Scribd
Upload
91 views

Edoc-Close-Open Operation (Short - Circuit) Time Result Interpretation

Uploaded by

El Comedor Benedict
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
91 views

Edoc-Close-Open Operation (Short - Circuit) Time Result Interpretation

Uploaded by

El Comedor Benedict
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
You are on page 1/ 5

Close-Open operation (short- circuit) Time

result interpretation
Introduction
Close-Open operation (C-O, trip-free) simulate closing on a short circuit. In the actual event, the
breaker closes first, then the protection relay system detects the short circuit and trips the
breaker.

In the test event, the timing device can be programmed to start a trip command as soon as the
contacts close. This gives the fastest short-circuit time (C-O time) operation the breaker is
capable of doing.

Most high voltage circuit breaker mechanisms are characterized as being trip-free. Performing
trip-free operation simply requires the circuit breaker to be able to open without any delay once
the auxiliary switch (contact), that controls the application of the electric signal to the operating
coils, closes. Under these conditions, the main contacts of the circuit breaker are allowed to
touch instantly. This means the trip-free characteristic requires the circuit breaker to open at any
instant that a trip command is issued to the unit, even if the circuit breaker is in the process of
closing. To achieve this, the mechanism, interrupters, and drive system must be able to withstand
the forces of the sudden change of direction.

In other cases, a circuit breaker must close before it opens.

For example, let’s suppose a breaker is being closed manually by operating the contact closing
mechanism or remotely. While the contacts are in the process of closing suppose a fault occurs in
the system with the relay closing the trip circuit of the breaker. The trip-free mechanism allows
the circuit breaker to be tripped by the relay even if the contacts are in the process of closing.

Close-Open Operation
The major international standards for circuit breakers are IEC® and ANSI® /IEEE®. One
section of IEC 62271-100 “High-voltage alternating current circuit-breakers” standard describes
the circuit-breaker-related time definitions.

C-O (close-open) time definition according to IEC is:

“Interval of time between the instant when the contacts touch in the first pole during a closing
operation and the instant when the arcing contacts have separated in all poles during the
subsequent opening operation.”

This standard also states:


“Unless otherwise stated, it is assumed the opening release incorporated in the circuit breaker is
energized at the instant when the contacts touch in the first pole during closing. This represents
the minimum close-open time.”

Close-open (measured during the test) should be distinguished from the make-break time
(measured when a circuit breaker is under load), as illustrated in Figure 1. According to the IEC
standard make-break time is:

“Interval of time between the initiation of current flow in the first pole during a closing
operation and the end of the arcing time during the subsequent opening operation (Figure 1).

NOTE: The make-break time may vary due to the variation of the pre-arcing time.”

Figure 1 – C-O (Trip free) operation


C-O time (also called dwell time) is the amount of time the breaker is in the closed position
during a close-open operation. C-O time value is compared to the manufacturer’s specifications.
For the puffer SF6 circuit breakers, too short C-O time (during trip-free operation) compared to
specification can cause longer arcing time or in the worst case a failure to break a short-circuit
during the subsequent opening. It is because too short C-O time could mean circuit breaker
didn’t get time to close enough (during closing in the trip-free operation) to provide compression
volume large enough to produce the blast of SF6 gas to extinguish the arc.

Longer C-O time means longer short-circuit time during the potential fault. Due to the high
electric current, there may be high thermal stress in the insulation and conducting parts of the
circuit breaker. As the thermal stress in the circuit breaker is proportional to the period of the
short circuit, the breaking capacity of the circuit breaker depends upon the operating time that is
C-O time.

When checking the C-O time of the breaker during timing tests, the auxiliary switch (contact)
adjustment should be checked. The auxiliary switches are adjustable for most high voltage circuit
breaker operating mechanisms. These switches are adjusted at the factory to set close-open time
and close open travel during a trip-free or C-O operation of the breaker according to
manufacturer’s specifications. In case C-O time value is out of range, the auxiliary switches can
be adjusted to bring the C-O time within tolerance.

C-O Timing Results in the DV-Win Software


The contacts close-open times for a circuit breaker with one break per phase are displayed in
Figure 2. In the graphic display, C-O times are marked for each pole and for breaker separately.
Also, as shown in Figure 2. C-O time is calculated and displayed in the tab Numerical results for
each phase and breaker separately.

Figure 2 – Graphical and numerical results of C-O operation (one break per phase)
For a circuit breaker with two breaks per phase, graphical results for C-O operation are displayed
in Figure 3. In the graphic display, C-O times are marked for each contact separately. Also, C-O
time is calculated and displayed in the tab Numerical results for each contact, phase, and breaker
separately.
NOTE: For a circuit breaker with more than one break per phase, phase C-O time is calculated
as the interval of time between the instant when the last contact touched in the pole during
closing and the instant when the first contact separated in the pole during subsequent O
operation. Breaker C-O time is an interval of time between the instant when the metallic
continuity is established in the first pole during a closing operation and the instant when all poles
have separated during the subsequent opening operation.

Figure 3 – Graphical and numerical results of C-O operation (two breaks per phase)
As it can be seen from the Figure 3, the C-O time in the phase A (14.6 ms) is much shorter than
the C-O time of the other two phases (34 ms and 29.2 ms). Also, it is much shorter than the
minimum opening time (25 ms) for this circuit breaker. Since the closing time of phase A is
within tolerance (i.e. phase A is not slower at closing that could cause shorter C-O time) it
indicates there is no problem with operating mechanism of the phase A but with auxiliary contact
of type “a” adjustment. It tells the auxiliary contact “a” closes earlier than it should, causing the
phase A to open faster at the next subsequent opening.

To download .pdf format of this article, please log in and visit the following link.

You might also like