Optimal PMU placement for power system observability using BICA, considering measurement redundancy

•The binary mode of ICA is introduced for solving optimal PMU placement problem.•The multi-stage objective function is considered in order to maximize measurement redundancy.•A new observability rule is developed.•PMU placement problem is solved in different contingency modes.

This paper presents a new method, based on Binary Imperialistic Competition Algorithm (BICA), for optimal PMU placement in power systems. Phasor Measurement Units (PMUs) have widely been used in recent years, due to their great advantages in power systems wide area monitoring, protection and control. The purpose of this paper is to provide observability, using minimum number of PMUs, in different operating conditions. Not only the system observability is considered as main goal in this research but also maximum redundancy is taken into account. Moreover, the problem of optimal PMU placement is solved using BICA in different contingency modes such as single line outage and single PMU failure. In all investigations, the zero-injected buses are considered to obtain the best answers. In addition to the conventional rules, a new rule is developed, which is capable of reducing the number of PMUs required to make the system observable. Simulations on different test cases confirm the BICA validity in solving optimal PMU placement problem.