Polyhedral Restrictions of Feasibility Regions in Optimal Power Flow for Distribution Networks

The optimal power flow (OPF) problem is one of the most fundamental problems in power system operations. The nonlinear ac power flow equations that model different physical laws (together with operational constraints) lay the foundation for the feasibility region of the OPF problem. While significant research has focused on convex relaxations, which are approaches to solve an OPF problem by enlarging the true feasibility region, the opposite approach of convex restrictions offers valuable insights as well. Convex restrictions, including polyhedral restrictions, reduce the true feasible region to a convex region, ensuring that it contains only feasible points. In this work, we develop a sequential optimization method that offers a scalable way to obtain (bounds on) solutions to OPF problems for distribution networks. To do so, we first develop sufficient conditions for the existence of feasible power flow solutions in the neighborhood of a specific (feasible) operating point in distribution networks; second, based on these conditions, we construct a polyhedral restriction of the feasibility region. Our numerical results demonstrate the efficacy of the sequential optimization method as an alternative to existing approaches to obtain (bounds on) solutions to OPF problems for distribution networks. By construction, the optimization problems within the defined restrictions can be solved in polynomial time and are guaranteed to have feasible solutions.