Network Reconfiguration for Power Loss Reduction on Distribution feeder Using Particle Swarm Optimisation: Case study of 11kv feeder in Ilorin, Nigeria

Abstract

The distribution system is the largest segment of the electrical power system and the final stage in delivering electricity to consumers. It experiences power losses which could be technical or non-technical due to its radial configuration and connected components. Technical losses occur as energy dissipation in the form of heat in the system components, which is unavoidable. It affects the efficiency of the system and increases operational costs. Therefore, the reduction is essential for adequate power supply and improvement in utility revenue generation. This study focuses on reducing power losses on 11 kV Taiwo distribution feeder in Ilorin using the Network reconfiguration approach. The feeder was modelled, and its power losses were evaluated based on the Backward Forward Sweep method suitable for the radial network. The reconfigured network was optimised using the Particle Swarm Optimisation technique. The study shows that the values of feeder real power losses before and after reconfiguration are 176.883 kW and 121.972 kW, respectively.Further improvement was, however, achieved when PSO was used for the reconfiguration, as the power loss value stands at 98.465 kW. This is 44.33 % reduction compared to the initial power loss value and 19.273 % after reconfiguration. Furthermore, the values of the reactive power losses before and after reconfiguration are 9.474 kVar and 6.527 kVar, respectively, amounting to a 31.11 % reduction. However, PSO reduces the value to 3.101 kVar, which is 67.27 % of the initial value. Thus, radial distribution network reconfiguration using PSO has proven to be a robust method for reducing power loss in the distribution network.