Assessing the Impact of Size and Site of DGs and SMs in Active Distribution Networks for Energy Losses Cost

The presence of responsive loads in the promising active distribution networks (ADNs) would definitely affect the power system problems such as distributed generations (DGs) studies. Hence, an optimal procedure is proposed herein which takes into account the simultaneous placement of DGs and smart meters (SMs) in ADNs. SMs are taken into consideration for the sake of successful implementing of demand response programs (DRPs) such as direct load control (DLC) with end-side consumers. Seeking to power loss minimization, the optimization procedure is tackled with genetic algorithm (GA) and tested thoroughly on IEEE 33-bus distribution test system. Different scenarios including variations in the number of DG units, adaptive power factor (APF) mode for DGs to support reactive power, and individual or simultaneous placing of DGs and SMs have been established and interrogated in depth. The obtained results certify the considerable effect of DRPs and APF mode in determining the optimal size and site of DGs to be connected in ADN resulting to the lowest value of power losses as well.