The short circuit trace feature in DIgSILENT PowerFactory is designed to provide a more accurate representation of protection device tripping sequences, tripping times, and fault clearance times than the standard short circuit calculation command. Moreover, it enables the redistribution of fault currents following the operation of circuit breakers to be considered in a simplified way, without requiring the detailed plant controller models typically needed for dynamic RMS or EMT simulations.

To prioritise accuracy over conservatism, the complete short circuit method—which aligns with the UK’s Engineering Recommendation G74—is used as the underlying calculation method. Unlike other standardised methods, this approach initialises the short circuit calculation using pre-fault voltages obtained from a load flow analysis. When the load flow operating points reflect realistic system conditions, the resulting short circuit calculations are correspondingly more representative of actual system behaviour.