Impact of Switching-Induced Electromagnetic Interference on Low-Voltage Cables in Substations

The electromagnetic environment within a substation is very complex. Substations represent an intricate interconnected collection of devices that serve as electromagnetic wave emitters and receptors. Transient electromagnetic emissions-electromagnetic interference (EMI)-are generated during the switching of disconnector and circuit breakers (CBs) that may cause malfunction or damage to electronic equipment positioned nearby if appropriate immunity measures are not taken. The interference may couple significant energy through common-mode currents to cable protection. Electromagnetic compatibility is mostly achieved by addressing the EMI victim through techniques in the secondary environment, such as shielding and filtering. This paper presents the finite-element method analysis of three methods: metallic channel, braided cable, and additional cable, used for EMI mitigation on low-voltage cables of 20 kV side in a 63-kV/20-kV substation due to switching effects of disconnector and CBs. In each method, overvoltage is considered and the results are compared with each other. A simple circuit analysis was also carried out on the causes of switching based on EMI to provide some insight into the interference mechanism during switching process, using common-mode and differential-mode equivalent circuits. The overvoltage reductions are attained through differential-mode current and shielding methods.