Power Flow on a Transmission Line

Let us examine the factors influencing the

transfer of active and reactive power between
two buses r and s connected by a transmission
line represented by an inductive reactance as
shown.

Es δ° I Er 0°
s jX r
The corresponding phasor diagram is

Es
δ jXI
θ Er
I

where δ = load angle

θ = power factor angle
The complex power at bus s
Ss = Ps+jQs = EsI* = Es[(Es-Er)/jX]*
Ps+jQs = Es δ° [(Es δ°- Er 0°)/jX]*
= Es δ° [(Es -δ°- Er 0°)/-jX]
= (Es² - EsEr δ°)/-jX
= (Es² - EsEr cos δ°- jEsEr sinδ°)/-jX
= (jEs² - jEsEr cos δ°+ EsEr sinδ°)/X
Ps+jQs = (EsEr sinδ°)/X + j(Es² - EsEr cos δ°)/X
Hence,
Ps = (EsEr sinδ°)/X and Qs = (Es² - EsEr cos δ°)/X
Let us examine the dependence of active and
reactive power transfer considering separately
the effects of differences in voltage magni-
tudes and angles.
a)We look first at the condition with δ=0°.
Ps = (EsEr sin0°)/X = 0
Qs = (Es² - EsEr cos 0°)/X = (Es² - EsEr)/X
Qs = Es(Es-Er)/X
The active power transfer is zero when Es and Er
are in phase. With Es>Er, Qs is positive, that is
reactive power is transferred from bus s to r.
With Es<Er, Qs is negative, indicating that reac-
tive power flows from bus r to bus s.
b) We next consider the condition with Es=Er=E,
but with δ≠0°. We have Ps = (E²/X) sinδ°).
With δ positive, Ps is positive, that is, active
power flows from bus s to bus r. With δ nega-
tive, the direction of active power flow rever-
ses. We see that the active power transferred
is a function of voltage magnitudes and δ.
However, for satisfactory operation of the
power system, the voltage magnitude at any
bus can’t deviate significantly from the nominal
value (± 5% for normal condition & ± 10% for
emergency condition to protect the system
components from damage). Therefore, control
of active power transfer is achieved primarily
through variation in load angle δ.
From the above analysis, we have the following
conclusions:
• Active power transfer depends mainly on the
angle by which one bus voltage leads the other
bus voltage.
• Reactive power transfer depends mainly on
voltage magnitudes. It is transmitted from the
side with higher voltage magnitude to the side
with lower voltage magnitude.
• Reactive power can’t be transmitted over long
distances since it would require a large voltage
gradient to do so.
• An increase in reactive power transfer cause an
increase in active as well as reactive power
losses (S=P+jQ=VI*, if Q is increased S will also
increase which means that I is increased (P=I²R
and Q=I²X).
Note: There is only one frequency in a power
system, that is why it is called system fre-
quency. It is the same in all parts of a power
system or grid no matter how big the system.
However, bus voltage in different parts of a
power system differ in magnitude. That is why
you can’t say system voltage but rather system
voltages. Over/under voltage in a power grid is
a localized problem.
f=60 hz if Pg=Pd+PLOSS V

V=nominal if Qg=Qd+QLOSS
 Power Flow Solution
Gauss-Seidel Method
Also known as the method of successive
displacement, it is one of the most common
techniques used for the iterative solution of
nonlinear algebraic equations. To explain the
technique, consider the solution of the
nonlinear equation given by
f(x)=0
The above function is rearranged & written as
x = g(x)
If x⁽ⁿ⁾ is an initial estimate of the variables x, the
following iterative sequence is formed
x⁽ⁿ⁺¹⁾ = g[x⁽ⁿ⁾]
A solution is obtained when the difference bet-
ween the absolute of the successive iteration is
less than specified accuracy, that is
x⁽ⁿ⁺¹⁾ - x⁽ⁿ⁾ ≤ ε
where ε is the desired accuracy.
For a system of n equations in n variables
f1 ( x1, x2, … , xn ) = c1
f2 ( x1, x2, … , xn ) = c2
…………………………..
fn ( x1, x2, … , xn ) = cn

Solving for one variable from each equation,

the above functions are rearranged and
written as
 x1 = c1 + g1( x1, x2, … , xn )
x2 = c2 + g2( x1, x2, … , xn )
.………………………………….
xn = cn + gn( x1, x2, … , xn )

The iteration procedure is initiated by assuming

an approximate solution for each of the
independent variables [ x1(0), x2(0),…, xn(0) ].
Find the root of the equation f(x) = x3 – 6x2 + 9x – 4 = 0 with a
desired accuracy ε = 0.00001.
Solution:

We write the above equation into the g(x) form.

9x = -x3 + 6x2 + 4
x = g(x) = - x3/9 + 6x2/9 + 4/9

Starting with an initial guess of x[0] = 2, we perform the

following iterations
X[1] = g(x[0] = 2) = - (2)3/9 + 6(2)2/9 + 4/9 = 2.2222
X[2] = g(x[1] = 2.2222) = - (2.2222)3/9 + 6(2.2222)2/9 + 4/9
= 2.5173
X[3] = g(x[2] = 2.5173) = - (2.5173)3/9 + 6(2.5173)2/9 + 4/9
= 2.8966

X[4] = 3.3376 ε = I 3.3376 – 2.8966 I = 0.4400

X[5] = 3.7398 ε = I 3.7398 – 3.3376 I = 0.4000
X[6] = 3.9568 ε = I 3.9568 – 3.7398 I = 0.2200
X[7] = 3.9988 ε = I 3.9988 – 3.9568 I = 0.0400
X[8] = 4.0000 ε = I 4.0000 – 3.9988 I = 0.0012
X[9] = 4.0000 ε = I 4.0000 – 4.0000 I = 0.0000
• Power Flow Solution by Gauss-Seidel Method
The complexity of obtaining a formal solution
for power flow in a power system arises
because of the differences in the type of data
specified for the different kind of buses.
Although the formulation of sufficient equa-
tions to match the number of unknown state
variables is not difficult, as we have seen, the
closed form of solution is not practical. Digital
solutions of the power flow problems follow an
iterative process by assigning estimated values
to the unknown bus voltages & by calculating a
new value for each bus voltage from the esti-
mated values at the other buses & the real &
reactive power specified. The equation
1  Pi  jQi n 
Vi     yijVj 
Yii  Vi * j 1 
j ≠ i
can be written to have an iterative sequence to
solve for Vi as

1 Pi  jQi
sch sch n 
Vi ( k 1)
    yijVj 
(k )

Yii  Vi *(k ) j≠i

j 1 
where yij shown in lower case letters is the
actual admittance in per unit. Pisch & Qisch are
the net real and reactive powers expressed in
per unit. In writing the KCL current entering
bus i was assumed positive. Thus, for buses
where real & reactive powers are injected into
the bus, such as generator buses, Pisch & Qisch
have positive values. For load buses where
real & reactive powers are flowing away from
the bus, Pisch & Qisch have negative values.
An initial voltage estimate of 1 0° for unknown
bus voltages is satisfactory, and the converged
solution correlates with the actual operating
states. The initialization of 1 0° for voltage in all
buses is called flat start because of the uniform
voltage profile assumed.

Sample Problem. Page 213, H. Saadat

Acceleration Factor, α (1.0<α<2.0)
In some cases, an acceleration factor can be
used to improved the rate of convergence. If
α>1 is the acceleration factor , the accelera-
tion process is achieved by using a suitably
chosen value of α to modify the voltages, thus
Vi(acc) = Vi(old) + α[Vi(new) - Vi(old)]
For small system 1.15<α<1.3 is mostly suitable.

Assignment: Solve the previous sample problem

using α=1.15
Power Flow Diagram
1.05 0° 199.5 (8.5) 191.0 0.98 -3.5°
84.0 (17.0) 67.0
409.5 256.6

189.0 110.2
210.0 (5) (0.8) 65.6
1 2
105.0 (15) (1.6) 43.2

90.0 205 66.4 44.8

3
1.00 -2.8°
138.6 45.2
Checking:
Real power balance
Pg = Pd + Ploss
409.5=(256.6+138.6)+(8.5+5+0.8)
Reactive power balance
Qg = Qd + Qloss
189.0=(110.2+45.2)+(17+15+1.6)

Emphasize difference between yij & Yij in the in the

Vi equation.