A reliability-centered maintenance process for equipment in distribution grids based on extended virtual age model

Abstract

In modern distribution grids, appropriate maintenance plans are necessary to ensure the reliability of power supply. In this context, this paper introduces a reliability-centered maintenance approach for the key equipment in distribution grids based on an extended virtual age model. Compared with existing reliability modeling techniques, the proposed extended virtual age model is capable of estimating the individual effects of various maintenance actions in mitigating the failure risks of multi-component equipment, which is designed for the assessment of equipment reliability at a high resolution. On this basis, a close-loop reliability-centered maintenance workflow is established to plan and prioritize maintenance actions, whose performance is verified through a numerical case study of power transformers in distribution grids. The test results showcase the effectiveness of the proposed method in extending the lifetime of equipment with cost-effective maintenance actions, highlighting the practical applicability of this approach.