The Principles of Controlled DC-Reactor Fault Current Limiter for Battery Energy Storage Protection

Abstract

The significance of battery energy storage systems (BESS) technology has been growing rapidly, mostly due to the need for microgrid applications and the integration of renewables. Relevant to the importance of utilization of BESS in microgrids, the protection of the BESS during microgrid faults has become a concern too. The short-circuit in a microgrid cause over-current for all of the integrated sources. BESS, as one of the sources in the microgrid, is heavily influenced by fault occurrence. The overcurrent can easily damage power electronic converter switches, battery management systems (BMS), and damage battery banks. Fault current limiters (FCLs) are appropriate protection devices that have been massively studied. This paper proposes a controllable reactor fault current limiter (CRFCL) to protect the BESS against fault currents. The proposed CRFCL can control the fault current value supplied by BESS during a fault condition as a current regulator. It is realized by means of the operation of solid-state switches and series DC reactor behavior. The main achievement of CRFCL is the protection of BESS against fault currents without delay. The simulations of the proposed structure are carried out in a MATLAB/SIMULINK platform, and they are confirmed and validated by experimental test results.