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TransmissionLineDesign

Energy Facility Siting Council

March 15, 2013

HowElectricityisDelivered

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TransmissionLineDesign
TasksInvolved

Route Selection (Covered previously by Kent McCarthy)

References (Standards)/Codes
References (Standards)/Codes
Easements
Structures
Conductors
Structure Spotting
(
)
Corona (Noise)
Electric/Magnetic Fields (EMF)

DesignCriteriaReferences
EPRI transmission line reference books
345 kV and above (red book)
115
115138
kV compact line design (blue book)
138 kV compact line design (blue book)
Wind induced conductor motion (orange book)

REA Design Manual for High Voltage Transmission Lines (REA

Bulletin 621)
ASCE Guidelines for Electrical Transmission Line Structural
Loading (Manual No. 74)
The Lineman
The Linemanss and Cableman
and Cablemanss Handbook, McGrawHill
Handbook McGrawHill
OSHA Code of Federal Regulations, Title 29, Part 1926

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DesignCriteria Safety
Clearances NESC rules 231235
Structural loads (wind & ice)
Strength wood, steel & concrete

NationalElectricalSafetyCode
(NESC)ANSIC2
Part 2
S f t R l f th I t ll ti
d
Safety Rules for the Installation and
Maintenance of Overhead Electric Supply
and Communication Lines
Section 23
Section 25
Section 25
Section 26

Clearances
Loading
Strength Requirements

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TransmissionLine
ClearanceRequirements

Supporting structures to other objects

Supporting
structures to other objects (Rule 231)
(Rule 231)
Conductor to ground, roads, rails, or water (Rule 232)
Conductors and wires on different structures (Rule 233)
Conductors from buildings, bridges, rail cars (Rule 234)
Conductors and wires on same structure (Rule 235)

TransmissionLine
StructuralLoads(Wind/Ice)
NESC Medium Loading (Standard Design)
NESC Medium Loading (Standard Design)
+15 F
Ice
4 psf wind (40 mph)

NESC Heavy Loading (Mountain Design)

0 F
Ice
4 psff wind (40 mph)
d(
h)

NESC Heavy Wind Loading (Structures > 60 tall)

+60 F
No Ice
16.4 psf wind (80 mph)

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IceLoadingExample

TransmissionLine
StrengthRequirements
Grade B
Largest OLFss
Largest OLF
Must be used at all RR and limited access highway crossings
IPCo Transmission Line design requirements

Grade C
Reduced OLFs
IPCo Distribution Line design requirements

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DesignCriteria Reliability

Grade of construction (B)

Lightning performance
Insulation levels
Structure grounding
Proximity of transmission lines in relation to other
transmission lines (serving the same load with the same
generation)

Insulators
Materials
Glass
Porcelain
Polymer

Length
Depends upon voltage
Depends upon elevation
Depends upon additional reliability factors applied

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Easements
Centerline Easements transmission line
Strip Easements transmission line
Access Easements access roads

EasementWidthsVary

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DeterminingEasementWidths
The conductor location is dynamic throughout the course of
any given day. It depends upon:

Ambient temperature
Ambient temperature
Wind speed and direction
Solar contribution
Electrical loading

Conductor Sag & Tension calculation

Determine worstcase blowout condition
Include Structure Deflection
Include Structure Deflection
Include lineangle contribution
Add in NESC clearance requirements
Add in additional clearance requirements

Example
Determining
Easement
Widths

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StructureTypes
Configurations
Vertical
Horizontal
Delta

Family
Tangent
Angle
Deadend

Tangent
Tangent
Vertical
Configuration

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Tangent
Horizontal
Configuration

Tangent
Delta
Configuration

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Doublecircuit
TangentDelta
Configuration

RunningAngle
Structure

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DeadendStructure

ConductorSelection
Factors Influencing Conductor Selection
Expected growth load
p
g
Amount of power to be transmitted
Economic evaluation of losses
Corona (noise) considerations

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ConductorTypes AAC

ConductorTypes ACSR

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StructureSpotting(Past)

StructureSpotting(Present)

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StructureSpotting(Present)

Corona(Noise)
Corona occurs when the
electric field intensity on the
conductor surface exceeds
the breakdown strength of
the air.
h i
Corona intensifies at sharp
points such as fitting
locations.
Corona occurs more
frequently during certain
weather conditions such as
misting rain.

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CoronaOccurrence Water
Droplets

CoronaConsiderations
Audible Noise (AN)
Radio Noise
R di F
I t f
(RFI)
Radio Frequency Interference (RFI)
Television Frequency Interference (TVI)

Solutions to Corona

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CoronaConsiderations
AudibleNoise

Low frequency component 120 Hz hum

High frequency component sizzling and snapping
sizzling and snapping
High frequency component
Due to Corona discharge and sparking gaps
Most obvious during specific weather conditions

CoronaConsiderations
Radio/TVNoise
Due to Corona discharge and sparking gaps
Most ob io s d ring specific eather conditions
Most obvious during specific weather conditions
Federal Communications Commission (FCC) line must not
interfere with radio safety services

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CoronaConsiderations
Solutions

Install hardware (grading or corona shields)

B dl
d t
Bundle conductors
Handle the conductor carefully during construction
Tighten all hardware

CoronaActivity InsulatorEnd

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CoronaDamage InsulatorEnd

Corona(Grading)Rings

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ElectricMagneticFields(EMF)
EMF occurs whenever there is a voltage across and a current
through a conductor
EMF is not limited only to power lines, but occurs in all
electrical devices
EMF due to power lines is different from EMF due to cell
phones

ElectricFieldInduction
Characteristics
Static charge only
Charge is proportional to the object size
Charge is proportional to the line voltage

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ElectricFieldInduction
Solutions

Install ground wires parallel to the transmission line

Install bundled conductors
Change the conductor geometry
Increase the conductor height above ground
Change the phasing spacing
Note: Undergrounding electric lines does not eliminate
Electric Fields!
Electric Fields!

MagneticFieldInduction
Characteristics

Continuous current flow

P
ti
l t li
t
Proportional to line current
Proportional to the length of parallel
Generally less than household exposures

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MagneticFieldInduction
Solutions

Change the conductor geometry

Increase the conductor height above ground
Change the phasing spacing
Note: Undergrounding electric lines does not eliminate
Magnetic Fields!

TransmissionLineElectricalEffects

EffectofGroundClearanceonElectricandMagneticFields

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EMFInformation
No known interference issues with GPS equipment
Health Effects
Since early 1970s extensive research has been performed
Some studies have suggested a statistical association between EMF and

certain diseases
Other studies have failed to show this relationship
Ongoing research has detected no causeandeffect relationship
between EMF and diseases

Additional resources
National Institute of Health
N i
lI i
fH l h
EMFs Electric and Magnetic Fields Associated with the Use of

Electric Power: Questions and Answers (PDF) by the National

Institute for Environmental Health Safety and the National Institutes of
Health, June 2002
World Health Organization

Questions?

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