APS

APS ||2020
2020

Performance Evaluation of a NCIT in a Laboratory Set up

based on Process Bus Topology

Dinesh Mithanthaya | Principal Asset Strategy Engineer | Western Power, Perth, WA 6000, Australia
dinesh.mithanthaya@westernpower.com.au

Shantanu Kumar | Principal Electrical Asset Integrity Engineer | BHP, Perth, WA 6000, Australia
shantanu.kumar@bhp.com

1 Introduction
Reliability in the protection of costly power assets during an electrical fault is the key feature of a
protection system. With the advancement in Digital technology and Internet of Things (IoT),
protection system and Substation Automation System (SAS) have undergone a huge change,
Operators are now effectively manage, control and diagnose faults with minimum downtime as
opposed to the conventional system. Implementation of digital protection schemes in a High
Voltage (HV) substation provides optimized maintenance cost, reduced maintenance diagnostics
and improved communication with the control room for decision making. Additionally Original
Equipment Manufacturers (OEM) have now come up with novel technologies in primary
equipment which are a good substitute for conventional ones. One such smart sensors that shall
replace Conventional Instrument Transformers (CITs) is called Non Conventional Instrument
Transformers (NCIT). Advancement of NCITs have made it possible to directly link NCIT with the
Intelligent Electronic Devices (IEDs) or via Merging Units (MUs). NCIT connected to IED provide
higher accuracy, better transient response and wider bandwidth when implemented in a process
bus topology based on IEC 61850-9-2 standard. NCIT based protection system, keeps the assets
secured by isolating the assets from faults while keeping the functionality of the substation
philosophy intact. Traditional CITs that are operational in the air and gas HV substations are
either oil filled or SF6 type which have environmental issues in the event of a catastrophic failure
or leakage. It is observed that, use of NCIT could mitigate these issues arising out of CIT failures,
provide better safety, reliability, and increased asset life. NCITs have better safety as compared
to CITs without the effect of secondary termination getting opened leading to saturation.
However, before these HV NCITs could find their way towards mass deployment in smart grids
and digital substations, there is a need for detailed modelling and simulation of NCIT and its’
IEC61850-9-2 process bus based merging unit. Optimized Network Engineering Tool (OPNET)
or Riverbed Modeler is a popular simulation software for such design and modelling of Ethernet
networks. This paper presents a model of OPNET software for the simulation of a NCIT based
on digital substation in a process bus environment.
2 Conventional vs Digital Protection Schemes
Conventional protection schemes connected through copper cables have few limitations, such
as time consuming and laborious diagnostics, crowding up of the low voltage secondary cable
trenches etc. Additionally, mechanical failures of switchyard equipment instrument transformers
have disrupted normal power flow and have caused inadvertent power outages. Advancement
of digital protection and application of Fibre Optics (FO) in the switchyard equipment have
heralded a new paradigm in Non–Conventional Instrument Transformer (NCIT). NCIT is an
alternative to CIT as it offers significant benefits to operational performance, safety, network
security environmental values, and many engineering advantages. Traditional transformers using
iron cores were widely used for measuring voltage and current for several decades, but with the
introduction of new fibre based sensors, digital technologies and novel measuring techniques
have made it easy to manage the instrument transformers. New sensor type of current and
voltage transformers do not adopt iron core like the conventional ones. Hence, these types are
identified as NCITs (NCIT) [3-6].

New technologies in substation protection, automation and control have made it possible to
protect costly primary plant assets, such as HV cables, Overhead Transmission Lines, HV

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switchgears and power transformers IEDs in protection schemes. Digital IEDs and Merging Units
(MU) exchange Sampled Values (SV) and Generic Object Oriented Substation Events (GOOSE)
via Ethernet and Fibre Optics in a process bus environment, replacing copper wires. Use of
Ethernet cables offer faster tripping in the event of a fault. It offers no saturation, wider frequency
bandwidth and no mechanical defects such as leakage of oil and SF6 gas. Additionally, the IEC
61850 Process Bus interconnects the IEDs within a bay that carries real-time measurements for
protection called Sampled Values (SV). Process Bus goes a step further than Station Bus as it
provides the digital link to the primary equipment like switchgear and instrument transformers. It
not only reduces copper wiring within the switchyard but also makes safer and easier the
maintenance of IED panels in control building by eliminating high energy signals. Relay panels
have much less wiring which helps standardise the design of the interfaces between secondary
and primary systems. A significant time is saved in the site secondary isolation process during
field installation, commissioning and maintenance. Less effort is needed for drafting, installation
and testing of such system [7-9].

Fig 1. Layout of a NCIT in a HV Substation [9]

Ethernet is the backbone of digital technology which is constantly shaping up the automation
requirement of a digital substation. However, in order to have large scale deployment in utilities
and industries, it needs to be tested further on it’s performance in a lab set up that shall give
confidence to its operators and make it financially viable. At present the cost of a NCIT is
generally 2 times more than a similar CIT. However it’s installation cost is lower as it does not
require standalone mounting structure and do not require the extensive secondary copper cables.
Hence NCIT still is worth considering for substation. Fig.2 exhibits a CIT that can be used in a
process bus topology by converting analogue signals to digital packets with the help of a MU as
shown in Fig 2.

Fig 2. CIT in a HV Substation used [10]

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Although, IEC 61850 lays down certain guidelines for communication protocol at station, bay and
process level components, there are quite a few issues related to redundancies in the scheme,
as frames often are lost at nodes and switches during its transmission and broadcast in the ring
[9]. This could be overcome using the network on Parallel Redundancy Protocol (PRP) schemes
based on IEC 62439-3. Furthermore, the timing requirement of the protection scheme to operate
during a fault being very critical, during interlocking and blocking, smart protection IEDs must act
quickly within 4-ms as per IEC 61850-5 standard referenced in Table-I. Operating under such
dynamic environment secondary connection between switchyard equipment and IEDs play a
crucial role in providing necessary reliability.

Table-I: Communication recovery time based on IEC 61850-5 [2].

Communication Partners Application Recovery Communication Recovery

Time (in ms) Time (in ms)

Client - Server 800 400

SC to IED
NTP , SNMP 500 300

IED to IED, reverse blocking, 12 4

interlocking

Trip GOOSE 8 4
Bus Bar Protection <1 seamless

Sampled Values <2 0

This paper evaluates the performance of a digital protection scheme featuring NCITs, MU and
IED’s using an Optimized Network Engineering Tool (OPNET) as well as laboratory based
experimentation. Understanding the End to End (ETE) delay and evaluating the errors in
receiving time of critical GOOSE and SV messages in a process bus schemes of a smart grid
substation provides confidence to use NCITs in future grids.
3 Network Topology in a Process Bus Configuration
A Single Line Diagram (SLD) has been exhibited in Fig.3 which show a typical 132/22-kV High
Voltage (HV) zone substation. Here, we have investigated the performance of a digital protection
scheme based on a process topology using OPNET simulator and through lab experiments of a
field NCIT connected to an IED over an Ethernet cable. Digital IEDs with switches and media
converters are connected in process bus topology to receive Sampled Values from the MU

NCIT involved in this experimentation have the following rating:

Rated Primary Current : 200A, Rated Secondary Current : 1A - Accuracy : IEC 0.5, 5P - Short-
time Current : 36kA for 1s

132kV 132kV
Line Line

132 kV
132 kV
Ckt
Ckt
Breaker
Breaker

132/22kV, 132/22kV,
D-Y,100 D-Y,100
MVAr Trf MVAr Trf
A1 A1

22
22
kV /
kV /
110v
110v
VT
VT
22 22
kV kV
Ckt 22kV Bus Ckt
22kV Bus
Bkr A5 Bkr
A1

1095
KVAR
Cap Out Going Feeders at
1095 Out Going Feeders at 22kV
Bank
KVAR 22kV
Cap 22kV Bus Section
Bank

Fig. 3. The SLD of a 132/22-kV zone substation [8].

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4 Simulation Results and Discussion

An OPNET simulator tool was used to verify the performance of an overall delay in the digital
network topology at the nodes of IEDs and switches. This simulation involved Sampled Value
(SV) traffic messages transmitted from NCIT via MU to the IED. Fig. 4 exhibits the Ethernet delay
at the node of a switch to the subscribing IEDs.

Fig. 4: Ethernet delays in process bus topology.

Fig. 5 exhibits the overall Ethernet delay i.e., End-to-End delay in the topology which is
encountered when all Ethernet connected IEDs and peripherals such as switches, media
converters and Merging Units etc. are in operations in the network.

Fig. 5: Average Ethernet delay at nodes in Process bus topology vs overall Ethernet End to End delay.

Table II exhibits a table with parameters set out for NCIT model with various nodes in the
topology in the desktop model of OPNET with number of events observed during an hr long
simulation.
Table-II: OPNET simulation for process bus topology.
Description Parameters

Events 12,550,400

Average Speed (events/sec) 2,453,320

Time elapsed (sec) 4

Duration of simulation (Hrs) 1

DES Log 6 entries

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The experimental results modelled in OPNET simulation, indicate minor data packets traffic delay
at the nodes which were insignificant and within the limits. Other notable conclusion inferred with
respect to this simulation is reliability. It is noted that NCIT linked with process bus topology
offered better protection reliability due to speed of data packet transmitted with less errors or
packets lost leveraging on FO and Ethernet technology.

Lab test on the given HV NCIT exhibits linearity and errors in Fig. 6 over a wide range of primary
current variation. Results exhibit it to be within the limits as per IEC 60044 std. Characteristics
exhibited for ratio and phase errors doesn’t show abnormality and merits wider application in the
network.

Fig.6 Ratio and Phase errors of a NCIT

Fig.6 shows the characteristics of a NCIT that could handle wide range of currents while
maintaining ratio and phase errors within limits and remains stable in accuracy regardless of the
surrounding temperature which merits wide spread deployment.

5 Conclusion

The Fibre-Optic Current Sensor based NCIT founded on the Faraday Effect which provides
considerable advantages over the CIT. This new technology involving NCIT exceeds traditional
magnetic CT technology in terms of safety of operation, current measurement and frequency
response, footprint/weight savings, and having a lower environmental impact. The faster
response of the NCIT and the precise measurement of both AC and transient DC makes it a
suitable equipment that merits large scale deployment in HV substation. Its digital interface with
IEC 61850-9-2LE communication heralds a new paradigm in protection technology in the near
future.

Software simulation results obtained in a laboratory set up modelling a typical HV zone substation
i.e. 132/22-kV process bus architecture exhibited higher reliability and enhanced performance of
a digital communication network with less delay time of data packets moving through nodes and
peripherals and limited phase and ratio errors as opposed to CITs. It validated the speed of
frames passing via nodes and the result encouraged its application for future use within utility
substation protection, automation and control system.

6 Acknowledgement
The authors gratefully acknowledge the valuable support and contribution made by Curtin
University’s industrial partners i.e. Schneider, ABB, GE, Siemens and Omicron

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7 References
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Stockholm, Sweden.pl check all refs.
[2] C. Hoga,“Seamless Communication Redundancy of IEC 62439" in Proc. of The international Conference on Advanced
Power System Automation and Protection 2011, DOI 10.1109/APAP.2011.6180451, Beijing, China.
[3] J. A. A raujo, J. Lazaro, A. Astaloa, A. Zuloaga, and A. Garcia, “PRP and HSR Version 1 (IEC 62439-3 Ed.2)
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[5] International Standard IEC 62439-3, Edition 3.0, “Industrial Communication Networks High Availability automation
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[6] H. Kirrmann, P. Rietmann, and S. Kunsman, “Standard IEC 61850 - Network redundancy using 62439”, Offprint of article
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[8] S. Kumar, N. Das, S. Islam, “Causes and mitigation of sympathetic tripping phenomenon based on IEC 61850,”
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About the Authors

Shantanu Kumar received Bachelor of engineering degree in Electrical
from Bangalore University, India in 1990. He obtained a MBA from Indore
University, India in 1996 and completed his postgraduate research in
power engineering leading to MScEng. from The University of Western
Australia, Perth, WA, Australia in 2014. Currently, he is pursuing his
research work in digital substation as a PhD candidate from Curtin
University, Perth, WA, Australia. He has over 30 years of experience as a
power engineer in diversified resources and utilities spanning from Asia to
Australia. Currently, he works for BHP Nickel West in Perth, WA as a
Principal Electrical Engineer Asset Integrity. He is a Fellow and chartered
engineer of Engineers Australia and is a panel member of EA to assess
the aspiring CP Eng candidates.

Dinesh Mithanthaya received Bachelor of Engineering degree in

Electrical from National Institute of Technology Karnataka in 1986. He
completed his Post graduation in Design and Production Engineering of
Heavy Electrical Equipment in 1988 from Maulana Azad National Institute
of Technology, India. He has over 30 years of international experience
spanning India, Middle East and Australia. He has wide exposure from
concept to commissioning of the projects involving engineering design to
site commissioning of power stations, substations and process networks.
Currently he works for Western Power as Principal Asset Strategy
Engineer. His professional interest is on implementation of new
technology in the business to enhance the safety, reliability and cost
effectiveness.

Australian Protection Symposium

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