Transmission Lines

1
Lecture 9: Transmission lines
Instructor:
Dr. Gleb V. Tcheslavski
Contact:
gleb@ee.lamar.edu
Office Hours:
TBD; Room 2030
Class web site:
http://ee.lamar.edu/gleb
/Index.htm
ELEN 3441 Fundamentals of Power Engineering
Spring 2008
Preliminaries
Generators and loads are connected together through transmission lines
transporting electric power from one place to another. Transmission line
must, therefore, take power from generators, transmit it to location where
it will be used, and then distribute it to individual consumers.
A ROT: the power capability of a transmission line is proportional to the
square of the voltage on the line. Therefore, very high voltage levels are
used to transmit power over long distances. Once the power reaches the
area where it will be used, it is stepped down to a lower voltages in
distribution substations, and then delivered to customers through
distribution lines.
Spring 2008
Preliminaries
Distribution line with no ground wire.
Dual 345 kV transmission line

Spring 2008
Preliminaries
There two types of transmission lines:

overhead lines and buried cables.
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Preliminaries
An overhead transmission line usually consists of three conductors or bundles of
conductors containing the three phases of the power system. The conductors are
usually aluminum cable steel reinforced (ACSR), which are steel core (for strength)
and aluminum wires (having low resistance) wrapped around the core.
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Preliminaries
In overhead transmission lines, the conductors are suspended from a pole
or a tower via insulators.
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Preliminaries
In addition to phase conductors, a transmission line usually includes one or two
steel wires called ground (shield) wires. These wires are electrically connected to
the tower and to the ground, and, therefore, are at ground potential.
In large transmission lines, these
wires are located above the phase
conductors, shielding them from
lightning.
Spring 2008
Preliminaries
Cable lines are designed to be placed
underground or under water. The conductors are
insulated from one another and surrounded by
protective sheath. Cable lines are usually more
expensive and harder to maintain. They also have
capacitance problem not suitable for long
distance.
Transmission lines are characterized by a series resistance, inductance, and

shunt capacitance per unit length. These values determine the power-carrying
capacity of the transmission line and the voltage drop across it at full load.
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Resistance
The DC resistance of a conductor is given by
RDC
(9.9.1)
Where l is the length of conductor; A cross-sectional area, is the resistivity of

the conductor. Therefore, the DC resistance per meter of the conductor is
rDC

A m
(9.9.1)
The resistivity of a conductor is a fundamental property of the material that the

conductor is made from. It varies with both type and temperature of the material.
At the same temperature, the resistivity of aluminum is higher than the resistivity of
copper.
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Resistance
The resistivity increases linearly with temperature over normal range of
temperatures. If the resistivity at one temperature is known, the resistivity at
another temperature can be found from
T 2
M T2
T 1
M T1
(9.10.1)
Where T1 and T1 are temperature 1 in oC and the resistivity at that temperature, T2

and T2 are temperature 2 in oC and the resistivity at that temperature, and M is the
temperature constant.
Material
Resistivity at 20oC [m] Temperature constant [oC]
Annealed copper
1.7210-8
234.5
Hard-drawn copper
1.7710-8
241.5
Aluminum
2.8310-8
228.1
Iron
10.0010-8
180.0
Silver
1.5910-8
243.0
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Resistance
We notice that silver and copper would be among the best conductors. However,
aluminum, being much cheaper and lighter, is used to make most of the
transmission line conductors. Conductors made out of aluminum should have
bigger diameter than copper conductors to offset the higher resistivity of the
material and, therefore, support the necessary currents.
AC resistance of a conductor is always higher than its DC resistance due to the
skin effect forcing more current flow near the outer surface of the conductor. The
higher the frequency of current, the more noticeable skin effect would be.
At frequencies of our interest (50-60 Hz), however, skin effect is not very strong.
Wire manufacturers usually supply tables of resistance per unit length at common
frequencies (50 and 60 Hz). Therefore, the resistance can be determined from
such tables.
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Inductance and inductive reactance

The series inductance of a transmission line consists of two components: internal
and external inductances, which are due the magnetic flux inside and outside the
conductor respectively. The inductance of a transmission line is defined as the
number of flux linkages [Wb-turns] produced per ampere of current flowing through
the line:
L
I
(9.12.1)
1. Internal inductance:
Consider a conductor of radius r carrying a current I. At a
distance x from the center of this conductor, the magnetic
field intensity Hx can be found from Amperes law:
H x dl I x
(9.12.2)
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13

Where Hx is the magnetic field intensity at each point along a closed path, dl is a
unit vector along that path and Ix is the net current enclosed in the path. For the
homogeneous materials and a circular path of radius x, the magnitude of Hx is
constant, and dl is always parallel to Hx. Therefore:
Ix
2 xH x I x H x
2 x
(9.13.1)
Assuming next that the current is distributed uniformly in the conductor:
x2
Ix 2 I
r
(9.13.2)
Thus, the magnetic intensity at radius x inside the conductor is
x
Hx
I H m
2
2 r
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(9.13.3)
14

The flux density at a distance x from the center of the conductor is
xI
Bx H x
[T ]
2
2 r
(9.14.1)
The differential magnetic flux contained in a circular tube of thickness dx and at a

distance x from the center of the conductor is
xI
d
dx[Wb m]
2
2 r
(9.14.2)
The flux linkages per meter of length due to flux in the tube is the product of the
differential flux and the fraction of current linked:
x2
x3 I
d 2 d
dx[Wb turns m]
4
r
2 r
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(9.14.3)
15

The total internal flux linkages per meter can be found via integration
x3 I
I
int d
dx [Wb turns m ]
4
2 r
8
0
r
(9.15.1)
Therefore, the internal inductance per meter is
int
lint
H m
I
8
(9.15.2)
If the relative permeability of the conductor is 1 (non-ferromagnetic materials, such

as copper and aluminum), the inductance per meter reduces to
0 4 107
lint
7 H m
8
8
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(9.15.3)
External inductance between 2

points outside of the line
16
To find the inductance external to a conductor, we need

to calculate the flux linkages of the conductor due only
the portion of flux between two points P1 and P2 that lie
at distances D1 and D2 from the center of the conductor.
In the external to the conductor region, the magnetic
intensity at a distance x from the center of conductor is
Ix
I
Hx
2 x 2 x
(9.16.1)
since all the current is within the tube.

The flux density at a distance x from the center of conductor is
I
Bx H x
2 x
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(9.16.2)
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External inductance between 2

points outside of the line
The differential magnetic flux contained in a circular tube of thickness dx and at a
distance x from the center of the conductor is
I
d
dx[Wb m]
2 x
(9.17.1)
The flux links the full current carried by the conductor, therefore:
I
d d
dx[Wb turns m]
2 x
(9.17.2)
The total external flux linkages per meter can be found via integration
D2
D2
I
I D1
ext d
dx
ln [Wb turns m]
2 x
2 D2
D1
D1
The external inductance per meter is
lex t
ex t
D2
ln H m
I
2 D1
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(9.17.3)
(9.17.4)
Inductance of a single-phase 2-wire

transmission line
18
We determine next the series inductance of a

single-phase line consisting of two conductors of
radii r spaced by a distance D and both carrying
currents of magnitude I flowing into the page in the
left-hand conductor and out of the page in the righthand conductor.
Considering two circular integration paths, we
notice that the line integral along x1 produces a net
magnetic intensity since a non-zero net current is
enclosed by x1. Thus:
dl I x
(9.18.1)
Since the path of radius x2 encloses both conductors and the currents are equal and
opposite, the net current enclosed is 0 and, therefore, there are no contributions to
the total inductance from the magnetic fields at distances greater than D.
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Inductance of a single-phase 2-wire

transmission line
The total inductance of a wire per unit length in this transmission line is a sum of
the internal inductance and the external inductance between the conductor surface
(r) and the separation distance (D):
l lint lext
2
D
1
ln H m
r
4
(9.19.1)
By symmetry, the total inductance of the other wire is the same, therefore, the total
inductance of a two-wire transmission line is
1
D
l ln H m
4
r
(9.19.2)
Where r is the radius of each conductor and D is the distance between conductors.
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Inductance of a transmission line

Equations similar to (9.19.2) can be derived for three-phase lines and for lines with
more phases In most of the practical situations, the inductance of the
transmission line can be found from tables supplied by line developers.
Analysis of (9.19.2) shows that:
1.The greater the spacing between the phases of a transmission line, the greater
the inductance of the line. Since the phases of a high-voltage overhead
transmission line must be spaced further apart to ensure proper insulation, a highvoltage line will have a higher inductance than a low-voltage line. Since the
spacing between lines in buried cables is very small, series inductance of cables is
much smaller than the inductance of overhead lines.
2.The greater the radius of the conductors in a transmission line, the lower the
inductance of the line. In practical transmission lines, instead of using heavy and
inflexible conductors of large radii, two and more conductors are bundled together
to approximate a large diameter conductor. The more conductors included in the
bundle, the better the approximation becomes. Bundles are often used in the highvoltage transmission lines.
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Inductance of a transmission line
A two-conductor
bundle
A four-conductor
bundle
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Inductive reactance of a line

The series inductive reactance of a transmission line depends on both the
inductance of the line and the frequency of the power system. Denoting the
inductance per unit length as l, the inductive reactance per unit length will be
xI jl j 2 fl
(9.22.1)
where f is the power system frequency. Therefore, the total series inductive
reactance of a transmission line can be found as
X I xI d
where d is the length of the line.
Spring 2008
(9.22.2)
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Capacitance and capacitive

reactance
Since a voltage V is applied to a pair of conductors separated by a dielectric (air),
charges of equal magnitude but opposite sign will accumulate on the conductors:
q CV
(9.23.1)
Where C is the capacitance between the pair of conductors.
In AC power systems, a transmission line carries a time-varying voltage

different in each phase. This time-varying voltage causes the changes in
charges stored on conductors. Changing charges produce a changing
current, which will increase the current through the transmission line and
affect the power factor and voltage drop of the line. This changing current
will flow in a transmission line even if it is open circuited.
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reactance
The capacitance of the transmission line can be found using the Gausss law:
D dA
(9.24.1)
where A specifies a closed surface; dA is the unit vector normal to the surface; q is
the charge inside the surface; D is the electric flux density at the surface:
D E
(9.24.2)
where E is the electric field intensity at that point; is the permittivity of the
material:
r 0
Relative permittivity of the material
The permittivity of free space 0 = 8.8510-12 F/m

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(9.24.3)

reactance
25
Electric flux lines radiate uniformly outwards from the

surface of the conductor with a positive charge on its
surface. In this case, the flux density vector D is
always parallel to the normal vector dA and is
constant at all points around a path of constant
radius r. Therefore:
DA QD(2 xl ) ql
(9.25.1)
were l is the length of conductor; q is the charge

density; Q is the total charge on the conductor.
Then the flux density is
The electric field intensity is
q
D
2 x
q
E
2 x
Spring 2008
(9.25.2)
(9.25.3)
26

reactance
The potential difference between two points P1 and P2 can be found as
P2
V12 E dl
(9.26.1)
P1
where dl is a differential element tangential to the integration path between P1 and

P2. The path is irrelevant.
Selection of path can simplify calculations.
For P1 - Pint, vectors E and dl are parallel;
therefore, Edl = Edx. For Pint P2 vectors
are orthogonal, therefore Edl = 0.
D2
D2
D2
q
q
V12 Edx
dx
ln
2 x
2 D1
D1
D1
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(9.26.2)
Capacitance of a single phase

two-wire transmission line
27
The potential difference due to the

charge on conductor a can be found as
Vab ,a
qa
D
ln
2
r
(9.27.1)
Similarly, the potential difference due to the charge on conductor b is
or
qb
D
Vba ,b
ln
2
r
qb
D
Vab ,b
ln
2
r
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(9.27.2)
(9.27.3)

28
The total voltage between the lines is
Vab Vab ,a Vab ,b
qa
D qb
D
ln
ln
2
r 2
r
(9.28.1)
Since q1 = q2 = q, the equation reduces to
q
D
Vab
ln
r
(9.28.2)
The capacitance per unit length between the two conductors of the line is
q
q
cab
q
D
V
ln
r
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(9.28.3)
29

Thus:
cab
D
ln
r
(9.29.1)
Which is the capacitance per unit length of a single-phase two-wire transmission

line.
The potential difference between each conductor and the ground (or neutral) is
one half of the potential difference between the two conductors. Therefore, the
capacitance to ground of this single-phase transmission line will be
2
cn can cbn
D
ln
r
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(9.29.2)

Similarly, the expressions for capacitance of three-phase lines (and for lines with
more than 3 phases) can be derived. Similarly to the inductance, the capacitance
of the transmission line can be found from tables supplied by line developers.
Analysis of (9.29.1) shows that:
1.The greater the spacing between the phases of a transmission line, the lower the
capacitance of the line. Since the phases of a high-voltage overhead transmission
line must be spaced further apart to ensure proper insulation, a high-voltage line
will have a lower capacitance than a low-voltage line. Since the spacing between
lines in buried cables is very small, shunt capacitance of cables is much larger
than the capacitance of overhead lines. Cable lines are normally used for short
transmission lines (to min capacitance) in urban areas.
2.The greater the radius of the conductors in a transmission line, the higher the
capacitance of the line. Therefore, bundling increases the capacitance. Good
transmission line is a compromise among the requirements for low series
inductance, low shunt capacitance, and a large enough separation to provide
insulation between the phases.
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31
Shunt capacitive admittance

The shunt capacitive admittance of a transmission line depends on both the
capacitance of the line and the frequency of the power system. Denoting the
capacitance per unit length as c, the shunt admittance per unit length will be
yC j c j 2 fc
(9.31.1)
The total shunt capacitive admittance therefore is
YC yC d j 2 fcd
(9.31.2)
where d is the length of the line. The corresponding capacitive reactance is the
reciprocal to the admittance:
1
1
ZC
j
YC
2 fcd
Spring 2008
(9.31.3)
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Example
Example 9.1: An 8000 V, 60 Hz, single-phase, transmission line consists of two
hard-drawn aluminum conductors with a radius of 2 cm spaced 1.2 m apart. If the
transmission line is 30 km long and the temperature of the conductors is 200C,
a.What is the series resistance per kilometer of this line?
b.What is the series inductance per kilometer of this line?
c.What is the shunt capacitance per kilometer of this line?
d.What is the total series reactance of this line?
e.What is the total shunt admittance of this line?
a. The series resistance of the transmission line is
l
R
A
Ignoring the skin effect, the resistivity of the line at 200 will be 2.8310-8 -m and
the resistance per kilometer of the line is
l 2.83 108 1000
0.0225 km
2
A
0.02
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Example
b. The series inductance per kilometer of the transmission line is
1
D
1
1.2
ln
1000
ln
1000
1.738
10
H
km
4
r
4
0.02
c. The shunt capacitance per kilometer of the transmission line is
8.854 10
12
cab
1000
1000
6.794 10
9 F km
D
1.2
ln
ln
r
0.02
d. The series impedance per kilometer of the transmission line is
zse r jx r j 2 fl 0.0225 j 2 60 1.738
10
3
0.0225
j 0.655 km
Then the total series impedance of the line is
Z se 0.0225 j 0.655 30 0.675 j19.7

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Example
e. The shunt admittance per kilometer of the transmission line is
yC j 2 fc j 2 60 6.794 10
9
j 2.561 106 Sm
The total shunt admittance will be
Yse j 2.561 106

30 j 7.684 10
5 S
The corresponding shunt capacitive reactance is
1
1
Z sh
j13.0k
5
Ysh j 7.684 10
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Transmission line models

Unlike the electric machines studied so far, transmission lines are characterized by
their distributed parameters: distributed resistance, inductance, and capacitance.
The distributed series and shunt elements of the transmission line make it harder
to model. Such parameters may be approximated by many small discrete
resistors, capacitors, and inductors.
However, this approach is not very practical, since it would require to solve for
voltages and currents at all nodes along the line. We could also solve the exact
differential equations for a line but this is also not very practical for large power
systems with many lines.
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Fortunately, certain simplifications can be used
Overhead transmission lines shorter than 80 km (50 miles) can be modeled as a
series resistance and inductance, since the shunt capacitance can be neglected
over short distances.
The inductive reactance at 60 Hz for overhead
lines is typically much larger than the resistance
of the line.
For medium-length lines (80-240 km), shunt
capacitance should be taken into account.
However, it can be modeled by two capacitors of a
half of the line capacitance each.
Lines longer than 240 km (150 miles) are long transmission lines and are to be
discussed later.
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The total series resistance, series reactance, and shunt admittance of a
transmission line can be calculated as
R rd
(9.37.1)
X xd
(9.37.2)
Y yd
(9.37.3)
where r, x, and y are resistance, reactance, and shunt admittance per unit length
and d is the length of the transmission line. The values of r, x, and y can be
computed from the line geometry or found in the reference tables for the specific
transmission line.
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Short transmission line

The per-phase equivalent circuit of a short line
VS and VR are the sending and receiving end
voltages; IS and IR are the sending and receiving
end currents. Assumption of no line admittance
leads to
IS IR
(9.38.1)
We can relate voltages through the Kirchhoffs voltage law
VS VR ZI VR RI jX L I
VR VS RI jX L I
which is very similar to the equation derived for a synchronous generator.
Spring 2008
(9.38.2)
(9.38.3)
Short transmission line: phasor

diagram
AC voltages are usually expressed as phasors.
Load with lagging power factor.
Load with unity power factor.
Load with leading power factor.

For a given source voltage VS and magnitude of
the line current, the received voltage is lower for
lagging loads and higher for leading loads.
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40
Transmission line characteristics

In real overhead transmission lines, the line reactance XL is normally much larger
than the line resistance R; therefore, the line resistance is often neglected. We
consider next some important transmission line characteristics
1. The effect of load changes

Assuming that a single generator
supplies a single load through a
transmission line, we consider
consequences of increasing load.
Assuming that the generator is ideal, an increase of load will increase a real and
(or) reactive power drawn from the generator and, therefore, the line current, while
the voltage and the current will be unchanged.
1) If more load is added with the same lagging power factor, the magnitude of the
line current increases but the current remains at the same angle with respect to
VR as before.
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41

The voltage drop across the reactance increases but stays at the same angle.
Assuming zero line resistance and remembering that
the source voltage has a constant magnitude:
VS VR jX L I
(9.41.1)
voltage drop across reactance jXLI will stretch

between VR and VS.
Therefore, when a lagging load increases, the received voltage decreases sharply.
2) An increase in a unity PF load, on the other hand,
will slightly decrease the received voltage at the end
of the transmission line.
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3) Finally, an increase in a load with leading
PF increases the received (terminal) voltage
of the transmission line.
In a summary:
1. If lagging (inductive) loads are added at the end of a line, the voltage at the end
of the transmission line decreases significantly large positive VR.
2. If unity-PF (resistive) loads are added at the end of a line, the voltage at the end
of the transmission line decreases slightly small positive VR.
3. If leading (capacitive) loads are added at the end of a line, the voltage at the end
of the transmission line increases negative VR.
The voltage regulation of a transmission line is
VR
Vnl V fl
V fl
100%
where Vnl and Vfl are the no-load and full-load voltages at the line output.
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(9.42.1)
43

2. Power flow in a transmission line
The real power input to a 3-phase transmission line can be computed as
Pin 3VS I S cos S 3VLL , S I S cos S
(9.43.1)
where VS is the magnitude of the source (input) line-to-neutral voltage and VLL,S is
the magnitude of the source (input) line-to-line voltage. Note that Y-connection is
assumed! Similarly, the real output power from the transmission line is
Pout 3VR I R cos R 3VLL , R I R cos R
(9.43.2)
The reactive power input to a 3-phase transmission line can be computed as
Qin 3VS I S sin S 3VLL , S I S sin S

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(9.43.3)
44

And the reactive output power is
Qout 3VR I R sin R 3VLL , R I R sin R
(9.44.1)
The apparent power input to a 3-phase transmission line can be computed as
Sin 3VS I S 3VLL , S I S
(9.44.2)
And the apparent output power is
Sout 3VR I R 3VLL , R I R
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(9.44.3)
45

If the resistance R is ignored, the output power of the transmission line can be
simplified
A simplified phasor diagram of a transmission
line indicating that IS = IR = I.
We further observe that the vertical segment
bc can be expressed as either VS sin or
XLIcos. Therefore:
VS sin
I cos
XL
(9.45.1)
Then the output power of the transmission line equals to its input power:
3VSVR sin
P
XL
(9.45.2)
Therefore, the power supplied by a transmission line depends on the angle between
the phasors representing the input and output voltages.
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The maximum power supplied by the transmission line occurs when = 900:
Pmax
3VSVR
XL
(9.46.1)
This maximum power is called the steady-state stability limit of the transmission line.
The real transmission lines have non-zero resistance and, therefore, overheat long
before this point. Full-load angles of 250 are more typical for real transmission lines.
Few interesting observations can be made from the power expressions:
1. The maximum power handling capability of a transmission line is a function of the
square of its voltage. For instance, if all other parameters are equal, a 220 kV
line will have 4 times the power handling capability of a 110 kV transmission line.
Therefore, it is beneficial to increase the voltage However, very high voltages
produce very strong EM fields (interferences) and may produce a corona glowing
of ionized air that substantially increases losses.
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2. The maximum power handling capability of a transmission line is inversely
proportional to its series reactance, which may be a serious problem for long
transmission lines. Some very long lines include series capacitors to reduce the total
series reactance and thus increase the total power handling capability of the line.
3. In a normal operation of a power system, the magnitudes of voltages VS and VR do
not change much, therefore, the angle basically controls the power flowing through
the line. It is possible to control power flow by placing a phase-shifting transformer at
one end of the line and varying voltage phase.
3. Transmission line efficiency

The efficiency of the transmission line is
Pout
100%
Pin
Spring 2008
(9.47.1)
48

4. Transmission line ratings
One of the main limiting factors in transmission line operation is its resistive heating.
Since this heating is a function of the square of the current flowing through the line and
does not depend on its phase angle, transmission lines are typically rated at a nominal
voltage and apparent power.
5. Transmission line limits

Several practical constrains limit the maximum real and reactive power that a
transmission line can supply. The most important constrains are:
1. The maximum steady-state current must be limited to prevent the overheating in the
transmission line. The power lost in a line is approximated as
Ploss 3I R
2
L
The greater the current flow, the greater the resistive heating losses.
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(9.48.1)
49

2. The voltage drop in a practical line should be limited to approximately 5%. In other
words, the ratio of the magnitude of the receiving end voltage to the magnitude of the
sending end voltage should be
VR
VS
0.95
(9.49.1)
This limit prevents excessive voltage variations in a power system.

3. The angle in a transmission line should typically be 300 ensuring that the power
flow in the transmission line is well below the static stability limit and, therefore, the
power system can handle transients.
Any of these limits can be more or less important in different circumstances. In short
lines, where series reactance X is relatively small, the resistive heating usually limits
the power that the line can supply. In longer lines operating at lagging power factors,
the voltage drop across the line is usually the limiting factor. In longer lines operating
at leading power factors, the maximum angle can be the limiting f actor.
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50
2-port networks and ABCD models

A transmission line can be represented by a 2port network a network that can be isolated
from the outside world by two connections
(ports) as shown.
If the network is linear, an elementary circuits theorem (analogous to Thevenins

theorem) establishes the relationship between the sending and receiving end
voltages and currents as
VS AVR BI R
I S CVR DI R
(9.50.1)
Here constants A and D are dimensionless, a constant B has units of , and a

constant C is measured in siemens. These constants are sometimes referred to as
generalized circuit constants, or ABCD constants.
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2-port networks and ABCD models

The ABCD constants can be physically interpreted. Constant A represents the effect
of a change in the receiving end voltage on the sending end voltage; and constant D
models the effect of a change in the receiving end current on the sending end
current. Naturally, both constants A and D are dimensionless.
The constant B represents the effect of a change in the receiving end current on the
sending end voltage. The constant C denotes the effect of a change in the receiving
end voltage on the sending end current.
Transmission lines are 2-port linear networks, and they are often represented by
ABCD models. For the short transmission line model, IS = IR = I, and the ABCD
constants are
A 1
BZ
C 0
D 1
Spring 2008
(9.51.1)
52
Medium-length transmission line

Considering medium-length lines (50 to 150
mile-long), the shunt admittance must be
included in calculations. However, the total
admittance is usually modeled ( model) as
two capacitors of equal values (each
corresponding to a half of total admittance)
placed at the sending and receiving ends.
The current through the receiving end capacitor can be found as
IC 2
Y
VR
2
(9.52.1)
And the current through the series impedance elements is
I ser
Y
VR I R
2
Spring 2008
(9.52.2)
53
Medium-length transmission line

From the Kirchhoffs voltage law, the sending end voltage is
VS ZI ser
YZ
VR Z I C 2 I R VR
1 VR ZI R
2
(9.53.1)
The source current will be
I S I C1 I ser
Y
Y
ZY
ZY
I C1 I C 2 I R VS VR I R Y
1 VR
1 I R (9.53.2)
2
2
4
Therefore, the ABCD constants of a medium-length transmission line are
ZY
1
2
BZ
A
If the shunt capacitance of the line is

ignored, the ABCD constants are the
constants for a short transmission line.
Spring 2008
ZY
1
4
ZY
D
1
2
C Y
(9.53.3)
54
Long transmission line

For long lines, it is not accurate enough to approximate the shunt admittance by two
constant capacitors at either end of the line. Instead, both the shunt capacitance
and the series impedance must be treated as distributed quantities; the voltages
and currents on the line should be found by solving differential equations of the line.
However, it is possible to model a long
transmission line as a model with a
modified series impedance Z and a
modified shunt admittance Y and to
perform calculations on that model
using ABCD constants. The modified
values of series impedance and shunt
admittance are:
Z' Z
sinh d
d
(9.54.1)
tanh d 2
Y 'Y
d 2
(9.54.2)
Spring 2008
55
Long transmission line

Here Z is the series impedance of the line; Y is the shunt admittance of the line; d is
the length of the line; is the propagation constant of the line:
yz
(9.55.1)
where y is the shunt admittance per kilometer and z is the series impedance per km.
As d gets small, the ratios approach 1.0 and the model becomes a medium-length
line model. The ABCD constants for a long transmission line are
Z 'Y '
A
1
2
BZ'
Z 'Y '
C Y '
1
4
Z 'Y '
D
1
2
Spring 2008
(9.55.2)

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1

Lecture 9: Transmission lines

ELEN 3441 Fundamentals of Power Engineering

ELEN 3441 Fundamentals of Power Engineering

Distribution line with no ground wire.

Dual 345 kV transmission line

There two types of transmission lines:

ELEN 3441 Fundamentals of Power Engineering

ELEN 3441 Fundamentals of Power Engineering

ELEN 3441 Fundamentals of Power Engineering