The application of icing on-line monitoring technology in 1000kV ultra-high voltage transmission lines

HUANG Xin-bo Electronic Information college Xian Polytechnic University Xian, China E-mail:hxb1998@163.com OU YANG Li-Sha Electronic Information college Xian Polytechnic University Xian, Xian, China E-mail:ouyanglisha819@126.com

Abstract:The 1000kV alternating current(AC) power transmission project from Southeast Shanxi via Nanyang to Jingmen is the first ultra high voltag(UHV)project in China,and is the first long-running UHV with rated voltage in the world.In order to achieve the icing on-line monitoring on this 1000kV UHV transmission lines, this paper summarized the current situation and drawbacks of the icing on-line monitoring technology research, followed by the investigation of the topography and climatic characteristics along this 1000kV transmission lines in Henan, and then elaborated on basic principle of the two on-line monitoring technology,which are icing monitoring unit with mechanical and meteorological data and image/video monitoring unit, the final focused on analyzing field monitoring data of icing monitoring unit and image/video monitoring unit in this UHV lines. The analysis results showed that the application of the icing on-line monitoring technology in the 1000kV UHV transmission lines has effectively monitored the icing condition along the lines, and has of great importance for ensuring the safe operation of UHV transmission lines and also premoting the development of the smart grid plan. Keywords:ultra-high voltage;icing monitoring; mechanical data; meteorological data; image/video;smart grid I. INTRODUCTION Transmission line icing often leads to the line trip, break, down tower, conductor galloping, insulator flashover, communications disruptions and other accidents.In order to reduce icing accidents on transmission lines, effectively guarantee the safe operation of power systems, should be strengthened research for the mechanism of transmission line icing and anti-ice de-icing effective methods, also should be strengthened research for large power grid icing on-line monitoring, early warning and diagnostic methods. At present, the monitoring methods of line icing are mainly manual inspection,ice observing station and analog icing on the conductors, etc.,but these methods exist big problems such as the labor-intensive, high investment and a big diference between the test results and the actual results, etc. Terefore,In order to solve the problems existed in the traditional icing on-line monitoring methods,this paper
Fund Sponsors: the National Basic Research Program of China (973 Program) sub-topic(2009CB724507-3)innovation fun for small and medium technology-based firm(08C26216101491)Major science and technology projects in Shaanxi Province(2009ZKC02-13)The Innovation Fund Project For Graduate Student of Xian Polytechnic University(chx10081)

introduced icing monitoring unit including mechanical and meteorological data, also introduced image/video monitoring unit. The two units achieved the icing on-line monitoring on the the 1000kV UHV transmission lines, monitored the required parameters and image/video information along the transmission lines, facilitated the timely detection of ice damage risk in the icing early stage, provided departments who dealed with the icing incident with icing pre-warning/warning/alarm information which will help to eliminate the icing incident in the bud, and effectively prevented ice damage incidents and increased the safety of ice areas along the 1000kV UHV transmission lines[1-4]. II.
THE INTRODUCTION OF 1000KV UHV TRANSMISSION LINES

The 1000kV AC pilot demonstration project from Southeast Shanxi via Nanyang to Jingmen is the first UHV project in China, and is the first long-running UHV with rated voltage in the world.The full length of the lines is 645 kilometers and passed through Shanxi Henan and Hubei provinces, the length of the lines in Henan is 342.811 kilometers. The alignment of the UHV line is north-east direction,the temperature of the north side is low but the south side is high.The lines pass through the mountains where the terrain is complex and the climatic is variable, particularly pass through in high-elevation mountain with a clear three-dimensional climate characteristics. In a small area, due to changable terrain, the climate is very different. In Henan,the most harm to transmission lines is glaze ice,followed by the rime. According to comprehensive analysis for the geographical distribution,climatic features and icing characteristics of 1000kV transmission lines, have established icing monitoring network for 1000kV UHV lines. Currently, the monitoring network including 10 icing monitoring points worked well. III. TRANSMISSION LINE ICING MONITORING TECHNOLOGY

A. Icing mechanical and meteorological data monitoring unit The principle frame of icing mechanical and meteorological data monitoring unit is shown in figure 1. The basic principle is as follows: the unit is adopted

978-1-4244-7161-4/10/$26.00 2010 IEEE

ultra-low-power design, charged by solar energy and battery, The unit timing/real-time complete information collection of the icing aggregate force on the conductor, unbalanced tension difference, windage yaw angle of the insulators, tilt angle and meteorological parameters (including temperature, humidity, wind speed, wind direction,etc.). Through the GSM/CDMA/3G network communication modules, these monitored information is sent to the monitoring center whichcan remotely set parameters for the monitoring unit (such as the sampling time interval , system time of the monitoring unit and real-time data requests, etc.). By virtue of

expert software the icing conditions of corresponding line can be obtained. The expert software can accuratly analyses on-site icing conditons by use of a variety of modified theoretical models,comprehensivly analyses entire collection and long-term accumulation of datas,all these displayed to the users through a variety of reports,charts and curves,etc.,promptly gives the pre-warning information,and effectively prevents ice damage accidents. The relevant departments of grid corporation at provincial and municipal level which have been authorized can achieve monitored data of the tower through the IE browser at any time [5-6].

Figure 1.

The principle frame of monitoring unit

B. icing image/video monitoring unit Transmission lines image/video on-line monitoring unit is composed of the monitoring devices,communication equipment,monitoring host service and monitoring software. Monitoring device is made up of the camera, capture and compress image, communication control, host control computer, power control, solar panels and batteries. The basic principles of icing image/video monitoring unit are as follows: based on control commands which master control server gives, the acquisition of image/video signal is got by cameras on the monitoring devices, the signal is sampled,compressed and encoded through the acquisition card, the three cameras on the same device are respectively used for collecting the image/video signals from the different perspective , and these signal is transmitted to the master control server through GPRS/CDMA/3G network, with the monitoring system softwares support, through the server of the monitoring center or remote log in, the monitored image/video of line are observed to achieve the real-time observation and recording of ice formation and development process on the lines. One part of the power control system enables automatic control of power consumption and enable the system to work long hours. Throughcapturing image/video of the transmission lines and the surrounding environment, not only intuitively get the long-range observations of the line ice conditions which brings breakthrough expansion in space and distance, but also achieved all-weather monitoring for the surrounding environment along the transmission line.The staff for lines operation and management can remotely inspect devices,

reduce the frequency of inspection, grasp the running condition of danger point along the lines.All these have opened up a new road for transmission line inspection and condition-based maintenance, and security of the transmission line is greatly improved [3,7,8]. IV.
THE APPLICATION OF ICING ON-LINE MONITORING TECHNOLOGY FOR THE UHV LINES

A. The Analysis of Monitored Icing Data The icing on-line monitoring techenology has been widely used on transmission lines. Combined with construction for the 1000 kV UHV projects,on-line monitoring systems have overall planned and implemented on the 1000kV UHV lines in Henan province,through China Electric Power Research Institute carrying out feasibility studies and comprehensive survey to the project. 10 sets of icing on-line monitoring systems are installed on some towers. These icing monitoring places cover the following features: leap over mountains, hills and rivers, ice-prone areas and accident-prone areas, special lines or special environmental sites, large span and important lines. As shown in figure 2 is on-site icing mechanical and meteorological monitoring data for the 1000kV Changnan I lines 0440 tower 2#. It can be seen from figure 2,from February 1th,2010 to February 28th,2010 the mechanical and meteorological data monitoring unit have successfully monitored icing aggregate force, unbalanced tension difference, windage yaw angle,tilt angle,temperature,humidity,wind speed and wind direction. The analysis results for the data as follows:

(a) aggregate force

(b) unbalanced tension difference

(c) windage yaw angle

(d) tilt angle

(e) temperature

(f) humidity

(g) wind direction Figure 2.

(h) wind speed

on-site icing mechanical and meteorological monitoring data for the 1000kV Changnan I lines 0440 tower 2#

1 aggregate force:as shown in figure 2(a),in February the aggregate force maintained with 21kN or so. Slightly changed on February 7 and February 11,the force were 22kN and 23kN respectively; 2unbalanced tension difference: figure 2(b), in February the unbalanced tension difference changed between 1kN and 3kN. Bigger changed on February 4 and February 5; 3 windage yaw angle:figure 2(c),in February the windage yaw angle slightly changed between -5and 10. A bit bigger changed on February 4, February 5 and February 22; 4tilt angle: figure 2(d), in February the tilt angle almost changed between -5and 10except February 18. the tilt angle on February 18 was close to -20;

5temperature:figure 2(e), from February 1 to February 18,the environmental temperature almost changed between 10 and 0. From February 19 to February 25, the environmental temperature rise, the highest temperature is 25 . From February 25 to the end of month, the environmental temperature drop,the lowest temperature is 0; 6 humidity:figure 2(f), in February the change of the humidy is greater, the range of change is 10%~100%.From February 7 to February 18,the humidy is above 85%; 7 wind direction: figure 2(g), in February except February 17,18 and 19, the change of wind direction is similar, range from 0 to 360,but on February 17,18 and 19,the wind direction change between 0and 180;

8wind speed: as shown in figure 2(h),in February (except February 11 and February 18 )the wind speed almost changed between 0 m/s and 8 m/s,but bigger changed on February 11 and February 18,the maxium wind speed is above 10m/s. It found that the unit successfully detected wire icing incidents two times,which occurred on February 11 and February 18.According to the analysis for the monitored data, the two icing incidents are not serious,because on February 11 and February 18 the change of the icing mechanical and meteorological data is not very obvious compared with other 26 days. The icing data on February 11 and February 18 confirmed to the weather conditions in which the icing on conductor can be formed : with a very low temperature, that is below 0(figure 2(e)); air relative humidity is generally more than 85%( figure 2(f)); with wind speed that water droplets can move in the air, that is greater than 1.0m/s(figure 2(h)). B. the image/video of icing As shown in figure 3, the ice image/video monitoring units which are installed on the 1000kV UHV transmission lines AC pilot demonstration project from Southeast Shanxi via Nanyang to Jingmen have successfully shot the process of snow and ice covered on the the insulators of tower No.112 on February 24, 2009 and on February 26, 2009,The figures showed the two different perspectives of the the snow and ice covered on/near the lines, so that operating personnel do not have on-site inspections and will be able to timely grasp danger emergency of the snow and ice coverd on the transmission lines.

V.

SUMMARY

State Grid Corporation firstly announced the smart grid plan on the May 21,2009,and the construction for the UHV grid which is possessed of long distance and large capacity transmission characteristics,will be fundamental and important link in the construction of the sart grid.Terefore,the application of icing on-line monitoring technology in 1000kV ultra-high voltage transmission lines have of great importance for ensuring the safe, stable and reliable operation of UHV grid and even state grid.For the future the application of icing on-line monitoring technology need in-depth study in the following aspects: 1Generally in a serious icing area, the mobile communications network is very poor, it is possible to some extent affect the results of application; 2 Further enhance the ability of the monitoring system anti-ice in serious icing conditions, and should prevent snow-covered and freezing on the image/video monitoring system in adverse weather conditions; 3Establishing a monitoring, decision-making and command center.4 Further improving pre-warning and warning function. REFERENCES
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[2]

[3]

[4] [5]

[6] 02-24 17:52:37beforesnowfall 02-26 08:31:52 after snowfall [7]

[8]

02-24 16:37:37beforesnowfall Figure 3.

02-26 09:33:21 after snowfall

icing on the tower 112# ,1000kV nanjing I# lines