DC (Optimal) Power Flow-Based Models for Simulation and Mitigation of Overload Cascading Failures

Overload cascading failures in a power system can evolve into a blackout if no timely and effective measures are taken when the failures are still local events. In this paper, two overload cascading failure models are proposed based on DC power flow (DCPF) and DC optimal power flow (DCOPF). The DCPF-based model uses the equal incremental cost method as the power dispatch strategy to minimize the total generation cost. The DCOPF-based model minimizes the total operation cost, which consists of generation and load shedding costs, with system security constraints. The two models are applied to simulate a cascading process, respectively, in the IEEE 39-bus New England system. Results show that the DCOPF-based model has a better performance than the DCPF-based model in both the topological integrity and the economic aspect, and the DCOPF-based model can help mitigate the severity of overload cascading failures and, therefore, help prevent power systems from blackout.