrange function

𝐿(⃗𝑥, ⃗𝜆) = 𝑓 (⃗𝑥) + ⃗𝜆𝑇 · ⃗𝑔 (⃗𝑥) (50.4)

with the Lagrange multipliers ⃗𝜆.

50.4 State Estimation Data Input

The main procedures to introduce and manipulate the State Estimation data are indicated in this section.
For applying the PowerFactory State Estimation, the following data are required additional to standard
load flow data:
• Measurements
– Active Power Branch Flow
– Reactive Power Branch Flow
– Branch Current (Magnitude)
– Bus Bar Voltage (Magnitude)
– Breaker Status
– Transformer Tap Position
• Estimated States
– Loads: Active Power (P) and/or Reactive Power (Q), or the Scaling Factor, as an alternative.
– Synchronous Machines: Active Power (P) and/or Reactive Power (Q)
– Static Generator: Active Power (P) and/or Reactive Power (Q)
– Asynchronous Machines: Active Power (P)
– Static var Systems: Reactive Power (Q)
– Transformers: Tap Positions
For the measurements listed above, PowerFactory uses the abbreviated names P-measurement, Q-
measurement, I-measurement, V-measurement, Breaker-measurement, and Tap position-measurement.
Similarly, as a convention, the four different types of estimated states are shortly called P-state, Q-state,
Scaling factor-state, and Tap position-state.

50.4.1 Measurements

All measurements are defined by placing a so-called “External Measurement Device” inside a cubicle.
For this purpose, select the device in the single line graphic and choose from the context menu (right
mouse button) “New Devices” and then “External Measurements. . . ” (see Figure 50.4.1). Then, the new
object dialog opens with a predefined list of external measurements. Select the desired measurement
device among this list.

The following measurement devices are currently supported

• (External) P-Measurement (StaExtpmea)
• (External) Q-Measurement (StaExtqmea)
• (External) I-Measurement, current magnitude (StaExtimea)
• (External) V-Measurement, voltage magnitude (StaExtvmea)

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• (External) Breaker Signalisation Breaker Status (StaExtbrkmea)

• (External) Tap-Position Measurement Tap Position (StaExttapmea)

Any number of mutually distinct measurement devices can be defined in the cubicle.

Figure 50.4.1: External Measurements that are located in a cubicle

Branch Flow Measurements

Any branch flow measurement (StaExpmea, StaExtqmea) is defined by the following values (see fig-
ures 50.4.2 and 50.4.4):
• Balanced/Unbalanced flag (e:calcType)

• Measured values (e:Pmea for balanced, e:PmeaDP1, e:PmeaDP2 and e:PmeaDP3 for unbal-
anced)
• Multiplicator (e:Multip)
• Orientation (e:i_gen)

• Accuracy class and rating (e:Snom and e:accuracy)

• Input status (to be found on the second page of the edit object, see Figure 50.4.4):
E.g., tele-measured, manually entered, read/write protected,. . . (e:iStatus). It is important to
note that the State Estimation takes into account only measurements, for which the “read”-Status
is explicitly set and for which the “Neglected by SE”-Status is unset.

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Figure 50.4.2: Dialog for an external P-measurement

The interface of the edit object changes whether the measurement is balanced or unbalanced. For
a balanced measurement, the sum of the power of all three phases is the measured value and the
calculation information (e. g. Power Deviation (rated)) is displayed right next to them, see Figure 50.4.2.
For an unbalanced measurement, depending on the number of line conductors of the cubical, there are
up to three input fields for the measurement values of all phases, see Figure 50.4.2. The calculation
information is shown in the separate tab Result Overview. The accuracy class and the rating are
used for weighting the measurement element. In case of redundant measurements, a more accurate
measurement will be higher weighted than a less accurate measurement.

Using the flag Orientation, it is possible to define the meaning of the active or reactive power sign.
Load orientation means that a positively measured P or Q flows into the element, generator orientation
defines a positive flow as flowing out of an element. With the Multiplicator, a measured quantity can be
re-rated. E.g., if a measurement instrument indicates 150kW (instead of 0.15MW), the Multiplicator can
be set to 0.001 and the measured value is set to 150 resulting in a correct value.

It is important to note, that External P- and Q-measurements have the additional feature to possibly
serve as a so-called (externally created) pseudo-measurement. This feature is activated by checking the
corresponding box (e:pseudo). Pseudo-measurements are special measurements which are ignored
during the regular calculation. They are activated in a selective manner only if the observability check
found unobservable states in the network (see Section 50.5.1: Basic Setup Options for details).

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Figure 50.4.3: Dialog for an external P-measurement unbalanced

Figure 50.4.4: Status page of the dialog for an external P-measurement

Current Measurements

The External I-measurement (StaExtimea) plays a special role and slightly differs from the External
P- and Q-measurements (see Figure 50.4.5): Besides specifying the measured current magnitude
(e:Imea), the user is asked to enter an assumed (or measured) value for the power factor cos𝜑
(e:cosphi and e:pf_recapr). If it is an unbalanced I-measurement, the current measurement value
as well as the power factor need to be defined for each phase.

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Figure 50.4.5: Dialog for an external I-measurement

Internally, the measured current magnitude is then additionally transformed into two further measure-
ments, namely an active and a reactive current. This is due to the fact that current magnitude does not
provide information on the direction of the flow, which on the other hand is essential to avoid ambiguous
solutions in the optimisation.

In this sense, an external I-measurement may play the role of up to three measurements:
1. as a current magnitude measurement.
2. as a measurement for active current.
3. as a measurement for reactive current.
The decision which of these measurements shall participate in the State Estimation is left to the
user by checking the boxes (e:iUseMagn,e:iUseAct, and/or e:iUseReact). In any case, the
corresponding ratings for the used measurement types need to be specified. This is done (accord-
ingly to the flow measurements) by entering the pairs of fields (e:SnomMagn,e:accuracyMagn),
(e:SnomAct,e:accuracyAct), and (e:SnomReact,e:accuracyReact), respectively).

Voltage Measurements

Voltage measurements (StaExvmea) need to be placed in cubicles as well. The measurement point
then is the adjacent terminal.

A voltage measurement basically has the same properties as a flow measurement, except, for the
rating, only a single value for the accuracy needs to be specified. The corresponding internal reference
is the nominal voltage of the terminal which serves as measurement point.

If the external voltage measurement object is defined as an unbalanced measurement, there will be an
additional option for the voltage input format. The voltage measurement values can be entered either
as line-to-ground or as line-to-line values.

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Breaker and Tap Position Measurements

Both breaker and tap position measurements are assumed to measure the corresponding discrete
breaker status and tap position signal accurately. Hence, no ratings needs to be specified.

Tap position measurements have a conversion table as extra feature. The conversion table allows
any discrete translation mapping between external tap positions (Ext. Tap) and tap positions used by
PowerFactory (PF Tap).

50.4.2 Editing the Element Data

In addition to the measurement values, the user has to specify which quantities shall be considered as
“states to be estimated” by the SE. This must be done in the edit dialog of the corresponding element
object on the State Estimation page (see Figure 50.4.6 left side). Note, if the corresponding check
box(es) are disabled, the values for the conventional load flow calculation (i. e. settings from the Load
Flow page, see Figure 50.4.6 right side) are used, even if an external measurement is defined.

It makes sense to also enter sensible default values on the load flow page, as these could possibly be
used to create pseudo-measurements.

Figure 50.4.6: Element settings for SE set-up: left State Estimation page, right Load Flow page

The possible “states to be estimated” options differ from element to element. Possible states to be
optimised whilst minimising the sum of the error squares over all measurements are all active and/or
reactive power injections at generators and loads as well as all tap positions.

Loads

For each load (ElmLod, ElmLodlv, ElmLodmv ), the user can specify whether its active and/or reactive
power shall be estimated by the State Estimation (see Figure 50.4.6 left side). Alternatively, the State
Estimation is able to estimate the scaling factor (for a given P and Q injection).

Synchronous Machines, Static Generators, PV Systems

For synchronous machines (ElmSym), static generators (ElmGenstat) and PV systems (ElmPvsys), the
active and reactive power may serve as a state to be estimated.

Asynchronous Machines For asynchronous machines (ElmAsm), the active power may serve as a
state to be estimated.

Static var Systems For static var systems (ElmSvs), the reactive power may serve as a state to be

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estimated.

Transformers

In the 2-winding transformer elements (ElmTr2), the tap position can be specified as a state to be
estimated by the State Estimation. Tap positions will be estimated in a continuous way (without paying
attention to the given tap limits).

For 3-winding transformers, any two of the three possible tap positions (HV-, MV-, and LV-side) can be
selected for estimation.

For 4-winding transformers, any three of the four possible tap positions (HV-, LV-sides) can be selected
for estimation.

Step-Voltage Regulator

In the step-voltage regulator elements (ElmVoltreg), the tap position can be specified as a state to be
estimated by the State Estimation. Tap positions will be estimated in a continuous way (without paying
attention to the given tap limits).

50.5 Running SE

The following steps should be performed to execute the State Estimation:

• Start from a case where the conventional power flow converges successfully.

• Select Additional Functions from the Change Toolbox button ( )

• Execute the SE by clicking the icon .

• Select the desired options for the State Estimation run (see below).

• Select Execute.

50.5.1 Basic Setup Options

Recall that the State Estimation in PowerFactory consists of three different parts (Plausibility Check,
Observability Check, Non-linear optimisation (state estimation)) and an additional precedent Prepro-
cessing step. This variation is reflected in the Basic Options dialog.

50.5.1.1 Calculation Method

Both calculation options AC Load Flow, balanced, positive sequence and AC Load Flow, unbalanced,
3-phase (ABS) are available. If AC Load Flow, balanced, positive sequence is selected, no unbalanced
measurements will be use.

50.5.1.2 Preprocessing

The algorithm distinguishes between breaker- and tap position-measurements on the one hand, and
P-, Q-, I-, and V-measurements on the other hand. Breaker- and tap position-measurements are han-
dled in the preprocessing step, whereas the latter types are processed in the subsequent parts or the
State Estimation.

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Adapt breaker states according to measurements

If this checkbox is selected, all measured breakers statuses will be set to the corresponding measured
signal values.

Adapt tap positions according to measurements

If this checkbox is selected, all measured tap positions will be set to the corresponding measured values.

50.5.1.3 Calculation components

The three components Plausibility Check, Observability Check and Non-linear optimisation (state es-
timation) can be set active separately, to consider the component in the process. The corresponding
settings on the separate pages should be adjusted according to the measurement configuration.

50.5.1.4 Plausibility Check

The algorithm offers various kinds of plausibility checks to validate measurements. Each measurement
undergoes the checks selected by the user. If a measurement fails any of the required tests, it will be
marked as erroneous and will be neglected in all subsequent steps. A complete error report can be
obtained via the error status page of each measurements (see Section 50.6).

The following checks can be enabled by marking the corresponding check boxes.

Consistent active power flow direction at each branch

Checks for each passive branch, whether all connected P-measurements comply with a consistent
power flow direction. More precisely, if some flow out of a passive element is measured while, at the
same time, no flow into the element is measured, then all P-measurements connected to this element
fail this test. For this check, a P-measurement is said to measure a “non-zero” flow if the measurement
value is beyond a value of 𝜎·rating, where 𝜎 and rating are the accuracy and the rating, respectively,
of the measurement.

Branch losses exceed nominal values

Checks for each passive branch, whether the measured active power loss exceeds the nominal loss of
the branch by a factor of 1 + 𝜀. This check only applies to passive branches which have P-measurements
𝑃mea,1 , ... , 𝑃mea,𝑟 in each of its r connection
∑︀𝑟 devices. The threshold 𝜀, by which the nominal loss shall
not be exceeded, is given by: 𝜀 = 𝑖=1 𝜎𝑖 · rating𝑖 , where 𝜎𝑖 and rating𝑖 are the accuracy and the
rating, respectively, of measurement 𝑃mea,𝑖 .

Negative losses on passive branches

Checks for each passive branch, whether the measured active power loss is negative, i.e., if a passive
branch is measured to generate active power. This check only applies to passive branches which have
P-measurements 𝑃mea,1 , ... , 𝑃mea,𝑟 in each of its r connection ∑︀devices. The measured power loss of
𝑟
the branch is said to be negative if it is below the threshold (− 𝑖=1 𝜎𝑖 · rating𝑖 ).

Large branch flows on open ended branches

Checks for each connection of the element, whether the connection is an open end (i.e., switch is open,
or it is connected to only open detailed switches). If the connection is open and there exists a (P-, Q-,
or I-) measurement which measures a “non-zero” flow, then the corresponding measurement fails the
test. Again, a measurement is said to measure a “non-zero” flow if the measurement value is beyond a
value of 𝜎 · rating.

Branch loadings exceed nominal values

Checks for each connection of the element, if the measured complex power (which is computed by the
corresponding P- and/or Q-measurements) exceeds the rated complex power value by a factor of 1 + s.
Here, s is the accuracy of the P- and/or Q-measurement(s).

Node sum checks for active and reactive power

This check applies to P- and/or Q-measurements. Checks, for each node of the network, if the node

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sum of the measured values in the adjacent branches is zero. If this is not the case, i.e., if the P- and/or
Q-sum exceeds a certain threshold value, all adjacent P- and/or Q-measurements fail the test. Again,
“not being zero” means that the sum of the measured
∑︀𝑟 values of the adjacent P-measurements 𝑃mea,1 ,
... , 𝑃mea,𝑟 has magnitude below the threshold 𝑖=1 𝜎𝑖 · rating (similarly for Q-measurements).

Each Plausibility Check allows for an individual strictness setting. Note that all checks rely on the
same principle: namely, the given measurement values are checked against some threshold. Recall,
for example, that the
∑︀“node sum check for P” tests whether the active power sum at a node is below
𝑟
a threshold of 𝜀 = 𝑖=1 𝜎 𝑖 · rating. The user has the possibility to influence the strictness of this
threshold. Therefore, the settings provide to enter so-called “exceeding factors” fac > 0 such that the
new threshold is fac · 𝜖 instead of 𝜖. E.g., in the case of the node sum check for P, the user may define
the corresponding factor fac_ndSumP.

The higher the exceeding factor, the less strict the plausibility test will be. Similar exceeding factors can
be specified for any of the given tests.

50.5.1.5 Observability Analysis

The Observability Analysis is an optional component of the State Estimation. If activated, it checks
whether the specified network is observable, i.e., whether the remaining valid P-, Q-, V-, and I-measure-
ments (which successfully passed the plausibility checks) suffice to estimate the selected P-, Q-,
Scaling Factor-, and Tap position-states. In addition, the Observability Analysis detects redundant
measurements. Redundancy, in general, yields more accurate results for the following state estimation.

Moreover, if the Observability Analysis detects non-observable states, upon user selection, it tries to fix
this unobservability by introducing further pseudo-measurements.

Rastering of sensitivity matrix

Internally, the Observability Check is based on a thorough sensitivity analysis of the network. For that
purpose, the algorithm computes a sensitivity matrix that takes into account all measurements, on the
one hand, and all estimated states on the other hand. This sensitivity matrix is discretised by rastering
the continuous values.

The user can specify the precision of this process by defining the number of intervals into which the
values of the sensitivity matrix shall be rastered (SensMatNoOfInt), the threshold below which a
continuous value is considered to be a 0 (SensMatThresh) in the discrete case, and the mode of
rastering (iopt_raster). It is highly recommended to use the predefined values here.

Treatment of unobservable areas

In case of unobservable states, the user has different options to cope with the situation:

• Stop if unobservable regions exist: The algorithm terminates with the detection of unobservable
states. The Observability Analysis groups all non-observable states into different “equivalence
classes”. Each equivalence class consists of states that carry the same observability information
through the given measurements. In other words, the given measurements can only distinguish
between different equivalence classes, but not between various states of a single equivalence
class. The results can be viewed by the user (see Section 50.6 Results).
• Use P-, Q-values as specified by model: If this option is selected, the algorithm internally drops
the “to be estimated” flag of each non-observable state and uses the element specifications of the
load flow settings instead (see Figure 50.4.6). For example, if a P-state of a load is unobservable,
the algorithm will use the P-value as entered on the load flow page. Hence, the network is made
observable by reducing the number of control variables.
• Use predefined pseudo-measurements: Using this option, the algorithm “repairs” the unob-
servability of the network by increasing the degrees of freedom. For that purpose, at the location
of each non-observable state, the algorithm tries to activate a pseudo-measurement of the same

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kind. Hence, if a P-(Q-)state is non-observable in some element, the algorithm searches for a
predefined P-(Q-)pseudo-measurement in the cubicle of the element carrying the non-observable
state. A predefined P-(Q-)pseudo-measurement is set-up enabling the flag Used as Pseudo-
Measurement in the external measurement object (see 50.4.2). In case of a non-observable
scaling-factor both, a P- and a Q-pseudo-measurement are required. The introduced pseudo-
measurements remain active as long as needed to circumvent unobservable areas.
• Use internally created pseudo-measurements: This option is similar to the previous one,
except the algorithm automatically creates and activates a sufficient number of internal pseudo-
measurements to guarantee observability. More precisely, internal pseudo-measurements are
created at the locations of all elements that have non-observable P-(Q-, scaling factor-)state. For
each such element, the pseudo-measurement value for P (Q, P and Q) is taken from the element’s
load flow specification (see Figure 50.4.6 right side). All internally created pseudo-measurements
use a common setting for their rating and accuracy, which can be specified on the advanced setup
options page for the observability check.

• Use predefined and internally created meas: This mode can be considered as a mixture of
the latter two options. Here, in case of a non-observable state, the algorithm tries to activate a
predefined pseudo-measurement of the same kind. If no corresponding pseudo-measurement
has been defined, then the algorithm automatically creates an internal pseudo-measurement.

Settings for internally created pseudo-measurements

If, on the basic option page, the mode for the treatment of unobservable regions is set to “use only
internally created pseudo-measurements” or to “use predefined and internally created pseudo - mea-
surements”, the user may specify a default power rating (SnomPseudo) and a default accuracy class
(accuracy Pseudo). These default values are used for all automatically created internal pseudo-
measurements.

50.5.2 Bad Data Detection

Recall that the State Estimation loops Observability Analysis and State Estimation as long as no further
bad measurement is found (see Figure 50.3.1). The following settings allow the user to control the
number of iterations performed by the loop.

Maximum number of measurements to eliminate

The variable iBadMeasLimit specifies an upper limit on the number of bad measurements that will be
eliminated in the course of the State Estimation.

Tolerance factors for bad measurement elimination

A measurement is declared to be bad, if the deviation of measured against calculated value exceeds
the measurement’s accuracy, i.e., if

calcVal − meaVal accuracy

≥ (50.5)
rating 100
where calVal and meaVal are the calculated value and the measured value, respectively. The user
may modify this definition by adjusting tolerance factors for bad measurements. More precisely, a mea-
surement is declared to be bad, if the left-hand side in equation (50.5) exceeds facErr·accuracy/100.
Here facErr > 0 is a factor which can be specified by the user for each group of measurements
individually. Use the factors facErrP, facErrQ, facErrV, facErrIMagn, facErrIAct, and
facErrIReact for P-, Q-, V-measurements, and the three types of the I-measurements (magnitude
measure, active current measure, reactive current measure).

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50.5.3 Non-Linear optimisation (state estimation)

The non-linear optimisation is the central component of the State Estimation. The underlying numerical
algorithm to minimise the overall measurement error is the iterative Lagrange-Newton method.

The algorithm stops successfully if the following three criteria are fulfilled:
1. The maximum number of iterations has not yet been reached.
2. All load flow constraint equations ⃗𝑔 (⃗𝑥) = 0 are fulfilled to a predefined degree of exactness, which
means:
(a) all nodal equations are fulfilled.
(b) all model equations are fulfilled.

3. The Lagrange function 𝐿(⃗𝑥, ⃗𝜆) itself converges. This can be achieved if
(a) either the objective function itself converges to a stationary point, or
(b) the gradient of the objective function converges to zero.

The following settings serve to adjust these stopping criteria and the initialisation of the process. If the
user is unfamiliar with the underlying optimisation algorithm, he is urged to use the default settings here.

50.5.3.1 General

Solver

The SE offers two solver options to run the Lagrange-Newton method: the build in Standard solver and
the open source Ipopt solver.

Convergence of objective function

The user is asked to choose among the following two convergence criteria for the Lagrangian function:
Either the function itself is required to converge to a stationary point, or the gradient of the Lagrangian
is expected to converge.

• Based on objective function: if this option is selected, the user is asked to enter a value for the
Max. change of objective function. If the change in value between two consecutive iterations falls
below this value, the Lagrangian is considered to have converged. The Max. change of objective
function is the value (in %), below which the Lagrangian is considered to have converged.

• Based on gradient of objective function: if this option is selected, the user is asked to enter a
value for the Max. value for gradient of objective function. If the gradient falls below this value, the
Lagrangian is considered to have converged. The Max. value for gradient of objective function is
the absolute value, below which the Lagrangian is considered to have converged.

It is strongly recommended due to mathematical preciseness to use the criterion on the gradient. The
other option might only be of advantage if the underlying Jacobian matrix behaves numerically unstable
which then typically results in a “toggling” of the convergence process in the last iterations.

Max. number of iterations

The user is asked to enter the maximum number of iterations.

Max.acceptable error for load flow equations

The user should enter a maximum error for nodal equations (where the deviation is measured in kVA),
and in addition, a maximally tolerable error for the model equations (in %).

The errors can be entered separately for the high, medium and low voltage level. The thresholds of
these levels can be defined in the project settings.

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50.5.3.2 Initialisation

The non-linear optimisation requires an initialisation step to generate an initial starting configuration.

Load Flow

Specifies the settings of the load flow command which is taken for initialisation in case no flat start is
used.

Initialisation of non-linear optimisation

The user may specify whether the initialisation shall be performed by a load flow calculation or by a flat
start. If it is known in advance that the final solution of the optimisation part is close to a valid load flow
solution, initialising by a load flow calculation pays off in a faster convergence.

50.5.4 Output

Three different levels of output during the iterative process can be selected. With the option Detailed
more options are available to provide a customised output.

The main objective of the output is to provide some information about the performance of the SE. A
huge amount of identified bad data, high nodal and/or high model equation errors as well as a long
iteration process are indicators for a bad measurement configuration set-up.

The output window report is explained in more detail in section 50.6.1.

50.6 Results

The presentation of the State Estimation results is integrated into the user interface. The solution of
the non-linear optimisation in the State Estimation is available via the complete set of variables of the
conventional Load Flow calculations. It can be seen in the single line diagram of the grid or through the
browser.

50.6.1 Output Window Report

The PowerFactory State Estimation reports the main steps of the algorithm in the output window.

For the Plausibility Checks, this implies the information on how many models failed the corresponding
checks. For the Observability Analysis, the report contains the information on how many states were
determined to be observable, and in addition how many measurements were considered to be relevant
for observing these states.

Non-linear optimisation reports, in each iteration step, the following figures:

• The current error of the constraint nodal equations (in VA) (Error Nodes).
• The current error of the constraint model equations (Error ModelEqu).

• The current value of the gradient of the Lagrangian function (Gradient LagrFunc).
• The current value of the Lagrangian function (LagrFunc)
• The current value of the objective function f to be minimised (ObjFunc).

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50.6.2 External Measurements

Deviations

Each branch flow measurement (StaExtpmea, StaExtqmea) and each voltage measurement (StaExtvmea)
offers parameters to view its individual deviation between measured value and computed value by the
State Estimation. The corresponding variables are:
• e:Xmea: measured value as entered in StaEx* mea
• e:cMeaVal: measured value (including multiplicator)
• e:Xcal: calculated value
• e:Xdif: deviation in % (based on given rating as reference value)
• e:Xdif_mea: deviation in % (based on the measured value as reference value)
• e:Xdif_abs: absolute deviation in the measurement’s unit
Here X is a placeholder for P, Q, or U in the case of a P-, Q-, or V-measurement. These results will
also be available in the edit object of the corresponding external measurements, see for example Figure
50.4.2).

If the unbalanced measurement is selected, these results will be available for each active phase. In the
edit object there will be a separate slider on the Basic Data called Result Overview.

Recall that a StaExtimea plays a special role, since a current measurement may serve as up to three
measurements (for magnitude, for active current, and/or for reactive current). Hence, a current mea-
surement has the above listed variables (with X being replaced by I) for each of the three measurement
types. In order to distinguish between the three types, for a StaExtimea, the variables carry the suffixes
Magn (for magnitude measurement), Act (for active current measurement), and React (for reactive
current measurement).

Error Status

All measurements (StaExt*meas) which possibly participate in the Plausibility Checks, the Observ-
ability Analysis, or the State Estimation provide a detailed error description page (see figure 50.6.1)
with the following information:
• General Errors:
– Is unneeded pseudo-measurement (e:errUnneededPseudo)
– Its input status disallows calculation, i.e., input status does not allow “Read” or is already
marked as “Wrong Measurement” (e:errStatus)
– Measurement is out of service (e:errOutOfService)
• Plausibility Check Errors:
– Fails test: Consistent active power flow direction at each side of branch (e:errConsDir)
– Fails test: Large branch losses
(e:errExcNomLoss)
– Fails test: Negative losses on passive branches
(e:errNegLoss)
– Fails test: Large branch flows on open ended branches
(e:errFlwIfOpn)
– Fails test: Branch loadings exceed nominal values
(e:errExcNomLoading)
– Fails test: Node sum check for P (e:errNdSumP)
– Fails test: Node sum check for Q (e:errNdSumQ)
• Observability Analysis Errors:

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– Measurement is considered to be redundant for observability of the network, i.e., observ-

ability is already guaranteed even without this measurement. Nevertheless redundant mea-
surements are used in the non-linear optimisation since, in general, they help to improve the
result (e:errRedundant).
– For redundant measurements, also the redundancy level is indicated on this page
(e:RedundanceLevel). The higher the redundancy level, the more measurements with a
similar information content for the observability analysis exist.
• State Estimation Errors:
– Measurement is detected to be bad, has been removed and was not considered in last non-
linear optimisation loop (e:errBadData)
This detailed error description is encoded in the single parameter e:error that can be found on the
top of the error status page. Again, we have the convention that, for a StaExtimea, the variables
e:errRedundant, e:RedundanceLevel and e:errBadData carry the suffixes Magn (for magnitude
measurement), Act (for active current measurement), and React (for reactive current measurement).

Figure 50.6.1: For description page for external measurements (StaExtvmea, StaExtqmea,
StaExtvmea).

50.6.3 Estimated States

Which states participated as control variables?

Recall that - depending on the selected “treatment of unobservable regions” - not all states that were
selected for estimation (see Section 50.4.2: Editing the Element Data) can be estimated. In addition,
some states will necessarily be estimated by the algorithm. In case of non-observability, it may happen
that some control variables need to be reset.

To access the information which states were actually used as control variables, PowerFactory provides

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CHAPTER 50. STATE ESTIMATION

a flag for each possible state. These flags are called c:iPSetp, c:iQSetp, c:iScaleSetp, c:iTapSetp for P-,
Q-, Scaling factor-, and Tap-states, respectively. They can be accessed through the Flexible Data Page
as State Estimation calculation parameters for the following elements: ElmLod, ElmLodlv, ElmLodmv,
ElmAsm, ElmSym, ElmSvs, ElmGenstat, ElmPvsys, ElmVoltreg, ElmTr2, ElmTr3, and ElmTr4.

Observability of individual state

The Observability Analysis identifies, for each state, whether it is observable or not. Moreover, if
the network is unobservable, it subdivides all unobservable states into “equivalence-classes”. Each
equivalence-class has the property that it is observable as a whole group, even though its members
(i.e., the single states) cannot be observed. The equivalence classes are enumerated in ascending
order 1, 2, 3, . . . .

For this purpose, the Observability Analysis uses the flags c:iPobsFlg, c:iQobsFlg, c:iScaleobsFlg,
c:iTapobsFlg for P-, Q-, Scaling factor-, and Tap-states, respectively. These parameters exist as State
Estimation calculation parameters for all elements which carry possible states (ElmLod, ElmAsm, Elm-
Sym, ElmSvs, ElmTr2, ElmTr3...). The semantics is as follows:
• a value of -2 means that the correspond state is not estimated at all.

• a value of -1 means that the correspond state is unsupplied.

• a value of 0 means that the corresponding state is observable.
• a value of i > 0 means that the correspond state belongs to equivalence-class i.

System state

If the non-linear optimisation converges, results will be available for all busbars and edge elements in
the network analogue to the Load Flow results, e.g. the complex voltage balanced or unbalanced of
every busbar. These results can be observed on the single line diagram with the result boxes or by
using the Flexible Data page of the Network Model Manager.

Note, that these results are based on the whole process of the SE command including the bad data
treatment. Results should therefore always be used together with the indicators regarding the observ-
ability. The colour representation in the single line diagram is suitable for a quick overview.

50.6.4 Colour Representation

In addition, PowerFactory provides a special colouring mode “State Estimation” for the single line
diagram which takes into account the individual measurement error statuses and the states to be
estimated (see Figure 50.6.2). The colouring can be accessed by clicking the icon on the task
bar.

The use of colouring in network diagrams is described in Section 9.3.10.1, and more detail about the
use of colours and colour palettes can be found in Section 4.7.8.

The colour representation paints the location of measurements (of a specific type) and the location of
states (of a specific type) simultaneously.

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 50.6. RESULTS

Figure 50.6.2: Colouring of measurement error statuses and estimated states.

Estimated States

The user selects to colour states of a specific type (P-, Q-, Scaling factor-, or Tap position-states). Dis-
tinct colours for observable, unobservable, non-estimated states, and states with unclear observability
status can be chosen.

External Measurement Locations

The user selects to colour measurements of a specific type (P-, Q-, V-, or I-measurements). Distinct
colours for valid, redundant and invalid measurements can be chosen. A measurement is said to be
valid if its error code (e:error) equals 0.

Besides, measurements with a specific error code can be highlighted separately using an extra colour.
To select such a specific error code press the Error Code button and choose from the detailed error
description list any “AND”-combination of possible errors.

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Chapter 51

Motor Starting

51.1 Introduction

The chapter presents PowerFactory tools for performing motor starting simulations using the Motor
Starting command (ComMot). A Motor Starting analysis typically includes an assessment of the follow-
ing:

• Voltage sag.
• Ability of motor to be started against the load torque.
• Time required to reach nominal speed.
• Supply grid loading.
• Starting methodology (Direct Online, Star-Delta, Variable Rotor Resistance, Reactor, Auto Trans-
former).
The Motor Starting command makes use of the PowerFactory stability module by providing a pre-
configured shortcut for easy-to-use motor starting analysis. Pre-selected and pre-configured plots are
automatically created and scaled with full flexibility for user-configuration. In PowerFactory, there are
two “Simulation Types” that may be used to perform a motor starting simulation:
1. Dynamic Simulation, which will execute a time-domain motor starting simulation.
2. Static Simulation, which will execute a load flow calculation when the motors are disconnected
from the system. Then, it will execute a short-circuit calculation, using the complete method,
simultaneously with the occurrence of the motors being connected to the network. Finally, a load
flow calculation will be executed after the motors have been connected to the system.

51.2 How to define a motor

To define the starting method of a motor, a Type must first be selected. This sub-section describes how
to define a motor and (optionally) define a motor driven machine (mdm).

51.2.1 How to define a motor Type and starting methodology

A comprehensive library of low-voltage, medium-voltage, and high-voltage motor types are available
in the DIgSILENT Library. Typical motors supported are: single- and double-cage asynchronous
machines and squirrel motors.

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 51.2. HOW TO DEFINE A MOTOR

To define a motor Type and starting methodology for a dynamic simulation:

1. On the asynchronous machine Basic Data page, press select ( ) and then choose an existing
or define a new asynchronous machine Type. Press OK twice.
2. From the Data Manager or single line graphic, double-click the asynchronous machine to open
the element dialog.
3. Depending on whether a dynamic or static motor starting simulation is to be executed:
• For a dynamic starting simulation, navigate to the RMS-Simulation page, Advanced tab.
• For a static starting simulation, navigate to the Complete Short-Circuit page.

4. Check Use Motor Starting Method.

5. Use radio buttons to select a starting method (see below).
Directly Online
For the direct online starting method, select Directly Online.

Star-Delta
For star-delta starting:

1. Select Star-Delta.
2. For a dynamic motor starting simulation, on the RMS-Simulation page, Advanced tab:
• Select Triggered by. . . either Time or Speed.
• Enter a simulation time for the motor to switch from the star winding to the delta winding
Switch to ’D’ after, or a speed for the motor to switch from the star winding to the delta
winding Switch to ’D’ at Speed >=.
Variable Rotor Resistance
For variable rotor resistance starting:
1. Select Variable Rotor Resistance.
2. For a static motor starting simulation, on the Complete Short-Circuit page:
• Enter the Additional Rotor Resistance.
3. For a dynamic motor starting simulation, on the RMS-Simulation page, Advanced tab:
• Select Triggered by. . . either Time or Speed.
• In the Variable Rotor Resistance table, enter additional rotor resistance, and the time (or
speed) at which the rotor resistance should be added.
• For additional entries, right-click and Append or Insert rows as required. Note that a minimum
of two-points must be entered.
Reactor
For reactor starting:
1. Select Reactor.

2. For a static motor starting simulation, on the Complete Short-Circuit page:

• Enter the Rated Apparent Power and Reactance.

3. For a dynamic motor starting simulation, on the RMS-Simulation page, Advanced tab:
• Select Triggered by. . . either Time or Speed.
• Enter the Rated Apparent Power, Reactance.
• Enter the time at which the reactor should be removed Bypass after, or speed at which the
reactor should be removed Bypass at Speed >=.
Auto Transformer
For auto transformer starting:

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CHAPTER 51. MOTOR STARTING

1. Select Auto Transformer.

2. For a static motor starting simulation, on the Complete Short-Circuit page:
• Enter the Rated Apparent Power, Reactance, and Tap.
3. For a dynamic motor starting simulation, on the RMS-Simulation page, Advanced tab:
• Select Triggered by. . . either Time or Speed.
• Enter the Rated Apparent Power, Reactance, and Tap.
• Enter the time at which the star contactor should be released Release Star Contactor after
and the time at which the auto-transformer should be bypassed Bypass after, or the speed
at which the star contactor should be released Release Star Contactor at Speed >= and the
speed at which the auto-transformer should be bypassed Bypass at Speed >=.

51.2.2 How to define a motor driven machine

Selection of a motor driven machine model provides enhanced flexibility to define the torque-speed
characteristic of the motor. A motor driven machine can be user-defined, or selected from a range
of Compressors, Fans, and Pumps available in the DIgSILENT Library. Refer to the asynchronous
machine Technical Reference Asynchronous Machine and motor driven machine Technical Reference
for further details Motor Driven Machine.

To define a motor driven machine, in a Data Manager or on the Single Line Graphic, right-click on the
asynchronous machine and:
• For a new motor driven machine:
1. Select Network Models → Motor Driven (mdm) machine→ New. . . .
2. Select a motor driven machine element (Type 1, Type 3, or Type 5).
3. Enter the torque-speed characteristic.
• For a motor driven machine from the library:
1. Select Network Models → Motor Driven (mdm) machine→ From Library. . . .
2. Select an existing motor driven machine from the project library.

Note: Motor driven machines may also be defined for Synchronous motors by selecting the “Composite
Type Sym frame” (or creating a user-defined frame). Refer to the mdm Technical Reference for
further details: Motor Driven Machine.

51.3 How to run a Motor Starting simulation

To run a motor starting simulation:

1. Select the motor or group of motors for the motor starting simulation.
2. Right-click a selected motor and select Calculation → Motor Starting. . . .
3. Enter the command options (see following subsections for a description of the command options).

51.3.1 Basic Options Page

51.3.1.1 Motor(s)

The motors selected for the Motor Starting command.

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 51.3. HOW TO RUN A MOTOR STARTING SIMULATION

51.3.1.2 Simulation Type

Select either:
• Dynamic Simulation to initiate a dynamic motor starting simulation.
• Static Simulation to initiate a static motor starting simulation.

Note: Load Flow, Initial Conditions, Run Simulation, Simulation Events, Short-Circuit and Results
Definitions objects in the active study case will be overwritten by the Motor Starting command.

51.3.1.3 Simulation Method

Either:
• If User defined simulation settings is not checked:
1. Select to run either a Balanced or Unbalanced Motor Starting simulation.
2. Enter the Simulation Time in seconds.
• If User defined simulation settings is checked:
1. Define the variables to be monitored.
2. Modify Load Flow Calculation command (ComLdf ) settings as required.
3. Modify Initial Conditions command (ComInc) settings as required. Note that motor starting
events are automatically created, and that previously defined events are not deleted. Simi-
larly, user-defined variable selections are merged with the Motor Starting command default
variables.
4. Modify Simulation command (ComSim) settings as required.

51.3.1.4 Monitoring

Click Select ( ) and select the Additional Terminals to be monitored for the Motor Starting simulation.

51.3.1.5 Check Thermal Limits of Cables and Transformers

Optionally select to Check Thermal Limits of Cables and Transformers. When this option is selected,
the feeding cables and transformers of every motor will automatically be gathered, and its thermal limit
will be checked.

The calculation of the thermal limits is performed depending on the type of simulation selected.

• Dynamic Simulation

Given the rated thermal overcurrent limit of the cable at 1 second (𝐼𝑡ℎ𝑟1𝑠 ), the thermal overcurrent
limit of the line at the starting time of the motor (𝐼𝑡ℎ𝑟𝑇 𝑠 ) is calculated according to equation 51.1:

√︃
2
𝐼𝑡ℎ𝑟1𝑠
𝐼𝑡ℎ𝑟𝑇 𝑠 = (51.1)
𝑇𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑟𝑡

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CHAPTER 51. MOTOR STARTING

Where:
𝑇𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑟𝑡 = is the time calculated during the Motor Starting simulation.

The calculated thermal energy (𝐼2𝑡 ) during the motor starting is defined as:

∫︁ 𝑇𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑟𝑡 𝑇∑︁
𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑟𝑡
2
𝐼2𝑡 = 𝐼 𝑑𝑡 ≈ 𝐼 2 ∆𝑡 (51.2)
0 0

Where:
∆𝑡 = is the integration step size of the simulation.

The calculated thermal current (𝐼𝑡ℎ𝑟𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑐 ) is then calculated as follows:

√︂
𝐼2𝑡
𝐼𝑡ℎ𝑟𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑐 = (51.3)
𝑇𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑟𝑡
Finally, the thermal loading is calculated as the relation between rated thermal current and calcu-
lated thermal current at starting time:

𝐼𝑡ℎ𝑟𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑐
𝑇 ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑚𝑎𝑙𝐿𝑜𝑎𝑑𝑖𝑛𝑔 = (51.4)
𝐼𝑡ℎ𝑟𝑇 𝑠
• Static Simulation

Given the rated thermal overcurrent limit of the cable at 1 second (𝐼𝑡ℎ𝑟1𝑠 ), the thermal overcurrent
limit of the line at the starting time of the motor (𝐼𝑡ℎ𝑟𝑇 𝑠 ) is calculated according to equation 51.5 :

√︃
2
𝐼𝑡ℎ𝑟1𝑠
𝐼𝑡ℎ𝑟𝑇 𝑠 = (51.5)
𝑇𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑟𝑡

The starting time is the variable 𝑡𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑟𝑡 specified in the “Protection” page of the Asynchronous and
the Synchronous Machine dialogs.
The calculated thermal current is the positive-sequence current calculated at the motor starting

𝐼𝑡ℎ𝑟𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑐 = 𝐼𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑟𝑡 (51.6)

Finally, the thermal loading is calculated as the relation between rated thermal current and calcu-
lated thermal current at starting time:

𝐼𝑡ℎ𝑟𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑐
𝑇 ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑚𝑎𝑙𝐿𝑜𝑎𝑑𝑖𝑛𝑔 = (51.7)
𝐼𝑡ℎ𝑟𝑇 𝑠

51.3.2 Output Page

51.3.2.1 Dynamic Simulation

Report
Check Report to report results to the output window. By default, report results include voltage before
starting, minimum voltage during starting, voltage after starting, starting current and power factor,
successful start, and starting time. The user can optionally modify report Settings.

Starting Tolerance for Simplified Models

Define the Max. Speed Tolerance, the maximum deviation from nominal speed at which the motor is
considered to be successfully started. This applies only to simplified (i.e. synchronous) motors.

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 51.3. HOW TO RUN A MOTOR STARTING SIMULATION

51.3.2.2 Static Simulation

Report
Optionally modify report Settings and Results. Figure 51.3.1 shows an example of a Static Simulation
Report with the option “Check Thermal Limits of Cables and Transformers” selected.

Figure 51.3.1: Report Example

Starting Tolerance for Simplified Models

Define the Max. Voltage Drop at which the motor is considered to be successfully started. This applies
only to simplified models.

Simplified models are:

• All synchronous motors.
• Asynchronous motors with type Asynchronous Machine Type (TypAsmo), and without the Type
option Consider Transient Parameter (i_trans) checked.

• Asynchronous motors with any Type other than Asynchronous Machine Type (TypAsmo).
Detailed models are: Asynchronous motors with type Asynchronous Machine Type (TypAsmo), and
which have the option Consider Transient Parameter checked on the VDE/IEC Short-Circuit page or
Complete Short-Circuit page of the Type dialog. This provides a more precise result for the motor
starting time.

Display results for

Select to display results on the Single Line Graphic:

• After motor starting.

• During motor starting.
• Before motor starting.

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CHAPTER 51. MOTOR STARTING

51.3.3 Motor Starting simulation results

51.3.3.1 Dynamic simulation results

Following a motor starting simulation, PowerFactory will automatically create a plot (VI) for each motor
showing the active power (m:Psum:bus1), reactive power (m:Qsum:bus1), current (m:I1:bus1), speed
(s:speed), mechanical and electrical torques (c:xmt and c:xmem) and voltage of the motor terminal
(m:u1). A second plot is created showing the voltage of monitored Terminals. Flexible data results
variables available following a dynamic Motor Starting simulation are found on the motor data Motor
Starting Calculation page.

The Motor Starting calculation variables are as follows:

• Terminal Pre-start Voltage, Magnitude (c:uprestart).
• Motor Start Voltage, Magnitude (c:ustart).

• Motor Post-start Voltage, Magnitude (c:upoststart).

• Starting current, Magnitude in kA (c:Istart).
• Starting current, Magnitude in p.u. (c:istart).

• Starting Power Factor (c:cosphistart).

• Successfully Started (c:started).
• Approx. Starting Time (c:Tstart).
The criterion of a successful start is as follows:

• Synchronous motors: Successful start if 𝐴𝑐𝑡𝑢𝑎𝑙𝑠𝑝𝑒𝑒𝑑 >= 𝑆𝑦𝑛𝑐ℎ𝑟𝑜𝑛𝑜𝑢𝑠𝑠𝑝𝑒𝑒𝑑 −𝑇 𝑜𝑙𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒, where

𝐴𝑐𝑡𝑢𝑎𝑙𝑠𝑝𝑒𝑒𝑑 is the value of variable “s:speed”, and 𝑇 𝑜𝑙𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒 is the value specified in the input
field Max. Speed Tolerance (tolspeed).
• Asynchronous motors: Successful start if 𝐴𝑐𝑡𝑢𝑎𝑙𝑠𝑝𝑒𝑒𝑑 >= 𝑁 𝑜𝑚𝑖𝑛𝑎𝑙𝑠𝑝𝑒𝑒𝑑 −𝑆𝑙𝑖𝑝, where 𝐴𝑐𝑡𝑢𝑎𝑙𝑆𝑝𝑒𝑒𝑑
is the value of variable “s:speed”, and 𝑆𝑙𝑖𝑝 is the value of variable “t:aslkp” of the asynchronous
motor.

51.3.3.2 Static simulation results

Following a motor starting simulation, new calculation variables are available for asynchronous (El-
mAsm) and synchronous (ElmSym) motors. For the Static Simulation, these variables are found on the
Motor Starting Calculation page. Results variables are described in the preceding sub-section.

The criterion of a successful start is as follows:

• Simplified models: Successful start if Voltage During Starting >= Voltage Before Starting *(1
- Voltage Tolerance), where Voltage Before Starting is the voltage value at the terminal before
the motor is connected to the system, Voltage During Starting is the transient positive-sequence
voltage value at the terminal during the motor start, and Voltage Tolerance is the value specified
in the input field Max. Voltage Drop (tolvolt).

• Detailed models: The electrical and mechanical torque are calculated for the minimum voltage
value during the motor start up. A detailed model is considered to be successfully started up if the
mechanical torque is always smaller than the electrical torque from zero speed up the peak of the
electrical torque.

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 51.3. HOW TO RUN A MOTOR STARTING SIMULATION

51.3.4 Motor Starting Example

Consider the following dynamic motor starting example for a single 6.6kV asynchronous motor shown
in Figure 51.3.2.

Figure 51.3.2: Motor Starting example Single Line Graphic

The Variable Rotor Resistance starting method has been selected, with three values of time-dependent
resistance, as shown in Figure 51.3.3.

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CHAPTER 51. MOTOR STARTING

Figure 51.3.3: Motor starting methodology options

A dynamic, balanced Motor Starting simulation is executed and run to 10 seconds, with “Source Bus”
selected as an Additional Terminal to be monitored, as shown in Figure 51.3.4.

Figure 51.3.4: Motor starting Basic Options

Following execution of the command, PowerFactory automatically produces plots showing motor quan-

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 51.3. HOW TO RUN A MOTOR STARTING SIMULATION

tities of interest (as described in Section 51.3.3.1) and monitored voltage results as shown in Fig-
ure 51.3.5 and Figure 51.3.6.

Figure 51.3.5: Motor starting example motor results

Figure 51.3.6: Motor starting example voltage results

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Chapter 52

Artificial Intelligence

52.1 Introduction

Artificial intelligence describes the modelling of intelligent behaviour and machine learning and is al-
ready used in applications such as picture recognition and search engines. One field of artificial
intelligence is artificial neural networks that are trained to predict specific values based on training
datasets. PowerFactory ’s Artificial Intelligence toolbox can be used to approximate load flow results
using an artificial neural network.

In this chapter, the term “neural network” is used synonymously with “artificial neural network”.

Artificial neural networks are always useful if many load flow calculations need to be run on one grid
model, as is the case for example with a quasi-dynamic simulation over a longer time period. To do
this, a neural network is trained on a dataset of precalculated load flow results, in order to quickly
approximate results for various dispatch configurations. This can increase the performance immensely,
especially for larger power grids and many load flow calculations.

To use artificial neural networks two steps are necessary:

1. Generation or collection of dataset.

2. Training of neural network on the dataset.

The PowerFactory Artificial Intelligence toolbox provides functionality both for generating a training
dataset and for training a neural network. For the dataset generation the PowerFactory Probabilistic
Analysis is used.

The approximation with a neural network is totally different from the standard load flow algorithm. In
the load flow algorithm, voltage and power flow are iteratively calculated based on physical laws, e.g.
Kirchhoff’s circuit law. All other variables are calculated based on these parameters. The neural network
in contrast, finds a way to approximate some specific values in a non-iterative way by analysing data
and finding coherences.

The neural network is capable of approximating the load flow for one network topology based on its
training data. Changes in network topology are not supported at the moment. This includes any new
network elements as well as any change in the switching status of the network. Each network topology
requires its own neural network to be trained.

This chapter is structured as follows: First of all in Section 52.2 the Technical Requirements for using the
Neural Network Training module are listed. Section 52.3 explains the technical background of the ap-
proximation of load flow results with a neural network and covers the advantages and limitations of this
functionality. How to create and use a neural network within PowerFactory is described Section 52.4.
In Section 52.5 and 52.6 the two commands to set up and create a neural network in PowerFactory are

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 52.2. TECHNICAL REQUIREMENTS

detailed. Section 52.7 focuses on the output. Section 52.8 covers typical issues and possible solutions
for the use of neural networks within PowerFactory.

52.2 Technical Requirements

The Artificial Intelligence toolbox uses the external library PyTorch. This library needs to be downloaded
before the Neural Network Training function can be used. The download and setup of PyTorch is
explained in the Advanced Installation and Configuration Manual.

It is possible to train a neural network on a CPU, but for a good performance, the use of a suitable GPU
is highly recommended. For compatibility a Nvidia-GPU together with the CUDA-API is required. Pow-
erFactory automatically selects the GPU. Further information can be found in the Advanced Installation
and Configuration Manual.

52.3 Technical Background

Artificial neural networks are a special method in the field of artificial intelligence. They are able to learn
tasks without being programmed with any task-specific rules just by considering examples. To visualise
the way a neural network works, a simple example is used.

Imagine a tiny power grid with 2 generators, 1 load and 2 lines. Depending on the operation point of the
generators and the load, the lines will be loaded accordingly. With the help of a neural network the line
loading shall be approximated for different operating conditions. The neural network has therefore three
inputs; the active power dispatch of Gen1, Gen2 and Load1; and two outputs; the loading of Line1 and
Line2. This is illustrated in Figure 52.3.1. You can see that with the sample input parameters, load and
generation setpoints, the neural network creates hidden layers and weighting factors 𝑤𝑖 to predict the
line loading. The circles represent the neurons. In practice, there is not just one hidden layer but many,
and of course many more inputs and outputs.

Inputs Hidden Layers Outputs

Gen

w
Hid Line
w
w

Gen

Line

Load

Figure 52.3.1: Example of a neural network with one hidden layer

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CHAPTER 52. ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE

PowerFactory uses a supervised learning approach to train the neural network. For the first load flow
approximation, the weights are drawn from a random distribution so that the result is quite arbitrary. The
calculated outputs are then compared to the generated training data. This is done by calculating the
mean squared error (MSE) for all output values. In the next step the weights are adapted to reduce this
error and the process is repeated with the next load flow samples until the whole training dataset has
been used.

Then the validation data is used and the MSE for the validation data is calculated and the next iteration
is started. These iterations are called epochs.

In PowerFactory, it is important to note that when using a neural network for a load flow approximation
only input variables of the neural network may be changed, if a precise result is to be obtained; changing
other variables may lead to different load flow results from those for which the neural network was
trained, and so the results from the neural network may no longer be dependable. For example, consider
the sample network above: Assume there is a second load, Load2, that was not selected as an input of
the neural network. When the setpoint of this second load is now changed during the calculation, the
new setpoint is not known by the neural network and this therefore leads to inaccuracy.

The quality of the approximation depends particularly on the similarity of the training data and the
approximated load flow. Therefore, the training data needs to be chosen with regard to common load
flow situations.

Note: Neural networks cannot predict the non convergence of a load flow. In consequence, one need
to be careful when calculating load flows close to the stability limit with a neural network. No
conclusions can be drawn from a neural network approximation of a load flow situation which is
totally different from the training data.

52.3.1 Neural Network Architecture

PowerFactory supports two neural network architectures:

• Fully Connected Network
• Graph Convolutional Network
The “Fully Connected Network” (FCN) architecture is the classic neural network setup as shown in
Figure 52.3.1. An FCN consist of input, hidden and output layers for which each neuron is connected
with each neuron of the preceding layer.

The “Graph Convolutional Network” (GCN) utilises convolutional layers, which act on correlation-based
estimated graphs. That means the value of a neuron is defined by a specific subset of neurons of the
previous layer The GCN has less weights than FCNs, thus is less prone to overfit to the training data.
Additionally, it can achieve a potentially better approximation accuracy than FCNs for large power grids.
For more details see [39].

52.4 How to create and use a Neural Network

This section explains step by step the general process of setting up of a neural network. The corre-
sponding commands can be found within the Additional Tools toolbox. To use a neural network for the
approximation of load flow parameters following steps need to be done:
1. Ensure that either distributions or characteristics are defined for all parameters that should be
inputs to the neural network. Only these variables can be regarded as input values. The distri-
butions should be continuous, not discrete. How to set up a time characteristic is described in
Section 17.2.1. More information about distributions can be found in Section 44.2.1.

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2. Configure the load flow command with the settings required for the approximate calculation. Bear
in mind that settings such as regulation or load options can not be changed after the data was
generated.
3. Configure the in- and output variables of neural network, and the distributions for the Probabilistic
Analysis. There are three options for doing this:
• Using the Setup for Neural Network command . This command is explained in Sec-
tion 52.5.
• Defining the variables within the Neural Network Training command and creating the
distributions for the Probabilistic Analysis with the Distribution Estimation command ex-
plained in Section 44.3.3.
• If the distributions were created manually, only the output variables need to be set within the
Neural Network Training command. Nevertheless, it might still be advisable to calculate the
correlation of the distributions using the Distribution Estimation command.

Note: It is recommended that the “Estimation of correlation” option be selected. With this option
selected, the correlation of the input parameters such as solar power is taken into consider-
ation, and so the generated dataset better represents common load flow situations.

4. (Optional) Test the settings by running a Probabilistic Analysis with few samples. It might be
necessary to select some kind of distributed slack within the load flow command to ensure the
convergence of the probabilistic analysis, as explained in Section 52.8.1.
5. In the next step, a dataset is generated for the neural network training. The command is explained
in detail in Section 52.6.2. Depending on the number of load flow calculations, this process might
take a while. Once it is complete, a database object will be available for training the neural network.
6. The next step is to carry out the actual training of the neural network. The setup of the command
is explained in Section 52.6.3. The result of the training is a neural network object.
7. Check the validation error of the trained neural network. If it is unsatisfactory, increase the training
epochs or the numbers of samples of the dataset. In Section 52.8 there is some advice as to how
to decide further steps.
8. Use the neural network to approximate a load flow result, e.g. in a Quasi-Dynamic Simulation (see
Chapter 27). Note that the starting may take a while due to initialisation. The benefit of the neural
network approximation process is therefore only realised if a long time period is to be analysed.
If there are doubts about the quality of the generated dataset or the trained network, the simulation can
be executed for a short time period to compare the approximated results with the standard load flow
results. If the results are not satisfactory, help can be found in Section 52.8.

Note: The load flow settings used for data generation should be chosen carefully, as the neural network
will approximate a load flow with exactly these settings.

52.5 Setup for Neural Network command

The Setup for Neural Network command creates the setup for a neural network for a Quasi-Dynamic
Simulation. The load flow settings and the output variables for the creation of the neural network
are taken from the Quasi-Dynamic Simulation. In addition this command automatically creates the
distributions for the probabilistic analysis based on time characteristics.

The intention is that this neural network should be used later on to run this Quasi-Dynamic Simulation;
see Section 27.3.7.

This command is placed within the Additional Tools toolbox.

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52.5.1 Basic Options

On the Basic Options page the following options are available:

• Configuration of: Here the Neural Network Training command for which the setup is done is
linked.
• Setup for: The Quasi-Dynamic Simulation (QDS) for which the setup is done is linked. The load
flow settings as well as the result variables are taken from this QDS. Note that other settings are
not considered. The setup of a QDS is explained in detail in Section 27.3.
• Variation management: With this option the user can define whether the newly created distribu-
tions and correlations for the Probabilistic Analysis should be stored in a new variation or in the
grid itself.

52.5.2 Input Variables

The data generation for the neural network is carried out using the Probabilistic Analysis. The Proba-
bilistic Analysis is based on distributions for the changing input parameters, which can be estimated
based on the characteristics. For this the Distribution Estimation command is used, described in
Section 44.3.3. It is recommended to tick the option Estimation of correlations as this ensures that
the generated load flow cases are similar to the actual ones.

If distributions and correlations are already defined in the PowerFactory project, the distribution estima-
tion selection can be deselected.

The button Show all characteristics opens a window with all characteristics of the project. Note that in
very large networks this may take a while. All characteristics are stored in the Characteristics folder in
the Operational Library.

52.5.3 Output Variables

The output variables define which values are approximated by the neural network. By default they are
defined according to the Quasi-Dynamic Simulation. By clicking on the Define and edit output variables
button, variables can be deleted or additional ones selected.

It is recommend to focus on the output variables of interest.

52.6 Neural Network Training command

This section explains the options of the Neural Network Training command . The command is placed
within the Additional Tools toolbox.

The two main tasks of this command are:

1. Generate a dataset as basis for the neural network training.
2. Train a neural network using this data.

52.6.1 Basic Options

On the Basic Options page following options are configured:

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Approximated calculation

The load flow for the approximation is linked and can be configured further. The neural network is
trained to approximate the result for a specific load flow calculation. Therefore, settings such as the
power regulations should be chosen carefully.

As the Load Flow command is stored within the Neural Network command, this will not affect the load
flow of the study case.

Tasks

There are three options available:

• Data generation: If this task is selected, the command generates data for the neural network
training. This creates a Dataset object.
• Neural network training: This task creates a Neural Network object and trains the neural network
on a generated dataset.
• Data generation and neural network training: With this task a dataset is generated and then
a neural network is trained on this dataset. In this case, both the Dataset and Neural Network
objects are created.

Method

There are two methods: new or continue. If new is selected, a new dataset or neural network is created.
With continue, an existing dataset is extended or the training of a neural network is continued.

Note that if the task Data generation and neural network training is used and the method Continue is
selected there needs to be a dataset as well as a neural network in order to continue with the training.

52.6.2 Data Generation

The options presented on the Data Generation page differ depending on the selected method.

52.6.2.1 New Data Generation

If the method New is selected, the following options are available:

Probabilistic Analysis

Probabilistic Analysis is used to generate a wide range of load flows for the dataset.

• Command: Here the Probabilistic Analysis command is linked.

• Consider distribution correlations: If this option is selected, the correlation of the distributions is
considered. If correlations are neglected this may lead to inadequate datasets, see Section 52.8.3
Probabilistic Analysis is explained in detail in Chapter 44.

Training variables definition

• Show input variables: Shows the distributions used for the input variables. The input variables
are defined taking account of the distributions and can therefore not be manually set.
• Edit output variables: Here the user can select the output variables for the dataset and the
neural network training. Only the selected output variables can be approximated with the neural
network.
• Automatic support of currents, voltages and powers: If this option is ticked, PowerFactory
automatically selects the required variables as outputs, in order to be able later on to calculate

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currents, voltages and powers of all elements. This can lead to many output variables and thus
increase the size of the dataset and the neural network.

Data properties
• Min. number of samples: Defines the minimum number of generated data samples. Depending
on the chunk size, the number of generated samples may be higher. The number of samples
should scale with the number of elements (nodes, loads, generators etc.) in the grid. The more
elements there are, the more samples are needed for the training.
• Chunk size: Data generation is done in chunks to avoid unwanted large data operations. Each
chunk corresponds to one execution of the Probabilistic Analysis. The chunk size should be an
divisor of the min. number of samples to avoid additional samples. For small grids the chunk size
can be increased to speed up the data generation.
• Data location: Location on the disk for the data to be stored. As the dataset can be quite big,
sufficient free space should be made available.
Project export for grid state backup.

The project can be exported to the same location the generated data is stored at. This allows the user
to save the state of the grid fitting to the generated data.

52.6.2.2 Continuation of Data Generation

If the method Continue is selected, an existing dataset is expanded. In this case the following options
are available:

• Extension of dataset: The dataset to be expanded is selected. It is important that this dataset
was generated with the same load flow settings and the same topology.
• Min. number of samples: Defines the minimum number of samples for this dataset. This
parameter considers also the already created samples.
• Chunk Size: See the explanation in the New Data Generation section above.

52.6.3 Neural Network Training

The options presented on the Neural Network Training page differ depending on the method selected
on the Basic Options page.

52.6.3.1 Training of new neural network

If the method New is selected on the Basic Options page, the following options are available on the
Neural Network Training page:

• Dataset: The dataset on which the neural network should be trained.

• Location: The directory in which the neural network is stored. This location should be different
from the location of the data to ensure separation of data and neural network.
• Stopping criteria: The stopping criterion is defined as Epochs or as a mean square Error. If the
stopping criterion Error is selected, the training will continue until the validation error is below the
supplied value. In some cases it may happen that this condition is never met. If this happens, the
user will have to manually stop the calculation by pressing the Break button .
• Neural network architecture: Two different architectures are available; the “Fully Connected
Network” and the “Graph Convolutional Network”. The different neural network architectures are
explained in Section 52.3.1.

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52.6.3.2 Continuation of neural network training

If the method Continue is selected on the Basic Options page, the training of an existing neural network
is continued. For this an existing neural network is selected. The other options are similar to those for
the training of a new neural network.

52.6.4 Random Number Generation

On the Random Number Generation page, the Seeding type is defined. This value has two functions:
• Data Generation: Seeding of the probabilistic analysis.

• Neural Network Training: Defining the initial weights of the neural network.
The seeding type can be selected as Automatic or User defined. The User defined option is used to
create a reproducible neural network.

52.7 Output of Neural Network Training

The generated data and the trained network are not stored directly in the database but on disk. For this
PowerFactory provides two objects to link this external data to the database.

52.7.1 Dataset Object

The Dataset object (IntNndata) is the link to the generated datasamples stored on disk. The following
information is defined within the object:
• Name: The name of the dataset. This can be edited by the user.
• Location: The location on disk of the data samples.
• Samples: Number of data samples on disk.

• Input Variables: Number of input variables on disk.

• Output Variables: Number of output variables on disk.
• Version used for data generation: The PowerFactory version used for the data generation. If the
data or the neural network is to be used within another PowerFactory version it is recommended
to check the consistency first.
• Probabilistic Analysis: Command used for the data generation.
With the two buttons Show input Variables and Show output Variables one can check the in- and output
variables used.

52.7.2 Neural Network Object

The Neural Network object (IntNnet) is a link to the externally saved description of the neural network.

General properties

• Location: Path to the folder

• Trained calculation: Load flow calculation used to create the training data.

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• Dataset: Dataset used for the training

Training properties The Training properties are for information only.

• Number of training samples: Number of samples used for training. The other samples are used
for validation.
• Number of training epochs: Number of epochs that were run for the training.
• Training error (MSE): The mean square error calculated for all output variables of the training
samples.

• Validation error (MSE): The mean square error calculated for all output variables of the validation
samples. Shows how good the neural network can estimate unknown data.
Since most of this data is not stored in the PowerFactory database, but on disk, opening the neural
network object might take a short time if the disk is a hard drive disk which is currently on stand-by and
has to be started.

52.7.3 Consistency Check

Both the Dataset Object and the Neural Network Object have a Check consistency button to check
whether the current topology fits to the one the dataset was generated with.

By execution of this check, multiple training samples from disk are loaded into PowerFactory. A Load
Flow is then executed for each of these samples. It is then checked whether the results of the Load
Flow still match the results of the samples.

If they match, it is very likely that the power system is in the same state as when the data was generated
or the neural network was trained.

If the results do not match, the power grid is most likely in a different state. For further examination
it is recommended to import the grid state backup created by the Neural Network Training command
and use the PowerFactory Compare and Merge Tool (see Section 20.4). A comparison of the current
project and the grid state backup will give an indication of where the difference may be coming from.

This function should always be used if there is any doubt about changes in the topology between the
creation of the neural network and its use.

52.8 Trouble Shooting for Neural Networks

In this section some advice for common issues when training and working with neural networks are
given. Note that the handling of neural networks is quite different to other functionalities in PowerFactory,
as the neural network trains itself.

52.8.1 The Probabilistic Analysis does not converge.

The Probabilistic Analysis generates random load flow situations according to the parameter distribu-
tions. Especially if loads and generators are modified, this can lead to extreme situations and a big
power mismatch that needs to be covered by the slack.

Some not converging cases are typical in larger power grids. But if there are more than 20%, distributed
slack might be necessary. This can be configured in the Load Flow command. The distributed slack
options are explained in detail in Section 24.3.2.

For more information regarding Probabilistic Analysis see Chapter 44.

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52.8.2 The validation error does not decrease during the epochs.

It might be the case that the training error decreases while the validation error stays constant or even
increases. This indicates that the neural networks only memorises the trained data instead of learning
patterns. This phenomenon is called overfitting. Generally this issue can be solved by increasing the
training dataset using the continue function. A sample training process is shown in Figure 52.8.1. The
training error decreases but the validation error stays constant.

Figure 52.8.1: Training process for neural network with inadequate training dataset

52.8.3 The approximation of the neural network is not good enough

There are several reasons why a neural network approximation may significantly differ from the load
flow results even if the validation error of the neural network is small. Some typical reasons are listed
here.

The network topology has changed.

To make sure the neural network was not trained on a different network topology, use the "Check
Consistency" button inside the Neural Network object.

If a grid backup was done during the data generation, this grid model can be used for the simulation to
ensure same topology.

Different load flow settings.

If the load flow settings have changed between the data generation and the use of the neural network,
this may lead to false results. Therefore it is important to check whether the settings of the load flow
inside the neural network are the same as the ones of the current calculation.

The training data does not fit the actual dispatch.

If the actual load flow calculations are quite different from those of the training dataset, it is hard for the
neural network to guess the result as it does not know similar situations. In Figure 52.8.2 the result
of a Quasi-Dynamic Simulation with a neural network approximation and the standard load flow are
plotted. It can be seen that the results fit good for a low line loading and differs for higher line loading.
The reason is that the correlations of the loads were not considered when the training samples were
generated. Therefore, the high-load situations were not represented in the training dataset and the
neural network could not learn these situations. As the neural network cannot run a plausibility check
the approximation can take unrealistic values, e.g. a negative loading, as shown in the example.

By considering the correlations of the distributions, this issue can often be solved.

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Figure 52.8.2: Example for neural network approximation where the network was not trained on a
suitable dataset

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 Part V

Appendix
Chapter 53

The DIgSILENT Output Language

When more than just the variable name, value and unit has to be displayed, if the use colours is
preferred, or other special formats, the DIgSILENT Output Language can be used.

By selecting the Format Editor input mode, the editor is activated (see Figure 53.0.1).

Figure 53.0.1: The Form text editor

Almost all textual output that is produced in PowerFactory, is defined by a report form. The use of report
forms range from the simple and small result forms that specify the contents of the single line result
boxes to large and complex forms that are used to print out complete system reports.

In all cases, the text in the editor field of a IntForm object specifies the report that is to be generated. For
result boxes, that text is normally created automatically in the IntForm dialog by selecting “Predefined
Variables”, or any other set of variables, and some extra’s such as the number of decimals and if an unit

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 53.1. FORMAT STRING, VARIABLE NAMES AND TEXT LINES

or name should be shown. These options will automatically create a report form. That automatic form
is normally used as it is, but it may be altered manually. This is shown in Figure 53.0.1, where report
format is changed such that the variable name of the loading factor is deleted and replaced by the fixed
text ’ld’, because the variable name “loading” is felt too long compared with the names of the other two
variables (“P” and “Q”). The shown format will produce result boxes like

P 12.34 MW
Q 4.84 Mvar
ld 103.56 %

Defining single line result boxes only asks for a basic understanding of the DIgSILENT output language.
For more complex reports, many different variables from all kinds of objects have to be printed as
listings or tables. Such a report would require macro handling, container loops, selection of parameters,
headers, footers, titles, colours, etc. The DIgSILENT output language offers all this, and more.

The basic syntax, which is primary used for defining result boxes is given in the following overview.

Format string, Variable names and text Lines

Placeholders
Variables, Units and Names
Colour
Advanced Syntax Elements
Line Types and Page Breaks
Predefined Text Macros
Object Iterations, Loops, Filters and Includes

53.1 Format string, Variable names and text Lines

A standard line consists of three parts (see Figure 53.1.1):

1. A format string, containing placeholders, macros and/or user defined text.
2. An ’end of line’ character like ’$N’, ’$E’ or ’$F’
3. Variable names, separated by commas, which are used to fill in the placeholders.

Figure 53.1.1: Basic parts of the report format

The format string is normally much longer.

53.2 Placeholders

A placeholder for strings like variable names or whole numbers is a single ’#’-sign. For real numbers,
the placeholder consists of
• a single ’#’ for the integer part
• a point or comma
• one or more ’#’-signs for the fractional part

The number of ’#’-signs after the decimal point/comma defines the number of decimals. The ’#’-sign
itself can be included in user-defined text by typing ’\#’.

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CHAPTER 53. THE DIGSILENT OUTPUT LANGUAGE

53.3 Variables, Units and Names

The variable name can be used to display the name of the variable, its value or its unit. The possible
formats are (’xxx’ = name of variable):

xxxreturns the value

%xxxreturns the long variable name, as used in the edit dialogs
&xxxreturns the short variable name, as used in the database browser
[xxxreturns the unit
xxxthe object dependent name of the variable (default name)
"%width.precision,xxx"
uses special formatting.

The special formatting %width.precision is explained by the following examples:

• "%.60,TITLE:sub1z" outputs TITLE:sub1z 60 column width, left aligned.

• "@:"%1.0,s:nt" inserts s:nt as an integer at the placeholder’s position

• ""%1.3,s:nt" writes s:nt with 3 digits precision at the placeholder’s position

The centring code | may be used in front of the formatting code for centring at the placeholder, for
example "|%.60,TITLE:sub1z".

The insertion code is used to switch to insert mode, for example,

|#|$N,:loc_name
will output
|aElmSym|.

The cformat string may be used to alternatively reserve place for a value or text. A cformat of ’%10.3’
will reserve 10 characters for a number with 3 decimals. The first number can be omitted for text: ’%.6’
will reserve 6 characters for the text field. The cformat syntax allows for centring text by adding the
’|’-sign to the ’%’-sign:

’|%.10’ will reserve 10 characters and will centre the text.

Free, language dependent text can be defined by use of the format

{E|a text;G|ein Text}. This will produce ’a text’ when the user has selected the English language (see
the user settings dialog), and ’ein Text’ when the language has been chosen to be German.

Special commands for access of Elements

OBJECT(cls)

Gets Element of class cls. Used to access a variable name or unit without actually accessing
such an object. Used in header lines.

argument
cls (obligatory): The name of the class
example:
[OBJECT(ElmTerm):m:Skss

writes the unit of the busbar variable Skss

EDGE

Gets an arbitrary object with at least one connection, i.e. a Load, a Line, etc. Used to access a
variable name or unit without actually accessing such an object.

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example:
%EDGE:m:U1:bus1

writes description of the variable U1

CUBIC(idx)

Returns the cubicle (StaCubic) at bus index idx of branch

argument
idx: index of branch, the currently set bus index is used when idx<0

example:
CUBIC(0):e:loc_name

returns name of cubicle at busindex 0

TITLE

Gets the title that is set in the output command (ComSh or ComDocu)

example:
TITLE:e:annex

writes annex of title

VARIANT

Gets the active variant in which the current object is stored

example:
VARIANT:e:loc_name

writes the name of the variant

NET

Gets the grid in which the current object is stored

example:
NET:e:loc_name

writes the name of the grid

CMD

Returns the last calculation command, i.e. a Short-Circuit (ComShc), Load-flow (ComLdf ),...

example:
CMD:pabs

writes the short-circuit position on the line after calculation of a short-circuit.

CASE

Returns the currently active calculation case

example:
CASE:e:loc_name

writes the name of the active calculation case

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CHAPTER 53. THE DIGSILENT OUTPUT LANGUAGE

DEF

Returns the default object. The default object depends on the currently processed output.

example:
DEF:e:loc_name

writes the name of the default object

STALNE

Returns the station if the current object is a busbar. Returns a line if the current object is a
terminal between line routes. Otherwise, nothing is returned, and the entry will be ignored.

example:
STALNE:e:locname

writes the name of the line or station.

RES

Returns the currently active results object (ElmRes) used by simulation, harmonics or other
calculation modules

example:
RES:e:desc

writes the first line of the description of the results object

53.4 Colour

A line can be set to another colour by adding a ’_LCOL(c)’ command directly after the ’$N,’ marker. This
will colour the whole line according to the colour number c.

𝑎 𝑏𝑙𝑎𝑐𝑘 𝑖 𝑔𝑟𝑎𝑦
𝑏 𝑏𝑙𝑎𝑐𝑘 𝑗 𝑙𝑖𝑔ℎ𝑡𝑔𝑟𝑎𝑦
𝑐 𝑟𝑒𝑑 𝑘 𝑏𝑜𝑟𝑑𝑒𝑎𝑢𝑥
𝑑 𝑔𝑟𝑒𝑒𝑛 𝑙 𝑑𝑎𝑟𝑘𝑟𝑒𝑑
𝑒 𝑏𝑙𝑢𝑒 𝑚 𝑑𝑎𝑟𝑘𝑔𝑟𝑒𝑒𝑛
𝑓 𝑏𝑟𝑜𝑤𝑛 𝑛 𝑙𝑖𝑔ℎ𝑡𝑔𝑟𝑒𝑒𝑛
𝑔 𝑐𝑦𝑎𝑛 𝑜 𝑚𝑎𝑟𝑖𝑛𝑒
ℎ 𝑚𝑎𝑔𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑎 𝑝 𝑑𝑎𝑟𝑘𝑏𝑙𝑢𝑒

Table 53.4.1: Colour Codes

A single item can be coloured by using the ’_COLOR(Variable name; color code)’.

53.5 Advanced Syntax Elements

The advanced syntax is mainly used for writing forms for larger and more complex reports. An example
is a short-circuit result form, which lists all the short-circuit parameters for all busbars and for each
busbar for all connected elements.

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53.6 Line Types and Page Breaks

The character ’$’ ends a format line. A line without this ending will be interpreted as a normal ’$N’ line
type. The following line type are available:

’$N’ Normal line

’$H’ Header on the top of each page
’$F’ Footer on the bottom of each page
’$T’ Title line, only appears on top of the first page
’$C’ Comment line (not used for output)
’$R’ Marker that make that the line will only be used when the specified results are valid

The line type ’$H’, ’$F’ and ’$T’ will be treated as normal (’$N’) line types when used inside a loop
command. Line type codes may be made language dependent by adding a ’E’, for English lines or a ’G’
for German lines, i.e. ’$HG’ specifies a German header line.

A report format must at least contain one normal ($N) line.

The following commands are used for page and line controls. They can only be used directly behind the
line type codes ’$N’, ’$F’ or ’$H’.

_PAGEBREAK Forces a page break after the current line

_AVAILBREAK Enables page breaking after the current line (default)
_NOBREAK Disables page breaking directly after the current line

_LCOL(c) Disables page breaking directly after the current line

_OBJ(ClsNam) The current line will only be used for objects from the class “ClsNam”.
_BUS(inum) The current line will only be used for objects which connect to exactly inum nodes
_FIRST The current line will only be used when the loop index is 0 (first passage)

_NFIRST The current line will only be used when the loop index is not 0 (all but the first passages)
_IF(boolean expression) The current line will only be written when the expression is true. Example:
_IF(m:u:bus1>0.95)
_IFNOT(boolean expression) The current line will only be written when the expression is false. Ex-
ample: \IF(m:u:bus1<0.95)

Example:
| #.## # #.## # #.## |$R,_NOBREAK, ..

53.7 Predefined Text Macros

The following macros will produce specific names or other texts.

_DATE(c) present date: c=’e’ give the English format, c=’g’ the German one.
_TIME present time
_VERSION version number of the DIgSILENT PowerFactory software.

_BUILD build number of the DIgSILENT PowerFactory software.

_VERBUILD combines _VERSION and _BUILD
_ORDER order title, if a title has been defined previously

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CHAPTER 53. THE DIGSILENT OUTPUT LANGUAGE

_CLASS class name of the object

_LINE current line number in page

_ALLLINE current line number in report

_PAGE current page number
_LOCALBUS name of the local busbar
_CALC(c) name of last performed calculation. c=1 returns a long description.

_SHORT short object name

_FSHORT short name of parent object
_CLS class name without the ’Elm’, ’Sta’, ’Typ’, etc. part.

_ANNEX the annex number

_NGB neighbourhood depth
_TEXT(E | text;G | Text) language dependent text (E=English, G=German)

53.8 Object Iterations, Loops, Filters and Includes

To create a report that creates a table with the voltages for all busbars, command are needed to filter the
busbar objects and to create a loop that outputs a line of text for each busbar. A loop or filter command
consists of the following parts:

• the keyword "$LOOP" or "$CLOOP"

• the filter or loop name

• the format text

• the keyword "$END"

DIgSILENT PowerFactory 2024, User Manual 1430

Chapter 54

Standard Functions DPL and DSL

These functions are present in both DPL and DSL, click on the link to go to the corresponding chapter.

• Models for Dynamic Simulations (DSL)

• Scripting (DPL)

Function Description Example

sin(x) sine sin(1.2)=0.93203
cos(x) cosine cos(1.2)=0.36236
tan(x) tangent tan(1.2)=2.57215
asin(x) arcsine asin(0.93203)=1.2
acos(x) arccosine acos(0.36236)=1.2
atan(x) arctangent atan(2.57215)=1.2
atan2(x,y) arctangent atan2(-2.57215,-1)=-1.9416
sinh(x) hyperbolic sine sinh(1.5708)=2.3013
cosh(x) hyperbolic cosine cosh(1.5708)=2.5092
tanh(x) hyperbolic tangent tanh(0.7616)=1.0000
exp(x) exponential value exp(1.0)=2.718281
ln(x) natural logarithm ln(2.718281)=1.0
log(x) log10 log(100)=2
sqrt(x) square root sqrt(9.5)=3.0822
sqr(x) power of 2 sqr(3.0822)=9.5
pow (x,y) power of y pow(2.5, 3.4)=22.5422
abs(x) absolute value abs(-2.34)=2.34
min(x,y) smaller value min(6.4, 1.5)=1.5
max(x,y) larger value max(6.4, 1.5)=6.4
modulo(x,y) remainder of x/y modulo(15.6,3.4)=2
trunc(x) integral part trunc(-4.58823)=-4.0000
frac(x) fractional part frac(-4.58823)=-0.58823
round(x) closest integer round(1.65)=2.000
ceil(x) smallest larger integer ceil(1.15)=2.000
floor(x) largest smaller integer floor(1.78)=1.000
time() current simulation time time()=0.1234
pi() 3.141592... pi()=3.141592...

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CHAPTER 54. STANDARD FUNCTIONS DPL AND DSL

Function Description Example

twopi() 6.283185... twopi()=6.283185...
e() 2,718281... e()=2,718281...

DIgSILENT PowerFactory 2024, User Manual 1432

Bibliography

[1] IEEE std. c37.010 IEEE Application Guide for AC High-Voltage Circuit Breakers Rated on a
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[4] IEEE std. c37.13 IEEE Standard for Low Voltage Power Circuit Breakers Used in Enclosures, 1990.
[5] IEEE std. 946. IEEE Recommended Practice for the Design of DC Auxiliary Power Systems for
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[6] IEEE std. 141. IEEE Recommended Practice for Electric Power Distribution for Industrial Power
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[7] DIN VDE 0276-1000 Power cables – Part 1000: Current-carrying capacity, general, conversion
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[8] IEC 61660-1 Short-circuit currents in d.c. auxiliary installations in power plants and substations –
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[17] IEC 61000-3-6 Electromagnetic Compatibility (EMC) - Part 3: Limits - Section 6: Assessment of
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[18] IEC 61400-21 Wind turbines - Part 21: Measurement and assessment of power quality character-
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[19] NF C 13-200 Installations électriques à haute tension, 2009.
[20] BS 7671 Requirements for Electrical Installations – IET Wiring Regulations, 2011.

DIgSILENT PowerFactory 2024, User Manual 1433

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[21] VDE Power generation systems connected to the low-voltage distribution network, 2011.
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[24] 60287-1-1 edition 2, 2014.
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[27] IEC 60909 Short-circuit currents in three-phase A.C. systems, 2016.

[28] VDE-AR-N 4105 G connected to the low-voltage distribution network - Technical requirements for
the connection to and parallel operation with low-voltage distribution networks, 2018.
[29] VDE-AR-N 4110 Technical requirements for the connection and operation of customer installations
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[30] VDE-AR-N 4100 Technical rules for the connection and operation of customer installations to the
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[45] J. VAN DIJK et al. Decomposing power flows in networks with hvdc lines in the fld methodology.
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[46] IEEE. IEEE 1584-2002. Guide for Performing Arc-Flash Hazard Calculations.

[47] IEEE. IEEE 1584-2018. Guide for Performing Arc-Flash Hazard Calculations.
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[49] R. L.Heinhold. Kabel und Leitungen für Starkstrom. Pirelli Kabel und Systeme GmbH & Co, 2005.

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DIgSILENT PowerFactory 2024, User Manual 1435

BIBLIOGRAPHY

DIgSILENT PowerFactory 2024, User Manual 1436

Glossary

Appliance A specific physical, installed, power system component: a specific generator, transformer,
busbar, etc. Example: a piece of NKBA 0.6/1kV 4 x 35sm cable, 12.4 metres long.

Base Case A Base Case is considered to be the basic power system design, from which one or more
alternative designs may be created and analysed.
Block Definition A block definition is a mathematical model which may be used in other block defini-
tions or in a composite model. Examples are all default controllers (i.e. VCO’s, PSS’s, MDM’s),
and all additional user-defined DSL models. A block definition is called “primitive” when it is
directly written in DSL, or “complex” when it is build from other block definitions, by drawing a
block diagram.
Block Diagram A block diagram is a graphical representation of a DSL model, i.e. a voltage controller,
a motor driven machine model or a water turbine model. Block diagrams combine DSL primitive
elements and block definitions created by drawing other block diagram. The block models thus
created may (again) be used in other block diagrams or to create a Composite Model Frame. See
also: DSL primitive, Composite Model Frame
Branch Element An element connected to two or more nodes, examples being lines, switches and
transformers. See also nodes, edge elements.
Branch Element (ElmBranch) Not to be confused with the generic term branch element, the Elm-
Branch object is a composite two-port element which can contain a number of lines, terminals
etc.
Busbars Busbars are particular representations of nodes. Busbars are housed in a Station folder and
several busbars may be part of a station.

Class A class is a template for an element, type or other kind of objects like controller block diagrams,
object filters, calculation settings, etc. Examples:
• The ’TypLne’ class is the type model for all lines and cables
• The ’ElmLne’ class is an element model for a specific line or cable
• The ’ComLdf’ class is a load-flow command
• The ’EvtSwitch’ class is an event for a switch to open or close during simulation
Composite Model A composite model is a specific combination of mathematical models.These models
may be power system elements such as synchronous generators, or block definitions, such as
voltage controllers, primary mover models or power system stabilisers.
Composite models may be used to create new objects, such as protection devices, to ’dress-up’
power system elements such as synchronous machines with controllers, prime movers models,
etc., or for the identification of model parameters on the basis of measurements.
See also: Frame, Slot
Cubicle A cubicle is the connection point between a edge element and a node (represented by a
busbar or terminal). It may be visualised as a bay in a switch yard or a panel in a switchgear
board. Elements such as CT’s, protection equipment, breakers and so forth, are housed in the
cubicle, as one would expect to find in reality.

DIgSILENT PowerFactory 2024, User Manual 1437

Glossary

DAQ Abbreviation for “Data Acquisition”.

Device A certain kind of physical power system components: certain synchronous machines, two-
winding transformers, busbars, or other kinds of equipment. Example: a NKBA 0.6/1kV 4 x 35sm
cable.
DGS Abbreviation for “DIgSILENT Interface for Geographical Information Systems”.
DOLE Abbreviation for “DIgSILENT Object Language for Data Exchange”. DOLE was used in previous
PowerFactory versions, but replaced by DGS meanwhile. Now, use DGS instead, please.
The DOLE import uses a header line with the parameter name. This header must have the
following structure:
• The first header must be the class name of the listed objects.
• The following headers must state a correct parameter name.
DPL Abbreviation for “DIgSILENT Programming Language”. For further information, refer to Section 22.1
(The DIgSILENT Programming Language - DPL).
Drag & Drop “Drag & Drop” is a method for moving an object by left clicking it and subsequently moving
the mouse while holding the mouse button down (“dragging”). Releasing the mouse button when
the new location is reached is called “dropping”. This will move the object to the new location.
DSL Abbreviation for “DIgSILENT Simulation Language”. For further information, refer to Section 29.4
(The DIgSILENT Simulation Language (DSL)).
DSL Primitive A DSL primitive is the same as a primitive block definition. A DSL primitive is written
directly in DSL without the use of a block diagram.
Examples are PID controllers, time lags, simple signal filters, integrators, limiters, etc. DSL
primitives are normally used to build more complex block definitions.
See also: Block Definition, Block Diagram

Edge Elements An element connected to a node or to more than one node. Includes single-port
elements such as loads, and multi-port elements such as transformers. See also nodes, branch
elements.

Element A mathematical model for specific appliances. Most element models only hold the appliance-
specific data while the more general type-specific data comes from a type-reference. Example: a
model of a piece of NKBA 0.6/1kV 4 x 35sm cable, 12.4 metres long, named “FC 1023.ElmLne”.
Expansion Stage An Expansion Stage is part of a network Variation, which includes all changes that
apply to the network at a specific activation time.
See also: Variation

Frame A frame is a special block diagram which defines a new stand-alone model, mostly without in-
or outputs. A frame is principally a circuit in which one or more slots are connected to each other.
A frame is used to create composite models by filling the slots with appropriate objects. The frame
thus acts as template for a specific kind of composite models.
See also: Block Diagram, Composite Model, Slot

Graphic Window The main graphics window is a docked window that contains one or more graphical
pages, in the form of tabs. These pages may be single line diagrams, plots, block diagrams etc.,
but other pages such as the Data Manager or reports can also be shown here.
The tabs may be used to change the visible page or to change the page order by drag&drop on
the page tab. It is also possible to move tabs between docked windows and floating windows.
See also: Plot, Block Diagram, Page Tab, Drag&Drop
Grid A Grid is a collection of power system elements which are all stored in one so-called “Grid Folder”
in the database. Normally, a grid forms a logical part of a power system design, like a the MV
distribution system in a province, or the HV transport system in a state.

DIgSILENT PowerFactory 2024, User Manual 1438

 Glossary

Node The mathematical or generic description for what are commonly known as busbars in the elec-
trical world. In PowerFactory nodes may be represented by “Busbars” or “Terminals” of various
kinds. These are treated in the same manner in mathematical terms but treated slightly differently
in the database. As far as possible the user should use terminals as Busbars can be somewhat
inflexible. See also Busbars, Edge Elements, Branch Elements.

Object An object is a specific item stored in the database. Examples are specific type or element
models which have been edited to model specific devices or appliances. Examples: the element
“FC 1023.ElmLne”, the type “NKBA_4x35.TypLne”, the load-flow command “3Phase.ComLdf”
Operation Scenario An Operation Scenario defines a certain operation point of the system under
analysis, such as different generation dispatch, low or high load, etc. Operation Scenarios are
stored inside the Operation Scenarios folder.

Page Tab Page tabs are small indexes at the edge (mostly on the top or bottom) of a multi-page window.
The tabs show the titles of the pages. Left-clicking the page tab opens the corresponding page.
Page tabs are used in object dialogs, which often have different pages for different calculation
functions, and in the Graphics Board Window, when more than one graphical page is present.
Plot A plot is a graphical representation of calculation results. It may be a line or bar graph, a gauge, a
vector diagram, etc. A plot gets its values from a results object.
See also: Results Object.
Project All power system definitions and calculations are stored and activated in a project. The project
folder therefore is a basic folder in the user’s database tree. All grids that make out the power
system design, with all design variants, study cases, commands, results, etc. are stored together
in a single project folder.

Results Object A results object keeps one or more lists of parameters which are to be monitored during
a calculation. Results objects are used for building calculation result reports and for defining a
virtual instrument.
See also: Plot

Slot A slot is a place-holder for a block definition in a composite model frame. A composite model is
created from a composite model frame by filling one or more slots with an appropriate object.
See also: Block Definition, Frame, Composite Model
Study Case A study case is a folder which stores a list of references or shortcuts to grid or system
stage folders. These folders are (de)activated when the calculation case folder is (de)activated.
Elements in the grid folders that are referenced by the study case form the ’calculation target’
for all calculation functions. Elements in all other, non-active, grid folders are not considered for
calculation.
Besides the list of active folders, the calculation case also stores all calculations commands,
results, events, and other objects which are, or have been, used to analyse the active power
system.
See also: Grid, System Stage

Type A mathematical model for devices: general models for two-winding transformers, two-winding
transformers, busbars, etc. A type model only contains the non-specific data valid for whole
groups of power system elements. Example: a NKBA 0.6/1kV 4 x 35sm cable type, named
“NKBA_4x35.TypLne”
See also: System Stage, Grid

Variation A Variation defines an expansion plan composed of one or more expansion stages which
are chronologically activated. Variations, like all other network data, are stored inside the Network
Data folder.
See also: Expansion Stage

DIgSILENT PowerFactory 2024, User Manual 1439

 ABOUT DIGSILENT
DIgSILENT was founded in 1985 and is a fully independent
and privately owned company located in Gomaringen close Our Power System Monitoring PFM300 p­ roduct
to Stuttgart, Germany. DIgSILENT continued expansion by line features grid and plant super­vision, fault ­
establishing offices in Australia, South Africa, Italy, Chile, recording, and power quality and grid characteristics
Spain, France, the USA and Oman, thereby facilitating analysis. The Grid Code C
­ ompliance ­Monitoring
improved service following the world-wide increase in PFM300-GCC system also offers compliance
usage of its software products and services. DIgSILENT has auditing of power plants with respect to grid code
­established a strong partner network in many c­ ountries requirements. This monitoring and non-compliance
such as Mexico, Malaysia, UK, Colombia, Brazil, Peru, ­China detection provides the complete transparency and
and India. DIgSILENT services and software i­nstallations assurance required by both plant operators and
are used in more than 170 countries. utilities.

The DIN EN ISO/IEC 17025 accredited DIgSILENT

DIgSILENT produces the leading integrated power Test Laboratory for NAR Conformity carries out
system analysis software PowerFactory, which measurements in accordance with FGW TR3 on the
covers the full range of functionality from stand- operational type 1 generation plant (directly cou-
ard features to highly sophisticated and advanced pled synchronous machines). These measure­ments
applications including wind power, distributed are carried out in accordance with the “individual
generation, real-time simulation and performance verification procedure” as required by the German
monitoring for system testing and supervision. For grid connection guidelines VDE-AR-N 4110/20/30.
various applications, P­ owerFactory has become DIgSILENT has many years of international exper-
the power industry’s de-facto standard tool, due tise in the field of generation and consumption/
to PowerFactory models and algorithms providing load systems testing. The in-house developed and
unrivalled accuracy and p­ erformance. produced measuring systems enable the testing
laboratory to offer customised measuring solutions
for a wide range of power plants and applications.

StationWare is a central asset management

system for primary and secondary equipment.
In addition to handling locations and devices in DIgSILENT GmbH is staffed with experts of v­ arious
a user-definable hierarchy, the system allows disciplines relevant for performing ­consulting
­manufacturer-independent protection settings services, research activities, user training, educa-
to be stored and managed in line with customer-­ tional programs and software development. Highly
specific workflows. It facilitates the management specialised expertise is available in many fields
of a wide variety of business processes within of electrical engine­ering applicable to liberalised
a company and centralises the storage of docu- power markets and to the latest developments
ments. StationWare can be integrated seamlessly in power ­generation technologies such as wind
into an existing IT environment and the inter- power and distributed generation. DIgSILENT has
face with PowerFactory enables the transfer of provided expert consulting services to several
­calculation-relevant data for p­ rotection studies. prominent PV and wind grid integration studies.
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For more information, visit

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