FEATURE
LV SWITCH - BOARDS DESIGNED TO WITHSTAND HIGHER
When we trace back the history of
Low Voltage (LY) distribution network
in India, it can be observed that, til
the recert past, the source transformer
capacities were restricted to a
maximum of 2MVA. Hence, the LV
switchboards, a vital ink between the
distribution transformer and the
downstream loads in the electrical
energy distribution network, were
designed for a service current of
‘maximum 300A and a fault withstand
capacity of maximum SOKA.
(Over the years, industries have grown
in size and plants have become more
sophisticated, automated and
complex. This has resulted in
corresponding increase in the power
requirement. It has also created the
need for a reliable electrical distrivution
network designed to take care of
effects of higher currents.
‘This increased power requirement has
necessitated development of sources
(transformers for LV distribution) with
higher capacity. Thus, the use of
transformers with 2.5MVA rating and
above has become a common
practice. In addition to this, for
ensuring reliable and continuous power
supply, switchboards are traditionally
fed trom more than one source.
Ina nutshell, the increase in size and
number of distribution transformers
feeding the switchboards have
necessitated uprating of the busbars
and the incoming/buscoupler circuit
FAULT CURRENT
=C.D. Mehta
‘Switchgear Design & Product Development
breaker of the main PCC. The
switchboards, now, are required to be
jpable of carrying higher continuous
current and be also capable of
withstanding increased fauit currents,
A typical single line diagram of a
distribution network is shown in Fig.1
The devices closest to the distribution
transformer will generally be circuit
breakers fed through duet / busbars,
‘Such devioas lie in the high fault level
zones of the network
To understand the requirements of the
‘equipment in the high fault zone, let
us first look at the different types of
faults. The commonly occurring faults
Inan electrical network are >
| Three phase faults
| Two phase faults
| Phase to earth faults
‘These faults can occur either due to
an external shorting or due to arcing,
‘An arcing fault is much less in intensity
than to the dead short circuit fault
However, an arcing fault may
eventually resuit into a short circuit
between phases. The fault currentsare generally maximum for a three
phase fault and henoe this fault current
is considered while designing the
busbar system and selecting the
switchgear equipment.
level is notmally taken as 16 times
the full load current. This is of
course an approximation based on
transformer impedance. Appropriate
correction factors will have to be
Transtormer Rating ‘Typical Short Circuit Full Load
Curent Current
1250 kVA, 28 KA 1739.4
1500 kVA, 33 KA 2087 A
2000 kVA 48 kA 2782.4
2500 kVA 56 KA 278A
3150 kVA 70 KA 4362 A
‘Typical fault levels and fill Toad currents Yor a 47S5V distribution system
The value of this short circuit current
depends primarily on the:-
| Capacity of the supply source
| Distance of the fault from the
transformer
| Source impedance
| Motor contribution
| Fault impedance
‘Three phase short citcuit current at
the transformer terminals can be
calculated as
S = Transformer rating in KUA x 10°
V, = System voltage
Z_=% Impedance of transformer
In LV systems, it is common to
assume that the system is an infinite
source and the only impedance
limiting the fault current is the
transformer impedance, Assuming
6.25% impedance for the distribution
transformer (for the transformers
of size 1250 KVA and above), the fault
applied depending on the type and
number of parallel sources, motor
oad contribution, impedance of the
connecting busbars / cables / busduct
‘tc, The short circuit current increases
with the rating of the distribution
transformer. (Ref. chart given above).
It is clear that the short circuit
performance of the switchgear is an
important consideration while selecting
the switchgear for any specific
application. The prospective or the
‘maximum fauit current at the point of
instalation will decide the breaking
capacity and the short time withstand
capacity requirement of the circut
breakers and related devices in the
installation. Type 2 co-rdination
essential for reliable and sate operation
of the switchgear also needs to be
Verified at this higher fault level. The
short time rating and the
electrodynamic withstand strength of
the busbars in the switchboards wil
also depend on the fauit level of the
system.
‘The main distribution board, due to its
proximity to the distribution
transformer, is required to be capable
of withstanding much higher normal
and fault currents. In addition to the
transformer impedance, only the
impedance of the short length of the
ducts/eables limits the fault current in
this case.
With the upward shift in the transformer
ratings, it has become a frequent
requirement for the main PCCs to be
suitable for a current rating of up to
GO00A with a fault withstand capacity
of up to BOkA.
‘Two factors should be taken care of
in the switchboards for this high
raling :-
| Thermal etfect
| Electrodynamic forces
The heat loss in the busbars is
proportional to the square of the
current. If the fault current increases
from 50kA to 80kA, the loss will
increase to around 2.5 times. All this
heat generated resuits in very high
temperatura on the busbars during
fault, due to its adiabatic nature
‘The electrodynamic forces, similar'y,
are also proportional to the square of
the current, However, in this case,
the peak current will be the deciding
factor. In case of fault current of more
than 50 kA the power factor reduces
from 0.25 to 0.2. This further
increases the forces as the
peak of the fault current 80 KA goes
up. The busbar system will have to
bbe supported properly to withstand
these high forces. Another
important point to note is
that these forces are of
impact nature and they tend to
severely stress the supportingInstantaneous Current (kA) 105/2 10512 522-522 532-5312
commit [I 00 00D YU
— —- + —> —> ——> —
Instantaneous Force (kN) 23 126 72 34 12 15
Instantaneous Current (kA) 10812 = 8212 -832 1082 -522 - 8312
moe [0D YO) 00 00) Qu
— <— «<_— — 1 <—
Instantaneous Force (KN) 39 39 18 19 40 02
The figures are with SOKA taut with 105KA peak on the R phase Fig. 2
structure. Hence, the material of the
supports will have to be strong
enough to withstand the impact
forces.
All this calls for a thorough design
consideration in case of the busbar
system.
The sub-distribution boards are
generally placed nearer to
the load, away from the main PCC.
The length of the cables or
busduct connections between the
main PCC and the sub-distribution
board is relatively great. This
helps in reducing the fault
currents at the sub distribution
board permitting use of busbars
and devices of lower short
circuit withstand capacity. It
may be noted that a 100kA
fault at the PCC can get reduced
to 53kA level at the end of a
20m long copper cable of 120 sq.mmm.
‘The conventional way of meeting the
requirement of higher continuous
current capacity is to provide higher
cross section by increasing the
number of flats for the busbars or
Increasing the size of the busbars
assuming that the current density
remains constant. But in reality,
Increase in cross section does not give
the required current rating
proportionately. Higher currents result
in non-uniform current distribution in
the busbars (due to skin effect and
proximity effect). This consequently
results into high powor/energy losses,
higher voltage drops, high temperature
tise and very high and non-uniform
electrodynamic forces,
It Is proved that the interleaved
busbar system is best suited for the
requirements of higher fault levels and
higher currents. It results in more
uniform distribution of the current
thereby reducing the losses and the
short circuit forces.
‘A mathematical calcultation was
carried out considering a three phase
busbar system where a SOKA RMS
fault where the peak is 105kA
on the R phase. Results of the
‘experiment are shown in Fig.2. As wo
observe, the electrodynamic forces,
In case of the conventionally
arranged busbar system (R-R-Y-Y-B-
B) are as high as 12.6kN.
Whereas, in case of the interleaved
busbar system (R-Y-B-R-Y.B), the
maximum force experienced by the
busbars is 4 KN.
Conelusion
With the present trend of using high
capacity transformers, LV
switchboards, including horizontal
and vertical busbars, must be
designed to withstand higher
fault currents viz. 80kA. The same
system should also be able to
carry current as high as 6000A
continuously