10th IndiaDoble Power Forum, 2012

Health monitoring / life enhancement of

power transformer - the role of
transformer accessories

Ramakrishnan Nagarajan

10th IndiaDoble Power Forum, 1

2012, Vadodara, Gujarat, INDIA
 POWER TRANSFORMER
VITAL FEW ACCESSORIES
• Vital few accessories
– Bushings
– OLTC – The main topic of this paper
– Transformer oil
• Thermal degradation
• Root cause for many other parts failure
>>Cellulose failure determines life of transformer
• Oxygen concentration in transformer oil

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 OLTC TECHNOLOGY
• Recent design improvements aimed at
reliability enhancement
– Vacuum proof sealing of upper part
– Transit damage – a very rare case
– OLTC hanging from top cover of transformer
– Cantilever effect amplifies the vibration
– Poor road conditions and handling facilities
– Suggested use of temporary support
– Fiberglass terminal strips

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 HELIUM LEAK DETECTOR

Photo

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 OLTC SINGLE POLE
TOP COVER

UPPER PART LINE TERMINAL

SELECTOR
TERMINAL STRIP

TAP TERMINAL
TRANSITION
RESISTANCE
DIVERTER
SWITCH NEUTRAL TERMINAL

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 PERFORMANCE
REQUIREMENTS
• No discontinuity during switching
• Various interlocks
• Contact resistance measurements
• Mechanical endurance tests
• Tightness tests
• Electrical routine tests
• Others
• Intank OLTC application demands highest
reliability standard
– A single loose joint is disastrous
– So computerised test system installed
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 COMPUTERISED TEST
SYSTEM
• All routine tests included
• No human error
• Computerised T.C. Photo
• Easy traceability
• For all OLTC models
• Editable for new models
• Single deviation stops test

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 ON-LINE FILTER
• CONTROL PANEL FILTER CABIN
Auto/
PLC manual
switch

Pump
Panel on/ off
lock switch

On/off Change
switch filter
with olr alarm

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 VACUUM OLTC
• Validation for application inside transformer
environment for anticipated long life of diverter
switch:
– Non operation for long periods to very frequent
operations and seasonal load variations
– Harmonics
– Errors in commissioning
• Fool proof system to prevent operation in the
event of vacuum failure causing explosion

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 CASE STUDY 1: EARLY
FAILURES
• Drive mechanism
– coupled and decoupled at
• OLTC manufacturer’s end
• Transformer manufacturer’s end
• Utility during commissioning
• Errors do occur due to unavoidable
triplication of coupling process needing
trained and skilled manpower

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 CASE STUDY 1:
COMMON ERRORS
• Leakage from OLTC top cover
– Top cover bolts found loose
• Drive mechanism coupling loose
• Interconnection of electrical wires between
DM box and RTCC wrong
• Wrong phase sequence
• Wiring loose
• DM box door kept open & rusty parts
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 CASE STUDY 1 :
PREVENTIVE ACTIONS
• Top cover bolts kept loose
• Prominent caution label
• Drive mechanism
• Selector - Improved packaging

Photo

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 MAINTENANCE
SERVICE QUALITY
• Objectives
– Immediately restore power
– Prevent outage
– Predict probable failures through health
monitoring
• Requires special health monitoring device
• Needs data interpretation
– Restore the transformer to its original condition and
enhance the life
• See case study 5

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 OLTC – PREVENTIVE
MAINTENANCE
• Mostly time bound
• Planning has to be site specific
– Consider age of transformer
– Number of trained staff available
– Transformer loading pattern
– Number of OLTC operations / day
– OLTC type and model
– Historical data

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 OLTC HEALTH
CLASSIFY SYMPTOMS
• Considering parts affected
– Mechanical
– Electrical
– Dielectric
• Considering failure mode
– Errors - immediately after commissioning
– Ageing - after long periods of service
• Takes long time for symptom to appear
• So prevent failure through health monitoring
– Cause of failure not originated from OLTC

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 CASE STUDY 2: OLTC
HEALTH MONITORING
• Transformer winding resistance
– Measured at site using special equipment at
low DC current
– Linear tap winding

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 TRANSFORMER
WINDING RESISTANCE
• Reversing tap winding

• Dr.Paul G Slade seminars at New Delhi

& at Holme USA
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 DGA DATA
INTERPRETATION
• DGA – most popular method for transformer
health monitoring
• More than 400 laboratories
– across the world
Photo
• Data interpretation
– Use multiple techniques
– IEC 60599 & Dovel’s triangle
– Validate conclusion with infrared thermography
– Training to utilities
– Case study 3: Carbon deposition all around selector
contacts. Customer believes OLTC has some defect

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 CASE STUDY 3:
OLTC & DGA
• OLTC is healthy:
– when contact force measured at site
is acceptable
– electrical joints are tight Photo
– C2H2 concentration is within limit
– OLTC operations normal
• DGA interpretation oil overheating
• Carbon due to decomposition of oil under
thermal fault conditions
– resultant carbon radicals get preferentially deposited
on HV contacts
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 Other diagnostic tools
• Infrared thermography
– Need thermal imaging camera
– Infrared thermometer
– Can locate a fault
– Easy to operate
– Can locate hot spot
– Validating DGA conclusion
• Motor current monitoring
– Equipment with higher sampling rate
– Refer next section

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 VIBRO-ACCOUSTIC
• Most suitable for OLTC
– Stable OLTC gives stable vibro-accoustic
pattern
– Non-intrusive technique
• both on line and off line
– Combines with motor current trace
• Strongest as it can detect almost all failure modes
• Acts as stethoscope
• Specialized software to develop envelope from raw
data and superimpose envelopes for comparison

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 VIBRO-ACCOUSTICS

RAW DATA

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 VIBRO-ACCOUSTICS
• Envelope

Demo

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 VIBRO-ACCOUSTICS
• Comparison of waves by superposition

Demo

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 CASE STUDY 4 -
VIBRO-ACOUSTIC
• Demo

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 TRANSFORMER
DEHYDRATOR
• Removes moisture from oil and paper
• Patented technologies
– Hydraulic piston
– Bubble bed
• No adverse impact on oil quality
– No heating involved

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 Case study 5
HEALTH ENHANCEMENT
• TRANSFORMER DATA

TABLE

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 DEHYDRATION
• Chart

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 LABORATORY
REPORT

Table

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 PERFORMANCE
REPORT

Table

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 ANALYSIS

Chart

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 DEGASING TREND

Chart

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25/08/2012
 DGA REPORT

Table

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 THANK YOU
????????

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