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A globally convergent optimization algorithm for solving large nonlinear optimal power flow (OPF) problems is presented. As power systems become heavily loaded, there is an increasing need for globally convergent OPF algorithms. By global convergence, one means the optimization algorithm being able to converge to an OPF solution, if at least one exists, for any choice of initial point. The globally convergent OPF presented is based on an infinity-norm trust region approach, using interior-point methods to solve the trust region subproblems. The performance of the proposed trust region interior-point OPF algorithm, when applied to the IEEE 30-, 57-, 118-, and 300-bus systems, and to an actual 1211-bus system, is compared with that of two widely used nonlinear interior-point methods, namely, a pure primal-dual and its predictor-corrector variant. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This paper deals with the problem of increasing the loadability of power systems which, in turn, can be linked to voltage collapse occurrences. As voltage collapses may be caused by insufficiency of reactive power support, and considering that reactive power can be locally supplied, for Stance, by shunt capacitors, this paper addresses the impacts of local control actions on the system loadability. The study is carried out in two steps. First, by using the tangent vector technique, two important areas of the power system are Identified: the critical area under the point of view of voltage collapse, and the area most sensitive to active power losses reduction. Second, once these two areas are Identified, an optimization technique takes place to optimize the amount of shunt reactive power compensation that should be available in each bus. Numerical results are obtained using the IEEE 14- and 118-bus systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]