Reactive power optimization of a distribution network with high-penetration of wind and solar renewable energy and electric vehicles

Abstract As high amounts of new energy and electric vehicle (EV) charging stations are connected to the distribution network, the voltage deviations are likely to occur, which will further affect the power quality. It is challenging to manage high quality voltage control of a distribution network only relying on the traditional reactive power control mode. If the reactive power regulation potentials of new energy and EVs can be tapped, it will greatly reduce the reactive power optimization pressure on the network. Keeping this in mind, our reasearch first adds EVs to the traditional distribution network model with new forms of energy, and then a multi-objective optimization model, with achieving the lowest line loss, voltage deviation, and the highest static voltage stability margin as its objectives, is constructed. Meanwihile, the corresponding model parameters are set under different climate and equipment conditions. Ultimately, the optimization model under specific scenarios is obtained. Furthermore, considering the supply and demand relationship of the network, an improved technique for order preference by similarity to an ideal solution decision method is proposed, which aims to judge the adaptability of different algorithms to the optimized model, so as to select a most suitable algorithm for the problem. Finally, a comparison is made between the constructed model and a model without new energy. The results reveal that the constructed model can provide a high quality reactive power regulation strategy