Effects of automation on the reliability of power distribution systems considering distributed generation: Worth analysis

The reliability of power distribution networks can be greatly enhanced by using automatic protective devices. Remotely controlled and automated restoration services can avoid the required execution of manual switching schedules and are bound to bring about remarkable levels of system reliability while reducing interruption costs. The customers interruption cost model according to a postal survey is used in this paper to verify the authenticity of the reliability worth analysis. Also, the value of circuit breaker installed as a protective and automated device is quantified in terms of its contribution to the reliability improvement of a test distribution network. The failure mode effect analysis technique (FMEA) is adopted for reliability worth assessment. In addition, the impact of introducing distributed generation units (DG) into the system is presented. The description of the proposed approach is tested by evaluating the reliability worth of a radial distribution test system.