Investigation into the Physical Mechanism and Influencing Factors of Sympathetic Inrush for Transformers in Series

Abstract

Sympathetic inrush is a magnetizing inrush phenomenon generated in an in-service transformer, when a nearby transformer in series or in parallel is energized. This phenomenon lasts longer than the general inrush and can cause protection maloperation. The study focuses on sympathetic inrush in series transformers. Flux linkage expressions for the series transformers are derived using the Laplace transform. The residual flux, switching angle, and system impedance factors are included in the expressions. The physical mechanism of the sympathetic inrush for series transformers is explained based on the characteristics of the flux linkages. The interaction between the saturated transformers during sympathetic inrush is also investigated. Moreover, the influence of the switching angle, residual flux, system impedance, and load on the inrush currents is analyzed and validated.