earthing concept

1. EARTHING CONCEPTS

2. 2
Earthing in a EHV Substation
• Providing adequate ‘Earthing’ in a substation is an important safety
measure.
• Earthing means connecting the electrical equipment to the general mass
of earth of low resistance.
• Objective is to provide under and around the substation a surface of
uniform potential
-- At near zero or absolute earth potential

3. 3
Earthing in a EHV Substation
1. Objective:
• The touch and step potential shall be within limits under all conditions
including fault condition
• Grounding resistance shall be lower.
• Effective earthing system shall aim at providing protection to life and
property against dangerous potentials under fault conditions

4. 4
Earthing in a EHV Substation
I.E.Rules 1956
•Rule 92
• Every substation /generating station exposed to lightning
shall adopt efficient means for diverting the electrical
surges due to lightning to earth
• Earth lead of any lightning arrestor shall not pass through
any iron or steel pipe.
• It shall be taken directly, as far as possible, to a separate
earth electrode and/or junction of the earth mat.
• Bends Shall be avoided where ever practicable
• Earth screen if provided for lightning protection shall be
connected to main earth grid.

5. 5
Earthing in a EHV Substation
I.E.Rules 1956
• Functioning of earthing in a substation
• It shall be capable of passing maximum earth fault current
• The passage of fault current does not result in any thermal or
mechanical damage to the insulation of connected plant / equipment
• Every exposed conductor part and extraneous conductive part may be
connected to the earth.
• There is no danger to the personnel
• Ensure equi-potential bonding within the power system
• No dangerous potential gradients (step or touch or transfer potentials)
shall occur under normal or abnormal operating conditions
• To minimize electromagnetic interference between power and control/
communication system

6. 6
Earthing System
Points to be earthed in a substation
• The neutral point of each separate system should
have an independent earth, in turn interconnected
with the station grounding mat.
• Equipment frame work and other non-current
parts (two connections)
• All extraneous metallic frame works not associated
with equipment ( two connections)
• Lightning arrestors should have independent
earths, in turn connected to the station grounding
grid.

7. 7
Earthing System
Points to be earthed-cont’d
•Over head lightning screen shall also be connected to
main ground mat.
•Operating handles of Isolators with a auxiliary earth
mat underneath, if necessary.
•Peripheral fencing
•Buildings inside the switch yard.
•Transformer Neutrals shall be connected directly to
the earth electrode by two independent MS strips

8. 8
Earthing and grounding -distinction
•Grounding:- connection of current carrying parts to
ground. Ex :Generator or transformer neutral.
•This is for equipment safety.
•In a resistance grounded system it limits the core
damage in stator of rotating machines.
•In solidly grounded system substantial ground fault
current flows enabling fault detection and faster
clearance.

9. 9
Earthing and grounding -distinction
• Earthing:- connection of non current carrying parts to ground. Ex :
Metallic enclosure.
• This is for human safety.
• Earthing system plays no role under balanced power system conditions.
• Under ground fault conditions, enables ground fault current to return
back to source without endangering human safety.

10. 10
Basics of Earthing
Resistivity of earth
Resistivity of earth:-
•Mother earth is a bad conductor.
•Resistivity is normally around 100 ohm – mt.
•GI of 65x10mm section will have same resistance as
copper of 25x4mm section.
•Corresponding figure for earth is 800x800mt (158acres)
•Metallic conductor is a preferred alternative to earth to
bring the fault current back to source.

11. 11
Electric field – Earth resistance
• Current flows through a series of hemi-spherical shells of earth
of continuously increasing cross sections.
• Almost 95% of final resistance is contributed by soil within
5mts of the electrode.
• If current is discharged from a grid towards another grid at
B100 km away, only soil with in 5 to10 mts of the electrode
contributes maximum resistance.
• Earth beyond, offers very minimum resistance.
• This is the concept of treating the soil around electrode of an
earth pit.

12. 12
Electric field – Earth resistance
•Earth with its huge mass offers equi-potential
everywhere
•A very large charge is required to change earth
potential everywhere
•Disturbance due to current injection at a point is felt,
only locally.

13. 13
Substation earthing
Design of Earth mat
Design depends upon the following parameters
• Durational and magnitude of the fault current
• Resistivity of the surface layer of the soil
• Resistivity of the soil
• Magnitude of current that the human body can safely carry
• Permissible earth potential raise that may take place due to the fault conditions
• Shock duration
• Material of Earth- mat conductor.
• Earth- mat geometry

14. 14
Substation earthing
Design of Earth mat
•Parameters for the calculation of Maximum
permissible step and touch potential
• Fault duration :- Fault clearing time of back up protection is
adopted
• Modern protection systems provides for fast acting back up
protection
• Considerable saving can be made by optimizing the size of
the conductor of earthing grid by considering lesser fault
duration.
• These will change the earth potential raise due to which
Step and Touch potentials arise.

15. 15
Earth mat parameters
Let go current
• Maximum safe current a person can tolerate and still release grip of an
energised object, using muscles affected by the current
• The magnitude of let go current adopted in calculating maximum
permissible step and touch potentials (As per IEEE – 80 – 1976)
for man – 9 milli amps
for woman – 6milli amps

16. 16
Substation Earthing
Non-fibrillation current
• Developed by Dalziel and approved by AIEE80-1963
Magnitude of power frequency alternating current (mA)
that a human body of average weight( 50kgs to 70 kgs) can
with stand without ventricular fibrillation,
I =0.116 for a body of 50kgs wt.
√t
I =0.157 for a body of 70kgs wt.
√t
Av. Value of human body resistance (dry) – 8 to 9 K-ohms
Adopted value for designing Earthing system– 1Kohms

17. 17
Substation Earthing
Non fibrillation current– contd
• Non fibrillating current adopted for earth grid design in India.
Magnitude of power frequency alternating current that a
human body of average weight( 50kgs to 70 kgs) can with
stand without ventricular fibrillation,
I =0.165
√t
• I = rms current through human body in amps
• t =durtation of shock in seconds
• Assumption /considerations in deriving the above equation
--The duration of shock is from 8 milli-seconds to 3 seconds

18. 18
Substation Earthing
Fault duration and magnitude
• During a line to earth or double line earth fault
current through earthing system causes
a) Heating of earthing conductor
b) Potential gradients in the soil
• For earthing design single line to ground fault is
considered as
• Most of the faults are of this type
• Current through earth in case of single line to earth fault is higher that in
the later case.

19. 19
Substation Earthing
Fault duration and magnitude-contd.
For determining maximum permissible step and
touch potentials
•Fault duration corresponding to maximum fault
clearing time of back up protection relays are
considered
•Normally in modern sub station clearance time of
primary protection is 0.2 sec, ie., 200 milli sec and
clearance time for back up protection is 0.5 sec, ie.,
500 milli sec
•A fault duration time of 0.5 sec (500 mill sec) is
adopted for design

20. 20
• Earthing conductor once placed under earth may not be inspected
normally.
• Prudent to make it capable of carrying maximum possible current for
maximum time.
• If felt necessary and if it is economical, fault duration of 1 sec can be
adopted for design.
Substation Earthing
Fault duration and magnitude-contd.

21. 21
Substation Earthing
Soil resistivity
•To design most economically and technically sound
earthing system accurate data of soil resistivity and its
variation with in substation soil is essential.
•Resistivity of soil in many substations has been found
varying -at times between 1 and 10,000 ohm –
meters.
•Variation in soil Resistivity with depth is more
predominant as compared to variation in horizontal
distances.

22. 22
Substation Earthing
Soil resistivity
• Large variations in stratification of earth layers will result in
large variations in earth resistivity.
• Highly refined techniques for the determination of resistivity
of homogeneous soil( non – uniform soil) is available.
• As resistivity of soil varies widely based on moisture content
earth resistivity readings to be obtained in summer or dry
season.
• Weiner's 4 electrode method is generally adopted for testing.

23. 23
Substation Earthing- Soil resistivity
Weiner's 4 electrode method
•Earth resistivity tests shall be carried out at least in 8
directions
•If results obtained indicate wide variation, test shall be
conducted in more number directions.
•Four electrodes are driven into earth along a straight
line at equal intervals.
•Current is passed through two outer electrodes and
earth.
•Voltage difference is measured between two inner
electrodes.

24. 24
Substation Earthing
Soil resistivity
• Current flowing through the earth produces are electric field
proportional to current density and resistivity of soil.
• Voltage measured is proportional to the ratio of voltage to the current
i.e R
ρ= 4sΠR - __s__
1+ 2s___ √s²+e²
√s²+4e²

25. 25
Substation Earthing
Soil resistivity
•Where
ρ= Resistivity of soil in ohm-meter
s= Distance between two successive electrodes in
meter
R= Ratio of voltage to current or electrode resistances
in ohm
e= depth of burial of electrodes in meters
•In case depth of burial of the electrodes in the ground
(e) is negligible compared to electrodes spacing. This
formula is the adjusted ρ=2ΠsR
(This formula is normally adopted in AP Transco Ltd.)

26. 26
Substation Earthing
Measurement of Soil resistivity
There point method
• Two temporary electrodes spikes are driven in to the earth at
150ft and 75ft respectively from earth electrode under test.
• Former is for current and the later is for voltage.
• Ohmic values of earth electrode resistances are obtained using
earth meager
R = ρ log 10 (4L/P) where
2 Π
R = Electrode resistance in ohm
L = Length in cms of the rod driven under ground
D = Dia in cms of the rod
ρ = Earth resistivity in ohm-meter

27. 27
Resistance of the earthing system
R = ρ + ρ
4r L
ρ = Soil resistivity in ohm meter
L = Length of conductor buried in meters
r = radius in meters of circle having the same area as
that occupied by the earth mat.
The value of the R should be less than the
impendence to ground values stated below

28. 28
Earthing System
Permissible resistance of earthing system
•Primary requirements : Impendence to ground (resistance
of earthing system)
•Small substations – 2 Ohms
•EHV substations up to 220 kV– 1 Ohm
•Power stations and 400 kV substations – 0.5 Ohms
•Distribution transformer - 5 Ohms.
•In order to avoid abnormal shift of the neutral potential,
earth resistance of the station earthing system shall be
normally less than or equal to 1ohm.

29. 29
Substation Earthing
Step and touch potential
•Step potential - Difference in surface potentials
experienced by a man bridging a distance of 1 mt with
his feet, with out contracting any other grounded
object.
•Touch potential- potential difference between the
earth potential raise and the surface potential at the
point where a person is standing touching an earthed
structure.
•Tolerable touch potential of human body is less than
tolerable step potential.

30. 30
Substation Earthing
Step and touch potential-contd
•In any switch yard, chances of exposure to ‘Touch
potential’ is higher than that to ‘step potential’.
•Resistance offered by the feet of a person against
‘Touch potential’ is much less compared to that
against ‘Step potential’.
•Hence ‘Touch potential ’ is more critical for design
while Step potential is usually academic.

31. 31
Substation Earthing
Step and touch potential- contd.
• Step potential is independent of the diameter ( cross- section)
of the earthing conductor.
• For 400% increase in diameter, reduction in Touch potential is
only 35%.
• Thus cross- section has minor influence on Touch and Step
potentials.
• Length of earthing conductor has significant effect on Touch
and Step potentials.

32. 32
Substation Earthing
Step and touch potential
• Tolerable Step and touch potentials (CBIP Publication no. 223)
• E step (LMT) = 0.116 (1000+1.5Cs(hs.K.)ρs) (volts)
√t
E touch (LMT) = 0.116 (1000+ 6Cs.(hs.K.)ρs) (volts)
√t
Where Cs= Reduction factor for de-rating normal
value of surface layer resisvity, a function of K.
K= ρ-- ρs
ρ+ ρs
ρ, ρs are resistivities of soil and surface layer respectively.
cs =1 when crushed rock has resistivity equal to that of soil.
Otherwise it is derived from reference graphs ( Cs. vs hs.)
hs = thickness of surface layer in meter.
t = Duration of shock current flow in secs.

33. 33
Substation Earthing
Step and touch potential-contd.
Tolerable Step and touch potentials as adopted by certain utilities.
• E step (LMT) = IB(RG +1.5Cs.ρs) (volts)------(1)
E touch (LMT) = IB (RG + 6Cs.ρs) (volts) ------(2)
RG= body resistance in Ohms= 1000
• IB= Permissible body current of human beings.
• Cs=Reduction factor(0 to 1)=1-(k / (2h+0.09) ------(3)
• k=0.09x(1- ρ/ρs)
• ρs= surface layer resistivity ( taken as 2000 ohm- mt.)
• h= Thickness of gravel in cm.
• ρ= Soil resistivity ( taken as 100 ohm- mt.)

34. 34
Substation Earthing
Step and touch potential-contd.
• Sample calculation for E step (LMT) and E touch (LMT)
• Data
• Weight of the man =70kgs
Fault duration =0.5 sec
Resistivity Soil = ρ=100 ohm-mt, Surface layer =ρs=2000 ohm-mt,
h= Thickness of gravel in cm.=10cm
From (3), Cs=0.705
From table in slide 24 for a 70 kgs man and for a shock duration of 0.5 sec IB=
222mA
From (1) E step (LMT)= 691V
From (2) E touch (LMT) =2100V

35. 35
Methodology of design as adopted in APTransco
Size of earth mat conductor (steel strip ) Shall be :
A (Steel) = 0.0013 x I √t sq. mm for bolted joints
= 0.011 x I √t sq. mm for welded joints
Where A = Area of Cross section
I = Fault current in Amps. at the station
= Fault MVA x 1000
√3 x system kV
and t = Time in seconds during which current is
applied
Earthing System
Size of earth mat conductor

36. 36
Earthing materials
• Determination of size of conductor for earth mat.
- Based on thermal stability determined by an approximate
formula of IEEE - 80-1986
A = I/ √( TCAP x10 –4) I n (Ko + Tm)
tc x iØr ρr (Ko + Ta)
Where
In case of steel
A = I x 12.3 √tc mm² for welded joints
= I x 15.13 √tc mm² for bolted joints
In case tc = Duration of current =1sec
A = 12.3 x I mm² for welded joints
= 15.3 x I mm² for bolted joints

37. 37
Earthing materials
• Based on Mechanical ruggedness of conductor and for easy installation.
Ratio of max width to thickness =7.5
Thickness for flat shall not be less than = 3mm (As adopted 5to
6mm)
Minimum dia for steel rod = 5mm
• Standard sizes of conductor as, As per IS 1730 – 1989
(I)10 x 6mm² (II)20x6mm²
(II)30 x 6mm² (IV)40 x 6mm²
(IV)50 x 6mm² (VI)60 x 6mm²
(VI)50 x 8mm² (VIII)65 x 8mm²
(IX)75 x 12mm² (X)100 x 16mm²
- For 33kV Substations 75x8mm and 50x6mm

38. 38
Earthing materials
Up to 220 kV substation
• Earth mat
a) Peripheral or main earth mat : 100x 16m MS flat
b) Internal earth mat : 50x8m MS flat placed at 5 m apart
c) Branch connections : cross section not less than 64.5 sq.m
d) Raisers : 50x8m MS flat
For 400 kV substation
• Earth mat
a) Peripheral or main earth mat :40mm dia MS rod of 3mt. length
b) Internal earth mat 50x8mm MS flat placed at 5m apart
c) Raisers : 50x8m MS flat
Where necessary, 40mm rods will be driven in to earth vertically along the
periphery of the earth mat.

39. 39
Pipe earthing
a) EHT Substations : (i) Cast iron pipes 125 mm in
diameter 2.75 m long
and not less than 9.5 mm thick.
(ii) Pipes 50.8 mm in dia and 3.05 m
long
1. Joints are to be kept down to the minimum
number
2. All joints and connections in earth grid are to be
brazed, riveted, sweated, bolted or welded.
3. For rust protection welds shall be treated with
Barium chromate.

40. 40
Earthing
2. Welded surfaces to be painted with red lead and
aluminium paint and then with bitumen.
3. Joints to be broken periodically shall be bolted and
joint faces tinned.
4. All exposed steel earthing conductors should be
protected with bituminous paint
5. All joints in steel earthing system shall be welded
except joints to be removed for testing shall be
bolted.

41. 41
Earthing system
Lowering of earth impedance
2) Lowering of earth impedance
In places where soil resistivity is high steps to be taken to reduce earth
impedance by one or combination of following:-
a. Connection of substation grid with a remote ground grid and adjacent
grounding facilities.
b. Use of deep driven ground rods or longer ground rods or maximum number of
ground rods along the perimeter of the earth grid.
c. Use of foundation rods as auxiliary grids where feasible
d. Formation of auxiliary grids if soil of low earth resistivity is available close by
e. Max. touch potential occurs in the corner of mesh of the grid. No equipment
are to be kept in such areas. higher values of touch potential than the
tolerable limit can be accepted if step potential are within permissible limits
f. If equipment is to be kept at corners of the mesh. Auxiliary grids are to be
created at those corner to limit touch potential.

42. 42
Earthing System
Earthing of switch yard fencing
• Two methods of fence earthing
a) Extension of substation earth grid up to 0.5 to 1.5 m beyond the fence,
bonding the fence to the grid at regular intervals.
b) Keeping the fence beyond the perimeter of the switch yard earthing grid,
providing its own earthing system not connecting to the main earthing
grid.
• In the former case substantial reduction in the effective substation
earthing resistance is possible but at additional cost.
• In the later case any inadvertent connection could give rise to dangerous
potential under fault condition unless special care is taken.
• Electrical isolation of fence into short section with individual earthing is
required where fence is closer to a single phase reactor or an electrical
plant generating large electromagnetic fields.

43. 43
Earthing System
Earthing of switch yard fencing- con…
Methods of earthing of fencing – As per CBIP report
A.
• Design permits extension of earth mat within 1.5mt inside perimeter fencing
• Electrical isolation of fencing can be ensured
• Isolate fencing for earth mat
• Running of independent earth conductor underneath boundary and
connecting it to fencing at frequent intervals.
B.
• Design permits extension of earth mat up to fencing
• Calculated touch potential within safe limit
• Extending the earth mat up to perimeter fencing and connecting the fencing
at frequent intervals to earth mat
• Spreading crushed metal 1.5mt beyond fencing

44. 44
Earthing System
Earthing of switch yard fencing- con…
C.
• Design permits extension of earth mat up to fencing
• Calculated touch potential beyond the fence above the permissible limit for touch
potential
• Termination of earth mat within 1.5 mt of fencing
• Fence electrically isolated and independently earthed by running an earthed conductor
underneath the fence connecting it to the fence at frequent intervals

45. 45
Earthing of gas insulated substation
•In GIS multi-components like buses, switch gear
associated equipment are present in an earthed
metallic housing
•They are subjected to same magnitude of fault current
and require low impendence earthing
•Compared to a conventional substation, as GIS
requires only 25% of land area design of earth mat is
comparatively difficult.
•Metallic enclosures of GIS have induced currents,
specially during internal earth faults.

46. 46
Earthing of gas insulated substation
• Inductive voltage drop occurring with GIS assembly shall be taken into
account for the design of earth mat
• Touch voltage criteria = √(FA)2+(EG)2 < ET (max)
Where FA = Actually calculated touch voltage
EG = Max value of metal to metal voltage difference
on and between GIS enclosures or between
GIS enclosures and supporting structures
ET (max) = maximum permissible touch
voltage
• Metallic enclosures of GIS may be continuous or not
• In either case provision of earth bond frequently is essential to minimize
hazards of touch potential
• In addition, earthing of GIS structures and service platforms at frequent
intervals are to be done.

47. 47
Thank you