Two-terminal traveling wave fault location based on successive variational mode decomposition and frequency-dependent propagation velocity

Abstract

This paper proposes a two-terminal traveling wave fault location method based on Successive Variational Mode Decomposition (SVMD) and frequency-dependent propagation velocity. Firstly, SVMD is used to extract all Intrinsic Mode Functions (IMFs) and their center frequencies of the aerial mode voltages in a successive manner. The maximum IMF with the highest center frequency is used for further processing. Secondly, The propagation velocity is obtained by frequency–velocity characteristic curve and the arrival time of traveling wavefront is determined by the normalized Teager Energy Operator (TEO). Finally, considering the time-domain and frequency-dependent characteristics of traveling wave, the fault distance is estimated by combining the arrival time, frequency and propagation velocity. PSCAD/EMTDC simulation results show that the proposed method achieves reliable and robust performance under different fault scenarios and outperforms compared existing methods. • SVMD is introduced to adaptively decompose the fault traveling wave signal. • The propagation velocity is treated as a variable and estimated for fault location. • The proposed method is reliable and robust under different fault scenarios.