Economical Installation of Capacitor Banks in Optimal Places of Distribution Feeders Considering Load Fluctuations

Distribution networks often suffer from substantial energy losses, particularly in radial feeders. These losses, primarily in the form of wasted heat, far exceed those experienced in the transmission system. Such power dissipation not only drives up operating costs but also degrades the quality and quantity of delivered electricity. One effective strategy to curtail these losses is the optimal placement of shunt capacitors. By compensating for a portion of the reactive power demanded by loads, these capacitors reduce the magnitude of current flowing through feeders and subsequently diminish distribution losses. However, the electricity demand within these networks fluctuates over time, significantly influencing the power distributed through the feeders. These load variations play a crucial role in determining energy losses, reactive power injections, and system's total cost. The dynamic nature of load variability can necessitate adjustments to the optimal locations for capacitor placement. However, taking into account the entire load variations can substantially increases the complexity and computational time required for solving the capacitor placement problem, particularly in large distribution systems. In light of these challenges, current study introduces a highly effective formulation for optimal capacitor placement to minimize energy losses and capacitor installation costs in distribution systems with time-varying loads. The numerical analysis of the results underscores the effectiveness of our proposed framework in achieving optimal capacitor bank places in radial distribution feeders operating under variable load conditions.