Protective Reley C Warrington

Protective Bela"s
THEIR THEORY AND PRACTICE
VOLUME ONE
by
A. R. van C. WARRINGTON
A.C.G.I., B.Sc.(Lond.), Fellow I.E.E.E.,
C.Eng., Fellow I.E.E.
The English Electric Company Limited
Stafford
1968
CHAPMAN & HALL LTD

11 NEW FETTER LANE EC4
Author's Prelaee
is an attempt to pass on to others the knowledge gained

TbyHISthevolume
author in 33 years of experience in the protective relay field, in
the U.S.A. and Europe. It offers the student a new general theory of relay
operation and brings the user up to date on modem design technique.
It has been written primarily for protection engineers, but with an
endeavour to make it easily understandable to students to whom this subject
may be new.
The second volume deals with static (solid-state) relays and provides
additional information on c.t's., p.t's., fault incidence, transients and sources
of relay error.
A. R. van C. WARRINGTON.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
WISH to thank the English Electric Company for their permission to

I publish
this book and for providing typing and drawing office facilities.
I am greatly indebted, for editorial and technical advice, to Dr. Adamson
and to my colleagues of the English Electric Company, and to those who
coped with the heavy task of reproducing the manuscript and drawings.
A. R. van C. W.
ix
Contents
1. PURPOSE OF PROTECTIVE RELAYS AND RELAYING
page 1
Causes of Faults. Definitions. Functions of Protective Relays. Application

to a Power System.
2.
RELAY DESIGN AND CONSTRUCTION

Characteristics. Choice of Measuring Units. Construction of Measuring
Units. Construction of Timing Units. Details of Design. Cases. Panel
Mounting. Operation Indicators. Finishes.
24
3.
THE MAIN CHARACTERISTICS OF PROTECTIVE RELAYS

Phase and Amplitude Comparators. Relay Characteristics. General Equation
for Characteristics. Inversion Chart. Resonance. Appendix.
99
4.
OVERCURRENT PROTECTION
Time-Current Characteristics. Application. Limits of Error. Ratings. Directional Overcurrent Protection. A.C. Tripping. Schemes for Radial Feeders.
Construction. Application. Problem.
141
5.
DISTANCE RELAYS
General Principles. Special Characteristics. Limitations. Application to Lines.
Settings. Multi-terminal Lines. Construction. A.C. Potential Supply. Simultaneous Ground Faults. Auto-reclosing Zero Sequence Compensation.
191
6.
SWITCHED AND POLYPHASE DISTANCE RELAYS

Reduction of Measuring Units. Automatic Switching Schemes. Polyphase
Distance Relays. Phase and Amplitude Comparators. Analysis of Polyphase
Comparators.
273
7.
DIRECTIONAL PILOT RELAYING

Basic Principles. Pilot Wire Schemes. Carrier Channel Schemes. Carrier Signal
Checking. Future Trends.
298
8. A.C. PILOT RELAYING

Pilot Wire Schemes. Phase and Amplitude Comparators. Effect of Load
Current. Multi-terminal Lines. Pilot Wire Limitations. Pilot Supervision.
Phase Comparison Carrier.
317
9. PROTECTION OF A.C. MACHINES

Generator Protection. Stator Faults. Rotor Faults. Miscellaneous Faults.
Motor Protection. Faults. Unbalanced Conditions. Power Station Auxiliaries.
Current Differential Relaying.
347
10.
POWER TRANSFORMER PROTECTION

Types of Faults. Gas Relays. Differential Relays. Magnetising Inrush. Minimising of Effects. Relay Solutions. Grounding Transformers. Generator Transformer Units. Transformer Feeders.
380
11.
BUS-ZONE PROTECTION
General Principles. Current Differential Protection. Voltage Differential.
Frame Leakage Protection. Directional Comparison. Back-up. Supervision.
413
xi
Contents
12. BACK-UP PROTECTION
page 429
Basic Principles. Precautions for Reliability Remote Back-up. Local Back-up.

Relay Back-up. Breaker Back-up. A.C. Supplies. D.C. Supply.
13. MAINTENANCE AND TESTING OF RELAYS
440
Commissioning. Periodic Maintenance. Transfer to Test Circuit. Tools.

Safety Measures. Mechanical Tests. Electrical Tests. Manufacture Tests.
14. MISCELLANEOUS
Static Relays. Future of Electromagnetic Relays. D.C. Protection Relays.
Protection Engineering as a Career.
468
REFERENCES
473
INDEX
481
List of Slim bois

area; amperes
susceptance; magnetic flux density
C capacitance
D discrimination factor; diameter
E e.m.f. (usually at power source)
F
force
G conductance
H
magnetising force
I
current
J
angular moment of inertia
K
a constant
L
self inductance
M mutual inductance; numeric ratio or constant
N
number of turns; numeric ratio or constant
o origin of a graph
P
point on a graph; general constant
Q steady state amplitude of charge q; general constant
R
resistance; ratio
S
spacing or displacement
T
temperature
V voltage
W power
X
reactance
Y admittance
Z impedance
A and B are also used as unspecified quantities or ratios, real or complex.
A
B
~3)
a /120 operator ( _!+j
susceptance per mile

capacitance per mile
diameter
instantaneous value of potential difference
frequency
conductance per mile; gravitational constant
height
instantaneous value of current; unit vector
a /900 operator
a constant
c
d
J
k
xiii
List of Symbols
I length
m mass; unspecified number
n an unspecified number
p in-phase component
q quadrature component or electric charge
r resistance per mile
s modulus of attenuation
t time
v velocity
x unknown quantity or reactance/mile
y admittance per mile
z impedance per mile
ex
an angle
an angle
')I
attenuation factor (complex)
~
an increment
e
base of Naperian logarithms
"
efficiency
()
characteristic angle
A.
an angle
(L
penneability or prefix micro
1t
radians in 1800
p
resistivity
[Jt
reluctance
(1
conductivity
()
characteristic angle; angle between system voltage vectors
q, magnetic flux
cjJ
phase angle, generally the angle by which the current lags the voltage in
a protected circuit
'" an angle
OJ
frequency in radians/sec; ohms
L summation
n ohms
ex is also used as the complex ratio of two currents and p their inverse ratio.
cjJ and G on circuit diagrams refer to phase and ground relays respectively.
List of Subscripts
A, B, C the terminals of a protected line
a, b, c the three phases

d
J: F
difference, direct axis

general suffix
fault
xiv
List of Symbols
g,G
h, i,j
I, L
m
n
q
r
R
s, S
t
res
max
min
1
2
[600
160
IVI
ground
general suffixes
line
magnetising
neutral; nominal
zero sequence; a basic value
in phase component; primary; polarising
quadrature; quadrature axis
replica; restraint
relay; relay (to distinguish in the case of a secondary quantity);
also suffixes denoting restraining signals; receiving end
source; secondary; sending end
suffix denoting quantity variable with time
residual
maximum
minimum
positive sequence; suffix denoting a derived relaying quantity
negative sequence; suffix denoting a derived relaying quantity
lagged 60
advanced 60
scalar value of V
Abbreviations
B.S.S.
British Standard Specification
C.E.G.B. Central Electricity Generating Board of Great Britain
1
Purpose of Proteetive Belays
alUl Belaying
Causes of Faults-Definitions-Functions of Protective RelaysApplication to a Power System
capital investment involved in a power system for the generation,
THE
transmission and distribution of electrical power is so great that the
proper precautions must be taken to ensure that the equipment not only
operates as nearly as possible to peak efficiency, but also that it is protected
from accidents. The normal path of the electric current is from the power
source through copper (or aluminium) conductors in the generators, transformers and transmission lines to the load and it is confined to this path by
insulation. The insulation, however, may be broken 'down, either by the
effect of temperature and age or by a physical accident, so that the current
then follows an abnormal path generally known as a short-circuit or fault.
Whenever this occurs the destructive capabilities of the enormous energy of
the power system may cause expensive damage to the equipment, severe
drop in voltage and loss of revenue due to interruption of service. Such
faults may be made infrequent by good design of the power apparatus and
lines and the provision of protective devices, such as surge diverters and
ground fault neutralisers, but a certain number will occur inevitably due to
lightning and unforeseen accidental conditions.
The purpose of protective relays and relaying systems is to operate the
correct circuit breakers so as to disconnect only the faulty equipment from the
system as quickly as possible, thus minimising the trouble and damage caused
by faults when they do occur. It would be ideal if protection could anticipate
and prevent faults but this is obviously impossible except where the original
cause of a fault creates some effect which can operate a protective relay.
So far only one type of relay falls within this category; this is the gas detector
relay, used to protect transformers, which operates when the oil level in
the conservator pipe of a transformer is lowered by the accumulation of gas
caused by a poor connection or by an incipient breakdown of insulation.
With all other equipment it is only possible to mitigate the effects of a shortcircuit by disconnecting the equipment as quickly as possible, so that the
destructive effects of the energy into the fault may be minimised.
1.2
Protective Relays
1.1. CAUSES OF FAULTS
Insulation is usually either air or a high resistivity material which may

also be used as a mechanical support. Air insulation can be accidentally
short-circuited by birds, rodents, snakes, kite-strings, tree limbs, etc., or
reduced in insulation strength by ionisation due to lightning or a fire.
Organic insulation can deteriorate due to heat or ageing, or can be broken
down by overvoltage due to lightning, switching surges, etc. Porcelain
insulators can be bridged by moisture with dirt or salt and can become
cracked. In all these cases the initial lowering of insulation resistance causes
a small current to be diverted which hastens deterioration or ionisation,
causing this current further to increase in a progressive manner until a power
arc occurs. Furthermore, heavy faults, if not quickly interrupted, may heat
conductors sufficiently to cause deterioration of other insulation which was
previously in a healthy state.
Line and apparatus insulation may be subjected to transient overvoltages
whenever current is started or stopped. These surges are a component of the
'recovery' voltages and are analogous to 'water hammer' when a hydraulic
valve is suddenly closed. The most severe switching surges occur when
current which lags or leads the applied voltage by 90 degrees (such as short
circuit current or line charging current) is interrupted. During unloaded line
dropping on a grounded system, the line voltage may go to crest line-toneutral voltage on the first interruption; three times this value on the first
restrike; five times this value on the second restrike; and so on as the arc
restrikes on succeeding half cycles. The magnitude of these switching surges
is appreciably greater for systems that are not solidly grounded. Thus system
insulation may be subjected to serious overvoltages with breaker recovery
voltages that are still higher when line charging current is interrupted.
1.2. PROGRESS IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF RELAYS AND
PROTECTIVE SCHEMES
In the very eady days of the electrical industry a power system usually
consisted of a small generator supplying a local load and it was possible for
the station attendant, in an emergency, to open a switch manually and even
swat out the arc with a duster! Since these historic times the sizes of power
systems have increased enormously, the rate of increase for most countries
lying between a doubling and a quadrupling per decade. Furthermore,
industrialised countries and an increasing number of under-developed ones
have integrated their systems on a national basis and numerous cases of
substantial international connections are in evidence. With increases in the
sizes of a generating plant and inter-connection, great demands have been
made on the ingenuity of the designers of automatic switchgear. Such
apparatus must operate to interrupt very high arc energies in a small fraction
of a second if the equipment is to avoid destruction.
Fuses were the first automatic devices to be employed to isolate the faulted
equipment quickly. They were very effective and are still widely used in
2
Purpose of Protective Relays and Relaying
1.2
distribution circuits, but suffer from the disadvantage of requiring replacement before the power supply can be restored. This inconvenience was overcome by the automatic circuit-breaker with a built-in overload or undervoltage trip magnet. The final step was to divorce the selective function from
the breaker and to incorporate it in separate protective relays, whose contacts
controlled the trip coil of the breaker.
The first attempts to design relays which would operate in response to
short-circuit conditions involved attracted armature devices, with or without
a definite time-delay provided by a dash pot mechanism. As power systems
increased in size and complexity it was necessary to employ more precise
relay mechanism and to obtain selectivity on an inverse time-current basis,
i.e. the relay speed increasing with the current magnitude so that, since the
current is greatest in the faulted section, that section will be isolated by its
relays before those in the sound sections can operate. The only device then
available which had this required accuracy was the induction disc watthour meter which was turned into a relay by substituting contacts for the
indicating register. This resulted in the inverse time-overcurrent relay which
is still in use today, although in an improved form (fig. 1.1).
As the requirements for sensitivity and selectivity increased, a trend
emerged towards the use of high-speed differential type relays on the maio
FIG.
l.Ia. Modern induction disc relay
1.2
Protective Relays
FIG.
l.lb. Induction vane differential relay
transmission system, time-overcurrent relays being retained only for distribution systems and for back-up purposes (reserve protection) on the main
system. Differential relays compare electrical quantities derived from each
end of the protected system (e.g. a transmission line 10 miles long) and
operation takes place if the ratio, phase angle or algebraic sum of the derived
quantities depart by a predetermined amount from some initially set value,
for example, unity in the case of a differential relay measuring numerical
ratio.
The induction disc inverse time relay was introduced in the early 1920s
and the high-speed differential type in the late 19.20s. Initially, the differential
type also employed the induction disc principle but with short contact travel
and a lighter armature; the desire for high speed led to the balanced beam
unit but this was gradually displaced by the induction cup, which was a
faster version of the induction disc unit, its inertia having been reduced by
forming the disc into a narrow cup and its torque increased by better utilisation of the available flux in a 4-pole magnetic structure (fig. 1.2) similar to
that of an induction motor. Greater sensitivity and accuracy have been
achieved, particularly since the 1939-45 War, by the use of polarised d.c.
relays energised through rectifier bridges.
Detailed explanations of the principles of the various types of relays will
be given in later chapters; more complete historical accounts of the progress
4
FIG.
1.3
1.2. Induction cup unit
in the design of protective relays over the last 35 years can be found elsewhere (1). In the present chapter it is proposed to outline briefly the nature,
function and mode of operation of relays.
1.3. DEFINITIONS
Throughout the two volumes some terms will be used which are peculiar
to protective relays; these will be explained as they are brought into use.
The following terms, however, are common to all relays and protective
schemes and will be defined before proceeding further.
The word 'normal' refers to the healthy or unfaulted condition of the
protected circuit but, when used in connection with relay contacts, it implies
that the relay is not energised. For instance, a 'normally open' contact is one
which is open when the relay is not energised; it is also referred to as a circuitclosing contact, a make contact or an 'a' contact.
Only in the case of relays designed to operate on an excess condition, such
as overcurrent or overvoltage, would 'normal' position of the contact
correspond to normal operating conditions. For instance, in an undervoltage relay, a normally open contact is one which is open when the relay
is not energised whereas, under normal conditions of full voltage, this
contact would be closed.
A 'normally closed' contact is one which is closed when the relay is not
energised. It is also known as a circuit-opening contact, a break contact or a
'b' contact.
Most relays have a resetting means such as a spring or gravity. Most
protective relays have a normally open contact which is closed when the
relay trips; the following definitions refer to such relays and exclude undervoltage, undercurrent, etc., relays.
5
1.3
Protective Relays
All diagrams will show relays in the de-energised position and will be
drawn so that, when the relay operates, its contacts move upwards (as if
against gravity). Where it is inconvenient to draw the relay with its contacts
moving upwards they will be drawn moving to the left.
Relays are shown with their coils and contacts together where convenient.
In schematic diagrams of complicated circuits, the contacts may be separated
from the coils but they will be identified by a similar letter or number.
1.3.1. Glossary of Common Relay Terms
Operating Force
or Torque
Restraining Force
or Torque
Pick-up (Level)
That which tends to close the contacts of the relay.
That which opposes the operating force or torque and

tends to prevent the closure of the relay contacts.
The value of current or voltage, etc., which is the
threshold above which the relay will close its contacts.
Drop-out or Reset The value of current or voltage, etc., which is the
(Level)
threshold below which the relay will open its contacts
and return to normal position or state.
Characteristic (of a The locus of the pick-up or reset when drawn on a
relay in the
graph. In some relays the two curves are coincident and
become the locus of balance or zero torque.
steady-state)
One which is energised by the contacts of the main
Reinforcing Relay
relay and, with its contacts in parallel with those of the
main relay, relieves them of their current carrying duty.
The seal-in contacts are usually heavier than those of
the main relay.
Seal-in Relay
Similar to a reinforcing relay except connected to stay
until its coil circuit is interrupted by a switch on the
circuit breaker.
A relay which operates, usually after a slight delay, if
Back-up Relay
the normal relay does not operate to trip its circuit
breaker.
Primary Relays
Those which are connected directly in the protected
circuit.
Those which are connected to the protected circuit
Secondary Relays
through current transformers (c.t's) and potential
transformers (p.t's).
The ability of the relay to discriminate between a fault
Selectivity
in the protected section and normal conditions or a
fault elsewhere on the system.
The accuracy with which the relay can repeat its elecConsistency
trical or time characteristics.
An oscillation between groups of. synchronous a.c.
Power Swing
machines caused by an abrupt change in load conditions.
6
1.3
A visual device, usually spring or gravity operated, for

indicating the operation of a relay.
Instantaneous Relay One which has no intentional time delay and operates
in less than 01 second.
Time Delay Relay
One which is designed with a delaying means.
Unit
A self-contained relay unit which, in conjunction with
one or more other relay units in a relay case, constitutes a complete protective relay.
Element
A part of a relay unit, such as an electromagnet or
damping magnet or an induction disc.
Power Consumption The power absorbed by the circuits of the relay,
(Burden)
expressed in volt-amperes if alternating current (a.c.)
and in watts if direct current (d.c.), at the rated current
or voltage.
Operating time
The time which elapses from the moment when the
actuating quantity attains a value equal to the pick-up
value until the relay operates its contacts.
Reach
The remote limit of the zone of protection provided by
the relay; used mostly in connection with distance
relays to indicate how far along a line the tripping zone
of the relay extends.
Errors in relay measurement resulting in wrong operaOverreach,'
underreach
tion or failure to operate, respectively.
Blocking
Preventing the protective relay from tripping, either
due to its own characteristic or to an additional
relay.
Tapped Line
One which has one or more tapped lines connected to
it for supplying loads.
Multi-terminal
One with three or more terminals which can be power
Line
sources.
Flag or Target
An interesting reference is the I.E.C. document on definitions for the

technical committee No. 41 on protective relays.
1.3.2. Vectors
An electrical vector (phasor) has magnitude and phase relation. Phase

relation means the time in a cycle relative to a reference moment. Current
vectors are standardised in meaning but there is some divergence in the interpretation of potential vectors. In this book Va or Van will be taken as the
voltage of the phase a conductor relative to the neutral and Vab will be taken
as the voltage of the phase a conductor relative to the phase b conductor,
i.e. Vab = Van - Vbn . The arrowhead will be drawn at the end of the vector
corresponding to the conductor under consideration (fig. 1.3a). Voltage drop
(1Z) will be drawn with the arrowhead in the other direction.
7
1.3
Protective Relays
Actually it does not matter whether this or the reverse concept of potential
vectors is used because the same result is obtained as long as the method
chosen is used consistently.
E is used for e.m.f. and V for terminal voltage. In mathematical equations
Vmax and I max are peak values and V and I are r.m.s values. Moduli are shown
thus IVI. Currents are shown in vector diagrams with a white or hollow
arrowhead. Potentials are shown with black or solid arrowheads. Figure 1.3a
shows the relative potentials in a three-phase four-wire system.
v.
I.
t
Zero or
reference
>----~.
(a) NormClI pha.se-to-neutra.1

potentia,is
FIG.
'I,
(b) La.gging loo.d
currents
Vo.
(c) Pha.se-to -pha.se
delta. potentia.ls
]- --[--
1.3a-<:. Vectors representing balanced conditions in a four-wire system
FIG.
~ II t
1.3d. Subtractive polarity in a c.t. or p.t.
c.t. and p.t. polarity will be assumed to be subtractive, i.e. with the
polarity marks at the same end of the primary and secondary windings, the
polarity will be such that the direction of the currents in the circuit will be
the same with the transformer removed (fig. 1.3b) and the circuit completed
by the dotted lines. Normal phase rotation of vectors is taken as anti-clockwise with positive sequence vectors coming up in the order a, b, c and negative
sequence a, c, b.
1.3.3. Vector Operators (141)
The operator 'j' moves a vector 90 degrees forward (anti-clockwise)

without changing its magnitude. The operator 'a' moves a vector forward
120 degrees without changing its magnitude.
The use of the operator 'a' considerably simplifies the vector algebra of a
three-phase system, especially when dealing with symmetrical components.
Fig. 1.4 shows how 'a' can be used for 30 degree phase angle shifts. The
following table gives the relations between functions of a, j, 88 and phase
shift.
8
1.3

TABLE
1.1
Vectorial Operators
Function of
Operator
Equivalent
Operator
Exponential
Equivalent
Algebraic
Equivalent
.2n
elT
a2
a2
. V3
-t+J2
V-t-j-l-
.2"
-13
eO
a3
.2"
1
a
a2
e-IT
l+a
- a2
el3
."
e - I3
1+ a2
-a
al
-a2
el3
a- l
-a
e - 13
I- a
V3 a- l
1- a2
V3 a l
v3e l 6
a - a2
V3 at
elz
.n
.n
v3e - 16
."
.n
e-
."Z
V3 at
a2 + a
- 1
[;irr
a2 + 1
-a
[; - 1:3
a+ 1
- a2
[;13
.n
.n
Sn
vt -J
. -3
2
v-
J6ijO
V3130
It +
V3130
vj-f
V3190
- j V3
V3'190
-1
1180
V3
t-j-y
160
. v:3
t+J-y
160
v-1 t +J. 2 3
V31150
-V3 at
v3 -1'6
a - a2
1
-at
V3
1
."
V3 e - l 2'
V. -3
-1 t - J
2
1
j V3
-1
- e irr
-1
1
a + a2
.Sn
J6ijO
j V3
v. 3
-JT
v1t -J. 2 3
t
v3 e l '6
a2
11200
-V3 a- l
a-I
11200
t+j~
2
t+j~
2
.n
V. 3
-J-y
V-
.n
a2
1120
100
Trigonometric
Equivalent
v31150
1 _
V3 19O
1180
1.4
Protective Relays
FIG.
1.4. Simple functions of the operator 'a'
t.4. THE NATURE OF A RELAY
Protective relays have been called sentinels and electric brains. From the
economic point of view, relays are akin to insurance; they protect the power
utility from financial loss due to damage to equipment (fig. 1.5a). From the
underwriters' point of view they prevent accidents to personnel and minimise
damage to equipment. From the customers' point of view good service
depends more upon adequate relaying than upon any other equipment. The
cost of this protection is between 1 and 2 % of the total cost of the power
system, i.e. equivalent to an insurance premium costing about 01 %per year,
assuming 15 years before replacement due to obsolescence (3).
In the dictionary, four definitions of relays will be found which deal with
foot races, post coaches, etc., but none even remotely fits this application.
A protective relay is a device which responds to abnormal conditions on an
electrical power system to contrpl a circuit breaker, so as to isolate the faulty
section of the system with the minimum interruption to service. To do this,
relays must be able to decide promptly which circuit breakers are to trip in
order to isolate only the faulted section(s). These relays must be designed,
therefore, to be responsive to electrical quantities which are different during
normal and abnormal conditions.
10
1.4
The basic electrical quantities which may change in the transition from
healthy to faulty conditions are current, voltage, direction, power factor
(phase angle) and frequency. It is generally necessary to provide relays responsive to more than one of these quantities because, for instance, the current in
a fault during minimum generation conditions may be less than the normal
load current during maximum generation. As another example, the power
FIG.
1.5a. Protective relays can prevent this
factor measured by the relay may be as low during a power swing as during a
fault. Sometimes all of the above quantities may have to be used to obtain
selectivity; furthermore, in the case of an a.c. railway, several heavy trains
starting up together may present current, voltage and power factor so similar
to that of a fault that an additional function is necessary, the rate-of-rise of
current, which is instantaneous for a fault but incremental or slower for
normal service conditions.
Whereas the main requirement of -instrumentation is sustained accuracy,
the most important requisite of protective relays is reliability since they may
supervise a circuit for years before a fault occurs; if a fault then happens,
the relay must respond instantly and correctly. For this reason the designers
should always attempt to use simple constructions and simple connections of
relays. In spite of good intentions in this respect, there is a tendency to extend
the operation of relay schemes by adding additional features until complexity
11
1.5
Protective Relays
results .and then it becomes necessary to re-design. In other words, a graph

of the progress of relay engineering as regards complexity tends to follow
a sawtooth shape.
For example, a simple way to protect a circuit is to compare the current
entering the circuit with the current leaving it by means of a relay in which
torques corresponding to the two currents are opposed so that, if either
exceeds the other, it indicates diversion of the current through a shortcircuit and hence warrants relay operation. This simple principle soon becomes complicated because of transient magnetic conditions, such as the
inrush of exciting current to a power transformer, which appear on one side
of the circuit only and would cause relay operation if discriminatory blocking
features were not added. Such a blocking feature, called harmonic restraint,
sometimes has to be unblocked because harmonics may appear during fault
conditions which demand tripping. Where possible, a principle is chosen to
avoid such complications.
1.5. FUNCTION AND MODE OF OPERATION OF A RELAY
From the foregoing it can be seen that protective relays do the work of an
untiring supervisor, continuously measuring the electrical quantities of the
protected circuit and ready to disconnect the circuit immediately when the
value of one of those quantities becomes abnormal. Actually, no human being
could approach the constant alertness of a relay, nor its speed of action, nor
its reliability and accuracy. For example, a reactance type distance relay for
a transmission line disconnects the line from the bus if a fault occurs within
its protecting zone and not if a fault occurs outside that zone. To do this it
measures the reactance of the line between itself and the fault, i.e. it measures
the current, voltage and phase angle, and computes
WI sin tP correctly to
within 2 %and closes its contacts (or not, depending upon the location of
the fault), and a modem relay (fig. 1.2) will do this in an overall time of
20-40 milliseconds. Three men reading meters and a fourth with a slide rule
could do the same thing within 5 %in about a minute, which is 3,000 times
as slow and less than half the accuracy.
In order to keep the size and cost of relays to reasonable values, the
enormous currents and voltages of the actual primary circuit are reduced to
relatively small values by current transformers (c.t's) and potential transformers (p.t's). The p.t's are often referred to as v.t.s, voltage transformers,
in British practice. The relays measure these secondary electrical quantities
and operate when the magnitude of one of them is abnormal or when the
ratio between two of them is abnormal. In electromagnetic relays, the
measurements are made by means of electromagnets which exert force on an
armature carrying contacts; static circuits using semi-conductors, thermionic
and cold-cathode tubes or magnetic amplifiers may also be used although not
all of these are equally attractive.
12
1.6
All protective relays have two positions, the normal position, usually with
their contact circuit open, and the fault position usually with their contact
circuit closed. A relay is changed to the fault position when a fault occurs by
the preponderance of abnormal operating quantities (such as overcurrent)
over normal restraining quantities (such as voltage or through-fault current).
Fig. l.Sb shows schematically the basic connections of a relay to the trip
coil of the circuit breaker which controls the power supply to the protected
circuit. When the relay contacts close, the high L/ R ratio of the trip coil delays
a ____~~------~s~~
~t~
io~
n ~b~
u .~.----------~
b --~-+----------------------~rPotential
tran,formus
(P.T:.)
>0."1"
;;:
d
~I
al'
O-+-----.J T
Current
trMsforme r
(C.T.)
S"conda.r~
potentIa l bus
FIG.
1.5b. Basic connections of a protective relay
the build-up of current so that a fast breaker is tripped before the current
reaches its steady value. For this reason, and because the duration of the
trip coil current is only a few cycles, the relay contacts need have a continuous
rating of only 5 amperes and yet operate a 30 ampere trip coil SO times without needing maintenance.
After the breaker has tripped, its auxiliary switch (marked a in fig. l.Sb)
opens the highly inductive trip coil circuit and the relay can reset when deenergised by the opening of the breaker. It is important however that the
relay contacts do not chatter while the trip current is flowing, otherwise they
will be badly burned. This is ensured either by non-bounce design or by the
use of a magnetic hold-in coil on the relay or by a separate relay, known as a
seal-in relay, which is discussed in section 1.10.2 of this chapter.
1.6. IMPORTANT REQUIREMENTS
The primary requirements for relays are reliability and selectivity. How
these are achieved in the relays themselves is explained in a later chapter, but
the first step is to make these conditions possible by locating the relays in the
correct places. Referring to fig. 1.6, it will be seen that, in order to have complete protection, the zones of protection given by each relay must overlap so
as to leave no unprotected areas. Furthermore, fig. 1.8 shows that there must
13
1.6
Protective Relays
be a first and second line of defence to cope with the possibility of failure of
the relay or the circuit breaker at anyone location. This is important because,
even with the greatest care in manufacture and installation, it is never possible
entirely to eliminate the possibility of a mistake or a defect in a mechanism
such as a trip coil and linkage which has been overlooked in maintenance.
~ [SQJ1-~""-.'~-'
[~l ~
r--+i=
u,,'_
=J
t---+-++---'
r-I I II
~--f
I
FIG.
L,n. ,.'o.y zone
1.6a. Zones of protection overlapping to avoid blind spots
G.nero.tor tro.nslormrr
..1------, r.lo.y
Bus zonr
rrlo.y
To
line
relo.y
FIG.
To
lin.
r.lo.y
1.6b. Locations of c.ts to provide overlapping zones of protection
Without back-up protection, a short-circuit in a line or piece of equipment

would not clear at all and might result in the destruction of the equipment.
Other important properties of a relay or relay schemes are sensitivity,
speed and positive action, these being matters of design. Sensitivity gives high
performance with low cost c.t's and p.t's. Speed minimises damage and risk
of instability because both are functions of time. Positive action. eliminates
the risk of contact burning, wrong tripping, or failure to trip.
14
1.8
1.7. ECONOMICS OF RELAYING
The cost of protective relays is generally extremely small (t to 2 %) compared with the cost of the equipment protected; this is particularly true in the
case of generators, transformers and high tension lines. In spite of this there
is a tendency to treat protection not as a small percentage insurance charge
but as separate item and then to pick the cheapest relay or relay scheme.
Considering the saving in repair cost afforded by high-grade, high-speed
relaying compared with cheaper slow-speed arrangements, it astonishes many
engineers that the best protection is not always chosen; the cost of one major
repair to a generator for instance would be many times the cost of the best
protective relay schemes. Similarly, the cost of one day's loss of production
in a copper mine or oil refinery may exceed the cost of adequate relaying.
On the other hand, unnecessarily expensive and complex protectitm schemes
are sometimes used for important lines so that the likelihood of an outage
due to trouble in the protective gear may be comparable with the likelihood
of an actual fault.
It is the duty of the Application Engineer to choose the most economical
scheme which will give complete protection and isolate faults selectively in the
shortest possible time. Good electrical service, i.e. continuity of supply, depends to a great extent on adequate protection. This is sometimes difficult to
achieve because of the tendency of system planners to relegate the relaying
considerations until the system arrangement has been decided on and the
equipment ordered; this often creates conditions that make it almost impossible to find anything on which the relay can base its selective measurement.
In most cases, if the Relay Engineer had been invited to attend some of the
meetings, he could have suggested some minor modifications for the layout
which would have provided much better protection with negligible increase in
cost or loss of flexibility. In short, Protection must be Considered before the
Power System Layout is Finalised.
1.8. MAIN AND BACKUP PROTECTION (106)
Fig. 1.7 shows the basic elements of an electric power system. Electric
power is usually generated at voltages between 11 kV and 33 kV since this
gives the most economical balance between the cost of copper, the cost of
insulation and the cost of mechanical strength to resist centrifugal force.
The voltage at the generator terminals is stepped up to a higher voltage, such
as 132 kV, the precise value chosen being the one to give minimum cost and
running losses dependent on the line length, power to be transmitted, etc.
At the load, there is a further transformation down to a voltage of a few kV
suitable for distribution, and again to a still lower voltage (usually 110
to 440 volts) for the ultimate consumers, i.e. industrial and residential
loads.
In order to isolate any of this equipment in case of trouble, each item
must be separated from the others on each side of it by a circuit breaker.
The relays themselves must be connected to trip only the breakers next to the
15
1.8
Protective Relays
01 unit per mile

a.t 132 KV
Alterna.tor
1 unit
GenerMion
0 '1 unit pcr MW including
boilus etc.
Ca.ble
3'3 KV
Hotel., houses etc.
lYRica.l cost 01 500 MW sy',tom

~g co.lol build Ing
55 units lor genera.t ion
18 unIt. lor tra.nsmission
27 units for distribution
100 unih tota.l
(1 unit. 100,000 in 1960)
FIG.
1.7. Cost of electrical equipment
protected unit, and, as previously stated, the zone of protection of each relay
must overlap the zones of the adjacent relays (fig. 1.6a) to ensure that there
are no dead spots. Fig. 1.6b shows how these results can be achieved by the
proper location of each C.t.
These relays are the main relays. In addition to this first line of defence
there must be a second line of defence provided by back-up relays, which
will clear the fault if the primary relays for some reason fail to operate
(fig. l.H). This subject wIll be dealt with in detaIl in Chapter 12, but a broad
explanation is helpful at this point.
Bus B
BusC
Nci!lhbouring~:t-~~:--i
Circuit
,--
~----------~I~~~~~==~~~-------
I
I Fa.at locaJ protection a.t B
Rela.y A
Rela.y I B
x = Brea.ker
I
FIG.
1.8. Back-up relays
There are three kinds of back-up relays:

(a) those which trip the same breaker if the main relay fails (Relay
Back-up);
(b) those which open the next nearest breakers on the same bus in case
one of the local breakers fails to open (Breaker Back-up), or in case
there is a failure of the local secondary current or potential supplies
or the a.c. wiring;
(c) those which operate from a neighbouring station so as to back-up both
16
1.9
relays and breakers and their supplies (Remote Back-up) in case of

the failure of any local supply including the battery, or in case a
circuit breaker or relay fails to function.
Relay back-up means literally the duplication of the main relays and
their c.t's and p.t's, etc., but usually a compromise is employed resulting in
the addition of a simple relay such as a time-overcurrent relay. The best
relay back-up is a device using an entirely different principle, such as the
gas detector relay in a transformer.
Breaker back-up is necessary when a feeder breaker fails to trip on a fault
(fig. 1.9) because the feeder fault then becomes virtually a busbar fault. It
F
@H
~
.
____ _
-----FIG.
1.9. Failure of breaker to clear a fault
usually consists of a time-delay relay operated by the main relays and connected to trip all the other breakers on the bus if the proper breaker has not
tripped within a half second after its trip coil was energised.
Remote back-up is provided by a relay at the next station in the direction
towards the source (fig. 1.6) which trips in a delayed time if the breaker in
the faulted section is not tripped. It usually consists of an inverse time-current
relay or by the second and third zones of a distance relay. This i~ the most
widely used form of back-up protection.
1.9. RECLOSING (4) (70)
In cases where continuity of service cannot be maintained by quickly

isolating the faulted circuit from the system, automatic reclosing relays are
used to reconnect the circuit so that, if the fault is a transient one, the system
is returned to normal operation.
Automatic reclosing is used mostly on overhead transmission and distribution lines because there is statistical evidence that 90 % of the faults on
such lines are caused by lightning or by objects passing near or through the
lines (birds, vines, tree branches, etc.). These conditions result in arcing faults
which can be extinguished by opening the circuit breakers to de-energise the
line. Reclosing immediately the fault arc has been interrupted is hence a
practical means of minimising the interruption to service, especially at unattended stations.
Where there is only one transmission line between an important load and
its power source, single pole switching is used, i.e. interrupting and reclosing only the faulted phase so that power is never completely cut off.
The combination of high-speed tripping and high-speed reclosing is
nearly equivalent (as far as disturbance to the rest of the power system is
concerned) to the ideal condition of eliminating faults.
B
17
1.10
Protective Relays
On high voltage lines where most faults are caused by lightning and where
contact with trees, etc., is unlikely, a single instantaneous reclosure is used.
Tests on high-voltage systems have shown that reclosure in 12 cycles is
practical, the period depending upon the time necessary to dissipate the
ionised air at the fault. Fast reclosing limits the phase separation of synchronous machines while the breaker is open and hence reduces the power
oscillation which follows reclosure.
On low voltage systems the fault may be caused by physical objects, such
as tree branches and vines, which may require one or more reclosures to
burn them clear. The usual procedure has been to reclose three times at
intervals of between 15 to 120 seconds. If the breaker reopens after the third
reclosure, the relay equipment locks it open, and it becomes necessary to
reclose by hand. Four automatic tripouts of the breaker in succession must
certainly indicate permanent damage on the feeder, such as a broken wire, a
wire down on a tower or on the ground or other trouble which should be
cleared before again energising the circuit. This will not be considered in
detail because it is outside the subject of protection.
1.10. OTHER RELAY FUNCTIONS
Relays of the same types as those used for protection are also used for
control and regulation. For instance, a voltage relay with both normally
open and normally closed contacts can be used for progressive tap changing
to keep the voltage between desired limits. The same principle may also be
used for control of other quantities such as frequency or reactive kVA.
It is probable in the future that protection and automatic control of
power systems will be done together and that eventually power systems will
be entirely automatic and both controlled and protected by static equipment.
1.10.1. Circuit Breaker Control
Fig. 1.11 shows a typical scheme which is known in the U.S.A. as the
X-V scheme. It is 'trip-free', i.e. it permits the circuit breaker to be tripped
by the protective relay even if the manual push-button C is held closed after
the breaker is closed on a faulted circuit. It also prevents 'pumping', i.e.
alternate tripping and closing if the closing button is held closed during a
fault.
The manual push-button switch C energises the contactor X which in turn
energises the breaker closing coil CC. When the breaker has closed, the
breaker auxiliary switch 'a' closes and 'b' opens, so that the release contactor
Y short-circuits the coil of contactor X and the closing coil is de-energised.
If the breaker is tripped by the protective relay PR it cannot reclose until C
is opened and Y resets.
1.10.2. Seal-in and Flag Arrangements
Operation indicators have a flag or target normally hidden by a shield

which is released when the relay is operated, exposing the flag. Alternatively,
18
1.10
/ r(a)
Remote a.la.rm
,!~-
+0
Protective Auxil ia.ry

Trip'
rela.y (P. R.) switch
cOil
MECHANICAL FLAG
Shunt or series sea.l-in rela.y required where trip coil current
excuds 5 a.mps (one for 3 pha.ses)
+o---~
P.R.
(b)
Aux.sw.
SHUNT REINFORCING WITH FLAG

Trip circuit sea.ls in until rela.y resets
Sea.l-in a.nd /Ia.g

(c)
Trip'
coli
Aux. sw.
Trip
coil
SERIES SEAL-IN WITH FLAG

Trip circuit sea.led In unttl brea.ker opens
FIG.
1.10. Operation indicators and seal-in relays
+~)-~~llp-.R.--~------~JI-
Y.
T.C.
C.C.
FIG. 1.11. The X-Y scheme for circuit-breaker control

C.C. = closing coil; T.C. = trip coil; X = closing contactor; a, b= breaker
auxiliary switches; Y = release relay for X; C = closing switch (manual);
T = tripping switch (manual); P.R. = protective relay
All contacts are shown in the de-energised position
the shield may be stationary and the flag may appear from behind it. The
release of the flag latch may be done mechanically by movement of the
armature of the relay or electrically by a solenoid when the relay contacts
close. It is restored manually by a station attendant after the relay operation
has been recorded, usually by a push rod in the relay case or cover.
There are a number of points in favour of an electrical operation indicator. It assists standardisation because mechanical ones cannot be used
with delicate or high-speed relays nor with relays having two units both of
19
1.11
Protective Relays
which have to operate to cause tripping; the electrical operation indicator

simplifies relay application problems because it can be used with all types of
relays. It is also preferable to the mechanical operation indicator because it
indicates that the relay has caused the trip coil to be energised whereas the
mechanical operation indicator merely indicates movement of the relay
armature: finally, it is very difficult to release the mechanical operation indicator at exactly the same moment that the contacts meet and thus there is a
risk of the one happening without the other.
The series electrical operation indicator is shown on the left side of the
relay in fig. 1.1. Fig. 1.10 shows typical connections of series and shunt sealin relays.
The electrical operation indicator is often combined with an auxiliary
contactor to provide extra contacts for other functions such as remote alarm.
One pair of its contacts is connected across the main relay contacts so as to
by-pass the trip current from them and thus minimises maintenance on the
contacts of the protective relay, which are sometimes critically adjusted for
precise performance. Maintenance on the seal-in relay contacts is easier
because it is a simple 'go' or 'no-go' device. The seal-in feature prevents the
protective relay contacts from interrupting the trip-coil current if the relay
resets before the breaker auxiliary switch interrupts it.
1.11. DUALITY IN THE ANALYSIS OF RELAY CHARACTERISTICS
In both volumes, frequent use is made of the concept of duality as an

economical and facile aid to analysis. The topic is mentioned at this stage
because it has been largely neglected hitherto in relay engineering. The
concept of duality is based upon geometry, vector algebra and tensor analysis,
but a knowledge of the latter is not necessary to understand duality in relays.
Examples of duality in relay circuits and power system analysis are:
mesh current
open-circuited terminals
constant potential
(Thevenin's theorem)
series resistance
inductance
capacitance
shunt resistance
inductance
capacitance
relay circuits based on
blocking
balanced voltage
amplitude comparison
the fuse
nodal potential
short-circuited terminals
constant current
(Norton's theorem)
shunt conductance
capacitance
inductance
series conductance
capacitance
inductance
tripping
circulating current
phase comparison
the surge diverter
(lightning arrestor)
20
1.12
Not all of these dual relationships are obvious but they will be explained
in the ensuing chapters. A very common case of duality in relay engineering
is that the inverse of a circular characteristic passing through the origin of an
impedance diagram is a straight line not passing through the origin on an
admittance diagram.
1.12. CLASSIFICATION OF RELAY SCHEMES
A protective relay scheme consists of one relay or a group of relays which

protect a section of line or piece of equipment against faults (9). The most
common schemes are the following:
1.12.1. Time-Overcurrent Relaying
This scheme is used on most low voltage distribution networks. It takes

advantage of the fact that, when one section of a network develops a fault,
current flows into it via the remaining healthy sections so that the faulty
section has the most current.
If the overcurrent relays are provided with damping (fig. l.la) their
operating time will be inversely proportional to the current magnitude and
the relay nearest the fault will work fastest because it has the most current
and hence will open its breaker and clear the fault before any of the more
remote relays can do so.
An alternative to inverse time-current relays is definite time relays.
Because their time is fixed, irrespective of current magnitude, such relays
have to be graded in time. This is practical on radial lines or loops but the
inverse relay is preferable for complex networks.
1.12.2. Directional Relays
In certain equipment, such as generators, power will always flow outwards except if the generator has developed a fault or has lost its driving
source, so that it is motoring and drawing power from the network. Such a
condition is detected by a directional relay which closes its contacts for power
(or a component ofkVA at a suitable angle) flowing in an abnormal direction
(fig. 1.2).
Directional relays are also used to control time-overcurrent relays where
the power sources are so located that as much current passes through
the relay for an external fault as for an internal fault in the circuit it is
protecting.
Such relays work on the product of the circuit current and potential. If the
product is positive, let us say, the torque closes the relay contacts; if negative,
it holds them open. Thus the relay can be arranged to trip only when the
current flows out from the bus. Consequently, by connecting a directional
relay in series with each overcurrent relay only the relays at the two ends of
the faulty section will operate, thus isolating the fault without disturbing the
other lines.
Overcurrent and directional relays are discussed in detail in Chapter 4.
21
1.13
Protective Relays
1.12.3. Distance Protection
Where time delay is undesirable distance relays are often used. For a line
section of given impedance ZL the current flowing through the section to a
fault will produce a voltage V = IZL Hence, if the relay compares V with 1
and is arranged to trip when V < IZ, it in effect measures Z =
-r
Since Z is
proportional to the length of line (5) the relay can be set to trip only for
faults within the protected section of line (fig. 1.2).
Selectivity is much easier to obtain with distance relays than with overcurrent relays because their reach is unaffected by current variation due to
changes in generating conditions and system switching.
1.12.4. Unit Protection
The most positive method of protecting a circuit is to arrange relays to

compare the currents entering and leaving it (fig. 1.1 b), which should be the
same under normal conditions and during an external fault. Any difference
current must be flowing into a fault within the protected circuit.
When this system is applied to electrical equipment it is called differential
current protection. When it is applied to lines or cables it is called pilot
differential protection because pilot wires or an equivalent link or channel is
required to bring the current to the relay from the remote end of the line.
Since unit protection operates only for faults within the protected circuit,
back-up protection must be provided which is inherent in time-current and
distance schemes.
1.12.5. Balanced Current Protection
Parallel circuits of the same impedance should normally carry the equal
currents. A fault in one circuit will increase the current in that circuit and
operate a relay that compares the two currents. In the case of two parallel
lines this is called 'current balance' or 'balanced current protection'. In the
case of a generator with split windings it is called transverse differential
current protection.
1.13. PRACTICAL APPLICATION OF RELAY SCHEMES
These schemes, their variations and methods of application are discussed

in detail in later chapters. Chapter 2 describes the various types of relays that
can be used to produce these characteristics, and Chapter 3 their operating
characteristics.
1.13.1. Current Transformers
In order that a relay may be selective it must measure electrical quantities

in the protected circuit accurately, and this means that c.t's and p.t's must
maintain their ratio over a wide range of conditions. The ability of a c.t. to
do this depends upon the impedance of the relay and lead wiring that is
connected across it. The higher this impedance is the bigger the iron-circuit
22
1.13
of the c.t. must be to cope with the IZ voltage across the load. Hence in the
interest of economy of C.t. cost and space requirements the lead runs must be
short and the relays must be sensitive, i.e. the power they require to close
their contacts firmly under borderline conditions must be as little as possible.
The power required to operate the relay is called the relay burden. In
the U.K. it is expressed as the volt-amperes (VA) at pick-up and this is an
index to the sensitivity of the relay and is a constant value irrespective of
the rating.
In the U.S.A. the relay burden is usually given as VA at C.t. rated current
or impedance at rated current. The latter gives no idea of the relays sensitivity
but enables the total burden on the c.t. to be calculated more easily, especially
if the relay saturates below C.t. rating.
Nowadays in all countries there is a tendency to provide a curve of relay
current circuit impedance over a range of current and this enables the C.t.
performance to be calculated at short-circuit currents that are expected in the
protected circuit. In particular it enables the c.t. secondary voltage to be
calculated at maximum fault current so that a suitable C.t. can be chosen.
Where the relays are remote from the c.t's the burden due to the leads will
be high and, in order to have a C.t. of reasonable size, it is often desirable to
use a lower secondary current rating. In the U.S.A. 5 ampere c.t's are almost
standard and sometimes they are very large; in the U.K. 1 ampere or even
t ampere c.t.s are used which is bad for standardisation of c.t's and relays
but results in a more economical design.
It is important to design test-gear and switchboard components so that
there is no risk of open-circuiting the secondary of a c.t. because in this condition it can produce an extremely high secondary voltage which may break
down the insulation and destroy the c.t. This is because, although the C.t.
iron may saturate at a sinusoidal secondary voltage of a few hundred, the rate
of change of flux near the zero points of the cycle can produce enormous
voltage peaks.
In later chapters and in volume II the subject of C.t. behaviour is considered in more detail.
1.13.2. Potential Transformers
Magnetic p.t's usually have a VA capacity which is more than sufficient to

maintain their ratio with ordinary relay burdens. Their accuracy decreases
at low voltages but is acceptable down to about 1 % of normal. Capacitor
type p.t's of the voltage divider type have less good performance and, with
rated burden, have an error of the order of 5 % and 5 at 3 % of normal
v:oltage. In short, the secondary potential supply seldom creates any problem
but the secondary current supply frequently does.
23
2
Belay IJeSigD alUl (;oD8tructioD
Characteristics-Choice of Measuring Units-Construction of Measuring
Units-Construction of Timing Units-Details of Design-Cases-Panel
Mounting-Operation Indicative-Finishes
N the design of a protective relay, the first stage is to select the characI teristics
which will give the clearest distinction between faults in the
protected section and all other conditions. Fig. 2.1, for example, shows an
R/X diagram on which the characteristic circle of a mho relay fits around a
x
FllUlt in l~ll~n9 pha.sc
)( Fllult in Ill99in9 pha.s~
------~~----~~~---,
FIG.
2.1. Characteristic of a mho relay enclosing the possible fault impedances

(shown shaded)
shaded area which includes the impedances (including arc resistance) for all
positions of fault within the protected zone; with such a characteristic the
relay will not trip during power swings, or on faults other than those in the
protected section and involving the phase with which the relay is associated
(47) (58),
The second stage is to choose a suitable relay construction; the third is
to design the movement for the utmost reliability so that it will operate
correctly even under the most adverse conditions. These three stages will be
considered first of all in the light of general requirements, and then in terms
of practical execution. The industrial trend is towards standardised designs
24
Relay Design and Construction
2.1
KIAI2_K'IBI2+ IAIIBICos (-B) =0
FIG.
2.2. Characteristic of any relay comparing two vector quantities A and B
of movement which can be applied as appropriate to meet the required

characteristics of protection gear systems.
2.1. GENERAL REQUIREMENTS
The characteristics should be chosen and plotted so as to provide the

greatest amount of information in the fewest possible curves. They should
show clearly the conditions for tripping and blocking and, where pertinent,
the times of operation under various operating conditions.
2.1.1. Factors Affecting Design and Construction
(a) The characteristic of the relay must be such that it always operates for
the type of fault which it is intended to protect against, and not for
any other conditions.
(b) The relay must have a range of adjustment to permit it to operate
selectively with other relays.
(c) It should meet the specifications of the country where it is to be used.
(d) A relay must be immune from transient effects, e.g. drop in voltage,
peak currents, d.c. signals and harmonics. This applies particularly to
high-speed relays.
(e) The construction should be simple and accessible, so as to facilitate
maintenance.
(f) The wiring and terminal arrangement should facilitate testing and the
tracing of faults.
(g) The construction should facilitate the making of minor modifications
to meet unusual conditions of temperature, humidity, corrosive
atmospheres, vibration, mechanical shock, etc.
2.1.2. Reliability
The most important consideration in the design of a relay is reliability,

which should be in the designer'S mind when making every decision. Simplicity of construction and circuitry makes reliability of operation easier to
achieve. The most important constructional feature in this respect is contact
pressure, since the main purpose of a protective relay is to close its contacts
25
2.2
Protective Relays
effectively and correctly, even under adverse conditions and in the event of
inadequate maintenance having been carried out (l05).
It must be remembered that a relay spends at least 99999% of its life
stationary, during which time there is a tendency for contacts and bearings to
deteriorate so that, when a fault does occur, the relay may not be able to
respond properly unless it is designed with these conditions in mind.
80me of the general rules which are followed by most responsible
manufacturers are:
(a) The use of wire not less than 0002 in. diameter; the proper support
and wrapping of the beginning and end wires and their junctions to
the external leads (see Coil Design, section 2.6.9).
(b) Design for maximum torque/friction ratio in order to promote
accuracy and avoid 'sticking' after long periods of non-operation (see
Bearings and Backstops, sections 2.6.1 and 2.6.2) or failure to trip
due to contact corrosion.
(c) Design for minimum contact maintenance; for this the contacts should
be bounce-proof since otherwise arcing, with consequent pitting of the
silver, will ensue (see Bounce-proof Contacts, section 2.6.4).
2.2. RELAY CHARACTERISTICS
To recognise a faulty circuit most electrical protective relays measure the

current entering the protected circuit and compare it in magnitude and/or
phase relation with some other convenient quantity; these include the current
emerging from the protected circuit, the local bus-bar voltage and constant
quantities such as gravity of the force of a calibrated spring. It follows that
such relays must be able to carry out addition, subtraction, multiplication and
division of scalar and vector quantities, as required. In some cases these
electrical quantities are compared in more than one phase, or more than one
circuit.
The purpose of this chapter is to consider the various devices which are
capable of measuring and comparing electrical quantities. Since the two input
quantities can produce torque singly or in co-operation, the equation for the
characteristic of the relay at the threshold of operation under steady state
conditions, when plotted on a diagram whose axes are
I~I
cos tP and
jl~l sin rp, must be of the form

(2.1)
KIAI2-K'IBI 2 +IAIIBlcos(4)-8)-K'' = 0
where A and B are the two electrical quantities which are being compared,
K and K' are scalar constants, K W is a constant representing a bias which
would take the form of a mechanical restraint in an electromagnetic relay,
4> is the phase angle between A and B, 8 is a fixed predetermined angle, e.g.
in an electromagnetic relay 8 is the value of tP which provides maximum
relay torque.
26
2.3
The equation (2.1) represents all the circular and straight-line characteristics which can be obtained from any two-input relay.
This equation is applicable to most of the common types of relay and
simplifies the explanation of their operation and characteristic curves (as
shown in fig. 2.4).
K" is finite only in single quantity relays where it is used as a level indicator; it is made substantially zero in relays that compare two input quantities
and in this case the equation represents a circle or a straight line on a complex plane (polar diagram). This can be demonstrated by rewriting equation
(2.1), making K" = 0 and dividing throughout by K'A2:
K
K'
_1~12
A
I~ICOS(</>-(}) = 0
A
(2.2)
K'
Moving the :, term to the right hand side and adding
(~,) 2 to each side,
equation (2.2) becomes
(2.3)
I~r -I~I cos ~,- (}) + 12~T = :' + 12~T

Equation
IBI
. 'I'""
A sm
(2.3) represents a circle on a complex plane having I~I cos </> and
as co-ordmates, th e ra dIUS b
emg
and the centre being at
JK + 11 12 J1+4KK'
K'
2K' =
2K'
2~' from the origin at an angle () from the reference
axis, as in fig. 2.2. The axes of the steady state characteristic diagram have
been designated
I~I p and j I~I q for I~I cos </> and j I~I sin </> respectively.
This will be discussed more fully in Chapter 3.

In the case of distance relays A will be current and B voltage; the coordinates of the diagram will be
WI cos </> and j WI sin </>,
in other words
R andjX.
2.3. CHOICE OF MEASURING UNIT
In broad terms protective relays are in two categories of construction,

(a) those which are wholly electromagnetic or electrothermal, in which the
comparison or measurement is done by the relay itself by balancing two forces

or magnetic fluxes and (b) using a static comparator in which the comparison
is done in a static circuit by comparing two or more currents or voltages and
feeding the resultant output into a slave device which takes the required
action. The slave devices are at present electromagnetic relays but, when
static devices of adequate capacity and reasonable price become available,
such as controlled silicon rectifiers, they will enable wholly static relays to be
27
Protective Relays
2.3
ATTRACTED ARMATURE RELAYS
-a
00
Pol(1t1sc:d
Ba.la.nccd
P lung e r
b~a.m
MOVING COIL RELAYS
A. i",lIy
moving coli
Roto..ry
moving c.oil
DynQJl'lom e tcr
INDUCTION CUP RELAYS
~
2
pol~
~
8 pol e
po l ~
Induction
dyno.momctc.f"
m
Sp lit cup
INDUCTION DISC RELAYS
E.M
EM.
P M.
THERMAL RELAYS
Unimcta.lli c
Bil1'l c\o.lI i e
FIG.
2.3. Some electromagnetic relay units
28
P.'"
2.3
produced commercially. For convenience, the second category (b) will be

referred to as static relays.
Table 2.1 compares eight types of relay construction, four electromagnetic and four static. Fig. 2.3 shows diagrammatically the physical
arrangement of some electromagnetic types. Tables 5.9 and 5.10 (in Chapter 5)
show some static relay arrangements and a number of illustrations and diagrams of polarised and unpolarised slave relays are provided in the present
chapter.
The numbers in Table 2.1 represent order of merit rather than degree,
since the degree would depend very much upon the actual design. The highest
number, 8, represents the best performance. It should be noted that the total
2.1
Evaluation of Comparator Units
TABLE
Moving Armature Electromagnetic

Quality
Attracted Induction Induction Thermal

Armature
Cup
Disc
Low Cost
Accuracy
Speed
Output Quality
Sensitivity
Stability
Robustness
Simplicity
Experience
Total
5
2
5
5
8
6
37
7
3
2
4
2
4
4
6
8
40
4
5
4
3
3
2
6
5
7
39
8
1
1
2
1
3
3
7
5
31
Static Comparators with Slave Relay

Electronic Transistors R~tifier MalP!etic
BrIdges Amplifiers
1
8
8
7
8
6
1
2
2
43
2
7
7
6
7
7
1
45
3
6
6
8
6
8
2
4
4
47
6
4
3
5
5
5
8
3
3
42
for anyone class does not necessarily represent the view of industry or its
acceptance by it; anyone class may be precluded by poor performance, or
attainment in anyone quality, or for reasons which are not entirely technical.
Reliability is not listed because it is covered under stability, simplicity,
robustness, etc. Stability includes overtravel and transient overreach.
Experience is confined to their use in protective relays. In the column
headed 'Quality' the fourth item 'output quality' refers to the steadiness of
the torque or force in the case of electromagnetic relays and to the smoothness and range limitation of the output voltage or current in the case of
static relays.
2.3.1. Attracted Armature Relays
This group (first column) includes plunger, hinged armature, balanced

beam and moving iron relay~. As measuring units they are handicapped by
inherently low reset/pick-up ratio and inadvertent operation on sudden
changes in circuit conditions.
In this family there are also magnetised-shot relays; these consist of steel
balls in a container surrounded by a coil which, when energised, causes the
29
sepa.ra. c
SO no VI
term
wlndln~
Va.nd I
8-75
1(-/(#-0
8-90
/('1( 1i _0
K-K'-O
-K"
<
/K'
z<jf,
K'
co.(~-8)
1'sln ~<K
I.C. X<K
FIG.
.!: vce
xce
2.4. Common forms of induction disc and cup units
All eha.ra.etcristics a.re loci of Vor I for zero torque
COO
--
Q!.sl
1
--::,us-$~
--
Polcv dla.gra.ms
Admltto.ncc or current Impeda.nec or potentia.l
~~~~.
j
~' ~9".
~~
-=
/~
/I
=~
.J
.J
~
.J
.J
'll
.J
:r
"0
'll
~ .. 'o~~~ ".
[(I i ~
~'k\? I
."eo -GH ~
:::o--t--a
voe
v<jf{
-K'
VI COl (~-6KN
~
coe
Rcla.y
1>$
Rela.y pic kup
+ VIeos (~-6) ~K" (Where oJI K's a.re torque eonsta.nt)
K/ 2K'V'
-VI CoS (~-750)_x'V2
-Vlsin
VlcO'(~-6)-K'"
-K~V~
K/2.V/COs~-/l)
Genera.l rela.y qua.tion -KI" -K'V"
Itnpcda.nc)
(Ohm unit
Otrect,ona.J
Impcdcu>ec
(mho unit)
Rea.cta.nce
(ohm unit)
Oireetiona.J
wind ings
hcncc no I'
or VI terms
No current
KI'-K"
No potcntla.1
windings
hence no V'
or Vlterm.
Oyereurrent
UndtrYOlta.ge
Result ing
equa.tlon
Conditions
Type rda.y
It>
<II
Qj
:tJ
~.
~.....
'"tJ
2.3
shot to move in the axial magnet field with considerable force after a time
interval depending on the current magnitude, during which they align their
magnetic axes.
2.3.2. Induction Disc Relays
These relays may have either shaded-pole or wattmetric type magnets

driving discs or vanes (17).
2.3.3. Induction Cup Relays
The induction principle is one of the most widely used throughout the
world. Fig. 2.4 shows some of its many applications to disc and cup relays.
It has been applied to the great majority of relay functions and is backed by
30 years of experience. Its most attractive features are its steady, nonvibrating torque and its simple armature which requires no flexible connection. Figs. 2.5 and 2.6 show typical relays using the induction principle.
With a cup-shaped armature, the induction relay can be made for fast
operation with reasonable immunity from system transients and, properly
designed, it can be given a very large operating range. Its drop-out is within
a few percent of its pick-up, so that it can be used where normal and abnormal
conditions are very close together.
These relays can be 2- or 4-pole, single phase or 8-pole, three-phase.
This class of relay includes a split-cup 4-pole unit which is similar to the
4-pole induction dynamometer relay; there are shaded-pole arrangements
also.
2.3.4. Thermal Relays
The thermal types include bimetallic strips or spirals, unimetal strips and
thermometric devices such as sylphons. In some early German relays they
were used as comparators; the thermal movement acted as a current operated
tripping unit and an electromagnetic or second thermal unit energised by the
restraining quantity was arranged to control the position of a contact and
hence the operating time. In motor protection, three thermal spirals energised
with current from the three phases control differential contacts in a similar
manner; this is described more fully in Chapter 9, section 9.2.3.
Their advantages are simplicity and smooth consistent operation. Their
principal disadvantage is low torque per VA input.
2.3.5. Electronic Relays
The high ratings of the relays based on electronic valves arises from the
form of assessment adopted, and should not overshadow the fact that these
relays have failed, over a period of 30 years, to obtain acceptance in the
powerindustry (2) (26) (60) (131), This is notwithstanding the absence ofcontacts
or bearings, with ensuing ease of maintenance and very fast operation, even
when close to pick-up level. The reasons for non-acceptance are not hard to
find (11); in spite of a number of excellent operating features these relays
31
2.3
Protective Relays
FlG.
2.Sa. Exploded view of induction disc relay unit with C-type magnet core
FIG.
2.5b. Exploded view of induction cup relay unit (4-pole)
32
o
(a)
(b)
(c)
flO.
26.
33
2.3
Protective Relays
2.3
failed, other than for special purposes, on grounds of complexity and the
short life of vacuum tubes.
The basic arrangements of two electronic relays are shown in fig. 2.7.
--u-
Transactor
Tro'p'
cool
Rect,f,er
(a)
POlorls lng tube
,...---.....-- +
v~ll\
Peak,ng
tranSformer
00__----...,
1~ "
11
o~ 11
Thyratron
"
(b)
2.7. Electronic relay units

(a) Time-overcurrent relay
(b) Mho relay based on a pentode
FIG.
2.3.6. Transistor Relays

Tran~istor relays are being developed by several large electrical manufacturers, but at present there is insufficient experience with them to justify
pronouncements about their future role and status. They appear to have the
advantages of electronic relays based on thermionics, without their disadvantages, but it will be several years before it is known how consistent
and stable their characteristics are and how effective are the means for protecting them, e.g. against voltage surges. When the necessary life tests have
been done, transistor relays should be smaller, cheaper and faster than
electromagnetic relays and should require little or no maintenance. In addition their great sensitivity will permit much smaller c.t's to be used and more
sophisticated characteristics to be obtained.
In existing relays transistors are used only as switches or amplifiers, so that
changes in their characteristics due to temperature or ageing will not affect
relay calibration.
The first use of transistors in protective relaying was in the field of carrier
protection. It should be noted, however, that at the time of going to press a
34

Input
Input
(a)
2.3
Block diagram ofstatic relay
Collector
00
Emitter
(b)
Multiple inputs to transistor base
Trip
relay
A
~--------L-
ee)
________
~~
________________L---Q+
Inputs to muched trans ilto rs
FIG.
2.8. Transistor comparators used as relays
35
2.3
Protective Relays
Input
~
A
Operate level
'1\ ~~ Reset level
I IV i
'"
-~-~-~---~ ~ Z.OI~~
I . I
.
I .
I
21
Output
-.IlLL
(d)
Op ..... tion 01 Schmitt level detector
Output
...rLn..I1..
Input
(I)
FIG.
Int.,,,,inl level d .. ector
2.8. Transistor comparators used as relays
36
2.3
substantial body of literature already exists on transistor and semi-conductor

protection (12) (13) (14) (27) (28) (29) (59). Two elementary arrangements of
relays based on transistor comparators are shown in figs. 2.8 (a) and (b). A
comparison of the relative sizes of a transistor and an electronic tube of comparable performance is shown in fig. 2.9.
FIG.
2.9. Comparison of a transistor and an electronic tube
2.3.7. Rectifier Bridge Relays
There are very effective competitors to transistor relays in the form of

relays based on semi-conductor diodes, some of which have been marketed
for a number of years; the most common are relay comparators based on
rectifier bridges (15) (62) (73) (109), These bridges can be arranged as either
phase or amplitude comparators and are used in conjunction with a sensitive
output relay, usually of the polarised moving iron or moving coil type.
2.3.8. Magnetic Amplifier Relays
These relays occupy an intermediate position between electromagnetic

relays and electronic relays, because they have the robustness of electromagnetic relays together with some of the properties normally associated with
static relays.
The magnetic amplifier relay, if used as an amplitude comparator (transductor), is limited in its sensitivity by the sensitivity of the slave relay in its
output circuit; if used as a phase comparator to obtain greater sensitivity, it
37
2.3
Protective Relays
is dependent upon an external a.c. supply which is sometimes difficult to

arrange. Figs. 2.23 (a), (b) and (c) show some typical magnetic amplifier
relay circuits. The use of the transductor has been described in references
(16) (23) (24).
2.3.9. Summary
Examination of Table 2.1 shows a relatively small range of merit which

indicates that the different constructions each have their own virtues and
useful properties and that there is no universal type. For instance, although
rectifier bridge relays have been given the highest merit score, it is doubtful
if the induction disc relay will be displaced for time-overcurrent protection
of feeders for many years to come.
The induction disc relay is in almost universal use throughout the world
as an overcurrent relay and as the basic element for a number of relays of more
complex characteristics. The induction cup unit is in widespread use throughout the world, particularly for directional and distance relays, but its position
is being challenged by polarised d.c. relays supplied from rectifier bridge
comparators. Furthermore, these static elements are very competitive with
transistor relays in their present state of development, other than for carrier
relaying.
Static relays require lower burdens than electromagnetic relays but tend
to have less accurate characteristics because of feedback between the inputs.
This limitation can easily be overcome, however, by amplifying the output
of the comparator.
It is obvious that two types of relay units are necessary, one for high
speed and one where time delay is required. Both may be of induction type;
for example, figs. 1.1 and 2.5 show assembled and exploded views respectively
ofthe induction disc type which is suited for time delay, 'and figs. 1.2 and 2.6a
the corresponding views of the induction cup type which, with its higher
torque/inertia ratio, is suited for higher speeds of operation. Either type can
perform any a.c. relay function and both are simple and robust in design.
In the future it is ineVItable that static relays will supersede all electromagnetic
types except the attracted armature type. The latter will continue because it
can control many circuits for a low price and provide high insulation between
them.
For d.c. relays, small contactors, slave relays and instantaneous alternating current or voltage applications, a small hinged armature unit is
commonly used, as shown in fig. 2.10. This unit can also be used as the movement for auxiliary relays and for indicating flag or target relays.
2.4. TYPES OF CONSTRUCTION FOR MEASURING UNITS
The relay units will not be described here in detail since such descriptions
appear in the literature (17) (20) (22), including manufacturers' publications;
modern improvements in design will, however, be mentioned.
38
FIG.
FIG.
2.l0a. Hinged armature relay
2.lOb. Blow-out magnet for contacts of hinged armature relay
39
2.4
2.4
Protective Relays
2.4.1. Induction Disc Relay
Early induction disc relays consisted of a watthour meter unit with a

pair of bridging contacts substituted for the dial register. Modern designs
employ a C-shaped magnet with shaded poles as, for example, in fig. 2.Sa
and have three main advantages:
(a) higher torque per VA input to the relay;
(b) the single coil permits the use of large wire diameter;
(c) two electromagnets and a damping magnet can be mounted on the
same disc for conversion into a differential relay.

On the left-hand side of the disc in fig. 1.1 can be seen an Alcomax
permanent magnet with high coercive force, which is smaller and more
stable than the earlier chrome-steel magnets. It can be mounted on the side
of the frame as shown and permits removal of the disc without disturbing
the position of the driving magnet and hence the relay calibration.
High contact pressure is obtained partly by the use of a magnet system
which produces a high torque on the disc and partly by the use of a single
contact with a flexible lead-in, rather than the older method of bridging
contacts. In addition, by using cylindrical contact surfaces at right angles,
the maximum contact pressure per unit area is achieved without using a fixed
point of contact; this ensures that the arc which forms on closure is not
localised.
Fig. 2.Sb shows an electl;omagnet in which the shape of the time-:current
curve is adjustable so that calibration. is made easy even with wide variations
of magnetic characteristics of the laminations. It is also somewhat more
efficient in torque per VA from the c.t. (18).
The torque of these relays is proportional to the sine product of the two
magnetic fluxes cutting the disc. Where both fluxes are produced by the
same quantity, as in .an overcurrent relay, the torque is proportional to the
square of the current, i.e. T = [(J2; K decreases with increase of current
owing to magnetic saturation and is used to give a definite minimum time
feature to the characteristics of overcurrent relays.
The vector diagram of the induction relay units, illustrated in figs. l.la
and 1.1 b, is shown in fig. 2.11, whereas that for another shape of driving magnet is shown in fig. 2.12a. The former, as would be expected from its simpler
shape, is more efficient than the latter in terms of the proportion of total flux
~t which is available at the air-gap for the production of torque. In general,
no induction disc relay is very efficient viewed from this particular standpoint,
although some are considerably better than others. The other major limitation on torque producing properties is the maximum angular displacement
between the working fluxes which can be produced by shading. This, together
with the theory of torque production, is dealt with in section 2.4.3.
In inverse time-overcurrent relays it is important that the disc or cup
should not continue moving under its own momentum after the fault current
has been interrupted at another relaying point; otherwise, additional circuit-
40
2.4
breakers may open. In modern relays the operating torque is high and they
must have a correspondingly high damping torque to meet a given time
current curve; this heavy damping serves to stop the disc very promptly.
At twenty times tap setting the contacts of such relays would not close if the
current should be shut off 004 second before the moment at which they
would have closed if the current had continued.
2.4.2. Induction Cup Relay
For high-speed operation, where polarising and/or differential windings

are required, a 4-pole or 8-pole electromagnet is used in the fashion of an
induction motor (see figs. 1.2 and 2.6). This is a very flexible arrangement,
used in many countries, and will produce almost any steady-state relay
characteristic with identical components except for the coil windings. The
high operating speed is obtained by forming the induction disc into an
inverted cup, so that its inertia is greatly reduced and by designing the pole
!;ystem to give maximum torque per VA input. In the 4-pole unit almost all
the eddy currents induced in the cup by one pair of poles appear directly
under the other pair of poles, so that the torque per VA is about three times
that of the induction disc even when the latter is equipped with a C-shaped
magnet. The greater efficiency of the induction cup is due to the arrangement
of its magnetic circuit to minimise magnetic leakage and to reduce the
resistance of the rotor induced current paths.
By designing to avoid magnetic saturation, the 'operating characteristics
of the relay can be made linear and accurate over a very wide range, with
pick-Up and reset values close together; this simplifies application and
testing. The relay tends to be inherently self-compensating for d.c. transients
originating in the power system and proper design can minimise its response
to other system transients as well as those associated with c.t.s and the relay
circuit.
This relay unit is particularly suited to a role as a directional or phasecomparison unit, not only on account of its sensitivity and speed but because
it has a steady non-vibrating torque and its parasitic torques due to current
or potential alone are small; furthermore, these particular parasitics can be
eliminated by using a vane on the cup and a flat on the rotatable centre core,
respectively. Interaction between the pole fluxes can be minimised by the
use of an iron base (lower part of fig. 2.6a) which also forms a machining
reference for the accurate location of bearings, etc.
Since it has no connecting leads, the rotor or the contacts can be removed
quickly without disturbing the contact settings. As in the case of the induction
disc relay, minor modifications can be made to provide special characteristics,
most of the parts remaining standard. For instance, an 8-pole electromagnet (fig. 2.6b) can be substituted for the standard 4-pole stack of laminations if an electromagnetic polyphase directional relay is required (32).
Furthermore, a holding magnet can be added to provide either harmonic
restraint or a voltage restraint.
41
2.4
Protective Relays
The torque of the induction relay is proportional to the sine product of

the two magnetic fluxes produced by the two pairs of poles, i.e. 1~111~21 sin (X
where ~1 and ~2 are the magnetic fluxes and (X the angle between them. If
~1 and ~2 are produced linearly by two electrical quantities A and B respectively, the torque is proportional to IAIIBI cos (q,-O), where q, is the angle
between A and B and (J is the value of t/J which gives maximum torque.
2.4.3. Theory of Induction Relay Torque
The two magnetic fluxes ~1 and ~2' which together create the torque,
each generate eddy currents in the disc or cup; each flux reacts with the eddy
current produced by the other flux to produce two torques, the sum of which
is a steady, unidirectional torque. To produce torque, the induction relay or
instrument must have its two working fluxes displaced in time-phase. In the
bi-polar type of magnet core, illustrated in fig. 2.12, there are two separate
exciting windings which give two out-of-phase fluxes in two separate magnetic
circuits. In the case of relay cores of the type shown in fig. 2.11, there is
only one exciting m.m.f. and the necessary pair of two out-of-phase fluxes
are produced by shading action.
The principle involved is illustrated in iig. 2.13. The flux ~ is shown
divided into two components, ~1 and ~2' in the shaded and unshaded portions of the pole respectively. ~1 acts as the mutual flux of a transformer of
which the shading ring or band is the secondary. The e.m.f. elf induced in the
shading band produces therein a circulating current (an eddy current in the
case of a flux passing through an induction disc) i,,; the m.m.f. of the singleturn shading band is clearly F"t = i" amp-turns. The difference between F. t
and F., the effective m.m.f. of the shading band, is the m.m.f. responsible
for leakage flux. The total m.m.f. of the pole is F1 = F2 + F". It should be
noted that F. has a component F2 cos
(~- A.)
= F" sin A. in phase opposition
to Flo and thus has a demagnetising effect. The disc, itself a shading element,
thus also has a demagnetising effect which must be considered in deriving
the steady-state torque equation of an induction relay (fig. 2.l3c).
The air-gap fluxes ~1 and ~2 and the eddy currents i1 and i2 they produce
in the induction disc or cup are shown vectorially in fig. 2.13b. Torque is
produced by the interaction of each flux with the disc current induced by the
other flux and is of the form 't' = ~li2-~2i1'
In the Appendix 2.11 it is shown that the torque works out to
(2.4)
where K is a design constant, 11 and 12 are the r.m.s. coil currents producing
the magnet air-gap fluxes, (J is the angle between 11 and 12 and A. is the phase
angle of the disc impedance.
In the shaded-pole magnet the fluxes are produced by the same coil
current so the torque is
't' = Kro12 sin (J cos A.
(2.S)
42
Nonshad.d
pol.
(a)
2.4
Ii
/'i,'
Ii
I'
I
I
I ,
,4>E ,i
, ''
,, :, ,
,,
,,
"',1
.'
(b)
" ' - -- - Ref.ronce

FIG. 2.11. Inverse time-overcurrent relay with C-type magnet core
(a) Magnet shape, (b) Scale diagram of flux distribution throughout the relay core
43
(b)
<PEt</>, .. - - - - - - - - - - - - -
------
2.12. Inverse time-overcurrent relay with wattmetric type magnet

(a) Magnet shape. (b) Scale diagram of flux distribution throughout the relay core
FIG.
---------
ta)
.----. ----~
<l>T
iii
(1)
:0;'
~....
."
F;--------------------(b)
(a)
~~~------------,_--------~~~2
(c)
(d)
2.13. Principle of shading in an induction disc relay

(b) Flux and m.mJ. vector diagrams of (a)
(a) Simple shaded pole
(c) Disc currents and gap fluxes
(d) A typical shaded-pole electromagnet.
FIG.
45
2.4
Protective Relays
In either case the steady-state torque is

't
K'wIII2 sin 0
(2.6)
In the case of high-speed induction cup mho relays where memory

action is used in the polarising circuit, a beat frequency torque may appear
if the polarising potential circuit is tuned to natural resonance at frequency n
instead of at the system frequency wand the torque is
't
= KI l12{(n- w) sin [(w+ n)t+l/I] +(n + w) sin [(w- n)t- I/I]}
(2.7)
where 1/1 is the phase displacement between the two currents at t = O.

Since (w - n) is usually small this simplifies to
't ~
2wK/I I2 sin w - n) t - 1/1)
(2.8)
(.) Equivalent dl<1gram of induction cup unit
1...
I,..
(b)
Vector di<1gram of on. pole of mductlon cup unit
~
I
b'
/
................. .{
~r~
'
'f.
I.J
Ill'r
......
/..'~----- -~~ /
S .....
'..... ..........
..... ,
.-/
'1z
(c) Flux di<1gram of both pol.circUlh of Induction C,,!, unit
flO.
2.14. Vector relationship of current and fluxes in induction cup relay
In an induction disc relay of the shaded-pole type the torque depends on

the proper ratio of the shaded to the unshaded pole face areas and the crosssectional area of the shading rings.
At 50 to 60 cycles the shaded area should be approximately equal to the
unshaded area. The shading rings should be of as low resistance as possible
and wound as closely as possible around the pole tips to minimise magnetic
46
2.4
leakage. Their cross-sectional area is usually about one-third of the pole face
area but has to be compromised with the dimensions required for minimum
frequency error. The mathematics governing the design of shading rings are
very complicated and a certain amount of trial and error is necessary.
2.4.4. Attracted Armature Relay
Most manufacturing companies make a wide variety of auxiliary relays

and contactors; this variety tends to arise because the original design has
had to be modified from time to time to meet new requirements. Now that
most of the requirements for protection are known it has been found possible
to make one standard hinged armature unit to fulfil the great majority of
requirements for auxiliary relays, a.c. and d.c. instantaneous voltage and
current relays and electrical operation indicators (68).
Such a unit is shown in fig. 2.10. It is applicable to a.c. or d.c. and can be
self, hand or electriCally reset; it can have an operation indicator and up to
four' pairs of contacts, one or more of which can be latched in. It can be the
operating unit of all auxiliary relays such as annunciators, semaphores, alarm
relays, etc. In the interest of universal application its VA consumption is
low, being of the order of 008 watt at pick-up with one contact, or 02 watt
with four contacts. The same unit can be polarised for sensitive d.c. applications by the addition of a permanent magnet. It can also be used for controlling heavy currents by the addition of a small blow-out magnet for d.c.
or contacts of special material for a.c. (fig. 2.10b).
The pull on the armature of an ordinary non-polarised attracted armature
relay is proportional to the square of the flux in the gaps. The gap flux is
proportional to the coil current below the level at which core saturation takes
place; it decreases inversely, however, almost as the square of the total magnetic gap, i.e. the armature gap plus any other gaps which there may be in the
magnetic circuit, such as those introduced by joints, (20) (21).
The pull on the armature in C.O.s. units is
F
2n(NI) 2
A(Ro+~r
(2.9)
where N is the coil turns, I the coil current, A the pole face gap area, Ro is
the reluctance of the iron circuit, x the air gap at the pole centre. In the open
position Ro is small compared with
i:
so that the pull can be written
F = 21t(N~2A
(2.10)
A comprehensive study of the design of these relays has been made by

Wagar and Peck (146).
The hinged armature relay increases its attractive force as the armature
47
Protective Relays
2.4
approaches the pole-piece (20) (21); referring to fig. 2.15, this increase in
attractive force tends to give a snap action and a drop-out value at a low level
of energisation unless the pressure built up by the contact springs is approximately matched. Line S shows the build-up of pressure of the restraining
spring. Line C is the additional pressure due to the contact brushes, and CR
is the pressure between the contacts when closed; this should be at least 15 gm.
Curve R is the force on the armature; this force may tend to level off as the
relay core saturates in spite of the decreasing magnetic reluctance of the
armature gap as it closes.
The ratio of pick-up to drop-out current is OC/OR. To obtain a high value
of drop-out current, C must be close to R; it is not possible to make C lie
R
EFFECT
0,.
SATVRATION
OC
t:
OROP OFF
o R = PICK-
YP.
S'c' : CONT-'CT PRESET.
CONTACT
PRESSURE.
PYL.L.. A.T MIN. VOL..TS.
-Wipe
o
FIG.
G.... P
-TRAVEL. .
2.15. Attractive force or 'pull' characteristic of a hinged armature relay
very close to R, however, because it is a normal requirement that tripping

relays must operate down to 75 % of normal voltage although saturation
helps this situation, as is apparent from fig. 2.15 (see dotted curve to R').
Fig. 2.16 shows how the attractive force on the armature varies with
ampere-turns. The attractive force increases as the square of the flux and hence
square of the ampere turns until point A is reached. It thereupon increases
less rapidly from B to C as saturation occurs. For the relay with the characteristic shown in fig. 2.16 the drop-out is low due to the effect of remanence
which tends to hold the armature in the operated position down to a low
value of ampere-turns. Low remanence iron such as radiometal is used for
correcting this and for obtaining drop-out at a higher value of ampere48
2.4
DROP' OUT
100,%
FlO.
2.16. Hysteresis curve of flux in a hinged armature relay
turns; a less efficient arrangement for the same purpose is an air-gap in the
iron circuit or a brass pin in the pole face, which prevents the armature from
touching the pole and limits the flux value at point B.
2.4.5. Balanced Beam Relay
This construction was once popular for high-speed differential and

impedance relays (fig. 2.17 (61)). Its popularity is now waning because of
its overreaching on faults with offset current due to high X / R ratio. Unless
means are employed to slow down the speed of operation, a fast balancedbeam unit will follow the half cycles of energising current and/or voltage so
that the ratio of operating to restraint quantities depends upon their phase
relationship. Furthermore, the resetting value of a balanced-beam unit is
low compared with its operating value on account of the fact that the magnetic gap is small under one pole in the normal position and large under the
other; in the operated position, this situation is reversed.
The force at each. end of the beam is proportional to the square of the
gap flux, as in the attracted armature relay. The gap flux is proportional to
the current and decreases inversely approximately as the square of the total
air gap length in the magnetic circuit.
It is capable of very fast operation but is not accurate because of the

tendency to phase angle error mentioned above, and because of its susceptibility to incorrect operation with d.c. transients in the energising quantities.
The phase angle error can be eliminated by modifying the voltage restraint
magnet; a split-pole or three-legged construction should be used wherein
the flux is split into at least two components which are equal in magnitude
and as near to 900 out of phase as possible for two components, or 1200
apart for three components. An alternative is to rectify the restraining
quantity.
The discrepancy between the pick-up and drop-out values can be reduced
to a certain extent by limiting the motion of the beam and introducing an
air gap into the magnetic circuit of the current pole; this latter device minimises the total change in reactance when the beam moves.
c
Protective Relays
2.4
(a)
(b)
Tonlon hca.d
Inntl~
diScs
Fixed conl"cl
Air
-."po
(c)
2.17. Balanced beam relay unit

(a) Basic arrangement
(b) Beam unit with filter for reducing d.c. transients in the current circuit and a
phase-splitting device in the voltage circuit
(c) Balanced vane unit
FIO.
50
2.4
The most troublesome of the transients to which the balanced beam is

susceptible is assymmetrical d.c. in the current wave. Since the operation is
proportional to the square of the current, a 50 % d.c. transient will increase
the torque by more than a factor of 2, and may give rise to overreaching, i.e.
tripping on faults external to the protected section. To prevent this, a d.c.
filter may be used as shown in fig. 2.17b but a reactor of very high
Q( =
a:) is required.
Fig. 2.17c shows another form of balanced attracted armature relay

which has the foregoing weaknesses to a slightly less degree because it is
slower and has a small amount of inherent damping.
To summarise, the balanced beam relay is a simple and economical relay
with limited precision; it may be used as a starting device for other units in a
protective scheme but it is not suitable for any primary role.
2.4.8. Moving Coli Relays
The polarised d.c. moving-coil relays (fig. 2.1S) are the most sensitive
electromagnetic relay units available, but they are generally more expensive
than induction cup or moving iron relays. They are adapted to a.c. measurement and comparison by using tHem in conjunction with rectifier bridge
comparators.
Two kinds of these relays are available, those with a rotary moving coil,
and those with an axially moving coil. The rotary moving coil type has
jewelled bearings and is cheaper since it uses standard d.c. instrument construction, which is easy to assemble and align (62). Furthermore, it is unaffected by tilting. Its arrangement is after the fashion of a moving coil
ammeter with contacts (fig. 2.1Sa).
The axially moving coil type is twice as sensitive from an electromagnetic
viewpoint since it has only one radial air gap in its magnetic structure; it
has, however, to be mounted within a few degrees of vertical and encounters
the problem of coil supports. Early types had six connection ligaments (22)
and two suspension ligaments (fig. 2.1Sb) to support the two ends of the coil.
Fig. 2.1Sc shows a construction in which the spiral diaphragms support the
moving coil and also act as electrical connections; in this type the coil has
only axial movement, so that the air gap can be made small; this enables the
same sensitivity to be obtained with a smaller device.
The attractive force of the relay is directly proportional to the coil current.
Typical sensitivity figures are 02 to 05 mW for just closing the contacts.
The speed of operation depends upon the damping; two cycles minimum
time is possible with a properly damped coil with an aluminium former.
Copper can be used for heavier damping and slower operation. Insufficient
damping reduces the capacity of the relay to withstand shock and vibration.
In cases where there is only one coil, such as in the parallel rectifier bridge
circuit of fig. 2.21a, the aluminium former can be eliminated since damping
is supplied by the coil itself, and the rectifier bridges provide a path for the
51
2.4
Protective Relays
lC<1d-in.
Cont4cts
Yoke
Plrma.nlnt
ma.gnlt
Moving call
{al
52

Flud conta.ct
MovIng contl1.C:t
L..ca.f ,uspenslon
Loca.ting tong
Soft .ttOl yoke
(b)
3 conta.cU on
Pcrspu cowr
ruihQnt disc
a.nd side ring
Pcrma.ncnt magnet
Coil winding
(c)
FIG. 2.18. Moving coil relays
(a) Arrangement of rotary moving coil relay
(b) Constructional details of axially moving coil relay
(c) Constructional details with spiral diaphragm coil supports
53
2.4
Protective Relays
2.4
damping current induced in the coil by its own movement. Where the relay
has separate operating and restraining windings, the metal former is necessary
for damping (22).
Recent improvements in permanent magnet materials have increased the
sensitivity of moving coil relays so that the rotary moving type can now be
made with 01 milliwatt sensitivity and yet be mechanically stable (50 g) and
employ wire of 0002 inch diameter or larger; units with such powerful
magnets must be sealed against the ingress of iron filings.
2.4.7. Polarised Moving Iron Relays
This type of relay is the inverse of the moving coil because the iron armature moves. The stationary coil results in a much more robust relay and permits a remarkably high ratio of continuous rating to pick-up. It is shown in
figs. 2.19. and 2.20d. The normal pick-up is 1 milliwatt for shock-proof opera-
flO.
2.19. Sensitive polarised d.c. moving iron relay with plug-in transistor
amplifier
tion (30 g) but the coil will stand 5 watts continuou~ly. In fig. 2.19 the relay is
fitted with a plug-in transistor amplifier which increases its sensitivity to I
microwatt for pick-up.
Figs. 2.20a, b, c, d and e show five typical polarised moving iron relays
employing the flux shifting principle. The choice between them depends on the
characteristic considered most important, such as speed, sensitivity, robustness, contact pressure, etc. Most relays of this type use leaf spring supported
armatures, but the one shown in fig. 2.20a uses jewel bearings.
The type shown in fig. 2.20b is highly resistant to mechanical shock because
normally it is held strongly in position by its permanent magnet; when the
armature flux is diverted through the small electromagnet E, the armature is
54
2.4

s
4 RadiomctaJ o=--i+--tt"ir.
pote pteces """,:::.r--w.._ ,
- . ,.........d"\
Radiomda.l
bridge pieces
(a)
(b)
A-B
(d)
(c)
~~
B
Hingcd <1I"mClturc
(f)
2.20. Polarised moving iron relays

(a) Polarised rotating iron vane relay
(b) Flux shifting type, releasing armature
(c) Flux shifting type, attracting armature
(d) Balanced version of flux shifting type (c)
(e) Bistable pattern of flux shifting type of relay
(0 Remanence type relay
FIG.
released and it is moved to the operating position by the very strong spring.
This relay is capable of tripping in two milliseconds.
Fig. 2.2Oc shows an adaptation of the telephone type relay (20) (21);
when energised it diverts flux into the armature instead of away from it.
It is self-resetting. Fig. 2.20d shows an improved version of fig. 2.2Oc with a
balanced armature. It is a very practical combination of speed, sensitivity,
55
Protective Relays
2.4
low cost and resistance to shock; it has contacts of 5 ampere rating and will
stand a shock of 30 g when adjusted for a sensitivity of 1 milliwatt.
Fig. 2.20e is the well-known Carpenter type in which the polarity of the
lower poles is controlled by the direction of the current in the coil. It will
pick up on 02 milliwatt but it has a very short contact travel and is suitable
for only low voltage circuits.
Fig. 2.20f is a remanence type relay which is inexpensive to manufacture
and extremely sensitive (15). It operates when m.m.f. ofthe operating coil (A)
"vercomes that of the restraining coil (B), which is normally energised, and
kills the remanent flux. The relay operates quickly enough for the armature
to open under the influence of the spring before the surplus of operating
m.m.f. can build up the flux in the opposite direction and hold in the
armature.
TABLE
2.2
Performance of Polarised d.c. Relays

Fig. No.
Pick-up
Coil Continuous Rating
Operating Time at
5 x Pick-up
Contact Pressure
Contact Gap
Armature Travel
Shock Resistance
Insulation Test
Contact Rating
Reset
2.20f
2.20b
2.20c
2.20d
2.20e
lOmW
1W
10mW
SW
1mW
7SW
003 mW
1W
003 mW
2W
2mS
lOOO gm.
004 in.
003 in.
10 g
2500 V
lOA
Hand
ISmS
8gm.
0'025 in.
0025 in.
sg
2500 V
1A
Self
ISmS
1 gm.
005 in.
O04in.
40g
2S00 V
SA
Self
2'smS
3gm.
2mS
4Ogm.
003 in.
0'02 in.
30g
1500 V
SA
Electrical
0002 in.
0003 in.
sg
SOO V
002 A
Electrical
2.4.8. Rectifier Bridge Comparators
These may be arranged either as amplitude comparators (fig. 2.21a) or

phase comparators (fig. 2.22a). The former type have been used in Europe
for many years but the latter are not yet popular, although they have distinct
advantages for directional and distance relays involving phase angle.
(a) Amplitude Comparator Bridges. The amplitude comparator may work
on either the voltage balance or the circulating current principle (15) (22) (62).
The latter is more efficient (fig. 2.21a) because the non-linear resistance
characteristic of the rectifiers provides a limiting action so that all the spill (i.e.
difference) current goes through the relay at low currents whereas only a small
fraction of it does so at high currents (fig. 2.21c). This implies that the sensitivity of the relay is greatest at low currents, which is the desirable condition.
This characteristic can be accentuated by using different types of rectifiers
in the two bridges, such as germanium in one and selenium iti the other.
56
2.4
Another way of expressing this is to say that output of the circuit to the
tripping relay increases rapidly (fig. 2.21e) near the threshold of operation
but the rate of increase diminishes at higher currents, so that the relay sensitivity is greatest near pick-up.
The reason for this characteristic can be appreciated by reference to
figs. 2.21a to 2.21e. Normally the restraining current preponderates and
current flows in the winding of the polarised relay in the blocking direction.
eel c ",grUT OI8"!!!'YT19N "'_N

!o"O 8P i~ Is ~u..,
VOLTS
API'>UEO TO
~Ew\Y.
Or---,-.--,-----k~~-------
.(,o,A.t-
-~
FIG.
i o i1'
(!)~ 1i!E:r1"'1E'Ii!-BIlIClGE
Lo-lr
--.
C~I2ISTIC,
2.21. Rectifier bridge amplitude comparator
Small values of ir will cause a current to flow in the relay, as in fig. 2.21b,
the voltage drop across the slave relay being - V volts; this voltage - V
serves as a bias in the forward direction of bridge 1. If ir is increased further
the voltage drop across the relay will rise to a value - V, the threshold of
bridge 1 and it will conduct, the current distribution being as shown in
fig. 2.21c; the current through the relay consists of fairly flat-topped halfwaves corresponding to the case of io < ir as in fig. 2.21d.
57
2.4
Protective Relays
The reverse is true if bridge 1 only is .energised; the voltage drop across
the relay will now be V, in the reverse direction from formerly, and this will
bias the restraint rectifier in its forward direction. When the voltage drop
across the relay attains a value V" corresponding to the threshold voltage of
two rectifiers in series, the surplus current from bridge 1 is spilled through
bridge 2. This corresponds to the case of io > i, in fig. 2.21d.
When both bridges are energised simultaneously, the complete relay
arrangement is acutely sensitive to small differences between io and i, without
a delicate setting for the slave relay or a high thermal rating for its coil.
The composite characteristic for the relay is shown ideally in fig. 2.21e.
The current in the relay is a function of the difference between io and i"
shown in fig. 2.21a. The current circulating between the bridges is the smaller
of the two input currents plus some of their difference which appears as reverse
current in the bridge with the larger current. The voltage V across the
comparator cannot exceed twice the forward drop (toe voltage) in one of the
rectifiers and is usually around 1 volt. The maximum current that can flow
in the relay is the saturating voltage of the rectifier Vs divided by the relay
coil resistance. With three inputs and three parallel rectifier bridges, elliptical
and hyperbolic characteristics can be obtained. This subject is discussed in
Vol. II, Chapter 12.
(b) Phase Comparator Rectifier Bridge. This bridge is shown in fig. 2.22a
and its operation can be followed from fig. 2.22c and 2.22f. It is a circulating
(a) Gtncro.l Qtra.nqcmcnt
(b) Wo.yc. forms of input currents
58
2.4
I,
1,-i2
2"
(c) i,> i 2 ; both +

Output.
2',
(d)'2>I,jboth +
12(q+q)- '2 R2
tt
Output-
2l,!J = '1R
21,
Block
Block
21,
2~
(~)i2>i1;
'1 is-
Output
-2;,
:2.1',
(t)(,>i 2 ;i,io-
-1- -',R
Output
2i,
2/,
(h)'2>i,; bot~
Output- 2i,
(9) '1>'2; bothOutput
= - i2(~+~) = -i 2R
~ i2(~+~)
2<,
(j)
(k)l, >;2 j i2
i 2 >i,i 12 "Output'"
-2(,.q =-i , R
FIG.
59
',R
2i,
i.-
Out.put:.
2.22. Rectifier-bridge phase-comparator
~-
-i2(~+~J= -' 2 R
2.4
Protective Relays
current bridge whose output current is equal to the smaller of the two currents
inputs. The path of the current through the bridge is established by the larger
of the two currents and depends upon their relative instantaneous polarity. If
11 > 12 the current will flow in the top and bottom rectifiers if 11 is positive
(fig. 2.22c) and in the diagonal rectifiers (fig. 2.22d) if 11 is negative. If 12 > 11
the current flows in rectifiers I and 3 if 12 is positive (fig. 2.22e) and rectifiers
2 and 4 if negative (fig. 2.22f). If 11 and 12 have the same polarity the current
in the pol~rised relay R flows in the tripping direction, if opposite polarity it
will be in the blocking direction.
The limiting action of this bridge is less pronounced than in the amplitude
bridge comparator and a non-linear resistor, such as thyrite, is usually connected across the polarising input so that the sensitivity at minimum fault
conditions can be raised to a satisfactory level, by increasing the polarising
current i1 without exceeding the rating of the rectifiers at maximum fault
conditions. This bridge produces more circular characteristics than the
amplitude comparator bridges and hence is preferable for mho and directional relays. It is limited to two inputs.
2.4.. Magnetic Amplifier Relays
Magnetic amplifiers are special transformers having two sets of windings,

a.c. and d.c., which are not magnetically coupled but which may use the same
core or cores. They can be voltage or current operated and their load or output can be series or shunt connected. They can be operated as phase or amplitude comparators. The subject of phase and amplitude comparison is considered in Chapter 3. The control circuit can be in series or parallel with the
output.
The earliest application to protective relays was an impedance relay (23)
of Swedish manufacture, illustrated in fig. 2.23a which used a currentoperated shunt-controlled magnetic amplifier known as a transductor. Here
the current required to operate the relay increases linearly with the voltage
because, as the latter increases, it reduces the shunt impedance of the transductor, thus acting as an amplitude comparator.
A similar principle is used in England (16) (24). A current operated series
controlled transductor has been used as an amplitude comparator for
differential and impedance relays. It is shown in fig. 2.23c comparing two
electrical quantities in magnitude, irrespective of their phase relationship. Such a relay produces excellent electrical characteristics but has to be
slowed to a minimum time of around 3 cycles by the damping winding shown
in fig. 2.23c. Fast operation is prevented by the fact that the restraint dies
down slowly due to the inductance of the control winding which is shortcircuited by rectifiers.
Faster operation can be obtained from the Ramey amplifier circuit shown
in fig. 2.23b, which is a half-wave magnetic amplifier. It is a shunt-controlled
phase comparator in which alternate half-waves of the one input quantity
60
(a)
Trip winding
Block winding
A
Opcr<lt~
Rt.stra.i n
Pol<lri.~
(b)
RutroJnt
(c)
r--_t-.::f::=;-_~Trl p rola.y
1_J:~====~
D.C.
output 1.
N.twork
(d)
(e)
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)
(e)
FlO. 2.23. Magnetic amplifier relays

Current-operated, shunt-controlled (transductor)-amplitude comparator
Voltage-operated, shunt-controlled (Ramey)-phase comparator
Current-operated, series-controlled (bias)-amplitude comparator
Voltage-operated, series-controlled (magamp)-phase comparator
Transductor relay-amplitude comparator.
61
2.4
2.4
Protective Relays
are polarised by the other input quantity. In fig. 2.23b the relay compares the
phase relationship of the two input quantities regardless of their amplitude.
The original magnetic amplifier (fig. 2.23d) developed in Sweden (23) and
the U.K. and known by various trade names, such as magamp and amplistat,
etc., has been used by a French manufacturer in a static distance relay as an
amplifier to minimise the burden on supply c.t.s and to miniaturise components. The amplifier is supplied by a 500 cycle transistor oscillator energised
from the station battery.
In distance relays, where accurate measurement is required over an
extremely wide range, it is necessary to have an output device which operates
with less than a milliwatt. This means either an extremely sensitive relay or
the provision of an amplifier, which can be a magnetic amplifier. Fig.2.23e
shows an attracted armature relay which has a transductor built into it,
making a compact device which is well suited as a low cost impedance fault
detector.
2.4.10. Thermal Relays
Thermal relays will receive only brief treatment here since they are not
generally used for protection of transmission systems, although they are
widely used for protection of motors against overloads and unbalanced
currents (25). The actuating elements are generally bimetallic strips (fig.
2.24a) which are often wound into a spiral to increase their length and thereby
increase their sensitivity. An alternative design which, although less sensitive,
Microswltch
Bi -motoJhc
strip
(a)
Adjusta.bltt
thttrma.1
insula.tor
(b)
FlO. 2.24. Thermal relays
(a) Three-phase bimetallic strip thermal relay
(b) Single-phase unimetallic strip thermal relay
62
2.4
is extremely shockproof consists of a brass strip bent into a hairpin of which

one leg is heated by current passing through it or through a heating coil
(fig. 2.24b); this type is also inherently temperature-compensated.
Thermal elements are sometimes heated by passing the current through
them but more usually by a heater situated immediately below them, the
whole unit may be encased in thermal insulation or left open, depending
upon the characteristics to be obtained. For instance, a bimetallic spiral
indirectly heated in an insulating cover would be used where precision and
a high resetting time is required. For the other extreme ofless precision and a
fast resetting time, the brass hairpin design would be used without a cover.
The bimetal strip has the limitation that its characteristic is affected by
the load current which may be flowing through it prior to its operation. The
hairpin unimetal design is very little affected by the previous load current
because this tends to heat up both legs and cause them to expand equally,
resulting in no movement of the contact. This effect can be controlled to suit
a given application introducing thermal insulation at the bend of the hairpin.
The equivalent torque of it bimetallic strip is proportional to the heat
supplied which is proportional to the [2R of the strip. The deflection of an
1 )[2.
all'IC stnp
. .IS 7.7(T26 -T
h
/.IS t he 1ength and
I nvar- Brass bImet
..
JOc hes, were
10 .W
w is the thickness, both in inches.
2.4.11. Electronic Relays
Here the movement is replaced by electronic components and circuitry

(2) (11). In amplitude comparators the two a.c. quantities to be compared are
rectified and applied in opposition in the control grid circuit of an electronic
tube (26) (60) (129) (131), so that operation occurs when one quantity exceeds
the other by an amount depending on the bias. In phase comparison circuits,
one a.c. quantity can be connected to the control grid of an electronic tube
and the other a.c. quantity to the screen grid of the tube, as in fig. 2. 7b;
operation occurs when the two quantities are in phase. Another technique is
to connect each of the two a.c. quantities to the control electrode of one of a
pair of tubes with their output electrodes in series or parallel so that the tubes
are jointly conductive, or not, depending on the phase relationship of the a.c.
quantities.
The reliability of this class of equipment is dependent upon the quality of
the components and their connections. The latter subject is discussed in
section 2.6.10.
The main drawbacks of electronics based on thermionic tubes are:
(a) Constant drain on the station battery for the heater supply.
(b) The provision of a minimum d.c. voltage of 120 V, for plate (anode)
circuits, which necessitates a battery voltage of at least 180 V to allow
for negative grid bias supplies and a suitable margin for voltage drop
during the closing of a circuit breaker.
63
Protective Relays
2.4
(c) The relays in use in the greatest quantities, such as time-overcurrent
relays, are more complicated in electronic design than their electromagnetic counterparts; the basic arrangement is shown in fig. 2.7a.
(d) Limited output capacity which necessitates a mechanical relay for
tripping the circuit breaker (attempts to use a thyratron for this
purpose were not overly successful).
(e) Greater problems in ensuring correct operation under transient conditions than with electromagnetic relays. The main difficulty here, as
with transistor relays and other relays based on semiconductors, is
that the inherent times of operation of electronic relays is well within
the time-constants of the power system and associated current and
voltage transformers.
(f) Uncertain life of the electronic tubes.
2.4.12. Transistor.
Transistors have similar limitations. Items (c), (d) and (e) above apply
directly. Item (f) does not apply but, in some transistors now available, some
change in characteristics can be expected during their life. Transistors do not
impose a constant drain on the station battery but they do require a
separate low voltage d.c. supply. The present solutions to this problem
are either to provide a small nickel-cadmium storage battery with a trickle
charger and a relay to disconnect the battery from the transistor circuit
while charging or to rectify the output of a saturating auxiliary C.t. and
stabilise it with a limiting device.
The circuitry of transistors has some similarity to that of electronic tubes;
those at present available differ in having low input impedance and are
current-fed devices. A phase comparator can be made either by connecting
two transistors back-to-back (13) (14), as in fig. 2.8c, or by applying the input
signals in parallel through diodes (fig. 2.8b) so that the transistor acts as an
'and' device (12) causing the transistor to cut off if either of the input quantities is positive.
In either of the above circuits, current of constant magnitude will flow in
the collector circuit only when the input a.c. quantities are simultaneously
negative; a relay in the collector circuit will pick up when the overlap angle
exceeds a certain value, i.e. when the mean d.c. level in the collector circuit
exceed the relay pick-up level as a result of phase coincidence.
Inserting inductance in the collector circuit causes the collector current to
rise exponentially, instead of being constant, during the period of phase
coincidence; this enables a trigger circuit to be added, which operates on the
basis of current level. Alternatively, capacitance can be used and the voltage
level measured; either method has the following virtues:
(a) Permits a single tripping device to be used for all phases and zones.
(b) Makes the pick-up level independent of voltage.
(c) Permits instantaneous resetting using an integrating circuit.
64
2.4
A third method of phase comparison is by gating the current pulses with

a transistor whose base-emitter circuit is polarised by the other a.c. quantity;
this is after the fashion of the electronic relay systems proposed by Loving (27).
Transistors can also be used in series for phase comparison and they can
also be used as amplitude comparators.
Both electronic and transistor relays at present have the disadvantage of
insufficient capacity to trip a breaker and transistors are very vulnerable to
transient overvoltages but, within the next five years, these limitations will
probably be overcome. There is a clear case for the application of transistors
to relaying systems using a carrier channel (28) (29), and to automatic synchronising (123).
2.4.13. The Hall Effect (31) (132)
So far, no relays have appeared on the market using the Hall Effect for
vectorial and scalar multiplication, probably because of the small output
and the high temperature error; however, at the time of writing this book,
it has been found that Indium Arsenide has a practicable level of Hall Effect
1'--- - V - - --9
Trip ,ola.y
G.rmC1llium cryst<1i
FIG.
2.25. Arrangement of Hall Effect directional relay
output with negligible temperature variation. The principle of the Hall

Effect is illustrated in fig. 2.25. If a magnetic flux 1<1>1 sin wt proportional to
one a.c. electrical quantity is arranged to pass through the surface of a flat
crystal of N type germanium (or other metal with good Hall Effect) and a
current III sin (wt + ) proportional to another a.c. electrical quantity is
passed through the crystal from the middle of one edge to the middle of the
opposite edge, then a d.c. e.m.f. Eh will appear between the midpoints of the
remaining pair of edges.
If H is the field strength, I the current in amperes, w the thickness of the
65
2.5
Protective Relays
germanium and R is the Hall coefficient then the Hall Effect voltage is
RIH
Eh = =
w
=
=
K<1>1
K'[I<f)1 sin rot] [III sin (rot+c/]

K'
2[\<1>\\/\ cos cf> - \<1>\\/\ cos (2wt+cf]
(2.11 )
(2.12)
It will be noted that the first term is a d.c. voltage proportional to the
vectorial product of <f) and I and the second term is an a.c. voltage of double
frequency proportional to the scalar product of <f) and 1. If the flux q) is
produced by a voltage V across the magnet coil the first term can be arranged
to be a measure of watts or reactive VA and the second a measure of VA.
Either term can be suppressed by suitable circuitry.
In equations 2.11 and 2.12, if the field flux density is expressed in maxwells/
sq. cm., H in oersteds, 1 in amperes and w in cm. then the Hall coefficient can
be expressed in volt/cm. 3/amp. maxwell and has a value of about 8.10-5 for
germanium. In current applications to instruments H is usually about 450
oersteds and w is about Olcm.
Further information is given in Vol. II, Chapter 4.
2.5. TYPES OF CONSTRUCTION FOR TIMING UNITS
The operation of a relay can be delayed by a circuit component which

delays the build-up or decay of operating voltage by changing its impedance
slowly when current flows in it. This includes thermistors, filament lamps and
R/C circuits.
Longer time delays can be obtained with R/C circuits when used with
electronic relays than with electromagnetic relays because smaller current
can be used which takes longer to charge up a capacitor. This is evident from
comparison of the times shown in Table 2.3.
The operation of an electromagnetic relay can also be delayed by reducing
the rate of build-up or decay of magnetic flux in its operating magnet or by
impeding the motion of its contact arm. The former can be done by a copper
ring around the magnet pole and the latter by friction, damping, gearing or
thermal expansion.
There are seven broad classes of timing units in which these principles are
employed:
1. Magnetically operated devices with mechanical damping.
2. Mercury tubes.
3. Thermal devices employing the expansion of an electrically heated
metal strip.
4. Motor-operated devices.
5. Electrical circuits containing reactance and non-linear impedance.
6. Electronic circuits.
7. Semiconductor circuits.
66
2.5

2.5.1. Mechanical Damping
An a.c. or d.c. solenoid operates contacts either directly or through a

spring, against the delaying action of a dashpot, pneumatic, inertia, escapement or magnetic induction device. The spring provides a constant driving
force irrespective of variations in the solenoid pull due to voltage, temperature, etc. A summary of their timing characteristics is given in Table 2.3.
2.3
Performance of Timing Devices
TABLE
(a) Mechanical Delay Devices

Type
Oil Dashpot
Pneumatic
Escapement
Magnetic Pot
Friction Governor
Mercury Tube
Mercury Dashpot
Synch. Motor
Range of
Adjustment
Max. Time
Setting
Accuracy
(Fig. 2.26)
20-1
100-1
10-1
15-1
10-1
None
None
10-1
5 min.
10 min.
120 sec.
120 sec.
10 sec.
50 sec.
500 sec.
No liIDit
5-10%
5-10%
5%
5%
5%
10%
5%
1 cycle
a
b
c
d
g
e
f
h
(Fig. 2.27)
a
b
Filament Lamp
Resonance
(b) Electrical Delay Devices

10-1
4 sec.
5%
2 sec. Oper.
10-1
5%
30 sec. Reset
10-1
5 sec. Oper.
10%
50 sec. Reset
None
! sec.
10%
None
005 sec.
10%
Thermionic
Semiconductor Diode
Transistor
(c) Electronic Delay Devices

20-1
60 sec.
5%
10-1
8 sec.
7%
10-1
60 sec.
5%
(Fig. 2.28)
a
b
c
Flux Decay
Capacitor (d.c.)
Capacitor (a.c.)
c
d
e
(a) Dashpots consist of a magnetically operated plunger which is retarded

by oil flowing through an adjustable orifice in the plunger (fig. 2.26a). Where
quick reset is required the orifice is a check valve which opens on the return
stroke.
(b) Pneumatic damping originally used leather or rubber bellows which
were compressed by the solenoid, the time being controlled by adjustment of a
needle valve. In modern pneumatic timers the bellows have been replaced
by a metal chamber and diaphragm which can give greater consistency of
timing, for two main reasons; the chamber and diaphragm can be more
accurately made and the air can be in a closed circuit so that there is less
likelihood of dirt blocking the needle valve (fig. 2.26b).
67
Protective Relays
2.5
-(c) E SCQ.pt.m.~nl
t
(~) Mc.rcuty tube
(9) Fridion govc rnar
FIG.
(h)
~olor
(t) ~"C Ut y
dorllpot
opcrc.lcd
2.26. Mechanical and electromagnetic time delay devices
(c) Escapements similar to those used on clocks are less affected by

temperature than dashpots or pneumatic devices but must be designed for
easy starting (fig. 2.26c) by suitable design of the tooth angles.
(d) Magnetic damping pots consist of a copper induction cup enclosing a
permanent magnet and a soft iron pot which provides the return path for the
68
2.5
magnetic flux, as shown in fig. 2.26d. This device is more reliable in starting
than one depending upon the escapement principle because it provides no
retardation until the cup is in motion. With modem high coercive force
magnets, time delays up to 120 seconds can be obtained.
(e) Friction governor; an adaption from the phonograph. It consists oftwo
weights located at the ends of two resilient arms which are parallel to the
shaft when the mechanism is at rest. As the speed increases the centrifugal
force makes the weights fly outwards until, at the rated speed, the weights
rub on a conical surface which prevents them from going any faster
(fig.2.26e).
2.5.2. Mercury Delay
Mercury is prone to corrosion and hence must be used in closed containers. The most common use is in a tube which, when tilted, causes the
mercury to flow through an orifice to a new position, bridging the contacts.
Recently it has been used successfully in the form of a dashpot.
(a) Tilting Tubes. In this type the mercury not only provides the delay by
the time taken to flow to a new position under gravity but also acts as the
moving contact, by bridging the terminals which pass through the walls of
the glass tube (fig. 2.26e). Great care must be taken in the design of the
tubes to avoid leaks which would admit air.
Existing tubes are unsatisfactory for short delays because the mercury
may splash and break the circuit. High-speed designs have been developed,
however, in which the glass tube with its stationary contacts are moved and
the mercury stays still.
(b) Mercury Dashpot. Fig. 2.26f shows a typical arrangement with
hermetically sealed contacts in a metal or glass shell. A hollow magnetic
plunger floats in the mercury and is pulled downwards by a solenoid, displacing the mercury which in turn displaces some inert gas from an inverted
thimble. After sufficient gas has been expelled from the thimble through the
porous ceramic plug, the mercury in the main pool completes the circuit to a
small pool which forms the other contact. De-energising the solenoid releases
the plunger which then floats up to its original position and allows the inert
gas to return between the contacts.
This is a fairly accurate device but it is difficult to provide any adjustment
of the operating time; hence it is usually provided for a fixed time delay.
2.5.3. Thermal Delay
The most common arrangement is a bimetal strip or spiral which is heated

directly or indirectly by a.c. or by d.c. and operates contacts as it bends due
to the unequal expansion of the two metals in the strip with increasing
temperature.
In section 2.4.10 of this chapter a device using a unimetal (brass) strip
was described which has the advantage of being shockproof, whereas the
bimetallic strip is not.
69
Protective Relays
2.5
2.5.4. Motor Operated
On a.c. circuits a synchronous motor can be used which is interlocked

with the system frequency and hence accurate within one cycle. On d.c.
circuits a friction governor is generally employed but it is of course much
less accurate (fig. 2.26g).
A clutch between the motor and the contacts provides instantaneous
resetting and, for this reason, the motor usually rotates continuously in
order to reduce the effect of inertia on starting. Fig. 2.26h shows a typical
arrangement.
2.5.5. Electrical Damping
This method employs either a short-circuiting ring (slug) around a relay

solenoid pole, or a circuit containing reactance, or non-linear resistance, or a
resonant circuit.
The timing of such relays is affected by the supply voltage unless a
stabilizing device such as a non-linear resistor is provided between the
supply and the relay circuit.
(a) Short-circuiting Ring. In attracted armature relays this consists of
a heavy copper ring around part of the length of the iron core or a copper
tube inside the coil (fig. 2.27a).
To obtain maxiinum delay on pick-up the slug is put at the armature end
of the core and, with a large armature gap and a stiff restraining spring (or
many contact springs), operating times of 01 second can be achieved.
To obtain maximum delay on drop-out the slug is placed at the other
(heel) end of the core and, with a light spring load and a short lever arm,
release times up to 06 second can be achieved.
On relays with ground pole faces the drop-out delay due to the copper
ring can be up to 4 seconds with 10% accuracy but is non-adjustable. The
drop-out time can be made adjustable by adding a neutralising winding which
opposes the main coil and is left energised after the main coil is open-circuited,
as shown in fig. 2.27a. The rheostat can adjust the time from 03 to 4 seconds.
Since both windings are energised from the same voltage source, the
effect of voltage variation on the operating time is small. This is further
improved and the drop-out time increased by making the relay iron saturate
at 20 %of normal voltage with the armature closed.
(b) Capacitance. Connecting the relay coil in parallel with a capacitor
which has to be charged through a series resistor (fig. 2.27b) gives longer
time delays. Only slightly longer drop-out times are achieved but the pick-up
time can be increased to half a second with a capacitor of reasonable size.
The time of operation is adjustable by the rheostat R and is given by
r
V(R+r)
t =CR
- - Iog ( 1 +
--
R+r
v,.
(2.13)
where r is the resistance of the relay coil, and v is its pick-up voltage. The
70
(a l
2.5
(h )
(d)
(e)
(e)
FIG.
2.27. Electromagnetic time delay circuits

(a) Inductive flux decay
(b) Capacitor charge delay
(c) A.C. capacitor decay
(d) Lamp filament heating delay
(e) Resonance build-up delay
71
2.5
Protective Relays
operation of the relay can be made more positive and the timing more consistent by connecting a neon lamp in series with the trip coil.
On a.c. applications a rectifier is used to produce delay on drop-out, a
capacitor being across the relay winding, as shown in fig. 2.27c.
(c) Ballistic Resistance. Time delay on pick-up can be obtained by
connecting a metal filament lamp across the relay coil and a rheostat in
series with it. The lamp short-circuits the winding and reduces the magnetic
flux to zero for a short time until its filament becomes incandescent; the
lamp filament then has ten times its cold resistance and permits pick-up
(fig. 2.27d). Alternatively a carbon filament lamp or a thermistor can be connected in series with the coil. At room temperature the thermistor resistance
is high which limits the coil current. As the current heats the thermistor
its resistance falls until the coil current is sufficient for pick-up.
(d) Resonance. With a.c. instantaneous overcurrent relays a time delay
of up to 3 cycles can be obtained on pick-up by providing a secondary winding
which is connected to a high-Q series tuned circuit. The delay is caused by
the resonant circuit current building up to its steady value (fig. 2.27e).
(e) Remanence. About 1930 a remarkable timing device was developed
as an inverse time-current relay but never used commercially. It consisted
basically of a test-tube 20% filled with steel balls about 01 in. diameter and
surrounded at the upper end by a solenoid coil. When a.c. potential was
applied to the coil, the balls would rotate for a certain time and then suddenly
rise en masse to the middle of the coil. The balls arrived in the new position
with considerable speed and force, sufficient to operate a breaker trip latch
directly. The time of repeated operations was consistent but its VA burden
was high.
2.5.8. Electronic Devices
The pick-up of an attracted armature relay can be delayed accurately

up to 30 seconds by an electronic circuit, such as the one shown in fig. 2.28a.
The capacitor C is charged through the resistance R and, when it reaches the
value necessary to make the electronic tube conductive, current flows in the
plate circuit and picks up the relay.
The electronic tube is of the hard (high vacuum) type where self-resetting
is required; it can, however, be a thyraton if the circuit is de-energised elsewhere, such as by an auxiliary switch on the circuit breaker.
2.5.7. Semiconductor Circuits
The principle of the R-C charging circuit can also be used with semiconductor diodes (rectifiers) or triodes (transistors), as explained below.
(a) Rectifier-type Timing Unit. When the starting contact closes (fig.
2.28b) the current 11 rises to a value below the pick-up value of the relay.
The capacitor voltage VB rises exponentially from zero at a rate determined
by CR. When VB exceeds VA. a current 13 flows in the second relay coil and
72
2.5
raises the relay operating force above pick-Up. Variation in R (or C) changes
the time between start and operate.
(b) Transistor Timing Unit. A simple circuit for a static timing unit using
a transistor is shown in fig. 2.28c. A constant direct voltage is applied to an
R-C network. The capacitor C is charged through the resistor R and, when it
I o.c.
+
~s\art
con\QC\
I,
(b)
(c)
Two winding
rela.y
L
FIG.
-.,:e
I
O.C.volts
"'ux.r~lQ,y
.J..
2.28. Static time delay circuits

(a) Electronic
(b) Semi-conductor diode
(c) Transistor
reaches the value necessary to make the transistor conductive, an emitter

current flows and picks up the relay. A battery B provides the power for
tripping the auxiliary relay. This operation is similar to that of the electronic
timer but some advantages in performance are obtained; these include smaller
size, longer life, lower voltage supply and the elimination of cathode heaters
which consume power and can fail.
73
2.6
Protective Relays
By putting the auxiliary relay in the emitter circuit instead of in the

collector circuit, negative feedback provides a longer time delay and improved stability with temperature variation.
2.1. DETAILS OF RELAY DESIGN
2.6.1. Bearings
The most common type of bearing for precision relays, such as in the
induction type, is the pivot and jewel bearing similar to that used in watthour meters; the modem types have spring-mounted jewels and are designed
so that shocks are taken on a shoulder and not on a jewel (fig. 2.29). For
special applications requiring high sensitivity and low friction, a single ball
bearing running between two cup-shaped sapphire jewels has been used.
Endstone
~-~-:-~I-- bedr i ng
FIG.
2.29. Induction cup jewel bearing
Multi-ball bearings are popular on the Continent and it is claimed that

miniature bearings less than 116 in. diameter are now available, which provide as low friction as jewel bearings but have greater resistance to shock;
furthermore, they can combine side-thrust and end-thrust in a single bearing.
In hinged armature relays, knife-edge bearings, pin bearings or resilient strips
are used instead of pivot bearings because they are designed for operating
many contacts rather than for precision.
2.6.2. Backstops
In cases where a relay has a strong resetting torque under nornial conditions but has been given a very sensitive pick-up setting, there may be
trouble from sticking against the backstop. This may be due to the use of
normally non-magnetic materials which have become magnetic due to
74
2.6
fabrication, or it may be due to molecular 'sticktion', the tendency for the

contact arm and backstop to interlock their microscopically rough surfaces
under the influence of a.c. vibration.
The magnetic adherence can be overcome by making the backstop of nonmetallic material. The molecular adherence can be prevented by the use of
hard surfaces rounded to a large radius, the ideal combination being a
rounded metal contact arm and a smooth agate or nylon backstop.
2.6.3. Contacts
Contact performance is possibly the most important item affecting the

reliability of protective relays. Corrosion or a particle of grit can prevent a
relay from tripping. Consequently, the material and shape of contacts are of
considerable interest to the designer and user (20) (64) (146).
(a) Contact Design. It has been estimated that line contacts have about
half the resistance of square flat contacts of the same length and are commonly
used for stationary contacts such as plug contacts.
Cylindrical contacts at right angles provide the most reliable arrangement
for relay contacts because they provide the optimum high pressure of a point
contact without concentrating the current at an actual point which would
tend to burn and erode away.
Silver is the most widely used metal for relay contacts since it has the
lowest resistance and its oxides and sulphides, though readily formed in air,
are broken down more readily than those of other metals. Copper circuits
are not used in relays because the resistance of clean, new copper contacts is
eleven times that of silver ones and oxidation raises the resistance of copper
contacts several hundred thousand times.
When large currents are to be handled, such as in a.c. tripping, special
alloys of silver are available, such as silver cadmium oxide, which have a low
resistance like silver but do not weld or become sticky. For small currents and
very light contact pressures an alloy is used which consists of 67 % gold,
26 % silver and 7 %platinum.
In sensitive (low input) relays, where the contact pressure may be very
low, non-corroding metals such as gold, palladium or rhodium are used.
Since these metals do not corrode there is no need for high pressure to break
through tarnish; on the other hand, such relays are not recommended in
protective schemes because high contact pressure may still be needed to
squeeze out dust and lint from between the contacts in order to make
contact.
For maximum precision of electrical characteristics as well as maximum
contact pressure, the protective relay should have only one contact; if
additional contacts are required they should be provided on an auxiliary
relay. Bridging contacts make the contact pressure uncertain and introduce
inaccuracy if the two contacts do not make at precisely the same current; a
better arrangement is to use a flexible connection to a single moving contact.
Double contacts in parallel are almost ideal because, if there is one chance
75
2.6
Protective Relays
in 10,000 of failure with a single contact, there is only one chance in

100,000,000 with two contacts in parallel.
The maintenance of contacts can be minimised, if not eliminated, by high
contact pressure, hard smooth contact surfaces, bounce-proof contact design
and the use of dust-tight relay cases. The smooth contact surface created by
a burnishing tool will permit about ten times as many operations as a filed
surface, because the minute ridges caused by filing are melted by the arc,
causing roughness and hastening the need for reconditioning. Emery paper
should never be used because emery particles adhering to the silver may prevent electrical contact.
The exclusion of dust is very important; most contact failures are caused
by lint or grit stuck to them by varnish from overheated coils and tarry
combustion products in the air. It is difficult to cure completely the phenolic
resin varnish commonly used on coils and a hot coil can cause volatile
components of the varnish to leave the coil and condense on electrical
contacts, with the risk of open-circuiting them. However, polyester and
epoxide varnishes are now available which cure completely and at a lower
temperature so that this difficulty is avoided, especially if the coil is encapsulated in resin.
(b) Corrosion. The resistance of the contacts is partly that of the contacts
themselves (which depends upon their material and dimensions) and partly
that of the actual contacting surfaces. For clean, dry silver contacts R = C/P"
where R is in ohms and P is in grams. For silver n = 08 and C depends upon
in.
the contact shape and dimensions. For cylindrical silver contacts
diameter C = 004.
The resistance of a clean contact has also (64) been expressed as ;;,
n-
where p is the resistivity of the metal (1'7 microhm. em for silver) and a
is the radius of the contact area. a
= 111
;j~ where
= contact
pressure in grams, r = radius of the two similar cylindrical rods in contact

at right angles (in em.) and E is the elastic modulus for the metal (7 x 108
gm/em2 for silver).
It has been said that silver oxide is a good conductor. Actually it can be
classified as an insulator since it has.a resistance of the order of 40 megohms!
em3 but it is very readily broken down by heat (200C) and electrical or
mechanical pressure. Fortunately, silver oxide does not form readily and
seldom to a thickness of more than 10 A, so that it is easily moved aside by
pressure or sliding wipe and enough heat is generated at the point of contact
to reduce the oxide to silver.
On the other hand, silver sulphide forms very readily in industrial areas
or where coal fires are used or sulphur cured rubber is near the contacts,
especially in the presence of heat and humidity. It does not break down so
easily as the oxides but it is as soft as lead and can be squeezed aside with a
force of 300 gm. with crossed silver rods of 003 in. diameter; the resistance
76
2.6
of silver sulphide is relatively low (0017 ohm/cm3). The resistance of silver

sulphide also decreases with temperature; at 170C it is only one thousandth
of its value at room temperature.
At voltages below 100mV the resistivity of the tarnish is constant and
not related to the voltage. Hence the tarnish resistance Rr = (1(J)/na 2 where
(1 is the resistivity of the tarnish, (J) the thickness and a the radius of the
contact area. a = 111
3/Pr
!tJ
E as before (64). The actual contact area is very
small compared with the contact surface; it consists of the total area of the
tops of the irregularities in the contact surface. With round contacts the
contact area is theoretically a point and the actual area is finite only because
of plastic yield of the silver.
The voltage at which a corroded silver contact becomes conductive is of
K'(J)
the form: V =. - P where K' depends on the nature of the corrosion and
(J) is the thickness; this applies to oxide and sulphide coatings. P is the
pressure in grams. The breakdown voltage for silver sulphide is 08 to 15
volts per 100 A, or 106 volts/cm. The thickness of the coating is in,dicated by
the colour. Up to 50 A the bright silver appearance is retained; a brown
tarnish indicates roughly 250 A; a blue colour the 500 A region and violet
l,oooA.
It should be remembered that K ', although small, has a definite value so

that it is hazardous to employ silver contacts with less than O'S gm. steady
pressure for voltages down to SO volts or 2 gm. at 24 volts in clean atmosphere; much higher values around 30 gm. apply in polluted atmospheres;
the alternative to this high pressure is sliding wipe which can scour off enough
tarnish to establish initial contact so that heat from the ensuing current will
quickly overcome the tarnish as already described above. In short, the higher
the contact pressure the better.
In reasonable atmospheres, contact pressures of the order of a gram are
satisfactory with cylindrical silver moving contacts of measuring relays in
circuits above 50 volts d.c., because the collision of the contacts momentarily
increases the pressure per square inch sufficiently to break down thin coatings
of silver oxides and sulphides so that current can flow. Below 50 volts 8 gm.
is recommended. However, stationary contacts, such as coil taps and drawout case contacts, should have at least a 500 gm. pressure because, in some
circuits, the voltage across them may be very small.
A thin coating of petrolatum has been found to reduce metal transfer and
corrosion of contacts without increasing their resistance. It is beneficial in
polluted atmospheres and for relays which have a very large number of
operations. A dust-tight relay case fitted with a filter breather is essential for
contacts operating below 100 volts d.c. because a minute particle of sand or
hard grit can prevent flashover contact at low voltages.
A special problem exists in relays with poor ventilation, especially in
77
2.6
Protective Relays
sealed relays. High resistance polymers can appear on the contacts due to
organic emanations from coil insulation, especially where traces of iron or
copper are rubbed into the surface during manufacture (75). Contacts containing palladium are the most affected and gold plated contacts the least.
Phenolic resin varnish impregnation is the worst offender but all insulation
gives off organic vapour to a certain degree except PTFE (Teflon). Ventilated
relay cases with dust filters minimise the effect but the ideal solution is separately encapsulated contacts, i.e. like reed relays.
(c) Making and Breaking Capacity. The short-time carrying capacity of
contacts depends upon their weight, thermal conductivity, electrical conductivity and surface resistance. The last two items control the heat produced ([2R) and the first two control the heat absorbable.
The continuous carrying capacity of contacts depends upon their surface
area, the volume and thermal coefficients of the contacts and their supporting members, their electrical conductivity and their surface resistance.
For modern silver contact designs with cylindrical contacting surfaces,
the relationship between the short-time (tripping) and continuous capacity
is shown in Table 2.4. The contacts are mounted so that their cylinders or
ridges meet at right angles.
TABLE 2.4
Contact Capacity
Contact Class
.05"
O~A6"
A. Auxiliary relay
. +
04"
> 110
:;j>
c:::l
13/16 1
C. Sensitive relay
> 110
:;j>
15
14 x;os
75
110
> 110
Continuous
Carrying
Capacity
Amps.
7
13'~
110
Ya"
B. Protective relay
.04'~
Making Capacity for

200mS
Circuit
Circuit
Volts
Amps.
:;j> 110
30
15
X;04
Table 2.4 assumes that the contacts will be operated not more than 5,000
times before maintenance; there is an inverse relationship between the
contact duty and the number of operations that can be done before the relay
goes outside the performance specification pertaining to the relay. The number of operations is drastically reduced if the bouncing period of the contacts
exceeds the time constant of the circuit; it can be significantly increased if a
seal-in relay is used.
78
2.6
In Table 2.4 the current values given refer to linear inductive circuits such
as the trip coils of circuit breakers and the coils of auxiliary relays. In such
circuits the current starts from zero at the moment of contact closure and
builds up exponentially. In a resistance circuit the continuous rating would
be the same but the 200 mS values should be halved. In a circuit dominated
by a capacitance or a metal filament lamp the values would be much less
because the initial inrush current could be many times the steady value.
Protective relays (Class B in Table 2.4) are not normally expected to
interrupt any power because the circuits they set up are usually interrupted
by an auxiliary switch on the circuit breaker. In some cases, however, they
have to interrupt the coil circuit of an auxiliary relay or a timer. Modern
protective relays will interrupt 100 VA a.c. up to 120 volts or 10 watts d.c.
inductive. With a spark-quenching circuit they should interrupt 50 watts
d.c. up to 250 volts. The corresponding values for sensitive protective relays
are less, depending on the design.
Auxiliary relays (Class A in Table 2.4) will interrupt about 500 VA a.c. or
50 watts d.c. inductive. Such a relay is illustrated in fig. 2.l0a but, when
equipped with blow-out magnets (fig. 2.10b) it will interrupt 3 kW in a
highly inductive circuit (LjR = 005).
Further data is given in Vol. II, section 2.4.1.
In a.c. tripping (see Chapter 4, section 4.6) the current is transferred to
the trip coil by opening a contact which normally short-circuits it, so that the
contact does not actually interrupt any current. This transfer is done by an
auxiliary tripping relay (Class A in Table 2.4), and the transfer capacity of
these contacts expressed as the product of the current before opening times
the voltage across the trip coil after opening, is about 3,750 VA for silver
contacts, assuming a maximum of 3 seconds for the current to be flowing
through the contacts. This can be raised to 15,000 VA by using elkonite
contacts.
2.6.4. Bounce-proof Contacts
The pmblem of contact bouncing arises particularly in the case of a highspeed relay in which the armature and contacts have to be accelerated to a
relatively high speed in about 20 milliseconds and then stopped abruptly
against the stationary contact without any rebound. This requires some means
of absorbing the kinetic energy of the moving parts, such as a miniature
friction-type shock absorber, or an inclined tube containing a ball, as shown
in fig. 2.30b.
The method most commonly used employs flexible contact brushes
which slide against each other at their contacting tips; this method can be
made much more effective if twin contacts are used which have different
spring rates so that their bouncing periods do not coincide. The most ingenious and effective solution is a tiny capsule on the moving contact which
is half-filled with tungsten powder and which 'sandbags' the contact closed
by the powder flying up to the other end of the capsule when the contact is
79
2.6
Protective Relays
stopped suddenly (fig. 2.30a). A friction clutch between the armature shaft
and the moving contact gives as good results when properly designed (fig.
2.30d) and has the additional advantage of reducing the tendency of the
relay to operate undesirably under the influence of circuit transients.
b)
(0)
~hln
flexible
"striP
Ie)
Stationary
contact
MOVing
(d )
contact
Ie)
FIG. 2.30. Bounce-proof contacts

(a) Tungsten powder in a moving contact
(b) Ball mounted on an incline
(c) Pivoted contact type
(d) Axial clutch type
(e) Radial clutch type
A simpler approach is to use a loose contact suspended freely in the

middle; in this design the rebounds from the two ends tend to cancel each
other out (fig. 2.30c). This solution is superior to the tungsten container
because it does not increase the total inertia and thus retard the relay. It can
be combined with the friction clutch for optimum results.
It is sometimes possible to absorb the energy of the moving contact by
providing a backstop behind the fixed contact which is made of material with
low resilience and high internal resistance, i.e. material of similar consistency
to that of the pad of a human finger. Such a material is Vinyl acetate-vinyl
chloride copolymer of 60 Durometer A hardness.
2.6.5. Spark-Quenching Circuit.
Comparator relays usually have contacts of rather small rating; when

such contacts are used to control auxiliary relays or timing devices it is
necessary to protect them with a spark-quenching circuit. The simplest sparkquenching circuit consists of a series resistor and capacitor connected across
the contacts, as in fig. 2.31a.
80
2.6
For the best action, i.e. sparkless interruption of an inductive circuit and
no contact welding on closure, the parameters of the spark-quenching circuit
are given by Re = 02 VCO. 2 , where V is the circuit voltage and Rand C
=-
<>---------1-1
(b)
FIG.
R~
P. R.
00>__----0
2.31. Spark-quenching circuits.

PR = protective relay
(a) Across contacts. (b) Across load
are in ohms and mfd respectively. In the case of a highly inductive load,
L
ReC = - where Land RL refer to the load. Values of C and R can be
RL
calculated by solving these two equations.

An alternative is to put a capacitor across the load, as shown in fig. 2.3lb;
in this case C =
03~.
RL
2.6.6. Contact Pressure Augmentation
Geartrains and linkages are avoided in modern protective relays;

although they can increase contact pressure they introduce friction and
inaccuracy and increase the resetting time.
Near the threshold of operation of a relay, especially at low values of
current or voltage, the torque may not be sufficient to make the contacts
complete their circuit electrically because of the presence of small amounts of
dirt and oxide, or sulphide coatings which would be broken down under
conditions of normal torque.
This difficulty can be overcome by designing the relay to increase its
torque as the contacts approach. Attracted armature relays inherently possess
the latter feature; in induction cup or disc relays, however, it is necessary to
provide auxiliary means, such as a slot in the disc or a small auxiliary armature, to provide the additional closing force at contact closure. With moving
coil relays it is necessary to provide a seal-in relay or to connect the contacts
so that, in addition to their main function, they also divert some extra current
through the operating coil (fig. 2.32a).
Fig. 2.34 shows the contact pressure for different types of induction relays
D
2.6
Protective Relays
with silver contacts. Even with the highest contact pressures, silver contacts
would rapidly deteriorate if they had to handle currents above SA, especially
if they bounced at all. However, if a fast seal-in relay is used to protect the
contact, by paralleling them with its own contacts, these relays can handle
quite heavy currents, provided that the seal-in relay operates within 0010
second and has at least 25 gm. pressure on cylindrical contacts which do not
bounce. Fig. 2.35 shows the contacts of an induction disc relay with a
shaded pole electromagnet and a fast seal-in relay; the illustration indicates
negligible contact deterioration after 500 closures of a 40 amp, 250 volt
trip coil.
Seal-in relays or augmentation of the operating coil current, as is practised
in some foreign relays, is not a complete solution for this problem because
they do not work unless electrical contact is made in the first place. On the
other hand, such methods are valuable for making the contact action more
positive if the contacts are inclined to chatter or if they are of small capacity.
--
C.S. t rip
coil
+o----o~
I
I
I
ra) Torque O.lJgmentmg by a.dditlona.1 coil currtnt
,....
S
(b) Ca.pa.dtor cha.rgt a.nd dlScha.'gecircuit

FIG.
2.32. Circuit arrangements for augmenting contact pressure

Quantity A operates; B restrains
Fig. 2.32b shows a circuit which makes the action of a polarised d.c.
relay more positive. When the contacts close the capacitor discharges through
the transformer, producing a circuit-closing impulse in the operating coil of
the polarised d.c. relay; this causes firm closure and then decays exponentially
to cause no contact rebound. On opening, the charging of the capacitor produces an impulse in the reverse direction causing a clean break of the contacts.
In the case of ultra-sensitive relays, used with some static relays, the contact pressure can be very small and, in order to ensure intial contact, non-
82
2.6
tarnishing (royal) metals can be used, such as gold or rhodium. Contacts of

67 % Au, 26 % Ag and 7 % Pt are reputed to work reliably down to 20
micrograms.
The foregoing applies to measuring relays, especially those operating on
very small power inputs. In the case of auxiliary relays the input can be made
as high as their thermal capacity will permit. In cases where very fast action is
required, still greater input may be necessary; fig. 2.33a shows a circuit which
-0. .t
c
+0--0
l!J
-0
(a) Circuit for a.ccc.lcro.ti ng p ci k.up
"O--O-f
-0
',I
R
V\IWIIII\
(b) Circu it for Q.C.Cc 'crCLtlnq drop-out
l"'
''"0'
.,
Go
i3
~
u
Tim e
:::0
.
c
...
~
Time
'0
U
(c) Circu it for Q.cctlc.ra.t lng both pick - up a.nd drop-out
FIG.
:::o
ij
.
c
Go
2.33. Circuit arrangements for accelerating pick-up and reset of auxiliary

relays
(a) Fast pick-up. (b) Fast drop-out. (c) Fast pick-up and drop-out
temporarily increases the relay coil current while the capacitor is charging and
thus accelerates the pick-up.
Fig. 2.33b shows a means of accelerating drop-out of an auxiliary relay
by using the inductive inertia of a parallel inductor to reverse the coil current
and hence suppress the core flux rapidly. Fig. 2.33c shows both principles
used to obtain fast action on both pick-up and reset.
83
Protective Relays
2.6
_~
30+---+
Conta.ct prssure of typica.l

gea.rless induction rcla.ys with 3 V A -+-_~
burden a.t setting
Note:- The induction disc rela.ys ha.vc
sa.tura.ting cha.ra.ctcristic to
produce inverse-definite
time current curve
20+----+---++
o+-~~~==~==t=~c==t===c===~
234567
e
9
_ - L_ _
FIG.
LI_o~p~crLa.~tl~n~g~cu~r ~c~nt~a.~s~m~U~lt~iP~IC~O~fs~ct~ti~ng~I ~j
__
2.34. Torque curve showing the development of contact pressure with

operating current for different types of induction relays
2.6.7. Dust Proofing
The importance of excluding dust from a protective relay cannot be overemphasised. The most common cause of contact failure is lint or grit,
especially in humid atmospheres, or where there is a sticky deposit on the
contacts from manufacturing processes in the neighbourhood, or an overheated coil in the relay.
Modern relays have dustproof cases of pressed steel, cast aluminium or
moulded plastic. Some can be made dust-tight by sealing their joints with
an adhesive filler. Such cases must then be provided with a dust filter (fig.
2.37) so that breathing can take place without building up a pressure which
would force air past the cover gasket. Modern cover gaskets are usually of
neoprene rubber, since this is resistant to tropical conditions and insects.
If a dust-tight relay leaves the factory in a clean condition and if it has
a high torque it can be left in service for many years without maintenance.
This may be a method of solving the difficulty of obtaining sufficient staff to
cope with the relay maintenance of an expanding system.
2.6.8. Mechanical Stability
Increasing demands for sensitivity and speed have encouraged the use of
light movements and very short contact travels. This has made modem relays
more susceptible to undesirable operation due to mechanical shock or vibration; where these conditions cannot be avoided there is a danger of incorrect
relay operation.
84
2.6
Many manufacturers have installed apparatus for applying calibrated

impact vibrating forces to their relays and have modified their designs to
stand relatively rough conditions. These modifications include, where possible,
stiffening of contacts, balancing of armatures, bracing of weak supports and
designing for a low resonant frequency. Clearly static relays are less susceptible to shock than those with moving parts.
The method of analysis is to prepare a diagram similar to an electrical
analogue of the problem in which friction, inertia and resilience are represented respectively by resistance, induction and capacitance. From this
analogue the vibration and shock can be determined which will cause the
contacts to close undesirably and what must be done to prevent this. The
remedy may be confirmed by inspection of high-speed cine films of the relay
action, which slow it down so that the weak or oscillatory members can be
easily detected and modified.
Specifications for mechanical stability have not yet been formulated for
general acceptance but there is evidence that an impact of 30 g. normal to
the panel surface as near as possible to the armature should be an adequate
test for stability of the contacts. Such a blow causes complex rotary and translational movements of the relay due to shock waves in the panel surface and
has been found to be more severe than any reasonable service conditions.
It is probable that a controlled applied vibration of the form F sin 2 w/.
will be the basis of a calibration for resistance to shock and vibration.
Unfortunately the wprk has not progressed far enough at the time of going to
press to include further information.
2.. 9. Coil Design
Relay windings must stand a high potential or flash-over test of 2,500 volts
for I second. Actually, their insulation must be designed to withstand at least
4 kV because:
(a) It is customary to measure voltage on the supply side of the test
transformer; thus the voltage applied to the relay may be amplified

considerably by resonance betw~en the secondary reactance of the
transformer and the capacitance to earth of the relay, especially if it
is mounted on a large switchboard.
(b) Moisture condensing on the relay when it is brought from a cold
store-room into a warm test-room reduces its normal insulation.
With modem insulating materials, however, these circumstances present
no problem. What is more difficult is to design the coil to stand mechanical
abuse and the effects of heat, humidity, corrosive atmosphere and bacteria.
Mechanical robustness is achieved by a protective wrapper, varnish
impregnation and the proper anchoring of the leads, especially in the case of
fine wire coils. A common method is to use a harness taped to the coil, which
firmly supports the lead and the end of the winding where they are joined.
A common cause of failure is a loop in the wire, due to imperfect tension
85
Protective Relays
2.6
control, which causes wires to cross each other and the insulation to break
down between turns. An external wrapper improves the appearance of the
coil and protects it against accidental blows, such as from a screwdriver
slipping off a screw head; such a wrapper is a trap for moisture and bacteria
in tropical climates, however.
Corrosion is prevented by the avoidance of acid-forming insulating
materials or soldering fluxes and taking precautions against hand perspiration; in the case of d.c. coils it is important to connect one end of the coil
directly to the negative pole in order to avoid electrolysis.
The larger the wire, the more mechanical abuse it will stand and the
longer it will take for corrosion to cause an open-circuit. It is considered
unwise to use wire of less than 0002 in. diameter, even if all the foregoing
precautions are taken; this is because of the risk of a kink in the wire which,
although not noticed in winding the coil, might break later in service after
a few hundred daily temperature cycles. It is considered good practice to use
not less than 0 004 in. diameter wherever possible and especially on coils
directly concerned with tripping the circuit-breaker.
Where fine wires are unavoidable, a precision governor for the wire
tension should be used and encapsulation is recommended, i.e. 'potting' in
a sealing compound such as epoxide or polyester resin. The heat dissipation
of a relay coil in watts is about 02 A, where A is the superficial area in
square inches for 50C rise.
Encapsulation makes the coil practically impervious to subsequent
external conditions.
Flaws in the enamel and imperfect winding can be detected by an induced
voltage tester, described in Chapter 13, section 13.11.1. The use of this device
greatly reduces the possibility of subsequent failure of the coil in service.
For relays with tapped coils or for air-gap transformer reactors requiring
a constant
~ ratio,
the stranded coil technique is recommended (fig. 4.20);
in this technique many wires are wound in parallel in the form of a tape whose
strands are connected in series with taps brought out at the junctions. Such
X
a winding has constant magnetic leakage and R ratio for all taps because all
the turns traverse the same path. This technique is particularly valuable for
eliminating tap error on time-overcurrent relays
2.6.10. Electrical Connections
Until recently, all permanent internal connections of relays were soldered.

Dry joints were theoretically avoided by cleaning the joints thoroughly
before soldering and making sure that the soldering iron was at the proper
heat so as to ensure that the connections were properly wetted with solder
before joining. Quality control of soldering can reduce failures to one in
50,000; this can be improved to one in a million by first twisting the conductors around each other at least three times.
86
2.7
Brazing is superior to soldering for wires above 001 in. diameter. Crimping and wire wrapping are still better for wires above 001 in. diameter because
they use a cold-welding technique and the high pressure (over 1,000 Ib/sq. in.)
at the contact eliminates failure due to imperfect cleaning. Here again,
twisting the conductors around each other before crimping tends to make
failure almost impossible.
Stranded wires are preferable to single wires for relay connections because
a single wire can break due to vibration, especially if it has a nick due to
stripping or a crack due to sharp bending. Furthermore, stranded wire makes
a more reliable soldered or brazed joint.
The type of connection that is considered reliable in a conventional
relay circuit may not be acceptable for static comparator circuits which
operate with milliampere currents at less than one volt. At the time of
writing this book, a great deal of research is being conducted in this field.
Of the permanent forms of connections, the wire-wrapped type appears
to have ten times the reliability of soldered connections, assuming that
skilled operators and correct tools are employed in each case. A bolted
connection using a flexible nickel-plated device like a "Speed Nut" has been
approved for connections to printed circuit modules in some telephone
equipment.
Pressure connectors with gold-plated contacts are used in important
equipment such as guided missiles but are relatively expensive. A technique
liable to replace them in protective relays is to gold plate the printed circuit
conductors at the edge of the module; on the assumption that the module
wi.11 be removed and re-inserted not more than 500 times in its life, a gold
flash on top of 00002 in. of nickel is satisfactory provided that the method of
depositing the gold leaves a non-porous layer so that the nickel and copper
will be sealed off from the atmosphere and thus prevent corrosion. The
nickel is used primarily for ensuring good bonding; if it is not used. a thicker
layer of gold is necessary to protect the copper. The contact pressure required
is about 60 gm.
2.7. CASES
Modem relay cases have the same width and depth. Only the length
varies with the number of relay units in a case. This enables the width of the
switchboard panels to be standardised, makes it possible to use pressing
tools for blanking out the panel, facilitates the layout of relays on the panel
and gives an improved appearance. In the U.S.A. the tendency in recent
years has been towards the flush mounting of relays to improve the appearance of the panel and minimise the effect of dust. This necessitated a relay
unit withdrawable from the front, so that the American manufacturers have
standardised on drawout relays. The main advantage of this construction,
however, is that it also permits the use of a test plug; this speeds up testing
time by a factor of about 5 and tends to eliminate the possibility of a wrong
87
2.7
Protective Relays
FIG.
2.35. Appearance of induction disc contacts after 500 operations at 40 A,

250 V to illustrate the benefit of a seal-in unit
connection or a bad contact due to an improperly tightened nut or some

pinched lead insulation. This topic is treated later in Chapter 13.
Fig. 2.36 shows an English drawout relay (68) (105) which can be used for
either flush or projection mounting; detachable clamps are provided on the
sides of the case for flush mounting and bosses are provided on the rear for
the holding studs necessary for projection mounting. The terminal arrangement is the same for all relays; this facilitates switchboard wiring and the
use of a permanently wired test plug. The relay cases have withdrawable relay
units which are interchangeable in their cases so that a unit can be replaced
quickly and the insertion of the relay can be postponed until the construction
work is finished and the station clean. Furthermore, if the protective scheme
has to be modified to meet system requirements, new relay units can often be
put in existing cases on the panel, so that no plugging of holes is necessary.
By sealing the case so that it is practically air-tight and providing a dust
filter for breathing purposes, protective relays can be operated reliably in
extremely dusty or dirty atmospheres (fig. 2.37). For extreme tropical conditions of heat, humidity and bacteria, or for factories where a corrosive
atmosphere exists, a sealed case is desirable which completely protects the
relay from these conditions (fig. 2.38). However, if the case is completely
air-tight it is necessary to expel all moisture and volatile materials before
88
FIG.
2.36a. Operation of test plug in a drawout case
FIG.
2.36b. Relay withdrawn from drawout case
89
2.7
Protective Relays
FIG.
2.37. Sealed relay case with dust filter
sealing and to provide means for either detecting or removing them if they
occur during service.
A limited amount of moisture can be absorbed by a silicagel unit (shown
just above the nameplate in fig. 2.38). The moisture changes the silicagel
crystals from blue to red; the unit also acts as a leak detector if the relay is
intially dry.
Most volatile organic materials can be minimised by an activated carbon
'getter' in a porous container. Proper baking of the whole relay before
sealing the case avoids the risk of overloading the getter.
90
FIG.
FIG.
2.38. Airtight relay case
2.39. ContInental European type of case
91
2.8
2.8
Protective Relays
2.. ECONOMICS IN PANEL MOUNTING
In most countries protective relays are mounted on panels to the rear of

the instrument and control boards but some progress has been made in
mounting relays in racks instead of panels, i.e. a system of parallel horizontal
straps bolted to vertical posts of L section so that the straps can be moved
vertically to suit the length of the relay. Wiring is cabled and supported by
cleats on the horizontal straps. This system is considered to be cheaper than
cubicles and is generally attached to a wall behind the control board; it is
also more flexible since the relays can be rearranged or replaced simply by
moving the straps instead of re-drilling or blanking the panel.
Continental European practice (135) is to put complete protective
schemes such as 3-step distance relays in one large case (fig. 2.39), whereas in
Britain, Sweden and the U.S.A., individual relays are mounted in separate
cases, several of which may form a complete scheme. The single large case
facilitates factory testing and reduces the external wiring but separate relays
are easier to handle, giving greater flexibility of mounting and permitting
changes in connections; this last feature enables modifications of the basic
scheme to be made, which are necessary to meet the demands of different
applications and which would be more difficult with a large case in which the
wiring was already in cable form. Furthermore, separate relays with plug
testing facilities permit one unit to be tested while the remainder of the units
are still in service.
2.9. OPERATION INDICATORS
The general advantages of electrical as compared to mechanical operation

indicators have already been mentioned in Chapter 1, section 1.11, but some
constructional details will be considered here.
The series electrical operation indicator shown in fig. 2.10 has one tap
so that it is suitable for a wide range of trip coils; one coil covers 80 %of the
trip coil ratings with less than 5 % voltage drop. Such an indicator is shown
mounted on a protective relay in fig. 1.1.
The shunt electrical operation indicator is preferable where the trip
current is variable or unknown; but it does, however, require an extra contact on the protective relay to prevent the operation indicator from operating
when the circuit-breaker is tripped manually or by another relay. Fig. 1.10
shows typical connections for series and shunt flag and seal-in circuits.
The electrical operation indicator is generally combined with an auxiliary
contactor which provides extra contacts for other functions such as remote
alarm and also protects the main relay contacts by sealing in around them;
this has already been discussed in section 2.6.6.
The following is a comparison between mechanical, shunt and series
flags from a practical viewpoint.
92
FIG.
2.40. Mechanical operation indicator
93
2.9
2.10
Protective Relays
Mechanical flags are the cheapest (fig. 2.40) but they may not be as
visible because they must be mounted on the relay armature. Two electrically
separate contacts are required on the protective relay if the remote alarm is on
a supply of different voltage from the trip circuit. The work done to trip the
flag, though small, affects the pick-up of a relay and prevents mechanical
flags from being used on very sensitive relays or those with short armature
travel. The absence of electrical connections on the flag simplifies stocking of
relays where the trip current does not exceed 5 A. The worst shortcoming
of mechanical flags is the difficulty of setting them so that they are released
exactly when the relay contacts make; if this is not assured a flag may fail to
operate, or may operate erroneously when an induction disc relay resets
before making contact.
Shunt electrical flags are easier to apply than series flags in a complex
control or trip scheme; tripping is delayed, however, by their operating time
and may be prevented if, for instance, the fine wire coil of the shunt coil is
open-circuited by corrosion. The shunt flag cannot be sealed in except by an
extra wire to an auxiliary switch on the circuit breaker and requires three
contacts on the protective relay. The most common arrangement is 'shunt
reinforcing' (fig. 1. lOb ) where the protective relay opens the flag coil circuit
when it resets after the fault is cleared.
Series flags are used in most countries and offer the most practical
solution. It introduces no delay in tripping and there is negligible risk of
failure to trip because of an open-circuited coil, because the coil wire is of
heavy gauge. Its only limitation is imposed by the very wide range of current
over which it has to operate; some trip coils take 30 A while some tripping
relays take only 01 A. This situation normally requires a choice of three
coils, each having a tap, but a sensitive polarised flag has recently been
developed in England which will pick up at 01 A and has a resistance of
only 1 ohm full coil and 01 ohm on its tap, so that it is applicable to trip
currents up to 30 A.
2.10. FINISHES
Since relays are liable to be kept in damp surroundings in transit or

storage, they must be constructed of materials resistant to rust and corrosion
or they must be plated or painted with a protective coating. When stainless
steel, titanium and magnetic nickel steels become cheaper there will be no
problem; at present the following protective finishes are the most commonly
used.
Steel Parts: Copper-nickel where the appearance is important, with, as an
alternative, tin zinc. Either aluminium or black paint for large parts such
as cases, with an undercoat of primer or phosphate.
Brass: Nickel for good appearance, otherwise bare.
Aluminium: Anodising or irriditing finish.
94
2.10
Laminations: Varnish impregnation after either painting or phosphating to

prevent rust.
Relays normally energised in service tend to preserve their finish but those
stored in damp atmospheres tend to deteriorate in appearance unless the
room or container is kept at least SoC above ambient temperature.
2.10.1. Tropicalisation
The protection of relay parts by special finishes is seldom completely

reliable; it is preferable to provide a few watts of heat in relays which are
not normally energised so that the temperature of the air inside the case may
be raised 10C to prevent condensation, especially during storage.
An anti-bacterial and fungicidal varnish is available which should be
painted on mouldings and around the inside of the case or cover every two
years.
Wrapping relays in strong waxed paper or sealed plastic bags for shipment or storage in the tropics is effective provided that the relays were warm
and dry at the time of sealing the bags, and preferably equipped with a bag of
silica-gel.
2.10.2. Corrosion
Unless proper precautions are taken at the factory, fine wire coils are
liable to subsequent failure on open-circuit, usually near one of the leads but
sometimes at a kink or crossed turns, due to the fine wire having been eaten
through by corrosion.
The primary cause of this corrosion is the condensation of moisture on the
coil surface when its temperature is lower than that of the surrounding air.
The condensed moisture rapidly absorbs CO 2 , fatty acids from handling at
the factory and other acid-forming impurities, including bacteria, so that a
weak acid is formed which acts as an electrolyte; this results in electrolysis,
the acid radical combining with the copper to form an acid salt. In the case
of CO 2 , which is absorbed from the air, the salt is CuC0 3 , a green deliquescent powder of low resistance, which attracts more moisture and tends to
spread, accelerating the corrosion. Failures from this cause were much more
common when coils were connected to the positive end of the d.c. circuit,
because the coil became the electrode to which the acid ions were attracted.
There is statistical evidence that coils wound with 0006 in. wire are no
less liable to failure than those wound with 0002 in. wire, although they may
take somewhat longer to fail.
Experience has shown that corrosion does not. occur on coils that are
continuously energised since a rise in temperature, even as low as 10C above
ambient, prevents the deposit of moisture. For this reason trouble is very
seldom experienced with a.c. coils; on the other hand, d.c. auxiliary coils and
95
2.11
Protective Relays
trip coils which are not normally energised will corrode if not properly manufactured, unless they are connected to the negative pole of the battery and
are separated from the positive pole by the contacts of a relay or switch.
It has been found that condensed moisture or dew starts depositing at the
bottom of cracks in the coil rather than on the surface, whereas rain water
deposits on the surface and tends to bridge over the microscopic cracks.
The formation of the dew at the bottom of the cracks is, of course, the worst
place as regards corrosion, but it can be prevented by encapsulation or by
proper impregnation of the coil or the application of a hard wax over an
existing coil.
Corrosion of other parts of the relay can arise from the same causes and
is accelerated at stress points or where two components made of dissimilar
metals, or having dissimilar finishes, are in contact, promoting galvanic
action. This is especially common in tropical countries where excretions of
bacteria provide a source of acid which, in a damp atmosphere, forms the
electrolyte. Astonishingly large and brightly coloured growths of metal
salts sometimes form during the periods between maintenance, especially
in certain factories in-the tropics such as rubber refineries. For the relays to
operate reliably in such localities it is essential to house them in a sealed case.
2.10.3. Metal Whiskers
Metal whiskers are hairlike single crystals of the order of 00001 in.
diameter and up to 0'25 in. long, occurring mostly on electronic parts plated
with cadmium, tin, zinc, tin-zinc or tin-cadmium. They are flexible but of
immense strength and can puncture solid insulation so that they are dangerous to miniaturised equipment. A tin whisker t in. long and 00001 in.
thick has a resistance of 50 ohms and will carry 10 mAo
They grow most readily in warm, humid air and on thinly electro-plated
brass or copper parts, especially if they are subject to mechanical stress or
high frequency vibration. The ideal conditions appear to be 63C and high
humidity.
They can be prevented by the use of plating other than tin, cadmium pr
zinc or by avoiding plating. Humidity can be excluded in some cases by
varnishing or encapsulation. On the other hand, silver contacts are also
susceptible to metal whiskers in the presence of a suitable catalyst such as
sulphur and certain volatile components of phenolic varnish.
APPENDIX
2.11. CALCULATION OF INDUCTION RELAY TORQUE
Consider a moving element made of thin conducting material and prevented from rotating about its axis.
Let two alternating magnetic fluxes Cl>1 and Cl>2 be applied to the element
in such a way that their normal components <PI and <P2 within the element
96
2.11
are given by:
= klIll s~n(wt+1X1)}
CP2 = klI21 s1O(wt+ 1X2)
CPl
(2.11.1)
where 1111 and 1121 are the amplitudes of the respective input currents and k
is a constant, characteristic of the magnetic system producing the fluxes.
If the effective impedances presented by the element to currents induced
by the two fluxes are equal and given by Z j A, the total currents are given by:
-~l
i l = ZjA = - wk l11 cos (Wt+lX l -A)
)
(2.11.2)
I
i2 = ZjA = - Z 12 coS(Wt+1X2- A)
-~2
wk l
and the currents i12 and i21 reacting with the resultant fluxes within the
element by:
.
112
.
121
Wkk11 11 I cOS(Wt+1X 1-A)

= kIll. = - -Z
)
(2.11.3)
= kl12. = - rokkl
-Z I12IcoS(rot+1X2- A)
where kl is a constant assumed equal for both currents and defined by:
(2.11.4)
Neglecting the effect of the induced currents upon the applied fluxes, the
torque developed within the element is then given by:
(2.11.5)
where k2 is a constant.
Thus:
'T
wkk ll 12 I . coS(Wt+1X2-,1.).
= k2{k I11 I s1O(wt+lXl)-Z
-k1I21 sin (rot + 1X2) . ro~klllli Cos(rot+a 1-A)}
2
.
~ 2-A)= rok Zk1k 21 11 I 12 I{sm(wt+al)'
cOS(Wt+1X
-sin (wt+a2) . cos(rot+al-A)}
=
rok2~lk2IIII112IHsin(2wt+al +a2- A)+sin(al- 1X2+ A)-sin (2rot+al +a2-A)-sin(a2-al +J..)}
:. 'T
I I.
= rok2kl
Z k21 11 12 s1O(al- a2) COSA
97
(2.11.6)
2.11
Protective Relays
Using r.m.s. values and considering II

't'
22klk2
12 in a time-current relay:
= 2wk Z-l sm (!Xl -!X2) cos A.

= KW]2
sin () COSA.
98
(2.11.7)
(2.11.8)
3
TIw Main Cha,.trete,.istics of
p,.otective Belays
Phase and Amplitude Comparators-Relay Characteristics-General
Equation for Characteristics-Inversion Chart-Resonance-Appendix
3.1. GENERAL CHARACTERISTICS AND EQUATIONS OF PROTECTIVE
RELAYS
In this chapter a general mathematical relationship for relays will be

developed which is applicable to all types of relay movement. A graphical
method of showing the complete performance of any relay at pick-up will
be discussed.
3.1.1. Relays as Comparators
All protective relays of the electrical type operate when an electrical

quantity of the protected circuit either changes from its normal value or
changes its ratio and/or phase relation with respect to another electrical
quantity of the circuit. In other words, the relay may measure one quantity,
usually the current entering the protected circuit, and compare it either with
a standard or with another quantity with which it has normally a certain
magnitude or phase angle relation.
In some simple types of relay, used as level detectors, the second quantity
is constant, as in the case of an overcurrent relay where a spring or gravity
may oppose the force produced by the current in the operating electromagnet. The spring acts as a standard of comparison and prevents the
electromagnet from moving the armature and closing the relay contacts until
its force has been overcome, which requires a current representing the calibration level of the relay. On account of the fact that the fault current level
changes with generating conditions, it is seldom possible to obtain selectivity
on the basis of current magnitude alone and most applications require the
addition of a time function so that the relays nearest the fault location, having
the most current, will trip first and before the others in unfaulted circuits
can do so.
Because of the difficulty of obtaining selectivity on the basis of single
quantities like current, potential, phase angle, etc., without employing time
delay, most high-speed relays measure a derived quantity which is a com-
99
Protective Relays
3.1
bination of several simple quantities; for example, admittance, current ratio,

etc., in which two simple quantities are compared in magnitude and/or phase
relation.
An example of magnitude or amplitude comparison is the differential
current relay where the current entering the protective circuit is compared
with the current emerging (fig. 3.1), which should normally be the same.
FIG.
Restra.in
Rutra.in
(a)
(b)
3.1a, b. Differential current protection (longitudinal) (a) normal (b) faulted
An example of phase comparison is the power directional relay which compares the direction of current flow relative to the bus potential (see fig. 2.4,
third row).
The comparison is usually made in relays by turning the electrical quantities into forces, torques, m.m.f.s or e.mJ.s proportional to the two quantities compared. This physical aspect of relays was considered in Chapter 2
in connection with different types of relay movements. In the present chapter
we will consider the different types of characteristics which those movements
can be used to produce. The movements are divided into two groups:
(a) Relay Movements or Circuit Arrangements which inherently make
Amplitude Comparisons.
Balanced beam relay (fig. 2.17a)
Induction disc element with shaded pole driving magnets (fig. 2.5a)
Opposed rectifier bridges (fig. 2.21a)
Transductor relay (fig. 2.23a).
(b) Relay Movements or Circuit Arrangements which inherently make
Phase Comparisons.
Induction cup relay (fig. 2.6)
Induction disc element with wattmetric type of driving magnet (fig. 2.12a)
Induction dynamometer (fig. 2.3b)
Polarised rectifier bridge (fig. 2.22)
Hall effect crystal (fig. 2.25)
Magnetic amplifier relay using Ramey circuit (fig. 2.23b).
In inherent amplitude comparators the two quantities are opposed and
the relay operates when the operating quantity exceeds the restraining
quantity in magnitude, irrespective of phase relation.
100
3.1
The Main Characteristics of Protective Relays
An example is a balanced beam impedance relay (see Chapter 2, fig. 2.17a)

with the current I tending to operate the relay and the voltage V tending to
restrain it. The relay operates when Kill exceeds IVI or when IZI < K,
irrespective of the phase angle between I and V (fig. 3.6).
FIG.
3.2. Balanced current protection (N is the number of coil turns)

Restrdining coli
~_
i(l.. +sl.)
----JM~~
__~~~ _ L__
__
. ~~~~
(a.)
Opcta.t.ing
coil
________--:-'______ Pi lot
!i~
_____ ____'________
TcrminoJ
(a)
Opna.ting
T
Opera.ling
co il
coil
~-:}II
II
........._ _ _ _.1...- _ _ ..../
\I
1\
' - - _ _ _ _........._ _- - ' ' - '
(b)
FIG.
3.3. (a) Circulating current pilot wire protection showing alternative positions
of restraining coil (a and b). (b) Balanced voltage pilot wire protection
In inherent phase comparators the two quantities interact causing the

relay to operate when one quantity has a certain phase relation relative to
the other, irrespective of their magnitudes. An example is a wattmetric relay
movement which is a natural phase comparator; the current and voltage
co-operate to produce a torque proportional to IVI III cos cP where cP is
the phase angle between V and 1. This means that the device produces a
positive torque when cos cP is positive, i.e. 90 > cP > - 90.
101
Protective Relays
3.1
3.1.2. Relationship between Amplitude and Phase Comparators
The above is only part of the matter, however, since an inherent amplitude
comparator becomes a phase comparator and vice versa if the input quantities are changed to the sum and difference of the original two input quantities ..
Consider a relay which operates when IA I > IBI, i.e. an amplitude comparator. If the input quantities are changed so that it operates when
A-B
~------~~------~
(a)
A
\
,
,
t,
':v, ,
'''',,
'l.
to/
I
I
tfJ
B
(b)
. FIG.
(c)
3.4. Vector diagrams of amplitude comparator used for phase comparison

(a) ; > 90 when
>
+
(b) ; = 90 when A - B = A + B
(c) ; < 90 when A - B < A + B
)A - B) )A B)
IA + BI > IA - BI it is now a phase comparator because A and B must have the

same sense or polarity for the relay to operate. This is illustrated in fig. 3.4.
Similarly, a directional relay whose torque is proportional to a vectorial
product of A and B is a phase comparator which operates when A and B
have the same direction. If, however, the input quantities are changed to
FIG.
(c)
(b)
(a)
3.5. Vector diagrams of phase comparator relay used for amplitude comparison
(a) A 90
(b) A = B when A = 90
(c) A > B when ..t < 90
(A +B) and (A - B), as in fig. 3.5, the relay becomes an amplitude comparator because (A + B) and (A - B) have the same polarity only if IAI > IB I
This can also be proved algebraically by taking specific cases of relays.
For instance, a balanced beam relay operates when the pull of the operating
magnet at one end of the beam exceeds that of the restraining magnet at the
102
3.1
other end, i.e. when IAI2 > IBI2. If we change the input quantities, as discussed above, the relay operates when IA+BI2 > IA-BI 2,
Le. when
IA2+B2+2AB cos (4)-8)1 > IA2+B2_2AB cos (4)-8)1
-where 4> is the angle between A and Band 8 is a design angle, or when
4AB cos (4)-8) > 0
Le. when
(0+90) > cP > (0-90)
Similarly, in an induction cup relay, the torque is proportional to the
vector product IAIIBI cos (4)-0) and the relay operates when
(0+90) > 4> > (0-90).
If we change the input quantities as before, the torque oc IA +BIIA - BI sin ex
where ex is the angle between (A + B) and (A - B) which must be 90 for
maximum torque. Thus the torque oc IA 12 -IBI2 and the phase comparator
has become an amplitude comparator.
3.1.3. Graphical Representation of Threshold Conditions
It would seem obvious that the operating characteristic of a comparator

would be most clearly demonstrated by plotting in a polar diagram the ratio
of the amplitudes of the two quantities compared for different angles between
them. Nevertheless, prior to 1930, it was customary to show the characteristics
of an amplitude comparator, such as a differential relay or an impedance
relay, in a diagram along whose axes were plotted the two quantities -compared and to use a polar current diagram for phase comparators, such as
directional relays, showing the characteristics at certain fixed voltage or
current values.
In the early thirties, when the mho relay was evolved (5), the amplitude
and phase characteristics were shown in the same diagram in a single characteristic (figs. 3.6, 3.9b and 3.lOb) at the suggestion of J. Neher, the coordinates being the real and quadrature components of VII, i.e.
WI cos 4> =
Rand j
WI sin 4> =
X.
Clearly this same idea can be applied to other relays comparing the two
quantities vectorially. For instance, fig. 3.14b shows the characteristics of a
current differential relay with axes
I~:I cos 4>
and j
I~I sin 4>;
this diagram
tells a great deal more about the performance of the relay than some present
manufacturers' bulletins, which use the amplitude comparison diagram of'
fig. 3.14a.
It has already been shown, in Chapter 2, that the characteristics of all
relays comparing two quantities A and B are circles in a diagram whose coordinates are the real and imaginary or quadrature components of (~), viz.
I~l, = l~l cos 4>
and j
103
l~t = j I~I sin 4>
(3.1)
3.1
Protective Relays
FIG.
3.6. Impedance relay characteristic on impedance diagram
\
\. Oi rection of I for mQJC. torque
(a)
.x
(b)
FIG.
3.7. Directional relay characteristic on

(a) current diagram
(b) impedance diagram
104
3.2
where A and B are the two quantities compared. As A and B can be either
currents or voltages, points in the diagram then indicate either current ratios,
impedance or admittance. The advantage of such a diagram is that the phase
and magnitude relations are clearly indicated, but it is not applicable to relays
with non-linear characteristics except as a series of graphs at different levels
of the quantities compared. Phase angles are considered positive when the
numerator quantity leads the denominator quantity, i.e. when A leads B
where
~ is plotted. For example,
where; is plotted, j
1;/ =
X is positive
when V leads I by the positive (counter-clockwise) angle ljJ.

Where A is potential and B is current the real ordinate
and j
I~t
I~t is resistance
is reactance; hence the diagram in which the characteristic is
plotted has ordinates R andjX and is called an impedance diagram. Similarly,

where
I~\ is
plotted, the diagram has ordinates G and jB and is called an
admittance diagram. Other names are the Z-plane and the Y-plane characteristics (see figs. 3.9 and 3.10).
Unfortunately, there are no words like impedance and admittance that
apply to the ratio of two currents or to the general case of
I~I or I~I. Con-
sequently, in the interests of clarity and brevity, these diagrams will be

referred to respectively as the (X-plane and the p-plane diagrams.
3.2. PARTICULAR TYPES OF RELAYS
The characteristics of instantaneous relays measuring a single quantity

cannot be plotted because they are in fact defined by their pick-up and reset
values. Time-current relay characteristics are usually defined by limits of
operating time at certain current values such as 2 x and 10 x pick-up and,
although shown as time-current curves, are very seldom represented by an
equation. However, they can be expressed in the form t =
-#-+ B where
m -1
m is the multiple of pick-up current and A and B are constants. For I.D.M.T.
relays, A is of the order of 2 and B is of the order of 0 '1. A is of the order of
6 for very inverse relays. n is 0 for a definite time relay, 1 for a very inverse
and 2 for an extremely inverse relay.
In comparator relays the relay cha:racteristic is the locus of zero torque
conditions; the relay operates for conditions on one side of the locus and
resets for conditions on the other side. This locus is the result of plotting the
equation of balance (zero torque) in terms of the two quantities compared.
We will now consider various well-known types of comparator relays,
comparing currents and voltages in magnitude or phase or both.
105
3.2
Protective Relays
3.2.1. Current Differential Relays
The most effective principle of protection is 'Unit Protection', in which the

relay compares the magnitude and/or direction of the currents entering and
leaving the protected circuit (fig. 3.1). For generators and motors, the magnitudes ofthe phase currents entering and leaving will be the same under normal
conditions. This will also apply to transformers after correction for their
tum ratio. Any difference will indicate an internal fault and is detected by a
relay whose operating winding receives the vectorial difference of the currents
at the two ends of the protected section.
For transformers and large generators, this is called longitudinal differential protection. In order to avoid undesirable operation on heavy external
faults due to C.t. errors, a restraining winding is provided which is energised
by the through current and has fewer turns than the operating winding.
If the restraining and operating magnets are similar and the ratio of their
turns is S, operation occurs when
II ;121> III ;I2[ for a static comparator,

+1 [2 for an electromagnetic comparator.
or II -1212 > II-T
I
/-T
(3.2)
(3.2a)
S is usually 05 or 5 % for generators and 01 to 04 for transformers, the

higher values being used if the transformer ratio is varied by a tap changer.
S is also the ratio of restraining turns to operating turns in symmetrically
designed relays.
Equations (3.2) and (3.2a) represent the same characteristic at balance.
By dividing equation (3.2) by II and substituting
an expression for marginal operation 11-a-jbl
~
11
= a + jb we obtain
= ~ 11+a+jbl which is
shown in the Appendix 3.7.1 to be the equation of a circle on a diagram having

ordinates
c=
I~I
~p
and j
I~I,. whose radius is

~q
1-
(S~) '
and whose centre is at
1+(~y
( 2 " The negative location of the cen're is due to the convention
1-
~)
of calling the difference current (II - 12 ), If the directions of II and 12 were

considered relative to the protected circuit 12 would be normally negative
relative to II and their difference would be written II + 12 which would make
c positive;
The mathematical steps for the calculation of rand c are given in Appendix 3.7.1. The characteristic is illustrated in fig. 3.14b for S = 01, which is
referred to as a 10% slope (fig. 3.14a).
106
3.2
In the case of a circuit with more than two ends, such as a three-winding
transformer or a multi-circuit bus, the c.t's are polarised with respect to the
direction of power flow from the bus or transformer so that the operating
quantity is now the vector sum of the currents which, by Kirchhoff's Law,
should be zero under normal conditions (this method of polarisation makes
the expression for c positive). In the protection for such multi-ended circuits
the operating coil receives the vector sum of the currents and the restraining
coil or coils the scalar sum of the currents or the squares of the currents.
The equation for marginal operation is
111
+Iz; ... 1,,\
111Iz+llzI2 ... 11,1
(3.3)
Another variation in the design of relays for protecting two-ended circuits,

such as generator windings, is the principle of product restraint, where the
restraining torque is proportional to the product of the two currents, i.e.
the net relay torque is of the form
r-ll1111zl
I 1- I z
coS'r
(3.4)
S I
where l' is the angle between 11 and 12 , This arrangement permits S to be
non-linear and large at high currents so that there is a very high restraining
torque (high stability) for heavy external faults. It also gives very fast action
on internal faults because 1111 1121 cos T then becomes negative and hence
adds to operating torque.
The characteristic is a circle of radius S
c=
J + (~)
1
(1 + S2) when plotted on a diagram with axes I~I12 and

2
the same circle when plotted in a diagram with axes
I~I
11
and centre at
j
I~I.
It is also
12
and j
p
I~I.
This is
11
q
analysed mathematically in Appendix 3.7.2.

In all these arrangements the stability can be further increased by making
the restraint non-linear, increasing the through current, or by introducing
saturation into the operating coil circuit so that the pick-up increases sharply
with the high through current. The effect on the equation for marginal
operation is to increase the value of S at high currents.
3.2.2. Current Balance Relays
In the case of parallel lines or split-winding generators, where the currents

in two parallel paths are normally equal (fig. 3.2), balanced current relays are
used in the system known as transverse differential protection. Because either
one of the two currents can be the larger during a fault it is necessary to have
two relays in each of which the restraining winding has 10% more turns than
the operating winding, so that an excess of 10% of current in either circuit can
be detected. Relay operation occurs when 1111 > 11 1121 in one unit or 1121 >
11 1111 in the other, where subscripts 1 and 2 refer to the two parallel circuits.
107
3.2
Protective Relays
The equation for balance is
ItI
= K, which gives a circle of radius K
with its centre at the origin.

This direct comparison of the two currents is less effective than the
system described in the previous section 3.2.1 because the latter is of the
order of ten times as sensitive at low currents. It is used for parallel line
protection because line faults seldom involve less than load current and
because it is necessary to distinguish the faulty line which could not be done
with a single relay measuring the difference current (see figs. 3.1 and 3.2).
3.2.3. Pilot Relays
Longitudinal differential protection can also be applied to lines and cables

in the same way as it is to generators and transformers but, if the relay is
located at one end of the line, some means of tripping the remote end by a
superimposed signal (known as transferred tripping) must be provided.
Although this is theoretically preferable it is not adopted in practice; instead
it is customary to have relays at both ends, in each of which the local current
is compared with the current in the pilot wire. With this arrangement the
performance of the relays is limited by the current by-passed through the
capacitance of the pilot wires and by the deliberate introduction of nonlinear devices in order to keep the pilot voltage down to a reasonable level;
the pilot wire current is the current supplied by the c.t's at one end minus the
current by-passed through these shunt paths and the linear current taken by
the local relay.
Depending on the relative polarity of the currents at the two ends of the
line, the pilot wire current under normal conditions may either be zero
(balanced voltage scheme) or equal to the through current (circulating
current scheme) assuming negligible capacitance and leakage. These schemes
will be described in more detail in Chapter 8.
(a) Circulating Current Scheme. In this system, under normal conditions
and during an external fault, the current circulates around the pilot wire
loop because the line current flows in at one end and out at the other. When
an internal fault occurs the current tends to flow inwards from both ends so
that it no longer circulates and the difference current flows in the operating
coils of the relay, as shown in fig. 3.3a; the restraining coil can be connected
either on the pilot wire side of the operating coil (position 'a') or on the c.t.
side (position 'b').
(i) Restraining Coil on Pilot Side. Considering the first position (a), the.
equation for balance in the relay at end A is
K
tIIA-1IBI = "2IIA+1IBI + P.U.
(3.5)
K is a relay parameter which depends upon the ratio of the operating and
restraining coil turns and the impedance of the operating coil circuit. P.U.
is the pick-up current ofthe relay, which will be neglected because the critical
108
3.2
conditions of operation occur at high currents where P.U. is negligible. ')I is the
propagation constant and ~~ is a, a vectorial quantity of the form a+jb.
(3.6)
where m is the attenuation constant and n is the phase shift constant. Z is the
series impedance and y the shunt admittance per mile of pilot.
It is more usual to use the symbols ')I = a+jp (151), but they have been
avoided here to prevent confusion with the a- and p-planes.
For zero attenuation and phase shift ')I = 1/0.
')I
= ..)Z". y = m+jn
To plot the characteristic in the a-plane
(a
~~), we must divide equa-
tion (3.5) by I B which gives
(3.7)
In Appendix 3.7.3 this is shown to be the equation of circle of radius
2K 21')11 and whose centre in the a-plane is located at c = ')11 +K:.

1-K
1-K
This is also the characteristic of the relay at terminal B plotted in the

p-plane because a is local current/remote current at end A. and p is local/
remote current at end B (fig. 3.8a).
It is more usual to plot the characteristic of the relay at terminal A. in the
p-plane, i.e. in terms of
1~:I. To do this we divide equation (3.5) by 1,( which
gives
(3.8)
Following a similar procedure, which is given in Appendix 3.7.4, this
gives the equation of a circle whose radius is
=
1':'~21~1 and whose centre is at
!(1+K2 )
l-K2 .
This is the same circle as for the characteristic of the relay at terminal
B plotted on the a-plane.
These results can be summarised as follows:
')I
3.1
Circulating Current Relay Characteristics
TABLE
a plane for end A or
pplane for end A or
Radius
2K
1- K21l'1
2K 111
1 - K2 l'
Centre
1 +K2
,'I-K2
Plane Quantity
Pplane for end B
109
a plane for end B
! (1 + K2)
l' 1- K2
3.2
Protective Relays
To take an example, if l' = '655/-24 for a 20-mile pilot and K = 031.

The a-plane characteristic for the relay at A is a circle of.radius 0'448, centre
at 0'792/- 24; this is also the p-plane characteristic for the relay at terminal B.
The p-plane characteristic for the relay at end A is a circle of radius
1045 and centre at 1,85/24; this is also the characteristic for the a-plane
characteristic of the relay at end B. These characteristics are shown in
fig. 3.8a.
For a zero length pilot l' = 1/0 and the a- and p-plane characteristics
are the same for the relays at either end, viz. a circle of radius 0685 and
II~
(. )
-..L
c , r-~
l-/I(Z ,
, - 1 _/1(2
}I!.!I
CA -
C, =~ . 0
I, '{
r, = ~
II~
~---+-4-4------1I+---+-- I~lp
FIG.
3.8. Charactcoristic of circulating current pilot relays on the ex plane

(a) Restraint coil on pilot side
(b) Restraint coil on C.t. side
centre at 1'21/. This is the middle circle of fig. 3.8a. This circle cuts the
.
I-K
I+K
real aXIs at op = - - and OP' = - ---.
I+K
l-K
For the relay to be stable on load and external faults it must not trip when
IA. = IB' i.e. the point 1,0 must be well within the circle. To do this and allow
for modification of the circle due to 1', the relay constant K and the phase angle
110
3.2
of the operating coil circuit must be related to y. To permit the use of a constant value of K, the impedance of the operating coil circuit can be made
equal to the characteristic impedance Zo of the pilot wires. This is explained
in Chapter 8, section 8.4.1 (a).
(ii) Restraining Coil on C.t. Side. For long lines and G.P.O. pilot schemes,
the restraining coil is usually connected in position (b). Here the relay at the
end A is at the threshold of operation when
1r,.-yIBI = KIIAI
(3.9)
In Appendix 3.7.5 it will be shown that the operating characteristic in the

a-plane is a circle of radius
~IYI
and centre at y - 1
1 2'
l-K
-K
Zo in series with the operating coil in fig. 3.3a is adjusted so that the
operating coil currents in the relays at the two terminals, t(IA - sIB) and
t(IB- SIA)' are in phase with each other for single-end feed, i.e. with I B = O.
This compensates for the phase shift in the pilot so that y can be taken as
scalar and equal to s (fig. 3.8b).
The equation for balance then becomes
(3.10)
This results in a circle in the a-plane whose radius is
sK 2 and whose
l-K
centre is at _s_ /0. The characteristic for the relay at terminal B is a circle
l-K-
of radius ~ whose centre is at ! /0. The circles for terminals A and Bare
s
sinterchanged when plotted in the p-plane. The effect of pilot wire voltage
limiters is to make the circle bulge to the right.
(b) Balanced Voltage Scheme. In this system (fig. 3.3b) the currents at the
two ends are turned into voltages by passing them through reactors with
secondary windings (transactors). The transactors are connected so that their
output voltages are opposed during normal conditions and no current flows
in the pilot wire, neglecting pilot capacitance. During an internal fault the
voltages are nearly in phase and current flows in the pilot wires and in the
relay operating coils which are in series with them. The relays compare the
pilot wire current with the current in the local restraint circuits and operate
when K 1/01 > 1/,1
Now, 10 is effectively proportional to VA - VB and IR to VA; since VA
and VB are proportional to the currents producing them, the relay at terminal
A operates when K IIA-yIBI > IIAI, which is the same basic equation (3.9)
as that of the Circulating current pilot scheme for long lines (restraining coil
on the c.t. side).
Hence it will be seen that circulating current and balanced voltage pilot
schemes have similar equations and hence similar characteristics.
Balanced voltage schemes are more difficult to apply to multiterminallines
111
/I:)
III ;121
KIIA\
lIB - "IAI = KIIBI
KIIB + )'IAI
Ditto
KIIA + )'IBI
\IA - )'IBI
lIB - )'IAI
Ditto
Circulating current pilot

scheme B and balanced
voltage scheme
IIA - )'IBI
III -12/2 = Illllhi cos IX
-S-
Ih;hl
Equation

scheme A (Restraint
on pilot side)
Current differential with

:::: product restraint
Current differential
System
3.2
(~r
11~1
KI~I
1- KI!I
I+K)'
Cl-K2
+K2)!.
)'
1
l-K I)'I
1 +KI!\
l-K)'
1 +K II
l-K )'
c+r
1-~
1+~
OP'
3.2.3 (a) (ii)
3.2.3 (a) (i)
3.2.3 (a) (i)
3.2.1
3.2.1
Section
(1 - K) I~I (1 + K) I~I 3.2.3 (a)(ii)
1
1 +K I)'\
l-K
1 +KI)'I
1 +K2
l-K2)'
1
l-K2)'
:XK2) +
c-r
S;)/oo
(1 +
1+~
(~rW
1- 2
K
l-K2 1)'\
(1
2K
1- K2 1)'1
SJ1 + (~r
1-
1-~
(~r
S
1+
OP
Both
Both
Terminal
a.-Plane Characteristics of Differential Current Relays
TABLE
3.7.4
3.7.4
3.7.3
3.7.3
3.7.2
3.7.1
Appendix
3.Sb
3.Sb
3.Sa
3.Sa
3.14b
3.14b
Fig.
No.
'"
iii
Cb
::0
Cb
.....
Cb
0
-.
'b
a
....
3.2
due to the fact that the voltage limiting devices upset the voltage balance that
is required to prevent tripping on external faults.
(c) Criterion for Stability. Table 3.2 summarises the values for the radii
and centre locations for the various applications of differential current relays.
As previously explained, the point 1,0 must be well within the characteristic
to ensure stability. This will be the case if 1,0 is well between the points P
and P' where the circle cuts the real axis. Where the centre of the circle lies
in the real axis, as in the case of differential current relays, OP = c-r and
OP' = c+r, but, in the case of the pilot wire relays, the data apply only
where compensation is provided for 'Y so that the centre of the characteristic
circle lies on the real axis. In the Appendix, section 3.7, the cases are considered of relays not having this compensation and which are treated as
follows.
Referring to fig. 3.21c, if the centre of the circle is located at ao, bo, the
points P and P' where the circle cuts the real axis are given by
a1 = ao-(r2-b 2)t and a2 = ao+(r2-b 2)t,
(3.11)
respectively.
3.2.4. Impedance Relays (58)
Where the length of the line makes pilot wire protection expensive and
where the importance of the line does not justify carrier protection, distance
relays are used. These relays compare the local current with the local potential
in a given phase or phase pair.
In relays of the electromagnetic type, such as the balanced beam, the
current magnet exerts a force K 1112 tending to close the contacts and is
opposed by the potential magnet whose force is K'1V12, where K and K'
are constants corresponding to those in equation (2.1) in the previous chapter. Operation occurs when K 1112 > K' 1V12, i.e. when
< Kor
IV/2
I
K'
IZI
<
JKK"
The characteristic on an impedance diagram is obviously a circle of

radius
J~,
and centre at the origin (see fig. 3.6).
Such a relay is set to operate when the impedance measured by the relay
is less than that of the protected section of line AB, i.e. the relay is adjusted
so that
J:,
is made equal to the impedance of the protected zone. The
application of impedance relays is discussed more fully in Chapter 5.

Relays such as overcurrent relays and impedance relays will respond to

. faults in either direction (fig. 3.6). To prevent such relays from tripping unfaulted lines they are monitored by directional relays (fig. 3. 7b) which respond
only to currents flowing in the direction from the bus to the line.
E
113
3.2
Protective Relays
The torque of the relay is IVIIII cos (4)-9) where 4> is the angle between
V and I and 9 is the value of 4> for which the relay has maximum torque.
This is the third term in equation 2.1 in the previous chapter.
3.2.6. Ohm Relays
This term has been used by the author to define a relay which measures
a particular component of impedance JZII!!. In the U.S.A. it has been called
an angle-impedance relay. The threshold characteristic is a straight line on
,1
/I
II
:12K-zl
(a)
(b)
-8
Ref V
-G--~7-r-.---~---G
Trip
Trip
(d)
(c)
FIG .
3.9. Ohm relay characteristic on different graphs (K is the impedance setting

ZI!. of the relay)
(a) Voltage. (b) Impedance. (c) Current. (d) Admittance
an impedance diagram (fig. 3.9b) or a circle on an admittance diagram

(fig. 3.9d).
This can be produced on a phase comparator relay by comparing the
phase relationship of the current KI with the vector difference (V - KI) as
shown in fig. 3.9a. The relay operates when a < 90. For example, in an
induction cup relay, the torque ex: the product III [K III - IVI cos (4) - 9)] and
114
3.2

the relay operates when
III [K III - IVI cos (4) -
0)] > 0, i.e. when
Z cos (4)-0) < K

(see fig. 3.9b).
In an amplitude comparator, magnitude of the voltage V is compared
with that of the vectorial difference (2KI - V). It can be seen from the dotted
lines in figs. 3.9a and 3.9c that this relationship also defines the same locus.
In the voltage diagram, fig. 3.9a, the characteristic represents a voltage locus
for a particular value of current. For double the value of I the locus would be
twice as far as from the origin. Similarly, fig. 3.9c is the current locus for a
particular value of V. The circuitry of the phase and amplitude comparator
relays is given in Chapter 5.
Figs. 3.9b and 3.9d show the duality of linear and circular characteristics
on impedance and admittance diagrams. Each one has a single universal
locus for any values of V and I, whereas in figs. 3.9a and 3.9c a family of
curves would be necessary to cover a range of current or voltage.
A particular case of the ohm relay is the reactance relay which measures
IZI /90. The itnpedance characteristic of such a relay is a straight line parallel
to the R axis, i.e. measuring constant reactance.
3.2.7. Mho Relays
This is again a term used to define, in this case, a relay which measures a
component of admittance IYI /0. Angle impedance is the alternative name,
used in the U.S.A.
The characteristic has an inverse relation to the ohm relay as would be
expected from the relation terms 'ohm' and 'mho'. It is a circle in an
impedance diagram (fig. 3.lOb) and a straight line in an admittance diagram
(fig. 3.10d). It will be seen that it is an inherently directional impedance relay.
In a mho relay of the phase comparator type the quantities V and
(V - ;,) are compared in phase relation; operation occurs when
r:t.
> 90,
as in fig. 3.lOa. In an induction cup relay the torque oc the product
IVI [III cos (4) - 0) - K' IVI1

and the relay operates when IYI cos (4)-0) > K'.
In an amplitUde comparator the magnitude III of the current is compared
with that of the vectorial difference (2K'V-/), as shown in fig. 3.lOc. Here
again it will be seen that this relationship results in the same characteristics.
The circuitry of these relays is discussed in detail in Chapter 5.
Further dualities can be seen by comparing the four diagrams of fig. 3.9
with the four of fig. 3.10. The admittance and impedance circles have radii
1
1
-1
1
2K and 2K' and centres at 2K /0 and 2K' /0. The straight lines are distant
from the origin K and K' at an angle o.

115
3.2
Protective Relays
A
""'
I
"
I,
I I
I
v'
V~AD
"
12V_1,
I
X
I
Zt' :2Z-x'1
I
I"
,'v_l~
(b)
(a)
-8
--~-r------~~ G
(c)
FIG.
(d)
3.10. Mho relay characteristic on different graphs (K is the admittance setting

YI!!. of the relay)
(a) Voltage. (b) Impedance. (c) Current. (d) Admittance
3.2.8. Offset Mho Relay
This is the term given to a relay whose circular characteristic in an impedapce diagram does not pass through the origin (fig. 3.lla). This characteristic can be obtained by adding current bias to a mho relay; the bias provides an extra 1/12 term which results in an equation of the general form
KI/12 - K'1V12 + IVII/I cos (-e) = 0 and represents a circle of radius
.. b
r = .JI+4KK'
2K'
and centre dIstant f rom t h e ongm
y cI
=l
2K'e
~
In a phase comparator mho relay the current bias can be introduced by

inserting a biassing impedance Zb in the current circuit and introducing its
IZb voltage drop into the potential circuit.
The same characteristic can be derived from an amplitude comparator
impedance relay using the same method but reversing the current bias, as
shown in fig. 3.11c. This is referred to as a modified impedance relay.
In the amplitude comparator mho relay the current bias is achieved by
changing the current term in one of the input quantities so that IKII is compared with 12V-K"II. This is discussed more fully in Chapter 5, sections
5.2.1 and 5.2.4.
116
3.3
When the offset mho characteristic is plotted on an admittance diagram

it is again a circle but its radius and distance of the centre from the origin
are inversely related to those of the circle drawn on an impedance diagram.
, '"
....... - ......
... , , ,
\.
\
I
I
I
I
'v'"
"
(a)
'"
'--
-..-;
",/
(b)
(c)
3.11. (a) Offset mho characteristic on impedance diagram

(b) Offset impedance characteristic on impedance diagram
(c) Offset mho or impedance characteristic on admittance diagram
FIO.
3.3. GENERAL EQUATION OF COMPARATORS
In order to compare the design constants of phase and amplitude comparators and also to produce a characteristic equation which directly fits
any sort of relay, including static relays, a more general approach is necessary.
The treatment here is given for two inputs under threshold conditions; a
treatment extending to multiple inputs and characteristics other than straight
lines and circles is given in Vol. II.
The two quantities A and B can be supplied to the relay in any combination (Kl A +K2B) and (K3A +K4B). If A is used as the vector of reference
they can be written:
(3.12)
KlIAI+K2IBI [cos (c/>-O)+j sin (C/>-O)]
and
K3IAl+K4IBI [cos (c/>-O)+j sin(c/>-O)]

117
(3.13)
3.3
Protective Relays
This is shown vectorially in fig. 3.12. K 1 , K 2, K3 and K4 are design constants.

In most relays at least one of them is zero and two of them are often equal.
This makes the practical case relatively simple.
It will be shown in sections 3.3.l and 3.3.2 that, for a given characteristic,
A
B
A
B
FIG.
3.12. General case of vector quantities for supplying comparators
the equations for the amplitude comparator and for the phase comparator
are of the same form (equation 2.2) but with different values for K 1 , K 2 , K3
and K 4 On the other hand, if the same values of K are used for both comparators their characteristic circles will be orthogonal.
3.3.1. Amplitude Comparator
In this case the two quantities are opposed and their moduli will be equal
at the threshold of operation for any phase angle between them, the locus
of which is the relay characteristic. Equating the moduli of expressions
(3.l2) and (3.l3) we have
[KlIAI+K2IBI cos (ljJ-8)Y
= [K3IAI+K4IBI cos (ljJ_8)]2
+ [K2IBI sin (ljJ_8)]Z

+ [K4IBI sin (ljJ-8)Y
Rearranging the terms:
IBlz
(Ki-K~) IAI2+2(K 1K 2-K 3 K 4) IAIIBI cos(ljJ-8)+(K~-K~)

= 0 (3.14)
Dividing through by (K~ - K~) IA 12 for plotting in the p-plane
1~lz + 2(Kl~~=~iK4)1~ICOS(ljJ_8) + ~~=~1 = 0

The last term can be rearranged in a form indicating the location of the
characteristic circle in the p-plane, viz.
I~r + 2cl~ICOS(ljJ-8)+C2 = r2
(3.15
This will be seen to be of the same form as equation (2.3) in Chapter 2,

and is illustrated in fig. 3.21 b.
Since
c=
-K 1K z -K 3 K 4
K~-K~
C 2 must be ( K 1K 2 -K 3 K)2
4
K~-Ki
118
3.3
Hence the right-hand side of the equation must be

.2 = (KIK2- K 3K 4)2
Ki-K~
I
K22 - K24
K22 - K24
-2KIK2K3K4 +K~K~+KiK~
(K~-K~)2
= (KIK4-K2 K 3)2
K~-Ki
Consequently the equation now becomes

(A._B) (KIK2- K 3K 4)2
(A~)2 + 2(KIK2-K3K4)1!!lc
K~-Ki
A os
+
K~-Ki
Of'
= (KIK4 -K2 K 3)2
(3.16)
Ki-Kl
This equation represents a circle of radius r = KIK~ -K;K3 and centre at

K2-K4
(see fig. 3.13), where c = -
Amplitude
compara.tor
j~lq
FIG.
K1K -/(.
K,K~-K(!
K
K
K.
J(.
-K
C/B,
Pha.se
com a.ra.tor
K1K~-K2K'}
2)(, K
K1K~+K2:K3
21(.
3.13. Threshold characteristic of any phase or amplitude comparator comparing

the vector quantities (KIA + K2B) and (K3A + K4B)
In order to obtain the radius and centre of the circle plotted in the ex-plane
we have to return to equation (3.14) and divide it through by (Ki-K~)
instead of (K~-Kl)
and this gives
IBI2
IAI2
2 (KIK2-K3K4)A co (A._B) Ki-Kl = 0

(~)2
B +
Ki-K~
B s Of'
+ Ki-K~
This is a circle of radius
KIK4-K2 K 3
Ki-K~
whose centre is at
3.3
Protective Relays
3.3.2. Phase Comparator
The two quantities to be compared are of the same form as equations

(3.12) and (3.13) except that the constants are different, i.e.
(3.17)
KIIAI+KzIBI [cos (cp-O)+j sin (cp-O)]
(3.18)
and
K;IAI+K4IBI [cos (cp-O)+j sin (cp-O)]
The relay operates when the product of (3.17) and (3.18) is positive.
Considering expressions (3.17) and (3.18), if ct is the phase angle of one
quantity and p that of the other, the threshold of operation is when
ct - p = 90, because the product is greatest when the two quantities are
in phase.
i.e. when
tan (ct- P) = 00
tanct-tanp
- - - - ' - = +00
i.e. when
1+tanct tanp 1+tanct tanp = 0
i.e. when
-1
tanct= - (3.19)
or
I
tanp
K21BI sin (cp-O)
KlIAI+KzIBI cos (cp-O)
K41BI sin (cp-O)
and
tanp = K;IAI +K4IBI cos (cp-O)
Substituting for tan ct and tan p in equation (3.19) we get
From fig. 3.12
tanct =
K1K41BI2 sin2(cp-O) = - K1K;IAI2-K1K4IAIIBI cos (cp-O)-K1K;IAIIBI cos(cp-0)-K1K4IBI2 cos 2(cp-9)

i.e.
K1K4IBI2+K;'K;IAI2+(K;'K4+K;K;)IAIIBI cos (cp-O) = 0
Dividing through by K5. K~ IAI2 gives the characteristic equation for the
p-plane
!!12 K1K4 +K1K;I!!1
(,1,.-0) KIK; = 0
1A +
K:zK4,
A cos,+,
+ K2K.~
The last term can be rearranged in the form of the circle equation (3.15)
to give th~ following:
!!/2 (KIK4+K1K3)/'!!leos(,I,._O) + (K 1K4+K1K 3)2
/A +
K;K4
'+'
2K1K4
AI
= (K;'K4-K1K3)2
2K~K4
'
. 1 f d'
K;'K4-K1K;
This IS
a CITe eo ra lUS r =
2K;K4
and centre at
= _ (K;'K 4+K;K 3)10
2K 1K 4
In order to obtain the radius and centre of the circle plotted in the
120
3.4
(X-plane we have to return to equation (3.19) and divide it through by

K; K31BI2 instead of K2 K41AI2 and this gives
K;K~+K2K31:i1 ('/"-0) K2K~ = 0

1 ~12
B +
K;K~
B cos
+ KI K 3
'I'
When this is rearranged in the form of the circle equation (2.3), the
equation represents a circle of radius
K1K~-K2K;
2K1X;
_ K1K~+K2K~ 10
2K1K;
-
whose centre is at
3.4. COMPARISON OF CONSTANTS
Since the same characteristic (fig. 3.13) is to be produced by both comparators rand c must be the same and, if equated, should give the relations'
between the constants for the two comparators. Considering the values for
the p-plane:
TA.!JLE
3.3
Amplitude Comparator
r=
K,K4 - K2K3
K22 - K42
(3.20)
(3.21)
Phase Comparator
r=
K{K4-K2K3
2K2K4
c = - K{K4+K2K~ /(J
2K2K4 -
(3.22)
(3.23)
The corresponding values for the (X-plane are given by substituting Kl

for K2 and K3 for K4 in the above expressions in their denominators only.
3.4.1. Typical Example of Comparison of Constants
Let us consider a percentage differential relay which operates if the

difference of the currents entering and leaving the protected circuit exceeds
5 % of the sum of these currents, or 10% of the mean through current
11 ;1
Such a relay operates when one current is 10% greater than the other
and is said to have a 10% bias and, when plotted on a graph (fig. 3.14a), the
characteristic has a 10% slope. Fig. 3.14b shows the same characteristic
plotted on the preferred diagram with axes
1~lp and j 1~lq'
(a) Amplitude Comparator. The differential current relay must operate

when
(11 -1
2)
exceeds S
(It ;12) where Sis the slope expressed as a fraction.
The operating winding is supplied with currents (Il - 12) and has N turns.
121
Protective Relays
3.4
s;
The restraining winding is supplied with currents (II +12 ) and has
turns. The common term N can be included in the relay constants K t
Kl , K3 and K4 The operating quantity is therefore

(11 - /2) = Kd/ll +K2 1/2 I(cos I{> +j sin I{.
I,+h
-2-
(a)
-+-------t---:--t----I*l
r=O1004
(b)
FIG.
3.14. Operating characteristic of differential current relay

(a) Scalar diagram. (b) Polar diagram
The restraining quantity is (/1 +/2) ~ = K31/11 +K41I21(cos I{>+j sin I{where
c/> is the angle between 11 and 12 () is the angle of 12 from a reference axis and
can be made zero and hence neglected.
From equations (3.20) and (3.21) the characteristic is a circle given by
S S
-+2 2
K 1 K 4 -K 2 K 3
r =
K~-K~
(S)2
1- -
122
(S)2
1--
(3.24)
c= -
K1K2- K 3 K 4
K2 K2
2-
1+(~r = (1 +!2)
1-
3.4
(S)2
1-
S2
(3.25)
This checks the results given in section 3.2.1 and Appendix 3.7.1. If the
slope Sis 10 %we can substitute S = 01 in the above equations, which gives
r = 01004 and c = 1004.
This is the characteristic shown in fig. 3.14b which has the general
equation
(3.26)
It is evident from equations (3.24) and (3.25) that, if S is small, C = 1 and
r = S. Therefore the approximate equation for the characteristic of a
differential current relay can be taken as
1~:12 -21~:1 cos q, + 1 =
(3.27)
S2
(b) Phase Comparator. In order to find the constants for 11 and]2 in the
quantities that must be supplied to a phase comparator to give the same
differential current characteristic, i.e. a circle of the same rand c, we must use
the same values as in equations (3.24) and (3.25).
and
= _
c-r = -
K~K~+K;K;
(1 + !2)
2K' K'
S2
=
2K~K~
2-K-;-K-~
K~
=-
K;
=-
K;
-K4 =
1-4
S2
S
1-1+ 4 -S
2
S2 = --S-
1- 4
S2
and
c+r = -
2K;K;
-2K-;-K-~
1+"4 +S
S2
1-4
Kl K~ 2- 1
-=-=-K2 K; S
2+1
123
1+2
S
1+2
=--
1-~
3.4
Protective Relays
which is fuI1iUed when
Kl =K:"=~-l
2
(3.28)
Ki=K3 = 2-+ 1
Therefore the quantities supplied to be compared in a phase comparator to
give the same characteristic as the amplitude comparator considered in
section 3.4.1 (a) are the vectorial sums
[11(~-1)+/2(~+1)]
and
[11(~+1)+12(~-1)]
(3.30)
For a 10% slope characteristic, S = 01 (fig. 3.14),

S
S
"2 - 1 = - 0'95 and "2 + 1 = 105
The two quantities must therefore be the vectorial expressions
(- 095 11 + 105 12 ) and (1'05 11 - 095 12 )
Since amplitude is not important in a phase comparator, all the quantities
can be diVided by 105 to give the simpler forms:
(-0'90511+12) and (11-0'91512)
(3.31)
These can be cQmpared with the expressions for the amplitude comparator
which were
(11 -/
2)
and
~ (11 +12 ), These expressions apply particularly to
biassed current differential relays used for the protection of generators and
power transformers.
The approximate equation of the characteristic on
again
1~12 _ 2 \~\ cos tP +
1~1.p and j I~I. axes is
1 = S2 and the locus is again as shown in
fig.3.13b.
(c) Other examples o/Comparison o/Constants. The same method can be
applied to any other type of relay. In fact it is a good exercise for students
to work out this method with different types of relays. Table 3.3 shows the
summarised results for the common types of relays comparing one current
with a voltage or another current. It will be seen that there are never more
than two constants, so that the general equation (2.2) given in Chapter 2
fits all the normal types of protective relays.
Consideration of the constants calculated in this manner will indicate
which type of comparator is preferable for a given relay characteristic. In
general an inherent comparator is better than the converted type because,
if one quantity is large compared with the other, a small error in the large
quantity may cause an incorrect comparison when their sum and difference
are supplied as inputs to the relay.
124
ti
-0.
(I
+ ~)h
-
(1 - K)IA - )lIB
IIA - )lIBI
Amplitude
Phase
~)Il -
Ditto Scheme B
and balanced
voltase scheme
(1-
III-hi
l)h
(1
1-
K
K-I
K
K
2K
K
K
K
K
K
Kl
KIIAI
)lIB
1
I-K
0
-1
-1
0
0
-1
0
-1
K2
-)I
-y
-y
(I + K)I
I+~
-I
-K
- (K+ 1)
(1 - K)lIB 1 - K -
+ )lIBI
+ K)IA -
KIIA
+ K)IA -
(I + ~)h + (1 - ~)12
i lh + hl
+ (K -
Ih +121
(K + 1)11
Amplitude
IIA - )lIBI
Phase
(1 - K)IA - (1 + K)yIB (1
Phase
Amplitude
Amplitude
Klh-hl
(K - 1)11 - (K + l)h
Phase
+ 12
Ihl
KIIll
K1l-h
K1l
IVI
VI
Circulating
current
Pilot Scheme A
Percentage
differential
current
(Slope = S)
Differential
current
Balanced current Amplitude

Phase
12K1KI
Amplitude
Phase
Ohm
KI- V
1- K1+2VI
V
IKiI
Amplitude
Phase
Mho
K1-V
IKiI
IVI
KI+ V
K1-V
Amplitude
Phase
Comparator Quantities to be Compared in Amplitude or Phase
Impedance
Relay
3.4
p-Plane Characteristics for General Equation
TABLE
(1
+ K)
K
1 +K
- (I +~)
S
2
1
K+I
0
K
0
K
-K
0
0
K
K3
(~r
1-
1+
(~r
(~r
K2+ 1
K2-1
00
K
2
0
-)I
K~I
II~/- )I
K)I
2K \1\1 + K21111
- (1 - K)y 1 - K2 Y 1 - K2 Y -)I
I-~
1-
S
2
2K
K2-1
00
K
2
1
- (K-I)
1
1
1
-1
14
3.5
Protective Relays
3.5. INVERSION CHART FOR COMPLEX QUANTITIES
The diagrams in figs. 3.9b, 3.10b and 3.lla can be inverted to the diagrams 3.9d, 3.10d and 3.l1c respectively by vector algebra or they can be
plotted from the chart (fig. 3.15).
The chart has axes
the corresponding form
I~\p and j 1~lq'
To convert a value of
1~lp + j 1~lq it is only necessary to refer to the values
of the semi-circles which intersect at the point

If A is potential and B is current
eX),
1~lp + j I~t to
1~lp' j I~t on the graph.
1~lp is resistance (R), j 1~lq is reactance
I!!!Ap is conductance (G), j I!!\Aq is susceptance (B), ~B is impedance (Z) and
~ is admittance (Y).
007
008
,,
0 ,09
,,
,,I
' ,0
U~~::lii~0~'~4~0~'=3~0;;:'2~5=0~';: 2::I0='18=l-:lO':-:'16~~-:--tJ::-~::--:0~'1-1% Ip
o
FIG.
I
4
5
Va.lu~ of
lA/al..,
3.15. Conversion chart from
126
1~lp jl~lq to 1~lp jl~lq
10
3.6
If it is desired, for example, to find the admittance corresponding to the

impedance value 3'8+j7 ohms, first locate the point 3'8+j7 on the graph;
then note the values of the two semi-circles that intersect at that point; viz.
0'061~1" and 011 j I~". The equivalent admittance is Y = 006+jO11 mhos.

3.6. RESONANCE IN RELAY CIRCUITS
Tuned circuits are used in protective relays to obtain frequency selectivity,

amplification, time qelay, memory, phase-shifting and power factor correction. Owing to the resistance of the circuit, however, there are three ways of
tuning a circuit to resonance, depending upon which ofthese results is desired;
in a zero resistance circuit the three methods of tuning would become identical.
The three types of resonance are as follows:
Natural resonance exists when the natural period of oscillation of the
system is the same as that of the applied e.m.f.
Phase resonance exists when cjJ, the phase difference between the current
and the supplied e.m.f., is zero.
Amplitude resonance exists when a change in the frequency of the e.m.f.
reduces the current amplitude.
Resonance is used in an unbiassed relay for differential protection, as
described in Chapter 9 for generators, Chapter 10 for restricted earth protection of transformers and Chapter 11 for bus zone protection. The build-up
time of the oscillations in the tuned coil of the relay provides a delay in
operation to override transient conditions at the inception of a fault and also
reduces the c.t. burden and makes the relay insensitive to harmonics. The
same relay uses non-linear resonance to act as a limiter since saturation of
the relay coil at high currents de-tunes the circuit.
In directional and mho relays the torque of the relay must be maintained
during a fault even if it is close enough to reduce the voltage to zero. By
tuning the series potential circuit of the relay for natural resonance at system
frequency it will continue to oscillate at system frequency and the voltage
across the potential coil will be maintained for a few cycles after the line
voltage has disappeared. If it is tuned for amplitUde or phase resonance it
will oscillate at a different frequency which will cause a momentary phase
shift in the potential coil current and a momentary shift in the phase angle of
the relay characteristic which, in a mho relay,. can cause overreaching. This
means that, if the series potential circuit of the relay coil is tuned with a voltmeter or an ammeter, it should peak at a frequency equal to the system
frequency divided by
J(
1-
~Z)
Phase resonance is used in protective relay circuits to produce current in

phase with the applied potential at a desired frequency.
In frequency relays, amplitude resonance is employed because the relay
must be more sensitive to a given frequency so that it can operate when that
127
3.6
Protective Relays
frequency is reached. Either series or parallel tuning can be used, depending

upon whether the relay is wound for current or potential.
This subject is dealt with mathematically in Appendix 3.8.
In the following table the amplitudes of oscillation Q and I for an impressed e.mJ. at the frequency which produces the kind of resonance are given
in the left-hand column. The period of oscillation T corresponds to that
frequency. In the case of natural resonance it is also the frequency at which the
circuit continues to oscillate when the e.m.f. is removed.
TABLE
Period of
Oscillation
Kind of
Resonance
(T)
21CVLC
I. Natural
2. Phase
J 1
LC
R2
4L2
Amplitude of
Oscillation
(Q)
Amplitude of
Oscillation
(I)
tan '"
E"v'LC
1R'C
!i /
4L
4L -1
J1 - R2C RJ1- 3R2C R" I _ 3R2C - 2)R2C
4L
16L
16L
21CVLC
VLC
3 Amplitude ) - 1 - -R2
.
LC
2L2
3.6
21CVLC
)1 _ R2C
2L
EVLC
R
EVLC
RJ1- R2C
4L
E
R
E
R
ct:)
- )4L _ 2
R2C
3.6.1. Non-Linear Resonance
By permitting saturation in the inductive reactance of a resonant circuit,

other useful effects can be obtained.
In the circuits of figs. 3.16 and 3.17 the reactance of the condenser Cis
resonant with that of the saturating reactor Ls above the knee of the volt
ampere curve (fig. 3.16a). In the series circuit, fig. 3.16b, the current increases
linearly up to a certain value of voltage V at which saturation of the reactor
has caused resonance because VLs = Ve. This causes the current to increase
suddenly to i on the upper solid curve. If the voltage is then decreased, the
current follows down the upper curve.
Fig. 3.16c shows the behaviour of a parallel non-linear resonant circuit in
which the roles of the current and voltage are interchanged, i.e. the parallel
circuit is the dual of the current circuit. The dotted portion of the curves
connecting the upper and lower sections is the locus of values that are obtained by calculation but which cannot be obtained in practice except by
introducing an exact amount of regulation.
3.6.2. Non-Linear Resonance in Relay Circuits
If a relay is connected in the series circuit, the operating characteristic

would be as shown in fig. 3.18. The abscissae shown in brackets are for the
128
3.6
(a)
I
~f-o
s C
(c)
(b)
FIG.
3.16. (a) Volt ampere relation of a capacitor and a saturating reactor

(b) Ampere/volt relation of a series resonant circuit
(c) Volt/ampere relation of a parallel resonant circuit
.!;.L
.~~L~
R
00
V'"
I-
...~...
~'"
'h'.U
Cf
Ls
mw
I'"
FIG.
(a)
J~:
(b)
3.17. Non-linear resonant circuits

(a) Series. (b) Parallel
(or V)
FIG.
3.18. Operating characteristic of a non-linear resonant relay
129
3.7
Protective Relays
parallel circuit of fig. 3.17b and the unbracketted ones for the series circuit
(fig. 3.17a). The arrows show the curves followed in increasing and decreasing
the voltage or current.
This phenomenon is useful in the design of a regulating device to make it
more sensitive over a small change in voltage or frequency. In a relay the
pick-up and drop-out can be closely controlled in the region x - y of fig. 3.18.
~ Ilnll"~
Dorltctoona.l
rcla.y
FIG.
3.19. Circuit for maintaining torque of directional relay at low voltages
The distance between x and y decreases with resistance. The associated analysis is very complicated and is dealt with in references (6), (7) and (145).
This principle has also been used in the potential restraining coil of a
distance relay starting unit to obtain a high pick-up under normal conditions and a low pick-up under fault conditions. It has also been used to
v.
I
I
I
v
( a.)
FIG.
(b)
3.20. Constant phase angle characteristic of relay in fig. 3.19

(a) Coil current versus line voltage
(b) Vector diagram of circuit voltages
maintain the torque of a directional relay at low voltages. Fig. 3.19 shows the
circuit of the polarising potential coil. The non-linear resistor N limits the
coil voltage and the coil current is maintained (fig. 3.20a) down to 10% of
normal voltage while the phase relation of the coil current relative to the
system potential is kept constant (fig. 3.20b) and hence the maximum torque
angle of the relay is constant.
3.7. APPENDIX 1
The threshold equations of relays can be transformed to represent

threshold characteristics in suitably chosen planes. This appendix deals with
a few typical cases.
130
3.7
3.7.1. Differential Current Relay
The relay is on the threshold of operation when
III ~I21 = III ;121
(3.7-1)
where II and 12 are the two currents fed into the relay and s is a design
parameter.
(c)
(b)
FIG. 3.21. Characteristic circle of differential relays

(a) In rectangular co-ordinates (x - g)2 + (y - f)2 = r 2
(b) In polar co-ordinates fJ2 + 2/lc cos
8) + c2 = r 2
(c) In polar co-ordinates a b = ao =F -vi r - b~
(I -
The threshold characteristic of the relay can conveniently be presented

in the (X-plane, where:
(3.7-2)
or in the p-plane, where:
P= 12
-=a+Jb
(3.7-3)
II
Consider the characteristic in the
(X~p1ane. Equation (3.7-1) can be

expressed in term.s of (X and transformed as follows:
II 2(a+jb)-I 21= KII 2(a+jb)+I 21

la+jb-11 = Kla+jb+ll
(a_l)2+b 2_K2(a+l)2_K 2b2 = 0 where K =
131
3.7
Protective Relays
2
2
1+K2
a +b -2--a+1 =0
1-K2
(3.7-4)
This is of the form X2+y2_2gx-2fy+c=0

which can be written '(x-g)2+(y-f)2=g2+f2-C.
Referring to fig. 3.21a this is the equation of a circle of radius Vg2 +f2 - c
whose centre is at (g,!).
It can easily be shown that the threshold characteristic of the relay in the
p-plane is also represented by equation (3.7-4).
Thus in both the a-plane and the p-plane the threshold characteristic of
the relay is a circle of radius r and centre defined by vector c, where:
r = {(1+K2)2
1-K2
_1}t
2K
1-K
2'
c = 1+K2
1-K2
(3.7-6) (3.7-7)
and K is defined by equation (3.7-5).

3.7.2. Differential Relay with Product Restraint
The threshold equation of the relay in terms of the two input currents
11 and 12 and the design parameter s is
III ~/212
1/1/1/21 cou
(3.7-8)
where 'f is the phase angle of 11 with respect to 12,

Consider the threshold characteristic of the relay in the a-plane.
II
a=-==a+J'b
(3.7-2)
12
:. arga == 't'
(3.7-9)
Equation (3.7-8) can be expressed in terms of a and transformed as
follows:
\I2(a+jb)-/ 212 = Kllz(a+jb)\\12\ cou

la+jb-W = Kla+jbl cos T
(a_l)2+b 2 = Ka
:.
a2+b2-2a(1+~)+1==0
(3.7-10)
where:
K == S2
(3.7-11)
It can be shown that the threshold characteristic of the relay in the p-plane
is also represented by equation (3.7-10).
Thus in both the a-plane and the p-plane the threshold characteristic of
the relay is a circle of radius r and centre defined by vector c, where:
r = {( 1 +
IY - r
1
K
2
and K is defined by equation (3.7-11).
c=I+-
132
= { K (1
+ ~)
(3.7-12)
(3.7-13)
3.7
3.7.3. Circulating Current Pilot Scheme with the Restraining Coil on the Pilot
Side
The two relays situated at the two ends A and B of a pilot are on the
threshold of operation when:
(3.7-14)
IIA -yIBI = KIIA +yIBI

IIB-yIAI = KIIB+yIAI
and
(3.7-15)
respectively, where IA and IB are the two currents fed into each relay and K
is a design parameter; y is the propagation constant of the pilot.
Consider the threshold characteristic of relay A in the a-plane.
IA
'b
a=-=a+J
(3.7-16)
y = m+jn
(3.7-17)
18
Equation (3.7-14) can be expressed in terms of a and transformed as

follows:
IIB(a+Jb)-lim+jn)1 = KIIia+jb)+IB(m+jn)l,
(a-m)2+(b-n)2-K2{(a+m)2+(b+n)2} = 0
2
2
I+K2
I+K2
2
2
a +b -2ml_K2a-2nl_K2b+(m +n )=0
(3.7-18)
Consider the threshold characteristic of relay B in the a-plane. Equation

(3.7-15) can be expressed in terms of a and transformed as follows:
IIB-(m+jn)IB(a+jb)1 = KIIB+(m+jn)IB(a+jb)l,
1(I-am+bn)-j(bm+an)1 = KI(I+am-bn)+j(bm+an)l,
(l-am+bn)2+(bm+an)2-K2(I+am-bn)2-K2(bm+an)2 = 0,
2
2
I+K2
a +b - 2m (I_K2)(m2+n2)a+
+2n(1
1
2)b + - 2- 2 = 0
m +n
m +n
I+K2
K2)( 2
(3.7-19)
It can be shown that equations (3.7-18) and (3.7-19) also represent the
threshold characteristics of relays A and B in the p-plane respectively,
where:
P=IB- =
IA
a+J"b
(3.7-20)
Thus the threshold characteristics of relay A in the a-plane and of relay B

in the p-plane are identical circles represented by equation (3.7-18), of
radius r and centre defined by vector c, where:
r=
{(m2+n2)G~~:r -
2K
= lyll_K2
)Y
(m 2+n 2
(3.7-21)
133
3.7
and
Protective Relays
I+K2
= m l-K2
. I+K2
+ Jn l _ K2
I+K 2
= y I-X2
(3.7-22)
Similarly, the threshold characteristics of relay B in the DC-plane and of

relay A in the p-plane are identical circles represented by equation (3.7-19),
of radius r and centre defined by vector c, where:
r =
l}t
(m 2+n 2)(I+K2)2
(m 2+ n2)2(1- K2)2 - m2 + n2
2K
(3.7-23)
= 1Yl (I-K2)
and
I+K2
I+K2
= m (m 2+n 2)(I-K2) - In (m 2+n2)(I_K2)
1 (I+K2)
= y(I-K2)
(3.7-24)
3.7.4. Circulating Current Pilot Scheme with the Restraining Coil on the c.t. Side
The threshold equations of the two relays situated at the two ends A
and B of a pilot are
(3.7-25)
I/A-IBI = KIIAI
(3.7-26)
and
IIB-IAI = KIIBI
where, as before, IA and IB are the two currents fed into each relay, K is a
design parameter and y is the propagation constant of the pilot.
Consider the threshold characteristic of relay A in the DC-plane.
IA
'b
DC=-=a+J
IB
y = m+jn
(3.7-16)
(3.7-17)
Equation (3.7-25) can be expressed in terms of DC and transformed as
follows:
IIaCa+jb)-(m+jn)IBI = KllaCa+jb)1
(a_m)2+(b_n)2_K 2a2_K 2b2 = 0
m
n
m 2+n 2
a 2+ b2 - 2 (1- K2) a - 2 (1- K2) b + 1- K2 = 0
(3.7-27)
Consider the threshold characteristic of relay B in the DC-plane. Equation

(3.7-26) can be expressed in terms of DC and transformed as follows:
IIB-(m+jn)IaCa+jb)1 = KIIBI
1(I-am+bn)-j(bm+an)1 = K
(l-am+bn)2+(bm+an)2-K2 = 0
22
m
11
l-K2
a +b - 2 2b+
2
2=0
2 - 2 a+2 2
m +n
m +n
m +n
134
(3.7-28)
3.8
It can be shown that equations (3.7-27) and (3.7-28) also represent the
threshold characteristics of relays B and A in the p-plane respectively, where:
'b
P= I- B
= a+j
(3.7-20)
IA
Thus the threshold characteristics of relay A in the ex-plane and of relay

B in the p-plane are identical circles represented by equation (3.7-27) of
radius r and centre defined by vector c, where:
r = {m 2+n 2 _ (m 2 +n 2)(1_K 2)}t
(1- K2)2
(1- K2)2
K
= lyl 1 _ K2
and
(3.7-29)
= m 1 _ K2 + jn 1 _ K2
1
(3.7-30)
= Y 1-K2
Similarly, the threshold characteristics of relay B in the ex-plane and of

relay A in the p-plane are identical circles represented by equation (3.7-28),
of radius r and centre defined by vector c, where:
'{ m 2+n 2
1-K2
r= (m2+n~2-(m2+n~
}t
IYI
and
(3.7-31)
c=----j---
m 2+n 2
m 2+n 2
(3.7-32
Y
3.7.5. Some Special Values of a and
The two points at, 2 at which any of the threshold characteristics discussed in this appendix intersects the real axis can be determined from the
already known values of rand c, as shown in fig. 3.2lc.
at,2
= ao(r2-b~)t
(3.7-33)
where ao and bo are the moduli of the real and imaginary parts of c
respectively.
3.B. APPENDIX 2
Resonance is of vital interest in the design of relay circuits. This appendix

deals with three typical cases of linear resonance in a series circuit.
3.B.1. Series Resonance in Terms of Charge in the Capacitor
Consider a series circuit containing a resistance R, an inductance L and a

capacitance C. Let e, i and q denote the instantaneous values of the electro-
135
3.8
Protective Relays
motive force applied to the circuit, the current in the circuit and the charge
in the capacitor, referred to its current facing terminal, respectively.
At every instant
1'R
di q
+ L --+-=e
dt
where:
dq
dt
1=-
(3.8-1)
(3.8-2)
Equations (3.8-1) and (3.8-2) can be restated using the Laplace transformation
iR+L{pi-i(o)} +!I= e
c
(3.8-3)
i = pq-q(o)
pq{R+LP +
:c}
= e+(R+Lp)q(o)+Li(o)
(3.8-4)
where e, i, and q are the transforms of e, i, and q respectively and i(o), q(o)
are the corresponding initial values.
Assuming initial quiescence
(3.8-5)
i(o) = 0
q(o)
=0
(3.8-6)
and an alternating electromotive force

e = Esihrot
(3.8-7)
equation (3.8-4) can be transformed to
q=
where:
Ero
1
L [(p+oc)z+pZ] [pz+ro Z]
R
oc=2L
Z 1 RZj
fJ = LC- 4Lz
(3.8-8)
(3.8-9)
Using equation (3.8-7) and a table of standard transforms

Ero p sin (rot + cP1)+roe-' sin (fJt + cPz)
q = --;-L-'--P-::-ro-.JT-'4oc=;Z;:::ro~z=+=:(=;ocz;=+=fJ7.z;=_=ro~Z)::;;z"":""'='
(3.8-10)
where:
cP1 = arc tan ( Z 2oc~ pZ) (steady state)

00 -oc -
(3.8-11)
and
cPz = arc tan ( Z 2oc~ pZ) (transient)

00 +oc -
(3.8-12)
Thus, under steady-state conditions
q = Q sin (rot+cP1)
136
(3.8-13)
Q= L-J
where:
41X 2 C0 2
3.8
+ (1X2 + p2 _ C( 2)2
E
LJR 2 co 2 + (~_
L2
LC
(3.8-14)
C(
2)2
and CP1 is given by equation (3.8-11).

The period T of sinusoidal oscillation of angular frequency co is given by
T = 21t
co
(3.8-15)
Natural resonance occurs when the circuit is energised at its natural

angular frequency p, given by equation (3.8-9). The amplitude Q, period T
and phase shift cP, characteristic of the oscillation, are then obtained from
equations (3.8-14), (3.8-15) and (3.8-11) respectively:
co=P=J~-fu
I_ R2C
4L
=
T
RJl- 3R
(3.8-16)
(3.8-17)
2
C
16L
21t
21tJLC
= - = ---;====:;:=
P Jl- R 2 C
(3.8-18)
4L
CP1 =
arc tan
4LJLc
1
R2)
( -"R
- 4L2
=a.rctan(
-2J;~c-l)
(3.8-19)
Phase res.onance occurs when the frequency at which the circuit is energised is adjusted so that its power factor becomes unity:
1
coC
coL-- =0
1
co = -JLC
137
(3.8-20)
Protective Relays
3.8
The amplitude, period and phase shift, characteristic of the oscillation

under such conditions, are, as before, obtained from equations (3.8-14),
(3.8-15) and (3.8-11).
Q=
L
R2 1
L2' LC
(1
LC - LC
)2
1-
(3.8-21)
=-yLC
R
2n
I-
= -ro = 2nyLC
(3.8-22)
2~
_1_
2L' JLC
(3.8-23)
Amplitude resonance occurs when the frequency at which the circuit is
energised is adjusted so that the steady state amplitude Q of charge q
becomes a maximum. Differentiating Q, equation (3.8-14), with respect to ro
and equating the derivative to zero
/
dQ
E {R2
- = - -2L
-ro 2 + ( - 1 _ro 2 )2}-3 2{R2
-2ro+2 ( - 1 _ro 2 )( -2ro)} = 0
dro
L2
LC
L2
LC
Leads to:
ro=
J/;C-ffi
l - R2C
2L
= ----,-0=-
(3.8-24)
JLC
The amplitude, period and phase shift, characteristic of the oscillation
under such conditions, are obtained using equations (3.8-14), (3.8-15) and
(3.8-11).
(3.8-25)
=--;=====
R2C
T = 2n =
ro
1-4L
2nJLc
Jl- RC
2
2L
138
(3.8-26)
3.8
(3.8-27)
3.8.2. Series Re.onance In Term. of Current
The results of section 3.8.1 can be expressed in terms of current as

follows:
q = Q sin (wt+tPl)
(3.8-13)
. dq
1=(3.8-2)
dt
i = 1 cos (wt+tPl)
(3.8-28)
where
i = wQ
(3.8-29)
Consider natural resonance. Q and ware given by equations (38-17)
and (3.8-16) respectively. Thus
EJl- R 2 C
1=
4L
(3.8-30)
RJI_ 3R2C
16L
The period T and phase shift tPl are given by equations (3.8-18) and
(3.8-19) respectively.
Consider phase resonance. Q and ware given by equations (3.8-21) and
(3.8-20) respectively. Thus
1 __1_ EJLc_~
-..[Lc
R -R
(3.8-31)
The period T and phase shift tPl are given by equations (3.8-22) and
Consider amplitude resonance. Differentiating 1, equation (3.8-29),
with respect to wand equating the derivative to zero
dI
dw
= Q+ w dQ = 0
dw
E{R2L2 W2+ (1LC - w2)2}-t - w 2LE{R2IJ w2+ (1LC - w2)2}-3/2
{~: 2w+ 2 (L1C -
2) ( -
2W)} = 0
leads to
1
w = .../LC
139
(3.8-32)
3.8
Protective Relays
which is the same as for phase resonance, equation (3.8-20). Thus

E
I = Ii
(3.8-31)
and the period T and phase shift lPl are given by equations (3.8-22) and
3.8.3. Linear Resonance in More Complex Circuits
The method of treating linear resonance, used in sections 3.8.1 and 3.8.2,
can be used with more complex circuits. As the complexity of the circuit
increases, however, it may become difficult to solve the resulting differential
equations rigorously. In such cases, suitable numerical or analogue methods
can be used to obtain the required information. In some cases of existing
circuits empirical methods are the simplest.
140
4
Overcurrent Protection
Time-Current Characteristics-Application-Limits of ErrorRatings-Directional Overcurrent Protection-A.C. TrippingSchemes for Radial Feeders-Construction-Application-Problem
4.1. TIMECURRENT CHARACTERISTICS
Fault current can be used as a basis for selectivity only where there is an
abrupt difference between its magnitude for a fault within the protected section
and a fault outside it, and these magnitudes are almost constant. Where this is
so, a current magnitude device can be used, such as a fuse or an instantaneous
relay or trip device and selectivity can be obtained by grading current. A
typical case where current grading can be used is shown in fig. 4.1, where there
~SUPPIY
'I~
Tra.nsformer
O.C.trip device
FIG.
4.1. Current grading through transformer impedance (Fault at X heavier than

fault at Y)
is a high impedance unit such as a transformer which makes the fault much
less for faults beyond the transformer.
In fig. 4.2 the fuses are current magnitude devices but, although they are
considered instantaneous, they have an inverse time-current characteristic,
i.e. the higher the fault current the faster they blow. In the diagram which
may represent the electrical circuit of a hotel or a factory, a fault on one of the
circuits at the right-hand end of the diagram may draw 50 amperes which
will be ten times the rating of the end fuses, five times that of the next group
141
4.1
Protective Relays
InIWta.ncOUI
--C1--1
FU5C5
FIG.
4.2. Current grading with fuses
and so on. Owing to the steep time-current characteristic of fuses

the fuse nearest the fault blows well before the others can do so.
(]3 t
= K)
4.1.1. Definite Time-Current Relays
In radial or loop circuits, where there are several line sections in series,
there is no difference in current between a fault at the end of one section
and a fault at the beginning of the next one; consequently, it is necessary to
FIG.
4.3. Lack of current selectivity where Z./Z. is high (Current similar for faults at
X and Y)
add time discrimination, as shown in fig. 4.3, with the time settings increased
towards the source.
Where there are many sections in series the tripping time for a fault near
the power source may be dangerously high (fig. 4.4). This is obviously unTime
2scc.
11scc.
lscc.
~SUb.l
~
Sub. 2
flO.
Sub.3
lsce.
Sub.4
4.4. Definite time grading on radial circuit
desirable because such faults involve large currents and are very destructive
if not removed quicldy. In fact, the fundamental weakness of time-graded
overcurrent relays is the fact that the heaviest faults are cleared slowest.
In the next paragraphs methods of dealing with this problem will be discussed.
4.1.2. Inverse Time-Current Relays
Where Za (the impedance between the relay and the power source e.mJ.)
is small compared with that of the protected section Zl' there will be an
appreciable difference between the current for a fault at the far end of the
section (] =
z.! z)
and the current for a fault at the near end (] =
142
:J
4.1
In such a case a relay whose time is inversely proportional to the current

(It = K) would trip faster for a fault at the end of the section nearer the
power source; the ratio for the tripping time at the near end to the time at
the far end is
~.
Z.+Z/
The resultant time-distance characteristics, compared with those of
definite time relays, are shown in fig. 4.5, and it will be seen that the inverse
,../
----
I
I
t--_D::...:~""fin",-it:..::.~-----1- _ -:;...-_~~___________ ....J
__ -
~
\!\~~rsr;
~_:::
___ /
____ -
II
I
_
--________
...JI
I===_i-r---'-:~:::
QWl~_ _ _ _~_ _ _ _ _ _~_ _~+I===

\.Y1lsub.l
Sub.2
FIG.
Sub.3
Sub.4
4.5. Definite versus inverse time current relaying
time relay can provide faster clearing times than the definite time relay,
assuming the same selective intervals, S. The tripping time can be still further
reduced by using e. more inverse characteristic, such as Ilt = K.
On systems solidly grounded at each station Z. is small so that excellent
selectivity on ground faults can be obtained with inverse time current relays.
4.1.3. Definite versus Inverse Time Relays
There are two conditions however which can reduce the advantage of the
inverse time characteristic. First Z. can be so high on impedance grounded
systems that the ratio
is not sufficiently lower than unity to give any

Z.+Z/
appreciable reduction in tripping times. This will occur at the end of a long
system where Z. is large. Secondly, Zs will vary if the generating capacity is
varied, becoming larger during weekends and at night when there is less
load and hence less generating capacity connected. This increase in Z. will
not interfere with selectivity because the inverse curve increases the time
discrimination at low currents, but it does increase the tripping times and
hence defeats its purpose of reducing them.
Definite time relays have always been popular in Central Europe because
their time is not dependent on current magnitude and because the synchronous type of relay in common use is more accurate than the induction
disc unit used for inverse time relays. On the other hand it is obvious that,
on long radial or loop systems, lower tripping times can be achieved with
inverse time relays. In other words, definite time relays are better on isolated
systems and for use as back-up to differential relays and distance relays, but
inverse time relays are advantageous on interconnected systems and solidly
grounded systems, i.e. where Z./Z/ < 2.
143
4.1
Protective Relays
4.1 .4. Inverse-Definite Time Relays (17) (18) (19)
In the U.K. and the U.S.A. a compromise curve is popular, which is

known as an inverse curve with definite minimum time (I.D.M.T.). This
was introduced about 1920 and could have been a happy solution but it was
ruined by the method of execution which was to obtain the definite
minimum time by saturation of the electromagnet. The effect of the spring
which controls the pick-up at the low current end and the saturation at the
high current end is to produce an irregular curve which follows no particular
law (see fig. 4.7, curve 'b' and fig. 4.15). Nevertheless, with a certain amount
of patience, the I.D.M.T. curve can be applied successfully by cut-and-try
methods, preferably using a plastic curve with an outline corresponding to
the I.D.M.T. time-current characteristic.
Fig. 4.6a shows a typical family of I.D.M.T. curves. Theoretically, their
time ordinates should be proportional to the time multiplier setting (contact
10
"-
1\ :-...:
1\ ~~
1\
I-
i'''~
T....S.
~ 62
~ gie-.
05
3
02
~ 0'
.,
0 ,
FIO.
10
MU'ltlpru 01 r1lJ9 lIttlin.9 currc.n.l
100
4.6a. I.D.M.T. time current characteristic to B.S.S.
travel) so that, if the times for a given current were divided by the time
multiplier setting (T.M.S.), all the curves should be coincident. Unfortunately, the inertia of the disc makes this impossible at low current values
because it takes a little time for the disc to accelerate from standstill to its
steady speed.
This is taken care of by publishing a family of curves such as is shown in
fig. 4.6a. In the U.K. the curves are coincident within B.S. tolerances down
to 01 T.M.S. at ten times the tap value and the nameplate shows a single
144
4.1
curve (fig. 4.15) or logarithmic scale (fig. 4.6b) which gives the time at full
travel (10 T.M.S.). The actual time is given by multiplying the time given
on the scale by the T.M.S. At low currents the time is given by the curves of
fig. 4.15 which are part of the national specification B.S.S. 142.
Plug setting multiplier
10
25
I
FIG.
I I
3
I
4
I
5
I
6
I
5
4
Time in seconds
II
3,5
9 10
I, I
I,
12
II,
28
14 16 18 20
I' , II
26
24
I I
2,2
4.6b. Logarithmic scale for I.D.M.T. relay
In the printed. disc type of relay, the family of curves is unnecessary

because the disc has very low inertia and the proportionality is within
5 %down to 01 T.M.S. at twice the tap value.
The advent of static relays has made it possible to obtain accurate control
of n in the characteristic I"t = K. This is an ideal arrangement because n can
LogT
(e) Definite time rOt:/(
Log!
FIG.
4.7. Inverse, definite and I.D.M.T. characteristics
be varied (118) to suit the application and the value of Z8/Z" Furthermore,
combinations of definite, true inverse and instantaneous units (fig. 4.1) are
much easier to apply than the present I.D.M.T. curves.
4.1.5. Voltage Monitoring
It is obvious that overcurrent relays can be used only where the minimum
fault current exceeds the maximum load current. Where there is a wide
variation in generating conditions and the minimum fault current is below
maximum load current it is possible still to use overcurrent relays if they are
monitored by undervoltage re1ays, since the voltage does not fall appreciably
during load.
In most cases of this type, however, it is preferable to use distance relays
which are described in the next chapter.
F
145
4.1
Protective Relays
4.1.1. Instantaneous Overcurrent Relays
Another tool for reducing the tripping time for faults near the source is
the high-set instantaneous relay which reduces the overall tripping times to a
minimum because each relay, whether definite or inverse, can be given the
same time-multiplier setting, since it has only to be selective with the instantaneous relay in the next section (fig. 4.8). Like the inverse relay the
instantaneous relay is effective only where Z, is large compared with ZS'
Fortunately this is true near the power source so that it provides tripping at a
place where the fault currents are heaviest and where the longest tripping
times would otherwise have to be accepted.
In order that these instantaneous units shall be' selective with each other,
each one is set to pick up at a progressively higher value towards the source
so that no relay can operate on the lower current value of a fault in the next
section away from the source.
Instantaneous relays cannot be applied where difference in current
between faults at the two ends of the protected section is exceeded by the
difference in current for a fault at the far end of the section for maximum and
. .
. cond'ltions,
.
. were
h
Zs+
Z, < --ZZs+ Z, were
hZ"
mlD1mUm
generating
I.e.
-s IS
ZS
Zs+,
the value of Zs under reduced generating conditions, i.e. where
Z;-Zs>
Z, (1 + ::).
An example of this is the short section 1-2 in fig. 4.8. In such cases fast
.
II
.::
----
Power
source
FIG.
_ ...... ......
...
---- .........
Sui>-stG.tion Sub-sta.tion
No.1
No.2
Sub-sta.tion
No.3
4.8. Reduction of time-settings by addition of high-set instantaneous overcurrent

units
clearing of faults can be obtained by the use of one-step distance relay described in Chapter 5, section 5.4.1, which cuts off at the same distance from the
relay regardless of the magnitude of the fault current.
Assuming, however, that conditions are suitable for the application of the
instantaneous unit, it should be set to pick up at a current value for a fault
near the end of the protected section under maximum generating conditions.
The percentage of the section that can thus be protected depends upon the
146
4.1
tendency of the relay to overreach on offset waves.

The current is proportional to oc _1_ so that, with 100% offset current
Zs+Z,
transient, pick-up would occur with half the symmetrical value of current,
i.e. double the value of Zs+Z" Since Zs is fixed Z, is correspondingly increased, i.e. the overreach K can be obtained from Z.+KZ, = 2(Z,+Z,),
Zs
K = 2+(4.1)
Z,
hence with 100% offset current wave a truly instantaneous overcurrent relay
would overreach to more than twice the length of the protected section.
Actually the overreach will be reduced by the operating time of the
relay because the d.c. component of the fault current will be decaying
exponentially, so that
i.e.
Emu. sin (wt+l/I-t/

I. =
../R2+(Lw)2
.
R
- -t
e L sin(l/I-t/
../R 2+(Lw)2
Emax
= 1max [sin (wt+l/I-t/+Ae -
(4.2)
~t]
(4.3)
The first expression is the steady symmetrical component and the second
is the decaying d.c.; where t/> is the phase angle of the circuit (tan -1 ~),
if; is the time in radians after voltage zero at which the fault occurs and t is
the time after the inception of the fault. Lw = X (see fig. 5.12).
On a system with high XI R ratio- the operating time of the relay would
have to be increased by several cycles to avoid overreach; the delay can be
calculated from the time constant. A preferable alternative is to use a d.c.
filter. In the U.S.A. induction cup instantaneous units are used because they
are less sensitive to the d.c. offset component. A less expensive solution is to
1J~k
I71
(a)
FIO.
(b)
4.9. Instantaneous overcurrent relays with negligible overreach

(a) Tapped secondary
(b) Continuous adjustment
147
4.1
Protective Relays
use the arrangement of fig. 4.9 which not only eliminates the overreach but
also provides a drop-out to pick-up ratio of over 90 %.
In systems such as are described in section 4.7, where the instantaneous
unit is given a relatively low setting, it is important that the relay reset upon
the return of normal load conditions, i.e. the reset value of current should
be as close to the operating value as possible. The normal drop-out/pick-up
ratio of attracted armature relays is SO % or less because of the change in
reluctance as the armature gap closes but a ratio of 90 % can be achieved
by matching the pull to the mechanical load over the range of travel of the
armature. This can be done mechanically by auxiliary spring arrangements,
as explained in Chapter 2, section 2.4.4, fig. 2.1S, or by non-linear resonance,
as illustrated in fig. 4.9 of this chapter, or by an adjustable air-gap inside the
solenoid.
4.1.7. Extremely Inverse Time Overcurrent Relay (/2t = K)
For cases where the generation is practically constant and discrimination

with low tripping times is difficult to obtain, because of the low impedance
per line section, an extremely inverse relay can be very useful (i.e. one in
which the time is inversely proportional to the square of the current) since
only a small difference in current is necessary to obtain an adequate time
difference.
This relay is also very desirable for protection of apparatus against overheating, since [2t = K is also the current versus heating characteristic of most
apparatus. Typical applications are earthing transformers, power transformers, expensive cables and railway trolley wires. Fig. 4.10 shows typical
heating curves for SO cis generators and transformers.
An application of particular importance is that of large generators which
may receive damage to their rotors by overheating if an unbalanced fault or
load is permitted to remain too long on the system. In this case a relay of
extremely inverse time-current characteristic is supplied through a negative
sequence filter and the constant K is set by the time multiplier scale according
to the type of machine. Such a relay must be well designed since it may have
to operate in a fraction of a second at heavy currents or several thousand
seconds at low currents. It also has to be very accurate in order to exactly
match the heating characteristics of the generator so that it will not be taken
off too soon or unnecessarily, which is important if it is a big machine. The
best relay of this type at present available uses a shrouded ball and jewel
bearing (see Chapter 2, section 2.6.1) and is shown in fig. 9.11.
Other useful applications of this relay are for accurate discrimination
with fuses (fig. 4.11), which is impossible with the LO.M.T. curve, and also
for reclosing distribution circuits after a long outage (see last paragraph of
section 4.2.6).
4.1.8. Special Characteristics
Owing to the American manufacturers having used a superlative in the

term 'Extremely Inverse' relay it is difficult to find descriptive names for the
148
oIloo
CO
.....
"
10
20
fIG.
I-
...
..i
""u~
.. SO
100
200
500
1,000
\\
\\
"-
,\
r\.
r><
Jrc.n$lormtr
in"..... relo.y
20
10
TImC$ ful"oc.d
'"
I \ ; !r COOlld
E~mcly
\l\
1'\1\
i"\..
SO
I:
I
II
o.rnc.t~r
100
4.10. Application of 121 relay to generator-transformer unit
~\
\\
::
N:t.m.
I \
1\1\ T,me
SB.
H{I ~
E)(tremcly
~~:~~:..
Typical
\ ~ Fun 75}'
I. O.M .T .
C. B. ffi--+-+-+-+-~++
11
i~
<
"
........
1 \
1\
~----~-~~~~~~~ ~ g _~--~I~
\ ~~~~
f..--TYl'ical
2S0AFu04I
In..... re illY
' ~~~~~~~j,~~~~~~~\~~~tj~tt
~'\
T.S.M.-O'
I----v---I \~ t--..
\ f'\"
1\
t\.
"-
'\oJ
440
1,000/5 C.T.
J
VI ff i
I
fIG.
4.11. Selectivity of 121 curve with fuse curve
0 0 1.~__~~-i__L-~-LLL~__~L--L~~-L~~
50,000 100,000
5,000 10,000 20,000
1,000
2,000
Secondary amps
t=
..
.5
.g
10
l\c~~~t:~:
i\.E>
CB .
1 11
5"1-
Tro.n.lormor
500 "Y.A.
1\ \
II K.V. ~l-
75 A fun
SC52S0A
f---_I\--\--II--+-+-+-+-H-~j-.....:..:.1t:..::...
KY./440V
\
,
rrr-
10
oIloo
:...
[
g.
(3
""tJ
....:::J
c:
"tb
4.1
Protective Relays
relays which are still more inverse, i.e. those with a time-current characteristic I"t = K where n > 2. Fig. 4.11 shows that the characteristics of
enclosed fuses approximate to the law [H t = K, so that the [2t = K
relay characteristic is not too good a match, but it is the best that can be done
with electromagnetic relays (35). With static relays, however, it is easy to
obtain an [HI = K curve, using a circuit of the form shown in fig. 4.12.
FIG.
4.12. Circuit of
rt relay for n up to 35
L -_ _ _ _ _ _ <Currri
FIG.
4.13. Time-current curve required for mercury arc rectifiers,
FIG.
4.14. Circuit of
r1= K
8
rt relay for n above 35
The shape of the time-current curve can be changed so as to increase the value
of n at higher currents by interchanging the positions of the resistor S and the
capacitor C. Other variations can be obtained by interchanging S or C with
the position of the output V2
150
4.2
The steepest time-current curve required so far is ]8 t = K for mercury

arc rectifier protection. Fig. 4.13 shows the curve and fig. 4.14 the circuit
employed to produce it.
4.2. APPLICATION OF TIME-CURRENT RELAYS
In their role as back-up relays their pick-up currents must be adjusted so

that each will operate for all faults in the immediately adjoining circuits and
their time settings must be just long enough to permit the relays In a faulted
circuit to work first. This is facilitated by using relays with a similar timecurrent characteristic, for instance, differential and other fast relays should
have a definite time relay for back-up. On feeders each relay backs up the
one in the next section further from the power source so that the timecurrent characteristic of the back-up relay should be intermediate between
the characteristics of the relays on each side of it; for example, with fuses on
the tapped-off loads and LD.M.T. relays on the supply, the extremely inverse
relay would be used at the sub-station nearest to the fuses and a very inverse
relay at the sub-station next to the supply, so that there would be a selective
difference between them at all current levels; this assumes that suitable taps
and multiplier settings have been chosen to prevent any crossing of their
time-current characteristics at likely fault current values.
Before considering the setting of these relays, the following definitions
will be helpful.
Time Lever Setting (T.L.S.-U.S.A.) or Time Multiplier Setting (T.M.S.U.K.). A means of adjusting the moveable backstop which controls the
travel of the disc and thereby varies the time in which the relay will close its
contacts for given values of fault current.
It should be noted that the T.L.S. scale marking is 0-10 in the U.S.A.,
divided into ten equal divisions, while the T.M.S. scale marking is 0-10 in
the U.K., the scale markings being calibrated to be proportional to operating
time at ten times the tap value. The latter system has the advantage that only
the max. T.M.S. time curve is required (instead of the family of curves for
different T.L.S.) and the operating time is that indicated by the curve times
the T.M.S.
Tap Block (U.S.A.) OR Plug Setting Bridge (U.K.). A device providing a
range of current settings at which the relay will start to operate.
Pick-up Errors. Allowable errors in the current value at which the disc
starts to move and at which its contacts close, expressed as a multiple of the
plug setting. In the U.S.A. the start and close values must be within 2 %
of the tap value. In the U.K. the contact closing value must exceed the disc
starting value by a value between 0 and 5 %.
Overshoot. This is defined as the time to close the contacts at twenty times
tap current with maximum disc travel minus the time to reach the point
where the current must be shut off in order to prevent the contacts from
closing, due to the momentum of the disc.
151
4.2
Protective Relays
4.2.1. Rules for Setting I.D.M.T. Relays on Phase Faults
(a) The relay must reach at least up to the end of the next protected zone.
For example, in fig. 4.16, relay Rl must operate for a fault at R3 with minimum fault current (for phase relays this is a phase-to-phase fault at minimum
generation).
(b) The current setting must not be less than maximum load, usually
15 x c.t. rating, unless monitored by an undervoltage relay.
(c) In estimating the current setting, allowance must be made for the
fact that in England the B.S.S. until now permitted the relay pick-up to vary
from 105 to 13 times tap value (see fig. 4.15). B.S.S. is quoted here because
other countries do not have exact specifications for time-current relays.
(cl) Where the generation varies widely, a low pick-up is preferable so as
to allow most faults to operate on the definite time part of the curve; on the
other hand, where the generation is sufficiently constant, higher pick-ups
should be used so as to operate on the inverse part of the curve and thereby
obtain the lowest overall operating times and the easiest discrimination, see
fig. 4.5.
(e) The time multiplier must be chosen to give the lowest possible time
for the relays at the end of the system most remote from the source, but the
contact gap employed should not be so small as to permit accidental tripping
due to mechanical shock. In the following sections of line the time multiplier
should be chosen to give the desired selective interval from the previous relay
at maximum fault conditions (for phase relays this a 3-phase fault just beyond
the next bus with maximum generation). The time multiplier setting should
allow not only for the time of the next breaker but also for overshoot and
errors in the relays, as will be discussed in the next section.
(/) Directional control should be used at places where there is not
sufficient difference between the currents in the faulted and unfaulted incoming feeders on a given substation bus to permit current grading. This may
be at a substation at the receiving end of two parallel lines or it may be at a
substation in the middle of a loop remote from the power source.
Setting I.D.M.T. Relays on Ground Faults. The setting of ground relays
to provide discrimination between breakers is much easier than with phase
relays, because they are energised with residual current which is zero under
normal conditions. Furthermore, the zero sequence impedance of the
system is larger than the positive or negative and is terminated in the nearest
grounded transformer. This means that the residual current varies chiefly
with distance to the fault and is less affected by generating conditions
(34).
The same rules apply as for setting phase relays, except item (b) can be
ignored. Faster tripping times can be achieved because (a) the pick-up
settings can be below load values, (b) there will be a greater difference in
current for faults at the near and far ends of the protected section, so that the
time for a fault at the far end will tend to be high enough for discrimination,
even if it is set low for a fault at the near end.
152
4.2
(a) The quickest and most effective way of obtaining time-current relay
settings is to use log-log paper and a plastic monogram corresponding to the
time-current curve. The current tap value moves the monogram along the
time axis so that, by moving the monogram to the pick-up and time values
required, the current and time settings are immediately given. With U.S.
relays the family of T.L.S. curves on a transparent tracing is used instead of a
plastic curve.
4.2.2. Typical Application of I.D.M.T. Relays
Fig. 4.15 shows the errors permissible by B.S.S. and 4.16 shows the
effect of these tolerances on the discriminative interval required to ensure
selectivity between successive relays. It will be seen that a fault drawing
100
tiL,
PICk.t 1.0Ll' J
50
40
..
30
"\ ,
."
12"0
Time
Irron
.=
glO
c
'"
~ 5
~Lr.
7Lo
Time errol'll
l~ ~
4
3
FIG.
utting
~20
2
3 4 5
10
Mult iple. of plug tlttlng
20
4.15. B.S.S. permissible errors at T.M.S. = 1
1000 amperes will cause the I.D.M.T. relay R 2 , which operates in 28 seconds
and is set at 10 T.M.S., to have an error of 007 x 3 = 021 second; relay R3
operates in just over 2 seconds and has a permissible error of 014 second.
These errors can be and must therefore be added so that the total selective
interval required is 035 second for error plus 005 second for overshoot and
01 second fol' the breaker time, making a total of 05 second, assuming the
breaker never exceeds its clearing time of 01 second even for low current
faults.
For the Rl relay (38 seconds at 1000 amperes) a selective interval of 06
153
4.2
Protective Relays
second is required but for the lower time settings the selective interval can be
smaller because the errors are a percentage and therefore less.
Actually, it is common practice to use a fixed selective interval of 04
second but it would be much better to use an interval of 02+01t where t
is the operating time of the next relay away from the source at maximum
fault conditions, assuming five cycle breakers. The 02 second allows for
breaker time plus relay overshoot and the 01 t is the sum of the errors on
two neighbouring relays.
4.2.3. Improvement of Selectivity
When a distribution system is supplied from a high tension power system

and the maximum time allowed for relays on the distribution system must not
exceed a figure of say 15 seconds, it is often extremely difficult, if not impossible, to set the time-overcurrent relays on the distribution system so as
to provide adequate selective intervals. There are several ways of solving this
problem.
(a) By setting the relays so as to operate on the inverse part of the
I.D.M.T. curve.
(b) Using 'very inverse' relays, to obtain greater time selectivity for a given
difference in current and permit lower current settings.
(c) Obtaining more accurate relays.
(el) The addition of instantaneous current or impedance units.
The first two suggestions have already been discussed above but relays
corresponding to item (c) have not been available until recently. Induction disc
relays are now available in which the overshoot is less than a third of the B.S.S.
value (about 003 second); the coil tap error has been eliminated by a new
winding technique described below and errors due to magnetic variations in
electromagnets can be minimised by an adjustment on the relay. The elimination of overshoot is, achieved by the use of a light disc and an electromagnet
which has extremely high torque and hence requires a correspondingly
strong damping magnet to meet the B.S. CUllVe, with the result that the high
damping force stops the disc almost instantly after the fault current is
interrupted.
The method of elimination of tap error used by the English Electric Co.
and its licensees is to wind a multi-conductor strip on the core instead of a
single conductor, connecting the end of each conductor to the beginning of
another, and so on, so that all the conductors are in series and each conductor traverses essentially the same path (fig. 4.19).
Taps are connected to the junctions of the conductors so that each tap
involves a different number of turns but all the turns are equivalent magnetically. This gives time-current curves of identical shape on all taps whereas,
with the ordinary method of a single conductor winding, the magnetic leakage
varies with the average distance of the turns from the core and from the ends
of the winding, and can create a pick-up error up to 5 %, which is eliminated
in the multi-strand winding. Fig. 4.20 shows typical coils of this type.
154
4.2
4.2.4. Application of Instantaneous Unit
The last solution (d) mentioned above, is the use of instantaneous units
(fig. 4.8) set to cover as much of the line as possible so that the time setting
of the next relay towards the source need only be about 03 second with five
cycle breakers (fig. 4.17) instead of the time setting of the previous I.D.M.T.
relay plus the errors and the breaker time (fig. 4.16). By using these instantaneous units in every section all faults are cleared instantaneously except
R,
Minimum grCldfng times

Rllay .,ror R,' Ra
at 2,000 A
Rllay error R,I.R,

Overshoot R,
evlrshoot R2
are<1ker for
0'19+0'14-0'33 ."C.
0 '14 0 105
- 0 ' 245
0 04
0 04
0 04
0'15
T,m. brtwlm R, &R,
R,
TIm.
~....en
=-0.36
R,'R,
0 '04
0 '15
0 '445
50r-~~r--'--'-'-----'-----r--r-'-'-----'
10tlmcs
20tlmcs
0 ' 21 c.
015 c.
0 '13
"
~10 i----'''r---i-'\,.--lI.---+-+---- R, "
1' 0 TM. 150% plug .. !tin
R,=0' 85 TM. 12S% plug sctting
t-----+---!f--t-''k-----''o.,----'''''oR---d----k7 %T,mrror
I I
2 1-----+----1I--I-+-__......::::~~~~.,.3II-~\II"'oot
ev...hoot
I
CircuIt brc<1k.r
110
~0~--20
~0
---L~~0
----~----~---L~~~---J
50
1,000
2,000
5,000 10,000
F<lUlt current in <1mp.
FIG.
4.16. Calculation of I.D.M.T. relay settings
those in the end zone which would be cleared in most cases in less than
! second. This is particularly important for the relays near the source because
(a) this is where the most severe faults can occur, (b) the time settings of these
relays must be less than those of the relays at the power source, (c) this
is generally the easiest place to apply them, because the difference in fault
currents at the two ends of the line section is greatest near the source.
155
4.2
Protective Relays
Unfortunately there are many cases where there is not sufficient impedance
in the line sections of the distribution system to provide a reasonable difference
in current at the two ends of each protected section. In such cases the instantaneous overcurrent unit can be replaced by a single-step impedance
unit, or mho unit (directional impedance).
An impedance unit or a mho unit has the advantages that its reach is
unaffected by current magnitude and, if of proper design, it is not affected by
transient conditions, such as offset current waves, so that it can be set to
10,000
5,000
2/)00
F~1t
1,000
500
200
100
current In C1IIIpa
FIO. 4.17. Calculation of settings of instantaneous O.C. relays

Inverse relays: All relays set at 12S%. Rl set at SOOA on 0'1 T.S.M. R2 set at 12SA
on O'IS T.S.M. R3 set at 62'5A on 01 T.S.M.
Instantaneous relays: Rl set at 3000A. R2 set at 1400A. R3 set at SOOA
cover up to 95 % of the protected section and thereby provide instantaneous

clearing of 90 %of the faults. This unit is described in more detail in Chapter
5, section 5.1.1 (c) on Distance Relays.
The most rewarding place to put either instantaneous overcurrent units
or mho units is on the line section nearest the source because, not only is the
difference in fault current greatest near the source, but there is the greatest
need for fast tripping because of the heavy fault currents there.
4.2.5. Application of Very Inverse Time Current Relays
The very inverse type of overcurrent relay is particularly suitable in cases

where there is a substantial reduction of fault current as the distance from the
156
4.2
power source increases. The characteristics of this relay are such that its
operating time is approximately doubled for a reduction in current from
seven to four times the relay plug setting multiplier. This permits the use of
the same time setting multiplier for several relays in series.
In the example shown in fig. 4.18 it has been assumed that the maximum
fault current at substations C, B and A is 1225, 700 and 400 amperes respectively, i.e. in the ratio of the 7 to 4 between successive substations. It is seen
-- -c
r---R1
R2
--
.....--
Ie
J
)
10
.
~
..
.,..e
u
~4M'
\ \
.5
............
.....
JA
~
Very Inverse cI1o.ra.<:terost.es

Stlll\da.rd
cha.rjerIItIC
. O.M.T .
B,7'
I- R~-;:-- RiA -p;:- f- .
I -R,
2-
\ \ \ \ 1\ \
\\
f',
! ~\ ~ i\~ '\~
\
.[
1l
,,-
1'0
"-
"-
os
"-
'\
."-
"
1\
< - f-~
u
j
.2
100
200
..
.!!
.2
soo
"'-
r---.'. , "1',
~
.!!
0"
1\
"'-1\
.........
'\
i"-- i'-
...
0
'\
"
2,000
>
r"I~]
S,OOO
10,000
Fault current In amps

FIG.
4.18. Calculation of settings of very inverse relays
that with the stated relay settings a difference of 03 second in the tripping
times of adjacent circuit-breakers is obtained although all relays have the
same time multiplier setting of 015.
A comparison is given in the same figure to show the impossibility of
obtaining the same time settings using a standard LD.M.T. relay.
This very inverse relay not only reduces the tripping time between the
157
4.2
Protective Relays
breakers but invariably allows a lower time multiplier setting to be employed

and, as the errors are only 7 % of the minimum operating time, down to a
minimum value of 01 second (B.S.S.), the margin between the time grading
steps can be reduced.
Very inverse time-current relays are particularly effective with ground
faults because of their steep characteristic, coupled with the fact that the
zero sequence current varies with distance to the fault much more than with
phase faults (section 4.2.1). This permits lower time multiplier settings to be
used without losing discrimination between stations.
4.2.6. Application of Extremely Inverse Time-Overcurrent Relays
It is sometimes difficult to find an inverse relay having characteristics

suitable to grade with fuses and at the same time to remain inoperative on
switching current. This problem has been successfully solved by the long time
characteristics of the extremely inverse relay at normal peak values. Fig. 4.11
Currcnlla.ppings
fIG.
4.19. Relay coil arrangement for zero tap error
gives typical curves showing the application of this relay on an 11 kV system

supplying a distribution transformer through a high-voltage fuse, and indicates a difference of 045 second between the operation of the relay and the
clearing time of fuses at the maximum fault level, which allows for the circuitbreaker time and variations in the fuse operating time.
This relay can also be used in conjunction with a negative phase sequence
network for the protection of large generators, as its characteristics can be
made to follow closely the permissible negative phase sequence current of any
generator by varying the time setting multiplier and/or current setting,
thereby ~ring a range of adjustment of I 2 t from 7 to 70. The characteristics
of this relay permit such close settings as to prevent a generator being taken
out of service unnecessarily, but to trip before any damage can result from
abnormal conditions occurring on the power system.
It is also possible to use an extremely inverse relay for the protection of
generators against overload and internal faults. The average generator under
fault conditions reaches its sustained value of short-circuit current in 3 or 4
158
4.2
e
c
'"
E
'"
'"t::
01)
I':
'p."
;g
]
i
....
'p."
-=
.~
:su
ell
'"
p::
'0
.ci
",'
.f
i;:
159
4.2
Protective Relays
seconds, this value being often below twice the generator's continuous current
rating, depending upon the value of excitation, and whether it has manual
or automatic control.
In the past, difficulties have arisen in the correct selection of suitable
relay settings when using the standard I.D.M.T. relay, as it is necessary to
select a setting which not only discriminates with other overcurrent relays
on the system and is inoperative on momentary overloads, but is operative
on the sustained short-circuit current of the generator, or at least operates
before it reaches the sustained value. The problem is further complicated by
the damping effect of offset currents on the relay itself.
An extremely inverse relay applied to a generator-transformer equipment
is shown in fig. 4.10. It will be apparent that the characteristics are such that
the relay gives adequate protection at the lower values of overload at a time
corresponding to the safe thermal rating of both the generator and the
20
10
~\
,\'-,
50
"
4 ,0
" 3,0
'0
8::2-0
..
r\
.5
.;l
0>
,,
1\
I-a
,,
8-
Inve.r.se tlmr.
(l.o.M.T.)~
- 'Wry i"vuu time

0-5
0-4
'\
0-3
"
0-2
'Extremely Inverse
time -
a-I
0 '05,
10
20
Multiples of plug 'dUng
fiG.
4.21. Various time-current characteristics
160
4.3
transformer, while leaving ample time for discrimination with other overcurrent relays on the system. Fig. 4.21 compares the characteristics of the
extremely inverse relay with those of the I.D.M.T. and the very inverse type.
Another use for extremely inverse time-current relays is load restoration
(40) (49). After an outage long enough to permit the motors of refrigerators,
factory equipment, etc., to stop, the impedance of the dead load is about onetenth of normal and when the breaker is reclosed the inrush current is comparable to fault current. With ordinary I.D.M.T. relays the faulted feeder
would be tripped out again after reclosing but, with the extremely inverse
relay, the square law time gradient is steep enough in most cases to distinguish between the persistent high current of a fault and the rapidly
decaying inrush current of the load, as light filaments become incandescent
and motors increase in speed.
4.3. PERMISSIBLE LIMITS OF ERROR
The British Standards Institution Specification B.S. 142, 1953, allows

errors of + 30 % in pick-up, 12 % in time from two to four times pick-up
and 7 %in time from four to twenty times pick-up.
The 30 % error in pick-up is far too great but was allowed in the early
days of inefficient mechanical flags. The sudden transition from 12 % to 7 %
error at four times pick-up is equally unrealistic and a more logical method
of defining permissible error is explained in the following paragraphs.
4.3.1. A New Method of Defining the Limits of Error
For inverse time-overcurrent relays the time of operation approaches

infinity at pick-up current and, for small increases of current just larger than
pick-up, the time of operation diminishes very rapidly. Thus a small change
in current causes a considerable increase in operating time.
At larger currents and correspondingly shorter operating times the characteristic has become less steep; thus a small percent deviation in current
causes an even smaller percent deviation in time.
For a true I.t = K characteristic the relay would have no restraining
spring to provide a fixed pick-up current value and the slope of its time current characteristic would be constant; hence the percent time error always
= K, the
corresponds to the percent current error. If we therefore write
above case is when n = 1.
It is shown on page 164 that, for any other value of n, the percent time
error is equal to the percent current error multiplied by n, where the small
change in current tends to zero.
The proposed method of defining the error is embraced by the following
statement:
r.t
The maximum percent error permissible shall be equal to the class

index and shall be defined in terms of current or time, whichever
produces the larger time error.
161
4.3
Protective Relays
This implies that, for n < 1, the error shall be defined in terms of percent
time error for any particular current and that, for n > 1, the error shall be
defined in terms of percent current error for any particular time.
Normally, for the purpose of any test or measurements, I is the independent variable and t the dependent variable; it may therefore be preferable to have all the errors tabulated in terms of time errors for the chosen
values of current.
For any particular characteristic the maximum permitted percent current
error may easily be converted into the maximum permitted percent time error
for chosen values of current.
An example of this is shown on each of the two curves (shown at figs.
4.22 and 4.23) when the Time Multiplier Setting is equal to 10. For this purpose the curves should preferably be drawn on log-log graph paper as the
law In. t = K is then a straight line.
(i) Draw a tangent to the curve such that the law for the tangent is
I.t = K.
(ii) Note the value of current 10 at which the tangent touches the
curve.
(iii) For all values of current in excess of 10 and less than Imax the permitted percent time error for any given current will equal the class
index C.
(iv) For all values of current less than 10 , down to and including pick-up,
the permitted percent current error for any given time will be equal
to the class index C.
(v) At any selected current less than 10 and more than pick-up, draw a
tangent to the curve at this point.
(vi) The law for this tangent will be r. t = K. Determine n.
(This is conveniently determined by reading from graph any two
points on the tangent and equating thus
(12)n
= !!..)
II
t2
(vii) The maximum permitted time error at the chosen current is now
given by n. C where C is the class index.
(viii) If v to vii are repeated for values of current over the required range, a
table of permissible percent time errors can be constructed.
This has been done for B.S.S. 3 sec. characteristic and also the extremely
inverse characteristic; the tables are given in Tables 4.1 and 4.2 respectively.
Consideration ofthese tables will show that, for values of current diminishing towards pick-up, the maximum permitted percent time error increases
according to the steepness of the time-current characteristic and in this way
the permissible time error is made to correspond with the requirements of the
characteristic, even to points on the characteristic fractionally above pick-up
and also for characteristics approaching a definite time.
In this way errors may be quoted from and including pick-up, up to the
upper limit of the effective range Imax' This is because the permissible pick-up
162
....
oI
00 I
0-0 !
0<>55
Q..
..
o
.5
)-5
~O12
'"
;:
.5
..
e
"'0
..
.80
'0)
FIG.
!"t'\.
'\
r\
f"\
t\
~~
0'
5
.-
'"
j\,.
p,
'" 1'--..\ .......... \0.1
........
.......
"---
~ ~ ~ t::::: '0
~~
_,,1
" ~~
~ t::::
1\
Multiplu of plug setting current
I\.
r'\
I\~ ~~~
NI ~ ~
1\ \\' ~
I\W ~
\\\\
\\\'l
4.22. Method of defining error of very inverse relays
'"
'"
10
00
V1t~K
r--..
t'-
~=--- g:~
0.6
plug .etting currrnt
- - - - - 0 1 \
'\
i\.
1'\
['.
--"":::::.
"
O T"
it",k
........... ' \ ,
J
0 2
t'\.
t---...
FIG.
0. 1
,00
4.23. Method of defining error of extremely inverse relays
IL--l-+-4JLlli~~-L-~I\~
50
2
10
5
10
20
0'
r--
i'!\
Mu lt iples
"
"-.
.'""- I""""' '""
~~~t-~ ~b~- -+-++-r-
"",
'"
f\" ~~~f:::
~~~~~-~-W~--~~II~
~"K~~
I""
I
0.:
"
I ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
'
o,
10
a..
~ 2
z.
~_
" ",m,
)~~''''E",
10
E
'"c
c;:
""
'~
20
1t==t=+=l=J-H+H----t--rrttD
50
tOO
~
W
o
:;,
~
R.
."
~
:;,
c::
o
...
4.3
Protective Relays
error is equal to the class index and the permitted time error fractionally
above pick-up corresponds with nx the class index. If the time approaches
infinity at pick-up so does n, and hence the permissible percent time error
also approaches infinity.
To summarise, th,is is a very simple and most effective way of defining
errors because:
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)
The percent pick-up error is equal to the class index C.

For n < 1 the percent current error is equal to the class index C.
For n < 1 the percent time error is equal to the class index C.
This method is applicable to all types of inverse time overcurrent
relays whatever shape the characteristic may be.
4.1
B.S.S. 3 sec. Characteristic
TABLE
I
Multiples of
Tap Value
13
15
2
25
3
3-S
4
5
10
20
(Sees.)
326
18-4
10
746
622
547
4-97
43
22
Max. permitted
percent
time error
5-94 C
2-95 C
137 C
H2C
C
C
C
C
C.
C
4.2
Extremely Inverse Characteristic
TABLE
Multiples of
Tap Value
13
15
2
3
4
5
10
14
18
20
t
(Sees.)
Max. permitted
percent
time error
166
435
145
5-13
276
179
06
0404
033
0308
1272 C
6125 C
2-82 C
2-33C
203 C
1-818 C
1307 C
C
C
C
In both tables above nC is the permitted percent time error for n

C is the class index.
164
> 1.
4.3
Tables 4.1 and 4.2 show the percent time errors obtained with this
formula for the B.S.S. characteristic and the extremely inverse characteristic.
An alternative method considered in the U.S.A. is to measure the error
in a direction normal to the time-current curve, i.e. to express the permissible
error as 8 = C sin A. (4.4), where A. is the slope angle and is calculated in the
same manner as before, i.e. by taking two points on the tangent and calculating
~ 1 - ~2 which is the tangent of the slope angle i.e. A. = tan -1 dd~
'1 -12
A formula somewhat more suitable to test conditions is 8 = C cos hA. (4.5)

provided that no times are measured below twice the top value of current.
4.3.2. Method of Defining Shape of Characteristic
It is necessary to be able to time grade Extremely Inverse relays with

fuses and, possibly, other devices using a heating effect. The short-time heating effect is dependent on ]2.t = K; it is therefore desirable that the
characteristic of the relay should match this law at the higher currents.
All devices 'affected by heating have a maximum continuous rating and,
in our case, this is the maximum current that can be supplied for infinite
time. For correct matching, this current should match pick-up current of the
relay, and at pick-up the time of operation should approach infinity.
In this case the law for the relay would be:
K
t = ]2_12
"
(4.6)
where t = time in seconds

] = multiple of tap current
I" = the multiple of tap current at which pick-up occurs.
K = constant which determines time delay.
Most electromagnetic relays will match this law up to some maximum
current. If this current is exceeded the time of the relay "usually becomes
longer than that obtained from the above law. This is due to the shortcomings of the relay; for example, saturation and inertia of the moving
systems. Future developments which might improve these characteristics
should not be prevented by standardising on a characteristic which is
dependent upon given amounts of these undesirable effects. The system
suggested should therefore quote accuracies to the above law over some
particular current range.
The counterpart of this for the Very Inverse relay is to use the expression
K
t=(4.7)
]-1"
Most of the above arguments still apply for this less inverse characteristic.
An important point is that grading will be more accurate at high currents if
the relay characteristicS match these laws, instead of tending to a definite
time at high currents. It will also result in great convenience to be able to
calculate the shape of the characteristic in such a simple manner.
165
4.4
Protective Relays
It should be noted in conjunction with these laws that n can never be less
than 1, which is an argument in favour of the method of defining errors
= K.)
given in section 4.3.1. (n is the index of I in the relationship
r.t
4.4. RATINGS OF OVERCURRENT RELAYS
In the U.K. it is customary to express the pick-up of overcurrent relays

as a percentage of the c. t. secondary current but in the rest of the world it is
expressed directly in amperes. For example, a ground relay supplied by
5 ampere c.t's may have seven tappings for a range of 1 to 4 amperes (20 %
to 80%). The percentage marking used in the U.K. has the slight advantage
of being the same for different c.t. ratings but the latter is easier for a man
testing the relays and eliminates the necessity for specifying the c.t. secondary
current. Almost all other countries mark the taps in amperes.
4.4.1. Phase Faults
The standard range of current taps for phase fault relays in the U.K. is:
Percent
5 amp c.t.
1 amp c.t.
50
2t
0'5
75
3'75
075
100
5
1'0
125
6'25
1'25
150
7'5
1'5
175
8'75
1'75
200
10
20
amps
amps
In the U.S.A. until recently the standard range was 4/5/6/8/10/12/16

amperes for the standard 5 ampere c.t's, which are invariably used for
feeder protection. Lately there has been a move towards a 3 to 12 amperes
range because the taps above 12 amperes are seldom used except on instantaneous overcurrent relays.
4.4.2. Ground Faults
Residual current relays (fig. 4.28) can be set much more sensitively than
phase relays because the residual current is normally zero except for phase
unbalance.
In most countries a popular range of taps is 1/1t:ll;;/2/lt/3/4 amperes
for a 5 ampere c.t. which is 20 %to 80 %of c.t. rating. A more sensitive range
sometimes used is 10% to 40%. Where 1 ampere C.t. secondaries are used the
ampere ratings will of course be correspondingly reduced where marked in
amperes.
4.4.3. Geometrical versus Arithmetical Tap Progression
In most countries the taps increase in whole numbers or in arithmetical

progression. A typical phase relay for instance may be marked 3/4/5/6/8/10/12
amperes. Other examples are given in the table above which has 25 %
increments. This custom results in inaccuracy in the relay pick-up on each
tap or necessitates trimming turns which are expensive and reduce the
reliability of the relay; furthermore, the arithmetical taps give varying
accuracy of adjustment.
166
4.5
If geometrical progression of tap values were used the coil construction

would be simpler and there would be less tap error and a constant accuracy
of adjustment. This is because the tap values are inversely proportional to coil
turns so that round numbers for taps require fractional turns on the coil taps.
A constant increment of turns on consecutive taps would enable the
pick-up of the relay to be set within the same accuracy on any tap. Preferred
tap ratings are as follows:
Percent
5 amp C.t.
1 amp c.t.
50
25
05
60
30
0'6
75
375
075
100
50
1'0
120
60
12
150
75
15
200
10
20
amps
amps
It will be seen that, with preferred taps, there is an almost constant ratio
between consecutive tap values so that settings can be made within the same
accuracy anywhere in the range. With the standard taps given in the previous
table there is an increment of 50 % between the lowest two taps and only
13 % between the highest two.
4.5. DIRECTIONAL OVERCURRENT PROTECTION (33) (38) (39)
It is obvious that the relays on a single radial line need not be directional
but, in the case of parallel lines or loop lines, the current magnitude may be
the same in two feeders on the same bus except for the relative direction of
the fault current; furthermore, the direction may change with the location of
the fault.
Fig. 4.24 shows a typical network where the direction of the current
depends upon the location of the fault and where, apart from direction, the
current may be the same in two relays at a station near the middle of the
loop.
For instance, a fault at X would produce similar fault currents in relays
D and E, except that the current in D is incoming and that in E outgoing.
Similarly a fault at Y causes similar currents in relays G and H. Directional
control of these relays would prevent the relays D and G from disconnecting
their sound lines.
Fig. 4.24 shows no loads or power infeeds. Where these exist they have
the effect of increasing the current in the faulted section and, in some cases,
reducing that in the sound sections so that directional control of timeovercurrent relays is seldom necessary, especially where those relays have
inverse time characteristics or are on the inverse part of an I.D.M.T. curve.
In general, directional control should be used with instantaneous-overcurrent or definite time relays where the maximum fault current flowing
through the relay into the bus for a fault on another feeder exceeds 80 %of
the minimum current outgoing for a fault at the far end of the protected
section.
167
4.5
Protective Relays
In the case of induction disc time-overcurrent relays a lower percentage

applies because of overtravel of the disc and because the operating time does
not vary much if the currents are on the definite part of the LD.M.T. curve.
FIG.
4.24. Directional overcurrent protection
The decision must obviously depend upon the application in question but a
figure of 25 % is safe for general application with inverse time or LD.M.T.
relays.
Directional control is also required where the load current is flowing
towards the bus normally and a low pick-up current setting is required. This,
of course, does not apply to ground fault relays.
4.5.1. Phase Faults
Because of the possibility of sudden reversal of the current direction when

the fault is cleared and load resumed, the directional unit should be fast and
induction cup units are popular for this purpose.
The contacts of the directional relay can be connected either in series
with those of the overcurrent relay or in series with a winding which prevents
the overcurrent relay from operating unless its circuit is completed. The
latter is called 'directional control' and is preferable because it permits the
overcurrent relay to start moving only for a fault in the tripping direction,
168
4.5
thereby eliminating the risk of wrong tripping if the current direction reverses
after the fault is cleared.
Fig. 4.2Sa shows how an overcurrent relay with a split-pole magnet is
directionally controlled. Fig. 4.2Sb shows the method used for the older
wattmetric type overcurrent magnet. In the case of attracted armature relays,
such as are used for instantaneous overcurrent units, directional control is
more difficult because there is seldom a convenient coil across which the contacts of the directional unit can be connected to effect control.
(a)
Directiona.l
unit
(b)
FIG.
4.25. Directional control of time-current relays

(a) Shaded pole type. (b) Wattmetric type
If the relay operating winding has sufficient impedance it can be normally

short-circuited by the contacts of the directional relay but this method is
effective only with relays operating below lA, because the resistance of the
contacts is comparable with that of the current coil which is to be shortcircuited. One solution is the use of a secondary winding, as in fig. 4.9,
across which the a.c. potential is sufficient to enable effective contact to be
made.
169
Protective Relays
4.5
The directional unit uses current from the same phase as the overcurrent
relay and is polarised by one of the line-to-line potentials, usually the one in
quadrature with the current, i.e. Vbc with current la' because (a) this gives
maximum torque with current lagging the unity power factor position by
60, using an induction cup unit having no phase shifting means; (b) this
connection is less affected by phase shifts that occur when there is a wyedelta connected power transformer between the relay and a fault.
In the early days, induction disc watt-hour meter units were used for
directional purposes. Since this unit had maximum torque at unity power
--~--------------~~--~R
FIG.
4.26. Impedance characteristics of directional relays

with and without voltage restraint
factor it was necessary to use the adjacent delta voltage to polarise it, i.e. to
use Vca with la and this gave maximum torque at 30 lagging the unity p.f.
position on three-phase faults or 60 lagging on phase-to-phase faults.
The subject of the connections of single-phase directional units has been
discussed at length by various authors (33) (38).
(a) Voltage Restraint. On many systems the connected generating
capacity varies with load conditions to such an extent that the minimum
fault current at one timc may be less than maximum load current at another
time. This of course makes it dfficuIt to set overcurrent relays unless the
directional unit is provided with voltage restraint.
Under even the heaviest load or power swing conditions the potential
will be near normal, preventing the directional unit from operating but,
during a fault in the protected section, it will fall to a value permitting the
operation. The directional unit becomes, in effect, a mho type fault detector,
such as is described in Chapter 5, with an impedance pick-up between the
load and fault values, which fortunately are widely different.
The directional unit associated with the overcurrent relay in the a phase
also has a phase current fa; it is polarised by the quadrature potential Vbc
and restrained by the voltage Vab
170
4.5
No voltage restraint is required for ground relays because they work on

zero sequence currents which are normally zero under load conditions and
hence avoid any requirement for blocking their action.
(b) Two Relays versus Three. Overcurrent relays in two of the phases and
one in the C.t. residual circuit give complete protection for all faults on lines
or cables but, in the case of a A - Y transformer feeder, the current in one
phase may be twice that in the other two phases so that three phase relays
are required.
On an ungrounded system where there is no relay in the residual circuit,
there should be either relays in all three phases or, if only two are used, they
should be in the same two phases in all feeders; otherwise there is a risk of a
'cross-country' fault, (i.e. two simultaneous single phase ground faults on
different feeders) involving the two phases not having overcurrent relays so
that time selectivity may be upset.
Discrimination between relays can be upset on interphase faults with
relays in only two phases (a) if there is a wye-delta power transformer between
the relays, (b) if there is a light fault and a heavy load.
To summarise, two phase relays and one ground relay are sufficient on
grounded systems and three phase relays are desirable on systems grounded
through high impedance or ungrounded.
In the case of directional overcurrent relaying the same considerations
apply if the directional units are polarised by quadrature potential. If
polarised from any other potential, three phase relays and one ground relay
should be used.
(c) Single-Phase Directional Units. Single-phase directional units can
use wye or delta current and can be polarised by any of the wye or delta
potentials. Certain combinations, however, are preferable because their
maximum torque angle (M.T.A.) is more consistently close to the fault phase
angle for all types of faults. The M.T.A. is the angle () by which the potential
applied to the relay leads the current for maximum torque (or the angle by
which the current lags the potential).
The best known connections have names by which they are known in the
U.K. and the U.S.A.; the names are given in the left-hand column of the
following tables, 4.3 and 4.4. The connection chosen depends upon the type
of relay unit. Early directional relays were adaptations of watthour meters
and had maximum torque at unity power factor; the 30 connection was the
most suitable for such units because its M.T.A. was 30 lagging the unity
power factor position under three-phase conditions and up to 90 lagging
the faulted voltage for a phase-to-phase or double-ground fault. This gave
reliable directional torque for all interphase faults on lines of average (50)
phase angle, but it could operate incorrectly during leading load conditions
on a single-phase ground fault on the remote side of a wye-delta connected
power transformer.
The induction cup unit replaced the wattmetric induction disc unit because
of its superior speed and efficiency; it has maximum torque with current 30
171
4.5
Protective Relays
leading the voltage applied to its potential coils; hence the quadrature connection was the most suitable for it. With this arrangement M.T.A. was 600
lagging for all faults. The constant M.T.A. makes this arrangement the most
reliable one because the relay is never near the threshold conditions due to
voltage phase-shifts caused by the fault and opposite current phase-shifts
due to an intervening power transformer or during leading load conditions
(33) (38).
The torque of a single-phase directional unit is proportional to 1111
cos (-O) where is the angle by which the potential leads the current for
a particular fault condition and 0 is the M.T.A.
Fig. 4.29 shows a condition which can cause wrong operation of a single-
Vi
c~--~--------~b
FIO.
4.27. Currents ani" potentials used in directional relays for phase faults
phase directional relay using wye current but not one using delta current
nor a polyphase unit. At both ends the wye currents in the three phases are
in phase and, since the potentials polarising the single phase directional
relays are 1200 apart, at least one of them will operate in the wrong direction
if wye currents are used.
Single-phase directional units are much more used at the present time than
polyphase directional units because, until now, there has been a tendency to
consider all protection phase to phase. However, polyphase relays offer
economy of equipment and panel space and immunity to certain fault conditions associated with Y -!1 power transformers which can cause wrong
operation of single-phase directional relays (32) (104).
(d) Polyphase Directional Units. Tables 4.3 and 4.4 show the various
possible connections for single-phase directional units and the sum of the
torques of three such units, one of which is connected this way and the other
two with corresponding connections in the other two phases, to form a
polyphase unit.
The torque of a polyphase directional unit is of the form
P1ICt+O + P2 ICt +O+ Po~
(4.8)
where Ct is the phase angle of the chosen potential V relative to the current I
172
-'"
......
(0)
be
ab
ab
ab
ab
60
- ea
30
- ea
be
Quadrature
ab
/60
/120
/30
/90
/30
/60
-e
/120
/60
/60
0
Pt!120 + P2/12O
PI/& + P2/6O
/30
/30
/90
-/60
/60
)I
PI +P2
PI/120
+ P2/120
+ Po
PI/60 + P2/6O - Po
PI/30 + P2/30
PI/90 + P2/90
PI/30 + P2/30
PI +P2+PO
3 Phase Torque
ex
Adjacent
Connection
TABLE 4.3
Wattmetric Unit (() = 0)
/)1
+ Po/60
PI/60 + P2/6O + Po/60
PI/60 + P2/6O - Po
PI/60 + P2/6O
PI/60 + P2/6O
PI/60 + P2/6O
Pt!6O + P2/6O
PI/60 + P2/6O
PI/60 + P2/6O
PI/60 + P2/6O
Torque with V shifted by
...ill
(I)
(")
....
g.
"\)
::J
....
(I)
c:::
0
~
.....
/30
+ P2/3O
- ea
/60
/120
PI/30
/30
PI/90 + P2/90
be
ab
ab
/90
PI/30 + P2/30
ab
ab
60
/60
PI +P2
/30
- ea
+ P2/60
PI/60 + P2/60
+ P2/60
PI/60 + P2/60
PI/60
PI/60
PI/60 + P2/60
0
/90
30
be
PI/60 + P2/60
+ P2/60 -
Po
+ P2/60
- + Po/60
PI/60
PI/60
PI/60 + P2/60 + Po/60
Torque with V shifted by 11..
/120
/30
/30
/90
"I
Quadrature
/30
+ Po/30
PI/90 + P2/9O + Po/30
PI/30 + P2/30 - Po/30
PI/60 + P2/60
PI/60 + P2/60
PI/30 + P2/30
3 Phase Torque
ab
/60
/120
-c
IX
A~jacent
Connection
4.4
Induction Cup Unit (9 = 30)
TABLE
".
'"
"0;
Qj-
::0
II)
II)
..;:
II)
2.
."
UI
4.5
with balanced unity power factor conditions, 9 is the angle of the current
relative to the potential applied to the directional unit for maximum torque,
i.e. the M.T.A. of the unit alone without phase shifting devices.
Polyphase units are not recommended for single-phase ground faults, it
being the practice to use separate residual directional relays with a torque
Po cos (cfJ-9). It will be seen that the Po components in the expression for
polyphase torque are either missing or at undesirable phase angles. In
evaluating actual torques it must be remembered that P2 and Po flow in the
opposite direction from PI because V2 and Vo originate at the fault whereas
VI originates at the generator.
Using one of the connections of Table 4.4 giving no zero sequence
torque a polyphase directional relay would not work wrongly in the above
case of fig. 4.29 which deceived the single-phase directional relay. This is
because it would work correctly at terminal s and not work at all at terminal
L where there is only zero sequence current.
A polyphase directional relay can be used to control three overcurrent
relays, through a multi-contact auxiliary relay, with a saving of cost and panel
space; there is also the advantage that it will not operate incorrectly on certain
conditions that would deceive a single-phase directional relay (33) (104).
4.5.2. Ground Faults (34) (37)
A single-phase ground fault on any phase produces the same magnitude

of zero sequence current and potential and in the same phase relation.
Consequently, only one directional overcurrent relay is required for ground
faults and it is energised from the residual circuit of the c.t's and p.t's, i.e.
with Ires = 3/0 and Vres = 3 Vo. It is connected as shown in fig. 4.28.
a----T-------------------------------b----+-~----------------------------c----+--4---r------------------------C.Ts
Phc.se
relc.ys
FIG.
4.28. Connections of residual current relay
The zero sequence current 10 can flow only from a grounded neutral to the
E Z where Z1>
Z1+ Z 2+ 0
Z2 and Zo are the total system impedances viewed from the fault. Zero
sequence current cannot pass through a wye-delta transformer because,
175
point where a ground fault occurs. Its value is 10
Protective Relays
4.5
even if the neutral of the wye side is grounded, the residual current can only
circulate around the delta.
Fig. 4.29 illustrates this point. Only positive and negative sequence
currents are supplied from the ungrounded power source at the left and only
zero sequence current from the grounding transformer at the right.
Zero sequence current can pass through a wye-delta-wye transformer
from one wye winding to the other if both are grounded.
Residual current relays (fig. 4.28) can operate erroneously due to spurious
zero sequence current caused by c.t. inequalities or by non-simultaneous
rm~-------------r~
ttII t
I'
,~~~:X,~
FIG.
[IE,
abc
jjj
10
4.29. Residual current can flow only between a grounded

neutral and a ground fault
closing of three-phase circuit-breaker contacts (34). Hence it is desirable to

limit the speed of instantaneous ground relays to a minimum time of 2
cycles; an alternative is a stabilising resistor, as explained in section 4.5.2 (d).
Instantaneous operation is permissible when the relay is supplied from a corebalance c.t., i.e. one which surrounds all three phases. A residual overcurrent
relay will also operate on the spurious zero sequence current caused by an
open-circuited c.t. secondary; tripping under this condition may not be
undesirable.
In systems grounded through. a reactor which is tuned to the system
capacitance to ground, the fault current is automatically. blocked because it
divides between the reactor and the capacitance to ground of the healthy
conductors which form a high impedance parallel resonant circuit. This is
known as a Petersen coil or a neutral compensator coil. Analytical treatment
orthese circuits is given in Volume II.
(a) Polarisation of Ground Relays. The directional unit can be polarised
by residual voltage Vres = 3 Vo or by neutral current In, or by both. The
neutral current obviously can be used only where there is a system neutral
grounding point at the station; otherwise, potential grounding is necessary.
Where the system ground is not always available (because the grounded
transformer may be out of service) both types of polarisation are necessary,
either on two relays or both on the same relay. This is because the zero
176
4.5
sequence potential is the IoZo drop between the relay and the nearest grounding point and will be very low if the grounding point is at the station; on the
other hand, current polarisation will not work when the local ground is not
available.
(b) Residual Current, Potential and Power Relays. Fig. 4.30a shows the
zero sequence current distribution in a system grounded solidly at each substation. It is clear that excellent discrimination is provided by zero sequence
1 f A---tl
(a)
(b)
FIG.
4.30. (a) Distribution of 10 in multiple grounded system

(b) Distribution of zero sequence kW and kVar
directional current relays because of the fact that most of the zero sequence
current comes from the neutrals at the two ends of the protected section and
very little from the other sources.
An alternative to a directional overcurrent relay is a zero sequence timepower or time-VA relay. Fig. 4.30b shows the distribution of zero sequence
kW and kVar in a multiple grounded system. This relay is more selective on a
single grounded system but it is more difficult to calculate its settings.
Currant
(a)
FIG.
(b)
4.31. (a) Very inverse time-current characteristic lot = K

(b) Current-distance relation for lot = K relay
Directional overcurrent relays have tended to supersede the directional

power relay because it is easier to set. Furthermore, with a very inverse timecurrent characteristic, it is as selective as the time-power relay. Fig. 4.31
shows that the very inverse relay has a time-distance characteristic because
G
1n
4.5
Protective Relays
the time T is inversely proportional to the current I which is inversely proportional to Zoo Hence TocZo and the relay operating time increases with
the distance to the fault. Fig. 4.32 illustrates this on a multiple grounded
system and fig. 4.33 on a single grounded system.
Time
./
,I
-'
Distance
FIG.
4.32. Time-distance characteristics of lot
K relay on a multiple grounded system
The addition of an instantaneous zero sequence overcurrent relay provides the same benefits as in phase relaying, but it is equally important to use
one with negligible transient overreach on offset fault current waves.
Tlm~
FIG.
4.33. Time-distance characteristics of lot = K relay on a system

grounded only at the source
On systems with neutral compensators or isolated neutrals a sensitive

wattmetric relay can be used for detecting single-phase ground faults and
energising an alarm if the fault is not self-extinguishing. Fig. 4.34 shows the
!
(a)
)A
(b)
FIG.
4.34. Zero sequence quantities on system with neutral compensator

(a) Distribution of kVar. (b) Distribution of kW
178
4.5
zero sequence kW distribution on a system with a neutral compensator. An

alternative to the residual power relay on an ungrounded system is a residual
potential relay, but it is less selective.
(c) Po/arising Sources. Current polarisation is obtained from the grounded
neutral of a power transformer or from a delta tertiary, depending on the
______~------------~S~t~~t~io~n~~~$~------------------_r---a
----~-+--------------------------------_r_t---b
--~~-4--------------------------------,--r-t---c
P.T!,
C T.5 '1--+--+----i
FIG.
4.35. Potential polarising with wye-broken delta p.t.
R~Ia.y
i>O l~ri $ing
coil
(a)
ConnectlOl1s of otMr
wind ings I mm~t.rial
(b)
FIG
4.36. (a) Current polarising with wye-delta power transformer

(b) Current polarising with zig-zag power transformer
179
Protective Relays
4.5
overall connections. Either method is satisfactory in a wye-delta transformer

(fig. 4.36a). In a power transformer with one grounded zig-zag connected
winding and the other winding wye or delta, the neutral of the zig-zag winding
is a reliable polarising source (fig. 4.36b).
In the case of an auto-transformer with a delta tertiary, a c.t. in the delta
winding is preferable to the neutral (fig. 4.37a), but c.t's in the three delta
(a)
(b)
FIG. 4.37. (a) Polarising with auto-transformer wi~h delta terti~ry
(b) Polarising with wye-wye power transformer With delta tertiary
windings must be paralleled if load is taken from the tertiary. A c.t. in the
neutral can be used if Z
~t
t+ ,+
Z < VII where suffixes t, h, 1 and s refer to

&.
l'I
tertiary, high side, low side and source.

In a wye-delta-wye transformer with both wye neutrals grounded it is
important to parallel the two neutral c.t's. There will always be a resultant
current, even for a through fault, because the windings have different currents
inversely as the ratio of their voltages. In fact, the directional relay can use
current from the neutral in the protected line side instead of the residual
current, as shown in fig. 4.37b.
Polarising potential is usually provided by a grounded wye-broken delta
p.t., as shown in fig. 4.35, or by a p.t. connected across the neutral grounding
impedance, if available.
180
4.5
Potential polarisation is not possible with two open-delta high side p.t's
unless the neutral is located by deriving the third phase from the Lt. side and
compensating for the transformer drop. High side zero sequence potential
can be obtained, however, even if there is only one high side p.t., by subtracting from the high side wye potential the corresponding low side delta
potential; allowing for the transformer ratio these should be the same except
for Vo. An alternative is to use a negative sequence power relay; this relay is
also effective where mutual coupling between power lines prevents the use of
a zero sequence power relay.
(d) Restricted Earth Protection. This is an English term which may be misunderstood in other countries. It refers to the differential protection of
generators or transformers against ground faults. It is called 'restricted'
because the relays operate only for ground faults within the protected windings (fig. 4.38).
Kirchhoff's law can be applied to grounded neutral circuits in the same
way as it is applied to bus protection, i.e. the sum of the neutral currents and
residual currents should be zero at a given location.
Fig. 4.38 shows restricted earth protection of the grounded wye windings
of a generator or transformer. The neutral current In will normally be equal
flO.
4.38. Restricted earth relay with transient blocking
to the residual current of three phases, which is the sum of the current in the
three phases, and no current will flow in the relay unless there is a ground fault
in the protected equipment which will upset the balance.
For the same reason, no current should flow in the relay in an external
ground or phase fault but in practice it is possible in a heavy through fault to
saturate the c.t's unequally due to fault current asymmetry or to remanence
flux in their iron cores and hence to cause the spurious difference current
long enough to operate the relay. This subject will be dealt with in more detail
in Chapter lIon Bus Protection. For the moment it is sufficient to say that
this spurious spill current can be prevented from causing undesirable tripping
in the following manner.
In fig. 4.38 the choke and capacitor in the relay circuit are tuned to system
frequency so that harmonics (the spurious spill current has a very distorted
wave) and the d.c. components are rejected and a short time delay (1 to 2
cycles) will be introduced, by which time the effect of the remanence flux will
have largely disappeared. Finally, a stabilising resistor can be connected in
series with the relay, as shown in fig. 4.38, which makes the c.t's saturate on
181
Protective Relays
4.5
an external fault and not on an internal fault, as will be explained in Chapters

9 and 10 on restricted earth protection of generators and transformers
respectively.
4.5.3. Zero Sequence Power Relays
These relays are of the wattmetric type with two co-operating windings,
one (the operatinKwinding) in the residual circuit of the c.t's of the protected
line and the other (the polarising winding) which can be energised by either
Ineut or Vres ' depending upon whether there is a transformer on the local bus
which has a solidly grounded neutral (34).
Usually, only the operating coil is tapped for adjusting the relay pick-up;
consequently in these relays the pick-up is a square-root function of the tap
turns. With neutral current In polarisation, the time is inversely proportional
to the current product 10 , In. With v;.es polarisation it is proportional to the
VA plus product Vo. 10 , The setting of these relays for time discrimination is
rather complicated and directional overcurrent relays are usually preferred
for protection against ground faults, except where low cost or minimum
panel space is considered important.
Furtherm ore, it is possible to have incorrect tripping on parallel lines
with current product relays polarised by neutral current. Referring to fig.
4.39 a fault near bus A with breaker 4 open will cause a current I in the unfaulted line 12 and a current I+kIin the faulted line 2, so that the relay at
I_
FIG.
4.39. Wrong tripping of zero sequence directional relay
breaker 1 receives the current product 12 and the relay at 3 gets kI(J + kI).
If the relay 1 in the unfaulted line is not to trip the good line 12 unnecessarily,
it must be slower than relay 3, i.e.
12 < 12(k+k 2)
k2+k-l > 0
k > 064
In other words, to avoid wrong operation, Ib must not exceed 64 % of I"
if instantaneous overcurrent relays are used which will open breaker 4 at once
leaving a race between relays 1 and 3. This condition will not occur on
single lines and is less likely to happen where instantaneous high set overcurrent units are not used.
182
4.6
4.5.4. Dual Polarisation (39)
In the U.S.A. it is becoming general practice to provide a double polarising

coil, one part being a potential coil energised with Vo and the other a current
coil energised with neutral current In. This arrangement not only prevents the
directional ground relay from failing to operate if the grounding transformer
is removed from service, but it also gives more consistent operation.
When the grounding transformer is in service In is large for a fault in the
protected section, especially if the fault is near the relay bus; Yo, on the
other hand, approaches zero as the fault location approaches the bus. When
the grounding transformer is out of service In is zero but Vo is as high as at the
fault location. For neutrals grounded through resistance, intermediate values
of Vo and In pertain and in this case dual polarisation is especially valuable.
4.6. A.C. TRIPPING
Where a d.c. source is not available for tripping the circuit breaker (such
as at a small unattended station) the energy must come from the a.c. power
system itself. This can be derived either from the c.t's or the p.t's. If c.t's are
used they must have enough output to trip the breaker at low currents. If
p.t's are used their potential output may not be available during a fault so it is
necessary to rectify the energy output to store it in a capacitor.
The early schemes for a.c. tripping from c.t's used a tripping reactor
connected in series with each relay and c.t. secondary; when the relay contacts
closed each reactor was paralleled by. an individual trip coil on the breaker,
as shown in fig. 4.40. The reactor should then have been removed so as to
have the maximum energy available for the trip coil, but this required a
transfer contact which was capable of transferring twenty or more times
normal current and which was not available.
Fig. 4.40b shows how this has been done in an English relay. In the case
of protective relays with at least 3 VA burden at c. t. rating the transactor
can be eliminated and the voltage for the auxiliary relay can be taken from
across the coil of the protective relay. The burden of the switching relay is
zero normally, so that the timing characteristic of the protective relay is not
affected; the burden during tripping is only 1 VA at c.t. rating.
The contents of the tripping relay must be capable of transferring at least
100 amperes at 1 ohm or 150 volts. Silver contacts would stick and weld
even if their operation were sparkless. Most alloys of silver which resist
welding have too high a resistance; the one exception is an elkonite, silver
cadmium oxide.
Potential or 'capacitor' tripping, of course, imposes no burden on the
c.t's and has no limit of fault current. It also requires only one trip coil and is
applicable to any kind of protective relay. Its main disadvantage is that it
gives only one short tripping impulse instead of a sustained pull on the trip
latch and requires much more careful adjustment and maintenance of the
trip mechanism.
183
4.7
Protective Relays
sta.lion bus
C.T.'s
H~I~y
'uuu u-
A-~I__~____________cO_'I_s~~~,-__~~=~~~~~~~~
~~
2OVA.
-vvv
~p
(a)
Stenion bus.
Prol~ct ivc
r~IQy
Protected
lin&
(b)
flO.
4.40. A.C. tripping
(a) With reactors. (b) With relays

4.7. PROTECTIVE SCHEMES USING TIME-OVERCURRENT RELAYS
Rural lines in the U.S.A. are generally protected by fuses but, in order
to minimise the patrolling of the lines and the replacement of fuses, faults on
the lines are initially cleared by a low-set instantaneous overcurrent relay
at the source (fig. 4.41) and reclosed. This prevents unnecessary blowing and
replacement of fuses. If a permanent fault occurs the fuse blows because the
instantaneous relay is cut out after the first trip long enough for the fuse
to blow and thus locate the faulty feeder or tap-off line. An I.D.M.T. overcurrent relay provides back-up protection if the fuse does not blow.
184
4.8
15 kV radial feeders in France do not use fuses but are protected by

definite time overcurrent relays and a recloser, as follows. A fault anywhere
on the line operates an instantaneous overcurrent unit which clears the fault
in approximately 02 second, including the breaker time. This gives time for
the fault to burn through if it is caused by a falling object such as a tree
branch. If the fault is still there after automatic reclosing, it is cleared the
FIO.
4.41. Protection of rural lines with relays at source only
second time in 06 second. The next reclosure is delayed 15 seconds, after

which it is finally cleared in 06 second and locked out. If the fault is on a tap
line an instantaneous overcurrent relay operates a notching relay which
trips the breaker if the fault is there after the second reclosure.
Their philosophy is that the fuses are expensive in manpower as well as in
capital cost and do not clear high resistance permanent faults which require
patrolling of the whole line anyway. I.D.M.T. relays have higher burden and
less accuracy than definite timers. Transient faults are eliminated after the
first trip and reclosure. Semi-permanent faults are eliminated after the second
trip and delayed reclosure.
Many 15 kV feeders in Belgium are protected by the Ramelot scheme,
which uses instantaneous overcurrent relays at the ends of each line section.
These relays are interlocked so that each outgoing relay, when it operates,
blocks the incoming relay, on the incoming side of the same bus, which is
slightly delayed. There are two trips and reclosures and the incoming relays
operate as back-up relays if the fault is not cleared by an out-going relay
after its short delay.
4.1. CONSTRUCTION OF TIME-OVRCURRENT RELA VS
The first induction disc time-overcurrent relays (I.D.M.T.) used a

modified watt-hour meter electromagnet in which the upper magnet acted as
a transactor to supply the lower magnet (fig. 4.42a).
About 1920, the shaded pole single-coil electromagnet was introduced in
the U.S.A. (fig. 4.42b). Its efficiency (torque/VA burden) is about double that
of the watt-hour type magnet because its flux leakage is much less, i.e. less
amp turns and volt-ampere burden is expended in magnetic flux that does not
drive the disc.
185
4.8
Protective Relays
(a)
Shunt tor obto.'"'"9
So.turo.t ion o.djustmtnt
~xtrf:mdy InVlrSI. t l m~ curve.
(b)
(c)
FIG. 4.42. Electromagnet constructions
(a) Wattmetric. (b) Shaded pole. (c) E-type
186
FIG.
4.8
4.43. Printed disc inverse time relay
Fig. 4.42c shows a hybrid construction used in Germany and the U.S.A.
which is reputed to be as efficient as the shaded-pole magnet and easier for
adjusting time-current curves (17) (18).
The efficiency of an induction disc relay with even the best electromagnet
design does not exceed 005 %, which is extremely poor. Figs. 4.43 and 4.44
show a printed disc dynamometer type which has 50 to 100 times the efficiency
and very much more accurate time-current characteristics.
The printed disc relay has inherently a pure inverse time-current characteristic. Other characteristics are obtained by non-linear resistance networks
connected between the disc printed circuit and the rectified current input (141).
FIG.
4.44. Printed disc [2/ = K relay
187
Protective Relays
4.9
4.9. APPLICATION PROBLEM
Application of Inverse Time-Overcurrent Relays

Problem
Determine the current and time settings and plot the grading diagram for
the overcurrent relays shown in fig. 4.45.
5MVA
15%
rv
F.L.C.- 440A
S.C.C.= 2,900A
8
6' 6KV
WOM"
(a,700A)
If
10 *
200/5
*I *I
Rtk1y
I
2
6'6KV
7S MVA - --'-"""T1- -
(6,550 A)
66KV/415V
I,OOOKVA
>:<
Typo
Sttting
Thermal Thtrma.ll05
with H.S. H.S.-IOX F. L.
I.D.M .T. o/e
with H.S.
I.D.M.ToIe
Volta.gt
FontrOlltd
I.D.M .T. o/e
41SV
10MVA
(eeOA)
x-WB
150/5
300.1. FU'2
FIG.
4.45. Application of time-current relays to a distribution system
The reactance of the 1000 kVA transformer may be taken as 7 %, and the
motor starting current as six times full load (assume full load of the motor
to be 150 amperes).
HRC Fuse. The time-current characteristic of the 300 ampere fuse is
shown in fig. 4.46.
Relay (1) Type 'Mn' Thermal Relay for protection of the motor at M;
current settings 105 %and 125 %of 5 amperes; there is no provision
for adjusting the operating time with this type of relay. Its timecurrent characteristics are shown in fig. 4.47.
It has an instantaneous (high-set) overcurrent unit continuously
adjustable between 400% and 1600% of 5 amperes.
188
.....
FIG.
0'10
8-,.
.,.,
:;:;
..
..
..,c..
10I
20
50
100
1\
1\
50
100
200
Prlma.ry current In a.mps. (6 6 KV.)
500
1,000
4.46. Time-current characteristic of 300 amp HRC fuse
20
.\
50
, 1
10
... 20
.~
.S
::
100
200
500
1,000
\.
\\
FIG.
\.
"
\.
"-
.......
.....
r---
-....
.....
.......
"
--....
.......
:.: r--
5
3
4
Multiples of ra.ted currcnt
- -- - -- _, A
- - - - Sta.rting (cold) cha.ra.tcrisllc

- - - Running (hot) cha.ra.lcrl5tic
'"
'-,
4.47. Thermal time-overcurrent relay (12/ = K)
" ',"
\ \
,
\ I"
7
6
5
II)
'E
Co
g'
(j;
...c::
.0::
.. ....:;,
l=
."
a
....
~
....
!l
:I
16
4.'
Protective Relays
Relay (2) Type CDGll. I.D.M.T. Overcurrent Relay with current tap
settings 50%, 75%,100%,125%,150%, 175%,200%of5amperes.
Its time-current characteristics are shown in fig. 4.6a.
Its operating time is continuously adjustable between 10 and 08
seconds at two times the current setting.
Its instantaneous high-set overcurrent unit is continuously adjustable between 400 % and 1600 % of 5 amperes.
Relay (3) Same as relay (2) except no instantaneous unit.
Relay (4) Type CDV22 I.D.M.T. Overcurrent Relay, voltage controlled.
Current tap settings 50%, 75%,100%, 125%, 150%, 175%,200%
of5 amps.
Its operating time is continuously adjustable between 20 and 2
seconds at two times the current setting.
100
80
60
40
...c
820
1\
.s
l~crIOC1d characteristic
Normal voltf
-="'" I.....
I"'t"
FaU~cn.tIC
f"""..
fiG.
8 10
Current,CllllpS
20
i'
40
6080100
4.48. Voltage controlled time-overcurrent relay for generator back-up protection
The relay characteristics are shown in fig. 4.48 for a 5 ampere

relay having a current setting of 100 % and the maximum time
setting of 10. Referring to the normal volts curve, it will be seen
that at 10 amperes it will take 20 seconds for the relay to operate
and it can be assumed therefore that, if the relay is given a time
setting of 01, it will take 2 seconds to operate at 10 amperes.
Similarly, when the relay characteristic changes due to a collapse
in volts, with a time setting of 1 and 10 amperes through the relay,
it will take 43 seconds to operate for the same current.
190
5
Bistance Belalls
General Principles-Special Characteristics-Limitations-Application to Lines-Settings-Multi-terminal Lines-ConstructionA.C. Potential Supply-Simultaneous Ground Faults-Autoreclosing Zero Sequence Compensation
5.1. GENERAL PRINCIPLES
5.1.1. Distance Measurement
As has been previously stated the most positive and reliable type of protection compares the current entering the circuit with the current leaving it;
on transmission lines and feeders the length, voltage or arrangement of the
line very often make this principle uneconomical so, in a distance relay,
instead of comparing the local line current with the current at the far end of
the line, the relay compares the local current with the local voltage in the
corresponding phase, or suitable components of them.
For a fault at the far end of the line the local relay voltage will be the
IZ drop of the line. It follows that the current to voltage ratio for a fault at
the far end will be VII = Z where Z is the impedance of the line, fig. 5.1.
For a fault internal to the protected section of line VII < Z. For a fault
beyond the next section, VII> Z. Since Z is proportional to the line length
between the relay and the fault it is also a measure of the distance to the
fault; hence the term distance relay.
Thus it can be seen that comparing the local current with the local voltage
is an alternative to comparing it with the far end current. It is not as accurate,
however, because the voltage changes gradually with the location of the
fault whereas the far end current reverses for a fault beyond the C.t. at the
far end of the line, thus providing an abrupt discontinuity which makes
selectivity easy and automatic. On the other hand, we shall see that the distance relay has other advantages which outweigh this consideration, such as
back-up protection and the elimination of the pilot channel (47).
Meanwhile-in order to measure the same distance on all faults involving
more than one phase (fig. 5.tb) the distance relay compares the potential
between the two faulted phases with the vectorial difference of their currents,
e.g. for a b-c fault the relay measures VbcI = Z1> the positive sequence
Ib-
impedance of the line between the relay and the fault (57).
191
5.1
Protective Relays
Intc;'n~
fa.ult
(a)
Ja.~
vab{ :
lb-
RCIa.y
setting
Externa.l
fa.ult
a.-------
Fault
(b)
FIG.
(c)
S.l. Principle of impedance distance measurement

(a) Relay trips when V < IZI
(b) Interphase fault
(c) Phase-to-ground fault
Similarly, for phase to ground faults, the relay measures the impedance
of a similar kind of loop, this time along the faulted line conductor to the
fault and back via the ground return path to the neutral of the system.
Hence for a phase c-to-ground fault the relay measures
Yc-..
Ie-I..
= Zl but,
since the current I" in the ground return path is inaccessible, the relay is
given the equivalent current which is a function of the C.t. residual current
and the phase c relay measures I
-~I
res
which is also Z1'
The mathematical justification for this is given in the Appendix of this

chapter, section 5.10.1. Tables 5.12 and 5.13 summarise in the left-hand
column, the currents and voltages supplied to each phase and ground relay
and the measurements that result during different kinds of faults (58).
(a) Impedance. The earliest distance relays were designed to operate in a
time proportional to the impedance between the relay and the fault, and
hence to the distance to the fault, irrespective of fault current magnitude.
This was an improvement on the inverse time overcurrent relay whose
operating time was considerably affected by the generating conditions.
A typical induction type relay had contacts held open by a potential
magnet whose pull was roughly proportional to voltage. The current magnet
exerted on the induction disc a torque roughly proportional to current. The
disc torque was opposed to the potential magnet pull through a spiral spring
192
5.1
Distance Relays
(fig. 5.2a). The time taken by the current magnet to wind up the spring until
it dislodged the potential magnet causing tripping was thus roughly proportional to potential and roughly inversely proportional to current. The
operating time was thus roughly proportional to
~ oc Z,
I
see fig. 5.2b. These
relays were inaccurate for the simple reason that the torque of an induction
~.~~~_ Pctcnt.ia..t
holdil"l9
fIIaqnc.t
(al
01
l s-+U-b-1 ------Sur-b-2---Sut-b-3------0,.ta+-nce
(b)
5.2. (a) Principle of time distance relay
(b) Application of time distance relay
FIG.
relay tends to be proportional to [2 and the pull of the holding magnet to

V 2 so that the time tended to be proportional to Z2 and no adequate compensating means could be found which would give a linear time/impedance
characteristic. The actual characteristic was curved (see fig. 5.2b) and hence
somewhat difficult to apply selectively.
The first high-speed impedance relays (61) used a balanced beam construction (see fig. 5.3a). A potential magnet normally held the contacts
open against the pull of a current magnet at the other end of the beam. The
relay tripped when the current pull exceeded the potential pull, i.e. when
J(J2 > V2 or when Z < .JK. The high speed of this unit made it subject to
undesirable tripping by overreaching on offset waves and also liable to
elliptical distortion of the impedance circle. Later models found solutions to
these difficulties; the d.c. offset component was extracted from the current
193
5.1
Protective Relays
wave by a filter and the voltage restraint was smoothed to give a circular
impedance characteristic by rectification or by phase-splitting (117).
Three such units, one tripping directly and two others tripping through
time-delay relays, produced the stepped time-distance characteristic of
e.ClIonc:c ",c lght
Stop aer e-
Voltag-c. COIl
(a)
FIG.
5.3. (a) Balanced beam impedance relay

(b) The stepped time characteristic
fig. 5.3b, which gave faster clearing times than the time-distance relay of
fig. 5.2.
(b) Reactance. In 1928, the,author of this book designed an induction
disc type distance relay for an American company, which had a reactive
VA magnet instead of the usual potential restraining magnet. Slots in the
disc caused the relay to balance at a position on a graduated scale proportional to VI sin cfJ1I 2 , i.e. to X. A three-step time-distance characteristic was
obtained by connecting stationary contacts on the reactance scale to a timing
unit, as shown in fig. 5.4a. The time-distance characteristic was stepped as
194
5.1
Distance Relays
in fig. 5.3b. The impedance (R - X) diagram for the three time zones is shown
in fig. 5.4b.
In 1934 the author designed the first high-speed reactance relay, using a
4-pole induction cup instead of an induction disc. Two opposite poles had
l~~~~
I
}o,.lIlftlt~1-
(a)
oI1m~s
___
__--\-Zone3
Contact
Q{- ---+-----''f------1<-.:....-------4- - - - --
Reactn.nco
unit
Contact P
- -- - f -Zonc 2
-- - --\-----1--1--------+
-'~-:Zoncl
(b)
FIG.
5.4a. d.c. connections Qf early reactance relay
(b) Impedance diagram of early reactance relay
current windings and the other two had opposed current and potential windings; the torque was proportional to J(Kl- V sin tP) and the relay operated
when V s~n tP < K, i.e. when X < K, the ohmic setting of the relay.
Figs. 5.Sa, band c show the advantage of the reactance relay over the
impedance relay in its immunity to the effect of fault resistance. Fig. S.Sb
shows the ordinary directional unit characteristic DD' used with impedance
relays. Fig. 5.4b shows the closed directional characteristic required for
reactance relays to prevent them from tripping on load current. This feature
195
5.1
Protective Relays
was obtained by adding a voltage restraining magnet to an ordinary directional relay. At low voltage the characteristic still passes through the origin
on an impedance diagram but as the voltage increases the current required to
operate the unit 'increases which in turn increases the impedance value of
x
0 L-------------~1
x
x-----,+----T'----=.:~+---x ,
Rela.y
setting
----~~--------------R
(c)
FIO. 5.5 (a) Additional voltage drop in fault resistance
(b) Reduction of impedance relay reach by fault resistance
(c) Reactance relay unaffected by fault resistance
(d) Fault area and tripping area of reactance relay
pick-up so that the straight line VI characteristic is bent around into a circle
as shown for the starting unit in fig. 5.4b.
Another way of expressing this is to say that the unit balances when
KVI cos (<jJ-e) = V 2 or when Z = K cos (<jJ-e) where <jJ is the angle
between V and I and () is the value of <jJ for maximum operating torque.
This gives the maximum value of Z when <jJ = e.
(c) Admittance. The impedance relay was prevented from operating on
faults on other feeders on the same bus by a simple directional relay with a
straight line characteristic on an impedance diagram. The admittance relay
is a combined directional-impedance relay which was developed by the
author in 1932 for the protection of extremely long lines (45).
In this relay a 4-pole induction cup unit had potential windings on two
opposite poles and an opposed current and potential windings on the other
196
Distance Relays
5.1
two poles. The torque equation at balance was V{KI cos (cf>-9)- V} = 0
so that Z = K cos (cf>-9) which is the impedance characteristic shown in
fig. 5.6a.
The torque of this relay would theoretically be zero for a fault close
enough to the bus to make the voltage zero. This was overcome by using a
Arcing fa.u lt
10n&
(b)
FIO.
5.6. (a) Mho characteristic (*faults in other phases)
(b) Effect of power swing on impedance and mho relays
resonant circuit in the polarising potential winding so that the voltage across
this winding is maintained by 'memory action' long enough to ensure operation. This matter will be discussed further in section 5.1.3. (b).
On extremely long lines the impedance measured by the relay during
power swings can be as low as for a fault and may cause an impedance relay
to trip undesirably. Fig. 5.6b shows how the mho relay is relatively immune
to tripping on power swings,
5.1.2. Time Steps
The very fact that the relay measures the ratio VII means that its cut-off
point is accurate only within the accuracy of the measurement by the relay.
197
5.1
Protective Relays
Five per cent accuracy would mean I mile on a 20-mile line. For this reason
it is necessary to make the relay cut-off at a point 5 % to 25 % short of the
end of the section, depending on the accuracy of the relay. Faults in the end
zone must be cleared by a second distance measuring unit which will reach
beyond the next bus and will have enough time delay to prevent it from tripping on a fault in the next section, which should normally be cleared by the
relay in that section. This delay is not serious (0'25 second) with modern
relays and breakers.
This second zone of protection also provides back-up for the relay in the
next section for faults close to the bus (fig. 5.3b). A third relay with still more
delay will give complete back-up for all faults at all locations. Consequently,
most modern relays are 3-step relays with three time-distance zones, as shown
in fig. 5.3b. Such a relay provides fast selective tripping for faults over most
of the protected section and close back-up protection for the next section.
In continental Europe, one or two additional time steps are provided,
making a total of five (63). The fourth step is controlled by the overcurrent
or impedance fault detectors through the directional unit, and the fifth step
by the fault detectors alone. In distance relays where the fault detectors are
directional, only the fourth step is provided.
5.1.3. Distance Measurement Problems
The heart of the distance relay is the measuring unit, which compares the
current and voltage in each of the phase-to-phase and phase-to-ground
circuits. This unit must not only compare] with V accurately but also must
ignore fault resistance and transient line conditions which may cause] and V
temporarily to have incorrect values. This appears to be impossible in fast
relays but it has been achieved, as will be explained in section 5.1.4. The
various methods for measuring distance are discussed in the following
sections and their circuitry is shown in Tables 5.9 and 5.10 (47).
(a) Fault Resistance. One source of error is shown in fig. 5.5c, where the
relay measures the voltage OB instead of OA because of the additional
component contributed by the voltage drop in the fault itself, due to arcing
at the fault or to a high tower footing resistance; this shortens the reach of
the impedance relay from OA to OA' (fig. 5.5b).
Fault resistance has two components, the resistance of the arc (54) and
the resistance of the ground (55); in a fault between phases only the arc is
involved. Fault arc resistance is given by the Warrington formula (41)
R arc = 87501
]1-4
(5.1)
where 1 is the length of the arc in feet in still air and] is the fault current.
I will initially be equal to the conductor spacing but it will increase in the
presence of a cross wind (which generally accompanies a lightning storm)
because the arc has no inertia. A 15 m.p.h. wind, for instance, will increase
I up to 11 ft. each side in t second (see figs. 5.7a and 5.7b). For this reason it is
198
5.1
Distance Relays
Wind
l+
JN~""""'" Conduc tor
Arc
(a)
(b)
(c)
FIG. 5.7. Stretching of arc by wind
(a) With cross wind. (b) With wind along line
(c) Typical power arc
generally assumed that arc resistance will have little effect on the accuracy
of the Zone 1 unit of a high-speed impedance or mho relay (except on very
short lines) but a fault at the end of the section (Zone 2) may not clear if the
time setting is too long (see section 5.3.1 (b)).
Where time is involved the formula becomes
(5.2)
R arc = 8750(S+3ut)
1 1 '4
where S is the conductor spacing and u is the wind velocity in miles per hour
and t the duration in seconds.
199
5.1
Protective Relays
The formula allows for a certain amount of deionisation of the arc due to
the cooling effect of the wind, in addition to the lengthening of the arc
(fig. 5.7a).
This arc formula has been confirmed by tests in Russia, France and the
U.S.A. Lower values have been claimed on various occasions but each one
investigated has used improper methods of starting the arc or improper
electrodes. The electrodes should be smooth and the arc should be started by
a fuse consisting of the finest iron wire that will support its own weight.
Lead or copper fuses form a metallic vapour which gives an arc resistance
which is much lower than that of an arc started by lightning, a van de Graaff
generator or the fine iron wire (41).
The most effective way of preventing the fault resistance from making
the distance relay underreach is to design the measuring unit to measure the
reactance rather than the impedance of the faulted circuit. Reactance relays
are therefore used for short lines where the fault resistance may be comparable with that of the protected section and also for ground faults where
the ground resistance may be very high.
There is considerable confusion concerning the effect of double end fed
arcing faults (48). It has been erroneously stated by some manufacturers that
there can be considerable error in a reactance relay due to the fictitious
reactive component of the arc impedance during double end feeds of different
phase angle.
The reactance error is Yare sin a where IA is the current fed in from one
fA
end and a is the angle between that current and the total fault current (see
fig. 5.8b). The larger the current IB fed in from the other end, the more a
approaches the angle between the two currents and the greater the fictitious
reactance but, on the other hand, (a) a+ f3 is a small angle because it is the
angle between the bus voltages at the ends of the protected section, and (b)
the larger f B is the smaller the arc voltage is because it decreases as the 14
power with current magnitude.
For example, if Yare is 4500 volts on a 30 mile 132 kV line, IA = 600
Oh fi ..
. 4500 sin 50
h Th
600
0290 m.
e
amperes an d a = 5 , t e ctItlOUS reactance IS
reactance of the line is about 18 ohms and the error is therefore 16 %which
is negligible compared with the errors in impedance relays due to arc
resistance.
(b) Direction. Impedance type distance relays generally contain a directional unit which prevents them from operating on faults behind the bus
(characteristic DD' in fig. 5.5b). The reactance relay requires a directional
unit with a voltage restraint which gives the circular characteristic shown in
fig. 5.4b and prevents the reactance relay from tripping on overloads which
represent a vector near the R axis. Admittance (mho) type distance relays
are inherently directional because their RjX characteristic passes through
the origin (fig. 5.6).
200
5.1
Distance Relays
Since the operating torque of a directional or a mho relay is the vector

product VI cos (cP - 8) it must become small and unreliable at low voltages
which may occur for faults very close to the relay. The three possible solutions
are (a) ultra-sensitivity, (b) memory action, (c) polarisation with potential
from an unfaulted phase.
On overhead lines a flashover, even at the bus, will always provide at least
3 % of normal voltage because of the arc resistance which, at the minimum
value of 400 volts per ft. and a minimum spacing of 008 ft. per kV, gives 32
x
Error
(c)
1A=:t
+~
1=IB
If
(a)
L-----------------------
S.S. Spurious reactance due to arc during double-end feed

(a) Fault location. (b) Impedance diagram. (c) Current phase relation
FIG.
volts per kV or 3'2%. The spacing may, however, be momentarily less due to
a bird flying into the line so a directional sensitivity of I % of normal volts is
usually provided. Any lower value would be beyond the accuracy of the
p.ts.
On cables, due to the smaller spacing, the minimum fault voltage can be as
low as 01 % but these faults are invariably to the grounded sheath so that
the ground relay can be polarized by zero sequence potential or current or
alternatively part of the zero sequence potential (which has a negative value)
can be subtracted from the faulted phase potential.
Memory action has been successfully used but sometimes causes inaccurate measurement in high-speed relays in faults that involve another
phase during operation. Polarisation with potential from another phase is
popular in Europe but it reduces the accuracy of the distance measurement.
Neither of these methods is effective when closing in on a line with a solid
three-phase fault caused by leaving ground clamps on after maintenance if
the p.ts. are on the line side of the circuit-breaker.
In such a case a high-set instaneous overcurrent relay can be used to
open the breaker. Alternatively, the mho relay can be given a slight current
201
5.1
Protective Relays
bias to do the same thing. In cases where the minimum fault current is
comparable with maximum load current the instantaneous overcurrent
relays can be monitored by an 'a' switch on the breaker and can clear the
fault through an auxiliary relay which has 4-cycle delay in pick-up. The circuit
is shown in fig. 5.9. When closing in on a fault, the trip circuit is closed for 4
cycles and thereafter is open-circuited to prevent tripping on overcurrent
during normal conditions.
The ideal scheme would appear to have the following features:
(a) Employ the fault voltage for directional polarisation as well as
restraint, but add to the polarising voltage 5 %of the voltage from one
of the sound phases, shifted in angle to be in phase with the fault
voltage during fault conditions.
O.C
O.C.
O.C.
a.
-~ po~
Trip
4'" P;ck.up
+
FIO.
5.9. Circuit for clearing close-in faults
(b) Provide memory action of at least I cycle duration, and an auxiliary
relay which seals-in the contacts of the directional fault detector for
4 cyles after it has operated.
(c) Provide an overcurrent relay in each phase with contacts in series with
an 'a' auxiliary switch on the breaker for tripping only during the
4 cycles after reclosure (fig. 5.9).
(c) Overloads and Power Swings. The impedance measured or 'seen' by

a distance relay during normal load is shown in fig. 5.6b. Normally this would
be outside the tripping zone of the distance relay but, on a very long line
where the length of the line in miles exceeds the system kV, the circular
impedance characteristic may have to be made so large as to involve the
point L. Furthermore, as the load increases L moves towards the relay
characteristic in the direction of the arrow and, during a power swing, it
may oscillate up to a point such as P.S. where it may enter the tripping zone
of the relay, even on a medium length line.
To overcome this the admittance (mho) relay was developed (45) (51),
which is sensitive only to a component of current at about the same phase
202
Distance Relays
5.1
angle as that of the protected line, so that it is insensitive to high powerfactor current conditions such as loads and power swings. The characteristic
of the mho relay is shown in fig. 5.6. It can be shown that the mho relay will
not trip on any overload or power swing from which the power system can
recover without going out-of-step.
Another virtue of the mho relay is that its characteristic fits so snugly
around the fault area (fig. 5.6a) that it will not operate for faults in other
phases (marked x), and of course it is inherently directional. (See Appendix
5.10.3).
This subject has been dealt with much more fully in reference (58) and
in Volume II.
5.1.4. Transient Conditions
(a) At Fault Inception. At the inception of a fault the sudden change of

impedance due to a short-circuit causes the currents and voltages to go
through some abnormal values before settling down at the correct fault
values. If the X to R ratio of the primary circuit is high the current may have
a temporary d.c. component which offsets the normal sine wave long enough
to affect the relay. The potential may have superimposed on it (a) transient
oscillations due to resonance between the line capacitance and the leakage
reactance of potential transformers, (b) a d.c. offset transient due to trapped
flux decay in a power transformer or the system reactance, (c) parasitic
oscillations in the relay itself where phase shifting circuits are used.
The relay current can contain (a) a d.c. offset, (b) a transient due to
differences in the time constants of the primary and secondary circuits of
the c.t.
All these transient conditions can affect the current aqd voltage supplied
to the relay so that it may overreach and trip for a fault beyond its first zone
setting if the relay operating time is less than the time for them to expire,
which is usually the case. An analysis of these transients is given in
Volume II.
In a homogeneous system it is possible to cancel out the effect of an offset
fault current with the help of an impedance which is the replica of the impedance of the protected line section on a secondary basis. If the replica impedance is used in the current circuit, the voltage across the replica is compared
with the line voltage, which is the voltage drop between the relay and the
fault. For a fault at the far end of the protected section the two voltages should
be equal for both transient and steady state conditions. If the replica impedance is connected in the potential circuit, the current through it is compared
with the c.t. secondary current; the two currents are equal for a fault at the end
of this section.
Where the source impedance is more lagging than the line impedance, the
transient response of the line potential will not be the same as that of the
current and the currents or voltages compared in the relay will not be matched
for a fault at the end of the protected section, so that a fast relay can over-
203
Protective Relays
5.1
reach if the fault current is considerably offset. In practice this is prevented by

the slower operation of the relay near cut-off and the shorter time constant of
the less lagging lines.
The current offset in the relay coil circuit can be eliminated by a transient
shunt (fig. 5.11) consisting of a very high Q reactor in parallel with the c.t.
and small resistance in series with the relay coil. This shunt effectively passes
------~------ ~
----~
'A.pllca. ""pedant'
PotcntiaJ coil
Currcfllt co jl
Rcla.y
FIG.
5.10. Use of replica impedance in potential circuit
the d.c. component. As more sensitive relays become available, WIth lower
burdens. the ordinary iron-cored c.t. will be. replaced by linear couplers which
minimise the d.c. component and hence eliminate this source of transient
error. Meanwhile, such a shunt is necessary with impedance relays supplied
from iron-cored c.t's.
Primary voltage transients can be blocked by a filter which permits only
the system frequency to reach the relay potential coils. Transient voltages
FIG.
5.11. Transient shunt for bypassing d.c. component
within the relay can be suppressed by proper damping of any phase-shifting

circuits containing Land C and, where possible, by tuning such circuits to be
resonant at system frequency to avoid temporary phase shifts. relative to
other circuits, which may cause undesirable tripping.
(b) Likelihood of Transients in Faults. The instantaneous fault current
can be expressed as
sin(wt+I/J-cf
Emax sin (I/J-cf
-!!,
.jR2+(WL)2
+ .jR2+(wL)2 . e L
Emax
i=
(5.3)
where cf> is the phase angle of the primary circuit (tan -1~). I/J is the time
after voltage zero at which the fault occurs and t is the time after inception
of the fault.
204
5.1
Distance Relays
From the second term it can be seen that (a) the duration of the offset
increases with L/R, (b) the maximum value of the offset occurs when
if! = ~ + cP (i.e. at current maximum), and
(c) that it is zero when
if! = cP
(i.e. at current zero); see fig. 5.12. Since flashovers occur when the voltage
approaches the maximum value, i.e. when rot = ~, the offset is usually small
because, on lines where it can be appreciable, cP tends towards ~ and hence
rot tends towards cP, the condition for zero offset.
cp
y
I
irf- cp HI
I
'" "
/
~ -.....
'"
\
t=O
FIG.
(
'\
1\
~'i',-:..
r\
\.
5.12. Conditions controlling d.c. offset

.I.'
lrurumum at I/f = '1': maxunum at I/f =
.I.
'I'
+ 11:2"
The reason why flashovers normally occur near maximum voltage is

because, on overhead lines, there are two main causes for flashover, (a)
induction from lightning discharges, and (b) conductors swinging together.
In (a) the line potential is raised by induction until the sum of the induced
potential plus wye voltage exceeds the line insulation level, which obviously
will occur first on the phase nearest to voltage maximum; in (b) the rate of
change of sinusoidal voltage is much faster -than the rate of reduction of insulation tan ABC as the conductors swing together, so that the phase pair
with highest voltage flashes over first.
The only time when a flashover can occur cP radians later than voltage
205
5.1
Protective Relays
maximum, i.e. when", = ~ + cp, is on closing a breaker in a solid fault such

as when grounding clamps have been left on. Even in this case the rate of
reduction of insulation due to the speed of contact approach must exceed
~'
1\
",iiV'"
~l\
VmQ- 1075
L
A
r--
c
FIO.
~r- t-
~r.--I4>
1/
~, r---..,
~
r-- r- ~
1f1z-
r-
r-
'"
~,
~
5.13. Likelihood of maximum offset also controlled by breaker speed, i.e. by

slope of A'B
the rate of change of voltage in the quarter cycle after voltage maximum
(tan A'BC), i.e. it must exceed
:t (V max sin rot) = - V maxro cos rot = - V maxro cos(cp + ~)
../2
On a 132 kV system Vmax = 132 ../'3 = 1075 kV and
,'. '!:: =
cp = 86
107.211: . 50 sin 86 = 33700 kV /sec. (see fig. 5.13).
Although such speeds are attainable in some high-speed breakers, there

are no recorded cases known to the author of overreach from this cause.
Automatic oscillograph records from U.S.A. on actual faults show very
few faults starting at more than 45 from voltage maximum and very few
cases of overreaching by modem distance relays of other than the balanced
beam type.
Complete treatment of the subject should include the effect of load
current flowing prior to the fault. The offset in the fault current will depend
upon the ins~taneous value of the load current at the moment the fault
occurs; hence load current can add or subtract from the offset component
and change the point of wave at which the maximum offset occurs. The
greatest effect is when the current prior to the fault is about 90 leading the
206
5.1
Distance Relays
potential and is large compared with the fault. Since neither of these conditions can occur to an appreciable extent in practice the effect of current
flowing prior to the fault is generally to reduce the offset component.
(c) Transients on Loss of Potential. On a radial line, if a breaker is opened
between the relay and the power source, the line voltage will not immediately
go to zero but will decay exponentially due to the stored energy in the capacitance of the line and will also have some low frequency oscillations due to
resonance between the line capacitance and the self-inductance of the
potential transformers. The energy discharged through the relay is very
considerable in this case because, viewed from the relay terminals, the line
capacitance is of the order of one farad for a 30-mile 132 kV line. Where
capacitors are used in phase-shifting circuits in the relay the currents in the
restraining and polarising potential circuits will be affected differently, causing
erroneous transient response.
For this reason the induction cup mho relay is most affected and may trip
wrongly upon loss of primary voltage. A reactance relay using an amplitude
+
\1"
]'"
yL..1o_,c___.....
yIT..,.2_ _--'y IT3
Trip
FIG.
5.14, Zone 1 monitored by instantaneous overcurrent unit
comparator would also be affected. On the other hand a phase comparator

reactance relay, such as an induction cup reactance relay, would not be
affected because it has only one potential circuit; nor would a mho relay
using an amplitude comparator such as a rectifier bridge (see Chapter 2).
The remedy for this condition is to monitor the instantaneous (Zone 1)
unit by an instantaneous overcurrent unit, fig. 5.14. It is not necessary to
monitor the time delay zones because they are not subject to this transient
tripping and also because a third zone fault may not draw enough current
to operate the instantaneous unit. However, the instantaneous unit must have
a drop-out current value not less than 90 %of its pick-up current in order to
reset on load current.
The instantaneous overcurrent unit also prevents undesirable tripping on
loss of secondary potential (blown fuse or bad contact at fuse clip, etc.) in
most cases, but it is advisable also to provide a fuse-failure relay which not
207
5.2
Protective Relays
only opens the trip circuit when a fuse blows but also sounds an alarm, calling
attention to the fact. An alternative to the overcurrent relay is the rate-ofrise-of-current relay which can be used where fault currents are extremely low.
Both these relays are described in Chapter 12, section 12.4.4.
Where capacitance p.ts are used no remedy is necessary because (a) the
tuned circuit of the device excludes most of the d.c. component, (b) it is
customary to provide a I! cycles delay to prevent wrong tripping on transient
oscillations between the capacitance of the potential device and the inductive
reactance in the primary circuit such as power transformers ..
(d) Summary. Overreaching by distance relays for electrical causes (not
mechanical causes such as shaft resilience and catapult action) can give
very little trouble in service because (a) the fault must be initiated near zero
on the voltage wave, (b) it must be located just outside the protected section;
this combination of circumstances very seldom occurs.
On lines of above 132 kV, supplied by very large generator-transformer
units, the XI R ratio of lines can exceed 7 and that of the source can exceed
20 so that there is a risk of transient overreach due to offset fault current
waves, especially when closing in with very fast breakers on a solid fault with
only a short line between the fault and the source, giving a high ZslZL ratio.
For this reason the latest distance relays are designed for the elimination
of current and voltage transient components and parasitic oscillations so
that they will not overreach appreciably even on a fault initiated at voltage
zero in a circuit of
> 20. The same precautions will generally be effective
to prevent tripping on loss of primary or secondary potential but a series

overcurrent relay and a fuse-failure relay are necessary for complete protection because the blowing of one fuse may result in a distorted set of
potentials which may look like a fault to the relay in one of the phases.
5.2. SPECIAL DISTANCE RELAY CHARACTERISTICS (47)
The following are various ways in which the standard impedance,

admittance and reactance characteristics can be modified to have more
tolerance to fault resistance and less susceptibility to power swings.
5.2.1. MocHfied Impedance
The standard impedance characteristic can be moved outwards along the

R axis by current biassing the potential circuit with the Ir drop across a
resistor so that it has more tolerance for fault resistance, as shown in fig. 5.15.
The maximum permissible offset is when the circle nearly passes through the
origin, because the torque then approaches zero for a fault close to the relay.
This scheme is used in Europe for lines up to 50 kV (62). In the U.S.A. the
arc tolerance was increased by biassing in the - X direction as well as the R
direction, so that a bigger impedance circle resulted whlch tended towards a
reactance characteristic (134).
208
Distance Relays
5.2
Introduction of the Ir bias changes the equation for balance of the

amplitude comparator to
IKW-IV+1rI2 = 0
K212_ V2-12r2-2Vlr cos = o.
or
Dividing through by - [2 we get:
Z2+2Zr cos-K2+r2 = 0
(5.4)
which can be shown to be a circle passing through the origin with its centre
on the R axis and r from the origin if r = K ohms.
In the phase comparator this method would be unecolJ.omical; better
results can be obtained from a mho relay, making () = o.
FIG.
5.15. Modified impedance characteristic
Such schemes are not as effective or accurate as the reactance relay mentioned in section 5.1.3 (a) and they also have the disadvantage that the more
bias is given the more liable is the relay to trip on power swings (fig. 5.15).
5.2.2. Admittance and Conductance
By swivelling the mho relay characteristic in the leading direction

(clockwise on the impedance diagram) its tolerance to fault resistance can be
increased with less vulnerability to power swings than in the modified
impedance relay (fig. 5.16). In the limiting position along the R axis it becomes
a conductance relay. This has also been done in Europe but it is applicable
X
only to medium voltage lines up to tan -1 R < 60 because the accuracy of the
distance measurement goes off rapidly on lines more than 60 lagging, as the
mho circle becomes almost tangential to the line impedance vector ZL'
In the conductance relay there is no change in the balance equation from
the mho relay,
H
~ () = K, except that () is now 0 instead of the normal

cos( - )
209
5.2
Protective Relays
value of 600 but the ohmic setting of the relay has to be multiplied by
Z,J..
cos 'f'
so that the impedance cycle will still pass through the ohmic value Z/4>.
Chapter 3 explains how the mho characteristic can also be obtained by
)(
(c)
FIG.
5.16. Phase angle biassing of mho relay (IP - 8) to increase tolerance to fault
resistance
(a) 20. (b) 40. (c) 55
comparing the phase relations of { I cos (4) - 0) -
IZp + I -
parator or by comparing the moduli Vp
VI and Vin a phase comv,. and IVp - I + Vrl in an

Zr
Zp
Zr
amplitude comparator where the suffix p refers to polarising and the suffix r
to restraining.
5.2.3. Reactance and Angle Impedance (Z/j)
There is unfortunately no standard term for a relay which measures a

component of impedance somewhere between resistance and reactance, but
such relays are used and have been called angle-impedance relays. A-ISo
impedance relay has been used in the U.S.A. as a 'blinder' to prevent distance
relays from tripping on very severe power swings on long lines, fig. 5.17.
In rare cases a heavy power feed from the other end of a protected line
210
Distance Relays
5.2
can make a reactance relay measure a small negative component of reactance

in the resistance of a fault; overreaching in this case can be prevented by
moving the reactance characteristic slightly leading (clockwise) so that
Line Impcdancc-7
'---_ _-LJ
---
----
power swing locus
FIG.
5.17. Use of ohm unit as blinder
Modified
rC<lc;ta.ncc
characteristic ___
Ra.rc
--------+---------~~~---R
----
FIG.
5.18. Modified reactance characteristic
it measures impedance at 85 lag instead of 90 lag (see section 5.1.3 (a),

para. 8. This is illustrated in fig. 5.18, where the effect has been considerably
exaggerated.
The balance equation of the ZjljJ relay is the same as for the Z/90 or
X relay, viz. Z cos (cjJ-O) = -K. It was explained in Chapter 3 that this is
obtained in the amplitude comparator by comparing
1:'1:::;: II - ;.1 or,
in
the phase comparator, by the phase relation between I and I-V cos (cjJ - 0).
5.2.4. Offset Mho
Unlike the Zone I characteristic, the Zone 2 and Zone 3 characteristics

need not pass through the origin of the R-X diagram. By offsetting the
third zone characteristic to overlap the origin it can also be used for power
swing blocking, as will be explained in section 5.4.6.
211
5.2
Protective Relays
The offset characteristic can also be reversed for starting carrier in the
carrier-blocking scheme (see Chapter 7, section 7.3.1.) In this case memory
action (see section 5.1.3.2) is used to make the unit operate quickly for lowvoltage faults near the relay bus and the offset increases the steady torque.
The offset is caused by biassing the mho relay to have torque on current
alone. The introduction of this current torque puts the [(]2 term back into
the equation of the mho unit, thus making it the general equation,
K[2-K'V2+ VI cos (t/>-(J)
=0
The offset of the impedance circle is secured by adding to the line potential a biassing potential, IZb , proportional to the current, which has the effect
of moving the characteristic impedance circle bodily by an amount Zb.
Substituting V + IZb for V in the equation for the mho relay, we get
-K'(V +IZb)2+(V +IZb)1 cos (t/>-(J) = 0
Dividing through by 12 , the equation becomes

-K'(Z+Zb)2 + (Z+Zb) cos (t/>-(J) = 0
or
Z = cos (t/>-(J) - Zb
(5.5)
K'
This shows the characteristic circle is the same as before except moved
through an impedance Zb (see fig. 5.19b). Fig. 5.19c shows how the offset of
the mho unit is obtained by introducing, in series with the supply potential,
a biassing potential that is obtained from a reactor in the current circuit.
Every point on the impedance characteristic of the unit thereby is moved
through an impedanCe equal to that of the reactor. In order to reduce the
burden imposed on the current transformers by the reactor, it is provided
with two windings. The primary winding has few turns and is in the current
circuit; the secondary has many turns and is in the potential circuit. It is
thus a combination of a transformer and a reactor and is called a transactor.
The bodily shifting of the characteristic circle necessitates resetting
the ohmic reach. This can be avoided by applying the bias to the polarising
circuit only, which has the effect of keeping the ohmic setting fixed and moving
only the part normally going through the origin.
It is obvious that an offset mho circle enclosing the origin can be obtained
equally well by shifting the mho circle towards the origin or shifting the impedance circle in the opposite direction. In the amplitude comparator of the
circulating current rectifier bridge type, it is easier to shift the impedance
circle than the mho circle, this can be done by introducing current bias into
the potential circuit so that the relay operates when
I;, -kII
<
III where Zr is
the replica impedance in the potential circuit. Multiplying both sides by
~' the relay operates when IZ - kZ, I < IZ, Iwhich is a circle on the impedance
diagram with its centre offset by Zr from the origin.
212
5.2
Distance Relays
x
(a)
Rela.y
(c)
FIG. 5.19. Offset mho characteristic
(a) Diameter increased. (b) Circle shifted
(c) Transactor used for circle (b)
------.--------------r-----------o+
B
Timing
unit
RI.I.tor
Trip
FIG.
5.20. Out-of-step blocking circuit for mho relay
213
5.3
Protective Relays
5.3. LIMITATIONS OF OHM AND MHO UNITS
In addition to difficulties in measurement caused by fault resistance,

power swings and power infeeds there is severe limitation imposed by the
fact that the relay may have to operate over a 30 to 1 range of potential
which, in an electromagnetic relay, may result in a 900 to 1 variation in
torque with consequent design difficulties.
5.3.1. Minimum Length of Line
When a fault occurs the current increases and the potential decreases
from normal. Since the current and the potential balance at the cut-off point
it follows that the potential torque cannot decrease below a certain limit
without impairing the accuracy of the measurement. Since the potential is
proportional to the length of the line to the fault the shortest line that can be
protected by the distance relay is a function of the minimum voltage down to
which the relay can remain accurate. It is also limited by fault resistance
which may be comparable with the impedance of a short line, as explained in
section 5.3.1 (b) of this chapter.
(a) Limitations Due to Relay Sensitivity. This can be expressed as a percentage of normal voltage or conversely as the ratio of Zs/ZL where Z. is
the impedance from the relay to the power source and ZL is the impedance
of the protected line section.
The reactance relay can operate down to a lower voltage than the mho
relay because it is polarised by current whereas the mho relay is potential
polarised. Induction cup mho relays can usually measure within 5 %
accuracy down to 8 volts or Zs/ZL = 14, which is sufficient for all normal
overhead lines. Modem induction cup reactance relays measure accurately
down to 3 volts or Zs/ZL = 37 and are immune to fault resistance.
Replacing the induction cup unit by a rectifier bridge circuit feeding a
very sensitive polarised relay increases the voltage range, because of its
limiting action, and enables a mho relay to be designed with a Zs/ZL ratio of
30 or more which can be used to protect cable feeders where fault resistance
is generally very low. However, on most overhead lines fault resistance prevents the use of a ratio higher than 12 (see section 5.3.1 (b) ).
It is difficult to make rectifier bridge relays as accurate as the induction
cup relay without resorting to rather complicated compensation by nonlinear resistors. This is because the rectifier bridge circuit is very sensitive to
burden and even the small burden of a d.c. polarised moving coil relay upsets
it. The European solution is to use a contact-making micro ammeter as the
relay because its burden is extremely low. A better solution is to use a more
robust relay and to reduce the burden on the rectifier bridge by interposing a
transistor amplifier.
The minimum length of line can also be estimated directly in miles as
follows:
If V is the minimum secondary voltage for accurate measurement, therefore 2IZ = VRp in primary volts (phase-to-phase) where I is the minimum
214
Distance Relays
5.3
fault current, Z is the minimum ohmic length of line that can be protected
and Rp is the potential transformer ratio,
2 / 0.9 0.631
...
= V. k V. 10 3
115
I =7V kV'
1
T mles
(5.6)
where 1 is the minimum length of line, 063 ohm is the impedance per line
mile, 09 is the fraction of the protected section covered by Zone 1 and kV
is the system kilovolts (47).
Assuming V = 8 volts for mho and impedance relays and 3 volts for
reactance relays, both relays being of the induction cup type,
kV
from equation (5.6) I = 56
. / miles corresponding to Z./ZL = 14
(mho and impedance)
= 21
k;
(5.7)
miles corresponding to Z./ZL = 37

(5.8)
(reactance)
On a 60-cycle line the ohms per mile are 12 times that of the 50-cycle line
so that proportionately shorter lines can be protected.
(b) Limitations Due to Arc Resistance and Economics. It so happens that
the limiting values of Z,/ZL = 14 for mho relays and 37 for reactance relays
due to relay performance tend to agree with limitations imposed by fault
resistance on overhead lines.
In ground faults the resistance of the fault path through the tower, the
tower footing resistance and the earth return are unpredictable (55) (142) so
that, in most countries, reactance relays are used automatically for ground
faults. Exceptions are cables, very long overhead lines and lines in localities
where there is a low ground resistance and excellent ground return arrangements (copper ground wires, etc.).
In phase faults, where arc resistance only is involved (sectioI). 5.1.3 (a) ), or
ground faults where the resistance of the ground fault path is low, the fault
.
. pred'lctable. I n still'"
h I 'IS the
resistance
IS
arr It IS 8750
/1'4 0 h ms per "
loot were
current in the arc.
(i) EFFECT OF ARC RFSISTANCE ON ZONE 1 FAULTS. Arc resistance shortens
.
. JX 2 +(R+R arc)2
2
2
where X and
the reach of an lffipedance relay by the ratio
X +R
R are the reactance and the resistance of the line between the relay and the
fault, see fig. 5.2Ia. The effect on a mho relay is slightly greater because of its
smaller impedance circle but, by making the mho characteristic angle 0 less
lagging than cp, the line impedance angle (tan -1 ~), the effect can be reduced
to less than that on the impedance relay (see fig. 5.16) but, for the sake of
simplicity, they will be assumed equal.
215
5.3
Protective Relays
Fig. 5.21b shows the error due to arc resistance for various secondary
values of X and I, assuming 5 ampere c.t. secondaries. The values of X must
be multiplied by 5 and the values of I divided by 5 for 1 ampere c.t.S. The
(al
50
40
10
5
OL---~--~2~--=3----4~--=5--~6~--7~--~8~~9~--1~0
Secondary ohm rca.ctanc:c
FIG.
S.21. Effect offault resistance on impedance relay reach

(a) Impedance vectors. (b) Relay error
values of X are those of the fault loop, i.e. twice the positive sequence or
phase to neutral values. The values of R are also secondary values.
The %error is
= 100 JX 2+(R+R arc)2
(5.9)
Il
X2+R2
If X
= 2R, i.e. tan- 1 XIi = 63 lag, the %error is Il = 100

216
26'4
1 + (IX)2
46
+ IX
5.3
Distance Relays
based on an assumed arc resistance of 500 volts per foot of arc length, i.e.
5 % of system voltage. The error can be much greater at lower currents
where the arc voltage exceeds 500 volts per foot or during a cross wind. This
applies obviously to overhead lines and not to cables.
Fig. 5.21b shows that fault conditions involving not more than 20% of
system voltage at the relay (Z./ZL > 5) should be checked for the effect of
arc resistance. In general, if the arc resistance exceeds one third of the im-
'-----(a)
r--.------'"
Zone 3
outside
eire'"
(b)
FIG. 5.22. Effect of arc resistance on Zone 1
(a) Upon Zone 1 reach. (b) Upon Zone 2 reach
pedance of the protected section (see fig. 5.22a), the reach of a relay set to
cover 85 % of the section can shrink to 60 % of the section so that only faults
in the middle 20 % can be cleared instantaneously from both ends.
It is further supported by the facts that 132 kV overhead lines are seldom
less than 10 miles long and the minimum short-circuit power is seldom less
than 200 mVA, which gives Z,/ZL = 12. Similar minimum values for a 275 kV
system are 25 miles and 500 mVA which gives Z./ZL = 115.
217
Protective Relays
5.3
In the rare cases where Zs/ZL > 12, reactance relays are required in any
case to avoid the error due to arc resistance. Cables have lower impedance
than overhead lines so that ZL values are smaller but the Zs values are also
smaller for the same reason and because Z. tends to be smaller on lower
voltage systems.
Fault resistance adds to the impedance measured by a mho relay and
hence shortens its reach.
(ii) EFFECT OF ARC RESISTANCE ON ZONE 2. A small reduction of the
instantaneous zone due to fault resistance is acceptable, but the intermediate
zone always must reach beyond the next bus, that is, faults within the section
must be cleared in Zone 2 time or less and not in Zone 3 time, or selectivity
between stations will not be possible.
In fig. 5.22b RII is the arc resistance, ZL is the impedance of the protected
section, t/J is its phase angle (tan -1 X/ R) and K is the fraction of ZL which the
second mho unit Y2 reaches beyond the end of the section. It is assumed that
the mho unit characteristic is given the same angle t/J as the line.
The circle in fig. 5.22b is the characteristic of a mho unit for the second
distance step and is assumed to reach a short distance KZL beyond the end
of the protected section ZL'
It is to be noted that a2 + b2 = diameter 2 and hence
(R!+K 2Zi-2KZLR Il cos r!J) + (R!+zi+2Z LR Il cost/J) = Zi(1+K)2
:.
2R!-2KZi+2RaZL(1-K) cost/J = 0
RII = ~L[J{cos2(1-K)2+4K}-(1-K) cost/JJ
= K'ZL
(5.10)
which equals maximum arc resistance to permit Zone 2 time, or less, for all
faults within the section.
A similar formula covers the reduction in reach of Zone 1 from 80 % or
90 % to the point where insufficient faults are cleared instantaneously from
both ends.
If the adjacent line sections are approximately equal Y2 will be set for
50% beyond the next bus, i.e. K = 05. Assuming = 60, then, from the
formula (1), RII = 06Z or ZL = 168R.
If the adjacent line section is shorter the Zone 2 setting will be reduced to
perhaps 20% beyond the next bus, i.e. K = 02 which gives RII = 0'29ZL
or ZL = 345Ra.
Since we are considering Zone 2, the arc resistance can easily treble its
initial flashover value, given by the above formula, if there is much wind
(section 5.1.3 (a because of its stretching and deionising effect. Because of
this and because line sections are seldom equal, it is better to take the value
of K = 02 to be on the safe side so that Ra > 0'29ZL (maximum permissible
value).
I. l'
'11'
Now
(5.1)
Ra = 8750
~ lor an arc lD s11 air
218
5.3
Distance Relays
where Is is the conductor spacing,
1=
and
for a phase-to-phase fault.
:.
kV.10 3
2(Zs+ZL +R,,)
(5.11)
)1.4
z +Z +R
Actual R" = 1481. ( k~ "
(5.12)
(iii) EFFECT OF R" ON MAXIMUM PERMISSmLE Zs/ZL RATIO. The values of

actual and permissible R" were calculated (see Table 51) for low values of
system mVA and line length and the results were plotted to find at what
values of Zs/ZL the actual R" exceeded the permissible R". The limiting values
of Z./ZL varied from 2 at 11 kV to 12 at 275 kV (see Table 5.2).
By making the angle of the mho characteristic less lagging than the line,
the tolerance for arc resistance is increased as shown in the right-hand
column of Table 5.1. At 275 kV Zs/ZL can exceed 12 under certain conditions
without exceeding the permissible value of R" but this is not recommended
because 275 kV lines are usually very important and it must be remembered
that (a) the arc formula was based on still air and a cross wind could cause
much higher values of R" and (b) the relay measures higher values of R" on
a three-phase fault. On the other hand these values of ZS/ZL were based on
assumed conductor spacings and high values could be tolerated where smaller
spacings are used. Furthermore, a calculated risk could be taken that a fault
would not occur close to the end of the protected section at the time of
minimum generation.
The columns headed 'permissible tR,,' are given with and without swivelling the circle to a less lagging angle. tR" is taken instead of R" because the
relay measures ZL +tR" in a phase-to-phase fault.
The actual values of Zs/ZL that are permissible depend upon the many
factors indicated in the table and should be worked out for any particular
application where Zs/ZL > 12. In cases where mho relays are not applicable
(because of arc resistance) reactance relays should be used.
The foregoing applies to single-phase faults in which only arc resistance
is involved but, in the case of single-phase ground faults, a much more conservative approach is necessary because the current path includes the tower
footing and the earth return in parallel with any ground wires in addition
to the arc. Hence, the resistance to single-phase ground faults is liable to be
very high indeed in certain localities and it is advisable to check any
application with Zs/ZL > 2 or preferably to use reactance relays for ground
faults.
The formulae used for calculating the various columns in Table 5.1 are
as follows:
kV2
Z=-(5.14)
MVA
219
5.3
Protective Relays
z +Z )1.4
Actual !Ra = 0741. ( kV
(5.15)
(see Table 5.1). In equation (5.15) the Ra term was omitted from inside the
brackets of equation (5.12) because, for maximum values of Z., Ra is negligible especially as it is added almost at 90.
Permissible !Ra = K'ZL where K' is calculated from equation (5.10).
The application of mho relays for interphase faults is limited to the
Z./ZL value at which the actual arc resistance exceeds the resistance derived
from equation (5.12).
i.e. when
0.741
S
(ZS+ZL)1.4
> K'Z
kV
(5.16)
This can be found graphically by plotting the two expressions and noting
the value of Z./ZL for which the two curves intersect or it can be calculated
from
Z
kV(KZ
(5.17)
Z::} ZL 1.48t
)0.7
The minimum length of line that can be protected by a mho relay without
loss of selectivity due to arc resistance can be deduced roughly from the
preceding formulae.
Because this is the minimum length of line, the adjacent line sections
must be at least as long, consequently K can be taken as 05 and ZL = 168Ra
8750
kV
kV
= 168 ]1-4 12.J3 = 715 ]1-4

for a 60 line assuming 12 kV per foot spacing.
Assuming the line impedance to be 07 ohm per mile, this gives the
minimum length as:
1010 :.~ miles for mho relays
(5.18)
A simpler formula is produced if the arc resistance is assumed to have a

440 kV
.
fixed value of 440 volts per foot, so that Ra = - .
r assummg 12 kV per
]
12y3
.
kV.
kV
foot spacmg so that Ra = 21.21 . From thIS Zl = 168Ra = 355 I for
mho relays.
Assuming 07 ohm per mile for the line impedance, this gives the minimum
line length for mho relays as 50 k V miles. However, this value cannot be
I
applied to ground relays and should be checked against the other method for
borderline cases, the safest method being to use reactance relays for ground
faults.
Accepting the values based on still air, the distance relay should be designed to be accurate for Z./ZL ratios of 30 for reactance relays and 12 for
220
Distance Relays
5.3
5.1
TABLE
ARC Resistance in Phase Faults
-~I~
...
~
"I
----r:-
Permissible tRa
...::
'<t
Line
Source
System
MVA
Zs
Miles
ZL
Actual (} - 75 (} = 60
Z./ZL tRa K'= 035 K'= 05
5000 15-15
2000 3778
275 kV
1000 7575
500 1515
'" = 75
1515
L. = 24' 5000
2000 37-78
1000 7575
500 151'5
10
10
10
10
20
20
20
20
53
53
5-3
53
106
106
106
106
2-86
7-13
1428
28'6
143
3'56
7-14
14'3
042
122
2-96
2000
1000
132kV
500
250
'" = 75
L. = 12' 2000
1000
500
250
5
5
5
5
10
10
10
10
3-5
35
35
35
70
70
70
70
249
497
995
1990
1'24
2-49
497
995
035
067
157
3-89
046
084
1'77
4-19
33kV
'" = 60
L.=6'
11 kV
'" =45
L, = 25'
750
500
250
100
50
750
500
250
100
50
750
500
250
100
50
750
500
250
100
50
870
17041
34-81
69'62
870
1741
34'81
6962
1'45
2-18
436
109
218
145
2-18
436
109
218
016
024
048
121
2-42
016
024
048
121
2'42
15
15
15
15
1'5
3
3
3
3
3
0'5
05
0'5
05
05
1
1
1
1
1
1'27
127
127
1'27
127
255
2'55
255
255
2'55
042
042
042
042
042
085
085
0'85
085
085
Without
Temp. Rise
1-14
171
3-42
855
17-1
057
085
172
427
855
With
Temp. Rise
75 (} = 60
K'= 035 K'= 0'5
(} =
1'86
2'66
1'6
2-16
372
5'31
32
4'3
123
175
1-06
1'42
2-46
3'51
212
2-84
7-44
0'59
1'44
321
7-89
012
019
037
11
269
024
029
0'5
125
291
0'38
057
114
2-85
5-69
0'19
028
0'57
142
2-84
221
002
004
005
012
027
0'06
007
010
016
034
(} = 60 (} = 30
K'= 029 K'= 0'56
() =
60 (} = 30
037
071
025
0'5
074
143
0'50
1'01
() = 45 () = 30 () = 45
K'= 023 K'= 040
() = 30
010
0'17
0043
010
019
034
007
020
Protective Relays
5.3
mho relays, although the permissible value of Z.lZL for a particular application may be much less. Consequently, reactance relays should be used for
short lines, i.e. less than 12 miles at 66 kV, 35 miles at 132 kV and 50 miles
at 275 kV. Reactance relays should also be used for ground faults on any
5.2
Maximum Z./ZLfor MHO Relay Permitted by Arc Resistance
TABLE
SystemkV
.p
Line Length
(Miles)
()=.p
275
275
132
132
33
33
11
11
75
75
75
75
60
60
45
45
20
10
10
5
3
15
10
05
7-95
10'0
645
815
262
3-45
174
2'25
Z./ZL Limit
.p
()'
106
132
865
]085
48
605
2-85
37
60
60
60
60
30
30
30
30
()'<
-----_.-
length of line because the fault resistance includes ground and tower footing
resistance as"Well as arc resistance. Exceptions can be made where there are
excellent ground wires or where the ground resistance is known to be low.
Another factor which reduces the permissible source/line _ratio is the
increase in conductor resistance due to temperature. In overhead lines, unlike
iron-cored electrical equipment, the effective a.c. resistance is only 10 to
15 % more than the d.c. resistance and hence is directly affected by temperature.
Most overhead lines are designed for a maximum temperature of 85C
during maximum load in the summer (B.S. 159) with permissible conductor
sag and the conductor resistance is given at 20C. The increase in d.c. resis. 65 x 100
tance from 20C to 85C IS 234'5 = 27'7%
The corresponding increase in a.c. resistance is 194 %.
5.3
Permissible Zs/ZL Ratio Including Temperature Effect
TABLE
Z,/ZLLimit
8' <
SystemkV
.p
Line Length
(Miles)
()=.p
275
275
132
132
33
33
75
75
75
75
60
60
45
45
20
10
10
5
3
15
10
0'5
70
88
575
725
1'75
24
0'25
0-8
11
11
222
.p
90
112
725
92
3'5
4'45
1'8
2'25
f}'
60
60
60
60
30
30
30
30
Distance Relays
5.3
This increase in conductor resistance must be subtracted from the permissible value of -iRa in Table 5.1, which will reduce the permissible value of
Z./ZL
In Table 5.1 the resistance values of permissible -iRa w!11 have to be reduced
by 19'4% of ZL cos cp. For example, in the 10 mile 275 kV line at the top of
the Table, the permissible !Ra values will be reduced by
0194 x 53 cos 75 = 0266 ohm
so that they become 159 for K' = 035 and 239 for K' = 05. In Table 5.2
this reduces the permissible Z./ZL values for a 275 kV 10 mile line to 88 for
9 = 75 and 112 for 9 = 60. Table 5.3 is similar to Table 5.2 except with
the increase in conductor resistance/temperature taken into account.
5.3.2. Choice of Measuring Unit
The factors affecting the choice are Z./ZL ratio, fault resistance and
economy. From the previous section it was clear that reactance relays should
be used for short lines but, owing to the high resistance component often
found in ground faults (41) (55), the reactance type measuring unit has also
become the standard preference in most countries for ground distance
relays.
With cables, it is the sensitivity of the relay rather than the fault resistance
that determines the minimum length of cable that can be protected (63) (117).
The minimum length of cable that can be protected by mho and reactance
relays was given in section 5.3.1 (a) in the formulae (5.7) and (5.8).
The conductance relay (fig. 5.16c) is a specialised type promoted by a
German company (63) (see section 5.2.2), more tolerant to fault resistance
than mho or impedance units but more economical than the reactance unit
because it needs no directional unit. It is applicable to distribution lines both
overhead and cable.
Distance relays are used for both phase and ground faults on resistancegrounded distribution lines and on important high-voltage interconnections.
On solidly grounded systems adeq~ate protection can be obtained from
directional inverse time-overcurrent relays with instantaneous overcurrent
attachments. The cost of one time-overcurrent relay in the residual circuit
of the line c.t's is only one tenth of the cost of three ground distance relays
and their auxiliaries. The occasional slower clearing time with overcurrent
relays is unimportant because single-phase ground faults have negligible
effect on system stability. Furthermore, the direct trip of a high-set instantaneous overcurrent unit is faster than the tripping of ground distance
relays through blocking auxiliaries.
Where there is a solid ground at each substation the selectivity is excellent
because the zero sequence current in the faulted section is mostly supplied
from the ground neutrals at the two ends of the section; hence the zero
sequence current in the faulted section is therefore much higher than in the
adjoining line sections and discrimination is sharp so that most ground faults
223
Protective Relays
5.3
can be cleared by the instantaneous overcurrent unit provided it is of the type

described in Chapter 4, with negligible transient overreach.
5.3.3. Maximum Length of Line
There is no maximum limit to the length of a transmission line section

that can be protected by mho relays because, if the phase angle of the mho
characteristic is the same as that of the impedance the latter becomes a
diameter of the circular mho characteristic. The terminal voltages during a
power swing severe enough to trip the mho relay would have to be 90
apart (fig. 5.23) which means that the generator e.mJ. would have to be more
FlO.
5.23. Mho relay stable on power swings
than 90 apart and hence the power system would be unstable. Conversely it
can be argued that, within the limits of stability, no line section could be long
enough to require a Zone 1 mho relay setting capable of causing tripping on
overload or power swing conditions.
Reactance, conductance and impeddnce relays however have impedance
characteristics which can be crossed more easily during power swing conditions (42). It can be estimated that the longest line section to which a
reactance or conductance relay should be applied is 500
k;
k;
miles where
I = minimum fault current. The corresponding figure for an impedance
relay can be estimated at about 1000
miles, with no upper limit for the
mho relay.
5.3.4. Effect of Faults on Relays in Unfaulted Phases
With high ohmic settings that may be necessary on mho units for back-up
on long lines, it is always possible for wrong flagging or even wrong tripping
224
Distance Relays
5.3
to occur due to the effect of load, charging current or zero sequence current
on the relays in the unfaulted phases. Similar improper operation may occur
in reactance relays where the starting unit has a very high ohmic setting in
order to permit the reactance unit to operate on an extremely high resistance
fault.
Where such conditions occur it is advisable to make vector diagrams
similar to those given in reference (58) so as to determine whether a calculated risk of wrong operation can be taken or whether relay operation for
extreme conditions must be sacrificed.
This subject is analysed in an A.LE.E. paper by the author (58) and is
further considered in the Appendix 5.10.3 of this chapter and in more detail
in Vol. II of this book.
In the case of a short section of a long transmission line of high X/ R
ratio, the charging current may cause inaccurate reactance measurement in
a relay near the power source. This can occur in the c-a relay during a
b - c fault because the phase c will have fault current and the phase a charging current, so that the relay current fe - fa will tend to become in phase with
the voltage Vea (fig. 5.25b) and the c-a relay will tend to measure zero distance. This can be prevented by overcurrent units in the lagging of the two
phases associated with the reactance unit.
In section 5.5.9, it is shown that the same arrangement of overcurrent
units can be used to block ground reactance relays from wrong tripping on
interphase faults. An alternative for short lines is to adjust the reactance unit
to measure impedance at 80 leading the current instead of 90.
Wrong operation can also occur in a reactance relay protecting a short
line section on a long transmission line where the potential triangle has
collapsed and the relay is located between the power source and the neutral
grounding point. For example, during a b - c fault the starting unit of the
a-b relay may be operated by lagging zero sequence and/or load current in
phase a (fig. 5.25c) and the ohm unit current fa - fb can tend to be in phase
with the potential Vab causing overreaching. Fortunately, this condition is
difficult to produce and can usually be remedied by either making the 10
compensation K < t in the starting unit or by making the ohm unit measure
Z/80.
Reactance relays which have starting units using phase-to-neutral potential can operate on faults in the reverse direction, unless the currents in
restraining and polarising windings of the starting unit have a phase relation
such that a slight restraint is produced during complete collapse of the
potential triangle where the two voltages are in phase.
Finally, wrong tripping can occur due to a race between the starting and
ohm unit contacts at the inception or clearing of a fault, due to the fact that
the reactance unit may measure negligible or even negative reactance during
load and may not open its contacts before the starting unit contacts close on
a Zone 2 fault.
This trouble can be avoided at the inception of the fault by connecting
225
5.4
Protective Relays
the starting unit to control the torque of the ohm unit (directional control)
but this adds time delay during tripping; a better method is to use very little
wipe on the contacts of the two units and to prevent contact bounce by other
means (discussed in Chapter 2), such as a contact back-stop of glyptal
succinate or vinyl-acetate chloride co-polymer.
If the ohm unit has too little travel, the contact race may be lost in the
other direction. When a fault occurs in the neighbouring section of line the
starting unit closes and the ohm unit does not at first close. If the fault is
promptly cleared by the relays in the faulted section, load will be restored
and the starting unit will reset while the ohm unit may close its contacts.
Unless the starting unit can open its contacts before the ohm unit contacts
close, wrong tripping will occur.
Normally, this race is always won by the starting unit and no undesirable
tripping occurs, but it is possible for a starting unit to have been wrongly
adjusted so that its contacts have too much wipe, while the ohm unit may
have too little travel. To avoid this, an auxiliary contact T can be provided
on the timing unit which opens the Zone 1 trip circuit four cycles after the
starting unit operates, by which time the ohm unit should have tripped if it
is a Zone 1 fault, and the circuit is now set up for faults in Zones 2 or 3 only
(fig. 5.29).
If a second fault should occur in Zone 1 of the protected section another
relay, S, will reclose the Zone 1 trip circuit a cycle after the ohm unit closes
its contacts, i.e. tripping will occur for a subsequent Zone I fault but not for
a load condition that may cause the starting unit and the ohm unit contacts
to be closed simultaneously for an instant while taking up their normal load
positions.
5.4. APPLICATION OF DISTANCE RELAYS
Distance relays can be used to protect almost any type of equipment or

circuit so that they have been growing in popularity steadily since their
introduction about 1920.
5.4.1. Single Step
Sometimes instantaneous overcurrent relays cannot be used for reducing

the fault clearing times in time-overcurrent protection of feeders (see Chapter
4) because of the shortness of the line sections or because of the wide variations of generating capacity and hence fault current. In such cases a single
step impedance or mho unit provides the ideal solution; it is simple, reliable
and unaffected by fault current variation; the modern mho unit also is inherently directional and insensitive to power swings and offset current waves.
Fig. 5.24 shows that the overall time-distance characteristic, using instantaneous overcurrent units with existing time-overcurrent relays, is
comparable with that of the much more expensive three-step distance relay,
shown dotted.
226
5.4
Distance Relays
I
I
I
Time
I
I
I
I
I
_____ 1
t:=:===::::::.---!--------+----Dista.ncc
Sub.l
Sub.3
Sub.2
5.24. Mho with time-current relay back-up

(3-step distance characteristic shown dotted)
FIG.
5.4.2. Directional Time-Overcurrent Relay
Conventional time-overcurrent relays will not clear faults during periods

of minimum generation if the minimum short-circuit current is less than their
setting. On the other hand, their setting must be above the maximum load
current with maximum generation, unless the settings of the overcurrent
relays are changed between maximum and minimum generating conditions.
The substitution of a mho unit for the conventional directional unit
solves this difficulty by permitting overcurrent relay settings of less than
normal load to be used all the time. In other words, if the directional relay
has a voltage restraint it becomes a mho unit and will not operate nor, with
the usual directional control arrangement, permit the overcurrent unit to
operate unless the impedance presented to the relay falls sufficiently to indicate a fault on the line, whatever the setting of the overcurrent relay.
A widely used type of directional overcurrent relay has a 4-pole induction
cylinder directional unit with alternate potential and current coils around the
cylinder. It is necessary only to replace one of the current coils with a potential coil to provide a V2 restraining torque, while the remaining coils provide
the VI cos (cP - lJ) directional torque and thus change the directional unit into
a mho unit.
An overcurrent relay with this voltage restrained directional unit can be
provided with current taps from 20 %to 80 %of c. t. rating on the overcurrent
unit instead of the usual 50 % to 200 % taps. The more sensitive overcurrent
settings permit operation on low-current faults and faster operation can be
obtained on heavy faults.
5.4.3. Multi-step Distance Relays (50) (51) (53) (63) (117)
The conventional distance rel~y consists of a directional starting unit, a

timing unit and one or more distance measuring units. An instantaneous
step, and two time-delay steps are usually provided, the three steps being
controlled in distance reach either by three distance measuring units
or by one unit whose distance reach is increased in steps by the timing unit,
progressively increasing its ohmic reach.
227
5.4
Protective Relays
Crou pola.riaing
tra.nla.ctor ~
(a)
\VQb
r"
Ie
-r,'{
lc
IQ
-If!.
Ib
Ib
VeQ
(c)
(b)
5.25. Errors in reach of quadrature polarised mho relay

(a) a.c. connections of distance relay for b-c phase pair
(b) Effect of charging current on c - a relay
(c) Effect of load and/or 10 on a - b relay
FIG.
FIG.
5.26. Basic d.c. circuit of 3-step impedance relay
Tripping times for
brea.ker A
72
7; A
7;
T2
---~-------------
FIG.
Tripping times for
brea.kcr B
5.27. 3-step time-distance characteristics
228
5.4
Distance Relays
The first zone unit is used for instantaneous faults up to 10 % from the
remote end of the protected section. The second zone unit clears faults in the
neighbourhood of the next bus in a delayed time, and the third zone provides
back-up protection for the relays and breaker in the next section beyond.
The overall characteristic is shown in fig. 5.27
(a) Mho Distance Protection. Fig. 5.28a shows the basic d.c. connection
for one phase of a three-step mho relay having separate mho units for each
phase and time-step. Series flags indicate the time-step in which the relay has
Seal in (S.I.)
and phase flag
'I
II
5.1.
lr------------jo+
Y, I
OY31
T31
O.C
To similar circuits
~in the other two
phases
Trip
alarm
L------oTrip
(a)
j~IF-ox---~~---F-o~~I,-F~ob~FO-'---O+
15.1.
Trip
(b)
5.28. Basic d.c. circuit of 3-step mho relay

(a) With series flags. (b) With shunt flags
FIG.
tripped. Instantaneous overcurrent units (O.C.) prevent the relays from

tripping on accidental loss of potential.
A typical modern three-step mho relay has two mho units per phase
(Fig. 5.28b), one of which is used for Zones 1 and 2 and the other, an offset
mho unit, is used as a fault detector (F.D.). No directional unit is necessary
because a mho unit is inherently directional; this fact simplifies the circuit
and reduces the number of contacts in the trip circuit. In Fig. 5.28b a rate-ofrise relay (R.R.) is used instead of overcurrent units and shunt-connected
flags are shown.
The third step mho unit, OY 3' uses a transactor to offset its impedance
characteristic so that it overlaps the origin, as shown in fig. 5.19a. If polarised
in the same direction as the first and second steps, Y 1 and Y 2, the OY 3
229
5.4
Protective Relays
unit can be used for out-of-step detection as well as for time delay back-up
protection of lines in which the electrical centre of the system is located.
Alternatively the OY3 can be reversed in direction so that it can provide
improved back-up protection (see section 5.5.3) and can at the same time
start the carrier signal (Chapter 7) when used for directional carrier protection.
(b) Reactance Distance Protection. As explained previously (5.1.3 (a
the directional unit of a reactance relay must be of the mho type in order to
prevent it from tripping on loads which may have negligible or negative
reactance. This directional unit is generally known as a starting unit or fault
r-----------------~O+
1 1
5eaJ-in
5.1.1 5.11
Alarm
Timer
Trip
FIG.
5.29_ Basic d.c. circuit of 3-step reactance relay
detector. Fig. 5.29 shows the basic d.c. connections for one phase of a threestep reactance relay.
In modem 3-step reactance relays one pair of contacts of the starting unit
are in series with those of the reactance unit of the same phase and the other
controls a timing unit (fig. 5.28). The normal setting of the reactance unit
controls the first zone reach. If the fault is beyond the reach of the first zone
the timing unit changes the ohmic setting of the reactance unit after a time
delay so that it can reach past the next bus. If the fault is too far away for the
second step the timer again resets, the reactance unit providing a third timedistance step.
In some reactance relays the third step is provided by the starting unit
through the timer because, although the distance measurement of the starting
unit varies with the type of fault, it is sufficiently accurate for the third step
because it varies in any case due to the effect of power infeeds. For instance,
in fig. 5.36 the distance relay at A measures too much impedance for a fault
at F because the voltage drop in section BF is increased by the current fed
in at D which does not appear in the relay A.
On the other hand, where fault resistance may be high, a third reactance
step is provided instead of relying on the starting unit which has less tolerance
to fault resistance. This latter arrangement is the most flexible and effective one.
230
5.4
Distance Relays
5.4.4. Extended First Zone
Where instantaneous automatic reciosing of the breaker is employed the

distance relay can be arranged to trip instantaneously all faults within the
protected line section. This is done by setting the instantaneous zone for
105 to 110% of the impedance of the section instead of 85% or 90%. The
105 % setting is used for relays having an abrupt cut-off to their Zone I
reach.
With sections of equal length this gives a 10% chance of tripping for a
fault in the next section but the likelihood of this occurring is reduced by any
power infeed at the intervening bus. Occasionally therefore (fig. 5.30) a fault
B -=- F
flO.
5.30. Extension of Zone 1 reach to end of section
in the next section Be, close to the bus B, would cause breakers at both A
and B to trip.
To preserve service continuity the tripping of breaker A operates a relay
which resets the Zone 1 ohm unit from 110% to 90% of section AB so that,
when reclosing occurs, if the fault is permanent, only breaker B operates the
second time.
In other words instantaneous clearing of all faults in the protected section
is obtained for the price of a very occasional extra trip and reclose of the
breaker and the momentary loss of voltage on one substation bus.
Fig. 5.31 shows how the main d.c. connections of a distance relay can be
modified to achieve this result merely by adding the auxiliary relay RX
which is controlled by an auxiliary switch 'b' on the circuit breaker which
opens when the breaker closes. The auxiliary relay RX has instantaneous
yb
Va \
II T2
IIr
11o,
\IRX
Ib
F2
a
T.C.
flO.
OX
5.31. Basic d.c. circuit for 100% Zone 1 coverage
231
RX
Protective Relays
5.4
pick-up and 1- second reset time to permit only the relay in the faulted section
to clear the fault when the breaker recloses. The Zone I jZone 2 transfer
relay OX has contacts in the a.c. circuit which increase the ohmic reach.
5.4.5. Bus Protection
Where a bus section is separated from other circuits by reactors, as shown

in fig. 5.32 reactance ohm units have been used in the U.S.A. to provide
protection for the generators and for the bus. Each generator has a reactance
ohm unit set to reach into, but not beyond, any of the bus-tied feeder reactors.
Feeders
FIG.
5.32. Bus protection with reactance units
A fault in a generator will be cleared immediately because its ohm unit will
measure reactance in the reversed direction. A fault on the bus will disconnect all the generators because it will be within the ohmic settings of their
ohm units (47).
Tripping is delayed 05 second in order to permit the line relays to clear
a fault in a feeder reactor.
The main difficulty of conventional differential bus protection is the
balancing of the current transformers in all the circuits around the bus to
ensure that there is no differential current to operate the relay during an
external fault. This difficulty does not appear with the ohm units because
they are connected only to the one set of current transformers in the generator
leads.
This form of protection has also been used for bus-tie reactors. Each
reactor is protected by two reactance ohm units (fig. 5.33) with their contacts
in series. The ohm units are polarised away from the reactor so that a fault in
the reactor is in the reverse direction for both of them and causes them to
trip and isolate the reactor. Both ohm units are set to operate up to half
way through the feeder reactors so that a fault on the bus causes both ohm
units to operate, one because it is within its ohmic setting and the other
because the fault appears to it in the reverse direction (47).
232
5.4
Distance Relays
Bus-tie
reactor
Brea.ker C.T.
C.T. Breaker
Trip
r=:-+-----+------t------i--'~_coil
o---t----+
Rtla.ctance
rela.ys
FIG.
5.33. Bus-tie reactor protection
An alternative that has been used in the U.K. is two mho relays each set
to reach 75 %through the bus-tie reactor and connected so as either can trip
both breakers. This arrangement will clear faults in the reactor only, and is
applicable to stations without feeder reactors.
5.4.6. Out-of-Step Blocking (42) (58)
When a short-circuit occurs for which the relay should operate, its voltage,
current, and the phase angle between them, instantly change from their
normal values to the value capable of operating the relay (fig. 5.l9a). But,
during a power swing, the voltage, current and phase angle change more
slowly from values incapable of operating the relay to the necessary operating
values. This fact enables tripping to be blocked on power swings without holding up tripping under fault conditions.
The out-of-step condition is detected by making the OY3 impedance
characteristic concentric with the Y 2 characteristic, as shown in fig. 19, and
somewhat larger, so that the changing impedance seen by the relays during a
power swing will always operate the OY 3 unit before the Y 2 unit. The OY3
unit then is arranged (fig. 5.20) to pick up a blocking relay B with a small time
delay; blocking is prevented on faults because the Y 2 unit de-energises the
blocking relay on drop-out if the OY 3 does not operate first by the margin of
the pick-up time of the auxiliary relay. The auxiliary relay is generally connected to prevent automatic reclosing after a trip on out-of-step conditions
but can also be used to prevent tripping. It should be remembered, however,
that this is necessary only if the relay characteristic circle includes the
electrical centre of the system, because a mho unit will not trip on out-ofstep unless its characteristic is out by the power swing locus.
Zone 3 is not blocked because a fault may conceivably occur during a
swing and must be cleared. A better alternative is to reset the blocking circuit
by means of a negative sequence current relay.
With high-speed distance relays the out-of-step blocking relay B is required in only one phase because a power swing is a three-phase condition
and, even if caused by a single-phase fault, the fault should be cleared and the
233
5.4
Protective Relays
asymmetrical conditions gone in plenty of time to permit blocking of the

swing that follows it. If the prevaience of lightning is such as to expect a
fault during a power swing as a common occurrence, three blocking circuits
like fig. 5.20 are needed and a connection to permit the removal of blocking
from Zones 1 and 2 if one of the three fault detectors resets.
5.4.7. Blinders
One application of the ohm unit is-to extremely long lines where distance
relays other than mho relays are liable to tripping on power swings because
their impedance characteristic has to be large in order to cover the long line.
In such a case the straight line characteristic of the ohm unit may be arranged
in parallel with the line impedance vector so as to cut off one or both sides
of the tripping characteristic (figs. 5.17 and 5.35) and confine the tripping
zone to a strip wide enough to permit tripping on arc resistance.
This scheme was the first attack on the problem of relaying long or heavily
loaded lines (45) and is applicable to any form of relay including overcurrent
relays. In most applications only one blinder is necessary because the major
flow of power generally is in one direction. It is only on interconnections
where the maximum power flows are the same in either direction that two
blinders are necessary.
5.4.8. Out-of-Step Tripping (47) (56)
When synchronism is lost the impedance measured by a distance relay

will progress through the line impedance vector on a locus from right to left
if the relay is located at the leading or fast end of the system and from left to
right if at the lagging end. Two blinders Oa and Ob are arranged to operate an
auxiliary relay T a or Tb if the impedance crosses the characteristic of one of
them before the other, in either direction. This auxiliary relay can be arranged
to operate an alarm, trip a breaker, or initiate some form of control (fig. 5.34),
08
FIG.
Trip
5.34. Out-of-step tripping circuit
234
5.5
Distance Relays
The advantages of this form of out-of-step relay are:
(i) Its operation is not affected by variation in the location of the electrical centre of the system.
(ii) It will not trip under any fault conditions.
(iii) It trips instantly after the first half cycle of system oscillation. Existing
relays require the machine to slip several poles before they will
operate.
(iv) Distinction can be made between speeding up and slowing down of
the local generation.
-R
-x
FIG.
5.35. Out-of-step tripping characteristics
A single-phase relay is adequate for tripping on out-of-step because the

regular protective relays will trip during a fault. If the swing continues after
the faults have been cleared or if the swing was caused by switching of load
or generation without a fault, only a single-phase out-of-step relay is required
for tripping because all three phases act similarly.
5.5. THE SETTING OF DISTANCE RELAYS
The ohmic setting or reach of the relay may be controlled either from the
current operating circuit or the potential restraining circuit or both. Since
potential decreases from normal during a fault while the current increases,
it follows that a high torque level can be obtained by tapping the current
circuit and leaving the potential circuit alone. An elegant arrangement is to
provide coarse taps in the current circuit and fine taps in the potential circuit
(or a rheostat if the potential circuit is at unity p.f.).
The following information is needed in order to determine distance
relay settings for phase-to-phase and double-ground faults.
(i) Voltage and frequency of the line.
(ii) d.c. control voltage.
(iii) Trip coil current at normal voltage.
(iv) c.t. and p.t. ratios, and connections.
235
5.5
Protective Relays
(v) State whether a.c. potential is supplied from the line or the bus side
of the breaker and advise whether magnetic potential transformers,
coupling capacitors or bushing potential devices will be used.
(vi) Transient reactance and resistance of line (phase-to-neutral). If in
percentage or per unit, give the kVA or MVA base.
(vii) If potential supplied from low side of power transformer bank, give
connections of transformer (Y-L\, Y-Y, etc.).
(viii) Maximum three-phase short-circuit current for a fault at the near
end of the protected section, and the minimum current for a phaseto-phase fault at the far end of the section, or complete information
from which this data can be calculated.
The following additional information is required for setting ground distance relay settings. The same information is required for setting directional
residual time-overcurrent relays.
(ix) Will ground relays be polarised by current transformers connected
in neutral of power transformer or by Y-open-delta connected
potential transformers 1
(x) Maximum phase and residual current for a single-phase ground
fault at near end of the protected section, and the minimum current
for a single-phase ground fault at the far end of the section (or
positive and zero phase sequence diagram of the system).
(xi) Ratio of zero to positive sequence reactance of protected section of
line.
(xii) Mutual coupling with any parallel lines.
5.5.1. Setting of Zones 1 and 2
The Zone 1 setting of the relay is 09Zntfnp where Z is the impedance of

the protected section in primary phase-to-neutral (positive sequence) ohms,
nl is the c.t. ratio, np is the p.t. ratio and 09 is the fraction of the section
covered, assuming a modem relay with 5 % accuracy over the range of
fault current expected. Since the relay slows down towards the cut-off point,
Zone I should not be set to cut off at 90 % but to reach Zone 2 time at 90 %;
otherwise Zone 2 may begin at 85 %.
In the case of reactance relay, X is calculated for the setting instead of Z.
Where a mho relay is used with a characteristic angle of the relay, e, not equal
to the phase angle of the line (c/J = tan -1 ~), the ohmic setting must be
increased by dividing it by cos (c/J - ()), see fig. 5.42.
Overhead transmission lines have approximately the following phase
angles on interphase faults. Ground fault phase angles depend upon the
terrain (55).
Cables are more complicated because their phase angle c/J depends upon
the division of the fault current returning through the sheath and through the
earth, assuming a ground fault because phase faults not involving the sheath
236
5.5
Distance Relays
TABLE 5.4
Phase Angle of Overhead Lines
kV
11
50 cycles
60 cycles
45
33
132
275
400
55
70
72
75
76
81
82
60
50
are rare. For cables between 11 kV and 33 kV, <p = 7 if all the current
returns via the sheath or 75 if it all returns via the earth.
The division of the -current depends upon the kind of terrain. In dry,
sandy soil <p = 10 or 15. In moist, acid soil <p is about 50. An average value
would be 30.
The usual angle 0 for the impedance circle of mho relays protecting cables
is 30, i.e. 0 = <p. There is nothing to be gained by making the mho characteristic less lagging than the cable because arc resistance is negligible on account
of the small spacing. Because of the varying angle, impedance relays are the
~siest to apply.
If Z is not known it can be calculated from L, the length of the protected
section in miles and z, the ohms per mile, since Z = Lz, assuming a homogeneous line. If z is not known it can be obtained from tables and curves
available to power company engineers, which are based on the equivalent
spacing of the conductors. Approximate values are shown in fig. 5.43.
For lines Zl = Z,. = rl +jXl where rl and Xl are respectively the resistance and reactance of the conductor in ohms per mile. r 1 can be obtained
from standard tables and Xl can be obtained from tables or from the graph
of fig. 5.43 or from the formula
G.M.D.
Xl = 000466flogloG.M.R.
(5.19)
where f is the system frequency, G.M.D. is the geometric mean spacing
{I dllb.d"c.dca and G.M.R. is the geometric mean radius.
Another formula commonly used is
X
f(000466log 2:S + 0.000506) ohms/mile

IO
where S is the equivalent. spacing of the conductors in feet and d is their

diameter in inches. For a single-phase 2-wire line, S is the actual spacing.
For a three-phase line S = ~ Sa" S"c Sca where Sa", S"c and Sca are the
spacings between the conductors a, band c.
Assuming these impedances to have been correctly calculated, the
accuracy of the relay setting will depend upon the c.t. and p.t. performance.
The real setting will be the calculated setting times the following factor:
Rp cos (<p - 0+ Op- Oc)
Rc
cos (<p - 0)
237
5.5
Protective Relays
where Rp = Ratio correction factor of the potential transformer
Rc = Ratio correction factor of the current transformer

fjJ
Power-factor angle of the transmission line
() = Phase-angle of the relay characteristic

(}p = Phase-angle error of the potential transformer (positive
if
leading)
(}c = Phase-angle error of the current transformer (positive if leading).
The subject of c.t. and p.t. errors will be discussed in detail in Vol. II.
Sometimes Z is known as a percentage impedance or reactance and the
ohmic impedance is then calculated from
Z= 10kV2 Z%
kVA
(5.20)
where kVis the line-to-line system voltage in kV and kVA is the base of Z%.
The values of line impedance so obtained must then be converted to secondary
..
c.t. ratio
o hms b y m u1tiplymg by
. .
p.t. ratio
Zone 2 must not reach as far as the Zone 1 setting of the relay in the
following line section (see fig. 5.3b), i.e. it must not be set to reach farther
than 75 %of the next section. If there is an infeed Ip at the next bus this will
reduce the reach of Zone 2, because the extra current will not be included in
the relay current I R , although the extra voltage drop will increase the
apparent ohms seen by the relay. In other words, the infeed at B of fig. 5.3
will decrease the Zone 2 reach of the relay at A from AD to AB, where
AE = ZL
+ BD .IR
IR+lp
This cannot ever cause serious trouble because however much infeed there
is at the next section, it can never cause Zone 2 to fail to cover the next bus B,
which is its chief duty.
5.5.2. Zone 3 Setting
The third zone is essentially back-up and, whereas Zones 1 and 2 are for
preserving continuity of service, Zone 3 is for preventing the destruction of
equipment and danger to personnel.
Zone 3 is set to cover the whole of the neighbouring section and, whereas
Zones 1 and 2 cannot overreach without upsetting selectivity, Zone 3 cannot
underreach without giving inadequate back-up protection. Whereas Zones 1
and 2 are set for the actual impedance of the line sections, ignoring infeed,
Zone 3 must be set for maximum infeed conditions.
Zone 3 must be set for at least Z1 + WZ{ ohms, where Z1 is the impedance
of the protected section, Z{ is the impedance of the next section and W is the
.
. IR+IF
' the next section
. to t h e
maxnnum
ratio
- 0 f th
e tot a
currentl
entenng
IR
amount flowing through the protected section (see fig. 5.36).
238
5.5
Distance Relays
Sometimes this setting becomes high enough for Zone 3 to operate on

overload conditions. This difficulty can be ameliorated by (a) using an
elliptical R-X characteristic (fig. 5.37), by (b) reversing the direction of the
(a)
I
I
I
I
I
---------_/
I>'
(b)
FIO.
5.36. (a) Effect of power infeed on back-up setting
(b) Current distribution with a multi-terminal line
Zone 3 units, as explained in the following section 5.5.3, or by (c) using a

rate-of-rise of current monitoring relay.
Where it is impossible to provide back-up on Zone 3 without tripping
on overload, some European relays have two more time steps with very long
FIO.
5.37. Elliptical characteristic for Zone 3, to prevent tripping on load current
time delays, one of non-directional overcurrent and then a final step controlled by a pure directional unit.
5.5.3. Reversed Third Zone
Referring to fig. 5.38, the relay at A normally provides the third zone
back-up protection for the section Be but there is no reason why it should not
be provided by the relay at B; in other words, by reversing all the third zone
relay units so that they will cover the next section behind them instead of the
239
5.5
Protective Relays
next section in front of them. The same protection will be provided but
the ohmic setting of each third zone unit will be reduced by the impedance
of the protected section, e.g. the relay at A has to reach a distance Be which
is less by AB and may thereby eliminate the risk of operating on overload.
Ta.p
line
Brea.ker fa.; led

Trip on
ba.Ck-UP\
Fa.ult
TQjJ
lin~
FIG.
5.38. Reversed Zone 3 reach to maintain supply to tap lines
Furthermore, with back-up provided by the relay nearest the fault, tap lines
on the unfaulted section AB will remain in service whereas they would be
l~st without the conventional arrangement of back-up. On the other hand,
the reversed back-up relay has the same a.c. and d.c. supplies as the relays
it is backing up so that it may fail for the same cause.
5.5.4. Transformer Feeders
Where there is a transformer in series with the line between two buses,
the ohmic setting of the distance relay includes the impedance of the transformer. At the end remote from the transformer this enables 100% of the
line to be covered by Zone 1, i.e. instantaneous tripping for all line faults,
provided that ZL < 1.lZe where ZL is the line impedance and Ze the transformer impedance (see fig. 5.40) but, at the transformer end, Zone 1 is reduced
~. WMre Zt > 2ZL it will be necessary to have the

ZL+Zt
potential transformers on the line side of the power transformer in order to
obtain selectivity; this will enable the relay to measure distance along the
line directly.
In other words, when the c.t's or p.t's are not connected to the protected
line but are on the other side of a power transformer, the ratio and phase
shift of the power transformer must be taken into account. In order to obtain
the overall ratios, the p.t. ratio must be multiplied by the power transformer
ratio and the C.t. ratio must then be divided by the power transformer ratio
in calculating the secondary reactance of the protected line.
In the case of distance relays for interphase faults, the phase angle shift in
wye-delta or delta-wye power transformer connections can be compensated
for simply by choosing wye instead of delta quantities. This is because the
in reach by the ratio
240
Distance Relays
5.5
phase relay uses line-to-line potential and delta current to measure the ohms
in line-to-line faults and, when these are viewed through a Y -Ll or Ll- Y
transformer, the delta quantities look like wye quantities. In the case of
ground distance relays, special zero sequence current compensation would be
necessary because the zero sequence components of current and potential
are blocked on the delta side of the power transformer.
The current compensation for a Y - Ll or Ll- Y shift in the power transformer is very simple. A distance relay having Ia- Ib from line side c.t's (fa
in one winding and - Ib in the other) would have - Ib in both windings in
series from c.t's on the low side (Table 5.5). The proper ohmic setting is
then obtained by taking a c.t. ratio of
times the actual c.t. ratio, where N
is the turn ratio of the power transformer. The turn ratio is the voltage ratio
of the line-to-line ratio on the delta side to the line-to-neutral voltage on the
wye side. The reason for taking only half the turn ratio is that the two coils
are in series, which doubles the ampere-turns.
The potential compensation for a Y - Ll or Ll- Y shift in the power transformer in the case of distance relays for interphase faults is similar to current
compensation. Either the wye potential on the low-side is used or the equivalent of high-side potential by means of an auxiliary Ll- Y p. t. to compensate
for a Y - Ll power transformer and vice versa.
The second method is preferred because the wye potential is not affected
by ground faults in the low tension system. No correction factor is necessary
'f h
11
..
'd d high-side line-to-line potential
1 t e overa p. t. ratio IS consl ere as
.
relay volts
Sometimes it is necessary to check the reach of Zones 2 and 3 through a
transformer on the bus at the end of the protected section in order to coordinate their time settings with those on the lines (generally a distribution
system) beyond the transformer bank. If the transformers are in wye-wye
or delta-delta this will present no difficulty for phase relays since it is only
necessary to add their reactance to that of the line. If the transformers are in
Y - Ll or Ll- Y the phase-shift complicates matters and makes a tedious calculation necessary. The result of this calculation is given in Table 5.5.
The reach of the ground relays terminates in the transformer bank if
either of the windings through which the current passes is in delta, because the
zero sequence currents circulate in the delta and do not emerge from it. In
the case of wye-wye transformers their impedance to phase faults is taken as
their phase-to-neutral or positive-sequence-reactance. Their impedance to
gt;ound faults is the same for phase faults if the neutrals of both are grounded,
but it is infinite if either side is not grounded.
A wye-connected auto-transformer presents the same impedance to phase
and ground faults if its neutral is grounded, but it presents a much higher
impedance to ground faults if its neutral is not grounded, since its windings
then act like series reactors.
241
STANDARD
COfm'CTION
SECONDARY
FAULT
RELAY
LOCATION
(PRIMAR.Y)
Fig. B
I agrou~bcl
"""-
Fig.C
~ --~---
,T
ar.;ound
ALTERNATIVE
CONNECTION
SECONDAR.Y
FAULT
RELAY
LOCATION
(PRIMARV)
Fig.D
--~- --
~.
-.
Ib
0
....
'"::0
UI
i.II
iii
Ib
Ib
cl ....a"'tI
:5
I r.grOUnd I
n.
b
Figs. A and B are the standard power transfonner connections with the l.t. side or secondary 30 deg.lagging the h.t. side or primary. Figs. C and D
are the opposite connections which make the secondary 30 deg. leading the primary.
LEGEND: R = Fault resistance.
p, n, 0 subscripts denote positive, negative and zero sequence components.
C = Fraction of the positive and negative sequence fault currents that flows through the relay.
Z~ = Impedance of line and transfonner between the relay and the fault.
Rn is the total negative sequence resistance between the fault and the ends of the system in parallel. Ro is the corresponding zero sequence
resistance.
Note 1: The ground relay measures the same whether it has zero sequence current compensation or not.
Note 2: The reactance terms are always positive, but the resistance terms, due to the phase shift, can create negative reactance terms in some phases,
thus causing the relay to overreach. In such cases, however, the starting unit pick-up is raised so as to prevent operation.
Fig.A
5.5
Effect of Grounded Neutral 11- Yor Y-11 Power Transformer Between Distance Relay and A.rcing Fault
TABLE
5.5
Distance Relays
TABLE
Protection
Sec.
Fault
5.5 (conI.)
Relay Excitation
Fig. A
Fig. C Secondary
&B
&D
Zmeasured
Phase
be
V12
h-lz
lz-I)
Vb
10
Z' +R.. +R,

l'
Y3C
Phase
be
V23
lz-I)
V31
I)-h
V.
I.
Z'1 ' - R .. +.R,

Y3C
Phase
be
I)-h
VI2
h-12
Va
la
00
Phase
a-Grd
VI2
h -12
V23
lz-I)
Vb
Ib
Z'p
Phase
a-Grd
Phase
21CZo
+ ;[(2R.. + Ro + 3R,)
12- I)
I)-h
V..
I..
Z'P+2C
1 Zo - Y3(2
2C R.. +Ro+3R,)
a-Grd
V31
I)-II
VI2
h -/2
Va
la
Z'p
Ground
be
VI
II
V2
Ground
be
V2
lz
Ground
be
Ground
V.. b
la-lb
z'p - C
V3 (R .. + R,)
I)
Vb.
Ib-i.
Z'p
I)
VI
II
V...
I. -Ia
Z'p
+ ~3 (R .. + R,)
a-Grd
VI
II
V2
lz
Va.
la -Ib
Z'p
+ Zo + 2R.. + Ro + R,
Ground
a-Grd
V2
12
V3
I)
Vb.
h-l.
00
Ground
a-Grd
VI
11
Veil
le-Ia
Z'l'
V3
V3
I)
lz
V3
2C
+Zo 2C
2Y3C
2R..
+ Ro -
R,
2Y3C
5.5.5. Transformer Voltage Drop Compensators
When h.t. potential is not available, impedance distance relays may be

supplied by potential transformers on the l.t. bus. Where the power transformer is part of the line the relay can be set to include the transformer impedance but, where it is connected to the bus and supplies other circuits as
well, the current producing the transformer voltage drop is not the line current
in the relay. For this case transformer drop compensators should be used
243
Protective Relays
5.5
(see fig. 5.39). They are supplied with power transformer current and produce a
drop which is added vectorially to the Lt. potential to obtain the correct h.t.
potential for the distance relays.
The compensators used are transactors, i.e. reactors energised by current
transformers in either the high or the low side, and equipped with secondary
windings which add vectorially a potential proportional to the reactance of
the power transformer and the current flowing through it.
lt is unnecessary to provide a resistance unit because the XI R ratio of a
transactor is similar to that of a power transformer. The secondary winding
of the transactor not only avoids sneak circuits between the c.t. and p.t.
circuits but reduces the burden on the c.t's to a minimum because the
FIG.
5.39. Transformer drop compensator
effective impedance of the transactor is its secondary voltage divided by its

primary current and the turns can be arranged to step up the secondary
voltage. On a 5 ampere basis the windings are arranged to give an equivalent
impedance up to 3 ohms in 1 % steps by providing the secondary with nine
10% taps and ten 1 % taps, as shown in fig. 5.41.
lt is customary to slightly undercompensate because overcompensation
would make the distance relay have a small reversed voltage for a fault close
to the bus; this would prevent the relay in the faulted line from operating
and could cause wrong tripping on other lines.
Normally one would not use a transformer drop compensator for a
transformer feeder because the distance relay could be set as though the
transformer impedance were part of the line impedance but, if the line is
short and the transformer small, the error in measurement could warrant a
compensator. On the other hand, the compensator adds its error to the total.
If 8, is the per unit relay error, L is the line impedance and T is the transformer impedance, the error in measurement without the compensator is
8,(L+T) = 81' With the compensator the total error is the compensator
error 8e plus the relay error 8eT+8,(L+8 eT) = 82 (see fig. 5.40).
244
5.5
Distance Relays
Sta.tHion
1
(a)
(b)
g
~g
--------11
Sta.tion 2
r-T---*+(-----L--+l-7~1
Error = (R( T +L)
(c)
IEC~~~-L---'7~'1
Error =ER(L +EcT)
FlO. 5.40. Error introduced by inaccurate transformer drop compensator

(a) Transformer feeder. (b) Error without compensator. (c) Error with compensator
Potential
Nine 10')10 taps
T.n
I%taps~
0 )0 )0 ' 10 )0 )0, )0' )0 )0 ' )0
FlO.
5.41. Transactor type transformer drop compensator
FlG.
5.42. Correction of mho relay setting with mho circle less lagging than line
impedance Zr = ZL!COS (r/> -8)
245
5.5
Protective Relays
To justify the compensator 82 must be less than 810

or
or
8eT+8r{L+8eT) < 8,(L+T)

8eT+8,BeT < 8rT
Be < Br{1-8 e)
or
8r
i.e.
If the relay accuracy
IS
Be
-Be
> -1- > Be{1 +8e)
5%, then Br =
(5.21)
1
1-c
1
20 and Be = 20 or 8e = 21 per
unit, i.e. 4'9% accuracy. This means that a transformer drop compensator
is a disadvantage unless its accuracy is at least equal to that of the relay. To
be of tangible benefit the compensator should be at least 5 times as accurate
as the relay, say 1 %. Alternatively, not more than 85% of the transformer
impedance should be compensated for (in order to avoid overreach) with a
compensator of the same accuracy as the relay.
5.5.8. Magnetising Inrush
On transformer feeders it is possible to have a high magnetising inrush

current upon energising the feeder so that, for a few cycles, the impedance
seen by the distance relay at the transformer end is below the value for a
fault at the end of the transformer feeder. Some types of distance relays
tend to overreach and trip undesirably for these conditions; others are
negligibly affected.
Those most affected are amplitude comparators such as the balanced beam
type and the rectifier bridge type. Least affected are the induction type which
have either the operating coil or the polarising coil tuned to provide the phase
shift necessary for maximum torque in mho and reactance units.
The effect of the magnetising inrush can be minimised by a tuned filter
in the current circuit which rejects d.c. and harmonics. There is no record,
known to the author, of trouble with distance relays of the induction cup
type from this cause.
5.5.7. Examples of Setting Distance Relays
Example 1: A 60 mile, 60 c.p.s 154 kV line with 300/5 c.t.s and 4/0 copper
conductors spaced 15 ft. in a horizontal row. Calculate the
Zone 1 ohmic setting of the phase relay.
Solution:
Assuming 5 % accuracy of the relay and 5 % accuracy

of the data, the Zone 1 coverage should be 90 %of the line.
The equivalent delta spacing is
iY15.15.30 = 126x 15 = 189 ft.
The diameter of a 4/0 conductor is 0'46 in. so that
SId = 18'9/046 = 41.
246
Distance Relays
5.5
09
V
08
/v
07
1/
./
eO'6
i/
.c
0'5
bO
(j
,l'/
V.,-:;0")/
0'4
--
1/
0'3
V/
V/ V
02
/./
v ...
V
01
V
0'1
0'2
0'5
2'"
G'i~-----
1'0
10
20
50
5/D= Ra.tio of (quival(nt II spacing in fnt to diam(ter of conductor

in inch(s
FIG.
5.43. Inductive reactance per mile of transmission line
From the graph in fig. 5.43 the reactance is 086 ohm per
mile and the relay setting is 09 x 60 x 086 = 464 ohms.
The secondary relay ohms
300
115
= 464 x 5 x 154000 = 208 ohms phase to neutral.
Example 2: 154kV line of 12% reactance on 50000 kVA base. With

1000/5 c.t.s on 138 kV side of a Y-L\ power transformer
bank; 154000/115 p.t.s connected in open delta on the line
side.
10kV2.X%
X line = kVA base
lOx 1542 X 12
(5.22)
=
= 57 ohms c/>-to-N
50000
Assuming the first zone set to cover 90 % of the protected
section, the first zone setting will be:
c.t. ratio
Xrelay = 57 x 09 x
. (overall)
p.t. ratIo
= 57xO.9 x 1000 x (13.8 XV3) x ~ x

5
=06 ohm.
247
154
154000
(!)2
Protective Relays
5.5
This would require a reactance relay because the setting

is too low for a mho relay. The (1) term is because the two
current coils of the relay are in series.
Example 3: 115 kV line of reactance 24 ohms phase-to-neutral, with
2000/5 c.t's on the 138 kV side of a 40000 kVA Y-A
power transformer of reactance 91 %. Three wye-connected
p.t's are connected A - Y on the low side of the bank with
665 volt secondaries. There is no line breaker so that the
transformer must be considered as part of the line.
T
fi
rans ormer reactance
10xkV2xX%
k VA
10x115 2 x9'1
40000
= 30 ohms phase-to-neutral
= 30+24 = 54 ohms.
Total reactance
Assuming the first zone to cover 90 % of the section
Overall c.t. ratio x 09
X I = 2X
x --::---:.,----::-re ay
pnmary
Overall p.t. ratio
If wye current is used for the phase relays on the Lt. side
and the relay current coils are connected in series, the overall
. will be 2000
. IS
.
ratio
- x -138 x -J3 = 41 '6/1
. The p. t. ratiO
5
115
2
1000/1.
Assuming a 90% setting for Zone 1,
416
Zrelay = 54 x 09 x 1000 = 22 ohms.
Example 4: If we go back to Example 3 but use compensators the procedure is as follows:

Secondary reactance of transformer
30
= - x 22 = 144 ohms
54
The compensator is therefore set to 1'44/3 x 100 = 48 %.
The relay then is set for the reactance of the line alone
which is 24 ohms primary.
The overall c.t. ratio is again 41'6/1 and the p.t. ratio
1000/1.
The Zone 1 setting is therefore 09 x
:~ x 24 = 09 ohm.
5.5.8. Commissioning
Having set the distance relay it is often desirable to test it on site to

ensure that it is in good condition and that the manufacturer's calibration is
correct. This will be dealt with in detail in Chapter 13 but a brief mention of
the method will be made at this juncture.
248
Distance Relays
5.5
Obviously the best way to test a relay is to subject it to conditions which

are as nearly as possible similar to those under which it will operate in service.
A common method of testing distance relays, i.e. setting the voltage and phase
angle and raising the current until the relay operates, is practically a waste of
time. The current and potential and phase angle are not static but change
suddenly from normal to fault values, and the relay may behave quite
differently in service and in the laboratory. The static test takes no account
of mechanical rebound and transient electrical conditions.
The old method called for a phase-shifter, a phase-angle meter or wattmeter, a timer, one or more load boxes and ammeters for the current circuit,
and potentiometers and voltmeters for the potential circuit. Each reading of
impedance or reactance was a slide-rule function of V, I and l/J or
W [X =
sin (cos -1
;:)].
Errors in reading the voltmeter, ammeter or
phase-angle meter, or in their calibration, could make a large total error in

ohms. This equipment was not only expensive to buy, and fragile and heavy
to transport, but it was tedious to wire up each time and required two test men.
The modem method employs a test box (128) containing the test circuit
wiring, reactances and resistances representing the line and fault impedances,
an ammeter and an equivalent of the breaker trip circuit. This equipment is
robust and compact and does not require shock-proof transportation (see
Chapter 13). It can be used to test any type of distance relay from a singlephase source of supply. It employs only one instrument, an ammeter, which
does not have to be accurately calibrated or precisely read, as the setting of
the relay is based solely on the calibrated fault impedance.
The method is to present the relay suddenly with the impedance it is to
measure by closing a single-pole switch. The change from normal to fault
conditions exactly duplicates service conditions. With this equipment the
behaviour of the relay can be checked over all possible line conditions in a
few minutes and without calculation except the mUltiplication of the fault
impedance by a dial setting.
5.5.9. Ground Distance Relays (44) (52) (57)
Whereas the distance relays for interphase faults are set directly in terms
of the positive sequence impedance of the protected line section, the distance
relays for ground faults have an extra adjustment to consider, viz. the zero
sequence current compensation.
As explained in section 5.1.1 and Table 5.13 of this chapter, the ground
relays are supplied" with line-to-neutral voltage and the current from the
same phase plus a fraction of the residual current, so that the relay measures
Vwye
f'
d
Zo-Z~
,
,
--~-=----. I K IS ma e equal to
Z' ,where Zo and Zl are the zero
I wye - KIresidual
and positive sequence impedances of the protected section, the relay then
measures Zl, as do the interphase relays. The mathematical proof of this is
given in the Appendix 5.10.1.
249
Protective Relays
5.5
It has been explained in section 5.5.1 how to calculate Zl, and Zo can be
obtained from Zl by using the ratios given in the following Table, 5.6, or it
can be calculated from zo = ro+jxo ohms/mile, where
ro =
'1 +0'00477/
(5.23)
De
xo = 0'00466/log 10 G.M.R.
(5.24)
In these formulae/is the system frequency, , is the conductor resistance per

mile, De is the equivalent depth of the earth return and G.M.R. is the geometric mean radius which can be obtained from data tables for standard
conductors.
The fault current returning through the earth is very widely diffused but
its electrical effect is as if it went down until it reached an imaginary conductor at a depth Da below the earth's surface.
De = 2160
J$
feet
(5.25)
where p is the resistivity of the earth in ohms/cm 3 p varies from 10 ohms/cm 3

for wet ground to 109 ohms/cm 3 for sandstone but 100 is an average value.
TABLE
Values
5.6
0/ ZO/Zl 0/ Overhead Lines
Conductor Arrangement
Min.
Max.
Average
Single circuit. No ground wire

Single circuit. One ground wire
Two or more ground wires
Double circuit. No ground wire
Double circuit with ground wires
28
1'8
1'5
42
20
4
30
25
65
40
35
2-3
20
5:5
30
The residual current transformer which supplies KIrcsidual in the current

compensation scheme is sometimes supplied with a tapped tertiary winding
for compensating the distance relay against the effect of mutual induction
from a parallel line. Fig. 5.44 shows how much the reach of the relay is
reduced by the current in another line on the same tower.
Unfortunately this method has to be closely checked before using it
because it can trip the unfaulted line as well on a close-in fault. This is because
the voltage at the relay is low, due to the proximity of the fault, and, if the
current in the faulted phase is high, the compensating current in the good line
may be enough to look like a Zone 1 fault.
Distance relays of the reactance type will give a practically constant
coverage of 90% of the section for instantaneous tripping; this superior
operation may not only minimise damage to insulators, etc., but also may
prevent the arc from involving another phase and thereby endangering
stability.
250
5.5
Distance Relays
100
I
90
BO
JI
..
!:
a.
a60
I
1
.. 1
'0"
...
.;I
.~I
&1
.}: I
"1
50
it
:;
....
d
.~I
.."
".
~30
S40
c:
d
20
10
1
1
I
1
I
1
"'I
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
~ 70
1
1
1
1
1 I
1
.2
.-~
---- ...
x~
II
0--i
0-1--
(a) Fo.ult o.t fo.r tnd
~/
(b) Fault o.t nto.r end
I
I
r
!
1"'" '" ~ ~" 'O~."
lint covtrs only 6B'Ya due to.

mutua.l inductien frem current
In unfaulttd line
1
1
1
o 0L---2..l.0---4LO--6...J.0-~-B.J..0--l..J00
Fo.ult Icco.tien
FIG.
%ef line Itngth
5.44. Effect of induction coupling from a parallel line
The same reactance relay may be used for either phase or ground protection but, as a ground relay, it requires an auxiliary relay to prevent it from
working on phase faults, since the current in the leading phase may be
almost in phase with the wye potential and hence measure zero reactance.
This is illustrated in fig. 5.45.
Fa.
--
sx~x
Fe
~l
Trip
5.45. Circuit for blocking ground reactance relays from overreaching on

double-ground faults
SX = starting unit auxiliary; X = reactive unit; F = phase flag; G = residual
overcurrent relay
FIG.
251
5.6
Protective Relays
In a b-c double ground or phase-to-phase fault it is the b phase relay

that is in trouble as the reactance unit in this phase must be monitored by the
fault detector in the c phase. This can be ensured by designing the fault
detectors so that the one in the lagging phase has the lower pick-up. In
switched relays wrong tripping is avoided by supplying the reactance unit
with the lagging instead of the leading of the two currents in a double ground
fault.
5.5.10. Multiterminal Lines
Where the protected section has more than two terminals (fig. 5.36b),
the distance relays at one terminal can measure the correct distance up to the
junction J of the lines to the other two terminals, but from there on their
reach along one of them is affected by the magnitude and direction of the
current in the other.
For exalJlple, the relay at A, for a fault at F, measures
IA.+IC)
ZA. = ZA.J+ZJF ( ~
This may be considerably more or less than the line impedance ZAP and
may interfere with selectivity; if there is much generation at C the relay at A
will underreach, causing sequential tripping; if there is no generation at
C but there is a low impedance path (dotted) from C to B, fault current will
leave the section at C and cause the relay at A to overreach, because its value
is negative in the above expression for Z A.; this may cause unnecessary tripping
and disruption of the system.
This is one of the penalties for economising in circuit-breakers. If there
were an extra breaker at C so that direct connections were made with A and B
this difficulty would not occur. In fact, this is the only solution in cases where
the variation in Z. at one of the terminals is sufficient to prevent discrimination between internal and external faults.
5.6. CONSTRUCTION OF DISTANCE RELAYS
As explained in Chapters 2 and 3, distance measuring relays can either

be phase comparator, such as induction cup relays and electronic or transistor comparators; or they can be amplitude comparators, such as balanced
beam, rectifier bridge relays and transductor relays. This is illustrated in the
Tables 5.9 and 5.10.
There are a great number of types of construction available because any
combination can be made of the following choices.
(a) Amplitude or Phase Comparators.
(b) Current or Voltage Measurement.

(c) Electromechanical, Transductor, Electronic, Semiconductor or Hall
Effect Measuring Units.

The general characteristics of the various comparators have been
252
Distance Relays
5.6
5.7
Amplitude and Phase Comparisons for Distance Relays
TABLB
Amplitude Comparator
Operating
Restraining
Directional
II + :'1
Impedance
III
Reactance
11 - :'1
Mho
II/
Offset Mho
III
1/ -
~I
Zr,
IfI
IfI
/1 -
~I
Zr,
1(1 + Ko)lr - Zr,

~I
Phase Comparator
Operating
Polarising
IZr
IZr - V
IZr + V
IZr - Vsin c/>
IZr
IZr - Vcos (c/> - ())
IZr - V cos (c/> - ())
+ kIZr
described in detail in Chapter 3. In the following paragraphs the types now

in use will be discussed briefly as distance relay units.
Recapitulating from earlier chapters, the amplitude comparator operates
when the operating force Fo exceeds the restraining force Fr. Relating this to
a design constant this means when IKII > IVI in an impedance relay. The
phase comparator works when IvI cos (fjJ-O) is positive; 0 is 900 for an
induction cup unit and 00 for a circulating current rectifier bridge comparator.
Relating this to a directional relay, it operates when VI cos (fjJ-(J+a.) is
positive where a. is the phase angle of the voltage circuit. It was also explained
in Chapter 3 that an amplitude comparator could become a phase comparator and vice versa by substituting (I - V) and (I + V) for I and V. Tables 5.9
and 5.10 show the arrangements in most common use. Electronic comparators have not been shown because it is unlikely that they will be used in
view of the superiority of transistors. Hall Effect comparators have not been
shown because at present they have certain limitations such as temperature
error and low output which have not yet been overcome.
5.B.t. Balanced Beam (53) (61) (134)
The advantages of the balanced beam unit are simplicity and speed. The
disadvantages are high reset impedance, overreach due to offset current waves
or currents of high XjR ratio, elliptical impedance characteristics and a
tendency to chatter. Very little can be done about the high reset impedance
except to use the minimum beam travel. The overreach on offset waves can be
controlled by a d.c. transient trap having a low resistance high-Q choke
across the current source and a small non-inductive resistance in series with
the relay current coil.
253
C7I
I\:)
Serio r.cllfi.,
bridge
(VOlta.ge comparison)
Tran.d uc tor
with rectified re.tra.int
(Ma.gndic comparison)
Parallel reciltier
bridge
(Current compa.rison)
E I.ctro-mechanlcal
ba.la.nccd beam
(Torque comparison)
Type
00
[J
Trip
~M
~'
o
o
!I
Impeda.nce
01
lp
00
':u
{illl
:l"Mt
II.
~TriP
TABLE 5.9
AMPLITUDE COMPARATORS
Admittance
~M
XR
~
~
~- a
~TriP
Reactance
Uneconomical
~c
@J@I'
\L~
TriP
ry = fi
ro--
D,rectional
UI
iii
~.
o
.....
."
en
Distance Relays
5.6
The ellipticity of the operating characteristic on an impedance diagram

is at right angles to the ellipticity of the reset characteristic so that the operate
and reset values are close at one phase angle and separated at 90 on each
side of this angle. The impedance characteristics can be made circular by
smoothing the potential flux through rectifiers and a smoothing capacitor
at the expense of speed or by phase-splitting using a three-pole magnet
having windings on two legs, one of which has a series capacitor to advance
the flux, the unwound leg carrying the combined return flux.
0
5.6.2. Induction Cup (45) (46) (51) (136)
The induction cup is slower than the beam but has nearly perfect impedance characteristics, no vibration, almost equal operate and reset values
and small effect on offset waves. It was described in more detail in Chapter 2.
Its construction is compact and robust and it is the most popular high
......-- v --~
c,
Operating
<tj
Polarising
(c)
Note: For simplicity only one phase of the current
circuit is shown. The circuit not shown is
similar but has minus the current in the next
l'Uin, ph.se.
I'
(0)
v=
I
rPv
;, =
l' =
1m =
ZI =
Izi =
ICI =
IRI =
VRC =
Z2
2
IZ2
'2
=
=
=
Line potential
Line current
Potential flux
Current flux
Current in dephasing coil of current.
pole
Component of I which corresponds
toh
Magnetising component of I
Potential coil impedance
Current through coil ZI
Current through CI
Current through Rl
Potential across Rand Cl
Phase shifting coil
e.m.f. in Z2
Volts drop in Z2
Potential across Z2
FIG.
V90 0
:::..
.pI
>9t
'0
:::..
'0
VI
:l
...J
v
(d)
5.46. Operation of induction cup reactance unit
(a) Potential, current and flux vectors

(b) Potential circuit
(c) Current circuit
(d) Diagram showing only reactive component of V is effective
255
~
Polarising potentia.l wdgs.
~
Restraint potcntia.1 wdgs.
~currcnt
~wdg.
(a)
(b)
= Fault current
= Faulted (restraint) potential
V, = Directional (polarising) potential
I
Vr
;r .,; Current in restraint coils
Rcstra.int
if. = Current in polarising coils

fI
= Power factor angle
fJ
= Angle betw.een i p and ir
ex =
Angl~tween
I and i p
120 + (180 - If) + IX + 8 = 0

:. = IX - 8 - 300
=P-8+6O
Operating torque = ipI sin ex = ipI sin (fJ - /I + 60)

Restraining torque = i,Ir sin P = Xi!! Vr sin P
'k
h Vr sin(p-fl+600) h
RI
eaYPlcsUpWenj<
sinp
oms
(c)
5.47. Vector diagrams of starting unit

(a) Potential and current circuits
(b) Currents and voltages during interphase fault
(c) Vector diagram of relay quantities
FIG,
~::r--o
PolClrising circuit
.~
~--------~c-----~v
RCltra.int circuit
Current circuit
v=
If.
=
=
Ire =
10 =
r
'I
Line voltage
Current in polarising potential coil
Current in restraining potential coil
Fault current at maxim.um torque angle
Current in parallel RC circuit
Current in operating coil
5.48. Vector diagram of mho unit

(a) Potential and current circuits
(b) Vector diagram of relay quantities
FIG.
256
Distance Relays
5.6
speed electromagnetic unit, especially in Switzerland, France, Sweden and

the U.S.A.
Phase comparators of the induction type differ from all other types of
phase comparator because they are sine product devices whereas the others
are cosine product (wattmetric) devices. For this reason the phase shift
necessary for the induction cup relays in the Table is 90 different from the
others. This property makes it suitable for polyphase application as discussed
in Chapter 6, section 6.8.
Fig. 5.46 shows the vector diagrams for a reactance relay of the induction
cup type. For simplicity only one current circuit is shown but in practice
there is another, inductively coupled to it and energised from the residual
current or another phase (see section 5.1.1).
Fig. 5.47 shows the vector diagram for the mho type fault detector with
quadrature potential polarisation. The relay in phase R would have current
JR , restraining potential the wye voltage VR and polarising potential the
delta voltage V yB ,
The mho measuring unit (fig. 5.48) diagram is similar to fig. 5.47 except
that the polarising potential is supplied from the same phases as the restraining potential.
5.6.3. Rectifier Bridge Comparators (50) (63) (117)
As amplitude comparators these devices tend to elliptical distortion of

their impedance characteristics unless the slave relay or output device is slow
and has a very low burden. The rectifier bridge current amplitude comparator
is popular in Germany and the U.K. The rectifier bridge voltage amplitude
comparator is used in Norway, France and the u.K. The other systems are
not yet in general use.
The advantage of a rectifier brirlge amplitude comparator of the current
or parallel type is its limiting action. Using a very sensitive output relay the
sensitivity near the balance point can be very high but the relay is protected at
higher differentials by the decreasing non-linear resistance of the rectifiers.
With the other comparators, limiters are necessary to produce this effect.
Distance relays using phase comparator rectifier bridges are not yet on
the market but an English company will be manufacturing them by the time
this book is available. The phase comparator bridge, like its induction cup
counterpart, has superior ohmic characteristics and R - X circles and,
unlike the amplitude comparator, any distortion at low voltage has an oblate
rather than a prolate tendency, i.e. the circle bulges sideways to give more
tolerance for fault resistance. This is an excellent feature since it occurs only
at low voltage where it is most needed and where power swings within system
stability limits cannot cause wrong tripping.
Transistor comparators are not described here because they are not yet
on the market, but they are discussed in Chapter 2 and in more detail in
Vol. II.
257
5.6
Protective Relays
5 4. Magnetic Amplifiers
Like all other comparators these can also be used for phase or for amplitude comparison. The amplitude comparator (transductor) was first used in
Sweden and later in England (16). It is most effective as an impedance relay;
when used as a directional, admittance or reactance relay it has a tendency
to transient inaccuracy which can be overcome only by introducing a time
delay through the damping winding D.
The phase comparator (Ramey half-wave type) is an excellent device but
so far has not been used by the major protective relay manufacturers; it is
uneconomical as an impedance relay but very effective as a directional,
admittance or reactance relay. Table 5.10 shows circuits employing a polarised relay with operating and blocking windings. The two windings have
equal currents when the two circuits to be compared are in phase. The output
relay need not be as sensitive as is required for the other circuits in Tables
5.9 and 5.10 because the milliwatts in the control circuit are magnified about
1000 times in the relay windings. The differentially connected transformers
should be as efficient as possible using mu-metal or HCR clock-spring cores
saturating at low voltage (about 10 volts).
5.6.5. Sensitive Tripping Devices (24) (50) (63) (117)
Perfect characteristics can be obtained from an electromagnetic relay,

such as the induction cup 'Jnit, with reasonable burdens, because it uses a
torque comparison and the work done to close the contacts has no effect on
the magnetic fluxes which produce the torque. In static relays, on the other
hand, the comparison is an electrical one, done in a network, and good characteristics are obtained only if the burden imposed by the tripping device is
negligible compared with the power in the network.
The most sensitive electromagnetic tripping relays are of the moving coil
or moving iron types, polarised by a permanent magnet and described in
Chapter 2. The moving coil type can work onO'25 milliwatt but it is not
shockproof; the moving iron type is shockproof but requires 2 milliwatts.
For good characteristics the output relay should not take more than 01 %
of the input to the comparator. Allowing for a 25 to 1 range of adjustment and
assuming a maximum input to the- comparator of 3 watts, this requires a
sensitivity of 50 microwatts of the output device for a mho relay. This has
been achieved by a transistor pre-amplifier supplying a shockproof (30 g)
polarised moving iron relay. The ideal solution is a high power output transistor. At the present time controlled silicon rectifiers are available with
sufficient capacity to trip a breaker having a trip coil current of 40 amperes
at 250 volts for 60 milliseconds, but their cost is too high compared with the
cost of an attracted armature relay. In a few years no doubt these or equivalent devices will be available for a reasonable price.
The cost of the amplifier is offset by the reduction in size of the comparator and the auxiliary transformers which supply it.
258
co
C1I
....,
Ma.gnt.llC a.mplil,c,
(Amplitud~ comparison)
(Curnnt cOincidence)
Compara.tor
TrCln.i.tor pa.ra.llel
Rectifier bfldge
CompClrCltor a.nd limilor (L)
(Phase comparison)
Elf.ctro -mocha.nlca.1
Induction cup
(Torque. compa-rlson)
Type
Unc:c.of"lomica'
Zr
polarised relay.
TranSductor
Relay
~'
CT
~.,
I-V
(I+V) "
,ill~-0
Zr
Impeda.nce
,dt.tcctar V
Levr~
Zr
PC
PC
'/
PC
1';1
Lucl
~~
'=8~
Rcacta.nc.e.
= operating coil.
r;'l
V
B = bias restraint coil.
tij)~ ~'
'"''';~
c.lrc. ..ut
~~nIlJt
Aux .
C .T.
,~@,
TABLE 5.10
PHASE COMPARATORS
Adm;tla.nco
cD?
Aux C.T.
o&[J
T~PC
---hQ-
LJ L J
V
L.... I
td.. tector....
Zr
':::JI~
Directiona.l
c"
UI
iii'"
Cb
::0
Cb
(")
~
::;,
I:)
5.6
Protective Relays
5.'.'. Relay Sensitivity
The sensitivity of a distance relay measuring unit can be defined as the

minimum voltage Vm down to which it will measure accurately. It was shown
in section 5.3.1. that this could also be expressed as inversely ZsIZL'
Since the VA burden of the potential circuit oc V2 it follows that
~ where VA is the burden of the potential circuit at normal voltage.

"VA
This is also affected by the sensitivity of the relay unit. In a rectifier bridge
Vm ex:
circuit it requires mW milliwatts to operate the unit, so that Vm ex:
~.
"VA
In the case of the induction cup relay, the polarising circuit co-operates
with the potential circuit to produce torque and Vm ex: J
1
where
VA. (VA)p
(VA)p is the burden of the polarising circuit which may be energised by
current (reactance relay) or potential (mho relay).

The burden of the operating current winding or circuit is related to the
sensitivity in the same way but it is not a limiting factor because it is only on
during fault conditions, whereas the potential burden is a maximum during
normal conditions.
The most important aspect of the current burden is to make sure that the
c.t. is capable of handling it for the maximum fault current Imax for a fault
at the end of Zone 1. The knee point voltage VK of the c.t. secondary should
at least equal the total voltage drop across the burden,
i.e.
V=
K
Imax
(R
+ Rleads +
et .
;,~) Kt
(5.26)
where VA is the relay burden at its rated current Ir and Kt is the d.c. offset
ratio which is a function of the time constant (LI R) of the primary circuit.
K= (1 + X)
R 2!!...
te
t
where tr is the relay operating time and t. =
(5 27)
~; the factor 2 comes from the
fact that the time of energisation of the relay at a given level need not be
more than half the time taken to close the contacts.
Kt
Now
:r.
(1+ :)~ tr
(5.28)
=(~+co)~
is small compared with co and can be neglected. Hence
K, =
co
"2
tr = nf.lr
260
(5.29)
5.6
Distance Relays
If f = 50 and tr = 0'04, K t = 628. Actually K can be taken as about 2

for most systems because almost all faults on overhead lines occur near the
point of Vrnax in the' cycle and the full offset conditions are rarely encountered.
The rare case of the worst conditions would only cause a short delay in
tripping.
(5.30)
5.1.7. Performance Curve.
The circular characteristics of a distance relay on an impedance diagram

are important only if they depart seriously from circularity in the quadrant
of the R-X diagram in which faults can occur. An exception is the case ofa
very long line where power swings may intersect the circular locus if the circle
is too wide (oblate). Another case is that of a very short line where arc
resistance can prevent operation of a mho relay if the circle is too narrow
(prolate).
The accuracy of the measurement can be clearly shown on a graph of
per unit accuracy Zr/Zn to the base of voltage, where Zr is the relay reach in
'20
110
f//,
100 WI'. rK71
'//. 'h '//. '//.
f/I
f/I !.lli. 1'1/1; illIh il///, I/h
f/I
f/I
f/I
'I'.'
,/1 '//1 W/, V/h V// h ;t//h Wh

'/I'///. 'Ih '//.
'/h
90
80
Shc1dcd arc" dcnotCi a.cCUl'"G.Cy tol crC1nCC .
5"0)
40
30
20
,0
10
20
FIG.
30
40
so
60
Few It vo Ita.qc
70
80
90
100
110
5.49. Distance relay performance curves (ohms/volts)
ohms for a fault at the relay setting Zn (fig. 5.49). Operating time can be
shown best on a curve of time to the base of distance so that the slowi~g
up of the relay near the cut-off point can be clearly seen.
The complete performance of the relay can be shown on a contour
diagram (50), plottingZ//Zr against a base ofZ./Zr whereZ/ is the impedance
between the relay and the fault and Zr is the relay setting; this is equivalent to
plotting the accuracy along the Y axis against a base of the reciprocal of the
voltage along the Y axis (see fig. 5.50).
261
5.7
Protective Relays
x - Y curves are plotted for several relay operating times so that there is
a family of such curves and contours. This method is a good way of evaluating
the performance of one relay against another but it takes much longer to
make the necessary tests and is somewhat more difficult for the user who is
I
I
T -
o.'St.ancc rclQ)' contour
100
- r---
.'"
'--
If,
~.
........ r-
.......... .......
60
'r--. i'.
n :J.)rM
I --,--
--
SlIa.dcd orca
on boundary
CUI"IIICI
//
;t.,
~ '~fo i - .. ( 8ClJ<1ncc)
--I"- ........
3~~.00lScc, r'\
o0,
02
0 '5
1\
Source /llnr impedance
FIG.
1\5001 Sc ""'6001 Sr< .
~\
-...:...
",,-
Q.
20
. ;,;;
10
20
50
100
rQtlO
5.50. Contour diagram of distance relay performance
more interested usually in the operating times for faults at different points
along a given section, i.e. for a given value of Z,/Z". To do this he plots a
vertical line and notes where it intersects the various contour curves.
5.7. A.C. POTENTIAL
For accurate measurement a distance relay must be supplied with a secondary voltage linearly proportional to and in phase with the primary voltage
of the circuit it is protecting.
5.7.1. Sources of a.c. Potential
One of the principal difficulties with the use of distance relays is the
availability of a suitable voltage supply. On low voltage systems a suitable
supply is generally available and the cost of potential transformers is not
great, but on high voltage lines they are a costly item and must be considered
in the overall comparison of the cost of different protective schemes.
For protection against phase faults only, two single-phase p.t's are used
in many countries and are connected in open delta to provide the three lineto-line voltages. For ground distance relays three p.t's are required to provide
262
Distance Relays
5.7
the three wye voltages and small auxiliary p.t's in wye-broken delta for providing the residual voltage, an alternative being double windings on the
main p.t's.
Potential for all the distance relays on a busbar can be obtained from a
singl(1 three-phase p.t. of the magnetic type connected to the bus. Magnetic
p.t's are preferable to those of the capacitance type (65) because they have a
greater VA capacity and are more reliable for high speed (1 cycle) relays
because they do not have parasitic oscillations when the potential is suddenly
changed in value, such as by a fault. The use of a common p.t. on the bus bars
reduces the total cost of distance protection considerably and is common
practice in the U.S.A. and Canada.
Potential can also be taken from the 1.t. side of power transformers, a
voltage drop compensator being provided where necessary. This subject has
been discussed previously in this chapter, section 5.5.5.
Compensators are seldom more accurate than the relays so that they
should be avoided where the fault current passes directly through the power
transformer. Furthermore, complicated bus systems sometimes make low
tension potential impractical. Tap-changing transformers present another
problem.
5.7.2. Loss of a.c. Potential
Accidental loss of a.c. potential can cause undesirable tripping of distance relays. In section 5.1.4 (c) it was explained how loss of primary voltage
due to the opening of a breaker can cause heavy transient torques from the
decaying potential. Wrong tripping on load current can be caused by loss of
secondary voltage due to the blowing of a secondary fuse or accidental
opening of the circuit during testing. The following methods are used to
avoid this undesirable tripping.
(a) In the U.S.A. it is claimed that the use of heavy (60 ampere) potential
fuses in the distance relay circuits and light (1 ampere) fuses for other
switchboard devices prevents blowing of the secondary fuses due to
transient short-Circuits, such as a falling tool or a stray strand of wire.
(b) The trip circuit can be opened in 7 or 8 milliseconds and an alarm
given by a relay connected to measure the potential across each fuse.
Fig. 5.51 shows such a relay with three operating magnets, one across
each fuse, so that only one contact is inserted in the trip circuit.
(c) A rate-of-rise-of-current relay is the most effective arrangement. It
completes the trip circuit only when there is a sudden increment of
fault current equal to 20 % of the c.t. rating. This prevents tripping on
loss of potential due to accidents or power swings, and permits
tripping only on a fault. The rate-of-rise relay shown in fig. 5.52
uses a transistor as a switch.
(d) A cheaper protection against tripping on loss of a.c. potential, but
which does not include power swings, is the use of an instantaneous
263
5.7
Protective Relays
FIG.
5.51. Potential fuse failure relay
'V1:bllEf
O
Sens!ti
ve
polarosed
d .c relay
(.)
FIG.
5.52. Rate-of-rise-of-current relays
264
Distance Relays
5.8
overcurrent relay in the instantaneous (Zone 1) trip circuit of the

distance relay.
5.B. SIMULTANEOUS GROUND FAULTS
When two phases of an overhead line flash-over simultaneously at the

same location or within the same section of line, it is known as a double
ground fault. When two phases flash-over simultaneously in different line
sections, it is known as a simultaneous ground or 'cross-country' fault (137).
Cross-country faults are rare on solidly grounded systems but they are
fairly common on systems grounded through high impedance or Petersen
Coils.
Such a fault is illustrated in fig. 5.53. It appears to the phase distance
relays at A and D as a double ground fault at an intermediate point X. It is
FIG.
5.53. Simultaneous ground faults
unlikely to operate the phase relays at Band C but it appears to the ground
distance relay at B as a phase b-to-ground fault and to the ground relay at C
as a c-to-ground fault. The ground relays tend to overreach because the
interphase current flowing from phase b to phase c through the earth is much
larger than the ordinary ground current. Another way of looking at it is that
their residual compensating current Klres is the sum of the c-phase current
from end R and the b-phase current from end P.
Under these circumstances the least that can happen is that the breakers
at A, B, C and D all trip and service is lost to station Q in fig. 5.53.
In Europe, where Petersen Coil grounding is common for systems below
100 kV, the isolation of station Q is avoided by the fact that switched impedance or mho relays are use'd on these systems and they select wye potential
and current for all faults involving ground. In the fault shown in fig. 5.53,
all the relays would receive phase c current and voltage and only breakers
C and D would open, with D probably not tripping until C had tripped.
The reason is that the fault appears to the relays at A and D as a phase-tophase fanlt so that they underreach when given c-phase current and potential;
265
5.9
Protective Relays
the c-phase current is flowing in the reverse direction for the relay at B, so it
stays open also.
After C and D have tripped, the ground fault in section AB still remains
but is extinguished by the Petersen Coil. On solidly grounded systems it is
necessary to trip all four terminals because there is no Petersen Coil to
extinguish the remaining fault. With separate distance relays for phase -and
ground faults, breakers A and D would be tripped by their phase relays for
the fault in fig. 5.53, breakers Band C by their ground relays. In switched
distance relays providing delta current and voltage for double ground faults
only, breakers A and D would open.
5.9. AUTORECLOSING
The large majority of faults on overhead lines are transient, i.e. they
disappear when the line is de-energised by opening the circuit-breakers at
both ends of the line. This fact permits immediate resumption of service by
reclosing the breakers.
Obviously, this does not apply to a cable because the breakdown of insulation is permanent whereas, in an overhead line, the insulating value of the
air is restored as soon as the fault current stops and the arc disappears.
Radial circuits are the most benefited by automatic reclosing because
there is only one source of power and the quicker it is restored the better.
Furthermore, there is no problem of synchronising on radial lines.
On tie lines or interconnections in a network there is more than one source
per bus, so that the loss of a line is not so serious and auto-reclosing is less
necessary. Furthermore, on tie lines there is sometimes a problem of connecting the two sections of the system after the source and load ends have drifted
apart in phase relationship. On the other hand, where there is only one tieline which must be kept in at all costs, single-pole switching is necessary, i.e.
separate circuit-breakers and reclosing relays for each phase; with this
system transient single-phase-ground faults (which are the most common)
cause no real interruption because, while the reclosing is taking place, the
load current formerly in the interrupted phase makes its way back to the
neutral through the ground and grounding wires (64).
5.9.1. MultiShot Reclosing
On low voltage lines (33 kV and below) the fault may have been caused
by something across the conductors, such as a vine or a tree branch, and it
may not be burned clear at the first reclosure. On such radial lines an instantaneous reclosure is provided, followed by two or three more delayed
reclosures if necessary (70). Statistics in the U.S.A. show that over 80% of
the faults are cleared after the first trip, so that the instantaneous reclosure
stays in and the reclosing relay resets. About 10 % stay in after the second
reclosure which is made after a time delay, usually between 15 and 45 seconds.
Less than 2 % require the third reclosure, which is made after 60 to 120
266
5.9
Distance Relays
seconds. About 5 %are permanent faults which are not cleared and result in
lock-out of the reclosing relay.
Most auto-reclosing relays are of the synchronous motor type with a
circular cam or drum having adjustable pegs or equivalent means for
operating the reclosing contacts after the desired intervals. Blocking relays
are provided to prevent the breaker from reclosing until the reclosing circuit
has been re-established.
5.9.2. Single-Shot Reclosing
On transmission lines most faults are caused by lightning flashovers;

tree branches are unlikely to cause faults because of the height of the line and
the wide right-of-way; vines or wire-dropped by birds would be vaporised
instantly by the large amount of power in the arc. Consequently there is no
need for more than one reclosure which must be instantaneous to restore the
connection before an appreciable phase difference occurs between the two
ends of the open line.
The drifting apart in phase of the two separated sections of the system is
caused by the fact that the source end speeds up and the load end slows down
when separated. The inertias of the synchronous machinery involved, however, is very great and the drifting apart in phase is slow. However, the reclosure is made as quickly as is compatible with the de-ionising of the arc
which permits successful reclosing after the following dead times in cycles
(Table 5.8).
TABLE
5.8
Dead Times Required for Automatic Reclosing

Line Voltage
Min. Dead Time
22
4
33
5
66
6
110
8'5
132
10
220
17
300
24
kV
cycles
5.9.3. Instantaneous Reclosing
A line can be successfully reclosed immediately after a fault only if the

two ends have been tripped simultaneously, otherwise the fault arc will not
have been extinguished before the breaker at the fast end recloses and the
breakers will trip again. Where the relay times are not the same at the two
ends of a protected section, reclosing must be delayed long enough for both
ends to have tripped.
There are two methods of ensuring simultaneous reclosing.
(a) A connecting channel for intertripping, such as carrier, space radio
or pilot wire.
(b) Temporary extension of the instantaneous zone.
267
5.9
Protective Relays
(a) Intertripping Channel: Of these methods, the carrier or pilot wire
channel is the most expensive and is suitable only for single lines of
great importance or when the channel is necessary for communication.
Microwave or radio link is cheaper where repeaters or reflectors are
not necessary to circumvent geographical obstructions. Space radio
is the cheapest channel and can be used where Government allocations
of radio wave-length band permit. The channel can be used for the
fast end to signal the slow end and thus to clear both ends instantaneously, even if the fault is close to one end and hence otherwise in
the second time zone of the relay at the other end.
(b) Extension of Instantaneous Zone: The instantaneous zone, normally
set 10 % short of the next bus, is in this case 5 %beyond the bus into
the next section, so that all faults in the protected section are tripped
instantaneously. A fault just beyond the next bus will cause the local
breaker to trip as well as the one in the faulted line. When they reclose
the relays are reset so that the instantaneous zone covers only 90 %
of the section and, if the fault is still there, only the nearest breaker
trips. The other time distance zones operate normally.
It should be pointed out that, although the overlap of the section by the
instantaneous zone in ohms impedance is 5 %, the overlap in actual distance is
generally only 1 % or 2 % because the relay only measures a fraction of the
total current fed into the fault through the intermediate bus. The likelihood
of a fault occurring in this small length of line is correspondingly remote.
On the other hand, it is obvious that this scheme is practical only with very
accurate relays, i.e. those with an error of less than ~ % over the possible
range of fault currents.
The effect again is to clear all faults instantaneously at both ends of the
protected section.
The subject of reclosing has not been discussed in detail because it is outside the scope of a book on protective relays.
5.9.4. Single Pole versus Three Pole Reclosing
Single pole reclosing was first introduced in the U.S.A. in the early 1930's.
Instead of a common closing and tripping mechanism for all three phases,
each pole of the circuit-breakers was provided with its own mechanism. The
relays were connected to control the three mechanisms so that, when a singlephase to ground fault occurred, only the phase involved was interrupted and
reclosed. For any multi-phase fault all three phases would be simultaneously
tripped and reclosed.
With single-phase distance relays of the mho type the selection of the
faulted phase is not difficult but, with polyphase relays, such as phase comparison carrier or pilot wire protection, phase selectors are necessary. Where
potential transformers are available the phase selectors compare each wye
268
Distance Relays
5.10
potential in amplitude with the delta potential that is in quadrature with it;
for instance, a ground fault on phase a will be detected by the fact that
Va < 05 Vbc ' Where a.c. potential is not available the negative sequence
component of current is compared in each phase with the zero sequence
component; in the faulted phase the two components are substantially in
phase; in the unfaulted phases they are substantially 120 out of phase and
hence have a negative product.
The advantage claimed for single pole reclosing is that, on a system with
transformer neutrals grounded solidly at each substation or line terminal,
the interruption of one phase to clear a ground fault causes negligible interference with the load because the interrupted phase current now flows in the
ground between neutral points until the fault is cleared and the open phase
reclosed.
This technique has become popular in France and Sweden especially
where there are no parallel low impedance paths in the network through
which the load can flow while a faulted line is interrupted. Meanwhile, it has
lost favour in the U.S.A. and been replaced by three-phase reclosing for the
following reasons:
(a) phase selectors cannot always select only the faulted phase;
(b) the protection and control circuits are more expensive and complicated with single-pole switching;
(c) most systems will maintain the load on two phases long enough to
permit instantaneous three-pole reclosing;
(d) the real problem is not to eliminate a brief dissymmetry of the load
current but to avoid system instability and this is associated with
multi-phase faults which require three-phase tripping and reclosing;
(e) owing to the more complex relay circuit and to the longer dead time
required,' single-pole reclosure cannot be as fast as three-pole reclosure; this is not only undesirable in itself but can cause trouble
with telephone interference and with wrong tripping of the residual
relays on a sound line in parallel with the faulted line due to mutual
induction.
5.10. APPENDIX
5.10.1. Zero Sequence Current Compensation
During a phase fault to ground the wye potential Va at the relay consists
of the following drops in the sequence networks and fault resistance
v" = I 1Z 1+1 2Z 2+/oZo+ IFRF

where la is the current in the arc. Now Z1 = Z2 for lines; hence
v.. = (I1 +12+/o)Z1 +/O(ZO-Z1)+IFRF

= Z1 {Ia+/ o (ZO~Zl)} + IFRF
269
5.10
Protective Relays
If the relay is supplied with current Ia+1o
Va
(Zo -
+1
Zrelay = I
a
(ZO~Zl) it will measure
i ;-)-
Z1
=Zl+ R F 1+1 (Z-Z)

_0 _ _
1
a
Zl
Hence the relay measures correctly except for the error due to fault resistance which is negligible in the case of a reactance relay, unless IF is appreciably out of phase with la and 10 ,
5.10.2. Zero Sequence Potential Compensation
An alternative to measuring the Z~ of the protected section is to measure
Z~. This method has an advantage in accuracy for lines carrying appreciable
reactive current but this is offset by the higher c.t. burdens and a somewhat
more complicated circuit. It is advantageous for a switched ground distance
relay because no switching is necessary in the current circuit.
Since only residual current (Ires) appears in the current circuit, the I1Z~
and 12Z; drops in the line voltage must be removed from the relay potential.
In phase a the potential supplied to the relay is Vre1ay = Va-(la-/o)Z~
where Z~ is the impedance of the protected section.
Vrelay = I 1Z 1 +12Z 2+/oZ o+IFRF -(I1 +12)Z;,
For a fault at the balance point Zl = Z2
Vrelay
= 10Zo +IFRF
;es = 10
If the current circuit is supplied with 1
Zrelay = ZO+RF
e:)
the relay measures
Again, the relay measures correctly except for the fault resistance which
will be ignored by a reactance relay if the angle between IF and 10 is small.
5.10.3. Impedances seen by Distance Relays
If one substitutes
-! +j .J~ for a and - i - j J~ for a 2 in Tables 5.12 and
5.13, the expressions for the impedance measured by the relays in the different
phases appear as shown in Table 5.14. These expressions are vectors that are
easy to draw on an R - X diagram. For example, in Fig. 5.54 the impedances
'seen' by the measuring relays in the three phase-pairs for a 2-3 fault are
AF310 AF23 and AF12 whereas Fig. 5.55 shows how the same fault appears to
the three ground relays.
270
Distance Relays
5.10
5.14
Impedance measured by relays in addition to true Impedance
TABLE
-----
Relay
Three
Phase
Z'12
RF
C
Z'23
RF
C
Z'31
RF
C
Z'l
Z'2
Z'3
Phase 2-Phase 3
C~j(Znl900 + Zo~ + 3RF130
RF
2C
MV3Znl90 +
RF
00
C~3(Znl90 + Zol30 + 3RFI300)
RFI600 )
3
2CnRF
oo
CRF
+ RFI60
v3Z"W
Phase I-Ground
c~j(Znl90 + RF[3O")
~~(ZnI90 + Zo~ + V3RF~0)
RF
C
C 3
~-(Znl90
+ RFI300)
-
~~(Znl90 + Zo130 + V3RFI600)
In Table 5.14190 means lagged in phase by 90.

Similarly 1900 means advanced in phase by 90.
x
A..
-x
FIG.
5.54. Impedances seen by phase relays during 2-3 fault
The method of construction of these diagrams is literally to draw the

vectors given in Table 5.14. For instance, the vector AF31 in Fig. 5.54 is
obtained by plotting
J!C z2190
(which is the line FM) and adding the arc
-
resistance component
~ 160.
C is the fraction of the total fault current
which flows through the relay.

271
5.10
Protective Relays
Reference (58) shows how to draw all fault conditions, with and without
power swings, and how to determine what any relay in any phase measures
during these conditions.
The impedance seen by a relay during a power swing can be derived even
more simply (Fig. 5.56). First simplify the system to the equivalent single
R,
ife
...
. R ______~~~~~---------R
..
FIG.
5.55. Impedances seen by ground relays during 2-3 fault
impedance SL connecting the lumped power sources which are swinging.

The power swing locus, as far as its effect on the relay goes, can be taken as
the straight line bisecting the line SL at right angles. For any point a on this
-x
FIG.
5.56. Impedances seen by phase or ground relays during a power swing
locus ISOL is the angle of separation of the generator e.m.fs and the impedance seen by a relay at any location A is AO.
If the relay characteristic be drawn on this diagram and it intersects the
power swing locus at 0' then ISO'L is the angle up to which the system can
swing apart without operating the relay.
A fuller treatment of this subject is given in Vol. II.
272
Co - C
Co- C
Z2 +Zo +CZ'I +3RF
CZ'2 - Z2
Col'o - Zo
(a2- a)C
(a - a2)C
Z2 + CZ'I + RF
Z2 - CZ'2
a2C
aC
cZ' +RF
Klb
KI,
KVI
KV2
IXCZ'I +RF)
KV..
(a2- a)(CZ'! +RF)
KVc,
1
(ZI HF)
(a -
(1 - a2XCZ'1
KV.c
1
(ZI +Z2 +Zo +RF)
- 3CZ'1 +(a - a2)Z2 +(a - 1)(Zo + 3RF)
(a - a2)CZ'1 - 3Z2 +(a - I)RF
(ZI +Z2 HF)
(a2- a)(Zo +2Z2 +3RF)
IXZo +3RF)
2(a2- a) (CZ'I + )
(a2-
CZ'I +(a - I)Zo +Col'o +3aRp
CZ'I +(a 2-1)Zo +Col'o +3a2RF
3CZ'1 - (a2- a)Z2 -
a(CZ'J +RF)
KV,
(a - a2)CZ'J +3Z2+RF(I - a2)
(a - a2)Z2 -
(a - a2)CZ,! +aRF - Z2
a2(CZ'1 + RF)
KVb
+RF)
(a2- a)Z2 -
+a2RF - Z2
(al - a)CZ'1
CZ'I +RF
KV.
KVo
2CZ'1 + Col'o + 3RF
c[a (Z2 +) +(a - a2) (Zo + +3RG)] - Co (Z2 +f)
2C+ Co
KI.
2(Zd)
c[a2(Z2 + )
Co
Klo
Kl2
a) (Zo
+ +3RG)]- Co (Z2 +)
+ 3RG)]-Col'0(Z2 +) +3RG(a2RF-Zz)t(a2-a) zo+(a2-1)Z2+3a2 Rt
+f) [CZ'I - CoZ'o +3(Zo +~ +2RG)]
Uacl/W p. 272
) ] - 3Zol2 - (I - a)RF(Zo +3RG) - (4 - a)Z2"Z

Rp - 9Z2RG - 4
3(l-a)aRF2
+(a - a2)(ZoR
+TF+3RG
1[
R
F
3RF2]
E
ZIZ2+
Z2Z0+ZOZI
+ "Z (ZI +Z2 +Zo) + 3RG(ZI +Z2 +RF) +4
. ,[(a - I) (RF)
CZ
Zzt"Z
+2(Zo + + 3RG)} + ~F (Z2 +2Z0 +~Rp +6RG)]
Rp
3
+(a - a2)(ZoR
+"ZF
+3RG) 1+3ZOZ2 +(1-a2)RF(ZO +3RG)t(4-a')Z2"Zt9Z2RG+4(I-a2)Rpl
(a2- a) [CZ'I{(Z2 + )
CZ ,I[(1- a2) (RF)

Zzt 2"
RF) +3RG(aRF-Zz)t(a-a2)"ZZo+(a-I)TZ2+3aT
RF
RF
RF2
CZI,[a(RF)
ZdT +(a-a2)(Rp
ZO+T+3RG )] -CoZo'(Zzt"Z
CZ+2 (Z2 +) +(a2-a)(zo +
(Z2
+ 3RG)
(Z2 + ) (Zo - CoZ'o)
(Z2 - CZ'2) (zo +
RF)(Zo +2"
RF + 3RG ) +"Z
RF (Zd Zo +Rd 3RG)
cz 'I(Zzt Rd Zo + 3RG)t (Zd T
+ (a2-
(C - C~ (Zzt )
.
- COjZ2
+R)
' +RF
- C(Zo
"Z + 3RG )
C(Z2 +R/ +Zo +3RG)
C
C
C
-C
Kh
Phase b-Phase c-Ground
Phase a-Ground
Phase b-Phase c
Three-phase
5.11
Fault
TABLE
I)(CZ'I + R,)
Z'I +~
2C
Z'I+~C
Z'I+~C
Z..
+(a-al)z al
I -c- Z-c R'
Z'I +(al-a)z
-c- Z-ca RF
Z'I+~C
z'
1
E(ZItZ2+RF)
1
E(ZI HF)
(a - al)CZ'1 - 3Zz +(a - I)RF
(a -
t')
KV..
2(aZ- a) (CZ'I +
(aZ- a)(CZ'1 + R,)
KV
CZ'I[(1- al)(Zz +
(a - a2)CZ'I +3Zz +(I - a2)RF
(1- a2)(CZ'I +RF)
KV
I)(Zo +3RF)
C(a - al)
C(a-I)
K(I. -1.)
I)(Zo +3RF)
It)
3C
I)(Zo + 3RF)
+(a - al)Zz +(I - aZ)(Zo +3RF)
(a - al)Z2 +(a 13C
Z'
Z'
a2)Zz +(a -
(ZI +Zz +Zo +3RF)
- JCZ'I +(a -
(aZ - a)(Zo +2Z2l +3(al - a)RF
3CZ'I - (aZ - a)Zz - (aZ-
CZ,I[(a - 1) (RF)
Zz +"'2
al) (ZoR
+ "2F+)
lRG] -
R, - [3Zz +(I - a)RFl (Zo + R,

(I - a) (RF)
Zl + "2 2"
2" +lRG )
Z'
I-
ZIt
Z' I +~
2C
f +3RG) +(1- al) (Z2+ f)]
, a) ( Zo + RF)
C[(a2" +3RG +(1
- a) (RF)]
Z2+ 2"
RF
[3Zz +(1 - a)RFl (Zo + RF)
2" +lRG +(I - a) (RF)
Z2+ 2" T
C[(a- al) (zo +
[3Zz +(I - al)RFl (Zo +RF)

2 + 3RG t(1 - al) (RF)
Z2+ 2" RF
"2
1[
p
1ZI ]
E
ZIZ2R
+Z2Z0 +Zoll
+ "2 (ZI +Zz +Zo) +lRG(ZI +Zz + RF) +4
+(a -
t') +(a- al) (zo +1' +3RG)] +(1- al) (Zl +~) i +[3Zz +(I -al)RFl (zo +1' +lRG)
(al - a) (CZ'I +~) {(ZZ + t') + 2(Zo +t + lRG)}
C[(a -I) (Zz +~) +(a - al) (Zo +~ +3RG)]
C[(al - a) {Zz + 3~F +2(Zo + 3RG)}]
2C(al - a)
C(a2 - a)
K(I. - Ie)
-3C
c[(1-a2)(Zztt') +(a-a2)(zo+1 +3RG)]
~.-+c-Ground
3C
-;,
C(a - a2)
~.
C(I- al)
3~
Values of Relay Quantities for Different Types of Faults

~.(Jround
K(I. -1.)
Quantity
5.12
Currents and Potentials Supplied to Phase Distance Relays
TABLE
+ CoZ/o
2CZ'I
+ CoI/o
- CZ' I
+ CoZ'o + 3RF
Z' l
Zi l
+ CoI/o
Z\
- CZ' I
2CZ' I
+ Zz + Zo + 3RF)
Z'
+ (aZ I
a)Zo - 3aRF
Zo
Z'I
+ (l c- C
a)Zz
Z' I --I- -,-(a_-_a~2)_Z=-2-'.+_(,-'_-_az..:..)Z-,o::....-_3_aZ_R..:..F

Z'o
C-CoZ'I
2C
CoZ'O
Z'I
Z'I+~
1
E(ZI
i)
Z' I ( Zz
Co Z'
+ 3 (Zo + ~F + 2RG)]
+ RF
"2 + 3RG)] -
[CZII - CoZ'o
aZ.~(
) Zo
+ RF)
"2
+ RF)
"2
Z'I
,RF
1) -
Zz
+ -3 a2RFz
+ (a -
RF
RF
3
aZ) - Zo + (a - I) - Zz + - aRFz
2
2
4
)
Z'
R )
+ (a -"aZ) (Zo -I- R
,; + 3RG ] - Co Z/~ (ZZ + 2F
R)] Z' ( R.
a) (Zo + ,; + 3RG - Co Z/~ Zz + ;
RF
a) - Zo -I- (a2
Z' I
+ ~F + 2RG)
Z'
C-Co~
3 (Zo
+ (a2 +R
-{) +(aZ -
3RG(aRF - Z2)
c[az (ZZ
3RG(a2RF - Z2)
+ C[
R
Cl (Z2 + -f-)
Z'I+
R
F
E1 [
ZIZz +
ZzZo -+- ZoIl
+ 2" (ZI + Zz + Zo) -I- 3RG(ZI + Z2 + RF) + 43 RF2]
[facing p. 272
R F ) -+-(a-a2) (
R F ) ] -CoIo
' (ZZ+"2
RF) -+-3RG(aRF-ZZ>+(a-a2)"2Zo+(a-l)"2Zz+"4RF
RF
RF
3a 2
CZI,[a (Z2+"2
ZO+-i-+-3RG
RF) +(a2 -a) (

R F )--CoIo
] ' ( ZZ+"2
RF) +3RG(aZRF-Zz)+(a2-a)"2Zo+(aZ-I)
RF
RF
3a2
CZII [
a2(ZZ+2
ZO+"2+3RG
IZz+TRF2
RF) + (a +"2
Z' oI ( Zz
a) (
ZoR
+ "2F
+)
3RG] - Co Z'
~:~)(Zz + i)
oPb-4>c-Ground
(C - Co
RF) + (a2 +"2
(Zz
C [ a ( Zz
C [ a2 ( Zz
Values of Relay Quantities for Different Types of Faults

oP..-Ground
+ (a Z-a)Zz + (a Z -1)Zo + CoI/o +

+ 3azRF
CZ ' I + (a - aZ)Zz + (a - I)Zo + CoI/o +
+ 3aRF
- CZ'I
5.13
Currents and Potentials Supplied to Ground Distance Relays
TABLE
6
S'fJitehed "lUI Polyphase lJistaDf!e
Bel"ys
Reduction of Measuring Units-Automatic Switching SchemesPolyphase Distance Relay-Phase and Amplitude ComparatorsAnalysis of Polyphase Comparators
6.1. REDUCTION OF MEASURING UNITS
The early time-distance schemes had the merit of simplicity. Since the
operating time was proportional to the distance of the fault from the relay
only one relay was necessary per phase, but the clearing time was high for
faults near the end of the protected section (fig. 6.1). The stepped timedistance scheme was introduced in Canada in 1925 by Paul Ackerman. It
Time
FIG.
6.1. Faster overall time with stepped time distance characteristic
had the advantage of reducing the overall clearing time by the shaded areas
in fig. 6.1 and is now universally used.
The normal stepped time-distance scheme consists of fault detectors,
distance measuring units and logic units; the latter include timing units,
auxiliary relay units and flag indicators.
Theoretically, four fault detectors and 18 measuring units are required for
providing three time-distance steps for the ten varieties of phase-to-phase and
phase-to-ground faults. Because of the cost and panel space so many units
would require, their number is reduced in practice by using each measuring
unit for more than one purpose. In almost all modern distance relays the
K
273
6.1
Protective Relays
number of ohmic measuring units is reduced to a third by using the same

units for the three time zones. Their ohmic reach is progressively increased
through contacts on a timing unit, in a manner already described in Chapter 5,
section 5.4.3.
The number of measuring units is sometimes reduced to three by using
the same set for phase and ground faults. The distance measuring units in
modem schemes of this type are normally connected for phase faults (i.e.
with delta potential and delta current) and are switched to wye connections
only when a single phase ground fault occurs. This provides immediate
clearing of interphase faults and a small delay in clearing single-phase-toground faults. This is considered expedient because of the greater effect of
interphase faults upon the ability of the system to transmit load. This
arrangement is shown schematically in fig. 6.2c.
In continental Europe, since 1930, a single measuring unit has been used
for all faults, the proper voltage and current being selected for each kind of
fault by a rather complicated connection of the contacts of the fault detectors;
this is shown schematically in a simplified form in fig. 6.3. Similar switching
circuits are used for the current and potential circuits of the relay; a, b, c and
n are fault detectors in the three phases and the residual circuit. Fig. 6.3 gives
wye potential for all double ground faults and is used on systems grounded
through ground fault neutralising reactors.
The economy of using a single measuring unit has to be balanced against
the following disadvantages:
(a) time delay required for the fault detectors to assess the type of fault,
which results in a minimum tripping time of at least 01 second compared with 002 second with non-switched relays;
(b) complete loss of protection if the single ohmic unit or any of the
switching contacts fail;
(c) possible wrong tripping if the type of fault changes during operation
of the relay (effect of wind on arcing faults);
(d) inaccuracy due to differing phase impedance (effect of unsymmetrical
transposition of conductors);
(e) possible reduction in reliability due to dependence upon a number of
contacts in series in the a.c. switching circuits.
The effect of these considerations is that schemes with six measuring
units are generally used for important lines of 100 kY and above, with
solidly grounded neutrals, because they require fast tripping and maximum
reliability.
For distribution lines, switched distance relays with a single measuring
unit can be economically applied as a substitute for the normal time-overcurrent relays where high speed is required. For medium voltage lines, below
100 kY, a number of different switched relay schemes are in use, including
the A - Y switched scheme and the interphase scheme in which separate
single unit switched schemes are used for phase faults and ground faults.
274
Switched and Polyphase Distance Relays

<l
b c
(a)
..
!I,o.\'OI\ but bOon
' ,",'
p .TI
"'-
"''''
~,
-"""'"
.-.,
-"""""
V,
i~
cl:
c .TI,
e
~
Hr
L.!&.
...!I..
...l&.
Ie
.!S..
' W '"
t ~ -l-.L +
Hf
0.- ~
'I G
~ \MN '
"-
+-~
n1
$" ,.,62e
""iF"
...
g... I
I
HtJ
(b)
x---f.-
(1
--0
-X
(1
(c)
6.2. Time distance relays for all faults

(a) Early scheme
(b) Later scheme
(c) Blocking contacts for double-ground faults
FIG.
275
6.1
6.3
Protective Relays
(b)
6.3. One distance relay for all faults
(a) Basic switching circuit. (b) Typical European circuit
FIG.
6.2. EARLY SWITCHING SCHEMES
The first switched schemes appeared in the late 'twenties and early 'thirties;
they were simple but less accurate than modern schemes. Because of their not
always employing the particular currents and potentials necessary for precise
measurement in each type of fault, they were used only with impedance
relays (where phase relation is unimportant) and accepted a certain variation
in distance measurement. Most early schemes used wye current for all types
of faults, wye potential for three-phase and phase-to-ground faults and half
the line-to-line potential for phase-to-phase faults. For double ground
faults some schemes used wye potential and some used half the line-to-line
potential, as shown in fig. 6.2a. Overcurrent starting units, Sa' Sb' Sc and Sg
determined the type of fault and applied the appropriate potential to the
measuring relays. Zg is a compensating impedance whose value depended
upon the Zo/Z 1 ratio of the protected line.
6.3. DEL TA-WYE SWITCHING
The simple scheme shown in fig. 6.2b can be used for distance relays of the
impedance or the admittance type and the timing unit can be started by a
polyphase overcurrent or mho type fault detector on phase faults, and by a
residual current or power relay on ground faults.
With reactance relays, the switching to wye voltage must only be permitted on single phase ground faults and the delta connections must be retained for double ground faults. This is because, on a double ground fault, the
current in the leading of the two phases involved in the fault may be almost
in phase with the corresponding wye voltage and the relay may measure zero
or negative reactance and hence trip inadvertently. This is prevented by connecting the contacts of the fault detector auxiliary relays so that the switch
to wye voltage is prevented if more than one of them operates (fig. 6.2c).
This scheme has been used in Europe but the rather large number of
contacts required tends to offset the saving of three measuring units; in fact,
276
6.4
for this reason, most manufacturers use six reactance units where high speed
(003 second) is necessary and a single reactance unit switched for all faults
where 015 second operating time is acceptable.
6.4. INTERPHASE SWITCHING
This consists of one measuring unit for phase faults and one for ground
faults, these units being switched to the appropriate phase or phase pair by
the fault detectors.
The phase and ground protection are two separate schemes, fig. 6.4 for
phase faults and fig. 6.5 for ground faults. A cheaper alternative is to use the
switched distance relay only for phase faults and to use residual current relays
for ground faults. This in fact is preferable for solidly grounded systems
where the fault current magnitude varies sufficiently with the fault location
to provide selectivity (see Chapter 4, section 4.1.2), especially on multiple
grounded systems where most of the zero sequence current comes from the
nearest grounding point, thus ensuring that the current for an internal fault
is always much greater than for an external fault. A residual time-current
relay with a very inverse time characteristic and an instantaneous unit is
commonly used for this purpose and it not only provides economical protection against ground faults but also considerably simplifies the circuitry
of the switched distance relay, as is shown in fig. 6.4.
Another argument in favour of residual inverse time current relays
is the fact that at stations where there is an ungrounded power source or a
solidly grounded neutral and no power source enough fault current can return
via the healthy phases to cause additional fault detectors to operate and
hence cause wrong switching.
In fig. 6.4 lop is the current (operating) coil of the mho type distance
measuring unit, Vrest is its restraining potential coil and Vpo1 js its polarising
potential coil. The fault detectors a and c are instantaneous overcurrent
relays in phases a and c with a drop-out current about 60 % of pick-up. This
is satisfactory on lines of 33 kV and below where the minimum phase fault
current is at least tMce the maximum load current. Where lower phase fault
currents are possible the fault detectors require a high drop-out/pick-up
ratio and hence can only carry one contact; this necessitates auxiliary relays
to provide the extra contacts necessary for current and potential switching.
Similarly, in fig. 6.5, the fault detectors a, band care undervoltage relays.
On resistance grounded systems the phase-to-neutral voltage drops to 50 %
or less during a single-phase to ground fault, permitting the relay to carry
the necessary switching contacts. On solidly grounded systems the voltage
on the faulted phase may not drop to less than 80 %of normal and auxiliary
relays must be interposed to do the switching.
In fig. 6.5, lop is the current (operating) coil, 10 is the zero sequence
compensating winding, To is the compensating transformer, Vrest is the
restraining potential coil of the reactance unit and the directional starting
unit and VpOI is the polarising potential coil of the starting unit. Vpol is shown
277
Protective Relays
6.4
Pot~ntiClI
Au .C.T. lor
ohmic a.diu.tmtnt
(a)
(b)
FIG.
6.4. One mho relay for interphase faults

(a) Diagram of a.c. circuit
(b) Photo of relay
278
6.4
energised by residual potential but on solidly grounded systems it is generally

necessary to use the line-to-line potential in quadrature with the current;
this requires extra switching contacts.
In the U.S.A. a reduction in the number of switching contacts has been
achieved by using voltage compensation instead of current compensation.
This is illustrated in fig. 6.6. The use of residual current (Ires = 3/0 ) eliminates
any current switching. The potential switching between phases requires only
To P.T's.
~
Q
ben
To
C.Ts.
FIG .
6.5. One reactance relay for single-phase ground faults
one NO and one NC contact per fault detector so that auxiliary switching
relays can be eliminated and the scheme is a very simple one from the point
of view of contacts. For this reason it is also applicable to static relays.
In fig. 6.5, compensation for the zero sequence voltage drop between the
relay and the fault is accomplished by adding a portion of the residual current
to the phase current.
It was proved in Appendix 5.10.1 of the previous chapter that the relay
would measure Zl if KIo were added to the phase current supplied to the
Z/O-Z/ I
relay, where K =
where Z/ 1 and Z/ o were the positive and zero
Zl
sequence impedances of the protected section of line.
The alternative to current compensation is potential compensation. The
relay can be supplied only with 10 in the current circuit and the phase-toneutral potential can have the positive and negative sequence voltage components removed. Since IIZ I = 12 Z 2 on transmission lines the compensa.
Va- 2/ 1 Z I 10Zo
tlon can be 2/1Z I The relay then measures
= - - = Zoo
(6.1)
10
10
In order to measure Xo instead of Zo either a phase or an amplitude
I
279
6.5
Protective Relays
comparator can be employed. In a phase comparator, such as an induction

cup relay, the operating and polarising windings have 10 and the restraining
winding the compensated phase-to-neutral voltage which must be switched
to the faulted phase by a suitable fault detector (phase sc\ector), as shown in
fig. 6.5.
Fig. 6.6. shows an amplitude comparator used in the U.S.A. for this
purpose. It compares the compensated phase-to-neutral potential V - 2/1Z' 1
Op~ra.t&
FIG.
6.6. Ground reactance relay with Vo compensation
with the vectorial difference of the compensated voltage and 2l0Xo where
X' 0 is the replica reactance for the protected section.
Balance then occurs when
(6.2)
-21 1 Z 1 -21 0 Xo = 1V-2ltZ~
from(6.1)
i.e. when
11oZo- 2/ 0Xol = I/oZ.o1
R02+(Xo-2XO)2 = R~+X~
or
i.e. when
Xo=Xo
IV
6.5. SWITCHING FOR ALL FAULTS
Impedance and conductance relays with a single measuring unit are

popular in continental Europe. Fig. 6.7a shows the circuit of a typical
German impedance relay using an amplitude comparator consisting of a
circulating current rectifier bridge and a rotary moving coil relay. An interesting feature of these relays is that the d.c. for energising the auxiliary relays is
derived from the current circuit through a saturating c.t. and a rectifier, at the
cost of 20 VA extra burden at c.t. rating. Ohmic measurement is carried out
by comparing the phase voltages with the voltage drop across resistors in the
current circuits. This requires an extremely sensitive measuring unit (50 p,W);
the contacts are necessarily light but their carrying capacity is increased by a
torque augmenting circuit (shown in fig. 2.32a of Chapter 2).
These relays are designed primarily for operation on power systems
grounded through Petersen coils. For this reason the measuring unit receives
wye potential instead of delta potential during a double ground fault so that,
if it is of the 'cross-country' type (i.e. two single-phase ground faults on
different phases and in different line sections), only one phase is cleared and
only one line section isolated, leaving the other phase to be cleared by the
Petersen coil. This will be understood by reference to the following table of
280
6.5

Imp,danc.
unit
To
en.
DireetlonC1l
unit
ReSistors
(a)
Q.
Induetlon cup
MHO rCIa.y
r-----Q.
b
To
P.Ts.
(b)
flO.
6.7. One impedance relay for all faults (European)

(a) With current shunts. (b) With auxiliary C.ts.
operation. It will be seen that a phase fault to ground causes no relay operation; this is permissible on a Petersen coil grounded system because singlephase ground faults are self-extinguishing but, on other systems, an additional
fault detector is necessary.
One advantage of the scheme in fig. 6.7a is the fact that the current and
potential switching can be similar but the use of the voltage drop across
TABLE 6.1
Operation of European Switching Scheme
Fault
a-b b-c c-a a-g b-g
Current la-lb Ib-Ic la-Ie la-Klo
Potential fab
Vbc
Vac
Va
a-b-g b-c-g c-a-g

c-g
3</>
-Ie+Klo la-Klo -Ie+Klo -le+Klo la-I.
-Ve
-Ve
-Vc
Va
Va.
281
6.5
Protective Relays
the resistors in the c.t. secondaries for supplying the current circuit necessitates
an extremely sensitive comparator circuit and relay unless the output of the
comparator bridge is amplified before it is fed to the output relay.
Where less sensitive relays are used, such as the induction cup, the C.t.
secondary current must be supplied directly or through an auxiliary C.t.
This means that the current switching circuit must be different from the
potential switching circuit because the main c.t. secondaries must be shortcircuited when not connected to the relay; this is illustrated in fig. 6.7b
which shows the connections of another German relay giving the same
switching of current and potential, except that on a c-a fault the ground
relay is connected to phase a instead of phase c.
A compromise between these two methods is to replace the resistors in the
current circuit by transactors and compare the transactor output voltages
with the line secondary potentials in a voltage comparator. This scheme
permits the use of an induction cup relay and yet allows the current and
potential circuits to be the same.
Fig. 6.8 shows the simplified circuitry of an English switched reactance
relay. In England, France and the U.S.A., reactance relays are preferred for
Phnst
o-----r-----<>n
<>----+--r----o b
To
e...+":':::::"h~ITtll-oc
P.T~,
To
C,TS.
L--...L...+-H-r-o n
FIG.
6.S. One reactance relay for all faults
ground faults because of the risk of high fault resistance which could prevent
a mho or impedance relay from operating; for this reason the use of a single
measuri.ng unit for phase and ground faults requires that it should be of the
reactance type.
The scheme shown in fig. 6.8 gives accurate measurement for all types of
faults since it provides the correct currents and potentials, as shown in
Table 5.7 of Chapter 5. The current circuit is very simple, having only one
282
6.6
transfer contact per phase. In spite of the extra switching needed for the
polarising potential circuit of the starting unit, the total number of contacts is
no more than for the simplest switched impedance scheme.
The directional polarising coil uses the same voltage as the restraining
coils, i.e. the faulted voltage. In order to ensure correct directional action for
an interphase fault very close to the bus, the directional polarising voltage is
augmented by 5 % of the voltage from the phase or phase pair leading the
faulted phase or phase pair. Memory action is ineffective in switched schemes
because it cannot be sustained for more than 2 cycles after the inception of
the fault.
6.2
TABLE
Comparison of Switched Distance Schemes

Measuring
Scheme
Minimum Trip Time

Ground
Phase
Fault
Fault
Units
Normal (unswitched)
Delta-wye
Interphase
Complete switching
Polyphase relays
1
1
5
5
1
6
3
2
1
1
cycle
cycle
cycles
cycles
cycle
1
5
5
5
1
cycle
cycles
cycles
cycles
cycle
6.6. PHASE SELECTORS
Overcurrent fault detectors are used for phase selection in low and medium
voltage systems for interphase faults because the minimum fault current
exceeds the maximum load current magnitude. They are also used for singlephase ground faults on such systems when they are solidly grounded. The
a.
d.
~/
va
/ Vc
c~-----+------~b
/1
Vpol.= 3Vo
IVc
(a.)
(c)
FIG.
6.9. Operation of undervoltage phase selectors
283
6.7
Protective Relays
resetting current of such fault detectors should be at least 90 %of their operating current value in order to ensure that they reset during an overload condition that may exist after the fault is cleared.
Medium voltage networks, however, are often grounded through resistance so that the minimum fault current does not necessarily exceed the
maximum load current. In such cases undervoltage relays are used for detecting single-phase ground faults and their contacts are sometimes connected in
parallel with those of the overcurrent fault detectors. Fig. 6.9 shows how the
wye voltage of the faulted phase is reduced by a single-phase ground fault
while the other two wye voltages are actually increased.
A more reliable phase selector than the overcurrent unit for single-phase
ground faults, which can be used on both grounded and ungrounded systems,
measures the phase angle between the residual potential and each of the lineto-line potentials. In the faulted phase the line-to-line potential lags the zero
sequence potential by about 90; in the other two phases the angles are about
210 and 330.
Other alternatives are (a) to compare the magnitudes of each pair of wye
potentials, (b) to measure the phase angle between the negative and zero
sequence components of current in each phase, (c) to compare the wye
potential to ground with the corresponding wye potentials to a floating
neutral.
8.7. POLYPHASE DISTANCE RELAYS
It would seem that polyphase relays would be more appropriate than

single-phase relays for protecting a polyphase system. Unfortunately, it has
not yet been found possible to devise the circuitry for obtaining uniform
performance on all kinds of faults. One set of connections will give the same
performance on multi-phase faults, i.e. three phase, phase-to-phase and
double ground, and another set will give the same performance on ground
faults, i.e. single and double phase-to-ground. Even if a universal connection
were found it would not be entirely practical because the effect of load current
could swamp the contribution of a light single phase-to-ground fault.
Table 6.3 shows the current and potential vectors at the fault location and
also their sequence components. Inspection of these indicates three conditions
that exist at the fault location.
(a) The line-to-neutral and line-to-line potentials are all in phase for inter-
phase faults.
(b) VI = V2 for all interphase faults.
(c) VI = V2 + Vo for single-phase ground faults.
This indicates that polyphase distance relays (both phase and amplitude
comparator types) can be made, using potentials at the relay location and
compensating for the IZ drops in the line between the relay and the fault.
The nearest approach to a practical solution is a phase comparator compensated for line drops and zero sequence components, to give the phase-toneutral potentials at the fault which give a zero sine product for a fault at the
284
6.8

TABLE
F<1ult
6.3 Phase Sequence Quantities in Faults

Currt nh
Volt<1g<>
Pas.
uro
Ntg.
Ph<1n
lora
Ntg.
Po .
PhQ
<1
</l-</l
</l - </l -G
#-'
J..
...",
A -, .. ~
A
<1
J.. '
o.b c
a.
<1-0
<1
~b
0.=0
<1
c-
a.
c
' y'"
Q_O
.,r-.....
+
a.
Qbc
<1
<1be
..I.
b=c=O
c.,r-.....b
e~b
~ C" y ..t'
- "'y"'" +
e b
a.
</l-G
<1
<1
ebb
Ph<1se
a.
<1
btl'
'
..
<1
b~c=O
balance point. Even this scheme underreaches for a balanced three-phase

fault and requires a second relay to clear such faults. Amplitude comparators
appear to offer a solution; however, they are not true polyphase devices but
rather three single-phase comparators which are paralleled to a single output
(tripping) device. They will all be discussed in the following section because
they offer some measure of economy over single-phase relays at the expense
of individual phase flagging.
8.8. POLYPHASE PHASE COMPARATORS
As early as 1928 European single-phase distance relays have utilised the

fact that the faulted phase potential, compensated for the /Z drop to the fault,
is zero, i.e. the relay operates when (IZ' - V) is positive (Z' is a replica
impedance equivalent to that of the protected line section; V and / are
measured at the relay). In 1946, the author suggested a polyphase distance
relay for measuring the sine product of the two compensated wye potentials, i.e.
{(/,,+K'/o)Z'-v,,} {(/b+K'Io)Z'-Vb} sin IX
(6.3)
where IX is the angle between the two compensated potentials. In 1948 an
American company produced a similar relay for phase faults only (46),
omitting the zero sequence compensation K 'loZ'.
Fig. 6.10a shows the basic connections for one phase, the other being
simila(. The resistor R adjusts the phase angle of the secondary voltage /Z
of the transactor to suit the line phase angle, 4J = tan - 1 ~. The voltage
supplied to each winding of the relay is of the form (/Z - V).
Fig. 6.10b shows a preferred method using current comparison. Each
relay winding is supplied with a current of the form
285
(I -;, ), where Z' is
6.8
Protective Relays
c:r.'f-__. , J
Aux.c:rr a
Sta.tion bus
StQtion bus
P.T.
P.T.
R~pljca.
ImpedQnc.,Z.
IZ
ce
n.
Sin. product r_IQY
."
e=
v"
...,
~
v ..
Ole
e-=
a..
Son. product r.la.y
(b)
(a)
FIG. 6.10. Polyphase distance relay

(a) Potential phase comparison. (b) Current phase comparison
__________________
~
St
_Q._lio
_
n
_b
_
u
_s
____________
_ _ _ _ _ _ a.
~--~----------------------------------~~-------b
R~plica.
im p_dane.:
P.TS<:._-=_...".....
.,
i"
...,~
"
b======:---------~-~--~]
(a)
(c)
(b)
FIG.
6.11. (a) Polyphase mho relay (phase comparator) for phase faults
(b) Induction cup phase comparator
(c) Static (Hall effect) phase comparator
286
6.8
the replica impedance. Here again the connections are shown only for one
phase; the other is similar.
Fig. 6.11 shows schematically the three-phase connections of a potential
phase comparator for phase faults only. The torque of the relay is the sine
product
(6.4)
which is zero when the two quantities are in phase or when either quantity is
zero. Fig. 6.12 shows the effect of a b - c fault on the wye and delta potentials.
a.
/1 ~
/1 1\\
// f I
\\ Fa.ulted a.nd compensa.ted
II'I~
I
\
/ I
/ I
II
\Y
\ \
Fa.ulted
/ ,I \ \
/
Ie
,"
FIG.
,I
, ,,,
/
'/
, I
'
\
/Norma.1
\v
1
\\
I
\ \
HI
\\
\\
6.12. Effect of b - c fault on potentials at relay
abc is the normal triangle of line-to-line potentials. aFE is the triangle of

potentials at the relay location. ab' c' is the potential triangle after -compensation, i.e. the potentials of the relay windings. aHG shows the completely collapsed triangle at the fault. The relay torque is proportional to the
sine product of two of the compensated potentials, i.e. to the area of the
triangle ab' c'.
Fig. 6.13 shows the effect of the compensation on the relay voltages.
Fl is the fault position corresponding to fig. 6.12, where the sequence of the
relay voltages is the same as normal so that the relay contacts stay open ..
F2 is a fault at the balance point where the compensated voltage triangle is
completely collapsed and the relay torque is zero. For the internal fault F3 ,
the potentials are compensated and the base of the triangle is inverted so that
the phase sequence of the compensated voltages is reversed, their sine product
is negative and the relay contacts close.
287
6.8
Protective Relays
Sine
F4
----1
~ P~~~~f~~d
rea.ch~
rJ..,-;
--1)>f-f----1~ 1~Ia.y
:
ia.ult
behini relay
product
rz
Rela.y
loca.tion :
Fa.ult within
bala.ncf point
'7
)1
rela.y
FI
ofof---:)(~I- -
:
Fa.ult a.t
bala.ncf point
:
Fa.ult beyond
bala.ncr point
A ,A. iG. it.
- - System voltagu at bus A ~abc)

- - - - Compensator voltages IZ
- - Net vOltagos applied to induction cup unit
For simplicity fault currents and </J-N voltages Clro not shown
FIG.
6.13. Effect of compensation on potentials at relay location
The relay of fig. 6.11 does not operate on three-phase faults because the
three-phase fault affects both compensators equally and for an internal fault
two of the potentials are reversed so that the phase sequence is reversed by
one and corrected by the other, hence the phase sequence remains normal.
Consequently, balanced three-phase faults must either be taken as a calculated
improbability or must be covered by an additional single-phase distance
relay.
Fig. 6.14 shows the connections .of a current comparator for protection
against both phase and ground faults. It uses wye instead of delta potentials
and employs zero sequence current compensation to ensure correct operation
on phase-to-ground faults. Fig. 6.12 shows that, in a phase-to-phase fault,
compensated wye voltages are also in phase for a fault at the balance point
and hence the operation is equally reliable with wye or delta potentials. On
ground faults, however (fig. 6.15) the wye potentials are not in phase at the
fault location and the relay has zero torque for a single phase-to-ground
fault on two of the phases but not on the third. For example, in fig. 6.15, if
the relay is energised from phases a and b it will not trip for a fault between
phase c and ground.
An extra single-phase distance relay is shown in fig. 6.14 which takes
care of phase c-to-ground faults and balanced three-phase faults.
The foregoing phase comparators are based on 4-pole induction cup relays
because they are sine product devices. It would be impractical to use dynamometer relays or any form of static relay now available because they are cosine
product devices, and the use of a phase-shifting circuit for one phase would
give a tendency to transient overreach.
It is impractical to use phase sequence components, either singly or in
groups, for phase comparison because the positive and negative sequence
components have opposite phase rotation and such a relay would operate
differently, depending upon which phases were involved.
288
6.8

____~--------~S~tn~t~lo~n~b~u.~bd~r~
. ----------------~ ~
---r1---------------------------~_r b
~~~--------------------------------~~~ c
P.Ts.
c:r.
ncb
~,
S.cond~y
-------
pountlar
abc
bu.
Prouct."
line
6.14. Phase comparator polyphase distance relay for all faults
FIG.
Rclo.y torque
R.lo.y torque
a.
I
T-
lZ~\
IZr
Va
\\
\
_/'
I/'/'
ct.::::..- - - - - - - - -
\
\
IZ~\
,,
/'
,,
/ /'/'
1IC:..
________ _ \
(a.)
FIG.
6.15. Operation of phase comparator distance relay on a single-phase

ground fault
(a) External fault. (b) Internal fault
289
6.9
Protective Relays
6.9. POLYPHASE AMPLITUDE COMPARATORS
Amplitude comparators are best adapted to static circuits. They can use
either wye or phase sequence quantities; but neither gives much economy
over single-phase relays and the use of phase sequence quantities introduces
some loss in accuracy due to the use of sequence filters.
Where wye quantities are used the operating quantities can be paralleled
on one side and opposed to the paralleled restraining quantities so that the
strongest operating quantity is matched against the weakest restraining
quantity. A preferable arrangement, however, is to parallel the outputs of
three single-phase comparators as listed below. The sign is used to denote
the summation of the outputs of the three phases in the following equations.
Tripping occurs when:
Impedance
LI{l-K'/o)Z'1 > LIVI
Reactance
L12(1 - K' I o)X' - Vi > LIVI
LI(I -K'/o)Z'1 > LIV -2(l-K'/o)Z'IAdmittance
(6.5)
(6.6)
(6.7)
Fig. 6.16 shows the basic circuit for the polyphase admittance relay; the
others are self-evident. These circuits are advantageous with rectifier bridge
circuits but uneconomical to apply to electromechanical relays. With the
former, only three comparators are needed for phase and ground faults
instead of the normal six.
In the case of the polyphase reactance relay a polyphase admittance
starting relay is needed to prevent it from tripping on load. This was explained
with single phase reactance relays in Chapter 5.
Fig. 6.17 shows a circuit using phase sequence components. In these
circuits all the rectified potentials are added except the positive sequence
voltage V 1 , which is reversed for providing restraint. They are less accurate
than the circuits using wye quantities because (a) sequence filters introduce
an error which increases with the load on them and (b) when a number of
large quantities are combined, producing a small resultant near the balance
point, small errors in the large quantities produce large errors in the
output.
Fig. 6.16 is based on the fact that 1V11-1V21 = 0 at the fault location
for all faults except single-phase-to-ground faults where IV11-1 V21-1 Vo 1= O.
The fault values of potentials are obtained by compensating the phase potentials at the relay before they are applied to the sequence filters. The underreach of the relay on single-phase ground faults is remedied by a monitoring
relay which cuts in the component IVo - 10Zo I on the operating side when
Vo > KV2 where K > 1 and depends upon the ratio of Zo to Z1' An alternative is to start with 1V1 - I1Z' 1-1V2 + 12Z' 1-lVo +10Zo I and either cut out
the 1V0 +/oZo I component or double the 1V2+12Z'1 component when a
double ground fault occurs. This alternative is less beneficial because it
involves a race to prevent overreaching, whereas the first method merely
involves a slight delay in tripping single-phase ground faults.
290
Q.
~
u
~
..,
C.T.
FIG.
faZa
(a)
V"
Vc
N
Va
( Iv)
4>-G Fa..u lt
( III)
~-4K1 Fa.ult E
( ii)
4>- 4> Fa..ul t E
( I)
34> Fa.ult
V,
(b)
I't-V~=O
--------------------1
V;'=V2+V~
!,~
!'Zi
J.'I=~
I,Z,
ft~
6.16. (a) Amplitude comparator polyphase mho relay for all faults. (b) Phase sequence voltage distribution during faults
Tra.nsa.clors
R
lZ
Sta.llon bus
[J
6.10
Protective Relays
, -________________~S~~~ij~~~b~u~s~b~~r~s_______________r----~
+-r-----------------------------------~~---b
SenSl!,ve differen!".1
POlo.rl:~ rela.y
. - -- t i c-/ - - ---,
Rtttificr
bridgcs
Sequence
potentia.l t--+-t--l
filhr. t--+--f-+--!
Scconda.ry
potentia.!
bus
Protected
lin'
Singlc-phcuc-ground
1a.ult detector
FIG.
6.17. Basic circuit of polyphase amplitude comparator distance relay

using sequence components
The economical advantage of using three comparators instead of the six

required for single-phase distance relays is more or less cancelled by the cost
of the filters and the monitoring relay.
6.10. MISCELLANEOUS POLYPHASE RELAYS
The 8-pole induction cup relay makes an excellent polyphase directional

relay (see Chapter 4, section 4.5.1 (d)). It can also be used as a starting
unit (fig. 6.18) for a polyphase reactance relay for phase faults but it is not
Y.lo---+-==::::::...J
Vao--+-./
FIG.
6.18. a.c. Connections of induction cup fault detector (mho type)
accurate enough for mho or reactance distance measurement. Another useful

application of this relay (fig. 6.18) is for directional comparison pilot-wire
and carrier schemes, described in Chapter 7.
The induction cup unit can also be connected to produce a torque proportional to the sum of the torques of three single-phase reactance units, i.e.
292
6'11
L{/(I -
V sin cP)} but such a unit would cost about the same as three separate
units and could be used only for interphase faults because the operating
torque ex: I: + I~ + K/~, ex: I~ + I~ + K' I~ and the II component due to load
could cause serious inaccuracy during light single-phase ground faults
.tt. ANALYSIS OF POLYPHASE RELAYS

The following analysis refers to the phase comparator and the amplitude
comparator for all faults.
6.11.1. Polyphase Phase Comparator
The two windings of the sine product relay are energised with currents of
the form (I + K'I 0
:)
where K' =
Z~~Zi; Z;
is the replica im-
pedance of the protected section and is made equal to the positive sequence
impedance Z 1of the protected section; Zo is the zero sequence impedance of
the protected section. Alternatively, potentials of the form {(/+K'/o)Z; - V}
can be impressed on the windings. Both are equivalent mathematically.
Referring to the latter, in phase a we have (Ia + K'/o) Z'l - Va which, during a
phase-a-to-ground fault at the relay balance point, becomes
i{(2C+Co)Zi +Co(Z~-ZD-2CZ1-CoZ~-3R,}
(6.8)
This expression was obtained by substituting the values for la, 10 and Va
given in the Table 5.7 at the end of Chapter 5. K =
!(Z~ +Zz +Zo+R,)
where R, is the fault resistance and Zh Zz and Zo are total system impedances. It will be seen that all the terms in (6.8) cancel out except -3R,/K,
i.e. the expression is zero for a solid fault at the reach setting of the relay.
For the same fault the expression for phase b is
(Ib + K'Io)Zi - Vi,
= ~ {(Co - C)Zi + Co(Z~-ZD+/jjZz + CZi _(a Z -l)Zo - CoZ~ - 3a ZR,}
r.
1
Z-1)Zo-3a Z}
= K{",3JZz-(a
R,
(6.9)
Similarly, in phase c, for this phase-a-fault-to-ground we have
(Ic-K'/o)Zi -
=-
v;,
{(Co - c)Zi + Co(Zo -Zi)-~3jZ2 + CZi-(a -l)Zo -
1 ~-3jZz+(a-1)Zo+3aR,}
K{
CoZ~ -
3aR,}
(6.10)
It is clear that the product of the phase a quantity with either of the others
293
6.11
Protective Relays
is zero at the balance point if R, = O. If R, is not zero there will be a small

error, as in all mho relays, depending on the magnitude of R,.
The product of the two phases not involved in the fault times the sine of
the angle between them is a negative quantity, which shows that the relay
will not trip for a fault in the third phase. Consequently, a single-phase mho
unit is required for clearing single-phase ground faults in the third phase as
well as three-phase faults. This still makes the scheme practical because two
induction cup units are a great deal more economical than the six required
for normal phase and ground protection using single-phase relays.
On phase-to-phase faults between phases band c we have, for phase a
(III+K'Io)Zl- VII which is - i(2Z2+R,)
(6.11
For phase b we have (Ib+K'Io)Zl- v" which is
~( -j.j3cz1+jJ3CZ1-a 2R,+Z2) = i(Z2-a2R,)
(6.12)
For phase c we have (Ic + K1o)Zl - Vb which is
~(j~3CZ1-jJ3czl-aR,+z2) = ~(Z2-aR,)
(6.13)
Obviously, the sine product of any two of these quantities is zero at the
balance point, except for the error due to arc resistance which is present in
all mho and impedance relays; hence the relay works correctly for a phase
fault between any phase pair. It can be demonstrated that it works correctly
also on double-ground faults but it will not trip at all on balanced threephase faults because the compensation effects all phases equally and their
product is positive (restraining) whether the compensated voltages are
positive or negative.
6.11.2. Polyphase Amplitude Comparator
The relay measures the sum of the compensated voltages of the there
phases, viz.
(6.14)
II2(I+K'Io)ZlFor a phase a-to-ground fault the expressions for the phases are:
For Phase a
VI-IVI
~12(2C+Co)Zl +2Co(Zo-Zl.)-2CZ 1-CoZ o-3RA-
~ 12CZl +CoZo+3R,I
= ~12CZl +CoZ o-3RA - ~12CZl +CoZ o+3R,1 (6.15)

The difference between these moduli is zero except for the arc resistance terms.
294
6.11
For Phase c
1
/K
12(C o-C)Zi +2Co(Z~-ZJ.)-v 3jZ 2 + CZi-(a -1)Zo- CoZ~-3aRfl-
-kl-jZn-CZi-(a-l)Zo-CoZ~-3aRfl
1
r
K
I-CZ 1+CoZ~-v 3jZ 2 -(a-l)Zo-3aR f l-
~1.J3]z2-czl +(a-l)Zo+CoZ o+3aRf l
(6.17)
The sum of the moduli in expressions (6.15), (6.16) and (6.17) is zero for a
fault at the balance point only if all the impedances are homogeneous in
phase angle and Rf = O. This can be demonstrated by drawing the vectors
(first changing the a operators to j operators with the help of Table 1.1,
column 4).
Similarly, for a fault between phases band c, the relay outputs are as
follows:
Phase a
KI2(2Z2+Rf )l- KI2(2Z2+Rf)1 = 0
(6.18)
Phase b
/-
1- K1 /-.J3jCZ
1+a2~f-Z2/
K I-v 3j2CZ1+v 3jCZ 1-a 2Rf +Z2
(6.19)
Phase c
1.J3j2CZ'l-.j3jCZ1-aRf +Z21- K 1.j3jCZ1+aRf -Z21
(6.20)
Here again the moduli of (6.18) (6.19) and (6.20) sum to zero for a fault
at the balance point with homogenous impedances.
For a three-phase fault the expressions are
times the following:
Phase a
(6.21)
295
co
0)
I':)
2EZ2
Z1 +Z2
(a 2 - a)CZ'1 - Z2
E
Zl +Z2
(a - a2)CZ't - Z2 E
Zl +Z2
3Z2 + (a - a2)CZ'1 E
Zl +Z2
2(a2 - a)CZ'1 E
Zt +Z2
(a - a2)CZ'1 - 3Z2 E
Zt +Z2
C Z '1 E
Z1
a2C Z '1 E
Z1
aCZ'l E
Z1
Z'l
(1 - a2)C-E
Zt
Z't
(a2 - a)C-E
Zl
Z'
(a - I)C --.! E
Zt
Vea
VbC
Vab
Ve
Vb
Va
(Co - C)E
Zl +Z2 +Zo
Z2 +Zo + CZ't E
Z1 +Z2 +Zo
(CZ'2 -Z2)E
Zl +Z2 +ZO
~CoZ'O - Zo)E
Z1 +Z2 +ZO
2CZ'1 + CoZ'O E
Z1 +Z2 +ZO
(a2 - a)Z2 - CZ'1 + (a2 - l)Zo + CoZ'O E
Zl +Z2 +ZO
(a - a2 )Z2 - CZ't + (a - l)Zo + CoZ'o E
Zl +Z2 +Zo
3CZ'1 - (a2 - a)Z2 - (a2 - l)Zo E
Zl +Z2 +Zo
(a 2 - a)(Zo + 2Z2) E
Zl +Z2 +Zo
- 3CZ'1 + (a - a2)Z2 + (a - l)Zo E
Zl + Z2 +Zo
Phase a-Ground
CE
Zl +Z2 +Zo
CE
Zl +Z2 +Zo
CoE
Zl +Z2 +Zo
(2C + Co)E
Zl +Z2 +Zo
(Co - C)E
Zl +Z2 +Zo
Phases b-c-Ground
C(Z2 +Zo)E
ZlZ2 + Z2Z0 + ZoZl
CZoE
ZlZ2 + Z2Z0 + ZoZi
CoZ2E
ZlZ2 + Z2Z0 + ZoZl
Z2(C - Co)E
ZlZ2 + Z2Z0 + ZoZl
C[a2Z2 + (a 2 - a)Z01 - CoZ2 E
Z lZ2 + Z2Z0 + ZOZI
C[aZ2 + (a - a2)Zo1 - CoZ2 E
Z lZ2 + Z2Z0 + ZoZl
CZ't(Z2 + Zo) + Z2Z 0 E
ZlZ2 + Z2Z0 + ZoZl
ZO(Z2 - CZ' 2)
E
Zt Z 2 + Z2Z 0 + ZOZt
Z2(ZO - CoZ'O)
E
Zt Z 2 + Z2Z 0 + ZoZ1
Z2(3Z0 + CZ'1 - CoZ'O) E
Z1Z 2 + Z2Z 0 + ZoZt
CZ't[ a2Z2 + (a 2 - a)Zo1 - CoZ'oZ2 E
ZtZ2 + Z2Z0 + ZOZI
CZ't[aZ 2 + (a - a2)Zo1 - CoZ'oZ2 E
Z,Z2 + Z2Z0 + ZOZI
CZ't[(l - a2)Z2 + (a - a2)Zo1 + 3Z2Z 0 E
ZlZ2 + Z2Z0 + ZoZl
CZ'I(Z2 + 2Zo)(a2 - a) E
Z lZ2 + Z2Z0 + ZoZl
CZ'l[(a - I)Z2 + (a - a2)Zo1 - 3Z2Z0 E
ZlZ2 + Z2Z0 + ZoZt
Table 6.4 is similar to Table 5.11 except that the fault resistance terms have been omitted, which makes the
symmetry of the expressions more apparent and facilitates the checking of polyphase measuring units.
Vt
Ie
a2C E
Zl
Vo
C E
Zl
Ia
10
V2
lz
aCE
Zl
CZ'lE
Zl
C E
Zl
(a2 - a)CE
Zl +Z2
(a - a2)CE
Zl +Z2
Z2 + CZ'l E
Zl +Z2
Z2 - CZ'2 E
Zt +Z2
Phase b-Phase c
CE
Zl +Z2
CE
Zl +Z2
Three-phase
Fault
TABLE 6.4 Currents and Potentials During Fault Conditions
(I)
iii
-.;:
::0
(1)
(1)
........-.
"b
0
......
(1)
...
:..
eft
6.11
Phase b
12a2CZ~ -a2CZ~ -a2Rfl-la2CZ~ +a 2Rfl
(6.22)
Phase c
12aCZ~ -aCZ~ -aR f l-laCZ 1+aRfl
(6.23)
The moduli of these expressions also all cancel out showing the scheme
measures correctly on three-phase faults under the same conditions.
297
7
Directional Pilot Belaying
Basic Principle-Pilot Wire Schemes-Carrier Channel SchemesCarrier Signal Checking-Future Trends
7.1. BASIC PRINCIPLE
A 'unit' form of protection may be used when it is important to clear all

faults simultaneously at both ends of the protected section of line, such as
when high-speed automatic reclosing is used. For unit protection it is
necessary to exchange information about the fault conditions at each end of
the prott:cted section and either a pilot-wire or a carrier channel is used for
this purpose.
Two basic principles are employed (a) to compare the direction of power
flow at the two ends and (b) continuously to compare the instantaneous
phase relation of the currents at the two ends. The first method is the subject
of this chapter and the second will be dealt with in Chapter 8.
7.1.1. Directional Comparison
In directional comparison pilot schemes; the direction of power flow is

compared by means of the relative position of the contacts of directional
relays at the two ends of the protected section. This type of protection utilises
the fact that, during an external fault, the power must flow into the protected
section at one end and out at the other whereas, during an internal fault, the
power can flow inwards at both ends.
Directional relays at each end are connected so as to block tripping when
fault power flows from the protected line to the bus-bar (fig. 7.1). By suitably
interconnecting these directional relays through a pilot wire or a carrier
channel, the position of their contacts can be compared and thus the location
of the fault determined. An external fault (fig. 7.1 b) will cause the directional
relay at the end nearest the fault to block tripping at both ends of the protected section. On the other hand, tripping will not be blocked on an internal
fault (fig. 7.1a) because power flow will be from the bus into the line at both
ends, or at one end if there is a single end feed. Load current (fig. 7.1a) will
have the same effect as an external fault; the relay at the load end will prevent
tripping.
In Chapter 5, section 5.5.10, it was explained that, for a fault near one
298
Directional Pilot Relaying
7.2
terminal of a multi-terminal line, the direction of the current at another

terminal could be outgoing under certain conditions even though the fault
was internal. This circumstance could of course prevent tripping by directional comparison relays at all three terminals, except by back-up relays. In
r-o
--
__of-o
B
(a)
-<I....lI
(b)
(Open
jf
volts restraint used)
(c)
Internal
-; fau It
---..
0--
_0-1-0
o
Loo.d
0--
--
Extirno.l
fo.ult
7.1. Basic principle of directional pilot relaying

(a) Normal conditions. (b) External fault. (c) Internal fault
FIG.
some cases the condition can be remedied only by providing the extra circuitbreaker and length of line necessary to eliminate the line junction,
7.1.2. Information Transfer Between Ends
The communicating circuit between the two ends can be either a pair of
pilot wires, or a carrier channel using the power lines themselves, or a v.h.f.
radio signal transmitted directly between the line terminals. The choice
between these channels is generally made on an economic basis. For short
lines, pilot wires are generally used; for long lines, a carrier channel is
generally more economical; where 'line of sight' exists between stations,
microwaves can be used. The choice is also influenced by the fact that power
line carrier can also provide some additional facilities for communication,
and a microwave channel can provide 30 or more sub-channels for telephone
communication, telemetering, telecontrol, etc. (76).
7.2. SCHEMES USING A PILOT WIRE CHANNEL (73)
Systems of d.c. pilot relaying although excellent, fell into disrepute 25

years ago and are seldom used today (95). Although the difficulties could have
been surmounted, a.c. pilot protection (Chapter 8) was becoming very
popular, because the number of pilot wires had been reduced to two and
great stress was laid on the fact that a.c. pilot protection did not require
voltage transformers; facts which were generally neglected were:
(a) the cost of p.ts was not serious at lower voltages where pilot wire
relays were used;
(b) often they were already available in the substation;
(c) they were often necessary, in any case, for directional-overcurrent
back-up relays.
299
7.2
Protective Relays
Simplified diagrams of the two general arrangements, called series and

shunt, respectively, are shown in fig. 7.2. They are clearly duals.
(i) In the series scheme, fig. 7.2a, the contacts of the directional relays, D,
close for power flowing from the bus-bar to the line and, if they all
close, indicating an internal fault, the trip coils T of the circuitbreakers CB will be energised and the fault cleared.
1-----I5l-----o~
Pilot
line section
'--_ _ _ _-0'0
Pilot
(a)
...
I
:
......L....
(b)
FIG. 7.2. Basic circuits of d.c. pilot schemes
(a) Series pilot scheme. (b) Shunt pilot scheme
(ii) In the shunt scheme, fig. 7.2b, the contacts of the directional relays
close for power flowing from the line to the bus-bar (opposite from
fig. 7.2a) and, if anyone of them closes, indicating an external fault,
all the blocking relays B are energised, thereby preventing tripping at
all terminals. None of the D relays will close for an internal fault
and the fault detector relays, F, will individually trip their breakers.
In the actual circuits shown in fig. 7.4 and 7.5 separate directional relays
are used for phase and ground faults because the requisite sensitivity on all
300
7.2
faults cannot be obtained with a single relay. The relays for protecting against
phase-faults are preferably polyphase (32) since single-phase relays cost more,
are less sensitive and involve more contacts and circuit complexity. Both
schemes use the basic principle of directional distinction between external
and internal faults but differ in the method of exchanging the information
between the directional relays.
The series pilot wire scheme is basically an interdependent tripping scheme
where open-circuit failure of the pilot wire prevents tripping, although an
alarm relay gives a warning if this should occur. The shunt pilot scheme is
basically a blocking scheme which permits incorrect tripping if the pilot wire
is open-circuited; in the shunt scheme the pilot wire can also be used for
transmitting other information. Both schemes are applicable to tapped lines
or feeders without any special engineering or any change in setting or
equipment.
'Ground preference', i.e. arranging for the ground fault tripping unit to
override the phase blocking unit in the event of a heavy incoming load preventing tripping on a light internal ground fault, (82) is not necessary with
the schemes above. This may be seen from fig. 7.4, where the tripping units
have preference and from fig. 7.5 where voltage restraint can be used to
prevent the phase directional units from operating on any load conditions,
thereby preventing them from blocking tripping on a light, internal ground
fault.
.
7.2.1. Early Difficulties with d.c. Pilot Schemes
The two main complaints which have been held against d.c. pilot relaying
are:
(i) wrong tripping due to a contact race between the directional relays at
the two terminals, either at inception or clearing of an external fault;
(ii) incorrect tripping due either to cable leakage current or to a.c. in the
relay tripping circuit caused by the IZ drop in the ground during the
external fault; in this latter case the current path is through the
battery grounding point at one station and returns through the
capacitance of the pilot cable (fig 7.3b)
The first difficulty can be avoided by time delay in the tripping relays or
by designing them so that they will keep their contacts open during normal
conditions regardless of the direction of the load current. In the series pilot
scheme this requires voltage restraint on the directional relays so that both
relays will start with contacts in the open position and one of them will stay
open during an external fault. In the shunt scheme the relays initiating tripping
are fault detectors of the overcurrent or impedance type and their setting can
be made high enough to prevent operation on load current only.
The second difficulty can be solved by using an ungrounded d.c. source.
Referring to fig. 7.3a the difference in earth potentials at the two ends, due
to the fault current (I[Z,), causes current to flow through the path shown
301
7.2
Protective Relays
in fig. 7.3b. Some station batteries are ungrounded but most are grounded
through fault detecting equipment which can pass enough current to
operate the tripping relay of the pilot scheme; this is limited to 60 rnA
by the fact that the pilot wire resistance may be as high as 2000 ohms but the
voltage across them must not exceed 120 volts. When a ground fault occurs,
the voltage drop, 10Zo, in the ground is impressed across the insulation of the
line potentia.l
I
I
Ea.rth potentia.l
_____________ ~_Z~ _____ _
--......0
I
I
I
I
Externa.l
01--.. . . -t-l-'
Protected line section
,_f.:..a.u:;,.lt_
(a)
T
Tripping
end
:UJJJ
I
I
Blocking
end
I
I
I
~_r--------~I------------------~~
i+- Lea.ko.ge a.nd

I
-----------_/
co.po.cita.nce pa.th
Fa.ult beyond
this termina.l
(b)
7.3. Wrong tripping through pilot capacitance
(a) Relay current path through pilot and ground
(b) Potential dropin ground due to fault current
FIG.
pilot cable wire and may well cause 60 rnA a.c. to flow through its distributed
capacitance, as shown in fig. 7.3b. The remedy is obviously to use an ungrounded battery for the pilot wire circuit.
The maximum pilot wire resistance that can be tolerated on d.c. pilot
schemes is 2000 ohms, which limits the length of line protected to 23 miles if
it is No. 19 AWG (20 lb/mile) pilot cable.
7.2.2. Series d.c. Pilot-wire Scheme
The basic d.c. connections are shown in fig. 7.4. The meanings of the
various relay symbols are as follows:
q,D = polyphase mho relay
GD = ground directional relay
q,F = polyphase overcurrent fault detector
GF = ground overcurrent fault detector
T = tripping relay
A = alarm relay for pilot wire open-circuit indication.
302
7.2
The supervisory alarm relays A are normally energised by current flowing in

the pilot wires; a break in the pilot wire circuit causes them to drop out and
give an alarm.
When a fault occurs the fault detectors rpF or GF pick up, opening contacts rpF and GF, de-energising the A relays and closing contacts rpF2 and
GF 2 in the trip relay circuit. If the fault is internal the rpD or GD directional
relays operate because power is flowing into the protected section, so that
the continuity of the pilot wire circuit is restored via the tripping relays T,
which then trip their breakers. If there is no power supply at one station,
none of its relays will operate but the alarm A will be energised; tripping
occurs only at the other stations with a.c. power sources. If the fault is
external, the directional relays close at the terminals where power is
flowing into the section but no tripping will occur; this is because the pilot
circuit is interrupted at the terminal nearest the fault since its directional
relays stay open. Voltage restraint on the phase directional units keeps
their contacts open during normal load conditions so that there is no
risk of a rpD contact not opening in time to prevent tripping on an external
fault.
The trip and alarm relay coils should have the same resistance in order
to keep the pilot wire current constant. Where different types of relays are
TC
Ar---~~----------~--+---------------~C
<po
1T
A
<pF, GF
(e)
(c)
~----------,----------------~
FIG.
7.4. Simplified diagram of series directional pilot scheme
used for blocking and tripping, the blocking relays must be at least as
sensitive as the tripping relays for all types offaults. This is achieved in fig. 7.4
by putting the fault detector contacts rpF and GF in series with the trip relay.
rpF 2 and GF2 can be separate overcurrent relays with higher settings than
those of rpF 1 and GF 1 but this is usually an unnecessary precaution on low
and medium voltage systems, since there is ample margin for effective relay
settings, generally between the maximum load current and the minimum fault
current. The advantage of high and low set fault detectors on a tapped line
must be weighed against the possibility of preventing tripping on an internal
fault on a two-ended line if the current at one terminal lies between the pickup values of rpFl and rpF2' or GF 1 and GF 2
303
7.3
Protective Relays
7.2.3. Shunt d.c. Pilot Scheme
Referring to fig. 7.5, in this case the fault detectors F and GF tend to
initiate tripping but the directional relays D and GD prevent tripping when
they close their contacts for power in an incoming direction, because the
pilot wire signal operates the blocking relay, B, at all stations; hence no
tripping occurs under load conditions or on an external fault. The auxiliary
relay F should be given a delay of 001 sec in order to ensure that the B
(A)
FIG.
(S)
(C)
7.5. Simplified diagram of shunt directional pilot scheme
relays will operate before the T relays on an external three-phase fault close
to one terminal where the D relays may tend to operate slowly due to low
voltage.
When an internal fault ()ccurs, the directional relays remain open and the
B relay is not energised; however, the fault detectors F and GF close and
pick up the auxiliary relay FX which then energises the tripping relay T,
since the contacts B of the unenergised blocking relay remain closed.
In this scheme there is no necessity for two sets of fault detectors because
the directional relays do not initiate tripping and hence need no fault detector
to limit their sensitivity. On unbalanced faults, the directional units will
always pick up at a lower current value than the fault detectors because the
latter must be set above full load, whereas directional relays (with quadrature
connections) should pick up at less than 2 % of c.t. rating on unbalanced
faults.
Voltage restraint is recommended for the phase directional units in order
to prevent one of them from energising the blocking relays during a light
internal fault where the power flow in the unfaulted phase, due to load, is in
the opposite direction from the fault current. Voltage restraint is not
necessary on the fault detectors unless minimum faults require settings below
maximum load current.
7.3. PILOT SCHEMES USING A CARRIER CHANNEL (8) (74)
The same basic principles of blocking and interdependent tripping are

employed in directional pilot schemes using a carrier channel. The blocking
scheme corresponds to the shunt pilot wire scheme and the interdependent
tripping scheme is analagous to the series wire pilot scheme.
304
7.3
In the blocking scheme, illustrated in figs. 7.7 and 7.8, the carrier is started
by fault detector relays which are countermanded by directional relays
only if the fault current is flowing away from the bus; under external fault
conditions this will be the case only at one terminal and carrier will still be
transmitted from the other end, so that the carrier signal thus appears on the
line and blocks tripping at both ends.
The interdependent tripping scheme is known as intertripping or transferred tripping; a carrier signal received from the other end of the line causes
local tripping, whereas, in the blocking scheme, it would prevent it. The
Zone 1 units of the directional distance relays at the end nearest to an internal
fault not only trip locally but send a carrier signal to the other terminal. This
signal causes immediate tripping at that end also, although the fault may be
beyond the Zone 1 reach of the relays at that end; this is shown in figs. 7.11
and 7.12. Failure of carrier prevents simultaneous instantaneous tripping at
the end furthest from the fault, and this results merely in delayed tripping
at that end.
An alternative to intertripping is 'carrier acceleration', wherein the
receipt of a tripping carrier signal from the other terminal increases the Zone 1
reach to Zone 2 reach, resulting in instantaneous tripping at both ends. This
is shown in figs. 7.9 and 7.10.
The carrier equipment is frequently used for communication and telemetering as well as protection so that only a portion of its high cost can be
justifiably charged against protection.
Voltage restraint directional relays are preferable in this context for the
same reason as given for the pilot wire schemes. Since back-up protection is
required for the periods when the carrier equipment is out of service for
maintenance, it is convenient to use three-step directional distance relays
of the mho or the reactance type, of which the second step is associated with
the carrier tripping and the third step with carrier blocking.
7.3.1. The Carrier Channel (74)
The signal is injected into the power line circuit, as shown in fig. 7.6a,
through coupling capacitors and is prevented from going outside the protected section by line traps, i.e. parallel resonant circuits tuned to the carrier
frequency. The carrier signal is generated by a transmitter consisting of an
electronic oscillator and amplifier with an output usually of about 15 to 20
watts at a frequency between 50 and 500 kc/s. Below 50 kc/s the size and cost
of the coupling components would be too high; above 500 kc/s the line losses,
and hence the signal attenuation, would be too great on long lines. 15 watts
output has been found sufficient to cope with the losses of lines up to 100
miles, including the effect of icing, i.e. for a maximum loss of 30 dB.
Carrier current can be used only on overhead lines because the capacitance of a cable would attenuate the carrier signal to ineffectual levels.
The coupling capacitor consists of a stack of capacitors, series connected,
inside a porcelain insulator for injection into and receipt of carrier signal from
L
305
7.3
Protective Relays
the line. The drain coil presents a high impedance to the carrier frequency
so that the transmitter can inject the carrier signal without permitting any
appreciable voltage across it at system frequency. The line trap limits the
carrier signal to its own section of line thereby preventing (a) interference
with other lines and (b) shorting of the carrIer signal by an external fault.
The carrier signal may be of fixed frequency and operate in an on-off
fashion or it may be on continuously (at a lower power) and a frequency
shift employed to operate the relays at the other end of the protected section.
The use of modulation techniques permits a number of signals at
slightly different frequencies to be used on the same circuit.
The carrier signal can be introduced between one phase and ground or
between two phases. The latter is technically better but much more expensive,
since it requires two sets of coupling capacitors (this is no problem where the
coupling capacitors are also used for a secondary potential supply) and two
sets of line traps. This is preferred in the U.K. but the single conductor
scheme is more generally used elsewhere. The single conductor scheme
requires an earth wire for consistent results and demands more careful
engineering since it has higher attenuation and has a higher interference level
and stronger coupling with other phases.
The presence of a fault on a line protected by blocking carrier causes no
trouble, because the carrier is in any case cut off for an internal fault. On the
other hand, the carrier channel must be operative for the inter-tripping and
carrier acceleration schemes and some allowance must be made for the
effect of faults, although the attenuatidn of the carrier signal is generally less
than expected. The amount of attenuation varies from about 20 to 50 dB
with single-phase ground faults and phase to ground coupling, depending
on the location of the fault; it is of course worse with multiphase faults. Frequency shift carrier is considerably better because it permits a more sensitive
setting of the receiver since the blocking frequency prevents tripping on
spurious H.F. signals from disconnecting switches and arcing external
faults. Back-up protection is necessary in either case if three-phase faults to
ground are considered a practical risk.
Fig. 7.6a is a schematic diagram of the carrier coupling circuit for coupling
to two conductors; with single conductor coupling one transformer, one
series coil and one coupling capacitor are removed. Fig. 7.6b is the simplified
equivalent circuit corresponding to either one or two conductor coupling and
shows it to be of the form of a band pass filter (see companion volume).
A third type of pilot channel uses microwave (900 to 6000 megacycles)
and the signal being beamed by parabolic antennae from one station to the
next; up to 90 miles range is possible in flat country but obviously the range
is limited by hills and buildings. This system is applicable only where there is
a clear line of sight between stations. Because of the high frequency as many
as 30 signals can be transmitted spaced about 10 kc/s apart. Each frequency
channel can be modulated by a multiplexing transmitter with sub-carrier
frequencies of about 500 kc/s. Experiments have been conducted and limited
306
7.3
Prohc'lti
hi'll!
1~-----------------+-----
Coa.a to
'l rG.,.." l\c.r
(oj
Series
tun, ng
Cou pi i ng
.-----'UlICOiUll"~__-i ca.pa.tl t or ,
I
I
I
OCi""~'
Shunt
tunt-r
I
I
FIG.
7.6. (a) Capacitor coupling to transmission line

(b) Equivalent circuit of capacitor coupling
success claimed, for v.h.f. transmission, other than line-of-sight, using flat
reflecting surfaces mounted at convenient geographical points and without
auxiliary electric amplification.
7.3.2. Blocking Carrier Scheme
The principle of operation is shown in a very simplified form in figs. 7.7

and 7.8. When a fault occurs the phase fault detector cf>F or the ground fault
detector GF at each terminal de-energises the holding coil H of the receiver
relay R; the contacts of R would close if it were not for the fact that the fault
detectors also start the carrier transmission with another of their contacts,
and the carrier receivers at both ends energise the carrier coils C of the
receiver relays thereby keeping their contacts open. On an external fault, the
directional relay cf>T or GT at one end will stop the carrier transmission at its
end, but carrier will still be produced at the other terminal holding the R
contacts open at both terminals and thus preventing tripping. During an
internal fault, however, the directional telays at both ends of the line stop
307
7.3
Protective Relays
the local carrier transmission and the receiver relays close their contacts,
thereby causing tripping at both ends.
The advantage of the holding coils on the receiver relays is similar to that
of voltage restraint on a directional relay; the receiver relay contacts are
:-----r.,
I.
_BA ~
-+---;--.----~
T. - - - -.....
(b)
FIG.
7.7. (a) Distance reach settings for carrier blocking scheme

(b) Mho characteristics for carrier blocking scheme
normally kept open so that there is no contact race when an external fault
occurs, and blocking must be applied before tripping can occur. Furthermore,
discrimination is assisted by the pick-up time of cpTX or GTX and the flux
decay time of the receiver relay.
308
7.3
At each station, e.g. station A in fig. 7.7, directional distance or directional

overcurrent relays (cfJT and GT) are set to trip for faults within the protected
system and a short distance beyond the end of it. Tripping for faults beyond
the end of the section is prevented by the receipt of a carrier signal initiated
by the cfJB or unit GB at terminal B, the one nearest the fault, where fault
current is incoming (fig. 7.8).
The blocking signal is usually initiated by disconnecting the control grid
of the oscillator tube from the d.c. negative supply terminal (fig. 7.8). This
Protected line
Line trap
r------+---------------r--~------r__o+
(a)
O--~l----~l------~----~l~o+
GT
Yl I
I'OY3 (t/IB)
IT
Y1'Ya and OY3 arc MI:IO units

for Zones 1,2 and 3
OY3 Is offset a.nd reversed
GTX
t/lTX
FIG.
7.8. (a) Basic d ..c. connections of carrier blocking scheme

(b) Use of 3-zone distance relay for carrier blocking
is done in modern equipment by the directional unit (cfJB or GB) at the

end of the protected section nearest the fault and this unit is polarised so as
to measure outwards from the protected section (fig. 7.7a).
If the fault is within the protected section, carrier transmission is shut off
at both ends of the protected section by the directional relays which shortcircuit the cfJB and GB contacts in the carrier starting circuit and restore
the grid to a negative potential, thereby stopping carrier transmission
(fig. 7.8).
309
7.3
Protective Relays
Referring to fig. 7.7a, the reach of the carrier starting relay, cpB and GB,
must exceed that of the directional tripping relays cpT and GT, otherwise
an external fault beyond the carrier reach would not be blocked.
(a) Fault Detectors. If the carrier should fail a fault at X beyond terminal
B in fig. 7.7a would cause wrong tripping at terminal A. To prevent this the
phase relays cpT usually have voltage restraint which gives them a mho
characteristic and limits their reach to just beyond the end of the protected
section, as shown in fig. 7.7b. Similarly, cpB is usually an offset mho relay
so as to ensure positive operation for a fault close to the bus-bar; this ensures
that there will be no risk of failure to send a blocking signal for the case of
a fault just outside the protected section. In fig. 7.8 cpB and cpT are drawn as
two polyphase units but, in most present day equipment, each consists of
three single phase mho units with their contacts connected in series for
blocking and in parallel for tripping.
For ground faults an impedance characteristic is not necessary for limitation of the tripping zone; this is so because, on most high voltage systems
where carrier relaying is liable to be used, there is a grounded transformer
neutral at every substation thereby ensuring that faults beyond the next
station would draw very little zero sequence current through the protected
line section. Consequently GB and GT are usually zero sequence directional
units polarised in opposite directions. At grounded stations they are polarised
by the transformer neutral current; at ungrounded stations they are
polarised by residual voltage.
(b) Receiver Relay. The holding coil H is normally energised. Fault
current flowing into the protected section causes cpT or GT to pick-up their
auxiliary relays cpTX or GTX which then open to de-energise the holding
coil H. If the fault is internal, this sequence will occur at both ends of the
protected section and other contacts of cpTX and GTX will shut off the carrier
transmission as previously explained. With both carrier and holding coils
de-energised, the receiver relay will close its contacts, thereby permitting
tripping.
(c) Distance Relay Back-up. Three-step distance relays are generally used
in a double role, to provide independent back-up protection and to provide
the tripping and blocking functions of the carrier scheme.
In a mho relay the starting or Zone 3 unit is used as cpB for starting carrier.
For this purpose the direction of measurement is reversed as shown in
figs. 7.7a and 7.7b. It still provides Zone 3 time back-up protection as
explained in Chapter 5, section 5.4.3, but it is now located at the other end
of the protected section. Reactance carrier is not common because carrier
relaying is generally used on medium or long high-voltage lines where mho
relays are preferable. Where it is used, however, the starting unit cannot be
reversed and a separate impedance or offset mho relay is provided for starting
carrier.
In most distance relaysZone2is obtained by the timer extending the reach
of the Zone 1 measuring unit after the elapse of the time for Zone 2. In the
310
7.3
carrier blocking scheme just described, however, it must be a separate unit

because it has to operate immediately for an internal fault. In sections 7.3.3
and 7.3.4 other schemes will be described which do not require a separate unit.
(d) Ground Preference (82). Before reversed mho relays were used for
fault detectors this particular function was performed by non-directional
impedance relays whose reach exceeded that of the directional (mho) tripping
units. Hence it was possible, on a very long line, to start carrier on overload
and prevent tripping on an internal ground fault. For this reason ground
fault relays were connected so as to countermand any blocking or tripping
which may have been initiated by the phase relays.
The latter practice was discontinued because the ground preference could
block tripping on a heavy internal phase fault if spurious zero sequence
current was produced at one end due to unequal c.t. characteristics. With the
modem arrangements of tripping and carrier starting being controlled by
directional relays polarised in opposite directions, no preference is necessary.
The only precaution which is now, on occasions, taken is to permit the carrier
starting ground relay to prevent the tripping ground relay from shutting off
carrier transmission during the transformer magnetising inrush current
which may follow the clearing of a single-phase to ground fault.
7.3.3. Carrier Acceleration
In this scheme.a separate Zone 2 measuring unit is not necessary because

the carrier signal is used for extending the reach of the Zone I measuring
unit to Zone 2. In other words, a fault in the protected section, near one
terminal, causes instantaneous tripping in Zone 1 at that end; simultaneously
there is transmission of a carrier signal to the other terminal, which puts the
distance relays at that end on to their Zone 2 setting so that they also can
reach the fault and trip immediately (figs. 7.9a and 7.9b).
This scheme is much simpler than the blocking scheme described in
section 7.3.1. Furthermore, it is safer because the failure of carrier merely
means that a phase fault in the end zone will be cleared in Zone 2 time
instead of practically instantaneously.
Fig. 7.10 shows the d.c. circuit in a very simplified form, assuming again
that polyphase units are used for phase faults. The relay T 2X changes the
settings of the phase and ground distance relays <jJT and GT from Zone 1
to Zone 2 reach. In normal distance protection this is done by the timing
unit contact T 2 after the expiry of the second zone time; fig. 7.10 shows also
that the receipt of a carrier signal from the other end operates the receiver
relay which, in tum, operates the zone transfer relay T 2X, thereby putting
the fault within the range of the distance relays at that terminal also.
Incorrect tripping on an external fault is prevented by setting the initiating
Zone I unit to cover less than the line length; a further precaution is usually
taken, however, by connecting the receiver relay contacts through the
directional fault detector contacts of the local relays CPT3 and GT3
Although distance relays are generally used for ground as well as phase
311
7.3
Protective Relays
Norma.l rca.ch of
rcla.y. a.t A
Extcnd.d rra.ch
of nldYs a.t A
(a)
fIG.
7.9. (a) Mho characteristic for carrier acceleration scheme

(b) Distance settings for carrier acceleration scheme
Ib
o
TrIp
fIG.
Receiver
7.10. Basic d.c. connections of carrier acceleration scheme
faults in this scheme, it is also applicable where directional instantaneous

residual overcurrent relays are used for ground faults, in which case they are
arranged so that their pick-up setting can be reduced by the receiver relay so
that they can reach to the end of the protected section.
312
7.3
7.3.4. Carrier Intertripping
An alternative to carrier acceleration is inter-tripping. It is similar to the

carrier acceleration scheme except that, instead of extending the reach of the
Zone 1 distance relays, the carrier signal trips directly. Wrong tripping due to
a spurious signal from interference can be avoided by tripping through local
directional fault detectors or by coding the carrier signal. This scheme is also
applicable to distance relay schemes using directional residual overcurrent
protection for ground faults.
Fig. 7.12 shows the basic d.c. circuit of the scheme. It will be seen that
the receiver relay can cause tripping if it receives a signal from the other
terminal, provided that the local fault detectors indicate that this signal is
in the tripping direction.
Figs. 7.l1a and 7.11b show that with each end able to send a tripping
signal to the other end, the overlap of the two characteristics will cause all
faults within the protected section to be tripped instantaneously.
For phase faults cPT 1 is the Zone 1 measuring unit and cPT 3 is the fault
detector. Strictly speaking, cPT 3 does not have to be directional because
the tripping of the Zone 1 unit at the other end proves that the fault is
within the protected section. Hence, the offset mho type of fault detector is
satisfactory .
For ground faults, distance relays are connected in the same way as the
phase relays but, if directional residual overcurrent relays are used for ground
faults, GT 1 is an instantaneous overcurrent unit directionally controlled and
GT 3 is the ground directional unit at the other end. Where the variation of
ground fault current is too great to employ an instantaneous overcurrent
relay for GT 1 , it can be a directional unit.
For multi-terminal lines there are several advantages to be gained by
intertripping directly without using the local directional fault detectors for
monitoring purposes. The equipment is simpler and cheaper because it
requires only a single-step distance unit and two receiver relays at each terminal; it avoids failure to trip on an internal fault if the current is reversed
at one terminal due to a back-feed (fig. 5.36b).
Another alternative is to set the distance relay at each terminal to overreach the other terminals under all conditions and to trip only if the received
signals indicate that all terminals have operated. This can be regarded as the
dual of the blocking scheme; it has the same advantages and disadvantages
except that it is faster since it trips directly the signals are received, whereas
a small delay is provided in the blocking scheme in case the blocking signal
is tardy. This is sometimes called permissive overreach.
With directional units at each end the scheme becomes similar to the
series pilot scheme described in section 7.2.1 and the circuit must provide
immunity from the effect of contact rebound, i.e. when an external ground
fault occurs, the directional relay at the terminal farthest from the fault will
send a carrier signal, but no tripping will occur because the directional relay
at the end near the fault will be open; when the fault is cleared, there is the
313
Protective Relays
7.3
,1t;"I<-___ Tripp'n g Ion. for
,,10.1 Clt A
by ca.rr ..~r Sl9n0..1 from B
,.,
U-I'++*--Dlrc:ct loco.l trippi ng lo ne

from both ends
Trtpping lono for rola.ya.t 8

by co.r n c.r IIgnQ.1 from A
------------~~~~-----------R~
(a)
k------ Z~ with in hrtrfp -----------+1

A
I,
(b)
7.11. (a) Mho characteristics for carrier intertripping scheme
(b) Distance settings for carrier intertripping scheme
FIG.
<tn,
II
'PT,I
GT, I
c>--------------J
p.r
a.
Tr ip
Tro.nsmlttcr
FIG.
7.12. Basic d.c. connections of intertripping carrier scheme
possibility that the sudden reduction of torque on this directional relay may
cause its contacts to rebound to the closed position, thereby causing incorrect
tripping if the carrier signal is still on. One solution is to cut off the carrier
signal after about 4 cycles, so that no tripping will occur if the directional
314
7.3
relay does not close in 4 cycles plus the operating time of the relays and the
carrier equipment at the other end.
7.3.5. Summary of Directional Comparison Carrier Schemes
7.1
TABLE
Carrier
Scheme
Separate Zone-2
Unit Required
Effect of
Carrier Failure
Ground
Faults
Blocking
Acceleration
Inter-tripping
Yes
No
No
Incorrect trip
Zone-2 trip
Zone-2 trip
Distance
Overcurrent
Overcurrent
In the right-hand column of the above table, either distance or instantaneous directional overcurrent relays can be used for ground fault for all
three schemes. However, ground distance relays are preferable for the carrier
blocking scheme; this practice ensures that, if carrier is turned on for telemetering or telephone communication, tripping will be blocked if there is a
ground fault near one end of the line section which draws insufficient current
at the other end to operate the relays to shut off carrier transmission. On the
other hand, in the absence of ground distance relays, tripping due to this
cause, which would be virtually a misapplication, cannot happen if a separate
channel is used for communication. Similarly, incorrect tripping with either
the inter-tripping or the carrier acceleration schemes can be avoided by
separate channels, or by monitoring the tripping signal through the local
directional fault detector.
Mho relays are also safer than directional overcurrent relays for phase
faults in the carrier blocking scheme; this is so for the case of a threeterminal line, where an external fault may divide the outgoing current between
two of the terminals so that neither has sufficient current to block carrier
transmission at the tripping terminal which, of course, has the total fault
current. Correct application is absolutely essential with such system configurations. The carrier acceleration and inter-tripping schemes are preferable
for three ended lines since a fault near one of the terminals may be affected
by the existence of low impedance path around to another terminal, thereby
causing outgoing current at one terminal; this condition would cause blocking
at all three terminals with the blocking scheme of directional carrier but would
only cause sequential tripping with the other schemes.
In the U.S.A. there is a growing tendency to use phase comparison carrier
for ground faults, in conjunction with mho relay directional comparison for
phase faults. This combination eliminated many such problems, including
that of the effect of mutual inductance on ground faults. The best general
solution would appear to be carrier acceleration or inter-tripping, with phase
comparison as an alternative for ground faults where mutual inductance
effects are involved.
315
7.4
Protective Relays
7.4. CARRIER SIGNAL CHECKING
A manual multi-contact switch is usually provided to check the carrier

equipment. Operation of this switch starts the transmitter and switches in an
arrangement whereby either,
(a) the signal received at the other end initiates a return signal which can
be read by the operator after he has released the carrier start button, or
(b) signals 1800 out-of-phase are introduced at the two ends, which
balance each other.
Another system provides continuous supervision and uses a clock which
periodically sends a signal for a pre-set period of time; the received signal
operates a relay which sends a return signal for a similar period. Tripping
schemes are checked with the trip-circuit open.
The carrier receiver is normally designed to have a flat response characteristic, so that small changes in the receiver signal will not change the input
to the receiver relay. In order to check attenuation, such as may be caused
by icing of the line conductors, the set is temporarily biased so that it operates
at the knee of its characteristic. If icing is proceeding, the received current will
gradually be reduced, thereby indicating the necessity for de-icing the conductors. An alternative to bias testing is automatic, hourly monitoring wherein an alarm is given if the signal strength received falls below a predetermined
safe value.
7.5. FUTURE TRENDS
In most modern sets, transistors are used instead of electronic tubes

(valves). It seems probable that future schemes will employ polyphase mho
relays and that in directional distance carrier schemes the inter-tripping and
carrier acceleration method will replace the blocking method. For lines of
less than 50 miles with 'line of sight' between stations, radio link (microwave)
techniques may increase in use as power systems become increasingly
automatic.
Where the cost of carrier is not justified but pilot wires are available
there is an increasing use of an audio tone signal over the pilot wires (99)
which can be used for blocking and tripping in the same way as a carrier
signal. Where the audio tone signal is used for blocking, or in the carrier
acceleration scheme where the received tripping signal is monitored by local
fault detectors, a continuous signal is used which also provides supervision
for the pilot wires.
In the inter-tripping scheme, where the received audio signal is used
directly for tripping, it is important to avoid interference from outside
sources such as a ripple on the a.c. supply and to design the tripping relay
circuits so that they cannot be operated by d.c. surges. This can be done by
combinations of tones or by using the frequency shift method. Since the time
constants of the audio circuit are longer than that of a carrier circuit a delay
of 10 to 15 m.s. is necessary to prevent using tripping on power reversal after
an external fault.
316
8
A.C. Pilot Bel"ging
Pilot Wire Schemes-Phase and Amplitude Comparators-Effect of
Load Current-Multi-terminal Lines-Pilot Wire LimitationsPilot Supervision-Phase Comparison Carrier
HEORETICALLY, unit protection provides almost perfect selectivity
Tbut,
when applied to lines and cables, it is less effective because the pilot
channel or link between the terminals, together with the coupling equipment
in the case of h.f. carrier, introduces amplitude and phase angle errors in the
quantities compared (28) (140). This link may be pilot wires or high frequency
carrier channel superimposed on the overhead power lines.
The comparison is made between the c.t. secondary currents, making
use of the fact that they should be equal under normal conditions and for a
fault outside the protected section, in an ideal system. Pilot channels are very
expensive; hence it is customary to combine the currents at each terminal into
a single current either by means of a summation c.t. or by a phase sequence
network (83), so that only one pair of wires or carrier channel is necessary.
In the case of pilot wires, errors can be caused by currents induced in the
wires by magnetic induction or by the potential gradient in the ground during
an external fault (73). Furthermore, if the pilot wires are rented from a telephone company (76), there is always the possibility of their being interfered
with in error, during maintenance of other telephone equipment at the
exchanges.
Carrier channels are affected by icing on the conductors and by high
frequency interference due to lightning and to arcing in faults and circuit
breakers.
Wired pilots are used for short lines but are uneconomical above 10 to
15 miles. The cost of carrier channels is not directly related to their length
but they are more expensive and their justification depends upon their joint
use for other purposes, such as telemetering and telecommunication (59)
(76).
Where the cost of carrier is not justifiable and available pilot wires are
not suitable for current comparison audio tone relaying is recommended (99).
The audio (voice frequency) signal is transmitted between line terminals and
used in exactly the same way as high frequency carrier is used on a power line.
317
Protective Relays
8.1
The frequencies used range between 500 and 2500 c.p.s and a different frequency is used in each direction. The signal not only blocks tripping on
external faults but provides monitoring of the pilot wire circuit. Single tone
frequencies are used without risk of wrong operation due to interference
signals because tripping is controlled by fault detector relays (see section
8.11.1).
8.t. PILOT WIRE SCHEMES
Modem schemes employ biassed relays whose restraining windings (or
signals in the case of static relays) increase the relay pick-up for high values of
through current ; this reduces the effect of c. t. inequalities and the errors due
to pilot wire series-resistance and shunt-susceptance (78) (79).
As with all comparator systems, either phase or amplitude comparison
can be employed on a current or on a voltage basis. Most present day
systems use amplitude comparison in a circulating current system since they
are easier to apply to multi-ended lines and are less affected by pilot capacitance; especially when pilot compensation is provided (see section 8.4.1).
The quantities available for comparison at each terminal are thelocal current
and the pilot wire current. Since. the latter is the difference of the currents
at the two ends, the quantities correspond to 1A and (IA-IB) in fig. 8.1.
C.T.
Prot~ct~d
Ilno soctlon
cr.
Pilot wirrs
~Rp
L-------~~r-----~----~~Ar----~
RolClY R triPsl A Clnd B
I
I
I
I
v,,=o Clt
midpoint
FIG.
8.1. Ideal current balance system
Another method is to compare the direction of each half-wave of current

with the direction of the half-wave received from the other terminal via the
pilot channel. This method is used in phase comparison carrier relaying (figs.
8.19 and 8.20) but is not now used with pilot wire channels; it was tried
in Germany and the U.K. for some years (77) but was not considered practical
because of the difficulty of designing and adjusting the relays so that they
would respond to instantaneous reversals of direction at the inception and
clearing of faults.
318
8.2
A.C. Pilot Relaying
As discussed in Chapter 3, schemes comparing the local current with the

pilot wire current produce a circle offset from the origin along the real axis
on a graph with co-ordinates
I~~I
Ap
and
jl~BI ' as in fig. 8.7b, i.e. in the fJ-plane.

A,q
A polyphase comparison is made by combining the phase and residual

currents from the C.t. secondaries into a single current by means of a summation c.t. at each terminal or alternatively by a sequence network (83).
8.2. DISCRIMINATING FACTOR
The selectivity of a unit scheme can be defined as the ratio of the relay
operating current at one terminal for an internal fault to that for an external
fault with the same primary current supplied from that terminal. This ratio is
called the discriminating factor (D) which would be infinite for a diffetential
system with the relay situated midway between perfectly matched c.ts, as
in fig. 8.1.
In pilot wire schemes, for practical reasons, the relay cannot be in the
middle of the. protected section, but must be replaced by a relay at each terminal. This difficulty was overcome in an early system by a third pilot wire,
as shown in fig. 8.2, which enables the relays at both ends to be at zero voltage
~~
______________ ________________
FIG.
t~
8.2. Three-wire pilot system equivalent to fig. 8.1
position for an external fault. Another solution, which is perhaps not

economically practical, would be to have a relay at one terminal only and to
produce the effect of its being in the middle of the system by connecting
between the relay and the c.ts a resistor-capacitor system equivalent to the
pilot wires. Transferred tripping would be necessary to clear the other
terminal.
In modern systems only two pilot wires are used and the discriminating
factor may be relatively low on a long pilot because the relay current for an
internal fault is reduced by the pilot resistance while the relay current for an
external fault is increased by the capacitance between the wires. This effect is
shown in fig. 8.3.
8.2.1. Discrimination Between Internal and External Faults
For proper discrimination, internal faults should be outside the characteristic circle for the particular terminal and all external fault conditions
inside the circle.
319
8.2
Protective Relays
With double-end feed, all internal fault conditions are well outside the
circle in the opposite quadrants, as shown in fig. 8.7b. With perfect C.t.
performance, loads and all external faults should be represented by the point
1,0 which should be well inside the circle.
Unfortunately, load current and c.t. errors can upset this theory of discrimination unless certain precautions are taken. The combination of a light
~~i-
_ _ _-::::;;:;;;....oo::::c.-_ _ _ _ _ _ _ RclQ.y
seUing
FCluit seU Ing
FIG.
Fa.ult current
Discrimina.tlng fo.ctor = ~g
8.3. Discrimination factor in two-wire pilot system
fault and a heavy through load current may produce a value of ex or p which
is inside the circle and hence prevent tripping. Pilot wire attenuation or
transient C.t. saturation at one terminal (due to c.t. remanent flux or due to
the use of different types of c.ts at the two terminals) may move the external
fault value outside the circle, causing erroneous tripping.
The former is discussed in section 8.7.1 of this chapter and the latter in
section 8.4.1, and in Vol. II.
'.2.2. Multltermlnal Line.
For reasons given in Chapter 3 and elaborated in Volume II, discrimination between internal and external faults is more difficult with a voltage balance
scheme than with a circulating current scheme. However, the condition described in section 5.5.10 of Chapter 5 can also cause incorrect blocking in a
circulating current scheme. This is the case where there is generation only at
one terminal and there is a low impedance path between the other two so
that current flows outwards at one terminal for an internal fault near the
other te~al having no generation.
This condition can sometimes be overcome by the use of fault detectors
because the current at the blocking terminal is usually small. Sometimes it is
convenient to provide no relaying at the blocking terminal (which is usually
the shortest leg) and treat the line as a two-terminal line with a tap.
320
A.C. Pilot Relaying
8.3
8.3. PHASE COMPARISON
The phase comparison voltage balance scheme shown in fig. 8.4 has
been used in England for at least 25 years (80). It compares the phase angle
of the local current with that of the pilot wire current. The actual comparison
in the relay is between voltages derived from the currents, using the upper
pole of a wattmetric type induction disc relay as a transactor, as shown in
fig. 8.4. It will be seen that this pole is also used as a three-phase summation
a.
b
........
~
Prouct
C.T'
S ~ (l dong
f-L'.
~ 0L4
p:
~
~~i4 v
FIO.
011
D 1S C
8.4. Phase comparison pilot relay (induction disc)
transformer. The same pole carries a secondary winding across which appears
a voltage corresponding to a combination of the local currents. The voltage
is opposed to the voltage produced by a similar arrangement at the other end
of the protected line section, and the difference voltage is impressed on the
lower coil of the relay electromagnet.
Normally, because the two voltages are equal and opposed, no current
flows in the pilot wire or the lower coil and the relay has no torque. On the
other hand, when an internal fault occurs, the voltages assist each other and
current flows in the pilot wire and relay coils, thereby causing tripping.
The torque of the electrical signal is of the form J(KJ - Vp cos cf, where
cf> is the phase angle between the local current I and the voltage Vp across the
pilot wires. In effect the relay measure~ the apparent pilot wire resistance
V coscf>
Rp because the relay balances for K = p I

= Rp' For this reason the
characteristic is generally plotted on an R- X diagram rather than one with
.
co-ordmates
IIBI
'L p and J'IIBI
(. q'
This characteristic is shown in fig. 8.5. It is theoretically a straight line but

becomes curved through the action of a restraining torque provided by a
shading ring on the upper pole in order to prevent it from operating on
external faults. Maximum tripping torque occurs on an internal fault; on
321
Protective Relays
8.3
external faults the current in the pilot wire is small because the voltages from
the upper poles of the relays are opposed and the resultant voltage is shifted
almost 90 in phase because of the predominating effect of the pilot wire
capacitance.
The advantages of this relay are low cost, simplicity and relative immunity
to high pilot wire capacitance. Its limitations are slow speed and its inability
G
-t~====~~~------B
Interna.l
fa.ult
Externa.l
fa.ult
FIG.
8.5. Operating characteristic of phase comparator relay
to trip on single-end feed at the far end because the relay produces no torque
with the same current in the upper and lower poles. It will operate with pilot
loops up to 800 ohms.
Fig. 8.6 shows an American scheme (79) using a similar principle with an
induction cup relay which gives faster operation and greater sensitivity,
Rcstra.int
Pol.
II
To
sum~""~i-~io_n
Pilot
II =------'---'----'00000'---/ wrs
~
Tra.nsa.ctClr
_ _ _ _ _----",
FIG.
8.6. High-speed phase comparison pilot relay
permitting operation up to 2000 ohms pilot loop resistance. The maximum

pilot current is 01 amperes and the maximum voltage across the pilots 120.
Both schemes operate for ground faults down to about 20 %of c.t. rating.
The setting for three-phase faults is 52 % and, on interphase faults, 45 % or
90 % depending upon which phase pair is involved. There is no phase
comparison pilot scheme available at the present time which uses the circulating current principle instead of voltage balance.
322
8.3
A.C. Pilot Relaying

8.4. AMPLITUDE COMPARISON (73)
Two alternative methods are used, the circulating current method and the
balanced voltage method of comparison, both of which produce similar
operating characteristics, shown in fig. 8;7. In the former, the c.t's at the two
ends are connected so that the currents normally circulate around the pilot
I
A B
Trip
,
Trip
/ ' Block
(a)
'j'AI
lie"
ExtHno.l
fault (1,0)
Block zone
If Ip
Inter nul
fa.ults on
~d~ou~b~I.-~.-nd~~~----~------~----~------- ~
Iud
Trip zone
FIG.
(b)
8.7. Operating characteristic of amplitude comparator
(a) Scalar diagram. (b) Polar diagram
loop (fig. 8.8) but, during an internal fault, the c.t. outputs are opposed so
that current now flows in the operating coils.
In the balanced voltage system the c.t's are opposed so that no current
should flow in the pilots normally but, when an internal fault occurs, current
323
8.4
Protective Relays
Protected Iine section
a-t~====~----------~~~~~---b~-+~--~------------------------------c~-+-+&r~-------------------------------
Pilots
(a)
1IRES"RO
.[3
m
3
14-k.x
(b)
FIG.
8.8. Circulating current pilot relay scheme

(a) Basic diagram of a.c. circuit
(b) Vector diagram of filter output
circulates around the loop through the operating coils of the relay. The one
system is the dual of the other.
4.t. Circulating Current Scheme
A typical circulating current scheme is shown in fig. 8.8 (78). With a

sensitive d.c. polarised relay this circuit will operate reliably on pilot loops
up to 2000 ohms. Some manufacturers connect the restraining coil on the
c.t. side, as in fig. 8.8a; others connect it on the pilot side (fig. 8.lOc). In
general the restraining coil is connected on the C.t. side for long line schemes
and on the pilot side for short line schemes with homogeneous pilots,
especially where automatic reclosing is involved. This is because, with the
restraining coil on the c.t. side during single-end feed, the relay at the end
with no power source has little or no restraining current and hence has a
lower pick-up than the relay at the source end. This discrepancy is greatest
with short lines, hence this connection is used for long line pilot schemes.
Conversely, with the restraining on the pilot side, the relay at the power
source end has a lower ratio of restraint to operating current than the remote
relay and this discrepancy increases with the length of the line; hence this
connection is used for short lines.
It is, however, possible to compensate for these discrepancies and to
control them according to the application. For example, with the restraining
coil on the pilot side, simultaneous tripping is obtained even on single-end
feed with Zop set for pilot compensation, fig. 8.l0c, permitting the use of
324
A.C. Pilot Relaying
8.4
automatic reclosing; by omitting the compensation the relay at the remote

end can be prevented from tripping on single-end feed, which is desirable on
a long radial line in difficult country because it saves a journey or extra
equipment to reclose the other end. Conversely, with the restraining coil on
the c.t. side, the scheme can be used for short as well as long lines if Zop is
correctly adjusted to compensate for the pilot wire impedance, fig. 8.lOb.
The method of compensation depends upon the position of the restraining
coil and the results desired, and is discussed in the following section:;, 8.4.1 (a)
and 8.4.1 (b). The purpose of the compensation is to cause a similar ratio of
restraining to operating coil current at the two terminals for an external fault.
As in the case of generator protection, it is possible to use product
restraint. This is described in reference (81) but is not yet used commercially.
An analysis of the operating characteristics of different schemes has been
given in Chapter 3, section 3.2.3 (a). Fig. 8.7a shows a typical characteristic
on a scalar diagram. The dotted line represents external faults with no errors
due to c.t. inequalities or pilot wire resistance and capacitance. The shaded
area shows the relay currents at A and B where only A trips for an internal
fault with a power feed from A only. Fig. 8.7b shows the characteristic in
a complex plane with co-ordinates / IA / and j/ IA / which was called the-~
IB p
IB q
plane in Chapter 3.
In Chapter 3, fig. 3.8 showed the effect of the attenuation constant y in
moving the characteristic circle from the position shown in fig. 8.7b to
positions above and below the real axis. It was explained, however, that by
adjusting the operating coil circuit impedance Zop to compensate for the
pilot impedance the circle stayed on the real axis. By inspection of fig. 8.7b
it will be seen how important this compensation is because, if the circle does
not move too much, there is considerable latitude for C.t. error, etc., between
the two ends, but incorrect tripping could result if the C.t. discrepancy moved
the complex quantity
~ in the
opposite sense from the movement of the
circle due to "I.

In fig. 8.7b the circle is really the blocking characteristic for external faults
and it can be seen that the point 1,0 should be well within the circle to ensure
stability on external faults. Internal faults with double-end feed are normally
well outside the circle and in the negative zone because the c.urrents flow in
opposite directions. Internal faults with single-end feed are near the real axis,
either close to the origin or towards infinity, because one current must tend
to zero. Where Zop is adjusted to compensate for the phase angle of "I and
turn it into the scalar value S, the circular characteristic of fig. 8.7b results.
The circle cuts the real axis at two points P and P' whose distances from the
origin OP and OP' depend upon the position of the restraining coil and the
terminal considered (see Table 8.1). This indicates that the value chosen for
K must be related to the value of y or So for a high discriminating factor.
325
8.4
Protective Relays
TABLE
8.1
Intersection of Pilot Relay Characteristic on Real Axis

Restraining Coil
Relative to
Operating Coil
'A' Relay on IX-Plane

or 'B' Relay on p-Plane
'A' Relay on p-Plane

or 'B' Relay on IX-Plane
op
op
or
Pilot side
l-K
1 +K" S
1 +K S
l-K"
l-K 1
1 +K" S
C.T. side
1
1 +K' S
1
l_K' S
1 +K'
OP'
1 +K 1
l-K" S-
l-K'S
(a) Restraining Coil on c.t. Side. Since this connection is usually employed
on long lines and Post Office pilots which have appreciable resistance and
susceptance, it is necessary to compensate for "I to ensure discrimination.
As previously stated, the object of the compensation is to maintain a similar
ratio of restraining to operating coil currents in the relays at both ends' of the
pilot. It can be approached by inserting inductance in series with the pilot
wires (130) but it can be achieved by providing the correct amount of inductance in series with each operating coil.
If the impedances of the operating coil circuit at each terminal (Zo, in
fig. 8.10b) are adjusted so as to make them in phase with current fed from one
end only, this will have the effect of replacing '1 by a scalar quantity s in the
expressions for the radius and centre location of their respective characteristic
circles; hence their circles will have their centres on the real axis of the
IX- or p-plane.
Furthermore, by adjusting the bias of the relay so that K = 1- S2, the
expressions for rand c will be identical. This can be seen by substituting for
K in the expressions for rand c in Table 3.1. of Chapter 3.
This method increases the length of the pilot for which discrimination is
possible and is achieved by adjusting an inductive impedance series with each
operating coil to provide an impedance.
IZo,1 = -IZol [cot n sin (t/>-{I)+coth m cos (t/>-{I)]
(8.1)
where m is the attenuation constant in nepers per mile, n is the phase shift
constant in radians per mile, ZoN is the impedance of the pilot loops and
Zo,IO is the impedance of the operating coil circuit.
Inspection of the equation will show that if Zo, is made as inductive as
possible (e.g. (I = 83) its ohmic value is reduced and the sensitivity of the
relay will be increased at the end remote from the power source during singleend feed; t/> is usually about 45 for long pilots. Zo, m and n can be found in
handbook tables (151) (152); sometimes n is given in terms ofsin n and cos n.
The derivation of equation (8.1) is given in the Appendix, section 8.12.
(b) Restraining Coil on Pilot Side. Since this arrangement is usually
associated with short lines close compensation for "I is not necessary and,
326
A.C. Pilot Relaying
8.4
owing to the relative positions of the operating and restraining coils, it is

possible to obtain the economic advantage of using fixed compensation for a
given type of pilot, irrespective of its length.
By connecting in series with the operating coil of each relay a capacitance
impedance Zo equal -to the impedance of an infinite length of the pilot, the
currents in the operating and restraining coils can be made equal in magnitude
during an external fault for any length of pilot and hence the operating
characteristics will be the same for the relays at the two ends of the pilot.
Zo can be obtained by measurement, because for any length of homogeneous cable (152) Zo = Zoc.Zsc where oc means with the pilot opencircuited and sc means short-circuited at its remote end. Zo can be calculated
from the parameters of the pilot wires as follows:
- JR+jWL
G+jwC
Zo -
(R:+W:L:)*
jarg.;;[tan-1 ~ _ tan-l~]
G + C
wC
wL
W
(8.2)
where R, L, G and C are in ohms, henries, mhos and farads respectively. .

With this method of compensation the operating characteristic of the
relay at the source end is independent of the pilot length but the setting of the
remote relay increases with pilot length because the characteristic circle for
the remote (B) terminal on the (X-plane increases in size.
Inspection of fig. 8.IOc will show that the operating coil and restraining
coil currents at terminal A will be approximately equal and in phase for
single-end feed ftom A, irrespective of the pilot length, and hence the
operating circle will have its centre on the real axis. For an external fault
beyond B, the operating coil current at B will be reduced and de-phased by
the argument of Zop from the current in the restraining coil and the circle
will be larger, i.e. some tendency to trip on single-end feed from A. With
short pilots, however, this effect will be small and need not be considered.
8.4.2. Causes of Loss of Discrimination
One cause, attenuation due to pilot wire resistance and susceptance, has
already been dealt with in section 8.4.1. Another cause is unequal C.t.
magnetic saturation.
As previously stated, the value of (X or f1 should be within the characteristic
circle for an external fault and should be represented by the point 1,0. If,
however, one or more of the c.t's at one end saturate, the currents will not be
equal during an external fault and the value of (X or f1 may be outside the circle.
This saturation may be at high currents due to abnormal lead resistance
at one end or due to the use of different kinds of c.t's, one end having c.t's
with stalloy cores and the other end C.R.O.S. or H.R.C. steel cores. Generally
it is a transient condition brought on by the d.c. component of an offset
current wave and aggravated by remanent magnetic flux in one C.t. or by
unequal lead resistance or dissimilar c.t. characteristics.
327
8.5
Protective Relays
This aspect of pilot relay design was neglected by manufacturers until

recently but caused only occasional trouble because of the lower XI R ratios
of power systems and the lower speed of circuit breakers (see Chapter 5,
section 5.1.4 (b. Today, however, reputable manufacturers test pilot wire
relay schemes on high current test sets (Chapter 13, section 13.11.1 (a and
specify the size of c.t's necessary to provide proper discrimination with their
equipment. See formula at end of section 5.6.6 in Chapter 5.
8.4.3. Balanced Voltage Scheme
Here a transactor at each end provides a voltage proportional to the

local current and it is opposed to the corresponding voltage from the relay
at the other end of the pilot wire. Hence, theoretically, current flows in the
pilot wire only during an internal fault (79) (80) (140).
The relay coils are connected as shown in fig. 8.9 so that the pilot wire
current tends to operate the relay and the potential across the pilot wires
tends to restrain it. In this way the relay measures the impedance seen from
one end of the pilot wires. This impedance will be high normally and during
an external fault.
Although no polarising winding is used, the relay will have a phase angle
characteristic because the current that flows will depend on the phase relation
of VA and VB as well as their magnitudes. In fact, the quantities energising the
relay are analogous to those of a conductance relay, viz. III-IKI - Vpl where
I is the local current, KI is the voltage it produces across the transactor
secondary and Vp is the opposing voltage from the transactor at the other
terminal, i.e. the pilot-wire voltage.
The impedance characteristic is similar to the curve of fig. 8.5, but this
type of relay will trip both ends with reduced sensitivity for an internal fault
with single-end feed because it is not polarised and the operating coil is in
series with the pilot wire. The ex-plane characteristic is the same as for the
circulating current scheme with the restraining coil on the c.t. side of the
operating coil and the equation for marginal operation is IIA - yIBI = KIIA I.
The discriminating factor is low for long pilots and the non-linear impedances that are used for limiting the pilot wire voltages upset the voltage
balance required to prevent tripping during an external fault.
In voltage balance schemes, compensation can be effected by the use of a
replica impedance equivalent to the series resistance and distributed shunt
susceptance of the pilot wires during an external fault. Fig. 8.10a shows one
method of applying this compensation (140).
8.5. EFFECT OF LOAD CURRENT ON RELAY SETTING
Referring to fig. 8.12a, IA = IF+IL and IB = Iv where IF is the fault

IA IF+IL
IF
current and IL the load current. Hence a = - = - - = 1 + - (8.3) or
IB
IL
IL
328
A.C. Pilot Relaying
Summntion
C ,T,
8.5
-----/:~>(:.'----
~] Lc;,L-----o-:
~
'0----
Pilots
iwu;tl
i
i
._.~I.~
Oper.
Rest.
(a)
..
__---------------------8
::>
u
'0
u
o scrlminnting
""
fador :
~..
a.
Pr imnry fnu lt current

Fau lt sell ing
(b)
~1~~I::==:==__n _+2~-n~-_-_-_-_-_-_~~
~I~
I,
k------n--t-::2:----C> 14
(c)
8.9. Voltage balance scheme
(a) Basic a.c. connections
(b) Discriminating factor
(c) Vector diagram of summation C.t. output
FIG.
329
8.6
Protective Relays
c,,{ ~]
I
\
/\
,'----Pilots
(a)
a.
b
~
Zp
(c)
8.10. Compensation for pilot-wire capacitance
(a) A voltage balance scheme
(b) A circulating current scheme
(c) Automatic compensation for pilot length
FIG.
IF = 1.( _ 1 = (X _ 1. This means that the fault current to operate the relay
1B
during load can be found by measuring PQ, which is
~;.
This value of (X-I is in terms of the summation transformer output

current. To obtain the corresponding value of c.t. secondary current requires
consideration of the relative phase angles of the summation c. t. for load and
fault currents. See section 8.7.1.
8.6. HALFWAVE COMPARISON SCHEME (98)
The basic connections of the circuit are similar to that of the circulating
current scheme (fig. 8.11a) but the principle of operation is different.
The relays have no restraining coils. Half-wave rectifiers are arranged to
330
A.C. Pilot Relaying
8.6
pass current through the operating coil in the tripping direction only during
an internal fault.
The resistances RA and RB are made slightly greater than that of the
pilot loop Rp- During an external fault one of the resistors RA or RB is shortcircuited by its rectifier, depending upon which half of the cycle is considered
a __~A~~__________~pr~o~t.~ct~.d~I~
ln~.~'.~Cl~'O~"__________-=~~B~_
b--~R=~--------------------------------~~~~
(0 )
(0)
G\, ,
\
./
(a)
8.11. Half-wave comparison scheme

(a) Basic a.c. circuit diagram
(b) External fault-first half cycle
(c) External fault-second half cycle
(d) Internal fault-first half cycle
(e) Internal fault-second half cycle
FIG.
(figs. 8.11b and 8.llc). The alternate short-circuiting of RA and RB causes the
relays alternately to have zero or negative voltage across them so that neither
relay operates. The fact that RA and RB are slightly greater than Rp , the pilot
wire resistance, makes the relays always have a slightly negative voltage.
During an internal fault, the c.t. currents are relatively reversed so that
positive voltage appears across both relays during one half cycle and zero
331
8.7
Protective Relays
voltage during the next half cycle. An additional half-wave rectifier is connected across each relay coil to perpetuate the coil current during the dead
half cycle. Non-linear resistors protect the c.t's from overvoltage during the
dead half cycle when the two c.t's would oth;rwise be open-circuited
(fig. 8.11e).
This scheme is used in England for both private and telephone pilots.
The relay is simple and inexpensive. It can be used with pilot wires up to
1000 ohms with an ordinary telephone type relay. It is somewhat affected by
offset waves since its stability relies upon movement of the equi-potential
point from one relay to the other during alternate half cycles of an external
fault.
8.7. POLYPHASE SUMMATION OF C.T. SECONDARY CURRENTS
Figs. 8.10 and 8.11a show widely used arrangements of windings for
summation c.t's. The output current for a given fault current magnitude in
each type of fault is given in Table 8.2 in terms of c.t. rated current.
Because the characteristics of pilot wire relays are plotted in terms of
ex =
fA
fB
or
p = ~ it is unnecessary to bring into the equations the number of

fA
turns in the summation transformer primary except for the ratio of the tap
turns. It is customary to make the turns between the a and b taps equal to
those between band c and use a higher number ofturns (n) between c and n,
the c.t. neutral return wire, so as to provide more sensitive action on ground
faults. Consequently, the pick-up setting can be expressed in terms of combinations of n and 1 for the various faults and, in this way, add only one more
constant to the equations.
It will be obvious from fig. 8.9c that the sensitivity of the relay will vary
with the type of fault; for example, the pick-up current for a c-a fault will
be half the value for an a-b fault and the pick-up current for a phase-a-toground fault will be ~2 times the value for a c - a fault.
. n+
Fig. 8.9c shows that, owing to the 120 between phases, the output for a
balanced three-phase fault is '" 3, so that the pick-up current is ../"3 times that
for an a-b fault.
8.2
TABLE
Effect of Summation on Pick-up Settings

Fault
Summation c.t. turns

Pick-up current
a-G
b-G
c-G
n+2
n+l
14%
165%
20%
90 0/0/
332
a-b b-c c-a a-b-c
90%
45%
52%
8.7
A.C. Pilot Relaying
It is possible to have a blind spot where load current is flowing in the

opposite direction from a single-phase ground fault. Also, no output will
occur when Ib = - 21a = - 21e which represents the current value on the
delta side of a Ll- Y power transformer with a phaso-to-phase fault on the
wye side. An a- c - G fault also cannot produce an output if the ground
current is phase-to-phase current divided by (n + 2).
The II +Klo filter network shown in fig. 8.8 originated in the U.S.A. (78).
.
. h-Ic
The output of the filter IS Vp = J
Xm + laRl + loRo = K}/l + Ko/o
v"3 '
where Kl and Ko are adjustments in the filter. It is free from blind spots if K is
chosen to suit the parameters of the protected circuit. Unlike the summation
transformer, the pick-up current of the relay supplied by this filter network
does not depend upon which phases are involved but only upon the amount
of II and 10 in the fault, which can be calculated from the Table 5.11 in
Chapter 5.
The general problem, however, is to select a form of network which can,
with the minimum of adjustment, suit most system application conditions.
This has been studied recently (83) and it has been shown that a combination
of the form II - NIz where N > 3 is generally applicable.
I
8.7.1. The Effect of Summation Transformer on 2: Ratio
IL
In section 8.5 and fig. 8.12c it was shown that the value of
{3 =
!!! to permit tripping of an internal fault,

IA
was given by the vectorial addition I
+ IF =
IL
IX
= ~ or
IB
i.e. to be outside the circle

IX.
The value of IIF however

L
depends upon which phases are involved because of their different treatment
in the summation c.t.
Fig. 8.9c shows that the output for a balanced three-phase load lags the
unity p.f. position for phase-a by 30. Consequently, for a ground fault on
IF = KaIIFjnj3'<PF-rPL+300 where <PF is the phase angle of the

I L l L V 3 :....:...::-=-=---fault current and <P L that of the load current. Similarly, for a fault between
.
0
phases a and b, IIF = Kab IIFI
T 1
r/<PF-<PL+60.
phase-a,
The values of
,I,v3
Kdepend upon the angle of II: and can be calculated or
measured on fig. 8.12 by drawing lines at the appropriate angles of IF and
IL
measuring their length from the point 1,0 to their intersection with the
characteristic circle. Fig. 8.12 shows the circle on the reference axis but, as
333
8.7
Protective Relays
explained in section 8.4.1, the circle may be displaced from this axis by pilot
capacitance unless it is compensated for.
Having measured these values of K, a table can be made of their values
and the actual effect of the load upon the pick-up current calculated for
L",=Argt
/
.0.
c-G
a-c
(c)
FIG.
8.12. Effect of load on IX-plane characteristic with single-end feed

(a, b) Single phase
(c) With summation transformer
various faults during single-end feed. As previously stated, the effect of load
current is negligible during double-end feed.
The value of IF for tripping with an
~
a-G fault is a/3 from fig.
Consequently, with x% load, the pick-up is : : ; .

334
n+2
8.12.
1~ as a percentage of c.t.
8.7
A.C. Pi/ot Relaying
rating. The values for other faults are given in Table 8.3. To these values must
be added the threshold value of pick-up given in Table 8.2.
TABLE 8.3
Effect of Load on Pick-up Settings
Fault
Summation
c.t. turns
Pick-up setting
e- G a-b b-e e-a a-b-e
a-G
b- G
n+2
n+l
bxV3
exV]
lOOn
axV3
l00(n
+ 2)
l00(n
+ 1)
dxV3 exV] Ixvi
100
100
100
200
x is the load expressed as a percentage of the c.t. rating.

The actual values of the setting factors a, b, c, d, e, J, g depend upon the
location of the centre of the circle relative to the point 1,0.
..~:r
0:
Ma.ximum fa.ult
current
Fcwlt
setting
(a)
Component for opera.tlon
----i------------l-l---I
Common(through) component
I
I
I
Current
(b)
FIG.
8.13. Effect of a voltage limiter

(a) Effect on pick-up
(b) Effect on discrimination
335
8.8
Protective Relays
8.8. PILOT WIRE LIMITATIONS
Private pilots are usually put in at the same time as the power conductors.
In cable systems, the pilot cable is laid in the same trench as the power cable
and protected from interference by twisting and sometimes screening. Overhead pilots may be on separate poles on the same right-of-way or may even
be combined with the earth wire. Fig. 8.14 shows the apparent impedance of
commonly used open and screened pilot cables. An analysis of the effect of
pilot-wire impedance and shunt admittance upon pilot relay characteristics
is given in reference (140).
Pilot wire cables are often rented from telephone companies (76) but they
involve certain difficulties which have to be recognised, such as re-routing
10,000
6,000
4,000
....
..
] 2,000
..u
c::
d
1,000
....c::
..
d
Q.
Q.
600
400
200
~ ~~~
100lL- -__
____
__
1
2
4
6
10
____
~
20
____
~ ~~.~.~.
40
__
60 80 100
Pilot length (mil )
FIG.
8.14. Apparent impedance of pilot-wire pairs
by the telephone staff causing a change in parameters, the insertion of inductive loading coils and sometimes open or short-circuiting during switchboard
maintenance. Also, the voltage across the pilots must not exceed 130 V and
the current 60 mA, compared with 200 V and 200 mA for private pilots. This
means that limiting devices have to be used in order to provide sufficient
relay sensitivity during minimum generating conditions without exceeding the
permissible voltage and current during maximum conditions. Limiting devices
employ either neon lamps (U.S.A.) which cut off sharply at about 90 V or
thyrite which has a characteristic of the order of V4 = kI, where k is a
336
8.9
A.C. Pilot Relaying
constant and is controlled by series resistance. Zener diodes are now coming
into use for this purpose.
Telephone pilots are usually either 2000 or 3500 ohms with padding
resistance to make them up to the nearest value. All equipment connected
to these pilots must stand a 15 kV test to ground.
B.9. PILOT SUPERVISION
Although private pilots are very reliable, telephone pilots require supervision and in some countries overhead pilots are often stolen for their copper
sales value.
The effects of open or short-circuiting the pilot wires are as follows:
TABLE
8.4
Effect of Open or Short-Circuiting the Pilot Wires

Voltage Balance Scheme
Pilot Fault
Circulating Current Scheme
Short-circuit
Fails to trip on internal faults
Trips on full load
Open-circuit
Trips on full load
Fails to trip on internal faults
Automatic supervision is usually applied in conjunction with overcurrent fault detectors which prevent wrong tripping on load. The supervision method usually consists of circulating a few milliamps d.c. in the pilot
and providing relays which give an alarm if this d.c. is drastically increased
or decreased. The alarm is delayed a few seconds so as not to operate during
faults. The d.c. has to be extremely well smoothed so as not to interfere with
telephone conversations.
Pilot
rclo.ys
10,uF
10.u F
120 V
A C.
FIG.
M
8.1S. Pilot supervision scheme
337
P,lot
rclo.ys
8.11
Protective Relays
Fig. 8.15 shows an effective supervision circuit. Relay Rl and R4 drop out
and sound the alarm if the supervisory d.c. is interrupted by an open pilot
or failure of the d.c. supply; if the pilot is short-circuited R4 again drops out
and R2 picks up on the increased current. R3 drops out if the d.c. supply fails.
R4 also drops out if the pilot wires are crossed, reversing the polarity of the
received current. Relays Rl and R2 can be combined into one relay with a
contact that assumes a central position when de-energised. The settings of
these relays are normally of the order of 15 rnA pick-up and 07 rnA
drop-out.
8.10. PROTECTIVE DEVICES
Besides affecting the operation of the relay, the high voltages that can
appear between the ends of the pilot due to a.c. potential gradients in the
ground can also damage the equipment and injure personnel.
Fig. 8.16 shows the modern methods of coping with this problem. A
15 kV insulating transformer insulates the relay from the pilot wires. A
Ga.. filled
protector tube
15 KV in.ula.ting
r - - - - - , tra.nsformer
r------,
Pilot
rela.y
Pilot wires
Dra.ina.ge
rea.ctor
FIG.
8.16. Pilot-wire protection against over-voltage
neutralising transformer cancels out induced and differential ground potentials but it is not necessary where supervision (S) is not employed. Both
transformers are wound so as to have low impedance to circulating currents.
A gas-filled protector tube and drainage reactor at each end of the pilot wire
protects the relay against longitudinally induced voltages. The drainage
reactor is also a transformer wound so as to provide a high impedance
across the pilots and a low impedance for currents flowing simultaneously
from the pilots to earth.
8.11. PHASE COMPARISON CARRIER
A high-frequency carrier via the conductors of the protected power line

may be used for unit protection in the case of overhead lines, but it is impractical with cables because of the very high attenuation due to shunt
susceptance. This is a clear-cut case for the application of transistor techniques (28) (29).
338
8.11
A.C. Pilot Relaying
In pilot-wire differential relaying, amplitude comparison is used more

frequently because the errors introduced by attenuation are fixed and can be
compensated for. In a carrier channel, however, the attenuation varies with
atmospheric conditions and hence phase comparison is used. The length of
pilot wire channel that can be used is limited by the phase shift due to the
capacitance between the wires; similarly, the length of transmission line that
can be protected by phase comparison carrier is limited by the phase shifts
caused by (a) the propagation time, i.e. the time taken by the carrier signal
to reach the other end of the line (up to 01 per mile), (b) the response time
of the band pass filter (about 5) and (c) the capacitance phase-shift of the
transmission line (up to 10).
Amplitude comparison is limited by error due to phase shift and phase
comparison is limited by error due to attenuation (fig. 8.17a). The latter is
Typica.l input
Squa.r~d
minimum
input
,
:
I
I
,
I
I
t
Thr~.hold
l ' ----:--..J :
: i-inttlrva.1
Fixed
interva.l
~l interva.l ~
(b)
(a)
FIG. 8.17. Effect of current amplitude on phase comparison

(a) Variable interval with sinusoidal wave. (b) Fixed interval with squared wave
minimised in phase comparison carrier by squaring the waveform for any

amplitude greater than some value below the minimum signal level (fig.
8.17b). Both of these errors have been recently considered in the literature
(28) (29) and receive further treatment in Vol. II.
8.11.1. Principle of Operation
At each terminal a high frequency carrier signal is injected into the line,
as explained for directional carrier in Chapter 7, and the signal is modulated
at each end by the squared wave of local current, so that blocks of carrier
frequency are transmitted corresponding to half-waves of system frequency
in one direction, i.e. there are alternate half cycles of carrier signal and no
signal (fig. 8.18).
During an external fault the half-waves of current are equal in magnitude
but 180 out of phase so that a continuous signal, consisting of alternate halfcycle blocks of carrier supplied from each end in turn, is provided and tripping
is prevented (fig. 8.19a). During an internal fault (fig. 8.19b) the currents at
the two ends are in phase so that both ends produce a similar block of carrier
339
Protective Relays
8.11
signals at the same time for one half cycle with nothing during the next half
cycle and this permits tripping.
Fault detectors or sequence networks ensure that carrier transmission is
started only when there is a fault because continuous transmission would be
uneconomical and might cause radio interference. The carrier signal can be
n[\ [\ /\ /\ n
FIG.
n[\ !\ [\ /\ n
8.18. Carrier modulation in half-cycle blocks
(a)
FIG.
8.19. Transmitted and received signals in phase comparison carrier

(a) Continuous signal during an external fault
(b) Intermittent signal during an internal fault
introduced between phases or between phase and ground and the basic
transmitter and receiver equipment is similar to that used for directional
comparison. The phase-to-ground method is cheaper but it requires an earth
wire and has somewhat higher attenuation, interference and coupling with
other phases. The transmitted power level is 10 to 15 watts and the receivers
are designed to permit about 30 dB attenuation.
340
A.C. Pilot Relaying
8.11
8.11.2. Equipment
Fig. 8.20 shows the basic functions of the equipment. The currents from
the three c.t. secondaries are combined into one current by a summation
network based on a preferred combination of phase-sequence quantities.
The resultant current is supplied to a modulator which is associated with a
carrier frequency oscillator. The half cycle blocks of carrier frequency are
injected into the transmission line via an amplifier and a capacitor coupler
IBO O
FIG.
8.20. Effect of stability angle upon operation of phase comparison carrier
(fig. 8.21). The carrier, however, is controlled by fault detectors so that it is

started only during faults. In order to cope with the wide range of fault
current amplitudes, a limiting device is used at the input of the carrier
equipment.
The signal received from the other terminal is passed to a demodulator
for extraction of the power-frequency component in the form of a cyclic
quantity of rectangular wave-form which is supplied to the comparator or
phase-discriminator unit, along with the local signal, the latter being suitably
limited to bring it down to a level comparable with the remote signal. The
output from the phase-discriminator goes to the tripping unit.
(a) Summation Network. Summation c.t's similar to those described in
section 8.7 of this chapter have been used; modem practice is to use a combination of phase sequence components, the most common being (/1 - NI2)
where N is adjustable or in some cases fixed at 4 or 5 (fig. 8.22). This subject
is discussed in Vol. II and reference (83).
The output of the summation circuit must reach the threshold value of the
modulator for all fault conditions for which the starting relays or network
function, including the effects of load and capacity currents. To ensure this
the output should correspond closely to that of the starting network and both
341
8.11
Protective Relays
should be linear over the fault range in order to avoid error due to unequal
phase shifts at the two ends. Finally, the transient response should not
produce parasitic frequencies at non-system frequency.
(b) Oscillator. The oscillator circuit produces the carrier signal. It is
usually arranged to operate continuously and, in modern equipment, its
frequency is kept constant by a piezo-crystal unit.
(c) Modulator. A continuous high-frequency carrier signal is supplied to
the modulator together with the local current at system frequency. The
Oscill<1tor
ModuI <1tor
Tr<1nsmitter
Squ<1ring
circuit
't'
Fa.ult
input
F<1ult
detector
~-~-
Low
set
Sta.rt
circuit
I
I
High
set
I
I
l _____
I
I
+I
Time
del<1y
I
IForced
Ist<1bility
I
I
Comp<1r<1tor
DemoduIa.tor
Rcf!iver
I
I
Reset
FIG.
Trip Circuit
8.21. Block diagram of phase comparison carrier protection
square-wave system frequency signal acts as a cyclic gate, and high-frequency

signal is passed through the modulator in half-cycle periods; maintenance of
unity mark-space ratio in the modulating signal is assured by design of the
squaring circuit.
(d) Transmitter-Amplifier. The signal from the modulator is increased to
at least 10 watts by a power amplifier which is suitable for the range of
frequency over which the oscillator can be adjusted. In some equipment the
amplifier is tuned. The output from the amplifier is fed into the power line
through a capacitance device, as explained in Chapter 7.
(e) Carrier Receiver. The receiver has to accept the carrier frequency
which has been chosen for the channel and reject all others that may be used
on the conductors of the same line for communication, telemetering, etc.
342
A.C. Pilot Relaying
8.11
Carrier frequencies are used for communication purposes in 4 kc/s bands but
for protective purposes, where simplicity is demanded, the frequencies used
would be much wider apart than 4 kc/s. Closer spacing and therefore better
selectivity could, if necessary, be obtained at the expense of operating
range.
The receiver input impedance is matched to that of the line and coupling
circuit in order to avoid trouble due to signal reflection. Included in the
receiver are a demodulator, a voltage amplifier and a limiter which equalises
input signals so that the phase comparator or discriminator can operate
effectively, without overloading.
(J) Phase Comparator. The phase comparator produces a tripping signal
when the interval between carrier blocks exceeds about 30 and prevents
tripping when the interval is less than this (fig. 8.21). Theoretically, the interval
between carrier blocks is 180 on an internal fault and 0 on an external fault,
but in practice the 180 interval can be reduced due to
(a) phase displacement between the generated e.m.f.s at the ends of the
system;
(b) through load current being added to the fault current at one end
and subtracted at the other.

The 0 interval can be increased by the previously mentioned phase shifts
due to the carrier signal propagation time, the response time of the receiver
band-pass filter and the capacitance of the protected line. The effect of line
charging current can be compensated by supplying the modulator with some
additional current lagging the local potential (or reversing the current through
a capacitor) but the first two items cannot be compensated for.
The narrowing of the tripping interval due to differences in summation at
the two ends of the line can be minimised by using separate protection for
each phase, or by using phase-comparison carrier with zero sequence current
only, and taking care of phase-to-phase faults (which are rare) by another
form of protection, such as directional-comparison carrier.
(g) Tripping Circuit. The tripping relay has to operate in the interval
between carrier blocks, which should be 180 but may be much less for the
above reasons. It is usual to provide a trigger-circuit which measures the
interval of time between blocks of carrier and trips if it exceeds 30, i.e.
l~f
second, where f is the system frequency. Such a circuit is not affected by

spurious intervals caused by interference.
(h) Starting Devices. As in other forms of pilot relaying, two groups of
starting devices are used, high-set and low-set. The low-set group initiate the
transmitting circuit and the high-set monitor the tripping circuit. The latter
are set 20 %to 50 %higher than the low-set group.
In the early American phase comparison carrier equipments the starting
devices were usually overcurrent relays on lines up to 69 kV and impedance
relays for the higher voltage lines.
343
8.11
Protective Relays
In modem equipment a phase sequence network is used, giving an output

which is some combination of sequence components, such as (11 - 512 ),
which has been found to give the most uniform output for the various kinds
of faults; insensitivity to load is provided by making the positive sequence
FIO.
8.22. (h
+ KJiJ starting network
component dependent upon a high rate-of-rise. Such a circuit is shown in

fig. 8.22.
Fig. 8.23 shows an alternative arrangement in which a transductor is
provided in each c.t. secondary circuit and their rectified outputs are paralleled
Tra.nsdu c~t..:.:or_._ _ _ _ _ _~
C.T.
FIO.
8.23. Transductor starting network
and fed to the starting relays or circuits. Each transductor is biassed by the
current from another phase so that there is no output during balanced threephase load but at least one transductor gives an output during unbalanced
con,ditions. Operation on three-phase faults is arranged by delaying the bias
344
A.C. Pilot Relaying
8.12
by means of a large capacitor so that there will be a brief output during which
a sealing-in device will operate.
In order to prevent incorrect tripping on an external fault, during the
period that the fault current has ceased but the starting devices have not yet
reset, a carrier-continuing device is provided. This device is similar in action
to the relay used in directional comparison carrier for preventing incorrect
tripping due to interference signals which are generated by the arc in the nearer
breaker which is interrupting the fault in the next line section.
8.12. APPENDIX
The derivation of equation (8.1) in section 8.4.1 (a) is as follows. Referring

to fig. 8.24, Is is the current entering the pilot at the sending end and IR is
Pilots
FIG.
8.24. Compensation for pilot y
the current leaving the pilot at the receiving end. Applying Thevenin's theorem
and considering one end at a time, the voltage across the C.t. at A, from
reference (152) is
(8.4)
Z
Now}' and ~ are complex ratios such that}' = m + jn and
Zop
zZo = IZo
z I{cos(4)-9)+j sin (4)-O)}
Op
Op
where 4> is the argument of Zo and 9 is the argument of Zop' Equation (8.1)
can be written
lop = IR {COSh (m +jn) +
= IR {coshm
I::J
sinh (m+jn) [cos (4)-9)+j sin (4)-9)]}
cos n + j sinhm
sinn+I~:p \(sinh m cosn + j cosh m sinn)

[cos (4)-9)+j sin (4)-lm}
(8.5)
In Chapter 3, Appendix 3.7.3, and in section 8.4.1 (a) of this chapter,

it was shown that, for the characteristic of the relays at the two terminals
to be on the real axis, the phase shift due to )' must be compensated for so that
the currents in the operating coils at the two ends (lop and I R ) must be in
345
8.12
Protective Relays
phase. For this to be so the sum of the imaginary components of equation

(8.5) must be zero- Hence
sinhm sinn + /Zo ,; {sinh m cos n sin (tfo-8)+cosh m sin n-cos (tfo-8)}=O
Zop
COS n .
cosh m
}
IZopl = - IZol { -.-sm(-8) + ----;+--h cos (tfo-8)
smn
sm ,m
= -IZol{cotn sin(-O)+cothmcos(--O)}
346
(8.6)
9
Proteetio" 0' A.C. MfWmnes
Generator Protection-Stator Faults-Rotor Faults-Miscellaneous
Faults-Motor Protection-Faults-Unbalanced Conditions-Power
Station Auxiliaries-Current Differential Relaying
9.1. GENERATORS
The generators are the most expensive pieces of equipment in the a.c.
power system (see fig. 1.7) and are subject to more possible types of trouble
than any other equipment. The desire to protect against all these abnormal
conditions and yet to keep the protection simple and reliable has resulted in
considerable divergence of opinion on the choice of protection.
The choice must be carefully made since inadvertent operation of the
relays is almost as serious as failure to operate. This is because the unnecessary disconnection of a large generator may overload the rest of the
system and cause power oscillations which may disrupt the system. On the
other hand, failure to clear a fault promptly may cause expensive damage
to the generator.
Another difficulty is the fact that, unlike other equipment, opening a
breaker to isolate the defective generator is not sufficient to prevent further
damage, since the generator will continue to supply power to a stator winding
fault until its field excitation has been suppressed; very few generators have
an additional three-phase circuit-breaker to disconnect the windings from
neutral to break up the fault path. It is therefore necessary to remove the
field, shut oft' the steam, water or fuel supply to the prime mover and, in
some cases, supply braking. Furthermore, carbon dioxide is pumped into
some large machines to extinguish any burning of insulation which has been
started by a fault arc and fanned by the rotor movement.
Finally, the relays must give reasonable protection and certainly not trip
undesirably during the running up of a generator. The pick-up of currentoperated relays is very little changed, whilst the pick-up of voltage-operated
relays is reduced at the low frequencies during the running up period because
their coil reactance is reduced; this latter is not important, however, since
overvoltage is not likely. On the other hand, all relays with phase-shifting
circuits or sequence networks will be affected and should be disconnected if
they cause undesirable tripping.
347
9.1
Protective Relays
Some of the abnormal conditions that must be dealt with are considered
in the following sections. The treatment is brief because this subject has been
dealt with in many previous books and articles and only the most modern
methods will be mentioned.
9.1.1. Stator Protection
The breakdown of conductor insulation may result in a fault between

conductors or between a conductor and the iron core. The breakdown may
be caused by overvoltage or by overheating which in turn can be caused by
unbalanced currents, ventilation troubles, etc.; it may also be caused by
damage to the insulation by conductor movement due to forces exerted by
short-circuits or out-of-step conditions.
Because of the destructive effects of a ground fault (conductor to core),
due to the high temperature of the arc, the fault current is usually limited by
impedance in the neutral of the generator which may be a resistance, a distribution transformer with resistance loading, a reactance, or a potential
transformer. With the neutral current limited to 250 amperes high-speed
relays and breakers will prevent serious core damage. With 5 amperes or less,
slow-acting relays are sufficient. The higher the neutral impedance, however,
the more the risk of creating another winding fault due to voltage resonance
with the capacitance to ground of the stator and the equipment connected
to it.
106
The neutral resistance should not exceed Rn = 6njC ohms where C is the
capacitance of the stator circuit to earth per phase in microfarads and f is
the system frequency.
Modern practice is to use a resistance-loaded distribution transformer and
its resistance should not exceed Rn =
61t~~N2 where N is the turn ratio of
the transformer. If C is variable or not known a safe value of impedance can

be used which will limit the current to between 20 and 200 amperes, usually
about 30 amperes.
(a) Phase and Ground Faults. Faults between conductors can sometimes
be repaired by re-taping or replacing the conductor, but faults between the
conductor and the iron laminations are a serious matter because the arc may
melt the laminations together, thereby forming a hot-spot which may necessitate rebuilding the core. It is essential therefore to clear winding faults as
quickly as possible and this is done in machines over 1000 kW by a high-speed
differential relay which compares current in c.t's at the two ends of each phase
winding (longitudinal differential protection). If there are parallel windings in
each phase and they are brought out to separate terminals, another relay
compares their two currents (transverse differential protection); it thus
provides back-up protection and detects inter-tum faults.
The relays use the same principle in both cases. They measure the
difference between the two currents, which should theoretically be zero under
348
9.1
Protection of A.C. Machines
normal conditians. The connections of the differential relays are shown

schematically in figs. 9.1 and 9.2 for wye-connected generators. Other connections are discussed in references (85) and (86). The relays shown have a
biassing (restraining) winding which provides the characteristic shown in
(a)
1
~
..
:>
u
u
.,.
.~ -6
.."' .
1='4
'3
2
1
Tlmn ra.tln9
fIG.
10
9.1. (a) Schematic connections for longitudinal differential protection of

a generator. (b) Typical characteristic of biassed differential relay
fig. 9.lb; a mathematical analysis of the biassed differential type relay was
given in Chapter 3, section 3.2.1.
In machines below 10 MW time-overcurrent relays may replace the
differential relays, but they should be monitored by an instantaneous undervoltage relay. The latter is connected to control the overcurrent relay making
it faster and more sensitive if the voltage drops below 50 % indicating a
fault in the machine.
349
9.1
Protective Relays
If the c.t's were ideal and the leads from the relay to the c.t's were equal,
very sensitive settings could be obtained and the bias or restraint windings,
shown in figs. 9.1 and 9.2, would be unnecessary. Unfortunately, neither is
the case and the spurious differential current increases with current through
the windings so that, on a heavy external fault, the sensitivity of the relay
Blo.S
a.
C.Ts
~(--_--G.ntr(1tor---_~
windings
FIG.
9.2. Schematic connections for transverse differential protection of a generator
must be reduced by the bias which is made proportional to the through

current and hence makes the relay stable with negligible loss of sensitivity
on light faults. In fig. 9.4a no bias is necessary because a common C.t. is used
so that error due to C.t. difference does not occur.
There are two varieties of this bias. In the U.S.A. the restraint winding is
in two halves (fig. 9.3) which are arranged to produce a product torque so
that, on an internal fault, the bias torque reverses and increases the sensitivity
of the relay. In the U.K., the bias is usualIy obtained by omitting the restraining windings altogether and putting a resistance in series with the operating
coil; the relay is set to pick up at a voltage equal to Vr = Is(Rs + RL) where Is
is maximum C.t. secondary current for an external fault, Rs is the resistance
of one C.t. secondary and RL is the resistance of the leads from that C.t. to the
relay (fig. 9.5).
This resistance would appear to reduce the sensitivity of the relay and
create dangerously high potentials across the c. t. wiring during heavy external
faults but, in practice, this is avoided by putting much of the resistance in
extra turns on the relay and hence providing greater sensitivity; high voltages
are avoided either by magnetic saturation (fig. 9.4b) or by a non-linear resistor
connected across the operating coil circuit. The capacitor is used, partly to
make the relay insensitive to the d.c. component of offset current waves
350
9.1
Shc.dlng tub.
0 ..
SIc.nk pol.
1-
R..lrc.in
Opuc.t.
(a)
(b)
~ Block==
Trip
Trtp
(e)
9.3. Differential relay with product restraint
(a) Basic circuit
(b) Arrangement on an 8-pole indu<;:tion cup relay
(c) Operating characteristic
FIG.
and partly to reject the harmonics, which form a large part of the initial
spurious differential current caused by remanence in the c.t's. A combination
of the restraining winding and the bias resistor will provide stability with
somewhat smaller c.t's.
The effects upon differential relays of C.t. transients are dealt with in more
detail in Chapter 11 and in references (30) and (94). One solution is to
employ very sensitive relays which can be used with ironless c.t's (linear
couplers) (113).
Generator differential relays are'usually set to pick up at 5 %of the C.t.
rating with full load flowing and the slope of the linear characteristic is
usually about 10%. In the case of the product restraint relay, the slope is
negligible at pick-up and increases in an exponential manner to infinity at
351
0.
In sl .-clJrrcnt
rClo.y '
(a)
Gl: ncrc.tor
windings
'.
'.
So.turo.t ,n9
a.u lO
CT
(b)
Sto.b,I,.lng
nSt5tor
IA
I.
FIG. 9.4. Differential protection with un biassed relays

(a) Application to transverse differential protection. (b) Relay circuit. (c) Photo of relay
352
9.1

Glnera.tor wind In9
.T
.T.
a ia.s coils (If UUd)

Lco.ch
Lnd.
Opera.llng
coli
Sta.bill s lng
resistor
I Z drop in bien coil (If used)
C.T.
l .m.1.
f C~iTl.~.
C.T.
cC,{,. I
c.m.f.
!~--I
(c)
FIG.
9.S. Voltage distribution in C.t. secondary circuit during faults

(a) Basic circuit. (b) External fault. (c) Internal fault
six or eight times c.t. rating on through faults, but is of course negative on
internal faults.
Because of the limited ground fault current where a machine is grounded
through impedance, the ground fault relays need to be more sensitive than
the phase relays. The modem practice of generator-transformer units solves
this problem because the generator stator winding terminates in the low tension
winding of the power transformer so that a sensitive zero sequence relay can
be used to protect against all ground faults (fig. 9.15). It is usual to design the
relay to be insensitive to third harmonic currents and to have a setting of
15 %of the neutral impedor rating. When an inverse time relay is used it is
set to pick up at 5 %of the neutral impedor rating and to trip in 05 second
at 10 times the impedor rating.
Ungrounded generators are rare but, where they exist, a stator fault to
ground must be detected by an electrostatic ground detector, since the fault
currents in this case are the low value capacitance currents fed through the
healthy phases.
353
9.1
Protective Relays
Ground faults near the neutral of the generator produce less current than
c: I
. 10.p.kV where kV is the kV
. Is. The lau
t h ose near the termma
t current IS
3Z..
rating of the machine, p is the location of the fault expressed as a percentage
of the winding from the neutral, and Z .. is the impedance in the neutral.
Let Q be the relay pick-up expressed as a percentage of the c.t. rating and
Prc be the neutral c.t. primary rating; the relay pick-up current is QPrc
100
(primary) amperes.
10. p. kV
I
y3Z..
QPrc .
= 100 gIves the relationship between
p=
p and Q
Q. Prc v3Z n
1000 kV
(9.1)
As an example, if the relay pick-up is 1 ampere, the c.t. ratio is 250/5

amperes and the machine is rated at 11 kV with Z,. = 200, then
100 200 ' d
Q= 5
= % an
J3.
2050.
200 3 %
1000.11 - = 1 0
This means that 31 % of the winding from the neutral is not protected or
that l00-p = 69% of the winding from the terminals is protected.
(b) Stator Inter-Turn Faults. Longitudinal protection cannot be relied
upon to detect interturn faults except those between conductors of different
phases which are in the same slot. In lap-wound machines an interturn
fault affects only a single-pole pitch but in a wave-wound machine it
would affect the whole stator. Such faults involve very high local currents
which can cause severe damage to the core. With generators having parallel
windings separately brought out to terminals, transverse differential protection
will detect faults between turns of the same winding. The most sensitive arrangement is shown in fig. 9.4b. For generators without access to parallel windings
it is necessary to rely on the zero sequence component of voltage caused by
the reduction of e.m.f. in the faulted phase. See fig. 9.6.
Another method of detecting turn-to-turn faults (84) is based on the fact
that any dissymmetry of the stator currents creates a negative sequence component; this rotates at the same speed as the armature reaction field but in the
reverse direction and thus induces a double frequency current in the field
circuit. This can be detected by a suitably tuned a.c. relay in the field which
can be monitored by a negative sequence directional relay so that it will
detect all stator winding faults but will not operate on unbalanced faults
external to the generator. A special c.t. is connected in the field to supply the
relay; it has a tertiary winding energised from the exciter voltage to produce
ampere-turns which cancel out those produced by the field current and thus
avoid magnetic saturation.
354
9.1

Volta.ge tra.nsfotmers
Sine
product
rela.ys
RN
Genera.tor sta.tor
windings
II'
Trip :
~
(a)
::...J..::.
II!I IIiI
II
Ii]
~
(b)
FIG. 9.6. (a) Interturn fault detection
(b) Effect of delayed fault clearance in a generator
In large generators intertum fault protection is often unnecessary

because there is only one turn per phase per slot. The greatest value of this
fault protection is for a generator with its neutral ungrounded, or grounded
through a high impedance, because here an intertum fault would otherwise have to burn through to another phase before it caused any relay
operation.
355
9.1
Protective Relays
(c) Stator Overheating. The main causes of stator overheating are ventilation failure, overloading, short-circuited laminations and failure of corebolt insulation.
Two methods are commonly used for detecting overheating; both are
used in large machines (above 2000 kVA). One method is to compare the
inlet and outlet temperatures of the ventilating medium, which may be air,
hydrogen or water. The other method uses temperature indicating devices
A.C. volta.gt: sourct:
Rclo.y polo.rising coli

St:rit:s bridgt:
resistor
:s...f----""d-RCIa.y
opcroiing coil
Fixcd bridgc
resistors
Volta.gt: dropping
+o---_~/ rcsista.net:
. Ca.libra.tion
pott:ntiomt:tcr _.oN.J\N....."AIVI.JVv.
Very
nnsitivc
rcla.y
Rcplica.
rcsista.ncc_
(b)
fiG.
9.7. Resistance temperature detector

(a) With induction relay
(b) With polarised d.c. relay
embedded in the slots at different points in the winding; a selector switch

checks each one in tum long enough to operate an alarm relay.
The embedded temperature devices may be either thermocouples, thermistors, or resistance temperature indicators (R.T.D.s). Fig. 9.7 shows typical
bridge circuits employed with R.T.D.s. In small machines a replica type
temperature relay is used which has a bimetallic strip heated by secondary
current from the stator; the housing of the bimetallic strip should be designed
to have a heating and cooling characteristic similar to that of the machine.
Short-circuited laminations can be detected by a temperature indicator
before damage only if one happens to be located near enough to the hot spot.
356
9.1
(d) Overvoltage. Apart from transient overvoltages caused by lightning,

etc., the over-voltage can be associated with overspeed or it can be caused by
a defective voltage regulator (see section 9.1.3 (g)).
On modem steam-driven generators the voltage regulators act sufficiently
rapidly to prevent serious overvoltage from occurring when either the generator loses its load and terminal voltage increases due to acceleration, or as
a consequence of line charging current. In hydro or gas-turbine driven sets,
however, the acceleration is greater because it takes longer to shut off the
prime mover than in the case of steam.
When a steam turbine set loses its load, the steam can be throttled before
any great increase in speed has taken place; any overvoltage associated with
overspeed will be controlled by the automatic voltage regulator. In hydro
sets, however, the water flow cannot be stopped or deflected so quickly and
overspeed can occur. Where the exciter is directly coupled to the machine the
voltage tends to go up nearly as the square of the speed. It is customary,
therefore, to supply overvoltage protection on hydro and gas-turbine sets
but it is not so common on steam turbo-alternators.
The most suitable overvoltage relay has two units, an instantaneous unit
tripping on 25% (steam) or 40% (hydro) overvoltage, and an inverse time
unit starting on 10% overvoltage; both overvoltage relays must be compensated for frequency and must be energised from an unregulated voltage supply.
Modem practice is for the high-set relay to insert resistance in the exciter
field (assuming no voltage regulator) and, if the overvoltage persists, the lowset inverse time relay will shut down the generator.
9.1.2. Rotor Protection
Rotor windings may be damaged by ground faults or open-circuits;

structural parts of the rotor itself may be damaged by overheating due to
unbalanced stator currents. The methods of protection are as follows.
(a) Ground Faults. If the rotor winding is ungrounded a fault to earth has
no effect, but a second fault to earth will increase the current in part of the
winding and may also unbalance the air-gap fluxes so that there will be serious
vibration which may do serious damage. Furthermore, a single rotor fault
to earth raises the potential of the whole field and exciter system and the
extra voltages induced by opening the field breaker or the main breaker
under fault conditions may cause a second rotor winding fault to earth.
Finally, a second fault may cause local heating which may slowly distort
the rotor causing dangerous eccentricity; this also can cause vibration and
serious damage.
Fig. 9.8 shows a modem method of detecting rotor earth faults. The
field circuit is biassed by a d.c. voltage which causes current to flow through
the relay if a ground fault occurs. The relay is a polarised moving iron relay
(fig. 2.19) which will pick up at It %of the field voltage and yet stand the full
exciter voltage continuously if a fault should occur near one end of the
winding, as indicated by the point X. This method is superior to those which
357
Protective Relays
9.1
apply the biasing voltage at the mid-point of a centre tapped resistor because
it has no null point. It is also superior to methods using an a.c. biasing voltage
because this will cause current to flow through the capacitance of the rotor
:I 01
0
~--
-,
L ____ J:
FIG.
Sensitive
rclo.y
9.8. Earth fault detection
winding to its core and thence through the bearings to ground; this current,
though small, will pit the bearings unless a special collector brush is fitted to
the rotor shaft.
(b) Open"circuit. Rotor open-circuits are very rare but, if one occurs, it
Bus bo.rs
(4)
To gen. tro.nsf. protection
FCiult B
(b)
9.9. Interlocked overcurrent protection

(a) Fault on breaker side. (b) Fault on line side
FIG.
must be dealt with promptly because the ensuing arc may cause damage by
burning.
The relay to detect a rotor open-circuit is the same one as is used for
detecting loss-of-field and is described in section 9.1.3 (c).
(c) Unbalanced Stator Currents. The negative sequence component of
unbalanced stator currents induces double frequency currents in the rotor
during normal synchronous running. lfthe degree of unbalance is sufficiently
large, severe overheating can be caused in the structural parts of the rotor
which tends to soften and weaken slot wedges and retaining rings; these
358
9.1
components are normally already under great stress in large turbo-alternators (120) (121).
The system conditions that would cause these harmful unbalanced conditions are:
(a) the open-circuiting of cne phase of a line or the failure of one contact
of a circuit breaker;
(b) an unbalanced fault near the station which is not cleared promptly
by the normal relays;
(c) a fault in the stator winding.
The time for which the rotor can withstand this condition is inversely
as the square of the negative sequence current, i.e. I~t = K, where K is a
constant which varies from a value of 7 in a highly rated steam set (101)
with direct cooling to 60 for a salient pole-hydro set with air-cooled stator
1,000
500
200
\' \~
100
inverse relo.y
Type COG 15
~tlrcmCIY
./
...
.. 50
\ \\ \
\\ \
...
c
\\\ l\
~~
.5
!.20
~ ~ K~
10
\\
1\
Direct cooled o.lterno.tor

ftiydrogen cooled aJterno.tor
Wo.tcrwheel o.lterno.tor
~"
1
10
20
50
2
5
Negative sequence current in multiples of full load
FIG.
9.10. lz2t = K characteristic of generators
359
100
9.1
Protective Relays
(see fig. 9.10). The ability of large generators to stand negative sequence
current (and hence the value of K) is becoming progressively less because
their specific rating is still increasing although their size has almost reached
the limit of present material strengths.
It is important for the protective relay to have a time-current characteristic
I~t = K which matches that of the machine as closely as possible because,
while it is important to disconnect the generator if K is exceeded, it is also
very important not to take it off the system unnecessarily. Fig. 9.11 shows a
FIG.
9.11. Negative sequence relay for generators
relay which maintains this characteristic very accurately over a time range of
02 to 2000 seconds. It has an induction disc movement with a special
electromagnet equipped with magnetic shunts, shown in fig. 9.12a. Another
way of doing this is to use non-linear resonance so that the operating coil
becomes tuned as it saturates; the latter method, however, is affected by
frequency (120).
The relay contains a negative sequence network which supplies an
instantaneous alarm unit as well as the time-current unit. The alarm unit also
starts the time unit and is adjustable from 8 to 40 %negative sequence current
360
9.1
because the ability of generators to stand 12 continuously over this range

depends on the type of cooling. The alarm is delayed by a timer to avoid
unnecessary alarms on unbalanced loads of short duration.
<">c.p bridged by
Mu-m.tc.1 shunt
Mu-m.tc.1 shunt
;;
W~~:~-;:~_Sha.din9
'"
Opcrc.tlnq
rongs
COil
(a)
V,
s
(b)
(c)
flO.
9.12. (a) Electromagnet of [2/ = K induction disc relay

(b) Static circuit for 135 t = K relay
(c) Time-voltage relation of static circuit
361
9.1
Protective Relays
9.1.3. Miscellaneous
Abnormal conditions that do not directly affect the stator or rotor alone
are overspeed, motoring, loss offield, loss of synchronism and bearing failure.
(a) Overspeed. When a circuit-breaker opens and a steam turbine therefore suddenly loses its load, the steam may be shut off immediately without
causing damage. On the other hand, when a water wheel suddenly loses its
load the water flow cannot be stopped quickly for reasons of energy and
mechanical and hydraulic inertia. This slow reduction of the water supply
following sudden loss of load is responsible for the occasional overspeeding
of water wheel generators. Under governor control, depending on the
governor adjustment, overspeeds of over 150 % of normal are possible.
Steam and hydro sets are provided with mechanical overspeed devices but,
because of the slower throttling down of the hydro and gas-turbine sets,
overspeed relays are usually provided on the latter. The setting of an overspeed relay may be 115% for steam or 140% for hydro machines.
On very large steam sets, relays are sometimes provided to anticipate
speeding up due to loss of load. In the U.S.A. an out-of-step tripping relay
(see Chapter 5, section 5.4.8) has been used which cuts off the steam when the
generator has slipped one pole and is 1800 out of synchronism. Obviously the
relay will not cope with overspeed caused by loss of load due to the opening
of a circuit-breaker. In England a quick acting relay has been used which
operates when the wattful power falls relative to the steam pressure.
(b) Motoring. In modem steam turbines the steam may be at a temperature equivalent to red heat and is difficult to envisage as a cooling medium;
nevertheless, if the steam supply is reduced sufficiently the heat caused by
turbulence of the trapped air while the generator is idling or running as a
motor can de-temper and damage turbine blades.
Motoring is prevented by a sensitive wattmetric relay (88), fig. 2.8, which
operates on about 05 % reverse power, its setting depending on the type
of steam turbine; the reverse power relay usually has a time delay which
varies from seconds to minutes, also depending on the type of turbine.
Topping turbines require faster settings than condensing turbines.
Sometimes reverse power relays are used to prevent other types of
generators from motoring. A diesel set requires a 25 % setting but a hydro
machine may require a setting as low as 02 %.
(c) Loss of Field. When a generator loses its field it speeds up slightly and
acts as an induction generator, not having amortisseur windings. Turboalternators tend to overheat the rotor and the slot wedges under these
conditions because of heavy currents induced in these parts; and sometimes
arcing occurs at metal wedges in the slots. At the same time a large machine
running out-of-step with the system may upset the system stability. Furthermore, the wattless current that the machine draws as magnetising current
from the system may overheat the stator.
On the other hand a machine equipped with a quick-acting voltage
regulator and connected to a stiff system, i.e. a system with a large amount
362
9.1
of stored rotational energy, may run for several minutes as an induction

generator without harm.
Field failure may be caused by a faulty field breaker or failure of the
exciter. It can be detected by an undercurrent d.c. relay in the field circuit
but some of the larger generators operate over a very wide range of field
current and such a relay may be an embarrassment. Furthermore, the loss of
field due to exciter failure may not be detected because the undercurrent
relay may be held in by a.c. induced from the stator. An undercurrent relay
fast enough to drop out on a.c. cannot be used because it would be affected
by a.c. induced during synchronising and during external faults.
The most reliable field failure relay is either a mho relay or a directional
impedance relay with its characteristic in the negative reactance area, fig.
9.13 (114). This is because such a characteristic is affected only by loss of
- - ... _ _
Z locus for loss

of 'Synchronl5m
~~~ ...... ~~~~-
Z ehClrClct .... t,e

01 rtlny
Nor;~I-~~
condit ion
-x
FIG.
9.13. Impedance characteristic of field failure mho relay
field and not by any other condition, such as loss of synchronism which may
result from the loss of field.
(d) Loss of Synchronism. An out-of-step relay can be provided for detect~
ing loss of synchronism (see Chapter 5, sections 5.2.3 and 5.4.8), but is
seldom used on an individual generator because it is unlikely to run out of
synchronism with the system or the other generators unless it loses field
(which was dealt with in the previous section 9.1.3 (c or unless the governor
becomes defective (56). Automatic synchronising by an electronic relay is
common for large machines (123).
(e) Bearing Failure. The temperature of the white metal or the oil can be
monitored by an instrument with alarm contacts or a syphon device can be
located in the bearing oil chamber. Such a device would shut down the
generator only in an unattended station. Failure of the oil cooling equip363
9.1
Protective Relays
ment is detected on large machines by comparison of the inlet and outlet

temperatures of the oil.
(f) Auxiliary Failures. Other tripping functions associated with very
large units are loss of vacuum and loss of boiler pressure. It is usual on loss
of vacuum to reduce the load until the condition is checked; if, however, the
vacuum continues to fall until a dangerous value is reached, a vacuum relay
closes its contacts and the set is automatically shut down.
A fall in vacuum may be the outcome of station auxiliary failures, so to
some extent the loss-of-vacuum relay gives protection against loss of auxiliaries. As a further safeguard against a fall in boiler pressure, a steam pressure device is arranged to remove the load from the turbine. It is also the
occasional practice to shut down automatically on the loss of the induced
draught fans.
(g) Voltage Regulator Failure. As the faulty operation of the voltage regulator may cause inadvertent tripping of the unit, or damage to the rotor, it is
necessary to provide some form of protection to guard against its failure.
This is particularly important on large generators using direct cooling of the
stator and rotor, as explained under section 9.1.4, 'Back-up Protection'.
Due to the complexity of the modem quick response voltage regulator,
it is more vulnerable to the failure of components which may cause the regulator to apply full field under normal load conditions, resulting in overheating
of the rotor. To guard against such failures a definite time d.c. overcurrent
relay is provided, which is energised from a shunt or a d.c. current transformer in the rotor circuit. As the rotor will be subject to overcurrent during
system faults, the time delay should be set to give the system protection
time to clear. If, however, the overcurrent condition persists beyond this
setting, the relay will operate and switch the excitation to a predetermined
value.
While it is usual to supply the regulator reference voltage from a separate
voltage transformer in order to minimise the risk of a short-circuit on the
secondary wiring causing a fuse failure, it is still felt desirable to provide some
form of protection to prevent maloperation of the regulator for voltage
failure, whatever the cause.
The relay provided for this purpose must respond to the failure of any
one fuse on either the h.v. or l.v. side of the voltage transformer; furthermore,
its setting must be so chosen that it would remain inoperative for a normal
voltage reduction during system faults.
An arrangement of undervoltage relays can be provided to detect such
failures but a more positive method to achieve a desirable setting is to use
either a current bias voltage relay whose setting increases with an increase in
stator current, or, alternatively, a voltage balance relay which compares the
voltage derived from the instrument transformer with the voltage derived
from the voltage regulator transformer. The operation of anyone of these
relays returns the field excitation to the follow-up value of the manual field
rheostat.
364
9.1
(h) Interlocked Overcurrent Protection. Where, for economic reasons, it is

necessary to locate the protective current transformers on one side of the
circuit-breaker only, a fault occurring between the breaker contacts and the
current transformer secondaries is detected by a special overcurrent relay
interlocked with the appropriate unit protection.
In fig. 9.9a a fault occurring at point A is immediately detected by the
bus-bar protection and, although the breaker opens, it will be seen that the
fault remains. Similarly, in fig. 9.9b, a fault at B is detected by the generator
differential protection but, as in the case of a fault at A, is not cleared by
resultant opening of the circuit-breaker.
In order to detect this type of fault without incurring any risk of indiscriminate tripping, the shading winding of an induction pattern relay,
having a time setting sufficient to ensure the position of the fault, is connected
in series with a normally open contact on the appropriate tripping relay.
....
g
~
Ma.m br.a.ku
Hl
. ".;;.
><
.0
c:
a "w
:l .;:
"0
"
~
-;:,~
",,,
,,0
-"'0
,,~
"~"
,
...
.c
..
,..
OQ.
Q.
p.. Ec;
-II>
"
i
g g
.." UI
.0
~ -
:<
H-- -- - - ---+----,.-+_-.
PT
FlO. 9.14. Tripping functions of generator protection

D = differential relay; E = restricted earth fault relay; 0 = overcurrent relay (with
voltage control) or mho; L = loss of load relay; F = Loss of field relay (undercurrent);
F.Y. = loss of field relay (admittance); F.D. = fire detector; G = neutral overvoltage
relay; R = rotor earth fault relay; T = stator winding temperature relay; T.D. = embedded temperature detector; V = overvoltage relay (hydro only); N = negative sequence
relay ]2t = K; N' = negative sequence alarm
365
9.1
Protective Relays
With a fault at A, the tripping relay associated with the bus-bar protection
would complete the shading winding circuit to the interlocked overcurrent
relay allowing it to operate and shut down the generator.
In the case of a fault at B, the tripping relay associated with the differential
protection would complete the circuit to the shading winding of the overcurrent relay, which in turn operates the bus-bar protection tripping relay
and clears the faulty section.
9.1.4. Back-up Protection (External Faults)
Negative sequence (I~t = K) relays protect the generator against un-
balanced external faults which are near enough to the generator to cause overheating and have not been cleared by the appropriate relays in the faulted
circuit (120) (121). The likelihood of an uncleared balanced three-phase fault
is very small but it can be detected by a single reactance or impedance type
relay set to reach just beyond the bus and given sufficient time delay to give
the proper relays a chance to clear the fault. This arrangement also gives
some back-up protection on generator faults.
For smaller machines, where negative sequence relays would not be
justified (122), three such distance relays can be used, one in each phase, with
a common timing device. A cheaper alternative is a time-overcurrent relay
whose characteristic matches that of the relays beyond the station bus but
which is equipped with an instantaneous undervoltage unit; this latter reduces
the pick-up of the overcurrent relay and increases its speed if the bus voltage
drops below its setting thereby indicating a nearby fault. This scheme works
best when the relays beyond the generator have instantaneous settings for
nearby faults.
Standard time-overcurrent relays can seldom be used for this purpose
because the synchronous impedance of a turbo-generator is over 100%, i.e.
the fault current may fall to less than normal load before the time-current
relay can complete its travel and it is of course not possible to set the relay
below normal load, except with the bus voltage monitoring unit just mentioned. However, with automatic voltage regulators the voltage, and hence
the current, may be sustained so that standard overcurrent relays can be
used.
Machines without automatic voltage regulators should employ the voltage monitored time-overcurrent relays mentioned above; this also applies
to hydro and diesel machines and to small turbo alternators which do not
have differential protection.
9.1.5. Stator Protection
Fig. 9.15 shows the main protection for a large steam turbo-alternatortransformer unit. No circuit breaker is provided between the generator and
the transformer. All the fault detecting relays trip the main and field breakers,
apply braking, inject CO 2 , shut off the steam and shut down certain auxiliary
equipment. The relays protecting against overload, overheating, overvoltage,
366
9.1

TABLE
9.1
Generator Protection
Rating
Below 1 MW 1 MW up
Differential
Restricted earth
Turn-to-turn fault
Time-overcurrent (voltage monitored)
Thermal overload
Temperature (thermo-detector)
Negative sequence current
Loss of load
Anti-motoring (loss of steam)
.
Loss of field
Out-of-step
Overspeed
Overvoitage
x
x
x
x
x
10 MW up 100 MW up
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
X
X
X
Hydro machines only

Hydro machines only
TABLE
9.2
Rotor and Bearings

Rating
Below 1 MW 1 MW up
10 MW up 100 MW up
Earth fault
Loss of field
Vibration indicator
Bearing temperature
Bearing insulation
x
x
x
x
x
X
X
X
9.3
Conditions Operating Alarms Only
TABLE
Steam
Air-cooled Hydrogencooled
Abnormal Condition
Condenser low vacuum
Hydrogen pressure, temperature or density abnormal
Bearing oil pressure low
Seal oil pressure low
Unit transformer winding temperature high
Bearing temperature high
Governor oil pressure
Cooling water failure
Stator air temperature high
Guide vane fails to open
Main or unit transformer Buchholz gas
Main or unit transformer oil temperature
H.T. V.T. Buchholz gas
Auto-voltage regulator failure
Rotor earth fault
Field failure
Battery voltage low
367
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
X
x
x
x
x
Hydro
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
9.1
Protective Relays
7.
- - t - . . , r - - - 132 KY.
switchg~ar
Brco.ker ~
60011
50011
Synchronising 500/1
~/
In.trument
-"""-t-~-tll.
600/-58
144 M.'l.A.
Volto.g~ tro.~or~ __
~/
Mo.in trw"formtr
132/138 K.V.
450/1
A.V.R.QQ)--/
6000120
Volto.9~ tro.n.lormcr
:"-_-ir---t'1100/1
Eo.rthlng
rulsto.nce
Ie
+-+--......7
6.6KV
~~~--.-----r-~----~4'
1----------------.. . '4
FIG. 9.15. Typical protection for transformer-generator in the U.K.

B. = Buchholz; W.T. = winding temperature; O.T. = Oil temperature; V.T. = vacuum
trip; O.S. = overspeed trip
40 = field failure; 46 = negative phase sequence; 51 = I.D.M.T. overcurrent; 511 =
interlocked I.D.M.T. overcurrent; 59 = instantaneous overvoltage; 64 = I.D.M.T.
earth fault relay; 64A = negative biased earth fault; 641 = instantaneous earth fault;
64R = restricted earth fault; 87 = generator differential protection; 87UT = unit transformer differential protection; 87BB = busbar protection; 87T = overall differential
protection
negative sequence current and overheating due to an external fault open the
main and field breakers only.
(a) Abnormal Conditions Operating Alarms and Causing Shutdown. Tables
9.3 and 9.4 indicate the practice in the U.K., which is basically the same as in
other countries.
368
9.2
Hydrogen cooled generators may also have a number of additional

indicators connected with auxiliary equipment such as defoaming tanks,
water detectors, vapour extractors, oil conditioners, d.c. emergency
pumps, etc.
TABLE
9.4
Abnormal Conditions Causing Shutdown

Abnormal Condition
All stator faults
All transformer short-circuits
External faults operating negative sequence or
back-up relays
Overspeed
Overvoltage
Steam
Air-cooled Hydrogencooled
x
x
Hydro
9.2. MOTOR PROTECTION
A.c. motors include synchronous motors, synchronous condensers and

induction motors. In general they are subject to the same electrical faults as
FIG.
9.16. Effect of delayed fault clearance in a motor
generators (fig. 9.16) and, in the case of motors of comparable size to

generators, similar protection is used. Smaller motors, such as are used for
power station auxiliaries and in industry, are protected against stator faults,
overload, unbalanced phase currents, reversed or open-phase starting and
undervoltage.
9.2.1. Stator Faults
Direct acting overcurrent tripping devices on the breaker take care of

faults to ground or between phases; these are of the thermal or dashpot type
N
369
9.2
Protective Relays
giving an inverse time-current characteristic and usually provide an instantaneous trip at high current. On large motors; above 50 h.p., instantaneous
overcurrent relays supplied from c.t's are more common, two in the phases
and one in the residual circuit. The phase relays have to be set well above the
starting current and the latest type (see Chapter 4, section 4.1.6) can give a
more reasonable setting because it is not affected by the d.c. component of
the inrush current. Fuses are used for protecting smaller motors but they
involve the risk of leaving the motor connected to single phase supply.
For stator faults, thermal overload relays with instantaneous overcurrent
relays usually comprise the main protection. The thermal relays are slow
because their time-current characteristic is matched to the I 2 t capacity of the
motor; the instantaneous overcurrent relays are usually set very high because
they have to surmount the high starting current of the motor, but they are
valuable for clearing winding and terminal faults.
For motors of 1500 h.p. and above the saving in cost of repairs by the
quick clearing of faults justifies the cost of differential protection.
9.2.2. Overload and Locked Rotor (Stalling)
The ordinary I.D.M.T. time-current curve is not suitable for motor protection. The motor heats according to an [2t function and good protection
is provided by thermal overcurrent relays using bimetallic spiral movements
(fig.9.18). The slow reset of these relays prevents restarting the motor until it
has cooled. Furthermore, the heat storage property of the relay gives it
different hot and cold time current characteristics which correspond to those
of the motor (fig. 9.17). Superior characteristics can be obtained with a
thermistor bridge and a thermal replica device.
In single-phase fractional h.p. motors the thermal element usually takes
the form of a bimetallic disc which snaps into the operated position above a
certain temperature and opens the supply.
The [2t relays are set to operate on 15 % overload with continuously
rated motors and up to 40% overload with motors having overload capacity,
depending upon the service factor.
When a motor stalls, either due to trouble with the connected load or
low voltage, both the stator and rotor windings will be overheated. Some form
of protection should be provided to shut the motor down before the locked
rotor current persists long enough to cause damage, but it must not shut the
motor down during a normal start. It is not always possible to provide adequate locked rotor protection with the overload device without upsetting
the overload protection.
The best protection is provided by a thermal device which is only operable
during a stalled condition (25). An English relay provides this feature by
means of an attracted armature relay which switches a separate thermal unit
into the circuit if the current is three times the motor full load current.
Tripping will occur if the motor current fails to fall to normal value within
the time-current characteristic of the thermal unit. The characteristic curve of
370
9.2
the thermal unit is shown in fig. 9.17 for starting (cold) and running (hot) conditions. The relay can also be arranged to give restart once after a stall, and to
lock out if there is a second stall.
The thermal element also incorporates an indicating device which
integrates the' current during the starting period. The trip setting can be set
10.000
"
3
2
1,000
8
6
..9.
"3
2
.. 100
go
I!
\\
\
-"
\
"'"
10
8
6
5
"'" "-..
...........
~ r-J""-....
Hot
2
1.01
FIG.
9.17.
3
"
5
6 ..1.....-J
Opcrutill9 current =II/r,+ 3[:
]21
t-9
10X5Cttill9
characteristic for motor protection
at a slightly higher value than the indicated value during starting, thus
providing the maximum possible protection against a stalled condition.
Overload relays also take care of faults not heavy enough to operate the
instantaneous overcurrent relays. Larger motors use temperature detectors
(see section 9.1.1 (c) ).
9.2.3. Unbalanced Phases
In the U.S.A. an induction disc, polyphase voltage relay is used to protect

motors from starting with one phase open or with reversed phase sequence.
The relay is connected as shown in fig. 9.20 and its torque is proportional to
the sine product of the two line-to-line voltages and hence to the area of
the voltage triangle. The relay will not close its contacts and hence the motor
371
9.2
Protective Relays
will not start unless all three phases are present and in the correct
sequence.
This method however does not prevent the motor from becoming overheated if an open-phase condition occurs while it is running, such as one fuse
blowing or a bad contact on a breaker. In the U.K. unbalanced current relays
are used for this purpose (25). One type, fig. 9.18, uses three bimetallic
FIG.
9.18. Thermal overload and unbalance movement
spirals, energised by currents from the three phases, whose contacts are
arranged so that, if either spiral moves differently from the others, due to
more than 12 % unbalance, their contacts meet and trip the supply breaker.
The same spirals also provide overload protection.
This is an important feature of motor protection. Due to the difference
between the positive and negative sequence reactance of a motor, a small
voltage unbalance causes a much higher current unbalance, which results in
overheating in one winding. A typical example would be a motor operating
at rated load with a 3 % voltage unbalance. This could result in approximately a 25 % increase of current in one line, giving 56 % overheating in one
winding. The worst case would be complete loss of one phase of the supply
due to a blown fuse or a bad contact.
9.2.4. Undervoltage and Underfrequency
Running on undervoltage will generally cause overcurrent which will

cause overload or temperature relays to trip; an exception to this is a fan
motor whose load drops sharply with speed preventing the current from
increasing. It is usual to provide undervoltage protection having an inverse
372
9.2
time characteristic which will override temporary voltage drops. Underfrequency relays are sometimes used to indicate failure of the power supply
to the motor because its load will cause it to decelerate quickly.
9.2.5. Miscellaneous
Under this heading are rotor overheating, loss of excitation, loss of

synchronism. Very large motors have individual forms of protection for these
failures but the normal procedure is to rely on the protection described in
the previous sections.
In the U.K. all the protection for a motor, except undervoItage, is
assembled in one relay case (fig. 9.19). A static relay has also been developed
which gives similar protection but substitutes an If + KIf unit for the three
bimetallic spirals. This relay uses a thermistor bridge with thermal storage
effect.
FIG.
9.19. Type M-4 motor protection relay
373
Protective Relays
9.2
Incomplete starting of a motor, especially in unattended stations, is

prevented from damaging the motor by a definite time relay which disconnects it if it remains on the starting connection too long. Large motors
which have a current limiting starting sequence are usually provided with an
underpower relay which opens the source breaker circuit if the supply should
fail.
On large motors, pull-out (loss of synchronism) or stalling on overload
is detected by either a separate overcurrent relay or by readjustment of
the overload thermal element by a high set instantaneous overcurrent unit.
a.
Induction
disc
aG.mPing
~===*F===
ma.gnct
(a)
'------ob
c
R
Bc...----~y
(c)
R
y'+-------' B
FIG.
(d)
9.20. Open and reversed phase relay
In large synchronous motors a power-factor relay is used to take the full

field off when the motor pulls out of synchronism, thus reducing the stator
out-of-step currents.
Bearing protection is the same as for generators except that thermal
indication is not applicable to ball-bearings; with these, failure may cause
overload but usually results in vibration which must be detected by mechanical means, such as a seismic pick-up.
374
9.4

9.3. POWER STATION AUXILIARIES (87)
These are divided into two categories, 'essential' and 'non-essential'.

The first group includes:
Boiler feed pumps
Circulating pumps
Condenser pumps
Exciter sets
Forced draft fans
Induced draft fans
Primary air fans
Pulverised coal feeders
Stokers
Unit-type coal pulverisers
The non-essential group include:
Coal handling equipment
Coal crushers
Central coal pulverisers
Conveyors
Clinker grinders
Ventilating fans
Air compressors
Service pumps
The protection of the two groups is usually similar except that the
essential group may have more comprehensive protection and usually have
full voltage starting, so that they can be restarted as quickly as possible after
a power supply interruption. They are usually arranged to be switched to an
emergency supply so as to keep them running. Standby pumps are sometimes
provided in case of low pressure or lack of flow; these are usually d.c. and
have thermal overcurrent protection.
9.4. APPENDIX: CIRCULATING CURRENT DIFFERENTIAL RELAYING
In order to make the explanation as simple as possible without affecting

the conclusions, the c.t's in fig. 9.21 have been shown as perfect transformers
with a shunt impedance carrying the magnetising component of the primary
C.T.
iR"
Z"'''
FIG.
Protected
unit
C.T.
IRa
z"'.
~,R.
~R"
9.21. Basic circuit of differential current relay
current and with impedances in series with the secondaries representing the
lead resistance and the C.t. leakage reactance and resistance. For further
simplification, giving a pessimistic error, all impedances are treated as resistances and added arithmetically.
It will be seen from fig. 9.21 that, during an external fault, the through
current should circulate between the C.t. secondaries and the only current
that can flow in the relay is that due to any difference in the C.t. outputs for
the same primary current. Magnetic saturation will reduce the output of a
C.t. and the most extreme case of error will be if one C.t. is completely saturated
and the other unaffected. This condition can be approached in bus differential
375
9.4
Protective Relays
protection but it is unlikely in generator or transformer differential protection

because the fault current would be limited by the impedance of the protected
unit. However, it will be considered because the principles now discussed
FIG.
9,22. Magnetising characteristics of c.ts. at A and B
apply to all applications of differential current protection including restricted

earth relays.
9.4.1. Stabilising Resistance RR
In this extreme case, the c.t. at one end can be considered short-circuited
as in fig. 9.23 and the one at the other end as delivering its full current which
will then divide between the relay and the saturated c.t. This division will be
--
.I-
Sa.tura.tIIi
iRA
C.T.
iRII
ti
I
z",
FIG.
Fa.ult
iRA
iRa
9.23. Effect of complete saturation of one c.t.
in the inverse ratio of the resistances RR and RB and it is obvious that, if RR

is high compared with R B , the relay will be prevented from undesirable
operation because most of the current will go through the saturated c.t. The
voltage across the relay is
hence the relay current is
(9.2)
and RR can be chosen in relation to RB to prevent the relay from operating.
Since the extreme case of one c.t. being unaffected and the other shortcircuited is impossible, RR need not be as high as indicated by RR = IBRB
IR
376
9.4
where IR is the relay pick-up and RB is the highest c.t.lead resistance; in fact,
for generators and transformers it can be about one third of this value.
N. IA = Ip-ImA and N . IB = Ip-ImB where Nis the c.t. turn ratio and
ImA and 1mB the magnetising components of the primary current Ip. Hence
1
lR = l A-I B = N(ImB-ImA)
(9.3)
i.e. the relay current is the difference between the magnetising currents
corrected for tum ratio.
As RR is increased, IR is reduced so that 1m.( and 1mB are forced towards
equality and the c.t. with the lower magnetising current will push equalising
current through the other c.t. secondary.
On the other hand, the high value of RR will not prevent the relay from
operating on an internal fault because, in that case, the c.t. secondary e.m.f.s
are additive and combine to force current through the relay. The voltage
across the relay will be its IR drop due to the current flowing through it. This
current will be shared by the c.t's after deducting the magnetising current
necessary to produce the voltage across the C.t. secondaries.
The distribution of resistance between the relay winding and its series
stabilising resistor depends upon the relay sensitivity and the pick-up setting
required on internal faults; in a very sensitive relay the pick-up can be controlled by series resistance; in a less sensitive type the pick-up would be controlled by taps on the relay coil. In determining the actual relay pick-up in
terms of primary fault current, the magnetising currents of all the c.t's
must be added to the relay current setting, i.e. the actual pick-up in (primary)
amperes is
(9.4)
where N is the c.t. ratio and L . 1m is the sum of the c.t. magnetising
currents at the relay voltage setting.
The c.t's must be chosen to produce a secondary voltage V equal to at
least twice the IR drop in the longest leads to the relay at maximum through
fault current (usually taken as the switchgear interrupting rating),
.
V = 2IR
(9.5)
I.e.
N
Also, at ~ volts, the magnetising current must not exceed ~ e~
IR) where
n is the number of c.t's or circuits. This follows from equation (9.3).

9.4.2. Through Current Bias
Similar considerations are employed in determining the stabilising

resistance for a biased differential relay except that the resistance is divided
by the bias ratio. The criterion for operation of a biased differential relay is
when the differential current exceeds the characteristic percentage of the
through current. During an external fault the stability limit will be when
IR > sIB where s is the percent slope of the characteristic, i.e. since
377
9.4
Protective Relays
RB > SRR for a relay with 20% slope or bias, the resistance would be onefifth of the value for a non-biased relay. This is an advantage in favour of the
biased relay because the operating voltages are reduced in the same ratio
and the c.t's can be correspondingly smaller and cheaper.
9.4.3. C.T. Lead Resistance Matching
In many countries stabilising resistors or high impedance relays are used

only for bus differential, and biased relays with low impedance operating
windings are used for generator protection. In the early days low impedance
I.D.M.T. overcurrent relays were used, even for bus protection, and it was
necessary to use very large c.t's that would not saturate under the worst
conditions. This was found to be impractical except with air-cored c.t's
(linear couplers).
In such relays it is necessary either to have very short c.t. leads or to
balance them so that the potential across the relay is substantially zero during
the maximum external fault.
Since the c.t. ratios are the same, their magnetising currents must be the
FIG.
9.24. Wave forms of saturated c.t.
same, but their secondary voltages EA and E B will not be equal unless they
have identical magnetising characteristics.
In fig. 9.21, below saturation of the c.t's, EA > EB and the voltage across
the relay
(9.6)
Below saturation, where the magnetising impedances of the two c.t's
have a constant ratio, this can be made so by inserting a suitable amount of
resistance in series with one of the c.t. secondaries. At higher currents, however, this is not possible because, with the different magnetising characteris378
9.4
tics shown in fig. 9.22, EA. > EB below their crossover point and EA. < EB
above it. Furthermore, the currents above saturation will have non-sinusoidal
wave-form so that this compensating resistance would have to vary during
the cycle.
In order to avoid instability due to this cause the c.t's. in relays without
stabilising resistances require cores large enough in cross-section not to
saturate with the maximum magnetic flux that can occur during an external
fault. The total flux <1>, allowed for should include the transient d.c. component and is theoretically
(9.7)
where X and R pertain to the primary circuit and QC is the steady state a.c.
flux required to produce the secondary voltage necessary to drive the current
through the various impedances in the c.t. and relay circuit.
Since X/R can be as high as 30 in a modern generator, it is clear from
Equation (9.7) that very large c.t's would be necessary to prevent tripping
on external faults and obviously it is preferable to use the stabilising resistor
or the high impedance operating coil in the differential circuit or else to
employ linear coupler c.t's.
379
10
Power Transformer Proteetion
Types of Faults-Gas Relays-Differential Relays-Magnetising
Inrush-Methods of Reduction-Relay Solutions-Grounding Transformers-Generator Transformer Units-Transformer Feeders
10.1. GENERAL
The power transformer is one of the most important links in a power

system yet, because of its relatively simple construction, it is a highly reliable
piece of equipment. This reliability, however, depends upon adequate
design, care in erection, proper maintenance and the provision of certain
protective equipment. Adequate design includes insulation of windings,
laminations, corebolts, etc., bracing the conductors against short-circuit
stresses and good electrical connections. Care in erection includes care to
avoid physical damage, leaving or dropping anything foreign inside the tank
(tools, nuts, etc.), making good connections and making sure the oil is clean
and dry. Proper maintenance includes checking oil and winding temperatures,
the cleanliness, dryness and insulation level of the oil and analysing any gas
that may have accumulated above the oil.
Protective equipment includes surge divertors, gas relays and electrical
relays. The gas relay is particularly important since it gives early warning
of a slowly developing fault, permitting shutdown and repair before serious
damage can occur. Of these various items of protective equipment, only the
relays are within the scope of this book. Detailed information on the others
will be found in the Bibliography (96) (103).
10.2. TYPES OF FAULT AFFECTING POWER TRANSFORMERS
The varied characteristics of the power transformer with different types of

fault greatly affect system conditions, which have tended to become more
complicated in recent times. It is thus worthwhile to review the different
types of fault generally encountered by a transformer, before considering
the application of protective gear.
10.2.1. Through Faults
These can be sub-divided into overload conditions and external shortcircuit conditions; the transformers must be disconnected when such faults
380
Power Transformer Protection
10.2
occur only after allowing a predetermined time during which other protective
gear should have operated. A sustained overload condition can be detected by
thermal relays (97) which give an alarm so that the situation can be attended
to or the supply disconnected, if necessary. For the external short-circuit
condition (bus-bar short-circuit, or short-circuit on the main supply network),
time-graded overcurrent relays or fuses are usually employed. Proper coordination of this back-up transformer protection should be made with the
primary protection of the associated power supply network. The primary
protective scheme associated with the transformer itself, however, should be
made so that the protective gear does not operate under such conditions.
10.2.2. Internal Faults
The primary protection of a power transformer is intended for conditions

which arise as a result of faults inside the protected zone. Internal faults are
very serious and there is always the risk of fire; these internal faults can be
classified into two groups.
Group (a)
Electrical faults which cause immediate serious damage but are generally
detectable by unbalance of current or voltage such as:
(i) Phase-to-earth fault, or phase-to-phase fault on the h.v. and 1.v.
external terminals.
(ii) Phase-to-earth fault or phase-to-phase fault on h.v. and 1.v. windings.
(iii) Short-circuit between turns of h.v. and 1.v. windings.
(iv) Earth fault on a tertiary winding, or short-circuit between turns of a
tertiary winding.
Group (b)
So-called 'incipient' faults which are initially minor faults, causing slowly
developing damage. These are not detectable at the winding terminals by
unbalance; they include:
(i) A poor electrical connection of conductors or a core fault (due to
breakdown of the insulation of lamination, bolts or clamping rings)
which causes limited arcing under the oil.
(ii) Coolant failure, which will cause a rise of temperature even below
full load operation.
(iii) Related to (ii) is the possibility of low-oil content or clogged oil flow,
which can readily cause local hot-spots on windings.
(iv) Regulator faults and bad load-sharing between transformers in
parallel, which can cause over-heating due to circulating currents.
Generally, for group (a), it is important that the faulted equipment
should be isolated as quickly as possible after the fault has occurred, not
only to limit the damage to the equipment but also to minimise the length
of time that the system voltage is depressed. A prolonged period of low
381
10.3
Protective Relays
voltage may result in loss of synchronism between rotating machines and,

if this occurs, the excessive current drawn by an out-of-step machine may
well cause other relays to operate and initiate sequential and false tripping.
The faults of group (b), though not serious in their incipient stage, may
cause major faults in the course of time, and should thus be cleared as soon
as possible. It should be emphasised that the means adopted for protection
against faults of group (a) are not capable of detecting the faults of group (b),
whereas the means applicable to detect the faults of group (b) cannot
necessarily detect terminal faults and are not quick enough to clear other
faults in group (a). These ideas are basic to transformer protection, and the
means for protection against groups (a) and (b) should not be treated as
alternatives but as supplements to each other.
In the discussion to follow, we will make a brief mention of the means
of protection applied to conditions arising due to faults under group (b).
Then we will pass on to describe the developments of protective schemes to
detect the electrical unbalance due to faults under group (a).
10.3. GAS-ACTUATED RELAYS (89) (93)
Core insulation failures and poor electrical connections create local

heat which, at 350C, caused the oil to decompose into gases which rise
through the oil and accumulate at the top of the transformer.
10.3.1. Buchholz Relays
Whenever a fault in a transformer develops slowly, heat is produced

locally, which begins to decompose solid or liquid insulating materials and
thus to produce inflammable gas. The Buchholz gas-actuated relay operates an
alarm when a specified amount of gas has accumulated. Analysis of gases
collected in the relay indicates the kind of trouble which causes them. The
presence of (a) H2 and C2H 2 indicates arcing in oil between constructional
parts; (b) H 2, C2H 2 and CH4 indicates arcing with some deterioration of
phenolic insulation, e.g. fault in tap changer, (c) H 2, CH4 and C2H4 indicates
a hot spot in core joints; (d) H 2, C2H4 , CO 2 and CaH6 indicates a hot spot in
a winding. The importance of gas-actuated relays in detecting various types
of 'incipient' faults in a transformer has been described (93) and it is generally
accepted that these reiays should be used to supplement differential protection
of power transformers. They are also being increasingly used for protection
of high voltage v.t.s. where other protection is not available.
Fig. lO.1a shows such a relay connected into the pipe leading to the
conservator tank, and arranged to detect gas produced in the transformer
tank. The conservator pipe must be inclined slightly for reliable operation.
As the gas accumulates the oil level falls and, with it, a float (or bucket) F
which operates a mercury switch, sounding an alarm. The open-topped
bucket shown in fig. IO.1b used by an English manufacturer, has the advan-
382
10.3
tage of more positive action than the float and eliminates the risk of pinhole
leaks which would cause the float to sink and give a false alarm. When the
oil level falls, due to gas accumulation, the bucket is left full of oil and the
force available to operate the contacts is greater than in the case of hollow
Insul C1.to r
bushing
Tr=sformor
tC1.nk
Trip
(a)
v.... (S
;7 'l
--
~--
(b)
FIG.
10.1. (a) Principle of Buchholz relay

(b) Modern Buchholz relay
383
10.3
Protective Relays
floats. Windows are provided for indicating the amount of gas generated
through a scale marked on the windows.
Referring to fig. 10.lb, the gas can be drawn off through the petcock,
via a pipe to the ground level, and the analysis of this gas will indicate the
kind of breakdown which will occur if suitable action is not taken. The gases
caused by arcing include hydrogen, hydro-carbons and carbon monoxide.
The 'incipient' faults indicated by the Buchholz relay will include arcing
due to circulating currents, where a path has been provided by inadvertent
contact between two parts of the core supports which are normally separated.
Such arcing can cause oil 'sludging' and damage tn the iron.
When the transformer is first put into service, air trapped in the windings
may give unnecessary alarm signals but, with H.V. transformers, it is customary to remove the air by vacuum treatment during the filling of the transformer tank with oil. The gas accumulated without this treatment will, of
course, be air, which can be confirmed by seeing that it is not inflammable.
The relay is adjusted to give an alarm when the gas accumulated has
reached a volume which depends upon transformer size, as in Table 10.1.
TABLE 10.1
Gas Volume to Operate Alarm
Transformer Size
Pipe Diameter
Up to 1 MVA
1 to 10 MVA
Over 10 MVA
25 cm. (1 in.)
50 cm. (2 in.)
75 cm. (3 in.)
Setting Range Normal Setting

l00-120cc.
185-215 cc.
220-280cc.
110 cc.
220cc.
250cc.
When a winding fault occurs in the oil, the arc generates gas so rapidly
(over 50 cm 3 jkW sec.) that it creates a surge in the oil which rapidly moves
the vane, V, and causes tripping through contacts attached to the vane. The
vane is set to operate for an oil velocity which is above that caused by the
starting and stopping of oil pumps, as shown in Table 10.2.
TABLE 10.2
Oil Velocity to Cause Operation
Transformer Size
Up to 1 MVA
Itol0MVA
Over 10MVA
Pipe Diameter
Setting Range
Normal Setting
25 cm.
50cm.
75 em.
75-125 em/sec.
80-135 em/sec.
95-155 cm/sec.
90 cms/sec. at 5
100 cms/sec. at 5
110 cms/sec. at 5
The angle of displacement of the mercury switch for making contact is

about 15 plus the angle of the pipe, which must be as short as possible and
with at least 2 inclination to permit gas to reach the conservator.
384
10.3
In fig. 10.1 b, the surge vane has a bucket similar to that in the gas detector unit. This bucket is used for tripping in the case of complete loss of oil
and also provides damping which makes operation on oil pump surges less
likely.
10.3.2. Sudden Pressure Relays
In transformers having a gas cushion instead of a conservator tank, the

tripping unit of the Buchholz relay is not applicable and is replaced by a
'sudden pressure' relay which is built into the tank and operates on the
t...=::====;i - -
(a)
Upptr cho.mbtr
Piston
-1\~~~lII!3'!!bJ~_EqUo.li5.r
holts
Oil vo.lve
Bronu bellows
fb)
FIG.
10.2. (a) J>rinciple of sudden pressure relay

(b) Modem sudden pressure relay
basis of rate-of-increase of pressure. Such a relay is shown in fig. 1O.2a. It

has a diaphragm which is deflected by a differential oil pressure; the diaphragm is by-passed by a hole which equalises the pressure on the two
sides of the diaphragm normally and also makes it responsive not to pressure
but to rate of rise of pressure. The gas accumulating unit in such transformers
is located at the top of the dome.
385
Protective Relays
10.3
In the American relay (90) shown in fig. 10.2b, the diaphragm is not
directly immersed in the transformer oil but inside a metal bellows full of
silicone oil, the bellows being in the transformer oil. In other words, the
diaphragm and switch are separated from the transformer oil by a bellows
containing silicone oil which has a flat viscosity/temperature characteristic
and provides an inverse time/pressure rise characteristic which prevents
'\.
..
U5
""
~4
~"
::J
oil
~ 3
"" ~
""-
a.
'0
~2
..
'0
~ 1
a:
"
~$
--
S~conds
Op~ra.ting
FIG.
<S
time
789
10
10.3. Operating time of sudden pressure relay
incorrect operation under conditions of mechanical shock, etc. This unit is

located at the bottom of the tank where it is convenient for maintenance.
Fig. 10.3 shows the operating time characteristic of this relay. The relay
is set to operate on a rate of pressure rise of 5 g/cm 2/sec. and a minimum
differential gas pressure of 20 g/cm 2
10.3.3. Limitations of Gas-actuated Relays
Too sensitive settings of mercury contacts makes them subject to false

operation on shock and vibration caused by such conditions as earthquakes.
mechanical shock to the pipe, tap changer operation and heavy external faults;
these conditions are in addition to normal mechanical vibration caused by
alternating magnetic fluxes. This has been counteracted to a certain extent
by improved designs of mercurcy contact tubes.
No specific shock tests have been agreed but the manufacturer of the
Buchholz relay shown in fig. 10.lb checks the relays to see that they do not
trip with a seismic shock up to 016 g. acceleration and 60 mm. amplitude
horizontally or vibrations vertically up to the following values:
TABLE 10.3
Maximum Vibration for Stability
Frequency
25 c.p.s
100 c.p.s
150 c.p.s
Amplitude
009 in. (2-3 nun.)
0023 in. (0'6 nun.)
0'015 in. (04 nun.)
386
Equivalent
Acceleration
3g.
12g.
16g.
10.4
The minimum operating time of Buchholz relays is about 01 second and

an average time is 02 second, which is somewhat slow; sudden pressure relays
are faster only for very heavy faults. On the other hand, electrical relays
can be used for heavy faults where high speed is necessary; they can also be
used for bushing flashovers which are outside the oil and hence do not create
an oil surge, the Buchholz relay being retained for faults involving only a few
turns of the winding and for incipient faults.
10.4. ELECTRICAL RELAYS FOR TRANSFORMER PROTECTION (91) (92)
Flashovers inside the transformers due to lightning or switching voltage

surges occasionally occur between the winding and the core or the tank,
and protection against them is generally by simple earth fault relays.
More usually, a break-down between windings or between end turns may
be caused by a steep voltage wave-front or sometimes by movement of the
windings due to electromagnetic forces during a heavy short-circuit; this is
especially so in an old transformer or one in which the insulation has
deteriorated due to overheating. Such faults are rare but differential current
or Buchholz relays can detect them.
Faults can also occur due to faulty contact operation of on-load tap
changers; this in its tum can cause incorrect switching or short-circuiting
of the taps between turns. Such faults can be detected by overcurrent and
under-voltage relays.
Overheating may be detected by thermal image temperature indicators.
to.4.1. Earth Fault Relays
Delta windings and ungrounded wye windings are best protected by zero
sequence overcurrent relays supplied by c.t's situated at the terminals of the
power transformers, as shown in Fig. 10.4. Such a relay can only operate for
a ground fault in the transformer since it does not have an earth connection
through which to supply an external fault. The relay is usually instantaneous
.--_....;Pow~c~rt.;.,ro.nsformcr
c:rll
Restricted
ccut.h rclo..y
Residuo.l
overeurrent
rclo..y
FIG.
10.4. Earth fault protection of a power transformer
387
10;4
Protective Relays
but must be of the high impedance type if supplied with the residual current
of the paralleled c.t's in the three phases; this is to prevent wrong operation
on false residual current from the c.t's during a heavy external fault between
phases, due to transient differences in the c.t. outputs (94) (see Chapter 9,
section 4). An ordinary overcurrent relay is acceptable if it is supplied from
a core balance type of c.t. which encircles the three phase conductors, since
the magnetic conditions of the c.t. are the same for all three phases.
For a wye-connected winding with the neutral grounded, the restricted
earth-fault connection offig. 10.4 is used. This differential connection provides
relay current only for a winding fault to ground, but with instantaneous relays
it is stable only if the relay circuit is of high impedance.
During a heavy external phase fault there should be no current supplied
to the residual overcurrent and restricted earth relays, referred to in Chapter 4,
section 4.5.2 (d), if the c.t's maintain their ratio; there is, however, in addition
to the effects of magnetic unbalance and transient components, which were
discussed in the Appendix 9.4, the problem of third harmonics in the exciting
current. Since the third harmonic components from each of the three phases
are in phase they behave in the same fashion as zero sequence components
and add together directly instead of cancelling out as with the fundamental
components.
Fortunately, balanced three-phase faults are very rare, and the problem
does not occur with phase-to-phase faults because both of the affected c.t's
have similar conditions. The problem can be solved by tuning the relay to
fundamental frequency, or by using a third harmonic filter.
During an external ground fault (fig. 10.5) the sensitivity of a low impedance relay is limited by the fact that the magnetising current of the neutral
ZR
FIG.
10.5. Equivalent circuit of restricted earth relay
c.t. is three times that of each of the three line c.t's, so that the voltage
produced by the neutral c.t. is three times that of the line c.t's if they are of
similar design and turns. If they are of the same design the relay will have
zero voltage across it only if the leads between the relay and the neutral C.t.
have three times the resistance of the leads between the relay and the line
388
10.4
c.t's. If this resistance balance does not exist, it can theoretically be remedied
by adding resistance on the neutral c.t. side, but this is not the practice
because the balance would not hold during transient conditions or if the
neutral C.t. was saturated. The proper solution is to use a stabilising resistance
in series with the relay, or to use a high impedance relay. The value of the total
resistance necessary in the relay circuit is calculated in Appendix 9.4.
The earth-fault current in a faulted winding in a resistance-grounded
transformer depends directly on the voltage between the neutral and the
fault point on the winding, and inversely on the neutral resistance, i.e.
/ y;'"
10kV.p
hp'IS the percentage 0 f WIn
. d'Ing InVO
. Ive,
d kV'IS
V"3 R n amperes, were
line-to-line voltage in kV; the source and transformer impedances are

assumed to be small compared with the neutral resistance, R If the power
II
source is on the delta side, the current on that side is /

where
Nis the voltage ratio of the transformer; hence /
V3 N
lbo /y
NrOR~V'
In a solidly grounded transformer the relation between the fault current

and the position of the fault along the winding is more complicated because
0..
O~~--~20---r--~40------6~O--~~B~O--~~100
P.ercenta.ge of WInding trom neutral
FIG.
10.6. Effect of location on fault current
the current is limited by the impedance of the winding which increases as the
square of the number of turns involved; furthermore, the voltage is not
proportional to the turns involved by faults near the neutral because of
increased magnetic leakage. Fig. 10.6 shows the current variation with fault
position for one type of transformer.
389
10.4
Protective Relays
For a fault in the delta winding the relation between the fault current and
fault position is still more complicated. The current magnitude varies less
because the voltage to ground can never be less than 50 %. The impedance
of the winding is maximum for a fault at the middle of the winding and may
be as high as six times the positive sequence impedance.
10.4.2. Biased Differential Transformer Protection (100) (102) (124)
(a) Basic Conception of Differential Protection Applied to Transformers.

Buchholz relays will detect all faults that occur under the oil, but it is possible
to have a flashover above the oil at the bushings; although practically all
such faults would involve ground, it is usual with large transformers to
provide high-speed biased differential protection which detects such flashovers and will also clear other heavy faults faster than the Buchholz (92).
Economically, this differential protection may not be justified where instantaneous earth fault relays are used, but it provides effective back-up
protection.
A transformer differential relay compares the currents in the windings
of the transformer through the medium of c.t's whose ratios are such as to
make their secondary currents notmally equal except for the core magnetising
currents of the transformer which are relatively small. Fig. 1O.7a shows the
relay in its simplest form; the polarity of the c.t's is such as to make the current
circulate normally without going through the relay, during load conditions
and external faults, i.e. the relay coil receives the vector sum of the derived
currents which is normally zero. Any fault within the transformer disturbs
the balance and the relay operates.
(b) Inadequacy of Simple Differential Arrangement. In practice, differential
protection in the simple form of fig. 1O.7a is handicapped by three main
difficulties.
(i) CURRENT TRANSFORMER CHARACTERISTICS. Unless saturation is avoided,
the difference in c.t. characteristics due to different ratios being required in
circuits of different voltage may cause appreciable difference in the respective
secondary currents whenever through faults occur, even though these
currents are of equal value at normal load. This is particularly troublesome
when different types of current transformers are used, as is frequently the
case in transformer protection.
Unequal length of current transformer secondary leads may well cause
a difference in VA burden between the two sets of c. t's; this generally tends
to give a ratio-error between the sets of current transformers (see Chapter 9,
Appendix, section 9.4).
(ii) RATIO-CHANGE AS A RESULT OF CHANGE OF TAPPINGS. Nearly all large
modem power transformers are equipped with on-load ratio-change gear.
As the transformer ratio is changed, the ratio between the primary-side and
secondary-side current transformers can be made to match at one point only
of the tap-changing range. At other points an unbalance current will flow in
the differential relay, the effect of which requires biased relays for its control.
390
10.4
(iii) MAGNETISING INRUSH-CURRENT. When a transformer is energised, the

inrush-current may attain peak values corresponding to several times the
transformer full-load current and decays relatively slowly. This current
Power tra.nsformer
C.T.
C.T.
Rela.y
(a)
Power tra.nsformet
(b)
(c)
10.7. Differential protection of transformers
(a) Overall differential relay
(b) Percentage differential relay
(c) Three-winding transformer differential
FlG.
generally flows in one side of the differentially connected relay only, which
will tend to operate if some form of restraint is not provided.
To make a differential relay stable because of difficulties (i) and (ii) above,
percentage differential relays have been developed and are now adopted as
the general practice in the protection of large power transformers. In the
case of difficulty (iii), early practice was to desensitise the relays for a short
391
10.4
Protective Relays
time until the magnetising inrush currents on each phase had decayed sufficiently; modern practice, however, is to provide some form of restraint to the
relays which depends on the harmonic content of the magnetising inrush
current(s) (124) (125).
These questions are quite fundamental to successful transformer unittype protection. Item (i) is a special study in itself and is not unique to transformer protection; it has already been mentioned in this volume and will be
treated separately in Vol. II. Item (ii) in so far as it concerns the general
theory of the biased differential relay has been included in Chapter 3 on the
theory of relays. Item (iii) as a feature special to transformer protection has
not been mentioned before and will be treated in section 10.5.
(c) Percentage or Biased Differential Relays and the Effect of Through
Currents. The unbalance, or difference, of the derived currents from the c.t.
secondaries due to causes (i) and (ii) above (section 10.4.2 (b)), increase with
increase of through current. Thus a relay whose operating current is an
appropriate percentage of through current will allow a sensitive setting at low
current without danger of tripping on through current.
Such a relay is shown in fig. 1O.7b. The operating coil is provided with the
vector sum of the currents in the transformer windings and the restraining
coil with the through current. The spill current required to operate the relay
is usually expressed as a percentage of the through current in the restraining
coils and the ratio is generally termed the percent slope.
In the case of a transformer with more than two windings, the restraint
is based on the scalar sum of the currents in the various windings. In early
induction disc relays this was done by providing a restraining electromagnet
for each winding and adding their torques; on more recent relays it is done
by rectifying the currents and adding the outputs of the rectifiers to supply
the restraining winding with the scalar sum of the currents (fig. 10.7c).
In the case of a three-phase power transformer, the c.t's associated with
the wye-connected windings are usually connected in delta and those for the
delta windings in wye (91). This is to correct for the phase-shift of the line
currents due to the wye-delta transformation. It also eliminates the zero
sequence component of the currents on the wye side, which might otherwise
upset the stability due to the lack of a corresponding zero sequence component on the delta side and prevent tripping on an external fault on the wye
side.
In the case of a transformer with its neutral grounded through resistance,
differential protection should be supplemented by restricted earth fault
protection, as shown in fig. 10.8, because only 41 %of the winding is protected
with a differential relay pick-up setting as low as 20 %of c.t. rating (24). This
is due primarily to the elimination of the zero sequence component from the
phase currents.
A method suggested by Matthews (147) to overcome this difficulty is
shown in fig. 10.10, in which the C.t. secondaries are connected in star on the
resistance-grounded side and in delta on the delta side of the power trans392
10.4
P OWfr
Mo.ln CT ' ,
tra ns former
ot
.-N'u t ' ClI C T
o.r th - fo.ul t
r.lo. y
___ J
Grou ndIn g
Im p.danet
Slo.blhSln 9
res lsta.ncr
------------,
Rt!. t rulnln q cOil s
,
Co rt-bo. l o.nC f
t r a.nsfor mer
Pef Ctn ta.gt

bia sed !
dtf ft rr ntlal
r r lo y
/'
Sto.b lloSlng
L.. _ _ _ _ _ _ _
...JI
rrS lsi a.nC I
FIO.
10.8. Combined differential and earth fault protection for transformers
Jj
~A
In
;;
......
",- /
./
/ U NIaoQ
f 'f
J
L. H "'on//
"''' au: ..
'IV'
./
./
./
./
./
./
,;'
/
400
INCAtr.Y.
ouc.
c.t ,~~
"" u"''''"'aoo
lui
200
..
1+-
600
-...-
\J
"
,r ...
,...,
OU _ lt)C
c!'
~""'[AKuo..,.
1000
,zoo
'TO
1400
'j
1600
'-
..
-"""
'500
I, TlRO.JGIJ CWIlaIT 1>l 1lo ~ C-" ~11101Ci .
FIG.
10.9.
C.t.
error curve and differential relay characteristics
former. Another current transformer of ratio 3 : 1, placed in the groundneutral connection, measures the zero sequence current and injects it to the
open delta of the multi-winding line-current transformers on the star side.
393
Protective Relays
10.4
It can be shown that, with this arrangement, the zero sequence current is
.added to the relaying circuit in the case of internal ground fault and subtracted from the relaying circuit in the case of external ground fault. It has
also been shown, so far as percentage of winding protected is concerned, that
M<1in multi-winding C.T.
r----------,
Tr<1nsformer
M<1in C.T.
,----------,
I
R<str<1inJng coil
Perc<nt<1ge
differenti<11
rel<1y
FIG.
St<1bdisJn9
resista.nces
10.10. Percentage differential relay protection of a resistance-grounded star-delta

transformer
this scheme approaches restricted ground fault protection, the maximum

departure being 16'7 %. It requires only one additional current transformer
in the ground-neutral lead.
One further system, which has been used in England, was proposed by
Wellings and Matthews (139) and uses the principle of magnetic ampereturn balance. When applied to transformer protection, this principle is
designed to counter the difference in performance of l.v. and h.v. current
transformers by a special arrangement of balancing amp-turns on the high
voltage current transformer core, as shown in fig. 10.11.
The core of the h.v. current transformer is divided into equal parts P
and Q and a number' e' of equal and opposite turns are added in series with
the secondary winding of 'a' turns. The turns 'a' are so arranged that, with
zero differential current (I = al') in the primary, there will be zero core
excitation. If I > al' due to out-of-balance, the differential ampere-turns
operate in the same direction as the 'cross' ampere-turns 'el" in core Q,
and in opposition in core P. It can be shown by taking a specific excitation
394
10.5
curve of the core that, provided the flux change takes place in the linear
portion of the curve, the average flux-swing to give an output to the relay
remains almost constant with a given per-unit differential current in the c.t.
primary windings. If the through current increases, there is a consequent
increase in the cross excitation 'cl" which brings the core-flux above the
FIO.
10.11. Magnetic balance protection for a transformer
knee of the excitation curve; the voltage output to the relay thus decreases
for the same per-unit differential current (127) as before in the primary
windings. Thus, if the relay operating voltage is properly chosen, it can be
made stable at high values of through currents.
The discussion above relates only to through fault stability, and it is
important to consider relay stability on magnetising inrush currents. In the
early days of protection, when time-lag induction disc relays were in almost
universal use, magnetising inrush currents had little affect on relays. But, with
the use of improved steels in the manufacture of power transformers, and
with the growing "application of faster relays to protective gear practice,
magnetising inrush phenomena came into prominence.
to.5. MAGNETISING INRUSH CURRENT IN A POWER TRANSFORMER
10.5.1. Factors Aftecting Magnetising Inrush Phenomena (136) (137) (138)
When a power transformer is connected to the supply with its secondary

circuit open, the steady state flux wave Cl> in the core is normally in quadrature
with the supply voltage wave v as shown in fig. 10.12, neglecting the resistance
drop of the exciting current in the primary winding. If the transformer is
switched~in at allY point of the voltage wave, the asymmetry in the core flux
will correspond to the voltage asymmetry, but its starting point will depend
upon the residual flux Cl>R in the core. If there is no residual flux and the
switch is closed at the zero value of the voltage wave, it is evident from fig.
10.12 that the peak value attained by the asymmetrical flux will be 2Cl>max,
where Cl>max is the maximum value of the steady-state flux. If, at the instant
of closing the switch, the core has a residual flux value of Cl>R' the resultant
peak value of the flux becomes 2Cl>maxCl>R. If the primary circuit is closed at
the peak value of the voltage wave, then the commencement of the flux wave
395
10.5
Protective Relays
will be in accordance with its normal value and the peak will have a value of
~maxcJ)R
The instantaneous value of the asymmetrical flux linked with the transformer winding will be limited by core saturation and the air-core inductance
of the winding under consideration. Since the air-core inductance is small,
FIG.
10.12. Wave-shape of voltage and flux in a transformer under normal conditions
the magnitude of current to produce the required flux is large. If it is assumed

that the amp-turns necessary to produce the flux iIi the core up to saturation
is negligible, then the ampere-turn (or current) wave shape during the saturation period will be as shown in fig. 10.13; this is the origin of inrush current
FIG.
10.13. Wave-shape of voltage, transient flux and magnetising inrush current

in a transformer
phenomena in a transformer. Fig. 10.14 shows how the inrush current wave
can be derived from the excitation characteristic.
The inrush current gradually decays in successive cycles of the voltage
wave due to the resistance R in the primary, i.e. the energising circuit, and
the impressed voltage on the primary winding of the transform.er is modified
by a small amount equal to the voltage drop in the resistance R. The rate of
decay of the transient inrush phenomena will be greater during the first few
cycles because of the shorter time constant of the circuit for decreased aircore inductance of the winding with higher saturation of the core. In the
determination of this time constant, eddy current loss has some effect during
396
FIG.
10.5
10.14. Derivation of inrush current wave from excitation characteristics
the first few cycles when the rate of decay is highest, but the influence of
hysteresis loss is absent (148) for practical purposes.
10.5.2. Three-phase Transformer Banks
In the case of three-phase transformer banks, it is clearly impossible to

switch all the three phases on to the supply simultaneously without producing
inrush currents in two phases at least. The instantaneous values of inrush
currents in the three phases will be affected by the electrical connections of the
energised windings and by magnetic coupling with any other closed windings
which are present. Some simple cases will be considered:
(i) Core-type transformer with primary winding connected in groundedstar and with no closed winding present.
Assuming that all three primary connections are made at an instant of

time when the a-phase voltage is a maximum, and there is no residual flux in
the core, then the transient asymmetry of the fluxes in each of the limbs will
be as for separate single phases, shown in fig. 10.15; fig. 10.15a shows the
first cycle of the flux in accordance with normal conditions in the a-phase
limb. If the peak of the transient flux is below saturation level, the magnetising
current demanded by the coil can be assumed to be negligible. Fig. 10.15b
shows the normal voltage swing of the b-phase, the corresponding normal
flux swing of the b-phase and the corresponding normal flux swing in core b
(both in dotted lines). The transient flux in this core will start from zero and
follow the normal flux swing as shown by a full line in fig. 1O.15b. If the
saturation flux level is as shown in the diagram, and if the transient flux
swing is above it, then the magnetising current demanded by the coil in the
b-phase will be a pulse as shown in fig. 1O.15b, full line. The inrush current
will appear during the period that the flux remains above the saturation value
397
Protective Relays
10.5
(a)
_
Time in
cycle.
"
.....
4/
"2
_-, ,'" /~ Norma.l flux
_
Time
In
cycl ..
1_
(c)
Time In
cycle.
PIG.
10.lS. Transient fluxes and inrush currents in a 3-phase transformer, energised at

VII (max)
(a) a-phase conditions. (b) b-phase conditions. (c) c-phase conditions
in anyone cycle. For phase c, the relevant diagram is given in fig. 1O.15c.
It should be observed that the inrush currents in phases band c are of opposite
polarities and that they occur at different times in the cycle. These currents
have a return path to the supply through the ground-neutral connection.
(ii) Core-type transformer with primary winding star connected, neutra
not earthed and with a closed delta winding present.
This case is shown in fig. 10.16. Assuming the same conditions for switching as in Case (i), the exciting ampere-turns required by the core will remain
the same, since it is of no importance whether the core of the transformer
obtains its exciting ampere-turns from the primary winding or from any other
linked winding capable of supplying ampere-turns. In this case, any core-limb
demanding inrush ampere-turns during a certain part of a cycle is provided
by the other phases with an auxiliary source by virtue of the magnetic coupling of the closed delta winding. Thus, one third of the required inrush current
I, will be supplied by the closed delta winding, as shown by the arrows
in fig. 1O.16a, when only phase c is experiencing inrush. Similarly, for the
period during which only phase b is experiencing inrush, the situation will be
398
10.5

CL
...,Ii
III
--.------,I,
III
0.
3 Ii
III
tlj
III
(b)
,~
,t
~Ii
(. )
--
"5/1
!I,
FIG.
10.16. Magnetising inrush current in a wye-connected ungrounded 3-phase

transformer, energised at Va(max)
(a) c-phase experiencing inrush. (b) b-phase experiencing inrush
as shown in fig. 1O.16b. It should be observed that the forced inrush current
through phase a, due to the other two phases experiencing inrushes in opposite directions during different periods in the cycle, will be double-sided.
The magnitude of this current will be zero at the instant when the inrush
magnitudes in phases band c are equal; at this particular instant the delta
circulating current will also be zero. This does, however, assume that the
inrush currents in phases band c are equal.
(iii) As for Case (ii) but with grounded neutral.
In this case, as before, the inrush current experienced by anyone phase

will have an alternative path to the supply through the grounded neutral
connection. A division of current will take place through the windings of the
other phases and through the ground-neutral return, depending on the respective circuit impedances. This aspect has been discussed in a recent paper (137).
(iv) Core-type transformer with primary windings connected in delta.
In this case not only the voltage but also the current in each phase is
independent of the other phases, and the inrush phenomena of each phase
take place individually on a single-phase basis. As far as the line currents are
concerned, they will be the instantaneous differences of the respective currents.
As before, the inrush peaks are determined by the air-core inductance of
the exciting winding. It is likely that energising a transformer through its
399
10.5
Protective Relays
higher voltage winding leads to smaller inrush currents; this is particularly

true in the case of concentric transformers in which the higher voltage winding
is the outer solenoid and the lower voltage winding the inner one. It may be
noted that this arrangement of windings gives higher percentage air-core
inductance in the outer winding.
10.5.3. Large Inrush Currents in Power Transformers with Low-Loss Steel Cores
There is a tendency in transformer design towards the use of cold-rolled

steels for cores, in which the hysteresis loss per cycle is much smaller than
with hot-rolled steels. Allowing the same core losses, the normal working
flux density in cold-rolled steels can be made higher than in the earlier types.
This is shown in fig. 10.17 where the hysteresis loops of a cold-rolled and a
26,
---------;~-------
.... -
I
I
I
I
I"
>-
+'
.0;;
.,
"""
;:;:"
_--
26,
~--
I'"
/"
...... -
... - -
.... (
I
/'
I
____;_---l
/I
I
I I
I
I
I
I
I
I
Working
o----+--flux deoslty
FIG.
Ma.gnetising
force H
10.17. Hysteresis loops of high-loss and low-loss transformer cores; loop (1)
for high-loss core, loop (2) for low-loss core
hot-rolled core material show the same loss per cycle; the normal working
flux densities are at different values. The attainment of these advantages
have been accompanied by an increase of the initial transient magnetising
current. It can be seen in fig. 10.17 that, if the maximum flux swings are
double the maximum value at normal working conditions in both cases, the
magnetising ampere-turns required in the case of cold-rolled steel are very
much greater than that in the other type.
400
10.5
Representative data (136) giving the average values of normal magnetising

currents and magnetising inrush currents for different steels used for transformer manufacture indicate the following figures:
TABLE 10.4
Average Values of Normal Magnetising Current in Transformers
MVARating
of Transformers
Normal Exciting Current as % of

Full-load Current
Cold-rolled Steel Hot-rolled Steel
25
22
15
1-3
10
05
10
50
10'0
50'0
TABLE
27
2'7
2'5
2-3
18
10.5
Average Values of Crest Magnetising Inrush Current in Transformers

MVARating
of Transformers
0'5
10
50
100
500
Crest Inrush Current as p.u. of

Crest Full-load Current
Cold-rolled Steel
Hot-rolled Steel
h.v.
l.v.
h.v.
l.v.
110
8-4
60
50
4'5
16'0
140
100
100
9'0
6'0
4-8
3-9
3-2
25
9-4
70
57
3-2
2'5
10.5.4. Methods of Minimising Inrush Currents
Although no commercial means have become available for the suppression

of magnetising currents in a transformer, the following methods have been
proposed and attempted (138) for their reduction and, in the case of capacitance compensation, clearly affect the choice of protective relaying system.
(a) Resistance Energisation. A series resistance is inserted in the energising
circuit by the first step of a two-step switch and it is proportioned so that,
when the first contact closes, only about one half of the circuit voltage will be
impressed on the transformer. Since the voltage is raised in steps, the transient
flux swing can be arranged so as not to exceed the steady-state normal value.
This method requires a very large value of series resistance and, although it is
capable of reducing the switching surges, it fails to cater for the situation of
inrush currents accompanying the recovery voltage, e.g. after an external
fault close to the transformer has been cleared.
(b) Capacitance for Reducing Residual Magnetism. A capacitor is connected in parallel with the transformer so that, when the transformer is diso
401
Protective Relays
10.5
connected from the supply, the damped oscillation in the tuned circuit so
formed eventually eliminates any residual magnetism. This method, however,
has not proved very effective (148) in reducing the peak value of magnetising
inrushes. This may be due to the fact that modem transformers using improved silicon steel and normally working nearly at saturation flux density
may, in some cases, retain considerable residual magnetism after deenergisation. When re-energised, these transformers will tend to draw inrush
currents which, in early cycles, may cover the period of nearly a complete
voltage cycle. This type of inrush current will contain a high percentage of
d.c. component but less second harmonic component; thus any relay which
depended for its restraint solely on the second harmonic component of transformer magnetising inrush current would encounter difficulties.
to.5.5. Relay Solutions to the Inrush Current Problem

Since the inrush current exists only on the source side of the transformer,
the ~nrush current will appear in the differential circuit and operate the relay.
There are several solutions to this problem, all of which are somewhat
complex and expensive:
(a) Even Harmonic Cancellation
(b) Harmonic Restraint
(c) Harmonic Blocking
(d) Resonance Blocking
(e) d.c. Bias.
The theory and effect of magnetising inrush current on c.t's is considered
in detail in Vol. II.
(a) Harmonic Cancellation. Owing to the saturated condition of the transformer iron, the wave-form of the inrush current is highly distorted; fig. 10.18
shows a typical wave-form for maximum inrush. The amplitudes of the
harmonics, compared with the fundamental (100%) are as follows:
TABLE
10.6
Amplitudes of Harmonics in a Typical Magnetising Inrush

Current Wave-shape
Component
Typical
value
d.c.
55%
2nd Harm. 3rd Harm. 4th Harm. 5th Harm. 6th Harm. 7th Harm.
63%
268%
H%
2'4%
The d.c. component varies between 40 %. and 60 %, the second harmonic

30 % to 70 %, the third harmonic 10 % to 30 %. The other harmonics are
progressively less, the range depending upon the equipment in the circuit, e.g.
tooth ripple from a generator. The third harmonic and its multiples do not
appear in the C.t. leads since the components circulate in the delta winding of
402
10.5
(a)
(e)
1O.1S. Typical wave-form of inrush current
(a) Theoretical
(b) Actual currents in wye-connected windings
(c) Actual currents in delta-connected windings
FIG.
the transformer and the delta connected c.t's on the wye side. The d.c.
components and even harmonics can be cancelled out in the operating circuit
of a rectifier bridge relay and added in the restraint. This leaves only the
5th, 7th, etc., which can either be ignored because of their small amplitude
or blocked by a suitable filter. This has been done in a Russian relay (143).
(b) Harmonic Restraint (124) (125) (136). A popular method of making
differential relays insensitive to magnetic inrush current is to filter out the
harmonics from the differential current, rectify them and add them to the
percentage restraint, as shown in fig. 10.19. Harmonic restraint is obtained
Power
transformer
FIG.
10.19. Basic circuit of harmonic restraint relay
403
Protective Relays
10.5
from the tuned circuit XCXL which permits only current of fundamental
frequency to enter the operating circuit, d.c. and harmonics being diverted
into the harmonic restraining coil. The relay is adjusted so that it will not
operate when the second harmonic (restraining) exceeds 15 % of the fundamental current (operating). The minimum pick-up is 15% of C.t. rating and
the minimum operating time is about 2, cycles.
Owing to the fact that a d.c. offset and harmonic components may also be
present in fault current, especially if the c.t's saturate, it is customary to
provide an instantaneous overcurrent unit in the differential circuit, which is
set above the maximum inrush current but will operate in less than 1 cycle
on heavy internal faults. In this way fast tripping is assured for all heavy
faults.
(c) Harmonic Blocking. An alternative to harmonic restraint is to provide
a separate blocking relay whose contacts are in series with those of a biased
differential relay and which operates when the second harmonic is less than
15 % of the fundamental.
Fig. 10.20 is a simplified diagram showing the basic principle (137).
HQ.fmon lC
blooklng
y
,/Ia.
,/
Tra.n!'QCLors
.~+--+:zd--+7'<CC~-b+--,j", S.n" tiV'
polarts.d
r~la.y
FIO.
10.20. Basic circuit of harmonic blocking relay
(d) Resonance Blocking. This method is similar to the harmonic blocking

except that the blocking relay is tuned to twice system frequency and is
supplied by rectified current from the differential circuit. The magnetic inrush
current of the power transformer, when rectified, gives the number of d.c.
pulses per second which correspond to system frequency and the relay blocks.
404
10.5
During a fault the current will have a large fundamental component which,
when rectified, gives twice as many pulses per second and the relay operates,
thereby permitting the differential relay to trip (100).
(e) D.C. Bias Scheme. The characteristic feature of a shunt-loaded currentoperated transductor, in which the operating current increases linearly with
increasing d.c. in the control circuit for a constant voltage output, has been
FIG.
10.21. Fault on transformer primary caused by lightning
utilised in this relay (16); this feature gives a convenient way of obtaining
percentage bias on through faults by rectifying the through current and using
it to control linearly the output from the a.c. primary winding carrying the
differential current from the same phase. The output from this transductor
goes to the second conductor which controls a tripping relay. The d.c. component of the magnetising inrush current has been used as 'auto-bias' to the
relay in the same transductor element. When the magnetising inrush current
is symmetrical and does not contain a d.c. component, the relay is made
stable by a 'cross-feed' bias from the d.c. component of the inrush current
in another phase. For this purpose another transductor element has been
incorporated, as shown in fig. 10.22.
This type of protection is simpler and cheaper than harmonic restraint
but has the possibility of undesirable tripping on inrush current which may
occur in a three-phase transformer if the breaker is closed at the moment of
voltage maximum on one phase. The resulting inrush current can have no
d.c. component to block the relay. This condition can be overcome at some
405
Protective Relays
10.5
PoWf::r
tra.nsformc.r
SenSItive
difle.ent'QJ
r.la.y
FIG.
10.22. Percentage biassed and d.c. component biassed transductor relay for
transformer protection
sacrifice of speed and sensitivity when its operation on offset internal fault
current is demanded. In another similar scheme the d.c. bias has been replaced by the second hannonic current for restraining the relay on magnetising
surges.
10.5.1. Overcurrent Relays
In the case of small transformers, overcurrent relays are used for both
overload and fault protection. An extremely inverse (]2t = K) time-overcurrent characteristic is preferable for overload and light faults, with an
instantaneous overcurrent unit for heavy faults. A very inverse time residualcurrent relay with an instantaneous unit gives adequate protection for ground
faults.
Time-overcurrent protection with a very long time setting is also used for
stand-by protection of a grounding resistor or reactor to protect it against
overheating due to a sustained fault to ground. Such a relay is shown in
fig. 10.23 which shows an extra damping magnet for giving the long delay.
In regulating transformers, time-overcurrent protection is used for the
shunt exciting winding in case a short-circuit should occur in the series
winding.
Inverse time-current relays are also used for protecting transformers for
mercury arc rectifiers and arc furnaces. They are connected on the supply
side of the transformer and are set just above maximum load. They are
usually of the very inverse or extremely inverse type, because there is a narrow
margin of selectivity between peak load and minimum fault, and are usually
406
FIG.
10.5
10.23. Long time overcurrent relay showing extra damping magnet
provided with an instantaneous overcurrent unit, set just above maximum

inrush current and preferably tuned to reject d.c. and harmonics (see
Chapter 4, section 4.1.6).
10.5.7. Protection of Grounding Transformers
Grounding transformers are connected either in wye-delta or zig-zag

and their sole purpose is to provide a grounding point for the power system.
Consequently, when a fault occurs they can contribute only zero sequence
R.la.y' prot.ctlng
grounding
tra.nsfor"'.t
C.T' .
Grounding
trcs.nsfor",.r
1-_+-&*-_+-__
Exl.rna.1 fa.ult
ba.c~-up r.la.y
FIG.
10.24. Protection of grounding transformer
current, hence any positive or negative sequence currents can flow only
towards the grounding transformer and not from it.
For the above reasons, faults in the grounding transformer bank can be
detected very selectively by overcurrent relays fed by delta connected c.t's, as
shown in fig. 10.24.
407
10.7
Protective Relays
10.6. THERMAL IMAGE OVERHEATING PROTECTION
In large power transformers warning is given of overheating and overload

by temperature indicators in the oil and in each winding. The indicator is
either a thermostat or a bulb containing volatile liquid which operates a remote pressure indicator through very thin tUbing.
The temperature indicator is put in an oil-filled pocket in the hot oil at
the top of the transformer tank. The pocket also contains a heating coil
energised from the c. t. secondary current in the associated winding. The
thermal time-constant of the heater matches that of the winding so that the
indicator measures the difference in temperature of the winding above that of
the oil and sounds an alarm when its temperature setting has been reached.
On smaller transformers, thermal image overcurrent relays with an
I 2 t = K time-current characteristic are used. The relay is usually of the
bimetallic strip type; it detects overload but does not detect failure of the
cooling system.
10.7. GENERATORTRANSFORMER UNIT PROTECTION
In most modem systems there is no 1.v. bus-bar or circuit-breaker but

each generator is directly connected to the delta winding of a power transformer whose h.v. winding is in wye and connected through a breaker to the
h.v. bus-bar.
The normal protection is provided for the generator and the transformer
but, in addition, an overall biased differential current relay is connected to
..-_ _A""tux.C:r.
Differentia.l
rela.y
Restra.in
Restra.in
Differentia.l rela.y C.T.
't-----'
Sta.tion
scrVice
tra.nsformer
(a)
FIO.
lO.2Sa. Overall differential protection
protect the two as one unit (fig. 10.2Sa). The relay is not normally provided
with harmonic restraint because the transformer is only connected to the
bus-bar at full voltage; however, it is possible for a small inrush to occur when
a fault near the bus-bar is cleared, suddenly restoring the voltage. The relay is
usually given a 20% pick-up setting and a 20% bias.
408
10.8
An English relay of this type is shown in fig. 10.25b. It has two shadedpole electromagnets acting upon an induction disc. The operating electromagnet is supplied with the difference current and its shading winding is
tuned so that the magnet produces maximum torque at system frequency
C.T.
Circuit
brca.ker
Pow.,
ira.nsform.r
Restrain
Opera.t.
(b)
PlO.
10.2Sb. Overall differential protection using relay with harmonic rejection
and negligible torque on harmonics. The restraining electromagnet is supplied

with the through current and its torque increases with frequency. This
arrangement provides the equivalent of harmonic restraint with an extremely
simple relay.
Since the generator windings and the delta winding of the transformer
form an isolated circuit, the earth fault relay can be very sensitively set without
risk of operation on an external fault; it can be a simple instantaneous overcurrent relay in the generator neutral.
10.8. TRANSFORMER FEEDER PROTECTION
When no breaker is provided between the transformer and a feeder the

two must be protected as a unit.
The normal transformer protection is provided except that, if biased
differential protection is used, the relays are of the pilot-wire type. Fig. 10.26
shows a typical circulating current pilot wire circuit. The residual winding of
the mixing C.t. is not connected since the zero sequence components of current
circulate in the delta connections and do not appear in the lines. In order to
----~~~r-------------~
----~~gr---------~
____~~m~--~----~/
Power
tra.nsfom.r
FIG.
10.26. Transformer feeder protection
409
Protective Relays
10.8
avoid a blind spot for a phase fault on the wye side ofthe power transformer,
which would give currents in the ratio 2/1/1 on the delta side, the middle tap
of the summation transformer is off-centre.
Such an arrangement is obviously less sensitive for ground faults than the
normal residual connection. The most common solution is to provide residual
relays at each terminal breaker, each of which will detect a ground fault only
on its own side of the power transformer; these residual relays are then
arranged either to send a tripping signal to the other end or to unbalance the
pilot-wire circuit or inject a tripping impulse so that tripping occurs at the
other end too. Another alternative is to close a 'fault-throwing' switch which
will create a fault on the feeder of the transformer that can be detected at
the other end.
Fig. lO.27a shows a typical case of a ground fault cleared at one end but
not detected at the transformer end; in this case the displacetnent of the voltage neutral can be used to cause local tripping, the neutral displacement
(b)
FIG.
10.27. Ground faults not seen through transformers

(a) On line side. (b) On bus side
relay being located on the line side of the transformer. This however is no
solution for a ground fault on the other side of the transformer which,
owing to the neutral grounding resistance, creates only a very small current
in the feeder, as shown in fig. 10.27b; such a fault can be detected by a
sufficiently sensitive negative sequence relay.
10.'.1. d.c. Intertripping
In order to avoid undesirable tripping due to a.c. int~rference for the case
of a potential gradient existing in the earth, the d.c. intertripping relay must
be very insensitive to a.c. but able to work rapidly on a small d.c. signal.
Such a relay is called a surge-proof intertripping relay and is usually designed
to pick up on 20 rnA d.c. and not to pick up on 5 A a.c. This assumes a
1000 ohm pilot and a maximum induced voltage of 5 kV.
410
10.8
Fig. 10.28 shows the pilot-wire intertripping circuit and fig. 10.29 shows
two typical intertripping relay circuits.
10.1.2. a.c. Intertripplng
This may be through an audio signal modulated by a phase-shifting

sequence or a coded signal produced by a vibrator energised from a battery.
It is sometimes done by unbalancing the pilot wire circuit.
The disadvantage ofthese schemes is that time delay has to be allowed for
establishing the code sequence and hence the tripping is slow.
~~--------------T-'~
Pilot
wIres
IR
~--~~~--------------~.--~~~--~
Trip
10.28. Pilot-wire intertripping circuit

P.R. = protective relay; T.R. = tripping relay; I.R. = intertrip relay
flO.
(a)
Relo.y
FIG.
TTT
10.29. Typical surge-proof intertripping relay circuits
10.1.3. Faultthrowing Switch
Where the cost of the pilot-wires makes intertripping too expensive, the
remote relay is operated by putting a fault on the line side of the power
transformer by means of a fault-throwing switch controlled by the local relays.
These switches are designed for applying but not for interrupting the fault;
411
10.8
Protective Relays
they are usually connected between one phase and ground on grounded
neutral systems and between two phases on insulated neutral systems.
Until recently the slow operation of these switches (0'5 second) delayed
the final clearing of the fault. An American switch with its contacts in sulphur
hexafluoride is now able to apply a fault in 005 second; this is due to the
very high insulation strength of the S2F6 which permits a contact separation
of only 001 in. per kV.
412
11
Bus.Zone Protection
General Principles-Current Differential Protection-Voltage
Differential-Frame Leakage Protection-Directional Comparison-Back-up-Supervision
11.1. GENERAL PRINCIPLES
There is some difference of opinion as to whether this should be called

bus-zone protection or bus bar protection. The former term is used by the
author because the protection includes all the apparatus connected to the
busbars.
Bus-zone protection should be fast in order to limit damage, especially in
indoor stations. It should be very stable, i.e. it should not have any tendency
to operate for faults outside the bus zone for values of current up to the
interrupting rating of the switchgear because of the disruption of the system
that would result from unnecessarily interrupting all the circuits to a large
station. Reliability of operation is equally necessary because failure to clear
a bus fault can result in extensive damage to equipment, danger to personnel
and disruption of service. Since bus faults are extremely rare (about one in
15 years per installation), periodic testing, either manual or automatic, is
necessary to check the pick-up of the relay on internal faults.
Statistics collected in the U.K. indicate that over half the bus faults that
have occurred were due to equipment insulation failure and flashovers due to
lightning. About a third of the faults were caused by human errors and the
remaining 10% by miscellaneous causes, such as falling objects and circuit
breaker faijures. More than half the faults were to ground.
The fact that the isolation of a bus causes the disruption of all the circuits
connected to it means the bus protection must be very carefully monitored to
prevent inadvertent operation of the relays protecting it. In France it is felt
that this is such an important point, and bus failure so rare, that local bus
protection should be avoided and bus faults should be cleared by back-up
relays at the neighbouring stations.
In the U.S.A. and the U. K. the risk of inadvertent tripping is frequently
met by providing independent protective circuits, both of which must be
satisfied before tripping can occur. In some cases continuous supervision of
the c.t. and tripping circuits is provided. In addition, the relays are designed
413
Protective Relays
11.2
for maximum electrical and mechanical stability. Electrical stability is defined

as the maximum value of through current that will not operate the relay
and is generally above 50 times the c.t. rating. Mechanical stability is defined
in Chapter 13, section 13.11.2.
Relays for the detection of all types of bus faults make use of Kirchhoff's
Law; all the currents entering and leaving the protected electrical circuit
R.la.y
&us
Brea.ku$
C.T> .-----d:;-------r:I;---'
11.1. Differential current protection of a bus

(the relay is connected to trip all breakers)
FIG.
(busbar zone) must sum vectorially to zero unless there is a fault therein.
Fig. 11.1 shows the arrangement of the c.t's so that the switchgear, as well
as the bus itself, is protected. It will be seen that the sum of the currents will
not be zero if there is a bus fault, and the relay will be energised.
11.2. CURRENT DIFFERENTIAL PROTECTION
Current differential protection depends upon the sum of the c.t. secondary
currents' being zero when the sum of the primary currents entering and
leaving the bus is zero, thus producing no differential current and making the
relay inoperative during load or an external fault.
During an external fault the c.t. in the faulted feeder has a current which is
the sum of the currents in all the other c.t's around the bus but the difference
in magnetic conditions of the c.t's may affect their outputs so that, with ironcored c.t's, their secondary currents may not sum to zero as they should.
Even with identical c.t's with iron cores large enough to avoid saturation
with maximum fault currents, d.c. transient conditions may upset the balance,
with a total current containing a decaying d.c. component.
i = I (sinwt+B-~t)
(11.1)
If v is the voltage across the C.t. secondary due to the current flowing
in the relay operating coil, the flux in the core is cP = Iv.dt.
1~8 . dt
maxwells, where n is the number of turns in the C.t. secondary winding.

For the sinusoidal component of current this will be of the form
cPa..c = KIZr
w where Zr is the impedance of the relay circuit. For the d.c. com414
Bus-Zone Protection
ponent of current it will be of the form
l/Jd.c.
= KIRr
11.2
where Rr is the total
resistance of the relay circuit. It will be seen that
l/Jd.c. Rr ro.L Rr X
l/J.c. = Zr . R = Zr . R
(11.2)
where L, R and X pertain to the primary circuit. X/R will be of the order of
20 on a power station busbar. This means that the c.t. carrying the fault
current will saturate if the fault occurs at voltage zero and that balance
with the other c.t's will not be possible. This subject is discussed in more
detail in Vol. IT, Chapter 9.
In the past, attempts were made to overcome this difficulty with time
delay but nowadays power systems have become so large, and fault currents
so heavy, that high-speed relays are required.
The d.c. time constant for a fault circuit is L/R seconds. Typical time
constants for primary circuit components are as follows: Turbo-generators
01 second, Transformers 005 second, Lines 001 second.
In sections 11.2.2 and 11.2.3, protective systems are described which
now solve this problem directly, but the first step taken (in the 'thirties) was
to bias the differential relay which improved its stability considerably but
was not a complete solution.
11.2.1. Biased Percentage Differential Protection
This was an early English solution to the problem of instability on external

faults due to C.t. saturation. The differential current relay was provided with a
restraint derived from the arithmetical sum of all the currents, which were
rectified and added. In other words, the operating quantity was the vectorial
sum of all the currents and the restraining quantity was their scalar sum. The
circuit is shown in fig. 11.2; it will be seen that the operating windings of
this relay are a.c. and the restraining or bias winding is energised by d.c.
This system is theoretically sound but has been superseded by a simpler
unbiased system using a voltage relay.
Meanwhile, an attempt to simplify the circuit (112) and hence increase
the reliability has been made by the use of summation c.t's so that only one
relay is necessary for all phase and ground faults. In this scheme it is of course
essential to connect all the mixing c.t's similarly with respect to the phases
(fig. 11.3).
Early American biased differential relays used induction disc relays with
two discs on the same shaft, each having two electromagnets and a damping
magnet. The operating electromagnet was connected in the differential circuit
so that it received the vector sum of the currents; the other three were
restraining magnets connected in the individual circuits or groups of circuits
and producing a net torque proportional to the scalar sum of the squares of
the currents in these circuits. Where the number of bus circuits exceeded three
415
Protective Relays
11.2
C.T's
Bus
FIG.
11.2. Biassed differential current protection
"_summation QUlC.C.TS.....
.....,
I
I
L...-,
.rr--
~?
..
..",
r--'
~
.<>
:>
CD
.~
A-
l~
,.......,
I--
Ii:
fl tt
,,~ill'ing
Op .. a.u ..oi,tor
.:...'-
f1
Rutrain
Rcla.y
FIG.
11.3. Use of summation c.t's to simplify bus protection
416
Bus-Zone Protection
11.2
they were paralleled in three groups, the basic power sources in one group,
load feeders that contribute less than 5 % of the total fault current in the
second group and other power sources in the third.
These early biassed schemes required very large c.t's because they did
not use stabilising resistors or high impedance operating coils and hence
the c.t's had to balance their secondary currents with maximum throughfault currents including the d.c. component (see previous section 11.2 and
Chapter 9, section 9.4.3), so that they theoretically had to produce a total
flux of the form =
(I + ~)IIC where <l>IIC is the steady state a.c. flux during
maximum through-fault conditions.

11.2.2. C.t. Voltage Differential Protection
On a heavy external fault the C.t. in the faulted phase may saturate and,
if it does, its output will be deficient and hence the sum of all the c. t. secondary
currents will not be zero. The resultant unbalance current will flow in the
relay causing it to operate and clear the bus (fig. ll.4c). If, however, the
relay works on a voltage basis instead of current, the saturation of the c.t's
in the faulted feeder will cause no trouble since the voltage across the c.t's
will be limited to the IR drop in the leads from the saturated c.t. and its
secondary winding resistance (see Chapter 9, Appendix 9.4), which is a
relatively low voltage. If the c.t. does not saturate the relay voltage will
approach zero because it is connected across voltages of opposite polarity.
On the other hand, during a bus fault, all the c.t's will be pushing their
currents through the relay so that the voltage across the relay will be the
impedance of the relay circuit times the total fault current (secondary) minus
the c.t. magnetising currents. This will be a much higher voltage, approaching
the open-circuit voltage of the c.t. secondaries, and will operate the relay
(fig. ll.4d).
The minimum voltage that can be presented to the relay during an internal
fault is usually many times the maximum value for an external fault, so that
it is easy to find a selective setting for the relay which is usually set to pick
up at twice the maximum external fault value, or half the saturation voltage
of the smallest c.t. For ground faults, a lower setting may be necessary if
the system is earthed through impedance.
For this principle to be effective, the resistance of the c.t. secondary
circuits must be low, i.e. the leads between the c.t's and the paralleling point
must be as short as possible and toroidal (bushing type) c.t's should be used.
AIl the c.t's should have the same ratio and auxiliary matching c.t's should
be avoided because they introduce dissimilarity.
(a) High and Medium Impedance Relay Schemes. Fig. ll.4a shows the
circuitry of an American high impedance differential relay. Series tuning
makes the relay responsive only to the fundamental component of the
differential (spill) current of the c.t's and improves the sensitivity of the relay
at the expense of a slight time delay. Making the relay insensitive to d.c. and
417
11.2
Protective Relays
Sensitive D,C.
polQris~d t~lay
(a)
(b)
Rtlo.y
C.Ts
(c)
Es
I relo.y
--- ..............
--------
I P;In~------------~~------------~~Is
-I
--N
11.4. Differential protection using high impedance relay

(a) With linear pick-up control
(b) With non-linear pick-up control
(c) Basic circuit of high impedance bus protection
RCL = resistance of c.t's and leads; Rs = stabilising resistance
(d) Vector diagram for an internal fault
Ip = fault current (primary); Is = fault current (secondary); n = C.t. turns ratio;
Elm = total magnetising currents of the other c.t's
FIG.
harmonics make it more stable on heavy through faults which may produce
spurious residual spill current due to unequal C.t. performance. The provision of harmonic restraint is impractical because of the risk of preventing
tripping on a heavy internal fault.
Excessive voltages on internal faults are prevented by the use of nonlinear resistance (thyrite) and a relay connected in series with thyrite provides
fast operation on heavy faults, its pick-up being high enough to prevent
operation on external faults.
418
Bus-Zone Protection
11.2
Fig. 11.4b shows a slightly different connection of this type of relay in

use in England. An a.c. relay is used which is prevented by a series capacitor
from operating on d.c. voltages in the presence of d.c. offset current components on external faults above the relay setting. The pick-up setting is controlled by series-connected thyrite units rather than an adjustable linear
resistance; this gives the relay a sharply defined voltage setting, enabling the
relay current to increase at a high rate when the voltage setting is exceeded,
thereby providing fast tripping for values above the setting. The series thyrite
units are chosen to provide settings in steps of 25 volts, from 25 to 175 volts.
The setting chosen is about half the saturating voltage of the c.t's.
Because of the high impedance of the relay circuit in fig. II.4b, another
thyrite unit is connected in parallel with it to limit the maximum voltage
during internal faults to about 900 for I amp c.t's, and thus prevent damage
to the insulation of the panel wiring.
The number of circuits on one bus which can effectively be protected by
high impedance differential protection depends upon the saturation voltage
of the c.t's together with the impedance and sensitivity of the relay. The
higher the impedance of the relay, the larger the proportion of the current
required for c.t. magnetising current and the smaller the margin between the
voltage on an internal fault and the voltage ceiling permitted for panel wiring.
Two objections to the high impedance differential relay are (a) the thyrite
units are bulky and expensive; (b) their resistance varies with temperature
and between units, making it difficult to obtain a precise pick-up setting.
Another English manufacturer uses the circuit shown in fig. 1l.5a. The
vector sum of the secondary currents from the bus c.t's is supplied to an a.c.
overcurrent relay through a small saturating c.t. which limits the maximum
relay current to a safe value. The relay circuit is tuned to exclude d.c. offset
components and transient harmonic currents; due to the high time constants
(~ ratio) of modem power systems, the d.c. offset component of current may
cause prolonged spurious differential residual current on heavy external phase
faults but, fortunately, the total transient has a relatively small fundamental
frequency content. A linear stabilising resistor in series with the auxiliary
c.t. in the relay enables it to be calibrated in voltage which can be more
accurately determIned because the resistor is of the linear type.
The circuit is simpler than the previous ones and the equipment is small
enough to put complete three-phase protection in a single unit relay case,
fig. 1l.5b. The tuned circuit adds about a cycle to the operating time of the
relay but the net efficiency of the relay is higher than that of the preceding
types. The net efficiency involves the sensitivity, speed and stability of the
relay. Stability is defined as the ratio of maximum through fault current
below which the relay will not operate, to the minimum internal fault current
for which it will operate.
With both high and medium impedance relays the best results are
obtained with c.t's having lower resistance and very low leakage reactance,
419
Protective Relays
11.2
e.g. those of toroidal construction. Auxiliary c.t's for ratio correction reduce
the sensitivity and electrical stability and should not be used. All the c.t's
should have the same ratio.
(b) Setting of Voltage Differential Relays. The pick-up voltage setting is
usually made just above the maximum relay voltage for an external fault;
this voltage would approach zero if the c.t. performance were linear but, if
the c.t. in the faulted circuit is completely saturated and the others are not
L
~/O-:___~
( a)
FIG.
11.5. (a) Circuit of one phase of medium impedance relay

(b) Complete three-phase medium impedance relay
saturated, it can reach a value of the maximum fault current times the resistance of the c.t. secondary plus that of the leads to the junction point with the
other c.t's. Hence the relay should be set to pick up at a voltage
Vr = 11 Imax(Rsec+ Rleads)
(11.3)
V, and Imax are r.m.s. values; no account is taken of the d.c. offset component
of Imax because the relay is assumed to be designed not to respond to it;
furthermore, saturation of the c.t's due to the d.c. offset component would
reduce their output voltage.
In the relay shown in fig. 11.5a, the voltage setting is the product of the
current setting of the relay times the resistance of the stabilising resistor.
The relay has taps between 01 and 04 ampere so that, for a 50 volt setting,
the stabilising resistor would be 125 ohms on the 04 ampere tap less the relay
impedance. The corresponding resistance in the high impedance scheme
420
Bus-Zone Protection
11.2
would be 50/0008 = 6250 ohms, because the current pick-up of the relay is 8
rnA.
During an internal fault the c.t's are virtually open-circuited except for the
small current taken by the relay. The voltage assumes a value such that the
secondary spill current which would have flowed in the relay if their ratios
had been maintained is equal to the sum of their magnetising currents required
for this voltage. In other words, the primary currents are all used up as
magnetising current instead of producing proportional currents in their
secondaries and the c.t's not having power sources receive magnetising
current from those that do via their secondaries.
Hence the real operating current of the relay is 10 = I, + LIm, where I, is
the pick-up current of the relay and 1m is the magnetising current of each c.t.;
I, is very small compared with 1m. For values above pick-up an increasing
proportion of current goes through the shunt saturating circuits of the relay,
hence limiting the c.t. secondary circuit voltage and the relay current.
11.2.3. Ironless C.T's (113)
In c.t's containing iron, the number of circuits permissible on a bus is

limited by the fact that the relay receives the differential current minus the
sum of the exciting currents for all the c.t's on the bus. Furthermore, the
high time-constants possible in modern power systems prolong transients, so
that stability on heavy through faults may be difficult to obtain, especially in
the case of the ground differential relay.
With ironless toroidal c.t's (linear couplers), transient conditions are
eliminated and there is no magnetising current, "no magnetic saturation limit
and no lead resistance problem. These facts eliminate the difficulties requiring
special precautions in differential schemes using ordinary c.t's.
It should also be noted that ironless c.t's have great potentialities in
dealing with the transient problem in general. Two of the greatest difficulties
with relay transient problems are differential saturation and the transference
of d.c. through the iron-cored C.t. The problem of differential saturation
clearly disappears when the iron is removed altogether. This also results in
the c.t. becoming a purely differential device, the instantaneous output quantity becoming a voltage.
dip
(11.4)
Vo=M' dt
where ip is the instantaneous primary current.
If
ip = Im[sin(rot-cf+K . a-At]
(11.5)
where A is the time constant of the resultant power system viewed through
the transforming device (linear coupler) then, from equation (11.4),
Vo = M . Im[ro. cos (rot-cf-AK . a-At]

(11.6)
A may well be of the order of 100 m.seconds, i.e. l/lOth second; thus the
d.c. transient applied to the relay, in this simple case, has undergone 90%
attenuation without the need of any other relay filtering device.
421
Protective Relays
11.2
The linear coupler has a limited VA output, of the order of 3 VA at

1000 A primary current. It is clear, however, that the future may well bring a
greater utilisation of relaying systems based on linear couplers since the
order of VA is adequate for most static relays based on semiconductors and
the inherently superior transient performance expressed in equation (9.4)
potentially provides for high accuracy with fast operation.
Linear couplers can be wound to within 1 %accuracy. By distributing the
winding uniformly around the core and using several layers, interference
from other couplers and from neighbouring iron can be made negligible.
Bu&
Sensitive
relay
LineCLr
couplers
(a)
Linca.r coupler secondaries.
Rela.ys
(b)
FIG.
11.6. Differential voltage protection using linear coupler c.t's

(a) Single line diagram
(b) Three-phase schematic diagram
The ratio of maximum external fault current for blocking to minimum internal
fault current for tripping is about 25 for a uniformly distributed multilayer winding.
The number of circuits on one bus that can be protected effectively is
of the order of 15 and depends only upon the sensitivity of the relay (113)
which should operate preferably on 5 mW or less. On systems grounded
through impedance, the ground relay should be more sensitive than the
phase relays (fig. 11.6b) but, in cases where the through current on an external
422
Bus-Zone Protection
11.3
fault may be very heavy, it may be necessary to block the sensitive ground
relay on multi-phase faults if this through current exceeds 25 times the relay
setting.
For maximum sensitivity the impedance Zr of the relay should be made
about the same as that of the sum of the impedance Ze of the linear couplers,
i.e. Zr = LZ(". It is not necessary to include the lead resistance because it is
usually small compared with that of the relay and the linear couplers. Ze is of
the order of 10 ohms for 132 kV linear couplers.
The current setting I, of the ground relay and its impedance Z, (from
fig. 11.5b) are related by the equation
LEe = I,(LZ e+ Z r+ 3Z,)

(11.7)
where" Ee is the e.m.f. from each linear coupler and Zr is the impedance of
each phase relay. If the linear couplers give 5 volts output per 1000 amperes
primary current, their e.m.f.s can be calculated and added to give LEe.
11.3. FRAME LEAKAGE PROTECTION
In this form of protection the switchgear framework is insulated from

ground (building steelwork) except through the primary of a c.t. whose
secondary supplies an instaataneous overcurrent relay with current whenever
a ground fault occurs anywhere in the bus or its associated equipment.
Frame leakage protection is most effective in the case of isolated phase
switchgear and bus construction, which should eliminate interphase faults,
although it is by no means limited to this type of equipment. It is easiest to
apply in new applications where insulation of switchgear from ground can be
included in the layout.
The insulation of the switchgear framework from ground is light; anything over 10 ohms is acceptable but care should be taken to ensure that all
main and multi-core cable glands are insulated and that it is not possible for
any earthed metal to make accidental contact with the switchgear frame.
In order to prevent the risk of insulation breakdown due to high voltages
induced in the cable sheaths during faults, the main cable gland should have a
minimum flash test of 8000 volts. It is not possible to protect separately each
set of busbars of a double busbar switchboard, nor is it always practical to
apply such protection on outdoor switching stations, but separate protection
can be applied with very satisfactory results to a phase-segregated metal-clad
board at a comparatively low cost.
It is essential to have some check system with a frame leakage scheme in
order to prevent a spurious current causing unwanted operation. This usually
takes the form of neutral check relays operated from current transformers
connected in the neutrals of the system, see fig. 11.7. As an alternative, a
core-balance transformer can be fitted in the cable box or three residually
connected current transformers on "the incoming equipments to supply an
instantaneous overcurrent relay.
Should it be found impracticable in a frame leakage scheme to provide a
423
11.4
Protective Relays
Frameworks
r---------~I 1
I---\---'~------------'
.1
I
I I
II
1
1
1 1
3 1-+1+-1- - , . . -_ _ _.,-_+-__
I
flO.
11.7. Frame leakage protection (checked by neutral current relay)
neutral check feature, then an inverse time delay relay should be used for the
main scheme. This prevents inadvertent operation of the bus bar protection
due to current flowing from the auxiliary wiring to the switchgear frame, the
auxiliary circuit fuses clearing the fault before the inverse relay operates.
11.4. DIRECTIONAL COMPARISON
During an internal fault the power will flow towards the bus in all circuits
connected to it; during an external fault the power will flow towards the bus
in all circuits except the faulted one and there the power will flow outwards.
An early scheme utilised this fact and had directional relays in all the bus
circuits with their contacts in series with a multicontact relay (fig. 11.8a)
which tripped all the breakers; the directional relays CD) closed their contacts
for incoming power so that tripping could occur only for a bus fault.
This scheme was little used because of its dependence upon a large number
of series contacts. It was superseded by a scheme in which the directional
relays had double-throw contacts; all the make contacts were paralleled
and connected to the trip relay (fig. 11.8b) and all the break contacts
were paralleled and connected to a blocking relay B which could block
tripping.
Discrimination was assured by the fact that during normal load conditions at least one circuit had outgoing power, so that the blocking relay was
normally energised and there was no contact race to prevent tripping on an
external fault. As a further precaution a 2 cycle delay in the tripping relay T
can be provided. The scheme can be simplified by the use of polyphase relays
for phase faults. The ground fault relays can be polarised by current from a
424
Bus-Zone Protection
11.4
neutral grounding c.t. or from residual potential if there is no grounding

point. Phase relays, if used, would be polarised from the appropriate line-toline potential.
The directional comparison scheme is difficult to apply in a large network,
especially a cable network with resistance earthing; in this case, the capacitance charging current may be comparable with the minimum ground fault
current because the magnitude and phase angle of the outgoing capacitance
P.T.
(a)
P.T.
FIG. 11.8. Directional comparison scheme

(a) Series trip scheme. (b) Blocking scheme
current may be close to that of a bus fault to ground. However, this problem
can in most cases be solved by the use of voltage restraint because a mho
characteristic can discriminate between these conditions, as can be seen
by reference to Chapter 5. Negative sequence directional relays will be
less affected because charging current has very little negative sequence
content.
Distance units have been used in the U.S.A. for bus protection where their
reach is limited by transformers or feeder reactors, as described in Chapter 5,
section 5.4.5. The relays were of the reactance type and were set to reach a
short way into the feeder reactors; reactance units operate for currents in the
reverse direction so that they detect faults either on the bus or in the generator.
Reactance relays have also been used for protecting a bus with two sections
separated by a reactor (also described in section 5.4.5).
425
11.6
Protective Relays
11.5. BUS BACKUP PROTECTION
This has two interpretations. It can mean no local protection at all and
dependence upon the second zone tripping of stepped distance relays at
neighbouring stations to clear local bus faults. It can also mean the clearing
of a fault on a feeder which: because the feeder breaker has failed to operate,
must be regarded as a bus fault. The latter fault can be cleared by a timer which
is controlled by the relays on the faulted feeder. This is described in more
detail in Chapter 12, section 12.4.2.
11.1. SPLIT BUS PROTECTION
Each section of the bus is protected in the same way as a single bus, using
one of the schemes described in section 2 of this chapter. A split bus permits
the use of a check feature (shown in fig. 11.9) which is not possible with
single buses, except by duplication of the c.t's and relay.
It will be seen that neither section of bus can be isolated unless the overall
bus protection relay 0 operates. In the case of a fault in the middle zone
near the bus-tie breaker, all the breakers will be tripped.
FIG.
11.9. Split bus protection
Fig. 11.10a shows a 41ine ring bus, where bus differential protection
would be complicated and expensive because of the many bus sections and
the secondary switching necessary when one section is out. However, from
the point of view of interruption to service, a bus fault is no more serious
than a line fault because the adjoining halves of any pair of bus sections, such
as between G and F, can be relayed as part ofthe line C by arranging the c.t's
for line protection as shown in fig. 11.lOb.
The advantage of this system is that any breaker can be taken out for
maintenance without interrupting any load and without providing a spare
breaker; but it is essential to provide automatic reclosing of the breakers and
a motoroperated disconnecting switch in each line in order to obtain its full
benefit. The disconnecting switch can also ground the line.
For a transient fault on a line or a bus section the appropriate two
426
Bus-Zone Protection
11.7
breakers open and reclose. For a permanent fault on a line the breakers open
and reclose a predetermined number of times and, after the last trip, the
motor-operated line switch opens and the breakers reclose, restoring the ring
-@-Rela.YinlineA
(b)
FIG.
11.10 (a) Four section ring bus. (b) Location of c.t's and p.t's on ring-bus
bus. If the permanent fault is on a bus section the breakers trip again and lockout leaving the other lines in' but the ring bus open.
11.7. SUPERVISION
In large stations, open-circuits in the c.t. circuits are detected by a very

sensitive overcurrent relay with an effective setting of 10% of the rating of
the smallest feeder on the bus and connected as shown in fig. 11.11. Owing to
c:r~
FIG.
11.11. c.l. supervision scheme
427
11.8
Protective Relays
the magnetising current taken by the other c.t's the actual setting of the
relay must be much lower than the 10 %value.
This sensitive relay operates. a time delay relay which sounds an alarm and
blocks the bus differential relay from tripping by short-circuiting it through a
hand-reset control. Wrong tripping during the time delay is prevented by a
checking relay. This system cannot be used where earth fault protection only
is provided because the c.t's are paralleled at their terminals and only the
residual circuit is brought back to the relay panel.
11.8. TRIPPING CHECK
On account of the many circuits that may be connected to a bus, wrong

tripping of the bus-zone protection is a serious matter and all possible precautions are taken to avoid it.
Inadvertent tripping in handling the relay, mechanical shock to the panel,
etc., is sometimes avoided by the use of two tripping relays with their contacts in series, so that both have to operate to cause tripping. For maximum
safety the two tripping relays should operate in different planes and \:>e
mounted on different panels.
Wrong tripping due to electrical defects in the circuit can be prevented by
duplicating the c.t's and the bus differential relay and connecting the contacts
of the two relays in series, so that both have to operate to cause tripping
(fig. 11.9).
428
12
Btrek-up Protection
Basic Principles-Precautions for Reliability Remote Back-upLocal Back-up-Relay Back-up-Breaker Back-up-a.c. Supplies
-d.c. Supply
12.1. BASIC PRINCIPLES
The function of a protective relay is to operate in response to a fault on

a power system so as to minimise the damage to equipment and the interruption to service by opening only those breakers which will isolate the faulty
circuit from the power source.
Relays can be prevented from doing this by failure of any of the components in the circuit, viz. the breaker trip mechanism, the switchgear wiring,
and the a.c. or d.c. supplies to the relay itself, fig. 12.1. Consequently it is
,8
.."
Onlt pha.se
shown
al
Lin.
FIG.
12.1. Normal connections of a relay protecting line section A-B
necessary either to provide the relays with characteristics so that relays at

one location will back-up those in another location which fail to trip, or to
duplicate some or all of the equipment locally.
The first solution (remote back-up) has been used for over 30 years. In
modern power systems it may sometimes be ineffective because of the
effect of infeeds, between the back-up relay and the fault, which may reduce
the current and increase the voltage at the relay so as to prevent it from
operating. The second solution (duplication of relays, current transformers,
etc.) involves extra expense and complication.
The best solution is first to take those precautions which will reduce the
risk of failure to a very small calculated risk and then to employ remote or
local back-up protection to an extent justified by the importance of the circuit.
429
12.3
Protective Relays
12.2. PRECAUTIONS FOR MAXIMUM RELIABILITY
Troubles with breaker mechanisms can be minimised by adequate maintenance (106). Troubles with trip coils, their wiring and breaker auxiliary
switches become negligible if the trip coil is connected directly to the negative
pole of the d.c. supply and a trip supervision circuit is installed.
The relays should be designed for high contact pressure under all operating
conditions. Ifnecessary, it should be augmented as the contacts are approaching and almost closed. This is done in certain modern relays (68), for instance,
by a notch in the induction disc.
The relay case should be made dust-tight and provided with a filterbreather to equalise the pressure inside and outside the case without admitting
dust. Testing should be done with the cover on or, in the case of plug testing,
a temporary perspex cover to permit dust-proof entry of the test plug (see
Chapter 13, Section 13.4).
Fine wire relay coils and trip coils should have well-braced junctions
between the coil wire and the outside lead so that stress on the latter will not
cause an open-circuit. The coils should either be encapsulated in araldite or
an equivalent substance, or at least be thoroughly impregnated to exclude
moisture. Acid fluxes or acid-producing insulation should be avoided; workers
with perspiring hands should not be permitted to handle fine wire without
gloves; mechanical removal of enamel from the wire should be avoided.
In general, a.c. coils should not use wire less than 005 mm. diameter and d.c.
coils not less than 01 mm.; d.c. coils should not be connected directly to
the positive side of the d.c. supply unless all these precautions have been
taken.
Maintenance testing should be done without disturbing switchboard
wiring, see Chapter 13. With relays incorporating the foregoing precautions,
maintenance should be done infrequently (about once every five years)
except in conditions of severe humidity, new untried components, etc.
Infrequent maintenance eliminates the risk of relay failure due to improper
adjustment by inexpert personnel, which is one of the commonest causes.
Adequate maintenance can often anticipate failures due to a.c. wiring
faults, including multi-core cables and current transformers. Failure to trip
due to loss of the a.c. potential can be prevented by an over-voltage alarm
relay connected across secondary potential fuses (see fig. 12.13).
Where devices are used which are too recent for comprehensive reliability
statistics to be available, they should be connected so that their failure or
deterioration does not cause undesirable tripping or failure to trip. For
instance, transistors should be protected not only against voltage surges
but also preferably should be connected so that the selectivity of the relay
does not depend upon the transistor characteristics.
12.3. REMOTE BACK-UP
This is the cheapest and simplest form of back-up. It is entirely independent of local supplies, wiring, etc., and is essential where there is no bus
430
12.3
Back-up Protection
protection. On the other hand it is unreliable where a local power infeed

raises the impedance seen by the back-up relay to a value comparable with
that of maximum load conditions.
In this solution overcurrent (fig. 4.5) or distance relays (fig. 12.2) at one
station can provide back-up protection for the breaker, relays and all their
associated equipment in the neighbouring station; it is effective because no
.e
t=
--
Dista.ncr
FlO.
12.2. Remote back-up with distance relays
common equipment is used and hence the back-up cannot fail from the same
cause as the first line of defence.
Until recent years system connections were fairly simple so that back-up
protection was effectively provided by the relays at the next station towards
the source with enough time delay to permit the relay in the faulted circuit
to clear the first fault, if operable. The increase in the number of interconnections and power-infeed points in recent years has reduced the fault
current in the circuits, other than the faulted circuit, so that remote back-up
relaying is becoming increasingly difficult; at the same time loads are
becoming more important and hence demanding better service continuity.
Where the limitation of the back-up reach of distance relays is mostly
due to line length, an improvement in their operation can be obtained by
(a)
e
i=
zon.l(A)
A
Ta.p
lin.
Ta.p lin.
12.3. Reversed third zone of distance relays

(a) The time zones. (b) Preservation of tap line
FlO.
locating the Zone 3 unit at the other end of the line section and reversing its
direction. Referring to fig. 12.3a, the third step of the distance relay at A
normally provides remote back-up for faults in section BC if the breaker at
B fails to trip. This back-up can equally well be provided by reversing the
third zone unit at B so that it covers section BC.
431
12.4
Protective Relays
This arrangement not only reduces the impedance seen by the back-up
relay by the impedance of section AB but also maintains power supply to
tapped loads in section AB (fig. 12.3b) which would lose their power source
with the normal arrangement where section BC is backed-up by the relay at
A. It also prevents the back-up relay from reaching through a large transformer into a distribution circuit. The fact that the back-up impedance relay
is now located at the same station as the transformer means that a directional
relay in the transformer circuit can be used to block the impedance back-up
relay for faults fed through the transformer.
Where the limitation of back-up reach is due to power infeed at the intervening bus the excessively high impedance setting of the back-up relay may
flO.
12.4. Elliptical fault detector characteristic
cover undesirable tripping on overload. Remedies for this condition are:

(a) Provide the back-up zone of the distance relay A with a non-linear
impedance characteristic.
(b) Provide it with an elliptical characteristic which will enable it to have
a shorter -impedance reach along the R axis than along the X axis
(fig. 12.4).
(c) Where the bus is divided a fault detector relay can be connected to
split the bus during a fault and reduce the local infeed.
Where remote back-up cannot be used effectively the relay circuit and the
breaker circuit must have local back-up.
12.4. LOCAL BACK-UP
This solution (fig. 12.5) involves extra expense and complication and the
value of duplicating each component depends on its liability to failure. An
analysis of the replies to a questionnaire sent in 1958 to the members of the
C.I.G.R.E. Relay Study Committee indicates that the order of likelihood of
failure of equipment is as follows:
(a) Relays (43 %).
(b) Circuit breaker interrupters (13'5 %).
(c) a.c. wiring (chiefly multi-core cables) (12 %).
432
12.4
Back-up Protection
(d) Breaker trip mechanisms (7 %).
(e) Current transformers (7%).
(/) d.c. wiring (including trip circuits) (5 %).
(g) Potential transformers (3 %).
(h) Breaker auxiliary switches (3 %).
(j) Breaker trip coils (25 %).
(k) d.c. supply (1 %).
B
Line
Norma.l
rcla.y
::J
IQ
Line
FlO.
12.S. Local back-up: duplication of relays and c.t's
The following were the most common reasons given for the failures under
the different items of the questionnaire:
(a) Relays
(i) Dirty contacts (low contact pressure).
(n) Open-circuit in fine wire coils (d.c.).
(iii) Wrong setting.
(iv) Incorrect adjustment.
(b) Breaker lfailure to interrupt)

(i) Insulation failure of bushings or operating rod.
(ii) Damage of main contacts.
(c) a.c. Wiring

(i) Breakdown of mineral insulation.
(ii) Loose connections.
(iii) Wiring errors.
(d) Breaker Trip Mechanism

(i) Plunger sticking due to corrosion.
(ii) Incorrect adjustment.
(e) Current Transformer

(i) Insulation failure of current transformer during lightning.
(ii) Ditto due to secondary, opened inadvertently.
p
4~
Protective Relays
12.4
(/) d.c. Wiring and Trip Circuits

(i) Breakdown of mineral insulation or seals.
(il) Loose connections.
(iii) Moisture ingress and corrosion.
(iv) Accidental physical damage.
(g) Potential Transformer
(i) Fuse deterioration.
(il) Blown fuse.
(iii) Insulation failure due to lightning.
(h) A.uxiliary Switches on Breaker

(i) Lost motion, in older types, causing early or later closure, and
contact bouncing.
(j) Breaker Trip Coil

(i) Open-circuit due to corrosion.
(k) d.c. Supply

(i) Low voltage.
(il) Blown fuse.
Electrically, the equipment can be grouped in three zones requiring
supervision or back-up:
(a) The current circuit comprising the current transformers, the relay
current coils, and the wiring connecting them.
(b) The potential circuit comprising the potential transformers, the relay
potential coils, and the wiring connecting them.
(c) The d.c. circuit comprising the trip coil, the breaker auxiliary switches,
the relay d.c. coils, and the wiring connecting them.
The least trouble is experienced with item (a), the a.c. current circuits,
so that some form of overcurrent relay is the best basis for back-up protection.
The grouping of the components in (b) and (c) suggests that local back-up
must be divided into two sections, relay back-up and breaker back-up, because
failure of either unit or its auxiliaries can prevent tripping.
12.4.1. Relay Back-up
Duplication of the normal relays (fig. 12.5) would provide relay back-up
without time delay because they would work in parallel, but it would involve
considerable cost and complexity; hence it would be justified only on very
important interconnections.
The best arrangement is for the back-up relays to use a different operating
principle from that of the main relays and to be supplied from separate c.t's.
For instance, on transmission lines, distance relays are used to back up pilot
(wired or carrier) protection and vice versa. Similarly transverse and longi-
434
12.4
Back-up Protection
tudinal differential protection can give mutual back-up on generators or

lines. Buchholz and electromagnetic relays are used together in transformer
protection.
A solution for overhead lines is to provide one-step (impedance or offset
mho) relays which are delayed 05 second and which overreach both ends of
the protected circuit (fig. 12.6). This gives high grade back-up protection
jA
;::
I
L ___
-J
FIG.
I
I
______ J
I C~
B-"
I
I
I
-+
10 . .
12.6. Local relay back-up by an offset mho relay (dotted characteristic)
without excessive time delay or expense. At systems solidly grounded at each

station it is simpler to use the one-step distance relay for phase faults only and
an inverse time-overcurrent relay with a parallel instantaneous unit for ground
faults. This is not only simpler but often faster and more reliable because
most of the zero sequence current comes from the local grounding transformer (see Chapter 4, fig. 4.30.)
The most economical back-up protection for the relays is a non-directional
definite time-current or I.D.M.T. relay (fig. 12.7). Because the reach of the
I
I
L - -
!I________~IA
--,t1 - c------------
___ JI
B
o
B~
O~
~e
fIG.
12.7. Local relay back-up by a definite time relay (dotted characteristic)
time-overcurrent relay varies with generating conditions and may cover more
than one line section it must be given a time setting of at least 10 second, i.e.
corresponding to the third zone time of a distance relay. Faster back-up times
can be achieved with a non-directional inverse time-overcurrent relay with
an instantaneous unit (fig. 12.8) supplied from separate current transformers,
if available. The overcurrent method is inexpensive and reliable; it relies
only upon the current transformer and there is no risk of failure due to fine
wire, such as is used in a.c. and d.c. potential circuits.
The time-overcurrent relay back-up (fig. 12.7) may be slower than the
previous alternative of a single-step mho back-up relay with Zone 2 time but
this does not interfere with the selectivity. Referring to fig. 12.7 a fault at
X is normally cleared by the distance relay at B if the relay at C fails to
operate. If the back-up relay at B cannot operate because of a heavy infeed
p*
435
12.4
Protective Relays
at C the time-overcurrent relay at C will do so, thus clearing a fault which

could not normally be cleared. The fact that the relay at B will operate before
the overcurrent relay at C for a fault near the C bus, causing the isolation
of station C, is no different from normal operation without the time-overcurrent relay. In cases where this is unacceptable there is the earlier alternative of duplicating the normal relays.
With inteed
a.tC
,'"
,,/
C
/
"..
,-- -- - -'F-------"t--,./
~~t~n!9-~~~~ ~cJ
FIG.
Without inteed
12.8. Local relay back-up by an inverse time current relay with an

instantaneous unit
More sensitive operation and often faster tripping can be provided by

a negative sequence current relay; it should have a fixed time delay if it is
backing up distance or pilot relays and an inverse time characteristic if
backing up inverse time relays. This relay ignores balanced three-phase
faults, which is practical on most systems. For back-up on ground faults
only, a very sensitive zero sequence relay can be used in the same way; an
English relay of this type will clear ground faults down to 2 % of the c.t.
rating and has a c.t. burden of only 0007 va at pick-up or 25 va at C.t.
rating; it uses the polarised d.c. relay shown in figs. 2.19.
12.4.2. Breaker Back-up
When a relay operates because of a fault but the breaker fails to trip, the
fault can be regarded as a bus fault and necessitates opening all the other
breakers on that bus. Opening the breakers nearest the fault has the advantages of (i) saving teed feeders, (ii) facilitating rec1osure, because all the
breakers are at the same station. This method is sometimes complicated to
apply where the bus is sectionalised and subject to switching.
Breaker back-up can be obtained fairly simply by paralleling all the relay
tripping contacts associated with all the circuits connected to a bus (fig. 12.9)
and connecting them to operate on a common timing unit when there is a
fault on any of the circuits. If the appropriate breaker does not clear the
fault when its relay operates then the fault should be regarded as a bus fault
and the timing unit, after a suitable delay, should trip all the breakers, clearing
the bus.
Since the timing relay can clear the bus its inadvertent operation must be
avoided; there should be an instantaneous overcurrent supervising relay
between the timing unit contacts and each breaker trip c.oil (fig. 12.10), so
that the breakers cannot be tripped unless both the timer and the individual
436
12.4
Back-up Protection
overcurrent relays close their contacts. In places where some of the unfaulted
circuits may feed in less than full load the overcurrent supervising relays
cannot be used but the paralleled contacts of the fault detectors of the relays
FIG.
12.9. Local breaker back-up by delayed trip of other breakers
II II II I!
11 11 II I
t t t t ~Trip
Protective
relays on four
feeders
Fault
~ detector
relays
To brea.l<er trip coils
FIG.
relay
12.10. Breaker back-up with interlocking scheme
R i , R 2 , R 3 , R4 can be connected in series with the tripping relay contacts,

so that, even if the timer or the tripping relay is operated manually, tripping
cannot occur unless one of the fault detectors is operated at the same time.
12.4.3. Current Transformers
Current transformers are unlikely to fail in themselves but they may be

inadvertently short-circuited by a test link having been left in the wrong
position during maintenance testing; also a current transformer insulation
may break down if the secondary circuit is accidentally opened.
Where possible, separate current transformers are desirable for back-up
relays (or at least separate secondaries on one current transformer) because
they increase the reliability of the back-up; on E.H.V. lines this may be
necessary because of the limited VA capacity of the current transformers.
Where they are not available (such as on H.V. air blast breakers) the effect of
separate current transformers can be obtained in the case of distance relays
by locating the third zone unit at the other end of the associated line; this
method also has the advantages of preventing the loss of teed feeders and of
facilitating reclosure.
437
12.4
Protective Relays
Where separate current transformers are available they should be on

opposite sides of the breaker so as to provide overlapping zones of protection
(fig. 12.11), otherwise a fault between the breaker and the nearest current
transformer will not be isolated except by remote back-up.
If both sets of c.t's are on-the bus side of the breaker (fig. 12.11a) a fault
between the breaker and the nearest current transformer will open the
(b)
FIG.
12.11. (a) c.t's on bus side of circuit breaker

(b) c.t's on line side of circuit breaker
breaker but the fault will remain as a bus fault, and will not be detected by
the bus zone protection which is now limited to busbar protection. With
distance relays, the fault may be cleared by remote back-up.
If both sets of current transformers are on the line side of the breaker
a fault between the breaker and the nearest current transformer (fig. 12.l1b)
will operate the bus zone protection and clear the bus, which will cause unnecessary interruption to service.
The inference is that it js better to have a set of current transformers on
each side of the circuit breaker.
12.4.4. Potential Transformers
Duplicate potential transformers are seldom used because they are

extremely reliable devices. Where each line has a set of p.t's and there is
another set on the bus, the latter could be used to supply the back-up relays.
The most common cause of loss of secondary potential is the blowing of a
potential fuse due to a temporary short-circuit during maintenance, such as
by a metal tool bridging two terminals in falling from a higher position or
due to a whisker of a stranded wire touching a grounded metal part. It has
been found that a relatively large fuse (60 amperes) for the relay circuits will
438
Back-up Protection
12.5
survive most of the transient short-circuits that are liable to occur in maintenance.
Loss of potential due to a blown fuse, an open-circuit in the wiring or to
trouble in the potential transformer can either prevent tripping or cause
undesirable tripping in distance relays. Loss of potential on the restraining
coil can cause wrong tripping but, in a mho relay which is polarised by a
potential winding, loss of potential supplying this winding will cause zero
torque, i.e. failure to trip.
In order to prevent undesirable tripping due to loss of potential each
distance relay can have a supervisory relay which may be a simple instantaneous overcurrent relay in series with the Zone 1 tripping circuit. In the
Zone 1 fault current
pick-up current f
h emaximum
rare cases w
re.
>
0 the
maXImum load current
drop-out current
instantaneous overcurrent relay, a rate-of-rise of current relay can be used
as the supervisory relay. In either case, the loss of relay potential must be
signalled by an alarm relay working on undervoltage and provided with a
time-delay so that the alarm will not sound during faults.
Where miniature circuit-breakers are used instead of fuses and have an
auxiliary contact to open the trip circuit, it must open before the protective
relay trips, i.e. with modem high-speed distance relays it should open in less
than one cycle. Where fuses are used, an undervoltage relay can be connected
with its coil across the fuses and its contacts in series with the trip circuit;
this relay will open very fast when a fuse blows because the relay coil receives
the full voltage (see fig. 5.51 and refer to Chapter 5, section 5.7.2).
12.4.5. Battery
The records indicate that this is the component least likely to fail. Nevertheless, it can be included in local back-up by providing an undervoltage
delayed alarm on the load side ofthe fuses. No supervision other than the alarm
is necessary because failure of the d.c. supply can only cause failure to trip.
12.5. SUMMARY
(a) The goal of protective relays is absolute assurance of tripping the
breaker when it is required.

(b) This assurance can be made extremely good by proper precautions in
design, such as high contact pressure.

(c) Remote back-up is desirable because it cannot fail for the same reason
as the first line of defence.
(d) Where remote back-up is not possible, local relay and breaker back-up
can ensure selective clearing of faults.
(e) The degree of duplication of components in local relay back-up
depends on the importance of the protected circuit.
(f) The a.c. potential supply should have a failure alarm and distance
relays should have supervisory relays working on overcurrent or rateof-rise of current, depending upon system conditions.
439
13
HainienalWe .IUI Testing of Belays
Commissioning-Periodic Maintenance-Transfer to Test Circuit
-Tools-Safety Measures-Mechanical Tests-Electrical TestsManufacture Tests
ROTECTIVE relays are intended to protect expensive electrical equipPment.
With proper care they will perform this duty, but when neglected
they may become inoperative and could become a hazard in themselves.
Since the reliability is the most important quality of protective relays it
follows that their maintenance must be first class.
In the ordinary course of events modern relays, which have been properly
adjusted and correctly set initially, should not require subsequent adjustment
and, if periodic inspection and check tests show them to be in good condition, they should not be physically touched.
It is generally accepted that protective relays and their trip circuits should
be periodically checked in order to ensure that they will always be ready to
operate with certainty. The recommended practice is to carry out three types
oftest:
(a) Acceptance tests at the installation or commissioning of the relays.
(b) Periodic tests to check the calibration and condition of the relay.
(c) More frequent tests of a simple nature to cause movement of the parts,
and to check the continuity of the trip circuit.
Before attempting any adjustment or tests, the test engineer should
carefully read the proper instructions. He should be entirely familiar with the
relay, its application, principle of operation, design features and characteristics.
13.1. INSTALLATION OR COMMISSIONING TESTS
Relays should first be examined for damage in transit. Care should be

taken not to bend any light parts when removing packing pieces, such as disc
wedges. Other important precautions are (a) to avoid handling contact surfaces or small bare wires because of the risk of corrosion; (b) to dust the
cover before removing it; (c) to see that packing pieces are removed and the
armatures move freely, (d) to avoid touching permanent magnets with ferrous
objects such as screwdrivers.
440
13.1
Maintenance and Testing of Relays
Each relay unit should be given a mechanical inspection to see that the
armature moves freely and that the contacts have the necessary travel and
wipe to ensure reliable operation, checking the manufacturer's settings, if
given, in the instruction book. An inspection light and dental mirror should
be used to see that the magnetic gaps are clean before the relay is left in
service.
Suitable electrical tests to check the performance characteristics of the
relay are usually described in some detail in the manufacturer's instruction
book accompanying the relay. Typical tests are described in section 13.10,
under the heading 'Electrical Tests'.
The contacts of each relay should be closed electrically or manually to
see that the trip circuit is complete and that the proper alarms are actuated.
In order to check the current-transformers, voltage-transformers and
wiring associated with the relays it is usual also to make overall tests from the
primary circuit. The primary current is usually supplied by a test transformer
of about 5 kVA supplied from a low voltage lighting or power source, such
Prima.ry
circuit
230.A.C.
"------;---...-
Relay
5 Kva.
FIG.l3.!. Primary injection test circuit
as a 240 volts, 30 amperes source, and tapped for various voltages (say 1 to
10 volts) necessary to give line currents up to 1000 A depending on the impedance of the circuit; this current is sufficient to check the polarity of the
connections but not to simulate fault currents, the latter being done in the
secondary injection tests to check the relay characteristics (see fig. 13.1).
The secondary wiring can be further checked if necessary by a low reading
ohmmeter or by the ringing method using a bell and battery. A more detailed
account of the tests on each type of relay is given in section 10, 'Electrical
Tests'.
13.1.1. Primary Fault Tests
Primary tests with actual fault currents can be done, however, by applying
a fault through a portable circuit-breaker, in the case of cable circuits. In the
case of an overhead line the simplest method is to shoot an arrow over or
between the conductors, the arrow being attached to a length of very fine
iron wire, the other end of which is free, for phase faults, or earthed, for
ground faults. An alternative method is shown in fig. 13.3 wherein the iron
wire is pulled into position with insulating cords. The side view shows how
conductor burning is prevented.
441
13.1
Protective Relays
Iron wire is preferred for starting the fault arc because it breaks up into
small pieces which are expelled from the arc electromagnetically and has no
effect on the arc resistance; copper or fuse wire on the other hand forms
a cloud of metallic vapour which creates a very low resistance arc, which is
misleading for the application of impedance relays. Flashover arcs, or test
. h very t hi'
. have a reSIstance
.
8750
h
"'.
arcs started WIt
n Iron WIre,
/1.4 0 ms per loot In
still air, which has a value of about 075 ohm at 800 amperes. Alternatively,
the arc has a drop of ~~~ volts per foot which is 450 at 800 amperes. It is
most important not to underestimate the arc resistance on short lines because
selectivity can be lost if, for instance, a distance relay gives third zone time
for a fault just inside the far end of the protected section (Chapter 5, section
5.1.1).
Few companies do such field tests, however, although the chance of
trouble is much smaller with a supervised test fault than with an actual fault
which is uncontrolled and going to oCCur anyway. In the U.S.A. these field
tests are carried out by power companies whenever they install some new
protective scheme which is of fairly recent design, or if they wish to find out
something about the behaviour of relays under particular system conditions.
These tests are usually carried out in conjunction with the manufacturer and
complete records are taken by high-speed portable oscillographs. The power
company engineers then have a much better idea of ~hat both the system
and the protection will do under fault conditions.
The superiority of thin iron wire for this purpose was originally discovered by the author in 1928 during a power arc investigation, in collaboration with Mr. E. E. George, on the 154 kV system of the Tennessee Electric
Power Company. During the tests it was found that similar results were
obtained with a wet rope with the added advantage that the arc was delayed
in striking and the effect on the relay was like that of an actual fault although
it was in fact initiated by closing a breaker near the source.
13.1.2. Primary Injection Tests
For checking the polarity and correctness of the primary and secondary
wiring it is necessary to inject current into the primary circuit. This is done
usually with a distribution type transformer of 5 to 10 kVA rating (as
described in section 13.1 and shown in fig. 13.1) with its low voltage winding
connected to the primary circuit and its high voltage winding connected to the
local supply (120 or 240 volts) through a controlling impedance such as that
of a secondary test set. The primary circuit is grounded for safety through the
conductors in the desired manner to ascertain that:
(a) the current-transformers in corresponding phases are correctly connected to differential relays;
(b) their polarity is correct relative to each other (checked by zero
spurious residual current);
442
13.2
(c) the phase and polarity of each current-transformer is correct relative

to the polarising potential in the case of a directional relay;
(d) there are no. poor electrical connections (checked by a low-reading
ohmmeter);
(e) there is the proper ratio between primary and secondary currents at
the relay setting, i.e. to see that the burdens of the relay and current
wiring are not too great for the c. t. and that it is in fact the correct C.t.
13.2. PERIODIC TESTS
These are usually secondary injection tests because it is not necessary to

re-check the polarity of the current-transformers, if the wiring has not been
changed since the installation tests, and the condition of the current-transformers can be checked from their secondaries or tertiaries.
Whereas the secondary tests at installation were fairly comprehensive. it
is only necessary in the periodic tests to check the relay at its actual setting.
With modem test plugs this can be done very quickly, as will be explained in
section 13.4, under 'Transfer to the Test Circuit'.
The frequency of these periodic tests depends upon the application. In
clean, dry surroundings once a year is sufficient, or even every three years in
the case of a modem relay with a high torque/friction ratio, especially if the
Clra.r a.rmour rods
F===X=====lf===:X:===tll
\\
SIDE
VIEW
dependent on
system KV
FI cxlbl. ground ca.bl.

d'sconnectl:d for
" , pha. .. to pha..e 'a.ulls
Pull on", or mor.e:

difp~ndlng
c Ia.mp~-,_ ,
--No. 30 ,tul or
Iron wire, Len9th
Gla.ss cord-- -
cords
Hot hnrr
on
type 01 1a." It de .. "d ~..p.,._~"""';:""

.::::'",j-L-JL...-
Flulbl. ca.bl.
Spa.ra.trr ground'S
FIG.
13.2. Fault initiation on overhead line
tripping contacts are relieved by a seal-in relay. For example there should
be negligible effect on the contacts of an induction disc relay with a series
seal-in unit after 100 operations tripping a 40 ampere trip coil at 250 volts
(fig. 2.35).
Relays in dirty surroundings, or having contacts with lower pressure, or
a tendency to bounce, need more frequent checking. On the other hand,
auxiliary relays with high-pressure bounce-proof contacts can be hermetically
sealed and replaced every 6 to 10 years, depending on their contact duty.
443
13.2
Protective Relays
In all tests the relay case should be dusted clean before removing the
cover. Fig. 13.2 shows a plastic cover which can be used when testing has to
be done in dirty or dusty surroundings with the cover off. It is better practice,
however, to test with the relay cover on.
FIG.
13.3. Plastic cover for use while testing
13.2.1. Insulation Tests
Occasional insulation tests should be made with a 1000 volt a.c. supply,
(a) between the relay case and each terminal,
(b) between a.c. and d.c. circuits,
(c) between terminals normally separated by open contacts in the relay.
For this test the earthing points of the secondary wiring should be
removed and either a 1000 volt megger or a step-up potential transformer
with a current limiting resistance should be used, the former being safer and
more convenient.
If a potential transformer is used as the high voltage source it should be
remembered that a large switchboard may have sufficient capacitance between
the wiring and ground to cause series resonance, which will increase the
voltage applied to the relays to two or three times the test voltage.
444
13.4
Another point to remember is that, in testing an individual relay which has

been stored in a colder room, time should be allowed for the relay to assume
the temperature of the test room and to evaporate any moisture which may at
first condense on the cold surfaces of the relay.
13.3. MORE FREQUENT TESTS
Where it is not possible to do the periodic tests at regular intervals, or

where the equipment is complex or on a very important circuit, a pushbutton switch is sometimes provided which energises the relay from a
station supply so as to make it go through its operation.
This switch may also open or insert resistance in the trip circuit, if desired,
by means of an extra contact, so that operation of the relay does not trip
the breaker each time. On the other hand, if the system conditions permit,
it is valuable to check the continuity of the trip circuit. This sort of test is
usually done daily or weekly by a station attendant, and is purely a means of
seeing that the protection device is operative.
Operating the relay mechanism by hand, although recommended by some
manufacturers, is not advisable because (I) a heavy hand may upset the
relay adjustments, (2) the contacts might successfully be closed by hand in a
case where the normal torque of the relay could fail to do so if the contacts
were corroded or out of adjustment.
13.4. TRANSFER TO THE TEST CIRCUIT
Most of the relays now in existence are wired through some kind of
terminal board which is provided with links for transferring the relay to a
test circuit. After locating the proper terminals with the aid of a panel wiring
diagram, current-transformers must be short-circuited, the d.c. trip and a.c.
voltage circuits disconnected and a number of connections made between
the test equipment and the relay terminal board; after completing the test
FIG.
l3Aa. Test plug
445
13.4
Protective Relays
the above procedure must be reversed. All this takes appreciable time and
involves the possibility of a mistake or a poor connection, which may leave
a relay inoperative.
A better method of transfer to the test circuit has been available for some
years which is instantaneous and relatively foolproof; it speeds up testing
so that the same staff can maintain several times as many relays. In this
method the test terminal block is replaced by a plug-in test block on the
front of the panel so that the same man can adjust the test controls and also
watch the relay. This test block may be separate from the relays (fig. I3.4b)
FlO.
BO.
13Ab. Test block
13.5. Non-drawout relay with test block
446
13.5
but, in some of the drawout types of relay, it is integral with the relay (fig.
13.5). The test plug (fig. 13.4a) is already connected to a portable test set so
that no extra connections have to be made; when the plug is inserted, the relay
is separated from the switchboard circuits and connected to the test circuit.
Withdrawing the plug instantly restores the relay to service. The transfer
of connections is automatic and there is no possibility of leaving the relay
wrongly connected. Finally, the testing can be done without disconnecting
the primary circuit and only one relay need be out of service at a time.
To avoid loss of time changing the test plug connections for different
relays, the terminal wiring should be standardised as far as possible so that the
tester can go from relay to relay without fear of opening current-transformer
circuits, etc. This, of course, applies only to a.c. protective relays. The test
plug should fit both the drawout relay contacts and the separate test block.
In these days of rapidly expanding power systems and shortage of maintenance staff, the test plug method is particularly valuable because many
times more relays can be tested per year with the same staff and less skilled
personnel are required because no circuits have to be traced behind the
board and there is no risk of the circuits being left improperly connected.
13.5. TOOLS
An important item in the maintenance of relays is the provision of proper

tools; without these tools it is difficult to avoid maladjustment and even
damage. For instance, the tension of the contact brushes of the telephone
type relays controls their pick-up and it is important to see that the tension
is correct.
A tool kit (fig. 13.6) is provided by many manufacturers. An English
manufacturer provides one which is compact enough to go into a waistcoat
FIG.
13.6. Relay tool kit
447
13.5
Protective Relays
pocket, but contains the most important relay tools-a contact bender, a
dental mirror and a combination burnisher and contact pressure gauge.
If cleaning is considered desirable, a burnishing tool only should be used.
On no account should any abrasive material be used as this may result in
the scratching of contacts and the depositing of insulating particles on their
surfaces both of which will increase arcing during operation.
Fig. 13.6 shows a burnishing tool attached to the contact gauge; it consists
of a strip of metal, the surface of which is roughened by etching, so resembling,
in effect, a very fine file. It can be compressed between the contacts and thus
ensures that the actual contacting points are cleaned. Being flexible, it is
useful for cleaning contacts which are located in normally inaccessible
positions.
By means of the contact bender, contact gaps can be accurately adjusted
to the required setting. The contact springs are bent at their clamping point
so that kinking and deformation of the springs is avoided.
In addition to the tools mentioned above, a few do-it-yourself tools are
recommended, such as a needle, a feather and a feeler gauge, which are used
as follows.
13.5.1. Bearings
An ordinary needle is the best tool for exploring the surface of a jewel
bearing to detect a crack. It can also be used as a gauge to prevent overlubrication, the amount of oil applied to a meter or timing unit bearing being
the size of a drop which will stay on the point of a needle.
Most protective relay bearings are run dry and can be cleaned out with
petroleum spirits. In the field, a jewel bearing can be cleaned by inserting and
twisting a clean piece of pith or watchmaker's peg wood. The pivot can be
cleaned by pushing it into a piece of pith, or a hole drilled in watchmaker's
peg wood, and twisting it. It is exceptional, however, to find bearings dirty
enough to need cleaning unless the atmosphere is very polluted.
13.5.2. Gap Cleaners
Gaps are either blown out with a low pressure air jet or cleaned out with
a feather. A thin brass spatula has been used with a magnetic insert for
attracting and removing iron filings, but this has been discontinued in most
companies because of the risk of demagnetisation of high coercive force steel
magnets, i.e. the method is applicable to electromagnets but not to permanent
magnets.
13.5.3. Gap Gauges
The normal gap between the relay contacts is often important. Too large
a gap would cause slow operation or, in the case of an attracted armature
relay, it might cause insufficient contact pressure or failure to make contact;
too small a gap might cause inadvertent tripping due to shock and vibration.
448
13.6
To check contact gaps and 'follow through' an ordinary feeler gauge is

useful.
For checking electromagnet gaps a steel drill is the handiest gauge,
especially in the case of an annular gap, as in an induction cup relay.
13.5.4. Contacts
Since many relays operate many more times in testing than they ever do
in service it is a good idea to use a neon lamp for checking contact closing
values. Metal filament lamps should be avoided because their initial current
can be 10 times their normal current, which may weld pure silver contacts.
Contact resistance should be determined with an ammeter and voltmeter at about normal current and not with a resistance bridge at a few
milliamps, because contact resistance is inversely proportional to the current
magnitude.
13.6. IMPROVISATIONS
Sometimes equipment needed for a specific test is not available, but

suitable substitutes can be found. The following suggestions come from the
U.S.A.
13.6.1. Voltage Indication
Where a suitable voltmeter is not available and the voltage is above 90

volts, a neon lamp and a potentiometer can be used. A neon lamp fires at
approximately 60 volts a.c., or 85 volts d.c. and the voltage can therefore be
checked by connecting the potentiometer across the circuit and moving the
slider until the lamp lights. Since the neon lamp takes practically no current,
the voltage can be deduced from the proportion of the potentiometer connected across the lamp.
13.6.2. Continuity Test
A neon lamp can also be used in series with a suitable resistor (or using
a lamp having an internal resistor) to check the continuity of a circuit or the
closing of a contact. It can also be used for checking the condition of a
capacitor. For instance, a 1 mF capacitor with a leakage resistance of
approximately 300,000 ohms will cause the neon lamp to glow at about once
per second when connected to a 125 volt d.c. source supply. If the capacitor
is short-circuited the lamp will glow continuously and, if open, it will not
glow at all. Of course, care has to be used not to use a test voltage higher than
the rating of the capacitor.
13.6.3. Inductive Current Control
It has been stated previously that, in order to have a good waveform,

reactance rather than resistance should be used for controlling the current
because a lower ohmic value can be permitted which will allow higher test
currents. If a suitable adjustable reactor is not available one can be made by
449
13.9
Protective Relays
taking two flat rolls of stranded wire of suitable size (such as 100 yds of 7/029)
and varying their position relative to each other to control their mutual
coupling and hence their impedance and so provide control for current
magnitude.
13.7. SAFETY MEASURES
With portable equipment and temporary test connections there is a constant danger of electric shock. Most companies avoid the use of exposed
connections and test clips by using insulated test plugs or switches (section
13.4).
Before testing, all capacitors should be de-energised by short-circuiting

them, after opening the supply switch; otherwise a charged capacitor may
give an unpleasant shock and cause a convulsive movement which may lead
to damage of delicate equipment.
Current transformers can develop dangerously high potentials across
their secondaries, if not short-circuited. Potential transformers should be
checked to see that they are de-energised from the high-voltage side and that
they are not re-energised through the test circuit so that a high voltage appears
on the primary side which may find its way to equipment with which the
operator may come in contact. Pilot wires should also be handled carefully
because high induced potentials may occur between their extremities even
though the voltage between the pilot wires themselves may be negligible.
13.8. RENEWAL OF PARTS
Protective relays normally operate for years with little maintenance,

which may lead people to believe that spare parts for them are not really
necessary. However, on account of the vital importance of protective relays
and since these parts are relatively inexpensive, it has been found desirable
that a suitable stock be kept on hand; for important circuits spare relays are
often stocked, especially where they are the drawout type which can be
instantly replaced without disturbing other relay circuits.
The parts most commonly stocked are contacts, coils, jewel bearings,
bearing pivots, resistors and cover glass. If damage occurs to larger parts,
such as bases or frames, the relay is generally returned to the factory for
inspection and repair.
13.9. MECHANICAL TESTS
The force on the armature of a protective relay is relatively small because

the power available from current transformers is small and because its
efficiency is low (about 005 % for the most common type, i.e. the induction
disc relay). Furthermore, the torc;ue is proportional to the square of the
current so that it decreases very rapidly near pick-up.
For accurate operation it is therefore essential to see that the relay is
in good mechanical condition. The armature must move freely, which can be
checked by moving it delicately. The shaft should have adequate end-play
450
13.10
and the gaps should be examined with a mirror and light to see that there are
no foreign bodies in the gaps; for instance, a hair can double the pick-up of
an induction disc relay. The moving contact should have adequate travel
and wipe. The operation indicator should not drop when the relay panel
is bumped.
13.9.1. Shock and Vibration
Although protective relays are normally treated as fairly delicate instruments, they are occasionally subjected to substantial shocks (such as during
an earthquake or if a fairly heavy piece of equipment is accidentally bumped
into the panel) and the relays should not inadvertently trip under these conditions. A few manufacturers have, in recent years, designed relays to stand
considerable shock and vibration and these relays can be mounted on circuit
breakers or electric locomotives.
No national specifications are yet available but an English manufacturer
subjects its relays to impact of 20 g. to 40 g. on the panel near the relay
contacts (50 g. for tripping relays) and also applies a sin 2 wt vibration test.
Such tests are considerably more severe than any service conditions.
13.9.2. Dust and Corrosion
The same manufacturer also provides relay cases which are dustproof
and dust-tight (Chapter 2, section 2.6.8), ordinary relay cases are dustproof
but not dust-tight. Fig. 2.37 shows a case which can be sealed to make it dusttight, the normal 'breathing' due to changes in ambient temperature being
effected through a dust filter which prevents the entry of even the finest dust
but offers negligible resistance to breathing. The dust filter is screwed into the
back of the case and contains a replacement unit of shredded nylon to stop
dust particles, while iron particles are trapped by a magnetised grating at the
outside of the filter. Such relays are suitable for use in flour mills, cement
mills, steel mills, etc., where an ordinary relay would require frequent
maintenance.
t3.10. ELECTRICAL TESTS
The instruction book on the relay should be referred to for suitable tests
on each type of relay.
The B.S. or A.S.A. recommended tests have already been carried out by
the manufacturer, since he has to meet their specifications, but when the relay
is tested on site it is only necessary to check it with the setting at which is is
to operate and at values of current, voltage, etc., which represent maximum
and minimum conditions. If this is done much time will be saved and there is
then a definite check on the behaviour of the relay for the conditions under
which it is expected to operate.
13.10.1. TimeOvercurrent Relays
The B.S. recommendations are to test inverse definite (I.O.M.T.) relays

on site with secondary injection test equipment to measure the operating
451
13.10
Protective Relays
time on the middle tap setting, i.e. 100 % tap for phase relays and 50 % for
earth fault relays, with currents equal to twice, five and ten times the setting
current, repeating these tests with the time-multiplier set on unity and at 05.
This can be most conveniently done using the circuit of fig. 13.7 in which a
t;j
Cu"ut
control
Rc. l a.y
i:L~1 ~~:: , .... o

l
~ooootao.
23B:~_O_'1_0_(1m_P_ _...y,oo;l
FUlc.s
5top
Mc.tct'"ng
tra.nsforMcr
Vt.ry fast
conto.ctor
-0
-.::::r
Push button
FIG.
510.' t
Synct'lronou s
timer
(cycle COUr'ltI:r)
13.7. Testing circuit for overcurrent relays
sinusoidal current waveform is assured by reactance control. This circuit

presents a constant low burden on the power source irrespective of the rating
of the relay, because it employs an impedance matching transformer. This
transformer also maintains good waveform by keeping VL below 20% of the
source voltage. Fig. 13.8 shows a portable test kit embodying this circuit.
FIG.
13.S. Portable test set for overcurrent relays
The following method is used in England for determining the overshoot

of a time-overcurrent relay.
i. Use two identical relays connected in series to a current supply of
sine wave form.
ii. Arrange for contact closure on relay A to interrupt this common
current by a suitable contactor.
iii. Set the current to 20 times tap value and relay B to Time Multiplier
Setting 1,0. Both relays set on the same current tap.
452
13.10
iv. Determine the highest Time Multiplier Setting permissible on relay A

consistent with relay B not closing its contacts.
v. Measure the time from the application of current to its removal by the
contactor of Item (ii).
vi. Measure the operating time of relay B with the current now maintained until B has closed its contacts.
vii. The overshoot time is the difference between (v) and (vi).
Where the actual operating conditions are known, the relay should be set
on the actual T.M.S. and tap (plug bridge) setting to be used and the time
checked with minimum and maximum fault current, preferably in that order
because some relays have a heating effect due to high current which is
appreciable at low currents unless the relay has been given time to cool off.
The mechanical condition of the relay can be checked by closing the contacts
by setting the time multiplier to zero and then quickly returning it to the
maximum travel position to see if the relay will reset in the manufacturer's
prescribed time, thus indicating that the bearings are free. Friction will also
be indicated by the disc speed not being consistent; the bearings and pivot can
be cleaned as explained under 'Bearings'.
High-set instantaneous units should be checked at their setting with
maximum fault currents applied suddenly, preferably in a reactive test circuit,
closing the switch at least five times to check any tendency to overreach on
offset current waves.
The phase angle curve should be checked at minimum fault current and
normal voltage to make sure that there is no parasitic V2 closing torque which
may tend to give incorrect directional action at low current. The test should
be repeated at 2 %of normal voltage with maximum short-circuit current to
make sure that there is no parasitic [2 torque which will give improper
directional action at low voltage. Further testing is unnecessary because, even
if the directional characteristic departs from the usual straight line passing
through the origin, it will do no harm provided that the two conditions above
are met.
Actually, considerable tolerance can be allowed, even for these two tests,
because parasitic V 2 torque aids selectivity if it is in the resetting direction
since it gives the relay a tendency to a mho characteristic. Furthermore, a
reasonable [2 torque in the tripping direction is useful in the case of cables,
where it is possible to have almost zero voltage for a fault close to the bus,
and can be usefully employed where the current for a fault in the protected
section close to the bus is sufficiently higher than a fault on one of the other
feeders close to the bus.
The recommended test circuit is shown in fig. 13.9. An auto-transformer
is used for adjusting the voltage because, unlike a potentiometer type voltage
divider, it does not cause a phase shift at low voltages.
Q
453
13.10
Protective Relays
In order to establish the correct polarity of a ground directional relay at

site the following procedure can be followed. Short-circuit the c.t's in phases
band c, open the secondary potential lead in phase a and short-circuit the
a-phase of the auxiliary wye-broken-delta p.t's supplying residual potential to
Rheosta.t
Fuses
CD
liZ
flO
'II
CD
230 v.
A.C.
Pha.sc rt-:t::l--;:;;l--r.JUi~h
shIfter
FIG.
13.9. Testing circuit for directional relays
the relay. The relay should then close its contacts if the load is outgoing, or
open them if it is incoming, if it is correctly connected. The test can, if desired,
be repeated for the other two phases.
13.10.3. Distance Relays
Here again it is quite unnecessary to plot the circular characteristics of

the ohmic units on an impedance diagram because only four points on the
curve are of interest in a mho unit (fig. 13.10a), viz. the conditions for faults
at the two ends of the protected zone, the cut-off point ZL and the relay bus,
with and without fault resistance Ra. In a reactance relay only two points are
of interest (fig. 13.10b), the reactance pick-up, with and without fault
resistance.
In other words, the fault area is bounded by the line impedance and the
arc resistance, forming the shaded zone in fig. 13.10a. It is only necessary to
establish that the relay trips on faults within the shaded zone and does not
trip for faults beyond the protected section at either end. For this purpose a
test circuit should be used which contains highly reactive impedance representing Z., the system impedance behind the bus towards the source, and a
faulted line impedance ZL of adjustable X and R which is connected to the
relay by a switch, as shown in fig. 13.11.
Fig. 13.12 shows a portable test set kit which embodies the circuit of
fig. 13.11. By adjusting the line impedance ZL to the impedance of the protected section and closing the switch, the accuracy of the relay reach can be
determined by varying ZL a few percent each way.
Referring to fig. 13.lOb, the test impedance representing the fault is
Zt = X;+(R x +R)2
This is scaled down to the value required for operating the relay by a potential
auto-transformer which has nine 10 % and ten 1 % taps. For example, the
454
13.10
(a)
X R"
2'
13.10. (a) The four test points for mho relays

(b) The two test points for reactance relays
FIG.
,,
I
''''p oda.ncc of
I
'ph,. b ...ck to
I gc.ncra.t ing IOU ree.
'mp<da.ncc of
protc.cte.d li ne.
r-~~~~~~~~
Stop
Dist ... "c.

rclClY
FIG.
No,,,,a.'
IOQ.d
V.,y fa..t
conta.cto r
rcpre.scnt ing to..ult
13.11. Testing circuit for distance relays
455
Millisecond
count er
Protective Relays
13.10
impedance 02 is Z, x
ratio
~~"
1~
where P is the percent tap setting to give the
The test should be repeated with arc resistance and in all cases the
switch should be closed at least five times to make sure that the relay does not
overreach due to transient conditions in the line or the relay circuit.
In the test set illustrated in fig. 13.12, ZL is calibrated in ohms for different
phase angles. In test sets with separate XL and RL it is important that Ra be
non-inductive and that Rx , the a.c. resistance of X, be known accurately.
FIG.
13.12. Portable test set for distance relays
It is then possible to set ZL for a desired angle because XdRL = tan

and Ra is set for the value RL -Rx (see fig. 13.10a).
The test is repeated with ZL very small and the current first in the out-
going direction and then in the incoming direction, to make sure that the
relay is directional. These relays with memory action will, of course, have
strong directional torque even down to ZL = O. Distance relays lend themselves to preliminary tests which are an effective check on the wiring of the
switchboard. For instance, the phase sequence of the potential connections
can be verified by the fact that the contacts are held open on a mho type
relay with a strong torque when no current is flowing through the circuit.
The relative phasing of the current and voltage circuits of each relay can be
checked by observing the behaviour of the contacts for different directions
of power and reactive kVA. If both are outgoing, a reactance unit should
open its contacts and a mho unit should close its contacts when the voltage
restraint is removed. The reactance unit should also open its contacts when
the reactive kVA is outgoing and the power is incoming, and close them
when the reactive kVA is incoming.
456
13.10
13.10.4. Differential Relays
The simplest way to test differential current or balanced current relays

is to connect one current circuit of the relay to an ordinary portable overcurrent test set and to supply the other current circuit with the same current
but reversed and controlled in amplitude by a tapped auxiliary current transformer.
A more convenient method is to pass the main current through both halves
of the restraining coil and to superimpose the differential current upon one
half of the restraining and the differential coil. The differential current can
be provided by a tapped step-down c.t. or a c.t. and a large Variac (fig. 13.13).
,:.+----'\J
Current supply from telt,-bCI,ch ----~_
Adjusta.blc ra.tlo
'-a.uxllia.ry C.T.
Diffcrcntla.1
rela.y windings
...-FIG.
13.13. Testing circuit for differential relays
The only tests important to ensuring correct operation are to see that the
pick-up of the relay agrees with the manufacturer's data and that the percentage slope of the characteristic at maximum fault current is sufficient
to be in excess of the current transformer errors at that current. The connections of the current transformers supplying the differential relays should
first be checked by inserting an ammeter in series with the operating coils of
the differential relays and seeing that the spill current is negligible when
simulated load current is passing through the circuit. In the case of a balanced
current relay the polarity is unimportant because the windings supplied from
the two circuits compared are on separate magnets.
13.10.5. Restricted Earth Fault Relays
The relay and stabilising resistance should be replaced by an ammeter of

suitable range. The polarities of the line current transformers should be
tested as detailed in section 13.14.
In the case of restricted earth fault protection with a current transformer
in the neutral connection, the polarity of the neutral current transformer can
be checked by injecting current through the primary of one line current
transformer and the neutral current transformer with the main transformer
primary winding shorted out as shown in fig. 13.14. (The ammeter reading
457
13.10
Protective Relays
should be zero or of the order of a few milliamps for correct polarity.) If it

is not possible to short the primary winding due to cable arrangements, short
circuits should, if possible, be placed on the secondary side as shown dotted
in fig. 13.14. In some cases, however, even with the transformer shorted on
the secondary side, the transformer reactance may be too high to enable the
C.T~
power
transformer
~~~--~~
rW~~----
".,"
.'
.:"
Altcrna.tivc
position for
short-circuit
AC.
sourc.
'III
FIG
Rela.y
13.14. a.c. polarity test for restricted earth fault relay
primary injection transformer to circulate sufficient current. If this is the case,

the following method can be adopted to check the polarity of the neutral
current transformer.
Alternatively, a low voltage battery in series with a single pole on/off
switch can be connected between one primary conductor and earth, and
centre zero d.c. instruments connected across the secondaries of the line and
neutral current transformers as shown in fig. 13.15. By means of the switch,
Power
tra.nsformcr
,-ANWI/',------
centre zero
instruments
FIG.
13.15. d.c. polarity test for restricted earth fault relay
d.c. pulses are passed through the line C.t. and the neutral c.t.; the direction of
the two instrument deflections should be noted. The meters should be so
connected that the deflections are in opposite directions, in which case the
terminals of the c.t's, to which the positive terminals of the instruments are
connected, should be joined together to give the correct relative polarities.
When these tests have been completed, be sure that all C.t. connections
are replaced.
458
13.11
t3.11. MANUFACTURERS' TESTS
These are of three kinds:

1. Electrical
2. Mechanical
3. Atmospheric.
Most manufacturers develop relays to predetermined specifications, based
on a knowledge of the requirements of the countries in which the market is
located. Prototypes are subjected to vigorous tests to be sure that specifications have been amply met.
t3.t1.1 Electrical Tests
Components, sub-assemblies, relay units, complete relays and relay

schemes are tested before leaving the factory. The tests on components are
merely to see that their electrical values are correct. Sub-assemblies may have
a simple test to avoid replacement after they are mounted in a relay.
Coils are tested for correct turns by putting them in an iron core with
a standard coil and comparing their induced voltage with that of the standard
when the core is energised with magnetic flux. Shorted turns can be detected
by tuning the coil with a series condenser and measuring the voltage across
the coil with a known voltage across the coil and condenser.
Another method of testing for shorted turns is induced voltage testing
which also indicates defective turn and layer insulation. About 1 volt per
turn at about 60 times normal frequency is induced across the coil by magnetic
[rJ j~._CO- - :i\
::-Li_----Jpv,,,.,,.,
High frequencf
source
Sphere
ga.p
FIG.
13.16. Induced voltage test
coupling as shown in fig. 13.16. In the case oftapped coils the voltage can be
induced across the whole coil by applying a lower voltage between taps.
For coils with less than 2000 turns a lower frequency can be used or a
minimum of 2000 volts at 3000 cycles be maintained.
Relays have more extensive testing to check their calibrations over their
range of adjustment. Slow-speed relays have static tests. High-speed relays
have dynamic tests. Relay schemes have dynamic tests to check both their
calibration and their overall performance.
Static tests confirm the accuracy of the relay calibration. Dynamic tests
check this calibration during the transient changes in current and voltage that
occur when a fault is suddenly applied, as happens on an actual power
system. These transients may occur on the power system or in the relay or
in the c.t's and p. t's supplying it.
459
13.11
Protective Relays
Experience has shown that the relays most affected are differential current
relays, distance relays and instantaneous overcurrent relays.
(a) Heavy Current Tests. All forms of differential relays, including pilot
wire, are tested on very heavy currents to make sure (a) that they do not
operate on faults external to the protected circuit, (b) that they do not fail to
operate on heavy internal faults due to C.t. saturation.
The equipment is large and expensive (fig. 13.2Ia, b) beca,use, in order to
simulate actual fault conditions, the heavy current primary circuit must have
an X/R ratio similar to that of the actual system, which may be as high as
30, i.e. a d.c. time constant of about 01. The primary current is limited by
air-cored reactors and, although they can be built with X/ R > 30, it is
difficult to maintain the ratio in the whole circuit because of the resistance
of the cables and bolted connections.
(b) Artificial Transmission Line. Fig. 13.17a shows the arrangement of a
typical three-phase artificial transmission line and fig. 13.l7b shows the
Sta.tion
A
Paralltlline
r-------1 Line r---,---i

r----i impe- r---+r-I
r-------1 da.nce r-----+l~
r-------1 ZLT
\--Circuit brea.ker-/
Protected line
M--flt:=~---i Line
PoTS
Sta.tion
B
Source
impeda.nce
Zs
Line
impeda.nce
ZL 2 r-TlrTT,----,
} To loa.d
a.nd A.Co
generator
100A
fuses
'---y----' '-y---'
To rela.ys on test
(a)
flO. 13.17a. Artificial transmission line circuit
appearance of the control panel. The purpose of this equipment is to duphcate

as closely as possible the secondary values of the electrical conditions that
would occur during a fault on a power system.
The transients in current and potential due to the X/ R ratio of the power
system are synthesised by using secondary values in the artificial transmission line equal to the primary values multiplied by the c.t. ratio/p.t. ratio.
With large, modem generators and transformers and the high voltage transmission lines, the X/R ratio of Zs can be over 30 (c/J = 80) and, although an
80 air core reactor can be readily designed, it is difficult to provide an ohmic
adjustment because either taps or a variometer control reduce the X/R ratio.
The method generally used is to make the reactor ill sections for seriesparallel connection; this also matches the current (thermal) capacity to the
Z. value.
460
13.11
Transients due to c.t's can be simulated by using c.t's of similar design or

by introducing into the current circuit their equivalent impedance, as shown
in fig. 13.18. Rc is the ratio of the C.t.
FIG.
13.17b. Artificial transmission line panel
The transients introduced by magnetic p.t's are closely similar, regardless

of their ratio, so that the 440/110 volt p.t's of the artificial transmission line are
acceptable. Capacitor p.t's, however, must be represented by their equivalent
circuit, as shown in fig. 13.19.
(a)
(b)
FIG.
13.18. Equivalent circuit of line
C.t.
referred to primary
This type of transmission line is used for type-testing of new distance

relay schemes and for individual (production) testing of distance schemes,
where special conditions prevail or the scheme is complicated.
461
13.11
Protective Relays
A= Auxllia.ry
t ra.ns former
~11:11L
R':(Ci::+CS)
1.r-R'2---1
~
RA = Ra.tlo of a.uxilla.ry
tra.nsformer, A
.....
---~
FIG.
13.19. Equivalent circuit of capacitor p.t. referred to secondary
(c) Test Benches. Fig. 13.23 shows a modern production test bench for
miscellaneous a.c. relays. Current is controlled by reactance in a circuit
similar to fig. 13.7. Potential is controlled in angle by a phase-shifter and in
magnitude by a tapped auto-transformer. Operating time is measured by a
synchronous timer for slow-speed relays and a Chronotron or a decatron
device for high-speed relays.
The equipment for each control circuit is mounted on a sub-panel so that
a test bench can be changed, for instance, from single-phase current and
potential to three-phase current by exchanging the sub-panel.
13.11.2. Mechanical Tests
The increasing use of protective relays, together with the decreasing

availability of maintenance engineers and the stringent specifications for
sensitivity and speed, has accentuated some of their physical weaknesses,
such as the risk of their wrong operation due to mechanical shock and
vibration, and failure to operate due to dirt in bearings and on contacts.
Fig. 13.20 shows a shock tester with the relay mounted on a panel which
is sUbjected to a very heavy impact from a falling hinged weight, capable of
administering blows up to 400 g. In the tests an ultra high-speed cine camera
is used to slow down the motion of the relay to demonstrate exactly what
happens to it during the shock. These cine films clearly show where design
changes are necessary to improve the shock resistance of the relay. From such
tests, data can be obtained for setting up equations of inertia, resilience and
friction, similar to the R, L, C transient equations of electrical circuits, so
that a proper analysis can be made and the shock resistance of the relays can
be increased.
From such tests it has been found that ordinary jewel bearings can be
protected by spring-mounting the lower jewel and providing a shoulder on
the bearing to take violent shocks. It has also been found that attracted
462
FIG.
FIG.
FIG.
13.20. Mechanical shock tester
13.2Ia. Controls of G.E.C. 44,000 amp test set
13.2Ib. Switchgear for G.E.C. 44,000 amp test set
463
13.11
Protective Relays
d~i~;;~m~~~:$O
' : sct N$'...:
10MVA
a.ltuna.tor
'2 ~
-:::r=,!.,,!., - - __
.,
11 KV ~50 MVA
.w,tchgoa., -
._
'21
L-_ _ _..J.
~OCB
Intulock.d
Exc,t.r
~- isola.tor
Accommoda.tlon
for C.T'.
- 'I whon ttstitl!l
Mo.ln
900 A
~ tra.nsform"~-r conta.ctor
g, ovoro.lI prot.
~l
:;;
~I
11'Ma.ko' switch 900A
1
~
10.J", )
6,360 volts
~~
3-14> 39MVA
~:; f T J~'::::::::::::"
~
~ N
C.T's for oscillogra.phs . tc
4 4 KA termino.ls
R
FIG.
13.22. High-current test set connections
FIG.
13.23. Productlun relay test bench
464
13.11
armature relays of great sensitivity can be made shock-proof by balancing

the armature.
In cases where the construction makes it impossible to prevent undesirable
closing of the contacts due to shock, such as in the case of an induction cup
unit, the problem can be solved by connecting its contacts in series with those
of another relay whose armature moves in a different plane, or another induction cup relay with the opposite rotation of the cup to close contacts.
There is no problem where there is a strong restraining torque under normal
.conditions.
Extremely delicate relays can be mounted on shock absorbers between the
relay frame and case or between the relay panel and the floor or supports.
Vibration tests are carried out to determine if natural resonance of any
part of the relay occurs at any multiple of system frequency (or the frequency
of nearby equipment) which would result in damage, undesirable contact
closing or loosening of parts. The test is usually continued for a long period to
see whether any part fails from fatigue. Parts likely to fail can be spotted by
stroboscopic light.
No definition of mechanical stability has yet appeared but the English
company which employs the apparatus shown in fig. 13.20 specifies that
protective relays should not trip when an impact of 20 g. is administered
near one corner of the relay (this is the most effective spot) or 30 g. for a
tripping relay. The g. value is set by the angle () through which the hammer
falls. The relation between () and g. was originally determined by g. testers,
which are small devices that can be attached to the back of the panel, opposite the point of impact; they contain two steel balls in clips at right angles
which are dislodged by a blow of the calibrated value.
Such a blow causes a complex combination of translational and rotational
movements in the panel and provides a severe test for the relay. However,
the difficulty of exactly duplicating the panel in other factories will probably
result in the ultimate adoption of a controlled sin 2 wt type of vibration
for shock testing. This would have the advantages of combining the shock
and vibration tests and being easily reproducible on a magnetic vibrator but
it would not duplicltte the complex shock waves which occur in practice
when a ladder or a wheeled device bumps the panel.
13.11.3. Atmospheric Tests
Manufacturers subject new relays and new finishes to temperature and

humidity cycles in excess of expected conditions. Relays intended for the
tropics are generally given better finishes and magnet impregnation than the
standard, but many manufacturers 'tropicalise' all relays because the temperature/humidity cycles in storage or on a dockside are just as severe in
temperate climates; for tropical use it is only necessary then to apply antibacterial varnish. B.S. 2011 describes approval tests which relays must meet
to be approved in the U.K.; it specifies in detail tests for heat, cold and
humidity cycles, the salt spray test and fungus tests.
465
13.11
Protective Relays
Owing to the small forces in relays near the borderline of operation,

gritty dust in bearings or iron particles in magnetic gaps can adversely affect
the operation of the relay. Fig. 2.37 shows a drawout relay sealed against
<a>
MtC1SUfI"g
tub.
1~i:3"
Orili tube.
(b)
FIG.
13.24. Test rig for Buchholz relays

(a) Photo. (b) Diagram
466
13.11
dust and provided with a dust filter through which cyclical expansion and
contraction of air takes place through a dust filter. Such an arrangement
permits use of protective relays in the most dusty locations, such as cement
mills, flour mills, steel mills and desert locations. Fig. 2.38 shows an airtight
draw-out relay case which is completely sealed against all ambient conditions.
These two cases are described in Chapter 2, sections 2.6.7, and 2.7.
13.11.4. Buchholz Relays
Fig. 13.24 shows the special test rig used by an English manufacturer for
testing Buchholz relays. Valves are provided for controlling the oil flow so
that velocities corresponding to Table 10.2 in Chapter 10 are produced and
the whole equipment can be tilted to simulate the slope of the pipe to the
conservator tank.
The test rig (fig. 13.24) consists of two oil storage cylinders with interconnecting pipes and valves, so arranged that when put under pressure by
the admission of compressed air above oil level in the left-hand cylinder,
the oil flows up and round through the orifice tube (selected to suit the size
of relay), giving the necessary differential to the flow meter, and thence
through the relay being tested to the empty right-hand cylinder. The compressed air inlet is regulated to build up pressure gradually, and this stimulates the rate of flow through the relay. Removable sections of either 1 in.,
2 in. or 3 in. diameter pipe used for mounting are interchangeable to suit the
size of the relay undergoing test, and the whole rig can be tilted to any angle
between 1 and 9, which gives relay. positions corresponding to various
angles in the pipe rising to the conservator.
Adjustments are made until the correct trip values are obtained under
steady flow conditions, as indicated on the flow meter, and these are followed
up by sudden surge tests, surges being created by the quick opening, under
pressure, of the left-hand air operated main valve. The action of the top
alarm element in response to gas accumulation is simply tested by admitting
air to the relay via the top pet cock, whilst running off oil from the relay
to waste. The gas scale is calibrated by comparison with the oil forced out
of the relay under pressure and rising in the calibrated measuring tube.
Used compressed air is occasionally released into the exhaust chamber, and
as needed the left-hand tank is recharged with the oil which has accumulated
in the right-hand tank, by manipulation of the appropriate valves.
The air injection test is carried out by the application of air under
measured pressure to the back pet cock provided for this purpose.
The relay is also given a mechanical stability test (see Table 10.3). Fig.
13.24 shows the pendulum hammer and graduated scale for administering a
calibrated impact. In addition the casing is given a porosity test by being
subjected to a pressure of 30 Ibs/in2 (over 2 Kgm/cm2) with cold oil for
12 hours and a short time test with hot oil (l00C) at 1 Kgm/cm2. The
strength of the casing is tested at 150 Ibs/in2 (over 10 Kgm/cm2) for one
minute.
467
14
MiseellaReolUl
Static Relays-Future of Electromagnetic Relays-d.c. Protection
Relays-Protection Engineering as a Career
The growing complexity of power systems, coupled with the increasing
difficulty of obtaining suitable personnel for maintaining the equipment,
poses a problem for which an ideal solution would theoretically be a completely static power system.
The components of a power system which are at present non~static are
generators, circuit-breakers, meters, instruments and relays. Research is
already under way on the direct transformation of heat, nuclear and chemical
energy into electrical energy by static means. It is possible that circuit-breakers
may one day be replaced by a device whose impedance can be controlled
over a wide range, similar to a magnetic amplifier, which would extinguish
arcing faults and reduce the current in permanent faults to a value which
would not affect the operation of the rest of the power system; isolation of the
defective circuit for repair could then be done by isolating switches or static
equivalents which would have no difficulty in interrupting the small inductive
current that was still flowing.
Static meters may soon be available which will integrate the amplitudes of
impulses derived at fixed intervals from a static measuring circuit, the
indication where necessary being given in printed form or on decatrons.
Indicating instruments may work on a similar principle except that indication
would be maintained between impulses.
14.1. STATIC RELAYS
Owing to the fact that static measurement and control devices use
comparators which are similar to those of protective devices it is probable
that protection, instrumentation, metering and control will tend to become
combined at each power station and substation and linked to a central
control as shown schematically in fig. 14.1.
As mentioned in Chapters 2 and 5, considerable work has been done
already on static relays. For many years semi-static relays have been available,
using transductor or rectifier bridge comparators supplying an electromagnetic slave output relay for tripping the breaker. Thyratrons and controlled
silicon rectifiers are available which could take the place of the output relay
468
Miscellaneous
14.1
and thus make the relay wholly static, but they have not yet done so because
thyratrons are not considered sufficiently reliable and controlled rectifiers are
at present too expensive. It is probable, however, that a suitable device will
be available in a few years, owing to the rapid advancement of semi-conductor
techniques.
The trend towards static relays will be accelerated by the use of higher
transmission voltages for the following reasons. At voltages of 275 kV and
above, the cost of c.t's of conventional design becomes prohibitive and even
Controlled
sta.tion
FIG.
Ana.logdigita.l
tra.nsmitter
a.nd
digita.la.na.log
rece.iver
14.1. Static relaying combined with instrumentation and control
linear couplers become somewhat impractical at 400 kV and above; consequently, research is being conducted into the possibility of transmitting
optical, acoustic or radio signals to an amplifier at earth potential so as to
eliminate the problems of insulation.
Present day amplifiers are limited in linear output range to about 20
watts; if this corresponds to a maximum fault current of, say, 20 times
normal rating it means that the relay current burdens should not exceed
005 VA at C.t. rating. This sensitivity, together with the higher source-to-line
impedance ratios of lines at these high voltages, can only be achieved by
static comparators with amplifying properties.
Although it was hoped that the absence of moving parts in static relays
would solve the problem of eliminating maintenance it is unlikely to do so
for a number of years because so little is known about the statistical reliability
of static components, such as thermistors, transistors and miniaturised
capacitors. This is aggravated by the fact that new types constantly appear
and the technical improvements which they offer may make it necessary to
use them although their recent appearance precludes the possibility of long
term life tests. For this reason maintenance is unlikely to disappear although
it may be reduced by automatic monitoring. In due course the reliability of
static components will have been proved and only then can there be any
real reduction of maintenance of protective relays.
An American company has developed a static flag indicator in which
the relay controls a digital computer type memory core; the state of the
core determines whether a neon indicator lamp lights when the circuit is
energised by a push-button 'reading' switch.
Printed circuits naturally follow the use of static components; they
conserve space, eliminate wiring errors and assist standardisation. They are
widely used in the radio industry but are new in the protection field. The
relay of the future will undoubtedly consist of a number of printed circuit
469
14.2
Protective Relays
cards or modules accommodated in a rack with plug-in or permanent

connections. An English firm has adapted the drawout case for this technique using modules about 4 in. x 5 in. each of which represents a complete
relay function such as direction, time delay, ohmic measurement, etc. All
the modules for a given relay scheme would be mounted in one (or perhaps
two) drawout chassis.
Initially, lack of confidence in the new technique of static relays will
necessitate easily detachable modules and the bringing out of testing points
for periodic manual or automatic testing, but, as the reliability of static
relays becomes established, the need for maintenance will tend to disappear
and it may be possible eventually to have protection built into primary
equipment and checked only from a central station.
14.2. THE FUTURE OF ELECTROMAGNETIC VERSUS STATIC RELAYS
Although static relays have obvious advantages of high speed, low

burden, etc., it is possible that certain simple relays, such as multi-contact
attracted armature relays and inverse time-current relays, will remain electromagnetic for a very long time indeed because their static counterparts are
more complicated and more expensive. Furthermore, new forms of
instantaneous and time-delay sensitive polarised d.c. relays are now appearing which, with rectifiers, can be made 100 times as efficient as the present
a.c. measuring units; this efficiency will enable the size of relays to be
considerably reduced and their burdens to be small enough for operation
from linear couplers, which may replace iron-cored C.ts on systems below
150 kV because of their adaptability to extra high voltage lines, their linear
characteristics and their freedom from transient inaccuracy.
In general it can be said that static circuits are cheaper and better for
complex protective relays, but not as yet for simple relays and that, when the
requisite new static tools appear, even the simpler electromagnetic relays may
be replaced. It is possible that the Hall Effect (31) (132) phase comparator
may replace existing phase comparators. The advent of a static phase comparator with a sine product output would permit polyphase measurement,
which would considerably reduce the price of static relays and hasten their
general acceptance.
The probable initial resistance of power company engineers to the use
of static relays, especially those using transistors, will undoubtedly stimulate
the application of great ingenuity to the design of supersensitive electromagnetic relays with high mechanical stability and encapsulated components
which will theoretically eliminate the need for transistor amplification and
require no maintenance. At present, the lack of knowledge of transistor
failure statistics justifies this attitude but the data now available gives cause
for optimism; there appears to be a greater tendency to parametric rather
than catastrophic failure. Most manufacturers use them in gating and amplifying circuits rather than for measurement. Furthermore, they are improving
all the time.
470
Miscellaneous
14.4
14.3. D.C. PROTECTIVE RELAYS
Relays for protecting d.c. equipment are generally less sophisticated than
a.c. relays, partly because no phase relation is involved and partly because
most electrical equipment is a.c. on account of the ease with which a.c.
voltage can be changed.
The main uses of d.c. are traction, electrolytic reduction of metals,
production of gases and chemical fertilisers and variable speed drives in
steel and paper mills. It is probable that the use of d.c. will increase when
electrical energy is produced by magneto-hydro-dynamics or by static
means (nuclear, chemical, thermal, solar, etc.) instead of by synchronous
machinery. Furthermore, d.c. transmission links are becoming more common
as transmission voltages increase and the importance of these synchronous
power links will stimulate investigation into d.c. protective relaying.
D.C. relaying is simpler in execution but more difficult in application than
a.c. relaying. Modern, powerful permanent magnets enable very sensitive d.c.
relays to be made; the absence of a.c. losses enables solid cores to be used
which can be fabricated in much more convenient shapes than are possible
with lamination stackings. On the other hand, discrimination is more difficult
with the lack of a quality corresponding to phase relationship; furthermore,
d.c. transformers are much more complicated and expensive than a.c.
instrument transformers.
14.4. PROTECTION ENGINEERING AS A CAREER
In conclusion, the author has no hesitation in recommending protective

relaying as a career for a young' engineer. It offers all the essentials of a
satisfying life, viz. security, interest and variety.
Security stems from the fact that the profession is not overcrowded; in
fact, manufacturers of relays have the greatest difficulty in finding new
engineers. Few colleges have protective relay courses and many relay
engineers are promoted to managerial posts on account of their broad knowledge of the electrical field which they inevitably gain in the course of studying
the behaviour of all sorts of equipment so as to learn to protect it.
Interest comes from the wide range of knowledge that the relay engineer
acquires in the course of his work; to design a relay which, in 002 second,
accelerates from standstill and travels to a contact which must absorb its
momentum with zero bounce, obviously requires a knowledge of transient
mechanical as well as transient electrical theory. Then, to make the relay
resistant to indu;;trial corrosion and tropical bacteriae requires considerable
knowledge of chemistry and metallurgy as well as industrial tooling and
processes.
Variety comes from the wide range of characteristics required of protective
relays and the activities connected with making and selling them, such as
aesthetic design, automation study, computer application to stocking,
publicity, customer contacts, psychology, travel and foreign languages.
471
14.4
Protective Relays
The design and application of relays is always a challenge because it starts

off with detective work, looking for clues to enable the relay to detect a fault
and then designing a device which will do the job better than competitive
devices, and for less cost. It is one of the few professions where the mathematical and electrical knowledge gained in college is not neglected during the
first few years of employment; in fact, not only is such knowledge put to
work from the start but, during his career, the relay engineer constantly adds
to his mathematical, electrical and general knowledge.
472
Belereaces
CHAP.
2
3
3
7
2,6
2
2,5
5
2,5
2, 5
2
2,4
4
9
2
REP.
1 A.I.E.E. Relay Committee. 'Bibliography of Relay Literature', re-published

1927-39, 1940-43, 1944-46, 1947-49, 1950-52, 1953-54, 1955-56, 1957-58,
Transactions A.I.~.E., 60, 1941, pp. 1435-47; 63, 1944, pp. 705-709;
67, Part I, 1948, pp. 24-27; 70, Part I, 1951, pp. 247-250; 74, Part II,
1955, pp. 45-48; and 76, Part III, 1957, pp. 126-128; 78, Part III, 1959,
pp.78-81.
2 ADAMSON, C. 'Electronic Protection of Power Systems', Electrical Times,
London, Part I, June 20th, 1957; Part II, July 25th, 1957; Part III,
October 3rd, 1957; Part IV, November 7th, 1957; Part V, February 27th,
1958; Part VI, March 6th, 1958.
3 HOLM, J. G. 'Costs Study of 69-346 kV Overhead Power Transmission
Systems', Transactions A.I.E.E., 63,1944, pp. 406-422.
4 DAVIDSON, L. A and HINES, V. M. 'A Relay Designed to Meet Automatic
Reclosing Requirements of Ring Bus Station', Transactions A.I.E.E.
Paper, 60-1267.
5 NEHER, J. H. 'A Comprehensive Method for Determining the Performance
of Distance Relays', Electrical Engineering, 56, No.7, July, 1937, pp. 833844. Also Disc., ibid., No. 12, December, 1937, p. 1515.
6 SUITS, C. G. 'Non-linear Circuits for Relay Applicatiom', Electrical Engineering, SO, December, 1931, pp. 763-765.
7 SUITS, C. G. 'Non-linear Circuits Applied to Relays', Electrical Engineering,
52, April, 1933, pp. 244-246.
8 CoRDRAY, R. E. and WARRINGTON, A. R. VAN C. 'The Mho Carrier Relaying
Scheme', Transactions A.I.E.E., 63,1944, pp. 228-235. Disc., p. 434.
9 WARRINGTON, A. R. VAN C. 'A Condensation of the Theory of Relays',
G. E. Review, 4, No.9, September, 1940.
10 HOARD, B. V. 'An Improved Polyphase Directional Relay', Transactions
A.I.E.E., 60, May, 1941, pp. 24-28. Disc., p. 633.
11 WARRINGTON, A. R. VAN C. 'Electronic Protective Relays', C.I.G.R.E.
(Paris), 69, Paper No. 325, 1954.
12 BERGSETII, F. R. 'An Electronic Distance Relay Using a Phase-Comparison
Principle', Transactions A.I.E.E., 73, 1954, p. 1276. Also 'A Transistorised
Distance Relays', Convention Paper, AI.E.E. Summer Convention,
San Francisco, June, 1956 (limited circulation).
13 ADAMSON, C. and WEDEPOHL, L. M. 'Power System Protection with Particular Reference to the Application of Junction Transistors to Distance
Relays', Proceedings I.E.E., 103, Part A, 1956, p. 379.
14 ADAMSON, C. and WEDEPOHL, L. M. 'A Dual-comparator Mho-type Distance
Relay Utilising Transistors', ibid., p. 509.
15 BRATEN, J. L. and HoilL, H. 'A New High-speed Distance Relay', C.I.G.R.E.
(Paris), 67, Paper No. 307, 1950.
16 EDGELEY, R. K. and HAMILTON, F. L. 'The Application of Transductors
as Relays in Protective Gear', Proceedings I.E.E., 99, Part 11,1952, p. 297.
17 ScINNEMANN, W. K. and GLASSBURN, W. E. 'Principles of Induction-type
Relay Design', Transactions A.I.E.E., 72, Part III, 1953, pp. 23-27.
18 SoNNEMANN, W. K. 'A New Inverse Time Overcurrent Relay with Adjustable
Characteristics', Transactions A.I.E.E., 72, Part III, 1953, p. 360.
19 LEWIS, U. S. 'Design Features of a Modern Induction Pattern Overcurrent
Relay', G.E.C. Journal, 18, No.2, April, 1951.
20 KELLER, A C., WAGER, H. N., PEEK, R. L. and LooAN, M. A 'Design of
Relays', Bell Telephone Systems Technical Publications Monograph
No. 2180, 1954.
473
Protective Relays
CHAP.
REF.
22
23
2, 10
24
25
2A
26
2A
27
28
29
8,9,
10,11
30
31
2,4,6
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
4,9
21
GROSS, E. T. B. 'Sensitive Ground Relaying of a.c. Generators', Transactions

A.I.E.E., 71, 1952, paper No. 51-371.
RYDER, C., RUSHTON, J. and PEARCE, F. M. 'A Moving-coil Relay Applied
to Modern High-speed Protective Systems', Proceedings I.E.E., 100,
Part II, 1953, p. 261.
LAMN, U. 'The Transductor and its Applications', A.S.E.A. Journal, 16,
No.5,1939.
LEYBURN, H. and LACKEY, C. H. W. 'Protection of Electrical Power Systems;
a Critical Review of Present Practice and Recent Progress', Proceedings
I.E.E., 98, Part 2, Feb. 1951, p. 47-66.
BIRD, D. E. and GOLD, L. B. S. 'Induction Motor Protection; a New Type
of Relay', Electrical Review (London), 137, July, 1945, pp. 60-67.
MACPHERSON, R. H., WARRINGTON, A. R. VAN C. and MCCoNNELL, A. J.
'Electronic Protective Relays', Transactions A.I.E.E., 67, Part III, 1948,
p.1702.
LoVING (JR.), J. D. 'Electronic Relay Developments', ibid., 68, Part I, 1949,
p.233.
ADAMSON, C. and TALKHAN, E. A. 'The Application of Transistors to Phasecomparison Carrier Protection', Proceedings I.E.E., 106, Part A, No. 25,
February, 1959.
FEASTER, W. C. and SCHENEMAN, E. E. 'Applications of Transistors in
Power-line Carrier Relaying', Transactions A.I.E.E., 73, 1954, pp. 976-979.
HODGKISS, J. W. 'The Behaviour of Current Transformers Subjected to
Transient Asymmetric Currents and their Effects on Protective Relays',
C.I.G.R.E. (Paris, 1960),72, Paper No. 329.
SOROTKA, V. T. 'Protective Relays Based on the Hall Effect', Elektrichestro,
1958, No. 11, pp. 68-71.
MCCoNNELL, A. J. 'A Single Element Polyphase Directional Relay', Transactions A.I.E.E., 56, No.1, 1937, pp. 77-80 and 113; No.8, pp. 1025-1028.
SONNEMAN, W. K. 'A Study of Directional Element Connections for Phase
Relays', Transactions A.I.E.E., 69, Part II, 1950. Also Disc., ibid., pp.
1450-1451.
BARNES, H. C. and MCCoNNELL, A. J. 'Some Utility Ground Relay Problems',
Transactions A.I.E.E., June, 1955.
Wn.soN, R. M. and CANNON, C. E. 'Fundamentals of Co-ordinating Fuses
and Relays', Electrical West., 87, July, 1941, pp. 30-31.
STEEB, G. 'Relay Inverse Time Characteristic Doubled', Electrical World,
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HUNT, L. F. 'Sensitive Ground Relay Protection for Complex Distribution
Circuits', Transactions A.I.E.E., 65, November, 1956, pp. 765-768;
disc., Supplement, 1946, pp. 1180-1181.
GRAYBEAL, T. D. 'Factors which Influence the Behaviour of Directional
Relays', Transactions A.I.E.E., 61, 1942, pp. 942-952.
MORRIS, W. C. 'Dual-polarised Directional Ground Relays', Distribution,
April, 1952, pp. 8-9.
PRATT, M. G., AUDLIN, L. J. and MCCoNNELL, A. J. 'New Relay Assures
Feeder Resumption After Outage', Electrical World, Part I, September
10th, 1949, pp. 99-103; Part II, September 24th, 1949, pp. 95-98.
WARRINGTON, A. R. VAN C. 'Reactance Relays Negligibly Affected by
Arc Impedance', Electrical World, 98, No. 12, September 19th, 1931,
pp. 502-505.
ZYDANOWICZ, J. 'Applications of the Idea of Steady State Impedance and
Admittance to the Construction of Diagrams intended for the Analysis
of the Operation of Distance and Directional Relays', C.J.G.R.E. Conference, 1960, Paper No. 323.
WARRINGTON, A. R. VAN C. 'A New High Speed Reactance Relay', A.I.E.E.
Paper presented Summer Convention, June 20th, 1932. Abstract, Electrical
Engineering, 51, No.6, June, 1932, p. 410. Disc., Electrical Engineering,
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474
References
CHAP.
5
5
5
5
4
5
5
6
5
5
5
5,9
5
5
8
2
5
2
5
5
5
6
6
REF.
44 GOLDBOROUGH, A. L. and SMITH, R. M. 'A New Ground Distance Relay',

Electrical Engineering (Trallsactiolls A.I.E.E.), 55, No.6, June, 1936,
pp. 697-703. Disc., ibid., 55, No. 11, November, 1936, pp. 1255-1256.
45 WARRINGTON, A. R. VAN C. 'Protective Relaying for Long Transmission
Lines', Transac/iolls A.I.E.E., 62, June, 1943, pp. 261-268. Disc., June
Supplement, 1943, p. 427.
46 SONNEMANN, W. K., et al. 'Compensator Distancc Relaying', Trallsactions
A.I.E.E., June, 1958, 77, Part 3, pp. 372-388.
47 WARRINGTON, A. R. VAN C. 'Application of the Ohm and Mho Principles
to Protective Relays" Transactions A.I.E.E., 65, June, 1946, pp. 378-386.
Disc., June Supplement, 1946, pp. 490-491.
48 GUTMANN, H. 'Behaviour of Reactance Relays with Short-Circuits Fed from
Both Ends', E.T.Z., 1940, p. 514.
49 RAMSAUR, O. 'A New Approach to Cold Load Restoration', Eler-trical
World, October, 1952, pp. 101-103.
50 HAMILTON and ELLIS. 'The Performance of Distance Relays', Reyrolle Review,
1956, No. 166.
51 HUTCHINSON, R. M. 'The Mho Distance Relay', Trallsactions A.I.E.E., 65,
1945, pp. 353-360. .
52 DODDS, G. B. and MARTER, W. E. 'Rl:actance Relays Discriminate between
Load-Transfer Current and Fault Currents on 2,300-volt Station Service
Generator Bus', Transactiolls A.I.E.E., 71, Part III, 1952, pp. 1124--1128.
Disc., p. 1128.
53 SONNEMANN, W. K. 'A New Single-Phase-to-Ground Fault Detecting
Relay', Transactions A.I.E.E., 61, 1942, pp. 677-680. Disc., pp. 995996.
54 STROM, A. P. 'Long 60 Cycle Arcs in Air', Transactions A.I.E.E., 65, 1946,
pp. 113-117. Disc., pp. 504--507.
55 GILKESON, C. L., JEANNE, P. A. and VAAGE, E. F. 'Power System Faults
to Ground'. Part II, 'Fault Resistance', Transactions A.I.E.E., 56, 1937,
pp. 428-433, 474.
56 MORRIS, W. C. 'One Slip Cycle Out-of-Step Relay Equipment', Transactions
A.I.E.E., 68, Part II, 1949, pp. 1246-1248.
57 LEWIS, W. A. and TIPPETT, L. S. 'Fundamental Basis for Distance Relaying
on Three-phase Systems', Transactions A.I.E.E., 66, 1947, pp. 694--709.
58 WARRINGTON, A. R. VAN C. 'Graphical Method for Estimating the Performance of Distance Relaying during Faults and Power Swings', A.l.E.E.
Paper No. 49-154.
59 NOWICKI, J. R. 'Phase-operated Relay Using Transistors for Power System
Protection', Mullard Tech. Commun., 4, July, 1958, pp. 7-13.
60 WIDEROE, R. 'Thyratron Tubes in Relay Practice', Transactions A.I.E.E., 53,
June 16th, 1934, p. 872.
61 GOLDSBOROUGH, S. L. and LEWIS, W. A. 'A New High-speed Distance
Relay', A.I.E.E. Electrical Engineering, 51, March, 1932, pp. 157-160.
62 NEUGEBAUER, H. 'The Use of Rotating Coil Relays and Rectifiers in Protection', Elektrotechnische Zeitschri/t, August; 1950.
63 BIERMANNS, O. 'Schnelldistanzrelais flir Mittelspannungnetze', A.E.G. Millelungen.
64 GOLDSBOROUGH, S. L. and HILL, A. V. 'Relays and Breakers for High Speed
Single Pole Tripping and Reclosing', Transactions A.I.E.E., 61, 1942,
pp. 77-81. Disc., p. 429.
65 , The Effect of Coupling Capacitor Potential Devices on Protective Relay
Operation', Trallsactions A.I.E.E., 70, pp. 2089-2096.
66 WARRINGTON, A. R. VAN C. 'Control of Distance Relay Potential Connections', A.I.E.E., Electrical Engineering, 53, 1934, pp. 206-213. Disc.,
pp. 465-466 and 617.
67 AUDLIN, L. J. and WARRINGTON, A. R. VAN C. 'Distance Relay Protection
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475
Protective Relays
CHAP.
REP.
69
70
71
11
72
73
74
75
76
77
78
79
80
81
82
83
84
85
86
87
88
10
89
10
90
10
91
13
68
WARRINGTON, A. R. VAN C. 'Survey of Methods of Mounting Protective

Relays and Arrangements for their Testing and Maintenance', C.I.G.R.E.,
1955, Paper No. 334.
FEIST, P. K. 'An Analysis of Compensated Polyphase Relays Using the
Circle Diagram', Electrichestvo, 1957, No.9, pp. 31-35.
SALZMANN, A. 'Relaying for Rural Distribution Feeders', Electrical Times,
April 2nd, 1959, p. 529, and April 9th, 1959, p. 572.
SALZMANN, A. 'Co-ordination of Phase Fault Protection " Electrical Energy,
December, 1958, pp. 480-487.
JENKINS, B. D. 'Current Transformers for Protection Circuits', Electrical
Times, October 24th, 1957, and November 14th, 1957.
A.I.E.E. Relay Committee. 'Pilot-wire Circuits for Protective RelayingExperience and Practice, 1942-50', Transactions A.I.E.E., 72, Part Ill,
1953, pp. 331-336. Also Disc., p. 336.
TRAVER, O. C., AUCHINCLOSS, J. and BANCKER, E. H. 'Pilot Protection by
Power Directional Relays Using Carrier Current', G.E. Review, 35,
No. 11, November, 1932, pp. 566-570.
CHAIKIN, SAUL W. 'Mechanics of Electrical Contact Failure caused by
Surface Contamination', Electro-Technology, August, 1961.
NEHER, J. H. 'The Use of Communication Facilities in Transmission Line
Relaying', Transactions A.I.E.E., 52,1933, pp. 595-602.
CASSON, W. and LAST, F. H. 'Ultra High-speed Relays in the Fields of
Protection and Measurement', Proceedings I.E.E., 96, Part II, 1949,
pp. 50-56.
.
HARDER, E. L. and BoSTWICK, M. A. 'A Single Element Differential Pilotwire Relay System', Electrical Journal, November, 1938, pp. 443-448.
NEHER, J. H. and MCCoNNELL, A. J. 'An Improved A-C Pilot Wire Relay',
Transactions A.I.E.E., 60, January, 1941, pp. 12-17.
FENWICK, W. and MARAIS, C. P. 'The Application of Pilot-wire Protection
to long 88 kV Transmission Lines, including intertripping', Transactions
South African I.E.E., 36, 1945, p. 60.
WARD, R. I. and GILMAN, D. W. 'Pilot-wire Relaying Utilizing the product
Differential Relay', Transactions A.I.E.E., 72, Part III, October, 1953,
p. 911, and Electrical Engineering, 73, February, 1954, pp. 137-142.
LEYLAND, S. C. and GOLDSBOROUGH, S. L. 'The Functions of Ground
Preference in Carrier Current Relay Schemes', A.I.E.E. Journal, March,
1944, p. 97.
ADAMSON, C. and TALKHAN, E. A. 'Selection of Relaying Quantities for
Differential Feeder Protection', Proceedings I.E.E., 107, Part A, No. 31,
February, 1960, pp. 37-47.
KINrrsKY, V. A. 'Relay Scheme Protects Generators', Electrical World,
October 3rd, 1960, pp. 44-45.
SONNEMANN, W. K. 'A High Speed Differential Relay for Generator Protection', Transactions A.I.E.E., 59, November, 1940, pp. 608-612. Disc.,
pp. 1250-1252.
MCCONNELL, A. J. 'A Generator Differential Relay', Transactions A.I.E.E.,
62, January, 1943, pp. 11-13. Disc., pp. 381-383.
A.I.E.E. Relay Sub-Committee. 'Protection of Power House AuxiIiaries',
Transactions A.I.E.E., 65, November, 1946, pp. 746-751. Disc., pp.
1115-1116.
FOUNTAIN, L. L. 'Motoring Protection for A.C. Generators', Westinghouse
Engineer, 6, November, 1946, pp. 190-191.
STERNER, V. 'The Protection of Large Transformers', C.I.G.R.E., 1958,
Paper No. 348, and C.I.G.R.E., 1960, Paper No. 334.
BEAN, R. L. and CoLE, H. L. 'A Sudden Gas Pressure Relay for Transformer Protection', Transactions A.I.E.E., 72, Part III, 1953, pp. 480483.
A.I.E.E. Relay Sub-Committee. 'Relay Protection of Power Transformers',
Transactions A.I.E.E., 66, 1947, pp. 911-916.
476
References
CHAP.
10
10
8,9,
10,11
7
10
10
8
10
10
9
10
10
6
13
12
12
6
2
11
11
11
11
9
8
13
5
4
REF.
92 KUNGSHIRN, E. A., MOORE, H. R. and WENTZ, E. C. 'Detection of Faults

in Power Transformers', Transactions A.I.E.E., April 1957, 76, Part 3.
93 MADILL, J. T. 'Typical Transformer Faults and Gas Detector Relay Protection', Transactions A.I.E.E., 66, 1947, pp. 1052-1060.
94 SEELEY, H. T. 'Effect of Residual Magnetism on Differential Current Relays',
Transactions A.I.E.E., 2, 1943, pp. 164-169.
95 NEHER, J. H. 'D.C. Pilot Loop Protects 66 kV Cable Circuits', Electrical
World, 101, March 25th, 1933, pp. 384-387.
96 DIETSCH, c., HENRIET P. and LARRUE, C. 'Simplified Devices for the
Protection of Extra High-voltage Transformers and Results of their
Application', C.I.G.R.E., 1950, Paper No. 342.
97 JEAN-RICHARD, CHARLES. 'Thermal Protection of Transformers', C.I.G.R.E.,
1950, Paper No. 309.
98 PATRICKSON, J. B. 'Solkor-R Pilot Wire Protection', Reyrolles Pamphlet
No. 1296.
99 BROWN, J. E. and EVISON, J. N. 'A Transistorised V.F. lntertripping System
for Power Line Protection', Electrical Journal, October, 1960.
100 BERTULA, G. 'Enhanced Transformer Protection through Inrush-proof
Ratio Differential Relays', Brown Boveri Review, 32, 1945, p. 129.
101 NEWCOMBE, R. W. 'Electrical Protection of Large Generator Units', The
Electrical Journal, 22 May, 1959.
102 SPIESS, H. 'Ein Neues, Einschaltsicheres Differentialstrornrelais filr Transformatoren', Bulletin Oerlikon, No. 306, 1954, p. 84.
103 GRUND MARK, B. 'The Lightning Arresters Protecting the Harspranget Plant,
Sweden', A.S.E.A. Journal, 1953, Nos. 7-8.
104 BALDWIN, C. J. and GOFFARD, B. N. 'An Analysis of Polyphase Directional
Relay Torques', Transactions A.I.E.E., 72, Part III, 1953, pp. 752759.
105 WARRINGTON, A. R. VAN C. 'Reduction of Maintenance Time for Protective
Relays by Simplification of Design and Test Methods', C.I.G.R.E., Paris,
May 12th-22nd, 1954, Report No. 330.
106 WARRINGTON, A. R. VAN C. 'Back-up Protection', C.I.G.R.E., Paris, 1960,
Report No. 334, Section III.
107 KENNEDY, L. F. and MCCONNELL, A. J. 'An Appraisal of Remote and Local
Back-up Relaying', Conferences Paper A.I.E.E., Paper No. 57-560.
108 LoSEV, S. B. and CHERMAN, A. B. 'Study of 3-phase Directional Impedance
Relays under Short Circuit Conditions'.
109 FABRIKANT, V. L. 'Relays Based on Semiconductors', Elektrichestvo, No.7,
1958, pp. 41-45.
110 NEWCOMBE, R. W. 'The Development of Bus Bar Protection', The English
Electric Journal, 14, No.6, June, 1956.
III REID, I. A. 'Busbar Protection', Electrical Review, June 7th, 1957, pp.
1041-1047.
li2 RUSHTON, J. 'Bus Bar Protection', Electrical Review, December 27th, 1957,
pp. 1156--1159.
113 HARDER, E. L., WENTZ, E. C., SONNEMANN, W. K. and KLEMMER, E. H.
'Linear Couplers for Bus Protection', Transactions A.I.E.E., 61, May,
1942, pp. 241-248. Disc., June Supplement, 1942, p. 463.
114 MASON, C. R. 'A New Loss of Excitation Relay for Synchronous Genera.
tors', Tra1lsactio1ls A.I.E.E., 68, 1949, pp. 1240-1245.
115 MCCONNELL, A. J., CRAMER, T. A. and SEELEY, H. T. 'Phase Comparison
Carrier Current Protection', Transactions A.I.E.E., 64, 1945, pp. 225-233.
Disc., Supplement, 1945.
116 ADAMS, A. W. 'Some Aspects of Testing Related to Meters, Relays and
Instruments', The English Electric Journal, Vol. 15, No.6, June 1958.
117 GUTMANN, H. 'The SD-14 High-speed Impedance Relay with Associated
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118 KREEKON, N. and POWCHROSKI, D. W. 'A New Static Overcurrent Relay'
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477
Protective Relays
CHAP.
REF.
119 HALMAN et al. 'A New Carrier Relaying System', Transactions A.I.E.E.,
63, 1944, pp. 568-572.
120 MORRIS, W. C. and GOFF, L. E. 'A Negative Sequence Overcurrent Relay
9
for Generator Protective', Transactions A.I.E.E., 72, Part III, 1953,
pp. 615-621.
121 BARKLE, J. E. and GLASSBURN, W. E. 'Protection of Generators Against
9
Unbalanced Currents', ibid., pp. 282-286.
9
122 GROSS, E. T. B. and LE VISCONTE, L. B. 'Back-up Protection for Generators',
ibid., pp. 585-592.
9
123 SEELEY, H. T. 'A Compensated Automatic Synchroniser', Transactions
A.I.E.E., 53, 1934, pp. 960-968.
10
124 KENNEDY, L. F. and HAYWARD, C. D. 'Harmonic Restrained Relays for
Differential Protection', Transactions A.I.E.E., 57, 1938, pp. 262-271.
10
125 HAYWARD, C. D. 'Prolonged Inrush Currents with Parallel Transformers
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11
126 ONYEMELUKERE, C. 'Differential Protection: Notes on Theory and Practice'
Electrical Times, December 24th, 1959.
11
127 SEELEY, H. T. and VON ROESCHLAUB, F. 'Instantaneous Bus Protection
Using Bushing Current Transformers', Transactions A.I.E.E., 67, 1948,
pp.1709-1719.
13
128 WARRINGTON, A. R. VAN C. 'Portable Equipment Speeds Relay Test',
Elec. World, 107, February, 1937, p. 764.
2,5,14 129 ADAMS, A. W. and BERGSETH, F. R. 'A Simplified Unit for Distance
Relaying', Transactions A.I.E.E., 72, Part III, 1953, fJp. 996-998.
8
130 NEHER, J. H. 'A New Approach to the Pilot Wire Protection of Transmission
Lines, using Leased Pilot Wires having relatively Long Electrical Characteristics', A.I.E.E. Paper No. 60-155, Power Apparatus and Systems,
June, 1960, pp. 245-252.
2,5,7 131 SEELEY, H. T. and KIss, M. A. 'All Electronic One Cycle Carrier Relaying
System', Power Apparatus and Systems, A.I.E.E., April, 1954, pp. 161-195,
together with three other papers on the same subject by Messrs. Barnes,
H. C. and Kennedy, L. F., Hodges, M. E. and Macpherson, R. H.,
Price, W. S. and Cordray, R. E.
2,5 132 BARLOW, H. E. M. 'An Experimental Impedance Relay using the Hall
Effect in a Semi-conductor', I.E.E. Paper No. 3136M, February,
1960.
6
133 SALZMANN, A. 'Cross Country Faults seen by Protective Relays in Resonant
Neutral Earthed Transmission Systems', Electrical Energy, 1, No. 16,
December, 1957, pp. 494-500.
5
134 GOLDSBOROUGH, S. L. 'A Distance Relay with Adjustable Phase-angle
Discrimination', Transactions A.I.E.E., 63, 1944, pp. 835-838.
2, 5 135 MULLER, M., et al. 'Protection of E.H.V. Systems, Tl\king into Account
Single-phase Automatic Reclosure on Very Long Lines', Brown-Boveri
Review, 45, No.6, June, 1958, p. 243.
10
136 A.I.E.E. Committee. 'Report on Transformer Magnetising Inrush Currents
and its Effect on Relaying and Air Switch Operation', Transactions
A.I.E.E., 70, Part II, 1951, p. 1730.
10
137 ROCKEFELLER, G. P., et af. 'Magnetising Inrush Phenomena in Transformer
Banks', Transactions A.I.E.E., 77, 'Power Apparatus and Systems', October,
1958, p. 884.
10
138 BLUME, L. F. and CAMILLI et al. 'Transformer Magnetising Inrush Currents
and its Influence on System Operation', Transactions A.I.E.E., 63, 1944,
p.366.
10
139 WELLINGS, J. G. and MATHEWS, P. 'Instantaneous Magnetic Balance Protection for Power Transformers', B.T.H. Activities, 191, 1946, p. 30.
g
140 RUSHTON, J. 'The Fundamental Characteristics of Pilot-Wire Differential
Protection Systems', Proceedings 1.E.E., 108, Part A, No. 41, October,
1961.
8
478
References
CHAP.
REF.
141
142
143
144
145
146
147
10
9
148
149
150
151
152
153
154
155
MORETON, P. L. and NELLIST, B. D., 'Printed Disc Inverse Time Overcurrent

Relay', I.E.E. Proc. May, 1965 p. 1000.
WAGNER, C. F. and EVANS, R. D. Symmetrical Components, McGraw-Hill
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MASON, C. R. The Art and Science of Protective Relaying, John Wiley Inc.,
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ATABEKOV, G. I. The Relay Protection of H. V. Networks, Pergamon Press,
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PIPES, L. A. Applied Mathematics for Engineers and Physicists, McGraw-Hill
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PECK, R. L. and WAGAR, H. N. Switching Relay Design, van Nostrand,
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MATHEWS, P. Protective Current Transformers and Circuits, Chapman &
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BLUME, L. F., et al. Transformer Engineering, John Wiley Inc., 1938.
CoNCORDIA, C. Synchronous Machines, John Wiley Inc.
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Johnson and Phillips Ltd. The J. & P. Switchgear Book, 5th edition.
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479
Pages
Intlex
Sections
318
183
114, 196, 209
102, 118, 121
210
226
151
441
198
109
29, 47
17, 266
A.C. pilot relaying

A.C. tripping ...
Admittance relays
Amplitude comparators
Angle impedance relays
Application of distance
Application of time current
Arc initiation .. .
Arc resistance .. .
Attenuation constant; compensation
Attracted armature relays
Auto reclosing ...
8.1
4.6
3.2.6, 5.1.1(c), 5.2.2
3.1.2, 3.3.1, 3.4.1
5.2.3
5.4
4.2
13.1.1
5.1.3
3.2.3(a)
2.3.1, 2.4.4
1.9,5.9
74
15,426,431
49
107
111, 328
363
74
106, 377, 390
234
307
79
436
382
23
232,413
Back-stops
Back-up relaying
Balanced beam unit
Balanced current relays
Balanced voltage pilot scheme
Bearing failure ...
Bearings
Biassed differential relay
Blinders ...
Blocking pilot ...
Bounce-proof contacts
Breaker back-up
Buchholz relay ...
Burdens on c.t's p.t's ...
Bus protection ...
2.6.2
1.8, 11.5, 12.3
2.4.5
3.2.2
3.2.3(c),8.4.3
9.1.3(e)
2.6.1
3.2,9.4.2,10.4.2
5.4.7
7.3.2
2.6.4
12.4.2
10.3.1
1.13.1, 1.13.2
5.4.5,11.1
109, 327
311
304, 338
316
87
26, 103
18
108, 133, 324
21
85
248, 440
99, 117
243,285
209
86
25
27, 38
66
75
448
225, 226
81
95
265
107
106
375
437
421
Capacitance of pilot wires

Carrier acceleration ...
Carrier relaying
Carrier signal checking
Cases ...
Characteristics of relays
Circuit breaker control
Oassification of relay schemes
Coil design
Commissioning
Comparators ...
Compensators (voltage)
Conductance relays ...
Connections (electrical)
Construction factors ...
Construction of measuring units
Construction of timing units ...
Contacts
Contact cleaners
Contact co-ordination
Contact pressure augmentation
Corrosion
Cross-country faults ...
Current balance relays
Current differential relays
Current transformers ...
C.T. back-up ...
C.Ts. without iron
3.2,8.4.1
7.3.3
7.3,8.11
7.4
2.7
2.2,3.1.3
1.10.1
1:2.3,3.7.3,8.4.1
1.12
2.6.9
5.5.8,13.1
3.1,3.3
5.5.5,6.8
5.2.2
2.6.10
2.1.2
2.3,2.4
2.5
2.6.3
13.5
5.3.4
2.6.6
2.10.2
5.8
3.2.1
3.2.1
9.4
12.4.3
11.2.3
405 D.C. biased differential

147, 204 D.C. offset current
299 D.C. pilot relaying
10.5.S(e)
4.1.6, 5.1.4
7.1
481
Index
Pages
66, 142
5
74
304
168
113, 167
191
20,102
183
84
175, 387
15,91
451
31,63
72
161, 244
148
2
441
198
94
18,93
423
263,371
148, 158
448
448
382
348
249
175
311
65
403
356,408
192, 210, 227
68
31,41, 255
31,40,321
42, 96
146, 158
444
365
311,410
354
142, 156
126
421
74
414
285
378
204
214
108, 323, 336
421
243, 285
304
432
106
362
207, 263, 438
Definite time relay

Definitions
Design details ...
Directional comparison carrier
Direction control
Directional relays
Distance measurement
Duality ...
Dual polarisation
Dust-proofing ...
Sections
2.5,4.1.1
1.3
2.6
7.3
4.5.1
3.2.5,4.5
5.1.1
1.11,3.1.2
4.5.4
2.6.7
Earth fault relay

Economics of relaying
Electrical tests ...
Electronic relays
Electronic time delay ...
Error limits
Extremely inverse current relays
4.5.2, 10.4.1
1.7,2.8
13.10
2.3.5, 2.4.11
2.5.6
4.3,5.5.5
4.1.6
Faults: Causes of
Initiation of test
Resistance of ...
Finishes ...
Flag indicators ...
Frame leakage protection
Fuse blowing ...
Fuse co-ordination
Gap cleaners ...
Gap gauges
Gas actuated relays
Generator faults
Ground distance relays
Ground faults ...
Ground preference
Hall Effect
Harmonic restraint
Heating (over) ...
1.1
13.1.1
5.1.3
2.10
1.10.2,2.9
11.3
5.7.2, 9.2.3
4.1.7, 4.2.6
13.5.2
13.5.3
10.3
9.1.1
5.5.9
4.5.2
7.3.2.4
2.4.13
10.5.5(b)
9.1.1(c), 10.6
Impedance relays
Inertia method of delay
Induction cup .. .
Induction dij;c .. .
Induction torque theory
Instantaneous O.C. relay
Insulation tests
Interlocked A.C. protection ...
Intertripping ...
Interturn faults
Inverse time relays
Inversion chart for complex quantities
Ironless c.t's. . ..
Jewel bearing ...
5.1.1(a), 5.2.3, 5.4.3

2.5.1(c)
2.3.3, 2.4.2, 5.6.2
2.3.2,2.4.1,8.3
2.4.3,2.11
4.1.6,4.2.4
13.2.1
9.1.3(b)
7.3.3, 10.8.1
9.1.1(b)
4.1.2,4.2.5
3.5
11.2.3
2.6.1
11.1
6.8
9.4.3
5.1.4(b)
5.3
3.2.3, 8.4, 8.8
11.2.3
5.5.5,6.8
7.3
12.4
3.2.1
9.1.3(c)
5.1.4(c), 572, 12.4.4
Kirchoff's Law
K-Dar ...
Lead resistance to c.t's
Likelihood of transients
Limitations of distance relays
Limitations of pilot wire relays
Linear couplers
Line drop compensators
Line traps
Local back-up ...
Longitudinal differential
Loss of field
Loss of potential
482
Index
Pages
363
243, 262
Loss of synchronism ...

Low tension current and potential
Sections
9.1.3(d)
5.5.5,5.7.1
37,60
68
246, 395
459
27,252
67
84
450
69
96
208
115, 196
369
362
70
51
54
250
Magnetic amplifier relays

Magnetic damping
Magnetising inrush
Manufacturers' tests ...
Measuring units
Mechanical damping ...
Mechanical stability
Mechanical tests
Mercury timers
Metal whiskers
Modified impedance
Mho relay
Motor faults ...
Motoring
Motor operated timer ...
Moving coil unit
Moving iron unit
Mutual induction (overhead lines)
2.3.8, 2.4.9
2.5.1.4
5.5.6,10.5
13.11
2.3,5.6
2.5.1
2.6.8
13.9
2.5.2
2.10.3
5.2.1
3.2.7, 5.1.1(c)
9.2
9.1.3(b)
2.5.4
2.4.6
2.4.7
5.5.9
358, 371 Negative sequence relays

338 Neutralising transformers
128 Non-linear resonance ...
9.1.2(c), 9.2.3
8.10
3.6.1
116, 211
371
18,93
233
234
141
147,204
362
451
357
Offset mho relays

Open-phase
Operation indicators
Out-of-step blocking
Out-of-step tripping
Overcurrent relays
Overreach
Overspeed
Overtravel
Overvoltage
3.2.8, 5.2.4
9.2.3
1.10.2,2.9
5.4.6
5.4.8
4.1
4.1.6, 5.1.4(b)
9.1.3(a)
13.10.1
9. 1.1(d)
Performance curves (distance relay)

Petersen coil ...
Phase comparison carrier
Phase selector ...
Pilot wire relays
Pilot supervision
Pneumatic damping
Polarisation
Polyphase directional relay
Polyphase distance relay
Potential drop compensators ...
Potential, loss of supply
Potential supply
Power rectifier protection
Power station auxiliaries
Power swings
Primary injection test ...
Product restraint
5.6.7
5.8
8.11
6.6
3.2.3,7.2,8.2
8.9
2.5.1(b)
4.5.1, 4.5.2
4.5.1(d)
6.7
5.5.5
5.1.4(c), 5.7.2, 12.4.4
5.7.1
4.1.7
9.3
5.1.3
13.1.2
3.2.1,3.7.2
Radial line protection ...

Ratings: distance relays
overcurrent relays
Reactance relays
Receiver relay ...
Reclosing
Rectifier bridge comparator ...
Rectifier protection
Relay back-up ...
Reliability
Remote back-up
Remote tripping
4.7
5.3
4.4
3.2.6, 5.1.1(b)
7.3.1(b)
1.9,5.9
2.3.7,2.4.8
4.1.7
12.4.1
2.1.3,12.2
12.3
7.3.3,10.8
261
265
338
283
108, 299, 319
337
67
168, 176
172
284
243
207, 363,438
262
148
375
198
442
106,132
184
214
166
114, 194
310
17,266
37,56
148
434
25,430
430
311,409
483
Index
Pages
177
127
72
181
239,431
357
104
Residual tripping relays

Resonance
Resonance time delay ...
Restricted earth protection
Reversed third zone
Rotor faults
R-X diagram ...
Sections
4.5.2
3.6
2.5.5(d)
4.5.2
5.5.3,12.3
9.1.2
3.1.3
450
18
13, 141
51,53
258
42
84
226
268
265
80
426
376
343
224,283
348
154
385
332
341
337, 427
276
202
Safety measures
Seal-in relays ...
Selectivity
Sensitive relays
Sensitive tripping devices
Shaded-pole principle ...
Shock-proof relays
Single-step distance relay
Single pole reC\osing ...
Simultaneous ground faults
Spark-quenching circuits
Split bus protection
Stabilising resistance
Starting network
Starting units ...
Stator faults
Stranded Coil ...
Sudden pressure relays
Summation C.t. (pilot)
Summation network ...
Supervision circuits
Switched distance relays
System stability
13.7
1.10.2
1.6,4.1
2.4.6,2.4.7
5.6.5
2.4.3
2.6.8
5.4.1
5.9.4
5.8
2.6.5
11.6
9.4:1
8.11.2(h)
5.3.4,6.6
9.1.1
4.2.3
10.3.2
8.7
8. 11.2(a)
8.9,11.7
6.2
5.1.3(c)
Tap error
Targets ...
Thermal delay ...
Thermal relays ...
Three-step distance relays
Time delay methods
Time steps
Torque equations
Tools
Transferred tripping
Transformer differential protection ...
Transients
Transistor relays
Transistor timer
Transverse differential
Tripping check ...
Tropicalisation ...
4.3
1.10.2
2.5.3
2.3.4, 2.4.10, 10.6
5.4.3
2.5
5.1.2
2.2,3.3
13.5
7.3.3,10.8
10.4.2
5.1.4
2.3.6, 2.4.12
2.5.7.2
3.2.1
11.8
2.10.1
Unbalanced currents ...

Under-frequency
Undervoltage ...
Universal torque equations
9.2.3
9.2.4
9.2.4
3.3
161
18
69
31, 62,408
227
66
197
26,117
447
311,409
390
203
34,64
73
106
428
95
371
372
372
117
7 Vector conventions
417 Voltage differential relays
364 Voltage regulator
1.3.2
11.2.2
9.1.3(g)
198 Warrington's law for power arcs

96 Whiskers (metal)
5.1.3(a)
2.10.3
104 X-R diagram
...
3.1.3
242 Y-f':,. transformation
5.5.4
269,270 Zero sequence compensation ...

182 Zero sequence power relays '"
484
5.10.1, 5.10.2
4.5.3

Protective Reley C Warrington

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Protective Bela"s

THEIR THEORY AND PRACTICE

CHAPMAN & HALL LTD

is an attempt to pass on to others the knowledge gained

WISH to thank the English Electric Company for their permission to

Causes of Faults. Definitions. Functions of Protective Relays. Application

RELAY DESIGN AND CONSTRUCTION

THE MAIN CHARACTERISTICS OF PROTECTIVE RELAYS

SWITCHED AND POLYPHASE DISTANCE RELAYS

DIRECTIONAL PILOT RELAYING

8. A.C. PILOT RELAYING

9. PROTECTION OF A.C. MACHINES

POWER TRANSFORMER PROTECTION

Basic Principles. Precautions for Reliability Remote Back-up. Local Back-up.

Commissioning. Periodic Maintenance. Transfer to Test Circuit. Tools.

List of Slim bois

a /120 operator ( _!+j

susceptance per mile

a, b, c the three phases

difference, direct axis

1.1. CAUSES OF FAULTS

Insulation is usually either air or a high resistivity material which may

Purpose of Protective Relays and Relaying

l.Ia. Modern induction disc relay

l.lb. Induction vane differential relay

Purpose of Protective Relays and Relaying

1.2. Induction cup unit

That which tends to close the contacts of the relay.

That which opposes the operating force or torque and

Purpose of Protective Relays and Relaying

A visual device, usually spring or gravity operated, for

An interesting reference is the I.E.C. document on definitions for the

An electrical vector (phasor) has magnitude and phase relation. Phase

(a) NormClI pha.se-to-neutra.1

1.3a-<:. Vectors representing balanced conditions in a four-wire system

1.3d. Subtractive polarity in a c.t. or p.t.

The operator 'j' moves a vector 90 degrees forward (anti-clockwise)

Purpose of Protective Relays and Relaying

1.4. Simple functions of the operator 'a'

t.4. THE NATURE OF A RELAY

Purpose of Protective Relays and Relaying

1.5a. Protective relays can prevent this

results .and then it becomes necessary to re-design. In other words, a graph

Purpose of Protective Relays and Relaying

1.5b. Basic connections of a protective relay

L,n. ,.'o.y zone

1.6a. Zones of protection overlapping to avoid blind spots

1.6b. Locations of c.ts to provide overlapping zones of protection

Without back-up protection, a short-circuit in a line or piece of equipment

Purpose of Protective Relays and Relaying

1.7. ECONOMICS OF RELAYING

01 unit per mile

0 '1 unit pcr MW including

Hotel., houses etc.

lYRica.l cost 01 500 MW sy',tom

1.7. Cost of electrical equipment

I Fa.at locaJ protection a.t B

1.8. Back-up relays

There are three kinds of back-up relays:

Purpose of Protective Relays and Relaying

relays and breakers and their supplies (Remote Back-up) in case of

1.9. Failure of breaker to clear a fault

In cases where continuity of service cannot be maintained by quickly

Operation indicators have a flag or target normally hidden by a shield