Primary Current Injection Test

[changeabilities]

Hi guys,
I need some help. I need to do primary current injection test. I have Vanguard PCI-600 device. Can you help me how can i do test ?

[ElectricalTestTech]

Hi guys,
I need some help. I need to do primary current injection test. I have Vanguard PCI-600 device. Can you help me how can i do test ?

What is it that you need to know? In order for current to flow, you need to provide a path. If there is not a series path of bus or cable, current will not flow.

Are you specifically asking how to use the vanguard set? Or are you asking how to test breakers?

The vanguard set is pretty easy. You have your current terminals (probably 2 large wing nut terminals), a ground terminal, and 2 terminals for a timer stop contact. If you’re testing breakers, they can’t be very large. 1000A May be the max current out of this set and that depends on connections and how much cable is used. A 100A molded case breaker probably has an instantaneous value of 1000A. So testing anything larger may be a long shot.

I personally have 0 experience with this particular test set. But it appears to be what I call a “hat box”. A small portable current set for simple current injection tests.

[changeabilities]

What is it that you need to know? In order for current to flow, you need to provide a path. If there is not a series path of bus or cable, current will not flow.

Are you specifically asking how to use the vanguard set? Or are you asking how to test breakers?

The vanguard set is pretty easy. You have your current terminals (probably 2 large wing nut terminals), a ground terminal, and 2 terminals for a timer stop contact. If you’re testing breakers, they can’t be very large. 1000A May be the max current out of this set and that depends on connections and how much cable is used. A 100A molded case breaker probably has an instantaneous value of 1000A. So testing anything larger may be a long shot.

I personally have 0 experience with this particular test set. But it appears to be what I call a “hat box”. A small portable current set for simple current injection tests.

I need to do "Perform current tests by primary injection with magnitudes such that a minimum of
1.0 ampere flows in the secondary circuit. Verify correct magnitude of current at each
device in the circuit." this test. Neta 7.1.B.10.2. I guess i don't need to test breakers. I just test the path of current. am i right ?

[SecondGen]

I need to do "Perform current tests by primary injection with magnitudes such that a minimum of
1.0 ampere flows in the secondary circuit. Verify correct magnitude of current at each
device in the circuit." this test. Neta 7.1.2.10.2. I guess i don't need to test breakers. I just test the path of current. am i right ?

Sounds like trip unit metering checks. Im assuming if you had a 1200:5 breaker, for example, you would need to push 240A to get 1A on the secondary, trip unit should display primary current.

Not sure about the "at each device in the circuit" part, this could have many meanings. I would need more info.

[Kalbi_Rob]

I need to do "Perform current tests by primary injection with magnitudes such that a minimum of
1.0 ampere flows in the secondary circuit. Verify correct magnitude of current at each
device in the circuit." this test. Neta 7.1.2.10.2. I guess i don't need to test breakers. I just test the path of current. am i right ?

I'm not even sure what NETA 7.1.2.10.2 references to.

NETA ATS 7.1.B.10.1 states "Perform current tests by secondary injection with magnitudes such that a minimum current of 1.0 ampere flows in the secondary circuit. Verify correct magnitude of current at each device in the circuit."

NETA ATS 7.1.D.10 states "Current-injection tests shall prove current wiring is in accordance with design specifications."

This is only going to verify any current metering or CT circuits. Primary injecting breakers with metering should satisfy those requirements. So, verifying the metering shows the correct current proves your CT wiring. This should also be accomplished with CT testing using secondary voltage injection. Essentially you need to prove that the switchgear is wired up correctly and that all metering and protection is going to work as intended.

The Vanguard is very simple, so single phase testing each phase and verifying on metering should be satisfactorily for any inspector or QA. Good luck pushing the required current through all that bus.