Optimal placement of UPFC based on techno-economic criteria by hybrid CSA-CRO algorithm

This paper employs a hybridization of cuckoo search algorithm (CSA) and chemical reaction optimization (CRO) for determining the optimal location of a unified power flow controller (UPFC) in the standard IEEE 30-bus power system network operating under arbitrarily increased load in random load buses to simulate the unpredictability and challenges of a power system transmission network. Lévy Flight and Random Walk techniques of the CSA are used with the collision techniques of CRO in such a way that, in each iteration, a balance is maintained between exploration and exploitation. The proposed algorithm is applied to determine the UPFC location in the system based on voltage quality, active and reactive power losses and installation cost. The results obtained show that the proposed algorithm is adept in handling non-linear and non-convex optimization problems within the boundaries of various equality and inequality constraints of the system as well as that of the UPFC.