Towards Modal Integration of Overhead and Underground Low-Voltage and Medium-Voltage Power Line Communication Channels in the Smart Grid Landscape: Model Expansion, Broadband Signal Transmission Characteristics, and Statistical Performance Metrics (Invited Paper)

Abstract

The established statistical analysis, already used to treat overhead transmission power grid networks, is now implemented to examine the factors influencing modal transmission characteristics and modal statistical performance metrics of overhead and underground low-voltage/broadband over power lines (LV/BPL) and medium-voltage/broadband over power lines (MV/BPL) channels associated with power distribution in smart grid (SG) networks. The novelty of this paper is threefold. First, a refined multidimensional chain scattering matrix (TM2) method suitable for overhead and underground LV/BPL and MV/BPL modal channels is evaluated against other relative theoretical and experimental proven models. Second, applying TM2 method, the end-to-end modal channel attenuation of various LV/BPL and MV/BPL multiconductor transmission line (MTL) configurations is determined. The LV/BPL and MV/BPL transmission channels are investigated with regard to their spectral behavior and their end-to-end modal channel attenuation. It is found that the above features depend drastically on the frequency, the type of power grid, the mode considered, the MTL configuration, the physical properties of the cables used, the end-to-end distance, and the number, the electrical length, and the terminations of the branches encountered along the end-to-end BPL signal propagation. Third, the statistical properties of various overhead and underground LV/BPL and MV/BPL modal channels are investigated revealing the correlation between end-to-end modal channel attenuation and modal root-mean-square delay spread (RMS-DS). Already verified in the case of overhead high-voltage (HV) BPL systems, this fundamental property of several wireline systems is also modally validated against relevant sets of field measurements, numerical results, and recently proposed statistical channel models for various overhead and underground LV/BPL and MV/BPL channels. Based on this common inherent attribute of either transmission or distribution BPL networks, new unified regression trend line is proposed giving a further boost towards BPL system intraoperability. A consequence of this paper is that it aids in gaining a better understanding of the range and coverage that BPL solutions can achieve; a preliminary step toward the system symbiosis between BPL systems and other broadband technologies in an SG environment.