ABB SR MV Products - 72dpi

W
ABB
The corporate
technical journal
review
Smarter switchgear for substations 11
Optimizing aging infrastructure in a modern grid 22
New digital fault detection you can Relion 33
ABB’s evolving MV product portfolio 48
Special Report
Medium-voltage products
For over 25 years ABB has been developing
and manufacturing vacuum interrrupters for
medium-voltage applications. State-of-the-art
manufacturing processes, including immacu-
lately clean rooms, ensure the highest standards
of quality.
2 ABB review special report

Contents
Distributed
7 Distribution evolution
Medium-voltage distribution technology is a key part of
the power network
power
Enabling a 11 Switching gears

Moving to smart switchgear for primary and secondary
smarter and safer

substations
16 Feeling the pressure
power network Simulating pressure rise in switchgear installation rooms
22 From the basic to the complex

Optimizing an aging infrastructure in the modern grid
26 Power house
A strong and light enclosure for substations
Lowering environ- 30 Compact and eco-efficient

Meeting the need for a more environmentally friendly ring
mental impact
main unit with the innovative SafeRing Air
Reliability across 33 Earth science

A new digital earth-fault detection method improves
reliability
the power value 36 Molding the future
chain Polymers processing enhanced by advanced computer

simulations
Closing in on
41 Life-cycle support
ABB’s service and customer solutions for medium-volt-
age products
the market 44 Pulling together

OEM partnerships are a vital element of ABB’s customer
value chain
48 Innovation in motion
How ABB’s MV product portfolio is evolving to address
market needs
Contents 3
Editorial
Medium-voltage products
Dear Reader,
Medium-voltage (MV) products play a key role We are not only introducing new globally
in the distribution part of the power value relevant products to serve customers but also
chain, facilitating the “last mile” connect that developing products specific to the needs of
brings electricity to billions of users around the different regions and countries around the
world. ABB’s MV products tradition dates back world. As part of ABB’s “in country for country”
to the 1920s with the introduction of the first strategy we locate manufacturing and R&D
MV switchgear manufactured by Brown Boveri. centers in proximity to our markets so we can
Today, ABB is a global market and technology be closer to our customers. Recently launched
leader in this space, with more than 30 produc- products for India, China and the United States
tion centers around the world and a sales and bear testimony to this approach.
service network in over 100 countries.
Bernhard Jucker We also continue to develop innovative
Head of Power Products division ABB’s vast medium-voltage product portfolio technologies that are enabling grids to get
Member of ABB Group Executive
serves utility, industry and infrastructure smarter by facilitating network automation and
Committee
customers with the most reliable, efficient, safe distribution management and addressing areas
and sustainable technologies. This includes like fault management, outage response,
solutions such as current conduction, control reporting and network planning. We also offer
and interruption, electrical insulation, switching solutions for refurbishment and maintenance
operations and network protection. Our asset optimization.
products can be found in substations, indus-
trial complexes, airports, skyscrapers and In addition to serving the needs of our custom-
shopping malls, ships and oil platforms, ers directly, we leverage high-value partner-
railway lines, and major sports venues. ships with distributors, original equipment
manufacturers (OEMs) and engineering, pro-
Technology and innovation are at the core curement and construction companies (EPCs),
of ABB’s medium-voltage product offering. and our extensive worldwide channel partner
As a case in point, we recently introduced network helps us to penetrate local markets
UniGear Digital. This innovative product and serve a vast customer base with a com-
combines switching capability with a unique prehensive product portfolio.
Bruno Melles solution for protection, control, measurement
Head of Medium Voltage Products and digital communication enabled by current We hope you enjoy this special edition of
business unit
and voltage sensors, which are integrated into ABB Review, which sheds light on the world
each panel, alongside ABB’s multifunctional of power distribution from a medium-voltage-
Relion IEDs that ensure an IEC-61850-based products perspective. We bring you some
open communication protocol. of our recent innovations and developing
technologies that are shaping evolving power
Eco-efficiency remains another key focus area networks and elaborate on how we are
of our R&D efforts to address the environmen- helping our customers address the challenge
tal challenge. For instance, ABB has devel- of providing safe, reliable and adequate
oped a ring main unit (RMU) as compact as electricity all over the world.
the traditional SF6 insulated RMU but using
dry air as an alternative. SafeRing Air provides Happy reading!
a solution using an insulating gas that consists
of atmospheric components, without enlarging
the physical dimensions of the product, making
it the most compact solution of its kind. Bernhard Jucker Bruno Melles

Editorial 5
Distribution
evolution
Medium-voltage distribution technology is a key part
of the power network
T
GERHARD SALGE – It is well over a hough DC technology is expe- For it to be reliable and safe, a modern
century since the so-called Current riencing a resurgence in spe- AC MV distribution network relies on mul-
Wars that pitted Edison’s established cific applications like data cen- tiple technologies. These cover aspects
direct current (DC) distribution technol- ters, AC is now the weapon of such as current conduction, electrical
ogy against the new alternating current choice for distributing electrical power. insulation, switching operations, and pro-
(AC) approach championed by, among The last remnants of DC hung on until tection, control and interruption capabili-
others, Westinghouse (later to be part the middle of the last century – the New ties during any type of network failure.
of the ABB family). Initially, DC was the Yorker Hotel, for example, converted ful- This entails the use of:
standard method of medium-voltage ly to AC only in the late 1960s. (Ironically, – Switching elements for normal
(MV) power distribution in the United it was in this very hotel that the AC pio- situations and any type of fault
States but, as time went on, AC neer Nikola Tesla spent the last years of condition.
technology caught up with and then his life.) – Protection and control equipment to
overtook DC: Workable AC motors were supervise the network and trigger
developed; AC transmission lines were With the realization last century of appropriate switching elements in
shown to be much more efficient; and the first high-voltage AC transmission normal and fault situations.
AC transformers were invented that lines, today’s famil-
allowed simple voltage step-up and iar power network
step-down – the Achilles heel of DC. In began to emerge. In the 120 years since the
the 120 years since the ousting of DC, In the vicinity of the
AC technology has evolved to such an user, the voltage ousting of DC, AC technology
extent that today’s MV distribution
network would be unrecognizable to the
is stepped down
(transformed) from
has evolved to such an extent
early pioneers: Numerous sophisticated the high voltages that today’s MV distribution
technologies are now employed for produced by the
current conduction, electrical insulation, generators to me- network would be unrecogniz-
switching operations, protection,
control and interruption. The modern
dium-voltage levels
(1 kV to 52 kV).
able to the early pioneers.
MV distribution product provider must Large industrial us-
be master of all these. ers may consume power directly at these – Measurement equipment for voltage
levels; households require further step- and current.
ping-down to a few hundred volts. – Switchgear for safe incorporation of
Title picture
all switching, protection, control and
ABB has over a century of experience in MV
distribution technology. The photo shows ABB (then measurement equipment.
Brown Boveri) MV switchgear from the 1920s.
Distribution evolution 7

Gas-insulated 1 Bulk oil circuit breaker 2 Calor Emag minimum oil CB OD4 for
20 kV (1976)
switchgear using Bushings

Oil level
SF6 was introduced indicator
to the market in Metal top
the early 1980s by

dome
ABB as a three-
phase design.
Oil
tank
Operating
mechanism
Switchgear history and development state-of-the art technology is now used

The first installations of MV-like switchgear by the majority of producers worldwide.
are mentioned in the literature in 1900. In
the beginning, designs were very simple Today’s air-insulated switchgear (AIS) and
and focused purely on technical function- GIS are highly optimized with respect to
ality; safety requirements and footprint functionality, operator safety, reliability
were of little interest ➔ title picture. and footprint. The choice between AIS
and GIS depends on a customer’s spe-
With growing operational experience, cific requirements.
switchgear design and optimization
p arameters changed significantly. For
MV switching equipment
i nstance, electrically live parts (at MV
In the beginning, the preferred MV current
p otential) were encapsulated in steel
interruption technology was based on the
to shield operators from live parts and air-blast technique. Air-blast circuit break-
hazards arising from equipment faults. ers (CBs) used either axially or radially
This evolved into today’s standard arc- blown air streams to deform and cool or
resistant switchgear. In a further signifi- stretch, and thus quench, the arc. In a
cant step forward, porcelain (later epoxy) further enhancement, arc chutes were
insulators were brought into play. used to split the arc up in order to in-
crease the arc voltage and make it easier
One aspect that has changed little is the to extinguish. This type of breaker needed
insulation gas: Today, the majority of air compression up to 100 bar and the
switchgear worldwide is still air-insulated. associated compressors, high-pressure

However, gas-insulated switchgear (GIS) containers, fast valves and pipes.
using SF6 (sulfur hexafluoride) was intro-
duced to the market in the early 1980s by In a second technology step, oil breakers
ABB as a three-phase design and by started to be used in MV applications.
The first genera-
tion of these – bulk
The latest, and today’s oil breakers – con-
sisted of a steel
dominant, MV interruption tank filled with oil
technology is based on from which the arc

was drawn and in-
vacuum techniques. terrupted between
two simple con-
tacts ➔ 1. These
iemens as single-phase design. The
S devices had very limited interruption ca-
three-phase approach is more compact pabilities (approximately 15 kV and 200 A)
than the single-phase concept and this and high explosion risk. As a next step,

3 Vacuum interrupter development 4 ABB vacuum circuit breakers
100
80
Market share (%)
60
40
20
0
1910 1920 1930 1940 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000
Air Oil Vacuum SF6

4a Circuit breaker VD4 for indoor 4b Circuit breaker OVB-VBF for
applications outdoor applications
tubes were placed around the interrupter tion technology developed rapidly from struction types satisfied different elec-
contacts, thus helping to shape the oil manual welding of flanges and evacua- tromechanical needs and the basic prin-
flow. With this development, higher cur- tion of the vacuum tube by diffusion ciples exploited were electromagnetic
rents (up to 50 kA) could be interrupted. pumps and pinch-off, to one-shot braz- attraction, electromagnetic induction
As a side effect, the amount of oil within and solid-state electronics.
the breaker was significantly reduced and
thus was born the minimum oil breaker, The new genera- During the 1970s, significant hardware
which was used until the 1970s with and software progress led to the first
great success ➔ 2. tion of ABB’s commercially available microprocessor-
The next technology generation of MV

UniGear switchgear based relay (1979). The digital relays
found on the market in the 1980s were
circuit breakers was based on SF 6. After (UniGear Digital) relays with very basic functions, hybrid
the first SF6 circuit breaker patent was relays combining analog and digital tech-
filed by Westinghouse in 1951 it took ap- fully e xploits niques, and relays offering economical
proximately 10 more years for the first
breakers to enter the market. The inter-
IEC 61850 to but barely adequate performance. Further
progress led to multifunction relays in the
rupting technology started with two volu- bring more flexi late 1980s. This led to significantly en-
minous pressure systems requiring a gas hanced network protection and control.
reservoir at high pressure, similar to air- bility and value
blast breakers. Then puffer breakers fol-
lowed (around 1970) where the operat-
to the switchgear ABB took a leading role in the standard-
ization work that paved the way for the
ing mechanism produced the high SF6
pressure during opening via a moving
customer following generations of relays. For ex-
ample, the IEC 61850 standard, which
piston. Finally, in the 1980s, the self- represents the state-of-the-art for trans-
blast breaker was introduced, where the ing technique in a high-temperature mission and distribution relays, was
blast pressure was extracted from the f urnace evacuated by turbo-molecular
developed and harmonized with major

energy of the arc itself, making the oper- pumps. Today, ABB uses spiral-shape contributions from ABB. Subsequently,
ating mechanism much more efficient. contact technology to make devices with in 2007, the first ABB Relion relay for dis-
short-circuit ratings of up to 63 kA. tribution applications capable of com
The latest, and today’s dominant, MV municating in native IEC 61850 was
interruption technology is based on vac- Protection and control launched ➔ 5. Today, IEC 61850 ensures
uum techniques ➔ 3 – 4. To make this ABB and its predecessors ASEA, BBC, the future of relay communication and
a pproach possible, multiple constituent Westinghouse, ITE and Strömberg have provides substantial advantages during
technologies, namely Al 2O 3 ceramics, all played an important role in the evolu- switchgear design, installation and opera-
oxygen-free copper, appropriate clean- tion of MV protection and control tech- tion. The new generation of ABB’s UniGear
room manufacturing, advanced brazing nology over the past few decades by switchgear (UniGear Digital) fully exploits
technologies and copper-chromium con- developing techniques to isolate mal- this technology to bring more flexibility and
tact technology had to reach mature in- functioning units and minimize power value to the switchgear customer ➔ 6.
dustrial status. In 1982, ABB introduced outages. Early units were merely single-
an interrupter, called VC1 (24 kV/25 kA), function electromechanical relays and
that used this technology. The produc- solid-state (static) relays. Different con-
Distribution evolution 9

5 ABB Relion 615 series for protection and control
The relay has evolved from a simple pro- times also called electronic instrument control, communication and equipment
tection device into an intelligent electron- transformers or low-power standalone supervision functionality in combination
ic device (IED) that is able to perform sensors) are becoming more and more with optimized human-machine inter
control, automation and communication popular. Current measurement is usually faces. This ABB Review Special Report
functionalities. Associated software and based on the Rogowski principle, while highlights numerous examples of the
hardware platforms are configurable via voltage sensing can be either resistive or future of medium-voltage technology.
software and are integrated into distribu- capacitive. Sensors can offer some sig-
tion management systems (DMSs). nificant technical advantages in terms of
linearity, weight, safety (no ferroreso-
Measuring and sensing nance) and space saving. In combination
The technology for measuring voltage with the latest generation of IEDs, sen-
and current has also undergone a revolu- sors offer a very interesting technological
tion. The very first instrument transformers alternative, with additional value for the
were just smaller versions of oil-p aper- customer, to conventional instrument
insulated power transformers, consisting transformers.
of an iron core, primary and secondary
windings, insulating oil and porcelain Main features
bushings. To get rid of the oil and to be- Four main features characterize MV
come more compact, cast resins have switchgear and substations: safety, reli-
been used since the early 1960s. Over ability, environmental friendliness and in-
the decades, ABB and its predecessors telligence. Technological advances are
contributed significantly to indoor as well constantly improving operator safety –
as outdoor instrument transformer prog- for example, ultrafast earthing switches
ress. Westinghouse and ABB brought (UFESs) working in combination with fast
aliphatic epoxy blends for indoor appli- protection relays; ferroresonance-free
cations to the market. In 2005, ABB was sensors; optimized switchgear design Gerhard Salge
the first manufacturer to introduce a that uses advanced simulation techniques; ABB Power Products, Medium Voltage Products
hydro p hobic cycloaliphatic epoxy for and new materials that have excellent Ratingen, Germany
outdoor applications. flammability behavior. Optimized switch- gerhard.salge@de.abb.com
gear panel design also makes operation
Today, the design and technology of the safer. Reliability is increased by high-per-
current or voltage measurement are formance circuit breakers and equipment Reference
highly dependent on the device that is that is produced in high-quality manufac- [1] Falkingham, G. Montillet (2004), “A History of
Fifty Years of Vacuum Interrupter Development,”
connected and which additional func- turing processes. New materials are
retrieved from: http://www.vil.org.uk/
tionalities the instrument transformer has e nvironmentally friendly and the latest
USBPapers/VIDevelopment
to deliver. In this respect, sensors (some- IED design enables advanced protection, PESGM2004-000429.pdf (2014, January 1).
1 0 ABB review special report

Switching gears
Moving to smart switch- VINCENZO BALZANO, MARTIN CELKO – Medium-voltage (MV) distribution
systems are undergoing a revolution: Gone are the days when they
gear for primary and merely distributed power of consistent quality from some far-off genera-
secondary substations tor and performed basic switching and protection duties. Now, intermit-
tent local generators, such as wind and solar sources, present a more
complex energy flow for the distribution equipment to handle. Further,
there are heightened quality and reliability expectations from operators
and consumers. This puts the onus on utilities to make sure their often
aging grids become safer, smarter, more efficient, more reliable, and
more environmentally friendly, and in addition, easier to engineer, install
and operate. This is why MV distribution networks are becoming
“smart.” To address the demand for smart switchgear, ABB has devel-
oped the UniGear Digital concept for primary substations and the
SafeRing, SafePlus and UniSec products for secondary substations.
Switching gears 1 1

1 UniGear Digital switchgear
M
ajor changes are running to the genesis of the so-called smart grid.
through the power industry: At the power distribution level, the smart
On top of industry-mandated grid offers an intelligent way to approach
indices like the system aver- grid efficiency and reliability, and provides
age interruption duration index (SAIDI) and a solid foundation for the automation, and
system average interruption frequency remote monitoring and control of switch-
index (SAIFI), many states are introducing ing. But smart distribution needs smart
a range of other grid efficiency regulations. products, at both the primary and sec-
Further, the energy generator and con- ondary substation levels.
sumer landscape is becoming more mixed
and more sophisticated with intermittent ABB UniGear Digital
generators like solar and wind sources ABB’s UniGear Digital is not just the
jostling for grid access and major new next version of an established product.
Rather, it is a new
concept – a new
The smart grid offers an intel- way of going about
MV switchgear.
ligent way to approach grid The concept com-
efficiency and reliability, and bines well-proven

switchgear design
provides a solid foundation with an innovative
approach to protec-
for the automation, and tion, control, mea-
remote monitoring and control surement and digi-

tal communication.
of switching. It is based on an
optimized integra-
tion of current and
consumers, like data centers, placing voltage sensors into MV switchgear, com-
stringent demands on power providers. bined with the latest intelligent electronic
devices (IEDs) and IEC 61850 communi-
Title picture
All this is happening to an infrastructure cation. The concept is embodied in the
Improved levels of automation and communication
in substations give central operators, like those that has changed little since its inception UniGear ZS1, an ABB MV air-insulated
pictured, the ability to optimize grid operation. in the early 1900s. This situation has led switchgear for primary substations.

2 SafeRing GIS RMU for smart grids 3 UniSec for smart grids
This switchgear is produced locally (CT) data and voltage transformer (VT)
around the world and more than 200,000 data. CT/VT data does not have to be UniGear Digital
UniGear panels have already been in- calculated, checked and approved, and
stalled in more than 100 countries. The last-minute changes can be realized in combines well-
UniGear ZS1 is used in demanding loca-
tions such as offshore platforms, con-
the IED logic. IEDs are perfectly suited to
protection, control, measurement and
proven switchgear
tainer or cruise ships and mines, as well supervision duties concerning utility and design with an
as in the more common applications, like industrial power distribution – including
utility substations, power plants, chemi- radial, looped and meshed networks. innovative approach
cal plants, etc. ➔ 1.
Using the IEC 61850 standard, the inter-
to protection, con-
Lower cost and easier setup national standard for electrical system trol, measurement
With the UniGear Digital concept, “one automation, further simplifies things. Pro-
size fits all” so there is no need to change tection and control IEDs publish signals and digital commu-
primary MV components, for
i nstrument transformers, if the load

e xample for interlocking, blocking and tripping
between panels via horizontal GOOSE

nication.
changes. This saves time and money communication. GOOSE (generic object-
during project planning and e xecution. oriented substation events) – defined un-
der the IEC 61850 standard – is a control
Energy losses during operation are lower model mechanism in which any format of
with the UniGear Digital than with equiva- data (status, value) is grouped into a data
lent devices: Instrument transformer losses set and transmitted. GOOSE communi-
are eliminated and this can save around cation is becoming popular in substa-
250 MWh over the 30-year life of a typical tions as it offers simplicity, functionality,
substation. This represents a r eduction of flexibility, easy scalability, improved diag-
about 150t in CO2 emissions. nostics and faster performance.
Costs are also reduced because the The IEC 61850-9-2 LE process bus is
UniGear Digital has fewer live parts, so also used by IEDs for transmitting sam-
outages are less frequent and trouble- pled measured values (SMVs). UniGear
shooting e
ffort is reduced. UniGear Digital Digital uses it for sharing busbar voltag-
takes up less space in the substation – es, for example.
a real cost-saver where real estate is
expensive or limited. Secondary substation automation
products
Setup is easier too. The streamlined set- Two elements are essential to enable the
up procedure eliminates the necessity, in smart grid at the secondary substation
many cases, to define details such as level: automation of the secondary sub-
relay parameters, current transformer
station switchgear itself and the ability to
Switching gears 1 3

4 Whole system overview 5 Typical automation level features
Control room
Feature Level name:

Remote wire or wireless Monitoring Control Measurement Protection
communication
MV network switches position monitoring x x x x
MV network fault monitoring x x x x

(including fault direction)
RMU Secondary distribution substation
Distribution transformer feeders fault x x x x
Integrated monitoring
GA device LV multimeter
Local communication
MV network switches position control n/a x x x
IL, UL, lo, S,
P, Q, f, PF, ... MV network analog values measurement n/a n/a x x
Protection functions (including autorecloser) n/a n/a n/a x

Hardwired signals
MV network faults indication reset o o o o
command
LV network analog values measurement o o o o
Distribution transformer feeders emergency o o o o

Fault passage trip command
MV/LV
indicator
Customer-specific signals (LV network x x x x
IL, U L, lo, S, faults, water intrusion, etc.)
Cable Fuse-switch Vacuum
P, Q, f, PF, ... switch disconnector circuit breaker
x - available o – option n/a – not available/applicable
communicate with the remote SCADA Secondary substation automation

Energy losses (supervisory control and data acquisition) To enable automation, MV switchgear is
system. ABB has products that address equipped with an advanced grid auto-
during operation these: gas-insulated SafeRing and Safe- mation (GA) controller. This device col-
are lower with the Plus ring main units (RMUs) and UniSec
air-insulated switchgear (AIS).
lects data available within the substation,
puts it into a standard communication
UniGear Digital protocol and transfers it to the remote
SafeRing and SafePlus RMU gas-insulat- control center for evaluation ➔ 4.
than with equiva- ed switchgear (GIS) is designed with
lent devices. flexibility and compactness in mind. Each

consists of a completely sealed system
This improved level of automation and
communication in substations gives the
with a stainless steel tank containing all remote operator the ability to adjust dif-
the live parts. This virtually maintenance- ferent operations in order to:
free system ensures a high level of reli- – Provide high-quality power at all times
ability and personnel safety ➔ 2. – Reduce energy transport losses
– Enhance network stability
UniSec air-insulated switchgear is based – Avoid (or shorten) outages
on a highly flexible, modular concept that – Avoid overloading network
can be readily configured to meet the spe- components
cific needs of each application. UniSec is – Improve maintenance planning
used in secondary substations where nor- – Enhance field crew efficiency
mal environmental conditions prevail, no – Optimize asset management
Different levels of
The streamlined setup proce- remote automation
are available for
dure eliminates the necessity, ABB secondary
in many cases, to define switchgear and the

user can select the
d etails such as CT/VT data, one that best suits
his needs ➔ 5. Each
and last minute changes can level comes with
be realized in the IED logic. a predefined IED

standard package,
which, in some
severe space restrictions apply and com- cases, can even be integrated into the
plex configurations and accessories – with, MV switchgear, thus eliminating the need
for example, MV instrument transformers for additional mounting space. Custom-
or surge arresters – are required ➔ 3. ization of these standard packages is

6 Nonavailability (SAIDI) of a network against 7 SCADA screenshot
number of MV substations equipped with
remote control (RC) technology
110
88
SAIDI (min/a)
66
44
22
0
0 20 40 60 80 100
MV substations with RC (%)
8 Smart grid in Rome 9 Norwegian Smart Grid Centre
Acea Distribution, an Italian utility, is Two years ago, the island municipality of Hvaler ABB is one of several participants in DeVID
committed to making electricity distribution in in Østfold, Norway, was chosen to be the test and ABB’s contribution is a Magnum compact
the MV and LV networks more intelligent, with laboratory for smart technology in MV and low- secondary substation (CSS) with a SafeRing
the aim of making Rome a smarter city. Acea voltage (LV) distribution networks. This project 24 kV switchgear that allows the local utility,
started with a pilot project – one of eight is called DeVID (Demonstration and Verification Fredrikstad Energi, to locate any faults quickly
Italian pilot projects approved and partially of Intelligent Distribution networks) and is part and to monitor power quality and load in this
financed by the Authority for Electricity and of the Norwegian Smart Grid Centre. part of the network.
Gas. For Acea, ABB is a partner in this
venture, rather than just a supplier – indeed, The archipelago has a mix of homes that are The CSS is monitored via ABB’s Network
a cooperation agreement was recently signed occupied year-round, vacation condominiums, Manager SCADA, part of the company’s Ventyx
in this regard. and commercial activity that provide the oppor- (enterprise) software portfolio; communication
tunity to study different electricity usage profiles. between SCADA and the CSS is via GSM.
In the experimentation phase, ABB provided The two load break switches in the RMU can
UniSec switchgear, current sensors, voltage Hvaler has 3,000 houses and 4,300 condo- be controlled from the SCADA system and
sensors and IEDs for the secondary substa- miniums. The population increases from 4,000 approximately 200 measurement parameters
tions. The logic employed is based on in winter to 30,000 in summer, presenting a are monitored ➔ 7.
IEC 61850 protocol. Inter-substation and challenge for the entire infrastructure, including
control system communication use GOOSE, the power network.
over a private wireless network.
The system is installed on a new portion of

the Rome electrical distribution grid and will
allow ACEA to substantially reduce the
number and average duration of service
interruptions, with a consequent reduction
in restoration times and penalties.
also possible. All standard packages in- GA effectiveness of the factors that will drive future prod-
clude: For a quick evaluation of the effective- uct development in smart distribution
– Power supply backup source for IEDs ness of a particular GA solution, ABB switchgear.
(24V DC batteries) uses an activity-based costing (ABC)
– Wired and/or wireless (GSM/GPRS) calculation tool developed in coopera-
communication interfaces tion with the National Technical Univer-
– Preconfigured IEC 60870-5-104 sity in Aachen, Germany. This allows
remote protocol signals calculation of, for example, the impact
of a S afeRing installation and standard Vincenzo Balzano
All IEDs installed within the switchgear or GA package on SAIDI ➔ 6. ABB Power Products
kiosk are factory preconfigured based on Dalmine, Italy
the standard package specification. The Smart switchgear is already making vincenzo.balzano@it.abb.com
communication system details (IP ad- a big impression ➔ 8 – 9. The smart grid
dresses, access point name, SIM card is still in its infancy. Renewable sources, Martin Celko
PIN, etc.) and MV network parameters distributed generation and an increas- ABB Power Products, Medium Voltage Products
(fault pickup current, fault current pickup ingly complex and demanding network Brno, Czech Republic
time, etc.) are usually configured on-site. of power consumers are just some martin.celko@cz.abb.com
Switching gears 1 5

Feeling the
pressure
Simulating pressure rise in switchgear installation rooms
EDGAR DULLNI, PAWEL WOJCIK, TOMASZ BLESZYNSKI – An internal arc fault is an unintentional discharge of
electrical energy in switchgear. During the fault, short-circuit currents flow between phases and to ground.
The arc heats the filling gas in the switchgear enclosure – either SF6 or air, resulting in pressure rise.
The incidence of a fault is very rare, but when it happens it may seriously damage the electrical equipment
and the building and may even endanger personnel. It is only possible to evaluate the pressure rise in a
building by calculation. Nevertheless, calculations should be substantiated by special tests allowing the
measurement of external pressure rise. ABB has developed a calculation program that is easy to use by
developers of switchgear and civil construction engineers.

1 Internal arc in switchgear during an arc fault test in the laboratory
requires that the building design shall The measured voltages are not necessarily
take into account the pressure rise due identical to the arc voltage, because a
to these exhaust gases. Switchgear arc three-phase arc can burn between two
fault tests do not cover this aspect, since phase conductors, but also to the
the installation room is simulated by two grounded enclosure. The pressure cal-
perpendicular walls and ceiling, which do culation tool either imports measured
not present a gas-tight room allowing phase-to-ground voltages from a format-
room pressure measurement. Therefore ted data file or applies an empirical aver-
it is only possible to evaluate the pres- age phase-to-ground voltage.
sure rise in a building by calculation. An-
other application for the calculation pro- All time-dependent quantities in the Inter-
gram is to simulate the pressure rise for nal Arc Tool (IAT) are regarded before and
P
different filling gases, ie, SF6 and air. For after a time step Δt. The following equation
ressure rises stress switchgear validation, tests were conducted togeth- shows the mass flow out of the arc com-
enclosures mechanically. In order er with RWTH Aachen and TÜV Nord partment into the exhaust compartment:
to avoid rupture, a relief device Systems GmbH.
opens at defined pressure. The Δm12 = α12·ρ12·w12·A12·Δt
fault arc produces hot gas, which has to Equations in the calculation program
be directed in a controlled manner into Gas pressure in an enclosure depends on α12 is the efficiency of a relief device with
the environment. Most often, exhaust gas temperature, in accordance with the area A12 and considers the contraction of
channels are placed on top of the switch- ideal gas law. Mass balance equations gas flow through an opening with sharp
gear. These channels often possess a consider mass flow out of the enclosure. edges (0.7 to 1.0), but also the flow reduc-
hatch or absorber at the end, where the Compartments are represented by their tion due to eg, a mesh or absorber. When
hot gas is cooled down before it leaves effective volumes (components subtract- the relief device opens, the mass Δm12
the channel. ed) and pressure relief areas in between. escapes from the volume per time step.
Gas properties such as the specific heat ρ12 and w12 stand for gas density and
Standards eg, IEC 62271-200 [1] require capacities are independent of tempera- gas velocity inside the opening according
switchgear to be safe for operating per- ture and uniform all over the volume [3]. to Bernoulli’s law [3]. This mathematical
sonnel, even if an internal arc occurs ➔ 1. approach allows for the calculation of the
Type tests not only verify that the switch- Some fraction – called thermal transfer pressure rise in all involved volumes.
gear enclosure withstands the pressure, coefficient kp – of the fault arc power
but also prove that hot gases are direct- heats up the gas in the arc compartment: The accuracy of the calculation is limited
ed away from personnel. IEC 61936-1 [2] by the applied simplifications. Because
Q1 = kp·Wel of the assumption of constant specific
heat capacities, dissociation of gas mol-
Title picture The electrical arc power is evaluated ecules into fragments is not considered.
Image captured from a high speed video showing the from measured currents and phase-to- This starts at 6,000 K in air and 2,000 K
controlled exhaust of hot gasses from medium voltage
switchgear during an internal arc test. ABB software
ground voltages: in SF 6. However, agreement with test
calculates the observed pressure development inside results is obtained also for higher gas

the switchgear and in the installation room. Wel = (uR·iR+us·is+uT·iT ) t temperatures.
Feeling the pressure 1 7

2 Cross-section of ABB switchgear type ZX2 3 Comparison of calculated and measured pressure developments for an internal arc in ZX2
with arc initiated in busbar compartment using air as filling gas (38 kA)
and pressure relief into the channel on top
Time (s) (measurements)
0,04 0,05 0,06 0,07 0,08 0,09 0,10 0,11 0,12 0,13 0,14 0,15 0,16 0,17 0,18 0,19 0,2 0,21 0,22 0,23
250
200
P1 and P2 (kPa) (rel)

150
100
50
-50
0 0,01 0,02 0,03 0,04 0,05 0,06 0,07 0,08 0,09 0,10 0,11 0,12 0,13 0,14 0,15 0,16 0,17 0,18 0,19 0,2
Time (s) (simulations)
P1 P2 P1m P2m

Type tests not 4 Comparison of calculated and measured pressure developments for an internal arc in ZX2
using SF6 as filling gas (35˘kA)
only verify that the Time (s) (measurements)
switchgear enclo- 250

0,04 0,05 0,06 0,07 0,08 0,09 0,10 0,11 0,12 0,13 0,14 0,15 0,16 0,17 0,18 0,19 0,2 0,21 0,22 0,23 0,24 0,25 0,26 0,27 0,28
sure withstands 200
the pressure, but

150
also prove that 100
hot gases are 50
directed away 0
from personnel.
-50
0 0,01 0,02 0,03 0,04 0,05 0,06 0,07 0,08 0,09 0,10 0,11 0,12 0,13 0,14 0,15 0,16 0,17 0,18 0,19 0,2 0,21 0,22 0,23 0,24
P1 P2 P1m P2m

If a considerable amount of gas flows The tool consists of two parts: graphical
out of the switchgear compartment, user interface (GUI) and solver. The
fewer and fewer gas molecules remain s olver was developed in Python and the
in it. If the heating fraction k p of the arc user interface in Java. The main features
energy stays constant in time, an ever delivered by the IAT GUI are:
increasing gas temperature would result, 1) Set up model parameters
e xceeding known arc temperatures of
2) Run solver
20,000 K by far. This is not realistic and 3) Visualize results
also generates numerical instabilities. To 4) Create report
avoid this, the k p is taken as density
d ependent [4]. This modification allows Model parameters can be set directly or
the extension of the calculation to longer can be selected from a drop-down list
fault durations and for calculating the and each parameter is validated. When
pressure rise in the installation room. the model is ready, the user is able to
start the simulation. They are guided
Tool description through the simulation setup by a simple
The proposed methodology was suc- wizard. Simulation time takes less than
cessfully implemented in the IAT simula-
tion software at ABB’s Simulation Tools Footnote
Center (STC).1 1 See also ➔ 7 on page 71 of ABB Review 3/2013.

5 Comparison of calculated and measured pressure developments for an arc in a test
arrangement using an 8 m³ closed container (20 kA) Simulation time
Time (s) (measurements) takes less than
250
0,04 0,05 0,06 0,07 0,08 0,09 0,10 0,11 0,12 0,13 0,14 0,15 0,16 0,17 0,18 0,19 0,2 0,21 0,22 0,23 0,24 0,25 0,26 0,27 0,28
10 s for a maximum
200 arc duration of 1 s
150
on a laptop.
100
50
-50
-100
0 0,01 0,02 0,03 0,04 0,05 0,06 0,07 0,08 0,09 0,10 0,11 0,12 0,13 0,14 0,15 0,16 0,17 0,18 0,19 0,2 0,21 0,22 0,23 0,24
P1 P2 P1m P2m

6 Pressure developments as in ➔ 5 with 0.3 m² relief opening (20 kA)
0,04 0,05 0,06 0,07 0,08 0,09 0,10 0,11 0,12 0,13 0,14 0,15 0,16 0,17 0,18 0,19 0,2 0,21 0,22 0,23 0,24 0,25 0,26 0,27 0,28
200
150
100
50
-50
-100
0 0,01 0,02 0,03 0,04 0,05 0,06 0,07 0,08 0,09 0,10 0,11 0,12 0,13 0,14 0,15 0,16 0,17 0,18 0,19 0,2 0,21 0,22 0,23 0,24
P1 P2 P1m P2m

10 s for a maximum arc duration of 1 s on Comparison of results (purple for the former, pink for the latter) up
a laptop. The calculations are performed The IAT results were compared with results to 250 ms after arc ignition.
with a constant simulation time step from tests obtained with ABB switchgear
of 0.05 ms. For comparison with tests, and specially designed experiments. In ➔ 3, measurement and calculation of
measurement data in proper format can pressure rise, peak and drop in the arc
be imported. The first comparison relates to gas-insulat- compartment filled with air are in good
ed switchgear (GIS) where the insulating agreement. kp is taken as 0.5 in accor-
The following characteristics are drawn: gas SF6 could be replaced by air. The dance with published data, and arc volt-
1) Pressures vs. time cross-section of the ABB switchgear ZX2, age (phase-to-ground) of 300 V is taken
2) Phase currents vs. time where the arc was ignited in the busbar from test. The calculation of pressure in
3) Phase to ground voltages vs. time compartment, is shown in ➔ 2. The pres- the exhaust channel shows less satisfy-
4) Integrated arc power vs. time sure relief device was a thin burst disc with ing correlation with the test results due to
an area of 0.049 m² opening into the chan- travel time effects of the exhausted gas,
Plots can be dynamically modified and nel on top at an over-pressure of 220 kPa. which cannot be implemented in the IAT.
no additional editor for visualization is The fault current had a value of 39 kA and For the filling gas SF6 ➔ 4, the reproduc-
needed. Examples are shown in ➔ 3 – 9. was applied for 1 s. The oscillograms show tion of the peak pressure is again good,
the time development of the calculated but the drop of pressure after the open-
Additionally, text files with simulation pressure in the arc compartment (black in ing of the relief disc is less satisfying. The
p arameters (selected input and output
oscillograms) and exhaust channel (gray in calculation provides a longer residence
values) and result data are generated. oscillograms), and the measured data time of the gas than observed in the test.

The exhaust of 7 Pressure in the container measured at another location than for ➔ 6
hot gas and subse- Time (s) (measurements)
quent pressure rise 60

0,04 0,05 0,06 0,07 0,08 0,09 0,10 0,11 0,12 0,13 0,14 0,15 0,16 0,17 0,18 0,19 0,2 0,21 0,22 0,23 0,24 0,25 0,26 0,27 0,28
in a closed installa- 50
tion room were

40

30
investigated in a 20
10
special experiment. 0
-10
-20
-30
0 0,01 0,02 0,03 0,04 0,05 0,06 0,07 0,08 0,09 0,10 0,11 0,12 0,13 0,14 0,15 0,16 0,17 0,18 0,19 0,2 0,21 0,22 0,23 0,24
P2 P3 P3m

8 Measured and applied phase currents showing the initial asymmetry
0,04 0,05 0,06 0,07 0,08 0,09 0,10 0,11 0,12 0,13 0,14 0,15 0,16 0,17 0,18 0,19 0,2 0,21 0,22 0,23 0,24 0,25 0,26 0,27 0,28
50
40
30
20
Ia, Ib, Ic (kA)
10
0
-10
-20
-30
-40
-50
0 0,01 0,02 0,03 0,04 0,05 0,06 0,07 0,08 0,09 0,10 0,11 0,12 0,13 0,14 0,15 0,16 0,17 0,18 0,19 0,2 0,21 0,22 0,23 0,24
Ia (kA) Ib (kA) Ic (kA) Iam (kA) Ibm (ka) Icm (kA)

kp is taken as 0.75 consistent with publi- The exhaust of hot gas and subsequent tion of the pressure rise in the container
cations, and arc voltage is 400 V accord- pressure rise in a closed installation is simulated satisfactorily. This is due to
ing to tests. room were investigated in a special the decrease of k p implemented in the
IAT in dependence
Many tests were recalculated. The inaccu- of the decreasing
racy in the peak pressure in the arc com- The tool can calculate pres- gas density in the
partment is in the range of ±20 percent, enclosed switch-
mainly determined by the uncertainty of sure rise in installation rooms gear compartment.
response pressure of the relief device. The
drop of pressure after relief is simulated
with relief openings provided If the arc energy
heats up the total
with an error of a factor of two. This is of no by, eg, windows or hatches. container volume
concern for the assessment of pressure uniformly in time, as
withstand of the switchgear, since it is the for a freely burning
peak pressure that is decisive. e xperiment [4]. The installation room was arc, the pressure would linearly rise to
simulated by a gas-tight container of 345 kPa instead of the measured 154
The peak pressure in exhaust channels 8 m³. ➔ 5 shows pressures determined and calculated 114 kPa.
can also be calculated. However, the in- in test and calculations. The drop of
accuracy might be up to ±40 percent, pressure in the arc compartment, after
which originates from the effects of pres- response of the relief device, deviates
sure waves in elongated channels. from the measurement, but the satura-

9 Arc energy determined from the multiplication of phase-to-ground voltages and currents
(purple from IAT; gray from measurement) The internal arc
simulation tool
0,04 0,06 0,08 0,10 0,12 0,14 0,16 0,18 0,2 0,22 0,24 0,26 0,28 0,3 0,32 0,34 0,36 0,38 0,4 0,42 0,44 0,46 0,48 0,5 0,52 0,54 0,56 0,58 0,6 0,62
is a useful element
16
14
to improve design
12 efficiencies and
increase safety,
10
Q (MJ)
8
6
4
especially when it
2
0
is impossible or
0 0,02 0,04 0,06 0,08 0,1 0,12 0,14 0,16 0,18 0,2 0,22 0,24 0,26 0,28 0,3 0,32 0,34 0,36 0,38 0,4 0,42 0,44 0,46 0,48 0,5 0,52 0,54 0,56 0,58 impractical to carry
out real-world

Q (MJ)

Qm (MJ) t esting.
The calculation tool implements the den- pressure effects of fault arcs in switch-
sity dependence of kp according to the gear. The uncertainty in the prediction of
following formula applied for ρ(t) < ρ c: the peak pressure is in the range of ±20
percent concerning the arc compart-
kp(t) = kp·c0·(ρ(t)/ρ0 )0.5 ment. A reliable arc voltage is required
determined from tests on similar switch-
co is adapted to provide a continuous gear. The tool can also be used to esti-
transition from the initial k p. ρ c is 1 per- mate the pressure rise in an exhaust vol-
cent of the normal gas density ρ 0 at ume or installation room with or without
100 kPa for air and 20 percent for SF6. relief openings considering proper safety
Corresponding results were gained from margins. The internal arc simulation tool
the tests using SF6 and air in a similar is a useful element to improve design
a rrangement [4]. effi
c iencies and increase safety, espe- Edgar Dullni
cially when it is impossible or impractical ABB Power Products
The tool can also calculate the pressure to carry out real-world testing. Ratingen , Germany
rise in installation rooms with relief open- edgar.dullni@de.abb.com
ings provided by, eg, windows or hatch-
es. ➔ 6 shows a test result using the Pawel Wojcik
same 8 m³ container with a relief area of Tomasz Bleszynski
0.3 m². The actual geometry of the instal- ABB Corporate Research
lation room and the position of the relief Kraków, Poland
opening and sensors cannot be consid- pawel.wojcik@pl.abb.com
ered in the IAT and will give deviations to tomasz.bleszynski@pl.abb.com
reality. An example is the higher initial
pressure in ➔ 6 due to the direct stream
of gas to the sensor. Another sensor po-
References
sitioned aside shows better agreement [1] High-voltage switchgear and control gear –
with the calculation ➔ 7. Only computa- Part 200: AC metal-enclosed switchgear and
tional fluid dynamics (CFD) may provide control gear for rated voltages above 1 kV and
up to and including 52 kV, IEC 62271-200,
better results.
2011.
[2] Power installations exceeding 1 kV a.c. –
Estimated pressure Part 1: Common rules, IEC 61936-1, 2010.
Within reasonable limits both peak pres- [3] WG A3.24, “Tools for the Simulation of Effects
Due to Internal Arc in MV and HV Switchgear,”
sures in the switchgear compartments
CIGRE Technical Brochure, to be issued 2013
and exhaust volumes match each other [4] E. Dullni et al., “Pressure rise in a switchroom
in test and simulation results. Inaccura- due to internal arc in a switchboard,” Proceed-
cies are caused by the simplifications in- ings of the 6th International Symposium on
Short-Circuit Currents in Power Systems,
troduced in the tool (eg, ideal gas as-
pp. 4.5.1 – 4.5.7, 1994.
sumption and generic outflow function). [5] SOLVAY GmbH, “Schwefelhexafluorid,“
The IAT can be used for simulation of the company brochure.

From the basic
to the complex
Optimizing an aging infrastructure in the modern grid
ROGER ESPERT, GARY FOUBERT – Hurricanes, tornadoes, blizzards, extreme temperatures – all occur on a regular basis.
An obvious consequence of any natural disaster is the disruption of electrical networks. The monetary costs of these disrup-
tions run into the billions of dollars annually.1 In addition, vendors of medium-voltage overhead distribution networks are under
increasing pressure to supply products with shortened delivery times so that their customers can deliver a reliable power flow.
An aging infrastructure can make meeting these tasks challenging, to say the least. To meet the challenge, ABB is providing a
range of solutions incorporating network applications and schemes through its vast portfolio of overhead installations.
Providing a reliable and economic industry standard such as a basic fuse cutout with improved insulation, or providing the
most advanced technology in switching and environmentally friendly applications in the form of an automatic recloser with
IEC 61850 communication capabilities, are just two examples.

One of the most
popular switching
devices, the auto-
matic recloser, has
gained a significant
role in the develop-
ment of the smart
grid.
T
o avoid the economic ramifica- But how can utilities overcome this situa- network are still a great task for many
tions when outages occur, tion while facing capital expenditure limi- utility companies.
utilities must invest in main- tations, minimal
taining their existing overhead operational costs
lines and assets, both in terms of the and higher safety Different approaches and
quality of the cable conductors as well as and reliability stan-
the operating devices. This can become dards for power schemes can be deployed by
especially challenging for overhead net-
works suffering with assets that should
supply? Utilities
can optimize the
the utility to merge proven
be replaced or upgraded in order to grid for a better, technologies with innovative
avoid undesired outages and endure safer and more re-
harsh climate conditions more resiliently. liable energy sup- intelligent devices.
ply to consumers
by using either a
proven ABB solution, an innovative tech- One of the most popular switching de-
Title picture
nology developed by ABB or a combina- vices, the automatic recloser, has gained
ABB is providing innovative solutions allowing
utilities to optimize the grid for a better, safer, and
tion of the two. a significant role in the development of
more reliable energy supply. the smart grid. First introduced in the
Advanced switching devices 1950s, this technology has gone through
Switching devices have been on the an astonishing development in the past
Footnote
market for many years as a way for utili- five years, specifically in terms of the im-
1 According to an August 2013 report from the
US White House, “Economic benefits of ties to safely and quickly restore energy provement of power electronics and the
increasing electric grid resilience to weather to their consumers. However the ability different communication capabilities. To-
outage,” between 2003 and 2012 roughly 679 to automate those devices in order to day, it is normal to have meshed net-
power outages, each affecting at least 50,000
take advantage of the existing technolo- works, GPRS/GSM communications
customers, occurred due to weather events.
Monetary costs of these outages account for up gies for telecommunication and monitor- from devices to a centralized SCADA
to between $18 billion and $33 billion annually. ing to create a smarter and optimized (supervisory control and data acquisition)
From the basic to the complex 2 3

1 An ABB GridShield® recloser with RER620 in a substation 2 Redundant 8.46 kV lines power an
industrial customer’s facility
Source Source
A B
Open
48 kV to
8.46 kV
8.46 kV 8.46 kV
Open
Customer Customer
load A load B
system, and significantly faster situation reclosers, the substation can maximize
The ABB polymer awareness of a specific line on a period transfer performance and provide a reli-
of time provided by the status of the able continuous power supply.
concrete insulator autom atic recloser.
cutout is unique in Today’s most advanced automatic re-

An example of this scheme has been
proven in a US municipal utility where the
the industry, but closer, the GridShield® recloser devel- results of the implemented transfer
oped by ABB, has the proven technology scheme test verify that it is possible to
growing in popular- of environmentally resilient solutions detect and transfer in less than four
ity among utilities. with components such as HCEP (hydro-

phobic cycloaliphatic epoxy), magnetic
cycles ➔ 2 – 4. The system fault detection,
isolation, restoration and transfer scheme
actuation and stainless steel, and incor- was based on the ABB Relion family of
porates the latest features in relay and relays’ native IEC 61850 capabilities with
communications ➔ 1. The GridShield re- GOOSE, combined with R-MAG ® distri-
closer is a resilient device and operates bution outdoor breakers and GridShield
with the Relion ® RER620, which has reclosers.
n ative IEC 61850, the global compatibil-
ity standard used from the substation to Fuse cutouts
the point of delivery of the energy loads, For years, electric utilities have relied on
while keeping the already well-known cutouts in the power distribution grid in
DNP 3 or IEC 104 as standard protocols. overhead distribution systems to provide
This innovative recloser takes advantage overcurrent protection.
of the real-time monitoring status of a
switching point that provides the SCADA By the early 1970s distribution cutout in-
operator, either by man-operated deci- sulators made from porcelain were a key
sion or automatic fault detection isola- component in most utilities’ protection,
tion restoration (FDIR). In the event of a security and operation of the distribution
fault, it can identify where the fault is and system. In the 1980s, however, PPL
if it can be automatically cleared, and Electric Utilities, a US-based utility serv-
then restore power in a certain portion of ing over 1.36 million electricity consum-
the line. ers in the state of Pennsylvania, noticed
the porcelain cutouts it had used for
Different approaches and schemes can many years were becoming increasingly
be deployed by the utility to merge prov- damaged or affected by the cold-weath-
en technologies with innovative intelli- er climate of the Northeast.2
gent devices. For example, even with
substation automation using existing The brittle nature of the porcelain insula-
infrastructure, introducing an advanced tor also made it susceptible to breakage
Footnote
relay at the substation circuit breaker, from handling in transit and during instal-
2 See also: M. Berner and M. I. Abdelrahim,
“Successfully Breaking the Mold with Polymer along with a communication system to lation. During extreme cold periods
Concrete Cutouts,” Utility Products, May 2011. interact with the downstream overhead moisture ingress would freeze, expand

3 ABB’s distribution automation verification lab configuration replicates a utility’s 4 An application example of feeder
field configuration. protection and control IEDs
COM600 Substation
COM600 Web HMI circuit breaker
GPS Clock
Ethernet switch PCM600 1 2

Peer-to-peer
GOOSE communication IEC 61850-8-1 GOOSE
Omicron C356 Open

Customer Customer
load A load B
RED615 REM615 RET615 REF615 RER620
I a, I b, I c, I n
I a, I b, I c, I n
I a, I b, I c, I n
I a, I b, I c, I n
I a, I b, I c, I n
Va, Bc, Vc
Va, Bc, Vc
Va, Bc, Vc
Va, Bc, Vc
Va, Bc, Vc
I/O
I/O
I/O
I/O
I/O
REF615 Feeder IED
(1 of 5)
5 ABB’s polymer concrete insulator cutout 6 ABB Smart Grid Center of Excellence in Raleigh, North Carolina
and crack the insulator, which ultimately vice for 12 to 14 years on its distribution What’s next?
would lead to mechanical failure. system. The sample units were tested by Without question, the use of field-proven
ABB, an independent testing lab and an- devices, even as traditional as a cutout,
Polymer concrete search other utility’s testing lab. The results will be an integral part of solutions for
Concerned about the degrading quality from all tests verified that the units per- years to come. And yet the merging of
of its porcelain cutouts, PPL approached formed without failure while exposed to simple solutions with complex intelligent
ABB in 1988 about creating a polymer the typical harsh weather conditions for devices providing communication and
cutout. the northeastern United States. flexibility is what allows ABB to offer sus-
tainable solutions for different global
In 1990, PPL undertook a program to in- PPL reports that, with more than 250,000 requirements ➔ 6.
stall all new cutouts using the ABB poly- units installed over the last 20 years,
mer concrete-designed cutout product. there has not been a single known
The ABB polymer concrete cutout came cracked polymer concrete cutout in its
with all the common features but also network.
provided additional benefits, including
cold-weather reliability, durability, and The ABB polymer concrete insulator cut- Roger Espert
excellent electrical properties and dielec- out is unique in the industry, but growing ABB Power Products, Medium Voltage Products
tric strengths. in popularity among utilities, as it pro- Lake Mary, FL, United States
vides excellent electrical properties and roger.g.espert@us.abb.com
To verify that the polymer concrete cut- dielectric strengths, as well as superior
outs had performed without an insulator mechanical toughness ➔ 5. ABB’s cutout Gary Foubert
failure, PPL tested a small sample of the and switch designs are available with a ABB Power Products, Medium Voltage Products
cutouts installed on its system. The com- polymer concrete insulator. Dalmine, Italy
pany selected 30 units that were in ser- gary.foubert@it.abb.com
From the basic to the complex 2 5

Power house
A strong and ALEXANDRA L. GOODSON, BRIAN C. JOHNSON, DANEL TURK – ABB’s latest
compact secondary substation (CSS) provides utilities with smart and
light enclosure for efficient equipment that provides real-time data, reliability and a perfor-
mance that ensures the network meets customer needs. Extending the
substations life of such equipment means that utilities have lower maintenance costs
and fewer replacement or warranty concerns. The provision of an
appropriate enclosure for the CSS is a very important strategy for
extending equipment service life. Traditional steel, concrete or brick
structures have many drawbacks concerning space, speed and flexibil-
ity of installation, and environmental robustness. ABB’s state-of-the-art
glass reinforced polyester (GRP) enclosure obviates all these concerns
and provides the perfect housing for a CSS and many other electrical
applications.

It is robust enough to protect the
e quipment inside from the extremes of
heat and cold, while being lightweight
enough to be easily transported to
remote locations.
T
he CSS market was created needed due to transportation limits, fur- evolving CSS market. A steel enclosure
when distribution utilities tran- ther complicating matters. Concrete was found to fit the bill. With the com-
sitioned from overhead power CSS factories are located in many re- paratively lighter weight of a steel CSS,
lines to underground cables. gions and close to customer sites in an transportation to rural locations was no
With cables underground, the traditional, effort to lower transportation costs. longer as expensive and heavy on-site
large step-down substation with its over- installation work was not required. Steel
head lines became impractical. Custom- provided the same functionality as con-
ers now required a compact piece of ABB recognized crete but the CSS had an average weight
equipment that could be installed quickly of just 12 t. This allowed CSS units to be
with a minimum of site work but that pro- that customers transported and rigged without signifi-
vided the same functionality as an over-
head line substation.
needed a new CSS cantly impacting budgets.
enclosure solution However, while lighter than concrete,

Concrete steel does not have the same strength
Driven by aesthetics and safety concerns – one that com- and is more sensitive to ambient weather
regarding overhead lines, Europe was
one of the first regions to embrace the
bined the benefits conditions. High levels of sunshine may
increase the steel temperature to such
practice of undergrounding cables and of steel and con- an extent that a derated transformer has
installing CSSs. CSSs can be built on- to be used, thus lowering the overall ef-
site with either brick or concrete. Con- crete. ficiency of the CSS.
crete is weather-resistant, but very
heavy, difficult to work with and on-site ABB recognized that customers needed
construction labor costs can be signifi- While this situation may have been ac- a new CSS enclosure solution – one that
cant. However, if the unit is preassem- ceptable years ago, it is now challenged combined the benefits of steel and con-
bled before shipment to site, the trans- by population growth and city expan- crete. Ideally, it would be robust enough
portation and rigging costs can be sions that force CSS installations further to protect the equipment inside from the
excessive as a concrete CSS weighs, on away from the CSS factory. extremes of heat and cold, while being
average, 24 t. If the CSS is heavier than lightweight enough to be easily trans-
24 t, separate shipments to site may be Steel ported, even to remote locations. To ful-
As underground cabling and urbaniza- fill this need, ABB developed a modular
tion continued apace, new, rural loca- platform that encompasses the strength
Title picture
tions began to create challenges for and durability of concrete with the light-
The robustness and flexibility of ABB’s UniPack-G
make it the ideal enclosure for the complete heavy concrete CSSs. A lighter and weight characteristics of steel. The plat-
spectrum of ABB’s smart grid product portfolio. cheaper solution was needed for this form is suitable not only for housing
Power house 2 7

Concrete struc- 1 Concrete structures are susceptible to dam-
age during transport or from manhandling.
2 Steel structures are prone to deterioration in
many environments.
tures are suscep-

tible to damage
during transport or
from manhandling.
CSSs, but also for housing a wide range Location

of other electrical equipment. In addition, Ever more rural and environmentally
it is appropriate for cold, moderate and harsh locations are being supplied with
warm climates and for locations ranging electricity. Because the UniPack-G has
from sea-spray-soaked coastlines to the same robustness as a concrete CSS
remote, heat-seared sandy deserts. This – with one-third of the weight – and on-
new product range is called UniPack-G, site installation and material handling
where G stands for glass-reinforced effort is minimal, it is ideally suited to this
polyester (GRP). GRP is a material used type of location. UniPack-G is easier to
in many everyday applications, such as transport over longer distances and it
wind turbine blades, boats, civil con- requires less lifting effort. This reduces
struction, cable pillars and garden furni- the utility’s reliance on local suppliers
ture, to name but a few. and allows it to depend on ABB, who
can exploit and pass on the advantages
UniPack-G that come with being a global supplier.
GRP is unaffected by temperature
change and can withstand attack by salt Rural and environmentally harsh loca-
and humidity. As a UniPack-G CSS en- tions usually require low-maintenance
closure weighs far less than its equiva- equipment because of remoteness and
lent in concrete or steel, transportation difficulty of access. In addition, the
costs are reasonable and installation in smarter networks now being installed
remote or difficult locations is far easier. around the globe can be controlled and
Although lighter, GRP has greater dura- monitored remotely, so CSSs are visited
bility than both concrete and steel. Since less often and this reinforces the require-
a CSS can be installed in publicly acces- ment that equipment be as maintenance-
sible locations, the Unipack-G’s inherent free as possible. The UniPack-G has an
ability to withstand vandalism is impor- exterior that can withstand severe condi-
tant. UniPack-G’s durability also ensures tions better than a typical CSS enclo-
there will be no damage from transporta- sure, it is corrosion-resistant and never
tion or shifting, as can occur with con- has to be repainted ➔ 2. In addition, Uni-
crete ➔ 1. Pack-G’s GRP enclosure material does
not dampen radio waves, so communi-
The UniPack-G design has been tested cation antennae can be installed inside
to the highest safety standards in the GB to reduce the risk of vandalism. These
and IEC ranges for CSS applications. In features all reduce the maintenance effort
addition, the standard UniPack-G design and cost for the utility.
has passed the internal arc classification
(IAC) test, which ensures it has the high- Insulation
est level of safety for the public and for Electrical equipment and automation
operating personnel. electronics are often sensitive to humid

3 The UniPack-G (middle image) impedes heat ingress far better than steel (left) or
concrete (right). UniPack-G’s GRP
Temperature (°C) enclosure material
80.000
77.500 does not dampen
radio waves, so
75.000
72.500
communication
70.000
67.500
65.000
62.500
60.000
antennae can be
57.500
55.000
installed inside.
52.500
50.000
4 ABB has factories and personnel to support all GRP projects. The map highlights ABB’s
global CSS footprint. (The map colors indicate ABB marketing regions.)
CA NO EE
UK CZ
CH CN KR
US KW
EG IN VN
SA
PE
BR
ZA
AU
ity and temperature. For this reason, included in all standard solutions. The GRP’s features, along with emerging
steel CSSs require additional insulation, third image represents a concrete enclo- applications, provide new opportunities
which can be difficult to install. Concrete sure wall. While the heavy wall is thicker, for grid solutions and utilities can now
CSSs require less insulation in warm the light green of the interior wall shows work with one supplier for all their GRP
e nvironments but need to be heated in it is not as cool as the UniPack-G. needs. GRP is a material that supports
cold locations or when in idle mode. these initiatives, while ABB provides a
The temperature consistency inside the global footprint and support ➔ 4. Cus-
UniPack-G’s double-layer design en- UniPack-G allows equipment to run at tomers demand a smart, optimized and
sures that ambient temperatures do not its highest efficiency and without the safe CSS solution and ABB’s UniPack-G
affect the equipment inside ➔ 3. The fig- need to derate. This increases the utili- portfolio exceeds the customers’ require-
ure shows the high level of insulation ty’s return on investment and ensures a ments by combining concrete’s benefits,
provided by ABB’s UniPack-G. The first high equipment utilization rate. steel’s lightweight features and smart
image shows the internal wall of a typical grid compatibility.
steel enclosure in intense sunshine – the UniPack-G’s flexibility makes it the ideal
interior will be difficult to keep cool and enclosure for the complete spectrum
this will affect the performance of the of ABB’s smart grid product portfolio – Alexandra L. Goodson
equipment inside. The second image including monitoring, control, measure- Brian C. Johnson
highlights the UniPack’s double layer in- ment and protection products. Its mod- ABB Power Products, Medium Voltage Products
sulating design: The red of the exterior ular design offers flexibility and allows Lake Mary, FL, United States
wall demonstrates an environment with a wide range of other electrical equip- alexandra.l.goodson@us.abb.com
high solar irradiation, while the blue of ment (eg, energy storage modules, brian.c.johnson@us.abb.com
the interior wall reflects the cool internal E-houses and solar inverter stations)
temperature. The ability to maintain the to be accommodated, while still abiding Danel Turk
internal temperature, regardless of exter- by transportation, installation and dura- ABB Power Products, Medium Voltage Products
nal conditions, is inherent in the double- bility requirements. Tallinn, Estonia
layer feature of the UniPack-G, which is danel.turk@ee.abb.com
Power house 2 9

Compact and eco-efficient
Meeting the need for a more environmentally friendly ring
main unit with the innovative SafeRing Air
TOM-RUNE BJORTUFT – As a leader and pioneer in power solutions with lower environmental impact, ABB devel-
technologies, ABB is always looking for ways to design oped SafeRing Air, a compact ring main unit within the
and manufacture products that improve grid reliability with SafeRing/SafePlus portfolio. Using dry air as the insulation
the lowest environmental impact. Concerns related to the medium and with vacuum technology for current interrup-
greenhouse effect of SF6 are driving the development of tion, SafeRing Air is available for up to 12 kV in circuit
a new generation of power distribution products based breaker and load-break switch configurations. This new
on alternative insulating gases. From an environmental offering is intended for a selected market segment in
perspective, dry air is one of the most desirable alternatives addition to the traditional RMUs, which cover the complete
seen today. In order to meet the increasing demand for portfolio in secondary distribution gas-insulated switchgear.

1 ABB’s SafeRing Air
T
he recent introduction of Safe- tional technology. This also has addition- Challenges
Ring Air ➔ 1 enables ABB to al advantages for transport or installa- The main technical challenge in develop-
provide another ring main unit tion, for example. ing an RMU with an alternative environ-
(RMU) alternative to its cus- mentally friendly insulation gas has been
tomer base. The traditional SF 6 solution Unique gas to maintain the same physical size. Main-
already meets the requirements of cus- SF 6 is used as an electrical insulator, as taining the outer physical dimensions of
tomers who are looking for closed SF 6 a thermal conductor and to interrupt the unit is vital since this places strict
handling and a very low leakage rate. current flow. The current technology ob- conditions on the dielectric and thermal
The innovative SafeRing Air is the perfect tains the necessary compactness and performance.1
solution for customers who seek to lower
the carbon footprint even further. For the Dielectric design
12 kV RMU market, SafeRing Air is a so- Maintaining the outer physical targets the distri-
lution that has the same physical dimen- bution of electrical
sions, operation sequence, technical dimensions of the unit is fields within the
performance and quality as the tradition-
al SafeRing with SF6. It also comes with
vital since this places strict unit, aiming to re-
duce the field
a new feature – the ability to upgrade a conditions on the dielectric strength of weak
load-break switch panel to a circuit points to compen-
breaker panel on-site. This is an impor- and thermal performance. sate for the re-
tant differentiator that is not seen else- duced dielectric
where in today’s marketplace and is strength of alter-
made possible by the use of vacuum technical performance within gas-insu- native insulating gases. Key parameters
technology for current interruption on lated switchgear (GIS). No alternative for optimization include choice of insulat-
both fault currents as well as load cur- gas has been identified that exhibits the ing materials, geometrical shape of con-
rents. The physical weight is reduced by excellent properties of SF 6. During the ducting surfaces and definition of con-
6 to 7 percent on high-volume configura- last decade, several gases have been ductor/insulator interfaces. Advanced
tions (typical CCV) and up to 19 to 20 explored, but many tend to suffer from simulation tools are used for this pur-
percent on less common configurations high liquefaction temperature and/or re-
(typical VVVVV), compared with the tradi- duced dielectric strength. SF 6 is well
known for its excellent properties within
applications and products for the elec- Footnote
1 These challenges have recently been discussed
trical distribution industry, but it is also in CIRED paper 0463, ”Dielectric and thermal
Title picture
ABB is creating technologies with greatly improved classified as a greenhouse gas. challenges for next generation ring main units,”
environmental measures. 2013.
Compact and eco-efficient 3 1

pose, and results are validated by dielec- Commercial perspectives
SafeRing Air has tric tests in full-scale units. A recent figure released by the World
E nergy Outlook 2013 2 states that the

been designed Thermal design is critical due to the lower energy sector represents two-thirds of

u sing the same thermal properties of alternative insulating

gases, compared with SF6, and has two
global greenhouse-gas emissions, and
hence is an important sector for improve-
logic that was main objectives. The first is to reduce ment for reaching the globally agreed
ohmic losses to a minimum by utilizing a 2 °C target. The energy industry is there-
used for traditional sophisticated design of select materials, fore under pressure in terms of global
RMUs with SF6, surface treatment, contact forces, etc.

Reducing ohmic losses increases energy
energy/climate policies. The European
Union also has strict regulations for the
leading to a well- efficiency. use of f-gases, where SF6 is one of the
most important greenhouse gases
known operating The second objective is to distribute the (GHGs). This regulation is linked to the
sequence. heat-generated losses through a combi-

nation of conduction, convection and ra-
EU climate policy with the overall objec-
tive of cutting GHG emissions by 80 to
diation. Computational fluid dynamics 95 percent by 2050. This, together with
(CFD) analysis is needed to understand new policies in, eg, China, opens up a
and optimize the temperature distribu- demand for proven and readily available
tions inside the switchgear. Such simula- products with lower environmental im-
tion results are validated by temperature pact. The shift of technology with im-
rise tests in full-scale units. proved environmental measures will re-
quire heavy investments and years of
Besides these key challenges, other fac- development to enhance and complete
tors have been considered in developing today’s global product portfolio. With
the SafeRing Air RMU. ABB is committed this first product launch for secondary
to providing customers with the safest GIS, ABB shows that this global chal-
products and Safering Air is no different. lenge is on top of its agenda.
Technical parameters and tests set by
the IEC and other relevant standards Customer feedback prior to the launch of
were done to ensure safety when operat- SafeRing Air confirms ABB’s strategy
ing the RMU. and shows an increasing demand for
such solutions in the low-end portfolio
Another aspect is keeping the simple (12 kV).
mimic, easy and logic operation of the
RMU. To take this fully into account,
Safe Ring Air has been designed using
the same logic that was used for traditional
RMUs with SF6, leading to a well-known
operating sequence. And of course envi-
ronmental measures such as life-cycle
assessment (LCA), environmental product
declaration (EPD), and environmental
product information (EPI) have been met.
Environmental measures
Clearly, meeting environmental measures
are of great importance when introduc-
ing an environmentally friendly offering to
the marketplace. ABB undertook a de-
tailed LCA analysis of the SafeRing Air
RMU. The main intention of such analy-
sis is to provide a base for customer in- Tom-Rune Bjortuft
formation. This base is established by ABB Power Products, Medium Voltage Products
using the experience from the LCA anal- Skien, Norway
ysis to set product category rules (PCRs) tom-rune.bjortuft@no.abb.com
in order to establish a standard for the
MV switchgear business. The overall
goal was to provide relevant and compa-
Footnote
rable product information to meet vari- 2 WEO 2013 executive summary, International
ous customer and market needs. Energy Agency, 2013.

Earth science
A new digital earth-fault detection method improves reliability
ARI WAHLROOS, JANNE ALTONEN – Temporary earth faults two most challenging and important tasks taken on by
cause the majority of outages in power networks. Compen- protection relays. After years of intensive research, devel-
sation coils connected to the neutral point of the network opment work and field testing, ABB has now introduced
can significantly reduce these outages but they do nothing a reliable digital solution that accomplishes these tasks.
to help detect the faults themselves. Indeed, the benefit This obviates the need for an additional and separate
of reduced fault currents that coils bring, inherently analog transient relay and its associated costs. The new
complicates fault-finding. In addition, faults may be functionality is integrated into the very popular Relion®
intermittent and manifested as high transient currents 615 series protection and control relays for distribution
and voltages. Earth-fault detection and directional deter networks and, in particular, in the REF615 for feeder
mination in compensated distribution systems are the protection and control.
Earth science 3 3

1 Typical voltage and current waveforms during a restriking earth fault
duced by the network to close to zero No digital alternative has been available,
and alleviates the conditions for self-ex- until now.
tinguishment of earth faults without the
need to trip breakers and cause custom- The reliable digital solution
er outages. However, such low fault cur- After years of intensive research, devel-
rents, which do not even trip breakers, opment and field testing, ABB has suc-
make it difficult to detect the fault and its ceeded in producing a reliable digital
direction. In addition, faults can be inter- alternative to the analog approach. This
mittent, ie, they can self-extinguish very takes the detection of transient and re-
rapidly but then reignite due to degrada- striking earth faults to a new and more
tion of the insulation dielectric at the fault sophisticated level. The patented algo-
location. Such intermittent faults create rithm utilizes the latest developments in
S
highly nonsinusoidal and irregular volt- protection algorithm design, including
tatistics show that the majority age and current waveforms, which con- multifrequency neutral admittance mea-
of faults in unearthed and com- ventional relay algorithms are not de- surement and sophisticated filtering
pensated medium-voltage net- signed to handle ➔ 1. This can cause techniques. The principle functional dia-
works are earth faults. Accord- relays that trigger on persistent fault sig- gram of the algorithm is illustrated in ➔ 2.
ing to studies made in the Nordic nals to either fail to operate or trip non-
countries, about 50 to 80 percent of all selectively. This can lead to the discon- The first fundamental novelty of the algo-
faults are in this category [1]. These faults nection of an entire primary substation. rithm is the multifrequency neutral admit-
are very often characterized by current tance measurement. This utilization of
and voltage transients. Therefore, up until now, utilities and harmonics makes the protection algo-
DSOs have always required, and pre- rithm very robust and reliable even if the
It is common for national regulatory ferred, earth-fault protection that is measured signals are distorted or include
models to require consumers to be com- based not on steady-state measurement high frequency components, as would
pensated for failures in power provision be the case in
(or for poor power quality). Also, the con- a restriking earth
sequences of short outages have be- Analog measuring relays fault.
come more significant as society has
become increasingly dependent on high were considered to be the A second novelty
quality and reliability of supply. It is,
therefore, clearly in the interests of utili-
only reliable way to measure of the algorithm is
its directional ele-
ties and distribution system operators transients and no digital ment, where the
(DSOs) to minimize supply interruption discrete directional
caused by earth faults. alternative has been available, admittance phasors
In recent years, resonant grounding has

until now. are replaced by the
accumulated values
become a growing practice worldwide in of the same quan-
neutral point treatment of medium-volt- signals, but on initial fault transients. tities during the fault. This filtering tech-
age networks. Such grounding reduces A nalog measuring relays are considered nique is called cumulative phasor sum-
the capacitive earth-fault currents pro- to be the only reliable way to measure ming (CPS). The directional phasor
transients so these have been enshrined calculated by the CPS technique gives
in utilities’ internal guidelines – regard- a very distinct and stable indication of
Title picture less of the additional work, cost and the fault direction as the accumulated
ABB’s digital method of earth-fault detection and
space requirements that these devices fault phasor points in the direction of
directional determination makes life a lot easier for
power network operators, like the owners of this bring with them. the highest energy flow, ie, in the fault
distribution station in California. d irection.

2 Principle of novel restriking earth fault (E/F) protection 3 Field testing
Io
Transient detected The latest field test took place in a 10 kV
Transient
Uo detector HV/MV substation owned by Vattenfall, one
Start of Europe’s leading energy companies, in
General fault
Sweden ➔ 4. The test infrastructure was a
E/F detected
detection large rural cable network with central and
UO > distributed compensation. The operation of
the new Relion 615 digital earth-fault
Directional detection functionality was demonstrated in
evaluation E/F detected in the
Fundamental and Trip logic Operate 51 individual test cases in which the fault
protected line
harmonic type (permanent, restriking), location (of four)
admittance and the compensation degree (undercom-
calculation,
CPS algorithm pensated, fully compensated and overcom-
pensated) were varied. The algorithm worked
Block EF
in all cases. The results showed that with the
Current
magnitude Current exceeds setting novel algorithm, high-security and depend-
supervision ability requirements of the protection scheme
CPS algorithm
could be met.
“The tests went really well. Moreover, tests

performed in a real-life setting are a good
4 Energizing a damaged cable initiates a restriking earth fault
opportunity for us, as a customer, to show
what our needs are. I think both parties learn
a lot from this kind of test,” said Ulrika
Uggla, protection engineer with Vattenfall in
Trollhättan.
For Vattenfall, it is important that the

earth-fault relay is able to detect transients in
earth faults. One reason is that transients can
indicate where in the grid the fault is located.
Another reason is that if the relay is not
triggered by recurrent transients, a greater
part of the system may be disconnected than
would otherwise be necessary. In the new
REF615 series, the protection relay can be
triggered selectively. It disconnects the
correct cable and prevents fault-free parts of
the system from being disconnected. This
can mean, in one concrete example given by
Vattenfall, that only 1,000 homes are affected
by a temporary power outage rather than
8,000 homes.
Fewer and shorter outages and faster Reliability proven in field tests The work described here has led to a
fault localization In recent years, ABB has undertaken inten- better understanding of new challenges
The algorithm provides a highly robust sive field testing in cooperation with select- and problems faced by modern distribu-
and selective fault identification and direc- ed power utilities in order to test and tion network providers. This provides im-
tion determination during restriking and develop new earth-fault protection func-
petus to further develop intelligent elec-
transient earth faults. It is sensitive enough tions. The novel algorithm discussed here tronic devices and functionalities for
to detect the smallest current spikes likely was developed in close cooperation with medium-voltage networks. Already,
to occur during a restriking earth fault in the Vattenfall utility in Sweden, where it has based on the experienced gained from
today’s extensive cable networks. Early been extensively tested with actual distur- this cooperation, a prototype of an even
detection of an intermittent fault prevents bance recordings representing a wide vari- more capable earth-fault detection algo-
it from evolving into a more serious mal- ety of network and fault conditions ➔ 3. rithm is being developed.
function – for example, a double earth
fault with high fault currents. Collaboration is the key to success Ari Wahlroos
Vattenfall is a good example of a close Janne Altonen
Current regulatory models motivate utili- collaboration with the customer during ABB Power Products, Medium Voltage Products
ties and DSOs to minimize the number product development leading to well re- Vaasa, Finland
and duration of supply interruptions ceived products that fulfill the custom- ari.wahlroos@fi.abb.com
caused by intermittent earth faults. This er’s requirements. Collaboration agree- janne.altonen@fi.abb.com
new digital approach to earth fault inves- ments will continue to be an important
tigation facilitates this in a simple and factor in product development. Future Reference
[1] S. Hänninen, ”Single-phase earth faults
cost-effective way. products will assist customers to further
in high-impedance grounded networks –
increase power availability and thus im- characteristics, indication and location,”
prove the profitability of their business. VTT Publications 453, p. 139, 2001.
Earth science 3 5

Molding the future
Polymers processing ROBERT SEKULA, KRZYSZTOF KASZA, LUKASZ MATYSIAK, LUKASZ
MALINOWSKI, DARIUSZ BEDNAROWSKI, MICHAL MLOT, GERHARD SALGE
enhanced by – Due to their excellent electrical, thermal and mechanical proper-
ties, polymeric materials are the principal insulating materials used
advanced computer in many ABB power products. Because of the shape complexity and
simulations wide range of parameters used in manufacturing technologies, there

can be product quality challenges. For example, air voids, incom-
plete filling, premature gelation, incorrect curing propagation, local
overheating, cracks and deformations may appear in the insulation.
However, through advanced computer (numerical) simulation tools,
ABB maintains the highest quality control of its products, and
minimizes the development time of new products. These simulation
tools allow engineers to explore thousands of design alternatives
within very short time periods, leading to improvements in perfor-
mance and design quality, and reducing the time required to bring a
product to market.

1 Results from simulations of epoxy casting and polymerization process
Indoor
embedded
pole
Filling front of epoxy Solidification front of the Visualization of

colored with temperature epoxy colored with degree temperature peaks during
of polymerization the epoxy polymerization
Outdoor
current
transformer
A
BB uses advanced comput- analysis of the obtained results helps in Thermoplastics injection molding
er simulations in all of its selecting the best process parameters. Thermoplastic polymers, used predomi-
polymers processing tech- Maintaining the right processing tempera- nantly in ABB low-voltage products, are
nologies, including reactive tures and minimizing the residual stresses distinguished from epoxies and other
molding, injection molding, and silicone are the key factors that determine the final thermosets by their ability to be melted
molding. product quality and reliability. and molded when heated above certain
temperatures, returning to a solid state
Epoxy casting ABB has also developed a Web-based upon cooling. Injection molding is the
Epoxy resins are the principal insulating epoxy casting simulation tool that offers most common processing method for
material used in manufacturing ABB’s fully automated calculations [3]. The cal- thermoplastics. Hot, melted polymer is
medium- and high-voltage products. The injected at high

complex manufacturing process, referred speed (up to hun-
to as reactive molding, includes casting, To maximize the composite dreds of cm3/s) at
gelling (solidification) and cooling. By high pressure (up
using a multiphysics approach that brings potential in the development to 2,000 bars) into
together advanced computer simulations
of fluid flow, heat transfer, mechanical
of its thermoplastic compo- a cold mold cavity;
while the polymer
deformation and stresses, more accu- nents ABB uses advanced is cooling, the
rate results are achieved and engineers pressure is main-
are better able to follow and control the simulation. tained by the in
manufacturing process. jection unit in or-
der to compensate
They can observe the mold filling with culations can be performed directly by for shrinkage. When the polymer tem-
epoxy resin, the material transition from design or process engineers with no perature is 20 to 30 °C below the solidifi-
liquid to solid state, temperature distribu- n umerical modeling background. The
cation temperature enough mechanical
tion with temperature peaks caused mesh generation, simulation setup, cal- strength has been gained so that the
by exothermic chemical reaction, shape culations and other steps are done auto- part can be ejected. Production cycle
deformation during the cooling and relat- matically based on input variables like time depends on wall thickness (starting
ed buildup of stresses [1, 2] ➔ 1. Detailed model geometry, selected materials and from 0.5 to 6 mm) and usually takes from
process parameters. The tool generates a few to around 100 s. Part and mold
a report with a summary of the results design is very challenging because of the
that can be used to analyze the process complex phenomena occurring during
Title picture
Optimization of a sample component achieved with regarding its quality and efficiency. thermoplastics processing – eg, shear-
injection molding simulation. ing, viscous heating, crystallization, ori-
Molding the future 3 7

2 Comparison of tensile test results for polyarylamide 50 percent 3 Simulation approach for short fiber reinforced thermoplastics
glass fibers in the case of different orientation of short fibers processed by injection molding
350
Injection – Process optimization
molding – Calculation of fiber
300 orientation
250
Stress (MPa)
200
150
Material – Calculation of orthotropic

100
modeling properties of composite
material
50
0 3
0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1 1.2 1.4 1.6 1.8 2 2.2 2.4 2.6 2.8
Tensile strain (%) Structure – Stress and strain

modeling – Deflection
Directly molded Across the flow – Failure indication

Along the flow 45deg

The arrows indicate flow direction
entation, cooling and undesired defor- chanical properties. The software also
Advanced comput- mation (warpage). handles processes like gas-assisted in-
jection, injection compression, co-injec-
er simulations are Advanced computer simulations are tion and fiber-reinforced materials.
conducted in order conducted in order to optimize each part

and mold design before mold fabrication. Thermoplastic composites reinforced
to optimize each with short glass fibers are also often
The computer simulation tool allows used as insulating material because of
part and mold analysis of all the processing stages: in- their excellent mechanical and thermal
design before mold jection, packing and cooling (ejection

time and its impact on heat distribution
properties. Introducing these materials
into a product is challenging because
fabrication. in the mold is even taken into account). the short fibers in a polymer matrix are
The simulation model considers all the aligned in flow direction during the injec-
essential components of the injection tion-molding process resulting in aniso-
mold, such as part cavity, cold or hot tropic material properties. The highest
runner system, part or mold inserts, stiffness and strength is measured in the
cooling circuits, and mold venting if nec- direction of material flow during molding,
essary. Computer simulations help eval- while the transverse performance could
uate the quality of the injection stage in be only 35 percent of material datasheet
terms of filling profile, flow stagnation, values (based on measurements for
premature polymer freezing or location of polyarylamide reinforced with 50 percent
weld lines and air traps. During the pack- glass fibers) ➔ 2.
ing and cooling stages the efficiency of
shrinkage compensation is evaluated so To maximize the composite potential in
that the correct selection of a cold gate the development of its thermoplastic
cross-section can be made. The shape components ABB uses advanced simu-
of the final part is also modeled by taking lation ➔ 3. The first step of the simulation
into account warpage caused by the process is to gather information on fiber
polymer shrinkage, uneven cooling and distribution. Material properties of poly-
material orientation. mer matrixes and fibers are defined sep-
arately in the material modeling software,
The software used for injection molding which calculates the resulting mechani-
simulation includes a database with over cal properties of the composite. These
6,000 predefined thermoplastic materials, values are then used by a structural sim-
which can be used for material specifica- ulation package to calculate product
tion – eg, pressure-volume-temperature response under applied mechanical load.
(PvT), viscosity as a function of tempera- Estimating the critical load that can be
ture and shear rate, and thermal and me- carried out by the composite material

4 Simulation results of injection molding process of thermoplastic embedded pole
The dielectric per-
formance of the
design is checked
with the simula-
tions of the electric
field distribution.
Fill time Pressure at V/P switchover Fiber orientation
5 Mechanical optimization of thermoplastic embedded pole structure
becomes feasible with stress- and strain- Changing the insulation material results in simulation results, modifications are intro-
based failure indicators [4, 5]. a weight reduction of more than a factor duced to the design and the next cycle
of three while gaining superior mechanical of simulations is started. Based on the
From epoxy to thermoplastics performance. The material change reduc- final results, the prototype of the part is
Thermoplastic materials have been wide- es CO2 emissions in the product life cycle manufactured and subjected to all tests
ly used in low voltage products applica- by more than 50 percent [6]. All these im- required by standards.
tions. With the increasing capabilities of provements have been achieved by using
engineering thermoplastics, they are also advanced computer simulations. With ABB’s thermoplastic embedded
being considered as a replacement for pole, such an approach allows for a 50
thermoset epoxy insulation for higher Injection molding of thermoplastics is bet- percent decrease of the maximum stress
voltage level products. The mechanical ter suited for thin-walled parts in contrast level in the part ➔ 5. By using the injec-
properties of engineering thermoplastics to the bulky structures of epoxy compo- tion molding simulation the process set-
are much better than of epoxies, with nents. Therefore when a material change tings are optimized and the material
needs to be made pressure in the mold cavity is reduced,
for a medium or which is important in this application as
Computer simulations allow high voltage prod- the overmolded vacuum interrupter was
uct, a complete re- designed for low pressure casting pro-
engineers to look inside the design of the prod- cess. With the computer simulations
injection mold for a complete uct is needed. The

first stage of a re-
both the design of the thermoplastic
embedded pole and its manufacturing

picture of how the silicone design is to create process were optimized.
the design ideas
rubber is processed. and then a draft Liquid silicone rubber processing
design of the plas- Silicone molding is another processing
tic part. Then the technology extensively used for producing
significantly higher stiffness and several evaluation and optimization of the con- electrical insulation in medium- and high-
times higher mechanical strength. The cept is carried out with simulation tools. In voltage power products like surge arrest-
dielectric strength of the thermoplastics the mechanical analysis all the load cases ers, bushings, insulators and cable termi-
can also be superior. These strengths to which the product is subjected during nations. The excellent properties of silicone
allow for significant reduction of the prod- its operation are modeled. In parallel, the rubbers include high chemical and thermal
uct weight and environmental impact. manufacturability of the part is verified stability resulting in the material hydropho-
with simulations of the injection molding bicity, UV stability as well as good flash-
ABB’s PT1 embedded pole is an example process ➔ 4. The dielectric performance over and erosion resistance [7, 8].
of switching from epoxy to thermoplastics of the design is checked with simulations
in ABB’s medium voltage applications. of the electric field distribution. Based on
Molding the future 3 9

6 Flow pattern and curing for HV silicone insulation
6a Flow pattern of silicone during mold filling 6b Course of curing process of silicone
Another factor influencing the properties

of the silicone insulation is the material
processing during the insulation manu-
facturing stage.
References
[1] R. Sekula, et al., “3-D Modeling of Reactive
One of the possible threats connected
Moulding Processes: From Tool Development to
with silicone molding is too high temper- Industrial Application”, Advances in Polymer
atures during the process that can cause Technology, vol. 22, vol. 1, pp. 42–55, 2003.
degradation of the material properties. [2] R. Sekula, et al., “Sequential fluid dynamics and
structural mechanics simulations of a reactive
Good temperature control is even more
molding process.” International Journal of
important when taking into account the Materials and Product Technology, vol. 40,
exothermy (heat generation) during the no. 3/4, pp. 250–263, 2011.
silicone curing, which might lead to cre- [3] L. Matysiak, et al., “eRAMZES – Novel Approach
for Simulation of Reactive Molding Process;
ation of local hot spots. Besides that too
Proceedings of 26th European Conference on
severe temperature conditions can result Modeling and Simulation, pp. 128–135, Koblenz,
in premature gelation of the silicone rub- Germany, 2012.
ber and, consequently, in incomplete fill- [4] D. Bednarowski, et al., “Modeling of short
fiber composites strength with use of failure
ing of the mold. Finally, incorrect design
indicators.” 10th International Conference on
of the injection and ventilations systems Flow Processes in Composite Materials, 2010.
can create air gaps during the mold [5] D. Bednarowski, et al., “Modeling of reinforced
filling, creating partial discharges in the thermoplastics’ mechanical performance with
use of failure indicator,” Digimat Users’ Meeting,
operating product.
2010.
[6] T. Fugel, et al., “Breaking ahead of expecta-
Computer simulations allow engineers to tions.” ABB Review 1/2010; pp. 57–62.
look inside the injection mold for a com- Dariusz Bednarowski [7] L. Stenstrom, et al., “Optimized use of HV
composite apparatus insulators: field experi-
plete picture of how the silicone rubber is Krzysztof Kasza
ence from coastal and inland test stations.”
processed [9, 10]. For example, the sili- Lukasz Malinowski
Proceedings of 40th CIGRE Session, 2004.
cone flow pattern, pressure growth, tem- Lukasz Matysiak [8] “Remote Plant Plays Key Role in ABB Insulator
perature field and silicone cure degree Michal Mlot Business,” Insulator News & Market Report
Quarterly Review, vol. 13, pp. 54–61, 2005.
can be observed over time ➔ 6. These Robert Sekula
[9] L. Matysiak, et al., “First Industrial Application
results can be further used to recognize ABB Corporate Research
of the 3D silicone Molding Simulation Tool,”
the potential problems connected with Krakow, Poland Proceedings of the 5th European Conference
product design or its manufacturing dariusz.bednarowski@pl.abb.com on Computational Fluid Dynamics ECCOMAS
CFD 2010, Lisbon, Portugal, June 2010.
process. Computer simulations can be
krzysztof.kasza@pl.abb.com
[10] L. Matysiak, et al., “Analysis and Optimization
applied to work out the improved product lukasz.malinowski@pl.abb.com
of the Silicone Molding Process Based on
design and production process in shorter lukasz.matysiak@pl.abb.com Numerical Simulations and Experiments,
time periods and with lower investment michal.mlot@pl.abb.com Advances in Polymer Technology.” vol. 32,
costs. robert.sekula@pl.abb.com no. S1, pp. E258-E273, 2013.
Gerhard Salge
ABB Power Products, Medium Voltage Products
Further reading
Ratingen, Germany eRAMZES – Breakthrough in advanced computer
gerhard.salge@de.abb.com simulations, ABB Review 01/2013

Life-cycle
support
ABB’s innovative service solutions
for medium-voltage products
MARCO EGMAN, THOMAS ZURFLÜH – Innovative services the lead in offering innovative service solutions for its
being offered to customers today are changing the ways customers operating or working with medium-voltage
companies communicate, collaborate, and interact. assets. ABB service means close interaction between its
And the way these smarter services are being delivered and service engineers and its customers as well as newly
used is also redefining customer support. Services increas- developed service solutions that seek to change the
ingly focus on how customers are doing and what supports service approach to MV equipment. The primary areas with
the customer’s business process. Service at ABB is all innovative approaches include asset support, switchgear
about building relationships to support customers through- and operator safety, and circuit breaker and protection relay
out the life cycle. With this approach the company is taking upgrades and retrofits.
Life-cycle support 4 1

1 ABB’s PowerCare matrix
PowerCare Entry level Level 1 Level 2 Level 3
Skills
Product Product Application Coaching
development
training list training training services
services
Emergency Technical support Callout support with Essential spare parts

Single point of
maintenance with agreed response agreed response assessment and
contact
services time time replenishing
Diagnosis and Preliminary survey

Asset condition Remote asset
condition and documentation Asset monitoring
and risk assessment monitoring
assessment services of installed base
Self-maintenance Installed base life- Manuals and Online support for

File storage
services cycle status report instructions online self-maintenance
Delivered Technical Protection and Full switchgear

Switching apparatus
maintenance assessment on control engineering
engineering services
services yearly basis report engineering services services
to documentation and information about level of service is defined along four lev-
all the assets, all increase the challenges. els, with support content increasing with
each level ➔ 1.
In addition, demands on operators are
growing because there are more chang- Classic services such as training and
ing load flows in power grids, harder bud- a ssistance have been refined to meet

get limits for investments, a convergence t oday’s requirements. However, the

of primary and secondary technologies, PowerCare portal also provides an ex-
and more software that needs to be man- pansive range of new advanced solutions.
A
aged. Operators have to adapt their main- For example, the asset and risk assess-
BB has a huge repository of tenance and modernization plans as ment module gathers offline data using a
knowledge, spanning not just equipment is pushed more and more to tablet’s app that enables nonintrusive site
its own branded products its limit and as new technologies emerge. assessments. The module also provides
but also those of the numer- reports and recommendations about the
ous legacy companies acquired over Web-based tool installed base and associated risks.
time. With this wide range of competen- Asset support services need to be fast,
cies complementing its customers’ own always available, easy-to-use and ac- ABB’s MyRemoteCare online remote mon-
services and solutions, integration into cessible through smart devices, eg, mo- itoring solution enables the condition-
the customer’s asset operation process bile phones and tablets. ABB has de- based maintenance concept. ABB service
is possible at a variety of levels, all the signed a powerful Web-based portal to engineers perform condition-based man-
while staying focused on the application meet these criteria, one that allows op- agement by exchanging information with
of the products. The customer is then erators and equipment to become key site operators on a virtual whiteboard, an
able to concentrate on its core strengths assets of the MV network. With ABB’s instant messaging tool where questions,
such as manufacturing goods or provid- PowerCare the complete portfolio of answers and comments are exchanged
ing a service – for instance, running a like sticky notes on a whiteboard. This
manufacturing process – to its own cus- allows both sides to look at the real-time
tomers. ABB service supports the cus- With ABB’s Power- condition of the equipment.
tomer so it can achieve its own opera-
tional goals. Care the complete ABB’s Clionet ® Data Care is a service
Operator challenges
portfolio of ABB solution specifically designed to provide
a secure place to store, update and
For MV asset operators, having skilled service offerings recover protection and control equip-

and trained staff who can safely operate ment configuration and setting files.
old and new assets is increasingly diffi- are immediately
cult. The growing complexity of installed-
base, historically grown assets in different
accessible. Keeping safe
ABB’s portfolio for safety includes a
levels of the life cycle, along with different range of solutions targeting operators
levels of know-how on old, mid-age and ABB service offerings is immediately and equipment protection in all daily ac-
new assets, plus the need to have access a ccessible. A full range of services
tivities ➔ 2. Fault prevention is the most
grouped in five areas – skills develop- important action asset managers can
ment, emergency, diagnosis and condi- target to ensure full safety and availabili-
tion assessment, self-maintenance, and ty. ABB provides clear solutions for map-
Title picture
Mobile devices are being used efficiently for delivered maintenance services – are set ping the source of all failures and associ-
customer support. up within the PowerCare framework. The ated risks.

2 ABB’s safety formula 3 ABB’s ultrafast earthing switch (UFESTM) 4 Circuit-breaker retrofit solutions
is the most powerful arc-fault-quenching
system available.
Voltage indicators Retrofit
Epoxy resin insulation

Condition
Fixed contact Conversion

Remote
racking Equipment faults
Distance S A Ceramic insulator
Roll-in
replacement
Y F Short Moving contact pin
circuits
T E Time Rupture joint Retrofill
Periodic
measurements
Piston
Hard-bus
Cylinder retrofill
Training
Arc faults
Moving contact system Cradle-in
cradle
Micro gas generator
Safety measures to prevent electrical hazards
An arc fault presents a significant risk The challenge is to select the most appro- MV products are in continuous operation
as operators and equipment can be priate circuit-breaker retrofit – from con- to ensure a stable, reliable and safe flow
e xposed to 20,000 °C plasma. ABB has version to roll-in and retrofill – to meet of electricity to power an enormous
developed an arc fault risk mapping soft- specific customer requirements ➔ 4. range of processes. With the service so-
ware, which ABB service experts use Assessing the existing equipment to check lutions provided by ABB the successful
to guide decisions concerning possible both the current condition and the future design and implementation of MV appli-
protection and mitigation solutions. The requirements is necessary to make the cations is guaranteed, regardless of
software also allows for analysis of the right choice. ABB asset and risk assess- whether the application is powering a
probability of the ignition of an arc fault ment tools apply the latest technologies manufacturing process in a factory,
and the possible consequences, and to make this possible. Using 3-D scan- switching a substation in a distribution
also facilitates the outlining and assess- ning systems to make a full model of the grid, or protecting an electric marine
ment of the arc fault risk picture. The installed equipment, regardless of age power propulsion system.
software thus supports appropriate in- and brand, and transferring the relevant
vestment decision making. information to 3-D design tools is an
e xcellent example of how ABB performs
An analysis of the fault’s probability and this kind of activity. The result is a quick
the relevant impact defines the anticipat- and comprehensive site assessment
ed level of risk. The most appropriate completed under safe conditions.
s olution can be determined through an
assessment. Depending on the risk level, In addition, a new generation of ABB engi-
solutions range from preventive mainte- neering software is now available to sup-
nance to replacement and can include port the implementation of new retrofit so-
an REA arc protection system, the most lutions. The software converts the gathered
advanced arc fault protection system on equipment data into a comprehensive fea-
the market, or an ultrafast earthing sibility study, which can then be made into
switch (UFESTM), the most powerful arc- manufacturing documentation. A process
fault-quenching system available ➔ 3. that in the past could take weeks of work
now only needs a few hours.
The other essential building blocks of the
ABB formula for safety are highly trained OneFit represents the latest in ABB com-
personnel, remote circuit breaker racking petence in the retrofit business. It is the
systems and passive voltage indicators. most advanced retrofill solution available
today, embedding all aspects in a unique
Retrofits design. The hard-bus retrofill model uses Marco Egman
Equipment upgrades require the replace- the most refined plug-in technology in ABB Power Products, Medium Voltage Products
ment of the circuit breakers and the pro- order to ensure a quick and intrinsically Dalmine, Italy
tection relays once or more during the safe installation. It fulfills all the require- marco.egman@it.abb.com
lifetime of the switchgear. ments of the ABB formula for safety, al-
lowing remote circuit breaker racking Thomas Zurflüh
and it is ready made for integration with ABB Power Products, Medium Voltage Products
the MyRemoteCare monitoring and diag- Zurich, Switzerland
nostic system. thomas.zurflueh@ch.abb.com
Life-cycle support 4 3

Pulling together
OEM partnerships NICOLE KOEPPEN – ABB sells a good number of its products directly to
the end user. But this is not the only strategy to sell products: It can be
are a vital element very effective to build tight partnerships with third parties, especially
OEMs (original equipment manufacturers) in order to create additional
of ABB’s customer channels to bring goods to market. The combination of ABB’s product
expertise and the OEM’s detailed knowledge of segments, application
value chain sectors, experience and local conditions can be very effective. ABB is
creating high-value customer partnerships with OEMS that provide a
comprehensive product portfolio, partner programs and cooperation
models that embrace MV products and systems.

1 A multichannel approach maximizes market coverage.
End users
Transmission
Distribution
OEM
Construction
Water
ABB
sales Marine
force / EPC
front-end Solar
sales
Oil & gas
DIST Wind
Etc.
− Distributors (electrical wholesalers/ example, the demand for local solutions

distributors, technical distributors and is being driven by the need for flexibility
resellers) ➔ 1 and speed. Local manufacturers are,
therefore, expected to grow in number.
The path an ABB product will follow to Further, many of these are supported by
reach the end customer will vary accord- the government’s preferential treatment
ing to the end customer’s requirements aimed at boosting the local economy.
or even the nature of the third party itself.
A
In essence, the third-party channels al- Given these market trends, ABB defined
BB’s medium-voltage (MV) low ABB products to become available three strategies:
power products business or be assembled, engineered or ser- − Extend market reach and grow the
has a long history of working viced. OEMs, in particular, are a vital ele- number of OEM channel partners
with OEMs. This type of ment in building and developing ABB’s − Leverage the complete ABB portfolio
c ooperation started in the early 1990s
customer value chain. − Develop OEM programs
with the supply of MV circuit breakers to
MV switchgear manufacturers and has OEM channel strategy ABB is committed to helping OEMs cre-
subsequently expanded significantly. The ABB’s engineering, manufacturing and ate high-value customer partnerships by
OEM channel has become a key element logistics capabilities combine with the de- providing a comprehensive product port-
within ABB and is embedded in its multi- tailed local market knowledge and exper- folio, partner programs and cooperation
channel sales strategy. models that em-
brace MV products
Multichannel strategy The OEM channel has become and systems.
ABB’s market strategy is based on cus-
tomer needs and buying behavior. De- a key element within ABB and Traditionally, ABB
pending on the particular market segment
and application, end users have different
is embedded in its multichan- has a good stand-
ing in the OEM
demands with respect to integration, en- nel sales strategy. channel business
gineering, availability and competencies, and one of ABB’s
so different channels are utilized to meet key strengths is
their individual needs. This is called a mul- tise provided by OEMs and panel builders the ABB brand itself. This comes with a
tichannel marketing strategy. to help drive sales across the world. reputation for technical leadership, qual-
ity and reliability. By incorporating ABB
The various sales channels can be cate- OEMs are active in various market seg- products as core components of OEM
gorized into direct and indirect (third- ments and application sectors, so they solutions, a pull effect is generated that
party) sales channels. The latter include: differ significantly in terms of their scope is highly valued by partners and lever-
− OEMs and the value they add. ABB’s OEM cus- aged by them.
− EPC (engineering, procurement and tomers include electrical panel builders
construction) entities and compact secondary substation Over the last 12 years, ABB has made
(CSS) manufacturers, for instance. progress with the OEM channel busi-
Title picture ness. For instance, ABB is now the lead-
ABB places great emphasis on creating high-value
Also, in recent years, the market has being supplier of MV circuit breakers to
relationships with OEMs as channel partners. How
does this work for MV products and what are the come more fragmented, with require- OEMs – and this represents only one
mutual benefits? ments varying by market segment. For product category in a portfolio that con-
Pulling together 4 5

2 The growth path: development of MV-related business with OEMs 3 The OEM value chain business model
and distributors
450
400 ABB scope
350
313 %
300
Million US$
250
200
150
100
50
0 OEM scope
2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012
Year
stitutes the most complete offering avail- In addition to the brand and technology
The strategic intent able on the market. ABB shares the advantage, ABB also strives to provide
latest products and offerings with OEMs strong support to OEM channels and this
is to position ABB to enable them to offer state-of-the-art is becoming increasingly important as a
as a reliable and technologies and gain a competitive

a dvantage over local rivals.
differentiator. ABB has tailored a busi-
ness model that provides flexibility for
consistent partner channel partners to choose where in the
The focus on channel business is a motor value chain they want to position them-
for OEM channel for ABB’s success and growth – ABB selves. Based on this model, ABB has
partners and to grew the MV-related channel business for

OEMs and distributors by 313 percent
developed a series of modular OEM part-
ner programs in which ABB combines its
build long-term over the last 12 years, for example ➔ 2. product offering with a technical support
program as part of a holistic approach
commitment based The strategic intent is to position ABB as that meets an OEM’s requirements for
on a win-win a reliable and consistent partner for OEM

channel partners and to build long-term
different markets and segments ➔ 4.
relationship. commitment based on a win-win relation-

ship. The implementation of a dedicated
The OEM partner program is a foundation
upon which to develop a strategic partner-
regional OEM development and OEM ship with OEMs. It consists of four pillars:
product support organization has been − ABB know-how and technical support
part of this endeavor and it is planned to − A comprehensive ABB product
further strengthen the local OEM channel portfolio
organization in the coming years. Further, − Cooperation models
ABB offers engineering and technical − The value added by the OEM
support, as well as extensive training pro-
grams and tools designed to assist chan- ABB know-how and technical support
nel partners. ABB develops OEM pro- enable the OEM to introduce a product
grams to meet partners’ demands and based on an ABB design in a very short
aims to establish simple and effective time and with minimal investment. The
processes to ease cooperation. transfer of technology consists of techni-
cal drawings, training, tools, configura-
ABB’s strict adherence to safety and reli- tors as well as access to testing facilities
ability extends to its OEM partners, and that allow OEMs to share their experi-
sustainable and energy-efficient solu- ence and concerns with ABB product
tions enable partners to offer end users experts.
improved performance and lowered en-
vironmental impact. The ABB know-how transfer and techni-
cal support for the specific OEM partner
OEM value chain business model programs are managed by dedicated
ABB’s focus on OEMs aims to build on OEM product support organizations.
synergies between the breadth and qual-
ity of ABB’s portfolio, and the particular
strengths of OEMs in market sectors ➔ 3.

4 The OEM partner program
ABB products ABB support Cooperation OEM added value Final product
The first strategic agreement based on agreement is applicable for any been almost completely closed to for-
the value chain business model was made product and OEM. eign manufacturers. Signed in Septem-
in Europe in 1998 for air-insulated primary − License cooperation agreement: ABB ber 2012, the contract is the culmina-
switchgear. The cooperation enabled grants a license to a third party to tion of more than four years of work
ABB to increase its market coverage by produce ABB products. ABB provides spent establishing a strategy with IEPC,
approaching a previously inaccessible the technology transfer and type tests gaining experience, and optimizing
market segment, and this partnership is for the product. The OEM will use its costs and technical solutions.
still operating successfully. In fact, it has own logo and ABB’s product brand.
recently been extended by adding OEM − Technical cooperation agreement: IEPC is Kuwait’s leading OEM for low-
partner programs for gas-insulated pri- ABB provides the technology to a third and medium-voltage power distribution
mary switchgear, outdoor circuit breakers party to produce an ABB product. The equipment and its knowledge of the local
and secondary switchgear. OEM will use its own logo and product market and technical requirements was
brand name. The type test needs to be combined with ABB’s expertise in elec-
So far, in the MV area, ABB has devel- repeated by the OEM. trical distribution to win the order.
oped OEM partner programs for: − Authorized value provider: ABB autho
− Primary switchgear (IEC and ANSI) rizes the OEM to use the registered The order was Kuwait’s largest ever for its
− Secondary switchgear ABB branding “ABB authorized value distribution network and ABB’s success-
− Indoor and outdoor switches provider” on collateral documentation ful bid will see VD4 type vacuum circuit
− Outdoor MV circuit breakers such as catalogs, brochures and breakers installed in 500 distribution sub-
business cards. stations along with switchgear panels and
The selection and qualification process is − Powered by ABB: ABB authorizes the other equipment provided by IEPC.
a key element of a successful implemen- OEM to put the registered trademark
tation of the OEM partner program. The “Powered by ABB” on their products,
selection process ensures the suitability which means that the OEM product
of the OEM partner for the different OEM contains ABB equipment.
partner programs, while the qualification
process guarantees a consistent product Since 1998, more than such 80 partner-
quality during the cooperation period. ships have been established worldwide.
The target is to extend the OEM partner
OEM cooperation models programs outside of MV power products
OEM partner programs are supported to embrace the complete power product
and regulated by specific cooperation portfolio. This will further strengthen
models covering all the legal aspects of a ABB’s leading position as a first choice
strategic partnership like responsibility, for a partnership.
liability, commercial conditions, etc.
− Supply and support agreement: ABB Kuwaiti OEM
provides the products, from simple In 2012, ABB received a $ 10 million
equipment to complete switchgear. o rder, via its OEM channel partner IEPC,
ABB logos, names and type tests are from Kuwait’s Ministry for Electricity and
applied to the supplied products. Water (MEW) for vacuum circuit break- Nicole Koeppen
− Channel cooperation agreement: ers (VCBs type VD4) and panel acces- ABB Power Products, Medium Voltage Products
ABB offers a commercial partnership sories. This was a major inroad into the Ratingen, Germany
for a specific business segment. This Kuwaiti market, which has traditionally nicole.koeppen@de.abb.com
Pulling together 4 7

Innovation in
motion
SAMI RAITAKOSKI – The medium-voltage power world is in the midst of a
How ABB’s MV challenging, and yet exciting, time. As the world becomes increasingly
product portfolio is more reliant on secure electricity supplies, pressure on the power
distribution industry to deliver is also increasing. The ways in which
evolving to address electricity is being generated, transmitted and even used are changing
– that is the challenging part. The exciting part comes from the new
market needs technologies and solutions being created to meet those challenges. In
order to respond to the evolving needs of today’s global power distribu-
tion market and to help support power and utility companies, ABB is
pushing the boundaries of technology, establishing itself as a trusted
partner, and expanding its global footprint through new growth opportu-
nities. Continual, proactive advancements allow ABB to offer a wide
range of new products and solutions for its customers to enhance grid
reliability, meet rising demands for electricity with increased energy
efficiency, and improve productivity.

1 Advantages of ABB’s medium-voltage 2 Market drivers in the medium-voltage
offerings segment arena
– Breadth of offering – Urbanization

– Depth of technology – Energy-intensive industries
– End-user segment diversity – Remote bulk generation from renewables
– Global view and presence – Distribution generation
– Vast installed base – Cost pressures
– Market-leading positions – Aging infrastructure
– Local market focus and footprint
– Ability to leverage scale
– Multiple channels to market
– People and domain competence
3 ABB’s innovative plug-and-play modules avoid lengthy shutdowns of rail services for the
installation of coupling stations.
A
BB has been in the business
of medium-voltage power
distribution for well over a
century, providing utility, in-
dustrial and commercial customers with
safe, reliable technologies. Over this time grid modernization, extension, etc. An Renewable energy sources, distributed
the company has been a constant pio- aging population means there are fewer generation and increasingly complex and
neer both of the technology itself and of personnel who are knowledgeable about demanding networks of power consum-
its applications. The huge portfolio of old and new equipment. There is a grow- ers are also factors.
products and services available now for ing complexity of installed-base, histori-
current conduction, electrical insulation, cally grown assets in different levels of Smart technologies
switching operations, protection, control the life cycle, along with different levels As part of modernizing their networks,
and interruption is a testament to this of know-how on old, mid-age and new medium-voltage operators are looking for
pioneering spirit. Today’s portfolio in- products equipped
cludes 66 product lines in 34 sites in with sensors and
27 countries. And this portfolio is evolv- An evolving global economy IEDs. To address
ing so that ABB can offer its customers the demand for
solutions that are more efficient and reli- demands that ABB continually smart switchgear,
able, safer, smarter, more environmen-
tally friendly, and easier to engineer,
seek ways to better serve ABB has devel-
oped the UniGear
install and operate ➔ 1. its customers. Digital product
family for primary
Change factors substations. It is
A variety of issues are driving the prod- assets. This in turn increases the need based on an optimized integration of cur-
uct and service solutions for maturing for immediate access to documentation rent and voltage sensors into MV switch-
medium-voltage markets ➔ 2. More peo- and information about all the assets. And gear, combined with the latest IEDs and
ple in cities means more pressure on city these all bring about safety and reliability IEC 61850 communication. Through im-
issues. proved levels of automation and commu-
nication in substations central operators
Utilities are looking for smarter, more can optimize grid operation.
Title picture sophisticated solutions to modernize

The world is becoming increasingly dependent
their networks. In addition more environ- World view
on secure electrical supplies. How is ABB helping
its electrical distribution customers meet the mentally friendly solutions are being Different regions and countries around
challenge? asked for. the world can have needs specific to
Innovation in motion 4 9

4 SafeWind, ABB’s tailor-made switchgear for wind turbines, is the 5 ABB service engineers develop innovative customer service
slimmest medium-voltage switchgear on the market. solutions.
that particular area. ABB is addressing on-site. Available for either indoor or out- ABB also recognizes that wind and solar
its global reach into new markets with door installation, the modules can be sources present a more complex energy
products under ABB’s “country for erected and commissioned overnight to flow for distribution equipment to handle
country”/”region for region” approach- avoid disruption to busy daytime rail and is extending its global footprint by
es. A unique offering for the distribution schedules. meeting the unique needs of the renew-
market in India is an example of this. able energy sector.
The main components – circuit breaker
ABB combined its well-proven and reli- and disconnector switches – are made For example, SafeWind, ABB’s tailor-
able switchgear, circuit breaker, and pro- by ABB and have long and proven track made switchgear for wind turbines, is the
tection and control technologies to cre- records in railway environments. The cir- slimmest medium-voltage switchgear on
ate the ZN1 for the unique needs of the the market and small enough to fit
distribution market in India. ZN1 is a pri- through the narrow doorway of the tur-
mary distribution switchgear with fea- The ABB drives bine tower ➔ 4. Designed specifically to
tures such as a compact construction, meet the switchgear requirements of
low maintenance design and an internal channel partner wind turbine manufacturers for compact-
arc withstand current rating of 26.3 kA
for 1 s, which is unique in this sector. The
network offers ness, safety and flexibility, SafeWind is a
complete range of secondary distribution
design is the perfect solution for applica- global quality with gas-insulated switchgear for onshore
tions in India’s construction, automotive, and offshore applications in the global
water distribution, textile, rail transporta- local availability. wind power market.
tion, pharmaceutical and data center
industries. Designed and developed in Safety issues
India, ZN1 offers easy installation and cuit breaker has an innovative design Safety is addressed throughout ABB’s
maintenance. The smaller footprint and that enables the entire module to be entire portfolio. In the face of the internal
compact design reduces switchgear transported simply and efficiently in a arc-fault hazard present in medium-volt-
room dimensions resulting in additional standard ISO freight container. age switchgear, ABB is continually look-
energy savings due to reduced air condi- ing at its portfolio for safety solutions
tioning and lighting requirements. Swiss Federal Railways and South targeting operators and equipment pro-
A frica’s Gautrain are among the first to tection in all daily activities. To that end,
Adapting to industries embrace this solution. ABB has developed a highly sophisticat-
Installing coupling stations in a traction ed arc-fault risk-mapping software, as
power supply system can be a costly, Switchgear alternative well as an ultrafast earthing switch
complex and time-consuming process Environmental concerns are also driving (UFESTM), which is the most powerful
that causes disruptions to passenger and the development of a new generation arc-fault-quenching system available.
freight services. ABB has been able to of power distribution products. In order
take its innovative plug-and-play module to meet the increasing demand for solu- Customer service
system to the rail industry in order to avoid tions with lower environmental impact, An evolving global economy demands
lengthy shutdowns of rail services ➔ 3. ABB developed SafeRing Air, a compact that ABB continually seek ways to better
ring main unit that uses dry air as an serve its customers. Service innovation
The solution comprises medium-voltage altern ative to the traditional SF6 insulat- is a new and significantly improved ser-
modules that are preassembled and facing gas. vice concept that ABB is implementing.
tory-tested to enable speedy erection Service innovation is about shifting the

ABB Review Special Report
6 The ABB drives channel partner network takes the sales, support and service business Medium-voltage products
to the customer. March 2014
Editorial Council
Claes Rytoft
Chief Technology Officer
Group R&D and Technology
Georg Schett
Head of Technology
Power Products division
Gerhard Salge
Technology Manager
Medium Voltage business unit
Sami Raitakoski
Head of Marketing and Sales
Harmeet Bawa
Head of Communications
Power Products and Power Systems divisions
Rona Victoria Gregorio

Special Report Coordinator and
focus away from just providing solutions better solution for detecting transient Head of Communications
and instead focusing on the job the cus- and restriking earth faults. Part of this
tomer is trying to get done. ABB strives e ffort involved the cooperation of select- Andreas Moglestue
Chief Editor, ABB Review
to better understand and translate cus- ed power utilities in order to test and
tomer needs into viable products, solu- d evelop the new earth-fault protection
Publisher
ABB Review is published by ABB Group R&D and
tions and services ➔ 5. One example is a functions. A new algorithm was devel- Technology.
powerful Web-based portal from which oped in close cooperation with the
the complete portfolio of ABB service Vattenfall utility in Sweden, where it was ABB Technology Ltd.
o fferings are immediately accessible. tested with actual disturbance record- ABB Review
Affolternstrasse 44
ings representing a wide variety of net- CH-8050 Zurich
Additional partnerships work and fault conditions. ABB’s contin- Switzerland
abb.review@ch.abb.com
Building close partnerships with third ued collaboration with its customers to
parties is another way of offering fast, develop future products helps to ensure ABB Review is published four times a year in
English, French, German, Spanish and Chinese.
effective and reliable sales support to its increased power availability. ABB Review is free of charge to those with an
customers. To that end ABB has an interest in ABB’s technology and objectives.
For a s ubscription, please contact your nearest
intern ational drives channel partner net- ABB representative or subscribe online at
work. For instance, ABB’s product exper- www.abb.com/abbreview
tise combined with original equipment Partial reprints or reproductions are permitted
managers’ (OEMs) detailed knowledge subject to full acknowledgement. C omplete reprints
require the publisher’s written consent.
of segments, application sectors, experi-
ence and local conditions has been very Publisher and copyright ©2014
ABB Technology Ltd.
effective. ABB is creating high-value cus- Zurich/Switzerland
tomer partnerships with OEMs that pro-
Printer
vide a comprehensive product portfolio,
Vorarlberger Verlagsanstalt GmbH
partner programs and cooperation mod- AT-6850 Dornbirn/Austria
els that embrace MV products and sys-
Layout
tems ➔ 6. The ABB drives channel part- DAVILLA AG
ner network offers global quality with Zurich/Switzerland
local availability. It is a network of autho- Disclaimer

rized partners that takes the sales, The information contained herein reflects the views of
the authors and is for informational purposes only.
support and service business where it Readers should not act upon the information
belongs – close to the customer. contained herein without seeking professional
advice. We make publications available with the
understanding that the authors are not rendering
Working with the customer technical or other professional advice or opinions on
specific facts or matters and assume no
ABB understands that close collabora- liability whatsoever in connection with their use.
tion with the customer during product The companies of the ABB Group do not make any
warranty or guarantee, or promise, expressed or
development leads to well-received prod- implied, concerning the content or accuracy of the
ucts that fulfill the customer’s require- views expressed herein.
ments. Collaboration agreements con- Sami Raitakoski ISSN: 1013-3119

tinue to be an important factor in product ABB Power Products, Medium Voltage Products
www.abb.com/abbreview
development. One recent example is Zurich, Switzerland
the extensive undertaking to develop a sami.raitakoski@ch.abb.com
Innovation in motion 5 1

ABB
The corporate
technical journal
review
Medium-voltage products. Safe, reliable and

smart technologies for distributing electricity.
ABB serves utility, industrial and commercial customers with a range of medium-voltage
products to enable the safe, reliable and smart distribution of electricity.
The extensive global offering includes indoor and outdoor switchgear; instrument
transformers; distribution automation products; switching, limiting, measuring and sensing
devices; modular substation packages; and ancillary services.
www.abb.com/mediumvoltage

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­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­2 ABB review special report

Enabling a 11 Switching gears

­smarter and safer

16 Feeling the pressure

power network Simulating pressure rise in switchgear installation rooms

22 From the basic to the complex

Lowering environ- 30 Compact and eco-efficient

Reliability across 33 Earth science

chain Polymers processing enhanced by advanced computer

the market 44 Pulling together

­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­4 ABB review special report

Distribution evolution ­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­7

switchgear using Bushings

to the market in Metal top

the early 1980s by

Switchgear history and development state-of-the art technology is now used

technology is based on from which the arc

­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­8 ABB review special report

Air Oil Vacuum SF6

The next technology generation of MV

Distribution evolution ­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­9

­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­1 0 ABB review special report

Switching gears ­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­1 1

efficiency and reliability, and bines well-proven

remote monitoring and control surement and digi-

­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­1 2 ABB review special report

Switching gears ­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­1 3

Feature Level name:

MV network fault monitoring x x x x

Protection functions (including autorecloser) n/a n/a n/a x

LV network analog values measurement o o o o

Distribution transformer feeders emergency o o o o

communicate with the remote SCADA Secondary substation automation

lent devices. flexibility and compactness in mind. Each

in many cases, to define switchgear and the

be realized in the IED logic. a predefined IED

­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­1 4 ABB review special report

MV substations with RC (%)

8 Smart grid in Rome 9 Norwegian Smart Grid Centre

The system is installed on a new portion of

Switching gears ­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­1 5

­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­1 6 ABB review special report

Feeling the pressure ­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­1 7

P1 and P2 (kPa) (rel)

Time (s) (simulations)

only verify that the Time (s) (measurements)

switchgear enclo- 250

sure withstands 200

the pressure, but

also prove that 100

hot gases are 50

Time (s) (simulations)

­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­1 8 ABB review special report

Time (s) (simulations)

6 Pressure developments as in ➔ 5 with 0.3 m² relief opening (20 kA)

Time (s) (measurements)

Time (s) (simulations)

Feeling the pressure ­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­1 9

hot gas and subse- Time (s) (measurements)

quent pressure rise 60

tion room were

P2 and P3 (kPa) (rel)

2 ABB review special report

smarter and safer

4 ABB review special report

Distribution evolution 7

8 ABB review special report

Distribution evolution 9

1 0 ABB review special report

Switching gears 1 1

1 2 ABB review special report

Switching gears 1 3

1 4 ABB review special report

Switching gears 1 5

1 6 ABB review special report

Feeling the pressure 1 7

1 8 ABB review special report

Feeling the pressure 1 9

2 0 ABB review special report

Feeling the pressure 2 1

2 2 ABB review special report

From the basic to the complex 2 3

2 4 ABB review special report

From the basic to the complex 2 5

2 6 ABB review special report

Power house 2 7

2 8 ABB review special report

Power house 2 9

3 0 ABB review special report

Compact and eco-efficient 3 1

u sing the same thermal properties of alternative insulating

3 2 ABB review special report

Earth science 3 3

3 4 ABB review special report

Earth science 3 5

3 6 ABB review special report

Molding the future 3 7

3 8 ABB review special report

Molding the future 3 9

4 0 ABB review special report

Life-cycle support 4 1

4 2 ABB review special report

Life-cycle support 4 3

4 4 ABB review special report

Pulling together 4 5

4 6 ABB review special report

Pulling together 4 7