Integrating mutation operator into grasshopper optimization algorithm for global optimization

The major purpose of this article is to enhance the performance of GOA algorithm by integrating a new mutation operator to the standard GOA algorithm. A series of six different variants of enhanced GOA is proposed by integrating GOA with six different variants of the mutation operator. The new enhanced metaheuristic optimization method is called EGOAs. EGOA aims to address the problems of slow convergence and trapping into local optima, by achieving a good balance between exploration and exploitation, using a special mutation operator that enhances the diversity of the standard GOA, to find the best solution for global optimization problems. The implementation process for enhancing the GOA algorithm is presented and the effectiveness of the enhanced algorithm is evaluated against 60 of the optimization benchmark functions, and compared to that of the standard GOA, as well as to other metaheuristic optimization algorithms. The performance of EGOAs was compared with the other improved methods based on GOA. Experimental results show that EGOAs is clearly superior to the standard GOA algorithm, as well as to other well-known algorithms, in terms of achieving the best optimal value, convergence speed, and avoiding local minima, which makes EGOAs a promising addition to the arsenal of metaheuristic algorithms.