FACTS location and tuning using the cross-entropy method

FACTS location and tuning using the cross entropy approach is presented in this paper. The nontraditional optimization technique based on simulation is used to optimize the various process parameters involved in the introduction of FACTS devices in a power system. The various parameters taken into consideration were the location of the devices and their rated value. The simulation was performed on a 30-bus power system with various types of FACTS controllers, modeled for steady state studies. The optimization results are compared to the solution given by sensitivities computation method. This comparison confirms the efficiency of the proposed method, which makes it promising for solving combinatorial problems of FACTS device location in large scale power systems.