2736
6, DECEMBER 2018
Distance Protection During Asymmetrical Power
Swings: Challenges and Solutions
Sayyed Mohammad Hashemi and Majid Sanaye-Pasand , Senior Member, IEEE
Abstract—It is commonly assumed that power swings are sym-
metrical phenomena that impose almost identical effects on the
three-phase voltages and currents of the power system. However,
there is another type of power swings which is asymmetrical and oc-
curs mainly during single-pole tripping. In the nowadays heavily
loaded power systems, the likelihood of occurrence of this phe-
nomenon is increased considerably. Although the effects of sym-
metrical power swings on distance protection are widely analyzed
in the literature, asymmetrical power swings have been less stud-
ied so far. This paper focuses on this type of power swings and
their effects on distance protection. Besides, two new techniques
are proposed to detect faults during asymmetrical power swings
and enhance performance of power swing blocking schemes. The
first technique is based on the rate of change of zero sequence cur-
rent, while the second one is based on the magnitudes of voltage
and current in each phase, as well as their relative phase angle. The
presented analyses and proposed methods are validated using two
benchmark test systems and promising results are obtained.
Index Terms—Asymmetrical power swing, distance protection,
single-pole tripping, transmission line.
I. INTRODUCTION
OWER systems are often prone to inevitable disturbances
P such as load variations, transmission line switchings, and
short-circuit faults. Such disturbances may cause oscillations in
machine rotor angles during which, transmission lines might
undergo significant fluctuations in their power flows commonly
referred to as power swings. Depending on the severity of the
disturbance and the response of power system controllers, the
emerging power swings may be stable or unstable [1]. In the ma-
jority of cases, power swings are low-magnitude well-damped
oscillations subsequent to which the power system would effec-
tively settle to a new operating point. However, under extreme
conditions, a system disturbance may result in an unstable power
swing of increasing magnitude, and loss of synchronism be-
tween generators or portions of the system. Large power swings,
stable or unstable, may cause unwanted operation of relays at
different locations. This would further aggravate the situation
and might result in cascading outages or even blackouts [2].
Manuscript received October 28, 2017; revised January 25, 2018; accepted
March 9, 2018. Date of publication March 15, 2018; date of current version
November 20, 2018. This work was supported by the University of Tehran
under Grant 8101064-1-11. Paper no. TPWRD-01316-2017. (Corresponding
author: Majid Sanaye-Pasand.)
The authors are with the School of Electrical and Computer Engineering,
College of Engineering, University of Tehran, Tehran 14395-515, Iran (e-mail:,
hashemi93@ut.ac.ir; msanaye@ut.ac.ir).
Color versions of one or more of the figures in this paper are available online
at http://ieeexplore.ieee.org.
Digital Object Identifier 10.1109/TPWRD.2018.2816304
0885-8977 © 2018 IEEE. Personal use is permitted, but republication/redistribution requires IEEE permission.
See http://www.ieee.org/publications standards/publications/rights/index.html for more information.
IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON POWER DELIVERY, VOL. 33, NO.
Distance protection offers a reliable protection in transmis-
sion and meshed distribution networks [3]. The trajectory of
impedance seen by a distance relay may enter its operating zones
during a power swing condition. Therefore, these relays are sus-
ceptible to undesirable trip due to mistaking a power swing for
a short-circuit fault. The conventional countermeasure against
distance relays maloperation is to block their operation as long
as power swings persist. Power swing blocking (PSB) functions
work traditionally based on the rate of change of impedance,
which is slower in power swings than in faults. The main pur-
pose of a PSB function is to detect power swings and to block
distance relay tripping during power swings.
During a power swing, the power system is under stress. If a
second disturbance occurs in such a condition, large oscillations
the system would experience might also endanger the whole
system stability. As long as a distance relay remains blocked,
it will not detect and clear short-circuit faults. Thus, faults that
occur during a power swing must be detected and cleared with
a high degree of selectivity and dependability.
In some relays, fault detection during power swings is carried
out using the zero-sequence current [4]. However, this method
is not suitable for detecting symmetrical faults. In [5], symmet-
rical faults are detected during power swings by monitoring the
energy of high-frequency components of forward and backward
traveling waves induced by the fault. In [6], the rate of change of
swing-center voltage is used to provide a power swing blocking
protection. The wavelet transform is capable of decomposing
signals into several frequency bands. This capability is used
in [7] for fault detection during power swings. In [8], the av-
erage of current is used for power swing detection and fault
identification during power swing. Some recent works on fault
detection techniques during power swings are based on intel-
ligent training [9], phase-space mapping [10], support vector
machine identification [11] and wavelet singular entropy [12].
Although their reported results are satisfactory, however, some
of these methods require time consuming training procedures
or high sampling frequencies which are beyond the capabilities
of existing numerical relays.
Calculation of impedance trajectory in numerical distance re-
lays is based on voltage and current phasor estimation [13]. Os-
cillation of fundamental frequency phasors during power swings
has led to the idea of dynamic phasor, rather than conventional
static phasors, to improve the accuracy of oscillation estimation
[14]–[16]. The transient variation of dynamic phasors is used in
[17] as a criterion to discriminate symmetrical and asymmetri-
cal faults from power swings. In most cases, power swings are
HASHEMI AND SANAYE-PASAND: DISTANCE PROTECTION DURING ASYMMETRICAL POWER SWINGS: CHALLENGES AND SOLUTIONS 2737

symmetrical and three-phase active or reactive powers can be

used to distinguish between power swings and faults as pre-
sented in [18], [19].
Single-pole tripping and reclosing is a common practice for
enhancing power system transient stability. In weak areas of a
power system, power swings may occur after single-pole trip-
ping [1]. The resulting phenomenon is known as asymmetrical
power swing and is more likely to occur in long, heavily loaded
transmission lines for which the interruption of one phase will
Fig. 1. Investigation of a typical transmission line during single-pole tripping;
result in remarkable change of transferred power [1], [20], [21]. (a) Self and mutual impedances; (b) Voltage phasor diagram.
To deal with such a problem, PSB schemes should be able to
detect power swings on each phase independently.
arranged as:
This paper focuses on asymmetrical power swings and their
effects on distance protection. In this respect, performance of ΔVb = (Zs − Zm )Ib + Zm IE , ΔVc = (Zs − Zm )Ic + Zm IE
distance relays during single-pole tripping is elaborated at the (2)
beginning. Then, an analytic discussion is presented to show where the earth current IE is defined as:
when and where asymmetrical power swings are emerged. These
IE = 3I0 = Ia + Ib + Ic = Ib + Ic (3)
issues provide the required information to investigate the effects
of asymmetrical power swings on distance protection. After- Using the K0 factor defined in (4), the healthy phases currents
wards, two new techniques are proposed to enhance numeri- are obtained as (5). It should be noted that K0 is a complex value
cal distance protection in the presence of asymmetrical power with an angle close to zero and can be well-approximated as a
swings. Finally, simulation results are provided to support the real value.
presented analysis and evaluate the proposed solutions. In a nut- Zm Z0 − Z1
shell, the main contributions and features of this paper are listed K0 = = (4)
Z1 3Z1
as:
r Elaborating asymmetrical power swings and their impacts ΔVb ΔVc
Ib = − K0 IE , Ic = − K0 IE (5)
on distance protection. This type of power swings is less Z1 Z1
studied in detail in the literature. From (3) and (5), the currents can be described in terms of
r Analyzing the effects of single-pole tripping on distance voltage differences as
protection by extracting proper mathematical equations. ⎧    
r Presenting two new techniques to empower distance pro- 1+K 0
⎨ Ib = 1+2K ΔVb
− K0 ΔVc
0 Z1 1+2K 0 Z1
tection in counteracting asymmetrical power swings.     (6)
⎩I = 1+K Δ Δ
Z 1 − 1+2K 0
0 V c K 0 Vb
c 1+2K 0 Z1

II. EFFECTS OF SINGLE-POLE TRIPPING CONDITION ON Note that for K0 = 0 in (6), the line is considered as three
DISTANCE PROTECTION separated phases with no mutual coupling, whose currents are
simply obtained by dividing voltage over the impedance. This
A distance relay measures impedance to the fault in order
condition takes place when Z0 = Z1 or mathematically:
to protect the line against short-circuit faults. Six distance 
protection units, including three ground units and three phase K0 = 0 ΔVb ΔVc
if Z0 = Z1 ⇒ ⇒ Ib = , Ic = (7)
units, provide a comprehensive protection against all types Zm = 0 Zs Zs
of short-circuit faults. During single-pole tripping (SPT), the
From (3) and (6), IE is expressed as:
line is operating under unbalanced condition which may affect 
some protection functions. Before analyzing these effects on 1 1
IE = (ΔVb + ΔVc ) (8)
distance protection, the relationships between the currents of Z1 1 + 2K0
healthy phases during SPT condition are extracted as follows.
Now, assume that buses x and y in Fig. 1 have the same voltage
magnitudes with the phase difference of δ. The voltage across
A. Healthy Phases Currents During SPT each phase is generally expressed as:
During SPT, the power flow is established through two healthy ΔV = |V | ∠0 − |V | ∠ − δ (9)
phases of the line. Considering Fig. 1(a), the following equations
can be written. Taking phase a as the reference and α = 1 ∠ 120◦ :
ΔVb + ΔVc = (α2 + α)ΔV = −ΔV (10)
Vbx − Vby = Zs Ib + Zm Ic , Vcx − Vcy = Zs Ic + Zm Ib (1)
Before SPT, the currents of healthy phases are given as (11)
where Zs and Zm are the self and mutual impedances of trans- in which the subscript ‘ini’ denotes the initial value.
mission line, respectively, and the line is considered to be trans- ΔVb α2 ΔV ΔVc αΔV
posed. Since the positive and zero sequence impedances are Ib,in i = = = α2 I, Ic,in i = = = αI
Z1 Z1 Z1 Z1
defined as Z1 = Zs − Zm and Z0 = Zs + 2Zm , (1) can be (11)
2738 IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON POWER DELIVERY, VOL. 33, NO. 6, DECEMBER 2018

Fig. 2. Variation of magnitude of IE with K 0 during SPT. Fig. 4. Variation of |Z/Z i n i | with K 0 for phase distance relays during SPT.

set longer than the dead time of reclosing scheme. Effect of this
current on distance protection is investigated in the subsequent
part.

B. Distance Protection During SPT

For a given phase L, the ground and phase units of a distance
relay calculate the following impedances:
V L 1 E −V L 2 E
ZL E = VL E
I L +K 0 I E , ZL 1L 2 = I L 1 −I L 2 (15)
where L1 and L2 are two given phases of the line. When the
system is operating under normal condition with no fault, the
impedance calculated by the distance relay is proportional to
the load power transfer across the line. An area near the R-axis
Fig. 3. Variation of I/Ii n i with K 0 during SPT for a typical transmission determines the load area. The longer the line, the more likely
line.
the load area encroachment on the relay characteristics.
Considering (12)−(15) and assuming that the voltages before
Accordingly, the expression of IE in (8) is developed as: and after SPT are similar, the impedance seen by the ground

1 ΔV 1 distance relay of phase b (ZbE ) during the SPT of phase a is
IE = − =− I (12) obtained as:
1 + 2K0 Z1 1 + 2K0
VbE α2 V V
Variation of magnitude of IE with K0 is shown in Fig. 2. It can ZbE = =  = (16)
be concluded that as the interphase mutual coupling increases, Ib + K0 IE Kb − 1+2K
K 0
I I
0
the magnitude of IE during SPT decreases. Meanwhile, the
currents of healthy phases in (6) are represented as: Under normal condition where IE is zero, ZbE turns to:
⎧
⎨ Ib = Kb I, Kb = (1+K 0 )α 2 −K 0 α VbE ,in i α2 V V
1+2K 0 ZbE ,in i = = 2 = (17)
(13) Ib,in i α I I
⎩ I = K I, K = (1+K 0 )α −K 0 α 2
c c c 1+2K 0 Hence, ZbE is equal to ZbE ,in i . A similar relationship is
established for phase c. In other words, the impedances seen
Fig. 3 represents variation of Ib /Ib,in i and Ic /Ic,in i ratios
by the ground distance relays of healthy phases during SPT are
both in magnitude and phase angle versus the K0 factor. Typical
similar to those during normal condition.
values of K0 in overhead lines are between 0.6 to 1 [3]. As
Moreover, it can be shown that the impedances of phase
mentioned earlier, zero K0 corresponds to Z0 = Z1 . Fig. 3
distance units during the SPT of phase a are described as:
demonstrates that as K0 increases, the magnitudes of Ib /Ib,in i
α2 V (α 2 −α )V
and Ic /Ic,in i decrease gradually. For K0 values between 0.6 to Zab = Kb I , Zbc = (K b −K c )I = V
I , Zca = αV
Kc I
(18)
1, the magnitudes of Ib and Ic during SPT are almost 85% of
their corresponding values before SPT. The trends of Ib and Ic These equations are related to their counterparts in normal
for larger values of K0 can be approximated as: condition as:
⎧ √  α2
⎪ 2
Za b
= , Zb c
= 1, Zc a
= α
(19)
⎨ lim Ib = lim Kb I = α 2−α I = 23 ∠ −90◦ I Za b , i n i Kb Zb c , i n i Zc a , i n i Kc
K 0 →∞ K 0 →∞
√  (14) As shown in Fig. 4, for typical K0 values of 0.6 to 0.1, the
⎪
⎩ lim Ic = lim Kc I = α −α
2
I = 3
∠ +90 ◦
I
K 0 →∞ K 0 →∞ 2 2 magnitudes of impedances seen by ab and ca phase distance
relays during SPT are almost 1.15 times greater than those of
The main result of this part is that during SPT, an inherent normal condition.
earth current (or zero sequence current) is generated due to the In numerical distance relays, the ground units are usually acti-
unbalanced system condition. Therefore, the protection func- vated if an earth fault is detected by monitoring the earth current
tions which are based on the value of zero-sequence current IE [3], [4]. During symmetrical operation of power system, due
have to be blocked during SPT or their time delay should be to the lack of zero sequence current, the ground distance units
HASHEMI AND SANAYE-PASAND: DISTANCE PROTECTION DURING ASYMMETRICAL POWER SWINGS: CHALLENGES AND SOLUTIONS
are not activated. This condition is established during symmet-
rical power swings as well. However, the presence of IE during
asymmetrical conditions, like SPT, may result in unwanted ac-
tivation of ground distance relays.
It is worth mentioning that some modern relays employ more
sophisticated earth fault detection algorithms to prevent activat-
ing ground distance units by SPT [22]. Such algorithms are only
carried out during SPT and therefore, they need to know whether
or not the faulted line is tripped single-pole. The ground units
of these relays may be immune to activation during the SPT of
faulted line. However, the presence of IE can be seen by the
relays of adjacent lines as well and those relays should have
the SPT data of the main faulted line which is not usually the
case. Therefore, even using modern numerical distance relays,
activation of ground distance relays during SPT is still likely.
As will be explained, the activated distance relays are exposed
to the risk of issuing false trip commands during power swings.
III. ASYMMETRICAL POWER SWINGS AND THEIR EFFECTS ON
DISTANCE PROTECTION
As mentioned earlier, asymmetrical power swings occur dur-
ing SPT. There are also some single-pole tripping and reclosing
practices without any considerable power swing. Thus, the ques-
tion is that when and where asymmetrical power swings take
place. Proper equations are derived in this section to answer this
question.
A. Asymmetrical Power Swings: When/Where Taking Place?
In a bulk power system, power swings are originated from the
rotor angle oscillations of synchronous generators. The well-
known swing equation of a turbo-generator is written by using
the Newton’s second law of motion as:
dωm
J + Td = Tm − Te (20)
dt
where J is the inertia constant, ωm is the rotor speed, Tm is
the mechanical torque produced by the turbine, Te is the coun-
teracting electromagnetic torque, and Td is the damping torque
accounting the mechanical rotational loss due to windage and
friction [23]. It is approximately proportional to the rotor speed
as Td = Dωm . The change in electromagnetic torque ΔTe is a
linear function of changes in rotor angle and flux linkages. After
some manipulations [23], the swing equation can be expressed
in terms of change of angle as:
2
d Δδ dΔδ
M +D + KE  Δδ = 0 (21)
dt2 dt
where M = Jωm and KE  is the transient synchronizing power
coefficient. Equation (21) is a second-order differential equation
with the initial conditions of (22).

Δδ|t=0 + = Δδin i , Δωm = Δδ̇  + = 0 (22)
t=0
During stable power swings, the rotor angle variation is un-
derdamped and described as [23]:
Δδin i −α t
2739
Fig. 5. Variation of |ΔP e /P e , i n i | with K 0 during SPT.
where α = ζωn , ωn = (KE  /M )1/2 , ζ = D/ 2(KE  /M )1/2
and ϕ = cos−1 ζ. On the other hand, the output electrical power
of a generator can be expressed as:
Pe = Pm ax sin δ (24)
For a small change in the electrical power:
Pe,in i + ΔPin i = Pm ax sin (δin i + Δδin i )
≈ Pm ax sin δin i + (Pm ax cos δin i )Δδin i
(25)
From (24) and (25), it is concluded that:
ΔPin i = (Pm ax cos δin i )Δδin i (26)
Equation (26) implies that any change in output electrical
power of a generator will be followed almost directly by a
proportional change in rotor angle. According to (23), the value
of initial change of angle Δδin i determines the amplitude of
angle oscillations. The more the change in power, the more the
severity of disturbance and rotor angle oscillations.
The electrical power transferred through a transmission line
is calculated as:
Pe,in i = Pa,in i + Pb,in i + Pc,in i = 3 |V | |I| cos θ (27)
During the SPT of phase a, the transferred power is
yielded as:
Pe = Pb + Pc = |V | |I| (|Kb | + |Kc |) cos θ (28)
From (27) and (28), one can deduce that:
   
 ΔPe   
  % = 1 − |Kb | + |Kc |  × 100 (29)
 Pe,in i   3 
Variation of (29) with K0 is illustrated in Fig. 5. As expected,
the single-phase interruption induced ΔP is smaller than that
induced by the three-phase interruption. For K0 > 0.5, ΔP
is about 40%. In meshed and interconnected transmission net-
works, some part of this ΔP is imposed on other lines which
provide alternative paths from the generators to the load cen-
ters. However, during the maintenance programs or in case of
a single-circuit tie-line between two areas of the system, there
may be only one path for the power transfer from power plants to
loads. If so, the whole ΔP created by SPT affects the generators
and it can be shown that:
 Δδin i   ΔPe 
Δδ(t) =  e sin(ωn t + ϕ) (23)  ≈  (30)
1 − ζ2  δin i   Pe,in i 
2740 IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON POWER DELIVERY, VOL. 33, NO. 6, DECEMBER 2018

For K0 > 0.5, the rotor angle variations during asymmetrical

power swings can be extracted from (23) and (30) as:

0.4
δ(t) = δin i + Δδ ≈ δin i × 1 +  e−α t sin (ωn t + ϕ)
1 − ζ2
(31)
If the initial transferred power Pin i is relatively high, this
ΔP can also be high enough to create remarkable Δδ and thus,
severe power swings. On the other hand, these power swings are
harmful to distance protection only when they cause impedance
trajectory encroachment on the relay characteristic zones which
is more likely in long transmission lines. In summary, the oc-
currence of asymmetrical power swings is more likely in long
heavily loaded systems

B. Effects of Asymmetrical Power Swings on Distance

Protection
Investigation of distance protection performance during
asymmetrical power swings can be studied using Fig. 1(a),
where phase a is opened following a single-phase to ground
fault. For one of the healthy phases, say phase b, we can con-
clude from (1), (4) and (15) that:
Vbx = Vby + (Zs − Zm )Ib + Zm IE (32)
Vbx − Vby
Ib + K0 IE = (33)
Z1
Vbx 1
ZbE x = V b x −V b y
= Z1 |V b y |
(34) Fig. 6. Time evolution of phase angle and impedance during power swings;
Z1 1− |V b x | ∠ − δ(t) (a) Phase angles and their corresponding impedances; (b) 3-D representation of
impedance trajectory encroachment on the relay third zone for δi n i = 40◦ .
The right-hand side of (34) is based on the assumption that
the angle difference between the voltages of both line ends is
δ(t) and the flow direction is from bus x to bus y. Given that
Kv = |Vby |/|Vbx |, the Cartesian representation of (34) is:
1
ZbE x = Z1 (35)
1 − Kv (cos δ(t) + j sin δ(t))
The real and imaginary parts of ZbE x are yielded as:
⎧
⎨ Re(ZbE x ) = R 1 (1−K v cos δ (t))+X 1 K v2 sin δ (t)
1−2K v cos δ (t)+K v
(36)
⎩ Im(ZbE x ) = X 1 (1−K v cos δ (t))−R 1 K v sin δ (t)
1−2K v cos δ (t)+K v2

It is worth mentioning that in practice δin i is maintained below

44° (equal to 30% margin) due to the steady-state stability limit
of transmission lines [26], [27]. Fig. 6(a) shows time variation
of δ in (31) for 10◦ < δin i < 44◦ . In this figure, ϕ is π/6, α is
0.2 and ωn is 2π which equals to the swing frequency of 1 Hz.
At the same time, the corresponding magnitudes of |ZB E x | are
represented in Fig. 6(a) as well as the boundaries of zones 1, 2
and 3 for an arbitrary line with total impedance of 40 ohms. It
is observed that as δin i increases, the impedance approaches to
the relay zones. Fig. 6(b) illustrates time evolution of impedance
trajectory with respect to the relay third zone for δin i = 40◦ .
As illustrated, the impedance may encroach several times on the
relay zone.
It should be noted that maloperation of a distance relay zone
during either symmetrical or asymmetrical power swings de-
Fig. 7. Impedance trajectories during power swings.
pends on how long the related impedance trajectory remains
within the relay zone. This time is mainly affected by the swing
frequency and its severity. In other words, severe power swings
whose related impedance trajectory encroaches the first zone of
distance relays may result in immediate maloperation of relay
regardless of the swing frequency. However, for swings inside
the second or third zones, only those slow frequency swings are
problematic which remain inside the zone longer than the zone
delay time.
Variations of ZbE x against power angle δ for different values
of Kv are depicted in Fig. 7, where the line impedance and relay
characteristics belong to the system simulated in Section III. It is
HASHEMI AND SANAYE-PASAND: DISTANCE PROTECTION DURING ASYMMETRICAL POWER SWINGS: CHALLENGES AND SOLUTIONS 2741

observed in this figure that for some values of δ, the impedance

trajectory lies inside the relay characteristics and in the worst
case, it passes through the relay characteristics and proceeds to
the opposite side of RX plane which represent unstable power
swings. It should be noted that the majority of asymmetrical
power swings are stable. However, if a line which is exposed to
asymmetrical power swings operates under SPT condition for a
long dead-time, it may experience unstable swings.
For phase distance relays, it can be shown that during the SPT
of phase a, the impedance seen by phase bc distance relay is
calculated using (1), (13), (15) as:
ΔV
Vbx − Vcx = (α2 − α)V, Ib − Ic = (α2 − α) (37)
Z1
Vbx − Vcx V 1
Zbc = = Z1 = Z1
Ib − Ic ΔV 1 − Kv ∠ − δ(t)
(38)
Considering (18), the following relationships can be extracted
for phases ca and ab.
α2 Z1 α Z1
Zab = · , Zca = ·
Kb 1 − Kv ∠ − δ(t) Kc 1 − Kv ∠ − δ(t)
(39)
The main results of this discussion can be summarized as
follows:
r Since the value of IE in symmetrical power swings is al-
Fig. 8. Proposed earth fault detection algorithm for activating ground distance
most zero, the ground distance relays are not activated and relays; (a) Flowchart; (b) Logic diagram used for generating FDL signal.
thus, they are immune to mal-operation under symmetri-
cal power swings. However, since these relays are activated
during SPT, they may mal-operate in asymmetrical power earth faults by using only the zero sequence current in this con-
swings. dition. For this purpose, the absolute of rate of change of zero
r It can be deduced form (18), (39) and Fig. 4 that during the sequence current (|dI0 /dt|) can be an alternative option, since it
SPT of phase a, distance units of phases ab and ca would rises up suddenly when an earth fault occurs. However, it should
see larger impedances than normal condition and there- be deactivated at the instants of single-pole tripping and reclos-
fore, they are less affected by asymmetrical power swings. ing in which |dI0 /dt| may increase spuriously. The threshold of
However, phase bc distance relay is affected similar to the |dI0 /dt| can be set as equal to 10% of In per second where In is
ground distance relays of bE and cE. the nominal primary current of the line current transformers. In
r As an analogy, in symmetrical power swings, only phase order to increase the reliability of this fault detection technique,
distance relays are involved and it is sufficient to equip PSB function should be activated during asymmetrical power
them with PSB functions. However, in asymmetrical power swings and an abrupt change should occur at least in the current
swings, both phase and ground units are engaged and of one phase.
should have PSB functions. 2) Enhanced Earth Fault Detection Algorithm: Some mod-
ern numerical distance relays employ more sophisticated earth
C. Proposed Solutions to Enhance Distance Protection fault detection algorithms during the SPT condition to restrain
During Asymmetrical Power Swings against the presence of IE . Such an algorithm is introduced in
[22] which is activated when the line is tripped single-pole fol-
It is demonstrated so far that both ground and phase units lowing a single-phase to ground fault. Therefore, the algorithm
of distance relays are affected by asymmetrical power swings. requires to know which phase is opened during SPT. As men-
From the reliability viewpoint, distance relays should be secure tioned earlier, the presence of IE in asymmetrical power swings
to prevent maloperation during power swings and dependable may also affect some adjacent lines which are not tripped. In this
to prevent misoperation and detect the faults in any condition case, the algorithm of [22] is not efficient. To tackle this prob-
regardless of the presence of power swings. In this part, two lem, an enhanced earth fault detection algorithm is proposed as
solutions are proposed to enhance numerical distance protection Fig. 8 which can be used in any condition regardless of SPT.
during asymmetrical power swings. Before running the proposed algorithm, the appropriate phases
1) Fault Detection using the Rate of Change of Zero Se- for fault detection are gathered in a given set like S as:
quence Current: As mentioned earlier, due to the nonzero value
of IE in asymmetrical power swings, it is not secure to detect ∀x = 1, 2, 3 if |Ix | > Im in ⇒ x ∈ {S} (40)
2742 IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON POWER DELIVERY, VOL. 33, NO. 6, DECEMBER 2018

Fig. 9. Modified Kundur’s four-machine system.

where Imin denotes the minimum current used for detecting any
phase opening and can be set as 0.1 × In . For the main faulted
line whose faulted phase (say a) is tripped, |Ia | becomes less Fig. 10. Performance of aE ground distance relays for an SLG fault on phase
than Imin and the corresponding phase a is eliminated from c; Reclosing dead time = (a) 800 ms, (b) 1000 ms.
set S. The maxima and minima of phase voltages and current
are compared with each other according to Fig. 8(a). If there
are considerable differences, an earth fault is detected and the
ground distance relays are activated. It should be noted that in
Fig. 8(a), the fault detection logic (FDL) signal is generated
according to the logic diagram shown in Fig. 8(b), wherein
the load angle criteria block checks the angle |(V{S} /I{S} )|
to see whether or not it is less than the maximum load angle,
typically 30°. Fig. 11. Phase and zero sequence currents during asymmetrical power swing.

IV. SIMULATION RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

In this section, two simulated systems are used to evaluate the
presented analyses. Each of two proposed solutions for distance
protection enhancement during asymmetrical power swings is
tested on one of the simulated systems as follows. Both sys-
tems are simulated in the DIgSILENT Power Factory software
[24] and the proposed methods are carried out in MATLAB
using a personal computer with Intel Core i7 CPU and 8 GB
RAM. Meanwhile, asymmetrical power swings are detected in
the simulated systems by conventional PSB functions used for
both ground and phase distance relays [4]. For this purpose, in-
ner and outer blinders are defined as zone 3 and 1.2 times zone
3, respectively. If the impedance trajectory remains between the
outer and inner blinders for more than 40 ms, PSB function is
activated.
A. Modified Kundur’s Four-Machine System
In order to demonstrate the effect of asymmetrical power
swings on distance protection, the Kundur’s four-machine sys-
tem shown in Fig. 9 is used for simulation studies [25] and its
data are given in Appendix. Moreover, the values of loads L5
and L6 are changed to create a heavy load condition for line 5–
6. This line transfers almost 430 MW from bus 5 to bus 6. The
relay under study is located at beginning of the line on bus 5.
The simulation scenario is as follows. A single phase-to-
ground (SLG) fault with Rf = 0 Ω occurs at t = 1 s at the
middle of line 5–6 on phase c. To prevent system separation,
SPT is necessary in this case. The faulty phase is opened at t =
1.06 s, meaning that the total time required for fault detection
and circuit breaker opening is assumed to be 60 ms. Then, the
fault is cleared at t = 1.08 s due to its temporary nature. Finally,
the opened phase is reclosed after a prescribed dead time.
Fig. 10 shows the simulation results for two different dead
times. In Fig. 10(a), the dead time is 800 ms, while in Fig. 10(b)
it is 1 s. In both cases, the impedance trajectory approaches the
Fig. 12. Simulation results for an SLG fault on phase a during asymmetrical
power swing; (a) Impedance trajectory; (b) Phase and zero-sequence currents.
relay operating zones once the faulty phase is opened. Moreover,
following the SPT, the impedance trajectory proceeds towards
the relay operating zones. Fig. 10 demonstrates that power swing
will represent different features depending on the reclosing dead
time. For the shorter dead time, the power swing is likely to
be stable and the impedance trajectory will exit the relay zones
after reclosing. However, if the dead time is further extended, the
system may experience an unstable power swing. This is because
during the single-pole tripping period, the power angles at line
end buses are moving further apart from each other. Although the
angle difference increase in this case is smaller than that of three-
pole tripping, it is still possible that such a phenomenon occurs
in weak areas of the power system. Meanwhile, Fig. 11 shows
the magnitudes of currents measured by relay R. As shown,
similar to the SLG fault condition, there is a considerable zero-
sequence current during single-pole tripping, which continues
to increase.
One of the main features of PSB functions is how to detect
faults during power swings. Fig. 12 shows the simulation re-
sults for an SLG fault occurring during an asymmetrical power
swing. In this figure, an asymmetrical power swing appears after
single-pole tripping of phase c. During this condition, a perma-
nent SLG fault initiates at t = 1.5 s on phase a. Following this
HASHEMI AND SANAYE-PASAND: DISTANCE PROTECTION DURING ASYMMETRICAL POWER SWINGS: CHALLENGES AND SOLUTIONS
Fig. 13. Variation of the rate of change of zero-sequence current.
Fig. 14. IEEE 39 Bus New-England System.
fault, the impedance abruptly moves into the relay operating
zone. This abrupt change is also observed in the zero-sequence
current depicted in Fig. 12(b). It can be concluded from Figs. 11
and 12(b) that the net value of zero-sequence current is not an
effective tool to detect earth faults during asymmetrical power
swings. However, Fig. 13 demonstrates that the rate of change
of zero-sequence current is able to serve this purpose quite
well. As shown, this parameter detects any abrupt change due
to fault or single-pole switching. Therefore, in order to make
it suitable to detect the faults that occur during asymmetrical
power swings, it can be logically combined with a power swing
detection method. In other words, the mentioned faults are de-
tected if a power swing is detected and the rate of change of
zero-sequence current exceeds a predetermined threshold.
B. IEEE 39 Bus System
The IEEE 39 bus system, as shown in Fig. 14, contains 34 lines
among which lines 26–29 and 26–28 are the longest ones and
line 26–28 is assumed to be out of service. Thus, generator G9 is
connected to the rest of the grid via line 26–29 which transfers
about 330 MW from bus 29 to 26. Under this condition, an
SLG fault on phase a with Rf = 0 Ω is applied at the middle
of line 26–29 at t = 1 s and this phase is opened at t = 1.1 s.
2743
Fig. 15. Simulation results for the IEEE 39 bus system; (a) Impedance seen
by the relay of line 26–29; (b) Currents of line 25–26; (c) Voltages of line 25–26.
Fig. 15(a) shows the impedance seen by the cE distance relay of
line 26–29 located at bus 29, in which the impedance trajectory
enters the relay zone due to the asymmetrical power swings
emerged after the fault removal.
In order to examine the second proposed earth fault detection
method, consider the three-phase voltages and currents of line
25–26 which are measured at bus 25 and shown in Fig. 15(b)
and (c). During the SPT of line 26–29, the zero sequence current
of line 25–26 is greater than zero which can result in starting
ground distance units. Using the proposed earth fault detec-
tion, max(|Ia |, |Ib |, |Ic |) is greater than 2 × min(|Ia |, |Ib |, |Ic |)
during SPT. However, at the same time max(|Va |, |Vb |, |Vc |) is
less than 1.5 × min(|Va |, |Vb |, |Vc |). Once an earth fault occurs
on phase a of line 25–26 at t = 2 s, max(|Va |, |Vb |, |Vc |) be-
comes greater than 1.5 × min(|Va |, |Vb |, |Vc |). Therefore, the
proposed combination of current and voltage signals in earth
fault detection method makes the relays of the main line and its
adjacent lines immune to activation of earth fault units during
SPT condition.
2744
TABLE I
EVALUATION OF EXISTING POWER SWING BLOCKING/UNBLOCKING SCHEMES
FOR ASYMMETRICAL POWER SWINGS APPLICATIONS
Methodology Applicable in
Asymmetrical
Power Swings
Conventional blinder scheme [4] No
Wavelet transform [7] Yes
Traveling waves [5] No
Moving window averaging [8] No
Swing center voltage tracer [6] No
Modified concentric characteristic [28] Yes
Admittance circular trajectory [29] Yes
SVM classifier [11] No
Differential power [30] Yes
Negative sequence current [31] No
Dynamic phasor transient [17] Yes
Taylor series [32] Yes
Instantaneous active power [18] No
Change of active/reactive power [19] No
Proposed dI0 /dt Method Yes
Proposed Earth Fault Detection Method Yes
Fig. 16. Simulation results for SPT of line 17–27 following an SLG fault.
C. Comparison With Other Methods
The presented simulation results demonstrated the better per-
formance of proposed fault detection methods during asymmet-
rical power swings in comparison with some commercial relays.
For instance, Figs. 12 and 13 showed that the zero sequence cur-
rent, which is used in [4], is not an appropriate parameter for
fault detection during asymmetrical power swings, but its rate
of change is proper for this purpose. Moreover, it was shown in
Fig. 15 that the second proposed method can effectively detect
earth faults during asymmetrical power swings in the faulty line
and its adjacent lines which is more beneficial than the method
used in [22].
Table I presents results of evaluating some existing power
swing blocking/unblocking schemes for using in case of asym-
metrical power swings. As shown, some methods are not effi-
cient for asymmetrical power swings applications due to relying
on all phases data or using zero sequence current. Meanwhile,
some methods including the second proposed method are set-
ting free, while others require settings. The procedure of setting
calculation in some methods like the first proposed method is
simple. However, some methods like [17], [18] and [32] need
simulation studies for setting calculations.
For more investigation, performances of two worthy methods
introduced in [18] and [19] are examined. Method [18] is based
on the three-phase active power. It is shown that the magnitude
IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON POWER DELIVERY, VOL. 33, NO. 6, DECEMBER 2018
Setting
Free
No
No
No
Yes
Yes
No
No
No
No
No
No
No
No Fig. 17. Investigation of fault detection methods proposed in [18] and [19]
No during SPT; (a) Magnitude of FFT of active power for line 17–27; (b) Rates of
No changes of active and reactive powers for line 17–27.
Yes
of fast Fourier transform (FFT) of three-phase active power
during normal condition and symmetrical power swings have
negligible variations; while following three-phase faults, it rises
considerably. A similar relationship has been used in [19] for the
rates of changes of three-phase active and reactive powers. Both
of these methods work well during symmetrical power swings.
However, during SPT and asymmetrical power swings, they may
cause undesired results. This issue is shown by evaluating these
methods during a simple SPT condition without remarkable
power swings. In doing so, line 26–28 in Fig. 14 is closed and
line 17–27 as a medium length and lightly loaded line is selected
for study. During normal condition, this line is loaded by about
7%. An SLG fault is applied at t = 1 s at the middle of phase
a of line 17–27 and removed at t = 1.1 s by SPT of the faulty
phase. The SPT condition is established until t = 2 s.
Fig. 16 shows the three-phase active and reactive powers of
line 17–27 during pre-fault and post-fault conditions. As shown,
these powers are almost fixed during pre-fault condition and rep-
resent remarkable variations during SPT. Fig. 17(a) and (b) illus-
trate the magnitude of FFT of active power and rates of changes
of active and reactive powers, respectively. As observed, both
of these variables have considerable variations during SPT. It
should be noted that these variations are mainly due to the open-
ing of one phase, since the created asymmetrical power swings
in this case are negligible. Consequently, these methods may
Result in relay maloperation during SPT and asymmetrical
power swings.
V. CONCLUSION
In this paper, effects of asymmetrical power swings on dis-
tance protection were analyzed in detail. It was shown that in
heavily loaded power systems, single-pole tripping of faulty
phase may induce power swings on healthy phases. During this
period, since one phase of transmission line is out of service,
there would be a zero-sequence current flow under non-faulted
conditions. This circumstance makes it difficult to detect earth
faults which might occur during asymmetrical power swings.
HASHEMI AND SANAYE-PASAND: DISTANCE PROTECTION DURING ASYMMETRICAL POWER SWINGS: CHALLENGES AND SOLUTIONS 2745

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