System configuration, fault detection, location, isolation and restoration: a review on LVDC Microgrid protections

Low voltage direct current (LVDC) distribution has gained the significant interest of
research due to the advancements in power conversion technologies. However, the use of
converters has given rise to several technical issues regarding their protections and controls of such
devices under faulty conditions. Post-fault behaviour of converter-fed LVDC system involves both
active converter control and passive circuit transient of similar time scale, which makes the
protection for LVDC distribution significantly different and more challenging than low voltage AC.
These protection and operational issues have handicapped the practical applications of DC
distribution. This paper presents state-of-the-art protection schemes developed for DC Microgrids.
With a close look at practical limitations such as the dependency on modelling accuracy,
requirement on communications and so forth, a comprehensive evaluation is carried out on those
system approaches in terms of system configurations, fault detection, location, isolation and
restoration.