469

FAULT LOCATING IN UNGROUNDED AND COMPENSATED SYSTEMS

H F Zhang'.2 Z C Pan' Z Z Sang'

0 Shandong University, P.R. China, 0 Jinan University, P.R. China

system through the faulted phase A of potential

INTRODUCTION transformer (PT) [I]. This is equivalent to an
unsymmetrical three-phase power source attached to the
faulted system from PT, which is
Most of the 6-66kV distribution networks in China are
v,,=v,,V,, =0 , V,,, =0 . The signal source is
ungrounded neutral system or Peterson Coil neutral
system. They can operate indefinitely with a ground fault transformed into an equivalent set of three sequential
on one phase for 1-2 hours, eliminating the need for an 1
components VsGl= Vscl = VsGo= - V, , using
immediate shutdown. A major problem in operating 3
these systems is locating a ground fault when it occurs. symmetrical components. The resulting
Small-magnitude fault currents flow in the faulted sequence-component networks interconnected for the
network due to the leakage capacitance and through the ground fault viewed from the signal generator are
grounding resistor if one is present. The system leakage illustrated in Fig. I@).
Superposition principle shows
capacitance is distributed throughout the entire network. that the current flowing in the network is sum of the
It acts as if it were a single lumped capacitance; however, currents supplied by the system source and the signal
the charging currents can be observed flowing in all
CBA
branch circuits. Technique currently used to track down
faults is visual inspection. The line inspectors look for
the fault point by manual observation along the faulty
line. This is not only time consuming and cumbersome
but also unsafe. Sometimes, it may need several line
inspectors and take several hours or even Ior 2 days to
localize the fault point. Moreover, it is unsuitable for the
distribution network automation.
A diagnosis signal injection method for fault location is I

developed in this paper. A diagnosis signal is injected

'
L
PT
- _ _ _ _3 _ _ _ - . .

into the faulted system. Tracing the injected signal can Fig. I (a) Signal generator interface to the power system
identify the fault location. There are two circumstances: through the faulted phase of PT
one is that the faulted feeder is not isolated from the grid.
The other is that the faulted feeder has been de-energized
They need different approaches to inject diagnosis signal
into the faulted feeder.

FAULT LOCATION IN LIVE FAULTED FEEDERS

(b)

Fig. I(b) Sequence-component networks

Figure I(a) shows signa1 generator coupled to the power
viewed from the signal generator

0 2004 The Institution of Electrical Engineers.

Printed and published by the IEE, Michael Faraday House, Six Hills Way, Stevenage, SGI 2AY
 470

generator. The current from the system source has not
changed. The current from the signal generator is
zero-sequence component and made distinct by
changing its frequency that different from the normal
power system frequency.
From Figure I(h), the total impedance seen by the signal
generator is the same order in magnitude as the total
ground-fault impedance of a solidly grounded system.
Hence, a relatively small current flows in the fault circuit
with a small impedance voltage. The zero-sequence
current level is selected to provide adequate detection
and measurement.
Summing the three phase currents at any point in the
network gives the residual current. For feeders and
branch circuits between the signal source and the fault
location, the residual current is non-zero. In all other
non-faulted branch circuits, the residual current will he
zero. Circuit tracing with the diagnosis signal is a
preferred method for locating a fault. Hand-held
detectors sense the signal along the faulted circuit.
Impedance computation of the zero-sequence voltage
and current provides an approximation of the distance
from the measurement location to the fault.
After the fault point is broken down, the signal generator
injects the small AC diagnosis current into the
de-energized faulted feeder. Then, the fault point can be
found by the same techniques as in live faulted feeders.
The constant DC current (about 40mA) and injected AC
current flow in the de-energized faulted feeder. Sum of
them gives the resulting current in the circuit. The
resulting current isn’t equal to zero all the time in order to
detect the diagnosis signal. Figure 3 shows the relation
between DC and AC current. Suppose DC current isl, ,
the virtual magnitude ofAC current is I , then I , and I
must satisfy the relation,
BUS
r----------
DCurdACngmd ,-
RGFI
DCHV
branch
SiplGumta

-
-

FAULT LOCATION IN DE-ENERGIZED Fig.2 Principle Diagram of Off-line Fault Point Location

FAULTED FEEDERS

Most of the earth faults are caused by insulation

breakdown and may be disappeared after the faulted
feeder de-energized. The diagnosis signal with small
O 1
magnitude couldn’t breakdown the fault point and cannot
Fig. 3 Relation between invariable DC and AC signal
be injected to the faulted system. It is important to make
the grounding conductance keeping a comparatively big
value [2].
Figure 2 shows a direct current high voltage (DCHV) is LOCATION SYSTEM
added to the faulted phase. A DCHV generator supplies
enough high voltage to breakdown the fault point and
constant DC current to the faulted circuit. It makes fault Two ground-fault location systems have been
position keeping constant conductance after power cut. implemented in MV/LV distribution systems with
The fault becomes solidly grounded fault. The magnitude ungrounded systems and Peterson Coil grounded
of DCHV must be large enough to break down the fault systems. One is for live faulted feeders, called online
point, about 1.4 times of rated voltage of the feeder. The system. Another is for de-energized faulted feeders,
insulation of power system can’t be destroyed. called omine system.
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The online system provides detection of ground faults,
the diagnosis signal current, impcdanceidistance
measurements to the fault, and fault-path indication for
the feeders and branch circuits. The offline system
provides DCHV and constant direct current, the
diagnosis signal current, impedanceidistance
measurements to the fault, and fault-path indication for
the feeders and branch circuits.
The architecture of online ground-fault location system is
shown in Figure 4. It consists of the following devices:
substation relay, diagnosis signal generator and remote
ground-fault indicators or hand-held detector.
The architecture of offline ground-fault location system
is shown in Figure 2. It consists of the following devices:
DCHV and Constant Current Generator, diagnosis signal
generator and remote ground-fault indicators or
hand-held detector.
Extend
PonwrSyrtem A A Diagnosis Signal Generator
(3
RGR
Fig. 4 Online Ground-fault System architecture for a Simple System
The function and operation of each of the devices will he
discussed next.
Substation Relay
The substation relay monitors bus voltages and provides
initial data about the ground fault's location. Specifically,
the relay indicates the fault; the faulted phase; the
substation feeder on which the fault is located; and the
electrical distance from the substation to the fault.
To detect the presence of a possible ground fault, the
relay uses an algorithm that monitors an unbalanced
voltage condition. The unbalanced voltage is obtained
through the open-delta side of PT, which is the sum of the
three line-to-ground voltage phasors as follows:
3u, =U,, =U,, +U,, + U ,
If the unbalanced voltage exceeds a given threshold, the
relay indicates the ground fault. When the line-to-ground
voltage drops below a threshold constant, then a ground
fault is detected on that particular phase.
On detection of a valid ground fault, the relay activates
the diagnosis signal generator, providing a
non-fundamental frequency current to the faulted circuit.
The relay indicates the feeder on which the fault has
occurred hy monitoring the detectors that located on the
feeders leaving the substation. Voltage and current
transducers provide measurements to the relay for
determining the impedance from the substation to the
fault location. Then the relay dzactivates the signal
generator.
By utilizing a zero-sequence impedanceiground distance
algorithm the feeder circuit impedance is computed.
With stored feeder parameters, an estimation of the
distance to the fault is obtained.
The diagnosis signal generator provides a low-amperage
ac current to the fault circuit. The signal frequency is
selected to he distinguishable from the power-line
frequency. An appropriate range is n and n+l the
fundamental power frequency, where n is a positive
integer. Integral harmonic power frequency values
should he avoided, as faulted system produce integral
harmonic currents.
The signal generator is controlled by the substation relay
system. With the detection of a ground fault, the
substation relay activates the signal generator, The signal
generator injects the current signal into the power system
network for several milliseconds, long enough for the
substation relay to monitor the signal flow as it leaves the
substation and goes to the fault. After the relay has
determined the supplying feeder to the fault and the
electrical distance, the signal generator removes the
current injection.
Hand-held Detector nr Remote Ground-fault
Indicators
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Hand-held detectors provide the necessary information
of the presence of the injection signal on the power
circuit for operators. Remote sensors located on the
branch circuits detect the presence of the injection signal
on the power circuit. With the detection of a residual
current flow by the sensor, an annunciation is made
either through communication to a central data
collection.
In ground-fault location system, individual branch
circuits and sections on one branch is monitored by
Remote Ground-Fault Indicator (RGFI). The RGFIs will
all give indication of the fault, as illustrated in Fig. 2 and
Fig. 4. Each branch circuit or section should employ a
RGFI. Coordination between the devices is not necessay
or performed.
The RGFI is most sensitive to the frequency ofthe signal
generator. At that particular frequency, the device will
give indication with as little as S O m A of current flow on
the primary circuit. The device is constructed using a
magnetic antenna tuned at the frequency of the signal
generator and a series of signal processing circuits. The
diagnosis signal can pass whereas power-frequency and
its high order harmonics are all eliminated.
DCHV and Constant Current Generator
The DCHV and constant current generator provides
DCHV and constant DC current to the fault circuit. It is
connected between the faulted phase and ground at the
leaving of the feeder when it is used to localize the fault
position after power cut. Push the button named high
voltage to activate the holding relay, the constant direct
current and DCHV is added to the faulted feeder and
break down the fault until the diagnostic signal generator
injects the current signal into the faulted feeder and the
fault position is determined.
APPLICATION
The ground fault location systems based on the injection
method using hand-held detectors, include online system
and ofnine system, have been widely applied in
distribution systems in China. The distribution systems
include ungrounded systems, Peterson Coil grounded
systems, as well as high-resistance industrial power
systems. The error of fault localization is less than 10
meters. The location systems using remote ground-fault
indicators have being developed.
CONCLUSIONS
This paper has presented new approaches to locating
ground faults for ungrounded and Peterson Coil
grounded systems. The system approach couples
information from a relay located at a substation and
remote ground-fault detectors to indicate the fault phase,
the supply feeder to the fault, an estimate of the fault
distance, and the branch circuit with the fault. A
diagnostic signal generator that operates at a distinct
frequency other than the power-line frequency provides a
circuit path and signal to help to locate the ground fault.
The remote ground-fault indicator or hand-held detector
is a robust device that gives indication of a ground fault
on a particular circuit. It is sensitive in detecting small
diagnostic currents. The DCHV breaks down the fault
point again before injecting the diagnosis signal current
in de-energized system.
REFERENCES
0 Z Z Sang et al, 1997, Power System Technoloav.2I.
50-523
2. H F Zhang et al, 2003, Electric Power Auto. Equip.23,
33-34