Chapter 5

SUB STATION AUXILIARIES:

5.1 Importance of Auxiliary system

AC power is required for substation building small power, lighting, heating and
ventilation, some communications equipment, switchgear operating
mechanisms, anti-condensation heaters and motors.
DC power is used to feed essential services such as circuit breaker trip coils
and associated relays, supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) and
communications equipment.

Control, monitoring and protection systems for these equipments require a

very high quality, reliable and efficient electrical auxiliaries supply systems to
perform the desired functions. Relays may mal-operate, SCADA systems may
hang, circuit breakers, isolators may not operate if proper auxiliary supply was
not available to them.

5.2 Auxiliary systems in substation.

LT Switchgear
LT Transformers
DG sets
Power & Control Cables
Batteries
Battery Chargers
Fire Protection System
Substation Lighting
Air-Conditioning System

LT Switchgear:
Highlights of technical specifications

Constructional Requirements- All switchboards shall have compartmentalized

construction, separate compartment for bus-bars, switching devises, relays & cable
alley. All compartments shall be distinct, Partitions shall be provided between all
chambers.

Degree of Protection- All indoor panels should have IP52 class of protection. First
digit stands for protection against dust ingress & second digit stands for protection
against water ingress. All outdoor panels should have IP 55 degree of protection.
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Safety aspects- All switchboards shall necessarily have earth bus bar throughout
the length, which shall be welded/bolted with each panel. Earth bus of switchboard at
both ends shall be finally welded/ bolted with main horizontal earth bus of substation.

All hinged doors shall be earthed with flexible earthing wire braids.

The bus bar chambers shall be provided with danger labels.

Clearances- The minimum clearances in air between phases and between phase
and earth shall be 25 mm for the entire run of horizontal and vertical bus bars. For all
other components this shall be minimum 10 mm throughout.

Verification of short circuit withstand capabilities- The bus bars of switchboards

are selected to withstand short time currents during fault conditions. This test
ensures withstand capabilities of selected bus bars during actual fault conditions. As
per technical specification, bus bars are required to be rated for short time current of
20 KA for 1 sec with an initial peak of 45 KA in one of the phases.

Verification of continuity of protective circuit- All circuits are verified during this
test to ensure the continuity.

AC LT System

LT Transformer

Main Switch Board (MSB)

AC Distribution Board (ACDB)

Main Lightning Distribution Board (MLDB)

Emergency Lightning Distribution Board (ELDB)

Incomer 1 supply fails Incomer 2 will supply all loads through Bus coupler and
vice versa. Both the incomer fails means DG set will automatically switched on
for supplying power to essential loads.

LT Transformers:

630 KVA & 800 KVA transformers are required to meet auxiliary power
demand in substations. 800 KVA Transformer is connected with tertiary of
autotransformer in substation, however 630 kVA Transformer is fed by SEB
supply.

The transformers are of oil-filled type.

All temperature indicators, Buchhloz relays and other auxiliary devices

associated with transformers are suitable for 220V DC control supply.

Type of Cooling is ONAN.

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Delta Star with Vector group Dyn1.

Suitable for 11or 33kV Cable or Overhead Conductor Connection.

DG SETS:

HIGHLIGHTS OF TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

250 KVA capacity DG sets for Arasur (400/230 kV) substation. DG sets
are silent type in weather proof enclosure. In addition to this the
enclosure provided with acoustic enclosure to meet the noise level limit
requirements.

DG sets have suitable viewing glass to view the local parameters on

the engine.

Dg set should be kept in AUTO mode.

MAIN SWITCH BOARD

Input:

Incomer-1 & 2.

Bus Coupler.

Output:

HVW Pump.

ACDB Incomer-1 & 2.

Lightning T/F-1 & 2.

Oil Filtration unit.

Colony.

Incomer 1 supply fails Incomer 2 will supply all loads through Bus coupler and vice
versa.

AC Supply Distribution Board

Input:

Incomer-1 & 2 from MSB.

DG Set.

Bus Coupler.
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Output:

BMK.

ICT MBs.

Fire Fighting pumps except HVW pump.

Battery chargers

Incomer 1 supply fails Incomer 2 will supply all loads through Bus coupler and
vice versa.

Both the incomer fails means DG set automatically switched on for supplying
power to essential loads.

Main Lighting Distribution Board

Input:

Incomer-1 & 2 from MSB.

Bus Coupler.

Output:

Switchyard Lighting

Supply from incomer 1 & 2 meet the lighting loads via lighting transformer 1&
2 respectively. If any one of the supply fails, supply extends to lighting loads
through bus coupler.

Emergency Lighting Distribution Board

Input:

ACDB

Output:

Emergency Switchyard Lighting

Control room lighting

Fire fighting, DG set lighting

Supply from incomer 1 & 2 meet the lighting loads via lighting transformer
1& 2 respectively. If any one of the supply fails, supply extends to lighting
loads through bus coupler. Both supplies fail means DG set will automatically
switched on for supplying emergency lighting loads through emergency
lighting transformer.
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All the Lighting transformers (100 KVA) should be kept on ON condition.

S.N LT Switchgear System

2 Nos. Transformer from Different Sources System Operation

Main Switch Board Receives Both 415V Supply from Transformer with auto changeover
Incomer-1 Incomer-2
1 2 Incomer & 1 Buscoupler
Supply to Oil Filtartion Unit of Transformer Supply to Oil Filtartion Unit of Transformer scheme is there if 1st I/C fails
Supply to Main System Supply distribution Supply to Main System Supply distribution then Bus coupler Transfers the
2
Board Board Supply of 2nd I/C Bus to 1st I/c
Bus & Viseversa with automatic
3 Interlocking. System Voltage,
Supply to Main Lighting distribution Board Supply to Main Lighting distribution Board
4 Current , Main Breaker Status to
Supply to Colony Supply to Colony
SCADA through Transducers &
5 Supply to High velocity Water Spray System Potential Free Contacts
AC Distribution Board Receives Both 415V Supply from Main Switch Board with auto
changeover
1 No. 415V Supply for Main System Supply 1 No. 415V Supply for Main System Supply
distribution Board Receives from Main distribution Board Receives from Main
Switch Board & 1 no. Supply from DG with Switch Board
Automatic changeover 3 Incomer & 1 Buscoupler
Supply for 48V & 220V DC Charger from Supply for 48V & 220V DC Charger from scheme is there if 1st I/C fails
1 both Supply both Supply then Bus coupler Transfers the
Emergency Ltg Suply to Emergency Lighting Supply of 2nd I/C Bus to 1st I/c
2 Board. Supply to Bay ( Qty as per S/s Requirement) Bus & Viseversa. And when
Supply to Bus Reactors ( Qty as per S/s both Supply fails the DG will
3 Supply to Bay ( Qty as per S/s Requirement) Requirement) Start & in that condition Both
Supply to Bus Reactors ( Qty as per S/s Supply to Line Reactors ( Qty as per S/s Incomer cannot be operated
4 Requirement) Requirement) ,DG System Voltage, Current ,
Supply to Line Reactors ( Qty as per S/s Supply to Auto Transformers ( Qty as per Main Breaker Status to SCADA
through Transducers & Potential
5 Requirement) S/s Requirement)
Free Contacts
Supply to Auto Transformers ( Qty as per
6 S/s Requirement) Supply to AC Systems
Supply to Jocky Pump, Sump Pump , Fire
7 Fighting Panel & AC Systems
Main Lighting Distribution Board Receives Both 415V Supply from Main Switch Board 2 Incomer & 1 Bus coupler
with Manual changeover scheme is there if 1st I/C fails
1 Switch Yard Supply ( As per Requirement) Switch Yard Supply ( As per Requirement) then Bus coupler Transfers the
Control room Supply ( As per Supply of 2nd I/C Bus to 1st I/c
2 Control room Supply ( As per Requirement) Requirement) Bus & Viseversa with
3 Receptacles Receptacles Mechanical Interlocking.
Emergency Lighting Distribution Board Receives Both 415V Supply from AC Dis. Board
from DG Side
1 Switch Yard Supply ( As per Requirement) Switch Yard Supply ( As per Requirement)
Control room Supply ( As per
2 Control room Supply ( As per Requirement) Requirement)
220V DC Distribution Board Receives Both 415V Supply from 415V AC Distribution Board
from (DG Side, I/C-1) & I/C-2
1 Line & Bus Reactor Panels Line & Bus Reactor Panels
2 Control Relay Panels ( As per Requirement) Control Relay Panels
System Voltage, Current to
3 Bus Bar Protection Panel Bus Bar Protection Panel
SCADA through Transducers &
48V DC Distribution Board Receives Both 415V Supply from 415V AC Distribution Board Potential Free Contacts.
from (DG Side, I/C-1) & I/C-2
1 PLCC Panels ( As per Requirement) PLCC Panels ( As per Requirement)
Phase Comparision Panels ( As per
2 Requirement) Control Relay Panels
Feeders shall be multiplied for different Voltage Label i.e.
33kV/66kV/132kV/220kV/400kV/765kV
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5. Interlock logic:

Electrical & Mechanical interlocking arrangement with Trip logic between the
air circuit breakers are to be provided.

A. Interlocking of Incomer I & Incomer II with Bus Section Breaker:

1. under normal condition (i.e. when supply is available through both the incomers),
incomers I & II of 400V switch board shall be in closed condition, Closing of Bus
Coupler breaker shall be prohibited.

2. In case of failure of either of the sources, the incomer of that source shall trip
through Under-Voltage relay and Bus coupler shall be allowed to close. After
restoration, the respective incomer shall be allowed to close only after opening of
Bus coupler breaker.

3. The above electrical interlock should be done through Breaker auxiliary contact
switch.

B. Interlocking of Incomer I & Incomer II with DG-Incomer Breaker:

1. under normal condition (i.e. when supply is available through both the incomers),
incomers I & II of 400V switch board shall be in closed condition, Closing of DG-
Incomer breaker shall be prohibited.

2. In case of failure of either of the sources, the incomer of that source shall trip
through Under-Voltage relay and Bus coupler shall be allowed to close, but Closing
of DG-Incomer breaker shall be prohibited.

3. In case of failure of supply of both the incomers, both the incomer shall trip
through Under Voltage relay and DG set breaker shall be allowed to switch on. After
restoration, the incomer breakers shall be allowed to close only after opening of DG
set breaker.

4. The above electrical interlock should be done through Breaker auxiliary contact
switches.
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Power and Control cables

Highlights of technical specifications

Type Of Cables & Applications-

Aluminum Conductor, XLPE insulated, armoured power cables are used for
main supply purposes.

Aluminum conductor, PVC insulated armoured power cables are used for all
other distribution applications.

Copper Conductor, PVC insulated armoured control cables are used for all
control & protection applications.

Calculation based on:

Continuous Current Rating

Voltage Drop

Short Circuit Consideration of the System

Important Points for Copper Control Cable:-

Separate Cable for AC & DC.

Separate Cable for DC1 & DC2.
Different Core of CT & PT should have separate cable.
Cable less than 10C shall have 1 spare core and 10C and above
shall have 2 spare cores.

Technical Requirements-

All XLPE insulated power cables used in main power supply purposes shall be able
to withstand 3 phase fault level of 45 kA for 0.12 sec for 3-Phase with an initial peak
of 105kA in any one phase at rated conductor temperature i.e. 70C for PVC
insulated and 90C for XLPE insulated.

1. Conductor withstanding temperature of 250C for XLPE and 160C

for PVC during Short Circuit Condition.

2. All cables shall be of FR type for fire retardant property. Under this
category oxygen index of outer sheath shall not be less than 29 and
temperature index shall not be less than 250 deg C.

HV Power Cable for Auxiliary Power Supply:-

1C X 185 Sq.mm Aluminum Conductor or 1C X 120Sq.mm Copper

Conductor for 630kVA and 800kVA LT Transformer to SEB Feeder.
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Batteries & battery chargers [D.C. system]

All protection circuits work on a dc source. This is generally stationary load

acid battery. Once the battery is charged it requires to be kept in float to meet
internal losses of the battery. Also it needs recharging in case of battery is drained.
This is accomplished with help of battery charger. To meet the load demand, the DC
source of power should be a highly stable and reliable. At the same time battery
bank cant be and should not be disconnected from load while being boost charged.
since incase of mains power interruption it might take limited time ,battery should be
available at the load bus.

Therefore, the dc power equipment should meet the following requirements.

It should operate on AC commercial mains available

It should supply a highly stable D.C power at very low ripple
It should meet full demand
It should be capable of supplying battery boost charge current while still
supplying the protection circuits load demands.
Voltage at the load terminals should not exceed the defined limits & protection
should be produced against overvoltage appearing at load terminals.

Battery bank:

220 Volt (2 sets) for protection and control

48 Volt ( 2 sets) for PLCC

Stationary batteries:

DC Battery of VRLA (Valve Regulated Lead Acid) type used in

entire power grid.
Capacity of DC Battery shall be suitable for following duty cycle-
Continuous load- 3 hours
Emergency Load- 1 hour
Momentary Load- 1 minute
All the cells in a battery shall be designed for continuous float
operation at the specified float voltage throughout the life.

Type Testing & Its Relevance-

Following type testing are broadly identified to conform the

design requirements of stationary batteries.

Capacity Tests- Under this category tests are performed to

verify capacity declared and ability to deliver desired duty cycle
by battery during its life span. This mainly consists of discharge
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capacity, charge retention during storage, recharge behavior,

abusive over-discharge etc.
Sensitivity Tests- VRLA batteries are sensitive to thermal
runaway, low & high temperature and elevated pressure. Tests
are performed to verify above as per requirement of standards
and technical specifications.
Miscellaneous Tests- Certain other tests like high current
tolerance, short circuit current, dc resistance, gas emission,
Valve operation, inter cell connector performance etc are
verified for compliance of standards.

In Arasur SS VRLA batteries are used.

VRLA BATTERY FEATURES:

Maintenance free

Can be installed and operated in any position since gas

generation is self-contained and there is no electrolyte leakage

Safety measures

Ready for use when charged even after extended storage

High performance lead-acid battery

Economy

Construction of VRLA battery:

Positive and negative plates

Retainer, adjusting plate

Safety valve

Container and covers

Factors affecting service life of the battery:

Discharge depth

Discharge current magnitude

Charging current magnitude

Overcharge quantity

Influence of ambient temp.

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BATTERY CHARGERS:

The charger can be operated in both Auto as well as Manual modes.

The 3 ph AC supply voltage is fed to a step-down double wound transformer thru
switch & fuses. The secondary voltage is then fed to a 3 ph full wave, half control
thyristorised bridge, thru the line surge suppressor & MCB.The thyristors of the
bridge circuit are adequately protected by snubber network for protection against
voltage transients.

The thyristor triggering is controlled by electronic regulator unit (AVR)

which senses feedback from both o/p voltage & current. These signals are
processed & compared with the reference generated in the AVR. The AVR is called
the heart of the system, which maintains stable DC voltage of the charger in spite of
supply voltage fluctuations & load variations.

Ramp Generator:

This will ensure a gradual rose of o/p voltage, even if the reference is set
at full value. Its o/p is fed to voltage regulator.

Voltage Regulator:
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The o/p from ramp generator is fed to a suitably compensated OP

amplifier. The reference signal is compared with the voltage feedback signal
obtained from o/p. The error is phase compensated & amplified, which is then
fed to current regulator thru a potentiometer for the current limit action. The
voltage at potentiometer is compared with current feedback signal & phase
compensated by a precision OP- amplifier. Thus the o/p current from charger
can be fixed at a required value.

Firing Circuit:

The o/p of current regulator is fed to the firing circuit, which is then fed to
the thyristors. The firing circuits consist of identical UJTs controlled
oscillator circuits which will be used for the triggering of thyristors in the right
sequence.

Suitably designed L-C filter circuit has been incorporated to bring down
the ripple at the o/p.

There are 2 modes in which the chargers can work.

Float Mode / Constant Voltage Mode

In Float mode the charger will feed the load & also the battery is trickle
charged.

Boost Mode / Constant Current Mode.

In Boost mode the total output of the charger is used to charge the
battery. Hence in this mode the charger cant feed the load.

Both charger 1 & 2 are of Float/ Boost charger type while charger 3 is of Float
type.

The selector switches 1 & 2 determine the mode of working of the chargers,
while the selector switch 3 determines the DB to which the S/B charger has to
feed.

15 Nos of spare batteries are also provided for backup. 20V/20A cell booster
used as spare cell charger to chare the spare batteries.
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Fire Protection system:

The main parts of fire protection system are

Hydrant System
High velocity water (H.V.W) Spray System (2 Nos of 315 MVA ICT).
Fire water storage and pumping system.
Fire Detection and alarm System.

Hydrant System

Hydrant System of fire protection essentially consists of a large network of

pipe, combination of underground and over ground fed with pressurized water to a
number of hydrant valves inside the switchyard as well as outside switchyard. These
hydrant valves are to be located at strategic locations near buildings, Transformers,
and Reactors and other electrical equipments. Hose Pipe of suitable length and fitted
with standard accessories like branch pipes, nozzles etc. are to be kept in Hose
Boxes. In case of emergency these hoses are to be coupled to the respective
hydrant valves through instantaneous coupling and jet of water is to be directed to
the equipment under fire hydrant protection shall cover the following:
Control room building
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All Pump House, Stores.

All switchyard equipment area including ICT and reactors.
D.G. Set Building.
Hydrant System shall be so designed that minimum required water pressure shall be
available at the farthest point of the switchyard.

HVW (High velocity water) spray system (For 400/230 Sub-station):

H.V.W spray type fire protection essentially consists of a network of

projectors and an array of heat detectors around 400 KV Power Transformer and
400 KV Bus Reactor to be protected from fire with H.V.W spray system. On
operation of one or more heat detectors, Water under pressure is to be directed to
the projector network through a Deluge Valve from the pipe network laid for this
automatic operation system is to be employed. Wet detection initiation system shall
be employed for automatic operation.
The system shall be designed in such a way that the same can be extended to
protect one more 400 KV Transformer and Reactor to be installed in future. However
design consideration shall be on the basis of considering only one
Transformer/Reactor of highest MVA/MVAR rating will be on fire at a time. The
system shall be designed to have a suitable pressure and suitable water quantity/hr.
at the farthest transformer/reactor location.

Fire water storage and pumping system.

Dedicated fire water pumping system ids provided for the fire hydrant system
of HVWS system.
Fire Water storage tank of RCC construction with two compartments with a
common sump has been provided .The total capacity of two compartments is 634
m3. One no 410 m3 /hr MWC motor driven horizontal centrifugal pump set and one
no 410 m3 /hr MWC Diesel engine driven horizontal pump set have been installed.
Control Cum annunciation panel is provided with the necessary control
And annunciation for the fire water pumps.

Fire Detection and alarm System.

Fire alarm and detection system is designed to annunciate detection of fire in

single storied control room building.

In Arasur SS conventional type 8 zone (4-zone in working and 4-zone standby

spare) Fire alarm panel is used. This conventional fire alarm system shall consist of
following types of devices.

Conventional ionization smoke detector

Conventional type detector
Conventional type hooters
Conventional type manual call points
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5.1.2 Practical problems in Fire fighting pumps:

The Fire fighting pumping house is having four types of pumps namely

1. Jockey pump(11 KW)

2. HVW Spray pump (125 KW)
3. Diesel engine pump
4. Hydrant pump

The main problematic area in the pump is NRVS, diesel engine battery, spray pump.

Non Return Valves:

These non return valves are provided in the discharge line to avoid the
pressurized water coming back to the impeller (Water Hammering).During the old
days, flap type valves were installed. These valves give heavy noise when pump
stops due to hammering effect. The failure of the pump impeller and the flap of the
NRV are imminent very frequently which in turn increase the outage time and
maintenance cost. To solve this issue rubber ball valve type NRVs are used which
gives noiseless operation and no water hammering effect on the impeller.

DE Pump Battery:

The diesel engine driven pump was provided with auto mobile type 24 volts
battery for starting. These batteries require regular maintenance and also charger
are of inferior monitoring mechanism to have controlled charging current. In recent
market trends, the sealed maintenance free starting system for the diesel engines is
available from the reputed manufactures like Cummins.

HVW Spray pump:

The spray pump is huge pump in the FF system of capacity 125 KW. The full
load current of the motor is 201 A. This pump is vital for the fire fighting system since
it starts only in case of emergency when all motors could not cope with the low water
pressure in case of fire. At the time of commissioning this pump was provided with
DOL (Direct online) starter due to which it takes six times the full load current (1204
A).

Recent times most efficient and flexible current control starters named soft starters
are available in the market.

Hydro-pneumatic tank

In power grid fire fighting system comprises of a pressure based hierarchical

operation of pumps .For sudden pressure drop due to a genuine demand for water in
the system like opening of a hydrant valve, deluge valve operations etc. The high
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discharge pumps connected to Diesel engine or Electric driven pump will come into
picture. However for small pressure drop occurring in the system pressure owing to
minor leakages, Jockey pumps only shall run.

To avoid frequent cycling of the jockey pump and also reduce the water hammer and
pressure rise phenomenon in fire fighting system, Hydro-pneumatic tanks as
temporary energy storage devices are provided in the system. The size of the Hydro-
pneumatic tank is arrived based upon the above mentioned considerations. In power
grid 3 m3 the Hydro-pneumatic tank capacity in all substations.

The Hydro-pneumatic tank uses captive air compressed with water pump operation
for storing the energy. In Older Hydro-pneumatic systems for fire fighting system, Air
compressor was used to pump air into the system whenever air pressure in the
system dropped below threshold. In present day systems these compressors are
avoided. But in the absence fresh air into the system, the existing air column may
deplete due to air molecules getting absorbed in the water. This may result in water
logging in Hydro-pneumatic tank and eventually result in frequent pump cycling
occurring because of insufficient energy storage in the tank. The draining of Hydro-
pneumatic tank unable to resolve the problem, as no opening was available in the
top of the tank to inject the fresh air. For Drain out of tank, piping arrangement was
provided at top of the tank.

The valve was located at a convenient position, to facilitate the operator to carry out
the draining of the system, while simultaneously opening of air intake valve. After
completing the above modification the pump cycling successfully reduced.

Substation lighting:

The following Lux levels are generally required to be maintained in switchyard

area:

50 lux on main equipments (Transformer, Reactor, Isolator, CB, CT,

CVT & SA etc).
20 lux on balance area of switchyard including street lighting.
350 lux in Control room & Office area & 150 Lux in other indoor areas.

For achieving the above specified lux levels in the switchyard, sodium or mercury
vapour luminaries of 400W/ 250W are used as per requirement. Indoor illumination is
generally achieved by various types of fluorescent / CFL & incandescent type of
lamps depending on applications.

In addition to above following items are generally required for illumination system:

Lighting panels, sub-lighting panels, Receptacles, junction boxes, conduit and

accessories, lighting poles, lighting wires & lighting transformers etc.
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Lighting Transformers: Dry Type Natural Cooled Lighting Transformers of 300kVA

for 765/400kV, 100 kVA for 400/220 kV and 25kVA for 132/33kV substations are
installed before incomer of MLDB & ELDB. These transformers have 415V:415V
voltage ratio and are also called unit transformers. These are installed mainly to
reduce the fault level at main-bus of MLDB & ELDB and for electrical isolation of
lighting distribution circuit.

The entire lighting system is divided in three categories:

AC Normal Lighting-

415 V Main Lighting distribution board located in MCC room feeds all normal AC
lighting requirement of substation.

AC Emergency Lighting-

415V Emergency lighting distribution board located in MCC room feeds all
emergency lighting requirements in strategic locations like control room, fire fighting
pump house, DG room & in switchyard area. Under normal circumstances this
distribution board is fed from main supply through auxiliary transformers, however in
case of emergency the board is fed by DG set of substation.

DC Emergency Lighting

DC Emergency lighting fixtures located at strategic locations are fed by DC lighting

panels. These fixtures will be automatically switched on in Case of under voltage or
total AC supply failure at Main Lighting distribution board.

AIR-CONDITIONING SYSTEM:

Air-conditioning requirements of following areas in shall be met by split units.

-Control room

-Conference room.

-DGMs room.

-Battery Room

-Electronics test lab

Air-Conditioning units for control room building shall be set to maintain the following
inside conditions 24C 2 C.
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