GENERATOR

PROTECTION:PHILOSOPHY

• STATOR EARTH FAULT PROTECTION

• ROTOR EARTH FAULT PROTECTION
• GT OVERFLUXING PROTECTION
• OVERCURRENT PROTECTION
• LOSS OF EXCITATION
• GENERATOR DIFFERENTIAL PROTECTION
• LOW FORWARD & REVERSE POWER PRTN
• GEN BACK UP IMPEDENCE PROTECTION
• GENERATOR POLE SLIPPING
• GENERATOR OVERVOLTAGE PROTECTION
 STATOR EARTH FAULT PROTECTION
Conventional unit type generator has the neutral earthed through a
resistance loaded distribution type transformer.The load resistor
is designed to limit the ground fault current to a value less than
the total charging currents of the capacitance to ground of
generator winding.Resistance results in low ground fault
currents(5A) for a solid phase to gnd fault at the generator
terminals.
Currents of this magnitude may not cause serious damage to the
core steel. For a single gnd fault near the neutral end of the
winding, there will be proportionately less voltage available to
drive the current through the ground, resulting in lower fault
current and a lower neutral bus displacement voltage. At the
lower limit, a fault on neutral bus will result in no fault current or
displacement voltage at all.
• Low magnitude fundamental (50Hz) ground currents may
flow under normal conditions, possibly due to generator
winding imbalances or due to faults on the HV side of the unit
TRF or the secondary side of the GEN PT. Under these
coditions the GEN shoulnot be removed from service. To
allow for these low magnitude earth fault currents, trip setting
for over voltages in excess of 5-10% of the P-N voltages.
• So the possibilities of an undetected earth fault in the lower
portion of the winding , where the corresponding neutral
displacement voltage is below the earth fault relay trip setting,
may arise.
• If an earth fault occurs & remains undetected , the probability
of second fault occuring is greater.This second earth fault may
result from the insulation deterioration caused by the transient
overvoltage due to erratic low current & unsteady arcing at the
first fault joint.The second earth fault yield currents of larger
magnitudes. Therefore it is considered to provide 100%
stator earth fault protection.
• If the relay setting is too sensitive to sense the earth-fault
currents of small magnitude, there is possibility of relay
coil damage & ultimately the stator winding to ground
capacitance is shorted or broken where ever there is the
flow of heavy fault currents in the stator circuit. The
diagram indicates that when the generator is working
normally, stator winding ground capacitance is charged to
the phase to ground voltage. This capacitor discharges
suddenly through the relay coil & grounding resistor
which may damage relay coil. When this happens, the
stator winding capacitance gets shorted due to the flow of
heavy currents.So the relay setting is adjusted for the
protection of only 85-90% of the winding so that it can
withstand to the flow of capacitor discharge current &
fault current.
If
OPERATING PRINCIPLE(ABB): This relay detects neutral
end earth faults with the aid of a coded signal of
12.5Hz( which is generated from the battery voltage or
obtained by frequency divisions of the network voltage &
fed to the circuit of the generator stator winding through the
coupling transformer.
During the operation without any earth fault a small current
(ma) flows to the earth through the capacitance of the stator
winding as well as through the capacitance of the
galvanically connected circuits. With an earth fault these
capacitance are short circuited and the current increases . To
exclude the disturbing effect of transient phenomenon ,
12.5Hz signal is coded.
OPERATING PRINCIPLE(ABB)

MEASURING
TRANSFORMER
SENSING
LOGIC

TRIP
R

INJECTION
TRANSFORMER
OPERATING PRINCIPLE(ABB)

MEASURING
TRANSFORMER
SENSING
LOGIC

TRIP
R

INJECTION
TRANSFORMER
OPERATING PRINCIPLE(EE): 3rd harmonic scheme: A.C
generators in service produce certain magnitude of 3 rd
harmonic voltage. However no 3rd harmonic voltage appears
across the phases of a star connected generator, though there
exists a certain magnitude of 3rd harmonic voltage b/w the
respective phases & gnd of the m/c. This voltage causes currents
to flow when the star point is earthed. In fact under healthy
conditions the 3rd harmonic voltage generated by the m/c is
shared b/w the phase & ground capacitor impedence at the m/c
terminals & the neutral-ground impedance

V3 V3

CN
R
VN3
VN3 VL3 VL3
• 3rd harmonic voltage produced can vary 1 to 3% of the rated
terminal voltage. 3rd harmonic voltage changes with
machine loading. The ratio of these voltages remain
relatively constant . When fault occurs at X on the winding,
this relationship(ratio) or the voltage distribution undergoes
a change from that during healthy conditions.
• Fig shows the distribution of VN3 & VL3 for a quiscent
condition Q corresponding to an healthy conditions. Fig
shows the variation with respect to fault position X. relay
measures continuously the difference in the scalar
magnitudes of these quantities & trips if it exceeds the
setting. When fault occurs at the neutral end, VN3 becomes
zero. Similarly when fault occurs at the line terminal, VL3
becomes zero.
 0.4 Q 0.6
0.3
0.8

0.2 0.9

VN3 = 0 VL3 = 0

VN3 VL3
VL3
VN3
 ROTOR EARTH FAULT PRTN
• Failure of rotor winding insulation or single ground fault
doesnot cause flow of current since the rotor circuit is
ungrounded. When the second EF occurs , that part of the
winding is bypassed & the currents in the remaining portion
may increase.
This causes unbalance in the rotor and may cause mechanical as
well as thermal stresses that increase with rotor current
resulting in damage to the rotor. In some cases the vibrations
have caused damage to the bearings & bending of rotor shaft.
There are 3 methods to detect this fault:
1. Potentiometer method
2. A.c injection method
3. D.c injection method
• A.C INJECTION METHOD:

EXC

ITO

C limits the current

& blocks the normal

field

voltage ,avoiding the

R
discharge of dc
• RELAY OPERATION(Siemens): D.C INJECTION

R Coupling resistor
V

R
V
U ---Auxiliary voltage
H

R
C E
E U
M R --Measuring shunt
M
U
H

U
M
R = INFINITY
E
t

U R = 5KOHMS
E
M
t
 GT OVERFLUXING PRTN
Overfluxing condition is most likely to arise when the m/c speed
is rising towards or decreasing from synchronous speed & a
failure of both AVRs in automatic control, or incorrect oprn in
manual control. This is rare but it can cause overfluxing of GT
& UAT during commissioning tests or testing of the excitation
equipment.
Overfluxing results in
• Large increase in magnetising current & iron losses
• Increase in winding temperature
• Increase in transformer noise & vibration
• Overheating of non-laminated metal parts affected by stray
fluxes .
This protection is valuable for the generator & step up transformer
during start up/shutdown & also for system transformers during
load shedding. Increase in the flux gets diverted from laminated
core structure to steel strucure parts.core bolts get rapidly heated
as they are subjected to this large flux & their insulation is
destroyed along with coil insulation.
From the tranformer equation
E = 4.44 B A f N where E = emf induced in transformer
B = flux density A = area of the core
f = frequency N = number of turns
So B is inversely proportional to f & directly proportional to E.
So disproportional variations in these quantities may give rise to core
overfluxing. A transformer is designed for a voltage limit of 1.2 per
unit at rated frequency. It experiences overfluxing when it exceeds 1.2
pu.
transformer can operate with some degree of overvoltage with a
corresponding increase in frequency , but operation must not be
continued with a high voltage input at low frequency.
OP PRINCIPLE(EE): The principle of the relay is to produce an
alternating voltage which is proportional to the ratio of input
voltage & frequency and to compare this with a fixed ref.
Voltage. When the peak of the alternating voltage exceeds the
fixed dc ref , the first timer is started. At the end of the second
timer cycle the second adjustible timer is initiated.
To obtain the correct measurement the applied voltage V is
converted to a current by means of a R. This current V/R is
arranged to flow thro a capacitor C to produce an o/p voltage

V/( 2*PI*f*R*C)
 LOSS OF EXCITATION

Loss of excitation can occur as a result of

• Loss of field to the main excitor
• Accidental tripping of the field bkr
• Short circuits
• Poor brush contact in the excitor
• Loss of a.c supply to the excitation
 What happens when generator loses excitation ?
* Gen runs as an induction generator & runs as asynchronously(>the
synchronous speed). Generator draws reactive power (VAR) from
the grid .Stator current produces field, which is cut by the rotor &
rotor magnetic field is set up (or the grid itself supplies reactive
power to sustain the rotor magnetism)(that is the main flux is
produced by wattless stator current drawn from the system).
Generator still supplies active power. Rotor takes 2 to 4 times the
rated reactive power .This large reactive load is suddenly thrown on
the system causes widespread voltage reduction & instability
unless other power plants are large enough to supply the deficiency
of VARS immediately.Operation as an induction generator
necessitates the flow of slip frequency current in the rotor, the
current flowing in the amortisseur(or damper)winding and also in
slot wedges and the surface of the solid rotor body.Excitation under
these conditions requires a large reactive component.However the
gen is not designed to operate as an induction generator, the
damper windings are not adequate to carry the rotor slip current.
So rotor overheats quickly from the induced currents flowing in the
rotor iron & windings,particularly at the ends ( time required to
reach dangerous currents=2 to 3 mints) & overloading of the
stator winding takes place also.
The quantity which changes most when gen looses excitation is the
impedance measured at the stator terminals. On the LOE , the
terminal voltage will begin to decrease & the current increases,
resulting in a decrease of impedance & also a change in power
factor.

E E
G
X X ZS S
G T
• A relay to detect LOE will be located at point A . It can be
shown that the impedance presented to the relay under the LOE
is given by
ZS = (X
• OPERATING CHARACTERISTICS OF THE RELAY
• Fig shows the LOC characteristics for a typical large generator
that is connected to a system through a stepup transformer
having a .15 per unit impedance on the machine base. These
characteristics are shown as a function of both initial machine
loading and system impedance.The following discussion will
consider the effect of initial generator loading and system
impedance on the impedance locus, on the generator terminal
voltage and on machine loading during a loss of excitation
condition. In cases the LOC characteristics will be plotted with
respect to two relay settings: one setting will have a circle
diameter of 1.0 per unit, the other will have a circle diameter
equal to machine synchronous reactance. The offset, in both
cases, will be equal to X’d/2. Fig shows LOE chars of a relay on
an R-X diagram. On LOE , the equivalent generator
impedance(apparent impedance) as viewed from the m/c
terminals, goes to the negative X region , that is from 1 to 4 rth
quadrant.
As noted in the diagram, curves (a), (b) and (c)show the
impedance locii as a function of system impedance with the
machine operating initially at or near full load. Curves (d) and
(e) show the locii at two values of system impedance with the
machine initially at about 30% load.For the case of the machine
operating at full load, all of the impedance locii terminate in an
area to the right of the (-X) ordinate and will approach
impedance values, which at the final steady-state slip, will be
somewhat higher than the average of
Relay chars

offset

DIR AXIS
TRANSIENT
DIRECT AXIS REACTANCE
SYNCHRONOUS X ’d/2
REACTANCE Xd
 Variation of volt,power & VAR
w.r.t. time on the loss of EXT

0.5

0
1 2 3 4 5

-0.5

-1
Voltage decreases & oscillates around an average of 0.5P.U
, power op decreases & oscillates around 0.3P.U. & VAR
go negative around –0.93P.U .When the m/c is operating
at full load,on loss of EXT,it is damaging to the gen &
system.Stator currents rise in excess of 2.0per unit. The
high current is due to the fact that the resulting machine
loading is at a substantially reduced terminal voltage. Of
course, the VAR drain from the system can depress
system voltages and thereby affect the performance of
other generators in the same station or elsewhere on a
system.In addition, the increased reactive flow across the
system can cause tripping of transmission lines and
thereby adversely affect system stability. other generators
and interconnections could not withstand the additional
reactive load imposed on the system
.
For example, in 1951 a utility reported4 that loss of
excitation on a 50 MW generator caused system wide
instability, the tripping of interconnections and tie lines
and over 100 breaker operations before the disturbance
subsided.
 Variation of active power

Curve 1
A

Curve 2
P1 B
Curve 3
C

Mech power of primemover is P1, torque is M when the exctn

potential is E1, generator works at pt A on the chars &
corresponding power angle is U1. At this pt electromagnetic power
of gen balances the mech power of primemover input. When the
exctn reduces from E1 to E2 , operating pt moves from A to B
Since input mech power is not changed ,but EM power becomes less
than than input mech power that is braking EM torque on the gen is
less than the input mech power . So the rotor accelerates & pt moves
along the Curve 2. At pt A EM torque again balances input mech
power. So the gen operates stably at power angle U2. If exctn
continues to drop then U reaches to 90degs, then speed will increase
above sync speed.. This is asynchronous operation..if the m/c is still
connected to the network, the n/w supplies a 3-phase symmetrical
current to gen stator winding to make it to establish an air gap
magnetic field & induce the potential & current in the rotor , so as to
produce an asynchronous torque.
2. VARIATION OF REACTIVE POWER: After the LOE, gen enters
into the asynhronous operation. As the active power fluctuates,there is
an alternating EM power with frequency 2f & the reactive power
consumed by the gen also fluctuates accordingly.
 GEN DIFFERENTIAL PRTN
• PRINCILE :This uses circulating current differential relays in
which vector difference b/w the current entering the winding &
current leaving the winding is used for sensing.

I1 I2
I GEN WINDING

I1 I2

I1 – I2
=0
 PROTECTED ZONE

I1 I2
I

I1 I2

I1 – I2
• DIFFERENTIAL PROTECTION(DP) is provided for the gens
above 2MVA . DP does not sense inter turn faults & over loads
but senses P-P & P-E faults. The magnitude of the earth fault
current depends upon the value of the reactance connected b/w
neutral & earth : and the position of the earth fault in the gen.
When the gen is earthed through impedence, a separate
additional earth fault protection is necessary in addition to diff
protection. DP provides earth fault protection to about 85% of
gen winding.
 REVERSE POWER PRTN
• Generator motoring (reverse active power ) protection
is designed for the prime mover rather than the
generator. Steam turbines will overheat on low steam
flow. ( in hydroturbines blade cavitation occurs on
low water flow). So gen motor protection can be
provided by the devices such as limit switches or
exhaust-hood temperature detectors, but rev pr relay is
recommended.
• On motoring ,real power will flow into the machine
and as the field excitation is same as before the
reactive may either flow in or out of the machine. KW
drawn by the generator would only be 1 to 3% of the
name plate rating.
 NEGATIVE SEQUENCE PRTN
• This protects gen against unbalanced loads.Unbalanced
loading is caused by an open circuit of 1-P external to gen &
may persist for sufficient time.
• A 3-P balanced load produces a reaction field which is
constant & rotates synchronously with the rotor field system.
Any unbalanced condition can be resolved into PSC, NSC &
ZSCs. PSC is similar to normal balanced load. ZSC produces
no main armature reaction & no heating of rotor. NSC is
similar to PSC except that the resulting reaction field rotates
counter to the d.c field system & hence produces a flux which
cuts the rotor at twice the rotational velocity, thereby inducing
double frequency currents in the field system & rotor body.
The resulting eddy currents are very large & cause severe
heating of rotor & damage the rotor.
• Since the heating depends on the reaction field & hence also
on the load current, a m/c can be assigned a continuous NS
rating. NPS levels can be increased depending upon the
cooling levels. Unbalanced stator currents also cause severe
vibrations & heating of stator.

• The length of time (T) that a gen may be expected to operate

with unbalanced stator currents without danger of being
damaged can be ezpressed in the form of ; I2 inst NPS comp
of stator current as a function of time.
 T

I 22 Dt =K
0

• Where I2 is the inst NPS component K (a constant proportional

to thermal capacity of the gen rotor) is 30 for steam turbine &
40 for hydraulic turbine generators
• Generator can withstand NPS component (I,e 0.05 pu stator
current ) continuously under unbalanced loading conditions.
• During unbalanced loading, the maximum difference b/w the
currents should not exceed more than 10% of the rated stator
current . Also the current in maximum loaded phase should not
be more than rated value.
 10

0 2 4 I 22 6 8 10
 R
Y
B

Y
X
Z Z
B R

46
V +V
V B R
V R
PSC R
NSC V
B
V
 GEN POLE SLIPPING
• Prolonged fault clearing time, low system voltage, weak field
condition or some line switching operation may cause pole to
slip. A gen can lose synchronism with power system, without
failure of the excitation system , becoz of severe disturbance or
operation at high load with leading power factor & relatively
weak field.
• Rotor oscillations cause vibrations in voltage,current
powerfactor, and torque reversals. Loss of excitation relay
provides some protection , but cannot be relied upon under all
conditions.
• The angular displacement of the rotor exceeds the stable limit &
the rotor will slip a pole pitch. If the disturbance has been
sufficiently removed by the time this has occurred, the m/c may
regain synchronism, but if it doesnot, it must be isolated from
the system.
• Fluctuations in gen speed durin pole
• Field bkr may be opened making it run asynchronously &
thereby removing the voilent power fluctuations from the system
& corresponding mechanical torque oscillations from the m/c.
• The load should then be reduced to a low value, at which the set
will probably resynchronize.. If it doesnot work reclosing the
field swith with the exc control set to the minimum position will
cause the set to synchronise smoothly.
• Ohms relay will detect the impedence changes during the power
swing & actuate the tripping sequence.
 GENERATOR CONSTRUCTIONAL DETAILS
• STATOR BODY
• STATOR CORE
• STATOR WINDING
• ROTOR
• BEARINGSSHAFT SEAL(RING TYPE)
• GAS COOLER
STATOR BODY
* Totally enclosed gas tight fabricated structure made of mild steel
& austenetic steel , suitably ribbed internally to ensure high
rigidity.
• It is designed mechanically to withstand internal pressure &
forces as a result of unlikely event of explosion of hydrogen, air
mixture without any residual deformation..
• H2 gas coolers are housed longitudinally inside the stator body.
• Rigid end shields close the casing & support the fan shields & shaft seals
which are made in 2 halves
STATOR CORE
* made up of laminations, segmental warnish insulated punchings of
electro technical sheet steel with low loss factor to reduce
magnetising & eddy current losses
• stampings are arranged in an inter leaved manner in order to damp
out the oscillations so that magnetic vibration of the stator core are
not transferred to the foundation through stator frame.
• Insulating paper press boards are also put b/w the layer of stampings
for additional insulation & to localise short circuit which may occur
due to failure of varnish insulation.
• Core bars are designed to provide elastic suspension of core
in the stator
• Core consists of several packets separated by steel spacers
for radial cooling of the core by H2
• Core is held in pressed condition by means of heavy non
magnetic steel press rings which are bolted to the ends of
core bars
• To avoid heating of press rings due to end leakage flux 2
rings made of copper sheet are used as flux shield
• The revolving magnetic field exerts a pull on the core
resulting in revolving & elliptical deformation of the core
which sets up a stator vibration at twice the system
frequency known as double frequency vibrations.
 A A

S S N

POINT ‘A‘ EXPERIENCES

VIBRATION OF 2f (100Hz) AS
ROTOR ROTATES WITH FREQ
OF ‘f’
• All gen cores featuring high dynamic vibration amplitudes are
spring mounted in the stator frame to damper the transmission of
double frequency vibrations to the foundations.
• Use of CRGO steel punchings can contribute to the reduction in
weight of stator core because high magnetic permeance of
CRGO steels make the core work at comparitively high
magnetic saturation ,without fear of excessive iron loss or too
heavy demand for excitation ampere turns from generator rotor.

B Y
STATOR WINDING
3-PHASE,DOUBLE LAYER SHORT PITCHED ,BAR TYPE
Each slot accommodates 2 bars.
Bar is taped with several layers of thermosetting epoxy mica tape.
To prevent carona discharge between insulation & the wall of the
slot, the insulation in the slot portion is coated with
semiconductor varnish.
Bus bars are connected to bring out the three phases through
bushings & 6 neutrals. The transposition is of Roebel
arrangement.
To make the stator body gas tight at the 2 ends, two end shields are
fitted with the help of bolts. End shield are of mild steel & ribbed
to acieve rigidity.
 Rotor comprises of the following
• Rotor shaft
• Rotor winding
• Rotor wedges
• Retaining ring
• Fans
• Field lead connections
High mechanical stresses resulting from the centrifugal forces due
to rotation & short circuit torques call for a high quality , heat
treated steel. The main constituents of the steel are chromium ,
molybdenum ,nickle & vanadium.
The conductors are made of hard drawn silver bearing copper(low
electrical resistance & high creep resistance so that coil
deformations due to thermal cycling due to start & stop operations
are minimum. Turns are insulated from each other by a layer of
glass laminates. Coils are insulated from rotor body by U-shaped
glass laminates impregnated with epoxy varnish.
SLOT WEDGE

TOP PACKER
CONDUCTOR

SLOT CELL
INTER TURN
INSULATION

SUB SLOT
• For protection against the effect of centrifugal forces the
winding is secured in the slots by slot wedges. Wedges are made
from duralumin, an alloy of copper magnesium &
aluminium .the wedges at the ends of the slot are made from an
alloy of chromium & copper . These wedges connected with
damper segments under retaining ring for short circuiting
induced shaft current. The overhang portion of field winding is
held by non magnetic austenetic steel forging of retaining ring
against centrifugal forces. The centering rings are shrink fitted
at the free end of the retaining ring. A spring ring is used to
prevent any relative movement between the retaining ring &
centering ring.
• The generator cooling gas is circulated by two single stage axial
flow propeller fans. The fans are shrink fitted on either side of
rotor body. The rotor shaft is supported on the pedestal type of
bearings which have spherical seating to allow self alignment.
the rotor winding is solidly connected to the slip rings by means
of field lead bars,current carrying bolts , field lead core bar and
flexible leads.