Coordinated voltage control in 3 phase unbalanced distribution system with multiple regulators using genetic algorithm

The continued interest in the distributed generation in recent years is leading to a number of generators connected to distribution network. The introduction of DG in the distribution system changes the operating features and has significant technical impact. One of the main obstacle for high DG penetration in the distribution feeder is the voltage rise effect. Present network design practice is to limit the generator capacity to a level at which the upper voltage limit is not exceeding; this reduces the efficiency of DG system. This paper presents an efficient algorithm for voltage control in 3 phase unbalanced system with multiple voltage regulators. The genetic algorithm is successfully applied on 13 bus unbalanced radial system for different load conditions to control the voltage level. The voltage profiles are improved & are within the specified limits with optimal setting of voltage regulators like Load ratio transformer (LRT), Static Var Compensator (SVC), Shunt Capacitor (SC) and DGs reactive power for providing smooth voltage profiles at all the load conditions.