IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON INDUSTRY APPLICATIONS, VOL. IA-17, NO.
6, NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 1981
Grounding of Generators Connected to
Industrial Plant Distribution Buses
RICHARD H. MCFADDEN,
Abstract-Increasing "energy consciousness" in industry is causing
expanded interest in in-plant generators, which are normally con-
nected to the main plant distribution bus. Electrical system reliability
requires the proper application of neutral grounding and ground fault
protection for these machines. Mechanical limits on safe generator
ground fault currents, possible circulating harmonic currents in
multiunit installations, and the effects of internal ground faults add
complexity.
INTRODUCTION
TT OFTEN makes good economic sense for an industrial
Iplant or a large commercial building complex to generate
part or all of its own electric power. For example, steel mills,
refineries, and paper mills produce process wastes that contain
potentially valuable energy, recoverable through in-plant
generation. Similarly, in a number of industrial processes,
energy must be extracted from a process stream and can be
recovered economically via a generator powered by an ex-
pander turbine or a heat-recovery boiler. In large building
complexes, such as hospitals and shopping centers, the need
for secure backup power can often be best satisfied by on-site
generation. In short, we can expect to find local generators
in a variety of industrial and commercial facilities for a long
time to come.
Unlike the typical electric utility practice, where generators
are separated from the power network by unit transformers,
most industrial plant generators operate at distribution voltage
and are connected via a circuit breaker to a main plant distri-
bution bus. While this arrangement has the virtues of low
initial cost, minimum losses, and simplicity, it makes the
generators an integral part of the plant distribution system.
The power system designer must give this fact careful consider-
ation in selecting neutral grounding and ground fault protec-
tion for the generators.
In designing any neutral grounding and ground fault pro-
tection scheme, we must work toward a variety of objectives,
some of which can be mutually antagonistic. They include the
following:
1) personnel and plant safety;
2) minimization of unplanned service interruptions;
3) limitation of damage to faulted equipment;
Paper IPSD 80-14, approved by the Power Systems Protection Com-
mittee of the IEEE Industry Applications Society for presentation at
the 1980 Industrial and Commercial Systems Technical Conference,
Houston, TX, May 12-15. Manuscript released for publication July 21,
1981.
The author is with the Marine Division, Westinghouse Electric
Corporation, Hendy Ave., Sunnyvale, CA 94088.
0093-9994/81/1100-0553$00.75 © 1981 IEEE
553
SENIOR MEMBER, IEEE
4) limitation of transient overvoltages;
5) conformance with National Electrical Code Article
250-5.
Plant generation at distribution voltage imposes additional
areas of concern, such as
1) possibility of ground fault currents which exceed the
mechanical limits of the generator(s);
2) possibility of circulating harmonic currents in multi-
generator installations;
3) effect of ground faults in the generator(s).
Leaving the basics of grounding and ground fault protec-
tion to more general treatises (such as IEEE Standard 142,
The Green Book), this paper will address the unusual prob-
lems posed by generators on medium-voltage distribution
busses.
ZERO-SEQUENCE CURRENT LIMITATION
The windings of typical plant generators (built according
to National Electric Manufacturing Association (NEMA)
Standard MGI) are braced to withstand the mechanical
forces resulting from a bolted three-phase short circuit at the
machine terminals. Any phase current that exceeds this
three-phase fault current is likely to damage the windings.
Let us examine a typical industrial turbogenerator, a four-
pole machine in the 2000-10 000 kVA range, with the fol-
lowing sequence reactances (per unit (pu) on rated kVA base):
X1 =Xd = 0.14
X2 Xd = 0.14
XO= 0.08.
The three-phase fault current at the terminals is then
ELN
IF= =
7.14pu.
XI
If our typical generator is the only zero-sequence source on
the system and its neutral is solidly grounded, the current in
the faulted phase for a line-to-ground fault at the machine ter-
minals is given by the familiar ground fault formula:
3EL N
IG = 3 LN = 8.33 pu.
XI +X2 +XO
554 IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON INDUSTRY APPLICATIONS, VOL. IA-17, NO. 6. NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 1981

CIRCULATING HARMONIC CURRENTS

A generator (or, for that miatter, aniy otlher electromag-
netic device) produces slightly noiisinusoidal voltage wave-
forms because of saturation, hysteresis, and less tlhain ideal
winding distribution. Generator voltages contaiin odd-nuim -
bered harmonics, of which the third harnioii is the greatest
in magnitude and importance. Industrial generators may pro-
duce up to 10 percent third-harmnonic voltage at full load,
with comparable but steadily decreasing magnitudes for the
fifth, seventh, ninth, and succeeding harmonics.
Apart from possible interference with nearby communi-
cation circuits, these harmonic voltages chiefly cause trouble
G l
when the system contains a closed loop in wlhich they can
A B c
circulate. Even then, problems are rare, but baffling when they
GROUND
do occur.
FAULT ON Each tlhird-harmonic phase voltage is displaced by 3 X
PHASE A
1200 - 3600 relative to its respective fundamental phase
Fig. 1. Ground fault currents with four parallel generators with one
voltage. As a result, third-harmonic voltages in the tlhree phases
solidly grounded.
are all mutually in phase and can be treated as if they were of
zero phase sequence. This means that third (and also ninth,
In this case the ground fault current exceeds the three-phase fifteenth, . . . ) order harmonic currents can flow only when
fault by only 17 percent-risky, but possibly not disastrous. there is a closed zero-sequence loop.
However, suppose we have four identical generators con- By contrast, the other significant odd harmonics are effec-
nected in parallel, one of which is solidly grounded (Fig. 1). tively. eitlher negative-sequence (fifth order) or positive-se-
A simple symmetrical components calculation gives us the quence (seventh order), and can circulate even without a
following sequence currents in the grounded generator during closed zero-sequence loop. Their effects, while occasionally
a ground fault on the common bus: troublesome, are outside the scope of this paper.
A zero-sequence loop occurs, of course, whein the power
system neutral is grounded at several points, or when the neu-
ELN trals of several generators or delta-wye transformers are con-
IO10I=11-2 =
=1IL.pu.
xi
+ X2 + xo nected together. For instance, a generator and a purchased-
4 4 4 power substation transformer, connected to a common bus
and each with its own grounding resistor, would create a loop,
The entire zero-sequence current flows in the grounded gener- as would two generators on a common bus with a common
ator, but the positive- and negative-sequence components of grounding resistor.
the fault current divide equally among the four parallel ma- Practically speaking, only the third harmonic has much
chines. Therefore, in the faulted phase of the grounded gen- importance to system grounding and ground fault protection
erator: design. The effect of a substantial third-order circulating cur-
rent is basically to preload the components in the zero-se-
I2
IG =-II + 4 + IO = 16.65
'1

4 4
pu.
The foregoing is 233 percent of the corresponding three-
phase fault current. In the absence of some limiting imped-
ance, this would be disastrous.
In even the least severe case of a single generator, solid
neutral grounding produces dangerously high fault current and
should be avoided. Any of the several grounding methods can
be applied if they limit the maximum ground fault current in
each generator to less than its maximum three-phase fault
current EL N/Xd
Most low-voltage power systems (208Y/120V and 480Y/
277V) are solidly grounded. Generators intended for emer-
gency and standby service on these systems have additional
winding bracing to allow their neutrals to be solidly grounded.
However, there is still a chance of trouble if several generators
are connected in parallel with only one grounded, as in the
case above.
quence loop, to the detriment of their usable thermal capaci-
ties. This effect assumes particular importance when third-
harmonic current flows continuously through a short-tinie-
rated neutral grounding resistor. At best, the resulting losses
waste energy and raise the initial operating temperature
of the resistor, requiring its deratiing either in current or
time. At worst, the harmonic loading may exceed the very
limited continuous capability of the resistor, thus destroying
it. Further problems can arise if the third-order current is high
enough to operate ground fault relaying, which depends
on detection of zero-sequence current or voltage. Relays may
have to be desensitized to prevent false operation.
Circulating current is directly proportional to the vector
resultant of all voltage sources of a given harmonic in the
closed loop, and inversely proportional to the sum of har-
monic-frequency impedances around the loop. If the zero-
sequence loop comprises two or more identical generators
loaded the same, the voltage waveforms of the machines will
be similar enough to nmake the resultant driving voltage very
McFADDEN: GROUNDING OF GENERATORS 555

small, and very little current will circulate. On the other hand,
significant currents are possible when different generators, or
generators combined with purchased-power transformers, are
connected in a loop.
The component derating required by circulating harmonic
current is easy to estimate. The thermal load is proportional
to the root-mean-square (rms) current, which is given by

'rms 22 h = 1, 2, 3,---,

For example, suppose we have two generators in parallel with

a common neutral bus (Fig. 2.). Due to differing electrical
parameters and construction details, one generates 10 percent
third-harmonic voltage, the other generates 5 percent third Fig. 2. Two parallel generators with common neutral bus.
harmonic, and the two harmonic voltages are 270 out
of phase. The resultant loop voltage is 0.0599 pu. Consider
a case where the generator parameters are

G1: 5000 kVA, XO = 0.06 pu.

G2: 7500 kVA, XO=0.08 pu
In this case, the loop zero-sequence reactance at three times
power frequency is 0.51 pu on a common 7500-kVA base,
and Ohm's law gives us 0.117 pu circulating current in G2. G,
current (on a 5000-kVA base) is 0.176 pu, so the rms current
at full 60-Hz loading in G, is given by the following equation:

'rm = 12 +0.1762=1.015pu.
GI and G2 are subjected to thermal overloads of 1.5 percent
and 0.6 percent, respectively, at full power-frequency load, Fig. 3. Two parallel generators with neutral grounding resistors.
and accordingly, might have to be derated. More importantly,
the zero-sequence third-harmonic current circulating through loops entirely, or by providing enough impedance in the zero-
the loop would tend to pick up the ground relays of both sequence circuit to limit circulating currents to tolerable
generators, causing mysterious false tripping of the generator levels.
breakers. (In a 13.8-kV system, for instance, the circulating
current is 36.9 A, versus a typical ground relay pickup current INTERNAL GROUND FAULTS IN GENERATORS
of 25 A for the 5000-kVA generator.) Generators differ from passive components of a power
For a more complicated example, assume the same genera- system in that they are sources of electric energy. Thus, a
tors operate at 13.8 kV and each is grounded through a fault inside a generator is supplied with current not only from
separate 19.92-Ql 400-A 10-s resistor (Fig. 3). Since the loop the power system beyond the machine terminals, but also
now contains two resistors, at 0.833-pu resistance apiece internally. This poses an interesting dilemma when a generator
(7500-kVA base), the magnitude of the loop impedance is is operated with a resistance-grounded neutral, especially
when the machine has no neutral circuit breaker (as is usually
i ZL I = N/1 .67 ±+0.5 1 2 = I .75 pu. the case in industrial installations).
Differential or neutral overcurrent relays normally detect
The circulating current is 0.0343 pu (7500-kVA base) or ground faults in generators and trip the generator stator and
only 10.8 A. The rms current the 5000-kVA
in G1 is only field breakers. This leaves the neutral end of the faulted wind-
1.001 pu; this presents no overload threat to the generators. ing still grounded. Since the fault current is severely limited
However, it amounts to 2.7 percent of the 10-s resistor rating, by the grounding resistor, the internal voltage of the machine
which is high enough to justify checking the continuous decays relatively slowly (approximately with the open-circuit
capacity of the resistor with the manufacturer. It might also time constant T'do), and fault current continues to flow for
be enough to cause misoperation in very sensitive ground quite some time after the breakers trip. Considerable damage
relaying and produces a continuous I2R loss of 4.6 kW in the can be done in this interval.
resistors. For instance, consider a 13.8-kV generator with a 400-A
As should be apparent, third-order harmonic current prob- grounding resistor (Fig. 4). If one phase suffers a ground
lems can be prevented by either avoiding zero-sequence fault at the midpoint of the winding, the driving voltage of
556 IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON INDUSTRY APPLICATIONS, VOL. IA-17, NO. 6, NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 1981
iG
= AFTER FIELD BREAKER OPENS:
zdrWi.g ( EW Ae
2V-3/
jG e dRIrvin
R about a neutral breaker, at least for the generator whose
Wez-S i22Rdt
Fig. 4. Ground falut at 50 percent of generator winding.
the fault is 50 percent of the internal voltage. If the voltage
across the arc is 50 V, the initial fault current is about 197 A.
This corresponds to arc power of about 9900 W, which persists
undiminished for the first five or six cycles-say 0.1 s-before
the field breaker clears. Then the fault current and arc power
decay with time constant T'do - 8.0 s, becoming insignifi-
cant 30-40 s after the fault, when the driving voltage decays
below the level needed to sustain an arc. In the preclearing
period, 990 J of heat are released at the fault; thereafter, 78 kJ
are added. One can appreciate what this means by noting that
the total heat input of 79 kJ is sufficient to melt 550 g (1.2 lb)
of copper, starting at 300C. Damage to the stator can be signi-
ficant, especially if the thermal damage from the ground
fault triggers an even more destructive phase-to-phase fault.
A neutral breaker would have limited the arc energy to the
original 990 J with negligible damage.
GROUNDING RECOMMENDATIONS
Considering the issues discussed above and general good
system grounding practice, we can offer some recommenda-
tions for neutral grounding on industrial and commercial
systems with generators at distribution voltage.
1) Avoid solidly grounding a distribution-voltage generator
neutral, unless the generator is known to be designed for
this service. Although reactance grounding is usually recom-
mended as the alternative to solid grounding for generators,
it is expensive, allows destructively high fault currents, and is
rarely the best choice for units operated at distribution vol-
tage. Either low- or high-resistance grounding will usually
be the best approach.
2) To minimize circulating harmonic current problems
(not to mention potential safety hazards and relay coordina-
tion difficulties), avoid configurations where the system
neutral is grounded at several points, or where several genera-
tors, transformers, or both have their neutrals connected
together. A good alternative where there are several possible
harmonic sources on a common bus is to leave the generator
or transformer neutrals ungrounded, and provide high-resis-
tance grounding through an inexpensive set of three distri-
bution transformers connected to the bus in a grounded wye-
open delta configuration with a resistor across the open
'
secondary delta.
3) In low-resistance grounded systems, think seriously
neutral is usually grounded, to minimize stator damage in
case of a ground fault.
REFERENCES
[1] IEEE Recommended Practice for Grounding of Industrial And
Commercial Power Systems, IEEE Standard 142, 1972.
[2] "System neutral grounding and ground fault protection," Industrial
and Commercial Power Systems Series PRSC-4B, Westinghouse
Electric Corp., Newark, NJ, 1979.
[3] Electrical Transmission and Distribution Reference Book.
Westinghouse Electric Corp., East Pittsburgh, PA,1964, pp. 188-
189, 657-659.
[4] NEMA Standard MGI-22.45, 1978.
[5] L. J. Powell, Jr., "Influence of third harnonic circulating currents
,in selecting neutral grounding devices," IEEE Trans. Ind. Appl.,
vol. IA-9, no. 6, pp. 672-679; Nov./Dec. 1973.
[6] Standard Requirements, Terminology, and Test Procedures for
Neutral Grounding Devices, IEEE Standard 32, 1972.
[7] AC Generator Protection, Industrial and Commercial Power
Systems Series PRSC-1, Westinghouse Electric Corp., Newark,
NJ, 1975.
[8] R. H. Perry and C. H. Chilton, Eds. Chemical Engineers'
Handbook. New York: McGraw-Hill, 1973.
Richard H. McFadden (S'67-M'67-SM'77)
received the B.S.E.E. degree from Lehigh
University, Bethlehem, PA, in 1967, and the
J.D. degree from Duquesne University, Pitts-
burgh, PA, in 1976.
In 1967 he joined Westinghouse Electric
Corporation as an Industrial District Engineer,
and since then has held a number of engineering,
marketing, and management positions with
Westinghouse. He is currently Advisory
Engineer for Product Development Engineering
at the Westinghouse Marine Division, Sunnyvale, CA.
Mr. McFadden is currently Publications Chairman of the Industrial
Power Systems Department of the Industry Applications Society. He is a
Registered Professional Engineer in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.