A Multiobjective and Multicriteria Approach for Optimal Placement of Protective Devices and Switches in Distribution Networks

The optimal allocation of protective devices and switches in distribution systems concerns the analysis of conflicting attributes, such as capital investment, SAIDI, ENS, ECOST, MAIFI, among others. Regarding this multiattribute context, this paper proposes a multicriteria strategy to support decision-making. From this strategy, an assertive decision can be made under different scenarios when defining an appropriate solution to a real-world problem. A multiobjective optimization approach is applied to approximate an adequate set of potential solutions for allocating protective devices and switches. The capital investment and the SAIDI index are assumed as objective functions of the problem, and the well-known NSGA-II method is employed as the optimizer. Experiments are performed using the RBTS - Bus 4; the obtained trade-off solutions are evaluated in the previously stated attributes, and assisted decisions are made to illustrate the effect of considering different scenarios of preferences from the decision unit. The results highlight both the advantages of a multiobjective approach for allocating protective devices and the usefulness of a multicriteria strategy to aid assertive decision-making under different scenarios.