An efficient topology processor for distribution systems

In modern distribution control centers, the topology processor plays a critical role in a number of functions, including the state estimation, power flow, network reconfiguration, etc. Since the distribution system has a very large and complicate configuration, which is subject to frequent changes due to maintenance and emergency operation, it is desirable to develop an efficient topology processor for distribution systems. This paper presents an efficient topology processor. Based on a well-defined data structure, the proposed algorithm can deal with topology changes quite quickly using only local updating procedure to track the network connectivity. The test results of applying this topology processor to a real world Chinese distribution system with more than 8000 nodes indicate the efficiency of the proposed method.