Optimal sizing of micro grid & distributed generation units under pool electricity market

This paper presents an optimized design of micro grid in a distribution system including various sources such as photovoltaic array, fuel cell, and battery bank with multiple distributed generation (DG) units under pool electricity market. In this research, an algorithm has been developed for the optimization of the micro grid cost. The costs include capital cost, replacement cost, operation and maintenance cost, fuel cost, and production cost. Then, an objective function to minimize the total costs is presented. A genetic algorithm is employed to obtain the minimum cost of the micro grid during interconnected operation by optimizing the production of local DGs and power exchanges with the main distribution grid. The developed optimization algorithm is applied to a typical low voltage network operating under pool market policy. (C) 2011 American Institute of Physics. [doi:10.1063/1.3643268]