A graph trace based reliability analysis of electric power systems with time-varying loads and dependent failures

A new approach to the prediction of the reliability of electrical systems is presented. In this approach a graph trace based reliability analysis of electric transmission and/or distribution systems is used. The systems are modeled using containers with iterators, where the iterators manage graph edges and are used to process through the topology of the graph. The analysis provides a means of computationally handling dependent failure rates and cascading failures. The effects of weather, time-varying loads, equipment age, wetness, and dependent failures associated with repaired components are considered. A sequential Monte Carlo simulation is used to evaluate the reliability changes for different system configurations, including distributed generation and transmission lines. Historical weather records and loading are used to update the component failure rates on-the-fly. Simulation results are compared against historical reliability field measurements.