Topic 1 – Introduction

Dr. Rui Fan

Electrical & Computer Engineering
University of Denver
Winter 2021
Power System

• Source: https://www.slideserve.com/nina-foreman/ee-445-course-presentation-power-system-protection
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What exactly are we protecting?

• People
• Equipment
• Others like system stability

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• Source: wikipedia 4
What exactly are we protecting?

• People
• Equipment
• Others like system stability

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Fail to protect

• Source: https://www.brighthubengineering.com/power-generation-distribution/93059-explosion-at-iranshahr/
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Fail to protect

• Source: https://www.engineeringworldchannel.com/transformer-failure/
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What exactly are we protecting?

• People
• Equipment
• Others like system stability

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Fail to protect

• Source: https://www.reddit.com/r/inadifferentlight/comments/2a728i/times_square_2003_blackout/
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Power System Protection

• Measurement Instrumentation
• Protective Relay
• Circuit Breaker

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 Measurement Instrumentation
• Current Transformer (CT)
• Potential Transformer (PT)

The objective of the instrumentation subsystem

is to provide the proper interface between the
high voltage electric power system and the
relays that operate at relatively low voltage.

We refer to these transformers as

instrumentation transformers.

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 CT
• A device which transforms the current on the power system from large
primary values to safe secondary values. The secondary current will be
proportional (as per the ratio) to the primary current

Standard currents are 5 Amperes and 1 Ampere.

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PT
• A device which transforms the voltage on the power system from primary
values to safe secondary values, in a ratio proportional to the primary value

Standard voltages are 69 V and 115 Volts

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Modern Relays
• Protective relays monitor the current and/or voltage of the power system to
detect problems with the power system. Currents and voltages to relays are
supplied via CT’s and PT’s.

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Circuit Breaker

Breakers are the main technology for interrupting high

voltage electric circuits.

230 kV Oil Circuit Breaker 500 kV SF6 (Sulfur hexafluoride) Breaker

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Illustration of a Protective Relaying System

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Traditional Approach
The instrumentation subsystem for numerical relays also comprises
an analog to digital conversion stage. Traditional numerical relays
they package the analog to digital conversion unit within the relay.

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Merging Unit Approach
• In recent years we have seen the separation of the analog to digital
conversion unit from the relay with the introduction of the merging units.

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Two types of Phenomena

• The power system must be protected against two types of

phenomena:
• (a) fast transients that normally last very short time but have the
potential of damaging the system, such as lightning transients and
• (b) faulty conditions and subsequent disturbed conditions that may
persist in the system until action is taking to remove the cause of the
faulty/ disturbed conditions.
• A layered system is utilized to protect the power system. The
first layer, referred to as the overvoltage protection system,
provides for the protection of the system against the fast
transients. The second layer, referred to as the relaying
protection system, provides for the protection of the system
against faulty/disturbed conditions.
• We focus on the second layer.

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Center Piece of Modern Protection is Relay

• The objective of protective relaying is to selectively and reliably

isolate a faulty power system component in the minimum
possible time so that
• (a) the exposure of the system to fault conditions will be
minimized,
• (b) damage will be avoided and
• (c) safety hazard to persons in and around the faulty power
systems will be minimized.

• Lewis Blackburn has defined protective relaying as:

• The science, skill, and art of applying and setting relays and/or fuses to
provide maximum sensitivity to faults and undesirable conditions, but to
avoid their operation on all permissible or tolerable conditions

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What to expect for this class
• Learn what is protection
• Learn different protection scheme
• Be able to analyze or even design your own protection scheme

• Project:
• To design a protection scheme for the transmission line or transformer or
generator with knowledge learnt in the class

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