Super-Node Approximation With Convex Hulls Relaxation for Distribution System Restoration Using ERRs

Emergency response resources (ERRs) such as mobile energy resources (MERs) and repair crews (RCs) play a pivotal role in the efficient restoration of power distribution systems after disasters. This paper presents a computationally tractable approach to utilize ERRs and post-disaster available distributed energy resources (PDA-DERs) in the restoration of disaster-impacted distribution systems. The post-disaster restoration model is proposed to co-optimize the dispatch of pre-allocated ERRs and PDA-DERs to minimize the impact of high-impact low-frequency (HILF) events on customers, i.e., energy not served for the entire restoration window. Compared with existing restoration strategies using ERRs, the proposed approach is more tractable since, in the restoration model, a super-node approximation (SNA) of distribution networks and the convex hulls relaxation (CHR) of non-linear constraints are introduced to achieve the best trade-off between computational burden and accuracy. Tests of the proposed approach on IEEE test feeders demonstrated that a combination of SNA and CHR remarkably reduces the solution time of the post-disaster restoration model.