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POTENTIAL TRANSFORMER ACCURACY

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POTENTIAL TRANSFORMER ACCURACY

 February 17, 2019  admin  Power Engineering

Potential Transformer Definition: Potential transformers (PT) or Voltage

Transformers (VT) can be defined as devices used to step down voltage
from high voltage typically used in transmission and distribution to a low
voltage (typically between 50-150V). By using a PT, voltage is reduced
that can be safely handled by meter or relay circuits. Potential transformers
are connected ‘parallel’ to the system that we intent to perform the
measurement and should offer negligible loading to the high voltage power
system that it is connected to. Terms PT and VT appears to be used
interchangeably though VT is the new terminology.

Potential Transformer Accuracy Class

Typical ANSI Potential Transformer accuracy classes are 0.3,
0.6 and 1.2.
Standard IEC accuracy classes are 0.1, 0.2, 0.5, 1. PT mainly introduce
two types of errors that affect the accuracy of the measurements:

Ratio Error
 Phase Angle Error

In a given PT, the metering error is a combination of two

separate errors
listed above. This combination is called Transformer Correction Factor
(TCF). IEEE C57.13 has
established accuracy classes for PT and require
that limits of permissible
error remain constant over a range of voltages
from 90% to 110% rated voltage from zero to the specified standard
burden at the specified burden power factor. In practice, performance at
voltages down to 5% are not significantly different with the same burden
connected at the PT secondary. Error
limits required by IEEE C57.13
apply not only at a given burden, but also at
zero burden. Errors on the
PT circuit and CT circuit both contribute to a
net error in the energy
measurement, power factor measurement etc. Let’s discuss
in detail what
these errors are and how to calculate them.

Ratio Error: A PT with 4,160V/120V ratio has a PT

ratio of 34.66. So,
when 4,160V is applied on primary we should see 120V at the
secondary-
ideally. When a PT is loaded with a burden (load) current flows in
the
circuit. This current flowing through the series impedance of the PT lead
to
a small voltage drop which subtract from the ideal voltage output. Series
impedance of the potential transformers are normally quite small. At
standard
burden, the manufacture would have adjusted the transformer
winding to deliver
standard nameplate output voltage for that accuracy
class and should not be a
concern. At any other burden the voltage ratio
would be off slightly.

The maximum ratio deviation over a specified range of burden defines the
accuracy class of the transformer. If the maximum ratio error is +/-0.3 %
over the standard burden range, the PT or VT is said to be 0.3 accuracy
class. Standard burdens are listed below.

PT Equivalent Circuit

PT Phasor Diagram

PTs are designed so that the impedance ZH is as low as

possible since they
are responsible for the ratio error in a PT. PTs are
designed to operate at a
high voltage on the saturation curve unlike current
transformers. A
compromise in design is required in the design as higher the
voltage, higher
the exciting current (through Rm and Xm) which lead to larger
voltage
drop in the primary impedance causing ratio and phase angle errors. For
limiting the current through the exciting impedance (Rm, Xm), PTs are
designed
to work without excessive exciting current up to 110% of rated
voltage.

Ratio Correctio Factor (RCF): Potential Transformers may have a marked

ratio of some number (say 4 for 480/120V PT). The actual voltage at the
secondary could be slightly higher or lower than the marked value. This
ratio is defined in IEEE C57.13 as Ratio Correction Factor (RCF). For
example, if the marked PT ratio of a PT is 20 but the actual ratio is 20.2,
then the RCF is [1+ (20.2-20)/20] = 1.01 or in other words the ratio
error is 1%.

VT Standard Burden

Phase Angle Error: Phase angle error is a problem when

watts, Var (PF)
and impedance are to be measured. For PT, phase angle error is
expressed
in minutes rather than degrees. For very light burdens, the secondary
voltage may lead the voltage being measured, but in most practical
applications, phase error will be lagging (-ve). Voltage transformers (VT or
PT)
are usually supplied with charts or circle
diagram that show the ratio
and phase errors as function of burden
magnitude and power factor.

Potential Transformer Circle Diagram

PT or VT circle diagram are an easy method of determining
accuracy at
any burden and power factor. Radial lines represent different power
factors
for the PT burden. The concentric circles are the burden in VA
(volt-
amperes).

PT Circle Diagram

PT accuracy can be determined from the circle diagram using

the following
steps:

Find the power factor of the burden used in the PT secondary circuit.

Determine the VA rating of the load burden.This is provided by the relay/meter manufacturer as to how
much burden VA their equipment adds to the metering circuit. If multiple meters/relays are connected then
individual VA may be added in series to determine the total VA loading.

Move vertically on the identified power factor line up to where it hits the VA rating. Ratio Correction Factor
and Phase Angle error can be determined from the x and y intercept of the circle diagram.

As an example, a PT rated for 0.3 WXMYZ will maintain a 0.3

accuracy
class from 0 VA to 200 VA (Z burden). PT accuracy changes linearly
with
burden. At factory accuracy is
recorded at zero and full burden and this
data can be requested from the
manufacturer. Between these two points a
‘load line’ can be drawn. By scaling
the length, accuracy at any
intermediate value of burden can be obtained.

For example, if a PT rated with ‘Z’ burden or 200VA was

loaded only at
100VA, the accuracy point would be in the center of the load
line drawn
between maximum and zero burden points. From the load line, the
Ratio
Correction Factor (RCF) and phase angle error can be obtained.

VT Load Line

Since modern digital meters and power meters burden is very low, the
accuracy of the VT/PT can be improved using a VT with lower full load
burden. Referring to the figure above loading a 0.3WXMYZ (200VA) VT
with only 15VA of actual burden puts it at the bottom portion of the
accuracy graph. Instead, if 0.3WXM (35VA) was chosen, then the 15VA
actual burden would be in the middle of the graph with near unity RCF and
near zero phase angle error, a smaller and cheaper solution.

The upper and lower limits of RCF and Phase Angle per IEEE
C57.13 is
given in the table below.

For a given accuracy class, the PT characteristics need to

lie within the
bounds shown on the table above from all voltages between 90% to
110%.

Other Considerations:

Potential
Transformer nameplate details and other details are discussed
here.

Ratio: PT ratio is the ratio of primary voltage to the secondary voltage. If a

PT is marked 14,400:120V, then applying 14,400V at the primary will
result in 120V across secondary winding. At lower primary voltage,
secondary voltage will be reduced proportionally. PT can be connected at a
lower voltage and also in a three phase configuration, Delta-Delta, Delta-
Wye etc.

Additional information on PT ratio calculation and three phase

PT connection is provided here. PT polarity testing is discussed
here.

PT thermal Rating: Thermal rating is the maximum

burden in VA that the
transformer can carry at rated secondary voltage without
exceeding the
temperature rise. If no thermal burden in VA is given, the
thermal burden
rating in VA shall be the same as the maximum standard burden
for which
an accuracy rating is given.

PT Name Plate

Referring to the name plate above, the thermal rating is 1,500VA at 30 deg
C ambient or 1,000VA at 55 deg C ambient.

PT Overvoltage Rating: IEEE standard allows for two levels

of operation.
One for continuous and other for emergency conditions. A PT must
be
capable of operating at 110% above rating voltage continuously provided
secondary burden at this voltage do not exceed the thermal rating.
Emergency
rating of PT is defined at one minute of operation, thereby
giving enough time
for protective equipment to operate. Refer to IEEE
c57.13-2008 for details on
the various overvoltage classifications.

Insulation Class: Industry recommendations are that

the insulation class of
an instrument transformer should be atleast equal to
the maximum line-line
voltage existing at the point of connection.

Polarity: Voltage Transformer (or PT) polarity is covered in this article.

Potential Transformer Connections

Below are
some of the common types of potential transformer (PT) or
voltage transformer (VT)
connections:

Delta-Wye
 Delta-Delta

Wye-Wye

Open Delta

Broken Delta

Delta secondary or open delta connection may be used for measuring line-
line (phase-phase) voltage. Line-neutral voltage cannot be obtained using
this connection. If line to neutral voltage is desired to be measured then one
of the wye connections may be used with the neutral grounded. Additional
attraction for wye-wye connection is that individual PT need to be rated
only for line-ground and thereby less expensive compared to line-line
rated PT if the connection was done in delta fashion. For this reason, it is
common to see wye-wye connections in medium voltage (>1000V)
applications.

A calculator for obtaining secondary PT voltages for various

winding configurations can be found here.

Per IEEE C57.13, PT

connected line-ground on an ungrounded system
cannot be considered a
grounding transformer and shall not be
operated
with the secondary windings in closed delta because excessive currents
may flow in delta secondary. This is because by having the PT primary
connected line-ground in an otherwise ungrounded power system, a ground
path
for harmonics and other zero sequence current is provided. If the
secondary of
such a PT is connected in closed delta then the zero sequence
currents (that
enters the primary) will have a closed circulating path within
the delta
secondary. This current is confined to the delta windings and will
not show up
on the line currents. Overtime this circulating current if
excessive can overheat
and damage the PT.

Connecting line to ground PT on an ungrounded system may

also tend to drift in to damaging ferroresonance depending on
the amount of cable capacitance and damping. A related but
different phenomenon can also occur when line-ground PT / VT
is applied on an ungrounded system. This is called neutral
inversion and is discussed in this article.

Broken delta is used for special zero sequence relaying

applications and not in metering.

Voltage Transformer Burden Calculation

If the PT is loaded below the standard burden, then accuracy of selected PT
is guaranteed for that application. If however the secondary leads are very
long or burden is very large then the cable will introduce additional voltage
drop and error. If the resistance and inductance of the lead wires are RL
and XL respectively and the power factor angle is Ɵ, the % accuracy will go
(become worse) up by:

VT Burden Calculation
This phase angle needs to be added algebraically to the phase
angle of
transformer to get actual phase angle difference.

Terminology Roundup:

Transformer Correction Factor (TCF): Correction for the overall error due
to both ratio and phase angle error for a specified load power factor. For
voltage transformers (PT) TCF at 0.6 power factor is defined as:

Ratio Correction factor

(RCF): The ratio of
true ratio to the marked ratio.
If a PT has a marked ratio of 480V/120V (ratio of 4), but the actual ratio
is
480V/122V(ratio of 3.934), then RCF
can be computed as 3.934/4 =
0.9836. Multiplying the actual secondary voltage
(122V in this case) by the
RCF (0.9836) yields the corrected output
(122*0.9836=120V).

Potential Transformer Standard

Burden: The maximum
load in volt
amperes (VA) at a certain power factor that may be placed on the potential
transformer or voltage transformer secondary without causing an error
greater
than allowed by the standard. For example, a 0.3WX PT can have a
burden of 25VA
at a power factor of 0.7 and still have 0.3% accuracy.
Refer to the standard
burden for voltage transformers given in this article.

Accuracy Rating:  A PT will have accuracy rating stamped on the

unit. For
example, an accuracy rating of 0.3 WXMYZ 1.2ZZ implies the PT has an
accuracy rating of 0.3% over any of the burdens listed (12.5, 25, 35, 75
VA
respectively) and accuracy of 1.2 over ZZ burden (400VA). Another
example is
0.3WX 0.6Y 1.2Z which means the PT has accuracy of 0.3 over
W and X burdens,
0.6 accuracy at Y burden and 1.2 accuracy at Z burden.
 Voltage Transformer Name Plate

Other Articles: Broken Delta, Transformer Connections:Phase Shift and

Polarity, Open Delta, Neutral Inversion, PT Ratio Calculation

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