9/17/2009

ELEC 4302/7311
POWER SYSTEM PROTECTION:
INSRUMENT TRANSFORMERS

Dr. Ramesh Bansal

School of Information Technology and Electrical
Engineering, Axon Bldg, 47/212
The University of Queensland, St Lucia, 4072 Australia
bansal@itee.uq.edu.au
Ph: +61 (07)33653394
Fax: +61 (07) 336 54999
1

PROTECTION COMPONENTS
The circuit breakers (CBs) break a faulted circuit
and thereby interrupt fault currents.

However CBs are not capable of determining
whether a fault has occurred or not.

We need additional components to detect a fault,
such as

Instrument transformers (ITs), including potential

transformer (PT) and current transformer (CT),
which are used for signal measurements.

Relays, which detect the faults and issue trip signals
to the breakers.

This chapter discusses about ITs (CTs and PTs)

INSTRUMENT TRANSFORMERS
The purpose of the ITs is to produce a much
reduced level of voltage or current from their
usual large quantities.

This has a two-fold advantage:

to obtain input levels for relays and associated

hardware containing electronic components and

to protect maintenance personnel from high voltage
and current risks.

In principle, these transformers are no different

from ordinary transformers.

However their usage is highly specialized.

For example, their power requirement is fairly
low as they are used for driving relays.

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MAIN CONTENTS OF CT

Operating principle and construction

Equivalent circuit and corresponding vector diagram
Performance parameters: current error, rated knee
point emf, Composite error
Symbols and three- phase connection
Types of CTs
Transient performance
Name plate ratings
CT ratio
CT selections
4

MEASURING AND PROTECTIVE CT

CTs are used to connect a low-voltage device (measuring

instrument or protection relay) to the high-voltage system (CBs)
and measure large currents circulating in the system during
normal operation or fault conditions.

The operation requirements for Measuring CT (connecting

measuring instrument) are different to the requirements for
Protective CT (connecting protection relay).

The Measuring CT is required to accurately perform its function

over the normal range of primary currents (10% to 120% of rated
primary current), and Measuring CT saturates for currents above
this range in order to protect the instruments connected.
The Protective CT must be applied to achieve satisfactory
protection relay performance over a wide range of fault
conditions, from a fraction of rated current to many times rated
5
current, and without saturation for high currents.

CONSTRUCTION OF CT

The main parts of a CT are iron

core and two windings: primary
and secondary.
The primary winding consists of a
single-turn (shown by the straight
line joining a and b).
The secondary winding (terminals
marked a and b) are multiple
turn windings wound on toroidal
cores.
The dots placed on the primary
and secondary sides have the
same connotation as a
conventional transformer.

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EQUIVALENT CIRCUIT AND VECTOR

DIAGRAM OF CT

Im
Ia

Ie
Es

I p

Is

Ie

OPERATING PRINCIPLE

The

primary winding is connected in the

primary circuit in which current to be
measured and the secondary winding is
connected to the burden (secondary load of
measuring instruments or protection relays).

The flow of current in the primary winding
produces an alternating flux in the core and
this flux induces an emf in the secondary
winding which results in the flow of
secondary current if the secondary winding is
connected to a closed circuit containing
8
burden impedance.

PERFORMANCE PARAMETERS: CURRENT ERROR

For a CT with turns-ratio ( n = Np/ Ns) equal to one

over the rated transformation ratio Kn = Ip/ Is (Is is
standardized to either 1A or 5A), the difference in the
lengths of the vectors Is and Ip'', related to the length
of Ip'', is defined as the current (ratio) error,

Current error % =

( I s I p ) 100 ( I s I p / K n ) 100 ( K n I s I p ) 100

=
=
I p / Kn
Ip
I p

Also the angular difference of the vectors Is and Ip'',

is called the phase displacement error.

A reduction of the secondary winding by one or two
turns is often used to compensate for current error

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RATED KNEE POINT

Es

EMF

4
10% Ek

Ek

50% I ek
E sn

1
2

I ek

Rated knee point EMF

(Ek) is the minimum
sinusoidal emf (RMS
value) at rated power
frequency which when
increased by 10% causes
the RMS exciting current
to increase by 50%.

Ie

10

COMPOSITE ERROR
c
4

c =

At point 4 the error reaches a limit

called either the Instrument
Limit Primary Current (ILP) for
a measuring CT or Accuracy
Limit Primary Current for a
protective CT.

The ratio Ips of to the rated

primary current Ipn is called either
the Instrument Security Factor
(FS) for the measuring CT or the
Accuracy Limit Factor (ALF)

2
1
3
I ps I p

I pn

Kn = transformation ratio,

Ip = RMS value of primary current,

ip = instantaneous primary current,

is= instantaneous secondary current

T = duration of one cycle.

100 1
( K n is i p ) 2 dt
I p T 0

11

SYMBOLS FOR CTS

Ip
P1

S1

S2

Is

The polarity marks P1, P2, S1,

S2 for IEC standard;

IEC

Ip

Is

According to the convention current

flowing in the polarity mark of one
winding flows out the polarity mark
of the other winding.

square or circle for ANSI / IEEE;

K, L, k, l for VDE (German

standard); are drawn at primary
and secondary sides.

ANSI

Ip
K

Is

VDE

12

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THREE-PHASE CONNECTIONS OF
TRANSFORMERS
Ia

Ia

Ib

Ib

Ic

Ic

s
I ac

I as I bs
I cs

CURRENT

s
I cb
s
I ba

I res

STAR connection provides

the line currents at the
secondary load.

DELTA connection
provides delta (difference)
currents to the secondary
load.

13

TYPES OF CTS
Wound type CT
Bushing or bar type CT

Oil-immersed bar primary CTs

Tank type
Inverted type

Air-gapped CTs
Transient Performance CTs

14

VARIOUS DESIGNS OF CURRENT

TRANSFORMERS

Wound primary type CT

has conventional windings (primary and secondary)
formed of copper wire wound round a core.

It is used for auxiliary CTs and for many low or
moderate ratio CTs used in switchgear of up to 11kV
rating.

Bushing or bar type CT (resin-embedded)

The secondary winding forms a toroid which should
occupy the whole perimeter of the core.

Such CTs normally have a single primary conductor,
sometimes permanently built into the CT and
provided with the necessary primary insulation.

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BUSHING OR BAR TYPE CTS DESIGNS

Primary Conductor

Cast Resin

Name
Plate

Terminal
Box

Cable
Bushing
Secondary
Terminals

Core 1 & Core 2

Secondary

Earthing Terminal

Fig. Cut view of a bar-type CT

Fig. Cut view of a

bushing-type CT
16

BUSHING-TYPE CT DESIGNS

Fig. Bushing-type CT

Fig. High current

bushing type CT
17

BUSHING-TYPE CTS INSTALLED ON THE

BUSHINGS OF 66KV DEAD TANK BREAKER

18

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OIL-IMMERSED CTS: TANK TYPE

Tank type with the cores

situated in a tank close to
the ground

The primary conductor is

U-shaped (hair-pin CT) or
coil-shaped (eye-bolt CT)

19

OIL-IMMERSED CTS: INVERTED (TOPE CORE)

TYPE

Cut view

with the cores situated at the

top of the transformer.

The primary conductor is

usually in the shape of a bar.

Tope Core CT
Installed in substation
20

AIR-GAPPED CTS
are auxiliary CTs in which a small air gap is
included in the core to produce a secondary
voltage output proportional in magnitude to
current in the primary winding.

This form of CT has been used as an auxiliary
component of unit protection schemes in which
the outputs into multiple secondary circuits must
remain linear and proportioned to the widest
practical range of input currents.

21

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TRANSIENT PERFORMANCE (TP)

Transient Performance (TP) CTs are included in IEC

60044-6 as types TPX, TPY and TPZ.
TPX is the closed iron-core CT while TPY and TPZ are CTs
with air-gaps in the core.

TPY Class anti-remanence CT has a small gap in the core

magnetic circuit, thus reducing the possible remanent flux
from approximately 90% of saturation value to approximately
10%. These gap(s) are quite small, for example 0.12mm total,
and so the excitation characteristic is not significantly changed
by their presence.

TPZ Class Linear CTs constitutes an even more radical

departure from the normal solid core CT. It incorporates an
appreciable air gap, for example 7.5-10mm. As its name
implies the magnetic behaviour tends to be linear by the
inclusion of this gap in the magnetic circuit.

22

Magnetisation curves of Transient

perpermence CTs

Fig. Magnetisation curves of TPX, TPY and

TPZ classes of CTs

Their remanence ( r) is very

large in case of iron core

23

NAME PLATE RATING OF CTS

According

to IEC (AS60044.1) CTs shall have

at least the following markings:

The manufacturers name, a serial number
and a type designation.

The rated primary and secondary current,
and rated frequency.

24

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...NAME PLATE RATING OF CTS

The rated output and the corresponding accuracy class, together

with additional information specified for different types and
classes of CTs, e.g.

Measuring CT specification

15VA Class 0.5 FS 10

Instrument Security Factor
Accuracy class
Rated output

Protective CT specification
15VA Class 10 P 20
Accuracy Limit Factor (ALF)
Protective CT type
Accuracy class
Rated output

25

...NAME PLATE RATING OF CTS

26

CT RATIOS
The secondary winding of a CT is usually rated
5 A.

However during short circuits, it is capable of
withstanding 20 times that value.

Standard CT ratios are given below.

In Europe and some other parts of the world,
the secondary current is 1 A.

Many new protective relays are programmable
for 1 A or 5 A CT secondary current.

27

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CT RATIO
CT ratios are expressed as a ratio of the rated
primary current to the rated secondary current.

For example, a 300:5 CT will produce 5 A of
secondary current when 300 A flows through the
primary.

As the primary current changes the secondary
current will vary accordingly. With 150 A
through the 300 A rated primary, the secondary
current will be 2.5 A.

When the rated primary amps is exceeded, which
is usually the case when a fault occurs on the
system, the amount of secondary current will
increase but, depending on the magnetic
saturation in the CT, the output may not be
exactly proportional.

28

CT SELECTION
Loads on instrument transformers are usually
referred to as burdens.

Current transformers have ratio error which can
either be calculated or determined by test.

The error can be quite high if the impedance
burden is large.

The error, however, can be kept at acceptable
level with the proper selection of CT.

29

FACTORS TO BE CONSIDERED
FOR SELECTING CTS

Measuring or protection application

Compliance with standard (Australian Standard (IEC) or

ANSI / IEEE

Number of cores

Rated primary current and rating factor (continuous

current)

Rated secondary current

Short-time current and Dynamic current

Burdens and accuracies for each core

Rated insulation level (service voltage)

Altitude above sea level if greater than 1000 m

Ambient temperature (average over 24 hours)

Pollution level (creepage distance)

30

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MAIN CONTENTS OF PTS

Types of VTs

Electromagnetic and capacitor type

Vector diagram

Design

Accuracy

Connections

Protection of VTs

Voltage Drop

Selection of VTs

31

POTENTIAL TRANSFORMER (PT)/VOLTAGE

TRANSFORMER (VT)

A VT is an open-circuited transformer whose primary

winding is connected across the main electrical system
voltage being monitored.
A convenient proportionate voltage is generated in the
secondary for monitoring.
The most common voltage produced by VT is 100120 V
(as per local country standards) for primary voltages from
380 V to 800 kV or more.
The capacity of a VT is normally represented in VA rating,
which indicates the maximum load that can be connected
across its secondary.
The other common name for this VA rating is burden.

32

VT CONNECTION SCHEME

V' = (1/n) V
Three 34.5 kV/115 V VT

STANDARD VT RATIOS
1:1

2:1

2.5:1

4:1

5:1

20:1

40:1

60:1

100:1

200:1

300:1

400:1

600:1

800:1

1000:1 2000:1 3000:1 4500:1

33

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VT: ELECTROMAGNETIC TYPE

It is a step down transformer

whose primary (HV) and secondary
(LV) windings are connected as
shown in Fig.

It is similar to a power transformer

and differs on the basis of cooling,
insulating and mechanical aspects.

The number of turns in a winding

is directly proportional to the opencircuit voltage being measured or
produced across it.
Three-phase system uses three VTs
per phase connected in star or delta
depending on connection of the
main power source.

Fig. Electromagnetic type

Used in voltage circuits upto

110/132 kV

34

CAPACITOR TYPE (CVT)

Primary portion consists of

capacitors connected in series to
split the primary voltage to
convenient values.

The capacitors also allow the

injection of a high-frequency
signals onto the power line
conductors to provide end-toend communications between
substations for distance relays,
telemetry/supervisory and voice
communications.

Hence, in EHV networks CVTs

are commonly used for both
protection and communication 35
purposes.

Fig. Capacitor-type VT

CAPACITOR TYPE (CVT)

In this, the values of C1 and C2 are so
adjusted such that a voltage of few kV
is obtained across C2 when the
terminal A is in system potential.
This voltage is then further reduced by
the PT.

The open-circuit voltage across C2 is given by

VB =

V A (1 j C 2 )
C1
= VA
1 j C1 + 1 j C 2
C1 + C 2

(1)

Also the short circuit current is

I sc =

VA
= j C1V A
1 j C1

(2)

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CVT

From (1) and (2), we can find the Thevenin impedance as

Z TH =

(3)

Let us assume L to be leakage impedance of the transformer. Let us now

choose C1 and C2 such that

VB
1
=
I sc j (C1 + C2 )

1
1
= j L L = 2
j (C1 + C2 )
(C1 + C 2 )

(4)

Then we have created a series resonance circuit. The output of the

PT is then in phase with the line voltage with no phase angle
error being created by the potential divider.

37

VECTOR DIAGRAM
The primary
parameters are
suffixed with p
while the
secondary with
suffix s.

Vector diagram for
a three-phase
connection will be
identical, except for
the phase shift
introduced in each
phase in relation to
the other phases.

Fig. 3 Vector diagram of a VT

38

PRINCIPLE OF OPERATION OF VTS

VT is connected across the points at which the voltage is to be

measured
In practice the winding voltage drops are made small, and the
rated flux density in the core is designed to be well below
saturation density.
The parameters that define VT performance are voltage ratio
error and phase displacement error.

Ratio error % =

K nVS VP
100%
VP

The phase error is the phase difference between the secondary

and the primary voltage phasors. It is positive when the
secondary voltage leads the primary voltage phasor.
39

13

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DESIGN EXAMPLES OF INDUCTIVE VT

VTs have only one iron core with attached

secondary windings and they can be provided
either as single pole or double pole insulated
designs.

40

SINGLE POLE INSULATED AND DOUBLE

POLE INSULATED VTS
Primary terminal
Primary winding
Name
Plate

Cast
resin

Terminal
box

Cable
bushing

Core
Earthing
terminal

Secondary winding
Secondary terminal

In double pole VT the insulation

between primary and secondary
windings is designed to be one half 41
of the phase to ground voltage.

DESIGN EXAMPLES OF CVT

The cost of electromagnetic VT tends to increase
at exponential rate with the rated voltage.

An alternative and more economic solution is
CVT. The CVT combines a capacitive potential
divider with an auxiliary (intermediate)
electromagnetic Voltage Transformer.

This combination enables the insulation
requirements of the electromagnetic unit to be
reduced with an associated saving in cost.

42

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CVT manufactured by ABB

43

ACCURACY OF VOLTAGE TRANSFORMERS

VT for protection are required to maintain
reasonably good accuracy over a large range of
voltage from 0 to 173% of normal.

Close accuracy is more relevant for metering
purposes, while for protection purposes the
margin of accuracy can be comparatively less.

The accuracy is not a major cost-deciding factor
for a VT due to the high efficiency of the
transformers, which normally ensures that there
is no major voltage drop in the secondary leads.

Thus, it is common to select VTs based on the
loads (choosing appropriate rated burden).

44

CONNECTION OF VTS

Whenever the values of voltage in a power system are too

high to permit direct connection of measuring instruments
or relays, coupling is made through a voltage transducer.
Such transducers are required to produce a scaled down
replica of the input voltage to the accuracy expected for the
particular measurement.

Commonly used transducers are electromagnetic

(inductive) Voltage Transformers (VT), Capacitor Voltage
Transformers (CVT), and Cascade Voltage Transformers.

Electromagnetic voltage transformers may be connected

interphase or between phase and earth.
However, CVTs can only be connected phase-to-earth.

VTs are commonly used in three-phase groups, generally in

starstar configuration.

45

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CONNECTION OF VTS

Fig. 4 VT connected in starstar

configuration

Fig. 4 VT connected in deltadelta

configuration

46

...CONNECTION OF VTS

Open Delta connection

PROTECTION

Broken Delta connection

47

OF VOLTAGE TRANSFORMERS

It is possible to protect a VT from secondary

short-circuit by incorporating fuses in the
secondary circuits.

Short-circuit on the secondary winding gives only
a few amperes in the primary winding and is not
sufficient to rupture a high-voltage fuse.

Hence high-voltage fuses on the primary side do
not protect the transformers, they protect only
the network in case of any short-circuit on the
primary side.

48

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VOLTAGE

DROP IN VOLTAGE TRANSFORMERS

The voltage drop in the secondary circuit is of

importance.

The voltage drop in the secondary fuses and long
connection wires can change the accuracy of the
measurement.

The total voltage drops in this circuit must not be
more than 0.1%.

49

FACTORS TO CONSIDERED WHEN

SELECTING VTS
Measuring or protection application
Compliance with standard (Australian Standard
(IEC) or ANSI / IEEE

CV type: inductive or CVT

Insulation level (service voltage)

Altitude above sea level if greater than 1000 m

Rated primary and secondary voltages

VT Ratio

Rated voltage factor (VF)

Burdens (outputs) and accuracy for each winding

Pollution levels (creepage distance)

50

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