CONDUCTOR DIMENSIONING FOR HV SURGE ARRESTERS

Although often asked, the question of terminal conductor cable size is not as important for surge arresters as it is for other high voltage apparatus. Under normal operating voltages, because of the high impedance of the arrester, only milli-amps are flowing constantly through the conductors. Virtually any size cable will withstand this low current loading. Even under surge conditions, although the current values can be quite high (10's of thousands Amps) it is only present for a very short time (micro-seconds). Such short duration currents have a negligible heating effect on the cable. The true criteria comes when the arrester has overloaded and the system short-circuit current is flowing through the conductors (and arrester). If the cross-section is thermally insufficient for this condition, the connection may be destroyed (melt) before the protection has operated to clear the fault. However, this may be accepted since the arrester has to be replaced anyway. If this is not acceptable, the cross-sectional area must always be based on the system short-circuit current and duration.

1.

LINE CONDUCTORS

For the line conductors, the simple practical solution is usually to use the same conductor as for current carrying equipment connected to the same line - eg droppers to current transformers - mainly because it is usually available on site. Current transformers have permanent current loadings, and must also withstand short circuit throughfault currents of longer duration than an arrester would see, and it is therefore being overly-conservative to dimension the arrester line droppers accordingly. However, this may result in undue mechanical loading on the arrester, and lighter droppers may be necessary (and even recommended) for this reason. Nonetheless, local regulations shall always be followed.

2.

EARTH CONDUCTORS

Surge arresters shall be connected to the same common earth grid as for the other HV apparatus in the substation. The earth conductor cross section shall be overridingly chosen in accordance with local regulations and earth fault current requirements. a) Connections between arrester earth terminal and surge counter When a surge counter such as EXCOUNT-A or EXCOUNT-I is mounted on an earthed pedestal structure, it is necessary to insulate the cable/busbar connecting the arrester to the counter, both to avoid parallel current paths and the risk for flashover during surges. Otherwise the counter will not register all surges as it should. During a surge condition, a considerable voltage is induced in the arrester earth lead. The required insulation level for this connector is then based on foreseen lightning levels. When lightning strikes an overhead conductor, the resultant surge (travelling wave) can have a steepness in the order of 800 to 2000 kV/s. The voltage rate of rise expected to be seen at the station itself depends on a number of factors including how far the lightning strike occurs from the station, impedance of the line, number of conductors struck, etc. When considering electrical equipment in outdoor substations, a wave with steepness S = 1550 kV/s is often used for the purposes of evaluation. Note however that higher or lower values may apply for a particular location. It is further assumed in the evaluation that the speed of propagation of this wave is approximately equal to the velocity of light, = 300 m/s. Hence, for the purpose of evaluation, the rate of rise of the surge voltage over a short distance (assuming negligible damping) is calculated to be 1550 / 300 = 5.2 kV/m. For simplicity, a nominal value of 5 kV per metre is assumed.

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The voltage drop due to the internal resistance and inductance in the cable itself will be negligible in the case of lighting impulses, and what is important is the circuit inductance, as indicated in the figure 1 below.

Surge Arrester Magnetic flux due to lightning surge current Insulated base Lightning surge current Grounded arrester pedestal support Insulated conductor

Surge counter

Figure 1 The figure 1 shows the general case, whereby the lightning surge current generates a magnetic flux in the circuit comprising the insulated base, the pedestal and the insulated conductor. The voltage induced is proportional to the magnetic flux in the closed loop, and is little affected by the size of the conductor. For this reason, the same insulation level is usually required for all earth connectors, regardless of their cross sectional area. To cater for foreseen lightning levels, the following recommendations are to be considered The earth conductor between arrester and counter should be insulated for at least 5xL kV (LIWV), where L is the conductor length in metres between the surge arrester earth terminal and the surge counter terminal (see Figure 2). The LIWV of the insulating base must also withstand this induced voltage; otherwise it will flashover and the impulse will be earthed through the structure without passing through the counter. The maximum permissible length L of the earth conductor between arrester and surge counter is then usually determined by the LIWV of the insulated base which the arrester is mounted on together with the permissible voltage at the counters terminals. Refer to the relevant installation instructions for details. It is worth remembering that long connection leads result in a disadvantage from the protection point of view since inductance drop adds to the protection level of the arrester. For this reason, connection leads should always be kept as short as possible. The surge impedance is not reduced by increased cross-section of the connection and the surge duration is very short; hence a large cross-section is not required on this account.

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Maximum fault currents must always be taken into consideration during arrester selection. In selecting cabling for a surge arrester, consideration should be given to the system short circuit currents and the thermal capacity of the cable and its insulation. If the cross-section is thermally insufficient to pass anticipated system shortcircuit current, the connection may be destroyed (melt) before the protection has operated to clear the fault. Connections to surge arresters in distribution systems are often made via 600/1000V PVC insulated copper cables. The temperature rating for this type of cable is generally V75, ie. 75 deg C. Two important factors should be considered before using this type of cable; especially in HV applications: Above 200 deg C, copper anneals and loses about 70 percent of its strength, thus compromising its ability to withstand short circuit forces. This increases the risk of breakage from whipping. Above 90 deg C, standard PVC softens. With an ambient temperature of 40 deg C, this permits only 50 deg C temperature rise. It begins to melt at 80 deg C temperature rise, at which point the risk of catching fire is very high.

Based on the above, the following connection is commonly used between arrester earth terminal and surge counter (in conjunction with ABBs 1HSA430 000 series insulated base): 1. Length: 0.5 to max 5.0 m (max 3m in the case of insulating base 1HSA430 000-P). Longer distances up to 10m could be used in certain circumstances case-by-case. Insulated cable or bare strip connected to structure via insulators. The LIWV of the cable or the insulators shall be at least 15 to 25 kVpeak Copper or aluminium or ACSR or galvanized steel. The cross-section should be approximately 25 - 50 mm2 (equivalent copper). To match the terminals on the surge counter, 150 mm2 (equivalent copper) is proposed. NOTE! An even higher value may be required, depending on local regulations/practice and consideration to the above regarding withstand of system short-circuit currents.

2. Type:

3. Material:

Even if the LIWV of the insulated cable and the insulated base are sufficient, this lead must be kept as short as practicable since its inductance-drop adds to the protective level of the arrester.

b) Connection between surge counter and earth The conductor between the counter and earth should be the same as other earthing conductors in the station and connected to the common HV earth grid. The crosssectional area and type is generally based on the system short-circuit current and duration or as per local regulations. However, whether or not this conductor is insulated has no account with regards to the registration of surges by the counter. This conductor should also be kept as short as practicable; especially critical in the case of EXCOUNT-I. For EXCOUNT-I, the conductor from the earth terminal of the counter to connection with the grounded support stand (point A in Figure 2) on to which the counter is attached (or similar support) shall not exceed 0.5 m. For example, Length B as shown in Figure 2. The earth conductor may be extended from the connection point at the support to any earth point if the support itself, due to local requirements, is not considered as sufficiently grounded. However, a flashover of the arrester base may occur if the total length (L+B in Figure 2) results in the LIWV as described above being exceeded and the counter may be damaged if the length B exceeds 0.5 m.

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