3353 Peachtree Road NE

Suite 600, North Tower

Atlanta, GA 30326
404-446-2560 | www.nerc.com

Use of Circuit Breaker

Position Indication in
Breaker Failure Protection

System Protection and Control
Subcommittee
December 2011

TableofContents

ii UseofCircuitBreakerIndicationInBreakerFailureProtectionDecember2011
Table of Contents

TableofContents.............................................................................................................................ii
Introduction....................................................................................................................................1
EventDescription............................................................................................................................2
IndustryGuidance...........................................................................................................................3
BreakerFailureModes................................................................................................................3
BreakerFailureProtectionSchemes...........................................................................................3
SPCSAssessment.............................................................................................................................5
Conclusions.....................................................................................................................................6
AppendixASystemProtectionandControlSubcommitteeRoster............................................7

This technical document was approved by the NERC Planning Committee on December 14, 2011.

Chapter1Introduction

1 UseofCircuitBreakerIndicationInBreakerFailureProtectionDecember2011
Introduction

ANERCeventinvestigationidentifiedconcernsregardinguseofcircuitbreakerposition
indicationinbreakerfailureprotectionschemes.Inthiseventthebreakerfailureprotection
didnotoperatewhenonepoleofthecircuitbreakerfailedtoopenduetoamechanical
problem.Thebreakerfailureprotectionschemeutilizedcircuitbreakerpositionindicationin
serieswiththefaultcurrentdetector.ThelogicalANDcreatedwiththisseriesarrangement
preventedoperationbecausealthoughfaultcurrentwasflowing,thecircuitbreakermechanical
problemresultedinadisagreementbetweenthecircuitbreaker52acontactandthecircuit
breakermaincontacts.

TheinvestigationresultedinpublicationofaLessonLearnedandarecommendationthatthe
NERCSystemProtectionandControlSubcommittee(SPCS)assesswhetherindustryguidance
onthissubjectissufficientandifappropriate,pursuemodificationstoIEEEGuideC37.119with
theIEEEPowerSystemRelayingCommittee.

Chapter2EventDescription

UseofCircuitBreakerIndicationInBreakerFailureProtectionDecember2011 2
Event Description

Duringtheevent,abreakerfailureprotectionschemedidnotoperatewhenonepoleofthe
circuitbreakerfailedtoopenduetoamechanicalproblem,resultinginbackupprotection
systemoperationonseverallinestoclearthefault.Priortothefault,anoperatingrodbecame
disconnectedfromthegearingmechanismontheBphaseofacircuitbreaker.Upondetecting
thefault,theprotectionsystemoperatedproperlyandinitiatedbothacircuitbreakertripand
thebreakerfailureprotectionscheme.ThecircuitbreakerAphaseandCphasemaincontacts
openedasexpectedwhenthecircuitbreakerwastripped,howevertheBphasemaincontacts
failedtoopenasaresultofthedisconnectedoperatingrod.Thecircuitbreaker52aauxiliary
contactswereunaffectedbythedisconnectedoperatingrodandopenedasaresultofthetrip.
Thisresultedinanincorrectcircuitbreakerpositionindicationbeingprovidedtothebreaker
failurecontrollogic.

Basedonthebreakerfailurelogicdesign,twoconditionswererequiredforthebreakerfailure
protectionschemetooperate:1)operationofthe50BFfaultcurrentdetector,indicatingthe
presenceoffaultcurrent;and2)thecircuitbreaker52aauxiliarycontactsremainintheclosed
position,indicatingthecircuitbreakerhadnotopened.Figure1illustratesoneexampleofa
breakerfailurelogicdesignusingalogicalANDtooperateonlywhenfaultcurrentispresent
andthecircuitbreakerpositionindicationisclosed.Inthisexamplethefaultcurrentand
breakerpositionarecombinedinalogicalANDwiththebreakerfailureinitiate(BFI)signalfrom
theprotectiverelaysforthefaultedzone.

Figure1:ExampleofBreakerFailureLogicRequiringFaultDetectorOperationANDCircuit
BreakerPositionClosedIndication

AlthoughtheBphase50BFfaultcurrentdetectorwaspickedupduetothefaultcurrent,the
52acontactsincorrectlyindicatedanopencircuitbreaker.Sinceonlyoneofthetworequired
conditionswastrue,thebreakerfailureschemedidnotoperate.Theconsequencewasthe
operationofbackuprelayingonmultiplelinestoclearthefault,resultinginamoresevere
outagethanifthebreakerfailureprotectionhadoperated.

Chapter3IndustryGuidance

3 UseofCircuitBreakerIndicationInBreakerFailureProtectionDecember2011
Industry Guidance

Breaker Failure Modes

Section6ofC37.119discussesbreakerfailuremodes.Thetwoprimaryfailuremodesinvolve
failuretotripandfailuretoclear.

Afailuretotripischaracterizedbythebreakercontactsfailingtoopenafterthetripcircuitis
energizedbytheprotectionsystem.Thiscouldbecausedbyanopenorshortinthetripcircuit
orthebreakertripcoil.Italsocouldbetheresultofamechanicalproblemsuchasoccurredin
theeventdescribedabove,whichmayresultinthe52aand52bcontactschangingstateeven
thoughthecircuitbreakermaincontactshavenotopened,resultinginanincorrectindication
ofthecircuitbreakermaincontactposition.

Afailuretoclearischaracterizedbythebreakerfailingtoextinguishcurrenteventhoughthe
breakercontactshaveopened.Afailuretoclearmayresultfromincompletecontactparting
causedbyamechanicalproblem,lossofdielectricstrength,restrikeofanopeningbreaker,ora
surgethatresultsinaflashoverofanopenbreaker.Ineachofthesecasesthe52aand52b
contactswillchangestateeventhoughfaultcurrentwillcontinuetoflow.

Breaker Failure Protection Schemes

Section7ofC37.119discussesbreakerfailureschemesthathavereceivedacceptancebythe
industryandareusedinutilitypowersystems.Severaldifferentlogicdesignsarepresented.
Theguidediscussestheuseofbreakerpositionindicationforbreakerfailureprotectioninthree
schemes;however,therearenoschemesinwhichthebreakerpositionindicationisplacedin
serieswiththefaultdetectorfunctiontoproducealogicalANDrequirement.

Thethreeschemesutilizingbreakerpositionindicationarediscussedinsections7.6,Minimal
currentscheme;7.7,Fast52aa,dualtimerbreakerfailurescheme;and7.8,Tripletimerbreaker
failurescheme.Breakerpositionindicationisusefulwhenitispossiblethatminimalfaultlevels
willoccurthatareinsufficienttooperatethefaultcurrentdetectors.Someexamplesofwhen
thismayoccurareturntoturnfaultsinageneratorortransformer,transformerorgenerator
faultslimitedbyimpedance,lowsidefaultsontransformerswithhightransformationratios
(e.g.,stationauxiliarytransformers),andgroundfaultsondeltatransformerwindings.Ineach
case,thelogicalcombinationofbreakerpositionandcurrentdetectionalwaysproducesa
logicalORrequirementtoassuretheschemewilloperateproperlyforlowmagnitudefaults.
Theguidespecificallystates,Whileoperationoftheauxiliaryswitchmightproperlyindicate
thatthebreakermechanismhasoperated,itisnotsufficientindicationthatthecircuitbreaker
hasinterruptedthefaultcurrent.Figure2illustratesoneexampleofabreakerfailurelogic
designusingalogicalORrequirementtoprovideoperationforfailuresinvolvingminimalfault
current.

Chapter3IndustryGuidance

UseofCircuitBreakerIndicationInBreakerFailureProtectionDecember2011 4
Figure2:ExampleofBreakerFailureLogicRequiringFaultDetectorOperationORCircuit
BreakerPositionClosedIndication

Chapter4SPCSAssessment

5 UseofCircuitBreakerIndicationInBreakerFailureProtectionDecember2011
SPCS Assessment

TheNERCLessonLearneddiscussestheimportanceofweighingtheadvantagesand
disadvantagesofcombiningbreakerpositionindicationandfaultcurrentindicationtocreatea
logicalANDrequirementversusalogicalORrequirementtosupervisebreakerfailure
protection.Breakerfailureprotectionisinitiatedwhenprotectionsystemscommandacircuit
breakertoclearanidentifiedfault.Failuresofbreakerstoclearfaultsoccurinfrequently;
however,therisktoequipmentandoverallsystemreliabilityoffailingtoclearafaultwhen
suchbreakerfailuresoccurdemandsthatbreakerfailureprotectionschemesaredesignedwith
ahighlevelofdependability.Toassuredependability,correctoperationofbreakerfailure
protectionschemesisnecessarywhenfaultcurrentisdetectedthroughthecircuitbreakerfor
longerthanthebreakerfailuretimersetting,regardlessofthebreakerpositionindication.
Dependabilitymaybeenhancedfurtherforcertainapplicationsbycombiningbreakerposition
indicationwithfaultcurrentdetectiontocreatealogicalORrequirement.Suchenhancements
areappropriatewhenthepotentialexistsforlowgradefaultsthatmaynotbedetected
dependablybythefaultcurrentdetector.

CreatingalogicalANDcompromisesthedependabilityofthebreakerfailureschemenotonly
forfailurestotripsuchasoccurredfortheeventdescribedintheLessonLearned;itprevents
operationofthebreakerfailureprotectionschemeforfailurestoclearresultingfrom
incompletecontactparting,lossofdielectricstrength,breakerrestrikeduringopening,or
flashoversofthemaincontacts.Securityofthebreakerfailureprotectionschemecanbe
improvedbycreatingalogicalANDrequirementwithbreakerpositionindicationandfault
currentdetection.However,thenegativeimpactondependabilityoutweighsany
improvementinsecurityunlessconsiderationisgiventoaddressthefailuremodesdescribed
above.

Chapter5Conclusions

UseofCircuitBreakerIndicationInBreakerFailureProtectionDecember2011 6
Conclusions

Breakerfailureprotectiondesignshouldconsiderallpotentialfailuremodesandbalance
dependabilityandsecurityofoperation.CreatingalogicalANDbyplacingthebreakerposition
indicationandfaultcurrentdetectioninseriescanimprovesecurity;however,itwillnot
providedependableoperationwhenthebreakerpositionindicationisnotinagreementwith
themaincontactpositionduetomechanicalfailureswithinthebreaker,andforfailuresto
clearresultingfromincompletecontactparting,lossofdielectricstrength,breakerrestrike
duringopening,orflashoversofthemaincontacts.Thepotentialconsequencesoffailingto
clearafaultmustbeconsideredwhenevaluatingthebalancebetweendependabilityand
securityinabreakerfailurescheme.

AppendixASystemProtectionandControlSubcommitteeRoster

7 UseofCircuitBreakerIndicationInBreakerFailureProtectionDecember2011
Appendix A System Protection and Control
Subcommittee Roster

JonathanSykes
Chairman
ManagerofSystemProtection
PacificGasandElectricCompany
WilliamJ.Miller
ViceChairman
PrincipalEngineer
ExelonCorporation
MichaelJ.Putt
REFRCC
Manager,DesignandStandards
FloridaPower&LightCo.
RichardQuest
REMRO
Engineer
XcelEnergy,Inc.
DanielJesberg
REMROAlternate
Engineer
MidwestReliabilityOrganization
JeffIler
RERFC
SeniorEngineer
AmericanElectricPower
PhilipB.Winston
RESERC
ChiefEngineer,ProtectionandControl
SouthernCompany
LynnSchroeder
RESPP
ManagerSubstationProtectionandControl
WestarEnergy
SamuelFrancis
RETRE
SystemProtectionSpecialist
OncorElectricDelivery
BajAgrawal
REWECC
PrincipalEngineer
ArizonaPublicServiceCompany
MiroslavKostic
CanadaProvincial
P&CPlanningManager,Transmission
HydroOneNetworks,Inc.
SungsooKim
CanadaProvincial
SectionManagerProtectionsandTechnicalCompliance
OntarioPowerGenerationInc.
MichaelJ.McDonald
InvestorOwnedUtility
PrincipalEngineer,SystemProtection
AmerenServicesCompany
CharlesW.Rogers
TransmissionDependentUtility
PrincipalEngineer
ConsumersEnergyCo.
JoeT.Uchiyama
U.S.Federal
SeniorElectricalEngineer
U.S.BureauofReclamation
JoshuaL.Wooten
U.S.Federal
ManagerofSystemProtectionandAnalysis
TennesseeValleyAuthority
DanielMcNeely
U.S.FederalAlternate
EngineerSystemProtectionandAnalysis
TennesseeValleyAuthority
PhilipJ.Tatro
NERCStaffCoordinator
SeniorPerformanceandAnalysisEngineer
NERC
RobertW.Cummings
NERCStaff
DirectorofSystemAnalysisandReliabilityInitiatives
NERC
JonathanD.Gardell
SubjectMatterExpertNERCConsultant
AssociateConsultantQuantaTechnology
PresidentGardellPowerConsulting,Inc.
JimIngleson
SubjectMatterExpert
RLCEngineering

EricAUdren
SubjectMatterExpert
ExecutiveAdvisor
QuantaTechnology
AppendixASystemProtectionandControlSubcommitteeRoster

UseofCircuitBreakerIndicationInBreakerFailureProtectionDecember2011 8
TomWiedman
SubjectMatterExpertNERCConsultant
President
WiedmanPowerSystemConsulting,Ltd.
MurtyYalla
SubjectMatterExpert
President
BeckwithElectricCompanyInc.
W.O.(Bill)Kennedy
SubjectMatterExpert
Principal
b7kennedy&AssociatesInc.
ForrestBrock
Observer
TransmissionComplianceSpecialist
WesternFarmersElectricCoop.
MarkFidrych
Observer
ManagerofPerformanceReviewsandMetrics
NorthAmericanTransmissionForum
JoeSpencer
Observer
ManagerofPlanningandEngineering
SERCReliabilityCorporation
DavidAngell
Correspondent
T&DPlanningEngineeringLeader
IdahoPowerCompany
HasnainAshrafi
Correspondent
Engineer
Sargent&Lundy
DevenBhan
Correspondent
ElectricalEngineer
WesternAreaPowerAdministration
LarryBrusseau
Correspondent
StandardsManager
MidwestReliabilityOrganization
DacPhuocBui
Correspondent
Engineer,SystemProtection
HydroQubecTransnergie
JohnL.Ciufo
Correspondent
Principal
CiufoandCooperbergConsultingLtd.
SaraFilling
Correspondent
Director,SystemProtection&Automation
BaltimoreGas&ElectricCompany
JeanneHarshbarger
Correspondent
SystemProtectionEngineer
PugetSoundEnergy,Inc.
FredIpock
Correspondent
SeniorEngineerSubstations&Protection
CityUtilitiesofSpringfield,Missouri
LorissaJones
Correspondent
BonnevillePowerAdministration

MarkLauby
Correspondent
Director,ReliabilityAssessmentandPerformanceAnalysis
NERC
LynnOelker
Correspondent
EONUS

JamesRoberts
Correspondent
TransmissionPlanning
TennesseeValleyAuthority
MahmoodSafi
Correspondent
OmahaPublicPowerDistrict

SaurabhSauksena
Correspondent
NationalGrid

DeanSikes
Correspondent
Manager,TransmissionProtection,Apparatus,andMetering
ClecoPower,LLC
EvanT.Sage
Correspondent
ConsultingEngineer
PotomacElectricPowerCompany
BobStuart
Correspondent
SeniorDirectorTransmission
BrightSourceEnergy,Inc.
GuyZito
Correspondent
AssistantVicePresidentofStandards
NPCC