Hierarchical Approach for Detection and Location of Open Conductor Fault in Power Distribution Networks

We propose a hierarchical approach for detecting open conductor faults (OCFs) at the feeder remote terminal unit (FRTU) level and performing the final determination and location estimation in a distribution management system (DMS). We propose an OCF-detection method at the FRTU level that considers various forms of OCFs. Multivariate detection factors, including kurtosis caused by arcing, are considered in Stage 1. To address the issues of false positive (FP) and false negative detections in the FRTU, which are known to confuse operators, Stage 2 involves comprehensive OCF identification and fault section estimation in the DMS. Thus, we propose an OCF-detection and location-estimation method that utilizes both empirical rules from operators and a fuzzy algorithm. Fuzzy sets and rules are appropriately defined for each method, and the final results are obtained by calculating an OCF certainty factor. Furthermore, through various case studies using MATLAB/Simulink on test systems, we confirmed an improvement in the OCF-detection accuracy for FRTUs compared to existing research along with a reduction in FPs and high location-estimation accuracy in the DMS. The proposed methods could be used to improve operational reliability as well as reduce the complexity of operators' judgment through efficient management of OCFs.