|BEE TRANSACTIONS ON INDUSTRY APPLICATIONS, VOL. 38, NO. 6, NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2002 16 System Grounding and Ground-Fault Protection in the Petrochemical Industry: A Need for a Better Understanding John P. Nelson, Fellow, IEEE Absiract—This paper provides an in-depth discussion of system rounding and ground fault protection on systems from 480 V 8nd above. The paper also discusses modeling of ground faults, the proper design for ground-fault protection, and. common problems associated with ground-falt protection. The paper will ‘ddress many realife problems associated with system grounding and ground-fault protection, including safety issues and how to avoid those problems. The topics to be included in the paper Include tow-voltage systems, under 600 V, through high-voltage transmission systems. Index Terms—Groundl-fuult_ protection, — high-resistance rounding, impedance grounded, solidly grounded, system rounding. 1 Istropucrion ‘OST electrical faults in the petrochemical industry, es- timated to be over 90%, are, or begin as, ground faults. (Many ofthese faults involve high impedances which allows the fault to exist longer than desired before being removed by stan- dard circuit breakers). Unfortunately, few engineers and practi- cally no plant operators totally understand ground faults and the means to protect against them. System grounding and ground fault protection in the petrochemical industry are important fac- tors in the design, construction, and operation of a petrochem- ical facility. The safety of plant personnel and the reliability of the equipment are highly dependent on the type of system ‘grounding selected and the type of ground-fault protection se- lected. ‘The basic types of system grounding include the following: + ungrounded; + solidly grounded; + impedance grounded. ‘The basic types of ground-fault protection include: * tipping: + alarming and tripping, Paper PID €2-17, presented atthe 2001 IEEE Petroleum and Chemical In sty Technical Conference, Troato, ON, Canada, Sepuneber 4-26, and ap. proved for publication inthe EEE TRANSACTIONS ON INDUSTRY APPLICATIONS by the Petroleum and Chemical Industry Comumitee ofthe IBEE Industy Ap plications Society. Manuscript submited for review September 1S, 2001 and Felted for polcation August 6, 2002. ‘The author is wih NEI Electric Power Engincering, Inc, Arvada, CO 80001 USA (e-mail jnlson@ niengineering com. Digial Object denier 10.1 109/T1A.2002.804758 = N@OO WI tp] tc] ® IysiIg=igt pte > ig. 1. Three CTs and residual circuit I. GROUND-FAULT MODELING Ground-fault modeling is important in analyzing the effects cof various types of grounding inthe petrochemical facilites and in predicting the effect of ground faults onthe system. Probably the most commonly used model involves the use of symmetrical ‘components (1] and, in particular, the use of the ero-sequence circuit. Historically, the use of zefo-sequence current vector Iy and zero-sequence voltage vector Vo have been used with pro- tective relays for ground-fault protection. Part of the eason for the long-time use ofthese components has been due to the fact thatthe zero-sequence values are directly proportional to the sum of the three phase currents and voltages as shown in (1) and (2) (To + Ty +1) w Vo =4(V.+Ve+Ve) ® where 1 zero-sequence curent vector; Vo zero-sequence voltage vector Th Ie three phase current vectors; Va, Vo, Ve three phase voltage vectors. ‘The zero-sequence current component of the current can be found by summing the three currents from a current transformer as shown in Fig. 1. Note thatthe neutral connection of the three currents transformers, often referred to as the residual circuit, is equal to 31g, ‘The zero-sequence voltage component can be similarly found. by summing the three voltages in a circuit called a broken delta 0093-999402817.00 © 2002 IEEEaT ta ta 3V9= Var VRt Vo Fig.2, Thre PTS in broken deta 4s shown in Fig, 2. Note that 3Vo exists across the portion of the three voltage transformers which has been left open. Ground faults also create values inthe positive- and negative- sequence circuits which have historically been of less value to ‘the protection engineer than zero sequence. The reason is that ‘the positive- and negative-sequence circuits required complex positive- or negative-sequence filtering in order to develop those ‘sequence components. As can be seen in (3)-(6), the equations, are more complex positive sequence (1, 40+, +8? 61) ® (Va tas Veta? o Ve) (I, +a? +I, +a+I.) 6) (Va +0? ¥Vs +a¥Ve) © where Ty, _ positive: and negative-sequence currents, respec tively; ‘Vi. Vo positive- and negative-sequence voltages, respec tively; an operator equal to 1120° and a® = 12240". With the modem microprocessor-based relays and their mathematical capabilites for processing of the phase currents and voltages, postive-, negative-, and zero-Sequence quantities ae readily available for use in the protection schemes. There- fore, the protection engineer now has practically unlimited capabilities for providing the kind and type of protection Schemes needed for proper ground-fault protection. IIL. EQUIVALENT ZERO-SEQUENCE CIRCUTTS FOR COMMON ‘TRANSFORMER CONNECTIONS Many references exist which show the detailed zero-sequence equivalent circuits for the different transformer connections. ‘This paper will consider only those transformer connections ‘commonly used in the petrochemical industry (see Figs. 3-6) as follows: + delta primary-wye grounded secondary; + delta primary-wye secondary with impedance grounding; [EEE TRANSACTIONS ON INDUSTRY APPLICATIONS, VOL. 3, NO. 6. NOVEMBERUDECEMBER 2002 Zero Sequence Bus 5 Ia Fig. 3, Dela-wye rounded. Zero Sequence Bus 32N Po Zp s Fig. 4. Detta-impedance grounded wye Zero Sequence Bus T P =: Fig. 5. Wye grounded-dlis-wye grounded Zero Sequence Bus P br s Fig. 6. Wye grounded-wye grounded ‘+ wye grounded primary-deltatertiary-wye grounded sec- ondary ‘+ wye grounded primary-wye grounded secondary. IV, Low-VOLTAGE GROUNDING Low voltage in this paper will consider everything 600 V and below. The three means of grounding include the following: * solidly grounded; + impedance grounded; * ungrounded.! Most recent petrochemical low-voltage transformer designs ‘consist of delta-connected primary, grounded wye secondary. ‘This type of connection establishes the grounding plane on the secondary of the transformer. Therefore, grounding is indepen dent ofthe type of grounding upstream from the transformer. ‘Some grounded-wye primary, grounded-wye secondary-con- nected transformers are utilized in the petrochemical industry since this is a commonly used utility transformer connection, ‘Caution should be taken in use of this type of transformer con- nection since itis dependent on the primary system grounding. ‘This transformer can be cautiously used as a grounded-wye pri- ‘mary to resistance grounded secondary, but should never be com. rected ungrounded on either the primary or secondary side, "Asm ungrounded sytem i setally special application ofthe impede sounded system where the ungrounded stem is grounded through i syse0 ‘spacince.NELSON: SYSTEM GROUNDING AND GROUND FAULT PROTECTION INTHE PETROCHEMICAL INDUSTRY “DeLta® SYSTEM Fig. 7. Ressanc grounding ation oan ungrounded system. Another system grounding connection which exists in the petrochemical industry is that of the comer grounded delta, This connection is found anywhere from production fields to some large chemical plants. The comer grounded delta provides the advantage of having the system grounded, but the disadvan- tages 1) thatthe two ungrounded phases will se full line-to-line voltage between the phase equipment and ground and 2) that a sround on any of the other two phases results ina phase-to-phase fault through ground. ‘As discussed in [2], the ungrounded system is a special app cation of the impedance grounded system in that the system grounded through its capacitance to ground, The main disadvan- tage to ths system is with the propensity to allow transient over voltages which can obtain voltage levels of five times or more normal line-to-ground voltage (See the Appendix). The author recommends that existing low-voltage ungrounded systems be ‘modified, most likely o a high-resistance grounded system, to ‘minimize the probability of transient over voltages. On an un- grounded-wye system, a resistor can be placed in the neutral ofthe transformer and/or generator. On a delta system, this can ‘be accomplished ata relatively small cost using propery sized control power transformers connected resistance grounded wye primary to delta secondary (see Fig 7). \V. Low-VoLTAGE GROUND-FAULT PROTECTION Ground-fault protection on low-voltage systems has histori- cally taken the following two directions: 1) alarming/indication and 2) tripping On delta systems and some high-resistance grounded wye systems, ground-fault detection lamps have been used to indicate that a ground fault has occurred. On high-esistance grounded systems, an alarm circuit has usually been incorpo- rated, In either ease, the system designer has chosen to keep the electrical circuit in service and provide only indication of a ground fault. Some designs have also incorporated a timing sequence that would trip a breaker ifthe faut is not cleared in a timely fashion. On solidly grounded systems, the normal means of ground-fault protection is through tipping of the circuit breaker or blowing ofa fuse. The intent is thatthe ground fault should have sufficiently high current to cause normal and se- lective operation ofthe overcurent protective device. However, ‘due to the resistance of the arc and the arc voltage developed 1a at the point of fault, it is quite common thatthe fault current is limited to a point where the phase overcurrent protective device ‘will not properly operate, or may be extremely slow if it does. ‘Therefore, ground-fault protection has been required by code in many instances and the use of ground-fault protection on circuit breakers of 600 A and above is highly recommended. Coordination of ground-fault protection can become difficult, especially if there are more than three breakers in series. Also, the selectivity of smaller downstream overcurrent devices which do not have ground-fault protection is difficult at best Solidly grounded low-voltage systems of less than 150 V to ground will typically have one of two events occur during a ‘ground fault: 1) the fault will weld atthe point of fault causing. aadirect short to occur and the overcurrent device to operate iso- lating the fault, or 2) the fault will extinguish due to the are voltage being greater than the source voltage causing the fault ccurrent to cease. ‘Therefore, these lower voltage faults do not pose any major difficulties in protecting, that is, systems 150 V to ground or less. However, once the line-to-ground voltages exceed 150 V, a different story exists. On the typical 480- and 560-V systems, the arc resistance and arc voltage make proper sensing of ground, faults more difficult. Where reliability and continuity of ser- vice are important inthe petrochemical industry, high-resistance ‘grounding should be applied. The reader is encouraged to review the references for more detailed design information (2), [5] VI. Mepium-VoLTAGe GROUNDING ‘Medium-voltage systems typically include voltages over 600, V through 15000 V. The system grounding practices have in- cluded the following: + solidly grounded; + impedance grounded: 1) Jow resistance; 2) high resistance; 3) reactance; + ungrounded. ‘Medium-voltage solidly grounded systems are commonly used on field distribution systems and small plant electrical systems. The solidly grounded medium-voltage transformer can have either high-side fuses or breakers for transformer protection. Sufficient fault current is normally reflected through the transformer to allow the use of fuses. Ground-fault protection can take many forms, but alarming js not normally one of the options. Fault currents of significant values are present and tripping is the norm. Ground-fault pro- tection using residual or current transformer neutral circuits are common and problems can occur with the use of zero-sequence current transformers (due tothe relatively low ratios on zero-se- quence current transformers and the relatively high fault cur- rents). For example, a solidly grounded system has an available sground-fault current of 1500 A, which is a relatively low value of ground-fault current, The expected secondary current using 50:5 zero-sequence CT is 150 A. This may be greater than the thermal or mechanical rating of the CT which often times is in the 100-A range.‘Medium-voltage impedance grounded systems are com- ‘monly used for plant operations with the low-resistance ‘grounded system being the most common. Low-resistance ‘grounded systems typically limit the ground-fault current to a range of 200-1000 A. Some reactance grounded systems are in existence, but they are rare. However, they do follow some of the same principles as the resistance grounded system. For the resistance grounded system, the fault currents are relatively Constant for faults throughout the system. This is due tothe fact, that the per-unit resistance is typically much greater than the per-unit reactance of the system. High-resistance system grounding has been successfully used ‘on systems through approximately 7200 V. However, problems have occurred on higher voltages primarily as a result of the increased capacitive current causing greater arc damage. Ungrounded medium-voltage systems present the same transient overvoltage problems as discussed in Section IV. Ungrounded medium-voltage systems should be avoided and existing ungrounded medium-voltage systems should be ‘modified to incorporate some type of system grounding. It should be noted that grounded-wye power-factor-correc- tion capacitor banks should not be used on low- or high-resis- tance grounded systems. A grounded-wye capacitor bank ap- pears as a parallel path to the resistor in the zero-sequence cir- cuit, and may cause overheating of the resistor and ground- fault coordination problems. This problem has been noticed in petrochemical facilities, especially where overhead distribution lines are present. The two most common options for installing power-factor-correction capacitors would be ungrounded wye and delta, Both eliminate the overheating problem with the re- sistor and the path for zero-sequence fault current. ‘VIL. MEDIUM-VOLTAGE GROUND-FAULT PROTECTION ‘Medium-voltage ground-fault protection usually involves co- ordinated ground-fault tripping. That i, selective tipping of the circuit breakers is typically used where the breaker closest to the fault senses the fault and selectively trips, isolating the fault. Consider the following different types of grounding. 1) A 4.16-KV solidly grounded system has an available sground-fault current of 5000 A. A zero-sequence CT with 50/5 ratio is being considered for feeder ground fault protection. The problem with using this zero sequence CCT is thatthe ratio is 10:1 which equates to a secondary fault current of 500 A for a 5000—A primary fault. Many ‘current transformers have a secondary rating of 100 A and few, if any, relays can withstand 500 A. Therefore, this is not a good application for a zero-sequence CT. In this particular application, a residual CT circuit with ‘a minimum ratio of 50:1 or 250:5 should be used to limit the secondary fault current to less than or equal to 100 A. 2) A 4.16-KV resistance grounded system with a 400-A. grounding resistor will have 400 A for practically all ground faults. Zero-sequence CTs are a good application for medium-voltage low-resistance grounding. Another problem which exists is that of sensitivity of ground-fault protection. For example, using the residual of a 3000/5 CCT provides a ratio of only 600:1. That is, for a ground [EEE TRANSACTIONS ON INDUSTRY APPLICATIONS, VOL 38,NO. 6. NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2002 fault of 400 A, only 2/3 of an ampere is available for fa ground fault of 400 A. Therefore, sensitive ground CCTs in the neutral of the main power transformer and zero-sequence CTs are best for ground-fault protection. ‘VIL. GENERATION GROUNDING Generator grounding can consist ofthe following: + solidly grounded; + low-resistance groundi + high-resistance grounding; + ungrounded. First, practically all generators are wye connected. Ground- fault currents cannot flow from the rare delta-connected gener- ator. However, ground-fault current can and does flow from the ‘wye-connected generator and, based on the type of grounding of the neutral of the generator, the system can be as classified as above. ‘Caution should be taken in using a solidly grounded gen- erator. The reason is that a generator typically has a zero-se- quence reactance Xo much less than the subtransient reactance XY As such, a bolted ground fault can produce currents in ex- cess of a bolted three-phase fault. The generator is designed for withstanding a bolted three-phase fault, but not necessarily a bolted ground fault. Therefore, good practice dictates that some type of neutral impedance needs to be placed in the circuit to ‘minimize the ground fault currents to a value lower than the three-phase fault. Due tothe nature of the zero-sequence circuit, any impedance placed in the neutral ofthe generator is multi- plied by three for zero-sequence modeling. Therefore, the neu- tral impedance Z,, appears to be 3° Z,. As such, the ground cur- rent which flows for a three-phase and a phase-to-ground fault are as shown inthe following equations: tia he = = o 3a (it Xa + Xo + 3Zy) Ten 8) subtransient impedance; Xi positive-sequence generator impedance; negative-Sequence generator impedance; Xo _zero-sequence generator impedance; Zy neutral impedance. ‘The minimum positive- and negative-sequence impedances of the generator are approximately equal to the subtransient impedance of the generator. The typical range of positive- and negative-sequence impedance is in the 10%20% range. ‘A typical generator zero-sequence impedance isin the range of 1%-59b. The neutral impedance often times is the most significant impedance limiting the ground-fault curren. ‘A low-resistance grounded generator has many of the same characteristics of alow and medium-voltage system. Generator voltage in the petrochemical industry ae typically clasified as Jow and medium voltage. In fact, even large utility generators are rated less than 25 KV and considered medium-voltage gen- eators. Therefore, the low-resistance grounding of generatorsNELSON: SYSTEM GROUNDING AND GROUND FAULT PROTECTION IN THE PETROCHEMICAL INDUSTRY 1 2p @83 Fig. 8 Genemntoe ground fault ove voliage protection options. is typically used on medium-voltage generators, The low-resis- tance grounding of a medium generator is typically limited to a range of 200-1000 A. Similarly, a high-resistance grounded generator has many of the same characteristics of a low- and medium-voltage system. ‘Special precautions must be taken when paralleling solidly grounded and low-resistance grounded generators (3). IX. GENERATION GROUND-FAULT PROTECTION Ground-fault protection of generators usually takes two forms: 1) ground current detection and 2) ground overvoltage detection. Also, generator ground fault protection can take the form of alarming and tripping. Similarly to low- and medium-voltage systems, a solidly grounded or low-resistance grounded generator should be ‘tipped offline. However, a high-resistance grounded gener- ‘ator can be either alarmed or tipped. With a high-resistance ‘grounded generator, it may be advantageous to alarm for a ‘ground fault. That way, important generation may be kept ‘online for critical loads On low-resistance grounded generators, ground faults are ‘commonly protected using ground-current-sensing devices. For ‘ground-fault currents originating in the generator, the current can be sensed using a current transformer in the neutral of the generator. That method protects the generator as well as, the system. A second method consists of placing a residual CT on the generator output. This protects the system from the generator and the generator from the system, However, it does ‘ot provide generator protection from itself. As a backup, a ‘ground overvoltage relay can also be used. The overvoltage relay can be placed in the neutral of the generator or can be provided by a broken delta PT where the resultant value is 3V9 (Gee Fig. 8). X. HIGH-VoLTAGE SYSTEM GROUNDING (ABOVE 15 kV) While electric utilities primarily provide the transmission systems for a petrochemical facility, there are some instances Where the facility has its own transmission system or it may be interconnected to a transmission system. Therefore, it is important for the petrochemical facility to have at least a working knowledge of transmission system grounding and transmission ground fault protection, With few exceptions, transmission systems are almost univer- sally solidly grounded. This is accomplished primarily through ‘grounded-wye source transformers. As such, ground-fault pro- tection of high-voltage systems is normally accomplished by 67 ground overcurrent relays, both directional and nondirectional Loop systems typically require the use of directional ground overcurrent relays. There are also ground-fault distance relays that are a type of impedance relay. 2X1. TRANSMISSION SYSTEM GROUND-FAULT PROTECTION ‘Transmission system relaying is typically high speed, often times using a communications system as a means of helping to identify the actual location of the fault. Fault clearing times in the range of 4-6 cycles is quite common. Sophisticated ‘modern-day relaying can sense the fault within 1-2 cycles and breaker clearing times of 3 cycles are common, Ground directional relays require some type of polarization. Historically, this was normally through the use of zero-se- quence current and zero-sequence voltage polarizing units. Both zero-sequence current and zero-sequence voltage values are readily available in power systems. With the digital micro- rocessor-based relays, polarizing can take additional forms such as both zero- and negative-sequence polarizing. This can be accomplished digitally for negative-sequence polarizing Or the use of the common zero-sequence voltage and current polarizing as previously shown. The basis for ground-fault Drotection is similar to that of lower voltage systems. XIL GROUND-FAULT SHIELDING CONSIDERATIONS FOR ‘MEDIUM-VOLTAGE CABLES ‘Once the voltage on a power cable exceeds 600 V, the user and cable manufacturer become concerned with safely maintaining the electric potential or field within the insulation, At the lower range of medium-voltage cables, through 5 KV, shielding is not required. However, shielding of power cables is commonly used ‘on 5-kV medium-voltage cables and is required on all power cables rated above 5 kV. ‘There is one aspect of electric power cable shielding which in- volves system grounding practices and ground-fault protection. ‘That deals with the ground-fault current withstand capability of the shield. There are three important variables which must be ‘considered when considering the proper shield for power cables for ground currents: + neutral current; * ground-fault current; + time. ‘The neutral currents are common only in solidly grounded three-phase four-wire systems. Three-phase four-wire systems require a neutral conductor. Therefore, the concentric neutral is typically used for this application. The concentric neutral isthe ‘most commonly used power cable fr the electric utility industry on their distribution systems. Similar distribution systems can and do exist for the petrochemical industry in the oil fields. The size of the concentric neutral depends on the continuous and i termittent neutral/unbalance currents which will low current in the system. This will include both the steady-state and harmonic ‘currents which flow on the system. The concentric neutral on ‘each power cable typically include the following: * full concentric; + 123 concentric;applications re- ‘quite a full concentric neutral on each cable. The size of the full ‘concentric neutral equals the size of the power cable conductor. ‘Many typical three-phase power systems can use a power cable with a 1/3 concentric. With the three power cables each having a 1/3 concentric neutral, the total neutral forthe system is equal to the size ofthe individual conductor. Finally, for three-phase sys- tems with little oF no neutral current, a 1/6 concentric could be ‘used. One of the main factors, if not the determining factor for determining the type of concentric neutral will be the amount of neutral current which can safely flow in the concentric neutral (On three-phase three-wire systems, neutral current is not a concern for the shielding. The apparent solution would be to use a simple tape shield, commonly a 5-mil copper tape with a 12.5% overlap. Since there is no neutral current flowing, the ‘common assumption is that the tape shield will be adequate. Unfortunately, that is not always true. Ground-fault current and ground-fault duration are impor- tant in determining the size and type of shield. Unfortunately, the tape shield has limited ground-fault time and current capa- bility. The use of a tape shield for a petrochemical plant with ‘2 medium-voltage low-resistance grounded system is usually a ‘good design. The reason is that the ground-fault current is lim- ited to some value 1000 A or less. Usually, that value is in the range of 200-600 A. However, on a solidly grounded system, the ground-fault current can be in the thousands to tens of thou- sands of amperes. ‘The maximum short-circuit current allowed in a copper power cable shield is given by the following equation [4]: A (%) I= o 1 amperes; A. shield area in circular mils; Number of cycles; initial temperature of 65 °C; K constant = 0.288 (200 °C temperature maximum tem- perature) ‘The allowable current I for NV cycles allows the temperature to rise from an initial shield temperature of 65 °C to 200 °C. ‘As can be seen from (9), which is also intuitively obvious, the allowable current is proportional to the cross-sectional area of the shield and inversely proportional to the square root of the time. Some examples of approximate allowable times and cur- rents for 2/0 AWG and 500 MCM Copper Cable are shown in ‘Tables I and I XII. ConcLusions System grounding and ground-fault protection are important in the petrochemical industry. First, it is important to have the proper system grounding for the particular system application. ‘Then, itis equally important to have the proper ground-fault protection. The combination of the two have been shown to be essential. The following general conclusions can be made, [BEE TRANSACTIONS ON INDUSTRY APPLICATIONS, VOL 38, NO. 6 NOVEMBERVDECEMBER 2002 ‘TABLE 1 210 AWG Conran (Connie AMES) Time n Cycles + 8 6 0 © Type ofShielding Current in Amperes SmilTape Shield «30152768 195814301011 ‘16Concentric Neutral 6617 4879 3008 2416 1708, i3Concentrc Neutral 12Ka 8576 6064 44283131 TABLE 500 MM Corr (CURRED AMPERES) Time in Cycles . 8 © » © ita Currentin Amperes Smil Tape Shield «56193073 2808 20521481 ‘6 Concentic Neutral 25kA 18A KA 8457 5080 ATA SOKA 20KA AHA 1204 413 Concentric Neutral + Ungrounded systems are to be avoided. Transient over- voltages due to arcing ground faults can occur on the un- ‘grounded system, Solidly grounded systems typically have relatively high fault currents and tripping is necessary. + Low-impedance grounded systems are typically used to limit ground-fault currents and typically allow sufficient fault current for coordinated tripping, LLow-resistance grounded systems are commonly used for ‘medium-voltage systems. The ground-fault current is nor- ‘mally limited to the 200-1000 A range with many systems operating at 400 A. ‘+ High-resistance grounded systems are commonly applied to low-voltage systems with a line-to-neutral voltage in excess of 150 V. Both alarming and tripping schemes are used for high-resistance grounded systems. ‘+ Low- and high-resistance grounded generators are the norm. Special caution must be taken in using solidly ‘grounded generators. Ungrounded generators should be avoided. + Reactance grounding of medium-voltage distribution sys- tems can be found on electric utility systems where they are providing an effectively grounded system. * Grounded-wye power-factor-correction capacitor banks should not be used on low- or high-resistance grounded systems, ‘+ Most utility transmission systems are solidly grounded. APPENDIX "TRANSIENT OVERVOLTAGES DUE TO ARCING GROUND FAULTS (ON AN UNGROUNDED SYSTEM ‘An arcing ground fault on an ungrounded system presents a unique problem: the possibility of transient overvoltages. While this subject is briefly covered in a number of references, one of the best explanations requires the use of the zero-sequence cir- cuit in symmetrical components. The capacitance to ground inNELSON: SYSTEM GROUNDING AND GROUND FAULT PROTECTION IN THE PETROCHEMICAL INDUSTRY Pos Sequence Neg Sequence A c DY AM ' {eu “TO Sid Teo » Fg.9. (a) Arig fault equivalent circuit) Approximate equivalent ici the circuit shows up in the zero-sequence circuit as a capacitor ‘The postive and negative-sequence circuits canbe represented by equivalent impedances, primarily reactive. The postive- and negatve-sequence circuits for an arcing ‘round fault are placed in series with the zero-sequence circuit 4s shown in Fig. a). However, in comparison withthe imped- ances between the positive-, negative-, and zero-sequence cir- cuits, the positive- and negative-sequence impedances are neg- ligible with respect tothe zero-sequence impedance and the re- sulting approximate equivalent circuit is shown in Fig 9(). ‘The first contact with ground will cause I-per-unit zeo-se- quence voltage to appear in the circuit. This causes the neutral of the system to be displaced from ground by a voltage ap- proaching line-o-neutral voltage of 1 per unit. Due to the na- ture of a capacitive circuit, the fault curent is predominantly capacitive and leads the voltage by 90°. Therefore, wien the current goes to zero, the are current stops flowing. At the same time, the capacitive voltage is maximum. Therefor, 1-per-unit zero-Sequence voltage exists across the capacitor and across the system, effectively shifting the neutral of the circuit (see Figs. 10 and 11). With the I-per-unit voltage on the capacitor, the system voltage travels another one-half cycle. With the voltage restored across the faulted phase, a subsequent arc can occur, which, because ofthe transient nature of the circuit will result in up to 2-per-unit shift of the neutral plus the original 1-per-unit voltage. Thus, the neutral can, within one-half cycle, create a shift of 3 per unit in the neutral of the circuit. Next, the same thing can happen the next half cycle where 3-per-unit voltage exists in the capacitance of the circuit and another 2-per-anit voltage shift can occur during the next half eyce (see Fig. 11). The transient overvoltage buildup can occur very rapidly, ‘creating subsequent overvoltages of I-, 3, S-,7-,9-, and so Fig. 10. Capacitive caret flow and system volge. Fig. 1, Transient overvoltags from resrikng ground felt on “A” phase, Zero Sequence Bus Tyiscuarce eee Fig. 12. Zerosequence circuit showing capacitance discharge Xo forth per-unit voltages. Theoretically, the overvoltage could ‘g0 on unlimited except for the fact that the insulation on the ‘unfaulted phases will probably fail, creating a fault on a second phase. This will result i a phase-to-phase fault and most likely clearing of the fault through a fuse or breaker. ‘One of the better options to an ungrounded system is to use a high-tesistance grounded system. The resistance is chosen to provide a resistive fault current equal or greater that the 2er0- sequence capacitive current as shown in (Al) Tro & Teo ap ‘The high resistance is placed in the zero-sequence circuit as shown in Fig. 12. ‘As one can se in Fig. 12 the resistance will allow the voltage to decay based on a time constant (7) equal to a RG Using & 1000-KVA 5.75% impedance transformer a a source reactance and a 277-9 neutral grounding resistor, the time con- (ag1610 [EEE TRANSACTIONS ON INDUSTRY APPLICATIONS, VOL. 38, NO. 6, NOVEMBERUDECEMBER 2012 stant is approximately 2.75 ms. Therefore, in one-half cycle the voltage will have decayed to V = VgeT/RC m1 S%of¥o. as) ‘Therefore, one can see that the transient overvoltages are lim- ited with resistance, and the lower the resistance the lower the transient overvoltage. Experience has shown that the transient overvoltage is limited to approximately 2.5 per unitif Ip» > Ico [REFERENCES IN] E, Chak, Cinwit Analysis of A-C Power Systems, New York GEMWiles, 1989 (2) J.P. Nelon and PK. Sen, “High resistance grounding of low voltage systems: A sandaed forte pevoleum and chemical industry,” IEEE Tran. Ind. Applica, vl 35, pp. 941-948, Jul/Aug. 199, 0) LS Powell “lfiscnce of third hameénic ceulaing cureats in selecting netral grounding devices" IEEE Trans. nd. Applica, vo TAS, Nov/Dec. 1973 Is] “Engineering data for copper and aluminum conductor electrical ce bles.” Okonite Co, Ramsey, NJ, Bull EHB-88, 1988. (5) Beka and Vitcheck, “High since ground ewofis in palp and paper mills ZEEE Ind Applicat, Mag. ol. pp 19-27, Mats Apr. 200 John P. Nelson ($'73-M°76-SM'82-F97) received ihe BSEE degree from the Univesity of Tinos, ‘Urbana, in 1970, andthe MS.ELE. degree fom the University of Colorado, Bolder, in 1975. He is President and» Principal Engicer with [NET Electric Power Engineering, In, Arvada, CO. PE He has authored or coauthored merous papers, typically involving eleeuic power systems in the r ‘evochemical indy Kiadk "Mr Nelson bas been ative wih the Peoleum and ‘Chemical Industy Commitee ofthe IEEE Industry Applications Society for more than 20 years, He{sa Registered Professional Ea {ner in he Sates of Cora, Arizona, Calfora, Lousiana, New Mexico, ia, Wisconsin, and Wyoming.