As shown in Figure 9, the higher the through-fault current, the higher the value of the restrain current, which is the sum of the primary and secondary p.u. current magnitudes divided by two. Some relay designers use the larger currents rather than the average as the restraint current.
The higher the restrain current, the more operating current it takes to cause the differential unit to trip.
Almost all digital transformer differential relays use the dual slope approach.
At a settable break point (usually a 2.0 p.u. restraint current), the slope is increased from slope 1 to slope 2. Slope 1 is set based on expected CT error (typically 10% for C class CTs), under load tap changing (LTC ) tap range (usually 10%), magnetizing losses (about1%), and a safety margin (about 5%).
Thus, for a transformer without LTC , the slope 1 setting is typically 15–20%.
For LTC transformers, the slope 1 setting is set higher to accommodate the ratio change with typical settings of 25–30%.
The slope 2 setting is usually double the slope 1 setting. The quality of the CTs used to supply transformer differential relays generally requires that they operate in their linear range for worst case symmetrical through faults.
A CT burden calculation can be done to verify the linear operation.
In addition, manufacturers generally provide specific guidance on minimum CT quality based on through-fault current levels.