Generic Existence of Unique Lagrange Multipliers in AC Optimal Power Flow

Solutions to nonlinear, nonconvex optimization problems can fail to satisfy the KKT optimality conditions even when they are optimal. This is due to the fact that unless constraint qualifications (CQ) are satisfied, Lagrange multipliers may fail to exist. Even if the KKT conditions are applicable, the multipliers may not be unique. These possibilities also affect AC optimal power flow (OPF) problems which are routinely solved in power systems planning, scheduling and operations. The complex structure -- in particular the presence of the nonlinear power flow equations which naturally exhibit a structural degeneracy -- make any attempt to establish CQs for the entire class of problems very challenging. In this paper, we resort to tools from differential topology to show that for AC OPF problems in various contexts the linear independence constraint qualification is satisfied almost certainly, thus effectively obviating the usual assumption on CQs. Consequently, for any local optimizer there generically exists a unique set of multipliers that satisfy the KKT conditions.

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