Search

A lot of previous studies have shown a great interest in connecting photovoltaic (PV) arrays to electric power grids. A Maximum Power Point Tracker (MPPT) controlled 100 kW PV array to boost its power that feeds the grid with the help of a three-level inverter. This paper investigated the effects of open-circuit faults of three-level inverter IGBT switches on the performance of the PV array system. This paper proposes a new diagnostic method called the Double Threshold-Trigonometric Coordinates (DT-TC) that relies on the double threshold technique and the trigonometric coordinates, respectively, for early detection and the precise location of open-circuit faults. To the best knowledge of the authors, two simultaneous open-circuit faults were not considered in the previous studies. The obtained simulation results prove the great success of the proposed diagnosis method even under noticeable changes in irradiation, temperature, and the number of PV array connected in series and in parallel. In this study, the reconfigurable fault-tolerant inverter was included to ensure the perfect continuity of the PV array system and its recovery in an extremely very short time up to 7 ms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For the oil-impregnated power transformers in service, the condition of the main insulation system is very important. This article reports a non-destructive evaluation technique based on time-frequency domain dielectric characteristics. First, the polarization/depolarization current and frequency-domain spectroscopy were well measured under controlled laboratory conditions. Then, the recovery voltage curves and recovery voltage polarization spectroscopy were also obtained by using the conversion method between polarization/depolarization current and recovery voltage based on the extended Debye model. After that, the time-domain dielectric characteristics, which can represent oil-paper insulation aging, were extracted from the polarization/depolarization current curves, recovery voltage curves and recovery voltage polarization spectroscopy. In addition, the frequency-domain dielectric characteristics, which can represent the oil-paper insulation aging, were also proposed in terms of frequency domain spectroscopy. Finally, the change rules of time-frequency domain dielectric characteristics under different aging times were investigated in depth. Results show that the time-frequency domain dielectric characteristics are sensitive to the aging states of power transformers, which could be utilized to diagnose the aging state of oil-paper insulation in field power transformers. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Electrical power generation in Oman depends mainly on natural gas, while in rural areas it is based mainly on diesel fuel. Oman has committed to net-zero emissions by 2050, in line with the Paris Agreement's goal of limiting global warming to 1.5°C. The objective of this paper is to propose an optimal energy mix model for electricity generation from various energy sources, such as gas, diesel, wind, and photovoltaic, that considers more renewable sources in the energy mix. The optimization model minimizes various costs such as construction cost, operation cost, fuel cost, and carbon emissions, while satisfying the load demand. In this paper, Masirah Island is selected to perform our analysis. Several scenarios are contemplated, including grid extension to the island. The results found that gas-powered generators with 20% PV and storage are the best option in terms of the levelized cost of electricity. The grid extension is an economically feasible option if the existing load is more than doubled. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To generate a concentrated photovoltaic-thermal (CPVT) unit system, linear Fresnel concentrators have been attached to a PV unit and a thermoelectric generator (TEG) has been combined in this work to boost productivity. In the presence of concentrators, the temperature of the silicon layer increases. While electrical output is enhanced for the CPVT unit, the non-uniform isotherms can decrease the lifetime of the panel, so confined jets of alumina-water nanofluid have been applied for cooling. To validate the numerical code, previous papers were examined and good accommodations were reported. Various values of the inlet temperature (Tin) and velocity (Vin) of jets have been analysed. The impacts of installing concentrators on overall performance and CO2 mitigation have been investigated. An increase in Vin leads to an incremental increase in thermal performance of about 4.2% and thermal uniformity is enhanced by about 13.91%. The thermal power of the system is enhanced by about 2.19 times as a result of adding concentrators. Also, the PV power is enhanced by 86.22% in the presence of the reflectors. With the increase in Tin, the thermal and electrical performance decrease by about 19.95% and 5.24%, respectively. Installing concentrators enhances the overall performance by about 6.55%. After 10 years, the amount of CO2 mitigation for the CPVT-TEG system reaches 148.28 ton. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The electrical energy demand is growing every day. Fossil fuel-based electrical power generation pollutes the environment. So, to fulfil the electrical energy demand, clean renewable energy sources like solar and wind are emerging as viable alternatives. But the amount of power generated from solar and wind energy sources is varying in magnitude and is intermittent in nature. So, predicting solar and wind power generation is indispensable for efficient planning and controlling of a renewable energy system. This paper aims to identify a machine learning model suitable for time-series prediction of wind power and also surveys the predominantly existing machine learning followed by the deep learning approaches. The main objective of this study is to solve a real-life problem in the renewable energy sector by accurately estimating the amount of power generation production per hour by applying machine learning techniques using historical wind power energy production data. Hence, historical wind data set with input parameters like wind speed, wind direction air temperature, pressure, and output parameters of wind power generation is considered for training and testing using mean absolute error for evaluating the prediction accuracy. Layers from simple to complex deep layers are trained and tested for prediction accuracy, i.e. baseline, linear, dense, multidense, convolution neural networks, and long short-term memory. Investigating further, LSTM and Residual LSTM prove to have higher mean absolute prediction accuracy of 0.0987 and 0.0958. This eventually enlightens the wind power forecasting models and new paths for further research applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

One of the most convoluted parts of an electrical power system is its distribution system. Compared to generation and transmission losses, distribution losses are very high in the vertically integrated power system. A modern smart grid involves bidirectional power flow due to Renewable Distributed Generations (RDGs). Integration of RDGs near the load points results in a reduction in the distribution losses. This paper proposes the new Hybrid Cuckoo Search Grey Wolf Optimizer (HCSGWO) to optimally place the RDGs such as Solar Photo Voltaic and Fuel Cells and Capacitor Banks (CBs) for the improvement of voltage profiles in each bus and minimization of losses. The hybrid algorithm utilizes the advantages of both the Cuckoo Search and Grey Wolf algorithm. The proposed approach is tested with the Standard IEEE 33-bus system and the real-time TN 84-bus distribution system at all load models such as constant current, constant power, and constant impedance. The HCSGWO minimizes the system losses by optimally placing both the RDGs and CBs when compared to other algorithms. Losses are reduced by installing CBs in the real-time system and significant improvement is achieved in the voltage levels of each bus in the system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recently, solar thermal energy has been considered the main type of renewable energy used widely to provide heat energy and produce electrical power. Evacuated tube solar collectors (ETSCs) are used in various weather circumstances such as clear, cloudy, windy, hot, and cold weather, and their efficient system supplies latent heat storage fluid with higher temperature and lower heat energy loss compared to the flat-plate solar collectors (FPSCs). This review paper is considered an investigation on adding nanofluid particles to the evacuated tube solar collector-PCM, indicating future evacuated tube solar collector designs and predicting the suitable high- or low-temperature PCM for various types of applications. Also, three main types of ETSCs, heat pipe, Thermosyphon, and U-pipe, with their applications are reviewed, and the factors that influence the collector performance and efficiency are discussed. Moreover, the properties that affect the selection of the PCM and the usage of various types, sizes, and volumetric concentrations of nanofluid as a working fluid for each ETSC are investigated with their enhancements for each type. Lastly, this paper provides future ideas for using additive nanofluid materials as a working fluid to improve the performance and efficiency of ETSCs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Applications such as high-voltage direct current (HVDC) transmission networks, flexible alternating current power transmission (FACTS), medium voltage (MV) motor drives, and power performance improvement topologies all see significant growth in demand for modular multilevel converters (MMCs) due to their attractive features. A 3-phase MMC can be described as having an AC terminal, a DC terminal, and a kernel for conversion with three-phase legs as part of its basic configuration. Each phase/leg in an MMC is having two symmetrical arms referred to as lower and upper arms. In order to reduce the high-frequency content in the arm currents, all the submodules are coupled in series with chock inductor. Now a days, the use of MMC is widespread because of its competitive benefits includes superior output performance, high modularity, simple scaling, and minimal voltage and current rating requirements for the power switches. A lot of work is being done around the world to find ways to use it in photovoltaic (PV) applications, low/medium voltage drives, converting wind energy and other places. In this paper, a detailed review of MMC is given, including its topological variants, modulation methods, modeling and capacitor voltage balancing techniques, fault-tolerant behavior, controlling approaches and future trends and challenges. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In light of resource depletion, energy scarcity, and toxic waste management, gasification is regarded as a viable waste-to-energy conversion method. Moreover, the Gasifier-Engine-Genest combo provides a suitable alternative for distributed electric power, waste conversion, and alleviating electricity scarcity. Despite an abundance of research report, it is not usually acknowledged as a viable alternative to traditional energy sources. Thus, to promote Gasification, efficient technology is required to maximize the yield of syngas with clean and improved calorific value. Furthermore, there is a void in the prior study that summarises the various types of biomasses and their pre-treatment, as well as the progression of conventional gasification to advanced gasification for the improvement of syngas quality and respective critical applications. Moreover, this is necessary in order to organise the conditions and biomass for gasification, which are many and frequently scattered in the literature. Hence, this study summarises the detailed review of recent novel concepts development over conventional techniques of biomass gasification. Recent reports on feed material properties of diverse biomass, as well as pre-treatment employing biomass torrefaction for gasification, are presented in this paper in order to evaluate their potential. In addition, a literature review of the various categories of gasification, the gasification processes, and the impact of technology on the quality of syngas, power generation and distribution were reported. In conclusion, it is proposed that enhanced gasification technology be employed to implement sustainable development in order to reduce the existing reliance on non-renewable energy sources. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The micro-grid (μ-grid) has picked up momentum worldwide with the ability to supply cost-effective, clean, and reliable electrical power to the present-day demand. The practical μ-grids are comprised of non-conventional and conventional sources such as wind turbine generators (WTG) and diesel generators (DG). Due to the encouragement of wind power which is exceedingly sporadic in nature and thus the frequency of the μ-grid is exceedingly vulnerable due to the erratic nature of wind speed. Variations in the load demand have also added to the vulnerability of the μ-grid at distinctive moments of time. Consequently, this paper appears to be a novel plan that utilizes artificial neuro-fuzzy inference system (ANFIS) within the built frequency regulation of the μ-grid. The proposed research has been employed within the μ-grid, and the application outcomes have taken all possibilities, such as load variety at the distinctive moment of time, modification of the load demand on the μ-grid, and step alteration of the wind input. The achieved results are coordinated with a few of the most recent results, which presents the ANFIS ahead over other strategies. Although there is a probable scope for improvement which subsequently involves the fuel cell (FC) with a hydrogen aqua electrolyzer (HAE) unit, as well as a redox flow battery (RFB), that is introduced one at a time in the μ-grid and the results of μ-grid are calculated for various working conditions to show the impact that the ANFIS technology has upon storage devices with regards to the μ-grid architecture. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The bidirectional flow of electrical power has aroused the need to monitor the distribution system (DS) in real time so as to avoid issues related to grid stability, which can cause cascade failure. A micro-phasor measurement unit (µ-PMU) is an equipment proficient in monitoring the DS in real time. A premeditated placement of µ-PMUs is therefore desired due to the technical and economic restraints. In the present paper, a novel hybrid technique that incorporates the Taguchi method (TM) and enhanced version of the binary particle swarm optimization (BPSO) by utilizing V sigmoid function and constriction factor is employed for the optimal location of µ-PMUs in the DS. The Taguchi scheme produces an improved population at the initialization stage, which finally eludes early convergence, and thus, it makes BPSO further robust. The study takes into account the optimal number of µ-PMUs required for the complete DS observability, economy, and the measure of reliability. The proposed method has been effectually applied to Indian 85-bus radial DS and standard IEEE distribution feeders, namely 34-nodes, 37-nodes, 69-nodes, and 123-nodes systems. A comparative analysis has been carried out to substantiate the superiority of the proposed method over the existing methods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

—The modular multilevel converter (MMC) has proven to be the most advanced voltage source converter (VSC). For long-distance power transfer, high-voltage DC (HVDC) is the best choice. Across the globe, electric power networks are witnessing rapid growth in MMC-HVDC installation to meet the ever-growing power demand. The existing AC transmission lines can be converted to DC lines by adding converters. The MMC-based multi-pole HVDC presents an adequate solution for upgradation. However, more study is required to make it a reality. The present paper attempts to bridge this gap. The proposed study can be divided into two parts. Initially, the concept of symmetrical multi-pole MMC-HVDC is proposed, and its mathematical relations have been derived. The multi-pole has been subdivided into an even and an odd configuration. The half-bridge submodule (HBSM)-based MMC lacks DC fault handling capability. The second part of the study includes controller and fault analysis of the HBSM-based tri-pole MMC HVDC. The study shows the severity of the pole-to-pole faults, leading to a complete shutdown of the transmission line. A controller and an algorithm for the DC fault-ride-through (FRT) have been proposed. The proposed controller has digital switches to temporarily bypass the real-time measurement values with measurements taken under healthy conditions. An impact analysis of the parameters of one MMC on the equilibrium of the entire multi-pole configuration is performed. The performance of the proposed controller has been carried out on a real-time digital simulator (RTDS). The proposed controller and FRT algorithm ensure that the tri-pole HVDC maintains the power supply during all DC faults. In the worst-case scenario, the shutdown is averted with a 50% reduction in power transfer capability. The transients in active and reactive power are minimized and eliminated within a cycle. Further, using the most economical and simplest submodule ensures the configuration without any additional cost. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the modern power electronic environment, application of low power, small size and high speed drives is achieving more prominence. In domestic appliances such as power tools, high speed fans, high power blowers etc., electric motors with high performance are attaining huge acceptance. The conventional variable speed drives employed diode bridge rectifier (DBR) and DC-to-DC converter-based methodologies, which hampered the supply by introducing current harmonics and conduction losses. This made these topologies unacceptable as per the standards set by the global power electronic authorities. Although there have been large number of developments in motors and control strategies, the risk and complexity of such drives become bottlenecks in implementation. In this paper, the conventional DBR-based DC-to-DC converter-fed drives are compared and analysed with a bridgeless dc-dc converter and a voltage source inverter-fed motor drive. Due to the low power, high-speed application of Brush Less DC (BLDC) motor, the same is selected for the aforesaid drive scheme. It is envisaged to ascertain that the combination of the same will help achieve almost near Unity Power Factor (UPF) and more efficient control compared to the conventional speed control topologies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper elucidates the working of shunt active filters in dynamically varying grid conditions. The accuracy of harmonics eliminated is based on the harmonic extraction technique and the switching techniques used. The harmonics of the electrical system are computed and based on the various harmonics produced; the shunt active filter has to supply a compensating current in opposition at the point of common coupling. Space Vector Pulse Width modulation (SVPWM) is an effective switching technique used but its performance is not satisfactory in the over-modulation regions. In this paper, optimised switching technique using a neural network for SVPWM is used which has lesser computation time and computes the gating pulses effectively in the over-modulation regions. Shunt active filter mitigates the impact of harmonics even in the over-modulation regions. The hardware is implemented using FPGA Spartan 6 controller, which utilises fewer hardware resources. The optimised switching topology results with improved harmonic reduction even in the over-modulation regions with unbalanced loading conditions is presented in this paper. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Determining the optimal operating point of generating units in the optimal combined heat and power scheduling is an economic optimization problem aimed at minimizing the total operating costs. The generation cost would nonlinearly increase with the increase in the power generation of fossil fuel thermal units. On the other hand, in combined heat and power (CHP) units, the amounts of power and heat generation are highly mutually dependent. Therefore, the determination of the optimal operating points of such units would be much more difficult compared to electric power or heat-only generating units. Obviously, the aim beyond implementing the day-ahead generation scheduling (GS) problem is to determine the optimal operating points of generating units. In this regard, the power outputs of the units are specified such that the total operating costs of the system are minimized taking into consideration the technical and economic constraints. This paper solves the GS problem in the presence of CHP units with nonconvex feasible operating regions (FORs). This paper investigates the problem of optimal operating point determination of CHP units along with electrical and heat-only units. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the current scenario, because of government policies, environmental factors, and technological improvements, there is a rapid growth in renewable energy sector. The emphasis is to obtain better system performance by effective resource utilization and providing security and reliability. This paper discusses the design and implementation of indirect grid control of a wind power plant by controlling the parameters in both grid and rotor side converters. The proposed system consists of Doubly Excited Induction Generator (DEIG) with Wind turbine system (WTS) and Mechanical and Electrical Power Controlling Systems (MPCS-EPCS). Various transmission line faults (symmetrical and asymmetrical faults) incur power imbalances in power grid. The developed MPCS and EPCS are helpful to perform grid monitoring and controlling under different types of faulty conditions. The MPCS monitors the effective source utilization and EPCS helpful for matching the grid energy levels under normal and faulty conditions. Modification in the converter topologies to minimize the impact of adverse effects of faults on the DEIG-WTS and to improve resiliency in the power grid is also discussed. To improve the stability and enhancing resource utilization to improve the efficiency of the overall system with the enhancement of fault voltage ride-through capability in DEIG-WTS under fault conditions are also considered. The stability of the system is tested under steady-state and dynamic-state conditions by applying faulty conditions in MATLAB/Simulink environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents a novel switched-inductor based DC-DC converter with high step-up capability for interfacing the low voltage input from renewable energy sources to a high voltage DC bus. In the proposed converter, coupled inductors (CIs) are employed in lieu of discrete switched inductors to enhance the voltage gain and reduce the voltage stress on the switches. The number of turns in the CI windings is properly designed and one diode-capacitor multiplier cell (DCM) is connected at each of the two secondary windings to obtain the desired high voltage gain value. Since the required voltage conversion ratio value of 15.833 is obtained by employing CIs, the switches experience only lower voltage stress levels of about 5.79% and 26.3% of output voltage under practical conditions. Experimental results obtained from 24 V-380 V, 175 W prototype converter confirm that it operates at 93.6% full-load efficiency. Further, the supply current drawn by the converter is continuous with 15.4% ripple. Simple closed-loop control is implemented to regulate the converter's output voltage against variations in line voltage and load current. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents experimental results on the control of stochastic flexural vibrations in a plate equipped with five piezoelectric patches connected to self-tuning multi-resonant shunts composed by N-parallel resistive-inductive-capacitive (RLC) branches. The study contrasts the tuning of the branches based on the minimization of the time-averaged total flexural kinetic energy and the maximization of the time-averaged electric power absorbed by each RLC branch relative to the resonant responses of the target modes. Next, it investigates the online tuning of the branches RL components with an extremum seeking algorithm set to maximize the time-averaged electric power absorbed by each RLC branch. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The advent of conductive extrudable materials has broadened the range of additive manufacturing applications to include smart devices, circuits, actuators and sensors -- all requiring electrical power. 3D printing of components dedicated to energy storage has also gained interest, with the goal of the monolithic printing of batteries directly integrated into subsuming smart components. This review focuses on the state of the art of extrusion-based 3D printed batteries, appearing as the most widespread, inexpensive and simple additive process. The paper is intended to introduce the processes and materials of 3D printing batteries, while highlighting the main manufacturing challenges and associated solutions proposed in literature. Particular attention is dedicated to describing the extrusion-based printers being employed and the required modifications, printing parameters and multi-material capabilities, with the aim of highlighting the most promising solutions required to print composite individual components and complete rechargeable batteries in a single non-assembly step. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we carried out a thermographic assessment of the hybrid PV/T system at four distinct times in the same day to analyze the behavior of the system and show the factors that can degrade the thermal and electrical performance of this cogeneration device. We utilized the 3D simulation of MATLAB software for temperature readings at each image. Too, the analysis of the heat distribution on the surface of the panel when the PV/T system was first dirty and then after cleaning. Additionally, over a number of days, the thermal and electrical yields of a PV/T system were assessed to ascertain the impact of environmental conditions on the system's overall output. The impact of uneven temperature distribution on thermal and electrical performance was demonstrated by this experiment. It is worth noting that the system's electrical efficiency rises with cooling, rising from 13.2% under natural conditions to 14.1% with cooling. When cooling is applied, thermal efficiency can reach 50%. Electrical power increases from 199.64 W in natural cooling to 215 W with forced cooling, an increase of around 7.5%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The reliability assessment helps to determine the existing power system reliability. Equipment failures may decrease reliability and the major contributory factors for power system unreliability. Therefore, the objective of this study was reliability assessment for distribution with distribution generation units and without distribution generation units, Dangila substation from 2020 to 2021. The base case reliability indices were 774.93, 1231.48, 1.589, 85.96%, and 14.04 for system average interruption frequency index, system average interruption duration index, customer average interruption duration index, average service availability index and average service unavailability index respectively. These indices are below the standards of Ethiopian Electric power set indices values of 20 system average in terruption frequency index and 25 system average interruption duration index. Therefore, the system needs improvement to achieve the minimum system reliability standard. Distribution generation was used to improve the system reliability in this paper. Distribution generation was placed at five suggested locations of feeder seven from substation, 66kilometer, 80kilometer, 100kilometer, 113.3kilometer, and 146kilometer distances. The results shows that as distribution gene ration was placed further from Supply point the reliability of the power system will be improved more. The assessment result of feeder seven shows that the feeder had more outages with the base cases of 636, 833, and 1.311 system average interruption frequency index, system average interruption duration index, customer average interruption duration index respectively. The size of distribution generation for feeder seven was 3.13 MW to supply 50% of feeder peak load. After distribution generation placed at feeder seven the system average interruption frequency index, system average interruption duration index, customer average interruption duration index, and average service unavailability index indices were 20.0868, 25.109, 1.25, and 99.71%. This shows that the system reliability is improved as compared to the base case and the reliability standards of the country were achieved. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Electric power generated in a centralized station is transmitted through the transmission system and supplied to the consumer end through an electric distribution substation. Electric power losses are high in distribution network compared to the transmission system. The integration of decentralized generation (DG) units in electric distribution networks will reduce power losses. However, the integration of conventional DG is not appreciable due to various techno-economic and environmental concerns. Hence there is a need for the changeover from conventional to renewable energy sources (RES) for energy requirement. Because of vast availability, non-polluting nature, and sustainable character of RES are grasping significant attention over the years. At present most, viable RES are solar and wind energy systems in the world. It is observed that the output generation patterns of solar photovoltaic (PV) arrays and wind turbine generation units (WTGUs) are arbitrary. Hence there is a need for sophisticated method/technique for modeling these generated outputs. In the present paper, optimal modeling and allocation of RES are solved using a novel metaheuristic algorithm. The proposed algorithm is tested on 12, 15 and 85 - bus radial distribution networks (RDNs) and the simulation results obtained are outperforms other existing techniques in the literature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper is intended to provide enhanced features of onboard EV battery chargers in terms of improved power quality feature, reduced voltage stress, reduced filter size, high efficiency and fast dynamic response for universal input voltage range (85–265 V). The proposed configuration comprises of three-level quadratic converter suitable to provide high voltage gain. The detailed operation, analysis and control scheme of the proposed converter rated for 3.2 kW, 400 V are studied under simulation and hardware in a loop environment. The on-board charger performances are assessed by charging a 40 Ah lithium ion EV battery under different charging modes. The state of charge of battery decides converter operating mode i.e. constant current and constant voltage mode to charge the battery. Enhancement in the onboard charger is observed in both operating modes tested for wide variation in supply voltages. The results reveal that the operation of converter depicts unity power factor operation, improvement in supply current harmonics and controlling output voltage/current. Under both operating modes, the proposed charger draws sinusoidal supply current from ac mains and its THD is reduced to specified limit prescribed by IEC-61000-3-2. Furthermore, the charger performance is also investigated for EV battery charging operation at wide input voltage variations and found satisfactory. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents a new conceptual framework of the disaster risk of critical infrastructure systems in terms of societal impacts. Much research on infrastructure reliability focuses on specific issues related to the technical system or human coping. Focusing on the end goal of infrastructure services – societal functioning – this framework offers a new way to understand how those more focused research areas connect and the current thinking in each. Following an overview of the framework, each component is discussed in turn, including the initial buildout of physical systems; event occurrence; service interruptions; service provider response; user adaptations to preserve or create needed services; and the ending deficit in societal function. Possible uses of the framework include catalysing and guiding a systematic research agenda that could ultimately lead to a computational framework and stimulating discussion on resilience within utility and emergency management organisations and the larger community. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, a wind-driven self-excited induction generator (SEIG) combining solar photovoltaic (SPV) and battery storage has been successfully demonstrated. A second-order sequence filter-based frequency locked loop (SOSF-FLL) control is implemented for operating the voltage source converter (VSC). The SOSF-FLL method is designed by replacing two second-order low pass filter (LPF) pure integrators with two reduced order generalized integrators (ROGIs). The SOSF-FLL has a nonlinear control feedback system. The major contributions in this study include: 1. Implementation of SOSF-FLL control to generate reference source currents for VSC and evaluate the amplitude of load current component under intermittent condition of renewable energy sources (RESs) and nonlinear load, 2) The control algorithm with VSC performs numerous functions such as voltage/frequency regulation, load leveling, harmonic reduction, active/reactive power compensation and reduces the overall power quality problems, 3) Through DC-link voltage management, a bidirectional converter (BDC) with battery storage optimizes the best power flow to provide power balancing between the sources and the unbalanced load, 4) Under diverse operating situations, an incremental conductance (INC)-based maximum power point tracking approach with BDC control provides quick system convergence and support frequency. Moreover, a comparison is carried out between SOSF-FLL control and conventional control algorithms. The settling time of the proposed control is very less than one cycle (20 ms) within 2% described limit, whereas the conventional control algorithms show oscillations of more than 5% during the load dynamics. Despite the load current THD 24.41%, the proposed control is able to obtain supply current THD at 4.23%, which is less than 5% as per IEEE-519 standard. The proposed microgrid (MG) is constructed in MATLAB/Simulink and experimental prototype environment, and its dynamic response is investigated under dynamic conditions of RESs and nonlinear load conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Precise state-of-health (SOH) estimation is extremely challenging in lithium-ion based cells due to the nonlinear behavior of its operating parameters. This pertains to complex estimation and prediction characteristics of power and energy demands in hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs) and electric vehicles (EVs), particularly variations in the operating temperature. In this paper, agricultural electric power tiller application battery pack cells are utilized for the study analysis. Extended Kalman filter algorithm (EKF) analysis was carried out for the experimental cell voltage estimation. The estimated voltage applied as the input to the nonlinear autoregressive network (NARX) modeled to analyze actual versus predicted charge/discharge powers. These estimation studies were carried out for lithium-ion nickel manganese cobalt chemistry 18650 cells. Aging analysis was carried out for four study cells through electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) to measure the impedance growth with different SOC conditions under a constant temperature of 318 K. In addition, incremental capacity analysis (ICA) peak points studies were carried out with regression analysis performed to evaluate the change in capacity. Resistance characterization analysis with two different temperature conditions 308 K and 318 K was performed to evaluate the change in resistance for the four study cells. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although the nonrenewable energy-driven power plants have major limitations, but at present, more than 80% of the energy needed all over the world is met through these power plants. Among them, almost one-third is supplied through coal-fired plants. However, the major limitation in the exploitation of coal fuel is the increase in environmental harms due to the increased greenhouse gas emissions. In this regard, it is necessary to adopt solutions and integrate these plants with other clean and green energy production cycles in order to reduce the emission of pollutants and improve their behavior. In this paper, the thermodynamic-conceptual evaluation of a new coal-fired plant driven by lignite is developed. Besides that, the plant is coupled with a solid oxide fuel cell and two independent solar units (both based on parabolic trough collector (PTC) arrays) in order to reduce the environmental harms of coal. Additionally, the introduced power plant consists of two power generation units based on a Rankine cycle and a gas turbine-based cycle. Therefore, the introduced plant can produce electric power and hot water. Further, the integration of cycles based on renewable technologies can reduce environmental pollution and improve plant's efficiency. Moreover, a comprehensive comparison is presented when changing power plant fuel from lignite to anthracite. The conceptual design of solar units based on the geographical characteristics of city of Karaj is also provided. The outcomes indicated that the gas released from the plant during the combustion process is approximately 94.1 kg per second. The considered plant can produce almost 270.2 MW of electric power and approximately 1572 kg of hot water per second. Additionally, the energetic efficiency was equal to 69.72% and exergetic efficiency was equal to 34.93%. The findings also indicated that the size of solar unit 1 under both types of anthracite and lignite coal is the same; while, by changing the type of coal from lignite to anthracite, the size of solar unit 2 can be reduced by almost 6.5 times. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents a fixed-switching frequency of direct reactive power control, called modulated hysteresis-direct reactive power control (MH-DRPC), for a variable speed wind turbine-based doubly fed induction generator (DFIG). Combination of two techniques, i.e. reactive power control-based fuzzy logic control and modulated hysteresis (MH) direct torque control, is the principle of the proposed strategy. The main advantage of this methodology is that the switching frequency of the converter switches is constant, where the major drawback of the classical DRPC is eliminated (the variable switching frequency). This new methodology aims to achieve sinusoidal forms of generated AC current with a constant frequency, ensure minimal current total harmonic distortion (THD), and minimum output voltage ripple irrespective of the wind speed fluctuations. This research work is aimed primarily at analyzing the performances of the new MH-DRPC, taking into account certain constraints that reflect the true working of wind turbine generators, such as the random wind speed behavior and variable reactive power demand. This allows analyzing all operation modes of DFIG, with an emphasis on synchronous and over-speed modes. A comparison with a classical DRPC is made to underline the effectiveness of the suggested approach. The MPPT algorithm and the pitch angle control are invested to optimize the captured wind power. Simulations of the proposed method are made under Matlab/Simulink. The simulation results revealed significant improvements over the classical DRPC in the following characteristics: a significant reduction in current THD supplying the AC grid (98.29%) and a good dynamic response with a significant reduction of ripples of electromagnetic torque (66.67%), rotor flux (42.67%), generated current frequency (96.70%), local reactive power compensation (50.23%), and generated active power (26.34%). In addition, the suggested MH-DRPC technique is extremely robust to machine parametric changes and random variations in references command. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Electricity has substantial effects on rescue and relief responses after strong earthquakes. Substations are essential components of electric power networks, and their seismic performance has recently attracted the attention of academia and industry, in particular, the recovery capacity from external events. This capacity is referred to as seismic resilience, which is defined as the ability of a system to resist, recover from, and adapt to an earthquake impact. It is quantified as the change in functionality over time. However, it is challenging to quantify the optimum recovery process dynamically due to interrelations between components. In this paper, a new probability-based method is proposed to assess the seismic resilience of complex systems, such as substations. A case study is performed on a typical 220 kV substation in China, and the seismic resilience of the system is investigated focussing on three important issues: (1) definition of system functionality; (2) a system model that considers the interrelations among the components; (3) recovery strategies to restore system functionality. The resilience index of the system with a functionality prioritisation recovery strategy is two to three times higher than that of a pre-determined one at the maximum considered earthquake. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Day-ahead scheduling of isolated nanogrid (NG) is an important task in power system. Owing to slowly lessening of fossil fuel, the profitable use of available fuel for electric power generation has turn out to be an extremely important concern of electric power utilities. This paper suggests horse herd optimization algorithm (HOA) to solve fuel constrained day-ahead scheduling of isolated nanogrid (NG) for five neighboring homes. NG comprises diesel generators, solar PV plants, battery energy storage system (BESS) and plug-in electric vehicles (PEVs). Simulation results of the test system have been compared with those obtained from social group entropy optimization, self-organizing hierarchical particle swarm optimizer with time-varying acceleration coefficients, fast convergence evolutionary programming and differential evolution. It has been observed from the comparison that the suggested HOA has the capacity to give better solution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, a detailed documentation revealing the design, development, and implementation aspects of grid-connected solar photovoltaic (SPV) power conversion system is presented. Since the inverter is considered as a key constituent of an SPV system, a laboratory developed three-phase four-legged (3P4L) inverter is employed to diminish the overall cost of the SPV system considerably. The multifunctional inverter controlled SPV system proposed in this work not only injects active power into the electric grid, but it also serves as an active power filter (APF) to provide various power quality (PQ) solutions. This typically includes source current harmonic attenuation, load reactive current mitigation, neutral current elimination, source current balancing, in addition to ensure unity power factor operation. A various hardware circuits including signal sensing circuit, signal conditioning circuit, pulse amplification and isolation circuit, and blanking circuit are fabricated and assembled to develop a complete laboratory prototype model. In addition, the voltage and current controllers, the synchronize reference frame theory (SRFT)-based approach, and the phase-locked loop (PLL) control algorithms are embedded in dSPACE 1104 control platform. Furthermore, an STM32F407VGT microcontroller is employed to implement the incremental conductance based maximum power point (MPP) tracking algorithm. The effectiveness of the developed SPV system is first simulated in MATLAB/Simulink software. In the second step, the efficacy of the proposed configuration is investigated under balanced and unbalanced nonlinear loads on a laboratory developed prototype. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In order to ensure safety and reliability of railway transportation the interest in monitoring systems is constantly increasing. These devices include sensors and electronic components, which need electric power supply for their proper working. However not all railway lines and vehicles are provided with electric power, furthermore, it can be complex to provide energy to sensors by cables in some location of the vehicle. The demand of a widespread distributed electrical energy can be fulfilled by energy harvesting techniques from primary sources. This paper analyses the different concepts of energy harvesters proposed in literature for the railway field, both for on board and wayside applications. The harvesters are classified according to the source from which energy is harvested and for each type of harvester advantages and disadvantages are critically discussed. The proposed review highlights the most promising solutions regarding energy harvesting in order to support future researches concerning this topic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The acute shortage of electric power in South Asia has severely hampered regional economic growth. Cross-border electricity trade – supported by appropriate policies, institutions and grid interconnections – can be a powerful tool for improving people's livelihoods in its Bangladesh–Bhutan–India–Nepal (BBIN) region. This paper reviews four cases of regional power trade and cooperation from four different continents – Asia, Africa, Latin America and Europe – and identifies six key elements that will be necessary for success in cross-border electricity trade in the BBIN region. It assesses the current status of these key elements in the BBIN countries and suggests areas for immediate intervention. Cooperation in the electricity sector in the region could be the building block for a larger regional cooperation in South Asia – and ultimately for regional economic integration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, a methodology to capture the model-based haptic feedback control reference for closed-loop steering systems is demonstrated. The parameterisation is based on the measurements of open-loop driving manoeuvres for the inertia-spring-damper-friction reference model. The steady-state and transient manoeuvres are used to identify the model parameters. The reference model is limited to the haptic feedback of driver excitation in the linear vehicle handling range and intended to be used in closed-loop steering control strategies. The model parameters have an intuitive interpretation that allows to be used in both admittance and impedance control setting. The feasibility of the proposed model is demonstrated in a validated simulation environment for electric power assisted steering and on a real hardware for the steer-by-wire force-feedback case. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

No single metaheuristic search algorithm can be adjudged universally best general-purpose optimizer. The performance of search algorithms mainly depends upon the weightage assigned to global and local search strategies. This paper proposed an improved directional bat optimizer to minimize the operating cost of the electric power dispatch (EPD) problem that establishes a balance between global and local search strategies. Improved directional bat algorithm exploits directional echolocation bat behavior, directional exploration, neighborhood search and opposition based learning for generation jumping. The directional bat algorithm acts as a global search tool whereas exploration in each direction and neighborhood search performs local search. Opposition learning improves convergence with diversity. An effect of valve-point loading introduces a discontinuity in cost characteristics. The EPD problem addresses energy balance, generator capacity, ramp-rate limits and prohibited operating zones (POZ) avoidance constraints. An iterative technique handles energy balance constraint. The generation is adjusted to avoid the violation of generation capacity, ramp-rate limit and POZ constraints. The proposed algorithm is verified on various electric power systems. The results verify that the proposed algorithm is a potential algorithm to solve EPD problems as it competes with recent existing algorithms undertaken for comparison [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper analyses the policies and laws that govern the Nigerian electricity sector to ascertain the opportunities and challenges it presents for addressing the problem of affordability of the initial capital costs and financial sustainability of off-grid renewable electricity (OGRE) faced by private investors. It is argued that the absence of sector-specific targets for OGRE and the preference for gas electricity erode the effectiveness of the policies in enabling laws that will address the mentioned barriers to OGRE development. Analysis of the relevant laws shows that some of the provisions present opportunities for addressing the identified barriers. The latter include the establishment of the Rural Electrification Fund (REF) which provides capital grants to OGRE developers in rural areas, under the Electric Sector Power Reform Act 2005. However, some provisions inflame the identified obstacles to OGRE development, including the expensive licensing fees for OGRE projects and overriding powers of the National Assembly over a State House of Assembly for making laws that cover the sector. Key recommendations are made for the adoption of an overarching renewable energy law that will have some recommended features for addressing the identified barriers to the development of OGRE. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A three unequal area interconnected power system under deregulated environment having multi-sources of generation is considered. The first area consists of solar thermal and thermal unit, the second area consists of thermal and hydro unit, and the third area contains thermal and gas units as generating units with proper generation rate constraint (GRC). Cascaded proportional integral-proportional derivative with filter coefficient (CPIPDF) is employed as a secondary controller. A recent meta-heuristic algorithm called moth flame optimization (MFO) is considered to optimize the controller parameters. System performances are compared with the classical controllers like proportional-integral (PI), proportional-integral-derivative (PID), proportional-integral-derivative with filter coefficient (PIDF) and cascaded proportional-integral-proportional-derivative (CPIPD) controller. MFO tuned CPIPDF controller performs better than all other controllers considered in this paper for different electrical transactions. Robustness of the optimum gains of CPIPDF controller obtained at poolco transaction condition is evaluated. In addition, system performance is studied with variation in disco participation matrix (DPM). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The geochemical characteristics and Pb isotope variations in Fe-Mn deposits collected from the South China Sea (SCS) were studied in this paper. The mineralogical and chemical composition data indicate that the deposits are almost all hydrogenetic in origin. Compared with the Fe-Mn deposits in other oceans, the SCS Fe-Mn deposits have a significantly higher Pb content because of higher material supply in addition to a lower growth rate of the deposits. Pb isotope ratios in the surface of the SCS Fe-Mn deposits are relatively uniform, with a characteristic of relatively lower 206Pb/204Pb ratio. The Pb isotopic compositions of the SCS Fe-Mn deposits are controlled by the Pacific Deep Water and local inputs, which include eolian dust from the Asian continent and weathering products from Taiwan, Luzon and SCS submarine volcanic rocks. The continuously increasing 206Pb/204Pb, 207Pb/204Pb and 208Pb/204Pb ratios along the transect of nodule D581 over the past 3.5 Ma are affected by the stepwise closure of the Luzon Strait that reduced volcanic material supply and the deep current strengthen at the same time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper introduces a Four-Switch Three-Phase Shunt Active Power Filter (FSTP-APF) based on One Cycle Control (OCC) technique for compensating the currents of three phase non-linear loads. The power stage of FSTP-APF uses only four semiconducting switches which leads to reduce the overall cost of APF. The proposed technique retains the advantages of the conventional OCC, such as no reference current calculation, no need for using Phase-Locked Loop (PLL), very simple control circuit and constant switching frequency. In addition, the modification reduces the number of semiconductor switches, reduces the filter output inductances, reducing the number of sensors to only four sensors, two of them for measuring supply currents and the others for measuring DC-link voltages, and the control algorithm becomes simpler. The feasibility and performance of the proposed technique are demonstrated through the simulation and experimental verifications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The requirement of a robust and adaptive control algorithm in active filters is inevitable nowadays. In this paper, an ADAptive LINEar neuron (ADALINE) based Least Mean Square (LMS) control algorithm is proposed for a three-phase-four-wire (3P4W) distribution power system under unbalanced loading conditions. The proposed controller has a unique inbuilt characteristic to extract the fundamental active positive sequence component from an unbalanced load current. Particularly, the control algorithm is intended to calculate an adaptive and suitable amplitude for the three-phase reference source currents which are used for the switching pulse generation in the subsequent steps. Moreover, the Distribution STATic COMpensator (DSTATCOM) is performed to eliminate harmonic contents of supply current and harmful excessive neutral current in the system. Further, the DC-link voltage is regulated in order to reduce the power loss across the DSTATCOM, and to attain a balanced, high-quality power availability at the Point of Common Coupling (PCC). The proposed system is accomplished in the MATLAB2014a/Simulink, and a low power rated 3P4W DSTATCOM prototype incorporating with the dSPACE1104 real-time environment to verify the proposed control algorithm. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A new method for transporting droplets is presented to avoid directive radiation of surface acoustic wave (SAW). An interdigital transducer (IDT) is fabricated on a 128°-YX LiNbO3 piezoelectric substrate using microelectric technology. A droplet to be transported is placed on a steel ball, which is driven by SAW. The droplet on the steel ball is then transported together with the steel ball. 0.5ul red ink solution was successfully transported by help of the steel ball with 2 mm diameters at 30.9 dBm electric signal power. Color development reaction is also implemented by transporting reaction solution using presented method to a paper-based device. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hydropower with water accumulation is an interesting option to consider in hybrid systems, because it helps dealing with the intermittence characteristics of renewable energy resources. The software HOMER (version Legacy) is extensively used in research works related to these systems, but it does not include a specific option for modelling hydro with reservoir. This paper describes a method for modelling a hydropower plant with reservoir with HOMER by adapting an existing procedure used for modelling pumped storage. An example with two scenarios in southern Brazil is presented for illustrating and validating the method explained in this paper. The results validate the method by showing a direct correspondence between an equivalent battery and the reservoir. The refill of the reservoir, its power output as a function of the flow rate and installed hydropower capacity are effectively simulated, indicating an adequate representation of a hydropower plant with reservoir is possible with HOMER. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Incoherent beam combining (ICBC) is a promising technique that can increase the total power of the lasers without decreasing the beam quality. Fast steering mirror (FSM) can be used in ICBC system to overlap the laser beams as well as suppress the jitter of the platform and the tip-tilt component of the turbulence. In this paper, a method using FSMs for incoherent beam combining is proposed and the relationship between the emergent light and the control voltages is derived, then the stochastic parallel gradient descent algorithm is adopted to calculate the optimal control voltages applied to the FSMs. A series of simulations combining two laser beams are carried on under static and dynamic turbulence. In order to verify the feasibility of this scheme, the dynamic turbulence is simulated under the hypothesis of Taylor’s frozen turbulence. The results of simulations show that the turbulence would severely degrade the result of combining and the correction process would resist the influence and assure the evaluation function can reach the ideal situation at last. The model of the scheme used in this paper can be easily utilized for arbitrary amount of the lasers. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This paper presents the numerical study of a new schematic for extracting marine energy through offshore wave energy harvesting and analyzes the design factors as well as environmental factors that create deviations in the energy efficiency. Though the device has some similarities to a traditional Backward Bent Duct Buoy, this invention is double-chambered and the whole power take-off set-up remains inside the device. It is a floating-type wave energy converter with a buoyancy material which can produce electric power from the movement of air inside the device from one chamber to another without interacting with the outside atmosphere which ensures device longevity and better performance of the system in rough ocean weather and normal weather alike. As the device has two chambers opposite to one another it can make efficient use of waves out of phase. The paper includes MATLAB simulated results for mechanical power obtainable from a bidirectional wind turbine inside the device. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Accurate parameter estimation of the input-output characteristics in thermal power plants is an important issue in power system because these characteristics directly affect the economic dispatch calculations. Parameter estimation is an optimization problem in which the optimal values of the unknown parameters should be estimated by an optimization technique. By considering the valve-point effect, the parameter estimation will be more difficult since the fitness function of this optimization problem turns into a non-smooth and non-convex function in which finding the global optimal is a challenging task. In this paper, a recently proposed metaheuristic approach, crow search algorithm (CSA), is proposed for accurate estimation of the input-output characteristics of thermal power plants with and without valve-point effect. Simulation results show that CSA finds more promising results than least squares method (LSM), particle swarm optimization (PSO), genetic algorithm (GA) and artificial bee colony (ABC). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Development actors are regularly aware of the shortcomings of governance interventions before, during, and after development assistance is introduced, yet those programmes continue and are even revisited. Why? This paper uses the Pakistani experience with power sector reforms to illustrate how the donor-led reform agenda had readily apparent shortcomings. A new wave of development thinking responds to such failures by drawing on complexity theory and moving toward more local, iterative and experimental approaches. However, by highlighting how the awareness of problems with reforms isn’t sufficient to avoid them, this paper points to a higher order of obstacles which remain unaddressed. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

It is well known that the tyre steering torque is highly dependent on the tyre rolling speed. In limited cases, i.e. parking manoeuvre, the steering torque approaches the maximum. With the increasing tyre speed, the steering torque decreased rapidly. Accurate modelling of the speed-dependent behaviour for the tyre steering torque is a key factor to calibrate the electric power steering (EPS) system and tune the handling performance of vehicles. However, no satisfactory theoretical model can be found in the existing literature to explain this phenomenon. This paper proposes a new theoretical framework to model this important tyre behaviour, which includes three key factors: (1) tyre three-dimensional transient rolling kinematics with turn-slip; (2) dynamical force and moment generation; and (3) the mixed Lagrange–Euler method for contact deformation solving. A nonlinear finite-element code has been developed to implement the proposed approach. It can be found that the main mechanism for the speed-dependent steering torque is due to turn-slip-related kinematics. This paper provides a theory to explain the complex mechanism of the tyre steering torque generation, which helps to understand the speed-dependent tyre steering torque, tyre road feeling and EPS calibration. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Large-magnitude earthquakes can damage high-voltage transformers, trigger power flow disruption and impact the economy and society. However, methods that enable large transformer vulnerability assessment in a practical and rigorous way are scarce. This paper proposes a probabilistic framework using Bayesian belief networks (BBNs) to predict the damage of high-voltage transformers subjected to seismic events. This framework incorporates major causes of transformer vulnerability at once, such as liquefaction, rocking response of the transformer, and interactions with interconnected equipment, which are otherwise commonly studied in isolation. To demonstrate the application of the framework, the paper elaborates on each step of the BBN framework, which is then validated with historical empirical data. Furthermore, the value of the proposed method is illustrated with high-voltage transformers in substations of the electric value BC Hydro in British Columbia, Canada. The paper also offers a sensitivity analysis that evaluates the effects of input variables on transformer damage. The proposed framework is simple to perform in practice, and the results are expected to support decisions on mitigation measures, seismic risk management, and to provide a step towards modelling the vulnerability of entire electrical substations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article presents solar energy or specifically the solar photovoltaic (PV) development outlook in Malaysia. The paper first introduces the massive potential of solar energy in the country, the key players in the solar energy development and the early solar energy policies, and programmes in the country. The most important to the PV development is the Malaysia Building Integrated Photovoltaic initiative, which is presented in this paper followed by an explanation on the Feed-in Tariff recently introduced in the country to encourage new solar PV projects. The outlook for solar PV in Malaysia is optimistic and as the uptake of solar PV increases, the unit cost is coming down rapidly. Solar PV is expected to be the most competitive Renewable Energy (RE) source, with the potential to achieve grid parity for electrical power in the country in the near future, and surpassing all other REs combined by 2050. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Billions of dollars lost to natural disasters such as hurricanes are associated with infrastructure damage and power interruptions. Most utilities have radially operated systems and the existing supporting infrastructure may not provide possibilities to restore power from other substations that are not within the disaster areas. This would lower reliability during hazards especially for customers that are downstream of affected parts of the system. A potential strategy to remedy such situations entails extending feeders from different substations in the vicinity and connecting them with affected feeder lines from other substations. This paper presents a framework to study the effectiveness of constructing additional lines with switching devices to connect feeders from different substations to improve system performance. The framework incorporates a hurricane hazard model, a topologically based system performance measure, and cost analysis. A notional power distribution system of parts of Florida is used to demonstrate the proposed framework. The results show that improvement in system performance achieved by constructing new lines depends largely on hurricane path, number of new lines constructed as well as the length of the new lines. Longer lines have a high probability of failure which leads to only marginal improvement in system performance and high construction cost. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]