Abstract. With growing penetration of distributed generation (DG) in electrical distribution networks (EDNs), miscoordination between fuse and recloser is more likely. This is the result of change of direction, as well as the magnitude of the fault current in the presence of DG where fuse saving cannot be achievd with standard recloser characteristics. This paper proposes a self-adaptive relaying scheme of reclosing operation for fuse saving in EDNs with DG. The recloser is programmed with a new non-standard characteristic using only the local voltage and current magnitude measurements. The proposed relaying scheme is tested for various fault conditions in a 20 kV Iranian radial EDN containing DG units at different locations. It is shown that the proposed scheme is not affected by the presence of DG units whereas the conventional relays fail the protection coordination. The proposed characteristic maintains proper recloser-fuse coordination for all fault types and different DG conditions. Keywords: Fuse saving, distributed generation, electric distribution network, non-communication protection, self-adaptive relaying scheme
IntroductionFuse saving is a common protection strategy that prevents nuisance fuse blowing during transient faults by fast operation of the recloser located at the head of a feeder before the blown up of its downstream fuses. After a predefined time, enough for the fault clearance, the recloser reenergises the feeder and restores the power supply. Since 50% to 80% of faults occurring in electrical distribution networks (EDNs) have transient nature [1], the fuse saving strategy can improve the system security and reliability. By incorporation of distributed generation (DG) units in EDNs, the fault current level and direction can change and cause miscoordination between the recloser and its downstream fuses. The fault current passing through the recloser decreases and at the same time the fuse fault current increases because of the DG contribution to the fuse fault current [2]. Therefore, the fuse may blow up before the fast operation of the recloser.Several methods are presented in the literature for fuse-recloser coordination in the presence of DG. In [3, 4] a complete study is carried out on a test EDN to find the best DG locations and also the best recloser setting to minimise the loss of coordination between the fuse and the recloser under different fault conditions. In order to achive the best location and size of DG, different cases must be studied by changing DG size and location for each possible fault location. This method needs to be tailored for each EDN individually. In addition, any change in the number of DG units, can cause a miscoordination between the recloser and fuses. Thus, it may be very time consuming or even infeasible to find the best DG location and related recloser setting for large EDNs.The method of [5] uses power electronic switches to disconnect all DG units after a fault inception and before any fuse blow up. This method does not require any upgrade of the prote...