Abstract:Arc grounding faults in distribution network are very harmful, Which may cause equipment explosions, fires and other accidents, and arc grounding is a time-varying and non-linear fault. Accurately characterizing arc grounding faults is beneficial to improve the research and simulation capabilities of grounding faults in distribution network. Aiming at the traditional fault model that does not consider the whole process of fault development, an arc grounding fault model of distribution network based on breakdown gap and variable resistance is proposed. Considering the dynamic development process of arc voltage and resistance under different grounding media, the breakdown gap and variable resistance equation is established. The verification under the PSCAD/EMTDC simulation environment shows that the arc fault model has obvious zerooff characteristics. At the same time, the field test data and the simulation data are compared and analyzed, and it is found that the model can truly describe the arc ground fault characteristics. It lays the foundation for the arc suppression, location, and line selection of distribution network, which has a strong practical value.