Protection and stability assessment in future distribution networks using PMUs

Phasor Measurement Units (PMUs) have the potential to play an essential role in power system monitoring and operation in the future, particularly for power systems incorporating increasing amounts of distributed generation (DG) and possibly systems operating in islanded mode in the future [1]. Their ability to directly measure and provide the voltage and current phasors at the PMU location offers numerous possibilities for ascertaining information relating to the state and health of the power system. Typical applications of PMUs in distribution networks include: state estimation, dynamic stability supervision, instability prediction and control, protection and fault location, and power quality monitoring [2]. (6 pages)