Simulation of metal oxide surge arrester dynamic behavior under fast transients

Data on characteristics of metal-oxide surge arresters indicates that for fast front surges, those with rise times less than 8μs, the peak of the voltage wave occurs before the peak of the current wave and the residual voltage across the arrester increases as the time to crest of the arrester discharge current decreases. Several models have been proposed to simulate this frequency-dependent characteristic. These models differ in the calculation and adjustment of their parameters. In the present paper, a simulation of metal oxide surge arrester (MOSA) dynamic behavior during fast electromagnetic transients on power systems is done. Some models proposed in the literature are used. The simulations are performed with the Alternative Transients Program (ATP) version of Electromagnetic Transient Program (EMTP) to evaluate some metal oxide surge arrester models and verify their accuracy.