Protective Relay:

A relay whose function is to detect defective lines or apparatus or other power system conditions of an abnormal or dangerous nature and to initiate appropriate control circuit action. (IEEE)

Functions of Protective Relaying

To sound an alarm or to close the trip circuit of circuit breaker so as to disconnect a component during an abnormal condition in the component, which include over-load, under-voltage, temperature rise, unbalanced load, reverse power, under frequency, short circuits, etc. To disconnect the abnormally operating part so as to prevent the subsequent faults, e.g. over-load protection of a machine protects the machine and prevents insulation failure. To disconnect the faulty part quickly so as to minimize the damage to the faulty part, e.g. if a machine is disconnected immediately after a winding fault, only a few coils may need replacement. If the fault is sustained, entire winding may get damaged & the machine may be beyond repair.

 To localize the effect of fault by disconnecting the faulty part, from the healthy part, causing least disturbance to the healthy system. To disconnect the faulty part quickly so as to improve the service continuity & system performance.

Faults cannot be avoided completely. They can be minimized. Protective relaying plays an important role in minimizing the faults & also in minimizing the damage in the event of faults.

Faults can be minimized by taking the following measures:

Improvement in the quality of machines, equipment, installation, etc. by improvement in design, manufacturing techniques, materials, quality control, adequate testing, research & development. Improvement in system design, correct layout, choice of equipment. Adequate & reliable protection systems; control. Regular & detailed maintenance by trained personnel. Trained personnel for operation & management of electrical plant.

Protection Zones
The power system is divided into protection zones defined by the equipment and available circuit breakers. Six possible protection zones are listed below:
Generators and generator-transformer units Transformers Buses Lines (Transmission, sub transmission, and distribution) Utilization equipment Capacitor or reactor banks

 Each zone covers one or two power system components. Neighboring zones overlap so that no dead spot are left in the protected system. The boundary of a protective zone is determined by the location of current transformers. Hence, CTs are located such that the CBs are covered in the protective zone. The zones can be precisely identified in unit systems. Unit system is one in which the protection responds to faults in the protected zone alone, & it does not respond to faults beyond the protected zone. Non-unit systems, such as over-current protection, do not have exact zone boundary. Each zone has certain protective scheme & each protective scheme has several protective systems.

Protection Zones & Overlapping of Zones

TYPES OF PROTECTION
When fault occurs in any part of system, it must be cleared quickly to avoid damage or interference with rest of the system. Protection scheme is divided into two classes:

Primary protection: It is first to act. Back up protection: It is next in line of defense. Relay back-up: Same breaker is used by both main &
back-up protection, but the protective systems are different. Separate trip coils may be provided for the same breaker. Breaker Back-up: Different breakers are provided for main & back-up protection, both the breakers being in the same station. Remote Back-up: The main & back-up protections provided at different stations & are completely independent.

The causes of failure of a protective scheme may be due to

the failure of various elements as mentioned below:

Back up protection by Time Grading Principle:

The tripping time at locations are graded in such a way that the CB nearest the faulty part operate first, giving primary protection. The CB at previous station operates only as backup.
0.1 Sec 0.6 Sec 1.0 Sec

Back up protection by Duplication Principle:

In this form of protection, the important protective devices (relays, CBs, auxiliaries, etc.) are duplicated. Both primary & back-up protections are provided at the same station & are arranged to operate at the same speed, i.e. as fast as possible. Such protection is costly & cost is justified for protection of EHV transmission lines, bus bars, large generators, large transformers, etc. If the cost of separate CB is not justified, same CB with two independent trip coils can be employed, one for each protection.

Merits of Duplication Back-up Principle:

Fast & almost simultaneous fault clearing. Complete reliability can be assured.

However, the duplication should be economically justified.

Monitoring:
Monitoring means checking the performance & is used as an alternative to duplicate protection. It is a continuous process of monitoring instrument transformers, relays, CBs, trip circuits, and other components of primary protection. The monitoring devices continuously switch in and out & determine whether the component is in working order & operational readiness. CBs are actually not tripped but are provided a test circuit to facilitate the monitoring. The monitoring is achieved by means of high frequency signals.

Basic Objectives of System Protection or Fundamental requirements of Protective Relaying

Selectivity Speed Sensitivity Reliability Simplicity Economy

Selectivity:
It is the ability of the protective system to select correctly that part of the system in trouble and disconnect the faulty part without disturbing the rest of the system. A well-designed and efficient relay system should be selective i.e. it should be able to detect the point at which fault occurs and cause the opening of the circuit breakers closest to the fault with minimum or no damage to the system. In order to provide selectivity to the system, it is a usual practice to divide entire system into several protection zones.
If fault occurs at busbars on the last zone, then only breakers nearest to the fault should open.

Speed:
The relay system should disconnect the faulty section as fast as possible for the following reasons:

Electrical apparatus may be damaged if they are made to carry the fault currents for a long time.
A failure on the system leads to a great reduction in the system voltage. If the faulty section is not disconnected quickly, then the low voltage created by the fault may shut down consumers motors and the generators on the system may become unstable. The high speed relay system decreases the possibility of development of one type of fault into the other more severe type.

Sensitivity:
It is the ability of the relay system to operate with low value of actuating quantity. Sensitivity of a relay is a function of the voltampere input to the coil of the relay necessary to cause its operation. The smaller the voltampere input required to cause relay operation, the more sensitive is the relay. Thus, a I VA relay is more sensitive than a 3 VA relay. It is desirable that relay system should be sensitive so that it operates with low values of volt ampere input.

Reliability:
It is the ability of the relay system to operate under the pre- determined conditions. Without reliability, the protection would be rendered largely ineffective and could even become a liability.

Simplicity:
The relaying system should be simple so that it can be easily maintained. Reliability is closely related to simplicity. The simpler the protection scheme, the greater will be its reliability.

Economy:
The most important factor in the choice of a particular protection scheme is the economic aspect. Sometimes it is economically unjustified to use an ideal scheme of protection and a compromise scheme has to be adopted. The protective gear should not cost more than 5% of the total cost. However, when the apparatus to be protected is of utmost importance (eg. generator, main transmission line etc.), economic considerations are often subordinated to reliability

References:
1. Power System Protection & Switchgear, Badri Ram, D N Vishvakarma, Tata MicGraw-Hill Publishing Company Ltd, 2006,ISBN 0-07-462350-8. 2. Switchgear & Protection, Sunail S. Rao, Khana Publishers, 1997. 3. Power System Protection & Switchgear, B Ravindarnath & M Chandar, New Age Int. Publishers, 2008, ISBN-81-085226-758-4. 4. Principles of Power System, V K Mehata & Rohit Mehta, S. Chand & Company Ltd, 2006, ISBN-81-219-0594-X. 5. A Text Book of Power System Engineering, R K Rajput, Laxmi Publication, 2006. 6. Switchgear & Power System Protection, Ravidra P. Singh, PHI Learning Private Ltd, 2009, ISBN-978-81-203-3660-5.