Diversity Enhanced Particle Swarm Optimization based Optimal Reactive Power Dispatch

Reactive Power Dispatch (RPD) problem is a complex nonlinear problem involving integer, discrete and continuous types of control variables. This paper proposes a novel algorithm for solving the RPD problem using Diversity Enhanced Particle Swarm Optimization (DEPSO) technique. The proposed method offers an effective technique for solving Mixed Integer Discrete Continuous (MIDC) problems; hence suitable for the RPD problem. The effectiveness of the proposed method is reflected on the rounding off of control variables to the nearest integer or nearest available discrete values. With the implementation of the solution obtained in real time applications, the system becomes less prone to voltage instability. In this paper, DEPSO is applied to standard IEEE 30-bus test system. The results obtained are compared with those of basic PSO method.