Impact of current transformer saturation on fault location algorithms for parallel distribution feeders

Abstract

This paper evaluates the impact of current transformer (CT) saturation on fault location determination for parallel distribution networks. As the CT saturation causes a distortion of the secondary current, it is expected that it magnifies the errors of the estimated fault distances. The selected algorithms are based on two different mathematical derivations including these principles depending on the sequence networks and the modified apparent impedance methods. The performance of each algorithm is investigated by evaluating the corresponding estimated error at different fault distances with and without CT saturation. A detailed CT simulation platform is utilized using a practical data. This highlights the required further consideration for realizing a practical and efficient fault detection with correction methodologies for CT before calculating the fault distance.