Directional Overcurrent

Protection
Abdul Basit
Necessity
• In overcurrent protection scheme it was assumed that
• System is radial and single sourced.
• True for traditional distribution systems but it does not hold true for sub-
transmission or transmission system with multiple sources.
• Radial system with two sources connected require relays on both end of
line to detect fault and disconnect transmission line from both ends
• If relays for protection are installed only at one end of transmission line say towards
source A end, it is obvious that after opening of relay in red, the fault will continue to
be fed from source B.

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Necessity
• Similar situation will exist even for a single source system if parallel
paths exist.
• Hence, system which have multiple paths to source require relays at
both ends. However, installing relays at both ends does not provide a
complete relaying solution

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Necessity
• Consider the action of red relay with respect to two likely faults F1 & F2
• If the fault is at F1 then it is responsibility of red relays to open. If fault is at
F2, then it is the green relays which should trip the line.
• However, it is quite likely that for fault F2, the circled red relay may trip before circled
green relay opens to disconnect feed from the source B, the reason being that both
relays are subjected to same fault current.
• In other words, circled red relay competes with circled green relay to clear fault.
Opening of circled red relay unnecessarily causes loss of service to load at bus P and
it should be classified as wrong operation

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Necessity
• Relay element has to be provided with additional discrimination feature to
distinguish between faults.
• Further, this 'selectivity' will not be sufficient if it is based upon magnitude of pick up current
(or fault currents).
• For overcurrent protection the discrimination is provided as R1 > R3 > R5 and R6 > R4 > R2

• not possible to provide such time discrimination between relays like R2 and R3

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Necessity
• Two possible fault locations
• Relay R2 should operate if fault is at F1 because it is on primary feeder but not
behind i.e. at F2.
• With polarity of CT connection, it is apparent that for fault F1 current
I1 seen by the relay lags Vp by 90 degrees. This is under the
assumption of bolted fault and reactive nature of circuit impedance.
However, when the fault is in the position F2, then relay current leads
the bus voltage 'Vp'.

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Fundamental Principle
• Selectivity logic: measure the bus voltage phasor Vp and compute the
phase angle of relay current with respect to bus voltage
• 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 relays with 'discrimination principle' based on phase angle comparison are called
directional relays
• Overcurrent relays can be made directional by adding above discrimination
logic to well known overcurrent logic. Such relays are called as directional
overcurrent relays.
• Used in distribution system or sub transmission system where 'ring main'
configuration is used to provide more reliability of service and has higher cost due to
additional cost of VT.

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Fundamental Principle
• Directional overcurrent relay can be visualized as a cascade
connection of 'one directional unit' and one overcurrent unit.
• If the polarity of the current is appropriate, then directional unit picks up. If
the current magnitude is above pickup, then the overcurrent unit also picks
up and when both units pickup, the trip coil is energized and CB tripping is
ensured. In a numerical relay, this can be programmed by a simple 'AND'
logic.
• Any fault involving ground is called a ground fault. Traditionally, three
phase relays and one ground relay have been used to protect a feeder
or a transmission line. However, in a numerical relay, all these
functions can be integrated into a single relay which acquires 3-phase
voltages and 3-phase currents.

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Fundamental Principle
• For electromechanical relays, with respect to reference phase 'Va', we can
draw operating line (zero torque line) which separates the plane into two
regions marked as 'operate' and 'Do not operate'.
• If the fault is in the operating region, then Ia lags Va and we issue trip decision.
• In case, fault is behind the relay, the fault current leads Va and hence lies in the "do
not operate" region.
• Maximum torque line, i.e. line perpendicular to the zero torque line can be
placed at an angle with respect to Va also.
• adds complexity to electromechanical relay design.
• But simple programming job in a numerical relay.
• Common practice is to place the maximum torque line at an angle of 60 degrees lag
or 45 degrees with respect to ' Va'

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Fundamental Principle
since Vbc is in phase quadrature with Va, it is
possible to use Vbc as the reference phasor
and locate the maximum torque line at 30
degrees leading it. This is what traditionally
practiced in legacy directional overcurrent
relays. With this placement we now show
that directional unit will pickup for both 3-
phase and L-L faults.

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Directional Overcurrent Relay
Coordination
Overcurrent & Directional Overcurrent Protection

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Directional Relay Coordination
• Coordination of directional overcurrent relays involves setting of
relays one by one so that at each stage the relay coordinates with its
primary relay.
• In a loop, the last relay to be set is the very first, in which initial
setting were assumed.
• Relay coordination activity in a mesh system is iterative.
• Contrast with a radial system where the relay coordination is completed in
one pass.
• The iterative nature of relay setting and coordination converges when on
revisiting the same relay, if we do not have to change the relay settings and
TMS.
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Directional Relay Coordination
Typical transmission line is
protected by directional relays at
both ends. Hence we have to
consider two loops, i.e. one loop
formed in clockwise direction and
the another in anticlockwise
direction.
In this case clockwise loop is given
by R5 > R6 > R7 > R8 > R5 and anti
clockwise loop is given by R1 > R2 >
R3 > R4 > R1 where arrow should
be read as ‘backs up' 13
Directional Relay Coordination
• Consider anticlockwise loop for setting starting setting from any one of the
four relays, i.e. R1, R2, R3 and R4.
• Let us start from R2, i.e. setting in relay R2 is assumed appropriately.
• R1 will be set to coordinate with R2, since R1 has to back up R2. Now R4 has to
coordinate with R1, R3 with R4 and R2 with R3. Thus we can see that the setting of
R2 has changed from what it was initially to coordinate with R3.
• After first iteration, we update the setting of R2 to the corresponding new setting, to
coordinate with R3, thus closing the loop. If the setting of the R2 has changed
significantly, then we repeat the above process by fine tuning the settings of all the
relays in the loop again.
• As every iteration improvises the relay settings (TMS), we expect the
settings to converge in a few iterations. We have to repeat the same
process with the clockwise loop also. Then all the relays will be set and
relay coordination activity is complete.

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Example
• Consider the system shown in above figure

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