Power System Protection

Fundamentals
What should we teach students
about power system protection?

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Agenda

Why protection is needed

Principles and elements of the protection

system

Basic protection schemes

Digital relay advantages and enhancements

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Disturbances: Light or Severe

The power system must maintain acceptable

operation 24 hours a day

Voltage and frequency must stay within certain

limits

Small disturbances

The control system can handle these

Example: variation in transformer or generator load

Severe disturbances require a protection

system

They can jeopardize the entire power system

They cannot be overcome by a control system

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Power System Protection

Operation during severe disturbances:

System element protection

System protection

Automatic reclosing

Automatic transfer to alternate power

supplies

Automatic synchronization

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Electric Power System Exposure to

External Agents

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Damage to Main Equipment

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Protection System

A series of devices whose main purpose

is to protect persons and primary electric
power equipment from the effects of faults

The Sentinels

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Blackouts
Main Causes

Characteristics

Loss of service in a
large area or
population region

Hazard to human life

May result in
enormous economic
losses

Overreaction of the
protection system

Bad design of the

protection system

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Short Circuits Produce High

Currents
Three-Phase Line
a
b
c
I
Fault

Substation
Thousands of Amps

Wire
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Electrical Equipment Thermal Damage

t

Damage Curve

Damage
Time

I
Rated Value

In

Imd

Short-Circuit
Current
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Mechanical Damage During

Short Circuits

Very destructive in busbars, isolators, supports,

transformers, and machines

Damage is instantaneous
Mechanical
Forces

f1

f2

i1
i2
Rigid Conductors

f1(t) = k i1(t) i2(t)

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The Fuse

Fuse

Transformer

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Protection System Elements

Protective relays

Circuit breakers

Current and voltage transducers

Communications channels

DC supply system

Control cables
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Three-Phase Diagram of the Protection Team

CB

CTs

Protected
Equipment

Control

Relay

VTs

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DC Tripping Circuit
+
SI
DC Station
Battery

Relay

Relay
Contact

SI

52a
52
TC

Red
Lamp

Circuit
Breaker

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Circuit Breakers

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Current Transformers

Very High Voltage CT

Medium-Voltage CT

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Voltage Transformers

Medium Voltage

High Voltage

Note: Voltage transformers

are also known as potential
transformers
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Protective Relays

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Examples of Relay Panels

MicroprocessorBased Relay
Old Electromechanical

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How Do Relays Detect Faults?

When a fault takes place, the current, voltage,

frequency, and other electrical variables
behave in a peculiar way. For example:

Current suddenly increases

Voltage suddenly decreases

Relays can measure the currents and the

voltages and detect that there is an
overcurrent, or an undervoltage, or a
combination of both

Many other detection principles determine the

design of protective relays
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Main Protection Requirements

Reliability

Dependability

Security

Selectivity

Speed

System stability

Equipment damage

Power quality

Sensitivity

High-impedance faults

Dispersed generation

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Primary Protection

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Primary Protection Zone Overlapping

Protection
Zone A
52
To Zone A
Relays

Protection
Zone B
To Zone B
Relays

Protection
Zone A
52
To Zone A
Relays

Protection
Zone B
To Zone B
Relays
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Backup Protection
Breaker 5
Fails
C

11

12

T
B

10

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Typical Short-Circuit Type

Distribution
Single-Phase-Ground:

7080%

Phase-Phase-Ground:

1710%

Phase-Phase:

108%

Three-Phase:

32%

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Balanced vs.
Unbalanced Conditions
Ia

Ic
Ic

Ia

Ib
Ib

Balanced System

Unbalanced System
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Decomposition of an Unbalanced
System
Ia

Ic
Ib
I a1
I c1

Ia0
Ib0
Ic0

Ib2
I b1

Ia2
Ic2

Zero-Sequence

Positive-Sequence

Negative-Sequence

Single-Phase

Balanced

Balanced
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Power Line Protection Principles

Overcurrent (50, 51, 50N, 51N)

Directional Overcurrent (67, 67N)

Distance (21, 21N)

Differential (87)

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Application of Inverse-Type
Relays
Relay
Operation
Time

I
Radial Line

Fault

Load
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Inverse-Time Relay Coordination

Distance

T
Distance
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Addition of Instantaneous OC
Element
t

Relay
Operation
Time
I
Radial Line

Fault

Load
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50/51 Relay Coordination

Distance

T
Distance

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Directional Overcurrent Protection

Basic Applications

L
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Directional Overcurrent Protection

Basic Principle
I

F1

F2
Relay
Reverse Fault (F2)

Forward Fault (F1)

V
V

I
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Overcurrent Relay Problem

I SETTING

Z S1 (0.8) Z L1

Relay operates when the following condition

holds:
I FAULT I a I SETTING

As Z s1 changes, the relays reach will change,

since setting is fixed
I FAULT ( LIMIT )

Z S1 (0.8) Z L1
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Distance Relay Principle

L
d
I a , Ib , Ic

Va ,Vb ,Vc

21

Three-Phase
Solid Fault

Radial
Line

Suppose Relay Is Designed to Operate

When:

| Va | (0.8) | Z L1 || I a |

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The Impedance Relay Characteristic

R 2 X 2 Z r21
X

Plain Impedance Relay

Operation Zone

Z Z r1

Zr1

Radius Zr1
R

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Need for Directionality

F1

F2
1

RELAY 3
Operation Zone

X
F1
F2

Nonselective
Relay Operation
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Directionality Improvement
F1

F2
1

RELAY 3
Operation Zone

X
F1
F2

Directional Impedance
Relay Characteristic
R

The Relay Will

Not Operate for
This Fault
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Mho Element Characteristic

(Directional Impedance Relay)
Operates when: V I Z M cos MT

Z Z M cos MT

ZM
Z

MT

R
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Three-Zone Distance Protection

Time
Zone 3
Zone 2
Zone 1
1

Time
Zone 1 Is Instantaneous
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Line Protection With Mho Elements

X
C
B

R
D

E
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Circular Distance Relay Characteristics

X

PLAIN
IMPEDANCE

OFFSET
MHO (2)

R
R
X

LENS
(RESTRICTED MHO 1)

MHO

R
X

OFFSET
MHO (1)

TOMATO
(RESTRICTED MHO 2)

R
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Semi-Plane Type Characteristics

X

DIRECTIONAL

RESTRICTED
DIRECTIONAL

R
R
X

RESTRICTED
REACTANCE

REACTANCE

R
X

R
X

OHM
QUADRILATERAL
R
R
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Distance Protection
Summary

Current and voltage information

Phase elements: more sensitive than 67

elements

Ground elements: less sensitive than 67N

elements

Application: looped and parallel lines

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Directional Comparison
Pilot Protection Systems
L

IL

IR

T
Relays

Communications
Channel

R
Relays

Exchange of logic information

on relay status
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Permissive Overreaching
Transfer Trip
Bus A
1

Bus B

FWD
FWD

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Basic POTT Logic

Key XMTR

Zone 2 Elements
AND

Trip

RCVR

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Directional Comparison
Blocking Scheme
Bus A
1

RVS

Bus B

FWD
FWD

RVS

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Basic DCB Logic

Zone 3

Key XMTR
Carrier Coordination
Time Delay

Zone 2
RCVR

CC
0

Trip

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Differential Protection Principle

Balanced CT Ratio
CT

CT
Protected
Equipment

50

External
Fault

IDIF = 0

No Relay Operation if CTs Are Considered Ideal

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Differential Protection Principle

CTR

CTR
Protected
Equipment
Internal
Fault

50

IDIF > ISETTING

Relay Operates
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Problem of Unequal CT Performance

CT

Protected
Equipment

50

CT
External
Fault

IDIF 0

False differential current can occur if a CT

saturates during a through-fault

Use some measure of through-current to

desensitize the relay when high currents are
present

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Possible Scheme Percentage

Differential Protection Principle
CTR

SP

RP
Protected
Equipment

CTR

R
Relay
(87)

Compares:

I OP I S I R
k I RT

| IS | | IR |
k
2

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Differential Protection Applications

Bus protection

Transformer protection

Generator protection

Line protection

Large motor protection

Reactor protection

Capacitor bank protection

Compound equipment protection

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Differential Protection
Summary

The overcurrent differential scheme is simple

and economical, but it does not respond well to
unequal current transformer performance

The percentage differential scheme responds

better to CT saturation

Percentage differential protection can be

analyzed in the relay and the alpha plane

Differential protection is the best alternative

selectivity/speed with present technology
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Multiple Input Differential Schemes

Examples
Differential Protection Zone
SP

RP

T
I1

I2

I3

I4
OP

Bus Differential: Several Inputs

Three-Winding Transformer
Differential: Three Inputs
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Advantages of Digital Relays

Multifunctional

Compatibility with
digital integrated
systems

Low maintenance
(self-supervision)

Highly sensitive,
secure, and
selective

Adaptive

Highly reliable
(self-supervision)

Reduced burden
on
CTs and VTs

Programmable
Versatile

Low Cost

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Synchrophasors Provide a
Snapshot of the Power System

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The Future

Improvements in computer-based
protection

Highly reliable and viable communication

systems (satellite, optical fiber, etc.)

Integration of control, command,

protection, and communication

Improvements to human-machine
interface

Much more
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