A visual learning tool for presentation of the economic dispatch topic

Computer modeling and simulation has emerged as one of the most cost effective ways for providing supplements to course lectures in diverse areas of engineering. Power systems engineering has a long history of this and has seen a range of power systems programs for commercial and educational applications. In educational contexts the simulation tool brings more clarity to concepts that are challenging for students, as well as enabling the instructor to use class instruction time more efficiently. This paper presents a simulation tool designed to enable students gain better insight into the numerical solution of the classical Economic Dispatch Problem (EDP). The MATLAB® -based program visually guides the user through the computational process involved in iteratively computing the economic dispatch solution for a 9-bus power system. This simulation program serves as a tool for managing classroom time and for presenting EDP with clarity, without getting bogged down with details of the analysis.