Optimal daily scheduling of reconfiguration based on minimisation of the cost of energy losses and switching operations in microgrids

Network reconfiguration has been involved in energy loss reduction by considering the time‐varying nature of loads. Nowadays, with the integration of intermittent micro‐sources (MSs) to the power grid, optimal configuration should be determined corresponding to the variations in loads and generations. In this study, optimum reconfiguration instants are achieved based on the switching operations and energy losses costs. Moreover, the sequence of selecting loops for reconfiguration is optimised in conjunction with the time intervals by a joint optimisation algorithm. Furthermore, a simple branch exchange method of reconfiguration is modified in the presence of MSs. Discrete genetic algorithm (DGA) is employed to optimise the reconfiguration instants as well as the sequence of selecting loops. By applying the proposed method, the total operating cost of the network is reduced significantly, compared to optimum fixed configuration and hourly reconfiguration policies. The proposed algorithm is evaluated on a real‐life 77‐bus distribution system with two interconnected MSs.