ELEG 593 High Voltage Engineering

METAL OXIDE SURGE ARRESTER MODELLING

AND IMPULSE PERFORMANCE STUDY
CONDUCTED AT THE
Electrical Engineering Department
The Petroleum Institute, UAE
By
Febri, 92001
Hesham Helal 920013769
Mohammad Luai A. Hammadih, 920017219
Prepared to,
Dr. Noureddine Harid

DECEMBER 7, 2014

METAL OXIDE SURGE ARRESTER MODELLING AND IMPULSE PERFORMANCE STUDY

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Table of Contents ............................................................................................................................... 1

1

Introduction ............................................................................................................................... 3

Implementation of The Models and Simulation Results................................................................. 4

Conclusion ................................................................................................................................ 8

References ........................................................................................................................................ 9

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METAL OXIDE SURGE ARRESTER MODELLING AND IMPULSE PERFORMANCE STUDY

LIST OF FIGURES AND TABLES

Figure 1: Surge arrester model proposed by IEEE [2] .................................................................... 4

Figure 2: Surge arrester model proposed by Pinceti [3]................................................................. 4

Table 1: Calculation of constant for achieving desired impulse waves .......................................10

Table 2: Calculation of the residual voltage
of MWK 11 ABB arrester at specific
impulse current .............................................................................................................................. 11
Table 3: Calculation of the residual voltage
of MWK 33 ABB arrester at specific
impulse current .............................................................................................................................. 11
Table 4: V-I characteristic for
and
for the MWK 11 and MWK 33 surge arresters ............. 12
Table 5: V-I characteristic for
and
for the MWK 11 and MWK 33 surge arresters ............. 12

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METAL OXIDE SURGE ARRESTER MODELLING AND IMPULSE PERFORMANCE STUDY

INTRODUCTION
In practice, the metal oxide surge arresters are utilized for protection purpose against

internal and external overvoltages in the insulation of electrical system equipments. The V-I
characteristic of arresters exhibit a highly non-linear behavior, where during normal operation,
surge arresters demonstrate a very high resistance, but the opposite during transient overvoltages.
This characteristic prevents the requirement for series spark gaps. However, surge arrester with
spark gap are still available and provided by different manufacturers for medium voltage
applications [1]. In literature, various models were proposed to simulate the frequencydependent characteristic of surge arrester. These models vary in two key points, the calculation
and parameters modification.

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IMPLEMENTATION OF THE MODELS AND SIMULATION RESULTS

In this project, it is required to simulate metal oxide surge arrester dynamic behavior during

fast electromagnetic transients on an electrical power system. The two models to be used from
the literature are the IEEE model [2] and the Pincetis model [3] shown in Figure 1 and 2.

Figure 1: Surge arrester model proposed by IEEE [2]

Figure 2: Surge arrester model proposed by Pinceti [3]

Figure 1 depicts the IEEE model where the nonlinear V-I characteristic is demonstrated with
two sections of nonlinear resistance assigned

and

.An R-L filter separates the two sections.

For the surges that has slow front the R-L filter has low impedance and the two non linear
sections are basically connected together in parallel. While for fast front surges the R-L filter
impedance becomes more significant and this causes the current to flow more in the section of
A0 than that of A1.The capacitance depicts the external capacitance related to the height of the
arrester. Figure 2 shows Princetis model which was derived from the IEEE model with some
small modifications compared with the IEEE model. Clearly, it is noticeable that the capacitance
is removed because it has minor effect on the behavior of the model. Additionally, one resistor

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METAL OXIDE SURGE ARRESTER MODELLING AND IMPULSE PERFORMANCE STUDY

at the input terminals substituted the two resistances in parallel with the inductance.
In general, the principle of operation is almost the same for both models.
The simulations were performed using Alternative Transient Program (ATP). Before
implementing both models and starting the simulation the suitable surge source must be chosen
first. Noticeably, there are several types of surge sources available in ATP such as Surge type 15,
Heidler type 15, Standler type 15, Cigre type 15. Surge source of Heidler type 15 is selected
because the parameter, e.g. front time, tail time, etc., of the source can be easily modified or
controlled which will result in an appropriate source waveform. Then also some further
calculation is done as follows, for example for the case where a

impulse is required, the

output of the surge arrester does not totally matches the desired output as the half magnitude of
the impulse does not occur at tail time of

. Thus, both tau value (tail time) and the n value

(rate of change/stiffness) were chosen by the method of trial and error to achieve the best output
the surge source could produce. Table 1 Appendix A section 1 shows the selected values of tau
and n and Figure 1 Appendix A section 1 shows the 10 kA, 8/20 s output waveform from
Heidler type-15.
Then, the simulation is done for both models where an example of the ABB surge arresters
type MWK 11 and MWK 33 are considered, the specification obtained from the datasheet is as
the indicated in Appendix A, section 2. Firstly, the peak residual voltages of both MWK11 and
MWK 33 were calculated at impulses of 1/5s and 8/20s and these values are represented in
Appendix A, section 2, table 2 and table 3 respectively. The waveform results of the 10KA (1/5
s, 8/20s and 30/60s) for the MWK 11 are shown in Appendix A, section 2, Figure 2, Figure
3 and Figure 4 respectively and of the 10KA (1/5 s, 8/20s and 30/60s) for the MWK 33 they
are shown in Appendix A, section 2, Figure 5, Figure 6 and Figure 7 respectively. The simulation

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METAL OXIDE SURGE ARRESTER MODELLING AND IMPULSE PERFORMANCE STUDY

values of both residual voltages and time to crest for both IEEE and Picenti for bith MWK 11
and MWK 33 at different waveform sources are shown in Appendix A, section 2, Table 10 and
Table 11 respectively. The residual voltage values obtained were compared to the datasheet of
the MWK 11 and MWK 33 and the error percentages obtained are represented in Table 10 and
Table 11 respectively. As observed from these tables if we picked an example of 10KA for the
1/5s waveform the error percentage is lower for the IEEE model than the Pinceti model for both
MWK 11 and MWK 33 surge arresters.
Following that the simulation results of the designed IEEE model were compared with both the
datasheet values and the simulation result values of [2]. The error percentage is indicated in
Appendix A, section 2, Table 6. As observed from the table the error percentage in average is
higher when the values are compared to the research paper datasheet than when compared to the
research papers simulation results. This error between the simulated values of the designed
model and the datasheet values of [2] might be due to the fact of them using a surge source that
differs from the one used in our design. Moreover, the value of n (rate of change/stiffness) that
the research group in [2] chose is also different. Following this the simulation results of the
designed Pinceti model were compared with only the simulation results of the research group in
[3] and the error percentages were calculated and presented in Appendix A, section 2, Table 7.
As observed in Table 7 the highest observed error percentage is observed in the output from
10KA (1/5 s) and the least error percentage was observed in the 10KA (8/20 s). This
difference is reading might be due to the difference of the chosen rate of change between our
surge source and the papers surge source.
According to [2] the IEEE model was adjusted by changing the value of the inductance that is
connected in parallel with the resistance. The model is adjusted in order for the manufacturers

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METAL OXIDE SURGE ARRESTER MODELLING AND IMPULSE PERFORMANCE STUDY

data and the obtained discharge voltages to be matching together. We used the same iteration
technique used by [2] to obtain the value of the inductance needed for this adjustment for both
MWK 11 and MWK 33 and these values are shown in Appendix A, section 2, Table 8 and Table
9 respectively. The value of the inductance settled upon was locked and selected based on the
lowest error percentage that falls below 2% as specified by the research group in [2].
The dynamic behavior of the IEEE model and the Pinceti model for both MWK 11 and MWK 33
and for the 1/5s and 8/20s waveforms were investigated. In the dynamic behavior curves as
the hysteresis loop size increases the dynamic behavior increases according to [1]. The figures
that display the obtained dynamic behavior of the MWK 11 and MWK 33 for both IEEE and
Pinceti model for 1/5s and 8/20s are shown in Appendix A, section 2, Figures 8,9,10 and 11.
As shown in the dynamic behavior graphs for the MWK 11 it is shown the IEEE model has a
larger loop than the Pinceti model and this means that the IEEE model has a more dynamic
behavior than the Pinceti model. As observed from Figure 8 the 8/20s has a smaller loop than
the 1/5s and this means that the 8/20s has a less dynamic behavior than the 1/5s.
Moreover, we implemented the dynamic behavior for the MWK 33 for both IEEE and Pinceti
models and for both 1/5s and 8/20s waveforms. As observed the IEEE is more dynamic than
the Pinceti and the 1/5s is more dynamic than the 8/20s.

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METAL OXIDE SURGE ARRESTER MODELLING AND IMPULSE PERFORMANCE STUDY

CONCLUSION

In this paper a simulation of metal oxide surge arrester dynamic behavior during fast
electromagnetic transients on power systems was conducted. Two models proposed in the
literature were simulated both the IEEE model and the model proposed by Pinceti. The
simulation model and results were obtained using ATP version of EMTP. The team worked on
specifying the most suitable surge source with the most suitable output after picking the correct
values of tau and n by trial and error. The simulation results of the designed model were
compared with the proposed models in both references and the provided MWK 11 and MWK 33
manufactures data to demonstrate the designed models accuracy. Moreover, a modified value
of inductance was calculated for the IEEE model as per the iterative method proposed in [2].
Finally, the dynamic behavior for the both the IEEE model and the Pinceti model for both MWK
11 and MWK 33 were observed and it was shown that for both arresters the IEEE showed more
dynamic behavior for both the 1/5s and 8/20s.

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METAL OXIDE SURGE ARRESTER MODELLING AND IMPULSE PERFORMANCE STUDY

REFERENCES
[1] A. Bayadi, N. Harid, K. Zehar, and S. Belkhiat, Simulation of Metal Oxide Surge Arrester
Dynamic Behavior Under Fast Transient, International Conference on Power System
Transients, IPST03, 2003.
[2] IEEE working group 3.4.11, Modeling of Metal Oxide Surge Arresters, IEEE
Transaction on Power Delivery, vol. 1, pp. 302-309, 1992.
[3] P. Pinceti, M. Giannettoni, A Simplified model for Zinc Oxide Surge Arresters, IEEE
Transaction on Power Delivery, vol. 14, pp. 393-398, 1999.

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METAL OXIDE SURGE ARRESTER MODELLING AND IMPULSE PERFORMANCE STUDY

APPENDICES
APPENDIX A
Section 1
Table 1:

(tau) setting for Heidler surge source (trial and error)

Source Type

setting
n

30/60
4

Heidler

Figure 3: 10 kA, 8/20 s output waveform from Heidler type-15

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Section 2:

Tables
For MWK 11 ABB surge arrester, at continuous operating voltage
voltage

, the residual voltage

and rated

in kV at specific impulse current are

obtained as follows,

Table 2: Calculation of the residual voltage

of MWK 11 ABB arrester at specific impulse current

Impulse Current

(kV)
36.9

impulse with 10 kA peak current

33.8

impulse with 10 kA peak current

For MWK 33 ABB surge arrester, at continuous operating voltage

rated voltage

, the residual voltage

and

in kV at specified impulse current

are obtained as follows,

Table 3: Calculation of the residual voltage

of MWK 33 ABB arrester at specific impulse current

Impulse Current

(kV)

impulse with 10 kA peak current

impulse with 10 kA peak current

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110.6
101.4

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Table 4: V-I characteristic for

and

for the MWK 11 and MWK 33 surge arresters

MWK 11

MWK 33

27.4

21.1

82.1

63.2

0.1

32.9

26.6

98.8

79.9

35.6

29.3

106.7

87.8

37.5

31.2

112.4

93.5

10

40.4

34.1

121.2

102.3

20

43.2

36.9

129.5

110.6

For the IEEE model, the obtained values are as the following,
Table 5: Physical characteristics of both the MWK 11 and MWK 13

MWK 11

MWK 33

Height
No. of Columns

Table 6: Verification of iteration process from IEEE paper [2]

Run
no
1
2
3
4

L1 Magnitude
(mH)
0.02175
0.010875
0.0054375
0.00725

V10 simulation (V)

271260
260240
248100
252390

error from paper

data sheet 248 kV(%)
9.38
4.94
0.04
1.77

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error from IEEE simulation

on table B2(%)
3.29
3.13
0.70
1.62

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Table 7: Calculated residual voltage based on table A3 from Pincetis paper

sources

Current

waveform 1/5 uS
waveform 8/20
uS

10 kA
20 kA
5 kA
10 kA
20 kA

Data sheet
(V)
50800
56400
44300
46700
50300

Pincetti Paper
Simulation
(V)
54546
61836
43823
46586
50431

error
(%)
7.37
9.64
-1.08
-0.24
0.26

Table 8: Iteration process for selecting the modified inductance value for the MWK 11

Run
no

L1 Magnitude
(mH)

V10 simulation (V)

error from data sheet

33.8 kV(%)

1
2
3
4
5

0.004005
0.0020025
0.00100125
0.000500625
0.000750938

37586
36145
34457
33235
33861

11.20
6.94
1.94
-1.67
0.18

Table 9: Iteration process for selecting the modified inductance value for the MWK 33

Run no

L1 Magnitude (mH)

V10 simulation
(V)

1
2
3
4

0.007605
0.0038025
0.00190125
0.0022815

109710
104980
100620
101560

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error from data

sheet 33.8
kV(%)
8.20
3.53
-0.77
0.16

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Table 10: Calculated residual voltage for MWK11 ABB arrester

IEEE (MWK 11)

sources
waveform 1/5 uS

waveform 8/20 uS

waveform 30/60 uS

Current
5 kA
10 kA
1 kA
2.5 kA
5 kA
10 kA
20 kA
125 A
250 A
500 A

Data sheet (V) Simulation

(V)
34900
36502
36900
39058
28800
28793
30500
30624
32000
32076
33800
33859
38600
36752
25100
26032
26100
26421
27100
27201

error (%)
4.59
5.85
-0.02
0.41
0.24
0.17
-4.79
3.71
1.23
0.37

Time to
Crest (s )
0.999
0.995
8
6.993
5.003
5.0038
4.985
29.954
28.988
30

Pincetti (MWK 11)

Simulation
Time to
error (%)
(V)
Crest (s )
35645
2.13
0.999
39622
7.38
0.994
29203
1.40
8
30675
0.57
7
32056
0.18
6
34033
0.69
6
36797
-4.67
6
26675
6.27
30
27050
3.64
30
27779
2.51
30

Time to
Crest (s )
0.998
0.996
7.983
7
5
5
5
30
30
30

Pincetti (MWK 33)

Simulation
Time to
error (%)
(V)
Crest (s )
106540
1.95
0.999
118260
6.93
0.997
87517
1.53
8
91919
0.68
7
96062
0.27
6
102010
0.60
6
110240
-4.64
6
80119
6.68
30
81216
3.99
30
83346
2.64
30

Table 11: Calculated residual voltage for MWK33 ABB arrester

IEEE (MWK 33)

sources
waveform 1/5 uS

waveform 8/20 uS

waveform 30/60 uS

Current
5 kA
10 kA
1 kA
2.5 kA
5 kA
10 kA
20 kA
125 A
250 A
500 A

Data sheet (V) Simulation

(V)
104500
108740
110600
116640
86200
86516
91300
91893
95800
96346
101400
101560
115600
110100
75100
78107
78100
79217
81200
81622

error (%)
4.06
5.46
0.37
0.65
0.57
0.16
-4.76
4.00
1.43
0.52

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METAL OXIDE SURGE ARRESTER MODELLING AND IMPULSE PERFORMANCE STUDY

Figures

Figure 4: 10 kA 1/5 us MWK 11

Figure 3: 10 kA 8/20 us MWK 11

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METAL OXIDE SURGE ARRESTER MODELLING AND IMPULSE PERFORMANCE STUDY

Figure 4: 10 kA 30/60 us MWK 11

Figure 5: 10 kA 1/5 us MWK 33

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METAL OXIDE SURGE ARRESTER MODELLING AND IMPULSE PERFORMANCE STUDY

Figure 6: 10 kA 8/20 us MWK 33

Figure 7: 10 kA 30/60 us MWK 33

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METAL OXIDE SURGE ARRESTER MODELLING AND IMPULSE PERFORMANCE STUDY

Figure 8: Dynamic behavior of IEEE model on MWK11

Figure 9: Dynamic behavior of Pinceti model on MWK11

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METAL OXIDE SURGE ARRESTER MODELLING AND IMPULSE PERFORMANCE STUDY

Figure 10: Dynamic behavior of IEEE model on MWK33

Figure 11: Dynamic behavior of Pinceti model on MWK33

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METAL OXIDE SURGE ARRESTER MODELLING AND IMPULSE PERFORMANCE STUDY

APPENDIX B
A.1 CALCULATION FOR THE MODIFIED IEEE MODEL
The inductive elements for MWK 11 are calculated accordingly,

The resistive element for MWK 11 is found as follows,

The inductive elements for MWK 33 are calculated accordingly,

The resistive element for MWK 33 is found as follows,

B.1 CALCULATION FOR THE IEEE MODEL

The inductive elements for MWK 11 are calculated accordingly,

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METAL OXIDE SURGE ARRESTER MODELLING AND IMPULSE PERFORMANCE STUDY

The resistive elements for MWK 11 is found as follows,

The capacitive element for MWK 11 is found as the following,

The inductive elements for MWK 33 are calculated accordingly,

The resistive elements for MWK 33 is found as follows,

The capacitive element for MWK 33 is found as the following,

The V-I characteristic for

and

is obtained for MWK 11 as follows,

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METAL OXIDE SURGE ARRESTER MODELLING AND IMPULSE PERFORMANCE STUDY

The V-I characteristic for

and

is obtained for MWK 33 as follows,

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