TEAM TENT DISCUSSION GROUP

YEAR 3 SEMESTER ONE

ELE3113: POWER SYSTEMS THEORY

TRANSMISSION LINE COMPONENTS

Overview

Heat Balance Equation of an Overhead Line

Heat gain is from 𝑰𝟐 𝑹 losses and from solar radiation
Heat losses are from convection and radiation
𝐹𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑡ℎ𝑒 ℎ𝑒𝑎𝑡 𝑏𝑎𝑙𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑒𝑞𝑢𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛, 𝒒𝒄 + 𝒒𝒓 = 𝒒𝒔 + 𝑰𝟐 𝑹𝜽
𝑊ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑒 𝑞𝑐 = 𝑡ℎ𝑒 ℎ𝑒𝑎𝑡 𝑙𝑜𝑠𝑠 𝑑𝑢𝑒 𝑡𝑜 𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑣𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑖𝑛 𝑊/𝑚
𝑞𝑟 = 𝑡ℎ𝑒 ℎ𝑒𝑎𝑡 𝑙𝑜𝑠𝑠 𝑑𝑢𝑒 𝑡𝑜 𝑟𝑎𝑑𝑖𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑖𝑛 𝑊/𝑚
𝑞𝑠 = 𝑡ℎ𝑒 ℎ𝑒𝑎𝑡 𝑔𝑎𝑖𝑛 𝑑𝑢𝑒 𝑡𝑜 𝑠𝑜𝑙𝑎𝑟 𝑒𝑛𝑒𝑟𝑔𝑦 𝑖𝑛 𝑊/𝑚
𝐼 = 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑑𝑢𝑐𝑡𝑜𝑟 𝑐𝑢𝑟𝑟𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑖𝑛 𝑎𝑚𝑝𝑒𝑟𝑒𝑠
𝑅𝜃 = 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑒𝑙𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑐𝑎𝑙 𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑖𝑛 Ω/𝑚 𝑎𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑜𝑝𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑡𝑒𝑚𝑝𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑢𝑟𝑒, 𝜃
𝒔𝟐 𝒘𝟐
𝑨𝒏𝒐𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓 𝒊𝒎𝒑𝒐𝒓𝒕𝒂𝒏𝒕 𝒇𝒐𝒓𝒎𝒖𝒍𝒂 𝒊𝒔; 𝒍𝜽 = 𝒔 (𝟏 + )
𝟐𝟒𝑻𝟐𝜽
𝑊ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑒 𝑙𝜃 = 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑑𝑢𝑐𝑡𝑜𝑟 𝑠𝑎𝑔 𝑎𝑡 𝑎𝑛 𝑜𝑝𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑡𝑒𝑚𝑝𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑢𝑟𝑒, 𝜃
𝑠 = 𝑠𝑝𝑎𝑛 𝑙𝑒𝑛𝑔𝑡ℎ 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑑𝑢𝑐𝑡𝑜𝑟 (𝑤𝑖𝑡ℎ 𝑛𝑜 𝑠𝑎𝑔)
𝑤 = 𝑤𝑒𝑖𝑔ℎ𝑡 𝑝𝑒𝑟 𝑢𝑛𝑖𝑡 𝑙𝑒𝑛𝑔𝑡ℎ 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑑𝑢𝑐𝑡𝑜𝑟 𝑖𝑛 𝑁/𝑚 𝑖𝑒 𝑤 = 𝑚𝑔
𝐼𝑛 𝑤ℎ𝑖𝑐ℎ; 𝑚 = 𝑚𝑎𝑠𝑠 𝑝𝑒𝑟 𝑚𝑒𝑡𝑒𝑟 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑔 = 𝑎𝑐𝑐𝑒𝑙𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑑𝑢𝑒 𝑡𝑜 𝑔𝑟𝑎𝑣𝑖𝑡𝑦.
𝑇𝜃 = 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑖𝑛𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑙𝑙𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑡𝑒𝑛𝑠𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑖𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑐𝑎𝑏𝑙𝑒 𝑎𝑡 𝑎𝑛 𝑜𝑝𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑡𝑒𝑚𝑝𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑢𝑟𝑒, 𝜃

𝒔𝟐 𝒘𝟐
𝑀𝑎𝑘𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑇 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑠𝑢𝑏𝑗𝑒𝑐𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑚𝑢𝑙𝑎 𝑔𝑖𝑣𝑒𝑠; 𝑻𝜽 = √
𝒍
𝟐𝟒 [(𝒔) − 𝟏]

𝑪𝒐𝒆𝒇𝒇𝒊𝒄𝒊𝒆𝒏𝒕 𝒐𝒇 𝒍𝒊𝒏𝒆𝒂𝒓 𝒆𝒙𝒑𝒂𝒏𝒔𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝒐𝒓 𝒄𝒐𝒏𝒕𝒓𝒂𝒄𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒄𝒐𝒏𝒅𝒖𝒄𝒕𝒐𝒓 (𝜶)𝒊𝒔 𝒈𝒊𝒗𝒆𝒏 𝒃𝒚;

𝒍𝜽𝟏 = 𝒍𝜽𝟎 (𝟏 + 𝜶(𝜽𝟏 − 𝜽𝟎 )) 𝑊ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑒 𝑙𝜃1 = 𝑙𝑒𝑛𝑔𝑡ℎ 𝑎𝑡 𝑎 𝑛𝑒𝑤 𝑜𝑝𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑡𝑒𝑚𝑝𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑢𝑟𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝜃1

𝑙𝜃0 = 𝑙𝑒𝑛𝑔𝑡ℎ 𝑎𝑡 𝑎𝑛 𝑜𝑙𝑑 𝑜𝑝𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑡𝑒𝑚𝑝𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑢𝑟𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝜃0

 SOLUTIONS

Question 1
a) Thermal heating on transmission lines is of great concern to engineers.
Discuss the effects resulting from thermal heating.
 Elongation of the conductor when it heats up resulting into sagging for
overhead lines which may be a danger to people
 Reduction in mechanical strength of a conductor at higher temperatures.
 Increase in power losses as a result of increase in resistance.
b) A 33 𝑘𝑉 wood pole overhead line system with 110 𝑚 span length is designed
to operate at 600 𝐶 thermal rating with conductor tension of 9 𝑘𝑁.The
conductor has a 19 × 10−6 𝐾 −1 coefficient of linear expansion, 2.1 𝑘𝑔/𝑚
mass and a 0.0678 Ω/𝑘𝑚 resistance at 600 𝐶. Consider gravity acceleration
of 9.81 m/s. Assuming solar heat gain of 7.55 W/m, radiated loss of
3.24 𝑊/𝑚 and convection loss of 21.22 𝑊/𝑚, calculate:

i) The MVA thermal rating of the line.

𝐹𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑡ℎ𝑒 ℎ𝑒𝑎𝑡 𝑏𝑎𝑙𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑒𝑞𝑢𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛, 𝑞𝑐 + 𝑞𝑟 = 𝑞𝑠 + 𝐼 2 𝑅𝜃
1
𝑞𝑐 + 𝑞𝑟 − 𝑞𝑠 21.22 + 3.24 − 7.55 2
𝐼=√ =[ ] = 499.41 𝐴
𝑅𝜃 0.0678 × 10−3

𝑀𝑉𝐴 𝑅𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 = 3𝐼𝑝 𝑉𝑝 = √3𝑉𝐿𝐿 𝐼𝐿 = √3(33𝑘)(499.41) = 𝟐𝟖. 𝟓𝟒𝟓𝟏 𝑴𝑽𝑨

ii) The installation tension. Assume the temperature at installation is 5

ºC.
𝑠2𝑤 2
𝐹𝑟𝑜𝑚; 𝑙𝜃 = 𝑠 (1 + )
24𝑇𝜃2

1102 (2.1 × 9.81)2

𝑙60℃ = 110 (1 + ) = 110.291 𝑚
24(9𝑘)2

𝐹𝑟𝑜𝑚; 𝑙𝜃1 = 𝑙𝜃0 (1 + 𝛼(𝜃1 − 𝜃0 ))

𝑙5℃ = 𝑙60℃ (1 + 19 × 10−6 (5 − 60)) 𝑶𝑹 𝑙60℃ = 𝑙5℃ (1 + 19 × 10−6 (60 − 5))

Note; in this case as the temperature is changed from 60 to 5, the length of the
conductor will decrease because the change is a negative as shown above OR if
you want to maintain the temp. difference as a positive then exchange the lengths.

𝑙5℃ = 110.291(1 + 19 × 10−6 (5 − 60)) = 110.176 𝑚

 𝑠2𝑤 2 𝑠2𝑤 2
𝑆𝑡𝑖𝑙𝑙 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑙𝜃 = 𝑠 (1 + ) 𝑖𝑚𝑝𝑙𝑦𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑡ℎ𝑎𝑡; 𝑇𝜃 = √
24𝑇𝜃2 𝑙
24 [( 𝑠𝜃 ) − 1]

1102 (2.1 × 9.81)2

𝑇5℃ = √ = 𝟏𝟏. 𝟓𝟔𝟒 𝒌𝑵
110.176
24 [( 110 ) − 1]

iii) The new maximum operating temperature of the line when a 20%
increase in the installation tension of the 33 kV overhead line system
is applied.
{Hint: The length of the conductor at the new operating temperature must
remain the same as it were at 60 ºC}
𝐿𝑒𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑛𝑒𝑤 𝑜𝑝𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑡𝑒𝑚𝑝𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑢𝑟𝑒 𝑏𝑒 𝜃
𝑵𝒐𝒕𝒆; 𝑇ℎ𝑒 𝑖𝑛𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑙𝑙𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑡𝑒𝑛𝑠𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑎𝑡 5℃ 𝑤𝑎𝑠 𝑖𝑛𝑐𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑠𝑒𝑑 𝑏𝑦 20% 𝑚𝑒𝑎𝑛𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑡ℎ𝑎𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑛𝑒𝑤 𝑡𝑒𝑛𝑠𝑖𝑜𝑛
𝑤𝑖𝑙𝑙 𝑐𝑜𝑟𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑝𝑜𝑛𝑑 𝑡𝑜 5 ℃ .
𝑁𝑒𝑤 𝑡𝑒𝑛𝑠𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑎𝑡 5℃ , 𝑇5℃ = 11.564 + .2(11.564) = 13.877 𝑘𝑁
1102 (2.1 × 9.81)2
𝑁𝑒𝑤 𝑙𝑒𝑛𝑔𝑡ℎ 𝑎𝑡 5℃ 𝑙5℃ = 110 (1 + ) = 110.122 𝑚
24(13.877𝑘)2

𝐹𝑟𝑜𝑚; 𝑙𝜃1 = 𝑙𝜃0 (1 + 𝛼(𝜃1 − 𝜃0 )) 𝑖𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑠 𝑐𝑎𝑠𝑒 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑜𝑙𝑑 𝑜𝑝𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑡𝑒𝑚𝑝. , 𝜃0 = 5℃

𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑛𝑒𝑤 𝑜𝑝𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑡𝑒𝑚𝑝. 𝜃1 = 𝜃

Note: By critically analyzing the hint, the length of the cable at a temp 𝜃
𝑖. 𝑒 𝑙𝜃 = 𝑙60℃ 𝑏𝑢𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑎𝑡 𝑑𝑜𝑒𝑠 𝑛𝑜𝑡 𝑛𝑒𝑐𝑒𝑠𝑎𝑟𝑖𝑙𝑦 𝑚𝑒𝑎𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑎𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝜃 𝑤𝑖𝑙𝑙 𝑏𝑒 60℃
𝐴𝑛𝑑 𝑎𝑙𝑠𝑜 𝑛𝑜𝑡𝑒 𝑡ℎ𝑎𝑡 𝑤𝑒 𝑎𝑟𝑒 𝑣𝑎𝑟𝑦𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 5℃ 𝑡𝑜 𝑎𝑛𝑜𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑟 𝑡𝑒𝑚𝑝𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑢𝑟𝑒 𝜃 𝑏𝑢𝑡 𝑛𝑜𝑡 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 60℃ .
𝐻𝑒𝑛𝑐𝑒; 110.291 = 110.122(1 + 19 × 10−6 (𝜃 − 𝜃1 )
1 110.291
𝜃 − 𝜃1 = −6
( − 1) = 80.77 ℃
19 × 10 110.122
𝑁𝑒𝑤 𝑚𝑎𝑥𝑖𝑚𝑢𝑚 𝑜𝑝𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑡𝑒𝑚𝑝𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑢𝑟𝑒, 𝜃 = 80.77 + 5 = 𝟖𝟓. 𝟕𝟕℃
c) Discuss the pole types used for used for construction of medium
transmission lines in Uganda citing any two advantages and any two
disadvantages of each type.
1) Wooden poles:
Advantages
  They are relatively cheap compared to other pole materials making them a
cost-effective choice for medium transmission lines especially in rural areas.
 Wooden poles are readily available in Uganda since its is a renewable
resource.
Disadvantages

 Wooden poles are highly susceptible to decay and insect infestations.

 Wooden poles have a shorter life span compared to other pole materials like
concrete and steel.
2) Concrete poles
Advantages

 Concrete poles have a relatively longer life span as compared to wooden

poles since they are resistant to environmental factors like weather and
insects.
 Concrete poles require minimal maintenance over their life span reducing
overall operational costs.
Disadvantages

 High initial costs that involve manufacture and installation of concrete poles
which are much higher than those incurred for wooden poles.
 Concrete poles are very heavy which makes transportation and installation
more challenging.
Read about steel lattice towers also.
Question 2
a) In the construction of long transmission lines, transposition of towers is
sometimes in inevitable. Explain with illustrations the meaning of
transposition of towers and its importance in transmission lines.
Make your own research on this!!!!!
b) Over time, medium voltage lines will no longer have the original sag at
which they are meant to operate. Advise a network operator on the possible
solution so as to maintain the line in operation.

To maintain the proper sag in medium voltage power lines over time, network
operators should:

 Conduct regular inspections and maintenance.

 Consider thermal rating upgrades for conductors.
  Install tensioning systems and dynamic line rating (DLR) systems.
 Evaluate the need for reconductoring.
 Use spacer dampers and weather-based sag prediction.
 Implement load management strategies.
 Develop an emergency response plan.
 Seek expert advice for tailored solutions.
Prioritize safety and adhere to regulations while implementing these measures
to ensure the continued safe and efficient operation of the medium voltage lines.
c) Discuss the importance of the following on a transmission line
i) Jumpers
 Provides a conductive path of current across a tension tower.
ii) Bundle spacers
 Bundle spacers keep bundles from clashing through maintaining the
required geometry-separation of bundle conductors and damping any sub-
span oscillations
iii) Stockbridge dampers
 They damp high frequency vertical vibrations in overhead lines.
iv) Tension insulator
 It isolates the overhead line from the tower.
v) Tension insulator
 Isolates the overhead line from the tower
vi) Quad bundle
 Provides increased current carrying capacity, reduces peak electric field,
minimizes inductance, reduces corona effects.
Question 3
a) Explain the types of clearances that exist on an overhead line system. Use
illustrations.
 Internal clearances; these are between the overhead line and the
tower body. Flashover of internal clearance will result in operation of the
power system protection reducing line’s reliability.
 External clearances; these are clearances between the overhead line
and other structures/ground. Flashover of external clearances could
result to danger to human life.
 The internal and external clearances are illustrated below;
 Phase-to-phase clearances; these are between the overhead line and
the line phase as shown below;
 b) Explain the purpose of a shield wire and coordination gaps in an overhead
line.
 Coordination gaps control the maximum impulse voltage that could travel
along the line. It also protects the insulator from any flash-over or back flash-
over event during lighting or switching
 Shield wire is intended to intercept the overhead line lightning strikes before
they hit the phase conductor. Also used in power system protection.
c) Discuss the advantages of bundling conductors on high voltage
transmission lines.
 Prevents conductors from clashing.
 It reduces corona discharge.
 It reduces line inductance.
 Reduction in communication line interference due to reduced corona
discharge.
d) Explain briefly how bundling conductors helps to reduce corona
occurrence on transmission lines.
 Conductor bundling increases the effective radius of the line’s conductor and
also reduces the electric field strength near the conductors hence reducing
the corona discharge effect.
Question 4
A 66 𝑘𝑉 wood pole overhead line system with 125 𝑚 span length and structure
height of 13.2 𝑚 above the ground; is designed for installation temperature of 50 𝐶
with an installation tension of 8 𝑘𝑁 and maximum operating temperature of
70℃.The conductor has a 23 × 10−6 𝐾 −1 coefficient of linear expansion, 1.8 𝑘𝑔/𝑚
mass and a 0.0678 Ω/𝑘𝑚 resistance at 700 𝐶. Consider gravity acceleration of
9.81 m/s. Assuming solar heat gain of 8.55 W/m, radiated loss of 4.24 𝑊/𝑚 and
convection loss of 23.22 𝑊/𝑚, calculate:
i) The MVA thermal rating of the line.
𝐹𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑡ℎ𝑒 ℎ𝑒𝑎𝑡 𝑏𝑎𝑙𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑒𝑞𝑢𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛, 𝑞𝑐 + 𝑞𝑟 = 𝑞𝑠 + 𝐼 2 𝑅𝜃
1
𝑞𝑐 + 𝑞𝑟 − 𝑞𝑠 23.22 + 4.24 − 8.55 2
𝐼=√ =[ ] = 𝟓𝟐𝟖. 𝟏𝟐 𝑨
𝑅𝜌𝑙 0.0678 × 10−3

𝑀𝑉𝐴 𝑅𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 = 3𝐼𝑝 𝑉𝑝 = √3𝑉𝐿𝐿 𝐼𝐿 = √3(66𝑘)(528.12) = 𝟔𝟎. 𝟑𝟕 𝑴𝑽𝑨

ii) Calculate the maximum sag at the operating temperature of 70 ℃.

Assuming a statutory clearance above ground for a 66 𝑘𝑉 system is 6 𝑚,
state whether this design provides enough ground clearance.
 1252 (1.8 × 9.81)2
𝑙5℃ = 125 (1 + ) = 125.3965 𝑚
24(8𝑘)2

𝑙70℃ = 𝑙5℃ (1 + 19 × 10−6 (70 − 5)) = 125.3965(1 + 19 × 10−6 (70 − 5)) = 125.584 𝑚

1252 (1.8 × 9.81)2

𝑇70℃ = √ = 𝟔. 𝟓𝟗𝟐 𝒌𝑵
125.584
24 [( ) − 1]
125

𝑤𝑠 2 (1.8 × 9.81)(125)2
𝐶𝑜𝑛𝑑𝑢𝑐𝑡𝑜𝑟 𝑠𝑎𝑔, 𝑆𝜃 = = = 5.232 𝑚
8𝑇 8 × 6.592𝑘
𝑇ℎ𝑒 𝑟𝑒𝑞𝑢𝑖𝑟𝑒𝑑 𝑐𝑙𝑒𝑎𝑟𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 66 𝑘𝑉 𝑠𝑦𝑠𝑡𝑒𝑚 𝑖𝑠 6 𝑚 𝑤ℎ𝑒𝑛 𝑖𝑡 𝑖𝑠 𝑛𝑜𝑡 𝑐𝑟𝑜𝑠𝑠𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑟𝑜𝑎𝑑 𝑠𝑜:
𝐶𝑙𝑒𝑎𝑟𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑝𝑟𝑜𝑣𝑖𝑑𝑒𝑑 = 13.2 − 5.323 = 7.968 𝑚 > 6𝑚
𝑯𝒆𝒏𝒄𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒔𝒕𝒓𝒖𝒄𝒕𝒖𝒓𝒆 𝒑𝒓𝒐𝒗𝒊𝒅𝒆𝒔 𝒆𝒏𝒐𝒖𝒈𝒉 𝒈𝒓𝒐𝒖𝒏𝒅 𝒄𝒍𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒂𝒏𝒄𝒆.

iii) The maximum span length that can be used for the overhead line
without infringing the statutory clearance.
𝑀𝑎𝑥𝑖𝑚𝑢𝑚 𝑝𝑒𝑟𝑚𝑖𝑡𝑡𝑒𝑑 𝑠𝑎𝑔, 𝑆𝜃 (𝑚𝑎𝑥) = 13.2 − 6 = 7.2 𝑚
1 1
8𝑇70 𝑆𝜃 (𝑚𝑎𝑥) 2 8(6.592𝑘)(7.2) 2
𝑀𝑎𝑥𝑖𝑚𝑢𝑚 𝑝𝑒𝑟𝑚𝑖𝑡𝑡𝑒𝑑 𝑠𝑝𝑎𝑛 𝑙𝑒𝑛𝑔𝑡ℎ, 𝑠(𝑚𝑎𝑥) = [ ] =[ ]
𝑤 (1.8 × 9.81)

𝑠(𝑚𝑎𝑥) = 146.64 𝑚

COMPILED BY BALUKU