Anomalies in On-Load Tap Changers: failure prevention through continuous monitoring and advanced data analysis techniques

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CIRED 2019 - 1931.pdf (516.88 KB)

Paper number

1931

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Conference name

CIRED 2019

Conference date

3-6 June 2019

Conference location

Madrid, Spain

Peer-reviewed

Yes

Short title

Convener

Authors

Tozzi, Marco, Camlin Power Ltd, United Kingdom
Cox, Steve , Electricity North West, United Kingdom
Chiesi, Lorenzo , Camlin Technologies, Italy
Mudryk, Anatoliy, Camlin Power Ltd, United Kingdom

Abstract

One of the leading causes of power transformer failures is the fault of the On-Load Tap Changer (OLTC) mechanism, mainly due to issues of dielectric, thermal or mechanical nature. Offline tests can assess the tap changer condition, in particular the Dynamic Resistance Measurements and DGA, but the results can be difficult to interpret, requiring expert analysis, in addition to the need for taking the transformer out of service.Electricity North West (ENW) has run an Innovation project to maximize the use of existing assets. In particular, ENW has identified that there is a need for improving the management of repair, maintenance and replacement of OLTC in the distribution transformers.Beside the conventional offline-tests it was decided to explore the capabilities of continuous on-line monitoring devices to find out leading indicators to properly plan maintenance and avoid catastrophic and dangerous failures. A project has started consisting of installing 42 permanent monitoring system collecting, continuously, parameters such as motor current, temperatures, transformer load, tap position and vibro-acoustic signature.The raw data have been collected for months and analysed by both data scientists and transformer experts. The paper describes the results of the first data analysis, which show a potential in providing automated algorithms able to correlate a multitude of parameters, set automatically alarm thresholds and detect anomalies that need further investigation.

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Publisher

AIM

Date

2019-06-03

Published in

CIRED 2019 Conference

Permanent link to this record

https://cired-repository.org/handle/20.500.12455/653
http://dx.doi.org/10.34890/876

ISSN

2032-9644

ISBN

978-2-9602415-0-1