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Summary
Substation automation is one of the key first steps to achieving Substation Automation Value Chain
a smarter grid. Substation automation has been underway in
The substation automation process involves replacing legacy
the utility industry for many years since the advent of the
field equipment with “smart” field equipment (devices that
microprocessor relay. It helps utilities add sophisticated
support communication with other devices). There are three
protection and control functions while also providing greater
layers of vendors in the substation automation value chain. The
visibility on the performance and health of the grid
power equipment vendors provide field equipment, automation
infrastructure. Extending a secure, scalable communications
platforms and controllers. The second layer consists of grid
infrastructure to substations enables important IT applications.
communication equipment vendors with products such as IEC
These applications help utilities control and automate the grid.
61850 compliant routers and switches. The third layer consists
Condition-based and predictive maintenance programs benefit
of IT application vendors that provide SCADA, EMS and
from improved observation of asset health and accumulated
Distribution Management Systems (DMS). The major vendors
stress, enabling proactive maintenance that can avoid costly
in each layer are shown in the table below.
unplanned power cuts.
Legacy RTUs typically have basic digital and analog inputs and Protective relays are used to protect critical and expensive
outputs and one or more communication ports to connect to a equipment such as transformers, generators, substation
SCADA front end. Because these earlier RTUs were often buswork, and transmission and distribution lines. Relays use
supplied by the same manufacturer as the SCADA system, current or voltage inputs from the equipment being protected to
many of them support only the proprietary protocol supplied by sense faults or abnormalities. The protective relay is typically
the manufacturer. They have limited onboard processing used to detect conditions such as over-current, under-voltage,
capability and data storage. Smart RTUs have additional over-voltage, under-frequency and over-frequency.
communications and processing capability compared to legacy
Differential protection senses the difference between incoming
RTUs.
current and outgoing current and assumes that if these are not
From a communications perspective, smart RTUs typically have approximately equal, then there is an internal short circuit fault
multiple communications ports, often including Ethernet ports, and trips the protected equipment offline. Differential protection
and have the capability to act as a “master” to poll data from is used to protect high-value assets including transformers,
IEDs and forward it to a SCADA/EMS system. To accomplish generators, substation buswork and sometimes transmission
this, they support multiple protocols, including non-vendor lines.
specific “open” protocols like DNP 3.0 and Modbus that are
Distance protection is used almost exclusively for transmission
used by multiple manufacturers. They also have additional
lines and uses voltage and current to calculate the line’s
processing capability, often including the ability to incorporate
impedance (similar to resistance). If there is a fault on the line,
PLC (Power Line Communications) style program logic.
the impedance changes, the relay senses this change, and
Programmable Logic Controller signals circuit breaker(s) to trip and protect the system.
PLCs provide many of the same functions as smart RTUs. In transmission applications, protective relays are often in
However, they are not nearly as popular as RTUs for substation redundant configurations. Two relays, often from different
automation. This is partly because most utilities have manufacturers, are connected in parallel with the same inputs.
historically used RTUs, and because as a more generic If either senses an abnormal occurrence, that relay will trip the
platform, PLCs require more programming than a typical RTU relevant circuit breaker(s). If they both sense the abnormal
to perform the same functions. In a survey conducted by the US occurrence, both will try to trip the breaker(s).