Basic Design Considerations
Safety of Life
• Equipment and installation shall conform to relevant codes and standards.
• Provide adequate working space and safe clearances around the electrical equipment,
dead-front equipment for low- and medium-voltage systems, insulated bus and
connections for metal-enclosed equipment, and adequate system and equipment
grounding.
• Design the system to permit maintenance of equipment and circuits in a de-energized state
without plant shutdown.
• Provide fully rated and protected equipment to withstand maximum short circuit and load
currents.
• Provide personnel protective equipment (PPE) such as insulated gloves, fire-retardant or
fireproof clothing, and warning signs.
• Provide operations and maintenance instructions, such as built-in wiring and interlocking
diagrams.
• Install emergency lighting for the safety and safe exit of personnel during power outage.
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Basic Design Considerations
Reliability of Utility Power Supply
• Quality and Quantity
• Reliability of Utility Power Supply
• Dedicated Vs Shared Line
• Transmission vs. Distribution Voltage
• Utility Power System Disturbances (Lighting Strikes, Ground
Faults)
• Mitigating Risks
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Basic Design Considerations
Reliability of Plant Distribution System
• Plan Early: Address power distribution in early design stages.
• Follow Best Practices: Utilize IEEE Gold Book guidelines & failure data.
• Key Strategies:
• Modern, Standard, Reliable Equipment: Ensure quality components.
• Good Installation & Maintenance: Implement proper practices.
• Redundancy: Use dual feeds from separate sources to critical areas.
• Above-Ground Distribution: Minimize buried cables for better reliability.
• System Neutral Grounding: Reduce transient overvoltage for safer
operation.
• Coordinated Protection: Isolate faults quickly, minimize damage &
outages.
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Basic Design Considerations
Simplicity & Fault Resilience
• Fault Focus: Industrial faults mainly caused by insulation & human
error.
• Simplicity Matters: Design with radial feeds for:
• Clear Fault Isolation: Easier identification & faster repairs.
• Reduced Interlocking: Less complexity, higher safety.
• Efficient Maintenance: Simplified procedures & faster response.
Voltage Regulation and Flicker
Cost
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Plant Distribution Systems
• Main Substation: Receives high-voltage (HV) power from utility.
• Primary Distribution: Steps down HV to medium voltage (MV) for
major plant areas.
• Secondary Distribution: Steps down MV to low voltage (LV) for
specific equipment and needs.
• In-plant Generation: Back-up power source within the plant, optional.
• Each industry often has unique electrical system features based on
experience.
• Studying similar plant systems before designing your own is highly
recommended.
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Plant Distribution Systems
Emergency Power Supply
• Protects essential equipment & processes from utility power loss.
Examples: Motors, valves, lighting, controls, etc.
• Diesel Generators: Provide backup power in such situations. Automatic start within 20
seconds of outage. Regular testing ensures readiness.
• Key Design Considerations:
• kW Rating: Matches active power demand.
• kVA Rating: Accounts for:
• Continuous load (active + reactive power).
• Motor starting needs (low power factor).
• Nonlinear loads (VFDs, derating necessary).
• Generator kVA & Impedance: Optimized for harmonic distortion tolerance.
• Neutral Grounding: Resistance grounding applied for safety.
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Plant Distribution Systems
Powering Plant Monitoring & Control Systems
• Critical Need: Reliable, disturbance-resistant power for monitoring & control
systems.
• Requirements:
• Meets voltage, frequency, and harmonic requirements.
• Unaffected by voltage dips, sags, and transients.
• Solution: Uninterruptible Power Supply (UPS)
• Consists of rectifier, battery, inverter, and static transfer switch.
• Provides filtered, regulated, and isolated AC power.
• Typical Systems:
• Non-redundant UPS: Cost-effective for basic protection.
• Redundant UPS: High availability for critical systems.
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Nonredundant UPS
One charger and one inverter is used
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Redundant UPS
Two chargers, two inverters, and an alternated AC
source from an emergency or standby diesel
generator are used to maintain the power supply
under multiple contingencies
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Plant Layout Types
• Simple Radial
• Expanded Radial
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Plant Layout Types - Primary Selective
• Two primary feeders are brought to each
substation transformer.
• Each feeder can handle the entire plant load if
the other fails.
• Backup switching occurs on the high-
voltage (primary) side of the transformers.
• This offers higher reliability and faster fault
recovery but is a more complex and expensive
option.
• Suitable for critical applications where
downtime is unacceptable.
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Plant Layout Types - Secondary Selective
• Uses a tie-circuit breaker to connect
two transformer stations or double-
ended stations.
• Backup switching occurs on the low-
voltage (secondary) side of the
transformers.
• Offers flexibility for planned outages
and load balancing but may have
higher fault levels during transfer.
• Less complex and expensive than
primary selective, but fault clearance
might be slower.
• Suitable for applications where some
downtime is acceptable, and flexibility
is needed.
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Key Differences
Feature Primary Selective Secondary Selective
Backup feeder location High-voltage (primary) Low-voltage (secondary)
Slower (potential higher
fault levels during
Fault clearing speed Faster transfer)
Complexity More complex Less complex
Cost More expensive Less expensive
Reliability Higher Lower
Non-critical applications
Applications Critical applications with need for flexibility
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Plant Layout Types - Sparing Transformer
• Shared Backup: Multiple low-voltage transformer stations use a single
spare transformer.
• Load Transfer: When a transformer fails, its load automatically
switches to the spare.
• Minimized Redundancy: Reduces spare transformer capacity
compared to dedicated backups.
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Plant Power Demand and Load Estimates
• Accurate power demand estimates are crucial for:
• Project feasibility studies
• Contract negotiations with power utilities
• Sizing electrical equipment
• Estimate is needed for
• Plant power demand
• Power cost
• Electrical load in different areas
• Major electrical equipment selection
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Energy Consumption
• Historical data on energy consumption per unit of production provides a
valuable starting point.
• Use this data to estimate:
• Energy consumption based on plant output and operating hours
• Average power for the period
• Power demand for each facility and net demand for the plant
• Monthly and yearly power cost (energy & demand charges)
×
• 𝐴𝑣𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑔𝑒 𝑃𝑜𝑤𝑒𝑟 =
• 𝑀𝑎𝑥𝑖𝑚𝑢𝑚 𝐷𝑒𝑚𝑎𝑛𝑑 =
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Example
• An example illustrating the method for estimating the power
requirement and power demand for an alloy steel plant producing 60,000
tons/year of finished product is given in tables 2.1 and 2.2, respectively.
A plant producing FeCr (ferrochromium) operates 24 hours per day and
365 days per year, whereas the operating period for other plant facilities
depends on the production requirement.
• Tariff as agreed with the power utility:
• $6.00/kW of maximum power demand
• $6.50/kW in excess or less than 80% of contract demand
• $0.04/kW for energy consumed.
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Estimate of power cost:
• Power demand (based on a 30-min period) = 39.200 MW
• Energy consumption per year = 166.3 × 10 kWh
• Energy consumption per month = 13860 × 10 kWh (based on an
average 730 h per month)
• Energy cost per month = $0.04 × 13860 × 10 = $554,400
• Demand charge per month = $6.0 × 39,200 = $235,200
• Total power cost per month = $789, 600
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Key Factors
• 𝑇𝑜𝑡𝑎𝑙 𝑃𝑜𝑤𝑒𝑟 𝐷𝑒𝑚𝑎𝑛𝑑 = ∑ 𝐸𝑞𝑢𝑖𝑝𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑅𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 × 𝐷𝑒𝑚𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝐹𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑜𝑟
• 𝑁𝑒𝑡 𝑃𝑜𝑤𝑒𝑟 𝐷𝑒𝑚𝑎𝑛𝑑 =
( )
• 𝐴𝑣𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑔𝑒 𝑃𝑜𝑤𝑒𝑟 =
• 𝐿𝑜𝑎𝑑 𝐹𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑜𝑟 =
• 𝐷𝑒𝑚𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝐹𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑜𝑟 =
• Coincidence Factor = <1
• 𝐷𝑖𝑣𝑒𝑟𝑠𝑖𝑡𝑦 𝐹𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑜𝑟 = =
Coincidence Factor
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Voltage Considerations – North America
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Voltage Considerations – Europe
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Voltage Considerations – Other Countries
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Voltage Considerations – Other Countries
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Voltage Considerations – Pakistan
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Ensuring Equipment Performance: Maintaining Voltage
• Equipment performance relies on stable voltage within specified
standards.
• Focus on voltage spread, transient dips, and voltage flicker.
• Steady-State Voltage Drop:
• Caused by variations in utility supply and internal system losses.
• Remedied by utilizing transformers with load tap changers.
• Electrical codes (NEC & CSA) specify allowable voltage drop:
• 5% for feeders
• 3% for branch circuits
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Voltage Drop Calculations
• Using Ohms Law
• Ampere Foot Method
• Suitable for simple calculations of low-voltage feeders and branch circuits.
• Multiplies load current by cable length to get ampere-feet.
• References tables or graphs to estimate voltage drop based on cable size.
• Useful for:
• Estimating voltage drop in systems not included in load flow analysis.
• Identifying potential problem areas.
• Limitations:
• Less accurate than load flow analysis.
• Ignores complex system interactions.
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Voltage Drop Calculations
• Load Flow Analysis:
• Comprehensive system analysis tool used for planning and study.
• Provides detailed voltage profiles at different load conditions and
contingencies.
• Identifies buses with potential voltage violations.
• Allows for adjusting transformer taps to optimize voltage spread.
• More accurate and comprehensive than ampere-foot method, but also more
complex.
• Choosing the Right Method:
• Ampere-foot method is suitable for quick estimations and initial assessments.
• Load flow analysis is preferred for comprehensive system planning and optimization.
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Voltage Flicker: Understanding & Mitigating the Blink
• Voltage flicker: Rapid, brief voltage fluctuations causing light output
changes and eye strain.
• Impact: Discomfort, headaches, reduced productivity, safety concerns.
• Sources: Frequent motor starting, arc furnaces, reciprocating
equipment, electric shovels.
• Flicker limit curves adopted by IEEE and used by many utilities
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Flicker Curves - IEEE
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Unveiling the Flicker Spectrum
• Flicker categories: Classified by frequency of occurrence (cyclic, non-
cyclic).
1. Cyclic Flicker (10 Hz to 2 Hz):
• Frequent voltage fluctuations due to repetitive loads like reciprocating
compressors, pumps, arc furnaces, and automatic spot welders.
• Mimics power system frequency (50 Hz or 60 Hz), hence the cyclic nature.
• Visible light flicker, potentially causing annoyance, headaches, and fatigue.
• Mitigation: Dedicated feeders, static VAR compensators, power factor correction.
2. Cyclic Low-Frequency Flicker (2 Hz to 12 per minute):
• Less frequent fluctuations resulting from loads like arc welders, drop hammers, saws, and
manual spot welders.
• Lower than power system frequency but still distinct cycles.
• Similar to cyclic flicker but with potentially stronger effects due to slower repetition.
• Mitigation: Similar strategies as cyclic flicker, along with potential load scheduling
adjustments. 71
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Unveiling the Flicker Spectrum
3. Non-Cyclic Frequent Flicker (12 per minute to 1 per minute):
• Irregular voltage fluctuations from loads like hoists, cranes, and single elevators.
• Random or unpredictable variations without a clear cyclic pattern.
• Less noticeable compared to cyclic flicker but can still cause visual discomfort and
disruption.
• Mitigation: Load balancing, power factor correction, and investigating specific load
characteristics to address root causes.
4. Non-Cyclic Infrequent Flicker (1 per minute to 3 per hour):
• Infrequent voltage dips, often associated with motor starting (especially large motors).
• Rare occurrences with significant voltage drops lasting brief periods.
• Can be startling and disruptive, potentially affecting sensitive equipment or causing
momentary lighting outages.
• Mitigation: Soft starters, variable frequency drives, reduced voltage starting, and ensuring
sufficient system capacity to handle motor starting inrush currents.
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Industrial Flicker Sources
• Starting large motors causes significant current surges (4-7 times rated
current) at low power factor.
• This highly inductive current leads to voltage dips exceeding flicker limits.
• Mitigation: Utilize assisted starting methods like soft starters or variable frequency drives.
• Arc furnaces pose major challenges due to frequent short circuits during
the meltdown period.
• Rapid current changes and short circuits cause voltage fluctuations at 4-7 Hz, exceeding
flicker limits.
• Mitigation:
• Connect the furnace to a dedicated bus for isolation.
• Utilize static VAR compensators to regulate power factor and minimize flicker
• Estimate voltage flicker (short-circuit voltage depression SCDV) using provided formula based
on furnace rating and system capacity.
• Recommend keeping SCDV below 1.9% for 230V systems and below 2.5% for 120V systems.
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Industrial Flicker Sources
• Reciprocating pumps and compressors operate at low speeds with
varying torque demands, leading to current pulsations.
• Standards allow up to 66% variation in motor full-load current, potentially causing flicker.
• Mitigation:
• Select motor size based on system short-circuit capacity and consider current pulsation limits
(25% or 40%).
• Analyze system interactions to identify and address potential flicker issues.
• Electric shovels have demanding duty cycles
(digging, hoisting, lowering) creating significant power fluctuations.
• Power draw can reach 200% of equipment rating during peak activities, potentially
causing flicker.
• Mitigation:
• Integrate duty cycle analysis into power system design and equipment selection.
• Conduct thorough voltage flicker assessment to ensure compliance with limits.
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Industrial Flicker Sources
• Other equipment like electric welders, strippers, and heavy rolling mills
can also contribute to flicker.
• Mitigation:
• Conduct system studies to identify and quantify voltage fluctuations from these sources.
• Implement appropriate corrective measures based on the specific equipment and identified
flicker levels.
• Understanding and addressing voltage flicker from various sources is
crucial for:
• Maintaining stable power supply and equipment performance.
• Ensuring visual comfort and safety for personnel.
• Optimizing plant operations and efficiency.
• Utilizing appropriate mitigation strategies is key to minimizing flicker and its negative
impacts.
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