ELECTROMAGNETIC COMPATIBILITY

A VITAL ISSUE FOR MEDIUM-VOLTAGE SWITCHGEAR

Ansgar Mller
Siemens AG
P.O. Box 3240
91050 Erlangen
Germany

Oliver Nldner
Siemens AG
P.O. Box 3240
91050 Erlangen
Germany
In legal and organisational view inner EMC is a matter of
the correct function of component combinations and their
interplay, and thus subject between manufacturer and user.
In contrast outer EMC concerns cross-link of the switchgear
with the outside electrical environment, for example the MV
grid, auxiliary power supplies, the protection system and the
control and communication networks. Thus the limitation of
emissions and minimum requirements on immunity are essential to avoid interference with other equipment, which may
be assigned to third parties.

Abstract - Electromagnetic compatibility (EMC) involves

functional, legal and safety aspects. The paper summarises
fundamentals of EMC in medium-voltage switchgear (1 kV <
U 52 kV), describing the electromagnetic climate, legislative and normative requirements, and presents guidelines for
EMC correct design, manufacture and installation. Using the
example of gas-insulated, metal-enclosed switchgear the
paper demonstrates practical examples to limit disturbance
emission and ensure sufficient immunity regarding the medium-voltage part of switchgear, the secondary system, the
wiring arrangements and the selection of electronic devices.
Index Terms medium voltage switchgear, secondary system, electromagnetic climate, interference, coupling, legislative requirements, design, potential bonding, wiring.
I.

Inner EMC
MV conductor
LV system
Control &
protection

INTRODUCTION

Automated and sensitive processes as well as complex

equipment in power supply and production industries may
carry a high risk potential in the event of a failure or a standstill of the plant. The number of electronic devices used for
protection, control, monitoring and communication in the
secondary system of medium voltage (MV) switchgear installations is rising. Hence the requirements on electromagnetic
compatibility (EMC) increase constantly. Provisions that electronics operate reliably inside switchgear are gaining importance. Moreover, electrical installations must also comply
with legislative requirements on EMC to avoid unduly interference with third parties. International standards provide
details to fulfil these obligations which also improve quality.
Manufacturers have to balance all these requirements in the
design of the switchgear.
II.
A.

Outer EMC
MV network
Auxiliary supply
Communication
Other installations

Fig. 1 Electromagnetic climate of MV switchgear

B.

Sources of potential interference

Switchgear installations face various sources of disturbances:

1) Switching devices: They release transients during
each switching operation, for example, impulse currents during closing and re-strikes or re-ignitions on opening.
2) Unstable consumers: Motors, rectifiers, arc furnaces etc., create voltage dips, flicker and harmonics, which
are commonly referred to as system perturbation.
3) Other networks: From the external medium-voltage
network transient disturbances may enter, caused by remote
switching devices, lightning, earth faults and short-circuits
with the associated overvoltage and overcurrent.
4) Faulty insulation, defects, e.g. faulty contacts: Excessively high field strengths can create partial discharges
(PD). Also, pollution layers on insulators, in conjunction with
moisture (condensation) can lead to creepage currents, corona and partial discharges.
5) Auxiliary switches and contactors: In principle, lowvoltage equipment produces the same switching transients
as medium-voltage switchgear, but with other amplitudes and
impulse forms. Higher disturbances may occur when inductive currents are interrupted, e.g. magnets and motors.

ELECTROMAGNETIC CLIMATE

Inner and outer EMC

The electromagnetic climate of switchgear installation is

formed by the electrical and electronic equipment which is
built-in, interconnected or located in the vicinity so that mutual influence is possible. For interference-free operation, all
components of an installation must tolerate the effects of
each other (internal EMC) and the environment (external
EMC); see figure 1. Electromagnetic tolerance is achieved
when interference emission and interference immunity are
compatible in a way that resistance to interference is always
larger than the subjected level.
Switchgear assemblies present a demanding inner electromagnetic climate in that they accommodate robust MV
conductors where transients may occur in the order of kilovolts and kiloamperes, and close by in the secondary system
there are susceptible electronic devices working at millivolt
and milliampere level. Therefore the compatibility between
MV and LV part as well as within the LV part itself must be
thoroughly ensured.

inductive coupling between current carrying conductor

loops, the magnetic fields caused by the currents induce
disturbance voltages in neighbouring conductors;
- capacitive coupling by stray capacitances between
neighbouring conductors, which are at different potentials.
- galvanic coupling between circuits, which have a common conductor, as e.g. in the circuits for power supply;
- radiation coupling through transmitted high frequency
transients; when the electromagnetic wave intersects
other conductors, it induces currents and voltages in
those conductors.
The mechanisms differ somewhat from one another, each
in respect of whether the disturbance emanates from the
high- or low-voltage part.

Auxiliary switches mostly used for smaller, principally

ohmic currents, cause different disturbance impulses than
contactors, which are controlling larger consumers (magnets,
motors). This is the background of the various test impulses
applied during EMC tests.
6) Commutator motors: Drive motors, e.g. in spring
charging mechanisms, cause disturbance due to sparking at
the commutator. Their starting currents lead to voltage dips
at the moment of energisation.
7) Electronic devices: These can influence the supply
voltage and radiate disturbance fields. This also applies to
intact devices, if they are installed in large groups. Sources
are, for example, the inbuilt, switch-mode power supplies or
processors with high clock-pulse rate.
8) Medium-voltage conductors: At operating currents
from some hundreds to thousands of amperes, they produce
stationary, power-frequency magnetic fields (national regulations lay down limit values for areas in which people may be
present). Stationary electric fields are almost completely
screened out by the earthed metal enclosures of switchgear
and do not play a role in the practice. Also the outer magnetic
field reduces very quickly in case of three-phase arrangements.
9) Low-voltage power conductors: In principle, the
same applies to all low-voltage conductors, but at rather low
currents flowing in switchgear secondary systems the effect
is so significantly smaller that it can be neglected.
C.

Susceptible equipment

The possible effects, which may occur under certain circumstances from the above mentioned sources, are defects
and faulty operation as described in the following.
1) Insulation: Overvoltage in the network due to
switching processes and similar transient disturbances frequently endanger the lifetime of equipment insulation; for
example cable terminations are especially susceptible.
2) Instrument transformers: Under specific network
conditions (isolated neutral) they can fall victim to ferroresonance initiated by transients. If not adequately damped, ferroresonance leads to failure through thermal overload.
3) Capacitors, filter units and transformers: Lowfrequency system perturbation caused by unstable loads has
many effects: inadmissible harmonic content can cause
overheating. Network resonance may occur if capacitor units
and transformers are not correctly matched to each other.
System perturbations of all types also affect the connected
measuring equipment.
4) Electronic devices: Overvoltage, transferred from
the MV side, can endanger the ports. Additionally, disturbance impulses can pervert the input signals and cause
faulty outputs.
D.

Fig. 2 Propagation of disturbances within switchgear

1) Inductive and capacitive coupling: An evident inductive coupling is given by instrument transformers (CT, VT)
which interlink MV and secondary circuits. Whereas the coupling defined by the transformation ratio is intended for
power-frequency, high-frequency disturbance impulses are
also transferred to the secondary system. In terms of the
higher frequencies, the magnitude of transformation is not
generally definable.
Other unwanted inductive and capacitive coupling occurs
due to the close routing of lines, where the physical proximity
of conductors permits high-frequency transients to cross between circuits by stray capacitance or inductance and cause
asymmetrical disturbance signals. E.g. switching actions can
lead to transients in parallel lines. Depending on the impedance characteristics of the 'switched' conductor, the coupling
has either inductive or capacitive character. The latter is the
rule for the usual switching actions of relays and contactors.
2) Galvanic coupling: most if not all components in
the low-voltage part are connected to the same auxiliary
power supply (e.g. 110 V battery). Feedback effects from
consumers spread through the supply lines. If, for example,
the starting current of a drive motor causes a voltage drop
over the internal resistance of the power source, all other
connected consumers are affected. The spread of disturbances via the power supply lines is a classic example of
galvanic coupling.

Influencing mechanisms

The ways of transmission and propagation of disturbances

are illustrated in figure 2. Disturbances, for example switching
transients, appear as a series of voltage impulses and travel
through the 'switched' conductors (conducted interference) or
they radiate as high-frequency electromagnetic fields from
the 'switch' and the connected conductors (radiated interference). Both conducted and radiated disturbance can be
picked up by susceptible components by four different methods of coupling:

Between MV and LV system galvanic coupling is only relevant where they are galvanically connected, e.g. through
resistive voltage dividers. HF transients 'escaping' from the
primary circuit through the divider, against the reference potential (ground), can lead to high-frequency voltage impulses,
in proportion to the divider ratio, at the secondary side of the
divider. However, this is of minor importance only.
3) Radiated coupling: the fields from transient effects
induce disturbance currents and voltages in conductors. Not
only lines within the switchgear are affected, but also conductors within electronic devices. For tightly laid conductors this
method of coupling corresponds to the inductive or capacitive.
4) Coupling within electronic equipment: low-voltage
lines have galvanic connection within the interior of the
equipment. That is, transient phenomena can spread within
the unit, affecting electronic components. Countermeasures
can be taken (by the electronics manufacturer) only within
the equipment or at the point of cable entry.

have to be applied, EMC considerations must be ideally incorporated in the design of the switchgear and carried
through to commissioning. Observation of the following
points will ensure compatibility of the components:
- restrict or at least limit the emission of disturbances or its
effects as far as possible, even if prevention is not completely possible;
- select equipment to suit its surroundings (separation of
immunity to disturbance into zones);
- increase immunity to disturbance by adequate EMC design, assembly and wiring of the switchgear;
- ensure a definite reference potential (earth) and effective
earthing system;
- if applicable, use supplementary measures such as filters, screening etc.
Section IV of this paper describes measures to achieve
EMC in practice.

All the coupling mechanisms generally appear simultaneously and the finally transferred disturbance is the sum of the
effects. In general, it is of little importance which mechanism
contributes which proportion, or if one or the other may be
neglected, as the result of EMC counts. In detail however,
one needs information about the magnitude of each effect,
because the reduction of each one requires specific measures. Adequate switchgear design can minimise interference.

A.

E.

III. LAWS AND STANDARDS ON EMC

Since every installation can interact with other equipment

and may affect 3rd parties, EMC is an issue of the environment and thus subject to legislative regulations as well. Laws
on EMC exist in almost all industrial countries since an early
stage of electrification. Originally aiming at the protection of
radio communication services only, the laws today shall also
ensure safety and the free trade of electrical equipment that
operates without unduly interference between installations of
different owners or operators.
In Europe the EU Council Directive on EMC [1] sets essential requirements on EMC. As these legal obligations
also reflect the fundamental technical requirements they are
quoted here.

Interaction with the environment

Basically, the above described mechanisms also apply to

the interaction of switchgear with their surroundings. Transient effects, which enter the switchgear from the MV network, propagate throughout the internals of the switchgear in
essentially the same ways and have similar values for the
magnitude of transients as if they had been generated from
within. Conversely, switching transients from the switchgear
travel throughout the connected network.
The same applies to the LV secondary system. Disturbance impulses enter and leave the assembly through the
conductors of the power supply, inputs and outputs, data
transmission and other connections.
Regarding radiated coupling with the environment the MV
part is practically insensitive to external influence. Inversely,
the emissions caused by transient MV phenomena and the
steady state power-frequency electric and magnetic fields
need to be considered.
In contrast, for the low-voltage part radiated coupling must
be considered. External fields (e.g. from mobile phones,
walkie-talkies etc.) may interlink with conductors and cables
and thus enter the LV part. Equally, high-frequency electromagnetic fields generated in the LV part can be spread
through the connected cables and conductors.
A metallic and earthed enclosure offers a certain amount
of screening, since it will dampen the effects of fields passing
through it, but it does not provide complete shielding since
the enclosure considering high frequencies has holes
(cable entries, bushings, insulated flanges, windows, operating openings, projecting components) at which magnetic
impulses can escape.
F.

Legislative requirements

1. Protection requirements
Equipment shall be so designed and manufactured, having
regard to the state of the art, as to ensure that:
(a) the electromagnetic disturbance generated does not exceed the level above which radio and telecommunications equipment or other equipment cannot operate as intended;
(b) it has a level of immunity to the electromagnetic disturbance to be expected in its intended use which allows it
to operate without unacceptable degradation.
2. Specific requirements for fixed installations
Installation and intended use of components
A fixed installation shall be installed applying good engineering practices and meeting the protection requirements.
Those good engineering practices shall be documented and
the documentation shall be held at the disposal of the relevant national authorities for inspection purposes as long as
the fixed installation is in operation.
The directive covers any electrical equipment and fixed installations, in particular those which may generate disturbance and be susceptible to interference, thus mainly
equipment containing active electronics. In contrast, equipment which does due to its design not produce interference and operates without degradation in the presence of
disturbances is explicitly excluded as inherently benign in
terms of EMC; see Table I.
Temporary switching actions are not relevant to EMC [2];
refer also to section III.E.3. Therefore switching devices and
other components which do not contain active electronics are

Methods to achieve EMC

The route to electromagnetic compatibility comprises several steps. To avoid the situation that incompatibility is first
discovered during commissioning and that retrofit measures

excluded from the EMC Directive. Vice versa, all kinds of

switchgear and fixed installations accommodating electronics
in their secondary system must comply with the directive.

temporary use at different locations must be considered, for

example switchgear mounted in a container.
b) Regarding MV switchgear EMC is covered by the IEC
62271 product standards series [3], for example by requirements on design, testing and installation.
c) For EMC correct installation reference can be made to
the IEC 61936-1 [4] and EN 50522 [5] standards. The installation and operating manuals of the switchgear should specify in detail which rules and standards are applicable. Layout
and installation plans, circuit and wiring diagrams, operating
instructions, declarations of conformity, test reports (if applicable) document the status of the installation.
d) This requirement demonstrates why documentation is of
vital importance and is explicitly required by the directive. By
contrast, the role of well-kept documentation may often be
underestimated in practice.
e) Operation in accordance with the EMC protection requirements addresses first and foremost the operator. One of
the crucial points regarding EMC is the proper maintenance
and professional workmanship in case of technical modifications. Since operation and maintenance involves health &
safety issues, not only basic operation standards (e.g. EN
50110) apply, but also national regulations and specific instructions depending on the industry.

TABLE I
Classification of switchgear and its components
under the EMC Directive
Equipment

covered excluded from

by the
the directive as
directive
benign

Switching devices
Circuit-breaker, switch,
disconnector, earthing switch,
contactor, HRC fuse

(x)

Switchgear assemblies
Air-insulated and gas-insulated
switchgear assemblies,
automatic circuit-recloser

LV secondary electronics
Protection relay, control electronics, communication equipment

Other components
Instrument transformer, sensor,
surge arrester, insulator, earthing
transformer, reactor, capacitor

B.

C.

In legal terms, a fixed installation does not cross borders

and therefore does not need a CE-mark (trade passport) for
the free movement of goods. So the EMC Directive provides
administrative alleviation for switchgear in that EMC conformity assessment and CE marking is not required. This dues
to the fact that the use of MV equipment is restricted to qualified and authorised professionals who have the necessary
expertise in EMC.
In technical terms, the EMC characteristic of customized,
fixed installation depends on the conditions on site and cannot be assessed before the entire installation is completed.
Factory type tests of only the components though necessary do not provide the relevant information about the electromagnetic behaviour of the complete installation.
The situation is quite different regarding LV equipment,
where conformity assessment and CE marking is a normal
procedure (also due to the EU Low-voltage Directive).

MV switchgear is fixed installation

The EMC Directive distinguishes between single apparatus

and permanently installed fixed installations which are in
most cases customised to the particular needs of their operators. Table II lists the specific requirements and reflects their
implementation with regard to MV switchgear.
TABLE II
EMC requirements on MV switchgear
Requirement

Realisation (examples)

a) Permanent use at
predefined location

normally given;
mobile switchgear may need
special consideration

b) Design and manufacture

according to the protection
requirements

Products and components

type tested to IEC standards,
e.g. IEC 62271 series for MV
switchgear

c) Erection and installation

to the state of the art

Compliance with installation

and earthing standards, e.g.
IEC 61936-1, EN 50522; routine and acceptance tests

d) Up-to-date documentation
of the technical status

Maintain a file with layout and

installation plans, circuit and
wiring diagrams, operating
instructions, conformity declarations, test reports etc.

e) Operation according to the

protection requirements

No CE-marking of MV switchgear

D.

Normative requirements

A crucial point is to fulfil the legal regulations in practice.

For this purpose international standards provide guidance at
two levels: The IEC 61000 standards series [6] compiles the
fundamentals of EMC into normative requirements (Table III).
TABLE III
EMC standards series IEC 61000
IEC 61000 Subject

Professional commissioning
and maintenance by qualified
personnel, refer for example
to EN 50110

Explanations on Table II: Requirement (a) is self-evident

for most applications. However, also mobile switchgear for
1

Covered only if drive mechanism is electronically controlled

Excluded if drive mechanism operates mechanically
Covered if secondary system is equipped with electronics
4
Non-switching components without active electronics

Part 1

General considerations, fundamental principles,

definitions, terminology

Part 2

Description and classification of the environment,

compatibility levels

Part 3

Emission and immunity limits (applicable if no

other limits set by relevant product standards)

Part 4

Testing and measurement techniques

Part 5

Installation and mitigation guidelines, mitigation

methods and devices

Part 6

Generic emission and immunity standards

Each part of IEC 61000 is further subdivided into several

Standards, Technical Specifications or Technical Reports.
Specific EMC requirements are defined by individual product standards which in turn make reference to the relevant
parts of IEC 61000 and set testing values in accordance with
the applicable phenomena related to a product.
E.

such as a high packing density of devices and proximity to

the high-voltage conductor. Also the fact that electronic devices which are not particularly developed for a high-voltage
environment are often used inside switchgear makes EMC a
challenge. Auxiliary and control circuits including electronic
equipment must be subjected to EMC immunity tests.
- Electrical fast transient/burst (EFT/Burst)
- Oscillatory wave
The EFT/Burst tests represent disturbances caused by
switching action in LV circuits, for example by auxiliary
switches or contactors. The oscillatory wave proves immunity
against typical transients which are transferred from MV conductors. Additional tests check interferences which may occur on auxiliary power supply lines:
- Voltage dips, short interruptions and voltage variations
- Ripple on d.c. input power port
Note that these tests on the switchgear are a minimum, intended to qualify the assembly, i.e. the compatibility of the
combination of electrical and electronic equipment in the
secondary system. Above all, electronic components itself
must comply with their relevant standards and corresponding
test requirements; see section IV. E.

Specific requirements for MV switchgear

EMC requirements for switchgear are defined by IEC

62271-1 [3], subdivided into those for the primary (MV) and
secondary (LV) system.
1) Emission of the MV part
The medium-voltage part of switchgear is almost passive
since the MV circuit does not generate interference under
normal operation, but only conducts electromagnetic interference from the grid.
Partial discharge (PD) or corona, a possible source of
high-frequency emission, is negligibly low in the mediumvoltage range. Therefore no test for radio interference voltage (RIV) 5 to prove emission limit values is required.
The power-frequency electric and magnetic field originating
from medium-voltage conductors can have negative effects
on the electronic devices inside the switchgear. However, to
the outside the electric field is shielded by the earthed metal
enclosure, and the outer magnetic field also reduces very
quickly in case of three-phase arrangements. Thus IEC
62271-1 does not specify limits for the power-frequency field.

IV. EMC CORRECT SWITCHGEAR DESIGN

A.

The design of switchgear contributes substantially to prevent the propagation of interferences, to limit the effects of
disturbances and also to create the conditions for appropriate
interference immunity. The following sections give practical
guidelines of measures to archive EMC. Gas-insulated MV
switchgear is used as an example. However, the guidelines
presented here apply to every type of switchgear. The rules
also apply if equipment or components are changed, added
or retrofitted at a later stage on site.

2) Emission of the secondary system

Electronic equipment generating steady state interference
(switched-mode power supplies, converters, processors)
must fulfil the requirements with regard to radiated emission,
as defined in CISPR 11 for group 1 (non intentional generation of high-frequency radiation), class A equipment, intended
for industrial environment6.
3) Switching operations
Interference emission due to switching operations can be
disregarded as it only occurs rarely and stochastically. The
duration of such noise (so-called clicks) is within the range of
milliseconds, and is considered part of the usual electromagnetic environment of switchgear, due to its low number, level
and consequences. For this reason, no proof of EMC is required as regards switching operations. This is justified by
CISPR 14-1 [7] which set the requirements for household
appliances, which are more sensitive to interferences. Subclause 4.2.3.1 refers explicitly to individual switching operations and states that no limit values for radio interference
must be observed in this context.

E
E

D
A

4) Immunity of the secondary system

The secondary system accommodates interference
sources and susceptible devices in close vicinity. Stationary
interference radiators (switch-mode power supplies, converters, processors) and short-term sources of interference (contactor, switching relay, tripping solenoid, motor) can encounter electronic devices which are potentially susceptible to
interference. Further difficulties are presented by the variety
of specifically designed secondary systems of switchgear,
5

Guidelines for air- and gas-insulated switchgear

(A) Frame and enclosure

(B) Medium-voltage part
(C) Secondary system

A
(D) Cabling and wiring
(E) Electronic devices

Fig. 3 Example of gas-insulated switchgear

to demonstrate EMC related design measures
B.

RIV is the equivalent of interference radiation. RIV can be

measured more easily than radiation.
Group 1 means non intentional generation of high-frequency
radiation (no radio equipment). Class A means robust industrial
equipment in contrast to more susceptible domestic use.

Equipotential bonding and earthing

One of the most important points is effective equipotential

bonding and earthing. With MV switchgear this is required in
any case as protection against electric shock.

1) Frame and structural parts

Good conducting bonding of metal parts of the switchgear
enclosure and the inner partitions provide a consistent reference potential for all integrated electronic equipment, thus
reducing the effects of coupled disturbances. The interconnection of all passive metal parts - i.e. conductive parts which
only adopt voltage in case of fault is called earth or ground.
As this ground must not adopt a hazardous contact voltage in
case of fault, it must be connected to the earth via protective
earth conductors; as for switchgear, this is the connection of
the frame or the metallic enclosure with the earthing system
of the substation. The following points must be observed:

all metal parts (frame, module, drawer, truck, partitions,

shutters etc.) must be large surface, low-impedance
bonded with each other;

connection areas must be first cleaned of insulating

grease, paint and protective coatings, or appropriate
connecting elements must be used instead;

contacts and connections areas must be protected

against corrosion;

doors, covers, flaps and other movable parts must be

bonded to the frame with flexible braid or earthing wire.
It is essential to verify the long-term durability of the joints
(between galvanized steel plates, stainless-steel plates, copper etc.) by corresponding tests in a climate chamber.

one tape or flat braid can serve simultaneously as PE

conductor between door and LV compartment (2). If it fulfils the requirements of protective conductor (see above),
a separate PE-conductor (3) is not necessary.

3) Connection to the substation earthing system

The switchgear cubicles are connected to an earthing bar
which interconnects the functional units and provides terminals for the conductor (e.g. up to 120 mm) to the substation
earthing system.
Bonding of frame and
connection between
adjacent functional units
Earthing terminal
(symbol IEC 60417)
with cable to substation
earthing system

Fig. 6 Switchgear earthing bar and terminals for the

connection to substation earthing system
Switchgear assemblies should be connected to the substation earth at least at both ends, preferably at every third or
fourth cubicle.
C.

Medium-voltage part (primary system)

Regarding EMC, the MV part of switchgear is almost passive; the main circuit does not generate interference under
normal operation, but conducts electromagnetic interference
from the grid. Nevertheless, some measures which may
commonly not be associated with EMC should be considered already in the planning stage.

Switching devices and their ratings must be selected

according to network requirements and switching duties,
taking also into account tolerances and if applicable
extreme service conditions.

Insulation coordination shall be ensured and, if necessary, surge protection shall be installed [9].
All components and the electrical environment of the installation shall be reviewed comprehensively - from the incomer to the outgoing circuits. Some switching duties may
require special measures.

Fig. 4 Equipotential bonding of LV cabinet door (left) and

latch to the frame by copper braid or 6 mm wire
Protective conductors must fulfil the requirements of IEC
60364-5-54; e.g. regarding the cross sectional area. They
must be identified by the colours green-yellow (PE conductors) as specified in IEC 60446. When braid is used for the
purpose, it must comply with both standards mentioned.
2) Earthing of electronic devices
With respect to disturbance free data communication,
good earth bonding, which is effective in the high frequency
range (occurrences >> 1 MHz), is of great importance. The
connection must be of low resistance, low inductivity and as
short as possible. Figure 5 shows a schematic representation
of earthing of door mounted equipment:

LV cables (1) enter a duct (cover

removed for photo) at the floor (2),
laid along metal partition wall (3)

(3)

Cables braced with clamps, cable

screens connected to earthing bar

(1)

(2)

Fig. 7 Entry of MV power cables, braced with clamps (left),

separate route for LV cables (cover removed)
As with the frame, equipotential bonding and earthing all
MV components is important.

Entry points, laying and mounting of cables to be clearly

defined, LV segregated from MV cables.

Power cable shields to be laid on defined points with

highly conductive earth connection.

All MV devices and the panels themselves shall be

equipped with adequate earthing connections.

Fig. 5 Earthing of electronic devices (schematic view)

-

each electronic device has its own tape; (1) and (2);
a protective conductor (3) realises equipotential bonding
between door and LV compartment;

Support insulators

The LV cabinet itself is

connected to earth via multiple
bolting to the switchgear frame.

Fig. 10 Central earthing point in the LV cabinet

Bonding and earthing of the power
cable screens:
directly via the cable support bar (left)
via insulated screen termination bar

3) Instrument transformers or sensors

The secondary circuits of instrument transformers (CT, VT,
sensor), which are close to MV conductors, must be segregated from the main circuit, where ever possible by earthed
metallic partitions (pipe, flexible metallic tube) or by means of
partitions of insulating material (e.g. tubes). Figure 11 shows
an example where the secondary cables below the CT are
laid in an insulating duct close along a metal plate to the lateral partition wall from where they are guided through a metal
duct to the LV cabinet. Screening against the MV conductors
is carried out by the metal wall of the compartment and the
screens of the cable plugs.

Fig. 8 Methods of earthing the MV power cable screens

D.

Low-voltage part (secondary system)

Secondary systems must on the one hand withstand interferences from the MV system without damage or faulty operation, and on the other hand be designed such that interferences within the secondary system itself are minimised.
1) Auxiliary and control circuits
The wiring of auxiliary and control circuits must be segregated from the main circuit, e.g. by earthed metallic partitions
(pipe, flexible metallic tube) or by means of partitions from
insulating material (e.g. tubes). Item 3 shows an example
with instrument transformer cables.
Inductive loads of auxiliary and control circuits, such as
contactor, relay, motor, tripping solenoid should be fitted with
a surge protection circuit (freewheeling diode, varistor) if the
auxiliary voltage is 60 VDC or higher.

Flexible tubes
on metal sheet

Fig. 11 Routing of CT / VT cables (left) and their earthing

at a separate terminal block in the LV cabinet

2) Low-voltage cabinet
The LV cabinet accommodates most of the electronics for
protection, control and communication. The cabinet should
be subdivided into zones, e.g. areas reserved for terminals
and built-in devices. If applicable, built-in devices should be
grouped into those being susceptible and less or nonsusceptible to electromagnetic disturbances.
Where cubicle lighting is required, non-fluorescent lamps
or LED should be used preferably.

E.

Cabling and wiring

1) Layout guidelines
The objective of making a suitable wiring arrangement is to
avoid undesirable coupling between different lines and to
avoid influence from outside. Measures to minimise interferences are:

separate conductors into groups, signal and data wiring

distanced from power connections; refer to table IV;

conductors of the same group can be laid in common

bundles or channels;

conductors of groups A and B shall be laid in separate

bundles or as far as possible in separate channels or
ducts;

signal and data lines shall be laid as close as possible to

the metal parts of the switchgear (enclosure, partition
wall or in a metal duct)7;

spatial loops should be avoided, i.e. wiring should preferably be designed radially;

excessive overlength of wires should be limited;

spare cores or spare wires should be connected to earth

or terminated by insulated caps.

Wiring ducts
Space for secondary devices
Terminal blocks
- switching devices
- earthing
- instrument transformers
Incoming / outgoing cables
- switchgear internal (right)
- outside (left)

Fig. 9 Structured LV cabinet with defined zones

Adequate equipotential bonding must be ensured within
the LV cabinet and from there to the switchgear earthing.
Built-in devices must be low-impedance connected to earth
as well. Where screened conductors are used, terminal bars
must be provided for cable screens of incoming cables.

The metal reduces the coupling flux between the conductors.

TABLE IV
Cables in the secondary system of switchgear
Group

Type

Application

Cables

- DC voltage 60 V
- AC voltage 25 V

Shielded cables

- Analogue signals
(e.g. sensors)
- Data transfer (bus systems)

Coaxial cables

- Voltage detecting systems

- Monitor, display

Cables

- DC voltage > 60 V
(up to max. 400 V)
- AC voltage > 25 V
(up to max. 400 V)

Fig. 14 Example of a terminal bar and a contact clamp

for all-round screen bonding
F.

Requirements for electronic devices

Electronic devices and components which comply with

their relevant product standard are not necessarily designed
to operate in a medium-voltage environment. Thus, when
selecting electronic equipment particularly in case of installation at a later date on site it must be thoroughly checked
whether electronics complies with the immunity required for
switchgear installations. Table V summarises recommended
requirements for devices with and without interface to MV
circuits. With interface to medium-voltage circuits means
that the component is connected via an instrument transformer or a coupling electrode to an MV conductor. Those
components may face more severe disturbances and should
thus be tested for higher immunity. In contrast to this a component without interface to medium-voltage is only interconnected with other secondary equipment.
A guideline for EMC specifications is given by the standard
of protection relays IEC 60255-26 [10]. This document compiles the requirements which might be applicable. However,
not all of them are relevant for every component. Which
specifications the devices or components must meet is determined by electromagnetic phenomena prevailing in the
installation, which in turn depend on
- the type of the existing interfaces (e.g. ports for analogue
or binary signals, power ports, auxiliary supply);
- the type and length of cables to be connected
- the installation situation, i.e. enclosures, shielding;
- the electrical and spatial environment.

2) Screened conductors
The quality of contact between screens and switchgear frame
has important influence on the effectiveness of the screen.
All screen connections must be "high-frequency proof" (HFproof), that is, coaxial, low resistance and low inductive.
A secure screen termination with low-resistance contact to
earth is ideally achieved with an all-round 360, large surface
connector between screen and the reference potential of the
earth. This can be accomplished by clamping the screen with
spring loaded or shell clamps. Unthreading and twisting the
screen braid into a pig tail (plait), which is attached to an
earth terminal is not sufficient.
For measurement sensor connections and coaxial leads from
voltage detecting systems follow manufacturer's advice regarding single or both end screen bonding and earthing.
3) Examples
Figure 12 shows the entry of external LV cables into the connection compartment of a switchgear cubicle. The metal
duct, whose cover is removed for the photo (left), separates
the LV and MV cables. Insulating tubes group wires of different function.

TABLE V

Example of wiring in
an MV connection
compartment:

Recommended test requirements for electronic devices

in MV switchgear secondary systems

A metal duct (left side,

cover open) segregates
the MV and LV cables;

Requirement
EMC

Electronic devices and components

of the secondary system
with interface* to
the MV conductor

Different types of LV
cables are grouped by
flexible tubes (right)

Interference
emission

IEC 60255-26

IEC 61000-6-4

Tables 1 and 2

Tables 1 to 3
IEC-CISPR 11
Group 1, Class A

Interference
immunity

IEC 60255-26

IEC 61000-6-2

Tables 3 to 7

Tables 1 to 4
IEC 61000-4-12
100 kHz, Table 1, Level 3

Fig. 12 LV cable duct in a MV compartment

The excess length of wires should be secured preferably in
form of meanders close to metal parts; Figure 13.

no interface to the
MV conductor

IEC 61000-4-18
100 kHz and 1 MHz,
Table 1, Level 3 with Note "a"
* e.g. via instrument transformer, sensor or capacitive electrode

For devices and components without interface to mediumvoltage circuits the immunity specifications of industrial environment suffice, supplemented with typical disturbance phenomena which appear at switching operations.

Fig. 13 Treatment of excess length of wires

For screened LV cables a terminal bar (Figure 14, left)
provides the HF-proof bonding of cable screens.

VIII. REFERENCES

ELECTROMAGNETIC FIELDS

V.

[1]

Steady state power-frequency electromagnetic fields have

been mentioned several times in this paper. Those fields are
of lesser relevance regarding the functional aspects of EMC
in MV switchgear (unless magnetically susceptible components are built in). However, they must be considered in view
of personnel safety. Legal regulations set limits for the human exposure to electromagnetic fields. At power-frequency
50 Hz or 60 Hz electric and magnetic field can be treated
separately. European regulations [11], [12] set limit values for
the magnetic field (magnetic flux density) of
- 5 kV/m and 100 T for the general public;
- 10 kV/m and 500 T for workers.
Switchgear manufacturers issue type proofs [13] declaring
the maximum magnetic field characteristic around the
switchgear at full rated current and the minimum distances to
be kept in order to fall below the limit value (Figure 15). The
electric field is almost negligible with earthed metal enclosures which shield the field down to residual values of only
some V/m. In general LV switchgear produces much higher
fields as the currents are higher than on MV level.
100 T
< 100 T
< 10 T
Maximum 20 cm from accessible surface

[2]

Directive 2004/108/EC of the European Parliament and

of the Council of 15 December 2004 on the approximation of the laws of the Member States relating to electromagnetic compatibility and repealing Directive
89/336/EEC, http://eur-lex.europa.eu
Guide for the EMC Directive 2004/108/EC
(8th February 2010), EMC working party,
http://ec.europa.eu/enterprise/electr_equipment/emc/directiv/di
r2004_108.htm

[3]
[4]
[5]
[6]
[7]

[8]

< 1 T

Grid dimension 20 cm

[9]

Switchgear
assembly

[10]

[11]
Front side

[12]

Fig. 15 Magnetic flux density around switchgear at full load

VI. CONCLUSION

[13]

Electromagnetic compatibility is a multifaceted issue involving functional, legal and safety requirements. Metal-enclosed medium voltage switchgear inhere good preconditions
to meet all of them and to achieve an intact electromagnetic
climate. The design of metal-enclosed switchgear must realise continuous equipotential bonding and earthing as well as
an effective separation between medium voltage and secondary system. Electronic devices should comply with international standards to ensure adequate interference emission
and immunity. The installation and wiring of the internal components should follow the guidelines presented in this paper.
An accurate documentation proves design and manufacture
of the switchgear according to the applicable rules of electrical equipment engineering. In the end, EMC of mediumvoltage switchgear is not a big challenge, but a matter of the
design in detail and the quality of manufacture.

IEC 62271-1: 2007-10 High-voltage switchgear and

controlgear - Part 1: Common specifications
IEC 61936-1 Power installations exceeding 1 kV a.c.
EN 50522: 2010-11
Earthing of power installations exceeding 1 kV a.c.
IEC 61000-x-x Electromagnetic compatibility (EMC)
CISPR 14-1:2009-02 Electromagnetic compatibility Requirements for household appliances, electric tools
and similar apparatus - Part 1: Emission
IEC 62271-200 High-voltage switchgear and controlgear - Part 200: AC metal-enclosed switchgear and
controlgear for rated voltages above 1 kV and up to and
including 52 kV
A. Mueller and D. Saemann, Switching phenomena in
medium voltage systems Good engineering practice
on the application of vacuum circuit-breakers and contactors, PCIC Europe Conference Record, 2011, pp
183-191
IEC 60255-26: 2008-07 Measuring relays and protection equipment - Part 26: Electromagnetic compatibility
requirements
1999/519/EC Council recommendation of 12 July 1999
on the limitation of exposure of the general public to
electromagnetic fields (0 Hz to 300 GHz)
Directive 2004/40/EC of the European Parliament and
of the Council of 29 April 2004 on the minimum health
and safety requirements regarding the exposure of
workers to the risks arising from physical agents (electromagnetic fields)
IEC 62271-208 Methods to quantify the steady state,
low frequency EMF generated by HV switchgear assemblies and HV/LV prefabricated substations
IX. VITAE

The lead author is Ansgar Mller of Siemens. He received

his Diploma in Electrical Power Engineering 1982 at Technische Hochschule Darmstadt, Germany. Since 1983 he has
been working for Siemens in the power distribution division.
Today he is consultant for transients, insulation coordination,
EMC and EMF. He is secretary of CENELEC TC 17AC HighVoltage Switchgear and Controlgear, member of the German
NC and IEC working groups related to HV switchgear.
Oliver Nldner studied telecommunication technologies at
Fachhochschule Frankfurt/Main. He started to work with
Siemens power distribution group, switchgear factory Frankfurt in 1988. Within his career he held various positions in
production, project and sales management for mediumvoltage equipment. Today he is product-lifecycle-manager for
hermetically sealed gas-insulated switchgear.

VII. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
The authors thank Dr. Bernd Jkel, Erlangen, and Andreas
Werner, Frankfurt/Main, for their contributions to the EMC
guidelines and the assessment of switchgear.