Optimizing energy distribution efficiency in wireless sensor networks using the hybrid LEACH-DECAR algorithm

Abstract

Wireless sensor network (WSN) is a network system consisting of various supporting components that integrate information to the base station. In its operation, delivery is greatly influenced by energy usage because limited battery supply causes variability in energy consumption on node activity factors, communication distance, and environmental conditions. So, in order to increase performance and energy efficiency, a routing protocol is required by selecting the best path through cluster head. The technique of determining the cluster head (CH) based on energy is used to avoid irregularity (randomness). In this study, the hybrid routing protocol selects CH based on the remaining energy, considering distance, coverage radius, and energy metrics. The system test evaluation compares the implementation of low-energy adaptive clustering hierarchy (LEACH) and hybrid LEACH- Distributed, energy and coverage-aware routing (DECAR). The results of 300 rounds show that the hybrid achieves a packet delivery ratio close to 100% and a throughput of 78.22 Kbps, while LEACH achieves a packet delivery ratio of 92.18% and a throughput of 247.15 Kbps. The average energy consumption of LEACH is 99.27%, while the hybrid shows much greater efficiency at 30.55%. This study emphasizes the significance of maintaining equilibrium performance and energy consumption in the development of future routing protocols.