A novel fault section locating method based on distance matching degree in distribution network

Abstract

Fault section location of a single-phase grounding fault is affected by the neutral grounding mode of the system, transition resistance, and the blind zone. A fault section locating method based on an amplitude feature and an intelligent distance algorithm is proposed to eliminate the influence of the above factors. By analyzing and comparing the amplitude characteristics of the zero-sequence current transient components at both ends of the healthy section and the faulty section, a distance algorithm with strong abnormal data immune capability is introduced in this paper. The matching degree of the amplitude characteristics at both ends of the feeder section are used as the criterion and by comparing with the set threshold, the faulty section is effectively determined. Finally, simulations using Matlab/Simulink and PSCAD/EMTDC show that the proposed section locating method can locate the faulty section accurately, and is not affected by grounding mode, grounding resistance, or the blind zone.