Three-Phase

An electrical network under short-circuit conditions can be considered a

network supplied by several sources (generators) with a single load con-
nected to the system at the node subjected to the short circuit. The normal
customer load currents are usually ignored, since they are small compared
to the short-circuit current. Generally this simplification does not impare
the accuracy of the short-circuit study. This is equivalent to the structural
analysis of a bridge supported by several piers and subjected to a single
concentrated load, with the weight of the individual members of the
structure being ignored. The re~nainderof this text concentrates on the
analysis of electrical network problems, but one should remember that the
techniques developed here apply e q ~ ~ a l well
l y to structures.
For a treatment of the reverse approach see Ref. 6. In the introduction
to Chapter 9 these authors write, "The language of the dynamics of
material systems will be used throughout, but the treatment can, for
instance, be applied equally well to electrical systems." The complete
short-circuit analysis of a network is possible by simple arithmetic opera-
tions, as soon as all the node voltages have been determined for the
particular fault condition. Coombe and Lewis solved the node voltages in
short-circuit studies by the Gauss-Seidel iterative approach developed by
Ward and Hale for the solution of normal power flow problems [1,2]. The
method is poorly suited to short-circuit studies, since each fault condition
requires an iterative solution. A complete analysis of a 1000-node (bus)
system may require as many as 20,000 to 30,000 fault conditions, each of
which would be an en tirely new iterative procedure. The short-circuit
analysis of very large electrical systems is achieved most efficiently by use
of the 2-bus matrix [3].
 Three-Phase Short-Circuit Calculations

DESCRIPTION OF TI1E Z-BUS MATRIX

The 2-bus matrix contains the driving point impedance of every node with
respect to a reference node that has been chosen arbitrarily. The driving
point impedance of a node is the equivalent impedance between i t and the
reference. The 2-bus matrix also contains the transfer impedance between
each bus of the system and every other bus with respect to the reference
bus. The transfer impedances are determined by co~nputingthe voltages
that exist on each of the other buses of the system, with respect to the
reference, when a particular bus of the system is driven by an injection
current of unity (see Fig. 3.1).
The matrix equation relating the 2-bus matrix, the currents injected into
the nodes, and the node voltages is

It was recognized very early that if the 2-bus matrix with the reference bus
chosen as the common bus behind the generator transient reactances was
available, the complete short-circuit analysis of the network could be
readily obtained with a small amount of additional computation. Re-
membering, as it was indicated earlier, that a network under fault condi-
tions could be considered to have a single node current, one can write the
matrix equation as

where the network is subjected to the single current injection I, into node
k, which is the bus that is in fault condition. Obviously, column k enables
the voltage profile to be determined for the network, when a short-circuit
occurs on node k, provided that Ik has been, or can be, determined. The
element Zkk is the driving point impedance of bus k . The off diagonal
Description of the 2-Bus Matrix

. Reference node ( R )

1, = 1.0

Fig. 3.1. Driving point impedance: Ek - r = IZkk; Ik = 1.O; Zkk= Ek-r. Transfer
impedance: lk= 1 .O; Eir = l Z i k ; Zik = Eir.

elements Zik are the transfer impedance between the other buses and bus
k.
In short-circuit calculations it is customary to assume that all generators
connected to the network are operating with 1.0 per unit voltage behind
their internal reactances. This common point behind the generator reac-
tances is used as reference. The network can therefore be considered to b e
supplied by a single common source (see Fig. 3.2).*

+ Ground
0 Common voltage source, 6 = 1.0

Reference node

Generator transient
reactances

1 3

-- 4 -- System buses or
node are numbered

C
7\
Fig. 3.2. Simplified system representation for short circuit studies.
*The analogous situation occurs in the analysis of the network of a steel bridge. The reaction
at each pier ultimately derives its capability from a single source, the earth.
 Three-Phase Short-Circuit Calculations

The use of 1.0 pu voltage behind internal machine reactance can be

justified by applying the Helmholtz-Thevenin theorem. The prefault open
circuit voltage at the point of fault is approximately 1.0 pu and may
therefore be assumed to be that value. The short-circuit impedance of the
network from the point of fault is determined by the impedance of the
network elements (including the internal machine impedances) with the
internal source voltages all short-circuited. The fault current is calculated
as the superposition of two sources: the current due to the internal source
voltages, which are zero; and the current due to a superposed voltage
source which will reduce the fault point voltage to zero. This voltage is
obviously equal to the negative of the prefault voltage and is thus equal to
- 1.0 pu from ground to the point of fault. But this gives the same current
as + 1.0 pu voltage from ground to a common bus behind transient
reactances.
When any node is short-circuited, it is connected to ground. Full voltage
is therefore applied between the reference node and the node subjected to
the fault condition. For example, for a fault on node 6 , the diagram can be
drawn as shown in Fig. 3.3.
Since the matrix elements of the Z-matrix of equation 3.2 are the driving
point impedances (diagonal elements) and transfer impedances (off-
diagonal elements) with respect to the reference bus, the voltages of
equation 3.2 will all be measured with respect to the reference node behind
the generator transient reactances. The reference node is therefore at zero
potential with respect to itself, but is at full voltage with respect to ground
in the actual network. The voltage obtained from equation 3.2 for the bus

source

*
Fig. 33. Node 6 is in short circuit condition.
Description of the 2-Bus Matrix

under fault condition is the full voltage of the generators with respect to
the reference. In the actual system the bus that is short-circuited is at zero
potential with respect to ground. This difference in voltage, depending on
the point of reference, should cause no difficulty but must be taken into
consideration in expressing the results of a calculation.

where E; is the voltage of bus p with ground as the reference, as it would

be measured in the actual system. The E," is the voltage obtained from the
matrix calculation of equation 3.2 and is measured with respect to the
reference bus behind the generator transient reactances.
When bus k is in short-circuit condition, the constraint that full voltage
is applied to bus k will be satisfied by injecting a current Ik that is
determined by equation 3.3.

See also equation 3.2.

The total fault current for any bus is therefore obtained by taking the
reciprocal of the corresponding diagonal element of the 2-matrix. The
voltages that appear on the other buses of the system, when bus k is in
fault condition, depend on the transfer impedances as given by the off
diagonal elements of column k of the 2-bus matrix. For example, the
voltage with respect to the reference on bus p for a short circuit on bus k
would be given by equation 3.4.

The current flow from bus p to bus q over the line p - q whose impedance
is Zlinepqis

The total fault current for a fault on any bus is obtained by equation 3.3,
and the flow in any line for a short circuit on a particular bus is obtained
by equation 3.5. The complete analysis of the system is obtained by these
simple arithmetic operations once the 2-matrix has been obtained.
 Three-Phase Short-Circuit Calculations

THE Z-MATRIX BUILDING ALGORITHM

T o compute the driving point and transfer impedance matrix of a com-
pletely assembled transmission system would be utterly impossible. How-
ever, it is possible, by rather simple means, to modify the Z-matrix of a
system for the addition of a single line. In this way the system can be
assembled by starting with a system of a single transmission line, adding
one line a t a time, modifying the matrix for each line addition, and
assembling the desired system and the matrix that corresponds to the
system 131.

DATA PREPARATION
A system diagram is drawn. The junction points, where two or more
transmission lines, transformers, or generator impedances are connected,
are assigned a unique bus (node) number. The number zero is reserved for
the reference bus. In short-circuit studies the reference bus is selected as
the common point behind all generator reactances. (In other studies the
reference bus may be selected as ground or a bus of the system. See
Chapter 6.)
Data are prepared by describing each element of the transmission
system by the two buses at the ends of the line and its impedance on a
common per unit base. These data are sequenced by an algorithm from a
random ordering to a sequence such that as each line is selected from the
data list for processing, it can be connected to the system that has been
assembled. The first line in the list must be one from the reference to some
bus of the system to provide a path to the reference for current injected
into any node of the network being assembled.
Each line selected from the list must fall into one of three categories.
1. A line from the reference to a new bus.
2. A radial line from an existing bus to a new bus.
3. A line between two buses already included in the system, (a loo1
closing line).
Three different routines are required to modify the matrix for th
addition of a line to the system depending on the type of line to be addec

A REFERENCE LINE TO A NEW BUS

A line from the reference to a new bus of the system is identified 1-

finding that one bus is the reference bus and the other bus is not in tk
system that has been assembled.
 (Addition of a Radial Line to a New Bus

Current injected into the new bus k which is connected by a radial line
to the reference, will produce no voltage on the other buses of the system
(see Fig. 3.4).
Injection of current into any bus of the system that had been assembled
will produce no voltage on the new bus k. All off diagonal elements of the
new row and c o l ~ ~ mare
n therefore zero.

I
The driving point impedance of the new bus is the impedance of the new
line being added. The diagonal element of a new matrix axis corresponding
to bus k is given by equation 3.7.

For the addition of a radial line from the reference to a new bus,
augment the matrix by a row and column of zeros. The diagonal element
of this new axis is the impedance of the new line being added. The bus
number k is added to the list of buses that comprise the system.

line

T
New bus

Inject Ik =

Big. 3.4. Addition of a line from the reference to a new bus.

ADDITION OF A RADIAL LINE TO A NEW BUS

A radial line from a bus of the system to a new bus is identified by finding
that neither bus describing the line is the reference and only one bus
describing the line is included in the system. Injection of unit current into
bus q produces voltages on all other buses of the system that are identical