EVALUATION OF SUBSTATION AUTOMATION WITH IEC61850

Seksan Vararaksit1, Knathip Spuntupong2

Designs and Supervision Department Metropolitan Electricity Authority (MEA) Bangkok, Thailand 1
2

seksanva@mea.or.th knathipsp@mea.or.th

AbstractModern substation automation using Intelligent Electronics Device (IED) such as numerical protection relay and/or Bay Control Unit (BCU) will integrate control, protection and many functions to reduce system complexity. Moreover, new international standard such as IEC61850 allows multi-vendor interoperability, hardwired reduction and ease of integration. However, it is still difficult for utility to evaluate system configuration, allocate function and accept the final system. This paper will present Metropolitan Electricity Authority (MEA) concept design, experience and practical solution for system configuration, function allocation and system integration.

opportunity. The project is mainly automated by CSCS with IEC61850 and back-up by fully conventional control and protection system. The concept design is in the following section. 2. DESIGN CONCEPT In MEA pilot project, Chidlom Terminal Station, 230/69/12kV 3*300MVA is pre-designed by MEA and consultant referring to the Guidelines for Implementing Substation Automation Using IEC61850 [2]. After internal discussion, MEA agrees to have both CSCS and backup convention remote control in the station. CSCS Specific requirements are summarized in table 1. However, special safety function such as interlocking still requires hard-wiring. More details and requirements are in technical specification. The concept drawings are mainly in single line diagram, equipment layout, CSCS configuration. Table 1 Summarize of Chidlom CSCS specific requirement Topics CSCS specific requirement Function All automatic function Separate protection relay Separate fault record Communication Depend on system redundancy Topology and system response time Redundancy N-1 contingency Performance Control response < 1s Status change response < 2s Analog value response < 4s Time resolution < 10ms 3. PRACTICAL SOLUTION There are many typical CSCS communication configurations or topologies even in the standard. Although star configuration is the most recommendation [3], MEA still allows many vendor configurations in order to achieve performance and failure requirement. This will depend on performance and availability calculation and the conformance testing in the final acceptance state. Chidlom Terminal Station CSCS configuration is shown in figure 1.

Keywords: Substation Automation, IEC61850, System Configuration, System integration 1. INTRODUCTION Substation Automation (SA) was introduced in Metropolitan Electricity Authority (MEA) more than 10 years. In brief, MEA has about 150 substations which mostly controlled by Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) via substation Remote Terminal unit (RTU). Only some of them are Computerized Substation Control System (CSCS) which has Human Machine Interface (HMI) and Control Unit (CU) within substation. When installing CSCS, MEA faces many difficulties to get the system operate as they need. Some information can not be collected because each relay or Intelligent Electronics Device (IED) vendor has his/her legacy communication protocol, and MEA has no flexibility to configure and maintain the system. Moreover, the majority of information available in installed IEDs especially in present protection relay is abandoned and left uncollected because traditional integration techniques were designed to exclusively support SCADA. Rather than being conceived as another protocol, IEC 61850 was created to be an internationally standardized method of communications and integration with goals of supporting systems built from multi-vendor IEDs networked together to perform protection, monitoring, automation, metering, and control. [1] Although MEA has interested in IEC61850 interoperability and has a recommendation from their consultant that only RTU or CU is recommended to be IEC61850, there is still ambiguity; Therefore, MEA plans to initiate a pilot project which is Chidlom Terminal Station to investigate the

Figure 1 Chidlom Terminal Station CSCS configuration [4] 4. FUNCTION ALLOCATION AND SYSTEM INTEGRATION First single line diagram and CSCS equipment layout is initiated to allocate physical device and function. However, some functions can not be visualized simply by physical device. So there is a guideline example of a relationship between function, logical nodes, and physical devices that can be applied for CSCS function allocation. Load shedding function, for example, will be allocated in Bay Control Unit logical node at bay level or Central Unit logical node at station level depends on function response time and physical device memory. The IEC61850 communication standard provides a System Configuration Language (SCL) that can be used to configure communications for both IEDs and the entire system. It involves the use of four types of files, created for different purposes. ICD (IED Capabilities Description):- the communications capabilities of an individual IED SSD (System Specification Description):- the functional specification of the secondary system SCD (System Configuration Description):- created from ICD and SSD and used for all IEDs CID (Configured IED Description):- download back to configure an individual IED The files are represented in XML (Extensible Mark-up Language) which are enabling the interoperable exchange of configuration and capability information between supplier tools. DIGSI (plug-in for 61850 stations) can provide IED configuration tool and system configuration tools. It is necessary that the tools can download additional IED configurationally data that is proprietary in nature, but which does not affect system interoperability. Chidlom Terminal Station system configuration process is illustrated in figure 2.
Library

ICDFile
IED Configuration Tool (DIGSI)

SSD File

Librar y

System Specification Tool

System Configuration Tool (Part of Digsi)

SCDFile
CID-File (optional) parameter file

IED Configuration Tool (Digsi)

Figure 2 Chidlom Terminal Station SCL configuration process [4]

5. ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES CSCS with IEC61850 will result in seamless communication architecture in the future because the standard covers all aspect for the communication within substation. It also supports important issues for engineering, conformance and testing procedures. By allocating some useful function in logical nodes, IED with IEC61850 can help utilities to reduce more hard-wiring in the future and get more efficient operation information in time. The standard provides a section on conformance testing procedures, which has been established by the UCA International Users Group (UCAIUG). It is important for users to understand the value and importance of this testing program, to have a realistic view of the limitations, and to understand what is required to achieve a successful implementation. Testing and certification is described for system components, including relays and other IEDs, gateway servers, client/server software, integration tools, and certification software. A description and roadmap is given on how to use the certification process to improve the end-user integration experience. However, the system architecture and the quality of each function are still independent and free so that the first experience can confirm the expectation in the future. 6. CONCLUSION AND FUTURE WORK Applications like in CSCS, Standards are very comprehensive and mandatory for customer products, and may not be covered all needed of performances and requirements. That should be substituted by individual utilitys Bests Practice; however, the final goal is that the system is still running safely and performing reliably with specified function. After learning and knowing from useful CSCS experience, utility will get their own practical manual along with IEC61850 standard. Moreover, typical requirements and drawings for terminal station should be carefully specified. REFERENCES [1] Klauss-Peter Brand, Volker Lohmann, Wolfgang Wimmer,Substation Automation Handbook, ABB, 2003 [2] EPRI Guidelines for Implementing Substation Automation Using IEC61850, the International Power System Information Modeling Standard, 2004 [3] V.M. Flores, D. Espiniosa, J. Alzate, and D. Dolezilek, Case Study: Design and Implementation of IEC 61850 from Multiple Vendors at CFE La Venta II, SEL, 2007 [4] Siemens, Preliminary CSCS Configuration for Chidlom Terminal Station, 2008 [5] IEC 61850 Communication Networks and Systems in Substations, 2003 [6] UCI Recommend Specification for RTU and CSCS, 2005

[7] E.A. Udren, D. Dolezilek, IEC61850: Role of Conformance Testing in Successful Integration, SEL, 2006 [8] G.W. Sheer, Comparison of Fiber Optics Star and Ring Topology for Electric Power Substation Communication, SEL, 1999 [9] D. Woodward, The Hows and Whys of Ethernet Networks in Substations, SEL, 2001 [10] D. Dolezilek, IEC61850: What You Need to Know about Functionality and Practical Implementation, SEL, 2005

BIOGRAPHIES Seksan Vararaksit received a B.Eng. in Electrical Engineering from King Mongkuts Institute of Technology North Bangkok, Thailand. He has been working with MEA for 6 years, as a protection and control system design engineer. Now he is a senior engineer of protective relays and control system design section. Knathip Spuntupong received a B.Eng. in Electrical Engineering from Kasetsart University, Thailand and M.Sc. in Electric Power Engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnics Institute, USA. He has been working with MEA for 14 years, as a substation design engineer. Now he is a chief of protective relays and control system design section.