On the Spatial Resolution of Fault Location Techniques Based on Full Fault Transients

Shao-Yin He (1) , Andréa Cozza (2) , Yan-Zhao Xie (1)

1 Xjtu - Xi'an Jiaotong University
2 GeePs - Laboratoire Génie électrique et électronique de Paris

This paper discusses the mechanisms enabling spatial resolution in fault location methods based on full transient signals, as opposed to those only using their early-time portion. This idea is found in recent travelling-wave methods (TWM) and those based on electromagnetic time reversal (EMTR). Their spatial resolution is discussed in terms of the sensitivity of a system resonances to change in the fault position and their coherence bandwidth. It is proven that using the entire transient signal it is possible to bypass the Fourier transform uncertainty principle, which limits the spatial resolution of time-domain reflectometry and standard early-time TWM. Super-resolved fault location is shown to be possible only for resonating systems, enabling high spatial resolution without relying on wide-band data. A detailed theoretical analysis for laterals and numerical results for networks and a three-phase line show that significant differences can be observed for the spatial resolution associated to each resonance, most often resulting in a loss of spatial resolution. The interaction between separate resonant structures, such as laterals in networks and coupled conductors in three-phase lines are shown to be main cause of resolution loss.

Keywords: Fault location; fault transients; spatial resolu- tion; power grids; correlation methods; characteristic frequencies

Domains: Electromagnetism

Shao-Yin He, Andréa Cozza, Yan-Zhao Xie. On the Spatial Resolution of Fault Location Techniques Based on Full Fault Transients. IEEE Transactions on Power Delivery, 2019, ⟨10.1109/tpwrd.2019.2949914⟩. ⟨hal-02312560⟩