Very Fast Transient Overvoltages and

Protections in 500kV GIS

Peng-fei Hu, He-mei-zi Tang, Qing-quan Li
High Voltage Institute
School of Electrical Engineering, Shandong University
Jinan, China
E-mail piscesfei@live.cn
Wei Wang
Shandong EHV Power Transmission Company
Shandong Electric Corporation
Jinan, Chin
E-mail hmilywei@163.com


AbstractVery Fast Transient Overvoltage (VFTO) generated by
the opening or closing of disconnections (DS) in GIS can range
from several kHz to hundreds of MHz. In this paper, the
technique of GIS is reviewed, the mechanism of VFTO is
introduced; Estimation of Very Fast Transient Overvoltage has
been carried out using EMTP for various switching conditions in
a 500kV gas insulated substation. This over-voltage amplitude is
generally under 2.0 p.u, but its rate of equivalent level is high, the
tip is very steep. Influencing factors of VFTO are discussed.
Necessary measures should be taken to protect the device in GIS.
To avoid the harm of VFTO in GIS, operators should minimize
the operation of DS as much as possible.
Keywords- Electromagnetic transient analysis, GIS , VFTO
I. INTRODUCTION
Gas Insulation Switchgear(GIS) is composed of electrical
equipment, including circuit breakers, isolating switches,
ground (fast) switches, current transformers, voltage
transformers, surge arresters, bus (three-phase or single phase),
connecting pipes and other elements ( SF
6
-cable head, SF
6
-air
pipe, SF
6
-oil casing)[1]. All Electrical equipment is enclosed
in a grounded metal, the shell charge to 0.34MPa ~ 0.44MPa of
SF
6
gas as insulation and arc quenching medium.
GIS is compact, small footprint, operational reliability, and
maintain a small advantage of the workload, whats more its
closure, GIS can be free of dirty, the impact of weather natural
conditions, outstanding performance in seismic performance.
As a result of above, GIS has been widely used in the power
system. For certain switching conditions where GIS
disconnections are operated following circuit breaker operation
it is possible to generate very fast transient overvoltage, which
acts as travelling waves and propagate within and external to
the GIS.
II. MECHANISMS OF VFTO
In GIS, the operation of disconnecting switches (DS) and
circuit breaker (CB), or destructive discharge capacity within
GIS may case steep wave front voltage, documents always call
it very fast transient overvoltage. Due to its large amplitude,
high gradient (rise time is usually 2~20 ns), frequency
components of VFTO is up to several hundreds of.
MHz [2].
As in [3] and [4], GIS operations in the DS pre-fracture
repeatedly renewed or breakdown, the causes are followed:
Firstly, GIS use SF
6
as its medium, the critical value of
avalanche is 89104kv / (m MPa).That is 3.7 times higher
than the airs, only the rate of rise in voltage is equal to or
larger than this critical value, there will be pre-strike or
repeated breakdown. The pressure of SF
6
in GIS is 0.3~0.4MPa,
therefore its recovery characteristics is 10 times than the air
insulation in the atmospheric pressure, so the critical value of
avalanche of SF
6
is higher in magnitude.
Secondly, electrical components in GIS are working in a
little uneven field work under the premise; the fracture type
(leader) will be formed when the pre-discharge or re-leveling
or slightly uneven impact of electric field in the channel
formation time T
r
, according to the existing research can be
characterized as

r t
T 13.3K / ( u / s) = A (1)
Where K
t
is the Toepler spark constant (K
t
= 50kV ns /
cm), A u / s = (E/p
0
) p on SF
6
insulated GIS its E/P
0
=
860kV / (cm MPa), usually the use of GIS coefficient =
E
mean
/ E
max
= 0.5~0.8, SF
6
gas pressure P = 0.3~0.4MPa, so the
impact of steep wave T
r
= 5~20ns in GIS caused by the normal
operation of DS.
With the electrode rough, uneven distribution of electric
field to increase, Au/s decrease, T
r
may increase; however,
the tip is also still relatively steep.
Thirdly, when DS fracture in GIS occurs pre/re-breakdown,
the electromagnetic waves transmitted along both sides of the
fracture DS, the transient oscillation frequency is not only
dependent on the system's electrical parameters of
f
0
=1/2 LC t , but also have relationship with the geometric
two side bus length
1
/ 2 f v l = .
Because the insulation strength of SF
6
is much higher than
airs, so the spacing between adjacent electrical equipment and
bus length are much smaller than the Air Insulated Switchgear
(AIS) at the same level, therefore the ultimate natural
oscillation frequency is transient surge.
Project Supported by Natural Science Foundation of Shandong province
(ZR2009FM042)

978-1-4577-0365-2/11/$26.00 2011 IEEE 1865
Origin of Very Fast Transients in GIS
Operation of disconnectors and circuit breakers and earthswitches
Earth faults
Generates Very Fast Transients
Internal VFT
Travelling waves inside GIS
External VFT
Travelling waves and radiation outside GIS
Overvoltages
VFTO between
conductor and GISenclosure
TEV
End And earth
FTO
Overhead
line / cable and
connected plant
eg transformer
TEM
F
Radiated
From end

Figure 1. Classification of Very Fast Transient Overvoltage
III. VFTO INFLUENCE FACTORS
Many factors affect the transient voltage levels. When DS
is under operation, the speed of contacts separate and close,
contact shape and electrode asymmetry (three-phase together
box type) have impact on transient voltage. Separation and
closure are slower, the probability of high transient over-
voltage is higher.
A. Residual charge
When the DS breaks the charged GIS bus, the possible
existence of residual charges will affect the amplitude of
VFTO. The maximum supply side surge level is approximately
linear relationship with the residual charge voltage, as well as
bus sides and the support insulators. The more residual
charge is, the higher its amplitude is. Residual charge voltage is
the result of the load side of the capacitive current size,
switching speed, time of restrike of arc, and the disclosure of
the bus. When the residual charge voltage and power side are
the opposite polarity, the arc voltage difference between the
contacts will increase. As a result, the amplitude of VFTO
soars.
B. Entrance capacitance of transformer (CT)
Because high frequency of VFTO, the way of entrance
capacitance represent transformer is not to lose accuracy. The
amplitude rises with the increase of capacitance, mainly due to
restrike of arc, the transformer equivalent capacitance store a
certain amount of energy. The greater the storage capacity is ,
the amplitude of VFTO is higher, but further study shows that
increase magnitude of CT, VFTO does not always increase
correspondingly, the amplitude of this decide by the GIS
structure, particularly the size of the operation of bus and
operate.
C. Overhead line or cable
As VFTO spreads along the conductive core lines of GIS,
what's more GIS substation bus connects all key components,
so the waveform of VFTO must be affected by substation
wiring of GIS, internal structure of GIS, many factors and so
on.
In GIS, external cable length has great impact on waveform
of VFTO amplitude. Long cables can accelerate the transient
process of decay, limit steepness of VFTO, reduce vibration
spectrum of VFTO at the main transformer.
IV. SYSTEM MODEL AND PARAMETERS OF GIS
Tianhuangping Pumped Storage Power Station is in Anji
city, northwest of Zhejiang Province. It is daily regulation of
pure pumped storage power station. It consists of main plant,
booster station for the underground and above ground in two
parts. Outlet surge arrester, traps, capacitor voltage
transformers are open type [5]. Power Station installed 6 sets
360WMA, 518/18 kV transformer, 6 main transformers are
directly grounding at the neutral point. Each two generator-
transformer unit to form a coalition in the 500 kV side of the
unit. 500kV power station with two back to East China Power
Grid line access Pingyao substation.
CTV
#2 Busbar
CTV
# 6
trap
#3Busbar
5406 Line
5405Line
50212 50122
5012
50521
5052
50526
MOA
500kV
#3 cable
#2Unit
MOA MOA
MOA
MOA
50536
50543
5023
5054
50546
50232 5023
#1 #2 #4 #3 #5
#1Unit #3Unit
500kV
#2 cable
500kV
#1 cable
#1 Busbar
trap

Figure 2. Equivalent circuit diagram of Tian huang ping GIS Substation
This equivalent model in the GIS component for the
entrance transformer equivalent capacitance is 5000pF, the
equivalent inductance is taken as 20mA. The values of each
GIS section can be calculated from the standard formula of
capacitance and inductance, treating the GIS as a concentric
conductor.

12
2
*10 /
ln
C pF m
b
a
tc
=
(2)

6
ln
*10 /
2
b
a
L H m

t
=
(3)
1866

L
Z
C
= O
(4)
Where
C is capacitance of GIS busbar
L is inductance of GIS busbar
b is inside diameter of GIS enclosure
a is outside diameter of GIS busbar
c is absolute permittivity of SF
6
, 8.85 *10
-12

is absolute permeability of copper conductor 4*10
-7
.
Z is surge impedance
GIS pipeline wave impedance is 80, and velocity is taken
as 231 / m s . XLPE-800 cable impedance is 68.8, velocity
is taken as 103.8 / m s .Line wave impedance of 350, and
velocity is taken as 300 / m s . Capacitor voltage transformer
is equivalent to 5000 pF capacitor to ground, resistor voltage
transformer is 154.6pF, arrester equivalent capacitance is 19pF
to ground, CB and DS closed can be regarded as the same
length of the closed bus, When disconnected, CB is taken as a
fracture capacitor[6]. When open, DS is equivalent to the
concentration capacitance to ground, dynamic and static lateral
side-to-ground capacitors are 12 pF. Time-vary resistance is
used to analog DS contact arc resistance.

/
0
( )
t T
a
R t R R e

= + (5)
TABLE I. EQUIVALENT PARAMETERS OF GIS COMPONENTS IN 550
GIS


Figure 3. waveform of transformer T1
In equation (5), Ra=0.5R
0
=10
12
T=1ns. In this
program, we use TACS/MODELS controlled time dependent
resistor. Please type 0.5+ (10**12)*expel (-Timex/10**(-9))
in the out box of FORTRAN 1. The Line trap at each end use
1mH inductor to simulate [7].
When DS is under operation, the tramped charge has great
impact on the amplitude of VFTO. In this calculation, the
trapped charge amplitude is -1.0 p.u. 5054 and 50546 has been
opened, and then opens the 50543. Equivalent power system
voltage Em = 550 2 / 3 kV = 449kV, simulation step is 1ns,
all the computing time is 30 s .
To analyze the frequency domain characteristics of VFTO,
select interested data on the left of PlotXY, then click at the
bottom save variables, file type select .mat, import .mat file
into Matlab for Fourier analysis. From Fig.3, the max value of
transformer T1 is 480.38kV, that is 1.0699 p.u, but the max
steepness of waveform is 0.4MV/ s .

Figure 4. waveform of transformer T1 with resistance
1867
A. Install opening and closing resistance
As the DS movement is relatively slow, and do not have
the ability of arc extinction by itself, easy to arc resignation,
the actual GIS in practical application is usually use of co-gate
resistance. Based on previous research, select opening and
closing resistance is 500. Compare to no opening and
closing resistance, the amplitude is 461.43kV which is
decrease to 4.2%. But the max steepness of waveform is much
lower, only 0.222 MV/ s .
B. Install R-C filter
RC absorber has been widely used in vacuum circuit
breaker to suppress overvoltage because of arc resignation.
Resistance R determine the decay rate of overvoltage, the
general value is 50 ~ 400; capacitance C is the absorption of
capacitance, its values 0.01 ~ 0.2F for different load. Select
75, 0.02F, the amplitude is 1.0346 p.u. It is 3.53 % lower
than no protections. Overvoltage spectrum analysis shows,
maximum frequency of VFTO is lower, spectrum is narrow,
largely because capacitance absorb the high frequency
components, and finally to generate heat is consumed by
resistance.

Figure 5. Waveform of transformer T1 installed R-C filter
C. Install ferrite ring
The ferrite ring in the GIS at both ends of the guide pole
isolation switch will be able to change the conductivity of the
high frequency circuit parameters, increase the wave energy
loss, and damp the spread of wave. Therefor install the ferrite
ring is good measure to inhibit VFTO. Power frequency current
condition, the ferrite ring is almost no hysteresis eddy current
loss. When DS is under operation, as the ferrite ring high
frequency performance, the ferrite ring is equivalent to
impedance between the fracture and load bus. The equivalent
load likes a series of impedance, transformer principle, bus is
same to a transformer primary side; the ferrite rings magnetic
loss is equivalent to the loss of transformer secondary side [8].
The role of ferrite ring can be equivalent to resistance R
D
and inductance L
D
in parallel. Those together affect the
steepness and amplitude of VFTO. Select 80, 0.02mH,
amplitude 1.0230, compared with no protection, a decrease of
4.6%, from the map, greatly reducing high frequency
components, using ferrite ring is a good protective measures.

Figure 6. Waveform of transformer T1installed ferrite ring
V. CONCLUSION
This paper describes the fast transient overvoltage
mechanism, the influencing factors in GIS. Detailed calculate
500kV GIS VFTO generated by DS operation. When DS is
under operation, it evokes the fast nanosecond transient
overvoltage due to contact restricting and the pipeline is very
short. This over-voltage amplitude is generally under 2.0 p.u,
but its rate of equivalent level is high, the tip is very steep.
Necessary measures should be taken to protect the device in
GIS. To avoid the harm of VFTO in GIS, operators should
minimize the operation of DS as much as possible.
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