EE482-Power System Analysis II

Dr. E. A. Feilat
Electrical Engineering Department
School of Engineering
University of Jordan

Topic 1-5: Transformer Protection

1
Transformer Protection
 Power transformers are expensive.
Protection must be effective
 What can go wrong?
 Phase-to-phase faults
 Three-phase faults
 Ground faults
 Core faults
 Tank faults
 Bushing faults

2
Causes of Transformer Failures
 Winding failures 51%
 Tap changer failures 19%
 Bushings failures 9%
 Terminal board failures 6%
 Core failures 2%
 Miscellaneous failures 13%

Differential protection can detect all of the types of failures above

3
Transformer Protection
 Protection Methods
Protection must be effective
 Fuse Protection
 Overcurrent Protection
 Differential Protection

4
Protective Relay Systems
 Basic function of protection is to detect faults and to clear
them as soon as possible.
 Minimum number of items of equipment should be
disconnected.
 Called SELECTIVITY.
 Speed and Selectivity are the most desirable features of
Protection
 But Cost also Decides the selection

Unit Protection 

Internal Fault Protection (87T)

5
Applications of Unit Protection
Circulating current systems generally used for
Transformer,
 Generator,
Busbars

CT’s are situated in same sub-station with common relay

 Compares currents flowing into and leaving a protected zone

 Operates when a set value of differential (difference) currents is
reached
 Analog is a balancing beam Iin Iout

6
Balanced Circulating current
 Compares currents flowing into and leaving a protected zone
 Use Two sets of CTs at two ends with relay in between
 Require Matching CT’s at both the ends

Current balance
circulating current scheme

7
Balanced Circulating current
 External Faults - Stable

Balanced CT Ratio

CT CT
Protected
Equipment External
Fault

50 IDIF = 0

No Relay Operation if CTs Are Considered Ideal

8
Balanced Circulating current
 Internal Faults - Operates

CTR CTR
Protected
Equipment
Internal
Fault

50 IDIF > ISETTING

Relay Operates

9
Protection of Transformers
 Transformers are expensive and important.
 IDMTL relays are not for Overload.
 Recommended protection
 Differential protection (optional)
 HV and LV restricted earth fault.
 Buchholz gas and surge relay.
 Oil and winding temperature.

10
Balanced Circulating current
External fault
(Idiff = I1-I2 ) <( RST= I1+I2)
The restraining current increased . So no tripping for the relay

I1 I2

Operating Coil Restrain Coil

11
Balanced Circulating current
Internal fault
(Idiff = I1+I2 ) >( RST= I1+-I2)
The restraining current decreased . So the tripping is assured. The
percentage differential relay is insensitive to internal faults, with this, the
internal faults the restraining current is small. So as we said the tripping is
assured.
I1 I2

Operating Coil Restrain Coil

12
Winding Polarity
 International standards define polarity
 Current in towards A2 on primary - Then current out from
a2 on secondary because Es is from a1 to a2

13
Transformer Connections

3 Phase -Typical Delta Star (-Y) Connection

14
Vector Representation

15
Phase shift
 Depending on how the
windings in the transformer
are arranged - the secondary
voltages may be phase -
shifted from the primary
voltages e.g. Ynd1

16
Transformer Vector Group Representation
 Phase Shift Represented by 12 hour Clock positions
 Each 30 degree corresponds to 1 hour shift
 Knowledge of Vector Group and Polarities MUST for
Correct Protection

17
Delta-Star transformer Differential Connection
Correct application of differential protection requires CT ratio and
winding connections to match those of transformer.
CT secondary circuit should be a “replica”of primary system.
Consider:
(1)Difference in current magnitude
(2)Phase shift
(3)Zero sequence currents

18
Phase Compensation
ABC rotation : compensation angle = - 30o – 0o = 30o lag

19
Delta-Star transformer Differential Connection

Connect HV and LV CT’s in Star

delta opposite to the vector group
connections of the primary windings
20
Delta-Star transformer Differential Connection

21
Star- Delta transformer Differential Connection

Connect HV and LV CT’s in

delta Star opposite to the vector
group connections of the
primary windings
22
Delta-Delta transformer Differential Connection

23
Mis-match of CT’s

132/11 kV
10 MVA

 CT’s Required on primary and secondary for Protection

 The closest ratio available to 43.8 amps is 50/1  0.876
secondary Amps
 the closest ratio to 525 Amps is probably 500/1  1.05
secondary Amps
 Also, the CT’s could be from different manufacturers
 Auxilairy or Matching Transformer is required
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Transformer Differential Protection Relay

Matching Transformer

25
Transformer Differential Protection Relay
1. Current Mismatch
Interposing CT’s can easily overcome the current mismatches.
Let us look at this example:

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Transformer Differential Protection Relay
At the current at the secondary side (33 kV)

So we choose a CT with 1400/1

So the secondary current = 1399.63/1400 = .9999= 1 A

At the 132 kV side important note. In this example we will not

consider the tap changer changing current.
So we choose a ct ratio with 400/1
So the secondary current will be = 0.875 A
So we need to correct the 0.875 A into 1 amps

How this can be done?

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Transformer Differential Protection Relay

Use Interposing CT

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Transformer Differential Protection Relay
2. Phase Shift Correction:
Phase shift can be easily overcome using interposing CT’s. Let us look at
this example:

The secondary of the transformer is phase shifted by 330o or its leading the primary by 30o.

Any way we want to phase shift the primary side by the same shift so we change it at the
interposing CT by Yd11 so at the interposing Ct the current no is phase shifted by 330o or also
leading by 30o i.e. the same at the secondary so the phase shift is resolved .
29
Transformer Differential Protection Relay
Suppose we want to overcome the secondary winding ….?

The secondary winding is phase shifted by 330o leading the primary by 30o,
so we need to phase shift the secondary into 0o ( the angle of the primary) so
we connect the interposing CT into Yd1,

so the secondary winding now phase shifted by 30o lagging, so 30o lagging +
30o leading = 0o which is the same as the primary current.
30
Transformer Differential Protection Relay

31
Transformer Differential Protection Relay
Transformer Digital differential protection:
Digital relays in these days do internally the phase shift correction +
zero sequence correction + current mismatches.
We just add the transformer information into the relay , the relay
itself do all the correction

32
Problem of Unequal CT Performance

CT CT
Protected
Equipment External
Fault

50 IDIF  0

 False differential current can occur if a CT saturates during a through-

fault
 Use some measure of through-current to desensitize the relay when high
currents are present

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Possible Scheme – Percentage Differential Protection

ĪSP ĪRP
CTR CTR
Protected
Equipment

ĪS ĪR

Relay
(87)

Compares: I OP  I S  I R
| IS |  | IR |
k  I RT k
2 34
Biased Differential Relay
• Large external fault may cause false
operation of simple differential relay
(because of CT Saturation) .
• To make the differential relay more stable
to external faults and improve relay
quality, restraining coils were inserted.
• Two restraining (Biasing) coils and one
operating are used as shown. Restraining Biased Differential Relay
coils will opposite the operation of
operating coil. The relay will operate only
when the operating force is higher than
restraining force.

Measurement

Tripping Characteristics of
Stability provided by Biasing Biased Differential Relay
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Biased Differential Relay

CT errors for due to high external faults

Measuring errors
safety margin
Transformer excitation
other
( slope 2)
Id
Restraining region
Operating region

( slope 1)
For OLTC issue
CT errors for small current levels
Min Measuring errors
op safety margin
other
Single feed problems
Measuring errors IRT

36
Over Current and Earth Fault Protection of Transformer

 Backup protection of electrical transformer is

simple Over Current and Earth Fault protection applied
against external short circuit and excessive over loads.
 These overcurrent and earth Fault relays may be of Inverse
Definite Minimum Time (IDMT) or Definite Time type
relays.
 Generally IDMT relays are connected to the in-feed side of
the transformer .
Over Current and Earth Fault
protection relays may be also
provided in load side of the
transformer too, but it should
not interrupt the primary side
Circuit Breaker
37
Star-Star transformer Differential Connection

38
Over Current and Earth Fault Protection of Transformer

 Backup protection of transformer has four elements, three

OC relays connected each in each phase and one EF relay
connected to the common point of three OC relays.
 The normal range of current settings available on IDMT
OC relays is 50% to 200% and on EF relay 20 to 80%.

39
Over Current and Earth Fault Protection of Transformer
 In the case of transformer winding with neutral earthed,
unrestricted earth fault protection is obtained by connecting
an ordinary earth fault relay across a neutral current transformer.
 The unrestricted OC relays and EF relay should have proper
time lag to coordinate with the protective relays of other circuit
to avoid

40
Restricted Earth Fault System

41
Restricted Earth Fault Protection
Differential relay provides a sensitive protection for internal faults,
including phase to phase and earth faults, but the relay is not sensitive
for small internal short faults, so another protection is applied in order
to protect from earth faults,

Restricted earth fault relay is based on comparison of measured

variables. By comparing residual current of the phase current
transformer of a given winding with the current of the associated
grounded star potential.

REF may be referred as unit earth fault protection and the restricted
part of the earth fault protection refers to an area defined between the 2
CT's.

42
Restricted Earth Fault System

Any residual current will cause

CT currents balance - no relay to operate for E/F in zone
operating voltage to relay

43
Restricted Earth Fault Protection

The restricted earth fault relay is a high impedance differential scheme

which balances zero sequence current flowing in the transformer neutral
against zero sequence current flowing in
the transformer phase windings.

Any unbalance for in-zone fault will result in an increasing voltage on

the CT secondary and thus will activate the REF protection.

This scheme is very sensitive and can then protect against low levels of
fault current in resistance grounded systems where the earthling
impedance and the fault voltage limit the fault current.

In addition, this scheme can be used in a solidly grounded system.

44
Restricted Earth Fault (REF) Protection
 On the HV side, the residual current of the 3 line CT’s is balanced
against the output current of the CT in the neutral conductor.
 The REF relay will not be actuated for external earth fault. But
during internal fault the neutral current transformer only carries the
unbalance fault current and operation of REF Relay takes place.
 Both windings of the transformer can thus be protected separately
with restricted REF Relay .
 Provide high speed protection against earth faults over the whole of
the transformer windings.
 Relay used is an instantaneous type.

45
Restricted Earth Fault Principle

To apply the ref protection on a Y connected transformer, you connect

three CT's in parallel for all CT's then connect this combination with
the CT in the neutral .

The CT connection provides a path for all zero sequence currents to

circulates in the CT's the REF provides a protection for all earth fault in
the area between the phase CT's and the neutral CT For the Delta
connected transformers the phase CT's connected in parallel as the Y
connected transformers,

but as there is no neutral for the Delta connection, an artificial neutral

used, taken from the zigzag transformer. So the CT is connected on the
artificial neutral which may connected through NGR.

46
Restricted Earth Fault Principle

To apply REF protection on star-connected transformers, connect the

three-phase CTs in star, and connect this combination to a CT in the
neutral leg of the transformer,
In the case of delta winding to perform the REF protection we connect the
phase CT’s in parallel and we connect the CT for using earthing
transformer to get the artificial neutral

47
Restricted Earth Fault Principle

For unearthed delta winding or even star winding REF excludes the
neutral CT from the circuit and the three phase CTs are all connected in
parallel with the relay element.

This is called a balanced earth-fault connection. The zone of protection is

still only the Delta winding of the transformer

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Buchholz Protection

 Failure of the winding insulation will result in

some form of arcing which can decompose
the oil into Hydrogen, acetylene and methane.
 Localized heating can precipitate a
breakdown in the oil into gas.
 Severe arcing will cause a rapid release of a
large volume of gas as well as oil vapor. The
action can be so violent that the build-up of
pressure can cause an oil surge from the tank
to the conservator.
 Buchholz relay can detect both gas and oil
surges as it is mounted in the pipe to the
conservator.
51
Buchholz Protection

Buchholz relay is a gas operated relay, it

protect the transformer from all internal faults.
Its name came from the inventor Buchholz.

A Buchholz relay, is a safety device mounted

on some oil-filled power transformers equipped
with an external overhead oil reservoir called a
conservator.

The Buchholz Relay is used as a protective

device sensitive to the effects of dielectric failure
inside the equipment.

52
53
Buchholz Protection
•Gas discharge: The Buchholz relay detects gas bubbles
•Excess tank pressure: The Buchholz relay detects a rapid flow of
dielectric fluid from the transformer’s tank to the expansion tank

In Buchholz relays:
A first mercury contact detects gas
discharge and initiate an alarm signal.

A second mercury contact detects rapid

flow of dielectric fluid from the transformer
to the expansion tank and initiate a trip
signal.

Transformer manufacturers usually mount

Buchholz relays as standard equipment on
expansion-tank transformers.
54
Buchholz Protection
Buchholz Relay (Alarm)

55
Buchholz Relay (Trip)

56
Transformer Overloading

 Sustained overloading reduces transformer life

 Operating Temperatures also decide the transformer oil life
Operating Temperature Oil Life .
• 60 deg C 20 years
• 70 deg C 10 years
• 80 deg C 5 years
• 90 deg C 2.5 years
• 100 deg C 13 months
• 110 deg C 7 months

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