Analysis of clustering techniques on load profiles for electrical distribution

The classification of electrical load profiles has become increasingly important as a driver for distribution companies in understanding substation data. The daily load profile can often give great insight into the types of customers connected to the substation and can assist with developing a long-term forecast. The literature in this area often uses data mining and clustering techniques to determine a load diagram representative for a subset of customers or substations. The type of technique used can often lead to representative load diagrams of unique shapes with differing numbers of customers belonging to each group. This paper analyses clustering techniques on representative load diagrams for primary substations at the distribution level. In particular, this paper will analyse clustering techniques in terms of their performance and effect on load profile groupings. The results show that K-means clustering showed the best performance in generating unique, well-populated cluster groups. This gives a greater understanding of the divisions between substations which can be used for future forecasting.