Shunt Capacitor Bank

Internal Design
and Operation
Shunt capacitor bank are used in transmission and distribution
system to improve the power factor and voltage regulation and to
reduce line losses. Capacitor banks have no moving parts,
minimal initial and maintenance costs, simple and easy
installation. They are compact, reliable, and highly efficient.
Reactive power compensation by SCBs can significantly reduce
ampere burden of the transmission, distribution network,
transformers, alternators and others. It can reduce line losses and
voltage drops to improve efficiency and voltage regulation.
There are provisions in Grid supply code to compensate reactive power and
maintain the power factor above 0.9. When corrective steps are not taken
at consumer ends, utility has to install a SCBs at LV side of substation.
Such central large size SCBs can improve the
overall power factor, voltage support and
transmission capability. To meet the
changing reactive power requirements,
several fixed capacitor banks can be
switched to obtain a close-to-unity power
factor throughout the day.

Automatic control unit can continuously

monitor total KAVR requirement on LV side
of the transformer and automatically control
capacitor banks through the operation of 12
kV Capacitor duty Switch.
a) Externally Fused
A fuse, externally mounted between capacitor unit and bus is
a common design. Fuse can disconnect a failed capacitor unit
from the bank.
A failure of a capacitor element welds the foils together and
forced short circuits damage the other capacitor elements
connected in parallel in the same group. The remaining series
capacitor elements in the unit remain in service with a higher
voltage across them than before the failure and an increased
in capacitor unit current.
If a second element fails the process repeats and successive
failures within the same unit will make external fuse to
operate, disconnecting capacitor unit and indicating the failed
one. To increase life of unit less capacitor element in parallel
Externally Fused
Once a fused capacitor unit is removed, capacitor bank remains in service with reduced kVAr
and an overvoltage on the remaining parallel capacitors. For safe operation, the bank must
be tripped offline if overvoltage exceeds 110% voltage level.
The unbalance signal level
decreases as the number of
parallel connected capacitors
units of higher voltage ratings is
increased. External fuses
provide a visual indication of a
failure, but bank has more
space occupancy, higher
installation and maintenance
costs and more live parts.
b) Internally Fused
The internal current-limiting fuses are
connected in series with every element within
the capacitor unit. Fuse can isolate internal
faults at the element level and allow continued
reliable operation of the remaining elements of
that capacitor unit. Other elements, connected
in parallel to the fused unit in the same group,
remain in service but with a slightly higher
voltage across them. Cascade failures within a
parallel group may fused out many elements
within the capacitor unit. Such failure are
reduced by more parallel connected elements.
Internally Fused
Such internally fused unit has higher reliability, less space, lower installation and
maintenance costs and fewer live parts.
The capacitor bank is made
of groups of parallel units
connected in series. In
general, banks employing
internally fused capacitor
units are configured with
fewer capacitor units in
parallel and more series
groups of units.
Most distribution and transmission-level small capacitor banks are single wye
connected, either grounded or ungrounded. Single star configuration employs
unbalance voltage detection for protection of capacitor bank. In large banks
Single Star H, Double Star (earthed or unearthed), and C-Filter H (harmonic
current filtering) Configurations is used. These configurations employ economic
and sensitive unbalance current detection for the protection of SCB.
Earthed star configuration banks provide a low impedance path to ground for triple and
other harmonic currents. Both double star and single star banks use a low voltage high
capacitance earthing capacitor to provide low impedance to earth under unbalanced
conditions. Earthing provide a protection and low impedance path to ground for
lightning/switching surge currents and voltages. Initial cost of earthed capacitor bank is
lower since the neutral does not have to be insulated from ground. However, earthed banks
can allow circulation of harmonic and inrush currents. This may result in mal-operation of
fuses and protection relays due to less sensitivity.
Ungrounded capacitor bank does not provide a path for zero sequence
currents, third harmonic currents, or large capacitor discharge currents
during system ground faults. The neutral, however, should be insulated
for full-line voltage, since it is momentarily at phase potential when the
bank is switched on. Capacitor Switch TRV requirement is also higher.
Ungrounded SCB are costly above 15 kV.
Single Star SCB
All banks are generally fed from a double
bus-bar system. Single Star Earthed SCB has
bus-bar isolators (off load switching), a vacuum
circuit breaker for on-load switching and for
the protection of faults, and earth switches on
either sides for safety and maintenance
purposes.
The air core copper winding series reactors are
used to limit the inrush current on energizing
the bank. Damping resistor in reactor is used to
avoid resonance between capacitor bank and
the inductive overhead line.
For Unbalance voltage Protection of Single Star
Earthed SCB two phase to earth voltages are
measured and compared. One is bus-bar voltage
and the other voltage is across bottom low
voltage capacitor. This form of protection may
only be used on solidly earthed banks. The
protection by such comparison is insensitive to
system voltage fluctuations and harmonics.
The protection system compares voltage
measurements from the system bus-bar and a
“tap” voltage within the capacitor bank. If
capacitor elements fail, there will be a voltage
shift at the tap voltage relative to the bus voltage.
The protection relay functions initiate alarm and
trip signals in the event of unbalance detection in
the capacitor bank.
The Capacitor Bank are used for a 3-phase,
50 Hz, 33 KV system. 33 KV, 20MVAR &10
MVAR Capacitor Bank shall consist of
individual small units connected in series and
parallel combination connected in double
star formation. Unbalance current protection
is provided by neutral current transformer.
Internal Fuse of capacitor unit shall isolate only the faulty element.
Operation of the fuse shall not affect the other healthy element or
deteriorate impregnating fluid. Each capacitor unit in the Bank shall
be totally sealed, self-contained outdoor type. Each unit shall also be
provided with internal discharging devices. Each unit
have two welded porcelain bushings suitably rated for series/parallel
connections with other units to form the capacitor bank of rated capacity
at 50Hz.
All parallel units in one series group shall
preferably be arranged in different tiers and
insulated from another by post insulators of
adequate voltage withstand capacity. All
individual units shall have permissible
overloads capacity 135% of rated current.
Five pole grounding switch is used to ground
the load side terminals and neutral of capacitor
bank. The interlocking ensures closing of the
grounding switch only when main switch is
open. Vacuum Circuit Breaker of standard of
capacitor bank duty design can isolate
capacitor bankbank
The capacitor in case of fault or by
is controlled failure.
VCB operation through on/off/auto
mode. In the auto position, digital
power factor controller signal or
protection relay signal control switch.
 The air core copper winding series reactors are used
to limit the inrush current on energizing the bank.
Reactors also filter out specific resonant frequencies
using resistive damping. The damping resistor in
reactor is used to avoid resonance between the
capacitor bank and the inductive overhead line.

Line and neutral CTs are provided for metering

and O/C, E/F and unbalance current
protection.
NCT is provided to detect the unbalance on
account of failure of element in any of the
capacitor unit and will trip the breaker through
unbalance protection relay provided in the
control & relay panel.
The unbalance protection
scheme can initiate a remote
alarm when numbers of
elements in an internal fused
type are lost. The protection
from unbalance current can
disconnect capacitor bank
instantaneously, when
overvoltage of 10% or more
on working units exist.