Name: Shoaib Ahmed

Week-06
POWER SYSTEM PROTECTION

Shoaib Ahmed Shaikh

Lecturer (EE)
Sukkur IBA University
Transformer:
 Relays and types
 CT and PT
 Primary and Back-up Protection
 Overcurrent Protection
 Instantaneous OC Protection Scheme
 Definite Minimum Time OC Protection scheme
 Inverse-definite Minimum Time OC Protection scheme
 Directional OC Protection Scheme
 Differential Protection (Week-06)
Transformer:
 A transformer is a device that changes ac electric power at one
frequency and voltage level to ac electric power at the same frequency
and another voltage level through the action of a magnetic field. It
consists of two or more coils of wire wrapped around a common
ferromagnetic core. These coils are (usually) not directly connected. The
only connection between the coils is the common magnetic flux present
within the core.
 It works on the principle of “mutual induction”.
 One of the transformer windings is connected to a source of ac electric
power, and the second (and perhaps third) transformer winding supplies
electric power to loads. The transformer winding connected to the power
source is called the primary winding or input winding, and the winding
connected to the loads is called the secondary winding or output
winding. If there is a third winding on the transformer, it is called the
tertiary winding.
 Importance:

 The first power distribution system in the United States was a 120-V dc
system invented by Thomas A. Edison to supply power for incandescent
light bulbs.
 Unfortunately, his power system generated and transmitted power at
such low voltages that very large currents were necessary to supply
significant amounts of power.
 These high currents caused huge voltage drops and power losses in the
transmission lines, severely restricting the service area of a generating
station.
 Another drawback was that this dc voltage was inadequate to transmit
over long distance.
 The invention of the transformer and the simultaneous
development of ac power sources eliminated forever these
restrictions on the range and power level of power systems.
 A transformer ideally changes one ac voltage level to
another voltage level without affecting the actual power
supplied. If a transformer steps up the voltage level of a
circuit, it must decrease the current to keep the power into
the device equal to the power out of it.
 Therefore ac electric power can be generated at one central
location, its voltage stepped up for transmission over long
distances at very low losses, and its voltage stepped down
again for final use.
 In a modern power system, electric power is generated at
voltages of 12 to 25 kV. Transformers step up the voltage to
between 110 kV and nearly 1000 kV for transmission over
long distances at very low losses. Transformers then step
down the voltage to the 12- to 34.5-kV range for local
distribution and finally permit the power to be used safely in
homes, offices, and factories at voltages as low as 120
V,220.
Why we always use HV in
transmission line?
 Increase efficiency
 Decrease voltage drop
 Decrease cost
Classification:

 Transformers are classified according to:

o Cooling
o Construction
o Phase
o Capacity or applications
 Core type
 Power transformers are
constructed on one of two types
of cores. One type of
construction consists of a simple
rectangular laminated piece of
steel with the transformer
windings wrapped around two
sides of the rectangle. This type
of construction is known as core
form and is il1ustrated in Figure
2- 2.
 Shell Type:
 The other type consists of a
three-legged laminated core
with the windings wrapped
around the center leg. This type
of construction is known as shell
form and is illustrated in Figure
2-3.
 Power transformers are given a variety of different names, depending
on their use in power systems. A transformer connected to the
output of a generator and used to step its voltage up to transmission
levels (110+ kV) is sometimes cal1ed a unit transformer.
 The transformer at the other end of the transmission line, which
steps the voltage down from transmission levels to distribution levels
(from 2.3 to 34.5 kV), is called a substation transformer.
 Finally, the transformer that takes the distribution voltage and steps
it down to the final voltage at which the power is actually used (110,
208, 220 V, etc.) is called a distribution transformer.
 All these devices are essentially the same- the only difference among
them is their intended use.
 In addition to the various power transformers, two special-purpose
transformers are used for measuring and protecting are; Potential
Transformer and Current transformer.
Transformer
Protection
Transformers come in all shapes and sizes. However, we
restrict ourselves here, to protection of power and distribution
transformers.
A transformer will be provided with as much protection as is
corresponding with its voltage and power rating and the
importance of its application.
Only MVA of a transformer is an imperfect guide to the
appropriate level of transformer protection, but it may be noted
that fuses are probably the predominant choice for transformers
below 10 MVA.
A 250 MVA, 15 kV/400 kV generator-transformer in a large
thermal power station, on the other hand, may be provided with
Transformer Protection

 Following factor must be taken into consideration in

transformer protection designing:
 Transformer size:
• Transformers with a capacity less than 2500kva are usually
protected by fuses. For example, over-current protection in
the form of fuses may be the only protection provided to a
small 100 kVA, 11 kV/440 V distribution transformer.
• Fuses are economical, require little maintenance, and do not
need an external power source to clear a fault, which is of
great cost and maintenance benefit.
• With ratings b/w 2500 and 5000 kVA ,the
transformer may be protected with fuses, but
instantaneous and time delay overcurrent relays may
be more desirable from the stand point of sensitivity
and coordination with protective relays on the high
and low sides of transformer.
• Between 5000 and 10000 kVA , an induction disc
overcurrent relay connected in a differential
configuration is usually applied.
• Above10MVA ,a harmonic restraint, percentage
differential relay is recommended. Pressure and
Temperature relays are also usually applied with this
size of transformer.
Possible Transformer Faults
Transformers are subject to a variety of faults. The various
possible transformer faults are:
1. Overheating 2. Winding faults
3. Over fluxing 4. Other faults

Overheating
The overheating of the transformer is basically because of
sustained overloads and short circuits.
The acceptable overload and the corresponding duration is
dependent on the type of transformer and class of insulation used
for the transformer.
The overloading which continues for longer time is
dangerous as it causes overheating of the transformer.
 Similarly the failure of the cooling system, though rare,
is another possible cause of overheating.
Generally the thermal overload relays and temperature
relays with alarm are used to provide protection against
overheating. If the corrective action is not taken within
certain period of time (like starting of fans) then the
circuit breaker trips.
Winding Faults
The winding faults are called internal faults. These are:
i) Phase to phase faults ii) Earth faults iii) Inter-turn
faults
The overheating or mechanical stress causes to weaken
the winding insulation. If winding insulation is weak,
there’s a possibility of short circuit between the phases or
between phase & ground. Also short circuit between
adjacent turns of the same phase winding is possible.
When such an internal fault occurs, the transformer
must be quickly disconnected from the system. If such a
The differential protection is very commonly used to
provide protection against such faults. Since the terminals
of transformer are physically close to each other, it is an
ideal candidate for application of the principle of
differential protection.
But this protection is not economical for transformers
below 5 MVA for which over current protection is used.
For high capacity transformers, in addition to main
differential protection, the over current protection is also
provided as a backup protection.
Over Fluxing
The flux and applied voltage in a transformer are related
through the following expression
V = 4.44 φmf N
Where,
V is the r.m.s value of the voltage
f is the frequency
N is the number of turns in the winding.
Thus, we can write the flux as
Whenever there is an over-voltage (frequency remaining
constant), the transformer core is subjected to a higher
value of flux in order to be able to support the higher
applied voltage.
By design, power transformers operate at the knee of
saturation curve at normal voltage. Hence, any increase in
applied voltage, and consequent increase in flux density,
drives the transformer deeper into saturation.
The transformer, therefore, draws an excessive
magnetization current. Hence, this condition is also
described as over excitation.
This, considerably increases the core losses giving rise
Such an operating condition cannot be allowed to
continue for long and the transformer should be
disconnected if there is a prolonged or lengthy over-
excitation.
Therefore, to keep the working flux within permissible
design limits, the V/f ratio must not exceed permissible
limit.
Thus over-excitation can be detected by measuring the
V/f ratio by a so-called volts/hertz relay (device no. 24).
The SIEMENS SIPROTEC 7UT613 , 7UT633 and 7UM62
are examples of V/Hz relay where a definite-time alarm
stage and an instantaneous stage can be used.
Incipient Faults in Transformers
Faults which are not significant in the
beginning but which slowly develop into serious
faults are known as incipient faults.
Buchholz relay provides protection against
such incipient faults. A Buchholz relay is a
standard protection fitted to all oil-immersed
transformers which detects all insulation
breakdowns inside the transformer tank causing
either the formation of gas or surges of oil flow
from the tank to the expansion vessel.
This applies to all phase and ground faults on
the windings and to inter-turn faults. The relay
also detects loss of oil caused by leaks.
Figure shows
the position of
the Buchholz
relay with
respect to the
transformer tank
and the
conservator.
The conceptual diagram of the inner working of
the Buchholz relay is shown in Figure.
When an incipient fault such as a winding-to-
core fault or an inter-turn fault occurs on the
transformer winding, there is severe heating of
the oil. This causes gases to be liberated from
the oil. is a build-up
There
of oil pressure
causing oil to rush
into the
conservator.
A vane is placed in the path of surge of oil
between the transformer and the conservator.
A set of contacts, operated by this vane, is used
as trip contacts of the Buchholz relay . This
output of Buchholz relay may be used to trip the
transformer.
The Buchholz relay also has another set of
contacts operated by a float. These contacts stay
open when the transformer tank is filled with oil.
However, in case of leakage of oil or
decomposition of oil, the float sinks causing the
Loss of oil will no doubt cause
the transformer temperature to
rise but does not require
immediate tripping. Hence,
normally these contacts are
wired to an alarm which alerts
the operator.
Differential Protection for
Transformers
The differential protection or Merz-Price protection
based on the circulating current principle gives protection
against phase to phase faults and phase to ground faults
to the power transformers.
The principle of such a protection scheme is the
comparison of the currents entering and leaving a
transformer.

The vector difference of currents (I1 - I2) passes through

the operating coil while the average current (I1 + I2)/2
In normal conditions, the two currents at the two ends
of the transformer are equal and balance is maintained.
So, the relay is inoperative.
But when there is phase to phase fault or phase to
ground fault, this balance gets disturbed. The difference
current flows through the operating coil due to which
relay operates, tripping the circuit breaker.
Compared to the differential protection used in
generators, there are certain important points which
must be taken care of while using such protection for
the power transformers. These points are:

1. In a power transformer, the voltage rating of the

two windings is different. The high voltage winding is
low current winding while low voltage winding is high
current winding. Thus there always exists difference
in current on the primary and secondary sides of the
power transformer. Hence if C.T.s of same ratio are
used on two sides, then relay may get operated
To compensate for this difficulty, the current ratios of
C.T.s on each side are different. Due to the different
turns ratio, the currents fed into the pilot wires from
each end are same under normal conditions so that the
relay remains inoperative.
For example if K is the turns ratio of a power
transformer then the ratio of C.T.s on low voltage side is
made K times greater than that of C.T.s on high voltage
side.

2. In case of power transformers, there exists a phase

difference between the line currents on primary and
secondary sides of a power transformer (eg. ∆Y
This introduces the phase difference between C.T.
secondary currents, on the two sides of transformer.
Though the turns ratio of C.T.s are selected to
compensate for turns ratio of transformer, a differential
current may result due to the phase difference between
the currents on two sides.
Such a differential current may operate the relay
though there is no fault. Hence it is necessary to correct
the phase difference.
 To compensate for this, the C.T. connections should be
such that the resultant currents fed into the pilot wires
from either sides are displaced in phase by an angle
To achieve this, secondary of C.T.s on star connected
side of a power transformer are connected in delta while
the secondary of C.T.s on delta connected side of a
power transformer are connected in star.
3. The neutrals of C.T. star and power transformer
stars are grounded.
4. Many transformers have tap changing arrangement
due to which there is a possibility of flow of differential
current.
For this, the turns ratio of C.T.s on both sides of the
power transformer are provided with tap for C.T.s for
their adjustment.
It is important to note that this scheme also gives
protection against short circuit faults between the turns
i.e. inter-turn faults. This is because when there is an
inter-turn fault, the turns ratio of power transformer
Due to this the currents on both sides of the power transformer
become unbalanced. This causes an enough differential current
which flows through the relay and the relay operates.

An Illustrative Numerical Problem

For a 45 MVA, 11 kV/66 kV star-delta transformer, design the
percentage differential scheme.
Thank you