Chapter 8 - Optimal Conductor Selection of Radial Distribution Feeders: An Overview and New Application Using Grasshopper Optimization Algorithm

Abstract

The increasing cost of electricity generation and the limitations of fossil fuel resources made it necessary to optimize the design and operation of distribution systems to guarantee the lowest possible technical and nontechnical electric losses. In this regard, optimal conductor selection can reduce the electrical power loss, while enhancing the voltage profile in a cost-effective manner. In this chapter, a comprehensive overview of the optimal conductor selection problem is presented. Further, a novel approach is proposed to solve the optimal conductor selection problem of radial distribution networks using a recent meta-heuristic algorithm, known as grasshopper optimization (GO) algorithm. A recent conductors’ library is introduced based on actual manufacturer data that includes 29 different types of conductors. The objective function is to minimize the combined annual cost of energy loss and investment cost of the conductors. The considered constraints are the bus voltage limits and the conductors’ current carrying capacities. The proposed approach is applied to two different systems; the first one is a small-scale 26-bus system and the second is a large-scale 85-bus system. The obtained results are compared with other results available in the literature to show the effectiveness of the proposed algorithm in reducing the network losses and maximizing overall savings, while maintaining the specified constraints with high annual load growth scenarios.