A Network Partition-Based Optimal Reactive Power Allocation and Sizing Method in Active Distribution Network

To address the node voltage fluctuation and over-limit caused by the high penetration of distributed photovoltaic (PV) generation connected to distribution networks, this paper proposes a network partition-based optimal reactive power allocation and sizing method in the active distribution network (ADN). A network index incorporating network partition and critical node identification is introduced to obtain the optimal location for the reactive power compensation. A singular value entropy-based adaptive spectral clustering algorithm is applied to obtain the initial zones and obtain the critical nodes of each zone on the basis of the proposed network indexes. This method avoids the unreasonable scheme and enhances the efficiency and clarity of partitioning. The improved decimal coding method is proposed to improve the efficiency of the proposed method. A case study on the IEEE 33-node distribution system is carried out to verify the feasibility and effectiveness of the proposed method. The results show that compared with the conventional methods, the proposed method can effectively reduce voltage variations and control the voltage within the safe limit.