9/19/12

Retro perspective 30 years ago: Metal-Clad or Metal-Enclosed MV Switchgear? What to choose? |

electrical-engineering-portal.com h t t p://elect r ica l-en g in eer in g -por t a l.com /r et r o-per spect iv e-3 0 -y ea r sa g o-m et a l-cla d-or -m et a l-en closed-m v -sw it ch g ea r -w h a t -t o-ch oose

Retro perspective 30 years ago: Metal-Clad or MetalEnclosed MV Switchgear? What to choose?

Elev en ba y s of m et a l-en closed sw it ch g ea r a ssu r e a h ig h lev el of pow er con t in u it y for cr it ica l loa ds a t a la r g e com m er cia l in st a lla t ion . T h e split bu s pr im a r y select iv e sw it ch g ea r in cor por a t e la t est solid st a t e con t r ols a n d fea t u r es t w o-w a y sou r ce t r a n sfer w it h a bu s-t ie sw it ch , pr ov idin g for a u t om a t ic t r a n sfer bet w een t w o u t ilit y lin es a n d a st a n dby g en er a t or .

There are two ty pes of switchgear commonly applied today for switching and protection of in-plant medium v oltage (4.1 6 kV through 34.5 kV ) power distribution sy stems. One is m etal-clad switchgear using drawout air-magnetic or v acuum circuit breakers and relay s for both load switching and fault protection: the other is m etal-enclosed switchgear using interrupter switches for load switching and power fuses for fault protection. An understanding of the application and operating philosophies of the two ty pes of gear is necessary to choose objectiv ely the gear that will permit the Optimum design for an in-plant sy stem. The three basic functions of switchgear in an industrial, commercial, or institutional medium-v oltage distribution sy stem are to: Distribute and carry load, including permissible ov erloads, with a minimum of interruptions for scheduled routine maintenance or for serv ice of the switchgear. Identify and clear faults quickly enough to minimize damage, while Interrupting the least possible amount of plant load. Prov ide sufficient segmentation of the medium-v oltage sy stem so that the ex tent of circuit outages
electrical-engineering-portal.com/retro-perspective-30-years-ago-metal-clad-or-metal-enclosed-mv- 1/8

9/19/12

Retro perspective 30 years ago: Metal-Clad or Metal-Enclosed MV Switchgear? What to choose? |

can he limited during work on cables and loads. To ensure that each function has been properly considered in relation to both sy stem design and plant operation, a number of pertinent questions should be ex plored including ease of maintenance, number of power interruptions, reclosing, av ailability of skilled personnel and cost-benefit analy sis. The following discussion prov ides some basic information, gathered from the field, for consideration.

How many outages can be permitted for maintenance?

Metal-clad switchgear contains drawout circuit breakers which are remov ed for required scheduled maintenance; remov al of a breaker interrupts its load. Metal-clad switchgear also contains insulated bus which, when tested periodically , requires a shotdown of the gear. Metalenclosed switchgear is av ailable with interrupter switches and fuses that require no scheduled maintenance, and the air-insulated bus does not require periodic dielectric testing. Annual maintenance normally consists of little more than a v isual inspection through the windows of the gear. This switchgear should be seriously considered if only infrequent interruptions can be tolerated by plant operations.

How much load will be interrupted for fault protection or for maintenance?
Consider maintenance as well as cost when selecting switchgear with fuses and interrupters (metalenclosed) or with breakers and relay s (metal-clad).It is ax iomatic to plan sy stem protection so that fault isolation will result in de-energization of only the faulted segment of the sy stem, thus permitting continuous serv ice to other loads. Additionally , there are many other reasons why portions of the distribution sy stem will be taken out of serv ice for ex ample, to add transformers, test cables or ev en modify circuits to accommodate plant ex pansions. For these occasions. a sufficient number of load switching points should be prov ided to allow selectiv e switching to minimize the number of loads interrupted. Circuit breakers are used in applications requiring a v ery high (abov e 7 20 A) continuous current carry ing and load-interrupting capability . While this capability may be an adv antage in some cases. a higher degree of serv ice continuity can often be achiev ed with less ex pensiv e power fuses by subdiv iding the sy stem into a larger number of discrete segments, with the result that load switching or fault interruption on one segment of the sy stem will affect fewer loads (see Fig. 1).

A high degree of segmentation also allows the use of smaller transformers located strategically throughout the sy stem, eliminating the need for unnecessarily long, high-ampacity secondary conductors required where fewer, larger, widely separated transformers are used.

electrical-engineering-portal.com/retro-perspective-30-years-ago-metal-clad-or-metal-enclosed-mv-

2/8

9/19/12

Retro perspective 30 years ago: Metal-Clad or Metal-Enclosed MV Switchgear? What to choose? |

Fig u r e 1 - Seg m en t in g a pla n t 's loa d in t o sm a ll block s su pplied by m u lt iple r a dia l cir cu it s a ssu r es a h ig h lev el of pow er con t in u it y a n d oper a t in g flex ibilit y . In -pla n t dist r ibu t ion dia g r a m m ed a t left su bejct s a ll loa ds t o in t er r u pt ion s for fa u lt clea r in g or m a in t en a n ce on a n y on e loa d. Seg m en t ed sch em e a t r ig h t u ses som e a m ou n t of ca ble t o ser v e loa ds a n d h a s a ppr ox im a t ely sa m e sw it ch g ea r cost - bu t pr ov ides for bet t er ser v ice r elia bilit y .

Is automatic reclosing necessary?

Automatic reclosing is neither useful nor desirable on in-plant power sy stems consisting of Insulated cables (in conduit or bus duct) feeding transformers. Faults on cables and transformers are rare. and those that do occur are not transient: they are permanent. They result in significant damage. and they are only ex acerbated not cleared by automatic reclosing operations. Metal-enclosed switchgear has achiev ed widespread use on cable sy stems because of the simplicity . economy and positiv e action of power fuses in
electrical-engineering-portal.com/retro-perspective-30-years-ago-metal-clad-or-metal-enclosed-mv-

Fig u r e 2 - Dist r ibu t ion sy st em w it h bot h ov er h ea d a n d in su la t ed ca ble con st r u ct ion . Pr ot ect iv e dev ice A clea r s t r a n sien t fa u lt s on ov er h ea d sy st em a n d r ecloses a u t om a t ica lly , w it h on ly m om en t a r y in t er r u pt ion of pow er t o loa ds. Fa u lt s in ca ble por t ion of sy st em a r e in t er r u pt ed by dev ice B a n d in t r a n sfor m er by dev ice C.
3/8

9/19/12

Retro perspective 30 years ago: Metal-Clad or Metal-Enclosed MV Switchgear? What to choose? |

prov iding protection from permanent faults. On the other hand, automatic reclosing can be an adv antage on outdoor, ov erhead distribution circuits subject to a high incidence of transient or temporary faults caused by falling tree branches, animal and bird contacts. wind-borne debris, lightning or ice. Ov erhead circuits are commonly protected by metal-clad switchgear (with circuit breakers and associated relay ing) in as much as a short-time interruption of sy stem v oltage by opening of the switchgear breaker may result in arc ex tinction, permitting an automatic reclosing operation to restore serv ice (see Fig. 2). In deciding whether to utilize automatic reclosing, consideration must be giv en to the effect on sy nchronous motors and large induction motors. High inrush current resulting from automatic reclosing may cause sev ere mechanical damage to the motors. Or, it may result in minor insulation damage which is not apparent at the time, but which will lead to premature failure. This insulation damage will be accelerated with repeated fast reclosures, as the effects are cumulativ e. Ev en manual reclosing may be undesirable on a cable sy stem: It is often a temptation to hope that the protectiv e dev ice has operated unnecessarily . Rather than take the time to search for the fault. ev en a trained person may , under pressure from production people, reclose in the hope that the protectiv e dev ice will hold. Since the condition which caused the protectiv e dev ice to operate will not hav e been eliminated. reclosing will only reinitiate the fault. This will cause further equipment damage, as well as prov ide a hazard to personnel in the v icinity . The practice of reclosing before locating and correcting the fault is highly questionable.
Per m a n en t n a t u r e of ca ble a n d t r a n sfor m er fa u lt sm a k es a u t om a t ic r eclosin g u n desir a ble.

Is sophisticated relaying required?

Most in-plant sy stem protection needs can be satisfied by an ov ercurrent protectiv e dev ice a fuse or a relay and circuit breaker. With the v ariety of fuse ratings and time-current curv es av ailable either metalenclosed switchgear with fuses and interrupter switches or metal-clad switchgear with circuit-breakers and relay s may be used. More complex protection dev ices respond to conditions other than just ov ercurrent: e.g., rev erse-current or
electrical-engineering-portal.com/retro-perspective-30-years-ago-metal-clad-or-metal-enclosed-mv- 4/8

9/19/12

Retro perspective 30 years ago: Metal-Clad or Metal-Enclosed MV Switchgear? What to choose? |

rev erse-power relay s, differential relay s and ov ercurrent relay s with harmonic restraint. These dev ices are a necessity for utility high-v oltage or EHV networks, but their desirability can be questioned for simpler inplant sy stems. Complex relay ing introduces the requirement for a much higher lev el of sophistication in sy stem design and coordination, as well as relay testing and calibration. Complex ity can also inv ite defeat by operating personnel who are in a hurry to restore power, and hav e no time or inclination to rev iew a complex sy stem designed y ears before.

Is DC control power available?

Metal-enclosed switchgear with fuses and interrupter switches is normally selfcontained with no requirement for an aux iliary power supply . Fault protection is prov ided by the fuses which use the energy of the fault current to achiev e interruption. Ev en complex remote controlled or automatic power operation of switches is usually accomplished with ac control power from one or more v oltage transformers which may also function as v oltage sensing dev ices. Metal-clad switchgear with circuit-breakers and relay s usually needs DC control power, and therefore the addition of a stationclass battery . Not only does this take considerable space, it often requires more maintenance than the switchgear itself. There are many recorded cases of damage to switchgear and plant which could hav e been av oided if the batteries had been maintained, if the battery charger hadnt been turned off-or if fuses had been used initially .

Is single-phasing a problem?
The possibility of single-phasing a load by operation of a fuse need not be an issue in choosing modern metalenclosed switchgear or metal-clad switchgear. Detectors and relay s are av ailable for sensing singlephasing, which could be caused by source-line burndown. broken conductors, singlephase switching, or by blown fuses on the utility source or on the in-plant feeder. When the detectors or relay s are applied in conjunction with power-operated interrupter switches in metalenclosed switchgear (see Fig. 3). the switches are automatically opened if a single-phasing condition occurs. interrupting and isolating all three phases of the load feeder.

Sensing and power operation will raise the cost of metal-enclosed switchgear significantly ov er that for manual gear. But the cost will still be on the order of 35 to 40% of that for equiv alent metal-clad switchgear with circuit breakers and relay s. And since the addition of this feature allows metal-enclosed gear to detect ev en source single-phasing. the lev el of protection is higher than that normally afforded by metal-clad gear.

electrical-engineering-portal.com/retro-perspective-30-years-ago-metal-clad-or-metal-enclosed-mv-

5/8

9/19/12

Retro perspective 30 years ago: Metal-Clad or Metal-Enclosed MV Switchgear? What to choose? |

Fig u r e-3 - Met a l en closed sw it ch g ea r feeder ba y h a s pr ov ision s for pr ot ect ion fr om open -ph a se con dit ion s. Open -ph a se det ect or (loca t ed in low v olt a g e com pa r t m en t in sw it ch g ea r ba y a t low er r ig h t ) in con ju ct ion w it h t h e pow er -oper a t ed in t er r u per -sw it ch pr ot ect s fr om a ll open -ph a se con dit ion s, in clu din g sin g le-ph a sin g ca u sed by blow n fu ses.

Are skilled technicians available?

Any electrical equipment should be operated and maintained only by qualified persons hav ing adequate knowledge of the installation, construction. . .(and) operation of the apparatus and the hazards inv olv ed according to the National Electrical Safety Code ANSI C2. The Code, parts of which hav e been adopted by local and state jurisdictional authorities, specifies that the employ er shall inform each employ ee working on or about communications equipment or electric-supply equipment and the associated lines, of the safety rules gov erning the employ ees conduct while so engaged.
electrical-engineering-portal.com/retro-perspective-30-years-ago-metal-clad-or-metal-enclosed-mv- 6/8

9/19/12

Retro perspective 30 years ago: Metal-Clad or Metal-Enclosed MV Switchgear? What to choose? |

In addition, such persons shall be regularly instructed in methods of first aid and emergency procedures and hav e an adequate supply of protectiv e dev ices and equipment. Users who cannot justify the ex pense of training and equipping employ ees to specialize in work on electrical equipment should hav e maintenance performed by an electrical contractor skilled in medium v oltage. Calibration of relay s and dielectric testing of insulated bus should be performed by a qualified testing organization. The choice between metal-enclosed switchgear and metal-clad switchgear is often made on the basis of the av ailability of qualified persons and the willingness of management to prov ide funds for maintenance. Metalenclosed switchgear is av ailable with non-damageable, non-aging, permanently accurate fuses which require no maintenance and with switches which require no scheduled maintenance or adjustments. A simple v isual inspection and occasional ex ercising are all that is required. Conv ersely , the maintenance requirements for circuit breakers, relay s and batteries are well established.

Will cable size be based on ampacity?

If cable size is selected solely on the basis of ampacity . the source protectiv e dev ice should be selected to operate fast enough to interrupt max imum av ailable fault current before the insulation suffers thermal damage. In other words, the selection of cable sizes should be based not only on ampacity . but also on the ability to withstand fault current while the source protectiv e dev ice detects and clears a fault. Fuses clear heav y fault currents In less than .01 4 sec. It is desirable to protect a cable from damage due to passage of fault current. The choice may well become one of whether to use fuses for protection. or to use metal-clad switchgear with circuit breakers and relay s and specify cables sev eral sizes larger than required by ampacity .

What are the economics?

In light of today s high cost of money , it is essential to keep capital outlay s and operating ex penditures to a practical minimum. Consequently , the economics of switchgear application hav e become increasingly important in plant design. Metal-enclosed switchgear prov ides protection for an in-plant cable sy stem at a cost of 25 to 40% of metal-clad switchgear. The high cost of building floor-space may make it desirable to locate the gear out of doors. Both metal-clad and metal-enclosed gear may be installed outdoors. Metal-clad gear normally requires an additional housing or walk-in shelter so that routine maintenance may be performed during inclement weather. This ex tra protection is not required for outdoorsty le metal-enclosed gear. Metal-enclosed switchgear weighs less than metalclad switchgear. thus, it is easier to handle with a minimum of rigging. Foundation or support channels are not required, permitting it to be located any where, ev en on balconies or rooftops. Only a lev el floor or pad is required. and room need not be prov ided to accommodate drawout of circuit breakers. The time required for the design of an in-plant medium-v oltage distribution sy stem is short compared to the many y ears it will be in serv ice. Ov er its life, the switchgear will be called upon to facilitate routine scheduled work on the power sy stem as well as to limit damage and lost production due to faults. The foregoing fundamental application questions were modeled to assure that the choice of switchgear will take into account how the plant Is operated and to help dev elop a switching and protection philosophy . The user may wish to consider other aspects. As with any engineering decision, it is important that the choice of ty pe of switchgear be made only after consideration of all relev ant factors.
electrical-engineering-portal.com/retro-perspective-30-years-ago-metal-clad-or-metal-enclosed-mv- 7/8

9/19/12

Retro perspective 30 years ago: Metal-Clad or Metal-Enclosed MV Switchgear? What to choose? |

RESOURCE: Electrical Energy Management; June/July 81

electrical-engineering-portal.com/retro-perspective-30-years-ago-metal-clad-or-metal-enclosed-mv-

8/8