Smart-PGSim: Using Neural Network to Accelerate AC-OPF Power Grid Simulation

The optimal power flow (OPF) problem is one of the most important optimization problems for the operation of the power grid. It calculates the optimum scheduling of the committed generation units. In this paper, we develop a neural network approach to the problem of accelerating the current optimal power flow (AC-OPF) by generating an intelligent initial solution. The high quality of the initial solution and guidance of other outputs generated by the neural network enables faster convergence to the solution without losing optimality of final solution as computed by traditional methods. Smart-PGSim generates a novel multitask-learning neural network model to accelerate the AC-OPF simulation. Smart-PGSim also imposes the physical constraints of the simulation on the neural network automatically. Smart-PGSim brings an average of 49.2% performance improvement (up to 91%), computed over 10,000 problem simulations, with respect to the original AC-OPF implementation, without losing the optimality of the final solution

Integrating Scientific Knowledge with Machine Learning for Engineering and Environmental Systems

There is a growing consensus that solutions to complex science and engineering problems require novel methodologies that are able to integrate traditional physics-based modeling approaches with state-of-the-art machine learning (ML) techniques. This paper provides a structured overview of such techniques. Application-centric objective areas for which these approaches have been applied are summarized, and then classes of methodologies used to construct physics-guided ML models and hybrid physics-ML frameworks are described. We then provide a taxonomy of these existing techniques, which uncovers knowledge gaps and potential crossovers of methods between disciplines that can serve as ideas for future research.Comment: 35 pages, 4 figures, submitted to ACM Computing Survey