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JANUARY 27, 2011

Alternator Protection

Also known as Generator

It is the heart of electrical power system as it converts mechanical energy into its electrical equivalent.

Three main types of prime movers

1. Steam turbines
2. Gas turbines
3. Water turbines
4. Diesel turbines

Small and medium sized alternators are connected direct to the distribution system.

Large sized alternators are connected to the EHV grid via transformer.

System Faults

Electrical Mechanical
Stator insulation failure Failure of prime mover
Overload Low condenser vacuum
Overvoltage Lubrication oil failure
Unbalanced load Loss of boiler firing
Rotor faults Over speeding
Loss of excitation Rotor distortion
Loss of synchronism Excessive vibration

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Stator Protections against Electrical Faults

Earthing and Earth Faults

 The neutral of the generator stator winding is normally earthed for protection.
 Impedance is generally used to limit earth fault current. This is when Generator is connected direct to the
distribution network.
 A setting of 10% of the maximum earth fault current is the safest for the connecting instantaneous relay.
 Time delay setting of 5% of the maximum earth fault current is applied for the connecting relay.
 Earth fault protection can be applied by using a transformer and relay to measure the secondary current.

 Earth fault protection using a relay in parallel with a loading resistor to measure secondary voltage.

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Overload Protection

 The amount of power that can be delivered by the prime mover may cause overloading of the generator.
This is then continuously monitored by its Governor and Regulator.

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 A Thermistor or Thermocouple embedded in the stator winding checks the rotor winding by measuring
the resistance of the field winding.

Overcurrent Protection

 An Electromechanical IDMTL relay is used to operate only under fault condition.

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Overvoltage Protection

 Overvoltage occurs at either as a high-speed transient or as a sustained condition at system frequency.

 Overvoltage is a result of the following
Defective voltage regulator
Manual control error resulted to sudden variation of load
Sudden loss of load due to nearby circuit tripping
 Surge arresters at strategic points on the system or at generator
terminals protects the network against overvoltage.

Rotor Protections against Electrical Faults

Potentiometer Method

 The field winding is connected with a resistance having center tap.

 The tap point is connected to the earth through a sensitive relay R.

AC Injection Method

 An auxiliary supply is injected to the field circuit via a coupling capacitance.

 The capacitor prevents entry of high current passing through the transformer.

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DC Injection Method

 A rectified voltage is injected to the field circuit, hence eliminating the flow of capacitance currents.
 The auxiliary voltage is used to bias the field voltage to be negative with respect to the earth.

Alternator Protections against Mechanical Faults

Reverse Power

 More applied when generators run in parallel to protect the system against
the failure of prime mover.

Loss of Excitation

 A mho-type impedance relay is used to detect the condition of excitation

loss on the primary side.

Loss of Synchronization

 When the generator is synchronized, the frequency of the system will

change depending on load and the average characteristics of all the
generating units connected to the grid. Large changes in system frequency can
cause the generator to fall out of synchronism with the system. Protective
devices on the generator will operate to disconnect it automatically.

Field Suppression

 When a machine develop a fault, the field should be suppresses as quickly

as possible.
 This can be done by using an automatic air circuit breaker with blow contacts
for small to medium sized machines. On larger sets say above 5MVA, a field
discharge resistor is used.

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