Distribution Network Reconfiguration and Optimal Placement of DG for Power Loss Minimization

Renewable energy sources are often mentioned as the most important factors that could affect the effects of global warming. They do not produce greenhouse gases, and they do not contribute to the accumulation of carbon dioxide. The increasing demand for electricity has led to the development of renewable energy sources. According to the latest statistics, the share of renewable energy in the power generation industry is expected to reach 85% by 2050. On the other hand, non-renewables are expected to account for 15% of the energy supply by 2050. One of the most important factors that will affect the development of renewable energy sources is the optimal placement and sizing of distributed generators (DG). Nevertheless, reconfiguration of distribution system impacts the performance and increases the losses. Hence, in this paper, optimal reconfiguration of distribution system considering optimal placement and sizing of distribution generator is proposed. Ant Lion Optimization (ALO) is used as optimal algorithm for reconfiguration, placement, and sizing of DG. The proposed method is implemented on IEEE 33-bus system considering light, moderate, and heavy loads. The effectiveness of the ALO algorithm is evaluated by comparing it with Lightning Search Algorithm (LSA). In all the cases, ALO gives the best performance.