1
A New Adaptive Loss of Excitation Relay
Augmented by Rate of Change of Reactance
Shreesh R. Tambay
Abstract- Conventional Loss-Of-Excitation relay for a
turbo alternator is an offset Mho relay and has been
reported to maloperate on Stable Power Swings under
certain conditions. The documented solution to this
problem is to intentionally delay the operation of LOE
relay, which the authors believe is not an ideal solution.
This paper, basically, reports an adaptive or dynamic
LOE relay, augmented by suitably selected time-
derivatives of impedance seen by the relay, to ensure
correct discrimination between genuine loss of excitation
and Power swing.
Index Terms: Generator protection, Loss of excitation,
Loss of field relaying, Adaptive relay.
I. INTRODUCTION
I n 1949, a single phase offset Mho relay was
introduced for the high-speed detection of loss of
excitation (LOE) in synchronous generators [1]. This
distance relay approach was developed to provide
improved selectivity between loss of excitation and other
normal or abnormal operating conditions. The relay
essentially had an offset Mho characteristics of diameter
Xd on R-X diagram and displaced along X axis by -Xd/2.
The security for LOE has since been a great concern
to many authors and utility under takings. The concern
was about the possible maloperation of the relay during
stable power swing (STPSW) such as might follow a
clearing of heavy close-in-fault if the generator is being
operated at a leading power factor [16].
This problem of maloperation was studied in great
details by number of authors [2]-[5] in one single year of
1975 and they suggested either a time delayed operation
for the loss of excitation relay or two characteristics, the
larger dia characteristics being provided with time delay
[7],[15].
Providing time delay to avoid false operation on
STPSW is not considered as an ideal solution and there
continues some user apprehension about the relay
performance [4], [7], [15], [16].
1
1
Manuscript received on December 11th, 2004.
S. R. Tambay is with the Department of Electrical Engineering,
Visvesvaraya National Institute of Technology, Nagpur, India. (091-
712-2225659 email: srtambay@yahoo.com.
Y. G. Paithankar is ex- Professor emeritus in the Department of
Electrical Engineering, Visvesvaraya National Institute of
Technology, Nagpur, India.
Yeshwant G. Paithankar
P+jQ Inf Bus
3 Fault
Relay
Fig. 1. The System studied
In view of the above facts, a general study of the
problem was initiated to look into possible differences
in the rate of change of apparent resistance / reactance
under conditions of loss of excitation and stable power
swing.
This paper discusses the results of the study and
provides guidance in augmenting the conventional
LOE relay with rate of change of apparent reactance.
Such augmentation results in dynamically shaping the
characteristics of LOE relay. The relay operates
satisfactorily on LOE whereas does not maloperate on
stable power swing.
II. GENERAL REVIEW AND LIMITATIONS OF
LOE RELAY
The offset Mho LOE relay is a single phase, single
element distance relay which is connected to the
generator terminals as shown in fig. 1, and its
characteristics on the R-X diagram is shown in fig. 2.
In fig. 2, curve A shows a general shape of the
apparent impedance associated with LOE whereas
curve B illustrates the traverse of apparent impedance
on a STPSW following a three phase fault. In both the
cases, initial point is the same and corresponds to
operation of the generator at a leading power factor. It
is apparent that a recoverable power swing results in an
unnecessary tripping of LOE relay.
A. Impedance locus on R-X diagram
The typical LOE characteristics and stable power
swing are shown in fig. 3 and fig. 4.
1) Loss of Excitation: The path traversed by the
impedance under LOE depends upon the initial loading
of the generator. For heavily loaded generator at
lagging power factor, the path is similar to that of
curve H shown in fig. 3. It enters the relay
characteristics at the top, crosses the X-axis and then
swings down on loss of synchronism and rotates inside
the characteristics.
 2

2) Power swing locus: The locus for stable power

swing, subsequent to a transient three phase fault at
transformer secondary, is shown in fig. 4. At the

+X
-R +R instant of fault occurrence the impedance changes from
0.0

Xd / 2 B
initial operating point I to point F instantly. It
remains at point F during the fault and jumps to point
-0.5
R at the instant of fault recovery. For stable post fault
conditions it moves towards X-axis and swings down
-1.0 Xd following the path R-B-T-M-N. Point B does not
A
seem to enter the relay characteristics though it may
-1.5 come close to it. Path B-T lies outside the
characteristics and point M may traverse inside the
-2.0 characteristics and even cross the X-axis. The point of
-1.5 -1.0 -0.5 0.0 0.5 1.0 1.5
penetration is always in the lower right hand quarter of
Fig. 2. Relay characteristics and loci of LOE and STPSW the characteristics. This is a fast phenomenon which
takes less then 1 second for a case when the locus
0.5 enters the characteristics.
H For unstable post fault conditions, point B
+X

0.0
-R +R may enter the relay characteristics and cross the X-axis.
The generator looses synchronism and the locus
swings downwards in third quadrant of the R-X plane.
-0.5
It may remain inside the relay characteristics long
enough to cause tripping. It does not cross the relay
-1.0
characteristics for all unstable conditions. However,
L the operation of LOE relay is anyway redundant in
-1.5 such (unstable) cases.
Thus the basic difference in the phenomena
-2.0 causing correct operation for LOE and maloperation
-1.5 -1.0 -0.5 0.0 0.5 1.0 1.5 2.0
under STPSW is the rate at which it occurs. The rate of
change of R Vs R and rate of change of X Vs X is
Fig. 3. Impedance loci for Loss of Excitation
shown in fig. 5. and fig. 6 for LOE and stable power
The time taken to penetrate the relay characteristics is swing (maloperating the relay). (Points R, B, T and M
few seconds. For extremely light load at leading power in fig. 5 and fig. 6 correspond to same points in fig. 4.
factor the locus enters the relay at lower half but at Points of entry and exit are also indicated.)
some positive R value and X > -Xd as shown by curve At the instant of fault occurring, the rate of
L. It can not really enter the characteristics of the change of apparent resistance, R& , is -infinity, it
relay at R = 0 because the speed of generator will be becomes zero at point F and +infinity at F to R
more than the synchronous speed. The time taken to transition. At point R it has a small negative value and
reach the relay may be in tens of seconds, thus the traverses the path as shown in fig. 5. Compared to
phenomenon is extremely slow. LOE plot, the R& for stable power swing is larger.
+X

30

-R F +R LOE
0.0
20 R& STPSW
B
[pu/s]

R
-0.5 I 10 +R

B
0 M F
T N I
-1.0 N
T
R
-10
-1.5
M
-20
-
-2.0 -
-1.5 -1.0 -0.5 0.0 0.5 1.0 1.5 -30
-0.50 -0.25 0.00 0.25 0.50 0.75 1.00 1.25
Fig. 4. Impedance locus for stable power swing.

Fig. 5. R - R& plot for LOE and stable power swing.


25.00
STPSW + +
18.75
12.50
N
6.25
0.00 M I
LOE
-6.25
-12.50
-18.75 T -
- calculation capability on behalf of the relay and hence
-25.00
-2.0 -1.5 -1.0 -0.5
Fig. 6. X- X
&
Plot for LOE and stable power swing
The rate of change of reactance, X& , is
+infinity for transition I to F, zero at F and -infinity for
F to R transition. Then it traverses the path as shown in
fig. 6. Note that:
1) The X& is virtually zero for LOE and
2) The entry points in the two phenomena are
well separated.
III. ANALYTICAL STUDY PROCEDURE
In carrying out the study, the mathematical
model and system data of [2] was used with same
assumptions except a mechanical damping of 4 p.u.
was used to compensate for absence of damper
windings as suggested in the discussion of [2], [3], [4]
and [5].
The system consisted of a single generator
connected to infinite bus through transformer and
transmission line (Fig. 1.). Saturation was accounted
for exciter and generator.
For LOE studies the field was assumed to be
shorted and for power swing studies a three phase
transient fault at transformer high voltage terminal was
considered. The fault duration was kept near critical.
The stability was determined from - phase plane.
The two phenomena were investigated for large
number of loading conditions using ATP TACS. For
each fault condition R Vs X, R Vs R& , X Vs X& , Vs
& and P, Q, Vt, R and X Vs t were plotted. Typical
curves for one case each of LOE and stable power
swing are shown in fig. 7 and fig. 8. In fig. 11 and fig.
12, R Vs R& and X Vs X& curves along with relay
boundaries, entry and exit points are shown for both
the conditions. The entry points and exit points are not
on the boundaries of relay limits due to curvature of
characteristics and application of tripping criteria
combining both R and X. If relay characteristics is
approximated by AND compounding of (1) and (2)
3
then the actual characteristics will be a square of width
Xd offset by Xd/2 below the R-axis.
- 0.5 X d R 0.5 X d (1)
'
- ( X d + 0.5 X d ) X '
- 0.5 X d (2)
X&
[pu/s]
+X IV. PROPOSED RELAY
R F It is abundantly clear from fig. 11 and fig. 12 that the
rate of change of R and / or X can be effectively
utilized to distinguish between the two cases and
prevent the maloperation without any time delay. The
incorporation of rate of change necessitates an in-built
0.0 the relay should be a numeric relay.
We observed (fig. 12) that the excursion of stable
power swing loci inside the relay is limited to an area
near negative maximum and none of the loci of LOE
nears that. The relay tripping criteria can be modified
such that on X - X& plane it appears as is shown in fig.
10.
The area bounded by lines KL and LM is given by (3).
- m ( X - a ) X& m ( X - a ) (3)
Where m = X b- a
d
Here b and a are newly introduced limits, whose
values will depend upon machine and system
parameters. For the system studied, the values of b and
a comes out to be 25 () p.u. /s and 1.4 () p.u.
For incorporating the rate of change of reactance, the
relay logic will be logically compounded with (3) such
that the trip criteria will be:
If [(Conventional relay trip logic). ( Eq. 3 ) ] is true or
logical 1 then TRIP.
The incorporation of a trip criteria based on R& seems
to be unnecessary and difficult as the difference
between R& for LOE and STPSW is not as distinct as
that of X& . Never the less, it may be included after
detailed studies for a particular system application.
For implementing the logic, the conventional relay
characteristics can be approximately realized by a
square made by two pairs of parallel lines. The offset
should be increased to Xd instead of Xd / 2 and
restricting maximum reach to Xd. This will positively
avoid excursion of point B inside the relay
characteristics at top. Equations (4) and (5) give the
criteria of tripping and characteristic of relay is shown
in fig. 9.
- X d X - Xd
'
(4)
'
- 0.5(X d - X d ) R
'
(5)
+ 0.5(X d - X d )
The over all trip criteria can be written in logical form
as: [Eq. (4)].[ Eq. (5) ]. [Eq.(3)] = 1 or true then TRIP.
 4

1.5

1.0
1.5

0.5 p. u. R
1.0
Trip
0.0
0.5 p. u. R
-0.5 X Trip
0.0

-1.0 X
-0.5

-1.5
-1.0

-2.0
0.0 0.5 1.0 1.5 2.0 [s] 2.5 -1.5
t
-2.0
0.0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 [s] 1.0
t
Fig. 7(a). R, X and Trip signal Vs time f or Loss of Excitation

1.5
Fig. 8(a). R, X and Trip signal Vs time f or stable power swing
p. u.
1.0 Vt
1.5
p. u.
0.5
P
P 1.0
Vt

0.0
0.5
Q
-0.5
0.0

-1.0
-0.5
Q
-1.5
0.0 0.5 1.0 1.5 2.0 [s] 2.5 -1.0
t 0.0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 t [s] 1.0

Fig. 7(b). P, Q and Vt Vs time for Loss of Excitation Fig. 8(b). P, Q and Vt for f or stable power swing

4.0

3.5 No Trip
[pu/s]
Trip
3.0 K X&
2.5 (r/s) b
Xd

L +X
2.0
a
1.5
M
1.0
Xd
(rad)
0.5

0.0

Fig. 10. Modified relay characteristics in X- X

&
1.0 1.4 1.8 2.2 2.6 3.0
plane
Fig. 7(c). Phase plane plot ( ) for Loss of Excitation
+X

-R +R
Xd

Xd

(Xd-Xd)

Fig. 9. Modified conventional relay characteristics.

 5

30

Relay limit
R& REFERENCES
20

[pu/s] [1] C. R. Mason, A New Loss of Excitation Relay for

Synchronous Generators, AIEE Trans., part II, vol. 68,
10

pp.1240-1245, 1949.
0
[2] C. R. Arndt and M. Rogers, A Study of Loss of Excitation
+R[pu]
Relaying and Stability of a 595-MVA Generator on the Detroit
-10
Edison System, IEEE Trans. on Power App. and Syst., vol. 94,
no.5, pp.1449-1456 and 1481-1483, Sept/Oct 1975.
-20 [3] J. Berdy, Loss of Excitation Protection for Modern
Synchronous Generators, IEEE Trans. on Power App. and
-30 Syst., vol. 94, no.5, pp.1457-1463 and 1481-1483, Sept/Oct
-0.50 -0.25 0.00 0.25 0.50 0.75 1.00 1.25 1.50
1975.
Fig. 11. Combined R- R& plots for LOE and STPSW
[4] Rotating Machines Protection Subcommittee, Loss of Field
Operation During System Disturbances, Working Group
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Relay limit

Relay limit

18.75 [5] H. G. Darron, J. L. Koepfinger et al, The influence of

X& Generator Loss of Excitation on Bulk Power System
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[pu/s]

12.50

no.5, pp.1473-1483, Sept/Oct 1975.
6.25
+X [6] H. K. Clark, J. W. Feltes, Industrial and Cogeneration
0.00
Protection Problems Requiring Simulation, IEEE Trans. on
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775.
-6.25
[7] R. D. Rana, R. P. Schulz et al, Generator Loss of Field Study
-12.50
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-18.75
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-2.0 -1.5 -1.0 -0.5 0.0
3rd Conf. Sept. 1992, pp 426-429.
[9] M. M. Elkateb, M. F. Dias, Case Study into Loss of Excitation
Fig.12. Combined X- X
&
plots for LOE and STPSW relays during Simultaneous Faults Part II in Proc.
AFRICON92, 3rd Conf. Sept. 1992, pp 430-433.
V. CONCLUSIONS [10] M. M. Elkateb, Seen Impedance by Impedance Type Relays
During System Sequential Disturbances, IEEE Trans. on
Due to incorporation of rate of change of reactance in Power Delivery, vol. 7, no. 3, October 1992, pp 1946-1952.
the tripping criteria, the proposed relay excludes any [11] A. M. Sharaf, T. T. Lie, Transient Stability and Loss of
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Energy Conversion, vol. 9, no. 4, December 1994, pp 753-759.
conditions and operates correctly for all loss of [12] M. OKeeffe, H. T. Yip, Benefit and Experience of an
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[13] L. Tao, Z. Quian, W. Xiangheng et al, Dynamic Performance
for Turbo Generator under Low Excitation and Loss of Field,
APPENDIX Proc. Of 5th Int. Conf. on Elect. m/cs and Systems, August
2001, vol. 1, pp 436-439.
SYSTEM PARAMETERS: [14] O. Rodriguez, A. Medina, Stability Analysis of Synchronous
Machine under Unbalance and Loss of Excitation Conditions,
IEEE PES General Meeting, July 2003, vol. 3, pp 1508-1511.
Machine base 595 MVA, 22 kV [15] C. J. Mozina, Upgrading the Protection and grounding of
H = 3.74 MW-sec/MVA generators at Petroleum and Chemical Facilities, Petroleum
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Xd = 1.786 p.u., Xd = 0.293 p.u., Xq = 1.765 p.u. [16] IEEE Committee report, Survey of Experience With
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Saturation function for generator: Digital Computers, IEEE Trans. on Power Delivery, vol. 3,
EI = A eB(E
'
- 0.8) No. 4, October 1988, pp1511-1522.
Where A = 0.03, B = 6.4047
q

System data: (on machine base)

Xt = 0.095 p.u., Xl = 0.088, 0.176 p.u.
Excitation system:
Vmax = 1.0, Vmin = -1.0
Exciter saturation function:
SE = A.eB.Efd = 0.00122.e1.211.Efd