Advanced

Power System
Protection
Dr Kashif Imran
Assistant Professor
USPCASE, NUST

Busbar Protection

 Bus is derived from Latin word OMNIBUS (common for all)

Serves as nerve center of power system where various circuits are
connected together
Found in grid stations and supply panels

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Studies in Energy

1-What is a Busbar?

2-Consequences and Causes of

Faults
over voltages.
lizards, snakes etc.

Weakening of insulation because of

ageing
Corrosion due to salty water

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A busbar has a high short circuit capacity

leads to enormous damage in case of fault
Breakdown of Insulation because of

3-Why Busbar Protection?

Historically bus bars were left unprotected

Due to the increased voltage levels and higher short circuit

capacities it is no longer advisable to leave the busbar unprotected
by missing primary protection

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Studies in Energy

Due to low probability of Busbar faults

Because they were being provided backup protection by the protective
zones on either side

4-Suitable Primry Protection?

Because terminals are physically near to each other

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Differential Protection. Why?

 Selection of CT
ratios
Selection of CT
ratios on the
basis of maximum
primary current
seen by the
individual feeder
is incorrect

Wrong Method

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5-Differential Protection of Busbar

5-Differential Protection of Busbar

Correct Method
CT ratio for all CTs in Busbar Differential Scheme
=(primary current of that feeder which carries max current)/(1A or
5A)

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Selection of CT
ratios

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6.1-Operation on Internal Faults

6.2-Maloperation on External Faults

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Maloperation of CTs during external faults is caused

by the saturation of CTs carrying excessive primary
current

7-Actual Behavior of Protective CT

Cts Primary Referred to the secondary side
Primary winding
leakage reactance referred
to secondary

Secondary winding
Resistance

Secondary winding
leakage reactance
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Primary winding Resistance

Referred to secondary

Core losses

Excitation

 At low values of Ip and therefore Is, EsIs*Zburden, is quite low.

Working flux will be low and, required magnetization current I o, will also be
low
Is is substantially equal to I p /N because of negligible Io, Is= (Ip /N)-Io

At higher values of Ip, before the knee of saturation curve, Is will initially
increase proportionate to Ip
Thus secondary induced volatge, E, also increases
Consequently Flux will be higher and, magnetization current I o, will be higher.
Is= (Ip /N)-Io , therefore due to huge I o, Is will be lowered

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Studies in Energy

7-Actual Behavior of Protective CT

7-Actual Behavior of Protective CT

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Equivalent Circuit

7-Actual Behavior of Protective CT

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Studies in Energy

After the knee point, any increase in flux requirement causes a

disproportionate increase in magnetizing current requirement
In case of saturation, Io no longer remains sinusoidal and becomes
peaky in nature

 As primary current goes on

increasing, at one stage
magnetizing requirement
becomes so large that there
is hardly any current for
burden.
This sate is known as
complete saturation
Secondary induced voltages
and currents are highly
distorted and consist of
sharp pulses near zero
crossings

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Studies in Energy

7-Actual Behavior of Protective CT

8-Circuit model of saturated CT

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Magnetizing branch is modeled as short circuit when it saps all the

current

 Equivalent circuits
of CTs
Currents of
unsaturated CTs A
& B sum up
The resultant
current has two
paths
A high stabilizing
resistance in
series
Ensures that
current through
OC relay is below
pick up value,

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Studies in Energy

9-External fault with one saturated CT:

High Impedance Busbar Protection

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10-Minimum Internal Fault that can be detected

by: High Impedance Busbar Protection

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Studies in Energy

10.1-Equivalent Circuit

11-Stability Ratio of High Impedance Busbar

Differential Scheme
The ratio of maximum external fault current for which scheme
remains stable to the minimum internal fault current for which it
operates
I

I f ,int ,min

The higher the value of stability S, the better is quality of differential

protection
Stability ratios of a few tens are common in extra high voltage
systems

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Studies in Energy

f , ext ,max

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Studies in Energy

12-Supervisory Relay

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13-Protection of a three phase Busbar

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14-Problem

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14-Problem