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Conductors & Materials


High-Capacity, Energy-Efficient ACCC® Conductor Case Study

This project won EEI Transmission Project of the Year – 2016 Description: 240 circuit miles, 345 kV line, double bundleProject: Replace 1,440 miles of ACSR conductor with ACCC   Objectives Improve reliability (reduced sag and corrosion) Increased capacity to serve growth (2X...

Copper Theft: A Call to Action

How utilities can stand firm to save money and save lives BY PHILL FELTHAM, Executive EditorElectricity Today Magazine Copper theft has become a growing problem for utilities in Canada and the United States. This precious metal has increased in value in recent years, so thieves are stripping...

Aging Cable Infrastructure

The 2014 Annual Energy Outlook Report compiled by the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) forecasts that total electricity demand will grow by 29 percent (0.9 percent per year) by 2040. While growth has slowed in every decade since the 1950s, due in part to efficiency gains in appliance...

Conductors & Materials

Detecting Faults in Underground Networks

Enhancing protection using directional faulted circuit indicators

BY CHRISTOPHER EVANICH, Thomas & Betts

Underground electrical networks provide reliable service to end users, but create problems for utility personnel in locating faults. Electric utilities who utilize an underground network could spend several weeks trying to locate a fault or potentially not even be able to locate it until a second fault occurs.

LOCATING FAULTS A directional faulted circuit indicator (DFCI) is a beneficial piece of...

Related Articles


Aging Cable Infrastructure

The 2014 Annual Energy Outlook Report compiled by the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) forecasts that total electricity demand will grow by 29 percent (0.9 percent per year) by 2040. While growth has slowed in every decade since the 1950s, due in part to efficiency gains in appliance...

Improve Energy Efficiency in Underground Systems

Making appropriate cable component design and material choices BY DENNIS DOSS, General Cable ore than ever, society is realizing that energy resources are dwindling and becoming more expensive. In response, North American electric utilities offer consumers a variety of incentives to deploy energy...

Converting Power Lines to Smart Wires

Increasing the observability and control of the transmission network BY FRANK KREIKEBAUM, JERRY MELCHER, & JULIE COUILLARD, Smart Wire Grid, Inc. The North American power grid has evolved into a connected set of four major interconnections delivering low-cost and reliable energy. The U.S....

Power line conductor repair

How Modern Conductors are Improving Grid Reliability and Much More

Reflections: Nearly twenty years ago when I got into the energy business, reliability was a second-tier design objective for most transmission engineers. Safety factors had already been established and the materials we used for structures and powerline wires (conductors) were well known. While...


FERC Complaint Targets Duke, PJM Transmission Planning

A coalition of large energy consumers and ratepayer advocates has filed a complaint with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), urging the agency to prohibit transmission owners from independently planning "local" transmission projects exceeding 100 kilovolts (kV). The coalition argues...

Digital Twins for Substations: Bridging the Physical and Digital Worlds

In the rapidly evolving landscape of power grid management, digital twin technology is emerging as a game-changer for substations. By creating virtual replicas of physical assets, digital twins bridge the gap between the physical and digital worlds, enabling enhanced operational efficiency and...

FirstEnergy Explores Alternatives to PJM Capacity Market

In a strategic move aimed at enhancing its power supply reliability, FirstEnergy is actively exploring alternatives to the PJM capacity market. This development reflects the company’s proactive approach to addressing challenges within the existing market structure and ensuring a more robust...

Insulators' ageing in North America - How about testing them?

Sediver has established in the USA an assembly factory for glass insulators in 2017 but also, and perhaps more interesting for some engineers, a laboratory capable of performing all the tests required by the world’s standards. Large test campaigns have already been conducted in this...

Facing Wildfire? Choose Toughened Glass Insulators

Insulators under fire, what are we talking about? A line directly in the fire is considered as lost A line near the heat of a fire can be saved What is the condition of insulators on a line nearby a fire? Reliability of insulators during or after a fire is a key consideration for T&D...

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