NATIONAL THERMAL POWER CORPORATION

OPERATION DIVISION FORMAL DOCUMENTATION SYSTEM

OPERATION GUIDANCE NOTE- OGN/OPS/ELEC/018
Issue No. : 1 Date : September, 1994
PYROLYTIC CARBON GROWTH ON TAPCHANGER
AND OFF-CIRCUIT TAPPING SWITCH CONTACTS
IN TRANSFORMERS
Approved for
Implementation by .....................................................
Director (Operation)
Date :.............................................
Enquiries to : Executive Director, Operation Services.
PYROLYTIC CARBON GROWTH ON TAPCHANGER AND
OFF-CIRCUIT TAPPING SWITCH CONTACTS IN TRANSFORMERS
CONTENTS
Page Nos.
1.0 Introduction 1
2.0 Superseded Documents 1
3.0 Scope 2
4.0 Precautions 2
5.0 Review 2
Page 1
OGN/OPS/ELEC/018
Issue-1, Sept. 94
PYROLYTIC CARBON GROWTH ON TAPCHANGER AND
OFF-CIRCUIT TAPPING SWITCH CONTACTS IN TRANSFORMERS
1.0 INTRODUCTION
This Guidance Note is issued to draw attention to instances of contact
overheating which have occured over the past few years due to pyrolytic carbon
growth.
On-load tapchangers designed for reversing or coarse/fine tapping
arrangements incorporate a changeover selector in the tap selector
compartment. On some three or four occasions in recent years, overheating
has occured on these changeover contacts in transformers. In each case, the
failure has manifested itself as a slow build up of pyrolytic carbon around the
point of contact which has increasingly raised the contact resistance to a high
value and overheating has become progressively more severe. In some
designs of tapchanger, the increased resistance has caused the contact springs
to carry current. This has in turn resulted in the spring overheating and relaxing
in pressure. As the spring pressure on contact surfaces in reduced, more
carbon has built up and the effect has been cumulative, eventually leading to a
Buchholz alarm.
A further instance of pyrolytic carbon growth occured on the contacts of an off-
circuit switch fitted to a fairly old generator transformer which had to be returned
to the factory following a Buchholz gas alarm.
There are a number of reasons for pyrolytic growth of carbon on contacts but
the most important is that when the contacts are rarely moved, the carbon is
allowed to build up and is not brushed away.
2.0 SUPERSEDED DOCUMENTS - Nil
Page 2
OGN/OPS/ELEC/018
Issue-1, Sept. 94
3.0 SCOPE
All indoor and outdoor transformers with tap changing facility.
4.0 PRECAUTIONS
To reduce the incidence of faults on contacts of tapchanger equipment as a
result of pyrolytic carbon growth, it is recommended that all such equipment
fitted to transformers, whether off-circuit or on-load type, shall be operated
occasionally through the tapping range as follows :-
On-load tapchanger equipment incorporating changeover selectors
should be operated at least six times through the changeover position
every year.
Off-circuit tapping switches should be operated through each tapping
position at least six times every four years.
Should any off-circuit switch be extremely stiff in operation, excessive force
should not be used but the cause of the stiffness investigated and rectified. The
operation of the tap changing equipment should be recorded.
5.0 REVIEW
The Executive Director, Operation Services, will be responsible for reviewing
this Guidance Note on 2-yearly basis or as necessary.