ON-LINE FAULT DETECTION AND LOCALIZATION IN THE

MEDIUM VOLTAGE NETWORK

Sungin Cho, Clean Technology Centre, DNV GL – Energy

DNV GL Technology Centre, 16 Science Park Drive, Singapore 118227, Sungin.Cho@dnvgl.com

Ng Desmond, Clean Technology Centre, DNV GL – Energy

DNV GL Technology Centre, 16 Science Park Drive, Singapore 118227, Desmond.ng@dnvgl.com

Paul Wagenaars, DNV GL – Energy

Utrechtseweg 310, 6812 AR Arnhem, the Netherlands, Paul.Wagenaars@dnvgl.com

Fred Steennis, DNV GL – Energy

Utrechtseweg 310, 6812 AR Arnhem, the Netherlands, Fred.Steennis@dnvgl.com

ABSTRACT

For distribution network operators, a quick localization of a MV cable fault, whether it is a full fault or an
intermittent fault, will contribute significantly to reduce the SAIDI and SAIFI. Therefore accurate fault
localization and effective execution of corrective maintenance activities are paramount [1]. The most common
way of localizing the fault is using conventional off-line testing equipment using Time Domain Reflectometry
(TDR). However effectiveness of this method is largely depending upon the type of the fault, experience of the
operator as well as ambient constraint such as accessibility of the fault location. Plus in case of high-resistance
cable faults, DC and surge pulse voltages should be used. A new development presented in this paper is the
localization of the fault by an on-line monitoring device, called Smart Cable Guard (SCG), being able to
pinpoint the fault location with an inaccuracy of 1 % with respect to the total cable length. Hence, this paper
introduces common practice of fault localization in MV networks in comparison with SCG system with a case
study. Lastly, the paper introduced SCG’s well-known Partial Discharge (PD) detecting and localizing features
including a recent case study.

KEYWORDS: on-line fault detection, on-line PD detection, breakdown, fault localization, PD localization,
on-line condition monitoring, medium voltage power cable.

1. INTRODUCTION
MV power cable network play a pivotal role in the performance of a distribution network. It is usually measured
as System Average Interruption Frequency Index (SAIFI) and System Average Interruption Duration Index
(SAIDI). The main target of network owners therefore is to improve those two key performance indicators.
Those indicators are largely affected by unscheduled outages, which can be caused by either electrical insulation
degradation preluded with measureable partial discharges (PD’s) and failures or direct components failures
without preluding measurable PD’s. In the latter case, the most important information to the network owner is to
find out the location of the failure as fast as possible in order to perform the corrective work effectively.
Afterwards and in addition, if it is possible, a proper Power Failure Investigation (PFI) could be executed in
order to understand the root course of this failure.
Meanwhile in the first case, network owners are trying to measure and monitor the MV power cable insulation
condition through different diagnostic techniques, where one can choose on- and off-line measurement methods.
Among these, one of the most reliable and cost-effective methods is known as on-line PD monitoring. In this
respect, both fault localization as well as condition monitoring of the MV power cable network are in demand.
2. FAULT DETECTION AND LOCALIZATION

2.1. Typical fault detection and localization technique

Once utility companies receive any alarms or interruptions of their cable network operation via the SCADA
system, a maintenance crew will proceed to the affected substations to perform isolation of the faulty cable and
perform off-line fault localization. A general procedure is typically set out to manage the fault location in a
systematic manner as following;
1. Fault indication
2. Fault analyses and insulation test
3. Cable fault pre-location
4. Cable route tracing
5. Pinpointing of the cable fault
6. Cable identification
There are several methods of conducting cable fault pre-location, depending upon the customer as well as the
actual site situation. One of the commonly and widely accepted methods in the industry is the Impulse Current
Method (ICM). This method has to be performed off-line after the faulty circuit has been isolated. This method
uses a surge generator injecting a High Voltage (HV) impulse that will be come with flashovers at the faulty
point of the cable. This flashover causes a transient current wave travelling along the cable insulation between
the surge generator and the flashover point and will reflect at both points. The travelling time between the
repetition intervals between the HV impulse generator source and the fault position is determined as the faulty
distance along the cable. Some challenges locating faults in very long cables are mainly due to the damping of
signals occurring in very long cables as well as part reflections at joints along the long cable, affecting the
length resistance of the cable.
After confirming the route tracing, pinpointing of the cable fault will be executed. The acoustic method is a
commonly used way to pin-point the exact fault location in buried cables. This is executed manually by the
engineers on the ground on the surface above directly buried faulty cable. The surge generator is a signal source
used in repetitive pulsing mode. High energy pulses which are released by a surge generator force a voltage
pulse to travel along the cable. At the fault, the flashover happens. This creates a high acoustic signal that is
locally audible using the headphone. These noises are detected on ground surface by the acoustic fault location
set which comprises of a ground microphone, receiver and headphone. The closer the distance from fault to
microphone, the higher the amplitude of flashover noise, therefore the intensity of the acoustic signal picked up
varies. At the fault position, the highest level of the flashover noise will be detected.
2.2. On-line fault detection and localization by Smart Cable Guard Systems [2]
The new development introduced in this section is a fault detection and localization technique in the MV power
cable network while the cable is on-line. It is designed to detect and localise the fault and send the information
immediately to the network operator, enabling proper correction activities effectively. The hardware set up is as
below Figure 1

Figure 1 Smart Cable Guard hardware setup; High Frequency Current Transformer (HFCT) based
sensor and control unit at both end of the cable as well as the main server.
 Control Unit (CU): The control unit works as the heart of the locally installed Smart Cable Guard system.
The connection between the control unit and the sensors is made by an optical fibre, meanwhile the control
unit connects through the internet to the DNV GL Control Centre server by using a GPRS or LAN
connection. The control unit handles all requirements for the LAN TCP/IP or GPRS backhaul connections. .
 Sensor: The sensor is a split High Frequency Current Transformer (HFCT) type and designed to be easy
installed. The sensor measures the travelling wave of the fault. Besides, the sensor is injecting a signal into
the cable for time synchronization (being a patented solution). Therefore the measurement can be made by
both sensors simultaneously on a less than 100ns time scale. Each sensor is paired with a second sensor
connected to another control unit at the other end of the cable that is monitored.
 Server: The server is visualisation of the fault data through 24/7 web platform providing customer interface.
In case of fault, the server immediately sends out warning to network operator via e-mail or SMS including
the location and time stamp.
The key working principle of SCG system is time synchronization, which is possible via a patented pulse
injection technique. The sensor installed at one side will behave as a master, and the one installed at the other
end as a slave. Every minute, the master unit will send a pulse to the other end of the cable circuit where the
slave unit is receiving and detecting the time synchronisation pulse as a reference. . In this way, the SCG system
can be precisely time synchronised and perform accurate fault localization.
Apart from fault location, SCG can be effectively used to measure PD’s and find their location while the cable is
in operation. This is illustrated in Figure 2. The yellow pulse is the injected time synchronization pulse and the
green pulse represents the pulse caused by either fault or PD. In both cases of PD and fault, half of the pulse
created is propagating to one cable end and the other half of the pulse propagates to the other cable end. By
measuring the arrival time of the both half pulses at both ends, the SCG system can accurately localise the pulse
location using well known equation as below

(1)

in which
l = defect location that caused the PD or fault pulse
L = total length of the cable
∆t = difference in arrival time at both cable ends of the pulses caused by PD or fault activities coming from
the same origin
∆T = cable propagation time
The biggest difference of the principles of the SCG system for fault location compared to conventional
protection equipment and short circuit indicators commonly installed in MV cable network is the fact that SCG
is measuring the first slope of the travelling wave of a fault and is not measuring 50 (or 60) Hz short circuit
currents. This is a crucial advantage of SCG in networks with a high impedance grounding, where 50 Hz short
circuit currents stay small and can often stay undetected or at least un-interrupted for a long time. SCG,
measuring the the first slope of the travelling wave of faults in such networks as well, will detect any fault, also
such faults.
The arrival time of the first slope is a very accurate indicator for the fault position, which immediately is
communicated to a server. Within minutes after the fault, the network operator receives a message via SMS or
email regarding the exact time and accurate location of the fault. Thanks to this detecting feature, SCG system
detect the fault location
 Independent of grounding configuration
 Independent whether fault is switched off or not
 Independent whether fault is intermittent or not (self restoring faults)
 Independent whether fault has high or low resistance

Figure 2 Diagram of synchronization as well as Fault and PD detection and localization mechanism
2.3. Self-restoring (intermittent fault) detected and localised, case study [3]
After having been tested in the laboratory and the field [2], SCG had been applied on a MV cable circuit of 4.5
km in length for a 10 kV Paper Insulated Lead Sheath Cable (PILC), with 5 substations spread along this total
cable length. The network here is impedance grounded with a short circuit current of 2.5 kA.

Figure 3 Self-restoring faults recorded by voltage and current probe by network owner
The network owner experienced regular self-healing faults on this cable identified by other sensors measuring
the current and voltage as shown in the Figure 3. In this respect, one SCG system was installed at this cable in
early February 2015 in order to detect and localize these self-restoring faults. Starting February 25, the first two
self-healing faults appeared where SCG could detect and locate the faulty spot.

Figure 4 SCG web interface showing that 125 self healing (self restoring) faults are recorded
The network operator decided not to replace the joint in this case in order to have further insight information on
the development of this self-healing fault. It happened that there were further 123 self-healing faults. It appeared
to be a 2620 m away from one side of the substation where joint is located. In order to find the root cause of the
failure, further investigation had been conducted in this bitumized joint.
 Figure 5 directly buried joint carried and excavated for further investigation
The failure investigation concluded that the cable connector part inside the joint did bent due to mechanical
forces (from the cable conductor expansion during a heavy load) and touched the metallic outer part of joint and
started to give the self restoring faults. Once it broke down, it caused heat to develop, which liquidised the
insulation material bitumen. This liquidised bitumen then flowed back into the breakdown spot in the joint
preventing a permanent failure.

Figure 6 after the failure investigation, the root cause was concluded to be a high load with strong
mechanical expansion forces of the cable conductor. This force caused the connecting part of the joint to
bend, touching the external metal outer part of the joint.
It was further noted that prior to the faults SCG did not detect (and thus localize) any partial discharges, which
may happened from this faulty spot. This case clearly shows SCG’s ability to detect and locate a fault in a
network, regardless of network grounding configuration and self-restoring fault. This will certainly provide
values to customer for effective correction work and reducing repair time significantly.
3. PD DETECTION AND LOCALIZATION, CASE STUDY

Using the same working principle, SCG can detect and localise PD activities in the MV power cable network.
An example of a PD map in 3D (Amplitude, Length of the cable and Time) and corresponding warning from
SCG is shown in Figure 7. This PD map was measured in a network of one of the network operators using SCG.
The weak spot was replaced before the cable failed. Investigation of the replaced component showed heavy
degradation at the PD spot and the network operator clearly stated that an important outage was avoided.

Figure 7 Partial Discharge trend over the time and corresponding warning
One recent case study is the following. In 20kV oil filled joint between PILC and Cross-Linked Poly Ethylene
(XLPE) PD activity was found. After 4 months of SCG installation, warning level 3 had been sent in order to
inform the customer about PD activity at the joint position. About a month later, due to increasing PD trend,
warning level 2 was assigned where the oil filled transition joint is located as shown in the figure 8. After
replacement of the joint, those PD activities are not shown anymore. Evidence of partial discharge activity was
found on the surface of a metal tube supporting one of the cores. Investigation concluded that a meanwhile high
resistivity of the semiconducting insulation screen caused heat and degradation of this component. The SCG
system therefore proved its effectiveness by correctly identifying a weak spot in the MV power cable network.
This problematic joint was replaced before the weak spot could cause a power outage and the root cause of the
problem was identified as a structural problem with the design of this joint type.

Figure 8 SCG warning level 1 and 2 were given and joint replaced before failure. Investigation with
network owner shows burning traces in the semiconducting insulation screen and on the surface of a
metal tube
4. CONCLUTION

In this paper, an on-line fault and PD detection and localization method is shown. Concerning fault detection
and location, using two time-synchronized sensors installed at both ends of the cable can detect high frequency
components from the first travelling wave caused by fault. Regardless of ground configuration and fault types,
SCG can always detect and localize faults. The case study showed in a field test shown in this paper proved
SCG’s effectiveness. This method of fault detection and localization will bring the benefits to allocate resources
effectively, reducing correction time.
In addition to on-line fault detection and localization feature, SCG is being used for condition monitoring of MV
cable power network by detecting and localizing PD activities, providing corresponding different level of
warning for utilities to plan maintenance activities. Both features are contributing in reducing the SAIFI, SAIDI
by enabling a much more reliable power supply.

5. REFERENCE

[1] E.F. Steennis, et al, 2014, “On-line PD location and fault location of MV power cables with smart cable
guard”, Proceedings CEPSI 2014 conference, Korea, Jeju.
[2] E.F. Steennis, et al, 2015, “Smart Cable Guard – a tool for on-line monitoring and location of PD’s and
faults in MV cables – its application and business case”, Proceedings CIRED 2015 conference, France, Lyon.
[3] P. Wagenaars, et al, 2015, “Accurate on-line fault location (full breakdowns) for MV cables with Smart
Cable Guard”, Proceedings Jicable 2015 conference, France, Versailles. Paper reference C4.2.