Identification of the optimal location and capacity of STATCOM using Grey Wolf Optimizer

Economic and environmental constraints are causing power systems to operate near their critical restrictions because of the growing demand for energy. Flexible alternating current transmission systems (FACTS) devices can be used to control power flow and regulate bus voltage in networks in order to improve transfer capability and reduce system losses. The purpose of this research is to determine the best location and capacity for a FACTS device, in particular a static synchronous compensator (STATCOM) within power systems. Grey wolf optimization (GWO) is utilized to address this issue and enhance system performance. The outcomes indicate the superiority of the GWO algorithm in terms of convergence speed and solution quality when compared to conventional optimization techniques. In this paper, the Newton-Raphson approach is utilized due to its quick convergence. The design was applied to IEEE 14 and 30 bus networks, with STATCOM and without STATCOM, in order to validate the efficacy of the proposed method. The findings demonstrate that the active and reactive power losses of IEEE-14 bus system were reduced by 11.8% and 10.4%, respectively, after installation of STATCOM. Additionally, the STATCOM reduced both active and reactive power losses of the IEEE-30 bus system by 21.2% and 19.2%, respectively. All simulations are performed using MATLAB/Simulink.