A Virtual Power Plant-Integrated Proactive Voltage Regulation Framework for Urban Distribution Networks: Enhanced Termite Life Cycle Optimization Algorithm and Dynamic Coordination

Amid global decarbonization mandates, urban distribution networks (UDNs) face escalating voltage volatility due to proliferating distributed energy resources (DERs) and emerging loads (e.g., 5G base stations and data centers). While virtual power plants (VPPs) and network reconfiguration mitigate operational risks, extant methods inadequately model load flexibility and suffer from algorithmic stagnation in non-convex optimization. This study proposes a proactive voltage control framework addressing these gaps through three innovations. First, a dynamic cyber-physical load model quantifies 5G/data centers’ demand elasticity as schedulable VPP resources. Second, an Improved Termite Life Cycle Optimizer (ITLCO) integrates chaotic initialization and quantum tunneling to evade local optima, enhancing convergence in high-dimensional spaces. Third, a hierarchical control architecture coordinates the VPP reactive dispatch and topology adaptation via mixed-integer programming. The effectiveness and economic viability of the proposed strategy are validated through multi-scenario simulations of the modified IEEE 33-bus system (represented by 12.66 kV, it is actually oriented to a broader voltage scene). These advancements establish a scalable paradigm for UDNs to harness DERs and next-gen loads while maintaining grid stability under net-zero transitions. The methodology bridges theoretical gaps in flexibility modeling and metaheuristic optimization, offering utilities a computationally efficient tool for real-world implementation.