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A3-101

CIGRE 2008

Strategy for End of Life Assessment for High Voltage Circuit Breakers

C. NEUMANN*, B. RUSEK RWE Transportnetz Strom GmbH Dortmund S. FEDERLEIN, A. SCHNETTLER RWTH Aachen University

J. SCHNEIDER RWE Energy AG Dortmund U. ZICKLER FGH e.V. Mannheim Germany

G. BALZER University of Technology Darmstadt CH. SCHORN EnBW Regional AG Stuttgart

SUMMARY Changes in the regulatory framework of the electricity market have intensified the efforts of the grid operators for an optimized utilization of their networks and the equipment installed. Moreover, incentive regulations have been introduced, although not all important details are fully clear at the moment. All these regulations should induce more competition in the energy market. Due to this fact, already today the grid operators are put under enormous pressure to optimize costs. Facing the existing and coming regulations, possibilities of extending the life cycle of high voltage equipment are intensively searched aiming at an extension of service life and thereby achieving distinct savings. Firstly, this paper describes the systematic data recording and data management process. Based on an extended database a method for supporting the decision making process for circuit breaker replacement is developed. This database contains records of failures, maintenance actions and maintenance protocols. All these data will be analyzed and evaluated in such a way that they can be used for a final decision process. The examples described refer to populations of 123 kV and 420 kV circuit breakers. Moreover, parameters for determination of the after sales service quality will be discussed and a method will be shown to use these parameters for achieving representative results in practice. For a replacement decision the overall maintenance costs are also relevant. Since real costs have not been recorded in the past, flat rate costs for each maintenance measure will be assumed for this calculation. Finally, an algorithm for supporting the decision making process will be presented. This consideration results in a priority list showing in which sequence the circuit breaker should be replaced. KEYWORDS Maintenance, lifetime, equipment, substation, service experience, data management, ageing behavior

claus.neumann@rwe.com 0

Introduction

Nowadays, the end of life assessment is based on the Reliability Centered Maintenance (RCM) strategy, which defines the sequence in which the different components should be replaced knowing the condition of the equipment and its importance in the system. However, this method does not consider life cycle costing points of view. Moreover, an important factor used by this method, the service experience, normally is only described qualitatively. In order to fulfill the aim of this paper the following subjects will be discussed. At first the structure of a consistent database will be introduced. This database should include all activities on circuit breaker (CB) like type and number of maintenance actions or number of failures and irregularities etc. In the second phase, typical parameters describing the reliability of the equipment and its technical condition will be evaluated based on the extended database. In the third phase, every activity on CBs will be expressed in terms of applied flat rate costs. Finally, the results of all single assessments will be combined and by using the method of weighted average, the priority of CBs to be replaced will be defined.

Requirements on data management

In the majority of cases various failure rates especially in dependence on the operation time or respectively on the age show a huge spread. Moreover, the fitted failure curves are not consistent with known ageing theories. The reason is the consideration of a mix of different failure events and of a mix of different technologies as well as relatively small period of CBs operation. In consequence, the combination of these influencing factors often entails a high uncertainty of derived failure rates [1]. These uncertainties induce certain requirements on data management processes as follows: Clear definitions of all events Classification of different technologies Mandatory data pooling to achieve high quantities Standardized guidelines for recording processes Based on these requirements a systematic data recording process as shown in Fig.1 was developed. Firstly, all raw information (e.g. equipment, event and network information) located at different places should be recorded. In the second step all available information has to be classified using clear definitions. The first two steps deliver classified data for equipment types and for event types and ensure the required data quality. In the last step it is possible to increase the data quantity by pooling data from different power utilities using a defined common data format. With adherence to this approach the failure statistics will be more significant because of the high certainty and the clear data processes. Hence, a type specific assessment is possible by means of sophisticated prediction and ageing models. The calculated failure rates are expedient for operators, service providers and manufacturers [1].
Equipment, event, Network data

Information Common guidelines

Quality Quality

+ clear definitions

Classification

Equipment type (technology class ) Event types (minor/major failure, info )

Quantity Quantity

+ defined data format

Data pooling

Access to all needed databases Central storage

significant for operator, SP, manufacturer Due to the practical data recording procedure the classification of failures according to CIGRE in minor and major failures was Fig. 1 Systematic data recording process not achievable. Therefore, the equivalent failures or irregularities had been determined by analysis of failure mode effects. For purposes of this method, five modes shall be evaluated: 1. Cost of spare parts (22.5%) 2. Repair time (20.0%) 3. Personal safety (30.0%) 4. Environmental pollution (10.0%) 5. Switching feasibility after failure occurrence (17.5%) For every mode, the three values high, middle, and low have been acquired. Subsequently, the single modes have been weighted (numbers in parentheses). Finally, the failures achieving more than 50% of total points have been classified equivalent to major failure and the rest equivalent to minor failure.

Assessment/Failure statistics

high certainty + clear data management

Estimation of equipment behavior by analysis of historic events

The service experience gained over years can also be used for estimation of the equipment behavior in future. For this, a thorough analysis of the service experience and all failure events is necessary. Thereby, the failures (or irregularities) are divided into two categories failures occurred during operation and failures detected during inspection. Ageing behavior of 123 kV CBs The development of various ageing and condition models for certain types of high voltage equipment is one objective of current research studies. In the process of life management, the condition of equipment can be determined and described by application of different methods [2]. This evaluation is based on the type of equipment, failure event and maintenance data of a network operator with adherence to the above mentioned approach as good as possible. The data cover a representative part of the whole network. Six types of outdoor CB are closely considered and cover different technologies of CBs e.g. SF6 self blast, SF6 puffer and min oil with spring and hydraulic drives. The corresponding quantities considered in the period of 2000 2006 are shown in the table below. 123 kV CB
(consideration period 2000-2006)

number of CB
(in 2006)

number of inspection protocols 1657

number of major failures 251

one breaker unit per pole one drive per CB

1424

The conditions of CBs can be described by means of inspected minor failures during maintenance measures. Thereby, an inspection can be identified as an intensive visual check, which can also include very basic servicing works such as cleaning or correction of the quantity of insulation medium. This inspection is different from the complex servicing. Fig.2a shows the analysis results. The number of minor failures per inspection specifies how many irregularities were detected on a certain CB type depending on the age in relation to all implemented inspections. Hence, the value 0.1 represents one minor failure which has been detected after ten inspections in average. The graph shows an exponentially growing trend of the failure occurrence depending on the age which barely changes in the first 15 operating years. However, starting from an age of 25 years the number of minor failures caused by environmental impact increases. These failures were predominantly provoked by un-tight insulator flanges due to flange corrosion and defective protective coating. It is assumed that the equipment behavior can be represented by the failure frequency of the equipment which is defined as the ratio of the number of major failures to the number of CBs. Defining this relationship for every year in service, the failure rate can be derived [3]. Here, it is important to note that it is necessary to calculate the failure rate related to the number of CBs installed at the instant of failure occurrence [1].
0.8 Number of minor failures per inspection 0.7 Fig. 3 0.6 0.5 0.4 0.3 0.2 0.1 0 0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 Age [Years] expected Different failures of 123 kV circuit breakers 4.5 value 4 confidence (a) related number of minor failures detected during inspection interval 3.5 (b) failure rate: major failures per 100 circuit breaker years Major failures per 100 CB years 3 2.5 2 1.5 1 0.5 0 0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 Age [Years]

(a)

(b)

expected value confidence interval

Fig. 2 Different failures of 123 kV circuit breakers (a) related number of minor failures detected during inspection (b) failure rate: major failures per 100 circuit breaker years

In Fig. 2b, the rate of major failures depending on the age of equipment is illustrated. The ageing behavior of CBs follows the typical characteristic of a bathtub curve, which is the result of a combination of basic and independent ageing curves (e.g. teething, deterioration, etc.). The three phases of a bathtub-characteristic can be explained as follows: Phase 1: The so-called teething failures with a maximal value of 3.0 major failures per 100 CB years occur predominantly at the beginning of operating time until an age of 10 years. Faulty electrical components such as SF6 density monitor and auxiliary switch are mainly responsible for these major failures. Phase 2: Between approximately the 10th and 25th year of operation the major failure occurrence is determined by stochastic processes, known as random failures. Stochastic major failures are not characterized by an accumulation of problems with certain components. Here, the often different switching elements contribute to the major failure occurrence, whereby a constant rate of about 0.8 major failures per 100 CB years is widely caused. Phase 3: Deteriorated major failures increasingly arise from an age of 25 years and are characterized by an exponential rise of the wear out failure rate. The causes for this development are heavily mechanical and electrical stressed components. Especially in the drive mechanism, major failures are frequently caused by leakages in the hydraulic system and defective damping breaks. Considering gas insulated substation the major failure frequency, especially the three phases of equipment behaviour in dependence on the age, is very similar. Merely the values of the failure rate are vitally lower compared to outdoor CBs [4]. Moreover, it is possible to estimate the life cycle depending on the prognosticated prospective major failure occurrence illustrated by the shaded area in Fig. 2b. A distinct increase of major failures can be recognized after a service time of 40 up to 45 years. This indication as well as the absolute failure rate can be considered as one criterion for the end of the service life. Thereby, it is presumed that the causes for teething failures were already identified and remedial measures were introduced. Nevertheless, individual end of life decisions are usually driven by other criteria as well, e.g. the meaning of a CB for the overall system performance or the supply of sensitive customers. Fig. 3 demonstrates average failure rates depending on the quenching and drive technology. As a result, the drive technique is deciding for the major failure rate. The failure probability of CBs with hydraulic drives is almost three times higher than of breakers with a spring drive mechanism. In contrast to the drive technology, the quenching technology does not determine the failure frequency, because the deviation between the different quenching technologies is comparable low. Furthermore, in this case, the period of consideration is too short for receiving consolidated results. For example, the major failures of self blast CBs mainly cover the teething phase at which the breaker unit is not responsible for the high failure rate. Moreover, the different bay types as well as the number of switching cycles are further influencing factors on the major failure occurrence. CBs are stressed with different loads which are, depending on the bay type (coupling, line, transformer bay), characterized by the magnitude of short-circuit current as well as by the switching frequency. In Fig.4, the average counter reading of switching cycles in the observed time period of the relevant CB types for different bay types are shown. Especially, CBs in coupling bays at substations with multiple busbars are often affected by major failures. Obviously, the high switching frequency of coupling bays leads to an increased occurrence of major failures.
3.0 Major failures per 100 CB years 2.5 2.0 1.5 1.0 0.5 0
Self blast CB Puffer type CB Minimum Oil CB Hydraulic drive Spring drive

Quenching technology

Drive technology

Fig. 4

Average failure rate for technologies of 123 kV CBs

different

600

4.0 counter reading for switching cycles average major failure rate

counter reading switching cycles

major failures per 100 CB years

500

3.5 3.0 2.5 2.0 1.5 1.0

400

300

200

100 0.5 0 coupling bay line bay transformer bay 0

Fig. 5

Impact of bay type and switching cycles 3

Average failure rate per 100 CB-years

Ageing behavior of 420 kV CBs The average failure rates for 420 kV CBs are shown in Fig. 5. From this figure one can take large differences in the average failure rates of the individual types of 420 kV CBs. The rates strongly depend on the technical solution of the different CBs (e.g. spring/hydraulic drive). Therefore, an adequate accuracy of results can only be obtained, if the consideration is carried out on individual 40 CB types and sufficiently large populations. Types of 35 equipment fulfilling these requirements most largely are 30 the CBs A80s and C63s. Hence, these types will be 25 discussed in next paragraphs more thoroughly.
20

Similarly as for 123 kV CBs, the relative failure 15 frequency (RFF) can also be evaluated for 420 kV CBs 10 (Fig. 6). For CBs of type A80s, again the three basic 5 ageing curves are recognizable i.e. teething, random and wear curve. However, the wear characteristic is 0 dominating. Teething events are to be seen in the second year of operation. The frequency of major failure events is much smaller compared with minor failures. Fig. 7 Average failure rates 6 This indicates positive improvements of CB design and a high efficiency of maintenance measures. Nevertheless, the relation is also a question of technology under consideration. For example, technologically earlier dated minimum oil breakers of type I63o had lots of major failure caused by serious problems due to leakages on grading capacitors. These failures had an enormous impact on the overall maintenance costs (see Fig. 7).
G63s C63s D63s H63s A80s B80s E63s F63s

(a) Type A80s

100 90
Exp. Regression of RFF (minor) Exp. Regression of RFF (all CBs) Confidence interval RFF (minor)

(b) Type C63s

100 90

RFF (1/a/100CB-years)

80 70 60 50 40
RFF (major)

RFF (1/a/100CB-years)

80 70 60 50 40 30 20 10 0
Lin. Regression of RFF (major) Confidence interval RFF (major) RFF (minor) Lin. Regression of RFF (minor) Exp. Regression of RFF (all CBs)

30 20 10 0
0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18 20 22 24 26 28 30 32 34 36 38 40 Lin. Regression of RFF (major)

0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18 20 22 24 26 28 30 32 34 36 38 40

Age (years)

Age (years)

Fig. 9 8

Relative Failure Frequency (RFF) of 420 kV circuit breakers with 95% confidence interval

Due to the relative small confidence range in Fig. 6a the regression curve will only slightly deviate in future from that shown above. Hence, higher expenditure for failure caused by repair has to be expected in the next years. In contrary, for CBs of type C63s, where the population of older breakers is smaller, the confidence range is larger. Additionally, the forecasted period is five years longer. Facing these facts, the RFF predicted for the 40th year of operation seems to be rather improbable. Nevertheless, based on regressions already available, the main trends of failure development can be assessed. The lower the RFF value, the better the reliability of equipment is to be expected in the future. In case of a high reliability the end of service life can be extended. Concluding the reliability analysis of CBs it can be stated that the age and type of CB evidently plays a very important role. Much worse is that obviously the failures probability increases by older CB. However, it has to be acknowledged that not the major failures but the number of minor failures cause disturbances which interfere the normal operation. Usually, the cost expenditure for removal of minor failures is not very high. Minor failures are most often caused by leakages of the oil or SF6 gas and problems with control circuits.

Maintenance costs

Maintenance costs strongly depend on the policy of the grid operator. He specifies the frequency and the type of maintenance measures (like visual inspections, condition assessment, servicing). The overall maintenance costs 4

I63o

are essentially affected by this policy. In the following, cost estimation over a long period of time is carried out based on an extensive database containing time-tagged all maintenance measures as well as failure events. For estimation of the overall maintenance costs flat rates for each kind of maintenance measure and for major and minor failure events are assumed. The following costs factors will be considered: 1. Visual inspection According to the maintenance strategy patrol inspections in constant time intervals are performed in the substations. At that time, visual inspections of devices can be carried out. For example, this can include a more general check of device, cursory search of oil leakages, read out of counters etc. 2. Condition acquisition using an automatic diagnosis system (ADS) By means of this system the condition of the majority of CBs can digitally be acquired. Usually these actions will be carried out few years before the planned maintenance in order to prove the necessity of servicing. 3. Servicing It consists of two parts depending on CB type: The cost for spare parts and for personal (the latter one measured in man-days). 4. Special measure In case of detection of series failures and irregularities all CBs of the relevant type will be submitted to repair. These costs strongly depend on kind and extent of measures in question. 5. Major failure as defined above according to the failure mode effect analysis. These failures can have severe financial, environmental and safety effects. 6. Minor failures also as defined above according to the failure mode effect analysis. These irregularities potentially can develop to a failure that impedes one of the CB functions. Minor failures normally do not require high financial efforts. However, their high frequency of occurrence has significant impact on overall maintenance costs. It should be mentioned that further cost factors as expenditures for penalties or re-dispatch caused by failures or events occurred during operation can significantly exceed the cost of a new CB. These costs depend on the individual configuration of the network and they are very difficult to evaluate in practice. Therefore, they are disregarded in this cost calculation, although they have to be paid by system operator. Fig. 7 shows the average overall maintenance costs for 420 kV CBs acquired according to the cost groups named above. Thereby, the costs are related to the actual replacement costs of a typical 420 kV, 63 kA CB. Usually, CBs with a rated short circuit current of 80 kA are more expensive in maintenance than 63 kA CBs. This is due to the CB design. The 80 kA equipment is fitted with four breaking units and two hydraulic drives i.e. double as much as a 63 kA CB. In spite of this, breakers F63s and I63o exceed the average overall maintenance costs compared to 80 kA CB of type A80s. From the financial point of view CB of type C63s is the most effective one. The overall maintenance costs are not linearly distributed in time. This effect can be seen in Fig. 8, where individual cost groups of CBs of type A80s installed in the years 1980-1995 are given. The maintenance expenditure can usually be grouped in three years bundles. The periods between the bundles depend on the maintenance strategy. In the early 1980ies, maintenance intervals of 6 years were chosen. The extension of maintenance intervals to 8 years started at the beginning of the 1990ies. Maintenance actions beyond the predefined maintenance intervals were carried out, if either repair actions had to be undertaken or de-energizing of the CBs in question was impossible at the predetermined periods due to operational reasons.
Average overall maintenance cost per CB-year (in % of new CB cost)
1,6 1,4 1,2 1 0,8 0,6 0,4 0,2 G63s C63s D63s H63s 0 A80s B80s E63s F63s I63o

Major event Minor event Maintenance

Visual inspection Special measure Condition acquisition

Fig. 10 Average overall maintenance costs per CB-year

Major event Minor event Maintenace Visual inspection Condition acquisition Special measure

Maintenace Cost per CB-year (in % of new CB cost)

1,8 1,6 1,4 1,2 1 0,8 0,6 0,4 0,2 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 Age (years) 0
Maintenance interval

6 years

8 years

Fig. 11 Overall maintenance costs of CBs of type A80s installed in 1980-1995 5

Furthermore, the transition from the old to the new maintenance strategy is also responsible for this effect. The costs factors not depending on the strategy, e.g. costs for removal of major and minor failure and for special measures, also tend to appear more frequently, in particular in the second half of the operating time. Hence, higher maintenance expenditures can be expected during and after the third maintenance interval. Above, the different overall maintenance costs have been considered. However, another important cost factor becomes more significant, particularly if the equipment grows older. Then often spare parts are much more difficult to purchase and the cost for spare parts may increase considerably, so that it might more advisable to purchase a new CB instead of servicing an old one. Additionally, for old equipment it is much more difficult to get qualified personnel that can carry out qualified maintenance work. This can considerably increase the failure frequency and failure costs. This interrelationship and also other factors that influence the after sales service quality will be determined in indirect way i.e. by an assessment based on service experience (Tab. 1). Tab. 1 Assessment of after sales service quality
Unavailability during maintenance actions 3.3 1-6 3 5 2 3 2 1 1 4 6 0-100 21.6 78.6 10.8 30.6 31.7 42.5 43.2 53.8 76.9 Stuff availability for failure removal Availability of spare parts in case of failure Reuse possibility of circuit breaker Assembly time in case of failure Stuff availability for maintenance actions Installation time Quality of maintenance actions Cost of maintenance package Stuff outlay for installation Feedback with manufacturer Assessment result

Weight [%] Range Type A80s Type B80s Type C63s Type D63s Type E63s Type F63s Type G63s Type H63s Type I63o

1.8 1-6 3 5 2 5 3 3 5 3 5

8.0 1-6 5 5 2 5 5 5 5 5 5

8.0 1-6 1 6 1 6 1 1 1 1 6

15.6 1-6 2 5 2 2 3 5 5 5 5

8.0 1-6 1 5 1 1 3 5 5 5 5

11.6 1-6 3 5 2 3 2 2 2 3 5

13.5 1-6 1 5 1 1 2 2 2 3 3

5.5 1-6 1 5 1 1 3 3 3 3 3

9.8 1-6 1 5 1 1 3 5 5 5 5

15.9 1-6 3 4 2 3 2 1 1 3 6

Notes: 1 - excellent, 6 - insufficient; Assessment result: 0 - excellent; 100 insufficient The service experience depends on numerous criteria, which are evaluated according to strictly predefined rules. In this process, the different criteria are assessed by notes from best one (1) to worse one (6). Subsequently, these notes will be weighted with values determined by use of a decision matrix [8]. The result of the assessment process is a weighted average value which is scaled between 0 (the best service) and 100 (the worst service). Tab. 1 shows large variations in after sales service quality. Taking for example the two 80 kA CBs, both of them were installed in the 1980ies, however A80s has received a rather good after sales service compared to B80s, not mentioning that service is better than for the majority of 63 kA CBs which are less sophisticated with regard to the basic design. According to this table, there is no particular necessity to give up the 80 kA technology although their frequency of failure events is higher than that for 63 kA breakers (see Fig. 5). Form the practical point of view, it is recommended to prefer those breakers that received less than 40 points in the assessment process when new CBs are to be purchased.

Actual technical condition of equipment

The actual technical condition is affected by irreversible and reversible physical ageing quantities like wear of high current contacts, amount of oil and SF6 gas leakages or wear of the mechanical components of drive. The predictions of the relative failure frequency (see chapter 4) indicates a certain increase of irregularities for older CBs. Hence, the knowledge of the actual technical condition of the equipment is of specific importance for the estimation of the remaining service time. Some options of CB condition acquisition are given in [5][6][7]. In a first approach, the end of life is roughly estimated based on the behavior of the CB population. In the first step, the technical condition for each individual CB will be determined. For this purpose, the weighted average of three factors dependent on time and actual condition will be evaluated for the individual breaker:

Average technical Average technical condition of CBs condition of CBs

1. 2. 3.

Age of CB Time to the next maintenance measure Results of the previous maintenance (If by the last maintenance the condition was poor, at last maintenance it can be expected that the next maintenance will provide similar or worse results)

60 60 50 50 40 40 30 30 20 20 10 10 A80s A80s C63s C63s D63s D63s H63s H63s F63s F63s G63s G63s B80s B80s E63s E63s I63o I63o 0 0

In the second step, the average of conditions of CBs of the same type will be calculated based on the condition data of the individual CBs determined in step 1. An example is given in Fig. 9. The variations between the Fig. 13 Average technical condition of CBs Fig. 12 Average technical condition of CBs conditions of different CB types are in the range between 10 and 35. The average condition of minimum oil CB (I63o) only is much worse. The better the condition, the better is the ability for lifetime extension. Hence, the service life of breaker I63o should not be extended.

Possibilities of equipment replacement

In case of a large population of CBs, typically a pool of spare equipment exists from which the CB in question can be taken for replacement. This pool consists of new breakers, usually standardized according to the requirements of the grid operator, and those removed from the grid because of network restructuring or insufficient capability, e.g. with regard to normal current, short-circuit current, opening time. The latter CBs could be reinstalled in less important substations. However, normally they have been overhauled before reinstallation. In some cases, the overhaul and the installation expenditure cannot be justified so that such breakers do not supply the pool but will be scrapped. Mostly, the breakers in question have already received the worst mark according to Tab. 1. The decision about application of overhauled or new CBs respectively can be taken according to following rules: 1. Replacement by overhauled equipment Same foundations, same control and auxiliary circuits and same switching capability Mostly this option is appropriate only for devices of the same type. Furthermore, this type has to be available in the pool Sufficient reliability (even after overhaul) Re-installation of devices older then 30 years cannot be recommended unless a fast response in case of failure is necessary Replacement by new equipment Important substation and/or bay in the system Requirement of high reliability Requirement of high switching capability De-energizing of the equipment will not be possible in the nearer future and maintenance actions between strictly predefined periods cannot be carried out.

2.

The factors listed above are relevant for certain application only. Hence, they shall not influence the decision about the breaker replacement directly. Nevertheless, they have been partially involved in decision process (see Tab. 1).

Combination of parameters for end of live assessment of equipment

In the previous paragraphs, the different factors influencing the decision about the replacement of CBs have been discussed. In this section, the final decision making is shown and illustrated by an example related to the population of the CBs under consideration. In Tab. 2 the parameters of the previous sub-assessments have been gathered. The result of the different subassessments given in figures 5, 7 and 9 and Tab.1 are combined in such a way that the worst parameter is set to 100. In consequence, the breaker B80s in Tab.1 with the result of 78.6 is set to 100 points and the other breakers are linearly scaled related to 78.6. In the same way the other assessment parameters average technical condition, average failure rate, average overall maintenance costs are also scaled. By this adjustment the spreads between the individual values are much higher, that makes the result more evident. 7

As before, the single parameters are weighted and the assessment of the end of equipment life is given as the weighted average value. Ordering the results from the worst to the best one, the priority for CB replacement can be established. The weighting factors again were chosen by means of a decision matrix. These factors can be adjusted according to the experience and the risks the utility wants to take. Tab. 2 Parameters influencing the end of equipment life
Circuit Breaker
Weight [%] Range

Average technical condition

20 0-100 67,0 86,2 31,9 86,2 35,4 91,2 92,0 51,3 100,0

Average Failure Rate

10 0-100 72,5 52,8 26,9 46,9 6,7 50,7 100,0 82,1 91,7

Average overall maintenance Cost

20 0-100 36,0 49,2 18,4 23,0 34,5 41,8 28,9 30,2 100,0

Service Quality
50 0-100 27,5 100,0 13,7 38,9 40,3 54,1 55,0 68,4 97,8

Evaluation Result
-0-100 41,6 82,4 19,6 46,0 34,8 58,7 61,7 58,7 98,1

Priority for decision about end of life

---

Type A80s Type B80s Type C63s Type D63s Type E63s Type F63s Type G63s Type H63s Type I63o

7 2 9 6 8 5 3 4 1

As expected, the oil CBs (I63o) should be replaced with the first priority. In that case, almost all evaluation parameters are the worst and the small variations of the weighting factors would not change this result. Furthermore, the CB B80s in comparison with A80s comes off badly. Nevertheless, the decision about replacement of this breaker type is not self-evident, because doing so one strict rule of power utilities, i.e. to be not dependent on one manufacturer only, will be broken. The breaker G63s is disqualified by the very poor technical condition and very high failure rate. Finally, the CB with code C63s should be replaced at last. It represents the best CB in terms of reliability, financial efforts and service quality.

Summary and Conclusions

The decision about end of life of CBs depends on many factors and parameters. Therefore, some advises for the general replacement strategy can be given only. The final decision is almost in every case a more or less individual solution. The paper presents easy, technically justified and effective method for supporting the decision making process for the end of equipment life. The tools described cover all the relevant parameters that based on service experience should be in taken into account. Data evaluation has to be based on a substantial database. Theoretical models and approaches are reliant on well-founded data to be successfully put into practice. Therefore, the paper introduces a systematic data recording process. The paper also shows the complexity of determination of the end of equipment life. To the factors essentially contributing to the final decision belong: average technical condition of a type, average failure frequency, maintenance costs and quality of after sales service. The methodology of the decision making process proposed is similar to neural networks. This paper shows examples of 420 kV CBs mainly. Similar methodology can be applied to all CBs and for different drive and quenching technologies. Moreover, these considerations can also be carried for other types of HV equipment. Grouping the equipment according to the parameters given in Tab. 2 a simple but efficient end of life assessment can be achieved. This can be used as basis in the replacement strategy process.

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