Directional Over Current & Earth Fault Relays Study (Good)

Why directional overcurrent protection?

Why do we use directional overcurrent protection? When does fault

current direction become important? Well, electrical power grid
comprises a network of power stations, substations and transmission
lines. As well as the simple single-end-fed radial system, there are
other more complex systems such as double-end-fed power systems
and parallel feeders in ring formation.

In many cases, it is therefore not only necessary to know the

magnitude of the fault current, but also its direction.
A double-end-fed radial system is shown in Figure 1. In this
example, the line is fed from both ends. The protection zones are
indicated by ellipses. The requirement is to open all breakers in any
one protection zone where the fault occurs, but none of the others.

In this example, it is impossible to set up an adequate protection

scheme using non-directional protection devices.

Consider a fault FC5. As defined by the zones, only CBs 4 and 5 should
trip. As CB 3 is in close proximity to CB 4, there would be no great
difference in fault current flowing through these two circuit breakers,
therefore IDMT IEDs (Inverse Definite Minimum Time protection relay)
would not be able to discriminate between them. The same situation
applies for CB 5 and CB 6.

This means that by using non-directional devices, CBs 3, 4, 5 and 6

would trip in the event of a fault at F C5. It is clear then that we need a
device that is capable of detecting the direction of the fault current as
well as its magnitude.

Directional overcurrent protection devices can achieve this

requirement, albeit at extra cost. Directional IEDs determine the
direction of the fault current by measuring the voltage with a voltage
transformer as well as the current with a current transformer, and
establishing the phase difference.

This technical article does not go into details of exactly how this is
achieved, but it can be seen that it is possible to determine the
direction of the fault current and base a tripping decision on this
criterion.

Consider again a fault at F C5. This time let us assume we have

directional IEDs. If we configure the IEDs to trip for overcurrent’s only if
the direction of the current flow is away from the bus, CB 4 and CB 5
will trip, but CB 3 and CB 6 will not.
To summarize //

The overcurrent IED should trip whenever the fault power flows away
from the bus but should restrain whenever the fault power flows
towards the bus. There are other situations, which do not involve dual
sources, where directional protection devices are necessary.
Parallel feeders in single-end-fed system
One example is for a single-end fed system of parallel feeders. Figure 2
shows a situation where a fault on one of the parallel lines is fed from
both the faulted line and the healthy one too.

This diagrams shows that a fault current will not only flow from the
source, through CB 4, but also from the source, through CB 1, CB 2,
Bus B and CB3. If non-directional IEDs are used, all circuit breakers will
trip, thus isolating the healthy section of line between (1) and (2).

This problem can be solved by introducing directional IEDs at (2) and

(3). If the tripping direction is set such that they will trip when the
fault is away from the bus, only the CBs in the required zone will trip.
In the example above, CB 2 will not trip as the fault is flowing towards
the bus.

Directional IEDs are more expensive than non- directional ones. What
is more, they necessitate the use of an additional voltage transformer.
For these reasons, they should only be used when absolutely
necessary. You can see by inspection that in this example, non-
directional IEDs will suffice for positions (1) and (4).

Ring main feeder system

Another example where directional IEDs are called for is in a ring main
feeder system, as depicted in Figure 3. Such a system allows supply to
be maintained to all loads in spite of a fault on any section of the
feeder. A fault in any section causes only the CBs associated with that
section to trip.
The directional IEDs and their tripping direction are indicated by
arrows in the diagram. The double- ended arrows indicate non-
directional IEDs, as these will trip with currents flowing in either
direction.

How Directional Feature Incorporated in a Relay?

Why Directional Relay?

For understanding the need of Directional Relay, we consider a power
system as shown in figure below.

For fault at F1, Relay R2 is supposed to pick-up and operate the circuit
breaker.
Similarly, for fault at F2, Relay R1 shall operate to isolate the faulty
section from the healthy section. Now suppose fault occurs at F2, it
may happen so that Relay R2 operate before the operation of Relay R1
as the set pick-up value for both the Relay is same and both Relay see
the same fault current. As Relay R2 is operating here hence the power
supply to the load from Source B is interrupted even when there is no
fault in that section. To avoid such scenario what can be done?

Can we provide time graded protection here? No, we can’t provide

time graded protection here as if there is fault at F1 then because of
time grading Relay R2 will take more time to operate because of
intentional time delay provided.

So, what could be the solution? We may arrange something such that
Relay R1 only operate if the fault is at F2 or toward Source A and
likewise Relay R2 operates if the fault is at F1 or toward source B.
This provision is Directional Feature as we are assigning a direction in
which the Relay has to operate.
But how can we provide this directional feature to a Relay? Which
electrical quantities need to be used for this?
For answering this, suppose a system as shown below.
Suppose a fault occurs at F1. The fault current is flowing in the direction
of I1. The bus voltage is measured using a PT which is Vp here. The CT
secondary and PT secondary is connected to the Relay R2 Operating
and Polarizing Coil respectively. Will explain Polarizing Coil latter in this
section, be patient till then.

As the fault is at F1, the fault current I 1will lag behind the reference
voltage Vp. Now if the fault is at F2, the direction of fault current
through the CT will change by 180 degree and therefore the CT
secondary current will also change its direction by 180 degree and
hence the fault current in this case will lead the reference voltage Vp
(saying reference voltage assuming that Vp remain unchanged).

To summarize, if the fault is at F1 then current is lagging Vp and if fault

is at F2, current is leading Vp. We can use this concept to provide
directional feature in the Relay. We can set in the Relay that if I1 lags Vp
then only it should operate for both Relays R2 and R3, thereby
eliminating the problem of actuation of R3 for fault at F1.

Thus, if we measure the bus voltage phasor Vp and compute the

phase angle of relay current with respect to bus voltage, then we can
use the following logic to provide selectivity. If the relay ‘detects fault’
and current lags VR (= Vp), then permit relay tripping. If the relay
‘detects fault’ and current leads VR (= Vp), then inhibit the relay
tripping. The ‘discrimination principle’ based on phase angle
comparison between a set of phasors, one of which is used as
reference is called ‘Directional Discrimination Principle’. Relays with
this principle are called directional relays.

Any Relay can be made directional by incorporating directional element

in it. For example, we can use directional element in over-current relay
to make it Directional Over-current Relay. This Relay will actuate if the
angle between the fault current and Reference Voltage is satisfied AND
over-current element picks up.
How Directional Relays are designed?
The torque developed by a directional unit is given as
T = VICos(Ɵ-Ƭ) – K
Where,
V = RMS value of voltage fed to the voltage coil of Relay
I = RMS value of current fed to the current coil of the Relay
Ɵ = Angle between V and I
Ƭ = Maximum torque angle, fixed by design (How fixed?)

As we know that Torque produced by a Relay = K1Ø1Ø2Sinξ, where ξ is the

angle between Ø1 and Ø2. K1 is some constant. Therefore, maximum
torque will be produced when ξ = π/2
The angle ξ is developed because of Shaded Pole in the Relay so how
much lagging flux will be developed by Shaded Pole depends upon the
construction and design. Therefore, the maximum Torque angle ξ is fixed
by design.

The phasor diagram for directional over-current relay is shown below.

Here, Øv is the flux created by Voltage Coil which lags behind the
Voltage by around 70 to 80 degrees. ØI is the flux created by current
coil. The net torque is produced by the interaction of Øv and ØI. The
torque will be zero if the angle between Øv and ØI is 180 degree which
is as shown in the phasor above. This is called Zero Torque Line. Also, if
the angle between Øv and ØI is 90 degrees then the Torque will be
maximum which is shown by dotted line in the above phasor which is
called Maximum Torque Line and the angle Ƭ is called Maximum Torque
Angle or Relay Characteristics Angle (RCA). Here it is to be noted that V
is assumed fixed and hence reference phasor. This reference phasor is
called Polarizing quantity.

Now, as V is unchanged hence for the production of net torque for

directional Relay,
VICos(Ɵ-Ƭ) – K>0

Assume k to be negligible, actually K is restrain torque because of

spring and friction.
VICos(Ɵ-Ƭ)>0
Ɵ-Ƭ> +(-)π/2
Ɵ> Ƭ+(-)π/2
This equation can be represented in polar form as shown below.

Carefully observe the zone where the Relay operates and the zone
where it is not operating. Therefore, it is clear that the Relay operates
in between the Zero Torque Line on both side of Maximum Torque Line.
Observe that Maximum Torque Line and Zero Torque Line are
perpendicular to each other.
Now, how to select reference Voltage Phasor?

Vector diagram and relationship between different phasors are shown

above.
Here, Vbc is perpendicular to the Van. Therefore, it is better to take Vbc
as reference phasor. We take the Maximum Torque Line at an angle of
30° with Vbc. As Zero Torque Line is perpendicular to the Maximum
Torque Line, hence it is drawn as shown in figure below. We need to
check whether the Relay will operate for Line to Line and Phase Phase
to Line fault for this assumed reference Phasor. It does operate, which
is described below.

Now consider a line fault involving phase ‘a’ and ‘b’. Then, using 3-
phase line model we get,
Va – Vf = ZsIa + Zm(-Ia) = (Zs – Zm) Ia = Z1Ia
Similarly,
Vb- Vf = ZsIb + ZmIa = – (Zs – Zm) Ia = – Z1Ia
So, Va- Vb = 2Z1 Ia
Ia = (Va- Vb)/ 2Z1
If for simplicity we assume Z to be purely reactive, then from below
figure we get that If abwill be at an angle of 60 degrees lagging to Van.
Thus, unit with Vbc as reference phasor will pick-up on both 3-phase
fault and L-L fault.
For a L-L fault involving phases ‘a’ and ‘c’ , Vac lags Van by . Assuming
purely reactive circuit, the phase current Ia will lag Vbc by . As seen in
the figure, Iac will be again in the operate region and the directional
unit will pickup. Thus, this unit (lead with Vbc as reference phasor) will
pickup for all phase faults involving phase ‘a’. In contrast, for L-L fault
involving phases ‘b’ and ‘c’, Ibc will lag Vbc by . Hence, it will lie outside
the tripping region of the directional unit. Therefore, directional unit
will not pick up.

To summarize, the key feature in obtaining directional discrimination is

the placement of zero torque line which separates the R-X plane into
two regions viz. operate and do not operate. It is apparent that in
numerical relays, this placement is quite flexible and can be specified
with respect to any one reference voltage phasor. This placement can
be made programmable.
Directional Earth Fault Protection

Generally, earth faults are Single Line to Ground (SLG) and Line-Line to
Ground (LLG) faults. Earth faults are characterized by the presence of
Zero Sequence Curren I0. Since, except for unbalance, normal system
operation is not having Zero Sequence Current I0, much more sensitive
pick-up is possible for earth fault by using zero sequence current
component I0 = (Ia + Ib + Ic) / 3 and declaring a fault if I0 exceeds a
threshold.

We know that I0 = (Ia + Ib + Ic) / 3

However, in a system with multiple sources or parallel paths, we

require earth fault relays to be directional as discussed in earlier
post How to Incorporate Directional Feature in a Relay.

As we discussed in earlier post How to Incorporate Directional Feature

in a Relay, that for making a Relay directional we need
Reference Phasor. The reference phasor is called as Polarizing
Quantity. For ground fault relaying both Voltage and Current
Polarization can be used.

We will consider each Voltage and Current Polarization separately for

Earth Fault Protection.

Voltage Polarization:

Let the system be initially unloaded and a ground fault occur on phase
A.

Therefore Ib = Ic = 0 and Ia = 3I0.

For Single Line to Ground fault there is a drop-in voltage of phase A
while phase B and C voltages remain unchanged. Phasor diagram for
Voltage and current for SLG fault can be drawn as below

Voltage and Current Phasor under Single Line to Ground Fault:

In the phasor diagram only 3I0 is shown as Ib = Ic =0 and Ia = 3I0 for

Single Line to Ground fault.

Now we will find the Zero Sequence Voltage under the fault.

As V0 = (Vag+Vbg+Vcg)/3, phasor sum of Va,Vb and Vc is to be taken.

3V0 = Vag+Vbg+Vcg, phasor sum

From phasor diagram it is clear that Zero Sequence Voltage 3V0 is in
phase opposition with Vag (Phase Voltage of A). Therefore, it is
appropriate to take -3V0 as a reference phasor.

In normal power system V0is not present but available only during the
fault. Let the maximum torque be drawn at 60 degrees lag with respect
to -3V0 phasor as shown in figure below.
As we know that Zero Torque Line is perpendicular to the Maximum
Torque Line, therefore we draw Zero Torque Line as shown in figure
above.

It is then clear that zero Torque Line which separates the plane into
Operate and Do Not Operate zone leads -3V0by 30 degrees. Thus, for
fault in the correct region, 3I0 lags -3V0 hence falls in operate region. If
fault is behind the relay, 3I0 will lead -3V0 by about 45 to 60 degrees
and hence will lie in do not operate region. Hence, earth fault
directional unit will not pick-up.
Current Polarization:

For providing direction feature in earth fault relay we can also use
current as refrenec phasor which is called current polarization. It is an
alternative for voltage polarization. It does not require an additional
Potential Transformer (PT).

For balanced system,

Ia+Ib+Ic = 0, phasor sum is taken here.

Therefore, I0 = (Ia+Ib+Ic)/3 = 0 which means absence of Zero Sequence

Current in balanced system.

During ground fault say at phase A, 3I0 flows from ground to neutral of
a Wye connection of Transformer. If we assume for simplicity that Ib =
Ic = 0, then 3I0 and Ia are in phase. This indicates that directional unit
for ground relay should pick-up as Ia is in phase with 3I0. Thus we place
maximum torque line at zero degrees with respect to I 0 phasor. The
correspondingOperate and Do Not Operate zones are marked in figure
below.
If fault is behind the relay, then the Ia will fall in Do Not Operate region
and hence relay will not pick up as Zero sequence Current through the
neutral of Wye connection and Relay will be in phase opposition.

Differences between a Phasor and a Vector

If someone ask you whether current and voltage are vector or scalar
quantity the obviously you will answer that they are scalar quantity.
Next, the question arises if current and voltage are scalar quantity then
why do we represent then in form of vector which is famously known
as Phasor? We will discuss here this aspect.

Vectors are physical quantity which have magnitude, direction and

above all which follows the triangle law of addition of two vectors. As
current have both magnitude and direction but they do not follow the
triangle law of addition of two vectors, hence current is a scalar. Same
argument applies with voltage.

While representing a vector, it is represented by an arrow pointing

toward a particular direction and the length of the arrow is
proportional to the magnitude of the vector.

Now coming to Phasor. Electrical quantities such as voltage and current

are scalar quantities. However, their values changes over time in a
sinusoidal way.

V = VmSinωt

If we see this voltage on Voltage and Time axis, we find that magnitude
of voltage varies from –Vm to +Vm with respect to time. Now consider
the figure below.
In the figure a vector is drawn from the origin making an angle of wt
with the time axis and rotating in anti clockwise direction. Mind that
this vector is rotating with some frequency, that is why it is Phasor.
Normal Vector do not rotate. If we take the projection of the vector on
Voltage axis, we observe that we get the instantaneous value of the
Voltage V = VmSinwt. It is normal practice to take the length of Phasor
as the R.M.S value of the Voltage / Current while in vector, length is
directly proportional to magnitude of the vector.

Anything that behaves like this can be represented by phasors, which

are really just representations of sinusoids.

Thus Phasors are generally rotational representation of sinusoidally

varying quantities. The phase differences in various sinusoidal
quantities can be represented in space respectively by single elements
rotating at angle difference with each other but their frequency should
be same else they cannot be represented on a single diagram. Their
projection on the reference axis gives the value of the individual
quantities at an instant of time.