Design of harmonic filters using combined feasible direction method and differential evolution

This paper presents an approach of combined feasible direction method and differential evolution (FDM+DE) to the optimal planning of large-scale passive harmonic filters. The harmonic amplification problems can be avoided for a plant under abundant harmonic current sources. The design is to minimize the total demand distortion of harmonic currents and total harmonic distortion of load bus voltages. Filters loss, reactive power compensation, and constraints of individual harmonics can be considered in the design procedures. The searching for an optimal solution has been applied to the harmonic problems in a chemical plant, where three 6-pulse rectifiers are used. Three design schemes are compared to demonstrate the performance of the proposed method. Finally, expectations and standard deviations are used to reveal the effects of filter parameter detuning, loading uncertainty, and changing of system impedance.