Operation and protection of 380V DC distribution systems

The demand of a reliable, sustainable, and resilient electrical energy grid motivates the integration of renewable energy-based resources based on different technologies. New network structures are essential in approaching these goals. Low and medium voltage DC grids could introduce a key answer in this context. In this paper, the operation of 380 V DC distribution grids for different applications is reviewed and evaluated. Furthermore, a new efficient protection scheme based on credit point concept was proposed to detect, allocate and isolate faults in such DC grids. The new technique was designed in order to be implemented in the laboratory. The proposed protection scheme was tested using PSCAD software based on radial DC distribution system. The concept for experimental implementation was established and will be presented. The new approach has been found to be robust and effective in detecting, allocating, and isolating faults in DC grids.