8’ International Conference on Probabilistic Methods Applied to Power Systems, Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa,

September 12-16,2004

Circuit Breaker and Transformer Inspection and

Maintenance: Probabilistic Models
Satish Natti, Panida Jirutitijaroen, Mladen Kezunovic, Fellow, IEEE, and Chanan Singh, Fellow, IEEE

out. Finally, a circuit breaker maintenance model is proposed.

Abslracl-Circuit Breakers and Transformers are two of the Oil filled and air blast circuit breakers are considered in this
most common components m the power system. Catastrophic paper since most of the circuit breakers that are already in
failure of these components will result in high cost associated service are of the above type.
with the loss of load and component replacement. Preventive
maintenance may reduce these costs by extending the
components’ lifetime and increasing availability. However, too 11. DETERIORATION PROCESSES OF CIRCLIIT BREAKER
much maintenance may be costly while too little maiuteonnce
may result in catastrophic failure. Probabilistic models that will A . Deterioration of Operating Mechanism
include the eNects of maintenance on reliability are needed to This includes the deterioration of interrupter chamber,
perform cost benefit analysis and arrive a t an optimal valves and various moving components. Moisture and
maiutcnance strategy. corrosion of metal parts are some of the causes that are
A probabilistic maintenaace model introduced carlier for
power transformer is proposed for circuit breaker uses in this responsible for deterioration process of operating mechanism.
paper. The model is based on data coming from a study of As a result, the breaker may fail to operate.
deterioration process, maintenance tasks, and inspection tests for
B. Deterioration of Conlacls
circuit breaker.
Oxidation of contacts results in formation of a thin oxide
Index Terns-Circuit Breakers, transformers, inspection,
film over the contact surfaces. At higher temperatures these
maintenance, probabilistic model.
oxide materials will begin to soften and might result in a
I. INTRODUCTION plastic deformation. Finally, contact erosion takes place due to
the vaporization of electrodes during the current interruption
AILURE of circuit breakers and power transformers can
F greatly affects the power delively. The “remaining life” of
power apparatus and maintenance cost are two most important
process 141. These conditions may result in binding of
contacts.
aspects, which affects the maintenance policies. Various C. Deleriaration of Oil
maintenance strategies are reported in literature so far [I]. It Arc byproducts combine with moisture and oxygen in the
was concluded that power apparatus service availability and oil and reduce the dielectric strength of the oil. Accumulation
replacement cost should be balanced in order to get an optimal of these products contributes to the deterioration of oil [SI. If
maintenance strategy. Incipient failures have along tenn- prolonged, this condition causes arcing in the insulation
accumulated effect, which may cause major failures if no gradually developing into an internal fault.
related maintenance action is taken. In reference [2], failure,
repair and maintenance sequences are described as Markov
D. Deterioration Failure
processes and optimal maintenance intervals are discussed in Deterioration process results in deterioration failure, which
detail. Based on this concept, a maintenance model for is a long term-accumulated fault. It can happen mostly due to
transformer is presented in [3]. deterioration of contacts and oil, and break down of insulating
In this paper, a similar idea is applied to circuit breakers. In materials such as bushings etc. [S, 61.
order to build the probabilistic model for estimating circuit
breaker failure rate, the deterioration process, inspection tests, 111. MAINTENkNCEACTIONS
and maintenance actions are discussed. Then, a comparison Various maintenance actions for power circuit breakers are
between circuit breakers and transformers regarding operating summarized in reference [7]. In the proposed model, two
conditions, inspection tests and maintenance actions is carried different levels of maintenance actions are considered.
A. Basic A-lainleniance
mis work mas supported by Pserc projecl, ”Automated Integration of
Condition Monitoring with an Optimved Maintenance Scheduler for C h i t I ) Operating Mechanism
Breakers and Power Transfor“”, and in p m by Texas A&M University. Clean all insulating parts from dust and smoke
Saish Nalti, Pmida htitijaroen, Mladen Kemovic and Chanan S i g h Clean and lubricate operating mechanism and apply
are wiUI the Depamnent of Electrid Engineering, Texas A&M University,
College Statio% TX 77843-3128 USA (emails: [email protected], suitable grease for the wearing surfaces of cams,
[email protected], [email protected]. [email protected]). rollers, bearings etc.

Copyright Iowa State University, 2004

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 Adjust breaker-operating mechanism as described in processing techniques. The time-axes of reference Bequency
the manufacturer’s insfmction book. pattern and test frequency pattem are aligned to indicate any
Make sure all bolts, nuts, washers, cotter pins etc.are changes in the condition of the operating mechanism. The
properly tightened. presence of an abnormal event in the test signature will change
AAer servicing the circuit breaker, verify whether the the hquency, and the time at which this event occurs.
contacts can move to the fully opened and fully closed 3) Control Circuit Monitoring
positions or not. Portable test sets are generally used to monitor the control
2) Contacts circuit. The circuit breaker is forced into operation and the
Check the alignment and condition of the contacts and control circuit signals are recorded [I 11. The following are the
make adjustments according to the manufacturer’s typical control circuit signals that can be monitored in practice
instruction book [121.
Check if the contact wear and have1 time meet Tripcoilcurrent
specifications Close coil current
3) Insirlaring A4edirini and Arc Extinction DC Supply voltage
Check for leaks and remove any water content. Check A, B auxiliary contacts
govemor and compressor for required pressure X B Y Coils
Recondition oil by filtering Trip initiation
Close initiation
B. Replacenienr
B. Contacts
This includes the replacement of various components.
Arc chute and nozzle parts if damaged Inspections related to circuit breaker conhcts are mentioned
Govemon and compressors if wom or malfunctioning in this section.
I ) Contact Resistance Test
Contacts if badly worn or bumed
The resistance of the main contact can be measured with a
Oil if dielectric strength drops below an allowable limit
portable double bridge (Kelvin) or a “Ducter” [7]. A DC current
and if any arc products are found in the oil.
is injected in one phase of the breaker, and the breaker is forced
into operation. The current and voltage over the contact are
I v . INSPECTION TESTS
measured and the dynamic resistance curve is calculated. The
This section gives an idea about bow various inspections can condition of the contacts can be analyzed hy comparing the
be done, and what is the information that can be obtained h m measured resistance c w e with previous measurements 191.
those tests. Some of the possible inspection tests used in practice 2) Contact Tentperatrire Monitoring
for a circuit breaker are mentioned below [8]. The inspection Large changes in contact temperature may be due to broken
tests are grouped according to the order of components that are contact fingers, excessive burning of the main contacts, material
discussed in section 11. degradation, oxide formation, weak contact springs, improperly
A. Operating A4echanisni or not fully closed contacts etc. Optical sensors are used to
measure the temperature of the contacts [4].
Inspection tests, which give the performance of operating
mechanism either directly or indirectly, are presented in this C. Inspection ofoil
section. Oil sample can be taken and tested for its dielectric strength.
I ) Contact Travel Time Aleasrmnienl The following are the inspections that can be done in practice
The motion of the breaker contacts can be determined with [51.
contact travel time measurement. It is a plot of position Color and visual inspection
(distance) of contacts with respect to contact travel time, and Interfacial tension (soluble contaminants measurement)
can be obtained by a resistive transducer [9]. The transducer is Dissipation factor (measure of power lost as heat)
usually mounted on a moving part of the breaker. The contact
travel time measurements provide information about the D. Partial Discharge
operating components of the circuit breaker, which include Insulation failures of circuit breakers can be detected by
mechanical finks and interrupter contacts. Partial discharge monitoring [13]. The test procedure and
2) Vibration Analysis equipment for the partial discharge monitoring are discussed in
Mechanical malfunctions, excessive contact wears, detail in reference [14]. Various methods are reported in
maladjustments, other irregularities and failures can he detected literature so far hut the cost varies according to the test
through vibration pattems [IO]. Accelerometers mounted procedures and accuracy of results.
usually on the arcing chamber and operating mechanism, are
used lo record the vibrations. The recorded vibration pattems
are converted into timdfiequency patterns using signal-

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 V. C0MPARISONBEl"A CIRCUITBREAKERAND
TRANSFORMER
Circuit breaker is an electrical device that operates on
command. Once the operating mechanism receives trip or close
signal from a control circuit, it starts working and opens or
closes the main contacts respectively. The overall performance
of the breaker depends on the operating mechanism, which
consists of various moving parts. Transformer is a device,
which while in service, is always in an energized state. The
insulating oil properties used in breaker and transformer are
different. Suggested limits for service-aged insulating oils for
both breaker and hansformer are given in table I [5]. Having an
idea ahout the similarities and differences between the two
devices, and knowing the maintenance model of the transformer
will help in developing the maintenance model for the circuit
breaker. Table 11 provides a comparison between the breaker
and transformer characteristics.

VI. PROPOSED hnAINTENANCE MODEL

AND DESCRIPTlON
A probabilistic model, based on the concept of representing
the deterioration process hy various stages [3, 151 is shown in
Figure 1. 7hree deterioration stages i.e., the initial stage (Dl),
minor @2) and, major (D3) deterioration stages, followed by a
Fig 1. Propas4 circuit breakerprobabilistic malntenanc.5 model
failure stage are considered. Inspection test is implemented at
each stage and the collected data is investigated to determine the
condition of the breaker. In this model, three different levels of The model takes results from various inspection and
breaker condition are defined C1- satisfactory and no maintenance tasks and the frequency of performing the tasks as
maintenance is needed, C2- indication of abnormality or caution inputs and gives the failure rates as output. The changes in the
stage, needs further investigation or related maintenance and 'hean time to failure" indicator can be observed by considering
C3- Failure stage or poor condition, needs replacement. Further, different inspection and maintenance actions. This model can
the maintenance process is divided into three levels; (1) Do help in obtaining optimum maintenance intervals such that both
nothing, (2) Basic maintenance, and (3) Replacement. Once the the component availability and the total cost are balanced.
suggested maintenance action is taken, the subsequent condition Various inspection tests and maintenance actions considered in
of the breaker is determined. the model are discussed nexA
A. Inspeclion Tests
TABLE I The following inspection tests are considered in developing
SUGGESTED LIMITS
FOR SERVICE-AGEDOLSFOR TRANSFORMERS AND CIRCUIT the proposed model. Air blast and oil circuit breaken are
BREALERS [5]
Test and method TlallSfOllller Circuit considered in this study.
(Value for voltage class) Brealie, I ) Conracr Travel Tinre Measurement
69kV 69-230 230kV Suggested Condition of the circuit breaker can he obtained by
and kV and limit comparing the test curve with the reference curve. Figure 2
klow above
shows various contact travel curves during the opening of a
Dielectric strength"
K V minimum circuit breaker [4]. The solid lines indicate the reference curve
I mm gap* 23 28 30 20 and the dotted lines indicate the current observation. The
2 Mn gap. 40 47 50 27 following are the possible observations from the Figure 2.
Dissipation facto? Conract separarion occurred sooner than before:
(power faclor), contact wear
25 "C, %maximum 0.5 0.5 0.5 1.0 Faster circuit breaker stroke: kinetic energy of the
IW"C,%&mum 5.0 5.0 5.0
mechanism is above its upper limit
Interfacial fensioR 25 30 32 25 No damping 01 rhe end of rhe operation: shock
"im mini" absorber failure
"Older mformen miti? inadequate oil preservation systems or
Reduction in total travel distance: binding or
maintenance, my have lower valuer stalling of the mechanism or insufficient stored
'Alternative meaSuremenb of 0.04 in and 0.08in respectively for gaps driving energy

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 The proposed criterion for assessment of the condition of Condition 3: excessive wear and need complete overhaul
operating mechanism is or replacement
Condition 1: satisfactoly, test results follow the reference curve 2) Control Circuit Monitoring
Condition 2: caution stage, test results deviate slightly and need The recorded control signals are analyzed to find any
more attention abnormalities in the breaker operation. A detailed analysis of
circuit breaker operations based on automated monitoring of
control circuit is discussed in reference [12]. Table 111 shows
some of the possible causes for the behavior of the measured
signals [16].
Figures 3,4,5 and 6 show the sluggish trip latch, defective
close coil, defective auxiliary switch and defective battery
respectively.
The proposed criterion for the condition of control circuit is
Fig. 2 Com~arisonof circuit brcaker contact mvel curves [4]
Condition 1: within specification and will not require
maintenance

Comparison Aspect Circuit breakers Transformers

Main components Contacts, interrupter, insulating medium, Winding, Cooling agent (for example, oil,
control circuit, mechanism which includes gas, or air), Bushing, Tap changer
cam, latches, springs, bearings, coils,
compressors, charging motors etc.
Operating Stored energy in springs or gas pressure is Transforms voltage from one level to another
mechanism used to move operating mechanism which preserving the same voltage frequency.
. .
either opens or closes themain contacts
Deterioration Operating mechanism, oxidation of contacts Insulation paper in the winding, oxidation of
process and oil oil.
Particles produced Oxides, arc byproducts such as carbon, water, Sludge, Water, Fiber, Gases (CO, CO2, etc.),
by aging process partial discharge Furfural, Partial Discharge
Failure Modes Fails to open on command Thermal related faults
Fails to close on command Dielectric related faults
Fails to conduct continuous or momentary Mechanical related faults
current (while already in use) General degradation related faults
Fails to maintain the insulation
Fails to contain insulating medium
Fails to indicate condition or position
Fails to provide for safety in operation
Inspection tests Contact travel time measurement Routine oil. sampling test; dielectric
Vibration Analysis strength, resistivity, acidity, moisture
Control circuit monitoring content.
Contact Resistance Test Dissolved gas analysis
Contact temperature monitoring Furfural analysis
Dielectric strength Partial discharge monitoring
Partial Discharge
Maintenance Basic maintenance: lubricating mechanism (For oil-immersed transformer)
components, check for compressor pressure Oil filtering (onlindomine)
and dielectric strength of oil, adjusting all Oil replacement
components and contacts as per
manufacturer’s instructions, check for
control circuit connections
Replacement of contacts, interrupters, oil,
damaged nozzles, springs, coils etc.

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 Condition 2 : caution stage; need more attention TABLE N
Condition 3: final stage; need major replacement SUGGESTED LLMTS FOR CONTWUEO USE OF SERVICE-AGED
CIRCUIT
BREAKER WSULATMG OILIS]
Test and mclhod S"gg&d limit
TART F 111
.._-_I
D i e l d e strength 25
ABNORMAL WAVEFORMS 1161
k V minimum
Signal Name Signal Behavior Figun Possible Cause
Tnp Coil Currenl Dip delayed Fig. 3 Binding or fndion Dielectric strength, kV minimum
Close Coil Excessive noise Fig. 4 Defective close mil I m gap' 20
current (distariion) 2 mm gap. 27
A&B Contacts Abnormal noise Fig. 5 Defective amiliay
on contacts switch Dissipation factor (power factor),
DC Voltages Dc Voltage Fig. 6 Defective substation 25 "C, %maximum 1.0
unstable batter).or high
impedance short hterfacid tensioa "im minimum 25

Color, ASTM units, maximum 2.0

'Altemstive memwrmenfsofO.04 in and 0.08 in rspectively forgaps

Condition 1: satisfactory
Condition 2: should be reconditioned for further use
Condition 3: poor condition; dispose
Suggested limits for oil in condition 1 are listed in table IV.
Fig. 3. Trip current dip delayed Criterion for recondition is .excessive carbon in oil and
reduced dielectric strength (dielectric strength drops below the
accepted limit).
A detailed analysis of inspection tests and the collected data

I/
,. .. .. ...... . . .. . .
is needed for implementation of the model, and will be
included in further work.
B. Invesligalion Process
Fig. 4. Closc current exassive noise Information out of the inspection tests can be used to
A ; determine the condition of the device followed by the
necessiuy maintenance action and rate of the next inspection.
C. Mainlenance Action
I ) Do nothing
The breaker is in satisfactory condition and no maintenance
Fig. 5. Noisy msition when opening is needed. The probability that the system is set back to same
stage is relatively high.
DC
2) Basic Mainrenonce
This maintenance action increases the probability of going
back to the previous stage.

3) Replacernenr
Fig. 6. X Voltage unstable Replacement of damaged components brings the system
back to its original stage i.e. beginning stage.
3) Contact Resislance Measurement
The possible causes for abnormal increase in contact
VII. CONCLUSION
resistance are deposition of foreign material in contacts, loose
contacts and loose bushing connections [7]. A probabilistic maintenance model for circuit breakers is
The proposed criterion for the condition of contacts is introduced. Information collected during inspection tests is
Condition 1: satisfactory analyzed and the condition of the breaker can he defined.
Condition 2 caution stage; need more attention Maintenance action is taken according to the condition of the
Condition 3: excessive wear and need complete overhaul breaker. Implementation of the model using Monte Carlo
4) Inspeclion of O i l simulation is in progress. Maintenance cost and time to failure
Service-aged oils are classified into the following three of each transformer and circuit breaker will be incorporated.
conditions P1.

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