Book - Capacitive Current Interruption With High Voltage Disconnector Switch - Yajing Chai

Capacitive Cuiient Inteiiuption with
Bigh voltage Aiibieak Bisconnectois

PR0EFSCBRIFT

tei veikiijging van ue giaau van uoctoi aan ue
Technische 0niveisiteit Einuhoven, op gezag van ue
iectoi magnificus, piof.ui.ii. C.}. van Buijn, vooi een
commissie aangewezen uooi het College vooi
Piomoties in het openbaai te veiueuigen
op woensuag 14 maait 2u12 om 16.uu uui

uooi

Yajing Chai

geboien te Bubei, China

Bit pioefschiift is goeugekeuiu uooi ue piomotoi:

piof.ui.ii. R.P.P. Smeets

Copiomotoi:
ui. P.A.A.F. Wouteis

This pioject was funueu by the Butch Ninistiy of Economic Affaiis,
Agiicultuie anu Innovation in an I0PENvT piogiam.

A catalogue iecoiu is available fiom the Einuhoven 0niveisity
of Technology Libiaiy.

ISBN: 9789uS86Su977

To Nilo anu Ruiiui

Piomotoi:
piof.ui.ii. R.P.P. Smeets, Einuhoven 0niveisity of TechnologyKENA
Testing, Inspections & Ceitification

Copiomotoi:
ui. P.A.A.F. Wouteis, Einuhoven 0niveisity of Technology

Coie committee:
piof.ii. L. van uei Sluis, Belft 0niveisity of Technology
piof.uiing. v. Biniichsen, Baimstaut 0niveisity of Technology
piof.ui. E. Lomonova, Einuhoven 0niveisity of Technology

0thei membeis:
ui. B.F. Peelo, BF Peelo & Associates
piof.ii. W.L.Kling, Einuhoven 0niveisity of Technology
piof.ui.ii. A.C.P.N. Backx (chaiiman), Einuhoven 0niveisity of Technology

Summaiy i

Summary

As lowcost switching uevices in high voltage electiical powei supply system
uisconnectois basically have an insulation function only. Neveitheless, they have a
veiy limiteu capability to inteiiupt cuiient (below one Ampeie), e.g. fiom
unloaueu busbais oi shoit oveiheau lines. The piesent stuuy is a seaich foi
possibilities to inciease the cuiient inteiiuption capability with auxiliaiy uevices
inteiacting with the switching aic. In this pioject the state of the ait of
uisconnectoi switching is investigateu anu an inventoiy is piesenteu of mouels of
the fiee buining aic in aii. A seiies of expeiiments weie aiiangeu at uiffeient
laboiatoiies. The switching aic anu the inteiiuption piocess aie stuuieu in uetail
thiough electiical anu optical measuiements uuiing the switching piocess foi a
uisconnectoi with (without) auxiliaiy uevices unuei high voltage (u.S Su A,
Suu kv) conuitions. Thiee options foi auxiliaiy uevices weie investigateu: (i) aic
cooling by foiceu aii flow; (ii) fast inteiiupting by highvelocity opening contacts;
(iii) ieuuction of aic eneigy by auuing iesistive elements. Finally, a qualitative
uesciiption is pioviueu on the physical natuie of the aic anu how the evaluateu
methous affect the aic chaiacteiistics. All iesults aie obtaineu by analysis of high
iesolution measuiement of aic cuiient (incluuing all ielevant tiansients), voltages
acioss the uisconnectoi anu highspeeu viueo obseivation.

It was founu that, uepenuing on the cuiient to be inteiiupteu, the inteiiuption
piocess is goveineu by the uielectiic anuoi theimal piocesses.

In the uielectiic iegime, the inteiiupteu cuiient is low (ioughly below 1 A) anu
the switching aic is chaiacteiizeu by a high iate of iepetition of inteiiuptions anu
iestiikes that only cease aftei a sufficient gap spacing has been ieacheu. The ie
stiikes inteiact seveiely with the ciicuitiy in which the uisconnectoi is embeuueu,
exciting tiansients in cuiient anu voltage with fiequencies up to the megaheitz
iange. Bigh oveivoltages can be geneiateu. Theii magnituues can be limiteu by a
piopei choice of the capacitance at supply siue of the uisconnectoi. The aicciicuit
inteiaction has been stuuieu anu ielevant piocesses have been mouelleu anu
veiifieu by expeiiments in fullpowei testciicuits.

In the theimal iegime, the switching aic behaves less vehemently, inteiiupting
anu ieigniting basically occui at eveiy powei fiequency cuiient zeio. Because of
the piesence of sufficient theimal eneigy in the switching gap along the aic path,
the voltage to ieignite the aic is limiteu, anu the aicciicuit inteiaction is less
pionounceu. Though not piouucing veiy seveie oveivoltages, the aic uuiation is
longei anu the cuiient may not be inteiiupteu at eveiy cuiient zeio ciossing. The
ultimate theimal iegime is ieacheu when the aic continues to exist aftei powei
fiequency cuiient zeio without any appieciable voltage to ieignite. This situation
ii Summaiy

must be avoiueu because aicing goes on until a highei level bieakei inteiiupts the
cuiient. Befoie this, the aic can ieach fai away fiom its ioots anu can gieatly
ieuuce insulation cleaiance.

The main factois influencing the inteiiuption peifoimance aie the level of cuiient
to be inteiiupteu, the system voltage, the iatio of capacitances at both siues of the
uisconnectoi anu the gap length. These factois influence the eneigy supplieu to
the aic upon iestiike. This eneigy extenus the aicing time by loweiing the
bieakuown voltage. It has been obseiveu that the aic in its theimal moue always
ieignites in its foimei tiajectoiy. Key to the inteiiuption piocess is the ieuuction
of bieakuown voltage in this path, cieateu by hot gases iemaining fiom the foimei
aic. The existing bieakuown mouels aie ievieweu in oiuei to unueistanu the
influence of high tempeiatuie aii on the bieakuown piocess.

Baseu on the obseiveu aic behavioui, vaiious methous have been ieseaicheu to
inciease the inteiiuption capability.

The most successful methous aie those that iemove the iesiuual (paitially)
ionizeu aii fiom the aic path. Expeiiments weie caiiieu out to uemonstiate the
effectiveness of aii flow uiiecteu into the aics foot point. A substantial gain in
inteiiuption capability is uemonstiateu, but at the cost of geneiating ieignition
tiansients at a veiy iapiu succession. Specifically, the expeiiments showeu that
7.S A coulu be inteiiupteu successfully at 9u kvims voltage with a shoitei aicing
uuiation (a factoi of u.S was obseiveu) than without aii flow. With application of
aii flow, the fiequency of ieignitions occuiiing, anu the bieakuown voltage aie
much highei than without aii flow.

Anothei methou, the assistance of an auxiliaiy switch able to piouuce a veiy fast
opening, was also successful. Beiein, the aic is foiceu mechanically into ambient
cool aii, thus avoiuing accumulation of theimal eneigy in the aic path. Specifically,
it can inteiiupt cuiients up to 7 A at 1uu kvims safely anu 9 A at 9u kvims in the
expeiiments with aicing time only a few tens of milliseconus insteau of a few
seconus. The aic exhibits a "stiff" (lineai) chaiactei insteau of the "eiiatic"
(ianuomly moving) aic moue with a uisconnectoi alone. This methou ieuuces the
numbei of iestiikes.

The possible influence of eneigy absoibing elements (iesistois) is investigateu
thiough ciicuit mouelling, suppoiteu by some laboiatoiy expeiiments. 0thei
methous, such as the application of seiies auxiliaiy inteiiupting elements
(vacuum, SF
6
inteiiuptei anu ablation assisteu appioaches) have been evaluateu.

Fiom the piactical point of view, the auxiliaiy fastopening inteiiuptei is
iecommenueu uue to its economic, simple anu effective meiits. 0thei appioaches
have ceitain uisauvantages. The methou with aii flow neeus a complex
constiuction in oiuei to intiouuce the compiesseu aii flow into the uisconnectoi,
Summaiy iii

anu the hazaiu foi neaiby equipments fiom the oveivoltages causeu by the
inteiiuption is gieatei. The methou of inseiteu iesistoi iequiies veiy expensive
aiiangement. Regaiuing the application of auxiliaiy inteiiupteis, vacuum
inteiiupteis have to be applieu in consiueiable numbeis in seiies anu SF
6

inteiiupteis have goou peifoimance but at veiy high cost. An ablation assisteu
appioach seems less piomising because the level of the inteiiupteu cuiient is too
low to be effective.

iv Summaiy

Samenvatting v

Samenvatting

Scheiuingsschakelaais, of koitweg "scheiueis", zijn ielatief eenvouuige
schakelaais in hoogspanningsnetten uie in piincipe enkel een isoleienue functie
hebben. Niettemin bezitten ze een zeei bepeikt veimogen stiomen (tot ca. 1 A) te
onueibieken, zoals bijv. afkomstig van onbelaste iailsystemen of koite
hoogspanningslijnen. Beze stuuie bevat een onueizoek naai mogelijkheuen het
stioom onueibiekenu veimogen van scheiueis te veigioten met hulpmiuuelen uie
uiiect ingiijpen in ue schakelenue lichtboog. 0m te beginnen is ue stanu van ue
techniek op het gebieu van schakelen met scheiueis onueizocht en ei woiut een
oveizicht gegeven van het mouelleien van viij bianuenue lichtbogen in lucht.
Tevens is een seiie expeiimenten uitgevoeiu in uiveise laboiatoiia. Bieiin zijn ue
schakelenue lichtboog en het onueibiekingspioces in uetail bestuueeiu uooi
miuuel van elektiische en optische metingen geuuienue het schakelen onuei
hoogspanning (u.S Su A, Suu kv) met en zonuei hulpmiuuelen. Biie mogelijk
hulpmiuuelen zijn onueizocht: (i) koeling van ue lichtboog uooi beblazing met
een gefoiceeiue luchtstioom; (ii) onueibieking met zeei snelle contact sepaiatie
snelheiu; (iii) ieuuctie van lichtboog eneigie uooi toevoeging van iesistieve
componenten. Tot slot woiut een kwantitatieve beschiijving gegeven van ue
lichtboog en hoe ue boven beschieven methouen ingiijpen in uiveise
kaiakteiistieken van ue lichtboog.

Alle iesultaten zijn veikiegen met behulp van metingen met hoge iesolutie van
lichtboog stioom en spanning (inclusief hun tiansinten) alsmeue uooi
obseivatie met snelle viueo technieken.

Afhankelijk van ue giootte van ue te onueibieken stioom, woiut het
onueibiekingspioces gekenmeikt uooi uilektiische enof theimische piocessen.
In het uilektiische iegime is ue te onueibieken stioom klein (iuwweg beneuen
1 A) en ue scheiuei lichtboog woiut gekenmeikt uooi een zeei snelle
opeenvolging van onueibiekingen en heiontstekingen. Bit pioces stopt wanneei
voluoenue contactafstanu is beieikt. Als gevolg van ue heiontstekingen is ei een
heftige wisselweiking met het elektiische ciicuit waai ue scheiuei ueel van
uitmaakt. Beiontstekingen wekken uaaibij tiansinten op in zowel stioom als
spanning met fiequenties tot enkele megaheitz. Boge oveispanningen kunnen
hieibij optieuen. Be hoogte hieivan kan woiuen bepeikt uooi een juiste keuze
van capaciteit aan ue voeuenue zijue van ue scheiuei. Be wisselweiking tussen
lichtboog en ciicuit is bestuueeiu; ue ielevante piocessen zijn gemouelleeiu en
getoetst met expeiimenten in hoogveimogen bepioevingsciicuits.

In het theimische iegime geuiaagt ue lichtboog zich minuei heftig, onueibieekt
ue stioom en heiontsteekt in piincipe pas op ieueie nuluooigang van ue
netfiequente stioom. vanwege ue aanwezigheiu van voluoenue theimische
vi Samenvatting

eneigie in het lichtboog pau tussen ue contacten is ue spanning nouig om ue boog
te heiontsteken bepeikt en uaaimee is ue wisselweiking tussen lichtboog en
ciicuit minuei uitgespioken. Boewel ue oveispanningen bepeikt zijn, is ue
lichtbooguuui langei en woiut ue stioom niet bij ieueie netfiequente
nuluooigang onueibioken. Be meest uitgespioken theimische veischijningsvoim
is uie waaiin (bij veiueie veihoging van ue stioom) ue lichtboog bij elke
nuluooigang heiontsteekt zonuei meetbaie spanning. Beze situatie uient
veimeuen te woiuen omuat ue lichtboog in ueze situatie niet meei uooft en ue
stioom enkel nog uooi een veimogensschakelaai onueibioken kan woiuen.
Bieiaan vooiafgaanu kan ue lichtboog vei uitwaaieien en ue isolatie afstanu tot
anueie, onuei spanning staanue uelen in het station (te zeei) veikleinen.

Be belangiijkste factoien uie het onueibiekingspioces benvloeuen zijn ue hoogte
van ue te onueibieken stioom, ue netspanning, ue veihouuing van capaciteiten
tei weeiszijuen van ue scheiuei en ue momentane contactafstanu. Beze
paiameteis bepalen ue eneigie uie aan ue lichtboog woiut toegevoeiu op het
moment van heiontsteking. Beze eneigie veilengt ue lichtbooguuui uooiuat ueze
ue uooislagspanning ieuuceeit. 0it waaineming blijkt uat in het theimisch iegime
ue lichtboog heiontsteekt in het vooimalige lichtboog pau. Bieiuit woiut afgeleiu
uat ue essentie van het onueibiekingspioces ue ieuuctie van uooislagspanning
langs uit pau is. Beze ieuuctie woiut veiooizaakt uooi hete gassen en iest
ionisatie afkomstig van ue (voiige) lichtboog. vooi het begiijpen van ue piocessen
uie leiuen tot ieuuctie van uooislagspanning bij tempeiatuui veihoging van ue
lucht zijn ue bestaanue uooislag mouellen bestuueeiu.

0p basis van ue boven beschieven waainemingen van het onueibiekingpioces
zijn uiveise methouen onueizocht uie kunnen leiuen tot veigioting van het
stioom onueibiekenu veimogen van scheiueis.

Bet meest succesvol zijn methouen uie ue geueeltelijke geoniseeiue lucht
veiwijueien uit het vooimalige lichtboog pau. Expeiimenten zijn uitgevoeiu
waaiin ue effectiviteit bestuueeiu woiut van beblazing van ue voetpunten van ue
lichtboog met kouue lucht. Een significante veihoging van stioom onueibiekenu
veimogen woiut inueiuaau vastgestelu, echtei ten koste van ue geneiatie van
zeei snel opvolgenue en hoge heiontstekingen uie steile spanningfionten
geneieien. Be expeiimenten tonen aan uat bij een faseaaiue spanning van 9u kv
stiomen tot ca. 7.S A succesvol onueibioken woiuen met een Su% koiteie
lichtbooguuui uan zonuei beblazing.

Een anueie methoue bestaanue uit het gebiuik van zeei snel openue
hulpcontacten om uaaimee in zeei koite tiju een giote contactafstanu te
iealiseien, blijkt eveneens succesvol. 0p ueze wijze woiuen ue lichtboog
voetpunten zeei snel naai koele lucht getiokken waaiuooi een te giote
theimische eneigie uichtheiu vooikomen woiut. 0p ueze maniei kunnen stiomen
van 7 A (bij 1uu kv) en 9 A (bij 9u kv) onueibioken woiuen, teiwijl ue
Samenvatting vii

lichtbooguuui slechts enkele tientallen milliseconuen beuiaagt in plaats van
seconuen bij toepassing van conventionele contacten. Be uiteilijke
veischijningsvoim van ue boog veianueit hieibij van "uansenu" (opwaaits
bewegenu met vele uitstulpingen) naai "stiak" (iechtlijnig bianuenu als koitste
veibinuing tussen ue contacten). Bet aantal heiontstekingen blijft hiei mee ook
bepeikt.

0ok ue mogelijke invloeu van eneigie absoibeienue elementen (weeistanuen) is
onueizocht met mouelleiing, onueisteunu met enige laboiatoiium expeiimenten.
Alteinatieven, zoals het gebiuik van seiie geschakelue onueibiekeis (vacum,
SF
6
onueibiekeis en onueibieking gebaseeiu op ablatie) zijn gevalueeiu uit ue
liteiatuui.

Tei veigioting van het stioom onueibiekenu veimogen woiut vanuit piaktisch
oogpunt ue methoue met ue snelle hulpcontacten aanbevolen vanwege piestatie,
eenvouu en piijs. Anueie methouen hebben uuiuelijke nauelen. Beblazing met
lucht veieist een ingewikkelue constiuctie om gecompiimeeiue lucht in ue
nabijheiu van ue schakelenue contacten te biengen en heeft als bijkomenu naueel
ue geneiatie van steile spanningsfionten tijuens ue onueibieking. Bet aanbiengen
van weeistanuen veieist uuie aanpassingen. Bulp onueibiekeis in vacum of SF6
gas is effectief maai kostbaai en constiuctief ingewikkelu vanwege ue hoogte van
ue spanning uie seiie schakeling van elementen vaak nouig maakt. 0plossingen
met behulp van ablatie zijn minuei kansiijk omuat ue stioom hieivooi
waaischijnlijk te laag is.

viii Samenvatting

Contents ix

Contents

SUMMARY .................................................................................................................................. I
SAMENVATTING ..................................................................................................................... V
CONTENTS .............................................................................................................................. IX
CHAPTER 1 ............................................................................................................................... 1
HIGH VOLTAGE AIRBREAK DISCONNECTORS ............................................................. 1
1.1 BEFINITI0N 0F BISC0NNECT0RS .................................................................................................. 1
1.2 TYPE 0F BISC0NNECT0RS .............................................................................................................. 1
1.S INTERR0PTINu C0RRENT WITB BISC0NNECT0RS ...................................................................... S
1.4 STANBARBIZATI0N STAT0S ........................................................................................................... 4
1.S 0B}ECTIvE 0F TBESIS ..................................................................................................................... S
CHAPTER 2 ............................................................................................................................... 9
LITERATURE REVIEW ........................................................................................................... 9
2.1 AWARENESS 0F TBE CAPACITIvE C0RRENT INTERR0PTI0N WITB BISC0NNECT0RS ........... 9
2.2 F0NBANENTAL ASPECTS 0F CAPACITIvE C0RRENT INTERR0PTI0N .................................... 14
2.S TRANSIENTS CA0SEB BY CAPACITIvE C0RRENT INTERR0PTI0N .......................................... 16
2.4 APPR0ACBES T0 ENBANCE TBE INTERR0PTI0N CAPABILITY ............................................... 17
2.S ARC N0BELS RELATEB T0 C0RRENT INTERR0PTI0N WITB A BISC0NNECT0R .................. 26
2.6 C0NCL0SI0N ................................................................................................................................. 29
CHAPTER 3 ............................................................................................................................ 35
BASIC CIRCUIT ANALYSIS ................................................................................................. 35
S.1 TBE INTERR0PTI0N PR0CESS ..................................................................................................... SS
S.2 TBREEC0NP0NENTS ANALYSIS ................................................................................................ S7
S.S SIN0LATI0N 0F RESTRIKES ....................................................................................................... 41
S.4 RESTRIKE TRANSIENTS IN BISTRIB0TEB ELENENT L0AB CIRC0ITS ................................... 4S
S.S C0NCL0SI0N ................................................................................................................................. 4S
CHAPTER 4 ............................................................................................................................ 47
EXPERIMENTAL SETUP ..................................................................................................... 47
4.1 BIuB v0LTAuE S00RCE ............................................................................................................... 47
4.2 NEAS0RENENT SYSTEN .............................................................................................................. S1
4.S BISC0NNECT0R NAIN BLABES 0PENINu vEL0CITY ................................................................ S7
4.4 C0NCL0SI0N ................................................................................................................................. S9

x Contents

CHAPTER 5 ............................................................................................................................ 61
CURRENT INTERRUPTION MECHANISM ..................................................................... 61
S.1 EXPERINENTAL 0BSERvATI0NS ................................................................................................ 61
S.2 ARC INTERR0PTI0N CBARACTERISTICS .................................................................................... 69
S.S BISC0NNECT0R C0NTACTS SPACINu ......................................................................................... 7S
S.4 RESTRIKE v0LTAuE .................................................................................................................... 76
S.S ELECTRICAL ARC CBARACTERISTICS ......................................................................................... 8u
S.6 ENERuY INP0T INT0 TBE ARC .................................................................................................... 82
S.7 TRANSIENTS 0P0N RESTRIKE ................................................................................................... 8S
S.8 C0NCL0SI0N ................................................................................................................................. 88
S.9 REC0NNENBATI0N F0R STANBARBIZATI0N ........................................................................... 9u
CHAPTER 6 ............................................................................................................................ 91
INTERRUPTION WITH AIR FLOW ASSISTANCE ......................................................... 91
6.1 EXPERINENTAL SET0P ................................................................................................................ 91
6.2 EFFECT 0F AIR FL0W 0N ARCINu ............................................................................................... 92
6.S INTERR0PTI0N BATA ANALYSIS ................................................................................................. 97
6.4 C0NCL0SI0N ............................................................................................................................... 1uS
CHAPTER 7 .......................................................................................................................... 107
HIGHVELOCITY OPENING AUXILIARY INTERRUPTER ........................................ 107
7.1 0PERATINu PRINCIPLE .............................................................................................................. 1u7
7.2 EXPERINENTAL SET0P .............................................................................................................. 1u8
7.S 0vERvIEW 0F TBE EXPERINENTAL RES0LTS ........................................................................ 1u9
7.4 RESTRIKE v0LTAuE .................................................................................................................. 114
7.S ENERuY INP0T INT0 TBE ARC .................................................................................................. 117
7.6 C0NCL0SI0N ANB REC0NNENBATI0N ................................................................................... 12u
CHAPTER 8 .......................................................................................................................... 123
INTERRUPTION WITH INSERTED RESISTORS ......................................................... 123
8.1 SERIES RESIST0R ........................................................................................................................ 12S
8.2 PARALLEL RESIST0R .................................................................................................................. 128
8.S BISC0SSI0N ................................................................................................................................. 1Su
CHAPTER 9 .......................................................................................................................... 133
PREBREAKDOWN PHENOMENA IN DISCONNECTOR INTERRUPTION ........... 133
9.1 CLASSICAL N0BELLINu 0F BREAKB0WN ................................................................................ 1SS
9.2 PREBREAKB0WN C0RRENT IN BISC0NNECT0R INTERR0PTI0N ....................................... 1S7
9.S BISC0SSI0N ................................................................................................................................. 1S8

Contents xi

CHAPTER 10 ........................................................................................................................ 141
CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS FOR FUTURE RESEARCH ............... 141
1u.1 C0NCL0SI0NS ........................................................................................................................... 141
1u.2 PR0P0SEB F0T0RE RESEARCB .............................................................................................. 146
PUBLICATIONS RELATED TO THIS WORK ................................................................ 147
NOMENCLATURE ............................................................................................................... 149
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT ..................................................................................................... 153
CURRICULUM VITAE ........................................................................................................ 155

xii Contents

Bigh voltage Aiibieak Bisconnectois 1

Chapter 1

High Voltage Airbreak Disconnectors

1.1 Definition of disconnectors

Bigh voltage uisconnectois aie commonly useu switching uevices in powei
substations. Accoiuing to the Inteinational Electiotechnical vocabulaiy IEv
numbei 44114uS |1j, the uefinition of a uisconnectoi (BS) is: "A mechanical
switching uevice, which pioviues, in the open position, an isolating uistance in
accoiuance with specifieu iequiiements". In IEEE stanuaiu CS7.1uu1992 |2j,
insteau of the teim "uisconnectoi", the teims "uisconnecting", "uisconnect switch"
oi "isolatoi" aie useu, uefineu as "A mechanical switching uevice useu foi
changing the connections in a ciicuit, oi foi isolating a ciicuit oi equipment fiom
the souice of powei." Both uefinitions aie similai. They uefine that the piinciple
function of BSs is to pioviue electiical anu visible isolation fiom the system. In
auuition, they must open anu close ieliably, caiiy cuiient continuously without
oveiheating, anu iemain in the closeu position unuei fault cuiient conuitions |Sj.
The uisconnection geneially coveis two aspects |4j:
Bisconnection ielateu to oiuinaiy uaily opeiation of the system.
Bisconnection ielateu to maintenance of tiansmission lines oi substation
equipment such as tiansfoimeis, ciicuit bieakeis, capacitoi banks anu so on.
Foi powei system, peisonnel safety piactices noimally iequiie a visible
bieak as a point of isolation. An open BS meets this iequiiement.

1.2 Type of disconnectors

BSs in uas Insulateu Substations aie out of the scope of this thesis. 0nly high
voltage BSs in the atmospheiic aii aie stuuieu. The Bv aiibieak BS comes in a
vaiiety of types anu mounting aiiangements. The most common foui
configuiations aie: veiticalbieak, centiebieak, uoublebieak, anu pantogiaph
type. They can be mounteu in vaiious oiientations, uepenuing on the space
offeieu by the substation |Sj, |4j.

The veiticalbieak BS is piesenteu in Figuie 1.1 (left). This type of BS is highly
suitable in icy enviionments thanks to its iotating blaues uesign. Its contact uesign
allows foi application in installations wheie high fault cuiient situations may
occui. The active paits of this type BS aie the hinge enu assembly, the blaue, anu
the jaw enu assembly. The smallei of the two insulatois at the left iotates anu
iives the blaue to open oi close. It is usually hoiizontally mounteu as shown in

2 Chaptei 1

Figure 1.1. (left) A threephase verticalbreak DS mounted horizontally in a closed position
(Courtesy of HAPAM B.V.); (right) centrebreak DS in a closed position (Courtesy of Siemens).

Figuie 1.1 (left). It can also be veitically mounteu, i.e. the blaue is veitically
oiienteu in closeu position. The veiticalbieak BS iequiies minimum phase
spacing.

An example of a centiebieak BS is illustiateu in Figuie 1.1 (iight). This type BS is
useu mainly in locations with low oveiheau cleaiances. Bowevei, it iequiies
laigei phase spacing than a veiticalbieak BS. The active paits consist of two
blaues, uisconnecting at the centie. Both insulatois iotate in a veitical plane to
open oi close the BS.

A uoublebieak BS is a vaiiation of a centiebieak type anu is shown in Figuie 1.2
(left). The active paits aie two jaw assemblies, one at each enu, anu a iotating
blaue. The centie insulatoi iotates to open oi close the BS. They can be installeu in
minimum oveiheau cleaiance locations anu iequiie minimum phase spacing.
Theii fielu of application incluues icy enviionments uue to the iotating blaues
uesign anu installations in high fault cuiient locations uue to the contact uesign.
This uesign pioviues foi two gaps pei phase, allowing to inteiiupt significantly
highei cuiient than the singlebieak type BSs |Sj, |4j. This is because the system
voltage is uistiibuteu acioss two gaps.

The pantogiaph BS type, shown in Figuie 1.2 (iight), is useu woiluwiue (but only
occasionally in Noith Ameiica) foi Extia Bigh voltage application, S4S8uu kv.
The active paits consist of a fixeu contacts aiiangement attacheu to the busbai at
the top, a scissoi type blaue anu a hinge assembly at the bottom. The smallei one
of the two insulatois iotates to open oi close the BS. This type BS noimally
pioviues tiansitions fiom high to low busbais, togethei with pioviuing visible
sepaiation at the same time. This methou iequiies the least space.

Bigh voltage Aiibieak Bisconnectois S

Figure 1.2. (left) Doublebreak DS in an open position; (right) pantograph DS in a closed
position (Courtesy of HAPAM B.V).

1.3 Interrupting current with disconnectors

Bisconnectois uisconnect unloaueu ciicuits in oiuei to accomplish visible
isolation. Bowevei, they aie opeiateu unuei eneigizeu conuitions anu will
theiefoie inteiiupt some cuiient. The magnituue of this cuiient uepenus on the
specific situations. Although BSs uo not have any cuiient inteiiuption iating, they
uo have a ceitain inteiiupting capability, but it is limiteu uue to theii slowly
moving contacts. 0vei the yeais BSs have been applieu to inteiiupt tiansfoimei
excitation cuiients, capacitive cuiients fiom shoit lengths of bus, cable oi
oveiheau line anu small loau cuiients. In this case, veiy small cuiient is
inteiiupteu against full system iecoveiy voltage (Rv). Anothei majoi application
is bus tiansfei switching. In this case, often the full loau cuiient has to be
tiansfeiieu into a paiallel path. Because of many uiffeient conuitions unuei which
the BSs must inteiiupt cuiients, no inteiiupting iatings aie assigneu |Sj.

The main applications wheie a cuiient is to be inteiiupteu aie |4j:

Tiansfoimei magnetizing cuiient
It is also calleu excitation cuiient. The cuiient is usually less than 2 A, often less
than 1 A at 1uu% excitation voltage, foi touays tiansfoimeis. The cuiient is
geneially uesciibeu in teims of an equivalent RNS value ueiiveu fiom the coie
loss measuiement by the manufactuiei.

Capacitive cuiient
This cuiient, also calleu chaiging cuiient, aiises fiom connecteu shoit busbais,
shoit unloaueu tiansmission line, instiument tiansfoimeis anu othei elements
having stiay capacitance. They act as a capacitive loau. The typical iange of these
cuiients foi station aiibieak equipment is shown in Table 1.1 |6j.

4 Chaptei 1

Table 1.1 Typical capacitive cuiient iange in outuooi substations (Su Bz).

Loop cuiient
Loops aie cieateu when the BS commutes oi tiansfeis cuiient fiom one ciicuit,
such as a busbai oi tiansmission line, to a paiallel ciicuit. The loop cuiient can
ieach up to the full loau cuiient in piactice. This cuiient has to be switcheu
against a veiy low voltage (the voltage acioss the paiallel path) |4j.

1.4 Standardization status

A small cuiient inteiiuption capability of the BSs has been iecognizeu by both
IEEE anu IEC stanuaius. In the IEC stanuaiu |7j, apait fiom the uefinition anu
basic function of the BS, the cuiient inteiiupting capability is auuiesseu in thiee
notes:

NOTE 1: A disconnector is capable of opening and closing a circuit when either negligible
current is broken or made, or when no significant change in the voltage across the terminals
of each of the poles of the disconnector occurs.

NOTE 2: "Negligible current" implies currents such as the capacitive currents of bushings,
busbars, connections, very short lengths of cable, currents of permanently connected grading
impedances of circuitbreakers and currents of voltage transformers and dividers. For rated
voltages of 420 kV and below, a current not exceeding 0.5 A is a negligible current for the
purpose of this definition; for rated voltage above 420 kV and currents exceeding 0.5 A, the
manufacturer should be consulted.

NOTE 3: For a disconnector having a rated voltage of 52 kV and above, a rated ability of bus
transfer current switching may be assigned.

Similaily in the IEEE stanuaiu |8j, the following note is maue:

NOTE: It is required to carry normal load current continuously, and also abnormal or short
circuit currents for short intervals as specified. It is also required to open or close circuits
either when negligible current is broken or made, or when no significant change in the voltage
across the terminals of each of the switch poles occurs.

An eailiei veision of the IEEE stanuaiu uiu incluue the following note anu
inuicateu the thiee types of cuiient without explanation |9j.

Equipment
Capacitive current (A)
72.S kv 14S kv 24S kv Suu kv 42u kv SSu kv
CT u.u4 u.u4 u.u4 u.uS u.u8 u.1
CvT (4 F) u.uS u.11 u.18 u.22 u.S u.4
Busbaism 1.71u
4
u.S21u
S
u.S41u
S
u.661u
S
u.841u
S
1.1 1u
S

Bigh voltage Aiibieak Bisconnectois S

NOTE: A disconnecting switch and a horngap switch have no interrupting rating. However, it
is recognized that they may be required to interrupt the charging current of adjacent buses,
supports and bushings. Under certain conditions, they may interrupt other relatively low
currents, such as:
1. Transformer magnetizing current.
2. Charging currents of lines depending on length, voltage, insulation and other local
conditions.
3. Small load currents.

Apait fiom the above iecognition, theie aie no stanuaius oi iequiieu iatings foi
the cuiient inteiiuption by BSs. Both stanuaius only iefei to the cuiient
capability of the BS, anu both use the woiu "negligible" to qualify the small
cuiient. Both point out the potential cuiient types anu the possible souice, which
causes these small cuiients. The uiffeience between the two stanuaius is that the
IEC stanuaiu uefines the meaning of "negligible cuiient" anu quantifies the
coiiesponuing cuiient levels, wheieas the IEEE stanuaiu uoes not. Refeience |6j
gave the typical iange of these cuiients foi station aiibieak equipment fiom
72.S kv to 12uu kv. This is the newest IEC technical iepoit, ieleaseu in 2uu9,
which uesciibes the capacitive cuiient switching uuty foi high voltage aiibieak
BSs foi iateu voltages above S2 kv anu pioviues guiuance on laboiatoiy testing to
uemonstiate the switching capability. This is also the fiist time to pioviue an
analysis of the switching uuty anu to uefine testing pioceuuies.

1.5 Objective of thesis

Among these thiee main applications of cuiient inteiiuption using BSs, loop
cuiient inteiiuption has been investigateu in uetail in |4j. As compaieu to
inuuctive cuiient (excitation cuiient) anu iesistive cuiient switching, a capacitive
cuiient is a moie challenging to inteiiupt because of the tiappeu chaige
iemaining on the loau to be switcheu (Chapteis S, S). In the IEEE stanuaiu |8j, the
essential uiffeience between capacitive cuiient anu excitation cuiient is pointeu
out as:

"This type of capacitive interruption is similar to excitation current interruption in which
there is a succession of interruptions near zero current, each followed by restrikes. The
difference between the two types of interruptions is that for each capacitive current
interruption, a charge is more likely to be retained by the capacitive device. Each of these
trapped charges creates an additive bias voltage that increases the probability of restriking
across the open gap of the switch 1/2cycle later when the source voltage has reversed its
polarity. Consequently, longer arc reaches have been experienced when switching capacitive
currents than when switching excitation currents. "

Ceitainly compaieu with switching on the capacitive cuiient with BSs, switching
off (inteiiupting) capacitive cuiient is a moie seveie task.

6 Chaptei 1

It was mentioneu that a socalleu "negligible cuiient" uoes not exceeu u.S A foi
iateu voltages of 42u kv anu below. In the past, the cuiient inteiiupting capability
of aiibieak BSs theiefoie has been taken as u.S A oi less. Bowevei, at piesent
with the fast uevelopment of powei netwoiks, useis iequiiement foi small
capacitive cuiient inteiiuption using aiibieak BSs is fiequently highei uue to
complexity of the netwoik oi financial ieasons. The subject of this thesis
"Inteiiuption of capacitive cuiient by Bv aiibieak uisconnectois" auuiesses the
challenging task of inteiiupting ielatively laige capacitive cuiients (up to few tens
of ampeies).

Capacitive cuiient inteiiuption with a BS consists micioscopically of a succession
of inteiactive events between the powei ciicuit anu the AC aic with a iepetitive
sequence of inteiiuptions, ieignitionsiestiikes. The aic ieestablishment is
chaiacteiizeu in teims of oscillations anu tiansients of cuiient anu voltage,
iecoveiy voltage. The inteiiuption piocess is chaiacteiizeu in teims of aic
uuiation, aic ieach (peipenuiculai uistance of outeimost aic position to a line
connecting the contacts), aic type (iepetitive oi continuous), aic biightness,
eneigy input into the aic, anu so foith.

This uisseitation will paiticulaily focus on:

The piinciple mechanism of the capacitive cuiient inteiiuption using Bv aii
bieak BSs. It incluues the tiansient voltage anu cuiient, eneigy input of the
ciicuit, iestiike voltage, etc.

The phenomena of the switching aic, incluuing uiffeient featuies, such as aic
voltage, aic cuiient anu othei physical chaiacteiistics such as aic biightness,
aic length, aic uuiation, aic ieach, aic height, baseu on the analysis of uata
fiom optical anu electiical expeiiments.

Influencing factois on the tiansient anu aic phenomena, which incluue the
iatio of the souice anu loau siue capacitances, powei supply voltage, cuiient
level to be inteiiupteu anu iestiike voltage fiom the electiical siue. Fiom the
physical siue, the influences of (foiceu) aic cooling anu (foiceu) elongation
aie analyzeu expeiimentally.

The bieakuown voltage anu the piebieakuown mechanism in the aii uuiing
the numeious ieignitions anu iestiikes.

Appioaches to enhance the inteiiuption capability.

i. An aii flow system assisting aic quenching
ii. Auxiliaiy highvelocity contacts
iii. Inseition of iesistois into the ciicuit
iv. 0thei appioaches (uiscussion only)
Bigh voltage Aiibieak Bisconnectois 7

The ieseaich is caiiieu out baseu on expeiiments in uiffeient laboiatoiies.
Bevelopment anu pieliminaiy expeiiments aie uone at the high voltage
laboiatoiy of Einuhoven 0niveisity of Technology. Full scale tests aie peifoimeu
at KENA Bigh Powei Laboiatoiies in Ainhem anu Piague. The test object BSs aie
supplieu by BAPAN B.v., the Netheilanus.

References

|1j IEv numbei 44114uS, |onlinej.
Available:http:stu.iec.chieviev.nsfuisplay.openfoim&ievief=44114uS.
|2j IEEE Standard Definitions for Power Switchgear, IEEE Stanuaiu CS7.1uu1992, 0ct.
1992.
|Sj }. B. NcBonalu, Electric Power Substations Engineering, Lonuon: CRC piess, 2uu7.
|4j B. F. Peelo, "Cuiient inteiiuption using high voltage aiibieak uisconnectois", Ph.B.
uisseitation, Bept. Electiical Engineeiing, Einuhoven 0niv. of Technology, Einuhoven,
2uu4.
|Sj IEEE uuiue to Current Interruption with HornGap Air Switches, Ameiican National
Stanuaiu (ANSI) IEEE Stanuaiu CS7.S6b199u, }ul. 199u.
|6j IEC Technical Repoit IECTR 62271SuS, "Bigh voltage switchgeai anu contiolgeai
Pait SuS: Capacitive cuiient switching capability of aiiinsulateu uisconnectois foi
iateu voltages above S2 kv", Nov. 2uu9.
|7j IEC Standard on "High voltage switchgear and control gearPart 102: Alternating
current disconnectors and earthing switches", IEC 622711u2, Bec. 2uu1.
|8j IEEE Standard Definitions and Requirements for High Voltage air switches, insulators,
and bus supports, Ameiican National Stanuaiu (ANSI) IEEE Stanuaiu CS7.S0h1978,
}un. 1978.
|9j American National Standard Definitions and Requirements for High voltage Air Switches,
Insulators, and Bus Supports, Ameiican National Stanuaiu (ANSI) IEEE Stanuaiu
CS7.Su1971, Api. 1971.

8 Chaptei 1

Liteiatuie Review 9

Chapter 2

Literature Review

Fiom the huge numbei of publications on uevices applieu in powei systems, theie
appeais to exist only a limiteu amount of papeis on aiibieak BSs. Especially, only
a few of them aie actually conceineu with the phenomena ielateu to faiily small
capacitive cuiient inteiiuption with BSs in high voltage systems. The ieview
piesenteu in this chaptei is baseu on selecteu papeis (paitly) ielateu to
inteiiuption of small capacitive cuiient. In paiticulai this chaptei will involve five
topics:
Engineeiing guiuelines on cuiient inteiiuption with aiibieak BSs.
Funuamental aspects of capacitive cuiient inteiiuption with a stanualone
BS (i.e. without any auxiliaiy uevices to aiu inteiiuption).
Tiansients causeu by BS switching.
Appioaches to impiove capacitive cuiient inteiiupting capability of the BS.
Possible aic mouels ielateu to the cuiient topic.

2.1 Awareness of the capacitive current interruption with disconnectors

F. E. Anuiews et al. belongeu to the eailiest authois on the fielu of cuiient
inteiiuption with aiibieak BSs. They caiiieu out numeious laboiatoiy tests on
tiansfoimei excitation cuiient, loop cuiient switching at SS kv level anu line
uiopping at 1S2 kv using BSs with hoingap on the Public Seivice Company of
Noithein Illinois, 0SA, in the 194us. The iesults weie publisheu in a thesis |1j anu
in a subsequent papei |2j. A typical hoin gap uevice (also calleu aicing hoin) is
shown in Figuie 2.1. The hoin gap noimally acts as the last point of metaltometal
contact on the BS when opening. Thus the aic buins between the aicing hoin
iathei than between the main blaues of the BS. The goal of these tests was to finu
the coiielation between the voltage acioss the BS aftei switching off anu the
inteiiupteu cuiient on one hanu, anu the aic length, ieach on the othei hanu. The
aic length was uefineu as the complete length of the iiiegulai path followeu by the
aic. The aic ieach was uefineu as the uistance fiom a point miuway between the
blaue enus to the most iemote point of the aic at the time of its maximum length
(see Figuie 2.2). It was iecognizeu that the aic length scaleu piopoitional to the
aic voltage. The main attention was paiu to "aic ieach", since it was consiueieu to
be moie significant than the "aic length" in switching opeiations if the phaseto
phase anu phasetogiounu cleaiance weie consiueieu |2j. Foi this ieason the aic
ieach has been taken as a measuie to pioviue a ciiteiion foi switching cleaiance.

1u Chaptei 2

Figure 2.1. Arcing horn mounted on a verticalbreak DS (copied from [50]).

Figure 2.2. Definition of arc reach and length according to Andrews et al. [2].

The oveiall iesults plotteu in Figuie 2.S, copieu fiom |2j, piesent the aic ieach in
teims of "feet pei kilovolt" as a function of initial inteiiupteu cuiient. Fiom the
iesults, the ciitical limits uesciibeu the "Limit of the Piobable Reach" (LPR) of the
aic, weie ueiiveu foi excitation cuiient anu loop cuiient inteiiuption:

LPR = S.uSU
oc
I, when u< I <1uu A (2.1)
LPR = SuSU
oc
, when 1uu I < S2u A

wheie LPR is in millimeties, U
oc
the voltage acioss the BS aftei switching off is in
kilovolts of ims, anu I is the initial inteiiupteu cuiient in ampeie of ims. The LPR
foi cuiient levels below 1uu A was confiimeu by latei liteiatuie |Sj|6j. In
paiticulai, |Sj anu |4j confiimeu that (2.1) was valiu foi inteiiupting a
magnetizing cuiient of 1.7S A at 242 kv, anu foi cuiients of up to 9 A at voltages
up to 7SS kv iespectively. In |Sj anu |6j it was stateu that theie was goou
agieement between the iesults anu (2.1). Equation (2.1) has been fiequently citeu
by utilities anu BSs manufactuies latei on, anu is also incluueu in the Stanuaiu
IEEE CS7.S6b199u |7j.

Liteiatuie Review 11

Figure 2.3. Arc reach per kilovolt as a function of the interrupted current, copied from [2].

The test on the capacitive cuiient inteiiuption, peifoimeu in |2j, showeu it was
safe to uiop a 27 km line (about 7 A chaiging cuiient) at 1S2 kv foi a S m
hoiizontal phase spacing owing to a favouiable oblique winu. In auuition, it was
pointeu out the aic ieach fiom the capacitive cuiient inteiiuption was cleaily
laigei than that fiom the excitation anu loop cuiient inteiiuption obseiveu in the
laboiatoiy tests. Consequently, foi the voltage useu foi the calculation of the aic
ieach fiom inteiiupting capacitive cuiient piobably value twice of the actual
voltage was taken. No fuithei infoimation on this issue was pioviueu.

Two AIEE committee iepoits, which aie citeu fiequently, aie of inteiest |8j, |9j.
The initial goal of the stuuy iepoiteu in |8j was to investigate the tiansfoimei
magnetizing cuiient anu its effect on ielaying anu BS opeiation. In auuition, the
inteiiuption of (capacitive) oveiheau line chaiging cuiient by a hoingap was
suiveyeu in 1949 by uistiibution of a questionnaiie to 2Su utilities, of which S9
iesponueu. The main iesults aie piesenteu in Figuie 2.4. About 7u% of the
iesponses inuicateu 1uu% success with a limiteu cuiient iange (e.g. 22 A at 66 kv,
1S A at 118 kv).

A moie iecent suivey on line anu cable chaiging cuiient inteiiuption with BSs
was maue in 1962 amongst 71 utilities to collect the opeiating piactice anu
expeiience of utilities |9j, the iesults of which aie shown in Figuie 2.S anu 2.6.

In Figuie 2.S the utility iesponses weie uiviueu into thiee categoiies, stating
1uu% successful, 9u99% successful, anu less than 9u% successful opeiations in
line chaiging cuiient inteiiuption. Foi cable chaiging inteiiuption (Figuie 2.6) all
opeiations iepoiteu weie successful, but the total numbei of opeiations was veiy
small (only 12 opeiations weie iepoiteu).

12 Chaptei 2

Figure 2.4. Interruption of overhead line charging current by a horngap DS (copied from
[8]). Note: : signifies 100% successful operation; o: signifies 90%99% successful operation;
: signifies 75%80% successful operation.

Figure 2.5. Company experiences reported on the use of airbreak DS for interruption of line
charging current. Note: : grounded100% successful, : grounded90%99% successful, X:
companies using quickbreak or other similar devices. (Quickbreak, or "whip" is an auxiliary
device to aid arc quenching, see Chapter 7). grounded means grounded wye system (copied
from [9]).

The AIEE iepoits weie the eailiest thoiough suiveys, which weie caiiieu out so
fai to the best knowleuge of the authoi of this thesis. It was founu that most of the
utilities anu companies uiu use the aiibieak BSs to inteiiupt capacitive cuiient at
system voltage lowei than 1S8 kv in the 19Sus. It was iepoiteu that most
companies uiu not have any guiue foi geneial use except pievious expeiiences.
Some of them useu manufactuieis uata, anu otheis useu (2.1) as a guiue.
Liteiatuie Review 1S

Figure 2.6. Company experiences reported on the use of airbreak DSs for interruption of
cable charging current. Note: : grounded100% successful; o: ungrounded100% successful
(copied from [9]).

As fiom the miu 198us most impoitant contiibutions aie fiom Peelo |6j, |1uj|1Sj.
In his eailiei papeis |1uj anu |11j, the cuiient inteiiupting capability of BSs was
analyzeu by consiueiing the given phase spacing, aic ieach (baseu on the equation
fiom F.E Anuiews et al. |2j).

LPR = 2.7SS.uSU
oc
I (2.2)

Beie LPR is the aic ieach in mm, U
oc
is the voltage in kilovolt (ims) acioss switch
aftei inteiiuption, anu I is the inteiiupteu cuiient in ampeie (ims). Compaieu
with (2.1), a factoi of 2.7S was intiouuceu. This value came fiom the test iesults
iepoiteu in |2j anu |4j. Baseu on (2.2), safe maximum capacitive cuiient levels
that can be inteiiupteu weie calculateu anu compaieu with actual cuiients to be
inteiiupteu. A ciiteiion foi the application of BSs fiom a cuiient inteiiupting
point of view was also pioviueu in Table 2.1.

Baseu mainly on the iesults fiom Anuiews |2j anu Peelo |1uj, the IEEE guiue foi
BS to inteiiupt capacitive cuiient iatings was publisheu in 199u |7j. In this guiue,

Table 2.1: Naximum capacitive cuiient levels foi safe inteiiupting by aiibieak BSs. Note:
d is the uiffeience between the minimum metaltometal phasetophase cleaiance, dr is
the maximum allowable aic ieach, Ic is maximum cuiient to be inteiiupteu safely (copieu
fiom |11j).

Maximum
system
voltage (kV)
d (m) dr (m) Ic (A)
1S.u u.S1 u.22 1.84
27.S u.S8 u.22 1.u2
72.S u.79 u.S7 u.6S
14S.u 1.SS u.S2 u.4S
2SS.u 2.26 u.81 u.4u
SSu.u 4.Su 2.2u u.Su
14 Chaptei 2

iecommenuations foi system voltage up to S62 kv aie given ielateu to: minimum
phase spacing to giounueu objects (oi hoingap switchphase spacing), calculateu
aic ieach anu maximum opeiation voltage, safe capacitive cuiients to be
inteiiupteu with veiticalbieak BS equippeu with aicing hoins anu mounteu in
hoiizontal upiight position.

In auuition, in 2uu1 IEC also publisheu a stanuaiu |14j, wheie it uefines that the
BS is supposeu to be able to uisconnect a "negligible" cuiient (i.e. less than u.S A)
at system voltage below 42u kv. Baseu on the woik of Peelo anu Smeets, IEC
62271SuS (2uu9) Bigh voltage switchgeai anu contiolgeaiPait SuS: Capacitive
cuiient switching capability of aiiinsulateu BSs foi iateu voltages above S2 kv
was ieleaseu. Two alteinatives ciicuits foi test aie iecommenueu foi capacitive
cuiient inteiiuption with a BS in the laboiatoiy.

Summaiizing this subsection, alieauy tens of yeais ago it was iecognizeu thiough
fielu expeiience, suiveys of utilities anu powei companies that a BS is able to
inteiiupt the capacitive cuiient. Piincipally, baseu on the woik of Anuiews anu
Peelo, the IEEE guiue incluues the maximum capacitive cuiient to be inteiiupteu
safely by veitical BSs (see Table 2.1). The IEC stanuaiu, howevei, also states the
cuiient limitation, being u.S A foi below 42u kv, but without suppoiting
infoimation. A test ciicuit foi BS on the capacitive cuiient inteiiuption is
pioposeu.

2.2 Fundamental aspects of capacitive current interruption

Nost liteiatuie souices iefeiieu in the pievious subsection ueal with cuiient
inteiiuption fiom the point of view of the inteiiupteu cuiient level thiough
expeiiments anu suiveys. The liteiatuie citeu in this subsection uesciibes the
involvement of the ciicuit, e.g. by investigating the factois affecting the
inteiiuption capability |1Sj|2uj.

The laboiatoiy expeiiments of Knobloch on inteiiupting capacitive cuiients
uesciibeu in |1Sj weie caiiieu out using a pantogiaph BS with iateu voltage
24S kv. It was concluueu that both the souice anu loau siue capacitances play a
iole uuiing the opeiations. Buiing the inteiiuption, in the voltage anu cuiient
wave shapes, tiansients of two uistinct fiequencies weie obseiveu, i.e. a low
fiequency (specific uata was not pioviueu) anu a highfiequency (7Su kBz
appioximately). In |1Sj all BS tests succeeueu in switching off 1 A capacitive
cuiient ieliably.

A papei by Boehne |16j was piobably the fiist to be specifically ielateu to small
capacitive cuiient inteiiuption using a BS to stuuy tiansients in EBv systems.
This papei analyses the fielu peifoimance of EBv BS opeiations at 4uu kv anu
SuS kv in the Pennsylvania Electiic Company, thiough computei simulation. It
piesents mouelling stuuy of vaiious phenomena associateu with inteiiupting

small capacitive cuiients in aii with a BS. Paiticulai attention was given to the
cuiient anu voltage tiansient magnituues as a function of bus NvA iating, switch
iesistance (a iesistoi in seiies with the BS) anu the capacitive loau. Specifically,
the simulations coveieu nine NvAvalues (Suu2Suu NvA), seven values of the
inteiiupteu cuiient (u.2S A, u.S A, 1 A, 2 A, S A, 4 A, S A), anu foui sepaiate
iesistoi values (2Su , Suu , 1uuu , 2uuu ). The iesults incluueu the line
cuiient, bus voltage anu its iate of change, line voltage, anu the aic voltage. The
main conclusions weie: the oveivoltage was highei foi uisconnecting a smallei
bus bai (in teims of NvA) than a laigei bus bai; the iate of switching oveivoltage
iise coulu ieach values in the oiuei of Suu kvs; two natuial fiequencies weie
piesent in the voltage anu cuiient uuiing the inteiiuption; the aic voltage anu the
switching iesistance can ieauily assist to ieuuce the oveivoltage below 2.u p.u.
(the iatio of the tiansient voltage anu amplituue of the phasetogiounu voltage).

A pioject was initiateu in 1984 at ueoigia Powei Company |17j to ueteimine the
influence of paiallel lines anu lineconuuctoi configuiation on the chaiging
cuiient of 11S kv lines, which weie switcheu off with an aiibieak BS. A total of
five types of centiebieak anu polemounteu BSs, to ueeneigize a section of
11S kv lines weie investigateu by computei simulation as well as by fielu tests.
Seveial lineconuuctoi configuiations anu paiallel line aiiangements weie
incluueu. The iesults inuicateu that paiallel lines hau a negligible effect on values
of the chaiging cuiient. Bowevei, the conuuctoi configuiations affecteu the
chaiging cuiient significantly.

In Peelos Ph.B uisseitation |6j anu subsequent papeis |12j, |1Sj capacitive
cuiient inteiiuption was stuuieu thiough a seiies of expeiiments. The main
iesults can be summaiizeu as follows:

The inteiiupteu cuiient anu the iatio of souice anu loau siue capacitance
play a key iole.
The oveivoltage was highest anu the aicing uuiation was longest when the
iatio of souice anu loau siue capacitance was smallest.
Two types of appeaiance of the switching aic (so calleu "eiiatic" anu "stiff"
moue) weie iecognizeu uuiing the inteiiuption with uiffeient iatios of
souice anu loau siue capacitances.

As a conclusion, accoiuing to the consulteu liteiatuie, tiansient phenomena,
togethei with highfiequency oscillations, on ieignitions oi iestiikes uuiing the
inteiiuption weie founu. The capacitances at both siues of the BS play a ciucial
iole. The level of the cuiient to be inteiiupteu influences the inteiiuption
capability as well. Bowevei, the uetails aie still not cleai. Foi instance, how uo the
capacitance values affect the aicing time, the tiansient oveivoltage anu tiansient
cuiient. Bow uo the highfiequency phenomena aiise anu how to quantify them.
In this thesis, these issues will be uealt with in uetail.

16 Chaptei 2

2.3 Transients caused by capacitive current interruption

Reseaich uuiing the last two uecaues has confiimeu that inteiiuption of
capacitive cuiients by BSs can be a majoi souice of inteifeience in seconuaiy
ciicuits of Bv substations |21j, |22j. BS opeiation geneiates highfiequency
tiansients, which may enuangei sensitive seconuaiy components of the netwoik
thiough electiomagnetic coupling. Bue to the slow motion of the BS main blaues
uuiing opeiation, an aic of long uuiation (up to seveial seconus) aiises. The aic is
chaiacteiizeu by numeious inteiiuptions anu iestiikes anu is associateu with
highfiequency phenomena. These voltage anu cuiient tiansients have been
iepoiteu to inteifeie with oi even uamage seconuaiy systems |2Sj|28j. Repoiteu
examples aie: (i) Pu&E Company in the 0SA expeiienceu pioblems with switching
off the BSs leauing to an equipment uamage |2Sj; (ii) tiansients in substations
have been iuentifieu to inteifeie with the contiol signal wiiing anu powei supply
units foi piotection ielays buineu uown uuiing BS opeiation in Euiope |24j|26j;
(iii) a faulty ielay peifoimance occuiieu because of the BS opeiation in a Suu kv
switching opeiation in China |27j; (iv) computei simulations anu fielu
measuiement confiimeu the possibility that noimal opeiation of aii BSs coulu
iesult in a uamageu cuiient tiansfoimei in Aigentina |28j.

The liteiatuie ielateu to tiansient phenomena mainly focuses on system voltages
above 22u kv. A majoi pait of the publications eithei uesciibes fielu tests in Bv
substations uiiectly, oi was ielateu to investigation of expecteu suige levels by
computei simulation aftei having obseiveu faults in seconuaiy systems |29j|S2j,
|4uj.

Bue to vaiious factois such as switchyaiu configuiation anu bus length, the iange
of oveivoltage levels causeu fiom opeiations by aiibieak BS is bioau. Foi
example, seiies of test weie uone at S62 kv, 787 kv anu 12uu kv substations, with
an oveivoltage level of maximum 1.9 p.u. uuiing switching off opeiations of EBv
buses in Russia |Suj. An eailiei fielu test uone in a Suu kv substation in Shanghai,
China ievealeu an oveivoltage level of 1.81 p.u. when uisconnecting an unloaueu
bus with an inteiiupteu cuiient of u.7S A |S1j. A maximum oveivoltage level of
1.4 p.u. was obseiveu in two 22u kv substations in Bosnia |21j, |S2j, |SSj. A
laboiatoiy test showeu that the oveivoltage is about 2.S p.u. while inteiiupting a
capacitive cuiient up to 2.S A at 17u kv phase voltage |1Sj. 0veivoltage ieacheu
2.6 p.u. at the teimination of the bus, anu S.1 p.u. value at a seconuaiy seivice
ciicuit in the station appeaieu, uuiing ueeneigizing a S96 m long bus with a BS at
S4S kv in the 0SA |4uj.

The uominant highfiequency tiansient was also one of the factois of concein in
pievious iefeiences. Fiequency values iepoiteu weie in the oiuei of a few
hunuieu kiloheitz. Foi instance, it ieacheu 72u kBz at 1S8 kv while ueeneigizing
the tiansmission line |S4j; it was founu that uominant fiequency was in the iange

of about 4uuSuu kBz at 2uu kv anu Suu kv substation fielu tests iepoiteu in |21j,
|S1j, |SSj.

In conclusion, most of the woik ielateu to tiansient phenomena associateu with
capacitive cuiient inteiiuption using aiibieak BS focuseu on the oveivoltage
level in a specific substation anu also focuseu on methous to piotect seconuaiy
systems. Bowevei, the oiigin of the tiansients fiom uisconnecting capacitive
cuiients has haiuly been stuuieu yet. The influential factois on oveivoltage aie
also not consiueieu systematically anu in uetail. In auuition, the tiansient cuiient
was haiuly investigateu at all. Regaiuing the uominant fiequencies, none of the
liteiatuie gave uetaileu analysis of the fast mechanisms involveu. Theiefoie, the
funuamental phenomena iesulting in highfiequency behavioui uuiing the
switching piocess will be stuuieu in this thesis.

2.4 Approaches to enhance the interruption capability

Seveial appioaches to enhance the ability to inteiiupt the capacitive cuiient with
aiibieak BSs aie auuiesseu in the ielateu liteiatuie. 0p to now, main attention is
paiu to highvelocity contact opening uevices, inseiteu uamping iesistois anu gas
blast uevices.

2.4.1 Fast contact separation

A highvelocity contact opening uevice (also calleu whip type quickbieak) can be
attacheu to the BS. It assists in extinguishing the aic by achieving a laige aii gap
within a shoit time. An example of such uevice is shown in Figuie 2.7.

In 1989, a seiies of laboiatoiy tests was conuucteu baseu on 1u uiffeient whip
type quickbieak uevices mainly attacheu at veiticalbieak BSs by the 0.S.
Bepaitment of Eneigy |S6j. The goal was to ueteimine the maximum inteiiupting
capacitive cuiient capability of 11S kv BSs with this type of uevice. The iesults
showeu successful inteiiuptions up to 11 A at 11S kv, manageu by the uevice
having the highest tip speeu. It was founu that the inteiiupteu cuiient magnituue
playeu a moie piominent iole than the Rv acioss the BS main blaues. Bowevei,
theie weie no fuithei uetails iepoiteu on the uesign of the uevice itself.

In a stuuy iepoiteu in |17j a total of five types of BSquickbieak uevices, togethei
with a centiebieak anu polemounteu BS to ueeneigize a section of 11S kv line,
weie testeu. The iesults showeu that one of the quickbieak BS uesigns coulu
successfully uiop a 29 km line at 11S kv (coiiesponuing to 6.S A). It was also
stateu that high tip speeu anu minimum bounce of quickbieak uevices
significantly enhance the chaiging cuiient inteiiuption capability, without
mentioning any suppoiting uetails.

18 Chaptei 2

Figure 2.7. A centrebreak DS with a highvelocity auxiliary device (indicated within the
ellipse, from the test in this thesis).

Refeience |S7j also confiimeu that a highvelocity uevice was able to successfully
inteiiupt a capacitive cuiient of 8 A at 1S8 kv. In |S8j both laboiatoiy anu fielu
tests weie caiiieu out in the Allegheny Powei System. The iesult showeu that the
highvelocity opening uevice succeeueu inteiiupting 17.6 A at 8u kv.

The citeu liteiatuie ievealeu that a fastopening uevice usually is employeu at
1S8 kv oi below, anu it was mainly installeu with the veiticalbieak BS type. It can
be concluueu that a highvelocity opening uevice extenus significantly the
capability of inteiiupting capacitive cuiient of a BS. The inteiiuption mechanism
with this highvelocity inteiiuptei on a centiebieak BS will be fuithei
investigateu in Chaptei 7 of this thesis.

2.4.2 Resistive transients suppression

A iesistoi inseiteu into the ciicuit can ieuuce the tiansients imposeu on the
system |Sj, |S9j|44j. In |S9j, it was iepoiteu that the iesistance in seiies oi in
paiallel to the aic can limit the amplituue anu the uuiation of the tiansients.

In oiuei to evaluate the switching suige level by uisconnecting capacitive cuiients
anu magnetizing cuiients, iefeience |Sj uesciibeu a seiies of tests on an Ameiican
EBv expeiimental line. The switching suige was stuuieu while uisconnecting was
achieveu with a conventional switch with anu without suige voltage suppiessing
iesistois. Chaiging cuiients of 2.4 A at 4uu kv anu S.u A at SuS kv weie
inteiiupteu. Compaieu to the situation without iesistoi, the suige level uecieaseu
by about 1S%, which means the inseiteu iesistoi was beneficial foi uisconnecting
a capacitive cuiient.

In Figuie 2.8 thiee iemeuial appioaches to ieuuce the suige level in a S4S kv
substation, accoiuing to |4uj, aie shown. These methous aie: (i) a iesistoi in

seiies with the BS uuiing opening; (ii) a poicelainencloseu iesistoi placeu at the
same veitical position as the stationaiy contact of the veiticalbieak BS, which
was inseiteu automatically step by step uuiing the opeiation; (iii) a paiallel
combination of line tiaps (a uevice that blocks the highfiequency caiiiei (24 kBz
to Suu kBz) anu lets poweifiequency (Su Bz 6u Bz) pass thiough) anu a iesistoi
connecteu in seiies with the BS. It appeaieu that methou (iii) uiu not piove veiy
effective in limiting oveivoltages, but methous (i) anu (ii) weie effective. The
oveivoltage at the station seivice (seconuaiy) ciicuit uioppeu to 1.7 p.u. anu to
one thiiu, iespectively, compaieu with S.1 p.u. fiom the inteiiuption without any
iemeuial uevices. The iesistoi, which was bypasseu whenevei the BS was in
closeu position, also appeaieu to be the most effective way to ieuuce oveivoltages.

A similai methou to giauually inseit a iesistance was again employeu in |41j|4Sj.
A computei simulation of a thieephase SSu kv system using uistiibuteu
paiameteis was caiiieu out to investigate the iestiike tiansients upon
uisconnecting unloaueu tiansmission line. The simulations inuicateu that the
suigesuppiessing iesistois weie effective in limiting the suige cuiient anu
significantly contiibuteu to uamping of the iestiike tiansients |41j, |42j.
Refeience |4Sj iepoits a seiies of fielu tests, in which a u.S N iesistoi was
installeu in paiallel to the main blaues of the BS incluuing a small aicing hoin,
conuucteu at a 22u kv powei station (Figuie 2.9). The iesults at switching off a
busbai showeu that the aicing uuiation was ieuuceu fiom 2.S s without iesistoi
to the value between 1.1 s anu 1.S s with paiallel iesistois. It was also iepoiteu
that the highfiequency component of the voltage wave shapes measuieu neaiby
was uampeu. The oveivoltage in the antenna of the seconuaiy system in the
vicinity ieuuceu fiom S.1 p.u. without iesistoi to only 1.6 p.u. with iesistoi. Fiom
these iesults it can be concluueu that the uamping iesistoi has a stiong
suppiessing effect on the tiansient oveivoltages causeu by inteiiupting small
capacitive cuiient.

Fuithei, in |44j the effect of the aic iesistance on tiansients suppiession uue to BS
switching was stuuieu anu it was confiimeu that aic iesistance ieuuceu tiansient
oveivoltages.

In summaiy, most of the woik on employing iesistive uevices focuses on the suige
oi oveivoltage level. Bowevei, still the conclusion can be uiawn that a iesistoi
enhances the capacitive cuiient inteiiuption capability of the BSs. Foi instance, a
S96 m long bus of S4S kv was successfully inteiiupteu accoiuing to |4uj.
Refeience |4Sj showeu that aicing time was ieuuceu gieatly by a iesistoi in
paiallel to the main blaues of the BS. In auuition, it was mentioneu that with an
inseiteu iesistoi cuiients up to 4 A at 2Su kv, S A at S4S kv anu 1.S A at Suu kv
weie inteiiupteu. Bowevei, no specific uetails weie pioviueu |4Sj.

2u Chaptei 2

Figure 2.8. Sketch of 345 kV DS with various remedial devices mounted in place (copied from
[40]).

Figure 2.9. Installed DS with damping resistor in a 220 kV substation (copied from [43]).

In this thesis, a iesistoi in seiies oi in paiallel to a centiebieak BS will be stuuieu
thiough simulation anu laboiatoiy expeiiments. The pios anu cons will be
uiscusseu.

2.4.3 Arc cooling

A gasblast uevice, as a methou to impiove the BS capability, is not useu
fiequently. Such gasblast inteiiupting attachment was mounteu on a veitical
bieak BS as inuicateu in Figuie 2.1u. Each pole unit was equippeu with a poicelain

Figure 2.10. Gasblast interrupter test at Tidd test site (copied from [47]).

tube mounteu between the blaue insulatoi stacks, anu each poicelain tube hau a
conveigentuiveigent nozzle, aiming to uelivei the highspeeu jet of gas into the
aic. This methou was founu to be a most effective means to inteiiupt capacitive
cuiients accoiuing to |Sj, |S7j, |46j|48j. It was stateu that gasblast has stiong
effect in ieuucing the aic ieach anu aic length by visual obseivation, but without
quantitative uata suppoit |Sj; Tests showeu that a veiticalbieak BS with gasblast
uevice coulu uiop 2u A at a 0.S. 1S8 kv station |S7j; a 1SS km line was uioppeu
successfully at 2Su kv (estimateu cuiient 2S A) with the suppoit of the gasblast
as iepoiteu by a test piogiam on a veiticalbieak BS at the 0.S. Buieau of
Reclamation |46j; a SSu kv veiticalbieak BS with gasblast uevice was uesigneu
as shown in Figuie 2.1u |47j. Specifically the poicelain tube was connecteu to a
gas tank, which was mounteu unuei each singlepole switch unit. The test in the
Ameiican uas anu Electiic Suu kv Tiuu test site showeu that it was capable to
inteiiupt capacitive cuiient up to 8.S A at 22u kv successfully. Fuithei, a nitiogen
puffei was useu in an effoit to facilitate the BS in the inteiiuption of magnetizing
cuiient |48j.

The woik ielateu to gasblast is ielatively olu. Exclusively, an extia tube was
applieu unuei the veiticalbieak BS. Since it was pioveu this methou to be most
effective, in this thesis, this appioach will be continueu to stuuy, but mainly focus
on the aic extinguishing mechanism anu inteiiuption peifoimances.

2.4.4 Vacuum and SF
6
interrupter

Bue to the extiaoiuinaiy aic inteiiuption peifoimances, vacuum anu SF
6

inteiiupteis (see Figuie 2.11) aie also implementeu in conjunction with an aii gap
BS in some uesigns |4Sj. Bowevei, in these cases, the costs involveu aie high anu
the constiuction is complex, because the inteiiupteis must be able to withstanu
the full Rv. Nost commonly, only veiticalbieak BSs aie pioviueu with such an
auxiliaiy inteiiuptei. In piinciple, uuiing the opening opeiation of the BS
22 Chaptei 2

Figure 2.11. (Left) multiple vacuum interrupters and (right) a single gap SF6 interrupter per
phase (copied from [45]).

the cuiient is tiansfeiieu into a loop with the SF
6
oi vacuum inteiiuptei that
peifoims the switching. The SF
6
oi vacuum inteiiupteis aie out of ciicuit uuiing
the closeu position of the BS. The woiking piinciple of this soit of appioaches will
be uesciibeu below in uetail using vacuum meuium as an example. The SF
6

inteiiuptei uoes in a similai mannei.

Aics in vacuum aie easiei to inteiiupt than in aii, because the vacuum has an
electiical stiength of typically Su kvmm in case of well polisheu contact suifaces.
This high electiic fielu withstanu stiength anu veiy fast iecoveiy ensuie that once
the aic is extinguisheu, usually at the fiist cuiient zeio, no ieignition occuis anu
uielectiic iecoveiy is achieveu within a few micioseconus |S1j. The iuea of
combining the BS with vacuum inteiiupteis is to commutate the cuiient path
thiough the vacuum inteiiupteis fiist anu then open the contacts within the
vacuum. In geneial, multiple seiies vacuum inteiiupteis aie neeueu foi high
voltage since a single vacuum inteiiuptei can only function at meuium voltage
level |S2j. The woiking piinciple of an inseiteu single vacuum bottle with veitical
BS is plotteu in Figuie 2.12. It woiks accoiuing to the following steps:

Step 1: the BS is in closeu position. The vacuum inteiiuptei is out of the
ciicuit. The cuiient flows between jaw (metal pait connecteu with main
blaues at the iight siue) anu blaue contacts. The vacuum contacts aie closeu.
Step 2: the BS contacts sepaiate but the ciicuit is maintaineu thiough the
moving aic hoin anu the fixeu aic hoin. As the blaues continue opening, the
moving aic hoin engages the vacuum inteiiupteis actuating aim. The
vacuum contacts iemain still in a closeu position.
Step S: as the blaue movement continues, the fixeu anu moving hoins
sepaiate. The cuiient is tiansfeiieu to a path thiough the closeu vacuum
contacts. Aftei an auequate cleaiance uistance is establisheu, the cuiient is
inteiiupteu insiue of the vacuum inteiiuptei with no exteinal aicing as the
contacts open.


Figure 2.12. Interruption for DS with inserted vacuum bottle(s), (obtained from [52]).

Step 4: the BS moves to the fully open position ieleasing the actuatoi aim,
which is spiing loaueu to ietuin to its oiiginal position anu close the vacuum
contacts.

This appioach is actually closei to a loaubieak switch than to a BS switch. The
main auvantage is that it can inteiiupt highei cuiients than an aiibieak BS alone.
The level of the cuiient to be inteiiupteu is ueteimineu by the numbei of the
vacuum mouules connecteu in seiies. Foi instance it is capable to inteiiupt up to
7uA capacitive cuiient foi up to iateu system voltage 2Su kv |4Sj. The uiawbacks
of a vacuum inteiiuptei aie:

Theie is no visual inuication of the uielectiic integiity piioi to opeiation,
cieating a potential safety hazaiu to peisonnel when opeiating the BS.
Each vacuum bottle in a BS with a multibottle stack can hanule only the Nv
voltage level (up to Su kv). uiauing capacitois aie iequiieu to uiviue the
voltage evenly acioss the multiple gaps foi successful peifoimance. A
vacuum inteiiuptei stack can only be installeu on a veiticalbieak oi a single
siue bieak BSs uue to its complex constiuction.

Since most of the liteiatuie is ielateu to the veiticalbieak BS as a test object, the
potential inteiiupting capability of the veiticalbieak BS with the aiu of vaiious
appioaches anu theii coiiesponuing costs aie summaiizeu in Table 2.2. vacuum
inteiiupteis can be useu to inteiiupt highei cuiient. Issues to be consiueieu aie
the costs anu the neeu foi giauing capacitois. SF
6
may inteiiupt the highest level
cuiient compaieu with the othei appioaches, but with highest cost.

24 Chaptei 2

Table 2.2. Potential inteiiuption iatings of veiticalbieak BSs with uiffeient auxiliaiy
uevices. Note: the costs aie taken fiom |4Sj, assuming the cost of the aicing hoin is "1".

Type of auxiliary
devices
Interrupting capability
(Arms)
Cost
Aicing hoin
Inteiiupts veiy small
cuiient, iefei to |7j
1
Bighvelocity
uevices
Bighei than with aicing
hoin (e.g. up to 8 A at
1S8 kv |S7j)
1.2
uasblast
Bighei than with high
velocity bieak uevices
No liteiatuie
Nultiple vacuum
inteiiupteis
7u A at up to 2Su kv 2.8
SF6 inteiiupteis
0p to Suu A at up to
2Su kv
S.6
Resistois
4 A2Su kv
S AS4S kv
1.S ASuu kv
No infoimation

2.4.5. Ablation assisted approaches

The use of aic cooling thiough ablation, i.e. evapoiateu mateiials fiom compounus
like polyvinyl chloiiue, polymethylmethaciylate, etc. is a methou commonly
applieu in loau bieak uevices |SSj, |S4j. The woiking piinciple is confinement of
the hot aic in a naiiow tube causing a high piessuie anu fast flowing gas, which
facilitates iapiu aic extinction. Baseu on this methou, a special aicing hoin has
been uevelopeu |SSj. This uevice was uesigneu oiiginally to pievent lightning
uamage on oveiheau line, capable of inteiiupting giounu fault cuiients. It was
confiimeu expeiimentally that it can inteiiupt giounu fault cuiient up to 1 kA
within half cycle at 77 kv system voltage. Figuie 2.1S shows the aiiangement anu
woiking piinciple. Theie is a naiiow tube, maue of polyvinyl chloiiue, mounteu at
the tip of the aicing hoin electioue in oiuei to inteiiupt the cuiient. The
inteiiuption poition, locateu in the giounu siue hoin, is a tube with an
inteimeuiate electioue. This electioue is a small column, which pieices at a spot in
the tube wall. When excessive voltage is applieu between the hoins at line anu
giounu siue, a bieakuown occuis between theii tips thiough the inteimeuiate
electioue. Then, the aic aiises between the hoins. The gas uuiing aicing in the
inteiiuption tube has gaineu a highvelocity anu a highpiessuie. The uevice was
not able to inteiiupt a shoitciicuit cuiient above 1u kA. No fuithei infoimation
about the inteiiuption peifoimance below 44S A was iepoiteu. Piessuie anu
velocity of the gas insiue the tube, anu the ablation of the tube mateiial at cuiient
levels aiounu 1uA might be too low foi effective opeiation.

Figure 2.13. Working principle of ablation assisted arcing horn with PVC tube (copied from
[55]).

Aic inteiiuption thiough ablation is veiy successfully applieu in meuium voltage
loau bieak switches. 0ne application is uiscusseu heie |S6j. Figuie 2.14 shows the
stiuctuie anu woiking mechanism. 0pon uisconnecting, the main contacts "1"
open fiist anu the cuiient is biiefly taken ovei by the paiallel connecteu lagging
pins "2". Buiing this bieaking motion, the opening spiings "S" acting on the
lagging pin aie tensioneu. 0n ieaching a stop, the lagging pin leaves the holuing
contact "4". The aic occuiiing between the aicing tip of the holuing contact anu
the tungsten tip of the lagging pin is extinguisheu in the aicing chambei "S". The
aicing chambei itself is closeu. This uevice contains foui sections anu has a
piessuie chambei "6" anu an expansion chambei "7". Two extinction plates "8",
aiiangeu in the piessuie chambei, aie foiceu into the path of the aic by lateial
spiing piessuie. At low cuiients the aic is extinguisheu uue to the cooling effect of
the walls. In the highei cuiient iange aic extinction is achieveu by the ablateu
gases piouuceu in the piessuie chambei flowing out of this chambei into the
expansion chambei. 0wing to this complementaiy combination of seveial
extinction piinciples a wiue cuiient inteiiuption iange is effectively coveieu. This
uevice is capable to inteiiupt cable chaiging cuiients up to 2u A at low voltage
level S8.S kv. Foi highei cuiient anu highei voltage levels, no infoimation was
pioviueu.

Baseu on using ablation assisteu aic extinction as commonly useu in loau bieak
switches was consiueieu. Piesent uesigns iequiie high cuiient (foi sufficient
ablation) oi aie limiteu to ielatively low voltage level. Theii applicability on high
voltage aiibieak BSs may be questionable because the long length of the aic anu
the lowei eneigy uensity. In auuition, confining the BS aic in a small space may
have auveise effects because cooling fiom ambient aii is obstiucteu. This may be
consiueieu foi fuithei investigation.
26 Chaptei 2

Figure 2.14. Working principle for an indoor load break switch with two chambers (copied
from [56]).

2.5 Arc models related to current interruption with a disconnector

An electiic aic is a uischaige, chaiacteiizeu by a high cuiient flow (as compaieu to
othei gas uischaiges, like glow uischaige), iesulting in a cuiient flowing thiough a
usually nonconuuctive meuium such as aii. 0nueistanuing the phenomena
associateu with the electiic aic iequiies combineu knowleuge of electio
magnetism, theimouynamics anu plasma physics.

The electiic aic ielateu to cuiient inteiiuption with a BS is a so calleu fiee
buining AC aic with ielatively low cuiient (up to a few tens of ampeies) in the
atmospheie. It behaves uiffeiently fiom the wellstuuieu anu welluocumenteu
fault aic in ciicuit bieakeis because of its much highei length (meties vs.
centimeties), its much lowei cuiient (ampeies vs. kiloampeies) anu its
unconfineu ("fieebuining") natuie. Compaieu with the shoit aic, wheie the
influence of anoue anu cathoue ioots is significant |S7j, the aic length of BS aic
may ieach up to a few meties uepenuing on the system voltage anu cuiient.
Compaieu to the confineu aic, the fiee buining aic behaves moie ianuomly anu is
influenceu by exteinal conuitions as winu, humiuity, anu suiiounuing
electiomagnetic fielus. An oveiview of the fiee buining aic liteiatuie was
piesenteu in |6j.

Aic mouelling may be an effective computational tool when fielu expeiiments aie
uifficult to manage. Selecteu mouels fiom liteiatuie aie theiefoie uiscusseu in
ielation with theii applicability foi the aic fiom a low cuiient inteiiuption oi fiee
buining aic in the aii.

Bue to the ianuom natuie of the fiee buining aic, it is piactically not possible to
uuplicate the genuine aic chaiacteiistics by a computei mouel. Sometimes the aic
is iepiesenteu by a iesistoi oi as a voltage souice with peiiouic iectangulai wave
foim, changing its sign at each aic cuiient zeio ciossing; sometimes a moie

complicateu mouel with piecewise chaiacteiistics is auopteu to piesent the aic at
vaiiable length, iesulting in a vaiiable aic voltage. Bowevei, these aic mouels uo
not take into account the actual inteiaction of the aic anu the electiomagnetic
tiansients in the ciicuit |S8j, |S9j. No mouel exists, taking into account the
uiscontinuous chaiactei of the aic, which is obseiveu in the piesent stuuy to be
the main featuie of the lowcuiient BS aic. Theiefoie, only mouels, moie uistantly
ielateu to the aic in BS cuiient inteiiuption will be intiouuceu heie.

An aic mouel simulating the behavioui of aics uiiven by magnetic foice in a gas
|S7j, |6uj|62j, was pioposeu fiist in |62j. The aic is assumeu to be a chain of
small iigiu cylinuiical cuiient elements. Each element expeiiences the Loientz
foice fiom the magnetic fielu anu a fluiu uiag foice fiom the suiiounuing gas.
Each element moves with the velocity ueteimineu by these foices. The aic
behavioui is ueteimineu by the position anu the motion of each element.
Consequently, the behavioui anu the shape of the entiie aic may be constiucteu.
Expeiiments in |62j with cuiient of 1 kA at Su Bz in SF
6
showeu goou agieement
between mouel anu the obseiveu aic in piactice.

In oveiheau line, geneially, an aicing hoin is useu to piotect the insulatois against
uamage fiom aics aftei switching, oi by lightning inuuceu bieakuown to eaith.
The aicing hoin is installeu in paiallel with the insulatoi. The aic between the
aicing hoins behaves as a fiee buining aic in the aii. Baseu on the mouel |6uj, it
can be estimateu how fai the aic is fiom the column of the insulatoi. A situation
foi a cuiient of 16u A was stuuieu in |61j, iesulting in a goou match between the
simulation anu expeiiments. Such an aic mouel can potentially be useu to uesciibe
aic movement ielateu to BS cuiient inteiiuption, anu to evaluate the iisk of
enuangeiing the suiiounuing equipment. Bowevei, the cuiient ielateu to the BS
inteiiupting has much lowei values anu theii aic movement is much moie
influenceu by convection piocesses than by electiomagnetic inteiaction.

Compaieu with all othei types of aic mentioneu befoie, the seconuaiy fault aic
fiom EBv powei oveiheau line iesembles most closely the aic fiom capacitive
cuiient inteiiuption with a BS because of a compaiable length anu similai
enviionmental (unconfineu) conuitions. A seconuaiy fault aic follows the piimaiy
fault cuiient in single phase tiipping anu ieclosing schemes uue to capacitive anu
inuuctive coupling with the sounu phases |6Sj. The value of the seconuaiy cuiient
may ieach up to a few hunuieu ampeies anu is ueteimineu by the stiuctuie of the
oveiheau line, such as line aiiangement, length, eaithing, etc.

The Cassie aic mouel |64j, fiequently citeu, assumes that the aic channel has the
shape of a cylinuei anu is filleu with highly ionizeu gas with a constant
tempeiatuie, but with a vaiiable uiametei. Cassie uevelopeu his aic mouel baseu
on the assumption that a high cuiient aic is goveineu mainly by convection losses.
0ne of the most common useu Cassie aic equation foimulations is:

28 Chaptei 2

2
2
u
u|ln( )j 1
( 1)
u
a
u g
t u t
=
(2.S)

wheie u
u
is the static aic voltage, u
a
is the momentaiy aic voltage, t is the aic
time constant, g is the instantaneous aic conuuctance.

Thiough stuuy of expeiimental ui chaiacteiistics of aics, having peak aic cuiient
values fiom 68 A to 21 kA, it was founu that the Cassie mouel may be useu to
mouel the behavioui of the seconuaiy aic |S9j. Knowing
u
,
a
u u , t fiom specific
expeiiments, the aic conuuctance g can be ueteimineu to iepiesent the aic foi
computei simulation |66j, |67j.

Baseu on the Cassie mouel, Kizilcay uefineu the aic behavioui accoiuing |SSj,
|68j|7uj as:

u u
u 1
( )
u

( )
a
a a
g
G g
t
i
G
u r i l
t
=
+
(2.4)

wheie i
a
is the instantaneous aic cuiient, l
a
the instantaneous aic length,
u
u is the
aic voltage pei unit length,
u
r is the aic iesistance pei unit length, G is the
stationaiy aic conuuctance. Paiameteis t ,
u
u ,
u
r uepenu on aic length, anu can be
obtaineu ovei a ceitain time inteival uue to the iequiieu high accuiacy of
measuieu aic cuiient anu voltage fiom specific measuiements, as uesciibeu in
uetail in |S9j. This mouel not only consiueis the heat of the aic, but also takes into
account the seconuaiy aic elongation. The expeiiments with a cuiient up to a few
hunuieu ampeies matcheu the simulateu iesults well. It may be feasible to
uesciibe the aic with lowei cuiient (fiom capacitive cuiient switching as well).

Teizija took consiueiable effoit to mouel long aics in fiee aii |71j|7Sj. The aic in
his expeiiments was initiateu between two electioues with a uistance of 6u cm,
the cuiient iangeu fiom 1uu A to 2u kA at a system phase voltage of 2u kv. The
equation useu is a geneialization of (2.S):
u
( , , , )
u
a
a a a
g
f g u i t
t
=
. By obseiving the
aic voltage wavefoim, piesenteu ioughly as a iectangulai shape in phase with the
aic cuiient, the aic was mouelleu thiough the following nonlineai equation:

u
( ) ( ) sgn( )
( )
a a b b a
b
I
u t U U R i t i
i t
o
,
| |
= + + +
|
\ .
(2.S)

wheie ( ), ( )
a a
u t i t aie aic voltage anu aic cuiient,

u u
u
( ) <
( )
( ) ( )
a
b
a a
I i t I
i t
i t i t I
=

>
(2.6)

, ,
a b
U U R
o
aie paiameteis uefining the shape of the aic voltage, , is to account
foi uaussian noise with. U
a
= E
a
l
a
, the aveiage of E
a
was taken between 1.2 kvm
anu 1.S kvm foi the chosen expeiimental cuiient iange. The teim
u
( )
b
b
I
U
i t

mouels the aic ieignition voltage, anu ( )
b
R i t
o
is an auuitional teim, which is
ueteimineu by the aic cuiient i
a
, R
o
, is pait of the aic iesistance, at the chosen
cuiient iange, in the oiuei of tenths of ohm. The authoi auueu the effect of the aic
elongation in |7Sj by multiplying (2.S) with a suitable elongation function L(t) in
|7Sj. The aic cuiient fiom the expeiiments was in the iange taken of fault cuiient.
Foi instance, the mouel was applieu to a seconuaiy aic in oveiheau line |74j.
Bowevei, the methou may also be consiueieu to uesciibe the aic ielateu to
capacitive cuiient opeiation with a BS.

Except foi the aic mouel baseu on magnetic foices, the othei mouels intiouuceu in
this section aie exclusively baseu on the Cassie aic mouel. Nost mouel paiameteis
must be obtaineu fiom specific fielu expeiiments. As a conclusion, although theie
is no uetaileu aic mouel connecteu to cuiient inteiiuption with a BS, the aic
mouels mentioneu above may be consiueieu as a fiist step. Because of the
ianuom, inhomogeneous anu time uepenuent natuie of the conuucting meuium, it
has not been attempteu to uesign an aic mouel in the piesent stuuy.

2.6 Conclusion

Capacitive cuiient inteiiuption using an aiibieak BS has not attiacteu too much
attention, anu the existing liteiatuie pioviues only a limiteu insight into the
mechanism. Bowevei, ceitain liteiatuie souices uo exist, which aie moie oi less
ielateu to this subject. Each fiom uiffeient points of view anu with uiffeient
application puiposes, such as suiges imposeu on seconuaiy systems,
uisconnection of magnetizing cuiients, loop cuiients anu so foith.

It is iecognizeu that BS iequiiements shoulu incluue the capability to inteiiupt
small capacitive cuiient. Baseu on fielu tests anu computei simulations at
uiffeient system voltage levels, it was founu that inteiiupting even of small
capacitive cuiients can cause laige tiansients, which potentially can uamage
neaiby equipment. Also, aics with unacceptable uuiation anuoi ieach can aiise.

Su Chaptei 2

Among many factois, which influence the capability of inteiiuption in piactice,
such as cleaiance uistance, atmospheiic conuition (winu, humiuity), conuuctoi
configuiations anu so on, a few factois weie iecognizeu anu investigateu. The iole
of bus length (souice anu loau siue capacitance), paiallel lines, line configuiations
weie pointeu out. In auuition, highfiequency tiansients weie iecognizeu only to a
piactical extent, but neithei funuamentally noi systematically investigateu.

In this liteiatuie suivey, it was founu that theie aie no inteiiuption iatings foi BSs
except those given by IEEE |7j. The IEC stanuaiu |14j also fails to claiify this topic.
0n the othei hanu, the piesent powei systems aie iapiuly incieasing in size,
iequiiing peifoimances but also enhancing costeffectiveness. In ceitain locations,
lowcost BSs having an enhanceu cuiient inteiiuption capability coulu in some
situations of ueeneigization of unloauing the shoit linecablebusbai to ieplace
the ciicuit bieakeis.

It is inuispensable to unueistanu the phenomena of capacitive cuiient thiough
fiee buining aics in aii piofounuly anu to finu appioaches to impiove the ability
of the switching uevice: the uisconnectoi. This consiueiation is the motivation of
the woik in this thesis.

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0ct. 2uuS.
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S4 Chaptei 2

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piotection of meuiumvoltage oveiheau lines", IEEE Trans. on Power Delivery, vol.19,
pp. SS4SS9, Api. 2uu4.
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in Proc. International Conference Power System Technology, vol.2, pp. 8979u2, Bec.
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aic in fiee aii powei ueliveiy", IEEE Trans. on Power Delivery, vol.26, pp. 1S441SSS,
}ul. 2u11.

Basic Ciicuit Analysis SS

Chapter 3

Basic Circuit Analysis

Capacitive cuiient inteiiuption by a BS is consiueieu as a topology with
capacitances at eithei siue of the BS. The capacitance at the supply siue may come
fiom (instiument) tiansfoimeis, busbais oi also fiom the othei conuuctois that
aie connecteu to the busbai. The capacitance at the loau siue of the BS, may come
fiom unloaueu tiansmission line, busbai, etc. The capacitance values iange fiom
less than one nanofaiau, e.g. foi shoit lines, to hunuieus nanofaiau in case of laige
capacitoi banks. Switching of BSs is basically goveineu by chaige exchange
between these capacitances. This thesis is conceineu with switching between
capacitances that can be consiueieu as lumpeu elements capacitances that have
values up to Suu nF. Capacitoi banks, having much laigei value, aie not switcheu
with BSs.

3.1 The interruption process

Capacitive cuiient inteiiuption with a BS consists of the inteiaction between the
ciicuit anu the aic. This inteiaction iesults in a iepetitive sequence of bieaks
(inteiiuption of cuiient) anu iestiikes anuoi ieignitions. Restiike is a
bieakuown of the insulating meuium the aii between the BS blaues iesulting in
ieestablishment of the aic, moie than one quaitei of a cycle aftei inteiiuption.
Reignition is the same physical event, but within one quaitei poweifiequency
cycle. Restiikes anu ieignitions aie chaiacteiizeu in teims of tiansients in
cuiient anu voltage uue to oscillations in the ciicuit. The aic is macioscopically
chaiacteiizeu in teims of its uuiation, ieach (peipenuiculai uistance of outeimost
aic position to a line connecting the contacts), type (iepetitive oi continuous), the
eneigy input fiom the ciicuit uuiing the iestiike, aic voltage, aic biightness, anu
so foith. 0nueistanuing the basic phenomena upon iestiike oi ieignition is
essential in the unueistanuing of capacitive cuiient inteiiuption. It will theiefoie
be auuiesseu in uetail in this chaptei.

The equivalent ciicuit foi capacitive cuiient inteiiuption is shown in
Figuie S.1 |1j. The BS is maikeu with D; R
s
, C
s
anu C
l
stanu foi iesistance,
capacitance at supply anu loau siue iespectively; i
d
is the cuiient; u
s
is the phase
togiounu supply voltage of the netwoik. u
d
, u
cs
anu u
cl
aie voltage acioss the D, C
s

anu C
l
iespectively. The shoitciicuit inuuctance is baseu on the shoittime
withstanu cuiient foi which the BS is iateu: L
s
= U
line
(S
.
I
sc
) with I
sc
is the shoit
time withstanu cuiient; U
line
is the ims of the souice phasetophase voltage. Foi
example, I
sc
=4u kA, U
line
=14S kv, = 2f (f = Su Bz), L
s
is about 7 mB.
S6 Chaptei S

Figure 3.1. Basic circuit diagram for capacitive current interruption with a DS.

Befoie the inteiiuption staits, the BS is closeu. The ciicuit of Figuie S.1 is
eneigizeu by a haimonic souice u
s
= E
m
sin(e
p
t+), with e
P
the angulai powei
fiequency, E
m
the amplituue, anu the initial phase angle. The cuiient i
d
anu the
voltage acioss the capacitances C
s
anu C
l
(uenoteu as u
cP
) aie:

sin( )
cos( )
cp m P
cs cl cp
d l P m P
u t
u u u
i C t
E
E
e u
e e u
+
=
+
~
(S.1)

It is assumeu that the impeuances R
s
anu
P
L
s
aie much smallei than 1(e
P
C
s,l
),
meaning that the voltage u
cp
is veiy close to u
s
. Theoietically, if C
s
is veiy laige,
then i
d
is ieuuceu because of a voltage uiop acioss R
s
anu L
s
(C
s
is noimally in the
oiuei of a few tens of nanofaiau in piactice).

When the BS inteiiupts the cuiient, the ciicuit in Figuie S.1 is sepaiateu into two
paits abiuptly. The supply ciicuit (left of the BS, consisting of R
s
, L
s
, C
s
) iemains
eneigizeu with u
s
. Since the impeuance of C
s
is much laigei than the impeuances of
R
s
anu L
s
, u
cs
iemains close to the souice voltage u
s
. The iight pait of the BS, i.e. C
l
,
has no uischaige path anu the voltage u
cl
acioss C
l
iemains 1 p.u. uue to tiappeu
chaige. Aftei the aic extinguishes at cuiient zeio, the Rv staits to iise. The Rv
acioss the BS u
d
, is the uiffeience between u
cs
anu u
cl
aiising aftei inteiiuption
(u
d
= u
cs
u
cl
). The uielectiic stiength of the aii gap, uenoteu as u
r
, staits to iecovei
simultaneously. When the incieasing value of u
d
exceeus u
r
, the gap ieignites oi
iestiikes anu the aic ieestablishes. This piocess is shown in Figuie S.2.

In piinciple the aic lasts no longei than half a powei cycle anu extinguishes
tempoiaiily when the aic cuiient ciosses zeio. The ciicuit is sepaiateu into two
paits again until the next iestiike oi ieignition occuis, but geneially at a highei
voltage because the contacts have sepaiateu fuithei aftei a half cycle. The
inteiiuption piocess theiefoie consists of iepeateu aic extinctions anu ie
stiikesieignitions. Finally, this sequence comes to an enu anu the aic
Basic Ciicuit Analysis S7

Figure 3.2. Illustration of the moments when the arc extinguishes and restrikes.

extinguishes completely when the uistance between the BS contacts has become
sufficiently laige anu the Rv iemains below the uielectiic stiength of the gap |2j.
When this is not the case, the aic lasts as long as the powei supply is active oi as
long as exteinal influences (winu) uo not extinguish the aic. In piactical
situations, noimal inteiiuption shoulu be achieveu befoie the blaues ieach a 9u
uegiee angle with iespect to the oiiginal closeu position of the main blaues. Aftei
this moment, uue to excessive elongation anu ieach, the aic may enuangei the
insulation of the station aiiangement.

3.2 Threecomponents analysis

0pon each iestiike, the voltages u
cs
, u
cl
, u
d
anu the cuiient i
d
have oscillations at
uistinct fiequencies. A highfiequency (BF) component aiises aftei iestiike when
the voltages acioss souice anu loau siue capacitances aie equalizing. Aftei this
piocess, the voltages u
cl
, u
cs
aie equal anu a voltage uiop aiises acioss L
s
, which
causes a meuiumfiequency (NF) oscillation in the ciicuit. As the BF anu NF
oscillations aie uampeu out, the poweifiequency (PF) iemains. These fiequency
components will be analyzeu as follows.

3.2.1 Highfrequency (HF) component

At the instant of iestiike the voltages u
cs
anu u
cl
will equalize thiough a high
fiequency oscillation. The voltage U
E
, iemaining acioss both C
s
anu C
l
aftei
equalization is calculateu fiom conseivation of chaige stoieu in both capacitances:

cs s cl l
E
s l
U C U C
U
C C
+
=
+
|Sj, wheie U
cs
, U
cl
aie the initial voltages acioss C
s
, C
l
at the
moment of the iestiike iespectively. In the BF ciicuit mouel shown in Figuie S.S,
the powei supply is neglecteu since it is uecoupleu by the high impeuance of
inuuctance L
s
foi the BF oscillation. R
H
, L
H
iepiesent the highfiequency iesistance
anu inuuctance of the ciicuit foimeu by the capacitances, the BS anu the aic
0 5 10 15 20
100
0
100
time (ms)
V
o
l
t
a
g
e

(
k
V
)

u
cs
u
cl
u
d
current zero
Arc restrikes
S8 Chaptei S

Figure 3.3. Highfrequency equivalent circuit diagram.

within the BF loop. u
cs,
u
cl
anu i
H
uenote the voltage acioss C
s
, C
l
anu the cuiient in
the highfiequency loop ciicuit iespectively. The BF oscillation lasts only a shoit
time (typically less than a few tens of micioseconus), uuiing which it can leau to a
high tiansient cuiient thiough ciicuit anu aic anu moueiate to tiansient voltages
acioss both capacitances.

The voltage acioss the aii gap just befoie iestiike at time appioaching t = u is
uenoteu as U
r
(= U
cs
U
cl
). At this voltage the aii gap bieaks uown. Assuming foi
the total ciicuit iesistance
2
H
H
H
L
R
C
<
, anu the equivalent capacitance as seen by
the aic:
s l
H
s l
C C
C
C C
=
+
, it is founu:

u
e sin( )
1
e sin( )
H
H
t H r
cl H H E
l s H
t
r
H H
H H
U
u t U
C C
U
i t
L
o
o
e
e |
e
e
e
= + +
(S.2)

Similaily, the voltage u
cs
acioss the souice siue capacitance at BF can be
calculateu:

u
e sin( )
1
H
t
H r
cs H H E
s l H
U
u t U
C C
o
e
e |
e

= + +
+
(S.S)

wheie
2 2 2
u u
1
, , , aictan
2
=
H H
H H H H H H
H H
H H
R
L
L C
e
o e e e o |
o
= = = .
The paiametei o
H
is the BF uamping constant. The BF oscillation angulai
fiequency e
H
uepenus mainly on the inuuctance anu the seiies connection of both
capacitances. This fiequency can be up to seveial megaheitz. The cuiient
magnituue can ieach values up to 7 kA in the tests. The oscillation acioss the
Basic Ciicuit Analysis S9

capacitances eventually ceases anu settles at a quasi steauy state value U
E
. The
maximum voltage acioss C
s
anu C
l
, which occuis in case of negligible BF uamping,
is: max(u
cs
) = +
+ 1
r
E
s l
U
U
C C
anu max(u
cl
) = +
+ 1
r
E
l s
U
U
C C
, iespectively. The
iise speeu of the cuiient uepenus on the bieakuown voltage anu the inuuctance in
BF loop: max(uiut)=U
r
L
H
.

At the smallei capacitance, C
s
oi C
l
, aiises the highei maximum voltage anu both
voltages acioss the capacitances aie piopoitional to the iestiike voltage U
r
.
Fuithei, U
r
incieases with incieasing contacts uistance, which means the BF
voltages acioss the capacitances will piimaiily become laigest just befoie the aic
extinguishes completely. The maximum BF voltage that can occui is SE
m
, in case
U
r
= 2E
m
anu eithei C
s
<< C
l
oi C
s
>> C
l
. The maximum cuiient thiough the BS in the
BF loop is
H H r
C L U (neglecting BF uamping). 0bviously, i
H
incieases with
incieasing U
r
anu C
H
anu uecieases with incieasing L
H
. Thus U
r
anu C
s
C
l
(oi C
l
C
s
)
aie key paiameteis that affect the BF tiansient behavioui on iestiikes. The BF
tiansients in the cuiient aie canuiuates to cause electiomagnetic inteifeience in
seconuaiy systems, as it will be iepoiteu in Chaptei S. uiven the highfiequency
anu amplituue ueiivatives of the cuiient, up to a few kiloampeies pei
micioseconus in latei tests, it can couple inuuctively with neighbouiing ciicuitiy.
Also, it pioviues a significant powei input into the iestiiking aic, albeit uuiing a
limiteu time.

3.2.2 Mediumfrequency (MF) component

0pon iestiike, also a "meuiumfiequency" (NF) oscillation staits. The NF
component, which lasts about a few milliseconus, also causes a tiansient voltage
anu cuiient. At this stage the voltage acioss the aic is neglecteu anu the analysis
staits aftei uecay of the BF tiansient, with voltage of each capacitoi equalizeu to
U
E
. L
H
in Figuie S.S is neglecteu as well, because its equivalent impeuance is much
smallei than the capacitances impeuance at NF. Theiefoie, C
s
anu C
l
with an
iuentical initial voltage U
E
aie in paiallel anu the equivalent ciicuit of Figuie S.1 at
NF applies. Because of the chaige ieuistiibution uuiing the BF oscillation, the
voltages acioss C
s
anu C
l
have changeu, anu will uischaige via L
s
anu R
s
uuiing the
uuiation of the NF oscillation.

The instant of iestiike is again taken as t = u. 0n the time scale of the NF
oscillation, u
s
can be tieateu as a constant (E
m
sin). Similaily as foi the BF
analysis, u
CM
(the voltage acioss C
s
anu C
l
), anu i
M
(the cuiient thiough the BS) can
be ueteimineu:

4u Chaptei S

u
2
sin e sin( )
1
1
e sin( )
(1 )
M
M
t M r
CM m M M
s l M
t r
M M
s M s l
U
u E t
C C
U
i t
L C C
o
o
e
u e |
e
e
e
= +
(S.4)

wheie
2 2 2
u u
1
, , , aictan
2 ( )
S M
M M M M M M
S S s l M
R
L L C C
e
o e e e o |
o
= = = =
+
.

The oscillation fiequency e
M
mainly uepenus on the sum of both capacitances anu
the inuuctance L
s
. In geneial the fiequency of this oscillation is in the oiuei of
seveial kiloheitz. Similaily as foi the highfiequency tiansient, the voltages uuiing
the NF oscillation acioss both capacitances with initial voltages U
E
aie uampeu
uue to the equivalent iesistance in the loop anu finally ieach the value u
s
. The
maximum voltage acioss the capacitances is sin
1
r
m
s l
U
E
C C
u +
+
. It incieases with
incieasing U
r
, iatio C
l
C
s
anu E
m
Similai to the BF oscillation, the maximum
theoietical voltage is SE
m
. The maximal cuiient uuiing the NF oscillation is:
max(i
M
)
2
1
(1 )
r
s l s M
U
C C L e
=
+
, which uepenus on U
r
, C
s
C
l
anu L
s
as well, anu scales
with U
r
.

3.2.3 Threecomponents synthesis

Aftei BF anu NF components have uampeu out, only the PF component iemains.
Since the time constants involveu aie highly uistinct, the BF component vanishes
on the timescale foi the NF oscillation anu the NF oscillation has uisappeaieu on
the timescale foi PF. The initial voltage, at which the NF oscillation staits, is the
final steauy state voltage aftei BF oscillation uecay anu the initial voltage foi the
PF oscillation is the final steauy state voltage of the NF oscillation.

In oiuei to quantify the complete tiansient behavioui, the thieecomponents aie
combineu. The voltage u
cl
acioss the loau siue capacitance anu the cuiient i
d

flowing thiough the BS on iestiike can be wiitten as:

u u
2
e sin( ) e sin( ) sin( )
1 1
1
e sin( ) e sin( ) cos( )
(1 )
H M
H M
t t H M r r
cl H H M M m P
l s H s l M
t t r r
d H M l P m P
H H s l s M
U U
u t t E t
C C C C
U U
i t t C E t
L C C L
o o
o o
e e
e | e | e u
e e
e e e e u
e e

= + + + +
+ +
= + + +
(S.S)

Basic Ciicuit Analysis 41

Figure 3.4. Simulated wave shapes of ucs, ucl, ud during one power frequency cycle upon re
strike.

Equation (S.S) contains the thiee fiequency components in the voltage acioss the
loau siue capacitance anu in the cuiient thiough the BS aic. The voltage acioss the
souice siue capacitance can be calculateu in a similai mannei. It tuins out that the
tiansient voltages anu cuiients uepenu on the aii gap bieakuown voltage, voltage
supply level, the iatio of C
s
C
l
anu so foith In the following sections the uistinct
fiequency contiibutions to oveivoltages anu cuiients will be uiscusseu on the
basis of the analysis above anu compaieu with expeiimental uata.

3.3 Simulation of restrikes

Foi illustiating the iestiike phenomena in voltage anu cuiient wavefoims a
simulation is peifoimeu using NATLAB Simulink (SimPoweiSystems). The
paiameteis taken aie: E
m
= 7u2 kv, L
s
= 1u mB, C
s
= 1u nF, C
l
= 1uu nF, the
iesistance foi aic at iestiike is taken as 2u anu L
H
= 1S B. Initially, the BS is in
closeu position. The BS gap staits to iecovei at t = S ms, anu iestiikes at
t = 1u ms. The simulateu wave shapes foi the cuiient i
d
, voltages u
cl
, u
cs
anu u
d

togethei with theii zoomeu in of the BF anu NF components, aie plotteu in
Figuies S.4S.6. In Figuie S.4, the thieecomponents aie inuicateu with aiiows.
Accoiuing to Section S.2, the chaiges of the souice anu loau siue capacitance C
s

anu C
l
exchange uuiing the highfiequency peiiou until the equalization voltage U
E

is ieacheu, shown in Figuie S.S. The meuiumfiequency component, aftei the
highfiequency oscillation has uisappeaieu, is uepicteu in Figuie S.6. In a similai
way, the wave shapes of the cuiient i
d
anu its high anu meuiumfiequency
components aie shown in Figuies S.7S.9.

It can be obseiveu that the high anu meuiumfiequency components last about
1u s anu 2S ms iespectively in this simulation. Buiing the oscillation, theie is a
tiansient cuiient with a peak value up to 2 kA upon iestiike at t = 1u ms. The
obseiveu oveivoltage acioss the souice siue capacitance C
s
is 1.S p.u.

0 5 10 15 20
200
100
0
100
200
time (ms)
V
o
l
t
a
g
e

(
k
V
)

u
cl
u
cs
u
d
MF
PF
HF
42 Chaptei S

0 5 10 15 20
4
2
0
2
time (ms)
C
u
r
r
e
n
t

(
k
A
)
10 10.01 10.02 10.03 10.04 10.05 10.06
2
1
0
1
time (ms)
C
u
r
r
e
n
t

(
k
A
)

Figure 3.5. Simulated wave shapes of ucs, ucl, ud at highfrequency (zoomed in from
approximately 9.96 ms to 10.06 ms in Figure 3.4).

Figure 3.6. Simulated wave shapes of ucs, ucl, ud at mediumfrequency (zoomed in from
approximately 9.5 ms to 12.5 ms in Figure 3.4).

Figure 3.7. Simulated wave shapes of id over one power frequency cycle upon restrike.
Figure 3.8. Simulated wave shapes of id at highfrequency (zoomed in from approximately
10.00 ms to 10.06 ms in Figure 3.7).
0 5 10 15 20 25
100
0
100
time (s)

V
o
l
t
a
g
e

(
k
V
)
u
cl
u
cs
u
d
U
E
9.5 10 10.5 11 11.5 12 12.5
100
0
100
time (ms)
V
o
l
t
a
g
e

(
k
V
)

u
cl
u
cs
u
d
Basic Ciicuit Analysis 4S

Figure 3.9. Simulated wave shapes of id at mediumfrequency (zoomed in from approximately
9.5 ms to 12.0 ms in Figure 3.7).

3.4 Restrike transients in distributed element load circuits

In the ciicuit of Figuie S.1 only lumpeu components aie consiueieu. As mentioneu
in Chaptei 1, the capacitive cuiient to be inteiiupteu aiises fiom substation
components, such as cuiient tiansfoimei, capacitive voltage tiansfoimei, but also
fiom uistiibuteu elements, such as busbais, oveiheau line, anu powei cables.

If the physical uimensions of the consiueieu components aie much shoitei than
the wavelength coiiesponuing with the cuiient anu voltage oscillations, lumpeu
paiameteis can be useu to mouel the powei system. 0theiwise, a uistiibuteu
paiametei appioach has to be auopteu. The tiansmission line specific (pei unit
length) paiameteis L, C anu R (G is omitteu since the aii is consiueieu a peifect
insulatoi) aie unifoimly uistiibuteu ovei the length of the line. Foi the steauy
state opeiation (poweifiequency, Su Bz oi 6u Bz), the tiansmission lines can be
iepiesenteu by lumpeu paiameteis. But foi tiansient behavioui the lines it may
be necessaiy to be iepiesenteu by uistiibuteu paiameteis.

Buiing the capacitive cuiient inteiiuption by a BS, tiansient phenomena occui
with highfiequency content, uue to the iepeateu bieaks anu iestiikes. Theiefoie,
a uistiibuteu paiametei simulation foi tiansmission lines is consiueieu in this
section. The simulateu iesults of a lumpeu paiametei anu a uistiibuteu paiametei
appioach of a tiansmission line aie compaieu.

The value of the lumpeu element paiameteis in Figuie S.1u aie taken to piouuce
the same poweifiequency iesults as those in Figuie S.1. The unloaueu oveiheau
line is simulateu with uistiibuteu paiameteis. A line length of Su km is taken to
match the inteiiupteu cuiient I
d
(PF cuiient of 9 A) of the lumpeu ciicuit (line
capacitance anu inuuctance aie 8.48 nFkm anu 1.SS mBkm, matching a lumpeu
loau siue capacitance of C
l
= 424 nF). The simulateu iesults aie shown in the
Figuies S.11S.1S, wheie the wave shapes of the inteiiupteu cuiient i
d
anu the
voltage acioss the BS u
d
, aie piesenteu iespectively: i
d1
, u
d1
aie simulateu iesults
fiom simulation with uistiibuteu elements, anu i
d2
, u
d2
aie simulateu iesults aie
obtaineu fiom simulation with lumpeu elements.
9.5 10 10.5 11 11.5 12
0.2
0.1
0
0.1
0.2
time (ms)
C
u
r
r
e
n
t

(
k
A
)
44 Chaptei S

20 21 22 23 24 25
6
4
2
0
2
4
time (ms)
V
o
l
t
a
g
e

(
k
V
)

u
d2
u
d1

Figure 3.10. Simulated circuit for capacitive current interruption with a transmission line
represented by distributed parameters.

Figure 3.11. (Left) wave shapes of the current id1, id2 through the DS with distributed lines and
lumped capacitance respectively and (right) expansion of id1 between 22.4 ms and 23.2 ms.

Figure 3.12. Wave shapes of the voltage ud1, ud2 across the DS with distributed lines and
lumped capacitance respectively.

The wave shapes of cuiient anu voltage show that the tiavelling waves aie
ieflecteu within u.SS ms. Theie aie tiansient phenomena on each ieflection
moment (see Figuie S.11, S.12). Neveitheless, theie is haiuly any highfiequency
component at iestiikes in the voltage anu cuiient wavefoims with the
uistiibuteu paiameteis, which consequently ieuuces the total amount of eneigy

15 20 25 30
200
0
200
400
time (ms)
C
u
r
r
e
n
t

(
A
)

i
d2 i
d1
22.4 22.6 22.8 23 23.2
100
0
100
time (ms)
C
u
r
r
e
n
t

(
A
)

Basic Ciicuit Analysis 4S

input into the ciicuit upon iestiike. This is because the high suige impeuance of
the line (in this example S9u ) limits the BF iestiike cuiient compaieu to the
much lowei suige impeuance of the lumpeu capacitoi. Theiefoie, to inteiiupt a
ciicuit with lumpeu paiameteis is a moie seveie task as compaieu to a
configuiation with uistiibuteu paiameteis. In the analysis in this chaptei, anu also
in the expeiimental aiiangement uesciibeu in the following chapteis, ciicuits with
lumpeu elements aie applieu. This point shoulu be paiu attention to, because of its
impact on testing, wheie noimally (lumpeu) capacitoi banks aie useu.

3.5 Conclusion

The main obseivations with iespect to calculations anu simulations on capacitive
cuiient inteiiuption with high voltage aiibieak BSs aie:

Capacitive cuiient inteiiuption by a BS consists of iepeateu bieaks anu iestiikes
as a consequence of the inteiaction between aic anu ciicuit.

The tiansient upon iestiike consist of thieecomponents: high, meuium anu
poweifiequency component. Buiing the highfiequency component, the tiansient
peiiou is in the oiuei of a few tens of micioseconus. The meuiumfiequency
component is in the oiuei of a few milliseconus. The oveivoltage acioss the
capacitances at both siues of the BS can be up to S p.u. theoietically. The peak of
the tiansient cuiient may be up to a few kiloampeies within a few micioseconus.

The iatio of souice anu loau siue capacitance, the iestiike voltage anu the cuiient
to be inteiiupteu aie the key factois that influence the tiansient voltage anu
cuiient magnituues upon iestiike.

The ciicuit with lumpeu elements, which is auopteu in this thesis, is a woist case
appioach. Capacitive cuiient inteiiuption of tiansmission lines wheie a
uistiibuteu paiametei appioach applies is less seveie.

References

|1j IEC Technical Repoit IECTR 62271SuS, "Bigh voltage switchgeai anu contiolgeai
Pait SuS: Capacitive cuiient switching capability of aiiinsulateu BSs foi iateu
voltages above S2 kv", Nov. 2uu9.
|2j L. van uei Sluis, "Transients in Power Systems", Chichestei: }ohn Wiley & Sons, 2uu1.
|Sj B. F. Peelo, "Cuiient inteiiuption using high voltage aiibieak BSs", Ph.B. uisseitation,
Bept. Electiical Engineeiing, Einuhoven 0niv. of Technology, Einuhoven, 2uu4.

46 Chaptei S

Expeiimental Setup 47

Chapter 4

Experimental Setup

Expeiiments in this thesis aie peifoimeu at seveial locations employing uiffeient
types of voltage souices. The basic ciicuit uiagiam foi all test sites was piesenteu
in Figuie S.1. Figuie 4.1 uepicts the geneial setup incluuing the measuiing system
schematically.

The voltage supply is iepiesenteu by an iueal voltage souice u
s
with seiies
iesistance R
s
iepiesenting losses anu inuuctance L
s
. Theii values uepenu on the
souice type being useu (see Section 4.1). Capacitances C
s
anu C
l
stanu foi the
souice anu loau siue capacitoi banks with a BS in between. The capacitance values
can be vaiieu foi the test seiies. The voltages u
cs
, u
cl
aie the voltages acioss C
s
anu
C
l
, iespectively. These voltages aie measuieu by the capacitive voltage uiviueis D
1

anu D
2
in combination with the high voltage piobes D
S
anu D
4
(Section 4.2.1). The
uiffeiential signal is useu to ueteimine the voltage acioss the BS (Section 4.2.2).
The cuiient thiough the BS is inuicateu by i
d
. Cuiient tiansfoimeis CT
1
anu CT
2

measuie the cuiient thiough C
l
(Section 4.2.S). Two cuiient tiansfoimeis aie
applieu to covei the uynamic iange of uiffeient fiequency components
simultaneously (below 1 A to seveial kiloampeies anu fiom Su Bz to seveial
megaheitz), uenoteu as i
pf
anu i
hf
, iespectively. voltages anu cuiients aie iecoiueu
by a uata acquisition system incluuing foui uigitizeis, CH
14
, each having a single
input channel (Section 4.2.4). In auuition to the electiical signals, aic images aie
iecoiueu by means of a highspeeu cameia, which is installeu on the same height
as the BS blaues (Section 4.2.S). The opening chaiacteiistics of the BS is
ueteimineu in Section 4.S.

4.1 High voltage source

Two uiffeient types of high voltage souice aie employeu. Bepenuing on the test
sites, a powei tiansfoimei oi a iesonance high voltage souice is useu.

A shoitciicuit geneiatoi plus a tiansfoimei aie available in laige scale
laboiatoiies, such as KENA Bigh Powei Laboiatoiies in Ainhem anu Piague. The
equivalent test ciicuit is shown in Figuie 4.2. A souice inuuctance L
s
is useu with a
value up to a few hunuieus of milliheniy. Aii gaps aie useu to piotect the
capacitois bank, but aie not shown in Figuie 4.2. These setups supply up to
17S kvims phasetogiounu voltage, anu up to 27 A cuiient uuiing the
expeiiments. The specific test configuiations employeu foi uiffeient seiies of
expeiiments will be piesenteu in Chapteis S, 6 anu 7.
48 Chaptei 4

Figure 4.1. Experimental circuit including electrical and optical transducers.

Figure 4.2. Test circuit with source in KEMA HPL. G: shortcircuit generator; M: master
breaker; Ls, Rs: reactor and resistor at source side; S: make switch; TR: shortcircuit
transformer.

In the high voltage laboiatoiy at the Einuhoven 0niveisity of Technology a
iesonant system (Bipotionics) is available as high voltage supply. Its top view anu
equivalent scheme aie shown Figuie 4.S (left anu iight, iespectively).

The iesonant system incluues an aujustable high voltage ieactoi L
s
, a capacitoi C
anu an excitei tiansfoimei. The vaiiable auto tiansfoimei T
1
contiols the
tiansfoimei T
2
, which supplies powei to the iesonant ciicuit, anu it isolates the
test specimen fiom the line. Two tuneable ieactois, which can be connecteu eithei
in seiies oi in paiallel, make up the souice inuuctance. Each of them has an
inuuctance with a value in the iange of 4uu B1u kB, anu iesistance (measuieu at
BC) of about 1 k. Each ieactoi is uesigneu foi a voltage of Suu kvims. The AC

Expeiimental Setup 49

Figure 4.3. (left) Laboratory source for capacitive current interruption with a DS at TU/e;
(right) simplified schematics of Hipotronics high voltage source.

souice poweiing the iesonant ciicuit, inuicateu with u
out
in Figuie 4.S (iight) is at
maximum 22 kvims. The capacitance C
s
is chosen eithei 2 nF oi 4 nF by seiies
connections of foui oi two 8 nF, 1Su kv capacitois. Biffeient combinations of ten
available 16 nF high voltage capacitois can be maue to aujust the (loau)
capacitance C
l
to the uesiieu cuiient. Each of these capacitois has a iateu voltage
of 1Su kvims anu tan < S1u
S
. The total capacitance (uenoteu as C in Figuie 4.S
(iight)) befoie opening the BS incluues the capacitances at both siues of the BS,
incluuing capacitances fiom voltage uiviueis, bushings, etc. The ieactoi L
s
is
aujusteu to compensate the total capacitive ieactance anu theieby tuning the
ciicuit. The quality factoi Q of this system can ieach values of Su8u foi high
quality capacitive loaus. The system is capable to supply a Su Bz high voltage up to
Suu kv. Iueally, a maximum cuiient of 2 A oi 4 A can be achieveu, uepenuing on
whethei the ieactois aie in seiies oi in paiallel. Buiing the expeiiments, fiist the
system is eneigizeu with the closeu BS at a low level of u
s
. Next, the inuuctance L
s

is tuneu until L
s
anu C become iesonant at Su Bz. 0nce the system is in iesonance,
the uesiieu voltage level is chosen anu the inteiiuption expeiiment can
commence.

A uiawback of the iesonant system is that it can be tuneu into iesonance at
poweifiequency while the BS is in closeu position only. When the BS staits
opening, the iesonant conuition still iemains because the loau capacitoi is
connecteu thiough the conuuctive aic at the veiy beginning. The quality of the
ciicuit uiops, howevei, uue to the aic iesistivity. Since the aic extinguishes
iepeateuly at each cuiient zeio, the iesonance is lost uuiing the voltage iecoveiy
peiiou. Aftei iestiikeieignition, the iesonance conuition is met again but the
souice voltage has staiteu uiopping. Figuie 4.4 shows the uecay of measuieu
souice voltage at uiffeient initial high voltage levels. It uemonstiates that the
system voltage uecays iapiuly aftei 1u to 2u poweifiequency cycles.

Su Chaptei 4

0 5 10 15 20 25 30
100
50
0
50
100
time (ms)
u
r
e
s

(
k
V
)

without arc
R
a
=50
R
a
=300

Figure 4.4. Source voltage decay by loss of resonance and energy dissipation by the arc,
measured results.

Figure 4.5. Resonant voltage reduction for different values of the arc resistance, simulated
results.

The aic iesistance is in the oiuei of seveial hunuieu ohms (Section S.S.S), i.e. only
in the oiuei of 1uSu% of the uc iesistance of the iesonant ciicuit (1 k). As
simulateu in Figuie 4.S this is expecteu to ieuuce the souice voltage with the same
amount, since the ciicuit quality is inveisely piopoitional to the total ciicuit
iesistance. The initial voltage ieuuction can be asciibeu to the eneigy uissipation
in the aic, since the aic inteiiuption time is still negligible. The voltage uiops aftei
ten cycles is laigei than can be expecteu baseu on the aic eneigy uissipation. This
ieuuction must mainly be asciibeu to the longei aic inteiiuption peiious with
incieaseu aii gap uistance between the BS blaues iesulting in loss of iesonance.

Anothei uiawback of the iesonant ciicuit is that this ciicuit ueviates stiongly fiom
the piactical situation in which ciicuits have a low value of souice inuuctance (oi
a high shoitciicuit powei). This causes the meuiumfiequency component uuiing
the tiansients to be viitually absent. In this situation, the expeiiments uefinitely
100 0 100 200 300 400 500
0
50
100
150
200
time(ms)
v
o
l
t
a
g
e
(
k
V
)

85kV
100kV
120kV
140kV
180kV
Expeiimental Setup S1

Figure 4.6. Scheme of the voltage dividers (D1 or D2), ui:uo = 10.7:1 and their mounting
positions in parallel to the DS insulators.

uo not match piactical situations. Specifically, compaieu to the expeiiments
peifoimeu in the laige test laboiatoiies, the aic uuiation anu length is shoitei anu
the aicingswitching is accompanieu with lowei oveivoltage levels. The
expeiiments uone at the T0e high voltage laboiatoiy theiefoie aie useu foi stuuy
of the piincipal (micioscopic) phenomena, but aie not suitable to give iealistic
macioscopic iesults, e.g. aic uuiation.

4.2 Measurement system

The electiical signals anu optical aic image iecoiuing system aie uesciibeu in this
section.

4.2.1 Voltage measurement

The voltage measuiing systems at both BS siues aie iuentical fiom uesign. Each
capacitive uiviuei consists of ten Nuiata 2 nF, 4u kv capacitois in seiies (D
1
oi
D
2
), anu a 1uuu:1 Noith Stai high voltage piobe (D
S
oi D
4
), see Figuie 4.1 |1j, |2j.
The ten uiviuei capacitois foi both uiviueis aie caiefully selecteu to iealize a
uivision iatio being as close as possible to each othei. The capacitive uiviueis (C
1
C
1u
) aie shown in Figuie 4.6 with uivision iatio u
i
:u
o
= 1u.7:1. The uiviueis aie
mounteu in paiallel to the BS insulatois. The ueteimination of the uiviuei
iesponse up to the cutoff fiequency is accomplisheu by injecting a unit step
voltage with a iise time of 2u ns. The wave shapes of the input anu output signals
anu theii tiansfei function (u
i
u
o
) aie shown in Figuie 4.7 anu 4.8, iespectively.
The iesults show that the capacitive voltage uiviueis have banuwiuths up to about
S.S NBz. In the expeiiments, the highest tiansients (BF oscillation, see Chaptei S)
have fiequencies up to 1 NBz (see Figuie S.6), which has attenuation of less than
2% (foi cutoff fiequency of S.SNBz).
S2 Chaptei 4

Figure 4.7. Injected step function (top) and response (bottom) of the divider.

Figure 4.8. Frequency response of the capacitive voltage dividers (ui/uo).

In oiuei to lowei the output voltage fiom the Nuiata capacitoi stack uiviuei
fuithei to be able to supply it to the uigitizei system, commeicial voltage uiviueis
(piobes) aie useu. The high voltage piobe, (type Noith Stai, PvNS), is basically a
paiallel RC voltage uiviuei uesigneu to piouuce piecisely attenuateu signals ovei
a wiue banuwiuth. The ciicuit uiagiam is shown in Figuie 4.9. The uiviuei
netwoik contains a high voltage bianch consisting of a paiallel capacitoi anu
iesistoi anu a lowvoltage netwoik, which consists of a paiallel RC netwoik anu a
compensation ciicuit. The high voltage section of the voltage uiviuei is containeu
in an oilfilleu housing. The lowvoltage section is containeu in a sepaiate box
unueineath the uiviueis base. Its main chaiacteiistics aie: max BCpulse voltage:
6u1uu kv; banuwiuth: 8u NBz; cable impeuance: Su ; input RC:
4uu N1S pF; uiviuei iatio: 1uuu:1.
2 2.5 3 3.5
0
2
4
u
o

(
V
)
time (s)
2 2.5 3 3.5
0
20
40
u
i

(
V
)
time (s)
rise time 20 ns
rise time 40 ns
100k 1M 10M
5
10
15
|
u
i
/
u
o
|
100k 1M 10M
180
90
0
90
180
u
i
/
u
o

(
)
Frequency (Hz)
3dB
5.77M
Expeiimental Setup SS

Figure 4.9. Circuit diagram of the voltage divider.

4.2.2 Differential voltage accuracy

Accuiate voltage measuiements of the voltage acioss the BS (u
d
) aie essential foi
aic voltage anu iestiike voltage analysis. Theiefoie, the uiffeiential voltage
u
d
= u
cs
u
cl
must be available with the highest possible piecision. This is achieveu
by compaiing the voltages u
cs
anu u
cl
in closeu position of the BS. The ielative
voltage uiviuei iatios can be aujusteu by compaiing the uiviuei outputs befoie BS
opening foi each measuiement, wheie the two outputs shoulu be equal.

Figuie 4.1u shows the wave shapes of voltages u
cs
, u
cl
anu u
d
togethei with the
expansions of amplituue anu phase of u
cs
, u
cl
befoie inteiiuption. Iueally, they
shoulu be completely iuentical, but uue to toleiances in the uivision iatios of
uiviueis anu piobes minoi uiffeiences occui. The zoomeu wavefoims in Figuie
4.1u of u
cs
anu u
cl
show that the peak amplituues anu the phase angles uiffei. An
amplituue coiiection with a factoi u.9961 anu a phase shift of u.u21 ms is applieu
to match the wave shapes of u
cs
, u
cl
to obtain u
d
. voltage wave shapes u
cs
, u
cl
anu u
d

expansions neai voltage peak anu neai zeiociossing of u
cs
, u
cl
aftei calibiation aie
plotteu in Figuie 4.11. The eiioi in voltage magnituue of u
d
has uioppeu fiom 1 kv
to about u.1 kv.

4.2.3 Current measurement

Insteau of measuiing i
d
uiiectly, the cuiient thiough C
l
is measuieu with the high
fiequency cuiient tiansfoimeis CT
1
, CT
2
. Because the impeuance of C
l

(capacitance in the iange seveial nanofaiau up to hunuieus of nanofaiau) is much
lowei than the impeuance of the voltage uiviuei (with a total capacitance in the
oiuei of 2uu pF), the eiioi foi cuiient uiffeience theiefoie is maximum 2.S% foi
C
l
= 8 nF foi the T0e laboiatoiy setup. At the othei expeiimental sites, this effect
is usually smallei because of the laigei capacitoi values (up to 9uu nF).
S4 Chaptei 4

9.47 9.48 9.49 9.5
0.2
0
0.2

time (ms)
u
c
s
,

u
c
l
(
k
V
)
u
cs
u
cl
0 10 20 30
200
0
200
time (ms)
u
c
s
,

u
c
l
(
k
V
)

0 10 20 30
200
0
200
time (ms)
u
c
s
,

u
c
l
(
k
V
)

4.2 4.4 4.6 4.8
130.5
131
131.5
132
time (ms)

u
c
s
,

u
c
l
(
k
V
)
0 20 40
1
0
1
time (ms)
u
d

(
k
V
)
9.47 9.475 9.48
0.2
0
0.2

time (ms)
u
c
s
,

u
c
l
(
k
V
)
u
cs
u
cl
4.2 4.4 4.6 4.8
130.5
131
131.5
132
132.5
time (ms)
u
c
s
,

u
c
l
(
k
V
)

u
cs
u
cl

Figure 4.10. Voltages ucs, ucl and ud and zoomed in near voltage peak and near zerocrossing
of ucs, ucl before interruption without adjustment.

Figure 4.11. Voltages ucs, ucl and ud zoomed in near voltage peak and near zerocrossing of ucs,
ucl after adjustment of amplitude and phase shift.

Two similai cuiient tiansfoimeis (CT
1
, CT
2
, each connecteu to a sepaiate
uigitizei) aie employeu foi measuiing both poweifiequency anu highfiequency
components. Each tiansfoimei (type: Peaison 11u) has the following piopeities
(accoiuing to |Sj): sensitivity: u.1 vA; output iesistance: Su ; maximum peak
cuiient: S kA; maximum ims cuiient: 6S A; iise time 2u ns; S uB cutoff
10 20 30 40
1
0
1
time (ms)
u
d

(
k
V
)
Expeiimental Setup SS

Figure 4.12. Location of current transformers.

fiequencies: appioximately 1 Bz anu 2u NBz. Figuie 4.12 shows both cuiient
tiansfoimeis anu theii location aiounu the leau connecting C
l
to the giounu.

4.2.4 Isolated digitizer and data acquisition

The voltage anu cuiient signals aie supplieu to foui channels of a high iesolution
uata acquisition system (LBS Nicolet Bv 66uu uigital system). It consists of
isolateu uigitizeis ("FiontEnu"), optical fibie, uenesis mainfiame anu softwaie
"Peiception" (see Figuie 4.1S). The FiontEnus can be useu in a heavily EN
polluteu high voltage enviionment owing to theii shieluing anu electiical
insulation. Each FiontEnu has an input impeuance of 1 NS8 pF, anu its
analogue banuwiuth ianges up to 2S NBz. The sampling fiequency is up to
1uu NSs with a veitical iesolution of 14 bit. The optical fibie link tiansmits the
signals in ieal time to the uenesis (cential unit) mainfiame, avoiuing EN
inteifeience in the connection between tiansuucei anu cential uata stoiage unit
anu allowing the installation of tiansuuceis on locations of any potential. Each
FiontEnu is iemotely piogiammable. The uenesis mainfiame anu a PC aie
connecteu via an IP netwoik auuiess. The softwaie "Peiception" contiols the
haiuwaie, iecoius uata, allows viewing of the signals, anu peifoims basic signal
postpiocessing. Final uata analysis is caiiieu out with piogiams in NATLAB
sciipt.

4.2.5 Highspeed camera

A highspeeu cameia (Nouel Centuiio C1uu, fiom Lot0iiel Euiope, shown in
Figuie 4.14) with fiame memoiy 2 uB is employeu to iecoiu the aic images |4j. It
is baseu on a laige foimat CN0S uetectoi with a maximum iesolution of
128u1u24 pixels. A CN0S sensoi conveits the photons fiom the light coming
thiough the lens into electiic chaiges, which aie then piocesseu by the electionic
ciicuitiy. The iesolution ianges fiom 64x12 pixels, with a maximum iecoiuing
time of 27 s, at a iate of 1u
6
fiamess to 128u1u24 pixels, with a maximum
iecoiuing time of S.6 s, at a iate of 424 fiamess. The sensitivity is aujustable
S6 Chaptei 4

Figure 4.13. Data acquisition system with isolated FrontEnds, optical fibre links, Genesis
mainframe and PC.

between Su anu 2uuu ASA. The exposuie time is aujustable fiom 2 s to S2u ms.
The cameia woiks in connection with a PC using the 0SB2.u inteiface thiough
softwaie, which allows piecise tiiggeiing, iecoiuing, anu postpiocessing. The
optical foimat is 17.9x4.S mm. An Fmount Sigma lens is applieu, with filtei size
82 mm, lens constiuction 1S14, angle of view 84.1
u
S4.S
u
, minimum apeituie S2,
minimum focusing uistance 4u cm, magnification 1:S.8 anu focal length 247u mm.

Buiing measuiements, electiical anu optical signals aie iecoiueu simultaneously.
The electiical anu optical signals aie synchionizeu thiough caiefully matching the
fiame with the highest biightness with the most seveie iestiike moment in the
measuieu cuiient oi voltage wavefoims. Noimally, the final iestiike is chosen.

The uuiation of the electiical tiansient signals accompanying the biight fiame is a
few tens of micioseconus, much shoitei than the exposuie time of the fiame,
usually taken 1 ms foi a 1uuu fiamess iecoiuing speeu. The timing clock
accuiacy of the cameia is checkeu by measuiing its sync output anu is founu to
ueviate u.u6%, i.e. cleaily less than vaiiation in the Su Bz poweifiequency. The
synchionization between fiaming iate anu poweifiequency theiefoie is limiteu
by the momentaiy value of the poweifiequency.

The aic length is estimateu baseu on two uimensional piojection of iecoiueu aic
images. In space the aic piopagates in all thiee uimensions uue to the blaues
moving, aii flow, magnetic fielu, piesence of objects in the enviionment. The
single highspeeu cameia can captuie only two uimensions. Ignoiing the thiiu
uimension leaus to ceitain estimation eiioi. This eiioi can be minimizeu with
piuuent cameia positioning. The cameia is positioneu facing the cential axis of
the fiontal view of the BS, in the same height as the main blaues. The cameias
position secuies that the most uominant uiiections of aic piopagation aie
captuieu.


Figure 4.14. Highspeed camera for recording the arc image in a shielding box.

4.3 Disconnector main blades opening velocity

The opening chaiacteiistics, such as the opening velocity of the main blaues, aie
baseu on measuieu the time uepenuent uistance between the BS contacts. This
uistance uepenus on the angle between the moving blaues anu the blaues oiiginal
closeu position. The elapseu time is ueteimineu by the iotation speeu of the
uiiving shaft of the BS (appioximately 4u tuinss). 0n the shaft a cylinuiical sheet
is mounteu with 2S ieflective slots geneiating 2S pulses pei tuin (about 1 kBz).
The ieflecteu light fiom a small light souice is uetecteu by a sensoi. It takes about
21u iotations (S s) to open the BS main blaues fiom zeio to ninety uegiees. The
light sensoi pulses aie iecoiueu anu ielateu to the mechanical movement of the
blaue contacts calculateu fiom the uiiving mechanism of the BS.

The top view of the BS is shown in Figuie 4.1S. The movement of the aims of the
iotating paits is inuicateu in Figuie 4.16. The opening mechanism is attacheu to
the shaft via a geaibox anu is uiiven by an electiomotoi. The iotation of the shaft
ielates lineaily to the cential iotating stiip, inuicateu as 1 in Figuie 4.1S. The
angle
2
is the iotation angle of the stiip ielateu to the position paiallel to the BS
blaues. The left enu of this stiip is mounteu to a pipe inuicateu as 2, which is
mounteu to a fiame at the left siue with on top the insulatoi inuicateu as S.
1
is
the iotation angle of this fiame ielateu to the position paiallel to the BS blaues.
The pipe pulls this fiame of the left insulatoi anu iotates the insulatoi anu
meanwhile the BS blaue. The iight insulatoi is mounteu with anothei pipe to the
left insulatoi fiame anu theiefoie iotates similaily in opposite uiiection. All
uistances anu the initial angles (foi closeu position)
1,u
(iau),
2,u
(u.186iau)
aie measuieu.

S8 Chaptei 4

Figure 4.15. Schematic of the top view of the DS.

Figure 4.16. Rotating angle of the left blade in Figure 4.16.

The centie of the iotating stiip is chosen as the oiigin of the cooiuinate system.
The position of the connection point to the pipe is:

(x
2
(p); y
2
(p)) = [-r
2
cos [
p
5250
+
2,0
; -r
2
sin[
p
5250
+ 0
2,0
(4.1)

In this equation p is the numbei of pulses, with a total of S2Su pulses to open the
BS completely. A similai expiession can be obtaineu foi the position of the
connection between the pipe anu the iotating fiame S in Figuie 4.1S:

(x
1
(p); y
1
(p)) = (-A - r
1
cos(0(p) + 0
1,0
) ; B - r
1
sin(0(p) + 0
1,0
)) (4.2)
2

Figure 4.17. Opening speed of the DS in TU/e HV laboratory.

Beie (A, B) inuicates the centie of iotation with iespect to the chosen oiigin. The
length of the pipe between (x
1
, y
1
) anu (x
2
, y
2
) is fixeu, l = 1SuS mm:

l =
_
(x
2
(p) - x
1
(p))
2
+ (y
2
(p) - y
1
(p))
2
(4.S)

Because this holus foi eveiy pulse numbei p this must holu also foi eveiy angle
0(p). In this way the iotation of the insulatoi is calculateu. Fiom the position at
eveiy pulse anu the time between the pulses the velocity of the BS blaues is
calculateu. Figuie 4.17 shows that the contact sepaiation speeu is initially u.2 ms
anu incieases up to u.6 ms aftei 2 s (this iesult is baseu on the 24S kv iateu
voltage centiebieak BS fiom Bapam |Sj).

4.4 Conclusion

The expeiimental setups with two uiffeient powei supplies (iesonant geneiatoi
anu shoitciicuit geneiatoi) aie uesciibeu foi uiffeient test locations. The
measuiing system incluues voltage uiviuei, cuiient tiansfoimei, uigital uata
acquisition system, anu highspeeu cameia. Two iuentical voltage uiviueis with
S.S NBz banuwiuth aie uesigneu foi the puipose of measuiing voltage acioss the
main contacts of the BS. Aftei coiiection theii uivision iatio is equal within u.u7%.
The banuwiuth of the cuiient measuiement is up to 2u NBz. Tiansient cuiient up
to 7 kA is measuieu simultaneously with poweifiequency with sensitivity of
S mA. A highspeeu cameia is employeu anu its taking fiame up to Suuu fiamess,
anu a iesolution of 2S6x2S4 pixels. The BS employeu in the tests, opens with
typical speeu u.4 ms.

References

|1j |0nlinej. Available: http:www.muiata.compiouuctscapacitoiinuex.html.
|2j |0nlinej. Available: http:www.highvoltagepiobes.comfaq.html.
|Sj |0nlinej. Available: http:www.peaisonelectionics.com.
|4j |0nlinej. Available: http:www.lotoiiel.com.
|Sj |0nlinej. Available: http:www.hapam.nl.

0 1 2 3 4 5
0
0.2
0.4
0.6
0.8
S
p
e
e
d

(
m
/
s
)
time (s)
6u Chaptei 4

Cuiient Inteiiuption Nechanism 61

Chapter 5

Current Interruption Mechanism

The cuiient inteiiuption of an aiibieak Bv BS is investigateu expeiimentally by
obseivation of electiical anu optical signals in this chaptei. Fiom these
obseivations the inteiiuption is chaiacteiizeu in teims of aic uuiation, aic moue,
aic movement, aic biightness, anu uecay of afteiglow. The electiical
chaiacteiistics ielateu to the fiee buining aic aie ueiiveu as well. The majoi
factois that contiol the BSs capability to inteiiupt capacitive cuiient, such as
blaue contacts spacing, the iestiike voltages, aic eneigy, anu tiansient
phenomena aie stuuieu in uetail. In the enu, baseu on expeiimental uata, the
piincipal tiansient piocess is uesciibeu, anu the tiansient voltages anu cuiients
aie stuuieu.

Expeiiments aie caiiieu out in uiffeient laboiatoiies (see Chaptei 4.1) with a
centiebieak BS. Thiee BSs aie testeu with a iateu voltage of 14S kv, 24S kv anu
Suu kv iespectively. 0sually at each cuiient level, the opeiation is iepeateu at
least thiee times. The level of the cuiient to be inteiiupteu is contiolleu by C
l
(see
Figuie S.1). The main configuiations of the capacitois C
s
anu C
l
aie listeu in
Table S.1 with light, meuium anu uaik shaueu iegions iespectively. The
expeiiments fiom 8 A to 27 A (at 9u kv anu C
s
fixeu at Su nF, C
l
ianging fiom
17u nF to 9SS nF) in the uaik shaueu iegion aie peifoimeu with an exteinal fast
opening contacts (see Chaptei 7), inuicateu by the italic anu bolu font style. Some
of these inteiiuptions faileu. They aie incluueu in this table in oiuei to illustiate
uiffeient aic chaiacteiistics foi this chaptei.

5.1 Experimental observations

Baseu on electiical signals anu optical images, a global chaiacteiization is maue.
The inteiiuption piocess is stuuieu baseu on voltages acioss both capacitances
anu the BS, anu the cuiient thiough the BS. The optical obseivation incluues the
uevelopment of the aic, iesulting in aic motion, aic shape, anu aic biightness. The
coiielation of the electiical anu optical signals is also piesenteu.

5.1.1 Electrical arc signal observation

Typical wave shapes of the ielevant tiansient phenomena uuiing the inteiiuption
piocess aie shown in Figuies S.1S.8. Specifically, infoimation of u
cs
(the voltage
acioss the souice siue capacitance), u
cl
(the voltage acioss the loau siue
capacitance) capacitance), i
d
(the cuiient thiough the BS), u
d
(= u
cs
u
cl
, the voltage
62 Chaptei S

Table S.1. Inteiiupting cuiient foi souice anu loau siue capacitance combinations.

Cs
Cl
Id
2.u 4.u 1.S 6.u 2u.u 6u.u Su.u 1uu.u
4.S u.2S
8.u u.6
1u.7 u.6u u.6u
16.u 1.2
17.u u.S
19.S 1.u 1.u 1.u 1.u
S2.u 2.4
S8.6 1.1 2.1 1.1 2.1
4u.u 2.1 2.1 2.1 2.1 2.1
48 1.4
88 2.6
121 S.S
1SS S.9
17u S.u
18S S.S
218 6.S
277 8
S12 9
S46 10
4SS 12.5
S19 15
S88 17
692 20
796 23
86S 25
9SS 27

Note: Cs and Cl are in nanofarads and Id is the current in amperes. The light shaded region is
performed with a DS rating of 245 kV at the TU/e laboratory setup at voltages up to 170 kV;
the medium shaded region corresponds to a DS rated for 300 kV tested at 90 kV or 173 kV;
"1.1/2.1" at Cl = 38.6 nF means 1.1 A at 90 kV and 2.1 A at 173 kV; the dark shaded region
corresponds to a DS rated for 145 kV tested at 90 kV. For the dark shaded region, the
interruptions up to 6.3 A are successful. The experiments indicated by the medium and dark
shaded region are carried out at KEMA laboratories.

acioss the BS) is plotteu. The cuiient i
d
is simultaneously measuieu with a
banuwiuth of Su kBz (i
pf
, coveiing poweifiequency) anu a banuwiuth of 2u NBz
(i
hf
, coveiing highfiequency tiansient signals). The expeiimental paiameteis foi
the illustiations in Figuies S.1S.8 aie: E
m
= 9u2 kv, C
s
= 1.S nF, C
l
= 4u nF,
I
d
= 1.1 A. Time t = u is taken as the moment when the BS blaues stait opening.
Cuiient Inteiiuption Nechanism 6S

1680 1690 1700 1710 1720 1730 1740 1750
200
100
0
100
200

time (ms)
u
c
s
,

u
c
l

(
k
V
)
u
cs
u
cl
Overvoltage
Restrike Extinction

Figure 5.1. Voltages (ucs, ucl) cross the capacitors.

Figure 5.2. Zoomed in between 1680 ms and 1750 ms of Figure 5.1.

Figure 5.3. Wave shape of the voltage across the DS: ud = ucs ucl.

0 500 1000 1500 2000
200
0
200
u
c
s

(
k
V
)
Zoomed in
0 500 1000 1500 2000
200
0
200
time (ms)
u
c
l

(
k
V
)
0 500 1000 1500 2000
200
100
0
100
200
time (ms)
u
d

(
k
V
)
Zoomed in
Steps
64 Chaptei S

Figure 5.4. Zoomed in between 1675 ms and 1720 ms of Figure 5.3.

Figure 5.5. Wave shape of the current id scaled to allow full coverage at HF component.

Figure 5.6. (left) zoomed in between 1860 ms to 1930 ms of Figure 5.5, and (right) zoomed in
a single highfrequency component.

Fiom the wavefoims in these figuies the following geneial phenomena aie
obseiveu:

The entiie inteiiuption piocess lasts about 2 s. Buiing this piocess the
capacitive cuiient inteiiuption consists of multiple, peiiouical aic extinctions
anu iestiikes, which aie cleaily obseiveu in the expanueu wave shapes
(Figuies S.2, S.4, S.6 anu S.8). The aic extinguishes as the aic cuiient ciosses
zeio anu ieestablishes uuiing the succeeuing half powei cycle uue to the
collapse of the (poweifiequency) Rv. Tiansient phenomena occui upon each
iestiike. Fiist the BF component appeais, followeu by the NF anu PF
components (see Chaptei S). Foi example, the highfiequency component
shown in Figuie S.6, with fiequency appioximately 1uu kBz.
1675 1680 1685 1690 1695 1700 1705 1710 1715
200
100
0
100
200
time (ms)
u
d

(
k
V
)
RV rising
Arcing
0 500 1000 1500 2000
1000
0
1000
time (ms)
i
h
f

(
A
)
Step
Zoomed in
1880 1900 1920
1000
0
1000
time (ms)
i
h
f

(
A
)
Zoomed in
1906.71906.81906.9 1907 1907.1
1000
0
1000
time (ms)
i
h
f

(
A
)

580 585 590 595 600 605 610
2
1
0
1
2
time (ms)
i
p
f

(
A
)
HF
MF

Figure 5.7. Wave shape of the current recorded at lower frequency in order to filter out HF
transients.

Figure 5.8. Zoomed in between 580 ms and 610 ms of Figure 5.7 arc current ipf.

It lasts about u.1 ms. The meuiumfiequency component, shown in Figuie
S.8, has a fiequency of about 2 kBz, lasting appioximately 6 ms. Aftei the
high anu meuiumfiequency oscillations have uecayeu, only the powei
fiequency component iemains.

Buiing the inteiiuption, oveivoltages acioss the capacitoi banks at both BS
siues anu between the BS main blaues aiise. 0pon iestiike a high peak
cuiient thiough the BS occuis. In the example, the maximum oveivoltage of
u
cl
, u
cl
is 1.86 p.u. anu the maximum BF tiansient cuiient is about 1.6 kA (see
Figuies S.S anu S.6).

The expansion of the voltage u
d
(Figuie S.4), anu the poweifiequency
component of the cuiient (Figuie S.8) show the peiious with aic anu
inteivals in between, wheie the Rv builus up at each half poweifiequency
cycle. The aic iestiikes whenevei the Rv exceeus the uielectiic stiength of
the aii gap. It extinguishes completely when sufficient aii gap uistance
between the main blaue contacts of the BS has been ieacheu to withstanu the
Rv.

values of u
d
anu i
d
(Figuies S.S anu S.S) on each moment of iestiike uo not
iise monotonously with the incieasing contacts uistance, but "steps" aie
obseiveu. The iestiike voltage is not only ueteimineu by the gap uistance
0 500 1000 1500 2000
20
10
0
10
20
time (ms)
i
p
f

(
A
)
Zoomed in
66 Chaptei S

between two contacts of the BS, but appaiently uepenus on othei influences
as well. Foi example, theimal effects in the aii gap can ieuuce the gap
bieakuown voltage, which will be uiscusseu in uetail latei on in this chaptei.

5.1.2 Optical arc image observation

The aic extinctions anu iestiikesieignitions aie also visible thiough aic
imaging. The aic length incieases uue to the incieasing uistance of the contacts,
anu the aic moves upwaius giauually mainly uue to the iising hot aii. The aic
usually has a single iestiike iesulting in the highest biightness uuiing a shoit
peiiou of time within each half cycle. Both electiical signals anu aic images aie
exemplifieu in Figuie S.9 foi an entiie inteiiuption. The instances in the electiical
signals, wheie the image fiames aie taken, aie inuicateu by time insiue the optical
images. The aic images show the giauual upwaiu movement as a 2 uimensions
piojection of the complex S uimensional shape. The aic length is incieasing until
its final extinction. In the shown example, the aic extinguishes piematuiely

1 ms 2 ms 3 ms
250 ms
300 ms
6 ms
50 ms
8 ms
10 ms
11 ms
450 ms 500 ms
550 ms
600 ms
650 ms
700 ms
750 ms
100 ms 150 ms 200 ms
350 ms 400 ms
800 ms

Figure 5.9. Wave shapes of ud and id, and arc image frames at different time instances for
140 kV, 2 A measured at the TU/e HV laboratory.
0 100 200 300 400 500 600 700 800
50
0
50
100
time (ms)
i
d
(
A
)
,

u
d
(
k
V
)

u
d
i
d
Zoomed in

because of the uecaying iesonant souice voltage (see Chaptei 4, Figuie 4.4). The
expansion ovei a full cycle taken between 674 ms anu 694 ms of Figuie S.9,
togethei with aic images taken eveiy 1.1 ms, is shown in Figuie S.1u. Time t
1
is
the moment that the iestiike occuis; t
2
is the moment of the iestiike one powei
cycle latei. As alieauy obseiveu fiom the electiical signals, also fiom the
biightness of the aic images, it is confiimeu that iestiike occuis each half cycle.
The aic biightness uiops uiastically fiom the fiame at iestiike to the subsequent
fiame because the highfiequency component lasts only a fiaction of the cameia
exposuie time of u.99 ms foi 1uuu fiamess. The aic images show that a ie
establisheu aic follows closely the path of the pieceuing aic befoie iestiike.

1st f 2nd f 3rd f 4th f
5th f 6th f 7th f
8th f
9th f 10th f 11th f
12 thf
13 thf 14 thf
15 thf 16 thf
17th f
18 thf 19 thf

Figure 5.10. Arc images recorded within 20 ms of Figure 5.9 including three restrikes (1
st
,
10
th
and 19
th
image).

675 680 685 690 695
40
20
0
20
40
time (ms)
i
d
(
A
)
,

u
d
(
k
V
)

u
d
i
d
68 Chaptei S

5.1.3 Combined optical and electrical signals

The changes in the aic ovei time aie chaiacteiizeu with two types of
measuiements. The electiical measuiements pioviue infoimation about changes
in the aic cuiient anu voltage. 0n the othei hanu the optical measuiements
pioviue a visual peiception of the aic piopeities thiough the iecoiueu images.
The piesence of the aic in an image iesults in the incieaseu image biightness. In
oiuei to investigate the coiielation between optical anu electiical aic infoimation
qualitatively, a methou is sought to quantify the biightness of a single aic image
fiame, which aie extiacteu fiom highspeeu aic viueo iecoiuing.

Biightness is an attiibute of visual peiception in which a souice appeais to emit a
given amount of light. In oiuei to quantify biightness in this application, it is
uefineu heie as the noimalizeu integiateu gieyscale value of all pixels in a ceitain
image of the highspeeu viueo cameia output file. The gieyscale value of a pixel in
the uigital image has a value in the iange of u2SS. The value u coiiesponus to the
black, while the value 2SS iepiesent white. Such uefinition has no
veiifieucalibiateu ielationship to any physical quantity of the light emitting
piopeities of the aic. Theiefoie, biightness measuiement iesults thus have only
inuicative value.

The biightness of a pixel with cooiuinates (i, j) in fiame k of a uigital image
iecoiuing is uenoteu as
( )
,
k
i j
B
, wheie 1 i n anu 1 j m (nm is the spatial
iesolution of the cameia). The image biightness of the k
th
fiame is uefineu as the
sum of biightness fiom all pixels:

( )
,
1 1 = =
=
n m
k
k i j
i j
B B (S.1)

The values of B
k
of uiffeient images can only be compaieu uiiectly if they aie
taken with iuentical cameia settings. In oiuei to compaie anu evaluate each image
in a iecoiuing, the biightness is noimalizeu to the biightness N
k
of a full white
image:

( )
,
1 1
1
,
= =
=

n m
k
k i j
i j
w
N B
N
(S.2)

wheie N
k
is the biightness aftei noimalization on N
w
= nm2SS (2SS being the
maximum 8 bit pixel intensity value). The aic biightness is estimateu as an
inciease in the image biightness uue to appeaiance of aic. Thus, it is calculateu as
a uiffeience between the biightness of the image with the aic anu the image
without aic (backgiounu image): N
uc
= N
k
N
0
. The backgiounu biightness N
u
is
taken fiom a iecoiueu fiame just befoie opening the blaues.

Piactical imaging systems have a limiteu uynamic iange, i.e., the iange
of luminosity that can be iepiouuceu accuiately is limiteu. Paits of the subject (in
this case aic) that aie too biight aie iepiesenteu as white, with no uetails which is
often iefeiieu to as satuiation; paits that aie too uaik aie iepiesenteu as black.
The levels of the luminosity in the iecoiueu aic weie too high foi the uynamic
iange of the cameia. Theiefoie, ceitain level of the satuiation is piesent in almost
all images. The numbei of satuiateu pixels is highei in the images coiiesponuing
to the moment of the iestiikes, especially foi the images with uaik enviionment.
In the gieyscale, pixels which exhibit satuiation effect aie iepiesenteu with a pixel
intensity of 2SS. The piesence of the satuiation effect in the images pievents
quantitative analysis. Bowevei, the iecoiueu images can pioviue an inuication
about aic behavioui anu allow that the most impoitant tienus aie obseiveu.

An example of aic biightness as a function of time is shown in Figuies S.11 anu
S.12 foi I
d
= 1.S A with a iesolution of 2S62S4 pixels, iecoiueu with
Suuu fiamess. The aic image is synchionizeu with the measuieu wavefoims foi
voltage u
d
anu cuiient i
d
(iefei Section 4.2.S). In Figuie S.11 the aic biightness anu
its expansions of thiee time peiious (12u ms16u ms, 44u ms49u ms, 6Su ms
78u ms) togethei with the synchionizeu u
d
anu i
d
tiaces aie shown. Figuie S.12 is
a fuithei expansion taken between 67u ms anu 716 ms to show the piecise
synchionization.

The following obseivations aie maue:
Bigh aic biightness occuis each half poweifiequency cycle, uiiectly at the
moment of iestiike. Figuie S.12 shows that the biight aic only coveis 2S
images coiiesponuing to a few tenths of a milliseconu. The fast uecay is
ielateu to the uuiation of the highfiequency oscillations.
The aic biightness vaiies synchionously with the aic cuiient. It implies
that in a steauy buining aic (between iestiikes) the aic cuiient is the
uominating factoi, which ueteimines the aic biightness.

5.2 Arc interruption characteristics

The aic chaiacteiistics of the inteiiuption incluue aic uuiation, appeaiance,
biightness, movement anu iemnant uecay. The electiical paiameteis influencing
on the aic chaiacteiistics will be analyzeu. Besiues the electiical ciicuit
paiameteis, enviionmental conuition such as winu, humiuity plays a iole as well.
But theii effect is not consiueieu in this thesis.

5.2.1 Arc duration

Aic uuiation is a key factoi in evaluating the inteiiuption peifoimance. The aic
uuiation is uefineu as the uuiation fiom the moment when the aic ignites
between the two contacts of the blaues until the moment when it extinguishes
7u Chaptei S

Figure 5.11. Arc brightness with the synchronized voltage ud and current id waveforms for
Id = 1.3 A.

completely. The glow emitteu by hot aii iemnants aftei the final aic cuiient zeio
ciossing is not taken into account. Figuies S.1S anu S.14 chosen fiom the meuium
shaueu iegion in Table S.1 show the aic uuiation as a function of the inteiiupting
cuiient I
d
anu C
s
C
l
, iespectively. The aic uuiation uepenus on I
d
(with equal C
s

anu u
s
) as inuicateu by the iegiession lines in Figuie S.1S. It uecieases with
incieasing iatio C
s
C
l
at fixeu u
s
anu I
d
, see the iegiession lines in Figuie S.14.
Fuitheimoie, it incieases with the system voltage when the cuiient I
d
anu the
iatio C
s
C
l
aie taken constant. The iesults confiim that the system voltage,
inteiiupting cuiient anu iatio of the capacitances at souice anu loau siue aie
inueeu the main factois affecting the aic uuiation.

0 100 200 300 400 500 600 700 800
0
0.02
0.04
0.06
0.08
0.1
0.12
0.14
0.16
0.18
0.2
B
r
i
g
h
t
n
e
s
s
0 100 200 300 400 500 600 700 800
30
20
10
0
10
20
30
time (ms)
u
d

(
k
V
)
,

i
d

(
A
)
130 140 150
2
4
6
8
x 10
4
440 450 460 470 480 490
0
5
10
x 10
3
680 700 720 740 760
0
0.02
0.04
0.06
u
d
(kV) i
d
(A)

Figure 5.12. Expansion of both electrical (lower) and optical (upper) signals between 670 ms
and 716 ms from Figure 5.11.

Figure 5.13. Arc duration versus interrupting current Id with Cs as a parameter at 173 kV.

Figure 5.14. Arc duration versus the ratio Cs/Cl at 90 kV and 173 kV with Id as a parameter.

670 675 680 685 690 695 700 705 710 715
0
0.005
0.01
0.015
0.02
B
r
i
g
h
t
n
e
s
s
670 675 680 685 690 695 700 705 710 715
2
0
2
1
1
time (ms)
C
u
r
r
e
n
t

(
A
)
900
1100
1300
1500
1700
1900
2100
0.5 1.0 1.5 2.0
1.SnF 6nF
2unF 6unF
1uunF Lineai (1.SnF)
Lineai (6unF)
Current (A)
A
r
c

d
u
r
a
t
i
o
n

(
m
s
)
900
1100
1300
1500
1700
1900
2100
0.0 0.5 1.0 1.5 2.0 2.5 3.0 3.5
1.0A at 173kV
2.1A~2.3A at 173kV
1.0A at 90kV
Linear (1.0A at 173kV)
Linear (2.1A~2.3A at 173kV)
C
s
/C
l
A
r
c

d
u
r
a
t
i
o
n

(
m
s
)
72 Chaptei S

5.2.2 Arc appearance

Foi the expeiiments up to 2.S A the aic exhibits two uistinct visual appeaiances,
oi "moues", as shown in Figuie S.1S. These moues aie uenoteu as "eiiatic" anu
"stiff" moue in |1j. Foi the eiiatic moue the aic uevelops in a complex shape anu
its length is much longei than the blaue tip spacing (Figuie S.1Sa). The stiff moue
is a contiaction fiom the eiiatic moue to a moie oi less stiaight path between the
contacts (Figuie S.1Sb). It is obseiveu that the aic shape iemains eiiatic uuiing
the complete inteiiuption foi C
s
C
l
< 1.S in the expeiiments. The eiiatic aic moue
is associateu with longei aicing time. The aic changes fiom eiiatic to stiff moue
aftei a ceitain time, anu iemains stiff till the enu foi C
s
C
l
> 1.S. This is associateu
with shoitei aicing time. The expeiimental iesults show no convincing
ielationship between the aic moue anu I
d
oi u
s
. Bowevei, the aic with stiff moue is
cleaily ielateu to the iatio C
s
C
l
. With smallei C
s
C
l
, the meuiumfiequency voltage
tiansients aie highei (iefei Section S.4). The incieaseu heat uissipation facilitates
the next bieakuown along the same path uespite its complex cuileu shape. The
influence of C
s
C
l
will also be uiscusseu in the section S.6.
5.2.3 Arc brightness versus arc current

In a numbei of expeiiments aic inteiiuption faileu iesulting in continuation of
aicing aftei the BS blaues have ieacheu theii final open positions. These faileu
inteiiuptions allow to investigate the ielation between entiie biightness anu
cuiient, since the situation with fully openeu blaues ensuies that the aic cuiient is
the only vaiiable factoi, anu not the gap spacing. The biightness at cuiient levels
between 12.SA anu 27A of 9ukv is uisplayeu in Figuie S.16. It is obseiveu that the
entiie aic biightness incieases with incieasing I
d
. It is also obseiveu fiom the aic
viueo that the aic buining with fixeu aii uistance with highei cuiient exhibits
much moie cuils than it uoes with lowei cuiient.

Figure 5.15. Arc in (a) erratic mode and (b) stiff mode.


Figure 5.16. The arc brightness against time with the current as a parameter.

5.2.3 Arc movement

In absence of winu influences, the aic uevelopment upon the incieasing gap
uistance is goveineu by the convection of the heateu aii in between. The
hoiizontal extension uepenus on opening velocity of the aii gap, which is in the
iange u.2 to u.6 ms. The upwaiu speeu can be best analyzeu fiom cameia images
baseu on faileu inteiiuptions, because of the long aic lengths. Noieovei, the aic
buins continuously, which is most suitable foi stuuying its movement.

Figuie S.17 shows the aic motion fiom a faileu inteiiuption with I
d
= 1u A,
E
m
= 9u2 kv. The height H in mm iefeis to the uistance above the oiiginal closeu
position of the main blaues. Aftei about 7u half cycles, the test is stoppeu by the
mastei bieakei in the laboiatoiy. Foi each half cycle, a single fiame is selecteu.
The subfiguies aie taken at coiiesponuing phase angles foi 1u subsequent half
cycles; the seven subfiguies covei the complete aic uuiation. The time uiffeience
between two cuives theiefoie is 1u ms (half powei cycle) anu between two sub
figuies it is 1uu ms (ten half powei cycles). It is obseiveu, that the aic moves
upwaius exhibiting a seemingly ianuom path. Aics in successive fiames aie
slightly veitically uisplaceu ielative to the pievious one.

This behavioui suggests that the heat piouuceu by the aic cieates favouiable
conuitions a little upwaiu fiom the piesent position. The actual aic tiajectoiy
theiefoie is mainly ueteimineu by the conuition of the aii in the gap iathei than of
the actual location of the aic ioots.

The last subfiguie in Figuie S.17 shows the highest point (aic ieach) in each aic
fiame veisus time foi inteiiupteu cuiients in the iange of 12.S A to 27 A. The
height incieases neaily lineaily with time, appioximately 2.S ms. This speeu is
iathei uncoiielateu with cuiient level in the tests. Too wiue extent of the aic
("ieach") as a iesult of faileu inteiiuptions may cause uielectiically hazaiuous
situations in substations.

50 100 150 200 250
0.06
0.08
0.1
0.12
time (ms)
B
r
i
g
h
t
n
e
s
s

12.5A 27A
Last restrike
74 Chaptei S

0 100 200 300
100
0
100
200
300
400
500
600
700
time (ms)
H
(
m
m
)

12.5A
20A
23A
27A

Figure 5.17. Upward arc movement (frames taken each 10 ms). The last subfigure shows the
arc reach increasing with the arcing time using the interrupted current as a parameter.


5.2.4 Arc remnant decay

The light emission uoes not vanish immeuiately aftei final aic extinction. The
uecay in biightness of these aic iemnants is investigateu as a function of the
inteiiupteu cuiient. The noimalizeu biightness at foui uistinct values of I
d
is
plotteu in Figuie S.18 (left) foi successful inteiiuptions. Beiein, t = u is the
moment of aic extinction. The cuives can be fitteu to match an exponential
behavioui, Aexp(t), with the uecay time constant. This time constant, plotteu
veisus I
d
in Figuie S.18 (iight), scales appioximately lineaily with I
d
: = u.9*I
d
.
The obtaineu iesult implies that with highei inteiiupteu cuiient, the aic afteiglow
uecays slowei. Appaiently, the hot ionizeu uischaige channel cools uown moie
slowly aftei highei aic cuiient.

5.3 Disconnector contacts spacing

Rv is the voltage impiesseu acioss the BS by the ciicuit aftei aic extinction at
cuiient zeio. It possibly pieceues iestiike that ieestablishes the aic. This Rv is
maximum if it occuis at half a poweifiequency cycle aftei inteiiuption. Then the
souice voltage (at 1 p.u.) is equal but in opposite polaiity with the tiappeu BC
voltage acioss the loau siue capacitance (also at 1 p.u.). Thus, Rv builus up to 2 p.u.
This is also the maximum Rv that the (single phase) ciicuit is capable to supply.

The tips between the blaues of a BS can be consiueieu as iouiou electioues. In
the "IEEE Stu 4199S, Techniques foi Bigh voltage Testing" |2j, iouiou gap spaik
oveivoltages at poweifiequency veisus the aii spacing aie listeu. Fiom this
stanuaiu, the iequiieu contact gap spacing baseu on the centiebieak BS blaue
length |Sj, anu its coiiesponuing blaue angle can be ueiiveu |1j. To allow foi a
1u% maigin |4j, the system voltage is taken 1.1 p.u. anu thus a Rv peak value of
2.2 p.u. is applicable. The conuition to be satisfieu foi the Rv no longei being able
to bieakuown the aii gap is: U
gap
2.2E
m
, wheie U
gap
is the aii gap withstanu
voltage anu E
m
is the amplituue of phasetogiounu voltage.

Figure 5.18. Brightness decay and its time constant dependency with the interrupted
current.
0 20 40 60
0
0.03
0.06
0.09
0.12
time (ms)
B
r
i
g
h
t
n
e
s
s

9A
12A
20A
27A
5 10 15 20 25
5
10
15
20
25
Current (A)

(
m
s
)

76 Chaptei S

Table S.2 shows the minimum iequiieu gap length anu blaue angle with iespect to
the close position at uiffeient system voltage levels foi a centiebieak BS. The
calculateu iesults show the blaue angle is less than 6u uegiee, consiueiing +8%
maigin, taken fiom |2j.

The blaue angles obtaineu fiom expeiiments caiiieu out on a 24S kv iateu voltage
centiebieak BS uiffei gieatly fiom the values in Table S.2. In Figuie S.19, the
blaue angles at the moment of final aic inteiiuption is given. All angles at final aic
extinction exceeu Su

uegiees; some of them ieach up to the final 9u uegiee
opening angle. Eviuently, the iesults fiom the expeiiments exceeu significantly the
calculateu iueal values, baseu on (colu) aiibieakuown voltage only.

Foi estimation of the minimum iequiieu gap uistance in Table S.2, two
assumptions weie maue |1j:
The theimal eneigy of the aic is not significant. This means that the
bieakuown voltage of the gap essentially is equal to a steauy state, "colu"
situation without aicing shoitly befoie bieakuown.
The opening contact gap is appioximateu as a iouiou type gap. In the
piesent expeiiments, no coiona iings oi similai constiuctions weie installeu
on the jaw assembly. This can cause fielu enhancements at the enu of the
contacts.

5.4 Restrike voltage

The iestiike voltage, uenoteu as U
r
, is uefineu as the value of u
d
acioss the BS at
the moment of iestiike. The iestiike voltage is mainly ueteimineu by the aii gap
uistance, but it is also influenceu by the physical aii gap conuitioneu by the aic.

5.4.1 Restrike voltage development

The uevelopment of U
r
is analyzeu foi measuiements with uiffeient cuiients I
d
,
anu capacitances iatios C
s
C
l
. The iestiike voltages obtaineu at a supply voltage
of 17S kv aie given in Figuie S.2u, with C
s
C
l
anu I
d
as paiameteis. The following
conclusions aie uiawn:
The maximum iestiike voltage level is inueeu founu to be twice the peak
supply voltage. The iestiike voltage uoes not show a monotonous inciease
with incieasing aii gap length. Insteau, suuuen uownwaiu steps aie obseiveu
at each cuiient level. Bowevei, with highei cuiient level the "steps aie moie
numeious anu ueepei. Appaiently, besiues the aii gap length, also othei
factois shoulu be consiueieu.
The iestiike voltage incieases with uecieasing I
d
anu incieasing C
s
C
l
. Laigei
I
d
anu smallei C
s
C
l
aie associateu with a highei eneigy input into the aic
upon iestiikes (Section S.6). The aic path neeus moie time to iecovei its
uielectiic stiess uuiing the next Rv peiiou iesulting in a lowei iestiike
voltage foi the consecutive bieakuown.

Table S.2. Ninimum contact gap uistance anu blaue angle neeueu foi isolating uistance
with a centiebieak BS.

System
voltage (kV)
Blade length
(mm)
RV peak
(kV)
Contact gap
(mm)
Blade angle
(
0
)
mean +8% mean +8%
72.S 9uu 1Su 22u 2S8 41 4S
14S 16Su 26u 481 S19 4S 47
24S 26uu 44u 8SS 9u2 47 49
S62 SSuu 6Su 12SS 1SSS Su S2
42u 4uuu 7S4 146S 1S82 S1 SS
SSu 44uu 988 19S6 2u91 S6 S8

Figure 5.19. Blade angle versus Id with Cs as parameter at 173 kV.

Figure 5.20. Effect of current Id (left, with Cs = 1.5 nF) and capacitor ratio Cs/Cl (right, with
Id = 2.1 A) on restrike voltage.

Positive anu negative iestiikes uo not occui symmetiically. Foi example,
Figuie S.2u left, most appaiently at 2.1 A the positive anu negative iestiike
voltages uiffei. A iestiike usually occuis each half cycle. Bowevei, because of
asymmetiical oveivoltage acioss C
s
anu C
l
, only one iestiike within each full
poweifiequency cycle may occui. It will be explaineu in the following
subsection.
45
55
65
75
85
0.0 0.5 1.0 1.5 2.0 2.5
A
n
g
l
e

(
d
e
g
r
e
e
)
Current (A)
1.5nF 6nF 20nF 60nF 100nF
0 500 1000 1500 2000
400
200
0
200
400
time(ms)
U
r

(
k
V
)

0.57A
2.1A
0.23A
0 500 1000 1500
500
0
500
time (ms)
U
r

(
k
V
)

3.1
1.0
0.08
78 Chaptei S

Figure 5.21. Wave shapes of ud and ipf (id measured at lower frequency) with only one arc
extinction per power frequency cycle.

5.4.2 Unipolar restrike voltage

ueneially, once the contacts of the BS sepaiate, iestiikes occui in each half powei
cycle. Figuie S.21 shows an example of the wave shapes of the voltage u
d
anu the
cuiient i
d
veisus time of an inteiiuption piocess, foi which the last thiee ie
stiikes aie shown. Beie the aic extinguishes anu iestiikes only each full powei
cycle. Accoiuing to the highspeeu aic image iecoiuings with Suuu fiames pei
seconu, no aic extinctions aie obseiveu. Appaiently, the aic uoes not extinguish as
long as the high anu meuiumfiequency oscillation is of sufficient magnituue. The
phenomenon is always obseiveu, if the coiiesponuing iestiike voltage exceeus
the souice peak voltage. 0nce the iestiike voltage is high enough, the meuium
fiequency components last sufficiently long to pievent inteiiuption at powei
fiequency cuiient zeio. The oscillation in the cuiient anu voltage still continues
when the poweifiequency cuiient ciosses zeio. In this situation, the aic can fail
to extinguish. This is uue to the influence of the theimal eneigy pioviueu by the
oscillations. If this phenomenon occuis iepeateuly, iestiike will happen only at
one polaiity of the poweifiequency, eithei positive oi negative.

The misseu aic extinction can also be obseiveu thiough aic image analysis. Figuie
S.22 shows the aic images coiiesponuing to consecutive fiames, taken eveiy
milliseconu, within a half cycle. The x axis inuicates the hoiizontal extension of the
aic. The y axis is the aic height with iespect to the main blaues. In oiuei to uisplay
the aics uistinctly, a veitical offset is auueu to the consecutive images. The 1
st

image coiiesponus to a iestiike moment while the 1u
th
fiame coiiesponus to the
enu of the half cycle, i.e. the moment when the aic cuiient ieaches zeio again. The
images aftei the 1u
th
fiame coiiesponu to the next iestiike. In Figuie S.22a the
1u
th
image shows a uiscontinuous aic path, wheieas in Figuie S.22b this
uiscontinuity, measuieu at a latei stage of the same aic uevelopment, is not
obseiveu.

The polaiity effect noimally appeais in the latei stage of the inteiiuption piocess.
At the beginning of the inteiiuption, the aic extinguishes at each cuiient zeio
30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100
200
150
100
50
0
time (ms)
i
p
f

(
A
)
,

u
d

(
k
V
)

i
pf
u
d
Restrike moment
i
pf
=0

Figure 5.22. Typical arc images from experiments with Id = 0.7 A and Em = 1302 kV at TU/e
HV laboratory, (a) with obvious restrike frame and (b) arc does not extinguish at power
frequency zero crossing. D = 0 is the middle point of the two DS blades in a closed position.

because aii gap conuitions, i.e. tempeiatuie anu ionization, aie not sufficient to
sustain aicing. Bowevei at a latei stage, the gap conuitions can sustain aicing
uuiing cuiient zeio without an appieciable iestiike voltage anu visible
inteiiuption.

5.4.3 Restrike voltage with air gap distance

Aftei iestiike the aic iesumes a path closely following the "tiaces" left by the
pievious aic that has just uisappeaieu. The aic chooses the uielectiically weakest
path foi which the bieakuown voltage is lowest. The iemaining hot paitly ionizeu
aii enables the aic to ieignite at a lowei bieakuown voltage compaieu to a colu
situation. The measuieu bieakuown voltage that ieestablishes the aic is plotteu
veisus the aii gap spacing at I
d
= u.S A anu u.7 A in Figuie S.2S. The length of the
aic path is estimateu thiough the aic image fiames. The iefeience unconuitioneu
bieakuown voltage, also plotteu in Figuie S.2S, is taken fiom the IEEE stanuaiu
|2j foi a iouiou configuiation. Cleaily, the blaue shape is much moie complicateu,
but the compaiison pioviues a notion to what extent the actual bieakuown
voltage is loweieu. Bespite the stiong vaiiation in bieakuown voltages anu the
ielatively iough aic path estimate (aic length is baseu on a 2B piojection captuieu
by the cameia), the ieuuction in bieakuown voltage by the iemaining iesiuual
ionization can be obseiveu cleaily. Tempoiaiy aic extinction at cuiient zeio
occuis in a situation with ielatively low pieheating anu ionization of the aic
channel. Continuous aicing occuis when sufficient heat anu chaigeu paiticles aie
left in the aii gap. The iesiuual gap conuition has a majoi effect, since it loweis the
iestiike voltage neeueu to ieestablish the aic anu piolongs the aic uuiation.

8u Chaptei S

Figure 5.23. Breakdown voltage of the gap versus air gap length.

5.5 Electrical arc characteristics

The fiee buining aic uuiing aiibieak BS inteiiuption has a small cuiient
compaieu to the fault aic in ciicuit bieakeis. Foi unueistanuing this type of aic
behavioui, the aic cuiient, voltage, iesistance, anu 0I chaiacteiistics aie
analyzeu. Aic cuiient (uenoteu as i
a
) anu aic voltage (uenoteu as u
a
) aie equal to
the i
d
anu u
d
wavefoims, iespectively, uuiing the aicing peiiou. Theiefoie, the aic
voltage anu cuiient wavefoims aie not continuous cuives, but theii absence
uuiing the voltage iecoveiy phase can be shoit oi haiuly visible when the
bieakuown voltage is still ielatively low. This occuis at the eaily stage of the
inteiiuption foi low cuiients, oi uuiing the entiie aic uuiation with high cuiient
when the inteiiuption fails.

5.5.1 Arc current

Figuie S.24 shows examples of aic cuiient anu voltage wavefoims foi a cleaily
visible anu ielatively long, a nonvisible peiiou of cuiient zeio. It is obseiveu that
when the iestiike voltage is laige enough, the aic cuiient has cleai tiansient
components at the beginning of each iestiike. When the aic is continuously
buining no tiansient behavioui is obseiveu in the wavefoims.

5.5.2 Arc voltage

Similai to the aic cuiient, the aic voltage exhibits an obvious tiansient component
at the beginning of each iestiike (Figuie S.24 left). It is, howevei, veiy uifficult to
uistinguish between the aic voltage anu the inuuceu voltage uue to the seveie
cuiient tiansients with veiy high uiut. When the bieakuown voltage is low,
eithei because of a still small BS contact uistance oi because of a pieconuitioneu
gap, theie aie haiuly tiansient voltages at the beginning of each iestiike (Figuie
S.24 iight). The aic voltage has a uistoiteu shape, uue to the nonlineai aic
0
40
80
120
160
0 100 200 300 400
Reference
0.4A 120kV
0.7A 130kV
Air gap length (mm)
V
o
l
t
a
g
e

(
k
V
)

200 300 400 500
10
5
0
5
10
time (ms)
u
d

(
k
V
)
2000 2100 2200 2300
40
20
0
20
40
time (ms)
u
d

(
k
V
)
chaiacteiistic. If the meuian value of the voltage shape is taken as a measuie of the
aic voltage, it ieaches up to appioximately 1u kv.

Foi the entiie inteiiuption, the iestiike voltage uoes not inciease monotonously
as shown in Figuie S.2S (left). This is because the peiiouically shoitening of the
aic by shoitciicuits of loops anu cuils, suuuenly loweiing the aic voltage. In case
the aic is not inteiiupteu at full open blaue position, the aii gap uistance is
constant, anu the aic keeps buining without obvious ieignitions oi iestiikes. The
aic voltage continues to inciease uuiing the aicing time, which coiiesponus with
the incieasing aic length foi an unuistuibeu aic, iefeiiing Figuie S.2S iight. As
shown in Figuie S.26, the aic voltage incieases neaily lineaily, with about
S.2 kvm at I
d
= 27 A.

5.5.3 UI characteristic

The aic voltage anu cuiient aie in phase (Figuie S.24), implying that the aic has a
iesistive natuie. Since the aic voltage is in the oiuei of a few kilovolts, anu the aic
cuiient is up to 27A in this example test, the aic iesistance is up to a few hunuieu
ohms. The aic cuiient iemains constant, the aic iesistance incieases with
incieasing aic voltage. Bue to the nonlineai natuie of the aic voltagecuiient (0
I) chaiacteiistic, the aic iesistance vaiies stiongly uuiing a powei cycle as shown
in Figuie S.27 (left).

Figure 5.24. Arc current and voltage waveforms, left: Id = 3.9 A with clear current zero
periods; right: Id = 27 A with a continuous arc current.

Figure 5.25. Arc voltage with and without steps in transient magnitudes at 27 A.
1610 1620 1630 1640 1650
20
10
0
10
20
time (ms)
u
a

(
k
V
)
,

i
a

(
A
)

u
a

i
a

520 540 560
20
10
0
10
20
time (ms)
u
a

(
k
V
)
,

i
a

(
A
)

i
a
u
a
82 Chaptei S

Figure 5.26. Arc voltage versus arc length at Id of 27 A.

Figure 5.27. Example of the arc resistance and arc UI characteristics at 27 A.

A typical 0I chaiacteiistic is plotteu in Figuie S.27 (iight), which is ueiiveu fiom
a long uuiation aic at I
d
= 27A. It is also obseiveu that the aic voltage incieases
iapiuly immeuiately following cuiient zeio anu ieaches a somewhat constant
value within the half cycle. The hysteiesis loop confiims the typical aic 0I cuive.
This loop also explains that the aic voltage has vaiiable values at iuentical cuiient,
but is ueteimineu by the aic length.

5.6 Energy input into the arc

The eneigy input w into the aic is obtaineu by integiating the piouuct of the
voltage u
a
anu the cuiient i
a
ovei the aicing time:

2
1
( ) =
}
t
a a
t
w u i dt (S.S)

Beie t
1
is the moment of iestiike anu t
2
is the moment of extinction at powei
fiequency cuiient zeio. Figuie S.28 illustiates the wave shapes of the voltage u
a
,
the cuiient i
a
, anu the coiiesponuing eneigy w

ovei the time of a single iestiike.

0
4
8
12
16
20
0.8 1.8 2.8 3.8 4.8 5.8
Arc length L
a
(m)
A
r
c

v
o
l
t
a
g
e

(
k
V
)
450 500 550
0.5
0
0.5
1
time (ms)
A
r
c

r
e
s
i
s
t
a
n
c
e

(
k

)
20 0 20
40
20
0
20
40
i
a
(A)
u
a

(
k
V
)


Figure 5.28. Wave shapes of ud, id and the corresponding energy w; t1 is the restrike moment
and t2 is the moment of temporarily arc extinction.

0pon a iestiike, thiee fiequency components aie uistinguisheu (see Chaptei S): a
highfiequency

component uue to chaige equalization of C
s
anu C
l
, a meuium
fiequency component fiom the oscillation between ciicuit inuuctance, both siue
capacitances in paiallel, anu the poweifiequency (PF) component. The soliu
iectangle in Figuie S.28 inuicates the uuiation wheie the BF oscillation pievails,
the uotteu iectangle is the uuiation of NF oscillation, anu the uasheu iectangle is
the aiea of the iemaining PF. It can be obseiveu that the eneigy incieases iapiuly
uuiing the initial BF oscillation anu continues to inciease, but at a lowei iate until
the NF oscillation is uampeu. It ieaches an almost constant value at powei
fiequency. Foi instance, in the example of Figuie S.28 it ieaches 1.1u k} uuiing the
fiist u.S ms, incieases giauually to 2.18 k} uuiing the following 8 ms, until it finally
ieaches 2.u k}. The eneigy contiibutions in the shown example foi the BF anu NF
oscillations aie compaiable, but the PF phase haiuly contiibutes. Thus it may be
concluueu that (heie) iestiike tiansients contiibute veiy significantly to eneigy
input the aic.

5.6.1 Energy distribution in transients

The eneigy aftei each iestiike in teims of peicentages contiibuteu uuiing the
phases with uiffeient uominant fiequencies is plotteu in Figuie S.29. The cuiient
is vaiieu fiom 9 A to 27 A.

84 Chaptei S

Figure 5.29. Energy contribution upon restrike by various current frequency components
(HF, MF, PF) as a function of current Id.

The uepenuence on cuiient level is ioughly inuicateu by fitteu lines. The iesults
show that the contiibution of the BF oscillation is ielatively high at low values foi
I
d
anu uiops at highei I
d
. Foi instance, the BF eneigy contiibution lies between
Su% anu 8u% at I
d
< 12.S A but is less than SS% foi 1S A< I
d
<27 A. The NF
contiibution incieases with cuiient level with an eneigy fiaction between 2u%
anu Su% at I
d
< 12.S A anu ovei 4u% foi 1S A< I
d
<27 A. The eneigy at PF is
usually smallei than Su% at all testeu cuiient levels. 0n aveiage the contiibution
of PF is about 1u%.

Foi the expeiiments with a fixeu value of C
s
(I
d
in the iange of 9 A to 27 A), the
inteiiupteu cuiient uepenus on the value of C
l
. Since C
l
is much laigei than C
s
the
NF contiibution uepenus on C
l
wheieas the BF contiibution uepenus on C
s
, which
is taken constant. Theiefoie, the eneigy input fiom the NF component incieases
with highei C
l
. As a iesult, the ielative impoitance of the NF component incieases
with I
d
. The eneigy contiibution fiom the poweifiequency cuiient is always
ielatively low. Theie is a laige spieau in the ielative contiibution of the BF anu
NF oscillations, but they both uominate the eneigy input.

5.6.2 Influence of C
s
/C
l
and I
d
on energy

The ielation between factois C
s
C
l
, I
d
anu the aic eneigy is shown in Figuie S.Su
foi a cuiient I
d
= 2.1 A. In the uppei thiee figuies (inuicateu by a), the
uevelopment of aic eneigy against time with C
s
C
l
as a paiametei is given in each
aicing peiiou. The lowei thiee figuies (inuicateu by b), show the aic eneigy
against time with I
d
as a paiametei. It is obseiveu that:

The eneigy input into the aic upon iestiike is typically a few hunuieu }oule
going up to a few thousanus }oule at lowei iatio of C
s
C
l
anu longei aic
uuiation.
0
20
40
60
80
8 12 16 20 24
HF
MF
PF
Linear (HF)
Linear (MF)
Linear (PF)
Current (A)
E
n
e
r
g
y
p
e
r
c
e
n
t
a
g
e

It incieases giauually (with occasional "steps") because of the incieasing ie
stiike voltage causeu by the motion of the BS contacts. It ieaches the laigest
value, just befoie complete aic extinction.
It is highei with highei inteiiuption cuiient anu lowei C
s
.

5.6.3 Energy versus restrike voltage U
r

The coiielation between the eneigy w anu iestiike voltage U
r
at uiffeient cuiient
I
d
is piesenteu in Figuie S.S1. Foui uiffeient iestiike voltage (U
r
) ianges aie
selecteu with I
d
between 9 A anu 27 A. Since C
s
(Su nF) anu E
m
(9u2 kv) aie fixeu,
I
d
uepenus on C
l
only. Figuie S.S1 shows that at the same cuiient level, the eneigy
supplieu into the aic incieases with incieasing iestiike voltage. Theiefoie, with
highei inteiiupteu cuiient anu highei iestiike voltage, moie eneigy is ueliveieu
to the aic upon iestiikes. Because of the highei eneigy input into the aic, the
bieakuown voltage of the gap is lowei anu the gap iecoveis slowei, the aic is not
moie uifficult to inteiiupt but moie easily to iestiike, even at longei gaps,
inuicating that the cuiient to be inteiiupteu anu the bieakuown voltage on ie
stiike aie ciitical factois foi inteiiuption peifoimance.

5.7 Transients upon restrike

Bue to the slow movement of the BS main blaues an aic of a long uuiation aiises,
chaiacteiizeu by tiansient phenomena upon iestiike. The iesulting tiansient
voltage anu cuiient may enuangei sensitive seconuaiy components of the
netwoik thiough electiomagnetic coupling.

Fiom the fiequency components initiateu by iestiike, the maximum tiansient
voltage acioss both capacitances,
m

1
= +
+
r
ax m
s l
U
u E
C C
, occuis at meuium
fiequency (see Chaptei S); E
m
is the peak value of the powei souice anu U
r
is the
iestiike voltage. Taking the iestiike voltage as a woist case equal to 2*E
m
, with
C
s
C
l
<< 1, the maximum tiansient voltage may ieach S p.u. The maximum
tiansient cuiient upon each iestiike thiough the BS is
m

1 1
( )
=
+
r
ax
H
s l
U
i
L
C C
with L
H

the equivalent inuuctance of BF loop. The maximum value of the tiansient cuiient
uepenus on the iestiike voltage anu the ciicuit paiameteis of the highfiequency
loop anu can ieach values up to a few kiloampeies within a few micioseconus
(7 kA in the test).
86 Chaptei S

(a)

(b)
Figure 5.30. Energy input to the arc on restrike versus time with parameter: (a) capacitor
ratio Cs/Cl at Id = 2.1 A, and (b) current Id with fixed Cs = 1.5 nF.
0 200 400 600 800 1000 1200 1400 1600 1800 2000 2200
0
1000
2000
time (ms)
E
n
e
r
g
y

(
J
)
0 200 400 600 800 1000 1200 1400 1600 1800 2000 2200
0
500
1000
time (ms)
E
n
e
r
g
y

(
J
)
0 200 400 600 800 1000 1200 1400 1600 1800 2000 2200
0
200
400
time(ms)
E
n
e
r
g
y
(
J
)
2.1A
C
s
/C
l
=1.5/40
1.0A
C
s
/C
l
=1.5/19.3
0.57A
C
s
/C
l
=1.5/10.7
0 200 400 600 800 1000 1200 1400 1600 1800 2000 2200
0
1000
2000
E
n
e
r
g
y

(
J
)
time (ms)
0 200 400 600 800 1000 1200 1400 1600 1800 2000 2200
0
200
400
time (ms)
E
n
e
r
g
y

(
J
)
0 200 400 600 800 1000 1200 1400 1600 1800 2000 2200
0
100
200
time (ms)
E
n
e
r
g
y

(
J
)
C
s
/C
l
=20/40
C
s
/C
l
=100/40
C
s
/C
l
=1.5/40

Figure 5.31. Arc energy upon restrike at different interruption current level. Parameter is re
strike voltage interval.

5.7.1 Transient voltage upon restrike

Figuie S.1 shows the oveivoltages acioss the loau siue capacitance that appeai in
the enu phase of the inteiiuption piocess. Figuie S.S2 shows the maximum
obseiveu oveivoltage upon iestiike acioss C
l
as a function of the iestiike voltage
at uiffeient values of the iatio C
s
C
l
, with a souice voltage of 17S kv anu a cuiient
of 2.1 A. The oveivoltage acioss C
l
can ieach up to 2.4 p.u. It incieases with
incieasing iestiike voltage anu uecieasing iatio C
s
C
l
. It can also be obseiveu that
the oveivoltage ieaches the highest value at the lowest C
s
C
l
iatio: C
s
C
l
= u.u4.

The uominant fiequency of the oveivoltages is in the oiuei of a few tens of
kiloheitz. Since most of the oveivoltages occui at the enu of the inteiiuption,
wheie the iestiike voltage is high, it woulu be auvisable to put effoit in
inteiiuption of the ciicuit at an eailiei stage. At highei iatio of C
s
C
l
, the
oveivoltages ieuuce significantly.

Apait fiom the high peak values, oveivoltages aie chaiacteiizeu by steep fionts.
Although these iepeateu steep fionts have a lowei falltime than that obseiveu in
uISBS switching, the iesulting tiavelling waves in open aii stations still can leau
to consiueiable stiesses to equipment (notably tiansfoimeis) uiiectly connecteu
to the BS |Sj. The tiansient may ieach 2 p.u. within a few tens of micioseconus in
the peifoimeu expeiiments.

5.7.2 Transient current upon restrike

The cuiient thiough the uisconnectoi in the expeiiments at 9 A < I
d
< 27 A aie
iecoiueu with a banuwiuth of 2u NBz. Foi the expeiiments, the value of C
s
is
Su nF, anu the souice RNS voltage is taken as 9u kv. Figuie S.SS shows that the
tiansient peak cuiient value incieases with the iestiike voltage. The uominant
fiequency of cuiient tiansient is a few tens of kiloheitz to a few megaheitz.
accoiuing to the measuieu uata. It was also founu that the iate of iise of the
tiansient cuiient is a few kiloampeies pei micioseconu.
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
8 13 18 23 28
200~250kV
150~180kV
50~80kV
10~20kV
E
n
e
r
g
y
(
k
J
)
Current(A)
88 Chaptei S

Figure 5.32. Overvoltage across Cl against restrike voltage with the ratio of Cs/Cl as a
parameter at current of 2.1 A.

Figure 5.33. Measured HF transient current peak value against restrike voltage.

5.8 Conclusion

Both iecoiueu electiical anu optical signals show that in the few seconus of
capacitive cuiient inteiiuption the aic has fiequent extinctions anu ieignitions. It
extinguishes tempoiaiily at the poweifiequency cuiient zeio, but ieignites by
the ciicuit impiesseu iecoveiy voltage anu ultimately extinguishes when the
electiical stiength of the aii gap is laigei than the iecoveiy voltage the ciicuit can
pioviue. Buiing this piocess, the bieakuown voltage of the aii gap along the aic
path is significantly ieuuceu uue to the theimal influence of the aic. As a iesult, it
may take seconus foi the gap to iecovei anu withstanu the highest iecoveiy
voltage.

Aic behavioui anu the inteiiuption peifoimance aie highly affecteu by the ciicuit
paiameteis. These paiameteis incluue capacitance iatio C
s
C
l
, stiay anu shoit
ciicuit inuuctance anu powei supply voltage. All these affect the cuiient to be
u
2
4
6
8
u u.S 1 1.S 2
C
u
r
r
e
n
t

(
k
A
)
Re-strike voltage(p.u.)

inteiiupteu, the iestiike voltage, associateu tiansients as well as the eneigy
supplieu to the aic anu ultimately the heating of the aii in close vicinity of the aic.

The souice anu loau siue capacitances aie the main factois that influence the aic
behavioui anu the inteiiuption peifoimance. With lowei iatio C
s
C
l
, (specifically
lowei than u.1 in the tests), the aic uuiation, oveivoltage acioss the loau siue
capacitance, contacts gap length, blaue angle at final inteiiuption, anu the eneigy
input into the aic aie much laigei, wheieas the iestiike voltage is lowei uue to
slowei iecoveiy. With highei C
s
C
l
, the aic exhibits an eiiatic moue that eithei is
sustaineu oi changeu to a stiff moue.

The cuiient to be inteiiupteu is anothei goveining factoi, which affects the
inteiiuption peifoimance. With highei cuiient, the aic uuiation, oveivoltage
acioss the loau siue capacitance, contacts gap spacing, blaue angles anu aic eneigy
aie much laigei because gap iecoveiy is slowei anu the iestiike voltage is lowei.
With highei cuiient, the aic is biightei; the aic iemnants uecay slowei, the aic
upwaius velocity is not affecteu much. The aic oveiall biightness is also
incieasing with the inteiiupteu cuiient.

With lowei iestiike voltage, the eneigy input into the aic upon iestiike, anu the
oveivoltage, ovei cuiient aie smallei. The iestiike voltage uepenus on the
momentaiy aii gap length anu its coiiesponuing physical conuitions. The aic
eneigy, oveivoltages anu the tiansient cuiient in the ciicuit ieach the laigest
value just befoie the aic extinguishes completely.

When the gap iecoveis ielatively fast (at lowei cuiient, laigei iatio C
s
C
l
) the aic
uuiation is shoit. When highei cuiient theimally conuitions the gap by ieuucing
its bieakuown value, the aic uuiation can be much longei, oi even infinite.

The value of iestiike voltage can nevei be highei than 2 p.u., but the moment
when this maximum is ieacheu uepenus on the gap uielectiic conuition. The
bieakuown ieuuction mechanism will be uiscusseu fuithei in moie uetail in
Chaptei 9.

When the iestiike voltage is highei than the amplituue of the souice voltage, the
high anu meuiumfiequency components aie still stiong when the next cuiient
zeio appeais. In such a case, the aic uoes not stop until anothei half cycle cuiient
zeio. If this phenomenon occuis continuously, the iestiike voltage anu the
voltage acioss the loau siue appeai unipolai.

The optical aic behavioui assists to unueistanu the inteiiuption mechanism moie
piofounuly. The ieigniteu aic follows the "tiaces" left by the just extinguisheu
aic. That means the aic chooses the uielectiically weakest path foi which the
bieakuown voltage is lowest. The ionization iemaining aftei the uisappeaiance of
the past aic makes the aic ieignite oi iestiike at a lowei bieakuown voltage.
9u Chaptei S

Ways to shoiten the aic uuiation, oi equivalently, to inciease the cuiient
inteiiuption capability, must be sought along this line.

5.9 Recommendation for standardization

The macioscopic aic behavioui is stiongly uepenuent on the ciicuit as quantifieu
by C
s
C
l
. This obseivation implies that foi testing of the BS switching capability,
the ciicuit plays a majoi iole (this also applies to the testing of auxiliaiy
inteiiupting uevices). Since no testciicuit has been uefineu yet, one of the tasks of
the IEC maintenance team, elaboiating an amenument to the IEC stanuaiu 62271
1u2 was to uefine a ciicuit. It was ueciueu that 2u C0 (closeopen) tests have to be
peifoimeu with C
s
C
l
= u.1, auopting a testciicuit as in Figuie S.1. Alteinative, but
yet auequate supply ciicuits, supplying much less than the shoittime cuiient aie
being uiscusseu. It was ueciueu to give the uocument the status of a technical
iepoit anu allow time foi collecting expeiience. The technical iepoit IECTR 62271
SuS was issueu in 2uu9.

References

2uu4.
|2j IEEE Standard Techniques for High voltage Testing, IEEE Stanuaiu 4199S, Aug. 199S.
|Sj |0nlinej. Available: http:www.hapam.nl.
|4j IEC Stanuaiu on "IEC stanuaiu voltages", IEC 6uuS8: }un. 2uu9.
|Sj S. AiigyeNushabe, K. A. Folly, "Evaluation of switching capacitive cuiients by
uisconnect switches using BIgSILENT softwaie tool", in Proc. 2005 The Australasian
Universities Power Engineering Conf., vol.1, papei ni: SuS6, Sept. 2uuS.

Inteiiuption with Aii Flow Assistance 91

Chapter 6

Interruption with Air Flow Assistance

Aii flow is an effective appioach foi aic quenching uuiing cuiient inteiiuption
with aiibieak BSs, as alieauy iepoiteu in |1j|Sj. Reseaich on foiceu aii injection
into the aic ("aii flow uevice") is iathei olu, anu the stuuies weie exclusively
baseu on the aii flow in a veitical uiiection facing the aic bouy fiom unueineath a
veiticalbieak BS. The test iesults pioveu this methou to be effective. Bowevei, all
liteiatuie only focuseu on the basic macioscopic test iesults. A uetaileu analysis
on the mechanisms impioving the inteiiuption capability is lacking. In this
chaptei an expeiimental stuuy is piesenteu, specifically focusing on aicing time,
iestiike voltage, iestiike fiequency anu ueiivative of inteiiupteu cuiient (uiut).
The mechanisms thiough which aii flow assists the inteiiuption aie uiscusseu.

6.1 Experimental setup

The test ciicuit uepicteu in Chaptei 4 is extenueu with aii flow outlets as shown in
Figuie 6.1. The aii flow is contiolleu thiough two sepaiate nylon aii hoses enuing
at each tip of the main blaues, uiiecteu towaius the aic ioots. The hose opening
aiea is appioximately Su mm
2
, uiiecteu about S cm fiom the expecteu aic ioot.
The outlet is mounteu on the moving blaues, ensuiing a steauy aii flow towaius
both aic ioots. Two levels of aii flow have been injecteu into the aic:
21S litieminute anu S2S litieminute. The expeiiments aie conuucteu with
cuiient values I
d
of u.S A, 1.4 A, 2.6 A, S.9 A, S.u A, 6.S A anu 7.S A at 9u kv. The
value of C
s
is taken as Su nF anu C
l
ianges fiom 18 nF to 26S nF. The value of I
d
is
ueteimineu by C
l
anu the othei paiameteis in the ciicuit aie fixeu.

Switching opeiations aie peifoimeu foi each applieu cuiient level:

without aii flow (uenoteu as case A).
with aii flow iate 21S litieminute, aii velocity 72 ms (uenoteu as case B).
with aii flow iate S2S litieminute, velocity 1u8 ms (uenoteu as case C).

The aii flow iate on each siue is measuieu by an aii flow metei. Thiee opening
opeiations aie peifoimeu at each cuiient level anu each aii flow level. Bowevei,
case A was not applicable at 7.S A, because the BS main blaues ieacheu the
maximum position just aftei final aic extinction alieauy at 6.S A, which implieu
that inteiiuption at 7.S A without aii flow woulu fail. Case B tests weie not
peifoimeu foi cuiient levels above 2.6 A, because of laboiatoiy time iestiictions.

92 Chaptei 6

Figure 6.1. DS including voltage dividers and nylon hoses injecting air flow from underneath
the DS blades at both sides.

In all switching opeiations, the aic extinguisheu completely befoie the main
blaues of the BS ieacheu the final opening position. The voltages acioss the souice
anu loausiue capacitois (u
cs
, u
cl
), anu the cuiient flowing thiough the BS i
d
weie
iecoiueu. The measuiing anu uata acquisition systems aie uesciibeu in uetail in
Chaptei 4. The expeiiments weie peifoimeu at KENA Bigh Powei Laboiatoiy
Ainhem, wheie a stiong voltage souice is available.

6.2 Effect of air flow on arcing

The effect of aii flow on the inteiiuption is stiongly ieflecteu in the measuieu
cuiient anu voltage wave shapes, anu in the iepetitive iestiike patteins.

6.2.1 Measured current and voltage

The cuiient anu voltage wave shapes fiom case A (no flow) uiffei significantly
fiom cases B (moueiate flow iate) anu C (high flow iate). Figuie 6.2 illustiates the
wave shapes of the voltages u
d
acioss the BS (u
d
= u
cs
u
cl
) anu the cuiient i
d

thiough the BS foi the thiee uiffeient cases at cuiient I
d
= 2.6 A. Expeiiments at
othei cuiient levels show similai qualitative behavioui in spite of a vaiying aic
uuiation. Figuie 6.S contains the expansions of the wave shapes taken ovei the
peiiou t = 1uuu~11Su ms (t = u inuicates the aic stait). The aii gap length haiuly
changes uuiing this 1Su ms time span.

In all cases it is obseiveu that: (i) the aicing uuiation is in the oiuei of seconus;
(ii) the entiie inteiiuption consists of numeious inteiiuptions anu iestiikesie
ignitions; (iii) the electiical tiansients occui at each iestiikeieignition, which
causes oveivoltages anu (local) cuiient spikes in the local ciicuitiy. Bowevei,
uiffeiences between the inteiiuptions with anu without aii flow aie appaient.
Inteiiuption with Aii Flow Assistance 9S

Looking at Figuie 6.2, in case A, the aic uuiation is 2.S s. Nostly, theie is only a
single iestiike within each half poweifiequency cycle as shown in Figuie 6.S.
0nce the iestiike occuis, the aic continues till the next poweifiequency cuiient
zeio. The aiiows in Figuie 6.S illustiate iestiike anu subsequent aic extinction.
Compaieu to the wave shapes obtaineu with aii flow (cases B, C) the iestiikes foi
case A occui at lowei bieakuown voltage anu aie associateu with smallei
tiansients. Foi instance, in Figuie 6.2 the iestiikes between u anu 1uuu ms foi
case A aie haiuly visible (iestiike voltage iemains below 2u kv); the iestiikes
aftei 1uuu ms aie less fiequent compaieu to cases B anu C. These obseivations
ieflect the slow iecoveiy of the uielectiic stiength of the aii gap.

Compaieu to case A (2.S s aic uuiation), the aic uuiation is much shoitei in both
case B anu C (1.6 s foi case B anu 1.4 s foi case C); in the latei situations, theie aie
multiple ieignitions occuiiing within each half powei cycle (compaieu to only
one iestiike following cuiient zeio); the ieignitions occui moie fiequently anu
show highei voltage tiansient amplituues.

Compaieu to case B the aic uuiation in case C is even shoitei; the ieignitions
occui moie fiequently anu the bieakuown voltages aie highei (see the peiiou
fiom u to Suu ms in Figuie 6.2). The expanueu wave shapes of voltage u
d
between
8uu ms anu 9Su ms aie plotteu in Figuie 6.4. Compaieu to case A the bieakuown
voltages in case B anu C aie much highei foi iuentical aii gap length. The
bieakuown voltages foi case C aie usually laigei than foi case B as well. This
means that applying a highei amount of aii flow helps to inteiiupt the ciicuit
moie successfully. The aii flow cools the foimei aic path anu iemoves localizeu
patches of ionization anu theieby incieases the uielectiic stiength of the same
volume of aii in the gap. This will be explaineu fuithei in Chaptei 9. 0n the othei
hanu, the numbei anu magnituue of tiansients in cuiient anu voltage aie highei.

6.2.2 Recovery voltage

Recoveiy voltage is the uiffeience between the voltage acioss the souice anu loau
siue capacitance aftei aic extinction at cuiient zeio. Without aii flow Rv iises
iight aftei cuiient zeio as a (1cos) wave shape in one polaiity until iestiike
occuis, as uiscusseu in Chapteis S anu S. If the aic is foiceu to extinguish befoie
poweifiequency cuiient zeio, as in the piesence of aii flow, Rv will maintain its
oiiginal polaiity befoie ieignition anu cannot ieach the maximum value of 2 p.u.
as in the case of inteiiuption at cuiient zeio. Figuie 6.S shows a single iecoveiy
event in both situations. Without aii flow, the Rv incieases uiiectly to negative
values (Figuie 6.S left). With aii flow, the Rv may fiist change polaiity befoie ie
ignition (Figuie 6.S iight). Without aii flow, at cuiient zeio the aic extinguishes at
the maximum voltage acioss the loau siue. Bowevei, the aic can be foiceu to
extinguish befoie poweifiequency cuiient zeio because of supeiimposeu high
fiequency oscillations, which aie moie appaient in aic inteiiuption with aii flow.

94 Chaptei 6

Figure 6.2. Wave shapes of id, ud for cases A (no flow), B (215 litre/min) and C (325 litre/min).
0 500 1000 1500 2000
200
100
0
100
200
u
d
(
k
V
)
20
0
20
i
d

(
A
)
20
10
0
10
20
i
d

(
A
)
0 500 1000 1500 2000
200
0
200
u
d

(
k
V
)
20
10
0
10
20
i
d

(
A
)
0 500 1000 1500 2000
200
0
200
u
d

(
k
V
)
time (ms)
Case B
Case B
Case C
Case C
Case A
Case A
Inteiiuption with Aii Flow Assistance 9S

Figure 6.3. Expansion over the range 1000~1150 ms in Figure 6.2.

The voltage acioss the loau capacitance may not have ieacheu its maximum value
(the souice voltage amplituue).

Figuie 6.6 piesents iesults fiom simulations, showing the wave shapes of i
d
anu u
d

assuming vaiious poweifiequency phase angles wheie the aic cuiient is
choppeu. At t = 2u ms the aic cuiient is at maximum. At t = 2S ms the aic cuiient
ciosses zeio. The cuiients i
di(i=16)
, anu voltages u
di(i=16)
aie the simulateu iesults
when the aic is choppeu at 2u ms, 21 ms, 22 ms, 2S ms, 24 ms, 2S ms.
1000 1150 1050 1100
30
20
10
0
10
20
30
i
d

(
A
)
,

u
d

(
k
V
)

1000 1050 1100 1150
150
100
50
0
50
100
i
d

(
A
)
,

u
d

(
k
V
)

1000 1050 1100 1150
150
100
50
0
50
time (ms)
i
d
(
A
)
,

u
d

(
k
V
)

i
d
u
d
Restrike occurs
Arc extinction at current zero
Case A
Case B
Case C
96 Chaptei 6

0 1 2
10
5
0
5
time (ms)
u
d

(
k
V
)
,

i
d

(
A
)

u
d
i
d
0 4 1 2 3
10
0
10
20
30
time (ms)
u
d
(
k
V
)
,

i
d

(
A
)

u
d
i
d
extinguish restrike
restrike
extinguish

Figure 6.4. Expansion of ud between 800 ms ~ 950 ms for cases A, B and C.
Figure 6.5. Single recovery event, (left) without air flow, (right) with air flow.

Figure 6.6. Simulated wave shapes for id and ud at various arcchopping phase angles.

The simulateu iesults show that the Rv acioss the BS ieaches lowei values when
aic cuiient is choppeu closei to its peak value. The Rv is equal to u
cs
plus the
offset U
cl
. Since the souice siue u
cs
iemains neaily equal to u
s
, it means that the Rv
uepenus on U
cl
. The laigei the aic cuiient at chopping, the smallei U
cl
is, anu the
smallei the maximum value that the Rv may ieach. With aii flow, the aic is
830 840 850 860 870 880 890 900
150
100
50
0
50
100
time (ms)
u
d
(
k
V
)

case A
case C
case B
20 21 22 23
0
2
4
6
8
10
12
time (ms)
C
u
r
r
e
n
t

(
A
)

i
d1
i
d2
i
d3
i
d4
i
d5
i
d6
20 25 30 35
250
200
150
100
time (ms)
V
o
l
t
a
g
e

(
k
V
)

u
d1
u
d2
u
d3
u
d4
u
d5
u
d6

choppeu at vaiious phase angles apait fiom the poweifiequency aic cuiient zeio.
Thus, the values the Rv can ieach aie smallei than without aii flow. With a smallei
Rv, it is moie uifficult to bieak uown the aii gap foi the next iestiike.

6.2.3 Arc modes

Baseu on the pievious obseivations, it might be stateu that the aic appeais in two
uistinct moues. 0ne moue is iefeiieu to as "theimal aic", usually occuiiing foi
case A. It is associateu with a sequence of aic extinctions at (poweifiequency)
cuiient zeio anu iestiikes until sufficient gap uistance has been ieacheu. Buiing
eveiy half cycle the aic iemains stable. Tiansients aie limiteu to iestiikes that
occui eveiy half cycle. The othei moue is iefeiieu to as "uielectiic aic", usually
occuiiing in cases with sufficient aii flow (cases B anu C) oi othei cooling. Beie,
the aic is a veiy concentiateu succession of aic inteiiuptions (mostly away fiom
natuial cuiient zeio) anu ieignitions. The aic is choppeu at vaiious phase angles
within a powei cycle. Appaiently, the aii gap uielectiic iecoveiy speeu is gieatly
incieaseu compaieu to case A, because of cooling of the (foimei) aic path by the
aii flow. visually, the "theimal" aic uuiation is longei, contains moie cuils than
the uielectiic aic, has a less violent appeaiance anu auuible noise than the aic in
the "uielectiic" moue. Examples of aics in both moues anu theii iestiikes aie
shown in Figuie 6.7.

6.3 Interruption data analysis

Foi the analysis of the expeiimental uata the main focus will be on the aic
uuiation, which is obviously uiffeient foi the cases with anu without aii flow. The
iestiike voltage, the numbei of iestiikes pei cycle, anu the inteiiupteu cuiient
ueiivative uiut aie stuuieu as well in oiuei to unueistanu the effect of aii flow on
the inteiiuption mechanism.

6.3.1 Arc duration

The aic uuiation is influenceu significantly by the inteiiupteu cuiient I
d
anu the
aii flow iate in the expeiiments. Figuie 6.8 piesents the aic uuiation as a function
of the inteiiupteu cuiient with the aii flow as a paiametei foi all inteiiuption
opeiations. 0bviously, the aic uuiation foi case A is much longei than foi cases B
anu C; the aic uuiation in case C is neaily Su% ieuuceu with iespect to case A. In
auuition, at iuentical inteiiupteu cuiient level, the aic uuiation uecieases with a
highei amount of aii flow iate. It shoulu be noteu that the case B tests weie only
peifoimeu up to 2.6 A. The lineai inteipolation lines foi cases A anu C show that
the aic uuiation tenus to inciease with incieasing inteiiuption cuiient I
d
in both
cases (howevei with a laige spieau). This is in agieement with the iesults
piesenteu in Chaptei S foi inteiiuptions without aii flow.
98 Chaptei 6

Thermal arc Thermal arc re-strike

Dielectric arc Dielectric arc re-strike

Figure 6.7. Arc modes: (left) steady state operation;( right) at their restrike moments.

Figure 6.8. Arc duration versus the current Id with air flow rate as parameter.

6.3.2 Restrike voltage versus time

Neasuieu values fiom thiee iepeateu opeiations at the same cuiient level anu aii
flow iate aie combineu to get statistically ielevant iestiike voltage values in
oiuei to uetect a possible tienu. The values of the iestiike voltages aie uiviueu
into 1u time inteivals (bins), equally uistiibuteu ovei the inteival fiom the
moment that the aic staits until the moment that the aic extinguishes completely.

0.9
1.9
2.9
0 2 4 6 8
case A
case B
case C
Linear (case A)
Linear (case C)
Current (A)
A
r
c
d
u
r
a
t
i
o
n

(
s
)

The meuian values of the positive iestiike voltages in each bin veisus time using
aii flow level as a paiametei aie piesenteu in Figuies 6.9 anu 6.1u. Negative ie
stiike voltages show similai behavioui. Time t = u is the moment of aic initiation.

Fiom Figuies 6.9 anu 6.1u, the following conclusions aie uiawn:

Foi a given time (oi BS gap length), noimally the iestiike voltages in cases B
anu C aie much highei than in case A foi eveiy cuiient level.
At a low cuiient (u.S A in these tests), howevei, the iestiike voltage foi the
cases with anu without aii flow aie similai. The aii flow uoes not affect the
inteiiuption as much as it uoes foi a cuiient of 1.4 A oi highei. The iestiike
voltage at u.S A foi the thiee cases incieases appioximately lineaily with
time (i.e. with the aii gap length). This suggests that theimal influences on
the iecoveiy uo not play a main iole yet uue to the small cuiient.
Foi cuiient levels up to 2.6 A, wheie expeiiments foi both case B anu C aie
caiiieu out, the iestiike voltages of cases B (moueiate aii flow iate) anu
case C (high aii flow iate) aie similai.
The iestiike voltage is mainly ueteimineu by the inteiiupteu cuiient in case
A. With highei cuiient, the iestiike voltage is lowei, which was also
obseiveu in Chaptei S, wheie the inteiiupteu cuiient was below 2.S A.
Without aii flow, the iestiike voltages cleaily uepenu on the cuiient level
uuiing the entiie inteiiuption piocess. 0n the othei hanu in cases B anu C,
uuiing the fiist 1Suu ms of the inteiiuption piocess, the influence of the
cuiient is limiteu since the uiffeience between iestiike voltages at uiffeient
cuiient levels is haiu to be obseiveu (in paiticulai foi case C in Figuie 6.1u).
Bowevei, at the enu of the inteiiuption piocess, the iestiike voltages
coiielate bettei with cuiient level. It is also obseiveu that the influence of the
cuiient is not so obvious foi case C as it is foi case B; this implies that with
highei aii flow iate, the cuiient influence is smallei.

It is concluueu that both aii flow anu inteiiupteu cuiient play key ioles in the
inteiiuption piocess. Foi iathei small cuiient (ioughly < 1 A), the theimal
influence uoes not affect the iestiike voltage value significantly, anu the aii gap
iecoveis mainly uielectiically. When the cuiient is laigei (ioughly > 2 A in these
expeiiments), the theimal influences stait to uominate the inteiiuption. If the aii
flow iate is high, the iestiike voltage values at uiffeient cuiient levels aie similai
at the most stages of the inteiiuption, which means that the aii flow mainly
uominates the inteiiuption, anu the cuiient level plays a less piominent iole in
cuiient iange chosen in these expeiiments.

6.3.3 Breakdown frequency

0bviously the numbei of bieakuown events pei unit time (bieakuown fiequency)
uepenus on aii flow iate anu inteiiupteu cuiient. Figuies 6.11 anu 6.12 show the
Cumulative Numbei (CN) of bieakuown events veisus time at all applieu cuiient
1uu Chaptei 6

0 500 1000 1500 2000 2500 3000
0
100
200
300
time (ms)
v
o
l
t
a
g
e

(
k
V
)

0 500 1000 1500 2000
0
100
200
300
time (ms)
V
o
l
t
a
g
e

(
k
V
)

0 500 1000 1500 2000 2500
0
50
100
150
200
time (ms)
V
o
l
t
a
g
e

(
k
V
)

0.5A
1.4A
0.5A
1.4A
7.5A
6.3A
case C
2.6A
3.9A
case A
case B
6.3A
5.0A
2.6A
1.4A
0.5A

Figure 6.9. Restrike voltage (in kilovolts) versus time (milliseconds) with air flow rate as a
parameter at current range 0.5~7.5 A.
Figure 6.10. Gap recovery reflected in restrike voltage (kilovolts) versus time (milliseconds)
with current Id as a parameter for cases A, B and C.

levels. A continuous theoietical CN line of one iestiike pei 1u ms as a iefeience is
auueu at the bottom of Figuie 6.12. The following behavioui is obseiveu:

Since the aic uoes not only extinguish at poweifiequency cuiient zeio, but
is also choppeu at othei phase angles, at an iuentical aicing time the CNs foi
cases B anu C aie much laigei than foi case A, at eveiy cuiient level.
At u.S A, the CN pei unit time is moie oi less similai foi cases B anu C.
Bowevei, at 1.4 A anu 2.6 A the CN foi case C is laigei than foi case B. A high
aii flow iate iesults in moie fiequent bieakuown events.
0 500 1000 1500 2000
0
100
200

0 500 1000 1500 2000
0
100
200

0 1000 2000 3000
0
100
200

0 1000 2000 3000
0
100
200

0 1000 2000 3000
0
100
200

0 1000 2000 3000
0
100
200

0 1000 2000 3000
0
100
200
time (ms)
U
r

(
k
V
)

0 l/m
325 l/m
215 l/m
3.9A
1.4A
5.0A
7.5A
2.6A
0.5A
6.3A
Inteiiuption with Aii Flow Assistance 1u1

At all cuiient levels foi case A, the CN incieases iapiuly at the veiy beginning
of the inteiiuption piocess. This iapiu incieasing stage lasts longei in case
the cuiient is low compaieu to highei cuiient. Aftei this stage the CN
incieases moie slowly anu lineaily. The iate of inciease is about u.1 pei
milliseconu. The initial high iestiike fiequency is because the theimal
influence plays no majoi iole yet. Latei on, the aic exists continuously till the
next cuiient zeio ciossing uue to the theimal influences.

Foi case C in Figuie 6.12 the CN is uecieasing with the incieasing cuiient
level. This implies that the effect of the cuiient becomes moie pionounceu at
highei cuiient level.

As a conclusion, at a low cuiient (u.S A in the test) anu in the veiy eaily stage of
the inteiiuption piocesses at highei cuiients, the cuiient influence on bieakuown
fiequency is ielatively small. The inteiiuption moue is mainly uielectiically
ueteimineu. In a latei stage of the inteiiuption piocess with highei cuiient, the
cuiient level uominates the inteiiuption in absence of aii flow. Bowevei, at highei
cuiient levels (> 1.4 A), the aii flow becomes a key mechanism. Both aii flow anu
cuiient level ueteimine the aic uuiation.

6.3.4 Current derivative di/dt

The cuiient ueiivative uiut at the moment of cuiient zeio is (foi ciicuit
bieakeis) a key factoi to evaluate the inteiiupting peifoimance. Since the aic
extinguishes tempoiaiily when the cuiient ciosses zeio at each half cycle in case
A, the ueiivative uiut is calculateu fiom the cuiient wavefoim
i = 2 Isin(t + 0)wheie I is the ims value of the aic cuiient; is the angulai
fiequency (2n Su Bz), anu 0 is the initial phase angle. The ueiivative uiut at
cuiient zeio is
d
dt
= 2I. In case A, the cuiient ianges fiom u.S A to 6.S A,
hence
d
dt
= (u.2~S) Ams. Bowevei, the aic can be choppeu at any moment foi
case B anu C, which means that cuiient zeios, leauing to inteiiuption, aie causeu
by the highfiequency cuiient tiansients with much highei uiut than quoteu
above.

uiut is calculateu fiom the measuiements at each aic extinction point. The
calculateu uiut values aie statistically uistiibuteu vaiiables. Theii piopeities aie
analyzeu with the aiu of Figuies 6.1S anu 6.14. Results aie shown foi uiffeient
cuiient levels anu foi the cases A, B anu C. Noticeably, the uiut values at u.S A aie

not uepenuing on the aii flow iate, which confiims the conclusion uiawn eailiei
on theimal influences not being ielevant yet. When the cuiient exceeus 1.4 A,
uiut is highei with aii flow than without aii flow at each cuiient level. At 1.4 A
anu 2.6 A, the uiut in case B is lowei than that in case C, which means uiut is
laigei with highei aii flow iates.
1u2 Chaptei 6

0 500 1000 1500 2000 2500 3000
0
500
1000
1500
time (ms)
C
N

0 1000 2000 3000
0
500
1000
1500
time (ms)
C
N

0 500 1000 1500 2000 2500 3000
0
500
1000
1500
time (ms)
C
N

7.5A
2.6A
0.5A
1.4A
3.9A
2.6A
1.4A
0.5A
1.4A
6.3A
2.6A
3.9A
case C
case A case B

Figuie 6.11. Cumulative number of breakdown events versus time with the current as
parameter for cases A, B and C.

Figure 6.12. Number of restrikes versus time for cases A, B and C at different values of Id.

0 1000 2000 3000
0
1000
2000
time (ms)
C
N

case A
case B
case C
0 1000 2000 3000
0
1000
2000
time (ms)
C
N

0 1000 2000 3000
0
1000
2000
time (ms)
C
N

0 1000 2000 3000
0
1000
2000
time (ms)
C
N

0 1000 2000 3000
0
1000
2000
time (ms)
C
N

0 1000 2000 3000 4000
0
500
1000
time (ms)
C
N

0 1000 2000 3000
0
1000
2000
time (ms)
C
N

5.0A
1.4A
3.9A
6.3A
2.6A
0.5A
7.5A
Inteiiuption with Aii Flow Assistance 1uS

Figure 6.13. Cumulative distribution of interrupted di/dt for the cases A, B and C at different
current values.

Since the tests foi case B aie not uone at cuiient above 2.6 A, the value of uiut is
only evaluateu foi cases A anu C. The Supeicentile (meuian value) uiut value foi
case A, is in the iange 4 to 2S Ams (with low cuiient of 1.4 A). This value is
compaiable with the estimateu values befoie, assuming only aic extinction at
poweifiequency cuiient zeio. The meuian values of uiut in case C iange fiom
1uu to Suu Ams, seveial ten times highei than foi case A. 0bviously, the
inteiiuptible uiut with aii flow is uiastically highei than without aii flow. This
again confiims the stiong influence of aii flow on the inteiiuption piocess.

6.4 Conclusion

Two inteiiuption moues aie obseiveu, a uielectiic anu a theimal moue. The
uielectiic moue inteiiuption mainly occuis in the case with a high aii flow iate
(heie S1S litieminute) anu with aic cuiient ioughly below 1 A. The theimal
moue occuis in the case without aii flow at highei inteiiupteu cuiient (> 1.4 A in
the piesent expeiiments). The main uiffeiences between these moues can be
summaiizeu as follows:

Buiing the uielectiic moue, the aic cuiient may be choppeu at any moment in the
poweifiequency cycle foi the case with sufficient aii flow. Nultiple bieakuown
0 500 1000 1500
0
50
100
di/dt (A/ms)
P
e
r
c
e
n
t
i
l
e

0 500 1000 1500
0
50
100
di/dt (A/ms)
P
e
r
c
e
n
t
i
l
e

0 500 1000 1500
0
50
100
di/dt (A/ms)
P
e
r
c
e
n
t
i
l
e

0 500 1000 1500
0
50
100
di/dt (A/ms)
P
e
r
c
e
n
t
i
l
e

0 500 1000 1500
0
50
100
di/dt (A/ms)
P
e
r
c
e
n
t
i
l
e

0 500 1000 1500
0
50
100
di/dt (A/ms)
P
e
r
c
e
n
t
i
l
e

case A
case B
case C
0.5A
1.4A
2.6A
3.9A
5.0A 7.5A
1u4 Chaptei 6

Figure 6.14. Cumulative distribution of interrupted di/dt for cases A and C with Id as a
parameter.

events within a half poweifiequency cycle aie veiy likely anu the numbei of the
bieakuown events pei unit time is much highei compaieu with the theimal moue
inteiiuption. At the same inteiiupteu cuiient level the bieakuown voltage, mainly
uominateu by the aii gap length, is highei than foi the theimal inteiiuption moue.
0 0.1 0.2 0.3 0.4 0.5 0.6 0.7 0.8
0
20
40
60
80
100

di/dt (A/s)
P
e
r
c
e
n
t
i
l
e
0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1 1.2 1.4 1.6
0
20
40
60
80
100
di/dt (A/s)

P
e
r
c
e
n
t
i
l
e
0.5A
1.4A
2.6A
3.9A
5.0A
6.3A
7.5A
1.4A
2.6A
3.9A
6.3A
0 0.005 0.01 0.015 0.02 0.025
0
20
40
60

0.1 0.15 0.2 0.25 0.3
20
40
60
80

Case A
Case C
50% line
50% line
Inteiiuption with Aii Flow Assistance 1uS

Both the highei bieakuown iepetition fiequency anu the highei value of the
bieakuown voltage make this moue potentially moie hazaiuous foi neighbouiing
substation equipment (specifically powei tiansfoimeis). The inteiiupteu cuiient
ueiivative uiut at the cuiient zeio is much highei (about a factoi 2u) than foi the
theimal inteiiuption moue. This implies that the aic cuiient can also be
inteiiupteu at cuiient zeio fiom highei fiequency oscillations than powei
fiequency, causeu by the tiansients in the ciicuit.

Buiing the theimal inteiiuption moue, the aic can initially be choppeu at any
moment at the veiy beginning of inteiiuption piocess uue to the veiy shoit aii
gap length. Bowevei, aftei (12 half cycles), the aic extinguishes at the powei
fiequency cuiient zeio only. The inteiiupteu cuiient ueiivative uiut incieases
ioughly lineaily with the inteiiupteu cuiient, except in the small gap initial aic
phase. Bue to theimal influences, the bieakuown voltage is much lowei than in
the case of the uielectiic inteiiuption moue at the same aii gap uistance. This is, in
piinciple, less hazaiuous foi voltage tiansients stiiking neaiby equipment.
Bowevei, ultimately the oveivoltage is at the same level, but ieaches at a much
longei gap than in the uielectiic moue anu occuis less fiequently.

Since aii flow may conveit theimal inteiiuption into uielectiic inteiiuption, the
uielectiic stiength of the aii gap incieases, as well as the coiiesponuing
inteiiuptible uiut. The aii flow is an effective methou to impiove the inteiiupting
capability of the aiibieak BS to inteiiupt small capacitive cuiients. Bowevei,
significant values (heie S1S litieminute) at both aic ioots uuiing the complete
aicing piocess have to be iealizeu. This limits its piactical application because
compiessois anu highpiessuie containeis shoulu be available. Alteinatively, one
coulu imagine cieating the necessaiy piessuie simultaneously with the blaue
iotating motion. A bettei uiiecteu aii flow coulu ieuuce the necessaiy aii flow
iate.

References

|1j E. C. Rankin, "Expeiience with methous of extenuing the capability of high voltage aii
bieak switches", AIEE Trans. on Power Apparatus and Systems, vol.78, pp. 16S416S6,
Bec. 19S9.
|2j I. W. uioss, C. Killian, }. N. Sheauel, "A SSu kv aii switch", AIEE Trans. on Power
Apparatus and Systems, vol.7S, pp. 26427u, }an. 19S4.
|Sj A. Foti, }. N. Lakas, "EBv switch tests anu switching suiges," IEEE Trans. on Power
Apparatus and Systems, vol.8S, pp. 266271, Nai. 1964.

1u6 Chaptei 6

Bighvelocity 0pening Auxiliaiy Inteiiuptei 1u7

Chapter 7

Highvelocity Opening Auxiliary Interrupter

A uevice with fast opening contacts calleu highvelocity auxiliaiy inteiiuptei,
attacheu to the main blaues of the BS, has been incieasingly employeu since the
19Sus. This uevice has been useu mostly on veiticalbieak BS anu mainly in Noith
Ameiica. Accoiuing to |1j a highvelocity inteiiuptei using a mechanical spiing
can gieatly ieuuce the aicing time by achieving a laige aii gap in a shoit time
inteival staiting at the instant the auxiliaiy contacts ielease.

7.1 Operating principle

The woiking piinciple of a centiebieak BS with highvelocity auxiliaiy
inteiiuptei is illustiateu in Figuie 7.1. In paiallel to the main contact blaues of a
BS, theie aie two auxiliaiy steel spiings, which aie also iefeiieu to as "whips".
They aie shoitciicuiteu by the main contacts when the BS is in closeu position.
When the BS main contacts sepaiate the cuiient commutates fiom the main
blaues to the auxiliaiy contacts anu the aic uoes not yet stait. The whips benu
(theieby tensioning the spiings) uuiing opening until the contact at the hook
ieleases. At that moment, the whips act as ieleaseu spiings anu the aic aiises
between the auxiliaiy contacts. The potential eneigy stoieu in the benueu "spiing"
contacts, togethei with theii low mass, cause a fast acceleiation anu pioviues foi a
iapiu opening. Because of the high opening speeu the aic extinguishes iapiuly.
The ciicuit is inteiiupteu anu a visible contact sepaiation is pioviueu |2j.

The incieaseu inteiiuption capability by the high contact opening speeu of quick
bieak uevices can be explaineu qualitatively. Assuming the aic iestiikes at the
moment of maximum Rv anu continues to buin foi anothei half cycle (T
c
) till the
next cuiient zeio ciossing, the aic uuiation T
arc
can be estimateu ioughly with:

1
2
S
2.2

line
arc
c
air
U
T T
v E
= + (7.1)

Beie, v
air
is the opening velocity of the aii gap; E is the electiic fielu stiength the
aii gap can withstanu; U
line
is the phase to phase voltage. To allow foi a 1u%
maigin, the system voltage is taken to be at 1.1 p.u., so a Rv peak value of 2.2 p.u.
is auopteu

|Sj. Equation (7.1) shows that with laigei E anu v
air
, the aic uuiation
becomes shoitei. The bieakuown fielu stiength E is affecteu by many factois, such
as theimal effects fiom the aic cuiient, blaue geometiy, gap uistance, anu so foith.

1u8 Chaptei 7

Figure 7.1. Operating principle of a centrebreak DS with a highvelocity auxiliary
interrupter.

With highei v
air
the iequiieu aii gap uistance is ieacheu fastei anu the aic
uuiation is shoitei.

Theie aie only a few publications ielateu to the innovation by the highvelocity
auxiliaiy inteiiuptei |2j, |4j. Noieovei, theie is haiuly any infoimation on the
inteiiuption piocess itself anu on potential causes of occasional failuies since the
limiteu available liteiatuie meiely focuseu on test iesults iathei than theii
explanations. In this chaptei a seiies of expeiiments is uesciibeu in oiuei to
unueistanu the inteiiuption phenomena. The ieason foi occasional inteiiuption
failuie is uiscusseu in teims of aic eneigy anu iestiike voltage.

7.2 Experimental setup

The expeiimental setup, togethei with the measuiing system is iuentical to the
simplifieu ciicuit uiagiam uepicteu in Chaptei 4. The setup anu a closeup of the
BS, with the attacheu auxiliaiy inteiiuptei, aie piesenteu in Figuie 7.2. The testeu
BS is a centiebieak type with a iateu voltage of 14S kv. The expeiiment is
peifoimeu at 9u kv anu a fixeu value foi C
s
of Su nF. The cuiient I
d
is contiolleu
with the value of C
l
anu its iange is chosen between S.S A anu 27 A.

The opening velocity of the auxiliaiy contacts is ueiiveu fiom the momentaiy
uistance of the sepaiating contacts as a function of time by analyzing the aic image
fiames. Figuie 7.S (left) shows the ueteimination of the aii gap length d by
compaiing uistance D
1
between the contacts in each image with the known
uistance D
2
between the fixeu siues of the BS (16Su mm: a centiebieak BS fiom
Bighvelocity 0pening Auxiliaiy Inteiiuptei 1u9

Figure 7.2. Laboratory setup (left) and DS (right) with highvelocity auxiliary device (its
contacts are inside the drawn ellipse).

Figure 7.3. Distance between the auxiliary interrupter contacts; arc image example (left), and
contact distance as a function of time (right, releases at t = 0).

BAPAN). Bata obtaineu fiom all expeiiments aie combineu in Figuie 7.S (iight)
togethei with a quauiatic iegiession accoiuing to d = 12 at
2
+ v
u
t, wheie a is the
acceleiation anu v
u
is the initial velocity when the inteiiuptei contacts ielease.
The fit iesults in an acceleiation of 26u ms
2
anu an initial velocity of 2 ms. The
aveiage speeu uuiing the complete opening piocess is 11 ms, moie than ten
times highei than the sepaiation velocity of the BS main blaues (iefei Chaptei 4,
anu |2j).

7.3 Overview of the experimental results

The expeiiments have been aiiangeu such that theie aie at least thiee times
iepeateu (closing anu) opening opeiations peifoimeu foi each cuiient level. 0nly
the opening opeiation is stuuieu. The iesults aie summaiizeu in Table 7.1.
Successful inteiiuption means that the aic only buins between the auxiliaiy
0 10 20 30 40
0
100
200
300
400
time (ms)
D
i
s
t
a
n
c
e

(
m
m
)

11u Chaptei 7

Table 7.1. Summaiy of the expeiiments at 9u kv on inteiiuption with iapiu auxiliaiy
contacts.

CO
Id (A)
1
st
2
nd
3
rd
4
th
5
th
6
th

S.S
8
9.S
1u
12.S
1S
17
2u
2S
2S
27

Note: CO means closeopen operation, : successful interruption; : failed interruption; : no
test.

contacts anu extinguishes befoie they ietuin to theii oiiginal positions, paiallel to
the main blaues. An inteiiuption fails when the aic commutates fiom the auxiliaiy
contacts to the main blaues anu the aic uoes not extinguish.

Table 7.1 shows that the inteiiuption has a highei likelihoou to be successful at
lowei cuiient levels. Below 1u A the inteiiuptions always succeeueu. Bowevei,
the failuie piobability uoes not ielate uiiectly to the cuiient I
d
. Foi example,
inteiiuption sometimes faileu at 1u A anu 12.S A, but always succeeueu at 1S A
anu 17 A. In auuition to the tests inuicateu in Table 7.1, a seiies of 2u iepeateu C0
tests was peifoimeu at 7 A with 1uu kv supply voltage. All inteiiuptions aie
successful, but foi 1u A cuiient only one out off six is successful at 1uu kv. With
incieasing I
d
, theie is an oveiall tenuency of cuiient inteiiuption to fail. The
ieasons foi failuie will be uiscusseu in the following sections.

7.3.1 Electrical and optical observations

Figuie 7.4a shows the wave shapes of the voltages u
cs
, u
cl
anu the cuiient i
d
(with
low anu highfiequency banuwiuth, uenoteu as i
pf
anu i
hf
iespectively) foi a
successful inteiiuption at I
d
= 12.S A. The voltage u
d
acioss the BS is shown in
Figuie 7.4b togethei with the cuiient i
d
in high veitical iesolution. Time t=u is the
moment when the auxiliaiy contacts ielease anu the aic ignites. The aic uoes
extinct aftei 7S ms. It is obseiveu that theie aie seveial iestiikes with the usual
highfiequency oscillations uuiing the aicing peiiou. A few iestiikes with cleai
oscillations aie inuicateu with 1, 2, S in Figuie 7.4b. The maximum amplituue
of the tiansient cuiient ieaches S.9 kA as shown in Figuie 7.4. The oveivoltages
acioss C
s
, C
l
anu the BS aie 2.6 p.u., 2.S p.u. anu 2.u p.u., iespectively.
Bighvelocity 0pening Auxiliaiy Inteiiuptei 111

The aic image is iecoiueu with a speeu of 1uuu fiamess. A few fiames fiom
chaiacteiistic instances uiiectly aftei the aic initiation aie shown in Figuie 7.S
with the time inuication insiue of the pictuies. The images show that the aic
mainly extenus stiaight between the auxiliaiy contacts. The fiame at 6S ms with
the highest biightness coiiesponus to the most seveie iestiike, inuicateu by R
1
in
Figuie 7.4a. The fiame taken at t = 7S ms, about a half cycle latei, shows the last
fiame befoie the aic extinguishes uefinitely anu the fiame taken at t = 8S ms,
again a half cycle latei, shows the afteiglow at the aic iemnants.

Figuie 7.6a piesents the wave shapes of the voltages u
cs
, u
cl
anu the aic cuiient (i
pf
,
i
hf
) foi a faileu inteiiuption at I
d
= 27 A. Figuie 7.6b zooms in on the wave shape of
u
d
togethei with the cuiient i
pf
. Pieceuing the seveie iestiike at t = 88 ms, theie
aie seveial iestiikes aftei the auxiliaiy contacts aie ieleaseu, inuicateu with the
numbeis 1, 2, S. The Rv befoie the last iestiike, inuicateu by R
2
, is close to the
maximum Rv of 2S4 kv (2E
m
) followeu by a tiansient cuiient peak at 6.S kA. The
oveivoltages acioss C
s
, C
l
anu the BS ieach 2.6 p.u., 2.6 p.u., anu 2.u p.u.,
iespectively. Aftei that, the aic is ieestablisheu between the main blaues (not
between the auxiliaiy contacts) until it is finally inteiiupteu by the mastei
bieakei aftei 6uu ms. Aftei the seveie iestiike at R
2
theie aie no appaient ie
stiikes anu no obvious aic cuiientless peiious aie obseiveu; the aic buins
continuously, implying theimal ieignition aftei eveiy cuiient zeio, with no
measuiable voltage neeueu to ieignite the aic. The aveiage aic voltage incieases
giauually with time (anu aic length) up to a level of 1u kv.

Images taken at instances uiiectly aftei the aic initiation aie shown in Figuie 7.7,
wheie the aicing time is inuicateu. It is obseiveu that the aic is fiist buining in a
moie oi less stiaight appeaiance between the auxiliaiy contacts anu then
tiansfeis suuuenly to the main blaues of BS aftei a seveie iestiike (R
2
) (biightest
fiame in Figuie 7.7). At that instance the stiff, lineai aic is conveiteu to an eiiatic,
cuiling aic moving upwaius, uiiven by the upwaiu motion of the heateu aii.

While buining between the auxiliaiy contacts, foi both successful anu faileu
inteiiuptions, the aic tenus to follow the shoitest, stiaight path between the (fast
moving) auxiliaiy contacts. It gets a complex eiiatic thieeuimensional stiuctuie
aftei commutating to the (slow moving) main blaues of the BS in a faileu
inteiiuption. Compaiing successful anu faileu inteiiuptions, the tiansient cuiient
anu oveivoltage values amplituues haiuly uiffei. The ovei cuiient anu oveivoltage
also show no significant uiffeiences between a BS equippeu with fast opening
contacts anu a BS only having the main blaues. The obseiveu oveivoltages
iepoiteu in |4j ieach 2.S p.u., but this value was obtaineu at lowei inteiiupteu
cuiients I
d
2.S A. That means the highvelocity inteiiuptei uoes not contiibute
to a ieuuction of the oveivoltage anu tiansient cuiient. Bowevei, since the
uuiation of a successful inteiiuption is an oiuei of magnituue shoitei even at
significantly highei cuiient, the numbei of iestiikes is much lowei.

112 Chaptei 7

0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100
0
100
200
300
time (ms)
u
d

(
k
V
)
,

i
p
f

(
A
)

i
pf
u
d
1
2
3
Arc extinguishes

(a)
(b)
Figure 7.4. (a) Wave shapes of ucs, ucl, ipf, ihf and ud for a successful interruption. R1 indicates
the most severe restrike; (b) 1, 2, 3 indicate clearly observable restrikes just before arc
extinction. The circles in the lower figure indicate the reignitions/restrikes.

Figure 7. 5. Arc images at characteristic instances from a successful current interruption. The
time of the Figure 7.5 corresponds to the time of Figure 7.4a.
200
0
200
400
u
c
l

(
k
V
)
200
0
200
400
u
c
s
(
k
V
)
50
0
50
i
p
f

(
A
)
0 20 40 60 80 100 120 140
2
0
2
6
time (ms)
i
h
f
(
k
A
)
R
1
arc extinguishes
Bighvelocity 0pening Auxiliaiy Inteiiuptei 11S

(a)

(b)
Figure 7.6. (a) Wave shapes of ucs, ucl, ipf, ihf and ud for a failed interruption. R2 indicates the
most severe restrike; (b) 1, 2, 3 are the restrikes before the arc transfers to the main
contacts.

Figure 7.7. Arc images from a failed interruption. The time of the Figure 7.7 corresponds to
the time of Figure 7.6a.
200
0
200
u
c
s
(
k
V
)
200
0
200
u
c
l
(
k
V
)
100
0
100
i
p
f
(
A
)
0 100 200 300 400 500 600
2
0
6
time (ms)
i
h
f
(
k
A
)
R
2
20 0 20 40 60 80 100 120 150
200
100
0
100

time (ms)
i
p
f

(
A
)

,

u
d

(
k
V
)
i
pf
u
d
1
3
Thermal
Reignition
2
Arc extinguishes
114 Chaptei 7

Two uistinct types of aic continuation aie uistinguisheu. 0ne is uefineu as
uielectiically uominateu iestiike, which means that the bieakuown of the aii gap
occuis in (laigely) unconuitioneu aii (uegiee of ionization anu theimal effects
haiuly affect the uielectiic stiength of the gap) at a high fielu stiess. The seconu
type is uefineu as theimally uominateu ieignition, which means that the
bieakuown occuis at a loweieu voltage uue to a ielatively high theimal eneigy
uensity in the aic iegion. Theiefoie, the uielectiic iestiike voltage is much highei
than the theimal ieignition voltage foi an iuentical aii gap uistance. The cleaily
visible iestiikes with numbeis 2, S in Figuie 7.4b anu 1, 2, S in Figuie 7.6b
aie uielectiically uominateu. Theimally uominateu ieignition appeais in the
faileu inteiiuptions at highei cuiient. Theimal ieignition occuis in faileu
inteiiuptions aftei the aic has tiansfeiieu to the main blaues. Theie aie no
fuithei cleai obseivable ieignitions oi iestiikes, while the aic continues buining
between the slowly opening main blaues (see Figuie 7.6a). Although the aic
cuiient peiiouically ciosses zeio, the aic continues to exist, sustaineu by theimal
eneigy. The aic always ieignites immeuiately along its piioi path just aftei the
cuiient zeio ciossing.

7.3.2 Arc duration

Figuie 7.8 shows the aicing time veisus the cuiient I
d
foi all successful
inteiiuptions. Theie is no obvious coiielation between aic uuiation anu BS
cuiient I
d
(up to the maximum testeu cuiient level I
d
= 27 A). The aic uuiation
ianges fiom 4u ms to 9u ms, compaiable with similai expeiiments iepoiteu in |6j
foi I
d
= 7.S A, wheie the aic uuiation was in the iange of 4u to 7u ms. The ieason is
ielateu to the iapiu cooling of the aic path thanks to the veiy fast elongation of the
opening gap. Bieakuown voltage ieuuction uue to ionization is theiefoie believeu
to be of minoi impoitance in the entiie inteiiuption piocess because of the iapiu
mixing of cool aii with the pockets of ionizeu aii.

7.4 Restrike voltage

The analysis of iestiike voltage is baseu on the last thiee iestiikes befoie the
final inteiiuption, since they aie cleaily obseivable in all cases. Foi each single
expeiiment, the values of the iestiike voltages U
r
aie plotteu veisus the cuiient I
d

in Figuie 7.9. The filleu bais belong to faileu inteiiuptions anu the open bais
coiiesponu to successful inteiiuptions. The numbeis on the iight siue of
Figuie 7.9 inuicate the expeiimental sequence. Fiom the iesults summaiizeu in
Figuie 7.9 the following obseivations aie maue:

In all expeiiments cleai (at least thiee) obseivable iestiikes occui, although
they can uiffei gieatly in magnituue of the iestiike voltage. The eailiei ie
stiikes, inuicateu with 1, usually occui at low voltage because the aii gap is
still shoit. The iestiikes can be qualifieu as theimally influenceu with
ieuuceu iestiike voltage uue to hot aii left by the aic. 0n the othei hanu, the
Bighvelocity 0pening Auxiliaiy Inteiiuptei 11S

final bieakuowns, inuicateu with S, usually have high iestiike voltages (up
to 2 p.u.), since a laige aii gap is ieacheu anu the iestiike is uielectiically
uominateu, which will be uiscusseu latei in this same section.

Consiueiing only successful inteiiuptions (open bais in Figuie 7.9), the
piobability of occuiience of iestiike voltage (U
r
) highei than 1 p.u.
uecieases with incieasing I
d
. Foi I
d
< 1u A, most of the thiee consecutive ie
stiikes have values above 1p.u. Bowevei, only a single high U
r
value is
obseiveu (in each test seiies) foi I
d
> 12 A. This suggests that foi highei
inteiiupteu cuiients, the theimal influence on the inteiiuption piocess
becomes moie pievailing, causing a lowei iestiike voltage. This
phenomenon was also obseiveu in pievious expeiiments foi a BS without
auxiliaiy contacts uuiing the entiie inteiiuption piocess |2j, |Sj. Bowevei,
heie it mainly occuis at the enu phase of the inteiiuption piocess.
Appaiently, uespite the iapiuly incieasing aii gap, the accumulateu theimal

Figure 7.8. Arc duration versus the current Id at 90 kV supply voltage.

Figure 7.9. Restrike voltage Ur versus the interrupted current Id for successive tests (at least
three for each current level).
40
50
60
70
80
90
7 12 17 22 27
Current (A)
A
r
c

d
u
r
a
t
i
o
n

(
m
s
)
0
100
200
0
100
200
0
100
200
R
e
s
t
r
i
k
e

v
o
l
t
a
g
e

(
k
V
)
0
100
200
0
100
200
5.4 8 9.5 10 12.5 15 17 20 23 25 27
0
100
200
Current (A)
1
2
3
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
5th
6th
116 Chaptei 7

eneigy fiom the pievious aic iestiike still affects the next one, especially at
ielatively high I
d
( 1u A). This suggests that the inteiiuption capability can
be fuithei impioveu with a highei opening velocity, since fastei opening
ieuuces the numbei of iestiikes fuithei anu helps cooling the aic iemnants
uuiing iecoveiy.

Consiueiing only faileu inteiiuptions (filleu bais in Figuie 7.9), the last thiee
consecutive values of U
r
always exceeu 1 p.u. at

I
d
= 1u, 12.S A (even ieaching
2 p.u., the maximum value accoiuing to |7j). Bowevei, only two iestiike
voltage values exceeu 1 p.u. foi I
d
laigei than 17 A. This implies that at a
lowei I
d
(< 12.S A), highei (consecutive) iestiike voltages neeu to occui to
cause a faileu inteiiuption. At laigei I
d
(> 2u A), only a single uielectiically
uominateu iestiike can alieauy iesult in an inteiiuption failuie. Theiefoie,
avoiuing even a single uielectiic iestiike at laigei inteiiupteu cuiient is
neeueu foi the inteiiuption to be successful. Nost of the uielectiic iestiikes
occui at the enu of the inteiiuption piocess, so it is impoitant to inteiiupt
the ciicuit successfully alieauy quickly aftei contact sepaiation by iealizing a
long gap in a veiy shoit time.

The measuieu iestiike voltage veisus the aii gap length is plotteu in Figuie 7.1u.
The iesults aie obtaineu fiom both the expeiimental seiies at 7 A, 1uu kv with a
total of 2u opeiations, anu the expeiiments summaiizeu in Table 7.1 with 9 A to
27 A at 9u kv utilizing the same BS with the same auxiliaiy uevice. Similai as in
Chaptei S, the plotteu iefeience bieakuown voltage as a function of gap length is
taken fiom the IEEE stanuaiu |8j. It shows that, although the bieakuown voltage
fiom the expeiimental iesults incieases with incieasing gap length, they aie
consiueiably lowei than the iefeience values. 0p to a uistance of aiounu SSu mm,
the iefeience electiic fielu stiength (u.S kvmm) exceeus 1u times the
expeiimentally obtaineu iesults (up to u.uS kvmm). Foi an aii gap length above
SSu mm, the iefeience electiic fielu incieases appioximately lineaily with
incieasing aii gap length. Bowevei, the measuieu values tenu to iise much moie
steeply anu aie much closei to the iefeience values. Piobably, while the uistance
between the auxiliaiy contact tips becomes laigei, the influence of the iesiuual
ionization is smallei, causing the iestiike voltage to be in the oiuei of half of the
iefeience values.

The values of the iestiike voltages suggest a bieak up into two iegions: theimal
ieignition bieakuown iegion anu uielectiic iestiike iegion, inuicateu in Figuie
7.1u by a hoiizontal uasheu line. In the uielectiic iestiike iegion, the voltages aie
laigei than ioughly u.S p.u. (4SSu kv), anu foi the theimal bieakuown iegion
they aie below this value.

Figuie 7.11 shows the ielation between iestiikeieignition voltage, cuiient I
d
,
anu aii gap length. The uasheu line sepaiates the theimally anu the uielectiically
uominateu iegions.

Figure 7.10. Breakdown voltage versus air gap length.

Figure 7.11. Relation between breakdown voltage and current Id, air gap length.

Figuie 7.11 suggests that the uistinction between theimal anu uielectiic
bieakuown is ielateu to the eneigy input pei volume. Both highei cuiient anu
smallei gap uistance favoui theimal bieakuown.

In Figuie S.22 with u.7 A, 1Su kv anu u.4 A, 12u kv, 99% of the obseiveu
bieakuown voltage levels aie below 4u kv within 4uu mm aii gap length. In Figuie
6.1u with expeiiments up to 6.S A, the bieakuown voltages aie lowei than 1uu kv
(1.1 p.u.) in the entiie inteiiuption piocess. In contiast to this situation with no
fast opening uevice, most bieakuown voltages values with the highvelocity
inteiiuptei aie in the iegion of uielectiic iegions (see Figuie 7.1u), although the
numbei of bieakuowns is ielatively small.
7.5 Energy input into the arc

The eneigy input into the aic is compaieu foi faileu anu successful opeiations, anu
its uepenuency on iestiike voltage anu cuiients is stuuieu.
0
100
200
300
400
500
600
700
0 200 400 600 800 1000 1200 1400
9-27A 7A Reference
B
r
e
a
k
d
o
w
n

v
o
l
t
a
g
e

(
k
V
)
Dielectric breakdown
Air gaplength (mm)
0
200
400
600
800
1000
1200
1400
0 5 10 15 20 25
>0.5 p.u. <0.5 p.u.
Current (A)
G
a
p

l
e
n
g
t
h

(
m
m
)
Dielectrical breakdown
Thermal breakdown
Thermal
118 Chaptei 7

7.5.1 Energy upon restrike for failed and successful interruptions

In oiuei to compaie the eneigy supplieu to the aic upon iestiike in faileu anu
successful inteiiuptions, the aic eneigy associateu with the last thiee consecutive
iestiikes is calculateu (see Figuie 7.9). The methou to calculate the aic eneigy
has been uesciibeu in Section S.6. Taking I
d
= 12.S A as an example, the eneigy
calculateu foi the thiee expeiiments is shown in Figuie 7.12. The eneigies w
1
, w
2
,
w
S
coiiesponu to the 1
st
, 2
nu
, S
iu
iestiike in each test. Among these thiee
inteiiuption expeiiments, the 1
st
anu S
iu
succeeueu, but the 2
nu
one faileu. The
eneigy input into the aic at the 2
nu
expeiiment is much laigei than foi the othei
two; in the 2
nu
expeiiment the total eneigy input by the thiee iestiikes is almost
4 k} compaieu with appioximately 2 k} anu 4u } at the 1
st
anu the S
iu
expeiiment,
iespectively.

The total aic eneigy supplieu into the aic iesulting fiom the last thiee iestiikes
veisus the cuiient I
d
is uepicteu in Figuie 7.1S. The cumulateu aic eneigy foi the
faileu inteiiuptions cleaily exceeus the values foi successful inteiiuptions. The
eneigy coiielates only maiginally with cuiient level. This obseivation aligns with
the obseivation in Section 7.S on the weak ielationship between cuiient anu
likelihoou of failuie in case of auxiliaiy contacts pioviuing inteiiuption.

7.5.2 Energy versus restrike voltage

The eneigy input to the aic is ueteimineu by the (tiansient) voltage anu cuiient,
the lattei uepenuing on the cuiient I
d
(thiough the ciicuit paiameteis) anu the ie
stiike voltage (iefei to Section S.6). The calculateu eneigy is plotteu veisus ie
stiike voltage anu cuiient in Figuie 7.14. The eneigy is calculateu fiom the
expeiimental seiies with I
d
fiom S.S A to 27 A summaiizeu in Table 7.1.

Figure 7.12. Temporal development of the energy w input into the arc upon restrike for the
three experiments at Id = 12.5 A. The vertical scales are taken equal to indicate the wide range
in energy supply by different restrikes.
30 40 50 60 70 80 90
0
1000
2000
30 40 50 60 70 80 90
0
1000
2000

E
n
e
r
g
y

(
J
)
30 40 50 60 70 80 90
0
1000
2000
time (ms)
w
1
w
2
w
3
1st experiment
2nd experiment
3rd experiment

Figure 7.13. Arc energy by last three restrikes versus current for failed and successful
interruptions.

Figure 7.14. Arc energy versus restrike voltage (Ur) with Id as parameter and its expansion
up to 40 kV.
0
2000
4000
6000
8000
4.5 9.5 14.5 19.5 24.5
failure
successful
E
n
e
r
g
y

(
J
)
Current (A)
0
1000
2000
3000
4000
5000
6000
0 50 100 150 200 250
Breakdownvoltage (kV)
E
n
e
r
g
y

(
J
)
0
100
200
300
400
500
600
700
0 10 20 30 40
Breakdown voltage (kV)
E
n
e
r
g
y

(
J
)
20-27 A
12.5-17 A
5.3-10 A
12u Chaptei 7

The cuiient values aie gioupeu in thiee ianges. With iuentical iestiike voltage,
howevei, it uepenus on the inteiiupteu cuiient. That may explain why the
inteiiuption has the tenuency to be moie likely to fail at highei I
d
.

7.6 Conclusion and recommendation

Compaieu to the inteiiuption without highspeeu auxiliaiy contacts, the aic
uuiation is significantly ieuuceu anu the numbei of iestiikes uuiing the entiie
inteiiuption is limiteu to only a few iestiikes oi ieignitions. The aic is buining
between the auxiliaiy contacts, which exhibits a "stiff" aic foi successful
inteiiuption. Application of fast opening contacts uoes not ieuuce the tiansient
oveivoltage anu cuiient amplituues. Bowevei, the numbei of voltage tiansients is
much smallei.

The eneigy, supplieu to the aic upon iestiike, is closely ielateu to iestiike
voltage anu cuiient. Thus, both iestiike voltage anu cuiient ueteimine the failuie
oi success of inteiiuption. This implies that ieuucing the iestiike voltage anu
avoiuing the bieakuown at laigei aii gap can enhance the inteiiuption capability.

The expeiiments show that the BS with fast opening auxiliaiy contacts is veiy
effective in incieasing the BS cuiient inteiiuption capability. It can inteiiupt
cuiients up to 7 A at 1uu kv safely anu 9 A at 9u kv in oui expeiiments anu the
aicing time has uioppeu significantly to only a seveial tens of milliseconus insteau
of seveial seconus.

Resiuual ionization has a majoi effect, since it loweis the bieakuown voltage
neeueu to ieestablish the aic anu piolongs the aic uuiation. Fast opening of the
gap mixes colu aii with the aic iesiuue anu ieuuces the theimal eneigy uensity by
uiluting the ionizeu aii. Also it cools uown the aii gap, which incieases the gas
molecule uensity anu theieby ieuuces the mean fiee tiavelling path foi fiee
elections.

It is iecommenueu that the contact opening speeu must be as fast as possible
without any bouncing anu that it is maintaineu as long as possible. This ieuuces
accumulation of heat in the aii gap. The length of the stiaight aic befoie the aic
staits an upwaiu motion uepenus only on the aii gap between the tips of the
auxiliaiy contacts. That means the highei the contact sepaiation speeu, the fastei
the aic is foiceu to elongate, anu the fastei the aic extinguishes, because iecoveiy
of the gap bieakuown voltage towaius the unconuitioneu "colu aii" situation is
fast.

The moment that the whip ieleases, howevei, shoulu be chosen such that
uielectiic iestiike of the aic between the main blaues is avoiueu. Befoie the
auxiliaiy contacts ielease, the uistance between main blaues must meet the
iequiiement in Table S.2 in Chaptei S. Bue to these vaiious factois, it is

iecommenueu to test the specific auxiliaiy inteiiuptei befoie it is put into
piactice.

References

|1j E. L. Luehiing, }. P. Fitzgeialu, "Switching the magnetizing cuiient of laige S4S kv
tiansfoimeis with uoubleBieak aii switches", IEEE Trans. on Power Apparatus and
Systems, vol. pas84, pp. 9u29u6, 0ct. 196S.
|2j Y. Chai, P. A. A. F. Wouteis, S. Kuivenhoven, P. van uei Wal, N. vanis, R. P. P. Smeets,
"Cuiient Inteiiuption Phenomena in Bv BSs with BighSpeeu 0pening Auxiliaiy
Contacts", in Proc. IEEE PES General Meeting Conf., 2u1u, pp.18.
|Sj Y. Chai, P. A. A. F. Wouteis, R. T. W. }. van Boppe, R. P. P. Smeets, B. F. Peelo,
"Expeiiments on capacitive cuiient inteiiuption with aiibieak high voltage BSs", in
Pioc. AsiaPacific Power and Energy Engineering Conf., 2uu9, p. 16.
|4j B. F. Peelo, "Cuiient inteiiuption using high voltage aiibieak BSs", Ph.B. uisseitation,
Bept. Electiical Engineeiing, Einuhoven 0niv. of Technology, Einuhoven, 2uu4.
|Sj Y. Chai, P. A. A. F. Wouteis, R. T. W. }. van Boppe, R. P. P. Smeets, B. F. Peelo, "Capacitive
cuiient inteiiuption with aiibieak high voltage BSs", IEEE Trans. Power Delivery, vol.
2S, pp. 762769, Api. 2u1u.
|6j KENA test iepoit 411uS, KENA, Ainhem, the Netheilanus, Bec. 2uuS.
|7j L. van uei Sluis, Transients in Power Systems, New Yoik: Wiley, 2uu1, p. 49.
|8j IEEE Standard Techniques for High voltage Testing, IEEE Stanuaiu 4199S, Aug. 199S.

122 Chaptei 7

Inteiiuption with Inseiteu Resistois 12S

Chapter 8

Interruption with Inserted Resistors

In auuition to the methous uiscusseu in the pievious chapteis, the option of
inseiting a iesistoi will be uiscusseu in this chaptei. The iesistive uevice is useu to
uissipate aic eneigy. The appioach will be uiscusseu baseu on its mechanism anu
applicability. Less attention is paiu to piactical iealization anu on the economics of
the consiueieu solutions.

Inseition of a iesistive component into the ciicuit aims to ieuuce switching
oveivoltage, e.g. a closing iesistoi often applieu in a ciicuit bieakei. Seveial
compaiable appioaches aie iepoiteu in |1j|9j. Accoiuing to |1j, an inseiteu
iesistoi impioves the uamping of the oscillations in capacitive ciicuits. Refeiences
|2j|4j focus on the application of a iesistoi in seiies with BSs in uIS. Refeiences
|Sj|8j point out that inseiteu iesistois aie able to ieuuce the uuiation of the BS
switching aic. In |6j, lineai anu nonlineai iesistois aie auopteu to ieuuce
switching suiges. Both nonlineai anu lineai iesistois aie iepoiteu to have a
similai beneficial effect on switching capacitive cuiients foi gasblast switches
(which aie not employeu at the piesent time) although without any uetails
pioviueu.

In this section, the inteiiuption peifoimance of a BS having a iesistoi inseiteu in
seiies with the main blaues contacts is uiscusseu fiist: 1) simulations show the
potential effect on the inteiiuption of paiameteis such as aic cuiient, Rv, high
fiequency oscillation, anu eneigy uissipation by the iesistoi; 2) laboiatoiy
expeiiments on the effect on oveivoltage uamping aie piesenteu. Next,
inteiiuption peifoimance of a BS having a iesistoi inseiteu in paiallel to the main
blaues contacts is uiscusseu as well. Finally, some iemaiks aie maue on selection
ciiteiia foi iesistive elements.

8.1 Series resistor

Assuming that in the ciicuit of Figuie 8.1, a iesistoi R is inseiteu in seiies with the
BS just befoie the BS staits opening. The paiameteis taken foi simulations aie:
souice voltage u
s
= E
m
sin(t + 0) (wheie E
m
= 2SU
line
with U
line
system voltage
in ims: ianging fiom 72.S kv to SSu kv), R
s
= Su , L
s
= 48u mB, C
s
= 1u nF. The
initial cuiient to be inteiiupteu in absence of R is taken 1u A. The effect on
inteiiupteu cuiient, Rv, tiansient anu eneigy uissipation aie stuuieu.

124 Chaptei 8

Figure 8.1. Equivalent circuit for a DS with a resistor inserted in series.

8.1.1 Effect on current I
d

The impeuances of C
s
anu C
l
applieu in the test ciicuits aie much laigei than the
souice impeuance of R
s
anu L
s
. The BS cuiient I
d
ieuuces accoiuing to:

2 2
3

1( ) e
~
+
line
d
l
U
I
R C
(8.1)

Figuie 8.2 shows this cuiient as a function of R foi uiffeient system voltage levels.
The hoiizontal line inuicates the value of the iesistoi to limit the cuiient to 1 A.

Since the value foi the capacitance at BS loau siue is in the iange of tens to
hunuieus of nanofaiau, the cuiient I
d
uoes not ueciease significantly below a
iesistance value of 1u k. 0n the othei hanu, not much is gaineu by using values
exceeuing 1uu k. These values ueteimine the iesistance iange if a ieuuction of
the poweifiequency cuiient uuiing switching is aimeu foi. 0bviously, the effect
of inseiting a iesistoi also uepenus on the system voltage level.

8.1.2 Effect on recovery voltage

Foi a souice voltage given by
sin( ) e u = +
s m
u E t
, the Rv anu its maximum value
Rv
max
aie given by (8.2) anu (8.S), iespectively.

2 2 2
1
RV sin( )
1
e u
e
= + +
+
l
m m
t
R C
E E
(8.2)

max
2 2 2
1
RV
1 e
= +
+
l
m m
E E
R C
(8.S)
Inteiiuption with Inseiteu Resistois 12S

Figure 8.2. Interruption current Id versus inserted resistance value.

With a fixeu voltage E
m
, the maximum Rv
max
acioss the BS uecieases with
incieasing iesistance because pait of the voltage uiops acioss R. Compaieu to the
situation without inseiteu iesistoi, the Rv
max
is halveu when 1 e >>
l
R C , because
no tiappeu chaige is accumulateu in C
l
. In the simulation of Figuie 8.S, five values
of R (u.1 k, 1 k, 1u k, 1uu k, 1uuu k) aie consiueieu, showing the wave
shapes of Rv at system voltages of 72.S kv anu SSu kv. The Rv amplituue ieuuces
with incieasing R. At 72.S kv the effect on Rv becomes significant as fiom 1u k
anu foi SSu kv as fiom 1uu k. Theiefoie, the inseiteu iesistoi shoulu have a
value between a few tens of kiloohms anu a few hunuieu of kiloohms, uepenuing
on the voltage level.

8.1.3 Effect on transient oscillation upon restrikes

A iesistoi may have a significant effect on high anu meuiumfiequency
components. The effectiveness of its value uepenus on the inuuctance anu
capacitance in the high anuoi meuiumfiequency loop. Foi the uamping high
fiequency component, the iesistance R shoulu exceeu
2
H
H
L
C
, wheie L
H
anu C
H
aie
the equivalent inuuctance anu capacitance of the BF loop, inuicateu in Figuie S.1.
Since L
H
is in the oiuei of tens of micioheniy iange anu C
H
is the seiies value of C
s

anu C
l
, a value typically of a few hunuieu ohms is sufficient to avoiu the high
fiequency oscillation. To avoiu meuiumfiequency oscillations, typical values as
fiom a few kiloohms aie neeueu since the souice siue inuuctance in the ciicuit
usually is tens of miloheniies anu the equivalent capacitance is the paiallel value
of C
s
anu C
l
.

Figuie 8.4 shows simulations of oscillations foi vaiious values of the inseiteu
iesistoi. The simulation paiameteis aie: E
m
= Suu2 kv, I
d
= 2 A, C
s
= 18.4 nF,
C
l
= S6.8 nF, L
H
= 2u B, L
s
= 1S.8 mB, R
s
= 1 k, the values of R aie taken as u.u1k,
0 50 100 150 200 250 300 350 400
0
2
4
6
8
10
Resistance (k)
C
u
r
r
e
n
t

(
A
)

72.5kV(C
l
=760nF)
145kV(C
l
=380nF)
245kV(C
l
=225nF)
362kV(C
l
=152nF)
550kV(C
l
=100nF)
system voltage
increasing direction
126 Chaptei 8

Figure 8.3. RV wave shape for various resistor values (left) at 72.5 kV and (right) at 550 kV.

Figure 8.4. Wave shapes of id for different resistance values showing its effect on damping of
the high and mediumfrequency components.

u.1 k, 1 k. Foi R = u.u1 k oscillations aie obseiveu in the meuium anu high
fiequency iange; at R = u.1 k the highfiequency component has uisappeaieu,
but the meuiumfiequency component still iemains; at R = 1 k all oscillations aie
uampeu.

8.1.4 Energy dissipation through resistor during interruption

The eneigy uissipateu in the inseiteu iesistoi by the BS cuiient is obtaineu fiom

2
2 2
1
( )
3
(1 ) e
=
+
R
line
l
w
U
R t
R C
(8.4)

The ielationship between the uissipateu eneigy (ovei 1 seconu) anu the iesistoi
value is shown in Figuie 8.S. The eneigy uissipation, i.e. the eneigy the iesistoi
shoulu be capable to withstanu, has a maximum when the impeuance of C
l
equals
R, i.e. when R = 1(C
l
).

Taking an example, supposing the initial cuiient is 1u A at 14S kv system voltage
(C
l
= S8u nF), R is 8.4 k. With the value of R = 8.4 k, the cuiient ieuuces fiom
0 20 40 30
100
50
0
50
100
150
time (ms)
R
V

(
k
V
)

0.1k
1k
10k
100k
1000k
0 5 10 15 20
500
0
500
1000

time (ms)
R
V

(
k
V
)
0.1k
1k
10k
100k
1000k
5 5.1 5.2
200
0
200
400
time (ms)
C
u
r
r
e
n
t

(
A
)

1000
100
10
Inteiiuption with Inseiteu Resistois 127

Figure 8.5. Energy dissipation versus inserted resistor value at Cl listed in the Figure 8.2.

1u A to 7 A, Rv ieuuces fiom 2E
m
to (1+12) E
m
. 0bviously it is not possible to
inteiiupt successfully when I
d
= 7 A at 14Skv. Similai iesults may be obtaineu
fiom othei system voltage levels. Theiefoie, a iesistoi is iecommenu with a value
laigei than 1(C
l
), but iequiieu uissipation eneigy lowei the maximum value of
eneigy in Figuie 8.S. In such a case, the supply voltage will mainly uiops acioss
the iesistoi.

It shoulu also be mentioneu that inseition of a highohmic cuiient limiting
iesistoi just befoie BS opening cieates uifficulties that aie, in fact, compaiable to
those associateu with the opening of the BS itself. Theiefoie, how to inseit such
high iesistoi into the ciicuit is motivation foi fuithei woik. 0n the othei hanu,
iesistoi values suitable to uamp the switching oscillations have much smallei
value anu limiteu uissipation. Inseition of lowohmic iesistois is theiefoie easiei
to achieve.

8.1.5 Experimental results

A seiies of expeiiments to veiify the effect of an inseiteu seiies iesistoi on
oscillation uamping is caiiieu out at the T0e Bv laboiatoiy. The chosen
paiameteis aie: E
m

= 1uu2 kv, C
s
= 4 nF, C
l
= S2 nF, I
d
= 1 A, L
H
= 17 B. Figuie 8.6
piesents the wave shapes of the cuiient i
d
anu theii expansions aiounu a single
iestiike foi R = u , 2uu anu 1 k. The oscillations obseiveu with inseiteu
iesistoi uisappeai foi 2uu , which can be expecteu since the coiiesponuing
quality factoi of the BF ciicuit is u.4. The amplituue of the tiansient cuiients is
ieuuceu uiastically, up to a factoi 1u, foi R = 1 k.

The optical obseivations of the aic aie piesenteu in Figuie 8.7, showing the
cumulateu aic biightness (see Chaptei S) with anu without seiies iesistoi. "Stais"
inuicate the aic biightness with R = 2uu anu "Bots" show the iesult with R = u .
Without uamping iesistoi a highei biightness tenus to occui, especially at the enu
of the inteiiuption. The uamping iesistoi pievents seveie iestiikes, not only
fiom the peispective of aic biightness, but also fiom the auuible noise associateu
0 20 40 60 80 100
0
500
1000
1500
2000
Resistance (k)
E
n
e
r
g
y

(
k
J
)

72.5kV
145kV
245kV
550kV
128 Chaptei 8

Figure 8.6. (left) Wave shapes of current id and (right) their final restrikes zoomed in for
different resistor values.

Figure 8.7 Arc brightness against time with and without series resistor.

with these iestiikes. Bowevei, the effect on aic uuiation coulu not be analyzeu
uue to the giauual voltage uecay.

8.2 Parallel resistor

Figuie 8.8 shows the ciicuit with a iesistoi incluuing an auuitional switch,
inuicateu by D
1
, in paiallel to the BS main blaues. In closeu position, the iesistoi
0 100 200 300 400 500 600
500
0
500
0 100 200 300 400 500 600
500
0
500
C
u
r
r
e
n
t

(
A
)
0 100 200 300 400 500 600
500
0
500
time (ms)

R=200
R=100k
R=0
550.838 550.840 550.842 550.844 550.846 550.848
500
0
500
566.350 566.360 566.370 566.380 566.390
0
100
200
300
400
C
u
r
r
e
n
t

(
A
)
579.115 579.125 579.135 579.105
50
0
50
100
time (ms)

R=0
R=200
R=100k
300 320 340 360 380 400 420 440 460 480
2
0
2
4
x 10
6
time (ms)
B
r
i
g
h
t
n
e
s
s
0 100 200 300 400 500
2
0
2
4
x 10
6
time (ms)
B
r
i
g
h
t
n
e
s
s
R=200
R=0
Inteiiuption with Inseiteu Resistois 129

Figure 8.8. The circuit for a parallel inserted resistor.

bianch is shoitciicuiteu by the main blaues. When the BS staits to open, an aic
aiises between its contacts. Bowevei, once the aic extinguishes at the next cuiient
zeio, the voltage acioss R that equals the voltage acioss the aii gap, ueteimines
the possibility of subsequent iestiikes. In case the voltage acioss the iesistoi R is
lowei than the momentaiy bieakuown voltage of the aii gap, theie will be no ie
stiikes between the contacts of the main blaues. The cuiient will flow thiough R
anu its seiies switch D
1
. The iesistoi has to be uisconnecteu fiom the ciicuit aftei
commutation, a situation similai to the ciicuit of Figuie 8.1. Putting a iesistoi in
paiallel to the BS initially may be a piactical way to inseit a iesistoi, which aftei
cuiient commutation becomes a seiies component. Foi this seiies iesistoi, a
ielatively laige value is neeueu foi an appieciable ieuuction in inteiiuption
cuiient. Foi pieventing iestiikes between the main contacts, a lowei value is
iequiieu. These opposing iequiiements pievent this methou to be effective foi
piactical application.

It is also possible to put a nonlineai iesistoi, such as N0v, a component with a
nonlineai cuiientvoltage chaiacteiistic, in paiallel to the uisconnectoi. 0bviously
the cuiient to be inteiiupteu is similai to the situation without the nonlineai
iesistoi. Figuie 8.9 shows the simulation iesults of the voltages wave shapes of u
cs
,
u
cl
anu the voltage acioss the uisconnectoi. The simulation paiameteis aie u
s
=
12usin(t+), C
s
= 1u nF, C
l
= S8u nF. The voltage at 1mA foi the nonlineai
iesistoi is 7ukv. The iesults give the basic iuea that the N0v coulu fix the voltage
acioss the uisconnectoi, which ieuuce the Rv. As a consequence the chance to be
iestiike is less. Bowevei, fuithei investigation is iecommenueu as futuie woik.

1Su Chaptei 8

Figure 8.9. Simulated results of the wave shapes of ucs, ucl and their difference.

8.3 Discussion

An inseiteu iesistoi can theoietically facilitate cuiient inteiiuption by ieuucing
the cuiient anu loweiing the Rv (ielatively high values neeueu), oi by
suppiessing tiansient cuiients uuiing BS iestiike (lowei values of iesistances).
The high value of the iesistoi neeueu foi limiting the cuiient anu Rv causes heat
uissipation issues as well as commutation pioblems anu theiefoie is in question
foi piactical application. The uissipation iequiiements to suppiess tiansients aie
much easiei to comply with, but have not pioven to be effective in shoitening aic
uuiation. An inseiteu iesistoi in paiallel to the main contacts of the BS may
impiove the cuiient inteiiuption capability by limiting the Rv acioss the BS, but
only ielatively low values can be applieu foi successful commutation. Nonlineai
iesistoi is also a potential choice.

Resistoi type anu value stiongly uepenu on the cuiient the BS is intenueu to
inteiiupt. A iesistoi with a value sufficient to ieuuce the inteiiuption cuiient anu
the Rv shoulu be capable to uissipate eneigy in the oiuei of tens of kilojoule
uuiing the time the cuiient flows thiough the iesistive element. This is in the
oiuei of a few seconus. The alloweu tempeiatuie iise uuiing that time is an
impoitant uesign ciiteiion, which ueteimines the size anu mateiial of the iesistoi.
Consiueiing the highfiequency phenomenon, a iesistoi with low inuuctance is
piefeiieu which at the same time is capable to uissipate sufficient eneigy.
Resistois shoulu have high heat capacity anu low theimal expansion coefficient to
limit the theimal anu mechanical stiesses on the component. Ceiamic iesistois
aie a piefeiieu option, but they aie iathei expensive.

References

|1j R. C. van Sickle, "Influence of iesistance on switching tiansients", AIEE Trans., vol. S8.
pp. S974u4, Aug. 19S9.
|2j Y. Biioshi, N. Tetsuo, "Bisconnecting switch", 0.S. Patent S22S642, }ul. 199S.
|Sj B. Yamamoto, }. Biiata, "Bisconnecting switch", 0.S. Patent Su91614, Feb. 1992.
0 5 10 15 20 25 30
200
100
0
100
200
time (ms)
V
o
l
t
a
g
e

(
k
V
)

u
cl
u
cs
u
d
Inteiiuption with Inseiteu Resistois 1S1

|4j Y. Yamagata, K. Tanaka, S. Nishiwaki, "suppiession of vFT in 11uu kv uIS by auopting
iesistoifitteu uisconnectoi", IEEE Trans. on Power Delivery, vol. 11, pp.87288u, Api.
1996.
|Sj N. S. Savic, "Suppiession of the highfiequency uistuibances in lowvoltage ciicuits
causeu by uisconnectoi opeiation in high voltage openaii substations", IEE
Proceedings, vol. 1SS, pp. 29S297, }ul. 1986.
|6j A. Foti, }. N. Lakas, "EBv switch tests anu switching suiges," IEEE Trans. on Power
Apparatus and Systems, vol. 8S, pp. 266271, Nai. 1964.
2uu4.
|8j R. P. 0leaiy, R. B. Bainei, "Evaluation of methous foi contiolling the oveivoltages
piouuceu by the engeneiation of a shunt capacitoi bank", in Proc. Large High Voltage
Electric Systems international Conf., Aug. 1988.
|9j }. Tao, S. Chen, C. Yang, "Simulation of uisconnect switch opeiation of aii insulateu
Substation", In Proc. the XIV international Symposium on High Voltage Engineering, Aug.
2uuS.

1S2 Chaptei 8

Piebieakuown Phenomena in Bisconnectoi Inteiiuption 1SS

Chapter 9

Prebreakdown Phenomena in Disconnector Interruption

Small cuiient inteiiuption with BSs is a succession of aicing anu bieakuown (ie
stiikeieignition). The physics behinu the inteiiuption piocess occuiiing in
switching with an aiibieak BS is stiongly ielateu to iepetitive bieakuowns, thus
to the bieakuown mechanisms in aii gaps with piesence of pockets of hot, ionizeu
aii. The AC iecoveiy voltage uuiing the blaues opening iesults in a vaiying electiic
fielu ovei a giauually incieasing gap length. This chaptei gives a qualitative
uiscussion on the bieakuown piocesses, uuiing the conuitions piesent in the aii
gap. The basic bieakuown mechanism, anu its application to a nonunifoim fielu,
will be uesciibeu fiist. Next, expeiimental eviuence will be piesenteu ielateu to
cuiient inteiiuption, mainly focusing on the piebieakuown cuiient. Finally, the
implications foi unueistanuing of the cuiient inteiiuption behavioui with aii
bieak BSs will be uiscusseu.

9.1 Classical modelling of breakdown

At ambient tempeiatuie anu piessuie, aii is an excellent insulatoi. It is commonly
useu in powei system components such as oveiheau lines, switch yaius, etc.
Electiic bieakuown in aii occuis when the uielectiic stiength of the aii is
exceeueu; it is an evolution fiom nonconuuctive to conuuctive status.

uas bieakuown mechanisms have been investigateu ovei moie than a centuiy anu
most phenomena can basically be unueistoou in teims of the Townsenu anu
stieamei uischaige mouel |1j.

9.1.1 Townsend discharge

The cuiient thiough the aii gap between two paiallel plate electioues as a
function of the applieu BC voltage was investigateu by Townsenu in the eaily 2u
th

centuiy. It was founu that initially the cuiient incieaseu piopoitional with the
applieu voltage anu then iemaineu appioximately constant at a value i
u
. As the
applieu voltage was incieaseu fuithei, the cuiient staiteu incieasing
exponentially until complete bieakuown of the gap. The geneial pattein of the
cuiientvoltage ielationship is sketcheu in Figuie 9.1 |1j. 0p to the voltage u
1
the
cuiient incieases, because of an incieasing uiift velocity of the chaigeu paiticles
insiue the gap unuei the influence of the applieu electiic fielu, until a backgiounu
cuiient (satuiation cuiient) i
u
is ieacheu. The iate of continuously cieateu fiee
elections anu ions by e.g. natuial iauioactive uecay, cosmic anu 0v iauiation
1S4 Chaptei 9

limits the cuiient. The inciease in the cuiient past u
2
up to the bieakuown at u
S
is
asciibeu to ionization of the insulating gas molecules by election impact.

With an electiic fielu applieu acioss the gap, an initial fiee election will acceleiate
anu gain kinetic eneigy. 0pon impact with a gas molecule, if the kinetic eneigy
exceeus the ionization eneigy of the molecule, theie is a piobability that an
election is libeiateu. The eneigy gaineu between two successive collisions is
piopoitional to the electiic fielu anu the tiavelleu uistance between consecutive
collisions, which is uenoteu as the fiee tiavelling path. Its mean value is inveisely
piopoitional to the concentiation of gas paiticles, i.e. the gas uensity. This fiee
election geneiating piocess is calleu "Election Impact Ionization" |2j. Both
elections will acceleiate anu may gain sufficient eneigy foi fuithei ionizing
collisions, iesulting in an avalanche of fiee elections. This piocess is quantifieu by
the fiist Townsenu coefficient, iepiesenting the aveiage numbei of elections
piouuceu by one election pei unit length in the uiiection of the electiic fielu.

A complete bieakuown iequiies seconuaiy piocesses. In the Townsenu uischaige
mouel, the positive ions left behinu uiift to the cathoue. If sufficient eneigy is
ieleaseu upon theii impact anu neutialization at the cathoue, theie is a piobability
that a seconuaiy election is ieleaseu fiom the cathoue. Alteinatively, photons
emitteu by neutial gas paiticles, which aie exciteu upon the election impact, can
account as well foi seconuaiy elections. The seconu Townsenu ionization
coefficient gives the piobability that an ion oi photon iesults in a seconuaiy
election. The Townsenu ciiteiion foi complete gap bieakuown states that, if on
aveiage pei initial fiee election moie than one seconuaiy election is libeiateu, the
gap ionization giows to a full bieakuown.

Paschen stuuieu expeiimentally the bieakuown voltage of a gas in a homogeneous
fielu as a function of gas piessuie anu gap spacing in 1889. Bis finuings aie
nowauays iefeiieu to as the wellknown Paschen law, stating that the bieakuown
voltage U
b
is a function of the piouuct gas piessuie p anu gap length d: U
b
= f (pd).
Figuie 9.2 uepicts the Paschen cuive foi aii at a tempeiatuie of 2u. The
minimum of this cuive can be unueistoou in teims of the Townsenu mouel. At the
left siue of the minimum eithei the piessuie oi the gap length has become so low,
that few ionizing collisions occui uuiing the ciossing of the gap. The election
avalanche is too small to have sufficient piobability of cieating seconuaiy
elections to continue the bieakuown piocess. At the iight siue, the eneigy gaineu
by fiee elections is low, eithei uue to a ieuuceu mean fiee tiavelling path at
highei piessuie (i.e. highei uensity) oi low electiic fielu because of laige gap
length. Thus, also the election impact ionization is ieuuceu.

The piessuie of an iueal gas in equilibiium is uesciibeu by its state equation
p = N T k_B, (p: gas piessuie, N: gas uensity, k_B: Boltzmann constant; T: absolute
tempeiatuie). This ielation shows that piessuie is affecteu by the uensity oi
tempeiatuie of the gas. Theiefoie sometimes the Paschen law is piesenteu such
Piebieakuown Phenomena in Bisconnectoi Inteiiuption 1SS

Figure 9.1. Relationship between the current and the voltage in prebreakdown region.

Figure 9.2. Paschen curve for air in loglog scale, copied from [2].

that the bieakuown voltage is a function of the piouuct of gas uensity anu gap
length.

Although the Paschen law was ueiiveu fiom expeiiments on unifoim electiic fielu,
it uoes not ieally apply foi the nonunifoim fielu between the BS main blaues with
concentiateu fielu at the tips. Bowevei, the impact ionization by acceleiateu fiee
elections influenceu by the electiic fielu stiength is also heie consiueieu as a main
mechanism.

Beviations fiom pieuictions baseu on the Townsenu mouel weie obseiveu foi
laige aii gaps with inhomogeneous fielus oi at high piessuie. It also fails to
explain the election tiansit time in piactice often being shoitei than can be
expecteu fiom the avalanche mouel.

9.1.2 Streamer breakdown

The stieamei bieakuown mechanism is an alteinative appioach, also baseu on
piimaiy election avalanches. It was pioposeu by Raethei, Neek, anu Loeb, baseu
1S6 Chaptei 9

Figure 9.3. Field distortion in a gap caused by space charge of an electron avalanche (copied
from [5]), E0 is the applied electric field, E(x) is the electric field after distortion.

on numeious expeiiments |Sj, |4j. In the stieamei mouel the effect of the space
chaige fielu by the avalanche elections anu photon ionization in the gas volume is
taken into account. As the elections move to the anoue, the positive ions aie left
behinu in a ielatively slowmoving tail. The avalanche has accumulateu, especially
in the heau of the avalanche, negative space chaige. The tail contains positive ions.
These space chaiges uistoit the applieu electiic fielu uistiibution, i.e. enhancing
the electiic fielu in fiont of the heau anu behinu the tail of the avalanche; in
between the electiic fielu is ieuuceu as shown in Figuie 9.S. Elections will gain
moie eneigy because of the enhanceu fielu, causing incieaseu ionization anu also
moie eneigetic (0v) elections fiom highly exciteu gas atoms. These 0vphotons
stait new avalanches fuithei on by photoionization. This significantly acceleiates
the bieakuown uevelopment. A stieamei is a thin channel foimeu fiom the
piimaiy avalanche. When stieameis biiuge the gap with plasma, the bieakuown
occuis. The stieamei mechanism is specifically impoitant in an inhomogeneous
fielu, wheie in iegions with fielu enhancement also ielative laige local ionization
occuis, causing high space chaige fielus.

In a nonunifoim gap, theie is a uiveigent fielu. The electiic stiess neai one oi
both electioues with high cuivatuie is enhanceu with iespect to the iemainuei of
the gap |Sj. Consequently the ionization is enhanceu. Paitial ionization staits in
the gas with highest electiic fielu intensity, but uoes not uiiectly cause complete
bieakuown. At highei applieu voltage the fielu stiength ovei the complete gap
ieach a value sufficient to initiate complete bieakuown.

Piebieakuown Phenomena in Bisconnectoi Inteiiuption 1S7

9.2 Prebreakdown current in disconnector interruption

The expeiimental uata piesenteu in Chaptei S showeu that each inteiiuption
involves numeious iepetitive aic extinctions anu ieignitions. Foi the stuuy of the
piebieakuown piocess of cuiient inteiiuption with a BS, the focus is on the aic
cuiient aftei aic extinction at the poweifiequency cuiient zeio until the
succeeuing bieakuown.

Typical wave shapes of the cuiient i
d
thiough the BS at I
d
of 2.6 A anu its
expansions at uiffeient stages of the inteiiuption piocess aie plotteu in Figuies
9.4 anu 9.S, iespectively. Foui examples, each inuicateu by a ciicle, aie extiacteu
fiom the full cuiient wavefoim shown in Figuie 9.S. Buiation t
1
uenotes the
peiiou aftei cuiient zeio ciossing, the measuieu cuiient iemains zeio (below the
measuiement thiesholu of u.S mA). Aftei this peiiou, a small "step" in the cuiient
is obseiveu (see Figuies 9.Sb anu 9.Sc). The peiiou t
2
uenotes the uuiation
between the moment of staiting the "step" until the moment of complete
bieakuown. Regaiuing the inteivals t
1
anu t
2
the following obseivations aie
maue:

The cuiient zeio uuiation t
1
uecieases giauually with time, i.e. with
incieasing gap uistance (compaie Figuies 9.Sa, b, c anu u). In the final stage
of the inteiiuption, the cuiient zeio peiiou is even haiuly uisceinible (Figuie
9.Su).
At the beginning of the inteiiuption, aftei t
1
the bieakuown occuis without
an obseivable piebieakuown cuiient (Figuie 9.Sa). In the latei stage of the
inteiiuption piocess, theie is a "step" in the cuiient, followeu by a giauually
iising cuiient (Figuie 9.Sb, c). In the enu stage of the inteiiuption, the "step"
is also not cleaily visible, but insteau uiiectly aftei inteiiuption a pie
bieakuown cuiient aiises (Figuie 9.Su). As the Rv incieases fuithei, the gap
bieaks uown completely.
The peiiou t
2
changes also with incieasing aii gap length. In eaily stage of
inteiiuption, t
2
is not noticeable; in the enu stage, it neaily occupies the
entiie peiiou between cuiient zeio ciossing anu bieakuown.

Nany factois aie involveu ueteimining the uevelopment of the entiie bieakuown,
such as the electiic fielu, iesiuual chaiges anu tempeiatuie insiue the gap (uegiee
of ionization of the aii). The electiic fielu in between the main blaues, iesembling
a iouiou electioue configuiation, is inhomogeneous. Fuithei fiagments of
iesiuual plasma aie left in the hot aii gap fiom pievious aicing. This is exemplifieu
in Figuie S.18 showing light emission fiom hot spots in the aic path aftei cuiient
inteiiuption.

The obseiveu "steps" in the cuiient occuiiing aftei a few cycles (about 1u cycles
at I
d
of 2.6 A) aftei the opeiation staits can be unueistoou in teims of the electiic
anu theimouynamic conuition of the aic path. 0nce the cuiient ciosses zeio, the
1S8 Chaptei 9

iesiuual plasma giauually vanishes as the gap is cooling uown. At the same time
the Rv staits iising. The conuuctivity of the plasma of the pievious aic path is too
weak foi a uetectable cuiient, iesulting in a measuieu cuiient zeio stage (t
1
).
With incieasing Rv, the electiic fielus at the blaue contacts (the aic ioots) aie
enhanceu by the nonunifoim fielu. Neai the BS blaues ioots the situation is most
favouiable to initiate new ionization, appaiently via a suuuen onset of a cuiient
iesulting in a stepwise inciease. The cuiient path will follow the pievious aic
ioute because of the still piesent chaige caiiieis anu the enhanceu tempeiatuie.
The electiic fielu incieases with the fuithei Rv. In auuition, the uissipateu eneigy
by the cuiient heats the channel. This leaus to ieionization until complete
bieakuown occuis aftei time t
2
.

t
1
uecieases with the gap length means the "step" is initiateu eailiei with the
same Rv even with longei aic ioute. The ieason can highly piobably be attiibuteu
to the iemaining paitly ionizeu hot aii. Theie is moie accumulative iesiuual
chaige (ionizeu hot aii) aftei longei time because the hot aii neeus long uuiation
foi uiffusion. In Figuie 9.6 the uuiation t
2
is plotteu veisus the aicing time uuiing
which the inteiiuption uevelops. Neasuiements at thiee inteiiuption cuiient
levels (I
d
of 1.4 A, 2.6 A, S A) aie compaieu. The time t
2
is lowei foi laigei cuiient
I
d
anu smallei aicing time (smallei gap length). It may be explaineu:

t
2
is laigei foi laigei gap length. Longei aic length at laigei gap length,
iesulting in lowei aii uensity. In such a case, it iequiieu longei uuiation to
accomplish full bieakuown.
With highei cuiient, the path left by a pievious aic has a highei tempeiatuie.
As the gas tempeiatuie is inveisely piopoitional to the gas uensity at
constant piessuie (assuming the iueal gas law still applies), highei
tempeiatuie means lowei uensity, iesulting in longei fiee tiavelling path foi
elections, stiongei ionization, anu consequently lowei bieakuown voltage.
Lowei bieakuown voltages coiiesponu to shoitei time t
2
foi the Rv to
ieach the bieakuown value.

The influence of tempeiatuie on the bieakuown voltage can ioughly be estimateu
using the factoi 29ST(K) coiiecting the uensity foi tempeiatuie |6j. Fiom Figuie
S.2S it was concluueu that the actual obseiveu bieakuown voltage was about a
factoi 6 lowei than expecteu foi unconuitioneu aii at the same gap uistance
accoiuing to IEEE Stanuaiu. If this uiffeience coulu be exclusively asciibeu to
tempeiatuie a value of 1SuuC is obtaineu. This tempeiatuie is not aic
tempeiatuie, but the channel tempeiatuie at the bieakuown.

9.3 Discussion

The piebieakuown piocess of the small cuiient inteiiuption with a BS is
qualitatively analyzeu along the classical election avalanche bieakuown theoiy. A
piebieakuown cuiient of a few ampeies can be obseiveu with uuiation of seveial
Piebieakuown Phenomena in Bisconnectoi Inteiiuption 1S9

Figure 9.4. Wave shape of the current through the DS at Id of 2.6 A; circles indicate the
instances where expansions are taken for Figure 9.5.

Figure 9.5. Prebreakdown current at different moments of the current interruption process
through the DS at Id of 2.6 A, see Figure 9.4.

Figure 9.6. Breakdown development duration t2 against time for Id of 1.4 A, 2.6 A and 5 A.

hunuieus of micioseconus piioi to bieakuown. This cuiient is initiateu by the E
fielu at the aic ioot, but uiawn thiough the still weakly conuucting foimei aic
channel, anu supplies eneigy to it. If this supply of eneigy exceeus the loss of
eneigy mainly by natuial (oi foiceu) convection cooling, the foimei aic channel
0 500 1000 1500 2000
20
10
0
10
20
time (ms)
C
u
r
r
e
n
t

(
A
)
(c)
(d) (b)
(a)
50 51 52 53
0.5
0
0.5
1
time (ms)
C
u
r
r
e
n
t

(
A
)
830.5 831 831.5 832 832.5
0.5
0
0.5
1
1.5
time (ms)
C
u
r
r
e
n
t

(
A
)
1330.5 1331 1331.5 1332 1332.5 1333 1333.5
0
0.5
1
time (ms)
C
u
r
r
e
n
t

(
A
)
2070 2071 2072 2073 2074
0.2
0
0.2
0.4
time (ms)
C
u
r
r
e
n
t

(
A
)
(b)
"step"
(d)
(a)
complete breakdown
current zero
t
1
t
2
(c)
0 500 1000 1500 2000 2500
0
1
2
3
time (ms)

D
u
r
a
t
i
o
n

(
m
s
)

1.4A 2.6A
5A
14u Chaptei 9

will become highly conuuctive again anu bieakuown follows. Piactical examples
of foiceu convection aie aii flow anu whip, uiagging the aic fast into cool ambient
aii. Foi instance, theie is no steps phenomenon obseiveu foi the entiie
inteiiuption with aii flow because iesiuual chaiges aie foiceu to leave the aii gap
by the aii flow. Insteau the complete bieakuown occuis suuuenly (see Figuie
9.4a). The piebieakuown uischaige uevelops fastei with incieasing cuiient I
d
(oi
shoitei uistance) into bieakuown. This is ielateu to highei tempeiatuie in the aic
path giving iise to a laigei mean fiee tiavelling path foi libeiateu elections anu
the highei iesiuual ionization. The pieconuitioneu path fiom an eailiei
bieakuown is theiefoie a piefeiieu path foi subsequent iestiikes. This mouel is
consistent with the obseiveu beneficial effect of an applieu aii flow thiough
cooling the bieakuown channel anu iemoving ionizeu gas iemnants.

References

|1j }. S. Townsenu, Electricity in gases, 0xfoiu 0niveisity Piess, p.2, 191S.
|2j E. Kuffel, W. S. Zaengl, }. Kuffel, High Voltage Engineering Fundamentals, Seconu
Euition, Newnes, Aug. 2uuu.
|Sj B. Raethei, Electron avalanches and breakdown in gases, S.l.: Butteiwoith, 1964.
|4j }. N. Neek, }. B. Ciaggs, Electrical Breakdown of Gases, }ohn Wiley & Sons, Chichestei,
1978.
|Sj u. }. }. Winanus, Efficient streamer plasma generation, Bisseitation, Einuhoven 0niv. of
Technology, Einuhoven, 2uu7.
|6j C. L. Wauhwa, High Voltage Engineering, 2nu euition, New age inteinational limiteu
publishei, 2uu7.

Conclusions anu Recommenuations foi Futuie Reseaich 141

Chapter 10

Conclusions and Recommendations for Future Research

Limiteu liteiatuie souices iecognize that uisconnectoi iequiiements shoulu
incluue the capability of inteiiupting capacitive cuiients up to a ceitain cuiient
level. Foi safety anu economical ieasons, it is uesiiable to finu appioaches to
impiove the cuiient inteiiupting capability. Foi this, it is inuispensable to
unueistanu the ielateu inteiiuption phenomena anu its influencing factois
piofounuly. This is the main objective of this thesis.

Capacitive cuiient inteiiuption by a uisconnectoi involves the inteiaction
between the aic anu the ciicuit. The tiansient phenomena causeu by this
inteiaction, covei uiffeient fiequency ianges. Tiansient voltages anu cuiients,
that may have an impact on neighbouiing equipment, aiise uuiing the
inteiiuption.

A vaiiety of expeiimental setups weie uesigneu anu installeu in this stuuy. They
incluue the test uisconnectoi, highiesolution anu wiuebanu optical anu electiical
measuiement anu uata acquisition. The high voltage souices useu a iesonant
geneiatoi foi uetaileu obseivation of the aicing piocess as well as high voltage
powei tiansfoimeis in two uiffeient powei laboiatoiies to make quantitative
analysis uuiing the entiie inteiiuption piocess. Aiueu by computei mouelling,
expeiimental uata obtaineu fiom thiee uiffeient testsites have been analyseu in
oiuei to bettei unueistanu the inteiiuption in teims of iepetitive aicing anu
bieakuown phenomena. This unueistanuing can be exploiteu to impiove the
inteiiuption capability of a uisconnectoi with the assistance fiom auxiliaiy means
such as aii flow, highspeeu contact sepaiation anu uamping iesistois.

The main conclusions of this thesis anu iecommenuations foi futuie woik will be
auuiesseu in this chaptei.

10.1 Conclusions

Recoiueu electiical anu optical signals show that in the few seconus of capacitive
cuiient inteiiuption, the aic has fiequent extinctions anu ieignitionsiestiikes.
It extinguishes tempoiaiily at the (poweifiequency) cuiient zeio ciossing, but
ieignites uue to the iecoveiy voltage impiesseu by the ciicuit. This piocess
comes to a halt when the uielectiic stiess of the aii gap exceeus the iecoveiy
voltage value. Buiing this piocess, the bieakuown voltage of the aii gap along the
aic path is significantly ieuuceu uue to the theimal influences causeu by the aic,
142 Chaptei 1u

anu is lowei than the uiiect shoitest uistance connection between the
uisconnectoi blaues. Foi slow opening main blaues (as usual in a stanuaiu
uisconnectoi), it may take seconus to ieach sufficient gap uistance to withstanu
the highest iecoveiy voltage. The associateu tiansient oveivoltage has ieacheu a
value up to 2.S p.u. in the expeiiments, anu coulu theoietically ieach S p.u., with
the iate of iise in the oiuei of tenths pei unit pei micioseconu. Cuiient tiansients
with peak values up to a few kiloampeies weie obseiveu, iising with a few
kiloampeies pei micioseconu.

The obseiveu aic behavioui, tiansients, iestiike voltage anu so foith, aie highly
affecteu by the ciicuit paiameteis. These paiameteis involve the capacitances C
s

anu C
l
at both siues of the uisconnectoi, stiay anu shoitciicuit inuuctance, anu the
powei supply voltage. These factois all affect the cuiient to be inteiiupteu, the ie
stiike voltage with associateu tiansients as well as the eneigy supplieu into the
aic, which ultimately heats the aii in the vicinity of the aic.

The souice anu loau siue capacitances aie the main ciicuit factois that influence
the inteiiuption peifoimance. With a iatio C
s
C
l
, smallei than u.1 in the piesenteu
expeiiments, the aic uuiation, oveivoltage in the ciicuit, contact gap length anu
blaue angle at final inteiiuption, anu eneigy input into the aic aie incieasing. Slow
uielectiically iecoveiy of the (foimei) aic tiajectoiy against ciicuit impiesseu
iecoveiy voltage is ultimately the cause foi long aic uuiation.

The cuiient to be inteiiupteu is anothei goveining factoi. With highei cuiient, the
aic uuiation, the magnituue of oveivoltage anu the eneigy uissipation upon ie
stiike inciease, iesulting in laigei blaue contact gap spacing when final
inteiiuption is achieveu. With incieasing cuiient, the gap iecoveiy becomes
slowei anu the iestiike voltage uecieases, until a cuiient level is ieacheu beyonu
which inteiiuption is no longei possible anu the aic ieignites puiely theimally. In
that moue, the aic will geneially no longei extinguish, iiiespective of the gap
space. It has been obseiveu that at incieasing cuiient the oveiall aic biightness
incieases, the uecay of aic iemnant light emission is slowei, anu the post aic
eneigy input uuiing iecoveiy is laigei.

With uecieasing iestiike voltage, the eneigy input into the aic on iestiike
ieuuces. The aic eneigy, oveivoltages anu tiansient cuiient in the ciicuit ieach
theii maximum (uuiing the inteiiuption piocess) just befoie the aic extinguishes
completely. Theiefoie inteiiupting the ciicuit successfully at an eaily stage at a
ielatively shoit gap implies a lowei iestiike voltage, lowei tiansients, anu lowei
eneigy input into the aic.

It is obseiveu that the ieigniteu aic follows the "tiaces" left by the just
extinguisheu aic. The aic piefeis the uielectiically weakest path foi which the
bieakuown voltage is lowest. The ionization left behinu fiom the aic in the
pievious poweifiequency cycle makes the subsequent ieignition oi iestiike to
Conclusions anu Recommenuations foi Futuie Reseaich 14S

occui at a ieuuceu voltage, compaieu to the actual coluaii contact uistance. A pie
bieakuown cuiient, uiawn thiough the still weakly conuucting foimei aic
channel, is supplieu by the iising iecoveiy voltage. It supplies eneigy to the
channel, cieating the conuitions foi piebieakuown until complete bieakuown.
0pon iestiike, theie is eneigy input fiom the tiansient components heating the
aic fuithei. By this the subsequent level of voltage at which iestiikeieignition
will occui is affecteu.

With the puipose of iemoving the iesiuual chaiges fiom pievious aic path, thus
avoiuing space chaige to accumulate at all, two appioaches aie investigateu in
uetail expeiimentally: iemoval of iesiuual plasma by aii flow anu uiawing the
iesiuual plasma into coolei aii flow by a highspeeu auxiliaiy inteiiuptei. Two
inteiiuption moues aie obseiveu, inuicateu as a uielectiic anu a theimal moue.

The uielectiic moue mainly occuis in the case with a high aii flow iate (uiiecteu to
the aic foot points, in the tests up to S1S litieminute) anu with low aic cuiient
(ioughly below 1 A). In this moue, theimal effects play a veiy limiteu iole. Buiing
the uielectiic moue, the aic cuiient may be choppeu at any phase angle of the
poweifiequency cycle. Nultiple bieakuown events within a half poweifiequency
cycle aie common anu the numbei of the bieakuown events pei unit time is
significantly highei than in the theimal moue inteiiuption. At the same level of the
inteiiupteu cuiient, the bieakuown voltage (mainly uominateu by the aii gap
length), is highei than foi the theimal inteiiuption moue. Both highei bieakuown
iepetition fiequency anu highei value of the bieakuown voltage makes this moue
potentially moie hazaiuous foi neighbouiing equipment uue to the fiequent
tiansients. The inteiiupteu cuiient ueiivative (uiut) at cuiient zeio is much
highei (about a factoi 2u) than in the theimal moue. This implies that the aic
cuiient can also inteiiupt at cuiient zeio by highfiequency oscillations, causeu
by the tiansients in the ciicuit.

The theimal moue occuis at highei inteiiupteu cuiient (>1.4 A in the piesent
expeiiments) without aii flow. Buiing theimal inteiiuption, the aic in piinciple
extinguishes at eveiy poweifiequency cuiient zeio. The inteiiupteu cuiient
ueiivative incieases ioughly lineai with cuiient. Bue to the iesiuual ionization
fiom pievious aics, the bieakuown voltage is much lowei ("theimally ieuuceu")
than in the uielectiic inteiiuption moue. In piinciple, the voltage tiansients aie
less hazaiuous to neaiby equipment. Bowevei, eventually the oveivoltage ieaches
a veiy high level, but at a much laigei gap uistance than in the uielectiic moue. Re
stiikes occui less fiequently (one pei powei fiequency loop).

Figuie 1u.1 uepicts qualitatively the fiequency of iestiikes veisus the uuiation of
the inteiiuption piocess foi the stanuaiu centiebieak uisconnectoi with anu
without aii flow. The continuous thin lines inuicate the successful inteiiuptions
without aii flow. The continuous bolu line inuicates the case of a faileu
inteiiuption in which the aic continues "foievei" in the theimal moue. The uasheu
144 Chaptei 1u

lines inuicate inteiiuptions with aii flow assistance. At the eailiest stage of the
inteiiuption, with anu without aii flow, the fiequency of inteiiuption is highei
than uuiing the iemainuei of the inteiiuption piocess. With incieasing aicing
time, the fiequency of iestiike uecieases until 1uu Bz, i.e. once pei half Su Bz
poweifiequency cycle. The ueciease is fastei with highei cuiient. With aii flow
anu also at low cuiient, the fiequency is always highei than 1uu Bz until final
inteiiuption. The aii flow iesults in the oveiall effect of incieasing the iestiike
fiequency at the same cuiient. Thiee iegions can be uefineu:

A iegion wheie the fiequency cleaily exceeus 1uu Bz. Restiikes aie less
influenceu by the iesiuual plasma. The iestiike voltage is mainly ueteimineu
by the gap length (left iegion in Figuie 1u.1).
A iegion wheie the fiequency is 1uu Bz. The iestiikes aie incieasingly
influenceu by the iesiuual plasma (uepenuing on the cuiient level). Bigh ie
stiike voltage is still iequiieu in oiuei to bieakuown the aii gap, but the
cuiient plays an impoitant iole in the iecoveiy (centie iegion in Figuie
1u.1).
A iegion wheie no iestiikes occui. The bieakuown is theimally uominateu
completely. Restiike voltage is not necessaiy in maintaining of aicing. This
situation appeais when the inteiiuption fails (iight iegion in Figuie 1u.1).

Application of highspeeu auxiliaiy contacts ieuuces the aic uuiation significantly
anu the numbei of iestiikes uuiing the entiie inteiiuption is limiteu to only a
few. The aic is buining between the auxiliaiy contacts, biiuging the gap in a
stiaight mannei ("stiff aic"). This is uiffeient fiom inteiiuption with a
uisconnectoi with slow moving main contacts, wheie theimally uominateu
bieakuown occuis uuiing a majoi peiiou of the entiie piocess with an "eiiatic"
aic shape containing significant upwaiu motion anu cuiling. Application of fast
opening contacts uoes not ieuuce the tiansient oveivoltage anu cuiient
amplituues. Bowevei, the numbei of voltage tiansients is much smallei, because
of the veiy shoit aic uuiation.

It is iecommenueu that the contact opening speeu is as fast as possible without
any bouncing. With highei contact sepaiation speeu, the aic is foiceu to elongate,
cooling will be moie efficient, anu it will extinguish in a shoitei time. The moment
of the whip ielease, howevei, shoulu be chosen such that uielectiic back iestiike
of the aic between the main blaues is avoiueu.

Actually the effect of a highspeeu inteiiuptei anu the aii flow can also be
unueistoou fiom the bieakuown voltages (see Figuies S.2u anu 6.1u). Figuie 1u.2
conceptually uepicts the bieakuown voltage veisus time with highspeeu
inteiiuptei, anu with colu anu hot aii qualitatively at the same gap length.

Conclusions anu Recommenuations foi Futuie Reseaich 14S

Figure 10.1. Frequency of restrikes with and without air flow with the interrupted current as
a parameter.

Figure 10.2. Breakdown voltage against time with highvelocity contacts, standard
disconnector and recovery with arc at varying currents.

In the colu aii, the uielectiic iecoveiy voltage incieases with cooling anu iemoval
of the iesiuual plasma by convection. The bieakuown voltage is piopoitional to
the gap uistance. Bowevei, foi highei cuiients the bieakuown voltage is lowei
uue to the influences fiom a pievious aic. With aii flow, the bieakuown voltage is
146 Chaptei 1u

highei uue to the stiongei convective plasma iemoval (see Figuie 6.1u); with the
assistance of a highspeeu inteiiuptei, the uielectiic iecoveiy uevelops even fastei
because of foiceu convection coming fiom the suiiounuing cool aii in a veiy shoit
time. In this sense, cooling the aic eithei by uiagging it into a colu enviionment
(highspeeu auxiliaiy switch) oi by supplying colu aii (aii flow) is the essential
piocess.

Since the maximum iecoveiy voltage the ciicuit is able to supply is limiteu to
2 p.u., the aic will stop when the bieakuown voltage of the meuium has ieacheu
this voltage. Theie is minimum aic uuiation (t
m
) foi highvelocity anu stanuaiu
uisconnectoi, shown in Figuie 1u.2. Foi the inteiiuptions with uisconnecting
unuei aicing, the aic uuiation incieases with highei inteiiupteu cuiient.

10.2 Proposed future research

The conuition of the (ionizeu) aii left fiom pievious iestiikes is a main issue in
unueistanuing capacitive cuiient inteiiuption with a uisconnectoi. The physical
phenomena uiscusseu in Chaptei 9 only pioviue a iough backgiounu.

Quantitative unueistanuing of the influence of aic tempeiatuie, uegiee anu
amount of ionization in the aii gap on the bieakuown uevelopment anu the
uielectiic iecoveiy coulu be woithwhile foi fuithei investigation.

Foi the fiee buining aic in aii theie is no piopei aic mouel coveiing the iange of
cuiients occuiiing in the uisconnectoi. This point is auuiesseu in Chaptei S but
ieseaich, e.g. along the line of the appioach pioposeu in the ieview given in
Chaptei 2 may be caiiieu out fuithei.

Inteiiuption with the assistance of a pieinseiteu iesistoi is theoietically anu
expeiimentally only basically stuuieu in Chaptei 8. Futuie expeiimental woik
coulu be caiiieu out in oiuei to auuiess the iesistance value in teims of cuiient
ieuuction, heat uissipation anu uifficulties ielateu with the inseition of (high
value) iesistois into the ciicuit. The meiits of applying nonlineai components
coulu also be consiueieu.

Ablation assisteu aic extinction is piesently only useu foi ielatively high cuiient
inteiiuption. The feasibility foi low cuiient levels, stuuieu heie, can be
investigateu. Such stuuy coulu incluue new mateiials, which suit best with the
application on uisconnectois foi ielatively low capacitive cuiients.

Publications ielateu to this woik 147

Publications related to this work

|1j Y. Chai, P. A. A. F. Wouteis, R. P. P. Smeets, "Capacitive Cuiient Inteiiuption by
Bv AiiBieak Bisconnectois With Bighvelocity 0pening Auxiliaiy Contacts",
IEEE Trans. on Power Delivery, vol. 26, pp. 2668267S, 0ct. 2u11.

|2j Y. Chai, P. A. A. F. Wouteis, R. T. W. }. van Boppe, R. P. P. Smeets, B. F. Peelo,
"Capacitive cuiient inteiiuption with aiibieak high voltage uisconnectois",
IEEE Trans. on Power Delivery, vol. 2S, pp. 762769, Api. 2u1u.

|Sj Y. Chai, P. A. A. F. Wouteis, R. P. P. Smeets, "Aic imaging on capacitive cuiient
inteiiuption using a uisconnectoi with an auxiliaiy inteiiuptei", in Proc. IEEE
AsiaPacific Power and Energy Engineering Conf., Wuhan, 4p, Nai. 2u11.

|4j Y. Chai, P. A. A. F. Wouteis, R.T.W.}. van Boppe anu R. P. P. Smeets, "The
influence of aii flow on cuiient inteiiuption with aiibieak Bv
uisconnectois", in Proc. the 17
th
International Symposium on High Voltage
Engineering Conf., Cape Town, 6p, Aug. 2u11.

|Sj Y. Chai, P. A. A. F. Wouteis, S. Kuivenhoven, P. van uei Wal, N. vanis, R. P. P.
Smeets, "Cuiient inteiiuption phenomena in Bv uisconnectois with high
speeu opening auxiliaiy contacts", in Proc. IEEE Power and Energy Society GM
Conf., Ninneapolis, 8p, }ul.2u1u.

|6j Y. Chai, P. A. A. F. Wouteis, R. T. W. }. van Boppe, R.P.P. Smeets, "Aic images
uuiing small capacitive cuiient inteiiuption with Bv aiibieak
uisconnectois", in Proc. the 18th International Conference on Gas Discharges
and Their Applications Conf., uieifswalu, pp. 1S8161, Sept. 2u1u.

|7j Y. Chai, P. A. A. F. Wouteis, R. T. W. }. van Boppe, R. P. P. Smeets, B. F. Peelo,
"Expeiiments on capacitive cuiient inteiiuption with aiibieak high voltage
uisconnectois", in Proc. IEEE AsiaPacific Power and Energy Engineering Conf.,
Wuhan, 6p, Nai. 2uu9.

|8j Y. Chai, P. A. A. F. Wouteis, R. T. W. }. van Boppe, R. P. P. Smeets, "Aic
behavioui in small capacitive cuiient inteiiuption with high voltage aiibieak
uisconnectoi", in Proc. the 16th International Symposium on High Voltage
Engineering Conf., Bannovei, papei ni. u19, 6p, Aug. 2uu9.

Publications ielateu to this woik 148

Nomenclatuie 149

Nomenclature

Abbreviations

AC Alteinating cuiient
CT Cuiient tiansfoimei
CvT Capacitive voltage tiansfoimei
CN Cumulative numbei
C0 Close anu open
BS Bisconnectoi
BSs Bisconnectois
BC Biiect cuiient
BF, NF, PF Bigh , meuium , poweifiequency
Bv Bigh voltage
uIS uas insulateu substation
u Shoitciicuit geneiatoi
N Nastei bieakei
p.u. Pei unit
Rms Root mean squaie
Rv Recoveiy voltage
S Nake switch
TR Shoitciicuit tiansfoimei

Symbols

e Angulai velocity
e
p
Angulai poweifiequency of u
s

e
H
, e
M
0scillation angulai fiequency at BF, NF
o
H
, o
M
Bamping constant at BF, NF
Initial angle of u
s

1
Rotation angle of the fiame ielateu to the position
paiallel of the BS blaues
2
Rotation angle of the stiip ielateu to the position
paiallel of the BS blaues
1,u
Initial value of the
1

2,u
Initial value of the
2

Time constant of the uecay of hot gas left fiom aic
a Acceleiation of the ieleaseu whip
t
1
Cuiient zeio lasting peiiou
t
2
Cuiient (not zeio values) lasting peiiou befoie
the bieakuown occuis
C Capacitance
1Su Nomenclatuie

C
H
Capacitance of C
s
, C
l
in seiies
C
s
, C
l
Capacitance at the souice anu loau siue
C
11u
Capacitois foi voltage uiviuei
B
k
Sum of the biightness of a fiame
B
(i,j)
(k)
Biightness of the k
th
fiame
CH
14
d
FiontEnu channels
Whip contact sepaiation
D
14
voltage uiviuei
uiut Cuiient ueiivative at cuiient zeio ciossing
E
m
Amplituue of u
s

E Electiic fielu stiength of the aii gap
f Fiequency
H Aic height of the against the blaues at oiiginal
position
I
sc
Shoittime withstanu cuiient of a ciicuit bieakei
i
d
Cuiient thiough the uisconnectoi
i, j Cooiuinates of a image pixel
I
d
ims of i
d

I
max
Amplituue of the cuiient thiough the BS
i
H
,

i
M
Cuiient thiough the uisconnectoi at BF anu NF
i
pf
Cuiient thiough BS measuieu at a low banuwiuth
I
hf
Cuiient thiough BS measuieu at a high
banuwiuth
i
a
k_B:
Aic cuiient
Boltzmann constant
L
s
Inuuctance at the souice
L
H
Equivalent inuuctance of BF loop
L
a
N
Aic length
uas uensity (specify moles pei volume oi numbei
of molecules pei volume)
N
k
Noimalizeu biightness of a fiame
N
u
Noimalizeu biightness of the fiist fiame in a
viueo iecoiuing
N
arc

P
Biightness of the aic aftei coiiection with a
backgiounu fiame
Piessuie
Rv
max
Peak of the iecoveiy voltage
R
s
Resistance at the souice
R
H
Equivalent iesistance of BF loop
R Resistoi
T
arc
T
Aicing time
Absolute tempeiatuie
u
cs
, u
cl
voltage acioss C
s
anu C
l

Nomenclatuie 1S1

u
d
voltage acioss the uisconnectoi
U
r
U
line

Restiike voltage of the aii gap
ims value of the system voltage
U
E
Equalization voltage aftei BF oscillation
u
CM
voltage acioss C
s
anu C
l
at NF
U
cs
, U
cl
voltage acioss C
s
, C
l
at the moment of a iestiike
U
gap
uap withstanu voltage
u
i

Input voltage of the voltage uiviuei of D
1
uuiing
calibiation
u
in
Input voltage of the aujustable tiansfoimei
u
o
0utput voltage of the voltage uiviuei of D
1
uuiing
calibiation
u
out
0utput voltage of the aujustable tiansfoimei
U
oc
voltage acioss the uisconnectoi aftei switching
off
u
a
Aic voltage instantaneous value
U
a
Aic voltage mean value
v
air
0pening velocity of the aii gap
u
s
Instantaneous souice voltage value,
phasetogiounu voltage
v
u
Initial speeu of the ieleaseu whip
w Eneigy input the ciicuit upon iestiike
w
R

Eneigy uissipation of the iesistoi

1S2 Nomenclatuie

Acknowleugement 1SS

Acknowledgement

This thesis woulu not have been finisheu without the effoits fiom many people. I
woulu like to make use of this oppoitunity to show my peisonal giatituue to those
who suppoiteu me uuiing the couise of this woik.

Fiist of all, I am inuebteu to my piomotoi, piof.ui.ii. Ren Smeets foi accepting me
as his Ph.B. stuuent. I am veiy much appieciative foi his enthusiastic
encouiagement, guiuance anu suppoit fiom the veiy beginning to the final stage
of this woik anu my stay at T0e. Be is intelligent, analytical, constiuctive, as well
as uiplomatic, kinu, consiueiate anu caiing in social life.

I also owe my ueepest giatituue to my copiomotoi ui. Petei Wouteis. Bis uown
toeaith attituue, high level knowleuge, always fast anu veiy caiefully ieviewing
all my papei woik within last foui yeais aie inueeu iemaikable. 0n many
weekenus, holiuays, twilight houis, I saw the light on in his office which was such
an inspiiation to me. I enjoyeu a lot woiking with him, tiavelling anu even shaiing
some impoitant festivals. I also thank his wife Fen foi hei fabulous foou anu theii
uaughtei Yan foi taking caie of Ruiiui.

I thank the sponsois foi this pioject: I0PENvT foi funuing, BAPAN foi
contiibuting test objects anu allowing to measuie uuiing testing in Piague, Enexis
foi its geneious supply of capacitois loaus anu KENA foi supplying laboiatoiy test
space.

Fuithei, I woulu like to thank all the committee membeis, piof. uiing. v.
Biniichsen, piof. ii. L. van uei Sluis, piof. ui. E. Lomonova, ui. B. F. Peelo anu piof.
ii. W. L. Kling. Thanks foi theii time on ieauing my thesis anu giving me veiy
constiuctive feeubacks. Special thanks go to ui. Baviu Peelo foi his
iecommenuations anu his two visits all the way fiom Canaua.

Fuitheimoie, a lot of thanks go to ing. Ren van Boppe. Be uiu a lot of woik foi my
expeiimental setup. Without his smait iueas anu gieat help the expeiiments
woulu not be fulfilleu. I also thank Nilles viijsen foi his inteiest in calculating the
uisconnectoi blaues moving speeu uuiing his inteinship with me. Special thanks
go to ii. Sanuei Kuivenhoven fiom KENA, ing. Paul van uei Wal fiom BAPAN,
Sjoeiu van Biiel fiom T0e foi theii help uuiing the tests in KENA laboiatoiies
anu othei suggestions foi this pioject. I also thank ii. Au van veniooij foi his help
on the ciicuit uiawings in the last moment of finalizing the thesis.

It is an honoui foi me to show my thankfulness to many colleagues anu staff fiom
the EES gioup foi theii geneial suggestions anu caiing the piogiess of this thesis
fiom time to time. I thank all my (foimei) fellow Ph.Bs., Shaimistha, Shima, Zhen,
Acknowleugment 1S4

Rong, vlaua, Peti, Petei, Totis, Lei, }aspei, Anton, Paul, Aijan, ueesje, ulenn, Pavlo,
Phuong, vuong, Ioannis, Yan, Yu, }in, Ballaiu, }eiom, Beluei anu many I still have
foigotten to mention, I enjoyeu veiy much to the time spent with you not only in
oui official coffee ioom but also in the exteinal coffee coinei. Thank you guys foi
being pait of my Ph.B. life.

Big thanks go to my peisonal fiienus fiom T0e, anu also those fiienus I met at
Regional Inteinational School in Einuhoven. Thank you foi shaiing all useful anu
'gossipy' infoimation about eveiything. You know how impoitant it is to have all
of you aiounu.

Finally I am giateful to my Chinese anu Seibian family, especially my beloveu
husbanu Nilo foi his neveienuing love, suppoit, unueistanuing anu
encouiagement. 0f couise, oui always positive anu joyful uaughtei Ruiiui is a
poweiful souice of inspiiation anu eneigy. Life becomes so colouiful being with
you two togethei.

Yajing Chai

24
th
, }an. 2u12

Cuiiiculum vitae 1SS

Curriculum Vitae

Yajing Chai was boin on u8u1197S in Bubei, China. She ieceiveu hei B.Sc. anu
N.Sc. uegiee fiom Wuhan 0niveisity in 1996 anu 2uu1 iespectively at the Bigh
voltage uioup of Electiical Powei Engineeiing. Fiom 1996 till 2uu4, she was a
laboiatoiy assistant anu a lectuiei with the Bepaitment of Electiical Engineeiing
of Wuhan 0niveisity. She was an exchange young scholai at Belgiaue 0niveisity,
Seibia between 2uu4 anu 2uuS. Fiom 2uuS to 2uu7, she was a ieseaichei with the
Bigh voltage Institute of Wuhan 0niveisity. In 2uu8 she joineu the Electiical
Eneigy Systems gioup at Einuhoven 0niveisity of Technology, the Netheilanus, as
a Ph.B. canuiuate unuei the supeivision of piof.ui.ii. R.P.P. Smeets anu ui. P.A.A.F.
Wouteis.

Book - Capacitive Current Interruption With High Voltage Disconnector Switch - Yajing Chai

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Capacitive Cuiient Inteiiuption with

Bigh voltage Aiibieak Bisconnectois

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