Performance Analysis of Smart Grid Communication Network Architecture for WAMS

In recent years, wide area monitoring systems’ (WAMS) communication infrastructure plays a crucial role in the transformation to smart grid for real-time delivery of data with low latency. The advancement of WAMS has to be meticulously designed by optimizing the power systems and communication infrastructure. The performance of the communication infrastructure relies on the optimal placement of phasor measurement units (PMUs) in the power system. In the modified IEEE 14 bus system the optimal PMU placement and its backbone communication network has been designed and analyzed. With optimum number of PMUs for complete observability and minimal distance between PMUs and control centers effective monitoring is achieved for the stable operation of the grid. The minimal path between the PMUs to the control centers were obtained by Dijkstra algorithm. Finally using opnet the communication network has been analyzed using different routing protocols. The simulation results are analyzed and it shows that Multiprotocol Label Switching (MPLS) based PMU data transfer provides better performance.