Essential Differences Between IEC

60909 and ANSI/IEEE C37 Series

Table of Contents
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 Maximum Short-circuit Current (Imax)
 Minimum Short-circuit Current (Imin)
 Initial Short-circuit Current (I”k)
 Peak Short-circuit Current (Ip)
 Symmetrical Short-Circuit Breaking Current (Ib)
 Steady-state Short-circuit Current (Ik)
 References
Before we start our discussion on IEC 60909, let us first review the concepts in
ANSI/IEEE C37 series on short-circuit study.

Our previous discussions on short-circuit analysis and circuit breaker selection

were grounded on the ANSI/IEEE Standards. We started with a brief overview of
power systems faults and introduced the widely accepted equation for a short-
circuit current. Then we moved to the derivation of ANSI/IEEE multiplying factors
for the circuit breaker closing and latching duty.
Next, we discussed several concepts affecting the calculation of circuit
breaker interrupting duty for medium- and high- voltage circuit breakers such as
circuit breaker rated cycle, AC and DC decay, separate X and R networks, remote
and local fault contributions, and circuit breaker rating structure. After that, we
moved on to the calculation of kAIC rating for low voltage circuit breakers. We
wrapped the whole series with a step-by-step manual calculation and computer
simulation using ETAP software.

In this series, we will try to explore how short-circuit calculations are addressed by
other International Standards. We will focus our discussion on IEC short-circuit
calculation methods particularly the IEC 60909. Before diving into the calculations,
it is recommended to review the following terms used in IEC 60909 and how they
relate to the short-circuit currents defined in ANSI/IEEE standards. This way, we’ll
be able to understand IEC 60909 better.

Maximum Short-circuit Current (Imax)

The short-circuit current used to evaluate circuit breaker interrupting and peak
rating derived using the voltage correction factor, Cmax.

Minimum Short-circuit Current (Imin)

The short-circuit current used as basis for protective relay settings derived using
the voltage correction factor, Cmin.
IEC 60909 recommends applying ‘Voltage Factors’, C max and Cmin, to the prefault
nominal system voltage in order to account for the system prefault conditions. The
following table shows the voltage factor for different nominal system voltages.
Table 1. Voltage Factors

In ANSI/IEEE standards, prefault load currents are neglected since they are
assumed to be of much smaller magnitude than the short-circuit currents.
Therefore, prefault voltages are assumed to be rated system voltages. In other
words, ANSI/IEEE standard assumes a voltage factor of 1.0. However, IEEE Std 551
allows the use of the operating voltage under actual conditions as the prefault
voltage which could exceed the customarily assumed 1.0 pu.

Initial Short-circuit Current (I”k)

The RMS value of the symmetrical short-circuit current at the instant of the fault
given that the impedance does not change. In ANSI/IEEE, this is equivalent to
the ½-cycle RMS symmetrical short-circuit current or the value of the short-circuit
current based on the subtransient network impedances.

Peak Short-circuit Current (Ip)

The maximum instantaneous value of the short-circuit current. This is equivalent
to the closing and latch peak duty in ANSI/IEEE standard.

Symmetrical Short-Circuit Breaking Current (I b)

The RMS value of an integral cycle of the symmetrical AC component of the short-
circuit current at the instant of circuit breaker contact separation. In ANSI/IEEE
standard, this value is equivalent to the interrupting duty.
Steady-state Short-circuit Current (Ik)
The RMS value of the short-circuit current that remains after the transient
component has completely decayed. In ANSI/IEEE, this pertains to the RMS value
of the symmetrical short circuit current at >30 cycles derived from the steady-state
network.

References
IEEE Std 551-2006 [The Violet Book]: Recommended Practice for Calculating AC
Short-Circuit Currents in Industrial and Commercial Power Systems. (2006). S.I.:
IEEE.
ETAP Enterprise Solution for Electrical Power Systems Online Help
Rodolakis, A. J. (1993). A Comparison of North American (ANSI) and European (IEC)
Fault Calculation Guidelines. IEEE Transactions on Industry Application, 29(3).
Retrieved from https://ieeexplore.ieee.org.

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