M

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JAMSHORO

Department
of
Electrical
Engineering
 FUSES SELECTION
M
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JAMSHORO

Department
of
Electrical
Engineering
Dr. Larik
 M
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JAMSHORO

Department
of
Electrical
Engineering
 FUSE SELECTION CONSIDERATIONS
Before selecting fuse, circuit requirements must be considered:

1.Fuse must withstand momentary OC due to starting motor, and transient

current surges due to switching ON transformers, capacitors, florescent
M lamps, etc.
2.Must operate at sustained OLs or SCs.

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3.Should provide discrimination with other protective devices.
4.Nature of load.

E From protection point, electric circuits are classified as;

T a.Steady load circuits: Load does not fluctuate much form its normal
value (resistive loads). If both OL & SC protection of these circuits is
JAMSHORO required, fuses having a current rating equal to or a little higher than the
load current are selected.

Department
b.Fluctuating load circuits: Due to wide fluctuations of load and peaks of
of a comparatively short duration, occur during starting or switching on.
Electrical
Engineering Motors, transformers, capacitors and fluorescent lamps are examples of
loads. Therefore main criterion is that fuse should not blow under
4
transient overloads.
 General Aspects for selection of Fuse
NATURE OF PROTECTION
a. O.L Or S.C Protection
M b. Operating Time Slow or Quick time of operation

U c. Peak Prospective Current, Desired Cut – Off Value

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FAULT CURRENT
a. Fault Current, Peak Prospective Current Value

T b. Fusing Factor / Utilization Category Required

JAMSHORO

c. Rupturing / Breaking Capacity

Department
of
d. AC or DC
Electrical
Engineering
 SELECTION CONSIDERATIONS
When selecting fuses, the following parameters or considerations need
to be evaluated:

M 1. Rated current

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2. Rated voltage
3. AC or DC

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4. Operating ambient temperature
5. Available short – circuit current

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6. Maximum let through current I2t
7. Starting inrush currents
JAMSHORO 8. Protection for short circuit, overload, or both
9. Physical size limitations
Department 10. Reset – ability
of
Electrical 11. Safety agency approvals
Engineering
12. cost
 How to choose Fuse Rating ???..... A simple rule may solve
the problem.
Fuse rating = (watts/volts) x 1.25
25% to 35% is common
M 1.Select the fuse, like time-delay fuses for inductive load and
U fast acting fuses for the resistive load.

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2.Write down the power(watts) of the appliance – usually
from the appliance manual,

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3.Write down the voltage rating. The voltage must be greater
than the circuit voltage for the proper protection of the
JAMSHORO device.
4.Use the next highest fuse rating after the calculation.
Department
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Electrical
Engineering
For example; If the calculated fuse rating is 10 amps, so
for this we will use a 12.5 amp fuse.
 General “rule of thumb” Short Circuit Protection
Transformers, fluorescent lighting circuits:
transient switching surges – take next highest rating
above full – load circuits.
M Capacitors circuits:
select fuse rating of 25% or greater than the full load rating of
U the circuit to allow for the extra heating by capacitance
effect.
E Motor circuits:
Starting current surge normally lasts for 20s. Squirrel
T cage induction motors:
JAMSHORO • DOL takes about 7 times full – load current.
• 75% tap auto – transformer takes about 4 times full – load
Department current.
of
• 60% tap auto – transformer takes about 2.5 times full 8–
PSP/FUSE SELECTION/NNS

Electrical
Engineering
load current.
• star/delta starting takes about 2.5 times full – load current.
 NORMAL OPERATING CURRENT:
The current rating of a fuse is typically derated 25% for operation at 25°C to avoid
nuisance blowing.

For example, a fuse with a current rating of 10A is not usually recommended for
operation at more than 7.5A in a 25°C ambient.

M ☼The rated current of the fuse is either designed according to IEC characteristic or

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UL characteristic.

 A fuse, which is designed according to a IEC standard, can continuously operate

E at 100% of rated current of the fuse.

 A fuse, which is designed according to a UL standard, can continuously operate at
75% of rated current of the fuse.

T  The fuse current rating should be based on the operating current in the application.

JAMSHORO VOLTAGE:
The voltage rating of the fuse must be equal to, or greater than, the available circuit
voltage.
Department Fuses are designed for use in circuits at any voltage as long as they don't exceed the
of fuse's maximum voltage rating. (Exception - medium-voltage fuses from 2,400PSP/FUSE
9 to
SELECTION/NNS
Electrical
Engineering 38,000 volts may only be used at the voltages designated on the fuse's label) The
voltage rating of a fuse is a safety rating that should never be exceeded.
 EFFECT OF AMBIENT TEMPERATURE ON
SELECTION OF FUSE
The current carrying capacity tests of fuses are performed at 25°C and will
be affected by changes in ambient temperature.

M The higher the ambient temperature, the hotter the fuse will operate, and
the shorter its life will be. Conversely, operating at a lower temperature

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will prolong fuse life.
A fuse also runs hotter as the normal operating current approaches or

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exceeds the rating of the selected fuse.

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Practical experience indicates fuses at room temperature should
last indefinitely, if operated at no more than 75% of catalog fuse rating.
JAMSHORO

Department
of TYPICAL FUSE
Electrical
Engineering DE RATING
CURVE
 Chart Showing Effect of Ambient Temperature
on Current-carrying Capacity (Typical)

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JAMSHORO

KEY TO CHART:
Department Curve A: Thin-Film Fuses and 313 Series (.010
of
Electrical
to .150A)
Engineering Curve B: Very Fast-Acting, Fast-Acting, and
Spiral Wound Slo-Blo® Fuses
Curve C: Resettable PTC’s
 Example:1
Given a normal operating current of 1.5 amperes in an application using a
traditional Slo-Blo® fuse at room temperature, then:

M
Normal Operating current
Catalog Fuse Rating 
0.75
1.5 A

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  2.0 Amp Fuse (at 25o C )
0.75

E  Similarly, if that same fuse were operated at a very high ambient

temperature of 70°C, additional de-rating would be necessary. Curve

T
"A" (Traditional Slo-Blo® Fuse) of that ambient temperature chart
shows the maximum operating "Percent of Rating" at 70°C to be 80%, in
JAMSHORO
which case;
JAMSHORO

Normal Operating current

Catalog Fuse Rating 
Department 0.75  Percent of Rating
of
Electrical 1.5 A
Engineering   2.5 Amp Fuse (at 70o C )
0.75  0.8
 How to select Fuse Rating without Catalog Curves????
The rule of thumb is that for every 20°C higher or lower in temperature,
the fuse should be re-rated higher or lower 10-15%.

EXAMPLE 2
M A Fuse re-rating when higher ambient temperatures are present:

U Normal full-load current: 1 Amp

Normal fuse sizing: 1.5 Amps (125% of full load current taken to the
E next higher standard rating)

T
Ambient Temperature: 65°C

Re-rating: Re-rating: 2 Amps (130% of normal fuse rating)

JAMSHORO

Department
of
Electrical
Engineering
  Conversely, when a fuse is intended to be used in
extreme low temperature conditions, the fuse must have
a lower rating than that in normal conditions.

M An example of the fuse re-rating when lower ambient

U temperatures are present:

Normal full-load current: 1 Amp
E Normal fuse sizing: 1.5 Amps
T
JAMSHORO Ambient Temperature: -15°C

Department Re-rating: 1.2 Amps (70% of normal fuse rating taken to

of
Electrical the next higher standard fuse rating)
Engineering
 EXAMPLE 3
If the normal full load current is 3 Amps, and the ambient temperature is
85oC, calculate the proper size of fuse. If same fuse is used at 5 oC, what
should the fuse rating?

M
SOLUTION
Normal full load current is = 3 Amps

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Normal fuse rating = 3 x 1.35 = 4.05 ( 135% of full load current taken to the
standard rating )
= 4 Amps

E Ambient temperature: 85oC

Re- rating of the 4 amps fuse will be: ( 85 oC - 25oC = 60oC it will be 45%

T more as each 20oC will increase the rating of fuse 10 – 15%)

= 4 x 1.45 = 5.8 Amps
JAMSHORO Approximately = 6 Amps (next higher rating)
If the fuse is operating at 5oC ambient temperature:

Department
Fuses are designed at 25oC, that means 20oC lower than normal or designed
of temperature will re – rate the fuse of 4 amps at
Electrical
Engineering = 4 x 0.85 = 3.4 amps
= 3.5 Amps (next higher rating)
  Maximum Allowable I2t
All overcurrent protective devices take a certain amount of “reaction time”
[some times called operating time]when they open to clear the fault.
During fuse opening time, there is energy flowing through the fuse. That
energy is measured in I²t. There are two parts to the fuse’s "reaction time".

M 1.The time it takes to melt the fuse element (also known as the melting
time, Tm).
U 2.The time it takes to quench the electrical arc (also known as the arcing
time, Ta).
E The total time open the fault is known as the total clearing time. T c = Tm +

T Ta

JAMSHORO During this clearing time, there is energy is being "let-thru" the fuse. The
downstream components are then subjected to this extreme energy as it
passes through the fuse (if only for a few milliseconds).
Department
of
Electrical
Engineering
In order to specify the proper fuse or circuit breaker in a circuit, the
engineer must know the withstand capabilities of the downstream circuit
components and select a fuse whose let-thru energy is below that of those
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E  Rated Voltage

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The maximum voltage the fuse link is designed to interrupt.
 Current Rating
JAMSHORO The value of current a fuse link will carry continuously without
deterioration.
 Rated breaking capacity
Department
of
The highest value of current the fuse has been tested to
Electrical interrupt, typically : 120kA (IEC) & 80kA (BS)
Engineering
 Fuse Selection For a Motor [Catalog Curves]
A motor draws about 6 times the normal full load current, when it is
started on load. The fuse, which is there to protect the motor under short
circuit conditions, must allow this high in-rush current, of the motor, to

M pass.
►Consider a motor whose full load current is 10 amperes and the motor

U takes 1.0 second to accelerate to its normal running speed.

▬ Motor starting current = 10 x IFL = 10 x 6 = 60 Amps

E ▬ Motor acceleration time = 1 second.

T
Assume that a 10 A fuse is selected from Figure (Next Slide). For a 10 A fuse
at a 60 A fault current, it will take 0.6 seconds to blow.

JAMSHORO Since the motor takes 1.0 second to accelerate, the fuse will blow before the
motor has fully accelerated.

Department However, if a 12 A fuse is selected, at a fault current of 60 A, the 12 A fuse

of
Electrical
would take about 1 second to blow. Therefore, the motor would have sufficient
Engineering time to accelerate to its rated speed. Using 12 A fuse, the motor can accelerate
to its operational speed without blowing the fuse.
 M
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JAMSHORO

Department
of
Electrical
Engineering
 CLASS WORK

Consider a motor whose full load current is 12 Amps

and the motor takes 3.0 second to accelerate to its normal
M running speed. Motors starting current is 5 times the FL
current.
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E 1.Select the fuse rating from the given curve.

T 2.Same motor if its acceleration time increases to 10

seconds, than which fuse will be suitable to avoid
JAMSHORO
nuisance tripping.

Department
of
Electrical
Engineering
 EXAMPLE 5

Eight motors with the sizes shown in Table are installed on a conveying
system. Time-delay fuses are used.

M Motor Quantity Rating (HP) Voltage Full-load Ampere (FLA)

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1 5 460 7.6
2 3 460 4.8

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5 2 460 3.4

T In accordance with NEC section 430-52, section 430-53, and table 430-
152, the time-delay fuse must be sized as follows:
JAMSHORO
175% FLA for largest motor + sum of FLAs for all other motors

Department ⇒ (1.75 x 7.6) + (2 x 4.8) + (5 x 3.4) = 39.9 A.

of
Electrical
Engineering
 NEC 430-52 allows use of the next largest standard-size
fuse—which in this case is 40 A.

M If nuisance tripping is a problem with this fuse

selection, NEC does allow 225% of the largest motor FLA

U to be used instead of 175% when calculating the size. In this

case, the calculation is as follows (the next largest standard

E fuse size in this case is 45 A):

(2.25 x 7.6) + (2 x 4.8) + (5 x 3.4) = 43.7 A
T
JAMSHORO

Department
of
Electrical
Engineering
 Example -6

Ten motors with the sizes shown in Table are installed on a conveying
system. Inverse time CBs are used
Motor Quantity Rating (HP) Voltage Full-load Ampere (FLA)

M 2
1
10
5
460
460
14
7.6

U
2 3 460 4.8
5 2 460 3.4

E
In accordance with NEC section 430-52, section 430-53, and
NEC table 430-152, the inverse-time circuit breaker must be sized
as follows:

T 250% FLA for largest motor + sum of FLAs for all motors

⇒ (2.5 x 14) + 14 +7.6 + (2 x 4.8) + (5 x 3.4) = 83.2 A

JAMSHORO

NEC 430-52 allows use of the next largest standard-size inverse-time circuit
Department breaker is 90 A
of 2
Electrical 3
Engineering
  If nuisance tripping is a problem, the NEC allows for
inverse-time circuit breaker sizes that “shall in no case
exceed 400% for full-load currents of 100 amps or less, or
300% for full-load current greater than 100 amps.”
M (4.0 x 14) + 14 +7.6 + (2 x 4.8) + (5 x 3.4) = 104.2 A

U In this case, the calculation is as follows (the next largest

standard inverse-time circuit breaker size in this case is
E 110 A):

T
JAMSHORO

Department
of
Electrical
Engineering
  Available short – circuit current
Any overcurrent protective device has only a finite ability to safely open a
circuit when a fault condition occurs. Therefore the amount of fault current
available is a critical piece of information in order to select the proper
protective device.
M The available short circuit calculations are generally based on the following

U factors:

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How much short-circuit current is available from the utility?
What is the resistance of the wiring from the utility to the piece of

T
equipment where the fuse is installed?
What is the internal resistance of the piece of equipment where the fuse is
JAMSHORO installed

Department
IMPORTANT TO NOTE:
of
Electrical
Engineering The fuse must be selected as to have a greater short circuit rating than what
is available in the circuit (otherwise the fuse can explode and cause great
harm to people and equipment!)
  Starting Inrush Currents

If the device is to be used as short-circuit protection, the fuse or circuit

M breaker must interrupt the fault quickly (generally less than 4

milliseconds) in order to give the maximum protection to equipment and

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personnel.

If the fuse or circuit breaker is intended for over-load protection only, then
E it can be much slower in reacting to the over-current - seconds or even
minutes as compared to milliseconds...

T All fuses offer some form of both short-circuit protection as well as over-
JAMSHORO load protection.

Department
of
Electrical
Engineering
 EXAMPLE 07
A 6.6 kV, 400 hp motor has a full – load power factor of 0.8 and efficiency of
90%. Its standstill current at starting is 5 times its full – load current and at 0.2 pf.
Calculate its starting current, and its active and reactive starting load? Also
suggest fuse size for over current protection.

M SOLUTION
400 HP  400  746  298.4 kW  300 kW
If efficiency is 90%, full – load input power is = 300  333 kW
U If full – load power factor is 0.8, full – load input power =
0.9
333
 416 kVA

E
0 .8
AT full – load,

T In this case kV = 6.6 and kVA has been calculated 416 kVA .
 416  3  6 .6  I
JAMSHORO
416
Or I   36.4 A ( At full  load )
3  6 .6
Department
of
Electrical
Starting current is 5 × full – load current
Engineering  5  36.4  182 A (at stanstill)
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JAMSHORO

Department
of
Electrical
Engineering

PSP/FUSE SELECTION/NNS 28
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JAMSHORO

Department
of
Electrical
Engineering

29
 Summarizing results:
Starting current = 182A (36A)
Starting power factor = 0.2 (0.8)
Starting active power = 416kW (333kW)

M Starting reactive power = 2 040kvar (250kvar)

U
1.The starting current is very much greater (it was given as 5
times).

E 2.The starting power factor is very much lower (it was given as
0.2).
T 3.The starting active power is of the same order as the full-load
running active power (in this case a little higher).
JAMSHORO

4.The starting reactive power is vastly greater than the full-

Department load running reactive power (in this case eight times).
of
Electrical
Engineering

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 PROBLEM: A 50 hp, 400 V, 3 - phase induction motor is designed on
its nameplate as a class H motor. How much inrush current current will
this motor draw during starting on a 400 Volt system. Suggest proper
fuse size to withstand starting current for 4 seconds.
SOLUTION:

M 1. Determine locked – rotor kVA, the motor draws; this is done with

U
reference to the given code letter. From table; A code letter H designates
the motor draws between 6.3 and 7.09 kVA per nameplate horsepower.

E Therefore, this motor draws starting (locked rotor) power;

T
kVA = (7.09 kVA / HP) X (50 HP) = 354.5 kVA
2.Calculate inrush current: P  3 V  I
JAMSHORO
354500  3  400  I
354500
I   511 .67 Amps
Department 3  400
of
Electrical  During motor starting, the starting (locked - rotor) current drawn by
Engineering
the motor is up to 511.67 Amps.
 kVA per HP with locked rotor

Code Letter on
motor name plate
Minimum Mean Maximum

M A
B
0
3.15
1.57
3.345
3.14
3.54

U C
D
3.55
4
3.77
4.245
3.99
4.9

E
E 4.5 4.745 4.99
F 5 5.295 5.59
G 5.6 5.945 6.29

T
H 6.3 6.695 7.09
J 7.1 7.545 7.99
K 8 8.495 8.9

JAMSHORO L 9 9.495 9.9

M 10 10.595 11.19
N 11.2 11.845 12.49
P 12.5 13.245 13.99
Department
of R 14 14.995 15.99
Electrical S 16 16.995 17.99
Engineering
T 18 18.995 19.99
U 20 29.2 22.39
V 22.4 No Limit No Limit
 EXAMPLE: 8 (Collective Short Circuit Current)

A 460V application is using an isolation transformer rated for 34kVA, a KEB

Harmonic Filter, KEB R6 regen unit and KEB F5 elevator drive.

SOLUTION

M 1.Since the available short circuit current of the isolation transformer is unknown, it

U
must be calculated.
To calculate the transformer secondary rated current, along with the collective
available short circuit current, the following equations can be used…

E I SEC 
T / F (kVA )  1000
T / F Sec Voltage (V )  3
T I SEC 
34 000
 42.6 A
JAMSHORO 460 V  3
The fuse size must not be greater than 125% of the secondary rated
current. From the Eq. below, 125% of the secondary rated current is 53.3
Department
of amps.
Electrical
Engineering I125%  1.25  42.6  53.3 A
 2. Next, the available short-circuit current at the transformer must be determined.
This can be calculated by determining the collective available short circuit
current.
 To protect against short circuit currents, limited by an isolation

M
transformer, the required current a fuse needs to clear instantly needs to be
evaluated. To do this, the collective available short circuit current of the
mainline and isolation transformer must be determined.
U  To calculate the available short circuit current of the mainline and

E transformer, the following equations can be used.

I L  0.1

T
Avail . SCCmainline (kA) 
Z machine (%)

JAMSHORO Assuming the mainline has a current of 400 amps and an impedance of 0.5%
…
400 A  0.1
Avail . SCCmainline (kA)   80 kA
Department 0 .5 %
of
Electrical
Engineering
  For Collective short circuit of the transformer:
As transformer is 34kVA, 43A secondary current already calculated.
Assuming 5 % impedance

M Avail . SCCTransforme r ( kA) 

I L ( A)  0.1
Z Trasnforme r (%)

U Avail . SCCTransforme r ( kA) 

43 A  0.1
5%
 860 A

E
T
NOTE: The available short circuit current of the transformer has been
calculated, the proper fuse must be selected. To select the proper fuse size,
consult with the manufacture’s published fuse blow curves.
JAMSHORO

Department
of
Electrical
Engineering
  Figure : Time Delay Class J Fuse Melting Time – Current
Curve (Source: Mersen Electrical Power, 2002)

M Looking at the Figure 4, Time Delay Class J Fuses rated for

50A and 60A require 800A and 950A, respectively, for 10ms

U to clear. In comparison, as seen in Figure 5, High Speed Class

J Fuses rated for 50A and 60A require 400A and 500A,

E respectively, for 10ms to clear.

T
JAMSHORO

Department
of
Electrical
Engineering
 M
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JAMSHORO

Department
of
Electrical
Engineering
 Figure : High Speed Class J Fuse Melting Time – Current
Curve (Source: Mersen Electrical Power, 2003)

M The High-Speed Class J fuses are a much safer option by providing the

U
required clearing currents down to 1ms According to Figure 5, the 50A
and 60A fuses require 675A and 850A, respectively, for 1ms to clear.

E
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JAMSHORO

Department
of
Electrical
Engineering
 M
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Department
of
Electrical
Engineering

39