Switching Studies for Islington Substation Capacitor Banks with Surge Arresters Vipashna Kaushik Department of Electrical and

Computer Engineering University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand

Abstract
The following report has been commissioned by Transpower New Zealand Ltd. to make an assessment on the existing and proposed surge arresters at Islington Substation. Surge arresters are devices that protect components from transient overvoltages caused during capacitor switching. These arresters are installed on the two existing 220kV capacitor banks and are proposed to be installed on the two new 220kV capacitor banks in order to protect them from switching transients. Switching studies were done with a circuit breaker restrike occurring while isolating a capacitor bank. Two surge arrester voltage ratings were analyzed; 198kV and 216kV in order to find which arrester would provide more protection. Surge arresters were then placed parallel to the capacitor banks in two different configurations. The energy absorbed by the surge arrester during a switching surge was calculated and compared to its energy rating capability. The 216kV surge arrester proved more suitable for the Islington substation capacitor banks as the maximum energy absorbed by this surge arrester was less than its energy absorption capability of 1555.2kJ. order to give Transpower an accurate picture on the efficiency of the new surge arresters, the Islington substation was modelled with surge arresters on PSCAD.

2. Scope
The intent of this report is to provide information on the effect of capacitor bank switching on the selected surge arresters. Two worst case scenarios were taken into account: circuit breaker restrike and bus fault. The aim of this report is to recommend whether the transients generated during these scenarios exceed the energy rating of the proposed surge arresters. The scenario of restrike has been discussed in detail in this report.

3. Islington Substation
A substation is a place where voltages are increased and reduced for transmission and distribution purposes. They also serve as connection points between different parts of a transmission system. The Islington substation, located in the South Island near Christchurch, is part of a transmission and distribution system. As shown in Figure 1, the southern generators at Tekapo, Ohao, Benmore and Livingston are connected to Islington through 220kV lines. This is then reduced to 66kV and 33kV in order to distribute it near the Christchurch area.

1. Introduction
The Islington substation is a 220kV/66kV/33kV substation located in the South Island. Transpower New Zealand Ltd. is currently installing two capacitor banks in addition to the existing capacitor banks to provide voltage support to the surrounding areas at times of high demand (refer to Appendix 1) [1]. These will be switched on a daily basis to maintain control of the system voltage levels during load changes. While such switching has its advantages, it can also create high voltage and current transients that can destroy neighboring equipment in the substation. Surge arresters are installed in such cases to protect the surrounding equipment from such high surges. A study had been carried out by the Power Systems Consultants (PSC) in Wellington to report the effect of capacitor bank switching on the proposed and existing capacitor banks [1]. These studies however did not include the existing or the proposed surge arresters. In

Figure 1. Location of the Islington Substation

4. Transients in Power Systems

An electrical transient is initiated whenever there is a sudden change of circuit conditions. It is represented by voltages and currents that are higher in magnitude and

frequency than the system values. These transients mostly occur when lightning strikes the transmission line or when switching of a component is involved. The period of a transient is normally very short; they can however cause a lot of damage to the components in a substation. In this report the transients that are generated during the switching of capacitor banks is focused on. The times that transients occur during switching are while a) the closing of a circuit breaker to energize the capacitor bank or b) the opening of a circuit breaker to isolate or de-energize the bank. All components in a utility are made of capacitive and inductive parameters. In an alternating current circuit, energy is transferred cyclically between the inductances and the capacitances of the circuit as the current and voltage rise and fall at the frequency of the supply [2]. When a sudden circuit change takes place there is a redistribution of energy in order to meet the new conditions in the circuit [3]. However this redistribution of energy cannot take place instantaneously due to two reasons: a) the voltage across a capacitor cannot increase instantaneously without an infinite increase in current and b) an instantaneous change in the current across an inductor would require an infinite voltage to bring it about [3].

Ea 3.6 0.002 0.0005 C Ia

Voltage (kV)

CB1 Ia

5000.0

Figure 2. Energizing a Capacitor bank.

capacitor voltage 90

-90 0.40 0.50 0.60 0.70 0.80

Figure 3. Overvoltage produced across capacitor The circuit in Figure 2 was simulated using PSCAD in order to investigate the occurrence of overvoltages while switching a capacitor. The circuit breaker is initially open and closes 0.53sec after the circuit is simulated. At this instant the voltage across the capacitor reaches a peak value of 1.6pu as shown in Figure 3. This occurs due to the redistribution of energy in the circuit. 5.1. Restrike Restrike is a phenomenon that occurs while deenergizing or isolating a capacitor during the zero current crossing [5]. At this point the voltage will be at its peak value and the capacitor is isolated while being charged to the peak line voltage [5]. This voltage gets trapped at the capacitor end of the circuit breaker and half a cycle later, the voltage on the source side of the circuit breaker is of the opposite polarity. There will then appear a rise in voltage across the contacts of the circuit breaker (TRV) and this voltage will overshoot to a value which is equal to the difference between the two contact voltages [5]. Due to the oscillatory nature of the circuit, this overshoot will then damp and return to the system voltage. In extreme cases, if the overshoot exceeds the dielectric strength of the insulation of the circuit breaker, there is a breakdown in the insulation and arcing results [5]. This is called a restrike of the circuit breaker. This has been illustrated in Figures 4 and 5.

Time (s)

5. Capacitor Bank Switching

A capacitor bank is an assembly of capacitors and all necessary equipment in one location [4]. They are primarily installed in a transmission system for VAR control and voltage control, while the secondary benefits include an increase in the system capacity and a reduction in power losses [4]. The components in a substation are mostly inductive in nature and with the addition of capacitor banks, the system losses are reduced by improving the power factor of the system. These capacitor banks are normally switched on during peak loading periods and switched off during light loading periods. Such connecting of a capacitor bank to the bus line results in a rise in the voltage level of the system. The switching of the capacitor banks thus adds flexibility over the control of voltage and losses. This switching is carried out with the help of circuit breakers and an automatic control device that senses a particular condition and disconnects or connects the capacitor banks from the bus based on that condition [4]. There is however a problem that is associated with the switching of a capacitor bank. Transient overvoltages are always created during this switching.

1.0

5.3. Grounded/Ungrounded Capacitor banks The capacitor banks at Islington are connected in two different configurations. The old capacitor banks C22 & C25 have an ungrounded star connection and the new capacitor banks have a grounded star connection. These two connections have been illustrated in Figure 6. Figure 4. De-energizing a capacitor bank Grounded capacitor banks provide a low impedance path to earth from lightning surges and provide some voltage surge protection [5]. Hence they are preferred in substations that are effectively grounded such as the Islington substation. Ungrounded Capacitor banks need to have surge arresters connected across them to protect them. The absence of a physical connection to ground means that the transients have no path to travel [5].

Figure 5. Capacitor restrike 5.2. Back-to-Back Switching The switching of a capacitor bank that is connected in parallel with one or more than one capacitor bank is known as back-to-back switching. Generally back to back switching of a capacitor bank when a capacitor bank is already energized creates a higher magnitude of transients [5]. In the case of the Islington substation there are four capacitor banks that are connected in parallel and switched alternatively depending on the load conditions. The zero voltage that occurs at the moment of contact closure when the second capacitor is energized makes it appear to the system as a short circuit [5]. This temporary short circuit will cause any energized capacitor nearby to discharge into the second capacitor [5]. In addition, the two capacitors in parallel appear as a larger equivalent capacitance rather than one capacitor alone, making the inrush current magnitude much larger than for a single capacitor. However, when switching a bank in parallel with and in close proximity to another energized bank, the transient current is limited only by the impedance between the banks [5]. This impedance is typically very low by comparison and therefore results in much higher current values. Figure 6. Grounded vs. Ungrounded capacitor bank

6.

Surge Arresters

A surge arrester is a non-linear resistor that provides a low-impedance path around the component being protected [6]. It protects equipment from overvoltages and surges that can result from circuit breaker operation and faults in the system. The non linear resistor has a property of diminishing its resistance sharply as the voltage at its terminal increases [3]. They are connected across the apparatus to be protected and so experience the system voltage under normal operating conditions. Their resistance is very high so the power dissipation is minimal [3]. On the incidence of a surge of voltage, the resistance falls rapidly as the voltage increases, thereby diverting much of the current and energy of the surge into the arrester [3]. In Figure 7 below, a surge arrester has been added to the earlier example in Figure 6. The addition of this surge arrester connected parallel to the capacitor has resulted in a reduction in the peak voltage across the capacitor from 1.60pu to 1.40pu.

Ea 3.6 0.002 0.0005 CIa

CB1 Ia

7. Case Studies
The Islington substation circuit is a complicated circuit and it needs a power systems software in order to analyze it. Power Systems Computer Aided Design (PSCAD) was used for this purpose as it is an Electromagnetic Transients Program (EMTP) software. In order to study the complete effect of switching overvoltages on surge arresters, a worst case scenario was modeled on PSCAD. These cases involved restrike occurring on the circuit breaker during the isolation of capacitor banks C22 and C21. These cases have been described in detail below: 7.1. Case 1A CASE 1A Restrike With Surge Arresters Without Surge Arresters

Figure 7. Energizing in the presence of a surge arrester

Voltage (kV)

Another important property of protective devices is their ability to store and dissipate energy [6]. When current is diverted into a surge arrester, and voltage is generated across it, it is at the same time absorbing energy. When metal-oxide arresters are energized, valve elements of the arrester will absorb energy that results in a temperature increase of the valve elements [6]. Under normal operating conditions there is a balance between the heat generated by the valve elements and the heat dissipated by the arrester [6]. Overvoltage events disturb this stable condition by causing the valve elements to absorb increased levels of energy. If the temperature rise of the valve elements due to energy absorption is too high, the arrester can be driven into a state of thermal runaway, resulting in further increase in valve element temperature [6]. If the temperature of a valve element reaches a high enough level, damage to the valve elements can occur, leading to an electrical breakdown and failure of the arrester [6]. The amount of energy an arrester absorbs depends on the magnitude and duration of the surge. The surge arrester should be capable of handling this energy by either storing or dissipating it without damaging itself. The surge arresters used at Islington are metal oxide arresters. The surge arresters in this project were modelled with two different voltage ratings: 198kV and 216kV. This was done to find the best possible rating for the surge arresters.

5000.0
capacitor voltage 90 0 -90 0.40 0.50 0.60 0.70 0.80

Figure 8. Reduction in the initial overvoltage

Time (s)

1.0

Figure 9. Steps taken to complete Case 1A Simulations were carried out on PSCAD with the existing capacitor banks C22 & C25. A restrike occurred on the circuit breaker connecting C22 to the 220kV bus while isolating the capacitor bank (refer to Figure 10). The duration of the restrike was 20mS and it occurred half a cycle after the capacitor current is interrupted, on phases A and C, while phase B remained unaffected
3.6 0.002 0.0005 CBC22Ia 3.6 0.002 0.0005 CBC22Ib 3.6 10000000.0 0.002 0.0005 CBC22Ic CBC22c CBC22b CBC22a

Figure 10. Connection of Capacitor Bank C22 The device illustrated in Figure 11 controls the opening of the circuit breaker on capacitor bank C22. The first input slider labeled Open ABC is set to open the circuit breaker at 0.5355sec. This is when the system current is at the zero crossing. The next slider labeled Restrike Start is set to start restrike at 0.1s. This is half a cycle after the circuit breaker opens.

CBC22b Open CB Control TIME A B Open ABC TIME D Restrike start TIME C + + D + F Restrike Duration A B Comparator + A B + F Comparator CBC22c Comparator CBC22a

48 kV surge arresters were also placed across the tuning reactors.

0.1125 0.41 0.41 0.41 0.1125 0.1125 3.6 CBC21Ia 3.6 CBC21Ib 3.6 CBC21Ic CBC21a CBC21b CBC21c

Figure 13. Connection of Capacitor Bank C21 The sliders in the control device in Figure 14 are the same as those for Case 1A. The difference is that for Case 1B, restrike only occurs on phase A of circuit breaker CBC21.
Open CB Control Open ABC TIME A B TIME D ++ Restrike Start F TIME A B + F Comparator A B Comparator CBC21c Comparator CBC21a CBC21b

Figure 11. Restrike Control for Case 1A The last slider labeled Restrike Duration governs how long restrike lasts and is set to 0.02s. As a result of this control device, restrike only occurs on phases A and C, while the circuit breaker for phase B opens with no such occurrence. The peak voltages affecting the capacitor banks and other components were noted. This simulation was then repeated in the presence of surge arresters connected phase-to-ground. The results of this simulation can are compared in Table 1. 7.2. Case 1B CASE 1B Restrike With surge arrester (SA) SA-capacitor to ground Without surge arrester (SA)

C D Restrike Duration

+ +

Figure 14. Restrike Control for Case 1B 7.3. Results

SA-capacitor section

The following are the results from the case studies Case 1A and Case 1B. Without With SA(PU) SA(PU) 220Kv Bus 1.59 1.48 66Kv Bus 1.23 1.19 33Kv Bus 1.52 1.44 C25 voltage 1.96 1.51 C25 Current 45.84 45.02 C22 Voltage 2.17 1.71 C22 Current 48.77 45.63 T3 Tertiary Line Voltage 1.12 1.1 SVC current 1.94 1.8 SVC 5th filter current 1.80 1.64 SVC 7th filter current 3.51 3.14 Table 1. Case 1A (existing capacitor banks)

Figure 12. Steps taken to complete Case 1B Simulations were carried out with the two proposed 5th harmonic filter banks (C21 & C26) and the existing capacitor banks (C22 & C25). A restrike occurred on circuit breaker connecting C21 to the 220kV bus while isolating the capacitor bank (refer to Figure 13). In this case restrike occurred on phase A half a cycle later and was 20mS in duration. The same simulation was then repeated in the presence of surge arresters. The placement of these surge arresters was altered in the following ways: (i) Connected from the capacitor side of the circuit breaker to ground (CapGnd). (ii) Across the capacitor section (CapSec)

Without SA(P.U.) 220Kv Bus 66Kv Bus 33Kv Bus C25 voltage C25 Current C21 Voltage C21 Current C26 Voltage C26 Current C22 Voltage C22 Current T3 Tertiary Line Voltage SVC current SVC 5th filter current SVC 7th filter current 1.17 1.10 1.07 1.08 2.25 2.40 8.20 2.31 7.26 1.09 2.26 1.14 1.64 1.78 1.59

With SA(P.U.) CapGnd 1.07 1.06 1.03 1.04 12.55 1.24 2.27 1.23 2.31 1.03 12.41 1.04 1.33 1.36 1.39

With SA(P.U.) CapSec 1.06 1.06 1.03 1.04 12.64 1.24 2.29 1.23 2.41 1.02 12.45 1.05 1.34 1.36 1.39

In Figures 15 and 16, the peak voltage across the circuit breaker reduces from -657.38 kV to -429.56 kV. This is the TRV voltage that builds up across the circuit breakers during a restrike.

8. Discussion
As can be noted from Table 1, surge voltages reduced proportionally after the addition of surge arresters. Because a surge arrester is a non-linear resistor, a high reduction in voltage is made only when the overvoltage is extremely high. This is evident from the results in Table 1 and 2. It was observed that the currents in C22 & C25 were very high while C22 was being de-energized. This occurred due to the back-to-back switching of capacitor banks C22 & C25. The factor limiting these inrush currents is the inductance between these two banks [5]. However this impedance was very low (0.002 + 0.0005j) and hence there was a very high frequency current of the order 45.84pu and 48.77pu rushing in the existing capacitor banks. In order to investigate this further, the impedance was increased to 0.02 + 0.005j and the magnitude of inrush current reduced to 22.68pu. Changing the ungrounded connection of the old capacitor banks to a grounded connection did not create favorable results. The inrush currents remained the same as the previous values. It is not practically possible to change the connections of these components at Islington without a substantial investment being made in altering the connections. These observations should however be taken into account when installing new capacitor banks.

Table 2. Case 1B (new and existing capacitor banks)

C C Voltage B 21 600 300

Voltage (kV)

0 -300 -600 0.525 0.550 0.575 0.600 0.625 0.650 0.675 0.700

Time (s)

Figure 15. Circuit breaker voltage waveforms

600 CB C21 Voltage

300

-300

From Table 2, it can be noted that the inrush currents entering the capacitor banks while de-energizing capacitor bank C21 have reduced. This is due to the fact that the new capacitor banks are 5th filter banks and the inductance of the tuning reactor is 0.41 + 0.1125j. This high impedance limits the currents and protects the capacitor banks. However, there is a rise in current in the existing capacitor banks C25 and C22 after the addition of surge arresters. The value for the tuning reactor was increased to 0.41 + 0.1125j for the old capacitor banks and this inrush currents reduced from approximately 12.55pu to 1.93pu for both the capacitor banks C22 & C25. This finding also supports the findings in Case 1A mentioned earlier. There was not any marked difference in the voltage peaks after altering the placement of surge arresters (CapGnd-CapSec). Both configurations provided the same amount of protection for the circuit components.

Voltage (kV)

-600 0.525 0.550 0.575 0.600 0.625 0.650 0.675 0.700

Figure 16. Circuit breaker voltage waveform with SA

Time (s)

9. Energy Calculations
The energy being absorbed by the surge arrester (Table 3 & 4) was calculated by placing a voltage and current probe at the arrester and measuring the Vpk and Ipk entering this arrester. These two values were then multiplied by the time it took the surge to settle down to the system voltage. In the case of restrike, this was 20 ms. Energy = Vpk * Ipk * t (1) Measured Parameters Energy Absorption (kJ) for 216kV and 198kV rated SA Restrike(216kV) Restrike(198kV C22 C25 C21 C26 17.118 17.119 31.714 17.119 26.127 26.127 42.896 26.132

10. Conclusions
Transients that were generated during restrike have been successfully controlled with the addition surge arresters. The 216kV surge arrester performed better than the 198kV surge arrester. Altering the placement of surge arresters did not supply any marked differences. Either of the two connections can be used for the new capacitor banks. The peak voltage (TRV) across the circuit breaker during a restrike reduced from -657.38 kV to -429.56 kV.

11. Recommendations
It is recommended that in order to reduce the generation of transients, inductances between capacitor banks should be increased. Also controlled switching should be incorporated in order to ensure that switching does not occur at zero current crossings. Future capacitor banks should be connected in a grounded star connection.

Table 3. Maximum energy absorbed during Restrike Measured Parameters

Energy Absorption (kJ) Bus Fault(216kV) Bus Fault(198kV)

C22 C25 C21 C26

1240.204 1240.204 1246.613 1246.562

5609.126 5609.126 6303.676 6304.666

Table 4. Maximum energy absorbed during Bus Fault The energy absorption capabilities of both the surge arresters have been mentioned below: SA Energy Rating (216kV) = 1555.2kJ SA Energy Rating (198kV) = 1425.6kJ The energy absorbed by the surge arrester during restrike was less than that during bus fault. This was mainly due to the difference in duration of these two scenarios. The bus fault lasted 300ms while the restrike only lasted 20ms. Also the peak currents produced during bus fault were higher than the peak currents produced during restrike. The 216kV rated surge arrester would be a better option to use, as the maximum energy absorbed by the surge arrester in a worst case scenario was 1246.613kJ, which is well below its energy rating of 1555.2kJ.

Acknowledgements
I would like to thank the following people: Dr. Nirmal Nair: for his guidance and support during the course of this project. Mr. Nihal Kularatna: for his advice on how to start a project effectively. Deeksha Srivastava: who has been a pleasure to work with these past few months.

Appendix 1
The single phase circuit in the column below illustrates the connections of the capacitor banks at Islington. They are all connected to each other through the 220kV bus line. The existing capacitor banks are C22 and C25 and the proposed capacitor banks are C21 and C26.

12. References
[1] Deller, R. (2005) Proposed B.E. Final year project on 220kV Islington Capacitor bank switching studies, Transpower New Zealand Ltd. [2] Shwehdi, M. H. and Sultan, M. R. (2000) Power Factor Correction Capacitors; Essentials and Cautions Power Engineering Society Summer Meeting, 2000. IEEE Volume 3, 16-20 July 2000 Page(s):1317 - 1322 [3] Greenwood, A. (1971) Electrical Transients in Power Systems John Wiley & Sons, New York. [4] IEEE guide for Application of Shunt Power Capacitors (1992). IEEE std. 1036-1992. Transmission and distribution committee of the IEEE Power Engineering Society. [5] IEEE Guide for the Protection of Shunt Capacitor Banks (2000). IEEE std. std C37.99-2000. Power System Relaying Committee of the IEEE Power Engineering Society. [6] IEEE Guide for the Application of Metal-Oxide Surge Arresters for Alternating-Current Systems (1997). IEEE std. C62.22-1997. Surge protective devices committee of the IEEE Power Engineering Society.