CONTENTS

Page No.

TITLE PAGE

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1.0

PURPOSE

2.0

SCOPE

3.0

DEFINITIONS

4.0

REFERENCE STANDARDS AND CODES

5.0

RESPONSIBILITIES

6.0

TEST EQUIPMENT CONTROL

7.0

QUALITY CONTROL

8.0

TESTING PROCEDURE

9.0

DOCUMENTATION

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DISCIPLINE :

ELECTRICAL

TITLE

PROCEDURE FOR SITE ACCEPTANCE TESTING OF

CURRENT TRANSFORMERS

1.0

PURPOSE
To ensure that the current transformers are installed in accordance with design
specifications, that their characteristics are within applicable standards and
manufacturers tolerances.

2.0

SCOPE
This procedure shall apply during the site acceptance testing of current
transformers.

3.0

DEFINITIONS

3.1
3.2
3.3
3.5

C.E.
C.M.
T.T.
Q.C.

4.0

REFERENCE STANDARDS AND CODES

4.1
4.2

TCP-P-105-00 Pre-commissioning Testing Procedure

NEC National Electrical Code

5.0

RESPONSIBILITIES

Commissioning Engineer
Construction Manager
Testing Technician
Quality Control

5.1 The Commissioning Engineer (C.E.) shall be responsible for preparing the testing plan,
for the observance of all safety precautions required by the JAL Safety Plan, for
supervising the testing activities.
5.2 The Testing Technicians (T.T.) shall be responsible for carrying out the tests, recording
the test values.
5.3
The QC Department shall be responsible for conducting reviews of the test records
to ensure that all tests have been performed in accordance with the approved
inspection and test plan.
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6.0

Test Equipment Control

The Commissioning Engineer shall carry out an inspection of the test equipment
when the test equipment arrives in the warehouse. Each piece of test equipment
shall have the calibration labels intact. The Commissioning Engineer shall ensure
that the test equipment manual is available and that the test equipment is calibrated
and calibration certificates are available.
The Commissioning Engineer will keep a record with the test equipment serial
numbers, date of calibration and copies of the calibration certificates. JAL will
submit copies of the calibration certificates of the test equipment to Al-Mashariq
The Commissioning Engineer shall ensure that test equipment that it is out of
calibration is isolated in a quarantine zone and will be sent as soon as possible to a
certified metrology laboratory for re-calibration against national standards.
The Testing Technicians shall ensure that the test equipment is tested for proper
operation before starting any test. Any defective test equipment will be isolated in a
quarantine zone and sent as soon as possible for repairs.
QC Department shall conduct periodic audits on the test equipment to ensure all
test equipment is within the required calibration period.

7.0

Quality Control
The Commissioning Engineer shall prepare the testing plan that will include the
equipment to be tested, the tests to be performed, the test equipment to be used,
the test procedure to be applied and the test records to be used. Based on the
testing plan, in coordination with the Construction Manager a testing schedule will
be developed.
The Commissioning Engineer shall organize, supervise and verify the
implementation of the testing schedule.
Any defects or variances from the approved specifications and standards will be
noted during the testing and shall be informed to the Construction Department by
the Inspection Report.
The Testing Technician shall use the pre-commissioning form as a checklist and to
record the results of the testing. The form shall be the quality record document to
identify that the inspection and testing has taken place.
The following tests will be performed and recorded on the pre-commissioning
form:
1. Visual check
2. Insulation resistance test
3. Polarity test
4. Burden test (secondary loop resistance test)
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5. Primary Injection
6. Magnetization curve
The following test equipment will be used to perform the above tests:
1. Megohmmeter 500V, AVO
2. Digital multimeter
3. Directional sensitive ammeter analog, moving-coil type, 10-15mA
4. Battery box
5. Secondary injection set Sverker 650 or 760
6. Current transformer test set CTER 91or CT Analyer Kit
7. Primary injection test set Oden or KAM.
8. Digital clampmeter
8.0

TESTING PROCEDURE
The following shall be the guidelines for the testing personnel during the inspection
and testing of current transformers.

8.1

8.2

Visual And Mechanical Check

Compare equipment nameplate data with drawings and specifications.
Inspect physical and mechanical condition.
Verify correct connection of transformers with system requirements. For multi ratio
CTs check that the proper required terminals are connected like S1-S2 or S1-S3 and
the terminals left spare are neither shorted nor earthed.
Verify that adequate clearances exist between primary and secondary circuit wiring.
Verify that all required grounding and shorting connections provide contact.
Insulation Resistance Test

Test Equipment: Megohmmeter, AVO; Digital multimeter

Measure the insulation resistance to earth of each set of secondary cores, including the
circuits to the relay and metering equipment.
The test voltage should be 500V.
Check the value of the insulation resistance across the earthing terminal block located
in the marshalling box with a Megohmmeter.
When taking the measurements, the earthing terminal block is to be open.
If the circuit is included in a busbar protection in which the circuits are switched with
disconnectors, the position of the later must be such as to ensure that all parts of the
circuit are connected.
After completing the measurements the terminal block is to be closed and a new check
made to ensure that a solid earth connection exists.
The insulation of a new installation is normally at least a few Megohms. The lowest
permissible value is 250kOhm.
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8.3

Polarity Test

Test Equipment: Battery; Directional sensitive ammeter;

8.4

The polarity of all secondary cores is to be checked.

The check is made by connecting a battery, having predetermined polarity, for a short
period, across the primary side of the transformer. At the same time, the polarity of the
current induced in secondary is checked with a directionally sensitive ammeter
(analogue type, moving-coil, 10-15 mA).
The ammeter is to be connected externally across the CTs secondary terminals S1 and
S2. The terminal blocks are to be open to isolate the CT load.
As shown in Fig. 1, the terminal + of the ammeter is to be connected to the S1
terminal of the CT and the - terminal to S2.
The - pole of the battery is to be connected to the P2 terminal of the CT.
Connect the + pole of the battery for a short period to the P1 terminal of the CT. If the
polarity is correct, the ammeter will deflect in a positive direction.
Later, when the battery circuit is opened, the ammeter will deflect in a negative
direction.
To prevent excessive build-up of the residual
magnetism, the battery should not be
connected more often than is absolutely
necessary. Immediately after a deflection is
observed on the ammeter, the test is to be
terminated.
When the test has been completed, the
polarity will be reversed (the connections to
the battery) and approximately the same
number of connections will be made in order
to reduce the residual magnetism.
In outdoor substations is advisable to make
Fig. 1
the polarity check in conjunction with the
primary injection test. The high-current
cables will be used for the battery circuit.
For cable current transformers, an insulated
conductor is passed through the transformer
to provide the primary connection points P1
and P2.
If a capacitor is incorporated in the secondary CT circuit in order to increase the
sensitivity of the protective relays, it must be disconnected during the check.
Compare determined polarity with drawings and specifications.
Burden Test (Secondary Loop Resistance Test)

Test Equipment: Wheatstone bridge; Digital multimeter

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Measure and record the outside temperature.

As shown in Fig. 2, the loop resistance
is measured, using a Wheatstone bridge
or a multimeter with 0.1 Ohm
resolution, at the marshalling box.
If the loop resistance of one phase is
measured in a three-phase group, the
current circuits of the other two phases
must be open.
If the circuits constitute a part of a
differential protection, the phase
terminals for all the incorporated
branches of the current transformer
group must be opened when taking
measurements to ensure that no
parallel circuit exists. If the relay
connected to the CTs secondary
terminals is of the high-impedance
type, this relay must be short-circuited
internally during measurements.
Enter the measured value of the loop resistance in the test record.
Determine the resistance of the load:

Rload = Rloop - RCT,

where: Rload = resistance of burden
Rloop = measured resistance
RCT = the resistance of the CT's secondary winding
Enter Rload in the Test Record
Calculate the maximum permissible impedance of the burden:

8.5

Fig. 2

Zmax = Sn / In2
where: Zmax = maximum permissible impedance
Sn = rated burden of the CT
In = rated secondary current of the CT
Enter the calculated Zmax values in the Test Record.
The measured resistance should always be lower than the calculated maximum
permissible impedance.
Primary Injection Test

Test Equipment: Primary injection Oden, KAM; Clampmeter, Digital multimeter

The CTs are subjected to primary injection to prove that the CT ratio is correct, the CT
star point is correct, all the relays and instruments are wired in the correct phases, the
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connections of the CT secondary wires are intact at all locations, the CT shorting and
isolating arrangement is functioning, CT polarity is correct in comparison with other CTs.
8.5.1 Ratio Test

The primary current injection can be performed between phase and ground and
between two phases. Ensure that all terminal blocks in the secondary circuits are
properly closed. Connect the primary injection test set as shown in Fig. 3. (Injection
between two phases). The primary current will be measured with a clamp meter (A1). A
temporary short circuit connection should be connected to all phases. A true RMS
ammeter A2 should be connected in the CTs secondary circuit.

Fig. 3

In the case of performing primary injection between one phase and ground check that
the primary circuit is earthed at one point only in order to ensure that no other circuits
exist in parallel with the test circuit.
The high-current cables must be drawn out to their full length in order to eliminate
loops that would otherwise act as high impedance coils and limit the output of the test
set.
The high-current cables are to be kept as close as possible one to each other in order to
reduce the cable inductance.
The test current is to be the rated CT primary current or a multiple of the CTs rating.
For example when In=1200A an appropriate test current would be 300A. The test
current selected should be so much lower than the maximum current of the test set to
enable the former to be maintained without any difficulty for all the occurring test
connections.
Before injecting primary current any existing high-impedance relay must be internally
short-circuited on the CT input. Ensure that the protective relays that are connected to
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the CT are not overloaded during the continuous injection of high magnitude primary
current. If there is any risk of them being overloaded they must be temporarily short
circuited internally.
Before injecting primary current, all the secondaries of any other CTs in the
primary current injection circuit must be short circuited.
Slowly increase the test current up to the predetermined level. If there is no
current, or an abnormally low current flow, this is a sure indication that one or more
secondaries are opened. In such cases the injection test must be interrupted
immediately and the loop resistance of the secondary checked.
During the entire period of the test, the secondary currents are to be checked to
ensure that they are of expected magnitude.
The ratio is given by the calculated value of A1 / A2.
Compare calculated CT ratio with that given on the CTs nameplate or vendor
specifications.

8.5.2 Integrity Test

8.6

The injection should be done between two phases. Connect the primary injection test
set to the circuit as shown in fig. 3. If any of the CTs on the primary injection circuit
have been shorted, remove the shorting link.
Inject a small amount of current-about 25% of the rated primary current and measure
the secondary current at each termination point: relay panel, relay terminal, instrument
terminal, etc. to prove the integrity of the CTs secondary wiring.
The indication of ammeter A3 should be small because it measures the leakage current
and it proves that the polarities of the CTs on phase A and B are correct.
The test should be repeated for phases B and C.
At the end of test disconnect the temporary short circuit jumper.
Magnetization Curve

Test Equipment: Variable voltage source; Secondary injection test set Sverker 760 or 650;
Current transformer test set CTER-91or CT Analyser Kit

The CT primary circuit should be open and the secondary burden of the CT should be
isolated.
The test is to be done on all secondaries of the CT. The secondary injection test set
will be connected to the CT secondary terminals.
When using a step-up transformer, the secondary circuit must be earthed, the ammeter
should be connected on the earthed side of the circuit and the common terminal of the
voltmeter is to be connected at the earthed side, see fig. 4. The ammeter must be a
RMS digital ammeter or a moving iron ammeter.
The test is performed by increasing the voltage until the knee-point is clearly exceeded
in a minimum of six steps and thereafter by slowly (appr. 5s) reducing it to zero. The
voltage and current values of each step will be recorded.
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The knee point is considered to be the sinusoidal voltage of rated frequency applied to
the secondary terminals of the transformer, all other windings being open circuited,
which when increased by 10% causes the exciting current to increase 50%.

Fig. 4

CTs Magnetizing characteristic

As a standard practice, six points of the magnetizing curve will be plotted.

The values will be compared with those given by the manufacturer.

9.0

DOCUMENTATION

9.1
9.2

Current transformer instruction manual-vendor documentation

Test equipment operation manual

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