Network Partition-Based Zonal Voltage Control for Distribution Networks With Distributed PV Systems

As the penetration level of distributed photovoltaic (PV) systems keeps increasing in distribution networks, overvoltage due to reverse power flow is an urgent issue to be addressed. This paper proposes a voltage regulation method by utilizing the voltage control capability of PV inverters. A novel network partition approach based on a community detection algorithm is presented to realize zonal voltage control in a shorter control response time using the minimum amount of reactive power compensation and active power curtailment. An improved modularity index that considers local reactive power balance is introduced to partition a distribution network into several clusters/communities with PVs based on the node voltage sensitivity analysis. An optimal reactive and active power control strategy is proposed for voltage control in each cluster. The voltage management of the overall system can he achieved by controlling each cluster separately. The proposed approach is applied to the voltage control of a practical 10 kV, 37-node feeder. Case studies on the real distribution network and a modified IEEE 123-node system are carried out to verify the feasibility and effectiveness of the proposed method.