Beruflich Dokumente
Kultur Dokumente
99-1990
American National Standard (ANSI) (Revision of
ANSIACEE C37.99-1980)
Sponsor
Abetrack IEEE C37.99-1990, IEEE Guide for the Protection of Shunt Capacitor Banks, assists in the
effective application of relays and other devices for the protection of shunt capacitors used in
substations. It covers the protective considerations, along with recommended and alternate
methods of protection for the most commonly used capacitor bank configurations. Capacitor bank
design trade-offs are also discussed. This guide covers protection of filter tanks and very large
EHV capacitor banks, but does not include a discussion of pole-mounted capacitor banks on
distribution circuits or application of capacitors connected to rotating apparatus.
Keywords: Bank connections, bus voltage, capacitor units, delta-connected banks, equipment
considerations, protection of banks, Y-banks, relaying methods.
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Foreword
(This Foreword is not a part of IEEE (37.99-1990,IEEE Guide for the Protection of Shunt Capacitor Banks).
This revision of ANSI/IEEE C37.99-1980incorporates a number of additions and changes. Some of the
more significant changes were made in the sections dealing with the protection of very large EHV
capacitor banks and HVDC filter banks. Other changes were made to bring this guide up-to-date and
more in line with present-day requirements.
This guide was revised by the Shunt Capacitor Bank Protection Guide Revision Working Group of the
Substation Protection Subcommittee of the Power System Relaying Committee of the IEEE Power Engi-
neering Society. The working group membership at the time of completion of this revision was as follows:
C . J. Cook, Chair
H. N. Banerjee J. S. Komisarek G. C. Parr
A. A. Bunese W. C. Kotheimer L. J. Schulze
S. P. Conrad R. W. Ohnesorge W. M. Strang
L. L. Dvorak T. E. Wiedman
At the time this guide was approved, the Substation Protection Subcommittee membership was as
follows:
At the time the IEEE Power Systems Relaying Committee balloted and approved this guide, it had the
following membership:
'Past Chair
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Contents
SECTION PAGE
1. Introduction ........................................................................... 7
2 References .............................................................................. 7
2.1 Standards References ............................................................... 7
2.2 Related References .................................................................. 7
3. Basic Considerations .................................................................... 8
3.1 Capacitor Unit Ratings .............................................................. 8
3.2 Arrangement of Capacitor Units ...................................................... 8
3.3 capacitor Bank Design .............................................................. 9
3.4 Overvoltage on Remaining Capacitor Units ............................................ 11
4. Bank Connections ...................................................................... 11
4.1 Delta-Connected Banks .............................................................. 12
4.2 Grounded Y-Connected Banks ........................................................ 12
4.2.1 One Series Group Per Phase .................................................... 13
4.2.2 Multiple Series Groups Per Phase -Single Y ...................................... 13
4.2.3 Multiple Series Groups Per Phase-Double Y ..................................... 13
4.3 Ungrounded Y-Connected Banks ..................................................... 13
4.3.1 One Series Group Per Phase ..................................................... 13
4.3.2 Multiple Series Groups Per Phase-Single Y ...................................... 13
4.3.3 Multiple Series Groups Per Phase-Double .....................................
Y 13
5. Other Considerations ................................................................... 13
5.1 Parallel Banks ...................................................................... 13
5.2 Neutral Grounding .................................................................. 15
6. Capacitor Bank Protection .............................................................. 15
6.1 Capacitor-Unit Fusing (To Prevent Case Rupture) ..................................... 16
6.2 Bank Overcurrent Protection ......................................................... 17
6.3 Protection for Rack Fault (Arc-Over Within the Capacitor Rack) ........................ 18
6.4 Bank Overvoltage Protection ......................................................... 22
7. Unbalance Relaying Methods ............................................................. 26
7.1 Introduction ........................................................................ 26
7.2 Inherent Unbalance and Other Errors ................................................ 26
7.3 General Unbalance Relay Considerations .............................................. 28
7.4 Neutral Current Unbalance Protection Method, Grounded-Y Bank ....................... 30
7.5 Summation of Intermediate Tap Point Voltages Method, Grounded-Y Bank ............... 32
7.6 Neutral Voltage Unbalance Protection Method, Ungrounded-Y Bank ..................... 33
7.7 Double-Y Unbalance Protection Method ............................................... 35
7.8 Neutral Unbalance Protection Method with Compensation for Inherent Unbalance ....... 37
7.9 Voltage Differential Protection Method, Grounded-Y Bank .............................. 39
8. Protection of Very Large E W Capacitor Banks ............................................ 39
8.1 Very Large EHV Capacitor Banks ..................................................... 39
\
8.2 Voltage-Differential Unbalance Protection of Very Large Grounded-Y Connected
Capacitor Banks .................................................................... 39
8.2.1 Backup Capacitor Bank Unbalance Protection .................................... 40
8.2.2 Alarm Levels .................................................................. 40
8.3 Bank Overcurrent Protection ......................................................... 40
8.4 System Overvoltage Protection ....................................................... 40
8.5 Loss of Bus Voltage ................................................................. 40
8.6 Capacitor Bank Breaker-Failure Protection ............................................ 41
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FIGURES PAGE
Fig 12 Special Protection Schemes for Very Large EHV Capacitor Banks.. . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
Fig 13 Typical Static VAR Generator Schematic . . . . . . . . . . . . . .... ..... . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . .. . 24
Fig 14 Opening the Circuit to a Single-phase Capacitor in One Step.. . . . .. . .. . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . .. . 24
Fig 15 Varistor V/I Curve Showing Voltage Turn-Up . . . .. . . . . ... ... .. . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . .. . . . . . 25
Fig 16 One Line Diagram of 230 kV Station . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ... ... .. . .. . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . .. . .. . . 25
Fig 17 Single Point Grounded Bank with Single-BushingV.T. . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . , .. .. . . 25
. .
Fig 18 Single Point Grounded Bank with Two-Bushing V,T. .. . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . , .. . . . . 26
Fig 19 Grounded Y-Connected Capacitor Bank Percentage of Allowable Inherent Neutral
Current Unbalance for Positive Detection of First Blown Fuse Versus Number of
Capacitor Units in Parallel per Group and Number of Series Groups . .. . . . .. .. . . . .. . . . . . 27
Fig 20 Ungrounded Y-Connected Capacitor Bank Percentage of Allowable Neutral
Voltage for Positive Detection of First Blown Fuse Versus Number of Capacitor
Units in Parallel per Group of Number of Series Groups . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . 28
Fig 21 Ungrounded Double Y-Connected Capacitor Bank Percentage of Allowable
Inherent Neutral Current Unbalance for Positive Detection of First Blown Fuse
Versus Number of Capacitor Units in Parallel per Group and Number of Groups
in Series . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . ....... .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . .. .. . . . . .. .. . . . . . . . . . . . .. 29
Fig 22 Grounded Y-Connected or Grounded Double Y-Connected Capacitor Banks:
Neutral Current (also change in intermediate tap-point voltage) Versus
Percentage of Capacitor Units Removed from Series Group .. . .. . . .. . . . . . . . . .. . .. . . .. . .. 31
Fig 23 Grounded Y-Connected, A, or Grounded Double Y-Connected Capacitor Bank
Voltage on Remaining Capacitor Units in Series Group Versus Percentage of
. . .
Capacitor Units Removed from Series Group . .. . . . . . .. . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . .. . 32 .
Fig 24 Ungrounded Y-Connected or Ungrounded Double Y-Connected (neutrals isolated)
Capacitor Bank Voltage Between Capacitor Bank Neutral and Ground Versus
Percentage of Capacitor Units Removed from Series Group . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. .. . . . 34
Fig 25 Ungrounded Y-Connected or Ungrounded Double Y-Connected (neutrals isolated)
Capacitor Bank Voltage on Remaining Capacitor Units in Series Group Versus
Percentage of Capacitor Units Removed from Series Group . . . . . . . .. . . . . .. . . . . .. .. . .. . . 35 .
Flg 26 Ungrounded Double Y-Connected (neutrals tied together) Capacitor Bank
Neutral Current Versus Percentage of Capacitor Units Removed From Series Group . . .. . 36 .
Flg 27 Ungrounded Double Y-Connected (neutrals tied together) Capacitor Bank Voltage
Between Capacitor Bank Neutral and Ground Versus Percentage of Capacitor
Units Removed from Series Group.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
Fig 28 Ungrounded Double Y-Connected (neutrals tied together) Capacitor Bank
Voltage on Remaining Capacitor Units in Series Group Versus Percentage of
Capacitor Units in Series Group.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . .. . . . .. . . . . . .. . .. . 38
TABLES
Table 1 Y-Connected Capacitor Banks, Number of Series Groups .. . . . . . . . . . . . .. , . . . . .. . . . . . .. . 11
Table 2 Minimum Recommended Number of Units in Parallel per Series Group to Limit
Voltage on Remaining Units to 1 lo%,with One Unit Removed. .. . .. . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . ... .. 11
Table 3 Summary of Shunt Capacitor Protection Methods . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . .. . .. 16
Table 4 Limits of Short-Time Power Frequency Overvoltage at Subzero Temperatures . . .. . . . .. . . 22
APPENDIXES
Appendix A .
Symbol Definitions ..... .. . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . .. .. . .. .. .. . . . . 53
Appendix B Equations . . .. . . .. ..... .. . . . . . . .. . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . , . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. .. . . . .. .. . . . . 55
Appendix C Equations for Effect of Inherent Unbalances.. . . . . . .. . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . .. . . . 57
Appendix D Inrush Current and Frequency for Switching Capacitor Banks . . . . . .. .. . .. .. .. . . . . 59
APPENDIX TABLES
Table B1 60 Hz Fault Current and Voltage with One Unit Shorted . . . . . .. . .. . .. . . . . . .. . . . . . .. . . 56
.
Table C1 Effect of Inherent Unbalance on Displacement Signal.. .. . .. . . . . . . .. . . . . , .. . . .. , .. . . 57
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SECTION PAGE
9. Protection of Filter Banks ............................................................... 41
9.1 Static VAR Control Filters ........................................................... 41
9.2 HVDC Converter Station Filters ...................................................... 42
10. Capacitor Bank Equipment Considerations ............................................... 43
10.1 Capacitor Bank Switching Devices ................................................... 43
10.2 Inrush Control Devices ............................................................. 44
10.3 Surge Arresters .................................................................... 45
10.4 Voltage Sensing Devices ............................................................ 45
10.5 Current Sensing Devices ............................................................ 45
10.6 Surge Protection ................................................................... 45
10.6.1 Surge Protection for Current Transformers .................................... 46
10.6.2 Surge Protection of Voltage Transformers, Capacitor-Coupled Voltage
Transformers and Resistance Potential Devices ................................. 48
10.6.3 Surge Protection of Relay Systems Associated with Capacitor Banks .............. 48
10.7 Control Cables ..................................................................... 49
11. System Considerations .................................................................. 49
11.1 Resonance ........................................................................ 49
11.2 Harmonics ........................................................................ 49
11.3 Telephone Interference ............................................................. 49
12. Practices ............................................................................... 49
12.1 Preparation for Initial Energizing .................................................... 49
12.1.1 Visual Inspection ............................................................ 50
12.1.2 Testing of Individual Capacitor Units .......................................... 50
12.1.3 Testing of Relay Protection ................................................... 50
12.1.4 Sensing Devices .............................................................. 50
12.1.5 Operational Test ............................................................ 50
12.1.6 Special Recording ........................................................... 50
12.1.7 Initial Energization .......................................................... 50
12.1.8 Additional Tests ............................................................. 50
12.2 Response to Alarm or Lockout ...................................................... 50
12.2.1 Inspection (after de-energizing bank) .......................................... 50
12.2.2 Capacitor Unit Removal and Replacement ..................................... 51
12.2.3 Returning Bank to Service After Lockout ...................................... 51
12.2.4 Servicing Bank Following Alarm Condition ..................................... 51
13. Bibliography ........................................................................... 51
FIGURES
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IEEE Guide for the Protection of
Shunt Capacitor Banks
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IEEE
C37.99-1990 IEEE GUIDE FOR THE PROTECTION OF
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IEEE
SHUNT CAPACITOR BANKS C37.99-1990
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IEEE
C37.99-1990 IEEE GUIDE FOR THE PROTECTION OF
1, U U U
I
I
I
I
I
I
n n n
U U- TT
I
I I I
I I I
n n n
U U U-
I I
I
i
n n
I
r
Fig 1
Y-Connected Capacitor Bank
(a) Externally-Fused Capacitor Units
(b) Internally-Fused Capacitor Units
10
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IEEE
SHUNT CAPACITOR BANKS C37.99-1990
Table 1
Y-Connected Capacitor Banks, Number of Series Groups*
Available Capacitor Voltages (kV per unit)
VLL VLN
kV kV 21.6 19.92 14.4 13.8 13.28 12.47 9.96 9.54 8.32 7.96 7.62 7.2 6.64
- -- - - - _ _ _ _ _ _ - _ _ - _ _ -
500.0 288.7 14 15 20 21 22 29 30 35 36 38
345.0 199.2 10 15 16 20 21 24 25 21
230.0 132.8 10 14 16 17 18 20
161.0 92.9 7 13 14
138.0 19.7 4 6 6 6 8 10 11 12
115.0 66.4 5 I 8 9 9 10
69.0 39.8 2 3 3 4 5 6
46.0 26.56 2 4
34.5 19.92 1 2 3
24.9 14.4 1 2
23.9 13.8 1
23.0 13.28 1 2
14.4 8.32 1
13.8 1.96 1
13.2 7.62 1
12.47 7.2 1
'This table shows, for a particular system voltage, the number of series-connectedcapacitors per phase of a Y-connected bank
that operates near rated capacitor unit voltage.
11
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IEEE
C37.99-1990 IEEE GUIDE FOR THE PROTECI'ION OF
The various types of connections illustrated in harmonic currents can flow in a A-connected
F g 2 are: capacitor bank. Additionally, where one series
(1) A group per phase is used, the individual capacitor
(2) Grounded Y fuses should be capable of interrupting the sys-
(3) Grounded double Y tem short-circuit phase-to-phase fault current.
(4) Ungrounded Y This often necessitates a current-limiting fuse.
(5) Ungrounded double Y Such fuses are significantly more costly than
expulsion fuses.
4.1 Delta-Connected Banks. Delta-connected
banks are generally used only at distribution volt- 4.2 Grounded-Y Connected Banks. Grounded-Y
ages and are configured with a single series group capacitor banks are most commonly used for volt-
of capacitors rated for line-to-line voltage. Wye- ages of 34.5 kV and above, and are composed of
connected banks are less complicated and more two or more series groups of parallel connected
economical, since A-connected banks require standard voltage capacitor units per phase.
either two-bushing capacitors with a grounded Figure 1 shows a typical bank arrangement. A
rack or single-bushing units with an insulated number of series group combinations are given in
rack. The greatest use of A-connected banks is at Table 1.
2400 V, since this is the lowest standard capacitor Grounded capacitor banks provide a low-imped-
voltage rating. Capacitor units for Y connection ance path to ground for hghtning surge currents
at 2400 V are not available as a standard unit and give some protection from surge voltages.
sue. Sometimes the bank may be operated without
With only one series group of units, no overvolt- surge arresters, taking advantage of this self-
age occurs across remaining capacitor units from protective feature.
isolation of a faulted capacitor unit and, there- Grounded capacitor banks also provide a
fore, unbalance detection is not required for pro- low-impedance path to ground for harmonic cur-
tection, but may be used to detect the outage of rents. These harmonic currents may cause com-
units within the bank. No zero sequence or third- munication facility interference, if such circuits
Fig 2
Basic Capacitor Bank Connections
(a) Delta (b) Grounded Y (c) Ungrounded Y
(d) Ungrounded Double Y-Neutrals (may or may not be tied)
(e) Grounded, Double Y
. I 0 I I
12
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SHUNT CAPACITOR BANKS C37.99-1990
parallel power lines. Additionally, an open phase insulated rack. However, if two-bushing capacitor
produces zero sequence currents that may cause units with a grounded rack are used, the capaci-
ground relay operation. Also, harmonic resonance tor-unit fuse should be capable of interrupting
could be a problem. system phase-to-ground fault current. If lower
When the neutral is grounded, recovery volt- rated fuses are used, a fault to the capacitor case
ages encountered during switching are reduced, may not be cleared by the capacitor-unit fuse and
however, careful consideration should be given to will require that the fault be cleared by the capac-
the effect of inrush current on protective relay itor bank overcurrent protective devices. Un-
performance (see Section 10) and the method of grounded Y capacitor banks usually do not re-
grounding (see 5.2). quire current limiting capacitor-unit fuses since
4.2.1 One Series Group Per Phase. As with current through a faulted capacitor unit is limited
A-connected banks, no overvoltage across re- to three times normal phase current. However,
maining capacitor units occurs from isolation of caution needs to be exercised when re-fusing a
a faulted capacitor unit, and, therefore, unbal- bank of this type since faulted capacitors in dif-
ance relay protection is not required. Similarly, ferent phases could result in a phase-to-phase
the individual capacitor fuses should be capable system fault.
of interrupting the system available fault current. 4.3.2 Multiple Series Groups Per Phase-
4.2.2 Multiple Series Groups Per Phase- Single Y. Wye banks with multiple series groups
Single Y. Grounded-Y capacitor banks above may also be ungrounded. Such a bank cannot, in
34.5 kV are commonly composed of two or more and of itself, provide any surge voltage protec-
series groups of parallel connected capacitor tion, and provides no path to ground for third
units per phase. The presence of multiple series harmonic currents. The entire bank, including
groups of units limits the maximum fault current the neutral, should be insulated for line over-
so that individual current-limiting capacitor fuses voltage.
are usually not required unless the parallel kvar 4.3.3 Multiple Series Groups Per Phase-
exceeds 4650 kvar. Double Y. When a capacitor bank becomes too
4.2.3 Multiple Series Groups Per Phase- large for the 4650 kvar per group maximum for
Double Y. When a capacitor bank becomes too expulsion fuses, and is large enough to meet the
large for the 4650 kvar per group maximum for minimum units per group requirement as out-
expulsion fuses, or is large enough to meet the lined in 3.2, the bank may be split into two Y
minimum units-per-group requirement as out- sections. When the two neutrals are ungrounded,
lined in 3.2, the bank may be split into two Y the bank has some of the characteristics of the
sections. The characteristics of the grounded ungrounded single-Y bank. These two neutrals
double-Y bank are similar to a single grounded may or may not be tied together. As for any
Y bank. The two neutrals should be directly ungrounded Y bank, the neutral should be insu-
connected, with a single connection to ground. lated from ground for the full line-to-linevoltage.
13
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C37.99-1990 IEEE GUIDE FOR THE PROTECTION OF
station ground grid, and the connections of the With peninsula grounding, one or more ground
respective bank neutrals to the substation grid, is grid conductor(s) is carried underneath the
of prime importance. Improper grounding can capacitor rack of each phase of each group and
result in neutral current transformer, voltage tied to the main station ground grid at one point
transformer, or control cable failures. Two meth- at the edge of the capacitor area. All capacitor
ods of neutral grounding have been successfully bank neutral connections are made to this iso-
used single-point grounding and peninsula-type lated peninsula ground grid conductor(s) only
grounding (see Fig 3). [ 191. Although this arrangement allows the
With single-point grounding, the neutrals of all capacitor bank neutral potential (and associated
capacitor banks of a given voltage are connected current transformers and voltage transformers)
together with insulated cable, or an isolated bus, to rise during capacitor bank switching, it does
and tied to the substation ground grid at only one provide the lowest possible impedance between
point. This arrangement prevents high-frequency capacitor banks (see Fig 3).
currents, which flow between banks during back- If single-point grounding is used, there will be
to-back switching, from flowing in the ground substantial voltages (tens of kV) between the
grid. Unfortunately, in the event of a nearby ends of the neutral bus and the single-point
ground fault, this arrangement does not elimi- ground during switching. As a result, the primary
nate those high-frequency currents that flow to secondary insulation of neutral current trans-
back into the power system via the substation formers, or tap sensing voltage transformers, will
ground grid. be subjected to this voltage, increasing the possi-
Fig 3
Methods of Neutral Grounding
(a) Single Point Grounding (b) Peninsula Grounding
14
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SHUNT CAPACITOR BANKS C37.99-1990
bility of failure. Two bushing voltage transformers grounded capacitor bank neutral in an otherwise
should be used with the primary connected to the ungrounded system will allow phase-to-phase
capacitor bank neutral. voltage to appear across two phases of the bank,
This does not occur with peninsula grounding, in the event of a phase-to-ground fault in the
since all equipment at the neutral tends to rise to remaining phase.
the same potential. Peninsula grounding, coordi- One of the main advantages associated with
nated with control cable shielding and grounding, neutral grounding concerns the severity of the
will hold common mode voltages, appearing on recovery voltage across the first pole to clear of a
control cables in the control house, to safe levels. switch interrupting the charging current of a
Single-point grounding and peninsula ground- capacitor bank The recovery voltage across the
ing are not compatible. All capacitor banks of the first pole to open consists of trapped charges on
same system voltage should use the same ground- the capacitors and the variation in the 60 Hz volt-
ing scheme in the same substation. age of the system. Due to system parameters and
When de-energizing a capacitor bank, the mag- capacitor bank size, the recovery voltage can be
nitude of voltage disturbances on the system is approximately 2 times normal peak voltage when
greatly reduced by the presence of one or more the bank is grounded. On an ungrounded bank,
additional banks of comparable size connected to the magnitude of the first peak of the recovery
the same bus. During a closing operation or a voltage can be as high as 3 times the peak system
restrike, however, the transient inrush current line-to-ground voltage when the bank is switched.
through the switching device between the ener- Since recovery voltage is a most important fac-
gized banks and the one being switched can be tor in determining the capability of a switching
very large. These currents are oscillatory at very device t o switch capacitive reactive power, it may
high frequencies. The peak current may be on the be desirable, in terms of switch rating and cost, to
order of 50 to 100 times the normal peak of the ground the neutral of large shunt banks rated
capacitor bank current. Such a high instantane- above 100 kV. In fact, IEEE C37.04-1979 [5] and
ous current can produce high forces in the in- ANSI (337.06-1987 [ l ] require both the shunt
terrupter of the switching device that may be capacitor bank and the system to be grounded at
damaging to the contacts or structure. voltage levels of 121 kV and above. The circuit
Since the severity of parallel bank switching is breaker manufacturer should be consulted for
caused by the very sudden high current, which application of a breaker if these conditions are
initially is limited only by the very low resistance not met.
and inductance of the circuit between the banks, While many shunt capacitor banks are directly
it can be reduced by the addition of inductance to connected t o a high-voltage substation bus,
the circuit. An inductance with a 60 Hz reactance switched capacitor banks may be applied to ter-
of as little as $4 to 1%of the 60 Hz capacitive tiaries of power transformers that are connected
reactance of the banks, and placed in series with to the line, or possibly to the bus. Grounding the
them, will greatly reduce both the rate of rise and neutral of the wye-connected capacitor bank
the peak value of the inrush current that, in turn, should be done with caution. Since the A tertiary
greatly reduces the severity of the switching de- of the auto transformer represents an isolated
vice duty, Additional inductance may be obtained source, grounding the capacitor bank neutral
by increasing the length of the bus between the would make this side of the transformer capaci-
capacitor banks, or adding current-limiting reac- tive grounded. Overvoltages may be experienced
tors. The reactors may be of the wound type, or during line-to-ground faults for certain ratios of
may consist of magnetic cores surrounding the XO/X1 depending on system, transformer, and
leads or bus. Reinsertion resistors or inductors capacitor bank parameters. In those situations
on the capacitor switching device will also effec- where the neutral is grounded, the application
tively Limit the inrush current. should be specifically analyzed for proper appli-
cation of surge arresters, bank configuration, and
5.2 Neutral Grounding. The application of large bank switching devices.
shunt capacitor banks with switched parallel
banks in high-voltage transmission systems in-
volves a number of considerations, one of which 6. Capacitor Bank Protection
is grounding. It is generally recommended that
the neutral of capacitor banks be grounded only To ensure availability of a capacitor bank for
to systems t h a t are effectively grounded. A service requires reliable protection. This ensures
15
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IEEE
(37.99-1990 IEEE GUIDE FOR THE PROTECTION OF
minimal damage to the bank in the event of a discharge current from parallel capacitor units
fault. The bank should be removed from the sys- influences selection of fuse type. Unbalance relay
tem before it is severely damaged, or before a protection is covered in detail in Section 7.
fault is established on the system. When a single Each of the several types of faults or abnormal-
capacitor unit fails within a bank, the capacitor ities should be considered when the protection
unit should be isolated without transferring prob- for a shunt capacitw bank is evaluated.
lems to adjacent units.
The design of the capacitor bank protective 6.1 Capacitor-UnitFusing. The first line of pro-
system should reflect consideration of the influ- tection for a capacitor bank is the individual
ence of the following seven basic conditions: capacitor-unit fuse. The job of the fuse is to oper-
Overcurrents-due to capacitor bank bus ate in response to the failure of a single capacitor
faults; unit, and remove the unit from service fast enough
System surge voltages; to prevent case rupture and damage to adjacent
Overcurrents due to individual capacitor units. Removal of the faulted unit is important for
unit failure; protection of the remaining undamaged capaci-
Continuous capacitor unit overvoltages; tor units, and will allow the capacitor bank to
Discharge current from parallel capacitor remain in service. A proper fuse operation is
units; desirable in order to minimize the chance of cas-
Inrush current due to switching; and cading failure of additional capacitor units that
Arc-over within the capacitor rack. may, in turn, lead to a major bus fault within the
Table 3 summarizes the type of protection and capacitor bank.
preventive measures. Bus-fault and surge-voltage Proper operation of an individual capacitor-
protection are conventional in nature. Capacitor unit fuse depends largely upon the bank configu-
unit overcurrent protection is obtained through ration. In a large capacitor bank, the impedance
proper fuse coordination. Capacitor manufactur- of the other series groups of capacitor units in a
ers usually assist in this task, but a thorough particular phase leg will limit the current in a
understanding by the user, of capacitor unit and faulted capacitor unit. However,the energy stored
bank fusing, is recommended. Consideration of in other capacitor units in the series group will
Table 3
Summary of Shunt Capacitor Protection Methods
Type of Protection
Condition and Preventive Measures Remarks
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IEEE
SHLTNT CAPACITOR BANKS C37.99-1990
discharge into the faulted capacitor unit; this slower characteristics of the T-speed fuse link
discharge should be withstood by the faulted may permit use of a smaller ampere rating than
capacitor unit and its fuse. This limits the maxi- that with the K-speed fuse link. Where fault cur-
mum number of capacitor units that may be rents are high, current-limiting fuses, with their
placed in parallel in the same series group when higher interrupting ratings, can be used, but at a
expulsion fuses are used. higher cost. The large ampere ratings required
The capacitor-unit fuse should be selected to: with current limiting fuses, relative to the capac-
(1) Accommodate the maximum anticipated itor-unit current, may make it difficult to achieve
continuous capacitor-unit current, allow- protection against case rupture for low-magni-
ing for system overvoltage, capacitor-unit tude faults. The combination of expulsion fuses
tolerance, and harmonic currents. and current-limiting fuses provides for both con-
(2) Withstand the transient outrush current ditions. Where extremely large capacitor banks
from a healthy capacitor unit that occurs are required, it is recommended that double-Y
when: construction be employed in order to retain the
(a) a nearby capacitor bank is energized use of expulsion fuses. For additional informa-
(back-to-back switching); and tion on capacitor-unit fusing, refer to the fuse
(b) when an adjacent capacitor unit fails. manufacturer.
(3) Operate as promptly as possible in re-
sponse to an escalating capacitor-unit 6.2 Bank Overcurrent Protection. Protecting
failure, and in all cases respond to a com- against a major fault, such as a line-to-line fault
pletely shorted unit. or a line-to-ground fault, will generally require
(4) Protect the capacitor unit from case rup- some form of external protection for the capaci-
ture in accordance with applicable case- tor bank, such as power fuses, circuit breakers, or
rupture curves. circuit switchers with associated relay circuits
In some instances, it may be difficult to select a (see Fig 4). For grounded-Y capacitor banks, the
capacitor-unit fuse that will meet all of these backup protection need only respond to high-
objectives and, in such cases, trade-offs among magnitude faults. However, on an ungrounded Y
the various criteria should be made. Refer to the bank, a line-to-neutral fault will cause an increase
fuse manufacturer or the capacitor manufac- in the line current, in the faulted phase, of only 3
turer for specific fusing recommendations. times the normal phase current. Since capacitor
Expulsion fuses have provided excellent capac- banks can operate indefinitely at current levels in
itor-unit protection for many years at relatively excess of that based on rated kvar and voltage,
low costs. And when using such fuses, it is desir- the backup protection should allow 125%or 135%
able that the fuse link operate with failure of the of rated current to be carried continuously. At
fewest number of series packs shorted before the same time, the backup protection should iso-
complete capacitor-unit failure occurs. The late the b.ank in the event of the three-per-unit
Fig 4
Capacitor Bank Protection
(a) Using Phase Overcurrent Relays
(b) Using Bank Fuses
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IEEE
(37.99-1990 IEEE GUIDE FOR THE PROTECTION OF
phase current. It may be difficult to accomplish nied by heavy damage to the bank, including
this protection with power fuses. many blown fuses and a few ruptured capacitor
If step switching is used with ungrounded Y units. The nature of a capacitor unit rupture,
banks, external protection can be even more diffi- without the appearance of very much case swell-
cult to accomplish. The most economical protec- ing, is more typical of a high-energy type rupture
tion is usually provided by a power fuse, circuit than that due to merely 60 Hz fault current. This
breaker, or circuit switcher in the line supplying stored energy comes from the other units in the
all steps, rather than protection in the lines of same parallel groups that have been subjected to
each step. This is especially true if the switching a high overvoltage as a result of other groups
devices for the individual steps do not have suffi- being shorted. Instantaneous overcurrent relays
cient interrupting capacity to protect the bank are not effective for rack faults.
for line-to-line or line-to-ground faults. The main protection for an arc-over within the
Consider an ungrounded-Y connected bank capacitor bank is provided by fast timing of the
having only two steps. If the backup protection is unbalance relay. An unbalance time delay of 0.3
in the line supplying both steps, it should carry to 0.5 second will provide good protection for
270%of the rated current of one step when both rack faults and has had considerable use on
steps are in serivce. At the same time, it should power systems that are effectively grounded. The
remove both banks in the event of 300% of the unbalance time delay, however, should never be
rated current of one step. This would be a rela- less than the maximum clearing time of the
tively difficult task for relays, and would be virtu- capacitor-unit fuse for a completely shorted
ally impossible for power fuses. When three steps capacitor unit.
are considered, the situation becomes impossible On resistance-grounded and ungrounded power
for relays as well. If, on the other hand, each systems, an unusually long unbalance time delay
capacitor bank step has its own unbalance relay is required to coordinate with the line relays,
protection, to detect the line-to-neutral fault, unless the unbalance relay scheme is of the type
then the backup protection in the line supplying that does not respond to system voltage unbal-
the entire installation need only detect and ance. As noted in 5.2, resistance grounded and
respond to h g h magnitude faults. ungrounded power systems would utilize un-
Time-overcurrent relays can be applied with grounded capacitor banks. Some of the types of
normal settings without encountering false oper- unbalance relays for ungrounded capacitor banks
ations due to inrush currents. Instantaneous that do not respond to system voltage unbalance
relays, however, should be set high to override are shown in Figs 5(a), 6(a), 6(b), 6(d), 7, and 8.
these transients, or have tuned circuits so that The unbalance relays shown in Figs 9(a) and 9(b)
pickup increases with frequency. Successful oper- also do not respond to system voltage unbalance,
ation has been obtained by setting instantaneous but they are used only for grounded capacitor
relays at 3 times the capacitor rated current. banks.
Where capacitor banks are switched back-to- The sensitivity of the unbalance-trip relay is
back (that is, in parallel with other capacitor determined on the basis of protecting the capaci-
banks on the same bus) a setting of 4 times the tor units from continuous overvoltages, as a
rated capacitor bank current is commonly used result of individual failure and resultant fuse
for the instantaneous setting. This setting is used operation (see Section 7). When set on this basis,
regardless of the capacitor bank connection [20]. the resultant sensitivity is adequate to relay for
the initial rack fault, assuming the initial fault is
6.3 Protectionfor Rack Faults (Arc-OverWithin across one series section of one phase.
the Capacitor Rack). With a capacitor bank of If the timing relay does not have a definite time
the usual construction, where the individual characteristic, the 0.3 to 0.5 second time delay
phases are well separated, an arc-over within the setting is made at the multiple of pickup corre-
capacitor bank will begin as an arc-over of a sin- sponding to the initial rack fault. For a single
gle series section. Such a fault produces very little ungrounded-Y bank with an unbalance relay of
phase overcurrent and, if an unbalance relay pro- the type that detects neutral-to-ground voltage,
tection scheme is not provided, more and more the per-unit neutral-to-ground voltage, when one
series groups of the same phase can become complete series section is shorted, is given by
involved until the instantaneous relay trips the
bank or fuses clear. The total arcing time can be 1
on the order of a few seconds. This is accompa- VNS = 3s-2
18
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IEEE
SHUNT CAPACITOR BANKS (3'37.99-1990
Fig 5
Shunt Capacitor Bank Protection Methods, Single Y-Connected Banks
(a) Summation of Line-to-Neutral Voltage Protection Method with Optional
Line-to-Neutral Overvoltage Protection, Ungrounded Y-Connected Capacitor Bank
(b) Neutral Voltage Unbalance Protection Method, Ungrounded Y-Connected Capacitor Bank
(c) Neutral Current Unbalance Protection Method, Grounded Y-Connected Capacitor Bank
(d) Neutral Voltage Unbalance Protection Method, Ungrounded Y-Connected Capacitor Bank
Using Capacitor Voltage Divider
I'
I - - - .
Surge
Arrester 4
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IEEE
(37.99-1990 IEEE GUIDE FOR THE PROTECTION OF
Fig 6
Shunt Capacitor Bank Protection Methods, Double Y-Connected Banks
(a) Neutral Current Unbalance Detection Method Ungrounded Double Y-ConnectedCapacitor Bank
(b) Neutral Voltage Unbalance Protection Method, Ungrounded Double Y-Connected Capacitor Bank
(Neutrals Isolated)
(c) Neutral Current Differential Protection Method, Grounded Double Y-ConnectedCapacitor Bank
(d) Neutral Voltage Unbalance Protection Method, Ungrounded Double Y-Connected Capacitor Bank
(Neutrals Tied Together)
0 I 1 I
NOTE. Be careful with (2and PT polarity marks (m). They sometimes look like wire connections (0).
20
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SHUNT CAPACITOR BANKS (337.99-1990
59N
60V
Shifter
I
Fig 8
NOTE: Compensating voltage is system zero sequencevoltage Neutral Voltage Unbalance Protection Method
and a phase shifted voltage of one phase.
Ungrounded Double Y-Connected
Capacitor Bank (Neutrals Isolated)
Fig 7 With Compensation for Inherent Unbalance
Neutrd Voltage Unbalance Protection Method
Ungrounded Y-Connected Capacitor Bank
With Compensation for Inherent Unbalance
A4
E4
C4
(b)
Fig 9
Voltage Difference Protection Methods
(a) Single Grounded Y-Connected Capacitor Banks
(b) Double Grounded Y-Connected Capacitor Banks
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IEEE
C37.99-1990 IEEE GUIDE FOR THE PROTE(T1ON OF
The initial fault may spread until it becomes 6.4 Bank Overvoltage protection. Lghtning and
severe enough to operate the time or instantane- switching transient overvoltages may be curtailed
ous overcurrent relays up to 5 s later. However, with standard overvoltage protection equipment
by this time, there may be considerable damage such as surge arresters. A capacitor bank gener-
involving all three phases. ally absorbs overvoltages since it acts temporarily
The currents and neutral shift voltage can eas- as a short circuit for step voltage changes. Over-
ily be computed for the initial rack fault. First, the voltages around capacitor banks are greatly
impedance of each phase to the new neutral reduced, but complete protection is not assured.
point, the point of fault, is obtained. This results in The overvoltage on a bank depends upon the
a set of impedances, Y-connected, which are un- length of line between the shunt capacitor bank
equal. Using a Y-Atransformation, the equivalent and the point at which the transient voltage is
impedances can be found. The A currents are generated, as well as on the surge duration.
the line-to-line voltages divided by the A imped- The capacitor bank may also be subjected to
ances. The line currents can be computed from the overvoltages resulting from abnormal system
phasor addition of 2 A currents. In this manner, operating conditions. If it is felt that the over-
the per-unit currents (of normal phase current) voltage could be sufficient to damage the bank,
in Fig 10, with 2 series groups per phase, are: overvoltage relays should be considered. Table 4
lists recommended short-term overvoltage limits.
I, = 1.0
Ib = 1.8 Table 4
Limits of Short Time Power Frequency
I , = 1.8 Overvoltage at Subzero Temperatures
The voltage drop from phase A to the former Multiplying Factor
neutral, where the primary of the potential device Duration Times Rated rms Voltage
is connected, is la Za, which is the same as before
0.5 c 3.0
the fault. Therefore, there is no neutral shift. The 1.0 c 2.7
IZ drops can be added from one phase to another 6.0 c 2.2
and compared to the applied line-to-line voltage 15.0 c 2.0
1.0 s 1.7
as a check on the accuracy of the calculations. 15.0 s 1.4
Protection for rack faults on banks of this con- 1.0 min 1.3
30.0 min 1.25
struction with two series groups per phase can
best be obtained by using TOC relays having a NOTE. The short time power frequency overvoltage should be
short-time characteristic, a pickup setting of 1.35 limited to the values listed here at subzero temperatures.
times rated current, and a time setting of 0.2 s at Higher limits may be permissible with less severe conditions.
150%of tap value current.
Fig 11
Fig 10 Summation of Intermediate Tap-Point
Midrack Phase-to-PhaseArcing Fault Voltage Protection Method
VT. CCV T, or
Resistive
Potential
DWCe
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IEEE
SHUNT CAPACITOR BANKS C37.99-1990
LEGEND
01 - Control Switch
278 - Undervoltage - Bus
50 - Instantaneous Overcurrent - Phase
51 - Very Inverse Time-Overcurrent - Phase
51N - Inverse Time-Overcurrent - Neutral
52 - Circuit Breaker
52TC - Circuit Breaker - Trip Coil
596 - Instantaneous Overvoltage - Bus
59N - Instantaneous Overvoltage - Neutral
59R - Instantaneous Overvoltage - Residual
60V - Voltage Differential
620V - Timer - Overvoltage
62UV - Timer - Undervoltage
62X - Auxiliary - Breaker Failure Initiate
62Y - Auxiliary - Breaker Failure Initiate
R - Red Lamp
NOTE: Relay contacts are shown with operating coil
* LOWVoltage Capacitor de-energized.
1 1
6 2 0 V q \62UVr
Fig 12
Special Protection Scheme for Very Large EHV Capacitor Banks:
(a) Functional Diagram (b) DC Schematic (Primary Tripping)
(c) DC Schematic (Backup Tripping)
23
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IEEE
(37.99-1990 IEEE GUIDE FOR THE PROTECTION OF
- -
1 - 1 -
--
-
W - PTs
--
c-
Electronic
Control
c-
Main
(a) (b)
Opening the circuit to a single phase capacitor in one step. On the left an opening
without restrike. On the right, the maximum effect possible with one restrike.
Fig 14
Opening the Circuit to a Single-phase Capacitor in One Step
(a) No Restrike (b) One Restrike
24
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SHUNT CAPACITOR BANKS IEEE
(37.99-1990
t
Volts
01
,001
I
.01
I
.1
Fig 15
I
1
Amperes --
I
10
I
100
I
loo0 1Ok
I
Capacitor Bank
40 MVAR, 230 kV
Grounded w e
500 h
Fig 16
One Line Diagram of 230 kV Station
1s -
Single Bushing VT
k V T Case
Fig 17
Single Point Grounded Bank with SingleBushing VT
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IEEE
(237.99-1990 IEEE GUIDE FOR THE PROTECl'ION OF
1s - - Capacitor Bank
1
1
--
I "
fly
Bank Neutral
-
Single Point Ground Station Ground [I
Bank Ground Connection As VT Connected
to Station Ground
Secondary Ground
Fig 18
Single Point Grounded Bank with Two-BushingVT
26
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SHUNT CAPACITOR BANKS (37.99-1990
relay operation, as well as to cause false opera- voltage applied to surviving capacitor units equals
tion. The amount of inherent unbalance for var- or exceeds 110%of rated voltage. If the estimated
ious configurations, resulting from system voltage inherent unbalance, as determined from equa-
unbalance, capacitor manufacturing tolerance tions of Appendix C, exceeds the allowable neu-
unbalance, or both, may be estimated by using tral unbalance as determined from the curves or
equations in Appendix C. A worst case estimate equations of Figures 19, 20, and 21, steps should
can be made by assuming the unbalance errors to be taken to compensate for the inherent unbal-
be additive. ance error.
Figures 19, 20, and 21 indicate the allowable Harmonic voltages can also influence the oper-
neutral unbalance for positive detection of the ation of the unbalance relay unless proper filter-
first blown fuse. The curves are based on the ing is provided. The third harmonic predomi-
relay being set to operate at a point half way nates, although special applications such as arc
between the critical step and the next lowest furnaces can produce a wide variety of harmonic
step. The critical step is the step for which the frequencies.
Fig 19
Grounded Y-Connected Capacitor Bank: Percentage of Allowable
Inherent Neutral Current Unbalance for Positive Detection of
First Blown Fuse Versus Number of Capacitor Units in
Parallel per Group and Number of Series Groups
100
\ I \ \ 4 2 L(P-1) S+lJ
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IEEE
(37.99-1990 IEEE GUIDE FOR THE PROTECTION OF
-ia
oc3
> I
W J
z
-I
~ - a
ZI:
w a
a o
w z
L
ZLL
- Q
wl-
Fig 20
Ungrounded Y-Connected Capacitor Bank:Percentage of Allowable Neutral
Voltage Unbalance for Positive Detection of First Blown Fuse Versus Number of
Capacitor UNts in Parallel per Group and Number of Series Groups
In addition, secondary errors may be intro- convenient visual means of locating the
duced by sensing device tolerances, temperature defective capacitor unit.
differences between capacitor units within the (2) Where possible, the unbalance relay should
bank, and partially deteriorated capacitor units be sensitive enough to alarm for the loss of
that have not yet blown their fuses. one unit within a group and trip and lock-
out on loss of sufficient or additional
7.3 General Unbalance Relay Considerations. capacitor units that will cause a group
General unbalance relay protection considera- overvoltage condition in excess of 110%of'
tions are discussed below. rated voltage.
(1) The unbalance relay should coordinate (3) The unbalance relay should have a time
with the individual capacitor unit fuses delay short enough to minimize damage
such that the fuses operate to isolate a due to an arcing fault within the bank
defective capacitor unit before the bank is structure, and prevent exposure of the
switched out of service, and thus provide a remaining capacitor units to overvoltage
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SHUNT CAPACITOR BANKS (37.99-1990
I
.. II 1 \
1. 2 (6PS - 65 +T
I\ \ '
a
m
z
3
t-
z
W
a
a
3
0
-I
a
a
t-
3
W
z
t-
z
W
a
W
S
z
U
W
-I
m
a
x
Q
-I
J
a
Fig 21
Ungrounded Double Y-Connected Capacitor Bank: Percentage of
Allowable Inherent Neutral Current Unbalance for Positive Detection of
First Blown Fuse Versus Number of Capacitor Unita in Parallel
per Group and Number of Groups in Series
conditions beyond their permissible limits. ( 5 ) The unbalance relay should be protected
The time delay should also be short enough against transient voltages appearing on
to avoid damage to the current transformer control wiring (see IEEE C37.90-1989[6]).
or voltage transformer, and relay system, (6) The unbalance relay may require a filter to
for a single-phase or an open-phase con- minimize the effect of harmonic voltages.
dition. It should be recognized.that the relay may
(4) The unbalance relay should have a time not operate for excessive harmonic (reso-
delay sufficient to avoid false operations nant) currents.
due to inrush, ground faults on the line, (7) The unbalance relay scheme should have a
lightning, switching of nearby equipment, lockout feature to prevent automatic re-
and nonsimultaneous pole operation of closing of the capacitor bank switching
the energizing switch. For most applica- device in the event that an overvoltage trip
tions, 0.5 s should be adequate. has occurred. The unbalance relay trip cir-
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IEEE
(37.99-1990 IEEE GUIDE FOR THE PROTECTION OF
cuit components should be coordinated. relays. This may be several seconds for
For example, the 0.2 A target and seal-in some devices.
coil of the voltage relay has about 50 ohms (14) In an internally fused capacitor bank, the
of impedance at 60 Hz. The armature- unbalance detection gives an indication of
closed current of a 120 V ac lockout relay the total number of failed capacitor ele-
may not hold the seal-in unit operated. ments. The actual number of failed ele-
(8) Where neutral unbalance due to system ments will be determined by the settings
variations or capacitor manufacturing tol- of the relays. Individual failed capacitor
erances is not negligible, a compensating elements can only be detected by a capaci-
means should be provided to negate the tor measurement. A complete measure-
effect of this unbalance. Careful considera- ment of all units in a bank is recommended
tion of bank design may also remedy the only when a relay trip has occurred, and
problem. Before making changes, the load not as a part of the regular maintenance
current of each phase and the capacitance schedule.
(or load current) of each capacitor should
be checked for indication of failure of a 7.4 Neutral CurrentUnbalance Protection Meth-
single capacitor pack within the can. The od,Grounded-Y Bank. Figure 5(c) shows a neu-
unbalance relay should be set taking this tral unbalance relay protection scheme for a
unbalance into account (see 7.8). grounded-Y capacitor bank. An unbalance in the
(9) Since most unbalance detection schemes capacitor bank will cause current to flow in the
do not measure overvoltage on the system, neutral. The amount of neutral current due to
the unbalance relay should be set on the loss of individual capacitor units can be deter-
basis of maximum continuous system oper- mined from Fig 22 or Eq 5 of Appendix B. The
ating voltage. voltage on the remaining capacitor units can be
(10) To allow for the effects of inherent unbal- determined from Fig 23 or Eq 1 of Appendix B.
ance, the unbalance relay alarm should be The unbalance protective scheme consists of a
set to operate at one-half the level of current transformer, with rated 5 A secondary,
neutral displacement, or neutral current, connected from the capacitor bank neutral to
determined for the desired alarm condi- ground. A ct ratio providing a maximum of 10 A
tion. The alarm should have sufficient time of secondary current for rated capacitor bank
delay to override external disturbances. current in the primary will avoid excessive
(11) To allow for the effects of inherent unbal- secondary currents when the capacitor bank is
ance, the unbalance relay should be set to energized or when only one or two phases remain
operate at a level of neutral displacement, energized. For an electromechanical type relay,
or neutral current, halfway between the the current transformer secondary is loaded with
critical step and the next lowest step. The an adjustable resistor, usually 10 to 25 ohms
critical step is the number of removed maximum, and connected to a time delayvoltage
capacitor units that will cause a group relay having a third harmonic filter for reduced
overvoltage in excess of the manufactur- sensitivity at frequencies other than 60 Hz. The
er's recommended maximum continuous current transformer loading resistor should be
operating voltage. rated 200 W or higher to avoid damaging this
(12) All neutral unbalance schemes detect an resistor in the event that one or two phases of the
unbalance in the three phases. Overvolt- capacitor bank switching device are open due to
age, caused by loss of an equal number of failure or misoperation.
capacitor units in one or more groups in A typical voltage relay has 60 Hz pickup taps of
each phase, will not be detected. In prac- 5.4, 7.5, 12.5 and 20 V. The voltage relay operates
tice, this is not a significant limitation. a latching relay through a 52a contact on the
(13) With grounded capacitor banks, failure of capacitor bank switching device to initiate open-
one pole of the switching device, or single ing of the capacitor switch and block its closing.
phasing from a blown bank fuse, will allow Static-type voltage relays have much lower
zero sequence currents to flow in the sys- burden and can be more insensitive to harmonics
tem ground relays. Capacitor bank relay- than electromechanical type relays, and thus
ing, including the operating time of the have greater sensitivity. Therefore, lower value
switching device, should be coordinated burden resistors can be used that will avoid satu-
with the operation of the system ground ration of the current transformer.
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SHUNT CAPACITOR BANKS C37.99-1990
0
0
Fig 22
Grounded Y-Connected or Grounded Double Y-Connected Capacitor Bank:
Neutral Current (also change in intermediate tap-point voltage) Versus
Percentage of Capacitor Units Removed from Series Group
Each time the capacitor bank is energized, small- to medium-sized single-bank installations,
momentary capacitor charging currents, in one the neutral current unbalance protection method
phase and in the neutral current transformer, works quite well and is economical. If instan-
can approach the available ground fault value. taneous overcurrent relays are used, they should
Where a parallel bank is already energized, cur- not operate on the initial inrush current.
rents can be on the order of thousands of amperes To prevent protective equipment damage due
[81. Various undesirable effects have been re- to failure of the switching device, the latching or
corded, such as spurious relay operations, relay lockout relay should have contacts wired to the
failures, current transformer failures, charged current transformer cable terminals to short out
substation fences, and ground mat problems. the current transformer secondary after it has
(The neutral connection between banks should operated. The current transformer loading resis-
not be through the ground mat.) However, for tor should be able to withstand the rapid heating,
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C37.99-1990 IEEE GUIDE FOR THE PROTECTION OF
in the event of single phasing, until the unbalance 7.6 Summationof Intermediate Tap Point Volt-
protection voltage relay and lockout relay operate. ages Method, Grounded-Y Bank. Figure 11
The voltage relay and current transformer load- shows an unbalance voltage protection scheme
ing resistor settings should be made to operate for a grounded-Y capacitor bank using capacitor
when the voltage across any capacitor exceeds tap-point voltages. An unbalance in the capacitor
110%of rated voltage. bank will cause an unbalance in the voltages at
the tap point of the three phases. The tap voltage
NOTE: The relay detects only the unbalance in the capacitor percent unbalance due to the loss of individual
bank and in supply voltage. However, this relay will not capacitor units can be determined from Fig 22
respond to capacitor overvoltage due to a balanced system
voltage above nominal. The maximum normal system voltage, (or Eq 6 of Appendix B) by considering the verti-
with capacitor bank energized, should be considered. cal scale as Tap Voltage Percent Unbalance. The
Fig 23
Grounded Y-Connected,A, or Grounded Double Y-Connected Capacitor Bank:
Voltage on Remaining Capacitor Units in Series Group Versus
Percentage of Capacitor Units Removed from Series Group
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SHUNT CAPACITOR BANKS C37.99-1990
voltage of the remaining capacitor units can be 7.6 Neutral Voltage Unbalance Protection Meth-
determined from Fig 23 or Eq 1 of Appendix B. od, Ungrounded-Y Bank. Figure 5(b) shows a
The unbalance protective scheme consists of neutral unbalance relay protection scheme for an
three voltage sensing devices connected between ungrounded-Y capacitor bank Unbalance sens-
the capacitor intermediate point of each phase ing is accomplished by means of a potential sens-
and ground, and a time delay voltage relay with ing device connected between the bank neutral
the third harmonic filter connected to the series- and ground. An unbalance in the capacitor bank
connected (broken A) secondaries of the poten- will cause voltage to appear at the bank neutral
tial device. For an even number of series groups, a with respect to ground. The amount of neutral
midpoint tap is used. For an odd number of series voltage due to the loss of individual capacitor
groups, the number of series groups between the units is determined from Fig 24 or Eq 14 of
tap point and ground should be one less than the Appendix B. The voltage on the remaining capac-
number of series groups between the tap point itor units can be determined from Fig 25 or Eq 10
and the line. The voltage sensing devices may be of Appendix B.
voltage transformers, capacitor coupled voltage The unbalance protective scheme consists of a
transformers, or resistive potential devices. The time delay voltage relay with the third harmonic
relay may include provisions to compensate for filter connected across the potential device sec-
the tap point error voltages caused by inherent ondary. The voltage sensing device may be a volt-
capacitor bank unbalance, fixed system voltage age transformer, capacitive potential device, or
unbalance, and potential device ratio errors. resistive potential device. The voltage sensing
The tap voltage percent unbalance can be device should be selected for the lowest voltage
determined from Fig 22 for isolation of capacitor ratio attainable, while still being able to with-
units in any series group of a capacitor bank hav- stand transient and continuous overvoltage condi-
ing an even number of series groups per phase. tions in order to obtain the maximum unbalance
The values are also valid for isolation of capacitor detection sensitivity. However, a voltage trans-
units in series groups located between the tap former used in this application should be rated
point and the line of a capacitor bank having an for full system voltage, since the neutral voltage
odd number of series groups per phase. However, can be expected to rise to as high as 2.5 per unit
for isolation of capacitor units in series groups during switching. Under these conditions, a de-
between the tap point and ground of banks with rated voltage transformer will be driven into deep
an odd number of series groups per phase, the saturation [14].
values from Fig 22 should be multiplied by the With 3 or more series groups, the change in
following factors: neutral voltage obtained from the secondary of a
voltage transformer, rated for full system voltage,
Total No. of Adjustment Factor is very smaU A voltage transformer of lower
Series Groups For Percent Tap voltage rating and ratio can be used to obtain a
Per Phase Unbalance Voltage usable relay voltage if the primary is gapped.
Flashover of the primary gap will ground the
3 2.0
capacitor bank neutral, short out the voltage
5 1.5
transformer, and prevent operation of the over-
7 1.33
voltage relay. Protection for this condition can be
9 1.25
obtained by using a residual current relay con-
11 1.2
13 nected t o line-current transformers, or to a
1.16
15 neutral-current transformer in series with the
1.14
neutral-voltage transformer and voltage trans-
former gap.
For banks having only three or five series The use of an underrated resistance potential
groups per phase, this may affect the coordina- device, with secondaryvoltage limiter, can permit
tion of alarm and trip level settings. Loss of a relay operation with an open phase to the capaci-
second capacitor unit, in the same phase, but in a tor bank. The resistive potential device should
second series group on the opposite side of the be capable of withstanding this overvoltage con-
potential device tap, has a compensating effect dition.
on the overvoltage and may reduce the unbal- If switch failure could result in continuous volt-
ance signal to zero. In practice, this is not a signif- age exceeding the relay rating (single phasing
icant limitation. due to blown main fuse), operation of the lockout
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C37.99-1990 IEEE GUIDE FOR THE PROTECTION OF
/
0
P No of u n i t s i n group
s NO of series groups '
Fig 24
Ungrounded Y-Connected or Ungrounded Double Y-Connect
(Neutrals Isolated) Capacitor Bank: Voltage Between
Capacitor Bank Neutral and Ground Versus Percentage of
Capacitor Units Removed from Series Group
relay should de-energize the voltage relay. If chat- sized to provide the desired unbalance voltage to
tering of the seal-in unit is a problem when used the relay. If single phasing of the capacitor bank
on ac, a lockout relay contact can bypass the volt- is a possibility (blown primary fuse), and the volt-
age relay contact. age of the neutral relay exceeds its short-time
Another scheme, shown in Elg 5(d), consists of rating, some means of limiting this voltage should
standard capacitor units connected in series to be provided. If the voltage exceeds the continu-
form a voltage divider. A conventional inverse ous rating of the relay, a lockout relay contact
time voltage relay is connected across the should short out the relay through a resistor.
grounded end capacitor. This grounded end Without a transformer for isolation, the relay is
capacitor is a low-voltage unit, 2400 V or less, and connected directly to the capacitor bank ground.
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SHUNT CAPACITOR BANKS (37.99-1990
Fig 25
Ungrounded Y-Connected or Ungrounded Double Y-Connected
(Neutrals Isolated) Capacitor Bank: Voltage on Remaining
Capacitor Units in Series Group Versus Percentage of
Capacitor Units Removed from Series Group
A capacitor voltage divider may also use a car- sensitivity over the single neutral-to-ground volt-
rier coupling type of capacitor with a low-energy age transformer scheme.
static relay. NOTE: Voltage transformers should be rated for line-to-line
Figure 5(a) shows a neutral unbalance relay voltage.
protection scheme using 3 line-to-neutral voltage
transformers with their secondaries connected in 7.7 Double-Y Unbalance Protection Method.
broken A to an overvoltage relay. This scheme has Figure 6 shows four methods of providing unbal-
the advantage of not being sensitive to system ance protection for double-Y banks. Schemes (a)
voltage unbalance. Also, the unbalance voltage to and (b) are ungrounded and use either a current
the overvoltage relay is 3 times the neutral shift transformer and overcurrent relay, or a voltage
voltage, as obtained from F‘lg 24. For the same transformer and overvoltage relay connected
voltage transformer ratio, there is a gain of 3 in between the two neutrals. The effect of system
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IEEE
(37.99-1990 IEEE GUIDE FOR THE PRO"ION OF
voltage unbalances are avoided by both schemes, The neutral voltage shift can be determined
both unaffected by third harmonic currents or from Fig 24 in the same manner as for a single-Y
voltages. The current transformer or voltage bank of the same rating as one section of the
transformer should be rated for system voltage. double-Y bank. Although a low-ratio voltage
The amount of neutral current due to the loss transformer would be desirable, a voltage trans-
of individual capacitor units, in a bank of two former rated for system voltage is required for
equal sections, can be determined from Fig 26. the ungrounded neutral and, therefore, a high
The neutral current is one-half that of a single turns ratio should be accepted. The resulting
grounded bank of the same size. However, the unbalance signal voltage may be very small.
current transformer ratio and relay rating may In Fig 6(c), the neutrals of the two sections are
be selected for the desired sensitivity, since they grounded through separate current transformers
are not subjected to switching surge currents or to a common ground. The current transformer
single-phase load currents, as with the grounded secondaries are cross-connected to an overcur-
neutral scheme. rent relay so that the relay is insensitive to any
Fig 26
Ungrounded Double Y-Connected (Neutrals Tied Together) Capacitor Bank:
Neutral Current Versus Percentage of Capacitor Units Removed from Series Group
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C37.99-1990
Fig 27
Ungrounded Double Y-Connected (Neutrals Tied Together) Capacitor Bank:
Voltage Between Capacitor Bank Neutral and Ground Versus
Percentage of Capacitor UNts Removed from Series Group
outside situation that affects both sections of the neutral and ground. The relay should have a
capacitor bank in the same manner. The current harmonic filter. The amount of neutral-to-ground
transformers can be subjected to switching tran- voltage derived due to the loss of individual
sient currents and, therefore, require surge pro- capacitor units can be determined from a curve
tection. They should be sized for single-phase of Fig 27, or from the equations in Appendix B.
load currents if this is a possibility. The relay does The voltage on remaining capacitor units can be
not require a harmonic filter. The unbalance cur- determined from the curves of Fig 28, or from the
rent can be determined from Fig 22, and the equations in Appendix B.
overvoltage on remaining capacitor units can be
determined from Fig 23. 7.8 Neutral Unbalance Protection Method with
In Fig 6(d), the neutrals of the two-capacitor Compensation for Inherent Unbalance. The
sections are ungrounded but tied together. A volt- trend in recent years has been toward larger and
age transformer, or potential device, is used to larger capacitor banks at transmission voltage
measure the voltage between the capacitor bank levels. The neutral unbalance signal due to the
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IEEE
C37.99-1990 IEEE GUIDE FOR THE PROTECTION OF
W
c3
a
I-
-1
Q
w
Fig 28
Ungrounded Double Y-Connected (Neutrals Tied Together) Capacitor Bank:
Voltage on Remaining Capacitor Units in Series Group Versus
Percentage of Capacitor Units Removed from Series Group
loss of 1 or 2 individual capacitor units, for these To compensate for this fixed unbalance, it is
very large banks, is such that the inherent unbal- necessary to generate an equal and opposite
ance can no longer be considered neghgible. phasor to be summed with the fixed inherent
Ungrounded banks can be split into two equal capacitor tolerance unbalance phasor, to yield a
banks as illustrated in Fig 8. This bank configura- null or zero signal output. The inherent unbal-
tion inherently compensates for system voltage ance at the neutral of the capacitor bank still
unbalances because the neutral current or volt- exists, but the relay is no longer responsive to this
ages are sensed differentially.However,the effects fixed unbalance component.
of manufacturer’s capacitor tolerance will affect A phase-shifting network with amplitude and
relay operation unless steps are taken to com- phase adjustment is used to generate the com-
pensate for this error. The equations in Appendix pensating phasor. The input for the phase shifter
C may be used to estimate the possible effect of should be bus derived to reduce the effect of nom-
the inherent capacitor bank unbalance. inal system voltage changes. The output of the
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IEEE
SHUNT CAPACITOR BANKS C37.99-1990
phase shifter, along with the inherent unbalance bank tap. Any subsequent voltage difference
signal, are summed by means of transformers or between capacitor tap voltage and bus voltage
a summing amplifier. will be due to unbalances caused by loss of capac-
It may not be possible or desirable to go to a itor units within that particular phase (see Fig
split bank arrangement, depending on the indi- 9(a)). Loss of capacitor units in each phase is
vidual circumstances of the application. For detected independently [9], [25].
compensation of system voltage unbalance on The sensitivity of this method is h g h and is
single, ungrounded banks, use is made of the fact used, in particular, for high-voltage banks, or
that the voltage appearing at the capacitor bank banks that consist of a large number of individual
neutral due to system unbalance is the zero capacitors.
sequence component. A zero sequence compo-
nent can be derived utilizing three voltage sensing
devices with their high-side Y connected from
line-to-ground, and the secondaries connected in
a broken A (see Fig 7). Very often, the voltage 8. Protection of Very Large
transformers are already available for station EHV Capacitor Banks
relaying, and all that is needed are low-voltage
isolation transformers to derive the broken A. 8.1 Very Large E W Capacitor Banks. A very
The difference voltage between the neutral unbal- large EHV capacitor bank is generally defined as
ance signal due to system unbalance and the one having more than 15 capacitor units in paral-
broken delta output of the voltage transformers lel per series group, and applied at system volt-
is then adjusted to zero by means of an amplitude ages of 345 kV and higher. Figure 12 illustrates a
control. Once this adjustment is made, the effect typical protection scheme. This section describes
of system voltage unbalance will be compensated the special protection schemes applied to very
for all conditions of system unbalance. The large EHV capacitor banks, beyond what is de-
remaining error appearing at the neutral due to scribed in Section 6 and listed in Table 3.
manufacturer’s capacitor tolerance, can be com-
pensated for by means of the phase shifter circuit 8.2 Voltage-Differential Unbalance Protection
previously described. of Very Large Grounded-YConnected Capacitor
Banks. The advent of very large grounded Y-
7.9 Voltage Differential Protection Method, connected capacitor banks at voltages of 345 kV
Grounded Y Bank. A means of compensation for and above has created the need for a protective
inherent unbalance in grounded-Y capacitor device sensitive enough to detect the loss of a
banks is illustrated in Figs 9(a) and 9(b) for single failed capacitor unit, without being a€fected
a single-Y connected bank and a double-Y con- by variable system voltage unbalance. Protective
nected bank, respectively. This approach is, in relay schemes that can compensate for inherent
essence, three single-phase voltage differential capacitor bank voltage unbalance, and fixed sys-
relays for each bank, as applicable. tem voltage unbalance, were covered in Section 7.
A signal responsive to the loss of individual Most of these protection methods cannot com-
capacitor units is derived by comparing capacitor pensate for variable system voltage unbalance
bank tap voltage with the bus voltage. The capac- and are, therefore, not useful for very large EHV
itor bank tap voltage is obtained by connecting a capacitor banks, where the effects of variable sys-
voltage sensing device between the lowest paral- tem voltage unbalance cannot be ignored. For
lel group (or groups) of capacitors and ground. very large EHV capacitor banks, the loss of a sin-
The bus voltage is usually available. Initially, the gle capacitor unit produces a voltage unbalance
voltage levels are adjusted to be equal, assuming that is small compared to the variable system volt-
that all capacitors are good and no fuses have age unbalance, making detection of a single failed
operated. Therefore, the initial difference signal capacitor unit very difficult (see F’lgs 9(a) and
between the capacitor bank tap voltage and the 9(b)). The voltage differential relay, Device 60V in
bus voltage signals is zero, and the capacitor tol- Fig 12, compares the output of the capacitor
erance and initial system voltage unbalance is banKs tap-point voltage monitoring device against
compensated. If the system voltage unbalance the output of the corresponding bus voltage
should vary, the relay system is still compensated, (phase-to-ground) monitoring device for each
since a given percent change in bus voltage results phase. With this method, inherent variable sys-
in the same percent change on the capacitor tem voltage unbalance is readily compensated.
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C37.99-1990 IEEE GUIDE FOR THE PROTECTION OF
8.2.1 Backup Capacitor Bank Unbalance Pro- The low burden for the overcurrent relay,
tection. For very large EHV capacitor banks, Device 51N, is suggested so that if a ground fault
a backup capacitor bank unbalance protection occurs on the bus in the substation, the discharge
scheme may be used. An overvoltage relay, Device of high-frequency currents will not impose a high
59N in Fig 12, is connected to a voltage trans- voltage on the secondary of the current trans-
former (VT) that measures the voltage across a formers to which the protective relays are con-
low-voltage capacitor unit in the capacitor bank nected. Moreover, the time-overcurrent relay,
neutral. Device 59N is set to detect and alarm for Device 51N, should be set on a low tap (for exam-
the removal of a specified number of capacitor ple, 0.1 A) to provide very fast clearing for ground
units that produce 105%or less of rated voltage faults of low magnitudes. These faults normally
as described in 7.3.2. A second or redundant would not operate the phase-overcurrent relays.
overvoltage relay (not shown) can be used, if The ha-frequency outrush current into an
desired, for a second alarm, and can be set to trip external ground fault will not operate the 51N
after a suitable time delay of several hours. The ground relay, however, the unbalanced capacitor
degree of redundancy and required sensitivity bank load current due to the external fault may
affects the cost and, therefore, requires engineer- be sufficient to cause this relay to pickup, thereby
ing as well as economic judgment. tripping the capacitor bank. To prevent this
The overvoltage relay mentioned above should inadvertent tripping, a normally closed contact of
be equipped with a 60 Hz narrow bandpass filter an overvoltage relay, Device 59R, (set to pick up
to avoid false operations due to harmonic cur- at 15 V secondary) is connected in series with the
rents. A third-harmonic-blocking filter may not trip circuit of the ground relay. This voltage relay
prevent all false operations of this relay. prevents bank tripping for faults involving high
8.2.2 Alarm Levels. In cases where an un- values of ground current. It is important that the
planned trip and lockout of the capacitor bank time-overcurrent relay be properly coordinated
can adversely affect the system, it may be desir- with the overvoltage relay. The overvoltage relay
able to have two alarm levels. The first alarm level should open its contact before the time-overcur-
is selected to respond to the isolation of a single rent relay closes its contact. It is also important
capacitor unit, serving as an alert for scheduling that the time-overcurrent relay resets before the
maintenance. The second alarm level, accompa- overvoltage relay.
nied by a time-delayed trip after several hours,
will warn system operators of an impending lock- 8.4 System Overvoltage Protection. For very
out. This time delay is intended to allow the user large EHV capacitor banks, it is advisable to
to de-energize the bank in an orderly fashion. install overvoltage relays on the bus capacitor-
Normally, the capacitor bank voltage unbalance coupled voltage transformers (CCVT), or bus VT
relay would be set to trip when the remaining to de-energize the bank if the bus voltage exceeds
capacitor units in the affected series group of predetermined levels. Three relays, Devices 59B
units are exposed to more than 110%the rated in Fig 12, may trip the bank switching device
capacitor-unit voltage. However, capacitor manu- instantaneously for extreme overvoltage condi-
facturers may permit even greater overvoltages tions. It may be desirable to time delay operation
for a few hours. of Device 59B to prevent nuisance tripping of the
capacitor bank due to transient overvoltages. A
8.3 Bank Overcurrent Protection. Two sets of time-delay overvoltage relay may be used in lieu
three very-inverse nondirectional time-overcur- of the instantaneous overvoltage relay and sepa-
rent relays with instantaneous attachments, rate timer.
Devices 50/51 in Flg 12, are used to provide
primary and backup protection for the capacitor 8.6 Loss of Bus Voltage. Undervoltage relay,
bank for phase faults, as well as ground faults. A Device 27B in Fig 12, connected to the bus VT,will
single non-directional time-overcurrent relay, detect the loss of the supply bus voltage and will
with an inverse time-current characteristic, De- trip the capacitor bank switching device. Trip-
vice 51N in Fig 12, and connected in the neutral ping of the undervoltage relay is delayed by the
of the current transformers associated with the 62UV timer to prevent de-energization of the
phase-overcurrent relays, may be used. This relay bank for transient undervoltage conditions such
should be very sensitive and have a very low as m a t occur when a source-side switching
burden. A solid-state relay may be necessary to device operates to clear a fault and then auto-
obtain the desired sensitivity and low burden. matically recloses. The undervoltage relay should
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SHUNT CAPACITOR BANKS C37.99-1990
be set such that the relay will not operate for breakers may have phase and ground inverse-
voltages that require the capacitor bank to be time overcurrent protection and the reactor bank
placed in service. and capacitor bank switching devices may have
instantaneous and inverse-time overcurrent and
8.6 Capacitor Bank Breaker-FailureProtection. overvoltage protection. Operation of any of these
If the capacitor bank is connected to the bus by a devices will trigger the static-var-system control,
circuit breaker or circuit switcher that is used for resulting in an alarm and trip. Additionally, the
both protecting the bank and switching the bank static-var-system control itself, will produce an
in service, a breaker-failure scheme may be pro- alarm and trip situation for a number of condi-
vided to remove the bank from the system in the tions. These are loss of dc control power, loss of
event that the bangs switching device fails to gate pulse, emergency trip, instantaneous over-
operate correctly for a fault within the capacitor current, time overcurrent, line undervoltage, and
bank. The breaker-failure protection scheme is loss of reference [lo].
initiated by auxiliary relay 62X (or 62Y) in Fig 12, Certain other protective functions may only
which starts the breaker-failure timer. If the fault require an alarm. From the thyristor section,
has not been cleared by the time the breaker- alarms are initiated for maximum air tempera-
failure timer has timed out, other devices in the ture, minimum air flow, dirty filter, or standby
substation will be tripped by the breaker-failure blower rotating in the opposite direction (due to
protection scheme to clear the capacitor bank the backdraft damper being open). Within the
and its switching device from the system. The static-var-system control, an alarm may be initi-
capacitance switching capability of these other ated when there is loss of one dc power source,
devices should be considered. loss of one line-driver pulse, loss of one gate-
driver pulse, or loss of one filter-capacitor unit.
In general, failures can be divided into two
main classes:
(1) Failures or malfunctions that require that
9. Protection of Filter Banks the entire SVG system be disconnected
from the line; and
9.1 Static VAR Control Filters. Static VAR Gen- (2) Failures or malfunctions that require only
erators (SVG) are being used as replacements for part of the SVG system be removed from
synchronous condensers applied to reduce trans- operation.
ient-voltage flicker in arc furnace circuits. They Capacitor banks, switched by conventional
are also being used by an increasing number of means, but used as an integral part of the SVG,
utilities to rapidly supply leading or lagging VARs can be protected by using the unbalance protec-
on transmission systems [23]. F'gure 13 illus- tion methods as described in Section 7.In addi-
trates a typical SVG schematic. tion, the capacitor banks may be tripped as a
Static VAR Generators usually include a number result of a station overvoltage condition.
of internal circuits that protect the SVG in the Similar protective relay schemes can be applied
event of a variety of unique malfunctions. A to thyristor-switched capacitors, modified where
representative list of such malfunctions is shown required by the switching function. Capacitor
below: unbalance protection is still employed in these
(1) Loss of power; latter schemes, but the switched capacitor banks
(2) Loss of line voltage; are usually of a lower voltage than discussed
(3) Loss of synchronism; above, and are not grounded.
(4) Overvoltage on switch; Harmonic problems have been solved by adding
( 5 ) Overcurrent in switch; inductance in series with the capacitor bank,
(6) Unequal current division in switch; thus creating an L-C filter to divert the dominant
(7) Unequal current division in capacitor bank; harmonic currents from the distribution system
(8) Overcurrent in capacitor banks; [ 111. This precludes amplification of the harmon-
(9) Incorrect water temperature; ics, and the possibility of destructive currents, of
(10) Inadequate water flow; and those frequencies oscillating between the capaci-
(11) Incorrect water purity. tor banks and the power system.
Some of the protective capabilities of the SVG In a majority of SVG applications, a trans-
control circuitry are used for both tripping and former is used to connect the relatively low-
alarm. For example, the incoming line circuit voltage thyristor to the high-voltage supply lines.
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C37.99-1990 IEEE GUIDE FOR THE PROTECTION OF
Differential protection of this transformer, the tive sequence currents. Some percentage of nega-
SVG, and the low-voltage bus are often provided. tive sequence current will appear in generators
Backup protective relaying for the SVG is usually and, if it is high enough, it may be detected by
provided just like any other apparatus on the negative sequence relays. It may be prudent,
power system. therefore, to check the magnitude and distribu-
A first consideration is whether to trip the tion of unbalance currents for typical operating
entire SVG in the event of an internal fault, or to conditions if this control mode is used.
arrange for a number of protective zones within
the SVG. For example, a failure in one of the
harmonic filters may only require tripping that 9.2 HVDC Converter Station Filters. All HVDC
branch, provided that particular harmonic cur- converter installations need a reactive power
rent, flowing in the external system for a period supply. Reactive power from power capacitors is
of time, does not cause additional problems such the most economical, and they can act as a shunt
as resonance with the remaining filters. filter with the addition of tuning reactors at a
Also, consideration should be given for backup modest additional cost. These filters, which are
protection. Since the SVG control provides the connected to the ac side of the HVDC converter
basic protective functions for all components of station, are typically tuned for the 1l t h and 13th
the SVG, including the auxiliaries, backup protec- harmonic, plus a high-pass filter [21]. Older
tion for electrical faults in the main components schemes also require filters tuned for the 5th and
should be sufficient. Basically) this is 60 Hz fault 7th harmonic.
current protection for phases and ground. As Protection of the filter banks is accomplished
previously stated, this may require individual by using the same protection methods as for
protection subsystems to obtain desired sensitiv- shunt capacitor banks. However, the filtering
ity and to provide flexibility in system operation. requirements for the unbalance relays can be
Any relays used, of course, should be coordinated more demanding.
with the SVGs control system's protective func- Voltage of the filter capacitors should be rated
tions. high enough to allow for the effect of the har-
Finally, the protection engineer might examine monic current flowing in the capacitor bank [22].
the characteristics of the SVG to determine if Capacitor voltage rating is the arithmetic sum
they could adversely influence the protective of the fundamental and harmonic voltage across
relaying existing in the utility system external to the capacitor:
the SVG.
The most obvious and unique characteristic of
the SVG is the generation of harmonic currents.
In general, the low level of harmonics passed into where
the power system (normally about 4% maximum
as a composite of all harmonics) should not E, =voltage rating of the capacitor
influence the protective relaying. However, spe- Il =fundamental current
cific cases may need to be examined, especially I h = current of the harmonic to which it is
those where harmonics are used for either re- tuned
straint or operation of the relay. For example, XI = fundamental reactance
transformer differential relays use harmonic re- x h = reactance of the harmonic to which it is
straint to prevent operation during inrush condi- tuned
tions. In terms of operating current, a minimum Where both power factor correction capacitor
7.5% second harmonic content is required to banks and thyristor power supplies are used on
restrain some relays. (In these relays, however, the same power system, the capacitor banks may
the majority of applications use 15%minimum.) resonate with the system inductance at harmonic
This is more than the SVG would produce in the frequencies generated by the thyristors. The
transformer for the typical case. It is unlikely that resulting amplification of system harmonic volt-
any existing relaying system will operate falsely ages and currents can create detrimental effects
due to harmonics generated by the SVG with on the power system, as well as in the station
proper filtering. equipment. Capacitor banks and capacitor unit
The SVG can be applied to control each phase fuses may fail when excessive harmonic currents
independently. If operated in this mode, phase oscillate between the capacitor bank and the
currents may be unbalanced, thus producing nega- power system.
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C37.99-1990 IEEE GUIDE FOR THE PROTECTION OF
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SHUNT CAPACITOR BANKS (37.99-1990
10.3 Surge Arresters. Lightning surges and the secondary winding could be eliminated by ground-
switching of capacitors can result in significant ing the secondary circuit at the CT location, this
system overvoltages. In regions where the light- is not recommended. To do so would impress the
ning activity is high, or in applications where the bank transient potential rise on the secondary
capacitor bank is switched many times daily, cable and present hazardous voltages at the relay
surge arresters may be applied at the capacitor location. Generally, the secondary winding can
bank to limit these transient overvoltages. The withstand these short duration transients with-
ability of the surge arrester to dissipate energy out difficulty. Also, coupling of this transient
that results during capacitor switching opera- voltage to the secondary cable can be greatly
tions is of particular importance to assure proper reduced by routing the cable closely parallel
surge arrester selection. Prestrike and/or re- to the primary ground conductor down to the
strikes in the capacitor bank switching device ground mat and then closely paralleling the
generally cause the highest transient overvoltages, ground mat conductors en route to the relay
particularly for isolated banks. Significant tran- location. In special instances where excessive
sient overvoltages can also occur at the capacitor neutral transient voltages are encountered, it
bank due to surge magnification of resonant may be necessary to insulate the transformer
circuits on the power system associated with case from the local ground to allow connection of
switching of a remote capacitor bank, cable, or one side of the secondary winding to the trans-
transmission line. Metal-oxide type surge arrest- former case. This approach will eliminate the
ers are generally better than silicon-carbide type stress between the secondary winding and the
arresters because they usually have a higher core and will increase the stress between the pri-
energy duty for the same arrester rating, and mary winding and the core. However,the primary
typically absorb less energy per transient event. insulation can generally be expected to be more
robust than the secondary insulation.
10.4 Voltage Sensing Devices. If a voltage trans- To protect the primary winding insulation of a
former, capacitor-coupled voltage transformer, wound primary CT, it is common practice to
or potential device, connected from the bank install a rod gap of 3/s4 to l/i6 in. connected
neutral to ground, is used for unbalance detec- directly across the primary terminals. This will
tion, it should be capable of withstanding switch- limit the voltage impressed across the winding
ing surge voltages of 0.5 to 2.4 times system and prevent primary turn-to-turn breakdown. A
phase-to-neutralvoltage without saturation [ 141. low-voltage surge arrester (varistor) should be
At higher system voltages, higher ratio voltage connected across the secondary terminals to pro-
transformers are required. The use of these higher tect the secondary winding from turn-to-turn
ratio VTs can make the neutralvoltage unbalance breakdown. This device should be insulated from
detection methods become very insensitive. Spe- local ground, again to avoid impressing the bank
cial relaying techniques may be required (see transient potential on the secondary circuit. The
7.6). surge arrester should be chosen to limit the CT
secondary voltage to coordinate with the secon-
10.6 Current Sensing Devices. A reasonably dary circuit insulation voltage rating.
conservative voltage rating for the neutral cur- Nonsimultaneous making and breaking times
rent transformer to withstand the surge voltages of the three poles of the capacitor bank switching
appearing at the bank neutral is 0.2 times the device may allow full phase current to flow in the
system line-to-ground voltage [13]. However, CTs neutral current transformer and relay during the
rated 0.1 of system voltage have been applied switching time. This current can flow for an indef-
without trouble. On small banks, these CTs are initely long period of time if one or two poles of
often wound primary types with low ratios. Dur- the bank switching device fail to operate. For this
ing switching, the bank neutral transient voltage reason, it is important to select the ratio of the
rise can stress the insulation across the (3"s neutral current transformer to result in a secon-
wound primary. It can also stress the insulation dary current of not more that 10 A with full
between the case, which is usually grounded to a capacitor line current in the primary.
local support structure, and the secondary wind-
ing due to the fact that the secondary neutral is 10.6 Surge Protection. The transient current
usually grounded at the remote end (i.e., at the circulating in a capacitor bank during switching
relay location) for safety reasons. Although the is accompanied by an electromagnetic field that
voltage stress between the grounded case and the can induce transient overvoltages in associated
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C37.99-1990 IEEE GUIDE FOR THE PROTECTION OF
apparatus, control systems, and cables. This sec- voltage across the switch before closing, and the circuit-loop
tion will discuss the techniques that experience inductance:
has shown to be effective in minimizing the effects dI/dt = V/L
of these transients. Surge protection techniques for capacitor bank
It is well documented that the switching of applications should take into consideration the
capacitive currents produces transients that are different character of the transient currents pro-
markedly different from those produced by other duced during bank-switching; higher peak cur-
power system switching operations [12]. In the rents and lower oscillation frequencies result,
case of capacitor bank switching, the differences as compared to other power system switching
operations.
Highly damped, non-oscillatory, transient- The circulating paths of the transient currents
current pulses are produced when pre- are also important. These currents flow in the
insertion resistors are employed in the capacitor bank buses, bank ground connections,
bank switching device. Peak currents range capacitor bank ground grid, and, for some condi-
from 1000 to 3000 A. The rise time is about tions, in the bus interconnections between the
1 ps and the fall time is about 600 ps. main switching station and the capacitor bank,
Initial dI/dt is about 3000 A/ps. and in the main station buses and ground grid.
When the main contacts of the capacitor Due to the combination of high current and high
bank switching device close, shorting the frequency, significant transient potential differ-
pre-insertion resistor, oscillatory transient ences can appear across portions of the ground
currents carrying a frequency of 1000 Hz grid due to the grid inductance. The currents are
t o 20000 Hz, a peak current of 1000 to also accompanied by strong high-frequency mag-
2500 A, and a subsequent dI/dt of about netic fields. Therefore, control cables in these
100 Alps are produced. areas are prone to inductive interference and
If resistor pre-insertion is not employed, require careful attention to routing, shielding,
the transient will be oscillatory at frequen- and grounding.
cies in the range of 1000 to 20 000 Hz and 10.6.1 Surge Protection for Current Trans-
the initial dI/dt will be about the same as formers. When the transient currents produced
with resistor pre-inserdon; 1000 Alps. during capacitor bank switching pass through
However, the peak current will be much the primary of the current transformer, its
greater. A typical value is 25 000 A crest. secondary circuit can experience a very large
Similar transient current components can transverse-mode interference voltage. It is not
be superimposed on 60 Hz fault current induced through stray coupling, but rather by the
waveforms for faults in the bank, for bus normal transformer action of the current trans-
faults in the station, and for close-in line former. This can present a serious problem for
faults. both the current transformer and the equipment
If pre-insertion inductors are utilized, peak and instruments that make up its secondary
transient currents are generally less than burden, such as protective relays and data trans-
3000 A. The oscillatory frequency is on the ducers. It is important to note that the reactance
order of several hundred hertz. The maxi- of the burden components at these frequencies
mum dI/dt is, therefore, less than 10 A/ps. can be over 100 times their 60 Hz values. As a
One source [3] has pointed out that additional consequence, high-frequency transient currents,
very high-frequency switching transients of sev- which can be a few hundred amperes, can pro-
eral megahertz (due to traveling waves on the duce extremely high voltages across inductive
capacitor bank bus) will also be produced and burdens.
superimposed on the transients already described. The suggestion is sometimes made that current
This is similar, if not identical, to the transients transformer saturation will prevent the produc-
generated by switching a length of HV bus with a tion of such high secondary voltages. This is not
disconnect switch. true for this situation, however. The secondary
The rate of change of the current, dI/dt, is a volt-second product for each half cycle of the
useful indicator of the potential for inducing high-frequency oscillation is very small compared
interference in nearby control circuits. to that required to produce current transformer
NOTE: Although switching with pre-insertion resistors re-
core saturation at 60 Hz. Therefore, voltage limit-
duces the peak current and eliminates the oscillation,it does ing by current transformer saturation is not likely
not reduce the initial dI/dt. This is determined only by the to occur.
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SHUNT CAPACITOR BANKS
C37.99-1990
- (-)
what from this example depending on the bank
(3)
CB = 2.65 40 000 '. 106 capacitance, current transformer ratios, system
230 103 voltage, and burden impedance.
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(37.99-1990 IEEE GUIDE FOR THE PROTECTION OF
10.6.2 Surge Protection of Voltage Transform- formers, and resistance potential devices can,
ers, Capacitor-Coupled Voltage Transformers with some loss in fidelity, reproduce the capaci-
and Resistance Potential Devices. AC voltage tor bank switching transient voltage. It will
signal sources of various types are used in capaci- appear in the transverse mode at the output
tor bank protection schemes to detect abnormal terminals of the device. This, too, may affect the
conditions in the bank Because they are located operation of relay systems.
close to the capacitor bank, these devices can be 10.6.3 Surge Protection of Relay Systems
directly exposed to the transients or surges pro- Associated with Capacitor Banks. It has already
duced during capacitor bank switching. Surge been mentioned that capacitor bank switching
protection of these devices is mainly a concern of produces the same megahertz-type transients
preventing overstressing of the primary-to-sec- that occur in other Hv switching operations, as
ondary insulation, and the secondary-to-ground well as its characteristic high-energy kilohertz-
(case) insulation by the transient ground poten- type transients. Protective relay systems for
tial differences produced in the bank area during capacitor-bank applications should incorporate
switching. surge protection that is effective for both types of
A peninsula grounding arrangement for the interference.
capacitor bank, along with proper control cable Experience has shown that interference in
shielding, grounding, and routing, provides better control circuits, caused by HV switching opera-
surge protection for ac voltage signal sources tions, is always stronger in the common mode
than the single-point grounding scheme. The than in the transverse mode. Surge protection
higher cost of peninsular grounding may be justi- techniques have been directed mostly toward
fied for very large EHV capacitor bank instal- reducing the common mode. Some of these tech-
lations. niques, such as control cable routing, cable
With the single-point grounding arrangement, shielding and grounding, and isolation, which are
the bank neutral transient potential will be about hlghly effective at megahertz frequencies, are also
1/4 that on the capacitor bank bus (20 kV to 60 kV, effective against the kilohertz common mode
or higher). In this case, a voltage transformer interference due to capacitor bank switching,
connected to measure the capacitor bank volt- and are, therefore, recommended for such instal-
age, bus to neutral, would need to be a two- lations.
bushing design so the case could be safely On the other hand, the surge filters (passive
grounded to the station ground grid (see 5.2). Use EM1 filters) used in the inputs to relay systems,
of a single bushing type, with the case (primary although highly effective at megahertz frequen-
ground) connected to the bank neutral, would cies, are ineffective against capacitor bank switch-
impress the neutral transient voltage between ing transients in the kilohertz frequency range.
the case and the secondary winding, which is Passive kilohertz surge filters for relay input
grounded through the control cable at the relay circuits would require much larger inductors and
location. Failure of the secondary winding insula- capacitors, which could present severe loading
tion would be a strong possibility. Figures 17 and problems for current transformers and voltage
18 illustrate the situation. transformers. Such filters are often not practical.
Conventional HV and EHV magnetic type volt- In capacitor bank switching, the kilohertz in-
age transformers often have primary-winding self- terference in the secondary circuits is strongest
resonant frequencies in the range 500 to 2000 Hz. in the transverse mode because, as already de-
If the bank switching frequency coincides with scribed, it is coupled to the secondary circuits
this self resonance, the capacitor bank transient of current transformers and voltage transformers
may be strongly amplified in the voltage trans- by the normal transformer action of these de-
former output voltage. There is probably little vices. Because it is not practical to use passive
risk of damage to the voltage transformer, but the kilohertz filters in the current transformer and
operation of relays and controls connected to the voltage transformer secondary ac relay input cin-
voltage transformer may be adversely affected. A cuits, the required filtering action should be
resistor in series or parallel with the secondary of achieved by other means. One approach is to
the transformer can be used to dampen the oscil- design active filters as an integral part of the
lation. The resistor value should be such that it relay analog signal processing circuits.
does not influence the signal level to the relay. Finally, all ac input connections to the relay
Finally, all types of voltage transducers, voltage system should be protected against overvoltages
transformers, capacitor-coupled voltage trans- by varistors or spark gaps.
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SHUNT CAPACITOR BANKS C37.99-1990
10.7 Control Cables. All control cable duct runs, Such phase-controlled thyristors generate har-
cable trenches, or direct buried control cables not monics, particularly3rd, 5th, 7th, and 11th. More
specifically associated with capacitor controls or instances of parallel resonance are occurring due
protection should be removed from the imme- to this cause. Some examples of harmonic series
diate area around the capacitor bank This is to resonance with utilities, due to adjacent utility
avoid induction of surges into relaying systems, loads, have been noted. This also includes utility
or possible control cable failure during capacitor distribution circuits that have capacitors that
bank switching. supply medium-voltage industrial and commer-
The routing of control cables from neutral cur- cial loads. In most of the instances, some form of
rent transformers or voltage transformers should harmonic voltage and high-harmonic capacitor
be kept at right angles with respect to the com- currents are involved.Higher voltage-rated capac-
mon neutral for single-point grounding, and in itors may be used [IS], [17], [18], [21].
parallel with the tie to the substation ground for Arc furnaces, in the melt part of their cycle,
peninsular grounding to minimize induction. produce a similar array of troublesome harmon-
These induced voltages can also be minimized by ics, including even-ordered harmonics. While the
shielding the cables and using a radial configura- large furnaces are connected to stiff high-voltage
tion for circuits that are completely contained sources, there are, nevertheless, also small instal-
within one cable so that inductive loops are not lations on distribution circuits that produce the
formed. same effect.
Control cables entering the capacitor bank
area should be kept as close as possible to the 11.3 TelephoneInterference. Another objection
ground grid conductors (4/0copper minimum) to harmonics in the power system is the noise
in the cable trench, or on top of the duct run, or interference produced in communications cir-
in contact with the ground grid conductor if directly cuits. Voice frequency noise interference comes
buried. This is mandatory if a peninsula ground is primarily from the residual or zero sequence cur-
used. Multiple control cable shield grounds are rents that are odd multiples of the third (the
recommended: one at the cable termination in ninth and fifteenth harmonic of the fundamental
the capacitor area, another where the cable frequency). Grounded capacitor banks provide a
enters the main cable trench or duct run, and low-impedance path for these currents to flow.
another where the cable enters the control house, The measure of the capability of a power cir-
or at final termination. All spare control cables cuit to act as a noise source is the telephone
should be grounded at both ends, and at inter- influence factor (TIF). This is a dimensionless
mediate points, if available. quantity indicative of wave form [24] (see IEEE
Std 469-1987 [3]).
Before attempting to apply corrective measures
to a capacitor bank that is suspected of causing
11. System Considerations interference, it would be well to locate the source
of the noise. The best corrective measures are
11.1 Resonance. A shunt capacitor bank forms usually applied at the source. If corrections
a resonant circuit with system inductive elements. should be made at the capacitor bank, modifica-
The resonant frequency may be generated during tions to change the resonant frequency can be
the switching of a remote capacitor bank, giving made.
rise t o excessive voltages and currents and the
possible failure of equipment such as other
capacitors, surge arresters, instrument trans- 12. Practices
formers, and fuses. These undesirable resonant
effects are more likely to occur if the capacitor 12.1 Preparation for Initial Energizing
bank switching device has long arcing time and 12.1.1 Visual Inspection. Inspect all fuses for
multiple restrike characteristics. proper connection and clearance. All porcelain
insulators should be clean and have sufficient
11.2 Harmonics. The capacitor bank may also clearance. The bank switching device and ground
resonate with harmonic currents produced else- switch (if used) should be operable. AU asso-
where, such as remote loads. There is extensive ciated equipment should be carefully inspected
and growing use of thyristors in industry to to have no obvious flaws. Capacitor units should
derive variable potential dc from an ac source. be checked for the correct voltage for the desired
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C37.99-1990 IEEE GUIDE FOR THE PROTECTION OF
number of series groups and parallel capacitor 12.1.7 Initial Energization. V e r a that all
units per series group. relaying systems are operational prior to energiz-
Secondary circuits should be checked for proper ing the capacitor bank. The oscillographic equip-
grounding of cable shields and spare control ment should be started immediately before the
wires (see 10.7). Spare control wires should be circuit breaker, circuit switcher, or equivalent
grounded as necessary. switching device is closed. If the relay protection
12.1.2 Testing of Individual Capacitor Units. operates to trip immediately after initial closing,
The capacitance of each capacitor unit may be the following procedure should be initiated
checked to verify that it is within specified toler- (1) Review oscillographic records to determine
ance. Usually, the capacitor manufacturer will the magnitude of the unbalance current or
maintain capacitor tolerances to within +2% of voltage and on what phase.
each other within a given bank. (2) Inspect the bank for blown fuses or possi-
12.1.3 Testing of Relay Protection. The un- ble flashover damage.
balance relay installation that detects the loss of (3) Test capacitors that are not obviously
individual capacitor units should be calibrated to defective, but have blown fuses.
verify proper pickup current and time delay. The (4) Replace the defective capacitors and/or
lockout and trip operation should also be checked. fuses. Capacitors can be removed from
Backup overcurrent relays should be tested to other phases in order to rebalance the
verify proper pickup current and time delay. The bank.
settings used should be compared with the desired (5) If no problem is found with the capacitor
values that have been calculated. bank or relay installation, review the set-
12.1.4 Sensing Devices. Current transformers ting of the relay that tripped with the oscil-
should be checked for ratio, polarity, excitation, lographic data and revise the setting, if
and dielectric strength to ground. The external appropriate.
circuits should be verified for correctness, conti- (6) If the sensitive unbalance relay is oper-
nuity, and dielectric withstand. ating on the inherent unbalance of the
Voltage transformers, capacitor-coupled voltage capacitor bank and should be calibrated, it
transformers, or potential devices should be may be necessary to raise its setting until
checked for ratio, polarity, and dielectric strength the capacitor bank is energized and the
to ground. The nameplate information should be relay is properly adjusted.
checked to reflect the actual settings of the de- With the bank energized, it may be necessary to
vices. All wiring should be checked and complete. calibrate the protection equipment with actual
When practical, the internal and external wiring system voltages and currents applied, especially
should be dielectric tested. if compensation for inherent unbalance is in-
12.1.6 Operational Test. The station control volved.
source voltage should be applied to all protective Secondary currents from the current trans-
devices, and these devices should be made to formers should be recorded along with phase
simulate response to a fault, such as closing the angles to verlfy that the installation is correct,
contacts of an electromechanical relay. The and to provide for future reference.
proper operation of the appropriate switching 12.1.8 Additional Tests. After the capacitor
device should occur. bank has been energized and all protection suc-
12.1.6 Special Recording. An oscillograph or cessfully placed into service, the alarm level (if
portable recorder can assist in diagnosing prob- used) and the lockout level should be checked.
lems associated with initial energization of a large Disconnect one capacitor unit and re-energize
capacitor bank The following parameters should the bank. The alarm should pickup. Verify opera-
be recorded tion of any remote displays, if used. Disconnect
(1) All three-phase currents; the critical number of capacitor units and verify
(2) All three-phase voltages (if voltages are that the sensitive relays will operate to trip and
available); lock out the bank. V e r a proper relay targets and
(3) Capacitor-bank neutral current (or volt- remote displays, if used.
age); and
(4) The outputs of the capacitor-bank sensing 12.2 Response to Alarm or Lockout
devices. 12.2.1 Inspection (after de-energizingbank).
A calibration trace should be run on each Immediately inspect the capacitor bank to deter-
channel used. mine the location of the fault. Identify blown
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SHUNT CAPACITOR BANKS C37.99-1990
fuses and/or obvious capacitor unit failures. If Beehler, J. E. “Capacitance Switching with Power
available, review oscillographic traces. If inter- Circuit Breakers,” IEEE conferenceP a m , 68-CP-
nally fused units are used, the failed units should 161-PWR, 1968.
be located by measuring the capacitance of all
the units. Behrendt, K. C. and Ross, M. W. “Protection Dis-
12.2.2 Capacitor Unit Removal and Replace- tribution Substation Capacitor Banks at Low
ment. Remove the obviously defective capacitor Cost,” Transmission & Distribution, Sep. 1983,
units and test any other capacitor units that have vol. 35,no. 9, pp. 22, 24, 26, 28.
fuses blown. Boskamp, J. B. “Protection of Bulk Capacitor
Replace the removed capacitor units or relo- Banks,” Elsctrical h t h , Dec. 1963/Jan. 1964,
cate existing capacitor units in the bank in order parts I and 11, p. 41.
to rebalance the series parallel groups for capac-
itance and voltage. Relocation of capacitor units Keezer, D. C. and Downing, W. C. Jr. “Relay Pro-
and changes to the bank configuration may tects Floating Neutral Capacitors”, Electrical
require a change in the unbalance relay settings. World,Mar. 11, 1963, p. 86.
In cases where a large number of the capacitor Marek, J. R. “Innovative Fusing Techniques for
units in the bank have blown fuses, for example the Protection of Shunt Capacitor Banks,” IEEE
25% or more, it is advisable to test all capacitor Transactions and Distribution conference,Sep.
units and verlfy fuse ratings. The energizing pro- 1981, no. 81 TD 709-5, p. 5.
cedure noted in 12.1.7 should be followed.
12.2.3 Returning Bank to Service After Lock- Marek, J. R. “Improved Fusing Can Reduce Many
out. If only a few capacitor units have been PCB-Capacitor Problems,” Electric Light and
replaced, the bank can be returned to service R”, vol. 59, no. 11,Nov. 1981, pp. 50, 52.
with a minimum of readjustment of the unbal- McCauley,T. M., Pelfrey, D. L., Roettger, W. C., and
ance relay. These adjustments can be performed Wood, C. E. “The Impact of Shunt Capacitor
after the bank is energized. Installations on Power Circuit Breaker Applica-
If a large number of the capacitor units have tion,” IEEE Transactions on Power Apparatus
been replaced, attention may have to be given to and Systems, vol. PAS-99, no. 6, Nov./Dec. 1980,
recalibration of the sensitive protection after the p. 2210.
bank is re-energized. Refer to 12.1.7.
Additional tests, as noted in 12.1.8,may be per- Mikhail, S. S. and McGranaghan, M. F. “Evaluation
formed in order to verify full protection and of Switching Concerns Associated With 345 kV
alarm. Shunt Capacitor Applications,” IEEE Trasac-
12.2.4 Servicing Bank Following Alarm Con- tions on Power Systems, vol. PWRD-1, no. 2, Apr.
dition. When system conditions permit, the bank 1986, p. 221.
should be taken out of service to replace defective Neumann, M. E. “Philosophy of Shunt Capacitor
capacitor units and/or capacitor fuses. If replace- Bank Protection,” Presented at the canferencefor
ment capacitor units are not available, the bank Protection Relay Enginsers, Allis-Chalmers Cor-
may be rebalanced by removing corresponding poration, Apr. 16- 18, 1973.
units from each series group in all phases. Such
rebalancing, or other changes to the bank confg- Newell, R. J., Risan, M. D., Raatz, D. D., and Hauth,
uration, may require a change in unbalance relay R. L. “Staged Field Testing of the Victory Hill
settings. Static VAR Control,”IEEE Transactions on Power
Apparatus and Systems,vol. PAS-99, no. 2, Mar./
Apr. 1980, p. 426.
Petrus, K. J. “Evaluation of Capacitor Protection,”
13. Bibliography The Line, 81-1, p. 21-8.
Pflanz, H. M. and Lester, G. N. “Control of Over-
Alexander, R. W. “Synchronous Closing Control voltages on Energized Capacitor Banks”, IEEE
for Shunt Capacitors,” IEEE Transactions on Transactions on Power Apparatus and Systems,
Power Apparatus and Systems, Sep. 1985, vol. May/Jun. 1973, T72 541-1, pp. 907-914.
PAS-104, no. 9, p. 2619.
Ransom, J. C. W. and Moulton, C. H. “Relay for
Application of Capacitors to Power Systems, 4th Shunt Capacitor Bank Protection,”Allis-CZws
ed., Westinghouse T & D, pp. 233 - 264. Engiwm-iw Reviau, vol. 31, no. 1, 1966.
51
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C37.99-1990 IEEE GUIDE FOR THE PROTECTION OF
Saine, J. A., “Shunt Capacitor Bank Connections,” “Unbalance Protection of Large Capacitor Banks,”
Distribution, Jan. 1969,pp. 22-24. Design.Principles and M M ,McGraw-Edison
Company, Feb. 1962.
Schultz, D. E., Shelley, D. A., and Zulaski, J. A.
“Advanced Technology Solves Big Rivers Capaci- Walsh, G. W. “Power System Considerations Relat-
tor Protection Problems,” Electric Light and ing to Thyristor DC Drive Applications,” Indus-
pbwer,vol. 58,p. 51. trial POLoer Systems,vol. 2, no. 2, Jun. 1968.
Stone, H. C. “High-VoltageCapacitor Bank Design Whitman, B. D. ‘‘Internally Fused Capacitors Re-
Factors,” McGraw-Edison Company Technical duce Environmental, Reliability Problems,” Elm-
Bulletin, no. 104,pp. 2-61. tric L i g u and Power, May 1980,p. 39.
52
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Appendixes
(These Appendixes are not a part of IEEE C37.99-1990, IEEE Guide for the Protection of Shunt Capacitor Banks,but are
included for information only.)
These Appendixes contain tables, formulas, and currents and frequencies for switching capacitor
equations that will be a source of information to banks, in addition to useful data for evaluating
the relay engineer in determining voltages, inrush the protection of shunt capacitor banks.
Appendix A
Symbol Definitions
F2 = number of series groups within one 4 = variance of phase angle between two
phase which each have a single capac- phases from 120”
itor eliminated AC = per unit variation of capacitance
Vc = rated capacitor voltage, V between phases
VCl = voltage across the series group with VTG = voltage between intermediate tap
removed capacitors, V point and ground, V
AV,, = voltage change across the series vNG = neutral to ground
group with removed capacitors, V V” = voltage between neutrals, V
VCZ = voltage across the series group with kvaru = individual capacitor reactive power
the correct number of capacitors, V rating, kVA
AV,, = voltage change across series group with kvar, = capacitor bank reactive power rating,
the correct number of capacitors, V kVA
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Appendix B
Equations
(Refer to Appendix A for symbol definitions.)
P-FI
vc2 = vu S ( P - F l ) + F1
3vu; (P-F,)
vc2 = 3s (P-Fl) + 2F1
6Vu*P
'cl = 6s (P-F 1 ) + 5F1
Current and voltage change for F1 capacitor
failures in the same series group relative to
normal values:
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VLG F1 11 ( 6 s - 5 )
VNG = 6 s ( P - F , ) + 5F,
(Eq 18) Pml = F,
6s
Table B1
60 Hz Fault Current and Voltage with One Unit Shorted
___.
Voltage on Each
Y Bank Remaining Group in Series
Configuration
__-- Fault Current With Faulted Group
- __________
S VLG
Grounded -
s-1 I$* s-1
Single 3 VLG
Ungrounded 3s- 2
Double 6 vu;
Ungrounded 6s-5
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Appendix C
Equations for Effect of Inherent Unbalances
(Refer to Appendix A for symbol definitions.)
Table C l is intended ils a rule of thumb for on the displacement signal of various bank
determining the effect of inherent unbalances protection schemes.
Table C1
Effect of Inherent Unbalance on Displacement Signal
Shunt Capacitor Effect of Capacitor Effect of System Voltage Effect of System Voltage
Bank Configuration Manufacturing Tolerances Maenitude Changes Phase Angle Change
Potential Sensing 3
Grounded Y with Rm
Differential Potential AVTG = A c * v , * y ( s - s T ) AVTG = 0
Sensing S
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Appendix D
Inrush Current and Frequency for Switching Capacitor Banks
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