A method of measuring the power line wire sag using optical sensors that are insensitive to high electromagnetic fields was proposed. The advantage of this technique is that it is a non-invasive measurement of power line wire elongation using a unique optomechanical system. The proposed method replaces the sag of the power line wire with an extension of the control sample and then an expansion of the attached chirped fiber Bragg grating. This paper presents the results of the first measurements made on real aluminum-conducting steel-reinforced wire, frequently used for power line construction. It has been shown that the proper selection of the CFBG (chirped fiber Bragg grating) transducer and the appropriate choice of optical parameters of such a sensor will allow for high sensitivity of the line wire elongation and sag while reducing the sensitivity to the temperature. It has been shown that with a simple optomechanical system, a non-invasive measurement of the power line wire sag that is insensitive to temperature changes and the influence of high electromagnetic fields can be achieved.

This article presents a new method of metaheuristic optimization, the algorithm of the innovative gunner (AIG), inspired by the choice of artillery parameters that sends a shot precisely to a target. The applied correction of the cannon’s setting parameters differs from that defined by classic artillery theory. The innovativeness of the AIG results from the fact that at each step of the iterative process, the previous solution is corrected by means of specially selected multiplication factors. This is a major difference from most methods in which, at each successive step, a corrective element is added to the previous solution. The AIG is characterized by high efficiency and speed in solving various optimization problems having nothing to do with ballistics. It is extremely simple in description and implementation. The algorithm was tested on several known test-optimization tasks. The results are noticeably better than those achieved by other methods and prove the practical usefulness of the AIG.

Electric power system is characterized by relatively high demand for lagging reactive power. From the economic viewpoint, reactive power sources should be installed close to its demand. Optimal compensation should ensure minimal costs of the reactive power generation and transmission within the considered system. The optimization of activities related to reactive power compensation concerns the location and power of compensation devices. This is to optimize voltage levels and reactive power flows in the system. The article presents methods of simulated annealing and particle swarm applied to solve an optimization task of the reactive power flow. It has been assumed that active power losses in a power system are the objective function.

The article presents the concept of voltage control in a medium-voltage network, using the classical control of a HV/MV (High Voltage/Medium Voltage) transformer and active participation of distributed generation sources. The proposed solution is based on the results of the optimization process. The objective function is considered as a single-criterion—the voltage quality indicator or value of power losses in the network, and optionally as two-criteria (voltage quality and losses combined, with appropriately selected weight factors). The analysis carried out for random selection of independent variables, using the original heuristic algorithm, indicated a very high efficiency of the proposed control process, compared to the traditional approach. A significant improvement in the voltage quality index and reduction of losses was found, which justifies the advisability of looking for new solutions in the field of voltage control in MV networks, taking into account active participation of distributed generation.