3_Objective of Power System Protection
A H Chowdhury, PhD
Professor
EEE, BUET
Objective of System Protection
• The function of protective relaying is to cause prompt removal from service of an
element of a power system when it suffers a short circuit or when it starts to
operate in any abnormal manner that might cause damage or otherwise interfere
with effective operation of the rest of the system
Objective of System Protection
• Protection equipment cannot prevent faults and equipment failures, or anticipate
trouble
– Act only after an abnormal or intolerable condition has occurred, with sufficient indication to
permit their operation
• Protection does not mean prevention
– Minimize duration of trouble and limit damage, outage time, and related problems
Power Blackouts in Bangladesh
• All records not publicly available
• 6 blackouts in last 7 years
Year Date Comment
2007 November 16 1st Failure during restoration after
Hurricane Sidr, 07:57 Hrs
November 16 2nd Failure during restoration, 17:27 Hrs
December 14 Fault at Ghorashal power plant
2014 November 1 Power interruption at Bheramara DC link,
11:28 Hrs
November 1 1st Failure during restoration, 15:23 Hrs
November 1 2nd Failure during restoration, 16:20 Hrs
Whose Fault?
System failures are result of multiple failures of following components
• Design
• Equipment
• Procedures
• Operators
• Supplies and materials
• Environment
Faults and Abnormal Conditions
Faults
Type of electrical failure that causes
greatest concern is the short circuit or
‘fault’
• Three phase fault
• Single line to ground fault
• Line to line fault
• Double line to ground fault
• Open circuit fault
Faults and Abnormal Conditions
Abnormal conditions
• Under/over voltage
• Under/over frequency
• Voltage and current unbalance
• Power reversal
• Power swing
• Temperature rise
• Instability (rotor angle, frequency, voltage)
Abnormal Conditions in System
Grid voltage at Haripur 132 kV
May 1 and 2, 2014
142
140
138
136
Voltage, kV
134
132
130
128
126
0 100 200 300 400 500 600
Sample no.
Abnormal Conditions in System
Grid voltage at Haripur 132 kV
December 4, 2014
135
134
133
132
131
Voltage, kV
130
129
128
127
126
125
124
0 100 200 300 400 500 600
Sample no.
Abnormal Conditions in System
Frequency variation at Haripur 132 kV
May 1 and 2, 2014
52
51.5
51
Frequency, Hz
50.5
50
49.5
49
48.5
0 100 200 300 400 500 600
Sample no.
Abnormal Conditions in System
Frequency variation at Haripur 132 kV
December 4, 2014
51.5
51
50.5
Frequency, Hz
50
49.5
49
0 100 200 300 400 500 600
Sample no.
Abnormal Conditions in System
Faults in a System
Equipment Causes of fault
Generator 1. Stator faults
2. Rotor faults
3. Abnormal conditions
4. Faults in associated equipment
5. Faults in protective system
Transformer 1. Insulation failure
2. Faults in tap-changer, bushing
3. Faults in protection circuit
4. Overloading, over voltage
Overhead lines 1. Lightning strike, storms, earthquake, icing
2. Birds, trees, kites, aeroplanes etc.
3. Internal over-voltages (switching, line charging etc.)
Faults in a System
Equipment Causes of fault
Underground cable 1. Physical damage (during laying, digging etc.)
2. Insulation failure due to temperature rise
3. Joints failure
Bus bar
CT, PT 1. Over voltage
2. Insulation failure
3. Wrong connection
Switchgear 1. Insulation failure
2. Mechanical defect
3. Leakage of air/oil/gas
4. Inadequate rating
5. Lack of maintenance
Design to Prevent Fault
• Features of design and operation aimed at preventing fault
– Adequate insulation
– Coordination of insulation strength with capabilities of lightning arresters
– Overhead ground wires and low tower-footing resistance
– Design for mechanical strength to reduce exposure
– Design to minimize likelihood of failure causable by animals, birds, insects, dirt, sleet, etc.
– Proper operation and maintenance practices
Design to Prevent Fault
• Adequate insulation
Design to Prevent Fault
Design to Prevent Fault
Design to Prevent Fault
Design to Prevent Fault
A vacuum circuit breaker A burnt vacuum circuit breaker
Design to Prevent Fault
Fire in a ready made garment factory
Fire in a ready made garment factory
State of Electrical Systems in RMGF
State of Electrical Systems in RMGF
State of Electrical Systems in RMGF
State of Electrical Systems in RMGF
State of Electrical Systems in RMGF
Loose and
messy cabling
CB without
enclosure
Wooden board
State of Electrical Systems in RMGF
Design to Prevent Fault
Shield wire or Earth wire for lightning strike protection
Design to Prevent Fault
• Tower footing resistance (TFR) is the
resistance from the tower top to the
ground offered by metal parts of
tower + ground resistance
Design to Prevent Fault
• What happens when lightning strikes a tower?
– A traveling voltage is generated which travels back and forth along tower
– The wave is reflected at tower footing and at tower top
– This raises voltage at cross-arms and stresses insulators
• Insulator will flashover if this transient voltage exceeds its withstand level (back
flash-over)
• Back flash-over voltage generated by multiple reflections along the struck tower
and also along shield wire at adjacent towers
Design to Prevent Fault
• Different methods to reduce number of flashovers on lines
▪ Improve critical flashover of insulators
▪ Reduce tower footing resistance
▪ Installing shield wire for lines without shield wire
▪ Installing lightning arresters
Design to Prevent Fault
• Effect of high TFR
– If a lightning hits earth wire and travels through tower to earth, voltage developed at cross arm
of tower (which is normally at zero potential) could become very high
– This produce a back flash-over thus transferring surge that should have been discharged to
ground, to phase conductors
– The surge travels on either side of tower towards power transformers, circuit breakers, switches,
bus bars etc.
– The very purpose of using earth wire on top to shield phase conductors is lost if tower footing
resistance is not kept low
Design to Prevent Fault
• Tower top potential depends on TFR
• Low TFR results in less voltage stresses across line insulation
• A TFR of 20 Ω for extra high voltage (EHV) lines and 10 Ω for HV lines provides sufficient lightning
protection
• TFR depends on type of electrode configuration employed and soil resistivity
Design to Prevent Fault
Mechanical strength
• 230 kV transmission
tower collapses at
Bhairab, Kishoreganj on
1 May 2017
• Shutdown of 25 power
plants, 540 MW power
import from India
disrupted
• 37 districts including
effected
• 30% consumers without
electricity for 5 hours
