A hierarchical scheme for outage management in multi-microgrids.

This paper investigates the operation of a smart distribution system comprised of multiple microgrids during emergency conditions. It proposes a two-stage hierarchical scheme for outage management in such a system to enhance the security of supply during contingencies. This goal is achieved through sharing the available generation and storage capacities among different microgrids. In doing so, a well-organized framework is devised in order to introduce the roles and tasks of each player in operation stage of a multi-microgrids system. Based on this framework, the general optimization model that needs to be evaluated at each stage of the proposed outage management scheme is formulated. In this regard, a model predictive control (MPC)-based approach is proposed to determine the optimal scheduling policy of microgrids in the first stage. In the second stage, distribution system operator (DSO) as an independent entity coordinates the operation of different microgrids and schedules their unused generation/storage capacities for minimizing load curtailments in the whole system. This method captures the inherent uncertainties of outage duration and significantly increases the resilience of resulting schedule against prediction errors of load and renewable resources. Various features of this scheme are studied through implementation on a test system. The results verify the effectiveness of the proposed scheme in enhancing the reliability of distribution systems and demonstrate the benefits it will bring to both customers and DSOs. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]