Overhead Line Tutorial Questions

1. Explain the purpose of a shield wire and co-ordination gaps on an overhead line

A shield wire is intended to intercept lightning strikes before they hit the phase
conductor. A shield wire also has secondary benefits in terms of power system
protection (phase to earth fault currents will flow down the shield wire).

Coordination gaps limit the maximum voltage that can travel down the overhead
line. When they flashover during a lightning strike event, they also provide
protection to the insulator dishes.

2. What are the main clearances required within an overhead line design?

The tower clearances are divided to internal clearances and external clearances
 Internal clearances are those that mainly affect the reliability of the OHL
system.
o Phase-to-phase clearances: horizontal and vertical phase separations.
o Phase-to-ground clearances: Separation of phase wire with the cross-arm
below, cross-arm and above, with the tower body under swing conditions
and the creepage distance of the insulators.
Note: Miscalculation of these clearances will result in poor OHL performance.
 External clearances are those that used to minimise the interference of the
overhead line with the surrounding environment and reduce any potential
hazard that may be resulted from the OHL.
o Phase-to-ground clearances: Minimum separation of phase wire to the
ground under no wind and wind conditions.
o Phase to ground clearances: Considering a pivotal collapse of nearby
structures.
Note: Miscalculation of these clearances will result in risk of the surrounding
environment and life.

3. Identify all of the major overhead line fittings in the picture below and describe
their function

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Tension insulator – Isolates the overhead line from the tower
Coordination gap – Controls 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
Stocksbridge damper – Damps high frequency vertical vibration in the overhead
lines
Shield wire – See lecture slides
Quad bundle – Provides increased current carrying capacity, reduces peak
electric field, minimises inductance, reduces corona effects (see lecture slides)
Bundle spacer – Used to maintain required geometry-separation of bundle
conductors and Damp any sub-span oscillations
Jumper – Provides the conductive path of the conductors across a tension tower
insulation.

4. Describe the potential benefits of increasing conductor tension on an overhead

line and describe the reasons that conductor tension can only be increased to a
specific value

An increase in conductor tension will reduce sag. More current can therefore flow
through the conductor or smaller tower heights can be used. However, the
conductor itself, tension insulators, and the towers will limit the maximum value of
tension that can be applied.
5. How could an overhead line design be made more compact? What new
technologies would contribute to this? Is there any barrier to making an
overhead line smaller but keeping the same level of voltage and current?

An overhead line could be made more compact through the use of novel
conductors that do not exhibit as much sag as conventional types (e.g. some
conductors have a composite core that reduces the sag) this will reduce the height
of the first cross-arm but not their separation (so mid-cross-arm and top cross-arm
separation will remain the same). The use of surge arresters could also reduce the
peak overvoltages seen on a line and therefore the insulation length; particularly at
EHV OHLs that switching overvoltages are significant design criteria. This will
reduce compact the tower (make in it shorter but also narrower).
The barrier that exists to compaction is the need to not exceed specific limits of
electric and magnetic field. Compaction in terms of moving the line towards the
ground will increase levels of ground electromagnetic fields. Compaction in terms
of moving conductors closer together will actually reduce fields.

6. Why conductor bundle configurations are used at high voltage overhead line
systems?

The bundle configuration is predominately used in order to reduce the electric field
on the conductor surface and therefore reduce the corona effects.
It is also used to effectively increase the power transfer of an OHL structure since
the installation of small conductors is easier comparing to the large conductors.

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See also lecture slides for additional benefits

7. A single circuit horizontally orientated overhead line must be designed for use
at 33kV. What must be the spacings between the phases and what distance is
required between the conductor and an earthed cross-arm (assume the
insulator flashes over with the same characteristics as an air gap)? A lightning
impulse voltage of 170kV may be present on the system.

Step 1 – Calculate phase to phase spacing using an AC voltage of 33kV and a LI

voltage of 170kV using the formulae below. Make sure you use the peak phase to
phase voltage.

3740k
U50  kV (AC), U50  (380  150k )d kV (LI)
1 8/ d

Do a similar calculation to check the conductor-cross-arm spacing but now use the
peak phase to earth voltage for the AC strength.

8. With reference to Q5, how would these values change if the cross-arm is not
earthed.

If the cross-arm is not earthed, the distance between the conductor and the cross-
arm can be reduced to even zero assuming that the cross-arm can withstand the
SI and LI of the OHL system the lightning impulse voltage.

9. With reference to Q5 and Q6 and the assumed parameters, would this design
be adequate in wet conditions?

A polluted insulator will have lower breakdown strength than an air-gap, for this
reason, the distances will increase.

10. Are the distances that you have calculated realistic?

Use the equation P  IV / 3 W per phase .

11. An overhead line has a span length of 300m. The conductor diameter is 0.35m
and a twin bundle is used. The conductor weight is 45N/m. The insulator length
is 3m and distance between the insulator and the tower (body) is 5m.
Considering a switching surge of 1MV, what wind velocity would cause
infringement of the conductor to tower clearance?

Step 1 – What distance must be maintained between the conductor and the tower
for 1MV?

3400k
U50  kV
1 8/ d

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Step 2 – What swing angle is therefore allowed?

 5m  dSI 
  sin1  - 3m insulator length is the hypotenuse, (5m-the switching
 3m 
impulse distance) is the opposite.

Step 3 – What will the value of wind-force be on the conductor for this swing
angle?

 Fw ind 
  tan1  (Ignore insulator weight / wind force – normally insignificant)
 Wconductor 


Step 4 – What wind velocity does this correspond to? Fw ind  v2 d  l  n
2

12. An overhead line is to have a maximum span length of 300m. The conductor
that is used has a rated breaking strength (RBS) of 105 kN and a mass of 1.03
kg/m. To ensure that a ground clearance of 5m is always maintained, what is
the required conductor height at the towers when a vibration limit of 20% RBS
is applied? Assume flat level ground.

Using 20% of the RBS (i.e. 21kN), this question simply requires you to calculate
the sag of a conductor for a tension of 21kN, a span length of 300m and a
conductor mass of 1.03kg/m (i.e. a conductor weight of 1.03kg/m x 300m x 10N/kg)
WRs2
Use this formula: STc  to calculate the sag and then the conductor weight at
8T
the towers should be the sag + the required ground clearance.

13. An overhead line is to have a maximum span length of 300m. The conductor
that is used has rated breaking strength (RBS) of 105 kN and weight equal to
1.03 kg/m. To ensure that a ground clearance of 5m is always maintained, what
is the required conductor height at the towers when a vibration limit of 20%
RBS is applied? Assume flat terrain.

Similar method to the question 12.

14. Required Equations

3740k
Strength of a gap for an AC voltage (peak): U50  kV
1 8/ d
Strength of a gap for a lightning impulse voltage: U50  (380  150k )d kV

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 3400k
Strength of a gap for a switching impulse voltage: U50  kV
1 8/ d
Assume k=1 in all cases.

Force exerted on a conductor owing by the wind: Fw ind  v2 d  l  n
2
(where ρ=air density–1.22kg/m3, v=wind velocity, d=diameter of conductor, l=span
length and n=number of conductors in bundle)
WRs2
Sag of an overhead line conductor: STc 
8T
W 2Rs3
Length of an overhead line conductor: l c  Rs 
24T 2

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