1. Application of Australian Standards
to HV Switchgear Routine Testing
Gabriel Ojeah
Director, Principal Engineer,
Gadian Electrical Engineering Services Pty Ltd
High Voltage Conference
Perth 2015
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2. Presentation Outline
 Purpose and Legal Status of Standards
 Basic Functions of Electrical Switchgear
 Main Components of Typical Switchgear Assembly
 Applicable Standards for HV Switchgear Routine Tests
 HV Switchgear Routine Tests Under AS 62271.200
 Switchgear components not specifically covered by AS
62271.200
 Summary
 Quiz
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3. Purpose and Legal Status of Standards
 Standards exist for various reasons including;
• Specifying minimum design requirements
• Specifying legislative requirements
• Providing purchasing specifications
• Providing technical conditions for contracts
• Providing guidance
 Legal Status of Standards
• Own their own, no legal status and no requirement for
compliance
• When called up in government legislation, they become
mandatory and can be subject to the scrutiny of the courts
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4. Basic Functions of Electrical Switchgear
 Basic functions of a switchgear assembly include;
• Control: Functional switching and emergency
switching
• Protection: Fast isolation of faulted circuits
• Isolation: Secure physical isolation of downstream
circuits for maintenance or other purposes
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5. Main Components of Typical Switchgear Assembly
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6. Main Components of Typical Switchgear Assembly
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7. Applicable Standards for HV Switchgear Routine
Tests
 Australian Standard 2067-2014 - Substations and High
Voltage Installations Exceeding 1 kV ac
• Still in Draft as at August 2015
• “factory-built, type-tested high voltage switchgear shall be
manufactured and tested in accordance with relevant
standards such as AS 62271.1, AS 62271.200, AS 62271.201
and AS 62271.203”
 AS 62271.200 - High-voltage switchgear and
controlgear Part 200: A.C. metal-enclosed switchgear
and controlgear for rated voltages above 1 kV and up
to and including 52 kV
• Calls up AS 62271.1 frequently
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8. Applicable Standards for HV Switchgear Routine
Tests
 Standards for the main components of the switchgear
to be considered as well;
• Circuit breakers
• Voltage transformers
• Current transformers
• Disconnectors and earth switches
• Contactors
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9. HV Switchgear Routine Tests Under AS 62271.200
 Dielectric test on the main circuit (AS 62271.200 subclause 7.1)
 Test on auxiliary and control circuits (AS 62271.200 subclause
7.2)
 Measurement of the resistance of the main circuit (AS 62271.200
subclause 7.3)
 Tightness Check (AS 62271.200 subclause 7.4)
 Design and Visual Checks (AS 62271.200 subclause 7.5)
 Partial Discharge Measurement (AS 62271.200 subclause 7.101)
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10. HV Switchgear Routine Tests Under AS 62271.200
 Mechanical operation tests (AS 62271.200 subclause 7.102)
 Pressure tests of gas-filled compartments (AS 62271.200
subclause 7.103)
 Tests of auxiliary electrical, pneumatic and hydraulic devices (AS
62271.200 subclause 7.104)
 Tests after erection on site (AS 62271.200 subclause 7.105)
 Measurement of fluid condition after filling on site (AS 62271.200
subclause 7.106)
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11. Dielectric test on the main circuit (AS 62271.200
subclause 7.1)
 Dry short-duration power-frequency withstand voltage test
 With the circuit breakers (and disconnectors) closed, test voltage
is applied to one phase at a time with the other two phases
earthed
 Test duration is 1 minute
 Test is deemed successful if no disruptive discharge occurs
 Rate of increase of test voltage, test duration and acceptance
criterion are specified in subclause 6.3.1 of IEC 60060-1 (High-
voltage test techniques – Part 1: General definitions and test
requirements
 Requirements of the measurement system are specified in IEC
60060-2 (High-voltage test techniques – Part 2: Measuring
systems)
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12. Dielectric test on the main circuit (AS 62271.200
subclause 7.1)
Power-Frequency Withstand Test Voltages Extracted from Table 1a of AS 62271.1
•Common values; phase-to-earth, and phase-to-phase
•Across the isolating distance; where the clearance between
open contacts is designed to meet the functional requirements for
disconnectors (i.e. minimum clearance in air requirement)
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13. Test on auxiliary and control circuits (AS 62271.200
subclause 7.2)
 Based on AS 62271.1 subclause 7.2 and consists of;
• Inspection of auxiliary and control circuits for
verification of conformity with circuit diagrams and
wiring diagrams
• Functional tests
• Verification of protection against electric shock
• Dielectric tests
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14. Test on auxiliary and control circuits (AS 62271.200
subclause 7.2)
 Inspection of auxiliary and control circuits;
• Physical damage
• Quality of the individual components
• Quality of the assembly
• Mounting
• Wiring termination
• Adequacy of terminal strips
• Adequacy of cable ducts
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15. Test on auxiliary and control circuits (AS 62271.200
subclause 7.2)
 Inspection of auxiliary and control circuits;
• Protection of wiring from heat & sharp objects, etc.
• Verification of General Arrangement drawings
against the physical installation (device location,
device details, etc.)
• Verification of Schematic drawings against the
physical installation (continuity of the physical
wiring, cable numbers, wire numbers, device details,
types of contacts, functional correctness, etc.)
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16. Test on auxiliary and control circuits (AS 62271.200
subclause 7.2)
 Functional tests
• Verify that the auxiliary and control circuits function
properly in conjunction with the other parts of the
switchgear
• Would include verification of voltage switching
through individual MCBs, mechanical/electrical
operation of switching devices, status of switching
device auxiliary contacts, anti-pumping device
operation, under-voltage relay operation, reduced
voltage operation of circuit breaker open & close
coils, etc.
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17. Test on auxiliary and control circuits (AS 62271.200
subclause 7.2)
 Verification of protection against electric shock;
• Done by visual inspection to ensure that metallic
partitions and shutters provide protection against
direct contact with the main circuit
• Also includes visual inspection to verify safe access
to auxiliary and control equipment that can be
touched during normal operation
• Where satisfactorily verification cannot be done
through visual inspection, earthed metallic parts are
checked for continuity to the earthing point (test at
30 A dc, result must be less than 0.1 Ω)
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18. Test on auxiliary and control circuits (AS 62271.200
subclause 7.2)
 Dielectric tests;
• Power-frequency voltage withstand tests at 1 kV for
1 second
• Test between the auxiliary & control circuits
connected together as a whole and the frame of the
switchgear
• For parts that are normally insulated from each
other, if practicable, also test between each part and
the other parts connected together and connected to
the switchgear frame
• Successful if no disruptive discharge occurs
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19. Measurement of the resistance of the main circuit
(AS 62271.200 subclause 7.3)
 Unlike the tests we have considered so far, AS 62271.1
is not applicable
 This test is subject to agreement between the
manufacturer and the user
 If the agreement is to use AS 62271.1 (subclause 7.3);
• Test current is between 50 A dc and rated current
• Acceptance Criterion: < 120% of the resistance
measured before the temperature-rise test during
Type testing
• High resistance at lower current must be verified at
a higher current as close as possible to the rated
current
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20. Tightness Check (AS 62271.200 subclause 7.4)
 Tightness check is based on leakage rate of the fluid
(gas or liquid)
 This test is based on AS 62271.1 subclause 7.4.
• Methods for measuring or calculating the leakage
are provided
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21. Design and Visual Checks (AS 62271.200 subclause
7.5)
 Checked to verify compliance with the purchase/design
specifications
 A comprehensive checklist can be built from the
information in subclause 5 (Design and construction) of
this Standard
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22. Partial Discharge Measurement (AS 62271.200
subclause 7.101)
 This test is subject to agreement between the
manufacturer and the user
 A test procedure is provided in Annex B of this
Standard
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23. Mechanical operation tests (AS 62271.200
subclause 7.102)
 Switching devices are operated several times to;
• ensure that they open and close correctly within the
specified limits of the supply voltage and pressure
• ensure that the mechanical interlocks work properly
 Withdrawable parts are inserted and removed several
times to verify satisfactory operation
 The specified number of operations for mechanical
operations tests is 5
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24. Pressure tests of gas-filled compartments (AS
62271.200 subclause 7.103)
 Applicable only to gas-filled compartment rated above
50 kPa (relative pressure)
 Test for 1 min at 130% of the design pressure
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25. Tests of auxiliary electrical, pneumatic and
hydraulic devices (AS 62271.200 subclause 7.104)
 Electrical, pneumatic and other interlocks together with
control devices that have a predetermined sequence of
operation are tested;
• five times in succession
• at the most unfavourable limit (upper or lower) of the
auxiliary supply
 An example would be attempting to close a circuit
breaker with the close release coil disabled and making
another attempt with the close release coil energised at
a voltage just above the lower limit
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26. Tests of auxiliary electrical, pneumatic and
hydraulic devices (AS 62271.200 subclause 7.104)
 This test differs from functional test because it is
conducted repeatedly under adverse conditions
 The test is considered to be satisfactory if the auxiliary
device;
• Operates properly without adjustments between
repeated operations
• Remains in good operating condition after the tests
• The ease of operation is practically the same before
and after the tests
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27. Tests after erection on site (AS 62271.200
subclause 7.105)
 Test to check correct operation
 The following tests are required;
• Main circuit short-duration power-frequency
withstand voltage test at 80 % of the values
indicated in subclause 7.1
• Tightness tests as specified in subclause 7. 4
• For gas-filled compartments which are filled onsite,
measurement of fluid condition as specified in
subclause 7.106 is conducted after filling
 The same operational tests conducted during the
factory routine test would be beneficial
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28. Measurement of fluid condition after filling on site
(AS 62271.200 subclause 7.106)
 Applicable to all fluid-filled compartments
 Condition (pressure, volume, etc.) of the fluid is
determined in order to verify compliance with the
manufacturer's specification.
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29. Switchgear components not specifically covered by
AS 62271.200
 Circuit Breakers: AS 62271.100 (High-voltage
switchgear and controlgear Part 100: High-voltage
alternating current circuit-breakers)
 Disconnectors and Earth Switches: AS 62271.102
(High-voltage switchgear and controlgear Part 102:
Alternating current disconnectors and earthing switches)
 AS 60470 (High-voltage alternating current contactors
and contactor-based motor starters)
 Current Transformers: AS 60044.1 (Instrument
transformers Part 1: Current transformers)
 Voltage Transformers: AS 60044.2 (Instrument
transformers Part 1: Inductive voltage transformers)
 Protection Relays: Refer to system functional design
specification and IEC 60255 series Standards
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30. Summary
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31. Quiz
 How do we know whether a Standard is legally binding,
i.e. called up by legislation?
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32. Quiz
 Here in Australia, we often here the term “Medium
Voltage” used when referring to switchgear and other
electrical equipment. Which technically correct voltage
range does this refer to?
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33. Quiz
 For power-frequency voltage withstand tests after
erection on site, AS 62271.200 calls for de-rating the
test voltage to 80%. For subsequent routine tests
throughout the life of the switchgear, is it always safe to
continue testing at 80%?
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