Polarity crossover regions of transient earth fault relays in non-radial resonant grounded networks

Abstract

Transient-based earth fault protection is widely used in all types of resonant grounded networks, and though the operating principles of the commonly available relays are usually derived from radial networks, manufacturers claim applicability in meshed networks as well. This paper utilizes a laboratory setup to study the directional indication of four transient earth fault relays in non-radial resonant grounded networks. Two of the relays considered are widely used analog single-purpose transient earth fault relays, whereas the other two relays represent two transient-based earth fault functions found in modern protective devices. The paper verifies the location of crossover points according to the presented theory, i.e. fault locations for which relays transition between seeing faults as forward and reverse faults, and demonstrates the viability of the proposed theoretical analysis of crossover points. However, presented analytical formulae only describe the two analog relays accurately, whereas the two modern relays have a more complex operating principle which requires further analysis to quantify properly. Finally, it is shown that relay misoperation which is not easily fixed by communication between relays can occur, and it is suggested that network operators conduct detailed relay coordination when applying transient earth fault relays instead of relying on standardized settings.