Hybrid MAS Fault Location, Isolation, and Restoration for Smart Distribution System with Microgrids

A hybrid Multi Agent System (MAS) Fault Location, Isolation, and Restoration (FLIR) solution has been proposed in this paper that uses both centralized and decentralized concepts to accomplish FLIR on distribution feeders with Microgrids. The main objective of the MAS is to locate and isolate the fault and then automatically reenergize un-faulted portions of feeders while maintaining system constraints like voltage limits and loading levels. The proposed MAS architecture exploits key features of agent technology where the fault detection is accomplished autonomously by agents and fault restoration is achieved by coordinated agent communications. The proposed MAS concept is designed to be implemented on few circuits in the territory of local utility, Mon Power, under the efforts of a Department of Energy (DOE) demonstration project named West Virginia Super Circuit (WVSC). The real distribution network is simulated in CYMDIST and Matlab/Simpower whereas the MAS is modeled using Matlab S-functions.