Course Project
Types of Switching Surges Found in MV Motors
Fed via Cables and Switched by Vacuum Circuit
Breakers
Name
Student Number
: 0307495 R
Abstract
Switching of medium voltage (MV) motor with vacuum circuit breaker (VCB) can result
in significant overvoltage surges which can pose a threat to insulation integrity of the
motor windings. The generation and severity of the switching surges is governed by the
type of operation and the characteristics of the entire motor circuit. In this document, the
characteristics of the VCB attributable to the switching surges are first discussed. This is
followed by investigation into the scenarios which result in switching overvoltages
during the operation of the VCB. Phenomena such as current chopping, multiple reignitions and virtual current chopping which occur during switching operations are also
discussed. Furthermore, the effects of overvoltage stresses on the motor windings are
deliberated. The last part of the document discusses strategies which are used to minimize
or eliminate switching surges in MV motor applications switched by VCB.
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
Abstract .......................................................................................................................... i
TABLE OF CONTENTS .............................................................................................. ii
Abbreviations ............................................................................................................... iii
1. Introduction ............................................................................................................... 1
2. Features of Vacuum Circuit Breaker ........................................................................ 2
3. Overvoltages due to Closing of Vacuum Circuit Breaker ........................................ 3
3.1 First-pole-to-close Pre-ignition Transients ............................................................. 3
3.2 Subsequent-poles-to-close Pre-ignition Transients................................................. 5
4. Overvoltages due to Opening of Vacuum Circuit Breaker ....................................... 5
4.1 Current Chopping Characteristic ............................................................................ 6
4.2 Multiple Re-ignition and Virtual Current Chopping Characteristics ...................... 7
5. Overvoltage Stresses in Medium Voltage Motor...................................................... 9
6. Protection of MV Motor against Switching Overvoltages ..................................... 10
6.1 Solutions which Limit Surge Voltage Magnitude ................................................ 10
6.2 Solutions which Limit Surge Voltage Rate-of-Rise ............................................. 11
6.3 General Mitigation Solutions ................................................................................ 12
7. Conclusion .............................................................................................................. 12
8. Recommendations ................................................................................................... 13
9. References ............................................................................................................... 14
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Abbreviations
BIL
HF
MCOV
MOV
MV
p.u.
RC
SiC
VCB
ZnO
Page | iii
1. Introduction
Vacuum circuit breaker (VCB) exhibits better performance in switching medium voltage1
(MV) electrical motors as compared to other types of breakers (such as oil, air or SF6
breakers). Some of the advantages of the VCB include higher number of switching
operations, compact size, economical vacuum bottles which are easy to replace and
minimal maintenance requirements [1]. The main drawback of the VCB is the generation
of large transient overvoltage when switching on inductive loads such as MV motors.
Various studies as highlighted in [2] have been carried out to understand the root-cause of
the switching overvoltages in VCB applications and it has been determined that the
vacuum as the arc quenching medium is the main contributing factor.
The vacuum has a high dielectric strength which results in the current being cut very
quickly before zero crossing during the VCB opening operation. This characteristic of
VCB is termed current chopping and on occurrence generates a very high transient
recovering voltage (TRV) between the contacts of the VCB. The TRV if higher than the
momentary dielectric strength of the VCB contacts causes an arc re-ignition which on
extinction causes a higher TRV to appear across the VCB contacts. This process is
termed voltage escalation and it continues up until the final successful extinction of the
arc which is at the point where the generated TRV is lower than the momentary dielectric
strength of the VCB contacts. The re-ignition process is also accompanied by high
frequency voltage and current oscillations which contribute to the accumulation of higher
TRV and the further multiple arc re-ignitions.
The transient overvoltages accompanied by high frequency oscillations also occur during
the closing operation of VCB as a result of arc pre-ignition occurrence. It should however
be noted the arc pre-ignition occurrence is also prevalent in all other types of circuit
breaker. The magnitude of the overvoltage as a result of the pre-ignition and re-ignition
occurrences is dependent on the installation conditions such as voltage level, motor
power, length and type of feed cables, cable screen earthing and the type of application
[3]. These overvoltages can sometimes reach the motors basic insulation level (BIL) and
hence damage the insulation of the motor windings. It is therefore imperative that
appropriate overvoltage mitigation strategies are implemented in applications where the
VCB is used to switch the MV motors.
The main objective of the research project is to investigate the issue of switching surges
in MV motors applications switched by VCB and determine the overvoltage mitigation
strategies used to protect the MV motors. To achieve the objective, the following process
is followed:
The characteristic features of the VCB attributable to switching surges are first
investigated.
The overvoltages generated during the closing and the opening of the VCB in MV
motor applications are subsequently examined.
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The above-mentioned steps will be discussed in this report. Emphasis will be made on the
effectiveness of the overvoltage protection strategies.
2. Features of Vacuum Circuit Breaker
The three main features which govern the characteristics of the vacuum circuit breaker
(VCB) are determined as [4]:
The current chopping value of the VCB is dependent on the type of vacuum contacts
material and the load surge impedance. The vacuum contacts of modern VCB are
normally constructed with copper, chromium, or tungsten alloys to provide a low
melting point and allow arc continuation until nearly zero crossing. This feature
contributes to the reduction of chopping value. The value of chopping current is
statistically distributed and is represented by a normal distribution with 15% standard
deviation [5]. The cold gap breakdown voltage is dependent on the dielectric strength of
the vacuum, contacts material and is also a function of the distance between the breaker
contacts. The capability of the VCB to quench HF currents is governed by the vacuum
and contacts dielectric strength as well as the time duration after which the contacts were
separated. The gradient of the HF re-ignited current at zero crossing determines whether
the VCB will be able to quench the arc or not. The gradient is given by equation 1 below
[5]:
=
+ (1)
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The values of critical di/dt of the VCB normally range between 100 A/s and 600 A/s
[6]. This range gives the VCB better capability of interrupting HF currents.
3. Overvoltages due to Closing of Vacuum Circuit Breaker
The pre-ignition transients during breaker closing operation occur in all types of circuit
breakers regardless of the arc quenching medium used. In this section the VCB preignition transients during breaker closing operation in the three phase MV motor
applications are examined. Figure 1[***********]shows the single line diagram of the 3
phase MV motor which is connected to the supply busbar via VCB and a power cable.
The VCB typically exhibits a 0.3ms statistically determined delay between the closing
and opening of the three phases [3]. In this section the pre-ignition overvoltages for the
first-pole-to-close and the subsequent-poles-to close are examined.
Busbar
ZC
Power Cables
Zm
Electric Motor
VCB
ZC
Other loads
Figure 1: General illustration of the MV motor connection to the busbar via VCB
3.1 First-pole-to-close Pre-ignition Transients
It was mentioned in section 2 that the dielectric strength of the VCB is dependent on the
contacts gap length. During the closing operation, the dielectric strength of the first-poleto-close contacts decreases with the decreasing gap length and the pre-ignition arc
eventually occurs when the gap withstand voltage falls below the voltage level cross the
contacts. The pre-ignition arc current results in the collapse of voltage across the breaker
pole contacts and this injects a very steep-fronted voltage wave into the power cable
network which travels towards the motor. The current which flows in the arc may be
extinct by the VCB and if this happens, the dielectric strength across the gap recovers.
The subsequent pre-ignition arc will then occur again as the gap gets much smaller and
this process repeats itself until the galvanic contact is established. The multiple preignition situations take place in a very short period of time (typically in less than 10
nanoseconds [7]).
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The travelling pre-ignition voltage wave has a magnitude which is dependent on the
source surge impedance (ZS). The source surge impedance is the Thevenin equivalent
impedance of the network as observed from the VCB in the direction of the motor and is
determined by equation 2.
=
(2)
=
+
+
= !
" (3)
+1
The voltage Vm appearing at the motor terminals as a result of Vti is given by equation 4
[7].
$ =
2$
(4)
+ $
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Figure 2: Illustration of the voltage reflections at the motor end in p.u. quantities
3.2 Subsequent-poles-to-close Pre-ignition Transients
As explained in section 3.1, the first-pole-to-close traveling voltage wave approximately
doubles at the phase 1 of the motor terminals and results in oscillations due to voltage
reflections. This causes the phase 2 and phase 3 of the motor windings to also oscillate at
approximately voltage magnitude of 2Vti depending on the motor windings and power
cable loses [7]. If the second or third pole also closes with pre-ignitions, then the
travelling wave of approximately 2.5 Vti will be injected into the power cable. The
travelling wave will be doubled on reflection at motor terminals with a maximum
magnitude of 5Vti appearing across the phase 2 or 3 terminals of the motor [7]. It has
however been experimentally established in [9] that the overvoltages at the MV motor
terminal can statistically reach a maximum of 2.82 per unit (p.u.) on the second or third
pole closing operation. It is further confirmed in [10] that the highest surge voltage has
been recorded during the third pole closing occurrence.
4. Overvoltages due to Opening of Vacuum Circuit Breaker
The interruption of MV motor current by VCB exhibits large transient voltages, multiple
re-ignitions and high frequency (HF) current oscillations. It should however be noted that
large voltage transients occur when interrupting the high starting currents of the MV
motor or in applications requiring frequent start-stops of the motor. The MV motor draws
high inrush currents (typically 4 6 p.u.) during startup. When interrupting currents of
the motor already running at rated speed, the back EMF of the motor will limit the
transient recovery voltage across the vacuum contacts and thus limit or eliminate the arc
re-ignition possibility. During the VCB opening process, the overvoltage escalation
phenomenon is governed by current chopping, multiple re-ignitions and virtual current
chopping characteristics. These characteristics are discussed further in this section.
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Figure 3: The illustration of equivalent motor and cable circuit during breaker opening
The current chopping value of modern VCB is normally in the range of 3 8 A [5]. The
abrupt current interruption leaves the remnant electromagnetic energy in the motor and
cable of the disconnected circuit which is proportional to the chopped current value (ich).
The remnant energy is given equation 6 [11].
1
1
)
($ $
= *$ $) (6)
2
2
($
1
/0 ; 2 =
(7)
*$
234($ *$
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The I2 superimposed on I1 will have multiple zero crossing and the VCB will again chop
this current near zero crossing point. The second Vmax as explained in section 4.1 will be
generated again and the second TRV will build up across the gap contacts. The withstand
voltage of the VCB increases with the increasing opening gap, but the HF I2 current also
causes higher TRV to build up across the contacts. Therefore, the second re-ignition will
occur at higher Vmax. The further multiple re-ignitions will occur with increasing Vmax up
until the TRV build up is lower than the dielectric withstand of the VCB and at this point,
the successful opening of the VCB will occur. The escalating voltage due to multiple reignitions causes very high overvoltages to develop across the motor windings. Figure 6
illustrates the voltage escalation process.
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5
4
3
2
IEE
e
Er
s
ue
val
d
e
nd
me
m
o
c
1
0.02 1
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Page | 10
ZC
Vt
Power Cables
Zm
Electric Motor
VCB
R
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It is more economical to connect the RC circuit at motor terminals because the motor
power cable will contribute to the surge capacitance value resulting in the smallest value
of additional surge capacitance being used. It has been practically confirmed in [3] that
RC circuit provides the best solution for overvoltage magnitude reduction as well as
surge rate-of-rise reduction.
6.3 General Mitigation Solutions
Other measures which reduce the magnitude of voltage surges include motor power cable
screen earthing, reducing the number of loads connected to the busbar which supplies the
motor via VCB, using single-core cables and selecting a VCB with higher withstand
breakdown voltage. It has been shown experimentally in [10] that earthing the power
cable screen at motor site reduces the overvoltage magnitude from 5.2 p.u. to 2.82 p.u.
The high frequency surge overvoltage generated at VCB gets split between cable surge
impedance and the cable screen. The component which propagates in the cable screen is
eventually diverted to earth at motor side. This reduces the voltage magnitude which gets
reflected at motor terminals [9]. However, [3] did not find evidence from simulations that
cable screen earthing has an effect on the surge magnitude. It is recommended in [3] that
further research be undertaken in this regard.
It has been confirmed in [10] that reducing the number of other loads fed from same the
busbar as the MV motor under consideration (refer to figure 1), will reduce the voltage
surge magnitude. This is verified by equation 3 which shows that the pre-ignition voltage
magnitude increases with the increasing number of cables connected to the busbar under
consideration. The multicore cable increases the probability of high overvoltages as
compared to single core cables. This is because capacitive coupling between phases is
higher in the multicore cable as compared to single core cable [3]. If the maximum
transient recovery voltage of the circuit is known, then the switching surges can be
avoided by selecting a breaker with a higher withstand breakdown voltage so that preignition and re-ignitions situations do not occur. This has been verified through
simulations in [4]. However, this solution is impractical because it will lead to an
unnecessarily oversized VCB.
7. Conclusion
The conditions which lead to overvoltages and high frequency current oscillations in MV
motor applications switched via VCB have been discussed in this document. It has been
determined that the high dielectric strength of the vacuum and contacts in the VCB are
the main contributors of switching surges. This is due to the current chopping and
multiple pre-ignitions and re-ignitions which occur during the operation of the VCB. The
switching surges are generated during both the opening and closing operations of the
VCB. The mitigation of switching surges can be achieved through the use of surge
arrestors, surge capacitors or RC snubber circuit. General techniques such as earthing of
motor power cable screen also reduce the magnitude of voltage surge. However some
literatures are sceptical about the effectiveness of cable screen earthing.
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Most of the literatures have confirmed the use of RC snubber circuit in mitigation of
switching surges achieves better results as compared to other methods of mitigation.
8. Recommendations
From the information acquired, the following recommendations are drawn:
The switching surges are a concern in the MV motor applications switched by the
VCB and appropriate overvoltages protection strategies should be implemented.
The RC snubber circuit offers the best performance in limiting switching surges
however an economical combination of the RC values for optimal performance
must be established.
The impact of the source side capacitance on the surge voltage magnitude should
be investigated further.
Further research and investigations should be carried out to determine the effects
of multicore cable on the surge voltage as compared to single core cable.
Further research and investigations should be carried out to confirm the effects of
motor power cable screen earthing on the voltage surge.
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9. References
[1] De Kock Jan, Strauss Cobus. Practical Power Distribution for Industry; IDC
technologies, Oxford, 1st edition, 2004
[2] Gibbs J D, Koch D, Malkin P, Cornick K J. Comparison of performance of switching
technologies on E Cigre motor simulation circuit; IEEE Petroleum and Chemical Industry
Conference Europe, 1989, pg. 1745-1750
[3] Penkov D, Vollet C, De Metz-Noblat B, Nikodem R. Overvoltage protection study
on vacuum breaker switched MV motorsIEEE Transactions on Power Delivery, 2008, pg.
1-7
[4] Borghetti A, Napolitano F, Nucci C A, Paolone M, Sultan M, Tripaldi N. Transient
Recovery Voltages in Vacuum Circuit Breakers Generated by the Interruption of Inrush
Currents of Large Motors; International Conference on Power Systems Transients,
IPST201, Netherlands, June 14-17, 2011
[5] Helmer J, Lindmayer M. Mathematical modelling of the high frequency behaviour of
vacuum interrupters and comparison with measured transients in power systems, IEEE
XVIIth International Symposium on Discharges and Electrical Insulation in Vacuum,
ISDEIV, 1996, pg. 323-331
[6] Abdulahovic T, Thiringer T, Reza M, Breder H. Vacuum Circuit Breaker Parameter
Calculation and Modelling for Power System Transient Studies; IEEE Transactions on
Power Delivery, 2014, pg. 1
[7] Cornick K J, Thompson T R. Steep-fronted switching voltage transients and their
distribution in motor windings. Part 1: System measurements of steep-fronted switching
voltage transients, IEEE Proceedings on Electric Power Applications, 1982, pg. 45-55
[8] Van Coller J M. Insulation Coordination Lecture Notes, University of the
Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2015
[9] Dick E P, Gupta B K, Pillai P, Narang A, Sharma D K. Practical calculation of
switching surges at motor terminals; IEEE Transactions on Energy Conversion, 1988, pg.
864-872
[10] Gupta B K, Nilsson N E, Sharma D K. Protection of motors against high voltage
switching surges; IEEE Transactions on Energy Conversion, 1992, pg. 139-147
[11] Mueller A, Saemann D. Switching phenomena in medium voltage systems - good
engineering practice on the application of vacuum circuit-breakers and contactors; IEEE
Proceedings of Petroleum and Chemical Industry Conference Europe Conference, PCIC
EUROPE, 2011, pg. 1-9
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