A simple distribution reconfiguration algorithm for loss minimization

Abstract

This paper presents a ranking method to solve the distribution feeder reconfiguration problem for loss reduction. A more efficient network configuration can be obtained to reduce loss by using this proposed algorithm. According to the bus voltages, a "boundary set" was defined in this paper. Through the ranking index for each boundary set in each closed loop, the on-off switch states can be determined. Meshed networks were considered instead of the radial topology by closing all the tie switches. By considering only the smallest ranking index in the boundary sets, this algorithm can reduce the number of feasible states drastically. Tests to many practical networks show that the desired switching operations can be reached in a very efficient manner by using this algorithm.