English

Generating synthetic power grids using exponential random graphs models

Systems and Control 2023-10-31 v1 Systems and Control Probability Statistics Theory Data Analysis, Statistics and Probability Applications Statistics Theory

Abstract

Synthetic power grids enable secure, real-world energy system simulations and are crucial for algorithm testing, resilience assessment, and policy formulation. We propose a novel method for the generation of synthetic transmission power grids using Exponential Random Graph (ERG) models. Our two main contributions are: (1) the formulation of an ERG model tailored specifically for capturing the topological nuances of power grids, and (2) a general procedure for estimating the parameters of such a model conditioned on working with connected graphs. From a modeling perspective, we identify the edge counts per bus type and kk-triangles as crucial topological characteristics for synthetic power grid generation. From a technical perspective, we develop a rigorous methodology to estimate the parameters of an ERG constrained to the space of connected graphs. The proposed model is flexible, easy to implement, and successfully captures the desired topological properties of power grids.

Keywords

Cite

@article{arxiv.2310.19662,
  title  = {Generating synthetic power grids using exponential random graphs models},
  author = {Francesco Giacomarra and Gianmarco Bet and Alessandro Zocca},
  journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:2310.19662},
  year   = {2023}
}
R2 v1 2026-06-28T13:06:05.575Z