Editorial
I am sure we can quote many similar stories that allow us to paraphrase "If it is not broken, don't fix it!" to "If it is not broken, don't test it!"
However, in both cases we can ask the question "How do we know that it is not broken?"
In the last century the technology that we used in substations for protection, measurements and control was Dumb Electromechanical Devices (DEDs). They h... More
Letters
Don't hesitate. Share your thoughts and experiences. More
News
Industry News
GE Announces
Generator Stator and Rotor Ground Fault Protection
GE Energy announced the new Multilin Stator Ground Protection module and the Field Ground Protection module that provide a complete generator monitoring, protection and control solution when used in conjunction with the Multilin G60 generator protection relay.
The Multilin Stator Ground Protection module provides increased... MoreInnovative injection based 100% stator earth-fault protection with REG670
ABB’s Generator protection REG670 IED (Intelligent Electronic Device) now features an advanced 100% stator earth-fault protection based on injection principle. It also includes a 3rd harmonic based 100% stator earth-fault protection using a sensitive and secure differential principle .
Based on ABB's extensive experience, REG670 takes generator protection to a new performan... MoreIntroducing the SEL ICON
Integrated Communications Optical Network
Schweitzer Engineering Laboratories, Inc. (SEL) announces the newly released SEL ICON for high-bandwidth network communications.
The ICON combines SONET and Ethernet technologies with flexible DS0 drop interfaces to provide an integrated voice and data communications solution in a single platform.
The ICON is easy to configure and manage ... MoreNew IEEE Fellows
PAC World: Dear PAC World readers,
We are happy to announce that PACWorld magazine is officially on Facebook!
The PACWorld page has been created as a business and organizations page to broadcast and share information, news and updates to a large audience in an environment which promotes exchange of thoughts, ideas, memories and stories. We encourage you all to check out the ne... MoreNovel, Drawout, Versatile Agile Solutions from Alstom Grid
Alstom showcases its advanced feeder protection technology in a range of three new models:
P14N non-directional feeder P14D directional feeder and P94V voltage and frequency devices
The new devices bring the design rigour and technology of transmission applications to the distribution market.
The footprints of both the device physical size, and the lifecycle environmental impact... MoreOMICRON electronics
An Easy Way to Test Reclosers and Sectionalizers
Distribution Reclosers and Sectionalizers are fast becoming an integral part of the Smart Grid, and even governing entities are requiring that these systems be tested. Those using the CMC 256, CMC 256plus, or CMC 356 relay test sets can easily test their Recloser or Sectionalizer systems with just the addition of a compatible test cab... MoreToshiba Accelerates
Smart Community and Transmission & Distribution Businesses
Toshiba has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Landis & Gyr AG, a global leader in energy management solutions for utilities. The acquisition will substantially enhance Toshiba’s Smart Grid and Smart Community businesses. Toshiba has also acquired an equity stake in Ansaldo Trasmissione & Distribuzione SpA, an It... MoreUpdate of Hirschmann(tm) Range of Products
Fast Fiber Optic repeater for Ex Zone 1
Belden has now launched the Hirschmann™ OZD Profi G12 ATEX, Profibus FO repeaters certified for use in hazardous locations, zones 1, 2, 21 and 22. The optical ports are intrinsically safe and have got op-is approval. With a transfer rate of up to 12 Mbps, the repeater is available with a stainless steel or plastic housing. The optical fun... More
Technology News
LED Light Bulbs - are now a reality
The efforts to find a replacement for the incandescent light bulbs that we have been using for more than a hundred years has not been easy due to some of the deficiencies of the new bulbs. And it is not an issue of price or power efficiency. They are much better than what we have been using. The problem is that we like to have a light bulb that provides the required level immediate... MoreSolar Flair
Sun Packs a Double Punch
The increasing requirements for accurate time synchronization of different protection, automation and control devices, and especially the intentions to use sampled values and synchrophasors for protection applications makes us have a new look at the impact that solar flares may have on these devices and systems. GPS synchronization is already being used and will si... MoreSpace and Ground Based Lightning Detection
Sun Packs a Double Punch
We all know how important it is on one hand to be able to design the right protection system for a specific environment and on the other to be able to quickly figure out why the protection relay tripped. Yes, we are using Intelligent Electronic Devices (IEDs) today, but they are not at the level of intelligence to tell us what caused the fault. That is why it is so... More
Cover Story
Condition Monitoring and Protection
The monitoring functions are divided into several categories, and some of the important monitoring functions are listed below, and are discussed in this article:
Circuit breaker (CB) maintenance related data (including CB state monitoring and CB condition monitoring) Dynamic rating of overhead lines Asset management for transformers Enhanced monitoring scheme for Trip circuit supervis... More
IEC 61850 Update
Are the Expectations Fulfilled?
Several thousand substations have been realized with IEC 61850 since its publication in 2005. While in the first years of deployment the user community was mainly utilities that asked one of the vendors to realize a turnkey project for the substation automation system based on IEC 61850, this is going to change. More and more utilities that traditionally buy relays from multiple vendors... More
Lessons Learned
Counteracting Propagation of major Disturbances - Implementation of SPS
The main scope of the SPS is to minimize the consequences of major disturbances liable in particular:
Avoid as far as possible the loss of synchronism of the Turkish system towards the rest of ENTSO-E Continental system, or loss of synchronism of generating units in Turkey and in the Balkan countries, thereby minimizing in extreme contingencies the loss of load and generation, and risk of... More
Testing
Testing or Condition Monitoring
Today changes in the industry caused by economics, reduced manpower, loss of protection expertise, and expanded application of microprocessor based relays are pressing for a change in the ways protection testing is performed. Additional pressures are coming from regulatory changes and new reliability council rules, life extension of existing infrastructure, and integration of “green&rdq... More
Condition Monitoring
Dynamic Line Rating System - Implementation & Analysis
The DLR technology selected for the pilot project utilizes load cells to measure tension in the overhead conductor to determine the thermal expansion of the conductor, and - using established and proven composite conductor mechanical performance characteristics - the sag.
Once the sag is known for the measured load current, the combined cooling effects of the local weather conditions ca... More
Legal Issue
Title VII - (a case example)
The case: Quite often life is more colorful than movies, and the following is not a grossly exaggerated example provided for educational purposes, but a real case. Ann Hopkins, a senior manager at the accounting firm Price Waterhouse (PW) whose candidacy for partnership was held for reconsideration in 1982, and never re-proposed, sued the firm. She held a B.A. and a Master degree in mathemati... More
Substation Automation
Distribution Substation Monitoring System
Also, new regulations permit customers to request reimbursement for energy interruptions, so the electric energy utilities have new financial drivers to provide a high-quality power supply.
With these new measures, specific service indexes for each installation are monitored separately, which means that even small distribution substations need to be monitored because they may contribut... More
The Guru
Interview with Goda Nudelman
PAC World: When and where were you born? GN: I was born in Ukraine, three years before World War II which gravely disrupted my life. My father, brother and sister went to the front, and my mother and I were evacuated to the Stalingrad region, later on – to Tajikistan. The most terrible thing that happened to me at that time was the loss of bread tickets and the f... More
History
Protection History - Generator Protection
In the beginning of electrical power supply, e.g. dynamos connected to water mills have been used. Lamps and motors have been connected directly. The first generators had no possibility to become disconnected automatically in case of short circuits and overloads. Maybe it was because of the novelty of technology that this was overlooked. Additionally the generators at this time would e... More
I Think
International Standards are Crucial
This morning I found myself struggling to get words onto paper, but that turned around this afternoon after I boarded an airplane. The thing that caught my eye was the news that the United States’ Federal E. Reliability Council (FERC) will not adopt 5 smart grid standards recommended by the National Institute of Standards and Technology without FERC elaborating on the reasons for its de... More
Industry Reports
Novel ICT solutions - backbone for Smart Distribution
by Bernd Michael Buchholz, NTB Technoservice, Germany and Christoph Brunner, it4power, Zug, Switzerland
Since the publication of the “SmartGrid” vision of the EU in 2006 many initiatives were started to establish SmartGrid solutions in the practice of network operations. The European Communities sponsored 6 projects after the call “Energy... More
Conference Reports
3rd Scientific & Technical Conference, 2011
The conference was held from 30 May to 3 June, 2011 at the Park Inn Hotel Pulkovskaya in Saint Petersburg, Russia.
The Conference ’Actual Trends in Development of Power System Protection and Automation’ was co-organized by the Russian National Committee of CIGRE, the System Operator of Unified Energy System, and the All-Russian Relay Research, Design & Technology Institute (VNII... MoreCIRED 2011 - 21st International Conference and Exhibition, Frankfurt
The conference motto: A global insight on the technology and business drivers.
The 21st International Conference and Exhibition on Electricity Distribution was held in Frankfurt, Germany 6-9 June 2011. The event was organized by CIRED (Congrès International des Réseaux Electriques de Distribution or in English International Conference on Electricity Distribution). The Frankfur... MoreGeorgia Tech Fault & Disturbance Analysis Conference
The 14th Annual Georgia Tech Fault and Disturbance Analysis Conference was held 9-10 May 2010.
The event took place at the Georgia Tech Global Learning Center in Atlanta, Georgia, USA. The conference was jointly organized by The Transient Recorder Users Council and Georgia Tech. This is the only international conference that specializes in the analysis of short circuit faults, local and w... MoreGeorgia Tech Protective Relaying, Conference, 2011
The 65th Georgia Tech Protective Relaying Conference was held 11 - 13 May, 2011.
The Event was held at the Georgia Tech Hotel, Atlanta, USA
The 65th Georgia Tech Protective Relaying Conference was held 11 - 13 May, 2011. This is one of the three specialized annual protection and control conferences held in the United States. It brings together every spring protection and control ... MoreIEEE PowerTech 2011, Trondheim, Norway
The 2011 PowerTech Conference was held in Norway, from June 19th to 23rd.
IEEE PES PowerTech 2011 was held 19 - 23 June 2011 in Trondheim, Norway. PowerTech is the main biannual conference of the IEEE Power & Energy Society (PES) in Europe and is intended to provide a forum for electric power engineering scientists and engineers to share ideas, results of their scientific work, ... MorePAC World 2011 Conference, Dublin, Ireland
The second PAC World Conference was held in Dublin, Ireland 28 - 30 June 2011.
After the success of the first PAC World conference in 2010 the second annual conference was held again at Trinity College with a different format. The conference was attended by protection, automation and control specialists from utilities, suppliers, consultants and academia from 38 countries and all continent... More
Book Review
Condition Monitoring of Rotating Electrical Machines
IET Power
& Energy Series 56
This book is Volume Number 56 in the IET's Power and Energy Series and is a new edition of a book published by Peter Tavner and Jim Penman in 1987 with the title "Condition Monitoring of Rotating Electrical Machines." As is clear from the title, the book focuses on a specific type of electric equipment, however the treatment of the subject an... More
Hobby
Dinghi Sailing with the smartkat
I have been a passionate sailor for many years. In the past I sailed a lot of different boats ranging from historical wooden schooners to modern yachts. All these boats had a couple of things in common - they used wind instead of an engine and ... they were not owned by me.
So at some point it became inevitable to get my own boat.
The Task -When I decided to get a sailing boat of my ow... More
Final Thoughts
The development and implementation of protection, automation and control systems in substations and anywhere else in the electric power grid has been facing and will continue to face in the future a major challenge.
It is related to the fact that none of the decisions that they make are based on direct knowledge of the state of primary equipment and the actual system parameters.
This is d... More