Reliance Energy Limited

(A Dhirubhai Ambani Enterprise)

Course
on

EARTHING
SYSTEM
By
Dr. K. Rajamani
On 4th and 11th February 2005

Reliance Energy Center, Santacruz, Mumbai 400 055, Tel (022) 3009 9999

EARTHING

EARTHING OF ELECTRICAL SYSTEM

Introduction
Definition of Earthing and Grounding:

Grounding implies connection of power system neutral to ground (earth). e.g.

neutral grounding / system grounding. In grounding current carrying parts are
connected to ground.

Earthing implies the connection of non current carrying parts to ground e.g
metallic enclosures. Another term for earthing is equipment grounding.
Earthing is done for human and equipment safety.

GENERATOR

TRANSFORMER

NG

NG

EARTHING
Human Element

Electric 'shock' is possible only when the human body bridges two objects of
unequal potential. Current flows when potential difference exists between
hand and feet (touch potential), or between feet (step potential).

Reliance Energy Center, Santacruz, Mumbai 400 055, Tel (022) 3009 9999
1 of 25

Maximum tolerable current for a human body is approximately 160 mA for

one second duration (i.e. if current through body exceeds about 160 mA, for
more than a second, almost certain death, due to ventricular fibrillation or
heart attack).

Allowable body current B

(Ampere) as per IEEE Standard 80 is as given

below:
B = 0.116 / TS, for a body weight of 50 Kg
B = 0.157 / TS, for a body weight of 70 Kg
where TS is the duration of current exposure (fault clearance time).

For various exposure times, the withstand currents of human body are as
follows:
B (50 Kg)

B (70 Kg)

0.2 sec

259 mA

351 mA

0.5 sec

164 mA

222 mA

1 sec

116 mA

157 mA

TS

Thus human body can withstand higher current for shorter time duration. The
advantage high-speed protection is evident from human safety point of view.

Average value of human body resistance RB is approximately 8000 to 9000

(under dry conditions). For standards purposes, RB is taken as 1000 as
per IEEE Std 80. Use of lower RB value results in conservative values for
allowable touch and step potentials.

Reliance Energy Center, Santacruz, Mumbai 400 055, Tel (022) 3009 9999
2 of 25

 Soil Resistivity
Resistivity ( ) of element:

R = L / A = R A / L M / M = M ; where - Resistivity of
element, R Resistance of element, L Length, A Area,

Earth is a not a good conductor. In fact it is one of the worst equipmentgrounding conductors. The comparison of resistivity is given below:

Material

Resistivity

Earth

100 M

GI

10 M

Copper

1.7 x 10 M

-7

-8

Soil resistivity ( in M ) is value of resistance in of 1M cube. Soil

resistivity for different types of soil is given below:

Type of Earth
Resistivity ( - M )

Wet Soil

Moist Soil

Dry Soil

Bed Rock

10

100

1,000

10,000

Effect of moisture on soil resistivity:

Soil resistivity rapidly increases for moisture content of less than 10 % of

soil weight. There is marginal decrease in soil resistivity for moisture content
exceeding 25% of soil weight.

Reliance Energy Center, Santacruz, Mumbai 400 055, Tel (022) 3009 9999
3 of 25

Effect of salt on soil resistivity:

Minute amount of salt causes sharp decrease in soil resistivity provided there
is moisture content of say 10%. Salt when added to dry soil gives hardly any
improvement in the resistivity value.

Substances used for improving soil resistivity are sodium chloride (common
salt), copper sulphate, calcium chloride and magnesium sulphate. To account
for corrosion, electrode size is increased from calculated value.

Corrosion intensity:

Soil classification based on corrosion intensity is given below:

Reliance Energy Center, Santacruz, Mumbai 400 055, Tel (022) 3009 9999
4 of 25

 of virgin soil M

<25

25 to 50

50 to 100

> 100

Corrosion Intensity

Severe

Moderate

Mild

Very Mild

Alternative substances used for earthing are coke or wood charcoal and
Bentonite. Coke is less corrosive compared to salt. Bentonite is a natural clay
and non-corrosive and needs watering periodically.

Performance over time for earth resistivity is shown below:

After treatment there is initial decrease in . However there is gradual

increase in soil resistivity with time as the salt is washed away by continual
water seepage. Hence, re-treatment is typically required to be carried out
once in 3 years.
Effect of Temperature on Soil Resistivity:

Soil resistivity decreases with increase in temperature. In summer is less

and in winter it is more. However, effect of temperature on is not serious
until freezing point is approached. Near 0C, abruptly rises to a very high

Reliance Energy Center, Santacruz, Mumbai 400 055, Tel (022) 3009 9999
5 of 25

value. It is preferable to place electrodes well below ground level. Surface

temperature may be freezing but below 1M, soil temperature will be higher.

Soil resistivity measurement:

Soil resistivity measurement setup is as shown below. AC supply source is

preferred for the set up as compared to the DC supply source.

Resistivity measured for spacing A represents apparent soil resistivity to

depth of 'A'. Measurements are made with different spacings. Rapidly
increasing value of with spacing 'A' indicates underlying stratum is rock and
it is difficult to install earth electrodes to great depths.

Reliance Energy Center, Santacruz, Mumbai 400 055, Tel (022) 3009 9999
6 of 25

 Resistance to earth

Resistance between metal of electrode in question and general mass of earth

is known as earth resistance. It is resistance between specific electrode and
imaginary electrode of zero resistance placed at infinity. 90% of resistance is
contributed by earth within 5 meters distance.

Resistance vs Distance:

Resistance to earth of hemi-spherical electrode is shown below:

A
X

dX

Reliance Energy Center, Santacruz, Mumbai 400 055, Tel (022) 3009 9999
7 of 25

R = L / A; RX = dX / 2 X

Resistance area of tube or rod electrode:

Resistance area is the region of earth that immediately surrounds the

electrode and contributes to practical value of resistance.

Current flows away from electrode in all directions and through a series of
shells of earth of continuously increasing cross section. At sufficient distance
from earth electrode, shells approach hemi-spherical shape. Hence results
given earlier for hemi-spherical electrode are also nearly valid here.
Resistance of electrode to earth here also is predominantly influenced by
earth with in the vicinity of electrode. This justifies artificial treatment of soil in
the immediate neighborhood of soil to achieve low resistance between
electrode and earth.

Resistance of Driven Rod or Pipe Electrode:

L : depth of Driven Rod in met
: diameter of Driven Rod in met
R = ( / 2 L ) [ LN (8L /{ x 2.7183 })]
R ( / 2 L ) [ LN (4L / )]

Reliance Energy Center, Santacruz, Mumbai 400 055, Tel (022) 3009 9999
8 of 25

Length / diameter of rod vs Resistance is given below:

RESISTANCE OF ROD ELECTRODE
300

RHO - 100 OHM-MET

2.5 CM

RESISTANCE, OHMS

250

DIAMETER : 2.5, 5, 7.5, 10 CM

200

150

ROD LENGTH: 6M
100

50 10 CM

R2.5 = 16.4

300%

R10 = 15.3

R 7%

0
0

10

LENGTH OF ROD, MET

The diameter of the rod has minor influence on the resistance. Length of the rod has
major impact. For lengths more than 3M, resistance is almost the same even if
diameter is increased by four times.
Resistance of Horizontal Wire (Strip) Electrode:
If excavation is difficult beyond a meter due to underlying rock, strip electrode is the
alternative. The earth electrode is as shown below:

Reliance Energy Center, Santacruz, Mumbai 400 055, Tel (022) 3009 9999
9 of 25

Exact Formula (RYDER)

R = ( / 2 L) [LN(8L/T) + LN(L/h) 2 + (2h/L) (h2 / L2)]
Where, h is depth in Met, L is length in Met.
T : width in Met (for strip)
: 2 x diameter in Met (for wire)
Approximate Formula:
R = ( / 2 L) [LN( 2L2 / hT )]

{ IS 3043 }

Length / diameter of wire Vs Resistance variation is shown below,

The diameter of the rod (width in case of strip electrode) has minor influence
on the resistance. Length of the rod has major impact on resistance value.
For length more than 50M, resistance is almost the same even if diameter
is increased by four times.

Resistance of electrode to earth is only influenced by maximum dimension of

electrode, i.e. depth in case of rod electrode and length in case of wire
electrode. It is not much influenced by minor dimensions like diameter or
width. It is not dependent on material of electrode. It is the function of physical
dimensions of the electrode and not its physical properties.

Reliance Energy Center, Santacruz, Mumbai 400 055, Tel (022) 3009 9999
10 of 25

The cross section of strip with width 'W' is approximately equivalent to round
conductor with diameter of 'W / 2'.

W
W/2
Plate electrode:

In early days only plate electrode were used. It was assumed that to get low
resistance, surface area of electrode be increased. The fallacy of increased
electrode surface area persisted for a long time. But as can be seen from
following figures, plate electrode is very inefficient. It is rarely used in modern
times.

Reliance Energy Center, Santacruz, Mumbai 400 055, Tel (022) 3009 9999
11 of 25

Two electrodes in parallel

To obtain low effective earth grid resistance, earth rods are connected in
parallel. For achieving minimum resistance, resistance area of each electrode
must be clear of one another. Theoretically, the effective resistance shall be
half of one electrode. If electrodes are well separated, this can be achieved.
The figure below shows the relation between percentage effective resistance
and separation between electrodes in meters.

If rod length is 'L' meters, spacing between electrodes shall be greater than
2L meters, as shown below.

L
2L

Three electrodes in parallel

Theoretically, the effective resistance shall be 33% of one electrode. If electrodes
are well separated, this can be achieved. The figure below shows the relation
between effective resistance and separation between electrodes in meters.
Reliance Energy Center, Santacruz, Mumbai 400 055, Tel (022) 3009 9999
12 of 25

If rod length is 'L' meters, spacing between electrodes shall be greater than
2L meters.

2
L
1
1

> 2L

Grounding Grid Resistance

Previous discussions centered around resistance to earth from individual

electrodes. Present discussion is on resistance to earth from entire grounding
grid.

Sverak formula
C1 = 1 / L ; C2 = 1/(20A); C3 = 1 + h (20A)
RG = [ C1 + C2 {1 + (1 / C3)} ]
Where,
RG

Grid resistance to earth in

Depth of grid in m

Average earth resistivity in

Area of grounding grid M

Total length of buried conductor, including rod electrodes

in meters

Reliance Energy Center, Santacruz, Mumbai 400 055, Tel (022) 3009 9999
13 of 25

 Example of rectangular grounding grid is shown below:

Area of Grounding grid = A = 80 x 50 = 4000 M2

Horizontal electrodes length = LH = (9 x 50 ) + (6x 80) = 930 M
Vertical rods length = LV = 18x 6 = 108 M
L = LH + LV = 930 + 108 = 1038 M
H = depth of grid = 0.5 M
= soil resistivity = 100 - M
Applying Sverak Formula, RG = 0.79
Caution in using formula for individual electrodes is illustrated below:

For Vertical rod electrodes:

Soil resistivity = 100 M ; L = 6 M; = 0.05 M ( 2")

Formula for individual vertical rod:
R = ( / 2 L ) [ LN (8L /{ x 2.7183 })] = 15.5625
For 18 rods in parallel, RV = 15.5625 / 18 = 0.8646
For Horizontal Electrodes:
Soil resistivity = = 100 M; L = LH = (9 x 50 + 6 x 80) = 930 M
T = 0.1M ; h = 0.5 M
Applying Ryder's formula for horizontal electrodes
R = ( / 2 L) [LN(8L/T) + LN(L/h) 2 + (2h/L) (h2 / L2)]
= 0.2866
Reliance Energy Center, Santacruz, Mumbai 400 055, Tel (022) 3009 9999
14 of 25

Thus effective Grid Resistance = R'G

= RV in parallel with RH
R'G = ( RV RH ) / ( RV + RH ) = 0.2152

But as per Sverak formula for entire grid, equivalent resistance = RG

= 0.79 .

Thus RG is very much greater than R'G. This is due to the fact that resistance
areas of electrodes are not independent and partially overlap.

Sverak formula for grounding grid resistance does not involve conductor size
or material at all. It involves only linear dimension (length of horizontal or
vertical electrodes) that makes it very special.

Measurement Of Earth Electrode Resistance by Fall Of Potential method.

It is also called Two-current and one potential electrode method.

In the above figure,

C_E_T implies current electrode under test. It can be a single electrode or

earthing grid whose resistance to earth is to be measured. Test current ('')
enters C_E_T.

C_E_R implies reference electrode placed at sufficient distance ('L') from test
electrode. Test current ('') leaves C_E_R.

V_E implies Voltage electrode.

Reliance Energy Center, Santacruz, Mumbai 400 055, Tel (022) 3009 9999
15 of 25

Voltage ('V') between C_E_T & V_E measured

Electrode (grid) resistance is given by R = V /
Take three measurements with,
L_P = L / 2
L_P = L / 2 + D
L_P = L / 2 D
L = 100 to 500 M, D = 5 to 10 M
If three readings agree within tolerable accuracy, electrode (grid) resistance is the
mean of the three readings. If the three readings are not sufficiently close, increase
spacing 'L between test electrode and reference electrode and repeat the test.
X

Y1 Y Y11

Resistance

Effective Resistance
Areas (Overlapping)

Reading Variation

X-Y Distance

Overlapping resistance areas

Y1 Y Y11

Effective Resistance
Areas (No Overlap)

Resistance

Reading Variation
X-Y Distance

Non-overlapping resistance areas

Reliance Energy Center, Santacruz, Mumbai 400 055, Tel (022) 3009 9999
16 of 25

 Electrode Sizing

Materials generally used for earth electrodes are Galvanized Iron, Copper
and Aluminum. Current ratings for above materials are given below in A /
2

mm (as per IS 3043):

Material
0.5 sec Rating
1 sec Rating
3 sec Rating

GI
113
80
46

Copper
290
205
118

Aluminum
178
126
73

For EHV switchyards, electrodes are designed for 0.5 sec duty. Primary
protection clears fault within 0.1 sec. Back up protection operating time is
about 0.5 sec. For electrodes other than those in EHV switchyards, design
duty is for 1 sec. Rating of 3 sec is rarely used.
Example
The fault current magnitude is 40 kA. The duration of fault is 0.5 sec. The electrode
material is GI.
Minimum cross section:
113 A

1 mm2

40 KA

40,000 / 113 = 353 mm2

Taking corrosion allowance as 10%,

Desired cross section = 353 x 1.1 = 388 mm2
Chosen size: 50 x 8 mm
General Formula for Electrode rating in Amps / mm2 is K / T
Where,
K implies constant defined for 1 sec duty (e.g. 80 for G )
T implies time considered for grid design (e.g. 0.5, 0.7, 1, 3 Sec )
Considering mechanical strength and ruggedness requirements, minimum electrode
2

size shall be greater than 50 mm for G and 25 mm for Copper.

Resistance of electrode to earth (REL) is independent of electrode material (G, CU,
AL). It is hardly influenced by cross section (e.g. REL not much different if cross
Reliance Energy Center, Santacruz, Mumbai 400 055, Tel (022) 3009 9999
17 of 25

section is 400mm or 600 mm ). In fact, Sveraks formula for ground grid resistance
does not even involve diameter or cross section!.
Earthing in LV & MV Systems
Following three cases have been considered for illustrating the concepts of earthing
in LV and MV systems.
Case 1: Source grounded Equipment ungrounded
For easy conceptualization, single-phase network is shown below.

In the above figure,

AB indicates source of supply.
C indicates equipment.
Point B is earthed trough earth electrode 'E'
2

RC indicates equipment load resistance (e.g. 230 / 1000 = 53)

R indicates equipment insulation resistance (M)
RH indicates resistance of a person (e.g. 2000 ohms)
Under normal conditions, R is very high. Even if a person touches the body, very
little current flows through him. Under the condition of insulation failure of equipment,
R reduces to 0. Current through body is given by,
H = V / (RH + RE1) = 240 / (2000+1) 120 mA

Reliance Energy Center, Santacruz, Mumbai 400 055, Tel (022) 3009 9999
18 of 25

This current is small and not sufficient to blow the fuse, but it can be dangerous to a
person (IEEE Std- 116 mA for 1 sec).
Case 2: Source grounded Equipment grounded

In the above figure B & C are earthed trough earth electrodes E1 & E2.
In the event of insulation failure of equipment R reduces to 0.
Equivalent resistance REQ = RE2 RH = 1 2000 1
Fault current, F = V / (REQ + RE1) = 240 / (1+1) = 120 A
Current through body, H = {1/(1+2000)} x 120 60 mA
F is significant but not very high. Fuse may or may not blow. But current H, through
body, though low, is not insignificant.
Case 3: Source grounded Equipment grounded With Bonding

Reliance Energy Center, Santacruz, Mumbai 400 055, Tel (022) 3009 9999
19 of 25

Bonding conductor, which is the physical connection between equipment casing and
source, is also called earth continuity conductor.
Bonding conductor resistance is indicated as RB, which is very small.
Even assuming RB = 0.01 ,
Fault current, F = 240 / 0.01 = 24 kA
F is high enough to cause instantaneous fuse blowing. Thus the human safety is
inherently achieved. Hence, it is not reliable to depend solely on earth for return of
fault current. Physical earth continuity conductor (bonding) that runs from equipment
to source is the most reliable conductor for return of earth fault current.
Low Voltage System (415V)
Generally Low Voltage System is solidly grounded as per IE rules.

Best earth

electrode resistance is approximately 1. on 415 V system. If only earth is used for

return of fault current,
MAX (415/3) / 1 240 A
If fault current is limited to 240A, neither over current relay nor fuse will ever operate.
Hence, earth shall not be treated as sole equipment grounding conductor for return
of fault current. We can make many supplementary connections to earth from
equipment. But metallic connection (bonding conductor) must exist between
equipment and source neutral. Majority of fault currents shall be carried by
grounding grid conductor and very little by earth.

Reliance Energy Center, Santacruz, Mumbai 400 055, Tel (022) 3009 9999
20 of 25

EARTHING IN LV SYSTEM CORRECT METHOD

EARTHING IN LV SYSTEM WRONG METHOD

Reliance Energy Center, Santacruz, Mumbai 400 055, Tel (022) 3009 9999
21 of 25

Unsafe earthing is shown below where no earth continuity conductor is provided.

Safe Earthing is shown below where earth continuity conductor is provided.

MV (Resistance Grounded System) is shown below:

Even here, earth conductor must run all over the plant and must carry return current
back to NGR.
MV (Ungrounded System) is shown below:

Reliance Energy Center, Santacruz, Mumbai 400 055, Tel (022) 3009 9999
22 of 25

Even for ungrounded system earth continuity conductor is recommended to be

provided.

`Clean Earth:
Correct method of electronic equipment earthing is shown below:

Reliance Energy Center, Santacruz, Mumbai 400 055, Tel (022) 3009 9999
23 of 25

Wrong method of electronic equipment earthing is indicated below:

Monitoring currents through neutral and ground is recommended:

High neutral current indicates unbalance load. High current through ground
conductor indicates earth fault.

Reliance Energy Center, Santacruz, Mumbai 400 055, Tel (022) 3009 9999
24 of 25

Two cardinal principles of electronic earthing are as follows:

Neutral conductor and ground conductor are connected only at the service
entrance. From this point on, neutral and ground conductors should not be
bonded together. i.e. neutral and ground conductors should never touch each
other after leaving service entrance panel board.

Unbalanced load currents shall return only through the neutral back to the
service entrance. Ground shall carry only fault current and not unbalanced
load currents.

References

IEEE std 80 : Guide for safety in AC substation grounding

IS 3043 : Code of practice for earthing

Earthing principles and practices: R W RYDER

Electrical earthing and accident prevention: Edited by M G SAY

Reliance Energy Center, Santacruz, Mumbai 400 055, Tel (022) 3009 9999
25 of 25

GROUNDING

Conversion of 11kV System Grounding

1.0

Reasons for various grounding practices at different voltage levels

Since the ground fault current magnitude is high, the core damage at the
point of fault in rotating machines like generator and motor will be high.
To limit the damage to the core, manufacturers allow only a limited ground
fault current. This information is usually provided in core damage curves
supplied by manufacturer. A typical core damage curve is shown in Fig 1.
For example, ground fault current upto 25A is tolerated for 1 sec. This
curve is used as a guide when selecting NGR and setting stator earth fault
relays in generator protection.
Winding damages in rotating machines are not of serious concern. The
repairs can be done by local rewinding agency. However in case of
damage to core, repairs can not be carried out at site. The machine has to
be sent back to manufacturers works for repair resulting in prolonged loss
of production.
Since rotating machines are not present in voltage levels from 22 kV and
above, usually these systems are solidly grounded. At EHV level solid
grounding is universally adopted for two reasons: (a) cost of insulation at
EHV level is high (b) primary protections clear the fault within 5 cycles and
backup protections clear the fault within a second.
If rotating machines are present at 3.3 kV, 6.6 kV and 11 kV levels, the
systems are grounded through resistor or reactor to limit the ground fault
current. If rotating machines are not present at 3.3 kV, 6.6 kV and 11 kV
levels, the systems are solidly grounded.
In case of LT (415V) system, though rotating machines are present, the
system is solidly grounded to conform to IE rules. Since LT system is also

1 of 5
Reliance Energy Center, Santacruz, Mumbai 400 055, Tel (022) 3009 9999

handled by general public, for safety reasons solid grounding is

mandated. Sufficient ground fault current is allowed to flow so that
protective devices can operate and clear the faults at the earliest. Of
course, core damage at the point of fault in rotating machines will be high.
2.0

Present grounding practices adopted in Mumbai distribution

The majority of 20 MVA, 33 kV / 11 kV and 10 MVA, 22 kV / 11 kV
transformers have vector group of Dzn10. The ground fault current of
11kV system is limited to full load current of the transformer (1050A for
20MVA transformer and 525A for 10MVA transformer). Considering the
magnitude of ground fault current, it is classified as Low Resistance
Grounded system. Since rotating machines are not present at 11 kV urban
distribution system, it can be converted to solidly grounded system.

3.0

Disadvantage of Resistance Grounded System

One of the major concerns with regard to non-solidly grounded systems is
over voltages during line to ground faults. In a distribution system, majority
of faults are single line to ground faults (more than 70%). Every time a
ground fault occurs on a particular cable, not only the cable under fault but
all cables emanating from that switchgear and associated distribution
transformers suffer the voltage rise. Hence cumulatively all the cables
experience insulation degradation and ultimately failure. Also it shall be
emphasized that as soon as a small resistance is connected from neutral
to ground, the system behaves almost like a ungrounded system from
over voltage point of view. In Fig 2, open delta voltage and phase to
ground voltage are plotted. It can be seen that until the ground fault
current reaches a value close to that obtainable from solidly grounded
system, the over voltage magnitudes are high. The over voltages come
down only when solid grounding is established. Thus conversion to solidly
grounded system will mitigate insulation failure problems.

2 of 5
Reliance Energy Center, Santacruz, Mumbai 400 055, Tel (022) 3009 9999

We understand that resistance grounded system has been adopted to limit

the through-fault current of the transformer in case of an earth fault in
downstream system. This advantage of reduced through-fault current of
transformer gets neutralized by the disadvantage of subjecting the
insulation of entire system to repeated over voltages.
Also it may be emphasized that a well coordinated protection system can
clear any internal fault within the transformer within 100 milliseconds and
external ground faults within a maximum of 1 second. These times are
well within the over-current withstand capability of transformers as
specified in standards. Refer Fig 3.
Since ground fault current magnitudes are high, selective isolation is more
probable as sensing quantity (current) is substantial. REL has recently
procured state of the art numerical protection relays. If proper relay setting
is adopted, the faults can be cleared at the minimum permissible time.
REL is in the process of installing FPIs (Fault Passage Indicators) on all
11 kV RMUs. If the system is solidly grounded, FPI operation becomes
more definitive.
4.0

Conclusion and recommendation

1.

New 33/11 kV substations shall be solidly grounded on 11 kV side.

2.

The existing NGRs on 11 kV side shall be bypassed.

3.

Before (2) can be implemented following shall be checked:

Review and revise relay settings for ground relays considering fault
current corresponding to solidly grounded system.

Review of CT specification for Standby Earth fault protection.

Test the complete scheme including instrument transformers, over

current relays and unit protection schemes (differential and REF) for
stability and sensitivity verification.

4.

Provide Standby Earth fault protection wherever not presently available.

3 of 5
Reliance Energy Center, Santacruz, Mumbai 400 055, Tel (022) 3009 9999

Fig-1

Fig-2
4 of 5
Reliance Energy Center, Santacruz, Mumbai 400 055, Tel (022) 3009 9999

5 of 5
Reliance Energy Center, Santacruz, Mumbai 400 055, Tel (022) 3009 9999