Earthing and Bonding

for Common Bonded

AC Electrified Railways
Peter Brown
Electrification & Plant Design Group
28 January 2014
18 February, 2014 Earthing and Bonding of Electrified Railways 2
 Induction

VL

cable
Lineside capacitance
conductor to earth

18 February, 2014 Earthing and Bonding of Electrified Railways VT 3

Effects of Coupling
Secondary safety concerns

Occupational
safety hazard
Delays

Traction
current Hazardous Noise on
touch System voice
potential Unavailable circuits
Magnetic
field
Equipment
malfunction Errors in
digital/data
circuits
Equipment
damage

VL VT
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 Touch Voltage Limits – EN 50122-1
EN 50122-1 AC Body Voltage RMS EN 50122-1 AC Eff Touch Voltage RMS

900

800

700 Effective
touch voltage
with shoes on 645 V, 200 ms
600
Touch Voltage /V

500

400

300
Actual voltage
200 across the body

100 60 V continuous

0
0.01
18 February, 2014 0.1
Earthing and Bonding of Electrified Railways 1 10 100 Time /s 1000 5
 Mutual Screening Conductor

• Earthed every 1 km using

earth electrodes
• MSC reduces induction to
cables by ~50 %
• Must be close to S&T
cable
• Earth electrodes are a
pain
• 19/3.25 (158 mm2) Al VL

4Ω
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 Return Screening Conductor
• RSC – performance similar to MSC
~ 50-60 % reduction
• Installation & maintenance costs
lower (no earth electrodes)
• Less risk of spiking cables
• More tolerant of bond loss
• Conductor must be rated for normal
and fault currents
• Typical size: 19/4.22 (266 mm2) Al
• Generic safety case pending VL
• If MSC is already installed it can be
left – no need to maintain
• AT+RSC ≡BT+MSC
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 RSC Connections to the Rail

RSC
Spider plates

AEW
Traction
Rail
Signal
Rail
Traction
Rail
Signal
Impedance bonds Rail
Axle counters / No Double-rail Single-rail
track circuits track circuits track circuits

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Signalling Power Earthing Issues

• Locs – 10 Ω earth farm

difficult to maintain low resistance
compliance with BS 7671 disconnection times
• Circuit protective conductor (CPC)
• Class II
• LOCs in OCLZ
move outside OCLZ
bond to traction return
• Common bonding using RSC as CPC
disconnection times
traction return under dewirement
reduction in differential voltages

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Bond sizes based on fault

• Bonds liable to carry traction fault:

– 6 kA 200 ms fault: 16 mm2 Cu, 25 mm2 Al

– 12 kA 200 ms fault: 35 mm2 Cu, 50 mm2 Al

• Al is preferred – ½ capital cost, 1/7 scrap value

• Voltage drop across the bond must not exceed EN 50122-1

limits.
– Only a problem for long conductors

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Earth conductor max lengths based on size
Max Length Cu Max Length Al
2
Size (mm ) (m) (m)
35 105 -
50 155 95
70 215 130
95 295 180
120 370 225
158 (19/3.25) 490 300
266 (19/4.22) 825 505

Based on 645 V max voltage drop for 12 kA 200 ms fault.

Double length for 6 kA, 200 ms fault.

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LOCs, Signalling Power & Earthing

VL

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Common Bonding on the Railway
Enhanced
PSP 650 V Insulation 2-
core
FSP FSP FSP

50 mm2 Al or
35 mm2 Cu
Loc Loc Loc Loc Loc Loc

Loc Loc
>10 m from FSP
19/3.25 Al
Loc
158 mm2 FTE
RSC 19/4.22 Al
RSC
AEW

AEW

RSC
18 February, 2014 Earthing and Bonding of Electrified Railways
400 m 13
 Classic Railway 6 kA
Two Track 25 kV Classic Lines with
Return Conductors 6 kA Fault Level Return Conductor

Location Open Route

Signalling
Location Case Signalling
Equipment
Room
Trough Extraneous Earth

Ground Potentials Earth Potential Earth Electrode

Rise in Rails and in
(V) Vehicle Body

Human
Touch
Potential
to Mast
Potential Potential
Difference at Difference
location case signalling
Ue Earth equipment to
Potential traction
Rise voltage

Potential Difference
signalling equipment to remote earth

© Roger White
18 February, 2014 Earthing and Bonding of Electrified Railways 14
 12 kA Railway: Common Bonded
Two Track 25 kV Railway with AEWs & BEWs
12 kA Fault Level
Location Signalling Equipment Remote BEW
AEW – Aerial Earth Wire AEW
BEW – Buried Earth Wire AEW

Signalling
Equipment Signalling BEW
Room Location Case
Trough

Ground Potentials
(V)
Earth Potential
Rise in Rails Trough
plus Vehicle Ground
Body Potential

Human Ue Earth
Potential Touch Potential
Difference Potential
to Mast Rise
Signalling
equipment to
remote Earth

© Roger White
18 February, 2014 Earthing and Bonding of Electrified Railways 15
 PAN/E&P-E/EE/ESD/0102

• ‘Earthing and Bonding for AC Electrification Schemes applying

Common Bonding’

– System approach to E&B to achieve

• compliance to EN 50122-1
• minimise interference to systems

– Substantial industry consultation

– Publication: Feb/March 2014
(subject to approval of derogations)

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