ARC FLASH HAZARD

EVALUATION
1.
BACKGROUND
ARC FLASH AND ITS
HAZARDS
 ARC FLASH AND ITS HAZARDS
Arc Flash
flashover of electric current through the air from one
conductor to another or to ground.

CAUSES: THREATS: METHODS OF REDUCING

ARC FLASH HAZARDS:
Accidental contact Burns
Short circuit among Fire Avoiding the occurrence
equipment Flying objects of arc flash incidents
Contamination Blast pressure Reducing the level of arc
Deterioration/corrosion Sound Blast energy released
of equipment Heat Protective relaying
Proper use of personal
protective equipment
(PPE)
2.
SIGNIFICANCE
 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

Proper equipment warning labels

Identification of proper personal protective

equipment (PPE) for workers

Safe working environment

3.
OBJECTIVES
GENERAL OBJECTIVE

To evaluate the arc-flash hazard

for a 10-MVA substation with a
relay protection designed by
Sunertech Corporation.
 SPECIFIC OBJECTIVES
1. Perform a short-circuit analysis on the
system using ETAP 12.6.0 to determine the
bolted fault current on the buses and
protective devices in the system;

2. Determine the incident energy using the

IEEE Std. 1584-2002 spreadsheet calculator;
and

3. Determine the flash-protection boundary of

the system.
4.
MATERIALS
AND METHODS
 Data Gathering

Short-Circuit Analysis on ETAP

12.6.0

IEEE Std. 1584-2002

Spreadsheet Calculator

Evaluation of Flash Protection

MATERIALS AND Boundary and determination of
METHODS Hazard/Risk Category accrdg to
FLOWCHART
NFPA 70E
5.
RESULTS AND
DISCUSSION
SHORT CIRCUIT ANALYSIS
ON ETAP 12.6.0

Determination of bolted
fault currents on the buses
and protective devices
 STUDY CASE MODES OF OPERATION

STUDY
MODE DESCRIPTION
CASE

A Normal Operation All feeders including Temporary feeder in operation

B TFS Temporary feeder spared

C TFS + 1FS Temporary feeder plus 1 feeder spared

D TFS + 2FS Temporary feeder plus 2 feeders spared

E TFS + 3FS Temporary feeder plus 3 feeders spared

F TFS + 4FS Temporary feeder plus 4 feeders spared

G TFC + 1FS Temporary feeder in operation plus 1 feeder spared

H TFC + 2FS Temporary feeder in operation plus 2 feeder spared

I TFC + 3FS Temporary feeder in operation plus 3 feeder spared

J TFC + 4FS Temporary feeder in operation plus 4 feeder spared

BUS 1 BOLTED FAULT CURRENTS

BUS 1
STUDY CASE
VALUE (kA) PORTION (kA)

Normal Operation 2.366 2.00

TFS 2.306 2.00

TFS + 1FS 2.248 2.00

2.179 2.00 Maximum bolted fault

TFS + 2FS
current at BUS 1
TFS + 3FS 2.098 2.00

TFS + 4FS 2.000 2.00

TFC + 1FS 2.317 2.00

TFC + 2FS 2.260 2.00

TFC + 3FS 2.194 2.00

TFC + 4FS 2.116 2.00 Bus Voltage = 69 kV

BUS 2 BOLTED FAULT CURRENTS

BUS 2
STUDY CASE
VALUE (kA) PORTION (kA)

Normal Operation 6.253 3.44

TFS 5.604 3.44

TFS + 1FS 5.063 3.44

Maximum bolted fault
TFS + 2FS 4.522 3.44 current at BUS 2

TFS + 3FS 3.981 3.44

TFS + 4FS 3.440 3.44

TFC + 1FS 5.712 3.44

TFC + 2FS 5.171 3.44

TFC + 3FS 4.630 3.44

TFC + 4FS 4.089 3.44 Bus Voltage = 13.8 kV

IEEE STD. 1584-2002
SPREADSHEET CALCULATOR

Calculation of incident
energy and flash-protection
boundary
IEEE STD. 1584-2002 CALCULATIONS

Arc-fault current calculation

BUS 2 (For systems less than 15 kV):

= + 0.662 + 0.0966 + 0.000526 +

0.5588 ( ) 0.00304 ( )

BUS 1 (For systems greater than 15 kV):

= 0.00402 + 0.983

Arc fault Current, = 10

IEEE STD. 1584-2002 CALCULATIONS

Incident energy calculation

BUS 2 (For systems less than 15 kV):

= 1 + 2 + 1.081 + 0.0011
= 10
610
= 4.184 0.2

BUS 1 (For systems greater than 15 kV):

= 2.142 106
2
IEEE STD. 1584-2002 CALCULATIONS

Flash protection boundary calculation

BUS 2 (For systems less than 15 kV):

1
610
= 4.184 0.2

BUS 1 (For systems greater than 15 kV):

= 2.142 106
 BUS 1 INCIDENT ENERGY AND ARC FLASH BOUNDARY

Arc Flash
Incident Energy
STUDY CASE Boundary
J/cm2 cal/cm2 mm

Normal Operation 32.38 7.7 4645.1

TFS 31.56 7.5 4585.8

TFS + 1FS 30.77 7.4 4527.8

Arc flash boundary for
TFS + 2FS 29.82 7.1 4457.7
maximum incident
28.72 6.9 4374.1 energy at BUS 1
TFS + 3FS

TFS + 4FS 27.37 6.5 4270.7

TFC + 1FS 31.71 7.6 4596.7

TFC + 2FS 30.93 7.4 4539.8

30.03 7.2 4473.0

TFC + 3FS Working
28.96 6.9 4392.8 Distance = 1829 mm
TFC + 4FS
 BUS 2 INCIDENT ENERGY AND ARC FLASH BOUNDARY

Arc Flash
Incident Energy
STUDY CASE Boundary
J/cm2 cal/cm2 mm

Normal Operation 8.26 2.0 1518.4

TFS 7.35 1.8 1347.1

TFS + 1FS 6.60 1.6 1205.7

5.86 1.4 1065.7 Arc flash boundary for

TFS + 2FS maximum incident
5.11 1.2 927.3 energy at BUS 2
TFS + 3FS

TFS + 4FS 4.38 1.0 790.6

TFC + 1FS 7.50 1.8 1375.5

TFC + 2FS 6.75 1.6 1233.8

TFC + 3FS 6.00 1.2 1093.6

Working
TFC + 4FS 5.26 1.3 954.8 Distance = 910 mm
 Arc Flash Boundary (mm) Incident Energy (J/cm2)

4700 34

Incident Energy (J/cm2)

Arc Flash Boundary (mm)
4600 33
32
4500 31
4400 30
29
4300 28
4200 27

Study Case
BUS 1

Arc Flash Boundary (mm) Incident Energy (J/cm2)

1550 9

Incident Energy (J/cm2)

Arc Flash Boundary (mm)
1450
1350 8
1250 7
1150
1050 6
950 5
850
COMPARISON OF INCIDENT 750 4

ENERGY AND ARC FLASH

BOUNDARY WITH RESPECT
TO INCREASING NUMBER
BUS 2
Study Case
OF FEEDERS
ARC FLASH BOUNDARY FOR MAXIMUM INCIDENT
ENERGY

Arc Flash
Incident Energy
LOCATION Boundary

J/cm2 cal/cm2 mm

BUS 1 32.38 7.7 4645.1

BUS 2 8.26 2.0 1518.4

NFPA 70E HAZARD/RISK CATEGORY
Minimum Rating
Category
(cal/cm2)
0 1.2

1 4

2 8

3 25

4 40

Incident Energy Hazard/Risk

Location
(cal/cm2) Category
BUS 1 7.7 1

BUS 2 2.0 0
 REQUIRED PERSONAL PROTECTIVE EQUIPMENT
Location Category Required Garments
Protective clothing nonmelting
or Untreated natural Fiber (i.e.
untreated cotton, wool, rayon,
or silk, or blends of these
BUS 2 0
materials) with a Fabric Weight
of at Least 4.5 oz/yd2
Shirt (long sleeve)
Pants (long)
Shirt (long sleeve) and pants
(long) or coverall;
Flash suit hood or faceshield;
BUS 1 1
Jacket, parka, rainwear, or
hardhat liner (AN)
Required Protective Equipment
Safety glasses or safety
goggles (SR);
Hearing protection (ear canal
inserts);
Heavy duty leather gloves (AN)
Hard hat;
Safety glasses or goggles (SR);
Hearing protection (ear canal
inserts);
Heavy-duty leather glove;
Leather footwear (AN)
6.
SUMMARY AND
CONCLUSION
 SUMMARY AND CONCLUSION

In general, the arc-flash hazard of a system can be

evaluated through following the arc-flash analysis
guide provided by the IEEE Std. 1584-2002 Guide for
Performing Arc-Flash Hazard Calculations.

the amount of bolted fault current on the buses

varies with the amount of feeders in the system
that are in operation,

the maximum available bolted fault current on BUS 1

is 2.366 kA and 6.253 kA on BUS 2, which are both
present during normal operation.
 SUMMARY AND CONCLUSION

the values of the incident energy present in a bus, as

well as its arc-flash boundary can be determined
using the equations given by the IEEE Std. 1584-2002

the computed maximum incident energy on BUS 1 is

7.7 cal/cm2 with an arc flash boundary of 4645.1 mm.

the computed maximum incident energy on BUS 2 is

2.0 cal/cm2 with an arc flash boundary of 1518.4 mm.

the computed incident energy can be used to

determine the Hazard/Risk category of the buses
according to NFPA 70E,
 SUMMARY AND CONCLUSION

the maximum incident energy on BUS 1 which is 7.7

cal/cm2 falls on the Category 1 of the NFPA 70E
Hazard/Risk Category, while the maximum incident
energy on BUS 2 of 2.0 cal/cm2 falls on Category 0.

the hazard or risk category can help in identifying

the proper personal protective equipment (PPE)
required for the workers to use while working within
the equipment working distance,

the NFPA 70E Standard for Electrical Safety in the

Workplace provides the required PPE for specific
Hazard/Risk category.
 END OF
PRESENTATION

Thank You!