Reliability Improvement of a Radial Feeder Using Multiple Fault Passage Indicators

For a fixed number of customers, reliability of a distribution network can be improved by reducing the duration of interruptions by faster restoration techniques. After occurrence of a fault, the average restoration time of a load point depends on average fault location identification time and repair time or switching time. The Fault Passage Indicator is a device that helps the utility to restore the supplies more quickly by reducing the time that an operating crew needs to travel around the network in search of a fault. To achieve a high degree of reliability for a given number of FPIs, it is necessary to decide the best locations of FPIs in a distribution network. In this paper, the effect of installing multiple FPIs on the reliability of a radial feeder is discussed and is implemented on an 11 kV, 2 MVA Indian utility radial feeder for five different configurations.