This Is AuburnElectronic Theses and Dissertations

Operational and Investment Solutions to Enhance the Transmission and Distribution Systems of the Electrical Grid

Date

2017-06-28

Author

Mortaz, Ebrahim

Type of Degree

PhD Dissertation

Department

Industrial and Systems Engineering

Abstract

An electric power system consists of three major components: generation, transmission and distribution. Electricity is usually generated in remote generation plants and carried through high voltage transmission lines to distribution substations. The distribution system delivers the electricity safely and reliably to the end customers. When the customers' demand increases, the transmission network has to be expanded to maintain the reliability of the network. In the first chapter of this dissertation, we propose a new method to compute the operational cost for the transmission network expansion. The proposed method is based on multivariate interpolation which reduces the computational time of the solving algorithm significantly. In the second chapter, we enhance the operational performance of the microgrids as part of the distribution grid. We introduce an efficient way to integrate a parking facility of electric vehicles (EVs) into the microgrids as a storage resource. By using the vehicle to grid technologies which enable the microgrid to withdraw energy from the batteries of the EVs, energy supply from the EVs' batteries can be a cost-efficient alternative. The ability to store and withdraw energy from the EVs allows the microgrid to shift energy purchases from high price to low price hours during the day. Finally, in the third chapter, we analyze the long term economics of EVs integration into the microgrids. We develop an investment model to determine the optimal capacity of the parking facility for EVs. Similar to the transmission network expansion, the required capital investment for the vehicle to grid technologies and the operational cost of the microgrid over the planning horizon are considered and minimized. We propose a new approach to minimize the total cost of investment and operation. Experimental results confirm that investing in the vehicle to grid technologies in the parking facility reduces the microgrid's cost of electricity supply in the long run.