Performance of Superconducting Fault Current Limiter and Fault Current Limiter in Power System

Abstract

In recent world the trend of using electrical energy is increased, which results in increased power demand and hence the occurrence of abnormal events. Superconducting fault current limiter is an innovative protection device which is used to reduce the magnitude of fault current in high voltage system. In this paper the application of resistive type superconducting fault current limiter is explained, which is used to reduce the magnitude of fault current. As the electrical power system is very wide, the chance of occurrence of any kind of fault is very common, due to that high magnitude of current flows through the system. This may harm the mechanical equipments of the power system. As the equipment’s in power system are expensive, so it is essential to protect from the abnormal events. It is not possible to eliminate these faults completely, but it is possible to lower their harmful effects, by decreasing the level of fault current. The application of the fault current limiter (FCL) would not only decrease the stress on network devices, but also can offer a connection to improve the reliability of power system. There are various types of FCL’s, which are made of different superconducting materials and have different designs. They are categorized into three broad types: the resistive type, the inductive type and bridge type SFCL. We discussed the operating characteristics of SFCL introduced into a simplified power transmission model system. It was finally revealed that SFCL could satisfactorily bring about the functions of fault current suppression and power system stability improvement. In order to evaluate the impact of fault current limiter in power system performance, simulation work is performed by using Mat lab/Simulink tool.

Index Terms— Power Quality (PQ); Superconducting Fault Current Limiter (SFCL); Switch Gear Units.