TABLE OF CONTENTS A key issue in the operation of power system plant is deriving maximum financial benefit while staying within technical, contractual and regulatory constraints. Moreover, the capital investment required for much power system plant necessitates high levels of plant availability to make a reasonable rate-of-return. Thus, the minimisation of operational costs resulting from unplanned plant outages, unnecessary maintenance and under-utilisation of plant capabilities has become a core objective of power system plant operation.
Rationalisation of power system control functions has resulted in the use of centralised control rooms from which large and complex power systems are operated. Extensive measurement, monitoring and control systems have been developed which provide operators with data from which power system plant behaviour can be evaluated. However, in the event of a serious operational incident, significant amounts of data are generated. Under such circumstances it has been found that operators are inhibited in assessing the situation, and hence the effectiveness of the subsequent operational response can be reduced. The role of knowledge based systems (KBSs) in condition monitoring is to support operational decision making through the provision of timely and focused information.
The demand for enhanced information has extended beyond the immediate operational concerns of the control room. The increasing use of computer-based data monitoring, storage and communications systems in power utilities permits the application of KBS based decision support tools across a range of engineering functions e.g. performance analysis, maintenance planning. Each additional user group uses the monitored...
