A three phase load flow algorithm for shipboard power systems (SPS)

Shipboard power systems (SPS) are island electric power systems. Generation, transmission, and distribution systems in SPS are tightly coupled. The transmission system consists of the lines that interconnect the generator buses in a ring configuration. Hence, there is no transmission system. Therefore, SPS can be considered radial a distribution system downstream of the generators. In this paper, a three phase load flow algorithm developed for SPS is proposed. Due to the nature of SPS, the load flow algorithm must solve for systems with multiple sources and ring configured systems. This algorithm combined three methods that addressed the issues of multiple sources, ring configuration, and radial load flow. For systems with multiple sources in the same proximity, the sources are collapsed to one source bus. The breakpoint compensation method is used for ring configured systems, and the backward-forward sweep method is used to perform a radial load flow. This algorithm was tested on the IEEE 37 bus radial distribution test feeder and a simplified shipboard power test system. The results produced minimal percent error when compared to the actual output results.