Study of the Fast-Closing Switch Used for Fault Current Limiters in Power System

This paper presents a new type of fault current limiter (FCL) based on fast closing switch, which is composed of a capacitor bank and a reactor in series. The main control component is a fast closing switch connected in parallel with the capacitors, which is driven by the electromagnetic repulsion force. It can response the order within 1 ms. When fault occurs, the switch closes and the capacitors are bypassed, and the fault current is limited by the reactor. Simulation analysis and experiment show that the electromagnetic repulsion force actuator can meet the demand of fast closing switch, it is feasible to develop the FCL with low cost and high reliability.

A novel fault current limiter topology design based on liquid metal current limiter

The liquid metal current limiter(LMCL)is regarded as a viable solution for reducing the fault current in a power grid.But demonstrating the liquid metal arc plasma self-pinching process of the resistive wall,and reducing the erosion of the LMCL are challenging,not only theoretically,but also practically.In this work,a novel LMCL is designed with a resistive wall that can be connected to the current-limiting circuit inside the cavity.Specifically,a novel fault current limiter(FCL)topology is put forward where the novel LMCL is combined with a fast switch and current-limiting reactor.Further,the liquid metal self-pinch effect is modeled mathematically in three dimensions,and the gas-liquid two-phase dynamic diagrams under different short-circuit currents are obtained by simulation.The simulation results indicate that with the increase of current,the time for the liquid metal-free surface to begin depressing is reduced,and the position of the depression also changes.Different kinds of bubbles formed by the depressions gradually extend,squeeze,and break.With the increase of current,the liquid metal takes less time to break,but breaks still occur at the edge of the channel,forming arc plasma.Finally,relevant experiments are conducted for the novel FCL topology.The arcing process and current transfer process are analyzed in particular.Comparisons of the peak arc voltage,arcing time,current limiting efficiency,and electrode erosion are presented.The results demonstrate that the arc voltage of the novel FCL topology is reduced by more than 4.5times and the arcing time is reduced by more than 12%.The erosions of the liquid metal and electrodes are reduced.Moreover,the current limiting efficiency of the novel FCL topology is improved by 1%–5%.This work lays a foundation for the topology and optimal design of the LMCL.

Mitigation of Distributed Generation Impact on Protective Devices in a Distribution Network by Superconducting Fault Current Limiter

Protection of radial distribution networks is widely based on coordinated inverse time overcurrent relays (OCRs) ensuring both effectiveness and selectivity. However, the integration of distributed generation (DG) into an existing distribution network not only inevitably increases fault current levels to levels that may exceed the OCR ratings, but it may also disturb the original overcurrent relay coordination adversely effecting protection selectivity. To analyze the potentially adverse impact of DG on distribution system protective devices with respect to circuit breaker ratings and OCR coordination fault current studies are carried out for common reference test system under the influence of additional DG. The possible advantages of Superconducting Fault Current Limiter (SFCL) as a means to limit the adverse effect of DG on distribution system protection and their effectiveness will be demonstrated. Furthermore, minimum SFCL impedances required to avoid miss-operation of the primary and back-up OCRs are determined. The theoretical analysis will be validated using the IEEE 13-bus distribution test system is used. Both theoretical and simulation results indicate that the proposed application of SFCL is a viable option to effectively mitigate the DG impact on protective devices, thus enhancing the reliability of distribution network interfaced with DG.

Hybrid Operation of Fault Current Limiter and Thyristor Controlled Braking Resistor

The effectiveness of a combination of fault current limiter and thyristor controlled braking resistor on power system stability enhancement and damping turbine shaft torsional oscillations has been studied. If both devices operate at the same bus, the stabilization control scheme can be carried out continuously and with flexibility. As a result, the fault currents are limited, and the generator disturbances and the turbine shaft torsional oscillations are converged quickly. In this paper, the effectiveness of the combination of both devices has been demonstrated by considering 3LG （three-lines-to-ground） fault in a two-machine infinite bus system. Also, temperature rise effect of both devices with various resistance values and weights has been demonstrated. Simulation results indicate a significant power system stability enhancement and damping turbine shaft torsional oscillations as well as with allowable temperature rise.

Research on a Fast-Closing Switch Based Fault Current Limiter with Series Compensation

A new type of fault current limiter (FCL) with series compensation based fast-closing switch is proposed. It is composed of a capacitor bank and a reactor in series. The main control component is a fast-closing switch connected in parallel with the capacitors, which is driven by the electromagnetic repulsion force. When fault occurs, the switch closes and bypasses the capacitors, and the fault is limited by the reactor then. Simulated analysis and experiments show that it is feasible to develop the FCL with low cost and high reliability. The effectiveness of transient stability for power system is evaluated by digital simulation.

Placement optimization of Multi-Type fault current limiters based on genetic algorithm

The fault current limiter(FCL)is an effective measure for improving system stability and suppressing short-circuit fault current.Because of space and economic costs,the optimum placement of FCLs is vital in industrial applications.In this study,two objectives with the same dimensional measurement unit,namely,the total capital investment cost of FCLs and circuit breaker loss related to short-circuit currents,are considered.The circuit breaker loss model is developed based on the attenuation rule of the circuit breaker service life.The circuit breaker loss is used to quantify the current-limiting effect to avoid the problem of weight selection in a multi-objective problem.The IEEE 10-generator 39-bus system in New England is used to evaluate the performance of the proposed genetic algorithm(GA)method.Comparative and sensitivity analyses are performed.The results of the optimized plan are validated through simulations,indicating the significant potential of the GA for such optimization.

Research on Parameter Collaborative Configuration of DC Circuit Breaker and DC Fault Current Limiter

Fault current suppression is the key technology to ensure the safe operation of the DC power distribution system. In order to realize the parameter collabora-tive configuration of the DC circuit breaker and the DC current limiter and improve the fault current suppression capability, the fault current suppression mechanism of the DC power distribution system is revealed based on the circuit model. Then, based on the mathematical model of the DC breaker, the characteristic parameters of DC breaking are extracted, and then the influence of different characteristic parameters on the breaking characteristics of fault current is studied. Finally, the mathematical model of the collaborative process between DC circuit breaker and DC current limiter is established. The charac-teristic parameters of fault current collaborative suppression are extracted. The coupling effects of different characteristic parameters on the fault current col-laborative suppression are studied. The principle of collaborative configuration of DC circuit breaker and DC current limiter is proposed, and the collaborative suppression ability of DC circuit breaker and DC current limiter to fault current is fully exploited to ensure the safe and reliable operation of the DC power distribution system.

Enhancement of Transient Stability of the Nigeria 330 kV Transmission Network Using Fault Current Limiter

The dynamic responses of generators when subjected to disturbances in an interconnected power system have become a major challenge to power utility companies due to increasing stress on the power network. Since the occurrence of a disturbance or fault cannot be completely avoided, hence, when it occurs, control measures need to be put in place to limit the fault current, which invariably limit the level of the disturbances. This paper explores the use of Superconductor Fault Current Limiter (SFCL) to improve the transient stability of the Nigeria 330 kV Transmission Network. During a large disturbance, the rotor angle of the generator is enhanced by connecting a Fault Current Limiter (FCL) which reduces the fault current and hence, increases transient stability of the power network. In this study, the most affected generator was taken into consideration in locating the SFCL. The result obtained reveals that the Swing Curve of the generator without FCL increases monotonically which indicates instability, while the Swing Curve of the System with FCL reaches steady state.

Current Limiting Characteristic Analysis of Magnetic-controlled Switcher Type Fault Current Limiter

A novel magnetic-controlled switcher type fault current limiter (FCL) based on the topology of the saturated iron core high temperature superconducting FCL is proposed. The magnetic field distribution of the FCL iron core is analyzed by FEA software ANSYS. The current limiting characteristic is investigated by both 3-D field-circuit coupled simulation and Matlab. The experiments on the 220 V/50 A test model show that the FCL can limit the fault current swiftly and effectively,and the FCL has the advantages of simple and reliable structure, flexible control strategy. The simulation and experimental results prove that the theoretical expectation and current limiting performance is satisfactory for practical use.

Fault Current Limiters and Impacts on the System Protection Behavior

A deregulated power market is making short-circuit currents likely to exceed the thermal or mechanical permissible limits of switchgear. Consequently fault current limiters （FCL） become more necessary in power systems. The use of FCLs has an impact on the protection schemes and functions in power systems. Thus, before FCLs can be applied in the network, the impacts on existing protection system must be understood. Depending on the current limiting technique used, today＇s protection concepts may have to be adapted or revised to ensure proper network protection selectivity. A relationship between fault current limiters and protection schemes should be established by taking into account both protection and network specific issues, such as the impact of different FCL technologies, existing and new protection concepts, selectivity and innovative network. This paper is presenting a frame work for accomplishing this task.

Directional Overcurrent Relays Coordination Restoration by Reducing Minimum Fault Current Limiter Impedance

FCL （fault current limiter） is used to solve relays miscoordination problem arises from DG （distributed generation） installation. In most published researches, different optimization methods are developed to obtain optimal relay settings to achieve coordination in case of not installing DG, then depending on the achieved optimal obtained relay settings, FCL impedance is deduced to ensure relays coordination restoration in case of installing DG. Based on original optimal relay settings, obtained FCL impedance is not the minimum one required to achieve relay coordination. The contribution of this paper is the generation of multi sets of original relay settings that increase the possibility of finding FCL impedance of minimum value which is lower than the calculated value based on original optimal relay settings. The proposed method achieves better economic target by reducing FCL impedance. The proposed approach is implemented and tested on IEEE-39 bus test system.

A Fault Current Limiting Hybrid DC Circuit Breaker

Due to the low impedance characteristic of the high voltage direct current(HVDC)grid,the fault current rises extremely fast after a DC-side fault occurs,and this phenomenon seriously endangers the safety of the HVDC grid.In order to suppress the rising speed of the fault current and reduce the current interruption requirements of the main breaker(MB),a fault current limiting hybrid DC circuit breaker(FCL-HCB)has been proposed in this paper,and it has the capability of bidirectional fault current limiting and fault current interruption.After the occurrence of the overcurrent in the HVDC grid,the current limiting circuit(CLC)of FCL-HCB is put into operation immediately,and whether the protected line is cut off or resumed to normal operation is decided according to the fault detection result.Compared with the traditional hybrid DC circuit breaker(HCB),the required number of semiconductor switches and the peak value of fault current after fault occurs are greatly reduced by adopting the proposed device.Extensive simulations also verify the effectiveness of the proposed FCL-HCB.

Appropriate Placement of Fault Current Limiting Reactors in Different HV Substation Arrangements

Short circuit currents of power systems are growing with an increasing rate, due to the fast development of generation and transmission systems. Current Limiting Reactor is one of the effective short circuit current limiting devices. This technique is known to be more practical than other available approaches. In this paper, proper application of CLR to HV substations is proposed, based on a comprehensive short circuit analysis of 4 well-known substation bus bar arrangements. Eventually, appropriate place and number of CLRs is recommended for each bus bar arrangement.

不失超型SFCL特性仿真分析

对不失超型SFCL限流时的线路电流变化曲线进行了理论分析和仿真计算 ,研究了其对节点测量阻抗和线路电流谐波特性的影响 ,并就动作电流对其特性的影响进行了详细分析。仿真计算结果表明 ,不失超型SFCL的阻抗虽然随着线路电流周期性变化 ,但对线路电流谐波特性的影响不大 ,完全可用于电力系统 ;

Superconducting fault current limiter(SFCL)for fail-safe DC-DC conversion:From power electronic device to micro grid protection

In DC micro grids and networks,DC-DC power converters having a large number of semiconductor-based power electronic devices are usually adopted to interconnect the renewable sources and flexible loads.Most of the semiconductor-based devices suffer from poor fault withstanding abilities,but conventional power electronic protection schemes have the bottlenecks of the time-delay,self-malfunction and mis-judgement.This paper presents a novel solution using the superconducting fault current limiter(SFCL)to protect a power electronic device and extend the usage to a micro grid.This SFCL is actually a self-triggering,recoverable,and passive current limiter,which does not involve any additional circuit hardware and software.Experimental investigations and simulation analyses clarify the feasibility of using this superconductor-based protection scheme to implement the self-acting fail-safe protection of DC-DC converters.Further system-level simulations explore the SFCL to suppress the over-current and stabilize the bus voltage of a photovoltaic based DC micro grid,particularly facing millisecond-level transients and faults.Our experimental and theoretical investigations lay some technical bases to establish a superconductor-semiconductor-coupled interdisciplinary application from the view from the applied superconductivity,to power electronics,and to micro grids.

SFCL对HVDC系统中换相失败的影响

针对逆变侧换流母线逆变侧发生短路使得交流电压下降和直流电流上升而引起的换相失败问题,分析了换相失败影响因素及桥式超导故障限流器(SFCL)限流原理。在PSCAD/EMPDC仿真环境下,以CIGRE HVDC基准模型为研究对象,将SFCL应用于直流输电系统中,研究SFCL对HVDC系统稳定运行及换相失败的影响。研究表明,SFCL能够限制交流系统的故障电流继而使直流输电系统能快速恢复正常运行状态。

采用SSFCL耦合的主动配电系统合环方法研究

为了应对配电网层面高渗透率分布式能源大规模接入后的合环运行问题,文章研究了采用固态限流器(SSFCL)耦合的主动配电网合环方法。通过SSFCL直流电感瞬时插入实现故障限流,提高分布式发电接入点残压便于实现低电压穿越,同时可以限制配电网合环冲击电流,并具有一定的潮流控制能力。通过对采用SSFCL耦合的主动配电系统合环运行的稳态特性和故障暂态特性进行仿真,验证了该方法具有成本低、可靠性高的优点,有利于传统配电网向主动配电网平稳过渡。

Current-limiting characteristics of saturated iron-core fault current limiters in VSC-HVDC systems based on electromagnetic energy conversion mechanism

A common method to examine the current-limiting performance of saturated iron-core fault current limiter(SI-FCL) in high-voltage direct-current transmission based on voltage source converter(VSC-HVDC) systems is to solve differential equations based on the system fault transient characteristics and the equivalent inductance calculation equation. This method analyzes the fault current of the VSC-HVDC system in the time domain. However, it is computationally complex and cannot directly reflect the relationship between parameters and the currentlimiting effect of the SI-FCL.In this paper,the relationship between the magnetic flux density and magnetic field energy of the SI-FCL is analyzed. The energy exchange between the DC capacitor and the SI-FCL in the DC short circuit fault process is analyzed. From the perspective of electromagnetic energy conversion, the criterion for determining the current-limiting ability of the SI-FCL in the transient process is given based on the parameters of the SI-FCL and VSC-HVDC system. On this basis, the characteristics of the DC side fault current and the capacitor voltage when the SI-FCL has current-limiting ability are examined.Based on the parameters of the SI-FCL and VSC-HVDC system, a method for calculating the fault current peak value and capacitor voltage drop time is given. Finally, the accuracy of the analysis of the SI-FCL in the VSC-HVDC system based on the electromagnetic energy conversion mechanism is demonstrated through a case study and simulation results of the VSC-HVDC system with different SI-FCLs.

关于HTSFCL中的超导材料交流损耗分析的一种新方法

分析并推导了高温超导带材的交流损耗模型,给出了一种新的分析其磁滞损耗方法,这样的磁滞损耗模型表明磁滞损耗是电流和与电流成正比的磁场感应强度的函数。