IEEB Transactions on Power Delivev, Vol. 8, No. 1, January 1993.
A CRITICAL ANALYSIS OF GROUNDING PRACTICES FOR RAILROAD TRACKS
IN ELECTRIC UTILITY STATIONS
D. L. Garrett
Member
Southern Company Services
Birmingham A1
KEYWORDS
Grounding Railroad Tracks Isolation
Transferred Potential
ABSTRACT
A r a i l r o a d spur i s o f t e n routed i n t o a large
substation or generating plant t o f a c i l i t a t e i n s t a l l a t i o n
o f large power transformers or other large pieces of
equipment and t o transport f u e l t o the plant. Because the
metal r a i l s may transfer hazardous p o t e n t i a l s i n t o or out
of the switchyard area during ground faults, precautions
must be taken t o l i m i t the hazardous voltages. This
analysis looks f o r c0rmK)n trends of voltages along r a i l -
road tracks i n a c o n t r o l l e d model of a substation ground-
ing system during a ground f a u l t .
Current practices t o l i m i t these transferred
p o t e n t i a l s are based on crude approximations and engineer-
ing judgement. Recently developed cornputer programs allow
a much b e t t e r model o f the grounding system, track and the
hazardous scenarios t o which a person might be subject.
Several cases were used t o i1 l u s t r a t e some of the
most c m n techniques used t o l i m i t hazardous voltages,
and s e o f these techniques were found t o be q u i t e
ineffective. Except f o r the cases where the tracks near
the substation were removed, the p o t e n t i a l transferred
along the tracks produced several scenarios with touch
and/or step voltages exceeding the tolerable l i m i t s .
INTRODUCTION
A r a i l r o a d spur i s o f t e n routed i n t o a large
substation t o f a c i l i t a t e i n s t a l l a t i o n of large power
transformers o r other large pieces o f equipnent. Rail-
roads are also routed i n t o most generating plants t o
f a c i l i t a t e i n s t a l l a t i o n o f large plant and substation
equipment, as well as t o supply fuel. E l e c t r i c a l l y con-
tinuous r a i l r o a d tracks that extend beyond the ground g r i d
o f a substation can transfer dangerous p o t e n t i a l s f a r from
the substation during f a u l t conditions. Several methods
have been used t o prevent these hazardous voltages,
including the i n s t a l l a t i o n of i s o l a t i o n j o i n t s between
r a i l sections or the removal of several r a i l sections i n
the v i c i n i t y o f the substation.
These practices have h i s t o r i c a l l y been based on
a combination o f engineering judgement, crude calculations
and , i n a feu cases, f i e l d measurements [1,23. With the
c a p a b i l i t i e s o f recently developed computerized grounding
analysis methods 13,41, a more accurate determination can
be made o f the possible hazardous voltages f o r various
practices used i n the industry. Because the actual
92 WM 220-4 PWRD A paper recommended and approved
by the IEEE Substations Committee of the IEEE Power
Engineering Society for presentation at the IEEE/PES
1992 Winter Meeting, New York, New York, January 26-
30, 1992. Manuscript submitted August 30, 1991;
made available for printing January 9, 1992.
0885-8977/92/$3.ooO1993IEEE
K. A. Wallace
voltages w i l l be s i t e - s p e c i f i c and d e f i n i t i v e conclusions
could not be obtained, a t y p i c a l substation grounding
system with several scenarios o f r a i l r o a d tracks were
analyzed and trends o f hazardous voltages were observed a t
s p e c i f i c points of concern along the r a i l r o a d track.
GAOUNORM
- CONDUCTOR
RAllROAD TRACK
BREAK IN SCALE
0 POINTOF WNCERN
\\ . M , \\ . \\ .
20 Id0 180 260" 340" 420
distance in feet
FiQure 1 Modeled G r o w d i n s Svstem and Track
SYSTEM MODEL
The main d i f f i c u l t y i n developing an appropriate
model f o r the study was the f a c t that there were an i n f i -
n i t e nunber of scenarios f o r the s t a t e o f the r a i l s . The
r a i l s could be e l e c t r i c a l l y continuous across a l l j o i n t s
(perhaps by using bonding jutpers), o r one o r more r a i l
j o i n t s could be semi-conducting or completely non-con-
ducting a t any location along the r a i l spur or main r a i l
line. The r a i l could be llperfectlyl* insulated from the
s o i l along i t s e n t i r e length (mounted on the t y p i c a l bed
o f rocks), o r i t could be i n semi-conducting o r f u l l
contact with the s o i l a t one or more locations anywhere
along i t s length.
There was also d i f f i c u l t y i n l i m i t i n g the nunber
of possible scenarios f o r the person subjected t o the
transferred potentials. The person could be stepping from
one r a i l section t o another across an e l e c t r i c a l l y
continuous, semi-conducting or non-conducting j o i n t . The
person could be standing with one foot on the r a i l and one
foot o f f ( t h i s foot could be on rock or s o i l ) . The person
could be standing i n the v i c i n i t y o f the r a i l and subject
t o step voltage. The person could be standing on the r a i l
and touching a remotely-grounded object with t h e i r hand,
or standing o f f the r a i l but touching a switch handle or
other object connected t o the r a i l .
When vieued concurrently, the p o s s i b i l i t i e s f o r
the r a i l sections and the person subject t o the hazardous
conditions m u l t i p l y t o make a seemingly unmanageable
number of possible scenarios t o evaluate. Using judgement
t o eliminate some cases that would have obviously not been

worst case scenarios and selecting other cases that would
e i t h e r r e s u l t i n worst cases or would i l l u s t r a t e trends,
a manageable mrnber o f cases were selected f o r the study.
Using the EPRI SGSYS program, a uniform 30.48~1X
30.48111 (100ft X 100ft) grounding g r i d was modeled with a
uniform 7.62111 ( 2 5 f t ) spacing between 2/0 copper g r i d
conductors. The g r i d was buried a t a depth of 0.46m
(1.5ft). Six meter ( 2 0 f t ) ground rods were placed a t each
conductor intersection. The parameters and size of the
grounded area were chosen f o r s i n p l i s t i c i l l u s t r a t i v e
purposes. The g r i d spacing and locations o f ground rods,
as well as the location of the track, would have some
e f f e c t on the step voltages around the r a i l s w i t h i n the
grounded area, but should have minimal e f f e c t on the
r e s u l t s outside the area. The s i z e o f the grounded area
would a f f e c t the r a t e a t uhich the GPR decreases with
distance from the grid, thus, a f f e c t i n g the touch and step
voltages along the external r a i l sections. The exanple
i l l u s t r a t e d here, however, i l l u s t r a t e s methods o f analysis
and trends o f r e s u l t s f o r t y p i c a l parameters.
Where applicable, a t r a i n r a i l was modeled as a 2/0
horizontal conductor bisecting the outer row of meshes.
The track was modeled as 122m (400ft) i n length and was
divided i n t o f i v e 24.4111 ( 8 0 f t ) standard length r a i l
sections. The model i s shoun i n Figure 1.
The r e i 1 j o i n t s were assuned t o be e i t h e r perfect-
l y conducting or t o t a l l y non-conducting. E a c h r a i1
section was assuned t o be e i t h e r p e r f e c t l y insulated from
the s o i l or t o be i n good contact with the s o i l (essen-
t i a l l y , half-buried). The person was assuned t o be i n one
of the following three positions when a t a r a i l j o i n t , as
shown i n Figure 2:
1) Standing across a non-conducting r a i l j o i n t , with
one foot on each r a i l .
This r e s u l t s i n a metal-to-metal
step voltage between the feet.
2) Standing with one foot on a r a i l section with the
other foot on rock or s o i l one meter away (perpendicular)
from the r a i l . This r e s u l t s i n a metal-to-surface step
voltage between the feet.
3) Standing with one foot on rock or s o i l adjacent
t o a r a i l and the other foot on rock or s o i l one meter
away (perpendicular) from the r a i l . This r e s u l t s i n the
usual step voltage condition.
PERSON STANDING
ACROSS RAILROAD
TRACK JOINT -
EXPOSED TO TRANSFER
POTENTIALS BETWEEN
THE TWO TRACKS
GROUND FAULT
AT SUBSTATON
U
PERSON WITH ONE
FOOT ON TRACK, ONE
FOOT OFF THE TRACK -
PERSON WITH BOTH
FEET ON THE EARTH -
EXWSED TO THE
DIFFERENCE IN
SURFACE
POTENTIALSOF THE
EARTH
Figure 2 Hazardous Voltages at Typical R a i l J o i n t
91
The SGSYS program i s capable o f modeling separate g r d -
ing system using the group Mmber feature. For isolated
r a i l sections and non-conducting j o i n t s , the r a i l s on
e i t h e r side o f the j o i n t Yere modeled as separate group
nunbers, allowing carputation o f the voltages between each
r a i l or group. f o r the cases where the track was insu-
lated from the s o i l , i t was unnecessary t o model the
track. The scenarios f o r t h i s case were evaluated
mathematically, with only the g r i d modeled. For cases
where the track was half-buried, the track was represented
by a conductor buried near the earth's surface. This
allowed the track t o "pick the local s o i l p o t e n t i a l s
and t o dissipate a p o r t i o n o f the g r i d current i n t o the
s o i l when connected t o the grid.
The r a i l section's endpoints are labeled T1-16 i n
Figure 1 and are noted as "points o f concern.l# These
points are the locations o f the touch and step voltages
investigated i n the study. As show in Figure 2, a person
standing across a r a i l r o a d j o i n t would be exposed t o the
difference i n the r a i l - t o - r a i l transfer potentials. A
person standing with one foot on the track and one foot
o f f the track would be exposed t o the difference i n tran-
sferred p o t e n t i a l o f the track and the surface p o t e n t i a l
of the earth. A person with both feet on the earth would
be exposed t o the surface p o t e n t i a l gradient adjacent t o
the track.
The t o l e r a b l e touch and step voltage were calcu-
lated using equations 16, 18, 19, and 20 i n accordance
with IEEE Std 80-1986 [11 with the following assunptions:
equivalent radius o f foot = 0.08111
separation distance o f feet = 1m
uniform s o i l r e s i s t i v i t y = 100 ohm-m
surface cover r e s i s t i v i t y = 3000 ohm-m
surface cover thickness = 0.15111 ( 6 in)
f a u l t clearing time = 0.5s
For cases with a foot on the r a i l r o a d track, the foot
resistance was ass& t o be n e g l i g i b l e f o r that foot.
With the track omitted, the g r i d current was
chosen so that the m a x i m touch voltage w i t h i n the g r i d
was j u s t below the t o l e r a b l e touch voltage.This resulted
i n worst case r e s u l t s f o r touch and step voltage analysis
near the track, while l i m i t i n g the f a u l t current t o a
r e a l i s t i c value f o r which a safe g r i d design was obtained.
For a g r i d current o f 2245 anperes, the m a x i m computed
touch voltage was 540 volts, while the t o l e r a b l e touch
voltage i n the substation was computed as 562 volts.
As described previously, the j o i n t s o f the r a i l -
road tracks were considered t o be e i t h e r conducting or
non-conducting. Working i s o l a t i o n j o i n t s and corroded or
separated j o i n t s were considered as non-conducting j o i n t s .
Shorted i s o l a t i n g j o i n t s and e l e c t r i c a l l y connected j o i n t s
i n good condition were considered as conducting j o i n t s
with n e g l i g i b l e resistance.
The three main categories o f cases f o r the study
were as follows:
1. Tracks insulated from the s o i l ( a t least f o r the f i r s t
f i v e track sections)
2. Tracks h a l f - b u r i e d i n earth
3. Tracks h a l f - b u r i e d i n earth and the section j u s t
outside the substation (section 2) removed
These cases are varied by connecting and not
connecting the tracks t o the substation grounding grid,
adding and deleting i s o l a t i n g joints, and considering the
other j o i n t s conducting or non-conducting. The r e s u l t s of
the study are shown i n the following tables and discussed
below.
92
RESULTS
1. R A I L S INSULATED FROM THE SOIL:
A t the time o f the track's construction, the r a i 1s
would be e f f e c t i v e l y insulated from the earth by cross
t i e s and crushed rock, and would not need t o be included
i n the modeled grid, unless the r a i l s were bonded t o the
grid. This w w l d be an ideal case that would be d i f f i c u l t
t o obtain and maintain; however, i t nas a good s t a r t i n g
point f o r t h i s c-rative study.
The study of t h i s case began with the track not
connected t o the grid, but remotely grounded a t some point
(perhaps, a t a grounded track switch, s i l t e d - o v e r track,
etc.). I s o l a t i o n j o i n t s uere then a s s d a t points T 2
and T 3 o f Figure 1. Next, the track was considered con-
nected t o the ground g r i d end remotely grounded beyond a
d i s t a n t non-conducting j o i n t (beyond the f i f t h r a i l set-
tion). Then, i s o l a t i n g j o i n t s were again assumed a t
points T 2 and 73. The voltages a t the points of concern
during f a u l t conditions f o r these four cases are con-
tained i n Tables l A , IB, l C , and 1D.

TABLE 1A R A I L S INSULATED FRLM EARTH b u

T O W H VOLTAGE IN STATION TRANSFER VOLTAGES BETUEEN R A I L S

TOUCH VOLTAGES TOLERABLE TOUCH TRANSFER VOLTAGES

I N STATION ( V I VOLTAGE (V) ACROSS JOINTS TOLERABLE
DESCRIPTION T1 TZ I N STATION (RAIL-TO-RAIL) STEP
DESCRIPTION T2 T3 T4 T5 T6 VOLTAGE ( V l
1 A - 1 TRACK NOT 3032 3032 608
CONNECTED TO GRID,
REMOTELY GROUNDED 1 C - 1 TRACK NOT 0 0 0 0 0 164
CONNECTED TO GRID,
1 A - 2 TRACK NOT FLOATING, 608 REMOTELY GROUNDED
CONNECTED TO GRID, NO PROBLEM
ISOLATING JOINTS AT I C - 2 TRACK NOT 0 0 0 0 0 164
T 2 AND T 3 CONNECTED TO GRID,
ISOLATING JOINTS AT
1 A - 3 TRACK 0 0 608 12 AND 13
CONNECTED TO GRID,
REMOTELY GROUNDED 1C-3 TRACK 0 0 0 0 3032 164
BEYOND NON- CONNECTED TO GRID,
CONDUCTING JOINT REMOTELY GROUNDED
BEYOND NON-
1 A - 4 TRACK 0 0 608 CONDUCTING JOINT
CONNECTED TO GRID,
ISOLATING JOINTS AT I C - 4 TRACK 0 0 0 0 0 164
12 AND 13 CONNECTED TO GRID,
ISOLATING JOINTS AT
* I F ISOLATING JOINTS BECOME SHORTED, THEN A PERSON
T 2 AND T 3

SIMULTANEOUSLY TOUCHING THE R A I L AND GRID WOULD BE

SUBJECT TO THE FULL GPR (3032 V I .

TABLE 10 R A I L S I N S U U T E D FROM EARTH

SURFACE-TO-SURFACE STEP VOLTAGES ALONG TRACK
TABLE 1B R A I L S INSULATED FRCM EARTH
RAIL-TO-SURFACE STEP VOLTAGES ALONG TRACK TOLERABLE
STEP VOLTAGES STEP
TOLERABLE ALONG TRACK (V) VOLTAGES
STEP VOLTAGES STEP (SOIL-TO-SOIL) ALONG TRACK
ALONG TRACK (V) VOLTAGES DESCRIPTION ALL POINTS ROCK SOIL
(RAIL-TO-SURFACE) ALONG TRACK
I D - 1 TRACK NOT NA
* 1825 267
DESCRIPTION T2 T3 T4 T5 T6 ROCK S O I L
CONNECTED TO GRID,
1 B - 1 TRACK NOT 2613 890 555 403 314 1010 215 REMOTELY GROUNDED
CONNECTED TO GRID,
REMOTELY GROUNDED I D - 2 TRACK NOT NA * 1825 267
CONNECTED TO GRID,
16-2 TRACK NOT 0 890 5 5 5 403 314 I010 215 ISOLATING JOINTS AT
CONNECTED TO GRID, 7 2 AND T 3
ISOLATING JOINTS AT
T 2 AND T 3 1 D - 3 TRACK NA * 1825 267
CONNECTED TO GRID,
18-3 TRACK 420 2143 2477 2629 2719 1010 215 REMOTELY GROUNDED
CONNECTED TO GRID, BEYOND NON-
REMOTELY GROUNDED CONDUCTING JOINT
BEYOND NON-
1D-4 TRACK NA
* 1825 267
CONDUCTING JOINT
CONNECTED TO GRID,
18-4 TRACK 420 890 5 5 5 403 314 I010 215 ISOLATING JOINTS AT
CONNECTED TO GRID, T 2 AND T 3
ISOLATING JOINTS AT
72 AND T 3 *
SOIL-TO-SOIL STEP VOLTAGES NOT AFFECTED BY R A I L S
 93
With the r a i l not connected t o the ground g r i d and TABLE U RAILS HALF-BLIRIED IN EARTH
remotely grounded, a person i n the substation simul- TOUCH VOLTAGE IN STATION
taneously touching the r a i l and a grounded structure would
be subject t o the f u l l g r i d p o t e n t i a l r i s e (GPR) during a TOUCH VOLTAGES TOLERABLE TOUCH
ground f a u l t (Case 1A-1). A person with one f o o t on the I N STATION (V) VOLTAGE (V)
track and one f o o t o f f the track would be subject t o p a r t DESCRIPTION T1 72 I N STATION
o f the GPR due t o the voltage between the track ( a t remote
earth potential) and the surface p o t e n t i a l near the 2A-1 TRACK NOT 1693 1693 608
substation (Case 1B-1). This voltage would decrease with CONNECTED TO GRID,
distance from the substation. Both the touch voltages i n DISCONTINUOUS AT
the substation and the rail-to-surface step voltages along REMOTE POINT
the track outside o f the substation were beyond the
tolerable voltages f o r the case studied. 2A-2 TRACK NOT 442 1633 608
CONNECTED TO GRID,
U i t h i s o l a t i n g j o i n t s added a t points T2 and T3 ISOLATING JOINTS AT
and the track beyond 73 remotely grounded. the r a i l po- T2 AND T3
t e n t i a l i n the substation would be f l o a t i n g and no problem
would e x i s t (Case 1A-2). Note t h a t i f the i s o l a t i n g 2A-3 TRACK NOT 442 1633 608
j o i n t s were shorted o r not properly installed, the r e s u l t s CONNECTED TO GRID,
default t o those described above with no i s o l a t i n g joints. ALL JOINTS
The t r a c k - t o - s o i l step voltages beyond the i s o l a t i n g DISCONTINUOUS
j o i n t s would be the same regardless o f the condition o f
the i s o l a t i n g j o i n t s (Cases 18-182).. 2A-4 TRACK 0 0 608
CONNECTED TO GRID,
The transfer voltages between the r a i l sections REMOTELY GROUNDED
were zero, as a l l j o i n t s were e i t h e r continuous or the BEYOND NON-
r a i l potentials were f l o a t i n g f o r the case with i s o l a t i n g CONDUCTING JOINT
j o i n t s (Cases 1C-l&2). The step voltages adjacent t o the
track were unaffected by the track and resulted i n the 2A-5 TRACK 0 0 608
same values as without the track modeled (Cases 1D-1&2). CONNECTED TO GRID,
ISOLATING JOINTS AT
U i t h the track connected t o the ground grid, no T2 AND T3
danger e x i s t s f o r a person simultaneously touching the
track and a grounded substation structure (Cases 1A-384). 2A-6 TRACK 0 0 608
The rail-to-surface step voltages outside o f the substa- CONNECTED TO GRID,
t i o n increaseddramatically (Case 16-3). I f the track had ALL JOINTS
a poorly conducting j o i n t (i.e., 8 corroded j o i n t or with DISCONTINUOUS
one o f two i s o l a t i n g j o i n t s shorted out), a person
standing across the non-conducting j o i n t would be subject
t o the e n t i r e GPR (Case 1C-3). U i t h the track insulated
from earth i n the v i c i n i t y o f the substation, the s o i l - t o - TABLE 28 RAILS HALF-BURIED IN EARTH
s o i l step voltages adjacent t o the track were unaffected RAIL-TO-SURFACE STEP VOLTAGES ALONG TRACK
(Case 1D-3).
TOLERABLE
U i t h i s o l a t i n g j o i n t s a t T2 and T3, a person STEP VOLTAGES STEP
simultaneously touching the track and a grounded substa- ALONG TRACK (V) VOLTAGES
t i o n structure would not be subject t o a difference i n (RAIL-TO-SURFACE) ALONG TRACK
p o t e n t i a l (Case 1A-4). The r a i l - t o - s u r f a c e step voltages DESCRIPTION T2 T3 T4 T5 T6 (V) SOIL
were inproved with the addition o f the i s o l a t i n g joints,
but only t o the values found i n Cases 1B-1&2, which were 28-1 TRACK NOT 1037 164 313 385 655 215
s t i l l beyond the tolerable voltages (Case 18-41. The CONNECTED TO GRID,
addition o f the i s o l a t i n g j o i n t s on a track bonded t o the DISCONTINUOUS AT
ground g r i d would introduce an added danger i f a person REMOTE POINT
was standing across one i s o l a t i n g j o i n t while the other
i s o l a t i n g j o i n t was shorted. For t h i s case, the person 2B-2 TRACK NOT 1112 504 21 63 353 215
would be subject t o the f u l l GPR (Case 1C-4). As f o r the CONNECTED TO GRID,
previous cases, the surface-to-surface step voltages along ISOLATING JOINTS AT
the track were i n s i g n i f i c a n t (Case 1D-4). The track was T2 AND T3
insulated from the earth and, thus, had no impact on the
surface potentials i n the substation area. 28-3 TRACK NOT 1103 465 143 68 319 215
CONNECTED TO GRID,
2. RAILS HALF-BURIED I N EARTH: ALL JOINTS
DISCONTINUOUS
After construction, most spurs i n t o the substation
are seldom used. Over time, the crushed rock o f t e n 28-4 TRACK 161 785 w 951 1522 215
becornes i n disrepair and the tracks become s i l t e d over, CONNECTED TO GRID,
bringing them i n contact with the earth. A half-buried REMOTELY GROUNDED
conductor was used t o represent the r a i l r o a d track i n BEYOND NON-
p a r t i a l contact with the earth. CONDUCTING JOINT

The study o f t h i s case began with the track not 28-5 TRACK 460 509 20 63 166 215
connected t o the g r i d and discontinuous a t some remote CONNECTED TO GRID,
point, with the remote track assuned p e r f e c t l y grounded ISOLATING JOINTS AT
(i.e., a t remote earth p o t e n t i a l ) . Isolat-ing j o i n t s were T2 AND T3
then added a t points T2 and T3. Then, a l l j o i n t s were as-
s& t o be non-conducting due t o poorly conducting 28-6 TRACK 1144 470 143 68 41 215
j o i n t s . These three conditions were then repeated with CONNECTED TO GRID,
the track Connected t o the substation grid. The voltages ALL JOINTS
a t the points o f concern during f a u l t conditions DISCONTINUOUS
 94
TABLE 2C RAI L S HALF-WRIED I N EARTH are contained i n Tables 2A, 28, 2C, and 2D.
TRANSFER VOLTAGES BETKEN RAILS

TRANSFER VOLTAGES U i t h the r a i l not connected t o the ground g r i d and

ACROSS JOINTS TOLERABLE discontinuous a t some remote point, a person simultaneous-
(RAIL-TO-RAIL) STEP l y touching the r a i l and a grouded substation structure
DESCRIPTION 12 13 14 1 5 T6 VOLTAGE C V l would be subjected t o a dangerous transfer voltage (Case
2A-1). A person along the track outside o f the substation
2C-1 TRACK NOT 0 0 0 0 1166 164 with one foot on the track and one foot o f f would be
CONNECTED TO GRID, subject t o the difference i n r a i l p o t e n t i a l and the
DISCONTINUWS AT earth's surface potential. This voltage increased as
REMOTE POINT distance increased from t h e substation (Case 26-1). A
person standing across a r a i l d i s c o n t i n u i t y (i.e.,
2C-2 TRACK NOT 1191 883 0 0 519 164 stepping from the local r a i l t o the r a i l assuned a t remote
CONNECTED TO GRID, earth p o t e n t i a l ) would be subject t o the f u l l p o t e n t i a l a t
ISOLATING JOINTS AT that r a i l section (Case 2C-1). The surface-to-surface
T2 AND T3 step voltages along the track were increased s i g n i f i c a n t l y
b y the presence of the h a l f - b u r i e d track and approached
2C-3 TRACK NOT 1179 702 237 118 360 164 the tolerable step voltage (Case 2D-1).
CONNECTED TO GRID,
ALL JOINTS U i t h i s o l a t i n g j o i n t s edded t o the tracks a t
DISCONTINUOUS points T2 and T3, a person simultaneously touching the
r a i l and a grounded substation s t r u c t u r e would n o w be
2C-4 TRACK 0 0 0 0 2320 164 subject t o a reduced voltage below the t o l e r a b l e touch
CONNECTED TO GRID, voltage, except a t the perimeter o f the substation (Case
REMOTELY GROUNDED 2A-2). The r a i l - t o - s u r f a c e step voltages were reduced a t
BEYOND NON- some points but increased a t others (Case 26-21. A person
CONDUCTING JOINT standing across the i s o l a t i n g j o i n t s would be subject t o
a dangerous difference i n r a i l potentials, regardless of
2C-5 TRACK 1613 a90 o o 519 164 whether or not one of the i s o l a t i n g j o i n t s was shorted
CONNECTED TO GRID, (Case 2C-2). The surface-to-surface step voltages along
ISOLATING JOINTS AT the track were reduced s i g n i f i c a n t l y by the addition of
T2 AND T3 the i s o l a t i n g sections (Case 2D-2).

2C-6 TRACK 1601 708 238 118 360 164 The next condition assuned a l l o f the r a i l j o i n t s
CONNECTED TO GRID, were non-conducting t o determine the impact on the voltage
ALL JOINTS levels a t the points of concern. A person simultaneously
D I SCONT INUWS touching the r a i l and a grounded substation structure uas
subject t o the same reduced voltage as i n the previous
case (Case 2A-3). The r a i l - t o - s o i l step voltages along
TABLE ZD RAILS HALF-BURIED I N EARTH the track were below the tolerable voltage, except near
SIRFACE-TO-SURFACE STEP VOLTAGES ALONG TRACK the substation (Case 28-3). The voltages across the
j o i n t s decreased from levels exceeding the tolerable
TOLERABLE voltages as the distance between the substation and j o i n t
STEP VOLTAGES STEP increased (Case 2C-3). The surface-to-surface step v o l t -
ALONG TRACK (V) VOLTAGES ages along the track were well below the tolerable step
(SOIL-TO-SOIL) ALONG TRACK voltage (Case 2D-3).
DESCRIPTION T3 14 T5 16 (V) SOIL
Next, the previous three conditions were repeated
20-1 TRACK NOT 124 213 259 162 267 u i t h the track connected t o the substation ground grid.
CONNECTED TO GRID, For these cases, the r a i l acted l i k e an extension of the
DISCONTINUWS AT g r i d t o lower the GPR. With the track connected t o the
REMOTE POINT grid, the touch voltage between the g r i d and the track was
eliminated (Case 2A-4). The r e i 1-to-surface p o t e n t i a l
2D-2 TRACK NOT 26 7 40 39 267 increased with increasing distance from the substetion and
CONNECTED TO GRID, was well above the t o l e r a b l e a t a l l points f o r t h i s
ISOLATING JOINTS AT example (Case 28-4). A person standing across a non-
T2 AND 73 conducting r a i l j o i n t would be subject t o the f u l l GPR
(Case 2C-4). The s o i l - t o - s o i t step voltages outside of
20-3 TRACK NOT 69 14 5 6 267 the substation along the track were above the tolerable
CONNECTED TO GRID, voltages f o r some distance, due t o the g r i d p o t e n t i a l
ALL JOINTS being transferred along the r a i l (Case 2D-4).
DISCONTINUOUS
U i t h i s o l a t i n g j o i n t s a t points T2 and T3, the
2D-4 TRACK 549 608 649 381 267 touch voltage between the g r i d and r a i l was again zero,
CONNECTED TO GRID, because the r a i l was bonded t o the g r i d f o r t h i s case
REMOTELY GROUNDED (Case 2A-5). A person with one foot on the track and one
BEYOND NON- foot o f f would be subject t o a voltage above the tolerable
CONDUCTING JOINT, along the isolated r a i l section between points TZ and 13,
but below the tolerable elsewhere (Case 26-51. A person
20-5 TRACK 28 7 40 39 267 standing across the i s o l a t i n g j o i n t s would be subject t o
CONNECTED TO GRID, transfer p o t e n t i a l s well above the tolerable, even though
ISOLATING JOINTS AT the i s o l a t i n g j o i h t s were assuned t o be i n good condition
T2 AND T3 f o r t h i s case (Case 2C-5). The s o i l - t o - s o i l step voltages
along the track were well below the t o l e r a b l e (Case 2D-5).
2D-6 TRACK 70 14 5 6 267
CONNECTED TO GRID, To represent an extreme case, the next cases
ALL JOINTS assumed a l l of the r a i l j o i n t s were non-conducting, u i t h
DISCONTINUOUS the r a i l bonded t o the grid. The touch voltage between
 95
(Case 2A-6). The r a i t -
the r a i l and g r i d uas a g a i n zero TABLE 38 RAILS HALF-BURIED IN EARTH
to-surface step voltages along the track imnediately RAIL-TO-SURFACE STEP VOLTAGES ALONG TRACK
outside the substation were above the tolerable, but
decreased r a p i d l y t o values below the tolerable a t points TOLERABLE
away from the substation (Case 28-6). The r a i l - t o - r a i l STEP VOLTAGES STEP
voltage across the non-conducting j o i n t s was well above ALONG TRACK (V) VOLTAGES
the tolerable a t points near the substation, but eventual- (RAIL-TO-SURFACE) ALONG TRACK
l y f e l l below the tolerable as distance from the substa- DESCRIPTION 13 14 15 16 ( V I SOIL
tion increased (Case 2C-6). The s o i l - t o - s o i l step
voltages were well below the tolerable a t a l l points (Case 38-1 TRACK NOT 305 22 60 161 215
2D-6). CONNECTED TO GRID,
TRACK 2 REMOVED
3. RAILS HALF-BURIED UITH ONE SECTION REMOVED:
38-2 TRACK NOT 172 132 67 41 215
I n the l a s t cases, the section o f track j u s t CONNECTED TO GRID,
outside the substation uas removed and the above touch and ALL JOINTS
step scenarios uere repeated. I n general, a l l touch and DISCONTINUOUS,
step scenarios resulted i n s i g n i f i c a n t l y lower voltages TRACK 2 REMOVED
with t h i s r a i l section removed, as shoun i n Tables 3A, 38,
3C and 3D. 38-3 TRACK 306 22 60 161 215
CONNECTED TO GRID,
U i t h the track not connected t o the grid, one o f TRACK 2 REMOVED
only three cases ( f o r t h i s exanple) which resulted i n
voltages above the tolerable was the rail-to-surface step 3B-4 TRACK 172 132 67 41 215
voltage j u s t beyond the removed r a i l section (Case 38-1). CONNECTED TO GRID,
The other cases were across the f i r s t non-conducting j o i n t ALL JOINTS
beyond the removed r a i l section with a l l r a i l j o i n t s DISCONTINUOUS,
assuned non-conducting, regardless o f whether or not the TRACK 2 REMOVED
r a i l s were connected t o the g r i d (Case 3C-2). These re-
s u l t s were due t o the magnitude o f the potentials induced
on the modeled r a i l sections between points T3 and T6,
which would, i n r e a l i t y , depend on the effectiveness o f
the r a i l ' s contact with the s o i l and the length o f track TABLE 3C RAILS HALF-BURIED I N EARTH
before a discontinuity were encountered. These voltages, TRANSFER VOLTAGES BETEEN RAILS
then, would be higher o r lower than the reported values
f o r d i f f e r e n t assumptions. TRANSFER VOLTAGES
ACROSS JOINTS TOLERABLE
U i t h the track bonded t o the grid, the only two (RAIL-TO-RAIL) STEP
cases which resulted in voltages above the tolerable were DESCRIPTION TE 13 14 15 VOLTAGE C V l
the two scenarios j u s t discussed, above (Cases 38-3 and
3C-4). These r e s u l t s were also dependent on the model f o r 3C-1 TRACK NOT NA NA 0 0 215
the r a i l and, thus, would be higher or lower f o r d i f f e r e n t CONNECTED TO GRID,
assumpt ions. TRACK 2 REMOVED

3C-2 TRACK NOT NA NA 222 116 215

CONNECTED TO GRID,
ALL JOINTS
DISCONTINUOUS,
TABLE 3A RAILS HALF-BURIED I N EARTH TRACK 2 REMOVED
TOUCH VOLTAGE I N STATION
3C-3 TRACK NA NA 0 0 215
TOUCH VOLTAGES TOLERABLE TOUCH CONNECTED TO GRID,
I N STATION (V) VOLTAGE ( V I TRACK 2 REMOVED
DESCRIPTION 11 T2 I N STATION
3C-4 TRACK NA NA 223 116 215
3A-1 TRACK NOT 438 438 608 CONNECTED TO GRID,
CONNECTED TO GRID, ALL JOINTS
TRACK 2 REMOVED DISCONTINUOUS,
TRACK 2 REMOVED
3A-2 TRACK NOT 437 437 608
CONNECTED TO GRID,
ALL JOINTS
D I SCONT I NUOUS,
TRACK 2 REMOVED CONCLUSION

3A-3 TRACK 0 0 608 Railroad spurs i n t o a substation have the poten-

CONNECTED TO GRID, t i a l o f creating hazardous voltages f o r several touch and
TRACK 2 REMOVED step scenarios during ground f a u l t s . Though no one
solution w i l l eliminate a l l possible hazardous conditions
3A-4 TRACK 0 0 608 f o r a l l cases, the best solution t o guard against these
CONNECTED TO GRID, hazardous voltages i s t o remove one or more r a i l sections
ALL JOINTS j u s t outside the substation. Where t h i s i s not possible,
DISCONTINUOUS, such as tracks throughout a generating plant, a study
TRACK 2 REMOVED s i m i l a r t o t h a t described herein should be performed on a
case-by-case basis t o determine appropriate measures t o be
taken. I t may not be p r a c t i c a l t o eliminate a l l hazardous
voltage under a l l conditions, but t h i s analysis would
allow the design engineer t o make the proper choices t o
minimize the hazards.
96
TABLE 3D RAILS MLF-BURIED IN EARTH Hr. Garrett i s a registered Professional Engineer i n the
SURFACE-TO-aFACE STEP VOLTAGES ALONG TRACK State o f Alabama and i s a rnenbtr o f Omicron Delta Kappa
and Eta Kappa Nu. He i s Secretary o f the IEEE Yorking
TOLERABLE Group responsible for IEEE Std 80, a maber o f the
STEP VOLTAGES STEP Substations Comnittee and i s a c t i v e i n several working
ALONG fRACK (V) VOLTAGES groups on other subjects.
(SOIL-TO-SOIL) ALONG TRACK
T3 14 T5 T6 ( V I SOIL Keith A. Uallace was born i n Birminghara, A1 on March 19,
1968. He received the BSEE degree f r u n the University of
3D-1 TRACK NOT 56 9 38 37 267 Alabama i n 1990. He joined Southern Conpeny Services,
CONNECTED TO GRID, Inc. i n 1990 and i s presently working i n the Power and
TRACK 2 REMOVED -
Systems Engineering E l e c t r i c a l and Controls D e p a r m t .
He i s a member o f Eta Kappa Nu.
3D-2 TRACK NOT 15 12 5 6 267
CONNECTED TO GRID,
ALL JOINTS
D I SCONT INWOS,
TRACK 2 REWOVED

30-3 TRACK 57 9 38 38 267

CONNECTED TO GRID,
TRACK 2 REMOVED

3D-4 TRACK 15 12 5 6 267

CONNECTED TO GRID,
ALL JOINTS
D ISCONT INUWS,
TRACK 2 REMOVED

References 111 and t21 both discuss the use of

r a i l i s o l a t i n g j o i n t s t o minimize hazards due t o r a i l r o a d
tracks i n the v i c i n i t y of substations and generating
stations. UhiLe the r e s u l t s o f t h i s study show that t h i s
practice reduces the hazards f o r some touch and step
conditions, the i s o l a t i n g r a i l s a c t u a l l y increase the
hazards f o r other touch and step conditions. I f the r a i l s
carinot be removed, the design engineer may be l e f t with a
choice o f which conditions t o protect against hazardous
voltages. The actual routing o f the track ( a c c e s s i b i l i t y
o f the r a i l s ) , the condition o f the track bed and the
p r o b a b i l i t y o f the various touch and step scenarios would
be sune o f the factors t o include i n the determination of
how t o best protect against hazardous voltages due t o the
presence o f the r a i l s .

REFERENCES

1) ANSI/IEEE Standard 80-1986, IEEE Guide f o r Safety i n AC

Substation Grounding, The I n s t i t u t e of E l e c t r i c a l and
Electronic Engineers, Inc., New York, 1986.

2 ) ANSI/IEEE Standard 665-1987, IEEE Guide f o r Generating

Station Grounding, The I n s t i t u t e of E l e c t r i c a l and
Electronic Engineers, Inc., New York, 1987.

3) alAnalysis Techniques f o r Poser Substation Grounding

Systems," EPRI Final Report EL-2682, Vol. 1, October 1982.

4 ) F. Dewalibi, D. Mukhedkar, IIGround Fault Current

-
D i s t r i b u t i o n i n Power Systems The Necessary Link,1a IEEE
Paper A 77 754-5, IEEE PES Surmer Power Meeting, Mexico
City, J u l y 1977.

BIOGRAPHIES

-
Q a v i d l a n e Garrett (S '75 M '76) was born i n Birming-
ham, A1 on January 10, 1954. He received the B. S. and M.
S. degrees i n Engineering from the University o f Alabama -
Birmingham i n 1976 and 1978, respectively.

I n 1974 he joined Southern Company Services, Inc. as a co-

operative education student and as an engineer i n 1976.
He i s presently a P r i n c i p e i Engineer i n the Power and
-
Systems Engineering E l e c t r i c a l and Controls Department,
where h i s major r e s p o n s i b i l i t i e s include grounding,
cathodic p r o t e c t i o n and equipnent application studies.