Line

Protection
Viju Ravindran
ABB Group - 1 -
11-Jun-07
 Line Protection

Electrical faults in the power system

Transmission lines 85%

Busbar 12%
Transformer/ Generator 3%

100%
ABB Group - 2 -
11-Jun-07
 Line Protection

Fault types
Transient faults
are common on transmission lines, approximately 80-85%
lightning are the most common reason
can also be caused by birds, falling trees, swinging lines etc.
will disappear after a short dead interval

Persistent faults
can be caused by a broken conductor fallen down
can be a tree falling on a line
ABB Group - 3 -

must be located and repaired before normal service

11-Jun-07
 Line Protection

Fault types on double circuit lines

Simultaneous and Interline faults
L3 L1
On parallel line applications a problem
can occur with simultaneous faults. L1 L2
A full scheme relay is superior when the
L2 L3
protection is measuring two different fault
types at the same time.

Z
~ < L1- ~
N
ABB Group - 4 -

L2-
11-Jun-07

N
 Line Protection

MAIN REQUIREMENTS ON LINE

PROTECTION ARE:

SPEED
SENSITIVITY
SELECTIVITY
DEPENDABILITY
SECURITY
ABB Group - 5 -
11-Jun-07
 Line Protection
Measuring principles

Overcurrent protection
Differential protection
Phase comparison
Distance protection
Directional- wave protection
ABB Group - 6 -
11-Jun-07
 Line Protection
Overcurrent protection
Are normally used in radial networks with system
voltage below 70 kV where relatively long
operating time is acceptable.
On transmission lines directional or non-directional
over current relays are used as back-up
protections.

I>

I> I> I>

ABB Group - 7 -

block
11-Jun-07
 Line Protection
Dependent Time Overcurrent Relays

CHARACTERISTICS OF
DEPENDENT TIME OVERCURRENT RELAYS

100.0
Operate Time [s]

Long T ime Inverse

10.0
Normal Inverse

1.0
Extremely Inverse Very Inverse

0.1
1 10 100
Current (multiple of setting)
ABB Group - 8 -
11-Jun-07
 Line Protection
Two or Three Phase Over current Relays

Two phase over current relays and one residual over

current relay give complete protection on power lines
and cables
A third phase relay provides back-up protection
In case of a D/Y-connected transformer, the fault current
in one phase may be twice that in the other two phases
and it may be necessary to provide three phase over
current relays
ABB Group - 9 -
11-Jun-07
 Line Protection
Directional Over current Relays

Relays on radial lines do not need directional element

Directional elements are useful on parallel lines, on

looped lines, and in meshed networks
ABB Group - 10 -
11-Jun-07
 Line Protection
Directional Residual Overcurrent Relays

Reverse
operation

0.6x 3I0D

=65
Upol
3I0D Forward -3U0
operation
3I0 >
= the characteristic angle of zero
ABB Group - 11 -

sequence source impedance

11-Jun-07
 Line Protection
Directional Residual Overcurrent Relays

Residual voltage polarization requires a sensitive

directional element
Third harmonics in voltage must not cause incorrect
operation of the directional element
ABB Group - 12 -
11-Jun-07
 Line Protection
Pilot wire differential protection

Pilot wires can be in soil or on towers.

The resistance in the wires will limit the use on longer
lines. The use is mostly restricted to distances up to 10
km.
ABB Group - 13 -
11-Jun-07
 Line Protection
Digital differential communication
L1
L2
L3

DL1
DL1
Digital communication with
DL2
optical fibres or by DL2
multiplexed channels
DL3 DL3
ABB Group - 14 -
11-Jun-07
 Line Protection
Phase comparison
load Phase comparison relays
compare the angle difference
I1 I2
between the two currents at
> > both ends of the line.

The measured time for zero
I1 I2 crossing is transmitted to the
other end.
Normally a start criteria is
e added to the phase angle
1
requirement.
e
2
I2
ABB Group - 15 -

e1 e func- I1
- 2 tion
11-Jun-07

I2
 Line Protection
Directional wave protection
The basic principle of directional wave protection is to observe the
polarities of the instantaneous change in voltage and current. Here by
one can determine the direction of a fault with respect to the location
of the measurement.
Tripping is achieved when both protections detects a fault in forward
direction.

I U Trip
A B + + 0
~ ~ - - 0
F
- + 1
ABB Group - 16 -

+ - 1
11-Jun-07
 Line Protection
Distance protection

ZK=Uk/
Ik

Uk Uk=0
metallic fault

Zk B
A
Ik
ABB Group - 17 -

Z<
11-Jun-07
 Line Protection
Fault resistance
L3 L1
multi-phase faults
L1 L2
consists only of arc resistance
L2 L3
earth faults
consists of arc and tower
footing resistance
Warringtons
formula
L= length of arc in
28707 x L meters
ABB Group - 18 -

Rarc = 1.4
I Footing resistance
I= the actual fault current in
11-Jun-07

A
 Line Protection
The principle of distance protection
Power lines have impedances of 0,3- 0,4 ohm/ km
and normal angles of 80 - 85 degrees in a 50Hz
systems.
A B
ZL=R+jX

Z< Z<

The line impedance may have to be converted to

secondary values with the formula:
ABB Group - 19 -

VTsec x CTprim x
Zsec= Zprim
VTprim CTsec
11-Jun-07
 Line Protection
The principle of distance protection
t
t3
t2
t1
l
A B C

f f f
1 2 3

Z< Z< Z< Z<

t
t3
t2
ABB Group - 20 -

t1
l
11-Jun-07
 Line Protection
Design of distance protection
Switched scheme
consists of a start relay to select (switch) the measuring
loop to the single measuring relay

Full scheme
has a measuring element for each measuring loop and
for each zone
Z
~ < L1- ~
N
ABB Group - 21 -

L2-
N
11-Jun-07
 Line Protection
Requirements on Distance relay Zones
Zone-1
Must not overreach
Zone-2
Must overreach
Must co-ordinate with next section
Provides back-up for the next busbar
Provides back-up for the first part of next line
Zone-3
Can provide back-up for next line
Can provide back-up for next busbar
In feed of fault current at the remote busbar affects the effective
ABB Group - 22 -

reach of the overreaching zones

11-Jun-07
 Line Protection
Measuring loop for earth faults
The distance protection relays are always set based on
the phase impedance to the fault

Zs RL XL
IL1
UL1

IN RN XN

The measured Impedance is a function of

positive and zero sequence impedance
ABB Group - 23 -
11-Jun-07
 Line Protection
Measuring loop for two- phase faults

The distance protection relays are always set based on

the phase impedance to the fault

Zs RL XL
IL1
UL1-L2 IL2

The measured impedance is equal to the

positive sequence impedance up to the fault
ABB Group - 24 -

location
11-Jun-07
 Line Protection
Measuring loop for three- phase faults

The distance protection relays are always set

based on the phase impedance to the fault

Zs RL XL
IL1
UL1 IL2
UL2 IL3
UL3

The measured impedance is equal to the

positive sequence impedance up to the fault
ABB Group - 25 -

location
11-Jun-07
 Line Protection
The earth fault measurement
U= I1Z1+I0Z0+I2Z2 Z1=Z2

U= Z1( I1+I2+I0 ) +I0Z0 -I0Z1 I= I1+I2+I0

U=I Z1+I0 ( Z0 - Z1 ) 3I0=IN

I Z0 - Z1
U=I Z1+ N ( Z0 - Z1 )
3
U=IZ1+IN ( 3
)
ABB Group - 26 -
11-Jun-07
 Line Protection
The earth fault measurement
The current used is thus the phase current plus the residual
current times a factor KN = (Z0-Z1) / 3Z1, the zero sequence
compensation factor.

The factor KN is a transmission line constant and Z0/ Z1 is

presumed to be identical throughout the whole line length.

(1+KN) Z1 gives the total loop impedance for the earth fault
loop for single end infeed.
ABB Group - 27 -
11-Jun-07
 Line Protection
Measurement Loops
Fault Voltage Current
R-Earth VR IR + Kn 3I0
S-Earth VS IS + Kn 3I0
T-Earth VT IT + Kn 3I0
R- S VR - VS IR - IS
S- T VS - VT IS - IT
T- R VT - VR IT - IR
R- S- T Any phase-earth voltage Corresponding phase current
any phase-phase voltage Corresponding phase-phase current
R - S - T - Earth Any phase-earth voltage Corresponding phase current
any phase-phase voltage Corresponding phase-phase current
ABB Group - 28 -
11-Jun-07
 Line Protection
Directional measurement
When a fault occurs close to the relay location the
voltage can drop to a value where the directional
measurement can not be performed.
Modern distance protection relays will instead use the
healthy voltage e.g. for L1- fault the voltage UL2-L3,
shifted 90 degrees compared to UL1. This cross
polarisation is used in different proportions between
healthy and faulty phases in different products.
At three- phase fault close to the station all phase
voltages are low and cross polarisation is not of any
use. Instead a memory voltage is used to secure correct
measurement.
ABB Group - 29 -
11-Jun-07
 Line Protection
Distance protection on short lines
jX
Distance protection with mho
characteristic can not see an
average fault resistance

RF
XF R
ABB Group - 30 -
11-Jun-07
 Line Protection
Distance protection on short lines
jX
Quadrilateral characteristic
improves sensitivity for higher RF/XF
ratio
It still has some limitations:
the value of set RF/XF ratio is
limited to 5

RF

XF R
ABB Group - 31 -
11-Jun-07
 Line Protection
Distance protection on short lines
jX Overreaching permissive
schemes increase the
sensitivity
Weak infeed logic for very
high fault resistance
Independent underreaching
zone 1 gives additional
advantage
RF
XF R
ABB Group - 32 -
11-Jun-07
 Line Protection
Distance protection on long lines
Load impedance limits the reach
jX
in resistive direction
High value of RF/XF ratio is
generally not necessary
Circular (mho) characteristic
Has no strictly defined reach
in resistive direction
Needs limitations in resistive
direction (blinder)

R
ABB Group - 33 -
11-Jun-07
 Line Protection
Communication equipment
Power line carrier (PLC) equipment is based on a
capacitive connection of signals with frequency in
range 50- 500 kHz on the power line.
Radio link is a good and reliable communication
equiment, but is rarely used due to the high cost.
Optical fibres have the advantage to be insensitive
to noise and can transmit a huge amount of
information.
ABB Group - 34 -
11-Jun-07
 Line Protection
Permissive communication schemes
Communication signal carrier send (CS) is sent to remote end when
the fault is detected in forward direction. Tripping is achieved when
the commmunication signal carrier receive (CR) is received and the
local relay has detected a forward fault.
In a permissive underreaching scheme the communication signal is
sent from a zone that underreaches the remote end.
In a permissive overreaching scheme the communication signal is
sent from a zone that overreaches the remote end.
A B

Z< Z<
ABB Group - 35 -

Carrier send CS = Z< forward, under or

overreach
11-Jun-07

Trip = ZM1 + ZM2 (t2 + CR) + ZM3 x t3

 Line Protection
Permissive Underreach Distance Protection
ABB Group - 36 -
11-Jun-07
 Line Protection
Permissive Overreach Distance Protection
ABB Group - 37 -
11-Jun-07
 Line Protection
Permissive Overreach Distance Protection

Permissive overreaching schemes are adopted for short

lines( Also called directional comparison schemes)

Advantages are
Better performance for high resistance faults.
Superior to pilot wire as digital decisions are
exchanged and not analogue
Superior to phase comparison which requires
faithful transmission of phase information.
ABB Group - 38 -
11-Jun-07
 Line Protection
Blocking communication schemes
Communication signal (CS) is sent to remote end when the fault
is detected in the reverse direction. Tripping is achieved when
this blocking signal is not received within a time T0 (20-40 ms)
and the local relay has detected a fault in the forward direction.

A B

Z< Z<

Carrier send CS = Z< reverse zone

ABB Group - 39 -

Trip = ZM1 + ZM2 (t2 + CR x T0) + ZM3 x t3

11-Jun-07
 Line Protection
Blocking Overreach Distance Protection
ABB Group - 40 -
11-Jun-07
 Line Protection
Remote faults
Due to current contribution If2 and If3 in substation B, the
distance protection in station A will measure a higher
impedance than the "true" impedance to the fault.
The relay will thus underreach and this means in practice it
can be diffcult to get a remote back-up.

A B If
ZL If
1 2
If If=If1+If2+If
Um ZF
3 3

Z<
ABB Group - 41 -

Um= If1 x ZL+ (If1+If2+If3) x ZF

11-Jun-07
 Line Protection
Double end infeed

I1 I Load
I2

U1 U2
UF RF

UF = RF ( I1 + I2 )
RF ( I1 + I2 )
RF1=
ABB Group - 42 -

I1
11-Jun-07
 Line Protection
Measuring error at high resistive earth fault on
a line with double end infeed
X

Rf Load import

ZL
Rf Load export

R
ABB Group - 43 -
11-Jun-07
 Line Protection
Zero- sequence mutual coupling on parallel
lines
ZL

~ ZOM ~
ZL

~ ~
ABB Group - 44 -

ZA< ZA< ZB< ZB< underreaching

11-Jun-07

overreaching
 Line Protection
Parallel line out of service and earthed at
both ends

KOM ZOM / ZOL

Z = - ZL
1 + KO

= - 0.23 ZL
ABB Group - 45 -
11-Jun-07
 Line Protection
Parallel line in Service

D
KOM
ZL
Z = 1 + KO
= 0.38 ZL
ABB Group - 46 -
11-Jun-07
 Line Protection
Distance relay settings for parallel lines

The influence of zero sequence coupling can be

compensated in two different ways
Different K factor for different Zones within same
group setting parameters
Different groups of setting parameters for different
operating conditions
ABB Group - 47 -
11-Jun-07
 Line Protection
FUSE FAIL SUPERVISION

This function is based on condition

3Uo > 20 % of Un / 3 and 3Io < 20 % of In

It can be selected to block protection and give alarm

or just to give alarm.

Fuse fail supervision is blocked for 200ms following

Line energisation in order not to operate for unequal
pole closing and also during auto-reclosing.

MCB can also be used.

ABB Group - 48 -
11-Jun-07
 Line Protection
Switch On To Fault (SOTF)
When energizing a power line onto a forgotten earthing, no
measuring voltage will be available and the directional
measuring can thus not operate correctly.
A special SOTF function is thus provided. Different principles
can be used, from one phase current to non-directional
impedance measuring.

SOTF condition can either be

taken from the manual closing
signal activating the (BC) input
U=0 or it can be detected internally
by a logic.
Z< V
ABB Group - 49 -
11-Jun-07
 Line Protection
Power Swing Blocking function
A power swing can start by sudden load change or due
to a fault somewhere in the network.
Close to the centre of the power swing, low voltage and
thus low impedance will occur.

A distance protection relay must then be blocked during

the power swing.
This can be done by measuring the transit time of the
impedance locus passing two dedicated impedance
zones.
Normally the time used is 35-40 ms.
ABB Group - 50 -
11-Jun-07
 Line Protection
Power Swing Blocking function
X

Power swing
locus

t = 40 ms
ABB Group - 51 -
11-Jun-07
 Line Protection
Power Swing Blocking function

When power swing detection unit operates any impedence

zone can be selected to be blocked or not as required.

Operation of power swing detection unit is inhibited when zero

sequence current is detected. This feature is included to ensure
tripping of high resistance earth faults where fault resistance
can decrease slowly.

The residual current inhibit condition ensure PSD will not

block due to unbalanced load or residual current experienced
with un-transposed transmission lines.
ABB Group - 52 -
11-Jun-07
 Line Protection
Stub protection function It is not possible for the
distance protection relay to
Bus A
+ >Z measure impedance when the
line disconnector is open. Not
to risk incorrect operation the
distance protection must be
blocked and a Stub protection
is released.
The Stub protection is a simple
current relay.

25ms
line disc
open & trip

Bus B I STUB >

ABB Group - 53 -
11-Jun-07
 Line Protection
Permissive overreaching
Current reversal logic schemes can trip healthy line
without C.R.L
1 Fault occurs on line 1
A: B:
~ 1 1 ~ Fault detection by protection A:1 B:1 and A:2
2 Relay B:1 trips CB and sends carrier to A:1
A: B: Relay A:2 sees fault in forward direction and
2 2 sends carrier to B:2
3 Fault cleared at B:1, current direction changed
on line 2
A: B: 4 Carrier from A:2 and forward looking measuring
~ 1 1 ~ element in relay A:2 does not reset before relay
B:2 detects the fault in forward direction and
trips, also relay A:1 will trip when receiving carrier
A: B: from B:1
2 2
ABB Group - 54 -

C.R.L allows slowly resetting

communication equipment without
11-Jun-07

risking to tripping the healthy line.

 Line Protection
Simultaneous faults
ABB Group - 55 -
11-Jun-07
 Line Protection
Simultaneous faults

On parallel line applications a problem

can occur with simultaneous faults.
A full scheme relay is superior when
the protection is measuring two
different fault types at the same time.
ABB Group - 56 -
11-Jun-07
 Line Protection
Weak end infeed
Weak end infeed is a condition which can occur on a transmission line,
either when the circuit breaker is open, so there is no current infeed
from that line end, or when the current infeed is low due to weak
generation behind the protection.

CR CS
Z< (echo) Z<
t3 CS CR
t2
t1
CS = ZM2 l
CS (echo)=CR x low voltage x no start forward or
ABB Group - 57 -

reverse
11-Jun-07

TRIP = ZM1 + ZM2(CR + t2)

 Line Protection
Fault Locator Measuring Principle
L
F
ZA A pZL ( I - p )ZL B ZB
I I
IA F B
RF UA=IA X P ZL + IFA X RF
DA

pZL ( 1- p ) ZL

(I-P) ZL +ZB
ZA ZB DA =
-

ABB Group - 58 -

ZA+ZL +ZB
+
11-Jun-07
 Line Protection
Series compensated system
jX B A B
XC =70%
Xl =100%

100% F1
gap flashed

B
Consideration for line
A
distance protections
R
Correct direction
discrimination at voltage
70% gap not flashed reversal (negative fault
reactance)
variation in resulted line
ABB Group - 59 -

impedance
11-Jun-07
 ABB Group - 60 -
11-Jun-07
Line Protection
 Line Protection
3.0
3.0 SETTING
SETTINGCRITERIA
CRITERIA

3.1
3.1 Reach
Reachsettings
settingsofofdistance
distanceprotection
protection

(i) Zone-I: to be set to cover 80-85% of protected line length

(ii) Zone II: to be set to cover minimum 120% of length of principle

line section. However, in case of D/C lines 150% coverage must be
provided to take care of, under reaching due to mutual coupling effect
but, care is to be taken that it does not reach into next lower voltage
level.
ABB Group - 61 -
11-Jun-07
 Line Protection
(iii) Zone-III:

For 400kV lines Zone-III to be set to cover 120% of principle section

plus adjacent longest section subject to a reach restriction so that it
does not reach into next lower voltage level.

For 220 kV lines, Zone-III reach may be provided to cover adjacent

longest section if there is no provision of LBB or all protection are
connected to single DC source at remote end substation.

(iv) Resistive reach should be set to give maximum coverage subject to

check of possibility against load point encroachment considering
minimum expected voltage and maximum load. Attention has to be
given to any limitations indicated by manufacturer in respect of
resistive setting vis-a-vis reactance setting.
ABB Group - 62 -
11-Jun-07
 Line Protection
3.2
3.2 Time
Timesetting
settingofofdistance
distanceprotection
protection

A Zone-II timing of 0.3 second is recommended. If a long line is follow-

ed by a short line, then a higher setting may be adopted on long line to
avoid indiscriminate tripping through Zone-II operation on both lines.

Zone-III timer should be set so as to provide discrimination with the

operating time of relays provided in subsequent sections with which Zone-
III reach of relay being set overlaps.
ABB Group - 63 -
11-Jun-07
 Line Protection
3.3
3.3 OO/ /VVProtection
Protection

3.3.1
Low set voltage may be set at 110% with a typical time delay of 5
seconds.

A time grading of 1 second may be provided between relays of

different lines at a station.

Longest time delay should be checked with expected operating time

of overfluxing relay of the transformer to ensure disconnection of
line before tripping of transformer.

3.3.2

High set stage may be set at 150% with a time delay of 100 m second.
ABB Group - 64 -
11-Jun-07
 Line Protection
3.4
3.4 Power
PowerSwing
SwingBlocking
BlockingFunction
FunctionAssociated
Associatedwith
withDistance
DistanceRelays
Relays

Decisions pertaining to allowing which Zone to trip and which to block

should be taken based on system studies on case to case basis.
ABB Group - 65 -
11-Jun-07
 Setting of Protections
(distance relays)
ABB Group - 66 -
11-Jun-07
 Line Protection
Zone-1

Offers instantaneous circuit-local back-up

protection for nearby faults, but not for the entire
transmission circuit from both terminals.
Set to under reach protected circuit to ensure
external security
In case of parallel circuit may be necessary to
increase degree of under reach
For multi circuit lines reach reduces further due to
in feeds
ABB Group - 67 -
11-Jun-07
 Line Protection
Zone-2
Zone-2 Reach Setting Criteria
Should overreach all terminals of the protected circuit
by an acceptable margin (typically 20% of highest
impedance seen) for all fault conditions and for all
intended modes of system operation.
As far as possible, should be less than Zone-1
coverage of all adjacent lines, to minimize the
required Zone-2 time delay setting.
ABB Group - 68 -
11-Jun-07
 Line Protection
Zone-2 reach setting
ABB Group - 69 -
11-Jun-07
 Line Protection
Zone-2
Zone-2 time Setting Criteria
Must be set to coordinate with clearance of adjacent circuit faults,
within reach, by the intended main protection or by breaker fail
protection
tz2 >tMA+tCB+tz2reset+ts
tZ2 = Required Zone-2 time delay
tMA = Operating time of slowest adjacent circuit main
protection or Circuit Local back-up for faults within Zone-2 reach
tCB = Associated adjacent circuit breaker clearance time
ABB Group - 70 -

tZ2reset= Resetting time of Zone-2 impedance element with load

current Present
11-Jun-07

tS = Safety margin for tolerance (e.g. 100ms)

 Line Protection
Zone-2

Effect of parallel lines

Where common impedance settings exist for
phase and ground fault impedance elements, or
where independent residual compensation settings
are not available for each zone of protection the
phase fault Zone-2 reach will unavoidably be
extended in order to satisfy ground fault reach
requirements.
This can create Zone-2 back-up co-ordination
difficulties, particularly where adjacent sections or
ABB Group - 71 -

transmission circuit are of unequal length

11-Jun-07
 Line Protection
Zone-2

Multi terminal circuits

The primary Zone-2 setting criterion must be met with
allowance for the highest apparent impedance seen for a
fault at any remote circuit terminal.

The Zone-2 reach setting may reach very high

percentage of the circuit impedance between the closest
terminals. The reach may need to be further enhanced to
address under reach for ground faults when protecting
parallel multi-terminal circuits.
ABB Group - 72 -
11-Jun-07
 Line Protection
Zone-2 in multi-terminal lines
ABB Group - 73 -
11-Jun-07
 Line Protection
Zone-2

Load encroachment
One problem with mho impedance elements is that the
fault resistance coverage varies with the forward reach
setting. When applying Zone-1 elements to short lines,
fault resistance coverage may be insufficient. It can also
be disadvantage for Zone2 elements to be set with
unusually high forward reach setting in relation to the
minimum load impedance. It may be possible for the
minimum load impedance to encroach upon the Zone-2
operating region.
ABB Group - 74 -
11-Jun-07
 Line Protection
Zone-2 load encroachment
ABB Group - 75 -
11-Jun-07
 Line Protection
Zone-3 Remote back-up
General
Usually set to provide remote back-up protection for
adjacent sections of a transmission circuit.
May have independently adjustable forward and
reverse reach setting
Usually forward reach provides remote back-up
protection.
With duplicate main protection, there may be a
case for not applying Zone-3 remote back-up
protection at all.
ABB Group - 76 -

In case of long 400kV lines it may be desirable

either to reduce the reach or to block 3rd zone of
11-Jun-07

distance relay for reasons of security.

 Line Protection
Zone-3 remote back-up
Reach setting
Zone 3 should overreach the remote terminal of the
longest adjacent line by an acceptable margin (typically
20% of highest impedance seen) for all fault conditions
and in feed conditions associated with all intended modes
of system operation
Zone-3 reach should be less than the Zone-2 protection
coverage of the shortest adjacent transmission circuit and
it should not see through power transformers into
distribution systems, in order to minimize the required
zone-3 time delay setting.
ABB Group - 77 -
11-Jun-07
 Line Protection
Zone-3 remote back-up
Time setting
Must be set to co-ordinate with clearance of faults by adjacent
circuit-local back-up protection. Zone-2 distance protection or time
delayed over current protection
The following formula would be the basis for determining the
minimum acceptable Zone-3 time setting:
tz3 > tMA +tCB +tz3reset +ts
Where:
tZ3 = Required Zone-3 time delay
tMA = Operating time of slowest adjacent circuit local back-up
protection
tCB = Associated adjacent circuit breaker clearance time
tZ3reset = Resetting time of Zone-3 impedance element with load
current present
ABB Group - 78 -

tS = Safety margin for tolerance (e.g. 100ms)

11-Jun-07
 Line Protection
Zone-3 remote back-up
Consideration of mutual coupling
As for Zone-2 protection the under reaching effect
of zero sequence mutual coupling for remote
ground faults must also be considered.
Such consideration is quite complex, since there
may well be differences in the levels of mutual
coupling for the protected circuit and any number of
adjacent circuits.
In addition, some circuit sections may be multi-
circuit while other sections may not be.
ABB Group - 79 -
11-Jun-07
 Line Protection
Zone-3 remote back-up
Considerations for intervening fault currents
The under reaching effects are encountered in relation to
adjacent circuit impedance, when applying Zone-3 remote
back-up protection.
These under-reaching effects are particularly difficult to
address, since they are variable according to the type of
fault.
Ground faults can invoke additional zero sequence
current in feed from transformers with grounded star-
connected primary windings and other delta-connected
windings.
ABB Group - 80 -
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 Line Protection
Zone-3 remote back-up
Zone-3 load impedance encroachment
Encroachment due to the minimum load impedance under expected
modes of system operation and the minimum impedance that might
be sustained for seconds or minutes during abnormal or emergency
system situations.
Use of blinders in case of Mho type of elements or by use of polygon
type impedance elements.
In case of long 400kV transmission lines it may be desirable to limit
the reach of Zone-3 for reasons of security. In such cases, if the
adjacent station has bus bar protection and breaker failure protection,
Zone-3 can be dispensed with.

ESKOM (South Africa) have a practice of not using third zone

impedance protection in long line applications . They use enhanced
ABB Group - 81 -

local breaker back-up .

11-Jun-07
 Line Protection
Effect of in feeds on Zone-3
ABB Group - 82 -
11-Jun-07
 Line Protection
Zone-3 load encroachment
ABB Group - 83 -
11-Jun-07
 Line Protection
Zone-3 coordination
ABB Group - 84 -
11-Jun-07
 Line Protection
Zone- 4 substation local back-up
An additional zone of reverse-looking protection (e.g.
Zone-4) to offer substation-local back-up protection.
The Zone-4 reverse reach must adequately cover
expected levels of apparent bus bar fault resistance,
when allowing for multiple in feeds from other
circuits.
Sometimes when separate reverse looking element is
not available the above is achieved by offset reach of
Zone-3 of distance relay.
ABB Group - 85 -
11-Jun-07
 ABB Group - 86 -
11-Jun-07
Line Protection