Economic dispatch with prohibited operating zones using fast computation evolutionary programming algorithm

This paper presents an efficient and simple approach for solving the economic dispatch (ED) problem with units having prohibited operating zones. The operating region of the units having prohibited zones is broken into isolated feasible sub-regions which results in multiple decision spaces for the economic dispatch problem. The optimal solution will lie in one of the feasible decision spaces and can be found using the conventional λ–δ iterative method in each of the feasible decision spaces. But, this elaborate search procedure is time consuming and not acceptable for on-line application. In this paper, a simple and novel approach is proposed. In this approach, the optimal solution and the corresponding optimum system lambda are determined using an efficient fast computation evolutionary programming algorithm (FCEPA) without considering the prohibited operating zones. Then, a small set of advantageous decision spaces is formed by combining the feasible sub-regions of the fuel cost curve intervening the prohibited zones in the neighbourhood of the optimal system lambda. A penalty cost for each advantageous decision space is judiciously computed using participation factor. The most advantageous decision space is found out by comparing the penalty cost of the decision spaces. The optimal solution in the most advantageous decision space is obtained using the FCEPA. The proposed algorithm is tested on a number of sample systems with units possessing prohibited zones. The study results reveal that the proposed approach is computationally efficient and would be a competent method for solving economic dispatch problem with units having prohibited operating zones.