The Essentials Of Substations, Electrical Equipment

and Busbar Arrangements

electrical-engineering-portal.com/substations-equipment-busbar-arrangements

By Edvard April 6, 2018

Introduction to substations
Electrical power systems nowadays are generated, transmitted, and distributed in the
form of alternating current. The electric power is produced at the power stations which are
located in suitable places, generally quite away from the consumers.

The Essentials Of Substations, Electrical Equipment and Busbar Arrangements (on photo: Little yellow
bird and big transformer in substation behind; credit: Tomislav Bicanic via Flickr)

It is delivered to the consumers through a large network of transmission and distribution.

At many places in the line of the power system, it may be desirable and necessary to
change some characteristics (e.g., voltage, AC to DC, frequency, power factor [pf], etc.) of
electric supply.

For that, in between the power station and ultimate consumer, a number of
transformations and switching stations have to be created. These are generally known as
substation.

Contents:

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1. What is the substation?

The assembly of apparatus used to change some characteristic (e.g., voltage, AC to DC,
frequency, pf, etc.) of electric supply is called a substation. Substations are important part
of power system. The continuity of supply depends to a considerable extent upon the
successful operation of substations.

It is, therefore, essential to exercise utmost care while designing and building a
substation.
The following are the important points which must be kept in view while laying out
a substation:

1. It should be located at a proper site. As far as possible, it should be located at the

center of gravity of load.
2. It should provide safe and reliable arrangement. For safety, consideration must be
given to the maintenance of regulation clearances, facilities for carrying out repairs
and maintenance, abnormal occurrences such as possibility of explosion or fire, etc.
For reliability, consideration must be given for good design and construction,

the provision of suitable protective gear, etc.

3. It should be easily operated and maintained.
4. It should involve minimum capital cost.

Watch Video At: https://youtu.be/Eavx0ommnTo

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2. Classification of substations

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There are several ways of classifying substations. However, the two most important ways
of classifying them are according to (1) service requirement and (2) constructional
features.

2.1 According to Service Requirement

A substation may be called upon to change voltage level or improve power factor or
convert AC power into DC power, etc.

According to the service requirement, substations may be classified as follows:

2.1.1. Transformer substations

Those substations which change the voltage level of electric supply are called
transformer substations. These substations receive power at some voltage and deliver
it at some other voltage.

Obviously, transformer will be the main component in such substations. Most of the
substations in the power system are of this type.

Figure 1 – Transformer substation

2.1.2. Switching substations

These substations do not change the voltage level, that is, incoming and outgoing lines
have the same voltage. However, they simply perform the switching operations of
power lines.

2.1.3. Power factor correction substations

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Those substations which improve the power factor of the system are called power factor
correction substations. Such substations are generally located at the receiving end of
transmission lines.

These substations generally use synchronous condensers as the power factor

improvement equipment.

Figure 2 – Power factor correction substations (photo credit: elektrik-vyzov.ru)

2.1.4. Frequency changer substations

Those substations which change the supply frequency are known as frequency changer
substations. Such a frequency change may be required for industrial utilization.

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 Figure 3 – Frequency converter substation (on photo: SEPTA Wayne Rail Substation &
Static Frequency Converter – Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; credit: wikimapia.org)

2.1.5. Converting substations

Those substations which change AC power into DC power are called converting
substations. These substations receive AC power and convert it into DC power with
suitable apparatus (e.g., ignitron) to supply for such purposes as traction, electroplating,
electric welding, etc.

2.1.6. Industrial substations

Those substations which supply power to individual industrial concerns are known as
industrial substations.

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 Figure 4 – Industrial substation, LV and switchgears displayed

2.2 According to Constructional Features

A substation has many components (e.g., circuit breakers, switches, fuses, instruments,
etc.) which must be housed properly to ensure continuous and reliable service.

According to constructional features, the substations are classified as follows:

2.2.1. Indoor substations

For voltages up to 11 kV, the equipment of the substation is installed indoors because of
economic considerations. However, when the atmosphere is contaminated with
impurities, these substations can be erected for voltages up to 66 kV.

According to construction, indoor distribution transformer substations and high voltage

switchboards are further subdivided into following categories:

a. Substation integrally built type

installed on site. The structures are constructed of
In such a substation the apparatus is
concrete or brick.

b. Substation of the composite built-up type

Here, the assemblies and parts are factory and
workshop prefabricated, but are
assembled on site within a substation switchgear room.

The components of substations take the form of metal cabinets or enclosures, each of
which contains the equipment of one main connection cell. Within such cabinets or
enclosures an oil circuit breaker, a load interrupter switch, and one or more voltage
transformers may be mounted.

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 Figure 5 – Compact substation

c. Unit type factory fabricated substations and metal clay switchboards

of
These are built in electrical engineering workshops and are shipped to the site
installation fully preassembled

After installation of the substations switchboard-only connections to the incoming and

outgoing power circuits are required.

2.2.2. Outdoor substations

For voltages beyond 66 kV, equipment is invariably installed outdoor. It is because for
such voltages, the clearances between conductors and the space required for switches,
circuit breakers, and other equipment become so great that it is not economical to install
the equipment indoor.

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Watch Video At: https://youtu.be/l53NrBvlorQ

2.2.3. Underground substation

In thickly populated cities, there is scarcity of land as well as the prices of land are very
high. This has led to the development of underground substation. In such substations, the
equipment is placed underground.

Figure 6 shows a typical underground substation.

Figure 6 – A typical underground substation

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2.2.4. Pole-mounted substation
It is a distribution substation placed overhead on a pole. It is the cheapest form of
substation as it does not involve any building work. Figure 7a shows the layout of pole-
mounted substation, whereas Figure 7b shows the schematic connections.

The transformer and other equipment are mounted on H-type pole (or four-pole
structure).

Figure 7 – (a) Layout of pole-mounted substation; (b) Schematic connections of of pole-mounted

substation

The 11 kV line is connected to the transformer (11 kV/400 V) through gang

isolator and fuses. The lightning arresters are installed on the high-tension (HT)
side to protect the substation from lightning strokes.

The transformer steps down the voltage to 400-V, three-phase, four-wire supply. The
voltage between any two lines is 400 V, whereas the voltage between any line and neutral
is 230 V. The oil circuit breaker (OCB) installed on the low-tension side automatically
isolates the transformer from the consumers in the event of any fault.
The pole-mounted substations are generally used for transformer capacity up to 200
kVA.

The following points may be noted about pole-mounted substations:

There should be periodical checkup of the dielectric strength of oil in the transformer
and OCB.

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 In case of repair of transformer or OCB, both gang isolator and OCB should be shut
off.

Watch Video At: https://youtu.be/cV14ZvHIH-8

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3. Comparison between outdoor and indoor substations

The comparison between outdoor and indoor substations is given in the following table:

No. Particular Outdoor substation Indoor substation

1 Space required More Less

2 Time required for Less More

extension

3 Future extension Easy Difficult

4 Fault location Easier because the equipment is Difficult due to closed

in full view equipment

5 Capital cost Low High

6 Operation Difficult Easier

7 Possibility of fault Less due to greater clearances More

escalation can be provided

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4. Transformer substations

The majority of the substations in the power system are concerned with the changing of
voltage level of electric supply. These are known as transformer substations because
transformer is the main component employed to change the voltage level.

Depending upon the purpose served, transformer substations may be classified

into:

1. Step-up substation
2. Primary grid substation
3. Secondary substation
4. Distribution substation

Figure 8 shows the block diagram of a typical electric supply system, indicating the
position of above types of substations. It may be noted that it is not necessary that all
electric supply schemes include all the stages shown in the figure.

Figure 8 – Block diagram of a typical electric supply system

For example, in a certain supply scheme there may not be secondary substations and in
another case, the scheme may be so small that there are only distribution substations.

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4.1. Step-up substation

The generation voltage (11 kV in this case) is stepped up to high voltage (220 kV) to
affect economy in transmission of electric power. The substations which accomplish this
job are called step-up substations.

These are generally located in the power houses and are of outdoor type.

4.2. Primary grid substation

From the step-up substation, electric power at 220 kV is transmitted by three-phase,

three-wire overhead system to the outskirts of the city.

Here, electric power is received by the primary grid substation which reduces the
voltage level to 66 kV for secondary transmission. The primary grid substation is
generally of outdoor type.

4.3. Secondary substation

From the primary grid substation, electric power is transmitted at 66 kV by three-phase,

three-wire system to various secondary substations located at the strategic points in
the city.

At a secondary substation, the voltage is further stepped down to 11 kV. The 11 kV

lines run along the important road sides of the city. It may be noted that big consumers
(having demand more than 50 kW) are generally supplied power at 11 kV for further
handling with their own substations.

The secondary substations are also generally of outdoor type.

4.4. Distribution substation

The electric power from 11 kV lines is delivered to distribution substations. These

substations are located near the consumer’s localities and step down the voltage to 400
V, three phases, four wires for supplying to the consumers.

The voltage between any two phases is 400 V and between any phase and neutral it
is 230 V. The single-phase residential lighting load is connected between any one phase
and neutral, whereas three-phase, 400-V motor load is connected across three-phase
lines directly.
It may be worthwhile to mention here that in some countries majority of the distribution
substations are of pole-mounted type.

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Figure 9 – Single line diagram of major components of power system from generation to consumption
(click to expand)

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5. Equipment in a transformer substation

The equipment required for a transformer substation depends upon the type of

substation, service requirement, and the degree of protection desired.

However, in general, a transformer substation has the following main equipment:

5.1. Busbars

When a number of lines operating at the same voltage have to be directly connected

electrically, busbars are used as the common electrical component. Busbars are copper
or aluminum bars (generally of rectangular cross-section) and operate at
constant voltage. The incoming and outgoing lines in a substation are connected to the
busbars.

The most commonly used busbar arrangements in substations are:

1. Single busbar arrangement

2. Single busbar system with sectionalization

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 3. Double busbar arrangement

5.2. Insulators

The insulators serve two purposes. They support the conductors (or busbars) and confine
the current to the conductors.

The most commonly used material for the manufacture of insulators is porcelain. There
are several types of insulators (e.g., pin type, suspension type, postinsulator, etc.), and
their use in the substation will depend upon the service requirement.
For example, post-insulator is used for busbars. A post-insulator consists of a porcelain
body, cast iron cap, and flanged cast iron base. The hole in the cap is threaded so that
busbars can be directly bolted to the cap.

Figure 10 – Porcelain post insulators for disconnectors (photo credit: PPC Insulators)

5.3. Isolating switches

In substations, it is often desired to disconnect a part of the system for general

maintenance and repairs. This is accomplished by an isolating switch or isolator. An
isolator is essentially a knife switch and is designed to open a circuit under no load.

In other words, isolator switches are operated only when the lines in which
they are connected carry no current.

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 Figure 11 – Use of isolators in a typical substation

Figure 11 shows the use of isolators in a typical substation. The entire substation has
been divided into five sections. Each section can be disconnected with the help of
isolators for repair and maintenance.

For instance, if it is desired to repair section II, the procedure of disconnecting this
section will be as follows. First of all open the circuit breaker in this section and then open
the isolators 1 and 2. This procedure will disconnect section II for repairs.

After the repairs has been done, close the isolators 1 and 2 first and then the circuit
breaker.

5.4. Circuit breaker

A circuit breaker is equipment which can open or close a circuit under normal as well
as fault conditions. It is so designed that it can be operated manually (or by remote
control) under normal conditions and automatically under fault conditions.

5.5. Power transformers

A power transformer is used in a substation to step-up or step-down the voltage.

Except at the power station, all the subsequent substations use step-down transformers
to gradually reduce the voltage of electric supply and finally deliver it at utilization voltage.

The modern practice is to use three-phase transformers in substations. Although

three single-phase bank of transformers can also be used.
The use of three-phase transformer (instead of three single-phase bank of
transformers) permits two advantages:

1. Only one three-phase load-tap changing mechanism can be used.

2. Its installation is much simpler than the three single-phase transformers.

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 Figure 12 – High voltage transformer

5.6. Instrument transformers

The lines in substations operate at high voltages and carry current of thousands of

amperes. The measuring instruments and protective devices are designed for low voltage
(generally 110 V) and current (about 5 A).

Therefore, they will not work satisfactorily if mounted directly on the power lines. Tis
difficulty is overcome by installing instrument transformers on the power lines.

The function of these instrument transformers is to transfer voltage or current in the

power lines to values which are convenient for the operation of measuring
instruments and relays.
Two types of instrument transformers are as follows:

a. Current transformer (CT)

A CT is essentially a step-up transformer which steps down the current to a known

ratio. The primary of this transformer consists of one or more turns of thick wire
connected in series with the line.

The secondary consists of a large number of turns of fine wire and provides for the
measuring instruments and relays a current which is a constant fraction of the current in
the line. Suppose a CT rated at 100/5 A is connected in the line to measure current. If the
current in the line is 100 A, then current in the secondary will be 5 A. Similarly, if current
in the line is 50 A, then secondary of CT will have a current of 2.5 A.
Thus the CT under consideration will step down the line current by a factor of 20.

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 Figure 13 – High voltage current transformers (CTs) – photo credit: PFIFFNER
Instrument Transformers Ltd

b. Potential transformer
It is essentially a step down transformer and steps down the voltage to a known ratio. The
primary of this transformer consists of a large number of turns of fine wire connected
across the line.

The secondary winding consists of a few turns and provides for measuring instruments
and relays a voltage which is a known fraction of the line voltage.

Suppose a potential transformer rated at 66 kV/110 V is connected to a power line.

If line voltage is 66 kV, then voltage across the secondary will be 110 V.

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 Figure 14 – Coupling Capacitor Voltage Transformers

More information and guide about HV instrument transformers you can find here.

7. Metering and indicating instruments

There are several metering and indicating instruments (e.g., ammeters, voltmeters,

energy meters, etc.) installed in a substation to maintain watch over the circuit quantities.
The instrument transformers are invariably used withthem for satisfactory operation.

8. Miscellaneous equipment

In addition to above, there may be following equipment in a substation:

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 1. Fuses
2. Carrier-current equipment
3. Substation auxiliary supplies

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6. Busbar arrangements in substations

Busbars are the important components in a substation. There are several busbar
arrangements that can be used in a substation. The choice of a particular arrangement
depends upon various factors such as system voltage, position of substation, degree of
reliability, cost, etc.

The following are the important busbar arrangements used in substations:

6.1. Single Busbar System

As the name suggests, it consists of a single busbar, and all the incoming and outgoing
lines are connected to it. The chief advantages of this type of arrangement are low initial
cost, less maintenance, and simple operation.

However, the principal disadvantage of single busbar system is that if repair is to be

done on the busbar or a fault occurs on the bus, there is a complete interruption of
the supply.
This arrangement is not used for voltages exceeding 33 kV. The indoor 11 kV substations
often use single busbar arrangement.

Figure 15 – Single busbar arrangement in a substation

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Figure 15 shows single busbar arrangement in a substation. There are two 11 kV
incoming lines are connected to the busbar through circuit breakers and isolators. The
two 400 V outgoing lines are connected to the busbars through transformers (11 kV/400
V) and circuit breakers.

6.2. Single Busbar System with Sectionalization

In this arrangement, the single busbar is divided into sections, and load is equally
distributed on all the sections. Any two sections of the busbar are connected by a circuit
breaker and isolators. Two principal advantages are claimed for this arrangement.

Firstly, if a fault occurs on any section of the bus, that section can be isolated without
affecting the supply from other sections. Secondly, repairs and maintenance of any
section of the busbar can be carried out by de-energizing that section only, eliminating the
possibility of complete shutdown.
This arrangement is used for voltages up to 33 kV. Busbar with sectionalization where
the bus has been divided into two sections.

Figure 16 shows busbar with sectionalization where the bus has been divided into two
sections. There are two 33 kV incoming lines connected to sections I and II as shown
through circuit breaker and isolators.

Each 11 kV outgoing line is connected to one section through transformer (33/11

kV) and circuit breaker. It is easy to see that each bus section behaves as a
separate busbar.

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 Figure 16 – Busbar with sectionalization

6.3. Duplicate Busbar System

This system consists of two busbars, a “main” busbar and a “spare” busbar. Each
busbar has the capacity to take up the entire substation load.

The incoming and outgoing lines can be connected to either busbar with the help of a
busbar coupler that consists of a circuit breaker and isolators. Ordinarily, the incoming
and outgoing lines remain connected to the main busbar.

However, in case of repair of main busbar or fault occurring on it, the continuity of
supply to the circuit can be maintained by transferring it to the spare busbar.
For voltages exceeding 33 kV, duplicate busbar system is frequently used. Figure
17 shows the arrangement of duplicate busbar system in a typical substation.

The two 66 kV incoming lines can be connected to either busbar by a busbar coupler. The
two 11 kV outgoing lines are connected to the busbars through transformers (66/11 kV)
and circuit breakers.

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 Figure 17 – Duplicate busbar system

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7. Example: Key diagram of 11 kV/400 V indoor substation

Figure 18 shows the key diagram of a typical 11 kV/400 V indoor substation. The key
diagram of this substation can be explained as follows:

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 Figure 18 – Key diagram of a typical 11 kV/400 V indoor substation

Diagram explanation:

1. The three-phase, three-wire 11-kV line is tapped and brought to the gang operating
switch installed near the substation. The GO switch consists of isolators connected
in each phase of the three-phase line.
2. From the GO switch, the 11 kV line is brought to the indoor substation as
underground cable. It is fed to the HT side of the transformer (11 kV/400 V) via the
11 kV OCB the transformer steps down the voltage to 400 V, three phases, four
wires.
3. The secondary transformer supplies to the busbars via the main OCB. From the
busbars, 400-V, three-phase, four-wire supply is given to the various consumers via
400 V OCB. The voltage between any two phases 400 V and between any phase
and neutral it is 230 V.

The single-phase residential load is connected between any one phase and

neutral, whereas three-phase, 400-V motor load is connected across three-
phase lines directly.
4. The CTs are located at suitable places in the substation circuit and supply for the
metering and indicating instruments and relay circuit.

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Reference // Elements of Power Systems by Pradip Kumar Sadhu and Soumya Das

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