PROTECTION OVER VOLTAGE

IN HIGH VOLTAGE
TRANSMISSION LINES

PREPARED BY:
ALI RAZZAQ (FA22-BEE-006)
ABDUL RAFEH (FA22-BEE-042)
BAKHTYAR KHAN (FA22-BEE-045)

DEPT. OF ELECTRICAL & COMPUTER ENGINEERING ,

COMSATS LAHORE
PROTECTION AGAINST OVER
VOLTAGES
1. Voltage Surge
2. Causes of Over voltages
3. Internal Causes of Over voltages
4. Lightning
5. Mechanism of Lightning Discharge
6. Types of Lightning Strokes
7. Protection Against Lightning
8. The Earthing Screen
9. Overhead Ground Wires
10. Lightning Arresters
11. Types of Lightning Arresters
12. Surge Absorber
VOLTAGE SURGE
A sudden rise in voltage for a very short duration on the power system is
known as a voltage surge or transient voltage.
Causes of Over voltages
Over voltages on a power system may be broadly divided into two main categories:

 Internal causes Up to 300kV 300 kV to 765 Above 765 kV

kV
1. Switching surges
Primarily Both lightning Switching
2. Insulation failure lightning and switching overvoltages
3. Arcing ground surges surges in
4. Resonance combination
with
insulator
 External causes contamination
INTERNAL CAUSES OF OVER
VOLTAGES
o Switching Surges
 Current chopping. Current chopping results in the production of high
voltage transients across the contacts of the air blast circuit breaker.
 Case of an open line: During switching operations of an unloaded line,
travelling waves are set up which produce over voltages on the line.
When the unloaded line is connected to the voltage source, a voltage wave is set
up which travels along the line. On reaching the terminal point A , it is reflected
back to the supply end without change of sign. This causes voltage doubling i.e.
voltage on the line becomes twice the normal value . If an unloaded line is
switched off, the line will attain a voltage of 2*s q r t ( 2)*E for a moment
before settling down to the normal value.

 Case of a loaded line. Over voltages will also be produced during the
switching operations of a loaded line. Suppose a loaded line is suddenly
interrupted. This will set up a voltage of 2 Zn i across the break (i.e. switch)
where i is the instantaneous value of current at the time of opening of line and
*Zn is the natural impedance of the line.
For example, suppose the line having Zn = 1000  carries a current of 100 A
(r.m.s.) and the break occurs at the moment when current is maximum.

switch = 2*sqrt(2)*100*1000/1000 = 282·8

kV
o Insulation failure. The most common case of insulation failure in a power
system is the grounding of conductor (i.e. insulation failure between line and
earth) which may cause over voltages in the system.

Suppose a line at potential E is earthed at point X . The earthing of the line

causes two equal voltages of E to travel along XQ and XP containing currents
E/Zn and +E/Zn respectively. Both these currents pass through X to earth so that
current to earth is 2 E/Zn.
o Arcing ground. The phenomenon of intermittent arc taking place in line-to-
ground fault of a 3 system with consequent production of transients. The
transients produced due to arcing ground are cumulative and may cause serious
damage to the equipment in the power system by causing breakdown of
insulation. Arcing ground can be pre- vented by earthing the neutral.

o Resonance. Resonance in an electrical system occurs when inductive reactance of

the circuit becomes equal to capacitive reactance. Under resonance, the impedance
of the circuit is equal to resistance of the circuit and the p.f. is unity. Resonance
causes high voltages in the electrical system. In the usual transmission lines, the
capacitance is very small so that resonance rarely occurs at the fundamental
supply frequency. However, if generator e.m.f. wave is distorted, the trouble of
resonance may occur due to 5th or higher harmonics and in case of underground
cables too.
EXTERNAL CAUSES OF OVER
VOLTAGES
 Lightning
An electric discharge between cloud and earth, between clouds
or between the charge centres of the same cloud is known as lightning.
oMechanism of Lightning Discharge
The air near the cloud breaks down, a streamer called leader streamer or pilot
streamer st The leader streamer will continue its journey towards earth as long
as the cloud, from which it originates feeds enough charge to it to maintain
gradient at the tip of leader streamer above the strength of air. If this gradient is
not maintained, the leader streamer stops and the charge is dissipated without
the formation of a complete stroke. arts from the cloud towards the earth and
carries charge.
the leader streamer being unable to reach the earth as gradient at its end cloud not be
maintained above the strength of air. It may be noted that current in the leader
streamer is low (<100 A) and its velocity of propagation is about 0·05% that of
velocity of light. Moreover, the luminosity of leader is also very low.
TYPES OF LIGHTNING STROKES
1. Direct stroke 2. Indirect stroke

1 . Direct stroke. In the direct stroke, the lightning discharge (i.e. current path) is
directly from the cloud to the subject equipment e.g. an overhead line. From the
line, the current path may be over the insulators down the pole to the ground. The
over voltages set up due to the stroke may be large enough to flashover this path
directly to the ground.
2. Indirect stroke. Indirect strokes result from the electrostatically induced charges
on the conductors due to the presence of charged clouds. A positively charged cloud
is above the line and induces a negative charge on the line by electrostatic induction.
This negative charge, however, will be only on that portion of the line right under the
cloud and the portions of the line away from it will be positively charged. The
induced positive charge leaks slowly to earth via the insulators. When the cloud
discharges to earth or to another cloud, the negative charge on the wire is isolated as
it cannot flow quickly to earth over the insulators.
PROTECTION AGAINST LIGHTNING

The lightning surges may cause serious damage to the expensive equipment in the
power system (e.g. generators, transformers etc.) either by direct strokes on the
equipment or by strokes on the transmission lines that reach the equipment as
travelling waves. It is necessary to provide protection against both kinds of surges.
The most commonly used devices for protection against lightning surges are :

(i)Earthing screen
(ii)Overhead ground wires
(iii)Lightning arresters or surge diverters
i. The Earthing Screen
The power stations and sub-stations generally house expensive equipment. These
stations can be protected against direct lightning strokes by providing earthing
screen. It consists of a network of copper conductors (generally called shield or
screen) mounted all over the electrical equipment in the sub-station or power station.
The shield is properly connected to earth on atleast two points through a low
impedance. On the occurrence of direct stroke on the station, screen provides a low
resistance path by which lightning surges are conducted to ground. In this way,
station equipment is protected against damage. The limitation of this method is that
it does not provide protection against the travelling waves which may reach the
equipment in the station.
ii. Overhead Ground Wires
The most effective method of providing protection to transmission lines against
direct lightning strokes is by the use of overhead ground wires. When the direct
lightning stroke occurs on the transmission line, it will be taken up by the ground
wires. The heavy lightning current (10 kA to 50 kA) from the ground wire flows to
the ground, thus protecting the line from the harmful effects of lightning. The
ground wires depends upon the footing resistance of the tower.
Vt = I1R1
iii. Lightning Arresters
A lightning arrester or a surge diverter is a protective device which conducts the
high voltage surges on the power system to the ground. . It consists of a spark gap in
series with a non-linear resistor. One end of the diverter is connected to the terminal
of the equipment to be protected and the other end is effectively grounded. The
length of the gap is so set that normal line voltage is not enough to cause an arc
across the gap but a dangerously high voltage will break down the air insulation and
form an arc.
The property of the non-linear resistance is that its resistance decreases as the
voltage (or current) increases and vice-versa
TYPES OF LIGHTNING
ARRESTERS
There are several types of lightning arresters in general use. They differ only in
constructional details but operate on the same principle :

1.Rod gap arrester 2.Horn gap arrester

3.Multigap arrester 4.Expulsion type lightning arrester

5.Valve type lightning arrester

1.Rod Gap Arrester. It is a very simple type of
diverter and consists of two 1·5 cm rods which
are bent at right angles with a gap in between.
One rod is connected to the line circuit and the
other rod is connected to earth. The distance
between gap and insulator (i.e. distance P) must
not be less than one-third of the gap length so
that the arc may not reach the insulator and
damage it. Generally, the gap length is so
adjusted that breakdown should occur at 80% of
spark- over voltage in order to avoid cascade-
Ing of very steep wave fronts across the insula-
tors. The string of insulators for an overhead
line on the bushing of transformer has
frequently a rod gap across it.
 2. Horn Gap Arrester. It consists of two horn shaped metal rods A and B separated by
a small air gap. The horns are so constructed that distance between them gradually
increases towards the top as shown. The horns are mounted on porcelain insulators. One
end of horn is connected to the line through a resistance R and choke coil L while the
other end is effectively grounded. The resistance R helps in limiting the follow current to
a small value. The choke coil is so designed that it offers small reactance at normal
power frequency but a very high reactance at transient frequency. Thus the choke does
not allow the transients to enter the apparatus to be protected. The gap between the horns
is so adjusted that normal supply voltage is not enough to cause an arc across the gap.
 3. Multigap arrester. It consists of a series of metallic (generally alloy of zinc)
cylinders insulated from one another and separated by small intervals of air gaps. The
first cylinder (i.e. A ) in the series is connected to the line and the other to the ground
through a series resistance. The series resistance limits the power arc. By the inclusion
of series resistance, the degree of protection against travelling waves is reduced. In
order to overcome this difficulty, some of the gaps (B to C) are shunted by a resistance.
Under normal conditions, the point B is at earth potential and the normal supply voltage
is unable to break down the series gaps. On the occurrence of an overvoltage, the
breakdown of series gaps A to B occurs. Such arresters can be employed where system
voltage does not exceed 33 kV.
4. Expulsion type arrester. This type of arrester is
also called ‘protector tube’ and is commonly used on
system operating at voltages up to 33 kV. It essentially
consists of a rod gap A A in series with a second gap
enclosed within the fibre tube. The gap in the fibre
tube is formed by two electrodes. The upper electrode
is connected to rod gap and the lower electrode to the
earth. One expulsion arrester is placed under each line
conductor. The heat of the arc vaporises some of the
fibre of tube walls, resulting in the production of a
neutral gas*. In an extremely short time, the gas builds
up high pressure and is expelled through the lower
electrode which is hollow. As the gas leaves the tube
violently, it carries away ionised air around the arc.
This de-ionising effect is generally so strong that arc
goes out at a current zero and will not be re-
established.
 5.Valve type arrester. Valve type arresters
incorporate non-linear resistors and are extend-
snively used on systems operating at high voltages. It
consists of two assemblies (i) series spark gaps and
(ii) non-linear resistor discs (made of material such
as thyrite or metrosil) in series. The non-linear
elements are connected in series with the spark gaps.
Both the assemblies are accommodated in tight
porcelain container. The spark gap is a multiple
assembly consisting of a number of identical spark
gaps in series. Each gap consists of two
electrodes with a fixed gap spacing. The voltage
distribute- Tion across the gaps is linearised by means
of additional resistance elements (called grading
resistors) across the gaps. The non-linear resistor discs
are made of an inorganic compound such as Thyrite or
Metrosil. These discs are connected in series.
SURGE ABSORBER
A surge absorber is a protective device which reduces the steepness of wave
front of a surge by ab- sorbing surge energy.
Although both surge diverter and surge absorber eliminate the surge, the manner
in which it is done is different in the two devices. The surge diverter diverts the
surge to earth but the surge absorber absorbs the surge energy. A few cases of surge
absorption are dis- cussed below :
1. A condenser connected between the line and earth can act as a surge absorber. A
capacitor acts as surge absorber to protect the transformer winding. Since the
reactance of a condenser is inversely proportional to frequency, it will be low at high
frequency and high at low frequency. Since the surges are of high frequency, the
capacitor acts as a short circuit and passes them directly to earth.
 However, for power frequency, the reactance of the capacitor is very high and
practically no current flows to the ground.

2. Another type of surge absorber consists of a parallel combination of choke and

resistance connected in series with the line as shown in Fig. 24.15. The choke
offers high reactance to surge frequencies ( XL = 2  f L). The surges are, therefore,
forced to flow through the resistance R where they are dissipated.
3. Another type of surge absorber. It is called Ferranti surge absorber. It consists of
an air cored inductor connected in series with the line. The inductor is surrounded by
but insulated from an earthed metallic sheet called dissipator. This arrangement is
equivalent to a transformer with short-circuited secondary. The inductor forms the
primary whereas the dissipator forms the short-circuited secondary. The energy of the
surge is used up in the form of heat generated in the dissipator due to transformer
action. This type of surge absorber is mainly used for the protection of transformers.