Effects of Neutral Point Grounding Methods on Single-Phase Short Circuit Fault Characteristics

Short circuit faults are one of the most common disturbances in power systems that occur because of insulation failure due to a sudden overvoltage condition caused by lightning, switching operations, insulation contamination, etc. Medium voltage power distribution networks use different methods for grounding the neutral point. Influences of these grounding methods on the characteristics of single-phase short circuit fault are discussed in this paper on the example of substation “Bugojno”. Modeling and simulation are implemented in EMTP-RV (Electromagnetic Transient Program-Restructured Version) software. Data recorded by protection system during normal operation and three-phase short circuit fault in the substation are analyzed and used for comparison with simulation results to validate developed model of the observed part of power system. This validated model was then used to analyze the effects of neutral point grounding methods on the characteristics of single-phase short circuit fault.