CABLE SIZING CALCULATION

AND REPORT FOR MV AND LV PAGE 1 OF 11 - 1 -1 OF 11

MOTOR FEEDERS REV

1. Introduction:

This document presents a report on cable sizing calculation for the Ras Tanura Intigrated Project.
The design calculation aims at appropriate selection of cables considering the installation conditions,
ambient temperature, group de-rating and short circuit withstand. The cable sizes and the maximum
cable lengths are calculated based on continuous current rating, ensuring voltage drop is within
permissible limits and are checked for thermal short circuit capacity. Cable selection charts have been
prepared and are annexed for reference.

2. Standards And Specifications :

A554-K-PRG-EL-GEN-PHL-005 Electrical Design Philosophy

A554-K-PRG-PE-GEN-PDD-001 Project Design Data
G7Z-0001-00 Electrical Design Engineering Criteria
G7C-0302-00 Process Plant Cabling / Wiring Methods.
RT7D-0665-00 Form Wound Motors.
RT7D-0613-00 Squirrel Cage Induction Motors NEMA Frame Horizontal and
Vertical Totally Enclosed Designs 600 Volts and below.

3. References :

XXXX Electrical System Study Report

XXXX Grounding Philosophy and Calculations
A554-K-299-EL-DWG-EA1-001 Electrical Overall One-Line Diagram (SS-299C001)
Riyadh Cable Catalogue
Ducab Cable Catalogue

4. Specification Requirements:

As per clause 10.1.1 of A554-K-PRG-EL-GEN-PHL-005

“The voltage at any point on the RTIP system will normally remain within the nominal values as
stated below, unless abnormal conditions prevail. Under exceptional circumstances, the maximum
over voltage limits stated below should not be exceeded for more than 30 minutes.”

• Nominal range +/- 5%

• 30 min over voltage + 10%

As per clause 10.2.2 of A554-K-PRG-EL-GEN-PHL-005

“The maximum voltage drop (measured on the distribution bus) under motor starting or restarting
conditions should not exceed 10% of nominal voltage. Voltage drop at the motor terminal shall not
drop below 85% of the rated motor voltage.”

As per clause 26.1.1 of A554-K-PRG-EL-GEN-PHL-005

“All cables shall be routed above ground in continuous tray systems. Underground cable
installations shall be by exception and require Owner Electrical SME approval.”

As per clause 26.1.2 of A554-K-PRG-EL-GEN-PHL-005

“All low voltage and instrument cables shall be supplied according to IEC standards. Cable jackets
shall be flame retardant, UV rated for direct sunlight exposure and suitable use in cable tray. Cable
shall be steel wire armoured”.
CABLE SIZING CALCULATION
AND REPORT FOR MV AND LV PAGE 2 OF 11 - 2 -1 OF 11
MOTOR FEEDERS REV

As per clause 26.1.3 of A554-K-PRG-EL-GEN-PHL-005

“The maximum conductor operating temperature under normal conditions shall not exceed 90
degree Centigrade. Under emergency conditions the conductor shall not exceed 130 degree
centigrade. The maximum conductor temperature under short circuit conditions shall not exceed
250 degree centigrade based on maximum cable fault duration of 250 ms”.

5. Basis of Design:

The system design parameters and the site ambient conditions are listed below.

• Nominal Bus Voltage Levels

Medium Voltage 4160 V, 3-phase

Low Voltage 480 V, 3-phase,3 Wire

• System Frequency : 60 Hz

• Site ambient air temperature : 500 C

• Fault Levels at various voltage levels

Medium Voltage 50kA, 1 sec

Low Voltage 65kA, 1 sec

• Zsystem : 0.02 ohm (Typical Value)

• Allowable voltage drops (starting and running) for LV and MV motors: 15 % and 5%
respectively.

• Minimum conductor sizes at various voltage levels :

Medium Voltage motor feeder 25 mm2

Low Voltage motor feeder 2.5 mm2

• Riyadh Cable data has been used for MV motor feeders and Ducab Cable data has been used
for LV motors.

• For Motor details of MV motors ABB ANSI motor catalogue has been used, for LV motors
Brook Crompton ANSI motor catalogue has been used.

6. Calculation
CABLE SIZING CALCULATION
AND REPORT FOR MV AND LV PAGE 3 OF 11 - 3 -1 OF 11
MOTOR FEEDERS REV

• MV Motor Feeder Cable Sizing Calculation

The sizing of 4.0 kV motor feeder cables shall take into account the following parameters:

a) Current carrying capacity of cable.

b) Short circuit withstand capacity.
c) Voltage drop in the cable.

These cables are sized to account for the minimum thermal rating required by applying the de-rating
factors based on the laying conditions and the maximum short circuit withstand capability of the cable
has to be chosen greater than 50 kA ( for circuit breaker protected feeders). The maximum feeder
length is guided by the voltage drop calculations.

SIZING CRITERION – A

Cables feeding a single motor used in a continuous duty application shall have an ampacity of not
less than Service Factor times the motor’s full load current rating.

Therefore the cable should be chosen such that the normal ampacity meets this criterion.

FLC
Normal Ampacity required = xS .F (A)
DF

Where,

FLC – Motor Full Load Current.

S.F – Motor Service Factor 1.0 (as per RT7D-0665-00 clause 4.1)

D.F – De-rating factor (based on cable laying conditions)

The motor full load current can be calculated as follows:

kW
I= (A)
3 xkVxP .Fxefficien cy

Where,

kW – Rated kW of the motor.

V – Cable Operating Voltage.

P.F – Motor Power Factor.

De-rating Factor

a) Ambient air temperature factor (500 C) = 0.82

b) Grouping factor ( 5 cables in group 3 core 1 layer, 1D separation) = 0.85
CABLE SIZING CALCULATION
AND REPORT FOR MV AND LV PAGE 4 OF 11 - 4 -1 OF 11
MOTOR FEEDERS REV

c) Overall de-rating factor = aXb

= 0.82 X 0.85
= 0.70.

Now for a 300 HP motor feeder the following calculation demonstrates the selection of cable cross
section based on SIZING CRITERION A:

The motor full load current can be calculated as :

kW
I= (A)
3 xkVxP .Fxefficien cy

224
I= = 41 (A) (224kW is the rating of the motor)
3 x 4 x0.84 x.93

Now the cable ampacity required to feed the above motor is calculated as:

FLC
Ampacity required = xS .F (A)
DF

41
= x1.0
0.70
= 58.57 (A).

1R X 3C X 25mm2 cable has a non de-rated ampacity of 150 (A). This is the minimum cable size
available for MV feeders.

Based on the calculations above it can be concluded that 1R X 3C X 25mm2 cable can feed 300 HP
motor feeder.

SIZING CRITERION – B

The short circuit withstand capacity of the cable determines the minimum cross section area of the cable
which can be used.

The minimum cross section of the cable –

Ix t
A=
K

Where,

A – Minimum Area of cross section required for 4.16 kV cable system.

K – Insulation coefficient of XLPE cable.

T – Total fault clearing time in second.

CABLE SIZING CALCULATION
AND REPORT FOR MV AND LV PAGE 5 OF 11 - 5 -1 OF 11
MOTOR FEEDERS REV

I – Fault current rating of the switchgear.

Total Tripping time of 4.16 kV Circuit Breaker = 200 ms (Typical value)

The maximum fault rating of the 4.16kV switchgear is 50 kA.

The insulation coefficient of XLPE cables is 143.

The admissible current density D in short circuit conditions is given by the formula:

Ix t
A=
K

Where A is the minimum Area of cross section required for 4.16 kV cable system.

K is the insulation coefficient of XLPE insulated cable = 143.

50000 x 0.2
Then the Minimum Cross Section Area of the cable for 4.16 kV system A =
143

= 156.36 mm2

185 mm2 being the nearest available standard cross section of cable available is chosen to be the
minimum cross section of the cable.

FOR FUSE PROTECTED FEEDERS :

The Fuse rupturing time = 0.005 sec.

The maximum fault rating of the 4.16kV switchgear is 50 kA.

The insulation coefficient of XLPE cables is 143.

The admissible current density D in short circuit conditions is given by the formula:

Ix t
A=
K

Where A is the minimum Area of cross section required for 4.16 kV cable system.
K is the insulation coefficient of XLPE insulated cable = 143.

50000 x 0.005
Then the Minimum Area of the cable for 4.16 kV system A =
143

= 24.72 mm2

25 mm2 being the nearest available standard cross section is chosen to be the minimum cross section of
cables for fuse protected motor feeders.

So it can be concluded that for fuse protected feeders all cable sizes can be used and for breaker
operated feeders minimum cable size which can be selected is 185 mm2.
CABLE SIZING CALCULATION
AND REPORT FOR MV AND LV PAGE 6 OF 11 - 6 -1 OF 11
MOTOR FEEDERS REV

SIZING CRITERION – C

The cable impedence causes a voltage drop at the load terminal, the same needs to be arrested within
the permissible limits. The following checks are performed towards achieving the above. For motor
feeders voltage drop criteria needs to be checked for both running and starting conditions.

Voltage drop in a motor feeder can be expressed as follows:

3 xI m ( R cos φr + X sin φr ) xL
Vd running = (V)
1000 x N C

3 xI lrc ( R cos φst + X sin φst ) xL

Vd starting = (V)
1000 x N C

Where,

Im – Rated current of motor.

Ilrc – Locked Rotor current of the motor.

cosΦr – Motor power factor for running condition.

cosΦst – Motor starting power factor.

R – Cable Resistance Ohm/km

X – Cable Reactance Ohm/km

Nc – Number of cables running in parallel.

The maximum length of cable which can be used maintaining the prescribed voltage drop limits is
calculated as follows:

 Vd x N C 
  x1000 (m)
m running =

 ( 3 xI m x ( R cos φr + X sin φr ) ) 


 Vd x N C 
  x1000 (m)
m starting =

 ( 3 xI lrc x( R cos φst + X sin φst ) ) 

CABLE SIZING CALCULATION
AND REPORT FOR MV AND LV PAGE 7 OF 11 - 7 -1 OF 11
MOTOR FEEDERS REV

The permissible running and starting voltage drops are 5% and 15% respectively.

When feeding a 300 HP motor with 1R X 3C X 25 mm2 cable the maximum running and starting lengths
are:

 4000 x5 x 1 
= x1000
mrunning 
 ( )
3 x 41 x ( 0.927 x 0.84 + 0.146 x0.54 ) x100 

= 3283 m.

 4000 x15 x 1 
= x1000
mstarting 
 ( )
3 x 266 .5 x( 0.927 x0.22 + 0.146 x 0.975 ) x100 


= 3778 m.

Based on the above calculations it is concluded that a fuse protected 300 HP motor feeder can be fed
with a single run of 3 core 25 mm2 cable to a maximum length of 3283 m satisfying the running and the
starting voltage drops. As suggested above the same cable would not be suitable for feeding the same
motor feeder in the event the feeder is circuit breaker protected.

• LV Motor Feeder Cable Sizing Calculation

Sizing of 460 volt motor feeder cables shall take into account the following parameters:

a) Current carrying capacity of the cable.

b) Voltage drop in the cable.

These cables are sized to account for the minimum thermal rating required by applying the de-rating
factors based on the laying conditions and the voltage drop limitations.

SIZING CRITERION – A

Cables feeding a single motor used in a continuous duty application shall have an ampacity of not less
than Service Factor times the motor’s full load current rating.

Therefore the cable should be chosen such that the normal ampacity meets this criterion.
CABLE SIZING CALCULATION
AND REPORT FOR MV AND LV PAGE 8 OF 11 - 8 -1 OF 11
MOTOR FEEDERS REV

FLC
Normal Ampacity required = xS .F (A)
DF

Where,

FLC – Motor Full Load Current.

S.F – Motor Service Factor 1.15 ( as per RT7D-0613-00 clause 2.2)

D.F – De-rating factor (based on cable laying conditions)

The motor full load current can be calculated as follows :

kW
I= (A)
3 xkVxP .Fxefficien cy

Where,

kW – Rated kW of the motor.

V – Cable Operating Voltage.

P.F – Motor Power Factor.

De-rating Factor

a) Ambient air temperature factor (50 degree C) = 0.82

b) Grouping factor for multi core cables laid in air = 1
c) Overall de-rating factor = aXb
= 0.82 X 1
= 0.82.

Now for a 10 HP motor feeder the following calculation demonstrates the selection of cable cross
section based on SIZING CRITERION A:

The motor full load current can be calculated as:

kW
I= (A)
3 xkVxP .Fxefficien cy

7 .5
I= = 12.5 (A) (7.5kW is the rating of the motor)
3 x 0.46 x0.84 x.895

Now the cable ampacity required to feed the above motor is calculated as:

FLC
Ampacity required = xS .F (A)
DF
CABLE SIZING CALCULATION
AND REPORT FOR MV AND LV PAGE 9 OF 11 - 9 -1 OF 11
MOTOR FEEDERS REV

12 .5
= x1.15
0.82
= 17.53 (A).

1RX 4CX 2.5 mm2 cable has a non de-rated ampacity of 33 ampere. This is the minimum cable size
available for LV feeders.

Based on the calculations above it can be concluded 1RX 4CX 2.5 mm2 cable can feed 10 HP motor
feeder.

SIZING CRITERION – B

The cable impedence causes a voltage drop at the load terminal, the same needs to be arrested within
the permissible limits. The following checks are performed towards achieving the above. For motor
feeders voltage drop criteria needs to be checked for both running and starting conditions.

Voltage drop in a motor feeder can be expressed as follows:

3 xI m ( R cos φr + X sin φr ) xL
Vd running = (V)
1000 x N C

3 xI lrc ( R cos φst + X sin φst ) xL

Vd starting = (V)
1000 x N C

Where,

Im – Rated current of motor.

Ilrc – Locked Rotor current of the motor.

cosΦr – Motor power factor for running condition.

cosΦst – Motor starting power factor.

R – Cable Resistance Ohm/km

X – Cable Reactance Ohm/km

Nc – Number of cables running in parallel.

The maximum length of cable which can be used maintaining the prescribed voltage drop limits is
calculated as follows:
CABLE SIZING CALCULATION
AND REPORT FOR MV AND LV PAGE 10 OF 11 - 10 -1 OF 11
MOTOR FEEDERS REV

 Vd x N C 
  x1000 (m)
m running =

 ( 3 xI m x ( R cos φr + X sin φr ) ) 


 Vd x N C 
  x1000 (m)
m starting =

 ( 3 xI lrc x( R cos φst + X sin φst ) ) 


The permissible running and starting voltage drops are 5% and 15% respectively.

When feeding a 10 HP motor fed with 1RX 4CX 2.5 mm2 cable the maximum running and stating lengths
are:

 460 x 1x5 
 x1000 m
m running = 
 ( 3 x12 .50 x( 9.45 x0.84 + 0.121 x0.54 ) x100 ) 


=132.87 m

 460 x 1x15 
 x1000 m
m starting = 
 ( 3 x81 x( 9.45 x 0.54 + 0.121 x0.84 ) x100 ) 


= 94.5 m

Based on the comparison made between the length based on voltage drop, the maximum cable length is
taken as the shorter of the two. So based on the calculations above it can be concluded that a 10 HP motor
can be fed by a 1RX 4CX 2.5 mm2 cable up to a maximum length of 94.5 m.

LV cable short circuit capabilities:

The cable short circuit current capabilities is based upon the adiabatic equation given by

T=( k2 X s2)/I2

Where cable withstand capability is given by (k2 X s2) = A2

Where k is the cable insulation thermal constant (143 for XLPE insulated cables) and s is the cable cross
section in mm2.
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MOTOR FEEDERS REV

The cable of chosen cross-section and the short circuit capacity is checked to determine if it is capable of
withstanding the let-through energy of the connected protective device.

Now for feeding a 15 HP motor with a 2.5 mm2 it can be checked that the cable withstand for 0.005 sec is
5.06 kA, while the fuse let through current stands at 5.7 kA. So the only restriction is 2.5 mm2 cable can feed
motors up to 10 HP.

7. Cable Selection Chart :

Cables are selected by locating the motor kW rating under the relevant Data column, then by viewing
horizontally, the first record displayed that exceeds the known cable route length is selected. Viewing up this
column indicates the minimum allowable cable size.

The following formula is used within the spreadsheet.

The cable current carrying capacity after applying a de-rating factor is compared with the Motor FLC. (In
case of motors, this is normally set to Service Factor times the motor full load current)

ICABLE x F > ITHS

ICABLE Cable current rating

F De-rating factor
ITHS Thermal relay setting

If the duty exceeds the cable de-rated capability then a =T= is displayed in the chart.
For Breaker fed MV motors a =T= is also displayed even if the short circuit capability of the cable is
exceeded.

For motor feeders, the spreadsheet determines whether the starting conditions or the running conditions
determine the maximum permissible cable, this is denoted by a {s} or {r} alongside the figures on the sheet.

For the motor feeders, the criterion which determines the maximum permissible cable length is displayed by
the side as

(=T=) when the thermal limit of the cable is exceeded and a larger cable is required,
(=L=) when the cable exceeds the specified maximum length

Also

{S} when voltage drop at starting dictates the length (for motors).
{R} when voltage drop at running condition determines the length (for motors).