Paper accepted for presentation at PPT 2001
2001 IEEE Porto Power Tech Conference
Economic Dispatch Solution Using A Genetic
Algorithm Based on Arithmetic Crossover
T. Yalcinoz, Member, IEEE, H. Altun, Member, IEEE and M. Uzam, Member, IEEE
AbstractIn this paper, a new genetic approach based on
arithmetic crossover for solving the economic dispatch problem is
proposed. Elitism, arithmetic crossover and mutation are used in
the genetic algorithm to generate successive sets of possible
operating policies. The proposed technique improves the quality
of the solution. The new genetic approach is compared with an
improved Hopfield NN approach (IHN) [1], a fuzzy logic
controlled genetic algorithm (FLCGA) [2], an advance
engineered-conditioning genetic approach (AECGA) [3] and an
advance Hopfield NN approach (AHNN) [4].
Index Terms--Economic dispatch, genetic algorithm, arithmetic
crossover.
I. INTRODUCTION
W ITH the development of modern power systems,
economic dispatch (ED) problem has received an
increasing attention. The economic dispatch aims to minimize
the fuel cost while provides consumers with adequate and
secure electricity. The literature of the ED problem and its
solution methods are surveyed in [5] and [6]. However, it is
realized that conventional techniques become very
complicated when dealing with increasingly complex dispatch
problems, and are further limited by their lack of robustness
and efficiency in a number of practical applications. Thus
developing a reliable, fast and efficient algorithm is still an
active area in power systems.
Recently, a global optimization technique known as genetic
algorithm (GA) which is a kind of the probabilistic heuristic
algorithm has been studied to solve the power optimization
problems. The GA may find the several sub-optimum solutions
within a realistic computation time. Even if there is no
guaranty that the GA may find the globally optimal solutions
in a finite time.
Genetic algorithm is an attractive tool for economic dispatch
problems. Sheble, et. al. [7,8] presented papers where GA
solves the economic dispatch. In the papers, an example with
three units was explored. Bakirtzis et al. [9] have proposed a
simple genetic algorithm solution to the economic dispatch
problem. The operation cost obtained from GA was 0.5 %
higher than the optimum operation cost. Chang and Chen [10]
This work is supported by the Research Fund of University of Nigde under
the project number of FBE 2001/04.
T. Yalcinoz, H. Altun and M. Uzam are adjuncts to Department of
Electrical and Electronic Engineering, Nigde University, Nigde 51100,
Turkey. (e-mail: tyalcinoz@ieee.org).
0-7803-7139-9/01/$10.00 2001 IEEE
10th 13th September, Porto, Portugal
have presented a genetic algorithm for solving economic
dispatch problem. The proposed method can take into account
network losses, ramp rate limits and valve point zone. A fuzzy
logic controlled genetic algorithm has been applied to
environmental/economic dispatch by Song et. al. [2]. Song
and Chou [3] have proposed a hybrid genetic algorithm that is
combination strategy involving local search algorithms and
genetic algorithm. The validity of a fuzzy logic controlled
genetic algorithm [2] and a hybrid genetic algorithm [3] is
illustrated on the economic dispatch problem with a six unit
system. In the above papers, the binary representation was
applied to economic dispatch problems.
In this paper, elitism, arithmetic crossover which defines a
linear combination of two chromosome [11] and mutation are
used in the genetic algorithm to generate successive sets of
possible operating policies.
II. ECONOMIC DISPATCH PROBLEM
The economic dispatch problem is to simultaneously
minimize the overall cost rate and meet the load demand of a
power system. The power system model consists of n
generating units already connected to the system. The
economic dispatch is to determine the optimal share of load
demand for each unit in the range of 3 to 5 minutes [12]. The
economic dispatch problem can be expressed as
n
Min Fi ( Pi ) (1)
Pi
i =1
Fi ( Pi ) =(ai + bi Pi + ci Pi 2 )
where ai, bi and ci are the cost coefficients of the i-th generator
and n is the number of generators committed to the operating
system. Pi is the power output of the i-th generator. The
economic dispatch problem subjects to the following
constraints:
Pmin,i Pi Pmax,i for i = 1, . . . , n (2)
n
P D L = 0
i =1
i (3)
n
where L = Bi Pi 2 (4)
i =1

where D is the load demand and L represents the transmission
losses. B represents coefficients of transmission losses. Pmin,i
and Pmax,i are minimum and maximum generation output of the
i-th generator.
III. GENETIC ALGORITHM
Genetic algorithms are search algorithms based on the
process of biological evolution. In genetic algorithms, the
mechanics of natural selection and genetics are emulated
artificially. The search for a global optimum to an optimization
problem is conducted by moving from an old population of
individuals to a new population using genetics-like operators.
Each individual represents a candidate to the optimization
solution. An individual is modeled as a fixed length string of
symbols, usually taken from the binary alphabet. An evaluation
function, called fitness function, assigns a fitness value to each
individual within the population. This fitness value is measure
for the quality of an individual. The basic optimization
procedure involves nothing more than processing highly fit
individuals in order to produce better individuals as the search
progresses. A typical genetic algorithm cycle involves four
major processes of fitness evaluation, selection, recombination
and creation of a new population.
Although the binary representation is usually applied to
power optimization problems, in this paper, we use the real
valued representation scheme for solution. The use of real
valued representation in the GA is claimed by Wright [13] to
offer a number of advantages in numerical function
optimization over binary encoding. Efficiency of the GA is
increased as there is no need to convert chromosomes to the
binary type; less memory is required as efficient floating-point
internal computer representations can be used directly; there is
no loss in precision by discretisation to binary or other values;
and there is greater freedom to use different genetic operators
[11]. For the real valued representation, the k-th chromosome
Ck can be defined as follows:
Ck = [ Pk1, Pk2, . . . , Pkn] k = 1, 2, . . . , popsize (5)
where popsize means population size and Pki is the generation
power of the i-th unit at k-th chromosome.
Reproduction involves creation of new offspring from the
mating of two selected parents or mating pairs. It is thought
that the crossover operator is mainly responsible for the global
search property of the GA. We used an arithmetic crossover
operator that defines a linear combination of two
chromosomes [11]. Two chromosomes, selected randomly for
crossover, C igen and C gen
j may produce two offspring,
+1
C igen +1 and C gen
j , which is a linear combination of their
parents i.e.,
C igen +1 = a C igen + (1 a ) C jgen
(6)
+1
C gen
j = (1 a ) C igen + a C jgen
where a is a random number in range of [0, 1].
The mutation operator is used to inject new genetic material
into the population and it is applied to each new structure
individually. A given mutation involves randomly altering
each gene with a small probability. We generate a random real
value which makes a random change in the m-th element
selected randomly of the chromosome.
The objective function is used to provide a measure of how
individuals have performed in the problem domain. In the case
of a minimization problem, the most fit individuals will have
the lowest value of the associated objective function. The
fitness function is normally used to transform the objective
function value into a measure of relative fitness. The fitness
function is defined as
Fit ( x ) = g (f ( x )) (7)
where f(x) is the objective function, g transforms the value of
the objective function to non-negative number.
An elitist which GA search is used guarantees that the best
solution so far obtained in the search is retained and used in
the following generation, and thereby ensuring no good
solution already found can be lost in the search process.
IV. ECONOMIC DISPATCH USING GENETIC ALGORITHM
The success of the genetic algorithm strongly depends on
the problem mapping which involves the transformation of the
problem solution to a chromosome representation and the
design of the fitness function as assess the quality of a
solution.
Each chromosome within the population represents a
candidate solution. A chromosome must represent a generation
scheduling in order to solve the economic dispatch problem by
using a genetic algorithm approach. In the economic dispatch
problem, the unit power output is used as the main decision
variable, and each units loading range is represented by a real
number. The representation takes care of the unit minimum
and maximum loading limits since the real representation is
made to cover only the values between the limits.
The main objective of the economic dispatch is to minimize
fuel costs while satisfying constraints such as the power
balance equation. The most fit individuals will have the lowest
cost of the objective function of the economic dispatch
problem. The fitness function is used to transform the cost
function value into a measure of relative fitness. For the
economic dispatch problem, the fitness function, Fit(P), may
be expressed as
n
Fit ( P ) = g (ai + bi Pi + ci Pi 2 ) (8)
i =1
 In order to produce two offspring, an arithmetic crossover clear that the fuzzy logic controlled genetic algorithm [2]
operator is used. After crossover is completed, mutation is provides the worst results among the compared methods.
performed. In the mutation step, a random real value makes a
random change in the m-th element of the chromosome. After TABLE 2. RESULTS OBTAINED BY PGA, IHN, AHNN AND FLCGA
mutation, all constraints are checked whether violated or not. Methods Load (MW) Cost ($/h) Load (MW) Cost ($/h)
If the solution has at least one constraint violated, a new FLCGA 8231.03 11480.03
random real value is used for finding a new value of the m-th IHN 800.0 8228.05 1200.0 11477.20
element of the chromosome. Then, the best solution so far AHNN 8227.11 11477.09
obtained in the search is retained and used in the following PGA 8227.09 11477.09
generation. The genetic algorithm process repeats until the
specified maximum number of generations is reached. Table 3 gives a comparison of the economic dispatch results
of AECGA, IHN, AHNN and PGA for 1520 MW and 2238
V. SIMULATION RESULTS MW of load demand. It can be clearly seen that the proposed
The proposed method has been applied to two test systems; genetic algorithm achieved lower operation costs for different
a power system with 6 units and a 20-unit system respectively. load demands, in contrast, the AECGA and the IHN produced
The cost function of each unit is chosen as a quadratic function higher operation costs for some loading conditions. For 2238
for the test systems. The proposed method is compared with an MW of load demand, the operation cost of the AECGA is 5.24
improved Hopfield NN approach (IHN) [1], a fuzzy logic $/h higher than the operation cost of the proposed method. It is
controlled genetic algorithm (FLCGA) [2], an advance obvious that the proposed method produced the better solution
engineered-conditioning genetic approach (AECGA) [3] and than the compared methods for 6-unit system.
an advance Hopfield NN approach (AHNN) [4]. The proposed
TABLE 3. RESULTS OBTAINED BY AECGA, IHN, AHNN AND PGA
method was implemented in Matlab. The first test system has
Methods Load (MW) Cost ($/h) Load (MW) Cost ($/h)
six units and details of this test system are given as follows:
AECGA 14169.54 20470.48
2 IHN 1520.0 14169.54 2238.0 20465.44
F1= 0.001562 P1 + 7.92 P1 + 561.0 100 < P1 < 600
AHNN 14169.54 20465.24
F2= 0.00194 P22 + 7.85 P2 + 310.0 100 < P2 < 400
PGA 14169.54 20465.24
F3= 0.00482 P32 + 7.97 P3 + 78.0 50 < P3 < 200
F4= 0.00139 P42 + 7.06 P4 + 500.0 140 < P4 < 590
In order to demonstrate the efficiency and the robustness of
F5= 0.00184 P52 + 7.46 P5 + 295.0 110 < P5 < 440
the proposed genetic algorithm, a 20-unit system is considered.
F6= 0.00184 P62 + 7.46 P6 + 295.0 110 < P6 < 440
Details of this test system are obtained from [4]. The results of
the proposed method is shown in Table 4 and compared
In Table 1, the results of proposed method (PGA) are
against the results of the IHN and the AHNN for three load
compared with the results of FLCGA, AECGA, IHN and
levels. The obtained operation costs by the IHN and the
AHNN when the load demand is 1800 MW. It is seen that
AHNN are about 0.74% and 0.2% higher than the PGA. The
there is a negligible difference in the values between the
execution time of the proposed method for the 20-unit system
methods. The FLCGA produced a higher operation cost than
is about 6 seconds.
other methods.
Table 2 presents the results of PGA, IHN, AHNN and TABLE 4. SIMULATION RESULTS FOR A 20-UNIT SYSTEM
FLCGA when the load demands are 800 MW and 1200 MW. Load Operation Cost ($/h) Error % of
The FLCGA produced the highest operation cost and the (MW) IHN [1] AHNN [4] PGA IHN / AHNN
obtained operation cost by the PGA are smaller than the IHN
3150 46460.84 46068.90 46027.35 0. 94 / 0.09
[1] respectively. For 800 MW of load demand, the operation
3800 53207.7 52981.76 52852.49 0.67 / 0.24
cost of the AHNN is slightly higher than the operation cost of
4600 63791.72 63566.14 63401.84 0. 61 / 0.26
the proposed method. According to Table 1 and Table 2, it is

TABLE 1. RESULTS OF FLCGA, AECGA, IHN, AHNN AND PGA FOR 6-UNIT SYSTEM
Methods Load Unit 1 Unit 2 Unit 3 Unit 4 Unit 5 Unit 6 Cost
(MW) (MW) (MW) (MW) (MW) (MW) (MW) ($/h)

FLCGA 1800.0 250.49 215.43 109.92 572.84 325.66 325.66 16585.85

AECGA 1800.0 248.07 217.73 75.30 587.70 335.60 335.60 16579.33
IHN 1800.0 248.08 217.74 75.18 587.90 335.55 335.55 16579.33
AHNN 1800.0 248.14 217.74 75.20 587.80 335.56 335.56 16579.33
PGA 1800.0 248.14 217.74 75.20 587.80 335.56 335.56 16579.33

VI. CONCLUSIONS
In this paper, a new approach to the economic dispatch
problem using a new genetic algorithm has been presented.
The real valued representation scheme, arithmetic crossover,
mutation and elitism are used in the genetic algorithms to
generate successive sets of possible operating policies. In the
case studies, the proposed method has been applied to the
economic dispatch problem with 6 generators and 20
generators. Test results have shown the proposed genetic
algorithm can provide better solutions than an improved
Hopfield NN approach [1], a fuzzy logic controlled genetic
algorithm [2], an advance engineered-conditioning genetic
approach [3] and an advance Hopfield NN approach [4]. For a
6-unit system, the AECGA, the IHN and the AHNN produced
higher operation costs than the new genetic algorithm for some
loading conditions. The FLCGA produced the highest
operation cost among the methods. The obtained operation
costs by the IHN [1] and the AHNN [4] are about 0.74% and
0.2% higher than the PGA for a 20-unit system.
VIII. BIOGRAPHIES
Tankut Yalcinoz (S'1991, M'2000) was born in Mersin, Turkey, in 1968. He
received the B.Sc. degree in electrical and electronic engineering from
Karadeniz Technical University, Turkey in 1990 and the M. Sc. degree from
Cukurova University, Turkey in 1993. In 1998 he obtained a Ph.D. from
Imperial College, London. Since 1998 he has been a Lecturer at Nigde
University. His main interests are in power system planning and operation
and the application of computational intelligence to power systems.
Halis Altun (M'1996) was born in Nevsehir, Turkey, in 1968. He recieved
the BSc degree in Electronic and Communication Engineering from Yldz
University in 1991. In 1998 he obtained a Ph.D. from Univeristy of
Nottingham, UK. Since 1998 he has been a lecturer at Nigde University,
Turkey. His main interests are in neural networks, signal and speech
processing.
Murat Uzam (M'1998) was born in Aydin, Turkey, in 1968. He received
both the B.Sc. and M.Sc. degrees in electrical engineering from Yildiz
Technical University, Turkey in 1989 and 1991 respectively. In 1998 he
obtained a Ph.D. from Salford University, UK. Since 1998 he has been a
Lecturer at Nigde University. His interests include modeling and control of
discrete event systems using Petri net based techniques.

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