Optimal capacitor allocations using evolutionary algorithms

This article investigates the implementation of integrated evolutionary algorithms based for solving the capacitor placement optimisation problem with reduced annual operating cost. Differential evolution and pattern search (DE-PS) are used as meta-heuristic optimisation tools to solve optimal capacitor placement problem. The objective function is formulated to enhance bus voltage profiles effectively within the specified voltage constraints and reduce line active energy losses whereas maximising the benefits of installing reactive compensators. To tackle and reduce the search space process and computational CPU time, the potential buses candidate for capacitor allocations are pre-identified. At that moment, hybrid DE-PS approach is used for the estimation of required optimum level/size of shunt capacitive compensations. The overall accuracy and reliability of the developed approach were validated and tested on several radial distribution systems with different topologies and varying sizes and complexities. Computational results obtained showed that the proposed approach is capable of producing high-quality solutions, and demonstrated its viability. The results are compared with one of previous studies using recent heuristic methods.