Environmental/economic dispatch using multi-objective harmony search algorithm

This paper presents a new multi-objective harmony search (MOHS) algorithm for environmental/economic dispatch (EED) problem. The EED problem is formulated as a non linear and constrained optimization problem with competing and non-commensurable objectives. The two competing objectives, fuel cost and emission, were optimized simultaneously using the proposed MOHS algorithm. The MOHS algorithm uses a non dominated sorting and ranking procedure with dynamic crowding distance to develop and maintain a well distributed Pareto-optimal set. The proposed algorithm has been tested on the standard IEEE 30 bus and 118 bus systems. Simulation results are compared with the fast non dominated sorting genetic algorithm (NSGA-II) method. The results clearly show that the proposed method is able to produce a well distributed Pareto-optimal solutions than the NSGA-II method.

► A new multi-objective evolutionary algorithm has been developed.
► This multi-objective evolutionary algorithm uses harmony search method for evolution.
► To obtain a Pareto-optimal set, non-dominated sorting and ranking with dynamic crowding distance strategy has been used.
► This multi-objective evolutionary algorithm has been finally applied to EED problem with competing objectives.
► To validate the superiority of this method, statistical analysis and comparison has also been made with NSGA-II algorithm.