Assessing the performance of an enhanced distance relay in converter-dominated network

Converter-dominated networks (CDN) not only limits the fault current, but also results in different fault current signatures with respect to what is typically observed during a fault with conventional generation. Major research activities across the globe (SANDIA and MIGRATE projects) have raised concerns that the commercially available distance relays are not reliable and could misoperate in the presence of inverter based resource(IBR). This paper evaluates the performance of the protective relay with an enhanced distance algorithm (phase selection, distance characteristics and directional) from multiple dimensions i.e., speed, selectivity, security, stability and dependability. The performance evaluation is done using COMTRADES obtained from electromagnetic transient program (EMTP) which incorporates ''Real Controller'' IBR Type - III onshore wind turbine and battery energy storage models considering different fault location, fault type, fault resistance, point-on-wave, operating scenarios and IBR penetration levels including 100% renewable generation. Investigation shows that the enhanced distance algorithm provides promising performance in CDN.