Problem of synthetic circuit-breaker testing with voltage injection

L. Blahous, Ph.D.

Indexing terms: Abstract

Circuit breakers, Electron device testing

When testing high voltage circuit breakers synthetically the question arises as to how the test results can be compared with test results in direct tests. In the paper the thermal equivalence between direct testing and the method of voltage injection is investigated. The circuit breaker is modelled by the Urbanek equation. It is shown that the prospective voltage alone cannot define the test circuit to ascertain thermal equivalence. To lay out the synthetic test circuit to obtain results equivalent to direct testing requires the exact knowledge of all circuit elements including the auxiliary breaker and the test breaker. There is no problem, however, if this method is applied for tests in which the breaker is dielectrically stressed. 1 Introduction that, provided these conditions are fulfilled, the circuit breaker is equally stressed in the synthetic circuit as in the equivalent direct test circuit. For the voltage-injection synthetic-test method the question of the thermal equivalence still seems to be unsatisfactorily answered. It is the goal of this work to contribute to the understanding of the interaction period for that test method. 2 Problem of circuit layout

With the increase of the system voltage of electric networks, not only the rated voltage for circuit breakers increases, but also the short-circuit power to be interrupted. This development made it necessary to increase the specific breaking capacity of arc chambers; thus, today, even one single breaking unit of a circuit breaker can hardly be tested directly. Therefore synthetic testing has gained more and more importance as it is the only way to keep expenses for circuit-breaker testing within reasonable limits. The question that arises when using synthetic test circuits is to what extent they can be used, i.e. to what extent the stress on the circuit-breaker in a synthetic test circuit is equivalent to one in a direct test circuit. It seems relatively easy to define conditions that ascertain equivalence for test circuits with current injection. Those conditions are generally accepted and there seems to be agreement

Fig. 1

Direct reference circuit

Fig. 2

Synthetic test circuit

Paper 8399 P, first received 20th April and in revised form 2nd August 1979 Dr. Blahous is with the Technical University of Vienna, Gusshausstrasse 25, A-1040 Vienna, Austria

Fig. 1 shows the direct reference circuit and Fig. 2 that circuit used for this theoretical investigation on the thermal equivalence. In Fig. 2, the damping resistor of the high-voltage circuit is in series with the inductance. There are also test circuits in use with the resistor in parallel to the inductance which can mean certain advantages for shaping the prospective voltage curve. This does not, however, change the results of this investigation. The essential feature of voltage injection is that the prospective voltage is not produced by one circuit only but that both the highcurrent and the high-voltage circuits contribute to it. The initial part of the prospective voltage comes from the high-current circuit, whereas the high-voltage circuit is connected, via the spark gap, after current zero, contributing the rest of the prospective voltage to the peak. This means that the test circuit for synthetic testing with voltage injection is basically different from an equivalent direct circuit. This method proves the claim of the IEC test philosophy that minor changes in the prospective voltage to the first peak also mean only minor changes in the test circuit, to be wrong. That the layout of such a synthetic test circuit really is a problem is shown by the different suggestions on how to do it. Slamecka1 restricts his layout to the approximation of the prospective voltage curve of the direct reference circuit (which fulfils the IEC requirements). The question of when this approximation is sufficient is not answered. Also, the prospective voltage curve of the synthetic test circuit can follow the prospective voltage curve of the direct reference circuit in close approximation only to the first peak, then the two curves generally differ considerably. This shows that the present IEC requirements are not at all unequivocal. There are two basically different circuits yielding two basically different voltage curves and only because these curves are very similar to the first peak can both circuits be used to test whether or not the breaker can interrupt a certain short circuit power as far as the IEC requirements are concerned. Kopplin and Pflaum,2 on the other hand, tried to show how to lay out the high-current circuit in order to ensure that the breaker is thermally equally stressed as in the direct circuit. In their considerations, the prospective voltage is not even mentioned. The only problem they are concerned with is how to lay out the circuit in order to ensure equal current distortion before current zero. Their proof, however, provokes a number of objections: (a) The Mayr model was used to describe the circuit-breaker arc. It was shown, however, that before current zero the arc is of the Cassie type (Urbanek,3Swanson, Roidt and T.E. Browne).4 (b) The thermal equivalence was proven only for the test breaker being identical with the auxiliary breaker. This cannot be generally ascertained in practice. There are test stations that use a well tested breaker as the auxiliary breaker no matter which breaker is being tested. Even if both the test breaker and the auxiliary breaker are two different poles of a 3-pole unit, identity between them is not 1287 0020-3270/79/121287 + 04 $01-50/0

PROC. IEE, Vol. 126, No. 12, DECEMBER 1979

ascertained. Their parameters may scatter considerably during an interruption. (c) Kopplin and Pflaum2 connect the capacitances Ce, Cp and Cz to one single capacitance parallel to both breakers. It is questionable whether this is permissible. It would mean that there is equal voltage distribution across each breaker which is exactly contrary to the recommendation by Slamecka.1 Both breakers must interrupt the current at exactly the. same time or the post-arc current of the test breaker will be interrupted by the auxiliary breaker, which certainly does not happen in a direct test circuit. It would also mean that the only effect of the capacitances Cp and Cz is a contribution to the capacitive current coming mainly from Ce and flowing through both circuit-breakers. This approach does not take into account the fact that in parallel to both the auxiliary breaker and the test breaker there are two different capacitances Cp and Cz. Each one forms a closed loop together with the breaker to which it is parallel. Therefore different currents flow in each breaker. (c/) Finally it. was shown that equal current distortion before current zero does not necessarily mean equal thermal stress. What happens after current zero is at least as important for the thermal behaviour of the circuit-breaker arc.s

Thermal equivalence

The above questions can only be answered by either testing what actually happens when interrupting a short circuit current in a synthetic test circuit with voltage injection or by simulating the whole

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Fig. 5 Fig. 3

Comparison of prospective voltage curves of two synthetic circuits with direct reference circuit
direct reference circuit
Rp = 0

Current in synthetic test circuit with Rp = 700 1 around current zero (test breaker identical with auxiliary breaker)
current in test breaker current in auxiliary breaker generator current - current through C p

Rn = 700 n

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Fig. 4

Currents in synthetic test circuit with Rp = 0 around current zero (test breaker identical with auxiliary breaker)
current in test breaker - - current in auxiliary breaker _ _ _ generator current - current through Cp

Fig. 6 Current in synthetic test circuit with auxiliary breaker being much better than test breaker (for circuit details see Table I)
current in test breaker current in auxiliary breaker generator current current through Cp

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Table 1

EQUIVALENT CIRCUITS (1) (circuit of Fig. 4) = 120ft;C e = 400nF L = \\m\\;Re Cz = 200pF;K 2 = 0 Cp = 90nF;Rp = 0 Ua = 1 l-9SkV,(C/cq = 47-8 kV) / = 34-6 kA Lh = 5mH;Rh = 400ft;C h = 1 0 / J F /Ch = 57-5 kV Test breaker: Po = 25kW;e = 8-4kV;T = 3 jus wd = 400kV /I uxiliary breaker: Po = 25kW;e = 8-4 kV; 71 = 3 jus ud = 400kV (3) (circuit of Fig. 6) L = \\ mH;Re = 120ft;C e = 400 nF 2 = 0
p p

(2)

(circuit of Fig. 5) L = l-lmH;/? e = 120ft;C c = 400nF C2 = 200pF;7? 2 = 0 C p = 90nF;/? p = 700 2 E7g = 15-63kV,(E7cq = 62-5 kV) / = 45-25 kA Lh = 3OmH;7?,, = 0;Ch = lOyuF Uch = 75-1 kV Tei/ breaker: Po = 25kW;<? = 8-4 kV; T = 3 jus wd = 400kV /I uxiliary breaker: Po = 25kW;e = 8-4 kV; T = 3 jus u d = 400 kV

(4)

/, = 12-02 kV,(t/ eq = 48-08 kV) / = 34-8 kA Z.h = 5mH;Rh = 400ft;C h = IOJUF UCh = 57-8kV T<?s/ breaker: Po = 25kW;e = 8-4kV;T = 3jus u d =400kV Auxiliary breaker: Po = 50kW;e = 8-4kV;T= 0-5 JUS ud =400kV ; e = 400nF L = 11 mH;/? e = C2 = 200pF;/? 2 = 0 Cp = 20nF;Rp = 550 ft t / g = 14-7kV,(C/eq = 58-8 kV) 7 = 42-6kA />/, = 5mH;/? h = 4 0 0 f t ; C h = IOjuF t/Ch =68-7kV Te^? breaker:
Po = 2 5 k W ; e = 8 - 4 k V ; r = 3 jus =400kV ud

L = 11 mH;/J e = 1 2 0 n ; C e = 4 0 0 n F Cz = 200pF;fl z = 0 Cp = 90nF;Rp =450^2 Ug = 14-7kV,((/ cq = S8-8kV) 7 = 42-6kA Lh = 5 m H ; ^ h = UCh = 68-7kV Test breaker: Po = 25kW;e = 8 ud = 400 kV Auxiliary breaker: Po = 25kW;e = 8 ud=400kV
(6)

(5)

L = 11 mH;Re = 120ft;C e = 400nF Cz = 200pF;/? z = 0 Cp = 200nF;/? p = 290 ft U8 = 14-7kV,(q eq = 58-8kV) 7 = 42-6kA Lh = 5mH,Rh = 4 0 0 f t ; C h = IOjuF UCh = 68-7kV Test breaker: Po = 25 kW; e = 8-4 kV; T = 3 us ud =400kV A uxiliary breaker: Po = 30kW;e = 9-5 kV; T = jus ud =400kV
(8)

A uxiliary breaker: Po = 10kW;e = 5kV;T = 2-8^s ud = 4 0 0 k V

(7)

L = 11 mH;/? e = 120ft;C e = 400nF C2 = 200pF;/? 2 = 0 Cp = 9-5 nF;/? p = 500 ft '(/,= 14-7kV,(t/ eq = 58-8 kV) 7 = 42-6kA lh = 5 11^1;/?/, = 4 0 0 f t ; C,, = IOjuF i/ C h=68-7kV Test breaker: Po = 25kW;e = 8-4 kV; r = 3 jus ud = 4 0 0 k V A uxiliary breaker: Po 33kW;e = 7 - 5 k V ; r = 1-8jus ud = 400kV

L = 11 mH;7? e = 120ft, Ce = 400nF Cz = 200pF; 2 = 0 Cp = 15 nF;7? p = 510ft U8 = 14-7kV,(t/ cq =58-8kV) 7 = 42-6kA

Lh = SmH;/J h =400ft;C f t = IOjuF UCh = 68-7kV 7e^? breaker: Po = 25kW;e = 8-4 kV; T= 3 jus wd = 400 kV Auxiliary breaker: Po = 28kW;e = 8 k V ; 7 ' = 3-5 jus wd = 4 0 0 k V The values in parenthesis are the generator voltages of the equivalent direct circuit. The values of the currents and voltages arc the thermal limits of the test breaker in each circuit listed. The values for the circuit elements and the thermal limit of the test breaker in the direct reference circuit are = 100n;C=380nl v = 58-8 kV;/ = 42-6 kA interruption process mathematically. The second approach was used and the circuit breaker was modelled by the Urbanek equation: 6 dg dt where T = time constant of arc e = minimum arc voltage at high currents PQ, = minimum power input to maintain arc ud = dielectric breakdown voltage of the cold arc channel g = instanteneous arc conductance / = instanteneous arc current u = instanteneous arc voltage PROC. 1EE, Vol. 126, No. 12, DECEMBER 1979
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This dynamic arc model incorporates both the Cassie and the Mayr equations and therefore can be used for the whole interaction period around current zero. Fig. 3 shows the prospective voltage of (a) the direct reference circuit (b) a synthetic test circuit with Rp = 0 and Rz = 0 (c) a synthetic test circuit with Rp = 700 ft and Rz = 0. All three of these curves can be considered similar to the first peak. Fig. 4 shows currents flowing in circuit (b) (Rp = Rz = 0), and Fig. 5 the ones in circuit (c). For both cases, the auxiliary breaker is identical with the test breaker. They show quite clearly that the system's behaviour changes very drastically from circuit (b) to (c) even thougli the initial part of the prospective voltage formed by the high-current circuit only is identical for both circuits. In circuit (b), 1289

the breaker is much more severely stressed thermally than in circuit (a) (which is the relevant direct circuit), while circuit (c) is much easier than circuit (a), even though the total prospective voltage would suggest circuit (c) to be the most severe one. This example shows again how little information really can be gained from the prospective voltage. The capacitance Cp parallel to the auxiliary breaker has practically no influence on the prospective voltage because it is in series with the very small capacitance Cz which completely dominates. So the prospective voltage curve/ that is determined by the high-current circuit is defined by Ce. Yet Figs. 4 and 5 show that Cp has considerable influence on the behaviour of the circuit breakers. In Fig. 3 the capacitive current across Cp delays current zero in the auxiliary breaker considerably. This results in a very small thermal stress for the auxiliary breaker which interrupts without any post-arc current. Fig. 4 also shows that not all of the capacitive current from Cp flows across the auxiliary breaker. Part of the capacitive energy of Cp, which is loaded to the full arc voltage before current zero, is also fed into the test breaker just at its most critical period of post arc current, thus causing a thermal reignition of the arc in the test breaker. In the case of circuit (c), the capacitance Cp is not loaded to the full arc voltage as some of its drops on the resistor Rp in series. Because the energy in a capacitance.varies with the voltage squared, there is much less energy stored in Cp and some of this is also absorbed by the resistance Rp. The capacitive current from Cp is much smaller and current zero of the auxiliary breaker appears at the same time as in the test breaker. Only little additional energy is fed into the test breaker. Fig. 6 shows a case where there is a completely different reason for the larger thermal stress on the test breaker in the synthetic test circuit than the one in Fig. 4. The auxiliary breaker shows a much better arc-quenching performance than the test breaker. It interrupts the current before the test breaker. Therefore the capacitance Cp is put in series with the capacitance Ce which considerably reduces the effective capacitance parallel to the test breaker. Once again the insufficiency of the IEC specifications is shown. Because the prospective voltage only shows the response of the circuit to an interruption with an ideal breaker, the very important role of the auxiliary breaker principally cannot be taken into account by it. The calculations made for the cases shown in Fig. 4 and 5 suggest that for a certain value of Rp the thermal stress in the synthetic circuit is equal to the stress in the direct reference circuit. For the special example considered this is the case for Rp =450 2. For this value of Rp the test breaker can interrupt exactly the same short circuit power in the synthetic test circuit as in the direct reference circuit. As, in practice, the identity between auxiliary and test breaker cannot be assumed, the question remains whether thermal equivalence can also be obtained if the breakers are different. Table 1 shows some examples where the auxiliary breaker is different from the test breaker. The auxiliary breaker constants were arbitrarily chosen and the other elements have the values for which

thermal equivalence was obtained. To obtain those values required a lot of calculation because the method of trial and error had to be used. No general or empirical law was found on how to lay out the test circuit to obtain thermal equivalence once the constants for test and auxiliary breaker are known. There was, however, no hint that there might be breaker combinations for which thermal equivalence were principally impossible. 4 Conclusion

The method of synthetic testing with voltage injection shows clearly the limits of the IEC specifications imposing conditions only on the prospective voltage. The prospective voltage can neither show the influence of the capacitance Cp parallel to the auxiliary breaker nor the influence of the auxiliary breaker itself. Yet both elements have great influence on the thermal behaviour of the test breaker. Therefore, in a test circuit laid out to fulfil the IEC requirements, only the thermal behaviour of the test breaker is completely undertermined. A prediction of its thermal behaviour from the prospective voltage curve alone is impossible. If the complete circuit topology is taken into account and both the test breaker and the auxiliary breaker are known, it is possible to lay out the circuit to stress the test breaker thermally equally as a direct circuit does. The prospective voltage is then only of minor importance. These objections, however, only concern early dielectric or thermal reignition, but by no means late dielectric reignitions occurring many arc time constants after current zero. There is no doubt that especially circuits of low natural frequency, which cannot be simulated by current-injection schemes equivalently and which usually do not cause thermal but late dielectric reignition, can only be effectively simulated by voltage-injection schemes. Therefore the question is not which of these two types of circuits are more useful or more reliable but merely under which condition they must be used. 5 Acknowledgment

The present work was financed by the 'Fondszur Foerderung wissenschaftlicher Forschung' of the Austrian Academy of Sciences.

References
SLAMECKA E.: 'Priifung von Hochspannungs-Leistungsschaltern' (Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg, New York 1966) KOPPLIN H., PFLAUM E.: 'Zur Aequivalenz der synthetischen und direkten Pruefungen von Hochleistungsschaltern' ETZ-A, 1963, 84, pp. 149-153 URBANEK J.: 'The time constant of high voltage circuit-breaker arcs before current zero' Proc. IEEE, 1971,59, pp. 502-508 SWANSON B.W., RO1DT R.M., BROWNE T.E. Jr.: 'A thermal arc model for short line fault interruption' ETZ-A 1972, 93, pp. 375-380 BLAHOUS L.: 'Anwendung der dynamischen Lichtbogentheorie auf das Verhalten von Hochspannungsschaltern in Priifkreisen' Doctorial thesis at the Technische Universitat of Vienna, 1978 URBANEK J.: 'Zur Berechnung des Schaltverhaltens von L.eistungsschaltern, eine erweiterte Mayr-Gleichung', ETZ-A 1972, 93, pp. 381-385

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