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Underexcitation (Loss-of-Field) Protection (ANSI 40)

The underexcitation protection protects a synchronous machine from asynchronous operation in the event of faulty excitation or
regulation and from local overheating of the rotor. Furthermore, it prevents that the network stability is endangered by
underexcitation of large synchronous machines.
Functional Description
Setting Notes
Settings
Information List

Functional Description
Underexcitation Determination
To assess underexcitation the device processes all three terminal phase currents and all three terminal voltages for the stator
circuit criterion. It also processes the excitation voltage made available by the measuring transducer TD3, for the rotor circuit
criterion.
For the stator circuit criterion the admittance is calculated from the positive sequence currents and voltages. The admittance
measurement always produces the physically appropriate stability limit, independently of voltage deviations from rated voltage.
Even in such circumstances the protection characteristic can be thus optimally matched to the stability characteristic of the
machine. By virtue of the positive sequence system evaluation, protection operates reliably even during asymmetrical current or
voltage conditions.

Characteristic Curves
The following figure shows the loading diagram of the synchronous machine in the admittance plane (P/U2; Q/U2) with the static
stability limit which crosses the reactive axis near 1/xd (reciprocal value of the synchronous direct reactance).

Admittance Diagram of Turbo Generators

The underexcitation protection in the 7UM62 makes available three independent, freely combinable characteristics. As illustrated in
the following figure, it is possible for example to model static machine stability by means of two partial characteristics with the same
time delays (T CHAR. 1 = T CHAR 2). The partial characteristics are distinguished by the corresponding distance from the zero
point (1/xd CHAR. 1) and (1/xd CHAR. 2) as well as the corresponding inclination angle 1 and 2.
If the resulting characteristic (1/xd CHAR.1)/1; (1/xd CHAR.2)/2 is exceeded (in the following figure on the left), a delayed
warning (e.g. by 10 s) or a trip signal is transmitted. The delay is necessary to ensure that the voltage regulator is given enough
time to increase the excitation voltage.

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Stator circuit criterion: PickUp Characteristic in Admittance Diagram

A further characteristic (1/xd CHAR.3 /3 can be matched to the dynamic stability characteristic of the synchronous machine. Since
stable operation is impossible if this characteristic is exceeded, immediate tripping is then required (time stage T CHAR 3).

Excitation voltage query

With a faulty voltage regulator or excitation voltage failure, it is possible to switch off with a short delay (time stage T SHRT Uex<,
e.g. 1.5 s). To do so, the device must either be notified of the excitation voltage failure via binary input, or the excitation voltage
must be fed in via measuring transducer TD3 and a voltage divider, provided that at address 3012 EXCIT. VOLT. the excitation
voltage query via measuring transducer has been switched ON.
As soon as the excitation voltage undershoots a settable minimum 3013 Uexcit. <, short-time tripping is initiated.
Instead of the excitation voltage acquisition, or also in addition to it, the signal of an external excitation voltage monitoring can be
fed in via a binary input. Here also, short-time tripping is initiated as soon as excitation voltage failure is signalled.

Lowpass Filter
As the excitation DC voltage may contain significant AC harmonics (e.g. because of thyristor control), an analog lowpass filter is
provided on the C-I/O-6 board for connection of excitation voltage, in addition to the integrated digital filter. This particularly
attenuates multiples of the scanning frequency, which cannot be adequately suppressed by the digital filter. The jumper settings for
activating this filter are described in the Mounting and Commissioning section. On delivery from the factory, the filter is enabled.
The jumper setting must match the setting of the parameter 297 TRANSDUCER 3 (see Power System Data, Section Power
System Data 1 >> Setting Notes). If jumper settings and parameters do not match, an alarm is issued and the device is reported
faulty and not operative.

Undervoltage Blocking
The admittance calculation requires a minimum measurement voltage. During a severe collapse (short-circuit) or failure of stator
voltages, the protection is blocked by an integrated AC voltage monitor whose pickup threshold 3014 Umin is set on delivery to 25
V. The parameter value is based on phase-to-phase voltages.
The following figure shows the logic diagram for underexcitation protection.

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Logic diagram of the Underexcitation Protection

Setting Notes
General
Characteristic Curve Values
Delay Times
Excitation Voltage Query

General

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The underexcitation protection is only effective and available if this function was set during protective function configuration
(Section Functional Scope), address 130, UNDEREXCIT. is set to Enabled. If the function is not required Disabled is set. The
address 3001 UNDEREXCIT. serves to enable the function ON and OFF or to block only the trip command (Block relay).
The correct power system data input according to Section Power System Data 1 is another prerequisite for the parameterization of
the underexcitation protection.
The trip characteristics of the underexcitation protection in the admittance value diagram are composed of straight segments which
are respectively defined by their admittance 1/xd (=coordinate distance) and their inclination angle . The straight segments (1/xd
CHAR.1)/1 (characteristic 1) and (1/xd CHAR.2)/2 (characteristic 2) form the static underexcitation limit (see the following figure).
(1/xd CHAR.1) corresponds to the reciprocal value of the related synchronous direct reactance.

If the voltage regulator of the synchronous machine has underexcitation limiting, the static characteristics are set in such a way that
the underexcitation limiting of the voltage regulator will intervene before characteristic 1 is reached (see figure Admittance diagram
of a turbogenerator).

Underexcitation Protection Characteristics in the Admittance Plane

Characteristic Curve Values

If the generator capability diagram (see the following figure) in its preferred representation (abscissa = positive reactive power;
ordinate = positive active power) is transformed to the admittance plane (division by U2), the tripping characteristic can be matched
directly to the stability characteristic of the machine. If the axis sizes are divided by the nominal apparent power, the generator
diagram is indicated per unit (the latter diagram corresponds to a per unit representation of the admittance diagram).

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Capability Curve of a Salient-Pole Generator, Indicated per Unit

Example:
U=

UN = 6300 V

I=

IN

SN =

5270 kVA

fN =

50.0 Hz

nN =

1500 RPM

cos = 0.800
xd =

2.470

xq =

1.400

The primary setting values can be read out directly from the diagram. The related values must be converted for the protection
setting. The same conversion formula can be used if the protection setting is performed with the predefined synchronous direct
reactance.

with
xdsec

related synchronous direct reactance, secondary,

xd Mach

related synchronous direct reactance of the machine,

IN Mach

Nominal current of the machine

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UN Mach

Nominal Voltage of the Machine

UN, VTprim Primary Nominal Voltage of the voltage transformers

IN, CT prim Nominal primary CT current
Instead of 1/xd Mach the approximate value IK0/IN can be used (with IK0= short-circuit current at no-load excitation).
Setting example:

Machine

Current
Transformer

UN Mach

= 6.3 kV

IN Mach

= SN/3 UN = 5270 kVA/3 6.3 kV = 483 A

xd Mach

= 2.47
(read from machine manufacturer's specifications in Figure Capability Curve of a Salient-Pole
Generator, Indicated per Unit)

IN CT

= 500 A

prim

UN,

= 6.3 kV

VTprim

Voltage
transformer

Multiplied by a safety factor of about 1.05, the setting value 1/xd CHAR. 1 results under address 3002.
For 1, the angle of the underexcitation limiting of the voltage regulator is selected or the inclination angle of the machine stability
characteristic is used. The setting value ANGLE 1 is typically situated between 60 and 80.
In most cases, the machine manufacturer prescribes a minimum excitation value for small active powers. For this purpose,
characteristic 1 is cut from characteristic 2 for low active-power load. Consequently, 1/xd CHAR. 2 is set to about 0.9 (1/xd
CHAR. 1), the ANGLE 2 to 90. The kinked tripping limit according to Figure Underexcitation Protection Characteristics in the
Admittance Plane (CHAR. 1, CHAR. 2) results in this way, if the corresponding time delays T CHAR. 1 and T CHAR. 2 of both
characteristics are set equally.
Characteristic 3 serves to adapt the protection to the dynamic machine stability limits. If there are no precise indications, the user
must select a value1/xd CHAR. 3 situated approximately between the synchronous direct reactance xd and the transient reactance
xd'. However, it should be greater than 1.
A value between 80 and 110 is usually selected for the corresponding ANGLE 3, which ensures that only a dynamic instability
can lead to a pickup with characteristic 3. The associated time delay is set at address 3010 T CHAR 3 to the value suggested in
Table Setting the Underexcitation Protection.

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Admittance diagram of a turbogenerator

Delay Times
If the static limit curve consisting of the characteristics 1 and 2 is exceeded, the voltage regulator must first have the opportunity of
increasing the excitation. For this reason, a warning message due to this criterion is "long-time" delayed (at least 10 s for 3004 T
CHAR. 1 and 3007 T CHAR. 2).
If the excitation voltage is missing or too low, the rotor criterion picks up as well, provided that the excitation voltage request feature
has been enabled at address 3012 EXCIT. VOLT. ON and under address 3013 the parametrized threshold Uexcit. < is undershot
or the absence of the excitation voltage has been signalled to the device by binary input. In all these cases tripping is possible with
a short delay. This feature is set via parameter 3011 T SHRT Uex<. The following messages and trip commands are typically
assigned:
Setting the Underexcitation Protection
Annunciation:
Exc < Anr

Characteristic 1 and 2 static stability

undelayed

Characteristic 1 and 2 static stability

long-time delayed
Trippings
T CHAR. 1 = T CHAR. 2 10 s Err<1 TRIP / Err<2 TRIP

Characteristic 1 and 2 Excitation Voltage Failure

shorttime delayed
T SHRT Uex< 1.5 s

Tripping
Err< UPU < TRIP

Characteristic 3 dynamic stability

shorttime delayed
T CHAR 3 0.5 s

Tripping
Exc<3 TRIP

Note:
If very short time delays are selected, dynamic balancing procedures may cause unwanted operations. For this reason, it is
recommended to set time values of 0.05 s or higher.

Excitation Voltage Query

The excitation voltage monitoring feature is set to approx. 50 % of the no-load excitation voltage. If the generator is used for phase-

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shifting, an even lower pickup value must be chosen, depending on the application in hand. It should also be noted that normally a
voltage divider is connected between the device and the excitation voltage.

with
UExc 0

No-load excitation voltage,

VDRatio Voltage divider transformation ratio

Example:
UExc N

= 110 V

UExc 0

= 40 V

VDRatio = 10 : 1

Settings
Addresses which have an appended "A" can only be changed with DIGSI, under Additional Settings.

Addr.

Parameter

Setting Options

Default Setting

Comments

3001

UNDEREXCIT.

OFF
ON
Block relay

OFF

Underexcitation Protection

3002

1/xd CHAR. 1

0.20 .. 3.00

0.41

Susceptance Intersect Characteristic 1

3003

ANGLE 1

50 .. 120

80

Inclination Angle of Characteristic 1

3004

T CHAR. 1

0.00 .. 60.00 sec;

10.00 sec

Characteristic 1 Time Delay

3005

1/xd CHAR. 2

0.20 .. 3.00

0.36

Susceptance Intersect Characteristic 2

3006

ANGLE 2

50 .. 120

90

Inclination Angle of Characteristic 2

3007

T CHAR. 2

0.00 .. 60.00 sec;

10.00 sec

Characteristic 2 Time Delay

3008

1/xd CHAR. 3

0.20 .. 3.00

1.10

Susceptance Intersect Characteristic 3

3009

ANGLE 3

50 .. 120

90

Inclination Angle of Characteristic 3

3010

T CHAR 3

0.00 .. 60.00 sec;

0.30 sec

Characteristic 3 Time Delay

3011

T SHRT Uex<

0.00 .. 60.00 sec;

0.50 sec

T-Short Time Delay (Char. & Uexc<)

3012

EXCIT. VOLT.

ON
OFF

OFF

State of Excitation Volt. Supervision

3013

Uexcit. <

0.50 .. 8.00 V

2.00 V

Excitation Voltage Superv. Pickup

3014A

Umin

10.0 .. 125.0 V

25.0 V

Undervoltage blocking Pickup

Information List
No.

Information

Type of Information

Comments

5323

>Exc. BLOCK

SP

>BLOCK underexcitation protection

5327

>Char. 3 BLK.

SP

>BLOCK underexc. prot. char. 3

5328

>Uexc fail.

SP

>Exc. voltage failure recognized

5329

>Char. 1 BLK.

SP

>BLOCK underexc. prot. char. 1

5330

>Char. 2 BLK.

SP

>BLOCK underexc. prot. char. 2

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5331

Excit. OFF

OUT

Underexc. prot. is switched OFF

5332

Excit.BLOCKED

OUT

Underexc. prot. is BLOCKED

5333

Excit.ACTIVE

OUT

Underexc. prot. is ACTIVE

5334

Exc. U< blk

OUT

Underexc. prot. blocked by U<

5336

Uexc failure

OUT

Exc. voltage failure recognized

5337

Exc< picked up

OUT

Underexc. prot. picked up

5343

Exc<3 TRIP

OUT

Underexc. prot. char. 3 TRIP

5344

Exc<1 TRIP

OUT

Underexc. prot. char. 1 TRIP

5345

Exc<2 TRIP

OUT

Underexc. prot. char. 2 TRIP

5346

Exc<U<TRIP

OUT

Underexc. prot. char.+Uexc< TRIP

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