i e1993
1 Pho,oOlsrl"c
%etc arc twn types of sIwtt-circuit studies
of iiitcteat to the power engineet. The first
determines the first-cycle (momentary)
and ciintact-partiiig (interrupting) shurt-circuit
current duties (k.. asymmetrical cms or peak cur-
rcnrs) ar rhe buses r i f the power system, which Lite
uscd to selcct thc short-circuit withsrnnd and in-
terrupting capabilities of iwitchgcnr [I,Chap. 'I].
ing tlic worst-case fault location
at the switchgcar bus (which recrivrs id1 pnssible
short-circuit c u ~ c e n tconttihutions) and the h i d t
typc (nsually a bolted, thtec-phase Fault) (1, Sec.
4.1.21.
'She scoond type of s r u d y detcrmincs thc
subtransient tind transicnr short-circuit utrenrs
that an overcutrent-protcctive device will srnsr in
ordcr CO initiarc the prompt rcmoval uf tlic affcctrd
portion of rhe power system by its circuit intct-
ruptcr [Z, Sec. 1.51, Thmc shorr-circuit currents
arc necessary to ptopurly sclect thc insnmtzinrous
and timc-dcliiy sertings of t h e overcurl.ent-prote~- I
rive dcviccs [ I , C h a p 51, 12, Chap. 141, 13, Chap. I
1
91, IS, Chap. 91. I
Oftentimes, thc engineer possesses commercid I
software for the first type of short-circuit study. To 1
I
perform the compmmions, many of the algorithms I
cmploy either rcduction of tile complex impedzince I
I
network rcprerentation of the power systeiii (2,Sec. 1
I .
the second typc of study. 'She jmr-
pnsc of this atticlc is to acldruss this question by
comparing thc twn types cif short-circuit studies.
Tlic hasis for the comparison is the complex imped-
ancc nrtwork mcthud.
The organization of the articlc is as follows. The
next srction provides a brirf background on thc
Sundamcncals n l short-circuit analysis. Pollowing
tliilr background is il discussion OS h w vatious
typrs uf phase ovcrcurrcnt pmtectivc drvices rc-
s p o n d to t h c shorr-citcoir curccnr waveform. Based
011 this discussion, the next scction specifies which
 Ihy-wtting p i y / m e i J aditrarily diuided into iiwple c o w
ptiiieizti, which mr,keJ it eary t o e z l c i / h u the .rburt-&i/it
iiiqiiitde ‘ i t certaiw .ri,qi$cmt timeJ +fie the .rhort-
cjrcxit umicf. [ 5 , p p 15 and 161
For this rciison, the asymmetrical short-circuit
current waveform uf Fig. 1 has been drcnmyoscd
into rwo components: il iinidirccrional dc compo-
nent ancl a symmetrical tic component. Thc ilc
component cxponcntially decays to zero, and the
xmpli tude of thc s y m m e t r i c d ac component even-
tually dcniyn t o a ciinstant amplitiide i n the
short-circuit cwreiits m e necessary to pcrhirm apro- steady-stare. The slim [if these two components at
rcctive device coordination study. A conip;irison of any time instant is r q ~ mt lo the total asymmetricnl
the two typrs of short-circuit stiiilics fullows, b a c d shnrr-citcuir current ar that instant. Furthermore,
o n d i e complex impedance nctwork represennition i t is i n i p ” i t to norc tliat tlic asymmetrical
of the power system. The results of the comparison shurt-circuit current waveform o i t h e otlierphases,
are then used t u prcsmt rccommmdations for how which arc not shown in Pig. 1, differ only in thcir
the results of a computer-airled study to compute dc components. The dc components haw different
short-circuit ciirrent duties ciin l>capplied tn iletcr- initial values, but rlccay exponcntially at the Siime
mitic thc shoic-circuit currents nucessary to select rate. The tilte of expunenrial decay (i.e., time con-
rhc srttings of phase overcirrenr protective devices. stant) of thc dc componcnt is related to the short-
Pinally, a sample industrial powcr system is pro- circuit X,:g / R nitio, ~ ~whetex,:, and !<,, arc tlic
vided tn clarify the recommendations. cquiv;ilcnt rciictancc and rcsisriincc ilt thc titilt lo-
A few words of ctiiition itre in order before we cation, respectidy. ‘l‘lic envelope of die symmetri-
proceed. T h e risk of injury to pcrsonnrl and c1am;tgc cal ac compoiicnt is identiczrl for all three pliases.
to power systcm ;Ippxatus is high ifa short-circuit To simplify the analysis, sre;aly-starc iio circuit
study is prrfonned by someone who is unqualified theory is exploited to calculate a ~ O I S C - C B S C (i.e.,
o r incxperiencecl. Simply rending thc litemtiire on initinl) root-mean-square (rms) magnitude of rhe
the subject does tior certify or qudify an engineer to symmctricll ac cumponrnt to characterize il pnrtic-
perfonn power system studies in practicu. Although ular time interval of tlir hiult-on rime period.
commercial software is the quickcst and most rffi- Thcrr are thrcc rimr intcrvals of inrercst:
cient means ofpcrforming a sliart-circuit study, it is ... the w6tl.~,irieIltp,lod,~e~iu4LaJ1iiig on/yfir tbefiYJt
important that the engincer know how to pcrfvrn~ /eu ‘ydu (‘it 60 Irz), B r i q u&ich the ci/i?enf ilerre-
tliesc c;ilcnlations hy hand, in conjunction with LIS- iiient (i.e., dezy ofthe nlyiilmetri’nl.ihurt-~i~ci,itc/ment
ing thc commercial software. Thc results of a coni- zuav!for;iz) ir very rwpid the tran.rientpmio4 mvwiiig a
purer-aided short-circuit sriidy iirc susceptible to uelaiivdy 1o;igw t i m (i.e., 6eyond 6 cycler), dwi;zg
errors. Thc most common ones arc liumiin errnrs whkb the c i i m i i t decveriiuizi is imre moder‘rte: c n d f l ~ i d j ~
(e.g., dnra-inpur ertors, misinr~r~~mtariun of rcsdts, therie‘,‘~,i/3,-it‘ltepenur/ii.c, 6cyoiid.iO ‘yclm) ... [6, Scc.
etc.); ;ilthiugh, occasionally the sofrwirc is the CUI- 6-61
prit. Ncvertlicless, the engineer, not rhc software Tu simplify verbiage, die expression “worst-
vcndnr, is resp”ihle for the;iccuracyofrhc study. ciisc (;.U,, initial) m i s mtynitiide of the symmcrri-

Background
l’his section pruviilcs only a brief b;ickgrrlund on
the funrlamentals of short-circuit analysis to setve Unidirectional dc
the purpcxe of this article. References [l]-(51 pro- Component
vi& further docails.
Fig. 1 illustrates ii rypical short-circuit currcnt
waveform fur one phase of a threr-phase synchro-
nous generator, previously unloadad, wliicll has
been subjected to a balanced, threc-phase fault
across its acccssible terminals. In general, a n u y m -
merrical, slam-circuit current waveform is pro-
duccd by a balancccl, three-phasc fault. In Asymmetrical Waveform
iSum 01 dc and ac Comuanents)
Aqnimetrical iiltemating tlwrwit.i uhen treated d.r a
,in& c m m ~ twave m e d&Edt to inlerpret fi. ci,rxit
liw&er ap)licatiun.r and relq-.rettinR /nrpi(iscr. L‘omn/ili-
t
c z d f m n d ~ i Jare reqiiirrd to azlciilrcte their iiqnitiide
imleIJ molved into c o m / i o m ~ t ~The. apmtmd nltw
nating cwi’eiitr me>f i r c i m i t 6rriiker ~i/iplicatioi~~
nnd re-
cal ilc componenr" i s hercafter shortened ru "syn-
mcrrical rms currenr."
l h u s , the p u t p c of thc analysis is tu o k u l a r c
the filllowing: I ; ~ sihtrnnsienr symmetricd rms
currriit, I,, = transient symmetrical r m s current,
and I,, = stcady-state symmcrrical tms currciit. In
d e r r o perform thcse calculations, il consranr
reacr;mce for each time pcriod is zssigned ra evuty
machine: X; = direct-axis srtbtransicnr rcilcfancc,
X',, = direcr-axis transicnt reactancc, m d X,, = di-
rect-axis synchmnous rracrilnce.
On the other hand, die utility generators are iisw
ally tcmotc from rlie plant. Their shorr-circuit cur-
rent conrribotkins to rhe remote plmr appear to rhcm
as asmall incmise in load current. hrthcrmore, thwe
currcnt contributions tciiil to m i l a i n consrilnt during
tlic entire fault-on tinir period. Thtrcfnrc, thc uriliry
tic is orten mudrled by a coiistanr (i.e., lhrvenin
equivalent) impedance ovrt thc rntirr h i t - o n time
pcriod, which is dererminrd by knowing rhe a v d
&le shott-citcuit contribution that can be delivcred
to thcplant. I'inally, thc passivc q p m i t u s ofthc sys-
tem (i.e., rmnsbrmcrs, cables, busway, rcacrors,
etc.) iirc niodelcd by imlxdanccs that ilrr constmt
over rhc enritc h k o n r i m putiuil.
l ' h c problem of calcularing symmcrrical rms
current can h e rumnxtized as follows:
1 . Cnnstrucr a i r impedance nutwork by inrcr-
coniiecting the appropriatr imprdnnces of
thr appafiitus in accordance wirh thc me-line
diagram.
2.Impose the h i l t ~ocationondie nrrwork.
3. Usc d i e series, pcinillel, and deltn-wye
rctinrformarion foriiiulas to rcducc t h e net-
work t o an eqnivdenr impcdancc, Z F Q .
4,Usc Ohm's Law ro divide 1 Z,IL,1 into the
rms m;ignirudc of the pref,iult phase-to-neu-
rml voltxgc :it the Faulrrd bus to yield rhe
symmetrird rms currrnt.
In order to t ~ p p l yrhc iibuve procedure tn calcu-
late sobtransient symmutriciil rms currenr, UEC di-
rect-axis subtransient reactances firr d l of the
m a t i n g machines in tlie subtriinsitnc ntrwork. To
apply the procrdure to calculate transirnt s y n i m w
tical rms currrnr lix several cyclrs (i.e., bcyond six
cycles) afrer f d r inceprion, thc synchronous ma-
chine (i.e., generarurand motor) model uses eirher
its transient reactancc oiii larger impedance tclatrd
to thc magnitude of decaying short-circuit c ~ i r r c i i t
ar the spccificd cidculation t i m e [ I , Sec. 4.5.4.31;
a l l induorion moror contrihutims are onlitred in
t h c rrnnsirnt ncrwork.
At rhis point, wc' havc only accounted lor t l i c
i10 componcnr or t h e asymmcrrical short-circuit
currrnt waveform.
CalciiLtion qithe piwire rm w d n e q'/nn uJyvmietvi-
ciil ciivent ut /nnj, time ufiw the ineelition of. rhort-cir-
mit vmy h wry i n d u e d A',cimite dwetiient.fizctori tu
t i m i i n t / i i the 'IC
ctiiNI)one~ittit u q l i m a w e q,ire'I> a
z u d u.i f i ~ t o . r/or the rute of thaizge of the zqqment
remzincer uf the perdor.c. 'fhis /ire& method wq he
ii.wI, i/ &red, biil .sir,i/iii/kl tiicthodr hnwr evolwed
zuheiaby the dccoin)onent ii accoimtedjir hj, Jiiiz/h itiiiiti-
/ d j , i n ~ j h v sThe
. limlti)lyillg/a',tor conwertr J ~ I Z I I I ~ ~ N -
iill m i ciwmnt inio a~yvmetrit<iIniii wruent, which
m m o z t z j & bath the ilc andnc m,u/mentr. {S, p. 20)
,,
1h e short-circuit currents necessary ro selcct
thr settings of an uvercurtent-ptotccrive device
must rcflect rhe operating characteristics and times
of thc device. Thc rrsponse of chr prorectivc device
cn subtransient nsymmetriud rms current ;indlrir
subtransient asymmctrical peak c ~ ~ r r e imusr it be
known. On t h e other hanil, it is unnccrssary to ac-
colint for the iiegligihlr dc cornponent ovrr the
transient pcriiid; only tlic tnmsienr symmetrical
rms currenr is necessary.
Thu subtransient asymmetrical rms currenr is
ualculated by multiplying t h e subrransicnt sym-
mctl-icd rnu current by an asymmetry multiplying
factor. Srrictly speaking, the ;isymmetry mulriply-
ing F'acnrdcpmds on theshort-citcuit X,,, / I t o ara-
rio of rile 'L'lievenin equiv;dent inipcd;mce, Z,:Q, at
the I n c a t i o n [41,(71, [$I]. In practice, ii multiplying
f.lcror of 1.6 is used on medium-volragc systems
( > l O O O V) ~ I 1.5 I on low-voltaglgc systcms IS, 1'.
5481. The cuccption ftir mcdium-volragc syrtenis is
to usc rhe smiiller multiplying facox of 1 .5 on syr-
t e n x of 2.4kV t o 5 kV when rhere arc transhrmcrs
or rhere is appreciable line resisrance brtwecn tlic
fault point and the s o ~ ~ r [X, c c Secrioii .54, p. 21. I t is
i m p r t " n t to note rhix these figures may need to bc
incrcasrd CO avoid iminanre tripping.
Protective Device Operution
Tlic operating clinracteristic of a phare-ovcr-
CIItrent-l,rorcrtive devicc dictattcs h o w it respunds
to rhr asymmetrical short-cituuit current wavc-
fixm. l'or ti static relay, it is iinportmr t o know
w l d i e r it is progrnnimrd to sense rms, avumge, or
prak currenr, and is calibrated for rims c u r c n t .
Induction-type rclays are ;tffcctc-donly by rhr ac
cutnponent of the short-circuit currenr waveform.
Genctally, the time-currenr chal-actcristic curve of
such ti device is not phtred bryond rhe subtransicnr
symmetrical rms currrnt tbar it will expcriencc.
Therc iirc d i e r insfanfanemis phase-over-
currcnt-pnjrrctivc deviccs rlvnr ate ;iS&ccted by both
tlic du and ac componenrs of rhe short-circuit cur-
m i t wavcform, and respond within rhe first half-cy-
clc. Consrqncnrly, subtransient iisymmurl-ical rms
cLirrenr is a crucial factor in setting thcse devices.
l'inally, the tmnsicnr symmetrical rms cucrent
is L I S C ~ to verify thr coordinariun of timc-delay
phasc~uvercurrent-I,n,reutivc deviccs that are set to
oprrate slowcr than 0.1 s (is., six cycles).
l'hr following list has h e m adaprcd from Sec.
4.5.4.1 o f [ l l ; p p 54%') oS[51; and Tiiblr 2, Src-
r i m ,541 of[X]. It summarizes which short-circuit
cutrents affect the operation of specific types of
phiisr-nverciirrri,r-~~"tectivcdeviccs.
 Sirhtransieizt Symmetrical RMS Current
Thcse incliidc high-speed, induction-typc relays
that operate in lcss t h m three cyclcs (0.05 s);
short-time induction relays chat are sct to operatc
h t c r thm 0. I s (six cycles); gener;mr, trans-
former, and bus differential relays; power-line CLII- rms current fnr a fault at the downstream dcvice
rent hdance relays; and pilot-wire rclays.
Subtunsieat Asywzwzetricul RMS C s w e n t
Instantaneous (i.e., magnetic) functions of tbermrrl-
magnetic-molded or instilnrecl-case circiiit lbroitk-
ers; plunger or hinged armature-rypc instanta-
ncoiis relays; 6.ist-mclting-timc zone (<0.1 s) of
fuscr; iind instantaneous and short-timu cleltry
funcriuos that ate sct to operate lister than 0.1 s on
clcctromagnetic or static (i,c., solid-state or micro-
processor-based) direct-acting t r i p of l o w and
mcdium-voltage circuit breakcrn are cxnmpies oi
this current.
Traizsieizt Symmetricdl RMS Current
These include time-delay induction-type relays
that are set to operatc slower than 0.1 s: f k e opcrii-
tiun, under sustained fault currcnt, i n melting-
timr portion of the characteristic that is slower
than 0.1 s; and long-rimc and short-time dclay
fuictions rhat arc sec CO opcrrrrc slower thnn 0.1 s
on elecrromagnetic orsfiiric (i.e.,solid-state or micrn-
processor-lmed) direct-;$cting trips of low- and me-
clinm-voltage circuit breakers.
short-circuit Currents To Select Settings
Based on t h r prcvious discussion, the subtransient
symmetrical rms short-circuit C L I T ~ C I I I Cunder the
maximal powcr system configuration should hu
c a l c i h t e d at the appropriatc fault location ofrvcry
phase-ovcrcurrenr-procecrivc device. l h c nmrimnl
p w c r sysrrm configuration for t h e rubtransient
nctwork includes all possiblc short-circuit currcnt
sources (i.e., iitility servicr supply, in-plant gcncr-
ation, and motors). Generally. the time-cLirrcnt
characteristic curve of an induction-type re1;iy is
nut plotted bcyond thr mnxinml subtransient sym-
metrical rms currcnt nor thc pickup sctting of an
instantaneous p h a s e - o v e r c u r r e n t - r ~ lin~ ~the same ovrrourrent~protectivcdevicr within a satisfac-
circuit, whiclrevrr is smallrr.
Knowledge of thr maximal subtr;msirnt asym-
metrical rms current is nccessary to determine the
scttings ufins,;,nt,,,,",,s.l,li~e-ovetcurrm
t i w devices that ace responsive to both thc dc and BC
coniponmts of rhc short-circuit currcnt wavrform.
Minimum scttings are requircd to allow nmtm
lockcd-roror current or transformer mngnctic in-
rush currcnt. Higher settings arc not ncccssary, but
c a n b e osed. C o o r d i n a t i o n of instsinta-
ncoos-plrasc-ovel.currcnt devices in scrics at rhc
same voltage levcl is not possible unless there is sig-
nificant impedance bctween huscs, c;iusud by long
cable rims or currmt-limiting reactors. In this case,
thc pickup sctting of rhe upstream devicc has to bc
about twicc t h e pickup setting of the duwnstream
devicc. (Note: In t h i s context, "pickup" refers to tlle
cffectivc primnry pickup that has taken the currcnt
transformer rxtio inro account [lo].) A more i ~ c w
ratc criterion is that d i e subtraiisicnt asymmetrical
must be less rllan thr instmtaneous s e t t i n g of the
upstream protrctive dcvice.
If the subtransient ;isymmetrical rnrs current un-
der thc minimal powur system cnnfiguration is less
than thc pickup setting nf a n instantaneous
uvercuirtlnt relay, t h e relay will not oprratc, and
protection will c l t p m d upun time-dclay phase-over-
current relays. This sitilirtioii rcrluirrs the czdcula-
tion (if minimal subrransienr symmetrical r m
current in orclcr to determine iftlie time-delay over-
current relays will provide xlequxe protection. The
minimal powcr sysrum configuration for t h c
subtriinsient network may apply at night or whcn
prnducrion lines arc down fix tiny rcason. Nocc tllat
this ncrwork still uscs direct-axis subtransient
rcncfanccs for ;dl of the muiring maclrincs in LISC.
The rrmsient symmetrical rms short-circuit CUI'.
rcnt Lindur t h e maximal powcr systrin configuration
is ciilciilared at the appropriate h l r location of CY-
riy time-delay pl~,sr-overcul-l-rnt-pforcctivedevicc
that is set tn oprcatc slower than 0.1 s (six cycles).
The maximal power system configuration for the
transient network neglects induction motor cantri-
butions, hut includcs d l otlicr shorr-circuit ciirrcnt
scurccs (i.c., utiliry rtivice siqq~ly,in-plant genera-
tion, and synchronous motors). ICoowledgc of the
maximal transicnt symmctricd rms current is nec-
cssiiry to esrahlish the coordination timu intervals
for clectromagnetic (i.e., induction-disc) or static
(i.e., solid-stare or micn,processor-based) time-rle-
lay p h a s e - o v c r c o r r r n t r e l a y s w i t h o t h e r
phnse-ovcrcurrent-pmtecrivc devices.
Finally, it may bc important to calcukite the
transient symmetrical rms current under t h r min-
iinal power system configuration (i.e., minimal
transient symmetrical rms current) in order to in-
vestigate whcther sufficient fnult currcnt is avail-
a b l e t o c a u s c o p e r i i t i o n of B r i m e - d e l a y
tory time. Tlic minimal power system configora-
t i o n for thc tmnsicnt nerwurk may apply a t night
or when production lines are down for any reason,
t-prom- and it is often defined under minimum power
SLLL Note I ~ the
~ ~that . traiisicnt nrtwork undcr the
minimal power systcm configurarion still nc-
glects indiicrion moror contriburiuns, but in-
clurlrs all othcr short-circuit currcnt so~lrccs(i.e.,
utility setvicc supply, in-plant gencration, and
synchronuus motors).
The following list summarizes t h c short-circuit
currrnts tliiit s h d d be ca1cul;ited in ordcr to per-
form il coordination study:
hIa&~d rad Minims/ S/hr~in.iient Syiimetvicd RMS
C/meiiLs: High-speed, p l m s e - o v c r c u ~ r r n t - ~ ~ ~ o t e c t i ~ ~
deviccs r l m arc rrsponsiive m l y ro thc ac componmt
of the short-circuit cusrcnt.
illasiwd S h t t z m m i t A.ty,v,etr;ui iind Minimnl
Snhrmn,iiant S y n i m t h d R M S Ciirreri/s: I i w a n t t -
WOLLS phase-ovcrcilrrunr-protuctivc dwices that
are responsive CO both the d c ilnd ac ctmponcnts of
the short-circuit curtent.
iWaxiw,l Sabtriinsiant nnd i\liisiii?n/ and h f i n i i ~ ~ d at the swirchgear h i s so ;is ti) rcccive all pmsihli,
Tmnrieni S~mtierriai! R M S C " w n : 'l'ime-dclny
phase-ovcrcurrcnr-I,n,recrive ilwices t l h r arc re-
sponsive to both tlic dc iind ac coniponcnts of rI1c
short-circuit currmt, and tire set to opc~ateslowtr
than six cycles at 60 EL.
Comparison of Sfudier
I.rt LIS first consider t h c slmrt-ciicuit srudy wlrose
rcsuits arc used ro selcct the short-circuir wirb-
stand and intcrmpting cqxibilirius nf medium-
volragc and low-voltagr circiiir hreakcrs iind fuses
from manufacturers' tables. For this applicaririn,
there are two types of networks to ciilculatc sym-
inetrical cnis cucl-ent: first-cyck (momccirary) and
contact-parriiig (inccrrupting).
T h e moinrntary nerwotk is idunrical to tlic
suhcransirnt network, and i c is iised to calcolatc t b c
symmetrical rms current over tlic subtransient
time interval of the fiiult-on t i m e peririd. An all-
propriatil asymmetry multiplying liictur is then
used to convert momentary symmcrric;d rms cur-
rent into momentary asymmcrrical rms current.
l ' h e witlistarid capability of ii medium-voltage cit-
cuit hrtaker, the intcrruptirrg cap"bi1ity of;r fiise,
and the intcrrupring capability of LI l o w - v u l r y e
circuit breaker must exceed t h e momcnrary ilsyni-
mctrical rms CLITTCIIC [I,(:hap 4).
l'hu inrerriqitiirg nctwurk is used to ~ i i l c u l a the
t~
symmetrical rms currcnt for ,,,e~li~,*,,~"olt',g~ ciicuir
brcalcr minimum conract-parring timus of 1.5 tu 4
cycles after the inceprim of tlic short-cimit. Piit
this network, direct-axis suhtl-;msicnr reactances
are used fur t l i c in-plnnr synchronuus tuhinc-
generatt,rs, synclrronous m"t0r L'eiiCfallCe is calcu-
latcd hy mulriplying its direct-axis subtransient
rcacrnnce by it rotating machine r ~ a c f i i i i ~multi-
c
plier of 1.5, mil inducrion mrxor contributions clre
included i n iiccordanir with Tables 4-I and 4-2of
rhr I E E E 1<J Book Ill. An appropriate asyminctry
midtiplying factor is then used to convcrr inter-
rupting symmrrrical tins c u r r e n t into
intcrrrupring nsymmcrrird rins c ~ ~ r r c nThc r . in-
tcrrupiing c;pibiliry of a mudium~vtrlt,,gecircuit
brcaker must e x c d the inrursnpting asymmetri-
CJl rnlS CILI'ICIIC.
Let LIS now cumpaw rile two types of sliott-
circoir srudics. The basis for thc comparison is the
complcx impedancc netwt,tk relxescnfiition cif chc
pnwcr system.
Although t h c mnmentiiry network is idcnticnl
to t h c subtransicnt ncrwurk, Cnult lociltion is the
Ipinciplu ruasnn w h y tlic momentary symmctricnl
r m s c u r s e n t is inot rhr siu" v a l u e cis t h e
subtransient rymmrtrical inis c ~ ~ r r c n r .
In ordcr t u selcct t l i t shorr-circuit witlmand
and intcrrupting uipdilitics 01 circuit brcakcrs
ani1 fiiscs zit ii switchgear bus, ii ciinscrviitive p c -
tier is to a s s ~ m rlrec maximal power systcm config-
uration and to 1oc;ite t h c three-phase short-circuit
slrxt-circiiit w r r r n t contrilmtioni. 'Ihc miixinml
powur systcm oritrfiguiarion For ilir first-cycle nct-
work i n c l u d r s all possible short-circuit c ~ ~ r r c n r
sourccs (i.e., uriliry service supply, irr-plant gencr-
aticin, and nmrurs).
On thc other hand, ti) rdect the timc-current
clwxctciistics iind settings of a I,h;ise-ovcrcurrcnl-
prwcctive dcvicr, tlic tlil-uc-phnsc h r t - c i r c u i t is I<>-
cilttlcl at ihc rcrminill of tlre dcvicc (i.c., or its currwir
rranstixmcrs), w l i i c h C ~ L I S C tSh c largest shotr-circuit
n t flow through it. (For a riiiliiil power sys-
c ~ ~ r r c ro
tem, this fiiiilr location is tlic load-side tcrmiixil of
rlie protective device o r its cLirrcnt transhrmers.)
I.rr LIS consider a specific exiimplc to bettcr il-
lustrim t h e distincrion betwcen thcsu two rypcs of
fiiult Iocirions. Fig. 2 prcscrnts thc &signations ;ind
illuscrates t h r dircciions of thc short-circuit cnr-
rent contrihutions t n t h e tlirec-phasu h i l t IUCCL-
tinn, 13, at the 4.16 kV substation i bus. 'L'lic
p i q w s e of t h i s f i d t 1oc;ition is to Calciiliitt~t l r mo-
m e i m r y symmetrical r n current. ~ In Fig. 2, I[ de-
m t ~ dsi e phnsor reprusmtation of tl i e short-circuit
currcnt conrribution; the sulxrscuilx, ,L refcrs to
tlicfirst-cyclcnetwork.Fini~lly,I~ =I.[, Iismul- ~
tiplied b y an ;ippropriate asynimcriy niulriplying
factor [ I , Chap. 41, based on t l i e cquivalcnt shorr-
circuit XIR ratio zxt thc f i ~ i l rlocation, til yicld the
Crsc-ryclc (momcnrnry) asymmetrical rms c m m i t
Sum of Contributions
From Remaining
Sources of System
Receives Sum of
Contributions From
All Possible
short-circuit Current
jources in Power System
f
M5
Contributions ~
Induction Induction
Each 1500 HP 2000 HP
x;j=O.l6 pu x;i=O.16 pu
g. 2. ' l % , r e - p b ' , l c / i ~ s ~loc,'lion
t to .select
rewi,/i/itq u@,hilirier o f / m o e r , f i t m .
IMhidorfry Applikoiiom Mngniine m Mnrrh/April2000

Sources 01 System
hrough Fuse Except
Induction Induction
Each 1500 HP 2000 HP
X,=O.i6 pu xi=O.i6 pu
Pig. 3. Pot& location to select time-current
chrwtrctwistic of j i u e .
(i.e., mamenrary duty). The short-circuit inrcr-
rupting calxibilirics of the medium-voltage powrr
fiiscs a t tliis bus must exceed the mnmcntary d u t y
iit this bus.
Next, Fig. 3 shows tlie three-phsse f.iolt loca-
tion, J, at the load-side terminal o f t h e p ~ w r fust.
r propriate $ulr location ;tiid ti) accnunt for motor
fot iniluction motor M5. The p ~ ~ r p o ofthissc loca-
tion is to calculatc the subtransicnt symnwrrical
rms current. Using an appropriarc asymmetry
multiplying factor (cf. "tlackground" section), the
rubtransient asymmetrical tins current delineates
thc upper (i.e., right-most) currcnt limit of the
fuse's rime-current cliarncturistic curve.
Now, t h e first-cycle network is prcdominmtly
reaotivc because the shart-circuit XIR ratios of its
appAP.ltLlS are relatively largc. Thus, IIS :In approxi-
mation, t h e magnicudcs ofrliephnsor currents can
be ;~drlcdand suhtractcd without regard to their
phase anglcs (which are ;d1 in t h e neighburhood of
9 0 O ) . Tlierrforu, referring to Pig. 3, the suhrtan-
sient symmetrical rnis current sit f d r location J
can be appmximatecI by: I ; E I : , PinnIly,
cis s t ; d previously, ( I ; ) , is inultiplied by an up-
proprkite asymmetry multiplying k t O r (cf, "Back-
g t o u n d " section) to yield t h c s u b t t m s i e n t
nsymnietricnl rms current.
Note that die differrnce between tlrr s n b t m -
sicnt symmetrical rms C L X K C ~ Xand the momentary
synimrrrical rms ciirrrnt is die short-circuit cur-
rent co~itribrition(i.e., first-cyle symmetrical rms
ourrrnt) of induction motor M5 (i.e., motor
bdckferd). For this exfimplc, the motor bzickfccd is
approximated by:
Finally, thc principle diffcrenct bctween the co11-
tact-pming (intcrrupting) nctwork and the tian-
sicnt network is time. Mcdium-volragc circuit
breikcr minimum contact-parting times arc 1.5 to
4 cycles after the inception of the short-circuit. In-
ductinn motor contributions ire includcd in the
contact-parting (interriipring) network. The rran-
sicnt period covcrs ti relatively longrr rinw pcriod,
beyond six cycles, so rhar, induction motor conrri-
burions are ignotcd in the trmsicnt network. lhcre-
furr, thc intcrriqxing symmetrical rnis cLment i s
larger by induction mntnr contributions tlian thc
transient svninimrical rmr current.
Recommendations
In this section, we present rccominrtidationson how
tn q>ply rhc results of ii ci,mpiiter-;iidcd short-cir-
cuir study tliar sciccts witlistand ancl interrupting
c;ipabilirics of switchgear to determine the shmt-
circuit currenrs (i.e., maximal a n i minimnl
suhtranrient iind rransient syiumetrical rms cur-
rents) to propcrly selrct the time-cmrcnt character-
istics i d serrings of phnse~ovcrcurl-mrproucctive
devices. It is very important to nntc that these rcc-
ommmdnrions are bascd on the complcx impcdance
network rcprcsentation of rhe power system.
First ancl foremost, it is imporrant to USC the ap-
backfucil. Imposing the ilpprqxiate fiulr location
and accounting for motor hackfercl on thc sub-
transient imcl first-cycle networks, the subtmnsicnt
symmcrrical rnis current is equal to rhc momentary
symmcrricd rnis current, which c m be c;dculated
by thc procedure in Chapter 4 of the I
[I]. In timi, thc subtr;msicnr asymmetrical rms cur-
rent is calculated by moltiplying thc subtransienr
synrmetricd rms currelit by an appmpriatc 21sym-
mctty multiplying lactor, in accordance with thc
rules disousscd abovr (cf. "Background" section).
As mentioned prcviously, die c m n s i e n t synimct-
rical tins current is diffcrcnt (i.e., smaller by induc-
tion motor ci~ntrihnrions)than the intcrrupting
sgmmcrrical rms currcnt. Howevcr, the principal
use of thr maximid transient symmetrical rms cut-
rcnr is CO establish rhecoordination time interval for
a time-dclay phiise-overcurrent relay (i.e., set be-
yond six cycles) with ;mtrthcr pli;isei,vcrcurrcl,t-
iprotcctivc device. Esrrrblisliing this time intervd at
a Iuger w l n c drlmrt-circuit c~irrentis a CODSC~YII-
tivc practice insnfar as coordinnrion is concrrncd.
Howrvcr, ~1 coordination time interval that is tno
cunservative nmy not b e desirablc from thr sriuld-
point of limiting equipment damagc. In the event
that tlir dawnstrcam protrcrivc device fails to opcr-
ate, thc upstre;rm (backup) protective device may
cake ruolong tooperare. In summary, wirh rcglird to
coordination, ir is pcrniissibir [2, Sec. 142.21 to usc
the maximal interrupting symmrtrical rms current
(instead ofthe maximal transient symmetrical rms
current) to rstablisli the coorrlinarinn timc interval.
 Finally, it is prmmissihlr [ I , Scos. 4.5.4.3 and
4.6.51 ro LLSC rlie aplxnximatc ill-cycle nctwork
( i n s r c x l of the minimal power system cnnfigufii-
tion far t h e rraiisienr nerworkj to invesrigare
whether the minimum synimcrricnl rms ciirrenr
is sufficient to cause satisfactory opcrmion of il
timc-delay currciit-acru;ited relay. The approxi-
marc 30-cycle iicrwork is a minimum source r c p
resentarion that may apply a t nighr or when
prnducrion linrs are clown for any reasrin. Some of
t h e sniircc circuit breakcrs may b e npcn, a n d a l l
mnrnrs are omirted. In-planr gencnmrs iisc di-
rect-axis rraiisient tuiicfance or il larger r e a c t "
related ro t h e magnitude of decaying gcnerarrir
short-circuit current at the specifid calculatirm
rimu. The dc componcix will havc decayed to ncar
Z C K and is nor considered.
Exomple
The precrciling rcoommcndations iirc applied rn
4.Fig. 4
t h u s ; q > l c iridustrialpu~~ersystemoll'ig.
shows rhe :ippmpriare faulr locations (i.e., I;ihclcd
A through K j of rhc phasc-~,vercurrent-~~rorective
duviccs, and pruvidcr rlie input dara ;md rhe labcl-
ing nf brircs for thu computer-aided short-circuit
study. Thu cnminercial soltware is designcd to
compurc the momcnr;iry and intcrrupting short-
circuit currunr durirs (i,c., ;isymnierical rnx CUI-
rents) iit t h c busus o i thu powct system, which iirc
u s r d to srlrct the short-circuit withrand and il3-
tcrrupring callahilitics of swirchgciit. The nlgo-
rithm of tlie software employs complex impudancc
network rcductiiin.
The program \viis r u n iinilcr rlitce different
p w u r sysrcm configunxir,ns: m;ixinial, !niinim;d,
 12.474 I
485141 .48114 48Sl4 1.030 1.030 0

nffirst-cycle symmetricd rnis cutrunt th;ir arc nec-

essary for rhc cxnmplc of Fig. 4.
As a n examplc, considcr k u l r location D in
Pig. 4. Nutc that the current rransformcrs cor t i c
miitol' bI2 o v c r c ~ ~ r r c relays
nt will not sense t h c
M 2 motor lxicktcccl for a three-phase f d r at loci-
r i m D. Consequrntly, t h r mnximal snbttimsicnt
symmctrical rim current at faulr Incaririn D, used
t n relrct the srttings ofthc motor M2 ovrruiirrcnt
d a y s , is rhc folluwing:

wlieri. 1;;;; = 11.517 kA from Table I is rhc total

til-sr-cycle symmetrical r m p c i i i r ~ n cfor a boltcil,
three-phase fault at the l 3 . X kV main bus 2H 1 and
,
If;; , , ~ 2,, = 1.506 kA fi-omTirblc I1 is clre brnncli
tkiw of first-cyclr symmettical rnis current f r u m
niotor h.12 bus 2BS12 ro bus 2B1 under il three-
pl~iiscbolted fault at INS 201.
l'he siinic ration;dc is used to dcrive thc fi,llowing
equations to calculate thc maxiinid subtransient syn-

I

In addition, anothcr column oCTablc I lists the
tomi interrupting symmctrical tins current for a
boltrd, thrrr-phasc fault at t l m bus. Huwevcr, this
particular soltware package does not provide a tit-
ble in its printout of the branch flriws of interrupt-
i n g symmetrical rms currcnc for a boltcd,
threc-plrasc fault at every bus. (It only provides t i
table with branch tlows of first-oyclc symmctrical
rms current.) Without this inlr,tmation, it is invt
possible to m e similar cquations to rhvsc abvve t o
approximate t h e maximal transient symmetricnl
r m s c u r t e n t s a t t h c f;inlt locativiis 01 tlic
I'hasc-ovcrcutrenrprotccri"~ devices.
For example, rhecquatiun for thc maximal tlaii-
sient symmetrical rms current at fault location 11
,'
- ?,,,
,,,
1 - l,,,,,2
I,,,,,,-?,,, . If;', =13.204kA
from 'I'able I is the total intcrrupting symmetrical
rms ciirrent for ti bolted, three-phase h i t at 13.8
kV bus LBI . However, 1:;; , 2 ~ ,, ,
1 ,the b ~ a n c h
tlow
of intcrrupting symmctrical rnis current fi-om mo-
tvr M2 bus ZBSI 2 to bus 2B1 undcr a thruc-pli
fault at bus 2B1, is unavailable in the printviit of
this particular solcwire package. Of c r m s e , i l the
M L motasbackfeed 1:;; , ? ~ ? , , , iscnnsidercd;incg-
IigibIe Iractionvfi;;:', ,[:,;', is not anwerIyconscr-
vativc ;ipproximation Gir (i:,);'! .
Asecond run ofthe software wiis pcrtixmcd ~ 1 1 1 -
dcr the minimal powcr sysrcm configuration. 'She
printout of thr run providcd the ~ a m types r of re-
sults as before, m c l similarequiitions to ~IIOSC nbovc
were used to calculate the minimal subtransient
symmutrical sins ~ w r e n t sat thc fault loc;xions uf
~ " t ~ ~ cThe
the p l ~ n s ~ - o v c t o u r r c * ~ t - ~ ~duviccs. i ~ em -
mcrical results a r ~ . p ~ s c n t eindTable Ill.
A third runofthr softwiu-r was perkrrmed under
the approximate 30-oyclc network con1iguratian
Ruoall that tlic vnly sources dshmt-circuit ciirieni
undcr the ilpproximnte 3Okyclc nutwork confign-
mtinn are the utility tic and in-plant gencrntor.
,.
I h e ill-plnnr gcnerator is rcpresentcd by its di-
rcct-axis t w n s i r n t rcactemcr instead of i t s
subtr-;ursicnt reactmce. Siiicc this vcrsion vf tlic
software only providus ii tathle i n its printout vf
branch flows cif Cirst-cyclc symmetrical rnis cur-
rent, a simple trick was cmployrd to p r o d ~ a~ ta- e
ble of branch flows of approximate 30-cycle
symmctrical rnis current fix a bolted, three-phasc
6 u l r at cvery bus. The trick was simply CO rcplace
t h e previous i n p u t d a t a of rhc generator's
subtransient rcacfiince with tlie valuc of its craw
&it rmicfimcr (i.c., 13.5%), iind r e n i n the pro-
gran, under the approximarc ?&cycle nctwork
configuration. The printout nf tlie r u n provided
the snme types ofrcsults iis Ixfixc (cf. Tablcs I rind
II), and similar cqirnrions to those abovc were used
til q>.l,proximarc the minimal trmsicnt symmetrical
rms currents a t t h e f;iolr l o c a t i u n s of t h e
phase-ovrrcurrcnt-lIrorcctive drviccs. Tlir rusults
of the cdculations arc, given in Table 111.
J-lnnd cnlciilations werr performed to valid;ite the
rcsults uf the computer-dcd short-circuit study at
C.lulrlncations A, C,l>,U, andP. Unfortuniitely, space
restrictions disnlhw their inclusion lhcre.

Summary
Thcre are rwci types of short-circuit studies of intcr-
cst to the puwcr cnginrcr. l'he results of tlir first
type [i.e., maximal first-cyclc (momentary) and cuii-
tact-pnrting (interrupting) symmetrical rms CLIT-
rents] arc used t o select the withstand and
interrupting capabilities of switchgear, wlicrcas, the
results of the sccond type (i.e., m;iximal i d mini-
nial srtbrrmsicnt i i n d transient symmetrical rms
uurrcnts) arc uscd to prupcrly select tlie settings of
~~hase-ovurcurrent-pn,tecrivrdcvices. This article
pmcnteil it comparison of rhcsc short-circuit studies
for rhr case of a bolted, thrcc-ph;isr fault. [Other
types of Caults (e.g., phase-to-phase and phase-to-
ground faults) nimt nlsri be considered whcn per-
forming il protcctive-device courilinarion smdy.1
The results ofrhe comparison were then used to fur-
niulatc recoinmcndiitiuns on how oamt'iiter-;iidcd
tcsiilts of rhc first type can he applied to determine
tlie short-circuit currents of the second type.
It is iinpcrative that the engincer cle;irly under-
wind the solution algorithm of rhc softw;m Tn
perform the compumtions, many of the algorithms
employ eithrt rcducrion ofthe complcx impedance
network represcntatioii rifrhe power system or else
reductions of s e p m t c renctancc and rcsistance net-