Optimal siting and sizing of distributed generation accompanied by reconfiguration of distribution networks for maximum loss reduction by using a new UVDA-based heuristic method

• Simultaneous siting and sizing of distributed generation and network reconfiguration for maximum loss minimization.
• Proposing a new heuristic method based on UVDA for the problem optimization.
• The method is able to find the best solution found until now.

A great number of methods have been proposed for distributed generation (DG) placement in distribution networks to minimize the power loss of Medium Voltage (MV) lines. However, very few researches have been done for network configuration in parallel with the DG siting and sizing for the maximum system loss reduction. In this paper, a heuristic method based on “uniform voltage distribution based constructive reconfiguration algorithm” (UVDA) is proposed for the simultaneous reconfiguration and DG siting and sizing. The results obtained from the application of the proposed method on two well-known distribution networks and a real network clearly verify the robustness of the contributed technique. The simulation results demonstrate that the proposed approach is able to find the best solution of the problem found so far. Also, the presented method is applicable to real large-scale distribution systems to find the optimal solution in a very short period of time.