Large-scale var optimization and planning by tabu search

A generalization on the tabu search method, recently developed for combinatorial optimization problems, is described in this paper. The novel version of the tabu search method can be used to solve a larger class of combinatorial optimization problems. Application of this method to var optimization and planning, which is formulated as a nonlinear large-scale mixed integer programming problem with non-differentiable objective function, is demonstrated. Judicious engineering judgment which is essential for a successful application of the proposed tabu search is developed. Simulation results of a real-world power system are included. A simulation comparison is done between the proposed method and the simulated annealing method, which is currently one of the most popular method for combinatorial optimization problem.