1160
3, August 1997
Capacitor Placement Replacement and Control in Large-scale
Distribution Systems by a GA-Based Two-Stage Algorithm
Karen Nan Miu and Hsiao-Dong Chian43
School of Electrical Engineering
Cornel1 University
Ithaca, NY 14853
Abstract - This paper presents a two-stage algorithm tai-
lored for capacitor placement, replacement and control of
general, large-scale, unbalanced distribution systems. The
first stage of the proposed algorithm consists of a GA fol-
lowed by the second stage which consists of a sensitivity-
based heuristic method tailored for the capacitor placement,
replacement and control problem. The two-stage algorithm
is designed to take advantage of the merits of each tech-
nique. The GA is employed to find neighborhoods of high
quality solutions and to provide a good initial guess for the
sensitivity-based heuristic. The heuristic uses the sensitiv-
ity of real power loss to reactive power to quickly and lo-
cally improve upon the solution provided by the GA with
less computation than by allowing the GA to continue. The
two-stage algorithm was implemented in the C programming
language and tested for a 292 bus unbalanced system with
single, two and three-phase branches and grounded and un-
grounded portions of the network with promising results.
1. INTRODUCTION
Capacitors are widely installed in distribution systems for
reactive power compensation for power and energy loss re-
duction and voltage regulation. The extent of these benefits
greatly depends on how the capacitors were placed on the
system and the control scheme designed for them. The gen-
eral capacitor placement problem consists of determining the
locations, types and sizes of new and existing capacitors and
their control schemes, such that an objective function is min-
imized while the load and operational constraints at different
load levels are satisfied.
Heuristic algorithms for the capacitor placement problems
are fast, but they suffer from the inability to escape local
optimal solutions. The genetic algorithm approach to ca-
pacitor placements in distribution systems has been investi-
gated by many researchers, including [5]-[7]. Their results
demonstrated the viability of GAS for the capacitor place-
ment problem; however, balanced tests cases were used and
capacitor replacement was not considered. The traditional
GA-based algorithm, however, may suffer from the problems
of convergence and computational requirements. Especially
with the increase in system size and expansion of the capaci-
tor placements, computational efforts required by traditional
GA-based algorithms becomes enormous.
96 SM 489-5 PWRS A paper recommended and approved by the
IEEE Power System Engineering Committee of the IEEE Power
Engineering Society for presentation at the 1996 IEEWPES Summer
Meeting, July 28 - August 1, 1996, in Denver, Colorado. Manuscript
submitted January 3, 1996, made available for printing April 23, 1996.
0885-8950/97/$10.00
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IEEE Transactions on Power Systems, Vol. 12, No.
Gary Darling
Distribution System Planning
NYSE&G Corporation
Binghamton, NY 13902
To this end, this paper presents a two-stage GA-based
algorithm to solve the capacitor placement, replacement and
control problem. The algorithm has the following properties:
e it attains a higher quality solution than heuristic meth-
ods.
it attains a higher quality solution than a GA alone.
* it arrives at the high quality solution in a shorter
amount of time than required by a GA alone
e it solves the capacitor placement, replacement and con-
trol problem simultaneously.
it is applicable to large-scale unbalanced distribution
systems with comprehensive modelling of diverse dis-
tribution components.
e it demonstrates the need and effectiveness for a tai-
lored optimization technique t o improve upon the gen-
eral combinatorial optimization focus of GAS.
e it demonstrates the potential of a two-stage algorithm.
2 . PROBLEM STATEMENT
Capacitor placement, replacement and control can be com-
bined into a general capacitor placement problem and can
be formulated as a constrained optimization problem [9].
min f(x,U )
st. F ( o ,U ) = 0
G ( ~ , uI ) O
where f(z, U ) is the cost function or objective function. The
state of the distribution system is represented by the state
variable x and the capacitor placement scheme is represented
by the variable U . The desire is t o minimize the objec-
tive function subject to equality constraints, F ( x ,U ) , and
inequality constraints, G(z, U ) .
2.1. O b j e c t i v e Function
The objective for the general capacitor placement problem
in distribution systems is to minimize the total cost of the
selected placement scheme. The total cost consists of the
cost of placements and the cost of real power loss and can
be expressed as follows:
min f ( z ,uneW,
uTep) = Cost of placements
+ Cost of real power loss (1)
where
i = l p=a
0 1996 IEEE
 1161

and
nbus= # of buses,
cW’P
, ~ P , P=
p = phase and n l o a d = # of load levels,
= the type and size of new capacitors at bus i, phase p ,
the type and size of replaced caps. at bus i , phase p ,
z
C n e v ( U : e w 7 P ) = the total cost of the new capacitor,
Crep(uSe*!P)= the cost of replacement,
Unew,l = the new capacitor. schemes vector at load level I ,
urep>l= the replaced cap. schemes vector a t load level 1,
PL = the total system loss at load level 1,
!Z’l = the time duration, in hours, of load level I ,
K = the cost of each kWh lost, in $/kWh.
The total system loss is the sum of the loss calculated across
each component of the distribution system and is a function
of the capacitor placements and control settings.
2.2. Equality Constraints
General distribution networks contain various types of sys-
tem components such as single, double and three-phase loads
and transformers with different winding connections, such as
grounded Wye - grounded Wye, grounded Wye - Delta, etc.
Therefore, three-phase power flow equations are used in this
paper to accurately represent the equality constraints of re-
alistic distribution networks.
2.3. Inequality Constraints
The inequality constraints for optimal capacitor placement
are the quality of service considerations and equipment limi-
tations utility companies experience. Two such examples are
the voltage magnitude and current flow ratings.
Voltage Constraints
Voltage magnitude, IV;” 1, constraints are expressed as
IVAI Ilvpl I IVrnazI
for all buses k = 1,...,nbuLS, at each existing phase p and
all load levels, 1 = 1,..., n l o a d . lVmtn/ and lVrnaz[ are the
specified acceptable voltage magnitude limits.
Current Rating
Line flow, I:,’, constraints are expressed as
lL%nl i lI:vil Il&nazl
for all buses k = 1,...,nbus,over each existing phase p current
and all load levels, 1 = 1,...,n l o a d . IIrnmznl
and lImazl are the
specified acceptable line flow ratings.
3. T W O - S T A G E A L G O R I T H M
A GA-based two-stage algorithm is developed to arrive at
a high quality solution in a shorter amount of time than
required by a GA alone, please see Table 1.
Traditionally, heuristic algorithms are fast techniques to
find a better solution than the current state, but they suffer
from the inability t o escape local optimal solutions. On the
other hand, GAS conduct multiple point searches to deter-
mine high quality solutions; however, there is a high com-
putional burden associated with GAS. Also, in practice, the
GA is not expected t o converge to one solution suggesting
that a GA solution may have room for improvement.
Therefore, a two-stage algorithm consisting of a GA fol-
lowed by a sensitivity-based heuristic is designed to take ad-
vantage of the good qualities of each solution technique. The
1 2 STAGE
1 ritKm 1 combinatorial
optimization
knowledge of
the problem
possible solution
in a reasonable
problems a t hand 1 amount of time
borhoods of high prove upon the to give Stage 2
solution from a good
- initial
(1 quality solutions I Stage 1 guess
Goal quality speed I highest quality
soln given some
computation or
time limit
GA is employed to find the neighborhoods of global opti-
mal solutions and to provide a good initial guess for the
sensitivity-based heuristic which will quickly and locally im-
prove upon the solution given by the GA.
S T A G E 1: A Genetic Algorithm
A GA is an optimization technique based on the theory of
natural selection, please see, for example, [lo] and [12] for
more details. A constant size population of strings or individ-
uals, representing the possible capacitor placement solutions,
are judged and propagated to form the next generation. It
is designed such that the “fitter” strings survive and propa-
gate into the latter generations. The population is expected
to converge to the “fitter” solutions, and, ideally, the algo-
rithm ends with a population consisting only of the most fit
string or the global optimal solution.
Some of the main components of GAS are:
1. Coding = representing the problem at hand by strings
(2) 2. Initialization = initializing the strings
3. Fitness Evaluation = determining which strings are fit
4. Selection = deciding who mates
5 . Crossover = exchanging information between two mates
6. Mutation = introducing random information
3.1. Coding
Each possible capacitor placement and control scheme is an
(3) individual in the population represented by at least four sub-
strings. Please see Table 2. The substring codes are as fol-
lows:
1. An integer coded substring exists for new capacitor lo-
cations. It is of a user input size nnewfor the maximum
possible number of new placements.
2. For each load level, an individual has a multi-parameter
binary coded substring representing discrete capacitor
sizes of new placements. Its size is a constant multiple
of nneW.If the binary value is zero for all load levels,
no capacitor is placed at the corresponding location.
Control actions for new capacitors are determined by
the corresponding capacitor size for each load level.
3. A binary coded substring of length ncqp,the number
of existing capacitors, exists for replacement decisions.
0 = no movement and 1 = replace the capacitor to a
new location.
4. An integer coded substring exists of length ncapfor re-
placed capacitor locations. If a capacitor is t o be re-
placed, the corresponding location is stored in this sub-
string.

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1162
For ease of presentation, it is assumed from this point on that
capacitor placements will be made in a balanced fashion; i.e.,
capacitor placements will only be three-phase and balanced.
This assumption is not necessary as node locations can be
used in place of bus locations.
Table 2: Coding for representation of the capacitor
placement problem
substring coding interpretation
new location integer bus number
new caDacitor size binary binary code for size
replacement decision 11 binary I yes/no for replacement
redacement location II integer
" ,I bus number
I 1 , J
3.2. Initialization
Weighted coin tosses or Bernoulli trials are used to initialize
all binary coded strings.
3.2.1 Sensitivity Initialization
For, integer coded strings, sensitivity information of real
power loss with respect to reactive power is employed to
limit the number of candidate locations for capacitors [6, 81.
In order to determine the sensitivity of a bus, solve for
% in the following equation, [ll].
Since the matrix above is just the system Jacobian relating
nodal changes in voltage t o nodal changes in power, an equiv-
alent sensitivity for buses must be determined from these
values. The maximum node sensitivity over each phase of a
bus is taken t o represent the entire bus sensitivity.
For initialization purposes, the sensitivities are calculated
for the system with no capacitors on it. The system with
no capacitors is chosen because replacement of existing ca-
pacitors is also considered in the problem. Thus, the integer
coded strings representing bus numbers are initialized from
the determined candidate locations. A user specified number
of candidate locations are selected from the most sensitive
locations in the network.
3.3. Fitness E v a l u a t i o n
All substrings are evaluated with the same fitness function.
The fitness function incorporates the objective function, i.e.,
the total cost of the proposed placement scheme with cost
penalties if a string violates any of the constraints. This
has the effect of reducing an infeasible string's probability of
propagating t o the next generation.
The fitness function, f f , can be expressed as follows:
ffi = fi - @ l ( Z , U ) - @ & , U ) - @3(5,U)
where fi is from (l),the total cost of individual i, $ 1 , @2
and $3 are penalty functions associated with the constraints,
where equality constraint penalties are larger than inequal-
ity constraint penalties. Then, the fitness function is scaled
by the individual in the current population with maximum
fitness (or cost) such that
(5)
The GA proceeds such that ( 5 ) is maximized and, concur-
rently, the objective function minimized.
3.4. Selection
Remainder stochastic sampling without replacement is the
selection scheme used, for a description please see [lo].
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3.5. Crossover
Given a crossover probability, simple crossover is performed
for each substring; in effect, simple crossover occurs at mul-
tiple points for each string or individual.
3.6. Mutation
Given a mutation probability, random alteration of genes in
a string or values of a string may occurs. For a binary coded
string, a mutation represents a simple bit change. For integer
coded strings, a mutation represents a change in bus number
to any valid location, including those locations not deemed
candidate locations by sensitivity initialization.
3.7 C o n v e r g e n c e / T e r m i n a t i o n of the GA
When the user input maximum allowable number of gener-
ations for the GA is reached, the best solution found so far,
i.e., the off-line solution, is returned and Stage 2 starts.
S T A G E 2: A Sensitivity-Based Heuristic
After the specified number of generations for the GA, a
sensitivity-based algorithm, using the sensitivity of real
power loss to reactive power, is employed to, if possible, im-
prove upon the off-line convergence solution of the GA.
The sensitivity heuristic proceeds as follows:
1. First, capacitor replacement is performed on the solu-
tion returned from the GA.
2. Then, capacitor placement is performed on this new
system.
3.7. Sensitivity Replacement
Starting from the best solution returned by the GA, the al-
gorithm attempts to do replacement of existing capacitors in
the new solution The procedure is as follows:
Step 1: Calculate the current scheme's bus sensitivities.
Please see Section 3.2.1 for sensitivity calculations.
S t e p 2: Determine possible locations for capacitor replace-
ment. A user specified number of buses with the largest
sensitivities.
S t e p 3: Capacitors are eligible for replacement only if their
bus sensitivities are less than the current possible new
location's. Select capacitors eligible for replacement to
the most sensitive bus location available. Move the
largest available capacitor first.
This process continues until a capacitor is accepted for
replacement or the list of all possible replacement ca-
pacitors or locations is exhausted.
If no capacitors are eligible, STOP replacement heuris-
tic: GOTO try new sensitivity placements ( S t e p 7.)
S t e p 4: Evaluate constraints.
With this new replacement, the power flow equations
are evaluated for each load level. If a power flow solution
exists, then inequality constraints are checked.
If there are no constraint violations,
then, the real power loss is calculated.
else, GOTO Step 6.
Step 5: Compare total costs.
If the total cost is less than the previous scheme,
then the replacement is accepted:
0 Remove the capacitor from the list of possible re-
placements;i.e, a capacitor is only allowed t o be
replaced once.
* GOTO Step 1.

else the total cost is greater than the previous scheme,
do not accept this replacement and do not move the
current replacement candidate to the current candidate
location. Try the next smallest available capaciter; i.e.,
GOTO Step 3.
Step 6: Do not move the current replacement candi-
date and try the next smallest available capacitor; i.e.,
GOTO Step 3.
3.8. Sensitivity Placement
After replacement is attempted on the current solution, if the
user specified maximum number of new capacitors has not
been met, the algorithm attempts to place new capacitors
on the system. This is done by choosing the bus with the
largest sensitivity after replacement or a specified number of
buses with the largest sensitivities and placing the smallest
available capacitor size on that bus. The procedure for new
placements is as follows:
Step 7: Evaluate the sensitivies of the new system.
Step 8: Place the smallest size capacitor on the available
bus with largest sensitivity. If no new candidate loca-
tions are available, STOP and EXIT.
Step 9: Evaluate constraints.
If the constraints are violated with the capacitor at the
highest load level, then the new placement is rejected.
STOP and EXIT. Else if the constraints are violated at
a lower loading level, then a switchable capacitor type
is elected and the control setting is adjusted to satisfy
lower load level constraints. The real power loss for the
system at each load is calculated and the total cost of
the new placement scheme is determined.
Step 10: If the total cost is less than the total cost of
the previous scheme, then the placement is temporarily
accepted in lieu of repeating the process for the next
largest capacitor size.
0 Repeat the process for the next largest capacitor
size.
0 If the next largest size has a total cost greater than
the previous scheme, accept the latest placement
and GOTO Step 7.
Else if the real power loss has decreased but the total
cost has not, the next largest capacitor size is tried; else,
the next possible location is considered for placement. If
there are no more possible locations, STOP and EXIT.
4. SIMULATION RESULTS
The two-stage algorithm for general capacitor placement was
implemented in the C programming language. The results
presented in this section were obtained on an HP735 Work-
station. The algorithm’s performance based on speed and
quality of solution are tested for a number of different GA
parameters.
General Case Scenario
For results presented in this section, the following assump-
tions and parameter choices are made.
1. Real Power Cost, K = O.O6/kWh
2. Capacitor Costs, please see Table 3.
3. Planning Period, 8 years, with 3 discrete load levels
0 2 yrs. - 0.7 x base case load
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1163
Table 3: NYSE&G capacitor costs
1 $ofi I TvDe I Conn. 11 Size I Nom. 11 Total 1 Total 1
0 4 yrs. - base case load
0 2 yrs. - 1.3 x base case load
4. Genetic Algorithm Parameters
0 popsize = 80
0 pcross = 0.7
0 pmutation = 0.005
5. Sensitivity Heuristic Parameter
Thirty buses are considered for possible replacement
and placement.
6. Fixed Capacitor Replacement
The test systems were operating at a given base load
level and information regarding existing capacitor types
was unavailable. Therefore, existing capacitors are as-
sumed to be fixed and only replacement locations need
to be determined, if necessary.
GA (Stage 1) Termination
The number of generations for Stage 1, the GA, is a user
input parameter. Depending on the user preference, speed
or quality, the GA can be terminated as desired. For speed,
a small number of generations for the given population size
may be used (here 40-50.) For quality, more generations
should be used (here approximately 100 or more). For
demonstration purposes, the GA is stopped after every gen-
eration, up to 200 generations, and the heuristic is applied
to the off-line solution of the GA.
Case 1: 292 bus system with no capacitors
The two-stage algorithm is applied t o a 292 bus test sys-
tem with no existing capacitors. The system experiences a
343.527 kW loss, a 1.35% loss with respect t o the substation
power. In the eight year planning period, this represents a
$1,485,854.10 kW loss cost.
Currently, the actual 292 bus system has 9 capacitors
placed on the system, representing a cost of $38,754 and
experiences $1,424,998.02 in kW loss costs.
Results after applying the heuristic alone, the GA alone
and the two-stage algorithm are reported in Table 4. When
applying the heuristic alone, the solution places 6 capacitors.
After 200 generations, the GA solution places 9 capacitors.
Then, applying the heuristic t o the GA solution, the result
Dlaces 10 caDacitors.
Results for the two-stage algorithm after a variable num-
ber of generations are reported in Table 5. Figure 1 compares
the two-stage algorithm and the GA alone. It highlights the
1164
Table 4: Results on t h e 292 bus system, no capacitors Table 6: Two-stage algorithm for Case 2
1 #of 11 Cap. I Real Power I Total

, , ,
200 11 12,100 I 1,369,868.90 I 1,381,968.90 (1 43,029.12

I
Two-Stage Performance
1.46 ~

1.45- dotted = GA alone 1.405. .....

....... ..... ...
solid = Two-Stage Alg.

2 1.441, 1.4- . --_- -_=_heuristic

- - - _ _ - _ _ - - - - _ _ _-dashed _ - _alone
___-_
g : 2 dotted = GA alone
21.43 ; 0
z1.395- solid = Two-Stage Alg.
s ..
.m.
c " i
$, $ .......,
dashed = heuristic alone
1.421 _ ,, 1.39 -

I 1. I

t
1.385

14
20 40 60 80 100 120 140 160 180 200 1.38' I
Generation 0 20 40 60 80 100 120 140 160 180 204
Generation

Figure 1: Two-stage algorithm performance for Case 1

heuristic improvements made t o the GA solution by the two-
stage algorithm. The heuristic always improves upon the
best solution given by the GA. This demonstrates that the
GA solution can and should be improved upon and, hence,
the importance and need for a two-stage algorithm.
Table 5: Two-stage algorithm results for Case 1
I # o f 11 Cap. I Real Power I Total 11 Total I
ken. costs LOSS Costs cost Savings
0 27,658 1,388,358.20 1,416,016.20 69,837.90
50 28,344 1,376,203.38 1,404,547.38 81,306.72
100 !I
32.106 , 1.368.739.48
, , , 1.400.845.48
, I
85.008.62
200 11 32,106 I 1,368,739.48 I 1,400,845.48 11 85,008.62
# of Stage 1 Stage 2 Two-Stage
gen. Solution Changes Answer
Case 2: An actual 292 bus system with 9 capacitors 1004 t 1170 1004 t 1170
Now, the two-stage algorithm is applied to the actual 292 100 1013 -+ 1278 1013 -+ 1278
bus system with 9 existing capacitors. The system experi- 1026 -+ 1262 1026 -+ 1262
ences a 328.274 kW loss, a 1.22% loss with respect to the 1063 -+ 1217 1063 -+ 1217
substation power. In the eight year planning period, this 1004 -+ 1170 1004 -+ 1170
170 1013 -+ 1278 1013 -+ 1278
represents a $1,424,998.02 kW loss cost. 1026 t 1262 1026 -+ 1262
After 200 generations, the two-stage algorithm decided to 1063 -+ 1215 1063 -+ 1217 1063 -+ 1217
replace 4 existing capacitors. No new capacitors are placed.
Results for the two-stage algorithm after a variable number Remarks:
of generations are reported in Table 6. Figure 2 compares the Typically, a GA experiences a sharp drop in the popu-
two-stage algorithm and the GA alone. Again, the heuristic lation's average cost after a few generations as it moves
always improves upon the best solution given by the GA, and from its initial population. Therefore, it is suggested
the two-stage algorithm returns a higher quality solution. that Stage 1 not be terminated until after a sufficient
In addition t o a higher quality solution, the two-stage al- number of generations, so that the GA population may
gorithm displays an improvement in running time over the settle down.
GA alone for determining the same quality solution. After The two-stage algorithm solution is always better than
100 generations (3 hours and 20 minutes), the two-stage al- the off-line solution given by the GA.
gorithm arrives at the same solution it returns after 170 gen- The two-stage algorithm solution quality varies with the
erations (5 hours and 40 minutes), but the heuristic starts GA solution the heuristic is given as an initial starting
from two different GA solutions. It took the GA over 2 hours point. For example, as Fig. 2 shows, the two-stage al-

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gorithm solution after 20 GA generations is better than
the algorithm’s solution after 70 GA generations. This
is because the GA population is moving towards indi-
viduals with lower cost, but suggests nothing about the
search space locally. Thus, the individuals with lower
costs now may lie on a shallower dip than individuals
before it. The sensitivity-based heuristic is a local op-
timization technique and thus it will shoot down the
shallower dip, resulting in a two-stage algorithm solu-
tion that may cost more than if the heuristic had started
with an individual from a previous generation.
Stage 2 allows some flexibility in the overall solution al-
gorithm. The sensitivity-based heuristic developed sys-
tematically exploits mathematical analysis of the sys-
tem; however, it may be replaced by other heuristics,
for example one based on operator experience.
It is noted here that the actual dollar savings over the
planning period is not substantial for the given cases.
However, in both cases, the base system experiences
only a small amount of loss; yet, the two-stage algo-
rithm could still reduce system loss and yield $ savings;
and in Case 2, it could make improvements without pur-
chasing any new capacitors, only replacements of exist-
ing system capacitors were required. Thus, the results
indicate great promise for lossy systems.
5. CONCLUSION
A GA-based two-stage solution algorithm was proposed for
a practical formulation of capacitor placement, replacement
and control in large-scale unbalanced power distribution sys-
tems. The two-stage algorithm combines the good qualities
of the general search technique of a GA and a fast sensitivity-
based heuristic. The two-stage algorithm consistently out-
performed the GA alone, in terms of both speed and qual-
ity. Thus, it illustrated the room for improvement in GA
solutions and t h e need for a two-stage algorithm. Signifi-
cant speed up in the fine-tuning of a GA was made by the
sensitivity-based heuristic.
The two-stage algorithm concept shows promising results
and may be applied t o any type of solution algorithm in
Stage 1. For instance, simulated annealing, tabu search or
any other optimization technique could be employed in Stage
1 with the same theme for Stage 2, a fast, intelligent heuris-
tic, t o be applied t o improve the solution of Stage 1. Also,
the two-stage concept may be successfully applied t o other
distribution optimization problems such as network reconfig-
uration, reactive power planning, unit commitment, genera-
tion scheduling, etc.
6. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
The authors would like t o thank the NYSE&G Corporation
for their support and Yoshikazu Fukuyama, Assistant Man-
ager at Fuji Electric Co. R&D., Ltd., for his helpful discus-
sions.
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BIOGRAPHY
Karen Nan Miu is currently enrolled in the Ph.D program in
electrical engineering at Cornell University, Ithaca, NY. She re-
ceived the B.S.EE, in 1992, and M.S., in 1995, from Cornell. Her
research interests include power systems, distribution automation
and optimization techniques applied to power systems.
Hsiao-Dong Chiang received the Ph.D. degree in electrical en-
gineering and computer sciences from the University of California
at Berkeley. He is currently an Associate Professor of Electrical
Engineering at Cornell University, Ithaca, NY. He was an Asso-
ciate Editor of the IEEE ’Ihnsactions on Circuits and Systems
from 1990 to 1991, and was Associate Editor of Express Letters of
the IEEE Transactions on Circuits and Systems-I: Fundamental
Theory and Applications from 1993-1995. He was a recipient of
the Presidential Young Investigator Award (1989) from the Na-
tional Science Foundation. His research interests include the de-
velopment of theoretical foundations and anlytical tools for the
analysis and control of physical systems, such as power and con-
trol systems, and the use of this work to achieve valuable and
practical results.
Gary R. Darling received a Bachelor of Electrical Engineer-
ing degree from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, NY, in
1961. He is currently a Senior Engineer in the Distribution Plan-
ning Department at New York State Electric & Gas Corporation
in Binghamton, NY. His current interests include distribution cir-
cuit analysis, distribution system planning, load research and ge-
ographic information systems.
1166
Discussion The problem formulation for capacitor placement, re-
placement and control is:
L L Lai (Energy Systems Group, City University, London
EClV Om, UK) : min f ( x , U)
st.F(x,u) = 0
The authors have presented an interesting paper. The
G(x,u)I0
proposed GA-based two-stage algorithm has a potential for
on-line volt/var compensation. where the capacitor placement scheme is represented by
the discrete variable U . The variable U is chosen to be
The discusser has the following questions: discrete to allow for any manufacturer capacitor size
ratings. For the simulation results presented in this paper,
1, To determine the optimal size of the capacitor to be placed the chosen manufacturer’s sizes and associated costs an-
in the system, it is essential to calculate both the power and ticipated by NYSE & G are displayed in Table 3.
energy losses reduction. Therefore the variations of the daily The authors are glad for this opportunity to specifically
load should be taken into account to achieve the reduction of address premature convergence in genetic algorithms
the overall losses during the year. Have the authors which was not discussed in the paper. Premature conver-
considered this? gence, the convergence of the GA to a suboptimal solu-
tion, is an inherent quality in genetic algorithms. One
2. The capacitor size required to produce an optimal cost main motivation for the second stage of the two-stage
saving is usually different from the standard rating. Has this algorithm presented in the paper is to help improve the
problem been included in the formulation? solution that the GA returns. Thus, if the GA converges
to a suboptimal solution, Stage 2 is applied to try to
3. As reported in the paper, how could the GA-algorithm be improve this solution to a local optimal solution.
prevented from premature convergence? However, preventing the GA (Stage 1) from converging
to a suboptimal solution is a very interesting problem.
Manuscript received August 15, 1996. Multiple independent runs of the GA, where the GA
starts from a different randomly generated population
Karen Nan Miu and Hsiao-Dong Chiang (School of Elec- each time, can be made and the best individuals from
trical Engineering, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853): each run compared to determine the final solution. As
We would like to thank the discusser, Dr. Lai, for his discussed by many researchers, this approach can be used
interest in the paper and for his thoughtful comments and to minimize the effect of premature convergence.
questions.
References
We agree that daily load variations would affect the
calculated overall losses. The problem formulation ac-
counts for discrete load levels and their associated time [11 Jin-Cheng Wang, Hsiao-Dong Chiang, Karen Nan
durations; and the solution algorithm readily allows for Miu, Gary Darling, ‘Capacitor Placement and Real
any given number of load levels and time durations. Time Control in General Unbalanced Distribution
Therefore, daily load variations may be better accounted Systems: Loss Reduction Formula, Problem Formu-
for by a refinement in the discretization of the load lation, Solution Methodology and Mathematical Jus-
pattern and durations during a year. However, we do not tification,’ Presented at the 1996 IEEE/PES Trans-
envision the two-stage algorithm presented in the paper to mission and Distribution Conference, Los Angeles,
perform on-line control of volt/var compensation or con- CA, Sept. 1996.
sider daily load patterns. It may be more appropriate to [2] Jin-Cheng Wang, Hsiao-Dong Chiang, Karen Nan
Miu, Gary Darling, ‘Capacitor Placement and Real
reserve the daily load pattern considerations to the capac-
Time Control in General Unbalanced Distribution
itor control problem and decouple the capacitor control
Systems: Numerical Studies,’ Presented at the 1996
problem from the capacitor placement and replacement
problem. For an example of this and a real-time control IEEE/PES Transmission and Distribution Confer-
algorithm which is designed to consider daily load varia- ence, Los Angeles, CA, Sept. 1996.
tions, please see [1] and [21. Manuscript received November 1, 1996.

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