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Arresters
February 9, 2019 Varistor Blocks 15 min read
before it fails than to deal with an unplanned resulting outage. For example,
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failure statistics compiled by utility industry insurers show a notable increase in
signi cant transformer events over the past 15 years, with about 45% of
failures due to electrical disturbances. Some 16% of these are due to lightning.
This raises the concern whether critical substation apparatus have su ceint
protection levels.
The following article from 2011, contributed by Hans-Ove Kristiansen and Kjetil
Liebech-Lien of Doble in Norway, discussed the important topic of surge
arrester assessment with the goal of diagnosing and preventing incipient
failures so that remedial action can be taken.
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There are several mechanisms that can cause degradation or, in the worst
case, failure of MOSAs:
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• Sealing defects leading to moisture ingress;
• Surface discharges due to contamination;
• Overloading due to temporary or transient overvoltages;
• Long-term ageing at normal service voltages, e.g. when the speci cation is
inapproprtiate for actual system voltage and overvoltage stress;
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• Internal partial discharges.
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At some point, the resistive leakage current can then exceed a critical limit
where the energy accumulated in the blocks exceeds the arrester’s capability
(i.e. the energy that it can dissipate to the surroundings). The arrester will then
become thermally unstable (often referred to as ‘thermal runaway’) and fail.
Failure Modes
1. An arrester equipped with a porcelain housing can, in the worst case,
explode and cause severe consequential damage. Of course, if the arrester has Advertisement
a polymeric housing, the risk of heavy, sharp objects being scattered is far
lower.
2. The arrester could trigger an earth fault (e.g. due to internal ashover). Such
an arrester can at times be di cult to identify.
Several methods and indicators are currently used for in-service monitoring,
diagnosis and assessment of MOSAs. These vary both in handling complexity
and level of information provided.
The two main approaches are online and o -line measurements. O -line Your Email
measurements provide a testing environment with full control over
parameters that a ect reliable and repeatable measurements. This approach PLEASE SIGN ME UP
requires de-energizing the arrester and using a portable voltage source or,
alternatively, taking the arrester to a laboratory.
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1. Visual inspection
This is the most commonly used diagnostic method for arrester condition
assessment and a variety of on-line and o -line methods are available. In the
eld, this parameter is normally measured only at the earthed end and the
arrester must therefore be equipped with insulated base and leads separated
from earth potential.
Electrical Properties
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Current-Voltage Characteristics
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Under normal service conditions, the arrester carrys a small but continuous
leakage current, typically in the range of 0.2 to 3 mA. This current is dominated
by its capacitive component, while the resistive component might be in the
range of only 5 to 20% of this amount. Moreover, the resistive component is
temperature and voltage dependent, as seen from a typical current-voltage
characteristic curve shown in Figure 1.
the range of 50 to 80% of its rated voltage, Ur. (De nitions might vary
depending on whether ANSI/IEEE C62.11 or IEC 99-4 is used).
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Leakage Current
The current-voltage
characteristic shown in Figure 1
is representative for a MOSA
when stressed by a pure,
sinusoidal voltage (fundamental
frequency component only).
https://www.inmr.com/condition-assessment-of-substation-surge-arresters/ 5/11
4/2/2020 Assessing Condition of Substation Arresters
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The resistive components (i.e. the 1st and 3rd) at any speci c voltage and PLEASE SIGN ME UP
temperature will re ect the current-voltage operating point characteristic of an
arrester and change during ageing. Both these components can therefore be
used as a measure of the arrester’s operating condition. However, for eld
measurements in three-phase con gurations, the best practical solution is to
determine the 3rd harmonic component of the resistive current.
The leakage current for any particular arrester can vary across a wide range
due to: 1. harmonic content of the system voltage; 2. actual temperature of the
ZnO elements caused by both ambient conditions and any discharges; and 3.
operating voltage.
This 3rd harmonic capacitive leakage current component could be of the same
rd
size or higher than the 3 harmonic resistive component generated by the
https://www.inmr.com/condition-assessment-of-substation-surge-arresters/ 6/11
4/2/2020 Assessing Condition of Substation Arresters
arrester. The evaluation error in this case could be large. For example, if the
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third harmonic content in the voltage is 0.5% or even 1%, the evaluation errors
in the third harmonic component will be in the ranges of ± 50% and ±100%
respectively.
Furthermore, since the harmonic content varies with load and thereby with
time, it will not be possible to tell if an apparent increase in resistive leakage
current is the result of real ageing (increase in the resistive leakage current) or
due simply to varying harmonic content in the operating voltage (which is of no
concern). Measurements on transmission grids (300 kV to 420 kV) have shown
that the 3rd harmonic content is typically in the range of 0.2 to 1%. A method
for compensating the e ect of harmonics in the operating voltage (THRC) has
been widely used now for many years.
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Risk
Assessment & Testing
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In the case of MOSAs, the best practice of risk assessment is based on the
trend and level of the resistive leakage current under standard reference
conditions. If the resistive leakage current exceeds a certain threshold value,
the following steps should be taken in nal evaluation/judgement:
1. If the resistive leakage current is unrealistically high (i.e. in the mA range and
many times higher than for MOSAs of the same type), check that the arrester
base and earth lead are properly insulated from the pedestal. If the arrester
base is non-insulated, circulating currents will be induced in the earth system
and cause incorrect measurements of leakage current.
2. Consider re-testing the MOSA in one or two days to con rm the high
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reading. If con rmed, proceed to steps 3 or 4. The reason for re-testing is that
the MOSA could have been subjected to a transient overvoltage causing a
higher current for several hours due to the energy absorbed.
3. Monitor the MOSA continually to follow the development of resistive leakage
current. If this increases from its already high level, proceed to step 4
4. Contact the manufacturer and consider replacing the arrester.
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The threshold value for resistive leakage current will vary from arrester to
arrester, depending on type, and can be established in di erent ways.
• Measure the resistive leakage current just after commissioning and use this
as the arrester’s baseline reading. If the leakage current eventually increases by
a factor larger than 3 to 4 times this baseline value, this is indicative of severe
ageing.
• Make an individual comparison of all three arresters of the same type in a
three-phase con guration. If one shows consistently and signi cantly higher
levels than the other two, this might indicate ageing.
• Compare the resistive leakage currents in all arresters of the same type in the
grid: Firstly, if one or a few arresters show signi cantly higher levels than the
others of the same type, this may indicate ageing and requires closer follow-
up. Secondly, if a number of arresters show low values at the same level, these
may be used as good/acceptable levels for this type of arrester. Thirdly, if one
https://www.inmr.com/condition-assessment-of-substation-surge-arresters/ 8/11
4/2/2020 Assessing Condition of Substation Arresters
or more arresters have been in service for only a couple of years, the
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measured values are expected to be close to baseline readings.
1. Classify and identify all arresters (name of substation, bay/line and phase,
nameplate data, manufacturer, type designation, year/date of commissioning
etc., historical data/failure rates, importance etc.);
2. Establish threshold levels/maximum recommended levels for the resistive
leakage current for each type;
3. De ne action limits (e.g. good condition, re-test/monitor continuously, Advertisement
replace);
4.De ne measurement frequency (e.g. normal, often, continuous monitoring,
or only after special fault situations);
5. De ne veri cation actions after replacement (laboratory test,
dissection/inspection);
6. Evaluate measurements, action limits, regularity of measurements and
veri cation tests to optimize test strategy.
Case Studies
Testing 420 kV MOSAs at Transmission
MOSAs having three di erent brands, with results shown in Figures 3, 4 and 5.
As seen in Fig. 3, seven of the arresters recorded low resistive leakage currents,
i.e. around 20% of the maximum recommended level, suggesting that their
condition was good. However, one arrester showed approximately 90%, i.e.
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several times the values of the two neighboring phases as well as the main
arrester population. This unit would therefore have to be monitored closely, PLEASE SIGN ME UP
with frequent measurements or by continuous monitoring to check for any
further increase of current. The four remaining arresters showed values of
45%, 50%, 60% and 70%. The unit showing 70% should ideally be tested more
frequently, for instance every six months.
Four out of the six units presented in Fig. 4 showed readings around 20%, i.e.
good condition. The last two arresters showed readings around 50 to 55%, i.e.
their condition is satisfactory. New measurements should probably be
performed in 1 to 2 years, depending on the arresters’ age.
Since the resistive leakage currents were in each case either signi cantly above
or close to the recommended maximum, the factory owner decided to replace
the arresters and avoid any risk of failure. The six replacement units (of the
same make but of di erent type) were then tested after two years in service
and all showed resistive leakage currents in the range of 35 to 40% of the
maximum recommended level, i.e. evidence of good operating condition.
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One of the remaining arresters was clearly severely aged and therefore
immediately taken out of service to avoid a second failure. The arrester was
then sent for laboratory veri cation, which revealed that the reason for the
ageing appeared to be poor coating of the blocks that caused internal partial
discharges and a partly conductive surface.
Conclusion
https://www.inmr.com/condition-assessment-of-substation-surge-arresters/ 10/11
4/2/2020 Assessing Condition of Substation Arresters
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