Generator Circuit-Breaker Systems

HECS, HEC 7/8

Data and Dimensions

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Contents

Application 3 Surge arrester 10

Characteristics 3 Surge capacitor 10
Standards and quality 3 Terminals 11
Modular design concept 4 Phase enclosure 11
Equipment options 5 Control and supervision 11
Generator circuit-breaker 5 Tests 12
Disconnector 8 Transport to site 12
Earthing switch 9 Site erection and commissioning 12
Starting switch 9 Maintenance and overhaul 12
Short-circuiting connection 9 Dimensions 13
Current transformer 10 Technical data 14
Voltage transformer 10

Application

The Generator Circuit-Breaker System type HECS and Systems are also suitable for retrofitting in existing
HEC 7/8 has been developed as a system suitable for power plants, when these are modernised, extended
application in all types of power plants. and/or automated. It is available for both indoor and
The HECS and HEC 7/8 Generator Circuit-Breaker outdoor application.

Characteristics

• 3-phase system with a SF6 circuit-breaker and dis- circuiting bar) can be used as a short-circuiting link
connector in series with the circuit-breaker, in sin- during power plant protection setting, whereas the
gle-phase enclosures, supplied fully assembled on a HEC 7/8 for this purpose can be equipped with a
common frame, with operating mechanisms, super- short circuiting connection which is either manually
visory and control equipment. mounted or motor operated.
• Additional components as earthing switches, start- • The phase distance can be selected to suit the bus-
ing switch (for starting of gas-turbines), current- and bar spacing in the power plant.
voltage transformers, surge capacitors, surge arrester,
all integrated and mounted in the phase enclosures,
can be provided. Additionally the earthing switch
on the breaker side of the HECS Generator Circuit-
Breaker System (if equipped with an optional short-

Standards and quality

The Generator Circuit-Breaker System type HECS and ABB High Voltage Products is continuously endeav-
HEC 7/8 fulfil the requirements of all relevant stand- oured to improve its quality-assurance-system; this has
ards, i.e. IEEE (ANSI) Std C37.013 and IEC 60694, IEC been recently new assessed by The Swiss Association
62271-102, IEC 60044-1/2, IEC 60099-4, IEC 60358, IEC for Quality and Management Systems with the SQS-
60529, IEC 61166. certificate ISO 9001 / ISO 14001.

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Modular design concept

The standard design includes: As required by the plant layout, individual compo-
nents can be deleted from the standard execution.
• SF6 circuit-breaker and disconnector
The standard execution can be extended by the fol-
• Earthing switches on one or both sides (for HECS: lowing optional items:
on breaker side also optional available with short-
• For HECS: Short-circuiting connection - either in
circuit bar to be used as short-circuiting link)
connection with generator side earthing switch, or
• Current transformers on one or both sides with up to be manually mounted (for power plant protection
to three cores per current transformer (depending setting)
on the class)
• For HEC 7/8: Short-circuiting connection - either
• Voltage transformers on one or both sides with one permanently fitted with switch, or to be manually
or two secondary windings mounted (for power plant protection setting)
• Starting switch for (reduced voltage) starting the gas • Surge arrester on transformer side.
turboset via SFC (Static Frequency Converter)
• Surge capacitors on both sides.

View into one pole of circuit-breaker type HECS-130L

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Equipment options

1 Generator circuit-breaker 6 Surge capacitor

2 Line disconnect switch 7 Current transformers
3 Earthing switch 8 Voltage transformers
4 Starting switch for SFC connection 9 Surge arrester
5 Manual short-circuiting connection (by removal of 10 Motor-operated short circuiting link (only HECS
cover) with generator side earthing switch)

Generator circuit-breaker
Interrupting chamber

Within the interrupting chamber SF6-gas is used for

both arc extinguishing and internal insulation. The
external insulation is air.
For the interruption a combination of the self-extin-
guishing and the puffer principle is used, a design
optimised to achieve a significant reduction in operat-
ing energy.
This self-pressurising principle allows high breaking
capacities as well as almost overvoltage-free interrup-
tion of small (inductive) currents.
Separate contact systems for breaking and for continu-
ous current carrying are used. This avoids wear / ero-
sion of the continuous current contacts and ensures
trouble-free current carrying even after a large number
of operations.
Interrupting chamber of the circuit-breaker type HECS-100L. On the
left the terminal is visible. The circuit-breaker contacts are operated
by a shaft passing from below, through the vertical support insulator.

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Mode of operation of the interrupting chamber of the HECS circuit-breaker systems

7 a Circuit-breaker “CLOSED”

2 b Initiation of opening movement, (transfer of current from the

main contacts to the arcing contacts)
3
4 c Separation of arcing contacts with interruption of small cur-
a b rents supported by puffer action
9 6 5 d Separation of arcing contacts with interruption of large cur-
1 rents – supported by the thermal effect of the current arc
2 itself to build up the pressure in the heating volume
3 e Circuit-breaker “OPEN”
9
c d
7 6 5 4 8 1 Terminals 6 Moving main contact

2 Cylindrical coil 7 Puffer

3 Fixed arcing contact 8 Heating volume

4 Moving arcing contact 9 Gas compartment

e
5 Fixed main contacts

Hydraulic spring drive

The hydraulic spring operating mechanism combines The operating mechanism is based on the so-called
the advantages of a hydraulic operating mechanism differential piston principle (between the larger pis-
with those of a spring energy storage system. Energy ton head side area and the smaller piston rod side
storage is accomplished with the aid of a disk spring area). For the closing operation the piston head side
assembly, with the advantages of high long-term sta- is isolated from the low pressure and simultaneously
bility, reliability and non-influence of temperature connected to the high pressure oil volume. As long as
changes. Tripping of the operating mechanism and the pressure is maintained, the piston remains in the
energy output are based on proven design elements “CLOSED” position. A pressure controlled mechani-
of the hydraulic operating technique, such as control cal interlock prevents movement of the piston to the
valves and hydraulic cylinders. “OPEN” position in case of a pressure drop.

1 1

O I

M M

2 2

High pressure 1 Breaker operating rod

Low pressure 2 Energy storage device
Schematic diagram of the hydraulic spring operating mechanism View of the hydraulic spring operating mechanism

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 For the opening operation, the piston head side is iso- A non-return valve between pump and high-pres-
lated from the high pressure and simultaneously con- sure oil volume prevents pressure loss in the event
nected to the low pressure oil volume. of a pump outage. The hydraulic system is hermeti-
cally sealed against atmosphere (no corrosion). The
The charging state of the spring disk assembly is con-
mechanically operated position indicator provides reli-
trolled by switching elements, actuating the pump
able indication of the circuit-breaker position.
motor to immediately maintain the oil pressure. For
emergency use or maintenance, charging of the spring The drive operates all three breaker poles simulta-
disk assembly and tripping is possible locally. The neously by mechanical linkages, thus keeping the
fully integrated construction has no hydraulic pipe switching time difference between the poles to a mini-
connections of any kind. mum.

SF6-gas density monitoring system

The breaking capacity of an SF6 circuit-breaker and the The functional principle of the density monitor is
dielectric withstand level across its open contacts is shown in below diagram. The density monitor oper-
dependent upon the density of the SF6-gas. Under the ates according to the reference-volume-density princi-
condition of constant volume the gas density is inde- ple. The density of the gas in the circuit-breaker cham-
pendent of the gas temperature, while the pressure ber is compared with the density of the gas in a sealed
varies with the temperature. It is therefore more practi- reference gas volume. When the gas density drops
cal to measure and use the gas density rather than the below the specified value, the density monitor signals
pressure for circuit-breaker supervisory purposes. the loss of SF6-gas in several steps.
It is mounted on the crankcase of the middle pole.
Since the gas volumes of the three breaker poles are
connected via the refilling pipe only one SF6-gas den-
sity monitor per breaker is required to supervise the
gas density.

5
SF6-gas density indication and filling connection

900 3
850
900 4
800
850
750 3
800
700
p [kPa]

750 2
650
700
p [kPa]

600 1
650
550 Schematic diagram of the SF6-gas density monitor
600
500 1 Pressure connection 4 Reference gas volume
550 2 SF6-gas volume of the 5 Actuating rod
450
500 circuit-breaker 6 Microswitch
400 3 Metallic bellows
450 -40 -30 -20 -10 0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100
400 t [°C]
-40 -30 -20 -10 0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100
P/t-diagram for SF6-gas, with operating characteristics of the gas
density monitor for the SF6 tcircuit-breaker
[°C]

Rated filling density 40.7 kg/m3

Alarm density 36.1 kg/m3
Blocking density 34.7 kg/m3

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Disconnector

The switchgear concept provides a disconnector fitted In the open position of the disconnector the isolating
in series with the circuit-breaker. It is placed on the air distance can be clearly seen through an inspection
out-going side of circuit-breaker and within the same window in the side wall (HECS) or in the cover (HEC
enclosure. 7/8) of the enclosure. The moving contact is motor
The disconnector is a tubular telescopic unit, with the driven.
moving contact on the terminal side and fixed contact
tube on the circuit-breaker side. This layout provides
easy access and simplifies maintenance.

View through the inspection window of HECS to assure that the disconnect switch is in the open position.

The operating mechanism is a compact subassembly, operation while the disconnector is being manually
including the motor, auxilary switch, reduction gear operated. Mechanically driven position indicator is
box and coupling flanges in one unit. provided in a readily visible position and a crank han-
Key locking in the positions “CLOSE” and “OPEN” is a dle is provided for manual operation.
standard facility. An additional locking prevents motor

The operating mechanisms, as for disconnector, earthing switch, The sticker shows the different operation modes of the key locking
starting switch are shown, the operating mechanisms for disconnec- scheme of the individual motor operating mechanisms, which all of
tor and all switches are identical and integrated in the pole frame. them operate in the same way.
They incorporate a driving motor and gearing, a mechanical sema-
phore, key locking and an electrical auxilary switch.

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Earthing switch

The earthing switch can be provided on either one or both

sides of the system. The switch and its connections are
designed for protective earthing purposes, i.e. it is rated for
the full fault current but has no current making or continu-
ous carrying capacity.
Design is of a blade type with the hinge point connected
to the enclosure and the fixed contact to the current path.
The earthing connection is made via the system enclosure,
which is earthed at one end to the busbar enclosure. The
moving contact is motor driven.

Starting switch

The starting switch can be provided on the generator side

of the system. The starting switch and its connections have
been designed for the voltage, current and current-duration
occurring during the SFC (Static Frequency Converter) start-
up period of the gas turboset. The design is of a blade type Breaker type HECS
with the fixed contacts at the current path and the hinge Earthing switch in closed position.
point isolated from the enclosure. High voltage cables can
be connected to this. The moving contact is motor driven.

Short-circuiting connection

For the HEC 7/8 there is either a manual short circuiting from the enclosure (2000 V), and is protected against
connection or an electrical operated short-circuiting switch inadvertently touching.
available. The moving contact is motor driven. As an additional fea-
The manual short-circuiting connection can be provided ture, a link can be provided with which the short-circuit
for the use between the circuit-breaker and the disconnec- connection can be connected to the phase enclosure i.e.,
tor of the system. This arrangement has been designed for to earth. This link can only be fitted manually.
installations where the short-circuiting facility is only rarely
used. The short-circuiting connection is built for the volt- For the HECS there is also a manual short circuiting con-
age, current and current duration occurring during the test- nection available which needs to be connected between
ing and adjustment of the power plant protection system. the circuit breaker and the disconnector. The cover of
The cover of each of the phase enclosures has to be each of the phase enclosures has to be removed to allow
removed to allow the fitting of the short-circuiting busbar. the fitting of the short-circuiting busbar.

The short-circuiting switch can be provided between the Alternatively there is a motor operated short-circuiting
circuit-breaker and the disconnector of the system. The connection available for the HECS. If a motor operated
short-circuiting switch and its connection between phases short-circuit connection is required, the three poles of the
have been developed to expedite the testing and adjust- earthing switch on the breaker side are linked together to
ment of the power plant protection system. Closure of the a common bar, which is connected by a copper bracket
switch establishes an unearthed three phase short-circuit, to the enclosure of the middle phase and thereby ground-
which then can be switched to the generator terminals by ed. By removing this bracket (to be done manually) and
closure of the circuit-breaker. closing of the earthing switch an unearthed three phase
The design of the switch is of a sliding type with the mov- short-circuit is established. The closing of the earthing
ing contact isolated from the enclosure and the fixed con- switch can be done motor operated (local/remote switch
tact connected to the current path. in position local) while the generator is de-excited and the
The actual short-circuiting connection between the phases residual voltage of the generator does not exceed 350 V.
is established external to the enclosure and being insulated

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Current transformer
A ring core current transformer can be provided
on either one or both sides of the breaker system.
Depending on the class up to three cores per current
transformer can be accommodated, depending on
output and class required. The secondary windings
are permanently wired back to terminal blocks in the
control cubicle.

Ring core current transformers with up to 3 cores per transformer can

be mounted at each end of each phase enclosure.
Voltage transformer
Single-phase, cast resin voltage transformers can be
provided on either one or both sides of the breaker
system. Up to three voltage transformers or two volt-
age transformers and one surge arrester can be fitted
at each side and each voltage transformer can be sup-
plied with one or two secondary windings, depending
on the class and output power required. The second-
ary windings are permanently wired back to terminal
blocks in the control cubicle.

The voltage transformers are fitted on the side panel of the phase
enclosure.
Surge arrester
A surge arrester can be fitted on the transformer side, to
provide protection for transformer and generator against
overvoltages. Standard is an ABB metal-oxide surge arres-
ter of the POLIM range with silicon housing. Metal-oxide
resistors have a highly non-linear resistance characteristic.
At service voltage a predominantly capacitive current
of < 1mA flows. Any voltage increase leads to a rapid
increase of the current, thereby limiting any further rise
in the voltage. When the voltage decreases, the condition
reverts to its essential non-conducting state. Metal-oxide
surge arresters are characterised by the residual voltage,
i.e. the voltage during the passage of an impulse current.
The surge arrester is fitted on the side panel of the phase enclosure.

Surge capacitor
Surge capacitors are fitted on both sides of the breaker
system, to provide additional protection against over-
voltages and to support arc extinction in the circuit-
breaker by TRV limitation.
The surge capacitors are fitted outside the phase
enclosure with only the porcelain bushings protruding
into the phase enclosure.

Surge capacitor are installed in such a manner that only their porce-
lain bushings protrude into the phase enclosure.

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Terminals

The current path of the system is connected to the traction of the flexible connectors and the subsequent
busbar current path by bolted flexible, laminated or tensile forces on switchgear components, under short-
stranded connectors. circuit current conditions.
In order to avoid detrimental tensile stresses to the
terminals, resulting from electro-dynamic forces of a Note: The flexible connectors are not part of the scope of supply
short-circuit current, the flexible connectors must be of the GCB system, usually they are supplied by the IPB supplier.
supported at the midpoint by a ring having the same
diameter as the terminals. These rings reduce the con-

Phase enclosure

The phase enclosures are designed to carry the induced

reverse current, flowing through the isolated phase bus-
bar enclosures. Thus the external magnetic field and its
influence to the equipment is minimised. As standard, the
phase enclosure is welded onto the busbar enclosure,
ensuring continuity of the phase enclosure characteristics.
On the other hand, the phase enclosures effectively elimi-
nate any possibilty of accidental contact with live compo-
nents. In order to avoid pollution due to ingress of dust
and/or moisture, the phase enclosures are made airtight to Phase enclosures and control cubicle of GCB system type HECS-130L
withstand also a small internal overpressure. Windows are
provided in the phase enclosures near to the disconnec-
tor, earthing switches and starting switch, to allow visually
checking of the position of each of them.

Control and supervision Phase enclosures and control cubicle of GCB system type HEC 7/8

All control and supervisory apparatuses are mounted

in the control cubicle. The control cubicle is placed on
the operating mechanism side of the system above the
operating mechanism of the circuit-breaker and is not
mechanically connected with the common frame of
the breaker system.
An active mimic diagram is provided with the actual
position indications and the integrated local control of
the circuit-breaker and all other switching apparatuses.
It is mounted in the door panel behind the glass door
of the control cubicle.
In the control cubicle there are also installed a local/
remote change-over switch and counters for C-O oper-
ations of the circuit-breaker and pump startings of the
circuit-breaker drive.

Mimic board of the control cubicle

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Tests
Type tests Routine tests

The performance of the generator circuit-breaker sys- After production, but prior to dispatch, the system is
tem was fully tested by the High Power Laboratory of subject to an extensive test program, as:
KEMA/Netherlands in accordance to the standard IEEE
• Design and visual checks
C37.013 with regard to the interrupting capability.
• Dielectric tests on the main circuit
Further type tests were carried out with all of the
related components within the system to prove con- • Dielectric tests on auxiliary and control circuits
tinuous current capability, dielectric strength, long • Measurements of the resistance of the main circuit
term endurance, noise level etc. and verify the liability
and compliance with the requirements of the relevant • Mechanical operation tests
IEC-standards. • Timing tests and recording the switching times and
movement of breaker contacts
• Functional tests of individual components
• Leakage test of phase enclosures
• SF6-gas leakage test.

Transport to site

The entire system is fully assembled and tested togeth- It is hence dispatched from the factory and transported
er with all its ancillary equipment in the factory. to site as a single unit.

Note: Exception - control cubicle according to ANSI standard.

Site erection and commissioning

Site erection requires a well prepared foundation. The only substantial site work is the welding of the
Due to the fact, that the system is delivered as a sin- enclosures onto the busbar enclosures, the mounting
gle, fully assembled, wired and tested unit, the time, of the flexible high-current connections, the connect-
required for erection, testing and commissioning is ing of the electrical supply cables and the performing
extremely short. of the commissioning tests.

Maintenance and overhaul

The HECS and HEC 7/8 generator circuit-breaker sys- The contact erosion can be measured without open-
tems are maintenance-free to a wide extend. ing the interrupting chamber with the DRM-methode
Overhaul can be scheduled based on service time, (Dynamic Resistance Measurement), which has been
number of C/O-operations or number of current inter- specifically developed for generator circuit-breakers by
ruptions. Removal of the phase enclosure top covers ABB High Voltage Products. This allows to optimise
provides easy access to the active components of each the service intervals also for frequent switching of
phase, including the instrument transformers, surge higher service currents. The DRM-Measurement system
capacitors and surge arrester. can be ordered separately.

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Dimensions
Type HECS

Type HEC 7/8

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Technical data

Generator circuit-breaker system type HECS-80 HECS-100 HECS-130

General:
Rated maximum voltage kV 23 25.3 25.3
Rated frequency Hz 50/60 50/60 50/60
Rated continuous current 50 Hz S A rms 8500
Rated continuous current 50 Hz M A rms 10500 10500
Rated continuous current 50 Hz L A rms 13000 13000
Rated continuous current 50 Hz XL* A rms 18000 18000
Rated continuous current 60 Hz S A rms 8000
Rated continuous current 60 Hz M A rms 10000 10000
Rated continuous current 60 Hz L A rms 12000 12000
Rated continuous current 60 Hz XL* A rms 17000 17000
Rated insulation level:
Rated power frequency withstand voltage
to earth and across circuit-breaker/switch contacts kV rms 60 60 60
across isolating distance of disconnector kV rms 70 70 70
Rated lightning impulse withstand voltage
to earth and across circuit-breaker/switch contacts *) kV peak 125 125 125
across isolating distance of disconnector kV peak 145 145 145
Circuit-breaker:
Rated peak withstand current kA peak 220 280 360
Rated short-time withstand current kA, 3 s 80 100 130
Rated short-circuit making current kA peak 220 280 360
Rated short-circuit breaking current kA rms 80 100 130
Rated operating sequence CO-30min-CO
Rated interrupting time ms 67 67 67
Disconnector:
Rated peak withstand current kA peak 220 280 360
Rated short-time withstand current kA, 3 s 80 100 130
Operating time s 2 2 2
Earthing Switch:
Rated peak withstand current kA peak 220 280 360
Rated short-time withstand current kA, 1 s 80 100 130
Operating time s 2 2 2
The above data are not limiting values. Additional data on request. We reserve the right to alter data and technical details without notice.

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 Generator circuit-breaker system type HEC 7 HEC 8

General:
Rated maximum voltage kV rms 30 30
Rated frequency Hz 50/60 50/60
Rated continuous current kA 24/22 28/26
Rated insulation level:
Rated power frequency withstand voltage
to earth and across circuit-breaker/switch contacts kV rms 80 80
across isolating distance of disconnector kV rms 88 88
Rated lightning impulse withstand voltage
to earth and across circuit-breaker/switch contacts kV peak 150 150
across isolating distance of disconnector kV peak 165 165
Circuit-breaker:
Rated peak withstand current kA peak 600 600
Rated short-time withstand current kA, 1 s 220 220
Rated short-circuit making current kA peak 440 440
Rated short-circuit breaking current kA rms 160*) 160*)
Rated operating sequence CO-30min-CO
Rated interrupting time ms 56 56
Disconnector:
Rated peak withstand current kA peak 600 600
Rated short-time withstand current kA, 1 s 220 220
Operating time s 2 2
Earthing Switch:
Rated peak withstand current kA peak 440 440
Rated short-time withstand current kA, 1 s 160 160
Operating time s 2 2

*) higher ratings on request

The above data are not limiting values. Additional data on request. We reserve the right to alter data and technical details without notice.

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ABB Switzerland Ltd
1HC0023255 E01 / AC05

High Voltage Products

Brown Boveri Strasse 5
CH-8050 Zurich / Switzerland
Phone: +41 58 58 83424
Fax: +41 58 58 81644

www.abb.com