IEEE Transactions on Power Delivery, Vol. 9, No.

3, July 1994 1517

Development of Lightning-resistant
Overhead Ground Wire
OPGW Length
installed
Nos. of year passed
by the end of 1992 Year
in each year after installation
1983 9 km 9.5 years
1984 147 km 8.5 years
1985 218km 7.5 years
6.5 years 1986 379 km
1987 693 km 5.5 years
1988 182 km 4.5 years
Munehisa Yokoya Yukio Katsuragi Yutaka Goda Yutaka Nagata Yuji Asano
Chubu Electric Power Co., Inc. Central Research Institute of theElectric Fujikura Ltd.
Nagoya, J apan Power Industry (CRIEPI) Tokyo, J apan
Yokosuka, J apan
Length x Year
of OFGW in service
by the end of 1992
. 86 kmyear
1,250 kmyear
1,635 kmyear
2,464 kmyear
3,812 kmyear
819 kmyear
Abstract-Overhead ground wires (GW) are vulnerable to
strand breakage due to lightning strikes. With the wider applica-
tion in recent years of Composite Fiber Optic Ground Wire
(OPGW), it becomes more important to protect GW from such
damage.
and have developed new overhead ground wires having high
resistance against lightning.
This paper describes the development and excellent proper-
ties of the lightning-resistant overhead ground wires.
1989
1990
1991
Inthis paper, we present the results of various investigations
made in developing lightning-resistant GW/OPGW. Investigations
included field experiments using rocket-triggered lightning, stud-
ies on materials and designs to improve lightning characteristics
and various evaluation tests, such as DC arc tests, of several proto-
types.
As a result, we have developed excellent lightning-resistant GW/
OPGW applicable for conventional transmission lines.
Keywords-overhead transmission line, ground wire, OPGW,
lightning, triggered lightning, etc.
847 kmyear 242 km 3.5 years
I86 km 2.5 years 465 kmyear
285 km 1.5 vears 428 kmyear
1. INTRODUCTION
Total I 2,509 km
The situation of overhead power transmission systems varies
year by year. Nowadays, the development of more reliable power
transmission facilities is an important subject for electric power
utilities.
Overhead ground wires, installed at the upper portions of
overhead transmission lines to protect conductors from light-
ning, may have their strands broken when struck by lightning
with extremely powerful energy. Particularly, those lines pass-
ing through areas where winter lightning with big energy
frequently occur or areas where the IKL (Isokeraulic level: an-
nual total days on which lightning occurs) is comparatively high
require upgraded lightning-resistance overhead ground wires to
increase the reliability of the power transmission system. Re-
cently, the use of OPGWs with a communications function has
been increasing, and the roles played by OPGWs have been be-
come more and more important.
To meet these requirements, we made a through study on
construction and material of strands to improve arc resistance
- I 11,890kmyear I
94 WM 095-0 PWRD A paper recommended and approved
by the IEEE Transmission and Distribution Committee
of the IEEE Power Engineering Society for presentat-
ion at the IEEE/PES 1994 Winter Meeting, New York,
New York, January 30 - February 3, 1994. Manuscript
submitted July 30, 1993; made available for printing
Debember 6, 1993.
2. LIGHTNING DAMAGE TO OVERHEAD GROUND WIRES
In J apan, galvanized steel stranded wires (GSW), aluminum-
clad steel stranded wires (AC) [l], aluminum alloy conductor
steel reinforced wires (IACSR), etc. are used as overhead ground
wires. In addition to these wires, composite fiber optic ground
wires (OPGW) have recently become popular as a new type of
overhead ground wire. The total length of OPGW installed in
J apan is approximately 17,000 kmaccording to data collected
in 1992.
We investigated actual damage to OPGW systems mainly in
the region of Chubu Electric Power Co. (with a total length of ,
approx. 2,500 km, refer to Table 1) over 10 years from 1983 to
1992 . The investigation results revealed that ground wires were
damaged with their strands broken at 10 places in these 10 years.
This can be expressed as a damage rate of 0.08 casedyear for
every 100 km, which means strand breakage may occur at 2
placedyear with the current length.
3. CHARACTERISTICS OF LIGHTNING AND ITS ELECTRIC CHARGE
3-1 Lightning occurrences in Japan
When classified roughly, there are two types of lightning in
J apan: summer lightning and winter lightning. The characteris-
I 1992 I 168km I 0.5years I 84km.year I
0885-8977/94/$04.00 0 1994 IEEE
1518
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tics of the two types differs as described below:
Summer lightning
Summer thunderclouds, caused by the ascending current gen-
erated by strong sunlight, mainly developed in mountainous
areas; while increasing its power, the lightning moves toward
an inland area and then a coastal area where it disappears.
Lightning flashes downward and forms several branches, with
more than half of the flashes being multiple strokes.
In many cases, once lightning occurs, it will last two to three
days.
Winter lightning [2] [ 4]
Winter lightning, an anomalous event in the world, is well-
known as lightning frequently occurs on the west coast of
Norway and on the coast of the J apan Sea. In J apan, thunder-
clouds are generated by the violent ascending current that is
caused by the large temperature difference between the cold sea-
sonal wind from Siberia and the warm air fed by the warm
Tsushima Current flowing northward along the J apan Sea.
Winter lightning frequently occurs in the transition zone from
a plain to a mountainous area at an altitude of 1,000 m or less. In
this zone, high buildings in particular are often struck by light-
ning.
Fig. 1 shows the distribution of summer and winter lightning
in areas where the Isokeraulic level ( I n) exceeds 30 days.
One of the characteristics of winter lightning is the high level
of electric charge. According to the observations carried out
mainly by the Central Research Institute of the Electric Power
Industry (CRIEPI), the electric charge of winter lightning ranged
up to approximately 1,000 coulombs as shown in Fig. 2. In com-
parison, the electric charge of summer lightning usually ranges
from several coulombs to 10 coulombs. Compared with the elec-
tric charge of summer lightning, winter lightning is extremely
powerful.
3-2 Rocket-triggered lightning experiment
E l e c t r i c C h a r g e
50% v a l u e : 3 . 5 c o u l o m b s
0 16% v a l u e : 7 6 c o u l o m b s
- 0
00
L\ o
To verify the relation between the electric charge of light-
ning and extent of damage to overhead ground wires, we carried
out a field experiment in cooperation with the Rocket-Triggered
Lightning Group led by Nagoya University. In the experiment,
lightning was caused to strike several types of ground wires si-
multaneously, and we checked the validity of the testing
apparatus, characteristics of lightning current and fusion char-
acteristics of the exposed ground wires.
The outline of the testing apparatus is shown in Fig. 3.
From the results of the above induced lightning experiment,
we confirmed the following points:
(1) Thetesting apparatus can evaluate the fusion properties of
several types of conductors under the same conditions.
(2) We observed winter lightnings whose maximum electric
charge was approximately 600 coulombs. The waveform of
lightning current obtained at that time is shown in Fig. 4.
(3) Generally, the arc spot made by actual lightning was longer
than that generated in the artificial simulation test (DC arc
test). In other words, the damaged area was widely spread
along the conductor surface. The fused state of conductors
: Winter Lightning Area
(IKL =30 or over:
(IKL =30 or over)
: Summer Lightning Area
Winter Lightning
observation site
Triggered lighlning lest site -
(1954-1963. by Meteorological Agency)
Dielriburion of summer and winter lightning Fig. I
T h u n d e r c I o u d s .......
...........................
.....................................
........................................
............. ....................
..........
..*,,,*,..,,
.*..,,*
R o g o w s k v t v p e
R e c o r d <
C O
P I a s t
D I D e
I
0 0 mm
T * S
a r r
Fig. 3 Rocket-triggered lightning
1519
press this diffusion is called thermal conductivity.
Arc-resistance characteristics therefore depend on the bal-
ance between the above two points, i.e., thermal energy needed
for fusion of conductor material and thermal energy diffused
out of the material. Based on the above idea, adopting metals
such as molybdenum, zinc and copper were considered effec-
tive, in addition to the current usage of aluminum and iron.
+ s o . ,
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- 50
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Fig. 4 Current oscilogram of rocket-triggered lightning
( CSI 55 I* ) ( ACS 55 I)* )
Fig. 5 Fused state of the conductors caused by triggered lightning
areshown in Fig. 5. On the other hand, the actual fused
volume was almost the same as that of the DC arc tests.
As a result, we confirmed that the DC arc test convention-
ally used is appropriate for the evaluation of the
arc-resistance of conductors.
4. LIGHTNING-RESISTANT OVERHEAD GROUND WIRES
This section describes the studies on material and design to
improve the arc resistance evaluation of initial prototypes and
test results of Hew-developed overhead ground wires.
4-1 Types and characteristics of initial prototypes
Study on materials
When element wires of a conductor are heated by an arc, the
fused part drops off or is blown away by the arc jet, resulting in
the wires being broken or damaged. To prevent such fusion, im-
proving the arc-resistance of element wires is required by
employing materials that need much energy to fuse.
When an arc is generated, thermal energy is supplied to the
arc spot, and then is diffused from the spot to the surrounding
area. Therefore, the spreading thermal energy over a wider area
reduces the energy concentrated at the arc spot and improves the
fusion-resistance of the conductor. The physical constant to ex-
i)
ii)
iii)
Molybdenum: The melting point of molybdenum is ex-
tremely high. In addition, extremely high energy is needed
to dissolve molybdenum. Therefore, the use of molybde-
num is expected to improve the arc-resistance of
conductors.
Zinc: Zinc needs little energy to dissolve. Therefore, if zinc
is clad on the surface of the conductor, the arc is expected
to act on this portion, causing the arc spot to spread widely
along the surface of theconductor. As a result, the thermal
energy will be spread widely and reduced. In addition, ther-
mal energy will be absorbed by vapor when the zinc layer
is fused and vaporized.
Copper: Copper has a large thermal conductivity compared
with other materials. Therefore, the thermal energy will be
spread rapidly and heat accumulation at the arc spot will be
greatly reduced. However, when used together with steel or
aluminum, it is likely to cause adverse effect such as gal-
vanic corrosion. Therefore we avoided the adoption of
copper in our trial application.
Study on construction
To improve arc-resistance, the following methods were ex-
pected to be effective from the viewpoint of the construction
and shape of conductors:
i)
ii)
iii)
To cover a conductor by a protective layer of aluminum,
molybdenum, or the like. In addition, to provide an air gap
between the protective layer and the conductor to prevent
heat intrusion.
The aluminum layer of outer Al-clad wires should be thick-
ened so that the energy is absorbed by dissolving the
aluminum layer, which protects the inner steel wires main-
taining the required tensile strength of the stranded wires.
The heat energy needed to break the element wire depends
on the diameter of the wire if the same material is used.
Considering this, the diameter of the outer layer wires
should be increased.
Based on the above considerations, 5 types of conductors
were experimentally manufactured as prototypes. These proto-
types were subjected to DC arc tests and evaluated. The cross
sections of the conductors are shown in Fig. 6.
Type I : Protective layer of molybdenum and zinc
To utilize the arc energy diffusion effect of zinc and high
melting point of molybdenum, theouter surface of deformed
Al-clad stranded wires was covered with a braided net of zinc-
plated molybdenum wire. The test revealed that the fusing
property of the conductor was improved. However it was ob-
1520
served that the arc did not spread widely, but stayed at one spot.
Further, the test also revealed that thearc with a large electric
charge could penetrate the molybdenum layer, and as a result,
the heat energy did not spread widely along the conductor sur-
face but was stored inside the conductor.
Type- 1
Molybdenum braided wire
net with zinc coated
Type 2: Molybdenum protective layer and air gap
MO braided
wire net
(Zinc
coated)
40AC
To protect the conductor, the outer surface of the conductor
was covered with flat molybdenum wires and an air gap was
made between the molybdenum layer and inner conductor. The
test result showed some improvement of the fusing property but
molybdenum flat wires of the outermost layer peeled off from
the conductor when they were fused.
Type-2
Molybdenum wire and air
gap
Type 3: Aluminum protective layer
To protect the conductor, the outer surface of the conductor
was covered with aluminum flat wires that works as a dummy to
consume arc energy. In addition, there was an ai r gap between
the aluminum flat wires and inner layer to prevent heat penetra-
tion.
The test revealed that this was effective in protecting the main
body at a lower electric charge. However, the aluminum flat
MO w'
A1
Tape
40AC
20AC
Fig. 6 Structure of lightning-resistant overhead ground wire
wires fused then peeled off from the conductor.
Type 4: Thick Al-clad fan-shaped wire
The outermost wire of the conductor was made of aluminum-
clad sector wires with steel cores displaced to the inside so that
enough aluminum fusion part was ensured on the outside.
The test revealed that the arc energy was absorbed efficiently
by the aluminum fusion part and the inner steel core was pro-
tected from damage.
Type 5: Zinc layer
The surface of Al-clad steel wires of the conductor were cov-
ered with zinc so that arc could spread widely along the
conductor surface and vaporized zinc could absorb the arc en-
ergy. The test revealed that the fusion characteristics of the
conductor were greatly improved, and the conductor showed arc
spreading performance.
Considering the above test results and the requirements of
conductors (mechanical properties, electrical properties, produc-
tivity, installability, cost, maintainability, etc.), Type 4 and
Type 5 were finally selected as the result of our preliminary in-
vestigation.
These two types of conductors were further improved in their ,
designs and manufacturing methods, and their overall perfor-
mance was totally evaluated.
4-2 Target perj5omnce
Considering their application to actual power transmission
lines, we determined the target performance as described below:
(1) The size of the conductors to be developed should be equiva-
lent to the standard 260 mm2 overhead ground wires used in
500 kV systems.
(2) The winter lightning observation result shows that in most
cases (over 90% in cumulative frequency), the electric
charge of lightning was 500 coulombs or less. Based on the
above, strands of the conductors should not be broken at an
electric charge of 500 coulombs.
(3) The electrical and mechanical properties of the conductors
should be equivalent to those of standard conductors. In
addition, the same accessories and installafion method as
used for the standard conductor could also be applied to the
new-developed conductors.
(4) The conductors could be manufactured industrially and eco-
nomically. In addition, manufacturing of long conductors
should be easily possible.
Based on the above target performance, we manufactured im-
proved prototypes of lightning-resistant 260-mm2 OPGW and
evaluation tests were made on arc-resistance, general perfor-
mance (electrical and mechanical performance), and
installability .
4-3 Result of DC arc tests [SI
We performed artificial DC arc tests on the two types (Type-6
and Type-7) of new conductors as shown in Fig. 7. The test con-
-
Item
ditions are shown in Table 2, and the test circuit is shown in Fig.
8. The conductor to be tested (test sample) was placed on the
negative electrode side, and return cables were connected to both
sides of the test sample and grounded via the shunt. As the op-
posite electrode of positive side, a 10-mmdiameter steel bar
was used, and the bar was set downward at an angle of 45" so
that fused metal did not remain on the test piece after arcing.
The gap distance between the opposite electrode and test piece
was set at 5 cm and connected by a small fuse to generate an arc.
Fig. 9 shows the fusion properties of lightning-resistant con-
ductors. As can be seen from the graph, two wires of standard
conductors were broken by an electric charge of 400 coulombs,
and seven strands of standard conductor were broken by an elec-
tric charge of 800 coulombs. On the other hand, for Type 6
(improved type of Type 4), the number of broken wires was
only one, even at the electric charge of 600 coulombs. For Type 7
(improved type of Type 5) , the number of broken wires was
only two even at 800 coulombs. Throughout the test made up
to 1,000 coulombs of electric charge, it was confirmed that
newly-developed conductors have less wires broken at each elec-
tric charge level compared with the standard conductors.
After that, weperformed a tensile test of the conductors sub-
jected to the DC arc test. The tensile strengths of the conductors
were measured, and then compared with the initial strength pre-
liminarily checked before the DC arc test. Fig. 10 shows the
Condition
Type of conductor
element wire
Type of.
Power voltage
Arc current
Arc duration
Passing electric charge
Igniting method
Gap length
Size (n")
DC 5 kV
DC3-18kA
20-70 ms
50- 1,000 Coulomb (A.s)
Fuse (Cu, 0.2 mmdia.)
5 cm
Cross section
Initial tension
of test piece
I
Approx. 9.800 N (measured with tension meter)
Outer dia. (mm) 21.0
262.1
1,228
155.2
108.9
15. 5~ 10-6
0.174
Cross-sectional area
(mm')
21.0 21.0
276.1 261.9
1,333 1,285
184.9 141.3
122.6 108.9
1 5 . 2 ~ 10-6 15.5 x
0.168 0.191
Minimum tensile
load (kN)
Elastic modulus
Linear expansion
coefficient (/T)
(GPa)
Electric resistance
(Rlkm)
U6.0
0.":
RW :
52s:
520:
L
S h o r t C
115kV
N.ulr.1
CI D. , " ,
Fig. 8 Direct-current arc test circuit
Standard conductor
e
e
0
0
eo m
'IAL , A ,
0
100 300 500 700 1mJ
Electric charge (C)
Fig. 7 Structure of lightning-resistant overhead ground wire
Fig. 9 Fusion properly of 260-mm: lightning-resistnnt OPGW
1522
r
Stranding & Wire Diameter
Conductivity
0 Standard conductor
0 0
0
0
Elongation
201 ' ' ' ' ' ' ' ' ' '
100 300 500 700 900 1100
Electric charge (C)
0
Fig. 10 Electric charge-rate of residual strength
Twisting
4-4 Study after DC arc test
0
In this section, the reason of the improvement in their arc-
resistance is examined.
Wrapping
( 1) Effect of increased diameter of element wires [6]
0
The diameters of individual wires of Type 6 and Type 7 were
increased compared with those of standard conductors. This is
because less fusion breakage occurs as the diameter of element
wires is increased.
The relation between the electric charge "Q" required to
dissolve a wire and the wire diameter "d" can berepresented by
the following equation from experience:
(1)
Q =ad" ..............................................................
where Q: Passing electric charge [coulomb]
d: Diameter of a wire [mm]
a, n: Constants determined by material and shape
The test results revealed that constants a and n are 2.2 and 2.3
respectively if aluminum-clad steel is used as the material. For
Zinc-coated aluminum-clad steel wires, constants a and n are
1.5 and 2.7 respectively.
Using Equation (l), the electric charge values required to fuse
a outermost element wire calculated for Type 6, Type 7 and stan-
dard conductors are given below.
Standard conductor: 2.2 x 4.52.3 =70 coulombs
Type 6: 2.2 x 5.462.3 =109 coulombs
Type 7: 1.5 x 4.92.7 =1 10 coulombs
As shown above, the electric charges required to fuse an ele-
ment wire of Type 6 and Type 7 are considerably higher when
compared with the standard conductor.
Corrosion resistance ( 2) The effect of thick AE-clad fan-shaped wire 0
The aluminum-clad steel wires employed in Type 6 form
fans, and the steel cores are displaced to the inside. The residual
Vibration test 0
strength of Type 6 is considerably high compared with that of
the standard conductors, because the thick aluminumon the outer
surface absorbs the arc energy when fused and reduces the dam-
age to the inner steel compared with standard round wires.
(3) Effect of zinc layer
0
For Type 7 and standard conductors, their arc-resistance val-
ues will be estimated from the viewpoint of thermal energy.
Assuming that the temperature at which element wires are
fused is 1536C that is the fusion point of steel, the thermal en-
ergy values required to heat 1 g of the material to 1536C are as
follows:
Aluminum: 1,888 J /g
Steel: 1,161 J /g
Zinc: 2,239 J /g
From these values, the energy values needed to fuse 1 cm
length of an outer element wire calculated for Type 7 and stan-
dard conductors are:
Standard conductor: 1,054 J /cm
Type 7 wire: 1,458 J /cm
As shown above, 1.4 times the thermal energy is needed to
fuse an element wire of Type 7 conductor compared with a stan-
dard conductor.
Considering the arc-spreading effect of zinc in addition to
the large fusion energy described above, the actual arc-resis-
tance of Type 7 wires will be further improved. The above study
clarifies why Type 6 and Type 7 wires showed excellent arc-
resistance in the DC arc test compared with standard conduc-
tors.
4-5 Result of mechanical and electrical pe$ormance tests
In addition to the DC arc test, various mechanical and elec-
trical tests were performed to evaluate the mechanical and
electrical performances of the new-developed conductors.
The test items are shown in Table 3. Particularly, the Type 7
conductor was checked for corrosion of the zinc-aluminum con-
tact surface and peeling off of zinc after passing through the
Table 3 Mechanical and electrical property test
~~~~
I Test item I Wire 1 Strand I
I ADDearance I O I O I
I Tensile stress l o 1 I
I Tensile load I l o 1
I Aluminum thickness I 0 I I
1 I
Compatibility of accessories 0
1523
[5] DENCHUKEN Report No. 91512, Arcing damage to new
arc-resistant OPGWs, Yokosuka Research Laboratory,
1992.6
[6] DENCHUKEN Report No. 865 1 1, Short-Circuit Current
and DC Arc Characteristics of Groundwires with Multi-Op-
tical Fibers Yokosuka Research Laboratory 1986. 10
pulley block. The test result was good, and we confirmed that
Type 6 and Type 7 had no problem regarding their mechanical
and electrical performances. In addition, we also confi i ed that
the conventional stringing method could be used for Type 6 and
Type 7 conductors.
5. CONCLUSION
In J apan, there are many transmission lines that pass through
areas with a high Isokeraulic level. Particularly on the coast of
the J apan Sea, extremely powerful winter lightning frequently
occurs, and the upgrading of the lightning performance of trans-
mission lines is one of the important subject in this field.
The OPGW used recently has an important communications
function. Therefore, to improve the reliability of the power trans-
mission system, improving lightning-resistance (arc-resistance)
is now more important than before.
Against such a background, since 1989, Chubu Electric
Power Co. Ltd. has been developing new overhead ground wires
having improved lightning-resistance in cooperation with the
Central Research Institute of the Electric Power Industry and
conductor manufacturers. As the result, the following develop-
ments have been made:
(1) The lightning-resistance of the new-developed overhead
ground wires has been greatly improved while maintaining
mechanical and electrical properties equivalent to conven-
tional wires. In this way, we have succeeded in development
and practical use of new overhead ground wires.
The rocket-triggered lightning allows the measurement of
lightning current waveforms and the checking of the dam-
aged conditions of several types of conductors at the same
time.
In addition to the conventional materials and shapes, new
technology has developed wires with new materials and
shapes, such as molybdenum wire, zinc tape, zinc coated
wire, and thick Al-clad fan-shaped wire. Some of these new
wires have been utilized as the newly-developed conduc-
tors to improve their arc-resistance.
REFERENCES
[ 11 IEC Draft Standard for aluminum-clad steel wires for elec-
trical purposes, TC 7 (Central Office) 434,1990
[2] Y. Goto, K. Narita, H. Komuro, N. Honma Current wave-
form measurement of winter lightning striking an isolated
tower, 20th ICLP, Sept 24-28, 1990
[3] DENCHUKEN Review No. 19, For protection of electri-
cal facilities against lightning, 1989. 1
[4] K. Miyake, T. Suzuki, K. Shinjou, Characteristics of Win-
ter Lightning Current on J apan Sea Coast, IEEE Trans. on
Power Delivery, Vol. 7, No. 3, J uly 1992
Munehisa Yokoya was bom in Nagoya, J apan, in
1952. Hereceived aB. E. degreein electrical engineer-
ing fromNagoyaUniversity, Nagoya, Japan, in 1977.
In 1977, he joined Chubu Electric Power Co., Inc. and
is now the assistant managing research engineer of the
Electric Power Research and Development Center. He
is engaged in research work on lightning and mainte-
nancetechnology of transmission lines.
Mr. Yokoyais amember of the IEE of Japan.
Yukio Katsuragi was bomin Oita, Japan, in 1941. He
graduated fromOita Technical College in 1960. In
1960, he joined Chubu Electric Power Co., Inc. and is
now the research engineer of theElectric Power Re-
search and Development Center. Heis now studying
lightning.
Mr. Katsuragi is amember of the IEE of Japan.
Yutaka Goda was born in Ehime, Japan, on April 1,
1956. Hereceived aB. E. degree in electrical engineer-
ing fromNagoyaUniversity, Nagoya, Japan, in 1979.
In 1979, he joined the Central Research Institute of
Electric Power Industr (CRIEPI), Yokosuka, J apan.
His work has been in arc phenomena as they affect
power equipment. Heis asenior research engineer of
high power station of the YokosukaResearch Labora-
Mr. Goda is amember of the IEE of J apan and IEEE.
tory of CRIEPI.
Yutaka Nagata was born in Kumamoto, J apan, in
1953. Hereceived aB. E. degree in electrical engineer-
ing fromKyushu University, Fukuoka, J apan, in 1976.
In 1976, hejoined Fujikura Ltd., Tokyo, J apan and has
been working in the field of development, design and
construction of overhead transmission lines. Heis pres-
ently the manager of the Overhead Transmission Line
Engineering Dept.
Mr. Nagatais amember of theIEE of Japan.
Yuji Asano was bomin Arakawa-ku, Tokyo, Japan,
on September 29,1965. Hereceived aB. E. degree in
electrical engineering fiomSeikei University, Japan, in
1988. In 1988, he joined Fujikura Ltd., Tokyo, Japan,
and has been working in the fietd of design, develop-
ment and production of the conductors and OPGW. He
is presently an engineer of the.Overhead Transmission
LineEngineering Dept.
Mr. Asano is amember of theIEE of J apan.