A particle swarm optimization for reactive power and voltage control in electric power systems

This paper presents a particle swarm optimization (PSO) for reactive power and voltage control (Volt/Var Control: VVC) in electric power systems considering voltage security. VVC can be formulated as a mixed-integer nonlinear optimization problem (MINLP). The proposed method expands the original PSO to handle a MINLP and determines an on-line VVC strategy with continuous and discrete control variables such as automatic voltage regulator (AVR) operating values of generators, tap positions of on-load tap changer (OLTC) of transformers, and the number of reactive power compensation equipment. The method considers voltage security using a continuation power flow (CPFLOW) and contingency analysis technique. The feasibility of the proposed method is demonstrated and compared with reactive tabu search (RTS) and the enumeration method on practical electric power system models with promising results.