Special Cases during the Detection of the Hook Style Energy Theft in Overhead Low-Voltage Power Grids through HS-DET Method – Part 1: High Measurement Differences, Very Long Hook Technique and “Smart” Hooks

Athanasios Lazaropoulos

doi:10.17737/tre.2019.5.1.0082

Abstract

On the basis of [1], this pair of companion papers investigates the possibility of jamming the method of the detection of the hook style energy theft (HS-DET method) that can be used for the detection of the hook style energy theft in the overhead low-voltage (OV LV) power grids. The three main suspicious issues that have been identified in [1] are further investigated in this paper. The robustness of the HS-DET method against these issues is assessed by using percent error sum (PES) submetrics, appropriate contour plots and a new proposed robustness PES submetric against the hook style energy theft of HS-DET method. Citation: Lazaropoulos, A. G. (2019). Special Cases during the Detection of the Hook Style Energy Theft in Overhead Low-Voltage Power Grids through HS-DET Method – Part 1: High Measurement Differences, Very Long Hook Technique and “Smart” Hooks. Trends in Renewable Energy, 5, 60-89. DOI: 10.17737/tre.2019.5.1.0082

Highlights

A portfolio of Broadband over Power Lines (BPL) applications, such as Topology Identification Methodology (TIM) [2], Fault and Instability Identification Methodology (FIIM) [3], methodology to preserve power system stability [4], [5] and main line fault localization methodology (MLFLM) [6]-[8], have already been discussed
Concluding this paper and synopsizing the findings of this paper in relation with three special cases of [1], HS-DET method succeeds in detecting hook style energy thefts that may occur across the overhead low-voltage (OV LV) BPL networks even if high measurement differences occur and specialized jamming techniques, which focus on the exploitation of the matched terminations, are applied
This paper has focused on the performance of HS-DET method when the three special cases of [1] are addressed

Summary

Introduction

A portfolio of Broadband over Power Lines (BPL) applications, such as Topology Identification Methodology (TIM) [2], Fault and Instability Identification Methodology (FIIM) [3], methodology to preserve power system stability [4], [5] and main line fault localization methodology (MLFLM) [6]-[8], have already been discussed. As indicated in [1], safe decisions concerning the existence of energy theft or not can be made regardless of the examined OV LV BPL topology, the intensity of the measurement differences and the hook characteristics. With reference to [1], these three special cases are: (i) the existence / definition of the threshold of the intensity of measurement differences that may occur / be produced by external sources above which HS-DET method starts to give faulty decisions concerning the existence of hook style energy theft; (ii) the possibility of the installation of very long hooks in order to mask the hook existence during the application of HS-DET method, which is anyway a broadband technique; and (iii) the use of “smart” hooks that are matched to the characteristic impedances of the lines in order again to cover the energy theft.

Measurement Differences

Impact of the Hook Insertion

Numerical Results and Discussion

High Measurement Differences and HS-DET Method Jamming

Very Long Hooks and HS-DET Method Jamming

Conclusions