Optimal Shunt Capacitor Placement in Distribution Networks for Power Loss Reduction Using Voltage Sensitivity Approach

High energy demands put ample load on power distribution systems which negatively impacts their performance. Excessive loading in distribution systems lead to more voltage drops, higher losses, and transformer/feeder overloads. As a low-cost solution, a capacitor bank can be installed to address these issues. However, their optimal size and location need to be determined in order to maximize its benefits. This paper proposes a voltage-to-load sensitivitybased strategy to find an optimal placement for the capacitor bank in a distribution network to reduce system active losses. Moreover, a feasible set of capacitor values is determined based on the system losses and voltage profiles. The proposed approach is tested on a test primary distribution system. The results prove the desired performance of the proposed approach.