Discussion of Practical Applications of DC Breakers and Superconducting Fault Current Limiter for a DC Distribution Network

Abstract

Many alternative energy power generation systems create dc electricity. Also, many devices consume dc converted from ac. Therefore, it may be possible to reduce conversion losses and CO2 emissions by adopting dc distribution. We assume that superconducting cables will be used for dc distribution because their electrical resistance is almost zero. However, if a superconducting cable is adopted, it is of great concern that if an excessive current flows because of, for instance, a short circuit, there is a possibility that this current cannot be interrupted by a circuit breaker alone. We propose that the fault current is limited by a Superconducting Fault Current Limiter (SFCL), and that this limited current is then interrupted by a dc circuit breaker. In this paper, we have separately investigated the SFCL and dc breaker, and their use in combination.