Evaluation of power transformer inrush currents and internal faults discrimination methods in presence of fault current limiter

Abstract

Due to increase in penetration of Distributed Generations (DGs) in power systems, fault current level is being increased, which results in some problems in the systems. Fault Current Limiters (FCLs) are attractive devices to tackle these problems for transmission and distribution systems. The utilized FCLs may have considerable impact on the signals used for differential protection of power transformers, which leads to mal-operation of these protections. It seems a comprehensive analysis is necessary for performance evaluation of differential protection algorithms in presence of FCLs. This paper deals with investigation of FCLs impact on power transformers’ differential protection. The performance of some well-known differential protection algorithms for discrimination between internal fault current and magnetizing inrush current with and without presence of FCL are evaluated.