Debre Markos

University
Institute Technology

Electrical and Computer

Engineering Department
Introduction to Power Systems

Chapter Three
Mechanical Design of Transmission Lines
 Outline

 Introduction
 Main components of an overhead line
 Conductor
 Support
 Insulators
 Cross arm
 Sag and tension calculations
 Effect of wind and ice loading
 Introduction

 Electric power can be transmitted or distributed either by

means of underground cables or by overhead lines.

 The underground cables are rarely used for power transmission

due to two main reasons.

 Firstly, power is generally transmitted over long distances

to load centres. Obviously, the installation costs for
underground transmission will be very heavy.

 Secondly, electric power has to be transmitted at high

voltages for economic reasons.
 Under ground cables

 Is much more expensive than overhead system.

 Has limited use for distribution in congested areas where

safety and good appearances are the main considerations.

Overhead lines
 Bare conductors are used and air acts as the insulation.

 The necessary insulation between the conductors can be

provided by adjusting the spacing between them.
 Cont…

 May be used to transmit or distribute electric power.

 The successful operation of an overhead line depends to a

great extent upon the mechanical design of the line.

 While constructing an overhead line, it should be ensured

that mechanical strength of the line is such so as to provide
against the most probable weather conditions.
The main components of an overhead line are:

 Conductors

 Supports

 Insulators

 Cross arms
 Cont…

 Conductors which carry electric power from the sending

end station to the receiving end station.

 Supports which may be poles or towers and keep the

conductors at a suitable level above the ground.

 Insulators which are attached to supports and insulate the

conductors from the ground.

 Cross arms which provide support to the insulators.

 Miscellaneous items such as phase plates, danger plates,

lightning arrestors, anti-climbing wires etc.
 Conductor materials

 The conductor is one of the important item.

 The conductor material used for transmission and distribution

of electric power should have the following properties:

 High tensile strength in order to withstand mechanical

stresses.

 Low specific gravity so that weight per unit volume is

small.

 High electrical conductivity.

 Low cost so that it can be used for long distances.

 Commonly used conductor materials

 The most commonly used conductor materials for overhead

lines are:

 Copper,

 Aluminium,

 Steel-cored aluminium,

 Galvanized steel and cadmium copper.

 The choice of a particular material will depend upon the

cost, the required electrical and mechanical properties and
the local conditions.
 Line Supports

 The supporting structures for overhead line conductors are

various types of poles and towers called line supports.

 The line supports should have the following properties:

 High mechanical strength to withstand the weight of

conductors and wind loads etc.

 Light in weight without the loss of mechanical strength.

 Cheap in cost and economical to maintain.

 Easy accessibility of conductors for maintenance.

 Longer life.
 Cont…

 The line supports used for transmission and distribution of

electric power are of various types including:

 Wooden poles,

 Steel poles,

 R.C.C. Poles and

 Lattice steel towers.

 Cont…

 The choice of supporting structure for a particular case

depends upon:

 Line span,

 Cross-sectional area,

 Line voltage,

 Cost and local conditions.

 1. Wooden pole

 These poles:

 Are made of seasoned wood (sal or chir)

 Are suitable for lines of moderate x-sectional area

 Relatively shorter spans, up to 50 metres.

 Such supports are:

 Cheap,

 Easily available,

 Provide insulating properties

 Are widely used for distribution purposes in rural areas.

 Cont…

 The wooden poles generally tend to rot below the ground

level, causing foundation failure.

 In order to prevent this, the portion of the pole below the

ground level is impregnated with preservative compounds
like creosote oil.

 Double pole structures of the ‘A’ or ‘H’ type are often used
(See Fig. 3.1) to obtain a higher transverse strength than
could be economically provided by means of single poles.
 Cont…

 The main objections to wooden supports are:

 Tendency to rot below the ground level

 Comparatively smaller life (20-25 years)

 Cannot be used for voltages higher than 20 KV

 Less mechanical strength and

 Require periodical inspection.

 Cont…

Fig 3.1 wooden poles

 2. Steel pole

The steel poles are often used as a substitute for wooden poles.
They possess greater mechanical strength, longer life and
permit longer spans to be used.
 Such poles are generally used for distribution purposes in the
cities.
This type of supports need to be galvanized or painted in order
to prolong its life.
There are three types of steel poles,
 rail poles
 tubular poles and
 rolled steel joints
 3. RCC pole

 The reinforced concrete poles have become very popular as

line supports in recent years.

 They have greater mechanical strength, longer life and

permit longer spans than steel poles.

 Moreover, they give good outlook, require little maintenance

and have good insulating properties.

 The holes in the poles facilitate the climbing of poles and at

the same time reduce the weight of line supports.
 Cont…

 The main difficulty with the use of these poles is the high
cost of transport owing to their heavy weight.

 Therefore, such poles are often manufactured at the site in

order to avoid heavy cost of transportation.

 Fig. 3.2 shows R.C.C. poles for single and double circuit.
Cont…

Fig. 3.2 (i) shows a single circuit

tower. However, at a moderate
additional cost, double circuit
tower can be provided as shown
in Fig. 3.2 (ii).

Fig 3.2 RCC pole

 4. Steel towers

 In practice, wooden, steel and reinforced concrete poles are

used for distribution purposes at low voltages, say up to 11 kV.

 However, for long distance transmission at higher voltage, steel

towers are invariably employed.

 Steel towers

 have greater mechanical strength,

 longer life,

 can withstand most severe climatic conditions and permit

the use of longer spans.
 Cont…

 The risk of interrupted service due to broken or punctured

insulation is considerably reduced owing to longer spans.

 Tower footings are usually grounded by driving rods into the

earth.

 This minimizes the lightning troubles as each tower acts as a

lightning conductor.
 Cont..

a) single circuit tower b) double circuit tower

Fig 3.3 Steel Towers
View of tubular Poles
Transmission line (Steel tower)
Transmission line (Steel tower)
Transmission line (Steel tower)
View of L.T. distribution system
Distribution Transformer
 2.4 Insulators

 The overhead line conductors should be supported on the

poles or towers.

 in such a way that currents from conductors do not flow to

earth through supports i.e. line conductors must be properly
insulated from supports.

 This is achieved by securing line conductors to supports with

the help of insulators.
 Cont…

 The insulators provide necessary insulation between line

conductors and supports and thus prevent any leakage
current from conductors to earth.

 In general, the insulators should have the following

desirable properties :

 High mechanical strength in order to withstand

conductor load, wind load etc.

 High electrical resistance of insulator material in order

to avoid leakage currents to earth.
 Cont…

 High relative permittivity of insulator material in order

that dielectric strength is high.

 The insulator material should be:

• non-porous,

• free from impurities and cracks otherwise the

permittivity will be lowered.

 High ratio of puncture strength to flashover.

 2.5 Types of Insulators

 The successful operation of an overhead line depends to a

considerable extent upon the proper selection of insulators.

 There are several types of insulators but the most commonly

used are:

 pin type,

 suspension type,

 strain insulator and

 shackle insulator.
cont…
 Cont…

Suspension type insulator

(i) Pin type insulator (ii) suspension type insulator

 Sag in Overhead Lines

 While erecting an overhead line, it is very important that

conductors are under safe tension.

 If the conductors are too much stretched between supports in a

bid to save conductor material, the stress in the conductor may
reach unsafe value and in certain cases the conductor may break
due to excessive tension.

 In order to permit safe tension in the conductors, they are not

fully stretched but are allowed to have a dip or sag.
 Cont…

 The difference in level between points of supports and the

lowest point on the conductor is called sag.

 Fig. below (i) shows a conductor suspended between two

equivalent supports A and B.

 The conductor is not fully stretched but is allowed to have a

dip.

 The lowest point on the conductor is O and the sag is S. The

following points may be noted:
 Cont…

a) When the conductor is suspended between two supports

at the same level, it takes the shape of catenary. However,
if the sag is very small compared with the span, then sag-
span curve is like a parabola.

b) The tension at any point on the conductor acts

tangentially. Thus tension TO at the lowest point O acts
horizontally as shown in Fig. (ii).

c) The horizontal component of tension is constant

throughout the length of the wire.
 Cont…

 The tension at supports is approximately equal to the

horizontal tension acting at any point on the wire. Thus if T
is the tension at the support B, then T = TO.

 Figure below shows a conductor suspended freely from two

supports, which are at the same level and spaced L meter,
takes the form of a catenary curve providing the conductor is
perfectly flexible and conductor weight is uniformly
distributed along its length.
 Cont…

Conductor Sag and Tension

 This is an important consideration in the mechanical design
of overhead lines.
 The conductor sag should be kept to a minimum in order to
reduce the conductor material required and to avoid extra
pole height for sufficient clearance above ground level.
 Cont…

 It is also desirable that tension in the conductor should be

low to avoid the mechanical failure of conductor and to
permit the use of less strong supports.

 However, low conductor tension and minimum sag are not

possible. It is because low sag means a tight wire and high
tension, whereas a low tension means a loose wire and
increased sag. Therefore, in actual practice, a compromise in
made between the two.
 Calculation of Sag

 In an overhead line, the sag should be so adjusted that

tension in the conductors is within safe limits.

 The tension is governed by

 conductor weight,

 effects of wind,

 ice loading and

 temperature variations.
 Cont…

 It is a standard practice to keep conductor tension less than

50% of its ultimate tensile strength

 minimum factor of safety in respect of conductor tension

should be 2.

 We shall now calculate sag and tension of a conductor when

 supports are at equal levels and

 supports are at unequal levels.

 When supports are at equal levels

 Consider a conductor between two equilevel supports A and

B with O as the lowest point as shown in Fig. . It can be
proved that lowest point will be at the mid-span.

Let
l = Length of span
w = Weight per unit length of conductor
T = Tension in the conductor.
 Cont…

 Consider a point P on the conductor. Taking the lowest point

O as the origin, let the co-ordinates of point P be x and y.
Assuming that the curvature is so small that curved length is
equal to its horizontal projection (i.e., OP = x), the two
forces acting on the portion OP of the conductor are :

(a) The weight wx of conductor acting at a distance x/2 from O.

(b) The tension T acting at O.

 Cont…

 Equating the moments of above two forces about point O, we

get,

 The maximum dip (sag) is represented by the value of y at

either of the supports A and B.
 At support A,
 When supports are at unequal levels.

 In hilly areas, we generally come across conductors

suspended between supports at unequal levels. Fig. 8.25
shows a conductor suspended between two supports A and B
which are at different levels. The lowest point on the
conductor is O.
 Cont…

Let
l = Span length
h = Difference in levels between
two supports
x1 = Distance of support at lower
level (i.e., A) from O
x2 = Distance of support at higher
level (i.e. B) from O
T = Tension in the conductor
 If w is the weight per unit length of the conductor,
then,
Cont…
 Effect of wind and ice loading

 The above formulae for sag are true only in still air and at
normal temperature when the conductor is acted by its
weight only.
 However, in actual practice, a conductor may have ice
coating and simultaneously subjected to wind pressure.
 The weight of ice acts vertically downwards i.e., in the same
direction as the weight of conductor.
 The force due to the wind is assumed to act horizontally i.e.,
at right angle to the projected surface of the conductor.
 Hence, the total force on the conductor is the vector sum of
horizontal and vertical forces as shown in Fig. 8.26 (iii).
 Cont…

 Total weight of conductor per unit length is

 Cont…

 When the conductor has wind and ice loading also,

the following points may be noted :
(i) The conductor sets itself in a plane at an angle θ to
the vertical where

(ii) The sag in the conductor is given by :

wt L2
S 
8T

(iii) The vertical sag = S cos θ

Corona
 Outlines

 Introduction
 Corona loss
 Factors Affecting Corona
 Methods of Reducing Corona Effect
 Advantages and disadvantages of corona
 Introduction

 When an alternating potential difference is applied across

two conductors whose spacing is large as compared to their
diameters, there is no apparent change in the condition of
atmospheric air surrounding the wires if the applied voltage
is low.

 The phenomenon of violet glow, hissing noise, production of

ozone gas, power loss and radio interference in an overhead
transmission line is known as corona.
 Theory of corona formation

 Some ionization is always present in air due to cosmic rays,

ultraviolet radiations and radioactivity.

 Therefore, under normal conditions, the air around the

conductors contains some ionized particles (i.e., free electrons
and +ve ions) and neutral molecules.

 When p.d. is applied between the conductors, potential

gradient is set up in the air which will have maximum value at
the conductor surfaces.
 Cont…

 Under the influence of potential gradient, the existing free

electrons acquire greater velocities.

 The greater the applied voltage, the greater the potential

gradient and more is the velocity of free electrons.

 When the potential gradient at the conductor surface reaches

about 30 kV per cm (max. value),the velocity acquired by
the free electrons is sufficient to strike a neutral molecule
with enough force to dislodge one or more electrons from it.
 Cont….

 This produces another ion and one or more free electrons,

which is turn are accelerated until they collide with other
neutral molecules, thus producing other ions.

 Thus, the process of ionisation is cummulative. The result of

this ionisation is that either corona is formed or spark takes
place between the conductors.
 Factors Affecting Corona

 The following are the factors upon which corona depends :

 Atmosphere: As corona is formed due to ionization of air

surrounding the conductors, therefore, In the stormy
(rainy) weather, the number of ions is more than normal
and as such corona occurs at much less voltage as
compared with fair weather.

 Conductor size: The rough and irregular surface will give

rise to more corona because unevenness of the surface
decreases the value of breakdown voltage.
 Cont…

 Spacing between conductors: If the spacing between the

conductors is made very large as compared to their
diameters, there may not be any corona effect. It is because
larger distance between conductors reduces the electro-
static stresses at the conductor surface, thus avoiding corona
formation.

 Line voltage: The line voltage greatly affects corona. If it

is low, there is no change in the condition of air surrounding
the conductors and hence no corona is formed.
 Cont…

 However, if the line voltage has such a value that

electrostatic stresses developed at the conductor surface

make the air around the conductor conducting, then corona is
formed.
 Advantages and Disadvantages of Corona

 Corona has many advantages and disadvantages.

Advantages

(i) Due to corona formation, the air surrounding the conductor

becomes conducting and hence virtual diameter of the
conductor is increased. The increased diameter reduces the
electrostatic stresses between the conductors.

(ii) Corona reduces the effects of transients produced by

surges.
 Disadvantages

(i) Corona is accompanied by a loss of energy. This affects the

transmission efficiency of the line.

(ii) Ozone is produced by corona and may cause corrosion of

the conductor due to chemical action.

(iii) The current drawn by the line due to corona is non-

sinusoidal and hence non-sinusoidal voltage drop occurs in
the line. This may cause inductive interference with
neighboring communication lines.
 Methods of Reducing Corona Effect

 It has been seen that intense corona effects are observed at a

working voltage of 33 kV or above.

 Therefore, careful design should be made to avoid corona on

the sub-stations or bus-bars rated for 33 kV and higher
voltages otherwise highly ionized air may cause flash-over in
the insulators or between the phases, causing considerable
damage to the equipment.

 The corona effects can be reduced by the following methods :

 Cont…

 (i) By increasing conductor size: By increasing conductor

size, the voltage at which corona occurs is raised and hence
corona effects are considerably reduced.

 This is one of the reasons that ACSR conductors which

have a larger cross-sectional area are used in
transmission lines.
 Cont….

 (ii) By increasing conductor spacing: By increasing the

spacing between conductors, the voltage at which corona
occurs is raised and hence corona effects can be eliminated.

 However, spacing cannot be increased too much

otherwise the cost of supporting structure (e.g., bigger
cross arms and supports) may increase to a considerable
extent.
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