High impedance fault detection using power line communication techniques

The detection of high impedance faults has been an important research field for many years. The insignificant increase of the line current in case of such faults makes their detection a difficult task, although at the same time a crucial one for reasons of public safety. In this work, the influence of a high impedance fault on the line's overall input impedance is examined, for frequencies within both the CENELEC A Band and the typical high speed PLC range. The tested line configurations correspond to phase to phase and phase to ground signal injections. Also, the different effects of a high impedance fault according to the exact fault location and the line termination are investigated. Finally, a comparison among the results concerning the two selected frequency bands is conducted, in order to determine the one with the most desirable performance.