Restoration strategy in a self-healing distribution network with DG and flexible loads

This paper develops an algorithm for energy management of a distribution network considering a restorative plan for most possible devastating contingencies in the network. The distribution network is self-healing and consists of smart meters and remotely controlled automated switches. Distributed energy resources and flexible loads provide the redundant capacity for restoration. Under normal operating conditions, the objective of the energy management system is to minimize the generation cost, while under emergency conditions, the objective is to minimize the amount of shed load, giving priority to critical loads. The energy management problem forms a non-linear programming problem. Simulation results verify the effectiveness of the proposed algorithm in energy management and restoration of a distribution network.