IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON INDUSTRY APPLICATIONS, VOL. 30, NO.

4, JULY / AUGUST 1994 1099

Short-Circuit Current Calculation:

A Comparison between Methods
of IEC and ANSI Standards
Using Dynamic Simulation as Reference
Albert0 Berizzi, Member, IEEE, Stefan0 Massucco, Member, IEEE, Andrea Silvestri,
and Dario Zaninelli, Member, IEEE

Abstract-An essential issue concerning short-circuit studies ages, electrical system one-line diagram, on adequate
is about how much precise should short-circuit calculations be. sizing of system equipment, and on proper setting of
Simplified procedures have been proposed since many years by
International Committees to provide reference methods for the
protection devices, is still a basic and unquestionable
manual computation and for the use of rated, rather than requirement.
operating, equipment data. Recently, dynamic programs have Some of the mentioned studies need complex and de-
been used to accurately simulate short-circuit currents. Two tailed models to represent the behavior of the power
widely adopted international standards (ANSI / IEEE system; other studies can utilize less sophisticated ap-
C37.010.1979 and IEC 909 Standards) are investigated in this
paper for comparing and pointing out the most significant proaches based on simplified but valid analytic proce-
differences in methodologies, assumptions, computed currents, dures. The kind and detail of the analysis are strictly
and results. An outline of the two standards is presented and a related to the stage of the project under development.
detailed comparison is carried on. The procedures of the two Not all the above mentioned calculations are required
standards are applied to a test network proposed in the IEC 909 at the preliminary stage of a project and also their accu-
Standard. Results of calculations by the two standards are
compared using the results of a transient study performed by racy can be less strict at this point than at more advanced
the EMTP simulation program as a reference basis. stages.
Short-circuit current studies are a typical example of
this. They are essential studies in system design as well as
I. INTRODUCTION in equipment sizing and selection. Their accuracy can be
L A ” I N G , design, and operation of electrical power quite different: they can be based on simulation, that
P systems require several studies to evaluate and assess must adopt very detailed models representing the dynamic
performances, reliability, and safety of the system. Exam- behaviour of system components, or they can use simpli-
ples of these studies are: load flow, fault and short-circuit, fied approaches by a quasi-steady state representation of
motor starting, stability, protective device coordination, the system components.
reliability analysis [l], [21. Although there is a great inter- Simplified procedures for short-circuit current calcula-
est in power system operation (as the large number of tion have been proposed long since by International Or-
works on hardware and software tools to improve system ganizations [4]-[91. The adoption of dynamic simulation is
operation can testify [31), it is common experience that a relatively more recent and is related to the availability of
poor electrical system design can lead to serious conse- powerful computers and software tools, which are succes-
quences in the system safety and operation. Sometimes sive to the development of standards, and to the availabil-
problems cannot be solved and the system situation can- ity of a much larger set of data (the recent document [lo]
not be improved by subsequent adoption of control provides information about power system equipment).
methodologies and devices. Bad system operation may The enormous development of computer hardware and
often be prevented by a correct planning and design. A software could have forced power system engineers to
good system design based on a careful selection of volt- adopt extensively dynamic simulation for short-circuit
studies and to set aside the use of simplified procedures
Paper ICPSD 93-47, approved by the Power Systems Engineering offered by standards. On the contrary, there is still a great
Committee of the IEEE Industry Applications Society for presentation interest in short-circuit current calculation by interna-
at the 1993 IAS Annual Meeting. Manuscript released for publication tional standards as it can be deduced by the continuous
February 21, 1994.
A. Berizzi, A. Silvestri, and D. Zaninelli are with the Dipartimento di process of revision and consolidation they are subjected to
Elettrotecnica, Politecnico di Milano, Piazza Leonard0 da Vinci 32, (for instance, see [51, [SI and [71, [91). Moreover, this
MI33 Milano, Italy. interest is confirmed by the significant presence in the
S.Massucco is with the Dipartimento di Ingegneria Elettrica, Univer-
sit$ di Pavia, Via Abbiategrasso 209, 27100 Pavia, Italy. software market of many programs that make use of the
IEEE Log Number 9402630. quasi-steady state computational method proposed by in-

0094-9994/94$04.00 0 1994 IEEE

1100 IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON INDUSTRY APPLICATIONS, VOL. 30, NO. 4, JULY / AUGUST 1994

ternational standards [ll] and by recent works which
compare standards and procedures from different coun- balanced short-circuit, because [7] applies only superfi-
tries [12]-[14].
The aim of the present paper is to give evidence of the faults are reported in the mentioned revision of the IEC
different approaches offered by dynamic and standard 909 Standard [9].
based calculation of short-circuit currents and to remind
the specific fields of application and the limits of both.
Afterwards, it seemed worthwhile to compare the method-
ologies offered by two important international standards,
namely the ANSI/IEEE C37.010.1979 [61 and the IEC
909 [7], which is the recent result of a long revision work.
It is evident that the comparison between the IEC and the
ANSI/IEEE Standards is not immediate and needs some
considerations due to the differences in computed quanti-
ties. The outlines of the two standards are reported in the
following Sec. I1 by pointing out the most significant
differences in methodologies, assumptions, computed cur-
rents and results. The comparison between the standards
is carried out in Sec. I11 on the basis of results derived by
applying the procedures of the two standards to an electri-
cal test network proposed in the Appendix of the IEC 909
Standard. This test network consists of a large generator
connected to an external system by means of a step-up
transformer and supplying power to an internal network
including several motors at different voltage levels. The
network is quite interesting because it takes into consider-
ation balanced short-circuit faults near to generator and
in presence of motor contributions.
In order to present a more significant comparison, the
same electrical test network has been investigated by
using a recent version of the EMTP, a widely spread
international computer code for electrical transient analy-
sis [15]. The results of the transient analysis are in terms
of current waveforms versus time: after some elabora-
tions, they are used as a reference to compare the differ-
ent values of short-circuit currents computed as required
by the ANSI/IEEE and the IEC Standards.
Afterwards, reference is made to the case of three-phase
cially to unbalanced faults. Some details to unbalanced
0 Computation of . :Z The approach of the IEC 909
method consists in an approximation of the superpo-
sition method. It neglects the state prior to the faults
and considers an equivalent voltage source cU, at the
faulted bus. The results are made sufficiently accu-
rate by using some corrective factors. The voltage
factor c assumes different values according to the
system rated voltage ( c = 1 in low-voltage systems
230 V/400 V, 50 Hz; c = 1.05 in other low-voltage
systems; c = 1.1in medium and high-voltage systems):
it is used to set the most adequate voltage level that
determines the maximum short-circuit current. An-
other factor K , allows the calculation of the cor-
rected value of the generator impedance: Z,, =
K J R , +jX$>, where R , is a fictitious value of
resistance (generally higher than the actual value of
the stator resistance) assigned by the Standard as a
function of the subtransient reactance XG for differ-
ent ranges of voltage and rating of the generator.
Analogously, other specific corrective factors are pro-
posed for power station units, depending on whether
generators and transformers are to be considered
separately or not. As for the other element
impedances-such as external network, two or three
winding transformers, overhead lines and cables-the
Standard gives appropriate formulae. Motors are
modelled by their locked rotor impedance.
:Z is calculated as: :Z = CU,/ f i z k , where Z, is
the equivalent impedance as seen from the faulted
bus; Zk includes rotating machines’ impedances only
if the fault is near-to-generators (and motors).

11. OUTLINES OF THE Two STANDARDS

Separated formulae for near-to- or far-from-generator
short-circuits are proposed to compute i,, I b , 16 asym, Zk,
A. The ZEC 909 Standard both because of their inherent dependence on :Z and
The IEC 909 Standard 171 distinguishes between near- furthermore because these characteristic values depend
to-generator and far-from-generator (and motor) short- on the time behavior of the short-circuit current, influ-
circuits, a commonly adopted practice in German techni- enced by possible contributions of synchronous and/or
cal literature [161. The short-circuit is the sum of an ac induction machines.
symmetrical component and of an aperiodic component The Standard also provides different approaches ac-
id,. Near-to-generator short-circuit current presents a cording to network configuration-radial or meshed-and
symmetrical component decaying with time, while far- to fault location. For radial systems, the total short-circuit
from-generator symmetrical component is constant. current is computed-in a simplified but more conserva-
In particular the IEC 909 Standard considers the fol- tive manner-as the algebraic sum (instead of vector sum)
lowing values of short-circuit currents: of all contributions from the paths connected to the fault
location; otherwise, in the case of meshed networks, this
Z[ rms initial symmetrical component; is not possible and a different procedure must take place.
i, peak value;
1, symmetrical short-circuit breaking current at the Computation of i,. It is necessary to distinguish the
instant t , of contact separation of the first pole cases of radial or meshed network.
of a switching device; -In the case of radial network, ip is the sum of
I6 asym rms asymmetrical short-circuit breaking current; contributions i from the ith path converging to the
p!
I, rms steady state short-circuit current. fault bus. Each z p r is computed as a function of ,:Z as
BERIZZI et al.: SHORT-CIRCUIT CURRENT CALCULATION
iPi = Ki\/ZZii,where each coefficient Ki depends (by
a formula or a graph) on the X / R ratio of the
corresponding element.
-In the case of meshed network, as the behavior of
the short-circuit current in each path depends on all
network branch parameters, the IEC 909 suggests
three different approximated methods (named A , B ,
and C ) to compute an equivalent X / R ratio for the
direct determination of i,.
Computation of Ib. In the case of short-circuit far-
from-generators and independently on the network
structure, the following holds: I b = Z i = I k . In the
case of near-to-generator short-circuit it is necessary
to distinguish between radial and meshed networks:
-radial networks: I b can be expressed as the sum of
different Ibi contributions, where Zbi = piqiZii.The
factor pi can be determined by a formula or a graph
as a function of the minimum contact parting time t,
and of the ratio Zii/Zri, where the considered values
of t , are 0.02,0.05, 0.1 and 2 0.25 s and where Zri is
the rated current of the machine related to the ith
branch; for external network supplies, pi = 1 is
adopted. The factor qi is set equal to 1 unless the
branch is an induction motor. In the latter case qi
( I 1) is a function of 1, and of rated power per pair
of poles;
-meshed networks: it can be assumed I b = Zi, ac-
cording to a conservative approximation of a more
complicated formula.
Computation of I b a s y m . It can be calculated as
This formula is also adopted, with different symbols,
in [6] (Sec. 5.1.3 and Appendix A4). The component
id, must be evaluated at the instant t, (as well as z b ) ,
by the formula
id, = exp ( - 2 7 ~ f t R / X ) , (1)
where the value of the ratio X / R is computed dif-
ferently according to the radial or meshed network
structure.
-radial network i, = cid, i , where for each branch
(1) applies with its proper X / R .
-meshed networks: id, is directly computed using
(11, where the equivalent ratio X / R can be computed
by using one of the methods B or C adopted by the
standard to calculate i,. No indication is given about
the calculation of the single contributions i, i .
Computation of 1,. Two different procedures are
considered for the cases of faults far-from- or near-
to-generators. In the former I k is assumed equal to
Zi; in the latter many parameters affecting the cur-
rent behavior must be accounted for: magnetic cir-
cuits saturation, excitation type and voltage ceiling,
automatic voltage regulator, type of machine (turbo-
generator or salient poles generator). The IEC 909
1101
Standard furnishes two graphs for each type of ma-
chine relating I,,,,, and I k m i n to the ratio I I G / Z r G
and, in the case of I k m a x , to the direct axis syn-
chronous reactance saturated value.
B. The ANSI / ZEEE C37.010-1979Standard
The purpose of the ANSI/IEEE C37.010-1979 Stan-
dard [6]-aftenvards cited simply as ANSI Standard-is
to allow a good size of medium and high-voltage breakers
(rated on symmetrical current basis) installed at 1000 V
and above; the corresponding Standard for low voltage
breaker is the ANSI/IEEE C37.013-1981, which is not
considered in this paper.
The ANSI Standard allows a simplified calculation of
short-circuit currents by reducing the electric system to an
equivalent network made by an ideal voltage source E
behind an equivalent reactance (both expressed in P.u.).
The voltage magnitude E is the highest typical operating
voltage at the faulted bus and it represents the prefault
voltage. In many cases, when the operating voltage is
unknown, the nominal voltage is utilized.
By means of appropriate corrective factors, the ANSI
Standard considers both the dc and the ac decay of the
short circuit current. The dc decay is determined by the
X / R ratio of the equivalent impedance as seen from the
fault point; the ac decay takes into account the behavior
of the system’s rotating machines such as induction mo-
tors and synchronous generators. Concerning the ac de-
cay, two possibilities are considered: rotating machines
can be either near to or remote from the fault location.
The ANSI Standard aim is to determine a symmetrical
rms current on the basis of which it is possible to choose a
circuit breaker rated on symmetrical current basis as
stated in ANSI C37.04-1979 [171 and ANSI C37.06-1987
[l8], although older breakers can still be selected on a
total current basis [19]. The considered faults are both
symmetrical and nonsymmetrical; the Standard pays par-
ticular attention to three-phase and line-to-ground faults.
Three types of duties are taken into consideration by
the ANSI C37.010-1979: (a) first-cycle duty; (b) contact-
parting duty; and (c) short-circuit current for time-delayed
relaying devices.
Each of the cited duties is calculated using a different
network. The characteristics of these duties are described
and commented with reference to the mentioned ANSI
Standard.
(a) First-cycle duty: It is the half-cycle rms current and
it allows the evaluation of stresses during the first cycle
after the fault. To compute it, a first-cycle network must
be built: this requires to ignore the static loads’
impedances, to use the branches’ impedances and to cor-
rect the rotating machines’ subtransient impedances with
multiplicative factors which take into account their typical
ac decay. Reactances instead of impedances can be used.
The rotating machines’ multiplicative factors are collected
into a table; in particular induction motors are classified
into three groups in accordance with their rated power
and number of poles. The calculation of the first-cycle
1102 IEEE TRANSACTIONS O N INDUSTRY APPLICATIONS, VOL. 30, NO. 4, JULY / AUGUST 1994
duty does not require any consideration about local or
remote short-circuit current sources.
Once the equivalent reactance X is obtained, the
first-cycle duty can be evaluated as E / X (symmetrical,
rms); this symmetrical duty must be lower than the breaker
closing and latching capability and it does not take into
account the dc component decay; so it is possible to
calculate the asymmetrical duty (rms) by multiplying E / X
by the factor 1.6; moreover, if E / X is multiplied by 2.7,
one can evaluate the peak value of the first-cycle short-
circuit current. The factors 1.6 and 2.7 are not empirically
determined: their meaning is described in [20] and they
can be derived respectively from the formulae:
,S
,, = 41 + 2exp(-4aftR/X),
Speak= f i r 1 + e x p ( - 2 ~ f t R / X ) ] ,
where f is the frequency, X and R are the equivalent
reactance and resistance of the first-cycle network. Actu-
ally, factors 1.6 and 2.7 are derived respectively from (2)
and ( 3 ) by adopting X/R = 25. Nevertheless, due to the
common exponential shape of (2) and (3), the value of
X / R which determines the previously mentioned factors
is indicated in [20] equal to 15: this value is clearly
established by the ANSI Standard as regard to the differ-
ent procedures for computing the contact-parting duty
[see the next point (b)].
The Standard recommends to use two different net-
works to evaluate X and R, one with only reactances and
the other with only resistances. This procedure is more
conservative than the one consisting in the calculation of
the complex impedance, for which X and R would be the
immaginary and the real part, respectively.
(b) Contact-parting duty: It is the rms current at the
parting of the breaker poles. In the Standard, only break-
ers with minimum contact-parting time in the interval
1.5-4 cycles are considered. A n interrupting network has
to be built, composed by the prefault voltage source and
by an equivalent impedance. This equivalent impedance
(or reactance X , as permitted by the Standard) is calcu-
lated as in the previous point a: the multiplicative factors
of rotating machine subtransient reactances are different,
because the ac decay at minimum contact-parting time is
larger than during the first cycle.
The ANSI Standard provides two procedures to select
the proper breaker: the most simple possibility, when
X/R is unknown, is to select as adequate a breaker with
symmetrical capability larger than 1.25E / X . Otherwise, it
is necessary to analyse the ratio X / R and the knowledge
of the system resistances is necessary. If X / R is lower
than 15, the breaker symmetrical capability can be se-
lected as > E / X ; on the contrary, a more detailed proce-
dure (named “with adjustment for ac and dc decrement”)
comes into play and it will be considered subsequently.
Following this method, once E/X is calculated, it is
possible to select the breaker by using a proper corrective
factor (cited here as F) which is time varying and depends
on the actual X/R ratio: the rated symmetrical capability
of the breaker must be larger than F - E / X ;the so
selected interrupting device is adequate as for the total
(asymmetrical) short-circuit current too.
Two set of curves (the meaning of which is described in
[20]) are available in the Sec. 5.3.2 of the Standard [6] for
evaluating the factor F : a local curve and a remote one.
The former, which refers to faults fed predominantly from
near generators, takes into account both the ac and the dc
decay and it is only empirically known [21]. The latter
curve is related to faults far from generators and consid-
ers only the dc decay: in this case F can be analytically
expressed as a function of X / R . When both local and
(2) remote sources are present, it is not easy to decide which
curve is needed. The more conservative procedure con-
(3) sists in applying the higher factor, i.e., the one related to
the remote curve. In [22] an interpolation technique is
applied to single contributions to the fault; a different
multiplying factor is applied to each contribution.
(c) Short-circuit currents for time-delayed relaying devices:
It is necessary to evaluate this current in case of applica-
tion of time-delay relays beyond six cycles. The short-cir-
cuit current is calculated as E / X where the correspond-
ing network must be built only with generators as well as
with passive elements such as lines and transformers, and
omitting motor contribution, which can be considered
vanished. Generators are represented by their transient
reactances or by a larger reactance that takes into ac-
count the ac decay; moreover, the dc component is sup-
posed to be zero.
111. SHORT-CIRCUIT
CALCULATIONAND COMPARISON
OF RESULTS
A. Test Network
The test network adopted for comparing the two stan-
dards is proposed in the Appendix A3 of the IEC 909
Standard and reported in Fig. 1. It consists of a power
station unit connected to a 220 kV system. The auxiliary
transformer AT is of the three-winding type and feeds two
auxiliary busbars B and C at the nominal voltage of 10
kV. Fig. 1 indicates the principal characteristics of all
equipment. The data of the transformer and of the exter-
nal supply system are the same as in [7], while the data of
the generator and of the motors (handled as groups of
motors) are specified in [23]-also those unnecessary for
the use of the standards but essential for the dynamic
simulation. Balanced short-circuit current faults at F1, F2,
and F3 (see Fig. 1) are taken into consideration. Concern-
ing the dynamic simulation, the steady-state condition
preceding the fault is assumed to correspond to the func-
tioning of motors at nominal slip, while the generator has
a load angle which assures the delivery of the nominal
power at the nominal power factor; besides, the effect of
the automatic voltage regulators is not accounted for,
because it influences the phenomenon only after about
200 ms.
BERIZZI et nl.: SHORT-CIRCUIT CURRENT CALCULATION 1103

“T

Th2
Una=220kV
Unit transformer T
S,r = 2 5 0 MVA
Un~vlU,~~=2 kV4 l0i l 2 % ) / 2 1 kV
uk, = 15% ;Pkn = 5 2 0 kW

3-

A Auxiliary transformer AT

Auxiliary busbar B, U, =10 kV

M7 M6 M5 M4 M3 M2 M1
7 7 7 - . -

M15 M21

6 M20 6 M26

Fig. 1. High and medium voltage test network with faults near-to-generator and motors. Network used for comparison of
results: faults at F1. F2, F3.

B. Basis for the Comparison of the Two Standards
The ANSI Standard is not directly addressed to the
calculation of short-circuit currents but its aim is to choose
as well as possible the circuit breaker; the IEC 909 is not
particularly oriented to breaker sizing, but rather to the
calculation of short-circuit currents; the dynamic simula-
tion gives the current waveform, independently from the
engineering application of this information. So, as the
goal of this paper is to compare the ANSI and IEC
Standards and the dynamic simulation, considerations
about breaker sizing are left out (while they are treated in
detail in [241) and attention is focused on the calculation
methodologies of the two standards which are analysed
accurately, to define common quantities comparable also
with those evaluated by means of computer dynamic simu-
lation.
A first comparison between the characteristic values
of the short-circuit current considers the initial sym-
metrical current. The Z i in the IEC 909 can be
related to the term E/X of the ANSI Standard,
where E corresponds to cU, (p.u.1 of the IEC 909
Standard and X is the reactance of the first-cycle
network.
The IEC 909 calculates the peak short-cycle cur-
rent i,. The ANSI Standard does not directly con-
sider this quantity, but allows to calculate it by multi-
plying the same term E/X by 2.7.
Concerning the instant of the contact parting, the
IEC 909 allows the calculation of the symmetrical
component 16,and only in one of the examples in the
Appendix it shows the value of the asymmetrical
component I , asym; the ANSI Standard considers only
the breaker symmetrical duty.
The term corresponding to 16 can be evaluated in the
ANSI Standard as E/X,where X is the equivalent reac-
tance of the interrupting network [see our Sec. IIB(b)].
Although the ANSI Standard does not consider the asym-
metrical short-circuit current at the minimum contact
parting time, it is possible to evaluate it by the following
logical process. Once the breaker is chosen, its asymmetri-
cal capability is univocally determined from its symmetri-
cal rating using ( 2 ) at the half cycle and supposing X / R
= 15; the asymmetrical short-circuit current is assumed
1104 IEEE TRANSACTIONSON INDUSTRY APPLICATIONS, VOL. 30, NO. 4, JULY / AUGUST 1994

TABLE I has, for example, a peak value of 0.46 kA which is negligi-

CHARACTERISTIC VALUES(INkA)OF THE SHORT-CIRCUIT CURRENT
AT F1, F2 AND F3 (SEEFIG1):COMPARISON BETWEENANSI, IEC ble. Even using the ANSI Standard but neglecting the
STANDARDS AND DYNAMIC THE CHARACTERISTIC
SIMULATION. contribution of motors, we obtained for example a peak
VALUESARE REPRESENTED WITH THE SYMBOLS
USED I N THE IEC 909 value of 54.12 kA, very close to the one referred in Table
(SEESEC.I1 A). THEPEAKVALUE FOR THE ANSI Is
CALCULATED BOTH WITH THE EXACTVALUEOF X/R AND 1 6 4 . 4 9 kA).
MULTIPLYING THE FIRSTCYCLEE/X BY 2.7 -Concerning the calculations of i, by the ANSI Stan-
(in the brackets) dard, it is possible to note that, using the coefficient
5

Fault location ANSI IEC EMTP derived by the actual X / R instead of the coefficient 2.7,
its determination in the case of F1 and F3 is closer than in
IWk=21.04 I",=22.73 1",=22.03 the case of F2 to the one by EMTP. In fact, in the cases
F1 ip=54.49(56.80) i,=56.64 ip=51.71 F1 and F3 the ratio X / R is lower than 25 (about equal to
18 and 24, respectively) while in F2 it is greater than 25
1,=20.99 l,,=22.57 1,=20.30 (about equal to 60).
1,-=21.30 - I, -,,=20.47 --In the case of fault F3 it is possible to note a difference
on the value of I,, determined by the two standards
Yk=75.83 I",=8 1.42 Iak=71.62 compared with the dynamic simulation. This is due both
ip=217.36 ip=201.65
to the beating of the symmetrical component of the
F2 ip=208.94(204.69)
short-circuit current (a typical dynamic phenomenon,
I,=74.35 1,=74.43 Ib=60.23 which is clearly shown in Fig. 2) and to the overestimation
- I, -=87.80
by the standards of motor contributions to the fault (see
1,,,=87.50
Table I1 and the corresponding comments). As concerns
Iwk=29.70 1",=30.70 Yk=27.3O the calculation of the contributions to the fault current, it
is important to note that the ANSI Standard seems not
F3 ip=78.86(80.35) ip=81.19 ip=69.64
explicitly to consider this possibility. Nevertheless, it is
Ib=25.98 1,=23.68 1,=17.75 possible to imagine the calculation of these contributions
considering the reactance of the corresponding network
1,,,=28.06 - 1,,,=21.63
branches and attributing to them the relevant E / X .
Table I1 reports the contributions to the fault F3 cur-
rent from the three-winding transformer AT (secondary B
side), from the group of motors M1-M7 and from the
equal to the breaker asymmetrical capability and compa- motors M + T 15-20, feeding the fault through their
rable to I b transformers. As shown in Table 11, the proposed method
C. Comments and Results to determine the fault current contributions with the
ANSI Standard gives results in accordance to the IEC
Table I shows the characteristic values of the short-cir- Standard and both the standard procedures overestimate
cuit current at the fault points for the IEC 909, the ANSI fault currents with respect to the dynamic simulation
Standard, and the dynamic simulation carried out by results.
means of the EMTP simulation program [151. The table This overestimation is higher for motor contributions,
refers respectively to the faults F1, F2, and F3 (Fig. 1)and as above mentioned, due to the fact the dynamic simula-
the symmetrical and asymmetrical breaking currents are tion takes into account the electric and mechanical tran-
evaluated at t , = 0.1 s (5 cycles). sient behavior of the motors. Only simulation can reveal
Referring to Table I, it is possible to make the following that during the short-circuit transient the motors near to
comments.
the fault point behave as generators (the mean value of
-The IEC 909 and the ANSI Standard give results that the torque changes its sign) but the motors far from the
are overestimated with respect to dynamic simulation, fault point still operate as motors. Fig. 3, depicting the
clearly in favor of a safety margin. In general, this overes- transient of the MV motor torques in the case of fault F3,
timation is less marked in the ANSI Standard: its results is a significant example of this.
are closer than the IEC 909 to those obtained by the
dynamic simulation. IV. CONCLUSIONS
-The IEC 909 does not indicate how to calculate Ib asym The present work performed a comparison between two
in this example, while it is possible to deduce it by the of the most significant international standards for short-
procedure used in the ANSI Standard, obtaining values in circuit calculation: the IEC 909 Standard and the
agreement with the dynamic simulation. ANSI/IEEE C37.010-1979. Although the methodologies
--In case of fault F1, the IEC 909 (differently from the of the two standards are both based on a steady-state
ANSI) does not take into account the contribution of approximation of the short-circuit phenomenon, they are
motors. Dynamic simulation confirms this approach. In quite different. The ANSI Standard is more oriented to
fact, the corresponding contribution (expressed as the breaker selection, while the IEC Standard gives general
current in the primary of the three-winding transformer) guidelines for short-circuit current computation: conse-
BERIZZI et al.: SHORT-CIRCUIT CURRENT CALCULATION 1105

40. I I I I 1 I
I quently the comparative analysis was not so evident and
some detailed considerations had to be done in perform-
IkAl
ing the comparison. A set of short-circuit currents, di-
20.
rectly extracted from the standards or obtainable after
some elaborations, were determined as values useful for
the comparison. A detailed dynamic analysis performed
by using a well known program for electromagnetic simu-
0.
lation was used as reference for the comparison between
the two standards. This latter analysis is expected to
provide a more accurate evaluation of the short-circuit
-20. currents because of its inherent superiority in modelling
the physical phenomenon.
The comparison between the two standards carried out
-40. I I I I I I I in this paper shows that the IEC 909 is somewhat more
.005 .1 .2 [SI .3 ponderous than the ANSI Standard. Hypotheses and as-
Fig. 2. Symmetricalshort-circuit current in case of fault F3. sumptions are more numerous and more detailed in the
IEC 909 than in the ANSI Standard. In the former
standard more information and more formulae about the
possibility of neglecting motor contributions are pre-
TABLE I1 sented, as well as the basis for determining whether
OF THE CHARACTERIS~C
CONTRIBUTIONS VALUESOF THE FAULT
F3 CURRENT FROM THE AUXILIARY
TRANSFORMER
(AT), FROM THE short-circuit is to be considered near or far-from-genera-
GROUPOF MV MOTORS( M I ... M7) AND FROM THE GROUP tors. The ANSI Standard presents more empirical but as
OFTRANSFORMERS-MOTORS ( M + T, 15 ... 20) much efficient solutions. The results of calculations, in
EMTP fact, confirm that both the standards give satisfactory
approximations of the short-circuit currents which are,
18.27 18.17 17.55
‘“k AT mostly, on the safety side.
10.00 7.82 Sometimes the better accuracy offered by dynamic
analysis becomes a must, such as in case of short-circuit
1.55
currents that exibit a large asymmetrical component, or
48.40 51.39 49.40 when more detailed information about actual rotating
ipAT
machine contributions are needed, or when evaluation of
i, qMl..M7) 24.19 24.77 10.87 voltage regulator effects on fault currents is required.
i, qM+T.15..20) 6.22 5.03 3.41 Nevertheless the traditional short-circuit analysis based
on the standards’ methodologies is still very important.
‘bAT 18.22 18,17 16.97 The adoption of the standards (and of adequately vali-
I, qMl..M7) 6.09 4.82 1.15 dated computer programs based on their methodologies)
should be encouraged if an unique reference for compar-
Ia qM+T.15..20) 1.66 0.69 0 ing different designs is needed, particularly at the begin-
ning of a project development, or if there is lack of data
and of their accuracy for transient analysis.
Although the EMTP simulation program used in this
T CkNn3
paper is widely adopted, there is still no evidence of the
existence of a uniquely recognized international dynamic
program which can be used as a reference, in the same
way as the international standards are.

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“Application guide for AC high-voltage circuit breakers rated on a Stefan0 Massucco (M87) received the Doctor
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“Short-circuit current calculation in three-phase a.c. systems,” IEC sity of Genova (Italy) in 1979. From 1979 to
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first edition 1992-08. control, power systems analysis and simulation, expert systems applica-
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Jan./Feb. 1993.

Albert0 Berizzi (M’93) received the Doctor de-
gree in electrical engineering at Politecnico di
Milano (Italy) in 1990 and he is now Assistant
Professor at the Electrical Engineering Depart-
ment of Politecnico di Milano. His areas of
research include: power system harmonics,
power system analysis, and voltage stability. He
is a member of PES and of the Italian National
Research Council (CNR)-Electrical Power
Systems Group.
Dario Zaninelli (M’88) received the Ph.D. de-
gree in electrical engineering at Politecnico di
Milano (Italy) in 1989 and he is now Assistant
Professor at the Electrical Engineering Depart-
ment of Politecnico di Milano. His areas of
research include: power system harmonics and
power system analysis. He is a member of PES,
of IAS and of the Italian National Research
Council (CNR)-Electric Power Systems Group.