Decomposition-Based Stability Analysis for Isolated Power Systems With Reduced Conservativeness

An isolated power system (IPS) usually operates in an islanded mode. Because of the lack of support from an external power grid, stability is a prominent issue for IPSs. This article proposes a novel stability analysis approach for IPSs based on the input-to-state stability (ISS) theory. Compared with existing stability analyses that use simulations and direct methods, the proposed method decomposes the stability analysis process by considering the ISS properties of subsystems and a network equation that reflects their connections. Thus, it has good adaptability for the stability analysis of systems with flexible operating conditions. Algorithms are presented for estimating the ISS properties of subsystems, and asymptotic gains in a piecewise linear form are adopted. The small gain theorem is used for the decomposed stability analysis, and a practical algorithm to numerically check the small gain condition is presented. Time-domain simulations were performed with a test system to verify the effectiveness of the proposed decomposition-based stability analysis approach. Note to Practitioners—Power systems used in shipboards, airplanes, remote areas, and so on are usually classified as isolated power systems (IPSs). The continuity of power supply in IPSs is the prerequisite of fulfilling certain tasks. Due to the lack of support from the bulk power grid, the normal operation of IPSs can be threatened by various external disturbances, such as disasters, battle damages, device failures, and so on. To maintain the survivability and reliability of IPSs under extreme conditions, fast reconfiguration and emergency control approaches are often performed, which lead to system topology changes and frequent connection/disconnection operation of devices in IPSs. Because of the limited generation capacity of an IPS, a stability analysis after an emergency is important for ensuring that the IPS can perform tasks normally, and can provide guidance for designing fast reconfiguration and emergency control strategies. However, current stability analysis approaches have limited applicability or are overly conservative for analyzing the stability of IPSs. To address the challenge of changeable topologies for the stability analysis of an IPS, this article proposes a decomposition-based analysis approach using input-to-state stability (ISS) theory. By decomposing the entire system into several subsystems, the system’s stability can be checked through the ISS properties of subsystems and their connections. The ISS properties of subsystems can be estimated offline, which saves time for online calculation. To reduce the conservativeness of stability analysis, the asymptotic gains in piecewise linear form are adopted in this article. Practical algorithms are designed for efficiently checking the proposed decomposition-based stability conditions. The research outcome provides a fast and flexible stability analysis approach that can adapt to the frequent changes in the operating conditions of IPSs.