Electrical power systems

Abstract

An electrical power system 10 and a method 300 of controlling an electrical power system 10 are provided. The electrical power system 10 comprises a DC:DC power converter 100 connected between a DC power source 11 and a DC electrical network 12. The DC electrical network 12 comprises at least a first zone Z1 for powering a first group of one or more electrical loads 12La-b, a second zone Z2 for powering a second group of one or more electrical loads 12Lc-d, a first controllable circuit breaker X1, and a second controllable circuit breaker X2. The electrical power system 10 further comprises a control system 150 configured to: in response to determining there is a fault in the DC electrical network 12: control a switching operation of a plurality of transistors of the DC:DC power converter 100 to supply a controlled and gradually increasing amount of current from the DC power source 11 to the DC electrical network 12; open the first controllable circuit breaker X1 if the gradually increasing amount of current supplied to the DC electrical network 12 reaches a level defined by a first trip profile 201, the first trip profile 201 defining a gradually decreasing current level; and open the second controllable circuit X2 breaker if the gradually increasing amount of current supplied to the DC electrical network 12 reaches a level defined by a second trip profile 202, the second trip profile 202 defining a gradually decreasing current level, the gradually decreasing current level defined by the first trip profile 201 being higher than the gradually decreasing current level defined by the second trip profile 202.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.