4.

1 Parallel Transfer

Parallel transfer is a method of transferring

process loads from one source to an alternate
source. In this method, the bus tie breaker is
closed before the normal source breaker is
opened. This method has gained wide accep-
tance because the transient on the motor bus is
eliminated, assuming the two sources are in
phase. However, the bus system designed for
this transfer method may violate the interrupt
rating for the circuit breakers and the short-term
withstand ratings of the normal and alternate
source power transformers. A fault in a motor or
its leads occurring during the time the sources
are paralleled may produce fault current levels
in excess of the circuit breaker ratings. The
probability of this happening may be viewed as
small; however, the consequences of such a
fault should be thoroughly understood before
the parallel transfer system is used.

Parallel transfer requires a high-speed sync-

check relay such as the Basler BE1-25 as
shown in Fig. 11 to ensure that the phase
difference across the bus tie breaker is within
acceptable limits prior to transfer. Without this
permissive relay, a large phase angle would FIGURE 11. High-speed sync-check relay.
cause a power surge through the bus system
that could cause damage to the bus system
components. An angle setting of 15-25 degrees 4.2 Fast Transfer
with no time delay may be used.
Fast transfer involves opening the normal
source breaker prior to closing the tie breaker,
thus avoiding the problems associated with
parallel transfer. This method is intended to
minimize the transfer time between sources.
However, the bus must always be completely
disconnected from both sources for a short
period of time.

One technique involves issuing simultaneous

trip and close commands to the normal source
and bus tie breaker. If the tripping breaker is
abnormally slow, the sources can be briefly
paralleled, introducing the problems of parallel
transfer. Another method involves using a b
contact from the normal source breaker to close
the bus tie breaker.

Especially during abnormal transient conditions,

supervision of the fast transfer requires a high-
speed sync-check relay such as the Basler BE1-
25 to ensure that the phase angle between the
motor bus voltage and the alternate source

12