Selectionof ProtectionDevicesfor Motor Feeder

Introduction
Motorsare the backboneof industry.The use of motorsis also rapidlyincreasingin commercialestablishments.
Protectionof motor,
hencehasassumedexlremeimportanceso asto keeptheseprocessesfunctioning safelyand continuously.

The mainpurposeof motorprotectionsystemis to protectthe motorwindingsfrom excessivetemperature.overloading,overvoltage,

undervoltageandsinglephasingaretheprimarycause6for hightemperature in motor. lJnbalancedsupplyvoltagecanalsoleadto
over-temperaturein motofs. In caseof motorswherethe motoris cooledby the mediumit drives e.g.fans,submersiblepumps under
loadingcanalsoresultin over tempefaturein motors.

Studiesshowthat about40% of the motorfailuresare due to electricaliaultslikeovercunent,singlephasing& shortcircuit.Henceit is

extremelyimportanttoselect effectivemotorprotectiondevicesto safeguardmotorsagainstanyofthe abovefaultsthatwillmakemotor
windingstoe)lceedsafeworking temperature.Moreimportantly,the protectiondevicesshouldbe coordinated.[ngroper:]
--'
lead
@Jr_dinatioh-!an to.

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I \ I
SCPD{ Fuse/ N4CCB
/ MPCB)
I ' t I

imi
r l !
:l::
i| *'1J Ii Starter( Overloadrelay+ Contactor
)
t t :
i- t i- ' l i
@
Fig,1

ShartqirsuttProl€cliqnDe,vice..$
Bimetallicthermaloverloadrelayis the most effectrveand provenprotection deviceagainststalling,singlephasingand smallto
, moderateoverloadrng.rSCPDSare used ,s ti; back up to the stader for providingprolectionagainstshort circuitconditron.The
,r comriionlyuied SCPD6are'SwitchDisconnectorFuses( with H.R.C.fuse) andMouldedcasecircuitbreaker(MCCB).Motorprotection
i circuitbreaker(MPCB)has emergedas a cost effectivealternativeas it providesprotectionagainstbolh, small overloadsand sho.t
circuitfaults. A judiciouschoiceof these devicesis extremelyimportantfor a properlyco-ordinatedand efficientmotorprotection
. scheme,givingtheoptimumbenefittotheenduser

,. ThermalOverloadrelav:
'ihermal
overloadrelay shouldprotectthe motor againstsinglephasing& overloadingblockedrotorcondition. At the same time, it
shouldpermitstartingofthe motor. In otherwords,ilshould withstandstartingcurrentfora durationequal to the startingtime ofthe
motof.

partaiSel) hasfacilitated 'Trip repfoducedinTable1.A

tEC60947-4-1(tS139+Z selectionofa relaybydefining CIass'.Tripclassesare
'blocked rotorcuffentwithstandtime'forthe motorwith maximumtriptime.
retayof appropriateirip classcan be selectedby comparing
'blockedrotorcurrentwithstandtime'of 15seconds,the relayshould havetriPtimelessthan15secondsat
Forbxample,for a motorwith '10ATripClasswillprovideadequateptotection.
a currentequaltoblockedrotorcurrent.Hence,\ryithreferenc€to Table1,a relayof

TABLE1:TRIPoLASS FORTHERMAL
OVERLOADRELAYS
Tfip Class TrippingTime,Tp,
Seconds*

'10A 2<TP<='19
'10 4<TP<=19
20 6<TP<=29
30 9<TP<=39
' a l 1. 2
New generationof thermaloverloadrelaysincorporating'diffefentialmechanism'provideexcellentprotectionagainstphase
unbalance andphasefailuresevenwhenmotoris not runningat fullload.Unbalanced voltagesresultin highunequalcufrentsin
statorwindings and consequently rise. Thoughbalancedvoltagesare preferred,
highertemperature in someapplications,
voltage
unbalanceis unavoidableand some deratingmightbe necessary.Wlere a motor is derated,selectiono{ overloadrelayshouldtake
intoaccountthe deratingfactor.
Fig 1. ls lhe single line diagramshowingcomponentsof a typicaldirect-onlinemotorstarterfeeder.

$hqtreusu!1Iro_lgeliyc_psylseclSgEDL
Fuse,MCCB& MPCBarewidelyacceptedasthe SCPDsfor (motorfeederprotection). Whiletheyaregenerally fastin clearing
S.C.faults,
they do take finitetime to operate. Bythe time SCPD interruptsshort circuitcunent, certainamountof faultenergypassesthroughthe
protectedcircuit.Allthe downstreamdevicesandcablesinthe protectedcircuitaresubjectedto stressescorresponding to thisenergy.

The two importantparameterswhichindicatetheextentofstressesgeneratedby shortqrcuits are'l?l letthrough'and 'cut-offcurrent'.

Theseare explained in Fig2.11 letthrough'signiflesthermalstresses.'Cul-offcunent(lc)'isindicaliveofelectro{ynamicstresses
thatvariousdevic€sand links/ cableswill haveto withstand Lower'l't letthrough'and 'cut-offcurfentindicatemoreefficientSCPDand
beter shortcircuitprotection.

11(tet- thror.rgh
energy)
a the areaunderthecurve

H.R.C.fuse isthe mostefficientand popularshortcircuitprotectjondevice. Fuseis usedalongwitha swilching device( SDFS) & has
minimumletthroughenergy&cutoffcurrent.HenceH.R.C.fuseoffersthe mosteconomicalproteclionpackage ( alongwithstarter)for
motorprotection.
Thedevelopment ofcurrentlimitingMoulded CaseCircuitBreaker(MCCB)hasbroughtwideracceplance of MCCBasSCPDformotor
protection.VVhileMCCBofferthe majoradvanlageof lowdowntime& enhanc€dflexibilitydue to availabilityofvariousaccessories,the
letthroughenergy& cutoffcurrentof MCCB arestillhighercomparedlo H.R.C.Fuses,

MotorProteqtionCircuitBreakercan be used in twoways. ltcan be useddirectlyforswitchingofa motot This is very costeffective.

Howeverthe electricallife of MPCB is limitedcomparedto that of a contactor Moreover,a separateundervdltageprotectionwill be
requ,red.

MPCBcanbe usedalongwitha contactor SinceMPCBcombinesthermaI aswell as shortc.ircuitprotection,it obviatesthe

Alternatively,
needof a relay. Hence,in suchprotection
scheme,MPCBwilltripandinterrupt
for alltypeof laults& contactorwillbeusedpurelyfor
swrtchingONorswrtching OFFtheload

Co-ordination
of thermaloverload
relay& SCPD:
IEC/ BS / EN specific€tionsrequirethat thermaloverloadrelaysand SCPDare co-ordinatedto ensurethat they operatesatisfactorjly
underallloadandfaultconditions.Following to achieveproperco-ordination
twoaspectsneedto beconsidefed :

- Discrimination
betweenthermaloverload
relavandSCPD
- Adequacyofshortcircuitprotection

Dicqr!!ninatiarlj
To understandvariousconsiderations for pfoperco-ordination,time-currentcharacteristics
of themal overloadrelay(curveB), HRC
fuse (curveC), MCCB with only instantaneous release(curveD) and MPCB (curveE) are superimposedon motorstarting
(curveA) in Fig.3. Iniersec{ionof characteristicsofthermal overloadrelayand Fuse/ l\4CCBis termedas'cross-over
characteristics
point'andcorrespondingcurrentas'cross-overcuffent' lco.

.,!}1il*
 ^;q,

"h,..*1,.t.""
Followingpointsareto be ensuredwhile selectingcomponqntsto havepropedycq-ordinated -;''i"7^'Jt '
motorprotection: 't

' rl""-7ai:iil'l-;i;-L."'iri,;#,-; f y"''' !.-.,

- t
(1) Appropriatefatingof contactorissafectedbasedon motorrarings..-/., ll ltv e/ .'tn*o+r '!l (,?/ AfPh€ o {''."ls .'tr'. a' ')
'u f! ./,,*l;1
(2) Thermaloverload relayofappropriate'Trip
Class'is selected.Timecunentcharactedstics
of the relay shouldremainabovemotor$t'
startingcharacleristics
asshownin Fjg.3 yi
r.4!
'
(3) Forfaultcurrentslowefthan 'cross-over
current lco',relaywill respondfasterthanSCPDandhencecontactorwill interruptthe fault 14f'
current.Faultcurrents higherthanlcowillbeintenupted bySCPD.lcodependson selection forSCPD. Hence,ratrngofSCPDlsso
chosenthatlco is lessthanratedbreakingcapacityofthe contactor A

(4) Relayandcontactorshould be abletowithstand

lcofora durationequaltotriptimeoftherelay.IEC/BS/ENstandardsrequirethat
the contactor
shouldbe ableto withstand
atleastcurrentequalto8 times AC-3rating(6 timesfor ratingshighefthan630A)for 10
seconds-

(5) WhileusingMCCB or MPCB,attenlion needsto be givento motorpeakstarting currenl.ToavoidoperationofMCCB/MPCB during

starting,instantaneous
releaseis chosenas 12 timesthe full load currentofthe motor. This thumb rule assumesmolorstarting
curenteoualto 6timesfullloadcurrent.

In caseofhighefficiencymotors,startingcufrentscouldbe about8 timesfull loadcurrent. Forsuchapplication,MCCB ratingneedto be

selectedsuchthatinstantaneous releasesettingis higherthan 12 (about14)timesfull loadcurrentto avoidnuisancetrippingduring
stanrng.

Similady,whileusingMCCBas a SCPDfor Star-Deltastarter,consideration needsto be givento peak currentassociatedwith change

overfromStarto delta.lnstantaneous
releaseof MPCBis normallysetat 12timesthe rating. Henc€,possibilityofnuisancetrippingneed
ro be consideredwhileusingMPCBfor protection of highefficiencymolorsorforstardeltastarter.

TYPE1 ANDTYPE2 CO-ORDINATION

IN MOTORFEEDERS
Standardslike IEC : 60947'4-1and lS : 139474-1 specifymotorprotectionrequirements. Theserequirementsare for selectionof
switching& protectiondevicefor motorfeeders.Sincethereare morethan one switching& protectjondevice,it is necessaryto co-
ordinatelhe selectionoi componentsfor a motorfeeders.This is to be done keepingin mind the capabilitiesof the individual
components.Sucha co-ordinatedselestionwill firstly,ensuresafetyto the user & secondly,provldethe expectedperformanceI life
of the feeder components.Specifically,an improperlyco-ordinatedsystemcan leadto
. Highelectro-dynamic force(magneticforceproportronaltoI peak)
. Lowerthermalstressesleadingto reducedheat(lt)
. Nuisancetrippingof / opefalionof SCPD undersmalloverloadsleadingto reducelife of SCPD
. NuisancetrippingofSCPDduringmotorstarting (DOL)
. Nuisancetrippingof SCPDduringtransientconditionslike opentransitionstartingof star delta starterstarting

Selectionof componentsinvolvesco-ordinationof characteristics

of variousdevicesi.e of the overload relay& of the shortcircuit
protectiondeviceof the motorfeeder

Thereare two type oi co-ordination

specifiedin the standards.They are the Type I co-ordinalion & Type 2 co-ordination.

Type 2 Co-ordinationmeansthat the startermust exhibitlittleor no damagefollowinga shortcircuittest and shouldbe ableto be
returnedto properservic€withoutreplacingany parts,That is, afterbeingsubjectedto a short circuilcurrent,the devicedoes not
requiremajormaintenancelike replacementof contactsofthe contactoror replacementof relay{hussavingconsiderabledowntime.

In the caseof Typs 1 co-ordination on the other hand,the starterafrerundergoinga shortcircuittest may get damage& is ftt for
use only aftercarryingout majormaintenancework like replacementof conlactsor replacementof relay.

Type 2 co-ordinationchartsare usuallypublishedby the manufacturers

of motorfeedercomponents.L&T'schartsare givenin the
pagesfrom......Thesechartsshowthe selectionof differentproductcombinationsfor a motorfeeder lt is importantto notethat the
validityofthe productselectionis contingenton usingcomponentsfromlhe same manufacturer

chartsgivesthe optimumbenefitto the end user in termsof

Selectionof componentsaccordingto these Type 2 Co-ordination
safety,reljabiljty& durability.

After ensuringproperdiscfimination,selectionof contacto(relayand fuse/ MCCBi MPCBshouldbe reviewedfor shortcircuit

protection.As describedearlier,the selectedcontactorand relayshouldbe able to withstand'11 let through' of chosenSCPD. This
can be establishedonly throughextensive testing.

IEC / BS / EN 609474-1 have specjfiedelaboratetests for verificationof performanceundershortcircuitcondiiion. Thesetesls a.e

carriedoutattwocurrents.'r'currentand'lq'current.Testsat'r'currentarecloserportrayalofactualapplicationconditions.'r'currentis
'lq'cunent is the maximum
definedcorrespondingto AC-3 ratingof the starter Theseafe shownin Table2. shortcircuitcurent the
combination canwithstandassoecifiedbvthemanufacturer.
 T A B L E2 : S H O R T C I R C U I T
PERFORMANCE:'r' CURRENT
'i Cuffent
RatedOperational
Currentle AC-3 KA

0< le< = 16
16<le<=63
6 3 <l e <= ' 1 2 5 5
125<le<=315 10
315<le<=630 18
630<le<=1000 30
1000<le<=1600 42
1600<le To be aqreed

Co - ordinationwith Fuse

CONTACTORBREAKING
t
r //9APACITY
I
T
CROSSOVER
eurve C
I
NT
M Curve B
E MOTOR
CURRENT

OVERLOADRELAY
FUSE

5-6ln
cURRENT--+

co - odinatiofl with MCCB

I
T

Co - ordinationwithlrlPcB

I
T
I

Fig.3

.si*t:
;:111?r5lr
S,qFr$4ry
The effectivemotor feeder protectionshould protect motor against any overcurrentincludingshort circuit currentthat can cause
excessivetemperaturein the motorWindingsfrom exceedingsafe workingtemperature.Combinationofthermal overloadfelayand
H.R.C.fuseis mosteftectiveandprovenmotorprotection.MCCBsandIMPCBsare beingincreasinglyusedfor motorfeederprotection.

Contacto.,thermaloverloadrelayand SCPDneedto be properlyco-coordinated to ensurethat they operatesatisfactorily

underall load
andfaullconditions.Performance of a contactor
anda relaybackedup by a SCPDundershortcircuitconditionscanbeprovenonly
through extensivetesting.IEC/lS / EN60947 4 1 specifyelaboratetests.

lmproperco-ordi canleadto:

High lorce ( force

High stressleads heat rougnj
Nuis ofSCPDunder ovefloaos,
trippingof durin9motor /,tlns( DOL).
'{uisancetrippingof SpPD duringtr conditions likeopen
of lowertimes and maintenance lype 2
, reliability& durability.

TYpeof motorstartinq
The mosl commonmethodof motorstartingfollowedare eitherdirecton line ( DOL ) and Star/ Delta. DOLstartingis the simpledirect
switchingof motor.Howeverit also leadsto a high startingcuffent.Star/ Deltamethodis adoptedin the motorfeederswhere high
startingcuffentis notacceptable.

DOLStartinq
While DOLsta(ing methodis simple& most commonlyused,care haslo be takenwhileselectingthe SCPD& relay.The possibllityof
highcurrentpeak& higherstartingtimeduringstartingmustbe kept in mind.Thisis especiallyimporlantwhilechoosingMCCB& MPCB
as SCPD as these devicecan sense currenlpeaks & may trip. Henc€ it is recommendedto selectMCCB & NIPCBwith magnetic
thresholdof at least '12timesof motorfull load currentfor all standardmotors& at least 14 times of full load currentfor highefficiency
motofs

_slar/Pe.Ea€laltrEs
Stardelta startingmethodis popularlyusedto reducethe motorstarlingcurrent.ln suchconnection,the motorwindingis connectedin
star modeto startwith.When it reachesa certainspeedthe motor( usually80 % of full speed),windingconnectionis changedto delta
mode.Stardeltastarlingcanbe oftwotypes:

1. OpenTfansition
2. ClosedTransition

In the c€se of most commonlyused opentransitionstarting,duringchangeoverfrom starto delta mode,the supplyto the motorgets
disconnectedfor few milliseconds.Dufingthis pedodthere is no voltageacfossthe motorterminaland the motoracts as a generaior
momentarily& back.emfis generated.\/vhenihe deltacontactorcloses,full linevoltageappearsacrossthe motortefminal.lf the motor
backemfandthelinevoltagearein phase,lhetransient currentpeaksmaybe as highas 16- 18timesthefullloadcurrentofthemotor
This can leadto nuisancetrippingofthe SCPD( especiallyin feedersinvolvingMCCBor MPCBas SCPD) in the protectionsystem.In
a jerk, whichin somecasesmay be critical.Hencethe trippingchafacleristicof the SCPDmustbe
addition, the motor.willexperienc€
propedyselectedto avoidanynuisancetrippingduringthe changeoverfromstarto deltamode.

Wlth closedtransitionstarling,the drange over from star to delta mode is madewithoutdisconnectingthe motorffom the line.In this
case,the changeoverfrom6tartodeltatakesplacelhroughthreeresislors.Theseresistorsdo nol allowfulllinevoltageto appearacross
the motorteminalandalsotherevvillbe no breakin the supplyto the motor.Henceclosedtransitionmethodeliminatesproblemsofhigh
transientcurrentpeaksin the system& jerksto the motot However,lhismethodis usedonlyin critical& sensitivemotorsas it leadsto an
increasein installation
& maantenance cost.

Hencefactorsliketype of starting,methodof changeoverfromstarto delta,startjnglime & cunentofthe motor, efflciencyof motoretc.

are very crucialfor selectionof propermotor protectiondevic€sto achievetype 2 co-ordination& henceensuresafety,reliability&
durabilitv
oftheinstallation.

chartsfor selectionof variouscomponentsof a

motorfeederare givenin the following,pages.
Thechartsare,forlq = 50kAat 415V,3@,
50Hzas perstandards: IEC60947=4-1,
lS: 13947(Par14/Sec 1),EN 60947-4-1 .