A novel method for assessing the contribution of harmonic sources to voltage distortion in power systems

Abstract

This paper presents a method for evaluating the harmonic contributions of multiple harmonic sources to voltage distortion at the point of common coupling (PCC). The proposed method quantitatively represents harmonic contributions based on the equivalent voltage models of harmonic sources. The equivalent voltage models can be estimated using the recursive least square (RLS) algorithm and measured voltage and current at the PCC. The assessment of harmonic contribution heavily depends on the accuracy of equivalent model estimation. Many existing studies have assumed that the equivalent model parameters of harmonic sources are not changed. However, because harmonic source parameters and system operating conditions are not constant in real power systems, this assumption can lead large errors in harmonic contribution assessment. In this paper, we propose a new assessment method based on variable forgetting factor RLS and parameter change detection to solve the problem. The proposed method is also effective for evaluating comprehensive harmonic contributions as well as individual harmonic contributions. The case studies show that the proposed method is superior to the previous one even under parameter changing conditions.