Harmonic Dual-Setting Directional Overcurrent Protection for Inverter-Based Islanded Microgrids

Limited fault currents in inverter-interfaced islanded microgrids impose immense challenges on conventional overcurrent protection schemes. This paper proposes a sensitive and selective protection scheme for islanded microgrids using a third harmonic voltage generated by inverter-interfaced distributed generators (IIDGs). The generated harmonic voltage results in a harmonic layer formed during short-circuit faults and is decoupled from the fundamental fault current, i.e., limited by IIDGs. Further, the generated harmonic voltage is adaptively adjusted based on fault severity to enhance protection sensitivity and obtain a universal set of relays’ settings. The proposed protection scheme utilizes harmonic directional overcurrent relays (HDOCRs) equipped with a dual-setting time-current-voltage setting that sense the generated harmonic voltages and currents at the relay location to ensure optimal protection coordination (OPC) of islanded microgrids. The OPC with the proposed dual-setting is formulated as a constrained nonlinear program to determine the optimal forward and reverse relays’ settings. The proposed scheme is tested on the Canadian benchmark urban distribution system and compared to the conventional protection scheme, which relies only on a single time-current-voltage trip characteristic. The results ensure the ability of the proposed scheme to protect islanded microgrids without communication and its capability to reduce relays’ operation times.