TRANSFORMER AND

TRANSFORMER FEEDER
PROTECTION

PART 3
18. TRANSFORMER-FEEDER PROTECTION
• A transformer-feeder comprises a transformer directly
connected to a transmission circuit without the
intervention of switchgear. Examples are shown in Figure
18.1.
• The saving in switchgear so achieved is off-set by increased
complication in the necessary protection.
• The primary requirement is inter-tripping, since the feeder
protection remote from the transformer will not respond to the
low current fault conditions that can be detected by restricted
earth-fault and Buchholz protections.
• Either unrestricted or restricted protection can be applied;
moreover, the transformer-feeder can be protected as a
single zone or be provided with separate protections for
the feeder and for the transformer.
• In the latter case, the separate protections can both be unit
type systems.
• An adequate alternative is the combination of unit transformer
protection with an unrestricted system of feeder protection,
plus an inter-tripping feature.
Figure 18.1. Typical transformer-feeder circuits.
18.1. Non-Unit Schemes
18.1.1. Feeder phase- and earth-faults
• High-speed protection against phase- and earth-faults can be
provided by distance relays located at the end of the feeder
remote from the transformer.
• The transformer constitutes an appreciable lumped impedance.
• It is therefore possible to set a distance relay zone to cover the
whole feeder and reach part way into the transformer
impedance.
• With a normal tolerance on setting thus allowed for, it is
possible for fast Zone 1 protection to cover the whole of
the feeder with certainty without risk of over-reaching to a fault
on the low voltage side.
• Although the distance zone is described as being set ’half way
into the transformer’, it must not be thought that half the
transformer winding will be protected.
Feeder phase- and earth-faults (cont.)
• The effects of auto-transformer action and variations in the
effective impedance of the winding with fault position prevent
this, making the amount of winding beyond the terminals which
is protected very small.
• The value of the system is confined to the feeder, which, as
stated above, receives high-speed protection throughout.

18.1.2. Feeder phase-faults

• A distance scheme is not, for all practical purposes, affected
by varying fault levels on the high voltage bus-bars and is
therefore the best scheme to apply if the fault level may vary
widely.
• In cases where the fault level is reasonably constant,
similar protection can be obtained using high-set
instantaneous over-current relays.
Feeder phase-faults (cont.)
• The instantaneous over-current relays must be set without risk
of them operating for faults on the remote side of the
transformer.
• When the power can flow in the transformer-feeder in
either direction, over-current relays will be required at both
ends.
• In the case of parallel transformer-feeders, it is essential
that the over-current relays on the low voltage side be
directional, operating only for fault current fed into the
transformer-feeder.
18.1.3. Earth-faults
• Instantaneous restricted earth-fault protection is normally
provided.
• When the high voltage winding is delta connected, a relay in
the residual circuit of the line current transformers gives earth-
fault protection which is fundamentally limited to the
feeder and the associated delta-connected transformer
winding.
Earth-faults (cont.)
• The latter is unable to transmit any zero sequence current to a
through earth-fault.
Earthed star-connected winding:
• When the feeder is associated with an earthed star-
connected winding, normal restricted earth-fault protection is
not applicable because of the remoteness of the transformer
neutral.
• Restricted earth-fault protection can be applied using a
directional earth- fault relay.
• A simple sensitive and high-speed directional element can be
used, but attention must be paid to the transient stability of
the element.
• Alternatively, a directional IDMT relay may be used, the time
multiplier being set low.
• The slight inverse time delay in operation will ensure that
unwanted transient operation is avoided.
Earth-faults (cont.)
• When the supply source is on the high-voltage star side, an
alternative scheme that does not require a voltage transformer
can be used.
• The scheme is shown in Figure 18.2.
• For the circuit-breaker to trip, both relays A and B must operate,
which will occur for earth-faults on the feeder or
transformer winding.
• External earth-faults cause the transformer to deliver zero-
sequence current only, which will circulate in the closed delta
connection of the secondary windings of the three auxiliary
current transformers.
• No output is available to relay B.
• Through phase-faults will operate relay B, but not the residual
relay A.
• Relay B must have a setting above the maximum load.
Figure 18.2. Instantaneous protection of transformer-feeder
Earth-faults (cont.)
• As the earthing of the neutral at a receiving point is likely to be
solid and the earth-fault current will therefore be comparable
with the phase-fault current, high settings are not a serious
limitation.
• Earth-fault protection of the low-voltage winding will be
provided by a restricted earth-fault system using either three
or four current transformers, according to whether the winding
is delta or star-connected.
18.1.4. In-zone capacitance
• The feeder portion of the transformer-feeder will have an
appreciable capacitance between each conductor and earth.
• During an external earth fault the neutral will be displaced, and
the resulting zero-sequence component of voltage will produce
a corresponding component of zero-sequence capacitance
current.
• In the limiting case of full neutral displacement, this zero-
sequence current will be equal in value to the normal
positive-sequence current.
• The resulting residual current is equal to three times the
zero-sequence current and hence to three times the normal
line charging current.
• The value of this component of in-zone current should be
considered when establishing the effective setting of earth-fault
relays.
18.2. Unit Schemes
• The basic differences between the requirements of feeder and
transformer protections lie in the limitation imposed on the
transfer of earth-fault current by the transformer and the
need for high sensitivity in the transformer protection,
suggesting that the two components of a transformer-feeder
should be protected separately.
• This involves mounting current transformers adjacent to, or on,
the high-voltage terminals of the transformer.
• Separate current transformers are desirable for the feeder and
transformer protections so that these can be arranged in two
separate overlapping zones.
• The use of common current transformers is possible, but may
involve the use of auxiliary current transformers, or special
winding and connection arrangements of the relays.
• Inter-tripping of the remote circuit-breaker from the
transformer protection will be necessary, but this can be done
using the communication facilities of the feeder protection
relays.
Unit Schemes (cont.)
• Although technically superior, the use of separate protection
systems is seldom justifiable when compared with an overall
system or a combination of non-unit feeder protection and a
unit transformer system.
• An overall unit system must take into account the fact that
zero-sequence current on one side of a transformer may
not be reproduced in any form on the other side.
• This represents little difficulty to a modern numerical relay using
software phase/zero-sequence compensation and digital
communications to transmit full information on the phase and
earth currents from one relay to the other.
• However, it does represent a more difficult problem for relays
using older technology.
• The line current transformers can be connected to a summation
transformer with unequal taps, as shown in Figure 18.3.
• This arrangement produces an output for phase-faults and also
some response for A and B phase-to-earth faults.
• However, the resulting settings will be similar to those for
phase-faults and no protection will be given for C phase-to-
earth faults.
Figure 18.3. Methods of protection for transformer-feeders using
Electro-mechanical static technology
Unit Schemes (cont.)
• An alternative technique is shown in Figure 18.4.
• The B phase is taken through a separate winding on another
transformer or relay electro-magnet, to provide another
balancing system.
• The two transformers are interconnected with their counterparts
at the other end of the feeder-transformer by four pilot wires.
• Operation with three pilot cores is possible but four are
preferable, involving little increase in pilot cost.
Figure 18.4. Methods of protection for transformer-feeders using
Electro-mechanical static technology
19. INTER-TRIPPING
• In order to ensure that both the high- and low-voltage circuit-
breakers operate for faults within the transformer and feeder, it
is necessary to operate both circuit-breakers from protection
normally associated with one.
• The technique for doing this is known as inter-tripping.
• The necessity for inter-tripping on transformer-feeders arises
from the fact that certain types of fault produce insufficient
current to operate the protection associated with one of
the circuit-breakers.
• These faults are:
a. faults in the transformer that operate the Buchholz relay
and trip the local low-voltage circuit-breaker, while failing to
produce enough fault current to operate the protection
associated with the remote high-voltage circuit-breaker.
b. earth-faults on the star winding of the transformer,
which, because of the position of the fault in the winding, again
produce insufficient current for relay operation at the remote
circuit-breaker.
INTERTRIPPING (CONT.)
c. earth-faults on the feeder or high-voltage delta-
connected winding which trip the high-voltage circuit-breaker
only, leaving the transformer energised from the low-voltage
side and with two high-voltage phases at near line-to-line
voltage above earth.
• Intermittent arcing may follow and there is a possibility of
transient over-voltage occurring and causing a further break-
down of Insulation.
19.1. Neutral Displacement
• An alternative to inter-tripping is to detect the condition by
measuring the residual voltage on the feeder.
• An earth-fault occurring on the feeder connected to an
unearthed transformer winding should be cleared by the feeder
circuit, but if there is also a source of supply on the secondary
side of the transformer, the feeder may still be live.
• The feeder will then be a local unearthed system, and, if the
earth-fault continues in an arcing condition, dangerous over-
voltages may occur.
Neutral Displacement (cont.)
• A voltage relay is energised from the broken-delta connected
secondary winding of a voltage transformer on the high voltage
line, and receives an input proportional to the zero-
sequence voltage of the line, that is, to any displacement of
the neutral point; see Figure 19.1.
• The relay normally receives zero voltage, but, in the
presence of an earth-fault, the broken-delta voltage will
rise to three times the phase-voltage.
• Earth-faults elsewhere in the system may also result in
displacement of the neutral and hence discrimination is
achieved using definite or inverse time characteristics.
Figure 19.4. Neutral displacement detection using a voltage
transformer.
20. CONDITION MONITORING OF TRANSFORMERS
• It is possible to provide transformers with measuring devices to
detect early signs of degradation in various components and
provide warning to the operator in order to avoid a lengthy and
expensive outage due to failure.
• The technique, which can be applied to other plant as well as
transformers, is called condition monitoring, as the intent is to
provide the operator with regular information on the condition of
the transformer.
• By reviewing the trends in the information provided, the
operator can make a better judgement as to the frequency of
maintenance, and detect early signs of deterioration that, if
ignored, would lead to an internal fault occurring.
• Such techniques are an enhancement to, but are not a
replacement for, the protection applied to a transformer.
CONDITION MONITORING OF TRANSFORMERS (CONT.)
• The extent to which condition monitoring is applied to
transformers on a system will depend on many factors,
amongst which will be:
- the policy of the asset owner,
- the suitability of the design (existing transformers may require
modifications involving a period out of service – this may be
costly and not justified),
- the importance of the asset to system operation, and
- the general record of reliability.
• Therefore, it should not be expected that all transformers would
be, or need to be, so fitted.
• A typical condition monitoring system for an oil immersed
transformer is capable of monitoring the condition of various
transformer components as shown in Table 20.1.
• There can be some overlap with the measurements available
from a digital/numerical relay.
CONDITION MONITORING OF TRANSFORMERS (CONT.)
• By the use of software to store and perform trend analysis of
the measured data, the operator can be presented with
information on the state of health of the transformer, and alarms
raised when measured values exceed appropriate limits.
• This will normally provide the operator with early warning of
degradation within one or more components of the transformer,
enabling maintenance to be scheduled to correct the problem
prior to failure occurring.
• The maintenance can obviously be planned to suit system
conditions, provided the rate of degradation is not excessive.
• As asset owners become more conscious of the costs of
an unplanned outage, and electric supply networks are
utilised closer to capacity for long periods of time, the
usefulness of this technique can be expected to grow.
Table 20.1 Condition monitoring for transformers
END