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Short Circuit

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Calculation Parameters (SC)

Results (SC)

Theory of Short Circuit Calculation

Calculation of Partial Networks (SC)


Calculation Parameters (SC)
The calculation parameters are entered with the help of a Parameters dialog. It consists of the three tabs, Parameter, Faulted
Nodes, Faulted lines, Special Fault, which are explained here.
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Parameter

Faulted nodes

Faulted lines

Special fault
Parameter
Fault type Type of fault at faulted nodes. Possible faults are:
- 3-phase fault
- 1-phase to ground fault
- 2-phase fault
- 2-phase to ground fault
- Special fault
- Fault at all existing phases
When selecting the option Special fault, the program calculates the fault
type, which was predefined by the user. The user can define an arbitrary
fault type in the Special fault tab of the Short Circuit Parameters dialog.
Calculation method Following calculation methods are possible:
IEC60909 2001
Calculation of Ik" according to IEC 60909.
IEC909 1988
Calculation of Ik" according to IEC 909.
Superposition without Loadflow
Calculation according to superposition method without pre-fault voltages
from the Load flow. The EMF are 1.1*Un.
Superposition with Loadflow
Calculation according to superposition method with pre-fault voltages from
the Load flow. A Load flow calculation will be done before Short circuit
calculation.
ANSI C37.10
Calculation according to ANSI/IEEE C37.010-1979 will be performed.
ANSI C37.13
Calculation according to ANSI/IEEE C37.013-1997 will be performed. This
standard calculates the generator current according to the formula mentioned
below.
Ik" max calculation Indicates, if the maximum short circuit current Ik" (if checked) or minimum short circuit current
Ik" (if not checked) should be calculated. The same is valid for the steady state current calculation.
Asymmetrical network If this box is checked, all unsymmetrical elements, like unsym. lines, unsym. transformers, unsym.
shunts, etc., are considered in the calculation.
Load flow before Short This parameter should always be active, when calculating according to superposition method with
circuit calculation load flow. There are cases where no load flow is desired before the short circuit calculation.
Fault distance The fault distance is the distance of a node from a faulted node for which the
results should be displayed or saved. A value of "0" means that the results
will only be displayed or saved for faulted nodes.
Calculation according to IEC909
Automatic selection If the box is checked, the program takes the c-factor according to IEC.
of c-factor Otherwise, the user has to define the c-factor by himself (see below).
Reduced tolerance If checked, a voltage factor c of 1.05 instead of 1.1 will be used for low
in low voltage voltage systems. This option should only be activated if the voltage
system tolerance of the low voltage system is not higher than +6%. (only for
IEC60909 - 2001)
R/X at fault location for ip If checked, the R/X ratio used for the calculation of the peak short circuit current ip at fault
branch calculation location is also used for the calculation of the peak short circuit currents in the branches.
If not checked, the branch peak short circuit currents will be calculated with the R/X ratio of the
branches and the current ip at fault location will be calculated with its R/X ratio.
Fault duration in s for thermal Duration of short circuit in seconds for calculation of thermal short circuit current Ith.
current calc.
Fault duration in s for DC Duration of short circuit in seconds for calculation of DC-component of short circuit current iDC
current IDC calculation and of asymmetrical breaking current Iasy.
Time delay of CB in Minimum time delay tmin of circuit breakers in seconds. tmin is the shortest
s for breaking time between the beginning of the short circuit and the first contact
current calc. Ib separation of one pole of the breaker. Possible options are according to IEC:
0.02, 0.05, 0.10, 0.25 s and larger. If entering a value in between a linear
interpolation will be done. tmin is necessary only for the calculation of the
breaking current Ib.
Calculation according to ANSI
Number of cycles When performing short circuit calculation according to ANSI/IEEE the
for DC current IDC number of cycles for the calculation of the DC component of the short
calculation circuit current can be entered. Typical values are: 3, 4, 5, 8.
Number cycles for When performing short circuit calculation according to ANSI/IEEE the
breaking current interrupting time of the high voltage breakers can be entered. The breaking
calculation Ib current Ib will be calculated for this interrupting instant. Typical values are:
3, 4, 5, 8.
E operating Highest operating voltage at all fault locations in pu with respect to nominal
system voltage. This value is relevant only for calculation according to
ANSI/IEEE.
Reduce switches, circuit breakers and couplers
Reduce Check this box to reduce switches, circuit breakers and couplers. The
calculation will be faster, but no results for these elements will be calculated.
If the box is not checked, for calculation, these elements are represented by
the impedances entered in the Data Input Dialogs.
Result File
The result file and its location can be chosen.
Write after If checked, the result file will be written after calculation
calculation
Format 4.x The result file format of version 5 is different from the format of version 4.
Check this box to save anyway in the format of version 4.x.

Reference for Allowable limit for bus bar and element stress in %. During SC-calculation
element loading the CTs/VTs, the protection devices and the switches are evaluated.

Faulted nodes
The user can define faults at any nodes in the network. In this tab, the nodes where a short circuit should take place, can be
selected from a list of all existing nodes. The type of fault has to be chosen in the Parameter tab.

Depending on the selected short circuit standard additional data must be entered for a fault location:

IEC909:
Input of the network type for calculating Ik" (see also Theory of Short Circuit Calculation).
The Network type for Ik"-calculation can be changed in the list of the selected fault nodes. For every fault node, a short circui
calculation will be made. Thats why the network type has to be defined for every fault node.
Automatic The program will determine the network type automatically.
Meshed The program calculates the short circuit current Ik" in a meshed network
Non meshed The program calculates the short circuit current Ik" in a non-meshed network.

For short circuit calculation in a single-fed network the input "Automatic" should be selected.

ANSI/IEEE
Input of the interrupting time in cycles of the circuit breakers, which are built in at fault location. This value is used to calculate
circuit breaker characteristic factors for the short circuit calculation. The interrupting time will be taken from the input data of
the circuit breaker at faulted node. If there is no breaker explicitly built in at faulted node, the interrupting time can be entered
respectively changed here.
The number of cycles as well as the type of short circuit can be changed in the list of the selected nodes. The following cycles
and short circuit types can be entered:
Cycles
Number Number of cycles. Possible values: 2, 3, 5, 8
Short circuit
Automatic: The program determines the type of short circuit: generator near or
generator far fault.
Generator near: The program calculates the interrupting current for a generator near short
circuit. The multiplying factor is taken from the tables in fig. 8 and 9 of
the ANSI/IEEE standard C37.010-1979.
Generator far: The program calculates the interrupting current for a generator far short
circuit. The multiplying factor is taken from the table in fig. 10 of the
ANSI/IEEE standard C37.010-1979.

Faulted lines
The user can define faults on any line in the network. In this tab, the lines where a short circuit should take place, can be
selected from a list of all existing lines. The type of fault has to be chosen in the Parameter tab.
In the same manner as described for the Faulted nodes, the network type respectively the number of cycles for an ANSI/IEEE
short circuit calculation has to be entered for every faulted line. Additionally the distance in percentage (%) from the "From
node" (starting node of line) has to be indicated. At this fault distance, a fictitious node will be created internally. The whole
length of the line is 100%, but the value 100% can not be entered, because this node has already been given as "To node".
Analogous is valid for distance 0%.

Remark:
If a line is faulted, the starting and ending nodes may not be faulted too. In the single line diagram the results of a line fault are
attached to the starting or to the ending node depending of the fault distance. In the output listing a line fault is treated as a
normal faulted node.

Special fault
The "Special fault" tab in the short circuit parameters dialog allows the input of special fault types. The definition of special
faults is based on the following idea: Given are at maximum 3 faulted nodes (node 1, node 2, node 3) with each 3 phases L1, L2
L3 (3x3 poles). An additional and independent node is the earth (node 0). The user can connect arbitrary poles through an
impedance (Rf, Xf), which can also be zero. It is also possible to connect a pole to earth. Examples are given below.

Fault description
Insert With this button, a new table line, respectively a new fault definition may be
inserted. An arbitrary number of connections can be entered.
Delete With this button, the marked table lines, respectively fault definitions may be
deleted.
Export to Library The fault definitions entered in the table can be exported to a library.
Fault type Arbitrary name of the fault type. If the fault definitions will be imported from a library, the fault type may be
chosen, by pressing the button .
Fault description Description of the fault type.
Table entries
Phase From Phase of the starting node of the connection. Possible values are:"L1", "L2", "L3".
To Node Ending node of the connection. Possible values are: "0", "1", "2", "3". "0"
means earth.
Phase To Phase of the starting node of the connection. Possible values are:" ", "L1", "L2", "L3". " " means earth.
Rf Real part of the connection impedance between the poles in Ohm.
Xf Imaginary part of the connection impedance between the poles in Ohm.
Assignment of the faulted nodes to network nodes
Node 1 Network node, which corresponds to faulted node 1 of the Fault description.
Pressing "" all network nodes are listed.
Node 2 Network node, which corresponds to faulted node 2 of the Fault description.
Node 3 Network node, which corresponds to faulted node 3 of the Fault description.

Examples of special fault types with there definition:

Fault type A: 1-phase-to-ground fault (phase L3) at node 1 with impedance Zf

Fault definition in NEPLAN:


From Phase To Phase Rf Xf
Node From Node To Ohm Ohm
1 L3 0 2.0 0.0

Fault type B: Double earth fault at node 1 (phase L2) and node 2 (phase L3)

Fault definition in NEPLAN:


From Phase To Phase Rf Xf
Node From Node To Ohm Ohm
1 L2 0 0.0 0.0
2 L3 0 0.0 0.0

Fault type C: 1-phase fault between all three nodes. The nodes can be from different networks and/or from different voltage
levels.

Fault definition in NEPLAN:


From Phase To Phase Rf Xf
Node From Node To Ohm Ohm
1 L1 2 L2 0.0 0.0
2 L2 3 L3 0.0 0.0
3 L3 0 0.0 0.0

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Remark 1:

Remark 2:
Remark 1:
If the user will calculate an open conductor series line fault (e.g. phase L1), he must proceed as follows:
1) Disconnect the line (A to B) at the fault location by inserting two new nodes
(H1 H2).

2) Make a load flow calculation with the original line.


according to the superposition
method with Load flow. The
calculation parameter Load flow
before Short circuit should be
deactivated. The special fault
definition is:
From Phase To Phase Rf Xf
Node From Node To Ohm Ohm
1 L2 2 L2 0.0 0.0
1 L3 2 L3 0.0 0.0

The faulted node 1 corresponds to network node H1 and the faulted node 2 to network node H2.

When calculating a special fault on a line, a new node has always to be inserted in the line at the moment.
Remark 2:
It is advisable to choose the superposition method when performing special faults. In this case the fault voltages are correct.

Results (SC)
After the calculation the results are automatically inserted into the single line diagram. For every node and element there is a
box with results. The box position is predefined by the program. The user can change the position clicking the box and dragging
the mouse. The new position will be saved. The abbreviations are given below.
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Show Results
Show Results
Fault currents Short circuit results of the nodes and elements in the defined fault distance
will be presented.
Currents at fault Only short circuit results of the faulted nodes will be presented.
location
Node voltages Voltages of the faulted nodes are displayed.
Result files Its possible to export or import results to or from a file by selecting the file and pressing the respective
button.
These result files can be read by external programs, such as Excel and the results can be evaluated in an
arbitrary way. The File can be written in the old Format 4.x or in a new Format for V5.x.
Units Output units for table list output. The following units are available: V, kV, A, kA, kVA, MVA.
Results selection The values or quantities, which have to be displayed in the result tables
can be selected here.

Below you find a description of the output variables in the result tables:

Fault currents and currents at fault location:


ID Identification number (ID) of the faulted node, or of the element for which the
fault current is displayed.
Fault location Element/Node at fault location or "From node" of the element, for which the
From node fault data is given.
To node "To node" of the element, for which the fault data is given.
Distance from Distance from the fault location to the element, for which the fault data are presented in this row.
fault
Element name Name of the element, for which the fault data is presented in this row.
Type Type of element.
Un System nominal voltage for nodes.
UL-E (RST) Fault voltage (line to earth). (Phase system)
Ang U (RST) Angle of fault voltage. (Phase system)
Ik'' (RST) Initial short circuit current in the phase system.
Ang Ik'' (RST) Angle of Ik'' in the phase system.
Ik'' (012) Initial short circuit current in the symmetrical components system.
Ang Ik'' (012) Angle of Ik'' in the symmetrical components system.
ip: Peak current Ip in magnitude (kA) (Phase system). Not available when calculating according to ANSI/IEEE.
Ib: Breaking current or ANSI interrupting (x cycles) current Ib in magnitude (kA) (Phase system).
Ik: Steady state current or ANSI steady state (30 cycles) current Ik in magnitude (kA) (Phase system).
Ith: Thermal short circuit current Ith in magnitude (kA) of the phases. Not available when calculating according to
ANSI/IEEE.
iDC: D.C. component of the short circuit current in magnitude (kA) (Phase system).
Iasy: Asymmetrical breaking current or ANSI asymmetrical 0.5 cycles current in magnitude (kA) (Phase system).
Sk": Short circuit power Sk" (Phase system). Not available when calculating according to ANSI/IEEE.
E/Z Symmetrical current according to ANSI/IEEE without consideration of the AC and DC decrement. Not
available when calculating according to IEC.
Zf: Network impedance at faulted node in Ohm of positive, negative and zero sequence. Output sequence: Zero,
Positive, Negative sequence. In case of symmetrical faults only the impedance of positive sequence is displayed
Fault type Type of short circuit fault used for the calculation.
Method Calculation method (Standard).
Maximum Indicates the node or the element with the maximum current of one fault calculation.
current
Network type Type of the network.
Calculation according to IEC:
- SING.FED: Simple fed sc
- MULT.FED: Sc fed from non-meshed sources
- MESHED: Sc in meshed network
Calculation according to ANSI:
- GEN.NEAR: Generator near fault
- GEN.FAR: Generator far fault
CB delay time Time delay of CB in s for breaking current calculation Ib.
SC duration Duration of short circuit in s for calculation of thermal short circuit current Ith.
for Ith
SC duration Duration of short circuit in s or in cycles for calculation of DC-component Idc and of asymmetrical breaking
for Idc current Iasy.
Description Description of the node or the element.
Zone Zone to which the element belongs to.
Area Area to which the element belongs to.
Partial network Partial network to which the element belongs to.

More:

Results only at faulted node

Node-oriented display of the results


Results only at faulted node
Only the currents at fault locations are displayed in the table.

ID Identification number (ID) of the faulted node, for which the results are indicated.
Fault location Name of the faulted nodes, for which the results are indicated.
Un Nominal system voltage Un in kV of the faulted node
.. Selected results

Node-oriented display of the results


The results are displayed node oriented. The following blocks are displayed for each faulted node:

Block 1: Voltages and currents at faulted node


ID Fault To node Distance Element Type Un Results
location from fault name Voltages/
Currents
1236 TWO Faulted 0 65.00
Abbreviations:
ID Identification number (ID) of the faulted node
Fault location Name of faulted node.
To node Faulted. Indicates that the nodes is faulted.
Distance Distance from the faulted nodes: 0.
Un Nominal system voltage of faulted node in kV.
Results Fault currents and voltages at faulted nodes.

Block 2: Results in the elements connected with the faulted node


ID From To node Distance Element Type Un Results
node from fault name Currents
1374 TWO ONE TRA1-2 2W Tra
1300 TWO THREE LIN2-3 Line

Abbreviations:
ID Identification number (ID) of the element connected with the faulted node.
From node Name of From node (faulted node).
To node Name of To node.
Element name Name of the element.
Type Type of the element, e.g. line, 2W-Transformer, generator,
Results Currents, which flows from From node to To node caused by the fault in
node of block 1.

Block3: Voltages at nodes, which are connected through elements with the faulted node
ID From To node Distance Element Type Un Results
Node from fault name Voltages
1236 ONE 1 220.00

Abbreviations:
ID Identification number (ID) of the node, which is connected through elements
with the faulted node.
From node Name of the node, which is connected through elements with the faulted node.
Distance Gives the distance of the node in respect of the faulted node.
Un Nominal system voltage of the node in kV, which is connected through
elements with the faulted node.

Block 4: Results in the elements connected with the node of block 3


ID From To node Distance Element Type Un Results
node from fault name Currents
1374 ONE TWO TRA1-2 2W Tra
1400 ONE SIX LIN1-6 Line

Abbreviations:
ID Identification number (ID) of the elements, which are connected with the node
of block3.
From node Name of From node.
To node Name of To node.
Element name Name of the element.
Type Type of the element, e.g. line, 2W-Transformer, generator,
Results Currents, which flows from From node to To node caused by the fault in
node of block 1.
Parameters.

Node voltages:
ID Identification number (ID) of node, for which the voltages are indicated.
Name Name of node.
Faulted Indicates the faulted node.
Un System nominal voltage of node.
UL-E (RST) Fault voltage (line to earth). (Phase system)
Ang U L-E (RST) Angle of fault voltage (line to earth). (Phase system)
UL-L (RST) Fault voltage (line to line). (Phase system)
Ang U L-L (RST) Angle of fault voltage (line to line). (Phase system)
U (012) Fault voltage (symmetrical components system).
Ang U (012) Angle of fault voltage (symmetrical components system).
U0 Pre-fault voltage, may depend on the load flow. If the calculation is performed according to IEC or
ANSI/IEEE the pre-fault voltages are zero
Ang U0 Angle of pre-fault voltage, may depend on load flow.
Fault type Type of short circuit fault used for the calculation.
Method Calculation method (Standard).
Maximum current Indicates the node with the maximum current of one fault calculation.
Description Description of the node.
Zone Zone to which the node belongs to.
Area Area to which the node belongs to.
Partial network Partial network to which the node belongs to.

For asymmetrical faults all results (phases L1, L2, L3) can be displayed, for symmetrical faults only results of phase L1 are
displayed.

Phase-to-phase voltages are calculated as:


UL1,L2 = UL2 - UL1
UL2,L3 = UL3 - UL2
UL3,L1 = UL1 - UL3

The output sequence is UL1,L2, UL2,L3 and UL3,L1.

Only the voltages of the 0.5 cycles network will be reported when calculating according to ANSI/IEEE.

Theory of Short Circuit Calculation


The behavior of a power system during short circuit can be represented by a network equivalent consisting of a prefault voltage
source U0k and the network impedance Zkki for the positive, negative and zero sequence system at the faulted node. The infeed
elements such as network feeders, generators and asynchronous motors are modeled by an impedance Ze and their source
voltage (EMF). During calculation they will be changed to equivalent current sources.

Assuming symmetrical structure and supplying of the power system the symmetrical components are only interconnected at the
fault location. The interconnection will be defined by the fault equations. The equations are dependent on the fault type:

- 3-phases short circuit:

- 1-phase to ground short circuit:


- 2-phases short circuit:

- 2-phases to ground short circuit:

It means:
U0k: Operating voltage or prefault voltage at faulted node k.
Zkki: Network impedance at faulted node of positive (i=1), negative (i=2) and zero (i=0)
sequence system.
Iki": Initial short circuit current at faulted node of positive (i=1), negative (i=2) and zero
(i=0) sequence system.

Depending on the calculation method the prefault voltage U0k will be


calculated with the help of current sources res. the currents of infeed elements Ie (superposition method)
set per definition (IEC909, ANSI/IEEE).

The currents of the infeed elements Ie for the superposition method are calculated as Ie = EMF / Ze. Ze is the internal
impedance of infeed elements. The prefault voltages U0 may be calculated from the network equation U = Y-1 Ie. The prefault
voltage of the node k is U0k. The internal voltage (EMF) of the infeed elements are
of the node's nominal system voltage as a set value (the parameter "calculation method" must be set to "superposition
without LF") or
calculated from the load flow results. The calculation will be done with the help of the complex voltages and powers at the
nodes. The load flow calculation must have been calculated before and the parameter "calculation method" must have been
set to "superposition with LF".

The IEC909 method set the prefault voltage at faulted node per definition to U0k=cUn, whereby the currents of infeed element
Ie are set to zero. The voltage factor c is dependent on the nominal system voltage at fault location and is defined by the
standard. The factor c will be set automatically by the program.

The ANSI/IEEE method set the prefault voltage at faulted node per definition to U0k= Eoper and the currents of infeed elements
Ie are set to zero. The value Eoper is an input value (see Calculation Parameters (SC)) and is the highest operating voltage in pu
at fault location. For calculating the interrupting duty of a breaker the current will be multiplied by a factor, which is a function
of the X/R ratio at fault location.

The network impedances Zkk1, Zkk2 and Zkk0 can be computed from the network equations U = Y-1I of positive, negative and
zero sequence system.

Depending of the used method the Y-matrix looks different:


All elements are considered in the calculation according to the superposition method. The models are described in section
Element data input and description of the models.
The IEC method prescribes to neglect all shunt admittances of the positive sequence system. Additionally the impedances of
the infeed elements will be corrected (see "Synchronous Machine Data", "Asynchronous Machine Data", etc. in chapter
"Element Data Input and Models").
The ANSI/IEEE-standard tells that there must be built up three different Y-matrices for the positive system in order to be
able to calculate the currents Ik" (0.5 cycles), Ia (x cycles) and Ik (30 cycles). The impedances of the generators and motors
must be corrected for all three matrices. In section 5.4.1 of ANSI/IEEE C37.010-1979 these factors are described. The loads
are neglected. The impedances of the negative and zero system will not be corrected. For getting the X/R-ratio two separate
nodal admittance matrices (positive and zero system) with only the resistive part of the network were built up.
Typical quantities of the short circuit current are the peak current, the breaking current, the steady state current and the
thermal current. The IEC or ANSI/IEEE gives the method how to calculate these quantities from the initial short circuit current
More:

A Comparison of the Methods:

Network Type IEC

The Initial Short Circuit Current Ik"

The Initial Short Circuit Power Sk"

The Peak Short Circuit Current Ip

The Short Circuit Breaking Current Ib

The Steady State Current Ik

The Thermal Short Circuit Current Ith

The D.C. Component of Short Circuit Current iDC

The Asymmetrical Breaking Current Iasy

The ANSI/IEEE-currents

The symmetrical 0.5 cycles current

The asymmetrical 0.5 cycle current

The symmetrical interrupting current (x cycles current)

The symmetrical steady state (30 cycles) current

ANSI Standard C37.013


A Comparison of the Methods:
The superposition method is the more accurate method assuming that the prefault voltages are known. It is difficult to know the
voltages before short circuit especially in a planning state, where the load flow can only be approximated. Moreover the load
flow which will lead either to a maximum or to a minimum short circuit current at the different locations of the system is hard to
find.

This module provides a simplified superposition method. The internal voltage sources (EMF) are set to 110% of the nominal
system voltage of the infeed elements. Thereby a voltage drop of 10% between the terminal voltage and the internal voltage is
assumed for steady-state operation. For the exact superposition method a load flow has to be calculated before starting the
short circuit calculation.
The IEC or ANSI/IEEE method is a simplified method which can be used to calculate short circuit currents. It has the advantag
that the pre-fault voltages must not be given beforehand. The calculated currents are on the safe side. The calculation is
performed according to an international standard.

It is advisable to calculate the short circuit currents according to the IEC or ANSI/IEEE method, especially when the peak
currents, the breaking currents and the steady state currents should be calculated. To calculate the voltages during short
circuit (post fault voltages) the superposition method should be used.
Network Type IEC
For the calculation according to IEC the supply of the short circuit is of importance:
Simple fed short circuit:
The short circuit is supplied by only one network feeder or one generator or identical parallel generators (see fig. 9.1). The
current at fault location corresponds to the current of the infeed element.
Short circuit fed from non-meshed sources:
The short circuit is supplied parallel by several active elements (see fig. 9.2). The current at fault location is calculated as
the sum of the partial currents. The size of the partial currents are independent of each other.
Short circuit fed from non-meshed sources over a common impedance:
The short circuit is supplied by several active elements over a common impedance (see fig. 9.3). The current at fault location
is calculated as a superposition of the partial currents (see point d).
Short circuit in an intermeshed network:
The short circuit is supplied by several active elements in an intermeshed network (see fig. 9.4). The current at fault location
is calculated as a superposition of the partial currents.

Fig. 9.1 Simple fed short circuit

Fig. 9.2 Short circuit fed from non-meshed sources

Fig. 9.3 Short circuit from non-meshed sources over a common impedance

Fig. 9.4 Short circuit in an intermeshed network

For the calculation of the initial short circuit current Ik" and of the peak current Ip the results are independent of the network
type.
The Initial Short Circuit Current Ik"
This current will be calculated according to IEC or the superposition method. The fault currents in the phases are calculated by
desymmetrizing the currents in the component system. With the module Short circuit the minimum and maximum initial short
circuit current Ik"min res. Ik"max can be computed. The selection is made in the dialog of the calculation parameters, field
"Ik"maximal" (see Calculation Parameters (SC)). The user gets the maximum initial current when the parameter is set to "YES"
otherwise the minimum current is computed. In this case the minimum short circuit power of all network feeder are taken, the
asynchronous machines are neglected and the resistance of the lines are taken by increased temperature.
The Initial Short Circuit Power Sk"
The initial short circuit power is calculated dependent on the kind of fault:
symmetrical fault:
asymmetrical and special fault:

Un means the nominal system voltage.

The Peak Short Circuit Current Ip


The peak current Ip is the highest possible instantaneous value of the short circuit current and is dependent on the ratio R/X. It
can be calculated according to IEC as:

with kappa = 1.02 + 0.98e-3R/X.

To compute the ratio R/X the method of the equivalent frequency is used, that means that the following term is used R/X=Rc/Xc
(fc/f). Rc and Xc are the equivalent resistance and reactance at fault location with the equivalent frequency fc.
Zc=Rc+j2PifcLc is the impedance as seen from the fault location if an equivalent voltage source as the only active voltage i
applied with the frequency fc=20Hz (for f=50Hz system frequency) or fc=24Hz (for 60Hz system frequency).
To compute the branch currents the ratio R/X of the branches or the ratio R/X at fault location are used, depending on the
Calculation Parameter entry.
When calculating special faults (e.g. double earth faults) the factor kappa is calculated in the same way as for symmetrical 3-
phase short circuits and if several faulted nodes are involved, the largest kappa-value is taken.
The Short Circuit Breaking Current Ib
The breaking current Ib for a synchronous machine will be calculated as:
The factor (mue) will be calculated according to IEC and is a function of the ratio Ik"/IrG and of the minimum time delay
tmin of the circuit breakers (Ik": initial short circuit current; IrG: rated current). The minimum time delay is an input value and
will be introduced in the dialog of the calculation parameters (see Calculation Parameters (SC)).
For motors the breaking current Ib is

The factor can be computed analogous to above. The factor q is a function of the ratio m=P/p (P: rated resistive power; p:
number of pole pairs) and of the minimum time delay of the breakers.
Depending on the network type the breaking current at fault location is computed as:

- SC in a meshed network:

with
cUn/3: Equivalent voltage source at fault location
Ik": Initial short circuit current
UG"i, UM"j: Initial voltage differences at the connection point of synchronous machine i and of asynchronous machine j
IkG"i, IkM"j: Initial short circuit currents of synchronous machine i and asynchronous
machine j

- SC fed from non-meshed sources:

Ibi represents the breaking current of the active element i, which is connected to the faulted node.

- Single fed SC:

Ibi represents the breaking current of the active element i, which is connected to the faulted node.
When calculating asymmetrical and special faults it is set: Ib = Ik".

Remark: The type of network is determined by the program.


The Steady State Current Ik
The steady state current will be computed dependent on the type of network:
SC in a meshed network:
Ik at faulted node:

,
Ik"OM is the initial short circuit current without considering the motors
SC fed from non-meshed sources:
Ik at faulted node:

,
Iki is the steady state current of the element i which is connected to the faulted node.
Simple fed short circuit:
Ik at faulted node:

Iki is the steady state current of the element i which is connected to the faulted node.

When calculating asymmetrical and special faults it is set: Ib = Ik".


The steady state current of a synchronous machine Ik will be calculated for a single fed network as:

The factor lambda is a function of Xdsaturated, Ufmax/Ufr, Ik"/IrG and the type of machine (turbo or salient pole). These
parameters are input values, except the initial sc current Ik" (see "Synchronous Machine Data" in chapter "Element Data Input
and Models"). IrG is the rated current of the machine. A minimum or a maximum -factor can be calculated. Depending on the
input in the field "Ik"maximum" of the calculation parameter dialog the minimum res. maximum initial short circuit current and
For calculation of the minimum steady state current compound excited generators are treated different.
The Thermal Short Circuit Current Ith
The thermal short circuit current Ith is calculated as:

The factor m takes into account the thermal influence of the aperiodic component of short circuit current and the factor n the
thermal influence of the alternating component of short circuit current. The factor m is a function of kappa and short circuit
duration Tks. The factor n is a function of ratio Ik"/Ik, factor kappa and short circuit duration (see Calculation Parameters
(SC), input field "Tshort Ith").
The D.C. Component of Short Circuit Current iDC
The D.C. component of the short circuit power is calculated as:

with f as frequency, t as short circuit duration and R/X as ratio of real- to imaginary part of the impedance. The R/X-ratio is
calculated according to the equivalent frequency method (see above, calculation of peak current Ip). The short circuit duration
is input value, input field "Tshort iDC" (see Calculation Parameters (SC)).
When calculating special faults (e.g. double earth faults) the factor R/X is calculated in the same way as for symmetrical 3-
phase short circuits and if several faulted nodes are involved, the smallest R/X-value is taken.
The Asymmetrical Breaking Current Iasy
The asymmetrical breaking current is calculated according to:

with Ib: breaking current and iDC: D.C. component of short circuit current.
The ANSI/IEEE-currents
According to ANSI/IEEE the currents are calculated in order to be able to select a circuit breakers. There are three different
currents:
Symmetrical 0.5 cycles current Ik"
Asymmetrical 0.5 cycles current Iasy
Symmetrical x cycles (interrupting) current Ia (x: input value, e.g. 3, 4, 5, 8)
Steady state (30 cycles) current Ik

For all three times (0.5, x, 30 cycles) a separate network must be built up. All fault voltage are reported for the 0.5 cycles
network.
The symmetrical 0.5 cycles current
The current will be calculated as follows (3 phase sc):

The impedance at fault location Zk1 will be found from the complex Y-matrix of the positive system. The Y-matrix is different
than the one of IEC909.
The asymmetrical 0.5 cycle current
The current will be calculated as follows (3 phase sc):

The impedance at fault location Zk1 will be found from the complex Y-matrix of the positive system same as for Ik". The X/R
ratio will also be found from the Y-matrix. f is the network frequency, t = 0.5 / f the time.
The symmetrical interrupting current (x cycles current)
The current will be calculated as follows (3 phase sc):

The impedance at fault location Zki1 will be found from the complex Y-matrix of the positive system, which is different to that
one for calculating Ik". The factor fSC will be calculated with the help of X/R- resp. Zki1/R-ratio, the type of network (generator
near or far) and the type of short circuit (symmetrical or asymmetrical fault). The value for the resistance R will be found from
a separate Y-matrix, which contains only the resistive part of the network. The value for fSC can be found from figures 8, 9 and
10 of ANSI-standard C37.010-1979. The program reports the value E/Z as well:

The symmetrical steady state (30 cycles) current


The current will be calculated as follows (3 phase sc):
The impedance at fault location Zkk1 will be found from the complex Y-matrix of the positive system, which is different to that
one for calculating Ik" and Ia.

ANSI Standard C37.013


In this Standard, the short circuit calculation is carried out, concerning the generators in the network with there current. These
currents are calculated by the following formulas:

Generator source symmetrical short-circuit current

Generator source asymmetrical short-circuit current

With P = rated power, V= rated maximum voltage and the reactance values of the generator in pu.

Calculation of Partial Networks (SC)


In case of a large network, which consists of several partial networks, it is possible to select the partial network(s) to be
calculated. A partial network is a network, which is not connected to an other network, because of e.g. open lines. The program
displays all partial networks in a list box and the user can select the network(s) to be calculated. Making the calculation with
only a part of a large network has the advantage of saving a lot of computing time.

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