On the minimal set of controllers and sensors for linear power flow

Abstract

We consider a linear power flow model with interval-bounded nodal power injections and limited line power flows. We determine the minimal number of power injections to control based on a minimal set of measurements, such that the overall system is feasible for all assignments of the non-controlled power injections. For the important case where the possible measurements are the nodal power injections, we show that the problem can be solved efficiently as a mixed-integer linear program (MILP). When also line power flows are considered as potential measurements, we derive an iterative, greedy algorithm that provides a feasible, but potentially conservative solution. We apply the developed algorithms to both a simple microgrid and a modified version of the IEEE 118 bus test power system. We show that in both cases a sparse solution in terms of the number of required controllers and measurements can be obtained. Moreover, the number of required measurements can be reduced significantly if line flow measurements are considered additionally to nodal power injections.