An Energy-Efficient and Load-Balancing Cluster-Based Routing Algorithm for CSMA-Based Wireless Sensor Networks

This paper presents an Energy-efficient and Load- balancing Cluster-based (ELC) routing algorithm for CSMA-based wireless sensor networks. In particular, both distance and residual energy are taken into consideration in developing the cluster-head selection procedure. Furthermore, in addition to distance, cluster size is also used in formulating the cost function for cluster forming in order to balance load and energy consumption among the nodes, and hence, to enhance the network lifetime. Besides, ELC employs multi-hop inter-cluster routing based on a lowest-cost path approach that considers both energy efficiency and load balancing. Illustrative simulation results show that, for the same amount of delivered data, ELC consumes less energy and offers longer network lifetime as compared to other cluster-based routing algorithms such as LEACH-C and CBCDACP.